QATAR | Page 16 SPORT | Page 1 Derwael’s winning return to Over 30,000 attend world title A R Rahman’s concert venue published in QATAR since 1978

SATURDAY Vol. XXXX No. 11131 March 23, 2019 Rajab 16, 1440 AH

GULF TIMES www. gulf-times.com 2 Riyals

Rwandan president meets FM In brief Qatar reiterates

QATAR | Offi cial Amir condoles with Golan belongs Iraqi president His Highness the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani held a telephone conversation with Iraqi President to Syria and is Dr Barham Salih, expressing condolences on the victims of a ferry that sank in the Tigris river in Mosul, wishing the injured a speedy recovery. Page 3 Israel-occupied

QATAR | Offi cial QNA alike throughout the bloody civil war Doha that has ripped the country apart since Speaker in Christchurch 2011. to off er condolences The Syrian government said Trump’s HE the Advisory Council Speaker, atar stressed yesterday its po- comments disregarded international Ahmed bin Abdullah bin Zaid sition that Golan Heights is law. al-Mahmoud, arrived yesterday Rwandan President Paul Kagame met in Kigali yesterday with HE the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Aff airs Qan occupied Arab land, and “The American position towards in Christchurch, New Zealand, to Sheikh Mohamed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani, who is paying an off icial visit to Rwanda. HE the Minister of Foreign Aff airs strongly rejected any attempts to un- Syria’s occupied Golan Heights clearly convey the condolences of His conveyed the greetings of His Highness the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani to President Kagame, and his wishes for dermine international resolutions refl ects the United States’ contempt Highness the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin further progress and prosperity to the Rwandan people. The Rwandan president reciprocated his greetings to the Amir, wishing which confi rm that Golan belongs to for international legitimacy and its fl a- Hamad al-Thani and the people of him health and happiness and the people of Qatar further progress, development, and prosperity. Page 2 Syria and is occupied by Israel. grant violation of international law,” a Qatar on the victims of the terrorist The Ministry of Foreign Aff airs said foreign ministry source told the offi cial attack on two mosques in the city. in a statement that Qatar stresses that SANA news agency. The Speaker and his accompanying aiding Israeli occupation undermine The source said Trump’s comments delegation were welcomed at international resolutions related to showed the extent of his administra- Christchurch International Airport occupied Golan Heights, particularly tion’s “blind bias” towards Israel. by New Zealand’s Defence Minister UN resolution No 497 of 1981, will “The statements of the US president Ron Mark and Qatar’s ambassador Qatar concerned over not change the fact that the land be- and his administration on the occupied to New Zealand Saad bin Abdullah longs to an Arab country and is under Syrian Golan will never change the fact al-Mahmoud. occupation, pointing out that Israel’s that the Golan was and will remain imposition of its laws, jurisdiction and Arab and Syrian,” the source said. SPORT | World Cup administration on Golan is void and Turkey said the change risked plung- New turf-laying record spread of Islamophobia without any legal eff ect. ing the region into a “new crisis”. The statement stressed that Israeli “We will never allow the occupation set at Wakrah Stadium occupation must conform to the reso- of Golan Heights to be made legiti- The Supreme Committee for Delivery QNA lutions of international legitimacy and mate,” President Recep Tayyip Erdogan & Legacy (SC), the body responsible Istanbul withdraw from all occupied Arab land, said. for delivering the infrastructure including Golan Heights. Iranian Foreign Minister Mohamed required to host the 2022 FIFA The statement also stressed that any Javad Zarif tweeted he was “shocked by World Cup in Qatar, announced atar condemned yesterday the unilateral measures recognising Israel’s @realDonaldTrump continuing to try the completion of turf laying of Al vicious terrorist crime that sovereignty over the area represents a to give what is not his to racist Israel.” Wakrah Stadium, one of eight that Qtargeted worshippers in the huge obstacle to peace. Russia warned that the policy U- will host the World Cup finals. In a mosques of New Zealand, stressing its Agencies add: The Gulf Co-oper- turn could spark new confl icts. tweet yesterday, the SC said: “Our strong and fi rm stance against terror- ation Council expressed regret at US “Certainly, such appeals can con- team has broken the record for ism in all its forms regardless of its mo- President Donald Trump’s call to rec- siderably destabilise an already tense the fastest turf laying of a football tives and reasons, considering it an act ognise Israel’s sovereignty over the Go- situation in the Middle East,” Kremlin pitch...completing it in just 9 hours 15 contrary to human nature and all moral lan Heights. spokesman Dmitry Peskov said. minutes!” It added that the previous values. Trump’s statement “will not change “It’s just a call for now, hopefully it record was 13 hours 15 minutes, held Qatar expressed its deep concern re- the reality that (...) the Arab Golan will remain a call.” by Khalifa International Stadium. garding the rise of extremist ideologies Heights is Syrian land occupied by Is- The Arab League said Trump’s com- that fuel hatred and religious and eth- rael by military force in 1967,” said Ab- ments were “completely outside inter- nic intolerance around the world. dul Latif al-Zayani, the GCC secretary- national law”. It expressed concern particularly on HE Sultan bin Saad al-Muraikhi speaking during the opening session of the general. Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman the spread of Islamophobia, combined emergency meeting of the OIC Executive Committee in Istanbul yesterday. “The statements by the American Safadi said lasting peace in the region with the ideology of racial superiority president undermine the chances of requires Israel to withdraw from all and racial extremism currently present require members of the Organisation phobia and the rejection of terrorism achieving a just and comprehensive Arab territories it occupies, including in many of the world’s societies, which of Islamic Co-operation not only to and religious fanaticism. peace.” the Golan. in turn increased hate crimes against condemn the acts, but also to counter He urged the Secretariat to update Syria, its allies, and fellow states Egypt urged “respect (for) legitimate all those who embrace Islam and led the hate speech against Muslims and to the work team formed by the co-ordi- in the region condemned President international resolutions and the Unit- to the creation of a wave of hostility fi nd ways to enact international laws to nating committee for Islamic action, Trump’s pledge, saying it violates in- ed Nations Charter on the unaccept- against those who advocate and defend combat these phenomena eff ectively which is charged with monitoring the ternational law. ability of land appropriation by force”. the causes of Muslims. and seriously. implications of Islamophobia. It breaks with UN Security Council The German government said it con- This came in the speech of HE the He stressed on the importance of He also called for activating the or- resolutions and with more than half tinued to see the region as occupied Minister of State for Foreign Aff airs dialogue among civilisations and ganisation’s observatory for Islamo- a century of US foreign policy, which Syrian territory. Sultan bin Saad al-Muraikhi during promoting a culture of tolerance and phobia and the voice of wisdom centre treated the Golan as occupied terri- The European Union (EU) stressed the opening session of the emergency moderation among all religions, cul- to confront this phenomenon. tory whose future would be negotiated that it does not recognize the sover- meeting of the OIC Executive Com- tures and societies as one of the most HE al-Muraikhi thanked the Turkish in talks with Syria on a comprehensive eignty of the Israeli occupation on the mittee. important tools in fi ghting racism. government for its request to hold this peace. Golan Heights, rejecting the position of HE al-Muraikhi pointed out that He noted that the time has come for emergency meeting to discuss the re- The territory’s return has always US Deputy Chief Spokeswoman of EU these and other phenomena consti- the OIC to play its pivotal role in con- cent terrorist attacks on two mosques been a key Syrian national demand, Commission Mina Andreeva, “The po- tute a violation of human rights and fronting the manifestations of Islamo- in Christchurch. To Page 3 championed by government and rebels sition of the EU has not changed.” QM installs artist Gillick’s new sculptural work at MIA Park

atar Museums (QM) has an- and examples of pearl jewellery. Bourgeois’s Maman, Damien Hirst’s The lic Art at QM, said: “Through display- nounced the installation There are two images on each sculp- Miraculous Journey, Urs Fischer’s Lamp ing various forms of art in public space, Qthroughout Doha’s Museum ture. Circular holes, cut into the surface Bear, Tony Smith’s Smoke, Dia Azzawi’s we aim to inspire local talent and es- of Islamic Art (MIA) Park of a new enable people to peer through, after the Flying Man, and Sarah Lucas’s Perceval. tablish an organic connection between 10-piece sculptural work by Liam Gil- fashion of “head-in-the-hole” attrac- Temporary installations by Qatari art and the local community. We hope lick, Folded Extracted Personifi ed. tions at carnivals and fairs. ARToonist Ghada al-Khater are also these works speak to people who may Now accessible for public viewing – Distributed at carefully chosen sites on view through the programme, as is envision themselves as cultural pro- and interaction – Gillick’s work is the throughout MIA Park, the sculptures Martin Creed’s Everything is Going to ducers, creative practitioners, and mu- latest installation in QM’s Public Art serve as invitations to the public to in- be Alright, which was commissioned seum professionals in years to come.” Programme, which brings engaging, teract with one another, performing for to commemorate the anniversary of the Gillick said: “Public art adds a new large-scale artworks into dialogue with observers and being photographed. blockade imposed on Qatar by neigh- conversation about our context – both people in the civic landscape of Doha. The multi-part installation also in- bouring countries. cultural and personal. This work is in- Folded Extracted Personifi ed com- vites playful interaction with the deep Built adjacent to the MIA, the MIA tended to celebrate the spirit of a diverse prises a series of 10 irregularly shaped collections of QM by the many thou- Park is a landscaped expanse where the cultural landscape and provide an op- panel sculptures – each a fl at surface sands of MIA Park users and was com- public can stroll, participate in recrea- portunity for spectators from all diff er- folded into a zigzag – which bear images missioned on occasion of the opening tional activities, or view the Doha sky- ent backgrounds to playfully intersect. abstracted from works in the MIA and of the Jean Nouvel-designed NMoQ. line from the best vantage point in the It is a tribute to the immense historical the National Museum of Qatar (NMoQ). Other major works in the Public Art city. Taking advantage of the intergen- traditions of art and craft in the region.” These sources from the extensive Programme that are now on view in- erational nature of MIA Park, Gillick’s Gillick, 55, is an artist whose diverse museum collections range from 12th clude “Desert Horse” by Qatari artist sculptures are installed in the vicinity practice encompasses sculpture, in- century Iraqi illustrations to Turkish Ali Hassan, “Shift to Light” by Qatari of the MIA playground, which off ers ar- Folded Extracted Personified comprises a series of 10 irregularly shaped panel stallation, public projects and texts. armour circa 1475-1525 to Iranian por- artist Yousef Ahmad, Richard Serra’s eas suitable for people of diff erent ages. sculptures – each a flat surface folded into a zigzag – which bear images abstracted Born and educated in England, he is traiture of the early 19th century period East/West, West/East and 7, Louise Abdulrahman al-Ishaq, head of Pub- from works in the MIA and the National Museum of Qatar. now based in New York City. Gulf Times 2 Saturday, March 23, 2019 QATAR Rolacc celebrates FM holds talks with Rwanda’s PM graduation of two training courses Rwanda Prime Minister Edouard Ngirente met with HE the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of he Rule of Law and Anti- Foreign Aff airs Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani yesterday in the Rwandan capital Corruption Centre (Ro- Kigali. During the meeting, they discussed the bilateral relations and means of boosting them, as Tlacc) has celebrated the well as matters of mutual interest. HE Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani also held talks graduation of the participants with Rwanda’s Minister of Foreign Aff airs Richard Sezibera, Minister of ICT and Innovation Paula of two training courses. Ingabire, Minister of Infrastructure Claver Gatete, and a number of Rwanda’s off icials. During the The fi rst course was on cyber talks, they discussed bilateral relations and means of boosting them, in addition to a number of crime for members of the pros- issues of mutual interest, especially in the fields of investment. ecution, judiciary and police offi cers from Gambia, and the other on the regulatory frame- work for procurement, tenders and government auctions for employees of Qatar’s Ministry of Chief of Staff attends meeting of US Commerce and Industry (MoCI). Qatar’s Attorney General and Central Command in Florida chairman of the board of trus- HE the Attorney General and chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Rolacc, Dr Ali bin Fetais al-Marri, tees of Rolacc, HE Dr Ali bin HE the Minister of Commerce and Industry Ali bin Ahmed al-Kuwari, and the Gambian ambassador Fetais al-Marri, honoured the Foday Malang with the graduates of the courses. PICTURE: Shemeer Rasheed participants of the courses at a ceremony held in the presence ment auctions, was attended by tion, rules for the prevention of and the constructive co-oper- of HE the Minister of Com- 12 participants from the MoCI. money-laundering and inter- ation between the two sides in merce and Industry Ali bin It came as part of Rolacc’s ef- national rules and good prac- all fi elds. Ahmed al-Kuwari and Gambian forts to raise awareness and tices to ensure integrity and The envoy lauded the Rolacc’s ambassador Foday Malang. ensure the proper application transparency. initiative to host a number of The training course on cy- of the United Nations Conven- The training covered the stag- prosecutors, judges and police ber crime was attended by 12 tion against Corruption, which es of conducting tenders and offi cers from Gambia to partici- members of the Gambian pros- deals with prevention, crimi- auctions as well as the interna- pate in a course on cyber crime. ecution, judiciary and police, nalisation, international co- tional rules to prevent corrup- MoCI’s Department of Fi- as part of the ongoing training operation and asset recovery, tion in the fi eld of government nance and Administration di- plan implemented by the Cen- which are related to the issue of procurement and related fi nan- rector Nasser al-Mohannadi tre for the African countries. government procurement. cial and accounting procedures. spoke about the importance of During the course, legal and The course, organised in co- Rolacc intends to organise the legal framework for gov- procedural aspects of cyber operation with the UN Offi ce similar courses to all relevant ernment procurement in intro- crime were discussed. on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), ministries in Qatar to ensure ducing participants to all legal The course also examined the dealt with the laws governing proper application of the laws aspects and legislative frame- HE the Chief of Staff of the Qatar Armed Forces Lieutenant-General (Pilot) Ghanem bin Shaheen diff erent types of cyber crimes, tenders, auctions and govern- of tenders and auctions, and works on government auctions, al-Ghanem took part in the meeting of Central Command, Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC) states, how to control them and the meth- ment procurement, and laws adherence to the highest anti- procurement and tenders and Jordan and Egypt, which was held in Tampa, Florida, US at the invitation of Commander of United ods of prevention while dealing criminalising damage to public corruption standards. training them on the United States Central Command General Joseph Votel. The meeting discussed counter-terrorism eff orts. with the agencies concerned. funds, as well as a review of the In a speech at the ceremo- Nations Convention against The Chief of Staff also held a meeting with General Votel, to discuss the military ties between the The second course, on the international legal framework ny, the Gambian ambassador Corruption, and the govern- two countries and means to further boost and promote them. HE the Lt General al-Ghanem visited regulatory framework for pro- relating to the international praised the strong relations ment procurement-related as- Boeing Company, the manufacturer of F-15 aircraft for the Qatar Amiri Air Force, in St Louis, US curement, tenders and govern- convention against corrup- between his country and Qatar pects of the Convention. where he met with Boeing Military Aircraft president Shelly Lavender.

WISE and FBQ Museum partner for art event

orld Innovation Summit for sponsibilities, a belief shared by WISE and ber of Qatar’s creative community. It will Education (WISE), an initiative FBQ Museum, whose partnership is aim- be mediated by Ayaz Rauf, FBQ Museum’s Wof Qatar Foundation (QF), and ing to share these values through educa- contemporary art representative. Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al-Thani (FBQ) tion and culture for the benefi t of Qatar’s Attendees of the discussion will get an Museum have partnered to host a full-day community. early preview of an exhibition by miniature event today that will explore the theme of The event will include a discussion with artists Ajay and Vinita Sharma, ahead of its global citizenship through art at the mu- Dr Jochen Sokoly, associate professor in the offi cial opening on April 5. Visitors will also seum’s new contemporary art space, the Art History department at QF partner Uni- be able to participate in a communal mural White Majlis. versity Virginia Commonwealth University painting on the themes of Qatari heritage, Global citizenship refl ects the principle School of the Arts in Qatar; and Mohammed culture, and ‘Qatar 2022’ in front of the that all people have rights and civic re- al-Hamadi, a collector and active mem- White Majlis. (QNA) World Challenge 22 ‘win is spring Poetry Day board for global expansion’ celebrated at Katara inning Challenge 22 is acting as the perfect spring board for large number of poets at- Wglobal expansion, according to tended yesterday a cul- The Baladna booth at AgriteQ in Doha Exhibition and Convention Centre. one entrepreneur who won the innovation Atural forum held by the award in 2017. Ministry of Culture and Sports Stefano Fallaha, chief executive offi cer, to celebrate World Poetry Day. Fallound, was in Doha as part of a visit or- The event took place in Katara. ganised by the Supreme Committee for De- It was organised by Qatar Po- livery & Legacy (SC). The week-long trip etry Center in co-operation with Baladna provided startups of the fl agship innova- the Committee of Poets’ Aff airs tion award with a chance to meet with key (Poetry Majlis). stakeholders throughout Qatar to present HE the Minister of Culture and their projects and discuss potential part- Sports Salah bin Ghanem al-Ali nership opportunities, sc.qa reported. commented said that poets and takes part An opportunity, Fallaha says, which their poems remain relevant for would not have been possible without the centuries, something proven by help of the SC and Challenge 22. history. He expressed hope that “We met very senior stakeholders at each future generations will read the of these organisations and I can say with Stefano Fallaha was in Doha as part of a visit organised by the SC. work of current poets and take in AgriteQ absolute certainty that we could not have pride in it. got these introductions without Challenge cate people on the go. This is why we have month till now. We are raising funds, clos- Shabib bin Arar al-Rzmani, di- aladna Food Industries, Baladna Food Industries, said 22,” he said. “We have had strong interest in partnerships with telecoms in the Middle ing partnerships and fi nalising contracts,” rector, Qatar Poetry Center, said the largest dairy pro- “We are pleased to be a part of our product from a number of high-profi le, East and Africa – Fallound is making audio he said. “The next steps are to expand, get that commemorating the day is Bducer in Qatar, partici- AgriteQ 2019, as we move to- globally renowned companies within Qatar educational content available to millions in more users and achieve worldwide reach. part of the Ministry of Culture pated in the 7th Qatar Interna- wards achieving self-suffi cien- – which is very exciting for us all.” these regions. If we start off in Qatar, it can absolutely and Sports vision of building a tional Agricultural Exhibition cy in dairy and food production Twenty-year-old Fallaha – who in March “Listening to audio has been around for become a springboard for this level of ex- society that is both healthy in 2019 (AgriteQ), held under in Qatar. AgriteQ is an impor- was mentioned on Forbes’ ‘Middle East’s 30 decades and the technology behind it is just pansion – especially with the international the body and the mind. He added the patronage of His Highness tant platform for Baladna to Under 30 2019’ list – founded the Fallound as old. In an era of distraction, we believe reach and exposure the companies we have that the event will also provide the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin participate in and exchange mobile app to give users personalised audio in the power of listening. Millions of peo- met with in Doha have. support to both famous poets as Hamad al-Thani. expertise while shedding light recommendations to match the length of ple listen to the radio during their commute “Proceeding further with one of these well as aspiring ones too. The exhibition, conducted on our role as a leader in dairy their commute times from over 30mn hours every day. The most challenging part is stakeholders would be a huge opportunity Poetry Majlis member Mo- by the Ministry of Munici- and food production.” of audio content. fi nding topics and channels that align your for us to expand globally.” hammed al-Shahwani said com- pality and Environment with Baladna has been expedit- “It started out as a voice-based social preferences and your commute time.” As for long-term plans – during the memorating the day refl ects Qatar Petroleum as the main ing its plans to expand and di- network,” he explained. “You would follow Fast-forward 18 months, and following 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar 2022, Fal- state’s appreciation of poets. sponsor, concluded yesterday versify into a variety of dairy people and people follow you back, and you his Challenge 22 win, Fallaha – who was also lound could be used to follow matches or Poets from Qatar, Kuwait, at the Doha Exhibition and and food products. With the would share voice recordings. I outsourced listed by Executive magazine as one of the top team news. It has already launched on the Oman, Iraq, and India recited their Convention Centre. latest cow shipment arriv- the development and launched a product 20 entrepreneurs in Lebanon in 2015 and was iOS App Store and the Android Play Store – poems. At the end of the forum, the Baladna Food Industries had al, the farm is now home to but quickly realised that people wanted to a Young Entrepreneur of the Year nominee in where it ranked highly in the news category minister of culture and sports hon- set up a large 264sqm booth at nearly 20,000 cows. Baladna consume content rather than share it. Arabian Business magazine’s Startup Awards – and is set to launch on Amazon Alexa- oured the participating poets for AgriteQ 2019, which included a continues to invest in the best “I spoke to the users and found out they 2018 – has put his studies temporarily on enabled devices in the near future. their contribution to poetry. splendid display of fresh dairy people, practices and equip- were consuming the most content when they hold to work full-time on Fallound. The team also has plans to integrate Fal- World Poetry Day was declared products, a cheese counter for ment to produce high quality were driving, so I tapped into the podcasting Such is the pace of development since lound’s technology into car manufacturers’ by the UN Educational, Scien- visitors to taste and a mock up products, with a vision to ed- market. I bridged the commuting part with it winning Challenge 22 that he has also hired software and is in talks with global compa- tifi c and Cultural Organisation silo representing the actual ucate local communities and to make it easy to discover and listen to audio a team of eight full-time members to help nies of this industry. (Unesco) in 1999. Its purpose is ones located at Baladna’s farm families on the importance podcasts on the go. It helps people stay edu- move the startup to the next stage. “The constant support of Challenge 22 to promote the reading, writing, in Al Khor. and benefi ts of fresh and local cated and entertained while driving.” “It’s a time we need to expand our growth has made this dream a genuine reality,” publishing and teaching of poetry Dr Kamel Abdullah, CEO at products. Fallaha continued, “Our vision is to edu- even more – as we grew 110% from last Fallaha concluded. throughout the world. (QNA) Gulf Times Saturday, March 23, 2019 3 QATAR/REGION/ARAB WORLD

