Alibaba Group, with the same heartache as all other people in China, expresses its deepest sympathies to the many thousands of victims whose lives and livelihoods have been destroyed by the May 12th earthquake in Sichuan.

The whole country is grieving because of the earthquake. When many of Alibaba Group's nearly 9,000 employees are putting in their greatest effort to help the victims of the disaster, we have been maliciously attacked by rumors and false reporting. These attacks have not only hurt every Alibaba employee, but have exploited the pain and suffering of so many Chinese people who are eager to help the victims of this tragedy.

Regarding recent false reports in the media, our official statement follows:

As of May 19, Alibaba Group has donated itself and collected from others a total of RMB47.5 million, of this amount RMB5.95 million was donated by the company and its employees, RMB16.5 million came from members of Alibaba's websites and RMB25 million has been put into a post-disaster reconstruction fund established by Alibaba Group. The fund, to be led by Jack Ma, Alibaba Group Chairman and CEO, and made up of employee volunteers, will help in the reconstruction efforts in affected regions.

Jack Ma learned about the disaster within hours of it happening while he was on a business trip overseas. He immediately called to instruct Alibaba Group management to begin the relief effort. On the evening of May 12, Jack also had his family donate RMB1 million from his personal funds and he also sent an email to all Alibaba Group employees about the disaster. Unfortunately these kind and discrete acts were obscured by incorrect reports saying that Jack had only donated RMB1. The irresponsible source unethically took out of context a quotation from an interview Jack had given in 2006.

Alibaba Group and our employees will continue to face challenges and hardships together with the Chinese people. We launched a range of relief efforts right after we heard about the disaster and we will continue our efforts with ever more determination. Yet, our efforts can never be compared to those of the real heroes who have been risking their lives in Sichuan to save the lives of others. This is why we originally decided not to make a formal announcement about our own relief efforts.

At this critical point when so many people are suffering, we are disappointed that certain people have been spreading false rumors.

Alibaba Group
May 20, 2008