CIJ slams Bestinet's billion-ringgit lawsuit, urges safeguards

The Centre for Independent Journalism (CIJ) has condemned Bestinet Sdn Bhd’s billion-ringgit lawsuit against multiple media outlets and individuals, describing it as an attempt to suppress public scrutiny.

It said the lawsuit had clear elements of a strategic litigation against public participation (Slapp), aimed at silencing journalists reporting on matters pertaining to the public interest, and urged the government to institute clear legislative guidelines to prevent harm from such litigation.

“Slapp, much like this case here, is aimed at burdening media organisations with exorbitant legal costs and procedural matters that would have a chilling effect on investigative reporting and chill public scrutiny.

“Ultimately, even if the underlying claims may not succeed in court, the mere threat of such actions can promote legal censorship and self-censorship amongst those with these civil duties of public interest reporting, conflicting with Article 10 of the Federal Constitution that enshrines freedom of expression and by extension, media freedom,” said CIJ executive director Wathshlah Naidu in a statement today.

She added that clear anti-Slapp mechanisms must be established to allow for early dismissal of lawsuits filed primarily to stifle speech or reporting on matters of public interest.

Legal action against alleged defamation

Yesterday, it was reported that Bestinet had sued 10 media outlets and individuals, including Malaysiakini, for over RM1 billion in damages.

This was over Bloomberg’s report “Everyone gets a cut, and migrant workers pay the price”, published on Jan 23, and subsequent reports repeating its claims and commenting on the issue, which Bestinet and its founder Aminul Islam Abdul Nor alleged to be defamatory.

They sought RM500 million each in special damages from Bloomberg’s New York and Kuala Lumpur offices, as well as RM5 million from each of the eight remaining respondents to the suit.

Other defendants are The Edge Communications Sdn Bhd (publisher of The Edge), MNow Media Sdn Bhd (publisher of MalaysiaNow), Norhafizan Muhamad and Nur Azwan Nusi (as owners of a partnership that operates Harapan Daily), former MACC chief commissioner Latheefa Koya, former economy minister Rafizi Ramli, and content creator Iswardy Morni, who runs the YouTube channel “YB Youtube Channel”.

Apart from the special damages and other reliefs, the plaintiffs also submitted an ex parte application for an interim injunction to prevent the defendants from further disseminating the allegedly defamatory statements pending disposal of the case, but this was rejected by Kuala Lumpur High Court judge Roslan Mat Nor.

‘Go through Media Council instead’

Lauding the court decision, Wathshlah urged authorities to ensure that suppressing information is only done when there is clear evidence of harm and in accordance with international standards of necessity, legitimacy, and proportionality.

She added that all grievances and complaints against the media should be directed to the Malaysian Media Council.

“If Bestinet believes the reporting by media outlets was inaccurate or unethical, a Media Council process could be faster and less adversarial than a RM1 billion lawsuit. It would also signal that the company is focused on correcting the record rather than punishing the press.

“In a progressive society, we should see strategic litigation as a last resort, especially with the existence of such an institution (Media Council) that seeks to mediate issues between the public and the media.

“Its multistakeholder nature allows for decisions on the media to be made that are congruent with a democratic society and a consultative approach,” she said.

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