Update 1 Sep 2021: Singapore PM wins $275,000 in latest defamation suits
Singapore's high court ordered two news bloggers to pay Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong a combined S$370,000 ($275,113) in damages on Wednesday, over an article about the status of the home of his late father and the city-state's modern-day founder, Lee Kuan Yew. The premier filed lawsuits against writer Rubaashini Shunmuganathan and editor Xu Yuan Chen, also known as Terry Xu, over the August 2019 article published on The Online Citizen that included references to a disagreement within the Lee family about what to do with the property.
High court judge Audrey Lim said the article "impugned Lee's reputation and character" by alleging he was dishonest. "This struck at the heart of Lee's personal integrity and could severely undermine his credibility, not just personally but also as the prime minister, and call into question his fitness to govern with integrity," Lim said in a written judgement. Xu, a Singaporean, was ordered to pay Lee S$210,000, while in a separate suit over the same article, Malaysian Rubaashini was ordered to pay S$160,000. Neither immediately responded to requests for comment.
Lee appeared in court here in the case in May, during which he said "sensational allegations" had been made. Lee's press secretary in a statement on Wednesday said the damages awarded would be donated to charity. Senior figures in the ruling People's Action Party, including Lee Kuan Yew, have also sued foreign media and political opponents for defamation, calling it defence of their reputations. In April, an activist here and a financial advisor here separately turned to crowdfunding in Singapore to raise tens of thousands of dollars to pay Lee damages after the premier sued both for defamation. Some activists, including the New York-based Human Rights Watch, say such moves are stifling freedom of speech and political opposition. ($1 = 1.3449 Singapore dollars).
PM Lee Hsien Loong awarded $210,000 in damages against TOC editor Terry Xu and writer
Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong was awarded a total of $210,000 in damages in his defamation suit against The Online Citizen (TOC) editor Terry Xu Yuanchen and his writer, Rubaashini Shunmuganathan. In a judgment issued on Wednesday (1 September), Justice Audrey Lim also issued an injunction restraining Xu from further publishing or disseminating the false and defamatory allegations in TOC's 2019 article about 38 Oxley Road. The article was still accessible as of 2.30pm on Wednesday.
Following the judgment, Lee's press secretary said that he intends to donate to charity the damages he has been awarded. Xu's lawyer Lim Tean said in a Facebook post, "We are very disappointed with the judgment and I am discussing with Terry on the next course of action. "It is evident to me from a quick read of the 60-page judgment that the judge did not consider or understand the import of many relevant pieces of evidence which we put forward in the trial, which would have proven Terry’s defence," he added. Xu will crowd-fund to pay for the damages.
The article published on TOC’s website and Facebook page on 15 August 2019 was titled “PM Lee’s wife, Ho Ching weirdly shares article on cutting ties with family members”. It was written by Rubaashini, whom Lee also sought aggravated damages against in a separate suit. He was awarded $160,000 for this suit against Ruubashini and Xu, who were found jointly liable. For the suit that was solely against Xu, Lee was awarded $210,000, comprising $160,000 in general damages and $50,000 in aggravated damages.
PM Lee wins defamation suits, awarded S$210,000 in damages against TOC editor Terry Xu and writer
Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong (left) and chief editor of The Online Citizen Terry Xu arrive at the Supreme Court on Nov 30, 2020 for the defamation trial. (Photos: Nuria Ling/TODAY)
Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong was awarded S$210,000 by the High Court on Wednesday (Sep 1) in two separate defamation lawsuits against Terry Xu, the editor of socio-political website The Online Citizen (TOC), and Rubaashini Shunmuganathan, the writer of a TOC article.
In August 2019, TOC published an article written by Ms Rubaashini about Mr Lee's dispute with his siblings, Dr Lee Wei Ling and Mr Lee Hsien Yang, over their family home at 38 Oxley Road. The article was found by Justice Audrey Lim to be defamatory, stating that the libel against Mr Lee was "grave and serious". "The defamatory remarks do not merely attack his personal integrity, character and reputation, but that of the PM, and damage his moral authority to lead Singapore," said Justice Lim in a 60-page judgment.
