ʻAsipeli ʻAminiasi Kefu is a Tongan lawyer and civil servant who has served as Solicitor General of Tonga. From 2014 to 2019 he was acting Attorney General of Tonga.
ʻAminiasi Kefu | |
|---|---|
| Attorney General of Tonga | |
| In office 26 June 2014 – 21 March 2019 | |
| Prime Minister | Sialeʻataongo Tuʻivakanō ʻAkilisi Pōhiva |
| Preceded by | Neil Adsett |
| Succeeded by | Linda Folaumoetu'i |
Kefu was educated at Tonga High School and Nelson College.[1] He studied law at the University of Waikato and Victoria University of Wellington,[2] where he wrote a Masters thesis on "Recent constitutional developments in Tonga : where to now?".[3] He later studied public sector management at Massey University.[2] He worked as an assistant legal officer for Tonga's Crown Law Department from 1997 and became a Senior Crown Counsel in 2002.[2] In July 2008 he became acting Solicitor General. The appointment was made permanent in April 2009.[2] As Solicitor-General, he was responsible for prosecutions over the 2006 Nukuʻalofa riots,[4] including the unsuccessful prosecution of pro-democracy members of Parliament.[5] He also gave evidence at the inquiry into the sinking of the MV Princess Ashika,[6] and managed the subsequent criminal prosecutions.[7]
Following the departure of Attorney-General Neil Adsett he became acting Attorney-General.[8][9] While expected to be a short-term position,[10] Kefu remained in the role until he was replaced by Linda Folaumoetu'i in March 2019.[11] In February 2015 he was accused of interfering with the judiciary over his sentencing recommendation for former Speaker of the legislative Assembly Lord Tuʻilakepa.[12] In 2017 he defended King Tupou VI's controversial decision to dissolve the legislative assembly and call early elections in an unsuccessful effort to unseat the elected government of ʻAkilisi Pōhiva.[13]
After retiring as Attorney-General in 2019 he moved to New Zealand, where he became a crown prosecutor and served on the board of rugby team Moana Pasifika.[1]