In the dark night, I kept screaming in the rough seas, November 2, 17:30
All of her photos are downturned without looking ahead.
And there are few pictures of the right side of the body.
"It was like yelling at the rough seas in the dark night." Even in
the depths of despair, she and her companions never gave up.
"No matter what difficulties you may have, you must absolutely eliminate them from the world."
That's because there are things that I have been thinking strongly and strongly.
Her 93-year-old thoughts have been passed down to 17-year-old high school girls.
And next January, that thought will take shape.
(Hiroshima station reporter Yusuke Kita, Nagasaki station reporter Mayu Yoshida)
75 years of strong wishes
"If we can tell you about the atomic bomb, we will cooperate as long as this life lasts,"
said Shizuko Abe, a 93-year-old atomic bomb survivor in Hiroshima, who has appealed for the abolition of nuclear weapons for half a century.
6:30 am on October 25, Japan time.
It has become clear that the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, which she has been strongly wishing for, has come into effect.
Shizuko Abe
"Today is a memorable day. Although the power of each A-bomb survivor is small, I have been constantly appealing to the world that" the ugliness and horror of nuclear weapons must not be repeated. " I am proud of being one of the A-bomb survivors as a result of the gathering of the small voices of the A-bomb survivors. "
"I'm glad I was alive" "I'm glad I kept screaming" From the
occasional smile, the depth of joy was conveyed.
Abe's spectacular experience behind a smile.
The words spoken by Mr. Abe were extremely heavy.
18 operations "It was a very painful and painful operation"
The atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima on August 6, 75 years ago.
Mr. Abe was 18 years old at that time.
I just got married.
A-bombed during the demolition work of the building to prevent the city from spreading due to air raids.
It was only 1.5 kilometers away from the hypocenter and suffered severe burns to the right side of the body.
After that, he will have 18 operations.
Shizuko Abe
"The heat rays burned my skin, and the intense blast that followed it tore and drooped. At that time, I had little anesthesia and medicine, so I added it even if the anesthesia was cut off during surgery. I couldn't get it. It was a very painful and painful operation. I endured it with the desire to return to my original body. "
The wish was not fulfilled, and keloids remained on the right side of the face and body.
That's why Mr. Abe's photographs are all facing down or taken on the left side.
However, in this interview, Mr. Abe allowed me to shoot from the right side.
"I want to tell you everything that the atomic bomb has brought as a fact."
This is Mr. Abe's thoughts now.
Called "Akaoni", "Blank 10 Years"
A-bomb survivors call the decade after the atomic bombing a "blank decade."
It was until around 1955 that the survivors suffering from sequelae had little medical or financial support and were exposed to severe prejudice and discrimination.
Shizuko Abe
"The wounds did not heal, my body became weak, I continued to live in poverty, and I was left unattended for 10 years without any support. It was very sad. I was interested in" What are the A-bomb survivors? " Instead of being comforted and comforted by the eyes of the cormorants, they were bullied by the mainstream people. The suffering and trauma of those days are still there. "
Mr. Abe is said to have been called "Akaoni" because of his red swelling scars.
A-bomb survivors who have been exposed to heartless words, even from their relatives, and who have become injured and close to each other.
A-bomb survivors will also stand up as the US tuna fishing boat Daigo Fukuryu Maru was bombed in a hydrogen bomb test at Bikini Atoll in the Pacific Ocean and voices banning atomic bombs are rising nationwide.
In 1956, the A-bomb survivors formed a delegation and headed to Tokyo, visiting the home of then Prime Minister Hatoyama and appealing for the relief of the survivors and the abolition of nuclear weapons.
That led to the formation of the Japan Confederation Association, which still plays a central role in the movement to abolish nuclear weapons.
"No more hibakusha" appeal to the world
"It was very tough, and it was a movement that shouted at the rough seas in the dark night,"
Abe recalls.
There was no response to the continuous appeal for the abolition of nuclear weapons, nuclear tests were repeated in the world, and the nuclear arms race did not stop during the Cold War.
Mr. Abe has been resenting the United States, which dropped the atomic bomb that changed his life.
Twenty years have passed since the atomic bombing, and in 1964, the year of the Tokyo Olympics, a change of mind will come.
It was when I went to the "World Peace Pilgrimage" to talk about my own experiences, traveling to the United States, Europe, and the former Soviet Union.
It was because I was exposed to the kindness of my family who accepted me at my homestay in the United States.
Shizuko Abe
"It was hard, wasn't it?" He listened to me very politely. Whether you are an American or anyone, a new hibakusha It changed to the idea that it should not be created. "
In the 1980s, Abe and his hibakusha began to focus on the movement to abolish nuclear weapons overseas.
The speech by Senji Yamaguchi, a survivor of Nagasaki who first took the stage at the United Nations, is also called the "No More Hibakusha Speech."
The terrifying appeal, even after nearly 40 years, has not faded and still strikes the hearts of listeners.
While expecting international public opinion, the attitude of "Japan" is ...
The proceedings of each A-bomb survivor gradually but steadily spread to the international community.
