CHAPTER III

PART I

SEYCHELLOIS CHARTER OF FUNDAMENTAL HUMAN RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS

Article 16


Every person has a right to be treated with dignity worthy of a human being and not to be subjected to torture, cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.

CHAPTER III

PART I

SEYCHELLOIS CHARTER OF FUNDAMENTAL HUMAN RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS

Article 18

3. A person who is arrested or detained has a right to be informed at the time of arrest or detention or as soon as is reasonably practicable thereafter in, as far as is practicable, a language that the person understands of the reason for the arrest or detention, a right to remain silent, a right to be defended by a legal practitioner of the person's choice and, in the case of a minor, a right to communicate with the parent or guardian.

4. A person who is arrested or detained shall be informed at the time of the arrest or detention or as soon as is reasonably practicable thereafter of the rights under clause (3).

5. A person who is arrested or detained, if not released, shall be produced before a court within twenty-four hours of the arrest or detention or, having regard to the distance from the place of arrest or detention to the nearest court or the non-availability of a judge or magistrate, or force majeure, as soon as is reasonably practicable after the arrest or detention.

6. A person charged with an offence has a right to be tried within a reasonable time.

7. A person who is produced before a court shall be released, either unconditionally or upon reasonable conditions, for appearance at a later date for trial or for proceedings preliminary to a trial except where the court, having regard to the following circumstances, determines otherwise -

a. where the court is a magistrates' court, the offence is one of treasonor murder;

b. the seriousness of the offence;

c. there are substantial grounds for believing that the suspect will fail to appear for the trial or will interfere with the witnesses or will otherwise obstruct the course of justice or will commit an offence while on release;

d. there is a necessity to keep the suspect in custody for the suspect's protection or where the suspect is a minor, for the minor's own welfare;

e. the suspect is serving a custodial sentence;

f. the suspect has been arrested pursuant to a previous breach of the conditions of release for the same offence.

8. A person who is detained has the right to take proceedings before the Supreme Court in order that the Court may decide on the lawfulness of the detention and order the release of the person if the detention is not lawful.

9. Proceedings under clause (8) shall be dealt with as a matter of urgency by the Supreme Court and shall take priority over other proceedings of the Court listed for hearing on that day.

CHAPTER III

PART I

SEYCHELLOIS CHARTER OF FUNDAMENTAL HUMAN RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS

Article 18

11. A person who has not been convicted of an offence, if kept or confined in a prison or place of detention, shall not be treated as a convicted person and shall be kept away from any convicted person.

CHAPTER III

PART I

SEYCHELLOIS CHARTER OF FUNDAMENTAL HUMAN RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS

Article 19


1. Every person charged with an offence has the right, unless the charge is withdrawn, to a fair hearing within a reasonable time by an independent and impartial court established by law.

2. Every person who is charged with an offence -

a. is innocent until the person is proved or has pleaded guilty;

b. shall be informed at the time the person is charged or as soon as is reasonably practicable, in, as far as is practicable, a language that the person understands and in detail, of the nature of the offence;

c. shall be given adequate time and facilities to prepare a defence to the charge;

d. has a right to be defended before the court in person, or, at the person's own expense by a legal practitioner of the person's own choice, or, where a law so provides, by a legal practitioner provided At public expense;

e. has a right to examine, in person or by a legal practitioner, the witnesses called by the prosecution before any court, and to obtain the attendance and carry out the examination of witnesses to testify on the person's behalf before the court on the same conditions as those applying to witnesses called by the prosecution;

f. shall, as far as is practicable, have without payment the assistance of an interpreter if the person cannot understand the language used at the trial of the charge;

g. shall not be compelled to testify at the trial or confess guilt;

h. shall not have any adverse inference drawn from the exercise of the right to silence either during the course of the investigation or at the trial; and

i. shall, except with the person's own consent, not be tried in the person's absence unless the person's conduct renders the continuance of the proceedings in the person's presence impracticable and the court has ordered the person to be removed and the trial to proceed in the person's absence.

3. When a person is tried for any offence that person or any other person authorised by that person, in that behalf shall, if either of them so requires and subject to payment of such reasonable fee as may be specified by or under any law, be given as soon as is practicable after judgment a copy for the use of that person of any record of the proceedings made by or on behalf of the court.

4. Except for the offence of genocide or an offence against humanity, a person shall not be held to be guilty of an offence on account of any act or omission that did not, at the time it took place, constitute an offence, and a penalty shall not be imposed for any offence that is more severe in degree or description than the maximum penalty that might have been imposed for the offence at the time when it was committed.

