Singapore leaders raise pressure on activist Tang

Singapore leaders raise pressure on activist Tang

SINGAPORE (Reuter): Singapore's political leadership has
increased the pressure on opposition politician Tang Liang Hong
with more suits for defamation.

Legal notices in the Straits Times newspaper yesterday
announced fresh suits against Workers' Party activist Tang by the
city-state's Senior Minister Lee Kuan Yew.

One notice charged that Tang slandered Lee in the hearing of
Ahmad Osman, a Straits Times journalist, on Jan. 23, and then
libeled the former prime minister in an article written by Ahmad
in the newspaper on Jan. 24.

Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong took action against Tang on
Thursday over the same article.

A second notice made similar claims against Tang over remarks
to Straits Times reporter Brendan Pereira on Jan. 10 and an
article in the newspaper on Jan. 11.

Lee's claims bring to nine the number of suits for defamation
against Tang by Singapore's political leadership since the
country's general election on Jan. 2, in which the ruling
People's Action Party (PAP) won 81 of 83 parliamentary seats.

Tang was an unsuccessful candidate in a hotly contested
constituency in the poll and left Singapore after the election
saying he had received death threats.

He is currently in London and was unavailable for comment on
Friday but has said he intends to fight the lawsuits and
eventually return to Singapore.

Tang is being sued separately for defamation by Lee, Goh and
nine other members of the PAP, for comments he had made during
the election campaign.

As in some previous suits, Tang's wife, Teo Siew Har, was
cited as a co-defendant in the writs. She was not mentioned in
either Straits Times articles and has shunned media attention.

Teo was prevented from leaving Singapore for Malaysia on
Monday. The Home Affairs Ministry later said the tax authorities
thought she may have been involved in the administration of
Tang's tax matters, which were being investigated.