By David Owen
February 16 – Dr Chung Mong-Joon (pictured), a South Korean member of FIFA’s ruling Executive Committee and honorary President of his country’s football association, has made a $500,000 (£318,000) donation to Haiti.
According to Dr Chung’s office, the money is to help with relief efforts in the impoverished Caribbean country that was devastated by an earthquake last month.
Dr Chung had received word that many members of the Haiti Football Association were killed or injured in the quake.
Separately, the FIFA Finance Committee has approved a proposal to provide an additional $3 million of support to Haitian football.
This is in addition to $250,000 (£159,000) of emergency aid provided by FIFA shortly after the January 12 quake, which killed tens of thousands of people.
The new money will take the form of a Special Projects Fund.
FIFA said the new fund would be dedicated to assisting Haiti in areas such as the reconstruction of the football association’s headquarters, technical centres and regional youth facilities, and to supporting the association’s leagues and youth competitions by providing basic football equipment.
It is said that Dr Chung, Chairman of Hyundai Heavy Industries, often donates money for relief efforts when large national disasters occur.
His office said that Dr Chung had entrusted the money to Jack Warner, so that the CONCACAF President could give it to relevant organisations.
Mr Warner recently visited Haiti, enabling him to make a detailed report on the dramatic situation there to the FIFA Finance Committee.
News of the fund came just ahead of a meeting in Zurich between Yves Jean-Bart, President of the Haiti Football Association, and FIFA President Sepp Blatter.
Jean-Bart, who was injured in the quake, said: “It’s painful but I’m still alive.
“Jean-Yves Labaze, the coach of the Under-17s, was just behind me and was less fortunate.
“The earthquake happened around 5pm; a lot of our players were training then, which maybe saved their lives.
“On the other hand, all of them, or nearly all of them, suffered losses within their families.”
Of the Haiti association’s headquarters, Jean-Bart said: “We don’t even have the money to pay for the heavy machinery to clear away the rubble.
“We estimate that there are at least 33 bodies buried underneath, and we’ve also lost all our assets, plus the whole of our administrative system.”
Blatter said that, while “football persists and brings hope and emotions”, money was also necessary to rebuild and carry on again.
The FIFA President has previously stated that FIFA would “continue to evaluate the situation very closely with the Haitian Football Association” and “do everything in our power to assist them in their hour of need”.
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