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Reject U.S. policies, Shinzo Abe told

STARK REMINDER: Doves fly beside the Atomic Bomb Dome during the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Ceremony in Hiroshima on Monday. - PHOTO: AFP

HIROSHIMA: Prime Minister Shinzo Abe pledged on Monday to work toward the abolition of nuclear weapons as Hiroshima marked the 62nd anniversary of the world’s first atomic bomb attack, which killed more than 1,40,000 persons in the Japanese city.

Survivors, residents, visitors and officials from around the world observed a minute of silence at 8:15 a.m., the moment the American B-29 bomber Enola Gay dropped its deadly payload on Hiroshima on Aug. 6, 1945.

An estimated 1,40,000 persons were killed instantly or died within a few months after the bombing.

Three days later, another U.S. airplane dropped a plutonium bomb on the city of Nagasaki, killing about 80,000 persons.

“Japan has been taking the path toward global peace for 62 years since World War II.

The tragedies of Hiroshima and Nagasaki should never be repeated in any place on earth,” said Mr. Abe in a speech at Hiroshima Peace Park, near the bomb’s epicentre.

His remarks followed the resignation last month of Defence Minister Fumio Kyuma amid a public outcry over his having suggested that the U.S. atomic bombings may have been justified.

Mayor Tadatoshi Akiba urged the central government to should stick to its war-renouncing Constitution.

“The Japanese government should comply with the nation’s pacifist Constitution and clearly say no to wrong and outdated policies of the United States,” Mr. Akiba said, without elaborating.

About 2,60,000 persons survived the attacks.

Many have developed various illnesses caused by radiation exposure, including cancer and liver diseases.

Ceremonies will also be held on Thursday’s anniversary of the Nagasaki attack.

Japan surrendered on August 15, 1945, bringing World War II to an end. — AP

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