US-based news agency Bloomberg has agreed to pay Singapore's three leading politicians S$595,000 (HK$2.6 million) in damages and legal costs for running a libellous article about the appointment of the deputy prime minister's wife to a top government post.
A letter from the trio's lawyer said Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong had accepted S$210,000, while Senior Minister Lee Kuan Yew and Deputy Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong had both settled for S$180,000. A further S$25,000 was offered to cover costs.
Bloomberg also issued an apology for the commentary, 'How far can Singapore Inc get out of business?', which was written by Patrick Smith and carried on the group's global distribution network earlier this month.
Davinder Singh, the Singaporeans' counsel, wrote the three were 'entitled to higher damages in view of the grave and malicious allegations'.
But they had accepted the company's offer as Bloomberg had promptly deleted the article from its online network and agreed to apologise.
Smith's analysis had covered the appointment in May of Ho Ching to the post of executive director at Temasek, an influential investment company that controls the Finance Ministry's stakes in the city-state's economy.
Ms Ho is married to Deputy Prime Minister Lee, who is also the finance minister.