Imagine that in a single, blinding flash, everything around you disappears. This was the reality for the people of Hiroshima at 8:16am on this day, 80 years ago.
For the first time in history, an atomic bomb was dropped on a civilian population. In an instant, tens of thousands were killed, and countless lives changed forever. Three days later, Nagasaki would suffer the same fate. By the year's end, 400,000 people had died.
Today, we remember the dead and honour the survivors, the hibakusha, who have bravely shared their testimonies for eight decades in the hopes that no one else will ever endure what they did.
As long as nuclear weapons exist, the horrors of Hiroshima and Nagasaki remain a threat to humanity.
In a time of rising global conflict and growing nuclear risks, we must not look away. We must remember.
Join us this Sunday, August 10th, 11-11:45am, at the World Peace Bell in the Christchurch Botanic Gardens.
More details on our event page.
Together we will remember, reflect, and recommit to peace—with readings, music, and the ceremonial ringing of New Zealand’s only World Peace Bell, for everyone to partake in.
Let’s honour Aotearoa New Zealand’s proud nuclear-free legacy—and stand together for a future free from nuclear weapons.
