2
1-4
1-5
1-6
1-7
1
8
All hearings of evidence were held in public, in the
Victoria District Court. Public, hearings commenced on 1st March, 1976, and finally concluded on 23rd March, 1976. They occupied 14 working days. A total of 13 witnesses have been heard (See Appendix II).
Where appropriate, section 7 of the Commissions of Inquiry Ordinance (Chapter 86) was explained to the
witness. Section 7 provides, inter alia: "Evidence
given by any person before the Commission shall not
be admissible against him in any civil or criminal proceedings by or against him."
Witnesses' allowances were calculated on a scale
similar to that prescribed in Criminal Procedure (Witnesses' Allowances) Rules 1971, Criminal Procedure Ordinance (Chapter 221).
Apart from viva voce evidence, evidence in the form
of written statements, reports and official records
were also received. A list of documentary evidence
appears in Appendix III.
On the examination of witnesses by counsel, the Commission has followed the procedure laid down in the Report of the Royal Commission on Tribunals of Inquiry, 1966, under the Chairmanship of the Rt. Hon. Lord Justice Salmon. Accordingly when a witness was legally represented, he was examined by
his own counsel on his earlier written statements.
The witness was no doubt a witness of the Commission
but he was a witness who was probably at risk so
far as his own interests and reputation were concerned.
Therefore, in the first instance he was allowed
to tell his own story confident that the counsel
questioning him was doing so with the object of bringing out the evidence which he wished to be
placed before the Commission.
A witness who was