Qatar concerned over spread of Hydroponic farms aim for UN steps up Islamophobia From Page 1 100 hectares target by 2021 human rights He declared Qatar’s full soli- darity with the government and atar’s local hydroponic people of New Zealand, and farms aim to further ex- monitoring praised the measures taken to Qpand their operations protect Muslim communities in in the next two years to reach the country. 100 hectares in order to meet DPA only focus on these casual- He called for holding account- the growing demand for organic Geneva ties, but also acknowledged able those responsible for the vegetables. that the protest organisers, crime and for providing neces- “We are hoping to achieve this including Hamas fi ghters, en- sary protection for mosques and target by 2021 under our opera- he UN Human Rights couraged the use of incendi- other religious centres. tions, management, and distri- Council decided yes- ary fl ying objects that caused Turkish Foreign Minister bution,” prominent Qatari agri- Tterday to increase the extensive damage and fear in Mavlut Cavusoglu attended the culturist and Agrico managing presence of UN monitors in southern Israel. opening of the meeting, at which director Nasser Ahmed al-Kha- the Gaza Strip, after a report Israeli Prime Minister Ben- President Recep Tayyip Erdogan laf told Gulf Times. Nasser Ahmed al-Khalaf found that Israel’s shooting of jamin Netanyahu has rejected gave a speech. Agrico, a private Qatari agri- A colourful display of fresh local vegetables at AgriteQ 2019. Palestinian protesters could this report. New Zealand’s Deputy Prime cultural development company PICTURE: Joey Aguilar He added that the company amount to crimes against hu- “Israel will continue to ex- Minister and Foreign Minister also established in 2011, is helping received its US Department of manity. ercise its right of self defence attended the meeting. Page 9 the country achieve self-suf- and EnviroteQ 2019’, brought to- pointed out that the demand for Agriculture certifi cation re- The Geneva-based council and will protect its citizens President Erdogan met yes- fi ciency in food. It is currently gether 90 local farms and more organic fresh produce in Qatar cently and it is on the process of passed a resolution that “con- against aggression. Israel terday with HE al-Muraikhi on developing other local farms and than 50 international compa- rose dramatically due to people’s applying for Global Good Agri- demns the apparent intention- will not co-operate with the the sidelines of the OIC meet- involved in a number of agri- nies under one roof, highlighting “high level of awareness” on the cultural Practices (GAP) certi- al use of unlawful lethal and Council on the issue,” the For- ing. The minister conveyed the projects in Qatar. the importance of innovation in health benefi ts of organic foods. fi cation to be able to export to other excessive force by Israel.” eign Ministry said yesterday in greetings of His Highness the “We are now focusing on im- agricultural techniques, in ad- Agrico currently exports Europe. The UN body decided to a statement. Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad proving effi ciency and increas- dition to showcasing an array of products to Kuwait (1.5 tonnes Agrico produces at least deploy fi ve UN human rights An Austrian envoy in Gene- al-Thani to the Turkish presi- ing yields by building more new equipment and technolo- weekly by plane) and Oman, and 10,000 tonnes of various veg- offi cers to monitor “ongoing va criticised that the report on dent, and his wishes for further greenhouses for farm investors gies. it is also eyeing European mar- etables such as cucumber, to- violations” amid the protests. the Gaza protests “did not take progress and prosperity to the with the use of modern technol- “There is nothing to improve kets. matoes, and mushrooms, among The resolution passed with into account the wider context Turkish people. ogy,” he explained on the side- on our system (made in Qatar) “People might see Agrico in others, per day, according to al- the support of 23 mostly Arab of the events at the Gazan bor- President Erdogan recipro- lines of the Qatar International but we want to increase the den- European markets this year. Why Khalaf. and developing countries. der,” including Hamas rockets cated his greetings to the Amir, Agricultural Exhibition 2019, sity per square metre, utilising Europe? Because in the winter, The company has also invest- It was opposed by a Central and mortars that have targeted wishing him health and happi- which concluded yesterday at the fertilisers and nutrients in they cannot produce vegetables ed in aquaponics farming and European group of Austria, Israel. ness and the people of Qatar fur- the Doha Exhibition and Con- a more effi cient way to increase and they cannot have this type will start raising organic chick- Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Three additional resolu- ther progress, development, and vention Centre. our production,” al-Khalaf said. of quality and not organic,” al- ens in Qatar early next year, he Hungary and Ukraine, as well tions that backed Palestinian prosperity. The event, dubbed as ‘AgriteQ The Qatari agriculturist Khalaf said. added. as Australia and Brazil. self-determination, criticised Other European countries Israeli violations in Palestin- were among the 15 abstentions. ian Territories, and denounced More than 260 Palestin- Israeli settlements there, re- ians have been killed and ceived broader backing in the thousands injured since the Human Rights Council than so-called “Great March of Re- the one that boosted monitor- turn” protests in Gaza began ing in Gaza. on March 30 last year, accord- The United States, Israel’s ing to the Gaza Health Minis- biggest ally, pulled out of the Two Palestinians killed try. Council last year to protest the A UN human rights report UN body’s habit of singling that was submitted to the Hu- out Israel at every session with in Gaza border clashes man Rights Council did not multiple resolutions.

AFP Protests in Algeria Gaza City enter fi fth week wo Palestinians were killed by Israeli fi re in Trenewed clashes along DPA converged yesterday on ma- the Gaza border yesterday, the Algiers jor squares in central Algiers, health ministry in the enclave chanting slogans against said. Boutefl ika and demanding that The clashes took place nearly a housands of Algerians his entire regime “leave now.” week before the fi rst anniversary took to the streets of Al- Some demonstrators were able of the protests, when organisers Tgiers yesterday for the to breach a security cordon have pledged larger than usual fi fth week in a row to demand and head to a street leading to demonstrations. that long-serving President the presidential palace in the Ministry spokesman Ashraf Abdelaziz Boutefl ika and the capital, witnesses said. al-Qudra said the two men were ruling elite leave. No violence was reported. shot in separate incidents along Since last month, the North Peaceful anti-Boutefl ika the fractious border. African country has been marches also took place in Jihad Harara, 24, was shot in rocked by mass demonstra- other parts of Algeria, in- the head east of Gaza City, while tions against Boutefl ika, who cluding the provinces of Tizi Nidal Shatat, 29, was hit in the has ruled Algeria for 20 years. Ouzou, Oran, Batna and Bejai, chest near the Al-Bureij refugee Despite rain, protesters local media reported. camp in central Gaza, Qudra said in a statement. He had previously said Harara RESTRICTIONS was 18. At least 62 other people US sanctions Iran’s N-research unit were shot, Qudra said. The Israeli army did not com- The United States yesterday imposed sanctions on 14 people and ment on the deaths. Troops 17 entities connected to an Iranian research organisation it said had were “fi ring in accordance with played a central role in the country’s past nuclear weapons eff ort standard operating procedures,” and which remains active. a spokeswoman said. Among those designated for sanctions was the Shahid Karimi group, The often violent protests are which works on missile and explosive-related projects for Iran’s demanding Palestinian refugees Organisation of Defensive Innovation and Research, and four associ- and their descendants be al- ated individuals, the US Treasury Department said in a statement. lowed to return to former homes Palestinians chant slogans as they march carrying a steel-wire mesh during a protest at the border fence with Israel east of Gaza City, yesterday. The United States charges that the organisation, known by its Farsi now inside Israel. Israeli offi cials acronym SPND, oversees nuclear-relevant research for Iran and is say that amounts to calling for In a rare visit, Hamas leader tors, Haniya said they were there He called for thousands to began nearly a year ago. Most active in the training of new scientists. the Jewish state’s destruction, Ismail Haniya visited protests to “send a message to the occu- gather for the anniversary on have been killed during protests, It sanctioned SPND’s head, Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, in 2008. The and accuse Hamas, the move- east of Gaza City, AFP corre- pation that we will not stop until March 30. At least 257 Palestin- though others have died in air announcement coincided with a visit yesterday by US Secretary of ment that runs the Gaza Strip, of spondents said. we uproot the occupation from ians have been killed by Israeli strikes and by tank fi re.Two Is- State Mike Pompeo to Beirut, where he will focus on Lebanon’s ties orchestrating the protests. Speaking to the demonstra- our land.” fi re in Gaza since weekly protests raeli soldiers have been killed. to the Hezbollah. Grief turns to anti-govt anger after boat capsize in Mosul

Reuters al-Sultan, who visited the site ed up bodies in the river,” said Islamic State might once again Mosul of the capsize early yesterday Mohamed Thannon, a student exploit. after nationwide mourning was who was among the protesters. Mosul was a key support base declared. Salih’s bodyguards “We reject visits by offi cials. for militants including Al Qae- cores of angry protesters rushed him back to his vehicle, They’re weak and corrupted and da after the US invasion of Iraq swarmed Iraq’s president which quickly drove off , a Reu- have failed to improve Mosul in 2003 that toppled Saddam Sand the governor of Mosul ters reporter said. since the nightmare of Daesh Hussein. yesterday, forcing them to leave The crowd then threw stones (Islamic State),” he said. The rise of IS was helped by the site of a river ferry accident and shoes at Sultan’s car, which Younes Abdullah, a 35-year- feelings among communities that killed at least 90 people in sped off hitting two people, one old civil servant, said: “We that they were being margin- the northern city the day before. of whom was taken to hospital, need action not words. Those alised by the Baghdad govern- The capsize of the boat, which the reporter said. who caused the tragedy must be ment. was carrying families to a rec- Protesters blamed negligence brought before justice and ex- Mosul residents’ feeling of reational spot on an island in the by the local government for the ecuted.” neglect by Baghdad and cor- Tigris River, was the single most accident, where the boat was Medical sources raised the ruption among local officials deadly incident in Mosul since loaded to fi ve times its capacity, death toll from Thursday’s cap- is shared with other poorer the city was recaptured from according to a local offi cial. size to at least 90 people as res- provinces in Iraq, including Islamic State in a bloody and de- Prime Minister Adel Abdul cue teams continued to search Basra, where riots over power, structive confl ict in 2017. Mahdi said on Thursday those for the drowned and missing. water and jobs last year turned Since the extremists were responsible would be held ac- Islamic State made Mosul its deadly. driven from Mosul nearly two countable. de-facto capital from 2014 to Dozens of people waited out- years ago, relief has given way Five ferry workers were ar- 2017 after taking over swathes side the local morgue in Mosul to impatience over alleged cor- rested. For the people of Mosul, of Iraq and Syria. The battle to yesterday to hear if their miss- ruption as reconstruction of the visits by politicians and days of dislodge the group killed thou- Iraqi Kurds light up candles in Arbil, the capital of the Kurdish autonomous region in northern Iraq, ing relatives were among those destroyed city has stalled. mourning are not enough. sands of people and destroyed yesterday, in remembrance for the victims of the capsized ferry in Mosul. who drowned. “No to corruption,” demon- “Corruption and mismanage- large parts of the city. “I have hope” that they are strators chanted at President ment are the reason for what Many in Mosul feel neglected rebuild their own homes, im- including the governor of cor- Some fear that the slow pace of alive, said Ahmed Abid, wait- Barham Salih and Nineveh prov- happened. These were families by the Baghdad central govern- patient with waiting for help ruption. restoration is creating an en- ing for news of his two younger ince governor Nawfal Hammadi trying to have fun, and they end- ment. Families have begun to to come and accusing officials He rejects the allegations. vironment that extremists like brothers. Gulf Times 4 Saturday, March 23, 2019 AFRICA At least 60 killed in Ghana bus

collision A child cries and complains of stomach pains as he sits on a woman’s lap, at the port of Beira, Mozambique, yesterday. AFP was completely gutted. The road glass and it was just a few of us Accra was strewn with debris over sev- — about 10 — who managed to eral hundred metres. Bags and move out. belongings of passengers from “In a matter of seconds then Shortages of everything, and worries about t least 60 people were the second bus were in piles on the vehicle went on fi re with the killed yesterday in a head- the roadside. others still trapped in the car. We Aon collision between two The side of the vehicle, which watched on as the fi re consumed buses in Ghana, police said, in was at an angle into the embank- them. It was late into the night.” relatives, for Mozambique fl ood survivors the latest deadly crash on the ment, appeared ripped off . The crash has renewed calls country’s roads. Kwame Arhin, a doctor at the for the authorities to enforce Reuters which were both in short sup- She had missed breakfast relatives and friends they had Survivors of the deadly smash Kintampo Government Hos- traffi c rules to reduce deaths and Guara Guara ply. while waiting in line with her not heard from since the wa- told rescuers the driver of one of pital, said 28 people were be- injuries on the country’s poorly- Eight large tents were sent to husband for the doctor, because ters started rising. There is no the buses had been feeling sleepy ing treated for head injuries and maintained road networks. the camp on Wednesday, but he was unwell. electricity, phones or internet before the crash but refused to multiple fractures. “We’ve been speaking to the t a camp near the city of yesterday most people were “The help is coming, but it’s at the camp. take a break. “Seven out of the 28 passen- local assembly to fi x rumble Beira for people rescued outside in the blazing sun, or coming very slowly,” she said, Louisa Ndena, 60, was sit- They said they shattered the gers who were rushed here are in strips on the road but they said Afrom Mozambique’s huddling into small patches of adding that what did arrive had ting on the ground in a white vehicle’s windows and escaped critical condition,” he added. this is a highway so it’s not pos- catastrophic fl ooding, resi- shade cast by the branches of to be given to children fi rst. aid tent surrounded by family with just seconds to spare before Ghana’s Vice-President Ma- sible,” said local resident Gifty dents were dealing yesterday sparse trees. “We had to ask a local hos- members and toddlers. fl ames took hold with other pas- hamudu Bawumia said action Mintah. with worries about their future People also took shelter in pital for soya milk so we can “Besides our missing fami- sengers still inside. was required to prevent such Rumble strips are a noise- and shortages of pretty much the village’s secondary school stretch out the food. All we’ve lies, the thing we are most The accident happened at accidents. “As a country we making safety feature that alerts everything — water, food and — whose roof was still intact — had so far is biscuits,” she worried about is disease,” she about 2:00am (0200 GMT) in need to put in place appropriate drivers when their cars are at the medicines. sitting or slumped, head down, said.”The conditions are terri- said, explaining that there are the Bono East region, some 430 measures to drastically reduce edge of the road. Also, painfully, some of them at its wooden desks. ble, and more people keep com- no toilets, and if the village’s kilometres by road north of the the occurrence of such mishaps,” “But people keep dying and lacked information about how A number of elderly women ing.” residents would not let them capital, Accra. he wrote on his Twitter account. for how long are we going to look their relatives were faring. were curled up on their side on Cyclone Idai pummelled the use theirs, they use bushes for “The vehicles were travelling “We wish the injured speedy on for people to keep dying?” Aid organisations such as the the dirt fl oor. port city of Beira and its low- privacy. in separate directions when the recovery and may the souls of the Crashes are common on high- World Food Programme and Fresh water was in low sup- lying surrounds last week with The International Com- collision occurred,” police com- departed rest in perfect peace.” ways in Ghana because of poor Red Cross are delivering food, ply and there were no toilets. ferocious winds and tore in- mittee of the Red Cross said mander Joseph Antwi Gyawu The cause of the crash was maintenance, disregard of traffi c water, shelter and other basic The camp’s residents, number- land, dumping torrential rains yesterday its relief efforts in- said. yet to be established but local regulations and unroadworthy supplies to the camp at Guara ing in the hundreds, washed in a and causing massive fl ooding in cluded sending teams to the “At least 60 people have been media said a driver of one of the vehicles. Guara, which was set up by stream nearby. swathes of Mozambique, Zim- region to help families with- confi rmed dead and one of the vehicles lost control after falling An average of six people die on the government, and scores of Medical tents were small and babwe and Malawi. out access to telephones or buses caught fi re, with the other asleep. the roads every day, according to others like it in the fl ood zone cramped. A young boy bawled The storm killed 242 peo- the Internet find their missing seriously mangled,” he added. “Some of the survivors are the Motor Transport and Traffi c around Beira. as doctors worked on a deep cut ple in Mozambique and 259 in relatives. The buses were each carrying telling us that their driver was Directorate (MTTD) of Ghana But with roads cut off , on his foot, as a family friend Zimbabwe, and numbers were “The agony of not knowing about 50 passengers at the time feeling sleepy at some point police. progress is slow. Camps like the held him still and shielded his expected to rise, relief agencies what happened to your loved of the crash. during that time of the night so In February 2016, 70 people one at Guara Guara, 45km west face from the gore. said. ones in a disaster like Cyclone One of the buses caught fi re, he was asked to park but he re- were killed and 13 injured when of Beira, can be reached only by Augusto Jose, a pharmacy In Malawi, 56 died in heavy Idea is indescribable,” said Di- leaving victims burned beyond fused,” Kintampo fi re service two buses collided in the same helicopter. technician who had come from rains before the onset of Idai. ane Araujo, an ICRC delegate recognition. Emergency services commander Ankomah Twene town of Kintampo. There are a limited number Beira to help, told Reuters the Left with nothing, many deploying to Beira. were at the scene, including fi re- told local station TV3. In July 2017, players from of craft available and they are in main concern was malaria, and people at Guara Guara were At Guara Guara, Albino fi ghters who put out the blazing “We believe it contributed to one of Ghana’s leading football huge demand. how to diagnose it with so few concerned for their future or Jose Albino, 18, was alone in vehicles, which were still smoul- the accident,” he added. A sur- clubs, Asante Kotoko, were vic- Fernando Marevere, a local tests at hand. the health of their small chil- the camp aside from friends, dering hours after the crash. vivor, Rose Anane, said: “I was tims of a crash in which their village chief, said the main con- Esther Zinge, 60, from near dren. without an idea about what Video footage of the crash site fast asleep then I heard a loud team bus rammed into the back cern for new arrivals at Guara the town of Buzi, had not eaten But the biggest fear, a happened to his mother or indicated that one of the buses bang. We managed to break the of a stationary truck. Guara was food and medicines, anything yet yesterday. number of people said, was for seven siblings.

Congo unrest Confusion and grief as hunt for 23 soldiers remains from Ethiopia crash halted dead in Chad after raid Reuters supposed to be easier if it’s in losing about 12% — or $28bn sentatives of Israeli volunteer Addis Ababa the government’s hands,” said — of its market value since the rescue and recovery organisa- Milka Yimam, a dual Ethiopia- disaster. But as headlines focus tion ZAKA were fi nally able to AFP Israeli citizen whose 26-year- on the investigation and its fi - access the site last Friday. N’Djamena child’s foot. Fingers. A old son Sidrak died. nancial fallout, families fear the They have not been allowed passport. Body parts and Relatives of the victims who spotlight has shifted from re- back. The embassy said on Apersonal eff ects were visited the site on Monday said covery eff orts. Thursday ZAKA had been told wenty-three soldiers still strewn across the crash site it had been cordoned off and Israelis whose bodies are not it could not return to retrieve were killed in southwest- of Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 the ground levelled, apart from recovered are offi cially listed at remains due to a “procedural Tern Chad yesterday when on March 15, a witness told Re- the impact crater. home as “disappeared” rather matter” and that Ethiopia did they came under attack from uters, fi ve days after the disas- The dead included a grand- than “dead” — a status that can not want to grant access for Boko Haram militants, a military ter and the day before recovery niece of consumer advocate and cause complications for rela- other nations. The Ethiopian offi cial said. eff orts were halted. former US presidential candi- tives in matters ranging from ministries of transport and for- “Boko Haram elements at- With the site now fenced off , date Ralph Nader. inheritance to remarrying. eign aff airs did not respond to a tacked the Chadian army posi- bereaved families are worried Excavation was halted last So the Israeli embassy has request for comment. tion at around 1am, killing 23 the remains of their loved ones Saturday, ministry of transport been working hard to retrieve An Interpol-led group of na- troops,” the offi cial said. may be left at the scene, com- spokesman Musie Yehyies told the remains of its two citizens tions including Germany and It is the deadliest attack on pounding their anguish. Reuters. “Excavation has ended who died in the crash, fami- Canada are supporting the the Chadian military by Boko Citizens of 35 nations were for the moment since we have lies told Reuters. But it hasn’t DNA testing, three Addis Aba- Haram, a militant group which aboard when the Boeing 737 got everything we think we been easy. After being bounced ba-based diplomatic sources launched an insurgency in Ni- MAX 8 jet nosedived into a fi eld need at the moment. The site between various government said. geria nearly 10 years ago that has on March 10 six minutes af- has been enclosed and can be ministries, the ambassador Ethiopia has also contracted spread to neighbouring Niger ter take-off from Addis Ababa, revisited,” he said yesterday. eventually wrote to the airline British fi rm Blake Emergency and Chad. killing all 157 people onboard. Global attention has mostly to get access to the crash site, Services to recover and return The Boko Haram revolt has Families of those who per- shifted to an investigation into a source familiar with matter the remains. claimed more than 27,000 lives ished complain of a lack of the cause of the disaster, and said. He got no reply — until The fi rm did not respond to and uprooted more than 1.7mn information about recovery similarities with the crash of a the Israeli prime minister inter- requests for comment. Remains people. The attack took place at eff orts, which saw Ethiopian Lion Air 737 MAX plane in In- vened by phoning his Ethiopian recovered so far have been Dangdala, on the northeastern workers using metal parts of the donesia last October that killed counterpart. bagged and stored in an out-of- A young girl helps clear the road after protests in the bank of Lake Chad. The assail- aircraft to dig in the soil. 189 people. The two leaders spoke to the-way area of Addis Ababa’s Majengo neighbourhood of Goma, DR Congo, yesterday, ants crossed over from Niger “At the beginning, (the Ethi- Pilots of both aircraft re- exchange condolences for the Bole airport, in refrigeration following four deaths and 10 kidnappings the previous before launching the raid and opian authorities) should have ported control problems and lives lost in the crash, a spokes- units usually used to store roses night by unknown assailants. Protesters lament that the “made off with military equip- blocked off that place and sent crashed minutes after take-off . woman for Ethiopian Prime destined for export, before be- police do not protect them after four community members ment,” the source said. an organised team to search, in- The world’s entire 737 MAX Minister Abiy Ahmed’s offi ce ing moved to the capital’s St were killed and 10 were kidnapped the previous night by In southeastern Niger, mean- stead of just leaving it open. fl eet was grounded after the told Reuters yesterday Paul’s Hospital, two sources unknown assailants. while, eight civilians were killed I’m unhappy about that. It’s Ethiopia crash, with Boeing The ambassador and repre- told Reuters. late Thursday in a Boko Haram attack in Karidi, in the Guesker- ou district, a local offi cial said yesterday. Gueskerou lies in the Diff a re- gion, which borders Lake Chad, 20 Cameroon students ‘tortured by separatists,’ say authorities and is one of the worst-hit areas for militant attacks in Niger. A total of 16 troops were killed AFP ing for an independent state, torture and...are in hospital for had paid a ransom. Kidnappings rity forces have died in clashes, bouring Nigeria. Around a fi fth of in attacks on February 16 and Yaounde the authorities said yesterday. treatment,” a local government for political and fi nancial motives attacks and a government crack- Cameroon’s population of 24mn March 9, while Niger’s armed The students, from the Uni- offi cial said, blaming English- are a daily hazard in the North- down, the International Crisis are English-speakers. The roots forces said it had killed 33 “ter- versity of Buea, the capital of speaking secessionists. west and Southwest Regions of Group (ICG) says. of the confl ict today date back a rorists” on March 12. wenty members of a uni- Southwest Region, were kid- “The 20 students were severely Cameroon, which are in the grip According to the UN, the un- century, when post-World War I Troops from Cameroon, versity football team in napped on Wednesday as they tortured,” said human-rights ac- of an armed separatist campaign rest has forced 437,000 people Germany surrendered Kamerun, Chad, Niger and Nigeria have Twestern Cameroon were were training, offi cials said. tivist Felix Agbor Nkongho. Lo- launched in October 2017. to fl ee their homes, in addition its principal colony in West Af- been grouped into a mixed, mul- abducted and tortured by an- “They were released late last cal media said the students had At least 500 civilians and more to more than 32,000 others who rica, which was then taken over ti-national force to fi ght Boko glophone militants campaign- night. They suff ered acts of been released after their families than 200 members of the secu- have sought shelter in neigh- by Britain and France. Haram. Gulf Times Saturday, March 23, 2019 5 AMERICAS TV stars to appear in court in college admissions scandal

