Effect Of Rest And Recreation On Asia

Press, Volume CVIII, Issue 31676, 11 May 1968, Page 5

Effect Of Rest And Recreation On Asia

fßy the Rev.

R. M. O’GRADY,

osrislont secretary of the National Council of Churches)

The taxi»driver half turned to me. “Would you like a girl for the night?” he asked. “No thanks.” He persisted. “Doesn’t cost very much, only about $l5 American.” I still wasn’t interested. “Well,” he went on slyly, “you could have one for $lO if you like.” Pointing to a girl with her G.I. boyfriend he added, “Only $10.”

We were driving along one of the streets in Bangkok at the time, but the conversation could well have taken place in Hong Kong, Seoul or Taipeh. It seems to be a standard procedure for the taxi-drivers to make this kind of overture to anyone from the West.

In previous visits to Asia, similar offers had been made, but they had not been so open, so persistent or so blatant The difference this time was certainly attributable to the vast number of American servicemen in the area undergoing their period of rest and recreation. Rest and recreation, as it ' Is everywhere called, is a new i fact in Asia today. With close on half a million fighting men in Vietnam and thousands of others scattered in other parts of Asia, the American Government is indirectly pouring millions of dollars into the coffers of some Asian operators through the off-duty spending of the troops. It is almost an inevitable outcome of a war fought so far from home and in such inhospitable conditions. The climate and conditions of warfare in Vietnam mean that the troops stationed in that country are unable to take their regular leave without travelling away. The men; are therefore given periodic five-day leaves in another* centre and in their usual * enterprising way, the Americans fly their troop carriers off from Saigon airport at* regular intervals. Golden Fleece

In Bangkok, Manila, Hong Kong and even in Sydney, one can usually see young; American troops in uniform' or mufti wending their way’ along arm in arm with one; of the local girls. When the; troops arrive in a city, they' are driven to a centre where' they are briefed on hotel prices, out of bounds areas, and local customs. They will then choose a hotel and settle in on their own for five days of complete freedom. When you are 19 or 20 years of age and miles from home and security: when you have just spent weeks on harrowing military operations in a steamy swampy jungle; when you have walked in daily fear of being blown to pieces by a sniper, or a bidden grenade, then it is not surprising if your first breath of rest and recreation leads to some fairly wide excesses. 1 The military pay is good and the soldier on leave usually l has more money than he would normally carry. By the standards of the locals be is both rich and extravagant and it is not at all surprising that they should be waiting for the golden American fleece when it arrives at the airport. In many parts of Hong Kong you walk along streets in which literally every doorway is an invitation to loose spending. Well-dressed touts offer you printed invitations or ask you to just look inside. A glance will show you rows of attractive girls waiting for you to enter so that they can drink at a cosy table with you. The “beer” they drink is tea, and their “gin” is all water. For this privilege you i pay excessive sums. In Bangkok rest and recreation has taken over a whole new street in Petchburi where hotels, bars and massage parlours stand in groups of three. It is a favourite spot for the troops on leave. Most of the hundreds of girls are under 16 and come in from the villages to their new job. Accepting the Buddhist philosophy that what is natural is never ugly, they arc pleasant and relaxed. These instances can be multiplied many times and apply to many of the Asian cities. The wake of human misery is, however, much more difficult to trace. In spite of all the precautions the many people who engage in the vice game suffer from many effects. Some have a break-down in health, others have feelings of remorse which lead to despair and sometimes suicide, and

'among the girls the birth of | an unwanted child can bring ostracism and unhappiness. In one area I spoke with an Australian minister whose wife is active in the work of rehabilitation. He claimed that 90 per cent of all troops in Asia had relationships with Asian girls and that most began within three weeks of their arrival. He had lists of statistics to prove his point. His wife runs one of the many centres established by the church to give trade training in dressmaking, beauty culture, typing and similar occupations, Of 158 girls in one of the centres, 51 had health care courses and returned to their homes, 18 had preliminary care and then ran away, 20 were placed in jobs, 68 completed trade courses and one went back to high school. There are many case studies to give meaning to this service. One girl who can be called Lee was married to a country school teacher, but j her husband’s widowed ! mother and his unmarried ' sister treated her cruelly. 'They even went so far as to (find another woman for her ’husband to keep him away ’ from home. Lee ran away and ' lived with her married \ brother in the city. It was a one-roomed overcrowded dwelling and she had ' to leave, but with no place to I stay she was soon picked up | by an intermediary and enI couraged to live in the prostiitute area. Her life plunged ; downhill and she began to I seek means to take her life. A sympathetic worker with one of the Y.W.C.A. centres met her and took her to the home. There she was given kindness and help, and slowly started the road back to society- She took vocational training and with the help of the staff at the centre passed a Government examination and secured a position in a women’s prison. In this work she has found satisfaction by helping others to know some meaning in life. What happens to a nation

when a foreign army moves in to enjoy some rest and relaxation? Prices go up, that’s the first inevitable happening. Male pride is hurt when “our women go after the Americans.” Most of all the moral sense of the people is outraged. There seems to be a basic moral feeling in all races which makes them revolt at those who make their living from the degradation of their fellow citizens. The man who in the climate of rest and recreation persuades little girls to sell their bodies is universally despised. “It isn’t right,” they will say in areas from one part of the globe to another. The Exceptions I realise this is a gloomy picture, so I must relieve it by a last reminder of the 10% who follow a different code. Here and there in Asia one meets the family which has come to know an American serviceman and love him as their own son. He has fumbled his way through a meal with chopsticks and attempted to learn snatches of the language. He has treated the elders with respect and diligently learned the customs of the land so as not cause unintended embarrassment. He has made many friends. Whether the action and behaviour of this kind of American will be sufficient to redeem the West in the eyes of the East is for history to judge. Certainly the Westerner who travels today in these Asian lands all too often feels the desire to have the earth swallow him up because of his shame at the behaviour of his fellow Westerners.

The good and the bad exist side by side. Rest and recreation has so many shady sides to it that one alternates between indignation and anger. Yet it is not for us to judge the actions of war weary soldiers suddenly released from their tensions for a few brief days. After all some of them will return not just to Vietnam but also to their death. The ultimate enemy is not immorality but warfare—the ultimate good is not morality but peace.