PETALING JAYA: He is 96 today but Tan Yap still listens to the deaf “loud and clear” through Facebook.
Tan, who is adviser to The Society of Interpreters For The Deaf in Selangor and Federal Territory, believes age is not a barrier to learning new things, including modern technology.
“I've learnt to use Facebook and e-mail to keep in touch with the deaf since all of them are spread out nationwide,” he said.
Tan, dubbed the Father of the Deaf, was instrumental in establishing deaf schools in several states and introduced sign language to educate the deaf in Malaysia despite much objection and scepticism.
He can still recall the difficulty he faced when he went to several institutions, including Gallaudet University in Washington, United States, to learn the deaf culture and sign language in the 1970s. He had to go there on no-pay leave.
On what drove him to sacrifice his pay as a state pharmacist in Johor Baru back then, he said he felt sorry for the deaf who were misunderstood and cheated as they were ignored and people did not understand them.
“I remember that in the 1960s, there were unscrupulous people using the deaf to sell black market movie tickets,” he said.
“The deaf did not know what they were getting into until the police arrested them. They were the unfortunate victims.”
Touched by their plight, Tan started the first school for the deaf in Johor Baru, especially for dropouts and those who missed the chance of an education.
At the invitation of the Education Ministry, the In-Service Sign Language Course was conducted for all government teachers of the deaf in Malaysia at the Language Institute in Kuala Lumpur.
Tan has received a few awards in recognition of his work, including being the first Asian to get the Edward Miner Gallaudet and Toko Pendidikan Cacat awards.
Believing that keeping life as simple as possible is his secret to a long life, he said his birthday wish on 11.11.11 was to see the deaf being able to lead a normal life.
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