Home > About Us > SGI's Efforts for the People's Decade
The SGI launched the "People's Decade for Nuclear Abolition" initiative in 2007.
From May 3 to June 6, 2010, SGI-Korea Student Group members throughout the country organized the thirteenth "Campus Peace Culture Activity," which displayed "A World Without Nuclear Weapons" an exhibition the group members created for 173 venues at 154 universities in South Korea.
Based on SGI President Daisaku Ikeda's 2010 Peace Proposal, "Toward a New Era of Value Creation," the exhibition consisted of photo panels showing the process of nuclear disarmament and dismantling. It also introduced Mr. Ikeda's various activities promoting peace.
Approximately 112,000 viewed the exhibition throughout South Korea.
A Hiroshima Peace Day Commemorative Meeting was held at the South London National Centre on August 8. SGI-UK members in South London area met to commemorate the 65th anniversaries of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945, to reflect on the profound desire of the survivors that it will never happen again, and to hear inspiration from a faith talk based on SGI President Ikeda’s 2009 Proposal: "Building Global Solidarity Toward Nuclear Abolition."
Following an extract from the SGI DVD "Testimonies from Hiroshima and Nagasaki – Women Speak Out for Peace," Alex Giles delivered a speech stating that we can definitely create momentum toward the goal of nuclear abolition and further to a lasting peace through taking action by spreading awareness and inspiration to others.
Rachel Cardy, accompanied by Ed Walton on the violin, sang her own composition "Never Again," which reached deep into the audience’s hearts and consolidated their determination to move forward.
SGI-UK will hold a national Hiroshima Peace Day event on Sep. 4.
The Student Division of the Soka Gakkai in the Chugoku region (five prefectures surrounding Hiroshima Prefecture) conducted a survey into university students’ awareness on peace and nuclear weapons issues from March 20 through May 9, 2010. They collected 1,970 results in the five prefectures. This is the 15th such survey, which the students conduct almost every year.
Asked if they knew the date of the atomic bombings, the percentage of correct answers by Hiroshima-born individuals is considerably higher than the average.
The percentage of males who stated that the bombings were unacceptable is 46 percent, while that of females reaches 62 percent. Similarly, the percentage of females who reject the use of nuclear weapons under any circumstances is 79 percent, 13 percent higher than that of males.
Overall, the majority of the students think nuclear weapons should be abolished. Meanwhile, a total of only 11 percent of people stated they are engaged in peace activities, although a much higher percentage stated they would like to be involved in peace activities but do not know what to do.
The full survey results can be viewed here.
Various events were held throughout the world to launch June 5, Nuclear Abolition Day, initiated by International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN). The SGI supported by holding an anti-nuclear forum and prayer service.
On May 26, 2010, a forum educating young people about nuclear abolition and the May NPT Review Conference 2010 that was held in New York took place at the Josei Toda International Center in Shinjuku, Tokyo. The event was sponsored by the Soka Gakkai Youth Peace Conference. more…
On May 11, a petition of 2,276,167 signatures from youth calling for the adoption of a Nuclear Weapons Convention was presented to Ambassador Leslie Gatan, adviser to the president of the NPT Review Conference, and UN High Representative for Disarmament Affairs Sergio Duarte at the SGI-USA Culture Center in New York City.
The signatures were collected between January and March 2010 by youth members of Soka Gakkai in Japan. Kenji Shiratsuchi, chair of the Soka Gakkai’s Youth Peace Committee, commented: “Each of these signatures embodies the heartfelt commitment and effort of a young person. We urge you to start debate on a Nuclear Weapons Convention at the earliest opportunity.”
In a message, SGI President Daisaku Ikeda stressed that the signatures represent valuable dialogues for peace and symbolize the immense power that lies hidden in the depths of seemingly ordinary people. more…
From January to March 2010, youth members of Soka Gakkai International (SGI) in eight countries conducted surveys of their peers' attitudes toward nuclear weapons and their abolition in advance of the May NPT Review Conference.
A total of 4,475 interview surveys were conducted of people from their teens through 30s in Japan, Korea, the Philippines, New Zealand, the USA, Brazil, South Africa and the UK. more…
The full survey results can be viewed here.
On January 26 and 27, the annual Peace Proposal by SGI President Ikeda was carried in the Seikyo Shimbun newspaper. The following is a translation of the portion carried on January 27 dealing with specific policy proposals in the fields of nuclear abolition and human security. more…
From February 20-28, 2010, the Ministry of Culture, in collaboration with Soka Gakkai Thailand, hosted the exhibition "Transforming the Human Spirit: From a Culture of Violence to a Culture of Peace" at the Siam Paragon Shopping Center in Bangkok, Thailand. The event is expected to raise awareness in society about peace issues.
Minister of Culture Mr.Teera Slukpetch presided over the opening ceremony and stated that problems and conflicts can be found all around us, beginning with the smallest things that have been neglected and allowed to grow into epic proportions. This exhibition will show that peace can be created, beginning with each individual. Mr. Teera also added that the world's ethics must be restored if the world is to move forward and achieve world peace.
