Source: http://www.deathpenaltyworldwide.org/country-search-post.cfm?country=Tonga
Timestamp: 2019-04-23 04:00:27+00:00

Document:
U.S. Dept. of State, Background Note: Tonga, http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/16092.htm, Jun. 28, 2010.
 Amnesty Intl., Death Penalty: Countries Abolitionist in Practice, http://www.amnesty.org/en/death-penalty/countries-abolitionist-in-practice, last accessed Oct. 22, 2010.
 Tonga Criminal Offenses, art. 33, Ch. 18, as amended by Act No. 46 of 1988.
 Amnesty Intl., Death Sentences and Executions 2018, p. 19, 50/9870/2019, Apr. 10, 2019.
 Amnesty Intl., Executions and Death Sentences in 2014, ACT 50/001/2015, Mar. 31, 2015.
 Amnesty Intl., Death Sentences and Executions in 2009, p. 29, ACT 50/001/2010, Mar. 30, 2010.
 Tonga Criminal Offenses, arts. 87, 91, Ch. 18, as amended by Act No. 46 of 1988.
 For example, see Rex v. Ake, Case No. Cr. 140/05, Supreme Court of Tonga, Feb. 3, 2006.
 Tonga Criminal Offenses, art. 44, Ch. 18, as amended by Act No. 46 of 1988.
 Tonga Criminal Offenses, arts. 44, 87, 91, Ch. 18, as amended by Act No. 46 of 1988.
 Tonga Criminal Offenses, art. 91, Ch. 18, as amended by Act No. 46 of 1988 (Providing an exception for those under the age of 15 at the time of an offense).
 Status, Declarations, and Reservations, Convention on the Rights of the Child, 1577 U.N.T.S. 3, http://treaties.un.org/Pages/ViewDetails.aspx?src=TREATY&mtdsg_no=IV-11&chapter=4?=en, last accessed Oct. 22, 2010.
 Tonga Criminal Offenses, art. 40, Ch. 18, as amended by Act No. 46 of 1988.
 Tonga Criminal Offenses, arts. 17-18, Ch. 18, as amended by Act No. 46 of 1988.
 Status, Declarations, and Reservations, ICCPR, 999 U.N.T.S. 171, Dec. 16, 1966, http://treaties.un.org/Pages/ViewDetails.aspx?src=TREATY&mtdsg_no=IV-4&chapter=4?=en, last accessed Oct. 22, 2010.
 Status, Declarations, and Reservations, Optional Prot. to the ICCPR, 999 U.N.T.S. 171, Dec. 16, 1966, http://treaties.un.org/Pages/ViewDetails.aspx?src=TREATY&mtdsg_no=IV-5&chapter=4?=en, last accessed Oct. 22, 2010.
 Status, Declarations, and Reservations, Second Optional Prot. to the ICCPR, Aiming at the Abolition of the Death Penalty, 1642 U.N.T.S. 414, Dec. 15, 1989, http://treaties.un.org/Pages/ViewDetails.aspx?src=TREATY&mtdsg_no=IV-12&chapter=4?=en, last accessed Oct. 22, 2010.
We found no major cases changing the application of the death penalty; in 2006, a sentencing decision of the Supreme Court in Rex v. Ake explained (in dicta, as the only issue in the appeal before the court was whether the court had discretion to award a sentence lesser than life imprisonment) that the death penalty is applied as an exception for extremely grave murders that can be characterized as the “rarest of rare,” outlining some support for this position.
Convictions and sentencing decisions of the Supreme Court and the judgments of the Court of Appeals (among other legal resources) can be accessed at http://www.paclii.org/to/.
 The Constitution of Tonga, art. 14, Dec. 31, 1988.
 The Constitution of Tonga, Dec. 31, 1988.
 Tonga Criminal Offenses, arts. 44, 87, 91, Ch.18, as amended by Act No. 46 of 1988.
