Dream come true as deaf kids go scuba diving

BESUT: For five underprivileged hearing-impaired children here, visiting Pulau Perhentian was already a wish come true.

To be able to go scuba diving on top of that was beyond their wildest dream.

Muhammad Arif Aiman Zainuddin, Mohammad Syamim Haikal Mustafa, Ahmad Dzul Syahmi Ahmad Dzulkarnain, Muhamad Shahmi Azri Mohd Shahir and Mohamad Amal Mukhriz Mohamad, aged 10 to 12, of SK Pendidikan Khas Besut – a special education school – were accompanied by four teachers.

The children were received by Diveheart Malaysia ambassador and founder of Kids Scuba Dive Centre Syed Abdul Rahman Syed Hassan when they arrived by speedboat to the island.

Diveheart Malaysia and Mimpi Perhentian Resort, together with Besut District Council, planned this special trip for the five.

Diveheart Malaysia is the Malaysian edition of Diveheart, a Chicago, US-based non-profit organisation that assists children and people with disabilities to involve themselves in scuba diving activities.

Besut District Council president Ahmad Azizi Zulkifli, at the welcoming ceremony, described the scuba diving programme as praiseworthy.

“When we are in the water, we are all the same,” he said, adding that he hoped more individuals and corporations would come forward to organise similar programmes for underprivileged children in Besut.

He said the scuba-diving programme could inspire youths to think positively, be ambitious and believe in themselves.

SK Pendidikan Khas Besut senior assistant head 1 Malisa Hussin told Bernama Radio that the programme was something the school was eagerly anticipating.

She said this was because the pupils hardly get such exposure.

“I noticed how excited they were to step foot on Pulau Perhentian for the first time and to experience scuba-diving and even get a certificate. They feel they are being recognised,” she said.

Syed Abdul Rahman said this was the first time a corporate company in Malaysia had organised such a programme for children with disabilities.

“I hope it will inspire others to provide this special community with similar opportunities,” he said, adding that such collaborations would help special needs children in realising their hopes of a better future. — Bernama