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Two junior writers, bound for NPT conference, share aspirations for their trip

by Rie Nii, Staff Writer

For the first time, “junior writers” of the Chugoku Shimbun will report on the Review Conference of the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty (NPT), opening this month at United Nations headquarters in New York. The Chugoku Shimbun interviewed these two young people as they prepare for the trip, asking what they hope to see in New York and the views they wish to exchange with their peers in the United States.

The Chugoku Shimbun will run their articles in “Peace Seeds: Teens in Hiroshima Sow Seeds of Peace,” a feature page planned and written by the junior writers. The articles will also be posted on the Hiroshima Peace Media Center website and disseminated to the world in different languages.

Shiori Niitani, 16, second-year student at Hiroshima Jogakuin High School

Want to hear other teenagers’ opinions

I was born and raised in Hiroshima. For me, it’s only natural, after studying about the damage caused by the atomic bombing, to wish for the abolition of nuclear weapons. I would like to interview participants from different countries, learn about their backgrounds, and ask their opinions on nuclear weapons.

I’ve heard that many people in the United States support holding nuclear weapons. I want to know what ordinary junior high and high school students there think.

Nozomi Mizoue, 15, first-year student at the high school attached to Hiroshima University

Want to contribute to the abolition of nuclear arms

My grandfather experienced the atomic bombing when he was five years old. He went out with his younger brother to catch cicadas, then went home to fetch his hat, when the bomb exploded. He was in the house so he wasn’t exposed to too much radiation. My other grandfather had been evacuated from Hiroshima before the bombing, so he was safe.

At this important conference, where people from all over the world gather once every five years, I’d like to do what I can to contribute to the abolition of nuclear weapons by reporting on the conference and talking about my grandfather.

(Originally published on April 6, 2015)

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