Overview
- A joint signing of the Atomic Bomb Death Register, which began on Sunday, June 7, brought together 16 signatories to start recording names of those who died from the bombing and its after‑effects.
- The June 7 signatories included two hibakusha in their 80s and 14 citizens chosen through Hiroshima’s first public recruitment for the ritual.
- Hiroshima City said the public recruitment responded to the aging hibakusha population and selected residents aged 16 to 70 so younger people can share responsibility for memorialization.
- The register now covers 3,035 people who died on or after August 6 of last year, entries will be taken through August 5, and the compiled book will be placed in the Peace Memorial cenotaph at the August 6 ceremony.
- The signing continues a practice begun in 1952 and mixes longtime participants and new signatories so survivors’ testimony and civic engagement can pass the ‘peace baton’ to the next generation.