Zhang Ziyi Puzzled By Olympic Protests: "I Don't See Why People Are So Negative"

HONG KONG — "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" star Zhang Ziyi has told Vogue magazine that she is puzzled by the protests against China's human rights record before the Beijing Olympics.

Activists have criticized China's rule in Tibet and its alleged failure to do more to help stop mass killings in the Sudanese region of Darfur. Protests marred several international legs of the Olympic torch relay.

The actress served as a torch bearer for the Chinese leg of the relay.

"I don't see why people are so negative. The games are about friendship," Zhang was quoted as saying in the current issue of Vogue. "I'm Chinese and I'm proud of my country."

Zhang's manager didn't immediately respond to an e-mail from The Associated Press seeking comment.

Zhang's film credits also include "Rush Hour 2," "House of Flying Daggers" and "Memoirs of a Geisha."

Comments

[cardineau]

Zhang Ziyi is correct ... the Olympics are a sporting alliance of all participating countries. Not a political forum for the rantings of people who have "harm to China" as their agenda. Especially citizens of the USA have no moral background to criticize any country about human rights. Ask the Vietnamese about the US war crime of carpet bombing and killing 2 million civilians. China's record of government abuse (in my 73 years) is many times more civil than that of the USA.

[starrianna]

Poor thing, she's delirious & confused.

Being bulimic is hard in China, where you're hungry every 15 minutes from the Chinese food.

[IAmYourDad]

That comment is border line racism right there sister. If you don't have anything intelligent to say, don't say it.

[starrianna]

Lighten up, honey.

[starrianna]

Poor thing...she's delirious and confused.

Being a bulimic is hard in China, where you're hungry every 15 minutes from eating Chinese food.

[ranch111]

How's that brainwashing working for you?

[starrianna]

Poor thing, she's delirious & confused.

Being bulimic is hard in China, where you're hungry every 15 minutes from the Chinese food.

[research]

Tibet, Iraq, same thing.

[starrianna]

Ching, Chang, Cheech & Chong, same thing.

??? huh

[research]

the USA lacks the moral standing to criticize China.

[RickTheScribe]

For the sake of transparency, let me begin by saying I have a huge thing for Zhang Ziyi (and have since seeing her in a beautiful little film called "The Road Home," which she did before "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon"). So my one-sided relationship with Ziyi goes back a long way. I also think she has every right to be proud of her country. Despite it's leadership, China is one helluva country. No other nation can match its history. And I kind of get what she's saying in the respect of the Olympics should be, ideally, above politics. In fact, I'll even admit that China has come a long way since the Cultural Revolution in opening up its society. Anyone who is old enough to remember Nixon's visit knows this to be true. But in the real world, protestors are going to choose high-profile targets and as long as China's leadership insists on treating the people of Tibet, the Uygers (whose plight, sadly, gets very little attention) and anyone else they deem to be threats to their authority in the manner in which they do, they can't expect anything less.

[realpolitic]

She is lovely, but my favorite actress is still Gong LI.

[egghumor]

Do I say agree with what many posters say about the hypocrisy of America? Yes, but that is only becaise the BUSH administration engages in activiies so many Americanss do mot agree with. PLEASE PEOPLE! Do not equate America with China. I recently finsihed living in mainland China for the past five years (2003-2008) and I can tell you, China and the U.S. are completely different with regards to free-flow of information (known as "transparency" in China -- of which that have none) as well as actions and attitudes toward human rights. A great many Chinese people are wonderful, but due to media control, most of them haven't a clue what is really going on in their country. China really needs to clean up its act if it wishes to join the rest of the world.

[taoist]

To have Americans spout morality is really something to behold. I am not defending China or Miss Z, but people in glass house's , well you know the rest.

[locuslily]

I'm so sick of comments like this, they are so typical and ignorant. Just because someone is American and they say they don't agree with the way people are being treated in another country, their feelings and opinions aren't invalid because they are American. We have the right think and feel what we want, we can have an opinion about what is right and what is wrong, that doesn't go away just because someone is American, which is what people like you keep regurgitating. Just because our gov't decided to wage an immoral war does not mean that all Americans are immoral.

