MEDIA
RELEASE
14
July 2003
“MINISTER
OF POLICE SHOULD STOP MISINTERPRETING
SUPREME
COURT RULINGS”
The
Human Rights and Democracy Movement in Tonga today
called on the Minister of Police, Hon. Clive Edwards
to stop misinterpreting Supreme Court rulings relating
to the banning of the Taimi ‘o Tonga.
Speaking
on behalf of HRDMT, Office Director Lopeti Senituli
said, “The Hon. Minister of Police’s
interpretation of the Supreme Court judgements
on the “Taimi ‘o Tonga” prohibitions
is of the utmost importance to the country as a
whole because, as the present attempts to amend
our Constitution show, the Hon. Minister’s
learned opinion carries more weight with His Majesty
in Privy Council than what the country’s
Chief Justice actually ruled”.
Senituli
explained that in an interview (in the English
language) published in the Tonga Chronicle on 26
June, the Hon. Minister of Police is quoted as
saying “The Prohibition (sic) Publications
Act is of course being declared by the court as
contrary to the Constitution. That is the right
of the King and Government under the Act to declare
any overseas publication prohibited because it
is offensive or against the public interest. And
it’s strange that the Court has set that
aside because declaring pornography offensive is
now something which cannot be done because of the
Act being unconstitutional”.
According
to Senituli, the Chief Justice’s exact words
in his judgement of 4 April were, “I declare
that section 3 of the Prohibited Publications Act
is inconsistent with Clause 7 of the Constitution
to the extent that any Order in Council made under
it fails to state the grounds upon which the Order
in Council is considered to be in the public interest”.
Senituli
said, “I am not a lawyer, but in my view
there is a world of difference between what the
Chief Justice actually said and the Hon. Minister’s
interpretation of it”.
Senituli
also said that the Chief Justice also stated very
clearly in his judgement of 4 April that “… a
ban for example, on all future issues of a pornographic
paper or one that is published solely to advocate
drug taking could be a justifiable restriction
on freedom of the press….”
For
further information contact Lopeti Senituli
on ph: 25501 or mobile 18545
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