Tanzanian president sworn in after election unrest

Summary

Global News Podcast – Tanzanian President Sworn in After Election Unrest

BBC World Service | Host: Andrew Peach | November 3, 2025

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Episode Overview

This episode centers on the swearing-in of Tanzania’s President Samia Suluhu Hassan for a second term amid severe election unrest, allegations of electoral malpractice, and a violent crackdown on dissent. Other stories include a political resignation in Spain, the aftermath and reconstruction challenges in Gaza, the humanitarian crisis in Sudan’s Darfur, Hong Kong’s ongoing crackdown on dissent, academic freedom under Chinese pressure in the UK, the upcoming COP 30 climate summit in the Amazon, and a personal interview with Sir Anthony Hopkins.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Tanzania’s Controversial Presidential Inauguration

• Violent Unrest & Tight Security
  • President Samia Suluhu Hassan was sworn in for a second term following an election marred by accusations of fraud, widespread violence, and protests.
  • The ceremony was atypical: only select government officials and dignitaries attended due to extraordinary security, with the public excluded.
    "[This was] an unusual ceremony that broke from tradition... only a select few government officials, foreign dignitaries, and members of the ruling party were present." – Akisa Wandera (02:46)
• Allegations & Aftermath
  • Hassan claimed readiness to "rebuild," sadness over the violence, and alleged that some arrested instigators came from neighboring countries.
  • Opposition claims 700–800 deaths in the post-election crackdown, difficult to verify due to internet and electricity blackouts.
  • International observers strongly criticized the election.
• Prospects for Governance
  • Deep public distrust and divisions remain. Free speech, opposition activities, and criticism have been suppressed.
    "From the comments we are seeing... Tanzanians feel that the democratic processes... are not working right now... repression of free speech, a crackdown on critics, mass abductions and killings..." – Akisa Wandera (05:00)

2. Spain’s Valencia Floods – Political Consequences

• Resignation after Public Pressure
  • Carlos Mathon resigned as regional leader after a year of public outcry over his mishandling of devastating flash floods (229 deaths).
  • Mathon was absent during the crisis, later revealed to be at a prolonged lunch, missing key emergency meetings.
  • Emergency alerts arrived hours too late, after many had died.
    "He did look really shaken... there was very much a feeling that that event perhaps was a turning point." – Guy Hedgco (06:23 & 07:24)

3. Gaza – The Daunting Road to Reconstruction

• Ceasefire Holds Amid Massive Challenges
  • The scale of destruction in Gaza is staggering: $70 billion in damage, 60 million tons of rubble, 300,000 homes damaged or destroyed.
  • Residents express despair over the long recovery:
    "At this rate, I think it will take 10 years... We'll be dead. We'll die without seeing reconstruction." – Abu Yad & others (09:54–10:04)
• Diverse (and Divisive) Visions for Rebuilding
  • Palestinian officials stress the need to preserve Gaza's identity:
    "Don't forget that 70% of Gaza's population are Palestinian refugees. We need to preserve the soul and the spirit of Gaza." – Estefan Salameh (11:20)
  • Western (including U.S.-led) “high-tech” plans alarm locals, raising fears of “disaster capitalism.”
    "These sort of almost hallucinatory plans are just creating an opening for disaster capitalism that is worrying." – Raja Khalidi (12:36)
  • Rebuilding will require hybrid approaches and major international cooperation.
  • An Egypt conference on financing the reconstruction is upcoming, but dates remain unfixed.

4. Sudan’s Darfur – Intensifying Humanitarian Crisis

• RSF Capture of Al-Fashir Brings Atrocities
  • Tens of thousands have fled; thousands more remain trapped with reports of summary executions, sexual violence, forced disappearances, and abuse.
  • Aid access is severely limited, food and medicine are scarce:
    "People have described buying a bucket of animal feed to feed their children for US$30. This is incredibly violent, incredibly grim..." – Noah Taylor (14:51)
• Escalation & International Attention
  • Recent violence marks a significant deterioration. Humanitarian needs are immense, with more than 25 million Sudanese food insecure.
  • Urgent Needs: Access for aid agencies and genuine pressure from international actors to end the war.
  • "The people of Sudan need an end to this war and political will from actors like the UK to actually bring those accountable to justice..." – Noah Taylor (16:51)

5. Hong Kong – Crackdown on Tiananmen Memorial Organizers

• Court Trials for 2018 Vigil Leaders
  • Three organizers of Hong Kong’s formerly open Tiananmen vigils will stand trial, accused of inciting subversion.
  • The National Security Law now criminalizes attempts to challenge one-party rule in any form.
  • "One of the three defendants... has been in prison already for four years... arrested for urging people to light candles..." – Mickey Bristow (21:02)

