Letters: In Brief

Sir: Should judges and policemen be required to register membership of Freemasonry? Or would that, as Masons claim, be an unwarranted intrusion?

But registration is not the only option. Perhaps professionals and others should adopt some symbol to record that they are not Freemasons ("We don't know who they are - but we can know who we are.") That would give a choice for those who would prefer their affairs to be handled by non-Masons. And those providing services would be able to attract clients from the 99 per cent who also are not "on the square".

DOMINIC TORR

London SE3

Sir: Rosalind Miles ("Why did no one step in to save the life of Sasha Davies?", 25 June) is less than accurate in stating that "many leading Western states" have not signed up to the Convention on the Rights of the Child. According to the Unicef Web page, there are now only three countries which have not ratified the convention: the USA, the Cook Islands and Somalia.

BILL LINTON

London N13

Sir: Your brief report (23 June) on the 14-year-old boy who has taken a case to the European Court of Human Rights was incorrect to state that "a parental smack could become illegal after a human rights court hearing in Strasbourg yesterday". The court has consistently ruled that there is nothing inherently "inhuman" or "degrading" about corporal punishment, stating that "a particular level of severity" must be reached for a punishment to be in breach of Article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights.

ANNE DAVIS

Families for Discipline

Frinton-on-Sea, Essex

Sir: We write to correct Tim Adler ("Rogue traders of the film industry", 25 June). We are not "twin labradors", as described in the above article, but a blonde spaniel crossbreed and a tan labrador crossbreed.

FLORA

CHARLIE

(Duncan Heath's dogs)

International Creative Management Ltd

London W1