2nd October 2017 Geneva, Switzerland
Council sessions leave your head spinning. Anyone who gets through one without feeling like it was full body and soul experience wasn’t really there. And it’s particularly trying for the families we abandon to meet the Council’s callous workload. If, like me, you’re lucky enough to have an understanding partner, for the first few days […]
25th September 2017 Geneva, Switzerland
Leaving aside the extremely grim subject matter which forms the basis of our work, one of the things I like the least in my job is having to say goodbye to good people. This summer we bade farewell to another great set of colleagues including the UK’s own James Mclaughlin and the ever wonderful, and […]
18th September 2017 Geneva, Switzerland
The seasons change fast in Switzerland though nothing quite takes the shine off a summer break like a week holed up in UN meetings. Once they begin, life becomes a strange combination of rapid high energy bursts of darting about, mixed with prolonged bouts of repetitive drudgery. Spending hours arguing over the wording of resolutions […]
11th September 2017 Geneva, Switzerland
It’s been a summer of car-related mishaps. The Swiss do many things well, though they must be among the best in the world when it comes to handing out speeding fines. I managed to pick up two tickets for going 1km and 2 km an hour over the limit and to add insult to injury, […]
3rd July 2017 Geneva, Switzerland
The Council came to a hot and weary end last Friday with some good results on the issues that mattered. Most importantly the EU and the African Group reached agreement on an investigation into reports of serious violations in the DRC. The Council also passed strong resolutions on violence against women, discrimination against women, child […]
20th June 2017 Geneva, Switzerland
One of the more amusing oddities that comes with going to the UN is having meetings interrupted by the screams of the peacocks that wander freely outside. It often seems like the vicarious expression of the feelings of those of us trapped inside for hours on end, arguing over any number of things that really […]
12th June 2017 Geneva, Switzerland
Growing up in Manchester, we used to say that if you couldn’t see the clouds approaching on the nearby Pennines it meant that it was already raining. I feel much the same way about sessions of the Human Rights Council – if there isn’t one around the corner, you’re probably already in one. The latest […]
27th March 2017 Geneva, Switzerland
My last blog worried some of you enough that you offered to send biscuits to my children in adult-proof containers. I’d like to offer some reassurance that my kids have started hiding their chocolate almost forgiven me for my thievery and that I am now receiving professional support for my wafer addiction. My wife has […]
20th March 2017 Geneva, Switzerland
I’m in big trouble. For the second Sunday running I’ve single-handedly, polished off a 26-pack of chocolate wafer biscuits which were supposed to be carefully rationed for the kids over the weeks ahead. I know it’s not going to do me much good come the morning as I try and squeeze into my suit, but […]
13th March 2017 Geneva, Switzerland
While there haven’t exactly been howls of protest about my online silence these last few weeks, the number of people asking what I’ve been up to rose to three on Friday (excluding my last boss who is clearly still keeping tabs on me from afar), so I feel a little sheepish and neglectful. The main reason […]