Soka Gakkai representatives attended the 38th International Meeting for Peace of the Community of Sant’Egidio from 22–24 September 2024 in Paris, France. During today’s turbulent time marked by serious conflicts and the risk of their global expansion, the conference brought together leaders of the world’s religions, as well as representatives of culture, civil society and institutions.

The opening assembly, attended by approximately 3,000 individuals, highlighted several speakers addressing the theme of the meeting, “Imaginer la Paix” (“Imagine Peace”). Among them was Lina Hassani, a 21-year-old Afghan woman, who shared a personal story of how she fled the country with her mother and sister, first to Pakistan, then to Belgium, after the Taliban seized control of Afghanistan in August 2021, imposing severe restrictions on women. Her father was taken and killed by the group in 2009. Ms. Hassani shared how the Community of Sant’Egidio listened to her family’s concerns and supported them during this challenging time: “I extend my heartfelt gratitude to all who have supported Afghan refugees and listened to our voices. I wish for a future where peace prevails in Afghanistan and across the globe. May the scars of conflict heal, and may every individual find the strength to embrace love, understanding and unity. Thank you for believing in our right to live freely. I ask you to continue supporting Afghan women and girls who remain in desperate need of assistance.”

Andrea Riccardi, who founded the Community of Sant’Egidio in 1968, recognized that for many it may seem dreamy to talk of peace in times of war and that the culture of peace seems to be in crisis. Nevertheless, he urged, “Believers must not lose the dimension of hope that comes from faith. The strong positions of religions weaken if they align on war behaviors.”

President Emmanuel Macron of France joined the assembly and spoke at the end. He stated, “Our society is marked by the domination of negative emotions. War is rooted in dehumanization. We dehumanize the other, the enemy.” President Macron further added, “There are too many people on the planet who copy and too few who create. The forms of nationalism linked to identity are, in some way, a copy of something. Faced with the current global challenges, we have an immense need for imagination.”

On 23 September, Anna Ikeda of Soka Gakkai International’s Office for UN Affairs spoke on the forum titled “Remembering the Victims and Imagining a World without Nuclear Weapons,” moderated by Andrea Bartoli of the Sant’Egidio Foundation for Peace and Dialogue. Attendees showed great interest in the forum, as evidenced by the venue exceeding its capacity even before the event’s start time. In her presentation, Ikeda introduced a story of a Hiroshima atomic bomb survivor who impacted her and stressed the importance of remembering our human dignity when discussing the issue of nuclear weapons. She also emphasized the important role of faith communities in challenging the current security doctrine based on nuclear deterrence by quoting Austrian Ambassador Alexander Kmentt, who served as President of the First Meeting of States Parties to the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW): “If nuclear weapons are discussed only among military experts, it is almost impossible to get out of the idea of nuclear deterrence. You have to bring in the legal perspective, the moral and ethical dimension.”

The panel featured diverse voices from the UN, civil society and religious communities, including UN Under-Secretary-General and High Representative for Disarmament Affairs Izumi Nakamitsu, Archbishop John C. Wester of Santa Fe, Jean-Marie Collin of ICAN France and Ivana Hughes of the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation. Bartoli concluded the forum by sharing pieces of paper with names of those who perished in Hiroshima and Nagasaki on 6 and 9 August 1945 with the audience. Each participant received a name, to honor the victims and remember their humanity.

In total, there were 21 forums throughout the meeting’s two days, which addressed themes such as migration, climate change, poverty, artificial intelligence and regional issues.

The meeting closed on 24 September with a ceremony in front of the Notre-Dame Cathedral. His Holiness Pope Francis sent a message, stating, “The urgent task of the religions is to foster visions of peace, as you are demonstrating these days in Paris. As men and women of different cultures and religious beliefs, you have experienced the power and beauty of universal fraternity. This is the vision our world needs today. I encourage you to persevere in your efforts to be artisans of peace. If others continue to make war, together we can work for peace.”