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Qatar-France 2020 Year of Culture kicks off on Friday Stan on course with 7th straight victory over Chardy published in QATAR since 1978

WEDNESDAY Vol. XXXX No. 11421 January 8, 2020 Jumada I 13, 1441 AH

GULF TIMES www. gulf-times.com 2 Riyals

In brief Spectacular start to Shop Qatar 2020

QATAR | Phone call Amir, Trump discuss regional developments His Highness the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani held yesterday evening a telephone conversation with US President Donald Trump. During the phone call, they discussed developments of events in the region, especially the latest developments in Iraq, and ways to resolve contentious issues and reduce tension to ensure security and stability. The conversation also dealt with the strategic relations between the two friendly countries and ways to boost them. HE Sheikh Faisal bin Qassim al-Thani, HE Akbar al-Baker and other dignitaries at opening ceremony of Shop Qatar 2020 Models showcase creations by Qatari designer Hind al-Rumaihi on the ramp at yesterday. PICTURES: Shemeer Rasheed the opening ceremony of Shop Qatar 2020. QATAR | Offi cial Amir sends greetings By Joseph Varghese 2020, marks the start of a busy calen- mats, government offi cials and private ers, Shop Qatar brings the world to our source markets in the world,” he con- Staff Reporter dar of events, organised and supported sector leaders along with the festival’s country.” tinued. to Croatian president by QNTC in its eff orts to enrich the host and partner organisations were in “With almost 30 events and activa- Al-Baker noted there has been a His Highness the Amir Sheikh country’s tourism off erings. The open- attendance at the launch ceremony. tions, held over three weeks, we will huge increase in the number of tour- Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani and atar National Tourism Council ing show was a blend of opulence and Speaking at the event, al-Baker, said, present off erings from France, the ists to Qatar last year. “In 2019, Qatar His Highness the Deputy Amir (QNTC) launched Shop Qatar tradition in a distinctly Qatari manner. “This edition of Shop Qatar will com- home of art and fashion to the best of witnessed a double digit growth in the Sheikh Abdullah bin Hamad Q2020 with a spectacular cer- Prominent Qatari entrepreneur HE bine cultural authenticity with luxury the Middle East and Asia and then end number of visitors to the country. With al-Thani sent yesterday cables of emony featuring a magnifi cent fashion Sheikh Faisal bin Qassim al-Thani, and showcase our world-class retail on a high note with China where a host 2.1mn visitors, there was 17% increase congratulations to Zoran Milanovic show and a Chinese lion show at Bara- QNTC secretary-general and Qatar and entertainment off erings in style. of immersive celebrations will usher in in the number of visitors to the country on his victory in the presidential hat Msheireb yesterday evening. Airways GCEO HE Akbar al-Baker, From haute couture designers, to glo- a Chinese New Year, marking our com- compared to the previous year,” pointed elections in Croatia. In its fourth edition, Shop Qatar other dignitaries including many diplo- bally renowned artists and entertain- mitment to one of the largest visitor out the secretary-general. To Page 16 ‘Made in Qatar’ expo to be held in Kuwait next month he third edition of ‘Made in Qa- tar’ exhibition will be held in TKuwait from February 19-22, Qatar Chamber announced in a press conference held in Doha yesterday. The expo is organised by Qatar Chamber, in co-operation with the Ministry of Commerce and Indus- try and Qatar Development Bank (QDB), and in co-ordination with the Kuwait Chamber of Commerce and Industry. Qatar Chamber chairman Sheikh Khalifa bin Jassim al-Thani told re- porters that the expo aims to promote Qatari goods abroad amid the success and demand of these products in the local market. He said the decision to hold the expo in Kuwait stems from Qatar Chamber board member and chairman of the Industry Committee Rashid “fraternal relations of both coun- bin Nasser al-Kaabi and QDB executive director of Business Finance Khalid tries” and “the fast-growing com- Abdulla al-Mana signing the partnership agreement for ‘Made in Qatar’ 2020 mercial relations between their pri- slated for next month in Kuwait. vate sectors.” Sheikh Khalifa said the Chamber is and businessmen and their Kuwaiti both nations’ economies, and increase keen on strengthening communica- counterparts with the aim of achiev- bilateral trade, which stood at QR1.5bn tion between Qatari manufacturers ing industrial partnerships to serve in H1 2019. To Page 5 ‘US expecting Iranian retaliation’  Americans to stay in Iraq Esper said it was “more than fair to had received what the US said was a  say” the attack that Iranian military draft letter describing steps its military Soleimani was planning commander Qassem Soleimani was would take to “move out” of Iraq. imminent attack: Esper planning was to be executed in days The Pentagon had said an unsigned rather than weeks. draft version of the letter had been AFP/Reuters US President Donald Trump told mistakenly sent, but the Iraqi premier Washington reporters yesterday he would obey in- disputed that claim. ternational law on avoiding targeting In a televised cabinet meeting in cultural sites in military attacks, walk- Baghdad, Mahdi said he had received S Defence Secretary Mark Es- ing back a threat he made to Iran days signed and translated copies at 8pm per said yesterday that the earlier. local time on Monday. UPentagon fully expects that Trump on Saturday said the United However, Esper said the United States Iran will retaliate for the killing of States has targeted 52 Iranian sites, in- is not pulling its forces out of Iraq, deny- Islamic Revolutionary Guards com- cluding ones that are very important to ing that there is a signed letter from the mander Qasem Soleimani in a Baghdad Iranian culture, and would strike if Iran US side announcing an exit. drone strike last week. attacks Americans or US assets in re- Trump said that a US troop with- “I think we should expect they will sponse to the US killing of Soleimani. drawal from Iraq at this stage would retaliate in some way, shape or form,” Meanwhile, Iraq’s premier Adel Ab- be the “worst thing” for the country. Esper told reporters. del Mahdi confi rmed yesterday that he Page 5 Gulf Times 2 Wednesday, January 8, 2020 QATAR

FM receives phone call from Pakistani Minister receives credentials of Italian and Brazilian ambassadors counterpart

HE the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Mohamed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani yesterday received a telephone call from Pakistan’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Shah Mahmood Qureshi. They discussed the latest developments in the region and ways to resolve contentious issues. Shura Council committee approves draft law on railways

The Services and Public Utilities Committee of the Shura Council held a meeting yesterday under the chairmanship of HE the Minister of State for Foreign Aff airs Sultan bin Saad al-Muraikhi yesterday received copies of the credentials of the ambassador of Italy to Qatar, Alessandro Prunas, and the Brazilian ambassador to Qatar, its rapporteur HE Mohamed Luiz Alberto Figueiredo Machado. The Minister of State for Foreign Aff airs wished the two ambassadors success in their duties, assuring them of all support to upgrade bilateral relations between Qatar and bin Mahdi al-Ahbabi. During their countries. the meeting, the committee completed the study of a draft law on railways, in the presence of HE the Minister of Transport and Communications Jassim Seif Ahmed al-Sulaiti, and Director of the Off ice of Qatari publishers to enrich Doha International Book Fair the Minister of Transport and Communications Mohammed bin Abdullah al-Shahwani al-Hajri. QNA around the world. France will be new titles in both Arabic and prose; articles; human de- stories, sports, translation, Zekreet Publishing and Dis- At the end of the meeting, the Doha the guest of honour in the 30th English, while its pavilion is also velopment and studies. among others. tribution will also participate in committee decided to approve edition of the DIBF where the set to host a group of authors and “Rosa Publishing, the fi rst Managing Director of Lusail the exhibition with a selection of the aforementioned draft law Cultural Year Qatar-France 2020 book signing ceremonies. private Qatari publishing house, Publishing and Distribution more than 30 new titles cover- and submit its recommendations he 30 edition of the Doha is being celebrated. Communication and Special seeks leadership and excellence House Khalid Mubarak al-Du- ing scientifi c, cultural, religious thereon to the Shura Council. International Book Fair Head of Katara Publishing Projects Manager at HBKU Press in disseminating intellectual laimi said that the House has this and literary sectors, in addition T(DIBF), due to start to- House’ pavilion at DIBF Khalid Reema Ismael said: “At HBKU production for Qatari youth; en- year accomplished a set of valu- to law, history, translations and Qatar condemns morrow, is witnessing the larg- al-Mohannadi said in a state- Press, we always look forward to couraging reading throughout able and varied publications, as Qur’anic studies as well as the est participation of the Qatari ment issued by Katara, that Ka- participate in this event, which the knowledge society; advanc- it issued a series of works by sen- narrative fi eld. Nigeria explosion, private publishing houses, as tara Publishing House is exhib- provides an optimum opportunity ing Arab culture; and benefi ting ior Qatari and Arab writers. In addition, it will display Mali bombing this edition witnesses a real and iting 150 book titles including for us to reiterate our commit- from discreet experiences in the Among other emerging pub- other publications which in- strong start for the Qatari cul- novels; poetry collections; criti- ment to disseminating knowledge fi eld of authoring and publish- lishing houses is Dar Al Watad clude 15 titles covering poetry, Qatar has voiced its strong ture and publishing makers. cal and linguistic studies; bi- in and outside Qatar”. She added ing,” Aisha al-Kuwari said add- which will participate in the up- articles, story, child literature, condemnation and denunciation The Qatari publishing houses ographies and autobiographies; that the HBKU Press will continue ing a number of authors would coming edition of the Doha In- self-development sciences, Is- of the explosion which targeted present hundreds of new titles and literature on the Qatari to be an exhibitor in all the future be present at the publisher’s ternational Book Fair. Director of lamic intellectual studies, edu- a bridge in the state of Borno that highlight the Qatari and Ar- heritage and history in addition editions of the DIBF. pavilion, to sign their newly re- Dar Al Watad Ibrahim Abdulrahim cational sector, and economics. in northeast Nigerian, leaving abic writings from Doha. The list to several translated books. He For her part, CEO of Roza leased books. al-Buhashim told Qatar News Belgium and Australia are tak- scores killed and injured. of Qatari publishers taking part pointed out that this is Katara’s Publishing Aisha Jassim al- Lusail Publishing and Dis- Agency (QNA) that Dar Al Watad ing part for the fi rst time in the In a statement yesterday, the in the DIBF features Katara Pub- 3rd participation in the DIBF. Kuwari said: “Roza Publish- tribution House will present this year will present a set of 35 Doha International Book Fair. Ministry of Foreign Aff airs lishing House; Hamad Bin Kha- HBKU Press is about to post its ing strives to support Qatari a wide range of publications publications published in 2019 The pavilions booked at the fair reiterated Qatar’s firm stance lifa University (HBKU) Press; 10th consecutive participation authors and present their by an elite of Qatari, Arab and along with previous editions. number 797. rejecting violence and terrorism, Lusail Publishing House; Roza in the DIBF, as part of its com- writings in an outstanding foreign writers. In this year’s He noted that these publica- The exhibition opens daily whatever the motives and Publishing; Zekreet Publishing mitment to foster passion for fashion”. She pointed out edition, the House participates tions include literary and scien- from 9am until 9pm, except on reasons. and Distribution; Dar Al-Watad; reading and knowledge among that the publisher is tak- with 126 publications covering tifi c books covering a number of Friday (from 3pm until 10pm) Qatar has also voiced its strong Dar Al Thaqafa Printing and Dar members of society in Qatar and ing part in the DIBF with all groups and ages and their areas, most notably psychology, and Thursday (from 9am to condemnation and denunciation Al Sharq among others. the Middle East region, display- 115 titles, including 49 new topics vary from literature, law and economics, pointing out 10pm). The book fair is being of the explosion which took The participation of the Qa- ing a long list of various liter- releases in various fields of thought and technology to that the house will provide a di- held at the Doha Exhibition and place in central Mali and killed a tari publishing houses are part of ary and scientifi c books. HBKU children’s literature; nov- politics, sociology, philosophy, verse cultural programme as well Convention Centre from tomor- number of soldiers. 335 publishers from 31 countries Press displays more than 100 els; short stories; poetry and education, novels, children’s as book signature during the Fair. row until January 18. Katara to display 150 books at expo

atara – The Cultural Village will par- Kticipate in the 30th Doha International Book Fair, to be held at Doha Ex- hibition and Convention Centre from tomorrow to January 18. Katara will be one of the 335 Arab and international participants in the fair, according to a statement. While announcing the participation, Khaled al- Muhannadi, head of Ka- tara Publishing House, said the establishment will put around 150 books on display at the fair. These include novels, anthol- ogy of poems, critical and linguistic studies, biog- raphies, translations and works on Qatar tradition, history, marine heritage, popular crafts and tradi- tional Qatari dhows. Katara Publishing House Katara’s stall in last edition of Doha International Book Fair. is participating for the consecutive third time in and international platform knowledge about Arab praised the eff orts, being the fair which is consid- to give a boost to literary identity and cultural herit- initiated by the Ministry of ered as one of the larg- and cultural production. age of Arabic and Islamic Culture and Sports in mak- est in the Arab world. He “Katara Publishing House world. These are achieved ing the Doha Book Fair a explained that the Katara also contributes to the ef- through encouraging writ- favourite destination for Publishing House is one forts meant to improve the ers, publishing their works audiences from inside and of the cultural projects by level of interest in the Arabic and presenting a wide vari- outside Qatar through inno- Katara administration and novel, studies and cultural ety of publications,” he said. vative ideas that make each aimed at providing a local research in order to enhance Al-Muhannadi also edition distinct.

AJCS to discuss role of media at Doha International Book Fair

he Al Jazeera Centre The seminar’s The seminar will also crises and wars that led to for Studies (AJCS) importance analyse the function of the aggravation of division Twill organise a public emanates from the fake news and alternative in these societies regarding seminar on ‘The Role of the growing danger of realities in international political, economic, human Media in Shaping Represen- the phenomenon of confl icts, crises and wars rights, religious and ethnic tation and Manufacturing “alternative realities” in in which they are strategic issues. Realty’ during the Doha In- the context of Arab and tools for propaganda and The speakers are Na- ternational Book Fair. international political the manufacturing of an waf Altamimi, professor The seminar on January conditions alternative political reality of journalism at Doha In- 11, at 5pm will explore the that serves political objec- stitute for Graduate Stud- role of the media in creating ing to individuals, groups, tives. ies; Mohamed al-Musfir, fake news and alternative states, religious, intellec- As per the concept note, professor of international realities to infl uence public tual, and political ideolo- the seminar’s importance affairs at Qatar Univer- opinion and steer the audi- gies and the promotion of emanates from the growing sity; and Liqaa Maki, sen- ences’ orientations. representations that do danger of the phenomenon ior researcher at AJCS and It will throw light into not correspond to reality of “alternative realities” in former professor of media the impact of alternative on the ground as well as the context of Arab and in- at the University of Bagh- realities on the falsifica- on societies particularly in ternational political condi- dad with Al Jazeera pre- tion of perceptions and terms of there political and tions, especially after polit- senter Mayada Abdo as distortion of facts pertain- security stability. ical polarisation, confl icts, moderator. Gulf Times Wednesday, January 8, 2020 3 QATAR

Qatar ambassador Culture Minister meets to Poland presents Unesco official credentials

The director of diplomatic More young Qataris protocol at the Ministry of Foreign Aff airs of Poland, Krzysztof Krajewski, yesterday received a copy of the credentials of Qatar’s ambassador Abdullah Abdulrahman Fakhroo. The director wished the taking part in Arab ambassador success in his duties and bilateral relations between the two countries further development and progress. Separately, undersecretary of Poland for Security Policy, the Americas, Africa and the Innovation Academy Middle East Maciej Lang met HE the Minister of Culture and Sports Salah bin Ghanem bin ambassador Fakhroo in Warsaw By Peter Alagos access to an extensive global Nasser al-Ali met Anna Paolini, director, Unesco Regional Off ice, yesterday. During the meeting, Business Reporter network comprising top men- in Doha yesterday. During the meeting, they discussed aspects they reviewed relations between tors and speakers in the fi eld of of co-operation in youth and cultural fields. the two countries, in addition to ‘techpreneurship’ and innova- issues of common concern. ore young Qataris are tion. The intensive programme participating in the enriches participants’ learning MArab Innovation Acad- experience and provides them emy (AIA 2020), which kicked with a solid foundation to suc- off at Education City yesterday, cessfully launch their tech star- compared to the 2019 edition of tups and realise their business CRA launches public consultation the AIA, the fi rst and the largest ambitions. entrepreneurship programme in The AIA goes in line with the pan-Arab region. QSTP and QF RDI’s eff orts in on regulatory framework draft The AIA was fi rst brought the fi eld of innovation mindset to Qatar and the Middle East education, which aims to fos- in 2018 through collaboration ter a competitive and innova- he Communications Reg- service (QoS) audit of mobile between Qatar Science and tive technology entrepreneur- ulatory Authority (CRA) networks will contribute to Technology Park (QSTP) and QF RDI vice president Richard ship ecosystem in Qatar and the Tlaunched yesterday a achieving our goal: protecting the European Innovation Acad- O’Kennedy wider region. public consultation on the draft the rights of telecom consumers emy (EIA), the world’s larg- EIA president Alar Kolk. Made possible by the tech- of a regulation and a policy (reg- and ensuring that they have ac- est extreme entrepreneurship PICTURES: Jayaram exposes participants to real-life nology park for the third time in ulatory framework) related to the cess to advanced, innovative and programme. experiences and experiments Qatar and the region, QSTP said quality of retail communication reliable services. AIA 2020 is the third edition dition to the regional and local on how to develop and launch the AIA “is testament to Qatar’s services provided to the public. “The regulatory framework of the programme and will run mentors, QSTP said. new tech ventures, in a real commitment to diversifying its The aim of the consultation is and the annual audit will enable until January 20. The kick-off The number of graduates marketplace with real customer economy by cultivating youth to receive views and comments consumers to access accurate event was highlighted by a key- from the fi rst and second edi- feedback. entrepreneurship and innova- on the content of the regulatory information about the quality note speech from Qatar Founda- tions of the programme is over Also, the AIA aims to pro- tion at the university level. QSTP framework from multi-stake- of the services provided, which tion Research, Development and 300 students. Previous partici- mote Qatari homegrown talent is at the forefront of Qatar’s holders, including consumers will make it easier for them to Innovation (QF RDI) vice presi- pants came from more than 30 and foster innovative ideas by quest for long-term economic and telecom service providers no choose the service provider that dent Richard O’Kennedy and a nationalities, including (and not providing a platform that of- sustainability and prosperity.” later than February 6. Amel Salem al-Hanawi, meets their needs. In general, the presentation from EIA presi- limited to) Qatar, Kuwait, Oman, fers hands-on learning in ‘how The academy is supported by The new regulatory framework consumer aff airs manager, CRA CRA communicates continu- dent Alar Kolk, as well as a panel Jordan, Palestine, Lebanon, to start a business from scratch’, cutting-edge research methods aims to develop the current key ously with the service provid- discussion with AIA alumni. Yemen, Sudan, Tunisia, Alge- through guidance and men- developed by leading global uni- performance indicators (KPI) for standards and best practices and ers to discuss ways of improving Data provided by QSTP stated ria, Morocco, India, and Russia, torship from world-renowned versities and companies, such as measuring the quality of telecom that both are forward-looking the provided services,” said CRA that this edition received about among many other nationalities experts. UC Berkeley, Stanford Universi- services. The regulatory frame- and taking into consideration the Consumer Aff airs manager Amel 800 applications, 190 of which that are studying at and residing It is designed for university ty, QSTP, Google, and Amadeus. work includes the measure- new technologies, such as Inter- Salem al-Hanawi. were accepted to participate in in Qatar. students in the pan-Arab re- AIA enables QSTP to further ment methodologies and men- net of Things (IoT), Fifth Gener- Stakeholders can check the AIA 2020, where almost half of The AIA aims to support uni- gion who have innovative ideas Qatar’s role in helping youth in tions the tools that are used in ation (5G) technology, and other public consultation document the participants are locals, while versity students who are aspir- and an entrepreneurial mind- the region to actively contrib- monitoring the KPIs, especially innovations and developments at www.cra.gov.qa and send the other 50% are international. ing ‘techpreneurs’ by off ering a set, regardless of whether or not ute to economic development for fi xed telecommunications in the communications sector their views and comments to There are more than 40 mentors unique accelerated mode of ex- their background is in business through entrepreneurship and networks. infrastructure from a quality of [email protected]. and coaches, with some coming periential learning to help them management. technology innovation, taking The CRA ensured that the reg- experience perspective. They should specify the sub- from the US, the UK, European turn an idea into a start-up in AIA off ers university students active strides towards a region- ulatory framework and the KPIs “The regulatory framework ject name as ‘Consultation QoS Union, and Singapore, in ad- only 10 days. The programme from across Qatar and the region wide knowledge-based economy. are in line with international and CRA’s annual quality of Regulation’, the CRA said. Gulf Times 4 Wednesday, January 8, 2020 QATAR Sidra Medicine providing treatment for babies born with Micrognathia idra Medicine is provid- was done to ensure she received the complications, there was a ing the most appropriate the best care possible to help risk of infection and a 2% chance Streatment for babies born with her long-term quality of of mortality. It was a temporary with Micrognathia, a genetic life. Early treatment is important measure as we determined that craniofacial condition which for such children in order to help she needed corrective surgery, manifests with an undersized them breathe clearly and to pre- in particular Mandibular Dis- jaw, it was announced yesterday. vent impaired cognitive develop- traction Osteogenesis surgery,” Every year one in 8,000 babies ment as they grow older. added Dr Abdulkader. worldwide is born with the con- “Our fi rst course of action was At three months, Baby D un- dition. As a result, their tongues to dilate Baby D’s nose and put derwent a Mandibular Distrac- roll backward, leaving the babies a stent to keep it open. We then tion Osteogenesis (MDO), a sur- struggling to breathe clearly as performed a tongue-lip adhe- gical procedure where her lower well as feed properly. sion procedure. This is where her jaw was made larger by slowly Baby D, a Qatari girl, was born tongue was tied to the lower lip. lengthening the jaw bone. with a very small lower jaw and The procedure is commonly done Dr Graeme Glass, attending a deviated septum. She was on babies with Micrognathia, to craniofacial surgeon at Sidra Medi- transferred to Sidra Medicine, move the tongue-base forward in cine, who performed Baby D’s MDO where its multidisciplinary team order to clear their airway.” surgery said, “We fi rst made cuts (MDT) based approach off ers During her post procedural as- on both sides of Baby D’s lower children requiring complex care sessments, it became apparent jaw and attached turning devices and surgery, access to all the that Baby D was still unable to which expanded the space where A close up of the 3D model of the Micrognathia patient’s jaw. services and world-class experts breathe clearly and would need the bone was cut. This allows the under one roof. a tracheostomy. Her tongue-lip jaw to move forward which in turn, surgery, Baby D had her trache- and Dr Glass for changing her Over the course of fi ve months, adhesion was reopened and a brings the tongue forward. We re- ostomy removed and a few days life and saving us a trip abroad Baby D’s treatment at Sidra Med- Dr Graeme Glass and Dr Faisal Abdelkader with the 3D model of the trach was inserted in her neck, moved the trach, as the MDO would later she was ready to go home to for her treatment and care. And icine was overseen by team of Micrognathia patient’s jaw. to bypass the airway obstruc- help expand her jaw and clear her a very elated and relieved family. special thanks to the child life ENT and craniofacial surgeons, tion caused by her small jaw and airway. After only one week we Her mother said, “To see my and nursing team, who guided us neonatal and paediatric ICU spe- chief of Ear, Nose and Throat plan for Baby D starting with prolapsing tongue. could see a marked improvement daughter undergo all these pro- every step of the way throughout cialist, nurses, allied health and (ENT) and Otolaryngology at non-invasive procedures and “We didn’t want Baby D to in Baby D’s breathing as her airway cedures at such a young age, was her journey of care at this amaz- child life professionals. Sidra Medicine said, “Our MDT then considering surgical inter- become dependent on the trach fi nally cleared.” really hard on us. I am particu- ing hospital. Thank you Sidra Dr Faisal Abdulkader, division clinic determined a treatment ventions as a second step. This for too long. Given her age and Only two weeks after her MDO larly grateful to Dr Abdulkader Medicine.” AlBahie announces MME urged to specify ‘exact 2020 auction calendar meaning’ of workers’ camps lBahie Auction collectors, enthusiasts and House has an- curiosity seekers to join Anounced its 2020 the auction house this year By Ayman Adly auctions and exhibitions “for one of our exciting Staff Reporter beginning with the return auctions or exhibitions”. of The Amber Auction All pre-auction exhibi- on January 14 at 7.30pm, tions and live auctions are he Central Municipal Coun- coinciding with the con- free and open to the pub- cil (CMC) has requested the clusion of the Kahraman lic, and no ticket or entry TMinistry of Municipality and Festival at Katara - the fee is required. Environment (MME) to specify the Cultural Village. The AlBahie 2020 auc- exact meaning of workers’ camps “Highly coveted and tion and exhibition calen- as laid down in Article 1 of Law No valued from antiquity to dar is as follows: February 15 of 2010 regarding the Prohibition the present, amber has - Special Numbers Auc- of Workers’ Camps within Family been prized as a gemstone tion; March - Antiques Residential Areas. The CMC session in progress. in jewellery-making and Fair & Auction; April - The CMC has sought a clear-cut as a healing agent in folk Rugs & Carpets Auction; description of workers’ camps to Meanwhile, the council suggested eas. Besides, work should be done to Labour and Social Aff airs would medicine. The fascinat- September - Art in Qatar avoid any potential manipulation that an electronic link be created be- expedite the creation of the neces- intensify inspection campaigns at ing history of amber and Today Auction; October of the law. It also asked the MME to tween municipalities regarding vio- sary infrastructure and facilities for workers’ housing units to ensure its special signifi cance to - The Amber Auction and review exemptions of the law, under lations of Law No 15 of 2010, indi- workers’ towns as a viable alterna- that the relevant standards are com- collectors in the region Special Numbers Auction; the Minister of Municipality and cating the type of violation, building tive to the existing situation. plied with. These pertain to provid- inspired AlBahie to bring carved amber necklaces. November - Modern & Environment’s Resolution No 83 for number and names of the violators In addition, more such towns ing workers with adequate space and once again a collection of All lots will be on view Contemporary Art Auc- 2011 in this regard, to curb the phe- and workers in order to prevent a should be created to cater to the in- ventilation and other aspects in or- this unique stone to auc- at AlBahie during the pre- tion; and December - Fine nomenon by reducing the number repetition of the off ence by the same creasing number of workers across der to give them suitable and healthy tion,” AlBahie said in a auction exhibition, which Rugs & Carpets Auction. of such exemptions. people in diff erent municipalities. the country. The council stressed housing options. press statement. will be free and open to For more information Further, the CMC asked that The CMC also suggested that the that the executive regulations of the At the same regular session, the Highlights include vin- the public to “come ,enjoy, and the latest details, one workers engaged in the fi shing in- MME study the possibility of reduc- law be issued as soon as possible to council recommended that the tage and rare misbaha in study and appreciate these can visit @albahie on In- dustry in coastal areas be included ing the number of workers needed explain and defi ne all its aspects and MME should name an important various shades ranging from exceptional treasures”, the stagram. To book a table or on the exemptions list under the by a company to be granted a land how to enforce the law. street in the country after Decem- yellow amber to dark am- statement notes. RSVP, one can contact Al- law to give them easy access to their plot to construct workers’ accom- The CMC hoped that the Minis- ber 18 due to the importance of the ber along with beautifully AlBahie has invited all Bahie by phone or e-mail. workplace. modation units in the designated ar- try of Administrative Development, occasion - Qatar National Day.

