A leader of the atomic bomb survivors’ group Nihon Hidankyo, which won the 2024 Nobel Peace Prize for its efforts against nuclear arms, urged the world Saturday to abolish the weapons as an “issue for all humanity” to solve.
A day after winning the prize, heads of the organization gathered in person and remotely at an emotional Tokyo press conference to share their reactions as the win finally sinks in, and conveyed their resolve to continue calling for a world without nuclear arms.
“Abolishing nuclear weapons is an issue for all humanity, the people, not an issue for hibakusha (atomic bomb survivors),” said Terumi Tanaka, a 92-year-old co-chairperson for the organization and survivor of the atomic bombing of Nagasaki.
“I want to see more debate on how we can strengthen this movement, because anyone could be a victim in future,” he stressed.
The Japan Confederation of A- and H-Bomb Sufferers Organizations, founded in 1956, received the honor “for its efforts to achieve a world free of nuclear weapons and for demonstrating through witness testimony that nuclear weapons must never be used again,” the Norwegian Nobel Committee said.
The anti-nuclear movement previously won the prize in 2017, when the International Campaign for the Abolition of Nuclear Weapons was rewarded for its work to realize the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, which outright bans the use of such arms.
Japan, however, despite being the first and only country to have endured a nuclear attack in war, does not recognize the treaty, preferring deterrence and the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, which is backed by nuclear powers, including the United States.
New Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, who has called for discussions on nuclear sharing with the United States, welcomed the win, but told Tanaka over the phone earlier in the day that he favors a “pragmatic response.” Tanaka also said Ishiba expressed hope to meet him in person soon.
Asked what he intends to say in the meeting, Tanaka said he will tell the prime minister that nuclear sharing, which entails possessing nuclear weapons and could lead to their use, is “out of the question.”
“It makes me furious that the top of the government believes nuclear weapons are needed. I want to meet him and convince him that his way of thinking is wrong,” he said.
Atomic bombs were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in the final days of World War II in August 1945, almost 80 years ago. They are believed to have killed around 210,000 by the end of 1945 and left many more exposed to life-changing radiation.
The win for Hidankyo comes at a time of global nuclear tension following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022, which has led to the highest level of alarm over possible nuclear war since the end of the Cold War.
A visibly emotional Shigemitsu Tanaka, another co-chairperson who was exposed to the bombing of Nagasaki, said that after so many years he had almost given up on Hidankyo ever winning the award.
Until the group’s formation, atomic bomb survivors, known as hibakusha in Japan, had largely struggled alone in Japan.
“Our forebears endured discrimination, prejudice and ill health,” the 83-year-old Tanaka said. “This was a punch to the politicians, and proof that the survivors who came before us choose the right path,” he said via remote link.
As of this March, there were still 106,825 officially recognized survivors, ministry of health data showed.
Looking to the future and the effect the award may have, 80-year-old Masako Wada, who has been assistant secretary general since 2015, called it a great opportunity.
“Everyone in this room understands the reality of the atomic bombing. But if you take one step outside, people don’t,” she said. “This award is a chance to spread awareness, and we must work hard to convey what Hidankyo’s work has been.”
“This is a chance for people to bring their hearts closer” to the issue, she said.
