'I feel empowered' says Pacific youth delegate after nuclear summit
Tamatoa Tepuhiarii at the Hiroshima G7 Youth Summit 2023. Photo: Supplied/Tamatoa Tepuhiarii
Youth from around the world met at the Hiroshima G7 Youth Summit to find solutions to stop the use of nuclear weapons. The summit was co-organised by the Centre for Peace at the Hiroshima University and the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons. Among the attendees was Maohi youth delegate, Tamatoa Tepuhiarii, who is looking to examine the nuclear impacts on Maohi people. Tepuhiarii's grandfather worked on Mururoa, where French Polynesia was subject to nuclear weapons testing by France from 1966. The youth summit statement noted the concerns some Pacific Nations have on Japan's plans to release over one million tonnes of ALPS treated radioactive wastewater into the Pacific Ocean, and urged G7 countries to take bolder and more decisive actions towards nuclear disarmament. The official G7 meeting with world leaders starts on May 19.