QC gives school uniforms, supplies to Gaza orphans

atar Charity (QC), through its “The project aims at easing economic offi ce in the Gaza Strip, has pressures on the families of the orphans Qimplemented the schoolbag by providing them with school sup- and uniform project for the 2019/2020 plies,” said Mohamed Abu Haloub, di- academic year to support sponsored rector of QC’s offi ce in the Gaza Strip. orphans. Qatar Charity works to support the As part of the project worth Palestinian education sector along QR75,060, each of the 278 orphans with other sectors. Its educational sup- sponsored by QC in the Gaza Strip re- port includes building and repairing ceived schoolbags, uniforms and sta- schools, classrooms and training cen- tionery items, Qatar Charity said in a tres, in addition to providing them with statement. solar power. “I am very delighted that I will start QC’s education projects in Gaza in- the second semester of this academic clude the construction and furnishing year with a new schoolbag, uniform of six classrooms at Fahd Al-Sabah and stationery items,” said 10 year-old School, opening Al-Shaimaa Second- Amjad, expressing his joyful feeling at ary School for Girls in Beit Lahia, giv- receiving school materials. ing alternative energy to 60 schools “This aid arrived on time to meet the in the light of continuous powercuts school requirements of my two sons and providing scientifi c laboratories to studying in school,” said a mother of public schools, in addition many other two, thanking benefactors in Qatar for projects that have been implemented in Each of the 278 orphans sponsored by QC in the Gaza Strip has the support. the education sector of Gaza. received schoolbags, uniforms and stationery items.

Blood donation camp at Umm Salal Municipality

The blood donation campaign by the Umm Salal Municipality entered the third day after evoking a good response from people from all walks of life. The campaign organised by the Public Relations Department in co-operation with the Blood Donor Centre at Hamad Medical Corp. The five day camp is held daily from 8am to 1pm. The campaign activities will be held today at Al-Sheehaniya Municipality and tomorrow at Al Wakrah Municipality. The organisers have requested all employees to take part in the campaign in order to help the Blood Donor Centre meet its requirements. Gulf Times Wednesday, January 8, 2020 5 QATAR/REGION ‘Over 50’ killed in stampede at Iranian general’s funeral

AFP offi cials in the southeastern city. media stopped broadcasting live again) we will set fi re to what they The United States “cannot spects to the great commander rarily reduce its presence in Iraq Kerman, Iran Anxious Iranians gathered from the cemetery, with some love,” he told the sea of black- escape the consequences of this of the holy defence,” said one of because of the increased risk to outside a city hospital to check outlets suggesting the burial clad mourners. great crime,” he told Macron in a the mourners who came from the troop safety. the lists of victims or show doc- might not take place before Schoolgirls joined chants telephone call, according to the southern city of Shiraz. France, however, has “no in- ore than 50 people were tors pictures of their missing morning. of “Death to Trump” from the Iranian presidency. “Haj Qasem was not only loved tention” of pulling its troops killed yesterday in a relatives. Soleimani, the head of the crowd. Iranian lawmakers voted to in Kerman, or Iran, but also the from Iraq, a French government Mstampede during a mas- Inside, patient Ali Salaji, 28, Guards’ Quds Force foreign op- The assassination of Soleimani designate all US forces around whole world,” 56-year-old war source told AFP. sive funeral procession in Iran for recounted the crush as his moth- erations arm, was killed on Fri- set off an escalating war of words the world “terrorists” over Solei- veteran Hemmat Dehghan told The European Union, whose a top general assassinated in a US er tended to him. day in a US strike near Baghdad between Iran and the US. mani’s killing. AFP. foreign ministers will hold emer- drone strike, Iranian media said. “I could hardly breathe.I had a international airport, an opera- In Tehran, President Hassan Parliament also agreed to bol- Another mourner said Solei- gency talks on the crisis Friday, The tragedy came as griev- seizure, and my foot was crushed tion that shocked Iran. Rouhani had on Monday warned ster the coff ers of the Quds Force mani’s assassination “boils the said it was in the interests of Iran ing crowds packed the home- pretty bad under the weight of all “The enemy killed him unjust- Trump to “never threaten” Iran, by $244mn. blood of the Iranian people”. and Iraq to “take the path of so- town of Revolutionary Guards that crowd,” he told AFP. ly,” the Revolutionary Guards’ top after the US leader issued a US In Kerman, people converged The assassination of the briety and not the path of escala- commander Qasem Soleimani, a The streets of Kerman over- commander, Major General Hos- strike list of 52 targets in the Is- from afar on Azadi Square where 62-year-old general heightened tion”. hugely popular fi gure in the Is- fl owed with mourners, while sein Salami said, adding that the lamic republic. two fl ag-draped coffi ns were on international concern about a new Iran’s foreign minister Moham- lamic republic. others took refuge on hillsides process of “expelling the United Yesterday, he told his French display, with the second one re- war in the volatile Middle East. ed Javad Zarif said he was informed More than 50 people were killed around the city, where the gener- States from the region has begun”. counterpart Emmanuel Macron portedly containing the remains Germany said it was withdraw- by UN chief Antonio Guterres that and 212 people injured in the al was to be buried at the martyrs’ “Our will is fi rm. We also tell that America’s interests in the of Soleimani’s closest aide, Brig- ing some of its troops deployed to Washington had denied him a visa stampede in Kerman, semi-offi - cemetery. our enemies that we will take region were in danger, Rouhani’s adier General Hossein Pourjafari. the anti-IS coalition in Iraq. for a planned trip to UN headquar- cial news agency ISNA said, citing After the stampede, Iranian revenge, and that if they (strike offi ce said. “We’re here today to pay re- Nato also said it would tempo- ters in New York.

Cold spell, strong winds ‘Made in Qatar’ expo to be to follow weekend rains here are chances of scat- ditions are expected to accom- tered rain in the country pany northerly winds, especially Tduring the coming week- at night and early in the morning, end, followed a spell of cold with a noticeable drop in tem- weather and strong winds, the perature, the report points out, held in Kuwait next month Qatar Met department has said. adding that the minimum tem- The minimum tempera- perature is likely to drop below From Page 1 factories under one umbrella to off er ture may drop below 10C in the 10C in some southern areas for an opportunity for manufacturers and southern parts of Qatar during the fi rst time this season. He said the expo would highlight the businessmen to get acquainted with the the cold spell, according to a re- The Met department has urged signifi cant developments in Qatar’s in- Qatari industry and its advantages, and port issued by the department people to follow latest updates dustry, “which rapidly developed since explore what new industries the local yesterday. through its offi cial social media the June 2017 siege on Qatar.” Since the market needs.” The weather offi ce has said a accounts. economic blockade, the number of fac- On the sidelines of the press confer- state of atmospheric instability Meanwhile, today’s forecast tories in Qatar increased to 800 factories, ence, Qatar Chamber and QDB signed is expected to aff ect the country says it will be misty in some place while projects that started production partnership agreement, making QDB a from tomorrow until Saturday in the early hours, followed by stood at 116, he continued. strategic partner of ‘Made in Qatar 2020’. due to the extension of a low- moderate temperature during “The great support of the wise lead- Qatar Chamber chairman Sheikh Khalifa bin Jassim al-Thani speaks to reporters The agreement was signed by board pressure system over the region. the day and some clouds. It will ership to the expo since its inception in during the press conference yesterday held at the Chamber’s Doha headquarters. member and chairman of the Industry The cloud cover is expected to be cold by night. Off shore areas 2009 refl ected the interest in promoting Committee Rashid bin Nasser al-Kaabi increase gradually and there is a will see partly cloudy conditions the Qatari products locally and globally. platform for participants to discuss in- edition in Kuwait “would off er a great and al-Mana. chance of scattered rain of varia- at times. The support represented a strong motive vestment opportunities available in all opportunity for both sides to exchange Qatar Chamber director general Saleh ble intensity, which may become The minimum temperature for the chamber to exert extra eff orts for sectors. It is also expected to help estab- expertise, establish new economic alli- bin Hamad al-Sharqi also told reporters thundery at times in some areas, today is expected to be 13C in the development of the industrial sec- lish alliances and commercial deals be- ances, and develop relations that serve that the expo, which will be held for the the report states. Wakrah and Mesaieed, 14C in tor and achieving the desired industrial tween Qatari and Kuwaiti companies. the economies of both countries, as well third time outside Qatar, will take place Fresh to strong northwesterly Al Khor and Abu Samra, 16C in boom,” noted Sheikh Khalifa, who un- QDB executive director of Business Fi- as contribute to their sustainability and on a 10,000sq m area at the Kuwait Inter- winds are likely to begin blowing Doha, 17C in Dukhan and 18C in derscored ‘Made in Qatar’s’ success for nance Khalid Abdulla al-Mana, who was prosperity.” national Fair; around 180 companies have from Friday, with the wind speed Ruwais. its seven previous editions, two of which also present during the press conference, Al-Mana praised the state’s interest in already confi rmed their participation in exceeding 35 knot off shore that Yesterday, a minimum tem- were held abroad. said the expo represents a marketing tool to the industrial sector and the government’s the event. will cause the wave height to ex- perature of 11C was recorded in Sheikh Khalifa also said the ‘Qatar- help promote Qatari industry and products, eff orts to develop the sector in line with Al-Sharqi, who lauded the role QDB ceed 10ft. Turayna, followed by 12C in Me- Kuwait Business Forum’ will be held on even as he lauded the role it plays in raising the country’s strategy that aims to achieve is playing to support industry and local “Therefore, kindly avoid going saieed, 13C in Batna and Karana, the sidelines of the expo to give both sides awareness and knowledge about products economic diversifi cation, which is a key products, said he expects the number of to sea due to the unsettled weather 14C in Al Khor, Ghuwairiyah and the opportunity to review and enhance and businesses in the local market. pillar of the Qatar National Vision 2030. exhibitors to reach more than 220 com- conditions from Thursday, with Jumailiyah, 15C in Wakrah, Shee- co-operation relations to assure that the He also lauded the previous successes He said, “The expo represents a fo- panies and factories, of which 20% are the marine warnings continuing haniya and Abu Samra, and 16C event and its related activities serve as a of the expo, noting that the upcoming rum that gathers Qatari companies and participating for the fi rst time. until Tuesday,” the Met depart- in Doha (airport area), Hamad ment advised. International Airport area, Qatar In addition, cold weather con- University area and Mesaimeer. Marmi Championship hails participants’ commitment Discussion on current rganisers of the Inter- All services and facilities are national Falcon Festival in place for the spectators and O‘Marmi Championship’ competitors. Middle East tensions have praised the competitors’ The Marmi Championship is commitment to making the one of the important events that event a success. highlight the cultural credentials l Jazeera Centre for Stud- 3, and the ensuing reactions and Miteb Mubarak al-Qahtani, of Qataris by throwing light on ies is organising a public vows of Tehran to retaliate. chairman of the Marmi Festi- the local heritage through vari- Aseminar entitled, “Where The seminar will discuss the val Committees, expressed his ous shows and competitions. is the Middle East headed after motives behind Soleimani’s as- satisfaction in the successful This year’s registration also the killing of Soleimani?” today sassination and the political and progress of the championship in recorded a huge turnout of fal- in Doha at Al Jazeera Media In- security implications of the op- the fi rst week. coners, including 40, who regis- stitute auditorium from 6pm. eration on the Middle East in gen- He lauded the competitors tered for various competitions. The seminar comes in the eral and US interests in particular. and the Ministry of Municipal- The competitions are held in lo- wake of the killing of General Participating in the seminar ity and Environment. Lieutenant al-Kuwari. cal and international categories. Qasem Soleimani, commander of are: Mahjoob Zweiri, director of The festival that started on A patrolling team has been the Quds Force, and Abu Mahdi the Gulf Studies Center at Qatar January 1 at Sabkat Marmi in ue until February 1. also deployed by the Internal al-Muhandis, deputy head of the University; Liqaa Maki, senior Sealine is organised by the Qatar Al-Qahtani said the festival, Security Force (Lekhwiya) in A competitor prepares to launch his falcon. Iraqi Popular Mobilization Forc- researcher at Al Jazeera Centre Al Qannas Society under the pa- in it’s fi rst week, witnessed mas- order to secure the venue and es, alongside a number of others for Studies; and Haoues Taguia, tronage of HE Shiekh Joaan bin sive turnout of spectators who premises. al-Kuwari said the Lekhwiya morning and evening sessions in a US airstrike near Baghdad researcher at Al Jazeera Centre Hamad al-Thani. It will contin- included residents and tourists. Lieutenant Hamad Abdullah personnel works during the and and hold regular patrols. International Airport on January for Studies. 4th season of Al-Tahadi programme location at Qetaifan Island North

s part of the prepara- Sheikh Nasser bin Abdulaziz Malek explained 29 episodes tions for the opening of al-Thani, director of Busi- of Al-Tahadi programme were AQetaifan Island North’s ness Development in Qetaifan shot on Qetaifan Island North. beach club, the fourth season of Projects, said: “We are keen to Children were compet- Al-Tahadi programme, which actively promote the vision of ing in every episode to obtain will be broadcast on Jeem TV of Qetaifan Island North project, the ‘treasure’, estimated at beIN Sports channels from one which is not only to create and QR3,000. of the beaches on the island, has provide housing and residential A mini-games city has been been completed. units, but also to present and built on the island.” The production team led by develop a project that builds an Al-Tahadi Programme spe- Amal Abdel Malek, executive integrated community in which cialises in entertaining and producer of the programme and the family has all the means of educating children in an atmos- director of programmes in Jeem entertainment. phere of fun and excitement, in TV, chose to shoot on one of “The island’s waterpark is the which two teams compete on Qetaifan Island North’s shores, fi rst-of-its-kind in the Mid- one of the shores of Doha to win making them the fi rst team to dle East, the greenery on the Al-Tahadi’s treasure. launch the beach and enjoy its sides of the canal, which will Located off Lusail City, scenic views. be of special importance for the Qetaifan Island North features As a continuation of the se- edutainment activities. seven beaches, which makes it ries of local partnerships and “What also makes Qetaifan the city’s distinct waterfront eff orts, this was done through a Island North a distinct project is destination. memorandum of agreement be- that it will also include a school, The island spans ap- Sheikh Nasser bin Abdulaziz tween Qetaifan Projects, Jeem medical centre, and retail out- proximately 1.3mn sq m with al-Thani, director of Business Some of the participants during the shooting of a segment of Al-Tahadi programme’s fourth season. TV, and Baraem Channel. lets.” 830,000sq m of attractions. Development in Qetaifan Projects. Gulf Times 6 Wednesday, January 8, 2020 ARAB WORLD/AFRICA

