1840
No. 23 of 1909.
OPIUM.
criminal proceeding, and no witness shall be obliged to disclose the name or address of any informer or to state any matter which might lead to his discovery, and if any books, documents or papers which are in evidence or liable to inspection in any civil or criminal proceeding contain any entry in which any such informer is named or described or which might lead to his discovery, the Court or Magistrate shall cause all such passages to be concealed from view or to be obliterated so far as may be necessary to protect the informer from discovery, but no further.
(2) But if, in any proceedings before a Magistrate for any offence against any provision of this Ordinance, the Magistrate, after full inquiry into the case, believes that the informer wilfully made in his information a material statement which he knew or believed to be false or did not believe to be true, or if in any other proceeding the Court or Magistrate is of opinion that justice cannot be fully done between the parties thereto without the discovery of the informer, it shall be lawful for the Court or Magistrate to require the production of the original information, and to permit inquiry and require full disclosure concerning the informer.
(3) Whenever a house or floor of a house wholly in the occupation of one Chinese family has been unsuccessfully searched for opium, and whenever the Captain Superintendent of Police has reason to suspect that a search warrant for opium has been obtained on false information, the opium farmer shall furnish confidentially to the Captain Superintendent of Police the name and address of the informer.
Penalties in cases not specially provided for
Penalties.
84. Every omission or neglect to comply with or act done contrary to the provisions of this Ordinance shall be deemed an offence, and for every offence against this Ordinance not otherwise specially provided for, the offender shall, in addition to any forfeiture of opium and implements provided for by this Ordinance, be liable, on summary conviction, to the following penalties:---
(a) for every first offence, a fine not exceeding 500 dollars, or imprisonment for any term not exceeding 3 months;
(b) for every subsequent offence, a fine not exceeding 1,000 dollars, or imprisonment for any term not exceeding 6 months.
* As amended by No. 30 of 1911 and No. 12 of 1912.