In his written judgement released to members of the media, Judge Lee Seiu Kin ordered CPF activist blogger Roy Ngerng to pay Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong S$150,000 in damages for defamation.
The Judge said Ngerng was malicious and "cynically defamed" PM Lee so as to attract more viewers to his blog where he talks about CPF and financial issues.
He added that Ngerng's allegation that PM Lee misappropriated CPF monies was "one of the gravest that could be made against any individual, let alone a Head of Government".
In July, international watchdog Human Rights Watch slammed PM Lee Hsien Loong for behaving just like his deceased father, Lee Kuan Yew, in threatening his opponents with defamation lawsuits. He said that this defamation suit says a lot about Singapore's leaders disregard for freedom of expression and their insecurities.
Is S$150,000 damages a fair amount to pay for Roy Ngerng's genuine mistake? Shouldn't PM Lee be the bigger man and gift Roy Ngerng a get out of jail pass?
http://www.allsingaporestuff.com/article/human-rights-watch-suing-roy-re...
Editor's Note:
Do you have a story to share? Please use our submission form or email us at editorial@allsingaporestuff.com. If not, why not give us a 'Like'?