BEIJING, June 14 (Xinhua) -- Supervisors of the Red Cross Society of China (RCSC) have rejected a proposal to reprobe the "Guo Meimei" controversy that stoked public suspicion over the charity's credibility two years ago.
The RCSC social supervision committee made the announcement at a press conference on Friday, citing voting results from a recent committee meeting.
The RCSC, a major charity in China, has been battling public mistrust after Guo Meimei, a young woman who claimed to be a chief of an organization with RCSC links, posted photographs online flaunting her wealth in mid-2011.
The issue triggered concern over how donations are used by the country's state-run charitable organizations, though an official investigation later that year ruled out any link between Guo or her wealth with the RCSC.
Jin Jinping, a committee member, said on Friday some members did raise the reinvestigation proposal and that the charity previously publicized a formal report on the incident after police-led investigations two years ago.
However, the committee, an independent panel that was created in December last year as a third-party body to supervise the charity, has no legal power to open such investigations or summon any of those concerned as a witness, she said.
"So during the vote, we believe that the committee should advise the RCSC to coordinate with authorities concerned to probe the incident when new evidence is available," Jin said.
The committee can conduct investigations and supervision on behalf of the public when issues of the RCSC become public concern, and publicize the report independently, according to the committee's charter.
CODE OF CONDUCT
In a bid to ensure the independent and fair nature of the supervisors, the RCSC social supervision committee has formally introduced a code of conduct for its members, the committee announced on Friday.
The rule, adopted at a Sunday meeting, says any member of the committee shall not provide for-profit services to the RCSC during the membership term or within the one-year period after leaving the post, according to Huang Weimin, general secretary of the committee.
This came after accusations of interest links between some supervisors and the RCSC sparked transparency and fairness concerns.
At the invitation of the RCSC itself, 16 professionals of different backgrounds, mostly famous people, formed the committee, a move once widely seen as a gesture for the charity to boost transparency and reshape its image.
The picking of members was made based on a "comprehensive" assessment of their professional background, credibility and passion for charitable projects, Huang said at Friday's press conference.
He admitted that some members used to be involved in research projects contracted by the RCSC and others did provide consultation to the charity.
"But when assuming their membership, most of the research or consultation concerned had already concluded, and their work as supervisors is totally voluntary and free," Huang said.
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