Dispatches from Nagasaki No.6
The Nagasaki Youth Delegation gears up for Geneva
(April 15, 2013) Eight young residents of the atomic-bombed land of Nagasaki will form the Nagasaki Youth Delegation (a contingent authorized by the prefectural and municipal governments) and attend the Second Preparatory Committee for the 2015 Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) in Geneva this spring. This project is organized by the PCU Nagasaki Council for Nuclear Weapons Abolition (or PCU Nagasaki Council), a consortium involving Nagasaki Prefecture, Nagasaki City and Nagasaki University. (For more information on this council see Dispatch #5.) At the end of January, a recruitment campaign aimed at young people between the ages of eighteen and twenty-five living, studying or working in Nagasaki Prefecture was launched with the tagline “Will you represent the youth of Nagasaki and appeal in Geneva for the abolition of nuclear weapons?” After receiving many applications, secondary evaluations based on written submissions and English interviews were conducted and eight people were selected as representatives. The final group consisted of five university undergraduate students, two graduate students and one working person.
In the background of the planning for this project was an issue that has constantly proved problematic for the atomic-bombed land of Nagasaki. Nagasaki’s peace education programs for elementary and junior high school students and peace activities for high school students are known to be thriving (see Dispatch #1 for reference). Of particular note is the Nagasaki Youth Peace Messengers and Ten Thousand Signature Campaign of High School Students, a lively effort conducted by the high-school-age generation that attracts considerable attention from the local media.
In contrast, however, it is generally opined that there are no conspicuous activities for the age group covering university students in undergraduate and graduate programs. Many high school students who are enthusiastic about peace activities leave their hometown after graduating, and those who stay behind tend to drift away from such efforts as their lives become focused on studies and part-time jobs. Even at Nagasaki University, the only university in the world with the legacy of an atomic-bombed medical college, there are no student groups focused on efforts to abolish nuclear weapons. With the 68th anniversary of the atomic bombing approaching and the survivors aging at an accelerated rate, it has become crucial that we think about how to get the young generation to take up the cherished wish of those in the atomic-bombed land for the elimination of nuclear weapons.
The founding of the Research Center for Nuclear Weapons Abolition, Nagasaki University (RECNA) in April of 2012 provided an opportunity to alter this situation. RECNA Supporters, a group consisting of students who express interest in RECNA’s activities, has developed into a platform for efforts by young people who feel that they would like to do something to help. That October, RECNA faculty members began teaching a series of liberal arts classes entitled Towards a World Free from Nuclear Weapons. Out of this groundwork rose the PCU Nagasaki Council with its mandated goal of “nurturing human resources who will be able to lead the next generation.” Concrete plans for the Nagasaki Youth Delegation were then put into place.
Members of the Nagasaki Youth Delegation will be in Geneva for the first half of the Preparatory Committee, which will be held from April 22 to May 3. They will observe the official meetings and take part in concurrently-scheduled NGO-sponsored events and forums where NGO members and diplomats can exchange opinions. Through this they will learn about tangible methods that can be used to realize Nagasaki’s long-cherished wish for the abolishment of nuclear weapons. Furthermore, they will work toward building a network for young people around the world who share the desire to see nuclear weapons eliminated. Plans also call for them to use social media to stay in contact with their partners in Japan and to send back reports on their activities. PCU Nagasaki Council Chairman Susumu Shirabe stated his expectations when he said “See the world shift before your eyes and interact with young people from other countries. I hope this will lead you to think for yourselves and develop your ability to convey your ideas to others.”
Plans call for dispatches of the Nagasaki Youth Delegation to continue beyond next year.
「ナガサキ・ユース代表団」、ジュネーブに向けて活動開始
(2013年4月15日)被爆地・長崎在住の8名の若者が、県と市が認定する「ナガサキ・ユース代表団」として、今春ジュネーブで開かれる2015年核不拡散条約（NPT）再検討会議第2回準備委員会に参加することになった。長崎県、長崎市、長崎大学の三者で構成する「核兵器廃絶長崎連絡協議会」（PCU協議会。本ディスパッチ第5号参照）の主催事業である。1月末、「長崎の若者代表として、ジュネーブで核兵器廃絶をアピールしてみませんか」のキャッチコピーを掲げ、長崎県下に在住、在学、在勤する18歳～25歳程度の若者を対象に公募が開始された。多数の応募がある中、書類、英語面接の二次にわたる審査を経て、8名が代表団メンバーに選出された。大学生5名、大学院生2名、社会人1名の構成である。
このプロジェクトが企画された背景には、被爆地・長崎が恒常的に抱える問題があった。長崎は小中における平和教育や高校生の平和活動がきわめて盛んなことで知られている（本ディスパッチ第1号参照）。とりわけ高校生の世代では、高校生平和大使や高校生一万人署名の取り組みが活発に行われており、地元メディアの関心も高い。
しかしそれに反して、大学生・院生相当の世代において目立った活動がないとの評価が一般的であった。平和活動に熱心な高校生の多くは卒業後に地元を離れ、残る者たちも学業やバイトといった日常の生活のうちに平和活動から足が遠のいていく。被ばく医科大学の歴史を継承する世界唯一の大学である長崎大学においても、核兵器廃絶を活動目標に掲げる学生サークルは存在していない。原爆投下から68年を迎え、被ばく者の高齢化が加速する今、被爆地の悲願である核兵器廃絶への思いを、いかに若い世代につないでいくかが焦眉の課題となっている。
2012年4月の長崎大学核兵器廃絶研究センター（RECNA）の誕生は、こうした状況に変化をもたらすきっかけとなった。RECNAの活動に興味を示した学生らが参加する「RECNAサポーター」は、「何かやってみたい」との思いを持つ若者に活動の場を与えるプラットフォームになった。また、同10月には、RECNA教員が担当する「核兵器のない世界を目指して」と題された一連の教養科目群もスタートした。こうした下地の上に、「次世代を担う人材の育成」を活動目的の一つに掲げるPCU協議会が立ち上がったことで、今回の「ナガサキ・ユース代表団」計画が具体化していった。
「ナガサキ・ユース代表団」のメンバーは、4月22日から5月3日まで開かれる準備委員会の前半、ジュネーブ現地に滞在する。政府間会議の傍聴、NGO主催の並行イベントや外交官・NGO関係者との意見交換会などへの参加を通じて、核兵器廃絶という長崎の悲願を現実のものとするための具体的な道筋について学ぶ。また、核兵器廃絶の志を共有する世界中の若者とのネットワークを構築することを目指す。加えて、ソーシャルメディアを使って日本に残る仲間たちと連携し、活動報告等の情報発信にも取り組む予定である。「世界が動く現場を目の前で見て、海外の若者と交流することで、自分たちで考え、発信する力を身につけてほしい」と、調漸（しらべ・すすむ）PCU協議会長は期待を述べる。
「ナガサキ・ユース代表団」の派遣は、来年以降も継続される見通しである。
