Suriname's justice minister wins libel case against MP
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| Published on Wednesday, September 24, 2008 |
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By Ivan Cairo
Caribbean Net News Suriname Correspondent
Email: ivan@caribbeannetnews.com
PARAMARIBO, Suriname: Minister of Justice and Police, Chandrikapersad Santokhi, has successfully filed a libel suit against Member of Parliament and ex-dictator Desi Bouterse (NDP) for slander. A judge in Suriname last Friday ordered Bouterse to retract slanderous allegations he made about the minister the past weeks during party meetings.
The former military strongman was ordered to publish his apologies on the front page in the four local newspapers while he should offer the same statement for broadcasting to a number of TV and radio stations. However it is still unclear whether the minister will also file a lawsuit against a local newspaper, which first published the allegations and carried an editorial lashing at the government official. His attorney Freddie Kruisland said that his client didn't raise this issue with him.
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| Desi Bouterse. Photo by Ivan Cairo |
Meanwhile, on Monday Bouterse complied with the judge's order by publishing the retraction in the local media, but at the same time he issued a press release stating that he isn’t satisfied with the ruling and will appeal the decision.
On several occasions the opposition leader alleged that minister Santokhi had ties with drug traffickers. He also revealed that, through his ex-wife, the government official in November 2006 purchased a house from a notorious gangster, who was shot and killed in August in the Netherlands.
A defiant Bouterse said in his press release that regardless of the ruling he will continue his revelations about the minister's wrongdoings.
At a press conference of the Council of Ministers, the minister of Justice and Police vehemently denied any wrongdoing and involvement with the criminal in question. He also denied knowing this individual.
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| Suriname Justice Minister Chandrikapersad Santokhi |
During the press conference, Santokhi confirmed that indeed his wife bought the house but that he was only notified after the deal was completed. He further indicated that his spouse didn’t buy the house with money from his household.
“My wife and I made legal documents which gave her the right to purchase independently,” said the minister.
He added that in this specific case he was informed afterwards.
“I was not involved, not before, during or after the acquisition,” Santokhi stated.
In court Bouterse’s lawyer Irwin Kanhai produced documents as proof of the acquisition of the house. Judge Suzanne Chu ruled however that the minister’s ex-wife bought the house from a foundation and that the gangster was merely its official representative.
She also noted that, since there are no official criminal investigations against Santokhi and parliament has not stripped him of his immunity as is required in such cases, and Bouterse didn’t substantiate his allegations, “this also was a lie”.
The magistrate further ruled that Bouterse’s revelations were not in the public’s interest as he claimed, but were meant to damage the minister’s reputation. With the information regarding the purchasing of the house, the member of parliament has also violated the minister’s privacy, said the judge, which in this case is of a higher order than Bouterse’s right to freedom of expression.
Several coalition MP’s expressed satisfaction with the ruling, stating that in the future politicians will think twice before they make wild accusations against opponents which they can’t prove.
“The judge made history with this ruling and from now on politician will seriously take this into consideration in targeting opponents. I hope the judgement will have a positive impact on the campaigns for the coming elections,” said coalition MP, Mahinder Rathipal, in an invited comment.
“Politicians in the future will stick to their manifestos and intended policies and refrain from personal attacks. Now the issues will count,” he added.
Disgruntled over the ruling, opposition MPs said that the Bouterse/Santokhi-case was not a matter for the courts, but a clear cut political issue. This issue should be addressed on the political field and not by a judge, they claim.
Since the allegations were made on August 30 and September 6, neither president Ronald Venetiaan nor vice president Ram Sardjoe has commented on the case. | | | | Reads : 323 |
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