The socially engaged Japanese Nichiren Buddhist organization the Soka Gakkai International (SGI) has issued a public statement calling for comprehensive prohibition of autonomous weapons systems (AWS)—“weapons systems capable of selecting and applying force to targets independent of human control or meaningful oversight.” (Soka Gakkai)

Titled “Autonomous Weapons Systems: Ensuring Human Control Based on Respect for the Dignity of Life,” and released 23 July, the statement opens by recalling the pledge inscribed in the Preamble to the Charter of the United Nations—which saw its 81st anniversary in June—rooted in painful reflection in the wake of two world wars:

To save succeeding generations from the scourge of war, which twice in our lifetime has brought untold sorrow to humanity.

“Lethal autonomous weapons without human control are an issue which we have been deeply concerned about for many years, and we have raising awareness on this issue as part of the ‘“’Stop Killer Robots’”’ coalition,” the SGI told BDG. “The SGI statement welcomes the increase in the number of countries calling for international regulation and prohibition of AWS and calls in particular for a ban on those that target human beings.”

Underscoring how conflict-resolution and peace-building efforts and treaties by the international community since the founding of the United Nations have slowly advanced step by step with the support of civil society, the SGI statement observes that recent circumstances threaten to erode the foundation of international progress toward global peace:

In recent years, as conflicts and the use of military force continue to spread across Ukraine, the Middle East, Africa and other regions, the situation warned of by organizations such as the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC)—in which “the basic tenets of international humanitarian law are routinely and deliberately being violated”—shows no sign of abating.

As a result, countless numbers of civilians, including children, women, older persons, and those suffering from illness, continue to suffer the devastating consequences of these conflicts time and time again. (Soka Gakkai)

The statement underscores the urgent need for an international regulatory framework governing AWS, including those employing artificial intelligence, and for a comprehensive prohibition on systems designed to select and engage human targets.

“The SGI has consistently warned—based on the Buddhist principle of respect for the dignity of life—that AWS reduce those subjected to attack to mere ‘data.’ Such a digital erasure of humanity risks trivializing the taking of life and the immense suffering inherent in war,” the SGI shared with BDG.

SGI President Daisaku Ikeda (1928–2023) first called for regulation at a time when autonomous weapons were still an imagined threat. In 2014, Ikeda warned: “Robotic weapons, when given a command to attack, automatically go on killing, without the intervention of human will . . . with no possibility of pangs of conscience or remorse. They present an extremely grave threat, particularly from a humanitarian perspective.” (Soka Gakkai)

The head of the newly formed SGI Peace Center, Hirotsugu Terasaki, emphasized: “While we continue to work toward a world free from both nuclear weapons and autonomous killing machines, we welcome the focus in the ongoing negotiations on ensuring ‘meaningful human control’ over autonomous weapons. There is a growing understanding that decisions concerning life and death must never be left solely to machines.

The statement continues:

In addition to our deep concern for the inhumanity inherent in AWS, there is a further danger of profound significance that we wish to draw attention to: namely, that if AWS are to become a mainstream means of warfare without robust international regulation, the power to bring armed conflict to an end will be fundamentally taken out of human hands. As civilian casualties continue to rise and inhumane attacks become increasingly frequent in conflicts around the world, concern over the state of international law, including international humanitarian law, has reached unprecedented levels. 

If attacks involving civilians were to become semiautomated in conflicts through the unchecked use of AWS, the restraining force of human conscience—which has long served as a foundation supporting international law—would be entirely lost. . . .

[The] Buddhist teachings offer lessons on war and peace in a variety of forms. A notable example is the parable of the “kalpa of weapons,” or age of armaments, in the Dirghagama, a collection of early Buddhist sutras. It tells of how a king’s abandonment of the long-established laws that placed the people’s well-being first gradually led to social and moral decay. Eventually, people sought to attack anyone they encountered, just as a hunter, upon seeing a herd of deer, seeks to kill indiscriminately. As a result, the world entered the “kalpa of weapons,” causing the human lifespan to diminish drastically. (Soka Gakkai)

The SGI noted that it remained determined to work together with states calling for the regulation and prohibition of AWS, and with the ICRC and civil society organizations and religious leaders participating in the Stop Killer Robots coalition, in which the SGI has participated since 2018. The SGI also affirmed that it would continue to promote grassroots awareness of the dangers of AWS, including through documentaries such as Immoral Code.

President Ikeda raised concerns from two perspectives about the danger that [AWS] could fundamentally alter the very nature of armed conflict: First, once such weapons are deployed, would there remain any possibility of refraining—even if only for a moment—from launching an attack, prompted by a recognition of the complex web of emotions that transcends the divisions between friend and foe, and our shared humanity? Moreover, in the aftermath of combat conducted by [AWS], would there be any room for the moral reckoning that has traditionally accompanied human conflict, i.e., profound remorse for one’s own actions, a deep sense of anguish at the suffering caused by war, and the heartfelt resolve, as human beings, to rebuild peaceful relations for the sake of future generations? (Soka Gakkai)

Read the full text of the Soka Gakkai’s statement here

“In modern warfare, should the deployment of AWS become standard practice, the moral weight of humanity’s earnest vow not to harm others will be stripped of its very meaning,” the SGI remarked. “While safeguarding national security is an essential responsibility for every state, we strongly urge the international community to draw a clear line against new weapons that fundamentally threaten humanity’s universal right to life.” (Soka Gakkai)

Founded in 1930, the Soka Gakkai (the Value Creation Society) is a Japanese Buddhist movement based on the teachings of the 13th century Buddhist priest Nichiren (1222–­82). Nichiren taught devotion to the Lotus Sutra, believed to contain the teachings of the historical Buddha, Shakyamuni, toward the end of his life, as the exclusive means to attain enlightenment. Soka Gakkai centers its teachings on the Lotus Sutra, with recitation of the mantra “Nam-myoho-renge-kyo” (“Glory to the Dharma of the Lotus Sutra”) as its main devotional practice. 

The Soka Gakkai International, founded by Daisaku Ikeda (1928–2023) in 1975, is an NGO with consultative status to UN ECOSOC. As a global community-based Buddhist organization that promotes peace, culture, and education based on respect for the dignity of life, the Soka Gakkai is involved in peace activism, education, and politics, with members in 192 countries and territories around the world.

Some of the Soka Gakkai’s more high-profile members have included actor Orlando Bloom, jazz musician Herbie Hancock, and singer Tina Turner.

See more

Soka Gakkai
Soka Gakkai International
Autonomous Weapons Systems: Ensuring Human Control Based on Respect for the Dignity of Life (Soka Gakkai)
Stop Killer Robots
Immoral Code (YouTube)

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