Mr. Keiji Tsuchiya, now 78 years old, was a young soldier near Hiroshima when the U.S. dropped the first atomic bomb on August 6, 1945. That afternoon he entered the city center and engaged in rescue work for a week. Mr. Tsuchiya sufered the effects of radiation poisoning and emotional effects from the bomb. In August 1997 he first toured U.S. cities to share his experiences. He is now Vice-President of the Okayama A-Bomb Sufferers Association and is active with Hidankyo, a Japan-based confederation of Hiroshima and Nagasaki A-bomb survivors, known as "Hibakusha."
This August Mr. Tsuchiya travelled again to the U.S. to speak on the 61st anniversaries of the U.S. atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. On August 6, the Hiroshima anniversary, he spoke at a rally at the Livermore nuclear weapons laboratory, which today continues to develop nuclear weapons for the United States government. On August 9, the Nagasaki anniversary, he spoke at a rally in front of Bechtel corporation headquarters in San Francisco. Bechtel manages most of the nuclear weapons research, production and assembly facilities in the U.S. The following is the English translation of the speech Mr. Tsuchiya gave on August 9 in front of Bechtel.
Tsuchiya-san’s speech for August 9
In the morning of August 6, 1945 the United States dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima City.
From that afternoon for about a week I slept outdoors in Hiroshima, eating only hardtack and water. As a rescue worker I saw many things. People breathing their last breath, people suffering from severe burns, people caught in fires pleading for help, people yelling for help from under the debris, people burnt completely black, people shrieking “I don’t care if I die, please just give me some water,” people with bellies split and intestines coming out, and countless floating corpses of those who had drowned in Ota River. I dug big holes in which we buried vomiting, suffering dying horses and I cremated many human corpses.
Sometimes black rain, full of radiation, fell on me. I was surprised by how many people died walking in the direction of the Red Cross.
Near the epicenter it was like an ocean of rubble. I was shocked by the number of messages people wrote on stones and pieces of wood looking for relatives or friends. On the day as I was thinking that finally I would be able to return to my base, I saw a corpse burned completely black and near his feet lay his burned lunch-box of soy bean rice. I was unable to stop the tears cried in anger, and I looked up to the heavens and, weeping, asked “God, how could such a cruel thing as this happen?
That was the first conversation I had with God.
On September 13th I was finally able to return to my home. My mother was so happy to see me. By that time, I had persistent diarrhea, I was bleeding from the gums, and my hair was falling out. The radiation has particularly affected by stomach area and I have to massage it every morning. Over the years I’ve used my hands, and towels, but for the last fifty years I’ve made it my habit upon waking up to rub my whole body with a judo belt to keep my circulation going and my stomach warm and working properly.
Two years ago I had a cancerous tumor the size of a grapefruit removed from my colon, but, thankfully I am o.k.
Today I take care of about 100 hibakusha who live in a Kasaoka city, which has a population of about 50, 000 people.
I am also the director of the Japan’s Horseshoe Crab Preservation Association. The horseshoe crab is a living fossil. Before tens of thousands of horseshoe crabs lived in the sea near Kasaoka city, and now I work to revive the dwindling population of these crabs that have been virtually wiped out by the destruction of their habitat.
It was many years ago that a Dr. Nishi introduced me to the horseshoe crab. He explained to me that the many horseshoe crabs died near his home because of lack of water when his city filled in the land to build on. When he said that the voices of the dying in Hiroshima saying “Soldier, please give me water. Soldier, please give me water” echoed in my ear. It was from that day that I received my missions to protect and help the horseshoe crabs and hibakusha.
I also pass out bibles, a most important book for human beings, to junior and high school and college students.
Everyone, what do you think will happen to our beautiful mother earth if nuclear weapons are dropped? The air, ground, animals, oceans will be terribly poisoned by radiation and the balance of the natural world will be disrupted.
The intense heat, flash, and blast will wipe out life on earth. Won’t you please work with me to make sure that these dreadful nuclear weapons are never made or used again. Please join me in this fight for justice.
Finally, I would like to recite a poem by Tôge Sankichi, a Hiroshima survivor.
Bring back the fathers! Bring back the mothers!
Bring back the old people!
Bring back the children!
Bring me back!
Bring back the human beings I had contact with!
For as long are there human beings, a world of human beings
Bring back peace,
Unbroken peace. Tôge Sankichi
I thank you for listening to my appeal today.
For photos of Mr. Tsuchiya and of the August 6th and 9th protests at Livermore Lab and Bechtel, visit http://jcabasso.photosite.com/ [1].