By Xian Qi
SINGAPORE — Singapore Supreme Court Judge Goh Han Sheng ruled in favor of himself today, concluding a brief trial in which he sued the Boston University Daily Free Press for libel.
The case arose following the publication, on May 13, 2009, of an op-ed piece written by Liberal Arts student Russell Wytchkoswki, in which he stated: “Singapore claims to have a free press, but the government appoints its friends as judges; said judges then act as their henchmen. As an example, Judge Goh Han Sheng roomed with Law Minister K. Shanmugam at law-school; later the pair became partners at the same firm. Last year, Shanmugam appointed Goh to the bench.”
Goh has since ruled in favor of the government in several cases where the media criticized the government. In each instance, the criticism was ruled as libel.
“This is libelous,” Judge Goh wrote in his ruling. “The Boston University Daily Free Press has been reckless with the truth. Such statements harm the integrity of Singapore’s independent judiciary, and as such, I award myself, the plaintiff – me – the sum of SGD 856,480 for harm to my reputation, another SGD 428,240 to the Law Minister for emotional distress and an additional SGD 280,043 to the Government of Singapore for reasons that I need not state.”
Judge Goh added that “until such damages are paid, the Boston University Daily Free Press, which is distributed on campus and at select Boston bookshops, is forbidden from publishing in Singapore.”
When reached for comment, the Boston University Daily Free Press editor, Darryl Fufkin, claimed he was unaware of the trial. “You’re shittin’ me,” said Fufkin. “Singapore – that’s in China, right?”
