China Red Cross vows to restore credibility

China's Red Cross has vowed to make public all donations it receives after allegations of corruption sparked a storm of controversy, amid reports even tennis star Li Na is shunning the charity. "We will humbly listen to different opinions, strengthen our sense of responsibility... and strive to enhance the Red Cross Society's credibility in society," the organisation said in a statement. It also vowed to make public the donations it received and its purchasing activities, according to the statement issued late Thursday. The scandal erupted last month when a young woman was found flaunting her wealth online. She said she was the general manager of a firm called "Red Cross Commerce", which web users took to mean she had received embezzled funds. "Guo Meimei Baby", as she called herself, had posted photos of her opulent lifestyle on her Twitter-like account on Sina Weibo posing in front of a Maserati or sipping a drink in business class on a plane. The Red Cross and Guo soon denied any links to the other party, and she insisted she had made up her job title. China's state auditor then waded into the controversy, saying it had found five discrepancies in its review of the Red Cross' 2010 budget, which the charity instantly said was not linked to corrupt practices. The flap has fuelled already deep-seated public suspicion of state-run charities such as the Red Cross Society of China, amid a general lack of transparency and openness in the sector. Even Li, who won the French Open last month and has become one of the nation's sports darlings, has reportedly refused to donate money through the Red Cross. Li, who pocketed $1.65 million in prize money for winning at Roland Garros, will donate 500,000 yuan ($77,000) to a home for the elderly, disabled people and orphans in her hometown of Wuhan, the official People's Daily said. But the report said she had refused to donate that money through the Red Cross, after hearing about the Guo Meimei controversy. "I really hoped I would be able to help them, so in the end I decided to go handle everything myself," she was quoted as saying in the report.