Red Cross China Vows Further Transparency

The Red Cross Society of China (RCSC) will further efforts to increase transparency in its charity operations by forming a committee of supervisors from the public, the society said Friday.

Zhao Baige, executive vice president of the RCSC, said at a media event that a special committee consisting of people with known social responsibility, credibility and good judgement will be formed to supervise the fund-raising and charity operations of the society and its branches.

She said it is necessary for the society to form an effective system to disclose information concerning the sources and utilization of donations.

The society will invite supervisors from the public, according to Zhao, who however did not elaborate on how and when they will do so.

This came after the society, a leading charity group in China, came under fire in June for a scandal involving a young woman calling herself Guo Meimei.

The woman, who claimed to work for an institution under the RCSC, posted many photos of her lavish lifestyle on her microblog, prompting speculation that she had embezzled funds from the Red Cross Society.

Although it was later found that she was not an employee of the RCSC, the scandal is believed to have exposed the problem of a lack of transparency in the operation of charity groups.

Addressing a meeting of the RCSC earlier this month, Zhao said the scandal has contributed to a drop in personal donations to the society.

While denying any links between the society and Guo Meimei, Zhao on Friday said a full investigation report on the well-known scandal will be publicized by the end of this year.