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Hibakusha: Disappearing A-bomb survivors leave movement’s future in question Mainichi By Sakiko Takahashi, Hiroshima Bureau 20 May 14 HIROSHIMA — The sun cast its soft rays on the green summer vegetation as I headed on my way to visit atomic bomb survivor and poet Hiroshi Maruya, 89, this May 1 after I received his invitation…..

“Finally, only I am left,” said Maruya, his eyes wide open and his voice lonely.

At the end of April, a general meeting of an A-bomb survivors’ group was held at Hiroshima Kyoritsu Hospital, for which Maruya serves as honorary head. The subject of the meeting: how to shrink down the group’s activities. As chairman, Maruya spoke to those gathered, saying, “We haven’t the vitality to actively campaign against nuclear weapons, and must have the younger generation take over the reins.”

At the meeting the subject of disbanding the group even came up, but on the request of members it was decided to leave it in existence.

Meanwhile, as Maruya and I talked, he relayed to me his recent activities: heading to Tokyo to demand improvements for a law supporting A-bomb victims and his visit to South Korea’s Hapcheon County, said to be “South Korea’s Hiroshima” because of its many residents who were exposed to A-bomb radiation.

Regarding the end of the activities by A-bomb survivors’ groups as their members die out, Maruya said, “It’s sad, but I think this is what history is. For both nuclear weapons and nuclear plants, it’s about how vividly and carefully people’s memories of them are preserved, and about how much creativity is born in the process.”…….http://mainichi.jp/english/english/features/news/20140520p2a00m0na006000c.html