Page:New penal code of Siam (Masao T, 1908).pdf/15

 by another Code on account of that state of things having come into existence.

The provisions of the new Penal Code of Siam on the subject of the application of Siamese criminal laws leave little to be desired. In short, these provisions are that the Penal Code and other Siamese criminal laws are applicable to all offences committed in Siam and to such offences committed out of Siam as are stated in the Code, namely, the offences against the King and the State, the offences relating to money, seals or stamps of the State, and the offence of piracy. It is also provided that a Siamese subject committing an offence out of Siam is punishable in Siam, provided that there be a complaint by a foreign State or by the injured person; that the offence be punishable as well by the law of the country where it is committed as by the law of Siam, if committed in Siam; and that the offender be not acquitted or discharged in the foreign country. Of course, it need scarcely be said that these provisions have only a limited application at present, but that is no reason why they should not be there, — especially in view of Japan’s experience in this respect.

The conclusion of a Treaty with Japan in 1898, consenting to the exercise of Japanese Consular jurisdiction in Siam but providing for its eventual surrender by Japan on the completion and coming into effect of the Siamese Codes,, the Penal Code, the Civil Code, the Codes of Procedure, and the Law of Organization of Courts, and the subsequent conclusion of a Revised Treaty with France providing for the immediate relaxation of French Consular jurisdiction in Siam as regards French Asiatic subjects and , and providing for the final surrender of such jurisdiction by France on the completion and coming into effect of the Siamese Codes including a Commercial Code, were a very strong incentive to Siam to put her law reforms on a broad and enduring basis. The new Penal Code discussed above is the first fruit of Siam’s effort in this direction; being the product of Japanese, French, Siamese and English influences combined, and taking from the law systems of these and other countries what is believed to be the best in them. It consisted of three hundred and forty short and clear articles, and is divided into two general parts, dealing