May 27, 2013, Shanghai ---- On April 20, the devastating news of a 7.0 magnitude earthquake hitting Sichuan’s Ya’an city not only spread throughout the country, but also caught the attention of the overseas Chinese community overnight. This powerful disaster comes as another blow to the region in the wake of the Wenchuan earthquake five years ago. In response to the tragedy, , Mr. Teguh Ganda Wijaya, the Chairman of APP, announced on April 23 an RMB 30 million donation to support relief efforts and post-disaster reconstruction through the Overseas Chinese Love Project - Hearts Ya'an Action organized by the Overseas Chinese Affairs Office of the State Council. In addition to cash donations amounting to RMB 25 million, APP also donated general household paper and female sanitary products at a total value of RMB 5 million. 

During a solemn donation ceremony in the morning of April 23, representatives from APP presented the Group’s donation and expressed sincere condolences to the disaster victims and their families, encouraging the survivors to face relief and rebuilding efforts courageously. “I was truly saddened to hear about the devastation and suffering caused by the Ya’an earthquake. As an overseas Chinese entrepreneur, making donations to my motherland not only fulfills APP’s corporate social responsibility, but more importantly represents my sentiment of patriotism to the home country,” Mr. Teguh Ganda Wijaya said after hearing the catastrophic news. He noted that perseverance has always been considered as a common trait of the Chinese nation and is the essence that keeps the Chinese culture thriving throughout the history. Mr. Wijaya is confident that with this persevering spirit and generous assistance from all factions of society, those affected will overcome all odds to rebuild their homes. 

It has been widely reported by numerous media that household paper and female sanitary products are some of the most sought after items in disaster areas – a fact that APP has taken into active consideration. Being the largest household paper manufacturer in Asia, APP’s Gold Hong Ye (GHY) Paper proactively took on the responsibility of providing household paper products for the areas affected by the earthquake. For its efforts, APP transported tons of household paper (including ‘Breeze’ wet paper towels and various kinds of tissue paper) to the disaster-hit areas, which amounted to a total value of RMB 5 million, in the hope of providing timely relief to meet the urgent needs of the victims. 

This is just one of APP’s many philanthropic contributions, along with charitable donations made to aid relief efforts for the Wenchuan earthquake and snowstorm disasters in 2008. In addition to monetary donations, APP is committed to supporting post-disaster reconstruction in stricken areas and psychological treatment for the victims involved. As a culmination of its efforts, the Pengzhou Tongji Middle School and Yushu County No.3 Primary School were respectively rebuilt in disaster-hit areas in 2009 and 2012 under sponsorship from APP. The two schools have since received hundreds of students in the aftermath of natural disasters. Furthermore, the Huang Yicong Foundation, which is named after the founder of the Sinar Mas Group and APP Mr. Eka Tjipta Widjaja, launched a psychological rehabilitation initiative entitled ‘APP Psychological Counseling Project’ after the Wenchuan earthquake, with the aim of helping disaster-stricken children recover from the trauma of disaster, and to assist local schools in establishing an optimized psychological counseling system. As of today, APP’s charity donation efforts in China have exceeded RMB640 million. 



For more information about Overseas Chinese Love Project - Hearts Ya'an Action, please visit: http://www.readdailynews.com/news-4406928-Overseas-Chinese-Love-Project---Hearts-Ya-39an-the-Lushan-action-donation-ceremony-was-held-in-Chengdu.html