FATHER AND SON SUE SDP

Unlike Malaysia, where the government uses the sedition act and ISA to muzzle the opposition and individuals, Singapore government takes the defamation route.

Many individuals and opponents of the Singapore government who opened their mouths to accuse them of wrongdoing without any backup evidence are taken to court on defamation court order. And it goes without saying, that if you cannot provide evidence for your allegations, be prepared to pay a heft sum, sometimes leading to bankruptcy.

In this latest case in Singapore where father LEE and son Lee sued the Singapore democratic party and its leaders for defamation.

At the centre of the defamation action, is an article which appeared in the SDP publication "Demokrat" in April 2006 with the headline "Government's role in the NKF scandal". NKF is short for national kidney foundation. At the height of the NKF scandal much was revealed about the abuses of the directors of NKF who used public donations to enrich themselves by way high bonuses payments and lawatan sambil belajar(same as our people).

Anyway coming back to the defamation case, the court found that the article had defamed son Lee and father Lee. Both leaders successfully obtained a summary judgment against SDP.

Now my hope is, our government can learn from our neighbors, and use this method to bring all opponents who speak their mind, which the government thinks have wounded their pride and proof to the public in open court. Its more democratic , instead of hiding behind the cloak of ISA and sedition which to me is medieval and has no place in this modern times.