China Slaps Comedy Firm With $2 Million Fine Over Military Joke, Accuses It Of 'Harming Society'

China has slapped a fine of 14.7 million yuan ($2.13 million) on the country’s one of the best comedy companies for a joke on the Chinese military.

China on Wednesday imposed a fine of 14.7 million yuan ($2.13 million) on the country’s one of the best comedy companies for a joke on the Chinese military and accused it of "harming society", reported Reuters. This comes after a military joke made by one of its comedians drew strong public criticism. The Beijing arm of China's Ministry of Culture and Tourism Bureau said it would fine Shanghai Xiaoguo Culture Media Co 13.35 million yuan and confiscate 1.35 million yuan in "illegal gains" from the firm. 

It added that the action is being taken after finding that a recent show by Li Haoshi, who performs under the name House, had breached rules. 

Comedian Li went viral on Chinese social media earlier this week after his video with a description of a joke he had made at a live stand-up set in Beijing on May 13 went online. The post described it as demeaning to China's People's Liberation Army (PLA). 

 According to Reuters, Li recounted seeing two stray dogs he had adopted chase a squirrel and said it had reminded him of the phrase "have a good work style, be able to fight and win battles". This is a slogan Chinese President Xi Jinping used in 2013 to praise the PLA's work ethic. 

The culture bureau reacted to it sharply and said, "We will never allow any company or individual use the Chinese capital as a stage to wantonly slander the glorious image of the PLA," adding that Xiaoguo Culture would be barred from staging any future shows in Beijing. 

In its response to the fine, Xiaoguo Culture blamed the incident on "major loopholes in management" and said it had terminated Li's contract, Reuters stated in its report. 

 Xiaoguo Culture was founded in Shanghai in 2015 and its popularity grew in sync with China's embrace of stand-up comedy. 

This is not the first instance when the firm and its artists have fallen foul of authorities. In July 2021, the company was fined 200,000 yuan for publishing advertisements that featured a comedian endorsing a lingerie brand with comments said to objectify women, the Reuters report mentioned. 

Meanwhile, Reuters reported, the incident has strongly divided the Chinese public over what sort of jokes are inappropriate as performances like stand-up comedy become increasingly popular.