Sir A. Galsworthy
:
Action against Communist Press in Hong Kong
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Problem
To decide what action should be taken in connection with the enforcement of an interim judgment for damages in a civil libel action brought by a Hong Kong Government Officer against a C.P.G. owned newspaper.
Recommendation
2.
I recommend that, provided the Governor agrees, the plaintiff should be informed that the Hong Kong Government would see no objection to his abandoning proceedings for the assessment of damages and the enforcement of judgment. A draft telegram to Hong Kong is attached.
Background
3. Since July interim Supreme Court judgments have been obtained against three Communist newspapers in Hong Kong, as the result of private civil actions for libel taken by Hong Kong Government Officers with the consent of the Hong Kong Government. In none
of these cases have damages yet been assessed. On the two occasions when this aspect of the proceedings has come before the Courts the plaintiffs, at the instance of the Hong Kong Government, have sought and obtained adjournments. This course was followed because it was known that to press home the actions against the newspapers concerned to the point of assessing and enforcing the payment of damages (which would probably involve action for distraint) would meet with strong opposition from the newspapers concerned and possibly from Peking.
4. The case with which we are immediately concerned is that of a Mr. MacGregor who obtained judgment against one of the three C.P.G. owned newspapers (the Ta Kung Pao), After an interim judgment was obtained in this case and pending the assessment of damages, an attempt was made by Mr. MacGregor, through an intermediary, to reach a compromise settlement with the newspaper. This failed, whereupon Mr. MacGregor provisionally fixed the 12th January for the assessment of damages intending, once damages had been assessed, to announce in court that, his name having been vindicated and in the interests of decreasing tension, he did not propose to proceed further towards their recovery (Hong Kong telegram No. 27). After consultation with Peking and the Governor the case was removed from the lists to give more time for 22 consideration and, if it were to be pursued further, it could not Elags
now come forward for assessment of damages until March (Peking and D. telegram No. 23, C.0. telegram No. 44, H.K. telegram No. 34).
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Flag
122A
2315.
However, Mr. MacGregor now proposes to seek permission from the Court to make a statement on the 12th January to the effect that he does not intend to ask the Court to proceed to the assessment of damages. He would explain this on the ground that the judgment in his favour was adequate public proof of the falsity of the allegations against him. This would, in fact, mean the abandonment of the action.
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