'I made a joke about missing MH370 - then the government tried to prosecute me'

08 March 2024 , 08:00

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'I made a joke about missing MH370 - then the government tried to prosecute me'

A comedian who offended Malaysian authorities with her infamous joke about missing flight MH370 says she didn't expect global outrage.

Jocelyn Chia, who grew up in Singapore and lives in the US, went viral this time last year when a video of her stand-up sketch about Malaysian jets garnered worldwide attention online. During her set at a New York club, she said Malaysians had not visited Singapore for years because their "airplanes cannot fly".

She added: "What, Malaysian Airlines going missing not funny, huh? Some jokes don't land." On March 8, 2014, a Malaysia Airlines passenger jet vanished from air traffic radar somewhere over the Indian Ocean, with 227 passengers and 12 crew onboard. Ten years later, it remains one of the biggest aviation mysteries of all time.

A Malaysia Airlines jet vanished 10 years ago today over the Indian Ocean and its whereabouts remains a mystery (AFP/Getty Images)

The joke was met with backlash in both Singapore and Malaysia and authorities publicly condemned Jocelyn's comments. Singapore foreign minister Vivian Balakrishnan was "appalled by her horrendous statements" and said: "We treasure our ties with family and friends in Malaysia, and are sorry for the offence and hurt caused to all Malaysians." While Malaysian police sought Interpol's help to investigate Jocelyn under the country's laws relating to insulting speech.

Jocelyn made headlines in the news, and online trolls dubbed her 'tasteless', 'heartless' and 'insensitive'. The comedian found herself in the firing line for months and the attention threatened to 'cancel' her reputation. But Jocelyn defended her act and compared it to other comics using the 9/11 terror attacks as fodder for their jokes.

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Speaking to the Mirror on the anniversary of the missing flight, Jocelyn said: "I did not expect the joke to go as viral as it did, certainly not beyond Singapore. Ironically, some Singaporeans criticised it. I think a lot of the Malaysian and Singaporean critics were initially biased by the comments they read about the joke before watching it. The reason why the joke works incredibly well in a live show is because I have the element of surprise on my side."

Jocelyn explained that she had performed the sketch for a year and a half before it went viral - and she continued to do so after the reaction, but she altered it to include the backlash. "I kept doing it throughout last year because it was one of my best jokes," she said. "The fact that Malaysians tried to harass and cancel me over this joke actually made me determined to do it every single night." She added: "I'm quite tired of doing the original joke now so it's taken a backseat as I work on newer material."

Comedian Jocelyn Chia joked that Malaysian 'airplanes cannot fly' and received backlash from the country's officials last year (Jocelyn Chia)

Despite the enormous slander, Jocelyn said the publicity has been a 'boost' to her career as she was invited on television shows across the world. "I already toured internationally prior to this, but now my big world tour later this year is expanding to cities and countries I've not performed at before," she explained. Jocelyn said she will not perform in Malaysia anymore, but Singapore producers have since invited her - though she is "a bit too peeved" at those who criticised her to agree yet.

Jocelyn said she has also been able to share her experience of 'almost getting cancelled' with other well-known comedians, including Shane Gillis, Hasan Minhaj and Dave Chappelle. As for the downside, she said one corporate gig cancelled her due to a complaint and there were protests about her outside the US Embassy. "I thought the Interpol request was beyond ridiculous," Jocelyn said. Malaysian authorities told Malaysian press that no action could be taken against her under Malaysian law.

Jocelyn said the criticism made her realise that the general public "does not regard comedy as an art form" and taboo topics are accepted in film, literature and paintings, but are "deemed off-limits" when it comes to comedy and comedians find themselves "being met with calls to cancel them". The comedian said the online hate towards her has "died down drastically", though she has limited comments on her social media and turned off notifications.

"They accuse me of crossing the line and being heartless and insensitive; being a bad comedian or an amateur. The latter makes me laugh because it takes a certain level of skill to pull off a joke like the one I did," Jocelyn said, adding: "As the saying goes 'tragedy + time = comedy'. Jokes about tragedy are not uncommon in comedy."

Nia Dalton