Parliament on Monday voted to accept the landmark evidence Act which was immediately forwarded to the parliamentary national security committee for review.
The bill proposed by a government lawmaker was passed by an overwhelming majority with 59 MPs voting in favour out of the 65 present during Monday's sitting.
The act entails regulations for testifying, offering evidence, obtaining evidence, criteria for weighing evidence, requirements of collecting testimonies and procedures for questioning witnesses.
The bill enables prosecutors to seek court order to place a witness under protection in any stage of the investigation before the testimony is given.
Witnesses also have the option to request for the prosecution to classify them as a witness needing protection, should they feel that there is any fear of reprisal against themselves or their families.
The law also offers judges the authority to place witnesses under protection.
If a question asked by the legal defence of the witness may reveal clues as to his or her identity, then the judge can rule the question as void. The testimony must be given in secret, in the same way secret witnesses give testimonies at present.
The bill also includes more features securing protection for witnesses, with the location of the witness also to be kept secret, with no one but those decided by the judge presiding over the case to know the location. The bill states that the identity of the witness must be kept secure throughout the investigation and both during and post trial.
Should the witness in question be under 18 at the time of giving testimony, then the parents of the child will be placed in protection as well. The property of the witness must be protected by the government as well, after assessing the level of threat faced by the witness.
Majority lawmakers had agreed the need for an evidence Act but opposition lawmakers during the debate on Monday had expressed concern over the integrity of judges to conduct fair trials.
