609617-1928-Supplementary-Draft-Bill--Chinese-Extradition-Amendment — Page 3

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Whereas requisition has been made to me by.

..........................for the surrender of ........

0

th

'e crime of...

ti

.....late

....accused of the commission of

.within the jurisdic-

on of China: Now I hereby, by this order under my band and seal, signify to you that such requisition has been made, and require you to issue your warrant for the apprehension of such fugitive or otherwise to proceed in conformity with the provisions of the Chinese Extradition Ordinance, 1889.

Given under my hand and seal at Victoria, Hong Kong, this............day of.....

19......

(Signed.)

Governor.

Application

of Ordinances

Nos. 7 of 1889 and 17 of 1927, as amended by this Ordinance.

9. The provisions of the Chinese Extradition Ordi- nances, 1889 and 1927, as amended by this Ordinance, shall apply to every fugitive criminal for whose surrender requisition is made after the commencement of this Ordinance whether the crime of which he is acensed is alleged to have been committed before or after such commencement.

Objects and Reasons.

1. The abnormal and almost unprecedented constitu- tional condition of China, and the constant shifting of authority there, make it very difficult to legislate on any subject which, like extraditiou, is of an international character. The Chinese Extradition Ordinance, 1989, Ordinance No. 7 of 1889, was recently amended by Ordinance No. 17 of 1927, but already fresh points have been raised or suggested, and further legislation seems necessary.

2. Section 2 of this Ordinance substitutes a new defini- tion of the term "Chinese authority". This new defini- tion differs from the present definition in the following points:-

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(a) It recognizes that the authority in any given part of China may rest in a body as distinct from a person.

(b) It enables the Governor to declare a person or body to have been a Chinese authority on some past date.

"

(e) It substitutes the words 'area or place' for the word "territory", because the word territory" might take its colour from the word "province" and might be held not to include a small area or place, though such area or place might be under the actual control of a separate authority,

3. Section 3 substitutes a new definition of the term

fugitive criminal”. The new definition differs from the

present definition in the following points.

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4. The present definition includes the case of a crime committed ou board a Chinese ship on the high seas The new definition substitutes the words, on board a Chinese ship outside the waters of the Colony ". This avoids any question as to whether the crime was com- mitted on the high seas or not, a point which sometimes gives rise to difficulty. It is true that the new phrase includes crimes committed in the ports or territorial waters of other states, but claims for surrender of a fugitive criminal by more than one state are already known to extradition law and are in fact expressly dealt with in some of the treaties. The point should not give rise to any practical difficulty.