Evidence to be taken in presence of accused
131.—(1) Subject to any other provision of this Decree, all evidence taken in any trial under this Decree shall be taken—
(a) in the presence of the accused; or
(b) when his or her personal attendance has been dispensed with, in the presence of his or her lawyer (if any).

(2) Nothing in this section shall prevent a judge or magistrate from authorising that appropriate arrangements be made for—
(a) taking of evidence from a remote location; or
(b) the use of any other procedure or means by which evidence may be taken during, or for the purposes of the trial—
where issues of safety or the interests of justice require the use of such means.
Manner of recording evidence before magistrates
132.—(1) In trials before a magistrate the proceedings, including the evidence of the witnesses, are to be recorded as follows—
(a) if there is available the means by which the proceedings (including the evidence) can be contemporaneously recorded and reproduced in written form by a device which will provide a transcript of the proceedings as nearly contemporaneously as is possible, the proceedings are to be recorded in that manner;
(b) if a device as described in paragraph (a) is not available —
(i) the evidence of each witness, or so much of it as the magistrate considers material, is to be taken down in writing in English by the magistrate, or in the presence and hearing and under the personal direction and superintendence of the magistrate, and when signed by the magistrate will form part of the record;
(ii) evidence taken down by a magistrate under sub-paragraph (i) is normally to be taken down not in the form of questions and answers but in the form of a narrative, except that the magistrate may, in his or her discretion, take down or cause to be taken down any particular question and answer;
(iii) a summary of any application or submission by or on behalf of a party to the proceedings on the law, evidence and facts must be noted by the magistrate and included in the record.
(2) If a witness asks that his or her evidence be read over, the magistrate shall cause such evidence to be read over to the witness in a language which he or she understands.
Admission of signed plan or report
133.—(1) Any plan, report, photograph or document purporting to have been made or taken in the course of an office, appointment or profession by or under the hand of any of the persons specified in sub-section (3), may be given in evidence in any trial or other proceeding under the provisions of this Decree, unless the person shall be required to attend as a witness by —
(a) the court; or
(b) the accused person, in which case the accused person shall give notice to the prosecutor not less than 14 clear days before the trial or other proceeding.
(2) In any case in which the prosecutor intends to adduce in evidence a plan, report, photograph or document a copy of it shall be delivered to the accused not less than 21 clear days before the commencement of the trial or other proceeding.
(3) The following persons shall be the persons to whom this section shall apply —
(a) medical practitioners and medical officers;
(b) Government analysts and chemists and laboratory superintendents employed by the Government;
(c) registered and Government land surveyors;
(d) examiners of weights and measures;
(e) veterinary officers, livestock officers and veterinary assistants;

the officer in charge of the Criminal Records Office;
engineers holding a degree in any relevant engineering discipline;
authorised examiners appointed under the provisions of the Land Transport Act; dental practitioners and dental officers;
survey technical assistants employed by the Government;
police photographers; and
scientists holding a degree in science relevant to botany, chemistry, micro-biology or any other scientific discipline relevant to forensics.
(4) The court may presume that the signature to any plan, report or document is genuine and that the person signing it held the qualification, appointment or office which he or she professed to hold at the time when the plan, report or document was signed.
(5) The contents of any report which the prosecution intends to give as evidence under this section and about which notice has been given under sub-section (2), may be referred to and commented upon by any other expert called as a witness in any criminal trial.
Statements in criminal proceedings
134.—(1) In any criminal proceedings, a written statement by any person shall, if such of the conditions mentioned in sub-section (2) as are applicable are satisfied, be admissible as evidence to the like extent as oral evidence to the like effect by that person.
(2) The conditions referred to in sub-section (1) shall be that —
(a) the statement purports to be signed by the person who made it;
(b) the statement contains a declaration by that person to the effect that it is true to the best of his or her knowledge and belief and that he or she made the statement knowing that, if it were tendered in evidence, he or she would be liable to prosecution for any statement in it which he or she knew to be false or did not believe to be true;
(c) at least 28 clear days before the hearing at which the statement is tendered in evidence, a copy of the statement is served, by or on behalf of the party proposing to tender it, on each of the other parties to the proceedings;
(d) none of the other parties or their lawyers within 14 days from the service of the copy of the statement serves a notice on the party so proposing, objecting to the statement being tendered in evidence under this section.
(3) The conditions stated in sub-section (2) (c) and (d) shall not apply if the parties agree before or during the hearing that the statement shall be tendered.
(4) The following provisions shall also have effect in relation to any written statement tendered in evidence under this section—
(a) if the statement is made by a person under the age of 21 years, it shall state the age of the person;
(b) if it is made by a person who cannot read it, it shall be read to the person before signature in a language he or she understands and shall be accompanied by a declaration by the person who read the statement to the effect that it was so read; and
(c) if it refers to any other document as an exhibit, the copy served on any other party to the proceedings under sub-section (2)(c) shall be accompanied by a copy of that document or by such information as may be necessary in order to enable the party on whom it is served to inspect that document or a copy of it.

