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TUESDAY Vol. XXXVIII No. 10455 May 16, 2017 Sha’baan 20, 1438 AH

GULF TIMES www. gulf-times.com 2 Riyals Emir, Armenian president hold talks Doha Forum In brief urges world

QATAR | Offi cial Emir in phone talks to help end with Tillerson HH the Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani held yesterday evening a telephone conversation with US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson. During the call, HH the confl icts Emir and the US Secretary of State discussed relations between the QNA for the international community to two friendly countries and means Doha shoulder its legal and moral respon- of enhancing them, and exchanged sibility and to work seriously towards views on a number of regional and stopping wars and confl icts that cause international issues. he two-day Doha Forum which the crisis by all political and peaceful was held under the theme means, fi nding just and lasting solu- QATAR | Visit T“Development, Stability and tions to the issues of peoples, helping Refugee Crisis” concluded yesterday refugees wherever they are, alleviating Burkina Faso president evening. their suff ering and providing hous- arrives in Doha today The forum saw a broad international ing, food, education and healthcare to President Roch Marc Christian participation of decision-makers, in- them, in addition to working on refugee Kabore of Burkina Faso will arrive HH the Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani and Armenian President held an off icial round of talks at the Emiri Diwan tellectuals and representatives of in- resettlement in their countries and real in Doha today for an off icial visit yesterday. During the talks, they reviewed relations between the two countries and ways to enhance and promote in all fields, ternational and regional organisations participation in the reconstruction and to the State of Qatar. HH the Emir as well as the most important developments on the regional and international arenas. Page 2 and institutions. stability of each country that its people Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani In a speech at the closing session, was forced to asylum and its homeland will hold talks with President Kabore HE the Minister of State for Foreign was destroyed because of wars and tomorrow at the Emiri Diwan on the Aff airs Sultan bin Saad al-Muraikhi confl icts. bilateral relations between the two said that the international and regional He pointed out that the success of countries and means of boosting participation and the speeches deliv- development depends on the stability and developing them. ered by the heads of state and govern- of societies. Businesses in Qatar ‘not ment, politicians, opinion leaders and Stability is the cornerstone and the QATAR | Circular intellectuals as well as businessmen, framework that protect the develop- parliamentarians and representatives ment process, he said, pointing out at Working hours of govt of regional and international organi- the same time that terrorism and ex- bodies in Ramadan impacted by hack attack’ sations and international community tremism can not be eliminated without HE the Deputy Prime Minister have provided an ideal opportunity for achieving sustainable development. and Minister of State for Cabinet atar businesses have not been A particularly dangerous element to be careful of unexpected e-mails, constructive dialogue as well as ex- HE the Minister of State for Foreign Aff airs Ahmed bin Abdullah bin impacted by the spread of the about this new malware virus is that it especially if they contain links or at- change of ideas and ideas to achieve the Aff airs affi rmed that all the forum’s rec- Zaid al-Mahmoud has issued a Qransomware virus so far in spreads via a network worm, enabling tachments, since e-mails are one of desired goals. ommendations and ideas will help in circular on working hours during view of the global cyberattack, Oore- it to move from one infected computer the main infection methods for ran- The selection of the theme of the fi nding ways and means to address the the holy month of Ramadan for the doo said and noted the company’s to all others on the same network that somware and malware. 17th Doha Forum “Development, Sta- issues of the humanitarian community, ministries, government bodies and experts are working with the Qatari has not received the security patch. Ooredoo also provides an MSS bility and Refugee Crisis” has many adding that everyone has the responsi- public institutions. According to the authorities and international infor- Ooredoo Qatar chief operating of- Patch Management service that au- important implications as these issues bility to make use of these visions and circular, the off icial working hours mation security leaders to ensure that fi cer Yousuf Abdulla al-Kubaisi said: tomatically updates computers with are among the most important chal- solutions to achieve world development during the holy month for civil organisations’ data remains safe. “Global attacks such as this weekend’s the latest Microsoft patches; a Cloud lenges facing the world today, he said. and stability and to contribute to build- employees will be five hours a day, The ongoing global cyberattack, ransomware outbreak reinforce the im- E-mail solution that automatically He stressed that holding the Doha ing world peace, reducing refugee fl ows from 9am to 2pm. which has so far impacted more than portance of a robust IT security strat- monitors e-mail; Cloud Web/ZScaler Forum on a regular basis since its fi rst and alleviating their suff ering. 200,000 victims in some 150 coun- egy, and demonstrate that companies solution to protect web browsing and a session in 2000 until now refl ects the The Prime Minister of Finland Juha EAST ASIA | Missile launch tries, emphasises the importance of need to consider every aspect within full suite of security monitoring serv- vision of the wise leadership of the Sipila addressed the closing session robust security processes and ad- that strategy, including employee be- ices in Ooredoo’s Managed Security State of Qatar and contributes to the stressing the need for the world to re- UN chief condemns vanced threat protection, according to haviour and the use of devices on their Services (MSS) portfolio. consolidation of the concepts of mean- spond to the refugees crisis and its North Korean action experts at Ooredoo. network, if they are to stay safe.” By subscribing to MSS, compa- ingful dialogue, constructive thinking consequent humanitarian needs. UN Secretary-General Antonio The “WannaCry” ransomware virus “Ooredoo has developed the net- nies can access the latest and most and constant striving to fi nd solutions He pointed out that Europe did not Guterres yesterday condemned that struck on Friday was designed to work, the portfolio of services and the advanced security solutions without to the problems and challenges fac- deal with this issue in an interactive North Korea over its latest take over fi les on infected computers. experience necessary to deliver real needing to invest in expensive hard- ing the countries of the region and the manner and that it should change the ballistic missile launch and Once installed, it demands payment information security, even during in- ware or bring in the highly qualifi ed world at large. way they of handling it. called on Pyongyang to return to from users in return for releasing the ternational incidents such as this. We staff necessary to monitor and manage He pointed out that the forum’s dis- He also called for thoroughly study- denuclearisation. “This action is locked fi les – without any guarantee are working with all our partners and the security solutions. cussions that took place over two days ing the causes of migration and asylum in violation of Security Council that the recovery password will ever customers to ensure that they receive Ooredoo’s customers who are con- proved that the problems of the world and for looking into their causes before resolutions and a threat to peace be sent. High profi le organisations the full benefi t of our legacy as a lead- cerned about the impact of this new today do not know any borders, and thinking about managing the crisis and and security in the region,” Guterres around the world have been impacted, ing IT security partner,” he added. malware can arrange a meeting with that the challenges have become global dealing with its fi gures. said in a statement issued by his including hospitals and healthcare or- As part of its security outreach ac- their account manager or call the and they do not pose a threat to those For his part Vice President of Brook- spokesman. Page 15 ganisations in the United Kingdom. tivity, Ooredoo is advising customers business team on 800 8000. who face them only or to countries they ings Center in the US Martin Indyk ex- suff er from, but the whole world is suf- tended thanks to Qatar for successfully EUROPE | Politics fering and has suff ered from them. organising forum for the past 17 years. Oil rises aft er Saudi, Russia back longer supply cut At the forefront of these problems In his speech at the closing session, Macron wins backing and the serious challenges facing the Indyk expressed dissatisfaction with from key ally Merkel Oil jumped more than 2% to its highest in extension specifi ed in the deal. Oil traders were surprised by the strong world today was the lack of develop- the manner in which the United States France’s new President Emmanuel more than three weeks yesterday, topping The ministers said they hoped other wording of the announcement, though it ment and instability in many regions of deals with the refugee crisis in the Macron secured backing yesterday $52 a barrel aft er Saudi Arabia and Russia producers would join the cut, which remained to be seen whether all countries the world and the refugee issue, he said. world, calling upon all parties in this from key ally Chancellor Angela said that supply cuts need to last into 2018, would initially be on the same volume participating in the deal would agree with Al-Muraikhi said that the partici- regard to fulfi l their humanitarian ob- Merkel for his bid to shake up a step towards extending an Opec-led terms as before. the Saudi-Russian stance when they meet pants’ deliberations proved beyond ligations towards the refugees. Europe, despite scepticism in deal to support prices for longer than fi rst Kazakhstan, however, said it could not join to decide policy on May 25 in Vienna. a shadow of a doubt that the asylum The fi rst edition of the Doha Forum Berlin over his proposed reforms. agreed. a prolonged reduction on the same terms. The Organisation of the Petroleum situation today is not as it was yester- was held in 2001 in preparation for the Travelling to the German capital to Energy ministers from the world’s two top Global benchmark Brent crude was up Exporting Countries, Russia and other day, and it is clear that the whole world WTO Ministerial Meeting in Doha in meet the veteran leader in his first producers said that supply cuts should be $1.24 at $52.08 a barrel by 1:40pm EDT producers originally agreed to cut output is facing a major humanitarian disaster November of the same year. off icial trip abroad, Macron used the prolonged for nine months, until March (1740 GMT), having touched $52.63, the by 1.8mn barrels per day in the fi rst half of that requires fi nding all means to ad- Then it was held under the title Qa- opportunity to call for a “historic 2018. highest since April 21. US crude rose $1.26 2017, with a possible six-month extension, dress it. tar-US Conference on Democracy and reconstruction” of Europe. Page 19 That is longer than the optional six-month to $49.10. in a bid to shore up prices. HE the Minister stressed the need Free Trade. Page 3 ‘Green’ desalination plant to cut Qatar’s carbon footprint

By Peter Alagos Aff airs Oscar Stenstrom told a press Aside from cutting carbon footprint, Logdahl, Sparkle Consulting managing ment, and Transport and Communica- Business Reporter conference in Doha yesterday. Stenstrom said the project will also ad- director Håkan Rosengren, and ABB tions, including institutions like Qatar Stenstrom pointed out that the fa- dress water scarcity in Qatar, “the pos- president Mena Mostafa al-Guezeri. Investment Authority, as well as other cility has the capacity of producing sibility of ‘green’ growth,” sustainable “The technical workshop will be held major players in the private sector. He solar and wind-powered desali- 400,000 cu m of water per day. It will farming, and food security, as well as in Qatar in the coming months after also participated in the Doha Forum nation facility in the northern also produce electricity, utilising 50% “the ability to produce water close to Ramadan. The plan is to continue with 2017. Apart of Qatar, a project proposed of the energy for the production of wa- consumers.” the research conducted in Sweden and “Sweden has chosen Qatar as one of by the Swedish government, could help ter. Stenstrom explained that the project to merge it with the experience from its priority markets for export and en- reduce the country’s carbon emissions The Swedish minister discussed de- “is still under discussion” but both the research conducted in Qatar on gagements. by 550,000 tonnes per year (tpy), a tails of the project with HE the Minister governments “have reached a common severe climate issues like extreme heat Out of 26 countries, Qatar, Saudi high-ranking offi cial has said. of Energy and Industry Dr Mohamed understanding to look into the details” and dust to develop the project further Arabia, and the UAE in the Gulf region With an estimated cost of less $2bn, bin Saleh al-Sada during a meeting by conducting a technical workshop.” through research co-operation,” Swed- are among the countries that play a sig- the facility will utilise 200 megawatts yesterday, which was also attended by He said the workshop will be led by ish ambassador Ewa Polano told Gulf nifi cant role in Sweden’s export strat- of wind and 200MW of solar energy Kahramaa president Issa bin Hilal al- the Swedish embassy in Doha, together Times. egy because we believe that we need to to desalinate seawater and to produce Kuwari and Qatar Electricity and Water with partners Monsson Energy AB di- Stenstrom’s visit to Qatar included pivot more to Asia and the Middle East water at a cost of around $1 per cu m, Company general manager Fahd al- rector Joanna Lilliequist, Sweco AB In- meetings with the ministries of Pub- as these are the areas where growth will Swedish vice minister of Trade and EU Swedish vice minister of Trade and EU Mohannadi. ternational Director of Energy Per-Olof lic Health, Municipality and Environ- happen,” Stenstrom stressed. Aff airs Oscar Stenstrom. Gulf Times 2 Tuesday, May 16, 2017 QATAR

OFFICIAL

Emir sends Independence Day greetings

HH the Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, HH the Deputy Emir Sheikh Abdullah bin Hamad al-Thani and HE the Prime Minister and Minister of Interior Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa al-Thani have sent cables of congratulations to President Horacio Cartes of Paraguay on the anniversary of his country’s Independence Day. HH the Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani holding talks with the President of Armenia Serzh HH the Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani and President of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan at the off icial Sargsyan at the Emiri Diwan yesterday. reception ceremony. Economy Minister holds meetings

HE the Minister of Economy and Commerce Sheikh Ahmed bin Jassim bin Mohamed al-Thani yesterday met Suren Karayan, Minister of Economic Development and Investment of Emir holds offi cial talks Armenia and his accompanying delegation. During the meeting, the two ministers reviewed relations between Qatar and Armenia and discussed aspects of co-operation, especially in the economic, trade and investment with Armenian president fields, and means of developing them. QNA Qatar and Armenia are Doha associated with a number of trade agreements such as the agreement on Economic, H the Emir Sheikh Commercial and Technical Co- Tamim bin Hamad al- operation and the Convention on HThani and President of the Promotion and Protection of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan held Mutual Investments. a round of offi cial talks at the Meanwhile, HE Sheikh Ahmed Emiri Diwan yesterday. bin Jassim bin Mohamed al-Thani During the talks, they re- met Greece’s Alternate Minister viewed relations between Qatar of Foreign Aff airs for European and Armenia and ways of pro- Aff airs and Economic Relations moting in all fi elds, as well as Georgios Katrougalos, and his the important regional and in- accompanying delegation. ternational developments. During the meeting, they The talks were attended by reviewed the bilateral relations several ministers and the offi cial and discussed aspects of delegation accompanying the co-operation, especially in the Armenian president. economic, trade and investment Earlier on arrival at the Emiri fields, and means of developing Diwan, the Armenian president them. Qatar and Greece are accorded an offi cial reception associated with a number of ceremony. trade agreements such as the Later HH the Emir Sheikh agreement on economic, trade Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani and technical co-operation, hosted a luncheon banquet in where the volume of trade honour of the Armenian Presi- exchange between the two dent and his accompanying countries in 2016 amounted to delegation at the Emiri Diwan about QR230mn. yesterday. The banquet was attended by Speaker meets several ministers. HH the Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani and Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan inspect a guard of honour at the Emiri Diwan yesterday. Cypriot, Serbian off icials

HE the Speaker of the Advisory Council Mohamed bin Mubarak Qatar participates in al-Khulaifi yesterday held President Bashir inaugurates separate meetings with the President of the Cypriot House of Representatives Demetris Arab human rights Syllouris and the President of the National Assembly of Serbia new Sudanese school in Doha Maya Goykovich. During the two meetings, committee meeting bilateral parliamentary relations QNA the Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Ha- Sudanese community. tar’s ambassador to Sudan Rash- between Qatar and Cyprus and Doha mad al-Thani and HH the Father HE the Minister of Education id bin Abdulrahman al-Nuaimi, Serbia and means of supporting, QNA rights infrastructure at the leg- Emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa and Higher Education Dr Moham- and Sudan’s ambassador to Qa- strengthening and developing Cairo islative and institutional levels, al-Thani, as well as the govern- ed Abdul Wahed Ali al-Hammadi tar Fatah al-Rahman Ali. them were discussed. and its was emphasised in the udanese President Omar ment and people of Qatar. expressed his delight at inaugu- Later yesterday President Ba- The meetings were attended he13th session of the Arab comprehensive vision of devel- Hassan al-Bashir praised The Sudanese president then rating the new Sudanese school in shir left Doha. He was in Doha to by HE the Secretary-General of Human Rights Commit- opment “Qatar National Vision Sthe eff orts exerted by Qatar reviewed previous unsuccessful Doha and added that it was one of take part in the 17th Doha Forum the Advisory Council Fahad bin Ttee kicked off at the Arab 2030”. to achieve peace and security in attempts to establish peace in the schools that the State of Qatar which concluded yesterday. Mubarak al-Khayareen. League headquarters yesterday The promotion and protection Darfur. Darfur, until Qatar took a deci- was keen to support. The Sudanese president and to discuss the fi rst periodic re- of human rights also received Addressing a gathering after sive step to achieve the feat de- The Minister said that Qatar his accompanying delegation port of Qatar under Article 48 great attention in the National jointly inaugurating the Suda- spite many challenges. was delighted to co-operate with were seen off upon at Hamad Advisory Council of the Arab Charter on Human Development Strategy (2011- nese School in Doha yesterday, President Bashir said that the Sudan in the educational fi eld. International Airport by HE the holds meeting Rights. 2016), which included sectorial President Bashir underlined that Sudanese school in Doha is part The school was inaugurated Minister of Municipality and Acting Director of Human strategies and programmes to Qatar, through the Doha Docu- of the Sudanese government’s at the new Sudanese embassy Environment Mohamed bin Ab- Rights Department at the For- implement Qatar National Vi- ment for peace in Darfur, has eff orts to provide education to premises in the Diplomatic Area. dullah al-Rumaihi, Qatar’s am- The Advisory Council yesterday eign Ministry ambassador Faisal sion 2030, he added. succeeded in achieving peace Sudanese children living abroad. The inauguration ceremony bassador to Sudan Rashid bin held its regular weekly meeting bin Abdullah al-Henzab is chair- Qatar appreciates the contri- in the region and resisted all at- He added that Qatar’s support was attended by HE the Minister Abdulrahman al-Nuaimi and under the chairmanship of HE the ing Qatar’s delegation to the butions of expatriate workers tempts to thwart its eff orts. to the school should be an exam- of State for Foreign Aff airs Sul- Sudan’s ambassador to Qatar Speaker Mohamed bin Mubarak meeting. and regards them partners in its The president thanked HH ple to all countries that have a tan bin Saad al-Muraikhi, Qa- Fatah al-Rahman Ali. al-Khulaifi. Addressing the meeting, am- development, he noted, stress- The Council heard the report bassador al-Henzab said Qatar ing that protecting and promot- of the Legal and Legislative appreciates the important role ing the rights of expatriate work- Aff airs Committee on a draft of the Human Rights Committee ers is a fundamental pillar in the law on national service. The in assisting the states to improve policies of the state. Council decided to submit its and strengthen their commit- He noted that Qatar was recommendations to the Cabinet. ments and their implementa- ranked fi rst in the Arab world Meanwhile, the Legal and tion of the provisions of the Arab and 33rd in the Human Develop- Legislative Aff airs Committee Charter, affi rming in this regard ment Report of the United Na- of the Advisory Council held a Qatar’s full support for and co- tions Development Programme meeting yesterday under the operation with the Committee. (UNDP) for 2016 under the title chairmanship of its Rapporteur The adoption of the Arab “Human Development for All”, Nasser Rashid Serayea al-Kaabi. Charter on Human Rights and which refl ected the great devel- The Committee discussed a draft the establishment of the Arab opment in the fi elds of educa- law amending some provisions Human Rights Committee were tion, health and GDP. of the Labour Law promulgated the result of the reform eff orts He highlighted Qatar’s eff orts by Law No 14 of 2004, and undertaken by the Arab League, to address most of the concerns Law No 13 of 1990 on the which stressed the importance and recommendations made by issuance of civil and commercial of establishing a regional system the Committee in its considera- proceedings. for the promotion and protec- tion of the state’s fi rst report. The Committee decided to tion of human rights in the Arab The process of submission of approve the draft law and submit region, he added. the concluding reports and ob- its recommendations to the Al-Henzab affi rmed Qatar’s servations has led to a number of Advisory Council. attention to the promotion and actual benefi ts to ensuring hu- The Committee also studied the protection of human rights man rights in the country. a draft law amending some which represents a strategic op- He reiterated that Qatar will provisions of the Advocacy Law tion and the backbone of the spare no eff ort through its mem- issued by Law No 23 of 2006. state’s comprehensive reform bership in regional and interna- The Committee decided to policy. tional organisations to contrib- invite the president of Qatar This attention has been re- ute actively to support eff orts Lawyers Association and one of fl ected in the development and to promote and protect human Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir inaugurating the Sudanese School in Doha yesterday as HE the Minister of State for Foreign Aff airs its members to attend the next strengthening of the human rights. Sultan bin Saad al-Muraikhi looks on. meeting of the committee. Gulf Times Tuesday, May 16, 2017 3 QATAR

Emir meets HNA official Finland PM hails Qatar’s ‘remarkable development’

QNA further cement co-operation Doha between companies from both countries. He said that there are oppor- inland’s Prime Minister tunities to boost relations be- Juha Sipila has hailed the tween Qatar and Finland in other Fremarkable developments areas, such as clean technology, achieved by Qatar over the renewable energy, information past 20 years, while pointing to and communication technology, growing bilateral relations and and education. excellent channels of dialogue As for the relations between between his country and Qatar. Qatar and the European Union In an exclusive statement to in which Finland is a member, Qatar News Agency (QNA) on the Finnish prime minister said the sidelines of the 17th Doha that there is no problem hinder- Forum, Sipila said there are pos- ing the development of relations sibilities for further strengthen- between the two sides, stress- ing of relations between Qatar ing that the European Union re- and Finland, especially in the spects and appreciates Qatar’s area of trade, which is currently achievements and developments at a very low level. over the past 20 years. HH the Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani met at the Emiri The prime minister of Fin- Earlier HH the Emir Sheikh Diwan off ice yesterday morning with the Chairman of the Board land said direct fl ights between Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani re- of Directors of China’s HNA Group Wang Jian and the Chief Doha and Helsinki have greatly ceived Finland’s Prime Minister Executive Off icer (CEO) of the Group Adam Tan who called on helped in developing the rela- Juha Sipila and his accompany- HH the Emir to greet him on the occasion of their visit to Qatar. tions between the two countries ing delegation yesterday. They HH the Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani met Finland’s Prime Minister Juha Sipila and his During the meeting, they reviewed areas of co-operation. since they were launched in Oc- reviewed bilateral relations and accompanying delegation yesterday on the sidelines of the 17th Doha Forum. During the meeting, they tober 2016, hoping that they will means of boosting them. reviewed bilateral relations and means of boosting them in various fields. UN warns of impact Sheikha Moza meets Kosovo ex-president of refugee crisis on global stability

QNA for refugees around the world. other countries experiencing theme “Political and Economic Doha He thanked Qatar for its ef- confl icts and natural disasters. Impact on Refugee Crisis”, said forts in providing generous aid to He warned that the refugee cri- that the issue of refugees is deeply face humanitarian crises around sis had become a global crisis as rooted and would require many he United Nations Secre- the world, while praising the ini- a result of the challenges, armed years to erase its social and psy- tary-General’s Envoy for tiatives of Education Above All confl icts and protracted crises in chological consequences, stress- THumanitarian Aff airs Dr Foundation which helped hun- addition to climate change eff ects ing the need for urgent measures Ahmed bin Mohamed al-Mu- dreds of thousands of children and its consequences. so that this issue does not become raikhi warned that the continuity around the world. Dr al-Muraikhi pointed to the a serious disaster. HH Sheikha Moza bint Nasser yesterday met the former president of Kosovo Atifete Jahjaga in her of the refugees crisis will lead to a Dr al-Muraikhi said that the serious impact on the vulnerable The participants stressed the off ice. They discussed social issues in Kosovo, including women’s rights and equal access to state of instability at both regional volume of the Qatari assistance groups such as children, women necessity of dealing with this is- education. PICTURE: AR Al-Baker/HHOPL and international levels, calling to the Syrian people has exceed- and the elderly as a result of forced sue with a new outlook and pro- for concerted regional and inter- ed US$1.5bn since the beginning displacement and prolonged con- cedures, co-operation with do- national eff orts to face it. of the crisis. fl icts in a number of countries, es- nors, and developing long-term During a session titled “The Dr al-Muraikhi lauded the ef- pecially in the Arab region. strategies to deal with the issue Legal and Human Dimensions of forts of a number of countries that Al-Muraikhi also pointed out through the development and the Refugees Crisis” at the 17th have assumed their responsibili- that internally displaced per- creation of new methodologies Doha Forum, Dr al-Muraikhi ties towards the refugees through sons in Syria are subjected to to assist the refugees and devel- Doha Forum reviews ties said that refugee crisis is highly the provision of generous assist- starvation, siege, destruction op employment opportunities in complex and has some political, ance, including the GCC coun- and killing in a fl agrant violation countries of asylum. economic, social and cultural tries, a number of European Union of international humanitarian Another session entitled “The factors, particularly military countries and the United States, law, indicating the regime and Impact of Refugees on the Host- between Gulf and India confl icts and occupation. in addition to Turkey, which has armed groups’ disrespect of the ing Countries”, discussed the On the funding allocated for received nearly 3mn Syrian refu- rights of unarmed civilians dur- positive and negative eff ects of refugees, he said that the Unit- gees, as well as Jordan, Lebanon ing confl icts. refugees, as well as the security, QNA with the Asian continent. portance of this project. ed Nation High Commission and Germany. Al-Muraikhi stressed that the political, social and economic Doha He said that the lack of major She expected the economic for Refugees (UNHCR) has pro- He pointed out that the GCC refugee crisis requires innova- dimensions in this regard. powers in the Asian continent benefi ts of the project to reach vided assistance to all refugees countries host and provide gen- tive and urgent solutions. Discussion during the session, led to the absence of a kind of $900bn through six economic of over US$1bn since the be- erous humanitarian aid to many Meanwhile, delegates taking focused on the Syrian refugees in articipants in the 17th balance in the region, stressing corridors. ginning of 2017, adding that the Syrian, Iraqi and Yemeni refu- part in the third plenary session the neighboring countries and Doha Forum yesterday the need to co-ordinate the rela- The project covers more than there is still a $7bn funding gap gees in addition to refugees from of the 17th Doha Forum under the the Bangladeshi refugees to In- Pdiscussed several aspects tions of the Gulf Co-operation 60 countries, covering 40mn km dia, reviewing the burdens borne related to the Asian continent, Council countries with India, and reaching 4.5bn people. by these countries in order to particularly the Indian-Gulf especially on security and stra- She stressed the signifi cance host and protect refugees and relations and the changes that tegic issues. of the project, saying that it will provide them with the necessi- have taken place recently. contribute to the development ties of living in spite of their own Speaking during a session on The nature of the Indian- of infrastructure plans and up- need for assistance. the “Political Challenges in the Gulf relations have been grading the technical standards In this regard, participants Far East and the Indian Sub- dominated by the GCC of the participating countries. discussed eff ects of refugees continent”, Secretary of the Gulf export of energy and India’s Dr Kazmi urged the Asian on labour markets in the host and Arabian Peninsula Studies export of labour over the countries to take part in this countries, as well as their com- Forum in Qatar and researcher past 50 years project, noting its great benefi ts petition to citizens and migrants at the Arab Centre for Research to the participating countries. from other countries. and Policy Studies HE Sheikh He added that the GCC coun- Launched by China in 2013, Participants also called on Suhaim bin Mohamed al-Thani tries must adopt a new policy to the Belt and Road initiative aims Western countries to open their said that the nature of the In- invest in India and to be domi- to build a trade and infrastruc- borders for refugees and work dian-Gulf relations have been nated by diversifi cation and in- ture network linking Asia with to protect them and provide hu- dominated by the GCC export of vestment in small sectors. Europe and Africa along the an- manitarian assistance to them. energy and India’s export of la- For her part, Director Aca- cient Silk Road and beyond. A number of speakers at the bour over the past 50 years. demics Policy and Programmes So far, the initiative has re- session praised Qatar’s support However, he noted that the re- at the Strategic Vision Institute ceived support from more than to refugees. They asserted that lations between the two sides have (SVI) in Pakistan Dr Sadia Kazmi 100 countries and international Qatar is a small country, but it is recently witnessed many geopo- spoke about the Belt and Road organisations and more than 40 Delegates attending the plenary session on “Political and Economic Impact on Refugee Crisis” at the 17th great in its eff orts towards refu- litical and economic changes as initiative, or the New Silk Road, co-operation agreements have Doha Forum. gees issues. India has had diff erent relations and reviewed the economic im- been signed with China. ‘Economic factor crucial in commitment to climate change convention’

QNA had not signed the agreement He also highlighted the im- types of non-conventional fuels Doha but are moving towards the use portance of working to diversify in the transportation sector still of natural gas instead of coal for the energy basket of countries needs material and moral sup- economic reasons and not to re- so as not to rely solely on fossil port in order to be available and E the Minister of Energy duce carbon dioxide emissions”, fuels, but also on renewable en- possible. and Industry Dr Mo- HE Dr al-Sada said adding that ergy. Dr al-Sada stressed the impor- Hhamed bin Saleh al-Sada it is well known that the use of He praised the research car- tance of the oil trade, noting that it has underlined the economic natural gas ensures lower emis- ried out by Qatar and the GCC is a huge trade volume, estimated factor as most signifi cant for sions of carbon dioxide, and countries in harnessing the use at about $ 2tn last year, represent- commitment of countries to the in contrast there are countries of renewable energy in some ing 2.7% of the global GDP. Convention on Climate Change. that signed the Convention and fi elds instead of traditional en- Dr al-Sada pointed out that Speaking during his partici- headed towards certain types of ergy, saying: “There is increas- the huge contraction in the in- pation in the second plenary coal because of the low cost. ing interest from countries in the vestment in the oil and gas sec- session of the 17th Doha Forum, HE al-Sada stressed that natu- region, especially with regard to tor in the past years was mainly which discussed challenges of ral gas had proven its effi ciency solar energy, because they are due to the fact that oil prices had economic development and in- as a clean fuel that preserves the most suitable for use in these fallen so low that investors did vestment in the stage of global environment and is characterised countries.” not have suffi cient incentives to changes, HE Dr al-Sada noted by its availability and accessibil- There are currently about pump money in this sector. that there are three factors that ity, and its cost is not high and can 1.2bn cars. While this number He pointed out that by 2035 determine the commitment of generate the required energy with will rise to 2bn by 2035, about 90 up to 25% of oil production can countries to the Convention on half the emissions from coal. % of those cars will depend on be added, and this requires huge Climate Change along with the He expressed Qatar’s commit- fossil fuels,” Dr al-Sada said. investments or there will be an HE the Minister of Energy and Industry Dr Mohamed bin Saleh al-Sada attending the second plenary economic factor. ment to eff orts to confront cli- In this context, he said tech- imbalance between demand and session of the 17th Doha Forum which discussed challenges of economic development and investment in “We have seen countries that mate change. nology related to the use of other supply. the stage of global changes. Gulf Times 4 Tuesday, May 16, 2017 QATAR

Dy PM meets Kyrgyz counterpart Al-Rumaihi holds talks with Bosnian minister

HE the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of State for Cabinet Aff airs Ahmed bin Abdullah bin Zaid al-Mahmoud met yesterday with Kyrgyz’s Deputy Prime Minister Cholpon Sultan Bekova and the accompanying delegation on the sidelines of her participation in the 17th Doha Forum. During the meeting, they discussed bilateral relations HE the Minister of Municipality and Environment Mohamed bin Abdullah al-Rumaihi met yesterday with Bosnia and and ways of boosting them in diff erent fields, as well as a number of issues of mutual concern. The meeting was Herzegovina Minister of Tourism and Environment Protection Edita Dapo. During the meeting, they discussed means of attended by Kyrgyz ambassador to Qatar Nuran Niyazaliev and a number of off icials at the General Secretariat of enhancing the bilateral relations in the fields of environment and municipalities as well as ways of developing co-operation the Council of Ministers. between the two countries. 29% Qatarisation achieved: Minister he number of Qataris em- portant the curricula off ered by The meeting was attended ployed by country’s energy educational and technical insti- by Saad Sherida al-Kaabi, QP Tand industry sector has tri- tutions are aligned to the spe- president and CEO, as well as pled from 2,900 to 9,300 in 16 cifi c requirements of our sector. by senior offi cials and repre- years, said HE the Minister of En- I am pleased to see how respon- sentatives from 36 companies ergy and Industry, Dr Mohamed bin sive our educational partners are implementing the Strategic Qa- Saleh al-Sada, at the 17th Annual to our needs. tarisation Plan of the energy and Qatarisation Review Meeting. “Process operators, mainte- industry sector. Also present Al-Sada praised the eff orts of nance technicians, and voca- during the event were senior ex- all the organisations taking part tionally trained staff are vital ecutives from Qatar’s education in developing and implementing to our industry. It is crucial we community. HE al-Sada and al-Kaabi with top executives of oil companies during the 17th Annual Qatarisation Review Meeting in Doha. the Strategic Qatarisation Plan, place greater emphasis on mak- The meeting began with a which has grown from 18 to 36 ing those positions more attrac- welcome message by Hamad A tar National Vision 2030 and the al-Hammadi, job and organisa- were Qatar Petrochemical Com- sation Certifi cates were also companies. tive and equally rewarding for al-Hamadi, chairman, Strategic National Development Strategy. tion analyst at Kahramaa. pany (Support and liaison with presented to Dolphin Energy He said, “We have achieved a Qataris. We must fi nd innovative Qatarisation Committee. A high-level review of Qa- Also, al-Sada and al-Kaabi the education sector); Nakilat (for (Support and liaison with the Qatarisation of 29% of our goal ways to raise awareness of the The 17th Annual Qatarisa- tarisation within the sector was presented the sector’s 9th An- supporting Qatarisation); Qatar- education sector); Qatar Chemi- of a 50% Qatari workforce.” importance of these positions.” tion Review Meeting featured presented by three young Qataris nual Qatarisation Awards to rec- gas (Support for training and de- cal Company (Supporting Qa- In his keynote speech, Dr al- At the review meeting, a presentations highlighting the – Noor al-Sooj, reservoir engi- ognise companies that exhibited velopment; RasGas (Supporting tarisation); Qatar Steel (Support Sada highlighted the sector’s number of companies were hon- sector’s progress in implement- neer at Qatar Petroleum; Noora Qatarisation excellence in 2016. student sponsorships); and Wo- for training and development); need for high calibre employees. oured in recognition of their ac- ing their Qatari human capital al-Kaabi, production specialist The recipients of the prestig- qod (Best Qatarisation Progress). Kahrama (Supporting Student He said, “It is, therefore, im- complishments in Qatarisation. strategies in support of the Qa- at Qatar Shell GTL; and Saood ious Qatarisation Crystal Awards In addition, Annual Qatari- Sponsorships). Al Meera off ers 1,438 products at cost price

l Meera Consumer Meera’s participation in Ka- branches, in addition to Goods Company has tara’s ‘Meerat Ramadan’ fes- replicating the latest inno- Aoffi cially kicked off tival as a token of appreciation vations and modern shelv- its Ramadan campaign by and gratitude for the continu- ing setup, in line with the off ering 1,438 consumer ous support of our patrons.” company’s identity. goods at cost price in 35 Held at Katara – the Cul- Al Meera’s Ramadan branches across the coun- tural Village from May 11 to campaign comes in the try, in addition to Géant June 29, ‘Meerat Ramadan’ framework of the com- Hypermarket. Cobus Lombard, Al Meera festival hosts more than 30 pany’s inclusive CSR pro- In line with the cam- acting CEO, Sales and local food supply compa- gramme and providing paign, Al Meera is currently Operations director. nies off ering a wide variety consumers in Qatar with participating at the ‘Meerat of Ramadan culinary sta- high-quality products at Ramadan at Katara’ con- ence in the shopping expe- ples and grocery items at the best price to live up to Al sumer goods festival for the rience of consumers across low prices to help families Meera’s motto of being eve- duration of the holy month. the country. around the country in their ryone’s ‘Favourite Neigh- The 1,438 high-quality “As part of our unwaver- preparations for welcoming bourhood Retailer’. products have been selected ing commitment towards the holy month. Al Meera will also pro- to cater to specifi c needs of the welfare and prosperity Throughout the festival, vide adequate quantities of shoppers during Ramadan. of the community we serve, Al Meera is off ering Katara’s ‘Tamween’ items for Qatari The products are strate- every year, Al Meera makes visitors a rich variety of Ra- nationals at 34 of its shop- gically-placed on “special sure to run massive promo- madan specials, essential ping centres across the shelf talkers,” Al Meera said tions on hundreds of food food items, and a selec- country during the holy in a statement. and non-food items cater- tion of the 1,438 consumer month. Al Meera is cur- Cobus Lombard, Al ing to the needs of all fami- goods off ered at cost price. rently working with its lo- Meera acting CEO and di- lies celebrating every iftar The interior design of Al cal suppliers in providing rector (sales and opera- and suhour.” Meera’s shop at the festival attractive off ers on a vari- tions), said: “Since incep- He added: “This year, we is decorated to refl ect the ety of consumer products tion, Al Meera has spared no are pleased to extend our company’s internal col- and home appliances at its eff ort to make a real diff er- Ramadan campaign with Al ours at its newly-opened stores. New law, awareness campaign urged for urban development

By Joseph Varghese The inaugural session of Staff Reporter the event had a panel dis- cussion consisting of rep- resentative from leading ore regulations, stakeholders in the country awareness events connected to urban devel- Mas well as private- opment. The panel high- public partnerships are A panel discussion at the opening ceremony of the event. lighted several challenges needed to transform Doha PICTURE: Jayan Orma that the city of Doha faced into “a city that you love to as well as the opportunities see”, according to an offi - from various public and pri- tive for the Gulf States and it off ered. cial of Qatar Green Building vate organisations in Qatar. director of UN Habitat in QGBC was recently Council (QGBC). “We have many regula- Kuwait, said, “This is a cam- awarded to host the Urban Meshal al-Shamari, di- tions in place for the con- paign for change for our fu- Thinkers Campus in Qatar, rector, QGBC, was speaking struction of buildings. ture as all the stakeholders of The Future of Doha – Im- at the Urban Thinkers Cam- However, many are option- a city come and think togeth- plementing the new urban pus, on the topic “The Fu- al. We will love to see more er as well as shape the future agenda, under the umbrella ture of Doha – Implement- regulations that help mar- together. This is a global of the World Urban Cam- ing the new urban agenda.” kets to develop by them- awareness event. It is driven paign and UN Habitat. The The two-day event, in selves, have instant impact by more than 180 partners. campus is an open platform collaboration with the World and good benefi ts in the We had 26 Urban Thinkers for action-driven discus- Urban Campaign, an initia- transition,” he added. Campuses and 7,847 partici- sion of topics and trends tive of UN Habitat, was at- Prof Dr Tarek Azmy El pants with 2,137 organisation that can impact and shape tended by representatives Sheikh, regional representa- from 124 countries.” the future city. Gulf Times Tuesday, May 16, 2017 5 QATAR

Commercial Bank chairman Sheikh Abdullah bin Ali bin Jabor al-Thani speaks during the luncheon in honour of long-serving bank staff who are retiring this year. CEO Joseph Abraham is also seen. Commercial Bank honours retiring employees, families

ommercial Bank, Qatar’s fi rst Bank departments and had a combined help build Commercial Bank into one private bank, has hosted a 412 years of service between them. of the leading fi nancial institutions in Cluncheon in honour of long- Speaking on the occasion, Com- Qatar and the region. Our employees serving staff who are retiring this year, mercial Bank CEO Joseph Abraham are our most valued asset, and this as a way of thanking them for their expressed the bank’s gratitude and celebratory lunch is held in the spirit many years of service. appreciation to the long-serving staff of Commercial Bank’s ‘One Bank’ cul- A total of 21 retirees and their fami- for their contribution and devotion ture based on the values of respect, lies were joined by Commercial Bank’s throughout their long service. collaboration and teamwork. I would Board members, CEO and senior man- Abraham said: “On behalf of the like to thank you, and all of our staff , agement for the celebratory lunch with Board of Directors, it is a privilege to for your eff orts which have contrib- accompanying speeches and gifts. The extend my thanks for your hard work uted to the bank’s success story in the staff worked in various Commercial and professionalism over the years to State of Qatar.”

