As far as I know none of Messrs Cameron, Clegg and Hague has any legal training or qualifications, but that does not stop them pontificating about matters that are not within their jurisdiction or competence.

Just like Tony Blair, who as a qualified barrister should have known better when he offered Colonel Muammar Gaddafi a prisoner transfer agreement in exchange for oil rights, they do not seem to understand the independent status of Scots Law.

This independence is not a ploy by the SNP or some accidental by-product of the recent devolution settlement, it is specifically guaranteed by the 1707 Treaty of Union approved by both the English and Scottish Parliaments.

Under Scots Law Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al Megrahi is not a free man, he is merely out on licence, having been released from prison on compassionate grounds under certain conditions. If he breaches these conditions he can be returned to prison in Scotland. That would be a decision for the Scottish judicial system and the Justice Secretary, and the opinion of UK politicians is irrelevant.

There can be no question of Megrahi being extradited to the US, to satisfy the insatiable American thirst for vengeance and be exposed to their interminable court processes. Perhaps the plan would be to present him on the steps of the courthouse to a baying mob, among whom there would surely be at least one armed assassin. It would not be the first time that has happened.

It is ironic that Megrahi’s unexpected continuation of life is probably due to a new cancer drug, abiraterone, which he could not have received in Greenock prison because it is not yet licensed for use in Britain or Europe, but was available to Libya at enormous cost from an American pharmaceutical business.

How many Americans who would joyously celebrate Megrahi’s early death own shares in that company and receive dividends from its profits?

Iain AD Mann,

7 Kelvin Court,

Glasgow.

I found your headline “Hunt is on to find Megrahi” (The Herald, August 24) rather disquieting. This man was released on what we were informed were compassionate grounds on the basis that his prognosis indicated an early death from advanced prostate cancer. Since then, many people, especially in the US, seem to be disappointed that he is still alive. Hardly a Christian view.

The issue of East Renfrewshire Council, his supervising authority, being now unable to contact him and therefore being in breach of his parole seems to me more to do with opportunistic political shenanigans than facing the extraordinary turmoil which is happening in Tripoli.

Megrahi has been caught up in a civil war which was unforeseen at the time of his release. Perhaps it should have been. In this instance I feel that in terms of what was essentially a contract of conditional release the principle of force majeure should apply. Clearly the family of Megrahi would be irresponsible to leave him at his home where, in the heat of the current violent conflict, anything could happen to him.

Everyone knows that the hawkish elements in the US would dearly love to find him, if he is still alive, but I suggest that Scotland has a duty to re-establish the conditions of his license when democratic peace is built in Libya or even now through the National Transitional Council.

Any talk of locking him up again because our medical estimates of his life span were inaccurate seems churlish and small-minded, especially if Holyrood were to use him as a pawn after having second thoughts over his release.

It is for the new post–Gaddafi Libyan government to decide if they wish to take action against Megrahi or indeed institute diplomatic negotiations with Holyrood over his future in Libya.

Bill Brown,

46 Breadie Drive, Milngavie.

In South Africa and in Northern Ireland, a time came when both sides realised that pursuing each other had to end. They recognised that to insist on formal proceedings being conducted until the bitter end would cause more useless loss of life and more avoidable grief.

If guilty it was not Megrahi’s idea to bomb Pan Am flight 103. If innocent, he has suffered enough.

A clinical judgment by a specialist doctor and a humanitarian decision by the Scottish Government resulted in Megrahi’s release on humanitarian grounds. These were milestones on the way towards reconciliation.

To put Megrahi on trial again, a process that with appeal could last a decade, would keep this dreadful problem in the public eye and continue to inflame public opinion in all the countries involved. His ultimate death would be peaceful if the matter were reconciled now. If not, and if he were to die in Western custody, we would see more rioting and bloodshed.

It is surely time to rebuild Libya with magnanimity not vengeance.

As Winston Churchill said: “In war: resolution. In defeat: defiance. In victory: magnanimity. In peace: goodwill.”

Michael Hamilton,

5 Stodrig Farm Cottages,

Kelso.