By Lin Meilian

Zhang Ziyi, internationally known for her role in Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, has paid an additional charity donation after a public outcry that she had failed to deliver on an initial pledge of 1 million yuan ($146,250).

Zhang donated another 160,000-yuan ($33,000) on Monday to aid relief efforts for the earthquake in Sichuan Province on May 12, 2008. This brings her total contribution up to 1 million yuan.

The Chinese Red Cross Foundation (CRCF) confirmed the additional donation to the Global Times Tuesday, but said the public had been unnecessarily critical of the actress.

"People can donate as little as one cent or as much as one million yuan, " said Li Jing for CRCF. "It doesn't matter how much Zhang has donated, her call for people to donate toward earthquake aid could not be measured in money."

Zhang pledged to donate 1 million yuan to the fund during the Cannes Film Festival in 2008.

However, CRCF records show she had only donated 840,000 yuan, triggering debate that she had cheated the public.

Li said CRCF had not been informed of how much money Zhang was planning to donate.

"Usually we sign a donation agreement with donors, but in Zhang's case, we didn't. We didn't know how much she was going to donate and therefore we couldn't demand her to make up any alleged shortfall."

Zhang's agent Ji Lingling released a statement on Monday, saying staff had made a mistake when transferring the donation to the fund.

"It is a serious mistake that I have made as a member of Zhang Ziyi's management team," Ji said. "I feel terribly sorry that the mistake led to unreasonable speculation and criticism of Ms Zhang."

Singer Na Ying and actress Zhao Wei were also under fire Tuesday, as there were no signs at all of their donations in the records, according to the Beijing News.

Zhang Yuqiang, professor of journalism at the Communication University of China, told the Global Times Tuesday that questioning celebrity donations is a sign of social development.

"It doesn't matter how much they donate; it's whether or not they keep their promise," Zhang said.

"To stop celebrities from exaggerating the amount of money they intend to donate, we need a sound social donation system to keep it fair, open and honest" he added.