Exhibition on Nuclear Disarmament and Human Security Opens in Bahrain

TOKYO, March 13, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- The anti-nuclear weapons exhibition "From a Culture of Violence to a Culture of Peace: Toward a World Free From Nuclear Weapons," created by Buddhist association Soka Gakkai International (SGI), opened on March 12 for the first time in the Middle East at the Bahrain National Museum in Manama.

This exhibition, jointly presented by SGI and the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN), and shown in Arabic for the first time, highlights the devastating effects of nuclear weapons use and examines the need to abolish nuclear weapons from the perspective of human security. "We hope this showing in Manama will contribute to the discussion of establishing a Middle East zone free of nuclear weapons and all weapons of mass destruction," said Arielle Denis, ICAN Campaign Director.

The launch was co-organized with the Bahrain Center for Strategic, International and Energy Studies (DERASAT), the United Nations Information Centre (UNIC) for the Gulf Countries and Inter Press Service (IPS), under the patronage of H.E. Shaikh Khalid bin Ahmed bin Mohammed Al Khalifa, Foreign Minister of Bahrain.

The opening ceremony was attended by some 100 people, including diplomats, UN officials and representatives from civil society organizations.

In his opening remarks, Foreign Minister H.E. Shaikh Khalid bin Ahmed bin Mohammed Al Khalifa indicated Bahrain's full support of UN initiatives for disarmament and nuclear weapons abolition.

Japan's ambassador to Bahrain, Shigeki Sumi, stated that the exhibition is relevant because it stresses the humanitarian impact of nuclear weapons and calls for a move from arms-based security to human security.

SGI Executive Director of Peace Affairs Hirotsugu Terasaki introduced a message from SGI President Daisaku Ikeda, stressing that the exhibition aims to help build a global network of solidarity through dialogue, the surest path to ending the nuclear age.

The exhibition will also be shown in Seef Mall from March 13 to 23. Films created by SGI and ICAN showing testimonies of atomic bomb survivors and promoting nuclear weapons abolition will also be screened.

SGI Contact:
Joan Anderson
Soka Gakkai International
Tel: +81-80-5957-4711
Fax: +81-3-5360-9885
E-mail: janderson[at]sgi.gr.jp
www.sgi.org

ICAN Contact:
Nasser Burudestani
ICAN campaigner in Bahrain
E-mail: nasser[at]icanw.org
www.icanw.org

SOURCE Soka Gakkai International (SGI); International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN)