In Hiroshima, US Catholic pilgrimage group apologizes to six survivor organizations for A-bombing, asks for “dialogue toward reconciliation”
Mar. 11, 2024
by Yu Yamada and Kana Kobayashi, Staff Writers
On March 10, a group of Catholics representing the U.S. chapter of the international Catholic peace group Pax Christi met with representatives of six atomic bomb survivors’ organizations at the Memorial Cathedral of World Peace, located in Hiroshima’s Naka Ward. As citizens of the United States, the group offered its apology for the dropping of the atomic bomb on Hiroshima, with the idea that the message might serve as a first step toward an official apology from the U.S. government. The members of the pilgrimage to Japan also called for promotion of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW).
On behalf of the 11 group members, Rosemary Pace, 70, read out a message that included expressions of regret that the U.S. government has yet to issue a formal apology for the atomic bombings. Ms. Pace also asked the atomic bomb survivors, including those from the Korean Peninsula, for their forgiveness of the “terrible crime” of the bombings and for the beginning of dialogue toward reconciliation.
Not including the Hiroshima City A-bomb Survivors Council, which is chaired by Hiroshima Mayor Kazumi Matsui, six of the seven A-bomb survivors’ organizations in Hiroshima were there to meet with the group of Catholics. Toshiyuki Mimaki, 81, chair of the Hiroshima Prefectural Confederation of A-bomb Sufferers Organizations (Hiroshima Hidankyo), welcomed the visit by the U.S. group. “I’m very pleased to see that such a movement has arisen in the nuclear superpower that is the United States,” said Mr. Mimaki. Kunihiko Sakuma, 79, chair of the other Hiroshima Hidankyo, responded, “Only when the mistake is acknowledged can true reconciliation occur and friendship deepen.”
The six organizations and the Pax Christi group issued a joint statement following the meeting, in which they demanded an official apology from the U.S. government and called on nuclear weapons states and the Japanese government to join the TPNW.
Pax Christi, with bases around the world, works to promote peace and respect for human rights. The group’s pilgrimage to Japan, planned by volunteers who hoped to apologize to A-bomb survivors in person, was achieved with help from the Catholic Diocese of Hiroshima. The group is scheduled to visit Nagasaki on March 12 to offer apologies to A-bomb survivors there.
(Originally published on March 11, 2024)
On March 10, a group of Catholics representing the U.S. chapter of the international Catholic peace group Pax Christi met with representatives of six atomic bomb survivors’ organizations at the Memorial Cathedral of World Peace, located in Hiroshima’s Naka Ward. As citizens of the United States, the group offered its apology for the dropping of the atomic bomb on Hiroshima, with the idea that the message might serve as a first step toward an official apology from the U.S. government. The members of the pilgrimage to Japan also called for promotion of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW).
On behalf of the 11 group members, Rosemary Pace, 70, read out a message that included expressions of regret that the U.S. government has yet to issue a formal apology for the atomic bombings. Ms. Pace also asked the atomic bomb survivors, including those from the Korean Peninsula, for their forgiveness of the “terrible crime” of the bombings and for the beginning of dialogue toward reconciliation.
Not including the Hiroshima City A-bomb Survivors Council, which is chaired by Hiroshima Mayor Kazumi Matsui, six of the seven A-bomb survivors’ organizations in Hiroshima were there to meet with the group of Catholics. Toshiyuki Mimaki, 81, chair of the Hiroshima Prefectural Confederation of A-bomb Sufferers Organizations (Hiroshima Hidankyo), welcomed the visit by the U.S. group. “I’m very pleased to see that such a movement has arisen in the nuclear superpower that is the United States,” said Mr. Mimaki. Kunihiko Sakuma, 79, chair of the other Hiroshima Hidankyo, responded, “Only when the mistake is acknowledged can true reconciliation occur and friendship deepen.”
The six organizations and the Pax Christi group issued a joint statement following the meeting, in which they demanded an official apology from the U.S. government and called on nuclear weapons states and the Japanese government to join the TPNW.
Pax Christi, with bases around the world, works to promote peace and respect for human rights. The group’s pilgrimage to Japan, planned by volunteers who hoped to apologize to A-bomb survivors in person, was achieved with help from the Catholic Diocese of Hiroshima. The group is scheduled to visit Nagasaki on March 12 to offer apologies to A-bomb survivors there.
(Originally published on March 11, 2024)
