Sarawak Report editor denies accusing Terengganu Sultanah of corruption
(MMO) – Sarawak Report editor Clare Rewcastle-Brown has denied suggesting in a book on the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) scandal that the Terengganu Sultanah was involved in corrupt practices, following a defamation lawsuit by the latter.
Rewcastle-Brown made the assertion in her statement of defence where she denied defaming the Terengganu Sultanah, news portal Malaysiakini reported.
Rewcastle-Brown also reportedly claimed that her book titled The Sarawak Report: The Inside Story of the 1MDB Exposé does not suggest the Terengganu Sultanah was influencing the administration of Terengganu, or that she had ties to fugitive tycoon Low Taek Jho or Jho Low.
“The only imputation capable of being derived in this context [from a book] is that Jho Low used his ties with the Terengganu royal family to obtain an advisory role in the setting up of the Terengganu Investment Authority (TIA).
“The imputation is incapable of bearing a defamatory meaning [to her],” Rewcastle-Brown was quoted as saying by Malaysiakini in her statement of defence.
TIA is the precursor to 1MDB.
The statement of defence was filed by Rewcastle-Brown and her book’s publisher as well as printer, who were also sued by the Terengganu Sultanah.
On November 21, the Terengganu Sultanah had filed the defamation lawsuit ― against Rewcastle-Brown, Chong Ton Sin who is in business as publisher Gerakbudaya Enterprise, and printer Vinlin Press Sdn Bhd ― at the High Court in Kuala Lumpur.
According to Malaysiakini, Sultanah Nur Zahirah had in her statement of claim said that she was never involved in the Terengganu state administration or TIA’s formation.
She also reportedly denied knowing Low, or backing him to have an advisory role in TIA, or approving his setting up of TIA or a sovereign wealth fund.
Today was scheduled for case management of the defamation lawsuit.
When contacted, the trio’s lawyer Americk Singh Sidhu told Malay Mail that the next case management date would be on January 30.
Prior to the filing of the lawsuit, the Terengganu Sultanah’s lawyers had in September sent a legal letter to the trio to demand an apology and retraction of the allegedly defamatory statements on page three of the book, as well as a demand that they stop selling and circulating the book.
Sarawak Report had previously on September 27 apologised if the Terengganu Sultanah had been “upset by any misinterpretations” of the book’s content, clarifying that it did not suggest that the Terengganu Sultanah conspired with Jho Low or was personally involved in 1MDB or its precursor TIA.
Sarawak Report had also then claimed that a careful reading of the cited passage would make it clear that there was no allegation made against anyone in the Terengganu royal family about the 1MDB affair, which took place after Terengganu’s involvement in the fund ceased.