CHAPTER III

PART I

SEYCHELLOIS CHARTER OF FUNDAMENTAL HUMAN RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS

Article 19

12. For the purposes of clause 2(i), a person who has, in accordance with law, been served with a summons or other process requiring the person to appear at the time and place appointed for the trial and who does not so appear shall be deemed to have consented to the trial taking place in the person's absence.

Article 55
Rights of persons during an investigation
1. In respect of an investigation under this Statute, a person:
(a) Shall not be compelled to incriminate himself or herself or to confess guilt;
(b) Shall not be subjected to any form of coercion, duress or threat, to torture or to any other form of cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment;
(c) Shall, if questioned in a language other than a language the person fully understands and speaks, have, free of any cost, the assistance of a competent interpreter and such translations as are necessary to meet the requirements of fairness; and
(d) Shall not be subjected to arbitrary arrest or detention, and shall not be deprived of his or her liberty except on such grounds and in accordance with such procedures as are established in this Statute.
2. Where there are grounds to believe that a person has committed a crime within the jurisdiction of the Court and that person is about to be questioned either by the Prosecutor, or by national authorities pursuant to a request made under Part 9, that person shall also have the following rights of which he or she shall be informed prior to being questioned:
(a) To be informed, prior to being questioned, that there are grounds to believe that he or she has committed a crime within the jurisdiction of the Court;
(b) To remain silent, without such silence being a consideration in the determination of guilt or innocence;
(c) To have legal assistance of the person's choosing, or, if the person does not have legal assistance, to have legal assistance assigned to him or her, in any case where the interests of justice so require, and without payment by the person in any such case if the person does not have sufficient means to pay for it; and
(d) To be questioned in the presence of counsel unless the person has voluntarily waived his or her right to counsel.

Article 63
Trial in the presence of the accused
1. The accused shall be present during the trial.
2. If the accused, being present before the Court, continues to disrupt the trial, the Trial Chamber may remove the accused and shall make provision for him or her to observe the trial and instruct counsel from outside the courtroom, through the use of communications technology, if required. Such measures shall be taken only in exceptional circumstances after other reasonable alternatives have proved inadequate, and only for such duration as is strictly required.

Article 66
Presumption of innocence
1. Everyone shall be presumed innocent until proved guilty before the Court in accordance with the applicable law.
2. The onus is on the Prosecutor to prove the guilt of the accused.
3. In order to convict the accused, the Court must be convinced of the guilt of the accused beyond reasonable doubt.

Article 67
Rights of the accused
1. In the determination of any charge, the accused shall be entitled to a public hearing, having regard to the provisions of this Statute, to a fair hearing conducted impartially, and to the following minimum guarantees, in full equality:
(a) To be informed promptly and in detail of the nature, cause and content of the charge, in a language which the accused fully understands and speaks;
(b) To have adequate time and facilities for the preparation of the defence and to communicate freely with counsel of the accused's choosing in confidence;
(c) To be tried without undue delay;
(d) Subject to article 63, paragraph 2, to be present at the trial, to conduct the defence in person or through legal assistance of the accused's choosing, to be informed, if the accused does not have legal assistance, of this right and to have legal assistance assigned by the Court in any case where the interests of justice so require, and without payment if the accused lacks sufficient means to pay for it;
(e) To examine, or have examined, the witnesses against him or her and to obtain the attendance and examination of witnesses on his or her behalf under the same conditions as witnesses against him or her. The accused shall also be entitled to raise defences and to present other evidence admissible under this Statute;
(f) To have, free of any cost, the assistance of a competent interpreter and such translations as are necessary to meet the requirements of fairness, if any of the proceedings of or documents presented to the Court are not in a language which the accused fully understands and speaks;
(g) Not to be compelled to testify or to confess guilt and to remain silent, without such silence being a consideration in the determination of guilt or innocence;
(h) To make an unsworn oral or written statement in his or her defence; and
(i) Not to have imposed on him or her any reversal of the burden of proof or any onus of rebuttal.
2. In addition to any other disclosure provided for in this Statute, the Prosecutor shall, as soon as practicable, disclose to the defence evidence in the Prosecutor's possession or control which he or she believes shows or tends to show the innocence of the accused, or to mitigate the guilt of the accused, or which may affect the credibility of prosecution evidence. In case of doubt as to the application of this paragraph, the Court shall decide.