May 2010

ACRP Executive Committee Meets in Beijing

The executive committee of the Asian Conference on Religions for Peace (ACRP) convened May 11-12 at a hotel in Beijing. Forty-seven committee members from 17 countries took part. They included Dr. Din Syamsuddin from Indonesia, ACRP's copresident and moderator, and Dr. Kim Sunggon from South Korea, its secretary-general. Rev. Takeshi Kawabata, director of General Affairs Bureau of Rissho Kosei-kai, represented Rev. Nichiko Niwano, president of Rissho Kosei-kai and a copresident of ACRP. The Japanese Committee of the World Conference of Religions for Peace (WCRP), Japan's national chapter of Religions for Peace, was represented by Rev. Tomokazu Hatakeyama, its under-secretary-general, in his capacity as deputy secretary-general of ACRP.

The executive committee met with the support of the China Committee on Religion and Peace (CCRP), established in 1994 and consisting of representatives of China's five main religious groups: Buddhists, Taoists, Muslims, Catholics, and Protestants. Following congratulatory messages by Dr. Syamsuddin and a CCRP representative, each national chapter reported on its efforts for world peace.

Rev. Kawabata's report on behalf of WCRP/Japan described preparations to commemorate the WCRP's 40th anniversary in September in Nara, Japan. He also reported on the ongoing worldwide petition drive for disarmament, the Arms Down! Campaign for Shared Security, in which many young members of the Global Youth Network of Religions for Peace have taken part since last November.

There were also meetings of ACRP's standing commissions on the themes of reconciliation and security; human rights protection; peace education and research; and development and environmental protection. Each commission discussed practical ways to carry out its plans for the next two years.

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