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Stone says quake was 'karma'
Tue, May 27, 2008 The Straits Times
HONG KONG - Sharon Stone has been slammed for saying that the May 12 Sichuan earthquake was 'karma' for China's treatment of Tibet. At an earthquake relief fund-raiser in Hong Kong on Sunday, Macau-born actress-singer Maria Cordero said Stone was 'China's public enemy' and called for a boycott of the Basic Instinct star. Cordero said: 'Is she human? Does she know what she is saying? Who are you? To hit people when they are down - she has no right to say these things.'

Asked about the earthquake at an Aids fund-raiser at the Cannes Film Festival, Stone had said last Thursday: 'Well, you know, it's very interesting... I'm unhappy about the way the Chinese are treating the Tibetans because I don't think anyone should be unkind to anyone else...

'I've been concerned about, oh, how should we deal with the Olympics? Because they're not being nice to the Dalai Lama, who's a good friend of mine. And then all this earthquake and this stuff happened, and I thought, is that karma? When you're not nice, the bad things happen to you.'

China cracked down on protesters in Tibet, after riots broke out in March.

Stone said she did help publicise the Tibetan Foundation's relief effort for the Sichuan earthquake, however.

She said she got a letter from the group saying it wanted to help the Chinese earthquake victims and 'that made me cry'.

'Sometimes you have to learn to put your head down and be of service, even to people who aren't nice to you, and that's a big lesson to me.'