Cristina Fernandez, President of Argentina, was heavily criticised locally and internationally when she posted a statement on social media making fun of Asians who could not pronounce the letter "R."

The announcement, posted on Twitter, came during her state visit to China. The visit was a mission to expand trade and even strengthen political ties between the two countries.

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The tweet started innocently enough. In her native language of Spanish, she commented on the number of people attending one of the events in Beijing saying, "Are they all with La Campola?"

La Campola is her party's youth organisation that is led by her son.

The next part of the tweet was not so innocent.

She then questioned the motives of the people there, asking, "Or, are they only there for the lice [rice] and petloleum [petroleum]?"

While the statement was an offensive jab at Asians, it was actually meant as a practical joke at home, as her detractors said that her supporters only attend party events to get the free food and beverages.

Though many people were outraged and let Fernandez know about her statements, she quickly followed up and said that she was sorry. She added that with all the crazy and absurd things in the world, humor is a good tool to get through it.

Fernandez is already under the spotlight in her homeland due to the fortuitous yet suspicious death of a prosecutor.

Even though the comment of Fernandez sparked international outrage, no Chinese government-run news outlet made any mention about the comment.

It is primarily because Twitter has been banned in China since 2009, as the government fears that the social media site could be used for the organization of protests.

Facebook, YouTube, and google also cannot be accessed in China, as the country uses a system called the "Great Firewall" to filter what contents are allowed in.

TagsCristina Fernandez, President of Argentina, The Letter R