BUSINESS | Page 1 SPORT | Page 8 Unbeaten Advani faces INDEX DOW JONES QE NYMEX QATAR 2-9, 28 COMMENT 26, 27 REGION 10 BUSINESS 1-5, 16-20 Russell QBA team to visit 23,382.00 7,885.50 56.74 ARAB WORLD 11 CLASSIFIED 6-16 -34.00 +29.26 -0.43 INTERNATIONAL 12-25 SPORTS 1-8 Europe from today in fi nal -0.15% +0.37% -0.75% Latest Figures published in QATAR since 1978

SUNDAY Vol. XXXVIII No. 10635 November 12, 2017 Safar 23, 1439 AH

GULF TIMES www. gulf-times.com 2 Riyals Sheikha Moza crowns winners of Longines Global Champions Tour Self-reliance In brief drive makes QATAR | Offi cial Emir to patronise Qatar Law Forum opening great strides His Highness the Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani will patronise the z Ministerial Group and licences and the allocation of land inauguration of Qatar Law Forum 2017 within 72 hours from the date of ap- today at the Sheraton Doha Hotel. announces launch proving the application. Besides, such Page 3 projects are given exemption of cus- of new projects toms on raw materials. QATAR | Visit Several government agencies, in- King of Morocco cluding Qatar Chamber, Economic QNA Zones Corporation and Qatar Develop- arrives in Doha today Doha ment Bank are participating in the ini- King Mohamed VI of Morocco will tiative and working together to achieve arrive in Doha today for an off icial visit its objectives. to Qatar. His Highness the Emir Sheikh he Ministerial Group for the En- The initiative has attracted a lot of Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani and the couragement and Participation of interest from investors since its launch. King of Morocco will hold off icial talks Tthe Private Sector in the Economic The committee has received many ap- at the Emiri Diwan on consolidating Development Projects of Qatar, chaired plications from both inside and outside bilateral relations between the two Her Highness Sheikha Moza bint Nasser, Chairperson of Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community by HE the Prime Minister and Interior Qatar. The scheme included eight major brotherly countries and means of Development (QF), crowned Qatari horseman Bassem Hassan Mohamed, winner of the Doha Grand Prix; and the Dutchman Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser industrial sectors that took into account enhancing them, besides a host of Harrie Smolders, winner of the Longines Global Tour Championships, which was hosted by Al Shaqab, a member of QF, bin Khalifa al-Thani, has announced the the needs of the local market. issues of common concern. for three consecutive days. HE Sheikh Joaan bin Hamad al-Thani, President of Qatar Olympic Committee, also attended launch of a number of new projects in In the fi rst stage, 63 factories which yesterday’s competitions. Bassem won the title after finishing first in the Doha Grand Prix final of the last round of the world various fi elds. will serve the needs of the local market QATAR | Delegation championship, with a time of 35.31 seconds. Dutchman Smolders won the championship with 278 points in 15 rounds started These ventures have been set in mo- have been approved. Food industries in Miami last April. Sport Page 1 tion as part of the government’s eff orts topped the list with 22 plants, while the Preparatory meetings to give a greater role to the private sec- rest were distributed among metallurgy, of Unesco committees tor in the country’s economic develop- machinery, rubber, medical, paper, elec- A Qatari delegation participated in ment and in pursuance of the directives trical and chemical industries. the preparatory meetings of the 39th of His Highness the Emir Sheikh Tamim To support food security, the Min- session of the General Conference bin Hamad al-Thani to seek self-reliance isterial Group has agreed to a shrimp of Unesco to discuss reports by the Saudi urged to ease Yemen blockade further and increase self-suffi ciency. farm with a capacity of more than 1,000 education, and communication and In the context of encouraging indus- tonnes per year. This project will cover information committees. Head of trial investments and meeting the local about 90% of the needs of the Qatari the Islamic Education Department AFP United Nations said. border was reopened the next day. market’s needs, the Ministerial Group, market. This initiative comes as part of Dr Abdullah al-Marri took part in the Sanaa The coalition shut down Yemen’s The EU’s commissioner for hu- at its latest meeting, approved the re- the government’s eff orts to reach self- Education Committee meeting, where borders on Monday in response to a manitarian aid and crisis manage- sults of the fi rst phase of the initiative suffi ciency in food, agricultural, animal they adopted the programmes and missile attack by Houthi rebels that ment, Christos Stylianides, said yes- “own your factory within 72 hours” and industrial products. 2018-2021 budget. Fatma al-Kubaissi he Saudi-led coalition’s eas- was intercepted near Riyadh airport. terday that more steps were needed. through the single window facility. The The Ministerial Group announced participated in the Social and Human ing of its blockade on famine- On Wednesday, it reopened the south- “Initial measures to resume opera- scheme aims to provide exceptional in- last month that a national company Sciences committee meeting, while Tthreatened Yemen is “a step in ern port of Aden, controlled by coali- tions in Aden port and to open Wadea centives to industrial investors in Qa- had won a bid to manage the fi rst fi sh Hamad al-Mohannadi took part in the the right direction” but does not go tion-backed government forces, and the border crossing are a step in the right tar through more than 10 concessions, farm that would produce 2,000 tonnes Culture Committee meeting. far enough, the European Union and Wadea crossing on the Saudi-Yemeni direction,” he said. Page 10 including the issuance of all approvals of local fi sh annually. To Page 9 Gulf Times 2 Sunday, November 12, 2017 QATAR

OFFICIAL QSTec, Philippines FM meets Omani counterpart

Emir sends to enhance tie-up greetings to Polish president

His Highness the Emir Sheikh in solar power Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, His Highness the Deputy Emir Sheikh Abdullah bin Hamad ffi cials from Qatar Solar tegrated solar company, as well op and install 20,000 megawatts al-Thani and HE the Prime Technologies (QSTec) as the largest polysilicon pro- of renewable energy capacity by Minister and Minister of Interior Oand the Philippines’ De- ducer in the region with a manu- 2040. Already, Philippines has Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser bin partment of Energy (DoE) have facturing facility of 8,000 met- prompted a number of new ini- Qatar’s Minister of Foreign Aff airs HE Sheikh Mohamed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani met the Khalifa al-Thani have sent cables discussed ways to enhance col- ric tonnes per annum in Qatar. tiatives aimed at fast-tracking Minister Responsible for Foreign Aff airs of Oman Yusuf bin Alawi bin Abdullah, in Muscat of congratulations to Polish laboration ties in the fi elds of The organisation is “strongly renewable energy growth and yesterday. Discussions during the meeting dealt with relations between Qatar and Oman and President Andrzej Duda on the renewable energy. committed to collaborating with investment. ways of strengthening them, in addition to the latest developments in the region. anniversary of his country’s QSTec chairman and CEO Dr international partners in the “With more than 7,000 is- Independence Day. Khalid Klefeekh al-Hajri recent- interest of progressively har- lands, the Philippines holds ly met with DoE secretary Al- vesting solar energy, combating enormous solar energy poten- fonso G Cusi and other offi cials climate change and reducing tial,” al-Hajri said. to discuss QSTec’s maturation greenhouse gas emissions”. He added, “As a fully integrat- in the energy industry and its QSTec sees far-reaching po- ed solar company, there is tre- integration across the solar value tential for collaborating with the mendous opportunity for QSTec chain and the growing solar en- Philippines in eff ectively meet- and its partners to work jointly More than 30 countries to attend ergy market in the Philippines, ing these common targets. with the Philippines in a wide as well as possible collaboration Under the Philippines’ Re- range of solar industry develop- opportunities. newable Energy Roadmap 2017- ment areas. QSTec is Mena’s fi rst fully-in- 2040, the country aims to devel- “QSTec spans the entire solar value chain - from polysilicon to Doha International Book Fair solar modules, right through to developing advanced manufac- turing technologies for the solar QNA intellectually and scientifi cally.” celebration of the events of the press conference to be held later. and semi-conductor industries. Doha He said this is consistent with the cultural year Qatar-Germany He pointed out that currently As such, QSTec, coupled with vision of the Ministry of Culture 2017”, he added. work on the preparation for the the strength of its global net- and Sports – “towards a con- He said that the audience of the Doha International Book Fair is work, is well-placed to assist in he 28th edition of the scious society with an authentic exhibition will be delighted by a in progress, adding that the Fair is helping meet Philippines’ solar Doha International Book conscience and a healthy body.” special cultural programme of- one of the long standing and most energy targets.” TFair, organised by the Al-Buhashim said that the fered by the French pavilion. The important exhibitions in the Ara- Underscoring friendly Qatari- Ministry of Culture and Sports, exhibition, this year, receives Ministry of Culture and Tourism of bian Gulf region, stressing the Filipino ties, al-Hajri explained will kick off on November 29, Arab and international atten- Turkey will participate extensively authorities are keen to promote that the existing strength in bi- and conclude on December 5, at tion, adding that there are more as well as a number of Turkish the services and overcome the lateral relations served as an im- Doha Exhibition and Convention than 25 publishing houses on the publishing houses, besides distin- diffi culties facing the participat- portant foundation with which Centre, with the participation of waiting list so far. “At the Arab guished contributions from China, ing publishers. to further expand business and more than 30 Arab and foreign level, we have a distinguished Iran, India, Malaysia and others. The Doha International Book economic bonds and develop countries and hundreds of pub- participation from Jordan, which The 28th edition of the ex- Fair will be attended by all the strategic partnerships for solar lishing houses. includes about 48 publishing hibition is accompanied by a State’s institutions concerned industry growth. Ibrahim Abdulrahim al-Bu- houses, Oman and Kuwait as cultural programme, in which a with publishing and culture, as “His Excellency Mr Cusi has hashim, Director of Public Li- well as Maghreb countries, Su- group of intellectuals from Qa- well as a special pavilion by the exerted great eff orts to accelerate braries and Heritage at the Min- dan, Iraq, Syria and Lebanon. tar and the Arab world, as well as Ministry of Culture and Sports. the growth of solar and renew- istry of Culture and Sports, who “At the international level, those from other countries, will The most important of which able energy in the Philippines is also Director of the Doha In- there are distinguished partici- take part, he added, noting that is to focus on the recommenda- and we look forward to harness- ternational Book Fair, said in a pants from a number of coun- the announcement of the cul- tions of the fi rst youth forum, ing our respective resources and statement to Qatar News Agency tries that have a weight and tural programme, statistics of to inform the youth of what has pooling together our collective (QNA) yesterday that the new cultural presence, including the publishing houses and partici- been done so far, as well as listen QSTec chairman and CEO Dr Khalid Klefeekh al-Hajri and the brainpower to build new solar round will be held under the Federal Republic of Germany. pating countries as well as par- to their ideas in a way that pro- Philippines’ Department of Energy secretary Alfonso G Cusi during a partnerships for growth,” al- slogan “Within the society and Germany is the guest of honour ticipants from within the State motes youth work and achieves recent meeting in Doha. Hajri said. the advancement of knowledge, at the exhibition...as part of the will be disclosed in detail at a the vision of Qatar 2030. Ooredoo unveils digital workplace solution at Qatar Data Centre

