Published in The Independent (May 1st, 2009) As she waited to go on, Souad Massi looked nervous for the first time that evening. The Algerian singer, who has […]
Economics
The unlikely triumph of capitalism
Published in The Independent (April 4th, 2009) Presidents, politicians, pundits and protesters are united: Capitalism is in crisis; free markets are fatally wounded; the state is in the […]
Africa / Libya
These poor unfortunates are pawns in a game of power politics
Published in The Independent (April 1st, 2009) Michael was sitting in the shade of a building site with about 20 fellow Nigerians, watching life go by in a […]
Disability / Politics
Iona and Ivan – a tale of two children and two families
Published in The Independent (February 26th, 2009) I awoke to the sound of my daughter, Iona, screaming yesterday morning, shortly after six. First the agonised screams, then coughing […]
Africa / Aid / General
The other side of modern Africa
Published in The Independent (December 7th, 2008) The disintegration of Zimbabwe continues. The killing goes on in Congo and Darfur. And Aids continues to devastate the lives of […]
Immigration / Policy
Why turn away these people that we need so badly?
Published in The Independent (September 10th, 2008) Sonia trained as a nurse in Nairobi before coming to Britain a decade ago. Since then, she has worked long and […]
Africa / Libya / Travel
Libya: From desert to oasis
Published in The Independent (December 8th, 2007) Ali took a hunk of camel meat and carefully chopped it into tiny cubes before throwing it into a pan. Then […]
Disability / Health / Politics
The hell I share with David Cameron
Published in The Spectator (October 22nd, 2005) My daughter suffered two seizures the other night. One was shortly after midnight, the other a couple of hours later. Having […]
Travel / United States / World
Virginia and Maryland: On the trail of the lonesome pine
Published in The Independent (September 24th, 2005) First there was the twang of country music, which turned out to be an apposite version of “Take Me Home, Country […]
Sri Lanka / Travel
The calm after the storm
Published in The Independent (March 26th, 2005) The two elderly ladies, with their blue rinses and bubble-perms, were explaining how they ended up going on holiday to Sri […]