Singapore court orders Bloomberg, reporter, to pay $356,000 for defaming ministers
Justice Audrey Lim said the article linked the ministers’ property deals to possible money laundering and rejected Bloomberg’s public interest defense.
- On Tuesday, July 14, the High Court awarded Cabinet ministers Shanmugam and Tan See Leng S$230,000 each in damages after ruling in their favor in a defamation suit against Bloomberg and reporter Low De Wei.
- The lawsuit arose from a December 2024 Bloomberg article titled 'Singapore Mansion Deals Are Increasingly Shrouded in Secrecy,' which detailed property transactions including Shanmugam's sale of his Queen Astrid Park home and Tan's purchase of a Brizay Park bungalow.
- Justice Audrey Lim found the article implied the ministers 'took advantage' of regulations to deal properties in a 'non-transparent manner' to 'avoid scrutiny that might extend to the possibility of money laundering,' impugning their personal integrity and professional reputation.
- Bloomberg argued the story listed the ministers as 'newsworthy examples' rather than implying wrongdoing; separately, authorities ordered the outlet to attach a 'correction notice' under the Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act.
- Singapore's leaders have frequently utilized defamation lawsuits against foreign media to protect their reputations, though critics argue such legal actions effectively stifle political dissent within the nation.
26 Articles
26 Articles
(Hanoi=Yonhap News) Correspondent Park Jin-hyung = A Singapore court [defended] the ministers' reputation regarding a Bloomberg article raising suspicions about the ministers' luxury real estate transactions...
A Singapore court has ordered Bloomberg and its journalists to jointly pay more than S$460,000 in compensation after an article about a mansion sale was interpreted as linking two ministers to money laundering and the concealment of transactions.
Singapore court orders Bloomberg to pay ministers in defamation case
A Singapore court ordered Bloomberg and a reporter to pay damages to ministers K Shanmugam and Tan See Leng over a property deals report. The ruling said the article linked their transactions to secrecy and money laundering claims, underscoring Singapore's strict defamation threshold.
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