wfn.org | Aid for Morakot victims continues through art and education

["Taiwan Church News" <enews@pctpress.org>]

>      Taiwan Church News

>3009 Edition

>October 26~November 1, 2009

Aid for Morakot victims continues through art and education

>Reported by Chen Yi-hsuan and Chiou Kuo-rong

>Written by Lydia Ma

Though it has been nearly three months since Typhoon Morakot  wrecked havoc in southern

Taiwan and took away hundreds of lives and homes, leaders at Chang  Jung Christian

University are determined to find ways to help their own students  whose homes were

destroyed so that students have all the help they need to get  through this crisis and continue

>their studies.

To help students continue their studies without interruptions due  to financial concerns, staff

and students at Chang Jung began a series of fundraising events  recently. News about their

efforts reached researchers and professors living abroad, who  volunteered to donate money

as well. University students also began donating their monthly  allowances on a regular basis to

>help their peers.

The university has created an emergency financial aid package for  students who are typhoon

victims, allowing each student to apply up to NT$60,000.  Furthermore, students holding a

special letter issued by city government offices identifying them  as typhoon victims can also

obtain help from campus counselors who will arrange on-campus jobs  for students to help

>them cover their living expenses.

University officials say fundraising events for Morakot victims  will continue for some time

because the road to recovery and reconstruction will be a long and  arduous journey. They

hope to comfort and support students during this critical time and  help them finish their four

>years of undergraduate studies.

Similarly, an association of painters in Taipei announced that  about 50 of its members had

agreed to donate a total of 40 paintings to help typhoon victims.  The association organized an

exhibit from October 18~29 and also partnered with World Vision by  making some of these

paintings available for purchase online at World Vision’s  website. All proceeds from the

exhibit and online purchases will go toward post-Morakot  rebuilding efforts.

The exhibit was held at Taipei Cultural Center and 17 of the  paintings on display were

available for purchase to raise funds for victims of Typhoon  Morakot. According to World

Vision, the funds will go toward temporary housing, permanent  housing, and education

>expenses for the children.

In related news, a forum discussing the historical background of  Hsiaolin Village, a village in

Kaohsiung County completely wiped out by mudslides during Typhoon  Morakot, was held on

October 22 at Taiwan Normal University. Hsiaolin residents are  mostly Aborigines.

According to one scholar, Hsiaolin residents are Siraya Aborigines  from the Tavorangh tribe.

This tribe was also the first Aborigine tribe to relocate from  their ancestral lands when Han

Chinese people occupied their lands and forced them out. Tavorangh  people originated from

Tainan County’s Yujing Township and later relocated and  settled permanently near Nantzu in

Kaohsiung City after being forced out of Yujing. Their new town  was later named Hsiaolin.

However, Tavorangh Aborigines are now the weakest of all  marginalized people because the

typhoon has virtually decimated the entire tribe. Taiwanese people  must reach out with

compassion to those who remain from Hsiaolin village by first  understanding Tavorangh’s

culture and history. A seminar on restoring Tavorangh culture was  held on October 31 and the

>event was open to the public.

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