Nick Vujicic: Fear is disabling abled people

Marcus Soh, 11, from Subang had a great moment with Nick Vujicic during the Up Close & Personal conference. IZZRAFIQ ALIAS / The Star

PETALING JAYA: Motivational speaker Nick Vujicic urged the public to address the increasing number of bullying cases in Malaysia.

"80% of teenagers in Malaysia admitted that they have been bullied before," said Vujicic to a 500-strong audience Wednesday night.

He explained: "Words are powerful. It only takes three seconds of negativity to get into someone's mind."

Vujicic, who was born with tetra-amelia syndrome that left him without arms and legs, was a victim of bullying in his schooling days.

At the age of 10, he attempted suicide, but eventually learned to be thankful for life.

"I realised it's not that no arms and legs prevent me from doing anything. Fear is preventing people with arms and legs from doing things!", he quipped.

For victims of bullying, he said; "The biggest encourager and biggest discourager is you. Do not let others and circumstances dictate your life".

While it might seem like a serious talk, it is not really the case with Vujicic. He entertained the crowd with some bits of humour during his talk.

The talk at Petaling Jaya Hilton, Selangor also saw the attendance of Women, Family and Community Development Minister Datuk Rohani Abdul Karim who launched Vujicic's latest book entitled Give A Hug.

Rohani expressed her appreciation to Vujicic who came to inspire Malaysians through his message of love.

"I am inspired by him as well and I think he conveyed the message of self-esteem to the audience," said Rohani.

The event was organised by StART society, a non-profit organisation that advocates visual arts among underprivileged children with R.AGE as the official media partner.