April 15, 2023

Representatives of the Japan Confederation of A- and H-Bomb Sufferers Organizations (Nihon Hidankyo) on April 14 visited the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to demand that Prime Minister Kishida Fumio place the abolition of nuclear weapons on the coming Hiroshima G7 Summit agenda.

Hidankyo Secretary General Kido Sueichi, a Nagasaki A-bomb survivor (Hibaskuha), criticized the government security policy for lacking measures to eliminate nuclear weapons and for moving toward a military response to disputes by strengthening Japan's military ties with and jointly developing new fighter jets with the United States.

Kido stated that the only way to save the human race from annihilation by nuclear war is by the elimination of nuclear weapons. He demanded that G7 leaders discuss and exchange views on a ban on nuclear weapons and nuclear disarmament, visit the atomic bomb museum in Hiroshima City, and meet with Hibakusha.

Hidankyo representative member Tanaka Terumi, a Nagasaki Hibakusha, said, "World leaders should understand the anti-humanitarian aspect to nuclear weapons. The inhumane consequences these weapons would bring about is the fundamental reason for the United Nations to prohibit them. I hope discussion on the elimination of nuclear weapons will be put on the agenda at the G7 Summit meeting."

Hidankyo Deputy Secretary General Wada Masako, a Nagasaki Hibakusha, said, "A nuclear weapon hasn't been used in war for 77 years, but there is always a possibility that it will be used. I hope world leaders will start negotiations toward eliminating nuclear weapons and achieve rapid results."

Another Deputy Secretary General of the Nihon Hidankyo Hamasumi Jiro, an antenatal Hiroshima Hibakusha, expressed his hope that Japan, the G7 Summit host country, will swiftly sign and ratify the UN Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) and will participate as an observer in meetings of State Parties to the TPNW.