The funeral of Scotland's first minister

[Chris Burford <cburford@xxxxxxxxxx>]

Entirely a struggle of reforms, the occasion of the death of Scotland's
first minister of only just over a year's standing, Donald Dewar, is a
moment to salute the struggle that brought devolution to Scotland and a
Scottish parliament back almost 300 years after it was abolished.

The Scots played a valuable subordinate role to the English in building the
British Empire. Nevertheless they were and are oppressed themselves by the
English. More distantly the attacks by the English under Edward I against
the Welsh and Scots, were among the most violent atrocities in English
history.

A more democratic settlement in northern Europe now requires smaller
nations to have devolution, self government, and if they want it
independence. That is not in contradiction to the increasing unity of the
economies under European finance capital.

Donald Dewar was a patient and far sighted democrat, who helped the
Scottish assembly to cooperate across most party issues, to win the
referendum for devolution and the setting up of the parliament of which he
became first minister, until suddenly killed by a cerebral bleed, after he
had been put on anti-coagulants earlier this year to guard against a
further heart attack.

Yes capitalism still prevails. Yes New Labour is inescapably reformist. But
devolution has been an important democratic change in the distribution of
power in the British Isles.

Chris Burford

London