letters In Brief

Sir: Since the bombing of Serbia, 750,000 Albanian refugees have returned to Kosova, several hundred thousand more have come down from the hills to restart their lives, and 170,000 Serbs have become refugees. Alice Mahon MP (letter, 30 July) calls that a humanitarian disaster. I would call it, in spite of its flaws, a humanitarian triumph.

ANDREW KEMBALL

Coggeshall, Essex

Sir: Virginia Ironside ("The ad that set me free", 27 July), attempting to make a case that smoking is not particularly dangerous, claims that Japan, the second heaviest smoking nation, has low lung cancer rates. Cancer is rising in Japan and the fastest-growing is lung cancer. Cigarette smoking became common in Japan only in the late 1960s and the time-lag between that and the increase of lung cancer is as seen in every other society for which data is available.

KENNETH CAMPBELL

Kettering, Northamptonshire

Sir: Your leading article of 2 August represents the Archbishop of Canterbury as "saying - to paraphrase - that organised religion is mostly hypocritical." Paraphrase is always dangerous, especially when based upon unauthorised quotes from an unpublished book. In recognising past failings Dr Carey is not accusing the churches of hypocrisy. He is challenging them to strive to live up to Christ's message. To paraphrase - accurately - his message is hope for the future, not complaint about the past.

JEREMY HARRIS

The Archbishop of Canterbury's Secretary for Public Affairs

Lambeth Palace

London SE1