Tanzania
Mental Diseases Act
Chapter 98
- Published in Tanzania Government Gazette
- Commenced on 29 October 1937
- [This is the version of this document at 31 July 2002.]
- [Note: This legislation has been thoroughly revised and consolidated under the supervision of the Attorney General's Office, in compliance with the Laws Revision Act No. 7 of 1994, the Revised Laws and Annual Revision Act (Chapter 356 (R.L.)), and the Interpretation of Laws and General Clauses Act No. 30 of 1972. This version is up-to-date as at 31st July 2002.]
Part I – Preliminary provisions (ss. 1-2)
1. Short title
This Act may be cited as the Mental Diseases Act.2. Interpretation
In this Act, unless the context requires otherwise—"court" means the court having jurisdiction in lunacy in the case;"criminal lunatic" means—(a)any person confined or detained, or ordered to be confined or detained, under any provision of the Criminal Procedure Act 1 at any time in force relating to procedure in the case of insanity or unsoundness of mind of accused persons; and(b)any prisoner removed to a place for the custody and treatment of lunatics under section 78, or confined in a mental hospital or other place of custody under the Prisons Act 2;"medical officer" means a Government medical officer, and includes any registered medical practitioner duly authorised in pursuance of the provisions of section 16;"mental hospital" means any mental hospital for the custody and treatment of lunatic and persons of unsound mind which is established by the Minister in pursuance of section 33;"Minister" means the minister for the time being responsible for health affairs;"reception order" means an order or authority made or given before or after the commencement of this Act under any of the provisions of Part II for the reception of any person in a mental hospital or similar institution for the care or treatment of persons suffering from mental illness;"registered medical practitioner" and "licensed medical practitioner" mean respectively a person registered or licensed as a medical practitioner, as the case may be, under the Medical Practitioners and Dentists Act 3;"temporary patient" means a person received into a mental hospital under section 19 of this Act as a temporary patient for the purpose of treatment;"visitors" means the visitors appointed for a mental hospital under section 34 of this Act;"voluntary patient" means a person received into a mental hospital under section 16 of this Act as a voluntary patient for the purpose of treatment.Part II – Custody of persons of unsound mind (ss. 3-16)
3. Jurisdiction
The court having jurisdiction in lunacy under this Part shall be a district court:Provided that the High Court may at any time before the determination of the proceedings upon application or otherwise direct any proceedings instituted in a district court under the provisions of this Part to be transferred to itself or to any other district court for hearing and determination.4. Appeals
5. Application for reception order
6. Officers in charge of police to report cases of persons of unsound mind not under proper care and control
Every officer in charge of a police station who has reason to believe that any person within the district controlled from his station is of unsound mind, and is not under proper care and control or is cruelly treated or neglected by anyone having charge of him, shall immediately report the fact to the court and the court may cause that person to be brought before it.7. Power to take under control certain persons of unsound mind
8. Procedure upon inquiry by court into unsoundness of mind
9. Detention of persons pending inquiry into state of mind
10. Powers of certain magistrates and justices of the peace
11. Disposal of movable property
In any proceedings under this Part the court may make inquiries into the property belonging to a person alleged to be of unsound mind and may make any orders regarding the disposal of any movable property not exceeding five hundred shillings in value belonging to any person in respect of whom a reception order is made as it thinks fit.12. Reception orders
13. Orders under other law for confinement of criminal lunatics
An order duly made under the provisions of any other law for the time being in force for the confinement or reception of a criminal lunatic or a person of unsound mind in a mental hospital shall be sufficient authority for the reception and detention of that person in the mental hospital or in any other mental hospital to which he may lawful be transferred.14. Medical certificates
15. Removal from one mental hospital to another
The order of the Minister endorsed upon a reception order or upon any order as is mentioned in section 13 shall be sufficient authority for the removal of the person named with from the mental hospital in which he is lawfully detained to another mental hospital in Tanzania.16. Power of the Minister to authorise certain persons to give medical certificates
Part III – Admission of voluntary and temporary patient to mental hospital (ss. 17-21)
17. Power to receive voluntary patients
18. Notification of reception, death or departure of voluntary patient
Whereas a person is received into a mental hospital as a voluntary patient under the provisions of section 17 of this Act, or where a person so received dies in or departs from a mental hospital, information of his reception, death or departure shall be given by the officer in charge to the visitors at their next visit to that mental hospital.19. Voluntary patient not to be detained for more than forty days after becoming incapable of expression
20. Provision for temporary treatment without certificate of certain persons
21. Minister's powers of discharge
Where any person has been received into a mental hospital under the provisions of this Part of this Act, the Minister may at any time order that that person be discharged or otherwise dealt with under the provisions of this Act.Part IV – Management and administration of the estates of criminal lunatics and persons of unsound mind (ss. 22-32)
22. Jurisdiction
The court having jurisdiction in lunacy for the purposes of this Part shall be the High Court.23. Persons in respect of whose estates orders may be made under this Part
The provisions of this Part relating to management and administration shall apply to—24. Application for order for administration
