Actor Zhao Lixin makes apology after uproar over Japanese subjugation of China, saying ‘Chinese blood is in my bones’
- Film and television star touches raw nerve with Weibo audience and invites backlash with online discussion of suffering in Second Opium War and Japanese occupation
- Zhao’s apology says ‘Chinese blood is in my bones’
Actor Zhao Lixin has apologised following an uproar over comments he made about the Japanese occupation of China during the second world war.
“Chinese blood is in my bones, I definitely would not make excuses for aggressors,” he said. “I strongly condemn the trauma that Anglo-French forces and the invading Japanese army have caused Chinese people.”
The row began with Weibo posts that have since been deleted. On Sunday, the actor asked why Anglo-French forces had sacked the Qing dynasty imperial gardens, known as the Old Summer Palace, during the Second Opium War in 1860, Chinese news site Guancha reported.
On Tuesday, Zhao said: “Japan occupied Beijing for eight years. Why did they not loot the artefacts or burn down the Forbidden Palace? Does this fit the nature of aggressors?” according to Guancha.
He made comments about the 1860 invasion in response to a social media user who said Anglo-French forces burned the Old Summer Palace because they could not subdue it. Zhao said: “What about the Forbidden Palace? Did they forget or did they not bring flintstones?”