 Tonga Criminal Offenses, arts. 33-34, Ch. 18, as amended by Act No. 46 of 1988.
 U.S. Dept. of State, 2009 Human Rights Report: Tonga, Denial of Fair Public Trial, http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/hrrpt/2009/eap/136012.htm, Mar. 11, 2010.
 The Constitution of Tonga, arts. 91-92, Dec. 31, 1988.
 As in, for example, Kaho v. Rex, No. AC 32 of 2009, Court of Appeal of Tonga, Jul. 14, 2010.
We found no reports that individuals are held under sentence of death in Tonga.
In the only recent sentencing for a capital offense—in this case involving a mandatory life sentence for murder—the Court stated that defendant’s counsel, in contesting the mandatory life sentence, had misstated law and failed to provide a complete analysis of the very limited set of relevant statutory resources. The Court, in dicta, explained why the death penalty applies only to the “rarest of rare” crimes, relying on various cases and legal resources that discuss criteria for discretion in sentencing. Defendant’s counsel apparently failed to use any of these resources to make any arguments that discretion during sentencing would also disallow the extreme punishment of life imprisonment without some exercise of court discretion (in its decision, the Court actually recommends parole after 10-15 years).  We found no other commentary on or indication of the adequacy of available representation in Tonga.
We have no other comments on the criminal justice system upon conclusion of our research.
 Islands Business, Transcript of Radio Australia Interview with Police Commissioner Chris Kelly, http://www.islandsbusiness.com/news/index_dynamic/containerNameToReplace=MiddleMiddle/focusModuleID=130/focusContentID=20665/tableName=mediaRelease/overideSkinName=newsArticle-full.tpl?PHPSESSID=fdd8846b4988051dda77df3a1ee7c06f, Wed. 25, 2010.
 Islands Business, Transcript of Radio Australia Interview with Police Commissioner Chris Kelly, http://www.islandsbusiness.com/news/index_dynamic/containerNameToReplace=MiddleMiddle/focusModuleID=130/focusContentID=20665/tableName=mediaRelease/overideSkinName=newsArticle-full.tpl?PHPSESSID=fdd8846b4988051dda77df3a1ee7c06f, Aug. 25, 2010; Radio New Zealand International, Tonga Prison Extension Ready by June, http://www.rnzi.com/pages/news.php?op=read&id=53502, May 12, 2010; Intl. Centre for Prison Studies, World Prison Brief: Tonga, King’s College, London, http://www.kcl.ac.uk/depsta/law/research/icps/worldbrief/wpb_country.php?country=208, last accessed Oct. 22, 2010.
 U.S. Dept. of State, 2009 Human Rights Report: Tonga, Torture and Cruel, Inhuman or Other Degrading Punishment or Treatment, http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/hrrpt/2009/eap/136012.htm, Mar. 11, 2010.
 American Correctional Institution, Inc., The Correctional Service of Tonga, Gale, Cengage Learning, http://www.thefreelibrary.com/The+correctional+service+of+Tonga-a0152584907, 2006.
 U.S. Dept. of State, 2009 Human Rights Report: Tonga, http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/hrrpt/2009/eap/136012.htm, Mar. 11, 2010.
Tonga is not a party to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights,  so the Human Rights Committee does not issue concluding observations or decisions on petitions regarding the country.
 U.N.G.A., Human Rights Council, Final Report of the Working Group on the Universal Periodic Review: Tonga, paras. 26, 66, U.N. Doc. A/HRC/8/48, Jun. 5, 2008.
 Telegraph.co.uk, King of Tonga in Legal Row over New Zealand Residence, http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/australiaandthepacific/tongafrenchpolynesia/8061534/King-of-Tonga-in-legal-row-over-New-Zealand-royal-residence.html, Oct. 13, 2010.

References: art. 33
 v. 
 art. 44
 art. 91
 art. 40
 v. 
 art. 14
 v.