Malay poetry to be used to raise awareness of diabetes
Poetry competition among initiatives planned to help community combat disease
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox
(From left) Mr Suraidi Sipan, president of Asas '50, with Mr Satyaprakash Tiwari, executive director of Diabetes Singapore (DS), as DS announced plans to combat diabetes this year. With them are Mr Peter Tan and Ms Chenny Yang from LDSY, which is sponsoring the poetry competition, and Asas '50 treasurer Abdul Samat Ali.
ST PHOTO: YONG LI XUAN
Luqmanul Hakim Ismail
It was seeing one of his closest friends go through a lot of stress and health complications, and almost losing a leg to diabetes, that jolted Mr Suraidi Sipan into seeing how seriously the disease has affected the Malay community.
Mr Suraidi, president of Malay literary association Asas '50, realised it was an issue that needed to be addressed.
Diabetes Singapore (DS) has now partnered Asas '50 to organise a Malay poetry competition to raise awareness about the disease.
DS is a non-profit organisation that provides education, support and counselling for diabetics and their families.
Mr Satyaprakash Tiwari, executive director of DS, said: "The prevalence of diabetes is not a 'Malay problem' but (indicates) a gap in empowering (the community) to combat diabetes. This poetry competition is an excellent opportunity to use an ethnic-centric approach to create awareness and understanding about diabetes."
Last week, Ms Rahayu Mahzam, Parliamentary Secretary for Health, highlighted that 14.4 per cent of Malays had diabetes last year.
Mr Tiwari spoke to the media yesterday to announce the programmes being planned to combat diabetes, as part of the 50th anniversary of DS this year.
In addition to the poetry competition, there will be engagement sessions about managing diabetes during the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan which starts in April, and a run, open to all, to raise awareness about the disease.
LDSY, a company which specialises in the use of sound waves to promote positive brain development, is sponsoring the poetry competition.
The competition will be judged by volunteers from Asas '50, the Association of Muslim Professionals Singapore and the M3 grouping of Muis, Mendaki and Mesra.
Mr Suraidi said: "I believe this competition will help educate the Malay community about the different aspects of diabetes and, at the same time, help them get closer to Malay culture through poetry."
LDSY's master trainer, Mr Peter Tan, said the company's philosophy of promoting a healthy lifestyle was aligned with the DS mission to combat diabetes.
Those interested in participating can submit their original Malay poems to DS until April 15. The competition is split into three categories: for people aged 15 to 35, for those aged 36 to 59, and for those 60 and above.
The top entry from each category will win $1,000, while the first and second runners-up will each receive special headphones from LDSY worth roughly $680. There will also be a consolation prize of FairPrice vouchers worth $200 for the fourth place in each category.
The winners will be announced on April 23, and will be invited to an awards event later this year.
