Utusan’s defamation suit against Seputeh MP Kok to get full trial

KUALA LUMPUR: Seputeh MP Teresa Kok succeeded Monday in her bid to dismiss an application by Utusan Melayu (M) Bhd to strike out her defence in its defamation suit against her.Justice John Louis O’Hara ruled for a full trial, holding that it was not a plain and obvious case to allow the application by Utusan to strike out Kok’s defence in its defamation suit.

In February 2009, Utusan Melaya sued Kok for allegedly uttering defamatory statements about the newspaper.

In its statement of claims, it said the alleged defamatory statements were made on Sept 22, 2008 when Kok claimed that the daily had distorted her statements to the national media and in her own blog about the food served to her while being detained under the Internal Security Act (ISA) in 2008.

欲撤销郭素沁“狗食论”辩词,吉隆坡法庭驳回前锋报申请

吉隆坡法庭今天驳回《马来西亚前锋报》，要求撤销士布爹区国会议员郭素沁在其“扣留所食物如狗食”案件辩词的申请。

法官约翰鲁斯裁决，由于郭素沁拥有确凿的论点，因此他谕令此案必须经过审讯。

“这不是单纯可撤销的案件，此案必须经过审讯。”

谕令前锋报支付五千堂费

他也谕令《马来西亚前锋报》支付5000令吉堂费。

郭素沁于2008年9月在内安法令下扣留一周，获释后在记者会上批评扣留所食物难吃如狗食，过后郭素沁因不满《马来西亚前锋报》炒作而指《马来西亚前锋报》扭曲其言论。

《马来西亚前锋报》坚称郭素沁确实曾发表“狗食论”，并在2009年2月28日入禀高庭，起诉郭素沁诽谤。

上述报章要求郭素沁移走她在部落格中诽谤该报的言论，同时也要求普通赔偿、特别赔偿、加重赔偿、惩戒性赔偿、堂费及高庭认为合理的赔偿。

《马来西亚前锋报》代表律师莫哈末沙菲益说，该报章将针对这项裁决提出上诉。

郭素沁的代表律师为桑吉。

http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/174398

More to come