The hibakusha are radiation victims who were terribly scarred and diseased sufferers of the first atomic bombs in Hiroshima and Nagasaki. That is, they are atomic survivors who lived but infected and sick for a time or for several years-from the effects of the bomb and, as such, are witnesses to its horror, pain and death. Not only that, but for a time they were shunned by their own Japanese compatriots because they reminded the public, through their disfigurement, of losing the war and the shame at their defeat. But after the Bikini Atol test of the Hydrogen bomb and the deaths of Japanese fishermen nearby, the Japanese people began to change that view and today view the hibakusha as respected witnesses of the continuing nuclear threat
There are thousands of new radiation victims around the world who have become sick from the fallout of other atomic bomb testings, including Americans known as "down-winders," from the fallout of radiation poisoning here in the US and overseas. They too, have come to be called hibakusha. In similar fashion, the Russian Chernoble victims are also called hibakusha. This growing company of atomic radiation victims/sufferers/witnesses are reminders of the grave threat we are still facing. And since the U.S. development of tactical nuclear weapons made of depleted uranium (DU), which can penetrate the thick armor of tanks, we have seen more victims appear in the U.S. war on Afghanistan and in Iraq, both in 1990 in the Gulf War and now in the latest occupation of Iraq and, as a result, US soldiers who fought in the Gulf War and entered destroyed Iraqi tanks became infected and, later, many developed serious diseases from that radiation.
Thus in our Inter-Faith / Secular Witness Liturgy to be held at The New York Ave. Presbyterian Church in Washington DC on Sunday, December 14th at 3 PM, Japanese, and hibakusha from Japan, Korea, Russia and the United States, will be present to be welcomed, heard and supported for their contribution to the cause of world peace and to our goal of "No More" nuclear bombs or depleted uranium weapons. Whereas the Japanese hibakusha say: "NO WAR, NO DU!" the International Criminal Court called DU a "crime against humanity." The Japanese describe "Depleted Uranium" in this way:
| Though DU is 40% less radioactive than natural uranium, it is nevertheless a radiological substance. Some believe that to call what is essentially uranium "depleted uranium" is to deliberately encourage underestimation of the effects of uranium. Furthermore, there is evidence to suggest that new weapons being used by the US military utilize not only so-called "depleted uranium" but also include natural uranium and even plutonium. We are concerned about these problems, but because "depleted uranium" is the term in common use, we have used this term even where ":uranium" or "uranium" weapon might be more accurate. | ||
| Hiroshima Appeal for Banning DU Weapons Available from Global Peacemakers Assoc. Atlanta: (404)-898-0586 () |
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