Obama should visit Hiroshima/Nagasaki

January 6, 2015

Editorial: Address reality of atomic bombing of Hiroshima, Nagasaki

http://mainichi.jp/english/english/perspectives/news/20150106p2a00m0na004000c.html

The pain and suffering of hibakusha, or the survivors of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki that occurred 70 years ago, is surely unique. One cannot help but wonder whether their plight has been sufficiently communicated to all parts of the world.

According to statistics released by the Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry last year, the number of those who hold official certifications as hibakusha, which entitle them to financial assistance for medical care from the government, fell below 200,000 for the first time in history. The average age of hibakusha has surpassed 79. It is a matter of course but still worrisome that those who experienced the horrors of the atomic bombing have been decreasing year by year.

In the meantime, little progress has been made on nuclear disarmament. Rather, it appears that the world is backing away from nuclear arms reduction. Human beings' memories of the tragedies that hibakusha experienced 70 years ago must not be allowed to fade away. It is important to take the opportunity on the 70th anniversary of the end to World War II to listen squarely to what hibakusha have to say and think about a path toward nuclear disarmament.

Mayors for Peace, a Hiroshima-based group of mayors from all over the world, aims to enact a Nuclear Weapons Convention, which would totally ban the production, possession and use of nuclear arms, by 2015 and achieve nuclear disarmament by 2020.

The organization now comprises 6,490 local governments in 160 countries and regions. Although it is unrealistic to achieve nuclear disarmament within five years, Mayors for Peace "will not give up on its 2020 goal" says Secretary-General Yasuyoshi Komizo, who also serves as the chairperson of the Hiroshima Peace Culture Foundation. This is because the mayors desire to at least pave the way for nuclear disarmament while aging hibakusha are still alive.

Keiko Ogura, 78, head of Hiroshima Interpreters for Peace (HIP), has told foreigners in English about the "living hell" she experienced and witnessed in Hiroshima shortly after the atomic bomb was dropped on the city. Ogura was exposed to radiation near her home about 2.4 kilometers north of the hypocenter on Aug. 6, 1945. Ogura saw the flash of the bombing before the blast hurled her to the ground. She subsequently saw black rain. She remembers that many hibakusha were wandering in the city just like ghosts. Without sufficient medical treatment they soon died.

Ogura also spoke about her experiences as a hibakusha at a foreign ministerial conference on nuclear nonproliferation in Hiroshima last year. She also met and talked with U.S. Undersecretary of State Rose Gottemoeller, who attended the meeting as an observer.

"My workmates have died one after another, while some others have become sick. It's sad. My work is getting tougher and tougher," Ogura says.

Ogura knows that some U.S. citizens feel a sense of guilt about the country's atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

As a member of a Japanese delegation, she visited the United States in 2003 to hand over a petition calling for nuclear disarmament that bore numerous signatures of Japanese nationals. At the same time, the Enola Gay, which dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima, was placed on display at a museum in Washington. Someone shouted abusive language at the delegation. In one meeting, however, about 30 Americans shook hands with members of the Japanese delegation, repeatedly saying, "I'm sorry." It was an impressive scene.

Still, the voices that say "I'm sorry" to Japan have not spread throughout the United States, even though President Obama pledged in 2009 to pursue a world without nuclear weapons and mentioned the United States "moral responsibility" as a country that has used nuclear arms. Opinion polls conducted in the United States in 2009 and 2010 show that about 60 percent of U.S. citizens believe the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki was justifiable.

The U.S. government is of the view that the atomic bombing helped end the war earlier and saved the lives of many U.S. soldiers and others. However, there are quite a few politicians and scholars in the United States who argue that the atomic bombing was unnecessary. Meanwhile, Washington has refused to change its official view, which could be seen as having mythical overtones.

However, the United States apparently has no choice but to admit that fresh efforts toward nuclear disarmament are necessary. The Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty (NPT) requires that the five official nuclear powers -- the United States, Britain, France, China and Russia -- hold sincere negotiations toward nuclear arms reductions. However, little progress has been made on U.S.-Russia talks, while grave concerns have been expressed over allegations that China is expanding its nuclear arms. Moreover, North Korea is believed to have armed itself with nuclear weapons, following India and Pakistan. Israel is also believed to possess such arms.

The five countries that are defined by the NPT as nuclear powers are also permanent members of the U.N. Security Council. These countries deserve criticism that they take advantage of their privileges while neglecting their efforts toward nuclear disarmament. As such, it is only natural that non-nuclear powers' moves to join hands with each other in their efforts to pressure nuclear powers to change their attitudes are gaining momentum.

As part of these moves, there are growing calls for the enactment of a Nuclear Weapons Convention. The issue may be discussed at an NPT review conference to be convened later this year. Most nuclear powers have reacted coolly to these calls, but the Obama administration should take concerns expressed by non-nuclear powers seriously. Parties to the NPT should hold significant discussions at the NPT review conference that will help progress the ongoing efforts toward nuclear disarmament.

What is more important is for President Obama to visit Hiroshima and Nagasaki. To realize such a visit, Obama will be required to overcome various problems, such as the issue of the responsibility for the atomic bombing, as well as with overall Japan-U.S. relations. However, we have claimed that mourning those who died in the atomic bombing is the first step toward Obama's journey toward a world without nuclear weapons. It would be of great significance for a U.S. president to visit ground zero in Hiroshima and Nagasaki in order to heighten the international momentum for nuclear arms reductions that remain deadlocked and develop new cooperative relations between Japan and the United States. President Obama should look straight at the reality of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

January 06, 2015(Mainichi Japan)