(CRI)
Updated: 2007-12-03 11:30

Blood donation hero Tan Jihu sells his medals on the streets of Beijing while his daughter does homework on a chair beside him, Saturday, December 1, 2007. [CRI]

Tan Jihu, a blood donation award recipient, tried to sell his medals for profit, newspaper Beijing Times reported on Saturday.

The 35-year-old man from Yichang, central China's Hubei Province, put two medals he obtained for donating blood and a wristwatch up for sale on a busy street in Beijing with his daughter on Saturday.

In light of his generous blood donations, Tan has received several medals over the years. For example, in January 2002, he was awarded a silver medal by the Chinese Ministry of Health and Red Cross Society of China and become known throughout the country.

Tan's daughter was diagnosed with idiopathic epilepsy after his wife's death in 2002. In order to cure her, Tan visited many doctors and became financially destitute. Since they moved to Beijing in 2003, Tan has worked at many jobs, but none of them have lasted very long because he has to take care of his daughter.

Tan's daughter is a second year student of a primary school in Beijing. Tan is out of work at the moment. In order to afford his daughter's living and medicine expenses, Tan planned to open a food stall in Beijing.

According to the report, the government of Tan's hometown in Yicheng offered to assist him only he refused because he insists on staying in Beijing until his daughter finishes college.