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srilawsby aturio
As enacted
Contents

Part VI · Entitlement of a Victim of Crime or Witness to Obtain Protection

25. Protection to be prescribed by Courts and Commissions

Official English translation. Where it differs from the Sinhala or Tamil text, the Act itself says which text prevails.

(1)

A Court or a Commission which has reasonable grounds to believe that a victim of crime or a witness in any judicial or quasi-judicial proceeding before such court or before such Commission, requires assistance or protection from harm, threat, reprisal, retaliation or intimidation or assistance to attend and participate in such judicial or quasi-judicial proceedings, such Court or the Commission shall, subject to the provisions of subsection (2), take all necessary steps to cause such assistance and protection to be provided to such victim of crime or witness.

(2)

The protection and assistance that may be provided to any victim of crime or witness under subsection (1), shall not cause any prejudice to the rights and entitlements of the person suspected or accused of the offence concerned or the infringement of the fundamental right or the violation of the human right, of the victim of crime or witness concerned.

(3)

The protection and assistance that may be provided under subsection (1), may include:—

(a)

the adoption of special measures to protect the rights of children and to ensure the best interests of child victims of crime and child witnesses.

(b)

the conduct of either the entirety or part of the judicial or quasi-judicial proceedings in camera;

(c)

the adoption of measures necessary to prevent the victim of crime or the witness concerned from being unnecessarily harassed, intimidated, coerced, violated or influenced by seeing the accused present at the venue of the trial or inquiry;

(d)

the prevention of the identity of and the background information pertaining to the victim of crime or the witness from being disclosed; and

(e)

the adoption of appropriate measures to prevent disclosure of the identity and the entirety or part of the testimony of such victim of crime or witness, to persons other than the accused concerned and his legal representative. The measures adopted shall include the power to direct media institutions, media personnel and other specified persons from publishing, broadcasting, telecasting or otherwise disseminating information pertaining to the identity of the victim of crime or the witness concerned.

Assistance to and Protection of Victims of

(4)

Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (1), a

Court or a Commission may by a notification issued in that behalf, request the Authority or the Division to provide to a victim of crime or a witness the protection referred to therein.

On receipt of such a request, it shall be the duty of the

Authority or the Division to take all necessary measures to provide the protection requested for to the victim of crime or the witness concerned, where after conducting any necessary inquiries it is of the view that the need to provide such protection, is well founded.

Read on from s 26

Part VII

Compensation

Read on from Part VII

Part VIII

Testimony Through Audio-Visual Linkage

Read on from Part VIII

Part IX

General

Read on from Part IX

Schedules