Pretenderendum

Seeing the excellent farce The Death of Stalin, I was amazed that the film was grimly realistic and yet at the same time laughably farcical. We see people in a situation which is unexpected and beyond their control, and we laugh at their panic-stricken reactions.

After the film, reality seems full of similar situations. The so-called referendum in Catalonia was a farce. Proper procedures were not observed - there was no check to prevent multiple voting, polling stations were full of people, ballot boxes were just plastic tubs with a hole for ballot papers, voters could print their own ballot papers at home, etc. And yet Carles Puigdemont declared the result of the farce a mandate for independence! Ridiculous! It was only a pretenderendum! The Spanish Government made a big mistake when it treated the farce seriously. Mariano Rajoy should have pointed out the procedural failings and then ignored it. By embarking on his heavy-handed response he has given the farce more status than it deserves.

We must all hope that the farce does not descend into tragedy, costing people their lives and dragging Spain back into the violence of the past. All concerned should see The Death of Stalin and then go forward with less high drama and more willingness to compromise.

LES REID

Morton Street, Edinburgh