BUSINESS | Page 1 SPORT | Page 12 Hyderabad edge out Bangalore INDEX DOW JONES QE NYMEX QATAR 2 – 8, 28 COMMENT 26, 27 REGION 9, 10 BUSINESS 1 – 8, 13 – 16 for maiden 17,849.00 9,675.66 49.33 ARAB WORLD 10, 11 CLASSIFIED 9 – 13 Qatar LNG ‘well set to +32.00 -40.82 -0.15 INTERNATIONAL 12 – 25 SPORTS 1 – 12 +0.18% -0.42% -0.30% compete at lower prices’ IPL title Latest Figures published in QATAR since 1978

MONDAY Vol. XXXVII No. 10104 May 30, 2016 Sha’baan 23, 1437 AH

GULF TIMES www. gulf-times.com 2 Riyals New govt services centre opens Superfast fi bre Gulf Times goes from connectivity for strength to strength houses in Qatar

By Darwish S Ahmed The new fibre connection their current fi bre speeds at ooredoo. Editor-in-Chief allows customers to download a qa/portal/OoredooQatar/fi bre-faq. 30-minute, 4K-quality movie in Al-Sayed also announced yester- three minutes and a two-hour, HD day Ooredoo’s “Platinum HomeZone” hen two people movie in two minutes service, which provides comprehen- meet, the better in- sive Wi-Fi coverage for large villas and Wformed person will By Peter Alagos mansions. prevail. Business Reporter “By providing additional Internet There lies the importance of points for customers with large houses newspapers in equipping people Ooredoo Qatar CEO Waleed al-Sayed or estates, Ooredoo ensures that Wi-Fi to succeed in today’s competi- A new government services centre has been opened at Mesaimeer to provide oredoo’s newly-launched introduces the country’s first 1Gbps connectivity is strong and consistent tion-driven world. “smoother and closer” facilities to the citizens and residents of the country. 1Gbps fi bre plan has made Qa- fibre plan. throughout the entire home, as well as And Gulf Times, Qatar’s lead- The Minister of Administrative Development, Labour and Social Aff airs HE Dr Otar one of only 10 countries across outdoor spaces. Customers can ing English newspaper, has been Issa Saad al-Jafali al-Nuaimi opened the new government services complex in the worldwide to provide superfast fi bre According to al-Sayed, the new fi bre even enjoy Wi-Fi coverage in their gar- doing exactly the same – em- presence of representatives of the complex’s service providers . Picture shows some connectivity for houses and palaces connection allows customers to down- dens and swimming pools by deploy- powering readers through dis- of the counters of government entities at the complex. Page 8 in the country, Ooredoo Qatar CEO load a 30-minute, 4K-quality movie ing the service,” said al-Sayed, adding semination of information – Waleed al-Sayed has said. in three minutes and a two-hour, HD that customers can request a prelimi- since its launch in 1978. “Ooredoo continues to set new movie in two minutes. nary survey of their property. An ever dynamic media or- records with our big, fast network. Our He said households could expect to He said the Platinum HomeZone ganisation, Gulf Times has al- ongoing investment in the company’s see “a smoother and faster experience” service can be tailor-fi tted to meet ways understood the winds of state-of-the-art fi bre network means for all users, as the speed will enable customer’s needs, and was designed change blowing across the ho- Fuel prices announced for June that our customers can enjoy incred- more people to enjoy simultaneous In- in co-operation with HPE Aruba and rizon and adapted and expanded uel prices in Qatar for June an- follows: gasoline (super 97) QR1.3/li- ible 1Gbps fi bre speeds for the fi rst ternet connectivity. GBM to ensure that customers can to meet the expectations of its nounced by the Ministry of En- tre, gasoline (premium 90) QR1.15 and time,” explained al-Sayed during yes- To celebrate the launch, al-Sayed access the Ooredoo Supernet at top patrons including readers and Fergy and Industry yesterday diesel QR1.40. terday’s launching of the service at the said customers upgrading their current speeds across their homes. advertisers. showed no major change from those Fuel prices in Qatar were allowed to St Regis Doha. fi bre plan to “the new breakthrough” “Ooredoo is striving to introduce Particularly in the last four fi xed for this month. fl uctuate in response to changes in the “We are one of the fi rst operators in 1Gbps plan would get two months at no new services and products that fully years, a slew of steps have been An announcement by the Ministry of global market from May 1, the Ministry the world to launch 1Gbps fi bre home extra charge before they start to pay the meet the needs of our customers. Our initiated and implemented with Energy & Industry showed 91-octane of Energy and Industry said. services and the very fi rst in Qatar. standard monthly price of QR1,900. VIP customers said they wanted com- a view to providing the readers Premium gasoline will cost QR1.2/litre, Every month, a special committee Ooredoo believes in future-proofi ng He also noted that while only com- prehensive Wi-Fi coverage in their vil- with a more complete news- while 95-octane Super gasoline will comprising representatives from vari- our network, and we continue to strive patible devices will be able to access las, and we have partnered with com- paper as well as meeting the cost QR1.3/l. ous government bodies, would review to bring our country the latest tech- speeds of up to 1Gbps, customers using panies who can deliver the additional growing demand for coverage Diesel will remain unchanged for fuel prices (gasoline and diesel) and nology fi rst,” he noted, adding that the the 1Gbps plan would be able to deploy hardware and ensure it blends seam- both within and without Qatar. June at QR1.4/l. make recommendations on proposed company continues to upgrade its na- more devices to their full potential in lessly into their home environments,” Full article on Page 28 The fuel price in Qatar in May is as prices for the local market accordingly. tionwide “Ooredoo Supernet”. their homes. Customers can check al-Sayed said. Page 7 Gulf Times 2 Monday, May 30, 2016 QATAR Ministry conducts surprise inspection at vegetable shops

QNA Doha

he Ministry of Economy and Commerce has con- Tducted surprise inspec- tions at a number of shops sell- ing vegetables, fruits and fi sh in diff erent parts of Qatar. HE Sheikh Mohamed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani, the Foreign Minister and Qatar Development Fund Nine cases of violations, in- Chairman, witnesses the signing of an agreement by QDF General-Director, Khalifa bin Jassim al-Kuwari, cluding unclear display of price and the United Nations’ Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Aff airs and Emergency Relief tags and non-compliance with Co-ordinator, Stephen O’Brien, in Doha yesterday. the rates for vegetables and fruits were registered. The inspection campaigns carried out by the Ministry of Economy are part of its com- mitment to monitor markets and QDF donates $5mn commercial activities in Qatar in order to protect the rights of consumers and ensure suppliers’ compliance with their obliga- tions stipulated by Law No 8 of to aid Syrian refugees 2008 on consumer protection. Penalty for violating Law No 8 of 2008 on consumer protection QNA ranges from administrative clo- Doha sure and fi nes between QR3,000 and QR1mn. The ministry pledged to step atar Development Fund up inspection campaigns and to (QDF) yesterday signed take appropriate action to im- Qa $5mn agreement with plement the law and protect the Turkey’s Humanitarian Pooled rights of consumers. Fund (HPF) in the presence of It urged all consumers to re- HE Sheikh Mohamed bin Ab- port any abuses or irregularities. dulrahman al-Thani, the Foreign The ministry receives com- Minister and QDF Chairman. plaints and suggestions through The agreement was signed by HE the Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohamed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani its communication channels. QDF General-Director, Khalifa holding talks with United Nations’ Under-Secretary-General for Meanwhile, the Ministry of bin Jassim al-Kuwari, and the Humanitarian Aff airs and Emergency Relief Co-ordinator, Stephen Economy and Commerce will United Nations’ Under-Secre- O’Brien, in Doha yesterday. discuss the topic of ‘trademark’ tary-General for Humanitar- during today’s episode of the ian Aff airs and Emergency Relief diffi cult times while QDF con- manitarian operations in Syria, weekly programme ‘Feed wa Co-ordinator, Stephen O’Brien. tinues to back thousands of pointing out that such contri- Istafeed’ produced by Al Rayyan Al-Kuwari said that the signing them through fi nancing human- butions could save the Syrians’ Channel in co-operation with of the agreement to support HPF itarian operations and providing lives, in particular women and the ministry. Off icials from the Ministry of Economy and Commerce inspecting a fruit and vegetable shop. stressed Qatar and QDF’s keen- assistance to those aff ected by children. The episode will discuss the ness to support the Syrian people the ongoing crisis in Syria. O’Brien thanked Qatar and diff erence between the trade mechanisms of registration of a the trademark. lighting important programmes, through humanitarian and devel- For his part, O’Brien called on QDF for their generous contri- mark and brand name, and the trademark. The programme aims to initiatives and services off ered opment assistance programmes. the international community to butions and eff orts in alleviating importance of registering the It will also highlight the role spread public awareness about by the ministry in the areas of He stressed Qatar’s long-term follow in the footsteps of Qatar the suff ering of those aff ected in product by choosing the ap- of the Ministry of Economy the services provided by the economic and trade aff airs and support for Syrian refugees in and provide assistance for hu- all parts of the world. propriate trademark, and the and Commerce in protecting Ministry of Economy by high- consumer protection. Gulf Times Monday, May 30, 2016 3 QATAR

Transport Minister meets Azerbaijan envoy

HE the Minister of Transport and Communications Jassim Seif Ahmed al-Sulaiti meeting Azerbaijan’s ambassador to Qatar Tofig Abdullayev in Doha yesterday. Talks during the meeting dealt with relations in areas of transportation, communications and information technology between the two countries and ways of enhancing them. Hot during the day, strong winds at night

trong winds are ex- with a high-pressure ridge, Slightly dusty conditions areas by tonight. pected in the northern over the northern Arabian are also likely in off shore ar- Meanwhile, data provid- Sparts of the country by Peninsula. eas at times. ed by the Met department tonight after a hot day, the The wind speed is likely showed that the mercury Qatar Met department has to increase gradually and The forecast for inshore level reached a high of 46C said. reach its peak tomorrow areas today says it will in Turayna and Batna yes- Off shore areas, too, are and on Wednesday, when be “hot to very hot” terday, followed by 45C in likely to see strong winds it may go up to 35 knots at during the day and Karana and Ghuwayriyah, along with high seas by this times. slight to blowing dust is 44C in Sheehaniya, 43C in afternoon, according to the This will result in blow- also expected in some Jumayliyah and Al Khor, 41C weather report. ing dust and poor visibility, places by night in Abu Hamour and 40C at On Saturday, the Met de- which may drop to 2km or Doha airport and Qatar Uni- partment had said fresh to less in some areas. The wind speed may versity. strong northwesterly winds The forecast for inshore reach a high of 22 knots in Today, the maximum were again expected to af- areas today says it will be both inshore and off shore temperature is expected to fect the country from today “hot to very hot” during areas, with the sea level ris- be 44C in Doha, Messaied, until Thursday (June 2) due the day and slight to blow- ing to 7ft. Wakrah and Al Khor, 41C in to the extension of the In- ing dust is also expected in Visibility may de- Dukhan, 40C in Abu Samra dian monsoon trough, along some places by night. crease to 3km in some and 35C in Al Ruwais. Gulf Times 4 Monday, May 30, 2016 QATAR

New app to help promote QC projects

atar Charity (QC) has launched mosque, implementing an education a new application called project and other causes. Q“Pointer towards Good” dur- Al-Yazidi said that work was under ing the concluding events of the Social way to further improve the app and Network Forum held recently. make it more accessible. QC fi nancial resources executive di- “QC has launched this initiative to rector Mohamed al-Yazidi announced help people be a part of doing good. the launch of the app and stressed that Al-Yazidi: This system has the Accordingly, users will be able to do- QC utilised technology to eff ectively potential to spread easily and quickly. nate using their names without being introduce its humanitarian projects charged a single riyal,” he said. and campaigns and mobilise further public awareness about them.” The app also allows users to follow public support for them. The advantage of this system is its the projects they choose. The new application allows social potential to “spread easily and quick- Once they register on the website or media users to promote donations for ly”. through their mobile phones, they can QC projects around the world without Besides, the points for each new see posts related to the projects they paying anything, he explained. user of a link will be credited to the choose, and share and promote them. “It encourages social media users to person who fi rst took the initiative to QC seeks to use advanced technol- make their personal pages a means for share the link. ogy in charitable work. It was the fi rst promotion. Accordingly, by signing up Further, the points accumulated by to adopt a system of donation through for the application they can directly a person could be transferred to a phil- text messages and off ers self-service access the links to QC projects and anthropic project conducted in his/ devices in public places, according to share them with others to help spread her name, such as construction of a a statement.

Gulf Times 6 Monday, May 30, 2016 QATAR Jumbo Electronics expands showroom network New procedure helps women suff ering from pelvic prolapse

new procedure at the menopause, being overweight the patients a much better al- Women’s Hospital of and chronic illnesses such as ternative because it requires a A Hamad Medical Corpo- lung disease, which create pres- shorter operation and a short- ration (HMC) can treat women sure inside the abdomen from er recovery time,” said Dr Ay- effectively for pelvic organ pro- coughing. man. lapse. Affecting many women, most “A hysterectomy does not Jumbo Electronics recently expanded its showroom network in Qatar with the addition of two new outlets – one at Plaza Mall in Asian Sacrohysteropexy, a mini- have no idea there is a problem correct the weakness in the Town and another on Al Shafi Street, Rayyan. Jumbo Electronics is the retail arm of Video Home & Electronic Centre, the sole distributors mally invasive technique done until years later, when the mus- support mechanism of the pel- of LG Electronics in the country. Among the other leading brands distributed by Jumbo Electronics are JBL, Harman Kardon, Indesit, robotically or through an open cles weaken with age and are no vic organs and is associated Oscar, Brother, Kyocera, Hitachi Power Tools and more. “In the 36th year of operations in Qatar, Video Home & Jumbo Electronics – a surgical procedure, is per- longer able to hold the organs in with other negative side effects. household name in the country – expresses deep gratitude to their ever-growing list of loyal customers, some of whom are in the third formed under general anaes- place. With this new innovative generation, for their valued patronage that has contributed to the steady growth of the Jumbo Electronics brand,” the company said in a thetic to put the womb back surgery, the patient’s womb will statement. Pictured are senior company off icials at the inauguration of one of the new showrooms. into its normal position. “After my second stay in place and there are as- After a 90-minute operation pregnancy, I started sociated psychological benefits, and an overnight stay in Wom- feeling more and more especially in premenopausal en’s Hospital, a young mother uncomfortable every women,” he added. who suffered from a pelvic or- day. I had severe back Since joining HMC in June gan prolapse, was able to return pain and even worse, 2015, Dr Ayman and his team Summer working hours to work, travel again and play I couldn’t control my have performed several of these with her children after being own bowel movements. life changing procedures. treated through Sacrohyster- I didn’t know what was Presently, Sacrohysteropexy from June 15 to Aug 31 opexy. happening and I had is only carried out by a fraction “After my second pregnan- nobody to talk to” of gynaecological surgeons be- cy, I started feeling more and cause of the limited number of QNA beyond 11.30am. The evening work- more uncomfortable every day. “Although up to half of clinicians who can perform the Doha ing hours must not start before 3pm. I had severe back pain and even women are thought to suffer surgery. Employers must place the work- worse, I couldn’t control my to some degree from a pelvic The Women’s Hospital Fe- ing hours’ timetable at the work- own bowel movements. I didn’t organ prolapse, far fewer seek male Pelvic Medicine and Re- he Ministry of Administrative place, according to the decree. know what was happening and I help.Those that do are typi- constructive Surgery Unit Development, Labour and The timetable should be in a vis- had nobody to talk to,” said the cally offered a hysterectomy opened in June 2015 and offers TSocial Aff airs (MADLSA) yes- ible place where all workers can see 27 year-old mother of two. which requires the removal advanced diagnostic and treat- terday announced that the imple- and labour inspectors can easily no- The condition which typi- of the womb,” said Dr Ayman ment options for women who mentation of the Ministerial Decree tice during their inspection visits. cally presents itself in older Elnaqa, senior consultant and suffer from incontinence, pel- No16 of 2007 determining the work- The Ministry of Administrative women, occurs when tissue subspecialist in Urogynaecol- vic organ prolapse and perineal ing hours in open work places during Development and Labour called supporting the pelvic organ ogy and Pelvic Floor Recon- trauma during childbirth. the summer will start on June 15. upon the owners of establishments including the womb, becomes structive Surgery at Women’s The unit provides the latest The decision stipulates that start- to respect the provisions of the deci- weak. Hospital. uterine preservation surgery ing from June 15 to August 31 the sion and warned that any company Common causes of a pelvic “This procedure when done (preserving the uterus instead working hours must not be longer violating the decree will be closed for organ prolapse include child- robotically or through a mini- of carrying out a hysterectomy) than fi ve hours in the morning and not a period not exceeding one month. birth, lower levels of estrogen at mally invasive approach offers in cases of uterine prolapse.

Dr Ayman along with his Sacrohysteropexy surgical team.

Commuters avoid buses due to heat

By Ramesh Mathew of passengers during the day Commuters look for said another commuter. Staff Reporter has fallen sharply – particu- shared cabs that are avail- The demand for covered larly between 8am and 3pm, able at many key locations bus shelters – as well as air- say sources. in Doha. conditioned ones – has been he rising mercury “Waiting under the sun One such place is the reiterated by commuters level is prompting for a bus is quite unbearable Doha Bus Station (DBS) in on a number of occasions. Tmany people to avoid these days,” said a Karwa the heart of the city. A busy While announcements on travelling by public buses smartcard holder. transport hub otherwise, better facilities at bus stops during the day. “Sometimes we have to the number of passengers have been made in the past, This is primarily due to wait for a long time be- has dropped at the DBS, too, the situation on the ground the absence of covered shel- fore a bus arrives. This is during the day. has not improved much, say ters in most places, say pas- something bus users like “It’s been really hot over passengers. sengers. me cannot aff ord to do now the last few days. While Covered bus shelters have Many bus stops which as we may fall ill due to the the bus station does have a come up in some areas but otherwise remain busy are scorching heat.” covered waiting area, many these are inadequate, they now deserted even though Some also say buses are passengers prefer using point out. bus services are being run as inconvenient because they the shared taxis. By doing Mowasalat sources say usual. have to walk a fair distance so, they can save time and it is not possible to build Even within the Industri- to reach their destination also reach their destina- covered bus shelters on al Area, where the demand from a bus stop. They opt to tion quickly. Finding pas- many roads due to major for Karwa bus services is use taxis as they can get off sengers for shared taxis infrastructure development generally high, the number at their places of choice. is usually not a problem,” works.

Diplomatic dinner

Vietnamese ambassador to Doha Nguyen Hoang last week hosted the Asian Ambassadors’ Group dinner to further enhance friendly relations among countries. The event was attended by the envoys of Malaysia, Brunei, Azerbaijan, Singapore, Japan, Pakistan, Kazakhstan, South Korea, the Philippines, China, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Kyrgyzstan, Thailand, Nepal, Tajikistan and Turkey. Ibrahim Fakhroo, director general of Protocol Department, Ministry of Foreign Aff airs, and Ahmed Ahen, director general of International Corporation and Trade Agreements Department, Ministry of Economy and Commerce, also attended the dinner. Gulf Times Friday, May 30, 2016 7 QATAR ‘Full fi bre connectivity by 2017’ y the end of the fi rst quarter of already connected with fibre. 300Mbps, which was three 2017, all houses and buildings “By the end of the fi rst quar- times the speed that was ini- Bin Qatar will be connected ter of 2017, I don’t think there tially launched. And today, we with fi bre, Ooredoo Qatar CEO is a need for a study anymore to have another milestone – an Waleed al-Sayed has said. prove that because every single amazing number – 1Gbps, He said Ooredoo has already house and building in Qatar will which is very impressive be- invested more than QR1.5bn in be connected with fi bre,” al- cause it is a unique speed that building fi bre network for resi- Sayed stressed. belongs to very few countries dential communities and build- around the world,” al-Sayed ings in Qatar. Currently, resi- “In February 2016, we have said, referring to Ooredoo’s dents of 275,000 houses in Qatar increased the speed to newly-launched fibre plan. are enjoying fi bre connectivity 300Mbps, which was three Citing several benefi ts, al- and fi bre services, al-Sayed em- times the speed that was Sayed said the 1Gbps fi bre plan phasised during the launching of initially launched. And provides faster download time the company’s 1Gbps fi bre plan today, we have another and improved Ooredoo TV serv- yesterday. milestone – an amazing ices, and allows customers to use Citing a previous study number – 1Gbps, which is multiple devices without com- on fibre penetration and fi- very impressive because promising Internet speed. bre rollout preparedness, al- it is a unique speed that Al-Sayed also said Ooredoo and Sayed said Qatar was ranked belongs to very few its international partners are reg- number one worldwide in countries around the ularly testing 5G products, “which speed of fibre rollout and world” are going to take the mobile pro- number seven in the world in gramme to 10Gbps in the future.” fibre penetration. Al-Sayed said Qatar has three “When the service will be “A new study will be Internet speeds for Ooredoo’s fi - available, we are going to prom- launched today, and I am sure bre-to-home: 10Mbps, 50Mbps, ise the people of Qatar that the that Qatar will be number one “and the ultimate speed of country will be the first in the in the world in terms of fibre 100Mbps.” world or one of the first coun- penetration because more than “In February 2016, we tries in the world to launch 5G Chief executive off icer Waleed al-Sayed and other Ooredoo Qatar off icials flank international partners during the launch of Ooredoo’s 1Gbps 85% of the houses in Qatar are have increased the speed to services,” al-Sayed added. fibre plan. PICTURE: Noushad Thekkayil.

In brief ‘No change’ in Islamic lectures Eight new mosques to in Urdu be opened in Doha PM greets new Qatar’s quota visiting Pakistani QNA The Ministry said Islamic Affairs said prime minister Islamic scholar will Doha in a statement that it takes into account of Turkey Adeliver lectures in the new mosques are the requirements of Urdu today and tomorrow. located in Leabaib, Al sustainable build- Professor Mohamed Ya- he Ministry of Hetmi Old, Al Nasr, ings, rationalising HE the Prime Minister and for Haj this year sin Zafar,(pictured) Director Awqaf and Is- Msheireb, Al Sakhama, the use of electric- Interior Minister Sheikh Abdullah of Education at Jama’ Sal- Tlamic Aff airs New Al Ghanim and ity and water, and bin Nasser bin Khalifa al-Thani fi ya in Faisalabad, will speak announced yesterday Umm Ghuwailina. the preservation of yesterday congratulated in a QNA proved applicants have ing will be held soon to on ‘The role of religious institutions in the the opening of eight All the new heritage aesthetics telephone call Binali Yildirim on Doha been informed via text discuss the fi nal arrange- Subcontinent’ tonight at Maktab Dawah Al- new mosques in dif- mosques include sep- in the mosques’ de- his assumption to the post of messages, and given one ments for this season. Irshad Saudi in Bin Omran after Isha prayer. ferent parts of Doha in arate place for wom- signs, reflecting the prime minister of Turkey, wishing week to choose and regis- The director of Haj af- Tomorrow’s lecture will be held at Jama’ the near future. en worshippers and authenticity of the him success and the relations here is no change ter for the pilgrimage. fairs commended the pil- Masjid Sakan Bin Laden in Khartiyat after The new mosques houses for imams. Qatari and Islamic between Qatar and Turkey more in Qatar’s quota He warned that an ap- grimage tour operators’ Isha prayer where Professor Yasin Zafar can accommodate The Mosques De- heritage according development and growth. Tof Haj pilgrims for plicant will be automati- co-operation with the will deliver a talk on the topic ‘A virtuous more than 6,000 men partment of the Min- to the highest stand- The phone conversation also this year (1437 AH), which cally eliminated in the ministry and their re- life’. For details contact 66571983. and women. istry of Awqaf and ards. dealt with bilateral co-operation remains at 1,200 pilgrims, event of failure to register sponse to all instructions, and issues of common concern. and eff orts are under way within the period granted. and their commitment to to raise the quota, Direc- He pointed out that provide quality services Al-Kuwari arrives tor of the Haj and Umrah this year the number of and all means of comfort Aff airs Department at the licensed Haj pilgrimage to the pilgrims. in Brussels for Ministry of Awqaf and trips has reached 27 - 16 by He also praised the Haj Unesco campaign Islamic Aff airs Ali Sultan air and 11 by land. Howev- authorities in Saudi Ara- al-Mesaifri said yesterday. er, a pilgrimage group can bia for their co-operation Speaking to Qatar News leave only if the number of with the Qatari Haj Mis- Qatar’s candidate to the post of Agency (QNA), Ali Sultan applicants reaches 50. sion, and their keenness the director-general of the United al-Mesaifri said that the Speaking about the to serve the pilgrims and Nations Educational, Scientific number of applicants for new instructions of the facilitate the smooth per- and Cultural Organisation Haj this year amounted Saudi Haj authorities, he formance of their ritu- (Unesco) and Adviser at the to nearly 18,400 Qataris stressed that Saudi Ara- als, stressing continu- Emiri Diwan, HE Dr Hamad and residents, but the bia is keen to provide Haj ous communication with bin Abdulaziz al-Kuwari, State’s quota is still 1,200 missions in all countries them to serve the pilgrims. arrived in the Belgian capital, pilgrims due to the ongo- with new procedures that Al-Mesaifri reaffi rmed Brussels, yesterday to deliver a ing expansion operations are always in the interest the Ministry’s commit- speech in the European Union of Al-Haram in the holy of the pilgrims and their ment to ensure the secu- headquarters to introduce his city of Makkah. However, safety and security. rity, safety and comfort of election programe and explain hopefully the quota will be He said that the Haj Af- the pilgrims, noting that his vision for the future of the UN increased due to the large fairs Department held a the Department of Umrah organisation. turnout, he added. meeting with operators and Haj Aff airs is upgrad- Dr al-Kuwari is scheduled Al-Mesaifri announced of pilgrimage tours and ing its work constantly to deliver his speech during that the selection process informed them about the taking advantage of mod- a meeting organised in co- has been completed for new instructions and lis- ern techniques in order to ordination between the Qatari- the applicants who meet tened to their suggestions, ensure an appropriate at- European Friendship Association the conditions. The ap- noting that another meet- mosphere for pilgrims. at the European Parliament and Qatar’s Mission to the European Union tomorrow evening in the presence of a group of high-level Belgian personalities, European commissioners Student gets one-year jail and Nato off icials along with a large number of European parliamentarians, ambassadors of Arab and foreign missions term for stealing car accredited to Brussels and permanent representatives to the European Union. Doha Criminal those involved suddenly The speech will be preceded Court has award- ran towards the car and by extensive meetings Aed a one-year jail sped off . with education and culture term, suspended over The victim reported commissioners aimed at a period of three years the matter to the police, introducing the Qatari starting from the date of who managed to spot the candidate’s programme. the fi nal verdict, to a stu- defendant and the vehi- dent for stealing a car. cle beside a hotel an hour Advisory Council According to local Ara- later. bic daily Arrayah, the The sentence was team off to Cairo owner of the car was at awarded after taking into The Pearl-Qatar when the the vehicle, leaving its en- consideration the defend- A delegation from the Advisory incident occurred. gine running, to see what ant’s clean record and also Council left Doha for Egypt The owner told the was going on. He saw a the fact that the victim yesterday to participate in court that he saw a crowd number of youngsters had dropped his claims, the fifth meeting of the fourth on the road and got out of fi ghting there and one of the daily said. session of the Arab Parliament’s first legislative term, which began on May 28 and will last until June 1. The third Arab Parliamentarians Conference 16 employees of fi rm accused of related to children’s issues in the Arab region will be held during the meetings tomorrow in Cairo. causing loss due to negligence Correction Doha Court of some irregularities in the ligent. They used to sell Misdemeanour is fi rm’s transactions. Ac- the company’s products The photo caption for the story, A hearing a case in cordingly, he reported the to local retailers for de- ‘Sidra to Open Six New Clinics in which 16 employees of matter to the Public Pros- layed payment and with- June’, on May 29 said that ‘Peter a local company are ac- ecution based on an audit out getting enough guar- Morris expects Sidra Medical cused of causing a loss report. antees for repayment. and Research Centre to be fully of around QR3mn to It turned out that the Besides, the manager operational by the end of January the firm through negli- 16 defendants, includ- of the company failed to 2017’. The right caption should gence. ing the general manager, adopt necessary market- read as ‘Peter Morris expects According to local Ara- head of accounts and ing strategies to enhance Sidra Outpatient Clinics to be fully bic daily Arrayah, the new director of sales, did not the fi rm’s position in the operational by the end of January managing director of the carry out their duties local market, the daily 2017’. The error is regretted. company had detected properly and were neg- said. Gulf Times 8 Monday, May 30, 2016 QATAR Sidra opens several Call for unifi ed new clinics and fi ght against services on June 1 he outpatient clinic of the Sidra Medical and TResearch Center (Sidra) has announced Ramadan tim- ings, new clinics and services. The outpatient clinic will oper- ate from 8am to 1pm on week- organised crime days during the holy month of Ramdan. It will remain closed QNA The ambassador reviewed the international co-operation. in the history of the United Na- on Fridays and Saturdays. Vienna draft resolution submitted by Al-Hammadi clarifi ed that tions conferences by contrib- Meanwhile, Sidra Outpa- Qatar, Japan, Brazil and Mexico the draft resolution had in- uting to fi nancing projects and tient Clinic will launch several under the title “Follow-up to the cluded a paragraph welcoming programmes in fulfi lment of new clinics and supporting atar has called for 13th United Nations Congress on the initiative of the government the recommendations of the fi - services on June 1. From June, strengthening interna- Crime Prevention and Crimi- of Qatar on working with the nal declaration of the congress the referred paediatric patients Qtional co-operation in nal Justice and preparations for United Nations Offi ce on Drugs which it hosted, adding that for will have access to neonatol- order to face the serious chal- the 14th United Nations Con- and Crime to ensure appropri- the fi rst time in the history of the ogy, developmental paedi- lenges posed by organised crime gress on Crime Prevention and ate follow-up to the implemen- UN Offi ce on Drugs and Crime, atrics; child and adolescent and its links to terrorism. Criminal Justice, saying that the tation of the Doha Declaration a single state has provided such mental health; paediatric ENT; Qatar has also emphasised the draft resolution refers to the 13th and the agreement between Qa- funding. paediatric plastic/craniofacial responsibility entrusted to the Congress on Crime Prevention tar and the UN Offi ce on Drugs Ambassador al-Hammadi surgery and pre-admission United Nations in the fi eld of and calls on governments to take and Crime, signed in Vienna on called on member-states to co- testing clinics. crime prevention and criminal into account its fi nal statement, November 27, 2015, adding that sponsor the draft resolution as The Sidra Outpatient Clinic justice. the Doha Declaration, when they that this agreement included an expression of their support will also off er new support This came in a speech deliv- develop policies and legislation, the implementation of a pack- for conferences and as an ap- services including anaesthe- ered by the vice-chairman of and to implement the principles age of projects and programmes preciation of the role of the UN siology, post-anaesthesia the committee tasked with fol- contained in the declaration. recommended by the Doha Dec- Offi ce on Drugs and Crime, as care unit services; diagnostic lowing up the implementation Ahmed Hassan al-Hammadi laration in the fi elds of terrorism well as an encouragement for imaging for magnetic reso- of Doha Declaration ambassador explained that the draft resolu- prevention and immunisation of other countries to follow Qa- nance imaging and anaes- Sidra acting chief medical off icer Dr Abdulla al-Kaabi and CEO Ahmed Hassan al-Hammadi, tion submitted by Qatar, Japan, young people against crime, ed- tar in launching initiatives and thesiology; physical and oc- Peter Morris. within item 8: “Follow-up to the Brazil and Mexico, reaffi rms ucation, strengthening judicial projects to implement the rec- cupational therapy; speech 13th United Nations Congress on the responsibility vested in the systems and improving prisons’ ommendations of the Doha and language pathology and The Paediatric ENT clinic Developmental Paediatrics Crime Prevention and Criminal United Nations in the fi eld of conditions. Declaration, and to strengthen audiology. is under the leadership of Dr clinic, under Dr Maria Fatima Justice and preparations for the crime prevention and criminal These projects shall be imple- international co-operation in “Our phased opening of Patrick Sheehan, the division Janjua, interim chief of Devel- 14th United Nations Congress justice, and stresses the impor- mented from this year until the the present circumstances when the Sidra Outpatient Clinic is chief of otolaryngology, head opmental Paediatrics, will see on Crime Prevention and Crimi- tance of crime prevention and 14th Congress on Crime Pre- the global community needs to progressing rapidly with the and neck surgery. His team will referred paediatric and ado- nal Justice,” during the 25th criminal justice’s conferences as vention and Criminal Justice in be united in the face of the se- launch of six additional pae- treat infants, children and ado- lescent patients with complex Session of the Commission on main intergovernmental forums Japan in 2020, he said. rious challenges posed by or- diatric clinics in June. The lescents with otorhinolaryn- disabilities that are likely to Crime Prevention and Criminal that infl uenced national poli- Al-Hammadi said that Qa- ganised crime and its links with feedback from patients related gology conditions, complex lead to long term needs. Justice which held in Vienna. cies and practices and promoted tar has set a unique precedent terrorism. to our services, physicians learning and/or physical dis- Paediatric Plastic and and nurses, since we opened abilities and congenital mal- Craniofacial Surgery clinic on May 1, has been very posi- formations of head and neck is under the leadership of Dr tive,” said Peter Morris, chief structures such as the ear, Mitchell Stotland, division executive offi cer, Sidra. nasal passage, oral cavity and chief of Paediatric Plastic and “We are looking forward to laryngo-tracheal airway. Craniofacial Surgery. His team the expansion of more clin- Child and Adolescent Mental will care for children present- Govt services ics and services in the com- Health Clinic led by Dr Mu- ing with a wide variety of con- ing months and establishing hammed Waqar Azeem, chair genital and acquired conditions ourselves as an integral part of of the Department of Psy- of the cranio-maxillofacial Qatar’s healthcare network,” chiatry, will off er services for region (head, neck, face and complex opens he added. children and adolescents for jaws) and throughout the entire The neonatology clinic un- conditions such as attention body. der Dr Istvan Seri, will off er defi cit hyperactivity disorder; Dr Michael Levis is the di- services for women with com- depression; generalised anxiety vision chief of Paediatric An- at Mesaimeer plex and or high-risk pregnan- or panic disorders; social pho- aesthesia. His team will be in cies including those with more bia; bipolar disorder, psychotic charge of assessing the pae- than one fetus in pregnancy disorders, post-traumatic diatric patients to ensure that new government services Development, Labour and Social or where the fetus is smaller stress disorder and complex they are medically fi t prior re- centre has been opened Aff airs; the Ministry of Educa- or larger than expected for its autism spectrum disorder with ceiving sedation or anesthesia Aat Mesaimeer to provide tion and Higher Education and gestational age. behavioural issues. services. “smoother and closer” facilities the Ministry of Municipality and to the citizens and residents of Environment, in addition to Qa- the country. tar General Electricity and Water The Minister of Administra- Corporation (Kahramaa). Ramadan Souq to start on June 11 at DECC tive Development, Labour and Speaking on the occasion, the The Ramadan Souq - The will open from 8pm to 1am. able to watch UEFA Euro 2016 Social Aff airs HE Dr Issa Saad al- minister said the upgrade of the Souq - will return this year Daily religious and cultural matches live at the Ramadan Jafali al-Nuaimi opened the new complex by increasing the area between June 11 and 24 to Doha events will be held in Souq Food Court, which will be government services complex in was done under the directives Exhibition and Convention collaboration with Qatar Charity off ering light snacks. the presence of representatives of Prime Minister and Interior Center (DECC). and Qatar Heritage and Identity The Souq is supported by of the complex’s service provid- Minister HE Sheikh Abdullah bin The seating facilities for the visitors. The Souq will include stalls Center between 9.30pm and Qatar Tourism Authority ers . Nasser bin Khalifa al-Thani for extending over Halls 1 and 2 of 11.30pm, featuring scholars and will be delivered by The minister also toured the providing more comfort, facili- from 7.30am to 1pm and 3pm to service complexes across the DECC, showcasing goods from from Qatar and the GCC region, Maraya Public Relations. The departments operating out of tating procedures and upgrading 7pm. country now, carrying out be- over 250 local and international presented by Dr Abdulrahman experiential exhibition aims to the complex and saw the serv- the services provided by minis- The government is working to tween 4,500 and 5,000 proce- companies, off ering fashion al-Harami. support members of the local ices provided at the centre by tries to citizens and residents. open such centres in all regions dures daily. items and household goods, The Souq will also cater to community, as well as share six ministries and a corpora- The complex comprises nearly to bring the offi cial services The Mesaimeer centre is sec- in addition to antiques and children of all ages with a Qatar’s Ramadan customs tion - the Foreign Ministry, the 30 counters, some of them dedi- nearer to residents to help them ond of its kind as the fi rst gov- carpets. gaming area, which will be open with visitors and residents by Ministry of Economy and Com- cated to serving women, the eld- save time and reduce congestion, ernment services complex was The Souq will be open daily from daily from 2pm-2am in Hall 3 of bringing together the country’s merce; the Ministry of Justice; erly and people with disabilities. a spokesman said. opened in November 2015 in 11am to 3pm and from 8pm to DECC. unique traditions, cultural roots the Ministry of Administrative The centre works in two shifts There are eight government Rayyan. 1am, except on Fridays when it Football enthusiasts will also be and charitable character. Qatar University centre honours its traffi c safety ambassadors

