A relief group from Taiwan is among the international organizations providing aid to Afghan refugees. The Tzu Chi Buddhist Compassionate Relief Foundation (慈濟功德會) has delivered tonnes of food, clothing and medical supplies to over 40,000 refugees in the country.
Two Tzu Chi relief groups have completed their work in Aiback, northern Afghanistan, and in two refugee camps close to the Iranian border.
The 10 returning relief workers held a press conference in Taipei yesterday to share their experiences.
PHOTO: CHIANG YING-YING, TAIPEI TIMES
After having worked for about 10 days in the battlefield, members of the relief groups said that Afghanistan is one of the toughest places they have ever been.
"When I saw the land, I just wanted to say, `Afghanistan, I want to cry for you,'" said Huang Szu-hsien (
Huang said many countries have been destroyed by disasters but he's never seen anything like Afghanistan, damaged by both natural and man-made calamities.
Tzu Chi has been working with the US-based Knightsbridge International Organization to help Afghan refugees since October.
"We gave them all of our personal belongings before we left because they are too poor," Huang said.
Tzu Chi has collected 8,000 items of winter clothing, shoes, blankets and medical supplies from Taiwanese non-governmental organizations since November.
To practice its principle of delivering compassion directly to refugees, it sent 10 Taiwanese relief workers in two groups to the country to deliver those goods on Jan. 7.
When the groups first arrived they found refugees were hesitant to receive assistance.
"After being governed by the Taliban, Afghans are unfamiliar with anybody from outside. But they felt more comfortable about receiving our goods after two days of communication," Huang said.
At yesterday's press conference, the relief workers said that their short-term goal is to give refugees enough supplies to allow them to survive for at least three months.
"Too many refugees need our help. We'll set up other plans for further relief operations in the coming days," Huang said.
Tzu Chi, a Buddhist relief association led by Master Cheng Yen (証嚴法師), goes where it believes it is needed, from floods in China to famine in North Korea. Its relief work left a positive impression on Taiwanese people following the 921 earthquake.
The organization started its international relief work in 1991 when it raised funds to assist victims of floods in central and eastern China. In 1995 the group began working with the French group Medecins du Monde (Doctors of the World) to help with relief work for disasters around the world, including the famine in North Korea, floods in Cambodia and hurricanes in several central America countries.
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