25. Notice of application
26. Attendance of person to whom proceedings relate
27. Evidence
28. Order for administration of estate
The court may make any orders which it thinks fit for the administration and management of the estate of any person to whom this Part applies and for the purpose of making provision for his maintenance and that of members of his family dependent upon him and the payment of his debts and the costs incurred by any inquiry or other proceeding under this Act or any other expenses connected with the management of his estate or arising out of anything ordered to be done by the court under the provisions of this Act.29. Orders for disposal of property
The court may, upon application or otherwise, if it appears to be just or for the benefit of any person to whom this Part applies order that any property belonging to that person be sold, charged or otherwise disposed of as may seem most expedient for any of the purposes mentioned in section 28 and may order that the property or the proceeds of it be delivered to that person as the court may think fit to be applied for the purposes referred to in section 28.30. Appointment of manager
The court may appoint a fit and proper person to be manager of the estate of any person to whom the provisions of this Part apply.31. Manager's powers and duties
32. Discretion of the court to make orders relating to estate
The court may, on application made to it by petition concerning any matter connected with the estate of any person, make any order, subject to the provisions of this Act, as in the circumstances it thinks fit.Part V – General provisions (ss. 33-46)
33. Establishment of mental hospitals
34. Visitors
35. Discharge
36. Order of discharge on undertaking of relative for due care
When any relative or friend of a person detained in a mental hospital under the provisions of Part II is desirous that that person shall be delivered over to his care and custody, he may make application to the court in whose jurisdiction the person is detained, and the court may if it thinks fit, after consultation with the officer in charge of the mental hospital and with the visitors or with one of them, being a medical officer, and upon the relative or friend entering into a bond with or without sureties for a sum of money which the court thinks fit, conditioned that that person shall be properly taken care of and shall be prevented from doing injury to himself or to others, make an order for his discharge and he shall then be discharged.37. Order to justify detention and recapture after escape
Every person duly received into a mental hospital under the provisions of this Act, may be detained there until he is removed or discharged as authorised by law, and in case of escape may be retaken and conveyed to the mental hospital.38. Proceedings may he held in private
Any proceedings under this Act may, if the court thinks fit, be held in private and the court may allow the person to whom the proceedings relate to be represented by any suitable person or may itself appoint a fit and proper person to represent him.39. Removal of persons lawfully detained
When it appears to the President that it is likely that the life of any person lawfully under this Act and who is not a detained citizen of Tanzania will be endangered or his recovery hindered by reason of there being no mental hospital or other place in Tanzania in which he can be properly detained and treated, or by reason of there being no person in Tanzania who can be made responsible for his safe keeping and treatment, or for any other cause, and arrangements are made with the government of some other country for his reception by some person or institution in that country, it shall be lawful for the President to order that he be sent to that person or institution in that other country in the custody of a person or persons who shall be named in the order:Provided that no order of removal shall be made unless the prior written consent for the removal has been obtained from the government of that country and a certified copy of the consent shall be endorsed on the order for removal.40. President's order sufficient authority to remove
The order of the President shall be sufficient authority to the person or persons to whom it is directed or delivered for execution to receive and detain the person described in the order and to carry him to the place named in it, according to the order.41. Admission into Tanzania of person found to be of unsound mind
When with the previous consent of the President any person who is a citizen of Tanzania and is found to be of unsound mind by the laws of any other country is received by any person or institution in Tanzania that person shall forthwith be brought before a court and shall be dealt with as if an application for his reception into a mental hospital had been made under the provisions of this Act.42. Rules
The Minister may make rules for prescribing anything which may be prescribed under the provisions of this Act and generally for the purpose of carrying the Act into effect, and in particular with respect to the following matters—43. Forms
Until varied or revoked by rules made under the provisions of section 42, the forms set forth in the Schedule to this Act shall be used for the respective purposes.44. Certain provisions of Criminal Procedure Act to apply
The provisions of the Criminal Procedure Act 8, in so far as they relate to the taking of bonds, the summoning and attendance of witnesses, and matters appertaining thereto to them shall, so far as may be, apply to proceedings taken under this Act.45. Protection of persons acting in good faith and with reasonable care
46. Disapplication
[Disapplication of the Indian Lunacy Act, 1912.]History of this document
31 July 2002 this version
Consolidation
29 October 1937
Commenced
Cited documents 5
Legislation 5
1. | Criminal Procedure Act | 50 citations |
2. | Civil Procedure Code | 43 citations |
3. | Local Government (Urban Authorities) Act, 1982 | 30 citations |
4. | Local Government (District Authorities) Act, 1982 | 28 citations |
5. | Medical Practitioners and Dentists Act | 12 citations |
Documents citing this one 7
Judgment 6
Legislation 1
1. | Transfer of Powers and Duties (The Chief Medical Officer, Ministry of Health) Notice, 1973 |