'My first dream was to clear my name, not just for me ... but for the victims' families'

[The following are excerpts from The Herald’s interview with Abdelbaset Megrahi, transcribed by me from the print edition of the newspaper.]

[One] priority is to complete an autobiography. “The outline is ready and most of the material is ready too,” he says. “It will be a history of my life. I will raise some of the new areas of evidence from the case. It will surprise so many people. It might be shocking to some people as well.

“I hope to be able to read this book before I die. I need people to read it – for them to be the jury in my case to see what judgment they make when they finish reading it. I don’t need their hearts. I need their brains to think properly and make the right decision about my case.” (…)

[C]oncern has been growing about how he and his case will be presented at the 40th anniversary celebrations on Tuesday of Colonel Muammar Gaddafi’s ascent to power. But Megrahi will be spending the day and those following it in hospital.

“I have met the three Libyan doctors and they have insisted that I go to hospital and so I need to go there on Sunday,” he explains between bouts of coughing. (…)

One of the most pressing questions in recent days has been why Megrahi dropped his appeal. Those who believe in his conviction have used his move as confirmation of his guilt. Others feared he had been forced to do so. He had hoped that by making an application under the prisoner transfer agreement – which meant he had to drop the appeal – and on compassionate release grounds, he would increase his chances of returning to Libya. If the authorities said no to one application, they might grant another. “I made two applications. I decided that I should go for both options rather than just having one chance.”

Megrahi explains he has always been desperate to clear his name and was determined to pursue the appeal, but that ultimately it was far too slow and his desire to see his family and country before he died finally tipped the decision.

“People have said there was pressure from the Libyan authorities or Scottish authorities, but it wasn’t anything like this. (…) I would have to have waited another two years for the appeal which I doubt I would have had time to live that long. I called my lawyer and asked him to drop the appeal because of my family. It is all about my family.” (…)

He is also deeply critical of the Court … proceedings, where a special advocate was appointed to represent him because of the confidential nature of many pieces of evidence. [RB: This is in the context of the UK Foreign Secretary’s assertion of public interest immunity in respect of intelligence documents from a foreign state that the SCCRC concluded should have been handed over to Megrahi as containing material that could have assisted in his defence.]

“I met the special advocate just one time and when I met him he said he doesn’t know anything about the documents and he said that he is not entitled to get in touch with me once he does know about it. Where is the justice in that? He is meant to represent my interests yet he cannot talk to me about a piece of crucial evidence. It could be of benefit to me and to the case, but they just say it is top secret and I am not entitled to see it or to see him again.”

Is he angry? “Anyone receiving a wrongful verdict is bound to be angry in prison. I was not at all angry with the Scottish people. Maybe I am lucky because the Scottish people are so friendly.

“I remember when Dr Swire visited me. The governor and staff were very kind and supportive and tried to understand what I was feeling and the stress. They tried to help me. Even the prisoners in my section tried to help.

“The only thing was coming from a completely different culture and having a different mentality sometimes. My family are so happy that I am back. It is good to be back for home-cooked food. My big boss – my wife – is a very good cook.”

[The full interview is now available online on the heraldscotland website.]