Haoshi Li (Li Haoshi)

Haoshi Li (Li Haoshi)

Biography

2023: $2 million fine for China's army joke

On May 17, 2023, it became known that the Chinese authorities fined the local comedy troupe Shanghai Xiaoguo Culture Media about $2 million. The reason was the joke of one of the participants in this Shanghai stand-up platform - comedian Li Haoshi, known by his stage name House.

During the speech, Haoshi said that after moving to Shanghai, he started raising two stray dogs. One day he saw them briskly chasing after a squirrel. Describing this situation, the comedian used phrases such as "exemplary behavior" and "the ability to win battles," which provoked a flurry of comments on the Chinese segment of the Internet and attracted the attention of the authorities. The fact is that the mentioned phrases were first uttered by Chinese President Xi Jinping in 2013 in relation to the People's Liberation Army of China. Since then, these words have been repeatedly quoted at various official events and in state media.

After Li Haoshi spoke, Beijing police said they had launched an investigation into the comedian. PRC law enforcement agencies emphasize that his actions "seriously insulted" the military and had a "bad social impact." At the same time, the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Culture and Tourism announced that the Shanghai Xiaoguo Culture Media troupe would be fined $1.91 million; in addition, "illegal income" in the amount of $189 thousand will be confiscated from her. Against the background of public outcry, Lee Haoshi apologized and canceled all his planned performances.

We will never allow any company or individual to gratuitously shame the glorious image of the People's Liberation Army on the stage of the Chinese capital, we will never allow people to hurt deep feelings, and we will never allow serious topics to be turned into entertainment, the Bureau of Culture and Tourism said.[1]

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