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Chinese tycoon offers free lunch and cash to US poor

2014-06-20 13:12 China Daily Web Editor: Yao Lan
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Chinese tycoon offers free lunch and cash to US poor

Eccentric Chinese tycoon Chen Guangbiao took out a full-page bilingual advertisement in the New York Times, inviting underprivileged Americans to a charity lunch and offering cash handouts.

According to Chinese media reports, the ad appeared in the New York Times print edition on Monday, announcing that Chen would host a charity luncheon at New York Central Park's Loeb Boathouse on June 25 for 1,000 "poor and destitute Americans". Each participant would also receive $300.

Chen, who is known for theatrical philanthropic stunts, has a photo of himself in the ad placed side-by-side with a picture of Lei Feng, a Chinese soldier from the Mao-era who is celebrated as a selfless model citizen. The title above the images says, "China's 'Lei Feng for a new era.'"

Those who wish to join the luncheon need to RSVP via a Hotmail email address.

Chen said he was hoping the lunch would show the US that there are Chinese philanthropists.

"There are many wealthy Chinese billionaires but most of them gained their wealth from market speculation and colluding with government officials while destroying the environment. I can't bear the sight of it," Chen told theSouth China Morning Post.

Making his fortune from recycling domestic waste and construction materials in China, Chen has been in the media spotlight in recent years for his dramatic publicity stunts promoting philanthropic causes. He arrived at the scene of the 2013 Lushan earthquake in Sichuan just hours after the disaster took place and personally handed out cash to the victims.

Chen has also tried unsuccessfully to buy the New York Times as part of his ongoing campaign to develop closer ties between US and China.

He recently expressed a desire to reignite discussions to buy the paper's opinionsection and fill it with articles about environmental protection and charity.

Founder of the Huangpu Renewable Resources Utilization Group, Chen has donated hundreds of millions of dollars to various charitable causes over the years and has made it more than once onto Forbes' list of Asia's leading philanthropists.

But not everyone is taken with Chen's flashy generosity.

Jeremy Goldkorn, director of Chinese media research firm Danwei, says: "Chen is a clown whose so-called philanthropy appears to consist entirely of self-promotional stunts like giving handouts of cash in Taipei and New York, and cans of air to people in China."

Goldkorn has also tweeted that Chen is the "greatest insult to the Chinese people."

Other critics find it difficult to take Chen seriously when his English namecard lists an absurdly long string of self-aggrandizing titles, including "Most Charismatic Philanthropist of China."

陈光标在美国请客撒钱

据CNN报道,中国大亨陈光标在纽约时报刊登整版双语广告,邀请美国弱势人群吃慈善午餐,并发放现金。

这则广告出现在周一的《纽约时报》印刷版,广告称陈光标将于6月25日在纽约中央公园为1000名“贫困美国人”举办一场慈善午宴,每位参加者还将获得300美元。

陈光标一向以其特立独行的慈善方式而广为人知。在广告中他将有自己的照片和雷锋的照片并列。雷锋是一个毛泽东时代的士兵,被赞誉为无私的模范公民。照片上面的标题为,“中国新时代的雷锋。”

希望参加午餐的人需要给一个Hotmail电子邮件地址尽快回复。

陈光标说,他希望通过这次午餐告诉美国中国是有慈善家的。

“中国有很多富豪,但大多数人的财富是通过市场投机和勾结政府官员获得的,而且还破坏环境。我不能忍受这种现象,”陈光标在接受《南华早报》采访时说。

通过在中国回收生活垃圾和建筑材料发家的陈光标,用夸张的宣传来推动慈善事业,近年来一直受到媒体关注。2013年四川芦山地震发生仅几个小时候,他就到达地震灾区,并亲自给灾民发放现金。

陈光标还试图收购《纽约时报》,尽管没有成功,但这是他发展更紧密中美关系活动中的一部分。

他最近表示希望重新开始与《纽约时报》商讨打算购买报纸中读者意见版面,全部发表环保和慈善事业的文章。

陈光标是黄埔再生资源利用集团创始人,多年来已向各种慈善事业捐赠巨资,不止一次荣登福布斯亚洲慈善英雄榜。

但并非所有人都认同陈光标的浮夸的慷慨行为。

中国媒体研究公司单位网的主管金玉米(Jeremy Goldkorn)说:“陈光标是一个小丑,其所谓的慈善事业似乎完全是由自我宣传的噱头组成的,比如在台北和纽约发放现金,给中国人发放灌装空气。”

其他批评者在发现它的英文名片后也觉得对其不能太当真。他的英文名片中列出了一大串自我炫耀的头衔,其中包括列出的自我夸大冠军,其中包括“中国最有魅力的慈善家”。

 

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