The High Court today threw out with costs a suit filed by former Communist Party of Malaya (CPM) secretary-general Chin Peng against the Malaysian government.

Justice Balia Yusof Wahi ruled that the suit was "unsustainable" because hostility between the now defunct CPM and the government was a historical fact and undeniable.

He said the hostility termination agreement signed between the Malaysian government and CPM in 1989 itself had disclosed the arm struggle between the government and the group.

chin peng and communist malaya Balia also accepted senior federal counsel Amarjeet Singh's argument that the civil suit filed by Chin Peng and CPM members was one of defamation and not a breach of contract as claimed by their counsel Tommy Thomas because the nature of the complaint was that their reputation was tarnished.

Balia also ruled that the CPM cannot sue or be sued because it was not registered under the Societies Act.

The suit was filed following media reports on March 21 and May 6, 2005, that the then Deputy Information Minister Zainuddin Maidin had announced that Radio Televisyen Malaysia would air documentaries on the atrocities committed by communist insurgents after the Second World War and for a decade following Malaysia's independence.

Chin Peng, 85, who was born Ong Boon Hua in Sitiawan, filed the suit on behalf of himself and his members seeking damages and to stop the Malaysian government or its agents from making defamatory statements about them.

Reputation was already ruined

They also sought a declaration that the 1989 agreement was binding and claimed that under the pact, any press statement issued by both the government and Chin Peng shall not contain slanderous terms.

In its defence, the government said that from history and public knowledge, the reputation of Chin Peng and other members of his party had already been ruined in the eyes of the public all the while.

Balia also dismissed Chin Peng's personal suit against the government, saying Zainuddin uttered a very general statement which made no reference to Chin Peng.

Chin Peng, who currently lives in Thailand, had turned to the Malaysian courts to seek a return to Malaysia to live out the rest of his life.

But he was unsuccessful in getting the Federal Court to hear his appeal against two lower courts' decisions compelling him to produce his identification documents to prove that he is a Malaysian citizen before he could pursue his legal action against the Malaysian government.

- Bernama