UK Government Did 'All It Could' To Facilitate Release Of Lockerbie Bomber

ROBERT BARR

LONDON — Britain's previous government did "all it could" to help Libya win the release of the only man convicted of the Pan Am bombing in Scotland in 1988, though it insisted the decision was made entirely by Scottish officials, Britain's senior civil servant said Monday.

However, Sir Gus O'Donnell, the head of the Cabinet Office, also said he found no evidence that the central government had put any pressure on Scottish authorities to grant the release.

Abdel Baset al-Megrahi, the only man convicted in the terrorist attack, was granted a compassionate release from a Scottish prison in August 2009 on the ground that he was suffering from prostate cancer and would die soon.

He is still alive.

The bombing of the U.S.-bound Pan Am jumbo jet killed 270 people, most of them Americans, and al-Megrahi's release has been criticized by members of the U.S. Congress.

Prime Minister David Cameron, leader of the British coalition government that took power in May, asked O'Donnell to conduct the review. Cameron has strongly criticized al-Megrahi's release in the past.

Cameron's office said he discussed the issue with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Saturday at a security conference in Munich and that they had "strongly agreed" the prisoner release was a mistake.

"He was convicted of the biggest mass murder in British history, and in my view he should have died in jail," Cameron told the House of Commons.

O'Donnell said British policy regarding al-Megrahi developed after former Prime Minister Tony Blair negotiated a prisoner transfer agreement with Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi in 2007.
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Policy then developed that the government should "do all it could" to facilitate an appeal by the Libyans to the Scottish government for Megrahi's transfer to be released under the prisoner transfer agreement or on compassionate grounds, O'Donnell said.

"Nonetheless, once Mr. Megrahi had been diagnosed with terminal cancer in September 2008, (government) policy was based upon an assessment that U.K. interests would be damaged if Mr. Megrahi were to die in a U.K. jail," O'Donnell said.

"The development of this view was prompted, following Mr. Megrahi's diagnosis of terminal illness, by the extremely high priority attached to Mr. Megrahi's return by the Libyans, who had made clear that they would regard his death in Scottish custody as a death sentence and by actual and implicit threats made of severe ramifications for U.K. interests if Mr. Megrahi were to die in prison in Scotland."

Blair's successor, Gordon Brown, met Gadhafi in July 2009, a month before the release, and had said he could not interfere in the Scottish decision, O'Donnell said.

The U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee held hearings last year on whether the British-based oil company BP had sought al-Megrahi's release to help get a $900 million exploration agreement with Libya moving. Former BP Chief Executive Tony Hayward refused to testify before the committee last year.

BP has acknowledged that it had urged the British government to sign a prisoner transfer agreement with Libya, but stressed it didn't specify al-Megrahi's case. O'Donnell said he found no evidence that BP pressured the Scottish government to release al-Megrahi.

"It's clear to me, those who think there was some sort of conspiracy cooked up between BP, the British government and the Scots ... that's not right," Cameron said.

The bombing aboard the Pan Am 747 jumbo jet on Dec. 22, 1988 killed all 259 people aboard the aircraft and 11 people on the ground in Lockerbie town, where much of the wreckage fell.

Al-Megrahi was convicted by a Scottish court in 2001 and sentenced to 27 years in jail.

O'Donnell said Blair's and Brown's governments had been "primarily motivated by a desire to build on previous success in normalizing relations with Libya and to safeguard the substantial gains made in recent years, and specifically to avoid harm to U.K. nationals, to British commercial interests and to cooperation on security issues."

"The desire to see such a result developed and intensified over time as Mr. Megrahi's health declined and the imminence of his death appeared greater," O'Donnell said.

___

AP writer David Stringer contributed to this report

Lockerbie bomber may beat cancer, say family

By Sam Greenhill and Peter Allen
Last updated at 1:53 AM on 27th February 2010

Freed from his life sentence, the Lockerbie bomber was sent home by the Scots on compassionate grounds because he had 'just three months' to live.

But six months later, Abdelbaset Ali Mohamed al-Megrahi is still living - and doing it in the lap of luxury.

