The outrage came after Operation Smile Vietnam (OSV) announced on its Facebook page that Jackie Chan would join a night event on November 10 in Hanoi to celebrate its 30th anniversary.
Vietnamese social media users defaced an image of Jackie Chan carrying a child posted on OSV’s Facebook page with a cross. Angry face reactions were used to comment on the poster, saying that Chan does not deserve to be an Operation Smile ambassador because he publicly advocated China’s U-shaped in the East Sea.
Vietnamese social media users defaced an image of Jackie Chan carrying a child posted on OSV’s Facebook page with a cross
In 2016, Chan shared a map, including China’s nine-dash line claims in the East Sea, on his social network page.
Because of the backlash, OSV removed the poster featuring the actor. OSV said they were sorry and they would not organise any activities with Chan's involvement in Vietnam.
Chan has been a global Smile Ambassador for the past 10 years.
At a press conference of the Vietnamese Foreign Affairs on Thursday, Ngo Toan Thang, deputy spokesperson for the ministry, said he was not aware of the social media protests against the invitation extended to Jackie Chan, but emphasised that Vietnam has sufficient historical and legal evidence of its sovereignty over the Hoang Sa (Paracel) and Truong Sa (Spratly) archipelagoes in the East Sea, in line with international law.
