Discredited Red Cross to re-probe reputation stain

Victims queue to get relief materials from volunteers of the Red Cross Society of China in Lushan County of Ya'an City, southwest China's Sichuan Province, April 21, 2013. (Xinhua/He Junchang).

The Red Cross Society of China (RCSC) will subject itself to a renewed investigation into the case that landed the charity in a trust crisis two years ago, the RCSC social supervision committee announced Wednesday.

The announcement came as the public has been hesitant to donate quake-relief money via the RCSC after a 7.0-magnitude earthquake shook southwest China's Sichuan Province on Saturday. This reluctance underlines the organization's urgent need to rehabilitate its image.

The reputation of the RCSC took a major hit two years ago, when a young woman calling herself Guo Meimei used social media to say she was a manager in the organization and openly flaunted wealth and extravagance.

Wang Yong, the supervision committee spokesperson, said, "Despite the work the RCSC has done in quake relief, its efforts were not recognized by the public. Instead, many people still take the 'Guo Meimei' case as a proof of the RCSC's corruption and embezzlement of public funds, which hampers the organization's future work in disaster relief and aid."

However, whether Guo Meimei was genuinely affiliated to the RCSC or not, Wang said, must be determined by a thorough investigation by the committee. Neither Internet users' nor the RCSC's accounts have proven impartial.

The upcoming probe will be independent and carried out without the participation of any RCSC staff, Wang said, adding that it will be led by the supervision committee and conducted by third-party professional agencies.

The supervision committee will also invite celebrities with good public reputations to join the probe, and it will publicly disclose the process and results of the probe, Wang said.

The RCSC social supervision committee, which was set up at the end of last year, has no affiliations with the charity, Wang said. The committee members -- all professionals in the fields of law, finance, medicine, communication, social management and rescue-and-relief -- work on a voluntary basis. They receive no pay or remuneration of any kind from the RCSC.

The supervision committee can initiate investigations into any RCSC-related matter that stirs media or public questioning, and it will disclose probe results to the public without interference, according to Wang.

The previous investigation following the "Guo Meimei incident" asserted that neither Guo, nor her demonstrated wealth, had anything to do with the RCSC, but grave flaws existed in the management of the China Business System Red Cross Society, one of RCSC's fund-raising groups. The result was publicized in December 2011.

The first round of investigation was done by a team composed of experts from the Ministry of Supervision, the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, a law firm, the China General Chamber of Commerce and the RCSC.

Following Saturday's earthquake that claimed at least 190 lives, online reports show that donation collection points set up by the RCSC on streets have been shunned by passersby. However, private charities such as the One Foundation initiated by movie star Jet Li have been widely applauded for their transparency and orderly handling of donations.

The new round of investigation into the "Guo MeiMei incident" will kick off in late May.