TNAG-0597-FCO40-744-Future-of-Dependent-Territories-territorial-studies-1977 — Page 6

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I assume there will be further action in London to raise the question of the abolition of capital punishment in the Colonies; perhaps by way of a Private Member's Bill? Any debate in the House could, I suppose, spark things off here again; so I would be grateful if I could have advance notice of the briefing for the Secretary of State. We must, as far as possible, avoid unnecessary pointing of fingers in our direction.

Here the Bermuda Parliament are appointing a Joint Select Committee to look into the question. The Premier seems to think it will take at least a year before the Committee has reported and the matter has been debated, with a view to any possible change in the existing legislation. So it is unlikely that there will be any changes here in the law on capital punishment before the end of 1978: regardless of what may come out of a House of Commons debate or changes in the Creech Jones doctrine in respect of Capital Punishment in the Colonies.

One other point: I hope you can arrange to let some water pass under the capital punishment bridge before pursuing the question of a revised attitude towards Independence. Hugh Cortazzi showed Peter Lloyd in London a copy of a Minute he had written on this subject, suggesting that it might now be put to Bermudian ministers that H.M.G cannot contemplate a repetition of the recent events and that,if Bermuda wished to retain the death penalty, and their present powers, then HMG would urge them to make speedy progress towards full Independence. I can see the force of that argument, but I do not think it would be wise, in present conditions here, to pursue it; at least for the time being. In fact there may well be now an increasing majority of Bermudians who have drawn a contrary lesson from the recent events; feeling less inclined to welcome early independence when they have seen how difficult it is for Bermuda to look after its own internal security in the event of riots. I am still maintaining the line on independence which I have taken since my Swearing In Speech - that HMG will neither stand in the way of independence, nor put pressure on the Bermuda Government to seek it, until the Bermudian people have clearly expressed their wishes one way or the other. So I . was mildly disconcerted by one of the Secretary of State's replies to supplementaries, which seemed to indicate that he would gladly see an early moved to independence for Bermuda.

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