TCA/DPA The hearing comes as the fed- owner of a for-profi t Newport of the students involved in the Huff man was initially repre- control an SAT testing centre time declined to comment. Los Angeles eral investigation is continuing, Beach college admissions com- fraud case. sented by Hollywood’s top crim- and arrange for someone to Loughlin, of “Full House” and there are signs that more pany, which wealthy parents are Although the prep schools inal defence attorney, Blair Berk; proctor her daughter’s test and fame, and Huff man, whose charges might be coming. accused of paying to help their are not targets of the investiga- but because the case is in Boston, correct it. credits include the hit ABC show he next move in the col- Law enforcement sources say children cheat on college en- tion, prosecutors want to know she will be defended by Marty The actress’ older daughter “Desperate Housewives,” are lege admissions scandal some parents are under pres- trance exams and which alleg- whether the parents and others Murphy of Foley Hoag. took the test in December 2017 charged with conspiracy to com- Twill unfold in a Boston sure to co-operate with federal edly falsifi ed athletic records of accused in the case sought or Loughlin is represented by and received a score of 1420. mit mail fraud and honest serv- federal courtroom on April 3, prosecutors, who are looking to students to enable them to se- received help from the schools, Perry Viscounty of Latham & That was a 400-point im- ices mail fraud. when Felicity Huff man, Lori expand the case. One source said cure admission to elite schools — sources told The Times. Watkins. provement from her fi rst test. According to court records, Loughlin and other defendants some parents are being given a including UCLA, USC, Stanford, People with knowledge of the Huff man is accused of dis- In October, the FBI recorded Loughlin and her husband are set to appear in court. short window to consider a deal Yale and Georgetown — accord- case said it’s likely prosecutors guising a $15,000 charitable Huff man allegedly discuss- “agreed to pay bribes totalling Federal prosecutors an- or potentially face additional ing to court records. are looking at more parents. payment in the bribery scheme, ing participating in the same $500,000 in exchange for hav- nounced that the actresses as charges. Several elite Southern Califor- Court documents said that the according to court records. scheme for her younger daugh- ing their two daughters desig- well as Loughlin’s husband, The actresses are among doz- nia prep schools have received scheme’s mastermind, William Prosecutors alleged she met ter; however, she did not ulti- nated as recruits to the USC crew fashion designer J Mossimo Gi- ens swept up in the scandal. subpoenas from prosecutors “Rick” Singer, had more than with a confidential witness mately pursue it. team” even though they did not annulli, will be in court. The scheme centred on the seeking information about some 700 clients. who explained that he could Last week, her attorney at the participate in crew. Trump denies knowledge of Kushner’s WhatsApp use

Reuters characterisation of earlier com- Washington ments “not completely accu- rate.” The lawyer denied telling S President Donald Congress members Kushner Trump yesterday said he had communicated through any Uknew nothing about son- app with foreign “leaders” or in-law and White House adviser “offi cials” but said that instead Jared Kushner’s use of the What- Kushner had used such apps sApp encrypted messaging tool, for communicating with “some a day after a top US Democratic people,” whom he did not spec- congressman questioned the ify. unoffi cial communications. Lowell also denied saying On Thursday, US House of that Ivanka Trump continued Representatives Oversight to receive e-mails related to Committee chairman Elijah official business on a personal Cummings asked the White account. House about Kushner’s use of He said Ivanka Trump “always the unoffi cial messaging appli- forwards offi cial business to her cation as part of his government White House account.” Police provide security at Saint Joseph’s Oratory in Montreal yesterday, after Catholic priest Claude Grou was stabbed. work. In the 2016 presidential race, In a letter to the White House, Trump railed against his Demo- seen by Reuters, Cummings said cratic opponent, Hillary Clinton, Kushner’s lawyer had told law- for her use of a private e-mail makers about his WhatsApp use server while serving as secretary for offi cial duties, a move that of state, inspiring chants at his would violate current law pro- rallies of “lock her up.” hibiting White House offi cials The FBI and the department from using non-offi cial elec- of justice investigated Clinton Priest stabbed live on TV tronic messaging accounts. but brought no charges. Trump, speaking to report- Kushner’s communications, ers at the White House before particularly with foreign leaders, departing for Mar-A-Lago, his have been under scrutiny since private club in Florida, for the the presidential campaign, and weekend, denied any knowledge questions have been raised about at Canada’s biggest church of Kushner’s unoffi cial commu- his security clearance. nications. Earlier Trump went on air to AFP scattering candles and a banner, Three guards restrained him Mayor Valerie Plante called tory when the attack unfolded, “I know nothing about it. double down on his attempt to Montreal before stabbing his victim. while others tended to Grou, the assault a “horrible and in- said he saw police arrive and I’ve never heard that, I’ve never discredit a massive probe into Witness Adele Plamondon, who appeared to be in shock. excusable act that has no place take away the suspect in hand- heard about it,” the Republican his campaign’s links to Russia, told public broadcaster Radio- The priest was taken to hos- in Montreal.” cuff s. president said. which is expected to be released priest was stabbed live Canada the priest was about pital, where his condition was Saint Joseph’s Oratory, built “I fi nd this incident very un- Cummings in his letter on shortly. on television during to start the service when “this said to be stable, with police from 1920 to 1955, sits atop fortunate, in a place so peaceful Thursday said Kushner lawyer Ever since the investigation Amorning service yester- man drew a knife and ran up to reporting that he had been the north face of Mount Royal that attracts millions of visi- Abbe Lowell also told Congress run by independent prosecutor day at Canada’s biggest church, stab him.” “slightly wounded in the upper overlooking Canada’s second- tors,” he said. that Ivanka Trump — the presi- and former FBI director Robert police said. “I’d thought he was just go- body.” largest metropolis, and attracts “With what happened in dent’s daughter, Kushner’s wife Mueller began nearly two years Footage broadcast on a ing to kneel and pray like many The church has been cor- some 2mn people each year. Christchurch, it seems that and also a top White House ad- ago Trump has insisted that it is Catholic television station and people do,” she said. doned off . The national shrine was all places of worship are being viser — continued to use a per- a “witch hunt” and a “hoax.” picked up by the top-rated CTV The suspect remained silent Police did not reveal a motive founded by Brother Andre Bes- targeted,” he added, referenc- sonal e-mail account for offi cial In an interview with Fox tel- network showed a man in jeans, during the assault but appeared for the attack. sette, a central religious fi gure ing a gunman’s attack at two business. evision yesterday, he called the a parka and a white baseball cap “very determined,” Plamondon Church spokeswoman Celine among French-Canadians, who mosques in New Zealand last That would also violate the probe “nonsense.” approach Claude Grou at St added. Barbeau said Grou was con- was canonized by Pope Ben- Friday that left 50 dead and 50 Presidential Records Act. Trump and his 2016 election Joseph’s Oratory in Montreal. Grou recovered enough to get scious when he was rushed from edict in 2010 for his devotion to wounded. Lowell, in a separate letter to campaign are being investigated He is seen chasing the priest to his feet and is seen backing the scene. the sick and disabled. In 2017, a shooter gunned Cummings, called the Demo- for possible improper or illegal and standing menacingly over away as security offi cers surround “We are hopeful he will pull Jean-Francois Lefebvre, who down six worshippers at a cratic committee chairman’s links to the Kremlin. Grou as he falls to the ground, the assailant, who drops his knife. through.” she added. was working in front of the ora- mosque in Quebec City. Trump picks ex-campaign Floods wreak havoc Truck driver jailed adviser as Fed governor for fatal bus crash Reuters Sidhu, driving a load of peat Toronto moss, was not injured. Reuters “I have known Steve for a long to slowing global and US growth Yesterday, at the hearing in Washington time — and have no doubt he and low infl ation. Melfort, Saskatchewan, judge will be an outstanding choice!” Moore would add a critical he driver who caused Inez Cardinal read out nearly Trump wrote on Twitter yester- voice to a collegial Fed commit- the deaths of 16 people 100 victim impact statements, resident Donald Trump day. tee that just last week had unan- Ton a rural Canadian road CBC News reporter Jason War- yesterday said he had Moore, whose nomination imously backed Powell in keep- in Saskatchewan after crashing ick posted on Twitter. Ppicked Stephen Moore, would require senate approval, ing rate hikes on hold. his truck into a bus transport- Along with the sentence, an economic commentator af- helped write Trump’s signature In a Wall Street Journal arti- ing a junior hockey team was Sidhu’s driver’s licence was fi liated with a conservative think tax plan. cle last week, Moore and a co- yesterday sentenced to eight also suspended. tank and a critic of the Federal The position would give him a author argued that the Fed’s rate years in prison, Canadian me- In January, the judge heard Reserve’s interest rate hikes, for vote at the policy-setting table hikes promoted defl ation and dia reported. numerous statements over a seat on the US central bank’s of an institution whose interest described the central bank as the Jaskirat Singh Sidhu, 30, four days from family mem- board of governors. rate hikes last year were a fre- “last major obstacle” to the US pleaded guilty in January to bers of deceased and injured “I will be nominating Moore quent target of Trump’s ire. staying on a good path. 29 counts of dangerous opera- players in a gymnasium chosen to the Fed,” Trump told report- Trump was so incensed by the A spokeswoman for Repub- tion of a motor vehicle causing for the hearing to accommo- ers as he arrived in Florida for a Fed’s policies he is said to have lican senator Crapo, who leads death or bodily harm, saying date families, friends, lawyers weekend trip. “He’ll be great on sought advice late last year on the Senate banking committee he did not want to make things and media. the Fed.” whether he could fi re its chair- whose support is needed before worse by proceeding with a Some said they forgave Sid- The Wall Street Journal, cit- man, Jerome Powell. a Fed governor can be appointed, trial. hu. ing a senior administration offi - After raising rates four times declined to comment. The prosecution had asked Yesterday, Cardinal said cial, reported earlier that Trump last year, Powell this year has There are two open positions for 10 years. there were no road or weather had made an off er to Moore this taken Fed policy in the di- on the Fed’s seven-seat board. The defence had made no conditions that contributed week after speaking with him to rection that Trump wanted, The White House is also con- recommendation but cited to the crash, and drinking, compliment him on an opinion putting rate hikes on hold and tinuing to consider one-time cases whose sentences ranged speeding or cell phone use article he co-authored in the mapping out an end to reduc- presidential candidate and pizza from 18 months to four years, were also not factors. Journal. tions in the Fed’s balance sheet chain magnate Herman Cain for according to CBC News. There were no tire marks Before joining the conserva- that Trump and others had a spot, Bloomberg News reported The Humboldt Broncos due to braking left by the semi tive Heritage Foundation, Moore complained were squeezing the late on Thursday, despite concerns hockey team was on its way to truck leading to the intersec- had worked as an editorial page economy. that the accusations of sexual har- a playoff game before the crash tion, where the truck, but not writer at the Journal. Powell has said the Fed took assment that derailed Cain’s bid Railroad tracks and the bridge carrying it are seen destroyed last April, which killed players, the bus, was legally required He also was an adviser to those decisions without regard for president could complicate his by flood waters near Monroe, Nebraska, US, yesterday. staff , a radio announcer and to stop, according to an agreed Trump’s presidential campaign. to politics but purely in response senate confi rmation. the bus driver. statement of facts. Gulf Times 6 Saturday, March 23, 2019 ASIA Thailand parties in fi nal ballot battle

Reuters Bangkok

hai political parties on yesterday held their larg- Test rallies yet, two days ahead of the country’s fi rst elec- tion since a military coup nearly fi ve years ago, but one that crit- ics say will deny power to the most popular party. Making his fi rst appearance Pheu Thai party’s candidate for prime minister Sudarat Keyuraphan (centre) shakes hands with her supporters at an offi cial campaign event, during the party’s final major campaign rally in Bangkok yesterday ahead of the March 24 general election. Prime Minister and junta leader Prayut Chan-o-cha was greeted Palang Pracharat adopted a new Pro-establishment and pro- With the military choosing all with his nickname of “Uncle slogan ahead of the vote that fea- business, it hopes to hold the Senate members, pro-military Tu” by supporters of a pro-army tures Prayut’s nickname, “Choose key to power after an incon- parties would probably need to party that has nominated him as peace, choose ‘Uncle Tu’.” clusive election, returning its win only 126 seats in the House its prime ministerial candidate. Prayut came on stage to cheers leader, Abhisit Vejjajiva, to the of Representatives to win a The opposition Pheu Thai and music, waving to the crowd prime minister’s offi ce he held majority in a combined vote. party gathered separately in and accepting roses from sup- unelected from 2008 to 2011. Pheu Thai urged voters to take Bangkok before sunset for last- porters as a massive television Polls indicate Pheu Thai will a strategic view. gasp campaigning. screen showed a video of his again be the top vote-winner, and “The rules in this election are Pheu Thai, removed from years as the junta leader, harvest- it hopes with its allies to make up designed to put the people at a power by the military in 2014, ing rice and hugging children. the largest bloc in the 500-seat disadvantage. If you don’t want is linked to ousted ex-premier Backers of the military have House of Representatives. to give in to despair, you need Thaksin Shinawatra, a former warned Thailand could be But that may not matter, be- to vote strategically,” it said in a telecommunication tycoon Thailand’s Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha attends the last Palang Pracharath Party’s party campaign plunged back into political un- cause the new constitution Facebook post early yesterday. whose loyalists have won every rally in central Bangkok yesterday. rest in case of a return to power written by the junta allows par- “You need to vote for Pheu Thai general election since 2001. for Pheu Thai, which has been liament’s upper house, the 250- for a landslide win!” Tomorrow’s general elections after more than a decade of frac- rial candidate, Sudarat Keyurap- put online by Thai media outlet, under investigation for “outside seat Senate, to vote with the Parties and candidates are al- have been cast as a high-stakes tious, at times violent, politics. han, told cheering supporters. Khaosod English, he urged Thai infl uence”, an inquiry that could lower house to choose the prime lowed to campaign until 6pm contest between democracy and Thailand’s largest party, Pheu “Happiness and a thriving econ- guests to vote. see it disbanded. minister - and the Senate is en- (1100 GMT) today. military rule, but critics believe Thai, is leading the charge for omy both lie at the tips of your “We will win for sure,” he said, Asked yesterday if another tirely appointed by the junta. The next day, 93,200 polling they have been rigged by a new a “democratic front” of parties pens on March 24.” without elaborating. coup was possible after the poll, The magic number of seats stations will be open from 8am to army-backed constitution giv- against Palang Pracharat, a new Thaksin, who has been in self- Without directly referring to the deputy junta leader Prawit Wong- parties or alliances need to se- 5pm (0100 GMT to 1000 GMT). ing military-appointed offi cials a military proxy party backing exile since a 2008 corruption party, Thaksin said the wedding had suwan replied, “No, no, no.” cure to form a government is 376, The election commission has large say in the next government. Prayut. conviction, attended his young- to be held before the vote, or too Pheu Thai’s long-time rival, or one more than half the total said unoffi cial results will be The military government says “We are here to lift you out of est daughter’s wedding in Hong many people would have turned out the Democrat Party, also held a number in the two houses of available three hours after the the new rules will bring stability despair,” its main prime ministe- Kong yesterday. In a video clip to attend, a hint at celebrations. fi nal rally in Bangkok. parliament. stations close on Sunday.

Six villagers killed in UN offi cial welcomes Rohingya relocation plan

Myanmar clashes AFP bouring Myanmar, is highly be willing to move and be able $280mn transforming the mud- Bangladeshi offi cials said the Dhaka overcrowded. to continue their “livelihood” dy silt islet that only emerged relocation would “lessen pres- “If you have been in Kutupal- there. nearly two decades ago. sure” on the squalid settlements, Reuters es and the incident would be ong or various camps in Cox’s International aid agencies in- Local offi cials have pointed most of which were built after Yangon investigated further. senior UN offi cial has Bazar area, it is clear that there cluding a UN rapporteur in Janu- to a newly-constructed 3m (9ft) clearing acres of forestland at a An Arakan Army spokes- welcomed Bangladesh’s is huge congestion,” the UNHCR ary have raised concerns about embankment around the island wild Asian elephant sanctuary. man did not immediately re- Aplan to move Rohingya offi cial told reporters in Dhaka the island’s ability to withstand that they say will keep out tidal A Cox’s Bazar offi cial last week ix villagers were killed spond to telephone calls from refugees out of the country’s after concluding a fi ve-day visit violent storms during the mon- surges in the event of a cyclone. said they were preparing a list of and fi ve injured in My- Reuters to seek comment. congested camps, but said any to the country. soon. Hundreds of thousands Many Rohingya have openly refugees who would “voluntarily Sanmar’s Rakhine state The Rakhine MP who trav- move to transfer some 100,000 “So we welcome the fact that have died in Bangladesh from opposed the idea to migrate to go to the island”. amid clashes between govern- elled to the area yesterday said of them to a fl ood-prone island the government of Bangladesh cyclones in the last 50 years, the island, saying they would Bangladesh had wanted to ment troops and ethnic Ra- residents told him soldiers had should be voluntary. has taken very active steps to mostly in coastal areas. prefer to stay close to the start relocating refugees to the khine rebels, a lawmaker and surrounded the village late on Volker Turk, an assist- identify alternative settlement A senior Bangladeshi minister Myanmar border. island, strictly off limit to the residents said yesterday, hours Thursday and bombarded it ant high commissioner at (for the Rohingya refugees).” last week said moving refugees About 740,000 Rohingya Mus- media, last June before the mon- after peace talks failed to with heavy weapons. the UN’s refugee agency, said He added that the UN was still to the remote island, which is lims have fl ed a brutal military soon season began. resolve an escalating crisis. “We brought fi ve bodies... Thursday that the south- in “discussion” with the Bangla- an hour away by boat from the crackdown in Myanmar’s north- Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina Clashes took place in to Buthidaung town now,” east Kutupalong camp, the deshi authorities about the relo- mainland, will start from next ern Rakhine since August 2017, was then slated to open the new Buthidaung township in the said Maung Kyaw Zan, an MP world’s largest and now home cation of refugees to the island month as the majority of the joining some 300,000 refugees settlement on the island last Oc- northern part of Rakhine late for the area. Six people were to some 600,000 Rohingya of Bhashan Char, in the Bay of construction work has fi nished. already living in camps in Bangla- tober, but the inauguration was on Thursday shortly after injured, with one dying later refugees who have fl ed neigh- Bengal, but said refugees must Dhaka has spent some desh’s Cox’s Bazar district. postponed. rebels from the Arakan Army, in hospital, he said, adding battling for greater autonomy that all the other villagers for the region, met represent- had fl ed. atives of the military in the About 7,500 displaced peo- capital, Naypyitaw. ple are scattered across 29 sites Rakhine State came to glo- in Rakhine, the Myanmar offi ce Lanka Tamils demand foreign bal attention after the My- of the UN Offi ce for the Co- anmar army drove about ordination of Humanitarian 730,000 ethnic Rohingya Aff airs said in a statement. Muslims across the border For weeks, most humani- judges in war crimes probe into Bangladesh late in 2017, tarian agencies have been but ethnic Rakhine are largely blocked from delivering aid AFP up a credible investigation, the Sumanthiran said in parliament. Buddhist, like the majority of to vast areas across the state’s Colombo second time it has been given an He said Tamils, who were the Myanmar’s people. north. extension. most aff ected by the separatist Photographs taken by a Ra- “It is estimated that at least The probe is meant to include war that claimed over 100,000 khine lawmaker and obtained 95,000 people... have been af- ri Lanka’s main minor- a special “hybrid” court involv- lives, will not accept an account- by Reuters show the blood- fected by access restrictions in ity Tamil party demanded ing both local and foreign judges ability mechanism that did not Bangladesh all-rounder Mehidy Hasan marries Rabeya Akter Priti. smeared bodies of four people, the fi ve townships of Kyauk- Syesterday that foreign and prosecutors. involve outsiders. including a young boy and a taw, Ponnagyun, Buthidaung, judges be included in a special But on Wednesday in Geneva, “The state of Sri Lanka can- middle-aged woman, lying in Maungdaw and Rathedaung,” court to investigate war crimes, Sri Lankan Foreign Minister not be an independent arbiter,” a dusty pit. the UN agency said. a day after the UN again granted Tilak Marapana said the coun- he said. “They are civilians who Peace talks between the Colombo more time for a much- try’s constitution did not allow Colombo’s no-holds-barred Cricketers marry were hiding in a bomb shelter,” government and the Arakan delayed probe. foreign judges. military campaign wiped out the said Maung Thar Phyu, a civil Army rebels concluded on Government troops have been This prompted uproar from leadership of Tamil Tiger rebels society activist in the area. “It Thursday without signifi - accused of killing at least 40,000 Tamil National Alliance (TNA), and ended the war in May 2009. after surviving NZ is terrible.” cant agreement, though they ethnic Tamil civilians in the fi nal with lawmaker Mathiaparanan UN rights chief Michelle Military spokesman Brig- signed a pact to continue talks. months of the island nation’s Abraham Sumanthiran threat- Bachelet warned this week that adier-General Zaw Min Tun Myanmar governments 37-year civil war in 2009. No ening yesterday to report Sri Sri Lanka risked slipping back mosque horror told Reuters by telephone have battled various ethnic one has been prosecuted for war Lanka to the International Crim- into confl ict unless it addressed there had been a battle to the minority insurgent groups crimes in the decade since. inal Court (ICC). the “worst crimes” of the war. AFP in my life today. I would like to south of Say Taung village at since soon after independence With no measurable progress, “If the government does not She noted that Colombo was Dhaka request the blessings of all my around 9pm. from Britain in 1948, though the UN Human Rights Coun- agree to a hybrid court, Sri Lanka yet to set up the special judicial fans and well-wishers for my He said the rebel Arakan some have struck ceasefi re cil in Geneva on Thursday gave will have to face a tribunal which mechanism as promised four new beginning. May the Rah- Army had initiated the clash- deals. Sri Lanka two more years to set will be entirely international,” years ago. wo Bangladeshi crick- mat of Allah always shower eters who narrowly es- upon us,” Mehidy said in his Tcaped last week’s deadly offi cial Facebook page. mosque attacks in New Zealand Meanwhile, pace bowler Rah- have married their fi ancees. man married his cousin, psy- Mehidy Hasan and Mus- chology student Samia Parvin Vietnam protests to China over boat sinking tafi zur Rahman were among Shimu, in their rural home yes- 17 members of the Bangladesh terday, his brother said. Reuters archipelago on March 6 when interests of Vietnamese fi sher- The fi shing boat had already nounced Taiwan’s military drills Test cricket team touring New “We were looking for a suita- Hanoi a China maritime surveillance men,” the ministry said in the struck a reef and sunk before on and around Itu Aba, an island Zealand who were driven up to ble time for his marriage... Now vessel chased it and fi red water statement, referring to the Para- the Chinese vessel arrived, he in the South China Sea, that a Christchurch mosque as the if it can help him overcome the cannon at it, Vietnam’s foreign cel islands by their Vietnamese added. Vietnam calls Ba Binh. shooting began. shock, we will be really happy,” ietnam has lodged an of- ministry said in a statement. name. “We hope the Vietnamese side Vietnamese foreign minis- They later watched as Mahfuzur Rahman said. fi cial protest with China The boat sank after hitting Vietnam had lodged a protest can stop making things up.” try spokeswoman Le Thi Thu blood-soaked victims stag- The team was in Christch- Vfollowing the sinking of rocks while it was being chased. with China’s embassy in Ha- China claims 90% of the Hang said the drills were “a gered from the building, ac- urch for their third and fi nal a Vietnamese fi shing boat which All fi ve fi shermen on board were noi and demanded that China South China Sea, where it has serious violation of Vietnam’s cording to team manager Kha- Test match against the home was being chased by a Chinese rescued by another Vietnamese deal strictly with its maritime steadily expanded military and sovereignty over the (Sprat- led Mashud, who said if they side scheduled to begin last maritime surveillance vessel in fi shing boat, the ministry said. surveillance agency to prevent other installations on artifi - ly) archipelago, threatening had arrived just a few minutes Saturday, which was promptly the disputed South China Sea, A Vietnamese rescue agency similar incidents and to com- cial islands and reefs, unnerv- peace, stability, and maritime later the team could have been cancelled to allow the cricket- Vietnam said. said earlier that the Chinese ves- pensate fairly the fi shermen for ing the region and angering safety and security, stressing caught up in the massacre. ers to return home. Vietnam and China have for sel rammed the fi shing boat. their losses. Washington. and complicating the situation Off -spinner Mehidy an- Fifty people died in attacks years long been embroiled in “The Chinese vessel com- In Beijing, foreign ministry In addition to Vietnam, the in the East Sea.” nounced that he had married on two mosques in Christch- a dispute over the potentially mitted an act that violated Vi- spokesman Geng Shuang said Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei “Vietnam resolutely opposes his long-term sweetheart Rab- urch in what is believed to be energy-rich stretch of waters, etnam’s sovereignty over the the Paracel Islands were China’s and Taiwan also have claims to (the drills) and demands that eya Akhter Priti on Thursday in the worst assault on Muslims called the East Sea by Vietnam. Hoang Sa archipelago, threat- and Vietnam must immediately parts of the sea. Taiwan not repeat similar ac- a ceremony in the southwestern in a Western country. Five The fi shing vessel was moored ened the lives and damaged the stop illegal fi shing activities in Separately, the Vietnam- tions,” Hang said in a statement Bangladeshi city of Khulna. Bangladeshis were among near Da Loi island in the Paracel properties and the legitimate the vicinity. ese government yesterday de- on the government website. “I am starting a new journey those killed. Gulf Times Saturday, March 23, 2019 7 ASIA/AUSTRALASIA N Korea quits liaison offi ce in setback for South after new US sanctions

