KEY POINTS:
The controversial Vietnam War sparked mass demonstrations in New Zealand but veteran John Masters said there was a fear of the spread of communism in the 1960s.
"We were very conscious of the growing communist threat to the north and the domino theory, now in hindsight has been rubbished etcetera, etcetera, was actually a real phenomenon," Mr Masters said.
He said soldiers had difficulty identifying targets and when they did get into "fire fights and produced some dead bodies they found that these dead bodies were young girls, young children and women".
"Soldiering is the application of violence. It's killing or be killed and if you find yourself in that role, it is very important that you never ever get to like it.
"Kiwis, I'm quite certain, have the capacity to do one thing when they have to but maintain their humanity," Mr Masters said.
* Click on the icon below the photo on the right for the full interview
On the web: The Auckland War Memorial Museum has a Book of Remembrance on its website for people to post messages on to remember those who served and died in war.
