London:
The recent release of the alleged Lockerbie bomber was in line with Mahatma Gandhi's principles of compassion and non-violence, Scotland First Minister Alex Salmond has said.
Speaking during a conference of his Scottish National Party, in Inverness, Salmond said that the Scottish justice secretary Kenny MacAskill was right in deciding to release Abdelbaset Ali Mohmet al-Megrahi on compassionate grounds in August.
Salmond recalled the recent visit of Mahatma Gandhi's grandson Arun Gandhi to Scotland and said, "One of the things he told me is that his grandfather's philosophy is much misunderstood. His resistance was not passive, but active. His dedication to non-violence a strength, not a weakness".
Salmond continued in the Gandhian mode, "Sometimes, someone has to break the cycle of retribution with an act of compassion - that is what Kenny MacAskill did and we should be proud of him for doing it."
Earlier, Salmond said he will consider a proposal to set up a Scottish centre for non-violence, peace and reconciliation after a meeting with Arun Gandhi.
Arun Gandhi, 74, was in Scotland to deliver lectures at the universities of Edinburgh, Dundee and Queen Margaret. He addressed a conference at Napier University on the Gandhian approach to ethical leadership.