Barbie Imperial posts new photo of bruised arm

Imperial, in an Instagram post on Monday, July 16, shared a photo of herself and her mom, along with a caption, “I am strong because a strong woman raised me. You’re all I need mama. I love you. Thank you.” (Photo: msbarbieimperial/Instagram)

After she caught the attention of many netizens over the weekend for posting a tweet about physical abuse, “Araw Gabi” actress Barbie Imperial posted a new photo showing her right arm marked with what seemed like bruises and scratches.

Imperial, in an Instagram post on Monday, July 16, shared a photo of herself and her mom, along with a caption, “I am strong because a strong woman raised me. You’re all I need mama. I love you. Thank you.”

Quick to notice the scars that Imperial had on her arm, the Kapamilya actress’ social media followers expressed their concern to the actress and even sent words of encouragement to her.

An Instagram user, @itslannalane_badiola119, said, “Mahal na mahal po kita (I love you) @msbarbieimperial super!! Pagpatuloy niyo lang po ‘yung pagiging matapang at matibay sa buhay. Nandito lang po kaming mga umiidolo sayo. Mamahalin, susuportahan, ipagtatanggol ng walang alinlangan, at papahalagahan ka namin (Just continue being strong in life. We are here for you. We will love, support, defend you without doubts, and treasure you).”

“OMG (Oh my gosh) huhuhu ang dami mong sugat at pasa (you have so much wounds and bruises) baby girl. Take care always and please love yourself more,” @mrsjoviavena added.

Meanwhile, another netizen @xxaimeemarcos told Imperial, “Malalagpasan mo din po ‘yan, tiwala lang sa kanya (God) na ang lahat ng bagay may dahilan (You will get through it, just have faith in Him and that all things happen for a reason). We support you and love you always. Be strong.”

On Saturday, July 14, the 19-year-old actress tweeted, “Girls, just because mahal niyo ang isang tao pero sinasaktan kayo physically, hindi pwedeng patuloy ‘yan. HINDI TAMA MANAKIT NG BABAE PHYSICALLY (Girls, just because you love the person, but that person harms you physically, it is not right. It is not right to harm a woman physically).”

In a separate post, Imperial uploaded photos of her neck and arm exposing her bruises and with a caption, “No to physical abuse. Never again.”

These posts have since been taken down, but some of her followers were able to take screenshots of it.

Imperial did not further explain her posts or even dropped the name of the person who did it to her, but several netizens have pointed their fingers to actor Paul Salas, the actress’s rumored ex-boyfriend.

Amid the controversy, Salas’s friend, Kristoffer Martin, posted a series of tweets apparently referring to the issue.

In a now-deleted tweet, Martin said, “‘Wag dumating sa point na maninira ka ng buhay ng tao. Kung totoo man o hindi ‘yung nangyari, problema niyo ‘yan. ‘Di kailangan ipaalam sa buong mundo para kumuha ng sympathy (Do not come to the point where you ruin someone else’s life. Whether it is true or not, that is your problem. You do not need to let the world know about it to get sympathy).”

He added, “There’s always two sides of the story. Mga naaapektuhan, ‘wag pa-victim. Wala ako sa lugar para i-elaborate ‘yung nangyari. Iisang circle kami. Pero nasa lugar ako maglabas ng saloobin kasi may nadedehado (Those who are affected, do not play as the victim. I’m not in a position to elaborate what happened. We are in the same circle. But I’m in the right place to air out my feelings because someone is at a disadvantage).”

Martin then apologized and explained his side after he earned mixed reactions from the netizens for his posts.

“I see where people are coming from. Some took it a little far kaya lumaki (that is why it become a big issue). I DON’T TOLERATE PHYSICAL ABUSE. Sorry if na mislead ‘yung iba (others were misled). Ni girlfriend ko kahit kelan ‘di ko naisipang saktan. Naapektuhan lang ako bilang kapatid (It never came to my mind to hurt my girlfriend. I was just affected as a friend). Not my story to tell. Again, sorry,” he wrote.

As of writing, Salas’s camp has yet to comment on the issue.