6. Academic Freedom and Chinese Influence in the UK

• Chinese Pressure on Sheffield Hallam University
  • China orchestrated a two-year intimidation campaign to halt research on Uyghur forced labor abuses by academic Laura Murphy.
  • The campaign included blocking websites, threatening staff, and economic pressure via Chinese student recruitment. The university suspended, then conditionally resumed the research.
  • "China certainly... tries to wield pressure in many ways... commercial companies... sometimes will say... they face pressure in all sorts of ways because China is willing to wield the sort of access to its market as a tool of influence." – Damien Gramaticus (25:31)

7. COP 30 in the Amazon – Symbolism and Contradictions

• Significance of the Setting
  • Hosting the climate summit in the Amazon underscores the region’s global ecological importance and the major role of indigenous communities.
  • However, Brazil’s President Lula is criticized for permitting new oil drilling and roadbuilding—contradictory to the summit's spirit.
  • "The symbol of having this in Belem is also the symbol of the complexity of how these leaders are responding to this crisis." – Cass Flynn (27:42)
• Progress since Paris Agreement
  • Most nations are not on track for the 1.5°C target; the Amazon summit is a crucial opportunity, but optimism is measured.
  • "Without the Paris agreement, we would be headed for a 4 degree world, which would be just utterly devastating." – Cass Flynn (29:16)

8. Anthony Hopkins on a Life of Challenge and Creativity

• From “Failure” to Film Icon
  • Hopkins recounts being bullied and dismissed as untalented in school, fueling a determination that led to his scholarship and career.
  • Memorable reflection:
    "One day I’ll show you. And within a few months, I got a scholarship as an actor." – Anthony Hopkins (31:29)
• Coping with Demons
  • He describes overcoming alcoholism after a near-fatal blackout, embracing a philosophy of resilience and self-acceptance.
  • "I was driving my car in a complete alcoholic blackout and I could have killed someone... I said to somebody, I need help... The craving left. I just never come back." – Anthony Hopkins (32:20–32:34)
• Contentment Later in Life
  • Now 87, Hopkins is grateful and philosophical:
    "I hope to be around a little longer. But even that I think, oh well, I had a good time. I had a laugh." – Anthony Hopkins (33:10)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Tanzania’s election crisis:

  • "It will be interesting to see how she's received by the people... They seem to feel that the democratic processes in this country are not working right now." – Akisa Wandera (05:00)

• On Gaza’s reconstruction:

  • "Gaza is not a blank slate waiting to be turned into Dubai.” – Paul Adams (12:48)

• On Sudan’s crisis:

  • "Aid organisations and local responders are targeted and there is no respite from the war." – Noah Taylor (16:14)

• On Hong Kong dissent:

  • "Any attempt to end the one party rule is considered unconstitutional. So therefore any means is unlawful." – Judge, summarized by Mickey Bristow (19:51)

• On climate action:

  • "These decisions are not easy and they are not simple and they affect every single person, every single community in the world." – Cass Flynn (27:42)

• On lived resilience:

  • "Life is tough. Enjoy it now before it’s too late. Just enjoy it as much as you can. Don’t be a victim.” – Anthony Hopkins (30:35)

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Timestamps for Major Segments

• Tanzania’s Election and Inauguration — 01:57–05:51
• Spain’s Valencia Region Flood Resignation — 05:51–08:27
• Gaza Ceasefire & Reconstruction — 09:11–13:42
• Sudan Darfur Crisis — 13:42–17:16
• Hong Kong Tiananmen Vigil Crackdown — 18:18–21:24
• Chinese Influence on UK Academia — 21:24–25:59
• COP 30 Climate Summit Preview — 25:59–29:52
• Anthony Hopkins Interview — 29:52–33:23

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Conclusion

This edition delivers a sweeping, well-sourced global overview with a particular focus on democracy under challenge (Tanzania, Hong Kong), post-conflict recovery (Gaza, Sudan), climate politics (COP 30), and personal resilience (Anthony Hopkins). Diverse voices and eyewitness accounts convey the gravity of each story, grounding distant crises in urgent, human terms.

Transcript

[Guy Hedgco]

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[Andrew Peach]

This is the Global News podcast from the BBC World Service. I'm Andrew Peach and at 16:30 on Monday 3rd November, these are our main stories. Tanzania's President Samir Salouhu Hassan is sworn in for a second term under tight security after disputed elections marred by violence and protests. The leader of Spain's Valencia region region resigns a year after being accused of mishandling the response to flash flooding that killed around 230 people. Also in this podcast, fears grow for tens of thousands of people trapped in Sudan's Al Fasha.