Reuters fi cials’ contact this morning,” Hanoi broke down over confl ict- with Washington is in jeopardy. international sanctions, it said. It The latest sanctions showed and nuclear tests, in place since Seoul South Korea’s Vice Unifi cation ing demands by the North for re- “The North sees its nuclear is- also cited 67 vessels for engaging there was some “leakage” in 2017, unless Washington makes Minister Chun Hae-sung told a lief from sanctions and from the sue and ties with the United States in illicit transfers of refi ned petro- North Korea sanctions enforce- concessions. Activity was de- briefi ng. South Korea regrets the United States for Pyongyang to as a matter of greater strategic leum with North Korean tankers ment by China, but it was mostly tected at the North’s main rocket orth Korea yesterday decision and urged a swift nor- give up its nuclear weapons. importance, so when they try to or facilitating the export of the abiding by UN resolutions, a sen- test facility around the time of the pulled out of a liaison of- malisation of the arrangement, The North’s withdrawal from assert its position, they sacrifi ce North’s coal. ior US offi cial told reporters on failed summit, fuelling concern Nfi ce with the South, in Chun said, adding the South the offi ce was another blow to the ties with the South, which Reuters was unable to locate condition of anonymity. While that Pyongyang may be about to a major setback for Seoul, just would continue to staff the of- Moon, who has seen his standing is considered inferior,” said Shin contact details for either of the declining to say whether Wash- resume weapons development to hours after the United States im- fi ce, set up as a regular channel of as a mediator between Pyongyang Beom-chul of the Asan Institute Chinese companies to seek com- ington was trying to send a post- ratchet up pressure on Washing- posed the fi rst new sanctions on communication to ease hostility and Washington deteriorate and for Policy Studies in Seoul. ment. The US sanctions prohibit summit message to Pyongyang, ton. the North since the second US- between the rivals, which techni- divisions grow within his gov- Moon’s offi ce reacted by hold- US dealings with the designated the offi cial said Trump “has made On Monday, two senior US North Korea summit broke down cally remain at war. ernment over how to break the ing an urgent meeting, headed by companies and freezes any assets clear that the door is wide open senators called for the Trump last month. The move came after the Unit- impasse. Moon’s administration his national security adviser, to they have in the United States. to continuing the dialogue with administration to correct a slow- North Korea said it was quit- ed States on Thursday blacklisted had touted the offi ce as a major discuss the withdrawal. The won “The United States and our North Korea.” ing pace of American sanctions ting the joint liaison offi ce set up two Chinese shipping companies feat resulting from his own sum- weakened about 0.4% against like-minded partners remain US-North Korean engagement designations on North Korea, in September in the border city of it says helped North Korea evade mit with Kim last year despite US the dollar in non-deliverable for- committed to achieving the fi - has appeared to be in limbo since saying such actions had seen a Kaesong after a historic summit sanctions over its nuclear pro- concerns about possible loosen- ward (NDF) trade after the news. nal, fully verifi ed denuclearisa- the Feb 27-28 summit, despite US marked decline in the past year of between leader Kim Jong-un and gramme and cited 67 vessels it ing of sanctions. The US Treasury Department tion of North Korea and believe Secretary of State Mike Pompeo US diplomatic engagement with South Korea’s President Moon said engaged in illicit trade help- The South’s Chun said he would identifi ed two Chinese fi rms for that the full implementation of saying on March 4 he was hopeful Pyongyang. They pointed to a re- Jae-in early last year. ing the North. not directly link the North’s move new sanctions — Dalian Haibo North Korea-related UN Security he could send a team to North Ko- cent UN report that North Korea “The North’s side pulled out It was the fi rst such step since to the failed Hanoi summit. But International Freight Co Ltd and Council resolutions is crucial to rea “in the next couple of weeks.” continued to defy UN sanctions after conveying to us that they are a second meeting between Presi- experts saw a pattern in the North Liaoning Danxing International a successful outcome,” Treasury North Korea has warned it is with an increase in smuggling of doing so on the instructions from dent Donald Trump and North lashing out against the South Forwarding Co Ltd — which had Secretary Steven Mnuchin said in considering suspending talks and petroleum products and coal and a higher level, during a liaison of- Korean leader Kim Jong-un in when its crucial strategic position helped the North evade US and a statement. may rethink a freeze on missile violation of bans on arms sales. Defi ance, tears and joy as Christchurch unites

AFP Christchurch New Zealand’s Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern leaves after the Friday prayers at Hagley Park outside Al-Noor Mosque in Christchurch. hen the prayer memo- rial ended in Christch- Wurch, Ahmad Khan Preparing NZ dead for burial stood shoulder-to-shoulder with three Maori men in tradi- For three days and nights the dead for Islamic burial, Mo said. tional dress as they all stuck out volunteers toiled, diligently But due to the sheer scale of their tongues. “It’s unbelievable washing the bodies of those the massacre and the criminal looking at the crowd here, thou- murdered by a white suprema- investigation that followed, it sands of people gathering behind cist in the Christchurch mosque took between four to five days us during prayers,” said Khan, a massacres, finally embrac- for most bodies to be released, 36-year-old businessman who ing when the last victim was adding to the pressure on the fl ew down from Auckland to at- wrapped in a shroud. In the team to prepare bodies as tend the service. “It’s a feeling of aftermath of the slayings of 50 speedily as possible. Mo said rejoicing.” Muslims one week ago, a team the process was the same for Joy might seem like an odd of specialists in Islamic funeral all — the 47 male victims were word for someone who hails from rites rushed to the terrorised prepared by men and the three a community that just had an un- city on New Zealand’s South female bodies were bathed by imaginable atrocity committed Island to perform a grim but women. The first job was to ad- against them. vital task. Muslim dead must dress the often horrific gunshot The killings began only a short be washed before burial in a wounds, a task primarily carried distance away at the blood- ritually complex ceremony out by the local medics. “The stained Al Noor Mosque, which that the city’s tight-knit Muslim doctors who helped make the is still shuttered to the public. community usually performed bodies look more presentable, But Khan said he was buzzing. at the Al Noor Mosque. they were amazing,” Mo said. No longer was his community But the mosque, the first of Bodies were then washed isolated, shunned or viewed with two Muslim houses of worship three times, first with lukewarm suspicion. struck in the March 15 attacks water, then water infused with The memory of those lost was, by Australian national Brenton extracts from a tree considered of course, painful. But for now, he Tarrant, remains a closed-up by Muslims to be blessed, and wanted to bask in that newfound Muslim men pray in a park near the Al Noor Mosque, shortly after a two minutes silence held in memory of the twin mosque massacre victims crime scene. Christchurch lastly with camphor-scented community spirit. Khan was not in Christchurch. Muslims suddenly had 50 water. The right side is bathed alone. loved ones to prepare for burial. first, followed by the left. A queue of worshippers wait- Jacinda Ardern also attended, as brother Mohammed Daoud Nabi, One of those who took part After that, the parts of the ed for pictures with the three did a self-declared wizard clad in the 71-year-old gunned down re- described to AFP the daunting body that Muslims wash in Maoris — men in prayer caps and fl owing robes and a pointed hat. portedly greeting his killer with and heartbreaking task in a their ablutions before attend- long tunics, veiled women and Some brought guitars and sang the words “hello brother”. As he funeral home on the outskirts ing prayer — feet, hands, and young children squealing with songs. Others held placards. One knelt down during the two min- of the city. “We treated each face — are cleansed a final time delight as the trio put on their banner held by two people next to utes of silence, Nadir started to body like it was family, as if I with a wet cloth so that the most frightening war faces. where Muslim men were wash- weep. The woman kneeling next was washing my own father deceased can make their way The crowd refl ected the sheer ing ahead of prayers simply read: to him, Alaska Wood, rested her or brother,” explained Mo, who to heaven in a state of purity. diversity of those aff ected by last “We support our Muslim neigh- hand and forehead on his shoul- travelled from Brisbane in Perfume was then applied and week’s devastating attacks. At the bours.” der. Australia as soon as he heard in a final ceremony the bodies front, divided into male and fe- Instead of mourning in black, “They’re hurting, they need the massacre had taken place. were wrapped in simple white male sections, were those hit the most women wore bright head- us, so the least we can do is to A 27-year-old urban planner, shrouds to be taken for burial. hardest — thousands of Muslim scarves, creating a kaleidoscope stand beside them,” Wood, a Mo asked AFP not to use his Mo’s team also prepared a worshippers facing the mosque of colour. Many of those attend- Christchurch local, told AFP. surname as he wanted to avoid 48th body not directly con- for prayers, including survivors ing said New Zealand had been “There’s only so much we can publicity. But he agreed to talk nected to the shooting — a and relatives of those killed. forever changed by the murders do. But if it’s little acts of kind- about the work performed Muslim volunteer who came to It looked much like any out- — but in a way that would only ness, they will snowball into big by a core team of around 10 Christchurch to help the local door Friday prayer session. But bond people together. acts. It’s the only way things will exhausted volunteers and community but who died in a what made the gathering so ex- “The country is united in this change.” Local residents with head scarfs listen to sermons by the Imam three doctors, who were aided car crash. “We’ve barely slept traordinary were the thousands and nothing is ever going to break Hasma Adeeb, 23, had tears during a call to prayer and moments of silence at Masjid Umar at times by family members. the last three nights. We started of non-Muslims behind them. it,” Christchurch local John Dale, streaming down her face as Mosque in Auckland. Islam prescribes that bodies be washing the bodies at 8am and There were families from across 59, said, accompanied by his she was hugged by a series of buried quickly, ideally within 24 would finish each day at around New Zealand, biker gang mem- partner Shirley, who had decided well-wishers. Her father Adeeb women wearing headscarves for having everyone by our side — it hours as no preservatives are 2am, although the first day was bers standing guard, Maoris in to wear a white headscarf. “We’ll Ahmed Sama was shot twice in the day as a “beautiful” ges- truly means a lot to all of us. It’s allowed in the process. Several a little less busy because there traditional attire, and priests in stand behind each other — any- the massacre, diving on top of her ture. “Today we really did feel beautiful, so thank you.” Soon af- of the volunteers had special- were only six bodies released,” clerical collars. one. Muslims, Christian, any re- twin brother Ali. She described the support from everyone. New ter, she was embraced by another ist experience preparing the Mo said. New Zealand Prime Minister ligion.” Mohamed Nadir lost his the huge number of non-Muslim Zealand has been amazing. Just person.

Northern Australia China probes factory explosion after 47 killed

braces for cyclone AFP hua. The State Council, China’s at least 90 are seriously injured. vironment and ecology bureau. Nearby residents — many Yancheng, China cabinet, has established a team Hundreds of rescuers have been In 2015 and 2017, the fi rm was of them elderly — have started to investigate the explosion, with dispatched to the scene, local fi ned for violating rules on solid sweeping up glass, and in some DPA reach category fi ve, he said, which State Councillor Wang Yong authorities said, and some 4,000 and water waste management. In cases, seemed to have abandoned Canberra would see wind gusts of more hinese President Xi Jin- headed to the scene to lead rescue people have been evacuated from the aftermath of the explosion, their homes entirely. than 300kmph. Currently, the ping ordered local gov- and response eff orts, state media the blast site. In a shopping street several residents told AFP they On the road where Xiang lived, cyclone is a category three and Cernments yesterday to said. in Yancheng, a bus was converted were concerned about pollution consisting of basic two-storey tropical cyclone bearing has already entered the Gulf at prevent any more industrial dis- The explosion toppled several into a blood donation centre, from the industrial accident. homes, almost all the windows down on northern Aus- Australia’s northern tip. asters after a chemical plant blast buildings in the industrial park with about 20 to 30 people lined “We don’t have drinkable water and some window frames were Atralia has forced entire Smith said heavy rainfall, de- left 47 people dead, injured hun- and caused a huge fi re that raged up. here,” Xiang said. “Why hasn’t blown in. towns to evacuate and a mining structive winds and dangerous dreds and fl attened an industrial through the night, while rescu- Local authorities, who are in- the government sent us some The woman was sitting at company to suspend operations, storm tides were also expected, park in the latest such catastro- ers scrambled to fi nd survivors in vestigating the cause of the acci- water?” home when the explosion oc- authorities said yesterday. Cy- and a severe fl ood watch has been phe to hit the country. the wreckage of the plant owned dent, said an unspecifi ed number According to a report released curred and said the force rocked clone Trevor is expected to make issued. Thursday’s explosion in the by a company with a chequered of people were taken into police by Jiangsu province’s ecology her house and badly damaged her landfall tomorrow morning as a The Northern Territory has de- eastern city of Yancheng, Jiangsu past. The windows of homes a custody. and environment department, front door. category four near the town of clared a state of emergency for the province was one of the worst few kilometres (miles) away were The facility involved in the several rivers near the blast site There was no immediate gov- Borroloola on the Gulf of Carpen- entire Gulf region. industrial disasters to hit China, shattered. explosion belonged to Tianjiayi are contaminated with chemi- ernment help, she said, and resi- taria, said Todd Smith, Northern More than 2,100 people have with Xi acknowledging that the “We knew we’d be blown up Chemical, a fi rm with 195 em- cals, including chloroform and dents were clearing the street Territory manager for the Bureau already evacuated from remote country has seen a rash of major one day,” said one 60-year-old ployees established in 2007 that dichloromethane. The force of themselves. “I have no one to of Meteorology. “This is a very Aboriginal communities to Dar- accidents in recent years. woman surnamed Xiang who had mainly produces raw chemical the explosion — which was so help me here,” said a grandmoth- dangerous tropical cyclone ... win and Katherine, police and Xi — who is on a state visit to harboured concerns about safety materials, including anisole, a powerful that it apparently trig- er and single mom surnamed with wind gusts getting up emergency offi cials said. The Italy — urged “all-out eff orts” and pollution for a long time. highly fl ammable compound. gered a small earthquake — blew Wang. around 275km per hour (kmph) entire towns of Borroloola and to rescue those trapped and to More than 600 people have Tianjiayi Chemical has a his- out windows and dented metal “What am I going to do with near the centre of the system as Numbulwar have been evacuated, identify the cause of the accident received medical treatment fol- tory of violating environmental garage doors of buildings as far as all the shattered glass on the fl oor it crosses the coast,” Smith told regional police controller Travis “as early as possible”, according lowing the blast, according to the regulations, according to online four kilometres (2.5 miles) from and a broken wall?” the 57-year- reporters in Darwin. It could even Wurst told reporters yesterday. to the offi cial news agency Xin- city government. Among them, records from Yancheng city’s en- the site. old told AFP, tearing up. Gulf Times 8 Saturday, March 23, 2019 BRITAIN/IRELAND I will not step aside to solve crisis, May tells Johnson

Guardian News and Media minister would change approach, uncharacteristically silent as re- deadlock, according to more than prime minister has made it clear he whatever decision I took, but they voted down for a third time next London which was interpreted as a cod- porters asked questions. Since one account, partly due to con- has no intention of changing his believed I should continue to vote week, suggesting he believed her ed message that he believed she then, several informed accounts cerns that if either were to show mind if May puts the plan to a vote against the deal.” time in Downing Street was run- should quit. have begun circulating at West- any willingness to compromise, it for a third time next week. Other senior Conservatives have ning out. heresa May told Boris John- May responded by saying she minster. would leak. In his Daily Telegraph column begun telling May to her face that Bradley said he was undecided son she had no intention of was drawing up plans in case her According to one source, May “No deal between them was last week, Johnson said he had she should stand down. Graham whether to support May’s deal Tstepping aside to help re- Brexit deal was carried through by even indicated she would, if nec- done, and there was no talk of a consulted his constituents over Brady, the chairman of the 1922 next week, despite having de- solve the Brexit impasse at a high- the House of Commons, includ- essary, be prepared to lead the deal,” said a person who had heard whether he should compromise Committee of Tory backbench- cided to vote for it the second time stakes meeting earlier this week ing a “restructuring” of the de- Conservative party and fi ght a an account of the meeting. A sec- and support May’s deal “that I be- ers, saw her on Monday and said a around after voting against it the with the man seen as the favourite partment for exiting the European general election if one took place ond person said it was safe to con- lieve is detrimental to the interests growing number of MPs believed fi rst time in January. “As it stands, to replace her. Union, signalling she anticipated before 2022 – the date she has clude the two “weren’t in complete of this country”. she had to go. and it seems that extension, de- In the meeting, the former for- staying put. given for when she is prepared to agreement”. He concluded: “My constitu- Ben Bradley, the MP for Mans- lay and indicative votes are all on eign secretary, who remains op- The meeting took place in stand down. Johnson’s opposition to May’s ents were strongly of the view that fi eld, said that he could not see the table and no deal is also on the posed to May’s Brexit deal, de- Downing Street on Tuesday, but Neither side off ered any con- Brexit deal is well known and the I should not compromise. They as- how May could carry on as prime table, then I think she will lose by manded to know how the prime when Johnson emerged, he was cessions in an eff ort to break the man who hopes to become the next sured me that they would support minister if her Brexit deal were more,” Bradley said. Petition to revoke Premier makes Article 50 hits 3mn fresh push for signatures

Guardian News and Media Brexit deal with London

n online petition calling on the UK government to re- Avoke Article 50 and remain in the EU has hit 3mn signatures, new timetable adding 2mn signees in less than 24 hours. AFP leave with a deal and move our “In the event of the House The petition, started in late London country forward,” May said on (of Commons) voting down the February by “frustrated Remain- Thursday. meaningful vote, it would not er” Margaret Georgiadou, be- The pound rose on news of be unreasonable to have sub- gan to rapidly gain signatures on rime Minister Theresa the delay but is likely to re- sequent votes to fi nd out what Wednesday evening, following the May huddled with her main volatile amid uncertainty the House actually supported,” prime minister’s appeal to the Brit- Pministers yesterday as she over what path Britain will now junior Brexit minister Kwasi ish people to back her in her stand- plotted a renewed bid to con- take. Kwarteng told MPs. off with MPs from all parties. vince MPs to back her EU di- Parliament has been dead- But the prospect of such votes But Theresa May rejected the vorce deal after securing a delay locked for months over Brexit, — potentially on everything message of the petition, when to Brexit from European leaders with lawmakers unable to de- from stopping Brexit altogether a No 10 spokeswoman said on in Brussels. cide how to implement the 2016 to remaining in a customs union Thursday evening that she wor- The premier faces daunting referendum result, refl ecting with the EU — prompted criti- ried that cancelling Brexit would odds to persuade British law- bitter divisions in the country cism from Brexit hardliners. cause “potentially irreparable makers to support a plan they as a whole. “National humiliation is im- damage to public trust”. have already overwhelmingly Tusk said four options were minent through these ‘indica- “The prime minister has long rejected twice by a new April 12 possible: a deal, a long exten- tive votes’,” said Conservative been clear that failing to deliver deadline agreed with the Euro- sion “if the UK decided to re- MP Steve Baker, who favours on the referendum result would pean Union. think its strategy”, a no-deal leaving without a deal. be a failure of our democracy and If May succeeds, Britain — exit or revoking Article 50 — the Earlier, a range of lawmakers something she couldn’t counte- which was staring at a cliff -edge formal procedure for member had signalled their continuing nance,” the spokeswoman added. deadline of March 29 for leaving states to leave the EU. opposition to May’s plan, while Over the course of Thurs- the EU — will depart on May 22 He said April 12 is now a “key others focused their fury on the day, the parliamentary petitions under the terms of a withdrawal date” — because after that Brit- agreed delay. website collapsed multiple times agreement struck with the EU ain could no longer register Conservative MP Peter Bone under the weight of traffi c to the last year. candidates for the European told the BBC: “If a deal is a bad plea. The error message “Bad But if MPs defeat the accord Parliament elections. deal, it’s a bad deal, and I’m not gateway”, which displayed when again next week Brexit will go “If it has not decided to do going to vote for it.” the website was struggling most, ahead on April 12, unless Lon- so by then, the option of a long Nigel Farage, one of the driv- even trended on Twitter at times don decides to request another extension will automatically ing forces behind the Brexit throughout the day. extension. become impossible,” Tusk said. campaign, said he was “dis- In order to keep the petition site A further extension would The British government de- gusted”. online as much as possible, several require Britain to take part in clined yesterday to set a date Conservative-leaning news- resource-intensive features were elections for the European Par- for a third parliamentary vote papers also reported growing disabled, including a chart track- liament in May despite having on the divorce deal but said it opposition to May remaining ing the petitions with the highest voted three years ago to leave hoped it would happen next in power over her handling of uptake, and the signature count the bloc. week. Brexit. was slowed to update only every “Until April 12, anything is She faces an immediate hur- The reports said the prime 30 minutes – leading some to possible,” EU Council presi- dle in the form of parliamentary minister had lost the support of worry that their signatures were dent Donald Tusk told reporters speaker John Bercow. her chief whip Julian Smith. not being counted. yesterday at the close of the EU He has said the agreement He was reportedly furious at Early yesterday afternoon, more summit in Brussels. being voted on has to be on dif- her statements on Wednesday than 1,000 viewers were logged on German Chancellor Angela ferent terms from the ones MPs castigating MPs he is trying to to livestreams of the website on Merkel said the bloc’s lead- have already rejected. win over to her deal. the video game streaming service ers would need another sum- There was also heightened A poll published yesterday Twitch, letting them watch the mit with May to discuss how to speculation that May is increas- found that around four in 10 count update in real time without proceed if MPs reject the agree- ingly open to a series of so- adults in Britain have been left needing to worry about whether ment again. called “indicative votes” that feeling powerless, angry or or not their visits might contrib- “I will make every eff ort could show what option parlia- worried by Brexit over the past ute to the site’s struggles. Prime Minister Theresa May is seen outside Downing Street in London yesterday. to ensure that we are able to ment prefers. year.

