─All volunteer members attended and discussed
On July 19 a party of ﾒJourney to build up peaceﾓ（Mr.Takashi Hiraoka, the tour leader and other 14 volunteers）moved to Siem Reap, famous for Angkor Wat Ruins, after they finished volunteersﾕ activities for the construction of Hiroshima House, and their observation of Tuol Sleng Museum as well as their sightseeing of Phnom Penh City. During their stay in the city, accompanied by Mr.Katumi Sugiyama, a Director of JSA(Japanese Government Team for Safeguarding Angkor), they visited a world heritage of Angkor Wat ruines, ﾒKilling Fieldﾓ site of Pol Potﾕs Holocaust, and ﾒHandy Craft Centerﾓ where orphans, the poor and the handicapped master a production technique of industrial art and sell its products for their self-supports. In the afternoon of 21st, a general discussion on ﾒJourney to build up peaceﾓ was held by all attendants. They respectively gave their own expressions of Tuol Sleng Museum and volunteersﾕ activities for the construction of Hiroshima House, and expressed their opinions and proposals on desirable way of using Hiroshima House, as well as on the tour itself. After the discussions, Mr. Hiroshima and Mr. Ishiyama flew back to Japan earlier than other members by way of Bangkok of Thailand.
Expressions and opinions mentioned are as follows. a) could not take pictures at Tuol Sleng Museum. b) proposal to prepare a gude book to get people of sight seeing Angkor Wat ruins also interested in Phnom Penh City and Hiroshima House. c) our guide’s story on the Pol Pot era have left a strong impressions on my mind. d) felt that we now live in the difficult time that to protect our own home dosen’t mean world peace directly. e) had a strong impression for careful attention and gentleness shown by Cambodian people f) Mr.Hiraoka mentioned that it could be good for him to have a chance to discuss many matters on the “Peace” with young people.
A time for silence
Mr.Ishiyama mentioned as follows;
Any of volunteers in a bus after visit to the Killing Field looked to have lost words for expression and fell into silence. This silent time was the most important time through the tour. Since we learned how difficult it is to build up ‘peace’, there was the silent time at that moment, which we could not experiense in our usual lives.
As to desireble usage of Hiroshima House, he suggested a case that the House would be cooperative with Japanese Language school next to the House when its students could act as guides of the House, and a case of usage as of‘Handy Craft Center’. He also mentioned that he was plannning to construct a building intentionally, which term as of 10 years or 20 years’. As to the tour, he concluded that this time tour could be regarded as the First Hiroshima Cambodia Peace School, and that all of volunteers should be proud of having piled up bricks as first joined students in the site.
Your support needed for Fund Raising
The construction cost of "Hiroshima House" depends on fund raising, which is widely open to many people. The fund raised will be sent to Cambodia to be used for walls, pillars, doors, windows, furniture and so on.
The second term construction which is to reinforce and cast in concrete the wing walls and the slab on the third floor being was finished. The construction process from now on is supposed to start with making the lodging rooms on the second floor and is to be continued with the forth floor slab, the pillars and the ceiling slabs on the forth floor in turn. By this year,we will finish the construction of all framework and the roof parts, and this cost will be estimated at 55,500 US dollars.
To add to it, it will still cost about 92,500 US dollars to build interior and exterior walls out of bricks and make doors, windows and furniture. We raise contributions widely as 'Window Fund' and 'Brick Fund'.
The raised fund will be sent to Cambodia and used for the construction of Hiroshima House.
If you would like to have more information on the fund raising, please contact us.
Ishiyama Labolatory
tel: 03-5315-7178 fax: 03-3-5315-7177
ishiyamalab@ishiyama.arch.waseda.ac.jp
"Build up peace" is his peace activities' keyword he is using from his mayor days. During his series of recent lectures , Hiraoka has felt that it has less and less impact on people all around the world to tell the expirience of the atomic bombardment in Hiroshima. Priviously, the word, 'Hiroshima' had a big influence on the world. People used to pay attention to the matter .
He thinks about the reason why the situation has changed. Firstly, peace activities from a mere victim point of view have no subsequent meaning to tragic wars breaking out everywhere in the world. Japanese attempt to abolish nuclear weapons has less influence no longer, because Japan has been under American nuclear power by the Security Pact Treaty since the W.W.�finished. That has caused also difference of view on peace between Japan and other countries, especially Asian countries. To understand more each other, the Asian Olympic Games were held during his mayor's period.
The greatest success of these Games was that Hiroshima's citizens could support Cambodia which population had suffered from as much as or more the disaster of war than Hiroshima's. Not only the attempt not to forget the past terrible experiences, but also to start more effective peace activities toward the contemporary society is our aim. In that meaning Hiraoka said "build up peace".Just knowing the fact brings already a big difference, he claimed. Additionly he is concerned about young people in our age and that it is obviously that they are ignorant of history and have lost a sense of reality and imagination.
We need to go and see what has happened in Cambodia apart from Hiroshima. After that we can tell Hiroshima history in our own words, and it will have more power to remind people's mind of peace.
