4
Practical experience of the working of this section,
since its enactment last year, has made it desirable to remove
certain doubts which have arisen as to its effect and to
widen the scope of the powers of punishment available to the
courts when dealing with a person convicted under this section.
The new section 33(2) sets out, in detail,
the
ways in which a court may deal with a person convicted under
the section.
(a)
The main changes introduced are as follows:
a person over 13 and under 17 years may also be
sentenced to corporal punishment or to detention
in a training centre, if there is no room for him
in a detention centre, as alternatives to imprison-
ment or a detention centre order;
(b) a person aged 17 or more may also be sentenced to
corporal punishment, as an alternative to imprison-
ment or a detention centre order.
The opportunity has been taken to make it clear
that section 36 of the Magistrates Ordinance and section 3(1)
of the Probation of Offenders Ordinance, which enable a
magistrate to make an order discharging an offender or putting
him on probation without proceeding to conviction, and section
11(2) of the Juvenile Offenders Ordinance, do not apply where
a person is charged with an offence under this section (new
section 33(3) and (4)).
In order to ensure that a careful control is kept
over the operation of this section, the new section 33(5)
provides that the consent of the Attorney General is required
before a prosecution under it is instituted.
Attorney General.
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