he Qatar Transportation al-Malki, CENG assistant profes- and Traffi c Safety Centre sor Dr Noor al-Maadeed and Dr T(QTTSC) at Qatar Uni- al-Thawadi, as well as CENG fac- versity (QU) honoured its traffi c ulty, staff and Traffi c Department safety ambassadors at a ceremo- representatives. ny held in co-operation with the Students and their mentors National Committee for Traffi c from 13 schools were also present. Safety. On the occasion, Dr al-Khalifa The initiative, which started in said: “QTTSC stresses the role of November last year, drew 17 teams young people and their involve- from 17 independent boys’ schools ment in various traffi c safety in Doha with the aim of promoting initiatives, and is in line with the safe driving behaviours. college’s commitment to citizen The students were oriented on safety on Qatar’s roads.” road safety and awareness cam- Brigadier al-Malki observed paigns by QU assistant professor that QTTSC is one of the most Dr Othman Mohamed al-Thawadi active centres in Qatar that pro- and Traffi c Department’s Captain motes individuals’ awareness Fahad Abdulla. of the culture of traffi c safety The initiative ended with Al through campaigns, initiatives Doha Secondary School for Boys and public events. emerging as the fi rst place win- Dr al-Maadeed explained that ners, Hamad Bin Abdullah Sec- in collaboration with the National ondary School for Boys fi nishing Committee for Traffi c Safety and second and Al Wakra Secondary the General Directorate of Traf- School for Boys and Mohamed fi c at the Ministry of Interior, bin Abdulaziz Al Mana Sec- the centre organised awareness ondary School for Boys coming workshops in the participat- Participants of the traff ic safety ‘ambassadors’ initiative. third. ing schools and distributed bro- College of Engineering (CENG) chures and posters on leadership on how to conduct safety sues and how they aff ect them.” in their campaign, which included dean Dr Khalifa al-Khalifa was and management of traffi c safety awareness campaigns in their Team supervisor Adel Abu al- developing brochures on traffi c joined at the event by National campaigns. schools. They learned a lot from Khair of participating Nasser Al safety instructions and guides and Committee for Traffi c Safety gen- Dr al-Thawadi added, “The their peers about road safety Attiya Secondary School outlined hosting a lecture by traffi c offi cers eral secretary Brigadier Mohamed workshop oriented students and came to understand the is- the activities that were employed on road safety and risks. Gulf Times Monday, May 30, 2016 9 REGION Conservative re-elected Iran speaker

AFP elected fi rst deputy speaker. Tehran Two other reformists were also elected to parliament’s 12-member governing board. oderate conservative Both are Sunni, a fi rst since Ali Larijani retained the the Islamic revolution of 1979 Mspeakership of Iran’s ushered in Iran’s Shia theocracy. (Left to right) Kuwait’s Foreign Minister Sheikh Sabah al-Khaled al-Sabah, Qatar’s Foreign Minister HE Mohamed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani, Oman’s Foreign Minister Yusuf bin parliament yesterday despite Larijani, who turns 58 on June Alawi, Britain’s Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond, Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir, Bahrain’s Foreign Minister Khalid bin Ahmed al-Khalifah, UAE Minister of State for major gains for reformists in 3, is the scion of a famed Shia Foreign Aff airs Anwar Gargash and GCC Secretary General Abdullatif bin Rashid al-Zayani pose for a picture following a meeting with foreign ministers of the GCC in Jeddah February elections, benefi ting clerical family and a regime vet- yesterday. from credit gained by his sup- eran. port for last year’s nuclear deal. He was a prominent fi gure in Several lawmakers from the the elite Revolutionary Guards reformist camp broke ranks to during the 1980-88 war with vote against the head of their Saddam Hussain’s Iraq and own List of Hope, Mohamed served as state broadcasting Reza Aref, who lost by 103 votes chief from 1994 to 2005. to 173. He stood unsuccessfully February’s election was wide- against hardliner Mahmoud Ah- British FM hails ‘progress’ ly seen as a referendum on last madinejad for the presidency July’s nuclear deal with world in 2005 and two years later re- powers led by the United States, signed as secretary of the Su- the signature policy of moderate preme National Security Council President Hassan Rouhani. in protest at his policies which Larijani’s support for its pas- triggered an economically crip- sage through parliament kept pling showdown with the West. in Yemen peace talks him out of the fi erce debate that Rouhani himself praised Lari- saw a string of hardline oppo- jani and his support for the nu- AFP GCC, UK hold strategic dialogue in Jeddah tween the Yemeni government last year’s nuclear deal which nents of the agreement lose their clear deal in an address to the Jeddah and Iran-backed Shia Houthi paved the way for a partial lift- seats. opening session of parliament The 5th ministerial meeting countries and the United rebels and their allies. ing of sanctions. Reformists took 133 of the 290 on Saturday. of the GCC-UK Strategic Kingdom and means of “The discussions have be- “Just because we’ve made an seats in parliament. “We need interaction to solve ritish Foreign Secretary Dialogue kicked off in Jeddah bolstering them in all fields. come more sensitive and deli- agreement with Iran on its nu- That fell short of a majority the problems and crises of the Philip Hammond yester- yesterday to discuss ways The ministers also exchanged cate bringing us closer to a clear programme does not mean but it was more than the con- country,” he said, adding that Bday welcomed “progress” of promoting relations in all views on regional and comprehensive agreement,” that we will turn a blind eye to servatives’ 125 seats. February’s poll gains for his sup- in Yemen peace talks, saying a areas. international developments the UN envoy said on Wednes- Iran’s continuing attempts to The remaining seats are held porters were a vote for an end to solution to the confl ict in the The meeting was chaired by especially the situation day. destabilise the region or to its by independents and repre- international sanctions imposed battered Arabian Peninsula Jubeir and Hammond, in the in Yemen, Syria, Iraq, and The apparent progress comes ballistic missiles programme sentatives of religious minorities over Iran’s nuclear programme country must be political, not presence of the GCC foreign Palestine, and fighting after Foreign Minister Abdul- which remains a serious threat who are expected to give Rouha- and an improved standard of liv- military. ministers and GCC Secretary terrorism. malek al-Mikhlafi said on Mon- to peace and which breaches ni a working majority to pass key ing. Speaking in Saudi Arabia at General Dr Abdullatif bin The first meeting of the day that the government stood UN resolutions,” Hammond reform legislation that eluded Rouhani is president but ul- the start of a three-day visit to Rashid al-Zayani. GCC-British strategic dialogue ready to make concessions for said. him in the outgoing conserva- timate power in Iran rests with Gulf states, Hammond also said The meeting focused on was launched in New York in the sake of peace. Jubeir said: “We supported tive-dominated parliament. supreme leader Ayatollah Ali world powers will not “turn a relations between the GCC September 2011. Despite a 14-month-old that agreement so long as we Several leading reformists Khamenei who called on the new blind eye” to attempts by Iran to Saudi-led military interven- were assured that Iran will not broke ranks to endorse Larijani parliament to remain faithful to destabilise the region. tion in support the government, be able to acquire a nuclear ca- in the runup to the speakership the principles of the Islamic rev- “In Yemen, progress is be- work towards a settlement,” he lisation and humanitarian aid,” the rebels and their allies still pability. contest. olution that saw relations with ing made and we recognise the told reporters, fl anked by Saudi Hammond said. control many of Yemen’s most “They are, after all, a neigh- “Larijani can better direct Washington ruptured in 1980. eff orts of the Gulf states, and I Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir. His comments come days populous regions, including the bour and we will have to live parliament than Aref,” Gholam Using the term “arrogance” have to give particular thanks “There is no military alterna- after the UN special envoy to capital Sanaa. with them. But it’s diffi cult to Hossein Karbaschi, the leader of fi rst coined to refer to the United to Kuwait for hosting the peace tive to a political settlement in Yemen, Ismail Ould Cheikh Hammond said he was reas- live with a neighbour whose ob- one reformist faction, the Con- States by his predecessor, revo- negotiations,” Hammond told a Yemen and there is now a need Ahmed, also spoke about suring his Gulf counterparts jective is to destroy you: that’s struction Party, told the Shargh lutionary leader Ayatollah Kho- news conference in Jeddah. to win the peace particularly progress in the fi ve-week-old that world powers are closely why the relation with Iran is not newspaper on Tuesday. meini, Khamenei urged lawmak- “All of us must continue to by helping Yemen with stabi- talks under way in Kuwait be- monitoring Iran in the wake of what it should be. Reformist former health min- ers to be wary of its schemings. ister Massoud Pezeshkian was “It is the revolutionary and legal duty of you to make the parliament a stronghold against the schemes, charms and impu- dently excessive demands of the Clashes in south Yemen kill 48 fi ghters arrogance,” he said in a message read to the packed opening ses- sion. AFP rebels) and 20 of our men were ernment positions in Bayhan The area where the fi ght- Yesterday’s fi ghting fl ared Khamenei has said repeatedly Aden killed in the fi ghting, which district on the border between ing is taking place is the only despite an early April ceasefi re that the nuclear deal with Wash- continued into the evening,” Shabwa and Marib provinces. part of Shabwa province still that paved the way for ongoing ington, which he fi nally en- General Misfer al-Harithi, who Troops counter-attacked controlled by the Iran-backed peace talks in Kuwait. dorsed, was a one-off and that it ierce fi ghting between commands the army’s 19th In- and pushed the rebels back, he rebels. More than 6,400 people have should not lead to a generalised government forces and fantry Battalion, said. said. Forces loyal to President been killed in Yemen since the rapprochement with the West. FShia rebels in south Yem- Earlier, Harithi gave a death “Our forces managed to re- Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, coalition began a campaign in Despite their heavy defeat in en yesterday claimed the lives toll of 28 rebels and 14 soldiers. capture several positions,” backed by the fi repower of the March 2015 against the rebels February’s elections, hardline of 48 fi ghters - 28 insurgents He said the clashes erupted Harithi said. Saudi-led coalition, managed who had occupied the capital Iran’s re-elected Parliament opponents of the nuclear deal and 20 soldiers - a senior mili- when rebels and allied forces “We will not stop fi ghting to drive rebels out of Shabwa and advanced on Hadi’s refuge speaker Ali Larijani speaks still control most of the princi- tary offi cer said. loyal to former president Ali until we take control of the en- and four other southern prov- in the south, forcing him to fl ee following the announcement of pal levers of power in the Islamic “A total of 28 Houthis (Shia Abdullah Saleh attacked gov- tire sector,” he added. inces in the summer. to Riyadh. the result in Tehran yesterday. republic. Saudi slams Iranian Haj conditions

AFP pilgrims despite having no Jeddah diplomatic ties or air links. “It is very negative if Iran’s intention from the audi Arabia yesterday start was to manoeuvre and denounced as “un- fi nd excuses, in order to pre- Sacceptable” Iranian vent its citizens from per- demands over its pilgrims forming the Haj,” he said. joining the Haj this year, af- “If it is about measures ter Tehran accused Riyadh of and procedures, I think we raising obstacles. have done more than our “Iran has demanded the duty to meet those needs, right to organise...demon- but it is the Iranians who strations and to have privi- have rejected things,” he leges...that would cause added. chaos during the Haj. This In the latest dispute be- is unacceptable,” Foreign tween Tehran and Riyadh, Minister Adel al-Jubeir “after two series of nego- said in a joint press briefi ng tiations without any results with his British counterpart because of obstacles raised Philip Hammond. by the Saudis, Iranian pil- Tehran said earlier yester- grims will unfortunately not day that Iranians will miss be able to take part in the the pilgrimage this year. Haj” in September, Iran’s Jubeir said Saudi Arabia Culture Minister Ali Jannati annually signs a Haj memo- said. Saudi offi cials have randum of understanding said an Iranian delegation with more than 70 countries ended a visit to the kingdom “to guarantee the security on Friday without reaching and safety of pilgrims”. fi nal agreement on arrange- “This year, Iran refused to ments for Iranian pilgrims. sign the memorandum,” he Riyadh’s Haj ministry said said, arguing that Riyadh has it had off ered “many solu- agreed to facilitate the travel tions” to meet a string of de- arrangements of Iranian mands made by the Iranians. Gulf Times 10 Monday, May 30, 2016 REGION/ARAB WORLD

Horse race festival Jordan’s king dissolves parliament, names PM

Reuters volatile situation in this region, that still favours sparsely popu- Analysts say it could be diffi - Amman which has had an adverse impact lated tribal areas which benefi t cult for the Brotherhood, which on growth levels,” Abdullah said most from state patronage. has operated legally in Jordan in a letter appointing Mulqi. Jordan’s main political op- for decades, to participate in the ordan’s King Abdullah ap- “Therefore we have to take ex- position comes from the Mus- election after the authorities pointed veteran politician ceptional and innovative meas- lim Brotherhood movement but closed many of its offi ces and JHani Mulqi as caretaker ures that help us overcome these it faces increasing legal curbs encouraged a splinter group to prime minister yesterday af- challenges and obstacles.” on its activities, leaving mostly legally challenge the main move- ter dissolving parliament as its Jordan is struggling to cope pro-monarchy parties and some ment’s licence to operate. four-year term nears its end, and with at least 1.2mn Syrian refu- independent Islamists and poli- Western diplomats and in- charged him with organising new gees who have fl ed the confl ict in ticians to compete in these elec- dependent politicians say the elections by October. their country. tions, the political analysts say. absence of the group, which has The king accepted the resig- The king also told Mulqi he Hani Mulqi: named caretaker The Brotherhood, wants strong grassroots support in ur- nation of Prime Minister Ab- hoped the election would pave prime minister sweeping political reforms but ban centres, could undermine dullah Ensour before appointing the way for a prime minister stops short of demanding the the legitimacy of the election. Mulqi by royal decree. emerging from a parliamentary move government sources and overthrow of the monarchy in Western donors have pushed Mulqi has held senior govern- majority rather than one hand- political analysts say will lead to Jordan. Jordan’s authorities to widen ment posts in successive admin- picked by the monarch, a main more candidates from political Its political arm in Jordan, the political representation to stem istrations. plank of the reformist agenda of a parties vying for votes. Islamic Action Front, represents radicalisation among alienated Under the constitution, the mix of Islamist and tribal fi gures. The analysts say the tribal many disenfranchised Jordani- and unemployed young people in election must now be held within Jordan traditionally votes ac- lawmakers who dominated the ans of Palestinian origin, who are poor overcrowded areas. four months. cording to tribal and family alle- last parliament had tried to resist in the majority in the population Hundreds of them have al- “The kingdom faces grave giances but parliament amended changes which might undermine of 7mn and live mostly in urban ready joined militants in Syria economic diffi culties due to the the electoral laws in March in a their infl uence, under a system areas. and Iraq. Race against time to fi nd EgyptAir black boxes

AFP The Airbus A320 plane crashed The recordings could help in- down the plane, but a technical water searches, Alseamar and Cairo into the Mediterranean with 66 vestigators determine the reason failure is also likely. Deep Ocean Search (DOS). people on board during a May 19 for the crash. France’s aviation safety agen- “Those two companies have fl ight from Paris to Cairo, after The plane was carrying pas- cy has said the aircraft transmit- complementary roles: the fi rst is nvestigators into EgyptAir’s disappearing from radar screens. sengers from diff erent nation- ted automated messages indicat- for locating the pings of the black plane crash need at least 12 Investigators are in a race alities, with 40 Egyptians in- ing smoke in the cabin and a fault boxes (the signal being emit- Idays to recover its black boxes against time to fi nd the fl ight re- cluding the crew and 15 French in the fl ight control unit minutes ted by the black boxes’ beacon), as they await a ship that can re- corders, known as the black box- nationals. before losing contact. while the second is for diving and trieve them from the bottom of es, which have enough battery Egypt’s aviation minister had Egypt and France have signed recovering them” with the help A Lebanese woman competes during a horse race festival on the the Mediterranean, investigation power to emit signals for four or initially said a terrorist attack agreements with two French of a robot, a source close to the coast shore of the city of Sidon, south Lebanon, yesterday. sources said yesterday. fi ve weeks. was more likely to have brought companies specialising in deep investigation said in Cairo.

For as low as QR349 (all-in, one-way fare), travellers from Doha can fly non-stop to Manila. CEB launches ‘exclusive seat sale for Mideast’

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Bahrain court upholds life terms for five Shia ‘spies’

A Bahraini appeals court acts against the kingdom”, yesterday upheld life prison a judicial sources said at the sentences against five Shias time. convicted of spying for Iran They were found guilty of as well as their citizenships working with Iran’s elite being revoked, a judicial Revolutionary Guard to carry source said. out attacks in Bahrain against A statement by the public facilities and banks. prosecution said the court Two of them had received rejected the appeal by the training in Iran on “the five defendants. manufacture and use of The men were convicted explosives and firearms in in November of “spying for preparation for carrying and seeking with Iran and its out these hostile attacks”, agents to carry out hostile according to the charges. Gulf Times Monday, May 30, 2016 11 ARAB WORLD Eight sentenced to death over alleged Brotherhood plot

DPA defendants making confessions, sions’ is an egregious injustice, laborating with the banned on two weeks later and that that security agencies had cap- Egyptian courts have sen- Cairo amid allegations from relatives even by the degraded standards Brotherhood, were pardoned by Saad said he had been tortured tured “one of the most danger- tenced hundreds of people to that they had been secretly de- of Egypt’s justice system,” said President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi throughout that period, includ- ous terrorist cells” seeking to death for involvement in Islam- tained and tortured. Magdalena Mughrabi-Talhami, last September. ing being hung up by the wrists threaten the country’s security. ist violence since al-Sisi, then military court in Cairo Twelve of the defendants re- Amnesty deputy programme di- Family and friends of Saad and and given electric shocks. Saad and other defendants in head of the armed forces, ousted yesterday condemned ceived life sentences and six rector for the Middle East. a second defendant, Omar Mo- Amnesty quoted lawyers and the case were shown confess- Islamist president Mohamed Aeight people to death for were jailed for 12 years, while two Among those sentenced to life hamed, had mounted a high-pro- relatives in the case as saying ing to forming an underground Mursi in 2013. plotting violence and assassi- were cleared. imprisonment was Suhaib Saad, fi le social media campaign after that defendants had been held Brotherhood cell taking orders Almost all those death sen- nations on behalf of the Mus- All the sentences can be ap- who was jailed alongside three they and a third friend went miss- incommunicado and tortured in from exiled leaders of the Islam- tences, including one passed on lim Brotherhood, and passed pealed to a military appeals court. Al Jazeera journalists in 2014 in a ing while out for dinner in June. military intelligence detention ist movement. Mursi himself, remain subject to lengthy prison sentences on an- Amnesty International con- high profi le trial that drew inter- Saad was out on bail pending centres, under conditions of en- Saad’s lawyer at the time, Yas- appeal, with only seven known other 18. demned the verdict as an “af- national criticism over Egypt’s a retrial in the Al Jazeera case at forced disappearance, for up to min Hossam al-Din, said that he to have been carried out. The verdict comes almost a front to justice.” crackdown on the media. the time. 46 days. was In 2014 al-Sisi issued a law year after the military released “Sentencing to death men The journalists, accused of Saad’s brother Osama said In July, the Defence Ministry “a purely peaceful political expanding the jurisdictions of a video showing a number of the who were tortured into ‘confes- publishing false news and col- that the two turned up in pris- published a video announcing activist.” military courts. Iraq forces set for Fallujah assault

AFP and around Mosul in prepara- against the towns of Marea and Baghdad tion for an eventual assault on Azaz that threatens to overrun the city,” the Kurdistan Region the last swathe of territory in the Security Council said in a state- east of Aleppo province held by lite Iraqi troops were ment. non-militant rebels. poised yesterday to assault Ten hours into the operation, It would also bring IS to the Eone of the Islamic State which was launched a day after doorstep of the Kurdish enclave group’s most emblematic bas- a wave of 12 coalition air strikes of Afrin. tions, Fallujah, as the militants in the area, Kurdish forces had As the fi ghting raged on mul- Rebel fighters from the First Regiment, part of the Free Syrian Army, fire a Grad rocket from Aleppo’s Al-Haidariya neighbourhood, towards counterattacked in both Iraq and fully retaken three villages, it tiple fronts, civilians were once forces loyal to Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad stationed in Talet al-Sheikh Youssef, Syria, yesterday. neighbouring Syria. said. again bearing the brunt of the The fi ghting prompted a new In Syria, Kurdish rebels from confl ict. exodus of thousands of desper- the People’s Protection Units At least 29 civilians have been ate civilians and deep concern (YPG) allied to Arab fi ghters and killed since IS began the assault for the many more trapped in the backed both on the ground and in Aleppo province early on Fri- battlegrounds. in the air by the US-led coali- day, the Syrian Observatory for The overall commander of the tion, were targeting Raqa, IS’s Human Rights said. Fallujah operation, Abdelwa- de-facto Syrian capital. More than 6,000 civilians fl ed hab al-Saadi, said on Saturday into the countryside, it said. Thousands fl ee IS it was a matter of hours before “This is one of the many Northwest of Azaz, a senior the Counter-Terrorism Service shaping operations nurse said late Saturday that a (CTS) entered the city. expected to increase hospital supported by Doctors The week-old operation has pressure on ISIL” Without Borders (MSF) was so far focused on retaking vil- closed except for emergencies. lages and rural areas around Fal- IS countered in both coun- MSF said on Friday it was lujah, which lies just 50km (30 tries where they declared their evacuating patients and staff off ensive in Syria miles) west of Baghdad. “caliphate” in 2014, attacking from the hospital in Salamah “I won’t tell you hours but non-militant rebels in Syria as town as it was just three kilome- AFP and allied militia around Fallu- The SDF is an alliance of rea and around two villages on the breach of Fallujah will hap- well as the Iraqi town of Heet, tres (two miles) from the front Beirut jah in neighbouring Iraq. Kurdish and Arab fi ghters that the supply route to the town of pen very soon,” Hadi al-Ameri, which the army recaptured just line. “More than 6,000 civilians, Washington regards as the most Azaz on the Turkish border to a senior commander in the last month. In Iraq, only a few hundred most of them women and chil- eff ective force on the ground in the northeast. Hashed al-Shaabi paramilitary “An attack by Daesh (IS) ter- families managed to slip out of housands of civilians have dren, were able to fl ee areas Syria against the militants of IS. The militants managed to cut force, told Iraqi television. rorists on several parts of Heet the Fallujah area, with an es- fl ed an off ensive by the Is- in the countryside of Aleppo Washington’s support for the the key supply line in a surprise CTS’s involvement will mark was thwarted...Now the whole timated 50,000 people still Tlamic State group against province...especially from Ma- alliance, which is dominated by assault early on Friday. the start of a phase of urban area is under control,” the Joint trapped inside the city proper. non-militant rebels in northern rea town and Sheikh Issa vil- the Kurdish People’s Protec- At least 61 rebel fi ghters have combat in a city where US forc- Operations Command said in a According to the Norwegian Syria into territory controlled by lage” to its west, the Britain- tion Units (YPG), has severely been killed in the fi ghting, as es in 2004 fought some of their statement. Refugee Council, around 3,000 a US-backed Kurdish-led alli- based monitoring group said. strained relations with Nato well as 47 militants, nine of toughest battles since the Viet- It said coalition aircraft tar- people have managed to escape ance, a monitor said yesterday. “The displaced arrived last ally Ankara which regards it as a them suicide bombers, the Ob- nam War. geted IS forces during the attack the Fallujah area since May 21. The off ensive against the night in areas in the west and terror group. servatory said. The militants were also under and added that pockets of mili- The biggest wave so far ar- towns of Marea and Azaz north of Aleppo province under AFP pictures of US comman- Northwest of Azaz, a senior pressure from Kurdish fi ght- tants remained. rived on Saturday night, NRC threatens to overrun the last the control of the Syrian Dem- dos wearing the YPG insignia nurse said late Saturday that a ers east of their northern Iraqi “Daesh attacked Heet to ease said, but a larger infl ux could be swathe of territory in the east of ocratic Forces,” Observatory drew condemnation on Sat- hospital supported by Doctors stronghold Mosul and from US- the pressure on their fi ghters triggered when the urban battle Aleppo province held by non- chief Rami Abdel Rahman said. urday from Turkish President Without Borders (MSF) was backed Kurdish-led fi ghters in inside Fallujah, especially fol- between CTS and IS begins in militant rebels and bring IS to An anaesthetist who fl ed Recep Tayyip Erdogan, whose closed except for emergencies. Syria. lowing the announcement that earnest. the doorstep of the Kurdish en- Marea with his family after fi ve government regards the group MSF said on Friday that Iraq’s autonomous Kurdish CTS had arrived,” the statement “Our resources in the camps clave of Afrin. relatives were killed in shelling as a puppet of the Kurdistan it was evacuating patients region yesterday announced the said. are now very strained and with At least 29 civilians have said late Saturday that just four Workers Party (PKK) which An- and staff from the hospital in launch of a pre-dawn off en- Northeast of Baghdad yester- many more expected to fl ee we been killed since IS launched medical staff remained in the kara has been battling for more Salamah town as it was just 3km sive involving 5,500 peshmerga day, police said a suicide bomber might not be able to provide the assault early on Friday, the town’s only hospital. than three decades. from the front line. fi ghters to retake an area on the killed at least seven people and enough drinking water for eve- Syrian Observatory for Human He said IS surrounded the hos- IS launched its off ensive The United Nations has road between its capital Arbil wounded 22 when he blew him- ryone,” said Nasr Mufl ahi, NRC’s Rights said. pital for 10 hours on Friday, in- against the rebel-held territory expressed concern for some and Mosul. self up in a cafe in Moqdadiyah, Iraq director. It came as the militants were juring two members of staff and that separates it from the Kurds 165,000 civilians who have “This is one of the many in an attack claimed by IS. “We expect bigger waves of under attack by the Kurdish- forcing doctors to operate on one in Afrin on Friday. been trapped by the fi ghting shaping operations expected to In northern Syria, the mili- displacement the fi ercer the led alliance in Raqa province of them without electricity after Heavy fi ghting raged early between Azaz and the closed increase pressure on ISIL (IS) in tants have launched an off ensive fi ghting gets.” further east and by the army IS cut off the hospital’s generator. Sunday on the outskirts of Ma- Turkish border.

