Ban Ki-moon speaking at the Hiroshima Atomic-Bomb Memorial Ceremony on August 6, 2010 (photo by Wu Zhaowei ８月６日 広島の式典に出席した潘基文国連事務総長 撮影 呉 兆煒) This year, Ban Ki-moon spoke the Hiroshima ceremony on August 6 as the first UN Secretary General attending the annual commemoration. Below is the full text of his speech then, first in English and in Japanese. In my observation, many who attended the ceremony, or heard or read his speech thought that it was the best of all. He shared his personal experience in the Korean War as a child, reinforced his commitment for nuclear weapons abolition, recognized Hibakusha (a-bomb survivors), their suffering and their contribution to the cause, and demonstrated some concrete steps for disarmament.
There was something, however, that I was expecting to hear in Ban's speech and did not. It is the idea of a Nuclear Weapons Convention(Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Testing, Production, Stockpiling, Transfer, Use and Threat of Use of Nuclear Weapons and on their Elimination), supported by Ban, atomic-bomb survivors' organizations like Nihon Hidankyo, Mayors for Peace, and many other NGOs around the world. It is also mentioned, though rather subtly, in his "five-point plan to rid world of nuclear weapons." He talked about it at the NGO Conference at Riverside Church, on May 1, 2010 in New York. Below is the YouTube video of his 20-minute speech then. "I especially welcome your support for the idea of concluding a Nuclear Weapon Convention," he said during the speech. It is reported that the idea of a Nuclear Weapons Convention was for the first time included twice in the final document of the 2010 NPT Review Conference, because of the Secretary General's strong commitment to the idea. But he did not mention it in his Hiroshima speech. Neither did he at the opening speech of the NPT Review Conference in New York, on April 30.
YouTube video of Ban Ki-moon and Hiroshima Mayor Tadatoshi Akiba's speeches at the NGO Conference at Riverside Church, New York, on May 1, 2010. The full text of Ban's speech then is available at the UN website.
I was at the Riverside Church on May 1 to hear Ban's speech, which was powerful, convincing, and inspiring, so this is probably why I was not as excited as the other people at the Hiroshima ceremony were about his speech on August 6. Apparently, Ban avoided talking directly about the Convention idea at the main UN conference in order not to upset the nuclear weapons states too much. That was understandable, but why did he avoid it again in his speech in the city, which is regarded by many as the international capital for nuclear abolition movements? Was he too considerate to the presence of U.S. Ambassador John Roos at the ceremony? It has been reported that Ban made a phone call to the U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton at some point when he was in Japan this summer. Whatever the reason was, we need to be vigilant about the forces that disable Ban from talking about a Nuclear Weapons Convention in the ceremony hosted by Hiroshima City, a co-leader of Mayors for Peace, an organization of 4,000+ mayors around the world committed to the idea of a Nuclear Weapons Convention and the total abolition of nuclear weapons by the year 2020.
Here are the full texts of Ban's speech in Hiroshima, first in English and then in Japanese.
http://www.un.org/apps/sg/sgstats.asp?nid=4712
Hiroshima, Japan, 6 August 2010 - Secretary-General's remarks at the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Ceremony
Hiroshima no minasama konichiwa. Ohayo gozaimasu.
We are here, on hallowed ground, to see, to feel, to absorb and reflect.
I am honored to be the first UN Secretary-General to take part in this Peace Memorial Ceremony on the 65th anniversary of this tragic day. And I am deeply moved.
When the atomic bombs fell on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, I was one year old. Only later in life, could I begin to understand the full dimension of all that happened here. As a young boy, I lived through the Korean War. One of my earliest memories is marching along a muddy road into the mountains, my village burning behind me. All those lives lost, families destroyed -- so much sadness. Ever since, I have devoted my life to peace. It has brought me here today.
Watakushiwa sekai heiwa no tameni Hiroshima ni mairimashita.
We gather to pay our solemn respects to those who perished, sixty-five years ago, and to the many more whose lives forever changed. Life is short, but memory is long.
For many of you, that day endures, as vivid as the white light that seared the sky, as dark as the black rains that followed. To you, I offer a message of hope. To all of you, I offer my message of peace. A more peaceful world can be ours. You are helping to make it happen. You, the survivors, who inspired us with your courage and fortitude. You, the next generations, the young generation, striving for a better day.
Together, you have made Hiroshima an epicentre of peace. Together, we are on a journey from ground zero to Global Zero ? a world free of weapons of mass destruction. That is the only sane path to a safer world. For as long as nuclear weapons exist, we will live under a nuclear shadow.
And that is why I have made nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation a top priority for the United Nations – and put forward a five-point plan.
Our moment has come. Everywhere, we find new friends and allies. We see new leadership from the most powerful nations. We see new engagement in the UN Security Council. We see new energy from civil society. Russia and the United States have a new START treaty. We made important progress at the Nuclear Security Summit in Washington last April, which we will build upon in Korea.
