Singapore (AFP)
A Singapore blogger claims to have collected through an online kitty the some 84,000 euros in damages he was ordered to pay the Prime Minister for defaming him by sharing an article on Facebook.
City-state Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong sued blogger Leong Sze Hian, accusing him of sharing an article published by a Malaysian news site, which claimed the Singaporean leader was the subject of an investigation in Malaysia linked to the looting of the 1MDB sovereign wealth fund.
The court ordered the blogger at the end of March to pay S $ 133,000 (around 84,000 euros) in damages to the Prime Minister, plus legal costs, the amount of which remains to be determined.
Mr. Leong then opened an online prize pool.
He said Sunday evening that more than 2,000 people had contributed, allowing the entire sum to be collected in 11 days.
"We have reached 133,000, thank you Singaporeans," he wrote on Facebook, "it is because of your help that we have had the courage to face."
During the trial, the prime minister accused the blogger of spreading "malicious and baseless" accusations that discredited the "integrity and honesty" of the government.
Advocates saw this trial and conviction as the latest example of the draconian measures taken by the government to try to silence any dissent online.
Singapore's draconian legislation that limits the freedom of expression of the opposition and the media has been criticized on numerous occasions by human rights NGOs.
Billions of dollars have been embezzled from the 1MDB fund, which is supposed to contribute to Malaysia's economic development, in a case with planetary ramifications that contributed to the downfall of Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak.
© 2021 AFP