by Saeed Shabazz
Staff Writer

NEW YORK (FinalCall.com)�Reaction continued to pour in from around the world concerning the conviction of Abdel Basset Ali al-Megrahi, a Libyan national, for the murders of 270 people when Pan Am flight 103 exploded over Lockerbie, Scotland, in 1988.

A second Libyan, accused on similar charges, was acquitted. The court�s decision was handed down Jan. 31 and drew immediate worldwide response.  

The most recent condemnation of the verdict came Feb. 4, as Professor Robert Black, the law professor responsible for putting together the mechanics of the Lockerbie trial, condemned the guilty verdict in an article published in the Sunday Telegraph of London. The professor called the evidence weak. The case was tried before Scottish judges at The Hague in the Netherlands.

Mr. Black said the three Scottish judges, in convicting Mr. al-Megrahi, failed to comply with strict Scottish legal rules�that evidence be corroborated. The Scottish attorney said that an appeal will probably be lodged, which Mr. al-Megrahi had 11 days to file at Final Call press time.

Meanwhile, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan told the press Feb. 2 that there is growing international demand for the lifting of the sanctions on Libya. �You have noticed that there are many calls for the lifting of the sanctions, including demands from the Organization of African Unity and the League of Arab States,� Mr. Annan said.

As to the lifting of the sanctions, the Secretary-General said, it will be left to the Security Council to determine if Libya has met all the requirements warranting the removal of the nine year-old embargo.

�I accept the fact that Libya cooperated by handing over the two people for trial,� he said. �Without that, there wouldn�t have been a trial, and we wouldn�t be where we are today,� he added.

But, Mr. Annan cautioned the press to remember that some governments maintain that Libya has a lot more to do and to account for. �I cannot judge what the Security Council will do,� he said.

Originally imposed in March 1992, the sanctions include an arms and air embargo and a reduction of Libyan diplomatic personnel serving abroad. The United States imposed its own unilateral sanctions on Libya and said that none of its sanctions will be removed until Libya not only pays compensation to families of the victims, but also accepts responsibility for the bombing.

British Foreign Secretary Robin Cook on Jan. 31 told the House of Commons that Britain had expressed its strong support for the U.S. stance. According to published reports, London and Washington are demanding roughly $740 million to compensate the 270 victims� families.

But this stance isn�t sitting well with former South African President Nelson Mandela, who lashed out Feb. 1 at the U.S. and British governments. Mr. Mandela was instrumental in breaking the 12-year deadlock over the bombing suspects when he convinced Libyan leader Col. Muammar Gadhafi to allow the two Libyans to be extradited to the Netherlands for trial.

Mr. Mandela was quoted in the international press saying the West had moved the goal posts. The former South African president is holding fast to his belief that Britain and the United States in the Security Council had agreed that sanctions would be lifted, not just suspended, when the suspects were handed over.

President George W. Bush has said that before any further action is contemplated at the UN, Libya must first pay the compensation. The United States has veto power over any Security Council actions.