Majority ‘oppose’ Megrahi release
By admin. Filed in shoes |
Only a third of Scots believe the Lockerbie bomber should have been freed from prison last week, a poll commissioned by BBC
News has suggested.
The ICM Research survey indicated almost three quarters thought Scotland’s reputation was damaged by Abdelbaset Ali al-
Megrahi’s release.
But only 36% thought Scottish Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill should quit.
Scottish First Minister Alex Salmond said Mr MacAskill had shown “guts” in making a hard but correct decision.
Mr MacAskill announced on 20 August that Megrahi, who is terminally-ill with prostate cancer, would be freed on
compassionate grounds and allowed to return to Libya.
He had served eight years of a life sentence for the 1988 bombing of Pan Am flight 103 over the town of Lockerbie, in
southern Scotland, in which 270 people died.
A random sample of 1,005 adults from across Scotland were questioned by telephone on Wednesday and Thursday.
The survey found 60% thought the Scottish Government was wrong to release Megrahi, against 32% of respondents who believed
it was the right decision.
Of those polled, 57% believed Megrahi should have remained in prison until he died, while 37% thought he should have been
released at some point prior to his death.
Despite Mr MacAskill’s insistence to the contrary, more than two thirds of those questioned – 68% – thought the decision was
influenced by factors other than Megrahi’s health, while only 20% believed it was made purely on compassionate grounds.
Mr MacAskill’s controversial meeting with Megrahi in Greenock Prison on 4 August was also unpopular, according to the poll,
with 52% believing the visit should not have taken place, and 36% saying it should.
The justice secretary has claimed the visit was required under the terms of the Libyan government’s prisoner transfer
request, but this has been disputed by opposition politicians
Almost three quarters of those polled (74%) said the affair had damaged the standing of the Scottish Government in the eyes
of voters, with the same proportion believing the release of Megrahi had damaged Scotland’s reputation.
Only 11% said it had enhanced the reputation of the country, while 10% said it had made no difference one way or the other.
