CONFIDENTIAL
6)
Mr Rushford RUSFORD
A.
R v. LIU CHU
1.
We now have what I fear may be the crunch case where there are no grounds under the existing law for suggesting commutation of a sentence of death in Hong Kong. It is obviously important to get our advice on this one right. But we do not need to rush ahead of ourselves. What we have to do now is to consider the records of the case, take the advice of the Home Office, and comment to Hong Kong accordingly.
The Governor has asked for advice by 10 January. This is obviously tight timing but I think we can meet it, given that he does not intend to consult Executive Council, even informally, before 29 January. In our first comments we can thus make it clear that we are dealing only with the facts of the case and that before he discusses it with Executive Council at all, we shall need to consult at least Mr Royle about the implications.
2. The first step is a letter to Mr Prior of the Home Office who has accepted responsibility for commenting on murder cases from Hong Kong. I attach a draft, typed in final form to save time, but amendable. I also attach the records of the case. I would be grateful if you could let me know as soon as possible whether you agree both with my conclusions and with the way that they are set out.
7 January 1974
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Mr Youde
ACSL
A C Stuart
Hong Kong & Indian Ocean Dept.
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8.1.74
CONFIDENTIAL
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