Posted on 09/04/2009 5:52:39 PM PDT by Free ThinkerNY
Jack Straw has reignited the row over the release of the Lockerbie bomber by admitting for the first time that trade and oil were an essential part of the Government’s decision to include him in a prisoner transfer deal with Libya.
The Justice Secretary said he was unapologetic about including Abdelbaset al Megrahi in the agreement, citing a multi-million-pound oil deal signed by BP and Libya six weeks later.
The admission directly contradicts Gordon Brown's insistence only days ago that oil deals were not a factor in the prisoner's release.
In an interview with The Daily Telegraph, Mr Straw also suggested that Kenny MacAskill, the Scottish justice minister, released the terminally-ill bomber on compassionate grounds earlier than the British Government would have done.
Mr Brown has been accused of putting Britain’s trade interests before justice for the Lockerbie victims.
Earlier this week, the outcry forced him to say: “There was no conspiracy, no cover-up, no double dealing, no deal on oil, no attempt to instruct Scottish ministers, no private assurances.”
(Excerpt) Read more at telegraph.co.uk ...
It makes me sad to admit Scottish heritage.
Where’s the “No Blood for Oil” protestors? /crickets
What about the green economy?
Me too... Granddad was born in Johnston.
WHERE ARE THE ADULTS? Petulant children, all of them, lacking in wisdom and loyalty. A curse on all of their houses.
I’m sure the thinking is that Brown is toast anyway so why not toss him under the bus to save a few other necks.
do I really have to say it???
Straw, Sep 29, 2003:
‘I know that today’s settlement cannot in any way make up for the terrible personal losses suffered by the relatives of those who were killed. But I hope that it will bring some comfort for the pain they have endured.’
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JACK STRAW WELCOMES UN SECURITY COUNCIL DECISION TO LIFT SANCTIONS AGAINST LIBYA (29/09/2003)
Foreign Secretary Jack Straw said:
‘I very much welcome today’s vote by the UN Security Council to lift sanctions against Libya. This is a result of Libya doing what the Security Council has demanded: accept responsibility for the horrendous Lockerbie bombing in 1988, the worst terrorist incident on UK territory; renounce terrorism; pay compensation; and undertake to co-operate with any future Lockerbie investigation.
‘Libya’s decision to comply with these demands is the result of patient but firm diplomacy based on some clear points of principle. It demonstrates that terrorists will be brought to justice. It shows that it is possible to resolve serious issues through commitment, dialogue and co-operation.
‘For all the above reasons we sponsored and supported the resolution to lift sanctions on Libya. The fact that those sanctions have now been lifted marks a new and welcome chapter in Libya’s relationship with the international community based on co-operation, not confrontation, and based on a continuing commitment by Libya to abide by the undertakings it has given to the UN.
‘I know that today’s settlement cannot in any way make up for the terrible personal losses suffered by the relatives of those who were killed. But I hope that it will bring some comfort for the pain they have endured.’
http://www.fco.gov.uk/resources/en/press-release/2003/09/fco_npr_120903_sanctionslibyaun
Oil for a terrorist who is dying? I would make sure he had a good case of AIDs before I let him go back to the cheering mobs that greeted him. Brown is toast and so to is the Labour Party. In a way, I can’t blame the Brits after the way Obama treated the Queen—why do anything that will help the USA in any way? England must stand alone.
The Justice Secretary said he was unapologetic about including Abdelbaset al Megrahi in the agreement, citing a multi-million-pound oil deal signed by BP and Libya six weeks later.
That's an unusual admission.
Less unusual if you look at the detail of what Straw actually said. He’s making a distinction between a prisoner transfer deal (which isn’t about freeing prisoners, only about returning them to country of origin to complete sentences), and actually setting somebody free. Given the country in question, the distinction is distinctly technical, but from a lawyer’s point of view (and Straw is a lawyer), undoubtedly real.
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