oredoo has an- nounced the launch Oof a new digital workplace solution as part of the ongoing digitisation strategy from its Qatar Data Centre. Working closely with its partners, Qatar Data Centre has implemented the latest Remedy Service Manage- ment Suite to “accelerate its response to customer issues and requests, elimi- nate recurring incidents and managing change more eff ectively”, according to a press statement from Oore- Qatar Data Centre. doo. The Qatar Data Centre shopping experience with to truly boost our customer securely and reliably as Digital Workplace will im- a simple interface, service experience and save our part of its commitment prove customer satisfaction catalogue tailored for each business customers time towards Qatar National by simplifying customer customer, live chat 24/7 and money.” Vision 2030. ticket submissions from and more, the statement This is the latest invest Ooredoo Data Centres pro- computers, smartphones notes. for Ooredoo in its national vide a full range of services, and tablets. Yousuf Abdulla al-Ku- network of data centres, including Hosting & Co-lo- The result is enhanced baisi, COO of Ooredoo Qa- which are providing an im- cation, Cloud Services, Stor- responsiveness, lower costs tar, said: “Having such an portant foundation for in- age & Web Content Delivery, and a competitive edge. enhanced knowledge base novation and development Data Backup & Restoration, The Digital Workplace will help our customers in Qatar. Business Continuity & Disas- will help Qatar Data Centre have a better understanding In launching the new ter Recovery, Infrastructure customers by giving them of their services and hope- Digital Workplace at Monitoring & Management self-service access to cus- fully enable them to solve QDC5, Ooredoo is step- and IT Security. tomised IT services with- small issues on their own ping up its ongoing efforts For more information, out the need to go through – which will empower their to ensure that businesses one can visit: http://www. the service desk. It has been employees. We’ve devel- can access the latest gen- ooredoo.qa/en/OORE- designed to off er an online oped the Digital Workspace eration of smart solutions DOO_DATA_CENTER

NHRC highlights Qatar’s eff orts in enhancing human rights

QNA ment that the celebration, man Rights Training and rights in society. Doha the15th since the establish- Documentation Centre for In recent years, the ment of the NHRC, on No- South-West Asia and the NHRC has been keen vember 11, 2002, which was Arab Region. to make the celebra- he National Human held in the cultural village Al-Mahmoud noted that tion open in order to al- Rights Committee Katara, included many ed- such meetings reaffi rmed low participation for all T(NHRC) celebrated ucational activities related the interdependence of groups of society and for yesterday the Qatari Human to the principles of rights as state institutions and the the positive interaction of Rights Day, which falls on well as recreational, social, common denominators that the observance. the 11th of November each and voluntary programmes, combine them in terms of The purpose of this day’s year, the anniversary of the with the participation of their goals and mission with celebration is to highlight establishment of the Com- several institutions and important humanitarian is- the State’s eff orts in en- mittee. specialised centres in the sues that highlight the vi- hancing human rights by Abdullah al-Mahmoud, country, such as children sion of the National Human urging the institutions to Head of the NHRC Pub- and people with special Rights Committee (NHRC) exert more eff orts to pro- lic Relations and Media needs, besides the Doha- in spreading and estab- mote the culture of human Unit said in a press state- based United Nations Hu- lishing a culture of human rights. Gulf Times Sunday, November 12, 2017 3 QATAR

Young lawyers debate peaceful resolution of international disputes

atari junior lawyers tions of how to improve the Qatar Law Forum following pre- opened the Qatar Law international mechanisms for vious successful events in 2009 QForum 2017 with a debate resolving disputes. The dis- and 2012, according to a press on the varying eff ectiveness of cussion involved a comparison statement. diff erent legal methods available of the different international Faisal al-Sahouti, CEO of to resolve international disputes. organisations responsible for QICDRC, said: “Junior lawyers Identified as future leaders resolving disputes, such as the are an integral part of the Qatar in the law, the debate drew to- World Trade Organisation, In- Law Forum programme as we gether the brightest of young ternational Court of Justice, hope it will help promote a com- legal minds from Hamad Bin International Criminal Court, mitment and understanding of Khalifa University Law School International Tribunal of the the rule of law among the young and Qatar University College of Sea and UN Security Council, Qatari legal community. Law (QU-LAWC) to exchange with an examination of speed “We are delighted to welcome their views in front of a panel of of process, costs, number of students from Qatar University Qatari legal experts, including cases handled and users by na- and Hamad Bin Khalifa Univer- HE Dr Ali bin Fetais al-Marri and other speakers at the discussion yesterday. PICTURE: Noushad Thekkayil Sheikh Thani al-Thani, mem- tionality. sity, and no doubt the experi- ber of the Qatar Law Associa- Organised by the Rule of Law ence and knowledge these junior tion and board member of the and Anti-Corruption Centre lawyers gained from Qatar Law Qatar International Centre for and Qatar International Court Forum will be invaluable towards Arbitration and Conciliation, and Dispute Resolution Centre their future careers and develop- and Dr Mohamed al-Khulaifi, (QICDRC), 2017 marks the third ment.” Qatar Law Forum discusses dean of QU-LAWC. The debate was held in the context of the Qatar Law Forum ROLACC Board of Trustees holds meeting theme: Goal 16 of the United Na- tions Sustainable Development HE the Attorney-General of attorney-general of the US steps to combat corruption Goals (Peace, Justice and Strong Qatar and president of the Rule Michael Mukasey, and former Institutions), and the United of Law and Anti-Corruption British attorney-general Baron Nations Charter stating that all Centre (ROLACC), Dr Ali bin Peter Goldsmith. HE Dr al-Marri atar Law Forum 2017 velopment Goals: Peace, Justice Combating corruption is a from the rule of law when people member-states shall settle their Fetais al-Marri, held a meeting started the meeting with a began yesterday with a and Strong Institutions, with wide-ranging process and the are displaced. international disputes by peace- with the Centre’s Board of welcome speech for the Board Qpanel discussion on anti- Lord Phillips opening the ses- high-calibre panel touched on The audience heard about the ful methods in the interests of Trustees recently. The Board members. corruption led by HE Dr Ali bin sion stating former UN Secre- a number of anti-corruption inherent bias against displaced international peace, security and headed by HE Dr al-Marri The meeting reviewed various Fetais al-Marri, Attorney-Gen- tary General Kofi Annan’s words measures including criminali- people and refugees, how the in- justice. consists of former president plans of the Centre for 2018 eral of Qatar and president of the on how corruption undermines sation of corruption, eff ective fl ux of refugees to the European The junior lawyers recog- of Tunisia Dr Mohamed and also discussed its current Board of Trustees of the Rule of the rule of law, leads to a viola- prosecution, enforcement, Union have tested some mem- nised the worldwide challeng- al-Marzouqi, former prime activities in addition to the Law and Anti-Corruption Cen- tion of human rights and allows proving unexplained wealth for ber states’ commitment to rules es in resolving international minister of Jordan Awn achievements for the year tre (ROLACC), and Lord Phillips, organised crime, terrorism and government offi cials and recov- protecting displaced persons, disputes by peaceful means Shawkat al-Khasawneh, former 2017. president of the Qatar Interna- other threats to human security ery of assets obtained by corrup- and the challenges of docu- and made practical sugges- tional Court and Dispute Reso- to fl ourish. tion. menting and protecting Afghan lution Centre (QICDRC). Lord Philips made the distinc- The audience also heard how refugees in Pakistan and nation- The objective of the Qatar tion between petty corruption Qatar has the highest political als who have been internally dis- Law Forum is to foster a global and grand corruption that in- will for combating corruption placed by earthquakes, fl ood and commitment to the rule of law, volves payments to public offi - in society, and that a long-term drought. and the international nature of cials to obtain lucrative govern- holistic approach is needed to Fahad al-Sulaiti, CEO of Edu- the anti-corruption debate was ment contracts, and how petty tackle this complex issue that cation Above All, highlighted refl ected in the diversity of na- corruption cannot be stopped includes education as well as a the organisation’s eff orts to pro- tions represented on the panel, without fi rst bringing an end to legal framework and enforce- tect children’s education among including Michael Mukasey, grand corruption. ment. refugee groups and displaced former attorney-general of the The speakers examined how An inspirational personal per- peoples. US, Dr Mohamed al-Marzouqi, grand corruption can be tackled spective on the rule of law from The Qatar Law Forum, organ- former president of Tunisia, and in practice from both the per- Dana Khalid al-Anzy of Geor- ised by ROLACC and QICDRC, senior leaders in law from India, spective of preventing compa- getown University Qatar and continues today with a keynote the Seychelles and the UK. nies paying large bribes to pub- Education Above All’s Youth address by HE Dr al-Marri fol- The theme of the Qatar Law lic offi cials and also measures to Advocacy Programme began the lowed by a panel discussion on Forum 2017 is Goal 16 of the prevent public offi cials receiving second panel discussion of the access to justice and fi nancial The debate focused on the varying eff ectiveness of diff erent legal methods available to resolve United Nations Sustainable De- them. day, examining requirements inclusion. international disputes. Gulf Times 4 Sunday, November 12, 2017 QATAR Ooredoo named offi cial telecom Youths attend Rota’s sponsor of Rowad Qatar Mycha training oredoo has an- ness offi cer, Sheikh Nasser businesses that enable it. nounced that it is bin Hamad bin Nasser Yousuf Abdulla al-Ku- Othe offi cial tele- al-Thani, will also be giv- baisi, COO of Ooredoo, By Joseph Varghese communication sponsor of ing a keynote speech at said, “Ooredoo is delighted Staff Reporter the upcoming Rowad Qatar and learning in Qatar. the event, highlighting the to support such an impor- - Entrepreneurship Awards As offi cial telecommu- company’s investment in tant event for Qatar and and Conference, organ- nication sponsor, Oore- supporting innovation and showcase our huge port- ore than 150 ised by Qatar Development doo will have a booth at entrepreneurship for both folio of services for busi- youths from over Bank (QDB). the event where they will the company’s future and nesses to those who need M10 countries in Taking place during the showcase the innovative Qatar’s. it most. We are investing the region are attending Global Entrepreneurship Business Collaboration So- To further demonstrate heavily in ensuring Qatar’s the Mena Youth Capacity Week, the event runs from lution, the new superfast the importance of the businesses have the digital Building in Humanitarian today until November 15 fi bre broadband portfolio culture of entrepreneur- tools they need to succeed, Action (Mycha) training, and aims to off er inspiring for businesses, Enterprise ship, which is signifi - and look forward to speak- organised by Reach Out to activities and events to mo- mobility solutions, Of- cantly boosting Qatar’s ing to some of the many Asia (Rota), a programme tivate and recognise out- fi ce 365 and Nojoom Busi- economy, there will also entrepreneurs at the event, of the Education Above All standing entrepreneurs, ness, according to a press be an Entrepreneurship who will no doubt become Foundation. Panellists at a discussion. as well as to encourage statement. Award to recognise entre- the next generation of The three-day training networking, showcasing Ooredoo’s chief busi- preneurship in Qatar and CEOs in Qatar.” programme, held at Ha- said, adding, “The work- Following the opening mad Bin Khalifa University, shops will equip the youth session, there was a panel provides participants aged participants with the skills, discussion moderated by 18-30 years with the hu- and provide them with a Dr Sultan Barakat, director, manitarian knowledge and resourceful network, which Centre for Confl ict and Hu- skills needed to plan and ex- will enable them to go about manitarian Studies, Doha ecute small-scale social and implementing a commu- Institute. community development nity project in their home During the panel discus- projects in crisis-aff ected countries.” sion, Dr Hani al-Banna, contexts. Jayathma Wickrama- president of the Humani- Tareq al-Ansari, director, nayake, UN Secretary- tarian Forum; Dr Ahmed al- International Co-operation General’s Envoy on Youth, Miraikhi, UN SG Humani- Department at the Minis- delivered a special video tarian Envoy; and Rashid try of Foreign Aff airs in Qa- speech highlighting the Khalikov, assistant secre- tar, delivered the opening role of youth in help- tary-general for Humani- speech at the event. ing people, especially in tarian Partnerships with Tareq al-Ansari speaking at “The role of youth in hu- confl ict areas. the Middle East and Central the event. manitarian action is often Essa al-Mannai, executive Asia, explored the ‘The Role overlooked. Through My- director, Rota, said that My- of Youth in Transform- home countries where they cha, we aim to bring about cha will equip participants ing Humanitarian Action: will be off ered support by a shift in mindsets, so that with the skills and knowl- How Can Stakeholders partner NGOs to implement policymakers are able to edge to become eff ective Support Youth Capacity?’. the humanitarian action realise the value of youth agents of change in humani- Once participants have projects that they devel- participation in humani- tarian action, and global completed the Mycha train- oped during the capacity tarian action,” al-Ansari ambassadors of Qatar. ing, they will return to their building initiative.

