Pete Out Of Pocket RM4 Million

Raja Petra Kamaruddin has just been ordered to pay RM2 million to an academician whom he has been said to have libelled.

The academician in question is Universiti Utara Malaysia vice-chancellor Nordin Kardi.

Alor Star high court registrar Priscilla Gengadaran gave judgement to Nordin today when Pete failed to enter his defence.

Pete is said to have posted the libellous article posted in his blog on Dec 16, 2006.

Nordin also sued Parti Keadilan Rakyat, its chief editor and the editor of the party bulletin Suara Keadilan. All in, the registrar gave Nordin damages of RM 7 million.

It is understood Nordin and UUM had first sought to obtain a whopping RM85 million in damages but later changed their minds.

None of the defendants dignified Nordin’s suit with a response or defence.

The offending article is entitled 'Datuk Dr Nordin Kardi Ciplak Karya Saya? Mohon Penjelasan... (Has Datuk Dr Nordin Kardi Plagiarised My Work? Please Explain...).

The article is written by one Muhtar Suhaili who said his essay 'Mahasiswa Dan Tanggujawab Menguruskan Kejayaan (Graduands And The Responsibility Of Managing Success) was plagiarised by a chap going by the name of Nordin Kardi.

After Pete posted the article on his blog, Suara Keadilan used it in their publication on Dec 27.

According to the media, Pete also has to pay RM2 million to UUM while Suara chief editor and editor are to each pay Nordin RM1 million and the university RM500, 000. The libel case against Keadilan itself has not been heard.

Nordin was seen on TV today crowing over the win, describing it as a landmark decision against cyber misconduct, and urged others to pursue lawsuits against bloggers.

Will the bloggers strike back?