<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR>Feer appeal to seek public interest privilege
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<!-- START OF : div id="storytext"--><!-- more than 4 paragraphs -->THE Far Eastern Economic Review (Feer) will appeal against a High Court ruling that the magazine defamed two top Singapore leaders, and will seek to have the court apply the public interest privilege.
The High Court ruled last month that the publisher and editor of the Hong Kong-based weekly had defamed Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew in a 2006 article.
Yesterday, a spokesman for Dow Jones, which owns the magazine, told The Straits Times in an e-mail: 'We have filed notice that we are appealing the decision against the Far Eastern Economic Review.
'We will seek to have the court apply the public interest privilege, which is available in most other Commonwealth countries, and reverse the decision from the court below.'
Lawyers told The Straits Times that in countries like England, the press has the right to publish untrue statements if it is in the public interest. But they must first have carried out due diligence to verify the statement, and must state the other side's position.
The Lees had in August 2006 sued Feer's publisher, Review Publishing, and its editor, Mr Hugo Restall, for defaming them in an article headlined 'Singapore's 'Martyr' Chee Soon Juan'.
Feer argued in its defence that the July 2006 piece by Mr Restall was based on fact and fair comment, and it concerned matters of public interest. It said journalists had a duty to publish information the public had a right to know, even if it turned out to be false, so long as they were not motivated by malice.
But in his written judgment on Sept 23, Justice Woo Bih Li found that unless there are special facts, there is no general privilege for the media in Singapore.
He said Feer's defences failed or did not apply in Singapore. He also said there was no doubt the defamatory words in the article referred to the two leaders.
The Lees have been awarded damages, which will be assessed at a later date. Their legal team is led by Senior Counsel Davinder Singh of Drew & Napier. Review Publishing and Mr Restall are represented by Mr Peter Low of Colin Ng & Partners.
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<!-- START OF : div id="storytext"--><!-- more than 4 paragraphs -->THE Far Eastern Economic Review (Feer) will appeal against a High Court ruling that the magazine defamed two top Singapore leaders, and will seek to have the court apply the public interest privilege.
The High Court ruled last month that the publisher and editor of the Hong Kong-based weekly had defamed Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew in a 2006 article.
Yesterday, a spokesman for Dow Jones, which owns the magazine, told The Straits Times in an e-mail: 'We have filed notice that we are appealing the decision against the Far Eastern Economic Review.
'We will seek to have the court apply the public interest privilege, which is available in most other Commonwealth countries, and reverse the decision from the court below.'
Lawyers told The Straits Times that in countries like England, the press has the right to publish untrue statements if it is in the public interest. But they must first have carried out due diligence to verify the statement, and must state the other side's position.
The Lees had in August 2006 sued Feer's publisher, Review Publishing, and its editor, Mr Hugo Restall, for defaming them in an article headlined 'Singapore's 'Martyr' Chee Soon Juan'.
Feer argued in its defence that the July 2006 piece by Mr Restall was based on fact and fair comment, and it concerned matters of public interest. It said journalists had a duty to publish information the public had a right to know, even if it turned out to be false, so long as they were not motivated by malice.
But in his written judgment on Sept 23, Justice Woo Bih Li found that unless there are special facts, there is no general privilege for the media in Singapore.
He said Feer's defences failed or did not apply in Singapore. He also said there was no doubt the defamatory words in the article referred to the two leaders.
The Lees have been awarded damages, which will be assessed at a later date. Their legal team is led by Senior Counsel Davinder Singh of Drew & Napier. Review Publishing and Mr Restall are represented by Mr Peter Low of Colin Ng & Partners.
