Nuclear weapons shadow world despite effortsーNHK WORLD-JAPAN NEWS
Right now I’m at the atomic bomb museum. It features the photos and relics of aftermath of the atomic bombing on August 9th, 1945. A city official I spoke with earlier said the number of annual visitors of the museum um went up until March this year exceeded 800,000 for the first time since the 2001 fiscal year. He said the spike may reflect that we are in a world where the nuclear risks are higher than ever. And here is one exhibit. It shows the number of nuclear warheads these nine countries possesses. Russia has the most with nearly 5,500. It’s followed by the United States with around 5,200. An annual report from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute last year warned we are now facing the prospects of a new nuclear arms race. Today we are focusing on what path we can take to bring about a nuclear free world. Nagasaki’s longheld wish. Hibbakusha atom bomb survivors have a sense of crisis. Despite continuous efforts calling for a nuclear free world, the shadow of a nuclear weapons still looms. We spoke to a hibakusha who’s been campaigning around the world for more than half a century about his feelings. 93year-old Tanakumi was exposed to radiation in Nagasaki at 13. He is helping record atomic bomb survivor testimonies. There was a sudden flash so bright that I couldn’t see anything. I felt such a deep sense of danger that I thought this is really serious. Tanaka was born in 1932 in Japan occupied Manuria. He was five when he lost his father and moved with his family to Nagasaki to live near his aunts. The river around here was our playground. I remember running around as a kid when the atomic bomb exploded over Nagasaki. Tanaka was at home about 3 kilometers from the hypoenter. He says he miraculously survived, trapped under a large glass door. 3 days later, he and his mother went to search for relatives who lived near ground zero. What he saw was unforgettable. Nagasaki completely charred black. Bodies left unattended and badly burned people received no help. An aunt’s house was just 400 m from the blast’s hypoenter. There he found the charred remains of his aunt and her grandson. Everything was burned. No house remained standing. Truly not a trace, no shadows, no shapes. Everything was totally gone. Tanaka lost five relatives in the bombing. Tanaka believes nuclear weapons must never be used again. For over half a century, he has worked to promote peace both in Japan and abroad. Last December, Nihon Hidango’s continuous peace efforts were honored with the Nobel Peace Prize. At the awards ceremony, Tanaka spoke about his feelings following the bombing of Nagasaki. The deaths I witnessed at that time could hardly be described as human deaths. I strongly felt that even in war such killing and maming must never be allowed to happen. It is the heartfelt desire of hibaksha atomic bomb survivors that we must not allow possession of a single nuclear weapon. [Applause] Since the ceremony, Tanaka has been traveling across Japan, giving lectures to share his experiences. Yeah. However, Tanaka is worried. He says while the efforts of survivors are getting attention, they haven’t reached young people enough. The situation may change and it may be decided by nuclear powers that such weapons need to be used after all. If we consider that we live in such a world, I don’t think young people can afford to be complacent. [Applause] If nuclear weapons are used again, it will be for the third time and that would be the end of the world. I want young people to join forces, think hard about how to open a path forward and what they need to do about this. Tanaka’s generation was unable to bring about a nuclear-free world, but he does hope the next generation will do what he could not achieve. We are now joined by Nakamura Keo. She’s an expert on nuclear disarmament issues. Thank you very much for coming. Thank you. Um I have spoken to some of Hibbakusha myself and it’s understandable that they feel so frustrated that their voices aren’t heard. Why do you think this is? Yes. Um thanks to hibacious uh more people in the world now realize that you know the u devastation caused by the nuclear weapons and then how inhumane it is but at the same time there is a very strong belief that nuclear weapon protecting us it’s necessary for the security. So um in this situation the Nobel Peace Prize uh given to the the Nihon Hango last year is a great mileston but at the same time you know it clearly shows that just only emphasizing that you know um the inhumanity of the nuclear weapons use is not nec I mean not uh enough it’s not enough to convince or change the behavior or nuclear depend dependent country. So what we have to do is we really must challenge that belief or notion that the nuclear weapon keeps us safe. Mhm. So we’re knowing this is so difficult to to um realize. So what can we do to achieve a nuclear free world, right? And of course it’s not there is no easy answers for that. But uh I think you know education and also the you know the public awareness raising is a key. So that you know we must uh show the strong scientific evidence that you know nuclear detence cannot protect anyone. So if we look at the history you know um there are many many accidents uh have happened to which brought us on the age on the verge of the nuclear war. So uh you know even like if the nuclear weapon are not really actually used in a war but still nuclear weapon cause a harm you know on every stage of its production and development. So actually that you know the nuclear testing is a good example more than 2,000 nuclear tests has been carried out all over the world and then you know but actually that many people still suffering from that but the world is you know really not much know about that. So if more people in this world understand that the nuclear weapons are threat to human survival then there will be more pressure to on the countries which depend on the nuclear weapon I hope. Mhm. Mhm. And Japan as a only country um which experienced the atomic bombing. What kind of role can Japan take do you think? Right. Uh Japan has a very special responsibility, moral responsibility as the abom nations. Yet unfortunately our government is remains under the US nuclear umbrella and then still believe that you know depending on the nuclear detence is the only way to protect us. So um Japan should you know but I really believe that Japan should take a leading role uh to strengthen the nuclear taboo you know to uh by the reducing the dependence you know own dependence of Japan on the nuclear detence. So um and then when you know the Japan is speaking about the nuclear inhumity. So the we you know Japan has to face that its own history you know as the perpetrator because um the you know just repeating a narrative as the victim food you know especially in the country in Asia it invite more criticism right so I believe that bombing in Hiroshima Nagasaki is of course that the Japanese experience but I think you know now we should kind of universal it you know making it as like you the collective like common experience of all humanity. So on this 80th anniversary, you know, we must renew our commitment, our bow and and never to repeat the same mistake. Thank you very much for Thank you very much. What I heard from Hibakusha in Hiroshima and Nagasaki over the past weeks was that we must never give up trying to realize a world without nuclear weapons. But when we look at the world, nuclear deterrence seems so ingrained as a concept. The idea of a nuclear weapon-free world almost seemed like a dream. But listening to the Hibbakusha, I feel an immense responsibility to pass their knowledge on. what they experienced was so terrible. So for our own sakes as members of humanity, we can’t afford to forget that once the hibakusha are all gone, it will be up to us to decide whether the dream can be reality. T.
Despite decades of effort to achieve a nuclear-free world, that goal remains unmet – and may be harder to achieve than ever as global tensions rise. #nagasaki #war #nuclear
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