Commercial Bank vice-chairman and managing director Hussain Ibrahim Alfardan, director Omar Hussain Alfardan and CEO Joseph Abraham among others attend a cake cutting ceremony during the function. Gulf Times 6 Tuesday, May 16, 2017 QATAR

Al-Attiyah meets Norway, Uganda ministers Ooredoo opens ‘Establishment’ at KidzMondo

oredoo offi cially Children visiting the ‘Oore- opened its ‘Oore- doo Establishment’ will be Odoo Establishment’ able to live the ‘Ooredoo En- at KidzMondo Doha during a gineer Experience’, a telecoms special ceremony held at the experience designed to teach edutainment establishment in children about the power and Mall of Qatar, allowing chil- potential of network technol- dren to embark on a new inter- ogy. The children’s tasks in- active learning experience at clude doing maintenance for the kid-sized theme park. the city by repairing tower The special ceremony was signals, following a map to attended by key senior ex- reconnect the buildings and ecutives from Ooredoo and much more. KidzMondo, including You- “We’re delighted with this suf Abdulla al-Kubaisi, COO, partnership, as it allows Oore- Ooredoo Qatar; Sheikh Nasser doo to share insights into a HE the Minister of State for Defence Aff airs Dr Khalid bin Mohamed al-Attiyah met in Doha separately with Norwegian Minister for Foreign Aff airs Borge Brende, and Ugandan bin Hamad bin Nasser al-Tha- complete telecoms experi- Minister of Foreign Aff airs Sam Kotisa. Discussions during the two meetings dealt with bilateral relations and ways of enhancing and developing them. ni, chief - New Line of Busi- ence, where children will be ness, Ooredoo Qatar; Manar introduced to the old system of Khalifa al-Muraikhi, director connecting telephone calls and of Community and Public Re- how this has evolved to today’s lations, Ooredoo Qatar; Ramez technologies and the daily al-Khayyat, GCEO and vice- challenges of providing con- president at Power Interna- nectivity,” al-Muraikhi said. tional Holding; Nabil Barakat, “Ooredoo strongly believes in general manager at Aura En- the importance of empower- tertainment; and Eman Baker ing children by teaching them Abu El Hawa, general manager, valuable life skills and giving Films supported by DFI KidzMondo Doha. them the tools they need to The partnership between develop their own identity and Ooredoo and KidzMondo Doha realise their potentials.” aims to “further enrich the es- “Through this activity, we tablishment’s fun learning ex- are eager to augment our Kidi- perience and help inspire chil- zens’ imagination and passion dren aged two to 14 years realise to learn, with the aim of ena- selected for Cannes their full potential and further bling them to realise their ca- their own development”, ac- pabilities through interesting iverse fi lms supported by Doha nia Kronlund. A Spring 2017 recipient, cording to a press statement. activities,” El Hawa added. Film Institute (DFI) have been se- the feature documentary is about Salim Dlected to the 2017 Cannes Film Shaheen, the most prolifi c and popular Festival, to be held from May 17 to 28, actor-director-producer in Afghanistan. underlining the continued presence of In addition, four grantee projects have projects nurtured by the Institute at the been selected for key initiatives at the premier fi lm event. Marche Du Film (Cannes Film Market); All fi lms are recipients of the Institute’s Spring Grant 2015 recipient Alam, The Grants Programme with three of them fur- Flag (Palestine, France, Qatar/2017) by ther fi ne-tuned under the eyes of Master Firas Khoury and The Translator (Syria, fi lmmakers at the Institute’s Qumra in- Jordan, France, Qatar/2017) by Rana Ka- dustry event. zkaz and Anas Khalaf screen in the Cine- Fatma al-Remaihi, chief executive offi c- fondation’s Atelier; The Maiden’s Pond er of DFI, said: “We are delighted that the (Lebanon, Germany, Qatar) by Bassem works of talented young fi lmmakers from Breche, Fall Grant 2016 recipient and Dignitaries touring the ‘Ooredoo Establishment’. the region and beyond have once again Qumra 2017 project, has been selected to made the cut to the premier fi lm event, the La Fabrique des Cinemas du Monde, vying with fi lms from around the world.” and You Will Die At Twenty by Amjad Marking their World Premieres in the Abu Alala (Sudan, Egypt, Qatar), a Spring Un Certain Regard segment are Beauty and Grants 2016 recipient and Qumra 2017 the Dogs (Tunisia, France, Sweden, Nor- development project, will be presented at Centrepoint way, Lebanon, Switzerland, Germany, Qa- the fi rst edition of the Cinephilia Bound tar/2017) directed by Kaouther Ben Hania; Plot 35 (France, Qatar/ 2017). Cannes programme in partnership with and Until the Birds Return (Algeria, France, the Maison Des Scenaristes. launches ‘make time Germany, Qatar/2017) by Karim Mous- who are a product of the confl icted Algeria Berni Goldblat and Ali, The Goat and Ib- Last year, a strong contingent of fi lms saoui. of the 2000s, each now facing a diffi cult rahim (Egypt, UAE, France, Qatar/ 2016) supported by DFI had screened in key Recipient of Fall Grants 2016 and a Pic- life choice, with their ideals shattered and by Sherif El Bendary. sections at Cannes, including the Of- for family’ initiative ture Lock screening at Qumra 2017, Beauty their moral strength drained. A Fall Grant 2016 recipient, Wallay fi cial Competition, winning fi ve major and the Dogs is the story of Mariam, who Plot 35 (France, Qatar/ 2017) by Eric had its World Premiere in the Genera- awards across diff erent sections. In line just wanted to enjoy her night out, but Caravaca world premieres in the Special tion section at the 2017 Berlinale, while with DFI’s mandate to promote Qatar’s entrepoint has said complaining that they do not something terrible happens, forcing her Screening segment at Cannes. A Fall Grant Ali, the Goat and Ibrahim is a Fall Grant evolving fi lm industry to the international its latest initiative, get to spend enough time with to seek justice from the perpetrator of the 2016 recipient, the fi lm takes viewers into 2012 recipient and Qumra 2016 Work-in- community, the Institute will once again C#MakeTimeForFamily, them. crime committed against her. the heart of a fascinating human quest. Progress project. present a special showcase of ‘Made in “highlights the most impor- An overwhelming 96% of Until the Birds Return, a Fall Grant 2015 Screenings in the parallel section of Selected for screening in the Direc- Qatar’ fi lms as part of the fi rst-ever Mar- tant factor” in balancing one’s the respondents live with their recipient and a Qumra 2016 development Cannes Ecrans Juniors include Wallay tors’ Fortnight is Nothingwood (France, ket Screening and the Short Film Corner priorities through a campaign families. project, is the story of three characters (Burkina Faso, France, Qatar/2017) by Germany, Qatar/2017), directed by So- programme. that stems from the brand’s At the same time, a major- continued work in support of ity of the respondents claimed families. that they treasured meaning- In a press statement, the ful one-on-one time spent fashion retailer said it took it together with family. In par- upon itself to encourage fami- ticular, parents said balancing lies in the region to balance their priorities as parents also Ministry holds meet for investors their priorities and make time teaches children to bring bal- for loved ones to celebrate ance to their lives. World Family Day on May 15. Simon Cooper, head of workshop was held yes- piece of land will cover an area of Centrepoint conducted a Centrepoint, said: “We have terday at the Ministry of 15,000sq m. survey last year in which over always encouraged our loyal AEconomy and Commerce The MEC said the allocation 48% of respondents claimed customers to never take qual- (MEC) to introduce interested would be made through public that they did not get suffi cient ity time with family for granted investors to new opportunities tenders, according to the stipula- time with their family. This and create irreplaceable mem- in establishing and operating tions of Law No 26 for 2005 and year, the brand surveyed more ories.” private schools. The MEC has of- its modifi cations regulating ten- than 500 people from across Centrepoint has partnered fered 11 plots of land across Qatar ders and bids. Potential investors the region and found that close with Fun City to gift free rides to private sector investors as part should submit a temporary guar- to 40% said they have missed passes across stores in Qatar, of the initiative. antee of QR300,000.The dead- out on a special occasion due the UAE, Kuwait, Oman, Bah- The workshop was organised line for receiving bids is June 18. to work obligations. rain and select stores in Saudi by the MEC’s Technical Com- The project will be managed The recent survey also Arabia for every purchase mittee to Stimulate Private A section of the participants at the workshop. through the design, build, fi - showed that over a fi fth of the made yesterday. Also, Cen- Sector Participation in Eco- nance and operate contract sys- respondents have less than trepoint stores will have a spe- nomic Development Projects in the importance of such projects develop and operate the project, proving infrastructure for en- tem. Both local and foreign com- one meal a day with their cial family shopping counter in co-operation with the Ministry on both the economic and edu- the evaluation mechanism for hancing the quality of education panies will be allowed to take part families, leading to loved ones store this month. of Education and Higher Educa- cational level for the private sec- tenders, and the standards used and training. in the tender in accordance with tion. A number of investors and tor was discussed. for this. There was a discussion The 11 plots of land are lo- Law No 13 for 2000 regulating interested parties took part at The workshop included a de- session as well, where all the in- cated in areas as follows: Umm the investment of non-Qatari the workshop, where they were tailed presentation on the nec- quiries and questions of the par- Qarn (one), Rawdat Al Hamamah capital in the country’s economic introduced to the details of the essary steps and procedures to ticipants were addressed. (one), Al Wukair (four), Luaib activity. Investors who meet 70% project, its objectives, and its ad- submit tenders, in addition to The initiative aims to provide (one), Al Thamid (two), Al Khor or more of the evaluation stand- Qatar participates in vantages and privileges. Besides, the technical requirements to high-quality education by im- (two) and Simaisma (one). Each ards will be considered qualifi ed. Belt and Road Forum

QNA Europe, and support them Beijing with multi-billion dollar in- Ashghal wins ISO 17025 from UKAS vestments in infrastructure. The Forum is the largest in- he State of Qatar took ternational meeting under the he Public Works Authority Mohamed Ali Darwish confi rmed ing”, he added. Darwish said the creditation of ISO 17025 is to accuracy, the ISO 17025 is with- part in the Belt and Road initiative launched by Chinese (Ashghal) has been award- that receiving ISO 17025 refl ects UKAS accreditation to Ashghal’s continuously update the labora- drawn immediately. TForum for International President Xi Jinping in 2013 to Ted ISO 17025 by the United the degree of international trust. centre directly improves its effi - tory equipment and ensure its Head of Laboratories Section Co-operation which conclud- revive the famous Silk Road. Kingdom Accreditation Service Centre for Research and De- ciency and recognises it nation- continuous performance with in the Quality and Safety Depart- ed in the capital Beijing yes- The Chinese president (UKAS). It is the fi rst government velopment is conducting re- ally and internationally. the highest effi ciency and at the ment Ali bin Lahmis al-Marri terday. pledged $124bn for the new agency in Qatar to receive accred- search work on all construction “We started paying attention highest level to achieve the most expressed his pleasure on the re- The Forum was held un- Silk Road Plan to be “a path of itation and successfully maintain projects, infrastructure, roads to the lab years ago and a plan accurate results. newal of the ISO certifi cation for der the theme ‘Cooperation peace, reunifi cation and free it for four consecutive years. and treated wastewater, which was put to develop the mecha- The Ashghal offi cial stressed the fourth time in a row. for Common Prosperity’ with trade”. During the two days Ashghal’s Centre for Research are being constructed, operated nism of the work to obtain in- the UKAS delegation is undertak- “Ashghal’s laboratories are participation of senior offi cials of the forum, the leaders dis- and Development succeeded in and managed by PWA. ternational accreditation for all ing each year a laboratories com- committed to maintaining qual- from more than 100 countries cussed ways of cooperation in passing the rigorous procedures “The centre’s works are sup- Ashghal laboratories. And after parison in which some tests are ity and effi ciency at both the ad- including 29 heads of state and various fi elds, particularly in- to reevaluate the quality of the ported by the latest laboratory considerable eff orts, the centre conducted on a standard sample in ministrative and technical levels. government. frastructure, transport, econ- laboratory for the fourth time, equipment, which covers all kinds was accredited ISO 17025”, said Ashghal’s laboratories and the re- Each year, we add new research HE Qatar’s Minister of omy, trade and energy, with thus maintaining its position as of environmental and civil engi- Director of Quality and Safety sults are sent abroad to assess their and laboratories to the ISO list. In Transport and Communica- the aim of expanding technical the fi rst governmental laboratory neering tests, which conduct tests Department and Senior Engineer accuracy compared to the results 2017, we were able to obtain the tion Jassim Seif Ahmed al-Su- standards and infrastructure centre to be accredited by ISO on roads, concrete, buildings and Khalid Mohammed al-Emadi. of the labs across the world. ISO for civil engineering projects laiti chaired Qatar’s delegation plans for countries located on 17025 from the UKAS. sewage projects, in addition to Al-Emadi said one of the most If the results are proven to be as well as chemical and micro- to the Forum. the “Belt and Road”, and pro- Ashghal’s Technical Support Af- supporting the centre’s employ- important requirements for the accurate the accreditation is re- biological laboratories, and the The Forum aims to expand moting integrated transport fairs director and senior engineer ees in obtaining necessary train- renewal of the international ac- newed and if the results show in- mobile laboratory.” ties between Asia, Africa and among continents.

Gulf Times 8 Tuesday, May 16, 2017 QATAR Chile’s Elemental wins Art Mill design contest atar Museums (QM) of humble materials, which announced yester- will acquire a patina with Qday that the Chile- age. based practice, Elemental, “We are hugely appre- has won the Art Mill In- ciative of the interest shown ternational Design Com- by the international archi- petition, a global search to tectural community in the fi nd an outstanding team project and would like to Some of the Lexus models. to design one of the world’s thank the long-list and the leading cultural centres. fi nalist teams for their work Elemental was selected during the competition.” by an international jury, Professor Harry Gug- from a list of 26 strong ger, special adviser to Qatar competitors, based on Museums and competition AAB launches their strategies for the site juror said: “The competi- and its links to the city. El- tion reached out to some emental’s concept design of the most extraordinary for the historic waterfront talents working in archi- site in the centre of Doha tecture today and Elemen- promotional drive took as its inspiration the tal, known for their social rhythmic monumental An exterior view of the Art Mill, as seen in this artist’s impression, prepared by Elemental. buildings, won in brilliant grain silos that are the in- fashion, being both inven- dustrial legacy of the origi- nect some of the country’s Alejandro Aravena, the 2016 HE Sheikha Al Mayassa tive and indefatigable. El- nal Flour Mills on the site, most cherished cultural Pritzker Prize Laureate, and bint Hamad bin Khalifa al- emental’s wonderful design on Lexus vehicles which have produced bread institutions, including the supported by climate engi- Thani, chairperson of Qatar proves once again that com- for Qatar since the 1980s. Museum of Islamic Art, neers, Transsolar; structural Museums, and jury chair petitions get the best out of Close to key landmarks, QM Gallery Al Riwaq and engineers, Schlaich Berger- said: architectural practices.” bdullah Abdulghani As part of the campaign, Lexus Hybrid, whose including the Corniche the forthcoming National mann; and global design “Art Mill will be an in- The competition was & Bros Co (AAB) customers will also get sales have recently exceed- and Jean Nouvel’s forth- Museum of Qatar. consultants, Stantec. ternational exemplar where hugely successful; the Ahas launched its lat- free four-year/100,000km ed 1mn vehicles worldwide, coming National Museum The concept design was Gifted with one of the most art connects across cultures original open call attracted est promotional campaign service and maintenance, is known for its advanced of Qatar, the Art Mill will praised by the international spectacular and historic sites and boundaries. Elemental’s great interest from the in- – ‘Drive in with your Old free 3M window tint and technology that has con- have an extraordinary civic jury as ‘a serene artwork, in the centre of Doha, the Art assured handling of space ternational design commu- Car, Drive out with a New four-year/100,000km tributed to reducing car- presence. The reinven- where the structure is the Mill will be pre-eminent in and scale in its treatment of nity with 489 submissions Lexus’. manufacturer warranty. bon dioxide emissions and tion of the existing site as architecture’. The team’s Doha’s waterfront ensemble the silos creates a memo- received from 56 countries. AAB is the exclusive dis- Lexus off ers several at the same time off ers a cultural space refl ects environmental strategy was of institutions dedicated to rable and original scheme Elemental will now work tributor for Lexus in Qatar. models that appeal to all an interactive, enjoyable, the wider urban and civic also praised for its under- art and is expected to become that evokes a strong sense with Qatar Museums to In a statement, AAB said tastes, including sports smooth and comfortable development of Doha. It standing of the local cli- one of the world’s leading of calm. The team showed a develop the initial concept the promotional campaign cars such as the RC F and driving experience. will be designed to con- mate. Elemental is led by cultural centres. love of simplicity in the use design. off ers a number of benefi ts GS F, sedans IS350, ES350, Lexus after-sales serv- for customers, allowing GS350, RC350 and LS450, ices are provided at eight them to trade in their old turbocharged vehicles such service centres across Qa- vehicle at the highest value as IS200t, GS200t and tar, and some of these op- for a new 2017 Lexus model NX200t, and 4WD vehi- erate seven days a week. Al Ahli Hospital marks Hand Hygiene Day of their choice. cles such as RX350, GX460 The Lexus service facili- Traded-in vehicles need and LX570. ties are as follow: Lexus to pass the technical in- In addition, Lexus Main Service Station in spection at AAB and must provides environment- the Industrial Area, Land- be of 2012 model year friendly hybrid vehicles mark Quick Service Cen- and above with not more such as the RX450h and tre, Abu Hamour Quick than 150,000km done, the GS450h where the war- Service Centre, Al Nayef statement explained. ranty period of the hy- Quick Service Centre, D- In case a customer com- brid battery is eight Ring Quick Service Cen- pletes the trade-in process years/160,000km – tre, Wakrah Quick Service for a 2017 Lexus model, whichever comes fi rst – in Centre, Aziz Quick Service she or he will get an addi- order to provide peace of Centre and Al Khor Quick tional QR10,000 voucher. mind to customers. Service Centre.

Nissan Murano models recalled

he Ministry of the framework of its ongo- The MEC has urged all Economy and Com- ing eff orts to protect con- customers to report any Tmerce (MEC), in sumers and ensure that car violations to its Consumer collaboration with Saleh Al dealers follow up on vehi- Protection and Anti-Com- Hamad Al Mana Company, cle defects and repairs. mercial Fraud Department has announced the recall of The MEC will co-ordi- through the following Nissan Murano 2015 mod- nate with the dealer to fol- channels: Hotline: 16001, Al Ahli Hospital recently held several activities to celebrate Hand Hygiene Day under the theme “Fight antibiotic resistance, it’s in your hands”. The events els over a potential defect low up on the maintenance e-mail: [email protected], were attended by the higher management, staff , nurses and physicians. The infection control department at the hospital participated at the events to raise in the power steering high and repair works and com- Twitter: @MEC_Qatar, In- awareness of hand hygiene among the staff and guests. “Hand hygiene is one of the most important things we can promote in healthcare to prevent illness,” pressure hose. municate with customers stagram: MEC_Qatar, MEC said Dr Mohamed al-Ahmadi, director, pathology and laboratory medicine department at Al Ahli Hospital. The MEC said the recall to ensure that the neces- mobile app for Android and campaign comes within sary repairs are carried out. IOS: MEC_Qatar

QIB unveils new fi nance campaign

atar Islamic Bank about the related expenses. (QIB) has launched “With the holy month of Qa new fi nance cam- Ramadan upon us, we are paign to meet customers’ delighted to introduce this growing needs on occa- exclusive off er to our custom- sion of the holy month of ers by rewarding them with Ramadan and the summer. a 1% cash bonus, with QIB Customers applying for Finance Promotion all ap- personal or auto fi nance plicants are winners,” said D. will enjoy a bonus of 1% of Anand, QIB’s Personal Bank- the total fi nancing amount. ing Group general manager. QIB said it “tailor-makes” “Our fi nance campaigns campaigns to suit the fi nan- have always been tailored cial needs of its customers. made to meet our custom- The new campaign entitled ers’ specifi c needs at the “Signing is winning” is a right time. We understand continuation of the bank’s that summer brings many commitment to reward loyal fi nancial commitments, in- customers and off ers up to cluding Ramadan, Eid, the QR20,000 of cash bonus. holiday season and back- Along with the cash bo- to-school expenses”. nus, the campaign off ers Whether customers want competitive profi t rates, a to refurbish their home, get quick and convenient ap- married, plan their vaca- proval process from the fi rst tion or planning to buy a visit and free QIB credit card new car, QIB’s new fi nance with the fl exibility to pay campaign off ers a conven- only a minimum of 5% of the ient and Shariah-compliant total outstanding as well as a solution that allows our three-month grace period. customers to enjoy a worry- The campaign, which free summer crowned with ends on July 10, requires a our cash bonus to support minimum fi nance request them.” Anand added. of QR100,000 and a mini- QIB continues to consoli- mum monthly salary of date its position as a leading QR10,000. bank, off ering tailor-made The cash bonus will be fi nancial solution. Earlier this credited directly to cus- year, in an initiative to foster a tomers’ credit card. The culture of saving among cus- 1% cash bonus also allows tomers the Bank launched a customers to move their li- campaign providing custom- abilities from other banks ers with additional profi t on to QIB without worrying their quarterly savings. Gulf Times Tuesday, May 16, 2017 9 QATAR MoPH to launch e-book with healthy recipes

he Ministry of Pub- Iman al-Hammadi won the lic Health ( MoPH) will fi rst place, while Mary Turner, Tlaunch an e-book with Kim White, Ghada Sadiq and healthy recipes, in an attempt Aisha Hussein won the second to promote a healthy lifestyle to fi fth places, respectively. and overcome the problem of Sheikha Dr al-Anoud bint obesity and other lifestyle dis- Mohamed al-Thani, director eases in the country. of health protection and non- A total of 57 healthy recipes communicable diseases at the aligned with the Qatar Dietary Ministry of Public Health said: Guidelines will be included in “The book with healthy reci- the book which off ers insights pes will be published soon as and guidance for healthy eat- part of implementing Qatar ing. The book will be available Dietary Guidelines.” free on the Ministry’s website Over 70 recipes were sub- and the recipes introduced at mitted for the competition and Al Wakra Hospital achieves 1,000 days free of unit-acquired pressure. restaurants. evaluated by nutritionists at The recipes were select- the MoPH with 55 selected for ed through a contest ‘Cook publication in the recipe book. Healthy-Live Healthy’ and They include various types of fi ve winners of the competi- popular and non-traditional tion were honoured by HE the dishes from diff erent cultures. Minister of Public Health Dr It also features Qatari popu- Hanan Mohamed al-Kuwari, lar dishes and how to prepare yesterday. The competition those with healthy ingredients Wakra Hospital milestone in was launched at the Qatar In- as well as the nutritional infor- pressure ulcer prevention ternational Food Festival 2016. mation for each recipe.

ith the aim of becoming the fi rst play at the hospital’s general wards and based Institute for Healthcare Improve- tions of the hospital. “We have intro- medical facility in Qatar without shows the number of pressure ulcer free ment as one of HMC’s Best Care Always duced the project at our High Depend- Wa single incidence of a hospital days. projects. ency Unit, Coronary Care Unit, Critical acquired pressure ulcer, Al Wakra Hospi- Dr Sabah Adnan Alkadhi, Al Wakra Internal medicine consultant and dep- Care Unit and 6 North Medical wards. tal, a member of Hamad Medical Corpora- Hospital’s medical director said: “We are uty chair of the clinical practice guide- Our aim is to spread it across all patient tion (HMC), has achieved and exceeded its proud of the achievement of our pressure lines committee, Dr Mohamed Sadek, care units in the hospital, including pri- goal of reaching 1,000 days free of unit- ulcer prevention team, which is working said: “Pressure ulcer is the term used to marily high-risk areas, to ensure that Al acquired pressure ulcers across its general tirelessly to ensure that all patients on describe localised damage to the skin and Wakra Hospital becomes the first medi- inpatient wards. admission to our facility receive the most underlying soft tissue. Pressure ulcers are cal facility in Qatar without a single in- As of February 2017, the hospital eff ective and most compassionate care caused by pressure from a hard surface, cidence of hospital acquired pressure has recorded 1,020 days free of unit- and that they do not acquire any new in- such as a bed or wheelchair, and can range ulcers,” he stated. acquired pressure ulcers in its 6 North fections while under our care. This is just in severity from patches of discoloured Sadek stated that pressure ulcers often General Inpatient Medical wards. The one of the successful initiatives aimed at skin to open wounds that expose the un- mean increased hospital costs, a longer hospital is also closing in on its goal of ensuring high-quality care and patient derlying bone or muscle.” stay in the hospital for patients, a nega- achieving 700 days in its 6 South Medi- safety at Al Wakra Hospital.” He noted that the pressure ulcer pre- tive patient experience, pain and may even cal wards, having already recorded 540 The pressure ulcer prevention project vention project was first piloted at Al lead to life-threatening complications Some of the winners with HE the Minister of Public Health days free of unit-acquired pressure ul- was an initiative introduced at the hospital Wakra Hospital in three units and it is such as sepsis, a bloodstream infection Dr Hanan Mohamed al-Kuwari and Sheikha Dr al-Anoud bint cers. A pressure ulcer calendar is on dis- in December 2014 by the United States- being extended gradually to other sec- that aff ects the body’s major organs. Mohamed al-Thani. WCM-Q research probes oral health in Qatar

n in-depth study by ment over the appearance of oral health as ‘good’, ‘average’ dental awareness campaigns researchers at Weill their teeth, the study found. or ‘poor’. They then cross- and at the same aid dentists ACornell Medicine- Dr Sohaila Cheema, direc- referenced this information in better evaluating and Qatar (WCM-Q) has dis- tor of WCM-Q’s Institute for with basic personal data such managing their patients.” He covered that approximately Population Health, and one as gender, age, tobacco use, added: “We are glad to co- 40% of Qataris rated their of the lead authors of the re- health status and education operate with the Institute own oral health as either search observed that people level to build up a detailed for Population Health, Weill poor or average. with poor oral health often picture of oral health status Cornell Medicine-Qatar on The WCM-Q team ana- suff er pain and diffi culty within a social context. studies that help us better lysed data from the STEPS eating, and they may also The survey also quizzed understand the problems of survey conducted in 2012 by have speech problems and participants about their public health importance in the World Health Organisa- suff er from low self-esteem. methods of maintaining oral the State of Qatar.” tion in collaboration with “This research helps us to health. The vast majority Dr Ravinder Mamtani, the Supreme Council of understand the true nature use a toothbrush (96.7%), senior associate dean, Pop- Health (now the Ministry of of oral health among Qataris while 27.6% said they use ulation Health, Capacity Public Health). and could prove very useful dental fl oss and 30.6% said Building and Student Aff airs The research also found to help formulate eff ective they use miswak, the tradi- at WCM-Q, is also a lead that women, people with public policy to protect oral tional teeth-cleaning twig, author of the paper. He said: diabetes, older people, health.” which has natural antibac- “An estimated 3.9bn peo- people with lower levels of The anonymous STEPS terial qualities. The study ple worldwide suff er from educational attainment and survey asked 2,496 Qataris found no association be- oral disease and up to 20% people who smoke or use a variety of questions about tween body mass index and of adults worldwide have smokeless tobacco products their oral health, such as how oral health, contrary to fi nd- severe periodontitis so oral like snuff or chewing tobac- they rated the state of their ings in other countries, such health is a very important co were more likely to report teeth and gums, how many as the US and Jordan. component of public health. their oral health as poor natural teeth they had and Sheikh Dr Mohamed al- Understanding more about than other groups. Women whether they used removable Thani, director of Public the oral health situation were also more likely than dentures. The WCM-Q team Health in the Ministry of in Qatar therefore makes a men to report problems then collated this data and Public Health, said: “The signifi cant contribution to such as mouth pain, trouble used statistical analysis to study fi ndings can be help- ongoing eff orts to protect chewing and embarrass- categorise each respondent’s ful in planning appropriate public health here.

QU and QCHP officials at the event. QU’s Health Cluster receives accreditation

atar University (QU) Health QU president Dr Hassan al-Der- Professor of Pharmacy and QU Health Cluster yesterday celebrated ham, the College of Pharmacy (CPH) CPD Committee chair Dr Ahmed Na- Qits accreditation award as Con- dean Dr Mohamed Diab, the College of dir Kheir in recognition of his contri- tinuing Professional Development Health Sciences (CHS) dean Dr Asma butions at QU as co-ordinator of the (CPD) provider by the Qatar Council al-Thani, and practitioners from the Continuing Professional Development for Healthcare Practitioners (QCHP) of health sector in Qatar, as well as QU of- for Healthcare Practitioners from 2010 the Ministry of Public Health. fi cials, faculty, and staff were present. to 2017. The certifi cate was presented to QU This is the fi rst accreditation to be Toft said the accreditation comes as vice president of Medical and Health awarded to QU Health Cluster that a testament for the quality and stand- Sciences and College of Medical Edu- comprises the CHS, the CMED, the ards of health education at Qatar Uni- cation (CMED) dean Dr Egon Toft by CPH, and the Health Clinic. versity that benefi ts healthcare profes- QCHP’s acting CEO Dr Samar Aboul- The ceremony also included the sionals, and ultimately patient care in soud. acknowledgement of CPH Associate Qatar. Gulf Times 10 Tuesday, May 16, 2017 REGION

Yemen rebels Tehran mayor quits declare state of emergency over presidential race cholera outbreak Reuters servatives was that Qalibaf may AFP yond the capacity” of his de- London outperform Raisi on Friday, but Sanaa partment, in a statement on not be able to pose a serious Houthi-run Al-Masira televi- challenge, let alone beat Rou- sion. ehran Mayor Mohamed hani in the run-off ,” said Hos- ebel authorities in The state of emergency is Baqer Qalibaf dropped sein Rassam, a former adviser to Yemen’s capital have an “indication of how serious Tout of Iran’s presidential Britain’s Foreign Offi ce. Rsounded the alarm over this crisis is”, United Nations race yesterday and said he would Rouhani has warned his sup- a spreading cholera outbreak humanitarian co-ordinator in back hardline cleric Ebrahim porters that Qalibaf and Raisi, that has killed dozens in the Yemen Jamie McGoldrick told Raisi’s bid to unseat President whose backgrounds are in the war-torn country, calling for reporters yesterday. Hassan Rouhani in Friday’s vote. Revolutionary Guards and Iran’s urgent international assist- “This rapid outbreak of chol- Qalibaf, a former Revolution- hardline judiciary, will take the ance. era is just another dire mani- ary Guards commander and po- country back to “extremism”. The International Commit- festation of the humanitar- lice chief, was one of the main He said yesterday he needed tee of the Red Cross yester- ian catastrophe that faces this conservative challengers to Rou- a stronger mandate to liberalise day said 184 people had died country,” he said. hani, a pragmatist seeking a sec- Iranian society, a big wish of his of cholera since April 27, with “These numbers will in- ond term. backers in 2013. another 11,000 suspected crease in the weeks and months Raisi’s popularity has risen On Friday, Rouhani accused cases diagnosed across the ahead,” McGoldrick warned. steadily in recent weeks and his hardline clerical foes of being country. France said yesterday it was Qalibaf’s move should give him a power-hungry pawns of Iran’s This is the second outbreak “preoccupied by the rapid last-minute boost against Rou- security forces. of the disease in less than a spread” of cholera, pledging hani, who has eased Iran’s inter- Hamid Aboutalebi, Rouhani’s year in Yemen, where less than 2mn euros ($2.2mn) to sup- national isolation though failed deputy chief of staff , said in a half of the country’s medi- port programmes “responding to spur a sluggish economy. tweet that most of Qalibaf’s cal facilities are functional to the extremely urgent needs” “I should take an important supporters would now vote for two years into a war between in Yemen, mainly in the health decision to keep the unity of rev- Rouhani as only those two can- Iranian-backed Houthi rebels sector. “It is more than ever ur- olutionary forces,” Qalibaf said didates had managerial experi- and the coalition-supported gent to fi nd a political solution in a statement carried by state Supporters of Iranian President and presidential candidate Hassan Rouhani campaign in Tehran yesterday. ence and a solid governing plan. government. in Yemen, the only way pos- media. “Qalibaf’s votes will be di- The Houthi-run health sible to end the suff ering of the “I ask all my supporters some other conservative candi- ing down broke as Raisi was Qalibaf fi nished second in the vided between Rouhani and ministry on Sunday warned population,” the French foreign around the country to use all dates. He was left with no option delivering a speech in Shiraz, last election four years ago with Raisi. In Tehran, his votes will go it was “unable to contain this ministry said in a statement. their capacity to help my broth- but to quit the race, however, thrilling his supporters. 16.5% of the vote. mainly to Rouhani but outside disaster” in a statement on the International relief agencies er, Mr Ebrahim Raisi, win the when the main conservative The crowd started chanting Rouhani won just over 50%, Tehran his supporters will vote rebels’ Saba news agency. on Sunday warned of a cata- election.” parties and clerical bodies threw “Qalibaf, Thank you!” accord- averting a second round. for Raisi,” said political analyst It launched an appeal for strophic humanitarian situa- Qalibaf’s allies had argued their support behind Raisi, a ju- ing to videos released on social Some conservatives had been Hamid Farahvashian. help from international hu- tion and urged citizens to exer- that he had more recognition in rist and cleric who studied at the media. unhappy that Qalibaf was stand- “However, I don’t think there manitarian organisations to cise hygiene precautions. the capital Tehran and among feet of Supreme Leader Ayatol- “I am also very thankful,” Rai- ing again and risking a split in will be a signifi cant impact as deal with the crisis. Dominik Stillhart, the direc- young voters, and off ered a more lah Ali Khamenei. si replied to the crowd. “He did a the anti-Rouhani vote. Qalibaf got (just) 6mn votes in Hafi d bin Salem Mohamed, tor of operations at the ICRC, coherent economic plan than The news Qalibaf was stand- revolutionary act.” “The biggest fear of the con- 2013.” the rebel health minister, said said Yemen was “facing a seri- the “scale of the disease is be- ous outbreak of cholera”. Saudi king hopeful over ‘historic’ summit on Sunday