Yesterday, his elderly father even held out the prospect of him beating the prostate cancer that doctors said would kill him by last Christmas.


Home comforts: Al-Megrahi with his family at their villa last year after he was freed on compassionate grounds

Mr Ali al-Megrahi believes that good genes, 'positive thinking' and alternative medicines could explain his son's remarkable survival.

Megrahi, 57, no longer receives hospital treatment after ending a course of chemotherapy.

Last night, the British cancer specialist who gave the three-month prognosis was forced to defend his prediction.


He insisted that Megrahi remained gravely ill and was not expected to live much longer.

He said the patient's survival may be due to his excitement over his reunion with family.

But Tory MP Daniel Kawczynski, chairman of the Commons all-party Libya group, yesterday tabled a Parliamentary question demanding Megrahi's medical records be published in full.

He said: 'He's still alive and we were told he had no more than three months to live. The Scottish Executive have a lot to answer for.'

Earlier this month it emerged that Libya was on the brink of agreeing £5billion in investment in Britain.

Critics believe Downing Street colluded with the Scots to pave the way by having Megrahi freed.

The news of Megrahi's survival has provoked consternation among those relatives of victims of the 1988 bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 who suspect he was never as sick as he claimed to be.

They believe it was an unforgivable mistake for the Scottish Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill to release him last August.

The Libyan - who days earlier had dropped an appeal against his conviction for the 270 deaths caused when Flight 103 exploded over Lockerbie - flew home to a hero's welcome.

It later emerged he had a £2million fortune stashed in a Swiss bank account.

His father, who is in his early 80s and keeps a vigil at his son's side in the family's plush villa in the capital Tripoli, still believes a 'miracle' could happen.

He said: 'A close relative was diagnosed with a similar disease and he was treated and recovered completely. We hope that Abdelbaset recovers his health as well.

'I think that the sick are not just cured by medicine, but also by having a high morale and a sense of freedom, and these were not available to Abdelbaset in prison.'

Megrahi receives 24-hour nursing care and, though often heavily sedated, receives well-wishers.

The relaxed, peaceful atmosphere has enabled him to more than double his original survival prognosis, and he says he is 'inspired and feeling very positive' thanks to the support of family and friends.


The 1988 bombing of Flight 103 over Lockerbie killed 270 people

Mr Megrahi said his son was working on his autobiography, and was determined to prove that he had nothing to do with the Lockerbie bombing.

The Tripoli Medical Center, where Megrahi was treated following his initial release, said it would be 'quite normal' for him to use 'alternative medicine and positive thinking' to prolong his life, and that a good family medical history would also act in his favour.

East Renfrewshire council, which is in weekly contact with Megrahi under the terms of his licence, speculated he could even 'last a year or two years'. A spokesman said: 'Nobody knows. It was never that he was supposed to be dead by now, it was never a certainty, it was just the opinion of the experts.'

Megrahi's life expectancy was crucial because under Scottish rules, prisoners can be freed on compassionate grounds if they are considered to have fewer than three months to live.

Last July, the Libyan government paid for Megrahi to be examined by three cancer specialists, among them British expert Professor Karol Sikora. It was their prognosis that won his freedom.

Professor Sikora told the Mail: 'I am very surprised that he is still alive. He is not receiving any active treatment. The latest information I have from Tripoli is that he is not a well man, and I suspect he will be dead within a month or so.'

Professor Sikora said he suspected Megrahi was hanging on because he had received a ' psychological' boost from being reunited with his family and countrymen.

Indeed the former Libyan secret service agent and his wife and five adult children are treated like royalty in Libya.

Frank Duggan, president of the Victims of Pan Am 103, which represents U.S. relatives, said: 'His people tried to have us believe he had one foot in the grave.

'Then to hear that he is doing quite well medically and is living in a luxury villa makes them all the more frustrated.'

Megrahi's lawyer in Scotland, Tony Kelly, declined to comment.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Yup they let this bomber free for an oil deal, like I said before!

US Senator says Lockerbie bomber should return to jail

A US senator has written to Prime Minister Gordon Brown calling for the Lockerbie bomber to be returned to prison.

Democrat senator Charles Schumer said Abdelbaset Ali al-Megrahi was released early on the assumption he only had three months to live.

