Conveying the "Spirit of Hiroshima"
to Junior Diplomats from Around the World |
A group of participants from 25 national governments in the UN Programme
of Fellowship on Disarmament visited Hiroshima City from September 25 (Sat)
to September 26 (Sun) last year. The programme aims to train Disarmament
Specialists and the participants learned about the reality of the atomic
bombing and the "Spirit of Hiroshima" through observation tours
and seminars. The Programme is a training project that has been implemented
by the United Nations since 1979. Visits to Hiroshima have been made every
year since 1983, and this year marks the 28th visit, with over 700 participants visiting Hiroshima to date.
On the afternoon of September 25, the group arrived in Hiroshima and
first visited Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum, where they listened to an
explanation by Ms. Mayumi Yamane, Deputy Director of Hiroshima Peace Memorial
Museum (Outreach Division), and took a tour of the Museum. |
| Participants listened to the atomic bomb testimony of Mr. Akihiro Takahashi,
the former Director of Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum, who has been designated
by the Foreign Ministry as a Special Communicator for a World without Nuclear
Weapons. This position was proposed by Prime Minister Naoto Kan at the
Peace Ceremony on August 6, 2010, for the purpose of passing on to the
international community as well as future generations the experience of
Hibakusha concerning the real consequence of the use of nuclear weapons. Mr. Takahashi
is the first person to receive this designation. |
The Fellows, as they listen to the a-bomb testimony |
On the following day, the group toured the epicenter, A-Bomb Dome, Children's
Peace Monument, and Hiroshima National Peace Memorial Hall for the Atomic
Bomb Victims. They offered flowers at the Cenotaph for the A-Bomb Victims,
listened to an explanation of Mayors for Peace by Mr. Manabu Iwasaki, the
Director responsible for Mayors for Peace, and viewed the film "HIROSHIMA:
A Mother's Prayer". It was a very full training program in Hiroshima.
The participants commented, "Through my visit to Hiroshima I learned
about the damage from nuclear weapons. I want to communicate the messages
from the atomic bomb victims", and, "Mayors for Peace is a great
initiative, and should be spread throughout the world". |
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| (Peace and International Solidarity Promotion Division) |
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