Foreign Correspondent

Celebrating 30 years, we chronicle the extraordinary changes that have shaped our world. We talk to correspondents about being on the ground reporting history - from revolution and war, tragedy and survival, terror and hope.

Which way is Mecca in space? Helen Vatsikopoulos ponders this and other imponderables when she meets Malaysia’s “it” man, the hunky former male model Dr Sheik Muszaphar Shukor, who’s become the country’s first astronaut.

For 50 years David Frost has shared the world’s stage with the powerful, rich and famous – and this week he shares it with Foreign Correspondent’s Mark Corcoran.

What would you do if you discovered your adopted children were stolen and trafficked, and not willingly given up by their parents, as you’d believed? South Asia correspondent Sally Sara investigates the insidious trade of children in India, and joins an Australian family in their moving search for the truth.

If they stay they face intimidation, violence even death. If they go they put their lives and life savings in the hands of people smugglers, run the gauntlet of naval patrols and the perils of the sea itself. They are the Tamils of Sri Lanka and many of them are choosing to take the high water over the hell at home. For some it's a case of if at first you don't succeed, try again.

It's a lifetime. Short, urgent and definitive. One hour to save those who can be saved - soldiers, civilians and the enemy critically wounded in the war in Afghanistan. Another defining feature - the surgeons, medics and patients are very young. Welcome to M.A.S.H. 2010 or to update another long-running American TV show - Gen Y Hospital.

How does a deeply personal spiritual offering from India's poor to their Gods suddenly become a super-expensive, must-have style accessory in the haute salons of Europe, Asia, USA and Australia. Fire up the Benz, cue the hip-hop track and set the GPS for a collision course with faith, fashion and truckloads of money.

From the lawless confines of a dirt poor nation an accused terrorism mastermind sends out a rallying call for fanatical foot soldiers and they come running from near and far. We set off for Yemen on the trail of disaffected young Australians joining up for jihad.

It's an extraordinary feat of endurance and will. Salma el Tarzi is a popping, fizzing bundle of energy and exuberance who was in Cairo's Tahrir Square from the outset, leading a corner of the protest. Despite the violent counter-attacks, the cold nights and the fear of government retribution, she was there at the end when belligerent Hosni Mubarak let go.

When the going gets tough, even the toughest and most resilient in Ireland get going - overseas. They have to. Ireland’s economy is on life support, jobs have been obliterated and if the nation is to get itself out of a black hole of debt things will probably get worse. And so they’re packing their bags, bidding an often heartbreaking farewell to family and friends and heading in droves to places with prospects. Australia’s high on the list.

In China they're setting blistering speed records. From the go-fast, rich kids quickly amassing stables of super-cars to the developers building sky-scraping hotels - start to finish - in just 14 days. One local rich list estimates China has almost a million millionaires, 600 billionaires and the numbers keep growing at a staggering rate. Private jets are flying out of showroom hangers at mach 1. The economic transformation of China has been electrifying, but with Europe teetering and the U.S. plodding can the biggest tiger of all keep on roaring? The super-rich you'll meet in our 2012 return certainly think so.

If Europe's going down the gurgler why are the good burghers of Bavaria singing, dancing, laughing and toasting their good fortune over a litre of beer or six? Well, they have a secret. They even have a word for it that only Germans really understand. It's called Mittelstand and it's made many of the businesses in this uber enterprising part of the world solid, successful, optimistic and fearlessly forging into the future. Germans have another word for how that makes them feel about the many of their basket-case neighbours in Europe: Schadenfreude - a kind of delicious pleasure at the misfortune of others. If only they didn't have to prop them up.

They're two women from utterly different worlds so what do a seasoned Australian television producer and a 19 year old student from Kabul, Afghanistan have in common. It's a shared hope for the ascendency of female rights, aspiration and opportunity in one of the most dangerous and oppressive places on earth. The outsider is shaping some of the country's TV drama, tackling confronting issues that challenge the orthodoxy. The teenager is boldly fighting violence in the street and at home. It's a massive battle against an age old order but don't discount her - Noorjahan Akbar isn't about to take a backward step.

In a special investigation reporter Eric Campbell goes undercover with the world's top ranger, Australian Sean Willmore - to expose ivory traders and their rampant, black trade.

Who was Prisoner X? A special Foreign Correspondent investigation to crack an international super secret.

Emma Alberici investigates the paradox of the modern Italian state - a country that the European Union simply can't afford to go the same way as some of its neighbours.

With breathtaking speed, Russian President Vladimir Putin has ordered the armed takeover of a key part of a neighbouring country and dared the world to do something about it. Eric Campbell is there for the countdown.

Sally Sara follows the trail of a woman accused of involvement in serious, violent crimes in her homeland. Now living quietly in suburban Australia, the families of the dead are demanding she return to face justice.

In Dubai, Australian Marcus Lee was accused of a multi-million dollar fraud he never committed. But it took him 7 months of jail time and a legal battle lasting years before he and his wife Julie would be free.

For the first time ever Palestine's football team qualified for the Asian Cup, played in Australia. We follow the highs and lows as players are caught up in a brutal war at home and dramas on and off the pitch in Australia.

Foreign Correspondent follows the remarkable journey of a Vietnamese adoptee as she desperately searches for the mother she lost nearly 40 years ago.

An exclusive with the Mayor of London - Boris Johnson. Philip Williams follows the star of British politics across London and asks: What challenges will he face if he gets the top job of Prime Minister?

Does gender equality free women from family violence? Campaigner Rosie Batty & reporter Sally Sara journey to gender equality heartland, Sweden to find out. What they discover will surprise.

They're back. The crazy loans that triggered the Global Financial Crisis have morphed into "zombie mortgages" and as Paul Barry discovers, they're cutting a swathe through some American cities.