AFP The summit will be one of three forums to the summit, including Turkey, Az- Agency, “he expressed his hope that Riyadh held during a visit by Trump, who is mak- erbaijan, Niger and Indonesia, which this historic summit will establish a new ing Saudi Arabia his fi rst overseas stop has the world’s largest Muslim popula- partnership in the face of extremism since assuming offi ce in January. tion. and terrorism and spreading the values audi King Salman yesterday ex- Aides described Trump’s decision to King Salman told a cabinet meeting of tolerance and coexistence” while en- pressed hope a “historic” summit visit Saudi Arabia as an effort to reset in the Red Sea city of Jeddah that the hancing security. Sto be held Sunday between Arab and relations with the Muslim world. meeting “comes in light of the chal- Trump is to also hold a bilateral sum- Muslim nations and US President Donald Along with the six-nation Gulf Co- lenges and sensitive situations that the mit with Saudi Arabia and talks with Trump will enhance ties and promote tol- operation Council (GCC), at least 18 world is going through”. the GCC on Saturday. Washington and A Yemeni child, suspected of being infected with cholera, receives erance. other Muslim nations have been invited According to the official Saudi Press Riyadh have a decades-old relationship. treatment at a hospital in Sanaa yesterday. Gulf Times Tuesday, May 16, 2017 11 ARAB WORLD

CONFLICT Iraqi forces push for Mosul victory before Holy Month

Iraqi forces battled to retake dis- tricts of western Mosul still under Syria using ‘crematorium’ Islamic State control yesterday, in an attempt to seize victory before the Holy Month of Ramadan. After seven months of fighting, militants have been dislodged from all but a few areas of Mosul. Islamic State is expected to make to hide mass killing: US a last stand around the Old City’s Grand al-Nuri Mosque, where the AFP present its evidence. Jones told group’s black flag has been flying Washington reporters Secretary of State Rex UN restarts talks since June 2014. Tillerson had raised concerns with fresh format, Backed by US-led coalition air about Assad’s brutality with same challenges strikes and advisers, Iraqi forces he United States yes- Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei have made rapid gains since terday accused the Syr- Lavrov during his visit to Wash- Syria peace talks in Geneva this opening a new front in the Tian regime of installing ington last week. week should benefit from a tighter northwest of Mosul earlier this a prison crematorium to de- Moscow, along with Iran, is format and a deal to reduce the month, closing in on the Old City. stroy the remains of thousands the Assad regime’s main foreign violence, UN mediator Staff an de Outnumbered, militants have of murdered detainees, piling backer and Washington believes Mistura said yesterday, playing retaliated with suicide car bombs pressure on Russia to rein in its Russian pressure is the only down dismissive comments by and snipers embedded among ally. thing that will compel its ally to President Bashar al-Assad. the hundreds of thousands of civil- Warning Moscow it should negotiate a peace deal. Previous rounds of talks have ians trapped in west Mosul. Many not turn a blind eye to Bashar “I would say that this infor- produced agreement that the war- local people have been killed by al-Assad’s crimes, the State mation has been developing,” ring sides will discuss a four-part militants or heavy bombardments. Department released satellite Jones said on the timing of the agenda, but no progress has yet “If we advance this quickly we can images that it said backed up crematorium allegation. been made on any topic. finish it in days,” First Lieutenant reports of mass killings at a Syr- Jones said Washington is not Assad, backed by Russia and Iran, Nawfal al-Dhari told Reuters at a ian jail. specifi cally accusing Moscow or is keen on discussing “terrorism”, a house turned into a temporary “The United States is on Tehran of complicity in the al- term he uses broadly to describe base in the western Islah al-Ziraie record, has stated many times, leged Saydnaya killings, but said all adversaries. district, retaken by Iraqi forces that we are appalled by the Russia is aware of and has sup- Opposition negotiators have three days ago. atrocities that have been carried ported other abuses. demanded Assad’s removal, “These are their dying breaths. out by the Syrian regime,” said And he said last week’s visit something his backers think is They are completely surrounded.” Stuart Jones, the top US diplo- by Lavrov to the White House fanciful in the face of his military He said the momentum was mat for the Middle East. was “an opportune time to re- advances in the civil war, now with Iraq’s elite Counter Terror- “And these atrocities have mind people about the atroci- in its seventh year. Last week ism Service (CTS), the US-trained been carried out seemingly with ties that are being carried out Assad told Belarusian TV channel special forces who have led the the unconditional support from inside of Syria all the time.” ONT that the Geneva talks were campaign to retake the country’s Russia and Iran.” US President Donald Trump “merely a meeting for the media” second city. And he added a warning to Syrian civilians and rebels, who were evacuated from the Qabun district in northeast Damascus, arrive at a came to offi ce vowing to focus and there had been “nothing President Vladimir Putin’s gov- temporary camp in the northern countryside of Idlib province yesterday. US eff orts in Syria on defeat- substantial in all the Geneva meet- ernment: “Russia must now, ing the Islamic State group, a ings”. Opposition negotiator Nasr LEGAL with great urgency, exercise its groups that Saydnaya is an ex- information came from cred- killed, but cited an Amnesty militant force that exploited the al-Hariri told reporters he wanted Hamas names infl uence over the Syrian regime ecution centre. ible humanitarian agencies and International report that be- civil war to seize the east of the a comprehensive ceasefire across to guarantee that horrifi c viola- “Beginning in 2013, the Syr- from the US “intelligence com- tween 5,000 and 11,000 had country. Syria. “The road to Syria’s freedom chief suspect in tions stop now.” ian regime modifi ed a building munity” — implying that classi- died between 2011 and 2015 in And he said he hoped to work runs through Geneva,” he said. commander killing One newly released image, within the Saydnaya complex fi ed evidence beyond the com- the prison. with Putin, whose forces are in “That’s why we have come here to a commercial satellite photo- to support what we believe is a mercial pictures exists. Assad’s regime, he alleged, Syria to protect Assad’s regime, Geneva committed to negotiate A military court in Gaza yesterday graph dating back to January crematorium,” said Jones, cur- “The regime holds as many as has detained between 65,000 in this goal. But relations with a political solution and that’s why held the first hearing of three men 2015, shows snow melting on rently an acting assistant secre- 70 prisoners in Saydnaya in cells and 117,000 people over the Moscow, already dire under Assad is frightened of this process. accused of assassinating a Hamas the roof of a building attached tary of state. that have a fi ve-person capac- same period — the fi rst fi ve Trump’s predecessor Barack He is afraid to engage on the military leader, naming the chief to the Saydnaya military com- “Although the regime’s many ity,” Jones alleged. years of a civil war that has left Obama, have not improved and agenda of political solution.” suspect for the first time. Hamas plex north of Damascus. atrocities are well documented, “And according to multiple hundreds of thousands dead. Assad has continued to bom- has accused Palestinian “col- This, along with an ear- we believe that the building of sources, the regime is respon- One satellite photograph pre- bard civilian areas in his battle laborators” of working with Israel lier picture allegedly showing a crematorium is an eff ort to sible for killing as many as 50 sented by Jones dated to January with opposition rebels. in a strike on his own people, to commit the murder. “In Gaza heavy-duty ventilation systems cover up the extent of the mass detainees per day at Saydnaya.” 2015, more than two years ago, Then last month, when As- Trump ordered a retaliatory US today, the first hearings were held on the structure, appear to sup- murders taking place in Sayd- He did not give an offi cial and it was not immediately clear sad was again accused of using cruise missile strike on a Syrian for three (men) accused of killing port earlier claims by rights naya.” Jones said Washington’s estimate for the total number why the United States waited to the banned nerve agent sarin air base. Mazen Faqha,” Assistant Military Attorney General Fadl al-Jadili said in a statement carried by a local news agency. He named Ashraf Abu Leila as the chief suspect in shooting dead Faqha, a senior Clashes erupt as ‘Nakba’ Israeli navy shoots dead Gaza fi sherman Hamas off icial killed near his home on March 24. Two other accused men faced a separate session, with marked in West Bank AFP air.” She said the boat ignored Jadili saying they had been tasked Gaza City the warning and the navy then by the Israeli security service with fi red at it. “As a result of the tracking Faqha’s movements. AFP The extent of their injuries fi re a Palestinian was injured Ramallah was not known. n Israeli patrol boat fi red and was evacuated to an Israeli Earlier, thousands of peo- at Palestinian fi shermen hospital for immediate medical APPOINTMENT ple carrying Palestinian fl ags Aaccused of breaching the treatment,” she added. First female alestinians marching to marched through the city, blockade off the northern Gaza The military later confi rmed Shariah judge remember those dis- many carrying large keys to Strip yesterday, leaving one of that the man had died. Pplaced at the time of the symbolise their claims to the them dead, offi cials said. Gazan fi shing offi cial Zach- sworn in 1948 founding of Israel clashed homes they lost in 1948. Israel and Palestinian fi ght- aria Bakr also confi rmed the with Israeli forces in the oc- “I come every year to com- ers in Gaza have fought three death. Israel yesterday swore in its cupied West Bank yesterday, memorate this anniversary, wars since 2008 and the terri- UN offi cials have called for first female judge to its Muslim leaving several wounded. this catastrophe,” said Salha tory has been under an Israeli the blockade to be lifted, cit- religious court system, the first Annual marches are held on Orabi, a descendant of refu- blockade for 10 years. ing deteriorating humanitarian woman to preside in any religious May 15 to mark what Palestin- gees and now a resident of the Fishing off the northern part conditions, but Israel says it is court in the country. ians call the “Nakba,” or catas- nearby Jelazoun refugee camp. of the strip, adjacent to Israel, is needed to keep Hamas, which Hana Khatib, an attorney from the trophe in Arabic. “The Nakba for us symbol- limited to six nautical miles off - Palestinian mourners shout slogans as the body of fisherman runs the strip, from importing northern town of Tamra, became At a checkpoint on the out- ises destruction,” he added. “It shore and the Israeli navy regu- Mohamed Majed Bakr, 25, arrives at a morgue in Gaza City, yesterday. weapons or materials used to a judge, in the Muslim court sys- skirts of Ramallah, dozens is us who have left our homes larly fi res at Palestinians at the make them. tem that deals with personal law of Palestinian youths hurled and our land.” zone’s outer limit. The dead man’s family iden- woman confi rmed the shooting The size of the fi shing zone at a ceremony in the presidential rocks at Israeli soldiers, who In Bethlehem, hundreds Such incidents rarely result tifi ed him as Mohamed Majed but did not speak of additional has varied over the years, hav- residence in Jerusalem. “This responded with rubber bul- of Palestinians stoned Israeli in deaths, however. Bakr, 25. arrests. ing been set at 20 nautical appointment and my success in lets and the foul-smelling riot troops guarding the tomb of Fishermen’s union chief Ni- His body was transferred to “A vessel deviated from the miles by the Oslo accords of the achieving it is a success for the control spray known as skunk. Rachel, an AFP photographer zar Ayash said the shooting and a morgue in Gaza ahead of his designated fi shing zone in 1990s before being reduced by legal system and for women,” she A Palestinian emergency said. the arrest of four other crew- funeral later. the northern Gaza Strip,” the Israeli authorities. said after the ceremony. “We see worker said that 11 Palestin- Soldiers fi red tear gas and men happened in one incident, Ayash said his union was sus- spokeswoman said. About 4,000 fi shermen work that the Shariah system is kind to ians were taken to hospital, stun grenades, but the number and two more arrests were made pending fi shing until the end of “Naval forces in the area off the coastal strip, more than women and with this achievement most of them wounded by rub- of Palestinian casualties was when the military boarded an- Thursday. called upon the vessel to halt half of whom live below the we give them their rights.” ber bullets. not immediately known. other Gaza boat overnight. An Israeli military spokes- and fi red warning shots into the poverty line. Refugee kids in Lebanon act, direct and ‘escape’

AFP More than 1mn Syrians — in- The children have been taught to them, but then they have a Beirut cluding over 500,000 children technical skills such as adjust- whole lifetime after that mo- — are registered in Lebanon as ing camera exposure and focus, ment,” says Evans. refugees. shooting fake fi ght scenes and Thirteen-year-old Hanadi Three, two, one, action!” Many live in informal camps using a green screen. al-Hajj Abdallah is one of those shouts Syrian refugee on agricultural land, but oth- Once shooting is complete, children. “Mostafa Abdallah, 11, en- ers settled in urban Palestinian “we edit the fi lm at home and Her fi ngernails painted a ergetically directing his fellow camps like Shatila, whose origi- show it to the kids, then they get fi retruck-red, she plucks at her child actors in a musical being nal population of 10,000 people to see themselves on screen be- oud — the pear-shaped stringed fi lmed in a Palestinian camp in has swelled with the arrivals of ing little actors,” says Jones, who instrument beloved in the Arab the Lebanese capital. Syrians fl eeing the confl ict. was on his fi rst trip to Lebanon. world. Members of the cast spring Gangly Mostafa is a natural di- The short fi lms will then be “We’re using the oud in our into action, belting out a chaotic rector, giving fi rm commands to incorporated into a broader doc- scene today, and this is the fi rst but charming rendition of a tra- his peers. umentary that Jones says will time I’ve played it on camera. ditional Arabic folk song about “I hope that when I grow up I provide a behind-the-scenes When I play, I feel like a huge love and loss, accompanied by can be a real director and jour- look at “real life in Shatila”. star,” Hanadi tells AFP. tambourines. nalist, and I can teach children “There’s always a Western Hanadi, who is wearing a The musical is part of the Ref- how to use a camera,” he says. lens looking at the kids, and we burgundy headscarf and loose ugee Film Project, an initiative The project has already pro- wanted to turn that around and dress over denim trousers, fl ed by international organisation duced several fi lms, including a have the kids in control of the her home near Damascus four SB OverSeas that is helping Syr- horror story about three witches photograph and in control of the years ago. The multi-talented ian refugee children in Lebanon and Betrayal in Beirut, a six- video to change things a little teen even performs Syrian rap write, direct and act in their own Syrian refugees from Minbej, nine-year-old Mostafa Abdallah (right) and 13-year-old Hanadi al-Hajj Abdallah minute tale of love, kidnapping, bit,” says organiser Evans. songs, including “People did you short movies. (centre) seen during a scene with their friends in Beirut’s southern suburb of Shatila, as part of a programme and greed. The children are able to escape wrong” by rapper Ismail Tamer. Since Syria’s confl ict erupted called the Refugee Film Project. It is the brainchild of British the grim reality of camps like “This song is about war, shell- in 2011, its children have often teacher Aphra Evans, 24, and Shatila while fi lming, Evans says, ing, and destruction — it’s about been centre stage in heartbreak- to shape their own stories — in- tila, a Palestinian camp in Beirut. have so much fun.” fi lmmaker Shyam Jones, 25, who while viewers are impressed by Syria,” Hanadi says. ing images capturing the brutal- cluding from behind the camera. Mostafa turns away from the A year and a half ago, he and work with the children to come the actors’ enthusiasm, creativ- She steadily recites the lyrics ity of the war or the tragedy of Every day for six weeks, digital camera just long enough his family fl ed the northern Syr- up with storyboards and scripts. ity and unexplored talent. that she and her brother memo- the ensuing refugee crisis. around 30 child actors gathered to tell AFP: “In the past, I used ian town of Manbij, held at the “Then we come to school and “You’re always seeing the kids rised together: “People did you But the Refugee Film Project in front of the Bokra Ahla (A Bet- to fi lm from my cellphone. But time by the Islamic State group, organise the kids to act, use the covered in dust in Aleppo. That’s wrong, they destroyed you. aims to turn the camera around, ter Tomorrow) NGO, which pro- here, we learned how to fi lm on and eventually made their way camera, and...rehearse their not what these kids are like — When they saw your beauty, they giving young refugees the chance vides education services in Sha- camera — we learn a ton and across the border into Lebanon. lines,” says Jones. that’s something that happened envied you so much.” Gulf Times 12 Tuesday, May 16, 2017 AFRICA

CRIME FOOD SCARCITY POLITICS CEASEFIRE HEALTH 4 aid workers kidnapped in Ugandan troops accused Zambian opposition leader Evacuations begin from WHO gears up to combat central Mali town of sexual abuse in CAR in custody for another week embattled CAR town Ebola in DR Congo

Unknown gunmen have abducted four Ugandan soldiers sexually abused at least 13 Zambian opposition leader Hakainde Hichilema Armed groups have agreed to allow for the The World Health Organization (WHO) said humanitarian workers in central Mali, the girls and women in the Central African Republic will remain in custody for at least another week evacuation of some civilians from a mosque in yesterday its experts have not yet decided whether International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) while the troops were helping to hunt for warlord after a magistrate yesterday deferred a ruling on Central African Republic’s southeastern town of to use newly developed vaccines to try to contain said yesterday. The Malian nationals, who work Joseph Kony, the US-based Human Rights Watch whether he could face trial for treason. Hichilema, Bangassou after two days of fighting, a senior UN an outbreak of Ebola in Congo, but off icials are for the ICRC and the Malian Red Cross, were said yesterday. The Ugandan military first arrived 54, was arrested last month for allegedly off icial said yesterday. Around 1000 people in the making preparations just in case. A second case abducted in the village of Tenenkou in the central in Central African Republic in 2009 and a force of obstructing President Edgar Lungu’s off icial town had sought refuge from attacks inside and of Ebola in Democratic Republic of Congo was Mopti region on Sunday evening, ICRC spokesman about 2,500 have been stationed there. They are limousine as both men travelled to a public event then found themselves trapped there by the militias, confirmed by the WHO on Sunday after an outbreak Germain Mwehu told DPA. “Our colleagues were part of a U.S.-supported African Union force seeking in Zambia’s Western province. Hichilema’s lawyers said UN Humanitarian Coordinator in Central this week of 17 other suspected cases. Three people in the process of assessing the humanitarian to defeat Kony and his Lord’s Resistance Army. had asked the court to throw out the treason African Republic Najat Rochdi. As of late morning, have so far died among the 19 suspected and situation of the area when unidentified, armed HRW said it had interviewed more than a dozen charges, saying they were baseless. “The ruling women and children as well as the injured and dead confirmed cases. A spokesman told Reuters the individuals forced them to follow them,” said women and girls who accused soldiers of using will be made on Monday, May 22,” magistrate had left but an unknown number of men were still WHO was working with specialists to conduct an Mwehu. Members of religious orders or aid food to manipulate them into abusive sexual acts. In David Simusambasaid told the court after another held hostage inside, she added. A total of 26 bodies epidemiological investigation “to better understand organizations are regularly abducted by militants some cases, the off ending soldiers threatened their judge earlier in the day acquitted Hichilema on a have so far been identified in the town and are the extent of the current outbreak” and to establish or extremists in Mali, usually in the hope of ransom. victims with reprisals if they reported the abuse. minor charge of using insulting language. being recovered by aid workers, said Rochdi. who is at risk of becoming infected with Ebola. Boko Haram militants kill 6 farmers in north Nigeria

AFP Kano

oko Haram militants have killed six farmers who were working on their land near the northeastern Nigerian Bcity of Maiduguri, civilian militia members and locals told AFP yesterday. Gunmen on motorcycles attacked a group preparing fi elds for the rainy season outside the village of Amrawa, 16km from the Borno State capital, on Saturday. “The gunmen attacked the farmers with machetes as they were clearing their farms that have been taken over by weeds in preparation for the rains which start in a few days,” said Ib- rahim Liman, a civilian militia member. “They seized six farmers and slaughtered them while the rest fl ed.” Liman’s account was supported by Masida Bunu and Rahis Musa, who live in the village. Some residents raised the alarm and the militia pursued the attackers to the nearby village of Sojori. “The vigilantes fought the terrorists and killed four while the rest fl ed,” Liman said. At least 20,000 people have been killed and more than 2.6mn made homeless in northeast Nigeria since the start of Boko Haram’s Islamist insurgency in 2009. Nigeria’s government and military maintain that the jihad- ists are a spent force but sporadic attacks and suicide bomb- Mutinous soldiers fire in the air inside a military camp in Ivory Coast’s central second city Bouake yesterday. ings pose a constant threat, particularly in remote areas. Saturday’s attack underscored the vulnerability of rural communities even as the authorities are encouraging dis- placed people to return home and rebuild their lives. Northeast Nigeria is in the grip of severe food shortages after farmers missed three rainy seasons in a row because of the confl ict. Crops have been destroyed and food stores looted, while farmers have been either killed or forced to fl ee to safety in Gunfi re rocks Ivory Coast vast camps for the displaced. Most of the remote region relies on subsistence agricul- ture, but domestic and international aid agencies are now having to provide food, shelter and healthcare. The Nigerian authorities mooted a deadline of May 29 to close the camps for the displaced in Maiduguri, though few humanitarian organisations working there believed the date cities as mutiny spreads was feasible. In March last year, Borno’s governor, Kashim Shettima, Reuters line with the mutiny, government “There was heavy shooting at banks to remain closed yesterday But we can’t give up now that said about 950,000 of the 3.2mn private homes in the state Bouake spokesman Bruno Kone said. the northern entrance to the city and many businesses at the port we’ve reached this point.” had been destroyed or damaged by years of fi ghting. While there was no negotiations and in the city centre. It’s calmed a in Abidjan from which cocoa is ex- The 8,400 mutineers, most of Schools, municipal buildings, electricity and water infra- under way with the soldiers “dis- bit but we’re still hearing gunfi re,” ported were also closed. them former rebels who said they structure and health care facilities have also been aff ected. unfi re rocked cities in Ivory cussions were continuing” and a said one Bouake resident. Heavy shooting was also heard were promised bonuses for fi ght- Those who have returned to their hometowns have found Coast yesterday as a mu- military operation was ongoing. Other residents confi rmed the in Daloa, a hub for western cocoa ing to bring Ouattara to power, themselves forced into makeshift camps, with water short- Gtiny by disgruntled soldiers The head of the army said on shooting. growing regions. received 5mn CFA francs ($8,400) ages and lack of sanitation increasing the risk of disease. gathered pace in defi ance of gov- Sunday troops were being sent to The four-day-old revolt exposes “All businesses are closed here each to end the January uprising, The insecurity has also aff ected food distribution, with ernment action against a revolt Bouake to “re-establish order” but divides in a society that emerged in Daloa. The banks are closed with more to come. about 5.1 mn people in Borno and the neighbouring states of that threatens the country’s rapid a Reuters team travelling from the from a decade of political turmoil and so are the cocoa buying busi- But the government has strug- Yobe and Adamawa said to be “severely food insecure”. emergence from a civil war. capital Yamoussoukro towards the and a civil war in 2011 to become nesses,” said Aka Marcel, a farmer gled to pay the outstanding bonus- The Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) said yesterday that The troops who rebelled over city, saw only a handful of loyalist one of the world’s fastest growing cooperative manager in Daloa. es of an extra 7mn CFA francs each. more than one mn displaced people or refugees had returned delayed bonus payments control- military vehicles. economies under President Alas- “The soldiers are in the streets A spokesman for the group said to the region from within Nigeria and outside the country led the second city Bouake, and Most of the large column of sane Ouattara. on foot and on motorbikes. They’re last week they had dropped de- since October. heavy gunfi re also hit San Pedro, troops spotted on Sunday evening The government promised bo- shooting in the air.” mands for the remaining money. But the NRC director in Nigeria, Cheick Ba, said the re- a crucial port for exports of cocoa. appeared to have withdrawn, sug- nus payments to the soldiers after A spokesman for the mutiny de- This was rejected by other sol- gion was “ill prepared” to cope given the level of destruction, Ivory Coast is the world’s largest gesting any government operation a mutiny in January but not they nied that any clashes occurred in diers, sparking the revolt. echoing widespread concern from international aid agencies. producer and London cocoa fu- was not yet fully under way. were not fully paid after a collapse Bouake and said the renegade sol- An Abidjan resident said soldiers In Damasak, in the far north of Borno near the border with tures climbed to a fi ve-week high More than 200 commercial in the price of cocoa, Ivory Coast’s diers were fi ring in the air to dis- came out of the largest military Niger, 180,000 people had returned since December but they due to the unrest as businesses in trucks were stranded yesterday on main export, caused a revenue suade any advance on the city. camp and erected barricades yester- lacked the resources to resume farming, the agency said. the sector closed. the roadside after mutinous soldiers crunch. On Sunday, the group’s leaders day morning, blocking traffi c along The United Nations has said about $1bn is required for the “The mutineers are in San sealed off the southern entrance to The issue triggered a wave of rejected the army’s demand that one of the eastern thoroughfares. Nigerian states of Borno, Yobe and Adamawa this year but Pedro. They are everywhere. There Bouake, Reuters witnesses said. mutinies that has exposed the they disarm and surrender. Several schools near the camp funding so far is well short of that goal, despite warnings of is heavy gunfi re. Everyone is clos- Sporadic gunfi re was heard lack of unity in a military assem- “We can no longer turn back,” did not open and the Abidjan- famine-like conditions in parts of the region. ing shop and heading home,” said overnight in Bouake as well as at bled from former rebel and loyalist said their spokesman Sergeant based African Development Bank, a cocoa exporter based in the city. military camps in the commercial combatants. Seydou Kone. which employs several thousand Three other residents confi rmed capital Abidjan. In signs of the economic im- “We don’t know what will hap- people — many of them interna- the gunfi re. Shooting in both cities intensi- pact of the crisis, the banking as- pen to us, so we just want our tional staff — told its employees to Authorities will maintain a fi rm fi ed before dawn. sociation, the APBEF, ordered all money so we can start a new life. stay home.

South African court hears case for secret ballot against Zuma

Reuters backs and the political stakes are Constitutional Court in televised tional Court decides today — se- Johannesburg high in this case. proceedings. cret ballot or not — all we ask is The opposition parties believe A decision is not expected im- that members of parliament vote the motion will have better pros- mediately. with their conscience,” said DA outh Africa’s top court yes- pects of toppling the president, The ANC has lost popularity leader Mmusi Maimane. terday heard arguments from who has survived previous such under Zuma, underscored by its Separately, local media reported Sopposition parties to allow a votes, if it is conducted in secret. worst electoral showing in over that ANC supporters in the port motion of no confi dence against Parliament Speaker Baleka two decades of power in local elec- city of Durban marched to protest President Jacob Zuma to taken Mbete, a top ANC offi cial, has said tions last year, in the face of a spate against what the party says is the by secret ballot, which they hope the rules do not allow for the secret of scandals and a failure to address pandering of the judiciary to the could help to depose him. ballot and the ANC chief whip’s slow economic growth, high un- opposition. Ouside the court, around 1,000 offi ce has rejected calls for one. employment and glaring income South African opposition One of Zuma’s recent judicial protesters from diff erent opposi- “Our case is very simple. The disparities. supporters look at proceedings hitches stems from that decision. tion parties marched peacefully speaker has the obligation to ar- Opponents led by the main op- on a giant screen as they picket Earlier in May, South Africa’s to the Constitutional Court, some range for a private ballot. We are position party Democratic Alliance outside the Constitutional Court in High Court ordered Zuma to pro- waving signs demanding that pleading that she has such an ob- (DA) believe a recent cabinet re- Johannesburg yesterday. vide reasons for Gordhan’s sack- Zuma be removed. ligation to arrange it and she has shuffl e that led to the dismissal of ing. Zuma and the ruling African failed to do it,” Dali Mpofu, a law- respected fi nance minister Pravin protests, may have angered enough Zuma last week requested legal National Congress (ANC) have yer representing the United Dem- Gordhan, triggering damaging rat- ANC members to desert Zuma. permission for an appeal against suff ered a string of judicial set- ocratic Movement party, told the ings downgrades and large street “No matter what the Constitu- that order. Gulf Times Tuesday, May 16, 2017 13 AMERICAS

ENTERTAINMENT CRIME LEGAL MEDIA TECHNOLOGY Rapper Scott accused Man to be sentenced for Ex-Hollywood movie chief Judge demands Uber of ‘inciting a riot’ transgender hate crime dies, months after ouster return Waymo documents

Rapper Travis Scott was arrested after a concert A gang member is due in court to be sentenced Brad Grey, the former chairman and chief A judge ordered Uber to promptly return any in Arkansas with police accusing him of “inciting under hate crime charges for the murder of a executive of Paramount Pictures, has died at files that had been downloaded and taken from a riot” as the crowd rushed to the stage, injuring transgender teen, in the first ever transgender age 59 of cancer, his family said yesterday, Alphabet Inc’s Waymo self-driving car unit but said several people. In the latest such incident for hate crime prosecution in the United States. just three months after being forced out of his the ride-services company could continue work on the 25-year-old, an enthusiastic crowd pushed Joshua Vallum, 29, pleaded guilty in a Mississippi Hollywood job. His death shocked Hollywood, its autonomous car technology. The latest ruling in through barricades to move closer to him at the federal court to the 2015 murder of his former with few people in the industry apparently a trade secrets case from US District Judge William arena concert Saturday night. Video footage romantic partner, 17-year-old Mercedes aware that he had been ill with cancer. Grey, Alsup in San Francisco, made public yesterday, posted online shows Scott energetically dancing Williamson, because she was transgender. who led Paramount Pictures for 12 years, was granted a partial injunction against Uber, which and revving up the crowd but later asking fans to Vallum could be sentenced for life without forced to step down in February after years of Waymo has accused of using stolen information step back and politely thanking the fire marshals parole.Harper Jean Tobin, spokeswoman for the underperforming movies including Ben-Hur for its autonomous cars. Alsup said that Uber after completing his hit Goosebumps. Police in National Center for Transgender Equality (NCTE), People protest President Donald Trump’s travel and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the “likely knew” or should have known that the northwestern Arkansas, said that several people said the murder was part of an “epidemic of ban outside the Court of Appeals in Seattle, Shadows. “Brad passed away yesterday evening former Waymo engineer, Anthony Levandowski, were injured including two involved in security. violence against transgender people”. Washington. at his home in Holmby Hills, CA. who now works at Uber, took Waymo materials. Barron Trump at police event to attend school in Maryland

Reuters lege, its website said. Washington Richard Coco, a spokesman for St Andrew’s, declined to comment on whether Barron S President Donald Trump would attend, citing Trump’s youngest son, the school’s privacy policies. U11-year-old Barron, Barron currently is fi nishing will attend a private school just the academic year at Colum- outside Washington in the fall, bia Grammar and Preparatory the White House said yester- School on Manhattan’s Upper day. West Side, another exclusive His enrolment at Andrew’s school and one of the country’s Episcopal School in Potomac, oldest private ones. Tuition Maryland, comes as he pre- there costs more than $44,000 pares to move to the White a year. House with his mother, fi rst Barron is the youngest of lady Melania Trump. Trump’s fi ve children and his When Trump took offi ce on only child with Melania, the January 20, Barron stayed be- president’s third wife. hind in New York City with his According to The Washing- mother to fi nish out his current ton Post, the Trumps’ selection school year. is the fi rst time in years that a US President Donald Trump after speaking alongside US Vice President Mike Pence and Attorney General Jeff Sessions during the 36th Annual National Peace Off icers’ Melania Trump announced US president with school-age Memorial Service at the US Capitol in Washington. the choice of school in a state- children has chosen a school ment. “The mission of St An- other than Sidwell Friends, a drew’s is ‘to know and inspire private school with campuses each child in an inclusive com- in Washington and nearby munity dedicated to excep- Bethesda, Maryland. tional teaching, learning, and Chelsea Clinton as well as service,’ all of which appealed Malia and Sasha Obama at- to our family,” she said. tended Sidwell, as did Presi- St Andrew’s, located about dent Richard Nixon’s daugh- 30km northwest of the White ters, Tricia and Julie, according House, or about a 30-minute to the Post. Democrats threaten to drive, has 580 students en- Former President Jimmy rolled from preschool through Carter’s daughter, Amy, at- grade 12, according to the tended local public schools school. while Gerald Ford’s daughter, Annual tuition for upper Susan, attended the private grades is about $40,000, and Holton-Arms School, also in all of its students go on to col- Bethesda, the Post said. block Trump FBI pick Democrats have threatened over their lifetime, essentially. a vote in the entire Republican- are happy with the way Trump If such tapes do actually exist, to impede any candidate for But very well known, highly re- controlled Senate. has been behaving lately. under the law Trump cannot de- the FBI job spected, really talented people,” But Democratic lawmakers are The White House is keeping a stroy or hide them. Trump said at the weekend. making such a vote contingent close eye on how fi rm Republican “But this Tweet has to be Katy Perry announces AFP He said he might make a de- on the Justice Department nam- support for Trump is. answered. I would advise the Washington cision before leaving late in the ing a special prosecutor to probe Some Republicans are upset president not to Tweet or com- week on his fi rst major interna- Russia’s alleged interference in with Trump for admitting he had ment about the investigation new album and tour tional trip, to the Middle East and the US election — and the ques- the FBI’s Russia probe in mind as we go forward,” Republican resident Donald Trump Europe. tion of possible collusion with when he fi red Comey. Senator Lindsey Graham said stepped up the search yes- The possible candidates in- Trump’s campaign. Trump is described as livid Sunday. AFP ruary 5 in Vancouver, sepa- Pterday for a new FBI di- clude men and women with ex- “To have that special pros- over seeing his name mentioned “I have no evidence of collu- New York rately will perform next month rector after his abrupt fi ring of perience in law enforcement or ecutor, people would breathe a constantly in connection with sion. But the president needs to at the Glastonbury festival in James Comey, but Democrats are national security, and others sigh of relief, because then there the investigation when, accord- back off here and let the investi- England. threatening to throw up road- more associated with politics. would be a real independent per- ing to the president himself and gation go forward. op superstar Katy Perry The singer announced the blocks unless a special pros- Among the group are the cur- son overlooking the FBI director,” several lawmakers, he is not a We need to call Comey and get yesterday announced album news on Twitter where ecutor is named to probe team rent acting FBI director Andrew Senate minority leader Chuck target of the probe. to the bottom of all of this,” Gra- Pa new album and tour, she has more followers than Trump’s ties to Russia. McCabe, senior Republican Schumer said Sunday. The president insinuated in a ham added. promising a more mature and anyone else at more than Trump has said he wants Senator John Cornyn, New York The Democrats cannot actual- tweet last week that he has tapes He said the next FBI director refl ective side after taking time 98mn. to move swiftly on replacing judge Michael Garcia, former ly prevent a Senate vote on a new of conversations he held with should be “beyond reproach” off . Perry has already released Comey, whose shock dismissal Justice Department offi cial Alice FBI director. Comey. and be free of political trappings The 32-year-old singer said two tracks from Witness. The triggered accusations that the Fisher, former presidential ad- But they could delay it with That got Washington — rattled so as to ensure an independent that Witness, her fi rst album fi rst, Chained to the Rhythm, president is trying to obstruct an viser Fran Townsend, Republican foot-dragging measures, and and surprised almost daily by probe of the Russia aff air. since 2013’s mega-hit Prism, has echoes of the disco era FBI probe into whether his cam- former congressman Mike Rog- that would be rare for a vote on the shoot-from-the-hip Trump Democrats are asking the would come out on June 9. along with a reggae off -beat paign colluded with Russia to tilt ers, and Trey Gowdy, who led a the FBI chief. presidency — into a veritable White House to release any tapes She also announced an ex- and an appearance by Bob the November election his way. congressional panel that probed Such nominations tend to get lather. Trump may have made so as to tensive tour, for now just of Marley’s grandson Skip Mar- A dozen diff erent names are the attacks on the US consulate support from both parties. The Washington Post quoted determine if he tried to intimi- North America, to begin on ley. Perry’s follow-up track, being mentioned in US media as in Benghazi, Libya in 2012. As it stands, Republican lead- former Trump business associ- date Comey or even obstruct jus- September 7 in Columbus, Bon Appetit, also has a dance candidates to replace Comey. Po- Trump’s pick to succeed ers do not support the naming of ates and journalists as saying tice. Ohio. feel but heads in a trap direc- litico puts the number at 14. Comey will have to fi rst appear a special prosecutor in the Russia they have long suspected that Said Graham: “If there are any Perry, who will close the tion with a collaboration by “Almost all of them are very at hearings before a Senate panel, aff air. Trump bugged his own phone tapes, they have to be turned North American tour on Feb- Atlanta hip-hop trio Migos. well known. They’ve been vetted before their nomination is put to But that does not mean they calls. over.” Top court rules in favour of debt collectors

Reuters deceptive or misleading” under the Fair Sotomayor also was critical of Mid- The US Supreme Court put the peal was fi led by Cooper’s predecessor, The law, one of a number of simi- Washington Debt Collection Practices Act, the fed- land’s business practices during the fi nal nail in the coffi n of North Caro- Republican Pat McCrory, before the lar statutes passed by Republican- eral law under which Johnson brought January oral argument in the case. lina’s strict voter-identifi cation law Democrat took offi ce in January. controlled states, was opposed by civil her lawsuit. Lawyers for debtors have said it is yesterday, rejecting a Republican bid Chief Justice John Roberts, citing a rights groups, including the state chap- he US Supreme Court yesterday Midland sought payment of $1,879 commonplace for debt collection com- to revive the measure struck down by a “blizzard of fi lings over who is and who ter of the NAACP, as well as Democrats. handed a victory to debt collec- in debt that Johnson had incurred more panies, which buy consumer debt at lower court for intentionally aiming to is not authorised to seek review in this Republicans have said the laws are Ttors, ruling that people who have than a decade earlier. pennies on the dollar, to try to recoup suppress black voter turnout. court under North Carolina law”, wrote needed to prevent voter fraud. fi led for bankruptcy cannot sue compa- Alabama law sets a six-year statute debt that is not legally recoverable un- The justices left in place a July 2016 a two-page statement noting that the Democrats have said the laws are nies that try to recoup old debt that is of limitations for debt to be collected. der state law unless the creditor actu- ruling by the Richmond, Virginia- confusion over who represents the state voter suppression measures intended not required to be paid back under state Justice Sonia Sotomayor dissented, ally agrees to pay it. If the debtors do based 4th US Circuit Court of Appeals was a reason not to hear the dispute. to make it harder for groups that tend to statutes of limitations. joined by fellow liberals Ruth Bader Gins- not object, claims can be made against that voided the law passed by a Repub- The North Carolina law required that back Democratic candidates, including The justices, in a 5-3 decision, ruled burg and Elena Kagan, and excoriated the them when they have entered bank- lican-controlled legislature and signed certain forms of government-issued black and Hispanic voters, to cast bal- in favour of Midland Funding, a subsid- business practices of debt collectors. ruptcy even when there is no legal basis by a Republican governor. photo identifi cation cards be presented lots. iary of Encore Capital Group Inc, which “Professional debt collectors have for the debt to be collected. The state’s new Democratic gover- by voters, allowing for example driver’s The appeals court found that the was sued by an Alabama debtor named built a business out of buying stale Lawyers for the debt collection com- nor, Roy Cooper, and its Democratic at- licenses, passports and military identi- North Carolina law’s provisions “target Aleida Johnson who entered bankrupt- debt, fi ling claims in bankruptcy pro- panies said bankruptcy law allows them torney general, Josh Stein, had told the fi cation cards but not public assistance African-Americans with almost surgi- cy in 2014. ceedings to collect it, and hoping that to fi le such claims even when there is no justices they wanted to drop the state’s cards used disproportionately by mi- cal precision” and “impose cures for Liberal Justice Stephen Breyer joined no one notices that the debt is too old to legal mechanism for them to collect. appeal of the 4th Circuit ruling. norities in North Carolina. problems that did not exist”, conclud- four of the court’s conservatives in the be enforced by the courts,” Sotomayor Justice Neil Gorsuch did not partici- But the Republican-led state legisla- Other provisions included cutting ing that the Republican-led legislature majority. Writing for the court, Breyer wrote. “This practice is both ‘unfair’ pate in the ruling because the case was ture said it should be able to intervene early voting days and ending same-day enacted the measure “with discrimina- said Midland’s action was not “false, and ‘unconscionable.’” argued before he joined the high court. in the case to defend the law. The ap- voter registration. tory intent”. Gulf Times 14 Tuesday, May 16, 2017 ASEAN

SMUGGLED CRACKDOWN AFRICAN SAFARI EMPLOYMENT 330 endangered tortoises Indonesians arrested over Woman held for smuggling Bali cop killer’s prison seized in Malaysia Sumatran tiger poaching leopard and elephant parts term raised to 5 years

Malaysia has seized 330 endangered Indonesian authorities have arrested two men on A woman has been detained at Ho Chi Minh An Indonesian court yesterday increased the jail ploughshare and Indian Star tortoises that were suspicion of poaching Sumatran tigers and seized a City’s airport carrying leopard skins, ivory and term of an Australian woman convicted of killing smuggled into the country, customs off icials skin and bones taken from one of the rare animals, other African wildlife products, local media a policeman on the resort island of Bali to five at Kuala Lumpur airport said yesterday. The a national park off icial said yesterday. Awaludin reported yesterday. The suspect, a 62-year-old years after prosecutors appealed her original tortoises had been flown into the country from and Sabian, who like many Indonesians go by one Vietnamese national, was caught at Tan Son sentence. Sara Connor, 46, was handed a four- Madagascar on May 14, and were documented name, were detained on Saturday by police and Nhat international airport’s customs on Sunday, year jail term in March after being found guilty in the flight’s manifest as stones, Abdul Wahid forest rangers in a village in North Bengkulu district with three leopard skins, 4kg of ivory and nine along with her British DJ boyfriend of killing Sulong, deputy director of KLIA Customs, told on western Sumatra island. Authorities acted on elephant tails, Vietnam News Agency (VNA) off icer Wayan Sudarsa, who was beaten to death reporters. The tortoises are valued at 1.2mn a tip-off from villagers who said the men often reported. Authorities estimated that the total on a popular beach on the island. The Briton, Malaysian Airports Customs Deputy-Director ringgit ($277,000), and the local address to hunted for protected species in the enormous value of the goods, which had been smuggled in 34-year-old David Taylor, was jailed for six years. Abdul Wahid Sulong poses with seized which they were shipped was found to be false, Kerinci Seblat national park. The International a flight from an undisclosed African country, was Taylor, whose stage name is DJ Nutzo, admitted endangered ploughshare and radiated he added. Ploughshare tortoises are endemic Union for Conservation of Nature classifies the $88,000. The trade in leopard parts and ivory is getting into a fight with Sudarsa on the beach tortoises following a press conference at the to Madagascar, and are listed as critically Sumatran tiger as critically endangered and banned under the multilateral CITES treaty, as after accusing the off icer of stealing Connor’s Customs Complex in Sepang yesterday. endangered. estimates as few as 440 remain in the wild. well as Vietnamese laws. handbag.

