Okinawa, Part 2 -Ties to Hiroshima
Sharing the conviction: "No more war"
This issue of "Peace Seeds" features part 2 of our coverage of Okinawa. In this issue we introduce the activities of young people from the Hiroshima area interacting with residents of Okinawa. Also, in connection with the previous issue's look at handing down the war experience of Okinawa, we present actions that might be taken, or actions we would like to take, from here in Hiroshima.
Okinawa was the site of fierce fighting toward the end of World War II. Local residents were caught up in the fighting, and even today, the people of Okinawa endure hardship as a result of the large U.S. military presence there. In Hiroshima, where the world's first atomic weapon was used, people's lives were utterly ravaged and the consequences of the bombing still linger, with survivors suffering damage to their health caused by the bomb's radiation.
Okinawa and Hiroshima. Studying the similarities and differences between these two places, we ponder what we can do in Hiroshima. We also make proposals for adults.
| Interaction | "Peace Summits" and sharing views |
| Eishin High School and Hiroshima Jogakuin High School | |
Eishin High School, located in the city of Fukuyama in Hiroshima Prefecture, and Okinawa Shogaku High School, located in the city of Naha in Okinawa, began an exchange of views in 2006. Thus far they have held three "Peace Summits" with the participation of mainly high school students. Two of these gatherings were in Okinawa and the other was in Hiroshima.
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| Above = Participants of the Peace Summit dance on the stage in a charity performance. Below = In a workshop at the Peace Summit, participants discuss the issue of the Futenma Air Base in Okinawa. (Both photo taken in Naha in March 2010) |
Students of Imabarimeitoku Yata Branch High School in the city of Imabari in Ehime Prefecture and Hiroshima Jogakuin High School have also met for a "Peace Summit." They initiated this activity on the theme of peace because they wanted to communicate with other high school students who have a different background with regard to the experience of war, such as land battles, air raids, and the atomic bombings.
We interviewed some students of Eishin High School and Okinawa Shogaku High School who took part in the "Peace Summit" that was held in Okinawa in March 2010.
As part of the program for this gathering, the participants paid visits to a limestone cave and other sites, and they listened to the accounts of survivors who had been part of student units at the time called "White Plum Blossom" and "Tekketsu Kinnou." Risa Okazaki, 18, a student of Eishin High School, said, "The inside of the caves, where people hid from American soldiers, are rugged with rocks and stones. It isn't a hospitable place for people to live." Aki Arata, 17, also of Eishin High School, reflected, "They were the same age as I am now and they were forced to go to the battlefield and die there without having the chance to live out their lives. This fact should be conveyed to many people."
The experience of the "Peace Summit" made many young people more aware of peace issues. Touching on the signature drive for nuclear abolition that Eishin High School students are involved in each year, Miri Fujiwara, 17, said, "I felt a sense of unity among our generation at the summit. It makes me believe that the abolition of nuclear weapons might be possible when I'm out collecting signatures."
Rino Nakamoto, 17, of Okinawa Shogaku High School told us, "Because we ourselves don't have an experience of war, it's hard for us to explain exactly what it was like at the time. So we listened to the accounts of the survivors and wrote down their experiences." When the students went out into the field, she helped guide the participants to "The Tower of White Plum Blossom" located in the city of Itoman. "I studied only about the battle of Okinawa," she said. "When I listened to descriptions of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and the air raid which took place in Imabari, I thought I should study more about the wartime experiences of other areas."
Shunsuke Higa, 17, who belongs to a club at Okinawa Shogaku High School which follows regional policy, said, "The participants studied a lot beforehand, so they had a good awareness of peace issues and they were able to clearly communicate their opinions. Talking with students from other areas gives me the chance to hear various ideas and prompts me to think about the things I should do. I'd like to share my experience with other students." (Marina Ishimoto, 14 and Yuka Ichimura, 14)
| Experience | Walking to feel the value of life |
| Seminar at Hiroshima University of Economics | |
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| Above = Students from the Hiroshima University of Economics listen to a guide's explanation at a former military site. Below = A student prays for the victims of war at the former site of a field hospital where a unit of students once worked. |
How do we feel the value of life? The answer to that question can be found by walking in Okinawa. Professor Sadao Okamoto, an expert on religion, started a seminar called "Walking in Okinawa" in 2007. The seminar offers participants the chance to experience the path taken by the local people during the Battle of Okinawa by walking along this same route.
The starting point is Kakazu Hill, where the first fierce fighting took place in Okinawa, and the end of the walk lies at the southern tip of Okinawa Island, Kiyan Promontory. The participants walk this course in three days. For meals, they can take only food supplements, water, and isotonic drinks. Along the way, they listen to the account of a woman who was a student during the war and engaged in nursing work.
