The horrific images of innocent children and their families injured and killed during the recent attacks in Gaza have lead to numerous protests and of course numerous initiatives to raise funds for those affected in this monstrous Middle East war.
The Israel and Palestine conflict has always been a sensitive subject internationally but also to the growing Muslim population in Bradford. After all the Palestine issue was one of the main topics that brought George Galloway into power as Bradford West MP. As with every crisis our British charities are always at the forefront to ensure aid reaches the affected areas, quickly and in the most cost effective way….well cost effective, but in who’s opinion? Before we go any further, let me clarify one point, donating to charitable causes is not wrong and is most certainly a good deed, so let’s not be discouraged to do this.
However, as the consumer let’s encourage transparency with our charities. After all it is our money and we have a right to know how it is being used. Research by ipos MORI found that 37 per cent of the public surveyed felt charities played an essential role in society – up by seven per cent from two years ago. However, the most common reason for distrust was highlighted to the perceived lack of transparency around the spending of funds. We’ve seen the scenario often, where as humans we become more charitable when a disaster strikes and this is the most opportune moment for charities to raise money. The question is, is the money for them (their costs) or for the cause? Currently the emergency fundraising for Gaza. So in this emergency situation, whilst innocents are being killed, people have lost their homes, dying of starvation, some of us agree to attend charity dinner’s, dressed in our best, going to top restaurants or hotels, enjoying a fine 3 coursemeal and we’ve done our bit, as we’ve paid for the ticket and the money from that will be used to help the affected in Palestine!
There’s nothing wrong with charity dinners, if that helps raise money for needy causes then it’s got to be done. The real question here is about transparency. Someone has to pay for the marketing of such events, the food and the venue, along with the entertainment. When transparency is lacking, how can the consumer determine a genuine charity from a rogue?
We were horrified to learn when a reader called in to inform us about a Facebook friend promoting and raising funds via Facebook for a charitable cause, later discovering that the bank account he was requesting people send donations to belonged to an individual and not an organisation. We spoke with the advertising standards agency to learn more about transparency on such promotions for donations to charitable causes. They told us “It is up to the Charity commission to look into the accounts of the Charity in question.
However, we do have a ruling on advertising that is misleading to the consumer” said the ASA spokeswoman
We also spoke to two charities in Bradford who hosted charity dinners on 24 November and 25 November respectively on their thoughts on transparency.
Here is what they had to say:
Islamic Relief
What percentage of the donations from the Gaza fundraiser will go to the Gaza appeal and what percentage (if any) will go towards administration costs?
Islamic Relief strives to ensure that all the money that is raised is used for the intended cause. On average the cost to implement the delivery of aid varies from crisis to crisis but on average: 90% goes directly on emergency relief and development projects, 4% supports the delivery of relief, 3% goes into campaigning on essential issues, and 3% is used to generate future income. The funds received through Gift aid is spent directly where there is a need.
Islamic Relief has an office in Gaza and is not working through partners. This enables Islamic Relief to respond to the crisis quickly and with established distribution channels working with experienced staff. The 4% is effectively our admin fee. It’s what we spend to support the delivery of relief and allows Islamic Relief to ensure the funds we receive from the public goes to the right people and the work in the field is of a high standard with clear accountability at all levels.
Your promotional material (see above) does not highlight how much of the money will go to charity (whether it is 100% of all proceeds or a certain percentage).
Do you as a charity feel it is NOT necessary to inform the public about this, as it has clearly been missed from your promotions?
At Islamic Relief, we strive hard to ensure that your donations are used in the most effective way possible. Islamic Relief is transparent about our costs. We ensure that our accounts are audited internally and externally by PricewaterhouseCoopers and our transparency was recently recognised with an award from the prestigious Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW). http://www.islamic-relief.org.uk/annual-reports.aspx We also explain how donations are used on our website.
http://www.islamic-relief.org.uk/How_Your_Donations_Are_Used.aspx We respond to all sorts of queries on our FaceBook and Twitter site as well as through our call centre and charity shops. We are always open to questions from our donors. Not all of our promotional material can feature this message as we have limited space to get key information out about appeals.
How will the funds once raised reach the affected in Gaza?
Islamic Relief has an office in Gaza which means we can transfer the funds immediately. Islamic Relief has already provided £1 million worth of essential drugs and surgical supplies to Gaza’s hospitals to help them cope with casualties from this month’s bombardment and tackle chronic shortages that preceded the conflict. Our immediate focus will continue to be medical supplies but we are also likely to be involved in further emergency relief, depending on whether the ceasefire holds. We are determined to help the people of Gaza with the provision of food and further medical supplies if the ceasefire breaks down.
Interpal North
What percentage of the donations from the Gaza fundraiser will go to the Gaza appeal and what percentage (if any) will go towards administration costs?
100% of our donations for emergency go towards the appeal, we do not take administration costs here at the Head Office. Our admin costs are covered by other sources such as unspecified general funds, GiftAid
and donated interest money. Your promotional material (see right) does not highlight how much of the money will go to charity (whether it is 100% of all proceeds or a certain percentage).
Do you as a charity feel it is NOT necessary to inform the public about this, as it has clearly been missed from your promotions?
Interpal has a long standing policy of 100% donations going to the beneficiaries and delivery costs on the ground. Of course we feel it is very necessary to inform the public of this, we would specify if were taking an admin cost, however as we are not, and we feel we have established this over the years, we do not always include this information in all our publicity materials. It is always communicated to donors when they call and enquire.
How will the funds once raised reach the affected in Gaza?
This will depend on the type of aid being provided. Some will be in kind, such as equipment and supplies whilst the rest will be transferred in the usual way, via bank transfers- which are heavily regulated and in compliance with UK law. Human Relief Foundation, who has an office in Bradford also didn’t declare what percentage of donations would go directly to the cause on their web appeal. However, their publicity did talk about how the funds would reach the affected.
We will let you conclude on the answers provided by the charities and would be interested in learning your thoughts on whether charities are transparent enough on how they spend your money? Do you feel tighter controls are needed? You can join the conversation on Twitter @AsianSundayNews or email newsdesk@asiansunday.co.uk with your thoughts.
