The storm caused by the Panama Papers has swept through Hong Kong again. New leaks list 18 big-name celebrities in Hong Kong and Macau, including international film star Jackie Chan, who are said to have set up a number of complex offshore companies.
Also on the list are Hong Kong’s richest man, Li Ka-shing, and Henderson Land chairman Lee Shau Kee. Some of the celebrities, such as the deputy chairman of the New Democratic Party, Michael Tien Puk-sun, have apologised for failure to declare their interests in the offshore investment. However, Jackie Chan has been silent so far.
Chan has always been a favourite star of the United Front Work Department of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). The public has been repeatedly outraged by Chan’s speeches flattering the CCP.
The Panama Papers exposed the political and business network utilised by the CCP to buy off Chan. The network includes seven mainland tycoons operating businesses with Chan, four are well-known billionaires.
Chan, a martial arts star, became popular internationally with the 1978 film “Drunken Master.” He is among a few Chinese actors who successfully merged into Hollywood A-listers. Chan’s numerous blockbusters set box office records and brought him into the limelight.
As a member of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) National Committee, Chan also actively mingled with top government officers and businessmen in mainland China.
However, in recent years, Chan seems to have been hit by one misfortune after another. In August 2014, his son, Jaycee Chan, was arrested by Beijing police for drug use. This year, Jackie Chan was absent for the first time from the CCP’s 2016 annual political meetings.
The products endorsed by Chan have also suffered huge losses, scandals, or even closure. Chan has been satirized by Chinese netizens as an “jinx.”
