6th June 2014 Havana, Cuba
Before I joined the Foreign Office I spent many years working for humanitarian NGOs in central Africa – Rwanda, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of Congo – where I experienced first-hand the horrors of war and the devastation it can bring to communities, families and individuals. In those conflicts and others, one of the most […]
5th June 2014 Havana, Cuba
Next week the British Embassy is moving. We’re off to Eastern Cuba for a full week of activities and meetings, events and project visits. Thirteen of us will travel, including staff from the Embassy’s consular, commercial and political sections and the Director of the British Council, Julian Baker. We’ll be visiting Holguin, Santiago and Guantanamo and […]
25th May 2014 Havana, Cuba
Next month the World Cup kicks off in Brazil and billions of football fans, including millions of Cubans, will be watching it. The last and only time Cuba made it to the finals was in 1938 in France when they beat Rumania in the first round and then lost heavily to Sweden (8-0 – ouch!) […]
14th April 2014 Havana, Cuba
Thanks to Rhys Patrick, Second Secretary in the British Embassy, Havana for this week’s blog. Last month I visited Camaguey and Ciego de Avila, two provinces in central Cuba famous for their farming and stunning archipelagos. When British pirate Henry Morgan visited Camaguey in 1668 he sacked the city and locked the town leaders in the Cathedral […]
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21st March 2014 Havana, Cuba
In a week when Russian aggression in Eastern Europe has brought back memories of the Cold War, it seems appropriate to write about Sir Winston Churchill, the great British statesman who coined the term ‘the iron curtain’. Churchill’s inspiring, determined, brilliant leadership during the Second World War is known to all. Less well-known are his […]
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14th March 2014 Havana, Cuba
A lot of my diplomatic counterparts in Havana look completely bemused when I talk to them about Twitter or tell them what my last blog was about. That’s not because they don’t know what Twitter or blogging is but because they don’t really see social media as playing a role in their daily diplomacy. Many […]
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11th March 2014 Havana, Cuba
I spent much of last week in Isla de la Juventud, one of the many hundreds of islands that make up Cuba. It’s called Juventud because thousands of youths – Cuban and foreign – studied there in boarding schools in the 1980s. Out of the 100 schools that were planned to be built sixty-two were […]
20th February 2014 Havana, Cuba
My thanks to UK singer Holly Holden for this guest blog on making music in Cuba and how a chance meeting in Havana led to her touring Europe’s top festivals with UK dub-step pioneer DJ Mala. When I was thirteen my mother took me to see the documentary film Buena Vista Social Club. I remember leaving […]
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14th February 2014 Havana, Cuba
Cuba’s National Assembly is due to hold an ‘extraordinary session’ in March when a new law on foreign investment will be approved. Investors around the world, including perhaps some in the US given recent debate there, will be interested in seeing what the law says and whether it provides them with a good framework for […]
6th January 2014 Havana, Cuba
A new year brings the opportunity to reflect on the past twelve months and look forward to the future. It’s a time to make resolutions and plan for the coming year. Here are my seven wishes for Cuba in 2014. 1. More measures are introduced that unleash creativity, innovation and entrepreneurism. Cubans are great people, amongst […]