After viewing the exhibition, he remarked that it should be held at many venues in Thailand. It is scheduled to tour the country through December 2010.
Republic of the Marshall Islands Ambassador Jiba B. Kabua
On March 9, 2010, Soka Gakkai youth members hosted one of a series of lectures titled "Toward World Peace and Human Security: A Statement Against War and Weapons of Mass Destruction" at the Josei Toda International Center in Tokyo, Japan. Republic of the Marshall Islands Ambassador Jiba B. Kabua was invited as guest speaker.
In his speech, Ambassador Kabua recounted that during the Cold War 67 nuclear tests were conducted in the Marshall Islands and stressed the need to abolish nuclear weapons. He also emphasized the importance of building solidarity among concerned citizens who will courageously and rationally speak out for this cause.
Reviewing the history of the Soka Gakkai and its presidents who dedicated their lives for the advancement of lasting peace, Ambassador Kabua expressed his hope to continue working alongside the Soka Gakkai in its endeavor to realize a world of peace and hope.
On March 16th SGI President Daisaku Ikeda published a column in Chugoku Shimbun, the most popular newspaper in Hiroshima, entitled "Toward a nuclear abolition summit in Hiroshima in 2015." more…
On February 1, 2010, Soka Gakkai youth members held one of a series of peace lectures at the Josei Toda International Center in Tokyo, Japan, titled "Toward Nuclear Abolition: Now Is the Time for Us to Stand Up for Peace."
In her remarks, guest lecturer and Peace Depot Secretary-General Keiko Nakamura noted that the nuclear weapons issue is not limited to the field of international politics but is rather something that every citizen should think about. She emphasized that simply aiming to get rid of all nuclear weapons is not enough. What is necessary is for the people to realize a world which understands that nuclear weapons are not needed at all for the protection of humanity.
On February 8, David Krieger, president of the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation and the keynote speaker, delivered a lecture titled "A Message to Youth: Live to Your Full Capacity and Save the Planet" at the Nagasaki Shimbun Hall. Dr. Krieger emphasized that as long as people continue to live under the threat of nuclear weapons, human security cannot be guaranteed. He also stated, "We [Dr. David Krieger and SGI President Daisaku Ikeda] espoused the principle of choosing hope, rather than succumbing to ignorance, apathy or despair. Hope gives rise to action, and action, in turn, gives rise to hope. Our shared hope includes the goal of building a more peaceful world, free of nuclear weapons --a daunting but essential goal. I stand with Daisaku Ikeda in choosing hope. I'm sure that you stand with him as well."
On February 10, Akira Kawasaki, member of the Executive Committee of the Tokyo-based NGO Peace Boat, delivered a lecture at the Kanagawa Peace Hall. He emphasized the importance of civil societies serving as key actors in transforming government policies and creating a nuclear-free world.
SGI recently launched a three-part series in The Japan Times, the leading English-language newspaper in Japan, in which hibakusha describe their experiences and opinions regarding current nuclear weapons issues.
SGI delegates attended the Parliament of the World's Religions, which took place in December 2009 in Melbourne, Australia, bringing together over 8,000 representatives from a wide array of faiths to build bridges and address global issues.
In addition to holding the antinuclear exhibition "From a Culture of Violence to a Culture of Peace: Transforming the Human Spirit," SGI delegates attended panels on nuclear weapons issues. On December 6, during one panel, Judge Christopher Weeramantry, former judge of the International Court of Justice, stated that we have to put a stop to the danger posed by nuclear weapons and that the only way to do this is by generating public consciousness of this agenda. SGI Executive Director for Peace Affairs Hirotsugu Terasaki stressed that the time is right for increased efforts toward nuclear abolition in the run-up to the May 2010 NPT Review Conference.
During the other panel Buddhist, Christian, Jewish and Muslim representatives joined their voices, calling for moral leadership by the world's religions in the effort to abolish nuclear weapons. Dr. Sue Wareham, former president of the Medical Association for Prevention of War (Australia) and board member of the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN), chaired the panel and stressed the vital role people of faith can play.
*You can listen to this news on the radio news program: http://www.gcast.com/u/TGRRadioEdition/
January 1, 2010 program (from 26:56)
From September 9-11, 2009, an SGI delegation attended the 62nd annual conference for NGOs associated with the United Nations Department of Public Information (DPI) in Mexico City. On September 10, an opening reception for the SGI-organized exhibition "From a Culture of Violence to a Culture of Peace : Transforming the Human Spirit" was held at the Mexican Senate.
The reception was attended by the President of the Mexican Senate, Carlos Navarette Ruíz, Senator María Elena Orantes López, UN Under-Secretary-General for Communications and Public Information Kiyo Akasaka, UN High Representative for Disarmament Affairs Sergio Duarte, Charles Hitchcock, Chair of the 62nd Annual DPI/NGO Conference, as well as numerous representatives of the NGO and diplomatic communities. In his welcoming remarks, Senate President Navarette described the power of the images in the exhibition, such as photographs of children holding automatic weapons, to move people's hearts.
