RM500k contempt fine on Mkini serves public interest: Federal Court

 

The RM500,000 fine imposed on Malaysiakini for contempt over its readers’ comments is an appropriate sentence that serves the public interest, the Federal Court ruled.

According to a copy of the full judgment of the majority 6-1 decision led by Court of Appeal President Rohana Yusuf, the sentence would deter others from committing similar acts of contempt involving readers’ comments.

“In our view, an appropriate sentence serves public interest in two ways. It may deter others from the temptation to commit such crime where the punishment is negligible, or it may deter that particular criminal from repeating the same crime.

“Not only regarding each crime, but in regard to each criminal the court always has the right and duty to decide whether to be lenient or severe,” she said.

Rohana added that the gravity of the contempt in Malaysiakini’s case, which involved baseless allegations of corruption, is much more severe than other contempt cases brought before the Federal Court.

“The language used and the allegation made is beyond any bounds of decency. It was targeted at the judiciary as a whole and the wild suggestion of the chief justice being corrupt.

“The impugned comments which were facilitated to be published by the first respondent (Malaysiakini) have besmirched the good name of the judiciary as a whole and subverted the course of administration of justice, undermined public confidence, offended the dignity, integrity and impartiality of the judiciary.

“Having weighed the mitigating factors as submitted by the respondent against the seriousness of the offence committed, it is only right that the sentence must not be too lenient.

“Public interest demands a deterrent sentence be meted out against the first respondent. We, therefore, hold a fine of RM500,000 is appropriate,” she said.

The other apex bench members that form the majority ruling were Chief Judge of the High Court of Malaya Azahar Mohamed; Chief Judge of Sabah and Sarawak Abang Iskandar Abang Hashim; and Federal Court judges Mohd Zawawi Salleh, Vernon Ong Lam Kiat, and Abdul Rahman Sebli.

The lone dissenting decision was delivered by Federal Court judge Nallini Pathmanathan, who held that Malaysiakini is not in contempt over the readers’ comments.

On Feb 19, the Federal Court in a majority 6-1 ruling found the news portal in contempt over its readers’ comments. This did not extend to its editor-in-chief Steven Gan who was found not guilty of the same charge.

It is the first time that the news portal was cited for contempt in its 21-year history. 

The apex bench had then meted out an RM500,000 fine on the news portal, in spite of the Attorney-General’s Chambers only seeking an RM200,000 fine for the contempt charge. 

However in a fundraising campaign later the same day, the news portal received public donation exceeding the amount of fine. 

Malaysiakini paid the fine the week after.

The ruling attracted concerns from various quarters, among them being the Malaysian Bar reportedly raising fears that it would have a chilling effect on press freedom of online media organisations and civil society groups in Malaysia. 

 - Mkini