Hon Hai should climb off its press high horse

FOXCONN'S DECISION to sue two journalists on Shanghai newspaper China Business News is a decision that is as daft as a brush.

Yesterday it filed a note on the Taiwanese bourse claiming the legal actions shouldn't be seen as an attempt to halt free speech.

Foxconn had been accused of exploiting its labour force on production lines for Apple iPods, a claim it has strenuously denied. A subsequent investigation by Apple found many of the original claims unsubstantiated but asked Foxconn (Hon Hai) to remedy some problems it did find, and pronto.

The original claims were reported in UK tabloid the Mail on Sunday, but so far Hon Hai hasn't taken legal action against hacks on this paper.

It is not the first time Foxconn has taken a legal hammer to crack a hack's nuts. Two years back, Foxconn sued a Commercial Times hackette, provoking a mass revolt by the association of Taiwan Journalists. That protest led Foxconn to drop a case against Joyce Huang after it moved to seize her assets.

Foxconn or Hon Hai, whichever way you cut it, has obviously never heard of public relations. It should abandon this latest attempt too. All it is doing is drawing unwelcome attention to itself which won't help it continue to sell its products and services.

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