QA fl ight diverted after pilot falls ill

Qatar Airways fl ight to Doha Afrom Thiruvanan- thapuram was diverted to Goa International Air- port in India, yesterday as its pilot had fallen ill, the airline said in a travel alert. The “medical diversion” to Goa occurred nearly one hour and forty minutes after departure from the Trivandrum International Airport, Qatar Airways said. “As per Qatar Air- ways procedure in these instances, the aircraft (QR507) was diverted to the nearest airport, Goa International Airport, where our well trained fi rst offi cer landed the aircraft safely shortly be- fore 7am local time. The safety, comfort and well- being of our passengers and crew are our utmost priority, and we have sent a relief aircraft to Goa to accommodate all pas- sengers on a new fl ight to Doha, which is due to land in Doha at 5-30pm local time.”

Gulf Times 6 Sunday, November 12, 2017 QATAR Yuva Awards to be presented on Nov 16 S Korean embassy to

he fi rst edition of Yuva Awards is all Tset to take place in Qatar, organisers have announced. mark National Day The event will be held at the Asian Town Amphi- theatre on November 16. The Yuva Awards focus on selecting young per- Parvathy sonalities from various Arya walks of life from India with fl air: envoy – those who have made a and P U Chitra, will at- diff erence and inspired the tend the function, among By Peter Alagos Drama Theatre inside Ka- the Korean peninsula with youth. The ceremony will several others. Performing Business Reporter tara – the Cultural Village. Dr Shin Beom-chul at W also honour noted person- artistes include Madhu The ambassador noted Hotel on November 20, alities from Qatar, accord- Balakrishnan, Sithara, that Korean youth are also including the ‘2nd Korea- ing to a statement by the Baby Shreya, Mia, Shamna he South Korean em- active in absorbing and de- Qatar Medical Forum and organisers. Kasim and more. bassy in Doha has veloping foreign cultures the 5th Korea-Qatar High The Yuva Awards initia- Shruti Haasan The show has been con- Tlined up a series of such as breakdancing. Level Strategic Co-opera- tive features an “innova- ceived by Aplus Media in as- activities to celebrate its He said the Jinjo Crew tion Committee’, which are tive concept of awarding The event will have sociation with Qbiz Events. time-honoured and diverse won fi ve major World B-Boy slated to held next month. people who have stayed “hundreds of artistes and Tickets can be obtained on- cultural heritages, as well as contests and achieved the The medical forum is ex- away from unhealthy hab- celebrity performances, line through Q-Tickets. its upcoming National Day, fi rst B-Boy Grand Slam in pected to witness advanced its and drugs and put sheer including dance, music, Gulf Times, as offi cial which will be marked with 40 years of B-Boy history. liver and heart artery sur- hard work and dedication comedy skits, etc”. newspaper, is among the fl air. They will show dynamic gical operations, while the into their professions and Film stars such as event’s media partners. Ambassador Heung dances to the fast rhythms high-level strategic co-op- fi elds, by which they are Dulquer Salmaan, Arya, The show will start at Kyeong Park said a taek- of Korea and others, he said. eration committee meeting seen as an inspiration by Shruti Haasan, Manju 7pm on November 16, wondo competition was The Kukkiwon Taekwon- will delve on co-operation the new generation”. Warrier, Parvathy, Tovino while gates will open held yesterday at Educa- do Demonstration Team, on in trade and investment, ‘Say no to drugs’ is the Thomas, Innocent and by 4pm. tion City’s basketball sta- the other hand, will focus energy, infrastructure, slogan for the campaign, Manoj K Jayan, as well as Details about the event dium, in co-operation with on the speed of physical ac- healthcare, and agriculture. and the winners will receive prominent sports person- can be found at www.face- the Qatar Taekwondo and tions in three areas: forms, South Korean ambassador Heung Kyeong Park Speaking on the a cash prize and an award. alities such as Sreejesh book.com/yuvaaward Karate Federation and the sparring, and breaking. He Pyeongchang Winter Ol- South Korean community pointed out that during the and 19 Unesco intangible present Korean foods dur- ympics slated from Febru- in Qatar. performance, the ambassa- cultural heritages in the ing the event. ary 9 to 25, 2018, the am- “After taekwondo started dor hopes that the audience format of music, dance, and “Korean foods are gen- bassador said: “The 2018 reforming from Korean tra- will feel the fi ve underlying other communal activities. erally low-fat and healthy Pyeongchang Winter Ol- ditional martial art since tenets of taekwondo: cour- These cultural heritages because they are made ympics, 2020 Tokyo Sum- the 1940s, it has continu- tesy, integrity, persever- have provided a rich ground mainly from vegetables, mer Olympics, 2022 Beijing ously developed and spread ance, self-control and an for the contemporary K- rice and beans. Kimchi and Winter Olympics and the across the world. As of now, indomitable spirit. pop, K-drama and K-mov- main sauces, such as soy- 2022 Qatar World Cup will 80mn people are practising “Korea has time-hon- ies,” he said. bean sauce and chilli pep- strengthen the lofty ideals taekwondo as an Olympic oured and diverse cultural Preparations are now per paste, are based on the of harmony and peace in the event in 206 countries,” heritages. Korean people under way for celebration fermentation process, the confl ict-ridden globe, con- Park told reporters at a con- have continually developed of the Korean National Day result of which activates di- secutively. ference recently. their culture over more than reception and Korean Food gestion and reduces the risk “Let us start our global Tomorrow, the ‘Rhythm 2,000 years while they have Festival at the Korean em- of diabetes and other dis- campaign for harmony and of Korea’ by B-Boy Jinjo lived on the Korean penin- bassy on November 14. The eases,” he said. peace in Pyeongchang, Ko- Crew and the Kukkiwon sula without interruption. Korean embassy and two Other upcoming events rea next February and then Taekwondo Demonstration “Naturally, Korea has 12 Korean restaurants and gro- include a roundtable dis- lead it up to 2022 Qatar team will perform at the Unesco world heritage sites ceries based in Doha will cussion on the situation of World Cup.” Infrastructure work starts in three residential sub-divisions

he Public Works Au- local road network, and a thority (Ashghal) 21.4km drainage network. Thas started work on The project will be par- three new projects to de- tially completed next year velop road and drainage while the rest of the work is networks in new residential scheduled to be over by the sub-divisions - North of second quarter of 2019. Al Nasiriyah, Al Froosh and The Al Froosh and Al Al Kharaitiyat, and Rawdat Kharaitiyat project is lo- Egdaim and Ezghawa. cated in Zone 71 of Umm The three projects aim Slal Municipality and covers at providing an effi cient approximately 1,870,000 and safe road network for cubic metres to serve 420 all future road users as residential plots. Works in- well as providing drain- clude constructing 22.7km age and foul sewer infra- of a local road network and structure, Ashghal said in a 17.4km drainage network. a statement. The project will be par- This comes as part of its tially completed next year “commitment to the pri- while the remaining works ority of developing roads are scheduled to be fi nished and infrastructure for resi- by the fi rst quarter of 2019. dential sub-divisions”, the The Rawdat Egdaim and statement added. Ezghawa project provides Once these projects are roads and drainage and foul delivered, the new foul sewer infrastructure for two sewer connections will government sub-divisions. eliminate the need for septic The fi rst is located to the tanks by providing sustain- north of Celebration Street able solutions and, thereby, in Zone 71 of Umm Slal Mu- reduce the risk of polluting nicipality, while the second soil and ground water. The is located to the south of drainage solution will also Celebration Street in Zone reduce the risk of storm- 51 of Al Rayyan Municipali- water fl ooding in the three ty. Both areas consist main- areas. ly of residential units, in As part of the three addition to service facilities projects, suitable access such as mosques, schools and exit points will be and commercial buildings. provided to the new resi- The project serves 806 dential plots, in addition residential plots and in- to service utilities such cludes constructing 19.7km as electricity, water and of a local road network street lighting. and a 21km long drainage Of the three, the North of network. Al Nasiriyah project covers The project covers ap- approximately 1,920,000 proximately 1,510,000 cu- cubic metre stretching over bic metres. The part of the some parts of Umm Slal and project will be completed Al Rayyan municipalities. next year while the rest The project serves 806 resi- of works are scheduled to dential plots and includes be completed by the fi rst constructing 22.9km of a quarter of 2019.

IndiGo opens booking for Kochi and Hyderabad services Low-cost Indian airline Qatari capital. At present, IndiGo has opened bookings it operates non-stop daily for non-stop services flights to Delhi, Mumbai, from Doha to two new Kozhikode and Chennai. destinations in India - Kochi According to the schedule and Hyderabad - from shown on the IndiGo website, December 21, according to 6E1704 will depart Doha at information available on the 10.30am and arrive in Kochi carrier’s website. at 5.40pm, while 6E1703 will With this, IndiGo will fly direct depart Kochi at 6.50pm and to six Indian cities from the arrive in Doha at 9pm.