A mob sexual assault on young women revellers on New Year’s Eve snapped Germany’s celebrated tolerance of mass migration. What happened? Why was it hushed up? How has it changed the nation?

Thousands of travellers, many of them young Australians, are flocking to the Amazon to chase the highs of the ayahuasca plant. Tragically, some never return. Hamish Macdonald investigates.

It's got more oil than any country on the planet but its people eat garbage and gangsters rule. Defying a media ban, Eric Campbell goes undercover in the onetime socialist idyll of Venezuela.

India's building boom has spawned a "sand mafia" that is plundering the environment and even killing those who get in its way. But as Samantha Hawley reports, some people refuse to be intimidated.

This is the inside story of 104-year-old activist David Goodall's last days in Europe as he farewells family and campaigns for the right to die, up to his final hour.

Australia is detaining, cuffing and deporting more New Zealanders than any other group. Guest reporter Peter FitzSimons finds it's riling Kiwis and straining relations across The Ditch. Is this how we treat an old mate?

A tropical paradise is racked with bankruptcy then smashed by a killer hurricane. In rides a cavalry of digital evangelists selling hi-tech revolution. Will they save the day? Eric Campbell reports.

In India's far east, wild elephants are in deadly, daily conflict with people. Siobhan Heanue follows the clashes as roaming herds get squeezed by shrinking forests and a growing human population.

What drives Tatyana, 21, heavily pregnant and with two tiny kids in tow, or 13-year-old Daniel, to make an epic trek over thousands of kilometres? Eric Campbell tells the stories of the people behind Donald Trump's wall.

Vanilla hustlers in dusty streets. Vanilla brokers in vanilla-built palaces. Vanilla crops threatening rare lemurs' jungle homes. On a wild ride through Madagascar, Adam Harvey finds there's nothing plain about vanilla.

While Australia ponders opening new coal fields, Germany has reached an agreement between government, mining and energy companies and unions to phase out brown coal by 2038 in return for a $60 billion injection of funds.

Sam Hawley gains rare access to the reclusive kingdom of Saudi Arabia as it begins a campaign to become a tourist destination. But is the notoriously repressive, brutal regime ready to open itself up to the outside world?

Reporter Sally Sara travels to Nepal to uncover an ugly truth: many children living in the more than 500 orphanages across the country are not orphans but victims of traffickers, who prey on poor families in remote areas.

Meet the formidable women in Georgia who fought for democracy and won. They faced generations of racism and voter suppression, inspiring record black voter turnout. Now their sights are set on the American South.

Once a city of protest, now a city of fear. Bill Birtles chronicles freedom's final days as Hong Kong activists face a stark choice: should they stay and fight for democracy, risking jail or flee and campaign from abroad?

He was poisoned, almost blinded, arrested and jailed but Alexei Navalny isn't cowed. He wants to force out President Putin and he's risking his life to do it. The inside story of Navalny's plan to take down the President.

Reporter Yalda Hakim returns to Afghanistan for the first time since the Taliban took power. She finds a war-ravaged country on the brink of starvation and economic collapse, and a new terror threat on the rise.

Flying solo in Japan. A rich and powerful nation is facing a social crisis. Millions of young singles are turning their backs on marriage and children - will it create an epidemic of loneliness? Jake Sturmer reports.

The brutal cost of our green energy future. In the Democratic Republic of Congo we expose the shocking truth about the mining of cobalt, a metal essential to making the batteries in electric cars, laptops and mobile phones.

Japan is confronting the possibility of war. New military bases on the country's remote southwest islands have the locals worried about the impact on their idyllic life and the prospect of becoming a target.

Independent Russian journalists forced to flee their homes following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, have been given sanctuary in neighbouring Latvia where they are broadcasting news of the war to counter Putin's propaganda.

In the Philippines online child sex abuse is flourishing and demand by Australian perpetrators for live streaming is increasing. Reporter Stephanie March embeds with police who are catching abusers and rescuing children.

Fake fashion is big business. From Gucci to Balenciaga, replica brands are everywhere. The trade is run by crime syndicates implicated in human trafficking and even terrorism. This story goes inside the counterfeit industry.

Indonesia has embarked on a radical plan to relocate its congested and sinking capital Jakarta to the jungles of Borneo. A new $45 billion mega city is currently being built but critics say it's too expensive and too remote.

The horrific events of October 7 and its aftermath have dramatically changed the lives of Palestinians and Israelis. With widespread loss of life and devastation, suspicion and revenge are boiling over and fear is everywhere.

When football chief Luis Rubiales kissed a player on the lips after Spain won the 2023 Women's World Cup it shocked many. With Rubiales on trial for sexual assault players reveal they have endured a misogynistic culture for years.

Three years of war in Ukraine has taken its toll. On the frontline and in makeshift hospitals volunteer medics work tirelessly in difficult and dangerous situations to save and repair the lives of soldiers wounded in combat.

Consumers of popular tea brands are assured by guarantees the product they are buying is ethically and sustainably produced. But in Sri Lanka the independent certification schemes are failing both tea workers and consumers.

NATO is facing its biggest security crisis since WWII. A wave of "hybrid" attacks blamed on Russia has left member states in fear and on high alert. Now Donald Trump's demand for Greenland is threatening the alliance. (Return)

Switzerland's iconic mountains are truly one of the wonders of the world, famous for their dramatic snow-capped peaks. But the Swiss Alps are under threat and in turn putting centuries old villages below them in grave danger.

A revolution is taking place in Indonesia. President Prabowo Subianto is nationalising and militarising his nation's economy to deliver a self-reliant future. But some are warning Indonesia could be returning to the Suharto era.