“Universal Respect for Human Dignity: The Great Path to Peace,” by Daisaku Ikeda

Daisaku Ikeda, president of the SGI, calls for intensified efforts to respond to the needs of humanity’s most vulnerable, including those displaced by conflict in Syria and elsewhere or by natural disasters.

He urges renewed focus on the protection of children uprooted by conflict and their educational needs, as well as further support to countries that have taken in large numbers of people fleeing armed conflict and persecution.

Ikeda stresses that dialogue is key to the genuine empathetic understanding that leads to action. Noting that “The irony of humanitarian crises is that the deeper the gravity of people’s plight, the less they are heard,” he encourages us to listen to the voices of those affected, to focus on their inherent dignity and potential rather than their current dire status and to “re-cast the world map in our hearts.” He also highlights human rights education as a vital tool for overcoming racism and discrimination.

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