In a significant legal victory, DAP chairman Lim Guan Eng has once again emerged triumphant in his defamation case against Perak PAS chief Razman Zakaria. The Court of Appeal has upheld a previous High Court decision that ruled in favor of Lim.
The Court of Appeal, as reported by news portal Free Malaysia Today (FMT), rejected Razman's appeal, thereby affirming the High Court's verdict. This ruling compels Razman to issue a public apology and pay RM250,000 in compensation.
The legal battle dates back to March last year when then-judicial commissioner Datuk Amarjeet Singh Serjit Singh ordered Razman to pay RM250,000 in damages. Furthermore, Razman was required to make a public apology on his Facebook page for a defamatory statement and was prohibited from repeating such statements on the platform in the future.
Lim, who also serves as the Bagan MP, initiated the defamation lawsuit against Razman in 2018. The case revolved around a November 18, 2017 Facebook post by Razman, which was allegedly defamatory towards Lim. Notably, at the time of the contentious Facebook post, Lim held the position of Penang chief minister.
In his testimony during the High Court proceedings, Lim emphatically stated that Razman's Facebook post was both offensive and misleading. He asserted that the claims made by Razman were entirely untrue. Lim categorically denied ever expressing support for a policy that would prohibit Muslim female staff at hotel reception counters from wearing headscarves during his tenure as Penang chief minister.
The Court of Appeal's decision in this matter not only serves as a robust reaffirmation of the High Court's prior ruling in favor of Mr. Lim, but it also resonates as a resounding message about the gravity of disseminating defamatory statements through the vast landscape of social media platforms. This precedent-setting case underscores the imperative need for conscientious and precise communication in the age of rapid digital dissemination. It unequivocally underscores the accountability that comes with the power to broadcast information to a global audience, reinforcing the idea that freedom of expression must be tempered with a sense of responsibility and integrity. This landmark decision prompts a collective reflection on the potential far-reaching impact of our words in the interconnected world we inhabit, compelling us to exercise prudence and diligence in all our digital interactions.
Kamran is a content creator under the Newswav Creator programme, where you get to express yourself, be a citizen journalist, and at the same time monetize your content & reach millions of users on Newswav. Log in to creator.newswav.com and become a Newswav Creator now!
The User Content (as defined on Newswav Terms of Use) above including the views expressed and media (pictures, videos, citations etc) were submitted & posted by the author. Newswav is solely an aggregation platform that hosts the User Content. If you have any questions about the content, copyright or other issues of the work, please contact Newswav.
