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Diplomats in Tokyo Consider Peace Proposals
Written by Shigenari Kato, Secretary General, UPF Peace Diplomats Forum
Tuesday, July 6, 2010
Tokyo, Japan - The ninth Peace Diplomats Forum was held in Tokyo on July 6, convening over 50 participants, including 25 senior diplomats from 20 embassies in Japan and several former Japanese ambassadors.
The forum started with an opening remark by the Co-Chairman of UPF-Japan, Rev. Gentaro Kajikuri. “I believe the dream of all people, a world of lasting peace, will be realized within a few years,” he said. “I will make my utmost effort to work with you in order to establish a peaceful world.”
The keynote speech was given by Prof. Akiko Yamanaka, a professional by-fellow at Churchill College, Cambridge, and the former vice minister for foreign affairs in Japan, on the theme “Human Security and Peacebuilding: An Age of Balance.” She pointed out that the nature of security is changing from “against” to “with” and emphasized that it is important to establish trustworthy relations among countries for peace building.
In the course of the program, a consultation took place on the proposal for an interreligious council at the United Nations. Mr. Seiichi Kikuya, secretary general of UPF-Japan, introduced the proposal that UPF founder, Rev. Sun Myung Moon, made at the UN Headquarters in 2000 to establish an interreligious council within the UN structure for religious leaders to discuss how to promote world peace.
The keynote speech was followed by a comment by the former Japanese ambassador to Poland and Belgium, Amb. Nagao Hyodo. Amb. Hyodo asserted that the issue of universal ethical standards must be seriously considered when we talk about world peace and human security in the 21st century. As a board member of InterAction Council (IAC), a gathering of former heads of state to discuss world peace, he reported about the meetings of religious and political leaders convened by the IAC. He explained that all participants came to realize that there is a "golden rule" which all religions and ethical systems share. In conclusion, he emphasized that what the IAC has been trying to do is heading in the same direction as Rev. Moon, who has been working for many years along these lines.
Questionnaires about the proposed interreligious council were distributed to the participants at the forum. In the questionnaire, Mr. Dwatmaji Hanomanresi, the counselor of the Embassy of the Republic of Indonesia, said that it is time for not only interreligious dialogue but also to establish an interreligious council that can work in cooperation with the UN Security Council. Mrs. Mwenda Jeanne, the wife of minister counselor of the Embassy of the Democratic Republic of Congo, who was newly appointed as an Ambassador for Peace during this forum, suggested that the council should be composed of religious leaders and civil society representatives.
The Peace Diplomats Forum, one of the projects of UPF-Japan, has provided opportunities for diplomats to discuss their concerns and vision as well as a way for foreign diplomats and Japanese leaders to exchange information.
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