CO129-543-4 Piracy- Case of Rex v. Chung Tam Kwong and others 10-2-1933 - 2-3-1934 — Page 50

DRAFT

50

Sir,

I have the honour to m

in you that I hav

I am directed by the 'Secretary of State to say

had

that he has/under consideration, with the assistance

of the Law Officers of the Crown and of H.M. Procurator-

General, the serious position which has arisen in

Chinese waters as a result of a judgment of the Full

Court of Hong Kong delivered on the 1st April, 1931.

arcumstances

in the following connection

•

At the Criminal

Sessions held in Hong Kong in February, 1931, twelve

subjects of the Republic of China were indicted for the

crime of piracy, to wit, that they on the 4th day of

January, 1931, on the High Seas with force and arms

assaulted and put in fear of their lives certain

mariners in cargo junk No.206.V. with intent to carry

away the said junk, her tackle and cargo from the

owners thereof and to steal the same

After the verdict of guilty of the jury the

following question of law was re served by the trial

judg2 vizt: "Whether an accused person may be convicted

of piracy in circumstances where no robbery has

occurred", piracy being understood to refer to piracy

1.

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