Mr Schumer questioned the severity of Megrahi's prostate cancer given that the three months had now passed.

The Scottish government stood by its decision to release Megrahi.

Mr Schumer, who represents the State of New York in the US Senate, said there was "speculation" that the severity of Megrahi's condition had been exaggerated. The bottom line is Megrahi should have never been released in the first place.



In his letter to Mr Brown, he said the UK should seek the "immediate" return of Megrahi to jail.

He said: "The bottom line is Megrahi should have never been released in the first place but it would be even more outrageous if he were to be able to live a long and free life after his release.

"The victims of Pan Am Flight 103 didn't get a second chance at life and neither should Megrahi.

"Justice in this case was life in prison, no exceptions."

Megrahi, who has terminal prostate cancer, was freed from Greenock Prison on 20 August before being flown home to Tripoli, the Libyan capital.

He was serving a life sentence for the 1988 Pan Am jumbo jet bombing which claimed 270 lives and his early release was greeted with anger by American relatives of those killed, many of whom were students at Syracuse University in the State of New York.

'Reasonable estimate'

The decision to release him was taken by Scotland's Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill, who said at the time: "There are no fixed time limits but life expectancy of less than three months may be considered an appropriate period."

In a statement issued in response to Mr Schumer's letter on Friday, a Scottish government spokesman said Mr MacAskill's decision was based on recommendations by the parole board and prison governor, and was supported by a medical report.

The clinical assessment by the Scottish Prison Service health director was that a three-month life expectancy was "a reasonable estimate for this patient".

The spokesman said: "Mr Megrahi has terminal prostate cancer and was sent back to Libya to die.

"As Mr MacAskill said when he announced his decision, he may die sooner or may live longer, given the nature of his terminal disease."

Gordon Brown: There Was No "Double-Dealing" Over Lockerbie Bomber

EDINBURGH, Scotland — Scottish lawmakers held a symbolic vote Wednesday to disapprove of the Lockerbie bomber's release, as the British government emphatically denied that Abdel Baset al-Megrahi's freedom was motivated by economic or diplomatic reasons.

The Scottish government had asked the parliament to endorse the decision as "consistent with the principles of Scottish justice." But by a 73-50 vote with one abstention, legislators backed an opposition amendment condemning Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill's decision as mishandled – and saying they disagreed with the government's actions in freeing the Libyan convicted in the 1988 explosion that killed 270 people.

"Releasing the Lockerbie bomber was a bad decision, made badly," Annabel Goldie, a Conservative Party member in the Scottish Parliament.

The vote is largely symbolic and was not an attempt to topple the Scottish government. MacAskill has said he released al-Megrahi because the Libyan was dying of terminal prostate cancer and compassionate releases are a key part of Scottish justice.

Criticism over the Lockerbie bomber's Aug. 20 release intensified Wednesday, despite the disclosure of confidential British and Scottish documents and denials that the release was linked to Britain's growing ties to Libya.

After keeping silent for days, Prime Minister Gordon Brown offered his strongest denial yet that no promises had been made to Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi over the fate of the 57-year-old al-Megrahi – the only man convicted in the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103.

There was no conspiracy, no cover up, no double dealing, no deal on oil, no attempt to instruct Scottish ministers," Brown said emphatically. "We made absolutely clear to the Libyans and everybody else that this was a decision for the Scottish government."

Questions are now turning to everything that still hasn't been said – or disclosed.
Story continues below


Britain's opposition Conservative Party wants an inquiry into al-Megrahi's release, but the results will unlikely appease the families of bombing victims.

Countering the compassionate release argument, critics point to the lives lost during the 1988 Lockerbie bombing. Some have also questioned why Brown hasn't come out in support or against the release.

The British government released the documents Tuesday in an attempt to quell speculation that it had pushed al-Megrahi's release to boost economic cooperation with Libya. But the documents fanned more resentment in the United States, where al-Megrahi's release was vehemently opposed.

