ZHOUSHAN: A Chinese hospital ship set sail for the typhoon-ravaged Philippines yesterday, with foreign media given unprecedented access to a navy base as Beijing seeks to promote its aid effort nearly two weeks after the disaster.
The Peace Ark, a 300-bed floating navy medical facility, sounded its horn as it set off from a People’s Liberation Army base on Zhoushan island, off the eastern province of Zhejiang. It is expected to take three or four days to reach the Philippines, which is embroiled in a territorial row with China.
“With our efforts, we will make great contributions to the relationship between the Chinese people and the Philippine people,” Shen Hao, deputy chief of staff of the East China Sea Fleet and commander of the mission, told reporters allowed on board the vessel before it left. “We will do our utmost to make contributions to the Philippine side.”
The deployment of the ship, which was featured on the front page of China’s state-run Global Times newspaper yesterday, comes as the world’s second-largest economy seeks to counter international criticism of its relief effort.
After an initial outlay of only $100,000, the Chinese government has gradually upped its aid over the past two weeks, contributing $1.6m worth of tents, blankets and other supplies. Other Chinese organisations are also contributing, and a first crew of relief workers left on Wednesday, China’s foreign ministry said.
By contrast, Japan has contributed $30m to the Philippines, and the US has donated $20m. Even the Swedish furniture group Ikea’s charitable foundation surpassed China’s initial outlay with a $2.7m contribution to the UN children’s agency Unicef.
One sailor’s wife clutched a Chinese flag and said: “I’m proud of my husband. It’s OK for the ship to go to the Philippines despite the state of relations.” The Peace Ark will initially be stationed in Samar province, but how long it remains in the Philippines will depend on the situation, officials said.
Sun Tao, head of the ship’s hospital, said it had more than 100 doctors and nurses on board, and can handle eight surgeries simultaneously. Doctors expect to handle disease caused by insanitary conditions and paediatric cases. Another batch of emergency medical rescuers left for the Philippines. They will establish a field hospital to offer medical services for typhoon survivors and work on disease prevention and control.
Around 5,500 people are dead or missing after the storm, which affected more than 13 million people, of whom 4.4 million are now homeless. AFP
