GOVT WON’T SUE YOU IF YOU SAY IT IS MADE UP OF IDIOTS
THEREALSINGAPORE Sun, 11/25/2012 - 02:47
In a recent wide-ranging interview with the media, Law and Foreign Affairs Minister K Shanmugam touched on the topic of defamation. He explained that, as a rule of thumb, the government doesn’t sue for defamation. He said, “Individuals within government who are personally defamed can sue – for example when you say someone is corrupt. But if you say the government is made up of idiots no one can sue you because that will be considered an opinion, and you are entitled to that opinion, based on your assessment of government policies. If you say the policies are incompetent, anti-Singaporean, you can’t be sued.”
THEREALSINGAPORE Sun, 11/25/2012 - 02:47
In a recent wide-ranging interview with the media, Law and Foreign Affairs Minister K Shanmugam touched on the topic of defamation. He explained that, as a rule of thumb, the government doesn’t sue for defamation. He said, “Individuals within government who are personally defamed can sue – for example when you say someone is corrupt. But if you say the government is made up of idiots no one can sue you because that will be considered an opinion, and you are entitled to that opinion, based on your assessment of government policies. If you say the policies are incompetent, anti-Singaporean, you can’t be sued.”