Blog postings can backfire

My article, originally titled “Social Media Development 2010” (title was changed by The Star as usual), was published in The Putik Lada column of The Star Newspaper on 20.01.2011. You can check it out at this link.

You will notice that I did not mention the names of the Malaysian cases. I initially was torn whether to post the names of the cases as it may cause a little embarrassment to those involved in the cases.

The cases were no doubt in public domain as they were reported in, among others, legal journals – which is widely known to the legal circle.

However, by publishing them in The Star, this would highlight the cases to the general public. Niki Cheong was kind enough to advise that if the disadvantages of posting of names outweigh the benefit, I shouldn’t put them.

Anyway, for the benefit of those interested to know the sources of my article, you can click on the links above. My blog doesn’t have the same readership as The Star newspaper so chance of embarrassing the parties involved is slim.

Blog postings can backfire

PUTIK LADA
By FOONG CHENG LEONG

Social media influence has hit court proceedings, with lawyers trolling blogs and Wikipedia in search of material that can help them argue the case for their clients.

LAST year brought further interesting development to social media and laws all around the world. Cases making references to social media tools saw an increase.

Social media was a tool for lawyers and litigants to help parties to fight their cases. Social media was also the cause of some parties’ mortification and incarceration.

In one High Court judgment last year, the judge recognised the publication of defamatory blog postings by a husband as one of the grounds to present a divorce petition before the expiry of two years from the date of marriage.

He also recognised that a defamatory statement in a blog posting operated in a borderless realm, and would continue to exist until the maker of the blog removed it.

The challenge against the constitutionality of S. 233 of the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998, the provision commonly used against Internet users, was dismissed by the High Court.

In this case, the defendant was charged with making disparaging remarks against the Sultan of Perak during the struggle between Barisan Nasional and Pakatan Rakyat. The court held, among other things, that the section did not impede freedom of expression. S. 233 is to ensure that the freedom given by the Constitution is exercised responsibly.

The use of Wikipedia as a reference is increasingly recognised in Malaysia, notwithstanding that the reliability of Wikipedia is questionable, as anyone can add or edit an entry in Wikipedia.

Nevertheless, the reliance on Wikipedia by our courts can be traced in reported cases as early as 2007.

Last year Wikipedia was referred to in Etonic Garment Manufacturing Sdn Bhd v Kunn-G Freight System (M) Sdn Bhd [2010] 1 LNS 13 (for the meaning of freight forwarder), PP v Murugan a/l Arumugam [2009] 1 LNS 1759 (for the meaning of atherosclerosis) and Thai Long Distance Telecommunication Co Ltd & Anor v Malaysian Maritime Dredging Corpo­ration Sdn Bhd (Kuala Lumpur Suit No: D-22-352-2005, for the meaning of chart datum).

Social media influence had also hit court room proceedings. It is common in Malaysia for people, in particular reporters, to tweet live from the courts. In the United Kingdom, the Lord Chief Justice issued a guideline for the use of live text-based forms of communication from court.

In this guideline, the Lord Chief Justice approved the use of Twitter for court reporting. However, in the US, certain courts ban the use of social media by juries.

In the US case of Romano v. Steelcase Inc, 2006-2233 (N.Y. Super. Sept. 21, 2010), Kathleen Romano sued Steelcase Inc for injuries she suffered after she fell off an allegedly defective desk chair manufactured by Steelcase Inc.

As a result of the fall, she claimed, she suffered restricted movement of her neck and back and “pain and progressive deterioration with consequential loss of enjoyment of life”.

In defence, Steelcase applied to access Romano’s current and historical Facebook and Myspace pages and accounts which are believed to be inconsistent with her claims in the action concerning the extent and nature of her injuries, especially for loss of enjoyment of life. The court granted Steelcase’s application.

Similarly, in McMillen v Hummingbird Speedway Inc, et al, Court of Common Pleas of Jefferson County, Pennsylvania, Civil Division, No. 113-2010 CD, Opinion on Defendants’ Motion to Compel Discovery (Sept. 9. 2010), the plaintiff sued the defendants for injuries suffered.

The defendants claimed that posts on the public portion of his Facebook page showed that he had exaggerated his injuries. The court granted the defendants access to the plaintiff’s private portion of his Facebook and Myspace account to determine whether or not the plaintiff had made any other comments which impeached and contradicted his disability and damages claims.

Closer to home, in a reported Industrial Court case, an employee claimed that she was forced by her employer to resign.

In response, her employer argued that the resignation was voluntary and they produced extracts of the claimant’s blog which showed the claimant had written about her feelings regarding her employment with the employer.

In it, she stated that she wanted to leave the company and admitted that she went for job interviews as she had already decided to go away.

