I refer to the article headlined, 'What in God's name is going on?' (Sunday Morning Post, January 3), by Charmaine Chan, which I believe carried misleading information about the Soka Gakkai.
In an interview held at the Cultural Centre of Soka Gakkai International (SGI), in Hong Kong, on December 2, I was happy to provide Ms Chan with information concerning the activities and practice of the Soka Gakkai International. Despite this interview and the ample information provided, Ms Chan still portrays the SGI as a secretive and fearful cult.
Ms Chan was given examples of how active SGI and its members are in society and their local communities.
For instance, during the handover ceremony and the festivities that followed, both the SGI gymnastics team, the Golden Eagles, and the Fife and Drum Corps participated. Moreover, during October and November 1997, the Fuji Art Museum, which is founded by the president of the SGI, Daisaku Ikeda, organised a Western art-painting exhibition in co-operation with the Urban Council, and last year in February, the SGI of Hong Kong co-sponsored, together with the Boys and Girls Club, the Education Department and UNICEF, an exhibition of children's drawings. Also, on January 17, this year, a Walkathon, organised in conjunction with UNICEF, took place on the Peak to raise money to build schools in deprived areas of China.
It baffles me that a reputable newspaper like the Sunday Morning Post should show such bias and regard as credible the hearsay of people who seem to have little - and inaccurate - information about the SGI.
It is wrong to suggest that the Soka Gakkai wants to turn Japan into a Buddhist country.