Lockerbie and how victims forgave

[This is the headline over an article by Rob Virtue published today on the Wharf.co.uk website.  It reads as follows:]

A father who lost his daughter in the Lockerbie disaster was in Canary Wharf to talk about how he forgave those responsible for the attack and then backed calls to compensate east London victims of Libyan-sponsored terrorism.

The Rev John Mosey was speaking at St Peter's Barge on West India Quay last week.

He recalled the day of the terrorist attack on the Pan Am flight over Scotland in 1988. He said when he and his family saw it unfold on television he had no idea his 19-year-old daughter Helga was on the plane.

"I remember saying how awful this was," he said. "We're usually observers in other people's disasters - it doesn't happen to us. But sometimes it does.

"Then they said the flight number which meant little to me but my wife said 'that's Helga's plane'.

"The silence was broken by my son shouting 'no, no, no' at the television and my wife just saying 'Helga, Helga, Helga'.

"She said at the time when her little girl needed her the most she couldn't be there for her."

He soon gave his forgiveness to those responsible - although he has strong doubts the man tried, sentenced and subsequently released, Abdelbaset al-Megrahi, was anything more than a fall guy.

Mr Mosey later received compensation as part of a package the United States agreed with the Libyan state. 

Most of his settlement has been used to set up charities in Helga's name and these are present in 12 countries.

He is now calling on victims of the IRA, which Gaddafi supplied Semtex to for explosives, to also be compensated by the Libyan state. [RB:  Here is a clarification from John Mosey: "His claim that I called for Libya to compensate other victims is false. What I said was that I thought it would be a good thing if such victims were compensated by the perpetrators."]

These include those affected by the South Quay bombing of 1996, which killed two and seriously injured dozens more.

"People who are guilty of terrorist acts should pay compensation," he said. "It doesn't take away the pain or bring anyone back, it's a distraction in a way, but it brings good out of evil.

"We have set up groups such as a children's home in the Philippines. Social services there said if we weren't around, many of the children would be dead.

"The way I see it is we've got lots of daughters around the world that would be dead today if Helga was still alive. Some good can come of tragedy."

Talks are progressing with the transitional government in Libya to secure compensation for IRA victims following the state's past sponsorship of Irish terrorism.

The latest developments were discussed in a debate in the House of Lords [on 4 October].

Minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office Lord Howell of Guildford said: "The National Transitional Council's chairman, Abdul Jalil, and Prime Minister [Mahmoud] Jibril have assured the Government they will work with the UK to resolve bilateral issues arising from the wrongs of the Gaddafi regime."

Lord Howell said a memorandum of understanding for compensation, signed by Jalil earlier this year, formed a "basis of future work".

It followed a question from Lord Empey about the progress of talks.

Lord Empey said: "What is required now is a vigorous and determined approach by the Government to ensure that this matter is resolved, and that United Kingdom citizens who have suffered as a direct result of what was nothing short of an act of war by the then Libyan regime can be properly compensated."