97
ger/
[This Document is the Property of His Britannic Majesty's Government, and should be returned
to the Foreign Office if not required for official use,]
1
From CHINA.
Decypher. Mr. Jamieson (Tientsin).
11th June, 1939.
D.
By wireless
11th June, 1939.
R.
9.0 p.m.
11th June, 1939.
No. 214.
IMMEDIATE.
you.
50
Your telegram No. 48 to me and Shanghai telegram No. 527 to
[? grp. omtd.] report of June 10th stating that the attitude
of the British authorities is that no Chinese can be handed over to
the Japanese authorities by the foreign Concession authorities
unless a prima facie case on a criminal charge has been established.
I would invite Your Lordship's attention to my telegrams
12, 32
53
Nos. 185, 186, 192 and 213, all of which deal with the legal aspect of this matter and on which no ruling has yet been given. I must state most emphatically that it is my opinion and the opinion of Council's legal adviser that it is established by treaty that neither His Majesty's Consul-General nor Municipal authorities
have any right whatsoever to refuse execution of warrants issued
by Tientsin district court. In giving this opinion the Council's
legal adviser and I take fully into account the fact that local de facto Government is not recognised by His Majesty's Government.
Neither Iunicipal council nor His Majesty's Consul-General has ever
contended that they exercise functions of a committing magistrate.
Any warrant issued by the proper district court disclosing a
proper criminal charge has been invariably executed by the concession
authorities in the past - not only before the present crisis arose
but