Sakchai Makao

I haven't written about this story before, although Norm has been following the case with some diligence. It concerns Sakchai Makao - a young Thai man who has been living in the Shetlands since he was ten years-old. He is facing deportation following the knee-jerk response to the Home Office's recent 'foreign prisoner' debacle.

While most people probably would agree that Home Office could do with tightening up their procedures to say the least, I think they would also concede that the case of Sakchai Makao hardly falls into the same category as the thousand-plus released prisoners that were so carelessly misplaced earlier this year.

That Sakchai Makao does not have British citizenship is a mere technicality. Not only has he spent most of his life in Lerwick, he has represented Scotland at various athletic events.

It has been heartening to see the response in the Shetlands - a place I already held in affection from childhood holidays there: a third of the population of Shetland have signed a petition calling for his release and 800 people turned up to a demonstration in his support. With regards the latter, if you apply the principle of the widow's mite, this is proportionately and morally more impressive than many of those we have become accustomed to witnessing in recent years.

I trust his release on bail is the beginning of a little official reasonableness being applied to this case. If you're of a letter-writing disposition, you could do worse than to drop a line to John Reid - as this is a matter reserved to the Westminster Parliament.

Because as Burke said, 'For us to love our country, our country ought to be lovely'.