Eighty-one years have passed since the atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima.
Today, we’d like to share a message from Mr. Thomas Mathew, a graduate of ARI from India, who visited Hiroshima during the WJST in 1988—an experience that profoundly influenced the rest of his life.
“Originally, my expectations for ARI were to experience life in Japan and to acquire various skills to lead rural communities in my homeland, India. Peace was not an immediate priority for me. However, during the WJST at the Hiroshima YMCA, I watched footage portraying the dreadful reality of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and I listened to the firsthand testimonies of the hibakusha (atomic bomb survivors). Their stories deeply touched my heart.
At the time, I took great pride in being a citizen of India, a nuclear-armed nation (India conducted its first nuclear test on May 18, 1974). That sense of pride vanished in an instant in Hiroshima, and I became determined to convey the message of peace from Hiroshima and Nagasaki wherever I went.
In August 1990, the first-ever visit of hibakusha to India was realized. We traveled extensively across India, meeting with thousands of students and peace activists, participating in media interviews, and engaging with political and religious leaders. Furthermore, I produced a documentary on the reality of India’s nuclear tests conducted in May 1998. This drew international attention, and I was invited to present it at the Hague Appeal for Peace in 1999. There, I met five Nobel Peace Prize laureates and conveyed to them the terrifying reality of India’s nuclear testing.
ARI ignited my inner passion for world peace and gave me the strength to transform it into a driving force for tirelessly pursuing a peaceful and just world.”
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