### Control of Obscene and Indecent Articles Ordinance 《淫褻及不雅物品管制條例》

25. Offences in relation to interim classification
Where an article is classified as a Class III article by virtue only of an interim classification, any person who publishes that article, whether or not he knows it has been so classified, commits an offence and is liable to a fine of $1,000,000 and to imprisonment for 3 years.

26. Prohibition on publishing Class III article
Any person who—
(a) publishes;
(b) possesses for the purpose of publication;
(c) imports for the purpose of publication,
any article classified by a Tribunal, other than by virtue only of an interim classification, as a Class III article, whether or not he knows it has been so classified, commits an offence and is liable to a fine of $1,000,000 and to imprisonment for 3 years.

27. Restriction on publishing Class II article
Where, in relation to any article classified as a Class II article, a Tribunal has imposed conditions under section 8(2)(c), any person who publishes that article otherwise than in accordance with those conditions, whether or not he knows it has been so classified or that those conditions have been imposed, commits an offence and is liable to a fine of $400,000 and to imprisonment for 12 months on his first conviction, and to a fine of $800,000 and to imprisonment for 12 months on a second or subsequent conviction.
(Amended 73 of 1995 s. 9)

### Control of Obscene and Indecent Articles Ordinance 《淫褻及不雅物品管制條例》

27A. Prohibition on possession of indecent article for the purpose of publication
(1) Subject to subsection (2), any person who possesses for the purpose of publication any indecent article in respect of which any requirement of section 24 or any condition imposed under section 8(2)(c) is contravened, whether or not he knows that it is an indecent article, or that the indecent article contravenes any requirement of section 24 or that any condition imposed under section 8(2)(c) is contravened, commits an offence and is liable to a fine of $400,000 and to imprisonment for 12 months on his first conviction, and to a fine of $800,000 and to imprisonment for 12 months on a second or subsequent conviction.
(2) It shall be a defence to a charge under this section for the defendant to prove that—
(a) the article the subject of the charge is, or was at the time the offence is alleged to have been committed, classified as a Class I article;
(b) at the time the offence is alleged to have been committed, the article the subject of the charge was possessed by him—
(i) for the purpose of submitting it, a copy thereof or a print therefrom to the Registrar under section 13; or
(ii) as a person licensed under the Broadcasting Ordinance (Cap. 562) for the purpose of submitting it under that Ordinance for provision under that Ordinance; (Replaced 48 of 2000 s. 44)
(c) at the time the offence is alleged to have been committed, he—
(i) had had no reasonable opportunity to inspect the article the subject of the charge; and
(ii) had reasonable grounds for believing that the article was not indecent; or
(d) at the time the offence is alleged to have been committed, he had good and sufficient reasons to believe that the requirements of section 24 and the conditions imposed under section 8(2)(c) had been complied with.
(Added 73 of 1995 s. 10)

28. Defence of public good
It shall be a defence to a charge under this Part in respect of the publication of an article or the public display of matter if that publication or display, as the case may be, is found by a Tribunal to have been intended for the public good on the ground that such publication or display was in the interests of science, literature, art or learning, or any other object of general concern.

### Control of Obscene and Indecent Articles Ordinance 《淫褻及不雅物品管制條例》

29. Tribunal to have exclusive jurisdiction
(1) A Tribunal shall have exclusive jurisdiction to determine for the purposes of this Ordinance whether— (Amended 31 of 2003 s. 24)
(a) any article is obscene or indecent;
(b) any matter that is publicly displayed is indecent; or
(c) the ground of defence under section 28 is proved in respect of the publication of an article or the public display of any matter.
(2) Subject to subsection (3), where in any civil or criminal proceedings before a court or magistrate a question arises for the purposes of this Ordinance as to any of the matters mentioned in subsection (1), that court or magistrate shall refer that question to a Tribunal; and the parties to those civil or criminal proceedings and, in the case of proceedings to which a public officer is not a party, the Secretary for Justice or their representatives, may appear and be heard at any hearing of that Tribunal relating to that reference. (Amended L.N. 362 of 1997)
(3) Where in any civil or criminal proceedings before a court or magistrate a person admits for the purposes of this Ordinance that an article is obscene or indecent or that any matter publicly displayed is indecent the court or magistrate may accept that admission and so find against that person, and subsections (1) and (2) shall not apply. 
(Amended 31 of 2003 s. 24)[cf. 1963 No. 22 s. 12 N.Z.]

30. Appeal
(1) Any party to any proceedings before a Tribunal may appeal to the Court of First Instance against a decision of that Tribunal on a point of law by giving notice of appeal in writing setting out the grounds of that appeal to the Registrar within 14 days of that decision. (Amended 25 of 1998 s. 2)
(2) Where notice of appeal is given under subsection (1) the Registrar shall fix a date for the hearing of the appeal which shall not be later than 28 days after the giving of that notice; but if, in the opinion of the Registrar, it is not practicable for him to fix a date within that period he may fix a date not later than 56 days after the giving of that notice.