| Moon Jae-in passes bricks during his June 2016 trip to Nepal, to build a temporary building for students of Arukharka Secondary School, which was destroyed in an earthquake in 2015. Yonhap |
By Lee Suh-yoon
President Moon Jae-in recently donated his own money to a secondary school in Nepal he visited two years ago as part of an earthquake relief effort.
Moon and his aides who accompanied him on the June 2016 trek to the region recently donated 13.5 million won ($12,600) to Arukharka Secondary School in Nuwakot, one of the districts that was hardest-hit by a 7.8-magnitude earthquake in April 2015. Of the money raised for the project, the President contributed 5 million won out of his own pocket.
"Moon donated the money to keep his promise to the local children he met while on his trek in Nepal. The friendship between South Korea and Nepal continues to this day," a Cheong Wa Dae official said, Sunday.
During the trip, Moon himself joined in relief work by participating in building a temporary structure for the children of the school that was totally destroyed by the earthquake. It was several months before the massive corruption scandal involving former President Park Geun-hye and her longtime confidant Choi Soon-sil surfaced.
Moon was not holding any major office at the time after quitting the then-opposition Democratic Party of Korea chief position five months earlier.
Before returning to Korea after the 15-day trip, Moon promised to continue supporting the reconstruction efforts of the school, according to Nepalese local media.
Earlier this year Moon checked how the reconstruction work was going, and found it was not progressing much due to budget limitations. He then decided to donate money. He and his aides collected 15 million won, and 13.5 million won was offered to the school and 1.5 million won to a Nepalese worker here who was suffering from heart disease.
"I was moved by Moon's warm and humble image," Bhakta Ram Lamichhane, a local guide who accompanied Moon during the trip, said on Facebook. "He himself washed his own clothes every day, ate with the Nepalese porters and guides, and deeply grieved at the earthquake-ravaged sites."
The donation, made two months ago, was not made public until several members of the Nepalese local media reported it last Wednesday. The school plans to use the money for building retaining walls on slopes, fences and a drinking fountain, according to media.