It was standing room only last Wednesday, 6 August, in the Lafcadio Hearn Japanese Gardens Tramore as a large crowd turned out to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the atom bomb being dropped on Hiroshima on 6 August, 1945.
Guest speaker, former MEP Grace O'Sullivan gave a fascinating insight into her personal journey as a Greenpeace activist spurred in part by what she learned in Stella Maris school in Tramore about the impact of the nuclear bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
Grace was a crew member on the Rainbow Warrior which was blown up by the French Secret Service in New Zealand 40 years ago, killing the Greenpeace photographer and good friend of Grace, Fernando Pereira.
Grace was later held prisoner for seven days by the French when she sailed onto their testing ground in the south Pacific. Her actions and those of her colleagues helped end the environmental calamity of nuclear testing in that beautiful part of the world.
'No nuke is good nukes,' she said.
She paid tribute to the survivors of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, which was bombed on 9 August, three days after Hiroshima.
The survivors have campaigned tirelessly for nuclear disarmament and were honoured last year with the Nobel Peace Prize. A remembrance candle was lit in their honour by Betty Lodge, a much loved nurse from Tramore who was born a year before the attack.
Grace was introduced by former Head of Communications with the UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction and journalist, Denis McClean, who was prompted to organise the event by the memory of his own visit to Hiroshima.
Almost 350,000 deaths are linked to the nuclear attacks on Japan and today the average age of the survivors is 86 but they continue to make their voices heard.
The atmosphere of the commemoration was greatly enhanced by the Tramore branch of Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann, led by Paul Wheatley and Richie McDonald.
The event was facilitated by Project Director, Agnes Aylward, Janet Carey, Marketing and Business Development Manager, Edel Clancy, Office Administrator, and the team of volunteers at Lafcadio Hearn Japanese Gardens.
Photos:
Former MEP Grace O'Sullivan addresses the commemoration at Lafcadio Hearn Japanese Gardens Tramore.
MC Denis McClean, former senior official with the United Nations and International Red Cross. Photos: Ciaran Conneelly
