October 4, 2000
Japan Council against A & H Bombs

The total number of signatures in support of the "Appeal from Hiroshima and Nagasaki for a Total Ban and Elimination of Nuclear Weapons" collected all over Japan surpassed the goal of 60 million, representing roughly 50 percent of the Japanese population. We would like to convey our deep respect and gratitude to those tens of thousands of people in different strata across the country, who have supported the Appeal and carried out the signature campaign for the last 15 years.

The "Appeal from Hiroshima and Nagasaki" signature campaign was launched jointly by the representatives of peace and anti-nuclear organizations of 12 countries, including our council, who gathered in Hiroshima and Nagasaki on January 6 and 9, 1985 respectively. It appealed for "complete prohibition and abolition of nuclear weapons as a straightforward goal, in a compact and clear call, beyond specific or partial nuclear disarmament measures. The "Appeal" was welcomed warmly by the people, and soon spread in Japan and throughout the world.

In the international arena, the "Appeal" was supported by nearly all peace and anti-nuclear organizations, such as the NGO Committee for Disarmament (Geneva), International Peace Bureau (IPB) and the World Peace Council and others. At the 3rd U.N. Special Session on Disarmament in 1988, the World NGO Conference recommended that the "Appeal" be carried out as a common action among the peoples of the world. During the "Peace Wave" actions for the abolition of nuclear weapons, which took place across the world in 5 different occasions from Oct. 1987, the "Appeal" signature campaign was taken up as a common form of action. In Vietnam, for instance, signatures for the "Appeal" were collected from more than a half of its population. Eventually the "Appeal" signature campaign spread to 160 countries.

Today in Japan, in 18 prefectures, more than half of the prefectural people have signed the "Appeal", and encouraged by this signature campaign, the number of local municipalities having adopted a nuclear-free declaration has increased from 300 when the signature campaign was started, to over 2,500 today.

As we enter the 21st century, the abolition of nuclear weapons has become a call of overwhelming majority of countries in world political arena. In December last year, the U.N. resolutions on the abolition of nuclear weapons were adopted with overwhelming support and at the past NPT Review Conference, an unequivocal undertaking to accomplish the total elimination of nuclear weapons was made by the treaty's member states, including the nuclear weapons states. Further, at the U.N. Millennium Summit, heads of states and governments gathered there resolved "to strive for the elimination of nuclear weapons".  We believe that the "Appeal from Hiroshima and Nagasaki" has made historically significant contribution to such progress toward the abolition of nuclear weapons.

We would like to congratulate this commemorative accomplishment with all people both at home abroad, who have involved themselves to the signature campaign. We call on all governments of the world to work on so that the current U.N. Millennium Assembly will make a courageous decision to totally ban all nuclear weapons for a 21st century without such weapons. As an expression of the aspiration of the grass roots people wishing to achieve a 21st century free of nuclear weapons, we are determined to continue the signature campaign in Japan and in the world.

Go to the Top Page