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Features

A-bomb exhibition opens in Geneva

by Michiko Tanaka, Staff Writer

GENEVA--On the sidelines of the Second Preparatory Committee for the 2015 Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty (NPT) Review Conference, an exhibition designed to convey the true nature of the atomic bombings opened on April 22 at the European Headquarters of the United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland.

The exhibition is sponsored by the Japan Confederation of A- and H-bomb Sufferers Organizations (Nihon Hidankyo) and the Japan Council against Atomic and Hydrogen Bombs (Gensuikyo), among others. In front of the hall where the preparatory committee has assembled, about 30 photo panels depict the destruction wrought by the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The images show horrific scenes from the aftermath of the bombings, including victims with severe burns and two cities reduced to ashes.

Toshiki Fujimori, the assistant secretary general of Nihon Hidankyo, spoke at the opening ceremony for the exhibition. Mr. Fujimori, 69, a resident of Chino, Nagano Prefecture, was exposed to the atomic bomb in the Ushita area of Hiroshima (in today’s Higashi Ward), about 2.3 kilometers from the hypocenter. He called on the participants to deepen their understanding of the threat of nuclear weapons, saying that the desire to eliminate them stems from the awareness of the devastation they produce.

Among those guiding visitors around the exhibition is Kunihiko Sakuma, 68, a survivor sent by Hiroshima Gensuikyo and a resident of Nishi Ward, Hiroshima. The exhibition will run until April 26. Another A-bomb exhibition will be held at the University of Geneva from April 24 t0 26.

(Originally published on April 23, 2013)

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