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San Jose Mercury News

August 6, 2002 Tuesday MO1 EDITION

SECTION: A; Pg. 14

Hiroshima mayor critical of U.S.;

POLITICIAN USES ANNIVERSARY OF A-BOMB TO CONDEMN BUSH ADMINISTRATION POLICIES

by Michael Zielenziger Mercury News Tokyo Bureau

DATELINE: TOKYO

In an unusually severe protest against U.S. foreign policy, the mayor of Hiroshima used today's anniversary of the atomic bombing of his city during World War II to denounce the "unilateralism" of the Bush administration.

"The United States government has no right to force Pax Americana on the rest of us or to unilaterally determine the fate of the world," Hiroshima Mayor Tadatoshi Akiba said during a solemn ceremony marking the 57th anniversary of the nuclear destruction of his southern Japanese city.

"On the contrary, we, the people of the world, have the right to demand 'no annihilation without representation,' " the mayor said, urging the Japanese government to protest U.S. military policy.

Growing criticism

The mayor's statement comes as many of America's allies in Europe, the Middle East and Asia are openly criticizing reports that the Bush administration is preparing to launch a military offensive against Iraq.

Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi has said he would like Japan to support the American fight against terrorism, but over the past weekend, leaders of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party indicated it would be difficult for the nation to cooperate with the United States if it attacks Iraq.

Taku Yamasaki, secretary general of the party, said the "harsh reality" was that a new Japanese law designed to give logistical support to U.S. forces in the war on terrorism could not be invoked to help a new American offensive unless certain conditions were met.

Specifically, he said any attack would have to be sanctioned by the United Nations or be "deeply connected" to the fight against terrorism.

Moment of silence

Koizumi and other national dignitaries sat in the audience today as Akiba, 59, a former associate professor of mathematics at Tufts University near Boston, made his remarks, which were televised across the nation. Traditionally, Japan observes a moment of silence at 8:15 a.m. Aug. 6 to mark the moment the United States dropped the first atomic bomb on the city.

The blast vaporized the central city and killed as many as 200,000. A second atomic bomb was dropped three days later on the city of Nagasaki. An estimated 80,000 survivors of the attacks still suffer from radiation-related illnesses.

Every year on Aug. 6, Hiroshima releases a peace declaration, urging the world's governments to abandon nuclear weapons and work toward peace. But it is rare for the city to specifically criticize U.S. foreign policy.