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Coffeeshop Chit Chat - PAPee Libel suits & the Kangaroo Courts</TD><TD id=msgunetc noWrap align=right> </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><TABLE class=msgtable cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="96%"><TBODY><TR><TD class=msg vAlign=top><TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%"><TBODY><TR class=msghead><TD class=msgbfr1 width="1%"> </TD><TD><TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0><TBODY><TR class=msghead vAlign=top><TD class=msgF width="1%" noWrap align=right>From: </TD><TD class=msgFname width="68%" noWrap>Fkapore <NOBR></NOBR> </TD><TD class=msgDate width="30%" noWrap align=right>Apr-17 9:28 pm </TD></TR><TR class=msghead><TD class=msgT height=20 width="1%" noWrap align=right>To: </TD><TD class=msgTname width="68%" noWrap>ALL <NOBR></NOBR></TD><TD class=msgNum noWrap align=right> (1 of 3) </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR><TR><TD class=msgleft rowSpan=4 width="1%"> </TD><TD class=wintiny noWrap align=right>31874.1 </TD></TR><TR><TD height=8></TD></TR><TR><TD class=msgtxt>Tired of the government’s libel suits
Posted by Ravi Philemon on April 17, 2010 11 Comments
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When Charlie Rose asked Prime Minister (PM) Lee Hsien Loong what he would do if some journalists made mention of nepotism and alluded that that was how the Prime Minister of Singapore came to power, PM Lee said “Well, then we’ll sue him”.
PM Lee then went on to explain why it was important to sue, saying that it goes against their essence of their moral fibre to govern. He continued, “(if not) they will put us on the same list as Kim Jong-il.”
There is absolutely no doubt who would win a libel suit for nepotism, if any journalist were to be brought to a court in Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) by Kim Jong-il.
Not that the judiciary of Singapore can be compared to the court of law in DPRK, but PM Lee used a very bad example to make his case in this instance.
It was PM Lee who said in the same interview that the people supported and worked with the government, and also that “there was a reservoir of trust” between the people and the government.
If there was really such a reservoir of trust between the people and the government, why should the PM worry that his moral fibre to govern will be affected if some journalists made some insinuations about nepotism?
People like me are tired of the government of Singapore threatening to sue for any fair comments that journalists make when penning an article.
The government of Singapore is yet to lose any libel suit it has brought against the foreign media group or the opposition politician.
Unnecessary libel and defamation suits are an impediment to free expression and silences dissent.
It is but Singaporeans who will lose out where there is no free expression or dissent.
The leaders of the government of Singapore should stop using defamation and libel suits to ascertain their imagined moral authority to govern and instead, should let fair comment and supposed insinuations roll off like water off a duck’s back.
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Posted by Ravi Philemon on April 17, 2010 11 Comments
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PM Lee then went on to explain why it was important to sue, saying that it goes against their essence of their moral fibre to govern. He continued, “(if not) they will put us on the same list as Kim Jong-il.”
There is absolutely no doubt who would win a libel suit for nepotism, if any journalist were to be brought to a court in Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) by Kim Jong-il.
Not that the judiciary of Singapore can be compared to the court of law in DPRK, but PM Lee used a very bad example to make his case in this instance.
It was PM Lee who said in the same interview that the people supported and worked with the government, and also that “there was a reservoir of trust” between the people and the government.
If there was really such a reservoir of trust between the people and the government, why should the PM worry that his moral fibre to govern will be affected if some journalists made some insinuations about nepotism?
People like me are tired of the government of Singapore threatening to sue for any fair comments that journalists make when penning an article.
The government of Singapore is yet to lose any libel suit it has brought against the foreign media group or the opposition politician.
Unnecessary libel and defamation suits are an impediment to free expression and silences dissent.
It is but Singaporeans who will lose out where there is no free expression or dissent.
The leaders of the government of Singapore should stop using defamation and libel suits to ascertain their imagined moral authority to govern and instead, should let fair comment and supposed insinuations roll off like water off a duck’s back.
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