Japan Gensuikyo sends message to Non-Aligned Movement Summit

Japan Press Weekly

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Japan Gensuikyo sends message to Non-Aligned Movement Summit

The Japan Council against Atomic and Hydrogen Bombs (Japan Gensuikyo) sent the following message to the 15th Summit Conference of the Non-Aligned Movement (July 11-16, 2009, Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt).

Distinguished leaders of the Non-Aligned Movement,

On the occasion of the 15th Summit Conference of the Non-Aligned Movement, we of the Japanese movement for a ban on atomic and hydrogen bombs convey to you our warmest greetings of solidarity. Your movement was born in the early 1960s to overcome the division of the world by military blocs and to defend and develop national sovereignty, peace and non-alignment. Carrying forward this tradition, your movement is continuing to play a vital role in this 21st century to overcome war, national oppression and unfair world economic order, and to establish a peaceful and just world without nuclear weapons. We sincerely hope that the 15th Summit Conference will achieve the greatest success in your work and that NAM, under the leadership of the new chair, the Egyptian Government, will play an even greater role in the world affairs.

At present, when we will soon enter the 10th year of the 21st century, the world is at a turning point. The enormous loss of lives and the devastation in Iraq caused [devastation wrought by the Iraq war] in the last six years have demonstrated the fatal error of the use of force conducted in violation of the UN Charter, as well as of the underlying unilateralism. We do oppose nuclear proliferation. It is already clear, however, that the policy of focusing on the danger of nuclear proliferation alone, while aiming to maintain the privilege of nuclear powers, claiming that their nuclear weapons are for "deterrence" or "security", can no longer work. It cannot check any attempts for nuclear proliferation.

We welcome the speech of President Obama in Prague on April 5, who said: "as the only nuclear power to have used a nuclear weapon, the United States has a moral responsibility to act." He then added: "I state clearly and with conviction America's commitment to seek the peace and security of a world without nuclear weapons." Further, in his speech in Cairo, he denied the privilege of the nuclear weapons states in saying, "No single nation should pick and choose which nation holds nuclear weapons. And that's why I strongly reaffirmed America's commitment to seek a world in which no nations hold nuclear weapons."

His statements show his sensible judgment, but also reflect what the A-bomb survivors of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the anti-nuclear weapons movements in Japan and worldwide have called for, as well as the consistent demand raised by the Non-Aligned Movement and other governments that stand in favor of the elimination of nuclear weapons.

We should not allow the current move to end up only with achieving some partial disarmament measures. The drastic cut in the strategic nuclear arms, of which 95% are in the US and Russian arsenals, the early entry into force of the CTBT, starting and concluding a verifiable cut-off treaty are all extremely important. A "nuclear weapon-free world", however, cannot simply be achieved by accumulating partial measures one by one. Achieving a nuclear weapon-free world will become possible only when the international community reach an agreement to make a nuclear weapon-free world a goal to be accomplished. We call on all UN member states, and the United States and the other nuclear weapons states in particular to take the initiative in building such an agreement.

Taking this opportunity, we express our support of the demands for the legally binding security assurance by the nuclear powers of not threatening or using nuclear weapons against non-nuclear parties, as well as of the establishing of a Middle East nuclear weapon free zone, and call with you for the implementation of the relevant decisions made so far.

The doctrine of "nuclear deterrence", the delusion, which has been used to try to justify the development and possession of nuclear weapons, should also be overcome. Japan, where we work, is the only country that suffered the nuclear attacks and that now makes it a national principle to not possess, not manufacture and not allow nuclear weapons to be brought into its territory. Nevertheless, it continues relying on the US "nuclear umbrella", placing its security on the US's nuclear arsenals. But if you rely yourself on nuclear weapons provided by a nuclear power, you will lose ground to urge any other to abandon nuclear development. Rather, such a position only works to aggravate tension and promote nuclear proliferation.

We, at the same time, oppose any action for nuclear proliferation, even if it is claimed to be for "deterring" against external threat. True security assurance should be pursued through the elimination of nuclear weapons and not by the force of "nuclear deterrence". Given that nuclear weapons states now declare that they pursue a world without nuclear weapons, no reason can stand for any country to run counter to this development.

Towards the next NPT Review Conference in May 2010, we are concentrating our efforts on raising public awareness, in cooperation with anti-nuclear weapons movements around the world, by promoting the signature campaign for "A nuclear weapon-free world" and organizing A-bomb photo exhibitions and speaking tours of the Hibakusha, the A-bomb survivors, internationally. We held a Hiroshima/Nagasaki photo exhibition in Autumn 2007 in Cairo and again in Kuala Lumpur in January 2009, thanks to the warm support by the government of the respective countries. It is the responsibility of the Japanese people, the only nation that suffered from nuclear attacks, to make known to the people the world over that the humans cannot coexist with nuclear weapons. The average age of the Hibakusha is now over 75. Yet many of them are determined to devote their remaining life to giving their testimonies. We cordially request that you will consider responding to their wishes.

President Obama said that the goal, a nuclear weapon-free world, would perhaps not be reached in his life time. However, of the 189 NPT signatories, as many as 184 have already renounced a nuclear option, placing themselves under the treaty obligation of not acquiring, not developing and not possessing nuclear weapons. If the determination and action of leading nuclear weapons states to pursue the elimination of nuclear weapons are added to them, a "nuclear weapon-free world" can be a goal to be reached in not a distant future. We hope that the 2010 NPT Review Conference will turn out to be a place of agreement and joint enterprises to this end.

Let us reiterate our hope that the 15th Summit Conference of NAM will be successful. In extending our solidarity to you, we ardently hope that the Non-Aligned Movement will play an even greater role in finally banning and eliminating all nuclear weapons.

- Akahata, July 10, 2009