While particularly devastating, the Sichuan earthquake was nothing new, given that four in every ten of the most destructive earthquakes in the world occur in China. Moreover, China is suffering increasingly from extreme weather, ranging from intense cold to typhoons.
Accordingly, the Chinese government recently released a white paper entitled, “China’s Actions for Disaster Prevention and Reduction,” that calls, among other things, for the development of a new legal framework, institutional setup and working mechanism related to disaster reduction and response. The paper highlights that laws and regulations concerning disaster reduction as well as other policies need to be improved.
The readiness of the Red Cross movement to support the government’s moves is reflected in the China Red Cross’ plans for promoting IDRL as part of its activities for 2009-2010. These include plans for organising trainings and workshops on IDRL in the coming months.
The IDRL Guidelines have also been translated to Mandarin, which will greatly facilitate the dissemination of IDRL to relevant officials.