The owner of a Shenzhen hotel has helped 1,300 cataract patients in Inner Mongolia regain their eyesight in the first stage of his campaign to restore eyesight for more than 100,000 poorer patients.

The first stage of the Panglin Bright Campaign ended Sunday with the 1,300 cataract patients in Chifeng City of the northern autonomous region having their eyesight restored, the Shenzhen Special Zone Daily reported Monday.

The Chifeng City campaign started one month ago. Four ambulances with world-class medical equipment, together with a medical team of experts from Beijing Tongren Hospital and Xiangya Hospital of Hunan Province, and local ophthalmologists, traveled to 13 counties, covering more than 5,000 km to perform the free operations.

All expenses incurred were covered by Yu Panglin, a well-known Hong Kong entrepreneur who donated 500 million yuan (US$60 million) to launch the campaign. Yu, who owns the Panglin Hotel, is an honorary citizen of Shenzhen.

The campaign is expected to treat more than 100,000 cataract patients throughout China over five years. It targets minority nationalities in nine autonomous regions and poverty-stricken provinces throughout the country.

The team will conduct the next campaign in Liaoning Province.

(Shenzhen Daily July 6, 2004)