Although the documents contain several references to British authorities deferring to Scotland on a potential release, they also contain repeated mentions of how important U.K.-Libyan relations had become. One document also showed that the British justice secretary did not want to exclude al-Megrahi from a possible prisoner transfer agreement – another way that al-Megrahi could have been released if Scotland didn't free him on compassionate grounds.

Britain has regional governments in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland that are responsible for local issues but retains power over foreign policy.

Foreign Secretary David Miliband confirmed details in the documents that suggested Britain had not sought to have al-Megrahi serve out his life sentence in a Scottish prison.

"We did not want him to die in prison, no, we weren't seeking his death in prison," Miliband told the BBC on Wednesday.

Miliband did not elaborate, but some in the Arab world would have been suspicious about any death in custody.

In Tripoli, Libya, al-Megrahi was reportedly taken to intensive care Wednesday, according to family members who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter.

Al-Megrahi was sentenced to life in prison in 2001 for the explosion, Britain's worst terrorist attack. He has long maintained his innocence.

Lawyers have said the evidence used to convict him was largely circumstantial – prosecutors said he bought clothes from a shop on the Mediterranean island of Malta that were packed around the bomb before it was placed on the plane.

Just days before Scotland approved his release on compassionate grounds, al-Megrahi's attorneys dropped his appeal against his conviction so he could be eligible for release.

Analysts at the time of the bombing pointed fingers toward Iran and Syria, not Libya, and said evidence was weak.

___

Associated Press writers David Stringer and Jill Lawless in London and Alfred De Montesquiou in Tripoli, Libya, contributed to this report.


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Lockerbie bomber: MacAskill defends Megrahi medical advice

Kenny MacAskill today slammed opoposition parties for doubting Megrahi medical advice



Published Date: 31 August 2009
By DAVID GUNN
JUSTICE Secretary Kenny MacAskill today hit out at opposition parties who have raised questions over the medical advice he sought before releasing the Lockerbie bomber.
Mr MacAskill sparked international controversy when he freed Libyan Abdalbaset Ali Mohmed al-Megrahi, who has terminal cancer, on compassionate grounds earlier this month.

The SNP minister was in Falkirk today for his first official engagement since the decision and also made it clear that trade deals with Libya had no bearing on his judgment.

Megrahi was released after medical advice obtained by Mr MacAskill indicated he had less than three months to live – but Labour have raised questions over this and the extent of the advice sought.

But the Justice Secretary said today: "The medical advice I got was from the director of health and social care from the Scottish Prison Service.

"He did not do this on a whim and fancy.

"The report he provided to me was based on information he got from a variety of people who treated Mr Megrahi before, during and after matters took a turn for the worse. I don't seek to challenge the report from the director.

"I do think it's a matter for regret that some opposition parties do seem to be seeking to undermine him.

"I accepted the report that was given to me, I accepted the information that was collated together and that seems to me the basis that every Justice Secretary has always made their decision on."

He added: "I think it's appropriate that opposition parties should maybe realise that people in public service do their job.

"I follow the guidance when they do their employment and we should support them."

The Cabinet Secretary said he was "not medically qualified" to comment on pictures which emerged yesterday of footage of Mr Megrahi in a hospital bed attached to a drip and wearing an oxygen mask.

Mr MacAskill was today visiting Falkirk fire station to see a new state-of-the-art communications system aimed at improving the safety of front-line firefighters through a priority call function which can request urgent police assistance should crews come under attack.

It comes after letters emerged at the weekend from his UK counterpart Jack Straw dating back two years which indicate the latter was unable to specifically exclude Megrahi from a Prisoner Transfer Agreement negotiated between the UK and Libya.

This came at a crucial time in negotiations about an oil exploration contract for BP in Libya. Six weeks later the deal was ratified, although Mr Straw yesterday denied commercial interests had any bearing on Megrahi's release.

Mr MacAskill said today: "I made it quite clear that my decision was based not on any political, economic or diplomatic considerations.

"I rejected the Prisoner Transfer Agreement which had been a matter of concern to the American families and American government. I thereafter considered in terms of due process in the laws of Scotland and the guidance given by the SPS an application for compassionate release."

The SNP minister reiterated that the Scottish Government had objected to the PTA when it was first agreed but found itself "overruled" by Westminster.