DR Congo measles Putin meets Assad in rare outbreak ‘kills 6,000 in a year’ visit amid Mideast tensions AFP Soleimani, was killed on Friday restored can be seen with the Damascus in a US strike on Baghdad inter- naked eye,” Peskov said. AFP national airport. He said the two men had Kinshasa The head of the Quds Force heard military reports on the ussian President Vladimir was widely seen as one of the situation in various parts of Putin met Syria’s Bashar most powerful men in the re- Syria. easles has killed more Ral-Assad yesterday dur- gion and the architect of Iran’s “The Syrian president ex- than 6,000 people in ing a surprise visit to Damascus support for the Syrian army. pressed appreciation for the Mthe Democratic Re- amid tensions between Iran and Tehran has reacted by vow- help of Russia and the Russian public of Congo since January, the United States loomed over ing bloody revenge, as have the military in the fight against the world’s worst outbreak and the region. militias it controls in Iraq, while terrorism and the restoration nearly triple the toll in the coun- In one of the highest-profi le parliament in Baghdad has of peaceful life in Syria,” Pesk- try’s Ebola epidemic, the World assassinations in the troubled voted to request a full US troop ov said. Health Organisation said yes- Middle East’s recent history, withdrawal. Assad’s forces now control terday. Washington killed top Iranian US President Donald Trump, more than 70% of the country, DR Congo declared its lat- commander Qassem Solei- who boasted in a tweet that So- but several areas remain out of est measles epidemic in June, mani Friday, triggering vows of leimani should have been killed its control. and last September the country bloody revenge from Tehran and earlier, in turn threatened Iran These include the embattled launched an emergency vacci- its allies. with more strikes and Iraq with opposition bastion of Idlib, a nation campaign to counter the On his fi rst visit to the capi- sanctions if US forces were tar- northern sliver seized by Tur- outbreak. In 2019, more than tal since the start of the Syrian geted or forced to leave. key last year, and a Kurdish- 18mn children under the age of confl ict nearly nine years ago, Putin’s reaction to the esca- controlled swath of the north- fi ve were vaccinated across the Putin greeted the Russian forces lation between Iran and Wash- east. DR Congo, the WHO said in a stationed there on the occasion ington had been laconic, warn- The Syrian presidency said statement. Around 310,000 sus- of the Orthodox Christmas. ing only that Soleimani’s killing Assad and Putin discussed pected cases were reported dur- Russia’s 2015 military inter- could “seriously aggravate the stamping out “terrorism” in ing the year, it said.WHO said an vention was decisive in saving situation in the region”. militant-held Idlib, and Tur- additional $40mn in emergency Assad’s regime and Putin hailed The United States still has key’s “measures” in the north funds was needed from donors the latest advances made by forces deployed in Syria as part of the country. for a six-month immunisation Syrian government forces dur- A handout picture released by the off icial Syrian presidency yesterday shows President Bashar al-Assad of the coalition against the Is- Putin seems not to have plan for children to help curb ing his visit. visiting with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin Damascus’ historic Ummayad Mosque in the Old lamic State group, some in been received at the presiden- the epidemic. Eff orts to halt the “In his conversation with City of the Syrian capital. Kurdish-controlled areas in the tial palace, but the two leaders spread of both Ebola and mea- Assad, Putin noted that we can northeast and others at a base visited the Umayyad mosque, sles are hampered by a lack of now say with confi dence that in but have now clawed back ranean base where the largest His visit to the region comes further south near the Iraqi and according to photos shared by access, weak health care and a huge distance has been trav- most of the territory lost at the number of Russian forces is as the United States, whose mil- Jordanian borders. the presidency. unrest across the country, espe- elled towards restoring Syr- beginning of the war. deployed, but had not visited itary dominance in the region Peskov told Interfax, RIA To mark Christmas, they cially in the east. ian statehood and the country’s Russia has thousands of Damascus since the start of the has waned while Russia’s has Novosti and TASS that Putin also visited the centuries- Measles is a highly-conta- territorial integrity,” Russian forces deployed across Syria in confl ict in 2011. grown, touched off what many had met Assad at a command old Mariamite Cathedral in gious disease caused by a virus news agencies quoted Kremlin support of the army, while an The Russian strongman is fear could be a high-stakes cy- post for Russian forces in Syr- Damascus — the seat of the that attacks mainly children. spokesman Dmitry Peskov as unknown number of Russian next expected in Turkey, the cle of region-wide tit-for-tat ia, driving through Damascus Greek Orthodox church in The most serious complica- saying. private security personnel also other key broker in a confl ict violence. on the way. the East — where the Russian tions include blindness, brain Government and allied forces operate on the ground. that has left more than 380,000 The head of Iran’s Islamic “Putin also noted that on leader presented the gift of an swelling, diarrhoea, and severe barely controlled a fi fth of the In December 2017, Putin vis- people dead and displaced half Revolutionary Guard Corps for- the streets of Damascus the icon of the Virgin Mary, the respiratory infections. country before Moscow stepped ited Hmeimim, the Mediter- the country’s population. eign operations arm, Qassem signs of how peace has been presidency said.

Tripoli-aligned forces quit Sudan bans newspapers, Troops Sirte to avoid bloodshed TV stations over Bashir ties arrest fi ve Palestinians Reuters AFP Al-Am and satellite channels receive any funds from a party Tripoli African Union announces summit next month Khartoum Ashrooq and Teeba along with or a government authority,” their parent companies, ac- he said.Bashir was ousted QNA Ismail Sharqi, Commissioner for Peace and Security of the African cording to committee mem- last April after mass protests Occupied Jerusalem orces aligned with Libya’s Union (AU) announced yesterday that African Union Peace and Secu- udan banned two news- ber Taha Othman. against his three-decade rule internationally recognised rity Commission will hold a summit in early February to discuss the papers and two televi- “These institutions were rocked Sudan for months. FGovernment of National situation in Libya and the Sahel region, which have been experienc- Ssion stations yesterday, funded by the state and we Sudan is currently ruled sraeli occupation forces ar- Accord said yesterday they had ing instability for years, QNA reported.. saying they had received want to return the money to by a civilian-majority body rested fi ve Palestinians, in- withdrawn from the strate- In a press statement, Sharqi aff irmed that the Peace and Security funding from the government the Sudanese people,” said formed after a power-sharing Icluding a girl, yesterday in gic coastal city of Sirte to avoid Council meeting will be held on the eve of the African Union summit of former president Omar al- Mohamed al-Fekki, a member deal signed in August by pro- front of the Al-Aqsa Mosque af- bloodshed, after their eastern scheduled for February 8 and 9 in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa. Bashir who was ousted last of Sudan’s transitional ruling test leaders and the generals ter attacking worshippers. rivals rapidly entered it and took He also noted that this meeting would be devoted to the Libyan crisis year following protests. council. who ousted Bashir. Palestinian sources said that control. and the circulation of weapons, which has exacerbated the situation The decision was made by By yesterday evening, In December, Bashir was this came hours after 88 Israeli Holding Sirte would be an im- in the Sahel region. He added that after the success of its recent a committee tasked by Su- Ashrooq and Teeba channels sentenced to two years’ im- settlers, led by extremist Yehuda portant gain for eastern-based mediation in Central Africa, the African Union wanted to discuss the dan’s transitional authorities stopped broadcasting. prisonment for corruption Glick, stormed Al-Aqsa Mosque, commander Khalifa Haftar, who Libyan issue, as it remains committed to supporting a comprehensive with dismantling institu- Diaa al-Din Belal, Al-Su- in the fi rst of several cases amid strict measures by the oc- since April has waged a military peace settlement in Libya. tions linked to Bashir and his dani’s editor-in-chief, denied against the ousted autocrat. cupation forces. off ensive on the capital, Tripoli, defunct National Congress receiving funds from Bashir’s He was charged with il- Earlier yesterday, Israeli oc- home to the GNA, to try to ex- Party. government. licitly receiving millions of cupation forces arrested seven tend his control across the vast, statement. “Our forces still re- Protection Force were from Mis- The ban covers the dai- “We operate under a pri- dollars from a Middle Eastern Palestinians from diff erent areas mainly desert country. tain their full capabilities and rata, a city to the northwest that lies Al-Sudani and Al-Ray vate company and we did not country. in the West Bank. Sirte is just west of important our withdrawal from Sire is not led the campaign against Islamic oil export terminals, also con- the end,” it added. The LNA said State and is a key source of mili- trolled by Haftar, and is strategi- on Monday it had taken Sirte in tary power for the GNA. cally positioned on supply routes a swift advance preceded by air Yesterday, an LNA military between eastern, western and strikes. source said LNA forces clashed southern Libya. Sirte lies in the centre of Lib- with Misratan forces in Abu Nigeria bomb blast leaves at least 30 dead The advance of Haftar’s Liby- ya’s Mediterranean coast, and Grain area, between Sirte an an National Army (LNA) comes has been controlled by GNA- Misrata. The Sirte Protection as Turkey prepares to send mili- aligned forces since they ejected Force accused LNA fi ghters of Reuters cal time (1600 GMT) on a crowded bridge in “I just heard a loud sound of explosions, tary advisers and experts to Lib- Islamic State from the city with burning homes and committing Maiduguri the market town of Gamboru that leads into before I realised I saw many of our friends ya to help shore up the GNA, part the help of US air strikes in late theft and looting in Sirte after neighbouring Cameroon. and colleagues were killed,” Said added. of rising international involve- 2016. The Sirte Protection Force entering the city on Monday. Witnesses in the market town said more A military spokesman said he would pro- ment in Libya’s confl ict. said it had withdrawn “to save Forces loyal to Haftar denied t least 30 people were killed in the than 35 injured people were taken to the lo- vide comment later in the evening. Two “Our forces took a decision, the blood of civilians and the any violations.“These are nei- northeastern Nigerian state of Borno cal hospital following the attack. sources with the Civilian Joint Task Force, after studying the situation, to youth of the forces” in Sirte, ther our actions or the Libyan Aafter an improvised explosive device “It is an unfortunate day for us to witness a group of citizens formed to fi ght Boko withdraw outside Sirte, then adding that the LNA got help army’s actions.On the contrary, detonated on a bridge, sources told Reuters this frustrating and devastating incident in Haram, confi rmed the attack and the early await orders,” the Sirte Protec- from “sleeper cells” in the city we were received with cheers,” on Monday. our community,” eyewitness Modu Ali Said death toll estimates. No group immediately tion Force, a GNA ally, said in a of 120,000. Many of the Sirte an LNA spokesman told Reuters. The bomb detonated at roughly 5 pm lo- told Reuters. took responsibility. Four Kenyan schoolchildren killed Ivory Coast president considers in militant attack on telecom mast constitutional revision before election Reuters that he would try to impose Abidjan age limits on presidential can- Reuters He had said in a statement killed three Americans on Sun- ries of cross-border attacks and didates that would prevent his Isiolo earlier yesterday that a teacher day in an attack on a military kidnappings.The Kenyans were main rivals, former presidents was among the dead. base in Kenya used by US forces. later absorbed into an African vory Coast President Alas- Laurent Gbagbo and Henri Ko- “I console the families of the In yesterday’s attack, police Union peacekeeping force, now sane Ouattara said yester- nan Bedie, from running. our Kenyan school chil- four pupils that were killed by said militants fi red at a mast be- 21,000-strong, which supports Iday he intends to modify “I wish to make clear that dren were killed in a gun- the heartless terrorist militia longing to Kenya’s leading op- the shaky, Western-backed So- the constitution ahead of an this is not a manoeuvre to push Ffi ght yesterday between who are hell-bent on slaying in- erator Safaricom and at police mali government. October presidential election anyone aside,” he said. police and Al Shebaab militants nocent lives, instilling fear and guarding the facility. Al Qaeda-linked Al Shebaab seen as a test of the country’s Modifying the constitution from Somalia who attacked a disrupting education in the re- “Offi cers manning the mast has waged an insurgency in So- stability. requires approval in parlia- telecommunications mast in gion,” Garissa County Governor and the base together with spe- malia since 2008, aiming to top- A rise in tensions in recent ment, which is controlled by the third such deadly incident in Ali Korane said in a statement. cial forces were able to repulse ple the government and impose weeks between Ouattara and Ouattara’s allies. Kenya this week, police and an The attackers also wounded them,” police said. its own strict interpretation of his political rivals has raised Ouattara came to power in offi cial said. three other children, Mohamed The raid took place in a village religious law. fears of election-related vio- 2011 after defeating Gbagbo at Offi cers killed two attackers Dubow Aden, Garissa County’s in eastern Garissa county, which On Sunday, Al Shebaab de- lence in Francophone West Af- Alassane Ouattara the polls and Gbagbo’s forces and recovered two assault ri- Red Cross co-ordinator told neighbours Somalia. stroyed six aircraft and killed rica’s largest economy, where a in the ensuing war. fl es and bomb-making materi- Reuters. The attackers did not damage three Americans during the at- disputed 2010 vote set off a civ- the proposed revisions were He says he wants to step als, police spokesman Charles Aden said three of the dead the telecom network, police said. tack on Camp Simba in coastal il war that killed 3,000 people. intended to make the constitu- down after a decade in power Owino said. children were from one family. Al Shebaab frequently carries Lamu country. In remarks to foreign diplo- tion “more coherent” but did and turn over the reins to a Owino told Reuters in a text The United States has sent out attacks in Kenya in retali- On Thursday, the insurgents mats, Ouattara, who has not not provide any details. new generation but that he message that the four killed were more troops to Kenya to rein- ation for Kenya sending troops killed three civilians on a bus in yet announced whether he will He did, however, seek to will run if Gbagbo and Bedie school children. force security after Al Shebaab into Somalia in 2011 after a se- the same county. be a candidate in October, said downplay opponents’ fears are candidates. Gulf Times Wednesday, January 8, 2020 7 AMERICAS

FLIGHT OF FANCY STATISTICS POLLUTION SAFE HAVEN TESTING TIMES! Task force probes mystery Mexico drug war hidden toll Australian bushfire cloud Mexican asylum seekers drones over Colorado includes 61,000 disappeared visible in Chile, Argentina to be sent to Guatemala

The night-time drone flights over parts of The Mexican government on Monday revised The cloud of smoke caused by raging bushfires in Mexicans seeking asylum in the United States rural Colorado and Nebraska that have baff led upward by as much as 50% the number of Australia has been spotted more than 12,000km could be sent to Guatemala under a bilateral investigators will now be the subject of a multi- citizens classified as missing to more than away in Chile and Argentina, weather authorities agreement signed by the Central American agency task force, federal and state authorities 61,000, the vast majority of them victims of in the South American countries said on Monday. nation last year, according to documents sent announced on Monday. The drones, or unmanned the country’s grinding war with powerful drug In the early hours “the eff ect was seen in the sun to US asylum off icers in recent days and seen by aircraft systems, have been sighted in northeast gangs that have grown more violent. The new through red tones. This eff ect was produced by a Reuters. In a January 4 e-mail, field off ice staff Colorado and southwest Nebraska over the past figure from the one-year-old administration of cloud of smoke that comes from the fires,” Chile at the US Citizenship and Immigration Services three weeks, tending to appear after sundown leftist President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador Meteorology chief, Patricio Urra, told AFP. The (USCIS) were told Mexican nationals will be and fly in formation in a grid pattern over the compares to about 40,000 missing cited by cloud has risen to 6,000m above sea level and included in the populations “amenable” to the remote areas. They have been sighted mostly over the government as recently as June. “The there is no meteorological reason for it to fall back agreement with Guatemala. The agreement, Colorado. The task force was announced following off icial data of missing persons is 61,637,” Karla to earth, said Urra. The Argentine Meteorological brokered last July allows US immigration off icials a closed-door meeting on Monday of dozens of Quintana, head of the National Registry of Service published satellite images of the cloud to send migrants requesting asylum at the Students wait outside a school to take their state agencies from Colorado and Nebraska with Missing or Missing Persons (RNPED), told a news saying it had been “transported by frontal US-Mexican border to apply for protection in university entrance exam in Valparaiso, Chile, the Federal Aviation Administration. conference. She said 25.7% of them were women. systems that move from west to east.” Guatemala instead. on Monday.

Nasa satellite fi nds Strongest earthquake in a Earth-sized world in ‘Goldilocks zone’

By Ivan Couronne and Issam Ahmed, Reuters century rocks Puerto Rico Washington

Reuters terday, of magnitude 6.4, struck at a asa’s planet hunter satellite TESS has dis- San Juan depth of 10km at 4.24am near Ponce covered an Earth-sized world within the on the island’s southern coast, the Nhabitable range of its star, which could allow US Geological Survey said. the presence of liquid water. uerto Rico Governor Wanda Witnesses on social media de- Another fi rst for the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Vazquez yesterday declared scribed the quake as “super strong” Satellite (TESS) is its discovery of a world orbiting Pa state of emergency and ac- and lasting up to 30 seconds. two stars, evoking the planet Tatooine from Star tivated the National Guard after a It was followed by a number of Wars but unlikely to be hospitable to life as we know series of earthquakes including one hefty aftershocks including one it. of magnitude 6.4 that was the most measuring 5.8. The potentially habitable planet, named “TOI 700 powerful to strike the Caribbean is- The impact along the country’s d,” is relatively close to Earth — only 100 light years land in 102 years. southern coast appeared signifi - away, Nasa’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory announced The temblors killed at least one cant. during the winter American Astronomical Society person, provoked a protective power The quake severely damaged the meeting in Honolulu, Hawaii on Monday. outage across the entire island and Immaculate Conception church in Proxima Centauri, the closest star to Earth, is just cut off drinking water to 300,000 Guayanilla, leaving about half of it over four light years away. customers, Vazquez told a news con- standing and surrounded by piles of “TESS was designed and launched specifi cally to ference, where she also announced rubble, according to video posted by fi nd Earth-sized planets orbiting nearby stars,” said the emergency measures. Wapa TV. Paul Hertz, Nasa astrophysics division director. At least 346 people were left A picture published by El Nuevo TESS initially misclassifi ed the star, which meant homeless, offi cials said. Dia showed people removing arte- the planets appeared larger and hotter than they ac- The declaration of emergency facts. tually are. will facilitate fi nancial aid for the At least eight homes collapsed in But several amateur astronomers, including high US territory, and Vazquez said she Yauco, El Nuevo Dia reported, citing school student Alton Spencer — who works with had already been in contact with the Mayor Angel Torres. members of the TESS team — identifi ed the error. US Federal Emergency Management Wapa TV video showed one home “When we corrected the star’s parameters, the Agency. in Yauco fl attened, its roof intact sizes of its planets dropped, and we realized the out- The island has been rocked by atop debris and slanting until it ermost one was about the size of Earth and in the a series of quakes — literally hun- touched the ground. habitable zone,” said Emily Gilbert, a graduate stu- dreds — since December 28, includ- Tourists take pictures of the collapsed wall of the ruins of an iconic landmark lighthouse in Guanica, Puerto Rico The international airport in dent at the University of Chicago. ing 10 of magnitude 4 or greater, the on Monday after it was destroyed by an earthquake. Carolina, just east of San Juan, con- The discovery was later confi rmed by the Spitzer US Geological Survey said. tinued normal service with the help Space Telescope. A 5.8-magnitude temblor on hurricanes that killed about 3,000 electricity across the island as a But she said it was too soon to of- of power generators, El Nuevo Dia A few other similar planets have been discov- Monday damaged some homes on people and destroyed a signifi cant safety measure, and a later, more fer an accurate assessment of dam- reported, citing Jorge Hernandez, ered before, notably by the Kepler Space Telescope, the southern coast. amount of infrastructure. powerful quake caused signifi cant age or injuries. chief executive of Aerostar Airport but this is the fi rst discovered by TESS, which was Powerful quakes are rare in Puer- Puerto Rico is also working damage to some power plants in the Vazquez, who assumed offi ce Holdings. launched in 2018. to Rico, and yesterday’s 6.4 was the through a bankruptcy process to re- southern part of the island, Vazquez in August after Ricardo Rossello In the town of Guanica, several TESS stabilises on one area of the sky to detect strongest in more than a century, structure about $120bn of debt and said. stepped down in the face of massive buildings collapsed. whether objects — planets — pass in front of stars, the island’s seismology offi ce Red pension obligations. Some 300,000 of Puerto Rico’s street protests, repeated pleas for Further east in Maunabo, video which causes a temporary drop in the stars’ lumi- Sismica said. “We are a resilient people. We 1.3mn water customers lacked serv- people to remain calm. on social media showed people nosity. On October 11, 1918, a 7.3 magnitude have responded to many diffi cult ice, she said. “Nothing is gained by creating evacuating to higher ground fol- This allows TESS to infer the presence of a planet, quake and tsunami killed 116 people, situations. Now this has been asked The governor confi rmed one hysteria,” she said, while asking lowing a tsunami warning. its size and orbit. according to Red Sismica data. of us one more time,” Vazquez said. death, as reported by El Nuevo Dia, people to on check on their neigh- The Pacifi c Tsunami Warning Star TOI 700 is small, about 40% of our Sun’s size The US territory is still recover- One of yesterday’s quakes trig- that a 73-year-old man died after a bours, especially the elderly. Center reported a small tsunami and only about half as hot. ing from a pair of devastating 2017 gered an automatic shutdown of wall fell on him. The fi rst and biggest quake yes- measuring around 20cm. TESS discovered three planets in orbit, named TOI 700 b, c and d. Only “d” is in the so-called “Goldilocks zone,” not too far from and not too close to the star, where the temperature could allow the presence of liquid wa- ter. Murders in NYC rose in The name is an allusion to the fairy tale Goldilocks Guaido walks past troops and the Three Bears, in which a young girl samples three bowls of porridge and fi nds that one is “just 2019, defying long-term right — not too hot and not too cold.” TOI 700 d is about 20% larger than Earth and or- bits its star in 37 days. decline in crime rate into National Assembly It receives 86% of the energy that Earth receives from the Sun. It remains to be seen what ‘d’ is made of. Reuters Reuters Researchers have generated models based on the New York Caracas size and type of star in order to predict ‘d’s atmos- pheric composition and surface temperature. In one simulation, Nasa explained, the planet is ew York experienced a 7.8 % jump in murders last year, enezuelan security forces yes- covered in oceans with a “dense, carbon-dioxide- though the number of homicides in the country’s largest city terday let US-backed opposi- dominated atmosphere similar to what scientists Nremained low on an historical basis as the overall major crime Vtion leader Juan Guaido enter suspect surrounded Mars when it was young.” rate extended a decades-long drop, authorities said on Monday. the legislative palace amid a show- The planet is tidally locked to TOI 700, mean- The number of murders rose in 2019 to 318, the most since 2016, down for control of parliament after ing that one side always faces the star, in the same the New York Police Department said in its annual crime statistics the ruling socialist party installed its way that Earthlings never see the “dark side” of the report. own rival congressional chief. Moon. Robberies, felony assaults and shootings also rose modestly in Guaido, who was re-elected on This synchronous rotation meant that, in another 2019, while the number of rapes and subway crimes declined. Sunday to a second one-year term model, one side of the planet was constantly covered Offi cials said most of last year’s increase in murders and shoot- as head of the opposition-held con- in clouds. ings was the result of statistical fl uctuations, refl ecting in part the gress, had pledged to preside over A third simulation predicted an all-land world, reclassifi cation of more than two dozen homicides, some of which yesterday’s opening session after where winds fl ow from the planet’s dark side to its occurred in other years. security forces blocked him from the Venezuelan opposition leader and self-proclaimed acting president Juan light one. New York Mayor Bill de Blasio insisted that the downward trend building over the weekend to allow Guaido is surrounded by journalists on his way to the National Assembly in Multiple astronomers will observe the planet with in the city’s crime rate was irreversible. socialist legislators to swear in their Caracas yesterday. other instruments, in order to obtain new data that “Not only are we going to sustain that progress, we’re going to own speaker. may match one of Nasa’s models. build upon that progress, and we are never going back to the years Local television images yesterday long attempt to oust Maduro through ed Guaido from entering parliament, Another discovery announced at the meeting was when this city wasn’t safe,” he told more than 500 recruits at the morning showed Guaido arguing for economic sanctions and diplomatic he held a separate session elsewhere TESS’s fi rst fi nding of an exoplanet orbiting two stars city’s police academy. half an hour with troops wielding pressure. in which 100 lawmakers backed his instead of one, also known as a circumbinary planet. The overall rate of major felony crimes dropped again in keeping riot shields who again blocked the US special envoy for Venezuela El- bid despite the earlier swearing-in of The announcement prompted comparisons with with a long-term trend, slipping 0.9% last year to a record-low of entrance to the legislative building, liott Abrams on Monday said Wash- Parra. Luke Skywalker’s home world of Tatooine in the Star about 95,500 incidents, the report said. but eventually allowed him to push ington was preparing new sanctions The legislature has 167 seats. Wars movie series, with its bewitching double sun- Burglary and grand larceny accounted for more than half of the past them. to step up pressure on Caracas. Guaido called Parra’s actions a sets. total. “This is not a barracks. This is the But Maduro’s move suggests he “parliamentary coup.” But the newly found planet’s size alone — it is 6.9 Since 1990, major crimes have fallen 81.9% in a period that house of laws,” Guaido told the sol- does not expect major consequences Parra has rejected that descrip- times larger than Earth, almost the size of Saturn — spanned the administrations of four mayors, both Republican and diers blocking his entrance. “The from the United States, though the tion, while saying he wants to end makes it unlikely to be liveable. Democratic, including Michael Bloomberg, who switched from be- military does not get to decide who government has steered clear of ac- confrontations with Maduro’s gov- Named TOI 1338 ‘b’, it is the only planet in the ing a Republican to an independent during his three terms in offi ce. can enter the house of laws.” tions — like arresting Guaido — that ernment. TOI 1338 system, which lies 1,300 light-years away Despite last year’s jump, murders were still 85.9% below 1990 But inside, a brief session led by could provoke a harsher response. “We came to save parliament from in the constellation Pictor, and orbits its stars every levels. Luis Parra — who was sworn in on “We once again handed imperi- destruction,” he said on Twitter. 95 days. The declining crime rate and expectations that it will continue Sunday by allies of President Nicolas alism a defeat,” socialist party Vice After security forces opened the The two stars orbit each other every 15 days. fi gured prominently in de Blasio’s decision nearly two years ago to Maduro as parliament chief — had President Diosdado Cabello said on gates to allow him to pass, Guaido One is about 10% bigger than our Sun, while the close the troubled Rikers Island jail complex within 10 years. already ended, according to Reuters his talk show on Monday night. stood in the leadership post and sang other is cooler, dimmer and only one-third the Sun’s Bucking the downward trend was a jump in hate crimes last year, witnesses. Parra, who was elected to congress the Venezuelan national anthem with mass. led by a surge in anti-Semitic incidents, which rose 26%. Parra’s swearing in on Sunday gave in 2015, had been expelled from the allies. TOI 1338 b was identifi ed by Wolf Cukier, a high About three-quarters of the incidents involved graffi ti, usually Maduro sway over the last major First Justice opposition party in late Electricity swiftly went out in school student who had an internship with Nasa last painting swastikas on the walls of buildings and vehicles, offi cials state institution that had remained 2019 due to corruption allegations, the chamber, and state television summer. said. outside his control and appeared to which he has denied. — which had broadcast footage of The system had been fl agged as an eclipsing bi- The number of reported rapes, which had soared by 24% in 2018, mark a setback to Washington’s ef- Dozens of countries, including the Parra’s session — cut away from the nary, where two stars circle around each other and declined by 2.5% last year to 1,760. forts to unseat him. United States, denounced Parra’s ap- congress. eclipse each other from our point of view. The NYPD had attributed the 2018 increase mostly to height- The gambit marked an escalation pointment as illegitimate, and said “In here, the people are in charge,” But after going over the data, Cukier realised that a ened awareness and a higher reporting rate inspired by the #MeToo in Maduro’s crackdown on the oppo- they continued to recognize Guaido lawmakers chanted as Guaido en- planet was present too. movement. Since 1990, rapes were down by 43.7%. sition, whose key international ally as the parliament’s head and as Ven- tered. Circumbinaries are diffi cult to detect, and scien- Crime in the city’s subway system and on buses declined by 3.4% — the Trump administration — has ezuela’s rightful president. The session began around 10am tists have now confi rmed about two dozen, with the in 2019, after a modest increase a year earlier. so far been unsuccessful in its year- On Sunday, after soldiers prevent- and ended in under an hour. fi rst discovered in 1993. Gulf Times 8 Wednesday, January 8, 2020 ASIA

