From 19 to 21 October, SGI and the Campaign to Stop Killer Robots co-hosted Part One of the 2020-2021 Humanitarian Disarmament Forum virtually, with a record attendance of 115 participants. This is an annual forum held parallel to the UN General Assembly First Committee session in the fall. Since 2012, the Forum has brought together campaigners from various humanitarian disarmament …
Taking an Intersectional Approach to Fully Autonomous Weapons
In August 2020, the Campaign to Stop Killer Robots’ Working Group on Intersectionality (WGI), which was established by the Campaign’s Steering Committee, conducted its first official meeting. The group was formed earlier this year, in recognition of the consequences and challenges posed by systemic and structural inequalities that exist within civil society. The primary objective of the group is to …
Interview with UN Under-Secretary-General Izumi Nakamitsu, High Representative for Disarmament Affairs
UN Under-Secretary-General Izumi Nakamitsu, High Representative for Disarmament Affairs was interviewed by the Seikyo Shimbun as part of its monthly Culture of Peace series. Ms. Nakamitsu covered topics such as the United Nation’s 75th anniversary, the 25th anniversary of UN Security Council Resolution 1325, the role of civil society in supporting the UN, how to accelerate actions for nuclear disarmament …
SGI Statement on the Ratification of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons by 50 States
On the occasion of the ratification of the UN Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) by the 50th state party, Honduras, on October 24, 2020, Soka Gakkai International made the following statement. The press release announcing the statement is available via Religion News Service. [Photo credit: ICAN/Ralf Schlesener] We wish to wholeheartedly welcome the ratification, on October 24, …
Interview with Dr. Mamphela Ramphele, Co-President of the Club of Rome
Dr. Mamphela Ramphele, renowned activist, medical doctor, academic, global public servant, political thinker, and Co-President of the Club of Rome was interviewed by the Seikyo Shimbun as part of its monthly Culture of Peace series. During the interview, Dr. Ramphele stresses that in the face of our unprecedented global crisis, now is a rare moment for us to make fundamental …
The Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons and the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty
The Arms Control Association (ACA) and the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF) co-organized a webinar titled “The Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons and the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty” on 27 August, as part of their new joint series on “Critical NPT Issues.” Anna Ikeda of SGI joined the panel with George-Wilhelm Gallhofer, Head of Nuclear Disarmament …
Interfaith Perspectives on Nuclear Weapons: A Multigenerational Conversation
The Parliament of the World’s Religions’ Next Generation Task Force hosted a webinar titled “Interfaith Perspectives on Nuclear Weapons: A Multigenerational Conversation” on 15 August, where panelists engaged in a conversation on nuclear weapons, the importance of disarmament, and the critical role of interfaith and multigenerational action in a world free of nuclear weapons. This webinar was hosted in commemoration …
Women of Color Advancing Peace and Security UK Chapter Launch Event
On 24 June, Hayley Ramsay-Jones of SGI joined the virtual launch event of WCAPS-UK, the UK branch of the Women of Color Advancing Peace and Security, as a panelist. WCAPS was created three years ago in the United States and aims to advance the leadership and professional development of women of color in the fields of international policy-making, disarmament, peace, …
Joint Interfaith Statement on the 75th Anniversary of the Atomic Bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki
Commemorating the 75th anniversary of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, 189 groups from around the world endorsed a joint interfaith statement coordinated by Faith Communities Concerned About Nuclear Weapons, to speak in one voice and reject the existential threat to humanity posed by nuclear weapons. The statement reaffirms that the presence of even one nuclear weapon violates the core …
Celebrating Caribbean leadership! 19-20 June 2020 marks the one-year anniversary of the Caribbean Forum on the TPNW
Celebrating Caribbean leadership! 19-20 June 2020 marks the one-year anniversary of the Caribbean Forum on the TPNW “Like all Small Island Developing States, we view the prospects of a nuclear detonation, whether by design, accident or negligence, as an existential horror that could decimate the entire Caribbean region.” Shorna-Kay Richards, former Deputy Permanent Representative of Jamaica to the United Nations. …