Fmr Pres Ramotar wins $20M defamation against KN

…to also pay $2.4M in costs for oil blocks allegations

High Court Judge Navindra Singh on Friday awarded $20 million in damages to former President Donald Ramotar, who successfully mounted a defamation lawsuit against Kaieteur News, its publisher Glenn Lall, and former Editor-in-Chief Adam Harris. Apart from damages, Ramotar was also awarded $2.4 million in costs.
The lawsuit for the tort of defamation stemmed from publications made in the Kaieteur News and broadcasts on Kaieteur Radio during June 2019, which suggested that the former President corruptly signed and granted two Petroleum Prospecting Licences to carry out prospecting operations in the Kaieteur and Canje Blocks.

Following a trial, Justice Singh rendered a written judgement in which he recapped the evidence led on behalf of Ramotar and Kaieteur News. The Judge related that it was clear that while he was President, Ramotar signed the agreements granting two Petroleum Prospecting Licences. According to Justice Singh, Ramotar in his testimony explained the various reasons and thought processes that guided the signing of the agreement.
Among them included the fact that there was a territorial dispute by Venezuela over the area and the fact that there was difficulty historically in generating interest in oil companies in the area, and the agreements were signed following applications by those companies being approved by the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission.

Though the reasons for signing the agreements granting the Petroleum Prospecting Licences may not appear material to the libel suit, Justice Singh noted that the existence of such facts, which could have been discovered by Kaieteur News, ought to have guided the newspaper’s publications and broadcasts.

Kaieteur News in defence pleaded justification and fair comment. But Justice Singh noted that both defences were not established. In fact, the Judge held that the newspaper failed to lead any evidence or establish that the signing of the agreements granting the licences was done clandestinely by Ramotar.
The Judge held, too, that Kaieteur News failed to prove that the entities that received the Petroleum Prospecting Licences were connected in any way to Ramotar, much less corrupt. According to the High Court Judge, the newspaper also failed to prove that the former President benefitted financially from any sale/transfer of the licences by those entities, which justifies such statements and inferences that were conveyed in the publications.
The Judge pointed out that a press statement released by Ramotar concerning the granting of the licences should have caused Kaieteur News to verify the truthfulness of the publications before publishing same multiple times.

“[Kaieteur News has] failed to produce one iota of evidence to support the intended and conveyed message of the publications and broadcasts, to wit, that [Ramotar] signed the agreements to corruptly benefit and in fact did corruptly benefit,” the Judge underscored in the 22-page decision.
Justice Singh said that how Kaieteur News pleaded its defence, further cast aspersions on Ramotar’s character, knowing very well that the newspaper did not have evidence to substantiate the pleadings. For instance, the Judge said that the newspapers never issued an apology or expressed any regret over the libellous publications.
According to Justice Singh in his testimony, Lall attacked the former President’s character, when he said, “I am saying that Donald is a corrupt man” and “I am calling for Ramotar to be investigated for corruption and crime against the people of Guyana.”
“The publications unmistakably convey the impression that the oil blocks were sold and/or disposed of and no longer the property of Guyana when in fact the agreements signed by [Ramotar] only granted Petroleum Prospecting Licences for the purpose of carrying out prospecting operations in what is known as the Kaieteur and Canje Blocks, a fact that must have been known to [Kaieteur News] or easily discoverable by examining the contracts.”
“The Court finds that the publications clearly attacked [Ramotar’s] character, labelling him as a dishonest person that engages in fraudulent or criminal practices and further that he engaged in such conduct when he was the President of Guyana thereby stealing from the people [citizens] of Guyana,” Justice Singh held.
Moreover, the Judge concluded that the libel attacked Ramotar’s integrity and professional reputation and him being a very public figure at the time, serving in the highest office of the land, indeed made the libel very grave. “The nature of the libel was bound to cause distress, hurt, and humiliation to [him].”
Taking this into consideration, the Judge found that Ramotar was defamed by the publication and awarded damages and costs against the newspapers. “On the evidence, the publications and broadcasts cannot possibly be considered to be justified,” the Judge further noted.
Concerning the $20 million awarded for damages, the Court ordered that interest be paid at the rate of six per cent per annum from June 26, 2019 – the date the claim was filed to March 12, 2021 – the date the judgement was delivered and at four per cent per annum thereafter until the sum is fully paid.
Kaieteur News’ publisher Glenn Lall and its former Editor-in-Chief were represented by lawyer Nigel Hughes, while Ramotar was represented by lawyer CV Satram.