Japan submits resolution on nuclear abolition to U.N. committee, but A-bombed cities are not mentioned by name
Nov. 2, 2015
by Jumpei Fujimura, Staff Writer
On October 20 (October 21 in Japan), the Japanese government submitted a draft resolution to the U.N. General Assembly's First Committee, which oversees disarmament issues and is now in session in New York. The resolution calls for the elimination of nuclear weapons, appeals for world leaders and young people to visit the cities devastated by the use of nuclear weapons, and stresses the importance of survivors conveying their experiences. Emphasizing the inhumane consequences of nuclear weapons, the resolution also calls for multilateral negotiations to reduce these arms. Similar resolutions have been submitted annually by Japan, making this the 22nd Japan-led resolution.
A total of 51 nations, including Germany and the Netherlands, jointly submitted the resolution. The United States and the United Kingdom, both of which are nuclear powers and were among the co-sponsors of last year’s resolution, have not joined the backers this year. The resolution submitted this time was crafted in line with the draft of the final document that was not adopted at this spring’s Review Conference of the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty (NPT).
The resolution makes no mention of Hiroshima or Nagasaki by name, instead suggesting that “visits to the cities devastated by the use of nuclear weapons” should be encouraged. This is because China opposed wording which sought for world leaders to visit the A-bombed cities in the final document of the NPT Review Conference, resulting in the removal of that part. Evidently, Japan took China’s stance into consideration when crafting the current resolution. At the same time, the resolution uses the word “hibakusha” (atomic bomb survivor) for the first time, and stresses the importance of listening to their accounts. In light of the international momentum for nuclear abolition, focusing on the inhumane nature of nuclear weapons, the resolution stipulates that “deep concerns about the humanitarian consequences of any use of nuclear weapons continue to underpin efforts by all states toward a world free of nuclear weapons.”
Last year’s resolution was first submitted jointly by 45 nations, including the U.K. and the U.S. The number of co-sponsors reached 116, and the resolution was adopted with the support of 170 countries.
Meanwhile, Austria and some 40 other nations submitted a resolution on October 20 which calls for efforts to establish a legal framework to prohibit and eliminate nuclear arms. Japan, which relies on the U.S. nuclear umbrella and takes a dim view of moving quickly to create a nuclear weapons convention, is not expected to support the resolution.
Important points of the Japan-led resolution on the abolition of nuclear weapons
・Emphasizing that deep concerns about the humanitarian consequences of any use of nuclear weapons continue to underpin efforts by all states toward a world free of nuclear weapons
・Calling for nuclear weapon states to reduce all types of nuclear weapons through bilateral and multilateral negotiations
・Encouraging more multilateral negotiations to further advance nuclear disarmament
・Demanding that North Korea abandon all its existing nuclear development programs
・Encouraging world leaders and young people to visit the cities that were destroyed by the atomic bombings and listen to testimonies of A-bomb survivors
by Jumpei Fujimura, Staff Writer
The draft resolution on the abolition of nuclear weapons sponsored by the Japanese government does not make direct mention of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Instead it uses the expression “the cities devastated by the use of nuclear weapons.” This is a political decision made by the government following China’s opposition to the draft of the final document of the NPT Review Conference held this past spring. However, the Japanese government’s decision to convey this idea indirectly, rather than specifically referring to the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, could compromise its power to appeal to others and capture their attention.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs says that the resolution’s preamble notes that this year marks the 70th anniversary of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and that “the cities devastated by the use of nuclear weapons” plainly refers to Hiroshima and Nagasaki. But in their speeches at U.N. conferences and on other occasions, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida have repeatedly invited people to “visit Hiroshima and Nagasaki.” The change of heart results from the fierce exchanges with China over the wording of “visit Hiroshima and Nagasaki” in the draft of the final document of the NPT Review Conference. They must have wanted to avoid creating further friction with China so that as many nations as possible would find the resolution acceptable.
It is not clear whether the Japanese government will continue using this indirect expression on the international stage in the future. If it does, this expression will prevail, meaning that the Japanese government will help fuel the forgetting of the names of Hiroshima and Nagasaki out in the world.
This is more than a mere problem of semantics. The resolution shows that the government of the A-bombed nation has little awareness of its mission to convey the humanitarian impact of the use of nuclear weapons.
