OPED: Breakfast with Margaret Thatcher

The life and times of former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher who died two weeks ago, evoke many strong sentiments among her supporters and detractors. I was not one of her fans. As someone with social-democratic leanings, I detested her tough conservative policies. Nicknamed the "Iron Lady", her leadership style was harsh and uncompromising. Her socio-economic policies known as “Thatcherism”  emphasized deregulation of the economy, less government, lower taxes, privatization of state-owned companies, more freedom for business and consumers, and weakening the power and influence of trade unions.

OP-ED: Ian Henderson and Repression in Bahrain: A Forty-Year Legacy

Ian Henderson’s death announcement Apr. 15 in Bahrain brings to an end the life of a British expatriate who was the architect and supervisor of the harsh internal security policies of the al-Khalifa ruling family since the early days of independence over 40 years ago.

Maduro, Capriles and Wayward Democracy

When the left was in opposition in Latin America, it never tired of repeating that true democracy was not limited to electing governments at the ballot box. Democracy was also needed in the distribution of rights and riches.

Q&A: Innovation Key to Sustainable Development Goals

Innovation, as the fruit of science and technology, will play a fundamental role in the Sustainable Development Goals that could go into effect in 2015, says Néstor Osorio, president of the United Nations Economic and Social Council.

Defusing the “Three Against Two” Nuclear Pentagon

It has not been this bad since the 1950-53 Korean War. October 1962, the Cuba-USSR-U.S. crisis, comes to mind. There were horror visions of mushroom clouds. A proud Cuba, with a strong leader-dictatorship, a social revolution in the near past, was denied a normal place in the state system, bullied by the U.S. and some allies with sanctions and boycotts into isolation, which has lasted more than 50 years.

We Are All Thatcherites Now

The flood of elegiac articles on former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher is in itself a good measure of how we have all become Thatcherites without realising it. Only those who are not graced by a young age can see how the world and politics have changed so deeply since her days that it is correct to call her a “great revolutionary”.

OP-ED: Letting Nature Take Its Course?

Is sustainability still possible? Yes. Is it still probable? No. With bold action today, tomorrow, and in years to come, we could succeed in creating a sustainable and prosperous society. But what does bold action actually mean?

OP-ED: Azerbaijan and Iran: A Soft-Power Struggle?

There's a coffee shop in an out-of-the-way part of Baku where the walls are covered with illustrations from an early 20th century satirical magazine called Molla Nasreddin. The magazine represents a bygone era, when Azerbaijan was a font of new cultural trends in the Muslim world, pioneering such issues as female emancipation, anti-clericalism, anti-colonialism and labour rights.

OP-ED: Women Breaking the G8 Iron Door

In a London boardroom today - on Apr. 10 - a new era in the longstanding fight to stop gender violence in conflict will be ushered in. Eight Foreign Ministers from the wealthiest countries around the world, the G8, will discuss conflict-related sexual violence and - if all goes according to plan - will emerge with a clear set of commitments to help end the global scourge.

Q&A: Moving Away from “Elite Multilateralism”

As the global South claims a greater share of the world's GDP, is it also progressing in terms of overall human development? How has this southward tipping of the scale affected the dynamics of international trade? What is the role of global governance in mediating this period of change?

OP-ED: Morsi, the Muslim Brotherhood and Democracy: A Sputtering Start

The governing programme of Egyptian President Muhammad Morsi and his Muslim Brotherhood has been disappointing. His commitment to genuine democracy has been faltering, and his efforts at inclusion and political tolerance have been wanting.

Q&A: Obesity and Hunger Are Two Sides of the Same Problem

Over 40 million children under the age of five were overweight in 2010. In fact, since 1980, the worldwide prevalence of obesity has doubled, according to the British medical journal the Lancet.

Why Focus on Babies?

I nearly died on the day I was born. My mother laboured for 24 hours in a bush hospital in northern Uganda that had no running water and no electricity. Fortunately, the midwife found a doctor, who had witnessed a Caesarian section, who managed to operate, saving my life and my mother’s. Today, had I been born in one of the many places across the world without adequate maternal and reproductive health care, I may not have survived my own day of birth.

Q&A: A Healthy Verdict from India

India’s refusal to grant patent protection for the anti-cancer drug Glivec, developed by Swiss drugmaker Novartis, is a victory for the developing world, which depends on low-cost exports of generic medicines from the Asian giant, said public health specialist Germán Velásquez.

BOOKS: Afpak Insider Dissects Obama’s Policy Missteps

Publication this month of Vali Nasr’s "The Dispensable Nation: American Foreign Policy in Retreat" is well-timed.

OP-ED: Falling Gasoline Use Means U.S. Can Just Say No to New Pipelines and Food-to-Fuel

Freeing America from its dependence on oil from unstable parts of the world is an admirable goal, but many of the proposed solutions - including the push for more home-grown biofuels and for the construction of the new Keystone XL pipeline to transport Canadian tar sands oil to refineries on the U.S. Gulf Coast - are harmful and simply unnecessary.

Q&A: Portugal Neglects Undocumented Immigrants with AIDS

In 1996, Luís Mendão was shocked to learn that he had contracted HIV/AIDS, and that the infection was advanced because of the late diagnosis. Racing against time, he began to put his affairs in order and to get ready to face his death.

Change in Cuba Comes in Stops and Starts

The reform process launched in Cuba by the government of President Raúl Castro has made several changes to the country’s rigid social and economic structure, with the ultimate aim of bringing this island nation out of its economic lethargy and making production, which is sinking under the weight of restrictions, controls and contradictions, more efficient.

The Two Faces of International Commodity Trade

For decades, commodity trade has been understood from the point of view of “commodity dependent” exporting countries, those whose revenues are largely generated by commodities exports. The trend of decreasing agricultural commodity prices was the focus of attention. However, from the beginning of the 2000s, there was an upward trend in agricultural commodity prices culminating in the price peak of 2007-08.

OP-ED: The BRICS and the Rising South

On Tuesday, leaders of five large emerging economies – Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, known as the BRICS – will gather in Durban, South Africa to discuss harnessing their formidable resources on behalf of faster development progress in Africa and elsewhere.

OP-ED: Genuine Constitutional Monarchy Is the Only Way Out for Al Khalifa

As the Bahraini and international media continue to dissect the meaning of Crown Prince Salman’s appointment as first deputy prime minister, powerful factions within the ruling Al-Khalifa family must be pondering the future of their rule.