[Noah Taylor]

The testimony from these people and from local responders that we've worked with in Al Fasha is incredibly grim. It's violent, they describe summary executions.

[Andrew Peach]

We begin, though, in Tanzania after days of violent unrest. President Samiyeh Saluhu Hassan has been sworn in for a second term. She swore to perform her duties with diligence and sincerity and vowed to treat everyone fairly in line with the country's laws. But hundreds of people died in clashes after the presidential election, which she won with nearly 98% of the vote. With many opposition challengers either imprisoned or barred from running. International observers have strongly criticized how the election was conducted. Akisa Wandera is in Nairobi and told me more about the ceremony and the extraordinary security surrounding it.

[Akisa Wandera]

An unusual ceremony that broke from tradition where the public often attends the swearing in of an elected president. This time round there was heavy security and only a select few government officials, foreign dignitaries and members of the ruling party were present. In this particular ceremony, President Samia Salou Hassan is speaking, saying that the time for elections is over and it's time to rebuild, saying that she's ready to serve the country, but also said that she's saddened by the loss of life and destruction of property that has been witnessed since last week. On Wednesday, when Tanzanians went to the polls and also said that among those who've arrested for disrupting security and the unrest were people from neighboring countries. Very interesting and strong lines coming out of her speech, but she said she's ready to work for people of Tanzania from now henceforth.

[Andrew Peach]

We'll come on to the future and rebuilding the country in a second. First of all, they've got to get through today without further violence, of course.

[Akisa Wandera]

Because there's been tension in Tanzania since Wednesday during poll day, and that disputed election was followed by mass protests in the commercial capital of Dar es Salaam and other parts of the country. A brutal crackdown followed and the opposition is putting a death toll from that crackdown at about 700 to 800. Of course, reports that we are unable to verify because Tanzania has been in total Internet blackout since Wednesday. Electricity was also disrupted for the better part of the days and was only just restored yesterday. So it's been very difficult to get information out of there. But the oppos still says they reject this particular election results and are calling on the International Criminal Court to begin conducting independent investigations into the alleged mass killings. So it's just day one, but the president seemingly will have a full entry and especially when it comes to public interests and confidence in her leadership.

[Andrew Peach]

And will she be able to rule effectively after all that's gone on?

[Akisa Wandera]

Well, it's going to be difficult because she's coming in at a time when there are very deep divisions in Tanzania, regardless of the fact that the electoral Commission said she won by 98% of the vote, which translates to about 32 million people. It will be interesting to see how she's received by the people. From the comments we are seeing on social media platforms and general reactions we are seeing from Tanzanians, they seem to feel that the democratic processes in this country are not working right now and that so many things have gone wrong even before this particular election. You're talking about repression of free speech, a crackdown on critics like opposition leaders, activists. We've seen mass abductions and killings, and these are some of the things that have dogged her presidencies and will likely follow her into this second term.

[Andrew Peach]

Akisa Wandera with me from Nairobi for more than a year. The head of the region of Valencia in eastern Spain, has been under pressure to resign. It's over his handling of the response to the devastating flash flooding that killed more than 230 people in October last year. There's been a series of protests in Valencia, and on the first anniversary of the disaster, tens of thousands of people held a demonstration calling for Carlos Mathon to resign. On Monday, Mr. Mathon bowed to that pressure and stepped down as the regional leader. I spoke to our correspondent in Madrid, Guy Hedgco.

[Guy Hedgco]

There has been enormous pressure on Mr. Mathon over the last year. There have been protests held in the streets of Valencia every month demanding his resignation. The most recent one just last weekend, when 50,000 people or so turned out to demand his resignation. Now, for a long time, it looked as if he was going to resist that pressure and just keep going. But I think last week was a turning point, because we had this memorial service for the victims of the floods last year, just last week. And when he appeared at the memorial service, he was barracked and shouted at by relatives of the victims that some of them were calling him a murderer, calling him a coward. And he did look really shaken by that. And there was very much a feeling that that event perhaps was a turning point and had caused him to think twice about his position, having resisted so long. And also his People's Party, the Conservative Party, which he's a member of, also seriously seemed to consider his position as.

[Andrew Peach]

Well and just remind us of what happened, the flooding, but also what was considered to be a pretty botched response to the flooding which led to all those deaths.