(Originally published on October 22, 2015)
On October 20 (October 21 in Japan), the Japanese government submitted a draft resolution to the U.N. General Assembly's First Committee, which oversees disarmament issues and is now in session in New York. The resolution calls for the elimination of nuclear weapons, appeals for world leaders and young people to visit the cities devastated by the use of nuclear weapons, and stresses the importance of survivors conveying their experiences. Emphasizing the inhumane consequences of nuclear weapons, the resolution also calls for multilateral negotiations to reduce these arms. Similar resolutions have been submitted annually by Japan, making this the 22nd Japan-led resolution.
A total of 51 nations, including Germany and the Netherlands, jointly submitted the resolution. The United States and the United Kingdom, both of which are nuclear powers and were among the co-sponsors of last year’s resolution, have not joined the backers this year. The resolution submitted this time was crafted in line with the draft of the final document that was not adopted at this spring’s Review Conference of the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty (NPT).
The resolution makes no mention of Hiroshima or Nagasaki by name, instead suggesting that “visits to the cities devastated by the use of nuclear weapons” should be encouraged. This is because China opposed wording which sought for world leaders to visit the A-bombed cities in the final document of the NPT Review Conference, resulting in the removal of that part. Evidently, Japan took China’s stance into consideration when crafting the current resolution. At the same time, the resolution uses the word “hibakusha” (atomic bomb survivor) for the first time, and stresses the importance of listening to their accounts. In light of the international momentum for nuclear abolition, focusing on the inhumane nature of nuclear weapons, the resolution stipulates that “deep concerns about the humanitarian consequences of any use of nuclear weapons continue to underpin efforts by all states toward a world free of nuclear weapons.”
Last year’s resolution was first submitted jointly by 45 nations, including the U.K. and the U.S. The number of co-sponsors reached 116, and the resolution was adopted with the support of 170 countries.
Meanwhile, Austria and some 40 other nations submitted a resolution on October 20 which calls for efforts to establish a legal framework to prohibit and eliminate nuclear arms. Japan, which relies on the U.S. nuclear umbrella and takes a dim view of moving quickly to create a nuclear weapons convention, is not expected to support the resolution.
Important points of the Japan-led resolution on the abolition of nuclear weapons
・Emphasizing that deep concerns about the humanitarian consequences of any use of nuclear weapons continue to underpin efforts by all states toward a world free of nuclear weapons
・Calling for nuclear weapon states to reduce all types of nuclear weapons through bilateral and multilateral negotiations
・Encouraging more multilateral negotiations to further advance nuclear disarmament
・Demanding that North Korea abandon all its existing nuclear development programs
・Encouraging world leaders and young people to visit the cities that were destroyed by the atomic bombings and listen to testimonies of A-bomb survivors
Commentary: Japan needs more awareness of its role as a nation that experienced nuclear attack
by Jumpei Fujimura, Staff Writer
The draft resolution on the abolition of nuclear weapons sponsored by the Japanese government does not make direct mention of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Instead it uses the expression “the cities devastated by the use of nuclear weapons.” This is a political decision made by the government following China’s opposition to the draft of the final document of the NPT Review Conference held this past spring. However, the Japanese government’s decision to convey this idea indirectly, rather than specifically referring to the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, could compromise its power to appeal to others and capture their attention.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs says that the resolution’s preamble notes that this year marks the 70th anniversary of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and that “the cities devastated by the use of nuclear weapons” plainly refers to Hiroshima and Nagasaki. But in their speeches at U.N. conferences and on other occasions, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida have repeatedly invited people to “visit Hiroshima and Nagasaki.” The change of heart results from the fierce exchanges with China over the wording of “visit Hiroshima and Nagasaki” in the draft of the final document of the NPT Review Conference. They must have wanted to avoid creating further friction with China so that as many nations as possible would find the resolution acceptable.
It is not clear whether the Japanese government will continue using this indirect expression on the international stage in the future. If it does, this expression will prevail, meaning that the Japanese government will help fuel the forgetting of the names of Hiroshima and Nagasaki out in the world.
This is more than a mere problem of semantics. The resolution shows that the government of the A-bombed nation has little awareness of its mission to convey the humanitarian impact of the use of nuclear weapons.
(Originally published on October 22, 2015)
