Editorial: 74 years after atomic bombing, stronger messages must be sent out for nuclear abolition
Aug. 6, 2019
Many people from home and abroad visit the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum each day. The exhibition space in the museum’s main building, which was renewed this spring, appeals to visitors’ emotions by enabling them to view the A-bomb artifacts closely, an approach that seems to be effective. We hope that they will engrave anew on their minds the inhumane nature of the atomic bomb and the longtime appeal of the A-bombed city as they walk through and around the museum in the midsummer sun.
Ideal behind the law must not be forgotten
This August 6 marks the 70th anniversary of the enactment of the Hiroshima Peace Memorial City Construction Law, which enabled the city to develop a base for sending out messages of peace that includes the Peace Memorial Park, where the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum is located, and the Atomic Bomb Dome.
Thanks to the support of this law, the infrastructure of the city could be developed at a strong pace. The City of Hiroshima received special subsidies from the Japanese government which covered two-thirds of the costs to erect peace-related facilities. Over 34 hectares of state-owned land was donated to the city without compensation.
It is a brief law with only seven articles, but became the important impetus for the reconstruction of the city. At the same time, the sublime ideal behind the law must not be forgotten: “to make the city of Hiroshima a symbol of the human ideal of the sincere pursuit for genuine and lasting peace.” The law also charges the mayor of Hiroshima with “establishing a program of continuous activity.”
A new mission was given to the people of Hiroshima. On the day the law was enacted, a statement, issued by Kijuro Shidehara, who was then speaker of the Lower House, was printed in the Chugoku Shimbun as well: “I am eager for each citizen of Hiroshima to recognize that the whole world, not to mention all the people of Japan, look forward to the peace city that you will construct. Please make efforts for human civilization and world peace.”
As prime minister, Mr. Shidehara was deeply involved in establishing Japan’s peace constitution. The renunciation of war must have been his conclusion after thinking out the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. He also said, “The state of the world has changed fundamentally because of the atomic bomb. If there is another war, all the cities of the warring nations, regardless of their size, would be utterly destroyed.”
Can we laugh away, saying that the possibility of the outbreak of a nuclear war 70 years ago was just imaginary fears? Unfortunately, the way of the world tells us that we are not being overly anxious. And thus the role of the A-bombed city has not changed.
The efforts of the nuclear weapons states, including the United States, Russia, and China, to expand their nuclear arsenals cannot be condoned. The United States and Russia have let expire the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty, which sought to eliminate a certain category of nuclear weapons for the first time in history. Although the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START) still remains, it is set to expire in Februaty 2021. If it is not extended, there will no longer be a nuclear arms reduction treaty between the two nuclear superpowers, and the last check on preventing a nuclear arms race will disappear.
Prohibiting nuclear weapons by law is becoming reality
The United States and Russia are reportedly developing low-yield nuclear weapons. The United States now even has new strategic guidelines for using them in actual warfare, which is outrageous. Such actions run counter to the wishes of the international community, which seeks a peaceful world without nuclear arms.
About two years ago, the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons was adopted at the United Nations. The treaty views the possession of nuclear weapons, as well as their use and the threat of their use, as violations of international law. The treaty’s adoption represents the fruit of the long-running efforts made by the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN), the non-governmental organization (NGO) that won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2017, together with civil society and non-nuclear weapon states. The atomic bomb survivors of Hiroshima and Nagasaki were also instrumental in the efforts to establish the nuclear weapons ban treaty.
For the treaty to enter into force, it must be ratified by at least 50 countries and regions. Currently, this number is almost half of the number required. This process may take time, but even so, a legal ban on the use of nuclear weapons, which had been regarded as taboo, is becoming a reality.
The appeal from the A-bombed cities has reached the world
There is no doubt that the appeal from the A-bombed cities, that nuclear weapons and human beings cannot coexist, has reached the world. Only the nuclear weapon states, which hold faith in “peace by force,” and some politicians of the countries which follow the nuclear powers are covering their ears to this appeal. The gap between these countries and politicians, which adhere to the possession and use of nuclear weapons, and the trend of the international community continues to grow.
