CONFIDENTIAL ·
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Sir James McPetrie
2.
Hong Kong Prevention of Bribery Bill
Thank you for your minute of 16 July.
By all means discuss this matter with the Attorney General of Hong Kong and I will delay the submission pending your discussion. I would like you in particular, if you agree, to press Mr. Roberts as to the extent to which the alternative clause 10 on Malaysian lines would be accepted in Hong Kong as meeting the Governor's criterion for the retention of clause 10, i.e. that it indicates the resolve of the Government to deal firmly with corruption.
3.
I am grateful to you also for the clear exposition in the second part of paragraph 2 of your minute of the point of principle involved in clause 10 and this is something which we must bring out to Ministers.
4.
Two other comments on your minute.
(i)
(ii)
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I do not myself share your doubts about item (3) and item (4) on the consequences of
In my rejecting the Governor's proposal. view these two points go beyond the question of which course is likely to evoke a more damaging criticism. I cannot feel complacent about a course which involves bringing the law in Hong Kong into contempt.
The consequences of such a course could run very wide indeed. With respect, the basic question is not the rightness or otherwise of the respective sides taken by the Governor and the Department in their submission. Corruption is obviously an evil thing and the Governor has "right" on his
6' Li J. Ncler side in attempting to tackle it in a comprehensive
way. The basic question is rather whether the means he proposes justify the end he seeks to achieve. The history of theological controversy bears out that this is not a matter of simply
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CONFIDENTIAL
15...
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