Singapore High Court orders former PM Lee’s brother to pay damages to Indian-origin ministers in defamation case

Justice Goh awards damages to ministers defamed by Lee Hsien Yang, citing malice and lack of defense.

Lee Hsien Yang, the brother of former Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, has been ordered by the High Court to pay SGD 200,000 ($147,880) each to Indian-origin ministers K Shanmugam and Vivian Balakrishnan for defaming them over their rental of state properties in an affluent suburb here.

In a judgment released on Friday, Justice Goh Yihan explained his reasons for awarding the damages to the two Ministers, who had filed separate defamation claims against Mr. Lee, the youngest son of the city state’s founder Prime Minister, the Late Lee Kuan Yew.

The lawsuits were initiated over comments Lee Hsien Yang made on his Facebook page on July 23 last year, suggesting that the Ministers had acted corruptly by having the Singapore Land Authority (SLA) give them preferential treatment in the rental of the Ridout Road properties.

Mr. Lee, who is not in Singapore, also charged that "trust in the People’s Action Party (PAP) PAP has been shattered", pointing to then-PM Lee Hsien Loong's "failure of leadership".

The People’s Action Party (PAP), founded by the late Lee Kuan Yew, has ruled Singapore ever since independence.

The Facebook comments came after the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau (CPIB), in its findings released a month before the post, said there had been no wrongdoing or preferential treatment given to the two ministers.

Mr. Lee did not appear in court to defend himself against the allegations.