A high court judge in Fiji says there is nothing revolutionary in offering discounts in sentencing to criminals who plead guilty.
Justice Kishore Govind made headlines when he told lawyers that there could be up to 25 percent discount in sentencing if their clients pleaded guilty.
He says guilty pleas have been attracting lesser sentences already but he thought he would spell it out and make it generally known.
Justice Govind says there are a number of reasons why he thinks the discounting is a good move.
"It saves a complainant or a victim in cases like violence or rape the trauma of going to trial to giving evidence. Secondly, it save the state a lot of expense, calling witnesses, wastage of court time. So there are a lot of pluses attendant upon a plea of guilty and I think any person who pleads guilty should be rewarded for it."
Justice Govind says the 25 percent is not set in stone and is dependent on when criminals plead guilty.
