(Photo/Wmxa.cn)

The Chinese Ministry of Civil Affairs (MCA) has been sued by a former investigative reporter after failing to inform the public about 4.8 billion RMB allegedly laundered from a children’s charity.

The China Charities Aid Foundation for Children (CCAFC) has been accused by plaintiff Zhou Xiaoyun of money laundering since 2012. The statement showed that of the 4.7-billion-RMB cash payment received during the charity’s operation, only 45 million was used to support children in need, while 4.84 billion was used in the form of cash payments for “other activities related to the charity’s operation.”

In 2013, Zhou tipped off the MCA, which administrates all charity and public welfare foundations in China, after CCAFC responded that the cash flow statement mistakenly listed 4.7 billion RMB instead of 470 million, flatly denying the money laundering accusation.

Zhou told People’s Daily Online that he received a call from MCA in May 2014 to once again confirm CCAFC’s supposed clerical error. At that point, a year-long investigation had already been carried out by the ministry.

However, the ministry denied the investigative group’s existence when Zhou petitioned for more information to be revealed to the public in September. In light of this, on Nov. 1, Zhou submitted his indictment to the No. 2 Intermediate People’s Court in Beijing. It remains to be seen how the court will handle this indictment, and whether there will be an open trial.

“I have been hoping that individual cases could help promote a systematic overhaul, to promote transparent financial reporting for all charitable organizations,” Zhou explained.

Zhou has submitted 22 requests to MCA for information disclosure regarding the missing 4.8 billion RMB, but none has yielded a satisfactory result, he told People’s Daily Online. Zhou now plans to gradually file lawsuits in his pursuit of the truth.

Neither MCA nor CCAFC has responded to Zhou's latest lawsuit, but the charity did post news on Nov. 2 that it has been selected as the one of the most transparent charities in China, with a score of 100 out of 100 on a transparency assessment. The assessment was conducted by China Foundation Center, which examined a total of 5,228 charities. Some 141 charities received scores of 100.