INTERVIEW: Nobel Committee Chair Notes Importance of Hibakusha Testimonies

Oslo, Norway, Dec. 10 (Jiji Press)--It is important to pass on the memories of hibakusha atomic bomb survivors to avoid repeating historical mistakes, Jorgen Watne Frydnes, chair of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, said in an interview with Jiji Press in Oslo ahead of this year's Nobel Peace Prize award ceremony.

Frydnes, 40, praised the Japan Confederation of A- and H-Bomb Sufferers Organizations, or Nihon Hidankyo, the 2024 laureate, for its "unique role of creating and upholding the 'nuclear taboo.'"

Pointing to the importance of hibakusha testimonies, Frydnes said that while their stories are filled with pain, they also convey humanity's strength and power to recover from adversity. He added that hibakusha are not just victims, but also survivors who play a crucial role in the future of humanity.

Frydnes emphasized the need for new approaches to nuclear abolition as the world situation is changing.

He suggested that after the Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, or ICAN, in 2017 and to Nihon Hidankyo this year, there could be more winners related to nuclear abolition.

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]