[Guy Hedgco]

Yes, these were floods that hit the east of Spain, in particular the eastern region of Valenc. Almost all the deaths, 229 deaths, were in the region of Valencia. There were several other deaths in other neighboring regions, but it was Valencia that was hardest hit. Many people were caught out in their cars or out in the streets, or in ground floor flats, for example, or in basements and garages. And that was where many of these victims were caught and died. And it emerged afterwards that Mr. Mathon had really not been present and he'd not been at his office, he'd not been at emergency meetings that day, because he was having a long, almost four hour lunch with a journalist in a restaurant that day. So he was missing emergency meetings. And also his administration, when it did issue finally an emergency alarm to people's phone, it was several hours too late. And by that time, dozens of people had already died.

[Andrew Peach]

Guy Hedgko in Madrid the ceasefire in Gaza is still holding, and that's despite recriminations between Israel and Hamas and Israeli airstrikes last week. The next steps, though, including the arrival of an international stabilization force, the disarmament of Hamas and the withdrawal of Israeli forces, still seem some way off. Even further off, the prospect of Gaza being rebuilt. That process is likely to take decades and cost billions of dollars, but it's already something planners Palestinian and international, are thinking about. From homegrown projects to glossy international investment opportunities, there's a bewildering array of proposals. Our diplomatic correspondent Paul Adams has been looking at some of them.

[Paul Adams]

The bulldozers are hard at work shoveling rubble into waiting trucks. After two years of destruction, the cleanup has begun. Parts of Gaza City are disfigured beyond recognition. If the ceasefire holds, recovery can start. But it's not going to be quick. It could take a generation. This was my house, says Abu Yad, pointing to a mangled heap of concrete and steel in Gaza's Sheikh Rud. It was here, but there's no house left. He's 63. If Gaza ever rises from the ashes, he doesn't expect to be around to see it.

[Cass Flynn]

At this rate, I think it will take 10 years.

[Ray Winstone]

We'll be dead. We'll die. Without seeing reconstruction.

[Paul Adams]

The scale of the challenge is mind boggling. The UN estimates the cost of damage at $70 billion. The Gaza Strip is l littered with 60 million tons of rubble mixed in with dangerous, unexploded bombs and dead bodies. Almost 300,000 houses and apartments have been damaged or destroyed.

[Andrew Peach]

This is the heart of the city of Gaza.

[Paul Adams]

Gaza's Hamas appointed mayor, Yahya Al Sarraj, is on the streets today wearing a high vis jacket, surveying the ruins of his city. Gaza is no stranger to destruction and recovery, but the work has hardly started.

[Ray Winstone]

We lack building materials. We badly need 1000 tons of cement.

[Mickey Bristow]

To start, many jobs to repair manholes.

[Andrew Peach]

And we need heavy equipment. We need vehicles, we need spare parts for everything.

[Paul Adams]

Tell me what we're looking at here.

[Ray Winstone]

Well, this is the Palestine National Spatial Plan.

[Paul Adams]

There's no shortage of plans. At the headquarters of the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank, Estefan Salameh, the planning minister, pulls up his government's official version on a big plasma screen. Gaza will look different, he says, but some things have to stay the same.

[Ray Winstone]

Don't forget that 70% of Gaza's population are Palestinian refugees. And we need to preserve the refugee identity. We need to preserve the soul and the spirit of Gaza. It will not be rebuilt the way it was before. But it could be rebuilt in the way that the Palestinian identity and the spirit of our people in Gaza can be preserved.

[Paul Adams]

There are, of course, other visions. Donald Trump famously posted this outlandish spoof on his social media account back in February.

[Akisa Wandera]

Donald is coming to set you free.

[Ray Winstone]

Bringing the light for all to see. No more tunnels, no more fear. Trump.

[Noah Taylor]

God's on.

[Cass Flynn]

Finally here.

[Paul Adams]

But a leaked plan published more recently in the Washington Post painted a similarly glossy vision of a high tech Gaza Strip under U.S. trusteeship. The Gaza Reconstitution, Economic Acceleration and Transformation Trust, great for short, was said to be the work of Israeli and American consultants with input from members of Tony Blair's Institute for Global Change. It's the kind of vision that alarms Palestinians. Raja Khalidi runs the Palestine Economic Policy Research Institute.

[Ray Winstone]

I think what I'm saying is that.

[Noah Taylor]

These sort of almost hallucinatory plans are just sort of creating an opening for disaster capitalism that is worrying.

[Ray Winstone]

And I don't think that, you know, I don't think they're going to get away with it.

[Paul Adams]

Gaza is not a blank slate waiting to be turned into Dubai. Shelley Culbertson, a senior researcher with the Rand think tank, says rebuilding will take many forms.

