Life Onboard LAST UPDATE  May 10, 2010
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April 25, 2010 The cancer of war – Sato Maki
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Mr Sato is holding a series of discussions onboard the 69th Peace Boat Voyage focusing on the causes of war and what can be done to develop peace.
In 2004 Japan sent troops to support the invasion of Iraq by the United States and its allies. The conflict led to thousands of civilian deaths as the nation descended into years of turmoil with rampant bombings and kidnappings. Security throughout Iraq is improving and a national election held earlier this year has been described as mostly democratic and free from fraud by international monitors. But a disturbing trend is emerging in the aftermath of the war. Huge numbers of children are being born with defects and are dying from cancer.

Sato Maki, Secretary General of the NGO Japan Iraqi Medical Network (JIM-NET), says uranium-enriched munitions used by US forces are to blame. Mr Sato began working in the Middle East when he was posted to Yemen as a Japanese volunteer in 1994 but left when the country erupted in civil war. It was his first experience of dealing with refugees and those affected by conflict.
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When the 69th Voyage stops in Jordan, a group of about 30 students in Peace Boat's Global University programme will visit a Palestinian refugee camp.

Mr Sato was working to help Palestinian people when the United States declared war against Iraq in 2003. "I had to do something for the Iraqi people because I had many Arab friends and colleagues, so I had to show solidarity with them," Mr Sato says. So he created JIM-NET in 2004 to provide medical care to children affected by the war. Today, this means working with five hospitals throughout Iraq to help those suffering from leukaemia and other forms of cancer.

In his lectures onboard, Mr Sato shared that the children of Iraq are similar to the survivors of the atomic bombings of Japan during World War II. Many participants at these lectures are brought to tears as Mr Sato shows them photo after photo of children with deformed limbs and missing organs. He says huge numbers of children are suffering from cancer but are not diagnosed until it is too late because their families cannot afford medical care. "Their situation is very bad, and they live in terrible places because they are so poor." Mr Sato says he is sharing his experiences with Peace Boat participants to help them gain an understanding of issues in the region. "There are big differences between Iraqi and Japanese society but this voyage is a good opportunity for young people to learn and see some of these issues first hand."
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Mr Sato says while there is hope for children affected by the war, there is an urgent need for more financial and medical aid.

Mr Sato's stories are ones that would never be heard on nightly television news bulletins. He speaks passionately about his friendship with an Iraqi girl named Sabrine who was diagnosed with cancer at the age of 12. She received medical care with the help of JIM-NET, however her cancer came back a year later. Sabrine went through another round of operations and recovered. But last year she was diagnosed with cancer for a third time and died shortly afterwards.

During her time in hospital, Sabrine discovered that she had a talent for drawing. Her art was used as part of a fundraising campaign in Japan to raise money for medical supplies in Iraq. Mr Sato says that just before her death, Sabrine said she was happy because her story and pictures would continue to be used to help other Iraqi children suffering from cancer.