Entrepreneur Jeshua Soh, 29, departed Singapore on April 28 and cycled for two weeks to reach Bangkok on May 11. - COURTESY OF JESHUA SOH
SINGAPORE: Amid the ongoing political unrest in Myanmar, one Singaporean set out – with a bicycle and a target fund-raising amount of S$100,000 – to help those affected by the conflict.
Between April 28 and May 11, entrepreneur Jeshua Soh cycled around 2,000km from Singapore to Bangkok to raise funds for Mae Tao Clinic, a healthcare facility located along the Thailand-Myanmar border.
The clinic in Mae Sot, a city in western Thailand, provides free consultations to more than 100,000 patients annually. Nearly half of them are migrant workers in the Mae Sot area seeking medical help, and the other half, those who come from Myanmar for care.
“There was a pressing need to help. Many of these individuals are choosing between staying in Myawaddy to protect their livelihoods and leaving to protect their lives,” says the 29-year-old, who founded Crossworks, a Myanmar-based remote hiring company that connects Burmese workers with international employers.
Myawaddy is a town in south-eastern Myanmar, close to the Thai border and separated from Mae Sot by a river.
According to the United Nations, more than three million civilians in Myanmar have been displaced since the military takeover in February 2021. The UN also estimates that a third of those who have been forced to leave their homes are children.
To complete his journey, Soh cycled at least 70km daily. He would hit the road at 4am and cycle till 9am, then continue from 5 to 9pm to avoid the sweltering midday heat. He updated his progress periodically on his LinkedIn account.
He had previously cycled around 600km from Johannesburg to Zimbabwe in 2020, and around 450km from Kuala Lumpur to Singapore in 2023 on personal trips, but says he sees cycling as a leisure activity rather than a sport.
“I’m just doing what I can to contribute and, hopefully, this small initiative can go a long way to create awareness and bring relief to those in far greater need,” he says.
As at May 14, he has raised almost 60 per cent ($59,778) of his target for Mae Tao clinic, which was set up in 1989 by Burmese medical doctor Cynthia Maung.
The clinic will use half the amount to stock up on emergency support items such as dry food and hygiene kits, and the other half to purchase health insurance for those who cannot afford it.
Even though Soh’s cycling journey has come to an end, his fund-raising campaign will continue until May 31. For more information, go to maetaoclinic.org/how-to-help/donate. - The Straits Times/ANN
