| Posted: May 12 2005,09:54 |
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PROGRESS: Has your organization seen
progress toward a culture of peace and nonviolence in your domain of
action and in your constituency during the first half of the Decade? |
We
have developed several educational programs to promote a culture of
peace and nonviolence such as the "Building a Culture of Peace and
Nonviolence for the Children of the World" exhibition, the "Victory
Over Violence" initiative, and several initiatives related to the theme
of "Women and a Culture of Peace."
Our goal for implementing
these programs is a shift of mindset of people at all levels toward a
culture of peace and nonviolence. In that regard, we have seen keen
interest and enthusiasm in those whom we reached out to through the
programs. Most encouraging is to see those who have become
empowered and inspired to develop consistent and ongoing programs to
promote a culture of peace.
Victory Over Violence (VOV) is a
youth-sponsored initiative of SGI-USA which has been ongoing since
1999. It aims to help young people identify and counteract the
root causes of violence in their lives and communities. VOV is a
peer-to-peer program whereby SGI-USA youth go into schools and act as
facilitators for discussions on ways of counteracting violence. A
resource kit including a video and information pack including practical
resources for victims of violence has been created.
The
"Building a Culture of Peace" exhibition has now been shown in many
venues around the world, and often programs involving local schools and
other groups are arranged around it. When it was first presented at the
United Nations Headquarters in February 2004, SGI worked with the
Renaissance Charter School in New York City, which created a group of
32 high school students who would serve as "peer hosts" to show people
round and stimulate discussion and reflection.
The women of Soka
Gakkai Malaysia (SGM) initiated a Womens Peace Convention in October
2000 entitled "Women in the New Era: Leading the Way to a Culture of
Peace." The convention was based on the premise that though women
have suffered the most due to war, violence and oppression, it has been
women who have persevered in turning society in the direction of peace.
27 conventions on the same theme throughout Malaysia were
organized in different languages during October and November 2001,
attended by a total of 17,000 people. Four guidelines for establishing
a culture of peace were introduced: Respect All Life, Win-Win
Communication, Courage to Take Action and A Correct Perspective of
Value.
Then from April to October 2002, the women
initiated a series of workshops on coping with change through
self-reflection and self-reformation.
These workshops aimed to
help women realize how their vision is bounded by their own concepts,
beliefs and ideas. Based on the theme
"Self-reflection
and Self-reformation Lead to Spiritual Discovery," they aimed to help
women realize the tremendous potential they possess as agents of change.
A
total of 21 workshops was organized throughout Malaysia attended by
2,500 SGM women leaders. The workshops were designed to challenge
participants’ mindsets and encourage them to break away from
self-imposed mental limitations. In addition, the workshops also
stimulated participants to reflect on their inhibitions and motivated
them to overcome their fears.
In small group discussions they
exchanged ideas on how to recognize and accept change, and how to
understand each other better. Many were surprised at the
innovative ideas they could apply usefully in their daily life.
The participants realized the significance of unity and teamwork
in advancing the larger cause of peace.
In January 2003 a women’s peace forum focusing on environmental protection continued this ongoing series.
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OBSTACLES: What are the most important obstacles that have prevented progress?
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There
is scope to further expand SGI organizations’ activities to promote a
culture of peace, thereby reaching many more people. One internal
limiting factor is that each SGI organization is autonomous and
therefore sets its own priorities for NGO activities. While information
and materials can be provided on the theme of a culture of peace or
protecting the environment, promoting human rights education etc., it
is up to each national SGI organization to decide what activities to
pursue during a given year.
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ACTIONS: What actions have been
undertaken by your organization to promote a culture of peace and
nonviolence during the first half of the Decade?
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(to be entered later)
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ADVICE: What advice would you like to
give to the Secretary-General and the General Assembly to promote a
culture of peace and nonviolence during the second half of the Decade? |
Last
year the New York chapter of our organization worked together with six
other community-based organizations and launched a week-long promotion
of a culture of peace entitled "Living a Culture of Peace Week" from
September 18 through 26 including the International Day of Peace. The
designation of such a week by the General Assembly would help
facilitate the promotion of a culture of peace in addition to the
International Day of Peace.
It seems that more concrete efforts
could be made globally to communicate the concept and interlinked
elements which make up a culture of peace. At present the concept
is still probably very vague and nonspecific to many of the people who
encounter the phrase "a culture of peace."
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PARTNERSHIPS: What partnerships and
networks does your organization participate in, thus strengthening the
global movement for a culture of peace? |
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PLANS: What new engagements are
planned by your organization to promote a culture of peace and
nonviolence in the second half of the Decade (2005-2010)? |
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Postal address of organization
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Soka Gakkai International
15-3 Samon-cho Shinjuku-ku
Tokyo, 160-0017, Japan
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E-mail address of organization
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sgiunny@att.net
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Website address of organization
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http://www.sgi.org
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Highest priority action domain of a culture of peace
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Education for a culture of peace
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Second priority action domain of a culture of peace
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Highest priority country of action (or international)
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INTERNATIONAL
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Second priority country of action (or international)
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