The Battle of Okinawa produced many victims. After the major battles ended, the safety of the residents was still not guaranteed and so movement around Okinawa continued. Explaining why he began "Walking in Okinawa," Professor Okamoto said, "I want people to identify with the minds of those who were unfairly forced to die and feel the preciousness of life and peace." He believes that, by retracing the steps of the wartime residents, the participants can more easily imagine what they were thinking back then.
In 2008, Professor Okamoto launched another seminar at the Hiroshima University of Economics called "Walking in Hiroshima." He hopes that "students in Hiroshima and Okinawa will play a leadership role in spreading word of these walking challenges so more students, from throughout Japan, can take part in them."
Shintaro Fukuoka, 21, a college senior, has taken part in the walks and he told us he felt both commonalities between Hiroshima and Okinawa, like the cruelty of war, as well as differences. One difference he noted is the fact that the tragedy of Hiroshima occurred in an instant, while in Okinawa the fierce fighting raged for about three months. By walking in both locations, he could feel this difference.
The participants of these walks can feel the atmosphere that can't ordinarily be felt through viewing a film. To share their experiences, some participants produced a DVD. Shintaro Yamaoka, 21, a college senior, told us, "It's hard to convey the experience through images alone, but it's important to spread this information." (Akane Murashige, 17, and Rena Sasaki, 13)
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Classify museum displays according to age I don't like Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum. I visited there for the first time, as homework, when I was in third grade in elementary school. Back then, I just found it "scary." I didn't think any "anti-war" thoughts. For me, at that young age, it was just upsetting. I do think it's meaningful, though, to visit the museum and hear A-bomb accounts. Therefore, I would like more consideration given to how visitors or listeners are presented with this information. I suggest that war-related materials have age restrictions. The displays should be separated depending on age or grade in school. In this way, I think everyone could be encouraged to feel easy when they visit the museum. (Rena Sasaki, 13) Students produce media productions about the bombing What if junior high and high school students in Hiroshima produced more media productions on the theme of the atomic bombing? These could consist of the accounts of A-bomb survivors and perhaps even dramas. Projects like this would also be a good opportunity to learn about the issues because the participants would need to do ample research to create such a program. These programs could convey the reality of war to many people. Students in Nagasaki could take part, too, and exchange activities might be developed for students in Okinawa, Hiroshima, and Nagasaki so the wartime experiences of each place can be better understood by the others. (Marina Ishimoto, 14) Create opportunities to learn about war damage in other places Create more opportunities to learn about the war damage in places beyond our own. In museums and other buildings where people gather, the course for visitors can include a display of materials showing the wartime damage in these other areas. In this way, the visitors could gain a deeper understanding of the destructiveness of war to all sides of the fighting. I hope Hiroshima, Nagasaki, and Okinawa will work together to initiate such a plan. (Yuka Ichimura, 14) Listen closely to the accounts of survivors Let's have conversations with people who have experienced war. Like the interaction between former members of the Himeyuri nursing unit and high school and university students in Okinawa, these conversations can be not only about life during the war, but also life before and after the war. If students actively ask questions about things they want to know, they can feel the reality of war more keenly. Such interaction between A-bomb survivors and young people in Hiroshima might help the youth gain a deeper feeling for the A-bomb experience, as opposed to simply learning about it and acquiring knowledge. (Akane Murashige, 17) Understanding one another, along with Nagasaki and Okinawa In Hiroshima, too, it is important to engage in activities to hand down the experience of war, as the youth in Okinawa are doing. The aging A-bomb survivors are passing away. Young people should listen to the accounts of the A-bomb experience from grandparents and elderly people in our neighborhoods. We should also meet with the youth of Okinawa and Nagasaki to understand the similarities and differences in terms of the war experience. Such information might help us learn what we can do to prevent war. I think it's important to discuss what we can do. (Masashi Muro, 17) Listen to the views of American citizens Gather participants from Hiroshima and organize a monthly tour to learn about the war experience in other prefectures. The participants pay visits to these areas to learn and feel how the local people experienced the war there. It would be great, too, to take tours like this to other countries. In these ways, we could come to understand war more deeply. One idea might involve visiting the United States and listening to the views of the nation which dropped the atomic bombs. To understand the atomic bombings more fully, we need to know why the bombs were dropped. (Masaya Obayashi, 13) | ||||
- White Plum Blossom nursing unit
This unit consisted of 56 female students of Okinawa Second Girls' High School, who were mobilized to work as nurses.
- Tekketsu Kinnoutai (Blood and Iron Corps)
A unit of boys, from 14 to 19 years of age, who were mobilized to serve in the Battle of Okinawa. Male students from Okinawa schools were forced to support the war effort as "volunteers."
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