Australia’s defense chief has been awarded tens of thousands of dollars in damages after claiming that a six-word Twitter post caused him deep “hurt and distress,” with a judge ruling that the tweet was defamatory.
A judge in Australia agreed Wednesday to pay $25,000 (A$35,000), to Peter Dutton, Defense Minister. This was far lower than the limit permitted by law.
The tweet is still relevant. “was no doubt a serious defamation,” Dutton “did not claim to have suffered more serious consequences by reason of the publication of the tweet or even that his hurt and distress had continued to the date of trial,”In his ruling, Judge Richard White stated.
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Original post by Shane Bazzi, an immigration activist. Later shown to Dutton later by one his staffers. The now-deleted Tweet denounced the minister for being a “sinister”. “rape apologist.”Dutton shared an article from 2019 in which he said that refugees who claim to have been rape victims are merely sharing his opinion. “trying it on,”They claimed they had lied to get asylum in Australia.
Dutton acknowledged that he knew the “rough-and-tumble of politics,”He said that the tweet at issue left him feeling so “deeply offended”It was necessary to file a suit.
Bazzi, for his part, reacted to the ruling with disappointment in another tweet on Wednesday afternoon – this one a bit longer than six words.
“We are very disappointed with the outcome. We’ll be taking the time to evaluate our options. Thank you for all of your support and solidarity,”The activist added “I ask that you could please respect my privacy at this time.”
The outcome has disappointed us greatly. We’ll be taking the time to evaluate our options. We are grateful for your solidarity and support. Please respect my privacy during this difficult time.
— Shane Bazzi (@shanebazzi) November 24, 2021
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