Tate galleries shun Sackler Canal drained Irish parcel ‘identical’ money over opioid crisis to UK letter bombs Reuters Flanagan said the sending of Dublin letter bombs was “totally unac- Guardian News and Media for its alleged role in aggressively would refuse to allow a planned ceptable” and linked it to height- London marketing the drug it launched in retrospective of her work to go ened tensions in the British prov- 1995. It is also accused of playing ahead there, as revealed by the suspicious parcel found at ince of Northern Ireland around down how dangerously addictive Observer last month, if it took the a postal sorting offi ce in Britain’s exit from the European he Tate group of British art the drug was. Sackler money. Goldin has been Athe western Irish county of Union. galleries has announced it Hundreds of thousands of leading protests against Sackler Limerick appears to be identical “It is a dreadful consequence Twill no longer accept any Americans have died of prescrip- donations to cultural institutions to letter bombs sent to buildings of the uncertainties around Brexit gifts off ered by members of the tion painkiller overdoses in the last in the US, including the Metropol- in London and the University of where in the context of the height- Sackler family, who own the US 20 years. itan and Guggenheim museums in Glasgow this month, Irish police ened tensions in Northern Ireland, maker of OxyContin. The pre- Eight members of the Sack- New York. said yesterday. in the island of Ireland that peo- scription painkiller is under fi re ler family are also being sued in This spring, Tate Modern is Police said they were inves- ple have taken it on themselves to amid the opioids public health cri- a number of lawsuits in the US planning to display a copy it owns tigating the parcel identifi ed at send letter bombs,” he was quoted sis in America. that accuse them of fraudulently of her seminal work, a slideshow the sorting offi ce shortly after as telling national broadcaster The decision came two days promoting OxyContin and en- of evocative portrait photographs 0600GMT yesterday and were li- RTE. after it was agreed the National couraging over-prescribing, while and a soundtrack under the title aising with British authorities. Police blew up the parcel sent Portrait Gallery would no longer knowingly misleading doctors The Ballad of Sexual Dependency. The army’s bomb disposal team to the University of Glasgow on accept a £1m gift from the Sack- and patients about the risks of ad- Goldin had not discussed the was on the scene. March 6, and said it was linked lers. Several major arts institutions diction, even when used as pre- show with Tate leaders but told A dissident Irish national- to the three devices sent to major on either side of the Atlantic have scribed. the Guardian she was very happy ist group calling itself the “IRA” transport hubs in London the day long benefi ted from Sackler dona- The Tate said in a statement: that Tate had chosen to decline claimed responsibility for three before. tions; the London gallery was the “The Sackler family has given gen- any future gifts from the Sacklers letter bombs sent to London and a White postal bags holding small fi rst to decline money from the erously to Tate in the past, as they – and that she and fellow activists fourth to Glasgow. bombs were sent to London’s Hea- family. have to a large number of UK arts had planned to organise protests The small group is made up of throw and City airports and Wa- The prestigious Tate group of institutions. We do not intend to to coincide with her show if they militants opposed to Northern terloo, the capital’s busiest train galleries includes Tate Modern and remove references to this historic had not. Ireland’s 1998 peace deal. station, on March 5. Tate Britain in London, Tate St Ives philanthropy. However, in the “We are thrilled,” she said. The police said those claiming The “IRA” is separate and far and Tate Liverpool. present circumstances we do not She said that Tate bought one of responsibility had indicated that smaller than the Provisional Purdue Pharma, based in Con- think it right to seek or accept fur- the 10 copies of The Ballad of Sex- fi ve devices were sent and Irish IRA, which was responsible for necticut and owned by a number ther donations from the Sacklers.” ual Dependency in 2015, when she Justice Minister Charlie Flanagan almost half of the 3,600 deaths of Sackler family members, is be- The National Portrait Gallery was in the throes of a deep addic- A section of the Caledonian canal has been drained to was quoted as saying the postage during 30 years of violence and ing sued in the US by more than had been told by the American art tion to OxyContin, after being pre- replace the lock gates at Fort Augustus, Loch Ness, Scotland. stamp on the Limerick parcel sug- which disbanded after the peace 2,000 city and county authorities photographer Nan Goldin that she scribed the drug for a painful wrist. gested it “could well be the fi fth.” deal. Gulf Times Saturday, March 23, 2019 9 EUROPE Italy bus hijacker wanted kids as human shields for Africa escape

AFP the children as human shields telephones and told the adults to and “die in the Mediterranean”. of Lampedusa with 48 people far-right Interior Minister Mat- Italian woman, allegedly by a Ni- Rome and from there head to Africa by tie them up with electric cable. Alberto Nobili, head of Milan’s aboard had been a tipping point teo Salvini, say Rome could now gerian drug dealer. plane,” Corriere della Sera daily Their 40-minute ordeal ended counter terrorism police, said Sy for him. Quoting three students revoke Sy’s passport. The debate Brenton Tarrant, accused of quoted Ousseynou Sy as telling when police managed to smash had posted a video on YouTube on the bus, Messagero daily re- has become increasingly heated last week’s Christchurch massa- he driver of a school bus investigators. windows open and get those on- with the message: “Africa, rise ported Sy had fi rst attempted a hi- in a country where Salvini’s tough cre in New Zealand, had scrawled who torched the vehicle “I didn’t want to harm any- board out just as Sy set fi re to up.” Media reports quoted him as jack on Monday, two days earlier. anti-immigration stance is popu- Traini’s name on one of his weap- Tto protest Mediterranean body,” insisted the 47-year-old of the vehicle. Sy now faces having saying he had no regrets as “it was “He tried to change the route but a lar with conservatives. ons. migrant deaths planned to use Senegalese origin, who hijacked his Italian citizenship, obtained something I had to do and would teacher intervened and said ‘what In February last year, Italy was Anti-mafi a state prosecu- his young passengers as human the bus Wednesday while tak- through marriage in 2004, re- do again, 100 times. Why did I do are you doing? Stick to the right similarly rocked when far-right tor Cafi ero de Raho warned La shields and escape to Africa, Ital- ing 12-13 year-olds from a gym voked. According to the Corriere it? To send a signal to Africa”. route’.” That day, the trio said, Sy militant Luca Traini fi red on a Stampa daily the time had come ian media yesterday quoted him to school in Crema, east of Milan. della Sera, Sy has told investiga- He reportedly told investi- appeared very nervous, shout- dozen African migrants in the to “tone down” the rhetoric, cit- as saying. Armed with two petrol canisters tors he hates white people for hav- gators that Italy’s impounding ing insults at one child. The gov- central town of Macerata, injuring ing the danger of people further “I wanted to get to the runway and a cigarette lighter, Sy threat- ing “invaded and colonised” Af- Tuesday of migrant rescue ship ernment, in the shape of deputy six. The attack was an apparent feeding on existing extremism at (Milan’s) Linate airport using ened the youngsters, took their rica, forcing Africans to emigrate ‘Mare Jonio’ off the Italian island prime minister, Luigi di Maio, and response to the killing of a young and racial hatred. Erdogan calls on world to fi ght back against

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan delivers a speech during a meeting of the Organisation of Islamic Islamophobia Co-operation in Istanbul, yesterday, to discuss the March 15 deadly attacks on two mosques in Christchurch.

AFP needed to tackle the “affl iction” Istanbul of Islamophobia. They called on countries with Muslim communities and mi- urkish President Recep norities to refrain from state- Tayyip Erdogan yester- ments and actions that associate Tday called on the world to Islam with “terror, extremism fi ght back against Islamophobia and threats.” in the same way it responded to In his hate-fi lled “manifesto” anti-Semitism after the Holo- before the mass killing, the ac- caust, following the deadly cused killer suggested neo- attacks on two New Zealand Nazi ideology and immigration mosques. prompted his action and men- The Turkish leader has pre- tioned other right-wing ex- sented the mosque attacks, by a tremists. self-avowed white supremacist He also referenced Turkey, who killed 50 people, as part of and Istanbul’s landmark Hagia a wider assault on Islam and has Sophia, that was once a church demanded the West do more before becoming a mosque dur- New Zealand’s Minister for Ethnic Communities Jenny Salesa looks on against anti-Muslim sentiment. ing the Ottoman empire and is as she attends an emergency meeting of the Organisation of Islamic “Just as humanity fought now a museum. Co-operation in Istanbul yesterday. against anti-Semitism after the New Zealand’s government Holocaust disaster, it should yesterday reassured Muslims prosecution of the attacker. Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu fi ght against rising Islamopho- living in the country they would “This person will face the full praised New Zealand authori- bia in the same determined fash- be “safe and secure” despite the force of New Zealand law and ties and their “sincere solidarity ion,” Erdogan told an emergency deadly attacks in Christchurch. spend the rest of his life in isola- messages”. The Muslim call to meeting of ministers from the “Ensuring Muslim communities tion in a New Zealand prison,” he prayer rang out across New Zea- Organisation of Islamic Co-op- in New Zealand feel safe and se- said. Erdogan, campaigning for land yesterday followed by two eration in Istanbul. “Right now New Zealand’s Foreign Minister Winston Peters reacts as he attends an emergency meeting of the cure is a particular focus,” New local elections this month, had minutes of silence nationwide we are facing Islamophobia and Organisation of Islamic Co-operation in Istanbul yesterday. Zealand Foreign Minister Win- angered New Zealand’s govern- to mark a week since the attack. Muslim hatred,” he said. ston Peters told the OIC meet- ment by repeatedly showing the Thousands of people — includ- In the March 15 attack in tims aged between three and 77 ing and spread a manifesto on OIC, which groups Muslim ing. video made by the alleged gun- ing Prime Minister Jacinda Ar- Christchurch, alleged gunman years old – in a massacre that social media claiming it was a countries, said in a statement Peters said New Zealand au- man, an Australian who was ar- dern — stood silently in a park Brenton Tarrant killed 50 men, sparked global revulsion. He strike against Muslim “invad- that “genuine, comprehensive thorities would make sure “no rested after the massacre. opposite the mosque where the women and children – the vic- livestreamed much of the kill- ers”. Representatives from the and systematic measures” were stone stays unturned” in the Yesterday, Turkey’s Foreign killing began.

Terror suspect confesses to Utrecht attack Russia jails ‘disabled’ Ukrainian

AFP people injured and triggered a that Tanis would be charged with ice said. “An in-depth investi- for six years on terror charges The Hague huge eight-hour manhunt until “multiple murders with terrorist gation has been carried out into he was fi nally captured. aims, as well as attempted mur- whether the man was involved in “The 37-year-old suspect con- der and a terrorist threat.” He ap- the shooting incident or helped in AFP in terrorism”. Gryb disappeared “disabled” Ukrainian, saying Turkish-born suspect fessed this morning to the exam- peared before a magistrate behind any way. No evidence was found Moscow in August 2017 in ex-Soviet Be- Russia detained him “without has confessed to terrorist ining magistrate the criminal of- closed doors and was expected to and the man is therefore no longer larus where he went to meet a any clear charges”. Acharges over a shooting on fences against him. He also stated be remanded in custody for a fur- a suspect,” it said. young Russian woman he had Yesterday, the EU said in a a tram in the Dutch city of Utrecht that he acted alone,” the Dutch ther two weeks. Police had mean- Two other men were arrested ussia yesterday convicted corresponded with on social statement it expected Gryb “to which killed three people, pros- prosecution service said in a while released a 40-year-old man and released earlier in the week a “disabled” Ukrainian media, his family says. He later be immediately released and ecutors said yesterday. Gokmen statement. “Because of the inves- who was arrested on Tuesday after police sniff er dogs followed Rman on terrorism charges resurfaced in a Russian pre-trial granted access to the special Tanis, 37, said he acted alone in tigation nothing else can be said.” because Tanis had been found in a trail from Tanis’s getaway car to and sentenced him to six years detention centre. Russian pros- medical treatment he needs.” Monday’s attack which left seven Prosecutors said on Thursday his home, the prosecution serv- their house. in prison, prompting the Euro- ecutors claim that Gryb sought His father said Pavlo suf- pean Union to call for his imme- to convince the woman to blow fers from portal hypertension, diate release. up an explosive device in Rus- which causes cirrhosis of the Pavlo Gryb, 20, who suf- sia’s Black Sea resort of Sochi. liver, and urgently needs medi- fers from cirrhosis of the liver Gryb — who has criticised cal treatment. Nato military drill and partial vision loss, urgently Russian authorities for the an- “Given Pavlo’s deadly dis- needs surgery and may die in a nexation of Crimea on social ease, it’s a death sentence,” Igor Russian prison, his family says. media — denies the charges. Gryb told AFP, referring to the The EU has described him as Kiev says the Russian authori- conviction. “He requires urgent disabled. ties have abducted the young surgery or he will die.” His fa- A spokeswoman for a military man, denied him medical treat- ther added that his son had not court in the southern Russian ment, and convicted him on received proper medical treat- city of Rostov-on-Don, Alyona “fabricated charges.” ment during his trial despite Katkalo, told AFP Gryb had The European Union has having a fever during the hear- been convicted of “complicity called on Moscow to free the ings.

‘Yellow vest’ protest ban on Champs-Elysees today

Paris police said yesterday that in other major cities, including immediately dispersed,” police “yellow vest” protests would be Toulouse, in southwestern France, warned. Last Saturday, police ap- banned on the Champs-Elysees where off icials said the main city peared to hang back as hundreds today, a week after hundreds of square will be out of bounds for of violent protesters rampaged anti-government demonstrators demonstrators. Protests will also along the Champs-Elysees, burn- rioted and looted shops on the be outlawed in much of the south- ing and looting more than 100 iconic Paris avenue. Protesters ern city of Nice, where Chinese businesses in unrest that cost the will also be stopped from enter- President Xi Jinping will meet his Paris police chief his job. ing streets surrounding the Arc French counterpart Emmanuel Addressing the new Paris police de Triomphe, at the top of the Macron on Sunday. The Paris chief Didier Lallement on Thurs- avenue, as well as several nearby prefect’s off ice said anyone defy- day, Interior Minister Christophe areas, including the presidential ing the bans would face fines, part Castaner demanded a “zero Elysee Palace and the National of tough new measures vowed tolerance” approach towards Assembly, the Paris prefect’s off ice by the government to prevent violent demonstrators. “Black said. “There are serious reasons another flare-up of violence. blocs belong in prison, not on the A gunner on a camouflaged tracked carrier shoots his machine gun during the Northern Wind Swedish army exercise in the to believe that violence and dam- In other areas of Paris, “the right Champs-Elysees,” he said, refer- north-eastern part of Sweden, near Kalix, yesterday. A total of 10,000 personnel from Sweden, Finland, Norway, UK and the USA ages are likely during the sched- to demonstrate, which is a funda- ring to the black-clad anarchists participated in the Nato exercise. uled demonstrations,” the off ice mental freedom, will be allowed”, that overran the Champs-Elysees said. Similar bans were planned but “any riotous groups will be on Saturday. Gulf Times 10 Saturday, March 23, 2019 INDIA

POLITICS COMMENT CRIME PEOPLE DECISION Former cricketer Congress and BJP are Five held with hashish oil Child rescued from Ola cabs banned in Gambhir joins BJP one and the same: Vijayan worth Rs130mn in Kerala borewell after two days Bengaluru for six months

Former cricketer Gautam Gambhir joined The Congress and the BJP are one and the Kerala Excise off icials yesterday seized hashish After a 48-hour-long rescue operation, a one- The Karnataka transport department yesterday Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ruling party same and follow the same policies, Kerala Chief oil worth Rs130mn and have taken into custody and-a-half-year-old boy, who fell into a 70-foot suspended the licence of online cab aggregator yesterday, leaving a panel to decide whether Minister Pinarayi Vijayan claimed in Kannur five men from Thiruvananthapuram, a top narrow borewell in Haryana’s Hisar district, was Ola for six months in Bengaluru for running its to field him as a candidate in the upcoming yesterday. Vijayan made the comment while off icial said. Excise off icials acted following a rescued yesterday, off icials said. The child is bike taxis while possessing a licence for only general election. With 9mn followers on speaking on the 42nd death anniversary of tip-off and took into custody five carriers and safe and kept under observation. His condition four-wheelers, an off icial statement said. The Twitter, Gambhir could give the Bharatiya legendary Communist leader A K Gopalan, who the vehicle in which the rich haul of hashish is stable, an off icial supervising the rescue order from the transport department, issued to Janata Party (BJP) some extra pulling-power was the first opposition leader in the Lok Sabha. was concealed. The seizure was eff ected near a operation said. The rescue team had to dig a Ola operator ANI Technologies yesterday stated in the campaign for an election which will “People voted for the BJP-led NDA government school in the state capital. Excise commissioner parallel well to create a passage to reach the that its licence in Bengaluru was cancelled for six run from April 11 till May 23. “I am joining this in 2014 after being fed up with the UPA II Rishiraj Singh said that four of the arrested child, off icials said. The rescuers comprised the months for violation of conditions under which party influenced by our prime minister, his government. But what transpired in the past five belong to Kerala, while one person is from National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), the permission was granted. The ban order was vision,” Gambhir, 37, told reporters after being years has been a nightmare for the people. The Andhra Pradesh. Enforcement off icials in the army and the district administration personnel. issued for violating the Karnataka On-Demand inducted into the party by Finance Minister BJP and the Congress have the same policies,” state are on high alert as they feel that the They provided oxygen and food items in the Transportation Technology Aggregators Arun Jaitley. Jaitley said the party’s election the CPI-M leader said. The chief minister said supply of contraband drugs into the state is borehole. Also, a night-vision camera was Rules, 2016. The Transport Department had committee would decide if Gambhir will be there cannot be a more shameless party than the likely to increase with the elections scheduled planted to keep watch over the child. The hole impounded several of Ola’s bike taxis over the nominated as a candidate. Congress and that was true for its leaders too. for next month. had been dug to install a tubewell. last few months, the order said.

Two die in train blaze Congress struggles to ‘Yeddy papers’ make allies giving Modi an edge of doubtful

Reuters New Delhi nature, claims he Congress party is strug- gling to forge an opposition Talliance to fi ght a looming election having been rebuff ed in the biggest state, Uttar Pradesh, regional party offi cials say, im- tax department proving Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s chances of a second term. IANS directorate of Karnataka and Goa. dairy and that the loose sheets in Voting begins on April 11 and New Delhi A large amount of incriminating question were not in his hand- will be spread over several phases material against Shivakumar and writing. Yeddyurappa also denied until May 19 to cover the country his company was found. his handwriting and signatures on involving more than 900mn vot- he Central Board of Direct “During the search, some loose the loose sheets,” the CBDT state- ers, and the count will be made on Taxes (CBDT) said that the papers were given to the raid- ment said. May 23. Tdiary pages from what has ing party. This was a copy of the Also, as the handwriting did Congress chief Rahul Gandhi come to be known as the ‘Yeddy Karnataka Legislative Assembly, not belong to him, the former has been seeking an grand alli- diaries’ – because of the alleged Legislator’s Diary pages of 2009 chief minister told offi cials that ance with smaller regional par- link with former Karnataka chief with details of entries against he could not have any knowledge ties for months to prevent a split minister B S Yeddyurappa – and some individuals. The original of about the contents of the loose that would make it easier for Mo- the loose papers given to the team these documents was never giv- sheets. di’s Hindu nationalist Bharatiya that raided Congress leader D K en,” a CBDT statement said. Yeddyurappa further stated Janata Party (BJP) to come out on Shivakumar’s premises in 2017 The statement made no refer- that the contents of the loose top. could not pass the forensic test as ence to the amounts allegedly sheets were false and fabricated Offi cials in regional parties and they were “not original”. paid to the politicians that were and his name was being used to analysts said Gandhi’s strategy The CBDT’s statement came highlighted in The Caravan re- malign his political career, the has been undermined by Con- after a media report titled ‘The port. CBDT statement said. gress leaders’ unwillingness to Yeddy Diaries’ published by news On being asked as to how he The CBDT said that on April 18, compromise or play second fi ddle magazine The Caravan alleged came into possession of the said 2018, an enquiry was made to the to regional politicians, some of that Yeddyurappa paid Rs18bn to loose sheets, the statement said: director, Central Forensic Science whom have vaulting ambitions. some top BJP leaders – including “Shivakumar stated that, being a Laboratory (CFSL), directorate of Mayawati, the powerful leader veterans L K Advani, Murli Mano- politician, he procures informa- forensics science services, min- of a party championing the cause har Joshi, Rajnath Singh, Arun tion about other parties, lead- istry of home aff airs, government of the lowest in the Hindu caste Jaitley and Nitin Gadkari. ers and members and as the said of India, Amberpet Post, Raman- hierarchy in the battleground The rebuttal, which comprised loose sheets contained political thapur, Hyderabad, Telangana to state of Uttar Pradesh, said ear- statements made by Shivakumar information he could not disclose have the signatures verifi ed. lier this week that she won’t tie and Yeddyurappa on documents the source of information. “In response, CFSL, Hyderabad up with Congress. seized from the Congress leader “Further, he also stated that he replied on April 24, 2018, that the Her Bahujan Samaj Party, during IT searches, was extraor- keeps getting such information examination of handwriting and which possesses a large vote bank dinary for its length and the de- from the general public.” signatures had been carried out in in the state, has struck a deal to tails it contained. Shivakumar added he did not the said laboratory and the origi- put up joint candidates with an- Shivakumar had told the inves- know the time period in which the nals of the disputed documents other regional party representing tigators that this was a copy of a said transactions had taken place needed to be sent. No originals Muslims as well as other lower diary, written by Yeddyurappa, and that he did not have the origi- were given by D K Shivakumar. Hindu castes, she said in a tweet, and payments were made on be- nals of the said loose sheets. “It is clear that for a forensic predicting her alliance would win half of the leader (Yeddyurappa) In response to the question analysis of the disputed writings a majority of the parliamentary to legislators, and received from on why the said matter was not to establish its evidentiary value, seats in Uttar Pradesh. various leaders, MLAs, ministers brought to the notice of the ACB originals of the same are required. “BSP once again wants to make when they were in power. (anti-corruption branch) or All eff orts have been made by the it very clear that in Uttar Pradesh Shivakumar further said, in his Lokayukta of Karnataka, Shivaku- income tax offi ce concerned to and in the country as a whole we statement to the income-tax au- mar told the income-tax authori- procure the originals of the disput- are not in any form of alliance thorities, that the handwriting on ties that as “he did not know about ed writings. However, the details or agreement with Congress,” the loose sheets could be of Yed- the genuineness of the docu- about the place and custody of the Mayawati said. dyurappa. ments” he did not inform the same original writings and, if the original A BSP offi cial said that Con- The department said a search to the enforcement agencies. writings exist, are not available. gress had wanted to run in far too action under Section 132 of the “Yeddyurappa was confront- “The same loose sheets prima many seats rather than give way Bystanders and railway off icials stand near the burnt out rail coaches of an express train next to Income-tax Act, 1961 had been ed with the seized material and facie appear to be of a doubtful to regional parties even though Chattarhat railway station, some 30km from Siliguri yesterday, A fire on the train left two people carried out on Shivakumar and a statements of Shivakumar on nature and were given by the per- its victory was not assured in dead, according to local reports. group of cases on August 2, 2017, November 25, 2017. He stated he son who was being raided for tax those seats. by the Income Tax investigation was not in the habit of writing a violations,” said the statement. Seven militants killed Trio rescued from under building rubble in Kashmir crackdown AFP trapped for more than 62 hours. New Delhi The man had no visible inju- Reuters 22 militants have been killed in mir state’s summer capital, after ries and was hugged by the res- Srinagar Kashmir. separatists called for protests cue team before he walked away Three of the gun battles, one in against the death in custody of a mergency workers yester- from the debris and was taken to north Kashmir’s Baramulla dis- man who was detained by police day rescued three people a nearby hospital. ecurity forces yesterday trict bordering Pakistan, started for suspected links with mili- Etrapped under the rubble As many as 54 people have killed seven militants who on Thursday. tants. of a collapsed building for three been rescued alive by the team Sthey said belonged to Pa- In one of the clashes, police Rizwan Asad Pandit, a chem- days, offi cials said as the death of around 400 who have been kistan-based groups during four said two Lashkar militants killed istry graduate who taught at a toll rose to 17. scouring through tonnes of con- gunbattles in Kashmir — the a 12-year-old boy they had taken private school, according to his Emergency workers were crete and steel. highest number of clashes in a hostage before being gunned family, had been arrested as part searching for eight more people “Those rescued have been single day in recent years. down themselves. of a “terror case investigation”. after the fi ve-storey building in shifted to the hospital and fi ve Police said the militants be- “Despite repeated requests by Police said he had been trying southern Karnataka state caved persons have been arrested in the longed to the Lashkar-e-Taiba community members and police to escape and inquiries were be- in on Tuesday, offi cials said. matter,” emergency offi cial Sri- and Jaish-e-Mohamed (JeM). for his release, he was brutally ing carried out into the cause of A video shared by M N Reddi, kant said. The JeM claimed a suicide at- killed by the terrorists,” a police his death. Karnataka’s emergency services Police have charged the owner tack last month that killed 40 statement said His brother, Zulkarnain Asad chief, showed a man and his wife of the construction company — paramilitary troopers in Kashmir A police spokesman said the Pandit, rejected the police claims being pulled out of the rubble af- one of the fi ve arrested — with and brought the two nations to militants were from Pakistan and and said he had been tortured ter remaining trapped for about manslaughter. the brink of their fourth war. had been active in the region, at- in custody. The family claimed 70 hours. Heavy earth-movers and res- India has since stepped up an tacking troops and harassing ci- Rizwan’s bones and even his While the woman was carried cuers with specialised equip- off ensive against separatist mili- vilians. spine was broken and that his out on a stretcher, a rescue work- ment and sniff er dogs were tants in the mountainous region Entire neighbourhoods in body bore cuts and clear signs of er lifted her husband on his back deployed in the increasingly des- that both countries claim in full Kashmir often march towards torture. up the ladder out of the debris perate operation. but rule in part. sites of gun battles between Authorities yesterday also amid claps and cheers. The victims were mostly from Pakistan denies giving mate- rebels and government forces, banned another separatist or- “Two more survivors — Dilip northern states who had come rial support to militants in Kash- attempting to rescue militants. ganisation in Kashmir, the and his wife Sangeetha, rescued to the region for work. Build- mir but says it provides moral Scores of civilians have died Jammu and Kashmir Liberation by our Fire Force rescuers just ing collapses are frequent in the and diplomatic backing for the during such clashes Front. now! This takes the total rescued country. self-determination of Kashmiri Authorities yesterday imposed Its chairman Yasin Malik was A young Kashmiri villager stands near the remains of a house so far to 59. Kudos to the Rescue Many fi rms use cheap mate- people. restrictions on the movement jailed this month under a law that destroyed during a gun battle between militants and team!,” Reddi said in a tweet. rials and bribe offi cials to evade Since the attack on Febru- of people and vehicles in parts allows for suspects to be held for government forces in Hajin area, in Bandipora district Another man was rescued ear- regulations, while on-site safety ary 14, Indian authorities say of Srinagar, Jammu and Kash- up to two years without charge. of Kashmir yesterday. ly yesterday morning after being is lax. Gulf Times Saturday, March 23, 2019 11 LATIN AMERICA