8 Vietnam Indonesia deploys fi ghter nationals killed in fi re near Moscow jets in stand-off with China AFP Moscow Reuters “They’re doing standard pa- tion with the Chinese vessels as Jakarta trols to protect our sovereign of Tuesday, Nursyawal Embun, area. It just so happened that director of sea operations of ight Vietnamese died yes- they’re patrolling Natuna,” Indonesia’s Maritime Security terday after a fi re swept ndonesia’s air force de- Adriyanto said. “We don’t have Agency, said. Ethrough cabins housing ployed four fi ghter jets to the the order to start a war with According to data from Mari- migrant workers at a greenhouse ISouth China Sea yesterday China.” time Traffi c, a ship tracking facility outside Moscow, Russia’s in a stand-off with Beijing after The South China Sea is a website, at least two Chinese emergencies ministry said. Jakarta protested over a Chinese global trade route with rich ships – Zhongguohaijing and The fi re at the facility in the violation of its exclusive eco- fi shing grounds and energy re- Haijing 35111 – were in waters Ramensky district southeast of nomic zone. serves and China claims most on the edge of Indonesia’s ex- Moscow broke out in the early The stand-off began in mid- of it based on what it says is its clusive economic zone yester- hours, the ministry said in a December when a Chinese coast historic activity. But Southeast day, approximately 200km (124 statement. guard vessel, accompanying Asian countries, supported by miles) off Indonesia’s Riau Is- “According to preliminary in- Chinese fi shing boats, entered the United States and much of lands. formation, the fi re was caused by waters off the coast of Indone- the rest of the world, say such The ships were within China’s an electrical fault,” it said. sia’s northern Natuna islands, claims have no legal basis. unilaterally-declared “nine- It was unclear how many work- prompting Jakarta to summon On Monday, Indonesia said it dash line”, which marks a vast ers were living in the complex. Beijing’s ambassador. was mobilising fi shermen to the expanse of the South China Sea Russian news agencies had The issue has soured Indo- northern Natuna region and had that it claims, including large earlier identifi ed the workers as nesia’s generally friendly rela- deployed several naval ships. swathes of Vietnam’s continen- from ex-Soviet Tajikistan. tionship with China, its biggest Chinese foreign ministry tal shelf where it has awarded oil Millions of migrant workers from trading partner and a major in- spokesman Geng Shuang said concessions. Central Asia live in Russia, where vestor in Southeast Asia’s larg- yesterday Beijing had “opened The China Coast Guard ship they often perform menial jobs for est country. diplomatic channels” with In- Haijing 35111 is one of a handful An F-16 C fighter jet arrives at Raden Sadjad military airbase on Natuna Island, Riau Islands province of low pay under lax safety conditions. Fajar Adriyanto, the air force donesia since the latest inci- of Chinese ships that was in- Indonesia yesterday. Migrant workers also travel to spokesman, said four F-16 jets dent, and said “both countries volved in a months-long stand- Russia from other parts of Asia, had been conducting fl ights shoulder responsibility for off with Vietnamese ships last economic zone. and investment, told report- portance for his country. including some 14,700 Vietnam- over the islands, though he also maintaining regional peace and year near the off shore oil block Luhut Pandjaitan, the co-or- ers yesterday that Indonesia’s “I would not sell our sover- ese who received work permits in played down fears of any con- stability”. in the disputed waters, which dinating minister in Indonesia’s sovereignty was not negotiable, eignty for investment, never,” 2018, according to Russia’s state frontation with Beijing. There has been no negotia- fall within Hanoi’s exclusive cabinet overseeing resources despite China’s economic im- he said. “I’m not stupid.” statistics service. To avert future fl ood chaos, Jakarta Four Rohingya children killed in residents urged to defend nature Myanmar blast Thomson Reuters Foundation The rainfall at the start of Kuala Lumpur 2020 was one of the most ex- treme events since records began Reuters Five other children in 1866, said Indonesia’s state Yangon and their teacher were ndonesia’s fl ood-hit capi- weather agency. also wounded when tal Jakarta must protect and But Jakarta is no stranger to the group stepped Iplant trees, stop extracting encroaching water. More than our Rohingya Muslim on the landmine as so much groundwater, and de- 50 people died in one of its children were killed by they went to collect velop long-term plans together deadliest fl oods in 2007 and Fa landmine explosion in fi rewood in the village with surrounding towns if it is fi ve years ago much of the cen- Myanmar’s western Rakhine of Kyauk Yan to keep pace with the growing tre was inundated when canals state yesterday which the threats from climate change, overfl owed. military and ethnic insurgents Tens of thousands of people green groups said. Past fl oods highlight the im- blamed on each other. have been displaced in Rakhine Since December 31, some of portance of better early warning Five other children and their state since fi ghting broke out the heaviest rain since records systems and community prepar- teacher were also wounded last December. began has caused chaos in the edness, said Abhas Jha, East Asia when the group stepped on the The region came to global mega-city, killing at least 60 and Pacifi c manager for urban landmine as they went to col- attention in 2017 when more people and displacing nearly development and disaster risk at lect fi rewood in the village of than 730,000 Rohingya fl ed 175,000 – and more rain is fore- the World Bank. Kyauk Yan, military spokes- to Bangladesh to escape an cast for this month. The government has decided man Brigadier General Zaw army crackdown which UN “Indonesia has got enough to move the administrative func- Min Tun said by phone. investigators said was car- resources to deal with these tions of the capital to Borneo Is- The wounded were being ried out with “genocidal problems,” said Leonard Si- land from 2024, to help reduce treated at local hospitals and intent”. manjuntak, country director population pressure on Jakarta. three were in a serious condi- Several hundred thousand for Greenpeace Indonesia in Ja- But it has pledged to spend tion, he said. remain in Myanmar. They live karta. $40bn to save the slowly sinking He said the landmine was under apartheid-like condi- “However, for decades, polit- city over the next decade. laid by fi ghters from the Ar- tions, confi ned to camps and ical leaders never really had any Plans to improve Jakarta’s akan Army, an insurgent group villages and denied access to consistency in implementing fl ood defences include building that recruits mostly from Ra- education and healthcare. long-term plans for fl ood man- Indonesian President Joko Widodo (third left) visiting an area aff ected by landslides triggered by heavy two dams and works on the city’s khine’s Buddhist majority. A Myanmar is encouraging agement,” he said. rain in Sukajaya-Bogor in West Java yesterday. biggest river. spokesman for the rebels, who refugees to return from Bang- Southeast Asia’s biggest city President Joko Widodo has want more autonomy for Ra- ladesh camps but most have is located by the coast and built terways tend to clog up during dredge and clean up its rivers sources Institute Indonesia, said blamed the fl ooding on delays khine state, blamed the blast refused, citing persecution on a swampy plain, with 40% heavy rains. and waterways, and help com- Jakarta could not solve its fl ood- to those infrastructure projects on the military. and confl ict. lying below sea level. Making matters worse, most munities access water without ing problem alone. caused by land acquisition and “One child’s head was The ethnic Rakhine insur- More than 10 rivers fl ow residents and businesses rely on huge, uncontrolled groundwater “The city needs to collaborate other problems. crushed. We could only re- gency, believed to include through the capital, but the wells that drain underground extraction, said Milag San Jose- with surrounding areas,” he said, Shobhakar Dhakal, a professor trieve his body. We brought thousands of rebels, poses a water catchment areas and aquifers for their water sup- Ballesteros, director of East, adding the government should in the department of energy, en- the bodies to their families threat to the government of forests around it have been plies, causing the city to sink by Southeast Asia and Oceania for stop further urban conversion of vironment and climate change at and buried them later in the Aung San Suu Kyi. largely converted over decades 5-10cm (2-4 inches) each year. the C40 Cities network. forested areas and watersheds. the Asian Institute of Technol- evening,” said a villager who Rebels have kidnapped vil- for residential and agricultural Rising sea levels and the in- Many cities, meanwhile, are San Jose-Ballesteros noted ogy, said the situation was not asked not to be named for fear lagers, administrators and lo- use, falling victim to rapid ur- ability of infrastructure to cope now looking at nature-based so- that collaboration and alignment yet out of control but immediate of retribution. cal offi cials and ordered a tax banisation. with excess water during the lutions, such as turning concrete of long-term plans across cities action was needed to tackle the Last year, 143 children were on businesses. A lawmaker The capacity of Jakarta’s riv- monsoon season have resulted in drainage and grey infrastruc- and regions “would be crucial in risks. killed or wounded in numerous from Suu Kyi’s ruling party is ers has also shrunk because regular fl ooding in the city, which ture back into fl ood-plains, she addressing the issue”. “I wish the decision-makers civil wars being fought along still missing after being ab- of sedimentation, poor waste is home to more than 10mn peo- added. Swathes of Jakarta and nearby (would) learn faster... to address Myanmar’s porous borders, ducted in November, and an- management and illegal settle- ple. Hidayah Hamzah, a forests towns were inundated after heavy a crisis which is only going to in- the United Nations Children’s other party offi cial died after ments, meaning remaining wa- Jakarta’s authorities must expert at think-tank World Re- rain fell at the turn of the year. crease,” he said. Fund said. being kidnapped in December.

Quake strikes Indonesia Marking fall of Khmer Rouge regime A strong earthquake jolted Indonesia’s northwest yesterday, Owners of collapsed but no tsunami warning was issued and there were no immediate reports of injuries or damage. The 6.2 magnitude quake struck at a depth of 20km (12.5 miles) just Cambodia building off the coast of Simeulue island, west of Sumatra, according to the US Geological Survey. Indonesia’s weather and geophysics bureau said there charged, freed on bail was no tsunami threat. People panicked and ran outside DPA pulled from the rubble. out a licence and had only been their homes when the quake hit. Phnom Penh Owners Ek Sarun and his permitted in August to build up “We are now watching at the wife Chhiv Sothy were charged to six storeys, VOD reported, beach to monitor the movement on Monday, but released by au- citing Lay Vannara, a provincial of seawater,” Simeulue resident he owners of a building thorities after questioning and land management offi cial. Ahmadi said. under construction that being placed under court su- Vannara did not answer a No casualties or infrastructure Tcollapsed in Cambodia pervision, a court spokesman, question about why the depart- damage have been reported so far. last week and killed 36 people Mann Boret, told local newspa- ment had not held the develop- Indonesia suff ers frequent seismic have been charged with man- per Khmer Times. ers accountable for the illegal and volcanic activity due to its slaughter and released on bail, Provincial police chief Ben structure sooner, saying a col- position on the Pacific “Ring of local media reported yesterday. Dara told local outlet VOD that league had facilitated the per- Fire”, where tectonic plates collide. The seven-story structure the couple was accused of man- mit, which was then signed off More than 2,200 people located in the southern Cam- slaughter. by the provincial governor. died and another 1,000 were bodian province of Kep, around The crime carries a punish- Construction workers in declared missing in 2018 after 160km south of Phnom Penh, ment of one to three years in Cambodia often live on-site a 7.5 magnitude quake and collapsed on Friday, killing prison. while buildings are under con- Dancers perform during a ceremony marking the 41st anniversary of the fall of the Khmer Rouge subsequent tsunami on Sulawesi workers and six children, and The builders had started struction, sometimes with regime in Phnom Penh yesterday. island. (AFP) injuring 23 others who were construction in March with- their families. Gulf Times Wednesday, January 8, 2020 9 ASIA/AUSTRALASIA US warns citizens in China over mystery pneumonia outbreak

AFP a central Chinese city with a alert issued by the US embassy, wan, where vice premier Chen in recent days and displaying ill, according to Wuhan’s health Respiratory Syndrome (Mers) Beijing population of over 11mn, and which urged citizens to seek Chi-mai has urged the island’s fl u-like illnesses but none were commission. All are being treat- have also been ruled out along- has since grown to at least 59 medical care “right away” if health and welfare ministry to confi rmed to have contracted ed in quarantine and no obvious side Sars, it added. cases. they felt sick after travelling to strengthen quarantine controls the mystery new strain. evidence of human-to-human “The reported link to a whole- mericans travelling in Chinese health offi cials have Wuhan. at airports and “plan properly”. Thirteen of them have been transmission has been found so sale fi sh and live animal market China should avoid ani- ruled out a resurgence of the The outbreak of pneumonia On Monday, Taiwan’s centre discharged, said Hong Kong far, it said on Sunday. could indicate an exposure link Amals and contact with highly contagious Sars virus, comes just a few weeks before for disease control also advised authorities yesterday. None- The infection broke out be- to animals,” the World Health sick people as the country grap- which killed hundreds more China’s busiest travel season of residents planning to travel to or theless, offi cials have raised the tween December 12 and 19, with Organisation (WHO) said on ples with a mystery pneumonia than a decade ago, after fears the year, when millions of peo- near Wuhan to wear masks and alert level to “serious” and rolled some of the patients employed Sunday. outbreak, the US embassy in spread online that it had made a ple take buses, trains and planes avoid contact with wild animals. out extra monitoring measures. at a seafood market in the city “Pneumonia is common in China said yesterday. comeback. for Lunar New Year. In Hong Kong, authorities say So far, none of the 59 patients that has since been closed for the winter season,” it added, and The viral illness was first “Be aware and practice usual The upcoming holiday has 30 people have been hospital- infected with pneumonia have disinfection. said the concentration of cases reported last week in Wuhan, precautions,” said the health prompted concerns in Tai- ised after returning from Wuhan died though seven are seriously Avian fl u and Middle East should be handled “prudently”. Australia bolsters bushfi re defences as costs mount on multiple fronts

