India’s Ambassador to Japan, Nagma Mallick, on Thursday paid tribute to the victims of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima by laying flowers at the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park as the Japanese city marked the 81st anniversary of the attack.
During her visit, Ambassador Mallick attended a reception for members of the diplomatic corps invited to the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Ceremony, where she met Hiroshima Governor Mika Yokota and Hiroshima Mayor Kazumi Matsui.
The envoy also joined Mayor Matsui, Hiroshima Prefectural Assembly Chairman Takashi Nakamoto and Hiroshima Japan-India Association President Kazuhisa Matsumoto in laying a wreath at the statue of Mahatma Gandhi.
In a post on X, the Indian Embassy in Japan said: “Ambassador’s Visit to Hiroshima. Ambassador Mallick, together with Hiroshima Mayor Kazumi Matsui, Hiroshima Prefectural Assembly Chairman Takashi Nakamoto, and Hiroshima Japan-India Association President Kazuhisa Matsumoto, laid a wreath at the statue of Bapu (Mahatma Gandhi). We extend our heartfelt gratitude to all members of the Indian community in Japan who participated, and to everyone who supports India.”
On August 6, 1945, the United States dropped a uranium bomb from the B-29 bomber Enola Gay over Hiroshima during the final stages of the Second World War. The bombing claimed an estimated 140,000 lives by the end of that year.
At the annual memorial ceremony on Thursday, Hiroshima renewed its call for the abolition of nuclear weapons, describing them as “tools of intimidation” and warning that the actions of major powers threaten international law, according to Japan’s Kyodo News.
In his Peace Declaration, Hiroshima Mayor Matsui said: “Downplaying the inhumanity of nuclear weapons and accepting the use of force to pursue one’s own prosperity risk cycles of violent retaliation that could ultimately result in another Hiroshima or Nagasaki.”
A moment of silence was observed at 8:15 a.m. local time, marking the exact time the atomic bomb detonated over Hiroshima on August 6, 1945.
According to Kyodo News, around 50,000 people gathered at the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park to honour the victims, with representatives from 121 countries and the European Union attending the ceremony.
(With inputs from IANS)
