The Yomiuri Shimbun
ISHINOMAKI, Miyagi--Two men handed envelopes of cash to evacuees at several shelters in disaster-hit Ishinomaki last week, as well as more than 5 million yen in cash to a branch of the city government, The Yomiuri Shimbun has learned.
The total amount given by the two men was believed to exceed 50 million yen, but their acts of generosity also sparked complaints of "unfairness" among evacuees who missed out.
The two men, who claimed they were representatives of "the western Japan volunteer committee" and "the western Japan retailers association," handed envelopes containing 30,000 yen to evacuees at six shelters in the city Thursday and Friday.
The men also delivered about 170 brown envelopes each containing 30,000 yen to the Ishinomaki municipal government's Oshika Sogo branch office, according to the city's disaster countermeasures committee.
The two men handed the envelopes to evacuees despite requests by city officials at the evacuation centers to stop, and then left, the committee said.
Several evacuees who heard about the incident called the municipal government to complain that it was "unfair" that some people had not received the cash.
An official at the municipal government said, "We appreciate the men's gesture, but we'd prefer they send donations that can be fairly shared among disaster victims."
(Apr. 25, 2011)
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