Singapore's Straits Times Threatens to Sue Best Selling Author

The Straits Times has threatened to sue John Harding, author of ESCAPE FROM PARADISE, Amazon's #1 best seller, because Harding had questioned the role of the son of Singapore's Prime Minister in the battle against SARS.

John Harding, co-author of the bestselling book, ESCAPE FROM PARADISE, questioned the role of Dr Goh Jin Hian, only 35, who heads up a major medical conglomerate which missed the diagnosis of Singapore's latest SARS victim. Dr Goh is the son of Singapore's Prime Minister.

Now the Straits Times, Singapore's leading newspaper is threatening to sue Mr. Harding claiming that an article on his website, http://www.escapefromparadise.com, made "innuendos" that the Straits Times practiced "political favoritism" as part of a possible SARS cover-up.

In America, such a charge would be ridiculous, but in dictatorial Singapore matters are different.

The Association for Democracy in Singapore, in a press release, dated May 22, 2003, has come to the defense of Mr. Harding stating:

"The Straits Times (ST) claims Mr Harding's statement is defamatory available on Harding's website (http://www.escapefromparadise.com/NewFiles/bc.html) towards the Straits Times and The Singapore Press Holdings (SPH). The paper claims the article shows the ST and SPH to have fabricated and disguised true facts of the story, were unprofessional and lacked journalistic integrity, practised political favouritism and were dishonest and corrupt in its business activities.

While we are unable to comment on whether ST intentionally fabricated and disguised the true facts of the story or whether it is corrupt in its business practices, it is clear that ST does lack jounalistic integrity and practices political favouritism.

Any attempt to claim that ST and its associated companies are fair and upholds journalistic integrity in issues with political implications, is an attempt to mock the intelligence of Singaporeans and contradictory to the statements and studies of various academics and commentators who have written extensively on the situation of the Singaporean media."

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