Every year on August 6, the City of Hiroshima holds a Peace Memorial Ceremony to pray for the peaceful repose of the victims, for the abolition of nuclear weapons, and for lasting world peace. During that ceremony, the Mayor issues…
“I adored my mother; she raised me with such kindness and care.” The woman speaking was 16 when she left home carrying the lunch her mother had lovingly prepared. She never imagined it would be their final parting. Summer, 77…
by Kazumi Matsui, Mayor of The City of Hiroshima August 6, 2021 On this day 76 years ago, a single atomic bomb instantly reduced our hometown to a scorched plain. That bombing brought cruel death to countless innocent victims…
by MATSUI Kazumi Mayor, The City of Hiroshima August 6, 2020 On August 6, 1945, a single atomic bomb destroyed our city. Rumor at the time had it that “nothing will grow here for 75 years.” And yet, Hiroshima recovered,…
By Matsui Kazumi Mayor, The City of Hiroshima AUG. 6, 2017 – Friends, seventy-two years ago today, on August 6, at 8:15 a.m., absolute evil was unleashed in the sky over Hiroshima. Let’s imagine for a moment what happened under…
In our town, we had the warmth of family life, the deep human bonds of community, festivals heralding each season, traditional culture and buildings passed down through history, as well as riversides where children played. At 8:15 a.m., August 6,…
By Matsui Kazumi, Mayor, The City of Hiroshima Summer, 69 years later. The burning sun takes us back to “that day.” August 6, 1945. A single atomic bomb renders Hiroshima a burnt plain. From infants to the elderly, tens of…
By Kazumi Matsui, Mayor, The City of Hiroshima 8:15 a.m., August 6, 1945. Our hometown was reduced to ashes by a single atomic bomb. The houses we came home to, our everyday lives, the customs we cherished–all were gone: “Hiroshima…
