Jan 17 hearing of bid to quash LFL’s suit against S’pore minister

The Malaysian government has another opportunity before the Federal Court on Jan 17 to nullify a legal action by Lawyers for Liberty (LFL) against Singapore Home Minister K Shanmugam.

On that date, the apex court in Putrajaya would hear the Malaysian government’s application for leave to commence an appeal to strike out LFL’s lawsuit targeting Singapore’s attempt to enforce its anti-fake news law against the group.

When contacted this afternoon, LFL’s counsel Shahid Adli Kamarudin confirmed the apex court hearing of the appeal leave application.

In the event that the apex court grants leave, then it would next fix a separate date to hear oral submissions on the merits of the appeal.

LFL is suing Shanmugam (above) over the Singapore government’s issuance of a “correction direction” against the group over its (group) allegation on the island republic’s treatment of prisoners.

The “correction direction” was issued under Singapore’s Protection From Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act 2019 (Pofma).

The apex court on Jan 17 is also set to hear the Malaysian government’s appeal leave application to strike out LFL’s other related suit.

LFL’s second suit seeks to restrain the Malaysian government from assisting Singapore to enforce Pofma against the group.

On July 20 last year, the Court of Appeal in Putrajaya allowed LFL’s appeal to reinstate the suit against Shanmugam.

The ruling overturned the Kuala Lumpur High Court’s decision last year to strike out the human rights group’s suit against Shanmugam, paving the way for it to be heard in Malaysia.

The Court of Appeal had also allowed LFL’s appeal to reinstate the second suit that seeks to prevent the Malaysian government from helping to enforce Singapore’s Pofma order against the group.

Singapore’s issuance of a “correction direction” under Pofma came after the group published details of Malaysian prisoners being executed in a purportedly brutal and unlawful fashion at Changi Prison on Jan 16, 2020.

A “correction direction” is issued by the Singapore government to an offending party to make a correction notice for publications deemed false or erroneous and to also provide access to the correct facts.

In a 2020 statement on its official portal, the Singapore government claimed that LFL’s allegations contained “false statements of fact”.

Singapore’s Home Ministry had called the claims “untrue, baseless, and preposterous allegations”, adding that all judicial executions in the state were carried out in strict compliance with the law.

It instructed the Pofma office to issue a “correction direction” against LFL’s statement on its website.

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