[Cass Flynn]

Living in the damaged but habitable communities and rebuilding while in them, we think is going to be a key way of preserving communities and allowing people to move back at the same time. You can't do that with all the communities. Some places have been so destroyed and damaged and dangerous that the only thing.

[Noah Taylor]

You do really is wall them off.

[Cass Flynn]

Raise them down and completely rebuild.

[Paul Adams]

The Gaza Strip already has a Riviera, stretches of beach where exhausted, traumatized Palestinians can briefly look away from the horror. Gaza reconstruction the plans and who intends to pay for it all are due to be discussed at a conference in Egypt later this month, but a date has yet to be set. Right now, a new Gaza feels a very long way off.

[Andrew Peach]

That report from our diplomatic correspondent Paul Adams. Next to Sudan. Since the paramilitary Rapids support forces the RSF seized the city of El Fha, the last stronghold of the army in the Darfur region more than a week ago, tens of thousands of people are believed to have fled. International aid agencies are warning that thousands more remain trapped in the city. Amid reports of executions, sexual violence and looting. Many are trying to reach Tawila, where aid agencies are offering help. Eyewitnesses say some have been killed by the rsf, while others, especially young men suspected of belonging to the Sudanese army, have been captured and abused. Here's our correspondent, Barbara Pletocher.

[Cass Flynn]

Any man suspected of being a member of the army is held back. Some of them are beaten, some of them are killed, some of them are detained, apparently some held for ransom.

[Akisa Wandera]

One man told us that when he.

[Cass Flynn]

Was trying to leave Al Fasher, he said he had nothing to do with the army. But one of the RSF fighters said.

[Akisa Wandera]

To the other, all of these people.

[Cass Flynn]

All of them, all people who escaped from Al Fashur are the army.

[Ray Winstone]

All of them, kill them.

[Andrew Peach]

Noah Taylor is the head of operations in Sudan for the Norwegian Refugee Council. He spoke to me from Nairobi.

[Noah Taylor]

We have teams in Tooela, which is about 60 kilometres outside of Al Fasha. They're receiving people who've arrived from the city in recent days. And the testimony from these people and from local responders that we've worked with in Al Fasha is incredibly grim. It's a very tense situation. It's violent. They describe summary executions, they describe armed men going door to door and looking for people. And this is a city that has been under siege for over 18 months. So there is no food. People have described buying a bucket of animal feed to feed their children for US$30. This is incredibly violent. It's incredibly grim, it's incredibly worrying. Those who do get out manage to get to Tooeleh and they're the ones that are escaping these arrests, this harassment and this, these executions. It's incredibly desperate.

[Andrew Peach]

And just to underline for people listening, although this has been going on, as you say, for 18 months or more, in recent days, the situation in El Fahsha has changed considerably.

[Noah Taylor]

Yeah. This latest violence has been exacerbated by a significant escalation of attacks from the rapid support for on Sudan Armed Forces and joint forces in the city. That's definitely what has contributed to this recent spike in violence. But this is a situation that has been grinding on for months.

[Andrew Peach]

And although there has been a fair bit of news reporting in recent days, it often slips down the news agenda in a way which I'm sure is frustrating for people like yourself working on the ground there.

[Noah Taylor]

The scale of the crisis in wider Sudan is incredibly distressing. We're talking about 25 million people. That's more than half the population that are food insecure. That's up from a 45% increase from December 2023. So this getting exponentially worse. We've had cholera outbreaks across the country this year. We've had flooding in the east of the country, and now this repetitive, grinding violence in cities like Al Fasha and in Kadougouli in the south, where Civilians are not protected. They are deliberately targeted. Aid organisations and local responders are targeted and there is no respite from the war.

[Andrew Peach]

What needs to happen, Noah, to bring the violence to an end, but also to get aid to the people who need it?

[Noah Taylor]

Well, fundamentally, we need access. We need access to people in need. We need unrestricted movement to get goods and commodities into the people who need it and people themselves. The civilians need protection. They need protection to leave these war zones, to get to where assistance is provided and to do so safely and dignified. But fundamentally, the people of Sudan need an end to this war and they need political will from actors like the UK to actually bring those accountable to justice and actually push for an end to this madness.

[Andrew Peach]

Noah Taylor, head of operations in Sudan for the Norwegian Refugee Council. Still to come, one of Britain's best known actors shares one of his darkest moments.

