News site accused of contempt

KUALA LUMPUR: A Malaysian news site’s chief editor was taken to court for alleged contempt yesterday over readers’ comments, with his lawyer warning the case could have a “chilling effect”.

The case against Malaysiakini, an independent current affairs website that has made a name for itself recently by reporting on the misdeeds of the ruling elite, and editor-in-chief Steven Gan was brought on by the country’s attorney general.

It relates to the publication of five readers’ comments that were critical of the judiciary and which the attorney general said had eroded public confidence in the courts.

Proceedings began yesterday at the country’s top court, with prosecutors arguing that Malaysiakini had facilitated publication of the remarks. However, lawyers for the site said it had not intended to publish them and they were removed quickly once police notified the portal.

Defence lawyer Malik Imtiaz told the Federal Court that Mr Gan “had nothing to do” with publishing the comments.

“There is nothing to show [Malaysiakini] wilfully turned a blind eye to the publication,” he said.

The court said it would hand down a ruling at a later date. Mr Gan, who cofounded the site in 1999, could be jailed if judges rule against the site.

Since a scandal-mired party seized power earlier this year, criminal probes have been launched into journalists, activists and opposition figures in what critics say is a sweeping effort to silence dissent.

Just last week, the police began an investigation into a group of Al Jazeera journalists over a documentary about the plight of migrants.