At the beginning of June, two survivors of the atomic bombings (hibakusha) spoke at a gathering in Friends House, Central London.
Toshiko Tanaka, a survivor of Hiroshima, told the gathering: ‘I would like to tell the people they call “world leaders”, who are interested in their own national interests… that in fact we live on something akin to a spaceship; a ship where we can spend our time fighting over borders, over resources, and if we do so then the spaceship and the life…
You can still place an order for our new four-page A5 briefing showing how Churchill believed (by July 1945) that there were two diplomatic tools which could end the Pacific War without an atomic bomb being dropped and without a long land invasion (PN 2667).
The two tools were: a Soviet declaration of war on Japan and/or granting immunity to the Japanese emperor Hirohito.
£…
We are now taking orders for a new four-page A5 PN briefing setting out the facts about Churchill’s belief in 1944 and early 1945 that a Japanese surrender could be gained without an atomic bomb being dropped and without the Allies having to invade Japan (PN 2667).
Churchill believed by July 1945 that there were two diplomatic tools which could end the Pacific War, especially if combined.
In September 1944, Churchill pleaded with Soviet leader Joseph Stalin to…
The arguments today about Hiroshima and Nagasaki miss the most important facts about Allied decision-making in mid-1945. Britain's wartime leader, Winston Churchill, believed - in mid-1945 - that the Second World War could be ended without the use of the atomic bomb.
At the urging of US and British military commanders, Churchill lobbied the US president, Harry Truman, to try other methods which he thought could end the Pacific War. The nuclear terror attacks on Hiroshima and Nagasaki…
This year’s international Hiroshima fast is not taking place in London but in Bristol, as part of the annual ‘Peace Gathering’.
Fasters include Dr Matthias Engelke, a Lutheran pastor from Germany, and Etienne Godinot, a retired lawyer from France. Both of them have been leading anti- nuclear fasts in their own countries for over 10 years.
You are invited to join the fast either for a day or for the whole spell, 6 – 9 August.
The ‘Peace Glade’ in Castle Park is behind the…
Maddie is on a street stall in her town centre on Hiroshima Day, 6 August, wearing a placard and handing out leaflets about the atomic bombings. Every so often, someone stops to argue. Sometimes Maddie can’t get a word in edgeways ...
Passerby: You should be ashamed of yourself.
Maddie: Excuse me?
Passerby: My granddad would have died if we’d listened to people like you.
Maddie: Was he a …
The current issue of Peace News doesn't have an events page because most events in the time period it covers (10 August to the end of October) are online.
So we've put the events listing online instead. Please do check before attending an in-person event as the changing COVID-19 restrictions mean in-person/face-to-face events change also.
This is a list of the kinds of events below:
1) Hiroshima & Nagasaki events (in-person/face-to-face)
2) Hiroshima &…
On 4 and 5 August a group of international peace gardeners visited AWE Aldermaston to plant vines and fig trees both inside and outside the Atomic Weapons Establishment. Nine were arrested and charged with criminal damage.
Taking inspiration from the biblical text Micah 4:3 - "and everyone shall live underneath their vine and fig tree and none shall make them afraid..." - the action kicked off a weekend of events held at Britain's nuclear weapons factory to mark the 60th anniversary…
All over Britain, people came together to commemorate Hiroshima and Nagasaki Days. There were vigils, ceremonies and tree plantings whilst other people chose to raise awareness by leafleting, fasting or floating peace lanterns. This is a round-up of a few of the events that took place:
In Southampton, over 100 people gathered at Bitterne Park United Reformed Church Hall for a meeting with the Mayor, Cllr Edwina Cooke, and Bruce Kent. After the meeting the audience and speakers viewed…
