Fifty Years Since President Ikeda’s First Malaysian Centre Gift, Members Renew Vow for Peace

On 8 August 2026, more than 940 members gathered at three SGM centres in Penang for commemorative gongyo meetings celebrating the 50th anniversary of President Ikeda’s gift of Malaysia’s first centre and the fifth anniversary of its naming as the Soka Peace Centre Malaysia (SPCM).

Looking back at the development of kosen-rufu in Malaysia, the movement grew steadily in Penang during the 1970s through the dedicated efforts of pioneer members. On 8 August 1976, President Ikeda purchased a colonial-style building along Burmah Road and gifted it to members in Malaysia, establishing the country’s first castle of kosen-rufu. Over the years, the centre has become an important bastion for advancing kosen-rufu in northern Malaysia and a cradle for fostering young successors. In 2021, President Ikeda named it the “Soka Peace Centre Malaysia,” entrusting the centre with a renewed mission for peace.

In the commemorative message delivered on his behalf, SGM General Director Koh Sia Feai encouraged participants to inherit President Ikeda’s wish to open the way to an age without war. He called on them to spread the philosophy of peace and respect for the dignity of life, and to expand the waves of peace from SPCM throughout society and the world.

In his address, SGM vice-general director Dr Christopher Boey expressed appreciation to the pioneering members of successive generations and to every member for their dedicated efforts. Recalling how he had received encouragement and guidance from senior members in Penang during his youth, he said the significance of reaching the 50th anniversary lies not only in reflecting on past victories, but also in engraving in one’s life the guidance President Ikeda gave to Malaysia and starting anew from today with the spirit of “creating history from moment to moment.”

Four pioneering members shared their experiences of advancing kosen-rufu in the early days, while three future division members expressed their aspirations to inherit the spirit of President Ikeda and their predecessors and grow into successors of kosen-rufu. Through sharing across three generations, the speakers recounted how faith has been passed on through the example set by parents, as well as the guidance and care received from SGM members.

After half-a-century, SPCM now stands at a new starting point. Carrying forward the spirit of the pioneering members who steadily built the kosen-rufu movement one step at a time, participants resolved to put their mission for peace into action and pass it on to the next generation. Together, they will embark anew from Penang and create the next 50 years of history for peace.

Reported by Eng Joo Min, photographed by Shaun Tye, Tan Kean Leong and Yeow Chee Sing