By Tenzin Dharpo
DHARAMSHALA, Feb. 18: Following the earthquake in Taiwan’s coastal city of Tainan on Feb. 6, the Tibetan leader His Holiness the Dalai Lama earlier sent a letter of condolence to the incumbent President Ma Ying-Jeou and pledged a donation of 50000 USD towards the relief works for the hard hit city.
“He conveyed condolences to the families of the deceased and prayers for the well-being of those who were injured or lost their homes and as a mark of his sympathy and solidarity with the people of Taiwan, he is making a token donation towards the relief and rescue work.” mentioned the Dalai Lama’s official website.
Yesterday (Feb.17), Representative of the Office of Tibet in Taiwan, Dawa Tsering, visited the affected city of Tainan meeting with the city’s Mayor Lai Qingde and handed over the donation of 50,000 USD for relief efforts.
The city of Tainan, one of the oldest cities, was struck with a 6.4 magnitude earthquake that caused destruction and deaths. The official death toll is 116. On Feb. 14, as the last survivor was pulled out of the rubble, the search efforts have ended now. 289 people were rescued with 96 of them in hospitals for treatment.
Weiguan Golden Dragon high-rise tower which fell caused most of the casualties. The people responsible for the construction of the building were arrested and face charges of “professional negligence resulting in death”.
