August 2009

The reaction was unanimous, from the Organisation of American States (OAS) to the UN, from the European Union to President Barack Obama. Everybody condemned, without qualification, the 28 June coup that deposed the Honduran head of state Manuel Zelaya, and removed him by force to Costa Rica. Miguel d’Escoto, president of the UN General Assembly, called for Zelaya to be reinstated without delay in the office and functions to which he had been appointed by the will of the people; no other (...)

With July’s violence in Urumqi following last year’s riots in Tibet, is China under threat in its frontier provinces? Xinjiang’s minorities, the Muslim Uyghurs in particular, face discrimination. Though their dislocation is more social and cultural than religious, without real autonomy Islamic fundamentalism is set to grow

During the Gaza war, South Africa expressed strong solidarity with the Palestinians. No one here has forgotten the collaboration between Pretoria and Israel under apartheid, and many see parallels between the Palestinian situation today and that of black and coloured South Africans back in the days of white rule

In the US, through the Save Darfur Coalition, there has been more lobbying for Darfur than for Iraq, with Hollywood celebrities such as George Clooney to the fore. But if the cause is worthy, the campaign has knowingly preferred action to understanding

It’s 30 years since the Sandinistas overthrew the last of the dictatorial Somoza dynasty. And since 2006 the Sandinistas have been back in power in Nicaragua. But did they sell out to their former enemies to regain government?

Rio de Janeiro’s military police have a record of brutality and corruption. One Brazilian journalist went undercover to see how the force was tackling the culture of violence

Florida has been hit by unemployment and home foreclosures. But its spirit of enterprise has not been quenched. In empty suburbs cannabis growing thrives, property agents find new bargain hunters and activists reclaim houses for homeless families

Bernard Madoff has taken the secrets of his Ponzi scheme to his relatively comfortable new jail accommodation where he will spend the rest of his life. No one knows, and he isn’t telling, how long his fraud lasted, how much it netted and who was in it with him

Japan’s disarmament following its defeat in the second world war has left it feeling vulnerable – even to UFOs. Films like Godzilla and manga cartoons express this sense of weakness and imagine a future where Japan controls its own destiny

Clint Eastwood has somehow joined the pantheon of great movie directors, with huge commercial success allied to art-house acclaim. Is this reputation justified?