The DAP-led Penang government said today the court’s decision to award Lim Guan Eng RM200,000 after being defamed by Umno’s Utusan Malaysia proves Pakatan Rakyat (PR) is not anti-Malay or anti-Islam.
High Court judge G.V Varughes ruled yesterday that an article titled “Kebiadapan Guan Eng” was “outright malicious and intentionally made to malign (Penang chief minister Lim) without cause and unfairly.”
The executive council said in a joint statement today that the judgment “conclusively demonstrates that neither the chief minister, DAP nor the PR state government are anti-Malay or anti-Islam, as was falsely and maliciously claimed by Utusan Malaysia.”
It said the ruling vindicated the administration’s policies which “since 2008 have been directed at serving all the people of Penang to the best of our abilities, without regard to race or religion.”
“We deplore the current state of the mainstream media in Malaysia, which is controlled by Barisan Nasional component parties and regularly used to stir up racial and religious disharmony amongst the people of Malaysia,” the executive councillors added.
Varughes had awarded DAP secretary general Lim (picture) a further RM25,000 in costs for the suit in which the Bagan MP claimed the Malay daily portrayed him as a racist who objected to anything related to the Malays.
The judge said the article was written in bad faith and the publication was motivated by spite and malice to subject Lim to contempt and scorn to the public at large.
Umno has repeatedly accused PR, especially DAP, of being anti-Malay, most recently at its general assembly where several delegates and leaders including deputy president Tan Sri Muhyiddin said the opposition was against Malays, anti-Islam, agents of Christianisation and disrespectful to Malay rulers.
Utusan Malaysia has also echoed these claims including an allegation that DAP had conspired with the Church to turn Malaysia into a Christian state.
PR has seen its support among Malays slide since Election 2008 with a study in October indicating DAP’s Penang Malays support slipping to a third from a high 50 per cent when Lim assumed office.
Lim has said he will donate the RM200,000 in damages to charity.
comments
LGE and Penang government and Pakatan led governments must stop appearing in media pictures alone, that is not good for the multi party approach of pakatan and will feed the racists taunts of BN....DAP leaders must ensure they are vphotographed with PAS, Pakatan Malay Indians ...pictures speak a thousaand words
This is what happens when judges decide based on their conscience and the facts of the case. Judges like Varguhese are now very rare with the judiciary completely losing their integrity and professionalism under the control of the executive. They may be compared to oases in the desert. Utusan has now been exposed as a malicious and mischievous liar and if the PM has any integrity (HE HASN'T ANYWAY), he will charge the editor of Utusan with sedition instead of directing him to appeal against the decision.
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