Justice Lim also granted an injunction that Mr Lee had sought, restraining Xu from further publishing or disseminating the defamatory allegations in the article. “As usual, PM Lee intends to donate to charity the damages he has been awarded," Mr Lee's press secretary Chang Li Lin said on Wednesday. In the first lawsuit against Mr Xu, Mr Lee was awarded S$160,000 in general damages and S$50,000 in aggravated damages, for a total of S$210,000.
Blogger Leong Sze Hian ordered to pay PM Lee $133,000 for defamation over sharing of article
PM Lee's lawyers had argued for $150,000 in damages in the defamation suit against blogger Leong Sze Hian. PHOTOS: ST FILE
The High Court has ordered blogger and financial adviser Leong Sze Hian to pay Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong $133,000 for defamation. The sum includes $100,000 in general damages and $33,000 in aggravated damages.
Mr Leong was sued for sharing, on his Facebook page, an article from the Malaysian news site The Coverage that falsely linked PM Lee to the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) corruption scandal in Malaysia. Justice Aedit Abdullah said in a written judgment on Wednesday (March 24) that Mr Leong did so "without making any enquiries as to its truth whatsoever" and displayed "reckless disregard of whether the article was true or not".
The judge ruled that Mr Leong's sharing of the article amounted to publishing it, even though he did not add any captions or commentary. Mr Leong had contended that he was not responsible for publishing the article, as there was no evidence anyone clicked on it as a result of him sharing it. Justice Aedit noted that the link to the article, along with its headline and a photo, was the only substantive content of Mr Leong's Facebook post, and it would be artificial to draw a "bright-line distinction" between the article and the post.
PM Lee awarded $87,000 in legal costs for defamation suits against TOC editor, writer
The costs order came after PM Lee Hsien Loong (left) won his suits against Mr Terry Xu (right), the chief editor of The Online Citizen, and article author Rubaashini Shunmuganathan. PHOTOS: ST FILE
The High Court on Wednesday (Oct 13) awarded Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong more than $87,000 in legal costs for the defamation suits he filed over an article published on The Online Citizen (TOC).
The costs order came after PM Lee won his suits against Mr Terry Xu, the chief editor of the socio-political website, and Ms Rubaashini Shunmuganathan, the Malaysian author of the article that was published on Aug 15, 2019. High Court judge Audrey Lim last month awarded PM Lee $210,000 in damages. She found that the article was defamatory, as it imputed that PM Lee had been dishonest with his father, founding prime minister Lee Kuan Yew.
The article, titled "PM Lee's wife Ho Ching weirdly shares article on cutting ties with family members", had quoted a Facebook post by PM Lee's sister, Dr Lee Wei Ling. Dr Lee's post asserted that Mr Lee Kuan Yew had been misled by PM Lee into believing the family house at 38 Oxley Road had been gazetted by the Government, causing him to change his will to bestow the house to PM Lee. Mr Xu had sought to justify the allegations in the article, arguing that they were true.
related: High Court awards PM Lee $210,000 in damages in defamation suits against TOC editor Terry Xu and article author
PM Lee awarded nearly S$88,000 in costs after winning defamation suits against The Online Citizen chief editor, writer
Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong (left) and Mr Terry Xu (right), chief editor of The Online Citizen
Justice Audrey Lim held a hearing in chambers on costs in both suits after her ruling on Sept 1 in which she awarded S$210,000 in total damages to Mr Lee, who had sued Mr Xu and the article’s writer, Ms Rubaashini Shunmuganathan.
Mr Xu’s lawyer, Mr Lim Tean, put up a Facebook post after the hearing, detailing the court’s decision and appealing to members of the public to donate to Mr Xu’s crowdfunding campaign. The campaign has since reportedly raised more than S$210,000. TODAY has separately confirmed the court’s ruling on costs and disbursements.
$262,237.22 handed over to Singapore’s Prime Minister’s lawyers for Leong Sze Hian’s payment of damages and cost
A cashier order of S$262,237.22 was hand-delivered to lawyers of Singapore Prime Minister, Lee Hsien Loong on Monday, for the payment of damages, legal cost and disbursement in a defamation suit filed against Mr Leong Sze Hian, a blogger and financial adviser.
Mr Lim Tean, counsel for Mr Leong posted this as an update on his Facebook page and shared the letter accompanying the cashier order.
Both visited the Guoco building where Davinder Singh Chambers is situated at, to hand the cashier order over to the law firm.