On the final day of the conference, SGI's representative to the UN in New York, Hiro Sakurai, was one of the speakers at a plenary roundtable. He related experiences of young people who had participated in activities in support of the SGI's People's Decade for Nuclear Abolition and how the dialogues engaged in with their peers had had a transformative impact on their consciousness. In the afternoon, SGI and Mayors for Peace jointly sponsored the workshop "International Decade for Disarmament."
On September 8, 2009, SGI President Daisaku Ikeda issued a proposal "Building Global Solidarity Toward Nuclear Abolition," highlighting five key steps toward the abolition of nuclear weapons. He stresses that we now have a unique opportunity to build grassroots solidarity, propel political processes and break out of the stagnation which has dogged nuclear disarmament and nonproliferation efforts. more…
On May 11, 2009, SGI held a symposium titled "Nuclear Abolition and Human Security: Shared Action to Meet a Common Threat" during the NPT PrepCom in New York. The speakers were: Kazuo Tase, chief of the Human Security Unit, UN Office of Coordination for Humanitarian Affairs; Patricia Lewis, Deputy Director of the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies at the Monterey Institute of International Studies; and Kathleen Sullivan, Education Consultant to the UN Office for Disarmament Affairs. The event, cosponsored by ICAN, explored how the perspectives of "human security"--a commitment to welfare of real people's lives as opposed to the often abstract imperatives of national interests--can be brought to bear in countering the threat of nuclear weapons.
An SGI delegation participated in the meetings held at the United Nations Headquarters preparatory to the 2010 Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) review conference on May in 2009.
On April 15, 2009, the seminar was held at the Nobel Institute in Oslo, moderated by Stein Tønnesson, Director of the International Peace Research Institute, Oslo (PRIO). Sverre Lodgaard, Senior Research Fellow of the Norwegian Institute of International Affairs (NUPI), emphasized the importance of serious debate on both the vision of the abolition of nuclear weapons and the means to realize it, stressing that it is essential for civil society to raise their voices and take action. This seminar was organized by the SGI, PRIO and NUPI and supported by No to Nuclear Weapons (NTA), Norwegian Physicians Against Nuclear Weapons (NLA) affiliated with International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War, the Norwegian Pugwash Committee, the Norwegian Atlantic Committee (NAC) and the United Nations Association of Norway.
In 2005, the Soka Gakkai Women's Peace Committee in Japan filmed 31 female war survivors from all over Japan talking about their experiences and compiled a DVD of eight of their accounts for educational purposes. From 2009 a multi-language version of this resource was made available.
"Creating a Culture of Peace" at the University of Hawaii, April 2007
(photo by Sophia Mendoza)
This exhibition presents issues on nuclear weapons through the lens of human security, while placing the work of nuclear abolition at the heart of building a culture of peace. It was launched in 2007 in commemoration of the fiftieth anniversary of declaration against nuclear weapons issued by second Soka Gakkai president Josei Toda at the launch of the decade of action by world's people for nuclear abolition.
The venues where the exhibit has been shown include the University of Hawaii, the University of Hong Kong, the New Zealand Parliament, the Cooper Union in New York City, the UN Office at Geneva during the preparatory session of the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) in 2008, the Oslo City Hall Gallery, and the Cibao Grand Theater, Santiago, Dominican Republic, as well as numerous venues in Malaysia and Taiwan.
On November 17, 2008, a symposium titled "Strengthening the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)" was held at Christiansborg Palace, which houses the Danish Parliament, in Copenhagen. SGI-Denmark and the Danish Committee of the Pugwash Conferences on Science and World Affairs (Pugwash Denmark) cosponsored the event together with several peace organizations. Some 150 peace scholars, activists and ambassadors to Denmark attended the event, including former IAEA Director General Hans Blix.
From February 8-10, 2008, SGI participated in a Workshop on the Eradication of Armed Conflict held at the Australian Centre for Peace and Conflict Studies (ACPACS) at the University of Queensland, Brisbane, organized by Global Action to Prevent War (GAPW). An SGI representative chaired a session on the theme "From Conventional to Nuclear Weapons: Movement Forward on Nuclear Disarmament." The event was cosponsored by GAPW, ACPACS, the World Federation of United Nations Associations (WFUNA) and the project for a United Nations Emergency Peace Service (UNEPS).
Civil Society Peace Forum titled "Abolishing Nuclear Weapons: What Can Each Of Us Do?" at the Cooper Union in New York City, September 2007
In commemoration of the 50th anniversary of second Soka Gakkai president Josei Toda's Declaration Calling for the Abolition of Nuclear Weapons, SGI, organized a Civil Society Peace Forum titled Abolishing Nuclear Weapons: What can each of us do? on September 8, 2007 at The Cooper Union, New York City, cosponsored by Global Action to Prevent War and the World Federation of United Nations Associations. A panel discussion was moderated by Kathleen Sullivan, a UN disarmament education consultant, and the panelists included experts from the Lawyers' Committee on Nuclear Policy (LCNP), the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom, the Global Security Institute, and the Peace Education Center of Columbia University Teachers College.