Megrahi was allowed to leave Greenock prison to go home to Libya to die having served just eight years of a minimum 27-year sentence.

The man who was convicted of murdering 270 people in the December 1988 bombing of Pan Am 103 returned to a hero's welcome. The scenes provoked international condemnation.

But Labour MSP Dr Richard Simpson, who specialised in prostate disease research, later reiterated his criticism of Mr MacAskill, claiming there was no medical consensus about the Libyan's prognosis.

Dr Simpson said: "The Justice Secretary chose to disregard the advice of four specialists and release Megrahi on the opinion of one doctor, who we know was not a specialist.

"At the very least, Kenny Macaskill should have sought a second opinion confirming the patient's prognosis from a specialist in palliative care.

"That he did not do so showed a disregard for due process and the significance of the decision."

http://news.scotsman.com/latestnews/Lockerbie-bomber-MacAskill-defends-Megrahi.5603137.jp#4379037

Compassionate release: Scottish Parliament makes little impact

SCOTS LAW NEWS
24 August 2009 16:15

Scottish Parliamentary questions to Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill in a session for which it had been specially recalled on 24 August 2009 failed to shake his basic position on the compassionate release of Abdelbaset Megrahi, the convicted Lockerbie bomber.

The MSPs' questions were basically rather repetitious: (1) what led to and what were the consequences of the meeting between Megrahi and MacAskill? (2) why was the compassionate release not to a place in Scotland? (3) would there be any leak inquiry over the early reports that Megrahi's release was imminent? (4) what did the Cabinet Secretary think about Megrahi's welcome in Libya?

The answers were actually mostly in Mr MacAskill's opening statement - itself basically a repetition of what he said when announcing the release on 20 August, resting on the planks of due process and Scottish values tempering justice with mercy even when the compassion shown did not appear to be reciprocated. On (2), the Cabinet Secretary pointed to police advice that release of Megrahi to a hospice would have required the attendance of 48 police officers to ensure security, and this and the probability of a media scrum in and around the hospice with concomitant effects on other patients led to his ruling it out as a possibility. Those who asked questions on this failed to suggest what practical alternatives there might have been. In general, the questions were not clever; and the MSPs failed to follow through on some of the points that emerged, preferring to read the questions they had so carefully prepared earlier rather than build on the answers Mr MacAskill had given when they were asked earlier by others.

The main blows landed on the Cabinet Secretary seemed to this observer to be these:

(1) the guidance on how to handle prisoner transfer agreements, while requiring the Minister to receive representations from the prisoner (whose consent to the transfer would not have been required), says that these representations will be in writing, so no actual meeting is required by those guidelines. Mr MacAskill's defence is that the meeting was requested by Megrahi and that the principles of natural justice were followed;

(2) he wasn't able to say that all existing documentation (including any notes taken at the meeting in Greenock prison) would be released, although he said that as much as possible would be; nor would he say that there would be any further publication of or inquiry into the Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission report which led to Megrahi's ultimately aborted appeal;

(3) he could not say what would happen if Megrahi failed to comply with the condition of his release that he hold a monthly video conference with East Renfrewshire Council social work department;

(4) he did not say that there would be any leak inquiry. This is interesting, because Scots Law News has heard that the source of the original leak to the BBC was in London; but perhaps that is all part of the exciting speculation which has characterised so much of the media discussion in this case.

Mr MacAskill did say that he regretted the way in which Megrahi had been welcomed in Tripoli, which came about, it appears, even although both he and the Foreign and Commonweralth Office of the UK Government had apparently asked Libya to avoid such scenes in the event of release.

In the end, then, Mr MacAskill seemed to hold his ground; but the Holyrood show has not quite brought the story to a final conclusion.

http://www.law.ed.ac.uk/sln/blogentry.aspx?blogentryref=7877

http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireStory?id=8434632

US warned Scotland bomber could get hero's welcome

By DESMOND BUTLER and DEVLIN BARRETT, Associated Press Writers – 3 mins ago

WASHINGTON – Attorney General Eric Holder warned his Scottish counterpart in June that the man convicted of blowing U.S.-bound Pan Am Flight 103 out of the sky could get a hero's welcome if allowed to return to Libya, according to the head of a group representing the families of victims.

