The recent eruption in Tonga has affected both the citizens living there, and their friends and families dispersed around the rest of the globe who are seeking to help them recover. With communication between Tonga and other nations slowly being restored after being disrupted by the disaster, information on the challenges the nation faces as it seeks to recover is being flowed out, and the Tongan diaspora is seeking to send aid back in whatever form they can.
Much of that intended aid, however, may take longer to arrive than expected, as both the pandemic, and the supply lines it has harmed, have added new difficulties in helping the already isolated nation. Already, shortages of shipping containers and boats to carry them have made the act of sending aid more challenging.
“In the face of such huge tragedy like this, a twin disaster of a volcanic eruption and a tsunami, Tongans have united, have come together, to send their ‘ofa, their aroha,” Jenny Salesa, a member of the New Zealand Parliament who has Tongan heritage and is involved in efforts to send critical goods to Tonga, told The New York Times.
Says Tongan athlete Pita Taufatofua, who has raised more than $750,000 to help his homeland, “Sports stars around the world from Tonga, whether it be in rugby or all the other sports — at heart, they’re still Tongan.”
Source:
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/01/28/world/australia/tonga-diaspora-recovery.html
