FBI director Robert Mueller has launched a scathing attack on Scottish Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill over the release of the Lockerbie bomber. In a letter, dated 21 August, Mr Mueller said the decision makes “a mockery of justice” and gives comfort to terrorists around the world…
The Scottish Government said it had consulted widely in the US and UK and had made the right decision.
Mr Mueller was previously a Justice Department lawyer leading the investigation into the 1988 bombing. The director’s letter is also being sent to families of the Lockerbie victims.
Mr Mueller wrote: “Your action in releasing Megrahi is as inexplicable as it is detrimental to the cause of justice. Indeed your action makes a mockery of the rule of law.
“Your action gives comfort to terrorists around the world who now believe that regardless of the quality of the investigation, the conviction by jury after the defendant is given all due process, and sentence appropriate to the crime, the terrorist will be freed by one man’s exercise of ‘compassion’.”…
A Scottish Government spokesman said the minister had made the right decision for the “right reasons” on the basis of due process, clear evidence, and recommendations from the parole board and prison governor.
He said: “Compassionate release is not part of the US justice system but it is part of Scotland’s.”
- BBC News
h/t: cracked.com for the image
22 Comments
If the action of the Scottish gov’t gives comfort to terrorists the world over, then I suppose the actions of the British gov’t a few weeks ago gave comfort to robbers everywhere.
Ronnie Biggs will be dying a free man. Didn’t see anyone getting all tetchy about that act of compassion.
The hero’s welcome was a predictable and tacky look, but otherwise, nothing in this that will encourage terrorists (or robbers) to up their activities. Unless they’re pretty sure they’ll contract a fatal disease while in jail?! Yeah, I can see how that would give them much comfort while planning their crimes.
Scotland wasn’t exactly responsible for the hero’s welcome, either. And if Amercians now truly believe that ‘justice’ and ‘revenge’ are synonyms, then it’s up to the rest of the Anglophone world to preserve the distinction.
Oh vey. Such an obscene gesture and I thought he vaz a nice Jewish boy.
Your action in releasing Megrahi is as inexplicable as it is detrimental to the cause of justice. Indeed your action makes a mockery of the rule of law.
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HAHAHAHA Didn’t this guy get his job under George bloody Bush?!
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I wish the Seppos would learn something about jurisdiction. Songs can be a great learning aid.
This is very amusing, and I laughed very hard. That is all.
Humourless, offensive and wrong as usual.
Learn some history QS. Any UK government minister who presumes to tell the Scottish parliament (or Scottish legal system) to jump is not asked “how high?”, he is asked outside discreetly and given a damn good kicking to remind him why the Acts of Union were necessary.
Scotland is another country. We do things differently here.
I think it means that he thinks the decision is “No 1″, otherwise he would have held up two fingers perhaps.
I get it. Scotland swaps terrorists for carbon credits and not for oil. You didn’t read the article at the link did you?
Hugivza@8 : said “thinks the decision is No 1″.
Hmmm, digitus medius, a.k.a. digitus tertius was originally (and certainly in the Roman Empire when the man in the illustration was allegedly alive) called “digitus impudicus” according to our anatomy lectures.
Mind you, there is growing scuttlebutt that the release has more than a bit to do with BP wanting access to Libyan oilfields, and a lot of obfuscation from Jack Straw.
See also The Middle Finger and the Law although there is a major screwup in the essay regarding “thumbs up” as an intensified version of “the bird” in a list of countries that includes Oz.
Scotland has just got rid of a dying convict and thus saved the taxpayer tens of thousands of dollars in medical expenses. Sounds like a clear win to me.
Just realized, it’s the illustration for Matthew 6:26 “Consider the birds in the air” (Do they call it “flipping the bird” in Scotland DEM?)
Mel, DEM addressed that point here. It’s a win
Juvenal called it ‘the vulgar finger’ and it meant the same to the Romans as it does to us (ie, ‘up yours’ and variations thereof).
Is it true that the two fingered “up yours” came from the British archers at the Battle of Agincourt, who were taunting the French? Hmm, just checking that fount all knowledge, Wikipedia. It appears that the Agincourt myth has been used to explain both the single fingered and the double fingered up yours.
I remember someone explaining that you shouldn’t do the “OK” symbol in some European country (making a round hole between forefinger and thumb) because it means something…quite different… Can’t remember where it was – Greece perhaps?
I did read the article QS, all the way to the end. Did you? Because the second last para pointed out:
The “Scottish executive” means the Scottish parliament by the way, not the PM or any specific minister.
Megrahi’s release benefits the central UK government, certainly. Scotland wears the negative fallout from the Americans and Gordon Brown’s government in London reaps the economic benefits from improved relations with Libya. I don’t think anyone is disputing that. But the decision on whether to release him or have him die in gaol was made in Scotland and it was made independently after feedback from various parties that included both the UK and US central governments.
Scotland has nothing to gain. It can’t benefit from Libyan oil – in fact Scotland doesn’t currently benefit from SCOTTISH oil (from the North Sea) – because diplomatic relations and energy policy are UK government powers and even if it returns to full indepenence one day, it already has the capacity to be self-sufficient from renewable sources so longer term “energy security” is not a factor either. It does however have an independent tourism brand which can be harmed financially by American ire, yet it decided to offer compassionate release anyway. How is this being made “worth their while”?
MacAskill has nothing to gain from sucking up to Westminster because he’s a Scottish National Party minister. The Labour Party that controls the UK government lost control of the Scottish parliament at the last election and the two parties hate each others guts. Making decisions that would annoy or damage Gordon Brown make the SNP look good, yet the minister made a choice that would economically benefit London at the expense of Scotland. There’s no political or legislative way London could force him to do that.
Could there *genuinely* be some other factor at play, perhaps? Even … compassion?
See, I think of the argument that the English wanted Megrahi released for oil as in the same boat as the argument that the US attacked Iraq for oil. It was a factor to any decision, I’m sure – but not the only factor, and to argue that it was denies the complexity of motivation behind actions such as this.
I think the Scottish government made the decision they did because they thought it was the compassionate and right thing to do – but let’s be honest, it was also in their financial interests because they didn’t have to pay for palliative care (as DEM has adverted to in a previous cartoon). For the English, I’m sure the oil thing was important, but I don’t think doing the right thing by the Poms would have been that influential on the Scots (at a guess, and knowing what I know of Scots…)
Humourless, offensive and wrong as usual.
DEM – Yer jus’ ginnae haf tae git used da tha’ fac’ ‘t ye piss people orf unnae reg’lar basis like. Sign ‘o a ‘good cartooist tha’ tes. Keep up the good work like. An’ g’i’ us a whiskey.
QS – Scotland swaps terrorists for carbon credits and not for oil. You didn’t read the article at the link did you?
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If you’d paid attention you’d understand that DEM is making reference to the venality of the Scottish govt.
FWIIW, Radio National had a story this morning covering various doubts about the original conviction.
I did not hear the Radio National story, but on the basis that there were flaws in the original conviction or new evidence which is favourable to Megrahi, is there a Scottish High Court or equivalent which would hear an appeal? This of course notwithstanding that Megrahi waived his right of appeal to seek compassionate relief. I understand that the House of Lords as an appelate court has been abolished so where to next? Who has the determinative pollexical right?
What was it you were saying? Will of the Scottish people or something? Sure, sure.
No, I’ve not claimed it was the will of the people – there was no public vote and the parliament wasn’t in session – just a Scottish decision based on Scottish priorities.