Madam, - Oliver Donohoe (April 2nd) rightly draws attention to the low level of support for Margaretta D'Arcy's demands for a ban on Israeli culture. Her motion was narrowly passed only after a mealy-mouthed amendment had been incorporated at the Aosdána general assembley on March 28th.
Mr O'Donohoe is also to be commended for pointing out the dual status of composer Raymond Deane. His urbane attempt to woo his colleagues into joining him as activists for the Palestine Solidarity Campaign was indeed elegantly garnished with good prose, but to me, and to a healthy majority of fellow-members, it smacked of Kristallnacht. - Yours etc,
VAL MULKERNS, Dalkey, Co Dublin.
Madam, - There is a lot to be said for the idea that literature and politics do not mix.
If, however, a Government-sponsored academy of creative artists such as Aosdána does try to mix the two, it would be well advised to "reflect deeply" first and be consistent.
I am therefore glad that the anti-Israeli resolution recently passed by Aosdána is entirely consistent with its previous action in electing as a Saoi - wise one - the former scriptwriter for Lord Haw-Haw, the late Francis Stuart. - Yours, etc,
DAVID SIMMS, Gilford Road, Dublin 4.