IT was with great sadness that i read the letter from Alfonso Valero and others which you published on Friday (Letters, April 27). In many ways I sympathise with them and agree that Spanish democracy is greatly improved since the days of Francisco Franco.
Snr Valero refers to the attempt on parliament by “a small section of the army” in 1981. It was attempted by units of the Guardia Civil and, without the intervention of the king and the army, it may have ended in even more tears.
It was the conduct of the Guardia in the Catalonian referendum which brought Spain’s government into international contempt and re-opened interest in the origins of Rajoy’s governing party. Snr Valero has no memories of the Guardia in the days of Franco but I have such memories and they were re-awakened by the Guardia’s conduct in Catalonia, to say nothing of the conduct of the judiciary and government of a country I love.
Like those of the United Kingdom, the peoples of Spain are diverse. Not all are Castillanos. Like Scots, the people of Catalonia should be able to choose their own destiny without intervention by thugs like ETA, IRA, GAL, TLl, or the Guardia Civil. Democracy lies in the hands of the people, and is a treasure too hard-won to be surrendered to the forces of historic aggrandisement.
KM Cambell
Doune
ALFONSO Valero of Nottingham Trent University and 113 others are at great pains to reject the starkly obvious fact that there are political prisoners in Spain. Amnesty International says that a political prisoner is any prisoner whose case has a significant political element.
It has not so far proved possible for Spain to move on entirely from the days of the Franco dictatorship. The underlying difficulty is that Franco was not defeated. Spain needs to show a greater willingness to seek resolution to political problems through democratic action. Imprisoning Catalan politicians flies in the face of democracy.
A reminder from the European Union that opposition is possible in Spain within the democratic channels would carry more weight if political prisoners were released, and if politicians did not have to live under the threat of imprisonment. Political prisoners exist when people resist oppression, albeit peacefully.
Tomás Ó Gallchóir
Glasgow
IT appears that power devolved is indeed power retained and that much of the devolution settlement was a farce, with Westminster retaining effective control over many devolved powers through its position in the EU, where it negotiated on behalf of the devolved UK parliaments. The current stalemate has arisen as the UK Government is determined to have these so-called devolved powers returned from the EU for Westminster, where they have always been in practice.
A substantial part of the Common Fisheries Policy is almost certain to be retained by the UK Government long after Brexit, no matter what promises are bandied about to keep the fishing communities on side.
If the amendments to Section 11 become law then the government would be free to negotiate a new trade agreement embodying much of the Common Fisheries Policy with the EU. The limited control over fishing as it was before Brexit would then be returned to the Scottish Government. Even if the new agreement was time limited as an international trade agreement, negotiations over its renewal would remain with Westminster.
Westminster devolved these powers to the parliaments of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. If the government really believes in devolution, now is the time for Westminster to take on its second role as the English Parliament, embrace its three equal partners in our precious Union and work towards agreements on common policies for all.
John Jamieson
South Queensferry
DAVID Mundell said of the Scottish Government regarding Clause 11 that “we cannot accede to their demands”, when in fact it is his Tory masters in London who are demanding capitulation and the power to tell us we mean Yes when we say No. This is the thin end of a very sharp wedge, and who would believe that powers handed over for seven years would ever be returned? It is a perfect example of power devolved being power retained, and it should be plain to all by now that Scotland simply MUST escape this lopsided and rotting Union.
G Foulis
Edinburgh
THE headline "Businessmen tell Trump: Come to Scotland if you want to avoid protesters" (April 27) is somewhat inaccurate. I looked in vain for any Scottish connection in the piece, and the nearest connection I could find was “the chairman of Republicans Overseas Scotland and a contributor to Think Scotland”, probably one person.
What this bunch of English Tories were saying was: “Let the Scots put up with the security, cost and embarrassment of hosting the President of the USA”. Nowhere is there any mention of involving Nicola Sturgeon, or Police Scotland, or the NHS who might be involved in the aftermath, to get some clearance for this invitation.
Silly me, it’s surely a case for the old Scots saying: “It’s nae loss what a freend gets” ... or is it?
Jim Lynch
Edinburgh
THE teachings of business schools have given us the economy we enjoy today. They have taught students that financialisation of the real economy produces “the maximum return in the shortest period”. They have also taught how to abnegate individual morality to the system.
This received wisdom enables the public to understand that even financialised self-created adversity is good for the economy and, hence, us.
Geoff Naylor
Winchester
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