The US-based China Overseas Tibetans Association has raised funds totaling 500,000 (US$73,000) yuan for quake-hit Yushu, a Tibetan prefecture in Qinghai Province.

The donations will be channeled to the quake zone through relevant government agencies or philanthropic organizations in China.

Yangjin Lamu, chairwoman of the association and a Tibetan singer living in the US, said in Beijing, "Overseas Tibetans are very concerned about the quake victims and want to offer help."

Lamu said Tibetans have a special attachment to Yushu for religious and historical reasons.

"Princess Wencheng used to stop there en route to Tibet when she was on her trip to marry the king of Tibet," said Lamu.

The Tang Dynasty (around 7 century) princess married the king of Tibet as part of a peace treaty, and later became an iconic figure embodying the amity between the Hans and Tibetans.

Yushu is an important place for Tibetan Buddhism, the dominant religious belief of people in Yushu.

One buddhist temple toppled by the quake boasted a history of over 800 years.

(Xinhua News Agency April 27, 2010)