THE Crown Office yesterday confirmed that the proposal to hold a trial
in The Hague of two Libyans accused of the Lockerbie bombing has been
rejected.
''There are only two possible venues for a trial, Scotland or the
United States,'' a spokesman said.
The compromise was devised by Scots legal expert Professor Robert
Black who suggested a trial be held under Scots Law at the seat of the
International Court of Justice with an international panel of judges
instead of a jury.
Yesterday Professor Black said the Government obviously lacked the
political will necessary to accept any compromise.
Lawyers for Abdel Baset Ali Mohamed al-Megrahi and Al-Amin Khalifa
Fhimah had indicated their clients were ready to accept Professor
Black's proposal. They have refused to surrender for trial in Scotland
or the US, claiming they would not get a fair trial.
Professor Black argues that it is in the interests of the people of
Lockerbie, the relatives of the victims, and the accused themselves to
have the matter settled.
He said he was disappointed but not surprised that the Crown Office
had rejected the plan: ''Something like this is the only real prospect
of bringing the two accused to trial.
''It's very, very sad indeed that the strength of the evidence against
the accused will now never be tested in a trial and their guilt or
innocence established.'' Professor Black holds the chair of Scots Law at
the University of Edinburgh.
The Crown Office said similar compromises had been suggested before
but its stance was unchanged: ''The fact that this proposal is for a
trial under Scots law makes no difference. The fact remains there is no
machinery in place to hold a trial in another country, other than
Scotland or the US.''
Professor Black's proposal had been considered and the Crown Office
would be responding in writing to ''the person who submitted it''. There
was to be no formal announcement, he added.
Eleven Lockerbie residents and all 259 people on board PanAm Flight
103 died when the New York bound plane blew apart over the town on
December 21, 1988.
Warrants were issued for the arrest of the two Libyans in November
1991, after investigations into the planting of the cassette radio bomb.
Libyan leader Colonel Gaddafi refused to hand them over and tough
United Nations sanctions have been imposed on the North African country
as a result.
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