Nothing "positive" about nuclear arms

December 20, 2014

Nagasaki mayor, anti-nuke groups protest envoy's remark about nuclear arms

http://ajw.asahi.com/article/behind_news/social_affairs/AJ201412200039

THE ASAHI SHIMBUN

NAGASAKI--A Japanese diplomat who called for a "positive" perspective on dealing with a nuclear catastrophe continues to face a barrage of criticism.

Nagasaki Mayor Tomihisa Taue said the remark by Toshio Sano at an international conference on nuclear weapons in Vienna earlier this month undermines global efforts to outlaw nuclear arms as inhumane weapons.

Sano, head of the Permanent Delegation of Japan to the Conference on Disarmament, sparked controversy at the Vienna Conference on the Humanitarian Impact of Nuclear Weapons on Dec. 8-9. Touching upon a panelist's view that humankind could not deal with the disastrous consequences of a nuclear blast, Sano said such a belief was "a little pessimistic."

“(Sano’s remark) runs counter to the direction of the conference discussion,” Taue said at a Dec. 18 news conference. “It really is a shame.”

Mitsugi Moriguchi, a 78-year-old member of the hibakusha group Nagasaki no Shogen no Kai, also was upset by Sano’s comment.

“I was outraged,” he said. “He must be commenting without detailed knowledge of the damage actually done.”

The atomic bomb survivors group sent a protest letter to Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida and other officials on Dec. 16.

“(Sano’s comments) are based on the premise that nuclear arms can be used,” the letter read.

Sano spoke up at a session on Dec. 8 in reference to the view that the impact of a nuclear detonation is so catastrophic that no nations or international organizations are capable of providing appropriate relief to deal with the aftermath.

The ambassador characterized the opinion as “a little pessimistic” and called on the chair of the conference to look at the issue from a "positive" perspective.

But representatives from Austria, the chair of the conference, presented a summary that read: “No state or international body could address in an adequate manner the immediate humanitarian emergency or long-term consequences caused by a nuclear weapon detonation in a populated area, nor provide adequate assistance to those affected. Such capacity is unlikely ever to exist.”

The summary's point is consistent with summaries of previous conferences on the same subject in Norway and Mexico, and is the basis for nations of the world calling for a ban on nuclear weapons under international law.

After the session, Sano told reporters that what he meant by his remark is that nations or international organizations should study possible assistance measures or develop capabilities to assist the affected.

“If you go without protective gear (to the affected nation), you will be exposed to radiation,” he said. “But if you wear (protective gear), you would be able to do many things.”

Five additional hibakusha organizations in Nagasaki also sent joint protest letters to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Kishida.

Hideo Tsuchiyama, a former president of Nagasaki University who was involved in treating victims as a medical student, said, “It is beyond understanding that he bothered to speak up in the conference that there are ways to address (a nuclear catastrophe).”

Immediately after the Dec. 8 session, anti-nuclear groups took exception to Sano's remark, saying it was unworthy of a representative from Japan, which experienced the disastrous consequences of the 1945 atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

(This article was written by Shohei Okada and Shoko Rikimaru.)