Canadian Muslim preacher sues Zamihan for RM1m

The RM1 million lawsuit filed by Canadian Muslim preacher Abu Ameenah Bilal Philips against Zamihan Mat Zin over a Facebook posting proceeded in court today.

The suit was filed in September over Zamihan's Facebook post, in which Bilal Philips was called an “international terrorism supporter.”

At case management today, Bilal Philips was represented by Meor Amir Meor Omar Baki.

Meor told Malaysiakini that the matter was fixed for further case management on Nov 30, due to Zamihan's lawyer asking for security costs before proceeding.

In his statement of claim, Bilal Philips alleged that Zamihan’s Facebook post from November last year displayed a picture of him, accompanied by a description calling him a supporter of international terrorism.

The posting was made ahead of a religious event held in Perlis, at which Bilal Philips was scheduled to speak.

The Jamaican-born Canadian preacher complained that the words describing him as a supporter of terrorism are false, defamatory and made without basis, given that he strives to promote peace and understanding of Islam, and rejects terrorism carried out in the name of religion.

Bilal Philips argued that Zamihan’s allegation means that he is actively engaged in terrorism and violence, and that his lecturers are geared towards those ends.

He added that at the time the suit was filed, there were 119 Facebook shares of the post, and that Zamihan had made additional comments on the original post on his page.

The renowned preacher, who converted to Islam in the 1970s, also noted that he has written over 50 books on Islam, and has been involved in various Islamic TV programmes such as “Peace TV,” “Huda TV,” and “The Deen Show, Chicago.”

Bilal Philips (photo) has a Bachelor’s degree from Madinah, a Master’s from Riyadh and a PhD from the University of Wales. He was also dubbed as one of the 500 most influential Muslims in the world this year.

He is seeking general damages in excess of RM1 million, to be assessed by the court, as well as aggravated and exemplary damages.

He is also seeking a restraining order and an injunction barring Zamihan from repeating those words, and also for the controversial Malaysian preacher to make a public apology in a newspaper of the plaintiff's choice.

Zamihan, in his defence filed Oct 19, denied knowledge of the posting, but also claimed that the statement was not defamatory as the description of Bilal Philips is accurate.

He added that the statement on Bilal Philips' involvement in terrorist-linked activity is based on news reports that appeared in Canadian news organisation National Post and The Guardian in the UK, as well as information from the police.

Zamihan further claimed that Bilal Philips is barred from entering several countries, including the UK, Denmark and Kenya. - Mkini

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