PETALING JAYA: The civil court in Basel-Stadt, Switzerland, will hear a defamation suit by Jamilah Taib Murray, daughter of Sarawak governor Abdul Taib Mahmud, against Swiss human rights and environment NGO Bruno Manser Fonds (BMF) on Wednesday.
Jamilah, her husband Sean Murray, and her Canada-based real estate corporation Sakto Group have sued BMF and its director, Lukas Straumann, for defamation based on statements linking her and her real estate investments to corruption related to the Sarawak logging industry.
According to BMF, the defamation case has been classified as a strategic lawsuit against public participation (SLAPP) by the Coalition Against SLAPPs in Europe (CASE).
The coalition defines a SLAPP as “an abusive lawsuit filed by a private party with the purpose of silencing critical speech”.
In a statement today, BMF said a 2022 report by the Centre for Independent Journalism noted that SLAPPs are also “on the rise” in Malaysia, and most targets are activists and journalists, while most perpetrators are corporations and high-ranking public servants.
“Recently, the United Nations special rapporteurs for human rights defenders, and on the rights of indigenous peoples expressed their concern that a lawsuit by timber giant Samling
against Sarawak-based NGO SAVE Rivers may be classified as a SLAPP,” it said.
It said that last week, more than 70 organisations, including Sahabat Alam Malaysia (SAM), SAVE Rivers, and Penan NGO Keruan, released an international solidarity declaration, calling on Jamilah to withdraw her lawsuit.
The suit calls for the deletion of 249 publications of BMF, and the injunction of any further statements connecting Jamilah and her corporation to alleged wrongdoing.
BMF said that as no witnesses will be called at the court hearing, it will hold a “Rainforest Tribunal” on Tuesday, during which Indigenous activists and international experts will testify
informally as witnesses to alleged rainforest destruction in Sarawak.
The event will be live-streamed. - FMT
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