Remembering the German nurse who was KL’s angel of mercy

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PETALING JAYA: Rainer Rotthoff may have looked like just another foreign tourist wandering around Kuala Lumpur, but to many of the city’s most vulnerable people, he was an angel of mercy.

“He would clean the wounds of sex workers, of people living on the street. He would go under bridges to care for those seeking shelter there,” said activist Glorene Das, a longtime friend.

Ratthoff, 72, who died last month, “was a gentleman through and through, he had such a kind and generous heart,” she told FMT.

A trained nurse, Ratthoff moved to Malaysia three decades ago from Germany and was part of the Malaysian Aids Council. He was also active in the Ikhlas programme which provided medical care for people who lived on the streets of KL, including sex workers and drug users.

Das, who heads the Tenaganita organisation, said she first met Rotthoff in 1999, and they had worked together over the years to help vulnerable communities.

“He even provided a safe space for us to care for victims of violence two years ago. It’s called the Rainer House of Hope.”

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