Judicial year opening ceremony spotlights recent cases

Public Prosecutor-General Ip Son Sang

The judicial year’s opening ceremony, held over the weekend, highlighted several recent cases, with several speakers addressing the the Suncity and Tak Chun cases.

During his speech, President Justice Sam Hou Fai of the Court of Final Appeal said local judges in the past judicial year had, in the face of intense pressure, swiftly and efficiently handled three complex cases that involved large numbers of suspects, generated intense public attention and had lasting impact.

The three cases were those involving Suncity, Tak Chun and two former chiefs of the former Land, Public Works and Transport Bureau, which was restructured as Land and Public Works Bureau (DSOP).

Sam said court procedures were handled nearly concurrently by different court sections, “which was relatively rare in the judicial history of Macau.”

The efficient handling of the procedures showcased the “capability of locally trained judges after the establishment of the Special Administrative Region in having control over processing complex cases,” Sam said.

Prosecutor General Ip Son Sang labelled a recent alleged bribery case involving an assistant prosecutor general as alarming to the Public Prosecutions Office (MP).
Ip underlined the prosecution body’s commitment and attitude towards combatting corruption, saying the MP had reviewed and reevaluated the process of case distribution and archive vetting, among other sections.

He pledged to close any existing loopholes to ensure the MP’s ability to fulfil its judicial responsibilities.

“Any violators will be subject to cautious investigations and severe punishments,” the chief prosecutor said.

Ip also called for longer sentences in a corruption context, as well as extending the statute of limitations for cases involving abuse of public power.

Ip also described the judiciary as “the last line of defense in safeguarding fairness and justice.”

Chief Executive Ho Iat Seng, meanwhile, said the judiciary must uphold principles of justice and integrity.

“A clean judiciary is the founding stone of a just judiciary,” the head of the government said. “We must severely punish judicial corruption without any tolerance.”

The judiciary should function to promote the rule of law and serve as a strong shield to safeguard residents’ legal rights.

The President of the Macau Lawyers Association, lawmaker Vong Hin Fai, did not mention any cases, although the aforementioned alleged bribery also involved a lawyer. However, the veteran lawyer skillfully took an excerpt from an ancient Chinese text to remind his fellows to be law-abiding.

The ancient text suggested that opinions, practices and deeds that do not comply with legal stipulations should not be heeded, promoted and conducted.

“During the practice of our profession, we should always bear in mind the need to abide by the law [and] collectively safeguard the overall reputation of the profession,” Vong said.

Divorce and minor offences

Sam said that in the last judicial year, the Family and Minor Magistracy had received 758 applications for divorce by mutual consent, equating to 46.7% of all cases. Nearly 90% of such cases involved parents of minors.

Sam noted a year-over-year increase in the number of cases handled by the judiciary, reversing the trend of the preceding years.

Ip also said the number of cases the MP handled in the past judicial year was on the rise. Despite the low rate of serious crimes, minor crimes such as digital crimes, swindling and theft have risen. He believed the resumption of free movement after the relaxation of disease control measures was responsible.

The chief prosecutor said the MP handled 201 sex offences against minors in the past judicial year, compared to 168 cases in the preceding year.

Ho suggested the judiciary be modernized to cope with the requirements of a swiftly evolving society, such as upholding positions appointed by the national government, retaining a capitalist and free market, as well as promoting fair competition.

Vong said that so far in 2023, eight lawyers and 19 trainee lawyers had applied for a suspension of practice. Most of them, he explained, have migrated to the executive or full-time education or training.

Currently, the city has 446 registered lawyers and 168 trainee lawyers, 14 of the latter will be eligible for registration this year.