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LORD GORONWY-ROBERTS'S VISIT TO HONG KONG:
BRIEF NO. 7: DEATH PENALTY
1.
11-17 JANUARY
The underlying position is still as described in Sir Duncan Watson's minutes of 11 June and 26 March 1974 (copies attached) and discussed with the Governor during his visit in the summer. Since then there have been a number of people convicted of murder in Hong Kong, all of whom the Governor has been able to reprieve, with the agreement of Executive Council, though the recent case of Lau gave some difficulty. In connection with the Lau case, the Attorney General of Hong Kong told us that he thought that the present position was no longer tenable in Hong Kong and that, failing a reversion to the Creech Jones formula, the best thing to do would be to change the law in London.
2.
Since the Attorney General's letter, the vote in the House of Commons on the possibility of reintroducing the death penalty for terrorism has again indicated that the House might not tolerate a hanging in Hong Kong. For so long as the Governor is able to reprieve with the concurrence or acquiescence of Executive Council, there will be no absolute need for IMG to take action. If he fails,
it would be possible by another use of the queen's residual Prerogative of Mercy to override the Governor's decision once again. But this would seriously undermine the Governor's position and would appear to bring the crown into the argument.
In the run-up
to the Royal Visit to Hong Kong in May 1975 this would be very undesirable. There have already been suggestions in the Hong Kong press that the matter will be raised with The Queen during Her visit.
3.
The other alternative would be to take steps to abolish the death penalty. This could best be done by an Order in Council, and the Governor would prefer this course in the long run. llowever, he told Lord Goronwy-Roberts in December that the Executive Council currently accept the necessity for commutation and that he had told
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CONFIDENTIAL covering BrCiT
/them that