The High Court has ruled in favour of Segambut MP Hannah Yeoh in her defamation case against Universiti Utara Malaysia (UUM) lecturer Dr Kamarul Zaman Yusoff, awarding her RM400,000 in damages.
Justice Datuk Aliza Sulaiman, who delivered the judgment, dismissed the defendant’s claim that Yeoh lacked locus standi and found no merit in his defence. The court concluded that two Facebook posts made by Kamarul between 10 and 17 May 2017 were defamatory.
In the posts, Kamarul accused Yeoh of using her political position to promote Christianity, referencing her autobiography Becoming Hannah: A Personal Journey as evidence of a so-called Christianisation agenda and alleging she aimed to turn Malaysia into a Christian nation.
Kamarul denied the claims were defamatory, arguing that his statements were justified. However, the judge found that Yeoh had successfully proven, on the balance of probabilities, that the publications were defamatory and exposed her to “hatred, ridicule and contempt,” especially in Malaysia’s multiracial and multireligious context.
“The defendant suggests the plaintiff is a threat to Islam and used her position to ‘Christianise’ the country. In a sensitive religious landscape, this would certainly subject the plaintiff to harm,” said Justice Aliza.
The court also found that the defendant had failed to establish any of the defences of justification, fair comment, or qualified privilege. Even if these had been proven, the plaintiff had sufficiently demonstrated malice.
“If the defendant genuinely believed an offence had been committed, he could have lodged a police report. Instead, he chose to publish the allegations on Facebook,” the judge stated.
She further dismissed the argument that the first post targeted the DAP party rather than Yeoh personally, citing that the defendant explicitly named her and that both the content and headlines clearly referred to her. The court noted that an ordinary reader would interpret the statements as alleging that Yeoh was unlawfully spreading Christianity and, by implication, committing a crime.
Justice Aliza ruled that Yeoh had proven her case and that Kamarul had acted with malice. She awarded RM400,000 in general and aggravated damages—RM200,000 for each post—and RM80,000 in costs.
However, the court rejected Yeoh’s request for a public apology, stating it could appear insincere. An injunction was granted to restrain Kamarul, his agents, or representatives from republishing the defamatory remarks or similar statements.
Yeoh was present in court, accompanied by her lawyer Sangeet Kaur Deo. Kamarul was not present.
Speaking to reporters, Yeoh expressed gratitude to her legal team and said, “After enduring years of defamation, justice has finally prevailed. These allegations were entirely false, and I have been praying since 2017 for this. I sincerely hope that no one will exploit religious sentiments or spread baseless accusations about me or my book in future.”
“The court has acknowledged that the issue involved religious sentiment. In a multiracial and multireligious country like ours, invoking such sentiments is akin to playing with fire. It is dangerous, especially when it involves slander. I believe slander is prohibited in Islam,” added the Youth and Sports Minister.
In response, Kamarul stated he would appeal the ruling. “I respect the court’s decision but disagree with its findings and reasoning,” he said in a statement. “I will be filing an appeal soon to challenge the decision based on both facts and legal grounds. This process is far from over, and I urge everyone to allow the courts to reassess the matter at the appellate stage.”