Unity govt struggles to make impact in Libya

AFP National Accord sailed into Tripoli But confi ned to the naval base a repeatedly delayed vote of con- Tripoli under naval escort on March 30 in where it receives visiting foreign fidence in Libya’s elected parlia- defi ance of a militia alliance that has ministers, the UN-backed GNA has ment from which it takes its own been in control of the capital since yet to draw up any clear roadmap legitimacy. wo months after his dra- August 2014, after it refused to let for ending Libya’s anarchy and ex- The rival administration, which matic arrival in Libya’s capi- him fl y in. pelling militants from their strong- itself had international recogni- Ttal, Fayez al-Sarraj’s unity His arrival sparked hopes of a way holds. tion before the rise of Sarraj, con- government has won international out of the political, security and Its targets of restoring peace trols eastern Libya through mili- support but had little impact inside economic crises that have gripped and healing divisions born of five tias and units of the national army a divided country plagued by mili- Libya since the 2011 revolution that years of conflict are being stymied loyal to controversial General Kha- tants, analysts say. ousted longtime dictator Muammar by a rival government in the east lifa Haftar, a sworn opponent of the The head of the Government of Gaddafi . that refuses to cede power until GNA.

Israel holds Palestinian professor despite appeal

Israel is keeping a that he should be freed on prominent Palestinian Sunday. academic behind bars But the military authorities despite his successful have now asked for him appeal against detention, to be kept in Ofer prison, a Palestinian NGO said between Jerusalem and yesterday. Ramallah. Astrophysics professor “The (Israeli) occupation Imad Barghouti, 52, was prosecutor today accused arrested in April and prisoner Barghouti of imprisoned without trial incitement to violence and for an initial three months, called for his continued under an Israeli procedure detention after a meeting of known as administrative the intelligence services,” a detention. spokesperson for the club He is accused of inciting said. Club lawyer Jawad violence against Israel, Boulos said it was a “totally and Israeli media say he absurd” turnaround. is suspected of ties to the “The prosecutor said militant Islamist group on Thursday that after Hamas. examining the dossier that The Ramallah-based it would not be possible to Palestinian Prisoners Club file charges because of lack appealed to an Israeli of evidence,” Boulos said. military court to order his When contacted by AFP, release and at a session on the army had no immediate Thursday the court ruled comment. Gulf Times 12 Monday, May 30, 2016 AFRICA Gambia leader Sunny side up slams UN and Amnesty over probe calls

AFP in custody or during interrogations, main president “as long as God and Paris it’s really common. This time, there the people wish”, seized power in a is only one dead and they want in- bloodless coup in 1994 and was then vestigations? I will not,” said the elected in 1996. ambian President Yahya outspoken leader. Since then, he has been repeat- Jammeh has slammed UN “No one can tell me what to do in edly reelected for fi ve-years terms Gchief Ban Ki-moon and Am- my country.” and will stand again in presidential A visitor takes photographs from the scenic Ou Kaapse Weg as seasonal fog covers the city in Cape Town. nesty International for demanding Speaking to Jeune Afrique, which polls slated for December. an investigation into the death in provided AFP with the original Eng- But Amnesty secretary gen- custody of an opposition activist, lish quotes, the 51-year-old said he eral Salil Shetty blasted Jammeh’s the Jeune Afrique weekly reported was “proud” to be labelled as a “dic- “murderous” regime and slammed yesterday. tator” by western powers whom he neighbouring states for not speak- “Ban Ki-moon and Amnesty In- claimed were used to African heads ing out against it and against the hu- ternational can go to hell! Who are of state being ‘yes men’. man rights abuses in Gambia. they to demand that?” said Jammeh, If he were a dictator, he was a be- “In Gambia, things are going from who has ruled Gambia with a rod of nign one. “I am just a dictator of de- bad to worse. Journalists and civil Five UN peacekeepers iron since 1994. velopment,” he said. society are under attack,” Shetty Solo Sandeng, a senior fi gure in “When I took power, this country told a rights conference in Senegal Gambia’s main opposition United was one of the poorest countries in where he claimed the results of the Democratic Party (UDP), died in the world. This is no longer the case. upcoming presidential poll were custody in April after being arrested There is an opposition, an elected “known in advance”. die in Mali rebel ambush for participating in a rare demon- parliament, we have one of the best Shetty urged Senegalese Presi- stration calling for Jammeh’s re- public health systems,” Jammeh in- dent Macky Sall and the Economic moval, according to his party and sisted. Community of West African States AFP First reports had indicated four Togo- The Mali mission is the most dangerous Amnesty International. He also rhetorically questioned (ECOWAS), which Sall currently Bamako lese peacekeepers were killed in the mid- active deployment for UN peacekeepers At the time, a government minis- the value of double-digit growth if chairs, to speak out and “take their morning attack on a MINUSMA convoy and it has been hit by sharp internal ten- ter said he was unaware of his death. that left schools empty because of responsibilities” in doing so. some 30km west of the town of Sevare in sions since its launch in July 2013. But Jammeh struck a defi ant note. children being forced to work. Not to do so would be “shameful,” t least fi ve UN peacekeepers were Mopti region. With yesterday’s attack, at least 64 “I don’t see the point. People die Jammeh, who said he would re- he added. killed yesterday in an ambush in MINUSMA mission head Mahamat MINUSMA peacekeepers have been Acentral Mali by suspected mili- Saleh Annadif condemned the attack as killed while on active service, while an- tants, the UN and police sources said. an “odious” act of terror. other four have died in friendly fi re inci- The attack is the fi rst time the UN “I most strongly condemn this abject dents, UN fi gures show. peacekeeping mission in Mali, MINUS- crime which adds to other terrorist acts The north has seen repeated violence Opposition rally MA, has recorded fatalities in the centre targeting our peacekeepers and which since it fell under the control of Tuareg- of a country long beset by violence in its constitute crimes against humanity un- led rebels who allied with militant groups vast and desolate north. der international law,” said Annadif. linked to Al Qaeda in 2012. “According to preliminary information, Yesterday’s attack came just two days The Islamists were largely ousted by an fi ve peacekeepers were killed. Another after authorities reported fi ve Malian ongoing French-led military operation was seriously hurt and is being evacu- soldiers killed and four wounded Friday launched in January 2013, but they have ated,” MINUSMA said in a statement. when their vehicles hit a mine in the since carried out sporadic attacks on se- The UN did not immediately confi rm north and then came under sustained curity forces from desert hideouts. the nationality of the dead soldiers but a fi re. Rival armed factions and smuggling Bamako police source indicated a group Last week also saw fi ve peacekeep- networks mean the region has struggled of Togolese peacekeepers “came across ers from Chad killed and three others for stability since Mali gained independ- a mine and a terrorist attack some 50km wounded in an ambush in the northeast ence from former colonial power France out of Mopti.” by Ansar Dine militants. in 1960.

SA police deny Gordhan Roadside bomb inquiry moved to new unit kills 5 in Nigeria

Reuters Hawks spokesman Hangwani AFP Johannesburg Mulaudzi yesterday repeated this Lagos denial, and dismissed the City Press report. outh Africa’s elite Hawks “There is no investigation ive people were killed when an improvised police unit yesterday denied against the minister, the inves- explosive device exploded in northeast Ni- Sa report that an investiga- tigation is only on the spy unit at Fgeria, in a region where Boko Haram insur- tion involving Finance Minister SARS. It is not correct that the gents have operated for years, the country’s mili- Pravin Gordhan, which has helped crime intelligence unit is handling tary said yesterday. to weaken the rand, has been trans- the case,” Mulaudzi told Reuters. A rickshaw driving close to a military check- ferred to another part of the force. Gordhan has been embroiled in point on the outskirts of Biu town, Borno State, Citing an unnamed source, the the investigation and an accom- ran over the IED in the morning. City Press newspaper said the police panying political row at a time “Preliminary investigations shows that the IED crime intelligence unit had taken when South Africa faces a possible was buried long time ago undetected. It exploded over the inquiry into a surveillance downgrading of its credit rating. when the tricycle erroneously stepped on it,” Ni- body formed at the national tax Standard and Poor’s, which gerian military spokesman Sani Usman said in a agency SARS when it was run by ranks Africa’s most industrialised statement. Gordhan between 1999 and 2009. country just one step above sub- “The IED exploded instantly killing four per- The Hawks, which are respon- investment grade, is due to make sons comprising of a woman with her baby and sible for tackling organised and public its rating decision on Fri- two other male adults,” Usman said, adding that commercial crime plus serious day. a soldier injured by the blast later died in hospital. corruption, have previously said Gordhan has said rival credit He added that “the explosion would not deter South African opposition radical leftist party Economic Freedom Fighters members sing and dance during they were running the inquiry but rating agency Fitch will also an- us from seeing to the end of Boko Haram terrorists a local election campaign launch at the Esikhawini Shopping Centre, south of Durban. that Gordhan was not being per- nounce the result of its review of wherever they might be hiding through our ongo- sonally targeted. South Africa on June 8. ing clearance operations.” Buhari says government to talk to Niger Delta leaders

Reuters ing leaders in the region in addressing tors and their sponsors and bring them Abuja Niger Delta problems,” Buhari said in a to justice,” Buhari said. speech marking his fi rst year in offi ce. On Thursday, Oil Minister Em- The former military ruler also said manuel Ibe Kachikwu said an am- he Nigerian government will the government was committed to nesty programme for former militants, talk to leaders in the Delta re- a clean up of polluted areas, a major signed in 2009 to end a previous in- Tgion to address their grievances source of dissent in the Delta along surgency, needed to improve. while cracking down on militants who with widespread poverty. The scheme had funded cash ben- have staged a wave of attacks oil pipe- “I believe the way forward is to take a efi ts and job training to militants who lines there, President Muhammadu sustainable approach to address the is- have laid down their arms but has been Buhari said yesterday. sues that aff ect the Delta communities,” cut by the government by two-thirds. Local offi cials and Western allies he said without elaborating. But security Buhari has also upset former militants such as Britain had told Buhari that operations would still go on, he said. by ending contracts to protect pipelines, moving in troops to the Delta was not The army has moved reinforce- part of a drive to tackle corruption. enough to stop attacks, which have cut ments to the swamps, with soldiers on Moving in the same direction, a Nigeria’s oil output to a 20-year low. Saturday raiding for the second time a committee set up by Delta state leaders “The recent spate of attacks by mili- community that is home to a former said on Thursday that the federal gov- tants disrupting oil and power instal- militant leader linked to attacks. ernment and oil fi rms have neglected lations will not distract us from engag- “We shall apprehend the perpetra- the grievances of local communities. Gulf Times Monday, May 30, 2016 13 AMERICAS

S Carolina soaked by tropical storm

Reuters 6cm to 9cm inches of rain in central Charleston and eastern South Carolina to the Georgia border, and more farther north across southeastern North ropical Storm Bonnie was Carolina, the centre said. downgraded to a tropical Forecasters warned that the Tdepression as it came ashore storm would likely produce danger- just northeast of Charleston, South ous surf and rip currents along the Carolina, yesterday morning, US Southeast coast, a particular bringing heavy rains, minor fl ood- concern during the long Memorial ing and sustained winds of about 30 Day weekend, when swimmers and miles per hour. surfers typically fl ock to beaches. The system, the fi rst tropical Police and US Coast Guard teams storm to reach the United States were searching yesterday for a miss- this year, dumped 8cm to 12cm of ing swimmer in Carolina Beach, rain in many parts of South Caro- North Carolina, 25km south of lina and triggered fl ooding in low- Wilmington, after a report of a man lying areas and streets at high tides, in distress in the ocean about 8pm on weather forecasters said. Saturday, according to authorities. In the Beaufort area, south of In spite of the risk, dozens of surf- Charleston, 18cm to 22cm inches ers gravitated to Folly Beach near of rain fell, said Carl Barnes, a fore- Charleston over the weekend to ride caster with the National Weather the storm swell and lumpy waves. Service in Charleston. But rain has dampened Memo- “We’re not out of the woods be- rial Day weekend for thousands of cause the heavy rain could move beachgoers. back over us today if it really sits on Alli Pulley, desk clerk at The us,” he said. Tides hotel on Folly Beach, said Heavy rains are still falling in guests were staying put despite the eastern Georgia and portions of the weather and the 132-room hotel Veterans ride during the Rolling Thunder rally in Washington, DC yesterday. Rolling Thunder is an advocacy group dedicated to raising awareness for American Prisoners Carolinas, the National Hurricane was full. of War and warriors currently missing in action. Center said in its 8am advisory. “No, they’re not leaving,” she Maximum sustained winds have said. “I think they just have this fl agged to about 60kph, punctuated time off for vacation. It’s this or go by higher gusts. back home and sit down.” The storm is now moving north Thousands of visitors are in along the coast, where it is ex- Charleston for the opening week- pected to soak the coastal Carolinas end of Spoleto Festival USA, an and move off shore or dissipate after annual, three-week international moving over the North Carolina performing arts event. Outer Banks, Barnes said. Rain is expected to continue Looters hit Virginia Before a slow weakening today, through today, but most perform- the system is expected to deposit ances are indoors.

Gorilla put down after boy falls into zoo enclosure A male gorilla in the Cincinnati Zoo Harambe, so he’s gone,” he said. was killed by keepers on Saturday Two female gorillas were also civil war battle site after he dragged around a 4-year-old in the enclosure at the time of the boy who fell into the enclosure, a zoo incident. Reuters mond and the neighbouring city of Pe- breakaway Confederate states in 1864. staff this week, and the area remained an off icial said. Maynard said the boy, who was New York tersburg, targeting a fi eld where more The siege led to the surrender of Gen- active crime scene. The boy crawled through a bar- not identified, was not seriously than 1,000 Union and Confederate sol- eral Robert E Lee at Appomattox Court Unaff ected sections of the sprawling rier and fell about 3.7m into a moat injured in the fall. In a statement, diers died, the agency said. House, Virginia, ending the bloodiest park remained open to visitors, it said. surrounding the habitat, where Hara- the zoo said the boy was alert when ooters ripped up parts of Virginia’s The looters were likely to have found confl ict in US history. Bryce said the theft of battlefi eld rel- mbe, a 181kg western lowland gorilla, taken to a hospital. Petersburg National Battlefi eld in uniform buttons, buckles, bullets and “This kind of aberrant behavior is al- ics hampers the work of historians by grabbed him, Cincinnati Zoo Director Harambe was born at the Gladys Lan apparent search for relics from other small metal objects that are dif- ways disgusting but it is particularly egre- destroying archaeological clues. Thane Maynard told reporters. Porter Zoo in Brownsville, Texas, and a siege that led to the end of the Ameri- fi cult to trace, Chris Bryce, chief of in- gious as Memorial Day weekend arrives, a “Even if we recover the artifacts, we The boy was with the 17-year-old was moved to the Cincinnati Zoo in can Civil War in 1865, the National Park terpretation and visitor services at the time when we honor the memories of our lost context in which they were found,” gorilla for about 10 minutes and the 2014. Service said ahead of the Memorial Day battlefi eld, told Reuters on Saturday. friends and family,” said Lewis Rogers, su- he said. zoo’s dangerous animal response Western lowland gorillas are clas- weekend. The blockade, led by General Ul- perintendent of Petersburg National Bat- Looting of such sites is a federal team deemed the situation life- sified as an endangered species, and Thieves dug a series of small pits ysses S Grant, cut off supply lines to tlefi eld, in the statement posted on Friday. crime carrying a penalty of up to two threatening, he said. “The choice Maynard said the zoo had hoped to looking for artefacts from the Union Richmond after the Union commander Numerous excavations in parts of years in prison and a $20,000 fi ne, the was made to put down, or shoot, use Harambe for breeding. Army’s nine-month blockade of Rich- failed to capture the capital city of the the 2,700-acre park were discovered by service said. ‘Big data’ could be In plane sight huge in 2016 vote

AFP erable work to build a supporter “We’ve had four years now and Washington base. we think we are able to develop “Now that the Trump cam- a persuasion model with more paign wants to raise funds from precision.” ig data” could play a huge the public they are certainly at a Contacting the most persuad- role in the 2016 US elec- disadvantage by not having spent able voters is critical for cam- Btion, even if Donald Trump the past year building up a big paigns. doesn’t think so. database,” Cohen said. Reaching out to those opposed Trump, who sailed through The 2016 campaign could see may backfi re by making them the Republican primaries using more sophisticated data eff orts even more committed to an op- unconventional campaign rallies thanks to advances in computing ponent. and Twitter messages, has indi- technology. TargetSmart, which works cated that he sees little use for Campaigns have been speed- with the Democratic party and popular data analytics tools to ing up how they collect and ana- political action groups, said it has help target specifi c voters. lyse data to form the so-called begun working with Facebook But analysts say he may be at a predictive models that can help data that eliminates the need for disadvantage in the general elec- determine tactics and strategy. tracking cookies. tion if he stays on that course. Consulting fi rms boast of The consultancy has matched “In the primaries, he was only having as much as 1,500 “data 191 mn voter fi le records to Fa- looking for Republican voters, points” or bits of information cebook users to be able to deliver and in the general he needs all about voters, and dozens of targeted messages to people on voters,” said Alan Rosenblatt, a “voter models” that categorise whatever device they are using, digital political strategist. individuals for targeted mes- said Bonier. “Unless he starts to be more sages. Bonier said this is more sophisticated in how he targets The data ranges from voter accurate than using track- his message, he’s not going to registration databases to public ing cookies because it is based have a good sense of where he’s records on hunting or fi shing li- on user log-ins regardless of the going to win and not win and censes or gun ownership, to on- device. The wreckage of a vintage P-47 Thunderbolt airplane that crashed in the Hudson River sits on a barge in New York City on Saturday. where he should put his resourc- line “cookies” or small programs Some Republican candidates es.” which track Web browsing and have used predictive models Trump’s rise appeared to take purchase activity. from a fi rm called Cambridge the wind out of the sails of data “This is ‘Moneyball’ for poli- Analytica, which off ers profi les crunchers and the techniques tics - it’s about running smarter, of voters for so-called behav- that helped the 2012 re-election more effi cient campaigns, and ioural microtargeting. campaign of President Barack the more data you have, the more Chris Wilson, a consultant Trudeau defends assisted suicide bill as deadline nears Obama. eff ective you can be,” said Tom for Republican Ted Cruz’s cam- Trump is defying the tradi- Bonier, chief executive of Target- paign which used the Cambridge tional wisdom in both political Smart, a political consultancy, scores, argued that using this Reuters or disabilities to end their lives cused on and I’m confi dent that preme Court ruling comes into parties, which have been ramp- referring to the book and sub- data is positive for the democrat- Winnipeg with a medical professional’s we got that balance right.” eff ect, allowing assisted dying ing up the way they use data to sequent hit movie using data to ic process. help, but stopped short of ex- The Supreme Court of Canada for those with a “grievous and ir- help candidates and their back- build a winning baseball team. “You have so many people who tending the right to minors and overturned a ban on medical- remediable” medical condition. ers personalise their pitch to Because the campaigns can’t have become disenfranchised bill legalising medical- the mentally ill. assisted suicide last year and gave Some Canadians who should raise funds and get out the vote reach everyone, they want to fi nd because they do not believe the ly-assisted suicide in “There are people who think the new government until June have access to medically-assist- on election day. the most “persuadable” people, political system speaks to them,” ACanada strikes the right we should have gone further 6 to come up with a law, adding ed death may not get it if doctors Jordan Cohen at the digital according to specially designed Wilson told a recent Washington balance between defending with this bill, there are people Canada to the handful of Western conclude there isn’t legal pro- marketing fi rm Fluent, which formulas or algorithms. forum. fundamental freedoms and pro- who think we already went too countries that allow the practice. tection for them, while others works with candidates, said the “In 2012 for the fi rst time we “Once we are able to under- tecting against abuses, Prime far,” Trudeau told reporters at a Trudeau said he expected Par- may gain access to it when they Trump campaign “has exhibited were able to successfully model stand what an individual voter Minister Justin Trudeau said on Liberal convention in Winnipeg. liament to meet that deadline. should not, he said. the least amount of digital so- persuadability,” said Dan Por- cares about and we are able to Saturday, predicting confusion “Making this fi rst step a re- He added, however, that fail- Trudeau’s Liberals hold a ma- phistication or interest” and that ter, a member of the Obama data talk to them about that issue, if it is not approved. sponsible, prudent one that ing to do so could lead to uneven jority of seats in Canada’s House this could hurt his eff orts. team who co-founded BlueLabs, it creates a level of connection The draft legislation, intro- gets the balance right between access to assisted dying across of Commons, but not in the Cohen said e-mail fundrais- a consulting fi rm now working between the voter and the can- duced by Trudeau’s Liberal gov- protecting vulnerable Canadi- Canada. Senate. ing, which has become a staple with the Hillary Clinton cam- didate, and that is what politics ernment in April, would allow ans and defending rights and If new legislation is not in Bills must pass both chambers for candidates, requires consid- paign. should be about.” people with incurable illnesses freedoms is what we have fo- place by June 6, last year’s Su- on their way to becoming law. Gulf Times 14 Monday, May 30, 2016 ASEAN

Fourth body found after speedboat accident

AFP Bangkok

he body of a British man missing for four days af- Tter a tourist speedboat crashed in southern Thailand was found yesterday on rocks close to where the boat went down, bringing the death toll to four. The vessel, which was carry- ing 32 tourists plus four crew, capsized Thursday afternoon after it was slammed by a wave near a rocky stretch of coast on Koh Samui, a popular island in the Gulf of Thailand. The accident threw all of the passengers overboard, trapping some under the ship’s hull. The bodies of three women – from the United Kingdom, Ger- many and Hong Kong – were soon located while rescuers battled rough seas to search for 46-year-old Briton, Jason Par- Supporters of the Wat Dhammakaya Buddhist temple lining the streets of the temple complex in support of their abbot, Phra Dhammachayo (not pictured) in Bangkok. nell. “Rescue workers found his body at 9:25am near the acci- dent site,” said Lieutenant Gen- eral Ukhcarawath Sithanaubol. “His body was trapped among the rock. Rescue workers are bringing his body ashore by rub- ber boat now and we have called Thai monks wage PR war off the search operation,” he added. Parnell was travelling with his wife who survived the accident, police said. The second British tourist killed, Monica Cozma, was cele- to defend scandal-hit abbot brating her honeymoon with her husband of three-weeks, who AFP part to tech-savvy devotees the money, calling the charges broadcasts across four conti- straight rows - also provides an with police now renewing the survived, Britain’s Daily Mail Pathum Thani who have cultivated a fervent “groundless and unconscion- nents and airs everything from antidote to the alienation of the case as part of the ruling junta’s newspaper reported. following, raised tens of mil- able”. A stalemate has set in. meditation teachings to car- modern age, she adds. wider crackdown on Thaksin al- The two other victims were lions of dollars and set up out- The temple claims the toons and daily news. And the temple’s early em- lies. The temple denies any po- named by Thai offi cials as n embezzlement charge posts in dozens of countries 72-year-old is too sick to meet “And a monk’s salary is only brace of technology has played a litical affi liations. 29-year-old German Kafo Fra- against a powerful Bud- across the globe. with offi cers, and police do not two meals a day”, he adds with key role in building its sweeping The case against the abbot neiska and 30-year-old Hong Adhist abbot has un- Phra Pasura, the monk want to confront him on the a smile. global presence, with overseas has also gained momentum Kong national Trunk Laidka. leashed his super-rich temple’s in charge of the temple’s temple grounds, fearing clashes Dhammakaya’s rise comes centres scattered across Asia, ahead of a protracted change of The boats that ferry tour- PR machine, with Twitter-us- 60-member International Af- with devotees. as mainstream monasteries in several US states and nearly a leadership in Thailand’s ruling ists around Thailand’s popular ing Thai monks orchestrating fairs Department, is part of the Monks and temple staff have Thailand struggle to stay rel- dozen European countries. council of Buddhist clerics, a beaches are notoriously reckless his defence over a scandal that fi ne-tuned public relations op- been vigorously live-tweeting evant to younger generations “Dhammakaya has been very body known as the sangha. and life vests are often in short has opened a bitter rupture at eration that is now fi ring on all the drama, churning out de- swept up in the rapid economic active, very smart, very modern The position of Supreme Pa- supply. the heart of the nation’s faith. cylinders as it seeks to quash the tailed press releases and fact development that has frayed in its way of using technology to triarch — or top monk — has Speedboats are also often “There has never been a latest scandal to dog the temple sheets, and making use of their traditional community net- grow a support base,” Sanitsuda been left open for years and overcrowded as companies try temple of this size in Thai his- since its founding in 1970. slick 24-hour TV channel to works and ways of life. said. While much of the criti- mainstream Buddhists are to squeeze as much profi t from tory,” orange-robed Phra Pasura Dhammakaya’s modern, and bat back the allegations against They have also been rocked cism has focused on the tem- fearful that Dhammakaya is each trip. Dantamano says as he gestures some say “cultish”, approach to their revered abbot. by a series of their own contro- ple’s teachings and assets, the poised to take over the coun- Police have charged the Thai towards Dhammakaya tem- Buddhism riles traditionalists, The temple boasts a TV stu- versies featuring badly behaved abbot’s embezzlement scandal cil and alter the religion for captain who drove the tour ple’s pristine, 1,000-acre com- with critics accusing the clergy dio and editing bays inside its monks riding in private jets and is also tangled up in Thailand’s good. A rapprochement ap- boat with negligence leading pound north of Bangkok where of peddling a pay-your-way to two-storey media department, disgracing the faith with sex and treacherous politics. peared close this week when to deaths and injuries, a crime peacocks roam the lawns and nirvana scheme. with other offi ces adorned with drug scandals. Police have attempted to nab Phra Dhammachayo agreed to that carries up to 10 years in white-clad devotees meditate. The temple’s abbot Phra signs such as “Corporate Image Sanitsuda Ekachai, who him on similar grounds be- meet at the police station near prison. But the aff able monk’s com- Dhammachayo, venerated as Division,” and “Printed Media writes on religion in Thailand, fore, but the case was dropped the temple to discuss the arrest Although tourism remains a ments apply to more than the a saint among his followers, Section.” said Dhammakaya off ers an a decade ago under ex-premier warrant against him. key source of income for Thai- temple’s enormous, futuris- is wanted by police for alleg- Phra Pasura, a former fl ight appealing alternative to urban Thaksin Shinawatra, an exiled But the parley was cancelled land, the kingdom’s reputation tic architecture - including a edly accepting embezzled funds attendant with a degree in in- Thais by mixing “old beliefs and but still infl uential telecoms at the last minute after the ab- as the “Land of Smiles” has building that famously resem- worth 1.2 bn baht ($33mn) from ternational relations, says the materialistic values”. tycoon at the centre of the king- bot fainted on his way to the car. suff ered in recent years amid a bles a gigantic UFO. the owner of a co-operative overheads are minimal. Its emphasis on order and dom’s political schism. Authorities retreated and are string of deadly bus and boat Dhammakaya is also regarded bank who was jailed in March. “Much of the animation and community - on display dur- That history has fanned spec- now plotting their next move as accidents, high profi le crimes as the wealthiest in Buddhist- The temple has denied its editing is done by monks,” he ing stunning mass gatherings of ulation that Thaksin and the the game — and the media cov- against foreigners and a decade majority Thailand, thanks in abbot conspired to launder says of the TV channel, which followers meditating in ruler- wealthy temple are in league, erage —continue. of political instability. Indonesia’s bid to probe massacres sparks backlash

AFP lead Indonesia with an iron fi st said some in the military “would The shop owner insisted it was Jakarta for three decades. like to revive the communist a picture from the album cover of During his rule, the massacres threat because that eff ectively a German metal band. were presented as necessary to justifi es the actions that were There have been other reports ndonesian activist Ad- rid the country of communism taken 50 years ago”. from across the country of peo- lun Fiqri could be jailed for — Indonesia had the world’s Those caught up in the back- ple being detained for wearing Iwearing a T-shirt allegedly third-biggest communist party lash potentially face tough pun- T-shirts with hammer and sickle bearing a leftist logo, one of before the killings. ishments, as spreading com- images, and police stopped the many caught up in a backlash Public debate about the kill- munist ideology is punishable screening of a documentary against eff orts to shine a light ings was taboo, and no one was by up to 12 years in jail. This in- about Buru Island where sus- on military-backed, anti-com- ever held to account. cludes activist Fiqri, 20, who pected communist sympathisers munist massacres half a century Since Suharto’s 1998 down- was arrested earlier this month were once held prisoner. ago. fall and Indonesia’s transforma- on the eastern island of Ternate Security forces have been Police and the military have in tion into a freewheeling democ- for wearing a T-shirt that had a cracking down on attempts to recent weeks rounded up people racy, there have been growing picture of a coff ee cup and the hold public discussions about for allegedly spreading commu- calls to re-examine one of the letters “PKI” on it, which au- the killings since last year, as the nism - which remains outlawed worst mass killings of the 20th thorities claim was a reference to country marked the 50th anni- in Indonesia - through logos on century, and even for an offi cial the country’s former communist versary of the start of the massa- T-shirts. apology. party. cres, but the current wave of ar- They have also seized books Last month, the govern- Police seized more T-shirts rests for promoting communist about communism and stopped ment took steps towards com- and books when they arrested ideology only began in recent a fi lm screening that touched on ing to terms with the episode by Fiqri and other activists from a weeks. the subject. backing for the fi rst time public group that promotes indigenous Authorities have backed the It came after the government discussions into the killings — people’s rights. crackdown, with the interior last month took timid steps to- attended by survivors and mem- Fiqri and one other activist are ministry noting a “growing phe- wards making peace with one bers of the military — and they still under investigation. nomenon” of communism. of the nation’s darkest chapters announced they would investi- “I think this is ridiculous,” But for many of Indonesia’s — the killing of at least 500,000 gate sites that activists say are Fiqri, who is not currently in younger generation, who are people in anti-communist mas- mass graves. custody, said. more willing to question the old sacres in 1965-66, conducted by But the moves swiftly sparked “It is silly that reading books narrative about the communist local groups with military sup- a backlash from the military and to gain knowledge and wearing killings, the security forces are port. police. File photo shows an anti-communism group burn a symbol during a rally in Bandung, West Java. T-shirts can get you arrested.” going over the top. The killings began after Gen- Conservative elements of the In another case, police arrest- “They are showing excessive eral Suharto put down a coup security forces began speaking ing the 1960s massacres. a recent speech to hundreds of communist threat as their role ed and questioned a Jakarta shop paranoia,” said Renno Krisna, a attempt blamed on commu- out against a supposed com- “The leftist movement is retired generals, according to the in the killings comes under scru- owner over the T-shirts he was 34-year-old music teacher.”It’s nists. munist resurgence, despite the currently surging in this coun- Jakarta Post newspaper. tiny. selling that bore a supposedly impossible that communism He rose to power on the back fact the Indonesian Communist try,” hardline Defence Minister Observers believe the military Paul Rowland, an independent communist image of a hammer will make a comeback in Indo- of the bloodshed, and went on to Party (PKI) was wiped out dur- Ryamizard Ryacudu warned in is whipping up the spectre of a Jakarta-based political analyst, and sickle. nesia.” Gulf Times Monday, May 30, 2016 15 EAST ASIA China fi rm Bride’s boat apologises for racist cleaner ad

AFP “For the harm caused to the African Beijing people because of the spread of the ad- vert and the over-amplifi cation by the media, we express our apology, “ the Chinese detergent maker has company said in a statement on an offi - apologised for an advertisement cial social media account. Awhich shows a black man stuff ed “We sincerely hope the public and the into a washing machine and transformed media will not over-read it,” the state- into a fair-skinned Asian, just a day after ment added. dismissing critics as too sensitive. “We express regret that the ad has The advertisement by the Shanghai caused a controversy, but we will not A Japanese bride wearing a pure white kimono rides a boat with her parents for her wedding in Itako city, some 80km northeast of Tokyo as part of the Leishang Cosmetics company provoked shun responsibility for controversial annual Ayame (iris) flower festival. Yomeiri-fune (a boat escorting a bride) and local Japanese entertainment is performed during the festival period. an uproar on US news websites, with content.” commentators citing it as an example of The fi rm said in the statement posted racist attitudes towards black people in late Saturday it had stopped airing the China. advertisement and deleted links to it. Its commercial for the “Qiaobi” brand A spokesman had earlier told China’s shows a black man whistling and wink- Global Times newspaper that the issue ing at a young Chinese woman, who calls of racism had not crossed the company’s him over, puts a detergent packet into his mind and “the foreign media might be 60% of Japanese assemblywomen mouth and forces him head-fi rst into a too sensitive about the ad”. washing machine. The advertisement attracted little at- She sits on the lid while the man shrieks. tention in China, which has historically Moments later an Asian man emerges in experienced almost no settlement by clean clothes and the woman grins. people of African descent. sexually harassed, fi nds survey The advert has been viewed more than Traditional attitudes prizing white seven mn times on YouTube in the past skin in women have contributed to bias three days. against dark-skinned people. DPA agency showed yesterday. The survey kissed them, some respondents told “society in which all women shine.” Tokyo reported 59.2% of the assemblywom- the Japanese new agency. Japan marks the 70th anniversary en said they had unpleasant experi- Some assemblywomen had their of women’s suff rage this year. How- ences due to “words and deeds stem- breasts and bottom touched by vot- ever, women held only 9.8% of the bout 60% of assemblywomen ming from misogyny,” while 40.8% ers at parties and were forced to pour prefectural assembly seats as of the in Japan said they had been said they had no such experiences. drinks for them in exchange for their end of 2015, the government said. Asexually harassed by voters, Male assemblymen intruded into votes, the report added. The 2015 Global Gender Gap report male colleagues and government offi - their female colleagues’ room at ho- Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has said by World Economic Forum showed Ja- cials, a poll conducted by Kyodo News tels during study tours and forcibly his government is working to create a pan ranked 101st of the 145 countries.

