BANGKOK – Like many online news outlets, the Malaysian news site Malaysiakini allows readers to post comments at the end of articles. This was costly on Friday, when a court ruled that the news site was legally responsible for comments by readers deemed insulting to the judiciary.
An appeal panel of seven judges found Malaysiakini guilty of contempt of court and ordered him to pay a fine of almost $ 124,000, more than double the amount sought by prosecutors, for five comments left by readers.
Media co-founder and editor-in-chief Steven Gan, who was acquitted of the same charge, said the heavy penalty appeared to be an attempt to get Malaysiakini off the market.
“This will have a terrible and frightening impact on discussions of issues of public interest and will be a death blow to our ongoing campaign to fight corruption,” Gan said after the hearing.
For decades, much of the media in Malaysia has been an ally of the government, but independent news outlets – mostly online – have emerged to provide critical coverage and give voice to the opposition. Gan supporters said he and Malaysiakini were being punished for the vehicle’s diligent reporting.
Readers’ comments were posted in a story about the Malaysian judiciary, which cares for its reputation. They were later removed from the article, but not quickly enough to avoid charges.
In their verdict, the judges concluded that Malaysiakini should have examined the comments and refrained from posting those that constituted contempt of court.
The panel rejected the defense’s arguments that Gan and the media were not legally responsible for his readers’ comments and that prosecutors should have been forced to prove that they intended to publish scandalous material.
The 500,000 Malaysian ringgit fine was much more than 200,000 ringgit, about $ 50,000, that prosecutors had sought. The defense had asked for a fine of a maximum of 30,000 ringgit, claiming it was the first time that such action was brought against a media outlet.
Four hours after the verdict, donors to a defense fund contributed more than enough to cover the entire fine, according to Malaysiakini.
Proponents of the site argued that a guilty verdict would have the effect of inhibiting freedom of expression in the country of 33 million people, who in recent years have been tortured on charges of high-level corruption in the government.
Malaysia’s Amnesty International said it was deeply alarmed by the verdict, calling it “a caricature of justice” and “a serious setback for freedom of expression in the country”.
“The use of disrespect for judicial laws to censor online debate and silence independent media is another example of reducing the space for people to express themselves freely in the country,” said the group’s executive director, Katrina Jorene Maliamauv.
The United States Embassy in Kuala Lumpur, the capital, also expressed concern about the decision. “Freedom of expression, including for members of the press and the general public, is fundamental to public discourse and democratic principles that support accountability and good government,” he said in a statement.
The case was brought up in June by Malaysian Attorney General Idrus Harun. He was appointed to the post by Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin, who took office less than a year ago at the head of an unelected government.
Muhyiddin’s government coalition includes former Prime Minister Najib Razak, who is accused of embezzling billions of dollars from a government investment fund he previously controlled.
In one of Idrus’s first acts as attorney general, the government dropped the money laundering charges against Najib’s stepson, Riza Aziz, a Hollywood producer, in a deal that critics said would leave him with $ 83 million of the quarter billion in government funds he was accused of receiving.
Mr. Najib has been charged with more than 40 criminal charges and is now on trial for some of them. Malaysiakini, along with other media, has covered the scandal for years.
“I am terribly disappointed,” said Gan. “What crime has Malaysiakini committed that we are forced to pay 500,000 when there are individuals accused of abuse of power for millions and billions who are walking free?”