Superstar Zhang Ziyi dogged by scandals
- Source: Global Times
- [03:25 February 02 2010]
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Zhang Ziyi
By Song Shengxia
Chinese film star Zhang Ziyi is being criticized for not yet honoring her more than $1 million commitment to earthquake relief in Sichuan.
According to the Southern Metropolis Daily last week, bloggers on tianya.cn claimed that Zhang had given just 840,000 yuan (about $123,500) of her promised donation to help those affected by the devastating earthquake on May 12, 2008.
The money was pledged to the Chinese Red Cross Foundation (CRCF).
Meanwhile, some supporters are questioning whether the criticism is unwarranted, saying some people just want to make her look bad.
The Web page outlining CRCF donations shows that on May 15, 2008, Zhang remitted 440,000 yuan and 400,000 yuan, successively, to CRCF.
Media reportes indicated that Zhang promised to donate 1 million yuan of her own money within a few days of the quake. But later on, she said at the Cannes Film Festival in France that she had raised the total $1 million she had promised.
At a film music concert in Beijing on Sunday, Zhang declined to respond to inquiries about her recent scandals, simply saying, "It's not easy to be an actress," the Beijing News reported Monday.
The only statement was made Thursday through her agent, Ji Lingling, which said that Zhang had set up the Ziyi Zhang Foundation in California in 2008 shortly after the earthquake and organized an overseas fundraising drive, according to 163.com.
"At that time, many potential donors made oral commitments to donate money to Sichuan, but it was hard to realize and follow through on some of these donations," the statement says. "But I (Zhang) have not given up my efforts to fulfill my promise."
Ji told 163.com that someone simply wanted to foment trouble for Zhang, and the secretary of Zhang's foundation was prepared to respond soon.
Divided reactions by Chinese Web users have been rife online.
Some asked why, after more than a year and a half, she hasn't donated anymore of her promised contribution.
Some users pointed out that Zhang had fulfilled most of the money she pledged, and she has already helped a lot with the relief efforts.
In December, Zhang placed first on a list of the 50 "most beautiful people in China," an annual event organized by the Beijing News. The Xinhua News Agency reported that the recognition was given partly because she organized an overseas fundraising campaign to help survivors of the earthquake.
Once a favorite actress of Zhang Yimou, a renowned Chinese director, Zhang Ziyi eventually made her name internationally known by staring in the Hollywood-made Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and Memoirs of a Geisha.
However, the spotlight she has attracted has also brought her problems – a phenomenon that has been growing along with the Chinese entertainment industry.
On December 23, a poster with Zhang's image put up at the Boyue Hotel in Beijing was splashed with ink by a group of men, prompting reports speculating that Zhang was caught up in economic and romantic disputes, a report by 163.com said.
