Subject : Invitation to the Hiroshima Conference

Date    : Wed, 6 Mar 2002

From    : “Asahi Square / Forum” square.k@ed.asahi.com

To      : Mahdi Elmandjra elmandjra@elmandjra.org

Dear Mr. Mahdi Elmandjra

We are taking the liberty of writing to request you to participate as a panelist in an international symposium “Let’s call back the stream of nuclear Weapons Abolition (subject-to-change)” sponsored by Asahi Shimbun, Hiroshima City, and Hiroshima Peace Culture Foundation, and supported by Hiroshima Television, to be held in Hiroshima on Sunday, August 4, 2002.

The streams to reduce nuclear weapons are under the pressure to be changed, after the mass terrorism in the United States last September and military attacks against Afghanistan. United States Governments seem to avoid mentioning the danger of nuclear consciously. You have formally mentioned the world danger that could be caused by Gulf War, and we are concerned how you see this situation. Is this the beginning of "The second Civilization War?"

We would like you to attend the symposium by all means and present your opinion regarding what new world order should be... Asahi Shimbun and Hiroshima City have been co-sponsoring annual international … We earnestly hope that you would attend this symposium and talk about your insight of nuclear situations and your thoughts when you decided to be part of the initiative.

Other panelists scheduled to participate in this symposium are Mr. Tadatoshi Akiba, Mayor of Hiroshima City, Mr. Mitsuru Kurosawa, Professor of International Law of Osaka University, and Mr. Yuzuru Nakagawa, Deputy Chief of the Editorial Board of Asahi Shimbun as a coordinator. We are planning to invite a few more people from America…

The Asahi Shimbun is a leading newspaper in Japan with a circulation

of 8.5 million and has just marked its 120th anniversary in 1999.

Very sincerely yours,

Suzuki Norio,

Managing Editor

The Asahi Shimbun Osaka Head Office

Kitagaki Hiromi,

Deputy Director of Asahi Kansai Square 21