Mr. Matthew Chou, Representative of the Taipei Liaison Office in the Republic of South Africa, together with Mr. Jincheng Lai of the Overseas Community Affairs Council were invited by the Tzu Chi Foundation in South Africa to attend the winter distribution ceremony of Taiwan government subsidised rice parcels to underprivileged communities in the Mooiplaas Informal Settlement area.
Around 40 tons of rice, shoes and toiletries were donated by the Republic of China (Taiwan) government and distributed via the Tzu Chi Foundation to around 2000 needy households.
Mr. Chou said during his remarks that fifty years ago it was Taiwan that was on the receiving end of humanitarian assistance and that Taiwan now viewed any assistance that they gave as a way of "paying it forward" and giving back to the international community.
Mr. Chou said it was for this reason that all the bags of rice had the logo "Love From Taiwan" adorned on them, as this perfectly summed up Taiwan's sentiment of helping those in need and giving back.
Mr. Chou paid homage to the Tzu Chi Foundation for their continued charitable work in the poorest areas and communities in South Africa. "I would like to pay a special tribute to all the brothers, sisters and volunteers of the Tzi Chi Foundation, as this humanitarian project would not have been possible were it not for their hard word work and efforts".
Mr. Chou went on further to say, "we are hoping that, with this charitable gesture, we can start a cycle of actions representing kindness, which means, those who once received the support will help others whenever they can."
It took Tzu Chi members and volunteers around two hours to distribute all the donated goods, much to the excitement, gratefulness and joy of the local community.
