Int'l meeting
2001 World Conference against A & H Bombs-International Meeting opens

TOKYO -- Calling for taking actions to immediately eliminate nuclear arsenals, the International Meeting of the 2001 World Conference against A & H Bombs opened its three-day session from August 3 in Hiroshima City with 220 people, including 54 overseas representatives from 20 countries, seven international and regional organizations, attending.

This year's meeting carries the banner "Nuclear Weapons States Must Make Good on Their Promise to Abolish Nuclear Weapons: International Cooperation and Solidarity Will Ensure the Future of the World."

Sekiya Ayako, the World Conference-Chairpersons Committee member, with a conviction that the voice for the elimination of nuclear weapons has now become a major current in the world, called on participants to actively discuss the way to urge nuclear weapons states to implement their promise to abolish nuclear weapons. (see separate item)

A Korean A-bomb hibakusha, Kwak Kwin Hoon, together with Japan hibakusha, spoke and stressed the need to pose the Japanese government to immediately apply relief measures to A-bomb victims abroad. (see separate item)

Ogata Yasuo, Japanese Communist Party House of Councilors member and Chairpersons Committee member, made a speech. (see separate item)

In the Plenary Session I of the International Meeting, titled, "Implementation of Abolition of Nuclear Weapons without Delay," discussion was focused on the danger of recent U.S. policy pursuing missile defense, space militarization, and miniaturization of nuclear weapons, as moves accelerating nuclear arms race.

"It is high time to enact an international treaty to abolish nuclear weapons," said Alyn Ware, the New Zealand government's representative of the NPT Review Conference.

In the Plenary Session II: Prevention of Bringing-in of Nuclear Weapons in foreign territories; Expansion of Nuclear Weapon-free Zones globally, representatives from South Korea and Okinawa in Japan reported their anti-U.S. base struggles, and those from Britain and Japan introduced their activities for increasing non-nuclear local governments.

The meeting received messages from the prime ministers of Sweden and New Zealand which were read aloud in the meeting hall. (end)