Gulf Times 8 Sunday, November 12, 2017 QATAR QGBC launches Green Life sustainability campaign atar Green Build- personalise the concept in an collaborative environment be- sustainability goals of Qatar ing Council (QGBC), eff ort to create community- tween members of the public National Vision 2030. Through Qa member of Qatar driven sustainable lifestyles and diff erent industries to work Green Life, we join hands with Foundation (QF), launched the among Qatar’s residents. It is together towards achieving the QGBC, AZF and WCM-Q to give Green Life national sustain- designed to demonstrate how sustainability goals of the State a comprehensive perspective ability campaign at the opening sustainability can become of Qatar.” of sustainability from the en- of Qatar Sustainability Week part of everyday life, and how Nesreen al-Rifai, chief com- vironmental, social and human 2017 recently. the public can get rewards munications offi cer at WCM- perspectives. This, in turn, will Meshal al-Shamari, director, by tracking their eff orts, the Q, said: “We’re delighted that create a healthier environment QGBC, welcomed Green Life’s statement explains. ‘Sahtak Awalan: Your Health and healthier citizens.” strategic partners - the National The application allows us- First’, the fl agship public health Nasser Abdullah al-Hajri, di- Programme for Conservation & ers to track their everyday green campaign of Weill Cornell rector of PR and Communica- Energy Effi ciency (Tarsheed), practices such as purchasing Medicine-Qatar, has signed this tion at AZF, added: “The MoU Aspire Zone Foundation (AZF) products, participating in initia- progressive, forward-thinking will enable AZF’s employees to and Weill Cornell Medicine- tives and attending Qatar Sus- MoU with QGBC. We share the benefi t from QGBC’s expertise Qatar (WCM-Q), a QF partner tainability Week events. Users view of QGBC that sustainable, through customised training university, at an offi cial sign- collect points that can then be environment-friendly buildings courses that focus on operating ing and launch of the national redeemed for rewards. are essential to the promotion of and maintaining green build- campaign at the Qatar National Commenting on the offi cial good health in the community, ings, and corporate sustain- Convention Centre. launch, al-Shamari said: “This and encourage the younger gen- ability reporting. AZF will also Green Life is the world’s initiative aims to support Qatar’s eration to appreciate sustainable collaborate with QGBC to sup- fi rst sustainability loyalty pro- commitment to sustainabil- lifestyles through our Project port an innovative campaign gramme, QGBC said in a state- ity practices and environmental Greenhouse initiative.” that aims to spread awareness ment, noting that the national protection in the nation’s tran- Abdulaziz Ahmed al-Hamma- about a variety of sustainability education campaign aims to sition to becoming a sustain- di, conservation and energy effi - activities among the community raise public awareness on what it able and diverse economy as ciency manager at Qatar General in Qatar.” means to be ‘green’. set out in Qatar National Vision Electricity & Water Corporation To take part in the Green Life The initiative uses the Green 2030. It is a demonstration of (Kahramaa), noted: “Tarsheed initiative, one can visit www. Life mobile application to our commitment to creating a supports the comprehensive greenlifehero.com Meshal al-Shamari with strategic partners at the launch of campaign. PHCC to host international primary HMC plans month-long activities to mark World Diabetes Day amad Medical Cor- also members of the public healthcare conference next week poration’s (HMC) to make the behavioural Hdiabetes clinics changes needed to pro- receive more than 3,000 tect their health,” said Prof he Primary Health patients each month, Abou-Samra. Care Corporation the corporation revealed “We work with patients T(PHCC) will hold the yesterday. with diabetes to help them third International Primary The National Diabetes understand the impor- Health Care Conference un- Center at Hamad General tance of controlling their der the patronage of HE the Hospital was opened in Prof Abdul-Badi Abou- blood glucose levels, and Minister of Public Health Dr 2013 and receives 2,000 Samra, chairman, Internal we work with patients Hanan Mohamed al-Kuwari patients each month. The Medicine at HMC. who have been diagnosed from November 17-19, at National Diabetes Cent- as pre-diabetic, or who The Ritz-Carlton Doha. er at Al Wakra Hospital self-care skills related to are at risk for diabetes, to “It is the fi rst such con- opened a year later and blood glucose monitoring, help them understand the ference since the establish- cares for around 400 pa- healthy eating and physical signifi cance of making the ment of the PHCC, as an tients each month while activity,” said Prof Abdul- lifestyle and behavioural independent corporation, the Diabetes in Pregnancy Badi Abou-Samra, chair- changes needed to reduce and the third conference on Clinic at Women’s Hos- man, Internal Medicine at their chance of developing primary healthcare in Qatar. pital receives around 600 HMC and director of the the condition,” he added. The international confer- patients per month, ac- Qatar Metabolic Institute. Pre-diabetes happens ence will be held under the cording to a statement. “HMC looks beyond the when one’s blood glucose slogan ‘Healthier Commu- In recognition of World care provided in the hospi- level is higher than normal nities, Brighter Future’ for Dr Mariam Abdulmalik, Dr Zulakha al-Wahidi, executive director of managing director’s off ice Nasser Abdulla, and deputy Diabetes Day, held annu- tal setting and is working but not high enough to be three days,” Dr Mariam Ab- chief medical off icer HMC Dr Abdullatif al-Khal at the press conference yesterday. PICTURE: Shemeer Rasheed ally on November 14, HMC to promote the benefi ts of a called diabetes. It is eff ec- dulmalik, managing direc- has planned a full month healthy lifestyle as a strat- tively a warning sign and tor of PHCC, told reporters most scientifi c and medi- health services and con- the conference will have important platform for pro- of activities to highlight egy for disease prevention. an indication that an indi- yesterday. cal developments and out- tinuous development as broad global participation fessional and scientifi c in- the importance of diabetes “Diabetes is a complex vidual could develop Type “The conference aims to puts within the framework well as raise the level of and expected to be a land- teraction and exchange of awareness, education, and disease which can lead to 2 diabetes. Research stud- enhance primary health- of primary care, based on awareness and highlight the mark for primary healthcare experiences among health- research. debilitating long-term ies have found that moder- care and family medicine research fi ndings and sci- importance of healthy life- in Qatar and the region, with care professionals, and “These facilities serve as complications. Education ate weight loss and exercise status as a basic model of entifi c evidence. The con- styles to build productive the participation of world- medical personnel to de- one-stop shops in which is an essential element of can prevent or delay Type 2 care in the modern health ference will also refl ect the communities,” he added. wide primary healthcare velop primary health serv- patients can speak with the diabetes care plan at diabetes among those at system. It will review the PHCC’s commitment to According to the offi cial, leaders. ices. It will also contribute specialist doctors, renew HMC. Education empow- high risk of developing the “More than 750 delegates to deepening expertise and prescriptions and learn ers not only patients but disease. are expected to take part in knowledge among primary the three-day conference. healthcare professionals, in Approximately 58 seminars addition to its contribution and scientifi c lectures will to improving performance be delivered by senior ex- co-operation and co-or- perts and guests from sever- dination between primary, al countries such as the UK, secondary and tertiary care the US, Canada, Australia, services,” she added. Oman, Kuwait, Lebanon A total of 11 companies and several other countries, would participate in the as well as leading experts in accompanying exhibition healthcare from Qatar,” she for the international con- said. ference. The participating Dr Zulakha al-Wahidi, ex- companies include Eli Lilly ecutive director (workforce Company, Hikma Pharma- training and development), ceutical Company, Merck PHCC, said that the confer- Serono Company, Novo ence would discuss 58 local Nordisk, Pfi zer, Sanofi , No- and global working papers. vartis, AstraZeneca, Abbott, “The conference is an GSK and Bayer Consumer. Gulf Times Sunday, November 12, 2017 9 QATAR

Education conference Self-reliance Doha Bank off ers fi duciary drive makes great strides service for Indian patrons imed at further enhancing solutions, such as estate plan- Doha Bank chief interna- From Page 1 its wide-ranging banking ning, setting up private trusts, tional banking officer Frank Also, the Ministerial Group Aservices portfolio off ered will writing and rendering ex- Hamer said: “Under the guid- agreed to issue a tender to na- to resident and expatriate Indian ecutorship services. ance of the well-experienced tional companies to set up plants customers, Doha Bank has part- “Everyone takes pride in pass- Warmond professionals, that can each recycle 2mn tonnes nered with Warmond Trustees ing on the legacy to the next gen- Doha Bank’s customers can of construction waste at the and Executors Private Limited eration but its process can some- effectively manage their es- Rawdat Rashid facility, within to provide succession and estate times become tedious especially tate, which includes property, fi ve years. planning services. for those who live in a diff erent business, assets, gold, vintage The initiative aims to produce This partnership with the country away from their assets cars, heirlooms among many recycled rubble and other raw ma- Mumbai-headquartered inde- and more so when there is more other assets, during and be- terials, to reduce the demand for pendent fi duciary services com- than one heir. yond their lifetime and pre- imported rubble in construction, pany will enable Doha Bank’s “Our customers living in In- pare for unforeseen eventu- and to encourage the private sec- resident and non-resident Indian dia and abroad have often come alities.” tor to invest in this area. The ini- (NRI) customers to avail the serv- across diffi culties in planning “For the fi rst time in Qatar, we tiative is part of the government’s ices of specialists for managing succession and fi nancial aff airs. are excited to bring these new ongoing eff orts to reduce waste their wills, estate and succession As the preferred bank, we under- services for our customers to en- that aff ects the environment and planning, according to a state- stand that it is among our key re- able them to secure their future to implement the Qatar National HE Sheikha Hind bint Hamad al-Thani, vice-chairperson and CEO of Qatar Foundation, ment. sponsibilities to provide our cus- and help them pass on heritance Vision 2030. attended the TEDxAlDafnaED conference in Doha yesterday along with other dignitaries. For the “fi rst time in Qatar”, tomers with solutions for all their without complications, ambigu- Other projects in the fi elds of The conference was designed to provide a platform for university students, educators and NRI customers can now avail of banking needs and the new col- ities, disputes, and high costs for food security, health, education, experts to discuss education-related issues, exchange ideas on the future of education and this service whereby special- laboration is a natural outcome generations to come,” said Gul industry, tourism and logistics de- provide eff icient solutions to enhance the education system at the local and regional levels. ists will off er customers of Doha of this vision,” said Doha Bank Khan, chief retail banking offi cer velopment are under consideration. Bank’s tailor-made and bespoke Group CEO Dr R Seetharaman. at Doha Bank.

UDC off ers even more options to The Pearl-Qatar residents, visitors

nited Development Com- fence services, legal document pany (UDC), master devel- authentication, tourism licences, Uoper of The Pearl-Qatar, embassy services, customs clear- has launched a number of services ance, Kahramaa services, trans- within the framework of its inte- lation, household employment grated strategy to improve its of- services, driving licence services, fering and provide residents with foreign labour recruitment as well eff ortless and time-saving access as educational centres and nurs- to services in close proximity to eries licensing among many other their area of residence or business. services. UDC has also recently Single window services ‘Khad- launched a free luxury limousine amati’ were announced to facilitate service available to The Pearl- the processing of selected trans- Qatar’s residents and visitors, actions for investors, retailers and who can call 800-6222 to request residents of the island including a driver between 10am and 10pm. the facilitation of passport and im- The introduction of added value migration-related services, traffi c services refl ects UDC’s continued department paperwork, company commitment to providing smart registration and licensing, medical services to the island’s residents. institution licensing and medical Earlier this year, the company commission services. and Ooredoo, launched a free Wi- Other support services include Fi service to enable residents, visi- security surveillance system ap- tors and shoppers to enjoy a unique proval for retail stores, civil de- Internet experience. ‘Khadamati’ service request counter at The Pearl-Qatar’s Registry Department Off ice.