Albino orangutan Navy drill named ‘Alba’ aft er Vietnam arrests global appeal A conservation group said yes- Malaysian Navy corvette terday it has chosen the name activist as MP KD Lekir (centre) and Alba for a rare albino orangutan Thailand’s Navy frigate rescued from captivity in Indo- HTMS Naresuan take nesia after receiving a flood of resigns over part in the inaugural suggestions from the public. maritime review along The name means ‘dawn’ in the strait near Changi Spanish and ‘white’ in Latin, mass fi sh deaths Naval Base in Singapore and the Borneo Orangutan Sur- yesterday. Twenty-eight vival (BOS) Foundation said the foreign warships from choice carried great significance. AFP 20 navies participated “Hopefully a new dawn will Hanoi in the inaugural review, come for these precious ani- which is part of Singapore mals,” the group, which is caring Navy’s 50th anniversary for the critically endangered ietnam yesterday arrested another celebration. ape, said in a statement. activist for organising protests over BOS Foundation launched an Vmass fi sh deaths caused by pollu- appeal last week for members tion from a steel plant, the same day a law- of the public to pick a name for maker resigned over the environmental the female Bornean orangutan, scandal. and said they had received Taiwanese steel fi rm Formosa was thousands of suggestions from blamed for pollution last year which killed around the world. tonnes of fi sh, including rare species, and The white-haired, blue-eyed decimated livelihoods in coastal fi shing animal was rescued on the Indo- communities in central Vietnam. nesian part of Borneo island last The fi rm, which was in the process of month from villagers who had building the plant, was fi ned $500mn over been keeping her in a cage. the disaster. The BOS Foundation says But anger still seeths in coastal commu- it is the first time in its 25-year nities and regular protests have continued history that it has taken in an since the fi sh kill in April last year. albino orangutan. Vietnam has cracked down on the pro- Multinationals hit by The five-year-old was in poor tests and arrested leaders. condition after being rescued Police in the central province of Nghe but the foundation said she was An yesterday detained activist Hoang Duc now having a “great recovery” Binh on charges of “causing public disor- and had gained about 4.5kg in der and abusing his democratic freedom to the past fortnight. infringe upon the state’s interests”. The orangutan — which was Binh, 34, was accused of organising Hanoi-linked hackers rescued in Kapuas Hulu district fi shing communities, provoking local — is being cared for at BOS’s fi shermen and Catholics to stage regular Reuters cyber-attacks against organisations It is also the fi rst time FireEye had In the case of the German manu- rehabilitation centre, which is protests including a recent demonstration Singapore or individuals,” said foreign ministry assigned the label APT — standing facturer, he said, “one would suspect home to almost 500 orangutans. outside a police station. spokeswoman Le Thi Thu Hang. for advanced persistent threat, a term the timing isn’t coincidental and the Normal Bornean orangutans His detention sparked hundreds of lo- “All cyber attacks or threats to cy- usually reserved for state-sponsored government has an unfair advantage.” have reddish-brown hair. cal residents in Nghe An province to gather ackers either working for the bersecurity must be condemned and hacker groups — to a group outside The same group was responsible BOS Foundation said they and demand his release with images on so- Vietnamese government or severely punished in accordance with China and Russia. for earlier attacks on local and foreign were examining albinism in cial media showing hundreds of police be- Hon their behalf have broken regulations and laws.” Robert Trong Tran, who directs journalists, as well as dissidents and great apes before deciding on ing deployed to the scene. into the computers of multinationals Carr said FireEye had observed the PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) cy- the Vietnamese diaspora in Australia the best course of action for State controlled Vietnam Television operating in the country as part of an group, which it called APT32, tar- bersecurity services business in Vi- and Southeast Asia, he said. Alba’s future welfare. said three policemen briefl y taken hostage increasingly sophisticated cyberespi- geting foreign corporations with in- etnam, said before the publication of It was the same group that Chinese “We can’t simply place by the crowds were later released. onage campaign, cybersecurity com- terests in Vietnam’s manufacturing, the report that he was not aware of cybersecurity company SkyEye Labs Alba in a forest area, nor in a Around the same time Vietnam’s rub- pany FireEye said yesterday. consumer products and hospitality any cases of European companies be- called OceanLotus in 2015, Carr said. sanctuary, without thoroughly ber-stamp National Assembly accepted Nick Carr, senior manager of Fi- sectors since 2014. ing hacked. SkyEye, a part of Internet company examining all possibilities,” said the resignation of lawmaker Vo Kim Cu reEye’s Mandiant Incident Response In several cases, he said, the hackers PwC declined to comment on the Qihoo 360, wrote that the group was Jamartin Sihite, BOS Founda- over the fi sh deaths, part of a carefully team, said in an interview the same sought information about the compa- FireEye report. behind attacks on Chinese govern- tion CEO. choreographed punishment that has been group was also responsible for hack- nies’ operations and their adherence Amanuel Flobbe, chairman of the ment agencies, research institutes “So far we have been unable laid on for a number of offi cials implicated ing into the computers of Vietnamese to local regulations, something he had Vietnam European Chamber of Com- and companies. to find any other example of an in the disaster. dissidents and journalists. rarely seen other hacker groups at- merce’s Information and Communi- It did not identify Vietnam as the albino orangutan and we need Last month Cu and three other offi cials He said it was impossible to iden- tempt. cations Technologies committee, said source of the attacks. to know more about her and were stripped of their party positions over tify or locate the hackers precisely or Victims included a German manu- that while European companies in SkyEye did not respond to requests her special situation.” the Formosa scandal. confi rm they were working for the Vi- facturing company about to build a Vietnam had been damaged by hack- for comment. The Bornean orangutan, The party secretariat said Cu made etnamese government, but the infor- factory in Vietnam, a Chinese hotel ers, it was no diff erent to hacks seen Carr said that his own research which along with the Sumat- multiple violations including failing to ad- mation they sought would be of very developer planning to expand its op- elsewhere. confi rmed it was the same group, but ran orangutan are Asia’s only equately monitor the implementation of little use to any other party. erations in the country, and the local Vietnam has long been vulnerable that he didn’t have any recent evi- great apes, is classified by the the steel plant. The attacks are unrelated to the offi ce of a British-based global con- to hacking, both criminal and politi- dence that APT32 continued to target International Union for Conser- While Formosa has been fi ned, it has WannaCry ransomware worm that sulting fi rm. cally motivated. China. vation of Nature as “critically been given a green light to restart opera- has ravaged computers around the He said in most cases the compa- In January, Microsoft listed it be- The group is also linked to attacks endangered”. Around 100,000 tions. world since Friday. nies were household names. hind only Mongolia of countries in- on journalists, activists, dissidents and are estimated to live on Borneo, Last month Vietnam said it could test “All the activity we have seen is of He declined to identify them, citing fected with malware, with more than bloggers in Vietnam reported by the which is divided between the plant’s fi rst blast furnace for a six interest to the nation of Vietnam,” client confi dentiality. double the worldwide average. Electronic Frontier Foundation in 2013. Malaysia, Brunei and Indonesia, month trial period. Carr said in a phone interview ahead Executives, human resources and Carr said the hackers “could do a It has also targeted Vietnamese according to the IUCN. Formosa completed 17 environmental of yesterday’s publication of a FireEye fi nance staff were targeted, he said. lot of damage or could have a lot of overseas and broke into the comput- Their habitat has shrunk dra- protection checks and had adequately ad- report on hacking in Vietnam. The report marks the fi rst time a impact on the organisations’ compet- ers of a Western national parliament, matically as the island’s rain forests dressed most of the violations required to The government rejected the ac- cybersecurity company has pointed to itive advantage, their ability to suc- Carr wrote in the report. are increasingly turned into oil operate after the disaster, according to Vi- cusation. “The government of Vi- Vietnam as the source of state-moti- cessfully navigate investigations and Vietnamese media organisations palm, rubber or paper plantations. etnam Television. etnam does not allow any form of vated cyber-attacks. regulations.” have also been targeted, he said. Free incubators save lives of Indonesian babies

By Kiki Siregar, AFP in Indonesia. The public insur- in need, a volunteer brings one doctors said Maryamah could Bogor, Indonesia ance scheme — introduced in round for them. no longer stay in the hospital 2014 — has helped as it some- The service began in the capi- as her condition had stabilised, times covers the cost of incuba- tal Jakarta, and has now expand- prompting her parents to launch iny Indonesian baby Mar- tors for a while. ed to an additional 48 cities, from a desperate search for help. yamah stared around from But families unable to aff ord the island of Sumatra in the west “We were slowly recovering Tinside an incubator, her the high cost of continued care to the mountainous Papua region from the shock of having a pre- bright eyes swivelling left and are often forced to take their in the east. mature baby, but then we had right from under a woollen hat newborns home early. As the service has grown, the another problem — how were that was far too big for her. Koestoer, who works at the professor has recruited two of his we going to take care of her at When she was born prema- University of Indonesia just out- students to work with him, and home?” said Prayogi. turely, Maryamah was just 1.2kg, side Jakarta, started his lending he hopes to extend the initiative After asking around, he found less than half the usual weight of scheme back in 2012, using his to 300 cities. out about the incubator lending a newborn in Indonesia. technical expertise to design and Koestoer, 62, says he has so far service from a friend. Now safely back at home, she build ultra-light, portable incu- built 180 incubators that have “I sent a text message and the is still diminutive but nestles bators. helped about 1,500 babies, in- response was very fast. After a few comfortably in a small incubator His interest in incubators be- cluding twins and triplets. minutes the operator got in touch lent to family, who live in a poor gan when he fi xed one of the de- “Our success ratio is 100%,” he with me, and said that the incu- neighbourhood in the city of Bo- vices for his elder brother, a pae- said. “1,500 babies — 100% alive, bator can be picked up as soon as gor on Java island. diatrician, and then learned how healthy.” the baby is at home,” he said. She is one of hundreds of pre- to construct them himself. The scheme has proved inval- Maryamah now weighs 2.4kg mature babies born in Indone- To fund the scheme, he sought uable for Maryamah and her par- and although she still spends a sia benefi ting from the work of individuals willing to donate ents, Yulia Herawati and Prayogi, lot of time in the incubator, her an engineering professor who is 3.5mn rupiah ($260) each — the who like many Indonesians goes parents now feel safe taking her building incubators and lend- cost of making one incubator — by one name. out and playing with her. ing them for free to low-income and also to transport the devices Herawati underwent a caesar- While running the scheme is families in a bid to fi ll a gap in the to the homes of selected families. ean section in February when she a big task, Koestoer says it all healthcare system. Maryamah Sudigyo, who was born prematurely, plays in an incubator in her home in Bogor. People who have signed up are was almost eight months preg- seems worth it when he meets “The government has a pro- generally middle-class profes- nant due to high blood pressure. the children he has helped. gram of public health insurance, est number of premature births birth complications are the lead- them warm and can help prevent sionals and include many in the Her baby was at fi rst allowed to “When a mother comes here but it cannot cover all the people,” of any nation in the world, at ing cause of death among chil- infections. healthcare sector. stay in a hospital incubator with with her baby and it is in good Raldi Artono Koestoer, who es- 675,700 a year, according to the dren under fi ve. But getting access to the live- People requiring an incubator the help of government insurance. health, I’m the happiest man tablished the initiative, told AFP. World Health Organization. Babies born early can need saving devices is a huge challenge send a text message to a special But after seven weeks, when in the world,” he said, speaking Indonesia has the fi fth great- The WHO says that pre-term specialist care. Incubators keep for the millions living in poverty number, and if they are deemed the baby was still only 1.5kg, from his university offi ce. Gulf Times Tuesday, May 16, 2017 15 AUSTRALASIA/EAST ASIA

‘CONSPIRACY’ NO TSUNAMI CRISIS MISSING CLOSE SHAVE Pope’s aide denies new 6.2-magnitude quake hits Aboriginal women locked Japanese military plane Australia, NZ escaped Australia abuse claims off Papua New Guinea up at ‘skyrocketing’ rate disappears from radar global cyber attack

Vatican finance chief George Pell yesterday A 6.2-magnitude earthquake struck off Papua New Indigenous women in Australia are being locked A Japanese army reconnaissance plane Australia and New Zealand appeared to have accused sections of the Australian media of Guinea yesterday, the US Geological Survey said, but up at a “skyrocketing” rate, a new report released disappeared yesterday from radar with four escaped largely unscathed as they woke up interfering in the course of justice as he denied no Pacific-wide tsunami warning was issued. The yesterday said, accusing the government of people on board, the country’s Defence Ministry yesterday for their first business day since a new child sex abuse allegations. Pell, Australia’s shallow tremor struck in waters near the sparsely overlooking a “national crisis” that was causing has said. Ground control lost contact with the massive ransomware worm hit thousands of most senior Catholic cleric, was interviewed in populated New Britain island, 450km northeast immeasurable harm. The incarceration rate for Beechcraft LR-2 plane around 11.50am, about computer systems around the world, disrupting Rome by Australian police last October over of the capital Port Moresby, the agency reported. indigenous women has risen nearly 250% since 30km west of Hakodate airport on Japan’s operations at hospitals, shops and schools. Cyber historical sex assault claims against him. No The Hawaii-based Pacific Tsunami Warning Center a 1991 report by the Royal Commission into northernmost main island, Hokkaido, the Kyodo Security Minister Dan Tehan said that just three charges have yet been laid. A book by investigative did not issue a widespread tsunami warning. Aboriginal Deaths in Custody, the Human Rights News Agency reported the ministry as saying. businesses had been hit by the bug, despite worries journalist Louise Milligan, Cardinal: The Rise and New Britain, the largest island of the Bismarck Law Centre and the campaign groups Change Around half an hour earlier the plane reportedly of widespread infection. There were no reported Fall of George Pell, now includes fresh details on Archipelago, is east of mainland New Guinea and the Record said. While indigenous women make took off in poor weather from Sapporo Okadama cases in New Zealand. “At this stage, it does seem allegations against him, and new information has a population of around 500,000. It lies on the up only 2% of Australia’s adult female population, airport. A pilot, backup pilot and two mechanics like that we have missed the major impact of this claiming a cover-up within the Catholic Church. 4,000-kilometre Pacific-Australia plate, which forms they represent about 34% of the female prison were aboard the plane, Kyodo said. The plane ransomware incident,” Tehan said on ABC radio. The Pell has denied all the accusations and suggested a part of the “Ring of Fire”, a hotspot for seismic population, with even more women in and out of was scheduled to transport a patient from a spread of the worm dubbed WannaCry began after conspiracy against him. activity due to friction between tectonic plates. courts and police cells. hospital in Hakodate. working hours on Friday Australian time. China decries Coming of age protectionism at Silk Road conference

AFP around a third of global gross domestic Beijing product. China has defended globalisation at a time when the United States is retreating hinese President Xi Jinping yes- into “America First” policies on trade and terday criticised protectionism at foreign relations under President Donald Ca summit positioning Beijing as a Trump. champion of globalisation, but some Eu- While some see Beijing’s project as a ropean nations challenged Beijing to ad- geopolitical powerplay, Xi has insisted dress concerns about its own trade prac- that the Belt and Road is open to every- tices. body. Xi addressed almost 30 leaders on the “In a world of growth, interdependence second day of a forum on his new Silk and challenges, no country can tackle the Road plan, a huge infrastructure project challenges or solve the world’s problems intended to revive ancient land and sea on its own,” he said as he sat next to Rus- trade routes from Asia to Europe and Af- sian President Vladimir Putin. rica. Putin and other leaders praised Xi’s “Globalisation is encountering some project. South Korean students attend a traditional coming-of-age ceremony at Namsan hanok village in Seoul yesterday. The ceremony marks the age of 19, at headwinds,” Xi told leaders from coun- “Today any signals that would give which a person is legally able to make life choices. tries ranging from Spain to Turkey, Russia hope for stability are in demand. In that and Pakistan at a convention centre near sense, the Chinese initiative is very timely the Great Wall on the outskirts of Beijing. and very useful,” Putin told reporters. “We need to seek results through great- But in a setback to Xi’s eff ort to gain full er openness and co-operation, avoid frag- support, some European Union countries mentation, refrain from setting inhibitive — Germany, Estonia and Hungary — indi- thresholds for co-operation or pursuing cated they would not sign one of the sum- HK’s ‘Snowden refugees’ face deportation: lawyer exclusive arrangements, and reject pro- mit documents on trade. tectionism.” The text on trade is one of the state- He compared countries to “swan ments that were to be published after the AFP “The decisions are completely un- After leaving his initial Hong risk of persecution. and geese” that can “fl y long and safely end of the summit yesterday, along with Hong Kong reasonable,” their lawyer Robert Ti- Kong hotel bolthole for fear of being After government screening, through winds and storms because they the fi nal communique. bbo told reporters, saying the proce- discovered, Snowden went under- claimants found to be at risk of per- move in tandem and help each other as a A diplomat who requested anonym- dures had been “manifestly unfair” ground, fed and looked after by the secution are referred to the UN’s ref- team”. ity told AFP the EU countries believe the group of refugees who shel- towards his clients. refugees for around two weeks. ugee agency, which can try to resettle The Chinese leader used the interna- text did not suffi ciently address European tered fugitive whistleblower The refugees have said previously Their stories only emerged late last them to a safe third country. tional gathering to promote his signature concerns on transparency of public pro- AEdward Snowden in Hong they were specifi cally asked about year. But with fewer than 1% of cases foreign policy project, the One Belt, One curement and social and environmental Kong are facing deportation after their links to Snowden by Hong Kong As well as Rodel and Pushpakuma- successfully substantiated by city Road initiative. standards. the city’s authorities rejected their authorities. ra, the group includes a Sri Lankan authorities, most refugees live in fear He later announced that the two-day China only presented the document bid for protection, their lawyer said “We now have less than two weeks couple with two young children. of deportation. summit reached “broad consensus” on to negotiators last week, telling them it yesterday. to submit appeals before the families The adults say they experienced Hong Kong’s 11,000 marginalised the project and that China will host a new could no longer be reworked, according to The impoverished Filipino and Sri are deported,” said Tibbo alongside the torture and persecution in their own refugees spend years in limbo, hop- forum in 2019. the offi cial. Lankan refugees helped the former refugees, who were visibly distressed. countries and cannot safely return. ing the government will eventually “This forum has sent a positive mes- On Sunday, German Economy Minister National Security Agency contractor He said there was a risk his clients Their lawyers and some city legis- support their claims. sage to the rest of the world that we will Brigitte Zypries called for transparency to evade authorities in 2013 by hiding could be detained and their children lators have said two of the Sri Lankan Lawyers for the Snowden refugees work together to advance Belt and Road ensure that the calls for investment bids him in their cramped homes after he placed in government custody. refugees have been targeted by separately lodged an asylum petition co-operation and build a future of shared are “non-discriminatory”. initiated one of the largest data leaks One of the refugees, Vanessa Rodel agents from their home country who with the Canadian government in prosperity for mankind,” he said after the “I think there is still room for improve- in US history. from the Philippines, who lives in travelled to Hong Kong. March and yesterday called for that close of the summit. ment in this area,” Zypries said. They have spent years hoping the Hong Kong with her fi ve-year-old Hong Kong is not a signatory to the process to be expedited. Xi pledged on Sunday to pump an extra But other Europeans praised Xi’s government would recognise their daughter, broke down over the news. UN’s refugee convention and does Human Rights Watch also urged $124bn into the China-bankrolled project, project. “In these times, when the temp- cases and save them from being sent “The fi rst thing on my mind is I not grant asylum. the Canadian government to “in- which involves a huge network of ports, tation is great to respond to the crisis of back to their home countries, where don’t want to be detained and I don’t However, it is bound by the UN tervene swiftly and protect them” railways, roads and industrial parks. globalisation by increasing isolation, and they say they were persecuted. want me and my daughter to sepa- Convention against Torture and following the rejection of their peti- The China Development Bank had al- by raising walls, this initiative highlights However, immigration authorities rate,” she told AFP. Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading tions in Hong Kong. ready earmarked $890bn for some 900 a vision of connectivity, co-operation and rejected their protection claims yes- Another of the refugees, Ajith Treatment or Punishment (UNCAT) The refugees faced “dire risk if projects. dialogue across Europe and Asia but also terday, saying there were “no sub- Pushpakumara from Sri Lanka, told and considers claims for protection sent back to their countries”, said Di- The initiative spans 65 countries repre- other parts of the world,” Greek Prime stantial grounds” for believing they AFP the government had “taken his based on those grounds. nah PoKempner, general counsel at senting 60% of the world population and Minister Alexis Tsipras said on Sunday. would be at risk if they went home. whole life” with the decision. It also considers claims based on the rights group.

Experts believe N Korea’s latest missile launch suggests progress towards ICBM

Reuters “under the worst re-entry situa- atmospheric re-entry, saying the States of a hostile policy to crush Seoul tion” and accurately detonate. possibility was low. its regime, calling its nuclear The claim, if true, could mark North Korea’s offi cial Rodong weapons a “sacred sword” to an advancement in the North’s Sinmun newspaper devoted half protect itself. orth Korea’s successful ICBM programme exceeding of its six-page Monday edition to The North’s leader, Kim, has missile test-launch sig- most expectations, said Kim coverage of the missile test, with said it was in fi nal stages of de- Nnals major advances in Dong-yub, a professor at Kyung- vivid colour photographs of the veloping an ICBM. developing an intercontinental nam University’s Institute of Far launch and jubilant leader Kim It was diffi cult to say when the ballistic missile, such as mastery Eastern Studies in Seoul. celebrating with military offi cers. North will have a reliably tested of re-entry technology and bet- Kim, a former South Korean The pictures featured a long ICBM ready to deploy, said Lee ter engine performance key to navy offi cer, added the trajectory nose-coned projectile that ap- Choon-geun, a senior research targeting the United States, ex- showed the North was clearly peared to be similar to missiles fellow at South Korea’s state-run perts say. testing the re-entry technology displayed during an April 15 Science and Technology Policy The isolated country has been under fl ight environments con- military parade for the birth an- Institute. developing a long-range missile sistent for a ICBM. niversary of state founder Kim Il- “When it comes to actual de- capable of striking the mainland The North has successfully sung, the current leader’s grand- ployment, developed countries United States mounted with a launched long-range rockets father. have tested at least 20 ICBMs and nuclear warhead. twice to put objects into space. The nose cone resembles that their success rate should be around That would require a fl ight of But many had believed it was of the KN-08 ICBM the North is 90%. It is not there yet,” he said. 8,000km or more and technol- some years away from mastering believed to be developing, and the But the new engine used for ogy to ensure a warhead’s stable re-entry expertise for perfect- lofted trajectory tests re-entry by Sunday’s test signalled a major re-entry into the atmosphere. ing an ICBM, which uses similar putting the missile through extra step forward in the intermediate- The North’s offi cial KCNA engineering in early fl ight stages. stress, said Joshua Pollack of the range missile development, one news agency said the new strate- Sunday’s missile launch also U.S-based Nonproliferation Re- that can be modifi ed for an ICBM gic ballistic missile named Hwa- tested the North’s capability to car- view. fl ight, Lee added. song-12, fi red on Sunday at the ry a “large-size heavy nuclear war- “This is an advanced missile, if The lofted trajectory that highest angle to avoid aff ecting head”, the state news agency said. their claims are true,” he said. would have result in more than neighbouring countries’ security, The long-range strategic ballistic rocket Hwasong-12 being launched during a test in this undated photo “The test-fi re proved to the KCNA said Kim accused the 40 times the gravitational force fl ew 787km on a trajectory reach- released yesterday by North Korea’s Korean Central News Agency. full all the technical specifi ca- United States of “browbeating” at re-entry also raises questions ing an altitude of 2,111.5km. tions of the rocket...like guid- countries that “have no nukes”, about the stability of the payload The details reported by KCNA Such an altitude meant it was performance never before seen strike the US base at Guam, but ance and stabilisation systems... warning Washington not to mis- and how much stress it can with- were largely consistent with launched at a high trajectory, from a North Korean missile”, more importantly, may represent and reconfi rmed the reliability judge the reality that its main- stand, said Munich-based aero- South Korean and Japanese as- which would limit the lateral dis- John Schilling, an aerospace ex- a substantial advance to develop- of new rocket engine under the land was in the North’s “sighting space engineer Markus Schiller. sessments that it fl ew further tance travelled. pert, said in an analysis on the ing an intercontinental ballistic practical fl ight circumstances,” range for strike”. “We do not know if the re-entry and higher than an intermediate- But if it was fi red at a standard US-based 38 North website. missile (ICBM).” KCNA said. North Korea, which is banned vehicle survived this hell of a ride, range missile (IRBM) tested in trajectory, it would have a range “It appears to have not only KCNA said the test launch South Korea’s military yes- by UN resolutions from engaging and even if it did, we do not know February from the same region, of at least 4,000km, experts said. demonstrated an IRBM that verifi ed the homing feature of the terday played down the North’s in nuclear and missile develop- if North Korea can build a payload northwest of Pyongyang. The test “represents a level of might enable them to reliably warhead that allowed it to survive claim of technical progress on ments, has accused the United that will also survive this ride.” Gulf Times 16 Tuesday, May 16, 2017 BRITAIN

PEOPLE INVESTIGATION ANGER WILDLIFE VERDICT Moors Murderer New search for body of Hackney parents Owners told to keep dogs Solicitor jailed for stealing Brady ‘gravely ill’ girl slain 16 years ago protest against cuts on lead as swans attacked £160,000 from clients

Moors Murderer Ian Brady is gravely ill and Garages are being searched in an attempt to find Parents and schools in Hackney are uniting in Dog owners were yesterday told to keep their A solicitor who swindled two grieving clients out receiving palliative care, the BBC revealed. Brady, the body of a schoolgirl murdered 16 years ago. protest against government funding cuts. More pets on a lead after swans were mauled at a of £160,000 to bankroll his property business has who is 79, is being held at Ashworth Hospital, a Stuart Campbell, 59, an uncle of Danielle Jones, than 13 schools in the borough have agreed to London park. The warning was delivered after been jailed for five years. Tyrone Anthony Walker, secure psychiatric unit on Merseyside. The serial was jailed for life for her abduction and murder in display banners highlighting proposed cuts to the two bull terriers attacked a female swan near the 58, used the inheritance money “as his private killer has been ill for some time and is being looked 2002. Danielle, 15, was last seen at a bus stop near local education budget by 2019. Unveiling their first pond in Barnes Green last week. Two days later bank account”, paying cheques to himself and then after by specially-trained nurses. Brady, who now her home in East Tilbury on June 18 2001. Her body banner yesterday morning, parents backing the another two swans were attacked by dogs left spinning a web of lies about the missing funds. The uses the name Ian Stewart-Brady, was jailed for has never been found. Essex Police were led to Fair Funding For All Schools Hackney campaign off their leads, losing a chunk of their feathers. Hounslow-based lawyer, defrauded Hans Chand three murders in 1966 and has been at Ashworth the block of garages in Stiff ord Clays, Thurrock, by sent a strong message to the government to After both incidents the swans were taken to the out of £45,528 she was due from her late mother’s since 1985. He has campaigned for several years to information described as “credible”. Campbell, a rethink the plans. Hackney schools would face nearby Swan Sanctuary for treatment. Richmond estate, and took £114,000 left to Mark Downham be moved from the secure unit to a Scottish prison, builder and father-of-two, was told he would serve a 22.3% cut — £25.8mn, or £914 per-pupil — by council called for dog owners to be “responsible” by his uncle. Walker, who moved to Dubai after where he would not be force-fed and be allowed at least 20 years of his life sentence for murder. 2020, said the National Union of Teachers. Louise to prevent further attacks. Dorothy Beeson, his solicitors firm closed in 2011, tried to blame his to die if he wishes. Brady and Myra Hindley, who He was also sentenced to 10 years for Danielle’s Nichols, executive headteacher of primary schools founder of the Swan Sanctuary, said the charity former business partner during a trial at Kingston died in prison in 2002, tortured and murdered five abduction, which he is serving concurrently. Kingsmead, Gayhurst and Mandeville, said they face deals with “four or five” cases of swans attacked crown court, but was convicted on seven counts children in the 1960s. Campbell will be eligible for parole in four years. losses of between £700 and £900 per pupil. by dogs each week. of fraud. Westminster In a flap! attacker ‘had history of violence’

Guardian News and Media notes, he is alleged to have at- London tacked two people in a pub, hit- ting one on the head with a glass and slashing the face of the sec- olice had warned that the ond. Less than six months later, in Westminster killer Khalid March 2003, he is alleged to have PMasood seemed to have pushed a man to the ground and a violent temper and displayed attacked him with a baton, “dislo- escalating levels of violence, in cating his shoulder, fracturing his a report written years before the collarbone and causing bruises to attack in which fi ve people died. his head and body”. The report compiled by the Masood appears to have been Criminal Records Bureau on acquitted for another of the in- Masood, and seen by the Guard- cidents mentioned in the report, ian, lists six convictions over two which describes how in May 2003 decades, and alleges he was in- he stabbed a 21-year-old man volved in a series of other violent “in the top of the nose” before off ences. Sussex police wrote in bringing the knife down “through Pigeons land on visitors to St James Park in London yesterday. the report: “Masood seems to the bridge of his nose, top of his have a violent temper which he mouth and into his lower jaw has demonstrated in a number of where the blade snapped in his crimes between 1998 and 2003. face”. This description matches Each of them seeming to be pro- an account given by a scaff older, gressively worse.” named Danny Smith, who de- Masood was shot and killed by scribed how Masood, then known offi cers in March after he drove his as Adrian Elms, stabbed him in the car through pedestrians on West- face. Masood was charged with at- minster Bridge and then stabbed tempted murder but was cleared. police constable Keith Palmer in Three months later, Masood was Hospital battles to stop the grounds of parliament. The in jail anyway, the report notes, attack killed Palmer and four oth- where he helped lure a 22-year- ers, and left dozens wounded. old man to a cell before his throat Some details of Masood’s crim- was slit with an unknown weapon. inal past emerged after his death, The attack appears to have hap- including a pub car park assault in pened while he was on remand 2000 that left a man named Piers awaiting trial for possessing an spread of cyberattack Mott needing 20 stitches to the off ensive weapon in a public place, face. for which he was convicted in De- London Evening Standard John Lewis yesterday asked for Devices across Barts Health ceived a phone call to rebook. Hospital, was unable to accept However more details have cember 2003 and sentenced to six London an urgent summit with police NHS Trust, which runs the Royal The attack also hit Chelsea heart attack patients for a day. emerged from the CRB report, months. A CV he submitted for experts on how to protect them- London and four other east Lon- and Westminster Hospital NHS Staff worked over the weekend compiled in 2009, which outlines a job, seen by the Guardian, de- selves from a new attack. don hospitals, were marked with trust, which operates Chelsea to keep the hospitals, including incidents for which he was not scribes his interests as “jogging taff at Europe’s biggest z Microsoft said the attack, red tape by IT staff as they battled and Westminster Hospital, West Whipps Cross and Newham, safe. convicted, including an alleged and weight training”. hospital were yesterday which aff ected 150 countries, to get systems online. Middlesex Hospital and several “Everyone has pulled together,” attack in which he punched a In 2004, after he left jail, Swarned not to switch on should act as a “wake-up call” to An 8am staff message from Si- clinics, including 56 Dean Street, said a Barts spokesman. woman, and two assaults in 2003 Masood trained as an English their computers as the NHS governments to improve IT secu- mon Harrod, medical director at Europe’s biggest sexual health Lesley Watts, chief executive of using batons and coshes. teacher for speakers of other lan- battled to recover from the crip- rity. the Royal London, said: “While clinic, which was closed until 1pm Chelsea and Westminster trust, In August 1998, aged 33, guages, and in 2005 he moved to pling cyberattack. z An IT expert warned that the work continues on clearing the yesterday. said: “People causing disruption Masood “approached a 31-year- Saudi Arabia. In his CV, Masood Medics at the Royal London in WannaCry worm, the virus that virus it is important NOT TO Friday’s attack left the Royal to NHS IT systems should look in old female and said that she didn’t describes himself as having a Whitechapel were under strict sparked the meltdown, had the TURN ANY PC ON. Doing this London, one of the capital’s four the mirror and feel shame.” like him because he was black, she “clear, confi dent and professional orders not to touch their PCs for potential of a “weapon of mass will delay the repairs.” major trauma centres, unable to Amid fears of more “ran- stated it was his attitude not his manner”, adding: “Friendly and fear of spreading the ransomware destruction”. An unknown number of pa- accept new trauma cases for near- somware” attacks, an interna- colour, Masood is alleged to have approachable, as well as being virus that hit the biggest NHS Patients awaiting non-emer- tients had non-emergency pro- ly two days. Ambulances were di- tional operation is under way to spat at her and punched her in the a good listener, he is enthusias- trust and 46 others. gency procedures today were cedures cancelled yesterday, with verted until yesterday afternoon fi nd the perpetrators of the attack nose causing swelling, bleeding tic and committed, with proven The order came as: warned they could also be aff ect- more likely today. and it was closed for stroke emer- that infected 200,000 machines and a headache”, the report says. interpersonal and motivational z West End bosses represent- ed, as a NHS boss rounded on the Patients were advised to turn gencies, while the Barts Heart with a virus that exploits a fl aw in In September 2002, the report skills.” ing stores such as Selfridges and hackers. up as planned unless they had re- Centre, part of St Bartholomew’s Microsoft Windows.

