E
bing conflend with, thashed out to a
Theni. mg Sei E. Stubly.
Conclusion.
Some
hury
about.
Амона
AF
Most of the Departments send me the
reports on these cases and I read them with interest
and I think some usefulness, since if they do
nothing else they give one some insight into local
legal proceedings and the way they are dealt with.
I need scarcely say that the reports are useless
unless full. We have quite recently, insisted on Porößenving full reports.
The doctrine of non-interference seems to
me to have been carried to its extreme point if
not to excess. For example, I remember a case from
Hong Kong where the Governor gent us all the papers
and asked specifically for advice from the Legal
Officere at the Colonial Office. The case was a
difficult one and he was very troubled and I think
Nevertheless, we were not allowed to
with reason,
Es ist him at all.
If we abolish the necessity for these
reports it means that the Secretary of State will
lose all touch with the policy adopted by Governors, and I am not sure that that would be altogether
desirable, since I can hardly imagine that this
doctrine would be carried so far as to preclude the Secretary of State from interfering if he saw that the whole trend and policy adopted by some Governor was wrong and it may be willfully wrong, owing to peculiar views which he held on the subject. Just a little curious that in these days when the prerogative of mercy in this country is exercised upon responsible advice and in that way is reviewable by Parliament and the Press, that the prerogative
It is
& delegated to the Governors should be incapable of
XI
Comment
59
ragulation even by the Secretary of State in eny circumstances whatever.
I hardly think that the reason given for the differentiation in reporte as to confirmation and as to commutation is the
one.
Conly or brently e/best
The real reason seems to me to be this. That in the former case the law is simply allowed to take its course, whereas in the second case there is en executive interference with the course of justice, which et any rete. in my opinion, is one which is properly reported and can usefully be watched.
12/11
I think that the general policy of non-intervention by the Secretary of State in the exercise of the prerogative of mercy should be maintained on the lines shown in my minute on Nigeria/39946. but I also agree that it is both interesting and useful to have full reports on cases of commutation accompanied where necessary by a copy of the proceedings. In cases where the question of commutation turns on such a matter as the extreme youth of the offender this may hardly be necessary,
but where it turns on such a matter as a
conflict in the evidence a copy of the proceedings is an essential complement to the
report.
Such reports (especially if there is a series covering some considerable period)
may