China Comedian Cracks Military Joke, Investigated For Insulting Army
Amidst a landscape of nationalistic sentiments, a Chinese comedian has recently found himself in hot water.
He allegedly referenced and insulted the Chinese military during two stand-up comedy shows.
This drew strong debate from the public, some of whom opined that he was simply being funny while others criticised how his joke was disrespectful and crossed the line.
China’s Ministry of Culture and Tourism Bureau has issued his company a hefty fine and is currently investigating the incident.
Meanwhile, the stand-up comedian’s shows have also been cancelled, and he has since apologised for his comments.
Comedian in China compares military to stray dogs
According to Sohu, controversy first sparked after Chinese comedian Li Haoshi — who goes by the stage name ‘House’ — cracked jokes about the military at two consecutive standup comedy shows last Saturday (13 May).
House began his joke by sharing that he had two adopted stray dogs.
Source: Hupu
He then went on to describe a scene of his dogs chasing a squirrel, remarking that it reminded him of eight words — “Fine style of work, capable of winning battles” (作风优良，能打胜仗).
CNN reported that this was a reference to a Chinese Communist Party slogan. It has apparently been repeated on multiple official occasions.
The phrase was first mentioned by Chinese President Xi Jinping when he listed the qualities he expected from the country’s army.
The punchline did not sit right with one of the show’s audience members, who took to his Weibo page in hopes of advising them to remove the joke from the performance.
The Weibo blog post made rounds as Chinese netizens debated over whether the joke was insulting towards the Chinese military.
Authorities fine comedian’s company, investigates incident
Unfortunately for House, it seems the authorities did not find his joke amusing.
Beijing police shared in a statement on Wednesday (17 May) that they are investigating the performance. This apparently happened in light of the “severe societal impact” the joke has caused.
According to STCN, the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Culture and Tourism handed House’s management company a 13.3 million yuan (S$2.5 million) fine for House’s offences.
His performance apparently infringed two of their regulations on the administration of commercial performances.
Source: Sohu
In addition, the authorities confiscated 1.32 million yuan (S$254,000) in revenue from House’s company — they were considered “illegal earnings” by the authorities since it came from House’s show.
They also banned the company from holding any other performances in the city for an unspecified period. The authorities added in their statement that they do not tolerate slander against the military’s image.
Comedian apologies for incident, gets contract terminated
Both House and his company have since apologised for the incident
Sohu reported that House’s company has terminated his contract. They have also put in place multiple measures to take responsibility for the offence.
Meanwhile, House expressed “deep remorse and regret” for the incident through a Weibo post on Monday (15 May), acknowledging he used an unsuitable analogy.
Source: Sohu
He added, “I will take responsibility, call off all performances, deeply reflect, and reeducate myself.”
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Featured image adapted from Hupu and Epoch Times.
