Red Cross seeks to reassure donors

Shanghai Daily, July 29, 2011

The Red Cross Society of China yesterday announced an online information system allowing people to track their donations.

The system will be launched on Sunday, according to its official microblog at Weibo.com.

The information platform will first disclose the amount donated to relieve the 7.1-magnitute earthquake that struck Yushu County in the southwest province of Qinghai last April, and how the money was used.

The Red Cross said the platform may have problems, as it involves a large database and has been hastily pulled together. It welcomes opinions and suggestions from the public.

The system, involving a check on how the donation is used, was first mentioned by Wang Rupeng, secretary general of the charity body, on July 5, when he answered web-based questions.

Wang said the platform on which donation information would be published was expected to be launched by the end of this month.

The Red Cross has been accused of malpractice in charitable work and corruption after 20-year-old Guo Meimei claimed to be the general manager of "Red Cross Commerce" and apparently flaunted her wealth and extravagant lifestyle online.

Although the Red Cross has denied any links with Guo, the lack of supervision and transparency of its charity works put the credibility of the organization on the line.

The new platform, disclosing acceptance, management and distribution of donations, is part of a Red Cross pledge to engender more transparent management.

The new system allows donors to access the Red Cross website to find out how their donations are being used.

The charity also pledged to release its earnings and audit reports for 2010.

Police in Beijing have said Guo had no direct links with the Red Cross.

However, other issues involving the Red Cross have come to light - provincial branches have been found charging learner drivers a fee for non-existent "rescue training."

In another case, a land plot allocated to a branch of the Red Cross in Wuhan, capital of central China's Hubei Province, for storing disaster relief items is said to have been rented to a company for business use.