Reuters Sydney

ustralian fi refi ghters used a break from sear- Aing temperatures to strengthen containment lines around huge wildfi res burning in the country’s southeast yes- terday, as the fi nancial and en- vironmental costs of the crisis mounted. South Korea’s President Moon Jae-in delivers a New Year address at the Presidential Blue House in Seoul, The latest offi cial data showed South Korea, yesterday. that more than 10.3mn hectares (25.5mn acres) of land across the continent - an area the size of South Korea - has been razed by bushfi res in recent weeks. Imagery posted online from the Himawari 8 Japanese satel- lite and Nasa’s Earth Observa- tory showed plumes of smoke South Korea’s from the fi res reaching as far as South America. Firefi ght- ers on the ground were making the most of a few days of cooler temperatures in the southeast of the country to prepare for a forecast return of heat and wind Moon seeks later this week that is expected A police off icer patrols a damaged property during bushfire season in Lake Conjola, Australia. to spur existing blazes and spark new ones into life. of what is happening in the “We need to remain vigilant,” Australian bushfi res crisis: Andrew Crisp, Victoria state’s „ Two men were reported Emergency Management Com- missing in New South Wales missioner Emergency Manage- yesterday, police said. Kim Jong-un ment Commissioner told re- „ Forty-eight US fi refi ght- porters in an afternoon briefi ng. ers are scheduled to arrive in “We talk about benign condi- Australia today, offi cials said, tions, and the fi re is suppressed joining 39 of their compatriots but it is still there. It is still tin- already on the ground. A further der dry.” 18 incident management per- Australia’s bushfi re season sonnel from the US and Canada visit to Seoul started earlier than normal this will also arrive on Wednesday. year following a three-year „ Prime Minister Morrison AFP drought that has left much of said he spoke with US President Seoul the country’s bushland vulnera- Donald Trump yesterday, while ble to fi res. Thousands of people British Prime Minister Boris have been left homeless, while Johnson has also off ered sup- Firefighters use the cooler weather to take a break as they wait for outh Korean President many in rural towns have spent port. an encroaching fire to hit in Towanba, Australia. Moon Jae-in yesterday days without electricity, tel- „ Morrison attended the fu- Scalled for better relations ecommunications and, in some neral for volunteer fi refi ghter prevent rotting carcasses from in NSW, Victoria, South Aus- with the North so leader Kim cases, drinking water. Military- Andrew O’Dwyer. who was spreading disease. tralia and Queensland since the Jong-un can visit Seoul, despite coordinated rescue and support killed along with colleague Ge- „ Authorities said the Insurance Council of Australia Pyongyang’s abandonment of its eff orts were ongoing. off rey Keaton on Dec 19 after number of people calling for declared a bushfi re catastro- nuclear and missile test morato- Prime Minister Scott Morri- a burnt tree fell in the path of urgent medical care in Victoria phe on Nov. 8. The claims are riums. son, who was due to meet with their fi retruck, causing it to roll. jumped 51% on Monday as haz- estimated to have a loss value Moon’s appeal came after Kim banking chiefs yesterday, has „ Data released yesterday ardous smoke covered the state. of A$700mn. The council re- threatened a demonstration of a acknowledged the crisis will showed the fi res were beginning „ There were 137 fi res ablaze corded the destruction of 1,838 “new strategic weapon” at a four- have a signifi cant economic to have an eff ect on the econo- across New South Wales state, residential properties so far. day ruling party meeting last impact and on Monday pledged my. The ANZ gauge of consum- but all were back at the “advice” „ A backbencher in PM Mor- week, where he never mentioned A$2bn ($1.39bn) to a newly cre- er confi dence fell last week to its level, the lowest alert rating. rison’s government was criti- South Korea. North Korean leader Kim Jong-un gives field guidance at Sunchon ated National Bushfi re Recovery lowest level in more than four „ Victoria state had 39 fi res cised for an appearance on the Since the breakdown of Kim’s Phosphatic Fertilizer Factory under construction. Agency. years, while its job advertise- with 13 “watch and act” alerts. ‘Good Morning Britain’ ITV summit with US President Don- The Insurance Council of ment data recorded the biggest „ Almost 1,600 homes have program during which he said ald Trump in Hanoi last year - The invitation its nuclear and ballistic missile Australia increased its estimate monthly drop in seven months been destroyed in NSW, Aus- there was no link between cli- which left nuclear negotiations programmes. Cheong Seong- for damages claims from the in December. tralia’s most populous state, au- mate change and the bushfi re largely deadlocked - Pyongyang for Kim to visit chang, director of the Center fi res to more than A$700mn „ Australia’s military were thorities said. In Victoria state, crisis. “There is no link, the has repeatedly lashed out at the Seoul dates from for North Korean Studies at the yesterday, with claims expected deployed yesterday to help bury authorities believe 300 homes facts that cause the fi res are the South, saying it has “nothing to Sejong Institute in Seoul, said it to jump further when more fi re- an estimated 4,000 dead sheep have been destroyed. drought and the drying of the talk” about any more with Seoul. the two leaders’ was “highly unlikely” the North hit areas are accessible. and cattle, a process authori- „ Insurers have received environment,” lawmaker Craig One senior offi cial has gone last summit, would respond to Moon’s address. Following are some highlights ties want to complete quickly to 8,985 bushfi re-related claims Kelly said. as far as describing the South’s “There are some problems with presidency as a “shy dog barking in Pyongyang the way the Seoul government more wildly”. in September perceives the current situation,” But Moon, who has long fa- he told AFP. “There will be no po- voured engagement with the 2018, when litical gain for Kim to visit Seoul at nuclear-armed North, doubled the peninsula this point in time, given that the Hong Kong leader vows to work down on his dovish approach. North has virtually stated it won’t “I hope South and North Ko- was basking in be talking to the US on nuclear is- rea can make eff orts together so a diplomatic sues.” that the conditions for Chair- Ahn Chan-il, a North Ko- closely with Beijing’s new envoy man Kim Jong-un’s reciprocal rapprochement rean defector and researcher in visit can be arranged at an early been mooted, with Moon yester- Seoul, said the Moon adminis- date,” Moon said in his annual day calling the prospect “a golden tration had adopted an approach Reuters of governance. Luo on Monday, council elections yielded no New Year address. The invitation opportunity for the South and of “ceaseless unrequited love” to Hong Kong in his fi rst remarks since taking government concessions. for Kim to visit Seoul dates from North to show to the world that Pyongyang, but had been left with offi ce, used the same language, Anti-government protests in the two leaders’ last summit, in we are one people”. very few options. saying he hoped the city would Chinese-ruled Hong Kong have Pyongyang in September 2018, But the two capitals have held “The way it has been deal- ong Kong Chief Ex- return to the right path. evolved over the months into a when the peninsula was basking no discussions on the candidacy, ing with the North - in spite of ecutive Carrie Lam said In November, Reuters re- broad pro-democracy campaign in a diplomatic rapprochement. and sporting ties have since en- Pyongyang’s insults against the Hyesterday she would ported exclusively that Beijing with demands for universal suf- Analysts suggested Moon’s call tered a deep freeze — North Ko- South - has not been ideal,” he work closely with Beijing’s was considering replacing the frage and an independent in- was now unrealistic. “I’m willing rea gave up any prospect of its said. “There is virtually nothing top offi cial in the Asian nan- fi former liaison offi ce chief, Wang quiry into complaints of police to meet repeatedly and talk cease- women’s football team playing the South can do as long as the cial hub to get it back on “the Zhimin, who had come under brutality. The police maintain lessly” with the North, Moon said in Tokyo rather than take part in UN sanctions remain on North right path” after more than six criticism for failing to antici- they have acted with restraint. in his half-hour speech, which a qualifying competition in the Korea.” months of pro-democracy pro- pate public opposition to a now- Many people in Hong Kong are was broadcast live. South next month. In his speeches to the full tests. withdrawn extradition bill. angered by what they see as He also suggested Pyongyang Pyongyang has also demanded meeting of the Central Commit- The appointment of a new Lam did not mention the pro- Beijing ever-tightening grip on and Seoul should consult on fi eld- the demolition of South Korean- tee of the ruling Workers’ Party head of the Chinese govern- tests in her opening remarks, the city which was promised a ing a unifi ed team at the Tokyo built tourism facilities at Mount last week, Kim acknowledged the ment’s most important offi ce in which focused on health risks high degree of autonomy under Olympics in July, which would Kumgang in the North, saying it North’s economic situation was Hong Kong, Luo Huining, was Hong Kong Chief Executive related an outbreak of a respira- a “one country, two systems” march together at the opening will operate tours there itself, and “serious” but made clear it was unexpectedly announced at the Carrie Lam at a news tory virus in the city of Wuhan framework when the former ceremony. The two Koreas’ ath- rejected discussions with Seoul willing to live under sanctions to weekend in a sign of Beijing’s conference in Hong Kong in China. British colony returned to Chi- letes took part together at the on the issue. But Moon said he preserve its nuclear deterrent. frustration with the latter’s yesterday. Authorities have identifi ed 21 nese rule in 1997. opening and closing ceremonies would push for the resumption of At his fi rst fi eld guidance visit handling of the crisis. cases in Hong Kong, of which Beijing denies interference of the Pyeongchang Winter Ol- South Korean visits to the peak, of the year - to the construction The Liaison Offi ce of the with director Luo in the com- seven have been released from and blames the West for fo- ympics in the South two years along with the re-opening of site of a fertiliser factory - he de- Central People’s Government ing future, committing to ‘one hospital. Clashes between po- menting the unrest. The pro- ago, and subsequently formed the Kaesong Industrial Complex scribed the situation as “severe”, in the Hong Kong Special Ad- country, two systems’, and the lice and protesters have intensi- test movement is supported by a series of joint teams in other where Southern fi rms employed the offi cial KCNA news agency ministrative Region reports to Basic Law, for Hong Kong to ... fi ed over the year-end holiday 59% of city residents polled in a events. Northern workers. reported yesterday. “The fi ercer China’s State Council or cabi- return to the right path,” Lam following an early-December survey conducted for Reuters by A possible joint bid for Seoul Both projects would currently the adverse wind raised by the net, and is the main platform for said in her fi rst news conference lull in violence after an over- the Hong Kong Public Opinion and Pyongyang to co-host the violate the international sanc- hostile forces gets, the fi ercer our Beijing to project its infl uence in of the year, referring to the city’s whelming win by the pro-de- Research Institute and 57% of 2032 Summer Games has even tions imposed on Pyongyang over red fl ag will fl utter,” Kim added. the city. “I would work closely mini-constitution and system mocracy camp in city district them wanted Lam to resign. Gulf Times 10 Wednesday, January 8, 2020 BRITAIN/EUROPE Brexit in sight as MPs Spain’s Sanchez scrutinise divorce deal

AFP London stays on as PM ritain moved a step closer yesterday to a historic de- AFP Bparture from the European Madrid Union, after more than three years of bitter division and po- litical drama, as Prime Minister pain’s parliament has nar- Boris Johnson brings his Brexit rowly confi rmed Social- deal back to parliament without Sist leader Pedro Sanchez the threat of defeat, deadlock or as prime minister for another delay. term, paving the way for the Lawmakers began three days Johnson: insists that he will not opt to extend the transition period. country’s fi rst-ever coalition of debate on legislation to en- government since its return to shrine Johnson’s divorce deal, new post-Brexit budget vote on that this is a tight timeframe, but democracy in the 1970s. with few hurdles to its passing March 11, to “seize the oppor- Johnson insists he will not opt to Sanchez, who has stayed on as expected after he won a comfort- tunities that come from getting extend the transition period. a caretaker premier since incon- able majority at recent elections. Brexit done”. Commission spokesman Eric clusive elections last year, won The air of inevitability that The main opposition Labour Mamer said on Monday that von 167 votes in the 350-seat as- Brexit was fi nally about to hap- party was meanwhile focused on der Leyen would “discuss with sembly compared to 165 against, pen contrasts starkly with the the start of a campaign to replace the prime minister how to try to with a decisive 18 abstentions by repeated postponements and veteran socialist Jeremy Corbyn overcome these challenges and Catalan and Basque separatist rejections of the previous deal as leader. make sure that we can come out lawmakers. of his predecessor Theresa May His divisive leadership and with a positive agreement at the He plans to form a minor- that plunged Britain into political ambivalence over Brexit were end of the year”. ity coalition government with and economic uncertainty. blamed for Labour’s stinging The meeting, which will also hard-left party Podemos this The lack of anticipated drama defeat and loss of support in its be attended by EU Brexit nego- time around, in what would be has instead seen focus shift to heartlands of northern England. tiator Michel Barnier, will “set the fi rst coalition government potential confl ict between the Britons voted in the 2016 ref- the scene”, he added, but would in Spain since the country re- United States and Iran. erendum to end more than four not go into details. turned to democracy following But the Conservative leader is decades of integration with the Many opposition MPs be- the death of longtime dictator still up against the clock. EU, but it has taken nearly four lieve Johnson cannot negotiate Francisco Franco in 1975. Both the UK and European years of infi ghting and two gen- a new trade deal with Brussels Podemos’ pony-tailed leader parliaments must ratify the deal eral elections to implement the in 11 months, and are seeking to Pablo Iglesias broke into tears before Britain’s January 31 de- result. amend the Withdrawal Agree- after the results of the vote were Sanchez poses after winning the parliamentary vote following the investiture debate in parliament. parture date, when a so-called Johnson now looks set to fi - ment Bill to allow for more time. announced and his lawmakers transition phase to the end of the nally make it happen, even if a Other amendments put for- chanted the party’s slogan “Yes a tie-up with the far-left party The political situation in Aina Vidal, who is in severe pain year will kick in. potentially bigger battle awaits ward include stronger rights for we can!” would keep him awake at night. Catalonia remains in fl ux fol- with cancer and had to miss the MPs gave their initial approval on future ties with the EU. around 3.5mn EU citizens living “A period of moderation, The two parties are pledging lowing a 2017 independence weekend vote, to turn up for to the Withdrawal Agreement The British premier will hold in Britain after Brexit. progress and hope opens up to- to lift the minimum wage, raise referendum which Madrid de- yesterday’s crucial session de- Bill in a vote on December 20, his fi rst meeting with the new Expatriate rights are already day,” Sanchez tweeted shortly taxes on high earners and large clared unconstitutional. spite her illness. a week after Johnson secured a European Commission presi- covered in the Brexit deal, along- after the vote. businesses, and repeal elements The Catalan independence “The political landscape re- majority of 80 in the 650-seat dent, Ursula von der Leyen, in side Britain’s fi nancial liabilities, On Sunday, Sanchez lost a of Spain’s controversial 2012 la- push triggered Spain’s most mains tricky,” ING analyst Ste- House of Commons. London today. the transition period and new fi rst attempt after falling short bour market reforms that made serious political crisis post- ven Trypsteen said. “The new They now have three days of Both sides are keen to prepare trade arrangements for Northern of the required absolute major- it easier to fi re workers – meas- Franco. government (is) ... a minority debate before the bill passes to for talks on their future trad- Ireland. ity of 176 seats in a fi rst confi - ures which business leaders Spain’s centre-right parties government, the Catalan ten- the unelected House of Lords for ing relationship, although these Meanwhile, a group of euro- dence vote in parliament. warn will hurt job creation. and Vox accused Sanchez of sions could fl are up again ... and further scrutiny next week. cannot start formally until Brit- sceptic lawmakers has tabled Spain, the eurozone’s fourth- With the two parties’ com- risking national unity through the fi scal situation makes it dif- Opposition lawmakers and ain leaves the EU. an amendment to get Big Ben to largest economy, has been in po- bined total of 155 seats still fall- his pact with the separatists. fi cult to increase spending a lot.” troublesome peers will try to The Brexit deal includes a chime for Brexit on January 31 litical gridlock without a proper ing short of a majority, Sanchez The leader of the main oppo- Until 2015, Spain had essen- amend the text but with such a transition period in which ties in a symbolic celebration of the government for most of the past also secured the support of sev- sition conservative Popular Par- tially a two-party system pitting comfortable majority, Johnson remain unchanged in practice landmark moment. year after two inconclusive elec- eral smaller regional groups as ty (PP), Pablo Casado, warned the Socialists against the PP but is virtually certain of getting it until December 31, 2020, to pro- A previous attempt for the bell tions in April and November. well the abstention of Catalan ahead of the vote that Spain was the rise of new parties has led to through on time. vide continuity until a new eco- to ring out on the fi rst Brexit date Sanchez’s Socialists won separatist party ERC’s 13 law- set to have “the most radical” a more fragmented parliament In a sign of his confi dence, nomic partnership can be agreed. of March 29, 2019, was blocked the November 10 poll but were makers and those of Basque government. that has made it harder to form Johnson’s government an- EU offi cials – including von by the then-House of Commons weakened, taking 120 seats – separatist party Bildu’s fi ve MPs. “Surrendering to the worst a government. nounced that it would hold a der Leyen herself – have warned speaker John Bercow. three fewer than in April – in As part of his deal with the radicals may make you prime Sanchez came to power in an election which saw far-right ERC, Sanchez agreed to open a minister but you will not be able June 2018 after ousting his PP party Vox surge into third place. formal dialogue with Catalo- to govern,” Casado said during a predecessor Mariano Rajoy in a Ireland’s Varadkar to meet main rival Unions set Friday Sanchez quickly struck a deal nia’s separatist regional gov- rare weekend session of parlia- no-confi dence vote but he was with Podemos, which has never ernment on the future of the ment called to debate Sanchez’s forced to call elections in April to discuss parliamentary poll date deadline for governed nationally, to form a wealthy northeastern region, bid to be reappointed premier. after Catalan separatists includ- French pension coalition government despite and to then submit the results of Sanchez’s narrow margin for ing the ERC refused to back his Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar is to meet the leader of the having previously said that such the talks to Catalan voters. victory led Podemos lawmaker draft budget. opposition party that props up his minority administration reform rethink tomorrow to discuss the date of the next parliamentary election. A minority government led by Varadkar’s centre-right Fine Gael has French unions has demanded ruled since 2016 after an initial three-year co-operation deal with that the government withdraw fellow centre-right party Fianna Fail was extended through to 2020 a pension reform proposal that due to uncertainty created by Brexit talks. would delay retirement ages British teen to appeal With Britain set to leave the European Union at the end of this before their next negotiation month, Varadkar and Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin have both session on Friday, if it wants to said an election should be held by May. see an end to strikes that have Cyprus conviction However, a demand by Varadkar for Fianna Fail support on a tied the nation in knots. number of additional issues between now and then has raised the Pension reform was one of prospect of a snap election as early as next month if the parties President Emmanuel Macron’s Reuters “The fi ght for her innocence cannot agree a short legislative programme. key promises during his election Paralimni, Cyprus will go on regardless,” said Lewis “The matter of when the election takes place, I hope through the campaign. Power, who was assisting the discussions that will take place on Thursday night, further clarity He wants to streamline the teenager’s local defence team. will be brought to bear on it,” Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe country’s multiple pension plans British teenager will ap- “We will maintain this young The British teenager, accused of lying about being gang-raped, told a news conference yesterday, confirming the meeting. into a single system. peal against her convic- girl was stripped of her dignity covers her face as she arrives with her mum at the Famagusta Fine Gael and Fianna Fail are closely matched in opinion polls, Some unions are worried this Ation in Cyprus over a and basic human rights.” courthouse in Paralimni, Cyprus. and some distance ahead of their other rivals, increasingly the could mean that solvent plans withdrawn allegation of gang- She had earlier been sen- likelihood that whoever edges ahead at the next election will lead will have to support ones facing a rape, her lawyers said yesterday, tenced before a packed court- 150 protesters who shouted slo- any evidence at her trial. another minority government. cash crunch. as the British government said it room to four months in jail, sus- gans like “Blaming the victim is British Prime Minister Boris But most of the anger is directed had raised numerous concerns pended for three years. the second rape!” and “Cyprus Johnson was pleased the teen- at setting 64 as a tipping-point about her treatment with Cyp- Raising his voice over chants justice, shame on you!”. ager could return home after Teenager jailed for planning attack age: anyone who retired before riot authorities. from supporters of the teen- “We are here to raise social being barred from leaving the that would lose benefits, anyone The 19-year-old was given ager outside, Judge Michalis awareness of rape,” said Dana island, a spokesman said, add- A British teenager who described himself as a neo-Nazi was who retired after would get more. a suspended sentence yester- Papathanasiou told her that the Salmon, one of almost 60 activ- ing that Britain would work with sentenced to almost seven years in prison yesterday for planning a Anger at the proposal has day after being found guilty by sentence took into account her ists from Israel who had fl own in Cyprus to ensure such a case terrorist attack from his bedroom. sparked a month of public a court in Cyprus on December age, clean criminal record and to support the teenager. “There could not happen again. The 17-year-old, who cannot be named for legal reasons, had carried transportation strikes, which 30 of public mischief for having remorse, and that he was giving is no justice here.” “We have had numerous con- out extensive online searches for extreme race-hate and right-wing have now extended to blockades alleged that she had been raped her a “second chance”. The teenager insists that a cerns about the judicial process material, encouraging others to share the banned material. of oil refineries. by a group of Israeli youths in “All mitigating factors were sexual assault took place and in this case and the (teenager’s) He was arrested in March 2019 when police found a handwritten list The cabinet is expected to vote the holiday resort of Ayia Napa taken into account but it does that she was pressured to with- right to a fair trial and we have of possible areas to attack and a list of “firearms I would buy” at his on the measure on January 24. last July. not negate the seriousness of draw her complaint during made these clear to the Cyp- home in Durham, northern England. Before the meeting ended She says she was coerced by the off ence,” Papathanasiou overnight questioning from po- riot authorities,” the spokesman In November, he was found guilty of six off ences, including yesterday, French Prime Minister police into dropping the com- said, noting that 12 individuals lice with no lawyer present. said. preparing to commit an act of terrorism, which the BBC said made Edouard Philippe said he was plaint. had been briefl y detained on the One defence witness, a Foreign Secretary Dominic him the youngest person to be convicted in Britain of plotting to prepared to show some flexibility The case has caused outrage basis of her accusation. former state forensic patholo- Raab earlier said there was no carry out such an attack. in the talks. in Britain and sparked protests The teenager, whose lawyers gist, said her injuries were con- immediate plan to change the “Cases such as this highlight the dangers our young people face “We will introduce a universal from activists who say the ten- say is suff ering from post-trau- sistent with rape. travel advice for Britons visiting today online,” said Detective Chief Superintendent Martin Snowden, system,” he told broadcaster RTL nager, who cannot be identifi ed matic stress, stood in silence Twelve Israeli youths were Cyprus. head of Counter Terrorism Policing North East. “The negative ahead of the talks with unions for legal reasons, did not get a before him. detained for questioning but The case has prompted calls influence and powerful manipulation that takes place by those who and business groups. “We will get fair trial. Police ordered window blinds swiftly released after the teen- for a boycott of the island, seek to radicalise them cannot be underestimated.” rid of the special plans. But I am Lawyers said she would ap- in the courtroom to be pulled ager withdrew her accusation. which is popular with British The teenager was sentenced to six years and eight months in jail at open to the question as to how peal to clear her name. down to block the sight of about They were not required to give holidaymakers. Manchester Crown Court. we will do it.”

