Interview with Robert Fisk - Part One
Robert Fisk in Lund. Photo: Björn Suomivuori
I met Dr. Robert Fisk on a sunny Tuesday in Lund. He works as a foreign correspondent for the Independent, and has so many awards in journalism that it is almost impossible to list them all. He has been elected for those awards for a good reason; his forcefull fluency of language and keen level of perception is rivaled by few. He covers the Middle East and does so with an accuracy that upsets most media-outlets that wish to stay in line with governments and officials. Nobody is immune from his criticism. He observes and sides with the victim. This interview shows just that. This is more than a grain of truth - it is a truth you will not find the New York Times.
See also: Robert Fisk’s commentaries in the Independent.
Dagens Nyheter review on Robert Fisk’s book “The Great War for Civilisation”
Who owns the three islands in the Strait of Hormuz? Iran or U.A.E?
Analysis on the defensive capabilities of Abu-Musa. Analysis is courtesy of The Arkenstone blog
The three islands which lie in the Strait of Hormuz in the Persian Gulf - Abu-Musa, Tunb Al-Kubra and Tunb Al-Sughra - have come to mean a lot between the countries that claim them, and still today this border dispute is unsolved for a number of reasons. This article discusses these three islands that are forgotten in the western media. It also discusses the Iranian point of view, the Arab point of view and the external interests.
Recension: En del av mitt hjärta lämnar jag kvar – Diana Janse
Formgivare: Niklas Lindblad
En annan bild av ambassadöryrket än den vi får oss till livs i Hollywoodfilmer ger Diana Janse i, En del av mitt hjärta lämnar jag kvar. Hennes romandebut handlar om hur det är att arbeta i ett av världens fattigaste länder, Afghanistan, och svårigheter man får tampas med där. Hur resonerar man egentligen när man tar den typen av jobb, och ännu viktigare: hur resonerar man för att klara av vardagen när man väl är på plats? Janse ger oss en personlig blandning av reseskildring och självbiografi som väcker många intressanta frågor.
Focus Iraq: The economy, the oil and the privatizations since the invasion of 2003
An American solider walks out to an oil platform in Iraq Photo: Shane T. McCoy - US Military
What is the best way to build a democracy in the world’s third richest oil-country? Answer: Outsource the planning of the new system to a company and let them take care of it. This may sound unreal but that was the way it was done in Iraq shortly after the invasion in 2003. The economy of Iraq went from being a planned economy to a fiasco of privatization dictated by a “Free Market for Dummies” book. The economy was not the only thing to be privatized - everything was in some way touched by the new order.
See also: Foreign policy in focus article on the oil heist, Nobel Prize Winner Paul Krugmans’s column on the military and privatizations,
Focus Iraq: The elections of 2010 - the hopes and the analysis
Iraqi Al-Iraqiya supporters. Photo: Al-Jazeera
The second elections in the turbulent eastern part of the fertile crescent otherwise known as Iraq have proven to be different from the ones that were held in 2005. This time there was a lot less mortar fire, a telltale sign that security has improved; there were 6000 candidates and countless coalitions to choose from, and so the Iraqi people finally had the choice to choose. The media has been calling these elections the democratic revolution Iraq has been waiting for, a watershed in the history of Iraq. Is this big bubble of hope obscuring a reality where not so much has changed after all, or is real reform on the horizon? Continue reading for the full story.
See also: NY Times coverage of the elections, DN.se primary election results, SVD.se article on the dismissal of election fraud
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Focus Iraq: a background to this week’s elections.
Iraqi Goran Supporter. Photo: Al-Jazeera
In the year 2003 Iraq possessed weapons of mass destruction. They were part of an evil alliance, dubbed “the axis of evil”, and they also supported the Al-Qaida terrorist network. These familiar arguments were provided by the world’s only superpower, The United States of America. The US invaded Iraq in order to overthrow Saddam Hussein, their former ally, and to install a new democracy that would pave the way for a new democratic Middle East and solve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Two elections have so far been held in Iraq, in 2005 and in 2010. This article discusses the political structure of Iraq leading up to the elections this week.
Further reading;
Al-Jazeeras Interactive website on the Iraq Elections
The Swedish Newspaper DN.se Q&A
The Swedish Newspaper DN.se listing of the parties and alliances