(5) Notwithstanding that a written statement made by any person may be admissible as evidence under this section—
(a) the party by whom or on whose behalf a copy of the statement was served may call that person to give evidence; and
(b) the court may of its own motion, and shall on the application of any party to the proceedings, require that person to attend before the court and give evidence or to submit to cross-examination.
(6) So much of any statement as is admitted in evidence under this section shall, unless the court otherwise directs, be read aloud at the hearing and where the court so directs an account shall be given orally of so much of any statement as is not read aloud.
(7) Any document or object referred to as an exhibit and identified in a written statement tendered in evidence under this section shall be treated as if it had been produced as an exhibit and identified in court by the maker of the statement.
(8) A document required by this section to be served on any person may be served —
(a) by delivering it to the person or to his or her lawyer; or
(b) by addressing it to the person and leaving it at his or her usual or last known place of abode or place of business or by addressing it to his or her lawyer and leaving it at his or her office; or
(c) by sending it by registered post to the person at his or her last known place of residence or place of business, or addressed to the person's lawyer at his or her office; or
(d) in the case of a body corporate, by delivering it to the secretary or clerk of the body at its registered or principal office or sending it by registered post addressed to the secretary or clerk of that body at that office.
(9) The provisions of this section are subject to any provisions of any law dealing with the giving and admissibility of evidence in criminal cases, and shall be read and applied subject to the provisions of such a law.

''Part VIII-ADMISSIBILITY OF FOREIGN EVIDENCE, Division 2 - Obtaining Foreign Material, 40. Requirements for testimony''

(1) The testimony shall be taken before a court-
(a) on oath or affirmation; or
(b) under caution or admonition as would be accepted, by courts in the foreign country concerned, for the purposes of giving testimony in proceedings before those courts.
(2) The testimony may be taken in Chambers.

''Part VIII-ADMISSIBILITY OF FOREIGN EVIDENCE ,Division 3 - Using Foreign Material, 42. Foreign material may be adduced as evidence''

(1) Subject to subsection (2) and section 43, foreign material may be adduced as evidence in a proceedings to which this Part applies.
(2) The foreign material is not to be adduced as evidence if-
(a) at the hearing of the proceeding, it appears to the Court's satisfaction that the person who gave the testimony concerned is present in Fiji and is able to testify at the hearing; or
(b) the evidence would not have been admissible had it been adduced from the person at the hearing.

''Part VIII-ADMISSIBILITY OF FOREIGN EVIDENCE ,Division 3 - Using Foreign Material, 43. Direction to prevent foreign material being adduced''

(1) The Court may direct that foreign material not be adduced as evidence if it appears to the Court's satisfaction that the interests of justice would be better served if the foreign material were not adduced as evidence.
(2) Without limiting the matters that the Court may take into account in deciding whether to give a direction, it shall take into account-
(a) the extent to which the foreign material provides evidence which would not otherwise be available;
(b) the probative value of the foreign material with respect to any issue that is likely to be determined in the proceedings;
(c) the extent to which statements contained in the foreign material would, at the time they were made, be challenged by questioning the persons who made them;
(d) whether exclusion of the foreign material would cause undue expense or delay; and
(e) whether exclusion of the foreign material would prejudice-
(i) the defence in criminal proceedings; or
(ii) any party to a related civil proceedings.

''Part IX -MISCELLANEOUS, 48. Authentication of documents''

(1) In a proceedings under this Act or the Proceeds of Crime Act, 1997 arising directly or indirectly from a request made under this Act, any document that is duly authenticated is admissible in evidence.
(2) A document is duly authenticated for the purposes of subsection (1) if -
(a) it is signed or certified by a Judge, Magistrate or officer in or of a foreign country; and
(b) it is sealed with an official or public seal of the foreign country or of a Minister of State, or of a Department or officer of the Government, of the foreign country.
(3) Nothing in this section prevents the proof of any matter, or the admission in evidence of any document, under any other law of Fiji.

''Part IX -MISCELLANEOUS, 49. Restriction on use of information etc.''

(2) The material is inadmissible in evidence in any proceedings other than the proceedings in respect of which it was obtained unless the Attorney-General has approved its use for the purposes of that other proceedings.
(3) Any information, document, article or thing obtained directly or indirectly from a person by making use of the material-
(a) otherwise than for the purpose of the proceedings or investigation in respect of which it was obtained; and
(b) without the approval of the Attorney-General,
is inadmissible in evidence in any other proceedings and may not be used for the purposes of any other investigation.