Japanese model and actress
Mizuhara Kiko, also known as
G-Dragon's alleged ex-girlfriend, has made a public apology to angry Chinese netizens.
On July 15, Mizuhara Kiko apologized to Chinese netizens as well as all Chinese citizens for three separate incidents through Weibo, a China-based SNS service. This apology comes soon after Chinese netizens threatened to boycott an upcoming movie by Chinese director
Zhao Wei as Mizuhara Kiko was cast for the film.
The model and actress states in the video,
"I would like to sincerely apologize to everyone in China and clarify a few things in this video... I currently live in Japan, but I was actually born in the United States. My dad is American, and my mom is a Korean born in Japan," adding that she learned to respect different cultures and considers herself a global citizen.
She continued saying she has many close Chinese friends and considers the Chinese culture
"amazing." She added,
"Firstly, I am a supporter for world peace and definitely anti-war. I'm confirming this is definitely not me in the picture," referring to the photos below of the Yasukuni Shrine as well as a middle finger to Tiananmen, both of which are controversial locations. Many find the Yasukuni Shrine offensive due to its implications concerning war atrocities, and Tiananmen is also a hot button topic due to the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989. Mizuhara Kiko also apologized for posing in front of a Rising Sun Flag, which is associated with Japanese imperialism unlike the national flag of Japan.
Mizuhara Kiko further explained why she liked the photo on Instagram, saying in 2013, she encouraged a friend to post his photos to the social networking service. She stated she liked many of his photos and only realized the photo in question was problematic an hour after the fact, which is when she canceled her like. Her friend also deleted his post.
The model and actress concluded she was apologetic for offending anyone and that she believes the world will be a better place with more love and understanding.
What do you think of Mizuhara Kiko's apology and the controversy?
