Rochdale and Littleborough Peace Group gathered at Hollingworth Lake on Thursday night (6 August
2015) to commememorate the dropping of atomic bombs on the cities of
Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945. On the 70th anniversary of the
destruction of Hiroshima, by nuclear bombs, members of the peace group
read survivors' accounts of the devastation and shared poems and prose
which reiterated their commitment to campaigning for peace and
disarmament. They then observed a minute's silence to remember all who
have died in wars and floated lanterns and scattered flower petals on
the Lake in memory of the dead.
Philip Gilligan, on behalf of the Peace Group, said:
"In 1945, the nuclear bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki caused
utter devastation. By 1950, over 340,000 people had died as a result and
generations were poisoned by radiation. The explosion's effects killed
indiscriminately by vaporising human tissue. Many survivors of the
initial blast burned to death, while cancers caused by the radiation
affected countless others, causing years of misery to both adults and
children. That is the effect of a nuclear weapon. 70 years later, in
2015, Britain continues to threaten all our futures with nuclear weapons
of mass destruction. 16,000 nuclear weapons threaten the survival of
the world. 225 nuclear warheads are based in Britain as part of the
Trident system. Each of these bombs has eight times the killing power of
the bomb dropped on Hiroshima.
As we commemorate the 70th anniversary of the bombings, we need to remember what nuclear bombs do and we need to work together to make sure that no-one else suffers such pain and devastation. We need to scrap Trident and begin to finally rid the world of nuclear weapons."
"In 1945, the nuclear bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki caused
utter devastation. By 1950, over 340,000 people had died as a result and
generations were poisoned by radiation. The explosion's effects killed
indiscriminately by vaporising human tissue. Many survivors of the
initial blast burned to death, while cancers caused by the radiation
affected countless others, causing years of misery to both adults and
children. That is the effect of a nuclear weapon. 70 years later, in
2015, Britain continues to threaten all our futures with nuclear weapons
of mass destruction. 16,000 nuclear weapons threaten the survival of
the world. 225 nuclear warheads are based in Britain as part of the
Trident system. Each of these bombs has eight times the killing power of
the bomb dropped on Hiroshima.
As we commemorate the 70th anniversary of the bombings, we need to remember what nuclear bombs do and we need to work together to make sure that no-one else suffers such pain and devastation. We need to scrap Trident and begin to finally rid the world of nuclear weapons."
