Editor Utusan mohon maaf pada Karpal Singh...

Seorang wartawan Utusan Melayu hari ini memberitahu Mahkamah Tinggi di sini bahawa beliau menulis artikel mengenai Pengerusi DAP Karpal Singh, empat tahun lalu tanpa sebarang niat jahat.

Zulkifli Jalil, 40, yang kini memegang jawatan sebagai pengarang berita di syarikat Utusan Melayu (M) Bhd mengakui wujud ketidaktelitian dan salah faham di dalam artikel bertajuk 'DAP diingat jangan bakar perasaan Melayu'.

Pengarang berita itu, yang memberi keterangan berhubung saman fitnah RM10 juta yang difailkan oleh Karpal Singh terhadap Utusan Melayu (M) Berhad, turut menyatakan bahawa ketika kejadian beliau tidak tahu bahawa wujud perbezaan antara perkataan menolak negara Islam dan menolak agama Islam sebagai agama rasmi negara.

Zulkifli turut mengakui bahawa beliau tidak menghubungi Karpal Singh untuk mendapatkan penjelasan ketika menulis artikel tersebut dan penulisannya bergantung kepada pengalaman serta laporan berita lain mengenai Karpal Singh yang ada kalanya membidas perjuangan PAS untuk membentuk negara Islam.

Sepanjang memberi keterangan, beliau beberapa kali memohon maaf kepada Karpal Singh dan memberitahu hanya menyedari artikel itu tidak tepat selepas Utusan Melayu menyiarkan 'ralat' pada 26 Ogos 2008 untuk menarik balik dan membuat permohonan maaf.

Sementara itu, Karpal Singh, menerusi kenyataan saksinya berkata perkataan itu (bahawa beliau menolak Islam sebagai agama rasmi negara ini) adalah tidak benar dan beliau tidak pernah berkata demikian.

Beliau berkata Islam ialah agama rasmi Malaysia seperti termaktub dalam Perkara 3(1) Perlembagaan Persekutuan dan bebas untuk mengamalkan agama-agama lain secara aman dan harmoni, dan beliau secara konsisten menyatakan pendirian itu dalam ucapan-ucapan beliau dan di Parlimen selama 26 tahun lepas.

"Disebabkan oleh artikel ini, orang ramai telah mula menganggap saya sebagai antiIslam dan seseorang yang sengaja mahu mewujudkan rasa benci di kalangan pelbagai bangsa di negara ini. Ini telah memberikan impak buruk yang serius terhadap maruah saya secara peribadi dan sebagai seorang profesional dan ahli politik," katanya.
 
Karpal Singh, yang juga anggota Parlimen Bukit Gelugor, memfailkan saman tersebut pada 19 September 2008 kerana mendakwa penerbit akhbar Utusan Malaysia menyiarkan artikel berunsur fitnah berhubung ucapannya pada Kongres Kebangsaan DAP ke-15 pada Ogos 2008 bertajuk 'DAP diingat jangan bakar perasaan Melayu' pada 25 Ogos tahun yang sama.

Hakim Datuk Nik Hasmat Nik Mohamad menetapkan 24 September untuk sebutan kes.

Defendan diwakili peguam B. Mohana Kumar manakala Sangeet Kaur bagi pihak Karpal Singh.- malaysiakini

Utusan writer repeatedly apologises to Karpal...

A senior writer with Utusan Malaysia apologised to DAP chairperson Karpal Singh several times in court today over an article written in four years ago.

The writer, Utusan news editor Zulkifli Jalil, admitted there was some negligence and misunderstanding on his part in writing the article, 'DAP diingat jangan bakar perasaan Melayu'.

Based on Karpal's speech at the DAP national congress in 2008, Zulkifli wrote in the report, the DAP leader said he rejected Islam as the country's official religion.

During his testimony, Zulkifli said at the time, he had taken "rejecting an Islamic state" and "rejecting Islam as the official religion of the country" to mean the same.

He also admitted he did not contact Karpal for clarification and that his writing was based on personal experiences and other news reports on Karpal's opposition to PAS' Islamic state agenda.

Zulkifli was the sole witness testifying during the hearing of a RM10 million defamation suit Karpal filed in the High Court in Kuala Lumpur.

According to national news agency Bernama, Zulkifli apologised to Karpal several times during his testimony and said he was unaware of his mistake until Utusan Malaysia published a correction on Aug 26, 2008, a day after the his article was published.

‘Utusan tarnished my reputation'

The correction states that Utusan had withdrawn the article and also apologised to Karpal.

However, Karpal has maintained his right to sue the Umno-owned newspaper due to the severity of offending article.

In his affidavit, Karpal said the words "bahawa beliau menolak Islam sebagai agama rasmi negara ini (that he rejects Islam as the official religion of the country)" was wrongly attributed to him in Zulkifli's Page 2 article.

He said Islam's position as the official religion of the country was enshrined in the federal constitution and his stand on this has been consistent, as reflected in his speeches in Parliament over the past 26 years.

"Because of this article, the public perceived me as a person who is anti-Islam, who wants to create discord among Malaysia's multi-ethnic populace," he said.

High Court judge Nik Hasmat Nik Mohamad will hear submissions from both parties on Sept 24.

Utusan Melayu (M) Bhd is represented by B Mohana Kumar while Karpal is represented by Sangeet Kaur Deo.- malaysiakini

 

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