Holder's warning to Scottish Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill came nearly two months before the bomber, Abdel Baset al-Megrahi, was released from a Scottish prison and greeted by a cheering crowd on his arrival in Libya last week.

The Scottish administration has faced unrelenting criticism from both the U.S. government and the families of American victims of the airline bombing since the decision to free the terminally ill al-Megrahi on compassionate grounds. The Scots said he was dying of prostate cancer.

Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi plans to visit the United States next month when he addresses the U.N. General Assembly. The trip is part of a long effort to rehabilitate his image and thaw relations between the West and Libya, but public anger over the Lockerbie release may drown out such efforts.

Notes prepared ahead of Holder's June 26 conversation with MacAskill were provided to The Associated Press by Frank Duggan, president of Victims of Pan Am Flight 103 Inc. Duggan says a Justice Department official read him notes that Holder used during the conversation.

Justice Department spokesman Matt Miller said he would not comment on the private conversation between the two officials. It was not clear whether the notes were a complete summary of Holder's message to MacAskill.

Duggan also provided notes of a July 9 teleconference between MacAskill and some victims' relatives, an emotional exchange in which family members told stories of their loved ones and implored MacAskill not to return al-Megrahi to Libya.

The telephone conversation between the U.S. and Scottish officials dealt with Scotland's consideration of transferring al-Megrahi to Libya under a prisoner transfer treaty that Britain and Libya concluded this year. MacAskill rejected that possibility before he granted al-Megrahi's request for release on health grounds. The application for compassionate release came after MacAskill's conversations with Holder and the family members.

According to the notes, Holder said the United States opposed al-Megrahi's transfer. Among a number of reasons given, Holder warned that Libya might pardon him, if not give him a hero's welcome upon his return.

Such a transfer would be perceived as a vindication of al-Megrahi's innocence before the Scottish process had run its course, the notes say.

Seif al-Islam Gadhafi, son of the Libyan leader, was quoted Friday in Scotland's Herald newspaper as saying, "The U.S. knew a long time ago that Mr. Megrahi would probably be released and asked us to keep the reception low-key." He claimed that most of the families of the victims in Scotland "have written us to say they are pro the decision and more than 20 percent of the American families say they have no objection."

A spokeswoman for MacAskill, Fiona Wilson, said her office had notes on the call with Holder, but would not discuss the conversations with Holder or the family members until the parties consented to MacAskill's request to release the documents summarizing them, which he hopes will help explain his decision.

Al-Megrahi, a former Libyan intelligence officer, was convicted in 2001 of taking part in the bombing of the Pan Am flight on Dec. 21, 1988, and sentenced to serve a minimum 27 years in prison. The airliner, which was carrying mostly American passengers to New York, was destroyed by a bomb in its cargo hold as it flew over Lockerbie. All 259 people aboard and 11 on the ground died.

Although Libya accepted formal responsibility for the bombing, many there see al-Megrahi, the only person convicted in the bombing, as an innocent victim made a scapegoat by the West. Even as he left prison, al-Megrahi, protested his innocence.

In the July 9 conversation with family members, MacAskill said the Scottish authorities had asked the British government to include an exemption for the Lockerbie case when it negotiated the prisoner transfer agreement with Libya, according to notes of the teleconference MacAskill's office provided to family members this week. He said that because the exemption was not included, he was bound to consider the possibility of a transfer.

MacAskill told the family members that "he would be making his decision on judicial grounds alone and that economic and political matters would not be part of the process."

Since al-Megrahi's release, Scottish and British authorities defended themselves against accusations that they sought to return the Libyan in order to curry favor with Libyan authorities dangling business deals. Libyan officials have said that they repeatedly raised al-Megrahi's release when negotiating commercial deals and had sought the prisoner transfer agreement specifically with al-Megrahi in mind.

Gadhafi's son told the Herald that "Lockerbie is history. The next step is fruitful and productive business with Edinburgh and London. Libya is a promising, rich market and so let's talk about the future."

In the teleconference, family members told of the two decades they have suffered since the deaths of their loved ones.

