Uganda: The Observer Media, Watchdog Communications, Fined Shs50m for Defamation

Kampala — High Court Judge Collins Acellam has fined Observer Media Ltd, publishers of The Observer newspaper, and Watchdog Communication Ltd, owners of the Watchdog news website, a total of 50 million shillings for publishing a defamatory article against a former employee of the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO).

Kathryn Elizabeth Clark, a former Livelihood Coordinator at the United Nations agency, filed the suit over a 2020 article published by The Observer titled "Racism charges, staff troubles hit the UN-FAO agency in Uganda." She argued that the story damaged her reputation among right-thinking members of society.

Clark contended that the article was false, malicious, and highly defamatory, as it alleged that she had been irregularly hired by FAO. It also claimed that she had a toxic working relationship with colleagues during her time at Catholic Relief Services, suggesting that several staff members left the organisation because they could not work with her.

According to the suit, the Watchdog website republished the same article, including Clark's photograph, further amplifying its reach. Clark said the publications attracted widespread online circulation and generated comments filled with hatred and contempt directed at her.

She maintained that the allegations were published without verification or an opportunity to respond and that internal investigations by FAO had cleared her of any wrongdoing. Despite this, the articles continued to harm her reputation and negatively affected her employability, undermining what she described as a well-established international career.

Neither Observer Media Ltd nor Watchdog Communication Ltd filed a defence in court, prompting the judge to hear the case ex parte.

In his ruling, Justice Acellam found that the publications were defamatory. He held that the repeated portrayal of Clark as a racist and a difficult person to work with amounted to libel, particularly given the nature of her work in diverse international environments.

He also noted that the Watchdog website's inclusion of her photograph further aggravated the harm. The court consequently ordered the two media houses to jointly pay 50 million shillings in damages. It also directed them to retract the defamatory articles from their platforms, issue an unconditional apology to Clark, and cover the costs of the suit.

Read the original article on Independent (Kampala).