April 8, 2010

Information on the 2010 World Conference against A & H Bombs

Dear friends,

Commemorating the 65th year since the atomic bombing, the 2010 World Conference against A & H Bombs will be held in Hiroshima and Nagasaki from August 2 (Mon) to 9 (Mon) under the main theme, “For a Nuclear Weapon-free, Peace and Just World”.

During the year since U.S. President Obama’s speech in Prague last April, the call for a nuclear weapon-free world has spread broadly both in the international political arena and among the public across the world. Toward the forthcoming NPT Review Conference in May, anti-nuclear peace movements all over the world are calling to start negotiations for totally banning nuclear weapons, collecting millions of petitions, and developing many activities for nuclear disarmament and elimination of nuclear weapons in their respective countries.

At the same time, the realization of a nuclear weapon-free world would require further development of movements calling for a ban and elimination of nuclear weapons and the public opinion to support these demands. Among the states possessing nuclear weapons or bound by military alliances, there is still a deep-rooted notion of asserting nuclear weapons as “deterrence” and regarding nuclear superiority as “guarantee of security”, while giving lip service to “a world without nuclear weapons”. It is now clear that such notion itself is providing incentives for nuclear proliferation.

The 2010 World Conference to be held at the 65th anniversary of the atomic bombing, will aim to analyze the current situation and trend involving nuclear weapons, criticize the fallacy of the “nuclear deterrence” theory, provide forums for world-wide peace movements to learn from each other, and set out a common path and direction for joint efforts and solidarity among the people to reach a nuclear weapon-free world.

Provisional Schedule

Following is the provisional schedule for the 2010 World Conference:
August 2 (Mon) - 4 (Wed): International Meeting, 2010 World Conference (Hiroshima)
August 4 (Wed) - 6 (Fri): 2010 World Conference against A & H Bombs - Hiroshima
August 7 (Sat): Travel from Hiroshima to Nagasaki
August 8 (Sun): International Forum (Nagasaki)
August 9 (Mon): 2010 World Conference against A & H Bombs - Nagasaki

Outline of the programs

Outline of the programs:
The International Meeting (Hiroshima) starts on August 2 at 14:00 and closes on August 4 at 11:30. It is a place for discussion, exchange of opinions and sharing of experiences among delegates from movements overseas and those representing various fields and localities of Japan. The International Meeting, through frank and honest exchange of views, will adopt a brief declaration, which would set a keynote for the entire World Conference. All statements submitted by the delegates to the International Meeting will be translated into English or Japanese, and distributed to the participants and the press during the conference. They will also be made available internationally through the web and on a conference record to be published. We strongly recommend that overseas delegates arrive in Hiroshima on or before August 1.

World Conference - Hiroshima: The Opening Plenary of the World Conference - Hiroshima will be held in the Hiroshima Prefectural Sports Center at 14:00, August 4. Various workshops and discussion meetings are planned on August 5. And the Closing Plenary (10:30-13:00) will be held on August 6. During the three-day Conference, approximately 8000 delegates gather every year from across Japan for exchange of views and deeper understandings among each other. People of wide spectrum of age participate in the conference, including youth in their twenties, who usually account for one-third of the entire participants. Details of the workshops on August 5 are set out in the attached. Besides, there are many other meetings organized by groups of different social spectrums and sectors, including the “International Youth Rally”. Overseas delegates are welcome to join these events for exchange and sharing.

World Conference - Nagasaki is held on August 8 and 9. Together with overseas delegates, delegates mainly from Kyushu region of Japan will join the two-day events in Nagasaki. The “International Forum” on August 8 is a place for exchange of opinions among the representatives of national governments, NGOs, and grass-root movements. The World Conference - Nagasaki on August 9 (10:30-13:00) will be the closing event of the entire 2010 World Conference programs. With our gratitude to the delegates from overseas, a reception will be held in the evening of the same day. We would recommend that the delegates plan to stay in Nagasaki on the night of August 9.

Procedures for Participation

Procedures for Participation:
Registration: Organizations/individuals planning to join the World Conference are requested to fill in and submit the attached Pre-registration form to the Conference Secretariat.

Registration fee: For overseas delegates it is $30 (or \3000) per person. Payment can be done at the registration desk after your arrival in Japan.

Transportation & accommodation

Transportation & accommodation: Unfortunately, the Organizing Committee cannot cover the international airfare of overseas delegates except for some delegates, including those representing nuclear victims organizations. Please book your flights and tickets well in advance. As to domestic transportation in Japan, the Organizing Committee will cover the cost of travel from your arriving airports to Hiroshima and from Hiroshima to Nagasaki, and hotel accommodation for three nights from August 1 to 3 for a maximum of two delegates per organization. For accommodation after August 4, we ask people in Hiroshima and Nagasaki to provide spaces for family-stay for overseas delegates. Please inquire the Organizing Committee for further information.

The World Conference against A & H Bombs has its origin in the nationwide anti-nuclear weapons movement in protest against the hydrogen bomb test at Bikini atoll on March 1, 1954, that caused devastating damage. The 1st World Conference was held in August 1955 and thereafter, a wide variety of movements have developed and continued till today, including the annual Nationwide Peace March during May to August. The World Conference has upheld the three fundamental goals: the prevention of nuclear war, the abolition of nuclear weapons, and relief and solidarity with the A-bomb victims.

In 2000, the five Nuclear Weapon States accepted “the total elimination of their nuclear arsenals” as “an unequivocal undertaking” at the 2000 NPT Review Conference held that year, which marked a significant agreement on the abolition of nuclear weapons at the international political level. Since that year, the World Conference against A & H Bombs has set the “cooperation among governments, public institutions and NGOs” also as one of the objectives of the conference.

We look forward to seeing many of you soon in Hiroshima.

Organizing Committee
World Conference against A & H Bombs