From the next hearing, Trongsa District Court will conduct an in-camera hearing with the girls and witnesses of the alleged sexual harassment case of Tagtse College of Language and Culture Studies.
In-camera hearing refers to hearing conducted in a closed room with the victims and witnesses. This was as per section 4 under the open trial of Principles of Judiciary under the Civil and Criminal Procedure Code of Bhutan 2001* to protect the privacy of parties.
The Court decided to abide by the section 4 of the Civil and Criminal Procedure Code of Bhutan following the defendants’ requests to summon the witnesses and the girls in the next hearing demanding a cross-examination in the courtroom.
The Court also said it may seek the help of the National Commission for Women and Children (NCWC) and NGO Respect, Educate, Nurture, Empower Women (RENEW) and other relevant organisations in order to provide security and to aid the girls and witnesses to reveal the truth without any fears and favours as some of them are still studying in the college and some have graduated last year.
Meanwhile, one of the defendants didn’t submit his rebuttal statement against the prosecutor’s evidence yesterday saying that submitting a rebuttal was inconvenient being in the prison. However, the prosecutor rebutted that opportunities would have been provided, had he informed them. He was the defendant whose bail got cancelled recently.
The second defendant submitted a statement but touched the arguments related to cases of seven other former staff whose reinstatement case proceedings are also underway against the college and the Royal University of Bhutan. And the Court ordered him to re-submit statement today rebutting the evidence of Prosecutor instead of submitting irrelevant statements. The third however submitted and denied the allegations like before.
Meanwhile one of the defendants also alleged that there are also five more serving lecturers whose charges would have been the same as theirs but they were not terminated. The Court ordered the lawyers of the college to submit the preliminary report as per their investigation to the Court today.
The college compulsorily retired ten staff in total after nineteen girls lodge a complaint with the college management for immediate action in May last year. The seven had filed a case against the college and Royal University of Bhutan to reinstate and for compensation since the police and Office of the Attorney General found no basis to charge them.
*Civil and Criminal Procedure Code of Bhutan 2001
4. Every person is entitled to a fair and public trial by an independent and impartial Court in any proceeding. The court may in its discretion exclude the press and the public from all or any part of the trial or other proceedings only if there is a compelling need to do so in the interest of:
- public order;
- national security;
- the privacy of the parties;
- protecting the privacy of a juvenile; and
- in any other situation, if in the opinion of the Court publicly would seriously prejudice the interest of the justice
Passang
