The Nepalese government is considering accepting Taiwan’s offer to help with search-and-rescue efforts for Saturday’s earthquake, while Taiwan is also seeking to cooperate with the US to transport relief supplies to the Himalayan country, Cabinet spokesman Sun Lih-chyun (孫立群) said yesterday.
Despite previously turning down Taiwan’s offer to send search-and-rescue teams, the Nepalese government said it has changed its position and is willing to consider the offer, Sun said.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has requested that the National Fire Agency put together a search-and-rescue team ready for immediate mobilization, Sun said.
Photo provided by Fo Guang Shan
Kathmandu had refused help from Taipei in search-and-rescue operations after the magnitude 7.8 earthquake for various reasons, including the distance between the two nations and the lack of diplomatic relations, the ministry said.
Sun made the remarks after a weekly Cabinet meeting, at which Minister of Foreign Affairs David Lin (林永樂) gave a briefing on what the government and civil sectors had done to reach out to Nepalese affected by the earthquake.
Lin said the ministry has asked the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) for cooperation with the US to ship relief supplies to Nepal, Sun said.
The AIT told reporters that it “is aware of Taiwan’s interest and willingness to provide disaster relief and assistance to Nepal.”
“We are exploring ways in which we could cooperate to assist the earthquake victims,” AIT spokesman Joseph Bookbinder said.
So far, four non-government teams from Taiwan have arrived in Nepal to assist with the rescue effort and deliver relief supplies, the ministry said.
It added that two more teams organized by Taiwanese charity groups were preparing to join the relief efforts this week.
One of the teams is a 60-member group from the New Taipei City-based Taiwan Root Medical Peace Corps, Department of NGO International Affairs Director-General Ray Mou (牟華瑋) said at a news conference.
The group, which is scheduled to depart for Nepal tomorrow, consists of doctors, nurses and volunteers, and is set to begin offering medical services to injured people as soon as it arrives, the organization told reporters, adding that its team is set to stay in Nepal for one week.
The Buddhist Compassion Relief Tzu Chi Foundation is also preparing to send a second team, Mou said.
The ministry has donated US$300,000 to Nepal, while three accounts were set up to accept donations from the public.
The number of Taiwanese known to have been in Nepal when the earthquake struck was 247, 245 of whom have been confirmed safe, according to an update provided by the ministry yesterday.
The ministry is still using various channels to try to reach the two who remain unaccounted for, ministry spokesperson Anna Kao (高安) said.
The first batch of relief supplies was shipped from Taiwan on Tuesday and the government is exploring the possibility of shipping more supplies via chartered planes operated by DHL and FedEX, the ministry said.
The ministry also has information available on its Web site on designated collection points where the public can donate relief supplies, it said.
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