So far, BLIA has raised more than 400 tons of relief supplies including water, food, toiletries, and other necessities for the 200,000+ people displaced because of the earthquake and tsunami in Japan.
The following is an excerpt from an article published in March 2011 by China Times and CNA.
“A first batch of 26 tons of relief supplies, including coats, masks, blankets, generators and mineral water, arrived at Narita Airport outside Tokyo, while another shipment of instant noodles, 298 generators and 200 heaters arrived at Tokyo’s Haneda Airport.
“A total of 400 tons of aid from Taiwan is set to be shipped to Japan by both air and sea in the coming days with the assistance of Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Buddha’s Light International Association (BLIA), which is affiliated with Fo Guang Shan Temple in southern Taiwan’s Kaohsiung.
“[Venerable] Man Jun, director of the Fo Guang Shan Temple in Tokyo who was in charge of taking Tuesday’s deliveries, thanked the MOFA and Taipei-based China Airlines for their efforts in transporting the goods.
“‘We hope to quickly get this food and other relief supplies to survivors in the devastated who are hungry and fighting low temperatures,’ she said.
[...]
“Workers at Sagawa Express, the courier hired to deliver the goods to disaster areas, said they were very surprised after hearing that Taiwan would contribute 400 tons of material aid to help Japanese victims.
“‘This is the largest amount of aid that I have heard about from any foreign country donor,’ one of the workers said.
