The Nobel Committee’s recognition of the Japanese hibakusha organization Nihon Hidankyo comes at a crucial moment for addressing the nuclear threat.
The following article was published in the November-December 2024 issue of NewsNotes.
The Norwegian Nobel Committee announced on October 11 that it has awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for 2024 to the Japanese organization Nihon Hidankyo. The committee stated, “This grassroots movement of atomic bomb survivors from Hiroshima and Nagasaki, also known as Hibakusha, is receiving the Peace Prize for its efforts to achieve a world free of nuclear weapons and for demonstrating through witness testimony that nuclear weapons must never be used again.”
In a press release from the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN), Nobel Laureate 2017, Executive Director Melissa Parke said, “It is extremely important that the hibakusha have been recognized for their lifelong work to bring the world’s attention to what nuclear weapons actually do to people when they are used. It is particularly significant that this award comes at this time when the risk that nuclear weapons will be used again is as high, if not higher, as it has ever been.
“Their testimonies and tireless campaigning have been crucial to progress on nuclear disarmament in general and the adoption and entry into force of the UN Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) in particular. We call on the nuclear-armed states and their allies which support the use of nuclear weapons, including of course Japan, to heed their call to abolish these inhumane weapons to make sure what they have been through never happens again.”
The recognition of the hibakusha comes at a crucial moment. Next year marks 80 years since the atomic bombing of Japan. Meanwhile, New START, the sole remaining nuclear arms control treaty between nuclear superpowers the United States and Russia, is set to expire on February 6, 2026. MOGC will launch a yearlong campaign on January 22, 2025, the fourth anniversary of the entry into force of the TPNW, to increase awareness and solidarity around nuclear disarmament, and pressure the U.S. and Russia to commit to a new arms control framework.
Faith in action
Get involved in Back from the Brink to advocate for nuclear risk reduction and disarmament in your community. https://preventnuclearwar.org/
Photo of Nobel Prize Medal by Adam Baker via Flickr.