Duggan says MacAskill's office provided families no indication that he was considering releasing al-Megrahi on compassionate grounds and did not respond to correspondence following the teleconference.

Some family members who joined the call with MacAskill said they had believed that MacAskill opposed returning al-Megrahi to Libya and was sympathetic to their position. They say they now feel betrayed.

In an e-mail sent to MacAskill on Wednesday, Michelle Lipkin, who lost her father, Frank Ciulla, on the flight, said she left the teleconference "feeling optimistic."

"I had faith that the right decision would come, and I am stunned by the unfathomable decision you have made," she wrote.

Brian Flynn, whose brother John was killed, said he also thought MacAskill shared the families' opposition to returning al-Megrahi.

"Now it seems that MacAskill was just being patronizing," he said.

___

Associated Press writer Ben McConville in Edinburgh, Scotland, contributed to this report.

http://indepth.news.sky.com/InDepth/topic/Libya_And_Kenny_MacAskill

Three in five Scots oppose Megrahi's release

Alison Orr, who wrote an open letter to Hillary Clinton



Published Date: 29 August 2009
By David Maddox
Scottish Political Correspondent

SCOTS believe that their country's reputation has been badly damaged by the decision to release the Lockerbie bomber, a new poll has revealed.
The ICM poll of 1,005 people across Scotland also showed that a clear majority disagreed with the decision to release Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed Al-Megrahi, with 60 per cent opposed and just 32 per cent in favour.

Opponents of the SNP government last night said the poll added to growing evidence that the decision taken by SNP justice secretary Kenny MacAskill was not one which commanded support in the country.

And there appeared to be question marks over whether Mr MacAskill was giving his real reasons for Megrahi's compassionate release.

The poll, conducted for the BBC, revealed that 68 per cent did not think his decision was made purely on legal grounds, as Mr MacAskill has insisted.

This follows conjecture over whether trade agreements played a part or whether the minister had private doubts over Megrahi's guilt.

The survey also showed that the reputations of both the Scottish and UK governments have been dealt a blow domestically by the events of the last fortnight.

Even though he played no part in the decision, the reputation of Prime Minister Gordon Brown has suffered according to 68 per cent of those polled. He has consistently refused to say whether he believes it was correct to release Megrahi.

The Scottish Government fared even worse, with 76 per cent believing it was now held in lower esteem.

Even 53 per cent of those who agreed with Mr MacAskill's decision accepted that the Scottish Government's reputation had been damaged.

Scottish Conservative leader Annabel Goldie claimed the poll showed that Alex Salmond's government had got it wrong.

She said: "The SNP, a party which boasts that it stands up for Scotland, has actually let Scotland down badly.

"But it is not just Alex Salmond who has been found wanting on the international stage, Gordon Brown has played his part too. What murky deals have been going on behind the scenes to free Mr Megrahi?"

The one crumb of comfort for the SNP was that only 32 per cent thought that Mr MacAskill should resign, compared to 60 per cent who believe he should continue in office.

But the greatest concern is over Scotland's reputation abroad, with 74 per cent believing it has been dealt a serious blow following the scenes of Saltires waving at the hero's reception for Megrahi in Tripoli.

Scottish Labour leader Iain Gray said: "What is of serious concern is that three-quarters of those polled say it has damaged Scotland's reputation abroad. Alex Salmond now has to come forward and say how he intends to repair that damage.

"I believe the whole process was mishandled from start to finish and a clear majority say it was wrong for Mr MacAskill to visit Megrahi in prison. Kenny MacAskill must return to the Parliament to justify his mishandling of this affair."

This is the second poll taken in Scotland which has revealed that a majority of voters oppose the compassionate release.

A Yougov poll carried out earlier this week showed Scots split 51 per cent against and 43 per cent in favour.

It also provided evidence of a knock-on effect to SNP support while backing for independence fell to a long-time low of 28 per cent. This followed concerns about how an SNP led independent Scotland would conduct its foreign policy.

Mr Salmond's personal rating dropped by four points to 32 per cent, a new low since taking power in 2007.

But last night Mr MacAskill came out fighting.

