Peace Declaration (1965)

The twentieth anniversary of the atomic bombing is here with us today.

We, who witnessed the catastrophic ravages of that atomic bomb, have been led to the realization that our conventional view on wars must undergo a radical change. In the nuclear age, war has come to mean nothing less than an act inviting ruin upon mankind itself, without distinction of friend or foe, for an atom bomb is not merely a dreadfully destructive weapon of barbarous cruelty, but it has also become clear that its radioactivity, while undermining human bodies over a long period of time, will ultimately make the very earth uninhabitable for man.

It is this realization that has constantly urged us, the people of Hiroshima, to voice our strong appeal for the banning of atomic and hydrogen bombs and for the complete renunciation of all war.

During the past twenty years, however, not only have nuclear weapons undergone prodigious development, both in quality as well as in quantity, but the countries possessing them have gradually grown in number, all contributing to increasingly confuse the situation. Truly alarming is the further fact that armed conflicts involving grave risks are being repeated in Vietnam and elsewhere in the world. In our apprehension, never before has humanity faced a crisis greater than that of today.

This viewpoint should require all nations and peoples to strive for the prevention of man's downfall by exerting their utmost efforts, to which all previous international entanglements should give way in view of the gravity of the situation. This, we firmly believe, is the imperative need of the present moment.

Today we reiterate this appeal to the whole world as we once again propitiate the manes of those who perished in the atomic bombing.

August 6, 1965

Shinzo Hamai
Mayor
The City of Hiroshima