Nihon Hidankyo is set to make a decision next year on whether to continue or disband as hibakusha enter their twilight years.
At its two-day general meeting held in Tokyo through Thursday, Nihon Hidankyo, the 2024 winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, decided to hold a vote on the group¡¯s future at its general meeting in June 2027.
The latest meeting was attended by about 90 people, mainly hibakusha from 30 of the country¡¯s 47 prefectures.
¡°We need to create a movement to eliminate nuclear weapons ourselves,¡± Nihon Hidankyo co-chair Terumi Tanaka, 94, said. ¡°It¡¯s not about the name (of the group) or the members,¡± he said, adding, ¡°As long as we don¡¯t give up on our dreams, there¡¯ll be an organization as a result.¡±
Over the past few years, the group, also known as the Japan Confederation of A- and H-Bomb Sufferers Organizations, has discussed its own future, with some saying that the organization ¡°will cease to exist if hibakusha are no longer here with us.¡±
A proposal to maintain the organization says that so-called second-generation hibakusha, or people whose parents were exposed to radiation in the U.S. atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945 in the closing days of World War II, will take over the group¡¯s activities, with the possibility of a name change.
A proposal to disband the organization states that Nihon Hidankyo will be dissolved when it becomes impossible for the group to continue its activities, including efforts by hibakusha. Still, it leaves open the possibility that a new organization to carry on Nihon Hidankyo¡¯s activities will be established.
The group will also consider other options.
At the latest general meeting, the group decided to use some of its prize money from the Nobel Peace Prize, worth around ?150 million, to erect monuments to mark the winning of the prize in Tokyo and Hiroshima. A similar monument was set up at Nagasaki Peace Park earlier this year.
Nihon Hidankyo will deliver a statement in Nagasaki on Aug. 10 this year, which marks the 70th anniversary of its establishment.
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