TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Social organizations, businesses, and schools on Friday (Feb. 3) emphasized efforts to help the Central American nation of Belize recover from a hurricane.

Hurricane Lisa made landfall in Belize on Nov. 2, causing extensive damage and temporarily displacing at least 5,000 residents. The country is one of Taiwan’s 14 official diplomatic allies.

Lawmakers, diplomats, and representatives of social groups met at the Legislative Yuan on Friday to announce a campaign of support under the heading “Love To Belize, We Are Siblings,” Radio Taiwan International reported.

Belize’s ambassador in Taipei, Candice Pitts, said Taiwan had been the first nation to respond to her country’s call for help after the disaster. The government donated US$200,000 (NT$5.94 million) in emergency funds to help rehouse the homeless and reconstruct damaged communities.

The actions of Taiwan’s government and private groups were praised as a sign of the country’s soft power and of its people's sympathy for the victims of disasters, the report said.