Stephen Fry

Global News Podcast

Syria's new leader says armed factions will come under state control

Well, I had the extraordinary experience two years ago. I was invited by Madam Zelenska, the wife, the first lady of Ukraine, the wife of the president, who holds every year a conference. And two years ago, she wanted to hold a conference on mental health, which is something that I'm very involved in over here. I'm president of MIND, the largest of our mental health charities.

Global News Podcast

Syria's new leader says armed factions will come under state control

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And I'm so fascinated that a country that's at war could have the honesty and the openness to talk about the mental health of its citizens. They care about their people and they care about the mental health of their soldiers, the soldiers coming back, and of the families and of the children and the citizens of Ukraine. And they were very anxious to discover more about what could be done to help

Global News Podcast

Syria's new leader says armed factions will come under state control

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and to be honest and open and to encourage Ukrainian people who are not used to it, just as we weren't in Britain. We never talked about it 20 years ago. It's quite new to talk about mental health with openness and without shame or stigma. And the Ukrainian people are starting to do this, and it's very healthy to do it. That's the paradox. It's healthy to talk about ill health.

Global News Podcast

Syria's new leader says armed factions will come under state control

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If you don't talk about it, it gets worse.

Global News Podcast

Syria's new leader says armed factions will come under state control

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Oh, the people. The humour, the laughter. Although there is a terrible situation, of course, they are people of great strength, and again, a sign of health is to laugh. They laugh. I mean, it's black humour, dark humour sometimes, but it's also humour that connects them to each other and reminds them who they are. They're Ukrainians fighting to be Ukrainians, to stay Ukrainians, not to be invaded.

Global News Podcast

Syria's new leader says armed factions will come under state control

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I mean, most British people are not aware of the history of your country. Things like the Holodora, the unbelievable suffering that has been undergone by the Ukrainian people over the past 150 years in their fight to be an independent people.