The free luxury limousine service is available to The Pearl-Qatar’s residents and visitors. Gulf Times 10 Sunday, November 12, 2017 REGION ‘More steps needed’ to Bahrain calls pipeline blast ease Yemen blockade ‘terrorism’ act AFP millions of victims”. Sanaa Stylianides echoed Lowcock’s Agencies sion of the pumping of oil to concerns. Manama the State of Bahrain,” the Saudi Yemen “is suff ering the Ministry of Energy, Industry he Saudi-led coalition’s world’s worst humanitarian cri- and Mineral Resources said. easing of its blockade on sis, with more than two-thirds ahrain yesterday blamed “The Ministry of Energy also Tfamine-threatened Yem- of its population in need of hu- a “terrorist act” for an oil confi rmed that it has increased en does not go far enough, the manitarian assistance,” he said Bpipeline fi re near Mana- its security precautions at all European Union and United Na- in a statement. ma, later brought under control its facilities, and that all these tions said. “The EU shares the concerns by emergency services. facilities enjoy the highest lev- The coalition shut down expressed by Lowcock and calls “It is an act of sabotage, a els of protection and safety,” it Yemen’s borders on Monday in for full and unrestrained ac- serious terrorist act aimed at added in a statement. response to a missile attack by cess to be restored immedi- harming the interests of the na- After authorities quashed Houthi rebels that was inter- ately, to avoid Yemen suff ering tion and endangering the pop- protests in 2011, militants have cepted near Riyadh airport. the largest famine in decades,” ulation,” the interior ministry launched deadly bombing and On Wednesday, it reopened Stylianides said. said on Twitter. shooting attacks against secu- the southern port of Aden, con- Geekie said no aid had gone Emergency services brought rity forces that Manama blames trolled by coalition-backed gov- into Aden yet and the reopening the blaze under control after it on Tehran. ernment forces, and the Wadea of the Wadea crossing did not af- was discovered early yesterday, Iran denies any role in Bah- crossing on the Saudi-Yemeni fect UN operations. it said, adding that national oil rain’s unrest. border was reopened the next The transport minister of company Bapco had turned off Bahrain relies on the Abu day. Yemen’s internationally recog- the fl ow of oil. Safa oilfi eld for the majority of The EU’s commissioner nised government, Murad al- “Terrorist acts witnessed by its oil. for humanitarian aid and cri- Halimi, said two airports in Aden the country in the recent period It shares the fi eld with Saudi sis management, Christos and the loyalist-held southern are carried out through direct Arabia. Stylianides, said yesterday that city of Seiyun would reopen contacts and instructions from Oil to Bahrain is transport- more steps were needed. from today. Iran,” a statement quoted Inte- ed via the 55km A-B pipeline “Initial measures to resume Yemeni media quoted him as rior Minister Sheikh Rashid bin which has a capacity of 230,000 operations in Aden port and to People look at the damage in the aftermath of an air strike in the Yemeni capital of Sanaa yesterday. saying the national carrier, Yem- Abdullah al-Khalifah said. barrels per day (bpd). open Wadea border crossing are The Saudi-led military coalition carried out two air strikes on the defence ministry in Yemen’s rebel-held enia, would resume its fl ights Residents close to the inci- A new 350,000-barrels per a step in the right direction,” he capital Sanaa late on Friday, witnesses said. to and from the two airports, to dent were being evacuated to day oil pipeline between the said. destinations including Amman a safe shelter, the statement two countries will be complet- “The EU urges the coalition to supplies is critical for the Yem- Yemen, despite the reopening of lifted, especially Hodeida, for and Cairo. added. ed next year and will serve the ensure the immediate resump- eni population and must be fa- Aden and Wadea. both humanitarians and for The sea port at Hodeida, Saudi Arabia’s energy min- planned expansion of Bahrain’s tion of the UN’s fl ights and ac- cilitated by all parties to the con- “Humanitarian movements commercial imports.” which is in rebel-held territory, istry said pumping to Bahrain refi nery capacity. tivities in the ports of Hodeida fl ict,” Stylianides added. into Yemen remain blocked,” UN aid chief Mark Lowcock is key to UN aid eff orts as it is had been suspended and the Arabian Light crude oil will and Saleef and the opening of On Friday, the UN offi ce for said OCHA spokesman Russell told the Security Council this closest to the majority of people kingdom was stepping up se- fl ow from Saudi Aramco’s land borders for humanitar- the co-ordination of humanitar- Geekie. week that unless the blockade in need. curity precautions at its own Abqaiq plant via the 115km new ian relief and basic commercial ian aid, OCHA, said the coalition “The reopening of the port in is lifted, Yemen will face “the The coalition accuses rebels of facilities. pipeline, 73km of which will commodities,” he said. was still blocking desperately- Aden is not enough. We need to largest famine the world has using aid shipments to smuggle “The attack on the pipeline run overland and the rest under “The delivery of life-saving needed UN aid deliveries to see the blockade of all the ports seen for many decades, with in weapons. was followed by the suspen- the Gulf. Gulf Times Sunday, November 12, 2017 11 ARAB WORLD

Lebanon wants Saudi to clarify mystery about Hariri’s absence

Reuters Aoun wants Saudi Arabia Beirut “with which we have brotherly ties and deeply-rooted friend- ship, to clarify the reasons pre- ebanon’s president called venting Prime Minister Hariri’s on Saudi Arabia yesterday return,” the statement from his Lto clarify why Lebanese offi ce said. Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri In in his phone call to Aoun, could not leave the kingdom and Macron stressed France’s com- return home. mitment to Lebanon and its sov- A senior Lebanese offi cial said ereignty, Aoun’s offi ce said. President Michel Aoun told for- A French foreign ministry eign ambassadors that Hariri, spokesman had said on Friday: who resigned suddenly while “We would like Saad al-Hariri in Saudi Arabia a week ago, had to have all his freedom of move- been “kidnapped” and should ment and be fully able to play the benefi t from immunity as prime essential role that is his in Leba- minister. non.” “Lebanon does not accept its A Lebanese offi cial who de- prime minister being in a situation clined to be named said Aoun, at odds with international trea- who has been convening high- ties,” Aoun said in a statement. level meetings with politicians Hariri’s resignation, which and diplomats, told ambassadors A member of the Syrian pro-regime forces mans a heavy machine gun mounted on the back of a pickup truck as comrades look towards him, near Abu al-Zuhur military airport in caught even his close aides by on Friday that Hariri was kid- the Idlib province countryside yesterday. surprise, has plunged Lebanon napped. into crisis. Hariri’s resignation unravelled It has thrust the country back a political deal among Lebanon’s to the forefront of a power strug- rival factions that made him gle between Saudi Arabia and prime minister and Aoun, a Hez- Iran - a rivalry that has wrought bollah ally, president last year. upheaval in Syria, Iraq, Yemen The coalition government and Bahrain. included Hezbollah, a heavily Aoun added that anything armed military and political or- IS recaptures former Hariri has said or may say “does ganisation. not refl ect reality” due to the Hezbollah leader Sayyed Has- mystery surrounding his status san Nasrallah said on Friday that since his shock resignation in a Saudi had declared war on Leba- broadcast from Saudi Arabia. non and his group, accusing Riy- Lebanese authorities believe adh of forcing Hariri to resign to Riyadh is holding Hariri, two top destabilise Lebanon. border bastion in Syria Lebanese government offi cials, a The comments mirrored an senior politician close to Hariri accusation by Riyadh earlier this AFP Trump and Putin also “con- “IS fully recaptured Albu as Mosul in Iraq, and Raqa and Yesterday, Jordan announced and a fourth source have said. week that Lebanon and Hezbol- Damascus fi rmed their determination to Kamal, and regime forces and Deir Ezzor in Syria. that it had agreed with the Unit- French President Emmanuel lah had declared war on the king- defeat ISIS”, an alternative name allied militia are now between Albu Kamal is the last signifi - ed States and Russia to formally Macron, who made an unsched- dom. for IS. 1 to 2km from the city limits,” cant Syrian town it controls. establish such a zone in south- uled visit to Riyadh this week, The United States said yester- he Islamic State group The militant group overran Rami Abdel Rahman, head of the Losing it would cap the ern Syria to build on a ceasefi re phoned Aoun yesterday to dis- day it “rejects any eff orts by mi- recaptured Albu Kamal swathes of territory in Syria and Britain-based Observatory, said group’s reversion to an under- already in place there. cuss the crisis, after comments litias within Lebanon or by any Tin eastern Syria yesterday Iraq in 2014, but its self-styled yesterday. ground guerrilla organisation Multiple rounds of peace talks by a French offi cial that suggest- foreign forces to threaten Leba- after a fi erce fi ghtback to save “caliphate” has since been Across the border, Iraqi forces with no urban base. hosted by the United Nations ed Paris believed Hariri may not non’s stability or use Lebanon the last urban bastion of its col- whittled down to a pocket of seized yesterday several villages IS rose to prominence in the in Geneva have failed to resolve be a free man. as a base from which to threaten lapsing “caliphate”. land along the border between from the militants in an off en- chaos of Syria’s confl ict, which Syria’s entrenched confl ict. Riyadh says Hariri is free and others in the region.” The militant rebound came the two countries. sive to capture the last IS-held broke out in 2011 with protests Yesterday’s joint statement had decided to resign because The White House called Hariri as the United States and Russia IS is putting up a fi erce de- section of their country. against President Bashar al- from the US and Russian presi- Iran’s Lebanese ally, Hezbollah, “a trusted partner” and referred issued a surprise joint presiden- fence there, particularly for the The operation’s commander, Assad. dents urged Syria’s warring was calling the shots in his coali- to him as prime minister. tial statement saying there was vital Syrian border town of Albu General Abdelamir Yarallah, It has since evolved into a sides to take part in a new round tion government. US Secretary of State Rex Till- “no military solution” to Syria’s Kamal, said the Syrian Observa- said his forces captured Ruma- complex war that has killed of talks later this month in Swit- Western countries have looked erson warned other countries grinding six-year war. tory for Human Rights monitor- na and 10 other villages as they more than 330,000 people, zerland. on with alarm at rising regional and groups against using Leba- The two countries have long ing group. worked their way towards the forced millions more to fl ee, and “What the joint statement tensions. non as vehicle for a larger proxy backed opposite sides in Syria, Syrian regime forces and al- Euphrates Valley town of Rawa, left much of the country in ru- indicates is a commitment to Hariri has made no public re- fi ght in the Middle East. but the Kremlin yesterday said lied militia from Lebanon, Iraq the last Iraqi town still held by ins. get this to a political reconcili- marks since quitting last week, Tillerson told reporters on Fri- US President Donald Trump and and Iran overran Albu Kamal IS. Violence has broadly de- ation and peace process. That when he said he feared assas- day there was no indication Har- Russian counterpart Vladimir on Thursday but lost the town The militant group has in the creased since a series of “de- serves their interest, it serves sination and accused Iran along iri was being held against his will Putin made progress during a again just two days later after a space of a few weeks seen its escalation zones” have been put our interest,” a senior US State with Hezbollah of sowing strife but that the United States was brief meeting on the sidelines of string of IS counter-attacks and “caliphate” shrink to a small in place in recent months in bat- Department official said yes- in the Arab world. monitoring the situation. a summit in Vietnam. ambushes. rump and lost major cities such tlefronts across the country. terday. Under siege, doctors forced to improvise medical care