TRAGEDY VERDICT LEGAL PEOPLE WILDLIFE Nine killed in explosion Venezuela judge accused Court clears extradition Kirchner facing more Scientists tag sharks amid protest in Colombia of graft sentenced to jail request for Funes corruption charges in Galapagos Islands

At least nine people were killed and four injured A Venezuelan court has issued a five-year jail El Salvador’s Supreme Court has approved a Argentina’s former president Cristina Kirchner Scientists in the Galapagos Islands have in an unexplained explosion in an indigenous sentence to a judge who was arrested in 2009 request by the country’s attorney general that has been charged with a new corruption case, attached tracers to five blue sharks for the first area in Colombia’s mountainous southwest, local after then-president Hugo Chavez demanded former president Mauricio Funes be extradited this time related to irregularities in the concession time as part of a project to study their migratory authorities said. The incident came on the 10th she be imprisoned, a case often cited by critics home from Nicaragua to face corruption of subsidies for train and bus operators. The patterns, Ecuador’s government said. One day of a blockade of the area’s major highway. as evidence of the country’s curtailed judicial charges. Funes, who governed El Salvador from 66-year-old senator was already facing numerous female and four males were tagged in a marine Hundreds of members of indigenous groups independence. Judge Maria Afiuni was jailed 2009 and 2014, is accused of embezzlement allegations before she was indicted on Monday for reserve during a six-day expedition to the have halted traff ic on the roadway, demanding without a warrant shortly after Chavez criticised and money laundering involving $351mn. The the fraudulent import of liquid gas. Judge Claudio islands of Isabela and Floreana, the environment land titles and funding for social programmes. one of her rulings and demanded she be given 30 court said in a statement that 15 magistrates Bonadio asked that Kirchner be remanded in ministry said. Conservationists do not fully One policeman has been killed during the years in prison. She later said she was raped while unanimously approved the extradition request. pre-trial custody with bail of one billion pesos understand if blue shark migration is a seasonal protest, which has caused shortages of gasoline in jail and refused health treatment by authorities. Funes, 59, said the extradition would violate ($25mn). But the centre-left politician, who was phenomenon, said Alex Hearn, a marine and foodstuff s in some cities. Several vehicles Her lawyer, Juan Carlos Goitia, said she had been his right to defence and that Nicaragua could president from 2007 to 2015, is protected from biologist with the Galapagos Science Center have also been burned. The explosion took place convicted of corruption, according to a sentence choose to deny it. He has lived since 2016 in the incarceration by partial parliamentary immunity. who was part of the team that tagged the in a house in Dagua municipality, an area largely read to him by the judge presiding over the case, neighbouring country, where he has political She is in Cuba, where her daughter Florencia is sharks. Blue sharks, which are not a threatened inhabited by indigenous groups. adding he had not received a copy of the sentence. asylum that would protect him from extradition. receiving hospital treatment. species, can have as many as 100 babies a year. Charles heads Venezuela crisis to Cuba amid US tensions

AFP President Miguel Diaz-Canel Havana will host a dinner for the royal couple in Havana during the vis- it, but there are no offi cial plans rince Charles and his wife to meet his predecessor, Raul Camilla will make the fi rst Castro, who still heads the Cu- Proyal visit to communist- ban Communist Party. run Cuba tomorrow at a time The prince is unlikely to raise when ally Washington is seeking the issue of human rights or to ramp up sanctions against the Cuba’s support for Venezuela’s island. embattled regime of President The 70-year-old prince was Nicolas Maduro. asked by the British government “I doubt it would be appropri- to add Cuba to a long-planned ate for him to make any public tour of Caribbean nations as statement of that nature because Brexit spurs it to seek alternative he is not a political fi gure in that trading partners to the European sense,” said Bennett. Union. Relations between Cuba and “Royal visits are used as part of Britain “go back a long way” diplomacy in the British system. said Webster Hare, recalling They’re a useful way of sending that Britain occupied Havana People cross from Cucuta in Colombia back to San Antonio del Tachira in Venezuela after buying goods to resell, through an improvised bridge on a “trocha”, an illegal messages, of making contacts in 1762 before trading the ter- trail on the border between the two countries near the Simon Bolivar international bridge. Venezuela is in the grip of a humanitarian crisis due to shortages of food and and moving to next stages in ritory to Spain in exchange for medicine exacerbated by hyperinflation. diplomatic negotiations,” said Florida. former British ambassador Paul The visit “is symbolically im- Webster Hare. portant because a member of the royal family has not visited “Royal visits are used as Cuba since the 1959 revolution,” part of diplomacy in the he said. British system. They’re “The last visit before that was a useful way of sending the Duke of Windsor on a private messages, of making visit in the mid-1950s.” contacts and moving to He cited Winston Churchill’s next stages in diplomatic love of Cuban cigars and his sev- Guaido aide was leading negotiations” eral visits to the island, which these days sports a bar in Havana The visit comes as US Presi- called the Yellow Submarine and dent Donald Trump threatens to a statue of John Lennon. tighten sanctions against Cuba, Diaz-Canel is a reputed branding Havana part of a “troi- Beatles fan. But Britain, in the ka of tyranny” along with leftist throes of Brexit and the rush to terrorist cell, claims govt Latin American allies Venezuela fi nd alternative trading partners and Nicaragua. to the European Union, is also Guardian News and Media “We would like to inform the “criminal organisation” and pro-government newspaper ro’s detention as a craven attack The White House is threaten- seeking to strengthen economic Caracas the national and international claimed a cache of “weapons Ultimas Noticias. on Maduro’s foes. ing to activate the long-dormant ties with Havana. communities that our intelli- of war” had been apprehended Marrero’s detention was “This is the start of a new Helms-Burton Act which ex- “They also see Miguel Diaz- gence services have dismantled with him. splashed on the front pages of onslaught of persecution,” tended the 1962 US embargo to Canel as somebody positive and he face-off between … a terrorist cell that was plan- As he was taken into custody state-controlled tabloids in said Juan Pablo Guanipa, a key apply to foreign companies trad- welcome language about open- Nicolas Maduro and his ning to carry out a series of tar- by masked agents on Wednes- Venezuela yesterday morning Guaido ally in Maracaibo, Ven- ing with Cuba. ing up the country to foreign in- TUS-backed challeng- geted attacks,” Reverol said in a day, Marrero told neighbours in an apparent bid to discredit ezuela’s second largest city. Charles’s Clarence House vestment,” said Bennett. er Juan Guaido has escalated broadcast on state channel Ven- two rifl es and a hand grenade Guaido’s movement to topple Writing in the Miami Herald, headquarters said the trip to the Britain sees opportunities in dramatically after Venezue- ezolana de Television. had been planted at his home in Maduro, which began in Janu- the US vice-president, Mike socialist island had been organ- Cuba’s booming tourism sector lan intelligence agents seized Reverol claimed the supposed the capital, Caracas. ary when the young opposition Pence, said Marrero’s “kidnap- ised at the behest of the British as well as energy. Guaido’s chief of staff and ac- cell “had hired Colombian and Speaking during a visit to the declared himself the country’s ping” was “the most recent ex- government, aimed at boosting Around 200,000 British holi- cused him of leading a “terrorist Central American mercenaries northern state of Aragua, Ma- rightful interim leader. ample of Maduro’s brutality and “growing bilateral relations” and daymakers come to the island cell” plotting a wave of political to kill political leaders, military duro claimed the alleged cell “Guaido’s right hand planned despotism”. “cultural links”. each year. assassinations. offi cials, Supreme Court judges “had a number of objectives: terrorist acts,” read the headline “We will not tolerate Marre- “It’s positive in terms of dem- A keen environmentalist, The charges – which oppo- and carry out acts of sabotage barracks, hospitals, under- of the Diario VEA newspaper. ro’s imprisonment or the intimi- onstrating the UK’s wish to have Charles will visit a solar power sition leaders rejected as a ploy against public services to gener- ground stations”. Opposition leaders and west- dation of the legitimate govern- closer relations with Cuba, that we station fi nanced with British to attack and intimidate their ate cause in Venezuelan society”. “Let it be clear, the govern- ern governments – most of ment of Venezuela. And those have an independent policy to that funds, which will go online in movement – were announced He alleged Guaido’s aide – ment will not hesitate to im- which recognise Guaido as Ven- responsible will be held ac- of the US,” according to Caribbean December and become the larg- by Maduro’s Interior Minister, the 49-year-old lawyer Roberto prison terrorist groups,” Ma- ezuela’s legitimate caretaker countable. Maduro must release Council head Chris Bennett. est in the Caribbean. Nestor Reverol. Marrero – was a key leader of duro added, according to the president – denounced Marre- Marrero now,” Pence wrote.

Prosur summit Nicaragua talks resume Mexico top bank to after prisoner release deal focus on price stability Reuters government has appointed two Acapulco members to the bank’s fi ve- AFP by the Inter-American Commis- as little as possible in the nego- person board, sparking con- Managua sion on Human Rights, 647 peo- tiations, and I believe there will cern it could seek to reshape ple being held as a result of the be a need for ongoing monitor- he head of Mexico’s policy. anti-government protests that ing and pressure to ensure that central bank said mon- One of the new members, icaragua’s government began in April last year. all detainees are released within Tetary policy is best suit- economist Gerardo Esquivel, and opposition delega- The government says it is the next 90 days,” Geoff Thale of ed to targeting price stability, has previously raised the ques- Ntions resumed stalled holding 350 detainees while a the Washington Offi ce for Latin not growth and employment, tion of whether the Banco de peace talks aimed at ending a committee of relatives maintains America (WOLA), said. underlining the bank’s core Mexico should adopt a dual deadly 11-month political crisis. 807 people are being held. Meanwhile, the IACHR put mandate in the face of a gov- mandate to promote growth The resumption follows an The International Committee Nicaragua on its human rights ernment eager to explore new as well as low infl ation, and agreement on Wednesday by the of the Red Cross is due to moni- blacklist along with Venezuela approaches. argued for more diverse board government of President Daniel tor the release process. and Cuba. Banco de Mexico governor views. Ortega to release all opposition The two parties have agreed In its annual report, citing Alejandro Diaz de Leon told a Speaking in the Pacifi c prisoners within 90 days. on a six-point negotiation proc- a group of experts’ conclusion conference that upholding the beach resort of Acapulco, gov- “It’s a big step forward,” said ess to accompany the releases in December, the IACHR said central bank’s independence ernor Diaz de Leon said that Max Jerez, a student representa- and have asked for international authorities committed crimes was crucial for the country’s at the end of the 20th century, tive on the opposition delega- support in implementing the against humanity during the bru- economic health, and force- many nations that lacked a tion. agreements reached, accord- tal crackdown on the protests. fully argued in favour of keep- “suitable framework” for their The agreement includes a call ing to a statement issued by the The IACHR “has watched ing infl ation as its key focus. central banks attempted to use on sanctions against Ortega’s re- presidency. closely as Nicaragua’s human President Andres Manuel monetary policy to “directly gime to be lifted. The 90-day release period has rights situation continued to Lopez Obrador, a leftist, as- promote growth”. This, Diaz On Monday, the opposition been greeted with suspicion by worsen, particularly since the sumed offi ce in December de Leon argued, had caused alliance suspended talks that relatives and local human rights start of violence from April 18, after a landslide election vic- economic setbacks and fanned had begun on February 27 after organisations. 2018, as part of state repression tory, pledging to overhaul the infl ation. 100 protesters were temporarily Vilma Nunez, head of the of protests,” it said a statement. economy from the bottom up. “Both historical experience detained on Saturday by police Nicaraguan Centre for Human Also in the report by the in- His Finance Minister Carlos and empirical evidence show who used tear gas to prevent a Rights, said she feared the pris- dependent body of the Or- Urzua said during the election irrefutably that monetary pol- protest against Ortega’s govern- oners would be treated as “hos- ganisation of American States, Chile’s President Sebastian Pinera and Brazil’s President campaign that the Lopez Ob- icy infl uences the long-term ment. tages, released one by one as the Venezuela and Cuba again were Jair Bolsonaro greet each other while attending the Prosur rador team wanted new faces infl ation trajectory, while it is The number of prisoners due agenda items are discussed.” described as countries that did summit of South American leaders, in Santiago, Chile, on the central bank board to clearly ineff ective at infl uenc- to be released was not given. “The government has repeat- not meet respect for human yesterday. bring fresh perspectives. ing growth and employment in According to a list compiled edly shown that its goal is to do rights. Since taking power, the new the long term,” he said. Gulf Times 12 Saturday, March 23, 2019 PAKISTAN

MoUs We need to fi nd ways to fi ght signed in 5 sectors

Internews Islamophobia: Malaysia PM Islamabad

Internews so we are familiar with them inance Minister Asad Islamabad so the traders fi nd it comfort- Umar yesterday said Ma- able to do business in the two Flaysia has agreed to import countries.” halal meat and rice from alaysian Prime Minis- The Malaysian premier re- akistan. ter Mahathir Mohamad gretted that there is not a sin- Umar’s statement came Myesterday said Pakistan gle Muslim country that can Pfollowing delegation-level and Malaysia understand the issue be considered as developed. talks between Pakistan and Ma- of combating Islamophobia. “Malaysia planned to become laysia led by the Prime Minister Addressing a press confer- developed by 2030 but unfor- Imran Khan and Prime Minister ence with Prime Minister Imran tunately due to changes in the Mahathir Mohamad. Khan in Islamabad, the Malay- government it became an im- The talks encompassed di- sian premier said, “There is fear, possible target to achieve,” he verse areas which included co- enmity towards Muslims and the stated. operation in trade, automobiles, example of that is Christchurch He further said, “I think we agriculture, tourism and food [attacks].” can exchange information on processing particularly halal “We need to fi nd other ways how to combat corruption in meat. of combating Islamophobia and our countries. I am honoured to According to the fi nance I think Pakistan and Malaysia be attending Pakistan Day,” he minister, Pakistan and Malay- understand this issue. Fighting added. sia signed memoranda of un- back doesn’t always mean kill- Also addressing the press derstanding in fi ve sectors and ing each other. There are other conference, Prime Minister Im- agreed to open branches of local things we can do to reduce this ran Khan said, “Islamophobia banks in their respective coun- atmosphere of fear, anger to- was deliberately stirred across tries. wards Muslims,” Mahathir the world. The Christchurch Malaysia also showed interest Mohamad asserted. attacks were also the result of in purchasing JF-17 jets. Regarding his talks with the Islamophobia.” Earlier, Prime Minister Imran premier, Mahathir Mohamad “We will have to change the Khan and his Malaysian coun- said, “We are giving impor- world’s perception regarding terpart Mahathir Mohamad held tance to trade with Pakistan Muslims. Terrorism badly af- a one-on-one meeting at the and had bilateral discussions fected Muslim countries,” he PM House. on issues aff ecting the region added. The two leaders emphasised and the world. If we increase Khan appreciated the Malay- on taking eff ective measures to our trade with each other, we sian premier for taking a stand cement relations at the people- will benefi t. Today, everyone for Muslims in the aftermath of to-people level, besides encour- is focused on growing their the New Zealand terror attacks aging their businessmen to ini- economy and it is necessary in which at least 50 Muslims, tiate joint ventures. that we have some wealth of including nine Pakistanis, were Malaysia Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad and Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan stand during the national anthem at a ceremony in Islamabad. Prime Minister Imran Khan our own in order to function as killed. “ said Pakistan and Malaysia en- nations.” “We also admire you for the premier told his Malaysian spent on human beings and on discussed bilateral relations,” he honour as he arrived at the Prime joyed brotherly relationship and Stating that trade between your stand against corruption. counterpart. human development,” he added. added. Minister House. stood by each other in diffi cult Pakistan and Malaysia will in- Your comeback was one of the “Corruption is a big hurdle in “Pakistan is facing economic “Mahathir Mohamad’s visit to The Malaysian premier is vis- times. crease, Mahathir Mohamad said, most remarkable comebacks the path of human development. challenges right now and other Pakistan is an honour for us,” the iting Pakistan at the invitation He termed Mahathir Moha- “We need to identify what you and Pakistan has always looked Corruption can make any coun- countries, including Japan, are premier further said. of Prime Minister Imran Khan. mad an inspirational person- can sell to us and what we can upon the Malaysian prime try poor and weak. Corruption models for us. I spoke to Ma- Earlier, the Malaysian premier, Prime Minister Mohamad will ality whose vision made Ma- sell to you. We need to know the minister as a Muslim states- is what destroys institutions and hathir Mohamad regarding how who is on a three-day visit to Pa- be the guest of honour at the laysia a developed and modern rules and laws of our countries man who changed his country,” takes away money that should be Malaysia moved forward and we kistan, was presented a guard of Pakistan Day Parade today. country. Prominent Trump foresees meeting with Pakistan leaders

Internews ing with Pakistan [leadership]. I a re-escalation in tensions”. of stock-up ammunition, the minister-level strategic dia- Islamabad think our relationship right now The briefi ng followed media reports added. logue in Beijing earlier this week, cleric survives is very good with Pakistan,” he reports that both India and Pa- The reports noted that Paki- Chinese Foreign Minister Wang said. kistan had deployed additional stan has responded by deploy- Yi said: “No matter how things S President Donald Trump made these comments forces on the Line of Control ing its fi ghter jets close to the change in the world and in the Trump hopes to meet hours after a senior administra- (LoC) and had also put their air disputed border in Kashmir and region, China will fi rmly support UPakistani leaders soon as tion offi cial warned at a news forces on high alert. has scattered its aircraft across Pakistan in upholding its sover- attack; two he acknowledges that relations briefi ng in Washington that the Several news outlets claimed the country. The PAF was also eign independence and territo- between the two countries are United States remained con- that India had not only deployed conducting night fl ights and rial integrity and dignity.” “now very good”. cerned about India-Pakistan missiles along the LoC but the other exercises and had put its At the Washington briefi ng, President Trump made this tensions as their militaries were Indian Air Force (IAF) has also air defence network on alert, the the senior administration offi cial surprise announcement at the still on alert nearly three weeks asked its government to “ur- reports added. acknowledged China’s role in re- guards killed end of a White House press talk after their most dangerous con- gently purchase” more missiles. Diplomatic observers in ducing India-Pakistan tensions, on Wednesday afternoon when a frontation in decades. India “has continued to main- Washington linked China’s but he also regretted Beijing’s journalist asked him to comment The offi cial also warned that tain a high level of “operational strong message of support for decision to block a US-backed Reuters police offi cer of the Counter- on the current situation between another terrorist attack in India alert” since last month’s clashes Pakistan this week with these move in the United Nations last Karachi/Islamabad Terrorism Department of India and Pakistan. could “be extremely problematic and the Indian Army also has developments. week to designate Masood Azhar Sindh province, said. “Pakistan – we’ll be meet- for Pakistan and it would cause moved up emergency purchases After their fi rst ever foreign a global terrorist. The attackers had followed prominent Pakistani the cleric’s car for some dis- cleric survived an as- tance and carried out surveil- Asassination bid by mo- lance of his route, he added. torcycle-borne gunmen yes- “Maulana Amir Sha- terday that killed two guards hab is in critical condition Waiter fi nds fame as Game and critically injured another with gunshot wounds to the cleric in the southern city of head,” Dr Seemin Jamali of a Karachi, police said. nearby hospital, the Jinnah The attack in an eastern Postgraduate Medical Cen- of Thrones doppelganger district of the port city infa- tre, said, adding that another mous for its violence came person had been brought in as the cleric and former Sha- dead. AFP why I have become very famous supporting actor in 2012. riah judge of the country’s The car in which Usmani Rawalpindi everywhere,” he said. A much anticipated fi nal se- Supreme Court, Mufti Mu- was travelling went to anoth- Not only are Khan and Din- ries is set to premiere on April 17. hammed Taqi Usmani, was er hospital, where his guard klage’s faces strikingly similar, Khan works at a small Kash- heading to a mosque to lead was declared dead on arrival, aiter Rozi Khan had they are also the same height at miri restaurant down a narrow Friday prayers. police said. never heard of the around 135cms (4 ft 5in). line in Rawalpindi, serving cus- “Allah has been gracious, he Reuters could not imme- WGame of Thrones Photographs of the pair have tomers hearty dishes such as is safe,” the city’s police chief, diately reach Usmani to seek – or its hugely popular char- unsurprisingly made their way mutton and spinach curries. Amir Shaikh, said, calling the comment. acter Tyrion Lannister – un- onto social media showing the Owner Malik Aslam Pervez attack a conspiracy to sabo- Crime in Karachi, from til his striking resemblance to doppelgangers side-by-side. described him as a hard-worker Rozi Khan, 25, who resembles US actor Peter Dinklage, waving to tage peace in Karachi and the targeted killings to extor- the dwarf anti-hero got heads “Wherever I go, someone says – and also a drawcard for the customers at Dilbar Hotel in Rawalpindi. country. tion, has fallen sharply since turning at home. to me: ‘Sir, who is this man with eatery. Usmani and his fellow a campaign to rein it in be- The 25-year-old so resembles you on Facebook’, I say that he “When he takes a day off or love to meet Dinklage, describing feel that I met with Lannister in cleric, Maulana Amir Shahab, gan in 2013, led by Pakistan’s actor Peter Dinklage – who has is my friend. ‘He looks like you’. gets sick, people look for him him as a friend and brother. real [life],” said Zain Hadri, 20. were travelling in two cars, paramilitary Rangers. played the witty and wily no- I tell them he is my brother. It’s and ask where did he go? They “I love him very much, he is Game of Thrones tells the when at least four attack- As a judge on the Shariah bleman since the hit series’ fi rst not a bad thing,” said Khan. get upset. They love him. There my friend... he is my height so I story of noble families vying for ers riding on two motorcycles appellate bench of Pakistan’s season in 2010 – that he gets The television series has is always a crowd here but it like him a lot,” said Khan. control of the Iron Throne, all opened fi re and fl ed, police Supreme Court from 1982 to regularly stopped by strangers won 47 Emmys – more than has boomed because of him,” he For customers, seeing Tyrion the while keeping one eye on the said. 2002, Usmani specialised in desperate for a picture. any other fi ctional show in his- said. Lannister in the fl esh is also a “White Walkers” leading hordes “They used multiple hand- Islamic jurisprudence and “I don’t mind. A lot of my tory – along with a Golden Born in Mansehra in northern thrill. of the undead toward an invasion guns,” Raja Umar Khattab, a fi nancial matters. pictures have been taken, that’s Globe for Dinklage, 49, for best Pakistan, Khan says he would “When I saw him, I’m happy, I from the North.

