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American Morning

Multibillion Dollar Settlement Offer from Libya to Families of Pan Am 103 Victims

Aired May 29, 2002 - 07:11   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
PAULA ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: On to the issue of the multibillion dollar settlement offer from Libya to the families of the Pan Am 103 victims. As you might remember, 270 people were killed in the 1988 bombing over Lockerbie, Scotland. And in this deal, the families would receive $10 million for each victim, but there are some very big strings attached, including a demand to end both U.S. and U.N. sanctions and getting the U.S. to remove Libya from its terror list.

Here is how one family member described the offer.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VICTORIA CUMMOCK, WIDOW OF PAN AM 103 VICTIM: I think that by accepting only compensation that we are accepting virtually blood money. But we need to make sure that we hold these people and these governments accountable for their actions, and to make sure that no matter how long we have to wait, that that is what needs to be done in order to bring these countries back to trading with other countries in the world and a part of the global community.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ZAHN: Bird Allen is a spokesman for the families of Pan Am 103, and he joins us now in our New York studios this morning.

Good morning.

BERT AMMERMAN, SPOKESMAN, FAMILIES OF PAN AM FLIGHT 103: Good morning.

ZAHN: Good to have you with us. If families ultimately would accept this offer, how is it anything but accepting blood money as you just heard that widow say?

AMMERMAN: Well, there is no question -- yes, I respect that opinion, and you are going to have some families saying that. But the pragmatic approach too is to realize that our government for the last three or four years has been pushing to try to reopen relations with Libya. Our business companies are trying to push that. The political community is trying to push it. And we have to be realistic that what Libya has done is made a serious offer and meets part of the criteria for the sanctions that were put in place by the U.N. I am sort of surprised that Libya finally is using their heads a little bit diplomatically, because if this offer is turned down, they can go to the United Nations and say, look, we extended ourselves. We made an attempt. Now, what do we do? And they'll start to get some support in the international community.

ZAHN: You are saying, and I want to make sure I understood you correctly, that Libya is accepting part of the criteria here. The families who are really outraged by this are saying Libya was supposed to accept responsibility for this bombing.

AMMERMAN: Yes.

ZAHN: And there is nowhere in this offer where that responsibility is accepted. Are they right?

AMMERMAN: They are correct. But as we are speaking, as I was told yesterday, our government, the British government and the Libyan government are working right now on a trilateral agreement diplomatically wording to have Libya accept responsibility. I believe in the end what will come out is Libya will accept responsibility of the actions of its citizens, and based on that fact, has made this offer to come back into the civilized world. Well, we know Gaddafi's fingerprints were all over this. It truly is unrealistic to expect that Gaddafi is ever going to admit this.

And so you are going to have to work your way through the maze that's been developed for the last 14 years. This is a serious offer.

ZAHN: What is the minimum you would be willing to accept as far this issue of responsibility? If you don't see Gaddafi saying, OK, folks, I'm sorry, we did this. What in your judgment is acceptable, particularly for those families that are out there on the fence saying, wait a minute. I am not going to betray my child's memory by taking this blood money.

AMMERMAN: My brother was on that flight, and he was blown out of the air at 31,000 feet. There are going to be some family members that will never accept this money, and rightfully so, and I respect that. There will be family members that will take this money and turn it into a positive good in charities or scholarships, and there are some families that actually need the money.

The agreement or understanding yesterday that was finally reached was that it had to be comprehensive settlement. So a vast majority of family members have to accept this agreement. And let's remember, this agreement was negotiated by the families' attorneys, not by the U.S. government. So the families' attorneys have sent letters out and are calling their clients now, and time will tell if whether this will be finally accepted by the families.

ZAHN: With the way the offer is written right now, could you in good conscious accept it in your brother's family's behalf?

AMMERMAN: I could. I am not going to be involved in it, because the sanctions are going to be lifted eventually whether we accept or don't accept this offer. It's in the movement right now, and the United Nations will put additional pressure on the United States. That was the 40 percent package.

The other 40 percent with the United States lifting economic sanctions, our government has been trying to find a way to lift those sanctions for the last four or five years. So that 80 percent is eventually going to happen.

The 20 percent that I would hold to is that Libya would still stay on the state sponsored terrorism list. I wouldn't move so quickly on that. But I do believe that this is moving now, and it's moving on the fast track. And I imagine something will be done by the summer.

ZAHN: So you sound to me like you are still convinced that Libya sponsors terrorism.

AMMERMAN: Oh, there is no question that Libya sponsors terrorism. There is no question in my mind that Gaddafi was behind this, and I will go to my grave with that. To get Gaddafi to admit to that or to be held accountable for that is not going to happen in our lifetime.

ZAHN: So what is the advice that you give families this morning, who are very torn about the prospect of this offer, particularly as you are saying even as we speak there are negotiations that continue that would maybe in writing say that Libya in some way was responsible for blowing this plane out of the sky?

AMMERMAN: I am surprised that we have got it up to the amount of money that they are talking now, $2.7 billion. That is a hefty financial price to pay. In other words, what you are saying to countries who support terrorism now, you will pay a political price, a military price and a financial price. And it's something that we should seriously consider. It's tough. It's emotional, but it's moving in a direction that forces Libya back into the civilized world under certain circumstances that would be satisfactory to some families.

ZAHN: And what indication do you have from your brother's family about which why they will go on this offer? I know you say that's not your responsibility. That is their decision.

AMMERMAN: Yes.

ZAHN: Do you know which way they are going to go?

AMMERMAN: No, not at all. I never got involved in that. It's a tough decision, but I know that there are many families right now that will be sitting down and they'll listen to their attorneys. That's the thing that's to me is positive.

This is not the U.S. government telling us. Let me be very clear, Paula. Our government has never been supportive of our efforts over 14 years. At best, it has been reluctant support. We have had to force them. We have had to embarrass them. So I would always be cynical if it was the government making this offer, saying this is a good deal. This is the families' attorneys who have been advising the families for 14 years, so we should listen.

ZAHN: All right. Bert Ammerman, thank you very much for dropping by.

AMMERMAN: Thank you.

ZAHN: Appreciate your insights this morning.

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