Dharamshala, 14th July: Jackie Chan, a martial arts legend, has expressed respect for his desire to join the Chinese Communist Party, but other Chinese people have declared he is not welcome. Many people have claimed on social media that he has strayed on his wife and that his son has used drugs, both of which would bar him from membership.
Chan voiced his desire to join the China Film Association at a seminar held last Thursday in Beijing. Chan told a throng of symposium attendees in a video aired by M Video News, an entity under official broadcaster Central China Television, that when he’s abroad, he often declares he’s “proud of being Chinese.”
“I also envy that you are Communist Party members, I think the Communist Party is just great, what the Communist Party says, what they promised, will always be delivered within a few decades,” he said. “I want to be a Communist Party member, thank you,” To tremendous applause, he added, smiling.
His statements, however, were met with derision on Weibo, with users claiming he is undeserving of party membership. “I have no doubt over his patriotism and professionalism, but his lifestyle … our party members need to set a positive example,” one of them stated “He’s probably not serious, he’s just acting on different occasions,” another person stated.
The internet “lifestyle” comments alluded to Chan’s prior extramarital affair, as well as his son Jaycee Chan’s drug offense and six months in prison on the mainland. In 1999, Chan had an affair with Hong Kong actress Elaine Ng, with whom he had a daughter named Etta. On Twitter, Chan’s words outraged his supporters outside of China, who believed they were intended to appease Beijing and allow him to market his films inside China. “I take back every good thing I ever thought about Jackie Chan and wish that I could un-enjoy every one of his movies!” one of them stated
However, his Beijing loyalist views and dismissals of the pro-democracy movement have in the past sparked fan resentment. The 67-year-old is a member of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, a legislative advisory body in Beijing dominated by Communist Party members.
On July 1, Chan sang at the Bird’s Nest National Stadium in Beijing as part of the Communist Party’s centenary celebrations, singing a rendition of the patriotic song Defending the Yellow River, written during the Second Sino-Japanese War.
In a 2019 interview with the state-owned television network CGTN, Chan spoke out on the Hong Kong protests, calling them “sad and gloomy” and expressing hope that Hong Kong “may return to calm soon.”
In 2009, Chan was again chastised for remarks about the pro-democracy movement. “I’m not sure if having freedom is good or bad,” he stated at the time. “I’m completely perplexed right now. If you’re too free, you’ll end up like Hong Kong. It’s a shambles. Taiwan is likewise a very hectic place.”
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