TONGA: Mixed reaction to proposal to abandon jury trials
Updated
There's been a mixed reception in Tonga to the idea of the country abandoning jury trials. The idea was raised by the President of Tonga's Law Society Laki Nui, in the wake of several 'not guilty' verdicts in a high profile case involving people accused of taking part in last year's riot which severely damaged the capital, Nukualofa.
Presenter: Bruce Hill
Speakers: Eseta Fusitua, Tonga's Cabinet Secretary; Akilisi Pohiva, pro-democracy movement leader.
HILL: The recent acquittal of several people charged in relation to the November 16th riot of last year caused quite a stir in Tonga, as the prosecution case had been regarded as very strong.
The suggestion from the President of the Law Society, Laki Niu, that juries determining the verdict might have to be abandoned or amended has received some sympathy in government circles.
Cabinet secretary Eseta Fusitua says Tonga's special circumstances might mean a system that works well in larger countries could be inappropriate for the Kingdom.
FUSITUA: It's not a problem unique to Tonga, it's a problem common to very small places, small countries like ours. I'm aware that the principle of the jury trial and the independence and fairness of that is very much dependent on the jurists not being the friends of the defendants or the relatives or the friends of friends or the relatives of relatives. I'm aware that that's not the kind of background where the concept of jury trial comes from. In a small place like Tonga that's very, very difficult to have because everyone knows everyone, as friends, relatives, co-workers, you go to the same church, your cousins or relatives go to the same football team.
HILL: But Tonga's pro-democracy movement is vehemently opposed to the idea of abandoning jury trials, seeing them as a constitutionally guaranteed right.
Five of the movement's MPs are facing sedition charges next year in relation to the November riot, and one of them, the group's leader, Akilisi Pohiva, accuses the government of being responsible for getting the Law Society to suggest the change.
POHIVA: I think like they got it wrong, it is not the first jury case ever done in Tonga. Some of the jury case were found guilty and I don't think that it is appropriate at this point of time for Tonga to do away with the jury. This is a constitutional provision and it's also an international standard.
HILL: Why do you think this idea is being raised at this particular time though?
POHIVA: It was the government which initiated that rule simply because of the fact that so far two cases have been found not guilty, and I think that the government initiated the idea and they put it across to the Law Society to take it up as an issue at this point of time.
HILL: Do you think that this move is aimed at you and your co-defendants in the big sedition trial?
POHIVA: Well we haven't finalised our position now but we first put it up as to be tried by jury, but we leave it for the ... because our case is adjourned, delayed until August next year. We can still have two choices; we can go for jury and we can go for judge alone, but we haven't decided that.
HILL: Cabinet Secretary Eseta Fusitua says the problem is more widespread than just one or two recent verdicts though.
FUSITUA: I think what has happened recently may have highlighted a problem which is always there. I'm not saying that the jury went left or right, I am saying that that's a permanent problem which I think the President of the Law Society is correct in highlighting that it's particularly difficult, especially say where you have a case that involves so many people. All that means is that there's so many defendants and hence so many relationships which can be brought into the judicial system.
