Here is this year’s Peace Declaration in English by the Mayor of Hiroshima. This is the third year that the Mayor of Hiroshima has given a speech in English. The first two speeches were given by Mayor Akiba, whose term of office came to an end in April 2011. The new mayor, Kazumi Matsui, gave this year’s speech.
The speech was given on 6th August 2011, at 10:15pm in Hiroshima, which is 8:15am American Central Time. The A-bomb exploded at 8:15am on 6th August 1945.
The idea of having the Mayor of Hiroshima give a speech in English was started as a joint initiative by Hiroshima City government and Hiroshima citizens groups to help spread the message of nuclear disarmament around the world.
As Mayor Matsui gives his speech you can see some film footage of the morning Peace Memorial Ceremony in Peace Park, Hiroshima.
