DR HANAN ASHRAWI INTERVIEW- Wednesday 27th June, 2007

Effectively, last week's street battles on the Gaza Strip have left the Palestinians with two governments - a new cabinet in the West Bank run by Fatah, and Gaza, now controlled by Hamas, virtually isolated from the outside world. The Fatah government in the West Bank - installed by Mahmoud Abbas - excludes Hamas and has already received support from Western powers. That said, it wasn't so long ago - early last year, in fact - that Hamas won a clear democratic victory in elections held throughout the Occupied Territories. Meanwhile, the long-held dream of a united Palestinian state has turned into a nightmare. Earlier, George Negus spoke with the respected Palestinian MP, Hanan Ashrawi.

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GERRY ADAMS INTERVIEW - Wednesday 20th June, 2007

Locals call this street RPG Avenue, Rocket-Launcher Avenue - black Irish humour being what it is. And this mural is a stark reminder, like so many of these murals, of this city's past. But what about its future? Ian Paisley - whatever happened the old Protestant firebrand? These days he's a changed man if you can go by his current words and deeds, which makes you wonder if Gerry Adams is also going through his religio-politico conversion. 

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IRISH PEACE TALKS - Wednesday 20th June, 2007

You can't really go to this part of the world and not go to a pub for a Guinness and a chat about politics and religion, so that is exactly what Paddy and George Negus did with Lawrence, a cabbie pal of his. But wait for it - Lawrence is a Protestant from the Shankill. A Protestant in a Sinn Fein pub in Andersonstown, bang in the Falls Road Catholic heartland.

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REVEREND IAN PAISLEY INTERVIEW - Wednesday 20th June, 2007

George Negus has come back to Northern Ireland to speak with the Protestant leader Ian Paisley and the head of Sinn Fein Gerry Adams about the quite extraordinary transformation that has taken place in their lives and their politics. Looks like the lads are getting ready for their bonfires on Orange marching day. During the Troubles this was typical of the signage here in the Protestant Shankill Road area. In fact "no surrender" was pretty much the war cry of the Loyalist gunmen who lived around here.

The last time George Negus was here he spoke with Ian Paisley who was absolutely adamant that there was no way he would ever deal with Gerry Adams and Sinn Fein. That is why they call him Dr No. But just a few weeks ago Ian Paisley became the new First Minister of Northern Ireland. Not only that, he is sharing power with Martin McGuinness - Gerry Adams's right-hand man and a former IRA military commander. How things can change.

No, hers is certainly not a job for the faint hearted.

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HIS HOLINESS THE DALAI LAMA INTERVIEW - Wednesday 13th June, 2007

His real name is Tenzin Gyatso, he's a 71-year-old Tibetan living in exile in northern India, but you probably know him better as the 14th Dalai Lama, the Nobel Peace Prize winning leader of the world's Buddhists. He's wise, he laughs without a hat even being dropped, and the powerful Chinese Communists who over-ran his tiny Himalayan nation more than 50 years ago attack him as a dangerous troublemaker. Indeed, in a notable display of megaphone diplomacy overnight, the Dalai Lama's Communist detractors in Beijing condemned John Howard for even allowing into this country the man they describe as an exiled Tibetan independence campaigner - a charge you'll shortly hear him totally rebut.

That said, he's already been here for a week and watching John Howard and Kevin Rudd desperately looking for excuses not to see him has bordered on the embarrassing. Yesterday, they finally caved in. George Negus had his second television audience in a decade with the chortling man in maroon and gold, in Canberra.

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BENAZIR BHUTTO INTERVIEW - Wednesday 6th June, 2007

In the midst of the current turmoil in Pakistan, former Prime Minister Ms Benazir Bhutto announced from exile this week that she intends to return home, form an alliance with Narwaz Sharif, also an ex-prime minister, and try to pull off some sort of democratic deal with Pervez Musharraf, the country's incumbent President.

General Musharraf, of course, is an unelected military dictator who's kept a solid grip on power now for eight years. Of late however, issues have emerged to loosen that hold, particularly his attempt to dismiss the nation's Chief Justice. Massive public support for the judge rocked Musharraf and earlier this week, he clamped down on the country's media. But apparently this won't stop his currently banned political adversaries. They plan to defy Musharraf by fronting, later this year, for the country's presidential elections. So it could be well and truly on for young and old. Earlier this evening, George Negus spoke with the charismatic Ms Bhutto from an undisclosed overseas location.


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Please Note: More interviews will be added as time permits.