Four men charged with manslaughter in Tonga over a ferry sinking that killed 74 people have pleaded not guilty at the start of a month-long trial in the Pacific nation's capital, Nuku'alofa.
The four - Shipping Corporation of Polynesia's managing director John Jonesse, the ferry captain, first mate and a senior civil servant - each face up to 25 years in jail if convicted.
The Princess Ashika sank in August 2009 while on an overnight voyage from Nuku'alofa to an outlying island.
There were five foreign nationals on board - a Japanese crew member and two French and two German passengers.
Survivors at the time told of water building up in the cargo hold before the ferry capsized around midnight, trapping sleeping passengers below deck.
An inquiry into the sinking described the incident as "scandalous" and found there was a lack of due diligence by the shipping firm and government when the ferry was bought.
The Princess Ashika, built in the early 1970s, was on its fourth voyage in Tonga when it sank and the inquiry blamed authorities for allowing it to sail as evidence mounted of its unseaworthiness.
The trial has been moved from the Nuku'alofa Supreme Court building to Tonga's parliament because of intense public interest in proceedings.
It was delayed last week when the original jury had to be discharged when it emerged one of them had a criminal conviction. It resumed today with a new jury of four men and three women.
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