Lim Tean 16 hrs
I hand-delivered the following letter & cheque to Lee Hsien Loong's lawyers just now....
The letter attached reads...
Dear Sirs,
Please find our client's DBS cashiers order for the amount of $262,327.22 being full and final payment of the damages together with legal costs and disbursements awarded to your client.
Your client will be aware that every cent of this amount was donated to our client by the people of Singapore in an epic demonstration of their condemnation and anger at your clients use of the libel laws to silence and chill dissent.
It was conduct unbefitting of a Prime Minister.
The courageous citizens of Singapore were determined not to allow your client the satisfaction of suing critics until their pants drop.
Your client may have won in a court of law, but this cashiers order is proof that he has lost decisively in the court of public opinion.
Yours Faithfully
Lim Tean
S$262,327 fully raised by Leong Sze Hian to pay defamation damages, cost and disbursement to Singapore Prime Minister
As of 9.38pm on Saturday, Mr Leong Sze Hian has managed to raise the full sum of S$262,327 to pay off the Singapore Prime Minister for the damages, legal cost and disbursement in a defamation suit filed by the latter — two days ahead of the deadline for payment set by Mr Lee Hsien Loong’s lawyers.
On 10 May, the High Court granted the full claim of legal cost and disbursement, totalling S$129,327 to PM Lee. This is on top of the S$133,000 awarded to PM Lee in March this year for purpose of damages. “Having considered the arguments of the parties, the Court is satisfied that the appropriate costs payable by the Defendant is as follows: Costs of $50,000 to the Plaintiff plus disbursements claimed of $79,327.22.” wrote the court in a letter addressed to both parties on Monday (10 May).
Subsequently on 12 May, lawyers for PM Lee gave a deadline of 17 May for Mr Leong Sze Hian to pay up the full $262,357 for the damages, cost and disbursements ordered by the court in the defamation suit between the two. Prior to the lawyers’ announcement of the deadline, Mr Leong managed to raise $65,032 over the span of 26 days. This meant that he had to raise a sum of S$64,295 within the next five days. Mr Leong had previously successfully raised the full damage of S$133,000 awarded to PM Lee through a crowd funding campaign in 11 days.
Leong Sze Hian May 15 at 9:41 PM
Breaking News: At 9.38 pm today, 15 May - The people have crowdfunded fully the $262,327 for the Prime Minister's defamation suit's damages, cost and disbursements.
I am very very grateful for your support, concern and encouragement, over these two and a half years!
If you like to - please write something and share with your friends
Leong Sze Hian
Roy Yi Ling Ngerng May 15 at 9:48 PM
This is such amazing news! Singaporeans, you have once again come together to raise enough funds for Leong Sze Hian to pay Singapore prime minister Lee Hsien Loong.
Hsien Loong wanted to force Sze Hian to pay the money by this coming Monday, while Sze Hian is blocked from posting on Facebook groups.
But you have come together again, to stand up against the bullying and oppression. This is wonderful, wonderful news, and makes me so delighted on this Saturday evening, that we have once again made history.
You are amazing, Singaporeans, we have just conducted a 2-month long resistance to stand by the people who have spoken up for us.
Both Sze Hian and I are so grateful to you. I am so proud too that you have all stood up when it mattered. Thank you, and you have so much to be proud of!
Leong Sze Hian declines to enter witness box in defamation suit by Lee Hsien Loong
PM Lee Hsien Loong (left) and Leong Sze Hian. (PHOTO: AP, leong.hian/Facebook)
Opposition politician Leong Sze Hian, who is being sued by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong for defamation, declined to testify and be cross-examined on the second day of the civil trial at the High Court on Wednesday (7 October).
The high-profile trial, which had originally been scheduled to last till Friday, was adjourned for closing arguments next month. Leong’s lawyer Lim Tean told Justice Aedit Abdullah that the plaintiff’s case was “frivolous and vexatious” and did not require his client to testify in his defence, according to media reports.
On Tuesday, Lee testified and was cross-examined by Lim.