We must keep up the momentum. In September, I will convene a high-level meeting in support of the work of the Conference on Disarmament at the United Nations. We will push for negotiations towards nuclear disarmament. A Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty. A Fissile Material Cut-Off Treaty. Disarmament education in our schools -- including translating the testimonies of the survivors in the world's major languages. We must teach an elemental truth: that status and prestige belong not to those who possess nuclear weapons, but to those who reject them.
Ladies and gentlemen,
Sixty-five years ago, the fires of hell descended upon this place. Today, one fire burns, here in this Peace Park. That is the Flame of Peace ? a flame that will remain lit until nuclear weapons are no more. Together, let us work for that day ? in our lifetime, in the lifetimes of the survivors. Together, let us put out the last fire of Hiroshima. Let us replace that flame with the light of hope. Let us realize our dream of a world free of nuclear weapons so that our children and all succeeding generations can live in freedom, security and peace.
Thank you. Domo arigato gozaimasu.
http://mainichi.jp/select/wadai/archive/news/2010/08/06/20100806dde007040042000c.html
広島原爆の日：潘基文・国連事務総長あいさつ（全文）
私たちは今、この神聖な場所に身を置き、自らの目で見て、感じ、吸収し、そして深く考えます。
私は初の国連事務総長として、この平和記念式典に参加できたことを光栄に思います。そして今、深い感動に包まれています。
広島と長崎に原爆が投下された当時、私はまだ１歳でした。私がここで何が起きたのかを十分に把握したのは、しばらく後になってからのことでした。
私は少年時代を朝鮮戦争のさなかに過ごしました。
炎上する故郷の村を後にして、泥道を山中へと逃れたことが、私にとって最初の記憶の一つとして残っています。
多くの命が失われ、家族が引き裂かれ……、後には大きな悲しみが残されました。
それ以来、私は一生を平和のために捧（ささ）げてきました。
私が今日、ここにいるのもそのためです。
私たちは６５年前に命を失った人々、そして、その一生を永遠に変えられてしまったさらに多くの人々に対して哀悼と敬意の念を表するため、一堂に会しているのです。
命は短くとも、記憶は長く残ります。
皆さんの多くにとって、あの日はまるで、空を焼き尽くした閃光（せんこう）のように鮮明に、また、その後に降り注いだ黒い雨のように暗く、記憶に残り続けていると思います。
私は皆さんに、希望のメッセージを送りたいと思います。
より平和な世界を手にすることは可能です。
皆さんの力は、それを実現する助けとなります。
被爆者の皆さん、あなた方の勇気で、私たちは奮い立つことができました。
次の世代を担う皆さん、あなた方はよりよい明日の実現に努めています。
皆さんは力を合わせ、広島を平和の「震源地」としてきました。
私たちはともに、グラウンド・ゼロ（爆心地）から「グローバル・ゼロ」（大量破壊兵器のない世界）を目指す旅を続けています。
それ以外に、世界をより安全にするための分別ある道はありません。なぜなら、核兵器が存在する限り、私たちは核の影に怯（おび）えながら暮らすことになるからです。
そして、私が核軍縮と核不拡散を最優先課題に掲げ、５項目提案を出した理由もそこにあります。
私たちの力を合わせる時がやって来たのです。
私たちには至るところに新しい友や同志がいます。
最も強大な国々もリーダーシップを発揮し始めました。国連安全保障理事会でも、新たな取り組みが生まれています。また、市民社会にも新たな活力が見られます。
ロシアと米国は新しい戦略兵器削減条約に合意しました。
私たちはワシントンでの核セキュリティーサミットで重要な進展を遂げることができました。その成果を踏まえ、２０１２年には次回のサミットが韓国で開催される予定です。
私たちはこの勢いを保たなければなりません。
私は９月にニューヨークで軍縮会議を招集する予定です。
そのためには、核軍縮に向けた交渉を推し進めなければなりません。
それは、包括的核実験の禁止に向けた交渉です。
また、兵器用核分裂性物質生産禁止条約（カットオフ条約）に向けた交渉でもあります。
また、被爆者の証言を世界の主要言語に翻訳するなど、学校での軍縮教育も必要です。
地位や名声に値するのは核兵器を持つ者ではなく、これを拒む者であるという基本的な真実を、私たちは教えなければならないのです。
皆さん、
６５年前、この地には地獄の炎が降り注ぎました。
今日、ここ平和記念公園には、一つのともしびが灯（とも）っています。
それは平和のともしび、すなわち、核兵器が一つ残らずなくなるまで消えることのない炎です。
私たちはともに、自分たちが生きている間、そして被爆者の方々が生きている間に、その日を実現できるよう努めようではありませんか。
そしてともに、広島の炎を消しましょう。
その炎を希望の光へと変えようではありませんか。
核兵器のない世界という私たちの夢を実現しましょう。私たちの子どもたちや、その後のすべての人々が自由で、安全で、平和に暮らせるために。
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