TNAG-0402-FCO40-448-Review-of-the-death-sentence-in-Hong-Kong-1973 — Page 72

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political factor.

5.

Nevertheless the Governor will not be surprised by this.

In the wake of the Tsoi case Ministers could not be expected

to give an unqualified assurance that the residual prerogative

would never be exercised save where a miscarriage of justice

has occurred. In practice this means that there will have to

be even closer liaison between us and the Governor, and that

he will need to be certain of Ministers' reaction in this

country before he decides in a specific case to let the law

take its course. On our side, since, as the Prime Minister

has said, it is important for the sake of good order in the

Colony, to uphold the Governor in his decision, we shall need

to ensure that we can hold to any decision to support the

Governor in a particular case.

6. This should avoid conflict in nearly all cases. But it

does not dispose of the ultimate possibility that the Governor

might find that he could not, in the circumstances of Hong Kong,

reprieve a convicted murderer in an extreme case; while the

Secretary of State might equally find it impossible in the

political situation in the UK not to recommend a reprieve to

This would have all the evil consequences foreseen

in paragraph 5 of Hong Kong telegram number 788. But at this

stage we can do no more than note the importance of avoiding

this situation.

The Queen.

7. We need two letters to the Governor to explain all this.

The first, which he could show to his Executive Council, should

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/set