Hammond in China Workers face falling 1.4mn edible bananas binned each day: data living standards: expert rescue” stations in its stores Guardian News and Media London to encourage consumers to use Guardian News and Media fi dence remains positive, with are likely to be air fares, utility bills, fruit that is overripe or past its London sectors like manufacturing and continued foreign exchange pass- best in baking, such as in ba- production proving particularly through and petrol prices,” said ritons routinely bin 1.4mn nana bread and muffins. Dam- buoyant,” said Gerwyn Davies, a Alan Clark, an economist at Sco- edible bananas every day aged fruit can also be whizzed ritish workers should brace labour market adviser at the CIPD. tiabank. “As ever, the joker in the Bat a cost of £80mn a year, up in smoothies, chopped into themselves for rising un- “The bad news is that there is pack is likely to be food and pos- figures reveal. fruit salads and dried as banana Bemployment and falling a real risk a signifi cant propor- sibly also restaurants and hotels.” A third of consumers (30%) chips. real pay in the year ahead as the tion of UK workers will see a fall in Infl ation has been steadily ris- admit to discarding a banana Supermarkets have been impact of a Brexit slowdown is their living standards as the year ing since the Brexit vote last June, if it has even a minor bruise or criticised for not doing more to increasingly felt in the jobs mar- progresses, due to a slowdown in which triggered a sharp fall in the black mark on the skin. More reduce food waste within their ket, reports have warned. basic pay and expectations of in- value of the pound, making goods than one in 10 (13%) also throw supply chains. Sainsbury’s is The era of rapidly increasing fl ation increases over the next few imported from abroad more ex- the fruit away if it shows any extending an in-store banana employment is over, according months. “This could create higher pensive. Those higher costs are green on the skin. bread trial – which sees un- to the forecasting group EY Item levels of economic insecurity and now feeding through to higher The figures, from the gov- sold fruits used by the in-store Club, which yesterday predicted could have serious implications shop prices. ernment’s waste advisory body bakery teams – to 110 stores the unemployment rate will rise for consumer spending, which A report by David Blanchfl ower, Wrap, were published yesterday nationwide after trials in seven from 4.7% now to 5.4% in 2018 has helped to support economic a former Bank of England policy- by supermarket Sainsbury’s to stores last year. and 5.8% in 2019. growth in recent months.” maker, and Stephen Machin and highlight the scale of avoidable “While we’re pleased with At the same time, UK fi rms are The warnings came as offi cial Rui Costa, both London School of food waste generated in the UK. the success of the in-store trial, planning to give workers a pay rise fi gures published tomorrow are Economics professors, argued that Through its £10mn five-year we’re determined to help shop- of just 1% over the next 12 months, expected to show infl ation rose to wages would remain low for sev- Waste Less, Save More national pers reduce the number of ba- sharply lower than the rate of in- 2.6% in April from 2.3% in March, eral years despite low unemploy- initiative, the supermarket is nanas going to waste at home fl ation, which is 2.3% and expect- putting further pressure on house- ment and record levels of employ- offering practical tips and ideas too,” said Paul Crewe, the su- ed to rise over coming months. hold budgets. ment. to help customers reduce their permarket’s head of sustain- Pay expectations are now at It would be the highest since “The Bank of England and other food waste. Using official sta- ability and environment. “Sixty their weakest in three-and-a-half September 2013, when consumer forecasters continue to state that tistics showing that the average one per cent of Britons admit years, according to the survey of price infl ation was 2.7%. The rise within 18 months wage growth will UK family throws away £700 of they never use otherwise dis- more than 1,000 employers by HR is partly expected to refl ect the revert to approximately 4% once food each year, it set a target of carded bananas in baking, so specialists the CIPD and Adecco, timing of Easter, which this year again. This is much the same fore- Chancellor of the Exchequer Philip Hammond and getting households to slash this we want to inspire customers the recruitment agency. fell in April, pushing up air fares in cast that they made in each of the Chinese Premier Li Keqiang shake hands before their by 50%. to use their fruit in different “The good news in this latest that month as a result. last 10 forecasts and these simply meeting at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China. Sainsbury’s is launching ways. There’s no need to bin the survey is that employment con- “The key infl uences this month did not turn out to be true”. hundreds of pop-up “banana bruised ones any more.” Gulf Times Tuesday, May 16, 2017 17 BRITAIN Weekend of knife mayhem in London leaves two dead

London Evening Standard aged 17 and 19, were left with se- black, who ambushed him in Bow day. Police arrested a man and a The stabbings come after a Joan Ryan, Labour’s parlia- had good intentions but the out- London rious injuries as violence erupted at 4.30pm on Saturday. He died woman who were seen driving fortnight in which 11 people died mentary candidate in Enfi eld come is disastrous. There is risk among more than 100 youths, at the scene an hour later. In oth- away from the West Cromwell in knife attacks in London and North, where Gomes was killed, on our streets. We need to enable some as young as 12. er weekend incidents: Road branch on suspicion of at- a 24% rise in knife crime over said: “We are close to epidemic the police to act.” teenager and a 41-year- All three were taken to hos- z A man in his thirties was tempted murder. They were re- 12 months. Scotland Yard has proportions on this crime. I have A Conservative spokesman re- old father became the lat- pital, where Gomes was pro- stabbed in the head and leg in an- leased without charge. launched a task force and stepped got mums saying they are fright- jected the criticism against the Aest victims of London’s nounced dead just after 11.40pm other attack in Enfi eld after a brawl z A 17-year-old went to hos- up stop-and-search in some bor- ened of their youngsters being prime minister, saying: “There wave of knife crime at the week- on Saturday. The killing came outside a Tesco in Southbury Road pital with a stab wound to the oughs. out in the evening.” is no clear relationship between end. hours after Brenton Roper, 41, on Sunday. He was said to be in a shoulder after what police de- However, the latest round of She partly blamed cutbacks in sensible controls on stop-and- Joao Gomes, 18, was stabbed to was chased, shot and stabbed to serious condition in hospital. scribed as a “fi ght with knives” bloodshed led to renewed calls for police numbers and constraints search and knife crime. When death on the steps of a temple in death in a daylight attack yards z A man is fi ghting for life af- among youths on a route 64 bus police to step up stop-and-search on stop-and-search pushed stop-and-search is misused it Enfi eld after a private party pub- from his home in east London. ter slashing his own leg during in New Addington on Friday. A activity and for courts to impose through by Theresa May as home wastes police time and under- licised on Snapchat spiralled out Witnesses said he was at- a clash at a Tesco supermarket samurai sword was found near tougher sentences on those found secretary. mines public confi dence in the of control. Two other teenagers, tacked by three hooded men in in Kensington at 3pm on Sun- the scene. guilty of carrying knives. Ryan said: “She might have police.”

Travel author’s PM vows more husband faces jail workers’ rights for attack

London Evening Standard London in bid to woo

he husband of travel writ- er Sara Wheeler is facing Tjail for breaking her arm at their home. Peter Graham, 67, attacked his Labour voters wife in March last year, fractur- ing her arm in three places. Reuters “Theresa May is taking work- at Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, Wheeler, 56, is noted for her London ing people for fools,” said Andrew saying his “nonsensical policies accounts of the polar regions. Gwynne, Labour’s campaigns would trash the economy and Her work includes the interna- and elections chairman. destroy jobs”. tional bestseller Terra Incognita: rime Minister Theresa May “The Tories (the Conserva- Listing 11 commitments, May Travels In Antarctica and The yesterday promised to ex- tives) have spent the last seven said she would increase the “na- Magnetic North: Notes From The Ptend workers’ rights in the years prioritising the few, op- tional living wage” in line with Arctic Circle. workplace and the boardroom, posing Labour’s proposals to give median earnings, give new pro- She has also published biog- part of a push to win over tradi- workers more rights and over- tections to “gig” economy work- raphies of Antarctica explorer tional working class supporters seeing wage stagnation which ers and off er a new statutory Apsley Cherry-Garrard and of the opposition Labour Party in has left people worse off ,” Gwyn- right for workers to receive infor- Denys Finch Hatton, the lover next month’s election. ne said. mation about major decisions in of Out Of Africa author Karen May, appointed prime minis- The fi nance spokesman of companies, in keeping with the Blixen and she was elected as a ter after Britain voted to leave the the centrist Liberal Democrats, rights of shareholders. Fellow of the Royal Society of European Union last June, wants Vince Cable, said he had experi- She would also include new Literature in 1999. to seal a decisive victory for her ence of the Conservatives try- rights for those who have to She revealed the attack by her Conservative Party in the June 8 ing to ban workers from striking leave work to care for fam- husband after police were called election to strengthen her hand when he was part of the 2010- ily members, or experience the to their home in Hampstead in in the Brexit talks, but opposi- 2015 coalition government and death of a child, those who want February this year, Blackfriars tion parties said her latest bid urged voters not to trust them. to train and protections for crown court heard. was part of a campaign to “fool” May’s governing Conserva- those suffering mental health Prosecutor Babatunde Alabi working people. tive Party has a clear lead in the problems. said it was a “malicious call”, but On a visit to southern Eng- opinion polls, but her aides say But on a Facebook live session Wheeler told offi cers about an land, May committed to keep- she does not want to become the later yesterday, the policy was attack on March 26 the previous ing EU guarantees on workers’ latest victim of misleading pre- criticised for being unpaid. “I year. “Graham made full admis- rights, getting workers repre- dictions after pollsters wrongly said I would use Brexit to extend sions about it,” he told the court. sented on company boards and forecast last year that Britain the protections and rights that Orla Daly, defending, said: protecting pensions from “irre- would vote to stay in the EU. workers enjoy, and our manifes- “This is a rather unusual case. sponsible behaviour by compa- Using one of her campaign to will deliver exactly that,” she Police were called out in rela- ny bosses” — a clear reference catchphrases, she again took aim said. tion to a separate incident, and to billionaire Philip Green who during the investigation was the oversaw the demise of depart- Angry voter yells at prime minister revelation that there had been a ment store BHS. previous incident. May also outlined plans to Prime Minister Theresa May a help from the authorities. May, “The defendant, when arrested, tackle pay gaps between diff erent was confronted while out who critics say has so far run a admitted previously there had races and ages, introducing a de- campaigning yesterday ahead stage-managed campaign which been an incident which is the sub- mand for employers to be trans- of next month’s election by an has kept her away from ordinary ject matter of this indictment.” parent to correct “an injustice angry voter who scolded the Britons, listened politely and The court heard that the couple, which cannot be allowed in 21st leader over cuts to disability nodded at the voter before trying who have two sons, had separated century Britain”. benefits. “Theresa are you going to explain the government policy. and that Graham had moved into “Our plans...will be the great- to help us?” the voter, who was “We are going to do a number an apartment in Highbury. est expansion in workers’ rights addressed as Cathy, asked as of things,” said May, who has He is banned from contacting by any Conservative government May walked around a market in promised to make Britain work Wheeler but is allowed to visit in history,” May said. “There is Abingdon in central England. “I for all citizens, before the voter the family home as long as he only one leader at this election am being serious, I want you to interrupted her. “The fat cats leaves before she returns. who will put rights and opportu- do something for us.” The voter keep the money and us lot get Wheeler has talked about their nities for ordinary working fami- said she had learning diff iculties nothing,” the voter said. “I can’t home, a converted Victorian lies fi rst.” which were so serious that she live on £100 a month. They took butcher’s shop, as a treasure trove Labour accused May of mak- could not write a letter asking for it all away from me.” of mementoes from her travels. Prime Minister Theresa May makes a campaign visit to Abingdon Market near Oxford yesterday. ing “ridiculous claims”. Senior police offi cer ‘Raindrop cake’ Tory MP sorry for swearing at schoolgirl quits over spy claims Guardian News and Media Tories, who are trying to fight London off a challenge from the former Liberal Democrat MP Tessa Guardian News and Media ports over the weekend about autobiography published three Munt. The LibDem leader, Tim London which I am unable to comment. years ago. Conservative candidate Farron, was in the constituency This coverage is signifi cantly im- A member of the public spot- has apologised for swear- helping Munt campaign last pacting on my ability to carry out ted the signifi cance of the brief Aing at a Scottish school- week. deputy police and crime my duties as deputy police and remark in the book recently and girl after she said she would vote Munt said she was shocked by commissioner has re- crime commissioner. tipped off campaigners at the for independence if there was a Heappey’s remarks, which were Asigned after he was ac- “I have therefore tendered my Undercover Research Group, a second referendum. made in March before the elec- cused of deceiving a woman into resignation with immediate ef- network of activists scrutinising James Heappey, who is stand- tion was called while he was the a sexual relationship while he fect, which (the) police and crime the deployment of police spies. ing for re-election in Wells, made area’s MP. was an undercover offi cer. commissioner, Jason Ablewhite Investigations by the group the remark during a debate with Munt said: “School is meant Andy Coles, the deputy po- has accepted.” and the Guardian had revealed sixth-formers at the fee-paying to be a safe place. We send our lice and crime commissioner He disclosed that the allega- how Coles adopted a fake iden- Millfi eld school in Somerset. children to school in the expec- for Cambridgeshire and Peter- tions have been referred to the tity and infi ltrated animal rights Heappey said his comment tation that they will be treated borough, stepped down three Independent Police Complaints groups between 1991 and 1995. was intended to be light-hearted. fairly and with respect by people days after his past as an under- Commission to be investigated. He had pretended to be “Andy In a statement he said: “I in positions of power. cover offi cer infi ltrating political Jessica, who had called for Davey”, a removal van driver liv- made a comment – intended “I am utterly shocked that the groups was revealed. his resignation, yesterday said: ing in a south London bedsit. only as a joke – but it was inap- then MP has used bullying, racist On Friday, he was accused of “I am relieved. He has done the Richard Coles described in his propriate and I am deeply sorry and abusive language to dismiss deceiving a 19-year-old activist right thing. This is just the start autobiography how his brother for any offence caused. I wrote a teenage schoolgirl engaging in into forming a sexual relation- of what is going to be a long le- had “looked like he had just to (the pupil) soon after the political debate.” ship while he was working un- gal process to try and get some walked out of the woods, his hair school brought her concerns Heappey, a former army ma- dercover in the 1990s. answers from both him and his long and shaggy, with a strag- A calorie-free, vegan ‘raindrop cake’ is about to take the to my attention and apologised jor, defeated Munt at the 2015 The Guardian disclosed that superiors.” gly beard, his ears rattling with capital by storm. The translucent cake — inspired by a unreservedly.” election. Munt’s campaign has the woman, known only as Coles’ past as an undercover piercings”. water jelly that in Japan is called mizu shingen mochi — The girl is understood to have been boosted by a win in the lo- “Jessica”, is taking legal action spy had been revealed following Jessica has told how she met tastes of little itself but takes up the flavour of the thick, raised the incident with her fa- cal elections this month when against the police, alleging that an apparent indiscretion by his “Davey” in 1992 after she had sticky, ultra-sweet molasses syrup (kuromitsu) and the ther – believed to be a Scottish she took the Wells seat from the Coles groomed and manipulated younger brother, the broadcast- joined the animal rights move- roasted soybean powder (kinako) that accompany it — National party supporter – who county council leader John Os- her. er and former pop star Richard ment as a “naive, idealistic, un- flavours which are released as it dissolves in the mouth. It contacted the school. man. In a statement yesterday, Coles Coles, who referred in passing to sophisticated and a very young is the lightest possible pudding. Wells is an important bat- The SNP has called for the To- said: “There have been news re- his brother’s covert work in his 19”. tleground constituency for the ries to suspend Heappey. Gulf Times 18 Tuesday, May 16, 2017 EUROPE

President explains Putin says US to blame hesitant musical for ransomware attack rendition AFP Reuters London Beijing

he world’s biggest ran- ussian President Vladimir somware attack levelled Putin said yesterday that Toff yesterday after wreak- Ran impromptu piano ren- ing havoc in 150 countries, but dition he gave on the sidelines Russian President Vladimir Pu- of a meeting in Beijing had been tin called it payback for the US hampered by an out of tune in- intelligence services. strument. Microsoft’s president and Putin was captured on cam- chief legal offi cer Brad Smith era on Sunday sitting down at a has said the US National Secu- grand piano in a Chinese state rity Agency (NSA) developed the residence, and performing a original code used in the attack, Putin: Microsoft’s leadership stated this directly, they said the source few slightly hesitant chords of which later leaked in a document of the virus was the special services of the United States. two popular Soviet-era compo- dump. sitions, Moscow Windows and “Microsoft’s leadership stated Health Service (NHS) were af- used by the ransomware. Evening Song. this directly, they said the source fected and several still had to A hacking group called Shad- Asked at a news briefi ng in of the virus was the special serv- cancel appointments yesterday. ow Brokers released the malware Beijing yesterday about his per- ices of the United States,” Putin French carmaker Renault shut in April, claiming to have dis- formance, Putin said he had just said on the sidelines of a sum- its Douai plant – one of its big- covered the fl aw from the NSA, been idly toying around with mit in Beijing. “A genie let out of gest sites, employing 5,500 peo- according to researchers at the the keys while he waited for his a bottle of this kind, especially ple – yesterday as systems were Moscow-based computer secu- meeting to start with Chinese created by secret services, can upgraded. rity fi rm Kaspersky Lab. leader Xi Jinping on the sidelines then cause damage to its authors The attack blocks computers The attack is unique, accord- of an international forum. and creators.” and puts up images on victims’ ing to Europol, because it com- “It’s a pity that the piano was Russia has recently been ac- screens demanding payment of bines ransomware with a worm out of tune,” Putin said. “It was cused of cyber meddling in sev- $300 (€275) in the virtual cur- function, meaning once one quite hard to play, even for me, eral countries, but Putin said A screenshot shows a WannaCry ransomware demand, provided yesterday by cyber security firm rency Bitcoin, saying: “Ooops, machine is infected, the entire someone who plays with two they had nothing to do with the Symantec, in Mountain View, California, US. your fi les have been encrypted!” internal network is scanned and fi ngers. I cannot say I played, I attack, which hit hundreds of Payment is demanded within other vulnerable machines are was just pressing the keys with thousands of computers. There had been concern that group Orange’s cyber security Telefonica and Germany’s Deut- three days or the price is dou- infected. two or three fi ngers. “A protection system ... needs yesterday’s start of the working arm, a “second wave” is to be sche Bahn rail network were bled, and if none is received Although the economic fall- “I thought that if Mr Peskov to be worked out,” he said. week would see an upsurge in expected. among those hit. within seven days the locked out is still unknown, the politi- is fi lming, it’s probably for per- Smith earlier said he hoped attacks but the number of inci- “Many people will use the The attackers demanded fi les will be deleted, according to cal fallout “will be signifi cant” sonal use, for the archive,” Putin the attacks would serve as “a dents reported levelled off . original to generate variations ... money to unblock their comput- the screen message. according to the Eurasia consul- said, referring to his spokesman, wake-up call”, warning govern- The cross-border police to recreate the panic and try to ers. Bitcoin, the world’s most- tancy. Dmitry Peskov. “But they de- ments against stockpiling code agency Europol said the situa- get some money for themselves,” In China, “hundreds of thou- used virtual currency, allows As well as Russia, China and cided to post it. But never mind. that could be misused if it fell tion was “stable”, after attacks he said. sands” of computers were af- anonymous transactions via India have blamed the US gov- I think I didn’t let you down.” into the wrong hands. that struck computers in Brit- The indiscriminate attack was fected, including petrol stations, heavily encrypted codes. ernment for developing the Another reporter at the news And vulnerabilities should be ish hospital wards, European car unleashed on Friday, striking cash machines and universities, Experts and governments original code. conference asked what tune Pu- pointed out to manufacturers, factories and Russian banks. hundreds of thousands of com- according to Qihoo 360, one of alike warn against ceding to the It also predicted a review in tin would play for US President he said. “The number of victims ap- puters worldwide by exploiting the country’s largest providers demands and few victims so far the United States about when Donald Trump if they were to “An equivalent scenario with pears not to have gone up,” a known vulnerabilities in older of antivirus software. had been paying up. to inform software vendors of meet. conventional weapons would be senior spokesman for Europol, Microsoft computer operating Russia said its banking and Security fi rm Digital Shadows vulnerabilities in their systems “I don’t know, I think we’d the US military having some of Jan Op Gen Oorth, told AFP. systems. railway systems were hit. said on Sunday that transactions and increased funding to ensure need to meet him, have a dis- its Tomahawk missiles stolen,” But according to Michel Van US package delivery giant A fi fth of regional hospital as- totalling $32,000 had taken timely patches to protect com- cussion, and depending on the Smith wrote. Den Berghe, director of telecom FedEx, Spanish telecoms giant sociations in Britain’s National place through Bitcoin addresses puter systems. result choose a melody,” Putin replied. Putin, a 64-year-old former KGB spy has demonstrated his skills on the piano in the past, al- though he has mostly cultivated Germany mulls a more macho image. Italian police make arrests That has included riding a horse in Siberia, piloting a fi re- fi ghting plane and diving in sub- moving soldiers mersibles into the depths of Lake Baikal and the Black Sea off the from Turkey over migrant centre mafi a Crimean coast. Reuters Italy police take over four Lidl offi ces in mafi a swoop Rome Reuters mittee from visiting their own Police in the Italian regions of Lombardy and Sicily ar- favourably to the companies controlled by the associ- Ankara/Berlin soldiers. rested 15 people and put four management off ices of ates,” the warrant read. Tonnes of Foreign Minister Sigmar talian mobsters took charge supermarket chain Lidl under state control yesterday Contracts assigned this way did “serious damage to Gabriel will raise the mat- of one of Europe’s largest as part of a swoop on a mafia gang. the assets of the contracting company”, it continued. ermany could move ter with colleagues from other Imigrant reception centres, Four of the German company’s off ices, which manage The court has taken over management of the four cocaine troops now based in Nato governments in Wash- using a Roman Catholic charity around 200 shops, were taken over as investigators off ices for six months. GTurkey to another ington today, the spokesman organisation as a cover to cream probed links with the Laudani crime family, police Among those arrested were a woman who works for country if Ankara persists in added. off millions of euros in state said in a statement. city hall and is suspected of corruption in relation to seized denying German lawmak- German and Nato military funds, prosecutors said yester- Lidl Italia said it was completely innocent regarding a public contract, and a man who previously worked ers permission to visit them, offi cials still hope to avert a day. the accusations, was not under investigation itself, for the provincial government and is suspected of Chancellor Angela Merkel wider rift with Turkey given Police arrested 68 people and had off ered to help authorities. influence peddling. from ship said yesterday, highlighting the importance of Nato facili- in early morning raids in the Sicily’s “Cosa Nostra” mafia has weakened in recent The court also placed under state control the private renewed strains between the ties there, including a powerful southern toe of Italy, including a years but yesterday’s arrests unveil the latest exam- company responsible for security at the Milan law Nato allies. radar that supports the Aegis priest and the head of the local ple of criminal groups spreading their tentacles from courts, due to suspected links to the Laudani clan. Reuters Some 250 German troops are Ashore missile defence site in Misericordia association that traditional southern fiefdoms to infiltrate businesses When areas of a business are placed under the Madrid stationed at Incirlik air force Romania. manages the Sant’Anna Cara in the wealthier north. control of a court, judges take over management for base, contributing to the North Moving the German troops immigrant centre in the town of In the case of Lidl, the mobsters allegedly used their a defined period of time. Atlantic Treaty Organisation from Incirlik could also result Isola Capo Rizzuto. influence to obtain contracts for work like warehouse In such cases, the court often appoints temporary panish police seized more (Nato)’s mission targeting Is- in a two-month interruption The fenced-in centre can logistics or kitting out new shops, the arrest warrant managers. than two tonnes of co- lamist State (IS) militants in in the surveillance fl ights they house up to 1,200 migrants, and issued by a Milan court showed. No details were released on how many Lidl em- Scaine from a ship with a neighbouring Syria. are now conducting from the mobsters from the powerful “This was a case of managers at Lidl Italia who were ployees work in the four management off ices or if Venezuelan fl ag in the Atlantic Turkish foreign ministry Turkish base, a government ‘Ndrangheta mafi a managed to in charge of contracting work being permanently their day-to-day activities will be aff ected during the Ocean and arrested the seven sources told Reuters that a visit source said. infi ltrate the operation a decade subjugated, so as to ensure projects were assigned period of state control. crew members, Spain’s interior by German parliamentarians The German military has ago, taking charge of key servic- ministry said yesterday. would not be appropriate at long planned to invest over es such as catering and laundry, The operation, carried out this time, without elaborating. €60mn to expand housing and prosecutors said. comment from any of those ar- €800 to the tax man, Gratteri clan of the ‘Ndrangheta mafi a alongside the US Drug Enforce- Turkey similarly refused ac- equipment at Incirlik, but Tur- Of some €103mn ($113mn) rested. said. – Italy’s largest organised crime ment Administration, the UK’s cess to German parliamentari- key has not yet approved the of state funds dispatched to The Florence-based national The head of parliament’s an- group which is based in the re- National Crime Agency and Por- ans late last year, although that plans. the centre between 2006-2015, Misericordia association said in ti-mafi a commission hailed the gion of Calabria and is one of tuguese police, took place earlier visit eventually went ahead. Relations between Ankara at least €36mn fi nished in the a press statement that it had full operation. Europe’s biggest cocaine im- this month, on May 4. “We will continue to talk and Berlin deteriorated sharply hands of the mobsters, police faith in the judiciary and was “The Cara of Isola Capo porters. The seven people on board with Turkey, but in parallel in the run-up to an April 16 ref- said. placing the southern migrant Rizzuto had become a money The Arena family shared were Venezuelan nationals, the we will have to explore other erendum in Turkey on expand- “If 500 migrants had to have centre under special adminis- printing operation for organised out the illicit funds with other ministry said, adding that a gun ways of fulfi lling our mandate,” ing President Recep Tayyip Er- lunch, just 250 meals would ar- tration. crime thanks to the complic- clans, bringing to an end to had also been seized alongside Merkel told reporters yester- dogan’s powers. rive at the centre. The other 250 The local bishop, Domenico ity of those who ran the centre,” brutal mafi a warfare in the area 2,400kg of cocaine. day. “That means looking at Citing public safety con- would either have to eat in the Graziani, told InBlu radio that Rosy Bindi said. and ushering in a period of mob The vessel, a small, rusted alternatives to Incirlik, and cerns, Germany banned Turk- evening, or else the next day,” he was “dismayed, alarmed and “This operation shows the peace, prosecutors said. fi shing boat according to images one alternative among others ish politicians – including prosecutor Nicola Gratteri told a praying”. ability of the mafi a to take ad- They said the Arenas were distributed by police, has since is Jordan.” senior government ministers news conference. “In the mean- Police sequestered goods and vantage of the weaknesses and also suspected of muscling in been towed to Spain’s Canary A German military survey – from addressing rallies of time the head of the Misericor- property worth €84mn in their fragility of our times with its on the management of a refu- Islands. team will visit Jordan in coming expatriate Turks, prompting dia, the priest and their friends early morning sweep. predatory and parasitic ap- gee centre on the island of Separately, a shipment of 5.5 days to look at potential bases Erdogan to accuse Berlin of grew fat, bought luxury cars, Some €200,000 was found at proach,” she added. Lampedusa, which is on the tonnes of cocaine destined for there, government sources “Nazi-like” tactics. fl ats and boats.” the house of one man who had Police said that many of those front line of Italy’s ongoing mi- Spain was intercepted off the said. A narrow majority of Turks There was no immediate declared annual earnings of just arrested belonged to the Arena grant crisis. coast of Ecuador, and 24 people Jordan is the preferred site, in the referendum backed were arrested in that operation, although facilities in Cyprus changing the constitution to the interior ministry also said and Kuwait are also possible, grant Erdogan sweeping execu- yesterday. they said. tive powers. The shipment was being or- For historic reasons and to Germany and other West- ganised by a drugs ring based in prevent abuse of power, the ern allies have voiced concern Blast at German factory injures 13 people Galicia, in northern Spain, and Bundeswehr army is controlled about what they fear is a drift two people were arrested in Ma- by the German parliament, not towards authoritarian rule in drid and another two in Vigo by the government, meaning that Turkey. Reuters er Schaeffl er, police said. well as police and a large con- to hospitals while workers at the Spanish police. lawmakers have the right to Last year Turkey banned Frankfurt An explosion at a cleaning tingent of rescue staff were on factory were asked to briefl y va- The other 20 suspects, in- inspect its activities, including German lawmakers from vis- facility for industrial salts at the scene but police said there cate their positions. cluding one Spaniard, were ar- outside the country. iting the base for months in Schaeffl er’s plant in Eltmann, appeared to be no danger for The majority of the labour rested on board the cargo ship A spokesman for the German response to a resolution in the hirteen people were in- Bavaria, was reported to police people living nearby as no haz- force have since returned to by Ecuadorian police, who inter- foreign minister said it was German parliament declaring jured, four of them se- in nearby Schweinfurt around ardous or toxic substances were work, police said. cepted it before its planned pas- “completely unacceptable” for the 1915 massacre of Armeni- Triously, in an explosion 10.15am local time, according to released. Criminal police in Schwein- sage through the Panama Canal Turkey to keep members of the ans by Ottoman forces a geno- yesterday at a German factory an e-mailed statement. The four people seriously in- furt and prosecutors have start- on its way to Spain, the interior parliamentary defence com- cide, a term Ankara rejects. operated by ball-bearings mak- More than 120 fi refi ghters as jured were fl own by helicopter ed investigating the incident. ministry said. Gulf Times Tuesday, May 16, 2017 19 EUROPE Macron appoints

