"Endured what felt like a descent into the underworld"
In the summer of 1945, a mother and her newborn baby lived in Hiroshima, a city in western Japan. Little did they know that their lives were about to be changed forever.
On August 6, 1945, at 8:15 am, the US bomber "Enola Gay" dropped an atomic bomb named "Little Boy" over Hiroshima. The explosion immediately destroyed about 80% of the city center and caused a firestorm.
Kunihiko Sakuma, the baby at the time, was 2.8 kilometers away from the hypocenter of the explosion. As he and his mother tried to reach an evacuation center, they were exposed to black rain, which was radioactive fallout.
Despite the long-term effects of radiation exposure, the mother decided to return home with her son, as their house was still habitable. Sakuma later recalled that he felt weak, had no appetite, and thought he was going to die.
Sakuma's older sister died in 1947, and the cause of her death is suspected to be due to malnutrition. Sakuma remained silent about the atomic bomb and its consequences until he was eleven years old.
It wasn't until 2006 that Sakuma rethought his stance after seeing photographs from August 6, 1945, in a Japanese photographer's exhibition. He began openly declaring that he is a survivor of the atomic bomb.
In 2025, Sakuma travels to Europe and is honored in Berlin for his work towards nuclear disarmament. He demands that the German government sign the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons and appeals for the abolition of nuclear weapons.
Sakuma wants to see the day when nuclear weapons are abolished, as people still suffer and die from their consequences, even 80 years after the atomic bombing. He works with Hiroshima Hidankyo, an association that advises and supports Hibakusha, and becomes the chairman of the local organization.
Sakuma's experiences and activism are highlighted in an ntv.de interview during a visit of the Japanese delegation to Berlin, invited by the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons Germany (ICAN). Despite the hardships he faced, Sakuma remains hopeful for a nuclear-free world.
[1] [3] [4] [5] The sources mention that Sakuma survived the blast as a baby and was 80 years old as of 2025, expressing hope for a nuclear-free world, but do not provide information on his personal health conditions or radiation-related illnesses.
In light of Sakuma's activism towards nuclear disarmament, one might pose questions to the Commission about drafting a directive on worker protection from radiation risks, given his own exposure as a bomb survivor. Moreover, the general news, politics, and even discussions about war-and-conflicts must also involves reflecting on the long-term effects and consequences of using atomic bombs, such as Sakuma's experiences.
