China is giving hundreds of thousands of dollars to quake-ravaged Christchurch.
A number of Chinese students were trapped in the Canterbury Television building in central Christchurch by last Tuesday's 6.3 quake. They and many others were attending an English-language school in the building when the quake struck.
A spokesperson for the Chinese Embassy, Wang Xin, says the Chinese government will give about $650,000 for urgent humanitarian aid; the Chinese People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries will give $20,000; and the Chinese Red Cross will give $65,000 to its New Zealand counterpart.
Twenty-thousand Chinese nationals are registered in Christchurch - 3500 of them students.
Meanwhile, the European Commission says it has received a request from New Zealand authorities for help with temporary sanitation, housing and demolition, and it will co-ordinate a response from Europe.
And the New Zealand Community Trust says it is giving $5 million. Trust chair Peter Dale says they will work with the Government, the Christchurch City Council and local sports organisations in distributing the money.
