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Ex-Selangor PAS youth leader to pay RM80,000 to Teresa Kok for calling her ‘anti-Islam’
Ho Kit Yen -February 26, 2020 1:41 PM
KUALA LUMPUR: The High Court here ordered a former PAS Selangor youth leader to pay RM80,000 to Seputeh MP Teresa Kok for saying she was “anti-Islam”.
High Court judge Mohd Firuz Jaffril ordered Syarhan Humaizi Halim to pay the damages after ruling that he was liable for publishing the defamatory statement on his Facebook account.
“She (Kok) has proven two out of the three elements required under the law for defamation cases and that the statement made reference to her.
“I think that RM80,000 is sufficient enough.
“This is not to punish the defendant (Syarhan) with a large sum in damages and it is not meant to enrich the plaintiff (Kok),” he said.
Firuz also said that freedom of speech is guaranteed under the Federal Constitution but this right is subject to laws such as the Sedition Act and Defamation Act.
The court also awarded RM10,000 as costs to Kok after Kok’s lawyer K Murali said he was leaving it to the court’s discretion to decide on the amount.
Syarhan was represented by Wan Rohimi Wan Daud. Rohimi said he will speak to Syarhan on whether to appeal over today’s decision.
Kok filed the suit against Syarhan last year, claiming he had suggested that she was a racist and a bigot, adding that it could have “serious negative implications” on her reputation.
She sought damages as well as an injunction to stop Syarhan from further publishing articles accusing her of being anti-Islam.
https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2020/02/26/ex-selangor-pas-youth-leader-to-pay-rm80000-to-teresa-kok-for-calling-her-anti-islam/
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23 January 2019
Minister of Primary Industries Teresa Kok has demanded an apology and RM30 million in damages from Selangor PAS youth chief over a defamatory article which alleged that she was anti-Islam.
Kok, in her letter of demand dated Jan 23, through a legal firm SN Nair & Partners, claimed that Syarhan Humaizi Halim had written and published an article in his personal Facebook page on Jan 19 which was derogatory and defamatory.
The firm said the content in the article in their ordinary and natural meaning meant that Kok was against Islam, a racist and a bigot and a dishonest minister.
“We are therefore instructed to demand from you an immediate and unequivocal public retraction of the impugned article and removal and retraction of all the offending and defamatory comments, forthwith.
“An apology in the terms to be approved by us as solicitors for our client, to be published in newspapers or media of our client’s choice, and an undertaking by you not to repeat the above allegation and comments as per impugned words or the likes of the same,” the letter read.
The firm also stated that their client also instructed them to demand damages of RM30 million from Syarhan for the injury caused to Kok’s reputation.
“Ïf we do not receive a satisfactory reply within seven days from today, our instructions are to institute legal proceedings against you,” the firm said.
– Bernama
https://www.malaysiakini.com/news/461434
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