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Booksigning at Hatchards, Piccadilly October 2020. |
Being Chair of the Round Table, The Round Table, the Commonwealth Journal of International Affairs, 18 December 2023
It was a huge privilege - for six years I felt like I was the 'face' of The Round Table; whenever I told friends about my esteemed position, this was followed by further discussions about what that entailed, which led me to describing the importance of the 'Commonwealth Journal of International Affairs' founded in 1910, who my colleagues were, and how we all passionately believed in the future of the Commonwealth, regardless of its critics and detractors.
But it was also a lot more both practically and logistically. As an independent writer used to working on my own, I found myself liaising with my fellow colleagues on the Editorial Board, relying upon them for advice and assistance. I also benefited - perhaps even more than I had as a simple 'Editorial Board' member - from that wonderful collegiate friendship, which is a hallmark of The Round Table's unique character.
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A 21st Century Coronation, The Round Table, the Commonwealth Journal of International Affairs, 7 May 2023
As I left home early in the morning on Coronation Day, 6 May, heading in the direction of Kensington Gardens and Hyde Park, there was that same stillness I'd witnessed on the morning of Her Majesty The Queen's funeral in London last September. Yet the atmosphere was different, a sense of anticipation, which even the drizzling rain was not going to dampen. When I got closer to the park, where crowd control men and women in their fluorescent yellow jackets were manning the pathways, the early morning joggers were much in evidence. Cyclists - like me - were also wending their ways in different directions; but there were also groups of people walking purposefully, carrying Union Jack flags ready to wave, one person with a face-painted flag already in place, others wrapped in larger flags which they would no doubt later unfurl. All, I assumed, were carrying picnics for what was going to be a long day.
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Opinion - Pakistan at 75: A mixed record, The Round Table, the Commonwealth Journal of International Affairs, 4 January 2023
When, in 1947, what was then known as 'the Indian subcontinent' was partitioned and the dominion of Pakistan was created, the population of its two wings - East and West - was considered to be approximately 70 million. The first census to be conducted after independence in 1951 estimated the population in West Pakistan to be over 33 million; by 1961 this had risen to nearly 42 million (with another estimated 50 million living in East Pakistan); in 1972, by which time statistics were no longer recorded for East Pakistan - which had seceded to become independent Bangladesh - the population in the West was recorded as being nearly 65.5 million. Less than ten years later this had again risen - to nearly 85 million.
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Accredited organisations return to Marlborough House, The Round Table. the Commonwealth Journal of International Affairs, 2 December 2022
I hadn't set foot in Marlborough House, home of the Commonwealth Secretariat, since literally the eve of lockdown in March 2020 when I'd attended the customary Commonwealth Day reception hosted by the then HRH Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall. And so, nearly three years later, it was reassuring to return to this stately building for the Secretary-General's 14th Dialogue with Commonwealth Accredited Organisations (AOs) of which The Round Table is one.
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Undaunted activist Mahbouba Seraj: 'Afghan women have not given up and they will neer give up' Afghan Women's Support Forum, 2 November 2022
Of all the Afghans who fled Kabul in fear on 15 August 2021 and in the succeeding days, 74-year-old journalist and human rights activist Mahbouba Seraj was not one of them. 'Not for a second did I think to get out. I thought now is the time to stand and fight,' she said to me defiantly, as we sat having breakfast in the Avari hotel, Lahore, where we had both come to attend the 4th Asma Jahangir Memorial Conference. Miraculously - over one year since the Taliban regained power in Afghanistan, she has stayed and survived. "No, I don't wear a burqah," she says, pointing to her grey-white hair indicating that her age means it really isn't necessary.
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The funeral of Queen Elizabeth II, The Round Table. the Commonwealth Journal of International Affairs, 20 September 2022
There was a certain stillness about London on the day of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II's state funeral. Venturing out in the early morning from my home, I could see flags on public buildings still flying at half mast, a chill autumnal feeling was in the air, which, as the day progressed turned brilliantly sunny. The shops were closed and no one was going to work; even so, there was some normality, joggers in the park, people - like me - going places on their bicycles, others walking their dogs, chatting with friends. Yet, as I got closer to the heart of London, where the funeral was to take place in Westminster Abbey, there was something undeniably different: hundreds of volunteers in red, yellow and blue jackets were manning barricades, roads were cordoned off in preparation for the funeral possession and hundreds of police were standing at the ready.
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The Queen's passing: A reflection by the Chair of the Round Table, The Round Table, the Commonwealth Journal of International Affairs,12 September 2022
As with other significant events in our lives, across the world we are all likely to remember where we were on 8 September 2022 when the announcement came that Her Majesty The Queen had died in Balmoral that afternoon aged 96. I was at home listening anxiously to the news since we'd heard earlier in the day that she was under medical supervision. Even so I was shocked at the speed with which The Queen departed, when, only two days previously, she had been photographed shaking hands with the new Prime Minister, Liz Truss. Albeit frail, she was emitting that familiar radiant smile and, assisted by a stick, was on her feet, her hand outstretched in welcome.
