Saturday, 9 June 2007

Libyan prisoner exchange deal


So, north of the border there's a nice little spat brewing over the government's decision to do a deal with the Libyans on prisoners held in each country's jails. Blair signed a memorandum of understanding during the Tripoli leg of his farewell tour which provides for reciprocal prisoner exchanges - the carrot from the Libyan end being the release of five Bulgarian nurses and a Palestinian doctor sentenced to death in 1998 for deliberately infecting 400 children with HIV, a shocking verdict which drew widespread condemnation.

There's only one Libyan in jail in Scotland; Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al Megrahi, the man responsible (supposedly) for the Lockerbie bombing. Yet despite justice being a matter reserved to the Scottish Parliament, Blair didn't bother to consult the Scottish Executive, Lord Advocate or anyone else here, and just went ahead and struck the deal with Libya.

The memorandum of understanding so reached will see a final agreement signed within 12 months: and that agreement may, or may not, see this man return to see out the rest of his sentence in Libya, depending on who you believe.

The negotations had nothing to do with al-Megrahi, says Blair:

"...it is totally wrong to suggest the we have reached any agreement with the Libyan Government in this case. The memorandum of understanding agreed with the Libyan Government last week does not cover this case."

The negotiations were all about al-Megrahi, say the Libyans:

Officials in Tripoli said they had made it clear that moving Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al Megrahi out of Scotland was the main reason for the discussions, despite repeated Downing Street protestations that his transfer had always been excluded from the memorandum of understanding now signed by the two countries. [...]

"Megrahi was the whole point of the talks as far as the Libyans are concerned. It was made perfectly clear to the British officials involved in the talks that the whole aim for them was to get Megrahi back."

All of which raises an agonising question: between the Libyan Government and the British Government, whom do you believe?

We certainly know who Kirsty Wark believes: the BBC have, rightly, been forced to apologise for this interview on Newsnight on Thursday.

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// posted by Mr Eugenides on 9.6.07
Comments:
It's sad that the liebour party and the oily git at its head have fallen so low in the public esteem that a thug like Gaddafi is seen as the more trustworthy.
I have no doubt whatever that it is Libya telling the truth here.

Robert

# posted by Anonymous Anonymous : 09 June 2007 11:40
 
I thought this, from the article in The Scotsman to which you link, has to win some sort of prize for bare-faced cheek:

One Labour source said the complaints were proof the SNP were trying to intimidate the corporation. "It's a bit rich for them to complain about Newsnight - Alex Salmond got twice as much time as David Cairns [the Scotland Office minister] did to put the government side," said the source. "These are just bully tactics and it's a shame the BBC has given them any ground."

I wonder what Andrew Gilligan makes of it.

# posted by Blogger Not Saussure : 09 June 2007 13:00
 
I thought Wark's behaviour toward Salmond was appalling (and I am no admire of his!) and contrasted dramatically with the easy ride she gave to Cairns from the Labour 'side' - she has regularly shown she cannot be trusted to be impartial.

And just what is Tony Blair's excuse for not having had the courtesy to call Alex Salmond to 'congratulate' him on his election as FM, even if iut sticks in his throat (just as it does in mine)?

I keep thinking that Labour is playing some very long game, far too obscure for me to understand, with its future in Scotland, because even I, as someone who loathes both Labour and the SNP, find it difficult to believe (or understand) just what Labour's game is, but I cannot believe they are so stupid as they have appeared recently.

# posted by Blogger Bill : 09 June 2007 14:13
 
The Beeb is usually a bit subtler in its bias than that. Congratulations to Salmond for biting his tongue and keeping his temper.

# posted by Anonymous dearieme : 10 June 2007 12:53
 
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