Thursday 20 February 2014

Justice for Megrahi: we live to fight another day

[What follows is the text of a message sent today by Justice for Megrahi’s secretary, Robert Forrester, to JFM members and supporters following Tuesday’s meeting of the Scottish Parliament’s Justice Committee:]

The Justice Committee's consideration of JFM's petition 1370, calling on the Scottish Government to endorse for an independent inquriy into the investigation and legal processes involved in the Lockerbie/Zeist affair, held on Tuesday 18th February, was by far the most animated session of the Justice Committee that I have attended on the subject: reaching almost operatic proportions. It generated valiant, bravura performances from both Christine Grahame MSP (SNP Convener of the Justice Committee of the Scottish Parliament) and John Finnie MSP (Independent) in the teeth of determined pressure to close the petition: this opposition emanated largely from Margaret Mitchell MSP (Conservative).

The principal argument used against maintaining 1370 open was the feeling that the Justice Committee was wandering away from its strict remit with regard to the petition proper by conflating it with JFM's allegations of criminality against police officers, forensic investigators and legal officials. Margaret Mitchell's position is an interesting development in that the principal Conservative Party member on the Justice committee when JFM received its first unanimous vote by the committee to keep 1370 open (11th December 2012) was the late David McLetchie MSP. JFM had up until that moment rather regarded Mr McLetchie an arch foe. However, he was most vocal in his support of the petition: backing up earlier statements made by John Finnie. The catalyst behind his change of heart was in fact that he was attracted by the new dynamic brought to the petition not only by the lodging with the then Dumfries and Galloway Constabulary of the JFM allegations themselves but also by the manner in which the JFM allegations were being treated by the authorities. This referred to the Justice Directorate's release of our private and confidential letter to Cabinet Secretary for Justice MacAskill to the Crown Office and the ensuing media attacks on JFM launched by Chambers Street, culminating in Lord Advocate Mulholland's outbursts to Magnus Linklater on the anniversary of the 103 tragedy in 2012.

It is now, therefore, most curious that the Conservative Party appears to doing a complete volte-face on essentially the same principle that encouraged Mr McLetchie to support 1370. In the current situation, both JFM and the Justice Committee are being confronted by an outrageously dismissive attitude by Police Scotland and the Crown Office with respect to the JFM allegations (follow this link to our submission: http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/S4_JusticeCommittee/General%20Documents/20140130_JFM_to_Committee.pdf, and this one to the email sent to myself by Detective Superintendent Stuart Johnstone, which was also sent as a last minute submission to the Justice Committee on Tuesday morning: http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/S4_JusticeCommittee/General%20Documents/20140217_PS_to_JFM.pdf).

As Mr McLetchie recognised at the time, the petition and the allegations had become inextricably entwined  as a result of the attitudes of the authorities to the allegations. This situation has not altered one jot. In fact, the attitude of Police Scotland and the Crown Office towards JFM is now even more parlous than it ever has been, so why has the position of the Conservative Party changed? Something of a mystery, methinks.

Ultimately though, the strength of Christine Grahame's anger at the behaviour of Police Scotland, and John Finnie's reasoned presentation of the current, developing environment vis-à-vis JFM and the authorities, and 1370 and the now 9 JFM allegations, won the day. As  you will see from the reports below and from watching the recording of the session, it was decided that letters would be sent to Chief Constable of Police Scotland Sir Stephen House and Detective Superintendent Johnstone asking them, amongst other things, to account for the seemingly blasé, slipshod and dismissive conduct of Police Scotland. The Justice Committee also sanctioned a letter to the SCCRC to ask if the al-Megrahi family have made a referral for a third appeal against the Zeist conviction. For details, see the video link below.

We live to fight another day then. What is more, these new letters could well have the potential to be as significant as the one which the Public Petitions Committee sent to the Scottish Government which established that it did after all have the power to sanction an independent inquiry under the Inquiries Act of 2005.

The transcript is not yet available but soon will be. In the meantime, you can watch the session by following this link to Parliament TV:

http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/newsandmediacentre/41409.aspx. The consideration of 1370 begins 1 hour, 8 minutes and 43 seconds into the session.  

See here below links to press reports:


The Committee of JFM would like to express its deep gratitude to its members who turned up in person to back 1370 on Tuesday, and, as ever, to thank all of you for your unqualified support of the campaign, and the invaluable ideas and advice you offer us.

Don't forget that you can follow daily developments as they relate to the Lockerbie/Zeist case on our indomitable Professor Black's blog (http://lockerbiecase.blogspot.co.uk/).

9 comments:

  1. I had to smile in response to John Finnie’s comment that ‘closing the petition would be inappropriate when there was an ongoing live criminal inquiry’.

