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with at the High Court. The great number of serious offences will be tried by the District Court and the Magistrates Court. The process by which a case passes from the Magistrates Court to the High Court is called committal. An analogous procedure is adopted with the District Court which is called transfer.
4.5
In all cases the investigator, usually the Police, will prepare witness statements signed by the person making the statement. When a man faces an allegation that is to be tried at the High Court, the magistrate must decide at committal whether the prosecution case discloses enough evidence to require the accused to stand trial. The Magistrates Ordinance, Chapter 227, requires service of copies of witness statements on the court and the defendant. Procedure in the District Court attempts, as far as possible, to follow the practice of the High Court. Copies of witness statements are served on the accused when his case is transferred.
4.6
It is a fundamental principle of trial in the common law system that it operates openly. When a man is arrested he is advised of the basis of his detention. When he is interviewed under caution the questions asked of him will normally reveal the nature of the Crown case. If he is to face trial at the District or the High Court he is almost certain to know who accused him and the evidence against him. These principles are jealously guarded. While provision exists within the Criminal Procedure Ordinance, Chapter 221, to provide for trial in camera, and to protect the identity of witnesses [section 123], it is employed only with great relunctance. Furthermore, it is in the nature of triad crime that there are many cases in which the victim and witnesses are well known to the accused.
4.7
Against that background, there is only a limited scope for protection of witnesses by securing their anonymity. But a number of options do exist for improving the present position.
Identification parades
4.8
Problem A question that must be asked is whether the current practice in the preparation and presentation of eye witness evidence contributes to the public reluctance to co-operate in the prosecution process. Unless the arrest of the suspect takes place in the presence of the victim or witness it is likely that the Police will arrange an identification parade. The parade is composed of the suspect and actors of a similar appearance, and is conducted by a senior police officer. The witness is required to face each person on the parade in turn and, in the presence of the suspect, to identify him. In the summer of 1983 the Police conducted an
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