A Republic of China (ROC) naval vessel departed for Cebu Port at noon Nov. 25, 2013, carrying 530 metric tons of relief supplies for the Philippines in the wake of super Typhoon Haiyan. The supplies included solar generators, tents, rice, clothing, crackers and cookies, ready-to-eat food and drinking water, all donated by ROC citizens, civic organizations and charity groups such as the World Taiwanese Chambers of Commerce, Dharma Drum Mountain, Roman Catholic Diocese of Taichung and National Fishermen’s Association. The Chung He class tank-landing ship is expected to reach Cebu in four days. In a ceremony at southern Taiwan’s Zuoying naval base preceding the vessel’s departure, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Ting Joseph Shih said that immediately following the typhoon, President Ma Ying-jeou instructed the government to work closely with nongovernmental organizations to offer disaster relief assistance in the shortest possible time. This is in line with the country’s role as humanitarian aid provider and has deepened its public-private partnership, he noted. Shih commended citizens and civic groups for the compassion and empathy they showed by collecting hundreds of tons of relief supplies in just a week. He particularly singled out ROC troops for working around the clock to help collect, sort, pack, load and ship the relief goods. Philippine Representative to Taiwan Antonio Basilio expressed deep gratitude to the ROC, emphasizing that the Philippine people would not forget the kindness of the people of Taiwan. According to the Philippine National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council, on Nov. 8 Typhoon Haiyan left roughly 4,000 people dead and 3,000 injured, while affecting nearly 10 million people in the central part of the country. Given the extent of the damage, recovery will take several months and post-disaster reconstruction will pose a major challenge. This shipment follows the delivery to the Philippines of more than 150 tons of aid supplies in 18 flights by ROC air force C-130 Hercules cargo planes over the last week. Monetary and material donations from the ROC people and government have now reached US$7.27 million. mofa.gov.tw/EnOfficial/ArticleDetail/DetailDefault/9911ccd2-f84e-4b7a-8343-f692c7235723?arfid=7b3b4d7a-8ee7-43a9-97f8-7f3d313ad781&opno=84ba3639-be42-4966-b873-78a267de8cf1
Posted on: Fri, 29 Nov 2013 18:48:55 +0000
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