Pacific Journalism Review 1996 Pohiva

http://acij.uts.edu.au/PJR/next/962pohiva.html

Vol 3 No 2, November 1996

FROM SAMUELA 'AKILISI POHIVA

COMMENTARY: By S. 'Akilisi Pohiva

The Tongan Times ... the "freedom" issue. ON 23 AUGUST 1996, all the nine People's Representatives met and agreed to submit to the Parliament of Tonga a petition for the impeachment of the Minister for Justice and Attorney-General Tevita Poasi Tupou based on Section 75 of the Constitution.
All the nine Peoples Representatives signed the petition: S. 'Akilisi Pohiva; Mahe; 'Uli'uli Tupouniua; Uili Fukofuka, 'Uili Uata; S. Teisina Fuko; Samiu Vaipulu; Masao Paasi; Aisea Ta'ofi and Tuipulotu Lauaki.

The petition was then taken on the same day by the Secretary of the People's Representative in Parliament Uili Fukofuka to the Clerk of Parliament.

About a week later the deputy editor [Filokalafi 'Akau'ola] of Taimi 'o Tonga asked me about the status of the complaint lodged by Noble Kalaniuvalu about the Minister for Justice's absence from Parliament, that had been earlier discussed by Parliament.

I then informed the deputy editor that all the People's Representatives had agreed to petition Parliament to impeach the Minister for Justice. He then asked me whether I had a copy of the petition and I told him "yes".

He then asked me if I could give him a copy of the petition and I told him "yes", and added that it was not a confidential document and that it had been submitted to the Clerk of Parliament.

When I was questioned by the Honourable Members of the House together with Kalafi Moala and Filokalafi, I explained everything as stated above. I also explained to the Honourable Members of Parliament that on many occasions in the past I had published in my publication, Kele'a, petitions, parliamentary appeals and Parliamentary Bills before they were even tabled in Parliament, but no one in Parliament raised any questions of contempt.

I also explained that the Minister for Finance in 1988 had moved a motion in Parliament to prosecute the Kele'a publication for contempt because it had published the details of a petition to impeach him (Minister of Finance) because the petition had not yet been discussed in Parliament.

On that occasion Parliament ruled that it had no authority to prosecute Kele'a for contempt under Section 70 of the Constitution but that it was up to the Minister of Finance to take Kele'a to court.

Today the Minister for Justice has invoked Section 70 of the Constitution to prosecute the editor of Taimi 'o Tonga and myself for contempt of Parliament because the Taimi 'o Tonga published the petition for his impeachment before it was tabled and discussed in Parliament.

Radio Tonga' English news bulletin of September 20 stated that 'Akilisi Pohiva had "confessed" that he had given the copies of the petition to Taimi 'o Tonga before the petition was submitted to the Clerk to Parliament on August 23. It was published in the Taimi 'o Tonga on September 4.

One of the questions I raised is whether the Minister for Justice, who had lodged the charges against us in Parliament should have been allowed to be on the "jury" that found us guilty and decided on our sentence.

Are the Honourable Members of Parliament confident that they carried out a "fair trial" in our case? Aren't there issues and tasks that His Majesty's Government and people would prefer Parliament to pursue but from which thay turn a blind eye? Is this whole saga designed to divert our attention away from the real and rightful issues we should be concentrating on? In spite of the injustice, I readily accept the punishment of imprisonment, and so do my fellow inmates Kalafi Moala and Filokalafi 'Akau'ola.

S. 'Akilisi Pohiva is a People's Representative in the Tongan Legislative Assembly. He is also leader of the pro-democracy movement in Tonga and a broadcaster and publisher. This article was published in the September 25 issue of Taimi Ôo Tonga and translated by Lopeti Senituli.

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