[UPDATED] McDonald’s M’sia is suing us for RM6 mil: BDS Malaysia

KUALA LUMPUR – McDonald’s Malaysia is seeking RM6 million in damages from a registered non-governmental organisation (NGO) known as BDS Malaysia in a civil defamation suit.

The NGO said it has received a writ of summons from the fast food chain, but it denies defaming the global brand.

BDS Malaysia (Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions) is known for its movement calling for the public, organisations and the government to boycott Israel and groups that are complicit with the siege on Gaza.

In court documents sighted by Scoop, McDonald’s Malaysia, owned by Gerbang Alaf Restaurant Sdn Bhd filed the suit at Shah Alam High Court on December 19 and named the NGO as its defendants.

The suit was filed via Messrs Bhadarul Baharain & Partners.

In the writ of summons, the chain claimed that BDS Malaysia’s online posters, which featured the brand’s logo in calling for a boycott, are defaming and slandering McDonald’s Malaysia.

“There is no proof that we (the plaintiff) has committed genocide against the 2.3 million Palestinian in Gaza, nor any proof that we contributed to Israel’s army.

“(But instead) our brand logo has been used (and deemed) to be related to the genocide in Gaza, which is not true.

“There is nothing in the defendant’s statement that excludes us, which would lead the public to not be able to distinguish which party is identified by the defendant (in alleging support towards Israel).

“We have also contributed over RM1 million to Ops Ihsan, a humanitarian fund set up by the Prime Minister’s Department and our workers contributed over RM100,00 to Humanitarian Care Malaysia (MyCARE) to help Palestinians affected by this war.”

The company claimed that the NGO should be aware of its accessible social media pages.

McDonald’s Malaysia said with more than 26,000 followers on Facebook and 11,500 followers on Instagram, the defendant should be aware that their posts can easily be downloaded, reposted and republished by social media users to no limit.

“The posters are not only defamatory and slanderous, but it has also been done with malicious intent to cause harm against us (the plaintiff), as it carries innuendo that we are involved in the genocide against Palestinians by colluding with Israel in this war crime and profiting from it.

“We and the McDonald’s Corporation do not contribute, support nor engage in any political or religious conflict anywhere in the world, including the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

“Due to the defendant’s publication, our reputation has been affected and subjected to public’s hatred. Our employees are also worried about their safety as they have been targeted due to public hatred towards us.”

The company said it sent BDS Malaysia a letter on November 10, asking for the NGO to take down the posts, and again sent a letter on November 23, but to no avail.

McDonald’s Malaysia said the NGO responded to an earlier letter on December 1, and admitted to have published the posts but claimed that they have done so due to their frustration with McDonald’s Corporation allowing its franchise, McDonald’s Israel, to help the Israeli army in the ongoing war between Palestine and Israel.

“We then responded to the defendant that our stance is clear; the posts are defamatory and slanderous, and their reasonings given is an afterthought.

“We continue to be the subject of public hatred and have suffered losses from the posts.

“It is common knowledge that Malaysians, with the majority of its citizens are Muslims, have boycotted our business because it is allegedly linked to the conflict in Israel, when in fact there are many instances that our workers were threatened and shamed on social media for working with us.

“All our efforts in explaining our stance in not being involved with the ongoing war have also fallen on deaf ears. Even the defendant hasn’t apologised to us until today.”

The company demanded for RM6 million in total damages, which consisted of RM3 million for loss of profitability due to shorter business hours, RM1.5 million for severance compensation to be paid to former employees and RM1.5 million for expired food products and raw materials waste.

It also demanded compensation for exemplary, special and general damages as well as 5% interest per annum, costs and 5% interest on costs.

The fast food chain also demanded for BDS Malaysia to issue an unconditional apology via their website, Facebook and Instagram pages, as well as to take down the defamatory posts and to reveal the identity of all parties involved in spreading the posts. – December 29, 2023