The Industrial Court chairman relied on the blog entries to find that the employee had intended to leave and found that she had gladly tendered her resignation to take on new employment.

In Australia, a hairdresser won compensation for wrongful dismissal after losing her job for making unflattering remarks about her employer on her Facebook.

In Miss Sally-Anne Fitzgerald v Dianna Smith T/A Escape Hair Design [2010] FWA 7358, Commissioner Michelle Bissett for Fair Work Australia said that posting comments about an employer on a website (Facebook) that can be seen by an uncontrollable number of people is no longer a private matter but a public comment.

It would be foolish of employees to think they may say as they wish on their Facebook page with total immunity.

This year brings another exciting watershed to Malaysia’s social media legal sphere. The Personal Data Protection Act 2010, which governs the processing of personal data, is pending enforcement.

Proposed amendments to the Copyright Act 1987 have been drawn up in the form of a Bill to exempt Internet service providers from liability for copyright infringement under certain circumstances.

The Bill also empowers the court to order an Internet service provider to disable access to infringing material.

Furthermore, the so-called Internet Service Providers Liability Act may be passed to compel Internet service providers to take action against their users if they download songs or movies illegally.

Pecha Kucha Kuala Lumpur – Vol. 11 – Getting Social

The event organised by British Council at Delucca was a success. The turnout was great notwithstanding that traffic was horrendous. The speakers (excluding myself) were witty, entertaining and informative.


http://www.nikicheong.com/ started the event with his presentation.


http://julianhopkins.net/. I first met him when I gave a talk at eLawyer’s Law Forum. I remember him posting a tough, tough question to me. Now he knows how it feels to be on stage. Hehe.


Tengku Zatashah Idris, founder of http://originalo.com.my/


Low Ngai Yuen – Director, producer and head of the newly revived www.kakiseni.com/ team


Fellow lawyer Jonson Chong – Human rights lawyer and former KEADILAN communications director


Rev Sivin Kit – Pastor at Bangsar Lutheran Church and social activist

I was the 9th speaker. My presentation was about the development of social media and the legal cases relating to it.

Although I had practiced my talk for nearly 2 hours, I couldn’t deliver it in the manner I practiced. In my talks lately, I would speak slowly and quite formal but the earlier speakers spoke quite fast! I decided to ditch the formal style and went Old Klang Road style. There are a few times I spoke too fast until I had spare time before my next slide. Gah.

If you’re wondering what is that green thing on my shirt, it is an ornament made from lego bricks courtesy of Laedglo. I was asked too wear it for this event. Sort of like a product endorsement! You can check out other Lego brick ornaments at their website at their Facebook page.

The last speaker was Daphne Iking – TV host and actress. She was funny!


Daphne Iking looks like she’s take a flight hehe


Me & Daphne Iking *starstruck*


Me, Ngai Yuen and Malko.S (I bet she will get tons of clicks on her link!)


Me and Malko.S

More pixs at Tian Chad’s!


Community Service Notice:

The 4th Young Lawyers Convention 2011 is coming up from Feb 19-20 2011, at Concorde Hotel KL. Do visit the Malaysian Bar website for more information.

Lou Shu Fun @ Restoran Yi Poh, Seremban

I got to know about this place when it was featured on Ho Chiak, a television programme covering various makan place around Malaysia.

The highlight of this place is their “lou shu fun”, which literally means “rat noodles”. The lou shu fun here is different from the usual. Instead of looking like rat’s tail, it’s “lai fun” (rice noodles) – the noodles people usually use for assam laksa.

On our way back from Port Dickson, we dropped by Yi Poh for lunch. It was packed when we got there. So much so, they forgot our order and the waiters didn’t bother to check on it when we asked them to do so. Luckily, one young boy (probably boss’s son) was kind enough to look into it and got our noodles in no time.


After mixing!

The smell of fried minced pork overwhelms the dish but the taste is quite light. It’s like eating hakka noodles with dark soy sauce.

Map

Address
26, Ground Floor, Jalan Seng Meng Lee (Off Jalan Temiang),
70200 Seremban, Negeri Sembilan
Negeri Sembilan, 70200

Other reviews:
Makantrip.com – Seremban – Dry Lou Shu Fun @ Yi Poh
AhKingFoodTalk – Seremban Restoran Yi Poh 姨婆老鼠粉
FoodWhore – Restoran Yi Poh, Seremban

Curry Chicken Bun @ Restoran Lucky (P.D) Seafood

After I tweeted, “What’s good to eat in Port Dickson”, some friends responded and recommending Lucky Curry Chicken Bun.

Immediately, I did a quick research on Google and found couple of blogs recommending Restoran Lucky for their Curry Chicken Bun. However, I couldn’t find any blogs showing the map to this place. There was one blog which gave rough description of the whereabouts and I followed it.

