From The Minister of State
HKGD (45)
Foreign and Commonwealth Office
London SW1A 2AH
HKC 38671
RECEIVED IN
AY
DC NO. 51
12 JAN 1978
DESK OFFIC
INDEX
KECISTRY
Action Take....
No
W
D.
EL
1
January 1978
(404)
HKC 38671 (77)
Thank you for your letter of 20 December informing the Foreign and Commonwealth Secretary of the resolution passed at your GMC meeting concerning the executions Bermuda.
in
As you probably know, Dr Owen made a statement to the House of Commons on 5 December about the situation in Bermuda. I enclose an extract from Hansard giving the full text of the statement and of the exchanges which followed it. You will see that, under the policy which has been accepted for many years by successive British Governments, the Foreign and Commonwealth Secretary's scope for intervention was limited. The administration of justice in Bermuda is an internal matter, proper to the Bermudian Government. The Foreign and Common- wealth Secretary could only intervene if he had reason to suspect that a miscarriage of justice might take place. In these cases there was nothing in the evidence to suggest that this might happen, and Dr Owen felt therefore that there were no grounds on which he could advise Her Majesty The Queen to exercise Her Prerogative of mercy.
As you will see, however, in particular from the replies to the questions raised by Mr Newens, Mr Latham and Mr Winterton, the Government are prepared to review current policy on the whole complicated question of capital punishment in the dependent overseas territories.
See 3
Submission
La
Teb Raila
Ted Rowlands
E
Mrs Diana Turner Secretary
Rugby Labour Party 14 Regent Place RUGBY
No comments yet.
Private notes are available after approval.