Oman resident Syed Shaandar Ali Shah Bukhari, a marketing professional and social welfare worker, was honoured by the American Red Cross for his heroic actions that saved the life of an Omani citizen last June when he wanted to commit suicide.
The American Red Cross, which created the Certificate of Extraordinary Personal Action in the 1950s, has since 2018 recognised and honoured more than 2,000 individuals worldwide with Lifesaving Awards. This is the world's second oldest life saving award.
In June last year, Oman Observer published the news which was picked up by a good samaritan and nominated Bukhari for the award for which he qualified based on the story. “I am taken by surprise and certainly overwhelmed,” Bukhari said after receiving the news of the award.
“I had not expected this level of recognition as I was just trying to do the right thing. We have a saying which translates ‘Do good deeds and forget that you have done them’, but I am grateful for it as it is a huge recognition and motivation for me to do more,” Bukhari said.
According to the American Red Cross, individuals like Bukhari have helped save more than 1,000 lives.
"This award is the first of its kind in the GCC and a proud moment for all Oman residents and it will motivate more people to step up in times of disaster and emergencies," Bukhari said.
In a statement, the American Red Cross said, "Shaandar represents what the Red Cross does every day which is to save and help people."
Bukhari, hailing from Pakistan, said, “Last year, I happened to see his WhatsApp status by chance that he was preparing to commit suicide and then, after a struggle of two hours of contacting him via WhatsApp because he was not taking any calls, I managed to convince him not to commit suicide,” Bukhari said.
Bukhari had to involve the Royal Oman Police because the person was not saying where he was. “It was very tough. The situation came all of a sudden, and I did not know how to convince him. He was getting angry at every passing minute. He was only communicating with me. Police were in touch with me because when they tried to call him, he became angrier, and later, his family got involved, but no one knew where he was,” he said.
Bukhari called for the authorities to set up emergency response centre to deal with suicide cases.
Son of one of the oldest residents of the Sultanate of Oman late Syedzada Sakhawat Ali Shah who was a renowned philanthropist and a known name amongst the expat diaspora in the country, Bukhari is himself a social welfare worker.
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