NPT Watch 2010: Wishing for the appeal of Hiroshima and Nagasaki to be heard
May 12, 2010
by Yumi Kanazaki, Staff Writer, dispatched from New York
Since the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty (NPT) Review Conference opened on May 3, I have studied the statements made by each of the state delegates to the U.N. body. I must say, I feel frustrated by the fact that, among the speeches and opinions delivered by more than 1,000 state delegates and international organizations, only a few countries, including Japan, Namibia, and Zambia, have made mention of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
On May 7, the "NGO Presentations," where the mayors of both Hiroshima and Nagasaki were present as NGO representatives, was included in the formal schedule of the NPT Review Conference. At these presentations, Sumiteru Taniguchi related his horrific experience of the atomic bombing of Nagasaki. However, more than a few state delegates were absent from the session. Nearly 2,000 Japanese citizens, including Mr. Taniguchi, have come to the United States in the hope that the state delegates would sincerely take in the appeal of the A-bombed cities before beginning their discussions at the review conference.
On May 3, an A-bomb exhibition, organized by the Japan Confederation of A- and H-bomb Sufferers Organizations, opened at U.N. Headquarters. Peter Herby, head of the Mines-Arms Unit of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), was studying the panels on display and remarked that the panels should be put up in the conference venue. I took his comment as one made in the spirit of the A-bomb survivors.
Most of the A-bomb survivors and citizens who journeyed to the United States have already returned to Japan. All I see in and around the conference venue are government officials from the participating nations and those from U.S. NGOs. Three weeks remain before the NPT Review Conference closes. I hope my frustration will ease by then.
(Originally published on May 12, 2010)
Related articles
A-bomb exhibition stirs flow of tears (May 10, 2010)
A-bomb survivor from Nagasaki shares his account at NPT conference (May 10, 2010)
Visitors to A-bomb exhibition in New York are struck speechless (May 7, 2010)
Since the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty (NPT) Review Conference opened on May 3, I have studied the statements made by each of the state delegates to the U.N. body. I must say, I feel frustrated by the fact that, among the speeches and opinions delivered by more than 1,000 state delegates and international organizations, only a few countries, including Japan, Namibia, and Zambia, have made mention of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
On May 7, the "NGO Presentations," where the mayors of both Hiroshima and Nagasaki were present as NGO representatives, was included in the formal schedule of the NPT Review Conference. At these presentations, Sumiteru Taniguchi related his horrific experience of the atomic bombing of Nagasaki. However, more than a few state delegates were absent from the session. Nearly 2,000 Japanese citizens, including Mr. Taniguchi, have come to the United States in the hope that the state delegates would sincerely take in the appeal of the A-bombed cities before beginning their discussions at the review conference.
On May 3, an A-bomb exhibition, organized by the Japan Confederation of A- and H-bomb Sufferers Organizations, opened at U.N. Headquarters. Peter Herby, head of the Mines-Arms Unit of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), was studying the panels on display and remarked that the panels should be put up in the conference venue. I took his comment as one made in the spirit of the A-bomb survivors.
Most of the A-bomb survivors and citizens who journeyed to the United States have already returned to Japan. All I see in and around the conference venue are government officials from the participating nations and those from U.S. NGOs. Three weeks remain before the NPT Review Conference closes. I hope my frustration will ease by then.
(Originally published on May 12, 2010)
Related articles
A-bomb exhibition stirs flow of tears (May 10, 2010)
A-bomb survivor from Nagasaki shares his account at NPT conference (May 10, 2010)
Visitors to A-bomb exhibition in New York are struck speechless (May 7, 2010)