Merkel and Macron arriving to a news conference at the centre-right PM Chancellery in Berlin. Schulz: It is a rocky road, but the AFP the northern port of Le Havre, elled to Berlin later to meet Ger- card as a youth, he switched to Macron needs a majority to visits Brussels for a North Atlan- SPD is a battle-hardened party Paris comes from the moderate wing man Chancellor Angela Merkel the right, becoming a close ally push through his ambitious tic Treaty Organisation (Nato) and we will put up a fight in the of the right-wing Republicans – has already won over dozens of of centre-right former prime plans to loosen France’s strict summit. elections. party and is seen as a pragmatist. moderate Socialist MPs. minister Alain Juppe. labour laws, boost entrepre- Merkel has hailed Macron’s rench President Em- His appointment was seen as Former investment banker Mayor of his hometown of Le neurship and reduce class sizes win as a blow for populism. manuel Macron has named a strategic move by 39-year-old Macron, who trounced far-right Havre, the German-speaking in tough neighbourhoods. But the Frenchman’s calls for Fcentre-right lawmaker Macron, who is trying to woo leader Marine Le Pen in the May father of three, who writes crime But his year-old party faces a the eurozone to have its own Edouard Philippe as prime min- modernisers of all stripes to his 7 presidential run-off , aims to novels in his spare time, was battle for seats, with the Repub- budget have received a cool re- Schulz ister in a further eff ort to splinter new centrist party, the Repub- take votes from both the Re- elected to parliament in 2012. licans, Le Pen’s National Front sponse from Germany, which the country’s traditional parties lique en Marche (Republic on the publicans and Socialists in next Juppe praised him yesterday (FN), the radical left and other fears it would be forced to pay and redraw the political map. Move, REM). month’s crucial parliamentary as “a very talented man”. losers of the presidential elec- the lion’s share. sees a Philippe, a little known France’s fervently pro-Euro- election. His appointment as premier is tion all plotting revenge. “Many countries including 46-year-old MP and mayor of pean new president – who trav- Philippe has been presented a blow to the Republicans, who Leftist fi rebrand Jean-Luc France would need to organise as his Trojan horse on the right have been trying to regroup after Melenchon said that Philippe’s a referendum. It’s not realistic,” ‘rocky of the spectrum. the presidential vote and prevent appointment as premier showed German Finance Minister Wolf- Taking over from outgoing defections to Macron’s camp. the right had been “annexed” by gang Schaeuble told Le Figaro prime minister Bernard Caze- Republicans secretary general the tentacular Macron. newspaper. road’ to neuve during a short ceremony, Bernard Accoyer said there were At his inauguration on Sun- French MEP Sylvie Goulard, Philippe described himself as “a no immediate plans to expel day, Macron said he aimed to an ally of Macron who has close man of the right” who was driv- Philippe from the party but that restore France’s shattered self- ties to Berlin, predicted that he election en by “the greater good”. he would have to “clear up the confi dence and help rebuild the would avoid causing any ten- Like Macron, Philippe is a ambiguity” about his loyalties. fl agging European Union. sions with Germany. product of France’s elite ENA Some in the party have argued The talks with Merkel are “There will be no arm-wres- AFP college who worked for a while in favour of an alliance with Ma- likely to focus on how Europe’s tling,” she said. Berlin in the private sector and has cron. power couple can drive reforms Breathing new life into the EU little truck with the country’s Around 20 MPs issued a of the bloc, with Macron push- is just one of a host of challenges fraying left-right divide. statement yesterday urging the ing for deeper EU ties to help it Macron faces. ermany’s Social Demo- Relatively unknown outside Republicans and centre-right overcome the imminent depar- On the home front, he will crat chief Martin Schulz his northern fi efdom, he has UDI to “accept his outstretched ture of Britain. have to work quickly to tackle Gacknowledged yesterday never served in national govern- hand”, saying that the right Later this month, he will also stubbornly high unemployment, that his party faced a “rocky ment. needed to “take the full measure meet Donald Trump, when the combat the jihadist threat and road” to national elections, af- After campaigning for Social- of the political transformation US president – believed to have heal divisions exposed by an of- ter it was soundly beaten in a key Newly-appointed Prime Minister Edouard Philippe. ist prime minister Michel Ro- taking place before their eyes”. preferred Le Pen to Macron – ten vicious election campaign. state by Chancellor Angela Mer- kel’s party. The chancellor, meanwhile, hailed the strong victory in North Rhine-Westphalia on Sunday and vowed to do “eve- Czech premier rejects fi nance minister nominee rything we can” to ensure that her party also prevails in general elections set for September 24. Reuters was too close to her boss. serious for the three-party coa- largest private employer active but that could change if ANO’s Schulz’s SPD won just 31.2% Prague The prime minister has lition government, which came in agriculture, food, chemicals nomination for the fi nance min- of the votes, well below the pushed hard to fi re Babis for to power in 2014 and has been and media. istry were rejected again. 39.1% it garnered fi ve years ago, what he calls unanswered ques- the most stable of any cabinet He called into question Schil- Under the Czech constitu- fi nal results showed. zech Prime Minister Bo- tions over his past tax dealings. in the last 15 years, marked by a lerova’s impartiality in Babis’s tion, 101 votes in the 200-seat Merkel’s Christian Democrat- huslav Sobotka rejected Babis has denied wrongdoing time of solid economic growth tax matters in demanding a new lower house of parliament are ic Union (CDU) gained signifi - Chis coalition partner’s and had refused to leave, but has and record low unemployment. nominee yesterday. required to topple a government cant ground in the state, for dec- nominee for fi nance minister come to accept his dismissal if With an election scheduled “I asked ANO to bring another and a three-fi fths majority is ades an SPD stronghold, coming yesterday, extending a confron- his party chooses his successor. for October, Babis has called the proposal,” Sobotka told report- necessary to dissolve the cham- in as the top party with 33%. tation between the country’s Babis said he would submit a scandal a political ploy by So- ers after meeting Babis. “I do not ber and force early elections. She said that her party would two top political parties months new name this week. botka, whose Social Democrats have confi dence that Ms Schill- President Milos Zeman has now gear up for the national before a general election. “Ministers don’t grow on trail ANO in popularity by a wide erova would be able to guarantee taken Babis’s side in the dispute campaign. Social Democrat head Sobotka trees, we have to fi nd some- margin. a truly intensive, thorough per- and has been delaying action. “We are aware that this new said he would not accept Deputy one,” he told reporters. “We Sobotka has raised questions formance of fi nancial adminis- When Sobotka threatened his phase will be an exhausting Minister Alena Schillerova as a will try (to bring another name) about whether Babis may have tration and the ministry on (Ba- own resignation, which usually one,” she said, but added that replacement for Andrej Babis, by Wednesday, of course, the broken the law in previous years bis’s tax operations).” means the fall of the entire gov- the grand right-left coalition led the billionaire businessman who sooner the better. We want to by buying tax-exempt bonds The coalition, which also in- ernment, Zeman hinted he could by her party has a good record to Babis: Ministers don’t grow on founded the anti-establishment end this.” from what was then his com- cludes the Christian Democrats, keep it in place and only replace show. trees, we have to find someone. ANO, on the grounds that she The row has become the most pany, Agrofert, the country’s had rejected snap elections, the prime minister. Schulz, for his part, admitted that “we suff ered a diffi cult mo- ment last night”. “One thing that is totally clear is that, before general elections on September 24, we’ll have a Dutch talks to form coalition government fail long way to go. It is a rocky road, but the SPD is a battle-hardened party and we will put up a fi ght in AFP tiations, the offi cial leading the From the beginning, doubts He added that his Freedom Schippers: We have tried the elections,” he said. The Hague talks said late on Monday. were raised about whether Klav- Party “is fully available”. everything to narrow the gaps, With one-fi fth of Germans – “We have tried everything er would be prepared to make the Rutte however has vowed not and they have become smaller 13.1mn – eligible to vote in North to narrow the gaps, and they kind of compromises especially to work with Wilders’s anti-Is- ... but we just couldn’t succeed. Rhine-Westphalia, elections iff erences over im- have become smaller ... but we demanded by the CDA. lam anti-EU party even though in the western state are closely migration have scup- just couldn’t succeed,” veteran Rutte described the failure it came second in the polls. Rutte (below) leaving after watched for hints to the federal Dpered attempts to form Dutch politician Edith Schippers of the talks as “a pity”, adding: So it is likely, Rutte will now negotiations for forming a outlook. a four-party coalition govern- told reporters. “We wanted them to be suc- turn to one of the smaller par- government failed yesterday. It carried even higher stakes ment in The Netherlands, after She had been leading the ef- cessful, but we didn’t succeed. ties, such as conservative Chris- this year, being the last regional more than eight weeks of nego- fort to forge a common agenda We decided together that it just tian Union which won fi ve seats. vote before the national election between the party of outgoing wouldn’t work.” That would give them a very and having a direct impact on Prime Minister Mark Rutte’s Immigration had proved the narrow 76-seat majority. the SPD’s ability to close a na- Liberal Party (VVD) and three main stumbling block, Rutte Schippers told reporters at a tionwide gap of around 10 per- others. said, adding there had also been surprise press conference that centage points with the CDU. The VVD, which won 33 MPs diff erences over climate change she has already informed King The SPD had already suff ered in March elections, has been and income levels. Willem-Alexander of the failure two setbacks since Schulz took in talks with the conservative Had the talks succeeded, the of the talks, and would prepare a over the party leadership, with Christian Democratic Appel new four-party coalition would report to go before the new par- the CDU scoring strong victories (CDA) and the progressive De- have had a total of 85 MPs – a liament. in the small states of Saarland mocracy Party (D66), which comfortable majority especially Coalition governments are and Schleswig-Holstein. both won 19 seats. when faced with the far-right the norm in The Netherlands, But to reach a majority in the anti-Islam party of controver- and the arduous negotiations are 150-seat lower house, the ne- sial MP Geert Wilders, who with part of Dutch political life. gotiations also included the 20 MPs makes up the largest In 2012 it took Rutte 54 days Le Pen takes back ecologist left party GroenLinks, party in the opposition. to put together a government – a party chief job whose young, charismatic leader Wilders crowed in a Tweet: relatively short time. Wilders: the Freedom Party is Jesse Klaver boosted his party’s “Very good news. No Groen- The longest it took was 208 Marine Le Pen, the far-right ‘fully available’. MPs from four to 14 in the polls. Links.” days in 1977. politician who lost her bid for the French presidency a week ago, resumed her job as head of the National Front (FN) yesterday but left followers guessing as to whether she will stand in the ‘Excess’ car pollution killed 38,000 in 2015, says study coming parliamentary elections. Steeve Briois, who took Le Pen’s place as FN leader during her By Marlowe Hood, AFP combine with ammonia to create least 50% more NOx under real- diesel NOx emissions for pub- Volkswagen cars equipped with cause more than 183,000 pre- unsuccessful presidential run- Paris particles that can penetrate deep world driving conditions than lic health are striking,” said lead test-evading software and sold mature deaths per year by 2040. off contest against Emmanuel into the lungs and cause cancer, their makers claimed. author Susan Anenberg, co- in Germany from 2008 to 2015 “Globally, the single-most Macron on May 7, welcomed chronic breathing problems and That translates to 38,000 founder of Environment Health will cause more than 1,200 pre- important action to reduce the her back to the helm of the xcess” diesel truck premature death. deaths due to “excess” emis- Analytics, a policy research mature deaths in Europe. health impacts of excess diesel anti-European Union, anti- and car emissions Until recently, estimates of sions, out of an estimated total group based in Washington DC. But defeat devices are not the NOx emissions is for countries immigration party in a Twitter “Eclaimed about deaths attributable to NOx pol- of 107,000 lives foreshortened Commercial trucks and buses only cause of additional NOx to implement and properly en- message. 38,000 lives worldwide in 2015, lution was based on levels re- to diesel car and truck fumes in are by far the biggest culprit emissions, according to the new force” European standards for The party is due to present its list said a study yesterday that ported by vehicle makers. 2015, the researchers found. worldwide, accounting for more research. heavy vehicles, said co-author of candidates for parliamentary sought to quantify deaths due to Since 2015, however, it has The study focused on how than three-quarters of excess Others included faulty engine Ray Minjares, a researcher at the elections that take place in two pollution that carmakers sought become clear that Volkswagen NOx emissions contribute to air NOx output. calibration, tampering by vehi- International Council on Clean rounds on June 11 and 18. to hide. and other manufacturers used pollution in the form of ozone Ninety per cent of excess NOx cle owners, and sub-standard Transportation, a Washington- Le Pen secured 34% of the Four-fi fths of these addi- so-called “defeat devices” to and fi ne particulate matter. output was emitted in just fi ve certifi cation testing. based research group. votes in the presidential run-off tional premature deaths due to disguise the true extent of diesel Long-term exposure is linked countries or regions – Brazil, To estimate damage caused Experts who were not in- vote versus 66% for the pro-EU nitrogen oxides (NOx) pollution engine emissions, which are far to disability and premature China, the European Union, In- by NOx emissions, the research- volved in the research said that Macron. occurred in three regions – the higher on the road than in labo- death due to stroke, heart dis- dia, and the United States. ers combined data from vehicles it was likely conservative in its Asked whether le Pen would now European Union, China, and In- ratory testing. ease, lung cancer, and chronic For light-duty vehicles – used in real-world conditions, conclusions. stand for election as a member of dia, researchers reported in the The new study of 11 major car obstructive pulmonary disease small trucks, cars and vans – the computer modelling of the at- “The study may well under- parliament in June, FN secretary journal Nature. markets – the others are Aus- (COPD) – a degenerative condi- EU produced nearly 70% of glo- mosphere, satellite observa- estimate the full consequences general Nicolas Bay told a news NOx is a generic term for the tralia, Brazil, Canada, Japan, tion of the lungs. bal excess NOx emissions, the tions, along with health and cli- for public health,” said Roy Har- conference: “I won’t announce poisonous gases – namely nitric Mexico, Russia, South Korea, The elderly are especially vul- study found. mate models. rison, a professor of environ- anything today, it is for Marine Le oxide and nitrogen dioxide – and the United States – revealed nerable. An earlier study calculat- The researchers calculated mental health at the University Pen to do that.” that contribute to acid rain and that diesel vehicles spewed at “The consequences of excess ed that pollution from 2.6mn that diesel NOx pollution will of Birmingham in England. Gulf Times 20 Tuesday, May 16, 2017 INDIA

BANKING INITIATIVE JUDICIARY INVESTIGATION POLITICS ICICI Bank reduces home Raina launches foundation Marital rape is a Dinakarans’ custody Adityanath’s appointment loan rates by 30 bps to help poor mothers serious issue: court extended till May 29 as CM challenged in HC

ICICI Bank yesterday said that it has reduced Cricketer Suresh Raina and his wife Priyanka The Delhi High Court yesterday remarked A New Delhi court yesterday extended the judicial The appointments of Yogi Adityanath as Uttar interest rates by up to 30 basis points (bps) Chaudhary Raina yesterday announced the that marital rape is a “serious issue” which custody of All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Pradesh chief minister and Keshav Prasad for home loans of up to Rs3mn. “With this launch of their foundation dedicated to the has notoriously become a “part of the Kazhagam leader T T V Dinakaran, accused Maurya as his deputy were challenged in the reduction, salaried borrowers can avail home aid of underprivileged mothers across the culture”. A division bench of Acting Chief of attempting to bribe Election Commission Lucknow bench of the Allahabad High Court loans at among the lowest rates in the industry. country. They made the announcement on their Justice Gita Mittal and Justice C Hari off icials. Special Judge Poonam Chaudhary also yesterday. In his public interest litigation (PIL), Salaried women borrowers will get home loans daughter Gracia’s birthday. The Gracia Raina Shankar hearing a petition against the penal extended the judicial custody of Dinakaran’s Sanjay Sharma, a social activist has alleged at 8.35% and others at 8.40%,” the private Foundation is dedicated to creating awareness code provision that protects husbands aide Sukesh Chandrashekhar Mallikarjuna, and that since both Adityanath and Maurya were sector lender said in a statement. According to and work closely with mothers and children from being tried for the rape of their wives, a hawala operator from Delhi, Naresh Jain till Lok Sabha MPs and were drawing salaries the bank, customers from economically weaker who require help ranging from physical to also asked how many countries have made May 29. Meanwhile, Dinakaran told court that he and other perks, they do not have a right section (EWS) and low income group (LIG) mental health issues and beyond. “This is a marital rape an off ence. “It’s a very serious will first examine a CD containing the recorded to be in the positions of power in the state can avail themselves of the dual benefit of low something very personal to me and my wife issues... Is it an off ence in the world? In how conversation before responding to Delhi police government. Sharma has cited the Prevention interest rates and credit-linked subsidy under and to announce it on our daughter’s birthday is many countries is marital rape an off ence?,” plea seeking his voice sample. He requested of Disqualification Act of 1959 and has called the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana. On May 8, the very special. My wife has been working towards the bench said. It added: “Marital rape is court to direct police to provide him a copy of the for nullifying the appointment of both. While State Bank of India cut the home loan rates by this and has put in a lot of time and eff ort and I part of the culture. See, how diff icult it is for CD. Dinakaran is the nephew of jailed AIADMK Adityanath is an MP from Gorakhpur, Maurya is a 25 bps from 8.60% to 8.35% per annum. fully support her endeavours,” Raina said. women to register a rape case.” general secretary V K Sasikala. Lok Sabha member from Phoolpur in Allahabad.

AIADMK has split into three If God wills factions: party leader I will enter IANS Chennai

he All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam par- politics, says Tty has now split into three factions, led respectively by O Panneerselvam, Chief Minister K Palaniswami and AIADMK general secretary V K Sasikala and her nephew T T V Dinaka- ran, said a party member. Former party MP K C Palan- Rajinikanth iswamy said that the “blasphe- mous” utterings by some mem- 66-year-old star urges fans port the Congress. However, he made a well thought out state- bers who have joined AIADMK to refrain from drinking and shifted allegiance to the Dravida ment. in the recent past is aff ecting the smoking Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK)- Swamy, who is known for his party. Tamil Maanila Congress (TMC) controversial remarks, said, “Ra- He was referring to the recent Agencies alliance after the Congress de- jini has been with various parties interview given by Nanjil Sam- Chennai cided to align itself with the AI- and has no ideology. Rajini is a path belonging to the Sasikala ADMK. mere distraction,” News18 net- faction. In February this year, specu- work reported. “Sampath in an interview to amil superstar Rajinikanth lation was rife that Rajinikanth He said Rajinikanth was not a Tamil TV channel said late J yesterday kept his fans intended to test political waters even a Tamilian; “in fact, he is Jayalalithaa committed the error Tguessing on his entry into after saying he “liked power”. a Marathi from Bengaluru,” he of making O Panneerselvam the politics saying if it is God’s will, However, he later clarifi ed that said. Swamy also took potshots chief minister twice,” he said. he will step into the arena. he was talking about spiritual at the megastar’s fans. “It is a cult “It is nothing but blasphe- He also said if he enters poli- power and not material power. following,” he said. The BJP MP mous. Jayalalithaa had made tics, he will be truthful and will Ahead of the 2014 Lok Sabha said that cinema people are good Panneerselvam the chief minis- not entertain people who want to polls, Prime Minister Narendra at giving statements as their dia- ter twice when she faced some make money. Modi met Rajinikanth in Chen- logues are scripted by somebody legal issues in continuing as “God decides what we have to nai, but both later clarifi ed the else. Tamil Nadu’s chief minister,” do in life. Right now, he wants me visit was just a courtesy call. Rajinikanth also urged his Palaniswamy said. to be an actor and I’m fulfi lling The superstar said some par- fans to refrain from smoking and He said there was no opposi- my responsibility. If God wills, I ties have claimed his support for drinking. tion to Panneerselvam’s selec- will enter politics tomorrow. If I votes. “Take care of your family and tion to the top post in the state enter, I will be very truthful and “They have associated my children. Don’t waste your life by then. will not entertain people who are name with politics and some smoking and drinking. Drinking “The utterings of people who in this to make money. I won’t parties drag my name with mon- and smoking not only aff ect your have joined the AIADMK party work with such people,” Ra- ey too. Some parties, for votes, health but also your decision in the recent times is aff ecting jinikanth told his fans at a meet- even claimed I have supported making ability. I have been af- the party,” Palaniswamy said. and-greet event here. them. That’s why I have clarifi ed fected enough so please take my He said the AIADMK party is The 66-year-old star de- that I don’t support anyone. And advice seriously,” he added. now split into three groups each scribed his brief stint in politics nobody has my backing.” Rajinikanth also confi rmed led by Panneerselvam, Palan- two decades ago as a “political The fans have often asked their he will commence shooting for iswami and Sasikala/Dinakaran. accident”. ‘Thalaivar’ (leader) to take the his next as yet-untitled Tamil It was Panneerselvam who In 1996, during the Tamil political plunge, even as he has project with director Pa Ranjith revolted against the Sasikala’s Nadu assembly election cam- been wooed by many political from May 28. He was accompa- leadership of AIADMK some paign, Rajinikanth denounced J parties on account of his mass ap- nied by Tamil director S P Muth- months back. Jayalalithaa and her politics. His peal. Recently, there were reports uraman at the meeting. Sasikala was elected the par- strong remarks contributed to that the BJP was trying to rope in When his Kabali released last ty’s general secretary and later her defeat. the superstar for its plunge into year, some people took potshots Panneerselvam was asked to “I did a mistake by supporting the mainstream of the turbulent at Rajinikanth for the surge in resign from the chief minister’s a political alliance 21 years ago. Tamil Nadu politics. ticket pricing. He was also criti- post after Jayalalithaa’s death. It was a political accident. Since Hours after his comments on cised for giving a ‘fl op’ fi lm. Subsequently the Election then, politicians have misused entering politics, Bharatiya Ja- Despite opening to mixed re- Commission had blocked the my name on several occasions. nata Party leader Subramanian views, Kabali became the highest party’s name and its `two leaves’ But I have to clarify, I’m not join- Swamy called it a “joke” and grossing Tamil fi lm last year. Ra- poll symbol and the rival camps ing any party,” he added. advised him to stay out of poli- jinikanth said, “Kochadaiiyaan claimed the right to use them in a During the P V Narasimha tics. At the same time, Rashtriya and Lingaa didn’t do well at the by-election that was later post- Rao government in the 90s, Swayamsevak Sangh ideologue S box offi ce, but Enthiran and Kab- poned. Fans listen to Rajinikanth (inset) when he met them in Chennai yesterday. Rajinikanth had begun to sup- Gurumurthy said that the actor ali were hits.”

Paper missiles thrown Peace activist appeals for at governor in assembly end to political killings IANS accused the state government of Lucknow failing completely on all fronts and said that people wearing saf- By Ashraf Padanna ing of CPM activist C V Dhanaraj killing was planned a month in fron scarfs were taking law into Kannur, Kerala of the same village. advance and meticulously ex- he fi rst sitting of the 17th their hands. Rajagopal, who heads India’s ecuted. Uttar Pradesh Assembly Congress leader Ajay Kumar largest movement for people’s District police chief G Siva Twitnessed unruly scenes Lallu accused the government of eace activist P V Rajag- control over land and livelihood Vikram confi rmed political ri- yesterday with the opposition lying on the loan waiver for farm- opal has swung into ac- resources, is here with his peace valry as the motive for the killing. disrupting the proceedings and ers and said nothing has been Ption to prevent retaliation initiatives since October when The police have so far detained throwing paper missiles at Gov- done to ensure payment of arrears in Kannur where a Hindu na- the revenge killings in Pinarayi two. ernor Ram Naik. for cane growers. tionalist leader was killed al- and surrounding villages peaked. Kannur has witnessed at least As soon as the national an- State president of the BSP Ram legedly by members of the rul- “It was a body blow to our 200 political murders, mainly them concluded legislators of the Achal Rajbhar also accused the ing Communist Party of India eff orts to bring peace here,” in the southern villages like Vi- Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) and government of failing to protect (Marxist). the founder-president of Ekta jayan’s Pinarayi, CPM state sec- the Samajwadi Party (SP) threw Dalits and said they will ensure Rajagopal visited the home of Parishad of some 11,000 com- retary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan’s paper missiles at the governor that the government is made ac- the victim, C Biju, 34, the village munity-based organisations and Kodiyeri and Kadirur of the re- and raised slogans on the issue of countable on this. chief of the Rashtriya Swayamse- a recipient of the Indira Gandhi gional strongman P Jayarajan, law and order in the state. They The Bharatiya Janata Party vak Sangh (RSS), on Sunday and Award for National Integration who himself was a victim of an were carrying posters and ban- (BJP) has a three-fourth majority called for restraint. said. attempt on his life by alleged RSS ners against the Bharatiya Janata in the 403-member state assem- “I have talked to top leaders of “I have met the chief minister assassins. Party government of Yogi Adity- bly with 325 members along with both sides, including RSS leader here who seriously wants to end The revenge killings are now anath. its allies, while the SP has 47, the Govindacharya and Kerala Chief violence. I also got an assurance spreading into the northern The pandemonium continued BSP 19 and the Congress 7. Minister Pinarayi Vijayan,” Ra- from Govindacharya that there parts like Annur and Ramanthali, for more than 30 minutes. The Earlier, a lawmaker of the rul- jagopal said. “They are all serious would be no retaliation. I see a prompting Governor P Sathasi- opposition also accused the BJP ing BJP came to the assembly in a about restoring peace.” ray of hope.” vam to ask the chief minister to government of not fulfi lling its bullock cart, while a BSP member The fragile peace brokered by Making a statement in the leg- act. electoral promise of loan waiver arrived in an e-rickshaw. Vijayan on February 14 was al- islative assembly yesterday, Vi- Well-known writer C V for farmers and on the matter of BJP member Jawahar Lal Ra- legedly broken by his party on jayan said the killing was “unfor- Balakrishnan said the killings reining in criminals and mafi a. jpur was fi rst stopped by the Friday when a seven-member tunate and condemnable.” have hit the normal life of citi- Congress legislator Aradhana security at the gates but was al- squad knocked down Biju, on a “Nobody is going to justify it. zens, but the killers go scot-free Mishra held placards on the issue lowed in after he showed his ID bridge and hacked him to death We’ll bring the culprits before with the patronage of politicians. Uttar Pradesh Governor Ram Naik is shielded by security of poor voltage, power cuts and card and insisted he be allowed in broad daylight. the law,” he said amid din after “They also unleash a reign of personnel from paper missiles being hurled by opposition lack of security for women. SP in as he was a farmer and the cart Biju was an accused in the kill- the opposition alleged that the terror,” he said. members in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly yesterday. spokesman Rajendra Chaudhary was his vehicle. Gulf Times Tuesday, May 16, 2017 21 INDIA

15-20% Delhi private school students have sleep apnea: study

IANS The study - whose fi rst phase ever, in private schools we see associated with an increased among others, and has found that isers aim to cover the entire Na- ical activities such as walking.” New Delhi has been completed with over huge presence of OSA in the stu- prevalence of obstructive sleep the OSA rate is around 15-20% in tional Capital Region; however Guleria said that despite the 7,000 students examined - is dents. It is an ongoing study but apnea in the general population. students of private schools. as of now only South Delhi has Human Resource Development being funded by the Department the data found in the fi rst phase is Among these, obesity is one “The data we have gathered been covered. ministry’s directive to schools to ome 15 to 20% of students of Science and Technology and so startling that we want to know of the strongest sleep apnea is from 13-14 schools. We will Speaking on the causes behind participate in the study, several in Delhi’s private schools the Indian Council of Medical what will be the result after the risk factors (12-15 years). Mild to continue the study and see,” said the high presence of OSA among did not co-operate. Sare suff ering from Ob- Research (ICMR). The age group completion of the study,” said moderate obesity has been asso- Guleria. Stating that there were the students of private students, Commenting on the study structive Sleep Apnea (OSA) in examined as part of the study is AIIMS director Randeep Guleria. ciated with markedly increased several diffi culties in screening the Guleria said: “Students in pri- which is in its third year, Saumya comparison to only 2% students 10-17 years. Sleep apnea is caused by re- sleep apnea prevalence. children, Guleria said that several vate schools have a poor diet, Swaminathan, director general in government schools, an ongo- “We are doing a study whose current episodes of upper airway As of now, the study has been parents refused to get their chil- lifestyle in comparison to stu- of ICMR, said OSA presence in ing study by the All India Insti- fi ndings are very dramatic and obstruction during sleep. Sev- conducted in 13-14 schools in- dren screened claiming that they dents in government schools. school children is quite disturb- tute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) it reveals that in the government eral risk factors, including obes- cluding Father Agnel School and did not have any problem. Data also shows that government ing and there is need for them to has revealed. schools we hardly see OSA. How- ity, age and heredity, have been Delhi Public School R K Puram Under the project, the organ- school students have more phys- improve their lifestyle. Kapil Mishra French visa application centre opens in Bengaluru ends fast, to approach CBI today

IANS The AAP has dismissed his New Delhi charges as a “conspiracy” by the Bharatiya Janata Party. Meanwhile, Kejriwal’s wife uspended Aam Aadmi Sunita waged a Twitter war with Party leader Kapil Mishra Mishra. She slammed Mishra Sended his indefi nite hun- saying he would “face the conse- ger strike on the sixth day yes- quences of the false allegations terday, and announced that he that he has made”. would approach the Central Bu- “Law of nature never errs, reau of Investigation and Central seeds of betrayal, false allegations Board of Direct Taxes to fi le cor- sown, so shall he (Kapil Mishra) French ambassador Alexandre Ziegler (left) and Chief Operating Off icer of VFS Global Vinay Malhotra look on after opening the French Visa Application Centre at ruption cases against Delhi Chief reap. Inevitable,” she tweeted. the Global Tech Park in Bengaluru yesterday. Bengaluru residents as well as those from outside can now apply for their visa to France - which would open the doors Minister Arvind Kejriwal. Mishra responded that Sunita to all countries in the Schengen Area - in the centrally-located off ice in Langford Town. The initiative is a pilot project for disseminating information about France’s “Doctors won’t discharge un- was “troubled” with the down- wide-ranging tourism opportunities. It will also enable travellers to book tickets and passes in advance for concerts, museums and touristic monuments in France til I start taking liquids. I have fall of her husband and he won’t while applying for a visa. to go to CBI and CBDT. Starting speak against her. on liquids now,” Mishra said in a “Sunita Kejriwal is a loyal tweet before ending his fast. wife. She has no knowledge of “Tomorrow case of hawala, which kind of conspiracies are black money, money launder- being made at her home. She is ing and operating through shell just doing her duty,” Mishra said companies will be fi led in CBI in a tweet. and CBDT against Arvind Kejri- “Sunita Kejriwal is unaware of walji,” he said in another tweet. the truth. She is troubled by the Attacking the chief minister, downfall of her husband. I won’t the sacked water minister said say a single word for her even if India urges ICJ to halt the “foundation laid on lies was she says anything to me,” Mishra rattled. And hence those who said. spread lies were hiding inside In other developments, the their houses”. AAP yesterday dissolved its “The people with black money Punjab unit in the fi rst meet- are unable to understand the re- ing held under newly appointed quest of truth,” he said. state president Bhagwant Mann. execution of Jadhav Mishra has been on an indefi - In a show of unity, AAP senior nite hunger strike since May 10, leaders, including legislator and Agencies concocted charges, (has been) told the court Jadhav “has con- Pakistan of “egregious viola- that states engage in peaceful demanding that the AAP chief leader of opposition H S Phool- The Hague deprived of his rights and pro- fessed to having been sent by tions of the Vienna convention”. resolution of disputes. This court reveal the source of funding of ka, member of parliament Sadhu tection accorded under the Vi- India to wage terror on the in- The case has highlighted the does not exist for time-wasting the foreign trips of fi ve party Singh, legislator and co-presi- enna Convention,” noted lawyer nocent civilians and infrastruc- recent sharp uptick in tensions and political grandstanding.” leaders - Sanjay Singh, Ashish dent Aman Arora and legislator ndia yesterday urged the Harish Salve told the court in ture of Pakistan”. between the two countries, with The court’s president Ron- Khetan, Raghav Chadhha, Saty- Sukhpal Singh Khaira attended UN’s top court to stop Pa- The Hague. Mohamed Faisal, from the the two sides outlining starkly ny Abraham said the tribunal endar Jain and Durgesh Pathak - the meeting. Ikistan executing an Indian Salve insisted Pakistan has Pakistani foreign aff airs minis- diff erent accounts. would publicly deliver its de- in the last two years. The marathon meeting, which national convicted of spying, as failed to respond to all Indian de- try, said the tribunal had been “India believes that the farci- cision on whether to grant an On Sunday, Mishra accused ended in the evening, was at- Islamabad hit back accusing its mands for information about the shown a video of the confession cal nature of the proceedings and emergency stay of execution “as the AAP of lying to the Election tended by all 20 AAP legislators, rival of “time-wasting and po- case, snubbing requests for doc- which was available on-line “for unjust trial by a Pakistan military soon as possible.” Commission about donations party candidates, zone co-coor- litical grandstanding”. uments including the charge- viewers to decide for themselves court has led to a serious miscar- New Delhi ultimately wants and laundering money through dinators and other offi ce bearers, In an emergency hearing called sheet, and has failed to provide whether commander Jadhav is riage of justice,” said Salve. the tribunal to order Islamabad shell companies. a party spokesman said. only days after India lodged its Jadhav with consular access. confessing voluntarily”. India is seeking the imme- to annul the sentence. case, lawyers and offi cials for Islamabad has also not re- Faisal also showed the court diate suspension of the death It also wants the ICJ, set up New Delhi urged the Interna- sponded to a visa application by a picture of a passport which he sentence against Jadhav who in 1945 to rule on disputes be- Three students die as car falls off flyover tional Court of Justice to halt the Jadhav’s parents seeking to trav- said was found in Jadhav’s pos- it claims was kidnapped from tween nations in accordance death sentence imposed on Kul- el to Pakistan to visit their son. session bearing a completely Iran, where he was carrying on with international law, to de- Three undergraduate business Rishab, Raja, and Garima - were bhushan Jadhav saying his rights Jadhav “has been denied the diff erent “and Muslim” name. business after retiring from the clare that the Pakistani military management students on way first-year students of Bachelor’s had been violated by Islamabad. right to be defended by a legal “India has been unable, or Indian Navy. court violated the Vienna Con- to taking an exam were killed in Business Administration Jadhav was arrested in the counsel of his choice,” Salve perhaps unwilling, to provide But lawyer Khawar Qureshi, vention by imposing a death when their speeding car skidded course in an institute in Rohini restive southwestern province said at the start of day-long an explanation for this pass- appearing for Pakistan, shot sentence on Jadhav and broke and flew off a 40ft-high flyover in locality in north Delhi. They of Balochistan in March 2016, hearing, adding that a confes- port which is the most obvious back that Jadhav “is a terrorist” human rights laws. west Delhi yesterday, police said. were on way to the Indraprastha where a separatist insurgency sion was forced out of him. indication of covert and illegal and New Delhi’s story was “far- The ICJ’s decisions are fi nal Four of their friends in the Honda College in Narela to sit for their has raged for years. “All that we know is what we activity,” added Faisal. fetched at best.” and binding. However, it has no City car were critically injured. second semester examination He was “an innocent Indian have seen in the media in Paki- India has denied however he “India invoked the jurisdiction means to enforce its rulings and The dead - Rajat, Sanchit, and when the accident occurred national, who, incarcerated in stan,” he added. was a spy, and last week lodged of this court improperly,” he said. they have occasionally been ig- Ritu - and the injured - Pranav, around 8.45am. Pakistan for more than a year on But Pakistani representatives a rare protest at the ICJ accusing “This court exists to ensure nored. Power fi rm’s computers hit Abbas visits IT centre by ransomware attack ahead of offi cial talks Agencies Abbas and his delegation Agencies Offi cials who opened the com- said billing for around 800,000 New Delhi spent nearly two hours touring New Delhi puter at the Thariyode pancha- households was aff ected when the Centre for Development of yat offi ce in the hilly district of the ransomware blocked access Advance Computing. Wayanad found that four of their to fi les in the computers. alestinian President Mah- The Palestinian leader later in he global ransomware at- computers had been hacked. A senior offi cial at the federal moud Abbas began a the day attended a function at tack has aff ected several Another village panchayat Ministry of Electronics and In- Pthree-day visit to India the India Islamic Cultural Centre Tcomputers of a state power at Aruvapulam near Konni in formation Technology said its yesterday with a tour of an IT in New Delhi. distribution company in West Pathanamthitta district got a Computer Emergency Response facility that is helping Ramallah Abbas will today be formally Bengal but the federal government similar virus message when their Team was gathering all possi- build a high-end tech hub. welcomed at the presidential computer system has largely es- computer was switched on. ble information about the ran- Abbas, who arrived late Sun- palace before meeting Modi, caped, offi cials said yesterday. However, West Bengal Power somware. day, will hold talks on the Middle President Pranab Mukherjee State agencies that manage Minister Sovandev Chattopad- The cyber attack, which shut East peace process, among oth- and Foreign Minister Sushma government websites and build hyay said that several billing car factories, hospitals, shops er issues, with Prime Minister Swaraj. supercomputers have installed centres of the state’s Electricity and schools over the weekend, Narendra Modi in coming days. Agreements in the areas of security patches issued by Mi- Distribution Company Ltd (WB- has proved less severe than an- But his fi rst stop was to a agriculture, education and tech- crosoft Corp. SEDCL) had been infected by the ticipated in Asia, but industry technology institute outside nology are expected to be signed Federal minister Ravi Shankar ransomware worm. professionals have fl agged po- Delhi where India is lending its following the talks, Indian dip- Prasad told reporters that there “The full extent and mag- tential risks in the future. IT know-how to help Palestine lomats said was no serious impact on In- nitude of the problem will be Aruna Sundararajan, secre- spur job creation in the tech sec- New Delhi is hosting Abbas dia, with only isolated incidents realised by tomorrow,” he said, tary of the Ministry of Electron- tor. ahead of Modi’s visit to Israel in in parts of Kerala and Andhra adding the situation will be very ics and Information Technology, India agreed in October to July - the fi rst by an Indian prime Pradesh and the government was serious if household electricity said the government was con- spend $12mn fi nancing a new minister. monitoring the situation. consumption data from the cen- stantly monitoring the situation IT hub in Ramallah in a sign of India has traditionally voiced In Kerala, the computers of two tral server of the utility could not and that a few stand-alone com- India’s “strong commitment to its support for Palestinian state- village councils were hit, with be retrieved beforehand. puters at a police department Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas poses for a photograph support (the) Palestinian cause”, hood, initially shunning diplo- messages demanding $300 in vir- A power department offi cial were “back in action” after being during a visit to the India Islamic Cultural Centre in New Delhi the foreign ministry said at the matic relations with the Jewish tual currency to unlock the fi les. who did not want to be named infected over the weekend. yesterday. time. state. Gulf Times 22 Tuesday, May 16, 2017 LATIN AMERICA

Migrants ‘fl eeing Central America face near-certain violence’

Thomson Reuters Foundation ual assault are common along MSF’s Head of Mission in Mexi- Salvador in 2015 and 2016 were Nearly one third of women Specifi cally, they should in- “Attempts to stem migration New York the route north for many who co, said in a statement. victims of violence along the reported sexual abuse. Medical crease resettlement and family by strengthening national bor- already suff ered attacks, threats, Most of the migrants are trying route, MSF said. care, treatment for sexual vio- reunifi cation quotas. ders and increased detention or extortion or forced gang recruit- to escape the so-called Northern Nearly two out of fi ve people lence and mental health services In the US, President Donald deportation, as we have seen in lmost all of the estimated ment at home, said the report by Triangle of Guatemala, Honduras said the violence occurred in along the route are limited or Trump has taken a hard line to- Mexico and in the US, ignore a 500,000 migrants who Medecins Sans Frontieres/Doc- and El Salvador, where violence, their home countries, and two- non-existent, the report said. ward immigration, vowing to genuine humanitarian crisis and Atravel into Mexico each tors Without Borders (MSF). much gang-related, has created thirds said they suff ered violence To address the crisis, govern- tighten borders, crackdown on do not curb smuggling and traf- year, fl eeing poverty and danger “The picture that emerges a “staggering” refugee crisis, the in Mexico that included torture ments in the region, including migrants without proper docu- fi cking,” Rossier said. in Central America, are victims from our report is one of ter- United Nations High Commis- by security forces, aggressive the US, Mexico and Canada, ments and speed up deporta- “These strategies have dev- of violence along their journey, a rorised vulnerable people run- sioner for Refugees said last year. detention and deportation poli- must allow more people to re- tions. astating consequences on the leading charity said. ning for their lives and those of Nine out of 10 people fl ee- cies and kidnapping by criminal settle from Central America, He also wants to build a wall lives and health of people on the Torture, kidnapping and sex- their families,” Bertrand Rossier, ing Honduras, Guatemala and El organisations. MSF said. along the border with Mexico. move.” Banks turn up heat on scandal-hit Odebrecht

Reuters given Odebrecht enough time Sao Paulo and have dealt with other head- aches in their credit portfolio over the last year, giving them anks are raising the heat more room to manoeuvre. on Brazilian conglomer- “Now the leniency deal is a re- Bate Odebrecht SA to put ality, we believe that Odebrecht its house in order after months can downsize assets and liabili- of treating the scandal-hit com- ties at a faster pace,” one senior pany with kid gloves because of banker said. fears its collapse could hurt their The tougher stance is evi- balance sheets, sources said. dent from how banks are dealing Odebrecht has agreed to ac- with Odebrecht’s 38% stake in celerate asset sales as part of a Braskem, Latin America’s No. 1 deal with creditor banks to let petrochemical fi rm. the heavily indebted company While chairman Emilio Ode- keep $800mn from the divesti- brecht wants Braskem to lead the ture of its water and waste unit group’s recovery, bankers believe announced last month, enough they have the right to decide the to fund its cash needs for two fate of the stake — pledged as Opposition supporters block an avenue during a rally against Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro in Caracas, Venezuela, yesterday. years, according to several ex- collateral for a debt restructur- ecutives, bankers and lawyers ing of agribusiness unit Odebre- involved in the talks. cht Agroindustrial SA. The conglomerate also agreed “It should be up to us, not to surrender to creditors all Odebrecht, to decide what to do dividends from its crown jewel, with Braskem,” said the chief ex- petrochemicals unit Braskem ecutive offi cer of a large Brazilian SA, and to place more assets as lender. collateral for loans under rene- Once the nation’s biggest Venezuelans block roads gotiation, said the people, who employer, Odebrecht has been asked not to be named because fl oored by Brazil’s “Operation the terms of the agreement with Car Wash” investigation into creditors were not made public. political kickbacks on state in- “All the parties agreed that frastructure contracts. steps to resolve this drama once Brazil’s harshest recession on and for all must be taken care- record has compounded prob- in seventh week of unrest fully but quickly,” said one of the lems for the family-owned group. people involved. Restricted access to capital AFP The centre-right opposition eral elections will take place as “There is no freedom. They ment protests in 2014 left 43 The agreement shows how and a tarnished reputation led Caracas blames socialist leader Maduro scheduled in late 2018 but not repress us. There is no food and people dead. creditor banks holding a big Odebrecht to miss a 12bn-real for an economic crisis that has before. when there is it is extremely ex- The current unrest erupted chunk of Odebrecht’s 76bn reais asset sale goal for mid-2017. caused severe shortages of food He has accused the opposi- pensive,” said teacher Miguel on April 1 after the Supreme ($24.34bn) in outstanding debt are The target has been extended enezuelans launched a and medicine. tion of mounting an “armed in- Martinez, protesting yesterday. Court seized power from the growing increasingly assertive. until next year under the accord seventh week of anti- A senior opposition lawmak- surgency” and “terrorist acts” “I am going to keep protest- National Assembly legislature In part, banks’ new-found governing April’s sale of Ode- Vgovernment demonstra- er, Freddy Guevara, the rally against him with US backing. ing in the streets until there is a — the only state authority con- confi dence stems from a plea brecht Ambiental SA. tions by blocking roads yester- would go on until 2300GMT. Maduro has set no date for change.” trolled by the opposition. deal struck by Odebrecht in De- However, Brazil’s government day, vowing not to budge all day He said 50 other similar block- postponed regional polls or for The government and the The court reversed that move cember with US, Brazilian and has joined creditors in push- in protest at a deadly political ages were being held on roads mayoral elections that are due opposition have accused after an international outcry. Swiss prosecutors, which drew a ing for the bulk of the target to and economic crisis. across the country, with the aim this year. each other of sending armed But Maduro further fanned line under the main legal risks to be completed this year, offi cials, Hundreds stood in the rain of generating a state of “ungov- The opposition has called on groups to sow violence in the protests when he announced the group. bankers and lawyers familiar with on a major highway in Caracas ernability” to pressure Maduro. the armed forces to abandon protests. plans to reform the constitu- Odebrecht and Braskem ad- the restructuring told Reuters. and similar rallies were called “This is a day of resistance, of Maduro but so far he still has Police have fi red tear gas and tion. That was seen by his op- mitted to bribing offi cials in 12 Some banks have balked at around the country. endurance, of showing that we the public backing of the high protesters have hurled rocks ponents as a bid to dodge elec- countries, mostly Latin Amer- how slowly the Odebrecht fam- Clashes have left 38 people are organised and fi rm,” Guevara command. and Molotov cocktails in a near- tions and cling to power. ica, and agreed to pay $3.5bn in ily, which retains control over dead in protests against moves said at the rally. He repeated the Analysts say street protests daily series of clashes. The European Union yester- fi nes in return for freedom from the company it founded in 1944, to strengthen President Nicolas opposition’s claim that Maduro are one of the few means the Venezuela has seen three at- day urged all sides in Venezuela prosecution. is selling shipbuilding, biofuels Maduro’s hold on power and his was installing a “dictatorship.” opposition has left to pressure tempted military coups since to refrain from violence and Lenders also feel they have and oil drilling assets. refusal to hold early elections. Maduro has vowed gen- Maduro. 1992. Clashes at anti-govern- seek a political solution.