    Because the ‘live criminal inquiry’ is a phoney investigation pursued to avoid holding a public inquiry into the crash.

    But whilst it remains ‘live’ the Justice Committee has the perfect reason to keep PE1370 alive too!

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  2. So all these people KNOW that the official version is a lie, and they're covering up? How many people in this coverup of yours, Dave?

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  3. Dear Dave,

    JFM thanks you for your compliment.

    Yours, deviously,
    Robert.

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  4. MISSION LIFE WITH LOCKERBIE, 2014 (google translation, german/english):
    THE TRUTH MUST BE KNOWN

    How is the elucidation of a crime, made by officials, deliberate to thwart, in one of the biggest criminal cases of Scotland - in the Lockerbie affair - by the new 'operationally Lockerbie investigation team', led by Detective Superintendent Michael Dalgleish ?
    Our answer: by trying to achieve the 30-year statute of limitations by means of intentional law delay...

    Members of the Scottish Parliament’s Justice Committee on 18th February 2014, agreed to write to Sir Stephen House requesting details on the number of officers working on the inquiry and what stage it is at.

    SNP MSP Christine Grahame said it was time to go to the “top of the tree” and request a response from the Police Scotland chief constable within seven to ten days.

    From MEBO Ltd: a much-demanded forensic after-analysis of the crucial piece of evidence, the MST-13 timer fragment (PT-35) get blocked until today - why? - what needs to be thwarted?
    A new forensic examination of the MST-13 Timerfragments (PT-35) is very simple:

    The technology today is ready that 100% can be proved, that the crucial MST-13 timer fragment (PT-35) consists of 9 or 8 layers of fiberglass and can be proved, within (timewindow +/- 10 days) that the 'PT-35' fragment had trace of powder from a bomb explosion on 21st of Dec. 1988.

    9 layers of fiberglass and traces of explosive powder, can have indicate to Libya ?

    8 layers of fiberglass, with no traces of explosive powder, indicate to a Scottish fatal fraud - against Libya ?

    MEBO LTD had determined, that the real MST-13 Timerfragment (PT-35) identify with 8 layers of fiberglass !

    Abdelbaset al Megrahi and Libya have nothing to do with the bombing of PanAm 103, over Lockerbie. The MST-13 Timer Evidence (PT-35) is a Scottish Fraud against the former Gadhafi regime!

    Please watch the film: Death flight PanAm 103: "The mystery of Lockerbie"
    in French language - on Link::
    http://www.arte.tv/guide/fr/050146-000/attentat-de-lockerbie-la-piste-inexploree

    in German language - on Link:
    http://www.arte.tv/guide/de/050146-000/todesflug-pan-am-103


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



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  5. Rolfe does know better, but her remark asking how many are involved in the cover-up is related to that other bogus phrase, ‘what, are you saying all the scientists are wrong’?

    It implies that a Lockerbie or any other cover-up needs many people to actively participate in the cover-up.

    It just requires an official report to be published saying one thing and then officialdom instructed by the secret services not to enquire further and to obstruct questions in the public interest.

    And this will be effective until the cross-party Establishment support for the cover-up ends.

    But on the web the truth is known about many cover-ups, but which are not officially known.

    For example, we know Megrahi is innocent, but getting an official admission still remains a vital goal.

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  6. Dave, you seem to be suggesting that the blocking of an inquiry is due to absolute cynicism on the part of everyone involved. That everyone "knows" that your preposterous theory that there was no bomb is true, and are determined that this should never become public.

    I don't even believe that the much more mundane truth, that the cops simply got it wrong about the position of the bomb suitcase in the container, is something any of these people are really aware of.

    They're politicians. They don't like boats being rocked. They want it all to go away please. They don't want to make the effort to understand the evidence.

    It's human nature.

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  7. Dear Rolfe,

    Quite. Like High Court judges and big cats, lazy is the way forward. After all, why make an effort to kill one's prey if not required.

    Pip, pip.

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  8. I think the underlying point may be sound though. I think some people may be developing at least an inkling that there are real problems there, and they really really wish it would all go away and become somebody else's problem.

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  9. The US opposed a public enquiry from the start and it was this rather than a ‘bungled investigation’ where things immediately went wrong.

    Everyone does know the truth, but there will be no official admissions to avoid reprisals from US.

    Only when the US admits the truth (or falls apart like most empires eventually do) will everyone else feel safe to do the same.

    That said overturning Megrahi’s conviction is possible by the State blaming someone else for the ‘bomb’.

    And the neo-cons would like Iran to become the next scapegoat as a pretext for more genocide in the Middle-East!

    But the actual official truth about the crash must await posterity.

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