| ++The Prayer of Hiroshima++ |
Hibakusha say simply, "I met with the A-bomb." Perhaps they use this
expression because the event they "met with" defies description --- an
instant of massive destruction, mind-numbing death and injury and grief
of watching helplessly as family members, relatives, friends, and neighbors
died in agony.
They also say, "It's painful even to remember." The A-bomb witnesses
have overcome that pain and are passing on their experiences of that day.
They feel duty bound to tell the world why nuclear weapons must never be
used again.
The continual prayer of the A-bombed city, Hiroshima, is to unite
humankind toward out common goal of genuine and lasting world peace. |
| ++Protesting Nuclear Weapons Testing++ |
Each time a nuclear test is carried out, the Hiroshima city
government protests to the government that conducted the test. Some citizens
seem to feel that the protests are an exercise in futility, but they should
be seen as a cry for peace on Earth. For a city that lost so many of its
own to an A-bombing, such protests are nothing less than a solemn responsibility.
Groups of private citizens engage in such protest activities as sit-ins
and meetings with like-minded citizens of other countries living close
to nuclear testing sites.
In 1994, the United States admitted having carried out more than
200 secret nuclear weapon tests and radiation experiments on human bodies.
Hiroshima residents also protested these acts.
Sit-in to protest nuclear testing (1999). Courtesy of Chugoku Shimbun
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| ++Relief of Hibakusha++ |
Long-term effects on human bodies by radiation is still not clear.
Aging hibakusha hope the government promotes thorough relief measures based
on the reality of their lives. In addition, support beyond national border
is needed for Japanese hibakusha living overseas and foreign ones. |
| ++Studying Peace++ |
In the 1970s, peace education came to the schools of Hiroshima. Peace
education emphasizes the lessons to be learned from the A-bombing. Activities
include listening to testimonies from A-bomb survivors and discussing the
issues of identifying victims and perpetrators of war. Interest in this
new field of education grows year by year. School children from all over
Japan now visit Hiroshima on annual school trips. |
| ++Hibakusha Drawings++ |
The Hiroshima Peace Culture Foundation carefully preserves as
powerful testimonies 2,225 images of the A-bombing drawn by Hiroshima citizens
from 1974 to 1975 - art work by the people who experienced it first-hand.
In this way, the tragedy of that day, etched into the minds of those who
were there, can be conveyed to future generations.
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| ++Hibakusha Testimony Videos++ |
Hibakusha testimonies, coupled with photographs, memoirs and paintings,
give a human face to the tragedy of the A-bombing. Starting in 1986, the
Hiroshima Peace Culture Foundation initiated a project to record hibakusha
giving testimonies on video. In each year since, the testimonies of 50
people have been recorded and edited into a 20-minute segment per person.
This collection is titled "Hiroshima Witness - Hibakusha Testimony." Along
with other video materials such as "Hiroshima: A Mother's Prayer" (available
in film and video), the documentary is used widely in Japan and abroad. |
| ++Overseas Exhibits of A-bomb Artifacts++ |
Artifacts from the atomic bombing lent to other countries are exhibited
widely. Since 1983, artifacts have been displayed in the lobby of the United
Nations headquarters in New York City, where people gather from all over
the world. Year after year the exhibit conveys the cruelty of the A-bombing.
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