A-bomb survivor hopes 'Oppenheimer' stokes debate in Japan

STORY: Teruko Yahata was eight years old when the

first atomic bomb leveled swaths of Hiroshima

Now 86, the Japanese survivor is eager to

be among the first to see ‘Oppenheimer’

Japan was initially left out of plans for the worldwide

screening of the biopic about the bomb pioneer

(Teruko Yahata, Atomic bomb survivor)

“I wonder if Japan is the last country because it suffered the atomic bombings. But even in a country that suffered the atomic bombings, we need to know the truth. We need to know the truth no matter how painful it is. And make use of it for the future. I think this is important.”

Yahata is one of a dwindling number of

survivors, known as 'hibakusha'

She learned English to help tell her story to

foreign visitors at Hiroshima’s bomb museum

“I don't hold a grudge against Mr. Oppenheimer himself or anything like that, it's a much bigger issue. As an atomic bomb survivor, the thought of developing, manufacturing, and actually dropping the bomb still sends chills up my spine // I think the 'Oppenheimer' film should be screened in Japan, so we can learn from it and not lose that awareness that we need to preserve a future for our loved ones."

The film opens in Japan on March 29