Oundle residents had the opportunity to meet one of Britain’s leading statesmen at an event hosted by the Oundle Festival of Literature in March.

Described as a “great peace maker”, Paddy Ashdown was until recently the High Representative for Bosnia and Herzegovina. At the Oundle Festival of Literature he delivered “bleak and bitter news” to speak on the sombre issue of conflict.

Paddy began by describing how the world cycles between stability and “profound change”. He also described how power is shifting from the West to the East, however he believes that “there is nothing we could, or should, do; it is natural” and that “China has shown every interest in following the laws”. He also spoke about a “shift of power, from the system we created, to the global state”.

When asked about Europe, Paddy described how we could “gain more from Europe than lose”. He predicted that America would go into an era of withdrawal so we should be aware of this and join with Europe more, believing our current policy to be based on “fear more than Intellect”.

Paddy also briefly mentioned the hot topic of our time, global warming. It is the responsibility of the current generation to do something about it otherwise we will be branded by the next generation as a “greedy, and feckless generation who missed the last chance.”

Paddy went on to point out that there will always be tension and conflict in the world over such things as religion, oil, water, land and natural resources. His talk focused on the most important conflict today, between the allies and Iraq and Afghanistan.

When asked about his feelings on the war on terror, his response was that “we must do it better, not we must never do this again”. Ashdown criticised the way the war had been conducted, saying that some of the actions contrvened the Geneva Convention, and that the government should have “taken as much time planning the peace as planning the war”.

He felt it is wrong for the west to impose democracy on a country that does not necessarily want it. While he believed people should be allowed to choose their own system of governance, he was confident they would make the right choice. At this stage, Paddy emphasised the importance of restoring Iraq’s economy, saying that this would lead to jobs. People who are employed and making money are happy, and happy people generally do not become terrorists. This rebuilding process needed to been done as soon as the frontline troops had moved off.

Lord Jeremy John Durham Ashdown became known as “Paddy” at Bedford School because of his Irish accent and this nickname has stuck with him throughout his political career. Paddy was a member of parliament representing Yeovil from 1983 to 2001 and was leader of the Liberal Democrats for 10 years until 1999.

Paddy was closely involved in the 1997 attempt to form a coalition government with New Labour. He was knighted Baron Ashdown of Norton-sub-Hamdon, after he retired as leader of the Liberal Democrats and serves as a life peer in the House of Lords.

t was Paddy’s skills as a linguist which led to his major role in European relations and there are rumours that he worked for MI6, but he refuses to comment on this.