Hiroshima survivors warn against Japan's rearmament
On the anniversary of the atomic bombings, survivors and activists tell DW Japan's military buildup risks eroding its longstanding commitment to pacifism. Japan on Thursday
On the anniversary of the atomic bombings, survivors and activists tell DW Japan's military buildup risks eroding its longstanding commitment to pacifism. Japan on Thursday commemorates the 81st anniversary of the nuclear attack on Hiroshima. On August 6, 1945, the US dropped an atomic bomb on the Japanese city of Hiroshima during the last days of World War II, killing close to 80,000 people in the initial blast. Three days later, the US dropped a bomb over Nagasaki. "Japan adopted a pacifist constitution in reflection on World War II," noted Masako Wada, assistant secretary general of Nihon Hidankyo, or the Japan Confederation of A- and H-Bomb Sufferers' Organizations. Japan "earned the trust of the international community as a country that promised never to wage a war again," added Wada, who survived the Nagasaki bombing as a 1-year-old. The dropping of the atomic bomb on August 6, 1945, flattened more than two-thirds of Hiroshima [FILE: September 8, 1945] Image: Stanley Troutman/AP Photo/picture alliance However, in recent years, Japan has increased defense spending, eased restrictions on weapons exports and expanded the role of its military, citing growing risks from China, North Korea and Russia. "The current administration is destroying that [trust]," Wada told DW, referring to Japan's recent efforts to pivot away from decades of strict postwar pacifism. "Japan's recent military buildup is no different from recreating the arms race that led the country toward World War II," said 84-year-old Masashi Ieshima, who survived the Hiroshima bombing at the age of 3. Survivors warn against rearmament Ieshima was playing in the entrance of his house, just 1.2 miles (2 km) from the hypocenter, when the blast shattered all the windows in the house, sending shards of glass into his mother.
Hiroshima 'successors' keep telling atomic bomb stories To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video Seventy years later, he underwent surgery for thyroid cancer, which was officially recognized as an atomic bomb-related illness. His father, who was also exposed to the Hiroshima atomic bombing, died of laryngeal cancer. "It makes my blood boil to see Japan justify its military buildup and the easing of arms export restrictions over the possibility of a Taiwan conflict," said Ieshima, who serves as the chairman of Toyukai, the Tokyo affiliate of Nihon Hidankyo. "If Japan continues down this path, it could lead to war. And if another war breaks out, I believe it will be a nuclear war." The average age of Japan's atomic bomb survivors, known as "hibakusha," has reached almost 87. They face the urgent challenge of passing on their testimony and calls for peace to younger generations, including their children, grandchildren, and supporters. Takako Nakamura, a second-generation atomic bomb survivor from Nagasaki, began working actively as a family testimony speaker in February 2026, following her career retirement. "People were killed without a trace, not even their bones remain. That is the true nature of the atomic bomb," the 73-year-old told DW, her voice breaking. Wada urged people around the world to recognize that the danger of nuclear weapons is "not something in the past, but in front of us right now." She said she does not want sympathy for survivors, but empathy. "I want people to think of it as their own issue." Japan pushes for military buildup, non-nuclear principles at risk On Tuesday, Japan's Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi said the country needs to strengthen its military with a "sense of urgency and crisis" as a new government assessment again highlighted growing risks from China, North Korea and Russia, according to Agence France-Presse (AFP).
The BriefWire