Hiroshima mayor receives Magsaysay Award

Hiroshima Mayor Tadatoshi Akiba on Tuesday received the prestigious Ramon Magsaysay Award for his role in the global campaign to abolish nuclear weapons.

Philippine President Benigno Aquino III conferred the award on Akiba and other recipients at a ceremony held in Manila.

"I am profoundly honored to be one of the recipients of this year's Ramon Magsaysay. I am grateful to the trustees for the personal honor they have bestowed on me, but more importantly, for their attention to the cause for which I have been working," Akiba said in his acceptance speech.

Akiba, 67, was recognized by the Ramon Magsaysay Foundation for "principled and determined leadership in a sustained global campaign to mobilize citizens, pressure governments, and build the political will to create a world free from the perils of nuclear war."

He is the 24th Japanese to receive the award.

"I am more than gratified that our campaign to liberate humanity from the threat of nuclear annihilation has been recognized by the Board of Trustees of the Ramon Magsaysay Award Foundation, and I am thankful for the recognition this award will bring to us from a wider public, especially here in Asia," Akiba said.

Akiba warned that if nuclear weapons persist, "the worst case scenario is the extinction of the human race."

He reiterated his appeal for governments all over the world to commit themselves to eliminating all nuclear weapons and weapons-grade fissile materials.

The awards, considered the Asian equivalent of the Nobel Peace Prize, also honored teachers Christopher Bernido and M. Victoria Carpio-Bernido of the Philippines, environmental activist Huo Daishan of China, and advocate for the disabled A.H.M. Noman Khan of Bangladesh for their contributions in different fields.

In addition, Pan Yue and Fu Qiping of China were recognized for their advocacies and efforts toward "harmonizing economic growth and environmental protection."

"To all our awardees, congratulations and thank you. You are indeed living testimony to the better angels of human nature," Aquino said in his speech.

"Thank you so much for being symbols of the highest ideals of human kind and for shining your life in a world that surely is in constant need of examples," he added.

Each of the awardees received a certificate, a medallion bearing the likeness of former Philippine President Magsaysay, and a cash prize.