Taipei judges have ruled two Web sites will not have to pay compensation to the city's deputy mayor, King Pu-tsung, for criticising him on their blogs.

The bloggers, one on yam.com.tw and the other on udn.com, criticised Pu-tsung for “humiliating Taiwan” during the International Children's Games in Thailand last year when he was failed to prevent Chinese representatives from snatching Taiwanese flags from Taiwanese medallists as they walked to the podium. King lodged a complaint asking for an apology from the Chinese team, but he request was denied.

Internet users in Taiwan used their blogs to complain about Pu-tsung's reaction to the incident, and Pu-tsung filed a civil lawsuit against the two sites.

“Judges decided that King should sue the bloggers, not the Web sites, if he really feels insulted,” Liu Shou-sung, spokesman for the Taipei District Court, is quoted as saying by AsiaMedia. “In addition, judges decided that the case concerned the nation's reputation and therefore the bloggers are entitled to express their views on such issues.”