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Public concern over the way donations to earthquake relief funds are being used has prompted the government to demand an open accounting of charitable giving and relief organization expenditures.

MS. Chen is not rich by any standard Forbes would acknowledge, but like her ancient predecessor spoken of once in a parable, she is a modest woman more rich in generosity for having sacrificed a greater portion of what little she had to spare. “I donated my monthly pay of 3,000 yuan,” she said, without false modesty. “It is my largest donation yet.”

Chen, who works for an insurance company in Beijing, is not alone. Among her friends, nearly everyone has done something. Some have given money, some have given blood, some have organized those who did. “Most of my friends have done their part,” she said, not in the least surprised. “Everyone will do what he or she can to help ease the suffering.”

As anyone who has ever given money to a good cause can testify, one always hopes that the small contribution one makes actually reaches and helps those whom it was intended to help. So Chen has made public a proposal, using a Website forum, to appeal to civil administration departments to make public the way donations are used. Her appeal has drawn hundreds of supportive replies.

By searching Google with key words like “earthquake, donation and transparency,” hundreds of related sites can be found, posted by ordinary Netizens and well-financed backers alike.

By the morning of May 26, the amount of money and relief supplies donated both at home and abroad reached RMB 30.876 billion, with received donations totaling RMB 23.002 billion, and already allocated money and goods valued at RMB 9.054 billion.

That much money, however, has aroused public concern that the funds could be misspent or otherwise misused if not properly supervised. In view of that concern, the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection of the Communist Party of China, the Ministry of Supervision, the Ministry of Civil Affairs, the Ministry of Finance and the National Audit Office jointly issued on May 20 a notice strengthening the supervision of earthquake relief funds and supplies.

“As to the use of donated funds, every day the Ministry of Civil Affairs makes public the allocated central funds and contributions. The local governments donation usage, however, is made known to the public gradually,” said Jiang Li, vice minister of the Ministry of Civil Affairs. “The public can inform itself about donation statistics on the television news and through other media.”

Regarding the management of charity organizations, the Ministry of Civil Affairs has established certain basic rules of oversight: put the foundations donation activities on record; open special accounts for contributions; supervise and assist foundations with the collection of daily receipts; and publish their usage and balance information. “Once the relief work is finished, all foundations will have to make their donation situation clear and open. We will be launching timely audits and checks,” said Yang Yue, deputy director of the Administration of Non-governmental Organizations of the Ministry of Civil Affairs.

In addition, the Ministry of Civil Affairs has directed that no recipient organization shall draw any working expenses from the donations it receives. The Red Cross and the China Charity Federation must not retain any received funds as accumulated capital.

The National Audit Office and KPMG, a major international accounting and consulting firm, have both sent audit personnel to the Red Cross. “We promise that all donated funds and goods will be used exclusively for relief work, without any administrative expenses or reserve funds,” said Wang Ping, director of the Emergency Response Office of China Red Cross. Normally, the Red Cross allocates some five percent of its received contributions for administrative expenses. That has now been suspended. “As society demands more transparency, some organizations, which are used to the old ways, are feeling more pressure,” Wang said candidly.

With regard to the use of funds, the first principle is to honor a donors wishes. For instance, if the money was obtained in the expectation ofbuilding a school and hospital, the funds cannot be used straight away. Nor can contributions for Gansu Province be allocated to Sichuan Province, for instance.

Liu Guolin, secretary general of the China Charity Federation, said that the donation fund flows in two directions. One involves appropriating money directly to the Sichuan Charity Federation and the provincial Bureau of Civil Affairs, the other is purchasing disaster relief goods and sending them to the earthquake-hit areas. In addition to reporting the itemized account to the State Council, the donation list is made public daily.

Once the emergency work is over, the donation fund will shift its focus to reconstruction.

The Red Cross Society of Sichuan has published a list of donor names, the amounts given and the dates on its Website. Zhang Bo, secretary of the Party leading group of the Sichuan Red Cross, said they are making the account known to the public and guaranteeing its transparency. The staff members register the detailed information of each donation, and post the receipts issued by branches in earthquake-hit areas that have received donations.

At the same time, the CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection and the Ministry of Public Security have also stated that corruption, appropriation and the withholding of donations is strictly prohibited. One cadre in Sichuan has already been punished for trading in disaster relief supplies. Such policies and measures ensure that donations are received by those who really need them.