Banknotes added with Braille features Flood forecasting stations to be set up

Internews Pakistani currency notes. just above the banknote serial Rs1,000 two dots, and Rs5,000 he Khyber Pakhtunkhwa RRS secretary Abid Majeed rigation department at the cost of Karachi SBP, for the information of the number,” the central bank said. three dots. province government in Pa- chaired the meeting, which was Rs59.328mn and was approved by general public and specifically This feature makes banknote All Braille features on currency Tkistan has decided to install attended by representatives of the DDWP on April 9, 2018. visually impaired persons, denominations easily notes of all denominations of fl ood forecasting stations on fi ve the fi nance and planning and He said the fl ood warning sys- All Pakistani currency notes reiterated that Pakistani distinguishable by rubbing the Rs20 and above were printed major rivers across the province at development departments. tem would be installed in Khaw- of Rs20 and above contain currency notes have specific thumb against these raised through Intaglio process, due to the cost of Rs59mn to forewarn the Minutes of the meeting said the zakhela and Chakdarra on the Braille features on the front to features to help the visually features, it added. which they appear raised and on residents of natural disasters and participants discussed the fi nali- River Swat, River Panjkora, River determine the denomination of impaired to identify the Braille in each denomination the front side of the note only. ensure better co-ordination among sation of modalities for the early Kalpani, and Munda headworks. the currency notes, State Bank of genuineness of currency notes appears in this manner: Rs20 “Thus, a visually impaired the relevant departments and agen- installation of automatic telemetry The minutes said the project Pakistan (SBP) said. and to distinguish between has one line, Rs50 two lines, person can easily infer the cies for rescue and relief operations. system to establish fi ve fl ood fore- was meant to replace the ex- The SBP said it had noticed diff erent denominations. and Rs100 has three lines, while denomination of the banknotes The decision was made during casting stations in the province. isting manual gauges with the that visually impaired persons “For this purpose, raised dots other higher denomination notes by feeling the raised printing as a meeting of the relief, rehabili- The project director of the modern electronic gauges for found it diff icult to recognise and and small horizontal lines are have dots as Braille feature. well as its genuineness,” the SBP tation and settlement (RRS) de- Provincial Emergency Opera- quick reporting of water levels distinguish amongst diff erent printed on the left bottom corner Specifically, Rs500 has one dot; said. partment’s departmental devel- tions Centre said the initiative’s and speedy issuance of alarm opment working party (DDWP). initial PC-I was made by the ir- signals. (Internews) Gulf Times Saturday, March 23, 2019 13 PHILIPPINES Firefighting operation Water service provider open to issuing rebates to customers

By Francis Earl Cueto crisis. Ty said the concession- Manila Times aires’ contract will end in 2037, but the president might order them to terminate it based on oncessionaire Manila Article 10 of the concession Water Inc, yesterday said agreement. Cthat it was studying the Failure to perform an obliga- proposal of the Metropolitan tion, such as jeopardising the Waterworks and Sewerage Sys- provision of essential water tem (MWSS) to suspend water and sewerage supply services, bills or issue rebates to custom- shall constitute “concession- ers aff ected by the water short- aire event of termination.” age in Metro Manila and Rizal “The service obligation of province. Manila Water is to provide the Ferdinand de la Cruz, presi- public with 24/7 water supply. dent and chief executive offi cer We know they have not deliv- of Manila Water, told DZBB that ered. It is possible to terminate they would meet with offi cials of the concession,” Ty said. the MWSS, including chief regu- Manila Water said it plans to lator Patrick Ty, over the matter restore 99% of water availabil- Firemen extinguish a fire that engulfs a warehouse containing plastic cups, spoons and forks, in Manila, yesterday. on Monday. ity in their concession area by “Public request for rebate is end of March. strong, particularly for custom- “On our end, we take the in- ers who lost access to water for structions of the president very more than 24 hours and for a few seriously that’s why we are 24/7 days, which is quite not normal,” not sleeping,” de la Cruz said. he added. Maynilad, on the other hand, Manila Water had apologised said it “has always held on to for the water service interrup- the sanctity of the concession tions and blamed the El Nino agreement and the commit- phenomenon for the inadequate ments it has undertaken under Duterte bans junkets water supply. it. “The water crisis is also felt Earlier, MWSS said they would in other parts of the country as ask Manila Water to temporarily the Local Water Utilities Ad- cease from charging the 6.8mn ministration (LWUA) revealed customers until their services that some provinces were expe- normalise. Ty said the agency riencing shortage in water sup- could also penalise the company ply. LWUA administrator Jeci for govt offi cials, staff for violating its mandate to pro- Lapus told GMA News that the vide water service 24 hours a day agency was already addressing By Ralph Villanueva for speaking engagements or through a rebate. the problem on water supply, Manila Times receiving awards from foreign The amount of rebate would specifically in five provinces: governments or institutions, be 25% of the total cost of re- Sibugay, Zamboanga, whether fully or partly funded suming the normal operations of Tuguegarao, Kidapawan and resident Rodrigo Duterte by the government, upon the the concession, Ty said. Ilocos Norte. “Water districts has issued an executive endorsement of the Depart- MWSS administrator Rey- are giving water, tankers…dis- Porder (EO) prohibiting ment of Foreign Aff airs. naldo Velasco, meanwhile, as- tribute. It’s not just as big as government offi cials and em- The foreign travels will also sured the public and President Metro Manila’s need. We put ployees from going on junkets be approved fi rst by heads of of- Rodrigo Duterte that they could ads on how to save water,” he abroad. fi ces. The offi cials who will go solve the water crisis, otherwise added. Under EO 77, an offi cial local on foreign travels will be given they would lose their jobs. “We LWUA sources 87% of its or foreign travel and assign- pre-departure expenses not can deliver as far as I know. It re- water supply from deep wells, ment would only be allowed if exceeding P3,500, which will mains short, who are we? That is Lapus said. He said govern- there were essential to the ef- be used for taxi fare, passport the call of the president,” he said. ment agencies concerned fective performance of an of- processing, immunisation and President Duterte, last Tues- should come up with long- fi cial or employee’s mandates medical laboratory fees, pho- day, threatened to fire MWSS term solutions such as water or functions; if they were re- tographs, porterage, airport officials and terminate the impounding in mountain and quired to meet the needs of the terminal fees and other possible concessionaires’ contracts reforestation to avoid having department or government of- expenses. if they fail to solve the water the same problem. fi ces; if the presence of the of- Reimbursement of airport fi cial or employee is critical to terminal fees will be allowed the outcome of the meeting, upon completion of the trip. conference, seminar, consulta- Clothing expenses are also tion or any offi cial activity to be provided for personnel who attended, and if projected ex- travel to certain countries for a Call to revive death penalty penses are not excessive. certain period. “The conduct of strategic The funds range from $200 planning workshops or team President Rodrigo Duterte delivers a speech during the 40th Commencement Exercise of Philippine to $400, to be given once every Manila Times should now send the message for building activities abroad shall National Police Academy in Camp Castaneda in Silang, Cavite. Also in picture is Vice President Maria two years. Trips of department Manila the government to draw the line not be allowed. Leonor “Leni” Robredo (third from left). secretaries, undersecretaries, and put an end to such heinous The taking of a personal leave assistant secretaries and such and bestial acts. It is now time to immediately before or after the Duterte, however, has also security and confi dentiality of travels that may be author- ranks that are more than four ante Jimenez, founding reinstate the death penalty and offi cial activity is highly dis- come under criticism for bring- offi cial communications. ised under the measure are hours without lay-overs will be chairman of the Volun- restore public order and sanity in couraged,” stated the order, ing large entourages to his over- Private individuals, consult- international conferences or allowed to have business class Dteers Against Crimes and society,” he said. dated March 15. seas trips. ants and family members of meetings, which the govern- airfares, but are subject to the Corruption (VACC), has urged Silawan was found in a va- In his speeches, Duterte of- Under the new EO, offi cials government offi cials, except ment has commitments to, or approval of the Offi ce of the the public to support the crusade cant lot on March 11, her head ten discourages government are required to minimise travel when diplomatic protocol or to undertake offi cial missions President. for the reinstatement of capital and face peeled off , exposing her offi cials from travelling over- cost, if travel is allowed. established international prac- or assignments which cannot The same goes for local trav- punishment. skull. seas. He has fi red a number of If possible, teleconferencing, tices provide otherwise, will not be assigned to government of- els. Government offi cials will Jimenez made the call in con- She also bore multiple stab government offi cials for going videoconferencing or submis- be issued foreign travel authori- fi cials posted abroad; scholar- have to seek the approval of the nection with the gruesome mur- wounds in the body and the ini- on junkets, including the heads sion of briefs and position pa- sation. ships, fellowships, trainings appropriate heads for local trav- der of Christine Silawan, 16, on tial medico-legal report showed of the National Anti-Poverty pers could be made as alterna- They will also not be enti- and studies abroad, which are els. Travels paid for by a private March 10 in Lapu-Lapu City, that her tongue, oesophagus, Commission and Maritime In- tives to travel, as long as these tled to government funding for grant-funded or undertaken at source should also be fully dis- Cebu. trachea and right ear were ripped dustry Authority. do not compromise national foreign trips. The only foreign minimal costs; or invitations closed, according to the EO. “This outrageous incident from her body. ICC assembly chief regrets Philippines’ withdrawal

By Al Jacinto & Glee Jalea ness in the fi ght against impunity. government offi cials before the ICC Manila Times The Assembly of States Parties is against China is long overdue, some- the management oversight and legis- thing that this government should lative body of the ICC. have done a long time ago,” veteran he president of the Assembly It is composed of representatives election lawyer Romulo Macalintal of States Parties, O-Gon Kwon of all States that have ratifi ed and ac- said. The fi ling came after Rosario, T(from the Republic of Korea), ceded to the Rome Statute. Morales-Carpio and a group of fi sh- has expressed regret over the with- The Philippines’ departure from the ermen went to the ICC’s Offi ce of the drawal of the Philippines from the ICC on March 17 came in the wake of Prosecutor last March 13 and accused Rome Statute, the founding treaty its preliminary examination of Presi- Xi and other Chinese offi cials of com- of the International Criminal Court dent Rodrigo Duterte’s bloody war mitting crimes against humanity for (ICC). Kwon said the Assembly of on drugs that had killed thousands of causing environmental damage in States Parties, comprising more than suspected drug users and pushers. the South China Sea (West Philippine 120 members from all regions of the The ICC probe will determine if Sea). Former solicitor general Florin world, was fully committed to the there is reasonable basis to proceed Hilbay expressed his “unequivocal court’s mandate to help put an end to with an inquiry into charges of crimes support” to the two government of- impunity for the most serious crimes against humanity. fi cials. of concern to the international com- Since Duterte was elected in 2016, “All these transgressions done by munity. some 5,000 suspected drug users and the Chinese government were possi- “I sincerely hope that the depar- pushers were killed in police opera- ble because of a single reason: the Du- ture of the Philippines from the Rome tions or had been executed by motor- terte administration failed to protect Statute is only temporary and that it cycle-riding gunmen. our sovereignty when it refused to de- will rejoin the Rome Statute family in The president has publicly said he fend the tribunal’s decision in the case the future. intends to kill more drug suspects un- we won against China last July 2016,” Encouraging universal adherence to til he steps down in 2022. he said, referring to the international the Rome Statute is key in strength- PLAN TO SUE CHINA HAILED arbitral court based in The Nether- ening our collective eff orts to promote Opposition candidates also yester- lands.. accountability for atrocity crimes and day hailed the move of former Foreign For Magdalo Rep. Gary Alejano, and the rule of law,” he added in a state- Aff airs secretary Albert del Rosario former Deputy Speaker Erin Tanada, ment posted on the ICC website. and retired Ombudsman Conchita the move of del Rosario and Carpio- Kwon said the ICC relies on the Carpio-Morales to sue Chinese Presi- Morales was a “slap” on the adminis- continued support of the internation- dent Xi Jinping before the ICC. tration for its stance on issues involv- Conchita Morales (right), former head of the anti-graft body, gestures while former foreign aff airs secretary Albert del Rosario al community to ensure its eff ective- “The case fi led by the two former ing China. listens during a press conference in Manila, yesterday. Gulf Times 14 Saturday, March 23, 2019 COMMENT

CHAIRMAN Abdullah bin Khalifa al-Attiyah EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Faisal Abdulhameed al-Mudahka Deputy Managing Editor K T Chacko Production Editor Amjad Khan

P.O.Box 2888, Doha, Qatar [email protected] 44350478 (News), 44466404 (Sport), 44466636 (Home delivery) 44350474 facebook.com/gulftimes twitter.com/gulftimes_Qatar GULF TIMES Rights of ‘ordinary Members of the public react in front of Al Noor Mosque on March 15 in Christchurch. New Zealand has banned semi-automatic rifles, and made the ban effective people’ in focus as immediately to prevent “stockpiling of weapons while the legislation is being drafted.” 1bn vote in Asia NZ has banned rifl es. Why Rights over land and forests, a push for equality, and getting more women on the ballot are some top election issues in Thailand, India and Indonesia as more than 1bn people prepare to go to the polls, including many fi rst-time voters. The candidates’ platforms refl ect a growing concern in can’t America do the same? those countries over widening economic inequality and the marginalisation of minority communities, analysts say. By Francis Wilkinson tangible results. According to the opportunity to declare a sweeping to join him on the crusade. The main In Thailand, which will hold a general election tomorrow Bloomberg News Giff ords Law Center to Prevent Gun constitutional right to carry a fi rearm question concerns Chief Justice John — its fi rst since the military seized control in 2014 — Violence, “the gun safety movement outside the home – one of many issues Roberts. candidates for prime minister include a transgender woman, experienced a tectonic shift in 2018.” still unsettled after the court’s 2008 In a concurring opinion in a 2017 a former student activist, and a human rights campaigner ew Zealand banned semi- The centre tallied at least 67 new gun- Heller ruling, which by a 5-4 vote ruling that upheld Maryland’s ban automatic rifl es this week, safety bills signed into law last year. established a limited, but vaguely so, on assault weapons, Judge J Harvie from the rural northeast. and made the ban eff ective That momentum continues. individual right to bear arms. Wilkinson of the US Court of Appeals A total of 52mn Thais aged 18 and above are eligible to vote, immediately to prevent In Washington, the House of “The energy of the gun violence for the Fourth Circuit laid out the of whom 14% will do so for the fi rst time. N “stockpiling of weapons while the leg- Representatives, fl ush with new prevention movement can be sapped conservative case for restraint in gun The contest broadly pits the party of junta leader Prayut islation is being drafted.” The Kiwis are Democratic members who campaigned pretty quickly,” said UCLA law cases. The courts shouldn’t walk all Chan-o-cha against populist parties loyal to ousted prime apparently not big on the “hopes and on gun regulation, passed a universal professor Adam Winkler, author of over the political process, Wilkinson minister Thaksin Shinawatra. prayers” mantra that the US Congress background check bill in February. “Gunfi ght: The Battle Over the Right to wrote: But there are also several adopts after each gun massacre. Multiple inquiries into the National Bear Arms in America.” Disenfranchising the American people on this life and death subject newly formed parties in It’s easy to be dispirited by the Rifl e Association’s political activities Indeed it can. In Thailand, cravenness of conservative politicians, and Russia connections are under way The court made seismic would be the gravest and most serious the race, some of them and by the frequency of American gun in Congress, with the NRA clearly on pronouncements on guns in 2008 and of steps. It is their community, not some parties are campaigning for greater deaths. Yet those failures obscure a the defensive. 2010, establishing fi rst the individual ours. It is their safety, not ours. It is rights for farmers and key development in US gun politics: Meanwhile, state governments led by right to fi rearms, and then requiring their lives, not ours. To say in the wake campaigning for minorities. These are glory days for the gun-safety Democrats continue to adopt aggressive states to recognise that right via the of so many mass shootings in so many When about 190mn movement. legislation to regulate fi rearms. For 14th Amendment. Then the court beat localities across this country that greater rights Indonesians go to the polls The March for Our Lives, which example, New York State in January a retreat, declining to further defi ne the the people themselves are now to be on April 17, they will be emerged from the 2018 massacre moved to prohibit teachers from scope of the Second Amendment. rendered newly powerless, that all they for farmers and at Marjory Stoneman Douglas carrying guns in schools, extended the Can semi-automatic rifl es be can do is stand by and watch as federal voting in a rerun of the High School in Parkland, Florida, waiting period for gun buyers who don’t banned? Does the Second Amendment courts design their destiny - this would minorities 2014 race when current galvanised youth across the country pass an instant background check, and guarantee the right to carry a fi rearm deliver a body blow to democracy as we president Joko Widodo and inspired millions of Americans established a red-fl ag law to enable in a public place? The court opted not have known it since the very founding went up against retired general Prabowo Subianto. to march for stronger gun laws. In authorities to deny gun purchases by to clarify such questions. It may now, of this nation. Surveys in the lead-up to this election show the president just six years, Moms Demand Action people who pose a danger to themselves removing gun regulation from the With much of the nation endorsing holding a double-digit lead over his challenger. for Gun Sense in America has grown or others. heated political arena and declaring gun-safety laws as a response both to into a formidable political force, with It’s been an extraordinary run. It may victory – or perhaps a series of victories mass shootings and to a gun culture One issue getting more attention this time is the role of millions of supporters, 350,000 donors soon come crashing to a halt. – for gun-rights forces. that has grown unsteady and militant, women in politics, said Diego Fossati, an assistant professor and networked activists in every state. All it takes to turn back a robust Brett Kavanaugh, who replaced Roberts appears to be the pivot point for at the department of Asian and international studies at City They are winning the argument: By gun-safety movement of millions is fi ve Anthony Kennedy on the court, appears a court that conservatives increasingly University of Hong Kong. about a 2-to-1 margin, Americans willing justices. Or maybe just one. to be a maximalist on gun rights. As a view as a bulwark against democratic Indonesian women held about a fi fth of the seats in the support stricter gun laws over leaving In the fall, the Supreme Court will circuit court judge he issued a dissent in politics. The country has been moving national parliament last year, as compared to about 12% in current laws in place. (Fewer than one hear arguments over an obscure and a gun-rights case that was so sweeping decisively toward gun regulation. Will 1990, according to World Bank data. in 10 Americans supports less strict idiosyncratic New York City law that and uncompromising that it could’ve Roberts use a 5-4 decision of a bitterly laws.) regulates the transportation of guns. been written at NRA headquarters. The divided court to stop it? - Tribune News While that fi gure is in line with the 20% average for Asia, Emerging power has produced It’s possible the court will use that other conservative justices appear likely Service it is lower than the 24% global average, and well below Indonesia’s own minimum quota of 30% for female political candidates, introduced in 2003. In India, where the general election will be held in seven stages starting April 11, about 900mn citizens are eligible to vote. High on the agenda is forest rights, after the Supreme Court last month stayed an earlier ruling ordering the forced evictions of nearly 2mn indigenous people whose land claims Toward a new global charter were rejected under the Forest Rights Act (FRA). The 2006 law aimed to improve the lives of impoverished By Carl Bildt Trade was replaced with the World set of shared principles, the biggest The declaration is not merely a tribes by recognising their right to inhabit and live off forests Stockholm Trade Organisation, and in under two challenge is in deciding whether to restatement of previously held beliefs. where their ancestors had settled. decades, trade as a share of global GDP make them applicable just to the Environmental issues clearly have But government data showed that, so far, about half the has grown from around 40% to over world’s democracies, or also to the become more prominent than they were claims have been rejected. n August 1941, even before the 70% (owing in no small part to China’s likes of Russia, China, and Saudi before, and questions of sovereignty United States had entered World accession to the WTO in December Arabia. Obviously, democracy is must be reframed for an increasingly Forest rights activists say the government led by Prime War II, British Prime Minister 2001). by far the best way to ensure that interconnected and interdependent Minister Narendra Modi of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party IWinston Churchill and US During this golden age of individual rights are respected; but world. Concerns about how prosperity has failed to implement the law or defend it in court. President Franklin D Roosevelt met multilateralism, globalisation, and the debate also should be open to is shared both within and between The leader of the main opposition Congress party, Rahul secretly off the coast of Newfoundland social and economic development, those advocating diff erent values countries have gained signifi cant Gandhi, has made land and forest rights a focus of his to discuss how the world could be more than 1bn people were lifted out and interests. In our case, we wanted currency. campaign. organised after the war. A similar feat of extreme poverty, and democracy to produce a document that would But basic values such as respect for Analysts say that may have helped Congress win recent had been attempted at Versailles just became the global norm. But it is resonate both in the “classical West” individual rights remain fundamentally over two decades earlier, but it had clear that the second decade of the as well as in Brazil, Algeria, Iran, India, important, as does the belief that elections in the states of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and clearly failed. 21st century has marked the advent Indonesia, and Vietnam. “governments that answer to their Chhattisgarh. Churchill and FDR’s assignation of a diff erent era. Memories of the Our deliberations resulted in a citizens and respect the rule of law can In the same way, the FRA could be a deciding factor in resulted in the Atlantic Charter, which international order’s formative Declaration of Principles that we issued best address inequity, correct injustice, nearly a quarter of the 543 parliamentary constituencies in established a set of shared principles years, and of the tragedies that made at the Munich Security Conference last and serve the good of all.” Indeed, the upcoming national election, according to the non-profi t and institutions that still defi ne the it necessary, have faded with the month. “Inspired by the inalienable governments ignore this proviso at their network Community Forest Rights-Learning and Advocacy international order eight decades passing of generations. New powers rights derived from our ethics, peril. (CFR-LA). later. In 1944, the Bretton Woods have emerged to challenge Western traditions, and faiths,” the declaration As the fruit of a year’s worth conference laid the groundwork for dominance within an increasingly reads, “we commit ourselves to seek a of discussions and revisions, the - Thomson Reuters Foundation the International Monetary Fund, the multipolar context. And the recent better future for our citizens and our declaration has received broad support World Bank, and other global fi nancial proliferation of authoritarian regimes nations. We will defend our values, from diff erent corners of the world. But institutions; the establishment of the has raised questions about the future of overcome past failures with new our goal is to start a larger debate, not To Advertise United Nations soon followed. The democracy. ideas, answer lies with truth, confront to have the fi nal word. We are under no defeated Axis powers were transformed Though the basic structures of aggression with strength, and go illusions that it will rival the Atlantic [email protected] into dynamic democracies with market the post-war order remain in place, forward with the confi dence that our Charter in terms of its historical impact. Display economies, and were integrated into they are being hollowed out in the principles will prevail.” But nor do we have any doubts as to the new global system, while stability face of Russian revisionism, Chinese The full declaration comprises the urgency and necessity of a new 44466621 44418811 was maintained through cooperative assertiveness, US disruption, and seven statements under the headings discussion about the basic principles security structures spanning the European uncertainty. With the goal of of “freedom and justice,” “democracy of global governance. Without such a Classified transatlantic and Pacifi c theatres. revising the principles of the Atlantic and self-determination,” “peace and debate, the old order will continue to 44466609 44418811 Then came China’s economic Charter for this dangerous new world, security,” “free markets and equal decay, to be replaced by a Hobbesian reforms, starting in the late 1970s, and two prominent think tanks, the Atlantic opportunity,” “an open and healthy jungle ruled by sheer power and Subscription the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, Council in the US and the Center planet,” “the right of assistance,” and narrow self-interest. We all know how whereupon the dream of truly global for Global Governance Innovation “collective action.” In each area, our that turned out last time. – Project [email protected] multilateral governance as envisioned in Canada, recently convened goal was to set down principles that Syndicate in the Atlantic Charter could start to be policymakers and thinkers, including might serve as the tenets of a new realised. In 1995, the Bretton Woods- me, from 19 diff erent countries. consensus after an inclusive global Carl Bildt is a former prime minister © 2019 Gulf Times. All rights reserved era General Agreement on Tariff s and When attempting to draft a new debate. and foreign minister of Sweden. Gulf Times Saturday, March 23, 2019 15 COMMENT Let’s talk about geoengineering

