w/17
DSR IT
Registry
No. HKG 380/2 DRAFT Submission
SECURITY CLASSIFICATION
Tag-Geuret,
Sacset.
To:-
Mr Stratton
Type 1 +
From
Mr McLaren Telephone No. Ext.
Confidential.
Unclassified
PRIVACY MARKING
Department
ce
WIAD
MCD
In Confidence
Mr Rushford
Mr Hall
Mr Cortazzi
Sir A Duff
PS/PUS
PS/Blaker
Capital Punishment in the Dependent Territories
TEJADA
K
1. The case of Dimas Monroy in Belize (see my submission
of
) and the recent House of Commons debate
on capital punishment for murder in the UK, have served
to highlight the fact that this penalty still exists in
some dependent territories.
2. Despite requests to consider abolition, even for a tri-
period, as a result of debates in the UK Parliament in
1965 and 1970, the following territories have chosen to
retain capital punishment for murder. The year of the
last execution is given in brackets.
Belize ·
(1974)
Bermuda
(1977)
British Virgin Is
(1972)
Cayman Is
(1928)
Hong Kong
(1966)
Montserrat
(1960)
(1946)
Turks & Caicos Is
In Bermuda, the House of Assembly voted as recently as July
for retention by a narrow majority of 1; the last
execution here before 1977 was 1943.
Prerogative of Mercy
3. The Royal prerogative has been expressly delegated o
Governors (but this does not entirely deprive the Crown
of