Japanese organisation Nihon Hidankyo has been announced the winner of the Nobel Peace Prize for 2024, today, by the Norwegian Nobel Committee.
A grassroots movement of atomic bomb survivors from Hiroshima and Nagasaki, also known as Hibakusha, the Organisation has been recognised for its efforts to achieve a world free of nuclear weapons and for demonstrating through witness testimony that nuclear weapons must never be used again.
“In response to the atomic bomb attacks of August 1945, a global movement arose whose members have worked tirelessly to raise awareness about the catastrophic humanitarian consequences of using nuclear weapons. Gradually, a powerful international norm developed, stigmatising the use of nuclear weapons as morally unacceptable. This norm has become known as “the nuclear taboo”,” stated the Committee.
Nihon Hidankyo has provided thousands of witness accounts, issued resolutions and public appeals, and sent annual delegations to the United Nations and a variety of peace conferences to remind the world of the pressing need for nuclear disarmament.
“These historical witnesses have helped to generate and consolidate widespread opposition to nuclear weapons around the world by drawing on personal stories, creating educational campaigns based on their own experiencee, and issuing urgent warnings against the spread and use of nuclear weapons. The Hibakusha help us to describe the indescribable, to think the unthinkable, and to somehow grasp the incomprehensible pain and suffering caused by nuclear weapons,” added the Norwegian Nobel Committee.
While acknowledging the organisation’s efforts which as led to the establishment of the nuclear taboo for almost eight decades, the Committee has expressed concerns over the increasing pressure on the taboo against the use of nuclear weapons.
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“The nuclear powers are modernising and upgrading their arsenals; new countries appear to be preparing to acquire nuclear weapons; and threats are being made to use nuclear weapons in ongoing warfare. At this moment in human history, it is worth reminding ourselves what nuclear weapons are: the most destructive weapons the world has ever seen,” stated the Committee.
In awarding this year’s Nobel Peace Prize to Nihon Hidankyo, the Norwegian Nobel Committee expressed its wish to honour all survivors who, despite physical suffering and painful memories, chose to use their costly experience to cultivate hope and engagement for peace.
“One day, the Hibakusha will no longer be among us as witnesses to history. But with a strong culture of remembrance and continued commitment, new generations in Japan are carrying forward the experience and the message of the witnesses. They are inspiring and educating people around the world. In this way they are helping to maintain the nuclear taboo – a precondition of a peaceful future for humanity,” shared the Committee.