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The Plebiscite Conundrum in Jammu and Kashmir 1947 to present day, Institute of Strategic Studies Islamabad, Summer issue 2022.
Since 1947 the expectation that the fate of the disputed former princely state of Jammu and Kashmir would be decided by a plebiscite has been part of the narrative of the state's history. 75 years later, the plebiscite has never been held, the state remaining de facto divided between India and Pakistan, both accusing each other of illegally occupying the territory the other controls, while a significant proportion of the inhabitants of the state maintain that they have never been allowed their 'right of self-determination.' This paper examines the reasoning behind holding a plebiscite, the challenges of holding a unitary plebiscite in a state where the inhabitants of the major regions of the state have differing allegiances and aspirations and the reasons why the plebiscite was not held. It also explains why successive governments of Pakistan have clung to the notion of holding a plebiscite, whereas successive Indian governments have long since decided that a plebiscite is no longer necessary. Finally, this paper will examine whether, in a changed demographic environment, with the state de facto divided for over half the time it was ever a united administrative unit, the holding of a plebiscite would resolve the issue or whether it would create more disaffection among disappointed minorities.
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Foreign Ministers' Roundtable with Civil Society, The Round Table,, The Commonwealth Journal of International Affairs, 27 June 2022.
The following day, with the 'heads of government' ensconced on their retreat, I sat listening to the deliberations at the Foreign Ministers' Roundtable with Civil Society; chaired by Dr Anne Gallagher AO, (Director-General of the Commonwealth Foundation and member of the Round Table's Editorial board). As the moderator, she skilfully encouraged one member of civil society to comment, while a foreign minister or their representative responded.
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The leaders meet, The Round Table,, The Commonwealth Journal of International Affairs, 25 June 2022
For me the opening ceremony of CHOGM 2022 began early. Up at 6.30am I had to be at the Kigali Convention Centre by 7.45am, my taxi driver, Eric, skilfully circumventing the road blocks and impressing on the assorted AK47-wielding guards, positioned to prevent unwelcome entrants, that I was a bona fide CHOGM media/delegate and was entitled to pass through the barriers. Once into the media centre it was a question of waiting, the Secretariat staff issuing assorted 'bibs' depending on which category of media pool we fitted. I was with the 'writers' and, with no requirement for a bib, eventually I and my fellow writers took our seats in the circular Convention Centre which, from the outside, looks like a beehive.
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Guilt and Genocide, The Round Table,, The Commonwealth Journal of International Affairs, 24 June 2022
...Even though my focus is on CHOGM 2022, I was glad to have faced the 1994 genocide, which is so much part of Rwandan history (although it is now forbidden for Rwandans to state whether they are Tutsis or Hutus and it is certainly inappropriate to ask). A strong part of the narrative is the response (or lack of) of the international community. Far from bolstering a UN presence, when ten Belgian UN peacekeeping soldiers were tortured and killed at the beginning of the genocide, the whole force was evacuated, as were any Europeans remaining in the country while the killing continued. Nearly thirty years later this failure to take action contributes to the guilt factor which western governments feel.
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The Peoples Forum, The Round Table,, The Commonwealth Journal of International Affairs, 23 June 2022
What with the arrival of HRH Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall in Kigali, the opening of the Business Forum by H.E. Paul Kagame, President of the Republic of Rwanda the closing of the Women's Forum, not forgetting the People's Forum, complemented by a plethora of side events, there was a sense of the pace speeding up as we approach the opening ceremony on Friday....Meanwhile, I'd decided to devote my time to the People's Forum, held in M Hotel, KN1 Avenue, another of Kigali's luxury hotels taken over by CHOGM for the duration; while climate, health, justice and leadership dominated the first day's proceedings, governance and freedom of expression formed the core of the People's Forum on day two.
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Arrival, The Round Table,, The Commonwealth Journal of International Affairs, 21 June 2022
On touching down in Kigali, the first instruction, which was a reminder of Rwanda's progressive policy to protect the environment, was over the loudspeaker forbidding all entrants to bring any plastic bags into the country. But it wasn't until the following morning that I could see how far Rwanda has come in its development. 'We are all Rwandan now,' Eric, my taxi driver, assured me as he picked me up from the Hotel des Mille Collines, where I'm staying (the real-life location for the Hotel Rwanda, the emotive film telling the story of the 1,000 plus who sheltered there during the 1994 genocide). And it was clear that the most important event of the week for Kigali's 1 million inhabitants was the city's total takeover by CHOGM, banners with 'CHOGM RWANDA2022' adorning the lamp posts, and the major hotels sporting the varied flags of the member countries.
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Departure, The Round Table,, The Commonwealth Journal of International Affairs, 20 June 2022
...The theme of this year's CHOGM is 'Delivering a Common Future: Connecting, Innovating, Transforming.' As usual, several forums and side events are taking place before the formal opening of CHOGM on Thursday 23rd June. As we all know, because of Covid-19 this particular CHOGM has been a long time coming: instead of the normal two-year interval between the meetings, it's been over four years since the last CHOGM in London in April 2018 hosted by the United Kingdom.
