Chinese → English transcript

Early this morning, a girl totally went off on AirAsia Malaysia

and caused the flight to be delayed by an hour and a half

I believe all of you have already seen it online

I was also one of the unlucky passengers on that plane

By now I was supposed to be on a beach in the Maldives

But because of this incident

I “happily” got a one-day tour of Kuala Lumpur instead

I was sitting very close to her at the time

and witnessed every detail from start to finish

To be honest, there were several times I wanted to stand up and stop it

But to tell the truth

I was really struggling inside

First was shame

Seeing my compatriot making a huge fuss in the cabin

just because one of our own was late

and even forcibly demanding that the foreign flight attendants must speak Chinese

my reaction was just wanting to find a hole to crawl into

Second was rationality

I know very well that when someone has completely lost control emotionally

there is no way for me to reason with them

If I got myself involved in the quarrel

things would probably just become even more chaotic

I might even end up not being able to take the flight myself

and it could even make the whole thing blow up even more

But now I have to stand up and speak

because people online have started to spin the narrative

trying to stir up conflict between China and Malaysia

As someone who experienced it firsthand

I have to say something fair

This was absolutely not an ethnic or national conflict

It was purely a problem with one individual’s behavior

Because the person who reminded her to switch off her phone

and to keep her voice down was a Chinese-speaking

Malaysian Chinese lady

When she was communicating

her tone was actually relatively gentle

But that woman responded with what she called a “tough” attitude

To cover up the fact that she was in the wrong

She even tried to make it about language

Everyone, be fair and speak with conscience

The common language on international routes is English

So does that mean on Chinese planes

When they fly abroad, the flight attendants

Must know dozens of foreign languages?

That argument clearly does not hold water

What is even more ridiculous is that

She kept calling herself a China Southern flight attendant

To be honest

From her loud yelling and threats to the crew

To obstructing taxiing

There was not a single sign

Of the professional qualities of civil aviation staff

If her identity is real

Then she is knowingly breaking the law

Her career is basically over

And if it is fake

Then the trouble she is facing next

Could be very serious

First of all, the number one thing is

A huge compensation claim from the airline

The delay of the plane caused fuel loss

Ground service fees

And all kinds of costs for our

Delayed tickets

Every single cent

The airline will charge to her

Second is severe legal punishment

Her behavior is already suspected of violating

The Regulations on Civil Aviation Security

And the Public Security Administration Punishments Law

She disrupted aviation order

She will very likely face administrative detention

And may even be put on

The civil aviation no-fly blacklist

The third type is a lawsuit over reputation rights

If she was pretending to be an employee of Blue Airlines

Then Blue Airlines would definitely not

Sit by and watch its brand image be damaged

The fourth point is also very realistic

People like me who lost work time because of her

The later losses from tickets, hotels, and so on

All these passengers

In theory, each one of us has the right

To file a civil lawsuit against her

If all of us join together

Then what she faces will be very serious

Detention and compensation

There was a comment online

It was written very incisively

Saying her legal awareness is weak

But her rights-defending awareness is very strong

You want to defend your rights, fine

But the basis of defending your rights is following the rules

Your friend was late

Yet you demanded that the whole plane

Pay the price for your personal business

You even demanded that an international airline

Accommodate your language

That is not defending your rights

That is “Rejecting English-style” hegemony

So finally I want to say this to the people fanning the flames

Do not take an issue of personal character

And raise it to the level of the nation

The Malaysian flight attendants

And the domestic security staff

Throughout the whole process

Were very restrained and very professional

I want to warn everyone

When we are abroad

Each one of us is like a business card

You do not have to be perfect

But you must obey laws and regulations

Defend your rights lawfully

Keep your emotions under control

Do not let your “heroism”

Become a source of shame in the eyes of your compatriots