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Evidence (Amendment) Act 2016

TONGA

EVIDENCE (AMENDMENT) ACT 2016

ACT 5 of 2016

Arrangement of Sections

Section
1 Short title and interpretation
2 Section 11 amended

EVIDENCE (AMENDMENT) ACT 2016

Act 5 of 2016

AN ACT TO AMEND THE EVIDENCE ACT (CAP.15)

I assent,
TUPOU VI,
26th March 2020.

BE IT ENACTED by the King and Legislative Assembly of Tonga in the Legislature of the Kingdom as follows:

1. Short title and interpretation

(1) This Act may be cited as the Evidence (Amendment) Act 2016.

(2) In this Act, the Evidence Act (Cap. 15) shall be referred to as the Principal Act.

2. Section 11 amended

Section 11 of the Principal Act is amended by numbering the current provision as subsection (1) and inserting the following new sub-sections –

"(2) Where any person is tried for any sexual offence under sections 118 to 137 of the Criminal Offences Act or for any other offence of a sexual nature, no corroboration of a complainant's evidence shall be necessary for the accused to be convicted, and in any such case the Judge shall not be required to give any warning to the jury relating to the absence of corroboration.
(3) If, in any such case, the Judge decides to comment on the absence of any evidence tending to support any other evidence, no particular form of words shall be required.".

Passed by the Legislative Assembly this 22nd day of February 2016.