International Humanitarian Relief Exemplar

THE 8.1-magnitude earthquake that struck Nepal on April 25 and its multiple aftershocks killed almost 9,000 and injured more than 20,000 people. The Chinese government immediately set about organizing two rounds of emergency humanitarian relief that provided 546 tons of relief materials worth RMB 60 million. The next morning the China International Search and Rescue Team was the first such team to arrive in Katmandu, Nepal’s capital.

“We really appreciate the Chinese government and people’s unconditional assistance in Nepal’s earthquake-stricken area. China’s rescue team is the best,” Nepalese President Ram Baran Yadav said to the Chinese press.

A Friend in Need

China’s 60-member medical team arrived in Nepal on April 27. During its 13 days of rescue operations the team treated 694 wounded, and made a round of 2,603 person-times visits. On April 29 China sent another 59-member team to the quake-stricken area to carry out post-quake medical treatment and epidemic prevention. China’s Red Cross International Rescue Team and a dozen nongovernmental rescue teams also went to the site to provide disaster relief. During Nepal’s coordinated international rescue meeting, in which China, the U.S., the U.K., Germany, and Indonesia participated, a Nepalese official confirmed that the Chinese team was the first to arrive. The official added that China had provided the best cooperation and made the biggest contribution to the rescue effort.   

China sent 1,088 rescuers, eight transport planes, three helicopters, and 190 units of engineering machinery. The country thus rescued two survivors, airlifted 22 stranded persons, and found 18 victims. It also airlifted 416 tons of relief goods and cleared 36-km of blocked roads. This was China’s largest international humanitarian aid project since the country’s founding in 1949.

President Yadav cited the old adage, “a friend in need is a friend indeed.” In face of such calamity, China’s practical actions exemplified the meaning of friend.

Humanitarian Aid

On April 2, 2015, a total of 225 nationals from 10 countries that had been evacuated from conflict-ridden Yemen arrived in Djibouti onboard the Chinese Navy frigate Linyi from the Port of Aden. In the course of evacuating Chinese citizens, Chinese warships also picked up eight nationals from Romania, India, and Egypt.

The evacuations took place under humanitarian relief campaign the Chinese government conducted at the request of relevant countries. It was the first time the Chinese government had taken such special measures to evacuate foreign nationals from danger zones, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said.

China also participated in humanitarian aid to trouble spots in Pakistan and Syria. In May 2009, in efforts to help the Pakistani government resettle civilians of the Taliban-threatened northwest border, China provided Pakistan with RMB 30 million in humanitarian relief goods. In July 2011, China provided Libya with humanitarian relief goods valued at RMB 50 million. Since the Syrian crisis started, China has provided humanitarian relief via various channels and also offered assistance to Syrian refugees in Turkey, Lebanon, and Jordan, most recently last April. In recent years, China has also provided humanitarian assistance to Darfur and South Sudan.   

Meanwhile, China has helped other countries to prevent and control epidemic situations. In February 2013, to help deal with the H1N1 flu epidemic, China provided Mexico with humanitarian aid to the tune of US $5 million. After the Ebola epidemic broke out in March 2014, China provided the West African countries with four rounds of humanitarian aid valued at RMB 750 million.

China has moreover supplied nearly 100 rounds of emergency disaster relief in the wake of natural disasters like the Indian Ocean tsunami, earthquakes in Japan, Haiti, and Myanmar, floods in Cambodia and Pakistan, and hurricanes in Cuba. From 2011 to 2012, the Horn of Africa and the Sahel region suffered severe droughts, so putting 30 or more million people at risk of hunger. In 2011, the Chinese government provided RMB 440 million in food aid to Ethiopia, Kenya, Djibouti, and Somalia, and in 2012, RMB 70 million in food aid to Chad, Mali, and Niger. These efforts helped local people return to normal life as soon as possible, and received recognition throughout the international community.     

Post-Disaster Reconstruction

In the face of disaster, China has not only promptly launched humanitarian aid efforts but also proactively participated in post-disaster reconstruction.

China carried out the largest emergency relief operation in its foreign aid history after the Indian Ocean tsunami in December 2004, providing nearly RMB 700 million in aid to tsunami-affected countries. Since January 2005, at the request of affected countries, China helped Indonesia build makeshift schools and seismic surveillance and tsunami warning systems, built temporary houses in Thailand, repaired a fishery wharf in Sri Lanka, and provided aid for residential construction in the Maldives.

When Pakistan suffered catastrophic floods in 2010, in line with local demand, China participated in post-disaster rebuilding in the fields of victim salvation and transportation infrastructure. China offered cash assistance in support of the Pakistani government’s plan to compensate victims and also restored a 340-km national highway network.

In March 2012, after the arms depot explosion in Brazzaville, capital city of the Republic of the Congo, China helped victims to build temporary settlements in efforts to return to normal life.

Through providing materials and trainings, China has also improved the disaster prevention and control capacity of recipient countries. From 2010 to 2012, China provided 10-plus batches of relief vehicles and other equipment in succession to disaster-affected countries, around 30 disaster management training classes for developing countries, and exchanged and shared related experience with 700 officials and technicians.  

Prompt provision of humanitarian aid to countries hit by major disasters has always been one of the key aims of China’s foreign aid, according to Deputy Commerce Minister Qian Keming. Since the establishment in 2004 of the emergency humanitarian aid mechanism, the Chinese government has launched almost 200 aid missions. In the short spell from 2014 to the present, China has provided RMB 1.3 billion in humanitarian assistance to some 40 countries in Asia, Africa and Oceania.