Crime crackdown Hundreds fl ee as gangs Brazilian says Maduro made $20mn payment clash in Honduras city election campaigns in Panama, Reuters Brasilia El Salvador, Angola and Ven- Thomson Reuters Foundation is that one mara (gang) are tak- middle of fi ghting between gangs. ezuela. Bogota ing over the area from the other “They are fi ghting over terri- Moura, who looked after the group,” said Christian Visnes, tory. Brazilian strategist was couple’s fi nances, told pros- the NRC’s Latin America direc- One group wants to take over paid $20mn under- ecutors that Maduro, then early two hundred people tor. “This has symptoms of an and govern,” said Garcia, who Athe-table for the 2012 Chavez’s foreign minister, per- have fl ed their homes in armed confl ict,” he said, add- declined to give his real name for re-election campaign of the sonally paid her with cash in Nthe last month from one ing that residents reported a security reasons. late Venezuelan leader Hugo bags in his offi ce in Caracas. neighbourhood alone in Hondu- 13-minute shootout between ri- “We can’t live there. We’re Chavez, much of it handed Maduro handed her $11mn ras’ second city of San Pedro Sula val gangs on May 7. afraid. It’s too dangerous. There over in cash by the man who in an unspecifi ed number of in fear for their lives as gang vio- The city has one of the world’s are shootouts night and day. now leads Venezuela, Presi- meetings and provided her lence intensifi es, the Norwegian highest murder rates outside a People can’t resist anymore.” dent Nicolas Maduro, accord- with a bodyguard for her secu- Refugee Council said yesterday. war zone. Gang members force The Honduran government has ing to a plea bargain statement rity when she left the foreign With one of the world’s highest children to join their ranks, often said gang violence, along with made public. ministry, Moura said. murder rates, Honduras is strug- to be watchmen, messengers, poverty and a lack of jobs, are rea- Strategist Joao Santana, She said $7mn was paid off - gling to contain drug-fuelled gang and drugs and arms couriers. sons why Hondurans are leaving nicknamed the “maker of shore to the couple by Ode- violence and organised crime. “In the neighbourhood, the their homes to seek refuge in other presidents” for helping Bra- brecht, Brazil’s largest engi- The refugee rights group said daughter of a local leader was parts of the Central American na- zil’s leftist leaders hold power neering conglomerate that has turf wars between two powerful killed because she resisted be- tion and abroad, mainly in the US. for 13 years, was arrested last admitted to bribing govern- gangs — Barrio 18 and its rival coming part of this mara and In an attempt to curb the kill- year with his wife Monica ment offi cials for contracts Mara Salvatrucha — in the Los that was one of the reasons of ings, extortion, and drug deals Moura and they now are serv- in Brazil and a dozen other Bordos neighbourhood, a slum the fi rst displacement,” Visnes imprisoned gang members often ing eight-year prison sen- countries, and another $2mn area on the outskirts of the in- told the Thomson Reuters Foun- co-ordinate from behind bars, tences for million-dollar pay- by Brazilian builder Andrade dustrial city of San Pedro Sula, dation in a phone interview. Honduras has been transferring ments from bribe money in Gutierrez. has worsened in recent weeks. If clashes between gangs con- inmates to higher-security pris- the sprawling Car Wash graft She said the Venezuelan In the past month, around 54 tinue, a further thousand fami- ons. investigation. government never paid a re- families — nearly 200 people — in- lies living in Los Bordos could Over the weekend, some 22 In a deposition to Brazilian maining $15mn for the 2012 cluding the elderly, single mothers be forced to leave their homes, gang members escaped from a prosecutors in March, Moura campaign. and children, have been forced to Visnes said. One resident, prison ahead of a transfer to a Brazilian Public-Safety National Force policemen patrol detailed similar illegal, under- Maduro, a former bus driv- leave their homes in Los Bordos to 21-year-old Alfonso Garcia, higher-security facility, defying an entrance to the Chapadao slums complex during the-table payments totalling er, is facing mounting unrest escape gang warfare, NRC told the who grew up in the neighbour- the military guards tasked with a security operation to crack down on crime in Rio de $53.9mn, mostly paid by Bra- as his opponents take to the Thomson Reuters Foundation. hood said he fl ed the area last bringing order to the prison sys- Janeiro, Brazil, yesterday. zilian engineering companies, streets in growing numbers “Our reading of the situation week after being caught in the tem. for their work abroad advising demanding overdue elections. Gulf Times Tuesday, May 16, 2017 23 PAKISTAN/AFGHANISTAN Pakistan, Iran Pakistan PM meets Chinese president agree to boost border security

Internews as a terrorist group, of killing stani territory. Islamabad the guards with long-range guns Iranian ambassador to Pa- fi red from inside Pakistan. kistan Mehdi Honardoost was “We cannot accept the con- called to the Foreign Offi ce to akistani and Iranian tinuation of this situation,” Ma- convey Pakistan’s concerns over senior border officials jor General Baqeri was quoted as the reported remarks of the Ira- P have agreed to boost saying by state-run news agency nian chief of staff of the armed security arrangements at IRNA. forces regarding cross border ac- their border in order to block tions. the entry of terrorist ele- “We cannot accept the Official sources said the ments and smugglers from continuation of this frequency of recent high- one side to the other side. situation. We expect level exchanges from both The offi cials carried out a joint Pakistani offi cials to control sides had strengthened bi- survey of Kachao Rabat and oth- their borders arrest the lateral cooperation and dur- er border areas and identifi ed the terrorists and shut down ing the Iranian foreign min- points where there was a need to their bases” ister s visit to Islamabad strengthen the security to check on May 3 the two sides had the intrusions. “We expect Pakistani offi cials agreed to enhance co-opera- The survey of the sensitive ar- to control their borders arrest tion on border issues. Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif shakes hands with Chinese President Xi Jinping during the welcome ceremony for the Belt and eas was carried out on the orders the terrorists and shut down The Iranian side was also Road Forum, at the International Conference Centre in Yanqi Lake, north of Beijing, yesterday. of the ministers of the two coun- their bases,” he said. urged to avoid issuing state- tries after Iranian complaints If the terrorist attacks contin- ments that could vitiate the en- that terrorists enter from the ue we will hit their safe havens vironment. Pakistani side of the border and and cells wherever they are he When Javad Zarif visited Pa- return after attacks on Iranian had threatened. kistan last week and asked Prime border guards. Pakistan on 10th May 2017 Minister Nawaz Sharif to im- Ten Iranian border security conveyed its concerns to Iran prove border security he was guards were killed last month. over warnings by the latter s assured that additional troops Exports to Afghanistan hit as Iran accuses Jaish Al-Adl, an army chief that it could carry would be deployed along the organisation it has designated out operations inside Paki- border with Iran. 8,000 cargo vehicles stranded

Internews Vienna Convention doesn’t Islamabad

xports to Afghanistan to apply to spies: Pakistan suff ered severely as over E8,000 empty and loaded cargo containers and commer- Agencies enna Convention is not relevant At the outset, Qureshi said cial vehicles remained stranded The Hague in this case. India was invoking the juris- in Afghanistan since the Feb- The Vienna Convention was diction of the court for “po- ruary 17 border closure despite adopted for better communica- litical theatre” and described hectic eff orts of the regional akistan yesterday rejected tion between friendly countries. as “bizzare” the description Customs authorities to fi nd an India’s attempts to invoke But it cannot apply in this case of Jadhav’s trial as a kangaroo end to the stalemate between Pthe jurisdiction of the In- of a spy set up by a state. court. the two countries. ternational Court of Justice (ICJ) “It is clear from the Vienna Dismissing India’s conten- The Customs authorities at to save the life of alleged spy Convention that the provision tion that it invoked the juris- the Torkham border crossing Kulbushan Jadhav, saying provi- being sought under Article 36 by diction of the court because have also informed the Model sions of the Vienna Convention India cannot be entertained by of the “imminent” possibil- Collectorate Customs (MCC), did not apply on spies, terrorists this court,” Qureshi said in his ity of execution of Jadhav, Peshawar, of the situation. and those who indulge in espio- 45-minute reply to arguments Qureshi said the court was They informed the authori- nage. put forth by Indian counsel Har- bound to settle disputes be- ties that the stuck-up contain- Rebutting India’s case be- ish Salve earlier. tween countries peacefully ers and commercial vehicles fore the ICJ, Counsel Khawar At the end of the Pakistani and not waste time on issues have become a huge issue con- The stuck-up containers and commercial vehicles have become a huge issue confronting bilateral trade Qureshi asserted that this fo- argument, ICJ President Ronny sought to be raised for po- fronting the bilateral trade and between Pakistan and Afghanistan. rum is not a criminal court Abraham announced that the litical purpose. working of the border authori- of appeal nor does it exercise court would give its verdict in In this regard, he cited the ties. Afghanistan could not be re- of wheat fl our and sugar have ghanistan to Pakistan contin- criminal jurisdiction. the case “as soon as possible”. possibility of clemency which The Collector MCC Pesha- solved, which has markedly started overloading the con- ues since March 21 when the “India’s plea for invoking pro- The date will be delivered at a was mentioned by Pakistan For- war, Qurban Ali Khan, said that led to further decline in bi- signments up to 80 metric border was opened after 32 visions of Article 36 of the Vi- public sitting, Abraham said. eign Advisor Sartaj Aziz. they raised the matter with the lateral trade between the two tonnes (MT) as the export pe- days closure. relevant forum to resolve the is- neighbours. riod of both the items is going The matter was taken up with sue as it was aff ecting the bilat- According to the Customs to expire on May 15 and 31, re- the Frontier Corps (FC) au- eral trade and local traders. authorities, more than 5,000 spectively. thorities manning Pak-Afghan Pakistan sealed its border empty vehicles stranded across The export of cement has also border at Torkham, and later a with Afghanistan for an ‘indefi - the border due to the monopo- witnessed a signifi cant decrease two-hour extension in the gate Sharif to meet Trump in Saudi Arabia nite period’ owing to security lised and restricted fl ow of own to the high transportation closure was given. concerns following the deadly empty commercial vehicles on charges resulting in the price- The office of the deputy suicide bombing at Lal Shah- the part of the Afghan Trans- hike of the Pakistan-origin ce- collector at Torkham division Internews that a meeting between Sharif had said, “Get it Straight: Paki- baz Qalandar shrine in Sindh on port Union. ment in Afghan markets. said that the border authori- Islamabad and Trump was planned; how- stan is not our friend.” February 16. Similarly, over 3000 com- It is adversely aff ecting the ties also sought to take the Af- ever, a fi xed date, time and agen- Earlier, a Gulf News report The border remained closed mercial vehicles loaded with the demand and supply of Pakistani ghan Customs into confidence da of the meeting are yet to be posted on its website the invi- for all sorts of trade, transport import consignment of mineral cement as compared to Iranian to ensure speedy flow of the akistani Prime Minis- fi nalised. tations for the coming Arab, Is- and people crossing over to coal, soapstone, etc are report- and Central Asian origin ce- empty commercial vehicles to ter Nawaz Sharif and This will be the first time lamic and United States summit both sides. edly stranded across the border ment, which cost lower than Pakistan. P United States President the two heads of state will were being sent to leaders of the However, on March 21 the awaiting their turn. that of Pakistani origin cement It informed that the Afghan Donald Trump will meet for meet in person, having only member countries of the Saudi- border was temporarily reo- The Customs authorities at in the Afghan markets. Customs had also assured all the first time in Saudi Arabia, talked on the phone a few led Islamic coalition to fi ght ter- pened at Torkham and Cha- the border said that this led to The Customs division in possible cooperation in unhin- sources in the Foreign Office months ago before Trump’s rorism. man crossings to allow Afghan an artifi cial shortage of com- Khyber, Torkham, offi ce on May dered fl ow of commercial ve- confirmed. inauguration. Pakistan is a part of the 41-na- nationals stranded in Pakistan mercial vehicles, due to which 9, through a letter No 3325, has hicles. Nawaz Sharif is expected to While Trump called Pakistan tion Islamic Military Alliance to to return to their country and transport charges have shot up also informed the MCC that The FC also assured of the land in Saudi Arabia on May 20 ‘fantastic’ in his phone conver- Fight Terrorism. some perishable items stranded ranging between Rs150, 000 to stalemate over the containers follow-up on the matter to for the US-Arab-Islamic sum- sation with the premier, the US Last month, the government at these crossings. Rs600, 000 per trip to diff erent and commercial vehicles issue resolve the issue ie the stuck mit, which will see leaders from president has historically ex- granted a no-objection certifi - The border crossing at the Afghan cities. continued. up vehicles and containers across the world participate in pressed his resentment for the cate to former army chief Gen Torkham, though, has been In the wake of this unprec- It said that the stalemate confronted by the traders and the event. country. Raheel Sharif to assume com- reopened, yet the issue of edented increase in transpor- over the unrestricted flow of transporter of both coun- Sources in the FO confi rmed In a tweet from 2011, Trump mand of the coalition. cargo containers stuck up in tation charges, the exporters commercial vehicles from Af- tries.

Severe water shortage hits Islamabad Shipshape

Internews reduction in water level at the charge of his offi ce in September term planning in shape of re- Islamabad Khanpur Dam. last year. ceiving 100 MGD water from “One out of two motors for After protests by residents of Indus River and it will take at water pumping is available Islamabad over water shortage, least two years to complete,” the esidents of various sectors due to which 4mn gallons of spokesman said. of the federal capital are water per day IMGD) instead “We are also working Presently, it is sector G-10/1 Rfacing water rationing of of eight MGD is being received on long term planning which is the worst hit by wa- two to three days due to insuf- from the Khanpur Dam,” the in shape of receiving ter shortage.“We receive water fi cient supply of water from the official said adding that in the 100 MGD water from supply after three to four days Khanpur Dam. present situation it is not pos- Indus River and it will which is not sufficient to meet An official of the engineering sible to ensue supply of water take at least two years to our requirements,” Amjad re- wing of the Municipal Corp of to all sectors. complete” siding in Street 16 of Sector Islamabad (MCI) requested not He revealed that the motor is G-10/1 said. to be named has admitted that dysfunctional for the last three reportedly Rs 5mn have been re- He said it is also not possible residents of sectors G-10, G-11 years and no remedial measures leased for repair of 72 dysfunc- to get water supply through MCI and F-10 are not getting water had been taken since then. tional tubewells. tankers as the private tanker ma- supply on daily basis and the The offi cial said the replace- The spokesman for MCI said fi a always enjoy good time dur- situation is expected to con- ment of motor requires over that 30 out of 72 dysfunctional ing the summer season. tinue for the ongoing summer Rs15mn saying that the tender- tubewells would be made oper- He regretted that the civic season. ing process to do the needful ational in the next two to three agency had not been available The main reason behind se- has been started and the needful weeks while measures were to receive water from the exist- vere water shortage in these would be done in the next few also being taken for improving ing capacity of water resources. Mohamed Sharif, 70, a carpenter with henna-dyed beard, cuts wood to shape a wood panel while sectors is a dysfunctional weeks. the water supply in all the sec- “This shows seriousness of MCI working with others to build a boat at a yard in Fish Harbour in Karachi, Pakistan yesterday. The heavy duty motor which helps The fi rst Mayor of Islamabad, tors. in resolving our basic issues,” he giant wooden boats, made almost solely by hand with minimum machines, are exported. in pumping of water along with Sheikh Ansar Aziz, also took “We are also working on long said. Gulf Times 24 Tuesday, May 16, 2017 PHILIPPINES

Senate nod for 10-year Panel rejects impeachment passport validity bill complaint against Duterte Manila Times Manila Reuters Manila he passage of a bill making Philippine passports valid Congressional panel of Tfor 10 years will give much Philippine lawmakers relief to overseas Filipino work- Ayesterday found an im- ers (OFWs), according to Sen. peachment complaint against Juan Edgardo Angara. President Rodrigo Duterte “This measure will certainly lacked substance and should go give comfort to our OFWs. Of- no further, a widely expected ten, they have to fi le a leave from outcome underlining the mav- work for them to be able to travel erick leader’s steadfast legisla- back and forth to the nearest tive support. Philippine Embassy or consular Committee members unani- offi ce to get their passports re- mously voted to shoot down the newed,” Angara said in a state- complaint by Gary Alejano, a ment yesterday after senators member of a minority block, and approved Senate Bill (SB) 1365, will recommend its dismissal by or the New Philippine Passport the 292-seat Congress, where Act, on third and fi nal reading, Duterte enjoys a super-majority. extending passports’ validity to Alejano accused Duterte of 10 years. high crimes and betrayal of pub- Angara expressed confi dence lic trust by concealing assets, that SB 1365 will easily hurdle the supporting summary execu- bicameral conference commit- tions of thousands of Filipinos Magdalo Representative Gary Alejano (left) gestures as he explains tee. Eighteen years after the pas- in his war on drugs, and having the impeachment complaint against the president at the House of sage of Republic Act 8239, or the a “defeatist” approach towards Representatives in Manila yesterday. Philippine Passport Act of 1996, Beijing’s assertiveness in the there is obviously a compelling South China Sea. bers said Alejano’s complaint strengthen a complaint fi led by need to amend it to simplify the The panel’s decision to de- Lawmakers stand to aff irm the rejection of an impeachment complaint against President Rodrigo Duterte was deeply fl awed. a lawyer last month with the In- application process of the De- clare the complaint insuffi cient at the House of Congress in Quezon City, Metro Manila yesterday. Harry Roque said “at best it’s ternational Criminal Court ac- partment of Foreign Aff airs since in substance came a few hours a misrepresentation, at worst cusing Duterte of crimes against the number of passports issued into proceedings that focused would prove “the government is dictatorship,” he told reporters. Alejano was aware his bid it’s a falsity”. humanity. by the DFA has been increasing heavily on Alejano’s admission killing them”. “We are sending the message was a long shot but had aimed Deputy house speaker Fre- Among the ICC’s jurisdic- by an annual average of 29.3% that he had not personally wit- He said the committee made to the president, ‘yes, you con- to embolden the public to speak denil Castro said Alejano was tional requirements is that do- beginning 2010, he said. nessed the drugs-related kill- a decision based purely on Du- tinue, we will allow you’.” up over the war on drugs and using “hearsay” to try to oust a mestic legal avenues to try an “It’s about time. We have to ings that he was accusing Du- terte’s popularity and would be Presidential Legal Counsel over Duterte’s failure to pressure president with a huge electoral individual are fi rst exhausted. keep up with the standard prac- terte of sponsoring. responsible for a dictatorship Salvador Panelo said the junk- China to abide by an interna- mandate. Alejano said he might now tice of other countries such as Alejano was furious that the taking shape. ing of the complaint was ex- tional arbitration ruling last year “You cannot make a joke of convince his allies to put their the United States, United King- panel was unwilling to hear what “I assure you if we allow the pected because it was built on that declared some of Beijing’s this proceeding,” said Castro. weight behind the ICC case, be- dom, Australia, among others,” he said was extensive evidence president that kind of power in falsehoods and intended to “be- activities in the South China Sea Some political commentators cause there were no Philippine Angara added, referring to the from witnesses and survivors violation of the constitution... smirch the reputation” of Du- illegal. say Alejano’s impeachment ef- institutions able to hold Duterte 10-year validity of passports. of drugs-related violence that If we allow it further, it will be a terte. Numerous committee mem- fort had an ulterior motive: to to account. Govt to shop for Chinese, Russian Filipina who helped Snowden arms due to strict US conditions faces deportation from HK

Manila Times safe house in Moscow. Rodel and the other refugees Reuters kidnapping, he said. Lorenzana that could be used in a war on companies which called on the Manila are facing deportation after the city’s authorities Manila said acquiring weapons and drugs that has killed thousands fi rebrand leader, and the de- rejected their bid for protection. equipment from the United of Filipinos, and has been con- fence ministry would send a “The decisions are completely unreasonable,” States had become diffi cult be- demned by Western govern- technical team to look at the he Department of Foreign Aff airs has reached Tibbo told reporters, saying the procedures had he Philippines has been cause the process was slow and ments. At the sidelines of a Belt Chinese equipment. out to a Filipina who sheltered former Na- been “manifestly unfair” towards his clients. forced to turn to China there were conditions tied to and Road summit in Beijing, China has off ered to donate Ttional Security Agency contractor Edward Tibbo said their cases had been rejected because Tand Russia for arms sup- sales. Philippine President Rodrigo $14mn worth of military hard- Snowden in 2013 and is now facing deportation in their home countries were deemed safe. plies because of conditions im- “That’s why we are discour- Duterte on Sunday met several ware to the Philippines, plus a Hong Kong. The refugees have said previously they were posed by its long-time ally and aged from getting from them Chinese state-owned corpora- soft loan for $500mn in Chi- Foreign Aff airs spokesman Robespierre Bolivar specifi cally asked about their links to Snowden by former colonial ruler the United because of these conditions,” tions, including a defence con- nese arms. said all concerned offi ces of the department were Hong Kong authorities. States, Defence Secretary Delf- Lorenzana told reporters in tractor blacklisted by Washing- He said the Philippines had mobilised to reach out to Vanessa Mae Rodel, 46, “We now have less than two weeks to submit ap- in Lorenzana said yesterday. Beijing. ton for selling to Iran items that only planned to use China’s whose life remains in limbo following her unex- peals before the families are deported,” said Tibbo The United States has pro- “We need airplanes, we need were banned under US laws. money if the military’s fi ve- pected meeting with Snowden. alongside the refugees, who were visibly distressed. vided its defence treaty ally drones, we need fast boats,” Duterte, who is working hard year 100bn peso ($2bn) budget In 2010, Rodel sought asylum in Hong Kong al- He said there was a risk his clients could be de- with most of its major hard- he said. “We need them in the to strengthen ties with China, for modernisation was insuf- legedly because she was a victim of rape and ab- tained and their children placed in government ware, like ships, fi ghters, heli- south so that we can deter kid- has admitted he has a grudge fi cient. duction. Rodel and other Sri Lankan refugees who custody. After leaving his initial Hong Kong hotel copters and small arms, but the nappings and bring about de- against the United States and He is due to sign a defence fed and gave shelter to Snowden are now seeking for fear of being discovered, Snowden went un- Philippines was now looking to velopment.” complained at what he says is agreement with his Russian asylum in Canada. They are being represented by derground, fed and looked after by the refugees for China and Russia for drones, Weapons procurements useless US “hand-me-down” counterpart next week for pos- Robert Tibbo, who also provided legal advice to around two weeks. planes, fast boats and rifl es to could also be complicated by merchandise. sible purchases of weapons and Snowden when he was hiding in Hong Kong. Their stories only emerged late last year. fi ght Maoist-led rebels and Is- bipartisan attempts by some Lorenzana confi rmed Chi- drones. Snowden, 33, is wanted by American authorities The group includes a Sri Lankan couple with two lamist militants behind an un- US lawmakers to ban the trans- na’s Poly Group Corp and Poly The Philippines is also ac- for leaking classifi ed information on global surveil- young children and Rodel and her fi ve-year-old relenting spree of piracy and fer of arms to the Philippines Technologies were among quiring drones from Israel. lance programmes. Snowden is in an undisclosed daughter.

HEALTH Agency takes precautions Philippine, US troops train for relief operations against Ebola virus Distribution of health forms to Agencies arriving passengers at the Ninoy Casiguran, Aurora Aquino International Airport (NAIA) may be resumed over a reported outbreak again of the Ebola virus ilipino and American in the Democratic Republic of troops yesterday simulat- Congo in Africa. Fed relief operations in the Bureau of Quarantine (BoQ) wake of a supertyphoon scenar- personnel yesterday said they are io, highlighting the focus of this only waiting for the instruction or year’s Balikatan exercises on ‘go-signal’ from the Department disaster response as the usual of Health (DoH) to resume the territorial defence manoeuvres distribution, which was stopped in took a back seat. February this year after all kinds The shift was on orders of of virus were reportedly put under President Duterte, who earlier control. Although it stopped the directed the scrapping of the distribution of the health forms, Balikatan exercises but later re- the bureau maintained its fever lented, Philippine Daily Inquirer scanning system 24/7, according reported. to physician Geraldine Yangson. The Balikatan is part of a Mu- Manila has no direct flights from tual Defence Treaty between the Congo but Quarantine bureau two countries signed in 1951. personnel strictly monitor arriving “The military is always dic- passengers with connecting flights tated by the guidance of politi- from Middle East countries and cal leaders and we comply with those from Hong Kong, Singapore that,” the Armed Forces of the and Thailand. “If given the go-signal, Philippines spokesperson, Brig. we will resume the distribution of Gen. Restituto Padilla, said on the health forms to all passengers the sidelines of the event. on these flights,” Yangson said. This year’s Balikatan involved A Philippine air force C-130 cargo plane flies over Philippine navy Three years ago, airport and health about 5,000 troops (2,800 Fili- Filipino soldiers disembark from the landing ship before they dock at Motiong Beach, as part of the sea lift vessel BRP Tarlac, while a speed boat loaded with US and authorities tightened screening of pino and 2,600 American), few- Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Response scenario during the annual Balikatan Philippine marines sails during a simulation of a disaster drill as arriving passengers at the NAIA er than some 9,000 American (Shoulder-to-Shoulder) exercises in Casiguran, yesterday. part of the annual joint exercise at a sea port in Casiguran town. amid fears of a worldwide spread and Filipino soldiers who took of the Ebola virus. part in exercises last year. John Jansen, commander of US phoon and there was no other ried troops for the event dubbed choppers for the insertion of medical and dental mission, and Passengers of all foreign flights “It turned out this Balikatan Joint Task Force. way to bring relief to residents “Civil Military Activities from troops and casualty evacua- taught residents expedient wa- arriving at the NAIA terminals were is a little smaller, two-third of Barangay Dibacong in Casig- but by air and sea. the Sea.” The Philippines also tion. They also used the USNS ter collection and purifi cation, required to fill out health declara- size compared to last year … but uran, the venue of the main The Philippine Navy’s big- used its Huey helicopters. Sacagaewa, a cargo ship, to ferry health and safety management tion checklists, which asked for there is no policy that says that event for the joint drills, was gest ship, the BRP Tarlac, was The US forces used V-22 Os- personnel and relief supplies. and other topics related to ca- travel histories, addresses and it will be small,” said Brig. Gen. supposedly hit by a super ty- used as a supply vessel and fer- prey and UH-60 Black Hawk The troops also sponsored a lamities. contact details. Gulf Times Tuesday, May 16, 2017 25 SRI LANKA/BANGLADESH/NEPAL

BNP calls Bangladesh court upholds for removal of attorney life sentence for preacher general By Mizan Rahman AFP Sayeedi’s lawyer Tanvir Al Amin secularists who had fought for Dhaka Dhaka said. decades for top Jamaat-e-Isla- Five Jamaat leaders, includ- mi members to be punished for ing mastermind Motiur Rahman war crimes. escribing Attorney Gen- angladesh’s top court Nizami, have been executed for Sayeedi and other Islamists eral Mahbubey Alam as a yesterday upheld a life their part in bloody crimes dur- from the hardline group were Dthreat to an independent Bsentence for a fi rebrand ing the war of independence. implicated in the murder, rape judiciary, the Bangladesh Na- Islamist preacher convicted of Sayeedi was sentenced to and torture of Hindus and pro- tionalist Party (BNP) yesterday war crimes, rejecting calls for death in 2013 by a war crimes independence Bangladeshis demanded his removal. him to be hanged. tribunal. seeking a secular nation free “The state’s chief law offi cer The Supreme Court stood The verdict triggered some of from Pakistani rule. has threatened the chief jus- by its 2014 decision to jail the worst political violence in The court decision in Say- tice and other justices during Delwar Hossain Sayeedi for years in the Muslim-majority eedi’s case comes as Bangladesh the hearing of a case on par- life over atrocities commit- nation, with scores left dead as grapples with a rise in extrem- liament’s power to remove its ted during Bangladesh’s 1971 tens of thousands of Islamists ism, as the moderate Islam wor- judges. The government’s true war of independence against clashed with police. shipped for generations gives colour has been exposed with Pakistan. Support for the radical way to a more conservative in- the media reports on it,” said Sayeedi’s lawyers wanted the preacher – whose sermons terpretation of the scriptures. BNP senior leader Ruhul Kabir prominent member of Jamaat- could draw hundreds of thou- The secular government of Rizvi. e-Islami, Bangladesh’s largest sands – swelled even further af- Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina Speaking at a discussion, he Islamist party, acquitted while ter rumours that his image was has ordered a crackdown on said, “The current attorney gen- government attorneys sought seen in the moon, a perceived homegrown extremists after a eral is a threat to an independent capital punishment for the sign of his innocence. series of bloody attacks, but has judiciary, and he should be fi red.” 77-year-old cleric. The Supreme Court in 2014 more recently made conces- Rizvi alleged that Alam har- “The court rejected the re- commuted the death sentence sions to Islamists to try to woo assed BNP leaders and activ- view appeals by both sides,” to life imprisonment, angering support. Delwar Hossain Sayeedi being presented in a court in Dhaka. ists by infl uencing the judiciary while dealing with cases fi led against them. “The government has long been carrying out various evil Lanka PM attends China forum activities to suppress the leaders Three British Gurkhas return and activists of BNP and other opposition parties through the attorney general.” He alleged that Alam has been to Mt Everest, make summit working as a government repre- sentative in the court to imple- ment its various programmes for AFP Brigade of Gurkhas – a unit of self – died this month while obliterating democracy. Kathmandu Nepalis recruited into the Brit- attempting to reclaim his title Mentioning that Chief Jus- ish army – were at Camp One at as the world’s oldest person to tice Surendra Kumar Sinha has 6,000m when a 7.8 magnitude summit Everest. clearly stated that the judici- hree British Gurkha sol- earthquake struck Nepal in late Experienced Swiss climber ary has lost its independence, diers reached the summit April 2015, killing 9,000 people. Ueli Steck fell during an accli- the BNP leader said the coun- Tof Mount Everest yester- The earthquake caused an av- matisation climb in late April. try’s common people also ‘fully day, two years after being caught alanche on Everest that claimed Last year fi ve people lost their agree’ with the chief justice’s in an avalanche on the mountain 18 lives at base camp, putting lives on Everest, while 443 suc- observations. sparked by the earthquake that a stop to the climbing season. cessfully summited from the He said though people are in devastated swathes of Nepal. The soldiers themselves were Nepal side and another 197 from favour of independence of judi- The climbers are the fi rst to unhurt. the north side in Tibet. ciary, the current government summit the world’s highest Yesterday, the three Gurkhas A team of six Indian climbers does not want it. peak from the south side this reached the summit shortly after were the fi rst to summit Ever- Accusing the prime minister spring season, as strong winds, a team of Sherpa guides fi nished est from the northern Tibet side of trying to establish her domi- fresh snowfall and bitter cold fi xing ropes to the peak, Kamal this year, reaching the peak on nance over all the state organs, hampered other attempts. Parajuli, an offi cial with Nepal’s Saturday. Rizvi said Sheikh Hasina is now “At 14:08 the message came Tourism Department, said. The successful fi rst sum- angry with the apex court as it is through that our lead team has Each year skilled rope-fi xers mits come unusually late in the ‘challenging her supremacy’. summited Everest,” the climb prepare the path to the summit, season. Mountaineers are con- He also said the government organisers posted on Instagram. allowing for hundreds of paying cerned that with 375 climbing is demonstrating its supreme China’s President Xi Jinping, right, shakes hands with Sri Lanka’s Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe Twenty-one Gurkhas are climbers to ascend the mountain. permits issued this year, there power by not issuing a gazette during the welcome ceremony for the Belt and Road Forum, at the International Conference Center in Yanqi hoping this year to complete This year’s climbing season could be potentially dangerous notifi cation on the rules deter- Lake, north of Beijing, yesterday. Chinese President Xi Jinping urged world leaders to reject protectionism an expedition to the 8,848m has already been marred by two “traffi c jams” as mountaineers mining discipline and conduct yesterday at a summit positioning Beijing as a champion of globalisation, as some countries raised concerns (29,030ft) peak which they deaths. target a brief window of good of lower court judges repeatedly over his trade ambitions. began in 2015. Min Bahadur Sherchan – aged weather before the monsoon ignoring the Supreme Court’s Sixteen soldiers from the 85 and a former Gurkha him- begins in June. directives. Nepal to strengthen Vote counting slow after relations with China Nepal’s local elections

