|
It is a great privilege for me to extend my heartfelt greetings as the new chairperson of the Hiroshima Peace Culture Foundation.
I feel deeply honored and humbled to be offered this position to come to work in Hiroshima, a focal point of efforts for peace and the elimination of nuclear weapons;
at the same time, I fully feel the weight of this responsibility.
My mission, as I understand it, is to aptly communicate to the world and to future generations a message of Hiroshima,
born from its unimaginable tragedy, that calls for realization of a peaceful world free from nuclear weapons.
To fulfill this responsibility, I intend, first of all, to listen wholeheartedly to the voices of the citizens of Hiroshima so that they may be ingrained in the depth of my heart.
With such constant efforts, I would like to perform my mission with devotion and ingenuity, garnering the collective wisdom of people working towards this shared goal.
It was the summer of 1987, 26 years ago, that I visited Hiroshima for the first time.
I was just assigned to work at the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and felt strongly that I needed to know more about Hiroshima as a Japanese citizen who would deal with the issues of nuclear energy and non-proliferation of nuclear weapons.
Since that visit, I started coming back to Hiroshima whenever the opportunity presented itself to interact with A-bomb survivors and those working towards a world free from nuclear weapons,
so that I could tackle my work without losing sight of deep-rooted and earnest human yearnings for peace and human dignity.
In 2000, I was fortunate to take part in organizing the Hiroshima-Nagasaki Atomic Bomb Exhibition in Vienna,
which was proposed by then Director General of the IAEA, Dr. Mohamed ElBaradei, and hosted by the organization.
At that time, I was Dr. ElBaradei's Special Assistant in charge of management affairs and the two of us discussed matters face to face on a daily basis.
Sometimes our discussion covered topics beyond the scope of our regular duties, such as a future aiming towards a nuclear-weapons free world.
His idea was that such a world would require a new, reliable security framework based on a sense of community on a global scale and built upon mutual trust between human beings,
replacing the current system of nuclear deterrence based on a reality of distrust and built upon the threat of nuclear weapons.
My opinion was the same.
We agreed that the foundation for the new framework could not be built by governments or international organizations alone,
and that collaboration with a wide range of groups from civil society would be essential.
Last November, I retired from a career of civil service after nearly 43 years.
This provided me an opportunity to start working, as a member of civil society, towards a peaceful world free from nuclear weapons.
Therefore, immediately after my retirement I started to travel around Tokyo, Hiroshima, Nagasaki, and several cities in the United States to contemplate what I could do towards this goal,
honoring what has been achieved and trying to search for areas where I can add value.
During the tour, I met and exchanged views with many people,
but the most unexpected outcome was an offer for the chairperson post of the Hiroshima Peace Culture Foundation.
Given the immense responsibility of the post, I hesitated, but at the end made up my mind to do everything in my capacity to spread Hiroshima's important message.
Despite the constantly accelerating pace of globalization, a sense of community among mankind remains yet to be developed, and divisions, distrust, and conflicts among people remain the unfortunate reality.
Amidst these circumstances, it is important to continue cultivating human bonds and sense of community among people as members of one human race.
If we succeed in promoting such sense of community and deep-rooted human bonds, the differences will serve as facets of diversity enriching human society, rather than causes for conflicts.
"No one else should suffer as we did."
This precious and powerful message from Hiroshima to every single person in the world was birthed from the profound emotions of those who strived strenuously in the face of an unimaginably tragic situation.
I believe that this message should be solemnly shared by all of us who live in today's world.
And this message has a special significance as a rich source of inspiration to the youth who are about to build future world in their own vision and efforts.
I would like to work with all of you who care about the well-being of family, friends, and human beings as a whole to create a new wave of effort towards nuclear weapons abolition,
while cherishing the foundation built through the exhausting efforts of many empathetic people of past and present.
Lastly, I sincerely pray for the citizens of this A-bombed city, who have experienced unthinkable hardship, to enjoy a peaceful life more than anyone and anywhere else
| one of compassionate human spirit, robust health, dynamic culture, and filled with the smiling faces of neighbors who live in harmony.
|
