Are Chinese celebrities stoking resentment against Malaysia over MH370 disaster?

10 years ago | Posted in: Latest Politics News | 518 Views

Bloggers and columnists warned against inflammatory speech and urged some celebrities to refrain from stoking further tensions, as calls on social media to boycott Malaysian tourism and products continued to gain traction.

Sina Weibo users today lashed out against those who launched attacks at Malaysian citizens – including Malaysian celebrities of Chinese descent – in retaliation over Malaysia’s handling of the search for flight MH370.

They urged “rational patriotism”, where instead of blindly boycotting Malaysia and fanning hatred, people should focus on finding the truth for the sake of the passengers’ families.

Some mainland internet users have left slurs and insults on the Sina Weibo pages of famous Malaysian-Chinese singers including  Fish Leong and Victor Wong.

Just months ago in October, Leong, who identifies as Malaysian, received glowing coverage from the Chinese media and netizens after Chinese president Xi Jinping mentioned her name on a diplomatic visit to Kuala Lumpur partly to illustrate pop culture parallels between the two nations.

But now she became the subject of vitriol. “What are you hiding from us?,” one blogger wrote on Leong’s page, in one of the milder comments on her page.

Others left obscenities. One called Malaysians “inferior” and said they were “not welcome in China”.

Malaysian officials have been criticised for giving confusing information, or are sometimes accused of witholding information, and failing to adequately comfort the families of the mostly Chinese passengers on the crashed jetliner.

Some opinion writers suggested a handful of mainland celebrities, many with millions of weibo followers, have played a part in encouraging the public to vent their anger at Malaysians…. see more

source: scmp.com

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