May 7, 2026

The 2026 National Peace March against A and H Bombs began on May 6. Parades set out from several locations across the country with the goal of arriving in the A-bombed cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August, calling for the abolition of nuclear weapons, support for A-bomb survivors (Hibakusha), and Japan’s participation in the UN Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW).

In Tokyo, more than 600 people, led by Hibakusha, participated in the first leg of the Tokyo-Hiroshima route. At the kickoff rally, speeches were given by several Hibakusha and members of a delegation who had visited New York City in conjunction with the NPT Review Conference.

Okuyama Shuhei of the “Daigo Fukuryu Maru” Peace Association delivered a speech in solidarity. He said, “Humanity has barely managed to prevent the use of nuclear weapons in combat since Hiroshima and Nagasaki,” adding, “We must defeat the continued acceptance of the outdated nuclear deterrence theory.”

Ieshima Masashi of the Japan Confederation of A- and H-Bomb Survivors Organizations (Nihon Hidankyo), in regard to the dangerous actions of some countries that disregard the UN Charter and international law, stated, “Let us strive to influence world politics with our call for peaceful coexistence.”