Charity and suspicion mix like blood and water

Almsgiving should be encouraged insofar as it serves its intended purpose, i.e. to help the poor and the needy, and it simply must not be taken for granted. Refusal to give change to someone who asks for it is sometimes justified if the potential giver knows the bum has a rich, big-spender uncle or suspects that the money may eventually go to a “big brother” to finance his bad habits. On the other hand, it must be considered “bad form,” or something worse, if the bum, or his big brother, attacks the hesitant giver who tries to think twice before parting with his money.

The same thing goes for disaster relief, in which embezzlement of relief funds is not unheard of. So as a precaution, one, when in doubt, should not cough up money too readily.

And yet, China, the world’s second largest economy and, according to Charities Aid Foundation’s World Giving Index, its 141st giver (of 153) in 2012, has accused Hong Kong, formerly a British colony but now a Chinese special administrative region, of trying to politicise charity. This comes after some Hong Kongers expressed concern that their donations in the aftermath of the April 20 Lushan, or Ya’an, earthquakes in the inland province of Sichuan might be misappropriated, either partially or wholehog. According to the same index, Hong Kong ranked 19th last year.

Instead of calling on officials overseeing disaster relief to clean up their acts after allegations of misappropriation of relief funds in the aftermath of the 2008 Sichuan earthquake, the state mouthpiece People’s Daily, or Remin Ribao, lashed out against those Hong Kong people on April 20. Targets included a local legislator, who asked for better oversight of donated funds. The publication labelled such calls an attempt to “politicize disaster relief.”

The article then used a worn-out cliche to urge Hong Kong people to come to the aid of their mainland brethens without delay. “Blood is thicker than water,” it said.

Hong Kong authorities then dutifully forked over the money, more than NT$400 million ($13.5 million) in all, without further ado, as if they had been under duress. But with perfect hindsight, it appears they looked more like the victim of a scam.

Just a few days after the Renmin Ribao tirades, a supervisory committee of the Red Cross Society of China (RCSC) on April 25 vowed to reopen an investigation that continues to plague the charity’s credibility as it seeks donations for victims of the Lushan earthquake in Sichuan province.

The third-party watchdog committee, established last year, said on its official Weibo account that it will resume an investigation into the scandal by inviting public representatives to directly communicate with staff from the RCSC. The investigation will begin after the disaster relief work in Lushan is completed.

The RCSC’s recent plea for donations to aid victims of the Lushan quake received thousands of caustic replies from Web users who en masse wrote “gun” or get away. Apparently, these people have not been reminded that “blood is thicker than water.”

The so-called Sichuan schools corruption scandal was a series of allegations of corruption against officials involved in the construction of schools in regions affected by the 2008 Sichuan earthquake. It gained momentum in May and June 2008, and the allegations culminated in protests from grieving parents of children who died in the earthquake as a result of the collapse of various schools in the quake zone.

The scandal eventually became a focal point of reporting on the earthquake rescue efforts, with Chinese civil engineers, bloggers, activists and foreign media bringing attention to the allegations. Various discussions and reports alleged that local government officials and construction companies were negligent in the construction of schools, and that they ignored civil engineering standards, saved materials and took shortcuts while pocketing the difference, according to media reports.

But what is more ironic is that some other people appear not to know that “blood is thick than water” when they should.In an online report, Renmin Ribao proudly said on May 2 that “one of this year’s most popular phrases may be “Chinese housewives” ― as a major force which reportedly spent 100 billion yuan ($16 billion) over the past two weeks purchasing 300 tons of gold and thus helping to sustain gold prices at $1,468 an ounce.

One percent of this mind-boggling sum would go a long way in helping the victims of the Sichuan earthquakes. One does not know how much these housewives have donated to the inland province’s disaster relief. Let’s hope their donations amount to much more than that.

(The China Post (Taiwan))

(Asia News Network)