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Book review, Kashmir at the Crossroads, Inside a 21st Century Conflict, by Sumantra Bose, Asian Affairs, Vol. LIII, 27 May 2022
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Reflections on Commonwealth Day, The Round Table,, The Commonwealth Journal of International Affairs, 17 March 2022
Her Majesty the Queen's presence at the traditional Commonwealth Service in Westminster Abbey was much missed, especially given that the service was to mark the beginning of her 70th Platinum Jubilee celebrations. So last minute was her absence that the schedule of events, as listed in the programme, still stated that, on arrival, the Queen would be received by the Dean of Westminster. Instead, as has already become increasingly frequent, the Prince of Wales fulfilled her role, accompanied by the Duchess of Cornwall, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and other members of the Royal Family. Seated close by was the Prime Minister, the Right Honourable Boris Johnson, MP and the Secretary-General of the Commonwealth, Baroness Patricia Scotland, QC, who, in turn, were flanked by a galaxy of diplomats and officials as well as representatives from all Churches and faiths.
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Book review, The Good Girls, An Ordinary Killing by Sonia Faleiro The Spectator, 20 February 2021
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'From Oxford pals to political prisoner - my 30-year friendship with Benazir Bhutto,' The Telegraph, 28 October 2020
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VE Day Reflections , The Round Table, The Commonwealth Journal of International Affairs, 11 May 2020.
On 8 May the United Kingdom celebrated the 75th anniversary of VE Day - Victory in Europe - in recognition of all those who had fought in the Second World War (1939-45). Having addressed the nation during the corona virus pandemic, her Majesty the Queen again broadcast a message to the people. Mindful of the continuing lockdown because of the pandemic, she recognised that 'today it may seem hard that we cannot mark this special anniversary as we would wish. Instead we remember from our homes and from our doorsteps.'...
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Covid-19: A view from London , The Round Table, The Commonwealth Journal of International Affairs, 1 May 2020.
A month or two ago no one of this generation had any concept of how a worldwide epidemic or 'pandemic' would affect our lives. Now with the rapid spread of Covid-19 from country to country, its significance has become horribly familiar, illustrated by daily statistics of those who have 'sadly died' and a whole list of do's and don'ts constricting our activities.
For those of us living in the UK being in the grip of a pandemic has also spawned a range of previously unheard of activities: lockdown, social distancing, self-isolation. But it has also generated resilience, compassion, and a realisation that, despite the challenges we are individually and collectively facing, the situation could be worse....
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Jinnah Institute Opinion 'Dear World, how is the lockdown? Kashmir', 28 April 2020
A year ago I was in the Valley of Kashmir. Although much had changed since my last visit, with new houses under construction, some roads repaired, there was still the same feeling of gloom - of people living on the edge, unable to enjoy their lives and their magnificent surroundings to the full because they never knew when the next curfew was going to be imposed, when the next crackdown would come and whose family was going to suffer premature bereavement in an 'encounter' with Indian security forces. Even so there was still an expectation that, if only the two powerful neighbours, India and Pakistan, between whom the state remains de facto divided, could sit down at the negotiating table, as they had intermittently tried to do in past decades, some equitable resolution of the issue could be achieved (provided of course there was some consultation with a representative selection of Jammu and Kashmir's 12 plus million inhabitants.)
But on 5th August 2019 - not long after I'd left the Valley - everything changed....
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Once the goal was to woo Kashmir. Now Modi is bent on taking it, The Sunday Times, 11 August 2019
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Dawn chorus and the Indian elections, The What and the Why, 3 June 2019
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India's Elections: 'Dismal' voter turnout in Jammu and Kashmir, The Round Table, 17 May 2019
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A day in the life of India's elections - Rajasthan, The Round Table, 7 May 2019
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London Notes: Reflections: CHOGM 2018
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London Notes: Buckingham Palace, 19 April. |
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London Notes: Days two and three, 17-18 April.
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London Notes: First day impressions of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, 16 April.
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Believe, a song to inspire aspiration,The Round Table, 15 March 2019
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Asma Jahangir obituary, 13 February 2018
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/feb/13/asma-jahangir-obituary |
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‘The greatest stories never told’, 19 January 2018
https://unherd.com/ |
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Book review: Defeat is an Orphan: How Pakistan lost the Great South Asian War, by Myra MacDonald |
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The Round Table, The Commonwealth Journal of International Affairs, November 2017
https://www.commonwealthroundtable.co.uk/?s=defeat+is+an+orphan |
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Book review: Travels in a Dervish Cloak by Isambard Wilkinson, The Spectator, 29 September 2017 |
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Secrets of the Kashmir Valley by Farhana Qazi, Pharos, 2016, Foreword by Victoria Schofield
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''A portrait of the Life and Vision of Shabana Basij-Rasikh'
http://afghanwsf.co.uk/blog/a-portrait-of-the-life-and-vision-of-shabana-basij-rasikh/ |
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