The Edge Media Group publisher Ho Kay Tat said that the Federal Court’s decision to dismiss the Home Ministry’s appeal against the newspaper is a win for press freedom in Malaysia.

“This conclusion of a two-year legal process is a victory not just for The Edge but for all news media and journalists.

“We have a public duty to report the truth and we must all live up to that responsibility,” Ho told Malaysiakini when contacted today.

The Federal Court yesterday unanimously ruled that the Home Ministry and its secretary-general will have to pay damages for the suspension order issued against The Edge Communications Sdn Bhd from July 27 to Sept 21 in 2015 over a series of reports on 1MDB.

The Edge, which operates The Edge Financial Daily and The Edge Weekly, had initially been ordered by the Home Ministry to suspend both publications for a period of three months.

However, the suspension was lifted after less than two months following a High Court order which quashed the suspension.

Ho said that The Edge had suffered financial losses due to the suspension but everyone on the team remained committed.

“We continued to publish digitally until we won our case in the High Court and resumed printing after two months,” he said.

While the Federal Court ordered for damages to be paid to The Edge, the panel made no order as to costs.

When asked for an estimation of damages The Edge is expected to be compensated for, Ho said he does not know.

“We have to wait for the court to decide after we submit to them our claims,” he said.

It was reported that the Kuala Lumpur High Court will be assessing the damages.