China revises law to boost transparency of Red Cross societies

China's top legislature on Friday passed a revised law to boost the transparency and credibility of Red Cross societies in the country.

The legislation was adopted after a third reading at the bimonthly session of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPC), reports Xinhua.

With the new law, the Red Cross societies in China are now required to give feedback to donors on the use of their donations, and staff who fail to do so could face civil and criminal charges.

"The revision primarily focuses on strengthening supervision on Red Cross societies and standardizing their activities," Guo Linmao, an official with the Legislative Affairs Commission of the NPC Standing Committee, told a press conference Friday afternoon.

A previous clause giving Red Cross societies power to "rectify" illegal activities by their subordinate societies and staff was deleted from the new draft.

After several scandals, China's Red Cross has grappled with trust issues in recent years. The law will come into force May 8, 2017.