CODE 18 - 77
47
Mr Levoir, Hong Kong & General
Reference.......
1. You asked me for advice on the remark about Grenada in the letter to Mr Snodgrass from Mr Evans General Secretary of the Friends Peace and International Relations Committee.
2. Whether or not the granting of independence in any one country is premature is a matter of subjective judgement and the timing must in the last resort be decided by the wishes of the inhabitants.
3.
Independence was granted to Grenada by the then Conservative administration. In describing the background of their decision to take this course Lord Balniel is reported in the Hansard for the House of Commons for Tuesday 11 December 1973 as saying:
4.
"The background to Grenada's request is that a General Election was held in Grenada on 28 February 1972, and the Premier, Mr Gairy, made his intention of seeking early independence the first item on his programme. His party won 13 out of the 15 seats in the House of Representatives. He then asked the British Government to grant independence to Grenada under the procedure laid down in Section 10(2) of the West Indies Act 1967. Talks were held in London in October 1972, attended both by the Premier and by the Leader of the Opposition in Grenada, at which it was agreed that there should be a constitutional conference in May 1973. The constitutional conference, again attended by the Premier and the Leader of the Opposition in Grenada, was held in London from 14th to 18th May 1973."
You may feel that your reply need not quote this passage in full and it would suffice to quote just the first sentences.
HKG 025/1
RECEN
- 8 DEC 1977
DESA OF
INDEX
No
29 November 1977
пи
ли нава
Ia Hude a
PwNewsan
NO. 51
R W Newsam
REGISTRY Action Tuken
an
rtmen
Mexico & Caribbean Department
> refit to
requested
draft reply.
W.E. Chantill
6712
issue
juls
-иб.
збри
S