FUKUOKA: Science and technology can be used for good or bad, and the choice lies with humans, Dr Mahathir Mohamad said in a speech to Japanese students here.
He said like a knife, science and technology could be used to carve beautiful things and also to kill people.
“It is not the science and technology which is bad but the people’s decision when they discover something to kill people,” he told participants of Japan Future Leaders School, where he is making his 16th appearance as the main speaker.
The two-week programme is held annually for some 2,000 high school students from Japan, South Korea and China. There are also four Malaysians this year.
Mahathir said there is a notion that killing people is not a crime during wars.
“Killing people, whether one or million people, is a crime,” he said.