By David Keith scientists are beginning to work on this Cambridge topic using existing funds for climate research. Why the controversy? Many egotiations on geoengineer- fear, with good reason, that fossil- ing technologies ended in fuel interests will exploit solar deadlock at the United Na- geoengineering to oppose emissions Ntions Environment Assem- cuts. But most researchers are not bly in Nairobi, Kenya, last week, when driven by such interests. The vast a Swiss-backed proposal to commis- majority of those researching solar sion an expert UN panel on the subject geoengineering or advocating for its was withdrawn amid disagreements inclusion in climate-policy debates over language. This is a shame, because also support much stronger action to the world needs open debate about reduce emissions. Still, it’s very likely novel ways to reduce climate risks. that Big Fossil – from multinational Specifi cs aside, the impasse energy companies to coal-dependent stemmed from a dispute within the regions – will eventually use environmental community about discussion of geoengineering to fi ght growing scientifi c interest in solar emissions restrictions. geoengineering – the possibility But that risk is not a suffi cient of deliberately refl ecting a small reason to abandon or suppress amount of sunlight back into space research on solar geoengineering. to help combat climate change. Environmentalists have spent decades Some environmental and civil- fi ghting Big Fossil’s opposition to society groups, convinced that solar climate protection. And although geoengineering will be harmful or progress to date has been insuffi cient, misused, oppose further research, there have been some successes. The policy analysis, and debate about world now spends over $300 billion per the issue. Others, including some year on low-carbon energy, and young large environmental groups, support people are bringing new political Solar geoengineering may help limit global warming. (Al Jazeera English) cautious research. energy to the fi ght for a safer climate. By refl ecting sunlight away from Open discussion of solar simply stops adding to the burden of and environmental eff ects of climate of outlays to cut emissions. A wise governments to consider doing so. the Earth – perhaps by injecting geoengineering would not weaken carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. change beyond what is possible with program would reduce groupthink by By foregoing debate and research on aerosols into the stratosphere – the commitment of environmental The CO2 from the fossil-fuel era, emissions cuts alone. increasing the diversity of researchers, geoengineering now, political leaders solar geoengineering could partly advocates, because they know and the resulting climate changes, Are these hopes justifi ed? The and by establishing a deliberate tension may be hoping to eliminate the risks of off set the energy imbalance caused emissions must be cut to zero to will persist. We need adaptation that geoengineering research community between research teams developing its future misuse. But their stance may by accumulating greenhouse achieve a stable climate. At worst, such increases resilience to climate threats. is small and dominated by a narrow specifi c scenarios for deployment and actually increase this danger. gases. Research using most major a debate could make some in the broad, But adaptation by itself is no solution. group of members, most of whom are others tasked with critically examining Humans rarely make good decisions climate models suggests that solar disengaged middle of the climate battle Neither is solar geoengineering. (like me) white, male, and based in how these scenarios could go wrong. by choosing ignorance over knowledge, geoengineering might reduce important less interested in near-term emissions And nor is removing CO2 from the Europe or America. Groupthink is a Governance is the toughest or by preferring closed-door politics climate risks such as changes in water cuts. But even this is not certain; atmosphere – another emerging set of distinct possibility. We may simply be challenge for geoengineering. A global to open debate. Rather than keeping availability, extreme precipitation, sea there is empirical evidence that public technologies that were considered in wrong. It would be reckless to deploy research program should therefore future generations in the dark on solar level, and temperature. But any version awareness of geoengineering increases the Swiss-backed proposal in Nairobi. solar geoengineering based only on be coupled with greatly expanded geoengineering, we should shed as much of this technology carries risks of its interest in cutting emissions. As the American writer H L hope and early research. international discussion about these light on it as we can. – Project Syndicate own, including air pollution, damage It is sensible to focus on cutting Mencken put it, “there is always a Instead, an international, open- technologies and their governance. to the ozone layer, and unanticipated emissions, and reasonable to worry well-known solution to every human access research program could, Such a debate was unfortunately cut David Keith, a professor of climate changes. that discussing solar geoengineering problem – neat, plausible, and wrong.” within a decade, dramatically short in Nairobi last week. applied physics at Harvard’s School Yet research on solar geoengineering could distract from that fi ght. But Complex problems like climate change improve understanding of the risks Although my generation will not of Engineering and Applied Sciences is highly controversial. This has it’s wrong to indulge a monomania rarely have a single solution. and effi cacy of solar geoengineering. use solar geoengineering, it seems (SEAS) and a professor of public limited research funding to a few whereby emissions cuts become the My hope is that emissions cuts, solar Such a programme would cost a small plausible that before the middle policy at Harvard’s Kennedy School of tiny programmes around the world, sole objective of climate policy. geoengineering, and carbon removal share of the sum currently spent on of this century, a dramatic climate Government, is the founder of Carbon although a larger number of climate Vital as it is, eliminating emissions can work together to reduce the human climate science, and far less than 0.1% catastrophe will prompt some Engineering. LEGAL HELPLINE Three-day forecast

TODAY Maximum Temperature : 260c Seeking travel ban on judgment debtor Minimum Temperature : 220c SUNDAY Maximum Temperature : 270c Minimum Temperature : 220c By Dr Nizar Kochery Claiming payment sue companies for acts related to when I applied for annual leave, Doha company’s business shall expire after the management refused to grant MONDAY dues from liquidator three years. In case of liquidation, it saying that I have to complete Maximum Temperature : 290c this period shall start from the date of service of one year under the new Minimum Temperature : 230c Question: My friend borrowed Q: Our company has fi led a case completion of the liquidation. As per management. As per the law, is Fisherman's forecast money from me for his per- against the main contractor for Article 321 of the Company Law, no this correct? Does the change of sonal use and agreed to return recovery of the due payment. The claim against the liquidator concern- management aff ect my contract WARNING Inshore : Expected strong wind it after three weeks. Now when court awarded the verdict in our ing the liquidation activities shall be terms? Offshore : Expected thunder rain I request for the repayment he favour and an execution case is heard after the expiry of three years associated with strong refuses to pay. I have a docu- also fi led. The main contracting from the declaration date of the end SA, Doha. wind and high sea ment signed by him and I filed company was under liquidation of liquidation and no claims against WEATHER Inshore : Modeate temperature a civil case against him using and we were expecting the fund the partners based on the company A: As per Article 52 (2) of the Labour daytime with scattered that document. I received the through the liquidator. Now we activities or against the managers, Law, the transfer of ownership shall clouds and chance of judgment in my favour. Now the came to know that the liquida- board members or auditors based on not aff ect the terms and conditions scattered rain at first and slight dust to blow- case is in the execution court. tion procedures are over and the the acts done in pursuance of their of the employee. The new employer ing dust at places. Now I came to know that he got company is offi cially deregistered. functions, shall be heard after such shall be jointly liable with the former Offshore : P cloudy to cloudy terminated from his job because But still we did not receive any period. employer for the payment of the with a chance of scattered rain maybe of the case. In such a case, how payment. Now we have planned employee’s entitlements accruing thundery at times. can I impose a travel ban on to move against the liquidator for from the latter, unless a new employ- WIND him? Will it take much time? the payment. Is there any limita- New employer ‘must ment contract is signed. The employee Inshore : Northeasterly-Easterly 12-22/30 KT Please advise. tion period for claiming the money pay entitlements’ terms and conditions will continue to Offshrore : Northeasterly-Easterly from liquidator as per Qatar law? remain and benefi ts will be calculated 10-20/30 KT ET, Doha Please guide. from entry in service. Accordingly, the Visibility : 4-8/3 KM Q: I am working in a small grocery employee will be eligible for leave en- Offshore : 4-6/10 FT Answer: As per Article 405 of Civil JS, Doha shop in Doha since 2012. Now the titlements without any interruption. Around the region and Commercial Procedure Law, a shop has been sold to another Weather Weather judgment creditor may move before A: Except in case of joint venture person and new management is Please send your questions to today tomorrow Max/min the execution judge to order stop companies, the creditors’ right to running the business. Last week [email protected] Max/min Cloudy 23/13 travel of the judgment debtor and Baghdad P Cloudy 23/14 Cloudy 24/19 the court may issue orders banning Kuwait CityP Cloudy 25/17 P Cloudy 28/22 travel. An order for a travel pro- Manama Cloudy 26/19 LEGAL SYSTEM IN QATAR M Cloudy 28/23 hibition shall be submitted with a Muscat M Cloudy 28/23 M Cloudy 16/10 petition along with its reasons. The Tehran P Cloudy 16/08 court may issue such orders upon the According to Article 256 of Criminal fi ed to him before that time. In the petition by a creditor that the credi- Procedure Code, the procedure shall case of the convicted person fl eeing tor fears the escape of the debtor. be null and void, if the law expressly the country, the time shall be counted But, issuing an order for a travel pro- provides for its invalidity or there is a from the date of notifying him at its hibition shall not breach the power procedural defect. The invalidity shall last known domicile. If the time for of an authority to terminate the not be judged if the purpose of form objection lapsed without objection by residence permit of the non-Qatari or procedure is achieved. the convicted person, the objection debtor or order him to depart the If the suspect attends the hearing to the judgment shall not be accepted country or deport from the coun- personally or through an attorney, he except by way of appeal, in permitted try, if the public interest so requires cannot claim nullity of the summons, cases. (Article 407 of Civil and Commercial and may request correction of the As per Article 265, in cases where the Procedure law). summons or the correction of any judgment is considered as delivered in shortcomings therein, and shall be the presence of the parties, its objec- given a period of time for the prepara- tion shall not be permitted unless the Punishment for tion of defence before the start of the convicted person proves the existence Around the world abusing in public hearing. The court shall respond to of a reason that prevented his attend- Weather Weather his request. ance and which he was not able to today Max/min tomorrow Max/min As per Article 261, the invalid pro- provide before the judgment, and that Athens Sunny 18/10 P Cloudy 17/07 Q: My friend had a difference of cedure may be corrected even after its appeal was not possible. Beirut P Cloudy 19/14 Rain 18/12 opinion with a person in a public the invalidity has been confi rmed, Objection shall be made by way of Bangkok P Cloudy 37/28 P Cloudy 35/28 place. Out of anger, he abused provided that it takes place within fi ling a report at the court which is- Berlin P Cloudy 12/06 M Cloudy 17/03 my friend in public. What action the legally prescribed time for the sued the judgment. The report shall Cairo P Cloudy 24/14 P Cloudy 25/12 can be taken against that per- procedure. If there is no time limit for be signed by the objecting party or Cape Town P Cloudy 27/18 Cloudy 22/17 son who abused? As per law in the procedure prescribed by law, the unless by appealing such judgment by his attorney and by the clerk of the Colombo S T Storms 31/24 M Sunny 32/24 Qatar, what punishment will be court shall set an appropriate time to the means prescribed in this Law. court, and the Public Prosecution Dhaka Sunny 35/20 Sunny 34/21 imposed on the offender? Please rectify it. Objection is allowed to judgments shall notify witnesses to attend the Hong Kong Showers 19/16 S Showers 19/18 advise. If the procedure is null and satisfi es in absentia issued on the violations hearing. If the convicted person is Istanbul P Cloudy 14/03 P Cloudy 11/02 the elements of another procedure, and misdemeanours by the convicted in custody, then the administrator Jakarta S T Storms 32/25 S T Storms 32/25 SJ, Doha it shall be considered as correct with person within seven days from being of the detention centre where he is Karachi P Cloudy 31/22 P Cloudy 32/22 regard to the procedure whose ele- personally notifi ed of the judgment, imprisoned shall authorise him to London Cloudy 11/04 P Cloudy 13/05 A: The victim can fi le a complaint ments are satisfi ed. If the procedure in addition to distance time. If the appeal. The objection shall be made Manila P Cloudy 35/25 Sunny 34/24 before the police against such a person is null in part thereof, then this part convicted person is not notifi ed, then at the detention centre within seven Moscow Cloudy 04/-3 Snow 04/-2 for use of abusive language. According alone shall be considered to be null. the time of objection starts from the days from notifying the judgment New Delhi Sunny 32/18 M Sunny 32/18 to Article 329 of the Penal Law, any The invalidity of the procedure shall day on which his knowledge about to the detained person. The centre New York P Cloudy 10/01 M Cloudy 13/06 person cursing a third party in public not imply the invalidity of preceding such notifi cation is proved. This time shall immediately send the report to Paris P Cloudy 18/07 Cloudy 15/03 through addressing improper words or future procedures, if they are not period in the judgments issued in the clerk’s offi ce of the court hav- Sao Paulo M Sunny 27/17 M Sunny 29/18 aff ecting their honour and dignity directly relying upon it. absentia with regard to crimes shall ing jurisdiction, and shall bring the Seoul Showers 07/-4 Sunny 08/-1 shall be punished to imprisonment According to Article 263, if a judg- be counted as from date of arrest objecting party to the hearing fi xed Singapore S T Storms 33/26 S T Storms 33/26 for a term not exceeding one year in ment has been issued on the merits of of the convicted person, unless the for considering the objection, if he Sydney S T Storms 27/19 P Cloudy 28/22 prison or a fi ne not exceeding QR5,000 a criminal case, it shall not be reheard judgment had been personally noti- remains in custody. Tokyo Clear 12/07 Clear 15/04 or both. Gulf Times 16 Saturday, March 23, 2019 QATAR

Qatari composer Dana Alfardan and singer Aisha presented a tribute song honouring the 150th birth A R Rahman performing at Khalifa International Stadium yesterday. PICTURES: Jayan Orma and Sajin Orma anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi. Over 30,000 attend Rahman’s concert at Khalifa Stadium

By Joseph Varghese stage to thunderous applause and he took his fans on a ecstatic mu- Many of the overfl owing crowd, Staff Reporter taking off with a medley of his sical journey along with his fel- clapped and tapped to the music greatest hits. low performers and with a mix while cheering the artistes. Rahman mesmerised the gath- of various genres of music. Rah- True to Rahman’s envious rep- A section of the audience. lobally acclaimed Indian ering with some of his evergreen man and his team performed on utation for ‘experimentation’ in musician A R Rahman, numbers and had the entire audi- a 90m-long stage, a world fi rst every sphere of music, the show in the entire show. The maestro composer Ranjit Barot, Rahman’s cated to the Qatar-India Year of Galong with his 80-strong ence on their toes right from the at the state-of-the-art venue, also witnessed several moments was joined in the concert by pop- troupe singer Dilshad Shabbir Culture 2019, a year-long col- troupe, captivated the audience word ‘go’ as he started the show which is one of the stadiums for of innovation. ular Indian playback singers Udit Ahmed Shaikh and Indian-born laboration that sees both nations with an electrifying perform- with a rendition of the Hindi the FIFA 2022 World Cup. The Each of the performers came Narayan, Shweta Mohan, Hari- Canadian singer Jonita Gandhi. jointly celebrate their unique ance yesterday at Doha’s Khalifa song, Aja Parinda Ghar Aja’ fol- entire performance had a rich out with something exciting charan Seshadri, A R Rahman’s Earlier, before the formal start cultural legacies. International Stadium. Billed as lowed by one of his greatest hits mix of music from diff erent In- which was welcomed with loud sisters and popular singers from of the concert, there was a special The event was organised by the biggest concert in the history Mukkala Mukkabalaaa heralding dian languages. cheers by the entire audience. the South Indian fi lm industry performance by renowned Qatari Katara Studios in association of Qatar, the much-anticipat- the variety of music performanc- Singers and performers from “Experimenting with courage, Reihana and Isshrathquadhre, composer Dana Alfardan and Do- with Qatar Airways. The strate- ed event kept the over-30,000 es in store for the audience. Bollywood and other regional is what I think, is the fi re for me. playback singer from the Ma- ha’s emerging artist Aisha, who gic partners included Supreme crowd spellbound throughout Rahman, a two-time Os- Indian languages came up with You jump into that fi re and things layalam fi lm industry Alphons presented a tribute song honour- Committee for Delivery and the three-hour duration. car- and Grammy-winner, was scintillating performances one start happening,” Rahman had Joseph, Bollywood playback ing the 150th birth anniversary Legacy, Ministry of Culture and It all began with the maestro performing for the fi rst time in after another, in a mix of clas- told Gulf Times, earlier in an in- singer Javed Ali, singer and actor of Mahatma Gandhi. Written by Sports, Aspire Zone and LuLu dramatically appearing on the Qatar, and true to his reputation, sic and popular Indian music. terview and that was well evident Benny Dayal, Indian fi lm score Dana Alfardan, the song is dedi- Hypermarkets. QIFF outlet inspires people to lead active lifestyle

By Peter Alagos healthy menu at the food festival, Business Reporter which she gladly wants to share with the rest of the community. With the availability of a wide ith more than 150 food range of food delights at this and beverage (F&B) year’s QIFF, al-Chaarani said Woutlets off ering a Ideal Diet encourages people to wide range of scrumptious and follow a healthy lifestyle by pro- mouth-watering food delights, viding them with food options. it is easy to let one’s guard down Every two months, Ideal Diet and wander in the euphoria of the works on its menu to make sure it Qatar International Food Festival off ers new options to customers, (QIFF). she pointed out. And with a QR5 to QR40 budg- Also, al-Chaarani said Ideal et-friendly price range, an un- Diet is taking cue from the gov- restricted food experience at the ernment’s self-suffi ciency and festival would seem guilt-free, sustainability initiatives, which even for those who are counting are ingrained in the company’s calories or trying to keep that A visitor points to some of the healthy offerings of Ideal Diet. business model. summer fi gure. PICTURES: Ram Chand “Most of our suppliers are But worry not, the festival has from Qatar to support the local many outlets that off er healthy coming soon in a great location. also features a live-cooking sta- food industry. We also try to have foods and one of them is Ideal I decided to enter the industry tion for saj, crepes, and other recyclable packaging as much as Diet, which has been a festival since we are already in the busi- grilled delights. While her per- possible; we are always taking mainstay for the past four edi- ness and people enjoy dining in sonal favourite are Ideal Diet’s steps towards being more sus- Foodies of all ages flock to the festival grounds yesterday. tions. and love Mediterranean cuisine smoothies, al-Chaarani said tainable by adding more recycled Currently located along the in general,” al-Chaarani told Gulf their bestseller in the past four packaging and avoiding wastage. spread over a 130,000sq m area cil said: “QIFF has successfully including businesses that off er Bin Omran area, Ideal Diet was Times yesterday. years at the food festival is the We also take part in many local and divided into three sections: contributed to enriching the local produce from Qatari farms, founded by Dr Nawal al-Alem She said Ideal Diet is off ering saj – a wholegrain, sugar-free, giveaway initiatives,” al-Chaara- O1 for main course specialities country’s dining canvas by not off ering unique authentic food as a meal delivery centre in festival goers a wide range of nu- and yeast-free Mediterranean ni stressed. and centre stage, O2 for kids- only attracting international experiences from gate to plate. 2004, but her daughter, Noor al- tritious food items, such as sal- savoury crepe. This year’s QIFF is being held friendly foods and activities, and chefs to open local outlets but To celebrate these experiences, Chaarani, decided to expand into ads, lunch or dinner, snacks and According to al-Chaarani, at Oxygen Park inside Qatar O3 for cafes and light food. also, providing a platform for QIFF has dedicated 15% of its the restaurant business. healthy desserts. her health-conscious lifestyle Foundation’s Education City In an earlier statement, the local entrepreneurs to intro- spaces to up-coming entrepre- “As part of our plans, we are It’s booth inside the festival is what inspired her to off er a until March 30. The festivities Qatar National Tourism Coun- duce their innovative off erings neurs and local SMEs.” Local chefs in the spotlight

Apart from internationally renowned chefs, the Qatar International Food Festival 2019 also features local celebrity chefs who prepare speciality dishes at the Live Cooking Theatre. Organised by the Qatar National Tourism Council, the annual event is taking place at Education City’s Oxygen Park this year with a wide range of culinary, entertainment, and multicultural off erings for residents and visitors. PICTURES: Ram Chand