Najib right to sue Mkini, says Muhyiddin
The prime minister's action to sue Malaysiakini is a right move and not in conflict with anyone's human rights in seeking the truth, said Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin.
He said the move was Najib Abdul Razak's right to seek justice in the court if a party felt that a person was being prosecuted.
In fact, Muhyiddin said, he was perplexed and described as 'unusual' that the Bar Council viewed it as an obstacle to media freedom and a violation of human rights.
"We want to inform that in this country, media has freedom but, at the same time, there are limits within the law and certain powers that cannot be contravened, especially if it involves defamation or matters that can bring about embarrassment.
"What more in this matter, it involves the prime minister, specifically the government. So it is his (Najib) right to take action to correct the situation through the legal process," Muhyiddin said.
The Bar Council in its statement said it viewed the court action taken by Najib, who is also Umno president, against Malaysiakini relating to allegations of corruption, as a violation of human rights.
On May 30, Najib and Umno executive secretary Ab Rauf Yusoh filed a suit against Malaysiakini on the publication of two articles last month that they claimed were of a defamatory nature.
Najib, as the second plaintiff, filed the summons in the High Court in Kuala Lumpur in his personal capacity while Ab Rauf, as the first plaintiff, acted on behalf of Umno.
According to Muhyiddin, the Bar Council and the news portal should have acted fairly in issuing statements.
Prior to this, the Malaysian Bar Council thorough its president Christopher Leong urged Najib to cancel the defamation suit as it viewed politicians should not make the article, which represented the people's opinions, as a response to such criticisms, whether it was true or otherwise.
- Bernama
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