Missing boy was left in mountains as a punishment

he parents of a seven- year-old Japanese Tboy missing in the mountains confessed yes- South Korea’s President Park Geun-Hye inspects a guard of honour of the Uganda terday they had left him as a People’s Defence Force (UPDF) at State House in Entebbe yesterday. punishment and he did not get lost during a hike as fi rst claimed, police said. More than 150 rescu- ers and police offi cers were Uganda to halt military and searching for a second day in mountains on the north- ern main island of Hokkaido security ties with N Korea after Yamato Tanooka went missing on Saturday, a po- lice spokesman said. AFP growing diplomatic pressure in the af- His parents originally told Kampala termath of its January nuclear test and a police Yamato got lost while space rocket launch in February, which the family were out walk- led to a United Nations Security Coun- ing in the area, a habitat of ONE SMOKER. gandan President Yoweri Musev- cil resolution in March tightening sanc- bears, to pick wild vegeta- eni said his country would halt tions against Pyongyang. bles. Usecurity and military coopera- “During the summit, Uganda’s Presi- But the parents later ad- tion with North Korea, a South Korean dent Museveni...said he had ordered (of- mitted they had lied, he said. offi cial said yesterday following a sum- fi cials) to faithfully enforce the UN Secu- “The parents left the boy TWO PATIENTS. mit in Kampala between Museveni and rity Council resolution including halting in the mountains as a pun- South Korean President Park Geun-Hye. of its security, military and police coop- ishment,” the spokesman Uganda hosted 45 North Koreans pro- eration with North Korea,” Jeong Yeon- said.”They said they went viding police training as recently as De- guk, a spokesman for Park, told reporters back to the site immediately cember, according to a February report in the Ugandan capital, according to the but the boy was no longer by a United Nations panel of experts. presidential Blue House in Seoul. there.” Another report by the panel last year Uganda abstained from voting on all The father told a TV Asahi said North Koreans trained Ugandan po- nine UN General Assembly resolutions reporter he did not dare ad- lice on the use of AK-47s and pistols. on North Korean human rights for which mit the truth while request- Isolated North Korea has come under votes were counted since 2005. ing a search. TOBACCO KILLS Pro-China rally

Pro-China demonstrators hold placards in a counter-protest against a pro-democracy rally ahead of the anniversary of the June 4, 1989, Tiananmen Square crackdown, in Hong Kong. Issued in Public Interest by GULF TIMES Gulf Times 16 Monday, May 30, 2016 BRITAIN Legal high ban predicted to exacerbate crisis on streets

Guardian News and Media number of people withdrawing ry Council on the Misuse of Drugs, to generically as spice, they were Psychoactive Substances Act to be fering novel psychoactive sub- spice user Wesley Dove said: London in the next week or two because said the government’s strategy sold as synthetic cannabinoids. repealed, pointed to the example stances for sale, although they had “We’re concerned that the un- of the reduced availability of the was “pathologically negative and But many contained other sub- of the Netherlands, arguing that not yet managed to completely fi ll regulated black market has moved drugs, which could previously thoughtless” and “not based on stances, such as crystal meth, new drugs mimicking cannabis the gap left by the ban. in already. Dealers of class A drugs he outlawing of legal highs be bought in head shops and reducing harm, but on reducing which have side eff ects including were almost non-existent because Nine people have collapsed in are starting to take over the legal risks creating a new crisis some newsagents for about £5 a use”. psychosis and mood disturbances. coff ee shops could sell cannabis. Manchester in the past few days highs market. But until their sup- Ton the streets, experts and packet. “People who work in head Experts say they can cause comas Steve Rolles, a senior policy after taking the drugs. Drug users ply chains are established, some users have warned. In Manchester, less than 24 shops aren’t interested in killing and seizures and lead to death. analyst at the foundation, said: sleeping rough in the city centre people who sold these drugs when Many users of the drugs, novel hours after the ban came into ef- people. They want people to come Nutt said he and other scien- “In the Netherlands, there is no claimed the people collapsed after they were legal, have started mak- psychoactive substances (NPSs), fect on Thursday, there were signs back … the black market doesn’t tists believed fi ve people died from market for synthetic cannabis, taking a locally made version of ing their own versions.” are young and homeless and they that black market dealers had al- care about anything other than legal highs last year, but far more none. No one buys it, because why the drug, sold as Annihilation and The Home Offi ce said 444 peo- say that withdrawing makes them ready moved in to take over the making a profi t,” he said. deaths had resulted from drugs would you if you can buy canna- manufactured by one of the city’s ple in the UK had died from tak- feel violent and out of control. lucrative market for the drugs. With brand names such as An- that were already illegal. bis?” head shops, which closed after the ing legal highs since 2010, having The experts said there would David Nutt, who formerly nihilation, Clockwork Orange and The Transform Drug Policy Users in Manchester said crack ban came in. increased from 31 in 2010 to 144 in be a signifi cant increase in the chaired the government’s Adviso- Black Mamba, but often referred Foundation, which called for the and heroin dealers were now of- Homeless activist and former 2014.

Ex-model helps turn Blair hints derelict plot into garden at refusal to

London Evening Standard London accept Chilcot odel-turned-lingerie tycoon Caprice Bourret Mhas revealed how she has spent £120,000 transforming a derelict patch of parkland near her Notting Hill home into an idyllic community garden. Iraq verdict The Californian-born busi- nesswoman, who has lived in Lon- Guardian News and Media be important when it does hap- type of populist policymaking don for more than 20 years, said London pen is that we have then a full left or right.” the six-month project had been debate,” Blair said. “And I look This was widely taken as a ref- one of the most rewarding of her forward to participating in that. erence to Corbyn because Blair career. ony Blair has suggested Make no mistake about that. It was responding to a question that Bourret, 44, said: “In the past that he will refuse to ac- is really important we do debate specifi cally mentioned him. it was all about ‘me me me’… now Tcept the verdict of the these issues.” Blair said he was “not being it’s all about my children and my Chilcot inquiry if it accuses him Blair may not have seen the disloyal” to the current Labour community.” of committing Britain to invad- full report, but it is understood leader and, although he said he She was inspired after regularly ing Iraq before he told parliament that he has seen the key passages was waiting to see what policies walking past gardens, which runs and the public. criticising his conduct, as part of Corbyn produced, he insisted: “I alongside the Grand Union Canal In an interview on the BBC’s the Maxwellisation process that don’t disrespect him as a person, in the shadow of brutalist land- Andrew Marr Show yesterday, allows people facing criticism or his views at all.” mark Trellick Tower, with her two- the former prime minister said from a report like this to see and He also said he would be back- year-old sons Jax and Jett. he did not think anyone could say respond to its draft conclusions. ing Labour at the general election She contacted the community he did not make his position clear The Sunday Times recently even if Corbyn remained leader. association that oversees the park ahead of the 2003 war that led to quoted an unnamed source with “I’ll always tell people to vote La- and off ered help with money and the toppling of Saddam Hussain. knowledge of the report saying bour because I’m Labour. That’s design to improve a rundown sec- Sir John Chilcot is due to pub- that Blair “won’t be let off the just the way I am,” he said. tion. “The area was just mounds lish his long-awaited report into hook” over claims that he told In his Marr interview, Blair also of rubbish and rats, it was such a the war on July 6. It is expected Bush he would support an inva- dismissed claims that his wealth waste,” she said. to be highly critical of Blair and sion of Iraq in 2002, a full year and globetrotting lifestyle meant Six months on and the strip many other political and military before the decision was publicly he was now out of touch with the of land — the size of two tennis fi gures. confi rmed. The Chilcot report is views of people who used to sup- courts — has been transformed, During the inquiry hearings expected to be especially damn- port him. with 40 bespoke bird boxes, a per- there was particular focus on evi- ing about the British and Ameri- “What I say to that is, if you are gola, park benches and an array of dence suggesting Blair had given can failure to prepare for the af- reading stuff in the press about shrubs and fl owers. a fi rm commitment to back presi- termath of the invasion, which what I do nowadays, don’t read She said: “When you see the dent George W Bush’s decision to triggered years of violent sectar- it or believe it. Go and look at my before and after photographs you invade while he was publicly say- ian confl ict and virtual civil war. website and you’ll see what I ac- see how much work and pride the ing a fi nal decision had not yet In his Marr interview Blair also tually do,” he said. community workers, my workers been taken. denied claims that remarks he “I spend 80% of my time on un- and myself put into it. My boys too Asked if he would accept made in an interview on Satur- paid work. I have just literally spent — they love planting. They’d say Chilcot’s conclusions, Blair told day about how it would be “very weeks in the Middle East on the ‘mommy, mommy fl ower’ and ‘I’d Marr: “It is hard to say that when dangerous” if a leftwing populist Middle East peace process. I have say OK sweetie put it there, not on I haven’t seen it.” He went on: took power were aimed at Jeremy two foundations. I employ around the cement, put it on the soil’. “But I think when you go back Corbyn. 200 people. I have to raise the Meanwhile Gardens cover four and you look at what was said, I “I wasn’t talking about Cor- money and make acres in total and provides services don’t think anyone can seriously byn, by the way. I was talk- the money for all including volunteering work and dispute that I was making it very ing about the general populism of them. What help gaining qualifi cations. Chan- clear what my position was.” there is in the world today,” he we actually do drika Dalpat, project manager of Blair also said that when the claimed. is very good and Meanwhile Gardens Community report comes out, he would be In a BBC interview broadcast exciting work Association, said: “The courtyard taking to the airwaves to defend on Saturday Blair had said: “It around the world, area was quite rundown. We only himself rather than going to would be a very dangerous ex- but you won’t read have a handful of staff and part of ground. periment for a major western a bit of it their role is to support volunteers.” Caprice at work in the garden which she helped transform. “By the way, the thing that will country to get gripped by this here.” Music fans ‘could be Sprucing up the hut Heroic Londoners save man’s life next terror attack target’ London Evening Standard saved his life and he’s lucky London they were in the area.” Zhang said he was watch- Guardian News and Media Glastonbury, the world’s largest he had launched a review of the ing television when he heard London music festival, is expected to draw capital’s ability to tackle a major eroic Londoners screams outside. When he about 135,000 people to Worthy terrorist incident that will inves- rushed to the aid of a went to investigate he saw Farm in Somerset next month, tigate how emergency services Hyoung man who was scenes like a “Hollywood usic fans and nightclub- with many more expected to fi ll would cope if extremists launched shot twice while sitting in movie” where the victim bers could be the target parks and green spaces for music simultaneous attacks, such as his car. was bleeding on the pave- Mof the next major terror- events throughout the summer. those that hit Paris last year. The victim was hit in the ment. ist attack in Britain, a top counter- But after the attacks in Paris But elsewhere in the country, chest and arm but survived He said people rushed out terrorism offi cer has warned ahead last November, where terrorists particularly in rural areas that thanks to the actions of pas- of their houses to help and of the country’s festival season. attacked revellers on the streets host some of the country’s larg- sers-by after the shooting on stayed with the victim until Music executives were invited and in a concert venue and at- est summer festivals, forces are Armitage Road, Greenwich. emergency services arrived alongside Premier League football tempted to bomb the Stade de warning they could be “sitting Three people treated him about five minutes later. bosses to a recent anti-terrorism France, Basu warned that crowd- ducks” in the face of a terrorist before they were joined by He added: “It’s scary for briefi ng at Wembley stadium to ed entertainment events were a attack as they wait for armed of- two doctors who happened me, I think London should hear the warning from Neil Basu, priority for police. fi cers to arrive from as far as 70 to be passing. be much safer, this shoot- deputy assistant commissioner “These people are perfectly miles away. The victim was said to be ing should never have hap- with the Metropolitan police, who happy to target civilians with the Meanwhile, the government’s critical but stable in hospi- pened. is in charge of the country’s pro- maximum terror impact,” he said. overall counter-extremism strat- tal in a non-life threatening “This neighbourhood has tective security. “Crowded places were always a egy has been mired in contro- condition. always been peaceful and Many stadiums already have concern for us, but now they are versy after it was suggested that Witnesses praised those friendly and this was noth- strict security measures in place to right at the top of the agenda.” it could actually fuel terrorism who came to the man’s aid, ing like what you see every protect against the risk of terrorist Stadiums and music events by alienating communities. A saying he owes them his life. day, this was gunshots, it attacks. But, Basu said in an inter- were particularly vulnerable due counter-extremism bill unveiled John Zhang, 42, said: was like a Hollywood movie.” view with the Sunday Times, there to the high concentrations of in the Queen’s Speech has been “People were running out A Met Police spokesman were concerns over the risk to the people, but music festivals were criticised for failing to defi ne onto the street to help him. said an investigation into night-time economy. particularly hard to control and extremism, while the police lead Two doctors happened to the shooting was under way. “I’d want to see the owners and secure because of their larger pe- on anti-radicalisation has said be walking down the street No arrests have been made. event managers taking the same rimeters, Basu said. government plans risk turning A couple paint their beach hut on the seafront in with all their medical kit. Witnesses or anyone with kind of security precautions,” he Sadiq Khan, the mayor of Lon- British offi cers into a “thought Broadstairs yesterday. They did an amazing job, I any information can contact was quoted as saying. don, announced on Friday that police”. think they’re the ones that police. Gulf Times Monday, May 30, 2016 17 BRITAIN/IRELAND

Academy trust accused of discriminating against disabled pupils

Guardian News and Media of children with special needs Bailey said that allowing the upon limited resources by the ex- pils attending Broadoak would good GCSEs – and then put chil- children with special educa- London who are due to start at Ashton on Dean Trust to go ahead with the isting very large cohort of SEND mean the pupils with spe- dren like my son in a less high- tional needs and non-disabled Mersey school in September that, plans would give a green light to (special educational needs and cial needs could be taught in achieving school.” children. because of “limited resources”, all academy trusts across Eng- disabilities) pupils, Ashton on smaller class sizes. Whereas Broadoak school is “As you will be aware, there are n academy trust has been their children will attend lessons land to move children between Mersey school has reached its ca- Deborah Key, one of the par- rated “good” by Ofsted, Ashton often signifi cant social and edu- accused of segregating at the undersubscribed Broadoak their schools without consulting pacity in delivery of SEND provi- ents to receive the letter, said she on Mersey received an “out- cational benefi ts for all children Adisabled pupils after an- school in the less affl uent area of parents. She said parents were sion and therefore having to con- is determined that her 11-year- standing” rating in its most re- if those with special educational nouncing that it would bus chil- Partington, six miles away. concerned that their children sider alternative options for this old son, Samuel, who has autism, cent inspection. needs and those without study dren with special educational Justine Bailey, director of the would be identifi ed as diff erent in future.” will go to Ashton on Mersey. Kate Green, the MP for Stret- together for some, or possibly needs and disabilities from a Traff ord Parents Forum, said par- if they were forced to board a He reassured parents that “They want him to go from an ford and Urmston and shadow all, of their learning,” she wrote. well-performing school to a ents were angered by the move. special bus to travel between the their child would still be on outstanding school with years minister for women and equali- “And of course parents will have worse school because of limited “Many of the children want to go sites. the roll at his school and that of experience with children like ties, has written to the Educa- a good understanding of what resources. to Ashton. They don’t want to go In the letter sent to parents, the school would continue to Samuel to one where they don’t,” tion Secretary, Nicky Morgan, would be best for their children The Dean Trust, which runs anywhere else. Their friends go the headteacher of Ashton on have responsibility for their she said. “It’s discriminatory. to ask what guidance the de- – yet their views do not appear schools in Traff ord, Cheshire and there, their brothers and sisters Mersey school, Aidan Moloney, education. Moloney argued They want to keep all the clever partment for education gives to have been sought in advance of Liverpool, has informed parents go there,” she said. wrote: “Due to pressure placed that the lower number of pu- children at Ashton – getting very academies about co-educating the proposals.” 19 migrants rescued from boat in Channel

AFP by boat from France in February London were rescued just in time after their vessel took on water and was close to capsizing. he British coastguard Rescuers were only alerted af- yesterday said it had res- ter one of the migrants made it Tcued 19 migrants from back to the beach at Sangatte in the Channel after their infl atable northern France before dawn. boat began to take on water. Offi cials warned last month “The rhib (rigid-hulled in- that migrants from the Jungle fl atable boat), with 19 people camp in Calais were stepping up on board was located at 2am attempts to reach Britain with (0100GMT) and the incident summer on its way, with a sharp handed over to Border Force,” it increase in migrant attempts to said in a statement. stow away in the back of lorries. Thousands of people have David Monk, leader of the Irish Prime Minister Enda Kenny poses with a poster during a pro-Europe event called ‘Irish4Europe’ in Ruislip, northwest London, yesterday. Irish4Europe is a civic campaign been massed in northern France Shepway Conservative local to secure Britain’s future in the European Union. Enda Kenny joined activists to support the campaign and raise awareness that Irish citizens living in the UK can vote in the EU for months as they try to reach authority near Dover, said that referendum on June 23, 2016. Britain where they believe they boosted surveillance measures will have a better chance of fi nd- would identify most unauthor- ing employment, according to ised crossing attempts. French and British charities. “I am pretty sure our security Calais coastguard organisa- is good. I cannot recall a previous tion SNSM assisted in the rescue incident but this should act as a operation, according to its presi- warning to the authorities to be dent Bernard Barron. even more vigilant,” he said. “We were called for help... to Meanwhile, Medecins San search between Calais and Dover Frontieres and the UN Refugee Tory challenge to PM for a boat carrying about twenty agency said at least 700 mi- people,” he said. grants may have died at sea this Helicopters from England and past week in the busiest week of France took part in the search. migrant crossings from Libya to- The passengers were taken to wards Italy this year. the nearby port of Dover to be About 14,000 have been res- interviewed by Border Force of- cued since Monday amid calm fi cers, the Home Offi ce said. seas, and there have been at least over immigration “The castaways, who were mi- three confi rmed instances of grants, called their families, who boats sinking. But the number of Reuters said “a failure” to curb migra- promised that annual net immi- Those campaigning to stay Earlier yesterday, a poll then alerted the authorities and dead can only be estimated based London tion was “corrosive of public gration could be cut to the tens in the European Union said the suggested that nine out of 10 rescue missions were triggered on survivor testimony, which is trust in politics”. of thousands. “This promise is “Leave” campaign was strug- of Britain’s top economists on both sides of the Channel,” still being collected. Cameron is leading a campaign plainly not achievable as long gling after losing the argument believed the economy would said Barron. “We will never know exact num- wo leading members of to persuade voters to keep Britain as the UK is a member of the EU on the economy and challenged be harmed if Britain left the “This confi rms our fears: the bers,” Medecins San Frontieres said the ruling Conserva- in the European Union in the June and the failure to keep it is cor- campaigners to describe what EU. smugglers are willing to take ex- in a Tweet after estimating that 900 Ttives yesterday accused 23 referendum and the “Remain” rosive of public trust in politics,” Britain would look like if the Cameron hailed the results treme measures, but the Chan- had died during the week. The Unit- Prime Minister David Cameron side said the attempt to move the they wrote. country left. as proof that the overwhelm- nel is a real highway, presenting ed Nations High Commissioner for of breaking his promise to curb debate onto immigration showed They pointed to offi cial sta- “The reason why the Leave ing view was that a British exit a great danger for this type of Refugees (UNHCR) said more than immigration, stepping up hos- that “Leave” campaigners had lost tistics issued last week showing people have now really focused would hurt the economy, but crossing,” he said. 700 had drowned. tilities in the party over a battle the argument on the economy. net migration to Britain reached on immigration day after day the “Leave” campaign, which Some 17 suspected Albanian Migrants interviewed on Sat- to win next month’s referendum In the letter circulated by the 333,000 in 2015, the second- after day is because they have denies it has lost the argument, migrants were detained on Tues- urday in the Sicilian port of Poz- on remaining in the EU. “Vote Leave” campaign, Gove, highest level for a year since lost comprehensively the debate cast doubt over whether such day after a boat arrived at Chich- zallo told of a large fi shing boat In an open letter to Cameron, Johnson and Gisela Stuart, a records began in 1975. Of those, on the economy,” former Labour a “cosy consensus” should be ester Marina on the south coast. that overturned and sank on his one-time allies Justice Min- member of the opposition La- a net 184,000 came from the EU, prime minister and “Remain” trusted after many supported Four Iranian migrants making Thursday with many women and ister Michael Gove and former bour Party and fellow cam- which upholds the principle of campaigner Tony Blair told the scrapping the pound 15 years a rare attempt to reach Britain children on board. London mayor Boris Johnson paigner, said voters had been free movement. BBC. ago. Livingstone sacked from World War II coding LBC show after Hitler row machine sold for £9.50 AFP “We said ‘Thank you very London much, how much was it again?’ Guardian News and Media Livingstone has appeared on Livingstone questioned wheth- She said ‘£9.50’, so we said London LBC’s Saturday show as a guest er the Tories may have leaned on ‘Here’s a £10 note — keep the in the wake of the anti-Semitism LBC bosses to take him off the ne of the machines used change,” he added. row, but has not been on the sta- show. to send coded messages The museum is now hunting en Livingstone’s Saturday tion since then. The controversy arose when Obetween Adolf Hitler and for a replacement motor, which morning radio show has “I was told on Monday that my Livingstone said in a BBC London his generals sold for £10 on eBay is missing. Kbeen dropped by LBC in the contract would not be renewed,” interview last month that Hitler after being discovered in a shed “It looks like an electric motor wake of the controversy surround- Livingstone said. “It was an annual had supported Zionism “before in England, the buyer said yes- in black casing with two shafts ing his recent claim that Adolf contract and doesn’t run out until he went mad and ended up killing terday. on each side, which drive the Hitler had supported Zionism. the end of July/early August. I’ve 6mn Jews”, and also claimed there Researchers at The Nation- gears of the Lorenz machine,” The former mayor of London, been on every Saturday since Sep- was a “well-orchestrated cam- al Museum of Computing at said Wetter. who had presented the politics tember 2008 except for when I’ve paign by the Israel lobby to smear Bletchley Park saw a “telegram The Lorenz teleprinter was programme with David Mellor for been on holiday … and a break ahead anybody who criticises Israeli pol- machine” for sale on the auction used in World War II to swap the past eight years, denied that of the 2012 mayoral election.” icy as anti-Semitic”. site for £9.50 and believed it may personal messages between Hit- his comments had led to the radio An LBC spokesman said Living- Livingstone maintained his have actually been a Lorenz ma- ler and his generals. station’s decision not to renew his stone would not return to his pre- stance on Saturday. “No paper or chine, used by the German army A linked cipher machine con- contract this year. senting role. media organisation has shown that to send top-secret coded mes- sisting of 12 individual wheels LBC, which is owned by Global The Saturday show had about what I said was wrong,” he said. sages. each containing multiple set- Radio, the UK’s largest commer- 300,000 listeners, compared with Labour suspended Livingstone in “My colleague was scanning tings encoded the messages. cial radio operator, has also decid- about 50,000 when he took over late April for “bringing the party into eBay and he saw a photograph of Andy Clark, chairman of the ed not to renew Mellor’s contract. the 10am-midday timeslot, Liv- disrepute”, and Jeremy Corbyn said what seemed to be the teleprinter,” trustees at The National Mu- Livingstone told the Guardian ingstone said, and was running the party was “not tolerating anti- John Wetter, a volunteer at the seum of Computing, called the that LBC informed him in early April “neck-and-neck” with Radio 4. Semitism in any form whatsoever”. museum in Buckinghamshire, machine “far bigger than the he could not present the two-hour It had also been well supported Livingstone said Labour’s Blair- south England, told the BBC. famous portable Enigma ma- Saturday morning show during the by advertisers, he added. “It’s ite wing had used the controversy To investigate further, Wet- chine”. EU referendum campaign because surprising that a capitalist com- as an opportunity to remove him ter travelled to the southeast- “Everybody knows about of Ofcom impartiality rules. pany is doing this. David (Mellor) from the national executive com- ern town of Southend where Enigma, but the Lorenz machine He said he had given station isn’t happy either,” he said. “Peo- mittee, the party’s ruling body. he found the machine, which was used for strategic commu- management two letters from Of- ple would stop me on the street He gave up his place on the resembles a typewriter, on the nications,” said Clark. “It is so com stating that he did not repre- and say how much they liked the committee this month, losing his fl oor of a shed, covered “with much more complicated than the sent Labour. show.” most infl uential role in the party. Ken Livingstone: controversial comment rubbish”. Enigma machine.” Gulf Times 18 Monday, May 30, 2016 EUROPE

Five Ukraine soldiers and two rebel fi ghters 17 perish in blaze at slain in separatist east

AFP capital Minsk to be implemented Kiev “as quickly as possible”, accord- ing to the French presidency. The accords call for a ceasefi re home for the elderly ive Ukrainian soldiers and along with a range of political, two rebel fi ghters have economic and social measures to AFP infrastructure is still in wide- Fbeen killed in fresh clashes end the confl ict which erupted in Litochky, Ukraine spread use amid an often lax ap- between government forces and April 2014 and has now claimed proach to fi re safety. pro-Russian separatists in the more than 9,300 lives. Such fi res often claim the lives country’s east, the military said But persistent violence is pre- eventeen people died when of some of the most vulnerable yesterday. venting the warring sides from an unlicenced home for people including the elderly and “Unfortunately, over the past reaching a reconciliation deal Selderly people outside the those with mental illness. 24 hours, fi ve Ukrainian soldiers despite a series of truce agree- Ukrainian capital Kiev caught Scores of people also die in have died and four more have ments. fi re in the early hours of yester- house fi res each year. been wounded,” military spokes- The latest spike in violence day, a fresh tragedy to shake the In 2011, 16 people died when man Oleksandr Motuzyanyk told came after Kiev scored a major confl ict-riven country. a state-run home for the elderly reporters. diplomatic victory on Wednes- The fi re tore through the two- caught fi re in the Rivne region in It was the second biggest day by securing the return of storey building for the elderly in western Ukraine. death toll in a single day this year Ukrainian military pilot Nadiya the village of Litochky, located Since April 2014, Ukraine has for the army after the military Savchenko as part of a prisoner some 50km (31 miles) north of been struggling to contain a reported on Tuesday that seven swap with the Kremlin. Kiev. pro-Russian insurgency which government troops had died in Some observers expressed “The bodies of 17 people have erupted in the east of the ex- the east of the country. the hope that the high-profi le been found at the site of the Soviet country after a popu- The villages of Avdiivka Savchenko prisoner swap would fi re,” the head of Ukraine’s state lar uprising in Kiev ousted a and Opytne located close to help reduce tensions between emergencies service, Mykola Kremlin-backed president and the rebels’ de-facto capital of the two rivals and speed up the Chechotkin, told reporters. Moscow annexed the peninsula Donetsk remain the epicentre of implementation of Western- “The fi re broke out at a pri- of Crimea. the fi ghting, said Motuzyanyk. brokered agreements to reach vately-owned house,” he said, The confl ict has claimed more In the rebel-held east two in- peace in the east of the ex-Soviet adding the residence did not than 9,300 lives, with the West surgents had also been killed country. meet existing regulatory re- and Kiev accusing Russia of over the past 24 hours, said rebel Ukrainian President Petro Po- quirements. fuelling the war and sending in spokesman Eduard Basurin. roshenko received Savchenko – More than a dozen body bags Off icials load body bags into a truck at the site of a fire in the village of Litochky. regular troops across the border He confi rmed the situation who was fi ghting in a pro-Kiev were laid out close to the fence to prop up the separatists. had become worse near the vil- militia group against rebels in of a fi re-gutted white brick by more than 150 people, had dence had been built several Both President Petro Poro- Moscow has repeatedly de- lage of Avdiivka. east Ukraine before she was cap- building before they were loaded been extinguished. years ago. shenko and Prime Minister Vo- nied the claims despite evidence “Some 30 people from the tured by Russia in June 2014 – onto a truck, an AFP photogra- A privately-held television “My heart aches,” Tamara, lodymyr Groysman expressed to the contrary. Ukrainian side with mortar guns late on Saturday. pher reported from the scene. channel said the locals had whose relative lived at the shel- condolences to the families of In May 2014, several dozen and armoured personnel carrri- The two discussed the exac- National television said police waited some 40 minutes for the ter, said in televised remarks. “If the victims, with the premier people died in a blaze when a ers have tried to break through erbation of violence in the east, had cordoned off the area. fi refi ghters to arrive and had you want to know, everything also ordering the creation of a trade union building in the Black but we repelled the attack,” he with Poroshenko asking the Citing preliminary informa- tried unsuccessfully to rescue was good there: things were special investigative commis- Sea port of Odessa was set on told AFP. 35-year-old Iraq war veteran tion, emergency service said the people themselves. clean, tidy, orderly, she had been sion. fi re amid street battles between The latest deaths came after “to visit a number of European that 35 people were at the home One witness, Vasyl, said a looked after, there are no com- First deputy head of national pro-Kiev and pro-Moscow ac- Kiev said on Saturday that an- countries and hold meetings when the fi re broke out in the residence employee had res- plaints.” police, Vadym Troyan, said a tivists. other Ukrainian soldier had died with European leaders”. early hours of yesterday. cued one person and returned to It was not immediately clear man behind the use of the build- Most of those who were killed in clashes with rebels near the Savchenko, who had been held Eighteen people have been help get more people out when a what caused the blaze but ac- ing as a home for the elderly had died from smoke inhalation, government-controlled city of in Russia for nearly two years, rescued and fi ve of them have wooden structure crashed down cording to one version it might already been detained. while others perished trying to Mariupol. was convicted by a Russian court been hospitalised, said the serv- upon her. have been sparked by an explod- In post-Soviet countries such escape by jumping out of win- “The situation has wors- in March over the killing of two ice, adding that the fi re, tackled Locals said the private resi- ing TV set. as Ukraine and Russia outdated dows. ened sharply,” another military Russian journalists in eastern spokesman, Andriy Lysenko, Ukraine and sentenced to 22 said on Saturday. years behind bars. Last Monday, the leaders of The West and Kiev have ac- Ottoman conquest France, Germany, Russia and cused Russia of buttressing the of Istanbul marked Ukraine called for the 2015 peace rebels and sending regular troops French government to stand accords signed in the Belarussian across the border. Turkey marked yesterday the 563rd anniversary of the Ottoman conquest of Istanbul with huge parties and a fireworks fi rm on labour reform plans show in the former Byzantine imperial capital once known as Pope scolds clergy over Constantinople. Reuters obsessed over the short term by “I cannot believe for a sec- Valls: his approval rating has More than 1mn people were Paris 2017 (presidential elections), ond that he (CGT union chief plunged to 24%. expected for a giant celebration we would lose everything,” Philippe Martinez) will take ‘part-time’ availability in the city to mark its capture in Valls told French newspaper Le France hostage, because the nance Minister Michel Sapin 1453 by Ottoman Sultan Mehmet he French government Journal du Dimanche. image of France is at stake,” said in an interview with Reu- II, who was nicknamed “the will stand by its labour In the mid-1990s then- Socialist party leader Jean- ters and three European news- AFP He said clergymen should wel- Conqueror”. Treform plans, it said prime minister Alain Juppe Christophe Cambadelis told papers. Vatican City come “those who knock on those The Air Force aerobatics team yesterday, while resuming talks triggered France’s worst unrest RTL radio station yesterday. “First and foremost we must doors at odd hours, even if that was to perform a fly past prior with unions in an eff ort to end in decades because he would The prime minister had all be fi rm,” Sapin said. “Doing entails setting aside something to an evening fireworks display widespread protests before not budge on pension reform trade unions leaders on the otherwise would be wrong lergymen should be he likes to do or giving up some with Turkish President Recep the country hosts the Euro but he eventually backed down phone on Saturday, govern- with respect to (other) labour available to their fl ocks well-deserved rest”. Tayyip Erdogan and Prime 2016 soccer tournament next after weeks of industrial action ment spokesman Stephane Le unions, most of whom support Cday and night instead of He also stressed the impor- Minister Binali Yildirim due at the month. and protests. Foll told France 3 TV. the text.” keeping visiting hours and relax- tance of priests and deacons festivities in the Yenikapi district The hardline CGT union has The dispute has sent Valls’ “This is a proof that nothing The more moderate CFDT ing once the church doors close, being mild-mannered, saying: in the European half of the city. organised street protests, train approval rating to 24%, its is completely fi nished ... we are union backs proposed reform Pope Francis said yesterday. “Never shout, never.” Security was tight with Turkey strikes and refi nery blockades lowest since he became prime ready to discuss, but not to give that will allow businesses to “One who serves cannot hoard Deacons from around the on alert following several attacks to pressure the government to minister, according to a poll up,” he said. lay off staff more easily in hard his free time; he has to give up world and their families con- in recent months attributed to scrap plans that would make conducted by BVA for Orange A source close to the prime times but also give unions more the idea of being the master of his vened in Rome this weekend to Islamic State and Kurdish rebel it easier for companies to hire et iTELE. minister’s offi ce said that, power to negotiate unilateral day,” the pontiff said in a homily take part in special jubilee as part groups. and fi re workers. Juppe resigned as prime while Valls and Martinez have deals with companies rather in Saint Peter’s Basilica to mark of Francis’ Jubilee year which is A submarine, a frigate, five French Prime Minister minister in 1996 after his rat- been unable to reach agree- than national collective agree- the Church’s Jubilee of Deacons. dedicated to the theme of mercy. helicopters and 9,000 police Manuel Valls was quoted as ing dropped below 25%. ment so far, he has sought to ments. “It deeply troubles me when I In a shock move earlier this off icers – including a contingent saying yesterday that he is de- The government is under reassure more supportive un- “There will be no withdrawal see a timetable in a parish: ‘From month, the Argentine Pontiff of 40 elite snipers, plus dozens termined not to join a long list pressure to fi nd a solution to ions that he will stand fi rm on of the text ... we are not in ‘68,” such a time to such a time’. And said he would set up a commis- of sniff er dogs – were all on duty, of politicians who have con- the latest stand-off before the the text of the draft labour bill. government spokesman Le Foll then? There is no open door, no sion to study the possibility of according to the Anatolian news ceded defeat to protesters. June 10 start of the Euro 2016 A plan to overhaul labour told France 3 TV, referring to priest, no deacon, no layperson women entering the Catholic agency quoting city police chief “If we gave in to the street tournament, which the CGT rules is crucial to proving the student-worker uprising to receive people. This is not clergy as deacons, in a potential- Mustafa Caliskan. and to CGT because we were has threatened to disrupt. France’s ability to reform, Fi- in 1968. good,” the 79-year-old said. ly historic move for the church. German and French youth ‘re-enact’ Battle of Verdun

