The Sultanah’s lawyer, Haaziq Pillay Abdullah said the notice of appeal to the Court of Appeal was filed today.
Last week, judicial commissioner Lee Kien How @ Johan Abdullah ruled that a statement in Rewcastle Brown’s book, “The Sarawak Report: The Inside Story of the 1MDB Expose” was not defamatory.
The impugned statement read: “(Fugitive businessman Low Taek Jho, or Jho Low) was also friendly with a key player in Terengganu, the wife of the sultan, whose acquiescence was needed to set up the fund and he later cited her support as having been crucial to his obtaining the advisory position.”
“I see no defamatory imputation from the statements although there was obviously a matter of mistaken identity. Thus, the plaintiff’s case is, hereby, dismissed,” he said.
Publisher Chong Ton Sin and printer Vinlin Press Sdn Bhd were the other defendants named.
The Sultanah had initiated a RM100 million defamation suit in 2018, claiming Rewcastle Brown had made a disparaging statement about her in the book.
The book, which tells the story behind Sarawak Report’s investigations into the 1MDB scandal, was written by Rewcastle Brown.
The Sultanah claimed the statement suggested she was involved in corrupt practices and had interfered in Terengganu’s administration, besides using her status to influence the establishment of the Terengganu Investment Authority (TIA), as 1MDB was formerly known.
The Sultanah also alleged that the statement could also be construed to mean that she had helped Low secure his position as adviser to TIA.
In her defence, Rewcastle Brown claimed that she had made an “honest mistake” when identifying the “key player” in the impugned statement as the “wife of the Sultan”. She claimed that she ought to have referred to the Sultan’s sister instead.
Despite the factual error, the judge said Rewcastle Brown’s statement that the Sultanah consented or agreed to the establishment of the sovereign wealth fund did not degrade her reputation in any way.
Likewise, he said a person would not be discredited in any way simply because he or she supported someone for a job, especially given that such support, including by way of letters of support, is very much part of Malaysian culture.
Moreover, Johan said it was Low, himself, who claimed he had the support of the Sultanah for the position.