A spokesman said: "The justice secretary made a brave and difficult decision, and the poll shows strong support for him, even among people who disagree with the decision.

"Regardless of their view, people recognise that Mr MacAskill upheld the due process of Scots law in difficult circumstances. It was inevitably controversial, but we believe will be seen as the right decision for the right reasons."

There were also problems for Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Tavish Scott last night. Former UK party leader Charles Kennedy has come out in support of the decision despite opposition to it from Mr Scott.

The MP for Ross, Skye and Lochaber said: "It is not surprising that some disagree very strongly, given the scale of the atrocity committed, but I think the decision was probably the right one, even if it was not necessarily taken in the right way."

He added: "This is not a party political matter, and it should not really be an international political matter either."

Former Liberal leader and Holyrood presiding officer Lord Steel has also supported Mr MacAskill and the YouGov poll showed a majority of Liberal Dem voters thought MacAskill had done the right thing.

There have been calls made in The Scotsman by church leaders for a free vote on the issue in Holyrood when it is debated next Wednesday.

Glasgow Roman Catholic Archbishop Mario Conti and Rev Ian Galloway, Convener of the Church of Scotland's church and society group, are among Mr MacAskill's highest profile supporters on the issue.

At least three Liberal Dem MSPs are understood to support Megrahi's release and Labour's Malcolm Chisholm also opposes his party's line against it.

How Scots answered poll

Was Kenny MacAskill's decision right or wrong? Right: 32% Wrong: 60% Don't know: 8%

Should MacAskill have visited Megrahi in Greenock prison? Yes: 36% No: 52% Don't know: 12%

Do you believe the decision was taken purely legal grounds as claimed by MacAskill? Yes: 20% No: 68% Don't know: 12%

Should MacAskill resign as justice secretary? Yes: 36% No: 56% Don't know: 8%

Has the Scottish Government's reputation been damaged? Yes: 76% No: 21% Don't know: 3%

Has Prime Minister Gordon Brown's reputation been damaged? Yes: 68% No: 29% Don't know: 3%

How has it affected Scotland's reputation? Damaged 74% No difference: 10% Enhanced: 11% Don't know: 5%

http://thescotsman.scotsman.com/politics/Three-in-five-Scots-oppose.5600092.jp

Too Little Too Late, Mr. Brown

Gordon Brown 'angry' and 'repulsed' by Lockerbie bomber's welcome in Libya

Aug 25 2009

GORDON BROWN said today he was "angry" and "repulsed" at the reception given to the freed Lockerbie bomber in Libya - but still declined to say if he agreed with the decision to release him.

Speaking for the first time on the subject, the Prime Minister insisted the British Government had "no role" in the decision to release Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed Al Megrahi on compassionate grounds, but went on to say that his determination to fight terror remained "absolute".

He also dismissed suggestions that the decision by the Scottish Justice Secretary would undermine Britain's relationship with the US and its other allies against terrorism.

Asked whether he thought it was the right or wrong decision to release Megrahi, Mr Brown said his first thoughts had been with the families of the victims of the Lockerbie bombing.

Speaking in Downing Street, he went on: "I was both angry and I was repulsed by the reception that a convicted bomber guilty of a huge terrorist crime received on his return to Libya.

"When I met (Libyan leader) Colonel Gaddafi over the summer, I made it absolutely clear to him that we had no role in making the decision about Megrahi's future.

"Because it was a quasi-judicial matter, because it was a matter legislated for by the Scottish Parliament and not by us, it was amatter over which we could not interfere and had no control over the final outcome.

"I want to make it absolutely clear, however, that whatever the decision that was made on compassionate grounds by the Scottish Parliament, our resolve to fight terrorism is absolute, our determination to work with other countries to fight and to root out terrorism is total, and we want to work with countries - even countries like Libya, who have renounced nuclear weapons now and want to join the international community - we want to work with them in the fight against terrorism around the world."

Mr Brown's comments, his first in public since last week's release of Megrahi, came as he faced reporters in Number 10 following talks with Israeli prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu.

http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/2009/08/25/gordon-brown-angry-and-repulsed-by-lockerbie-bomber-s-reception-in-libya-86908-21623464/