In order to further the momentum for the abolition of nuclear weapons, the A-bombed cities must appeal to the world even more actively.
Next spring, the Review Conference of the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty (NPT) will be held for the first time in five years. We must relentlessly question the five nuclear weapons states – the United States, Russia, China, the United Kingdom, and France – on their willingness to squarely fulfill their obligation under Article 6 of the NPT, to undertake “sincere negotiations toward nuclear disarmament,” and why they cannot see the situation from the viewpoint of humankind as a whole.
All five nations are veto-wielding permanent members of the U.N. Security Council. We cannot allow them to sit idle in this position and turn their backs on the nuclear weapons ban treaty and neglect their duty to voluntarily pursue nuclear disarmament.
It is the responsibility of the international community to put the brakes on this high-handed behavior by the nuclear weapon states. Pope Francis is expected to visit Hiroshima and Nagasaki this fall and hopes are high that he will send out a strong message from the A-bombed city. When John Paul II, the first pope to visit Hiroshima, came to this city in 1981, he said in his appeal for peace: “To remember Hiroshima is to abhor war.” His visit had a significant impact on the public, priming the pump and prompting more foreign VIPs to visit the A-bombed cities.
Pope Francis has repeatedly called for the abolition of nuclear weapons since becoming pontiff in 2013. Vatican City ratified the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons as soon as it was adopted. The Pope has been calling for the abolition of nuclear weapons by distributing copies of a photo that shows “a Nagasaki boy carrying his dead brother on his back while waiting to have him cremated after the atomic bombing.” His actions are indicative of a responsible religious leader who is thinking globally.
Pope Francis is reportedly eager to visit the A-bombed city, saying, “I would like to make a strong appeal to the world that nuclear weapons, including both their production and their use, are unethical.” From an ethical point of view, rejecting the possession of nuclear arms has great significance. This question is also posed to those who are under a nuclear umbrella.
As long as nuclear weapons exist, it is impossible to get rid of the risk that they will somehow be used, including by human error. The only way to realize a peaceful world is by eliminating these weapons entirely. We must continue sending out this message to the world from the A-bombed cities. This is also the ideal championed by the Hiroshima Peace Memorial City Construction Law, and the mission that the people of Hiroshima must embrace.
(Originally published on August 6, 2019)
Ideal behind the law must not be forgotten
This August 6 marks the 70th anniversary of the enactment of the Hiroshima Peace Memorial City Construction Law, which enabled the city to develop a base for sending out messages of peace that includes the Peace Memorial Park, where the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum is located, and the Atomic Bomb Dome.
Thanks to the support of this law, the infrastructure of the city could be developed at a strong pace. The City of Hiroshima received special subsidies from the Japanese government which covered two-thirds of the costs to erect peace-related facilities. Over 34 hectares of state-owned land was donated to the city without compensation.
It is a brief law with only seven articles, but became the important impetus for the reconstruction of the city. At the same time, the sublime ideal behind the law must not be forgotten: “to make the city of Hiroshima a symbol of the human ideal of the sincere pursuit for genuine and lasting peace.” The law also charges the mayor of Hiroshima with “establishing a program of continuous activity.”
A new mission was given to the people of Hiroshima. On the day the law was enacted, a statement, issued by Kijuro Shidehara, who was then speaker of the Lower House, was printed in the Chugoku Shimbun as well: “I am eager for each citizen of Hiroshima to recognize that the whole world, not to mention all the people of Japan, look forward to the peace city that you will construct. Please make efforts for human civilization and world peace.”
As prime minister, Mr. Shidehara was deeply involved in establishing Japan’s peace constitution. The renunciation of war must have been his conclusion after thinking out the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. He also said, “The state of the world has changed fundamentally because of the atomic bomb. If there is another war, all the cities of the warring nations, regardless of their size, would be utterly destroyed.”
Can we laugh away, saying that the possibility of the outbreak of a nuclear war 70 years ago was just imaginary fears? Unfortunately, the way of the world tells us that we are not being overly anxious. And thus the role of the A-bombed city has not changed.
