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By George F. Lee, Star-Bulletin
Children of the Yokohama YMCA, from left: Tomomi Kumata, Yurina
Iida, Yuji Komuro, Megumi Mitsui, Kaoru Furuyama, Nanae Aikawa,
Ikuo Asano, Miyuki Yasuda, Yoshie Hinata, Ayumi Okubo and Miyu
Kaihara pay their respects at the Hiroshima Peace Bell at
Izumo Taishakyo Mission yesterday.

Japan kids join
Hawaii Hiroshima
anniversary rites

Teen-agers from Hawaii also
participate in A-bomb
ceremonies in Japan

---

By Leila Fujimori
Star-Bulletin

Teens from the YMCA of Honolulu were in Hiroshima yesterday commemorating the 55th anniversary of the atomic bombing of that city, while a group of Japanese youths were in Honolulu for a similar event today.

The 11- to 14-year-olds from the Yokohama YMCA were to participate in a bell-ringing ceremony at the Izumo Taishakyo Mission in downtown Honolulu.

They were to join Nuuanu YMCA youngsters in singing and following the Japanese tradition of hanging 1,001 paper cranes.

The ringing of the Hiroshima Peace Bell, which was given to the people of Honolulu by the people and prefecture of Hiroshima, will commemorate the Aug. 6, 1945, bombing of Hiroshima and of Nagasaki three days later.

The bombing was "very, very cruel," said 12-year-old Yuji Komuro of Yokohama. "That event was so bad, it will never happen again."

Yurina Iida, 13, said: "People go to museums and can see what happened -- how horrible World War II was and, at the same time, they are making bombs. Why don't they stop?"

Nanae Aikawa, 12, fears a nuclear war because so many countries have nuclear weapons. But she said if countries talk with one another at gatherings like the G-8 summit, they can prevent another world war.

The Yokohama group also visited the Arizona Memorial yesterday and got a lesson in war and peace.

Jim Brown, director of the Camp Erdman YMCA, takes Japanese youngsters to Pearl Harbor every year as part of the YMCA's exchange program.

After seeing the video presentation, he said they are often a bit shocked that Japan and the United States were at war.

"Many feel really badly; they take it personally," Brown said. "I'm glad we could balance it out this year with the Hiroshima ceremony."

At the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park, the Hawaii 16- to 18-year-olds capped their visit by attending the memorial ceremony yesterday.

They also participated in discussions on peace with 25 Hiroshima university and high school students.

The program's goals are to develop peace by making friendships on a person-to-person level, said Takanori Mizuta, executive director of the Hiroshima YMCA.

Next summer, the Hiroshima YMCA will send its teens to Hawaii in a continuation of an international exchange program, which began in 1961 and has had more than 500 participants.

Despite their youth, this summer's Yokohama participants learned some lessons.

"Each person has only one life," said Miyu Kaihara, 13. She hopes the world's leaders will prevent another Hiroshima. "Life is so precious."

"More people should know about the tragedy of war," said Ayumi Okubo, 13.