LONDON - 11 August 2008 - 245 words
Peace
groups remember Hiroshima and Nagasaki
Pax Christi members around the country have marked the 63rd anniversary
of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki on 6 and 9 August
1945. Among them, day-long vigils on the steps of Westminster
Cathedral in Central London; a service in the Chapel of Unity
in Coventry Cathedral with readings prayers and poems; a night
vigil at Aylesford Priory in Kent; a memorial service in Swinton,
Salford and an evening service of prayer in Aigburgh, Liverpool.
In London, hundreds of people took leaflets about the anniversaries and others joined with twice daily times of prayer for peace. Ninety people attended the Coventry event where they were addressed by guests form Japan and by the Mayor of Coventry. The event was coordinated by the Lord Mayors Committee for Peace and reconciliation, the Quakers and Pax Christi.
Pax Christi vice-president Bruce Kent
participated in the memorial service in Hiroshima on the morning
of 6 August where he was attending on behalf of CND. The Mayor
of Hiroshima, Tadatoshi Akiba issued a Peace Declaration at the
ceremony, urging that the citizens of the world pledge to do everything
in their power to accomplish the total eradication of nuclear
weapons.
Pax Christi partner in Japan, Sr Filo Hirota, who works with the
Japanese Conference of Bishops, has asked Pax Christi to support
the Save Article 9 Campaign. Article 9 of the Japanese Constitution
renounces war as a means of settling international disputes and
prohibits the maintenance of armed forces and other war potential.
Article 9 is an international oath declaring No to War, a shared
property of all the world,s citizens who wish for peace. Today,
however, the Japanese government is moving towards amending Article
9, partly due to the US demand for full-fledged military support
from Japan in its 'war on terror. Despite the restrictions of
Article 9, Japan's Self-Defence Forces have gradually expanded
over the years, bringing Japan's military expenditure to one of
the highest in the world, and they provided support to US military
operations in Afghanistan and Iraq.
© Independent Catholic News 2008
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