August 5, 2022

Welcomed by a local chorus group singing songs about peace, such as a song titled “Peace for Ukraine”, marchers on all routes of the 2022 nationwide antinuke Peace March on August 4 arrived at their final destination, the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park in Hiroshima City in Hiroshima Prefecture.

Braving the summer heat, a rally took place after the arrival of the march with 200 people, including local peace activists and marchers, participating.

Prior to the rally, the participants offered a minute of silence to those who were killed by the U.S. atomic-bombing 77 years ago.

At the rally, on behalf of the local organizing committee of the Peace March, Kanbe Yasushi, who heads the Hiroshima local of the National Confederation of Trade Unions (Zenroren), delivered a speech. He quoted a passage from the Vienna Declaration adopted at the first meeting of the State Parties to the UN Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) that states, “[…] We will not rest until […] nuclear weapons have been totally eliminated from the Earth.” Kanbe said, “We will also not take a break from taking part in the antinuke peace march until nuclear weapons have been totally eliminated.”

One of the peace marchers, Murakami Atsuko pointed out that the voices of A-bomb survivors (Hibakusha) have moved the international community to commit to a nuclear weapons-free world as evidenced in the TPNW Vienna Declaration and the convening of the NPT Review Conference. She expressed her determination to work hard to push the Japanese government to catch up with the world trend demanding the abolition of nuclear weapons.

At the end of the rally, holding a banner that read, “The Japanese government must join the TPNW!”, the participants shouted in chorus, “Provide relief to all Hibakusha!” and “Abolish nuclear weapons!”

Past related article:
> Antinuke peace march 2022: 'No!' to Russia's nuclear threats [May 7, 2022]