His Holiness the Dalai Lama has donated US$50,000 to the Taiwanese city of Tainan to help support relief efforts in the wake of the 6.4-magnitude earthquake that rocked the city in the early hours of 6 February, toppling buildings and leaving 117 people dead and hundreds injured. Dawa Tsering, a representative from the Office of Tibet in Taiwan presented the gift to Lai Qingde, the mayor of Tainan, yesterday.

A notice posted on the Dalai Lama’s official website earlier this month announced that His Holiness had sent a letter to Taiwanese president Ma Ying-Jeou expressing his sadness over the devastation and loss of life wrought by the quake in the southwestern coastal city. The article dated 6 February added that His Holiness would make a token donation towards relief and rescue work.

Conveying his condolences to the families of the deceased and prayers for the well-being of those who were injured or lost their homes, His Holiness also urged fellow Buddhists to recite the Heart Sutra for the people of Taiwan.

All but two of the 117 people who perished in the quake were killed when the 17-story Wei-Guan Golden Dragon apartment complex collapsed. Officials in Taiwan said rescue teams had recovered the body of the last known victim of the disaster yesterday.

On 8 February, three executives from the now-defunct real estate developer that built the 24-year-old complex were arrested and charged with criminal misconduct, following criticism of the building’s design and construction. Reuters reported that witnesses at the scene saw rectangular cooking-oil cans packed inside wall cavities, apparently having been used as a building material. Taiwan media reports also noted the presence of polystyrene mixed in with concrete used for supporting beams.

See more

Dalai Lama makes donation of 50K US Dollars for Taiwan relief efforts (Phayul.com)
His Holiness Expresses Condolences to the People of Taiwan (His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama of Tibet)
Taiwan Earthquake Search Uncovers Body of Last Missing Person (The New York Times)
Taiwan developer in custody after deadly quake fells building (Reuters)