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SINGAPORE – Failing to sue his brothers for the statements they made regarding his family’s home at 38 Oxley Road did not mean “carte blanche” for anyone else to use what they had said to defame him, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said.
He was speaking from the witness stand in court on Monday (November 30), the first day of a week-long hearing for his defamation lawsuit against Terry Xu, editor of The Online Citizen (TOC) website.
In his testimony, Prime Minister Lee also said that the public family dispute over the fate of the Oxley property is one-sided, noting that he and his wife Ho Ching had no animosity against his brother Lee Hsien Yang and his sister Lee Wei. Ling.
The defamation lawsuit involves a TOC article published in August last year titled “PM Lee’s wife Ho Ching strangely shares an article on severing ties with family members.” The article refers to a Facebook post by Dr. Lee, in which she claimed that PM Lee had misled her late father, Founding Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew, into believing that 38 Oxley Road had been posted by the government.
The TOC article, PM Lee’s attorneys have said, contains “sensational” allegations that seriously damage his character and reputation.
In his cross-examination of PM Lee, Xu’s attorney, Lim Tean, said that since the prime minister had decided not to sue his brothers over their allegations, it was “understandable” that the TOC editor thought he could refer to what they had saying.
“It’s not like anyone can say anything,” said PM Lee. “I had decided to take a different approach with my brothers, but that didn’t mean carte blanche for anyone else to use that and smear me even more.
“I am not required to sue everyone to sue one person. I consulted an attorney and decided who to sue.”
Then Mr. Lim asked: “Are you suggesting to Singaporeans and Singaporeans that the media can never report what your brothers have accused you of, when it is a matter of intense public interest?”
PM Lee said that the media could, subject to defamation laws. Lim asked if this meant reporting only his side of the story.
“Not at all,” replied PM Lee. “They can file a complaint and, if I file a lawsuit, they can defend themselves, claim and demolish me, which is what they hope to do in this trial.”
He noted that Mr. Xu had repeated allegations that he had previously refuted, in an article read by more than 100,000 people, and that those who did not follow up on the case and its details would believe what was written.
“Your brothers have filed charges against you since 2017 … so are you content to let your brothers kill your reputation?” asked Mr. Lim.
Prime Minister Lee said that he had addressed his accusations in two ministerial statements, opened himself up to questioning in Parliament and invited his brothers to raise any suspicions. But they have not raised anything or sued, he said.
In his ministerial statement to Parliament in 2017 at 38 Oxley Road, Prime Minister Lee had said that suing his brother and sister in court would “further foul our parents’ names,” drag out the process for years, and cause more distraction and distress to Singaporeans. .
“As far as the public is concerned, not suing my brothers does not mean that I approve (of the allegations) or that it is true,” said Prime Minister Lee.
“But if others repeat it and I do not act against others for whom my inhibitions do not apply to sue brothers, that would further spread the poison and aggravate the damage.”
Family quarrel: “This too will pass”
Lim also asked Prime Minister Lee if there was a bitter relationship between his wife and his brothers.
“The animosity is evident from one side of my brothers,” the Prime Minister said. “Neither I nor my wife want this to continue or that we have something against him.”
The enmity, he emphasized, was on the part of his brothers.
“I don’t understand what it is about,” said PM Lee. “I have disassociated myself from the cause of the dispute. I no longer own 38 Oxley, I sold it to Lee Hsien Yang and recovered from the government’s handling of the matter. So there is nothing I can or cannot do to influence I have never made any posts on Facebook or criticized them publicly more than what I posted in my ministerial statements.
“And I hope against hope that one day, things will work out. But it’s one of those things that happens in life, and this too will happen.”
Lim then lobbied Prime Minister Lee about why he did not invite his siblings to a Chinese New Year reunion dinner after their father’s death, which was objected to by the prime minister’s attorney, lead attorney Davinder Singh.
Lim said he was testing Prime Minister Lee’s credibility. Judge Audrey Lim rejected the question, saying that while Mr. Lim had the right to do so, his questioning had to be relevant.
Lee Hsien Yang, Lee Wei Ling will not testify in court
In October last year, Mr. Xu also requested to bring PM Lee’s siblings to the lawsuit as third parties, intending that they bear damages if it is found that he has defamed PM Lee.
He said that the TOC article simply cited directly the public comments made by Dr. Lee and Mr. Lee Hsien Yang, and that they would know if the allegations were true.
On Monday, Lim said that Xu would discontinue any third-party involvement, thus ruling out the possibility of Lee Hsien Yang and Dr. Lee testifying in court.
Lim also defends blogger Leong Sze Hian in another defamation lawsuit filed by Prime Minister Lee, which will also be heard on Monday.
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