Takeshi Araki
Encyclopedia
was the mayor of Hiroshima
from 1975 to 1991.
In April 1947, he was elected as member of the Hiroshima city council, and as member of the Hiroshima Prefectural Assembly in 1951.
Araki was elected mayor of Hiroshima in 1975. In 1976, he protested the air show held in Texas, in which the US Air Force held an imitation of the atomic attack on Hiroshima in the form of a mushroom cloud in the desert. As a mayor, Araki approached the US government to work for nuclear disarmament. On November 26, 1976, he held a meeting in Washington D.C. with head of Arms Control and Disarmament Agency
Fred Ikle
, a meeting attended also by mayor Yoshitake Morotani of Nagasaki
with the purpose of promoting US policy of nuclear disarmament. On November 30, the two mayors met US Permanent Representative to the UN William Scranton
and conveyed the same message. The two mayors met UN Secretary General Kurt Waldheim
on December 3. Araki later described his meeting with Waldheim as follows:
In May 1978, spoke at a special session of the United Nations General Assembly, dealing with disarmament, and was the first ever Mayor of Hiroshima to appear at an official UN session.
Being a hibakusha
himself, He helped found the organization Mayors for Peace
in 1982. He also concluded a number of Sister City agreements with Hannover, Germany
(1983) and Chongqing
, People's Republic of China
(1986).
Hiroshima
is the capital of Hiroshima Prefecture, and the largest city in the Chūgoku region of western Honshu, the largest island of Japan. It became best known as the first city in history to be destroyed by a nuclear weapon when the United States Army Air Forces dropped an atomic bomb on it at 8:15 A.M...
from 1975 to 1991.
In April 1947, he was elected as member of the Hiroshima city council, and as member of the Hiroshima Prefectural Assembly in 1951.
Araki was elected mayor of Hiroshima in 1975. In 1976, he protested the air show held in Texas, in which the US Air Force held an imitation of the atomic attack on Hiroshima in the form of a mushroom cloud in the desert. As a mayor, Araki approached the US government to work for nuclear disarmament. On November 26, 1976, he held a meeting in Washington D.C. with head of Arms Control and Disarmament Agency
Arms Control and Disarmament Agency
The U.S. Arms Control and Disarmament Agency was established as an independent agency of the United States government by the Arms Control and Disarmament Act , September 26, 1961, a bill drafted by presidential adviser John J. McCloy. Its predecessor was the U.S. Disarmament Administration, part...
Fred Ikle
Fred Ikle
Dr. Fred Charles Iklé was a United States Department of Defense official during the presidency of Ronald Reagan who is credited with a key role in increasing U.S. aid to anti-Soviet rebels in the Soviet War in Afghanistan...
, a meeting attended also by mayor Yoshitake Morotani of Nagasaki
Nagasaki
is the capital and the largest city of Nagasaki Prefecture on the island of Kyushu in Japan. Nagasaki was founded by the Portuguese in the second half of the 16th century on the site of a small fishing village, formerly part of Nishisonogi District...
with the purpose of promoting US policy of nuclear disarmament. On November 30, the two mayors met US Permanent Representative to the UN William Scranton
William Scranton
William Warren Scranton is a former U.S. Republican Party politician. Scranton served as the 38th Governor of Pennsylvania from 1963 to 1967. From 1976 to 1977, he served as United States Ambassador to the United Nations.-Early life:...
and conveyed the same message. The two mayors met UN Secretary General Kurt Waldheim
Kurt Waldheim
Kurt Josef Waldheim was an Austrian diplomat and politician. Waldheim was the fourth Secretary-General of the United Nations from 1972 to 1981, and the ninth President of Austria, from 1986 to 1992...
on December 3. Araki later described his meeting with Waldheim as follows:
There we, as survivors, living witnesses, testified the true facts of our atomic bomb experiences, and we strongly appealed for the total abolition of nuclear weapons and the renunciation of war.
To this appeal of ours, both Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim and President H.S. AmerasingheHamilton Shirley AmerasingheHamilton Shirley Amerasinghe, CCS was a Sri Lankan diplomat and civil servant. He was the Ceylon's High Commissioner to India and concurrently Ambassador to both Nepal and Afghanistan and Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Finance & Treasury and the Ministry of Health...
of the General Assembly, representing the United Nations, respectively emphasized that the sufferings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki are sufferings to be shared by the whole of mankind, and that a new concept of world order should be built from the ashes of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. They deeply sympathized with us, expressing their earnest desire to visit Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
In May 1978, spoke at a special session of the United Nations General Assembly, dealing with disarmament, and was the first ever Mayor of Hiroshima to appear at an official UN session.
Being a hibakusha
Hibakusha
The surviving victims of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki are called , a Japanese word that literally translates to "explosion-affected people"...
himself, He helped found the organization Mayors for Peace
Mayors for Peace
Mayors for Peace is an international organization of cities, dedicated for the promotion of peace that was established in 1982 at the initiative of then mayor of Hiroshima Takeshi Araki....
in 1982. He also concluded a number of Sister City agreements with Hannover, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
(1983) and Chongqing
Chongqing
Chongqing is a major city in Southwest China and one of the five national central cities of China. Administratively, it is one of the PRC's four direct-controlled municipalities , and the only such municipality in inland China.The municipality was created on 14 March 1997, succeeding the...
, People's Republic of China
People's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
(1986).