Dozens of relatives of Dutch prisoners of war visited the site of a former World War II prison camp in Nagasaki on Saturday to pay tribute to family members who suffered abuse, starvation and forced labor there and who witnessed the atomic bombing of the city.

The commemoration at the former Fukuoka POW Camp No. 2 in Koyagi took place as Japan marks the 80th anniversary of the Aug. 9, 1945, bombing of Nagasaki. A stone monument at the site, erected in 2015 with contributions from Japanese survivors of the bombing and their descendants, bears the names of the Dutch prisoners and is intended as a symbol of reconciliation and a plea for peace.

Andre Schram, representing the Dutch bereaved families, said at the ceremony that the monument "carries a message that goes beyond remembrance. It’s a plea for peace.” He added that it "stands as a symbol of reconciliation between those whose ancestors were once enemies." Schram’s father, Johan Willem Schram, survived forced labor at the No. 2 camp and the atomic bombing on Aug. 9, 1945. Andre Schram has published an account of his father’s experiences and the broader wartime and colonial context, titled "Johan's Story."

During World War II, Japan held roughly 150,000 members of Allied forces as prisoners in camps across Asia, including more than 30,000 in Japanese war prisons, according to the POW Research Network Japan. The No. 2 Camp in Nagasaki held about 500 prisoners, most of them Dutch, with smaller numbers from the United States, Britain and Australia. Prisoners were used as forced labor in mines and factories as Japan diverted its male population to battlefields across Asia.

By the time the U.S. dropped a plutonium bomb on Nagasaki at 11:02 a.m. on Aug. 9, more than 70 prisoners at the No. 2 Camp had already died of malnutrition, overwork and illness. The camp lay about 10 kilometers (6.2 miles) from the hypocenter of the blast. Prisoners reported seeing a huge orange fireball, purple smoke and a mushroom cloud rise from the direction of the city. Windows were shattered, doors fell off and the ceiling of the camp clinic collapsed, injuring about 10 prisoners, historians say. At the nearby No. 14 Camp, closer to the blast, brick buildings were destroyed, killing eight prisoners and injuring dozens.

The bombing of Nagasaki killed tens of thousands of civilians; by the end of 1945, more than 70,000 people in Nagasaki had died as a result of the blast and its aftereffects. The attack came three days after a uranium bomb destroyed Hiroshima, where an estimated 140,000 people died. Japan announced its surrender on Aug. 15, 1945, bringing World War II to a close.

Survivors at the No. 2 Camp were officially notified of Japan’s surrender on Aug. 18. U.S. B-29s made the first food drop for Allied prisoners on Aug. 26, and the surviving POWs left the camp to return home on Sept. 4, two days after the formal signing that ended the war.

Saturday’s ceremony also highlighted local efforts toward reconciliation. Kazuhiro Ihara, whose father survived the bombing and worked to foster ties with former POWs, said the connection between Dutch families and descendants of atomic-bomb survivors in Nagasaki is "very symbolic.” He said organizers hope the event will help advance peaceful relations and deepen exchanges between the two countries.

Emperor Naruhito, Empress Masako and Princess Aiko visited Nagasaki on Friday to pay tribute to victims of the bombing and to meet with survivors, underscoring official observances tied to the 80th anniversary and the importance Japanese leaders place on passing down the memory of wartime suffering.

The monument at the former No. 2 Camp was erected as an emblem of shared remembrance. Relatives who gathered at the site said the day was a solemn recognition of the hardships endured by prisoners and a reaffirmation of a commitment to peace and reconciliation across generations.

The Associated Press contributed reporting to coverage of the visitation and historical context.