Soliciting donations

On Dec. 15, my husband queued up at Studio 21 Senayan and bought two tickets. After handing over Rp 100,000 to the cashier, she showed my husband Rp 40,000 and asked him if he had Rp 2,000. Having not been to see a movie for quite a long time, my husband had no idea how much one ticket cost, and so handed over the Rp 2,000 and accepted the Rp 40,000 change. While he was walking away, he noticed that the tickets each had Rp 30,000 printed on them. He went back to the cashier and asked her what the Rp 2,000 was for. After squirming a bit, she told him it was for the Indonesian Red Cross. He promptly demanded a receipt.

Just who do these "donations" go to when no receipt is given? Is this how Studio 21 instructs its staff to collect donations? I certainly don't mind giving to a good cause; what I do object to is the unscrupulous manner in which it was obtained.

After all the complaints over the years, I would have thought that Studio 21 would have instructed its staff on how to solicit donations: ask, don't trick people. And give a receipt.

LINDA H.

Jakarta