Great Big Heart in a Small Package

Since the earthquake hit Nepal, several countries and organisations have begun sending money and support to help the tiny Himalayan country. The US government pledged $10 million. The UN released $15 million from its emergency relief fund, and Japan sent $8.4 million. The Tibetan government-in- exile in Dharamsala was one of the first to respond. A day after the tragedy struck, it announced financial aid of Rs 12.5 lakh, which is around $19,775. It is a generous sum, given the minimal resources on which the government-in- exile functions.

The exile administration resembles less a government and more a charity. It runs mostly on donations, and even its top official, its sikyong or prime minister, Lobsang Sangay, according to a BBC article, earns a monthly salary of just Rs 25,000. This government has a long association with Nepal, since many Tibetans live in the many refugee settlements there, and most Tibetans fleeing Tibet use the route via Nepal to escape. Many Tibetans have also married into Nepali families. In the past few years, though, Nepal’s government has grown increasingly close to China and has restricted the flow of Tibetans entering Nepal, apart from disallowing Tibetan protests to be held in the Himalayan country.

On 26 April, the Tibetan kashag or cabinet convened an emergency meeting, which directed all Tibetan settlements, monasteries and communities in Nepal to help with rescue-and-relief efforts in their localities, apart from asking Tibetans across the globe to chip in with donations. Sangay, the PM-in- exile, released a brief statement saying, ‘On behalf of the Central Tibetan Administration and the entire Tibetan people, I express my profound sympathies and condolences to those who have lost their loved ones and whose lives have been severely devastated by this horrific natural calamity.”

About The Author

Lhendup G Bhutia

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