Viola! we found it!

Upon touching down Restoran Lucky, we ordered their curry chicken bun. It costs RM25 for the large bun whereas the small bun is RM20. They ran out of small bun hence we ordered the large bun – just for the two of us.

The large bun is about the size of a pomelo. Aaah.. reminds me of the pamelo girls in Ipoh.

Anyway, the kind waiter peeled the bun to expose a bowlful of yummy curry chicken. We dipped the bread with curry. It was heavenly!

Since it was just the two of us, we couldn’t finish it. I think we need at least 4 fellows to finish it.

To ease others to find this place, check out the map below. The easier way to get there is to exit at Lukut at the Seremban – PD highway, head to the town and keep an eye on your right side. It’s at a corner.

Map

Address
No 4366, Taman Aman, Jalan Besar,
71010 Lukut, Port Dickson, Negeri Seremban
Tel: 06-651 2392

Pecha Kucha Kuala Lumpur – Vol. 11 – Getting Social

I will be speaking at this event on 18.1.2011 with a bunch of other fehmes people. But this talk is no easy talk. Usually in my talks, my presentation slides follow my lead. However, in this Pecha Kucha presentation, I need to follow the slides! There are a total of 20 slides in this presentation. I am allocated a fixed 20 seconds for each slide. You can check out the video below for a good introduction on Pecha Kucha.

The stakes are now higher. Instead of delivering good content, I have to deliver it in style! NIAMALOH!! Already got problem with the first part!!!

Anyway, here’s the information about the event. Check out the Facebook page for more information.

Back by popular demand, Pecha Kucha Night (PKN), the global design networking/social event that draws creative talents together is back for its eleventh instalment!

In the first Pecha Kucha of 2011, join host Niki Cheong and the British Council who will present a line up of big names, with even bigger personalities to match as they share their stories and journeys about social media and the way it has revolutionalised the way we… communicate!

Featuring,
• Niki Cheong – Journalist and social media advocate
Website | http://www.nikicheong.com/
Twitter | @nikicheong

• Daphne Iking –TV host and actress
Website | http://daphneiking.blogspot.com/
Twitter | @daphCLPT

• Tengku Zatashah Idris – Online entrepreneur of exclusive gift collection company Originalo
Website | http://originalo.com.my/
Twitter | @zatashah

• Low Ngai Yuen – Director, producer and head of the newly revived Kakiseni.com team
Website | http://www.kakiseni.com/
Twitter | @ngaiyuen

• Julian Hopkins – PhD candidate at Monash University, Sunway Campus researching the commercialisation of Malaysian blogs
Website | http://julianhopkins.net/
Twitter | @julianhopkins

• James Chong – Independent Internet Strategist Heading Online & Social Media for P1
Website | http://aidsaware.ruumzcauses.com/
Twitter | @warbaby

• Zain HD – Project Manager for RandomAlphabets (the collective behind Glee Flashmob Dance KL, Tali Tenang and Freeze for Unison) and Wago, which does social media PR and alternative events
Website | www.randomalphabets.com
Twitter | @zainhd

• Foong Cheng Leong – Senior Associate at Lee Hishammuddin Allen & Gledhill focusing on Intellectual Property and Information Technology and cyberlaws
Website | www.xes.cx
Twitter | @xescx

• Sivin Kit – Pastor at Bangsar Lutheran Church and social activist
Website | http://sivinkit.net/
Twitter | @sivinkit

• Jonson Chong – Human rights lawyer and former KEADILAN communications director
Website | http://jonsonchong.com/
Twitter | @jonsonchong

The event is on 18.1.2011, 8pm. There is no entry fee but it’s on a first-come-first-served basis. The event will be held at Delucca, The Italian Restaurant on Jalan Mesui in Kuala Lumpur (opposite No Black Tie/Palate Palette).

Ice Room Cafe @ Port Dickson

We found this place while driving randomly around Port Dickson town. It’s not hard to miss. The entire building was lime green.

When I travel, I usually will not eat in a place unless it is recommended by friends, blogs, food websites and even 4square. Ice Room was recommended in a few blogs and 4square.


Looks like chicken meat!

Nut case – Peanut Snow Ice is highly recommended. It’s basically shaved ice cream with a strong taste of peanut butter. It’s like having a mixture of ice cream and peanut butter melting in your mouth.

A and I gobbled it within minutes!

I initially thought that this cafe is only available in Port Dickson but after a quick research, I realise that they have many branches all over Malaysia!

There’s one in Kota Damansara. Can’t wait to try it out!

