Miss-Delectable
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Biker on a mission
What started out as a motorcycle trip to visit friends outside Malaysia has turned into a mission to help the deaf.
IN 2005, Rosman Noordin decided to hop on his motorcycle and visit his friends in Thailand, Laos, and Cambodia.
The 42-day trip was more than a holiday. A volunteer with the Malaysian Federation of the Deaf, Rosman, 44, was prompted to forge closer ties with the deaf communities in neighbouring countries.
After the trip – termed the Asian Tour 2005 – word spread to other countries about this Malaysian who was biking around Asia to visit deaf communities. Soon, Rosman began getting e-mails from people in countries like Pakistan and India, asking how they could get involved in his “programme”.
“I told them it was not an official project, and that I did it on my own initiative,” he said. “They then wrote back and asked me to visit them, anyway.”
That spurred Rosman to embark on another trip – the Ride 4 the Deaf 2007 tour (R4TD 2007) – during which he and his trusty BMW R80 motorcycle will visit Pakistan, India, Nepal, Iran and Turkey over a five-month period. The tour kicks off on Friday.
How much can one man on a bike do? After all, Rosman was a mere volunteer with the Malaysian Federation of the Deaf, with no mandate to make any decisions for the deaf community in Malaysia.
“The mission (of the trip) is very broad but the main objective is to increase networking among the countries’ deaf communities,” he explained.
“I may not be able to make decisions for the Federation, but I can at least make contact with all the organisations for the deaf in these countries, and then act as a liaison person and centre for information and communication between the communities.”
That was what the Asian Tour 2005 turned out to be, eventually. Rosman managed to form closer ties with the deaf communities in those countries and encourage better cooperation between them. He also started an information centre through which he could dispense information to the people who needed it.
“After I came back, I kept in touch with the people I had contacted via e-mail, and I spread a lot of info around,” he said.
“I do what I can. For example, a school in Laos was having problems getting books, so I conveyed the message to a school in Thailand. I then completely forgot about it.
“Ten weeks later, I got an e-mail from Laos, thanking me, and saying that they had received the books. I’m not taking the credit for it, but I’m just glad to have played a small part in helping them,” Rosman said.
The R4TD 2007 “project” remains very much a one-man mission.
“Being alone allows me a lot more mobility,” he said.
“My goal (this time) is to visit as many associations for the deaf as possible within the Asian region en route to Europe, and research the systems and structures of deaf communities.
“The target is also to visit at least one main body within each country – preferably an organisation affiliated with the World Organisation for the Deaf.
“I will also be visiting schools for the deaf, because these schools are usually the turning point in the lives of the deaf,” he said.
While the first bike trip was self-funded, Rosman managed to secure 13 sponsors – both financially and in kind – for the R4TD2007 project. However, he is still short of the mark, financially.
“The main concern is petrol. It costs RM53 for a full tank of petrol in Malaysia, but in India, the cost is almost RM149!” he said.
“I’m already anticipating several nights of pitching the tent and sleeping outdoors because whatever I can save in terms of money can be used to fill the bike with petrol, so that I can go that bit further on the trip.”
Nevertheless, Rosman is really looking forward to the trip, especially since he wants to contribute to the betterment of deaf communities everywhere, in his own little way.
“I think the Malaysian Federation of the Deaf is very active and proactive in serving their community, and has done an exemplary job in working towards the betterment of the deaf in Malaysia. I am proud to be associated with it, and I hope this ride can bring the deaf communities around Asia closer to one another.”
What started out as a motorcycle trip to visit friends outside Malaysia has turned into a mission to help the deaf.
IN 2005, Rosman Noordin decided to hop on his motorcycle and visit his friends in Thailand, Laos, and Cambodia.
The 42-day trip was more than a holiday. A volunteer with the Malaysian Federation of the Deaf, Rosman, 44, was prompted to forge closer ties with the deaf communities in neighbouring countries.
After the trip – termed the Asian Tour 2005 – word spread to other countries about this Malaysian who was biking around Asia to visit deaf communities. Soon, Rosman began getting e-mails from people in countries like Pakistan and India, asking how they could get involved in his “programme”.
“I told them it was not an official project, and that I did it on my own initiative,” he said. “They then wrote back and asked me to visit them, anyway.”
That spurred Rosman to embark on another trip – the Ride 4 the Deaf 2007 tour (R4TD 2007) – during which he and his trusty BMW R80 motorcycle will visit Pakistan, India, Nepal, Iran and Turkey over a five-month period. The tour kicks off on Friday.
How much can one man on a bike do? After all, Rosman was a mere volunteer with the Malaysian Federation of the Deaf, with no mandate to make any decisions for the deaf community in Malaysia.
“The mission (of the trip) is very broad but the main objective is to increase networking among the countries’ deaf communities,” he explained.
“I may not be able to make decisions for the Federation, but I can at least make contact with all the organisations for the deaf in these countries, and then act as a liaison person and centre for information and communication between the communities.”
That was what the Asian Tour 2005 turned out to be, eventually. Rosman managed to form closer ties with the deaf communities in those countries and encourage better cooperation between them. He also started an information centre through which he could dispense information to the people who needed it.
“After I came back, I kept in touch with the people I had contacted via e-mail, and I spread a lot of info around,” he said.
“I do what I can. For example, a school in Laos was having problems getting books, so I conveyed the message to a school in Thailand. I then completely forgot about it.
“Ten weeks later, I got an e-mail from Laos, thanking me, and saying that they had received the books. I’m not taking the credit for it, but I’m just glad to have played a small part in helping them,” Rosman said.
The R4TD 2007 “project” remains very much a one-man mission.
“Being alone allows me a lot more mobility,” he said.
“My goal (this time) is to visit as many associations for the deaf as possible within the Asian region en route to Europe, and research the systems and structures of deaf communities.
“The target is also to visit at least one main body within each country – preferably an organisation affiliated with the World Organisation for the Deaf.
“I will also be visiting schools for the deaf, because these schools are usually the turning point in the lives of the deaf,” he said.
While the first bike trip was self-funded, Rosman managed to secure 13 sponsors – both financially and in kind – for the R4TD2007 project. However, he is still short of the mark, financially.
“The main concern is petrol. It costs RM53 for a full tank of petrol in Malaysia, but in India, the cost is almost RM149!” he said.
“I’m already anticipating several nights of pitching the tent and sleeping outdoors because whatever I can save in terms of money can be used to fill the bike with petrol, so that I can go that bit further on the trip.”
Nevertheless, Rosman is really looking forward to the trip, especially since he wants to contribute to the betterment of deaf communities everywhere, in his own little way.
“I think the Malaysian Federation of the Deaf is very active and proactive in serving their community, and has done an exemplary job in working towards the betterment of the deaf in Malaysia. I am proud to be associated with it, and I hope this ride can bring the deaf communities around Asia closer to one another.”