DPA ed when the production ended, Verdun, France standing and walking onto the fi eld where the artistic re-en- actment – created by award- ulling and pushing each winning German director Volker other, arms locked in mock Schloendorff – had taken place. Pcombat, 4,000 young peo- The leaders were in Verdun ple from France and Germany to pay tribute to the battle and French and German youths take part in a show at the French National cemetery outside the Douaumont created a tribute yesterday to the send a signal of lasting German- Ossuary (Ossuaire de Douaumont), northeastern France, during a remembrance ceremony to mark the soldiers who fought at Verdun French co-operation. centenary of the Battle of Verdun. during World War I. The two countries have been After running through the the driving force behind greater ting the German and the French But it has taken on symbolic part to pass on a historical con- woods to appear on a green fi eld, European integration. against one another on a small value as a site of reconciliation. sciousness of a battle that none the young people – indecipher- “We are all called upon to keep area of northeastern France that In 1984, French President of the participants is alive to re- able by country and dressed in memories alive in the future ... still shows signs of the combat. Francois Mitterand and German member. colourful T-shirts – lined up only those who know the past French historians say that the Chancellor Helmut Kohl clasped Schloendorff , the director, told against one another and engaged are able to take lessons from it remains of thousands of sol- hands over graves. DPA that the remembrance of in mock struggles to a fast-paced in order to ensure a good fu- diers are still scattered across the Yesterday morning Hollande Verdun was in the hands of the drumbeat, before freezing and ture,” Merkel said, calling Verdun former battlefi eld. and Merkel visited a cemetery for younger generation. collapsing when a fi gure symbol- a symbol for “the unbelievable Hollande and Merkel are seen with a history re-enactor dressed as a The bloodbath claimed German soldiers, accompanied “The important thing is to take ising death appeared. atrocity and futility of war, as French soldier in Verdun during ceremonies marking the 100th 300,000 soldiers on both sides; by two children from each coun- the ceremony from the politi- The production was per- well as for lessons learned and anniversary of the Battle of Verdun. 400,000 others were wounded in try as they laid a wreath under a cians and the military and give it formed in front of French Presi- French-German reconciliation”. a battle that typifi ed trench com- grey sky and pouring rain. to the youth,” Schloendorff said. dent Francois Hollande and Ger- The French president said that tween France and Germany”. again,” Hollande warned. bat in attrition warfare. In the afternoon, they vis- “It’s not about fl ames that will be man Chancellor Angela Merkel to the site was at once a representa- Both leaders called for Europe- Merkel said the lessons of uni- Despite the scale of destruc- ited the newly redesigned Ver- rekindled. It’s also not about na- commemorate the 100-year an- tion of “the worst, where Europe an unity, warning against state- ty should be applied to contem- tion, the Battle of Verdun is con- dun Memorial in the village of tional anthems being played for niversary of the Battle of Verdun was lost 100 years ago, and also centric thinking that is a throw- porary challenges like the refugee sidered by historians to have had Fleury-devant-Douaumont. the umpteenth time. It’s about – one of the longest, and bloodi- the best, where the city has been back to the past. crisis. limited strategic use, changing But the main part of the cere- the 15 minutes when the young est battles of the war. capable of investing in and unit- “The forces of division, sepa- The Battle of Verdun lasted the front lines of combat very lit- mony was the inclusion of 4,000 people will fi ll the cemetery Merkel and Hollande applaud- ing for peace and friendship be- ration and isolation are at work more than nine months, pit- tle. young people, orchestrated in grounds.” Gulf Times Monday, May 30, 2016 19 EUROPE 700 ‘die’ in week of shipwrecks in

This handout picture released by the Italian coastguard (Guardia Costiera) shows a rescue operation of migrants and refugees at sea, off the coast of Sicily, on Friday. Up to 700 migrants are feared to have drowned in shipwrecks off the coast of Libya this week, the UN’s refugee agency said yesterday, citing Mediterranean survivor testimony. AFP wreck that happened on Friday, traffi ckers were also arrested. ting off every day for the past vefi including a pregnant minor who Bulgaria to return detained Afghans to Greece Rome the UNHCR said it feared up to “We tried everything to stop days. said she had been raped, MSF 700 people had drowned in total the water, to bail it out of the Italy’s Interior Minister Ange- mediator Ahmad Al Rousan said: Bulgaria detained 53 Afghan migrants on Saturday aboard a freight train this week. boat,” a Nigerian girl told cultural lino Alfano said Europe needed “Violence is growing in Libya from Greece and said that it would return them to its southern neighbour week of shipwrecks in Giovanna Di Benedetto, Save mediators, according to La Stam- “a quick agreement with Libya – we see it in the marks left on to “send a strong message” to others who might be tempted to use the the Mediterranean cul- the Children’s Sicily spokes- pa daily. “We used our hands, and African countries” to halt these boys and girls.” same route to western Europe. Aminated yesterday with woman, told AFP that survivors plastic glasses. For two hours we the crisis. Many of the recent arrivals, Greece’s border with Macedonia just to the west is now eff ectively closed 700 migrants feared dead and of Thursday’s wreck said around fought against the water but it The chaos in the Libya since largely Eritreans and Somalians, to migrants, sparking fears in Bulgaria that they may instead try to transit survivors giving harrowing testi- 1,100 people had set out from was useless. It began to fl ood the the fall in 2011 of late dictator said they had balked at the idea of its territory on their way north. mony of dozens of small children Libya on Wednesday in two fi sh- boat, and those below deck had Muammar Gaddafi has been ex- boarding the rickety vessels and Bulgaria shares a 500km (310 mile) border with Greece. drowned. ing boats and a dinghy, before no chance.” ploited by people traffi ckers. dinghies once they saw them, but Bulgaria’s fears have grown following Athens’ decision this week to shut a Survivors brought to safety in running into trouble. “Woman, men, children, many Migrants interviewed by La were forced on in Libya at gun- makeshift refugee camp, the largest in Europe, on its border with Macedo- the Italian ports of Taranto and “The fi rst boat, carrying some children, were trapped, and Repubblica in Sicily told the point. nia due to deteriorating humanitarian conditions. Pozzallo told the UN’s refugee 500 people, was reportedly tow- drowned,” she said. newspaper that a new “head European Parliament Presi- “All of them (the Afghan migrants) are registered in Greece and they will agency (UNHCR) and Save the ing the second, which was carry- Those who survived told traffi cker” called Osama had dent Martin Schulz said in an be returned to Greece,” said Georgi Kostov, chief secretary of the Bulgar- Children how their boat sank on ing another 500. But the second mediators the dead included taken control of departures from interview with La Repubblica ian interior ministry, adding that a further 34 illegal migrants had been Thursday morning after a high- boat began to sink. Some people “around 40 children, including Libya’s beaches and was off ering yesterday that Italy’s “migra- detained on Friday night. seas drama which saw one wom- tried to swim to the fi rst boat, many newborns”, La Repubblica “cut-price” deals of €400 for the tion compact” idea was “the best “(By returning the migrants back to Greece) we want to send a strong an decapitated. others held onto the rope linking daily said. boat journey to lure in new cus- proposal so far” for stopping the message to all who have chosen this route,” he said. “We’ll never know the exact the vessels,” she said. “I saw my mother and 11-year tomers. boat crossings and preventing The ministry said in a statement it would send troops to assist border number, we’ll never know their According to the survivors, the old sister die,” Kidane from Erit- Doctors Without Borders deaths. police in guarding the frontier against an influx of migrants. identities,” said the UNHCR’s fi rst boat’s Sudanese captain cut rea, 13, told the aid organisations. (MSF, Medicins Sans Frontieres) Italy wants to persuade African Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borisov said in March that the Black Sea spokeswoman Carlotta Sami. the rope, which snapped back “There were bodies everywhere.” doctor Paola Mazzoni warned countries to help close migrant state was ready to build a fence on its border with Greece if necessary. However, multiple witness re- and decapitated a woman. A bout of good weather as that “the number of women ar- routes to Europe and take back ports suggested over 500 people The second boat quickly sank, summer arrives has kicked off a riving pregnant or with new- some of those arriving via Libya had drowned in that shipwreck taking those packed tightly into fresh stream of boats attempt- borns appears to be on the rise, in exchange for increased aid and issuing of EU-Africa bonds to fi - co-ordinated across the world” alone. the hold down with it. ing to make the perilous crossing with many saying they have been investment. nance it. were needed, as well as “credible With some 100 others missing The Sudanese captain was ar- from Libya to Italy. raped in Libya”. Germany has made it clear, Italian President Sergio Mat- policies on activating legal chan- after a boat sank on Wednesday, rested on his arrival in Pozzallo. Italian news agency Ansa said As newly arrived migrants however, that it is against one of tarella said yesterday that “ac- nels for migration and repatria- and 45 bodies recovered from a Three other suspected people more than 15 boats had been set- docked in the port of Palermo, the elements of Italy’s plan: the tions of solidarity and reception tion”.

Greek minister worried over Germany’s AfD in row over Boateng remarks migrant deal The Greek asylum commission’s decision not to send several AFP Grindel, slammed them as “sim- comments as “unacceptable and Syrians back to Turkey, despite an Frankfurt ply tasteless”. shabby”. EU-Ankara agreement that relies Boateng, 27, “is an excellent “People who say things like on readmitting migrants, has player and a wonderful person, that unmask themselves, and left migration minister Ioannis he right-wing populist who gets involved in social caus- not just as a bad neighbour,” he Mouzalas concerned over his Alternative for Germany es and is a role model for many wrote on Twitter. country’s ability to implement T(AfD) party found itself young people”. Last week, members of the the deal. under fi re yesterday after a lead- The manager of the German anti-Islam Pegida movement The Greek government’s legal ing member made racist remarks national team, Oliver Bierhoff , sparked controversy when advisers were looking into about the national football said: “It isn’t the fi rst time that they took to Facebook to attack the commission’s decision, team’s defender Jerome Boat- we’ve been confronted with members of the national football saying that continuing to avoid eng, forcing its leader to issue an such statements. They need no team with migrant backgrounds. deportations could create “a apology. comment. The people who made Pegida supporters com- diff icult situation for Greece”, The uproar was started by them are simply discrediting plained when childhood photos Ioannis said in an interview with AfD’s deputy chief Alexander themselves.” of players including Boateng, as a Dutch broadcaster aired on Gauland, who told the Sunday Boateng: has a Ghanaian father. Benedikt Hoewedes, who won well as midfi elders Mesut Ozil Friday night. newspaper Frankfurter Allge- the World Cup alongside Boat- and Ilkay Gundogan, were used According to Mouzalas, the meine Sonntagszeitung (FAS) “Independent of that, I apol- eng in the German team, wrote: in a marketing campaign for commission had refused to ship that Germans would not like to ogise to Mr Boateng for the im- “If you want to win the title for Ferrero’s Kinder chocolate in the Syrians back to Turkey “in four live next door to Boateng, who pression that arose,” she said. Germany, you need neighbours run-up to the UEFA Euro foot- or five cases” this week after has a Ghanaian father and was And Petry subsequently like him” alongside a picture of ball championships, due to be they had lodged complaints born and brought up in Berlin. Young supporters of Germany’s Jerome Boateng hold a placard tweeted: “Jerome Boateng is a Boateng on Twitter. held in France in June. against their deportation, with “People fi nd him good as a reading ‘Jerome, please move next to us’ before the match. super footballer who is rightly a Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, The AfD, founded on a euro- the commission coming to the footballer, but they don’t want member of the German national chairman of Boateng’s club Bay- sceptic platform three years ago, conclusion “that Turkey is not to have a Boateng as a neigh- not know him nor would I there- comments, which have drawn team. I’m looking forward to the ern Munich, said that racism has vocally protested Germa- safe”. bour,” Gauland said. fore have the idea to devalue him widespread condemnation. European championships.” needs to be shown a red card. ny’s record refugee infl ux that The government has yet to Yesterday the 75-year-old as a personality.” AfD party chief Frauke Petry Nevertheless, Gauland’s com- “Discrimination of any kind brought more than 1mn asylum- decide whether to appeal the Gauland attempted to back The newspaper FAS put out has tried to calm the storm, tell- ments have fallen off side with has no place in sports and in our seekers to Europe’s top economy asylum commission’s decisions. track. a statement saying that both ing the mass-circulation daily key fi gures in German football society. It deserves the red card,” last year alone. The agreement between the “I have never, as the FAS in- of their reporters, who inter- Bild that Gauland “cannot recall and politics. Rummenigge said. The party won several region- European Union and Ankara sinuates, insulted Mr Boateng,” viewed Gauland in Potsdam last whether he made that state- The president of the DFB Ger- German Justice Minister al assembly seats in recent state hinges on the readmission of he told German daily Bild. “I do Wednesday, had a record of his ment”. man football league, Reinhard Heiko Maas slammed Gauland’s elections. thousands of migrants from Greece to Turkey. In return, the bloc will resettle Syrians directly from Turkish refugee camps. But critics have cast doubt Never-ending vigil for millions on Turkey’s ability to provide adequate shelter to those sent back from Greece. yearning to bury their dead Amnesty International reported last month that Turkey was carrying out “large scale” forced By Jo Biddle, AFP The numbers are thought perished at sea lacking any kind returns to Syria of thousands of The Hague to be “staggering” – between of documents, a new challenge is refugees, calling into question 250,000 and a million in Iraq emerging. the safety of migrants who are alone stretching back to the ear- After fi ve years of civil war and sent back to the country from ameless migrants laid to ly days of the regime of former a huge exodus from the country, Greece. rest in unmarked scrub- dictator Saddam Hussein, said there are an estimated 60,000 Nland, murder victims ICMP director general Kathryne missing Syrians. Capsize survivor dumped in mass graves, desper- Bomberger. “There’s nothing we can do in ate searches for the missing after The organisation, which fi - Syria for the moment, but we’re drowns in lake natural disasters. nances its painstaking research already losing time in terms of Around the world, millions of through voluntary donations, collecting data from survivors,” A 24-year-old from the Ivory families wait in vain to bury their held a recent seminar on its work Bomberger told AFP. Coast who survived a shipwreck dead. as it moves its headquarters She’s hoping to try to move in the Mediterranean has “You cannot close the book on from Sarajevo to The Hague. into the refugee camps, build drowned in a lake in northern the life of a loved one if you do Born out of the confl icts in up trust with families there and Italy, Italian media said on not know the truth, or what the former Yugoslavia and set up start organising a valuable data Saturday. reasons were, why people went in 1996 by then-US president base. Lesine Sanune was living at a missing,” said Salvadoran dip- Bill Clinton, the ICMP has used Every day Syrian families are hotel-turned-migrant centre near lomat Augustin Vasquez Gomez. sophisticated DNA matching contacting the organisation for This photo taken on April 19 shows graves of migrants at a cemetery in Calais. In the northern cemetery Turin after making it alive to Italy His country, where some techniques to identify more than help fi nding relatives, and the of Calais, migrants’ graves are easily identifiable in the middle of the Muslim section: a simple wooden despite the rickety vessel he 8,000 people are still missing 70% of the 40,000 who went ICMP is already working with cross, engraved with a name accompanied most often only by the date of death. When the identification was on overturning during the after years of civil war, has be- missing in the Balkans wars. Italian authorities to try to iden- is not possible, they are buried in an isolated area of the cemetery. crossing to Europe. come one of the latest nations to Now it is shedding its ad-hoc tify the dead washing up on Ita- According to witnesses, he dived sign a treaty pledging to support status to become a recognised ly’s shores. how many people are missing tors of those crimes operate un- genocide in the Bosnian enclave. into the cold waters of the Lake the work of the International international organisation – the In Iraq on Mount Sinjar, it has in the world,” said Bomberger. der the principle: no bodies, no She told the seminar how one Sirio in Chaiverano for a swim Commission on Missing Persons only one dedicated exclusively to been working to identify mass “Most countries don’t have ac- crime,” he said. Bosnian Muslim mother died in immediately after eating and (ICMP). accounting for the missing. graves from the Islamic State curate fi gures because of the For those left with no grave Srebrenica a few days ago, still never returned to the surface, La In the Philippines, also a sig- It hopes to open a new lab in group’s persecution of the Yazidi highly political nature of these to mourn over, there is an over- mourning her son whose body Stampa daily said. natory to the treaty, there are the Dutch city in the coming people, protect the sites and cat- confl icts.” whelming sense of loss, of fare- has never been found. His body was recovered over two still 2,000 missing after Ty- months, to complement its fi rst alogue the DNA of the dead. Identifying the dead is also wells left unsaid, a raw grief “Her last words were that if hours later by divers with the fire phoon Haiyan struck in Novem- one in Sarajevo which already And that’s without mention- crucial, if those behind the which does not fade as the dec- she had been so lucky to fi nd service. ber 2013. has the capacity to handle up to ing confl icts in Africa or Asia, world’s worst crimes are to be ades pass. just one little piece of bone she “It’s absurd. He escaped the And while fi nding and identi- 10,000 DNA cases a year. where there are also many fami- successfully held to account, “Our truth is hidden in mass would have wrapped it in silk sea and died in this way. I’m fying the missing killed in con- Demand is growing. lies waiting to claim their dead. said Kweku Vanderpuye, senior graves,” said Munira Subasic, and kept it for herself. lost for words,” said Silvana fl icts or disasters is an age-old And as the confl icts in Syria “Part of what we want to do trial lawyer at the International president of the Mothers of Sre- “And it would have made Perrone, head of the Isola di problem, no overall global fi gure and Iraq feed a new wave of ref- and focus on is demographics, Criminal Court. brenica, who lost 22 members of her the happiest person in the Ariel association which runs the has ever been determined. ugees, hundreds of whom have for once to try to get a handle on “Oftentimes the perpetra- her extended family in the 1995 world,” said Subasic. migrant centre. Gulf Times 20 Monday, May 30, 2016 INDIA

Tamil Nadu Roundup Army can’t operate in civilian areas without AFSPA: Parrikar IANS Asked about the possibility will not go to a civilian area for “There is suddenly a crop of also enforced in Punjab after ter- Among the provisions of the By Umaima Shafiq New Delhi of revoking the AFSPA, the de- operations. The home ministry activists who try to fi le cases and rorism erupted in 1983 and was AFSPA, any commissioned of- fence minister said the subject should decide on the basis of all that... Actually if you see the withdrawn in 1997. fi cer, warrant offi cer, non-com- came under the home ministry, that, after assessing the situa- immunity should be total un- In Kashmir, where the missioned offi cer or any other he Indian Army cannot adding it was needed by the tion,” Parrikar said. less it (a wrongdoing) is proved Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is person of equivalent rank in the Centenarian operate in civilian ar- army to “proceed and act” in “If the army is required, this in a particular fashion. How will a junior partner in a coalition armed forces may fi re upon or Teas without a contentious certain areas. He also said im- act has to be there; otherwise armed forces act otherwise? headed by the People’s Demo- otherwise use force if he is of the plans grand act that gives it sweeping spe- munity to soldiers should be the army cannot operate. Jawans Someone can even fi le a case on cratic Party, removing AFSPA opinion that it is necessary to do birthday party cial powers, Defence Minister total. cannot be made to face standard Kargil,” he said. from certain areas was one of the so for the maintenance of public Manohar Parrikar has said, amid The minister stressed that laws.” The AFSPA came into force in conditions the latter had set for order. A soldier, however, needs demands that the Armed Forces the army will not go into civil- There is a “new crop” of ac- the northeastern states in 1958 joining hands. Earlier this week, to fi rst give a warning before V Sambanthan Chettiar will Special Powers Act be revoked ian areas without the act being tivists who keep fi ling cases after the Naga tribes rebelled the opposition National Con- opening fi re. celebrate his 100th birthday from Jammu and Kashmir and in place. against the AFSPA, the minister against the government and ference and the Congress pro- The forces can destroy arm today with 2,500 guests, his the northeastern states. “If that act is not there, the said, adding in a lighter vein that continues to be in force there. tested in the Kashmir assembly, dumps, make arrests without three sons, eight grandchildren “My department’s role comes army will not take action. For someone may even fi le a case on It is also in force in Assam, Ma- demanding that the AFSPA be warrants and can enter and and 12 great grandchildren at into the picture when the army is carrying out counter terror op- the Kargil confl ict even though nipur and parts of Arunachal revoked. search buildings without a war- his ancestral home at Konapet asked to proceed and act in a cer- erations, the army requires that 17 long years have passed since Pradesh. Meanwhile, Minister of State rant to make an arrest. The act, in Pudukottai, about 60km from tain area. At that time, the army power. That power comes from the army went into action to It came into force in Jammu for Home Haribhai Parthibhai however, requires the forces to Tiruchi. requires protection,” Parrikar such laws; AFSPA is a major evict Pakistani intruders from and Kashmir in 1990, a year after Chaudhary recently said there promptly take an arrested per- Born on May 15,1917, Chettiar was said, referring to the AFSPA that one,” he said. the icy heights of Jammu and an insurgency, which continues were no plans to revoke AFSPA son to the nearest police sta- the fourth of five sons and took is in place in “disturbed areas.” “If that is not there, the army Kashmir. to fester, erupted. The act was from Kashmir. tion. up the family’s money lending business in Malaysia in 1927. He became a Malaysian citizen in 1948 and settled in Muar in Charminar gets a chemical wash Johar province, buying rubber estates and a gas station besides maintaining charity organisations for local traders. In the mid-1990s he gave up his Malaysian citizenship and TDP seeks to returned to Pudukottai. An active car enthusiast he recalls the first Chevrolet personally delivered by T V Sunderam Iyengar, founder of today’s TVS business conglomerate, to his father in get national 1933. Other memories include meeting Mahatma Gandhi in 1946 and voting regularly in elections. He says the secret of his longevity is hard work, good exercise, healthy food and a financially regulated lifestyle. status, eyes

46 bonded labourers rescued more states At least 46 bonded labourers The party is planning to Sabha members: 15 from Andhra (H D Deve Gowda and I K Gu- working in industrial units of expand its base in Karnataka, Pradesh and one - Malla Reddy jral),” he said. Erode were rescued and sent Tamil Nadu and Odisha which representing Malkajgiri - from Naidu said he supported the back to their native Dantewada have substantial presence of Telangana. Vajpayee government (1999- district in Chhattisgarh state last Telugu speaking people During the deliberations, sen- 2004) and fl oated in 2008 the week. ior party leader and Civil Avia- United National Progressive Alli- A local agent Babu, who had IANS tion Minister P Ashok Gajapati ance (UNPA) with the Samajwadi recruited them and earned Tirupati Raju recalled the “tough days” of Party’s Mulayam Singh Yadav commissions from the employers regional parties at the national and others. besides getting a payment level and how the TDP was able “This third front UNPA did deducted from the workers’ he Telugu Desam Party, to secure the opposition party not do well and I am back in the salaries, was arrested. which has members in the status in the Lok Sabha in 1984. BJP-led NDA now. Our MPs are The employers reportedly TLok Sabha from two states, “I still remember the days ministers in the Centre and BJP confiscated the labourers’ is planning to contest elections when our leader and TDP found- leaders are ministers in my gov- family cards, bank books and from other states too to be able to er N T Rama Rao raised the im- ernment,” he noted. other ID proof. The matter get national party status by 2019. portance of Centre-state rela- However, Naidu said he was came to light when Sukhram, a “The idea that the TDP should tions and later brought in the doubtful if the central govern- labourer, escaped to Dantewada. struggle to achieve national sta- constitution of Sarkaria Com- ment would give Andhra Pradesh Based on his complaints, the tus fi gured in the discussions, mission. The recommendations a special category status to end Dantewada collector ordered an but no decision has been taken,” of the commission still remain an the suff erings of the people administrative probe and rescued Jayadev Galla, TDP leader who important feature of India’s fed- brought on by the bifurcation of the labourers with the help of the represents Guntur constituency eral structure,” he said. the state. But, he is also avoiding Erode district off icials. in the Lok Sabha said he on Sat- Party leader Ravula Chan- any confrontation or a legal bat- Babu admitted that he had been urday during the party’s ‘Maha- drasekhar Reddy said there was tle with the Centre over the issue. bringing working for two decades nadu’ (annual convention). a special place for the TDP in “I do not want any confronta- from the poorer areas of north He said the party already has the national politics ever since tion. Moreover, litigation cannot India. Lok Sabha members from And- NTR, as Rama Rao was popu- solve these problems,” Naidu said. hra Pradesh and Telangana and is larly known, took the initiative to At the annual TDP conven- required to represent at least one form the National Front. tion, a section of party members Students score more state in the lower house of TDP president and And- mounted pressure on the chief high despite being parliament to be eligible for the hra Pradesh Chief Minister N minister to harden his stance national status. Chandrababu Naidu recalled the against the BJP-led central gov- handicapped The candidates for expanding politics of 1984 in the Lok Sabha ernment and press for the spe- the party’s base are Karnataka, when the Bharatiya Janata Par- cial status - a promise made in Several handicapped students Tamil Nadu and Odisha which ty’s strength was just two and the parliament by the then Congress performed well in the Class X have substantial presence of Tel- TDP was the major opposition government when the state was board exams in Tamil Nadu. ugu speaking people, Galla said. party. divided into two in 2014. P Geethalakshmi, a student “Now we will be open to ex- “The TDP has experienced The idea was to compensate from Pochampalli in Krishnagiri ploring how we should go about all kinds of experiments at the Andhra Pradesh for the losses district, scored 498/500, despite it. No fi nal decision has been tak- national level. My father-in- it suff ered due to the division having deformed hands and feet en either to contest in one state law and founder of TDP, N T because all industrial and com- that do not allow her to hold a or the other,” he said. Rama Rao, joined hands with all mercial development was con- pen or sit on the floor. She wrote The issue of the TDP making kinds of political forces to fi ght a centrated around the capital the exams herself taking an extra A part of the famous Charminar monument is covered with cloth after a chemical wash carried its presence felt in other states mighty Congress,” said Naidu. Hyderabad that geographically hour. out by the Archaeological Survey of India in Hyderabad, yesterday. Chemical washing helps and achieving national status “He created the National belonged to the Telangana re- D Mariappan, a student from remove grime that gets accumulated on the monument due to its exposure to pollution. An fi gured prominently in the sec- Front. This ended with V P Singh gion. The status, which involves an impoverished family at ASI off icial said the chemical washing is essential for the restoration of the monument to its ond day’s deliberations at the becoming prime minister. Then a huge fi nancial package, is nor- Dharmapuri got 85% though he is original glory. “It is undertaken periodically by ASI,” the off icial said. Mahanadu on Saturday. we worked for the United Front mally given to economically deaf and uses a hearing aid to lip The party currently has 16 Lok and we had two prime ministers backward states in India. read lessons. Similarly K Anbarasu, a deaf student and three blind students - J Sowtharya, M Arunachalam PMO website goes multi-lingual and Sainandhini - from schools in Namakkal district got 85% Modi unveils cooking gas marks bagging district ranks in individual subjects. scheme for Karnataka poor Cash meant for ATMs stolen IANS would improve the health of cooking gas cylinders. Their ges- Davangere, Karnataka women as they won’t have to ture is helping the government inhale smoke from fi rewood for in providing subsidised cook- Police are on the lookout for two cooking, Modi said studies have ing gas connection to women in men working for a cash loading rime Minister Narendra shown that these fumes were poor households.” The prime company, who escaped with Modi yesterday said more equivalent to smoke from about minister also noted that the cen- Rs13.9mn meant to be loaded Pthan 30mn families have 400 burning cigarettes. tral and state governments will into automatic teller machines got cooking gas connections in “Cooking on gas is not only have to work in tandem to tackle (ATMs) in Sowripalayam area in the last one year as he launched economical and benefi cial to the drought situations that have Coimbatore last week. the Ujjwala Yojana scheme to women’s health, but also helps us hit a major part of the country. Arun Kumar and Satheesh, both provide connection to poor fam- to conserve forest wood, which is “I have met the chief minis- 22, were employed by the Brinks ilies in Karnataka. still used for cooking food in rural ters of the aff ected states. We are India Private Limited. They “Under the scheme, we will areas,” Modi told the gathering of focusing on irrigation and wa- had been allegedly pilfering provide cooking gas connection about 100,000 people. ter conservation facilities. The cash in phases for several without security deposit to fi ve Expressing gratitude to the Centre and states will work to- years while loading them at crore (50mn) women from BPL over 10mn consumers across the gether to fi ght the drought situ- ATMs of seven banks that did (below poverty line) households country for surrendering cook- ation,” he said. not have automated counting across the country in the next ing gas subsidy, Modi said there Marking two years of the equipment. The duo entered the three years,” Modi said at a mas- was a dramatic change in the Bharatiya Janata Party-led gov- valid amounts on hand written sive rally in Davangere, 260km mindset of the people, as evident ernment at the ‘Vikas Parv’ External Aff airs Minister Sushma Swaraj launches the website of the Prime Minister’s Off ice in New vouchers and disappeared when from Bengaluru. “More than from the overwhelming response rally, Modi fl agged the various Delhi yesterday. The website is in six diff erent languages: Bengali, Gujarati, Marathi, Malayalam, a recent audit revealed the fraud. three crore families have got gas to his appeal for this purpose. schemes launched for the welfare Tamil and Telugu. The initiative is part of the on-going eff orts of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Police also suspect that the two connections in the last one year “People from even the mid- of the people, especially the poor, reach out to the people and communicate with them in their own language,” Swaraj said. Other suspects could have invested the of our government,” he added. dle class are coming forward to underprivileged and economi- regional language versions of the website will be set up in a phased manner, she added. stolen cash in other schemes. Asserting that the scheme surrender the subsidy given on cally backward. Gulf Times Monday, May 30, 2016 21 INDIA