In a questionnaire conducted by NHK on the Internet, about 70% of the younger generation in the United States answered that they do not need nuclear weapons.
Mr. Abe hopes that international public opinion will change as a result of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, but he says that there are some unfortunate things.
That is the attitude of us "Japan".
The Government of Japan continues to oppose the treaty, saying it is "different from Japan's approach to advancing nuclear disarmament while properly addressing security threats."
Shizuko Abe
"Looking at the current government, I remember the 10 years since the atomic bombing, when I was worried about the United States, saying,'It's bad for the United States to say that the damage caused by the atomic bomb is great,' without any support." That's absolutely unacceptable. Countries with nuclear weapons, and those that support them, are lenient about the damage caused by the atomic bomb. For humans, the world, without worrying about the United States. I want you to stand up for the abolition of nuclear weapons. I want Japan to take the lead in the abolition of nuclear weapons by joining the circle of countries that have ratified it. "
Three days after the treaty came into effect, another hibakusha ...
Three days after the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons came into effect.
Another A-bomb survivor died in Hiroshima.
This is Mitsuo Kodama (88 years old).
Kodama has developed various cancers such as the large intestine, stomach, and thyroid gland and has undergone more than 20 surgeries.
While fighting cancer, he has continued to appeal for the abolition of nuclear weapons by showing photographs of his own chromosomes damaged by the radiation of the atomic bomb.
The average age of A-bomb survivors is over 83, and the opportunity to hear "live testimony" is lost daily.
However, the younger generation who take over the proceedings of the A-bomb survivors is steadily growing.
"Red back" that received a strong impact
Yuka Okuma, a second-year high school student in Nagasaki, holds the microphone in the downtown area.
We go out to the streets almost every weekend to sign the abolition of nuclear weapons.
He is a member of the High School Peace Ambassador, an organization that conducts peace activities in collaboration with high school students nationwide.
This photo is the reason why Mr. Okuma participated in the peace movement.
The "red back" of A-bomb survivor Sumiteru Taniguchi, who suffered a serious red burn.
Mr. Taniguchi was exposed to the bomb during mail delivery when he was 16 years old.
Mr. Okuma is said to have been shocked when he saw this picture in a peace class at an elementary school.
Yuka Okuma
"I don't know if the wording is appropriate, but I thought it was terrible. I felt that the atomic bomb suddenly blew me away and when I noticed it, my back was burned. I felt scared. "
Mr. Okuma's great-grandmother was also a hibakusha, but he rarely talked about his experience.
My great-grandmother must have experienced the same suffering as Mr. Taniguchi.
Mr. Okuma decided to participate in peace operations, not to repeat the misery of the atomic bomb.
The "Nuclear Weapons Ban Treaty" that continued to appeal until the end came into effect
During his lifetime, Mr. Taniguchi repeatedly attended UN conferences such as the NPT = Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty, and continued to appeal for the inhumanity of the atomic bomb by pointing his "red back" at the international community.
Sumiteru Taniguchi's appeal
"If you see me, please do not look away and look again. I was able to survive miraculously, but" living "means" suffering. " We are living with suffering, with the scars of the atomic bomb cursed all over our bodies. Nuclear weapons are extinct weapons and cannot coexist with humans for whatever reason. Never use it at all. Having a nuclear weapon and thinking about having it is anti-human. I can't die without worry if I don't see the nuclear weapon disappear from the world. "
Four years ago, Mr. Taniguchi launched a signing activity in Nagasaki calling for the realization of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons.
The following year, until just before his death, he continued to appeal for the treaty from his bed.
Sumiteru Taniguchi's appeal
"A country that does not have nuclear weapons should surround the country that has nuclear weapons and make an effort to eliminate nuclear weapons as soon as possible. When we, the A-bomb survivors, are gone I'm most scared of what the (world) will look like. "
Realization of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, which Mr. Taniguchi appealed to the end with the intention of killing his life.
Immediately after its entry into force, the atomic bomb survivors gathered at the Peace Park in Nagasaki City to share their joy.
Among them was Mr. Okuma.
Yuka Okuma
"I think the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons will be a very important step, and I hope that it will be a step toward signing activities by our high school students and a world without nuclear weapons."
The "Nuclear Weapons Ban Treaty," the first treaty that prohibits the illegal development, possession, use of nuclear weapons, and the threatening of possession, will come into effect on January 22, next year.
However, with the participation of nuclear-weapon states and countries under the "nuclear umbrella" such as Japan, there are some doubts about their effectiveness.
However, the A-bomb survivors and young people never give up and look forward.
The cry of the souls of the A-bomb survivors, which can be said to be the origin of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons.
Until there are no nuclear weapons in the world, there will be no end.
Hiroshima Bureau Reporter
Yusuke Kita
Joined in 2007 Okinawa Bureau, Hiroshima Bureau after working in the Social Affairs Department.
Covers the A-bomb survivors.
Nagasaki Bureau Reporter
Mayu Yoshida
Joined in 2015 Nagasaki Bureau after working at Kanazawa Bureau.
In charge of coverage of the atomic bomb.