Prince Harry and Meghan visit Canada House Poland’s Senate speaker to seek EU advice Prince Harry and his wife Meghan, the duchess of Sussex, were back in Britain yesterday after a six-week private visit to Reuters parliament, or Sejm, last month (PiS), which says the reforms are Senate speaker Tomasz Grodzki, Canada. Warsaw that would allow the dismissal necessary to make the judiciary whose position makes him Po- One of their first off icial engagements on of judges who question its judi- more effi cient and eff ective. land’s most powerful opposition British soil was a visit to Canada House at cial reforms. But the Senate is dominated fi gure, told Reuters. Trafalgar Square, where they extended their oland’s Senate speaker The European Commission, by the opposition and could The Commission has warned thanks to High Commissioner Janice Charette will go to Brussels today to the EU executive, says the legis- redraft or reject the draft law, it could cut funds paid out to EU and her staff for the hospitality they received Pconsult European Union lation would imperil the rule of though the Sejm would still have member states that undermine in Canada. offi cials over how to limit the law in Poland and has launched the power to overturn the Sen- courts and the rule of law. The two spent Christmas in Canada with damage from Warsaw’s latest legal steps against Warsaw over ate’s decision. Grodzki said he would meet their baby son, Archie, along with Meghan’s clash with its EU partners over earlier reforms of the judiciary “I am going (to Brussels) out European Commission Vice- Prince Harry and his wife Meghan view an exhibition of mother. reforms of the judiciary. to try to preserve the independ- of concern for my country ... President Vera Jourova and that artworks by indigenous Canadian artist Skawennati, in The duchess , is well-acquainted with Toronto, The nationalist Polish gov- ence of courts. not following the rule of law and Polish Senate lawyers would the Canada Gallery during their visit to Canada House in where she lived and worked while on the cast ernment rushed draft legisla- The Sejm is controlled by the democracy could lead to Poland consult with Commission ex- London. of the US TV drama Suits. tion through the lower house of ruling Law and Justice party getting cut off from EU funds,” perts. Gulf Times Wednesday, January 8, 2020 11 INDIA Meeting with Bollywood on CAA a great success: BJP

IANS “Several renowned Bollywood al at a luxury hotel. least 60 people from the industry Shaan replied to his critics, “We not attend’ and on the other, they the Citizenship Amendment Act, New Delhi icons like Bhushan Kumar, Pra- The invite was on behalf of who attended the event. Among were there for a dialogue and to are stating that ‘people were not which seeks to help Hindu, Sikh, soon Joshi, Anu Malik, Kailash both Goyal and Baijayant Jay others who attended the meet- put forth thoughts and fears... we invited’.” Jain, Buddhist, Christian and Kher, Shaan, Kunal Kohli and Panda, the BJP vice president. ing were ad fi lmmaker Pralhad were heard and given suffi cient Giving examples, the source Parsi refugees from Afghanistan, he Bharatiya Janata Party Ranvir Shorey were among those After attending the four-hour Kakkar, eminent photographer information and explanation. cited the names of Tapsee Pannu, Pakistan and Bangladesh to ob- yesterday claimed its out- who came for the meet,” claimed interactive session, Shorey ex- Atul Kasbekar and fi lm director Don’t turn everything dirty.” Rajkumar Rao, Imtiaz Ali, Jaaved tain Indian citizenship. Treach to the Bollywood BJP sources. pressed happiness at the gov- Aruna Raje. According to reports, the Jafari, Kangana Ranaut and Sonu The BJP has kicked off a na- fi lm industry on January 5 in Central Board of Film Cer- ernment reaching out to clear After the event, Kakar threw guests came 30 minutes ahead Sood as those who were invited tionwide outreach where every- Mumbai on the issue of Citizen- tifi cation chief Prasoon Joshi, misconceptions about the Citi- his weight behind CAA saying for the 8pm meeting and stayed and were keen to attend. Howev- one from party president Amit ship Act was a great success. producers Ritesh Sidhwani and zenship Amendment Act that has even the US has a religious per- till 12 midnight. er, the source claims, they regret- Shah to the district level leader- But critics of the new citizen- Bhushan Kumar, director Ab- sparked nationwide protests. secution law. Singer Shaan said Replying to certain criticism ted giving it a miss because they ship are pressed into action to ship law dubbed the event a damp hishek Kapoor and actor Ranvir Shorey came under intense after the event that he felt “much that many were selectively not were not in Mumbai on that day. go to people and answer their squib with A-listers like lyricist Shorey were among the Bolly- heat for attending the event. more reassured and relieved” af- invited, a BJP source said, “The Calling it a “grand success”, queries on CAA. The January 5 Javed Akhtar, fi lmmaker and ac- wood personalities who attended Following media reports that ter the interaction on CAA. reports are baseless and are con- the BJP source expressed happi- meeting with the entertainment tor Farhan Akhtar and fi lmmaker a special meeting with BJP leader the outreach was “ignored”, a Facing heat like Shorey did tradictory in nature by claiming ness at being able to dispel a lot industry was part of that endeav- Kabir Khan giving it a miss. and federal minister Piyush Goy- BJP source cited the names of at for merely attending the event, on the one hand that ‘people did of “misconceptions” regarding our. Last decade India’s hottest Nirbhaya rapists to on record, says hang on Jan 22: court top offi cial Victim’s parents welcome judgment, convict’s mother begs for forgiveness Agencies Reuters It also saw a record number New Delhi New Delhi of cyclones, and later record cold, with Delhi seeing its coldest day in over a century our men convicted in the he past decade was In- last month. fatal 2012 gang rape of a dia’s hottest on record, A dry spell also triggered F23-year-old woman in a Twith extreme heat di- crippling droughts and dire wa- moving bus in New Delhi – a rectly killing about 350 people ter shortages, including in the crime that shocked the world – last year, the national meteoro- southern city of Chennai, which will hang on January 22, a Delhi logical department’s chief said was plunged into crisis when its court declared yesterday. yesterday. four main water reservoirs ran Pawan Gupta, Vinay Sharma, India has faced some of the dry. Mukesh Singh and Akshay Singh fastest-rising threats from cli- More unpredictable weath- will be executed at the capital’s mate change, environmental- er – including more frequent Tihar Jail, where offi cials had ists say, with increases in blis- droughts and heatwaves – can reportedly started preparations tering heat, powerful cyclones, threaten harvests and food se- for the execution a month ago. drought and fl ooding. curity, especially in developing Nirbhaya – ‘fearless’ in Hin- Between 2010 and 2019, tem- nations such as India, climate di – was the name given by the peratures were 0.36 degrees scientists say. media to the physiotherapy stu- Celsius above the 1981-2010 av- Weather extremes also can dent, Jyoti Singh, who was as- erage, making it the hottest dec- lead to more water shortages saulted and raped on a bus on ade since records began in 1901, and outbreaks of water and the night of December 16, 2012. according to the Indian Meteor- mosquito-borne diseases such She died nearly two weeks lat- ological Department (IMD). as diarrhoea and malaria. er at a Singapore hospital. Mrutyunjay Mohapatra, In early December, the World The court issued death war- IMD’s director general of me- Meteorological Organisation rants following an application teorology, said it was diffi cult (WMO) said that 2019 was by the parents of the victim to to pinpoint a defi nite cause for on course to be the second or expedite the hanging, saying any single incident of record- third warmest year on record the Supreme Court and lower breaking temperatures, but glo- globally. courts have confirmed death bal warming and climate change It said the global mean tem- sentences in judgments since were defi nitely “factors to con- perature during the fi rst 10 2013. sider”. months of 2019 was 1.1C above Additional Sessions Judge “The reasons are climate pre-industrial levels. Satish Kumar Arora said the change, global warming but I The 2015 Paris Agreement, hanging of the four convicts will cannot say specifi cally because a global pact to fi ght climate take place at 7am on January there is no such study to at- change agreed to by nearly 200 22, Nirbhaya’s father Badrinath tribute that ‘X’ occurred due to countries, aims to keep the Singh told reporters. ‘Y’,” Mohapatra told the Thom- Earth’s temperature rise well “This judgment will reinforce Nirbhaya’s mother Asha Devi flashes the victory sign after a court issued death warrants against the four convicts in the rape case, outside son Reuters Foundation. below 2C, striving for 1.5C. people’s faith in the judiciary. the Patiala House Courts in New Delhi yesterday. Such “attribution science”, But current national plans to My daughter will get justice,” which can help link specif- curb emissions and limit climate the victim’s mother Asha Devi court in September 2013. The mother of Mukesh Singh, jail at the beginning of the trial. According to the latest gov- ic extreme events to climate change, even if achieved, would said, adding she had waited sev- It was upheld by the Supreme one of the convicts, walked up to The juvenile was let off in ernment data available, 33,658 change, is on the rise globally, produce warming of more than 3 en years for justice. Court in May 2017. Nirbhaya’s mother and begged 2015 after three years in a reform women and girls were raped in but is still taking hold in India, degrees – one reason countries Lawyer A P Singh, who repre- After their review petitions for forgiveness. home. India in 2017. where heatwaves in 2015 and are due to update them this year, sents convict Akshay Singh, said were rejected in December, the “I appeal to you to forgive my Executions are rarely carried Activists say many more rapes 2016 have so far been tied to as global emissions continue to he will fi le a curative petition in convicts still have the fi nal legal son. I am begging for his life,” out in India – there have been go unreported. climate shifts. rise rather than fall. the Supreme Court within a day recourse of fi ling a curative peti- she said according to NDTV. only four such instances since The criminal justice system According to the IMD, 2019 WMO Secretary-General or two, requesting the top court tion in the Supreme Court. The 2012 crime had sparked 2004. also fails to respond adequately, was the seventh warmest year Petteri Taalas warned that if to look again at the judgment. If that petition is rejected, mass protests across the country Yakub Memon, who was con- with the conviction rate in rape on record in India. urgent climate action was not Last month, the Supreme they can approach the president and an international outcry. victed for fi nancing and pro- cases at 32% in 2017. Overall about 1,630 people taken “then we are heading for Court dismissed the last review of India with a mercy petition to Six men, including one who viding logistic support for the A couple of recent cases, one died in extreme weather events a temperature increase of more petition in the case, fi led by Ak- commute the death sentence. was a juvenile at the time of the deadly 1993 Mumbai bombings where a young woman was set over the year, it said. than 3 degrees C by the end of shay Singh. As the judge pronounced crime, were accused of brutally – was the last to be hanged – in on fi re by men she accused of The country – home to 1.3bn the century, with ever more The victim’s parents had then the order, the courtroom was gang raping the student and 2015. rape and later died, and the gang people – last year experienced a harmful impacts on human asked the lower court to issue a packed and thick with emotion, beating a male friend accompa- Despite stricter laws and rape and murder of a young longer summer as well as mon- well-being”. death warrant. NDTV reported. nying her. measures to increase security woman veterinarian in Hydera- soon rains that were delayed “We are nowhere near on The men accused in the rape Nirbhaya’s parents as well as Ram Singh, who was the bus for women since the Delhi gang bad have brought the spotlight but ultimately the biggest in 25 track to meet the Paris Agree- and murder were fi rst handed family members of the convicts driver and one of the perpetra- rape, a high number of such back on cases of sexual assault years. ment target,” he said. death sentences by the trial wept. tors, committed suicide in Tihar crimes continue to be reported. on women. 12 hurt as ABVP, NSUI Woman in trouble over students clash in Gujarat ‘Free Kashmir’ placard IANS “How can we tolerate such Mumbai separatist elements in Mumbai? Agencies student body linked to Modi’s Beyond universities, almost a ‘Free Kashmir’ slogan by Azadi Ahmedabad ruling Bharatiya Janata Party, month of violent protests across gang at 2kms from the CMO? for the JNU violence on Sunday the country against the new citi- woman yesterday apolo- Uddhavji (Thackeray) are you go- evening. zenship law has left more than 25 gised for carrying a plac- ing to tolerate this ‘Free Kashmir’ t least a dozen people were Police reportedly stood by people dead. Aard which said “Free anti-India campaign right under injured yesterday in fresh and did nothing to stop the at- The law speeds up citizenship Kashmir” at a protest near the your nose???” Fadnavis tweeted Aclashes between student tack, while videos purportedly claims from minorities from Pa- Gateway of India in Mumbai, yesterday. groups loyal to Prime Minister from the scene showed masked kistan, Afghanistan and Bangla- after attack from right-wing Responding to the BJP charg- Narendra Modi and opponents men swinging batons as students desh, but not if they are Muslim. groups and activists. es, Shiv Sena Rajya Sabha MP with the main opposition Con- screamed in terror. Combined with a mooted citi- Mehak Mirza Prabhu claimed Sanjay Raut made it clear that gress party, police said. Police in Gujarat said fresh vi- zens register, it has stoked fears it was “intended for peace it would not tolerate if anyone Student politics has turned olence broke out yesterday when that Modi wants to remould In- in Jammu and Kashmir”, but talks of freedom of Kashmir ugly in recent weeks over several members of the the Congress- dia as a Hindu nation and mar- police yesterday filed a case from India. issues, including a new citizen- affi liated National Students’ Un- ginalise its 200mn Muslims, against her. “I read that those who held ship law, heavy-handed police ion of India (NSUI) held a protest something he denies. The placard was seen in her the ‘Free Kashmir’ poster clari- tactics and hikes in university outside the ABVP’s offi ces. Delhi police fought street bat- hand on Monday evening dur- fi ed that they want to be free of fees. “Some 10 to 12 people have tles with JNU students in No- ing protests to condemn the restrictions on Internet services, The latest confrontation, in been injured in the clash,” K N vember after protests broke out violence on the Jawaharlal Ne- mobile services and other issues. Modi’s home state of Gujarat, Damor, deputy commissioner of over fee increases at the top uni- hru University campus two days It doesn’t mean that they advo- came two days after attackers Ahmedabad police, told journal- versity. ago. cate freedom from India,” Raut rampaged through Delhi’s Jawa- ists. Student organisations domi- Former Maharashtra chief said. harlal Nehru University, leaving One unverifi ed but widely nated by left-wingers have since minister and Bharatiya Janata Nationalist Congress Party 34 injured and sparking nation- shared video suggests members staged demonstrations demand- Party (BJP) leader Devendra Fad- minister Jayant Patil retorted to wide protests. of the ABVP chasing and hitting ing a rollback of the fee increase, navis demanded to know what Fadnavis that the ‘Free Kashmir’ Critics and media reports an NSUI activist with sticks. while facing accusations of ob- the protest was exactly about and poster was intended for freedom blamed the Akhil Bharatiya The ABVP accused the NSUI structing administration offi - An activist holds a placard as she takes part in a protest along with why slogans of ‘Free Kashmir’ from all restrictions and dis- Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), a of instigating the clashes. cials. others against the new citizenship law in Bengaluru yesterday. were raised there. crimination. Gulf Times 12 Wednesday, January 8, 2020 PAKISTAN