[darthdarcy]

Your government has slaughtered 1 million Tibetan Buddhists and destroyed 1,500 Temples and you don't know why people are so negative..?

[OsamaBushLadin]

But that wasn't in the script she was given.

[IAmYourDad]

Hey there guy. You got any source of that information? Or did you just pull that out of your @ss?

People keep saying that the Chinese government is killing millions of Tibetan monk everyday. So let do some math here… the Chinese government took control of Tibet since the 1950s. Let’s say its 50 years. So altogether the Chinese government killed 50 x 365 x 1 mil = roughly 18 BILLION Tibetan monks!!!!!

Holy sh|t!!! They are evil...! Of course… only if they did kill all those monks…

They point is, get your facts straight and stop talking out of your @ss. You are acting worst then those kill who talk crap to other players on Xbox live.

p.s. I am not Chinese. I am American.

[starrianna]

This chick needs to get real.
Hasn't she seen the program for the Opening Ceremony???!?!?

PRODUCTION NUMBER 1:
(spoiler alert!)

* 100,000 colorful & cute Tibetan people
led by 8,000 super-Holy Tibetan singing monks,
being BEATEN DOWN by huge DISPOSABLE
Red Chinese Chopsticks carried by Commie Police.

Set to "Give It To Me Baby"! -- by Rick James

PRODUCTION NUMBER 2:
(spoiler alert!)

Another show-stopper!

* Young women, carrying babies in their arms,
being chased down by
Big Scary Red TANKS!

The Government yells at the women to drop the
"Extra" babies on the ground so that the Red Tanks
will run them over, because the women were very
NAUGHTY to have more than one baby in the first place.

Silly Chinese Women!
All set to "Celebration" by Kool & the Gang!

[fun for the whole family]

PRODUCTION NUMBER 3:
(spoiler alert!)

* 10,000 cute little dogs & cats,
waving tiny American flags, eating Chinese pet food
and
keeling over, often dying, in musical synchronization
to "I'm Turning Chinese" by the Vapors.

Set to "Give It To Me Baby"! -- by Rick James

Set to "Give It To Me Baby"! -- by Rick James

[kappa08]

Surprise...she doesn't get it. Actually we don't get it either. Why are you famous? I can throw a rock in China and hit 12 women that can do what you do and look exactly the same.

[dolphy]

Whoa! You don't think she's hot and beautiful. I don't get it.

[kawreader]

She doesn't see why people are so negative? Really? Huh.

"Nationalism is an infantile disease. It is the measles of mankind."
Albert Einstein

[genseric13]

Let's see, China invaded Tibet in 1950, slaughtered and relocated hundreds of thousands and now claim it is part of China. They have hundreds of missiles pointed at Taiwan and would invade them tomorrow if the US was not around to protect them. They routinely use slave labor, administered by their army. They have gulags and pay their people $.10 an hour. All newspapers and the internet is censored. Yeah, I think they do have some human rights problems.

[winwithoutrwar]

Please read the history books. Tibet has been associated with China for thousands of years. THe Tibet Zhuang ethnics practiced slave system for years until 1950's .The 98% of Tibetians are happy with their new lifes.

The Bristish army did not get a piece of land they wanted. Now you are siding with the dreams of those Coloniel past. Wake up, be tolerant. read the history rather than brain washed by the Greedy Bristish and French.

[OsamaBushLadin]

If you want to see the brainwashed one, look in a mirror. You are just parrotting the same lies the PRC throws out.

[genseric13]

I don't see the difference between China occupying Tibet and Japan occupying Manchuria in the 1930s.

[dolphy]

Please remind yourself of what the Euros did in the past 550 years. Maybe you'll be enlightened. Please remember also what the Euros did to the Chinese less than a hundred years ago.

[OsamaBushLadin]

Ah.... Always nice to see a dopey ,"but, but ... they did it too..." post. Of course this @ss has no idea the race or country any of us is from. Just stupid assumptions.

[NickNas]

WE RE_ELECTED ( not me personally ) BUSH to the Whitehouse! NO ROOM TO BE CRITICS! Fix the horrible problems here before you blast others please.