Rais should get aggravated damages, court told
Published: Jul 5, 2011 11:50 AM | Updated: Jul 5, 2011 11:53 AM
Aggravated and punitive damages should be awarded to Information Communication and Culture Minister Dr Rais Yatim as a defamatory article published by a blogger against him was very serious, the High Court in Kuala Lumpur was told today.
Aggravated and punitive damages should be awarded to Information Communication and Culture Minister Dr Rais Yatim as a defamatory article published by a blogger against him was very serious, the High Court in Kuala Lumpur was told today.
Counsel Muhammad Shafee Abdullah, representing Rais, said the words in the article posted by blogger Amizudin Ahmat in his blog sharpshooterblogger.blogspot.com on Dec 28 last year seriously defamed Rais.
“I don’t think in Malaysia or in the world, has there been a serving cabinet minister defamed in such fashion,” he said in his submission for assessment of damages.
Yesterday, Rais won his defamation suit against the blogger after the court found him liable for defamation over the article against the minister.
Muhammad Shafee said Rais had been a politician of long standing in the cabinet spanning 37 years under five prime ministers and had also been Foreign Minister, and that following the article, he had been gravely injured in his personal and professional reputation nationally and internationally.
Muhammad Shafee stressed that the article was mala fide and made for political gain as Amizudin was from an opposition political party.
Furthermore, he said, there was no investigation to determine the truth of the story and neither Rais nor his wife, Masnah Rais, were interviewed before the article was posted.
Muhammad Shafee further submitted that the article was posted in a permanent form in the blog until the court ordered the blogger to remove the article with Rais’ photograph through an injunction order.
Muhammad Shafee pointed out that Amizudin remained an arrogant person when giving testimony in the witness box whereby he repeatedly said he believed the article was true.
Counsel William Leong, acting for Amizudin, countered that his client had ‘cut and pasted’ the article, which was published in Harakah Daily.
He said in this case, Amizudin was merely repeating the article without adding any words in the article and he was also not the original writer.
July 19 decision on quantum of damages
High Court Judge Zabariah Mohd Yusof set July 19 to decide the quantum of damages.
On Jan 1, Rais filed the suit against Amizudin, 42, who is also a Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) Youth committee member, over an article posted in the latter’s blog, sharpshooterblogger.blogspot.com on or about Dec 28 last year.
Rais, 69, in his statement of claim said the entire words in the Malay language article were malicious and defamatory of him and the words in the article meant and/or were understood to mean that he was guilty of a serious offence of having raped and capable of murdering his Indonesian maid.
Rais, who is the Member of Parliament for Jelebu in Negri Sembilan, denied the allegations after a blogger named him.
Subsequently, a woman who worked as a maid for him for eight years was reported by an Indonesian news portal to have denied that she had ever been mistreated or raped by her employer.
- Bernama
Counsel Muhammad Shafee Abdullah, representing Rais, said the words in the article posted by blogger Amizudin Ahmat in his blog sharpshooterblogger.blogspot.com on Dec 28 last year seriously defamed Rais.
“I don’t think in Malaysia or in the world, has there been a serving cabinet minister defamed in such fashion,” he said in his submission for assessment of damages.
Yesterday, Rais won his defamation suit against the blogger after the court found him liable for defamation over the article against the minister.
Muhammad Shafee said Rais had been a politician of long standing in the cabinet spanning 37 years under five prime ministers and had also been Foreign Minister, and that following the article, he had been gravely injured in his personal and professional reputation nationally and internationally.
Muhammad Shafee stressed that the article was mala fide and made for political gain as Amizudin was from an opposition political party.
Furthermore, he said, there was no investigation to determine the truth of the story and neither Rais nor his wife, Masnah Rais, were interviewed before the article was posted.
Muhammad Shafee further submitted that the article was posted in a permanent form in the blog until the court ordered the blogger to remove the article with Rais’ photograph through an injunction order.
Muhammad Shafee pointed out that Amizudin remained an arrogant person when giving testimony in the witness box whereby he repeatedly said he believed the article was true.
Counsel William Leong, acting for Amizudin, countered that his client had ‘cut and pasted’ the article, which was published in Harakah Daily.
He said in this case, Amizudin was merely repeating the article without adding any words in the article and he was also not the original writer.
July 19 decision on quantum of damages
High Court Judge Zabariah Mohd Yusof set July 19 to decide the quantum of damages.
On Jan 1, Rais filed the suit against Amizudin, 42, who is also a Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) Youth committee member, over an article posted in the latter’s blog, sharpshooterblogger.blogspot.com on or about Dec 28 last year.
Rais, 69, in his statement of claim said the entire words in the Malay language article were malicious and defamatory of him and the words in the article meant and/or were understood to mean that he was guilty of a serious offence of having raped and capable of murdering his Indonesian maid.
Rais, who is the Member of Parliament for Jelebu in Negri Sembilan, denied the allegations after a blogger named him.
Subsequently, a woman who worked as a maid for him for eight years was reported by an Indonesian news portal to have denied that she had ever been mistreated or raped by her employer.
- Bernama
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