[Ray Winstone]

I was driving my car in a complete alcoholic blackout and I could have killed someone. I was out of control. And I said to somebody, I need help. And I made the phone call. Hello, it's Ray Winstone. I'm here to tell you about my podcast on BBC Radio 4, History's Toughest Heroes. I got stories about the pioneers, the rebels, the outcasts who define tough. And that was the first time that anybody ever ran a car up that fast with no tires on. It almost feels like your eyeballs are going to come out of your head. Tough enough for you? Subscribe to History's Toughest Heroes wherever you get your podcast.

[Andrew Peach]

Now let's go back to events in Victoria park in Hong Kong in 2018. More than 100,000 people gathered to hold a candlelit vigil to mark the 29th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square crackdown in Beijing. The event was held every year until 2020, when it was banned by China. Now a court in Hong Kong has ruled that three people who are accused of organizing the demonstrations will face trial. Mickey Bristow told me more.

[Mickey Bristow]

Yeah, these protests were, as you mentioned, there to commemorate the 1989 killings of students and ordinary people, protesters in Beijing who'd been arguing for more openness, more democracy in the Chinese government. The government sent in the military and many people were killed, hundreds, perhaps thousands now in China itself. I was reporting in China for many years. I never saw any commemoration of that event. The only place it could take place was in Hong Kong because at the time, Hong Kong was under British rule and even afterwards was still open, it was still free, you know, under Chinese rule, they were still allowed to commemorate and mark that particular event. And it's not just marking it as well, it's remembering it. Because in China, there's no word of it ever spoken. No. It's never taught in schools, no mention of it. So Hong Kong was really the only place you could remember and commemorate this event.

[Andrew Peach]

So if it was allowed in Hong Kong at that time, why are the authorities pursuing those who organized it now?

[Mickey Bristow]

Well, what happened is there were protests throughout the 2010s in Hong Kong. The authorities decided to crack down and it coincided with the COVID pandemic in 2020. That's what the authorities said initially was their reason for not allowing these commemorations to take place. In the same year, the Chinese government brought in the National Security Law in Hong Kong, which is severely cracked down completely almost on dissent in the former British territory. And since then, there have been no commemorations have been allowed. This court case, particularly taking place now is about today. It was three people who were going to be standing trial for organizing events to commemorate this Tiananmen protest. And essentially they were saying that they shouldn't go forward to trial because they been accused of inciting subversion of state power by unlawful means. And they were saying, well, what are the lawful means we took to do this? Essentially, the judge said, basically any attempt to end the one party rule is considered unconstitutional. So therefore any means is unlawful. So therefore their trial will go ahead in January next year.

[Andrew Peach]

Right. And this is in the broader context of almost no dissent being allowed in Hong Kong at all now.

[Mickey Bristow]

No dissent at all really in Hong Kong. In fact, one of the three defendants standing trial, she's been in prison already for four years. She was arrested and put in prison for simply urging people to light candles on June 4th to commemorate these Tiananmen killings. So if that's the level of repression you've got, there's really no protest allowed in Hong Kong at the moment.

[Andrew Peach]

Mickey Bristow reporting. In 2019, British MPs said universities in the UK were failing to recognize the level of interference from foreign government. And their report highlighted concerns about the influence of China. In particular, new documents seen by the BBC show that China waged a two year campaign of intimidation against Sheffield Hallam University in the north of England in an effort to close down research into human rights abuses. The target was an academic called Laura Murphy, a professor of human rights and contemporary slavery.

[Cass Flynn]

Last April, we started to hear news.

[Akisa Wandera]

That the Chinese government, the foreign intelligence.

[Mickey Bristow]

Agency, was intimidating and harassing and interrogating.

[Cass Flynn]

The staff that the university has in Beijing. And the university, let me know that.

[Akisa Wandera]

This was happening and that in fact it appeared that the. The Chinese State security wanted me to.

[Mickey Bristow]

Stop doing our research.

[Akisa Wandera]

At the time, the university backed us and said we could continue the research. But over the next couple of months.

[Cass Flynn]

It was clear that that influence grew.

[Akisa Wandera]

From the State Security service to the university. And the university became more and more.

[Mickey Bristow]

Committed to ending my research team's work entirely.

[Andrew Peach]

Professor Murphy's work focuses on Uyghurs, a persecuted Muslim minority in China, being co opted into forced labor programs. China denies allegations of rights abuses. Our correspondent Damien Gramaticus told me more.

