Latest news with #ToshiyukiMimaki


The Mainichi
13-05-2025
- General
- The Mainichi
Replica of Nobel Prize medal on display at museum in Hiroshima
HIROSHIMA (Kyodo) --Replicas of the Nobel Peace Prize medal and certificate awarded last year to Japan's leading group of atomic bomb survivors went on display at the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum on Tuesday. Toshiyuki Mimaki, a representative of Nihon Hidankyo, or the Japan Confederation of A- and H-Bomb Sufferers Organizations, visited the museum, viewing the display while recalling the moment the group was honored with the award. The showing runs until Aug. 31. "I would like people to feel that the world must be peaceful," the 83-year-old survivor told reporters, adding the replicas were prepared by the Norwegian Nobel Committee for the group. Three sets of the copies are now kept in Hiroshima, Nagasaki and Tokyo. Atomic bombs were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in the final days of World War II in August 1945, killing an estimated 214,000 people by the end of that year and leaving numerous survivors to grapple with long-term physical and mental health challenges. Nihon Hidankyo received the Nobel Peace Prize for its efforts to achieve a world free of nuclear weapons and for conveying, through witness testimony, that they must never be used again.

13-05-2025
- General
Replicas of Nobel Prize Medal, Diploma Displayed in Hiroshima
News from Japan Society May 13, 2025 22:10 (JST) Hiroshima, May 13 (Jiji Press)--The Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum on Tuesday opened an exhibition of replicas of a Nobel Peace Prize medal and a diploma that hibakusha atomic bomb survivor group Nihon Hidankyo received in December last year. "I would like (visitors) to feel that the world must be at peace," Toshiyuki Mimaki, 83, a co-chairperson of the group, officially called the Japan Confederation of A- and H-Bomb Sufferers Organizations, said after seeing the exhibits. The replicas will be displayed in a free panel exhibition commemorating Hidankyo's winning of the Nobel Peace Prize on the first floor of the museum in Hiroshima, western Japan, until Aug. 31. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.] Jiji Press


Japan Times
09-05-2025
- Politics
- Japan Times
Heads of hibakusha groups urge Pope Leo to promote abolition of nukes
The heads of atomic bomb survivor groups in Hiroshima and Nagasaki voiced hope Friday that newly elected Pope Leo XIV will promote nuclear abolition as his predecessor, Francis, did. The late pope, who died in April, visited the two atomic-bombed Japanese cities in 2019 and called for the elimination of nuclear weapons. "I want (the new pope) to think about peace first and aim for a world without nuclear weapons," said Toshiyuki Mimaki, 83, who heads a hibakusha group in Hiroshima Prefecture. He urged the 69-year-old new pope to "visit Hiroshima and Nagasaki in the near future." "It doesn't matter where he is from. I hope he'll work with the same mindset as previous popes," Mimaki said of Leo, the first U.S.-born pope. Shigemitsu Tanaka, 84, who heads a hibakusha group in the Nagasaki Prefecture, said that he wants the new pope to adhere to Francis' stance on nuclear abolition. "The wish of hibakusha is not to fight back, but to ensure that people never have to go through the same suffering again," Tanaka said. This year marks the 80th anniversary of Japan's surrender in World War II. Still, there are constant military clashes around the world, including Russia's invasion of Ukraine. "World leaders should have more dialogue before fighting a war," Tanaka said.

21-04-2025
- Politics
Pope Francis, Who Called for Nuke Abolition from Japan, Dies
Paris/Hiroshima/Nagasaki, April 21 (Jiji Press)--Pope Francis, who called for the abolition of nuclear weapons during his 2019 visit to Hiroshima and Nagasaki, died Monday at the age of 88, the Vatican said. Hailing from Argentina, Pope Francis was picked in 2013 to become the first leader of the Catholic Church from Latin America. In 2019, he became the first pope in 38 years to visit Japan. During his four-day stay in the Asian nation, he visited Hiroshima and Nagasaki, which were devastated by U.S. atomic bombings in the final days of World War II, and urged the world to abolish nuclear weapons. He also met with people affected by the March 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake. When the pope visited Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park at the time, Toshiyuki Mimaki, who heads a group of hibakusha atomic bomb survivors in the western Japan prefecture of Hiroshima, asked the pope to tell politicians around the world to stop wars. The pope will be "greatly missed," Mimaki said after hearing the news of his death. [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]


Leaders
12-04-2025
- Politics
- Leaders
‘Those Fighting for Peace in Gaza Deserve Prize', Says Nobel Peace Laureate
Nobel laureate Toshiyuki Mimaki has broken down in tears and given an emotional speech about what is going on in Gaza at a news conference, according to Reuters. Mimaki's remarks came after Nihon Hidankyo, an organization for atomic bomb survivors' group that Mimaki co-chairs, had won the Nobel Peace Prize. The group's co-chair stated that activists who support peace in Gaza are the only people who deserve the prize. He also revealed that he never dreamed they would win and thought 'those fighting hard for peace in Gaza deserve it.' Mimaki sadly noted that Israel's bloody genocide in Gaza reminds him of US nuclear bomb that hit Hiroshima in 1945. 'The images of children in Gaza covered in blood held by their parents remind me of Japan 80 years ago,' he added. Mimaki also mentioned that most people today seek to achieve peace in the world, but politicians insist on waging war, saying 'We will not stop until we win.' 'I think this is true for Russia and Israel, and I always wonder whether the power of the United Nations could not put a stop to it,' Mimaki said. Related Topics: Saudi Arabia Urges Global Action to End Gaza Blockade UN Rights Office: 36 Israeli Raids in Gaza Killed 'Only Women and Children' Israeli Military Fires Reservists over Gaza War Criticism Short link : Post Views: 1 Related Stories