JUSTICE
(BRITISH SECTION OF THE INTERNATIONAL COMMISSION OF JURISTS)
(HONG KONG BRANCH)
CHAIRMAN
S. V. GITTINS, Q.C.
SECRETARY
I. R. A. MACCALLUM
URGENT
PRESS
RELEASE
CORRESPONDENCE TO:
1. R. A. MACCALLUM
MESSRS. WILKINSON & GRIST -
JARDINE HOUSE, PEDDER STREET
HONG KONG TEL: 226161-
19
19
The batch of Bills published by Government on Friday granting increased jurisdiction to the District Courts and to the Magistracies make considerable inroads into the liberty of the ordinary citizen of Hong Kong for no valid reason.
The offender brought before the principal Magistrate a District Court will now face a sentence of either 4 or 7 years without
or
(a) The basic right of a Jury trial or even the right to claim trial by Jury.
(b) Any Legal Aid in the Magistracy and with very restricted Legal Aid in the District Court.
(c) Any detailed advance knowledge of the evidence to be given by the prosecution.
(P)
A complete record of the proceedings being made.
The reasons given by Government for these measures are the increased case load in the Supreme Court and in the District Courts.
However, the Chief Justice has the power, which has been regularly used, to appoint Commissioners to deal with cases in the Supreme Court, and these Commissioners can be drawn from a very wide field.
Similarly the Governor can appoint temporary District Judges from an equally wide field.
With these powers of appointment available the argument of pressure of work is demonstrably false.
It can only be presumed that as these measures have been introduced on the eve of the launching of the "Fight Violent Crime Campaign" they are aimed at giving the Campaign an initial boost.
Justice deplores the fact that the Government of Hong Kong and its legal advisers think that the liberty of the individual citizen of Hong Kong is of less importance than a good publicity gimmick.
GERALD DE BASTO, Q.C.
•
COMMITTEE
A. J. J. SANGUINETTI
D
C. Y. SHUM
B. H. TISDALL
·
OLIVER MARK