What punishments Army Act holds for various offences

Asian Tribune learns that there is a likelihood of former Army Commander and the former Chief of Defence Staff would be court martialled and also cases would be filed against him in the appropriate civil courts.

Army authorities will finalize their move once Mr. Mohan Peris, Attorney General, who is away in Geneva arrives in Colombo today.

According to Army spokesman Sarath Fonseka has been arrested under Army Act 57(1).

Trial of offenders who have ceased to be subject to Army Act 57 (1):

"Where a person subject to military law commits any offence and thereafter ceases to be a person subject to military law, he may be taken into and kept in military custody and be tried and punished for that offence by a Court Martial:

Provided that he shall not be so tried after the lapse of six months from the date of the commission of such offence unless such offence is the offence of mutiny, desertion, or fraudulent enlistment. "

Asian Tribune learns that Sarath Fonseka has been charged for the following offences:

* Engaging in political activity aimed at targeting and undermining the state to which he was sworn to serve whilst in uniform

* Conspiring against his Commander-in-Chief whilst holding the highest rank in the Army

* Creating a private army of more than 1,500 deserters whilst holding the office of the Army Commander in pursuit of his self-serving politics, and

*. Engaging in corrupt practices in procuring arms for the forces.

Army authorities are considering taking up the following charges to be considered by the Court Martial

* Engaging in political activity aimed at targeting and undermining the state to which he was sworn to serve whilst in uniform

* Conspiring against his Commander-in-Chief whilst holding the highest rank in the Army and

* Engaging in corrupt practices in procuring arms for the forces.

Fonseka will be charged under Army Act 134:

Special provisions, in regard to punishments by Court Martial:-

134. The following provisions shall apply in regard to punishments which may be inflicted by Court Martial:-

"(a) For the purpose of communication and revision of sentence, detention shall not be deemed to be a less severe punishment than imprisonment if the term of detention is longer than the term of imprisonment.

(b) An officer shall be sentenced to be cashiered before he is sentenced to imprisonment,

(c) The Minister may cause the restoration of the whole or any part of any part of any lost seniority or forfeited service in the faithful service in the case of an officer who may otherwise be deemed by the Minister to merit such restoration.

(d) An officer or a non-commissioned officer when sentenced to for feature of seniority of rank and an officer when sentenced to forfeiture of all or any part of his service for the purposes of promotion may in addition be sentenced to be severely reprimanded or reprimanded.

(e) A soldier when sentenced to imprisonment may, in addition thereto, be sentenced to be discharged with ignominy from the army.

(f) Where a soldier on active service is guilty of any offence, it shall be lawful for a court martial to inflict for that offence such field punishment, other than flogging or attachment to a fixed subject, as may be prescribed, and such field punishment shall be of the nature of personal restraint or of hard labour, but shall not be of a nature to cause injury to life or limb.

(g) For the purpose of communication of sentence the field punishment above mentioned shall be deemed to stand in the scale of punishment next below detention.

(h) In addition to or in lieu of any other punishment in respect of any offence committed by a soldier on active service, it shall be lawful for a court martial to order that such soldier shall forfeit all ordinary pay for a period commencing on the day of the sentence and not exceeding three months.

(i) In addition to or in lieu of any other punishment in respect of any offence, an offender convicted by a court martial may be sentenced to forfeiture of any deferred pay, service towards pension, military decoration, or military reward, in such manner as may be prescribed.

(j) In addition to or in lieu of any other punishment in respect of any offence, any offender may be sentenced by a court martial to any deduction authorised by this act to be made from his pay. "

Accordingly an officer shall be sentenced to be cashiered before he is sentenced to imprisonment.

The word Cashier derived from the French word casser - revoke, dismiss from. That means if he is found guilty, he will be deprived of all his position and honor awards given to him in the Army. Subsequently he will be simply addressed as Sarath Fonseka.

Once he is cashiered the scale of his punishment would be based on Part XIV of the Army Act.

Scale of punishments by Court Martial

133. "(1) Subject to the provisions of section 134, the following shall be the scale of punishments, in descending order of severity, which may be inflicted on officers convicted of offences by courts martial:

(a) death;

(b) rigorous imprisonment;

(c) simple imprisonment;

(d) cashiering

(e) dismissal from the Army;

(f) forfeiture, in the prescribed manner, of seniority of rank, either in the army or in the corps in the case of an officer whose promotion depends upon length of service, forfeiture of all or any part of his service for the purposes of promotion;

(g) severe reprimand or reprimand;

(h) such penal deductions from pay as are authorised by the Act.

(2) Subject to the provisions of section 134, the following shall be the scale of punishments. In descending order of severity, which may be inflicted on soldiers convicted of offences by courts martial:--

(a) death;

(b) rigorous imprisonment;

(c) simple imprisonment;

(d) detention for a term not exceeding three years;

(e) discharges with ignominy dismissal from the Army;

(f) dismissal from the army.

(g) in the case of warrant officer or a non-commissioned officer, reduction to the ranks or to a lower grade, or forfeiture, in the prescribed manner, of seniority of rank;

(h) In the case of a warrant officer or a non-commissioned officer service reprimanded.

(i) Such forfeitures of and deductions from pay, and such fines, as are authorized by this Act."

Furthermore, for the offence of * Creating a private army of more than 1,500 deserters whilst holding the office of the Army Commander in pursuit of his self-serving politics, he will be referred to the appropriate civil courts for trial under the Army Act section 138.

Inducing or assisting officers or soldiers to desert or absent themselves without leave

138.Every person, other than a person subject to military law, who by any means-

"(a) procures or persuades any officer or soldier to desert or absent himself without leave, or attempts to procure or persuade any officer or soldier to desert or absent himself without leave, or

(b) knowing that an officer or soldier is about to desert or absent himself without leave, aids or assists him in deserting or absenting himself without leave, or

(c) Knowing any officer or soldier to be a deserter or absentee without leave, conceals such officer or soldier or aids or assists him in concealing himself, or aids or assists in his rescue from arrest,

He shall be guilty of an offence and shall, on conviction after summary trial before a Magistrate, be liable to simple or religious imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months. "

- Asian Tribune -