CRIME WELFARE MYSTERY NOTICES TRAGEDY Girl raped, killed, body Automated laundry run by Beant Singh’s grandson Historic sites found Bhagat’s grandnephew found hanging from tree people with mental illness shoots himself dead to breed mosquitoes killed in Himachal accident

A 15-year-old girl was raped and murdered by An automated laundry service launched in Harkirat Singh, grandson of Punjab’s late chief The South Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC) Shaheed Bhagat Singh’s grandnephew and three men who later hung her body from a a mental health hospital in Kolkata seeks minister Beant Singh, allegedly shot himself yesterday issued notices to the authorities Aam Aadmi Party activist Abhitej Singh tree, police said yesterday. Two suspects were to give the inmates an opportunity to work dead in his house in Chandigarh yesterday maintaining Humayun’s tomb, Iskcon temple, Sandhu was killed in a road accident in Shimla arrested in connection with the crime that and earn a daily wage, organisers say. Called afternoon, police said. With a gun-shot injury Gandhi Darshan and the Zoological Park for district of Himachal Pradesh, police said. occurred in the Bahraich district in Uttar Pradesh ‘Dhobi Ghar,’ the spacious automated laundry in his head, Harkirat was rushed to the Post- failing to prevent mosquito breeding in their Sandhu, 27, suffered multiple injuries when on Friday night. The girl was abducted from has been set up in state-run Calcutta Pavlov Graduate Institute of Medical Education and premises. “The SDMC inspected nine historical, his motorcycle skidded near Rampur town, near her village home by the men who sexually Hospital and was inaugurated on Saturday Research (PGIMER) where doctors pronounced tourist and religious places with substantial some 120km from the state capital Shimla assaulted her and later strangled her to death, by West Bengal’s Minister for Social Welfare him dead, said police off icer Neeraj Sarna. foot fall. On finding mosquito breeding at on Saturday evening. He was returning from district police chief Salik Ram said. They then Shashi Panja. “The idea is to challenge the “We are investigating the reason behind the Humayun’s tomb, Iskcon temple, Zoological Kaza in the Spiti Valley. His three friends were hung her body from a tree to make it appear very notion that people with mental illness incident,” Sarna said. Chandigarh Police said Park and Gandhi Darshan, notices were issued following him. Sandhu suffered head and rib she had committed suicide, Ram said. Medical can’t become workers. The work they are they were not ruling out suicide. Harkirat was to their authorities,” said an official. “The injuries and was taken to a hospital in Rampur, tests had confirmed rape, Ram said. Sex crimes doing in the laundry proves they have value- staying in the off icial bungalow allotted to other places visited by the SDMC officials were where he was declared dead, a police official and attacks on women have been a focus of based role in life,” said Ratnaboli Ray, founder Beant Singh’s family in Sector 5. The family Qutub Minar, Chhattarpur temple, Jahaj Mahal, said. There was also some technical problem public attention in India since the gang-rape and of Anjali, a mental health rights organisation. continues to enjoy high-level security provided Mehrauli and Lotus temple where no breeding with the motorcycle’s gearbox and that could murder of a student on a New Delhi bus in 2012. The laundry project was set up by Anjali . by Punjab police and paramilitary forces. was found,” the official added. also be the reason for the accident, he said. Modi govt has Flamingos in flight set example for others: BJP leader

IANS country’s direction in the last New Delhi two years. “This government ensured economic development with he ruling Bharatiya Janata public welfare. It has been suc- Party yesterday slammed cessful in its attempt of all- Tthe Congress for spread- round development of the coun- ing what it said was false propa- try.” ganda against the government, The Congress meanwhile re- and said the opposition party jected the charge that it has been was unable to digest the fact obstructionist, saying its poli- that the country was progressing tics refl ected the ground reality under Prime Minister Narendra of India. Migratory flamingos take flight at Nalsarovar Bird Sanctuary, some 70km from Ahmedabad in Gujarat yesterday. The birds are being encouraged to stay at the wetlands Modi. “This is not the politics of of Gujarat as locating shoals of fish which form the diet of the flamingos, is made easier since water levels are falling due to drought conditions in many parts in India. “The Congress stands ex- obstructionism but of realism posed today. It has given this so that ground reality could be country nothing but problems shown to them,” Congress leader and we are trying to find solu- Anand Sharma told reporters in tions to those problems. But we response to Modi’s suggestion are confident that the public that the opposition to his gov- will not be swayed by this false ernment’s policies was reaction- propaganda of the Congress,” ary in nature. BJP national secretary Srikant Speaking at a celebration of Sharma said in a statement his government’s two years in here. offi ce, Modi said on Saturday: Five held over attacks He said the central govern- “Two things have emerged in the ment led by Modi had set an ex- last 15 days. One is ‘Vikasvad’ ample for others. (development) and the other is “The previous UPA (United ‘Virodhvad’ (obstructionism). Progressive Alliance) govern- What is the reality, people can ment failed on all fronts. How- judge for themselves.” ever, not a single case of cor- Sharma said the way the on Africans in Delhi ruption has come out (against prime minister, it seemed as if he the Modi government) in the last has fulfi lled all the promises he Sushma promises swift cially motivated and were in- why they were doing so,” he Sushma Swaraj, in a series of security of everyone,” he said in two years. Even the opposition had made while running for of- action and a sensitisation stead connected “entirely to lo- said. tweets yesterday, promised a tweet. could not get anything against fi ce in 2014. campaign cal issues.” The attacks come after a swift action against those in- In another tweet, he said: us. We have set an example for “He pretended as if he has “We still promptly registered Congolese teacher was bludg- volved in Thursday’s incidents “Spoke to CP Delhi regarding others,” he said. fulfi lled the aspirations of com- Agencies the cases and arrested fi ve locals eoned to death one week ago as well as a “sensitisation cam- the incident of physical assault Reacting to senior Congress mon man... (but) their claims are New Delhi today,” said Singh, adding that allegedly by three men after an paign” for “areas where African against certain African nation- leader P Chidambaram’s state- wrong and the fi gures reject it,” one of the Africans received argument over hiring an auto- nationals reside.” als in New Delhi. ment on the status of job crea- the Congress leader said. only minor injuries during the rickshaw in an upscale Delhi Minister of State for External Such incidents are condem- tion in the country, Sharma said There is a gap between what olice said yesterday they heated exchanges. neighbourhood. Aff airs V K Singh, who has been nable.” he was a “failed” leader. the prime minister says and what arrested fi ve men accused African residents told news In a rare statement issued deputed to meet and reassure Thousands of people from “He (Chidambaram) is a failed he does, Sharma said. Pof assaulting Africans in channels that they were ra- after the attack, a group of Af- African students in Delhi, ac- African countries study and leader of the earlier UPA govern- “He had promised two crore New Delhi, after African dip- cially abused and attacked by rican ambassadors said African cused the media of overreacting work in India but several inci- ment. It is because of his frus- jobs every year. So at least lomats urged the Indian gov- mobs. nationals were living in a “per- to the latest “minor” incidents. dents have raised concerns of tration that he is putting such four crore jobs should have ernment to ensure the safety A Nigerian national, Leuchy, vading climate of fear and inse- Earlier in the day, federal racist violence and discrimina- questions on this government,” been created till date. I throw of their nationals living in the 32, told NDTV that he was on curity” in Delhi. Home Minister Rajnath Singh tion. Sharma said. him open challenge to prove if country. way to a nearby church in an They warned they may rec- condemned the attacks and told In 2013, a Nigerian national The BJP leader said: “Skill In- he has even created four lakh Deputy Commissioner of auto-rickshaw when a group of ommend their governments not the city police to step up pa- was killed by a mob in Goa, with dia, Start-up India and Stand- jobs,” he said. Police Ishwar Singh said alter- locals stopped it midway and to send students to India until trolling in neighbourhoods that a state minister later calling Ni- up India are some of the schemes Sharma claimed that during cations and scuffl es took place attacked him. safety conditions improve, fol- have signifi cant African popu- gerians a “cancer.” launched by this government the last two years the rate of in- on Thursday night after locals “They attacked me with lowing a string of what they said lations. Delhi’s former law minis- that have provided lots of em- vestment has gone down. became off ended by Africans (cricket) bats and a stone, were unpunished racial attacks. “Instructed CP (commis- ter was also accused in 2014 of ployment opportunities to the “For the fi rst time in history playing loud music and drink- which caused a deep injury on Police have arrested two of sioner of police) Delhi to take harassing African women after youth.” the national investment rate has ing alcohol in the street. my nose among other wounds. the three suspected of the kill- strict action against the at- he led a vigilante mob through Sharma said the Modi gov- gone down with respect to na- Singh stressed that the three They kept thrashing me as I ing. tackers and increase police pa- an area of the capital, accusing ernment had tried to change the tional savings rate,” he said. separate incidents were not ra- screamed for help asking them External Aff airs Minister trolling in these areas to ensure them of being prostitutes. Haryana gears up as Jats AAP demands liquor ban Govt rejects list for threaten to renew protest IIM-A chief’s post IANS ings of the search committee Ahmedabad that drew up the list in March. IANS chances that some agitators, Police (ADGP) Mohamed Akil The IIM-A’s 15-member Chandigarh hooligans and anti-social ele- said: “Police will try to make board of governors has two rep- ments may cause damage to the protesters understand. But he Human Resource De- resentatives of the central gov- roads, railway tracks, water if they do not understand, po- velopment ministry has ernment and one of the state at leaders yesterday threat- sources and power houses in lice will use force against such Trejected a list of names government but none of the ened to renew their protest view of the stay ordered by protesters, without any con- sent by the Indian Institute three was present during the Jfor reservation in Haryana the Punjab and Haryana High sideration of caste or commu- of Management - Ahmeda- meetings that decided the list. from June 5, and the state gov- Court on the Haryana govern- nity.” bad (IIM-A) for its chairman’s The list was fi nalised by ernment and police started mo- ment’s decision to grant res- At least 30 people were killed post and sought a fresh list of consensus but the ministry bilising security forces at various ervation to Jats and five other and 320 injured and property candidates, sources said yes- took the stand that the formal places. communities in jobs and edu- worth millions of rupees was de- terday. procedure was not followed in Sources said that police and cational institutions under the stroyed during violent agitation The rejected list included the case. paramilitary forces were being newly created Backward Class in February this year. the names of Infosys Board According to a Memoran- stationed in sensitive districts ‘C’ category.” “We will hold ‘Jat Nyay’ rally of Directors chairman R Se- dum of Association between like Sonipat, Rohtak, Jhajjar, Jind Under section 144, there as promises made by Haryana shasayee, HDFC chairman the IIM-A and the ministry, and Fatehabad. would be a complete ban on the Chief Minister Manohar Lal Deepak Parekh and Hero Mo- the latter picks a name from Sonipat District Magistrate K gathering of fi ve or more people Khattar have not been ful- toCorp chairman and manag- the search committee’s rec- Makrand Pandurang yesterday at any place and carrying sticks, filled,” Jat leader Yashpal Malik ing director Pawan Munjal. ommended candidates. ordered imposition of prohibi- axe, sword, knife or any other said. The list was sent by a three- The IIM-A top post is ly- tory orders, under section 144 sharp-edged weapons. The or- “We were promised that member search committee ing vacant since Naik stepped of the Criminal Procedure Code, der would remain eff ective for those arrested during the Jat headed by Larsen & Toubro down as board of governors in the district “to ward off any 60 days until July 27. quota stir earlier will be re- chairman and managing direc- chairman on December 31, two tension, fi ghts, threats to human Following the high court’s stay leased and compensation given tor Anil Naik, himself a former years ahead of the end of his life, damage to property and de- on the government notifi cation to the relatives of those killed IIM-A chairman. tenure. terioration in the law-and-order granting reservation and Jats or the injured. We will hold a While the IIM-A’s offi cial Cadila Healthcare chairman situation.” threatening protests, the police peaceful protest, but if the po- statement refused to comment and managing director Pankaj The order has been issued fol- on Friday said they were fully lice retaliate or try to stop us by on the issue, the sources said Patel was appointed the inter- lowing apprehension of violence prepared to deal with the situa- using violence, the protesters Aam Aadmi Party activists stage a demonstration demanding the names were rejected as no im chairman by the board and during the renewed Jat protests. tion. are free to take their call,” Ma- liquor ban in Rajasthan, in Jaipur yesterday. government representative a search for the new chief was Pandurang said “there were Additional Director General lik said. was present during the meet- launched. Gulf Times 22 Monday, May 30, 2016 LATIN AMERICA

LAW AND ORDER PROBE VERDICT DECISION TRAGEDY Police arrest first suspect Bachelet testifies in Canadian jailed for Haiti raises minimum Footballer dies after after gang-rape video daughter-in-law’s tax case sexually harassing teen wage to $4.84 a day two blows on pitch

Brazilian police said they had arrested the first Chile’s President Michelle Bachelet has A Canadian man was sentenced to eight years Haiti has hiked the minimum wage by 25%, A player in a regional Argentinian football of more than 30 suspects wanted over the gang- voluntarily testified with the national prosecutor’s in prison in Nicaragua for sexually predatory raising it from the equivalent of $3.87 a day to league died from injuries sustained in a violent rape of a 16-year-old girl whose attackers posted off ice as part of a probe into alleged tax crimes behaviour towards a 16-year-old girl, a court $4.84 to off set surging inflation. Acting president encounter on the pitch with a rival team, the a graphic video online showing the aftermath of by her daughter-in-law Natalia Compagnon, the off icial in Managua said. Phillips Barry Hilderbrand Jocelerme Privert ordered the raise after labour league reported. San Jorge player Micael Favre, their brutal attack. The arrest came as some 70 government said. While Bachelet has not been was sentenced to “five years in prison for sexual unions last month demanded a hike to 500 24, suff ered an apparently accidental blow to the military police fanned out across a slum west of accused of any wrongdoing, the case has been harassment leading to light psychological gourdes, or $8.05, a day. “In setting the minimum head from the knee of an opposing player during Rio de Janeiro in a huge operation to apprehend one of a number of high-profile money-in-politics harm, and three years for drug possession,” a wage, the state has a duty to take into account a game yesterday in Villa Elisa. Just as Favre got those suspected of taking part in the assault scandals to come to light over the last year, spokesman for Nicaragua’s high criminal court sectoral realities and dynamics,” said an off icial to his feet, another player from the Defensores that has shocked Brazil. The detained suspect sowing discontent among Chileans and dragging said. The 62-year-old struck a deal with the girl’s statement. Already weak, Haiti’s economy has team sent him to the ground again with an was being interrogated, said police. Social media the president’s popularity to all-time lows. mother to take the teen and raise her in exchange slowed further because of a political crisis apparent blow to the face. Favre was brought networks erupted with outrage over the footage Interior Minister Jorge Burgos disclosed that he for paying money and promising to build the resulting from indefinite delays in the second to a hospital in convulsions and died soon after, posted on Wednesday featuring the girl naked informed Bachelet that he had received a request mother a house. He then took the girl to live with round of presidential elections, which initially La Nacion reported. Both players from the on a bed and the apparent attackers bragging from the prosecutor’s off ice for the President to him at his residence where the prosecution says was scheduled for December 2015. Haiti’s annual Defensores team were temporarily detained. The that she had been raped by more than 30 men. voluntarily testify in the probe. he made unwanted sexual advances. inflation rate surpassed 15% in April. state attorney has ordered an autopsy on Favre. Nearly 3mn Gifts for quake-hit children need food aid in drought-hit C America: UN

Thomson Reuters Foundation The latest El Nino, which re- Bogota sulted in sea temperatures rising to the highest levels in 19 years and shifted weather patterns round 2.8mn people in around the world, has ended, the three Central American Australian Bureau of Meteorol- Acountries need food aid ogy said this week. after two consecutive years In recent weeks parts of Cen- of severe drought decimated tral America have seen erratic crops and exacerbated hunger rainfall marking the onset of among the poor, the UN Food the rainy season, which started and Agriculture Organisation a month late. Despite the rain, (FAO) said. families in drought-hit areas Prolonged dry spells since will reel from the eff ects of poor mid-2014, linked to the El Nino harvests and loss of livestock for weather phenomenon, have months to come. The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies distribute gifts to children in Pedernales, Ecuador. The country is attempting to rebuild after a battered subsistence farmers “The current situation is likely magnitude 7.8 earthquake killed some 700 people on April 16, 2016. in Central America’s “dry cor- to continue up to August when ridor” running through Guate- the fi rst harvest of the year takes mala, El Salvador and Honduras. place,” Morelli said. “Much de- Poor rainfall has left parched, pends on what will happen with cracked soil, fi elds of withered the rainfall and the results of the maize and bean crops, and emp- fi rst harvest.” ty water wells in these areas. A key challenge facing Cen- Some 3.5mn people are strug- tral America’s dry corridor is gling to feed themselves in Gua- ensuring small farmers are bet- temala, El Salvador and Hondu- ter prepared to cope with long ras, and of that number 2.8mn dry spells by improving rain- Venezuela’s top US rely on food aid to survive, the water harvesting, creating more FAO said. effi cient irrigation systems and “We have one of the worst planting drought-resistant drought in decades,” said Anna crops. Ricoy, FAO’s regional disaster The UN World Food Pro- risk reduction specialist. gramme (WFP) said in April “It’s a recurrent drought that it is providing food aid - such diplomat defends govt year after year is slowly eroding as rice and beans, and cash the livelihoods of small farmers. for people to buy food at lo- Tribune News Service “This has been very irrespon- has also instituted mandatory “That is what the constitu- states,” Shifter said. “It’s a not It’s a silent disaster,” she said. cal markets - to 1.6mn people Washington sible behaviour,” Alvarez said, blackouts to save energy. tion says. To deny the people that a sense of criticism, but puzzle- Because of the drought, in affected by drought in Guate- after speaking publicly about Alvarez, who is the country’s vote, to deny them the possibil- ment in the way he’s behaving.” mid-2015 Honduras declared in mala, El Salvador, Honduras the situation in Venezuela at the representative at the OAS, blasted ity of deciding, would make you Unlike his president and its dry corridor a state of emer- and Haiti. enezuela’s top diplomat Inter-American Dialogue think Almagro, former Uruguay foreign just another petty dictator, like so other Venezuelan leaders who gency that is still in place. The drought has ravaged in the US defended his tank. “And you can imagine minister, for working unilaterally many this hemisphere has had.” have accused the US of trying Poor farmers and their fami- Haiti, the poorest country in the Vembattled government how we feel after he insults our without the support of member Michael Shifter, president of to overthrow the Maduro ad- lies living across Central Amer- Americas, with half of all crops against what he called a “dis- president.” states and taking a political posi- the Inter-American Dialogue, ministration, Alvarez avoided ica’s dry corridor have been lost due to poor harvests last torted” campaign designed to Almagro is expected to release tion against Venezuela. which has raised concerns about attacking the US. He was largely forced to cut meals. year, according to the WFP. incite political intervention. a report next week outlining Last week, Almagro ques- the crisis in Venezuela, compli- critical of the media for its ex- “People are and have been A third consecutive year of Ambassador Bernardo Alva- the political and humanitarian tioned whether Maduro was mented Almagro’s passion and tensive coverage of the crisis. selling their assets to survive, drought in Haiti has “resulted rez saved his strongest words situation in Venezuela, part of turning into a “petty dictator” concern for the Venezuelan peo- Alvarez also acknowledged selling land and seeds, reducing in a drastic deterioration of the for Luis Almagro, the head of an ongoing investigation into and pressed the socialist presi- ple. But Shifter questioned Al- the challenges his government the number of meals a day and food security situation”, driving the Organisation of American whether to present to the OAS dent to allow Venezuelan voters magro’s strategy of getting into faces, which he attributed to reducing their amount of protein people deeper into poverty and States, whom Alvarez accused permanent council a case for in- to decide via a recall referendum a “war of words” with the Vene- a 70% drop in income largely intake,” said Gianni Morelli, dis- hunger, WFP said in a report this of “illegally” trying to invoke voking the Democratic Charter. whether he should fi nish his zuelan president and not working due to falling oil prices. Imports aster response advisor for Cen- week. the hemispheric organisation’s Venezulan President Nicolas term, set to expire in 2019. more through the member states. have fallen 60 % in the last four tral America at the UN humani- The WFP estimates 1.5mn Democratic Charter. Maduro faces tremendous pres- “When politics are polarised, “There is a risk for him years. But he said it doesn’t give tarian agency (OCHA). “Right Haitians are severely food in- Such a move would essential- sure as the country continues the decision must go back to weighing in on issues from Ven- Almagro or any leader the right now the situation is very serious, secure, double the fi gure of six ly suspend the continent’s big- to suff er from food and medi- the people,” Almagro wrote in a ezuela to Brazil to Peru with- to launch a disruptive campaign and it’s fragile.” months ago. gest oil producer from the OAS. cine shortages. The government scathing May 18 letter. out really consulting member of international interference.

Support for Rousseff Brazil probes possible Fujimori gains ground graft at Olympic venues over rival in new poll Reuters Fujimori has climbed in opin- Lima ion polls even after Univision re- Reuters Dilma Rousseff faces an im- not been notifi ed about the in- ported on May 15 that a top aide Rio de Janeiro peachment trial, the economy vestigation and could not make a is under investigation by the suff ers its worst recession since comment without understand- entre-right presiden- US Drug Enforcement Agency the 1930s, an outbreak of the ing more about the probe. tial hopeful Keiko Fu- (DEA). The DEA declined to razilian investigators have Zika virus prompts health con- Mitidieri would not say if his Cjimori has gained more confi rm or deny the report. expanded their probe cerns and a massive corruption team had uncovered any proof of ground over her centrist rival Fujimori and her aide have Binto possible corruption scandal infuriates Brazilians. corruption - but he added that Pedro Pablo Kuczynski in a denied wrongdoing and said around the staging of the Olym- Mitidieri said his team is also detailed announcements about Datum opinion poll, the third they were victims of a smear pic Games in Rio de Janeiro this investigating what happened the investigation’s results would survey in the past week to campaign. August to include all the ven- to federal funds earmarked for be made in coming weeks. show her winning Peru’s June Ipsos gave Fujimori a 5.2 point ues and services fi nanced with cleaning Guanabara Bay, where Five construction fi rms are 5 run-off election. lead over Kuczynski in a poll federal funds, a lead prosecutor Olympic sailing events will take building most of the 39bn reais Fujimori, the daughter of im- published last Sunday before a said. place, and lakes that surround ($10.8bn) worth of venues and prisoned ex-president Alberto debate later in the day that she Federal investigations have the main Olympic venues in infrastructure needed for Rio’s Fujimori, had 52.9% of valid was widely considered to have previously focused on “legacy” western Rio’s Barra neighbour- Olympics. The fi gure includes votes compared with Kuczyn- won. Local pollster CPI put her modernisation projects not di- hood. at least 1.76bn reais in federal ski’s 47.1%, according to Da- 8.4 points ahead on Thursday. rectly tied to the Games but this Those bodies of water have funds, according to documents tum’s mock voting exercise. The Fujimori has portrayed Kuc- newly disclosed probe includes heavy sewage contamination from Brazil’s federal accounting survey of 1,979 voters May 23-25 zynski, a 77-year-old former Olympic Park and the Deodoro and remain badly polluted de- court. had a 2.2 point margin of error. World Bank economist, as out- area where Olympic venues are spite promises to drastically im- All fi ve companies are caught The two free-market advo- of-touch and part of Peru’s located, federal prosecutor Le- prove them as a legacy achieve- up in an investigation into price cates in the world’s third top elite. She is seen as stronger on andro Mitidieri said. ment of the Olympics. fi xing and kickbacks at state-run copper supplier were locked in crime and more supportive of “It’s not just the physical Another team of federal pros- oil company Petrobras, a two- a statistical tie in previous Da- the Andean country’s provinc- works we’re looking at - it is ecutors, along with federal po- year probe that has seen scores tum polls. es and social programmes for contracts for services, security, lice, is investigating whether of top executives and politicians However, 13.7% of respond- the poor, according to Datum. everything that used federal the Rio de Janeiro state water jailed, charged or under investi- ents cast blank or spoiled bal- However, 57% of respond- funds,” he said from his Rio de utility company Cedae commit- gation. lots, giving Kuczynski room to ents in the Datum survey said Janeiro offi ce. ted environmental crimes by not The Petrobras investigation pick up more support if he can allegations that her party is The Olympics were meant to properly treating sewage in Rio’s is what led federal police and exploit fears about Fujimori’s linked to drug-traffi cking and showcase Brazil’s rise as a glo- metropolitan area of 12mn peo- prosecutors to begin looking at Supporters of suspended Brazilian president Dilma Rousseff ties to her father’s authoritar- money laundering were cor- bal power. Instead, they will take ple, Mitidieri said. possible corruption tied to the protest in New York. ian government and alleged rect, compared to 38% who place as suspended President Rio utility Cedae said it had Olympics. drug traffi cking. considered them false. Gulf Times Monday, May 30, 2016 23 PAKISTAN/AFGHANISTAN Pakistan sees no Protest march threat from Iran’s Chabahar port

Internews was not an unexpected move in cance and benefi t to the area and Islamabad the region. through co-operation they could She said there was no match be mutual partners and not between the Chabahar and Gwa- competitors. akistan’s Ministry of dar ports as both had much con- He stated the Chabahar deal Commerce seems to be trast and could never become was “not restricted to these Punruffl ed by the recent competitors. three nations” and even Pakistan trilateral agreement among Iran, and China were welcome to be Afghanistan and India for devel- “There is no need to worry part of it. oping the Chabahar port, believ- as Chabahar is not a recent The Ministry of Commerce ing it is not a serious competitor development and the and Iranian authorities are also of its Gwadar port since it is not three countries have been working to sign a free trade a deep-sea port. working on it for a long agreement and in this regard an Senior ministry offi cer Rubina time” initial text is being prepared to Akhter, who is the Additional share with Tehran. Secretary of Trade Diplomacy, She explained that besides not The step has been taken after says there was much hype about being a deep-sea port, the dis- the lifting of sanctions by the the move by Iran, Afghanistan tance from Chabahar to poten- international community fol- and India, which inked an agree- tial markets is also much longer lowing a successful deal on the Pakistani eunuchs and their supporters protest in the wake of the killing of transgender female Alisha, in Lahore on Saturday. ment to develop the Chabahar than Gwadar, which is another Iranian nuclear programme. Alisha, who was shot eight times earlier this week allegedly by a disgruntled customer, succumbed to her wounds at Peshawar’s port, but it was not a threat to minus point of the Iranian port. Akhter said the trade diplomacy Lady Reading Hospital on May 25. The 25-year-old’s murder is the fifth reported case of violence against trans people in Khyber Pakistan. She mentioned that the Ira- with Iran was moving in the right Pakhtunkhwa this year. The three countries signed the nian president during his re- direction. deal after the landmark China- cent visit to Pakistan also clari- There were a number of events Pakistan Economic Corridor fied that they were developing on the cards in both the coun- (CPEC) project was launched by the Chabahar port and it was tries focused on promoting bi- Pakistan and China under which not a competitor of any other lateral trade, which had halted Gwadar deep-sea port would be port in the region. Last week due to the sanctions. developed for opening an easy Iranian ambassador to Paki- The commerce ministry will access to the regional markets. stan Mehdi Honardost also lead a delegation to Iran in July Pak statute allows minister to “There is no need to worry as dispelled the impression that or the fi rst week of August to Chabahar is not a recent devel- Chabahar was a move against discuss trade-related issues opment and the three countries any other country. and a proposal to hold a single- have been working on it for a He stated that each port in country exhibition of Pakistani long time,” Akhter said, adding it the region was of equal signifi - goods in Iran. perform functions of absent PM

