Building bridges with foreign students

Reading the April 30 editorial “Extend support for foreign students in Japan,” I came to recognize the serious situation facing foreign students studying in Japan, and the importance of our support for them.

I fully agree that “it is extremely important to provide essential information and support to vulnerable international students.”

It is not easy for any student to live and study in a different country where the language and culture are different, particularly in this difficult time of the coronavirus pandemic.

It is true that for students from different countries, every experience here in Japan will be an unforgettable learning experience, in terms of both their academic studies and the activities of their everyday life. And their Japanese experience will continue to play a key role in making them ambassadors who know at least two different cultures. They shall never forget their studying abroad experience in Japan throughout their lifetime, and they will eventually grow into unshakable bridges of international goodwill, understanding and friendship between Japan and their countries. And their love of Japan will be relayed to their families and neighbors.

Besides the Japanese national and local governments, we ordinary citizens should not be reluctant to give them a helping hand, as their friends and neighbors, in every possible way. If we can learn their language and culture even a little, we will discover important hints of coexisting in peace with people who have different backgrounds.

I hope that the 21st century is the century in which every country does not choose to live alone, but seeks to live in close contact with other countries, striving together for solving big problems of not only the coronavirus but other big world issues we humankind face.

The opinions expressed in this letter to the editor are the writer's own and do not necessarily reflect the policies of The Japan Times.