Hiroshima marked the 66th anniversary of the dropping of the atomic bomb Saturday morning in a ceremony that paid tribute to victims of the March 11 quake and tsunami and heard calls by Prime Minister Naoto Kan, Hiroshima politicians and local residents to consider moving away from nuclear power.
As fear that radiation leaking from the Fukushima nuclear plant entering the food chain continues to grow, media polls across the nation show an increasing number of people support moving away from nuclear power toward renewable energy. That includes many who attended Saturday's ceremony.
"We're very sorry for the people of Fukushima. If the reactor disaster wakes people up to the dangers of nuclear power, it will hopefully lead to the eventual closure of all Japan's nuclear power plants, which can be replaced by better conservation measures and renewable energies," said Hiroko Takenaka, 53, a Hiroshima resident whose parents were living near the city when the atomic bomb exploded.