News Lepartment
HKG 380/1
(195)
CAPITAL UNIR ENT: BERNUDA
1.
Iwo convicted murderers, Erskine urrant ("Buck") Burrows and Larry Winfield Tacklyn, are to be hanged in Bermuda on Friday 2 December. This is being announced in bermuda late this evening. Letails of the offences are attached. The announcement may attract a certain amount of attention since there will probably be some surprise that executives are allowed to take place in british Dependent Territories when they have been abolished in the U.K. There is the added fact in this case that one of the men involved is the convicted murderer of the former "Governor, Sir Richard Charles.
2. we should avoid being drawn into discussion of these cases. The question of Capital Punishment is an internal matter, and therefore one that it is for the local legislative, not the Fritish Government, to decide. The Royal irero1ative of Mercy has been delegated by lier Lajesty to the Covernor, who takes his decision after consultations with a local irerogative of Mercy Committee established under the Constitution.
All other possibilities having been exhausted, a petition was sent to The Queen on behalf of the condemned men. After carefully considering all the matters raised in the petition the ecretary of tate was unable to advise Her Majesty to intervene to prevent the law from taking its course.
4.
(Further background). Although all UK Dependent Territories were invited to follow the british example and abolish the death penalty, seven territories declined to do so. in Bermuda the question was last debated in 1975 when a motion to abolish the death penalty was rejected in the Bermuda House of Assembly by 25 vorbe to 9. There has not been an execution in Bermuda since 1943. The last execution in a ĉritish Lependent herritory was in Bolize in 1974.
WL Quantrill
K 216
23 November 1977
Hong Kong 3 Ceneral Department
CC:
Mr Sullivan WIAD
нка 3861
RECEIVED
YAY NO.
51
2 4 NOV 1977
DUSK OFF
INDEX
No
PA
ction Taken