AFP tient, says 23-year-old nurse of our surgical equipment, from eting prices for whatever is avail- to the Internet to carry out real- The procedure was nerve- Members of the Al-Shifaa Douma, Syria Anas Daher. gloves to tubes and even the sur- able. time consultations with special- wracking, but ultimately suc- medical organisation, their faces With the operation over, Daher gical blades and sutures – even Residents of the rebel enclave ists. cessful. covered by surgical masks, fi ll removes his surgical gloves and, if it’s for a single stitch, and just have found creative ways to se- Hussam Adnan, a 44-year-old “The child’s heart slowed for brown glass bottles with a white urgical consultations via instead of disposing of them, 1cm long.” cure their everyday needs, in- surgeon, was one of four doctors a few moments, and we felt our lotion. Facebook, reused sutures scrubs them with water and soap Omar said he and his team are cluding burning plastic to gen- who, in October, operated on an own hearts stop with him. We “We produce serums to clean Sand gloves, and half-doses and tosses them into a red basket aware the materials are meant for erate crude fuel and using solar infant with an esophageal defor- revived him, his pulse started up wounds because it’s rare to fi nd of expired drugs: doctors in a be- full of other pairs. a single patient, but they had no panels to power water pumps. mation. again and the smiles returned to high-quality serums. We also sieged opposition enclave near They are taken into an adjacent choice. Eastern Ghouta’s doctors, too, But none of the gathered sur- our faces,” Adnan says. produce anti-lice medication Syria’s capital are improvising to room, powdered and placed into The United Nations warned on have had to make do with what- geons were children’s specialists, But within 48 hours, their and other creams for skin ulcers cope with shortages. a sealed jar with sterilisation tab- Thursday that some 400 civil- ever is readily at hand. so they used Facebook’s video young patient – frail from a and scabies,” says Ammar Abdo, Blood and skid marks stain the lets for 24 hours so they can be ians are in urgent need of evacu- They ration medication, giving messaging application to get nutritional deficiency caused an Al-Shifaa pharmacist. fl oor of a dimly lit operating room used again. ation from Eastern Ghouta, in- patients half the required dose guidance from a colleague on the by food shortages – passed The organisation is even using in Douma, a rebel-held town in “We doctors in Eastern Ghouta cluding 29 who would die unless of drugs or expired medication, outside. away from medical complica- a large electrical loom to make the Eastern Ghouta region, where are taking steps that are medical- they were allowed to leave imme- Omar says. “Normally, this kind of op- tions. its own gauze, but they can only a surgeon was hard at work ex- ly undesirable,” says Mohamed diately. Hospitals limit operations to eration would be referred to Da- In addition to rationing, Dou- produce around 8kg a day. tracting medical sutures from a al-Omar, the head of the surgi- Since 2013, Syrian government emergency surgery and the few mascus. But because of the siege, ma’s struggling medical services “It’s barely enough to cover patient. cal department at the Damascus troops have imposed a devas- remaining surgeons are forced we’ve been forced to carry it out have also turned to locally made anything but we’re doing our “After we fi nish with the Countryside Specialised Hospi- tating siege on Eastern Ghouta, to conduct procedures outside of here, via Internet communica- supplies. best. It’s just an alternative for thread, we wash it and sterilise tal. leading to rampant food and their specialities. tion with a children’s surgeon A small underground cellar in the situation we’re in,” Abdo, 30, it again” for use on another pa- “We are re-sterilising most medical shortages and skyrock- For guidance, they have turned outside Syria,” Adnan says. the town is buzzing with activity. says.

Over 100,000 commemorate Israel downs Syrian Arafat in Hamas-run Gaza drone over Golan

AFP cation,” Israeli Defence Minis- AFP Gaza to the Palestinian Author- bas, who has not visited Gaza Jerusalem ter Avigdor Lieberman said in a Gaza City ity led by current Fatah leader since his allies were thrown out statement. Mahmud Abbas by December 1, by Hamas in 2007, hailed his “We will not allow the con- could end years of bitter division predecessor’s legacy. he Israeli army said it had solidation of a Shia axis in Syria” ens of thousands of Pal- between the rival factions. “Our Palestinian people, who shot down a Russian- as a base for operations against estinians gathered in Gaza Tens of thousands of peo- have always loved you as a great Tmade Syrian drone carry- Israel, he added, referring to the Tyesterday to commemo- ple from across the Gaza Strip leader, still have that love, re- ing out a reconnaissance mission presence of Syrian regime allies rate the death of veteran leader poured into Saraya Square in spect and loyalty.” over the Israeli-occupied Golan Iran and Lebanese group Hez- Yasser Arafat in the fi rst such Gaza City from early morning, Abbas said the Palestinians Heights yesterday. bollah in the war-torn neigh- memorial in the Hamas-run ter- hours before the keynote speech- were pushing ahead to seal rec- The drone was intercepted by bouring country. ritory since 2007. es were due to be delivered. onciliation and to achieve Ara- a Patriot missile in the demili- Israel and Syria are still tech- The anniversary event was billed Organisers said more than fat’s “dream for freedom, sover- tarised zone between the Israe- nically at war, though the armi- as a show of national unity after Ha- 100,000 people were in attendance. eignty and independence on our li- and Syrian-controlled parts stice line on the Golan Heights mas struck a reconciliation agree- Participants waved Palestin- Palestinian national soil”. of the Golan, a military spokes- had remained largely quiet for ment last month with the rival Fatah ian fl ags and placards calling for “There is no state in Gaza and woman said in a statement. decades until civil war erupted in movement founded and led by Ara- unity, as well as pictures of both there is no state without Gaza,” “The State of Israel regards Syria in 2011. fat until his death in 2004. Arafat and Abbas. he said, stressing that the Pales- with utmost seriousness any vi- Israel seized 1,200sq km of the The deal, which is supposed to In a pre-recorded speech tinian people were “united” and Fatah supporters take part in a rally marking the death anniversary olation of its sovereignty and will Golan Heights from Syria in the see Hamas cede civil control of broadcast on large screens, Ab- “refuse divisions”. of Yasser Arafat in Gaza City yesterday. respond with force to any provo- Six-Day War of 1967. Gulf Times 12 Sunday, November 12, 2017 AFRICA Somaliland set to elect president

