Jocelyn Chia Stands by MH370 Joke, Says It Needs to Be Viewed in its Entirety
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Last week, Singaporean-born comedian Jocelyn Chia caused an uproar amongst Malaysians as she made a joke about MH370 that was deemed inappropriate and insensitive. Check out our story here for the full rundown including comments from Singaporean officials on the issue. Days after her controversy first broke out when she posted the clip to her social media accounts on 6 June, Chia spoke to CNN about the hotly discussed topic.
In an interview with the American news channel and website, Chia did not apologise for her routine but said that it had been performed “more than a hundred times” for a year and a half without an issue. She added that when the segment was taken out and condensed into a short clip for social media, some of the necessary contexts went missing.
“I do stand by my joke but with some caveat – I stand by it in its entirety, when viewed in a comedy club. Upon reflection I do see that having this as a clip that gets viewed out of a comedy club context was risky,” she added.
Chia elaborated that the joke was based on Singapore’s longstanding friendly rivalry with Malaysia. She commented that she bears no grudge against Malaysia and that it was part of a common culture for comedians to “roast” their live audience.
Chia explained that Malaysian audience members often come up to her after her shows to tell her that they loved her gig. She commented that this showed that “they clearly didn’t take offence.”
Family and Friends Received Hate Messages
Her controversial routine had also been reported by The New York Times on 9 June. It reported that Comedy Cellar, where the routine was performed, received 4,000 one-star Google reviews and its website was hacked. Chia also told the publication that TikTok had removed the clip from her account, flagging it as hateful behaviour and a violation of its community guidelines.
Chia also told them that her family and friends had received hate messages. In an interview, she said “I’m in no way cancelled in America, in any sense of the word. Now people want to come see me.”
“I didn’t want the haters to think they had won and got me to back down,” she added. “Audiences at the Comedy Cellar see the best comedians and they love it, so how can I be embarrassed by it?”
UMNO Protest
On 9 June, NST reported that approximately 100 members of UMNO Youth gathered near at the US Embassy on Jalan Tun Razak in Kuala Lumpur to deliver a memorandum in protest against Chia, who is now a US citizen.
Speaking to the media, UMNO Youth chief Dr Muhamad Akmal Saleh said, "We came here today to submit a memorandum of protest to the US Embassy as we learnt yesterday that the Singapore High Commissioner has said that Chia is no longer a Singaporean. We then came to know that she is staying in the US and therefore we are handing the memorandum of protest over to the US Embassy."
He delivered a stern warning towards anyone who attempts to insult the country, saying that it wasn’t a matter of freedom of speech, as it must come with sensitivity. Dr Akmal also urged the government Chia from entering Malaysia and to pursue legal action against her.
Back on Social Media
Although we initially reported that it was uncertain if her social media accounts were suspended or deactivated, Chia clarified the matter in a Tweet saying: " Rumours had it that I either deleted my IG, or that I got 'cancelled' by IG. My account actually got suspended for 'impersonating a celebrity'. Answer: Jocelyn Chia (laughs emoji).”
She also has retweeted and responded to several tweets supporting her:
This is how you do it! Never say sorry for jokes. https://t.co/uMGNoD1yzT— Tyler Fischer (@TyTheFisch) June 12, 2023
She also replied with fingers crossed emoji in response to a Tweet saying, “That was a good joke. Good for her now she’ll become more popular.”
??— Jocelyn Chia (@JocelynChia) June 12, 2023
Police to Seek Help from Interpol
According to Bernama, the police will also seek the help of Interpol, an international organisation that facilitates worldwide police cooperation and crime control, to locate Chia. Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Acryl Sani Abdullah Sani said an application would be made to Interpol to obtain her full identity and latest whereabouts.