Namibian Sun wins Supreme Court appeal
Namibian Sun has won a Supreme Court appeal after a wildlife farmer dragged the newspaper to court for defamation for an article describing the conditions in which he kept captured elephants.
In their judgment, deputy chief justice Petrus Damaseb and appeal judges Dave Smuts and Elton Hoff, said the newspaper had satisfied the standards of reasonable and responsible reporting.
The judges set aside a 2020 High Court order against the newspaper, and dismissed the claim, with costs, that had been brought by game dealer Johan Lombaard.
Lombaard and Golden Game CC launched a N$200 000 libel lawsuit against Namibia Media Holdings and Namibian Sun’s former editor, Festus Nakatana, based on a 2017 article about the conditions in which he kept three captured young elephants at a farm in the Mariental district.
The top court judges stated that it was clear "from the journalist’s evidence that she believed in the truth of the allegations contained in her report, as they had been confirmed by or were stated by the minister and the permanent secretary of the ministry."
The judges also found that "at no stage of the trial did the respondents take issue with the accuracy of her report concerning the statements of the minister and permanent secretary."
Worrying conditions
In the article, environment minister Pohamba Shifeta and then permanent secretary Malan Lindeque, were quoted as describing the conditions the elephants were being kept in as "horrific" and "deplorable".
The article stated that the elephants were being kept "in containers".
It was also reported that Lombaard did not have the required paper work to transport the elephants, which had been captured at a farm in the Grootfontein area, and the farm did not have the necessary ministry approval to keep elephants.
The judgment also found that the "ruling of the High Court refusing the application for leave to call two further witnesses is set aside with no order as to the costs of that application in the High Court."
In their judgment, deputy chief justice Petrus Damaseb and appeal judges Dave Smuts and Elton Hoff, said the newspaper had satisfied the standards of reasonable and responsible reporting.
The judges set aside a 2020 High Court order against the newspaper, and dismissed the claim, with costs, that had been brought by game dealer Johan Lombaard.
Lombaard and Golden Game CC launched a N$200 000 libel lawsuit against Namibia Media Holdings and Namibian Sun’s former editor, Festus Nakatana, based on a 2017 article about the conditions in which he kept three captured young elephants at a farm in the Mariental district.
The top court judges stated that it was clear "from the journalist’s evidence that she believed in the truth of the allegations contained in her report, as they had been confirmed by or were stated by the minister and the permanent secretary of the ministry."
The judges also found that "at no stage of the trial did the respondents take issue with the accuracy of her report concerning the statements of the minister and permanent secretary."
Worrying conditions
In the article, environment minister Pohamba Shifeta and then permanent secretary Malan Lindeque, were quoted as describing the conditions the elephants were being kept in as "horrific" and "deplorable".
The article stated that the elephants were being kept "in containers".
It was also reported that Lombaard did not have the required paper work to transport the elephants, which had been captured at a farm in the Grootfontein area, and the farm did not have the necessary ministry approval to keep elephants.
The judgment also found that the "ruling of the High Court refusing the application for leave to call two further witnesses is set aside with no order as to the costs of that application in the High Court."
Comments
Namibian Sun
No comments have been left on this article