The efforts of the nuclear weapons states, including the United States, Russia, and China, to expand their nuclear arsenals cannot be condoned. The United States and Russia have let expire the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty, which sought to eliminate a certain category of nuclear weapons for the first time in history. Although the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START) still remains, it is set to expire in Februaty 2021. If it is not extended, there will no longer be a nuclear arms reduction treaty between the two nuclear superpowers, and the last check on preventing a nuclear arms race will disappear.
Prohibiting nuclear weapons by law is becoming reality
The United States and Russia are reportedly developing low-yield nuclear weapons. The United States now even has new strategic guidelines for using them in actual warfare, which is outrageous. Such actions run counter to the wishes of the international community, which seeks a peaceful world without nuclear arms.
About two years ago, the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons was adopted at the United Nations. The treaty views the possession of nuclear weapons, as well as their use and the threat of their use, as violations of international law. The treaty’s adoption represents the fruit of the long-running efforts made by the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN), the non-governmental organization (NGO) that won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2017, together with civil society and non-nuclear weapon states. The atomic bomb survivors of Hiroshima and Nagasaki were also instrumental in the efforts to establish the nuclear weapons ban treaty.
For the treaty to enter into force, it must be ratified by at least 50 countries and regions. Currently, this number is almost half of the number required. This process may take time, but even so, a legal ban on the use of nuclear weapons, which had been regarded as taboo, is becoming a reality.
The appeal from the A-bombed cities has reached the world
There is no doubt that the appeal from the A-bombed cities, that nuclear weapons and human beings cannot coexist, has reached the world. Only the nuclear weapon states, which hold faith in “peace by force,” and some politicians of the countries which follow the nuclear powers are covering their ears to this appeal. The gap between these countries and politicians, which adhere to the possession and use of nuclear weapons, and the trend of the international community continues to grow.
In order to further the momentum for the abolition of nuclear weapons, the A-bombed cities must appeal to the world even more actively.
Next spring, the Review Conference of the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty (NPT) will be held for the first time in five years. We must relentlessly question the five nuclear weapons states – the United States, Russia, China, the United Kingdom, and France – on their willingness to squarely fulfill their obligation under Article 6 of the NPT, to undertake “sincere negotiations toward nuclear disarmament,” and why they cannot see the situation from the viewpoint of humankind as a whole.
All five nations are veto-wielding permanent members of the U.N. Security Council. We cannot allow them to sit idle in this position and turn their backs on the nuclear weapons ban treaty and neglect their duty to voluntarily pursue nuclear disarmament.
It is the responsibility of the international community to put the brakes on this high-handed behavior by the nuclear weapon states. Pope Francis is expected to visit Hiroshima and Nagasaki this fall and hopes are high that he will send out a strong message from the A-bombed city. When John Paul II, the first pope to visit Hiroshima, came to this city in 1981, he said in his appeal for peace: “To remember Hiroshima is to abhor war.” His visit had a significant impact on the public, priming the pump and prompting more foreign VIPs to visit the A-bombed cities.
Pope Francis has repeatedly called for the abolition of nuclear weapons since becoming pontiff in 2013. Vatican City ratified the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons as soon as it was adopted. The Pope has been calling for the abolition of nuclear weapons by distributing copies of a photo that shows “a Nagasaki boy carrying his dead brother on his back while waiting to have him cremated after the atomic bombing.” His actions are indicative of a responsible religious leader who is thinking globally.
Pope Francis is reportedly eager to visit the A-bombed city, saying, “I would like to make a strong appeal to the world that nuclear weapons, including both their production and their use, are unethical.” From an ethical point of view, rejecting the possession of nuclear arms has great significance. This question is also posed to those who are under a nuclear umbrella.
As long as nuclear weapons exist, it is impossible to get rid of the risk that they will somehow be used, including by human error. The only way to realize a peaceful world is by eliminating these weapons entirely. We must continue sending out this message to the world from the A-bombed cities. This is also the ideal championed by the Hiroshima Peace Memorial City Construction Law, and the mission that the people of Hiroshima must embrace.
(Originally published on August 6, 2019)
