KUALA LUMPUR: The High Court today ordered Khairy Jamaluddin to pay RM150,000 in damages to jailed opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim, after ruling that a statement by the Umno Youth leader nine years ago was defamatory.
Judge Azizul Azmi Adnan said Khairy’s “main belakang” statement had a sexual connotation meant to attack Anwar, and dismissed Khairy’s defence of fair comment and qualified privilege.
“The allegations are serious and are capable of bearing a defamatory meaning,” he said.
Azizul also ordered Khairy to pay Anwar RM60,000 as costs.
On March 7, 2008, Anwar filed a suit against Khairy and demanded RM100 million in damages, alleging that Khairy, then the Umno Youth vice-chief, had uttered defamatory words against him in a ceramah (speech) in Lembah Pantai on Feb 20, 2008.
Anwar claimed that a phrase used by Khairy, “main belakang”, suggested that he was a homosexual and a person of low morals.