“I regard myself not as a pacifist but as a peace pursuer", was the first words Mr. Hiraoka gave to younger attendants at the morning meeting just before the general conference. And then he mentioned from his position of peace pursuer that an academic field of peace research could be developed from now on. He would not deny that human being is to be 'a being to fight essentially'. However the problem is for what the fight should be done, or how the fight should be done with weapons. “There should be 'Rule of Fighting' laid down by the international laws. The purpose of war between countries could be to damage each other' s military power, never could be to give unnecessary pains to the people. The unnecessary pains could be put in other words to be the pain that citizens suffer from the war, and the pain that injuries remain after the war. Nuclear weapons and land mines are just those of weapons that could give unnecessary pains. Nowadays is the time that weapons which exceed beyond the bounds of war purpose could be available. In 1994 criticality nuclear test was succeeded in America. He cannot help feeling the threat against the fact that nuclear weapons are developed in computers. The nuclear weapones' problem extends widely from physics to philosophy, but he would intend to continue the pursuit of peace through activities of "Build Up Peace".
Mr.Takashi Hiraoka, the ex-mayor of Hiroshima City , and volunteers for the construction works left Hiroshima airport on July 16 and arrived at Phonom-Penh international airport in the morning on july17, via Hong-Kong.
After they had received a warm welcome at the airport from Mr. Osamu Shibui and local people connected with Hiroshima and Cambodia citizen's group,they visited 'Hiroshima House'. Mr.Shibui and Mr.Ishiyama explained the concept of 'Hiroshima House'and showed them around the construction site, mainly 2nd and 3rd floor.
There are not so many high buildings at Phonom-Penh , so one can see the entire city from the 3rd floor(under construction).
According to Mr.Ishiyama, this area is the best place in Phonom-Penh for 'Hiroshima House ' The site for 'Hiroshima House' is located next to the palace on the edge where Mecon River and Siem Reap River are meeting.
On the building site Mr.Hiraoka put the first brick of 'Hiroshima House'.
Almost all the participants had no experience of piling bricks. As it was the main event of the tour, everybody did it earrnestly, but with fun .
Then, Mr.Ishiyama stayed at Una-Rohm to discuss the construction of 'Hiroshima House' with Mr.Shibui and the others left there to pay a courtesy visit to Mr.Chea Sim, the chairman of the Diet.
Hiroshima House Project in the Future
'Hiroshima House' project is carried out under the notion of long -term cycle. Sucessively, the ground floor is used as a workshop for making chairs ,windows and other products. The 2rd floor will be used as lodging rooms and the3rd floor is planned to be used as an exhibition space for infomation about the historical tragedy occured in Cambodia and Hiroshima.
Now the second term of construction has finished. Mr.Shibui intends to finish the framework whithin this year, in order to determine the consturuction as soon as possible.
Simultaneously with using the house, the otrher work (piling bricks of interior and exterior wall ,and making windows , furniture , etc. ) will be going on as well as the design and functions will change with the oncoming construction.The staircase from 2rd floor to 3rd floor will be roofed over by the " feet of Buddha" that the sunlight coming from the outside lightens up the inside.
On his arrival Mr.Shibui had already suggested to Mr.Ishiyama that "we build a bridge or steps between my house (Mr.Shibui's house) and the Japanese language school (Yoiko-Bunko; library for children located in the close ) on the 3rd floor of Hiroshima House,to make coming and going easily ."
In Phnom Penh, the CapitaI of Cambodia, the Hiroshima House has been under construction at Wat Una Rohm at the north side of the Royal Palace.
The second term construction of the Hiroshima House started last November, was finished in the middle of last June with the wing walls on the third floor concreting.
The construction works started with the extension of the foundation has been continued for seven months, which are the extention of the second floor slab, and reinforcing and concreting the pillars on second floor, the third floor slab, and the wing walls on the third floor.
Mr Shibui who teaches Japanese at his Japanese language school, has taken charge of the construction management at the site, which was carried by way of exchange of letters for confirmation with Ishiyama Lab. The second term construction was completed with several.changes on its design.
The construction process from now on is supposed to be started with making the lodging rooms on the second floor and to be continued with the forth floor slab, the pillars and ceiling slabs on the forth floor in turn.
When The Asian Olympic Game was held at Hiroshima in 1994, Hiroshima citizens were informed that it was difficult for Cambodia to send athletes to Japan. Hiroshima citizens decided supported the Cambodian athletes both physically and mentally as the Hiroshima and Cambodia Exchange Committee. After the Game was over, they suggested "Hirosima House Project" with consent and cooperation of Mr.Sibui who was a priest in Wat Unalome.
In 1999 spring, Mr. Ishiyama gave a lecture on the town planning in the citizens lecture , "The Future College", held by Hiroshima City ,which Ms.Kunichika，a representative of the Hiroshima and Cambodia Exchange Committee，attended. She asked him the design of the Hiroshima House and he accepted her offer . He worked out the design as a volunteer.
The Hiroshima House is expected to be a place for people in Cambodia suffered from the holocaust by Pol Pot in the civil war to know the history of Hiroshima destroyed by the atomic bomb，and for people having lost their occupation，houses, families to stay and study there.
Besides that, the Hiroshima House is also to have a museum collecting materials on the atomic bomb of Hiroshima , a library，a lodging and a medical facility together .The construction cost depends on fund raising，which is called "Piling Up System"; fund is raised to some extent and the construction is proceeded accodingly.