Tinian holds two separate events for Japan, US

Key personalities involved in the Manhattan Project, USS Indianapolis survivors, atomic bombing survivors, and other World War II experts are on Tinian to commemorate the 60th Atomic Mission to Japan today.

The Tinian government is set to hold two separate events at the same time: peace ceremonies for the Japanese group to be held at King Peace Gardens in San Jose, while the U.S. team holds its activities at U.S. North Field, a military property where the 1945 bomb pits are located.

“We’re all set for these events. Everybody is here,” said Tinian Mayor’s Office senior policy consultant Phillip Mendiola Long yesterday.

Long chairs the commemoration committee, and handles the event for the U.S. contingent.

The 10th Tinian Municipal Council leads the Japan commemoration rites.

The Tinian event officially began yesterday with the opening of exhibits about the atomic mission and World War II in the Marianas at Tinian Dynasty Hotel and Casino.

The organizers are also displaying life-size replicas of the atomic bombs that were dropped at Hiroshima on Aug. 6, 1945 (Little Boy) and at Nagasaki on Aug. 9, 1945 (Fat Man).

Commemoration activities today for both contingents will be held from 9am to 1130am.

At 9:15am, an all island-siren ceremony will be held.

Organizers hail the whole event, which stretches up to Aug. 9, as once-in-a-lifetime event that can happen only on Tinian, where the A-bombs were flown from 60 years ago.

Organizers said the event would be attended by key World War II personalities.

Among them are Martin Zach, an American prisoner of war in Japan, USS Indianapolis survivors Woody James and Mike Kuryla Jr., who brought parts of the atomic weapon to Tinian, Dr. Harold Agnew and Leon Smith who were involved in the assembly of the bombs, and about six B-29 crewmembers involved in the actual strike, 2nd Marine veterans Donald Swindle and Donald Milleson, and two Seabees who were involved in the building of Tinian harbor, runway, and bomb pits.

Other guests are keynote speakers Anderson Giles, who is known as the proverbial expert on Tinian’s World War II history, John Coster-Mullen, known across the U.S. as the expert in World War II weapons, and professor Haguchi from Kyoto University and an adjunct faculty at Harvard, who has been featured in History Channel and Discovery Channel for his historical knowledge about the Japanese Imperial Army.

Two Imperial Army veterans are said to be attending the event.

Three Hibakusha representatives are also on island: two from Hiroshima—85-year-old Keijiro Matsushima and 75-year-old Fumiaki Kajiya—and one from Nagasaki—85-year-old Kiyoshi Nishida.

Long said the Tinian commemoration aims “to balance” the presentation of World War II history as far as Tinian is concerned.

While others fear that the presence of Japanese may ignite bitter memories, he said the Japanese side cannot be ignored “because they’re part of history.”

He said the commemoration of the atomic mission “does not belong to the Commonwealth but to the world.”

Members from the foreign media are covering the event, according to the organizers. They are CNN, NHK, New York Times, Philadelphia Inquirer, and South China Morning Post, among others.