Foreigners giving blood in Shanghai Photo: Yang Hui/GT

Another person has been nabbed for getting mixed up in the illegal blood trade. Prosecutors announced last week that police arrested a man for taking money to organize a group of people to donate blood at a medical center in Shanghai Qingpu district, according to a report in the Metro Express.

The man, surnamed Zhang, 22, a university graduate, got the job after responding to an online advertisement that offered money in exchange for blood donations.

Zhang was an experienced blood donor. As a university student in Nanjing, Jiangsu Province, he donated blood twice a year, though always for free, the report said.

The man behind the online advertisement refused to take a donation from Zhang because he had recently given blood. However, he then offered to pay him 300 yuan ($48.39) to take a group of people to donate blood. Zhang rounded up about 20 people and took them to the medical center the next day, but police arrested him when he arrived.

Prosecutors said Zhang claimed that he didn't know it was illegal to accept money for organizing groups of blood donors. The report didn't provide any further information about the man who hired Zhang, or whether the donors were also paid.

China outlawed paying people to give blood in 1998, when only 5 percent of the country's blood supply came from volunteers, according to the People's Daily. However by 2010, voluntary donations had risen to account for more than 99 percent of the donated blood supply.

Despite that progress, Chinese people have remained relatively reluctant to donate blood. Less than 1 percent of the Chinese population gave blood in 2011, far less than in developed countries, where 4.54 percent of people donated, according to a report in the Southern Weekly in June 2012.

This general reluctance to give blood may explain why stories about money infecting the blood donation supply continue to pop up in the media. In December 2012, for example, the Shanghai Blood Administration Office felt the need to remind residents that they were not allowed to sell their blood after a microblogger posted a photo of a flier offering 900 yuan for 400 milliliters of blood.

We wondered whether Shanghai's expats also had reservations about giving blood, so we hit the pavements to find out why they choose, or refuse, to donate.

Mark, student, the UK

No, I haven't given blood. No one's ever offered to take it. I sometimes see those vans around Shanghai, and I know you can donate blood through them, but it's just something that's never appealed to me. I suppose people would say they're reluctant to give blood in China because the hygiene levels aren't so high, but I wouldn't say that sort of thing. It's just something that's never flagged up. When I see one of those trucks, I just keep walking. I don't become introspective or anything.

Andy Chevry, businessman, the US

I did (donate blood) when I was in college in the US. If somebody needed my blood, maybe I could save a life. But actually, I did it because I was part of the tennis scene and we were donating blood for school. It was something that had to do with a nonprofit organization. But usually it's not something I do by myself.

Iwona, student, Poland

When it comes to donating blood, I will definitely do it. And I always do it in my home country. There are many aspects (why it is important). First of all, you can save someone's life, which is the most important one. Second of all, it shows you are a good person.

Jamie Balkin, student, the US

I've never given blood. I never have because I'm an athlete and it just never worked with scheduling because you can't give blood before matches. I would give blood so other people who need healthy blood could get it. I don't think it is life-or-death. I just think it is a good thing to do, like donating organs.

Scott Woods, student, the US

I do not. It's not based on principal. It's just something I haven't done. I'd like to say it's something I would do, but my school has done blood drives before and I haven't taken part. I've always been an athlete and I know that donating blood puts you out for a few hours. It's not something I would enjoy doing, obviously, but it's also not something I'm afraid of. It's just because of the time commitment.

Steven Eich, Germany

I don't. I'm afraid of injections.

Benny Bosh, traveler, the US

I gave blood once when, I believe I was in high school. They had a blood drive. The guy before me passed out. I didn't feel too strange at all. I think I got a cookie. Some people go out and do it all the time, but I just did it once. I think I've maybe seen a blood donation truck here in Shanghai once or twice, but it's just not something that I think about. It's kind of a strange thing in general, when you get down to it. The part about helping a stranger is good. I think it makes sense in the scientific and medical world, but in your own mind it's difficult to comprehend. Like, this blood, I can give it and it will be in someone else. It's very strange. I like to help people, but the more I think about it the more whacked out I get. What is this really all about? When I think about that blood I gave, I don't know who took it, I don't know when I did it, and I don't know where it goes. There are, however, many middlemen out there, with your blood, it's crazy. It's a wonderful thing, the idea that you're helping somebody. But that's how many charities are. Essentially, how many charities are just out there preying on things. I don't know if it's the same with blood. I mean, blood's got to be a very valuable commodity. There are so many things you can get roped into without knowing what it's all about.

Tania, pilot, New Zealand

I don't donate blood. I've never done it, and I'm in a job that we're not supposed to - airline pilot. We can only give it in family emergencies. It's due to the oxygen-carrying ability of the blood; if you give blood and go flying the next day, then it can be a danger. I've been a pilot for around 25 years. Prior to that, I never gave blood. I'm only in Shanghai for three days, so if I were in a situation in which I could give blood, I'd give it back home.

Miriam, product specialist, Germany

I have given blood, but not here in Shanghai. I've given blood in Germany. I've only done it once. I would like to do it more often, but I have no time. I did it to do a good thing. I have lived in Shanghai for 18 months. I'm not sure if I would give blood in Shanghai. I'm worried about the hygiene. Maybe if I had a friend or a doctor I knew who said "yeah, you can do that, it is safe," then maybe I would do it.

Timon Smith, enterprise technology, the US

I have not donated blood before. Not because I feel it's not a great cause and that people shouldn't give blood. I guess when I was growing up there were always opportunities, but I was always in sports, and I didn't want to be out for a few days recuperating. I really haven't thought about giving blood in Shanghai, I'd probably have the typical concerns that any foreigner would have as to the needles and the kind of diseases that could be passed.

Gerard Dinarès-Riba, business developer, Spain

Gerard Dinarès-Riba, business developer, Spain

I have never given blood, and I don't know why. I've had several opportunities. Everybody has these opportunities. A lot of big companies, like the one I work for, twice a year, they bring a bus and you have the opportunity to give blood, but I don't know, I never have. Sometimes I feel guilty, but maybe not enough to change anything. Anyway, I know I should change because I've had friends who have had accidents and they've depended on blood that someone has given. So, maybe I should change.

Global Times