The ad on the left, of a smirking Chairman Mao gazing down on a new Citroen, sparked indignation from Chinese residents of Spain, where it ran earlier this month.
When the news hit mainland online forums, the reaction was much the same, with calls to boycott Citroen’s vehicles in China.
The company pulled the Mao ad and apologized, saying that it never intended to offend the Chinese people.
Late last week, according to Swiss media, the Mao ad was replaced with the image on the right, featuring a smirking Napoleon.
Via Zhai Hua’s blog.