Thursday 19 August 2010

Would Scottish Government be ‘not concerned’ if there were whistleblowers in the SCCRC?

[This is the heading over a letter from Thomas McLaughlin in today's edition of The Herald. It reads as follows:]

Just when you waved goodbye to that busted flush, New Labour, as the nadir in political show, along comes a bunch of electioneering US senators. First came their impertinent summons to ministers answerable to parliaments other than the United States Congress over the release of Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al Megrahi.

Now they incite UK citizens to break the law by disclosing confidential patient information. More extraordinary than this bid by US lawmakers to make law-breakers out of Scottish doctors and nurses is the response of the Scottish Government (“Nothing to fear over US call for Megrahi ‘informers’”, The Herald, August 16). So, ministers are “not concerned” about the call for whistleblowers?

They will not worry, then, if I now appeal for whistleblowers to leak papers from the Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission (SCCRC). Then we can all inspect Brian Quail’s “monstrous pachyderm in the living room – the manifestly unjust nature of the original verdict” (Letters, August 17).

Come along now, potential SCCRC whistleblowers. You have the green light from a “not concerned” Scottish Government. Join the ranks of the University of East Anglia “climategate” beans-spiller and Julian Assange of Wikileaks who dished the dirt on Afghanistan. The redemption of your country’s honour depends on you.

[A letter from Neil Robertson in today's edition of The Scotsman reads in part:]

George Foulkes's enthusiasm for full disclosure in the Lockerbie bombing case does, I hope, extend to making publicly available all the evidence reviewed by the Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission - along with all intelligence reports withheld by the US and UK.

As a senior member of the parliamentary committee charged with oversight of the security services, his voice would certainly add weight to that of Jim Swire and the Lockerbie relatives.

His call for publication of "the full medical evidence" in respect of the decision by the Scottish justice secretary (Kenny MacAskill) to release Mr Megrahi risks being seen, however, as more contentious - and indeed partisan.

It was not the SNP government in Scotland, after all, that was trying hard to negotiate a Libyan prisoner transfer deal in the Libyan desert but George's old friend, Tony Blair.

2 comments:

  1. MISSION LOCKERBIE:

    Would Scottish Government be ‘not concerned’ if there were "whistleblowers" in the SCCRC ?
    Ich hoffe, dass Senator Menendez und der US Congress, wie zuvor die CIA nach dem PanAm-103 Attentat, für geheime Informationen den möglichen "Whistleblowers" der "Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission" (SCCRC) ebenfall bis US $ 4millionen offerieren.

    Das GUTE daran wäre, dass endlich die wahren Fakts aus den geheim gehaltenen Dokumenten der SCCR-Commission bekannt würden, welche Mr. Al-Megrahi und Libyen die EHRE zurückbringen könnten, denn sie haben mit der Lockerbie-Tragödie nichts zutun !
    Der U.S- Congress hat es in der Hand...

    sorry only a computer "Babylon" translation, in german/english language:

    Would Scottish Government be ‘not concerned’ if there were whistleblowers in the SCCRC ?
    I hope senator Menendez and the US Congress, offers the possible "whistleblowers" from from the Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission (SCCRC) also up to US$ 4 million, like CIA before payed informants for informations in the PanAm-103 attack.

    The opening of the truth facts from secretly documents of the SCCR- Commission could bring return the HONOUR for Megrahi and Libya and that Al-Megrahi und Libya have nothing to do with the Lockerbie-Tragedy.
    The U.S. Congress has it in the hand...

    by Edwin and Mahnaz Bollier, MEBO Ltd., Switzerland
    URL: www.lockerbie.ch

    ReplyDelete
  2. Marvellous letter from Thomas McLaughlin.

    ReplyDelete