WCCC supports Tonga Law Society's concerns over the current constitutional amendment ^Featured

This is an amendment to Tonga’s Constitution, introducing new Clause 89A which requires every Court of Tribunal in the Kingdom to take Tonga’s “customs, traditions, practices, values and usages” into consideration, where relevant, in deciding any matter before them.

In addition to the concerns raised by the TLS, WCCC is extremely troubled by the impact that this new clause will have on women and girls’ overall access to justice in Tonga.

“We have a grave concern because we know that rape and sexual assault cases, domestic violence and child abuse cases will be at risk of being hijacked by so called “traditions and practices”. Take for example a rape case where the family of the perpetrator takes a pig and mats (‘considered’ an asking for forgiveness cultural practice) to apologise to the victim/survivor’s family. Does this new clause require the presiding judge to ‘consider’ the ‘kole fakamolemole’ as traditional practice and therefore possibly excusing the offender from the crime entirely or resulting in the reduction of penalties in sentencing? I don’t think these risks were considered thoroughly by the Parliamentarians” expressed ‘Ofakilevuka Guttenbeil-Likiliki, Director of WCCC.

WCCC therefore strongly reiterates TLS’s full statement. “Based on our years of experience working in the area of eliminating violence against women and girls in Tonga, we feel that Tongan women and girls have been denied a fundamental right to have a say in such a major Constitutional amendment” says Guttenbeil-Likiliki.

It could mean that where technical and evidential aspects of a criminal charge were proved, the judge could still find the offender not guilty on the basis of "traditions, practices, values and usages" - none of which are written down and vary from family to family, village to village.

We are hugely disappointed in this decision by Parliament to be so careless, lacking transparency and accountability for their role in unanimously passing Clause 89A into Tonga’s Constitution without due diligence and proper consultation.