Efforts to remember A-bombed international students from Southeast Asia are recognized by Hiroshima University
Nov. 25, 2015
by Kyoko Shinmoto, Staff Writer
On November 13, the Hiroshima University, located in the city of Higashihiroshima, recognized the efforts to console the spirit of Syed Omar, an international student from Malaysia who was killed in the atomic bombing, and hand down his life to others. Mr. Omar was a student at the Hiroshima University of Arts and Science, now Hiroshima University, when the city was attacked. In this 70th anniversary year of the A-bombing, the contributions of two individuals were praised in the form of a special award given by the president of the university.
Toshie Sonobe, 68, a resident of Fushimi Ward, Kyoto, has been paying visits to Mr. Omar’s grave, located in Kyoto, for many years. Mr. Omar, 19 at the time, died in Kyoto on his way back to Malaysia and was buried in obscurity. Kenkichi Sonobe, Ms. Sonobe’s father, built an Islamic-style grave for Mr. Omar at a temple in Kyoto in 1961. Mr. Sonobe, who died in 1983, formed a group to help maintain Mr. Omar’s grave in 1974 and helped look over the grave with his family.
Although the group was dissolved in 2008, Ms. Sonobe has continued to visit Mr. Omar’s grave. “I feel very sad that he came to a foreign country and died because of the atomic bombing. I truly hope his soul rests in peace,” she said.
Hiroso Niimi, 76, a resident of Naka Ward and a former staff member of Hiroshima University, told Souichi Iijima, the president of Hiroshima University from 1969 to 1977, about the A-bomb experiences of international students from Southeast Asia during World War II, including Mr. Omar. This prompted administrators from Hiroshima University to begin taking part in the memorial service for Mr. Omar held each year in Kyoto. Last year, Mr. Niimi guided elementary school students, who were visiting Hiroshima from Kyoto, to the former site of the dormitory where the university’s international students were living at the time of the bombing.
Mr. Niimi attended the awards ceremony held at the university’s campus in Higashihiroshima. He experienced the atomic bombing at the age of six and has been serving as a volunteer guide at the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum in Naka Ward. “I want to continue my efforts to give young people a chance to think about what a peaceful world means,” he said.
(Originally published on November 14, 2015)
On November 13, the Hiroshima University, located in the city of Higashihiroshima, recognized the efforts to console the spirit of Syed Omar, an international student from Malaysia who was killed in the atomic bombing, and hand down his life to others. Mr. Omar was a student at the Hiroshima University of Arts and Science, now Hiroshima University, when the city was attacked. In this 70th anniversary year of the A-bombing, the contributions of two individuals were praised in the form of a special award given by the president of the university.
Toshie Sonobe, 68, a resident of Fushimi Ward, Kyoto, has been paying visits to Mr. Omar’s grave, located in Kyoto, for many years. Mr. Omar, 19 at the time, died in Kyoto on his way back to Malaysia and was buried in obscurity. Kenkichi Sonobe, Ms. Sonobe’s father, built an Islamic-style grave for Mr. Omar at a temple in Kyoto in 1961. Mr. Sonobe, who died in 1983, formed a group to help maintain Mr. Omar’s grave in 1974 and helped look over the grave with his family.
Although the group was dissolved in 2008, Ms. Sonobe has continued to visit Mr. Omar’s grave. “I feel very sad that he came to a foreign country and died because of the atomic bombing. I truly hope his soul rests in peace,” she said.
Hiroso Niimi, 76, a resident of Naka Ward and a former staff member of Hiroshima University, told Souichi Iijima, the president of Hiroshima University from 1969 to 1977, about the A-bomb experiences of international students from Southeast Asia during World War II, including Mr. Omar. This prompted administrators from Hiroshima University to begin taking part in the memorial service for Mr. Omar held each year in Kyoto. Last year, Mr. Niimi guided elementary school students, who were visiting Hiroshima from Kyoto, to the former site of the dormitory where the university’s international students were living at the time of the bombing.
Mr. Niimi attended the awards ceremony held at the university’s campus in Higashihiroshima. He experienced the atomic bombing at the age of six and has been serving as a volunteer guide at the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum in Naka Ward. “I want to continue my efforts to give young people a chance to think about what a peaceful world means,” he said.
(Originally published on November 14, 2015)