Reuters under B&R Initiative Kathmandu ounting of votes in Ne- IANS Sharma, former brigadier gen- pal’s fi rst local elections Kathmandu eral of the Nepal army, told Cin two decades began Xinhua. yesterday but offi cials said it “Nepal always has remained could take several days for all the epal expects to en- an admirer of this noble Belt results to be known. hance co-operation and Road Initiative to bring Offi cials said 73% of nearly Nwith China within peace, prosperity and brother- 5mn voters cast their ballots on the framework of the Belt and hood for the entire world,” said Sunday in the fi rst round of the Road Initiative, Nepal’s For- Sharma, who is also the execu- elections, a major step in the eign Minister Prakash Sharan tive director of the Kathman- young republic’s diffi cult tran- Mahat said yesterday. du-based private think-tank sition to democracy more than “The Chinese president’s National Institute of Strategic a decade after the end of its announcement to contrib- Studies. civil war. ute an additional 100bn yuan “Nepal as the closest neigh- The government hopes that (about $14.5b) to the Silk Road Foreign Minister Prakash bour is soon to benefi t from the polls, staggered over two Fund is a piece of good news Sharan Mahat: “The Chinese this Belt and Road Initiative,” phases, will lead to a general for neighboring countries like announcement to contribute he added. election later in the year. Nepal that have recently joined an additional $14.5bn to the Nepal’s Deputy Prime Min- “The fi rst phase of local elec- the Belt and Road Initiative,” Silk Road Fund is a piece of ister Krishna Bahadur Mahara, tions was historic because it took Mahat said. good news.” who heads a high-level del- place after many years. Voters The initiative, proposed by egation, is attending the two- also participated with enthusi- Chinese President Xi Jinping Nepal wants to enhance railway day Belt and Road Forum for asm,” Govinda Acharya, an aide in 2013, aims to build trade and road inter-connectivity International Co-operation in to Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal and infrastructure networks with China and attract more Beijing. Dahal, said. connecting Asia with Europe investments, he said, adding The forum is also covered by Nepal’s democratic journey and Africa along and beyond that “We are expecting more mainstream daily newspapers, took a hit in 2015 when some ancient Silk Road trade routes loans from China to develop online media outlets and tel- regional groups rejected a con- over land and sea. various infrastructure projects evision channels in Nepal. stitution approved by bigger po- Commenting on Xi’s speech within the framework of the Kosh Raj Koirala, a Kath- litical parties, saying it concen- at the opening ceremony of the Belt and Road Initiative.” mandu-based correspondent trated power among the hill elite Belt and Road Forum for In- Nepal and China signed a with Republica Newspaper, that has long dominated politics. ternational Co-operation held memorandum of understand- said, “In his speech, Presi- Surya Prasad Sharma, an Elec- in Beijing on Sunday, the for- ing (MoU) earlier this week, dent Xi has categorically put tion Commission spokesman, eign minister said that Nepal which is aimed at enhancing emphasis on the need to build said counting for 214 local bodies wishes to receive more invest- co-operation in promoting in- peaceful and stable environ- out of 281 for which polls were ments from China to develop ter-connectivity of infrastruc- ment in the region to imple- held on Sunday had started. inter-connectivity and infra- ture, trade links, fi nancial inte- ment the initiative. This is Sharma said ballot boxes were structure projects within the gration and inter-connectivity expected to create conducive being brought in by helicopter framework of the Belt and Road of peoples. environment in the region for from remote polling centres. Off icials from the election commission count votes a day after the local election of municipalities and villages Initiative. Meanwhile, the forum has peace and prosperity.” “It could take three-four days representatives in Kathmandu yesterday. The Belt and Road Initiative received widespread attention The Belt and Road Initia- for all results to be declared be- is a wide concept. China has from all walks of life in Nepal. tive provides opportunities for cause of (lengthy) counting cluding mayor, deputy mayor, Another 9mn Nepalis are southern plains where Madhesi given top priority to promot- “This is an extraordinary countries like Nepal that face procedures,” he said. ward chairpersons and council eligible to vote in the second groups are demanding consti- ing this initiative since it was address by President Xi at the diffi culties in infrastructure Some 50,000 contenders were members in the fi rst round of phase of elections set for June tutional change to address their introduced in 2013, he added. forum this morning,” Suresh development, he added. vying for 13,556 positions in- elections. 14 that includes the restive grievances. Gulf Times 26 Tuesday, May 16, 2017 COMMENT

Chairman: Abdullah bin Khalifa al-Attiyah Deputy Managing Editor: K T Chacko Congrats, President Macron

P.O.Box 2888 — now we will oppose you Doha, Qatar [email protected] Telephone 44350478 (news), Macron’s electoral 44466404 (sport), 44466636 (home delivery) programme made clear his Fax 44350474 intent to continue with the labour-market policies that he began to introduce as former President GULF TIMES Francois Hollande’s economy minister

By Yanis Varoufakis Testing transition Athens rior to the second round of the French Presidential election, DiEM25 (the pan-European for Pakistan with Pmovement of democrats, mostly of the left, that I helped to found) promised Emmanuel Macron that we would “mobilise fully to help” double departure him defeat Marine Le Pen. This we did – incurring the wrath of many on the left – because maintaining “an equal First, the good part. distance between Macron and Le Pen,” Emmanuel Macron: No “honeymoon” period? Pakistan have won their fi rst-ever series victory in we believed, was “inexcusable.” But there was a second part to our The idea is simple: If employers cutting local government spending, Germans have said so already. West Indies. The thrilling 101-run victory in the third promise to Macron: if he “becomes have more control over how long and and increasing indirect taxes, which According to Wolfgang Schäuble, Test, won with just six balls to spare, was a historic merely another functionary of how much they pay their employees, ultimately hit the poorest. In any Germany’s fi nance minister, all Europe moment for Pakistan. Europe’s deep establishment,” they will hire more workers under economy affl icted by low and falling now needs is to convert the European Now the bad part. pursuing dead-end, already-failed normal contracts. And the improved investment, cutting government Stability Mechanism into a European neoliberalism, we “will oppose him social safety net will ensure that spending and raising indirect taxes is Monetary Fund. In other words, if The next time Pakistan team don whites and head no less energetically than we are – or workers with the right skills will be bound to weaken aggregate demand, France wants joint funding, it must out into a cricket fi eld, they will be without the should be – opposing Le Pen now.” available. thus confi rming the pessimistic submit itself to the same conditionality services of two of Pakistan’s ever-dependable pillars Relieved that Macron won, and There is, of course, nothing new to expectations that prevent investors that wrecked Greece. Martin Schulz, proud of our clear support for him, we this idea. Known by the unfortunate from investing and giving the the leader of Germany’s opposition — Younis Khan and Misbah-ul-Haq. Their long and must now fulfi l the second part of the neologism “fl exicurity,” it was defl ationary wheel another spin. Social Democrats, agrees that no new distinguished career came to an end with this Test tour promise. No “honeymoon” period: implemented with some success in As if this were not enough, Macron fi scal institution is necessary, proposing of West Indies. It proved to be a perfect goodbye with we must oppose Macron immediately. Denmark and other Scandinavian has promised to redress an injustice he only that France and Germany jointly Here’s why. countries in the 1990s. But fl exicurity feels burdens the low-income, asset- fi nance some common investment Pakistan having gotten the elusive series triumph but Macron’s electoral programme is bound to fail badly in France, thus rich French: he pledged to reduce projects. In other words, nein means now begins a tricky period of transition. They will have made clear his intent to continue with strengthening Le Pen’s xenophobic taxes on wealth or assets that do not nein. to fi nd new talent who will be tasked with fi lling in the the labour-market policies that he nationalists, because it can work only generate incomes above a certain Hollande, lest we forget, also won began to introduce as former President in a macroeconomic environment of threshold. As with fl exicurity, there the French Presidency by promising huge boots of these two great players. Francois Hollande’s economy minister. investment-led growth. Alas, this is a logic to this: Taxing assets that to challenge Germany on eurozone Misbah in Pakistan’s most successful captain with Having spoken to him about these is not the environment that the new do not generate incomes makes little macroeconomic policy – and then this latest victory over the West Indies becoming the policies, I have no doubt that he French President has inherited. sense from an ethical, political, or quickly abandoned the fi ght. If 26th under his command. The 42-year-old was also at believes in them strongly. He follows In today’s France, investment in economic viewpoint. Macron is to succeed, he will need a long tradition of blaming the legal fi xed capital, relative to national Even so, to reduce wealth taxes a credible fallback position and a the helm of aff airs when Pakistan soared to the numero constraints on fi ring workers for income, is at its lowest level in before closing the loopholes that European strategy that he can pursue uno spot in the ICC Test rankings last year. He made the fall in permanent employment decades – and falling. This reinforces allow the income-rich (who are often without German agreement. Such a his debut in 2001 against New Zealand and since then and the emergence of a new division defl ationary expectations, which, also asset-rich) to pay their share of plan is not in evidence. All we see is between protected and precarious when dismissals become easier, imply income tax makes little sense. To do so a readiness to do whatever Germany has scored 5,222 runs with an average of more than 46. employees – between insiders, with a rapid reduction of permanent, full- while practising austerity on the poor demands in advance, including Misbah was entrusted the Test captaincy in 2010 well-paid, quasi-tenured positions, time positions. In short, rather than is to commit an act of vandalism on an “fl exicurity,” austerity, and so forth, in after the spot-fi xing scandal in England which had led and outsiders, who work as service ameliorating the division between already divided society. the hope that Germany will then agree providers without benefi ts and often insiders and outsiders, Macron’s Macron understands the folly in to some of his eurozone reforms before to the sacking of his predecessor Salman Butt. And under zero-hour contracts. Trade labour-market legislation would the foundations of the eurozone. And it is too late. the level-headed Misbah was the perfect candidate for unions and the left, according to this deepen it. he has promised to work tirelessly Reasonable people understood Pakistan. He has proved to be the corner stone of many view, are actually a conservative force, Macron’s greatest diffi culty will be to convince Germany that Europe that Macron ought to be supported because they defend insiders’ interests the same as Hollande’s: dealing with must speedily create a proper banking against Le Pen. Now they understand Pakistan innings, saving his team from many diffi cult while ignoring the plight of the Germany. The German government union, common unemployment that Macron’s policies will worsen situations. Though known to be a slow run-maker, he burgeoning army of outsiders. – and consequently the Eurogroup insurance, a debt-restructuring the deflationary, regressive cycle also scored a record-equalling 56-ball century against For Macron, a true progressive of eurozone fi nance ministers, which mechanism for countries like Greece that is Le Pen’s greatest ally. With Australia in 2014. must not only support reforms Germany dominates – never misses and Portugal, a proper federal the election over, opposing Le Pen that strengthen employers’ right to a chance to castigate the French for treasury, Eurobonds (operating like US now means opposing Macron. – That he happened to dismiss and manage workers; equally their failure to bring the government’s Treasuries), and a federal parliament Project Syndicate If the youngsters equal the record of Viv important are increases in social budget defi cit below the agreed that legitimises the federal treasury’s Richards speaks of his security for those losing their jobs, 3%-of-GDP limit. authority. zYanis Varoufakis, a former fi nance fail fi ll the void, training in new skills, and incentives Macron has pledged to achieve So, what will Macron do when minister of Greece, is Professor of calibre. to take up new jobs. this by dismissing civil servants, Germany says nein? In fact, the Economics at the University of Athens. Pakistan cricket Misbah, along with Younis, have been the could go into bedrock of Pakistan a downward cricket for a decade. Younis leaves the fi eld as spiral Pakistan’s most prolifi c Germany will lose if Macron fails Test batsman having scored 10,099 runs at an average of more than 52 which By Hans-Helmut Kotz capacity to boost domestic demand, infrastructure, digitisation, and clean could well win France’s next election. includes 32 hundreds. The former captain had also led Frankfurt thereby reducing its massive energy to boost potential growth. To avoid this outcome, Macron current-account surplus. Despite Macron’s decisive victory, must be fi rmer than his predecessors the country to the World Twenty20 title in 2009. These are not new ideas: the he faces an uphill battle implementing in pursuing diffi cult but ultimately It will be diffi cult for Pakistan to find able hen Emmanuel Macron European Commission, the his economic agenda. Even if the benefi cial policies. He might take a replacements but they will have to do so soon. Or they won the French International Monetary Fund, National Assembly, to be elected in page from former German Chancellor will suff er the same fate as Sri Lanka. The Islanders presidential election, Macron’s predecessors, and June, endorses his reform programme, Gerhard Schroder’s playbook. In Wmany Germans breathed economists throughout Europe have street-level resistance will be no less 2003, Schroder prioritised reforms still haven’t recovered from the departure of stalwarts a loud sigh of relief. A pro-European advanced them often. And, just as fi erce than it has been over the last few over rigorous obedience to the EU’s Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene, who centrist had soundly defeated a far- predictably, Germany’s government years. Stability and Growth Pact. Additional retired two years ago. right populist, the National Front’s has roundly rejected them, relying Germany, however, has good fi scal leeway was needed to smooth Marine Le Pen. But if the nationalist on reasoning that, like its counter- reason to support Macron’s supply- the economy’s adjustment to the bold Pakistan do have the talent in their roster. Azhar Ali, threat to Europe is truly to be arguments, is well rehearsed. and demand-side reforms. After labour-market reforms that he was Asad Shafi q and Sarfaraz Ahmed are among the few contained, Germany will have to work For the most part, German all, France and Germany are deeply introducing. The decision to prioritise names that can deliver. But it will be important for with Macron to address the economic economists and offi cials believe interdependent, meaning that reforms over obstinate rule-following challenges that have driven so many that economic policy should focus Germany has a stake in Macron’s proved to be a good one. these players to understand the gravity of the situation voters to reject the European Union. almost exclusively on the supply side, fate. Now is Macron’s Schroderian and deliver on a consistent level. This will not be easy. In fact, within diagnosing and addressing structural While it is true that the German moment. He, too, appears to have Teams constantly go through transition. Even the a couple of days of the election, core problems. And German offi cials also government cannot (fortunately) opted for reasoned pragmatism over planks of Macron’s economic platform regularly suggest that their economy fine-tune wages, it could, out of the blind implementation of rigid rules mighty Australians suff ered a blip in performance but were already under attack in Germany. is already performing at close to its sheer self-interest, provide for (which cannot make sense under any they have been able to slowly and steadily regain lost For starters, his proposed reforms of supply-determined limits. its future by investing more in its circumstances). Fortunately, policy ground. Pakistan has done it once before when greats eurozone governance have been met In fact, far from viewing the human and social capital – including principles are not written in stone, with substantial criticism. current-account surplus as a policy schools, from kindergartens to not even in Germany. Recall that Inzamam-ul-Haq and Mohammad Yousuf had retired Macron’s campaign manifesto problem, the German government universities, and infrastructure like the German government adamantly from Tests in 2007 and 2010 respectively. Then Misbah embraced the idea of more eurozone sees it as a refl ection of the underlying roads, bridges, and bandwidth. This rejected the eurozone banking and Younis had put their hands up and delivered. federalism, characterised by a shared competitiveness of German fi rms. It approach would reduce the private union and the European Stability Now it’s time for someone else to step up and do what budget for eurozone public goods, is the benign upshot of responsible user cost of capital, thereby making Mechanism, both of which were administered by a eurozone economics labour unions, which allow for private investment more attractive. ultimately launched (though some say these two had done. and fi nance minister and accountable appropriate fi rm-level wage fl exibility. It would also create domestic real it was too little, too late). to a eurozone parliament. It also The accumulation of foreign assets, reducing Germany’s exposure Europe is experiencing a seismic called for greater co-ordination of assets is a logical corollary of to foreign credit risk. A lower shift, with its political system being tax regimes and border controls, these surpluses, not to mention an current-account surplus implies undermined from within (and stronger protection of the integrity of imperative for an ageing society. a more sustainable net-financial- becoming vulnerable to Russian To Advertise the internal market, and, in view of Indeed, German policymakers view liability position for Germany’s pressure from without). Fear of the the rising threat of protectionism in as essential a reduction of Germany’s partners. “other” and perceptions of trade as [email protected] the United States, a “made in Europe” debt-to-GDP ratio toward the 60% If Germany and Macron don’t fi nd a zero-sum game are taking hold. Display procurement policy. ceiling set by European rules. When, common ground, the costs to both These circumstances call for bold Telephone 44466621 Fax 44418811 An attempt at re-opening the if not in good times, does one have the will be massive. No malicious external and committed action, not only by debate about Eurobonds, or the chance to save? actor is imposing populism on Europe; France, but also by Germany, which, Classified partial mutualisation of eurozone This stance does not align it has emerged organically, fuelled by ultimately, has the most to lose. – Telephone 44466609 Fax 44418811 public-sector liabilities, was viewed particularly smoothly with Macron’s real and widespread grievances. While Project Syndicate as a pie-in-the-sky suggestion, economic programme. While those grievances are not exclusively Subscription mostly just a distraction. And, Macron’s programme includes economic, the geography of populism zHans-Helmut Kotz, Program Director [email protected] incidentally, it appears nowhere signifi cant proposals for addressing does fi t that of the EU’s economic of the SAFE Policy Center at the Goethe in Macron’s platform. Far more supply-side issues with the French malaise: too many Europeans have University in Frankfurt, is a visiting disturbing to German pundits and economy, it also favours output been losing out for too long. So, professor of economics and a resident 2017 Gulf Times. All rights reserved policymakers is Macron’s desire for stabilisation and, more important, if Macron fails to deliver on his fellow at the Center for European Germany to make use of its fiscal increased spending in areas like public promises, a Eurosceptic like Le Pen Studies at Harvard University. Gulf Times Tuesday, May 16, 2017 27 COMMENT New Etihad boss to rethink strategy

Etihad reviews growth Etihad has looked to catch up, and as the door to unrestricted access in followed a third path of buying into a market where it has limited traffi c through minority airline other airlines to expand its reach. rights with its own planes. stakes; Alitalia in special When Hogan rescued Alitalia in But that airline has seen losses 2014 after months of negotiations, he widen to a record 782mn euros in 2016. administration, assets to had been encouraged by two reformist For now, Etihad continues to be sold; Air Berlin reeling prime ministers, Enrico Letta and his provide funding. successor Matteo Renzi. Air Berlin says Etihad has granted from record losses, high Letta fl ew to Abu Dhabi to help another loan facility of 350mn euros debt; Problems highlight clinch the deal. and a letter of support for at least 18 “When Etihad arrived in 2014, we months. limited power of minority thought this time it would fi nally But industry sources say Etihad work, that this was it,” said Alitalia could exit Air Berlin by seeking a deal owners pilot Stefano Di Cesare of the Fit-Cisl with German fl ag carrier Lufthansa, union. with which Etihad is keen to work. Reuters Yet Italian industry leaders say Lufthansa CEO Carsten Spohr said Dubai/ Milan/ Paris Etihad underestimated the country’s he had held talks with Abu Dhabi about tangled politics and chronic labour the future of Air Berlin, but that it was strife. up to the emirate to resolve Air Berlin’s he naming of a new boss at Italian executives, offi cials and 1.2-bn-euro debt problem, which also Etihad Airways presents unions said in interviews with Reuters prevents Lufthansa buying it. the Gulf carrier with an that alienating Alitalia’s workforce “Air Berlin and Alitalia have proven Topportunity to rethink its was among a series of mis-steps that extremely tough challenges,” said UK aggressive expansion strategy after to Australia as it races to catch up with from the Italian investment and they Etihad and its rivals have ended Etihad’s Italian dream. aviation consultant John Strickland. the failure of minority-owned Alitalia regional rivals Emirates and Qatar would play a role in shaping future demonstrated spectacular growth but Many also say Etihad Etihad’s new CEO will need to underlined the big barriers to global Airways. strategy. are increasingly pressured by a slowing underestimated the blistering growth address losses already incurred and growth. Alitalia was Etihad’s eighth and Etihad’s strategy has allowed it to Gulf economy due to relatively low oil of low-cost carriers Ryanair and then “assess lower risk methods of Ray Gammell was appointed interim most high-profi le bet. cut costs by pooling items like airplane prices. easyJet. extracting value out of the important CEO recently, days after Alitalia But the 560-mn-euro ($609mn) procurement, while off ering a larger They have chosen diff erent Without a majority stake, Etihad’s German and Italian markets,” he said. sought bankruptcy protection with investment lies in tatters, placing network; it says it brings together 600 strategies to sidestep the regulatory infl uence was limited despite being the Other investments such as Air $3.3bn of debt. Hogan’s wider strategy under destinations and over 700 aircraft. dilemma governing foreign ownership largest single investor on 49%. And Serbia and Air Seychelles have been He replaces veteran boss James the microscope, after staff Hogan’s “approach to partnerships and pursue global expansion. despite the lure of Italy’s important more successful. Hogan. overwhelmingly rejected its latest did not pan out, but a few of his Qatar Airways, like many other tourism market, it was forced to watch There, Etihad was given hands-on Hogan’s strategy was to buy up restructuring plans. principles are still valid”, said Will carriers, has entered one of three Alitalia’s effi cient rivals mop up the management control and benefi ted minority stakes in myriad airlines but Now the future of Etihad’s other Horton, senior analyst at Australian global alliances. benefi ts. from close diplomatic ties. the struggles of that strategy, most leading investment, in Air Berlin, aviation consultancy CAPA. These give some access to other “There is no doubt that the idea to Even as the carrier picks up the recently with Alitalia, are emblematic is also in doubt as the Gulf carrier Etihad’s eff orts to grow through carriers’ traffi c rights without manage the company from Abu Dhabi pieces of its European adventure, of a quandary peculiar to the industry. pursues a strategy review that began minority stakes have at times breaking ownership rules, but allow was a very serious mistake,” Italian Etihad faces its own restructuring that The path to growth for airlines often last year. been compared to Swissair’s failed only limited control over route- Industry Minister Carlo Calenda told sources close to the company say has lies in gaining access to rivals’ routes. Like Alitalia, the German carrier has “Hunter” strategy of the 1990s. planning and costs. parliament. seen near-daily redundancies. Yet in the European Union, which made big losses and it said two weeks Swissair’s buying binge, often Dubai’s Emirates, by contrast, The Etihad spokesman said Alitalia This may also weigh on the strategic mainly operates as one nation in ago it was seeking a new partner, acquiring stakes in ailing airlines, mainly operates alone — an approach had been in fi nancial trouble for decision facing Irishman Gammell as aviation, foreigners cannot majority- which could include a new investor. contributed to huge losses which that gives it control of over its network decades and that its investment was he takes up his interim post, followed own an airline. An Etihad spokesman said its review eventually saw it grounded in 2001 and costs but also means it carries all welcomed wholeheartedly in Italy. in coming months by a permanent At Alitalia, the lack of full control was ongoing but declined to comment and sold to Germany’s Lufthansa in the risk. Etihad believed the new successor to Hogan. meant that Etihad could not deal on how its strategy might change or 2005. The Middle East’s largest airline, restructuring plan developed by “Etihad is likely to look to growth eff ectively with labour problems. the impact of Alitalia’s failure on its Hogan has always rejected the reported a drop in annual profi t Alitalia’s management would have markets for further organic growth Since 2011, Abu Dhabi state-owned global plans. comparison, saying Etihad was doing recently for the fi rst time in fi ve years. addressed its problems, he added. such as the Indian Sub-Continent and Etihad has spent billions of dollars But a senior source at the Gulf things diff erently to Swissair and had As the youngest of the three major In Germany too, Etihad had seen Asia, but as ever this will be dependent buying minority stakes from Europe carrier said lessons would be learned demonstrated it could control costs. Middle Eastern carriers, 14-year-old Air Berlin, its fi rst investment in 2011, on traffi c rights,” Strickland said. Weather report Merkel in pole position for Sept. polls Three-day forecast TODAY By Andrew McCathie/DPA The party has chalked up a 7 on the CDU in the face of right-wing leader has had nothing much to say High: 41 C Low : 31 C Berlin percentage point lead over the centre- criticism of her centrist stance, on the key issues facing the German left Social Democrats (SDP), according including her liberal refugee policy. electorate such as terrorism and Inshore: Hot daytime with slight dust to a voter survey released last week by The SPD’s defeat in the three state security. he victory of Chancellor Berlin-based pollsters Forsa. elections is a crushing blow to its But a fresh terrorist attack risks Angela Merkel’s “Merkel stands for continuity national leader, the former European driving the refugee crisis back into WEDNESDAY conservatives in Sunday’s and stability,” said Forsa’s Peter Parliament president Martin Schulz. the headlines and throw Merkel’s High: 40 C Telection in Germany’s Matuschek. Nominated by the SPD in January to campaign for a fourth term in Low: 29 C most populous state has left her in a He said Europe’s most powerful head up its September campaign, September off course. Sunny commanding position as she gears up leader was a safe choice in a turbulent Schulz was initially seen as a new A December terrorist attack which for the national poll in September. world shaped by Britain’s exit from the face on a political stage of well-known left 12 dead at a Berlin Christmas The win by Merkel’s Christian European Union and an unpredictable actors. market was carried out by a failed THURSDAY Democratic Union (CDU) in North White House under US President But after an initial surge in support Tunisian asylum seeker. High: 39 C Rhine Westphalia built on the CDU’s Donald Trump. following his nomination, the SPD Merkel’s answer to any further Low: 29 C impressive victories in the two other “She has developed the image of the has lost ground again with voters now fallout from the refugee crisis has been Sunny recent state elections – in the coastal crisis chancellor through the series of backing Merkel over Schulz as their to now shift the CDU to the right by region of Schleswig Holstein and the crises that have hit Europe such as the preferred chancellor. tightening the nation’s asylum laws, small industrial state of Saarland. Greek debt crisis,” added Matuschek. “He has no public offi ce and has spearheading a controversial EU deal Fishermen’s forecast Only a year ago Merkel was battling For the moment, the German been hardly visible,” political scientist with Turkey to curb the number of OFFSHORE DOHA to recover from a political backlash economy also plays into the Oskar Niedermayer said, adding that refugees travelling to northern Europe Wind: NW-SW 05-15 KT unleashed by her September 2015 chancellor’s hands with business the new SPD leader remained too and stepping up deportations of failed Waves: 2-4 Feet decision to open Germany’s borders confi dence near a six-year high, vague and undefi ned. asylum seekers. INSHORE DOHA Her government has also launched Wind: SW-NW 05-15 KT to allow around 1mn refugees into the unemployment at a historic low, the “We still do not know where for Waves: 1-2 Feet country, triggering speculation she nation’s key industrial sector turning example he stands on refugee policy,” comprehensive refugee integration might not stand for re-election this year. in a buoyant performance and the Niedermayer said. schemes, while at the same cracking Around the region But national opinion polls are country’s fi nances in good shape. Apart from calling for more social down on criminality, including Weather Weather showing her CDU now regaining The three state elections have also justice through changes to tough addressing a jump in petty crimes today Max/min tomorrow Max/min political momentum. helped to strengthen Merkel’s grip labour and welfare laws, the new SPD such as burglaries. Abu Dhabi Sunny 38/25 Sunny 39/26 Baghdad Sunny 39/23 M Sunny 39/24 Dubai Sunny 36/24 Sunny 38/26 Kuwait City Sunny 43/29 Sunny 43/30 Manama Sunny 41/28 Sunny 38/31 Muscat Sunny 39/30 Sunny 39/32 Riyadh Sunny 41/27 Sunny 42/27 Live issues Tehran Sunny 33/18 Sunny 32/19 Surgery won’t help degenerative knee problems

By Marilynn Larkin The panellists also reviewed 12 less- this surgery if they understand the Reuters Health rigorous studies of close to two mn evidence.” patients that looked at complications If you have chronic knee pain, from the procedure. “double down on eff orts for things we urgery won’t cure chronic knee After considering the balance of know work — for example, weight loss pain, “locking,” “clicking,” benefi ts, harms and burdens of knee and physical therapy,” he advised. a torn meniscus, or other arthroscopy, as well as the quality of “Also, talk to your healthcare Sproblems related to knee the evidence for each outcome, the provider (doctor, physical therapist) arthritis, according to a panel of panel made a “strong recommendation about strategies to reduce the physical international experts. against arthroscopy.” stress on the knee that exacerbates the Every year, more than 2mn people The evidence shows a less than 15% pain,” he added. with degenerative knee problems probability of “small or very small Dr Joseph Bosco, vice-chair at NYU have arthroscopic surgery, in which a improvement in short-term pain and Langone Orthopedics in New York surgeon inserts a tiny camera into the function” from the procedure, and City, told Reuters Health, “In general knee and uses small instruments to try improvements would likely last less I agree with the fi ndings and support than a year, the panellists noted. most of the conclusions.” to fi x what’s wrong. Around the world But guidelines published on They thought it was more “The only issue is that in the study Weather Weather Wednesday in the British Medical important to avoid postoperative with the strongest evidence, the today Max/min tomorrow Max/min Journal recommend against the limitations such as pain, swelling operative group did not do physical Athens P Cloudy 26/17 S Showers 22/14 procedure for just about everyone with and restricted activity, and the risk therapy,” he said by e-mail. Beirut M Sunny 25/20 M Sunny 26/22 knee arthritis. of adverse effects. “That is not consistent with how we Bangkok S T Storms 31/27 T Storms 29/27 Berlin Cloudy P Cloudy 24/13 “Chronic knee pain can be treat our patients. Almost all patients 20/13 “It does more harm than good,” Cairo Sunny 36/20 M Sunny 36/22 Dr Reed Siemieniuk, chair of the incredibly frustrating to live with — get physical therapy following knee Cape Town M Sunny 22/12 P Cloudy 19/11 guideline panel, told Reuters Health both for the person experiencing the arthroscopies.” Colombo T Storms 31/26 T Storms 31/26 by e-mail. “Most patients experience Methods, Evidence and Impact at pain and for their doctors,” Siemieniuk “Cortisone injections, physical Dhaka T Storms 31/26 S T Storms 33/27 27/24 improvement after arthroscopy, but in McMaster University in Hamilton, said.“The problem is that none of the therapy and anti-infl ammatory Hong Kong Rain 27/24 P Cloudy Istanbul M Sunny 22/13 Cloudy 20/14 many cases, this is probably wrongly Ontario, Canada. current options cure the pain. medications work as well or better Jakarta M Sunny 33/25 P Cloudy 33/25 attributed to the surgery itself rather The panel, made up of surgeons, Most people will continue to live than surgery for most degenerative Karachi Sunny 35/28 Sunny 34/28 than to the natural course of the physical therapists, clinicians and with some pain even with weight loss, meniscal tears,” said Bosco, who London P Cloudy 23/14 Rain 18/11 disease, a placebo eff ect, or (other) patients, analysed data from 13 physical therapy, and painkillers. was not involved in developing the Manila S T Storms 36/27 S T Storms 34/27 Moscow Rain 10/03 S Showers 11/03 interventions like painkillers and randomised controlled trials — the Knee replacement surgery also has guidelines. New Delhi M Sunny 43/28 M Sunny 41/28 exercise.” gold standard way to test medical important limitations and should be However, he added, a small group New York M Sunny 26/16 Sunny 30/20 In addition, the procedure is costly procedures — involving a total of 1,668 delayed as long as possible. of people “who (also) have mechanical Paris P Cloudy 27/14 P Cloudy 28/14 — up to $3bn annually in the US alone patients. So it’s no surprise that many placed symptoms, localised pain, and acute Sao Paulo P Cloudy 21/14 M Cloudy 21/14 P Cloudy M Sunny 24/12 — and there’s a risk of rare but serious The trials compared knee their hopes in arthroscopic knee onset of pain will benefi t, so a blanket Seoul 22/11 Singapore M Cloudy 32/27 S T Storms 32/27 adverse eff ects such as blood clots or arthroscopy to conservative surgery.” recommendation against all surgery Sydney Sunny 19/08 M Sunny 20/11 infection, said Siemieniuk, who works treatments such as exercise and Still, he said, “We believe that no for degenerative meniscal tears is not Tokyo Clear 24/17 Cloudy 21/14 in the department of Health Research painkillers. one or almost no one would want appropriate.” Gulf Times 28 Tuesday, May 16, 2017 QATAR Al Gharrafa area sewage network is completed he sewage network works in Al Gharrafa, which Tserves about 3,190 land plots in the project area, have been completed. It covers an area of more than 5,860,000sq m. All houses in the project area are now connected to the net- work. The project included build- ing a sewage network in Zone 51, which comprises Al Gharrafa, Al Nasiriyya, Izghawa, and Bani Hajer, which all fall under Al Rayyan Municipality. A map of the areas served by the The sewage network project network. also covers Zone 71, which con- sists of Al Kharaitiyat and Umm ing and Contracting at a cost of al Amad, which are under Umm about QR200mn. Slal Municipality. It is one of the Local Areas In- The sewage network is 10km frastructure programme projects, away from the northwestern side One of the areas served by the network. which covers all areas of Doha, of Doha. main cities and external areas in Engineer Ali Ibrahim Ashka- Pumping Station 70, the use of ity main sewage pipes, made of contractor makes any required Qatar. nani, head of North Areas Sec- septic tanks will be eliminated environmentally-friendly ma- changes or maintenance, and this Through this programme the tion at Ashghal’s Roads Projects and a permanent sewage network terials, in addition to building is a standard thing in all Ashghal authority develops roads and Management Department, said will be available”. 2,360 concrete manholes. contracts. infrastructure and implements that “with the completion of The technical works of the Ashkanani said any completed The construction of the sew- specialised projects to develop the advanced sewage system in project included laying about project stays under warranty age network in Al Gharrafa was and upgrade sewage and drainage the area, which is connected to 65km of durable and high-qual- for 400 days, during which the implemented by Oasis for Trad- networks. Ashkanani: any completed project stays under warranty for 400 days.

HE the Minister of Education and Higher Education Dr Mohamed Abdul Wahed Ali al-Hammadi (left) with Canadian ambassador Adrian Norfolk at the UCQ Convocation 2017. With them are former UCQ College of Nursing Project director Dr Latifa al-Houty (centre), Dr Khalid Mohamed Yousef al-Horr, the director of the Higher Education Institute at the Ministry of Education and Higher Education, and Community College of Qatar dean Dr Abdallah Hazaimeh (right). Group photo of the graduates with off icials. PICTURE: Thajudheen UCQ sets milestone with 150 nursing graduates

total of 150 nursing stu- convocation, UCQ’s eighth. Hamad al-Thani, Sheikha Mar- With the completion of the hamed bin Hamad al-Thani, to Mihirani Chandraratne, while “This experience enables us to dents earned their un- Along with the university’s iam bint Abdulrahman bin Has- 2017 Convocation ceremony, 438 director of Public Health at the Maryam Ghlamreza Fatemi was gain more knowledge and skills Adergraduate or graduate other alumni, the new cohort of san al-Abdulrahman al-Thani, students have earned their BN Ministry of Public Health, hon- awarded the Silver Medal for ac- and ensure we are prepared for nursing degrees at University of University of Calgary in Qatar and other dignitaries. degrees from UCQ while 28 have oured the graduates’ achieve- ademic achievement in the Post our future as nurses in Qatar,” al- Calgary in Qatar (UCQ)’s 2017 graduates will contribute to the University of Calgary chan- graduated from UCQ’s MN pro- ments during his address. Diploma Bachelor of Nursing Qahtani added. Convocation ceremony, held at success of the health goals of Qa- cellor Dr Robert Thirsk noted: gramme. The University of Calgary in programme. Established in 2007 and near- the Qatar National Convention tar National Vision 2030, UCQ “Our university, with the gener- Qataris make up 16% of the Qatar also honoured two gradu- “The environment at UCQ ing its 10th anniversary, UCQ has Centre on Sunday. has said in a press statement. ous support of the State of Qatar, university’s alumni network. ates with the university’s highest consists of knowledgeable pro- educated more than 400 nurses, Professors, family members, The convocation ceremony strives to provide our students “It is amazing to see 150 of academic distinction, the Gold fessors, state-of-the-art equip- signifi cantly increasing the local friends and dignitaries from was attended by HE the Minister with the knowledge and resourc- our students move on to the next and Silver medallions. ment, educational resources talent pool. Qatar’s health and education of Education and Higher Educa- es necessary to become leaders in phase of their nursing journey,” The university’s Gold Medal and continuous support,” said More than 400 students are spheres celebrated 136 Bachelor tion Dr Mohamed Abdul Wa- this honourable profession. This UCQ dean and chief executive Dr for academic achievement in the Shaikha al-Qhatani, the fi rst currently registered in the Uni- of Nursing (BN) and 14 Master hed Ali al-Hammadi along with is the beginning of a journey for Deborah White said. Bachelor of Nursing, Regular Qatari graduate from UCQ’s MN versity of Calgary in Qatar’s BN of Nursing (MN) graduates at the Sheikha Aisha bint Khalid bin our graduates.” Guest speaker Dr Sheikh Mo- Track programme, was awarded Thesis programme. and MN programmes. Dubai Customs receives delegation from Qatar

ubai Customs has received a del- Customs and Qatar’s General Authority perience with our brothers in the Gulf egation from Qatar’s General Au- of Customs, and eff orts of the two par- and learn from their experience as well Dthority of Customs (GAC). ties to enhance co-operation between through the exchange of visits”. Ahmed Mahboob Musabih, director the GCC Customs authorities. The meeting was attended by a host of of Dubai Customs, met GAC chairman “Co-operation between the GCC au- other offi cials as well. Ahmed Abdullah al-Jamal, who was ac- thorities is gaining more importance Abdullah Mohamed al-Khaja, ex- companied by senior Customs offi cials. with the advent of great events in the ecutive director of the Clients Manage- Al-Jamal applauded Dubai Customs’ region such as the hosting of Dubai Expo ment Division at Dubai Customs, said experience in developing Customs work. 2020 and FIFA 2022 World Cup,” he said. that working together with Qatar’s GAC “It’s very important for us to enhance “This is a good opportunity for us all would help in the exchange of best prac- co-operation with Dubai Customs. We to enhance our mutual eff orts and ex- tices in terms of delivery of services to are sure we will benefi t a lot from Dubai change knowledge and expertise in Cus- clients. Customs and will exchange expertise, toms service delivery, especially with the DC World chief executive Faisal Eissa especially in matters related to Dubai increase of Dubai’s external trade with Lutfi said: “We at Dubai Customs World Customs’ Mirsal2 and the Nadeeb sys- Qatar, which reached AED15bn in 2016,” support Customs business worldwide by tem that we apply in Qatar,” he said. Musabih added. sharing the Dubai Customs innovative Musabih reaffi rmed the importance Further, the Dubai Customs director experience with other Customs admin- of the brotherly relations between Dubai said that they were “happy to share ex- istrations worldwide.” Off icials at the meeting.