PM Lee v Leong Sze Hian defamation suit: Blogger declines to take stand, lawyer says there's no case to answer
Lim Tean and Leong Sze Hian at the High Court on Oct 7, 2020. (Photo: Gaya Chandramohan)
Mr Leong Sze Hian did not take the witness stand in the defamation case brought against him by the Prime Minister on Wednesday (Oct 7), with his lawyer saying there was no case to answer and Mr Lee Hsien Loong's lawyer saying Mr Leong has "turned tail" from the fight.
This means there will not be any more hearings for the rest of the week and all parties will file written submissions and return to court on Nov 30 for oral arguments to determine liability.
Mr Leong, a blogger and financial adviser, is being sued by Mr Lee for defamation over a Facebook post Mr Leong made in November 2018, sharing an article by Malaysian website The Coverage.
Lim Tean’s 4-hour cross-examination of PM Lee: Key observations
Four hours and 15 minutes - that's the length of time Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong spent with lawyer Lim Tean on day one of the four-day trial for his defamation suit against blogger and financial adviser Leong Sze Hian.
The colourful but nonetheless lengthy exchange saw Lim, Leong's lawyer, cross-examine PM Lee, who took the stand as witness. PM Lee is represented by Senior Counsel Davinder Singh from Davinder Singh Chambers.
The mood was palpable at the beginning of the hearing, with supporters clapping for Leong and Lim before they entered the courtroom. For the first half of the hearing before the court was adjourned, PM Lee appeared to be calm and brief with his replies, with Lim's repeated questions on the same issue. It was only in the second half of the hearing that PM Lee spoke at length in response to Lim's cross-examination, sharing his thoughts on Leong and his rationale behind the lawsuit in greater detail.
related:
Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong arrives at the Supreme Court on Oct 6, 2020
Hearings have begun in Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong’s defamation suit against a blogger who shared an article about him on Facebook. Lee sued Leong Sze Hian for posting a link to a Malaysian news site that alleged the prime minister had helped launder 1Malaysia Development Bhd. funds. The Singaporean leader, who has sued other people for defamation while in office, arrived in court on Tuesday to give evidence and undergo cross-examination. Lee’s lawyers have said the accusations are false and baseless.
People queue to enter the Supreme Court ahead of PM Lee Hsien Loong's defamation hearing against blogger Leong Sze Hian on Oct 6, 2020.ST PHOTO: KELVIN CHNG
The offending words in the post “meant and were understood to mean that the plaintiff was complicit in criminal activity relating to 1MDB,” according to Lee’s opening statement to the court. They “meant and were understood to mean that the plaintiff corruptly used his position as prime minister to help Mr Najib launder 1MDB’s billions,” the statement said, referring to former Malaysian premier Najib Razak.
Taking the stand in court, Lee said when an accusation is made against him as the prime minster, “the government has to take it very seriously. I have to take it very seriously.” He added: “I have to protect my own reputation and standing.” Lee is seeking aggravated damages and an injunction that Leong be prevented from publishing or disseminating the allegations, or other allegations of complicity relating to the embattled Malaysian state fund, according to the Straits Times.
Leong Sze Hian and Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong are seen arriving at the High Court on Oct 6, 2020. (Photos: Gaya Chandramohan, Jeremy Long)
Lee Hsien Loong set to testify in defamation suit against Leong Sze Hian at High Court
PM Lee Hsien Loong (left) and Leong Sze Hian. (PHOTO: AP, leong.hian/Facebook)
The civil suit taken out by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong against opposition politician Leong Sze Hian for defamation is set to begin at the High Court on Tuesday morning (6 October). The high profile trial is scheduled to last till Friday before Justice Aedit Abdullah with Lee expected to be cross-examined by Leong’s lawyer Lim Tean early in the trial. Lee arrived at the Supreme Court amid tight security at about 9.40am.
At 7am on Tuesday morning, all 20 tickets for seats in the public gallery were given out. Still, there was a crowd of reporters, camera crew and curious onlookers milling around the Supreme Court entrance. Due to safe distancing measures, the number of seats allocated to journalists in the media gallery were also limited. Two spots each went to state broadcaster Mediacorp and conglomerate Singapore Press Holdings, and one spot each to Bloomberg, Bernama, AFP and Mothership.
The case revolves around a Facebook post made by Leong on 7 November 2018 containing a link to an article which alleged that Lee corruptly used his position as prime minister to help former Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak launder billions from insolvent Malaysian sovereign wealth fund 1MDB.