Internews The Constitution, however, such by the Prime minister. raised if the cabinet can meet Islamabad does not have any room for a Sharif has to be absent from without the prime minister, the “deputy prime minister”. Pakistan when the government Rules of Business 1973 unam- Article 95(3) of the Constitu- is supposed to present its fi scal biguously say that the cabinet Missing Pakistani boy found oth the 1973 Constitution tion covers the present situa- budget for the year 2016-17 be- can meet even in the absence of Pakistan as well as the tion where the prime minister fore parliament. of the prime minister. Rule BRules of Business provide has to stay in London for a few 20(3) of the Rules of Business for holding of cabinet meet- weeks for his open heart sur- “When the Prime Minister, 1973 says: (3) The prime min- in India two years later ings in the absence of the prime gery, to be carried out on Tues- by reason of absence ister may authorise the holding minister besides allowing a day next. from Pakistan or any of cabinet meetings during his federal minister to perform the This Article reads as: other cause, is unable to absence. IANS the next day, Dawn online yes- boy was in the police custody in functions as chief executive for “When the Prime Minister, perform his functions, The Rules of Business ex- Islamabad terday quoted the boy’s father as Rajasthan. the time being. by reason of absence from Pa- the most senior federal plain: “In the absence of the saying. Zafar said it had been 45 days Amid reports that the gov- kistan or any other cause, is minister for the time prime minister, a minister Nearly two months ago, Is- since he learned of his child’s ernment is considering hold- unable to perform his func- being shall perform nominated by the prime min- Pakistani boy who went mail’s family came to know that whereabouts but had been un- ing a cabinet meeting today tions, the most senior federal the functions of prime ister shall preside (over the missing from his home he was in Rajasthan when his able to bring his son back to Pa- to be attended by the prime minister for the time being minister until the prime cabinet meeting). The deci- Ain Khyber Pakhtunkhwa maternal uncle in Saudi Arabia kistan. minister from London through shall perform the functions of minister returns to sions taken in the prime min- province of Pakistan two years saw a picture on social media The family was looking to the video link, the government is prime minister until the prime Pakistan ister’s absence shall be subject ago was found in India. shared by an Indian social work- governments of India and Pa- thinking of notifying a federal minister returns to Pakistan to the approval of the prime Tufail Ismail, who was fi ve er, his father said. kistan to help their son return minister – probably Finance or, as the case may be, resumes The budget proposals, before minister, unless the cabinet years old at the time, got sepa- The social worker had shared home to Pakistan. Minister Ishaq Dar – to per- his functions.” their presentation to the par- feels that a particular case is rated from his family in June a contact number with the photo Ismail’s parents appealed to form the functions of the chief The same Article adds, “Most liament for discussion and ap- so urgent that immediate ac- 2014 in Charsadda district, his and requested social media users Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz executive till Prime Minister senior federal minister” is de- proval, are considered and ap- tion may be taken in antici- father Zafar Ali said. to share the post so the child could Sharif and Indian Prime Minis- Nawaz Sharif’s return from fi ned as the federal minister for proved by the cabinet. pation of the prime minister’s The family searched for Is- be reunited with his family. ter Narendra Modi to help in re- London. the time being designated as While the questions are being approval.” mail everywhere and registered Islamil’s uncle called the given covering their son and reuniting a missing complaint with police number and was told the missing him with the family. Lahore lions for ALLOWANCES Islamabad zoo Judges endorse increase in perks Finally, the Marghazar Zoo Michelle Obama attends of Pakistan’s federal capital for themselves Eff orts to prevent multiple Eid Islamabad will get a pair of lions as a team of health graduation party at A full court meeting of the experts is in Lahore Safari Supreme Court of Pakistan has Internews Peshawar’s Masjid Qasim Ali announcing Eid earlier than rest Park to bring them to the city. approved a boost in perks and Islamabad Khan tomorrow. of the country. Dr Bilal Khilji, the head of the Pak envoy’s residence privileges for both serving and But the ministry, or any “If he declines the offi cial re- team, said from Lahore over retired judges. other federal and provincial quest and refuses to accept the the weekend that after a long Off icial sources say the meeting, n a bid to ensure that the department for that matter, Ruet-i-Hilal Committee’s deci- eff ort the management of the Internews daughters, Sasha and Malia, held under Chief Justice Anwar holy month of Ramadan will be helpless if Popalzai sion, there will be two diff erent Lahore Safari Park had agreed Washington and Vice President Joe Biden’s Jamali, discussed several issues Iand Eid al-Fitr are ob- decides not to accept the de- dates for the beginning of Ra- to give the pair to Marghazar grandchildren attend the school. regarding perks and privileges. served on the same day across cisions of the Central Ruet-i- madan and possibly Eid as well. Zoo. “According to an agree- Former presidents Theodore The nine-page minutes of the the country, Pakistan’s Fed- Hilal [Moon Sighting] Com- We cannot do anything, because ment we will provide a pair he First Lady of the United Roosevelt, Richard Nixon, Bill meeting indicated the full court eral Ministry of Religious Af- mittee. there is no law in this regard,” a of zebra and barking deer to States, Michelle Obama, Clinton and vice-president Al approved the reimbursement of fairs has sought a meeting with Traditionally, over the past senior offi cial from the ministry Safari Park in return for the Tvisited the residence of Gore also sent their children to Supreme Court (SC) judges’ medi- Mufti Shahabuddin Popalzai of several years, Popalzai has been says. lions,” he said. the Pakistani ambassador at the this school. “It was an absolute cal claims for indoor and outdoor start of the weekend to attend delight hosting FLOTUS ‘fi rst treatment in government hospitals, his son’s graduation party. lady of the United States] at Pa- in addition to medical allowances. The visit was the fi rst by a kistan House,” ambassador Jilani It also resolved that SC judges after fi rst lady to a Pakistani mission said on Twitter. retirement should be provided an or offi cial residence, and it also option either to return IT gadgets was the fi rst positive news in the “It was a small get-together / devices/ computers / laptops Pakistan may abandon Afghan US capital about Pakistan after arranged at the residence, / PC-Notebooks in their use, or weeks of negative publicity. planned couple of weeks to purchase the same at 40 per Yet, it was a private visit, with ago. “The First Lady was cent depreciation per year of the no apparent connection to larger gracious enough to accept original purchase price and after projects after workers’ harassment events – like the elimination of the invitation” five years, a flat price of Rs5,000 Taliban leader Mullah Mansour may be charged. The full court in Balochistan or Congress’s re- Embassy offi cials, however, decided to enhance the stay of Internews As many as 45 Pakistani Pakistani nationals, who are workers also face problems in fusal to subsidise an F-16 deal said reports in the Pakistani me- judges in guest houses from three Islamabad workers, including engineers, working on various projects, is securing Afghan visas and ex- for Pakistan. Ambassador Jalil dia that the First Lady discussed to seven days. are involved in the construc- now common and has demoral- tensions in visas. Jilani’s youngest son goes to the bilateral relations with the am- tion of the $14mn hospital. ised them,” the Pakistani offi cial Meanwhile, Afghanistan’s same school – Sidwell Friends bassador were “absolutely in- OFFENSIVE Besides Pakistanis, around 90 lamented. top diplomat in Islamabad – as President Barack Obama’s correct.” n a sign of deteriorating ties Afghan nationals also work on He added that the Afghan said that it was just one in- daughters. “As the ambassador said, this 6 killed in Afghan between Islamabad and Ka- the site. government is lax on ensuring cident. Shaista Jilani and the ambas- was a private get-together, not drone strike Ibul, Pakistan has indicated The Pakistani offi cial said security for workers. “We should not generalise sador hosted a graduation party an offi cial meeting,” said one of- it could abandon work on de- police took issue with an elec- [based on] one isolated inci- for their son. fi cial. Six militants, including a com- velopment projects in Afghani- trical machine claiming that it “Pakistani contractors dent of a worker detained and “It was a small get-togeth- But since the visit followed mander of the loyalists of Islamic stan in the wake of harassment could be used for terrorism. explained to the police then released within a few er arranged at the residence, weeks of high tensions between State (IS) group, have been killed of its workers there. “Pakistani contractors ex- offi cer that the machine hours to all Pakistani workers planned couple of weeks ago,” the two countries - due to the in an airstrike in eastern Nan- A Pakistani offi cial in Kabul plained to the police offi cer that is used only for electrical in Afghanistan,” Afghan Am- ambassador Jilani said when drone strike and the F-16 con- garhar province of Afghanistan. was yesterday quoted by Ex- the machine is used only for purposes but the police bassador Omar Zakhilwal told contacted. troversy - it generated a lot of According to the local govern- press Tribune newspaper as say- electrical purposes but the po- offi cer was adamant on Express Tribune. “The First Lady was gracious speculation. Political pundits ment off icials, the airstrike was ing that authorities in the Logar lice offi cer was adamant on his his view and took the site He added that around enough to accept the invitation”. appearing on various television carried out in Haska Mina district, province last week detained an view and took the site engineer engineer to the police 100,000 work in Afghanistan Asked if this visit could be in- channels said that the visit was apparently by the US forces as engineer, who is working on a to the police station,” the Paki- station” without any restrictions. terpreted as a goodwill gesture, a bid to mend strained relations an unmanned aerial vehicle was Pakistan-funded hospital, for stani offi cial said. Pakistan is providing $500 which could help reduce ten- between Washington and Is- involved. Provincial governor’s nearly fi ve hours. He said the engineer, a con- The offi cial further pointed million for capacity building in sions, the ambassador said: “It lamabad. spokesman Ataullah Khogyani con- On May 24, a police squad tractor, later contacted the local out that Pakistani workers and various sectors including edu- was a private get-together.” Some also claimed that the firmed that a commander of the IS visited the under-construction administration in Logar and the engineers have been killed and cation, health as well as build- Called the Harvard of Wash- visit had President Obama’s group was killed with five others in 100-bed Naeb Aminullah Khan governor. kidnapped in the past. ing schools, hospitals, roads ington, Sidwell Friends is an blessings who wanted to tell the a drone strike, according to the Af- Logari Hospital in Logar prov- It was on their intervention “If the situation continues, and other communications in- exclusive private school where Pakistanis that the United States ghan Khaama Press. Drone strikes ince to search and clear the that the engineer was released, we will be forced to abandon frastructures of Afghanistan, students are accepted purely on wanted to continue a strong re- have played a role in suppressing structure ahead of an impend- but not before he was detained projects,” he warned. He also according the Pakistan embassy their merit. lationship with Pakistan despite the activities of the loyalists of IS ing visit of the governor. for fi ve hours. “Harassment of complained that Pakistani website. Both of President Obama’s the recent tensions. terrorist in Achin district. Gulf Times 24 Monday, May 30, 2016 PHILIPPINES Incoming president Police kill three more seeks early rebel talks drug suspects AFP Davao AFP southern city of Davao, has Manila been accused of backing vigi- lante death squads that have ncoming Philippine presi- murdered more than a thou- dent Rodrigo Duterte said hilippine police have killed sand people in Davao, includ- Iyesterday he would seek an three drug suspects in a ing more than 100 minors. early start to peace talks with Pshootout, offi cials said rebels and free detained guer- yesterday, the latest such deaths “The armed men rilla chieftains when he takes after president-elect Rodrigo shot at the raiding offi ce in end-June. Duterte vowed to crack down on team several times, He also offered safe pas- crime by any means necessary. prompting the latter sage for Jose Maria Sison, the Police said they were fired on to defend themselves founder of the insurgency who when they went to the home of and return fi re” fled to European exile nearly a suspected drug dealer on the 30 years after the failure of tiny central island of Banacon Civil rights groups have crit- initial attempts to end one of before dawn Saturday. icised Duterte over the threats, Asia’s longest armed insur- They returned fire and the describing his proposed meth- gencies. suspect and three associates ods as illegal and unconstitu- Duterte is betting on his were injured. tional. close friendship with Sison, The suspected trafficker Police have denied they are his former university teacher, Rowen Secretaria and two implementing Duterte’s cam- to bring a swift political set- unidentified men were pro- paign promises even before he tlement to a rebellion that has nounced dead after being taken takes office on June 30, insist- killed about 30,000 people to hospital, while a fourth was ing earlier this month that the by official count and impov- treated for gunshot wounds, first eight suspects were killed erished vast swathes of the local police officer Roel Lagora in self-defence. country. said. Banacon is about 20 kilome- “I will...give him (Sison) a “The armed men shot at the tres off the coast of Cebu, the safe-conduct pass,” the soon- raiding team several times, country’s second-largest city. to-be president told a mid- prompting the latter to defend The recently elected mayor night news conference in his themselves and return fire,” of Cebu, Tomas Osmena, said southern hometown of Davao. Lagora said by phone, reading earlier this month he would pay He said Benito Tiamzon and an official account of the inci- police 50,000 pesos ($1,060) his wife Wilma Tiamzon, the dent. for each criminal they killed, detained alleged leaders of the Police have killed 12 other and 5,000 pesos for wounding Communist Party of the Phil- Philippine president-elect Rodrigo Duterte has said at a news conference on May 26, that he will visit Jolo to talk to Moro National Liberation drug suspects across the coun- them. ippines and its armed wing Front (MNLF) chairman Nur Misuari (centre), seen raising a clenched fist. try in the past week, while uni- “I’m just taking care of busi- the New People’s Army, would dentified gunmen murdered ness,” Osmena said yesterday also be let out to take part in of their jailed comrades whom talks between the Aquino gov- agreement, “then I will release two other people linked by po- when asked about the raids and the peace talks. they described as “political ernment and the rebels. all the political prisoners,” lice to illegal drugs. the criminal bounties. Incumbent President Be- prisoners”, which the Aquino “I have commissioned them Duterte said. Duterte has warned that se- While the raid took place in a nigno Aquino revived peace government rejected. to go to Oslo...to go there for The rebels have hailed curity forces will kill tens of separate municipality, Osmena talks soon after taking office in Duterte, who met a rebel the framework and agenda Duterte’s earlier offer for a thousands of criminals and said on Facebook that Sec- 2010 but shelved them in 2013, emissary in Davao 10 days ago, that (we) will talk about,” Du- ceasefire, as well as to allow ignore human rights, part of a retaria was “the biggest drug accusing the rebels of insin- said he would also be sending terte added. the rebels to nominate their campaign pledge to eradicate lord” in two Cebu city districts. cerity in efforts to achieve a out two members of his cabi- He said the two cabinet em- allies to four positions in his the scourge of drugs that many “This is just one of four op- political settlement. net to Norway for preparatory issaries would then “maybe cabinet. However they have voters rated as their top con- erations being conducted this The talks got bogged down meetings with the exiled rebel accompany Jose Maria Sison also urged him to release all cern. weekend. after the communists de- leaders.Norway had acted as home”. Should his emissar- detained rebels that they said The incoming leader, who Will report the others to- manded the release of scores go-between in failed peace ies be able to hammer out an numbered more than 500. Jose Maria Sison is also the sitting mayor of the morrow,” Osmena wrote. Tough life Govt to partner Indonesia, Malaysia to boost sea security

Manila Times The defence chiefs commit- tive security forces undergo joint Manila ted to use existing platforms in training. undertaking joint patrols in the Indonesia’s defence ministry, Sulu Sea. for its part, proposed to conduct he Philippines, Malaysia, At present, the country regu- the said joint training at least and Indonesia have agreed larly conducts co-ordinated pa- twice a year. Tto enhance co-operation trols with Indonesia while main- Gazmin, however, reminded to curb piracy, kidnapping and taining an anti-smuggling pact Indonesia’s and Malaysia’s de- smuggling activities in Sulu Sea. with Malaysia. fence chiefs that the Philippines Meeting on the sidelines of the The defence chiefs noted that can only participate in joint ex- Association of Southeast Asian the notion of co-ordinated pa- ercises if they are conducted in Nations (Asean) Defence Minis- trols is in accordance with the the high seas. ters’ Meeting in Vientiane, Laos, Joint Declaration on Immediate The absence of a status of Defence Secretary Voltaire Gaz- Measures in the Maritime Areas visiting forces agreement with min and the defence ministers of of Common Concern which was either Malaysia or Indonesia Malaysia and Indonesia made a signed by the three countries’ prevents the Philippines from pact for the sharing of informa- respective defence ministries on hosting military exercises with tion and tighter co-operation May 5. foreign troops within its territo- among the countries’ intelli- Guidelines to implement the rial waters, Gazmin explained. gence units. said Joint Declaration are cur- To sustain the high level min- Indonesia, meanwhile, pro- rently being drafted by the re- isterial dialogue regarding the posed the institution of joint spective technical offi cers of the conduct of joint exercises, the posts of co-ordination within countries’ defence ministries. three defence chiefs of the cited A boy stands at the window of a shanty that was built with campaign posters of the recent presidential election in Manila. the countries’ respective bor- The defence chiefs also agreed countries agreed to hold a trilat- ders. to have the countries’ respec- eral meeting in June in Manila. Fraud claims set to hound new vice president

By Jaime R Pilapil another, a political science ana- haunt you. And you will go down future elections can indeed be- “Ours was beyond suspicious precincts showing 95-100 per- & Jeff erson Antiporda lyst and statistics expert from De the annals of history as a product come true barometers of the at 8.43 percent for the vice pres- cent undervotes!” he added. Manila Times la Salle University, said Robre- of that fraud. And worse is when people’s will, then I refuse to ident,” Contreras said. Contreras also raised the issue do’s supporters continue to har- you eventually lose in a protest. be drawn into this issue of the Another international statis- of “missing votes.” ass them online after they posted You will end up as a blighted Marcos burial. It is an important tician, Ma.Victoria V Ferro, pro- “I have received information ongress will proclaim their fi ndings on Facebook that it footnote.” symbolic issue that has the po- vided Contreras an analysis of that for the VP (race) this is not maverick Davao City was statistically impossible for Contreras gained more atten- tential to divide us. But we have the election results on a precinct allegedly the case. It is being al- Cmayor Rodrigo Duterte her to win the vice presidential tion and bashers on social media been sidetracked by so many basis, made by an associate of leged that when we add all the this afternoon as the 16th presi- race. when he corroborated a statis- symbolic debates that we lose hers who requested anonymity. votes cast for all the six candi- dent of the Philippines uncon- Lawyers for Marcos, mean- tical analysis made by David track of those that will have se- “There were many precincts dates, the number of undervotes tested after a landslide victory, while, pointed out an unusually Yap, instructor of Mathematical rious impacts on our democracy, that had more than 90 percent and the number of overvotes, the but neophyte Leni Robredo’s high undervotes of nearly 4 mil- Economics at the Ateneo, of the like elections,” he explained. turnout. A turnout like this indi- sum is less than the number of to- slim edge over the heir of the lion registered in the vice presi- quick unoffi cial count by PPCRV Contreras also pointed out the cates voters that are eager to vote tal votes cast. This indicates that Philippine strongman Ferdinand dential race, and said the fi ght showing Robredo’s vote eradi- “undervotes” – which he said and have a high degree of enthu- there are missing votes, and the Marcos is set to usher her to the will go on as they plan to fi le a cating the nearly 1 million lead of were staggering at 3.9 million. siasm. An analysis of the under- estimate is around 299,315 based vice presidency amid claims of protest before the Presidential Marcos in the early hours of May Referring to an argument of vote percentages of the precincts on the data downloaded from election fraud and legal protests. Electoral Tribunal (PET) con- Leni Robredo: facing claims of 10, when the nation was asleep. Prof Douglas Jones of the Univer- that had 90 percent turnout is the PPCRV transparency server,” Camarines Sur representative testing the offi cial outcome of election fraud and legal protests Yap said it was statistically sity of Iowa, who authored a pop- very revealing. Take note that he added, referring to the Parish Robredo clinched the second the canvassing of votes. improbable to say that Marcos’ ular book – Broken Ballots: Will according to Prof. Douglas Jones, Pastoral Council for Responsible highest post of the land in a tight De la Salle professor Antonio never happen again. It was ac- bailiwicks’ votes came in early, Your Vote Count?, he said: Pro- the noted election scientist from Voting. “If this is true, where did race with a lead of just more than Contreras said several issues tually better that Marcos ended but were quickly overtaken when fessor Douglas Jones is not just a Iowa, an undervote of 5 percent these 299,315 votes go? The an- 263,000 votes over Senator Fer- swirled around the vice presi- up losing, for it would have been Robredo’s own votes from her data scientist. He is an election is already suspicious, and that of swer is nowhere to be found.” dinand ‘Bongbong’ Marcos Jr in dential race which now need to diffi cult to probe fraud if he won. bailiwicks were transmitted. science guru. So I hope this will 10 percent is highly suspicious,” Contreras also supported the an election that used the hotly be addressed if questions on the I can just imagine the illogic that Contreras stressed that re- put him at par, even more quali- he said. demand of the Marcos camp for debated automated system pro- legitimacy of Robredo’s victory would be raised, the same one solving the vice presidential is- fi ed than David (Yap, the other “Data shows that we have a system audit to determine if vided by the Venezuelan fi rm were to be settled. now being raised at (President- sues is more important than ar- professor from Ateneo), myself 3,130 precincts whose turnout there were human interventions Smartmatic. “The issue here is fraud. And it elect Rodrigo) Duterte: “He won. guing whether former President and the 104 signatories of the was more than 90 percent, in- during the transmission of votes. Voters’ turnout was roughly is one already mediated by tech- How was he cheated?” he said. Ferdinand Marcos deserves a statement who claim that they dicating high voter enthusiasm, A political analyst said yester- 82 percent or 45.7 million. nology. The signs of the plague He said in an earlier post on hero’s burial. are data scientists, combined. but whose undervotes for vice day, however, Marcos will have At least two university profes- are there. I urge Bongbong Mar- Facebook: “There is no glory in “I am sorry if I will have to Contreras quoted Jones as president are considered suspi- to prove that there was cheating sors, one a mathematical econo- cos to exhaust all legal remedies winning a highly questionable focus my energy on cleaning saying that an undervote of fi ve cious, to highly suspicious, to if he intended to fi le an electoral mist from Ateneo de Manila and if only to make sure that this will election. The ghosts of fraud will up our electoral system so that percent is already suspicious. even preposterous, with three protest. Gulf Times Monday, May 30, 2016 25 SRI LANKA/BANGLADESH/NEPAL 10 killed in Bangladesh local election violence Unprecedented levels of March, with at least 90 peo- who had defected from the party, “The violence during the cur- response to the violence, with violence and allegations ple killed in total, according to police said. rent local elections surpassed thousands of opposition sup- of poll rigging mar local monitors. “Three people died. They had all records. The level of irregu- porters arrested - particularly council elections held in Prime Minister Sheikh Hasi- bullet marks and arrow injuries,” larities was also unprecedented,” those from the main Islamist phases since March, with at na’s ruling Awami League is Jamalpur deputy police chief EWG’s director Abdul Alim said. party. least 90 people killed in total looking to tighten its grip on Shariful Haq said, adding police Alim said the latest violence Bangladesh is also reeling power in the polls, as Bangladesh opened fi re to bring the situation put the overall death toll at 90 from a series of gruesome mur- AFP reels from a protracted political under control. although local monitoring group ders of secular and liberal activ- Sajeeb Wazed Joy Dhaka crisis. A candidate from the main Shujan said 101 people had been ists and members of religious During the latest round of opposition Bangladesh Nation- killed. minorities by Islamist extrem- voting on Saturday, three people alist Party (BNP) was stabbed Bangladesh has been hit by a ists. t least 10 people have were killed in central Jamalpur to death in eastern Comilla dis- political crisis since the BNP and The BNP has blasted the elec- been killed and thou- district and another seven else- trict while another was killed other opposition parties boy- tion commission’s handling of Asands injured in clashes where around the country, police in southern Chittagong, police cotted the 2014 general election. the local polls, saying there had Joy denies between supporters and candi- offi cials said. said. Scores of people were killed in been widespread intimidation dates of rival parties during the A police offi cer injured in poll Election Working Group fi rebomb attacks on vehicles last of opposition candidates and latest Bangladesh local elec- violence last month also died in (EWG), funded by US charity the year when BNP leader Khaleda looting of ballots boxes by ruling tions, police and poll monitors a Dhaka hospital on Saturday, an Asia Foundation, said the elec- Zia called a transport blockade party supporters. said yesterday. offi cer said. tion commission had “utterly as part of her eff orts to force the Both the Awami League and meeting Israel Unprecedented levels of vio- In Jamalpur, hundreds of failed to conduct free and fair government to hold fresh elec- the election commission have lence and allegations of poll rig- armed supporters of an Awami polls” mainly because it had no tions. said the polls have been fair. ging have marred local council League candidate clashed with authority over police and local Hasina’s secular govern- The fi nal phase will be held next elections held in phases since rivals supporting a candidate offi cials. ment launched a crackdown in month. politician in China keen Japanese aid for Lanka Washington

on strategic By Mizan Rahman drew controversy over hold- Dhaka ing a meeting with the Israeli politician in India early this expansion month. rashing Israeli politi- In another interview with cian Mendi N Safadi’s BBC Bangla on May 17, Sa- of ties with Tclaim that they had fadi also claimed that he met a meeting in Washington, Aslam Chowdhury in India but Sajeeb Wazed Joy has said they had no ‘secret meeting’ with Bangladesh: met nowhere. the BNP leader. In a Facebook post, Joy Criticising BBC Bangla for wrote: “I have never met Sa- airing the interview, he said: Minister fadi, either in Washington or “It is also shameful that BBC anywhere else. He is lying. Bangla actually broadcast That he is willing to lie for the this obviously fake interview By Mizan Rahman Bangladesh Nationalist Party without verifying facts. This Dhaka (BNP) also proves that he is in- really harms its credibility as a volved in a conspiracy with the news source.” BNP. Otherwise why would he Hanif said the ruling party hina wants to expand lie on their behalf?” will issue a rejoinder, protest- its ‘strategic’ relations Joy, son of Sheikh Hasian ing the report of BBC Bangla. Cwith Bangladesh, Chi- and ICT adviser to the PM, Meanwhile, BNP senior nese Defence Minister General came up with the Facebook joint secretary general Ruhul Chang Wanquan said this dur- statement yesterday, a day af- Kabir Rizvi yesterday said ing a meeting with Bangladesh ter the Israeli politician in an people do not trust Joy’s re- President Abdul Hamid in Dhaka interview with BBC Bangla, mark that he never met Israel’s yesterday. claimed that he had visited Likud Party leader Safadi. The Chinese minister said Joy’s offi ce in Washington last He also said their party is Bangladesh is a good friend of Japan Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, right, and Sri Lanka President Maithripala Sirisena shaking hands prior to their meeting in year. waiting to see what action the his country, and Chinese assist- Nagoya, central Japan. Abe has announced an assistance of ¥38bn ($308.44mn) for power transmission and water supply projects However, the BBC Bangla government takes against Joy ance in equipment training and in Sri Lanka. report did not include Joy’s over his meeting with Safadi. maintenance in the military sec- version in this regard. He also alleged that the tor will continue in future, Joy- On Saturday, Awami League government is playing double nal Abedin, the president’s press joint general secretary Mah- standard over separate meet- secretary told reporters after the bubul Alam Hanif also dis- ings between Safadi and Joy, meeting. missed Safadi’s claim, terming and Safadi and Aslam. Besides, the military training it a ‘drama staged by BNP’. Rizvi said, “Safadi himself programme between the two In his status, Joy further claimed to have met with Joy. countries continues to help in- said: “The BNP is such a stu- When an innocent BNP leader Nepal PM honours Sherpas met a person he was charged crease professional effi ciency pid party, that even when they on both sides, General Wan- lie they make stupid mistakes. with treason, but when the quan added that the exchange I would like the BNP and Sa- prime minister’s son met the of visits between high offi cials fadi to answer one question. same person he was labelled of the two countries would be Where in Washington did as patriot. This is the policy of for successful Everest season this regime.” increased. he meet me? At an event? In President Hamid termed Chi- someone else’s offi ce? Criticising Awami League na “one of the most important DPA top of Everest on May 11 to Mountaineering Association, climbed Everest since the fi rst “The fi rst stupid mistake leader Hanif for terming BNP development partners of Bang- Kathmandu prepare the mountain for the Ang Tshering Sherpa, said. ascent in 1953. they have made is that I have drama the media report about ladesh.” climbers to come. Out of the 400, 289 were for- Nearly 300 people have died not been to any event or of- a meeting between Safadi and “Chinese co-operation in The Nepalis were handed a eign climbers. trying to climb the world’s fi ce in Washington in at least Joy, Rizvi said people will trash diff erent sectors is playing an epal marked its annual cheque of 50,000 rupees each The government described highest peak. three-four years. The only his comment. important role in the socio- Everest Day yesterday ($470). the season as “successful” Everest expeditions in 2014 meetings I have had are pri- Rizvi alleged that the at- economic development of Nat the close of what au- “They did the job of rope fi x- although it was not without were cancelled after 16 Sher- vate ones with government of- torney general’s offi ce is Bangladesh,” the president thorities said was a “successful” ing, putting their lives in jeop- tragedy. pas died in an avalanche on the fi cials. So where could he have obstructing the release of observed. climbing season, after two years ardy, and their achievement Three Indians, one Austral- Khumbu icefall (4,900m). met me?” he added. Rajshahi City Corporation He hoped that through the vis- scarred by major accidents. is refl ected in the successful ian woman, a Dutchman and a In 2015, an avalanche trig- Earlier on May 15, detectives Mayor Mosaddek Hossain it the existing relations between Prime Minister KP Sharma ascent of Everest by more than Sherpa guide who was fi xing the gered by a 7.8-magnitude quake arrested Aslam Chowdhury, Bulbul from jail though he se- the two countries in the military Oli honoured the nine Sherpa 400 climbers in spring sea- ropes, died on the mountain. in Nepal killed 19 mountaineers a joint secretary general of cured bail from the High Court sector would be strengthened. climbers who had reached the son,” the president of the Nepal More than 4,000 people have on the Everest Base Camp. BNP, soon after the politician in the cases fi led against him. Nepalese runner wins world’s highest marathon

AFP and Australia, joined another 30 number of participants as a fur- Kathmandu from Nepal. ther sign of the recovery of Ne- Local soldier Bed Bahadur pal’s mountaineering industry Sunuwar took fi rst place, com- after two years of tragedy on the asping for breath and clad pleting the 42km run in four 8,848m (29,029ft) peak. in trekking boots, more hours and 10 seconds. “The earthquake dampened Gthan 150 local and for- “The route is very challenging the race last year, but we have eign runners took part yesterday but amazing too. I feel proud to seen a signifi cant increase in in the world’s highest marathon be the winner,” the 29-year-old the number of participants this in the snow-covered foothills of said. year,” said organiser Bikram Pan- Mount Everest. The air at base camp con- dey. The annual Tenzing-Hillary tains only half as much oxygen Only 55 took part last year and Everest Marathon, which be- as at sea level, leaving many it was postponed until October gan in 2003, is meant to mark runners gasping for breath on after a massive earthquake hit the anniversary of the fi rst even the slightest incline along the Himalayan nation in April, summit of the peak by Tenzing the narrow, rocky mountain killing nearly 9,000 people and Norgay and Edmund Hillary on paths. triggering a deadly avalanche on May 29, 1953. “It is a diffi cult and exciting Everest base camp. Runners kicked off the race to race at this altitude. My mus- An avalanche on Everest in at 7am local time, with the trail cles will hurt once the adrenaline 2014 also claimed the lives of 16 taking them from Everest base wears off ,” said Poland’s Robert Nepali guides and forced a shut- camp at a height of 5,364m Celinski, 43, taking part in his down of the mountain. (17,598ft) to the fi nishing line fourth race. But hundreds of mountain- about 2,000m below in the town “The Nepali runners are very eers have reached the summit of Namche Bazaar. good. But next year, I hope to in recent weeks, as this year’s About 130 foreign runners, in- win,” he said. spring climbing season drew to Runners participate in the world’s highest marathon in the foothills of Mount Everest, in the Solukhumbu district of Nepal, yesterday. cluding from Britain, US, China Organisers hailed the large a close. Gulf Times 26 Monday, May 30, 2016 COMMENT

Chairman: Abdullah bin Khalifa al-Attiyah Editor-in-Chief : Darwish S Ahmed Production Editor: C P Ravindran America must boost