Address for Port Dickson outlet
No 52 ,Jalan Raja Aman Shah,
71000, Port Dickson. Negeri Sembilan
Tel : 06 – 6479808,06 – 6476808

Map

Other outlets check out the following links:
Bukit Bintang Area :
10 号胡同,K3,Hutong @ Lot 10,
Lot 10 Shopping Mall , Jalan Bukit Bintang
55100,Kuala Lumpur.

Bandar Baru Nilai :
No 200-201,Dahlia Mall,Jalan Nilai Square 6, Nilai Square
71800 Bandar Baru Nilai, Negeri Sembilan,Malaysia
Tel : 06 – 8506467,06 – 8506487

Cheras – Shamelin Area :
No 1,Lorong 6E/91,Taman Shamelin Perkasa.
Off Jalan Cheras 56100.Kuala Lumpur.
Tel : 03 – 92811586

Bandar Baru Bangi :
No 45, Jalan Medan Pusat 2D,
43650, Bandar Baru Bangi,
Negeri Selangor
Tel ; 03-89271501,0389269986

Kajang :
No 30, Jalan Metro Avenue 2 ,Metro Kajang
43000. Selangor
Bandar Baru Nilai Town Centre, 71800 Nilai, N. Sembilan
Tel : 06-8503754

Banting :
62 & 64, Jalan Emas 1 , Bandar Sungai Emas , 42700
Banting, Selangor Darul Ehsan.

Centre Kitchen :
PT7484, Jalan BBN 1/1E,
Bandar Baru Nilai Town Centre, 71800 Nilai, N. Sembilan
Tel : 06-8503754

New Years Eve 2010

Instead of welcoming the new year at bustling club in Kuala Lumpur, A and I decided to welcome 2011 in Port Dickson.

We packed our bags and headed straight to our hotel, Avillion Admiral Cove, in the afternoon.

Our initial plan in the evening is to jog at the treadmills in the hotel and swim.

Unfortunately, the gym was ill equipped. All we had was this….

Swimming was taken off from our list when we saw that the swimming pool was filled with kids. The thought of kids peeing in the swimming pool turned me off. There were around 10 kids. It was as if we were going to swim in a swimming pool of pee!

With all these activities off our plan, we headed to Port Dickson town to explore. It was like any other typical Malaysian town.

Except that they have an ooohsum shop by the name “Ice Room” which serves shaved ice cream.

Just right after we were done with dessert, we headed to Lukut for their famous Curry Chicken Bun.

Will blog about all these food outlets later.


Sunset..

I was expecting a quiet celebration in Port Dickson and it was indeed quiet. At 12 midnight, there were some fireworks here and there but nothing of magnificent scale like the one at Sydney.

The hotel’s pub had a small countdown. But we decided to skip it and roam around the hotel.

By 1am, we were back in our hotel and was ready for bed by 2am.

Welcome 2011. Best wishes to all www.xes.cx readers for the new year!

Christmas 2010

Christmas 2010 started off with drinks at the newly opened restaurant/pub at The Hill @ Jalan Dungun.

The Hill is one of the many bungalows turned restaurant/pub on Jalan Dungun. It is just a stone throw from Jarrod Rawlins. Parking is scarce but one can opt for valet parking. I wouldn’t recommend anyone to park at one of the secluded spots around that area. A friend of mine got robbed one night when she was there.

To get to the place, you need to hike up a stairway. I wonder how many drunkards have stumbled down the stairways.

Notwithstanding the packed venue, we managed to secure a spot on the upper floor. Prices were hiked up 20% for Christmas eve celebration.

We were given a party pack each. In the party pack, there was a small led light. We took some pictures with it.


Supposed to be an angel..


Buck? #fail

On Christmas day, Melvin had his annual Christmas party at his place. For the first time, we had gift exchange session.


The highlight of the night. Melvin cheese baked potatoes and roast turkeeeeyyyy! Yummehhh!


Mm… BBQ


Irenehai brought home made tiramisu. Made with extra alcohol. Perfect for all the alcoholics in the house.


A and I brought French Toast ice cream and Horlicks ice cream from The Last Polka. Horlicks ice cream is my favourite. French Toast on the other hand has a tinge of cinnamon in it. I’m not a big fan of cinnamon hence I think this flavour is so-so. Other than these two flavours, they have other flavours such as Guinness, green tea, peanut butter, Nuttella and teh tarik. I tried their Bacon ice cream few months back when they had a tasting session. I was quite good! I wonder if they’ll have Wan Tan Mee ice cream next time!

You can order The Last Polka’s ice cream from their website and pick it up from a few designated locations.

We managed to finish up most of the food this year. Turkey was left with bones. Melvin said he will make porridge out of the bones. Wow.

Looking forward to Xmas parties!!