Letters to the Editor, March 30, 2014

Pro-military Japanese politicians will not apologise for the sex slavery that their cruel military men imposed on Asian women before and during the second world war.

So what's surprising? It's the inherent nature of soldiers and their mission to inflict humiliation, suffering and death on others, including women and children. They are weak targets, the kind soldiers prefer - remember Dresden? War is "patriotic" and soldiers are forgiven, or rarely punished, for rape. Militarism and war are essentially about "survival of the fittest", our superiority over your weakness, with minimal concern for decency.

In this age, Asian women must work together to reduce the malignant power of military men by minimising the attractiveness of violence for our children. We have to teach our youngsters to respect other races and cultures, not to fear them as the militarists would have them do. Mothers have many years of spiritual and ethical guidance to give their sons and daughters, so it should be possible eventually to end the horrific damage that Asian soldiers have inflicted.

To counter the malignancy of militarism, there is a good analogy that can help mothers to guide their children.

We know the human race is one species, almost like a human body with many cells (races, nations) that can work together in harmony. But in our bodies, rogue cells such as cancer do not co-operate. They live in disharmony, obey different impulses and feed off the healthy organs, consuming needed nutrients, eventually killing the host.

Military men are like cancer cells, because all their energy and resources are designed to destroy and kill others, thus damaging our shared humanity and degrading and perverting society.