2010 World Conference against A and H Bombs

Japan Press Weekly

Japan Press Service Co., Ltd. is the only news agency providing information of progressive, democratic movements in Japan

2010 World Conference against A and H Bombs - Hiroshima Held

The 2010 World Conference against A and H Bombs -- Hiroshima was held from August 4 - 6 in Hiroshima City. The opening plenary on August 4 was attended by 7,400 delegates from grass-roots organizations all over Japan.

In light of the result of the 2010 NPT Review Conference, participants expressed their conviction that the elimination of nuclear weapons has become a realistic goal and expressed the determination to further develop the grass-roots campaigns.

On behalf of the Organizing Committee, Tomita Koji made a report, saying, “The NPT Review Conference has revealed the extent of the irreversible current toward the elimination of nuclear weapons. With the conviction that global grass-roots activities move international politics, let us strive for the total elimination of nuclear weapons.”

As a guest speaker at the opening plenary, 85-year-old Hibakusha Tsuboi Sunao, co-chair of the Japan Confederation of A- and H-Bomb Sufferers Organizations, said, “I can’t die before I see the elimination of nuclear weapons with my own eyes.”

Hiroshima Mayor Akiba Tadatoshi said that he extends Hibakusha’s deep desire to the world and demands that the Japanese government enact a law to truly enforce the Three Non-Nuclear Principles and abandon reliance on the U.S. nuclear umbrella.

Muhammad Shahrul Ikram Yaacob, Governor of Malaysia to the International Atomic Energy Agency and Chair of the Governors of IAEA, and Miguel Ruiz-Cabanas Izquierdo, Mexican Ambassador to Japan, gave speeches.

At the closing plenary on August 6, in which 8,000 delegates participated, an Appeal was adopted saying, “Together with the Hibakusha and rallying the energy of young generations, let us march forward towards the realization of a ‘nuclear weapon-free world.’”

Sergio de Querioz Duarte, United Nations High Representative for Disarmament Affairs, said, “I am proud to join you on this journey to a nuclear-weapon-free world. It is a righteous cause and our shared responsibility to past victims and future generations. The time has come to move forward. Come, let us cross this great bridge together.”

Egyptian Ambassador to Japan Walid Mahmoud Abdelnasser, Norwegian Ambassador Japan Arne Roy Walther, and Venezuelan Ambassador to Japan Seiko Luis Ishikawa Kobayashi also made speeches.

Japanese Communist Party Chair Shii Kazuo also made a speech at the closing plenary.

- Akahata, August 5 - 7, 2010