Cameron Diaz has apologised for using a bag that hurt the sentiments of the people of Peru.
Washington, June 25 : Cameron Diaz has apologised for using a bag that hurt the sentiments of the people of Peru.
The 'Shrek 3' actress visited the Inca city of Machu Picchu high in Peru's Andes carrying an olive green messenger bag emblazoned with a red star and the words 'Serve the People' printed in Chinese on the flap.
While the bags are trendy fashion accessories in some parts of the world, the phrase has particular resonance in Peru.
In Peru, the phrase reminds about the Maoist Shining Path insurgency that took Peru to the edge of chaos in the 1980s and early 1990s with a campaign of massacres, assassinations and bombings.
Nearly 70,000 people were killed during the insurgency.
The actress, in a statement, issued a sincere apology, and said that she had not realised the 'potentially hurtful nature' of the slogan while buying the bag on a trip to China.
"I sincerely apologize to anyone I may have inadvertently offended. The bag was a purchase I made as a tourist in China and I did not realize the potentially hurtful nature of the slogan printed on it," Contactmusic quoted her, as saying.
"I'm sorry for any people's pain and suffering and it was certainly never my intention to reopen what I now know is a painful wound in this country's history," she added.
ANI