FEER To SG Leaders ~~ We Can't Wait To See You In Court!!
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Magazine looks forward to day in court in Singapore
I wonder how long they will last... and lose.
By John Ruwitch
HONG KONG, Oct 6 (Reuters) - The Far Eastern Economic Review will vigorously fight a defamation suit brought against it by Singapore's prime minister and his father and regrets the city-state's decision to ban the magazine, its editors said on Friday.
Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and former premier Lee Kuan Yew filed the libel suit against Hong Kong-based Review Publishing Company Ltd. and FEER editor Hugo Restall on Aug. 22 over an article published in July on opposition politician Chee Soon Juan.
"We are planning to defend the defamation lawsuits vigorously and look forward to having our day in court in Singapore," Restall told a news conference in Hong Kong.
"We believe that the original article was not defamatory in any way and could not be read by any reasonable reader of the Review as alleging the things that Mr. Lee Kuan Yew and Lee Hsien Loong claimed," Restall said.
The article that sparked the lawsuit, entitled "Singapore's Martyr: Chee Soon Juan", criticised the government's handling of a pay-and-perks scandal at the country's largest charity. The magazine also quoted Chee attacking the Lees.
Restall said Chee never said he thought any particular member of the Singaporean government was corrupt.
"He never said that and I certainly didn't write that, and I don't believe that," Restall said. "I think it's just ridiculous to read the article in that way. It's preposterous."
TOUGH STANCE
Singapore has for decades taken a tough stance on foreign media when they report on local politics. International media organisations have been banned, slapped with defamation suits or seen their circulations restricted when they published articles deemed offensive by the government.
The suit is the latest in a series brought by Singapore's leaders against foreign media and opposition politicians.
The Review celebrates its 60th anniversary this year and on Friday unveiled a new "Barometer of Asian Development", scoring 12 countries in the region over the past five years on a variety of data such as education, human mobility, capital access, creative rights, gender equality and labour flexibility.
China and Thailand were tied at the top, with Singapore a close second.
"We're trying to be very fair to Singapore, and I think the index reflects that we are not seeking to criticise them unfairly or trying to only emphasise the negative," Restall said.
Paul Gigot, editor of the editorial page of the Wall Street Journal, which with Review Publishing is owned by Dow Jones & Co., said the government's decision to ban the Review last month did a disservice to Singaporeans.
"We really regret that decision," he said.
The government said it banned the sale of FEER, which has about 1,000 subscribers there, because it failed to comply with its press regulations.
Singapore's leaders have won damages in the past from media groups, including the Economist, the International Herald Tribune, Bloomberg, and FinanceAsia -- as well as the Far Eastern Economic Review when it was published as a weekly news magazine.
In November 1989, a Singapore court found FEER guilty of libelling then-Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew and ordered it to pay S$230,000 in damages.
At the time, Justice L.P. Thean said Lee was entitled to aggravated damages against the magazine, owned by Dow Jones & Co., because of "express malice" by the defendants and the conduct of their lawyer Geoffrey Robertson during the trial.
The case stemmed from an article published in 1987 dealing with the arrests that year of 22 people, mostly lay church workers, for alleged involvement in a Marxist plot to subvert the government.
Media watchdog Reporters Without Borders, which ranks Singapore 140th out of 167 countries for press freedom, slammed the government's decision in August to issue restrictions on five foreign publications, including FEER.
The government ordered Time, Newsweek, the Financial Times and the International Herald Tribune to post bonds of S$200,000 and appoint representatives in Singapore.
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No one, will always win... as surely as no one will always lose.
I look forward to seeing FEER winning the case....
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i wish they will win but then i doubt it. i somehow have a dim view of the independence of our judges......... now, if it were overseas then maybe but then again wehave to allow for differences in law of other places
and i'm not sure if the lawsuit is taken by the gov or the party or the individuals. if its the government and they lose then they better explain why they did somethign with no confidence thus wasting our money. -
FACTBOX-Lawsuits pepper Singapore's political past
Oct 6 (Reuters) - Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and his father Lee Kuan Yew have launched a defamation suit against the Far Eastern Economic Review. The magazine's editor said on Friday the publication would vigorously contest the suit in court.
Following are some libel suits filed in Singapore courts:
1985: Asian Wall Street Journal apologises and pays fines after Singapore files contempt-of-court charges over a newspaper editorial on the treatment of an opposition politician.
1989: Singapore court awards then-Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew thousands of dollars in damages after he sues the Far Eastern Economic Review for libel.
1994-95: International Herald Tribune is sued for an article by a visiting U.S. academic critical of oppressive Asian regimes. Without mentioning any country, the article referred to governments "relying on compliant judiciary to bankrupt opposition politicians". Arguing that the article could only refer to Singapore, the Attorney-General cited 11 cases where government politicians sued opposition figures successfully.
