As we know, Scotland takes a much gentler approach to refugees than the powers that be in Westminster.
The people of Scotland have proved their kindness of heart by campaigning for years for the closure of Dungavel refugee detention centre, and by welcoming refugees into our communities.
But we also know, that we in this country have no power to act in the best interests of refugees, when they are hounded, imprisoned and deported by the Home Office. Our hands are tied. All power lies in London.
But the Home Office has gone too far this time. Majid Ali, a refugee from Pakistan, was unceremoniously detained, and expelled from Scotland almost a week ago.
He was placed on a military plane - an almost unheard of practice, with most refugees deported on civilian aircraft - and then flown to Pakistan. Since his arrival, he has not been heard from - despite assurances he gave to friends that he would contact them.
Many now believe he is dead. They are not being unnecessarily fearful. One only needs to look at the daily news cycle in Pakistan to realise it is a country riven with violence, civil turmoil, and human rights abuses - from non-state actors and the state alike. Majid Ali and his family were no friends of the Pakistani government. In fact, they were outspoken critics. Nor, though, were they involved in terrorism. A number of members of his family have either been killed or disappeared for their political beliefs.
If Majid Ali was a friend of yours - what would you think? Would you be confident he was safe and well? Or would you dread in your heart that he was dead? And might you also, understandably, fear in your heart that your government sitting in Westminster might be to blame if your worst fears were realised.
We know that the hated asylum system in the UK needs reformed. It is a disgrace. It treats those in dire needs of help, friendship and support as little better than criminals and parasites.
But what we must assure - above all else - is if and when we are compelled to throw people out of this country that we only do so in the full knowledge that they will not be harmed on the return to their country of origin.
If Majid Ali has been harmed - and no-one as yet knows for sure if he is safe and well or in danger, in prison, or dead - then the UK government will have corrupted the very soul of the concept of asylum. Asylum exists to help those fleeing persecution and death. No asylum system that sends people back to their deaths can be allowed to continue. It needs torn up and reconfigured.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article