[Damien Gramaticus]

It started with their website in China being unavailable. So Chinese students looking to apply to Sheffield couldn't find information about courses, couldn't do applications, couldn't complete that process. And they did see internal emails that have been handed over to the researcher who was behind some of the research happening to Laura Mercury show that student numbers dropped over that period. The university was concerned about it. And in 2024, those emails say that some Chinese State security officers visited Sheffield Hallam's recruitment office in Beijing, that their tone was threatening. They told staff there that the research had to stop. And then the university then came back back and delivered a message to the security staff that they had decided not to publish a final report by Professor Murphy's unit. And those internal documents said that after that, relations immediately improved.

[Andrew Peach]

And just give us a sense of what China have said about this, what the university have said themselves.

[Ray Winstone]

Yes.

[Damien Gramaticus]

So importantly, what China have said is that this is unfounded allegations. They push back very strongly. They say that this unit at Sheffield Hallam University says has released multiple fake reports on Xinjiang that are seriously flawed. The university itself, they have come out and said that the decision that was taken not to continue with the research was, they say, based on understanding of a complex set of circumstances at the time, including being unable to secure the necessary professional indemnity insurance insurance for their research. And the university do make clear that they have now said that Professor Murphy can resume her research and they are committed to supporting her academic freedom.

[Andrew Peach]

The leverage that the Chinese state has here is the value of Chinese students to universities in the UK and other countries around the world.

[Damien Gramaticus]

Absolutely. And there are. Chinese students are the largest Cohort in the UK. There are 200,000 at the minute in it, the Chinese Embassy says, and that is a very valuable source of foreign income. And it's certainly a concern, I think, in parts of the UK government, the vulnerability that of universities then, who could be exposed to such pressure.

[Andrew Peach]

And Damien, you're a former BBC China correspondent just set the wider context for us of how China can look for organizations around the world, be they universities or whatever, and apply pressure like this. It's quite a common accusation.

[Damien Gramaticus]

It is. And China certainly, you know, tries to wield pressure in many ways. So work as a journalist in China, you come under a lot of pressure. Certainly commercial companies operating in China or dealing with China sometimes will say, very often not publicly, but will say that they face pressure in, in all sorts of ways because China is willing to wield the sort of access to its market as a tool of influence.

[Andrew Peach]

Our correspondent Damien Gramaticus with me. Leaders from around the world are flying to the Amazon rainforest in Brazil for the start of COP 30, the climate summit. It's now just five years from 2030 when countries are expected to meet their pledges they made in 2015 to limit rising temperatures. So what can we expect from this meeting? Is the fact it's being held in the Amazon significant? Let's hear from Cass Flynn, who's the UN Development Programme's global Director of Climate change.

[Cass Flynn]

It's hugely significant. The Amazon rainforest of course is an enormous symbol for the climate crisis and not to mention the reality that when we think about the lungs of the world, this is the Amazon and who cares for the Amazon? It is often safeguarded by indigenous peoples, by local communities that have an enormous role on the front lines of the climate crisis. And so I think for the government of Brazil to be gathering the world at the Amazon, it is hugely poignant for everyone because they really are coming to talk about the climate crisis on the front lines of the climate crisis.

[Akisa Wandera]

There are some things that have been overshadowing the geography of it though as well. You use the word symbol. I mean, how symbolic is it, for example, that Brazil's President Lula has been criticized for giving the thumbs up, up for plans for more drilling of oil in the Amazon and also the cutting down of trees in order to build this new road, a four lane highway so that the area can be accessible for all the delegates who are going to be coming to Belem, the area that has been held in the Amazon.

[Cass Flynn]

For Cobb, it's really, and we share, you know, the, the, the United Nations Secretary General expressed sort of immense disappointment at the idea of being able to drill in the Amazon. And, and I think that it symbolizes the difficulties and the choices that world leaders and countries have to make when it comes to the climate crisis. Because these decisions are not easy and they are not simple and they affect every single person, every single community in the world. And certainly we hope that world leaders rise to this occasion and hopeful that as countries really start to transition away from fossil fuels, that they're going to direct this level investment in ways that are strategic and better for the world. But certainly I think that, as you say, kind of the symbol of having this in Billem is also the symbol of the complexity of how these leaders are responding to this crisis.

[Akisa Wandera]

Over the past 10 years, by several measures, it can be argued that everything that was agreed 10 years ago in Paris in 2015, countries haven't met some of the agreements that had been made, namely to be on track to keep global temperatures below a rising of 1.5 degrees compared to pre industrial levels. So how hopeful can we be of what can be achieved 10 years since Paris?