1997: PAP leaders, including then-Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong, file a total of 13 lawsuits against Tang Liang Hong of the Workers' Party, for comments made during an election campaign. Tang flees the country and PAP leaders win a record S$8 million in damages, later reduced.
1997: J.B. Jeyaretnam, then chief of the Workers' Party, is sued for defaming government leaders during an election campaign.
2001: Goh Chok Tong and Lee Kuan Yew sue Singapore Democratic Party head Chee Soon Juan for suggesting the government lent S$17 billion in taxpayers' money to former Indonesian President Suharto.
2002: U.S. financial news agency Bloomberg paid S$595,000 in damages and costs to Goh, Lee, and then-Deputy Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong for implying nepotism in the appointment of Lee Hsien Loong's wife, Ho Ching, as executive director of Singapore state investor Temasek Holdings.
2004: British news magazine the Economist apologises and pays damages for an article about Temasek Holdings.
2005: FinanceAsia.com, a Hong Kong-based Web site, apologises and pays damages for an article about Temasek Holdings.
2006: The Economist apologises and pays damages for comments in an obituary about the late Singapore president Devan Nair.
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The higher the number of past victories, the higher the chance and likelihood for that "first time" in being defeated in legal battle...
Likewise the other way round...
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any chance of a summary judgement
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i think feer may mean business this ime if they really plan on playing hardball with the lee family..whatever it is..its still probably gonna end up in close door session..which i won;t b e surprised..
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Wow. FEER realli "No feer". I sincerely hope they will win.
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Originally posted by spinsugar:Wow. FEER realli "No feer". I sincerely hope they will win.
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i don't think they'll loseOriginally posted by spinsugar:Wow. FEER realli "No feer". I sincerely hope they will win. -
FEER will lose if they cannot back up their claims with solid facts. Given the tight security over release of any official data, it is unlikely that they will have any information the public doesn't already know from government sources. Unless the case is heard in a court full of judges with a liberal agenda, I cannot see how they can ever win such a case.
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Aiya i find that some of the things they write definitely not right... But there are still some facts about it... If they were to fight on the facts, I don't see why FEER will lose. But if they were to fight on the wrong ground then too bad.. They will lose like what he did last time. We just know that we are dominated thats all
We got OWNED!!!! -
lets face it.. FEER will lose
reason? the lawsuit will be in singapore courts -
It's sad, but I fear you may be right.Originally posted by I.M.ME:lets face it.. FEER will lose
reason? the lawsuit will be in singapore courts
The Singapore courts have bent over backwards and stretched the law in favour of our leaders in past defamation suits, and will surely not hesitate to repeat that move again. It will probably be a closed-door affair. There have been many instances where the court will find a way to dismiss or render irrelevant any evidence that bolster the case of anyone who dares to face the SG leaders in court.
I doubt it will be any different this time around, especially since the FEER article challenges the govt-controlled media's public portrayal of Chee as a misguided lunatic. -
Hmm... what are the odds of FEER actually winning?
When it comes to lawsuits brought about by the father and/or the son, the results are pretty much a forgone conclusion. -
They will push to hold the lawsuit in HK.
Anyway, it's time someone stepped up to them and cut them down to size. -
If the lawsuit really gets the go-ahead in HK, don't be surprised if the defendants drop the lawsuit, claiming that they had 'forgiven' FEER.Originally posted by LazerLordz:They will push to hold the lawsuit in HK.
Anyway, it's time someone stepped up to them and cut them down to size. -
Well true, and as you've said; the outcome depends on whos court to fight in.Originally posted by oxford mushroom:FEER will lose if they cannot back up their claims with solid facts. Given the tight security over release of any official data, it is unlikely that they will have any information the public doesn't already know from government sources. Unless the case is heard in a court full of judges with a liberal agenda, I cannot see how they can ever win such a case.
If in HK, the Lees will lose.
If in SG, FEER may likely lose.
But even if FEER loses, the world already knows and wouldn't fault FEER. -
You know I really hope they succeed in holding it in HK.Originally posted by LazerLordz:They will push to hold the lawsuit in HK.
Anyway, it's time someone stepped up to them and cut them down to size.
I like for once, to see them either backing off or have the tables turned against them.
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FEER will sure lose one. Think about it. Who appoints the judges in Singapore?
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That's why I say FEER will likely win in HK court than in SG court.Originally posted by av98m:FEER will sure lose one. Think about it. Who appoints the judges in Singapore?
Don'r forget our Law and judiciary system is Tailored by and for our gov. -
Anyone can provide the link to the full article?
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But, will the Lees go over to HK for the court case? I doubt so ...
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They are Gurus in Law and Politics, they'd know better than to go to HK and get legally bashed up...Originally posted by gd4u:But, will the Lees go over to HK for the court case? I doubt so ...
.. as much as they know they CAN bash up FEER here, in SG... -
Goodbye forever FEER.