Public skeptical on funds

As of yesterday Typhoon Toraji had left 93 dead and several villages in Hualien and Nantou Counties destroyed in its wake. Despite such devastation, the public has been called "lukewarm" in its response to the disaster compared to the outpouring of donations that followed the 921 earthquake.

Although government officials and social workers insist the two disasters are not comparable, they have criticized the government for failing to establish a system for how non-profit administrations should allocate donations in the aftermath of a natural disaster.

Two years ago, more than 200 accounts for earthquake relief were established by non-profit organizations and local governments around the country, collecting approximately NT$37.5 billion in aid.

The numerous accounts, however, became an administrative nightmare for the government, which was unequipped with regulations on how to govern the allocation and administration of those funds. Subsequently, the public has repeatedly blamed the government for the misallocation of the relief funds.

Two years later, this mistrust has not dissipated, as the Executive Yuan has failed to establish any permanent mechanism for the allocation of relief donations.

"The government just wants to solve short-term problems and never tries to deal with key structural issues," said Frank Wang (王增勇), assistant professor at National Yang-Ming University's Institute of Health and Welfare Policy.

According to Huang Jung-tsun (黃榮村), minister without portfolio in the Executive Yuan, the Ministry of the Interior has proposed permanent regulations for the management of donations, but the regulations are still tied up in the legislative process.

Officials at the Ministry of the Interior did say that the Executive Yuan is establishing temporary guidelines for allocating donations to Toraji's victims.

While the government has been slow on solving its donation difficulties, several non-profit private foundations have long had comprehensive donation administration systems in place.

The Tzu Chi Buddhist Compassionate Relief Foundation (慈濟功德會), Taiwan's largest charity, releases a list of received donations every two weeks. When disaster strikes, the foundation's social workers go to scene and report what is needed. The social workers and central decision-makers then evaluate their next moves together.

The Red Cross and the United Way administer their donations in a similar manner. The Taiwanese chapter of the Red Cross is required to report the details of its reconstruction programs to the organization's international headquarters and is monitored by an international accounting firm.

The Taiwan chapter of the Red Cross's public relations bureau chief, Lin Shou-fen (林秀芬), admitted that the government has tried to integrate financial and material donations, but complained that the rate at which the social safety system has been established hasn't been quick enough.

"The government has tried to improve the problem, but the process has been too slow and not comprehensive enough," Lin said.

United Way social worker Chen Wu-lien (陳文良) said that the government has learned from the 921 earthquake, albeit not enough. Chen said the government needs to integrate all non-profit foundations to form a social safety system.

"If all non-profit foundations were coordinated by the government and had their own individual responsibilities in the event of a disaster, the relief efforts would be able to operate systematically and the administration of these foundations would be easier," Chen said.