[Cass Flynn]

When we adopted the Paris Agreement 10 years ago, there was this immense hope that very quickly we would be on the pathway toward meeting, meeting those goals that we set out for ourselves. And namely this, what has now become this threshold of 1.5 degrees. And certainly something that is important about all of this is that when we do cooperate on the climate crisis, that that cooperation does pay off. And without the Paris agreement, we would be headed for a 4 degree world, which would be just utterly devastating.

[Andrew Peach]

Cass Flynn talking to my colleague Priya Rai. Anthony Hopkins is one of the finest actors of our age. A two time Oscar winner, he's now written an autobiography called we did okay Kid. It's a story about his extraordinary journey from Port Talbot, the town in Wales where he grew up, to Hollywood. And it is a journey paved with pain, rejection and alcohol. Our culture editor, Katie Razzle, met the actor in Los Angeles.

[Noah Taylor]

Police.

[Ray Winstone]

Hi, how are you?

[Akisa Wandera]

Even in Los Angeles, Sir Anthony Hopkins gets noticed. I guess that happens all the time.

[Ray Winstone]

People think actors are special, but not at all.

[Akisa Wandera]

Looking back on his life as he publishes his autobiography, he tells me he's pragmatic.

[Ray Winstone]

Life is tough. Enjoy it now before it's too late. Just enjoy it as much as you can. Don't be a victim.

[Akisa Wandera]

As a child, he was a loner who was bullied at school. School kids called him elephant Head. He was written off and slapped around by teachers. Even his parents couldn't understand their failure of a son.

[Ray Winstone]

I was not bright. I was not the brightest piece of cutlery in the drawer. So what I did to compensate my academic shortcomings, I would learn massive pieces of poetry and Shakespeare. Then the turning point was in 1955 or 17. My school report had arrived and it was pretty bleak. Anthony seems to be way below the educational standard of the school and my father. All good intentions. I don't know what's going to happen to you. What's going to happen to you? I mean, can't you concentrate? And I remember stepping back and I said, one day I'll show you. And within a few months, I got a scholarship as an actor.

[Akisa Wandera]

This son of a baker's film career took off immediately from his debut playing a future king in Haworth Productions. The lion in winter.

[Ray Winstone]

I remember the very first scene I had with Katherine Hepburn.

[Akisa Wandera]

Now I've only one desire left, to see you king.

[Ray Winstone]

The only thing you want to see is father's vitals on the bed of lettuce. Just speak the lance. Just don't act, just do it. And I took that advice.

[Akisa Wandera]

And as Hannibal Lecter, the role that won him his first Oscar in the Silence of the Lambs, directed by Jonathan Jones. Demi. He was bone chilling.

[Ray Winstone]

Closer the more still you are and deadly. And don't take your eyes off the person. That's terrifying.

[Akisa Wandera]

Despite his success, he had his own demons. He was regularly drunk and angry until he had an epiphany.

[Ray Winstone]

December 1975. I was driving my car in a complete alcoholic blackout and I could have killed someone. I was out of control. And I said to somebody, I need help.

[Noah Taylor]

Help.

[Ray Winstone]

And I made the phone call. The craving left. I just never come back.

[Akisa Wandera]

What are your biggest regrets?

[Ray Winstone]

People have hurt over the years, the stupid things they did. In the British Army, I was screamed at by sergeants and trainers, you know, so you withdraw into yourself thinking, okay, you can't hurt me, can you? That's how I think. I developed my own personality. Of course, it's not the healthiest way to go through life. Ah, that's a bit sharp.

[Akisa Wandera]

Not many can say they've had a private piano recital from Anthony Hopkins. He played us one of his own compositions. This talented musician, artist and actor seems, at 87, contented.

[Ray Winstone]

Yeah, I am. So I hope to be around a little longer. But even that I thinking, oh, well, I had a good time. I had a laugh.

[Andrew Peach]

Our culture editor, Katie Razzle with Anthony Hopkins in Los Angeles. That's all from us for now. There'll be a new edition of the global news podcast later. If you'd like to comment on this one, drop us an email globalpodcastbc.co.uk or go to X where we are at BBC World Service. Just use the hashtag globalnewspod. This edition was mixed by Chris Ablaqua. The producer was Ed Horton. The editor is Karen Mar. Martin. I'm Andrew Peach. Thanks for listening and until next time, goodbye.

[Ray Winstone]

Hello, it's Ray Winstone. I'm here to tell you about my podcast on BBC Radio 4, History's Toughest Heroes. I got stories about the pioneers, the rebels, the outcasts who define tough. And that was the first time that anybody ever ran a car up that fast with no tires on. It almost feels like your eyeballs are going to come out of your head. Tough enough for you? Subscribe to History's Toughest Heroes wherever you get your podcast.