The article by Malaysian news site The Coverage was titled “Breaking News: Singapore Lee Hsien Loong Becomes 1MDB’s Key Investigation Target – Najib Signed Several Unfair Agreements With Hsien Loong In Exchange For Money Laundering”. Leong’s post was accompanied by a photo of Lee and Najib smiling for a wefie.
Trial opens for Lee Hsien Loong's defamation suit against Leong Sze Hian
The trial for Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong's defamation suit against writer and financial adviser Leong Sze Hian opened on Tuesday (Oct 6).
The trial is set to run for the rest of the week before Justice Aedit Abdullah, with Mr Lee represented by Senior Counsel Davinder Singh and a team of lawyers, and opposition politician Lim Tean representing Mr Leong.
Mr Lee, 68, sued Mr Leong in late 2018 over a public Facebook post the latter shared on his page on Nov 7, 2018, containing a link to an article by Malaysian website The Coverage.
PM Lee Hsien Loong in High Court for start of four-day defamation hearing against blogger Leong Sze Hian
Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong is in the High Court on Tuesday (Oct 6) for the start of a four-day hearing in his defamation suit against blogger and financial adviser Leong Sze Hian.
PM Lee, who is represented by Senior Counsel Davinder Singh from Davinder Singh Chambers, will enter the witness box to give evidence and be cross-examined at the hearing, which is presided over by Justice Aedit Abdullah.
Mr Leong is represented by lawyer and opposition politician Lim Tean from Carson Law Chambers.
1MDB scandal: Singapore PM in court for defamation suit against blogger
Singapore’s Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong arrives at the High Court for a defamation hearing against blogger Leong Sze Hian in Singapore October 6, 2020. ― Reuters pic
Singapore's prime minister arrived at court today for a case in which he is suing a blogger for sharing an online article linking him to Malaysia's 1MBD state fund money-laundering scandal.
As the world's best-paid political leader and the head of a government that has pledged zero tolerance on corruption, Lee Hsien Loong, 68, is no stranger to protecting his integrity via legal channels. Lee is suing financial adviser Leong Sze Hian, 66, over a November 2018 Facebook post which linked to an article by Malaysian news site The Coverage.
Lee's lawyers said that the article contained “false and baseless” allegations and charged that Leong shared the post “maliciously” to damage their client. Leong subsequently deleted the post.
Singapore police arrest lawyer set to defend PM Lee Hsien Loong’s defamation suit
Singapore lawyer Lim Tean (right) was arrested for alleged criminal breach of trust. Photo: Facebook
Singapore police on Friday arrested a lawyer for alleged criminal breach of trust, days before he was set to defend a client in a defamation case against the city state’s prime minister.
Police said the lawyer, Lim Tean, who leads a small opposition party that unsuccessfully contested an election this year, was also being investigated for stalking and had not complied with earlier notices to attend police interviews. “The police had no choice but to arrest Mr Lim Tean in order to conduct the investigations,” police said in a statement, adding that they rejected allegations by Lim that the arrest was politically motivated.
In a trial likely to be watched closely next week, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong is suing financial adviser Leong Sze Hian over a Facebook post in which he shared a story linking Lee to Malaysia’s 1MDB state fund money laundering scandal. Lee’s lawyers at the time said the allegation was “false and baseless” and Leong subsequently deleted the post.
Opposition politician held ahead of case against PM
Photo from Ravi MRavi post
A SINGAPOREAN opposition politician and lawyer was arrested on suspicion of misappropriating money and harassment, days before a client of his faces a libel case against the city-state’s leader. Lim Tean was handcuffed and escorted from his office yesterday as he prepared his client’s case against Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, and his own lawyer slammed the arrest as “politically motivated”. But police swiftly rejected the allegations as “baseless”.
Lim, who heads a political party called Peoples Voice, is accused of misappropriating money awarded by a court to a client, and of harassing a female former employee of his law firm. Police said they had asked Lim, who stood unsuccessfully as a candidate at general elections in July, to attend an interview last month to assist in investigations but he refused to show up. “Police had no choice but to arrest Mr Lim Tean in order to conduct the investigations,” they said.
Lim is the lawyer for a blogger who has been sued for defamation by Prime Minister Lee.
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