A comedian’s joke on the disappearance of Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 has caused an uproar in Malaysia and Singapore.
The foreign ministers of the two countries have condemned comedian Jocelyn Chea’s joke that was recently delivered at the Comedy Cellar Club in New York.
Chia, who was born in Singapore, posted an 89-second clip of her hilarious performance on her TikTok and Instagram pages, sparking outrage among the Malaysian public. The Singaporean authorities also apologized for this.
Singaporean Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan has apologized on Thursday for the hurt caused to Malaysian citizens by Miss Chia’s joke.
Singapore’s High Commissioner to Malaysia, Vanu Gopal Menon, has also apologized to all Malaysian citizens for the woman’s hurtful statement.
Mr Menon described the woman’s remarks about the missing plane, as well as other comments about Malaysia, as ‘unreasonably insulting’.
He later clarified that Chia is no longer a citizen of Singapore.
“The Singapore government does not condone words and actions that harm others and Chia, who is no longer a Singapore citizen, in no way reflects our views,” he said.
Malaysian Foreign Minister Zambri Abdul Qadir also reacted to the video clip, saying Chea’s move showed a “total lack of sensitivity and compassion” for Malaysian citizens and the families of victims of MH370. .
‘The video also clearly shows behavior that is against the values of Asian countries known for their manners and ethics.’
Mr Menon said statements like Chea’s were “unhelpful and damage the close trust and friendship between the two countries and peoples.”
Chia’s Twitter has since been suspended and reports say she has removed her Instagram profile, where she shared the clip of the act. The clip was on his TikTok page, which reports say is still up.
The ‘lawyer-turned-comedian’ Chia is now a US citizen and regularly performs at the Comedy Cellar and Gotham Comedy Club in New York, The Straits Times reports.
Citing screenshots shared by social media users, Da Star reported that Chia had responded to a comment by local stand-up comedian Jason Leung in which he supported her acting, saying, ‘ I liked it.’
He reportedly responded to her on Instagram before taking down his page, saying, ‘Surprise people take jokes so seriously.’
The outlet reported, “An Instagram user @suhvrv86 commented on Jocelyn’s stand-up video saying that tragedy should not be made fun of, to which Jocelyn responded with something else.”
Chia reportedly replied: ‘Tragedy plus time = comedy. It’s been a long time, man.’
He also reportedly claimed on his Instagram that people have the right to joke about tragic events if they can make them funny.
Qudsia Kahar, a former Malaysian radio announcer who shared the video on social networking site Twitter, says Chia has crossed the line. ‘I draw the line at turning MH370 into a joke. A good stand-up never makes fun of tragedy and death.’
One user wrote: ‘This is not funny at all. I have lost an aunt and two cousins to MH370. It will never be a joke.’
“I think she needs a big nature therapy (but) not here,” tweeted popular Malaysian actress Teez Zakiah.
According to local reports, a demonstration against Chia is also planned for Friday in front of the US Embassy in Kuala Lumpur.
Some groups in Malaysia are also calling for a ban on their entry into the country.
Meanwhile, the Twitter handle of the Comedy Cellar Club in New York wrote, they are experiencing ‘a significant and damaging online attack’ due to the comedian’s show.
“In that first tweet, which has now been deleted, we used the word ‘canceled’. We thought it was a joke. We did not stop. But we are facing a significant and damaging online attack.’
Read about it here and form your own opinion: https://t.co/Ss6OwljnLs
In the first now-deleted version of this tweet, we used the word “canceled.” We were being tongue-in-cheek.
We are not canceled. But we are experiencing a significant and damaging online attack.— The Comedy Cellar (@ComedyCellarUSA) June 8, 2023
Popular Malaysian actor and comedian Datuk Afdalin Shawki told the Berita Harian online newspaper that if Chia was Malaysian, ‘I would tell her it’s too much.
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‘However they are from Singapore where comedians are famous for making fun of us. That’s fine because we do that too, but we usually avoid doing it with sensitive subjects like tragedies.’
He added that comedians should take care of the pain of victims’ families.
Harit Sikandar, another famous Malaysian stand-up comedian, said, ‘As a comedian, I respect freedom of expression. We must do our work.
‘But it is equally important to use sensitivity and empathy when dealing with some material, particularly deeply personal or tragic themes. As an artist, comedians must be aware of the potential impact of their words.’
A member of the Malaysian Parliament described Miss Chia as a ‘dirty seed’.
Syed Sadiq tweeted, ‘I must say that making a tragedy a source of entertainment is simply ‘bad’. But I have the best confidence in my fellow Singaporean friends and believe that we all value our close ties as a nation.
‘Be that as it may, we must not allow a dirty seed to spoil our view of our neighbor. Learn from him not to take the misfortune of others lightly.’