AFP Islamic State thriving in Somalia: UN report Mogadishu An Islamic State faction in Somalia has checkpoint near Bosaso, killing five grown significantly over the past year, people. he self-proclaimed state of So- carrying out attacks in Puntland and “The group showed signs of increas- maliland will tomorrowvote for receiving some funding from Syria and ing tactical capabilities during its first Ta new president, hoping to con- Iraq, a report by UN sanctions monitors attack target a hotel,” said the UN tinue a series of democratic transitions has said. monitors. of power that sets it apart from its trou- The faction loyal to Sheikh Abdulqad- The UN report raised concerns that bled neighbour Somalia. er Mumin was targeted by US drone the Bari region could become a potential The northern territory, which is more strikes last week in the first US operation haven for foreign IS fighters as the tribally homogenous and stable than targeting IS in the Horn of Africa, US extremists are driven out of their strong- the rest of Somalia, broke away in 1991 Africa Command said. holds in Syria and Iraq. and has been striving to attain interna- In the report, the UN monitoring The IS group in Somalia “presents tional recognition ever since. group for Somalia said the IS faction, more natural appeal to foreign terrorist Three candidates are running for the which was estimated in 2016 “to number fighters than Shebaab,” whose aim is to Women from the association Ndoye Ti Be, which brings together Christians and Muslims, ex-fighters and refugees, work state’s top offi ce, seasoned politicians not more than a few dozen, has grown establish a state government by Islamic in a field in Bambari. Muse Bihi of the ruling Kulmiye party significantly in strength” and may “con- law, it added. Shebaab is aff iliated with and opposition candidates Abdirahman sist of as many as 200 fighters.” IS’s global rival Al Qaeda. Iro and Faysal Ali Warabe, who was de- Phone records from Mumin showed The Bari region has attracted a limited feated in previous elections in 2010. he was in contact with an IS operative number of foreign fighters including Elections are meant to be held every in Yemen who acts as an intermediary Sudanese national Abu Faris who is on Ravaged Central Africa attempts to fi ve years, however the poll was delayed with senior IS leaders in Iraq and Syria the US terror list for recruiting foreign for two years due to drought and other “though the exact nature of this contact fighters for Shebaab. technical issues. is unclear,” said the report. While the faction is expanding, its turn swords into ploughshares Incumbent Ahmed Mohamud Si- Former members of the faction who fighters appear to be poorly paid or not laanyo is not seeking re-election. defected in December said the Mumin paid at all. Campaigning wrapped up on Friday group received orders as well as financ- Unmarried fighters receive no salary, By Florent Vergnes, AFP Thousands of people have been cludes vital agricultural items such after weeks of rallies around the region ing from Iraq and Syria, the report said. while married militants receive $50 per Bambari, Central African Republic killed and more than 900,000 people as wheel barrows, spades, boots and for Somaliland’s third democratic elec- The group captured the town of month plus $10-$20 per child, depending displaced, almost a quarter of the to- veterinary kits. tion. Qandala in Puntland’s Bari region in on the age. tal population. The scheme is part of the UN’s The vote is set to be the most sophis- October 2016, declaring it the seat of The report estimated that the salary round him, goats bleat and In the midst of this gloom, peacekeeping strategy to reconstruct ticated yet with some 700,000 voters the Islamic Caliphate in Somalia before payments were between $3,000 and beat their hooves in excite- Ngueringu and a group of other local CAR through “disarmament, de- registered using biometric eye scanners being pushed out two months later by $9,000 per month, allowing IS leaders Ament as feeding time ap- fi ghters have chosen to try to return to mobilisation and reintegration” — a which will identify them before they Puntland forces backed by US military “to fund its insurgency on a limited proaches. Life has changed a lot for ordinary life. process launched by the government cast their ballots. advisers. budget”. Richard Ngueringu, a former mili- He has founded an agricultural in September. “The sophisticated equipment which In February, IS gunmen stormed a UN monitors said the faction will likely tiaman in his early thirties who has cooperative called Kekereke-Ti-Ye, “The goal is to train young people was used to register voters reads the eye hotel in Bosaso, the economic capital of face frequent defections from poorly witnessed some of worst things that meaning “Our Future,” in the local in techniques for growing vegetables of the individual and it’s the fi rst time Puntland, and in May the faction carried paid fighters, a problem that also aff ects humanity can off er. sango language. and self-suffi ciency. We have to boost such equipment is used in elections,” out its first suicide attack at a police Shebaab. Once a member of a so-called self- “If you remain locked in violent be- their capacity for resilience,” says said Said Ali Muse, spokesman for the defence group, he says he has wit- haviour, you will have nothing to eat Grace-a-Dieu Sathe Demonkombona national electoral commission. nessed hundreds of killings, as well as and you will suff er hugely,” Ngueringu of the FAO. He said social media will be suspend- news and social unrest they should In 1991, after years of bitter war with atrocities, in Central African Repub- says. The FAO aims to expand the ed during the counting of votes amid “disseminate accurate information and the government in Mogadishu, it de- lic’s years-long confl ict. “I brought in young ex-fi ghters scheme to involve some 1,300 young concerns of interference from outside discourage violence”. clared independence from the rest of Today, in the central town of Bam- to help with the project. I explained people in Bambari and a further 3,000 the borders of the semi-autonomous Somaliland writer and activist the country. bari, he has swapped his weapon for a to them the importance of getting across the country. state and speculation over results. Barkhad Dahir, said the election was While anarchic southern Somalia has bucket of corn meal, under an inno- together as a group to do farming, One potential new recruit is Is- “It is very diffi cult to control social crucial to proving the state’s democrat- been riven by years of fi ghting between vative scheme to help former fi ghters which was what we used to do before mael, a 17-year-old former anti- media and the overall media but we ic credentials. multiple militia forces and Islamist vio- return to civilian life. the troubles.” balaka member, who wants to become have requested the communication “It is not only the election itself lence, Somaliland has enjoyed relative “Before the troubles began, I was a The “troubles” lasted fi ve years, a farmer because the militia “do not companies to temporarily suspend the and the leader but the process and the peace. farmer. In fact I took over this farm, when Bambari was used as a base pay you and you die unnecessarily”. social media platforms,” said Muse. The fairness, the international commu- The one-person-one-vote demo- when my parents died. This is where for a militia group called the UPC — When asked about his past, Ismael ban will go into eff ect after polls close at nity is looking at us and if we are smart cratic election process in Somaliland we grew up,” says Ngueringu, a giant the Union for Peace in Centrafrique says, several times, “I didn’t do any- 6pm. enough, we will vote smoothly to show stands in stark contrast to that in So- of a man who gestures at the walls — drawn from the Fula people, also thing.” Human Rights Watch bemoaned the we are a democracy,” he told AFP. malia, which elected a president earlier with powerful, ditch-delver hands. called Fulani. But, eventually, he admits: “I went move to curb social media in a state- Somaliland, a former British protec- this year in a limited electoral process “I want to show what our fathers Ngueringu was a “section leader” on patrols with my friend, and we did ment, saying that if Somaliland au- torate, won independence in 1960 but that saw handpicked clan elders choos- did to feed us, to help us and aid our in the anti-balaka. very bad things.” thorities were concerned about fake days later joined with Somalia. ing delegates who were allowed to vote. families.” Clashes in Bambari and the Ouaka One of the main challenges of the Seen from the outside, such think- region at the turn of last year left doz- programme will be to engage fi ghters ing may seem hugely ambitious, given ens of people dead. in agricultural work, but also per- International groups CAR’s mountainous problems. Although violence continues in the suade them to ditch their weapons Deeply poor and chronically unsta- region, his cooperative now employs forever, even if confl ict again breaks sound warning over ble, the country has been gripped by 22 young men and eight young wom- out. Liberia vote delays Tanzania, Uganda leaders confl ict since 2013. en, all of them former fi ghters. “The development of the town is Longtime leader Francois Bozize “I couldn’t manage a farm all by going to go hand-in-hand with re-es- everal international organi- was overthrown by a mainly Muslim myself,” he says. tablishing peace and security and so- sations have sounded a bell slam ICC Burundi probe rebel alliance, the Seleka, unleashing Ngueringu’s farm has since been cial cohesion,” says Bertrand Touaboy, Sover delays to presidential a counter-off ensive by so-called self- integrated into a UN programme after CAR’s minister of entrepreneurship. run-off elections in Liberia, asking defence militias, the “anti-balaka.” being spotted by the local NGO Espe- “Without it, this project will have de- residents to maintain peace during AFP rundi is not as bad as it has been de- France intervened militarily and rance, meaning Hope. veloped nothing but words.” a period of political uncertainty. Nairobi scribed (by the ICC) because numerous the UN has deployed one of its biggest “We see that people want to leave, The reporter asks Ismael if he “We reiterate our call on all par- Burundian refugees have already re- peacekeeping forces to the country. they are tired of the fi ghting,” says would again take up arms if Seleka ties and stakeholders to exercise turned home”, said the statement. But most of CAR’s territory remains Rosmon Zokue, with the UN’s Food rebels returned to the town. restraint, uphold the rule of law anzanian President John Magu- Museveni meanwhile accused the in the hands of militia groups and vi- and Agricultural Organisation (FAO). He hesitates, smiles and looks at his and conduct all activities with ci- fuli and his Ugandan counterpart ICC of “interfering in the eff orts of the olence — committed in the name of The FAO supplies the farm with shoes before saying: “I gave up work- vility,” the UN mission in Liberia, TYoweri Museveni yesterday crit- EAC”. ethnicity or religion — is common. so-called “installation kits” that in- ing for the anti-balaka”. the African Union and the Eco- icised the International Criminal Court On Thursday, the ICC revealed that nomic Community of West African (ICC) for launching a probe into alleged its judges had given the go-ahead for a States has said. crimes committed during Burundi’s full investigation into crimes allegedly Liberia’s Supreme Court on No- political crisis. committed in Burundi from April 26, vember 6 indefi nitely postponed A statement from the Tanzanian 2015, to October 26, 2017, which is the a presidential run-off election presidency said the two leaders had day before the country’s exit from the Searching for Africa’s Einstein with a to assess fraud claims levelled by condemned the move, during a meet- court. Charles Brumskine, the candidate ing in western Uganda. The prosecutor can also widen the of the opposition Liberty Party “President Magufuli said this deci- probe to acts committed both before science lab on wheels in Nigeria who came third in the October 10 sion compromised eff orts by the East and after those dates “if certain legal election. African Community, which has put in requirements are met”, and even inves- The Supreme Court had earlier place a committee charged with seek- tigate other atrocities such as suspect- By Aminu Abubaker, AFP teacher for its 157 science students. put on hold a run-off poll sched- ing a resolution to the Burundi confl ict, ed “genocide or war crimes,” under the Muduru, Nigeria School principal Sagir Ladan said uled for November 7. led by President Yoweri Museveni and decision. the mobile science project has al- The run-off would have been former Tanzanian president Benjamin The period this covers begins with lowed it to take on three more and between former soccer star Mkapa,” said the statement. Burundi’s descent into unrest and dozen other students look on helped overcome lack of funding for George Weah, 51, who leads the Museveni is the current president bloodletting when President Pierre as Umar Amadu uses a glass infrastructure and laboratory sup- main opposition Coalition for of the EAC, a regional bloc made up of Nkurunziza announced he was running Apipette to draw a solution from plies. Democratic Change, and Vice Tanzania, Uganda, Kenya, Rwanda, Bu- for a third term in offi ce, winning July a conical fl ask as part of a chemis- Poor funding is obvious from the President Joseph Boakai, 72, of rundi and South Sudan. 2015 elections which were boycotted by try experiment. It could be a scene classrooms at the school, most of the ruling Unity Party. Magufuli said “the situation in Bu- the opposition. from any school laboratory around which have no furniture, with students the world, but until two months ago sitting on the fl oor or perching on bro- Amadu and his fellow students had ken window sills instead of desks. no access to any science equipment. VSO’s country director in Nigeria, Science subjects at his rural sec- Lucia Balonwu, said the charity’s ondary school outside the city of project was a small step towards over- Katsina in northern Nigeria were all improvements. taught using theory only. “The challenges are enormous and But now they have all the kit they our eff ort is like a drop in the ocean, need to put theory into practice, which we hope will make an impact thanks to a mobile science lab that Students of Government Day Second- on the quality of education in Katsina tours selected state schools. ary School in Muduru dance at the state,” she added. “It’s an exciting experience. We were end of their science practice. VSO is monitoring the Katsina being taught only the theoretical as- scheme with a view to rolling it out pect of science subjects,” Amadu, who for the driver and fuel to take the across Africa, where many countries wants to be a doctor, told AFP. “But truck to each school twice a week. face similar challenges with basic fa- with this project we now have a better Katsina — the home state of Presi- cilities and equipment. understanding of what we are taught.” dent Muhammadu Buhari — was the It wants to inspire young science The “Science on Wheels” project fi rst in mainly Muslim northern Ni- students to be the “Albert Einsteins is the brainchild of international de- geria to introduce so-called Western of tomorrow”, referring to the Nobel- velopment charity Voluntary Service subjects in education in the 1940s. winning physicist who developed the Overseas (VSO) and is supported by the But since then the sector has suf- theory of relativity. consumer goods company PZ Cussons. fered from years of neglect and un- “This is the stepping stone for a A truck equipped with laboratory der-investment. Now, it has a sub- pan-African science revolution,” Ba- equipment tours the state, allowing stantial share of the more than 10mn lonwu said as students busied them- 7,500 students and 15 schools to con- out-of-school children in the north. selves with practicals. duct practical lessons. For the “Science on Wheels” “Despite there being over 400 win- It also aims to haul Nigeria up the project, VSO said it had to take on 60 ners since 1901 of the Nobel Prize for rankings for the quality of its science science and math teachers to go to the physics, chemistry, physiology or and math teaching, after a World 15 selected schools. medicine, an indigenous Sub-Saha- Economic Forum study ranked the Amadu’s school, the Government ran African is yet to win a Nobel Prize country a lowly 131st out of 139. Day Secondary School (GDSS) in Mu- in one of these scientifi c fi elds,” she The Katsina state government pays duru, has 734 pupils but had only one said. Gulf Times Sunday, November 12, 2017 13 AMERICAS Flynn lawyer Volunteer service denies plan to seize cleric for cash