P.O.Box 2888 Doha, Qatar [email protected] its domestic saving Telephone 44350478 (news), 44466404 (sport), 44466636 (home delivery) America needs to save – save much less than other developed To succeed, both countries will have The US, long locked in a Fax 44350474 countries. to overcome entrenched mindsets. codependent economic relationship more and consume less, Conversely, high savers like On this front, China has been with China, cannot aff ord to ignore while China needs to save Germany, Japan, the Netherlands, leading the way, with a strategy of this shift. Norway, Denmark, South Korea, consumer-led rebalancing that it After all, along with reduced less and consume more Sweden, and Switzerland all run trade introduced fi ve years ago. current-account and trade surpluses. The results so far have been surpluses, China’s consumer-led By Stephen S Roach Saving imbalances can also lead mixed, as inadequate funding of shift to saving absorption likely GULF TIMES to destabilising international capital a social safety net continues to entails diminished accumulation New Haven fl ows, asset bubbles, and fi nancial temper the support to household of foreign-exchange reserves and crises. incomes provided by services-driven reduced recycling of those reserves S politicians invariably That was the case in the run-up job creation and urbanisation-led into dollar-based assets such as US bemoan trade as the enemy to the fi nancial crisis of 2008-2009, increases in real wages. Treasuries. of the middle class, the when global saving imbalances, as But China has lately shown a To the extent that America fails to Support UN drive measured by the disparities between commitment to addressing this boost its domestic saving, the lack Umajor source of pressure on jobs and wages. countries with current-account shortcoming. of Chinese capital may well force the The current presidential campaign defi cits and surpluses, hit a modern Its recently enacted 13th Five-Year US to pay a steeper price for external is no exception: Republicans and record. Plan aims to dampen fear-driven fi nancing, through a weaker dollar, against illegal Democrats alike have taken aim at The asset and credit bubbles fueled precautionary saving through higher real interest rates, or both. both China and the Trans-Pacifi c by those imbalances brought the world interest-rate liberalisation, the Such are the classic pitfalls of Partnership, holding them up as the to the brink of an abyss not seen since introduction of deposit insurance, codependency: when one partner scourge of beleaguered American the 1930s. the loosening of the hukou residential alters the relationship, there are trade in wildlife workers. permit system (which would improve consequences for the other. While this explanation may be No country can benefi t portability), and relaxation of No country can prosper indefi nitely politically expedient, the truth lies the one-child family planning policy. without saving. The United Nations, backed by A-list celebrities elsewhere. prosper indefi nitely The US, however, is headed in the Holding the world’s reserve from across the globe, has launched an unprecedented When it comes to trade, as I recently without saving opposite direction. currency, America has gotten away campaign against illegal trade in wildlife, which is argued, America has made its own There is no interest in debating the with it, largely because the rest of the bed. saving issue, let alone implementing world let it. pushing species to the brink of extinction, robbing The culprit is a large saving defi cit; Here, too, there is considerable policies to address it. After all, the enablers – especially countries of their natural heritage and profi ting The country has been living beyond its fi nger pointing. A pro-saving US policy agenda should export-led economies like China, international criminal networks. means for decades and drawing freely Defi cit countries tend to blame draw on the following: longer-term along with its resource-dependent “Each year, thousands of wild animals are illegally on surplus saving from abroad to fund the yield-seeking “saving glut” that fi scal consolidation, expanded IRAs supply chain – benefi ted from the greatest consumption binge in sloshes around in world fi nancial (individual retirement accounts) and America’s consumption binge, as it killed, often by organised criminal networks motivated history. markets. 401Ks, consumption-based tax reform drove an outsize expansion of global by profi t and greed,” said UN secretary-general Ban Ki- Politicians, of course, don’t want As former US Federal Reserve (such as value-added or sales taxes), and trade. moon. He urged governments and people everywhere to blame voters for their profl igacy; chairman Ben Bernanke put it, if only interest-rate normalisation. But those days are numbered. to support the new UN campaign, Wild for Life, which it is much easier to point the fi nger at countries like China had spent more, Instead, US politicians continue to American voters – especially others. the bubbles that nearly broke America focus on keeping the consumption disenfranchised, angry middle-class aims to mobilise the world to end this destructive trade. The saving critique merits further would not have formed in the fi rst binge going, regardless of its workers – increasingly recognise that #WildforLife, launched at the second UN analysis. place. implications for America’s saving something does not add up. Environment Assembly in Nairobi, aims to mobilise The data show that countries Others have been quick to point imperative. Yet US politicians continue to millions of people to make commitments and take with saving defi cits tend to run trade out that America’s supposed growth The asymmetrical response of the defl ect the electorate’s anger outward, defi cits, while those with saving miracle probably could not have world’s two largest economies to their dismissing the growth subsidy action to end the illegal trade. surpluses tend to run trade surpluses. happened without the capital provided respective saving dilemmas has far- that accompanies the “kindness of The campaign is run by the UN Environment The US is the most obvious by surplus countries. reaching consequences. strangers”. It is time for politicians to Programme (UNEP), the UN Development Programme example, with a net national saving The prudent approach would be to To the extent that China makes own up to the uncomfortable truth: (UNDP), the UN Offi ce on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) rate of 2.6% in late 2015 – less than strike a better balance between saving progress on the road to consumer-led The saving defi cit is the single greatest half the 6.3% average in the fi nal three and spending. rebalancing, it will shift from surplus threat to the American Dream. - and the Convention on International Trade in decades of the twentieth century – That is particularly important for saving to saving absorption. Project Syndicate Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). and trade defi cits with 101 countries. the US and China, which together Already, China’s gross national The Global Environment Facility (GEF) and World Bank The pattern also holds true account for a disproportionate share saving rate has declined from a peak zStephen S Roach, a faculty member at elsewhere. of the world’s saving disparities. of 52% of GDP in 2008 to around 44% Yale University and former Chairman are also on board as supporters. The United Kingdom, Canada, Simply put, America needs to save this year. of Morgan Stanley Asia, is the author UNEP Goodwill Ambassadors are lending their Finland, France, Greece and Portugal more and consume less, while China It should fall further in the years of Unbalanced: The Codependency of weight to the cause. These include Brazilian model – all of which have large trade defi cits needs to save less and consume more. ahead. America and China. Gisele Bundchen who is fi ghting for sea turtles; four- time African Footballer of the Year Yaya Touré who is backing elephants; and actor Ian Somerhalder who is rooting for pangolins. Between They are being joined by major celebrities 2010 and from China, India, 2012, 100,000 Indonesia, Lebanon and Vietnam battling to elephants were conserve species such killed for their as orangutans, tigers, rhinos and helmeted ivory in Africa hornbills and calling for citizen support to end the demand that is driving the illegal trade. Between 2010 and 2012, 100,000 elephants were killed for their ivory in Africa. Three rhinos are killed every day, and the Western Black Rhino has already gone extinct. Pangolins – scaly anteaters – are the most illegally traffi cked mammal in the world. Great apes are already locally extinct in several African nations. The campaign asks participants to fi nd their kindred species and use their own spheres of infl uence to end the illegal trade, however it touches or impacts them. Profi ts from the illegal wildlife trade sometimes go Migrants rescued at sea arriving aboard the Italian navy ship Vega in the port of Reggio Calabria, southern Italy, yesterday. A week of shipwrecks and death in the into the pockets of international criminal networks, Mediterranean culminated yesterday with harrowing testimony from migrant survivors who said another 500 people including 40 children had drowned, bringing the threatening peace and security, and damaging the number of feared dead to 700. livelihoods of local communities who depend on tourism. Stopping this trade is also crucial to achieve the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), as it threatens Migrant deaths add to pressure on EU countries’ biodiversity and people’s livelihoods, and disturbs peace. SDG 15, in particular, calls for By Alvise Armellini Three days earlier, speaking at been two citizens of the world who are in 2011, the north African nation DPA/Rome the G7 summit in Japan, Renzi said not European. has been in chaos, a situation that the protection of wild fauna and fl ora as well as the even Nato units may start rescuing I am referring to the president of the has allowed smugglers organising ecosystems that they depend on – including targets on migrants in the central Mediterranean, United States (Barack Obama). And to migrant trips to Italy to expand their combatting and addressing the supply and demand of n October 2013, when 366 but he insisted that “the sea is the the Bishop of Rome (Pope Francis),” operations unchecked. illegal wildlife products. migrants died near the coast of worst place to save them”. Renzi said. According to the local mission head Lampedusa, an Italian island Italy’s Africa plan was proposed in of the International Organisation for Steppenwolf’s lead singer, John Kay, donated the use outpost about 100km from April, as a way of replicating the EU- Migration, Othman Belbeisi, there of Born to Be Wild – one of the top three international I “We really need Tunisia, European Union leaders Turkey deal which has dramatically are anywhere from 700,000 to 1mn music licences of all time for Universal Music – to the vowed to never allow similar tragedies to help them at reduced refugee fl ows to Greece. refugees and migrants in Libya, “but campaign. to happen again. Reactions from European capitals nobody knows how many want to go First by Italy only, then by home, starting and humanitarian organisations to Europe”. Every individual should play a part in making the other European nations and non- have been mostly positive, but - as But despite Italy’s calls for urgency, campaign a success, as preserving wildlife is crucial for governmental organisations, the with investing usual in EU aff airs - changes of not much is likely to happen soon: the well-being of people and planet alike. central Mediterranean was fi lled with policies take time, prompting the the Migration Compact is likely to be search-and-rescue missions that have on international Italian government’s complaints that discussed at an EU summit scheduled so far managed to save hundreds of progress is too slow. for June 28-29, and even if it were to be thousands of lives. development aid” “All the victims that we are picking brought forward, there is no credible Yet, as migrants keep on drowning up from the sea are the proof of how Libya authority to negotiate with. To Advertise on what is considered the world’s He renewed calls for the EU to far and late Europe is in its relations Humanitarian organisations have most dangerous sea route, Rome adopt Italy’s Migration Compact, a with African nations,” Italian Interior long had another suggestion: open [email protected] authorities now say that the problem paper suggesting that the bloc could Minister Angelino Alfano said up legal migration routes - via airlift Display needs to be tackled at source, with off er African nations money, as well on Saturday at an event in Lecce, programmes or regular ferries - so Telephone 44466621 Fax 44418811 a mix of development and security as entry quotas for workers, students southern Italy. that people will not have to risk their aid to stop migrants leaving their and researchers, in return for them While trying to reassure public lives in search of asylum or better Classified countries of origin. tightening border controls. opinion that Italy was not facing an economic opportunities. Telephone 44466609 Fax 44418811 “Saving them at sea without a “Either Europe (follows up on these emergency, as migrant arrivals are Carlotta Sami, a spokeswoman strategy for Africa is not resolutive. proposals) or we will have to do it on broadly stable from last year despite for UN Refugee Agency UNHCR Subscription We really need to help them at our own. There is no time to lose,” the surge of recent days, Alfano called who said more than 700 died in the [email protected] home, starting with investing on the Italian premier told Avvenire, for a “serious agreement to try to Mediterranean this week, wrote on international development aid,” Italian lamenting the lack of European vision contain departures” to be negotiated Twitter: “Sunday counting victims. Prime Minister Matteo Renzi said in on the migration crisis. with Libya. Macabre exercise: Will the world 2016 Gulf Times. All rights reserved an interview with Catholic newspaper “It strikes me that the most clear- Ever since the Nato-backed ouster realise the over 700 would have Avvenire. headed on the future of Europe have of longtime ruler Moammar Gaddafi deserved a safe passage?” Gulf Times Monday, May 30, 2016 27 COMMENT Pakistan pushes for NSG entry

China holds the key as addressed to the NSG chairman, deterrence - itself a reaction to India’s Pakistan’s ambassador to Austria, Cold Start doctrine and long-range nuclear-capable South emphasised that the country had the missile threat - the response to missile Asian neighbours seek expertise, manpower, infrastructure defence and nuclear submarines is and the ability to supply NSG- likely to further complicate the nuclear diff erent paths to the controlled items, goods and services equation in South Asia,” the paper said. 48-nation elite club for a full range of nuclear applications Asserting that “not every military for peaceful purposes. or nuclear development is worth the “Pakistan attaches high priority price” in reference to the wide chasm By Kamran Rehmat to nuclear safety and security. It in resources edged in India’s favour, Doha has taken legal, regulatory and the paper warned the two countries of administrative measures to bring the danger of creating a “new safety, nuclear safety and security at par with security and chain-of-command he stage is set for a possible international standards,” the letter issues” in “a signifi cantly more and interesting showdown drove home. nuclearised South Asia”. This assumes next month when the Nuclear Pakistan’s civilian nuclear facilities heightened signifi cance in the wake TSuppliers Group (NSG) are already placed under International of a recent report examining global converge in South Korea following Atomic Energy Agency safeguards. nuclear security, which drew a mixed Pakistan’s formal application for Reports circulating in the recent bag for both. membership of the elite 48-nation past, including The Washington The Harvard Kennedy School club. Post, have speculated the US may be report on “Preventing Nuclear Until now Islamabad’s push was considering a civilian nuclear deal Terrorism: Continuous Improvement considered a far-fetched dream - and with Pakistan along the lines it signed or Dangerous Decline?” noted that it may yet remain at the threshold - with India, but offi cially, Washington “India’s nuclear security measures but for the intriguing geo-political remains mum. may be weaker than those of Pakistan”, pitch which has gained traction But it is the lead-up to the NSG In the spotlight: Workers give last minute touches to a replica of Chaghi, the site where Pakistan conducted six nuclear but that the risk “appears to be because of an apparent nuclear zero- meeting that may drive the decision. explosions in 1998 in response to India’s five, in the capital Islamabad to mark the anniversary. moderate” with “no clear trend, either sum regime in South Asia. Following India’s testing of upward or downward”. India has already been proactively nuclear-capable K-4 Submarine- Command Authority, said last week But while the two nuclear powers from Pakistan in case of confl ict,” In contrast, the report says the pursuing membership and benefi ted Launched Ballistic Missiles (SLBMs) that India’s bid to secure a second of the subcontinent remain locked Topychkanov said at a Strategic risk in Pakistan’s case “appears to from a waiver to trade in nuclear from its nuclear-powered submarine strike capability woulf leave Islamabad in a battle of wits, interestingly, Institute Vision seminar entitled be high” although it goes on to add technology with NSG nations in 2008 Arihant - as part of its eff orts to no option but to follow suit. doubts have been expressed about the “Non-Proliferation and Strategic that “Pakistan has substantially after a landmark civilian nuclear deal develop second-strike capability - and All indicators however, suggest accuracy and depth of their second Stability in South Asia: A Russian strengthened its nuclear safety in with the US in 2005. Advanced Air Defence Missile Ashwin Pakistan may already be down that strike prowess. Perspective” in Islamabad recently. the past two decades”, citing, “US It fi rst expressed a desire to join - for its multilayered Ballistic Missile path as claimed by a former defence While unconfi rmed accounts But in fears often implied in the offi cials from President Obama to the the elite club - created in response to Defence system - this month, Pakistan secretary associated with the pertaining to Pakistan’s second strike context of an unconventional war, he chairman of the Joint chiefs of staff India’s fi rst nuclear testing in 1974 is considering tabling a resolution at country’s deterrence programme last capability fl oat - perhaps, a touch also said a false sense of superiority have repeatedly expressed confi dence - in 2010. the UN General Assembly later this year! exaggerated, Petr Topychkanov, a with regards to the anti-ballistic in Pakistani nuclear security But both India and Pakistan’s year to call for making the Indian The second strike capability is of Russian nuclear expert from the missile systems taking out an arrangements”. Pakistan reportedly, cases are aligned to geo-political Ocean a nuclear-free zone. great importance particularly, for the Carnegie Moscow Centre’s Non- incoming missile from Pakistan could maintains a work force of highly considerations and while India has In a policy statement made in the smaller neighbour with greater land Proliferation Programme, suggests lead to preemption tendencies among trained 30,000 personnel in a multi- lobbied with considerable headway in Senate, Sartaj Aziz, advisor to the mass to cover. Pakistan’s much larger neighbour with military planners across the border. layered security ring. engaging most global powers, China prime minister on foreign aff airs, The general impression until now all its spend will be hard-pressed to Experts also say the short missile But all this takes nothing away appears unwilling to accede despite declared the developments “a threat had been that Pakistan’s deterrence defend its territory against missile fl ight between India and Pakistan from what an idealist would probably two summit meetings between Prime to the maritime security of the Indian regime was confi ned to a fi rst-use. strikes! would probably make it impossible to suggest is a massive waste of resources Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese Ocean Region’s 32 littoral states” and In the hypothetical event of its “Even in 10 years and with the intercept the missiles. on a security paradigm that hawks President Xi Jinping. pledged to raise the issue with all land-based nuclear arsenal being huge budgets that India plans to Taking up the cudgels, an editorial in in both countries, however, contend China, many pundits suggest, world powers at all fora. neutralised, the game would have been spend on the development of nuclear Dawn, Pakistan’s leading broadsheet, cannot be built on mere notions of would relent only if Pakistan was An offi cial of the powerful Strategic up. weapons and capabilities, it is diffi cult questioned the race either way. goodwill. allowed the same leeway. Plans Division (SPD), which serves as Not so, if the latest claim holds to imagine it will be able to defend “With Pakistan having offi cially Earlier this month, in a letter the secretariat of Pakistan’s National water. its territory from possible strikes adopted so-called full-spectrum zThe writer is Community Editor. Letters Weather report Three-day forecast

TODAY Mindless values and commitments which serve Commerce is commendable. The increase their awareness of consumer High: 44 C as the basis for peaceful co-existence latest measures will help consumers rights. Many of them have little or no Low : 34 C Strong wind and high seas by slaughter internationally. who buy defective products and seek knowledge of their rights. afternoon We cry, but let us never fear embracing to return them. Dear Sir, the values we know to be true. I feel that campaigns should be George Matubia At the same time, it is estimated held among blue-collar workers to [email protected] TUESDAY The terrorist carnage continues that there are 388 violent confl icts High: 39 C unabated in many parts of the world. raging across the world today, Low: 29 C Words fail to describe the horror claiming the lives of millions of Cloudy of such mindless slaughter. Those innocent civilians who have no direct Please send us who perpetrate it, whoever they are, role in them. personify the embodiment of evil No longer able to bear so many your letters WEDNESDAY and sheer cowardice. The mindless abominations, so many horrors, mankind High: 38 C slaughter of men, women and children is pleading desperately for peace in our By e-mail Low: 29 C is an aff ront to humanity. lifetime. We are being held captive by Cloudy Muslims must unite and squelch groups of warmongers and terror groups, [email protected] those charlatans who proclaim their soiled with dreams of global conquest. Are Fax 44350474 “virtues” as they get involved in we all mere pawns in a titanic struggle for Fishermen’s forecast Or Post terror activities. No religion approves global supremacy? OFFSHORE DOHA massacres and extremism. Letters to the Editor Wind: NW 12-22 KT Terrorism is a sickness of the mind. Farouk Araie Waves: 4 -7 Feet It is related to no particular religion. In [email protected] Gulf Times INSHORE DOHA Wind: NW 12-22 KT fact, terrorism is in no way related to the P O Box 2888 Waves: 1-3/4 Feet world’s great religions. Our tormented world is fraught with bereavement and Commendable Doha, Qatar Around the region pain caused by unbridled violence. Weather Weather Mankind has been infl icted with measures today Max/min tomorrow Max/min the bitter taste of terrorism since time All letters, which are subject to editing, should have the Abu Dhabi Sunny 42/28 Sunny 39/28 immemorial. It has diff erent hues Dear Sir, Baghdad Sunny 36/23 Sunny 37/24 name of the writer, address and phone number. The Dubai Sunny and aspects varying the impact and Sunny 39/30 38/28 Kuwait City Sunny 43/27 Cloudy 41/26 interpretations, according to diff erent The recent affirmation of writer’s name and address may be withheld by request. Manama Sunny 36/30 Cloudy 34/29 places. consumer protection rights by Muscat Sunny 42/33 Sunny 42/33 Terrorism is the antithesis of shared the Ministry of Economy and Riyadh Sunny 43/26 Sunny 38/24 Tehran M Sunny 32/19 Sunny 31/18 Live issues Purging junk from the brain can release new energy

By Judi Light Hopson, Emma She needs to lighten her mental new goals that require dedication. matic stress from his combat service H Hopson and Ted Hagen load. Use your time more wisely by living in Korea. Tribune News Service She needs to make room in her brain fully in the present. Ron’s working on forgiving his dad for goals she can feel excited about. z Dwell on positive memories. and thinking about him as a hero. Most of us automatically spend a lot zWhen you look back on your past, “This approach has taken a lot of o you need to clear out men- of time looking back, especially if bad think about the good times only. weight off my mind,” says Ron.”I don’t tal baggage from the past? things really have happened to us. zSelect only great memories and let understand the bad stuff , and I don’t Maybe old hurts, fears and But, we owe it to ourselves to purge the rest go. have to. Dplain bad memories leave junk out of our thinking. “I used to have a tough time even I can let it go. Around the world you feeling depressed and exhausted. looking at the house I grew up in,” says I really do have the power to take Weather Weather Like a computer that needs a good When you look back a doctor we’ll call Ron.”My dad drank a this kind of approach.” today Max/min tomorrow Max/min scanning and cleaning, your brain may lot, and he verbally abused us. Ron says he feels less tired and more Athens Sunny 31/22 Sunny 34/21 need a tune-up as well. I was blocking out my family focused in his work, too Beirut Sunny 26/21 Sunny 27/21 on your past, think M Cloudy 33/27 Troubling thoughts aff ect anyone’s memories, but I was literally throwing “I don’t feel like overeating as Bangkok 34/27 S T Storms Berlin S T Storms 27/14 S Showers 26/17 emotional state. about the good that segment of my life away.” much, either,” says Ron.”I used to have Cairo Sunny 34/21 Sunny 38/23 It’s much like a computer mov- Ron goes on to say that his cousin, somewhat of a craving for food that’s Cape Town P Cloudy 20/13 P Cloudy 23/14 ing way too slow, because there are times only Angie, is a psychologist. kept me overweight. Colombo T Storms 30/26 T Storms 31/26 too many programs running in the She advised him to go back and think As a medical doctor, it was awkward Dhaka T Storms 31/25 S T Storms 31/25 Hong Kong S T Storms 32/28 P Cloudy 32/28 background. These tips can help you deal and only of the good times with his father. to tell my patients to lose weight when Istanbul Sunny 27/18 Sunny 26/18 Getting rid of clutter from your past move forward: “I spent about two weeks trying to I couldn’t. Jakarta T Storms 32/25 M Cloudy 33/26 will clean up space on your brain’s zStop reacting and start respond- recapture the great times we had,” says Those food cravings are under con- Karachi Cloudy 34/28 P Cloudy 34/28 “hard drive,” so to speak. ing. Ron.”I drove by the old house several trol now, and I really do feel very much London M Cloudy 21/12 Showers 17/13 S T Storms S T Storms 32/26 You’ll feel lighter and ready to move When you spend too much time times. at peace these days.” Manila 34/25 Moscow M Sunny 28/14 Sunny 24/11 forward. reacting to stress, this keeps you in a I thought about the volleyball games New Delhi S T Storms 36/26 Sunny 39/28 “I’ve been exhausted for 10 years,” victim’s role. and the cookouts my dad planned for zJudi Light Hopson is the executive New York Rain 23/20 P Cloudy 29/19 says a woman we’ll refer to as Kate.”I Respond intelligently by saying, us. director of the stress management Paris Rain 17/14 Rain 14/13 have too much emotional baggage.”I “I can take control of every situation That part of my childhood was website USA Wellness Cafe Sao Paulo S T Storms 22/16 S T Storms 23/15 Seoul Sunny 28/15 P Cloudy 28/14 regularly think about old arguments without wasting too much of my own wonderful.” at www.usawellnesscafe.com Singapore S T Storms 32/27 S T Storms 33/27 with my ex-husband.” time.” Ron says he began researching some Emma Hopson is an author and a Sydney Sunny 18/11 Rain 17/11 We advised Kate to deal with her z Stop living in the past. of his dad’s military experiences. nurse educator. Ted Hagen is a family Tokyo Rain 22/18 Cloudy 27/17 anxieties and past wounds. zForce yourself to get at least three He realises his dad had post-trau- psychologist. Gulf Times 28 Monday, May 30, 2016 QATAR Gulf Times goes from strength to strength

By Darwish S Ahmed patrons including readers and trian, UCI Road World Champi- producer and manufacturer of of the ever growing expatriate tinues to hold the sway and Some of the Gulf Times Face- Editor-in-Chief advertisers. onships (Cycling), Qatar Clas- a host of petrochemicals and population of the country, Gulf dominate the sector in Qatar, book and Twitter postings have Particularly in the last four sic (Squash), World Swimming fertilisers, home to one of the Times has added separate pages the world is slowly and steadily registered record views, shares years, a slew of steps have been events, MotoGP and World Su- best international airports and for blocs like Asean, regions like yielding to the attractions of the and likes. hen two initiated and implemented with perbike Championships. one of the largest seaports and Latin America and countries like Internet. Inspired by the resound- people a view to providing the readers Locally also, the football clubs sprawling economic zones, the Philippines. Our times have witnessed the ing success of the Gulf Times Wmeet, the with a more complete newspaper are very active throughout the Qatar is a major player in the While Gulf Times devotes explosive growth of Information social media platform, the or- better informed per- as well as meeting the growing year and they have evolved into world of economy and com- ample space for news and views Technology and the future no ganisation is exploring ways son will prevail. demand for coverage both within important players in the regional merce. from around the world, the re- doubt belongs to those who are to tap this resource commer- There lies the importance of and without Qatar. and international club leagues. It was quite natural for Gulf porting of activities taking place able to keep pace with develop- cially and launch a digital newspapers in equipping people As Qatar is getting ready to All this has necessitated an Times to expand its Business among the diverse expatriate ments in this vital fi eld. newspaper to reach the larger to succeed in today’s competi- host the FIFA World Cup 2022, increase in the number of the section to provide a wide plat- community is a daunting chal- Realising this crucial fact, Gulf audience. tion-driven world. the nation is in a sporty mode Sport pages and Gulf Times has form to support the ever-grow- lenge. Times has relaunched its website As Qatar leaps ahead under And Gulf Times, Qatar’s lead- and infrastructure projects now got a 12-page standalone ing local economic activities and The task was met by launching with novel and advanced fea- the wise leadership of HH the ing English newspaper, has been worth billions of dollars are un- Sport section, which is unique the ambitions of its enterprising a daily supplement of 20 tabloid tures which are not found even Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad doing exactly the same — em- derway across the country. on a number of counts, even in- residents with a separate pullout pages providing abundant space on the sites of leading foreign al-Thani and HH the Father powering readers through dis- Qatar has already emerged as ternationally. of up to 12 pages of editorial con- to accommodate the wide spec- publications. Emir Sheikh Hamad bin Kha- semination of information — an international sport hub with Qatar has also been growing tent. trum of hustle and bustle in the The Gulf Times website is lifa al-Thani, Gulf Times will since its launch in 1978. the country successfully host- into a regional fi nancial centre Life is not Sport and Business vibrant society. constantly and instantly updat- be on the side of its patrons, An ever dynamic media or- ing global tournaments like the with several multinational com- alone. Community features separate ed as events unfold both in Qatar nudging them along the path ganisation, Gulf Times has al- Doha Diamond League (Athlet- panies opening their offi ces in Qatar has got arguably the pages for topics like Education, and abroad. of progress, peace, prosperity ways understood the winds of ics), Commercial Bank Qatar Doha. most unique demography in the Art & Culture, Schools & Col- The website is complemented and holistic development that change blowing across the hori- Masters (Golf), Qatar Ladies On its own right as the largest world, it is home to people from leges, Tourism, Fashion, Cin- by an active social media plat- our leaders have envisaged zon and adapted and expanded Open (Golf), Tennis (ATP & exporter of LNG in the world more than 180 countries. ema, Music, Food, Motoring, etc. form, focusing on Facebook and in the Qatar National Vision to meet the expectations of its WTA), Show Jumping/Eques- (77mtpa) and a recognised oil To accommodate the needs Though the print media con- Twitter. 2030. Karwa’s mobile app boosts taxi service All cabs to have services such as GPS tracking, two years. It replaced 330 of its new tamper-proof despatch, metered receipt, speed old cars with new Camry taxis meters by 2017 monitoring of drivers and seat last week, it said, adding: “We sensor, among others. also refurbished our entire fl eet a axi services in Qatar have The company’s quality control year ago.” One taxi is used twice improved considerably team monitors drivers and vehi- a day and the driver on duty also Tsince the launch of the cles 24/7, the statement said. ensures timely car wash, refuel- Karwa taxi app in January this Cabbies’ behaviour and adher- ling and interior cleanup before year, fi gures provided by Mow- ence to traffi c rules are observed leaving for work. asalat show. - and controlled - to a large ex- The company has asserted that its driver recruitment pro- cedures are in line with the standards stipulated by the Min- istry of Administrative Develop- ment, Labour and Social Aff airs and the same apply to its fran- chisees as well. The fi rm also endeavours to maintain a unifi ed labour con- tract and bring drivers who will Wraith inspired by wolf. pay heed to customer service and comply with diff erent laws, cus- toms and traditions, for which they are trained prior to their fi rst trip, the statement noted. Mowasalat has said its state- Inspirational Rolls-Royce ment comes in response to reports The company also said in a tent and yearly refresher courses on various complaints pertain- statement yesterday that 65% of from the Karwa driving school ing to taxi and bus services in the taxis are currently fi tted with the play a key role in improving their country. The company has sought new tamper-proof meters and services. public support to resolve com- Wraith Wolf arrives in Doha all cabs operated by Karwa and The company registers com- plaints and eff ectively deliver its the franchisees will have the new plaints, suggestions and feed- services to the satisfaction of cus- meters by 2017. back from every customer and tomers. olls-Royce Motor Cars carefully placed Wolf motifs While some 40,000 orders for necessary action is taken based Mowasalat’s contact numbers Doha has taken delivery throughout the interior, as taxis were executed in January, on the nature of each case. are 800-taxi (8294), 800-Limo Rof a one-of-a-kind mo- embroidery on the headrest the number rose to 88,000 in Further, the company has said (5466) and 800-ride, and the tor car inspired by the allure of and as a central veneer inlay May through the use of the mo- Karwa replaces its taxis once in website is www.Mowasalat.com one of nature’s most magnifi - in the instrument panel. bile app as well as Karwa’s call cent beasts – the wolf. Additional subtle features centre service, Mowasalat said, The Rolls-Royce Wraith such as the Bespoke Clock noting that the execution rate Bus routes modifi ed to meet demand Wolf Edition wonderfully cap- and “One of One – The Wolf for call orders was roughly 98%. tures the synergies between Wraith” treadplates make this A passenger can get a taxi Mowasalat has stressed that and infrastructure works. this mystical animal and the a truly unique motor car. within a maximum of 15 min- it has extended and modified The statement also referred Wraith’s fl eeting, enigmatic Ihab Allam, general man- utes in case of instant hiring, some of its public bus routes to the issue of buses blocking presence in an iconic automo- ager of Rolls-Royce Motor the Mowasalat statement noted. since the beginning of the roads. The company has attrib- tive form. Cars Doha said: “True luxury Customers also get drivers’ de- year on the basis of demand uted the situation to the practice Hand-crafted by specialists is authentic, handcrafted and tails through the application and number of travellers. The among many private car owners at the home of Rolls-Royce in rare, and the power of Rolls- and SMS, which enables them waiting time for buses has been of occupying bus bays to park Goodwood, England over a pe- Royce’s unparalleled bespoke to identify the car assigned to reduced to 12 minutes and the their vehicles. “This requires riod of 12 months, the Wraith programme is that it applies them. frequency of services has been the attention of the authorities Wolf Edition highlights the ex- this ethos to the creation of The company has stressed increased to make them more to ease the job of a bus driver, clusivity and unique nature of automotive masterpieces that that more features are being reliable, it said in a statement which is to drop and pick up the super-luxury marque’s re- embody the character of their added to enhance customer sat- yesterday. passengers, and serve them nowned ‘bespoke programme,’ owner. The Wraith Wolf Edi- isfaction. While noting that more bus shel- without incurring fines from the and is expected to attract tion is the perfect demonstra- It was also observed that ters will be set up for the benefit Traff ic Police,” it said. Mowasalat strong interest from local col- Bespoke. The deep Twilight is interspersed with subtle tion of this and we are proud to Karwa taxis are now equipped of commuters, the company has said bus drivers are taught lectors seeking the pinnacle in Purple exterior is emblazoned Purple Silk leather details – a have the only one in the world with tamper-proof meters and has said it is currently unable to to tackle traff ic congestion ef- luxury and individualisation. with intricate Wolf motifs Bespoke natural grain leather right here at the Rolls-Royce the vehicles operate under the provide this facility at a number fectively besides being imparted Striking and distinctive, within the twin coachline, al- that perfectly complements Motor Cars Doha showroom for company’s unifi ed call centre. of places due to ongoing road lessons in customer care. the Wolf Edition wonderfully luding to the car’s inspiration. the exterior. one of our esteemed clientele to The operations are backed by captures the possibilities of The light Magnolia interior The Bespoke Designers have own.” QNB brand ambassadors honoured at ceremony

NB recently held an “hon- and future vision. For the sec- QNB brand reach the leading ouring ceremony” for its ond year in a row, QNB main- position it now enjoys, locally Qbrand ambassadors to tained its position as the “most and internationally. He fur- recognise their eff orts throughout valuable bank brand” in the ther stressed the importance of the year in raising staff awareness Middle East and Africa, ac- sustaining this position in the about QNB’s brand and its vision cording to Brand Finance Mag- future. to become a Middle East and Af- azine. The distinction serves QNB Group has maintained rica icon by 2017. as “a testament to the group’s its position as one of the high- All brand ambassadors re- continuous strong financial est-rated regional banks from ceived appreciation certificates performance and its expanding leading credit rating agencies, during the ceremony, which international presence.” including Standard & Poor’s was attended by the QNB sen- Ali Rashid al-Mohannadi, (A+), Moody’s (Aa3), Fitch ior management. During the QNB executive general man- (AA-) and Capital Intelligence QNB brand ambassadors pose with the bank’s off icials. event, the brand ambassadors ager and chief operating of- (AA-). The bank also received were lauded for their efforts in ficer, praised the QNB brand- many awards from leading in- Euromoney, Bloomberg Mar- its subsidiaries and associate providing a comprehensive range ployees is more than 15,300 op- raising staff awareness about ing team and commended the ternational specialised finan- kets, among others. companies extends to 27 coun- of advanced products and serv- erating through more than 640 QNB’s brand and its current efforts deployed in helping the cial publications, including The group’s presence through tries across three continents, ices. The total number of em- locations.