Women reject claim Lower house okays laws by World Bank rep

Internews on services chiefs’ terms Karachi Reuters/AFP/Internews Govt all praise for opposition as key military bills sail through lower house been more assertive in what committing rights abuses dur- Islamabad supporters and analysts say is a ing its anti-militant operations. tweet by a World Bank Special Assistant to Prime Minister Imran Khan on in the greater national interest. battle to strengthen the rule of The army rejects such accusa- offi cial over the weekend Information Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan was all praise for “I am hopeful that this show of unity from the Parlia- law and regain credibility, which tions. Aearned the ire of Pakista- he National Assembly ap- the opposition yesterday after the National Assembly ment will also be demonstrated on other matters the opposition parties allege it “This parliament’s major- ni businesswomen, with many proved yesterday three passed three bills on the tenure of the services chiefs related to national interest.” lost by interfering in politics. ity is fake, this prime minister calling it an ill-informed remark Tbills regarding the tenure – the chief of army staff , the chief of air staff , and the “It is time we sit together and brainstorm on develop- In a separate development, is fake,” said Asad Mahmood, that spread misinformation. of the services chiefs – the chief chief of naval staff – and the chairman of the joint chief ing a strategy for defining and protecting our national a court last month sentenced parliamentary leader of the Ja- The women, many of whom of army staff , the chief of air of staff committee. interest,” she stressed, adding that the “wave of unity former military ruler Pervez miat Ulema-e-Islam – Fazlur are married or divorced, stressed staff , and the chief of naval staff Speaking to the media in Islamabad minutes after demonstrated today should continue going forward”. Musharraf to death in absentia (JUI-F) religious political party, that amongst all their business – and the chairman of the joint the bills were passed in the lower house of parlia- Awan is of the view that the most important issue fac- on treason charges. which says it unfairly lost seats problems, their marital status chief of staff committee. ment, Awan said: “The lower house passing the bills is ing the country currently is national security. The government responded to in the northwest to Prime Min- was never one of them, nor were The three bills are: the Pa- illustrative of the fact that when it comes to national “You can see what is happening in the region,” she said the Supreme Court’s ruling by ister Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek- they legally disadvantaged or kistan Army (Amendment) Bill interest and safety, all political parties are ready to set in an apparent reference to a rise in tensions after the drafting legislation that the low- e-Insaf (PTI) party. “We will not discriminated against. 2020, the Pakistan Air Force aside their interests and stand with the government. US assassination of Iranian General Qasem Soleimani. er house of parliament approved support any such amendment in On January 3, World Bank (Amendment) Bill 2020, and the “Today, I salute all political parties and the role that “In such a scenario, if there is instability or uncertainty yesterday, clearing the way for the law by a fake parliament.” country director Illango Pat- Pakistan Navy (Amendment) Bill they have played [in passing the bills in the National in institutions responsible for national security and the extension. The military sets defence and chamuthu shared a tweet and 2020. Assembly], especially the Pakistan Peoples Party their leadership, it ultimately sends a message to Paki- It must still be approved by security policy, and also domi- blogpost: “In #Pakistan, mar- Pakistan has been ruled by the (PPP), which withdrew their proposed amendments to stan’s enemies about your weakness and vulnerability. the upper house, the Senate, nates foreign aff airs. ried women cannot legally reg- military for about half its history the bills in greater national interest and stood with the “This serves to perpetuate the propaganda of your which is expected. Recently, it has also had a role ister a business in the same way and tensions between govern- national cause.” enemies. The legislation passed in the in framing economic policies. as married men as the business ments and the top generals often “Today is also an eye opener for the enemies of the “Today the parliament has sent a message to the National Assembly yesterday Opposition activists and registration procedures diff er for dominates politics. state. Whenever the country has needed its political enemies of the state by unanimously passing these also sets a maximum age of 64 rights groups have also ac- women and men. Any eff ort by a military chief leadership, they have stood by the country and acted bills,” she said. for the chiefs of the army, air cused the military under Bajwa “What would #Pakistan’s to consolidate power is viewed force and navy. of meddling in politics, limiting economy look like if this was with suspicion by many in the The two main opposition par- civil liberties and muzzling the easier for women?” political class, who are wary of Bajwa’s term “one of the darkest from Afghan border districts. with India as justifi cation for the ties have a long history of clash- media. The tweet led to a strong reac- the army extending its infl uence days” in Pakistan’s parliamen- Critics of Prime Minister extension for Bajwa at the end of ing with the military but never- The military denies inter- tion from women entrepreneurs. further into the civilian domain. tary history. Imran Khan say that his gov- the usual three-year term. theless backed the legislation, fering in politics or curbing Anum Kamran, the chief exec- Pashtun parliamentarian “We voted against the Army ernment, unlike its immediate However, in a surprise ruling, largely, analysts say, to avoid a freedoms. utive of Buyon.pk – an e-com- Mohsin Dawar, whose party ac- Act before walking out. This predecessor, enjoys the support the Supreme Court of Pakistan damaging confrontation. Bajwa was appointed to lead merce platform – a expressed cuses the military of heavy- parliament acted like a rubber of the military, which is why it struck down the extension in Two smaller parties and some the military in 2016, taking over shock at the tweet and blogpost. handed tactics in its anti-mil- stamp,” he tweeted. approved Bajwa’s extension in November, ordering the govern- members of parliament from from General Raheel Sharif. “I am a software engineer itant operations, termed the His Pashtun Tahafuz Move- August, triggering a constitu- ment and army to produce legal troubled northwestern districts There have been nine army and don’t come from a busi- legislation allowing the ex- ment has been a thorn in the side tional furore. provisions and arguments for along Afghan border opposed chiefs since Pakistan’s inde- ness background. I am a mar- tension of Chief of Army Staff of the military, mainly by de- The government cited a wors- the reappointment. the legislation. pendence in 1947, following par- ried woman and have registered (COAS) General Qamar Javed manding the army’s withdrawal ening national security situation Pakistan’s judiciary has lately They accuse the military of tition with India. two companies on my own. The process is pretty straightfor- ward,” she says, dispelling the notion that it hinders women. Chilling out “I have helped some 40 women entrepreneurs – many Forbes includes of them married – with the reg- istration process, and nowhere did we face any diffi culties be- cause of the marital status,” she Pakistan on list of stressed. Fatima Anila, an Islamabad- based businesswoman and the chief executive of Alishevrish top places to visit and Wire (Women In Renewable Energy), was one of the fi rst few people to call out the tweet. Internews and palaces,” he added. “For years we have made vol- Washington “But most of all, it off ers in- untary eff orts to bust the myths credible scenery, particularly and clarify wrong perceptions in the north where the three regarding business registration t’s offi cial. Pakistan is all greatest mountain ranges col- in Pakistan among women en- set to become a must-visit lide. trepreneurs.” Idestination for travellers “Pakistan is great for trek- The fi nance ministry tweet- and tourists looking for some- king, mountain biking, rafting ed: “Process of incorporating a thing new, something diff erent or just cultural tourism. company in Pakistan for a mar- in 2020. “The infrastructure has also ried man or woman is the same. A new Forbes article includes improved, with resurfaced There is no additional require- Pakistan in its “The Not Hot roads and new tunnels cutting ment for a married woman.” List: 10 Best Under-the-Radar down travel time, new luxury Meanwhile, the Securities and Trips for 2020”. hotels are opening up in the Exchange Commission of Pa- The American magazine region.” kistan (SECP) sent out a tweet: wrote: “Closed countries are Just last month, Pakistan “Please note, in law there is no opening up. Savvy luxury made it to Condé Nast Travel- gender discrimination. Any in- agencies are making remote ler’s list of best holiday desti- dividual, having a national iden- destinations accessible to trav- nations for 2020. tity number (any gender) can ellers who don’t want to rough And while it is clear that an become director of a company or it or risk much.” improved security situation form a new company.” The list features other coun- has revived the tourism indus- The World Bank offi cial tweet- tries such as Armenia, Chad, try, it is really the country’s ed a response: “I was glad to hear Eritrea, Guatemala, and Mon- natural beauty and diverse cul- from many women entrepre- golia, among others. tures that attract local and for- Monkeys are seen by the road during snowfall in Ayubia, some 75km north of Islamabad. neurs who were not constrained Interestingly, the criterion eign tourists alike. by this.” for the list was based on a In addition, the British newly discovered but essential Backpackers Society had de- need of many modern tour- clared Pakistan as the world’s ists: “Where can we go to avoid third-highest potential adven- other tourists?” ture destination for 2020. The magazine points out Sadly, Pakistan still lags be- Pakistan witnesses major developments in women’s rights that many travel agencies and hind neighbours in the region local tour guides “have learned and was ranked by the World to bring less obvious, under- Economic Forum as the least Internews judges in superior judiciary has government subsidies and credit. Group, after winning a competi- who won a bronze medal for Pa- touristed places to life in a way competitive country in South Islamabad historically remained low. It requires gender parity in tion for female engineering stu- kistan at the 7th Fujairah Taek- that yields the kind of insights Asia last year when it comes to With the induction of Justice wages. dents in Budapest, Hungary. wondo Open Championship in you might expect from their travel and tourism. Lubna Saleem Pervaiz in the Is- It is also the fi rst time that Pa- She has also won prize money the UAE; over-touristed equivalents.” No doubt Pakistan has un- he year 2019 saw some lamabad High Court (IHC), the kistan will recognise the right of along with future trips to Bu- Hajra Khan, captain of Paki- “Pakistan is perhaps the ul- paralleled beauty, but what it major developments in number of female judges in all women agricultural workers to dapest for training and devel- stan’s women’s soccer team; and timate adventure travel desti- lacks is a structure that can TPakistan related to wom- the seven superior courts has unionise. opment and the opportunity to Mahnoor Shahzad, who won the nation,” says Jonny Lee, found- facilitate tourism; more im- en’s rights and their increased gone up to six out of the 141 seats. These facilities will also be work at this Fortune 500 fi rm. Annapurna International Bad- er of Wild Frontiers. portantly, what it needs are roles in diff erent spheres of life. This is too insignifi cant a extended to women working in She was one of the 120 ap- minton Tournament, as well as “It off ers ancient Indus civi- stricter laws and policies that There were women who made number keeping in view the fact fi sheries and livestock sectors. plicants who took part in the a bronze medal in the recently- lisations stretching back 4,000 can safeguard its natural sites the country proud with their that female population in the As per this law, women will not competition in STEM (Science, concluded Bulgarian Interna- years, and exciting cities like and historical landmarks from achievements at national and in- country is almost equal to that of only receive pay in cash for their Engineering, Technology and tional Championship 2019. Lahore with its forts, mosques the onslaught of over-tourism. ternational level. males. work, but will also participate in Mathematics). Apart from that, there was No doubt there were reports So far, the Supreme Court of decision-making. A female soldier, Major Fozia cricketer Nida Dar, who became issued by national and inter- Pakistan, with strength of 17 Parveen, made country proud the fi rst Pakistani woman to Air force pilots die in training jet crash national organisations that put judges, the Baluchistan High The year 2019 saw major when she was ranked among the sign a deal with an international Pakistan at low positions among Court (BHC) having 10 judges, achievements by women, as best female military and staff of- cricket league, Sydney Thunder. A Pakistan Air Force (PAF) fighter jet crashed yesterday, killing both comity of nations when it came and the Federal Shariah Court well as the passage of laws fi cers serving in the UN peace- Last but not least, karate expo- pilots on board, off icials said. to grant of basic rights, equal with four judges, do not even to empower women keeping mission in Cyprus. nent Shahida Abbasi from Haz- The Chinese-made FT-7 aircraft was on a routine operational wages, protection against vio- have a single female judge. Pakistan’s former repre- ara won gold for Pakistan at the training mission when it crashed near Mianwali in southern Punjab, lence, etc to women. The statement of the outgo- The same year, Punjab ap- sentative to the United Nations, South Asian Games 2019 held in air force spokesman Waseem Ahmad Khan said. However, the encouraging ing Chief Justice of Pakistan Asif proved the Home-Based Workers Maleeha Lodhi, took to Twitter Kathmandu, Nepal. An inquiry has been ordered to determine the exact cause of the thing is that the women of Pa- Saeed Khosa, that the Supreme Act and the Punjab Occupational and lauded Parveen for her serv- A Pakistani computer scien- crash, the spokesman said. kistan excelled in an environ- Court of Pakistan will soon have Safety and Health Act. ices in the UN peacekeeping mis- tist, Asma Zaheer, was awarded The plane crashed in an open field and no other casualties were ment not that conducive to their women judges, is a heartening It is hoped that the two laws sion in Cyprus. IBM’s highest award “Best of IBK reported. growth. development in this context. would play an important role in It is an encouraging develop- 2019”, making her the fi rst Paki- Trainer aircraft used by the Pakistani Air Force are mostly procured Yet another development is He praised women judges for protecting the rights of industrial ment that Pakistan has crossed stani computer scientist to ever from China. that a few pro-women laws were their knowledge and professional workers and home-based work- the target set by the United Na- receive it. passed in 2019, and it is hoped integrity and said that they de- ers, who are mostly women. tions from zero to 15% deploy- The award ceremony was held these will be implemented in served these slots. The women home-based ment of female military and staff at Bali, Indonesia, and attended Free medical for GB patients in capital their true spirit in 2020. In 2019, the Sindh Assembly workers have remained one of the offi cers in the peacekeeping mis- by IBM’s senior leaders, 1,000 It was towards the end of the unanimously passed the Sindh most exploited workforces, left sion, in only 18 months. “Best of IBM (BOI) Honourees”, Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) Chief Minister Hafeez-ur-Rehman has said that year that the then-chief justice Women Agriculture Workers Act at the mercy of middlemen who The year 2019 saw many fe- and their guests. his government has established an endowment fund worth Rs1bn of Pakistan hinted at the inclu- 2019. make them work for “peanuts”. male sports stars rising on the Assistant Superintendent of to help cover medical costs of the people of the province. sion of female judges in the Su- This law recognises the right of Misbah Hamid, a fi nal year horizons and making their mark Police Maham Khan won the “People from [the northern scenic mountainous state of] Gilgit- preme Court of Pakistan for the women workers to have a written student at the National Univer- at the national and international prestigious “Sword of Honour” Baltistan can now avail of treatment in hospitals of Islamabad free fi rst time in the history of the contract, a minimum wage, so- sity of Science and Technology levels. in 2019 for outshining her batch of cost,” he said. country. cial security, and welfare benefi ts (NUST) in Islamabad, will get To mention a few, they includ- mates during training at the Na- Presiding over a meeting in Gilgit, he said a memorandum of This was no small develop- including that for child health, a job at one of the world’s big- ed an eight-year-old Pakistani tional Police Academy, Islama- understanding will be signed with the best hospitals in Islamabad. ment as the number of female maternity leave, and access to gest oil and gas companies, MOL taekwondo star Ayesha Ayaz, bad. Gulf Times Wednesday, January 8, 2020 13 PHILIPPINES

Security preparations President threatens takeover of Manila water service fi rms

AFP roughly $145mn arbitration Manila ruling against the govern- ment last month over rejected rate increases. Analyst Calixto hilippine President Rod- Chikiamco warned the offer rigo Duterte has threat- was “like putting a gun to their Pened a government (utility operators’) head”, and takeover of the capital’s water risked leaving investors won- services unless its two private dering if agreements would be utilities accept a new contract, unilaterally changed. his spokesman said yesterday, “If the outcome is cancella- an ultimatum experts warned tion and nationalisation, that could spook investors. will have a negative impact Duterte’s government will across the board for foreign in- offer a deal to replace the one vestments,” he told local TV. first crafted in the 1990s when Duterte has claimed the Manila’s troubled water system water firms were committing was privatised and which the “economic sabotage” with president calls a “colossal rip- terms they obtained in their off”, his spokesman Salvador 1997 franchises, including re- Panelo said. couping corporate income tax “Should (utilities) Maynilad costs from ratepayers. and Manila Water refuse to ac- The companies took over cept the new agreements, the water distribution from the president will order the can- government after a water cri- cellation of their present water sis in the capital, caused in part contracts and order the nation- by the system’s heavy debt and alisation of water services in a notoriously inefficient pipe their...areas,” Panelo said. network. No text has been made pub- Duterte’s public com- lic and neither firm immedi- ments, repeated several times ately provided comment on in speeches since December, Philippine Marines patrol past devotees and carriages with replicas of the Black Nazarene prior to the start of a procession near the Quiapo church in Manila, yesterday, the proposal. The companies, helped drive the stock price of two days ahead of the annual procession in honour of the Black Nazarene on January 9. Thousands of barefoot devotees will join the procession in Manila, hoping to which serve some 16mn cus- Manila Water and Maynilad’s touch a centuries-old icon. tomers, have drawn the presi- listed parent firms down by dent’s ire since they won a more than a combined $2bn.

Two policemen face charges over jailbreak

Two personnel of Bacolod City Govt gets ready to evacuate Police Off ice (BCPO) Station 3 have been charged while under- going investigation along with their superiors and colleagues for the escape of four detainees, including three arrested for illegal OFWs in Mideast over tensions drugs, Manila Times reported. Duty jailer S/Sgt. Eric Olverio and Reuters gineers and nurses. President sage in case of evacuation.“We ment is readying aircraft to ferry Tehran offi cial said yesterday as dullah advised Malaysians to desk off icer Cpl. Orwayne Jade Manila Rodrigo Duterte has ordered have so many Filipinos working Filipinos in Iraq and Iran who the general’s body was brought defer non-essential travel to Nadado are facing a criminal the armed forces to prepare air mainly in the Middle East. I am wish to come home or be evacu- to his hometown for burial. the region, “in particular areas case for infidelity in the custody and naval assets for the evacu- nervous. Iran seems to be hell- ated to safer areas. Filipinos in the Middle East where the security situation is of prisoners under Article 223, he Philippines is prepar- ation of Filipinos in Iraq, Iran bent on a retaliation, which I “We can send transporta- sent home $5.4bn in remit- critical”, and for citizens in the Section 1, Chapter 5 of the Re- ing to evacuate thou- and nearby Arab countries, his think will come,” Duterte said in tion to fetch them,” Lorenza tances in January to October region to register with their vised Penal Code. Tsands of overseas Fili- spokesman Salvador Panelo a speech on Monday. told reporters, adding that hir- last year, accounting for a fi fth nearest foreign mission. Col. Henry Binas, city police direc- pinos workers (OFWs) in the said yesterday. There are close to 7,000 Fili- ing a cruise ship was among of total remittances for that pe- “The ministry advises all tor, said yesterday he directed Middle East as regional tensions Saying he was deeply wor- pinos working and living in Iraq the things the government was riod, making the region a major Malaysians residing, or cur- station chief Maj. Ruel Culanag rise following the killing of a top ried about the prospect of a and more than 1,000 in Iran, ac- considering to safely evacu- source of foreign exchange in- rently travelling to the region to arrest and detain the two, who Iranian commander by the US. “protracted war”, Duterte told cording to government data. ate those who would wish to be fl ows which help drive growth to be more vigilant and take were subsequently charged be- About 2.3mn people from the reporters he sent a special en- Defence Secretary Delfi n repatriated. Iran is considering in the consumption-led Philip- the necessary precautions to fore the City Prosecutor’s Off ice Philippines are working in the voy to Tehran and Baghdad to Lorenzana, who heads a newly 13 scenarios to avenge Friday’s pine economy. ensure their safety and secu- and subjected to the administra- Middle East as domestic help- get assurances that Filipinos created committee to prepare killing of Qassem Soleimani by a In Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia’s rity,” Saifuddin told at a press tive investigation. ers, construction workers, en- would be provided safe pas- the evacuation, said the govern- US drone attack in Iraq, a senior Foreign Minister Saifuddin Ab- conference. Tough life In war of words, Duterte says VP a ‘colossal blunder’

DPA Manila

hilippine President Ro- drigo Duterte lashed out Pat Vice President Leni Robredo, a key critic of his government’s crackdown on illegal drugs, yesterday, call- ing her a “colossal blunder.” Duterte made the comments a day after Robredo said the country’s anti-drug campaign Rodrigo Duterte and Leni Robredo. has been a “massive failure” in constricting the supply of what should be done in the which has left more than But 18 days later, Duterte narcotics in the country in the campaign, saying, “If ever she 5,000 suspected drug users fired her from the position, past three and a half years. becomes president, then she and pushers killed in police alleging that she “wasted” “You know, for all of these can do the things she is sug- operations since 2016, when the opportunity and used her years she has done nothing,” gesting. She does not lecture Duterte became president. appointment “to attack the Duterte told reporters when on me.” In November, Duterte ap- methods undertaken by this asked about her. “She is a co- Duterte added that Robredo pointed her as co-chair of the administration.” lossal blunder. Colossal blun- should not have won as vice Inter-Agency Committee on On Monday, Robredo said der.Blunder.” president: “It was really a Anti-Illegal Drugs (ICAD), af- that, since 2016, authorities The 74-year-old president mistake.” ter she said in interviews that have only seized an estimated A man sleeps outside a minimarket in Manila, yesterday. also told Robredo to refrain Robredo is an outspoken the crackdown has failed to 1% of illegal drugs believed to from lecturing him about critic of the anti-drug war, stop the illicit trade. be circulating in the country. Go says intensifi ed drive against drugs to continue

By Javier J Ismael ment campaign has to continue Committee on Anti-Illegal believe the latter. “They are the be scared of her recommended Manila Times to save the innocent victims Drugs (ICAD) in late 2019. ordinary citizens that directly strategy,” Go added. of illegal drugs. We will con- The vice president gave Presi- benefited from the campaign. “Let me remind VP Robredo tinue to intensify the campaign dent Rodrigo Duterte’s govern- They are the ones saying that that, first, the war against ille- enator Christopher Law- [against illegal drugs,” Go said in ment a dismal “1 out of 100” they are safer now compared to gal drugs is a continuing cam- rence “Bong” Go yesterday response to Vice President (VP) score in its fl agship programme the time of the past adminis- paign and a relentless one. We Ssaid the government cam- Maria Leonor “Leni” Robredo’s to fi ght narcotics, saying the au- tration. And they are also say- will not stop until we put an paign against illegal drugs would claim that the administration’s thorities were only able to seize ing that the campaign against end to this menace. We cannot continue to the last hour of the war against illegal drugs is a dis- 1% of the total supply of illegal drugs has to continue and in- do it by talking alone. We have Duterte administration. mal failure. drugs in the country. tensify it in order to stop the il- to scare them, and if it is nec- “As long as the addicts are On Monday, Robredo But Go pointed out that be- legal drugs in the country,” the essary, you have to kill them in there, the drug lords are there, slammed the government’s anti- tween one person using her own lawmaker said. order to finish the illegal drugs the greed for money is there, we drug campaign as a “failure” as computation giving a grade of “Perhaps if VP Leni is still in the country,” said Go, who cannot easily wipe out the sup- she fi nally revealed her fi ndings 1%, and 79% of Filipinos who a co-chairman of ICAD, there served as special assistant of ply of shabu in the country. This during her 18-day stint as co- said they were satisfi ed with the will be more supply of shabu President Duterte before being is the reason why the govern- chairman of the Inter-Agency campaign, he would choose to because the drug lords will not elected as senator. Bong Go: assurance on anti-drug campaign Gulf Times 14 Wednesday, January 8, 2020 COMMENT

CHAIRMAN Abdullah bin Khalifa al-Attiyah EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Faisal Abdulhameed al-Mudahka Deputy Managing Editor K T Chacko P.O.Box 2888, Doha, Qatar [email protected] 44350478 (News), 44466404 (Sport), 44466636 (Home delivery) 44350474 facebook.com/gulftimes twitter.com/gulftimes_Qatar GULF TIMES China debt defaults picking up amid rising fi nancial risks

Concerns have for long been mounting over the state of China’s $45tn fi nancial system in an economy built on debt. The nation’s central bank and its top fi nancial regulator pledged in the new year to step up measures to shore up its troubled banks and small businesses while continuing a crackdown on shadow banking and property speculation. But Chinese companies are facing a reality check after years of ramping up debt. A de-leveraging campaign President Xi Jinping began in 2016 to curb risks in fi nancial markets has led to a crackdown on unregulated lending – shadow banking – and tighter rules on asset German conservationists management. That made it harder for some to raise funds to repay existing debt, leading to a record number of bond defaults in 2018 and 2019 as economic growth slowed. The problem is big, for sure, with the potential to worsen. Chinese onshore company bond defaults in thrilled at wolves’ return 2019 reached more than 150 – well past the 2018 record of 120. Missed payments totalled more than 130bn yuan By Joerg Schurig Since then the wolves, benefi ting fi rst year of life is around 50%, and there The DBBW cautions against Rietschen, Germany from their protected status, have spread is considerable fl uctuation,” she says, drawing overly hasty conclusions. “A ($18.7bn), compared with 2018’s high of 122bn yuan, north and west across the north German predicting that it will be some time before comparison of domestic animal losses which itself was more than quadruple the level in 2017. plain into Brandenburg and Lower the German wolf population reaches in diff erent European countries has Private-sector fi rms otta and Juli have been Saxony. the conservation status of “favourable,” shown that the extent of losses was not directly linked to the size of the accounted for more than scouring the woodlands of the Expansion southwards into the according to European Union criteria, Onshore German states of Saxony and central uplands and further still into the implying 1,000 adult animals. wolf population or the number of farm 80% of defaults in 2019, Lneighbouring Brandenburg for Alps is proceeding much more slowly. Wolves’ populations gains mean animals,” it noted. company bond according to Bloomberg prey for six months now. Reinhardt notes that some believe their strict protected status is being The key factor was how well sheep data. Moody’s Investors Lotta, an adult, has scouted around that wolves from the plains are reluctant questioned. and goats — the main targets — were defaults in 200sq km, while Juli, who is just a year to move into more mountainous In May, the German government protected. “This analysis is confi rmed Service said it expects old, has covered a little more than half territory, although this remains theory. decided to ease shooting policy by German experience,” it continued in 2019 reached 40 to 50 new, fi rst-time of that. But the species will continue to following attacks on domestic herds, a recent report. defaulters in 2020; there “We still don’t know whether they are spread out, even in times of climate and the question now is whether Most attacks occur where wolves more than 150 mother and daughter, or aunt and niece,” change. preventive shooting should follow. have only recently moved in and were about three dozen in wolf researcher Ilka Reinhardt says. Wolves are extremely adaptable, she Frank Fass, head of a Lower Saxony where shepherds and goatherds have compared with 2019. The two predators were fi tted with says. wolf monitoring centre, believes the yet to become accustomed to their Investors and banks transmitters after Saxony decided to According to the latest fi gures from number of wolf territories is rising at presence. “Losses in these areas decline 120 in 2018 restart a tracking programme following Germany’s DBBW wolf monitoring 30% a year. once livestock farmers apply proper historically have favoured a lengthy gap. offi ce, Brandenburg now has 41 packs, This would imply 130 packs across protection measures,” the DBBW says. state-backed borrowers and are reluctant to extend Satellites have tracked the wolves overtaking Saxony’s 22. Germany by the spring of 2020. Unable to distinguish wild and credit to smaller, private companies. On top of that, the on travels as far afi eld as Belarus and Lower Saxony is third, with 21. “Every landscape has its capacity that domesticated animals, wolves “kill Denmark. Each pack is believed to have around decides how many packs it can take,” those animals for food that they can government’s surprise seizure of Baoshang Bank Co in While wolves generally avoid humans, eight animals, made up of the adult pair Fass says. easily overcome.” May 2019 – the fi rst such takeover in two decades – cut Juli has been tracked on the outskirts of plus their off spring spawned during a He predicts the numbers will Hunting in the wild, a pack of wolves many investors’ tolerance for risk. the city of Cottbus. two-year period. continue to rise, but insists there is has little chance of bringing down Meanwhile, growth in the broader economy has been Reinhardt believes she may be Indeed, wolves have now been sighted no need for wolves to be hunted. “I do more than one deer at a time, whereas wanting to start a family. “The problem across most of Germany, even if some believe, however, that hunting will be a herd of domesticated animals off ers losing steam and weaker companies can be subject to is that she needs a territory,” the of the fi rst sightings are only of lone pushed through politically at some oversupply. funding squeezes and higher repayment pressure. researcher for the Lupus Institute says. animals. point,” Fass says. “This easy opportunity causes them Chinese companies have been piling on debt for at Reinhardt predicts the wolf The overall fi gures are a matter of “My prediction is that, while we will to kill more animals than they can population will continue to grow for dispute. have wolf hunting in 20 years, there will consume,” a contact group tracking least a decade, ever since the leadership team under Xi’s as long as the wolves can fi nd suitable The hunters association puts the total still be attacks on unprotected domestic wolves in Saxony says. predecessor responded to the global fi nancial crisis by territory. number at 1,300 and predicts this fi gure animals, in particular sheep and game This is where the fault line between going on a borrowing binge. That kept China’s economy The numbers tend to stabilise will rise to 1,800 by the spring. kept in reserves,” Fass says. rewilders and farmers lies. once the animals have established The NABU conservation organisation During the course of 2018, the DBBW Wolf attacks on humans are after all chugging, but at a cost. The corporate debt to GDP ratio themselves, and the territory becomes believes the hunters association fi gure is noted 639 wolf attacks on farm animals, vanishingly rare, despite the fairy tales. surged to a record 160% at the end of 2017, from 101% 10 “saturated,” as the researchers put it. overstated. “It merely generates panic,” resulting in death or injury in 2,067 But for the present, as the front lines years earlier. In 2000, Saxony became the fi rst of NABU wolf expert Marie Neuwald says, cases. harden, Lotta and Juli are free to roam, Germany’s 16 states where cubs were charging that the hunters have included The fi gure was well up from 472 their movements tracked by transmitter A particular worry has been China’s $10tn shadow sighted, following a 96-year absence all yearlings and cubs, fi gures that have attacks and 1,667 victims in 2017, and satellite until the collars break open banking system. Local government fi nancing vehicles, set that started when the then last wolf in little relevance to the bigger picture. which, in turn, was considerably higher after two years and they return to an up to fund infrastructure projects, have already defaulted the region was shot. “The mortality rate for cubs in the than the year before. anonymous existence. – DPA on many trust loans (which were part of that system), but had yet to suff er a bond default as 2020 began. The broader economy, however, is loaded up on debt. Slower growth challenges China’s ability to stem the buildup of its government, corporate and household debt, which according to Bloomberg Economics is on track to add up to more than 300% of GDP by 2022. China is a key driver of global growth, but expansion in the world’s second largest economy has been sputtering. China’s $14tn economy, second in size only to the US, accounts for almost a third of global growth each year. That makes it a vital driver of job creation and improved living standards everywhere. The bigger China’s debt pile becomes, the harder the impact on global growth should it all go sour.

