The Youth Committee of the Japanese Committee of the World Conference of Religions for Peace held a drive in Kyoto on May 30 to collect signatures to petitions for the Arms Down! Campaign for Shared Security before the Nio-mon gate of Kiyomizu-dera temple of the Kitahosso sect of Japanese Buddhism. Some 20 young people from eight member organizations of Religions for Peace took part, as well as 22 members of Rissho Kosei-kai's Kyoto Dharma Center. The campaign calls on every nation to divert 10 percent of its military spending to achieving the UN Millennium Development Goals for ending poverty by 2015.

At the beginning of the petition drive, the activists gathered to hear greetings from Rev. Ryoichi Fukata, president of the youth department of the religious organization Ennokyo, and Rev. Shinko Onishi, temple affairs director of Kiyomizu-dera.

Rev. Onishi sought to encourage the participants, saying, "This is the high season for Kiyomizu-dera, during which it welcomes many tourists, including young students on school excursions from all over Japan." He emphasized that "it is important for us to sow the seeds of peace among young people on this special occasion. The seeds will then mature to bloom and bear fruit in the future."

The activists explained the campaign's significance to visiting students and as well as Japanese and foreign tourists, and circulated petitions for disarmament in the temple precincts.

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