Science and technology can be leveraged for good or bad to humanity and the choice lies with people, said Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

He said the problem related to science and technology was not about the materials, but the human who handles them.

He likened the scenario to a knife where the tool could be used to carve beautiful things, and on the other hand, could be used wrongly to kill people.

"Science and technology can be used for the good of the people, or destroy the people.

"It is not the science and technology which is bad, but the people’s decision when they discover something to kill people," he said when addressing participants of a summer school, Japan Future Leaders School, today on 'How Science and Technology will Contribute to World Peace'’.

Mahathir has been the main speaker at the summer school and this year marks his 16th appearance at the Japan Future Leaders School (JFLS) annual lecture.

The JFLS is a specialised programme held annually for selected high school students. Its two-week programme is aimed at developing leadership skills among students in various fields of interest through meaningful exchanges with prominent figures.

There are over 2,000 high schoolers, including four Malaysians, at this year's programme. Others include students from Japan, South Korea and China.

The prime minister said science and technology could contribute to the betterment of humanity like the discoveries for medicines and cures.

At the lecture, he told the students that war will stop if they embed the thinking that killing people is a crime and called on them to reject violence.

He pointed out that there was a mentality that "killing one person is a crime but killing millions is not a crime" and that must change.

"Killing people, whether one or million people, is a crime. You must grow up ... as future leaders of your countries, that killing people one or a million is a crime," he said.

- Bernama