British Embassy
3100 Massachusetts Avenue NW Washington DC 20008
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CJ B White Esq
ERD
FCO
HKB 371/2
Your reference
Our reference
Date
28 February 1989
Mr Edwards, Legal Advisers
Адика
one week
M.
envoja r
2. Enter
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MUTUAL LEGAL ASSISTANCE AND HONG KONG
1.
During his visit to Washington last week, Mr Gareth Mulloy, the Hong Kong Commissioner for Narcotics, touched on a number of mutual legal assistance issues at a meeting with State Department lawyers on 23 February.
Proposed US/Hong Kong MLAT
2.
Mr Mulloy said that senior Crown Counsel in Hong Kong had now provided an opinion on the US draft MLAT. Preliminary consideration was also being given to the possibility of introducing implementing legislation. The next step would be for the draft treaty to be reviewed by the International Rights and Obligations Sub-Group of the Joint Liaison Group. One point which clearly needed to be considered was whether it would be possible to continue to use the treaty post-1997. Although lawyers in the Attorney's General Chambers had 'at one point been considering the possibility of entering into a separate bilateral narcotics agreement, they had now decided that it would be better to go direct to the conclusion of an MLAT. He was not in a position to discuss dates for follow-up action but made it clear that the US proposal was being given careful consideration and that a response would be provided as soon as possible.
3. The State Department took note of all this and said that they looked forward to receiving the response.
Drug Trafficking (Recovery of Proceeds) Bill 1989
4.
Mr Mulloy handed over a copy of this bill* which was due to be published the following day and introduced in about two weeks time. The bill, which was modelled on the UK Drug Trafficking Offences Act 1986, would provide for the tracing, confiscation and recovery of the proceeds of drug trafficking and create a new offence of assisting drug traffickers to retain such proceeds. He drew attention, in particular, to Clause 28 providing for the enforcement of external orders and to Clause 25, which makes it an offence for
a person to assist another to retain the benefit of drug trafficking. He mentioned that the UK would be the first country to be
*
/designated
which I assume that you will have received direct from Hong Kong but please let me know if you have not, and I will send you a copy.
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