22nd October 2013 Tripoli, Libya
لقد مرت فترة من الزمن على كتابة آخر مدونة لي، وقد انتقلت بعدها من اليمن لتولي منصبي الحالي كسفير للمملكة المتحدة في دولة قطر. ويسعدني الآن أن أعمل في الدوحة، في هذا الوقت بالذات، خاصة وأن البلاد تمر بمرحلة تطور سريعة بالإضافة إلى لعب دولة قطر دورا دوليا أكثر أهمية من أي وقت مضى. لقد […]
22nd October 2013 Tripoli, Libya
It’s been a while since I last blogged. Since my last post, I have left Yemen and moved to be the UK Ambassador to Qatar. I am delighted to be serving in Doha at a time when the country continues to develop fast and play an ever-more important role internationally. 16 October marked Blog Action […]
19th July 2013 Tripoli, Libya
The children wanted to play football. But there wasn’t one to hand. So an older boy was dispatched on a motorbike to find one. Then after a long wait a battered ball arrived and two hundred men and boys chased a ball around a dusty patch in the middle of the village. The game was […]
3rd April 2013 Tripoli, Libya
يزعم بعض الناس أن مشاكل اليمن متأصلة في البلاد بعمق لدرجة أنه من الصعب التغلب عليها. وصحيح أن الثقافة القبلية في الشمال وإرث حكومات ما بعد الاستقلال والمظالم التي عانى من الناس منذ الوحدة – ناهيك عن مصائب الإرهاب والفساد – تمثل عقبات كبيرة. فهي تقطع الطريق أمام إيجاد ديموقراطية أكثر تمثيلا، وتنفيذ لسطلة القانون، […]
3rd April 2013 Tripoli, Libya
There is a body of opinion that argues Yemen’s problems are so deeply embedded that the country will never overcome them. It is true that the tribal culture in the north and the Cold War and post-unification legacies in the south – not to mention the scourges of terrorism and corruption – pose formidable obstacles. […]
24th March 2013 Tripoli, Libya
في 19 مارس، رأيت اليمنيين يعبرون عن مواقفهم بثبات ومرح. فقد احيوا ما قدموه وبدا واضحاً ايمانهم بمستقبل أفضل. بدوا متوترين قليلاً الا انه كان جلياً استمتاعهم بوقتهم ايضاً. وكانت الفكرة السائدة كيف يمكن للأفكار ان تغير من حياة الافراد، وتعززت فكرة ان الابتكار والتفكير الإبداعي اقوى من سطوة السلاح لتحقيق التغير. وفي نفس الوقت، […]
22nd March 2013 Tripoli, Libya
On 19 March, I watched Yemenis setting out their positions forcefully and entertainingly. They brought their presentations vividly to life and clearly believed in a better future. They seemed a bit nervous but were clearly enjoying themselves. The dominant theme was how ideas could transform lives. Innovation and creative thinking were better weapons for achieving […]
1st March 2013 Tripoli, Libya
I wrote in my introductory blog (a little tentative as I was learning how to manage the software) that I would offer some more personal views. However, I’d like to pick up first on the theme that I mentioned before, the Friends of Yemen meeting in London, a week from now. People often ask me […]
26th February 2013 Tripoli, Libya
Welcome to my blog! I am hoping to share some personal reflections about this beguiling and complicated country very soon. Suffice it to say that I am preoccupied with the preparations for the Friends of Yemen meeting which takes place in London less than two weeks from now, on 7 March. Another way-marker on the […]