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KUCHING, Aug 10: Jamilah Taib Murray, the daughter of Sarawak Governor Tun Pehin Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud, along with her husband Sean Murray and their Canadian-based company Sakto Corporation, are suing Bruno Manser Fonds (BMF) for defamation in the Civil Court of Basel-Stadt in Switzerland.
The defamation case brought forth by the Taib-Murray family against BMF, a Swiss non-governmental organisation (NGO) focused on human rights and the environment, is scheduled for a hearing on Aug 16 in the Basel Civil Court.
In a statement today, The Borneo Project director Jettie Word said yesterday (Aug 9), some 75 organisations sent a letter of solidarity to the Sakto Group and Vischer law firm, the legal representation for the case, asking them to withdraw the lawsuit.
In the letter, the signing organisations asserted that it is the core responsibility of civil society organisations to speak out in public interest and to defend free speech.
Jettie added that BMF will face the powerful Malaysian heiress in a defamation lawsuit on Aug 16, the day after the organisation plans to call its own witnesses in a “Rainforest Tribunal”.
As described on the tribunal’s website, the Rainforest Tribunal is being prompted by a civil lawsuit filed by Jamilah against the BMF.
The Rainforest Tribunal of Basel, it explained, is a purely symbolic event to which guests from Sarawak and experts are invited to testify as witnesses before a staged tribunal. It serves to review real events and place them in a larger context. — DayakDaily
