Lee Hsien Loong v Leong Sze Hian 27 [2021] SGHC 66 The defendant’s Post, as reproduced above, states that he has shared a link, from THECOVERAGE.MY, with the following text:15 Breaking News: Singapore Lee Hsien Long Becomes 1MDB’s Key Investigation Target – Najib Signed Several Unfair … 28 The title of the Article, which was linked from the Post, was: Breaking News: Singapore Lee Hsien Loong Becomes 1 MDB’s Key Investigation Target – Najib Signed Several Unfair Agreements with Hsien Loong in Exchange of Money Laundering. 29 The phrase “Lee Hsien Loong becomes 1 MDB’s key investigation target” clearly suggests that the plaintiff was involved at the heart of the 1MDBrelated wrongdoing. After all, the connotation of one having become a “key” investigation target points strongly towards one’s deep involvement in the 1MDB scandal. The 1MDB scandal has also become, in effect, a byword for corruption and improper governmental dealings, and the average reader of the Post and/or Article would be amply aware of this given the multitude of news articles on the topic.16 Moreover, the title of the Article further suggests that various “unfair” agreements had been entered into between the plaintiff and Mr Najib, which were the result of a quid pro quo with the plaintiff providing the assistance of Singapore banks in laundering stolen money. Against the backdrop of allegations of criminality surrounding the defalcation within 1MDB, the defendant’s Post extracting part of the title of the Article, and the Article itself, attract the meaning that the plaintiff is corrupt and, at the very least, implicated in the wrongdoing associated with 1MDB. The Article, in particular, clearly insinuates that the plaintiff was involved in criminal activities in order to obtain 15 See [6] above. 16 See PCS at [13]. 14

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