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    The Home Affairs Department (HAD) announced today (May 18) that starting from this week, payment of the compassionate grants by the "SHA Incorporated Tsunamis Relief Fund 2004" (the Fund) will be made to successful applicants.

    "The committee, which was set up to manage the Fund, had met early this month to consider a total of 28 applications.

    "It was decided that except for a few applications which failed to meet the stipulated eligibility criteria, all other applications should be accepted," an HAD spokesman said.

    The secretariat of the committee has notified the applicants of the results of their applications. Ex-gratia grants will be made to successful applicants after the verification of their supporting documents.

    "For the disbursement of ex-gratia grants, it would be a lump sum payment on a per victim basis. A sum of $200,000 would be awarded to each victim. The successful applications involved a total grant of $4,800,000," he added.

    The Fund was established with donations raised in response to a government coordinated fund-raising event at Hong Kong Stadium on January 1 this year. About $44 million had been raised and to date, $37.5 million had been allocated to the five relief organisations, which co-organised the fund-raising event, for emergency relief operations in South Asia. The rest of the donations were used for setting up the Fund to provide a one-off compassionate financial assistance to family members of Hong Kong residents who were victims of the tsunami disaster occurred last December in South Asia.

    "After the disbursement of grants to all successful applicants, the remaining balance in the Fund will be distributed equally to these five relief organisations.

    "The Fund will then cease operation and a final statement of accounts will be posted onto the Fund?s website (http://www.had.gov.hk)," the spokesman said.

Ends/Wednesday, May 18, 2005

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