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© 2020 Gulf Times. All rights reserved A wolf is seen in the wildlife Park Schorfheide near Gross Schoenebeck, Germany, in this March 12, 2019, file photo. Gulf Times Wednesday, January 8, 2020 15 COMMENT Making stakeholder capitalism a reality

By Laura Tyson and Lenny Mendonca will drive corporate commitments. state’s power grid and other critical Berkeley Customers are the engine of top-line infrastructure. revenue growth, and have always California is also leading the way been recognised as essential business with new legislation to support gig or a half-century, American stakeholders. As more consumers workers (a measure that is ambitious corporations (and many others have begun to seek out “green” goods enough to have provoked a challenge in around the world) have em- and services, for example, companies federal court). And, along with 23 other Fbraced shareholder primacy, have started investing in new states, California has pushed through a which holds that the only responsibil- growth opportunities geared toward major increase in the minimum wage. ity of business is to maximise profi ts. sustainability. Now, much more work needs to be But this principle is now being chal- Skilled employees are also essential done to address rising homelessness lenged by corporate leaders them- corporate stakeholders, and with and soaring housing costs, which selves, with the United States Business labour markets so tight, they are are driven largely by the lack of new Roundtable announcing last year that demanding fair compensation and housing construction. Early steps by it will adopt a stakeholder approach benefi ts as well as upskilling and major corporations to address this that focuses not just on sharehold- reskilling opportunities. They are also problem are encouraging, but not yet ers but also on customers, employees, demanding transparency in pay and scaled to the challenge. suppliers, and communities, all of promotion practices, inclusive and Again, government policy will be which are deemed essential for busi- diverse workplaces, and respect for essential. As the investor Warren ness performance. human rights and the environment Buff ett recently pointed out, “The When US business leaders join throughout company supply chains. A government has to play the part of their global counterparts this month growing number of younger workers modifying a market system.” History at the 50th-anniversary meeting of are seeking employers with both suggests that he is right. Earlier the World Economic Forum, they “purpose” and profi ts. periods of populist insurgency have will discuss how to give concrete Meanwhile, investment motivated led to signifi cant policy reforms meaning to stakeholder capitalism, a by environmental, social, and that restored stability and trust in concept fi rst articulated by the WEF’s governance concerns has risen to capitalism both in the US and Europe. founder, Klaus Schwab, in the 1970s. $30tn in recent years, and now As we head into 2020, it is clear that In anticipation of this year’s gathering, accounts for one-third of funds under it will take the death of “shareholder- Schwab has proposed a new “Davos professional management. Pension Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (file). The outsized rally in the US stock market in 2019 may give only capitalism” to renew capitalism Manifesto” that identifi es potential funds, asset managers’ biggest clients, way to a more muted performance in 2020 if history is any guide. for today’s political economy, which tradeoff s between the interests of are increasingly using ESG rankings as currently resembles a dangerous various stakeholders, and looks for a guide to portfolio decisions. There change, have undermined public and communities where they do partisan and ideological divisions mix of 1920s capitalism and 1930s ways to reduce or eliminate them is mounting evidence that strong ESG confi dence in globalisation and market business. are paralysing policymaking. But politics. Let’s hope we’ve learned through the common goal of long-term performance correlates with higher capitalism. Hence, even if the only reason change is coming at the state level, the right lessons from the past. Now value creation. equity returns from both a tilt and These conditions are highly is self-preservation, the business not least in California. A new report is the time to pursue a sustainable Critics have pounced on both momentum perspective. reminiscent of the period leading up community’s multi-stakeholder from the UCLA Anderson School of democratic capitalism that works for the Business Roundtable and WEF But perhaps the strongest motives to the Progressive Era of reform at the rhetoric is likely to be accompanied by Management shows that even with US all stakeholders. – Project Syndicate statements, dismissing them as behind the growing corporate support turn of the twentieth century, when real changes in corporate behaviour. economic growth set to slow in 2020, “empty rhetoric” or like something for stakeholder capitalism are the policymakers broke up monopolies, But self-imposed changes will not be California will continue to outpace the zLaura Tyson, a former chair of the out of The Wizard of Oz. Others have erosion of trust in business and the introduced new protections for enough. Government action will be country as a whole. US President’s Council of Economic decried the travesty of elites talking accompanying rise of populism. natural resources, and strengthened necessary to ensure that democratic At the same time, California is Advisers, is a professor at the Haas among themselves rather than with Citizens are lashing out at what they participatory democracy. market capitalism remains politically exceeding its aggressive climate- School of Business at the University of those they have harmed. Yet while perceive to be a “rigged” economic Today, business leaders are and environmentally sustainable over change goals, and introducing new California, Berkeley, a senior adviser some scepticism is justifi ed, there are system. Income and wealth inequality understandably concerned that the long run. Of particular importance measures to leverage the state’s at the Rock Creek Group, and a senior already promising signs that a change have surged in recent decades as citizens will press for a new era of are policies to encourage competition, pension fund in the interest of external adviser to the McKinsey Global in corporate behaviour is coming. Both middle-class incomes have stagnated, progressive policies that will curtail combat climate change, contain climate mitigation. Building climate Institute. the WEF and the Business Roundtable and as labour markets have become their freedom to operate. To head off inequality, and bolster democratic resilience is now an urgent priority. zLenny Mendonca is Chief Economic have begun to develop blueprints for more polarised. The 2008 fi nancial or infl uence such eff orts, companies institutions. Recent wildfires and electricity and Business Adviser and Director of implementing stakeholder capitalism. crisis and its aftermath, along with the are seeking ways to demonstrate their Policy action may appear impossible shutdowns point to the need for the California Offi ce of Business and Ultimately, long-term self-interest growing costs and urgency of climate commitment to the countries, regions, at the federal level in the US, where significant investments in the Economic Development.

Maybe Pelosi’s impeachment delay is working Three-day forecast

TODAY started this week had Pelosi acted willingness to testify. To the contrary, then the delay is sensible; if they’re Maximum Temperature : 230c By Jonathan Bernstein Minimum Temperature : 160c Bloomberg News promptly after the impeachment vote, instead of insisting on a subpoena more likely to see the whole thing might achieve that in two ways. from the Senate that may never arrive, as a partisan gimmick and therefore THURSDAY One has little to do with the Bolton could off er to brief the House support McConnell’s idea of a trial, Maximum Temperature : 240c ne striking thing about Senate trial itself: It’s simply that the impeachment managers once they then holding on to the articles is a Minimum Temperature : 180c mistake. House Speaker Nancy investigation is continuing, and that are named – or he could simply give FRIDAY Pelosi’s decision to time will allow more information an interview somewhere. An off er to My guess is that the standoff won’t Maximum Temperature : 220c Odelay sending articles to surface in various ways. That’s comply with a lawful subpoena may go on much longer – that the risk of Minimum Temperature : 170c of impeachment against President already happened a bit, with look good and may in fact increase a backlash from marginal senators Donald Trump to the Senate is that she reporting on how Trump operatives pressure on Senate Republicans, but is too high to make benefi ts from Fisherman's forecast doesn’t actually have any real leverage. engineered a freeze on military it’s still far short of what he should be delay worthwhile. But that’s just an WARNING Senate Republicans are free aid to Ukraine last summer as a doing). outsider’s guess, and I’d temper it with Inshore : Nil

to ignore the articles passed manoeuvre to pressure that country’s Another possibility is that Pelosi’s quite a bit of history demonstrating Offshore : Nil by Democrats in the House of government to investigate the son ploy might work exactly the way that Pelosi knows how to count votes Representatives on December 18. of former vice president and Trump Sheriff Bart’s did: By confusing the and act based on solid information. WEATHER Inshore : Misty at places at first Indeed, Senate Majority Leader Mitch rival Joe Biden, and on Pentagon White House into self-destructive Then again, in this case most of the becomes moderate McConnell has said that’s exactly what concerns that the freeze was illegal. behaviour. Trump could certainly votes are in the other chamber and the temperature daytime he’s doing. Pelosi’s move calls to mind On Monday, former National just call Pelosi’s bluff and ignore other party, so it’s not quite the same with some clouds, cold the threat by Sheriff Bart in “Blazing Security Adviser John Bolton said for impeachment, but he also could, and as moving a piece of legislation to the by night Saddles” to kill himself when he’s the first time that he would testify in so far has, blustered about it in ways House fl oor. Overall? I’m not quite Offshore : Partly cloudy at times about to be lynched. a Senate trial if subpoenaed. that are not likely to win new support willing to say that if Pelosi is doing And yet ... that’s not quite the end of Perhaps all of this would have for him. something it must be sensible. But on WIND Inshore : Southeasterly 04-14 KT the story. happened anyway, but then again it’s Against all that is the question of a tactic like this one for which success What Pelosi and House Democrats still possible that a continued delay what individual senators make of the depends on accurately understanding Offshore : Southeasterly 05-15/20 (plus independent Representative would drum up further revelations. delay. McConnell doesn’t get to decide insider information, I think there’s a KT Justin Amash, the Michigan libertarian And yes, perhaps this is also a sign trial procedures in the Senate; any pretty good chance that she’ll get it Visibility : 4-8/3 KM who left the Republican Party last that the House did in fact rush the majority of 51 senators can request right. – Tribune News Service July) want is to use the Senate trial impeachment process, as Republicans or deny witnesses, documents and Offshore : 2-4/6 FT to force new information about like to charge. anything else. If marginal Democrats z Jonathan Bernstein is a Bloomberg Trump’s actions to be revealed. They (As for Bolton: If he really wanted such as West Virginia’s Joe Manchin Opinion columnist covering politics Around the region are convinced that such information to do the responsible thing and and marginal Republicans such as and policy. He taught political science Weather Weather would be incriminating and would tell everyone what he knows about Maine’s Susan Collins and Alaska’s at the University of Texas at San today Max/min tomorrow Max/min harm Trump and his supporters. Trump’s guilt or innocence, he Lisa Murkowski are more likely to Antonio and DePauw University and Baghdad S Showers 19/06 P Cloudy 17/07 Delaying the trial, which might have wouldn’t put any conditions on his vote for the kind of trial Pelosi wants, wrote A Plain Blog About Politics. Kuwait City M Sunny 21/10 Sunny 20/08 Manama Sunny 22/18 P Cloudy 22/18 Muscat M Sunny 25/18 Sunny 27/19 Tehran Sunny 09/03 Rain&Snow 07/0 Live issues Debut marathoners may add years to life

By Kate Kelland conditions which are also linked to London dementia and kidney disease. The fi rst-time marathon runners in the study saw, on average, a decrease Around the world irst-time marathon runners in arterial stiff ness equivalent to a Weather Weather can add years to their lives four-year reduction in their ‘arterial today Max/min tomorrow Max/min and reap the health rewards age’, and a drop in systolic (when heart Athens M Sunny 09/04 Sunny 11/03 Fof lower blood pressure and muscles contract) and diastolic (when Beirut Rain 14/12 Rain 14/11 healthier arteries, even if they take the muscles relax) blood pressure of 4 Bangkok P Cloudy 35/25 P Cloudy 35/26 on the challenge in mid- to later life, and 3mmHg respectively. Berlin S Showers 09/06 Showers 10/07 research showed on Monday. The fi ndings show “it is possible to Cairo M Sunny 17/08 P Cloudy 16/09 “It appears to never be too late,” said reverse the consequences of ageing Cape Town P Cloudy 23/16 P Cloudy 22/16 co-lead researcher Charlotte Manisty on our blood vessels with real-world Colombo P Cloudy 31/24 P Cloudy 30/24 of University College London. exercise in just six months”, Manisty Dhaka P Cloudy 23/16 P Cloudy 23/15 The Marathon Study showed the said. Hong Kong Sunny 21/17 P Cloudy 19/17 biggest health gains were in slower, “These were not people who were Istanbul S Showers 06/04 M Cloudy 07/03 older men who also had relatively high doing extreme levels of exercise or Jakarta T Storm 30/24 T Storm 28/24 blood pressure when training began, losing extreme amounts of weight. Karachi Sunny 24/08 Sunny 23/09 though the researchers said it was not They were doing moderate training London S Showers 12/09 Showers 13/04 clear why they benefi ted most. and reaching realistic running goals,” Manila P Cloudy 32/24 P Cloudy 32/24 In the study, published in the she added in a telephone interview. Moscow Cloudy 01/-2 S Showers 02/-1 Journal of the American College of Metin Avkiran, a director at the New Delhi Showers 16/09 Sunny 14/06 Cardiology, Manisty’s team looked at British Heart Foundation charity New York P Cloudy 06/-4 M Sunny 02/0 138 fi rst-time marathon runners from which co-funded the research, Paris Cloudy 13/11 Showers 13/06 the 2016 and 2017 London Marathon. of the study was 5.4 hours for women taking on a marathon had aff ected said in a statement that the results Sao Paulo T Storms 28/21 S T Storms 28/22 On average, the new runners were and 4.5 hours for men. their levels of arterial stiff ening. showed the “undeniable” benefits of Seoul Rain&Snow 05/-5 Sunny 02/-7 37 years old and 49% were male, and The scientists examined the Hardening of the arteries is a normal exercise. Singapore T Storms 30/25 T Storms 29/25 were not running for more than two participants before training and after part of ageing. It increases the risk “As the old mantra goes, if exercise Sydney S T Storms 24/20 S Showers 24/19 hours per week before the study began. they had completed the 26.2-mile of cardiovascular diseases such as were a pill it would be hailed as a Tokyo Rain 16/04 Clear 14/06 The average marathon time at the end (42km) event to see if successfully stroke and heart attack and related wonder drug,” he said. Gulf Times 16 Wednesday, January 8, 2020 QATAR Qatar-France 2020 Year of Culture set to begin on Friday

By Joseph Varghese HE the Minister of Culture and Sports Salah bin Ghanem bin Nasser al-Ali speaking at the launch press Staff Reporter conference yesterday. now announce for Qatar-France the programmes that will be held tive breakthroughs. Mathaf will xhibition of artworks by 2020. “We look forward to show- throughout the year in Qatar as open an exhibition by Yto Bar- legends including Pablo ing the best of Qatar in France, well as in France in connection rada. EPicasso, classic French the best of France in Qatar, and with the programme. The temporary exhibition movies, music performances, inviting the people of both na- In February 2020, the Palais gallery of the NMoQ will host and French food festivals are tions to share their thoughts and de Tokyo will host a major con- an exhibition curated by the re- some of the highlights of Qatar- experiences and deepen their temporary art exhibition, titled nowned French art historian France 2020 Year of Culture that mutual connections,” added the ‘Our World is Burning’. The ex- Catherine Grenier on the sub- will kick off on January 10. minister. hibition, co-curated and co- ject of Paris as a whirlwind of The details of the programme, Ambassador Gellet explained produced by the contemporary innovation in modern art, and organised by Qatar Museums that the Qatar-France 2020 Year art centre and Mathaf: Arab Mu- Qatar Museums’ Gallery Al Ri- (QM), were announced yes- of Culture will continue the ad- seum of Modern Art, will feature waq will showcase works by the terday at a press conference at vances in mutual understand- works by artists from Qatar and acclaimed contemporary French the National Museum of Qa- ing, friendship and support that the Gulf region. artist Philippe Parreno. tar (NMoQ) in the presence of both the nations are so proud Other events to be hosted in Qatar-France 2020 Year of HE the Minister of Culture and to have achieved. “In the past France include screenings of Culture, sponsored by Qatar Sports Salah bin Ghanem bin year alone, we exchanged visits works from the Doha Film Insti- Airways, is planned in collabo- Nasser al-Ali, French ambassa- of high-level delegations and tute at the Cannes International ration with the Qatar embassy dor Franck Gellet, and QM Year signed seven important agree- Film Festival and the Short Film in France, the French embassy of Culture head Aisha al-Attiya. ments in defence, security, Festival in Clermont-Ferrand, in Qatar, Qatar’s Ministry of Marc Piollet, one of the most higher education and culture. and the presentation of Qatar Culture and Sport, Qatar Foun- exciting and versatile con- The dynamic bilateral trade be- Culture Week in October 2020 dation, Qatar National Tourism ductors of his generation, will tween our nations is fl ourishing, at the Institut du Monde Arabe Council, Doha Film Institute, lead the Qatar Philharmonic having increased only recently in Paris. Qatar National Library, and Orchestra in a programme of Qatar Museums’ Year of Culture head Aisha al-Attiya and French ambassador Franck Gellet on the by a remarkable 33% for the year. In March 2020, the Fire Sta- Katara. Started in 2012, this is French classics at the opening occasion. PICTURES: Jayan Orma “By encompassing visual arts, tion Garage Gallery will present the 9th edition of the Year of ceremony at the Katara Opera music, cinema, sport, literature, the outstanding exhibition Pi- Culture programme that col- House on Friday at 7.30pm. “For also strengthening the impor- our resident community. Some of educational and cultural ac- and scholarly and scientifi c ex- casso’s Studios. Dozens of works laborates with a diff erent nation this new Year of Culture, we are tant diplomatic, economic, so- 200,000 people in Qatar speak tivities in Doha. changes, Qatar-France 2020 will by Pablo Picasso, on exceptional each year, promoting mutual building on some of the most cial, and cultural ties that are so French. “We are grateful to our part- broaden these existing relation- loan from the Musee National understanding across borders substantial relationships we benefi cial to both our nations. “Bilateral trade between our ners in both countries for their ships among our people while Picasso in Paris, will bring the while providing opportunities have with cultural institutions More than 5,500 French nation- nations is thriving, and the In- enthusiastic co-operation in elevating them to an even higher public imaginatively into the for the people of each nation to anywhere in the world,” HE al- als currently live and work in stitut Français du Qatar has now putting together the truly ex- level,” he added. spaces where this great 20th- encounter and appreciate one Ali told the gathering. “We are Qatar, as respected members of celebrated its 30th anniversary ceptional programme that we Al-Attiya gave an outline of century artist achieved his crea- another’s creativity. Shop Qatar 2020 gets off to a spectacular start

From Page 1

The opening ceremony of the three-week festival witnessed a fash- ion show by Qatar’s own Hind al-Rumaihi, followed by the avant garde stylings of French fashion collective Faith Connexion, in a nod to the Qatar-France 2020 Year of Culture. A traditional Chinese lion show, symbolising good fortune, completed the cross-cultural expe- rience at the event. The fi rst week of Shop Qatar boasts diverse off erings and products across retail, entertainment and culture, including in-mall musi- cal entertainment, and children’s shows Masha & the Bear as well as Shaun the Sheep, while children of all ages can enjoy Disney in Con- cert with the Qatar Philharmonic Orchestra. Aspiring makeup artists can learn from the best – at Hanan Alnajadeh’s ticketed masterclass or through her free makeup class with Dior whilst Dalal al-Refai will off er a free makeup workshop. Running until January 31, the festival provides shopping discounts of up to 70% with cash and car prizes worth up to QR2mn across 12 malls and retail partners as well as a platform for local and regional designers, with fashion shows throughout the festival as well as makeup masterclasses with celebrity artists and infl uencers. Malls will host a plethora of activities, and entertainment shows for children and adults alike. A host of live music concerts featuring renowned Pa- kistani and Indian artistes will take audiences to Asia, with a week of Chinese New Year celebrations ending the festival. A traditional Qatari performance at the venue.

A model waking the ramp.

Another model at the fashion show. Chinese lion show. PICTURES: Shemeer Rasheed Models from the French fashion collective Faith Connexion.