RESTRICTED
F
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ontent to be associated with the reply. I submit a draft.
3.
Although Cahill addressed his letter to Sir Arthur Watts, it would be more appropriate if the reply were to be signed by a
* Diplomatic Service Officer rather than the Legal Adviser. subject is shared by SEAD and HKD, I suggest Mr Burns might sign.
Background
* and
Since the also e
DS officer
4. Osman, a Malaysian businessman, is being held on remand pending extradition to Hong Kong to face charges of fraud. I attach a background note by the Home Office on the case. His case has attracted a degree of notoriety as a result of Osman's repeated attempts to block extradition through ruthless exploitation of the habeas corpus procedures in this country (he is a Barrister, having qualified in this country). Cahill is a journalist who has worked closely with Osman's solicitors to publicise his case.
5. We assume that he obtained his copy of the Hong Kong telegram from Osman's solicitors who in turn received it from Treasury
Solicitors as one of a number of official documents relevant to the case late in 1989. These documents were released in response to a Court order for discovery because it was thought at the time that there were insufficient grounds to claim Public Interest Immunity for them. In fact, we were subsequently able to successfully assert such Immunity, Mr Maude having signed the appropriate Certificate.
6. We have consulted Treasury Solicitors and taken the advice of the Treasury Counsel, John Laws, on how to react to Cahill's letter. The legal options open to us are limited. We could seek an injunction to prevent the breach of confidence in the use of the Hong Kong telegram as proposed by Cahill. This would involve us in potentially highly controversial Court proceedings analogous to those in the Spycatcher case. Mr Laws advises that while we might succeed in obtaining an interim injunction to prevent any initial use of the document, we would then have to prove to the Court's satisfaction that disclosure would be injurious to our relations with Malaysia and that it should in consequence be withheld. We could not be certain of success. In view of the age of the telegram
DTCFDTOTSA