By DANIEL JOHNS
Brian Summerfield will never forget the four words that changed the course of his life forever.
It was on a backpacking trek through Tibet in 1997 when an infant boy, draped in rags, ran up to him and slipped a note under his arm.
Brian unrolled it and stood frozen.
“Please help my people,” it read.
It was a moment of blinding fate.
Since then, the 56-year-old has sold his home and boarded a bike for an odyssey he knows he has to make.
Brian has already pedalled more than 5000km around Australia, telling anyone who’ll listen about the heartbreaking persecution the Tibetan people are suffering at the hands of the communist Chinese government.
“When I got that note I started looking into it and it was just horrible,” he said.
“They are such a compassionate, beautiful people and I just felt like I needed to help them.
“It’s what keeps me going, everytime I’m riding up a steep hill or having a bad day I just think of the tragedy of the Tibetan people and it makes my riding so much easier.”
More than a million Tibetans have been slaughtered by the Chinese since they invaded in 1949.
To this day, any Tibetan that dares have a national flag or a picture of their Buddhist leader, the Dalai Lama, is thrown in jail and systematically beaten, according to Brian.
Many Tibetans make the deadly trek through the Himalayas into Northern India, often in the bitter cold of winter, to escape the horrific regime.
“It’s just the injustice, it’s so horrible,” Brian said.
“They’re so afraid to speak out and I knew I couldn’t help them in their own country so I’m doing this.”
The latest chapter in Brian’s epic journey brings him to the Highlands, where he is feverishly contacting schools and other groups to relay his message of peace and retell his remarkable journey.
“I’ve never been here before but Bowral seems very new age and I’m sure there are a lot of people around here who are aware of human rights issues,” he said.
“But the schools are a big thing for me and I’d love to be able to speak to as many kids as possible.”
Any school or group wishing to hear from Brian or anyone wishing to help with donations, accommodation or support can contact him on 0439 361 363.
