"U.S. Newspaper Can be Sued in Canada"

It's a small world, after all.

An article in today's Globe and Mail:

A former senior official at the United Nations has won the right to sue The Washington Post for libel in a Toronto court even though the lawsuit has nothing to do with Canada.

The case involves Cheickh Bangoura, who headed a UN agency in Africa from 1994 to 1997. Mr. Bangoura's contract was not renewed after a series of articles appeared in The Washington Post which accused him of sexual harassment, financial improprieties and nepotism.

Two United Nations' panels later cleared him of any wrongdoing and ordered the organization to pay him compensation....

The Washington Post moved to have the lawsuit dismissed and argued Ontario was not a proper venue. But in a recent ruling, Mr. Justice Romain Pitt said the case can go ahead because the newspaper made the articles available on its website.

"Those who publish via the Internet are aware of the global reach of their publications, and must consider the legal consequences in the jurisdiction of the subjects of their articles," the judge wrote....

You think all that's a little scary? Here's the really scary part:

.... A day after the Post articles appeared, Fred Eckhard, a spokesman for UN Secretary-General Annan, announced that Mr. Bangoura's contract would not be renewed because of the allegations in the articles.

"That basically was quite devastating to him because he was a career international civil servant," Ms. Roach said....

He was a career international civil servant: if you're looking for one phrase to sum up the source of many of the world's most intractable problems, I think you need look no further.

Lane Core Jr. CIW P — Wed. 02/04/04 05:24:33 PM
Categorized as International.