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Ministers agreed to support Hong Kong's efforts to seek administrative redress in France. The "Recours Gracieux" was lodged with the French authorities on 19 May. Under this French procedure (a sort of "administrative review") a failure by the French authorities to reply within two months constitutes an implied rejection. The only step beyond that is to "seize" (take the case to) the Conseil d'Etat. French lawyers acting for the British and Hong Kong governments were instructed to take this step last month.
Although extradition cases often go to the Conseil d'Etat, we are advised that this will be the first time that a government has applied to the Conseil d'Etat on an extradition issue. This approach on HKG's behalf may have raised some French eyebrows, on the grounds that it could be taken to be politically contentious.
The Hong Kong Attorney General has now written to the FCO asking for assistance at a political level over the matter to reinforce the latest legal move. Our Embassy in Paris - which has been coordinating closely with the lawyers acting for the HKG suggests that an approach now by the Attorney General would be timely. Although we doubt whether action by the Attorney General could produce an early reversal of the previous French government decision, we do consider that such an approach would usefully emphasise British Ministerial support for Hong Kong's determination to exhaust all possible lines of appeal and that we should make every effort to encourage a French rethink.
In asking the Attorney General to consider taking this on, I am conscious that he is already planning to raise the Ali Akbar extradition case. While care would of course need to be taken in keeping the two cases separate, I would hope that the Attorney General would not see this as an obstacle to raising our concern in securing a French rethink on Saniman's extradition. We would envisage the Attorney General doing no more than registering British interest with the French Minister of Justice and indicating that the British Government fully supports HMG's position on this case, which is a matter of great public interest in Hong Kong.
I would be grateful if you could let me know as soon as possible whether the Attorney General can agree to raise Saniman. If so, we will liaise with your office to provide a brief giving more detailed background for the call.
PF Ricketts
You ever,
beler Ricket.
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