It has been over 81 years since the atomic bomb “Little Boy” was dropped on the Japanese city of Hiroshima. Back in September, Taiwanese and Japanese Rotary Club communities came together to assist one man in the fight to keep the memory alive and spread the message of peace to all. 

(Source: PeaceEventPicture)

History classes everywhere paint that fatal day in 1945 as the day the world’s weaponry and power transformed. Nuclear warfare became a horrifying race to the top where whoever could achieve that goal would be unofficially crowned as supreme and almighty. Global superpowers fought to answer one rising question: “Who can have the most power?” and subsequently, “Who can cause the most destruction?”  

Japanese journalist and founder of the Peace Story Foundation, Daisaku Yoshimura shares another angle of the story, that of peace and resilience. He believes everyone should know the struggles of Japanese people following the drop of the atomic bomb. How the people of Hiroshima have grappled and continue to grapple with grief, loss, disease, and lingering adversities even 80 years later. Yoshimura believes that to make the world a better, more peaceful place, all must know the hardships Japanese people have and still deal with to this day. 

Yoshimura has a commendable attitude and commitment to peace. With this project, he even hired a Ukrainian illustrator, Yuliia Bondarenko, to help him illustrate his story, entitled “The Cloud That Won’t Disappear By Kei,” whom he recruited during a visit to Ukraine; showing his support for the end of war. Last year, for the entirety of the Osaka Expo, 184 days between April 13 and October 13, 2025, fueled by fierce determination, Yoshimura stood out every day and performed his story. Even when hospitalized with meningitis, Yoshimura live-streamed at exactly 3 p.m. every day, dressed in his hospital gown, IV drip attached, bringing passersby and viewers to tears. 

To tell the story, Yoshimura integrates Kamishibai, a traditional form of Japanese storytelling utilizing medium- to large-sized poster boards with detailed watercolor illustrations plastered across one side, the corresponding text on the other. The Kamishibai is a sort of traditional paper stage play in Japanese culture. 

The main character, Kei the little girl, is based on the real-life event of 8-year-old Keiko Ogura, a survivor of the 1945 atomic bomb dropped over Hiroshima, Japan. This Kamishibai simplifies the horrific events into something digestible for all ages, from 3 to 93.  

This depiction breaks down the human massacre, destruction of cities, and diseases caused by nuclear weapon. It concludes with a message of hope. Activist and speaker Ogura, now 89, hopes to convey her message of hope that nuclear weapons will never be used again. 

On Sunday, September 20th, 2026, Yoshimura was joined by 43 members of both Taiwanese and Japanese Rotary Clubs in a reading of the Kamishibai in the historic Taipei Four Four South Village. The performance comes the day before the United Nations’ International Day of Peace, with the iconic and innovative Taipei 101 protruding in the background.   

The group performs not as a government, but as members of civil society, sharing their story of peace with others. Passersby observed curiously and took pictures as the group read aloud their story in Mandarin, flashing up the corresponding illustrations as they proceeded. 

Yoshimura emphasizes that he never names the country that dropped the atomic bomb. He only wishes to join people around the world to read what happened and think about peace. He has devoted his life to sharing his story with the world, and hopes he can inspire others to think about peace and the end of war.  

More information about the Peace Story Foundation can be found here: https://www.peace-story.org/.  

Have you read?

• Former Malaysian Deputy Minister: ASEAN Doesn’t Want to Depend on China Alone
• Why Foreign Investors Like Warren Buffett Are Flocking to Japanese Stocks
• The Taiwan-Inspired AI Revolution: How a Sci-fi Writer Led Team Mirai into Japan’s Parliament

Uploaded by Ian Huang