Selangor executive councillor and Seputeh MP Teresa Kok has issued two legal letters demanding a public apology and millions of ringgit in damages from an Umno division leader, a short story writer and Utusan Malaysia.

In a letter of demand to Cheras Umno chief Wira Syed Ali Al-Habshee, Kok claimed he had uttered defamatory words against her which was published in Star on Oct 13.

Syed Ali had reportedly said: “Teresa has challenged the honour of Malays by suing Utusan Malaysia as it is a newspaper owned by the Malays... Challenging the Malays is similar to challenging Umno.”

The article also paraphrased Syed Ali as saying that questioning the azan (Muslim call to prayer) was akin to questioning the honour of the Malays and Islam.

teresa kok released from isa 190908 03 Kok’s letter stated that Syed Ali’s statements implied that she was, among others, a racist, religious bigot, a politician bereft of integrity, untrustworthy, intolerant, anti-Islam and anti-Malay.

“(The statement) is premeditated and calculated to tarnish, malign, defame and seriously injure the good name and character of our client,” reads the letter prepared by legal firm SN Nair and Partners.

The letter also demanded retraction of the statements, a public apology and RM10 million in damages from Syed Ali.

Earlier, Kok had filed a RM30 million defamation suit against Utusan Melayu (M) Bhd and the paper’s columnist Zaini Hassan over an article which allegedly defamed her.

The suit was filed following her release from seven days of detention under the Internal Security Act (ISA).

umno supreme council special meeting 260809 syed hamid Home Minister Syed Hamid Albar (right) said at the time that her arrest was linked to her alleged involvement in petitioning a mosque to lower the volume of azan over the loudspeakers.

The allegations surfaced in Zaini’s article but were denied by Kok.

Syed Ali’s remarks which have offended Kok were made when he launched a legal-defence fund for Utusan Malaysia to contest the RM30 million suit.

Utusan Melayu (M) Bhd has also filed a suit against Kok for allegedly defaming the company when she allegedly accused Utusan Malaysia of distorting her statements about the food she was served while under ISA detention.

Compensation for ‘threat to life’

Kok has sent a separate letter of demand to prominent writer Chamil Wariya and the editor of Utusan Malaysia over the publication of a short story ‘Politik baru YB J’ which appeared on Oct 12 in Mingguan Malaysia .

The story describes a female member of Parliament named Josephine who was deemed anti-Malay and anti-Islam, and who was eventually murdered.

cerpen bunuh politik baru yb j chamil wariya 151008 In her letter of demand, Kok said that the story by Chamil (left) was designed to deliberately encourage and fan racial and religious hatred towards her.

“(The article) is deliberately designed to justify and or encourage the causing of grave physical harm to our client including assassination,” reads the letter.

Kok has told Utusan Melayu (M) Bhd to retract the article and publish an apology.

“Our client has also instructed us to demand damages from you for the injury caused to her reputation and threat to her life of RM100 million,” adds the letter.

Both letters were issued on Oct 17. The two recipients have been given seven days to reply, failing which legal proceedings will be initiated.