27th December 2012
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
“Sadly for me, this Christmas is my last in Rome, as I approach the end of my posting as Deputy Head of Mission at this Embassy. As I prepare to depart in January, this end-of-year moment gives me a chance to look back on my time in this job, and what it has meant for me. To say it’s been a fascinating and busy …
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19th December 2012
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
70 years ago, Europe was the scenario for an unprecedented and horrific experiment: the systematic effort to exterminate an entire race. On 17 December, Foreign Secretary William Hague marked the 70th anniversary of a declaration by the Allies denouncing the barbarous and inhumane treatment of Jews in Nazi-occupied Europe – “the bestial policy of cold-blooded […]
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11th December 2012
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
The British Foreign Office and the Canadian High Commission in London collaborated last week in a conference in London, under the aegis of Wilton Park, on the question of promoting freedom of religion or belief. Participants came together from across the world, and from a range of institutions – different faiths, different governments, and different […]
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3rd December 2012
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
The Duke and Duchess of Gloucester were in Rome on 30 November and 1 December. They were here to celebrate the work, teaching and history of the British Pontifical Colleges. They visited the Pontifical Scots College on St Andrew’s Day, where they unveiled a plaque commemorating Henry Stuart, Cardinal York; commemorated the English Martyrs and […]
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29th November 2012
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
The following is a guest blog by Sr. Eugenia Bonetti. Human trafficking is one of the greatest affronts to human dignity of our time. It claims an estimated 27 million victims globally, primarily women and children, many forced into prostitution. And it is a lucrative trade, generating roughly $32 billion annually for well organized crime […]
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26th November 2012
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
25 November was the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women. It is shameful that crimes by humans against other humans are, it seems, an inevitable element of the human condition. The use of rape as a weapon of war, or human trafficking as a lucrative trade by organised crime, are all too […]
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16th November 2012
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
I have written in the past about the value of the complementary United Kingdom and Holy See global networks. One of the reasons we have an Embassy to the Holy See is that we can plug into global Catholic networks in the pursuit of achieving results on issues of priority to us. Two current examples […]
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9th November 2012
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
Observers in Rome may have found the process for the appointment of the new Archbishop of Canterbury rather strange. It is the Crown Nominations Commission which nominates two candidates to present to the Prime Minister, who then advises The Queen on the appointment. Her Majesty as Supreme Governor of The Church of England then gives […]
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2nd November 2012
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
I often have to remind people that I am not accredited to the Vatican City State, but to the Holy See. This is an important difference. It means being accredited to the governance of the global Catholic Church including its 5,000 bishops, its capillary networks of nuncios, priests, religious and Catholic NGOs around the world, […]
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24th October 2012
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
The UN General Assembly is currently discussing the terms of a resolution calling for a worldwide moratorium on the death penalty. It is likely to go to a vote next month. The last time there was such a vote (in 2010), 109 states were in favour, 41 against, and 35 abstained. The United Kingdom and […]
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