The Online Citizen (TOC) chief editor Terry Xu did not appear at a High Court hearing in Singapore on Thursday, February 26, 2026, concerning defamation suits brought by Minister for Home Affairs K. Shanmugam and Minister for Manpower Tan See Leng. The hearing was convened to determine the amount of damages Mr. Xu would pay following a default judgment issued in August 2025, after he failed to file a defense against the claims.
Mr. Shanmugam and Dr. Tan both attended the hearing and briefly took the stand to confirm affidavits they had previously submitted to the court. Justice Audrey Lim posed clarifying questions to both ministers regarding the dates of their respective appointments, according to court reports.
Representing the ministers, Senior Counsel Davinder Singh submitted a written opening statement that did not specify a precise amount for damages. However, Mr. Singh argued that Mr. Xu’s failure to mount a defense meant the facts presented in the ministers’ statements of claim were effectively admitted. He characterized the alleged defamation as “of the gravest kind,” emphasizing the ministers’ positions as public leaders of high integrity.
Mr. Singh further contended that the widespread reach of the TOC website and its social media platforms justified a higher assessment of damages. He asserted that the court could consider user engagement – including views and social media followers – as indicators of the extent of publication and its impact. He also highlighted Mr. Xu’s refusal to remove the contested article and related social media posts, despite a court-issued restraining order, as well as what he described as a campaign to garner public sympathy by alleging suppression of press freedom, as factors supporting a claim for aggravated damages.
The defamation suits stem from an article published on TOC’s website in December 2024, written by Low De Wei, concerning property transactions involving Good Class Bungalows (GCBs) in Singapore. The article, headlined “Singapore mansion deals are increasingly shrouded in secrecy,” referenced transactions involving both Mr. Shanmugam and Dr. Tan. The article was subsequently reported on by other media outlets, including The Edge.
Following the publication of the article, both Mr. Shanmugam and Dr. Tan indicated their intention to pursue legal action against media outlets they deemed to have published libellous statements. On January 6, 2025, they filed separate defamation suits against Bloomberg and Mr. Low. The ministers alleged that specific statements within the article were false, baseless, and intended to damage their reputations and the integrity of their ministerial offices. Bloomberg and Mr. Low have denied the allegations. Trial dates for the cases against Bloomberg and Mr. Low are scheduled for April 2026.
The lawsuit against Mr. Xu was also filed on January 6, 2025. The court granted permission on January 28, 2025, for the legal papers to be served on Mr. Xu in Taiwan, where he had relocated after being previously sentenced for criminal defamation. According to Channel NewsAsia, Mr. Xu did not send any legal representatives to Thursday’s hearing.
Justice Lim directed Mr. Singh to submit closing submissions within two weeks, and to serve those documents on Mr. Xu via email and at his stated address in Taiwan within seven days of filing.
