Maurizio Giuliano facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Maurizio Giuliano
Giuliano at a United Nations event
Born	1975 (age 49–50) Milan, Italy
Nationality	Italian, British
Alma mater	University College, Oxford (BA) Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge (MA)
Occupation	United Nations official, traveller, author, journalist
Known for	Youngest person to visit every sovereign nation
Awards	Guinness World Records (2004)

Maurizio Giuliano (born in 1975) is an Italian-British official who works for the United Nations. He is also a traveler, author, and journalist. In 2004, the Guinness Book of World Records recognized him for an amazing achievement. He became the youngest person to visit every independent country in the world. He was 28 years and 361 days old at the time. Maurizio has worked for many international groups, often helping them share their news with the public.

About Maurizio Giuliano

Early Life and Education

Maurizio Giuliano's father was a lawyer, and his mother was a homemaker. He has lived in different countries, including Cuba, Chile, and Indonesia.

He finished high school in Milan, Italy, and Manchester, England. Then, he went to the University of Oxford in 1996. There, he studied Philosophy, Politics, and Economics. He focused on Latin America and Eastern Europe. He also earned a master's degree from the University of Cambridge in 1997.

In 1998, he worked as a researcher in Santiago, Chile.

His Writings and Journalism

Maurizio Giuliano has written books and articles about politics, especially about Cuba. He wrote about how the US embargo (a ban on trade) affected Cuba. He believed it actually helped the Cuban government stay in power. He also thought that any big changes in Cuba would happen very slowly.

He wrote about internal conflicts in Cuba. His book, "El Caso CEA" (published in 1998), showed disagreements between the government and smart people (intellectuals). This book was important because it revealed things that were not known before. Other scholars later built on his work to understand these issues better.

Besides Cuba, Maurizio also reported from other places like East Timor and Myanmar (Burma). In 1993, he interviewed Mikhail Gorbachev, a former leader of Russia. Gorbachev shared his thoughts on the changes happening in Russia at that time.

In 2000, Maurizio visited North Korea. He wrote an essay describing his trip as very controlled. He felt the North Korean authorities carefully planned everything he saw.

Challenges as a Journalist

Maurizio sometimes faced problems with authorities while reporting. In 1998, he was not allowed into Myanmar. This happened after he met with a political leader, Aung San Suu Kyi. Myanmar officials said he was gathering news illegally. Groups like the International Federation of Journalists spoke out against this. He finally returned to Myanmar in 2013 and met Suu Kyi again.

In 2002, he was held by Israeli authorities while crossing a bridge. This incident also led to criticism from Reporters without Borders. Maurizio said his toughest travel problem was in 2003 in the South Pacific. Authorities in New Zealand and some islands found his travel patterns suspicious. This caused him many difficulties.

Maurizio also wrote about lighter topics. When he was in Kabul, he even wrote restaurant reviews for a local magazine!

Working for Human Rights

In the early 2000s, Maurizio was an advisor for the Italian Senate's Committee on Human Rights. He wrote reports to help the Italian government make decisions on human rights issues. For example, he wrote about human rights in North Korea.

Working for the United Nations

Maurizio Giuliano has worked for the United Nations and other international groups. He often focused on helping people and sharing important information.

• Pakistan (2004): He worked for the International Organization for Migration. He helped Afghan refugees vote in elections, even when it was not safe.
• Afghanistan (2005): He joined the United Nations Development Programme. He helped reform the country's legal system and worked on media relations.
• Central African Republic (2006): He spoke out about the lack of money to help people in need. He asked Western governments to give more aid to save lives.
• Sudan (2007): He reported on violence by armed groups and problems getting aid to people. He also asked for more help after floods hit the city of Kassala.
• Chad and Cameroon (2008): He called for more international attention to conflicts that forced many people to leave their homes. He warned that a humanitarian crisis could become much worse without strong support.
• Democratic Republic of Congo (2009-2010, 2014-2015): He spoke out against terrible acts committed against civilians. He also highlighted the harsh treatment of immigrants between Congo and Angola. Later, he continued to report on violence by different groups and asked for more protection for civilians. He also pushed for more funding to help people in need.
• Pakistan Floods (2010): He was the UN spokesperson during massive floods. He warned that diseases and food shortages could cause a "second wave of death." He said millions of children were at risk. He described the disaster as the worst natural disaster in United Nations history. He stated that aid workers would not be scared away by threats and would keep helping.

Amazing Travels

Maurizio Giuliano is famous for his travels. The Guinness Book of World Records confirmed that he visited every independent country in the world by February 20, 2004. At that time, there were 193 such countries. He also said he visited a total of 238 places, including other territories.

He started traveling when he was 14 years old. By 2004, he had traveled at least two million miles. This included trips on the Trans-Siberian Railway and 11 trips around the world by plane. Some of his first journeys were to Albania and Sierra Leone in 1991, when he was 16. He also went to Mongolia in 1992 for their national festival, Naadam. When he was younger, he often stayed with pen pals. Later, most of his travels were for his journalism work.

He said that North Korea was the hardest country to enter. It took many tries and a long wait for a visa. Once there, his "tour guides" never left him alone. Getting a visa for Sudan was also very difficult, taking almost a year. In 1992, his passport was stolen in Albania. He had trouble getting a new one because an Italian embassy worker thought he was Albanian.

On February 20, 2004, he arrived in Suriname. This was the last independent country he needed to visit to complete his record. He held a press conference there, explaining that he chose Suriname because he was fascinated by its many cultures.

After completing his record, he traveled to London with 42 passports. These passports (30 Italian and 12 British) were full of immigration stamps. He used them to prove his record to Guinness World Records. He said that most of his travels were not planned for the record. Only since 2001, after friends suggested it, did he start thinking about the Guinness Record. He joked that he might have an "addiction to crossing borders."

Collecting passport stamps was a very important part of his journey. He was so focused on his stamps that he carried ink pads in five different colors. This way, he could help immigration officers if their stamps were running out of ink!

See also

In Spanish: Maurizio Giuliano para niños