ASUH should use due process in hearings

The Student Court of the Associated Student of the University of Hawai`i (ASUH), in its Feb. 25 court case, showed how a lack of due process can limit its effectiveness.

The ASUH trial Fatafehi vs. Okubo found itself plagued with complaints from the defense, which claimed it was given less than a day to prepare an appropriate defense.

Were it not for one of the justices calling the defense attorney the night before, he would not have known when and where the hearing would take place.

According to one of the justices, the ASUH Student Court is run much like an absolute democracy: majority rules in every case. This includes not only the decisions made, but the policies, schedules, trial dates, etc. as well.

While democracy is the basis of the judiciary system, some standard rules and regulations must also apply, The current system leaves respondents and defenses with complaints.

The ASUH court should employ the same process in the handling of such cases. If ASUH wishes to bill itself as a governing institution, it must learn to obey the basic governing principles in which it operates.