Reuters after just 24 days in the job Washington for misleading Vice President Mike Pence about the extent of his conversations with then he lawyer for former Russian ambassador Sergei US national security Kislyak last year. Tadviser Michael Flynn Barry Coburn, a lawyer for on Friday labelled as “out- Flynn’s son, Michael Flynn Jr, rageous” and “false” media declined to comment. reports suggesting his client Turkish President Tayyip may have been involved in an Erdogan accuses Gulen of in- alleged plan to seize a Muslim stigating a failed coup in July cleric and deliver him to Tur- 2016 and wants him extradit- key in exchange for millions of ed to Turkey to face trial. Gu- dollars. len has denied any role in the The rare statement from coup. A spokesman for Mu- lawyer Robert Kelner came eller’s team declined to com- after the Wall Street Journal ment on the report on Friday. reported on Friday that Spe- Flynn is a central fi gure in cial Counsel Robert Mueller Mueller’s investigation be- was investigating an alleged cause of conversations he had proposal under which Flynn with Kislyak and because he and his son would receive up waited until March to retro- to $15mn for seizing Fethullah actively register with the Jus- Gulen from his US home and tice Department as a foreign delivering him to the Turk- agent for work he did for a US Vice President Mike Pence participates in a volunteer service event cleaning the wall at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, yesterday. ish government. The Journal Turkish businessman. cited people familiar with the The Journal reported that investigation. FBI agents asked at least four NBC also reported on Fri- people about a December day about an alleged Decem- meeting in New York where ber 2016 meeting, saying Flynn and Turkish govern- Mueller’s team was inves- ment representatives dis- tigating whether Flynn met cussed removing Gulen, cit- with senior Turkish offi cials ing people with knowledge of in the weeks before President the FBI’s inquiries. Donald Trump’s January 2017 NBC also reported that in- inauguration about a possible vestigators had questioned Trump trusts Putin’s quid pro quo in which Flynn witnesses about an alleged would be paid to do the bid- December meeting between ding of Turkey’s government Flynn and Turkish offi cials while in offi ce. NBC cited where Gulen was discussed. multiple people familiar with The group also discussed the probe. how to set free a Turkish- “Out of respect for the Iranian gold trader, Reza process of the various inves- Zarrab. Zarrab is in prison in denials on meddling tigations regarding the 2016 the United States on federal campaign, we have inten- charges that he helped Iran Trump has called collusion allegations just doesn’t understand how to put coun- dent Bashar al-Assad in a civil war now in tionally avoided responding skirt US sanctions, NBC said. a hoax try over self. Or to put it in terms he is its seventh year. to every rumour or allegation A Reuters report on Oc- more familiar with — Mr Trump simply “We did it very quickly,” Trump told raised in the media,” Kelner tober 26 said one of Flynn’s Reuters can’t bring himself to put America fi rst,” reporters. “We seem to have a very good said in an e-mailed state- business associates, former Danang, Vietnam the Democrat said. feeling for each other, a good relationship ment. CIA Director James Woolsey, In Danang, Putin told reporters an al- considering we don’t know each other “But today’s news cycle pitched a $10mn contract to leged link between Manafort and Russia well.” has brought allegations about two Turkish businessmen to S President Donald Trump said he was fabricated by Trump’s opponents. Talking after their meeting, Putin de- General Flynn, ranging from help discredit Gulen while believed President Vladimir Putin Putin dismissed suggestions Russia in- scribed Trump as “a well-mannered per- kidnapping to bribery, that Woolsey was an adviser to Uwhen he denied accusations Russia fl uenced the elections through political son and comfortable to deal with”. are so outrageous and preju- Trump’s election campaign. meddled in last year’s US election despite advertising. “We know each other little, but the US dicial that we are making an Woolsey was a member of US intelligence agencies’ conclusion of President Trump and Russia’s President Tech companies, including Facebook, president is highly civil in his behaviour, exception to our usual rule: Flynn’s fi rm, the Flynn Intel Russian interference. Putin session at the Apec Summit. have said some Russian-bought political friendly. We have a normal dialogue but they are false.” Group, according to a Justice Trump made the comment after he and content spread on their platforms around unfortunately little time,” he said. The Wall Street journal re- Department fi ling by the fi rm Putin met briefl y at a summit in Vietnam conducting a probe that has led to charges the time. Trump said they had two or three ported that the alleged plan and an archive of the compa- yesterday and agreed on a statement sup- against Trump’s former campaign man- “There is no confi rmation of our mass very short conversations. They were involving Flynn and Turkish ny’s website. Mueller’s team porting a political solution for Syria. ager Paul Manafort and his associate Rick media meddling in election campaigns — seen chatting amicably as they walked offi cials emerged during Mu- has also interviewed White It was their fi rst encounter since July Gates. and there can’t be any,” Putin said. to the position where the traditional eller’s wider investigation of House senior policy adviser and came during a low in US-Russia rela- US intelligence agencies have also After emphasising on the 2016 cam- Apec summit photo was being taken at a possible Russian interference Stephen Miller, the highest- tions and at a time Trump is haunted by an concluded Russians interfered to tip the paign trail that it would be nice if the Unit- viewpoint looking over the South China in the 2016 presidential elec- level Trump aide known to investigation into accusations that Putin election in Trump’s favour through hack- ed States and Russia could work together, Sea. tion and any collusion by the have spoken with investiga- infl uenced the election that brought him ing and releasing emails to embarrass Trump has had limited contact with Putin Pictures from the Apec meeting also Trump campaign. tors, CNN reported on Thurs- to the White House. Putin reiterated the Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton and since taking offi ce. showed Trump approaching Putin at the Flynn was fi red by Trump day. denials of interference, Trump said. spreading social media propaganda. Trump again made this case, saying it summit table and patting him on the back. “Every time he sees me he says I didn’t Russia has repeatedly denied meddling. would benefi t Washington to have a good They also shook hands at the summit din- do that, and I really believe that when he The top Democrat on the US House of ties with Moscow so they could work to- ner on Friday. tells me that, he means it,” Trump told re- Representatives intelligence committee, gether on issues including Syria’s civil war, The Kremlin said their statement on porters aboard Air Force One after leaving which is investigating the issue, harshly the confl ict in Ukraine and the North Ko- Syria was coordinated especially for the the Asia-Pacifi c Economic Cooperation criticised Trump’s comments and accused rean nuclear crisis. Danang meeting. (Apec) summit in the resort of Danang. him of siding with Putin over US intelli- “Look, I can’t stand there and argue With Islamic State having suff ered loss- “I think he is very insulted by it, which gence agencies. with him, I would rather have him get out es in Syria and beyond, greater attention Marine gets of Syria,” Trump said. “I would rather... is not a good thing for our country,” Trump “The President fools no one. He un- is turning to the broader confl ict between said. derstands that the Russians intervened get to work with him on the Ukraine rather Assad’s forces and rebel factions. Trump, who has called allegations of through the hacking and dumping of his than standing and arguing.” They confi rmed their commitment to campaign collusion with Moscow a hoax, opponent’s e-mails, the fruits of which he In Vietnam, Trump and Putin agreed a Syria’s sovereignty, independence and ter- has faced questions from Democrats about exploited time and again on the campaign joint statement saying there was no mili- ritorial integrity and called on all parties to 10 years tary solution to the confl ict in Syria, where the matter since he took offi ce. trail,” Adam Schiff said in a statement. take an active part in the Geneva political for hazing A special counsel, Robert Mueller, is “He understands all this and more. He Russia has militarily backed Syrian Presi- process, it said. Muslims President’s campaign co-chairman

AFP was turned on when they did Washington not renounce their faith. questioned by investigators One of the recruits, Raheel Siddiqui died after a plunge US Marine Corps drill over a third-story railing in Reuters idential election. He is also co-operating According to court documents related Victoria Toensing, one of Clovis’s law- instructor was sen- March 2016 after enduring Washington with the Senate Intelligence Committee, to Papadopoulos’ guilty plea, he reported yers, said last week her client “always Atenced Friday to 10 years days of hazing worse than the which is investigating the same issues. to Clovis in an e-mail on a March 24, 2016, vigorously opposed any Russian trip for in prison for abusing more than normal high-pressure treat- Contacted late on Friday, the White meeting he had in London with a professor Donald Trump and/or the campaign”. Af- a dozen Muslim recruits, one of ment given recruits. The Ma- pecial counsel Robert Mueller’s House declined to comment. later identifi ed as Joseph Mifsud. ter Papadopoulos’ guilty plea, the White whom died in 2016, US media rines called his death a sui- team has questioned Sam Clovis, One of the sources described Clovis as Mifsud in turn introduced him to a Rus- House and former Trump campaign offi - reported. cide. Sco-chairman of President Donald “another domino” after former campaign sian woman and the Russian ambassador cials dismissed Papadopoulos and Clovis Gunnery Sergeant Joseph Fe- In October, Siddiqui’s family Trump’s election campaign, to determine foreign policy adviser George Papadopou- in London, and they discussed setting up as minor fi gures in the campaign. The lix was convicted a day earlier sued the Marines for $100mn, if Trump or top aides knew of the extent of los pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI over meetings to talk about US-Russia ties in a campaign’s National Security Advisory of maltreatment of the recruits saying he was driven by an un- the campaign team’s contacts with Russia, his own contacts with Russians during the Trump presidency. Committee, which Clovis formed, has be- during their basic training at named superior through a door two sources familiar with the investigation 2016 election campaign. The documents showed Clovis re- come a focus of the investigations by both the Parris Island, South Caro- and onto a balcony where he fell said on Friday. “The investigators now know what sponded to the proposed meetings by say- Mueller and the Senate, sources said. lina base. to the ground below. The focus of the questions put to Clovis Papadopoulos was doing on the Russian ing he would “work it through the cam- “Sam built the fi rst group of eight,” J An jury of eight fellow serv- The sentence decided Friday, by Mueller’s team has not been previously front, which he initially tried to conceal, paign.” While he told Papadopoulos not to D Gordon, the director of the campaign icemen and women considered which also includes a dishon- reported. and who he told that to,” said the other make a commitment then to set up those foreign policy group, told Reuters, adding Felix, an Iraq war veteran, the ourable discharge, was harsher “The ultimate question Mueller is af- source. “Now want to know whether meetings, he congratulated him for “great that he and then-Senator Jeff Sessions, most to blame of six instruc- than the seven years in prison ter is whether candidate Trump and then Clovis and others reported these activi- work”. now the US Attorney General, had “nearly tors who ordered and partici- that prosecutors had recom- President-elect Trump knew of the dis- ties and others related to Russia, and if In August 2016, after Trump won the doubled” it in size. pated in extreme hazing of the mended. cussions going on with Russia, and who so, to whom,” this source said. Attorneys Republican presidential nomination, However, two other sources familiar recruits, taunting them as ter- The case will automatically approved or even directed them,” said one for Clovis did not respond to requests for Clovis encouraged Papadopoulos to “make with the investigations said investiga- rorists. go to appeal per military regu- source. “That is still just a question.” comment. the trip” when Papadopoulos proposed tors have been told the committee Clovis Two of them were forced into lations for judgments that in- Clovis testifi ed in late October before Lawyers for Papadopoulos had no im- going to an off -the-record meeting with formed did very little, and that other ad- industrial-sized clothes dry- volve lengthy prison sentences the grand jury in Mueller’s investigation mediate comment. Peter Carr, a spokes- unnamed Russian offi cials, the court doc- visers appeared to carry more weight with ers and in one case the machine and dishonourable discharges. into Russian interference in the 2016 pres- man for Mueller, declined to comment. uments show. Trump. Gulf Times 14 Sunday, November 12, 2017 ASEAN

Summit snapshot!

Leaders pose for the ‘family photo’ during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) leaders’ summit in the central Vietnamese city of Danang yesterday. (From left) Australia’s Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull; Brunei’s Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah; Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam; Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau; Peru’s President Pedro Pablo Kuczynski; Chile’s President Michelle Bachelet; Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte; China’s President Xi Jinping; Russia President Vladimir Putin; Vietnam’s President Tran Dai Quang; US President Donald Trump; Indonesia’s President Joko Widodo; Thailand’s Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha; Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe; Singapore’s Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong; South Korea’s President Moon Jae-in; New Zealand’s Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern; Malaysia’s Prime Minister Najib Razak; Taiwan’s representative James Soong and Mexico’s President Enrique Pena Nieto.

Vietnamese musician defi es protest ban to insult Trump A Vietnamese musician yesterday defied the country’s ban on protests by flashing a sign with an insulting message at US President Donald Trump as his motorcade passed through Hanoi. Troops to storm Papua Mai Khoi, a former pop star, stood on the side of Hanoi’s Yen Phu street with a sign saying “Peace on you Trump,” with the word “peace” crossed out and replaced with an of- fensive word as Trump’s motorcade passed by while leaving the airport. Vietnam, which is a single-party commu- nist state, bans all public demonstrations, villages held by rebels which the pro-democracy musician said she detests. Reuters where an armed separatist group the villagers since taking over the area with the police, military, and Freeport. Freeport’s Grasberg mine has been “I want to practice my right to address my- Jakarta linked to the Free Papua Movement several days ago. Papua has had a long-running and dogged by security concerns for dec- self, so I’m going to do a small, lonely protest (OPM) is preventing about 1,000 peo- A state of emergency has been de- sometimes violent separatist move- ades due to a low-level confl ict waged with a message I want to express,” said Khoi, ple from leaving an area near a giant clared in the area and at least 300 ment since it was incorporated into by pro-independence rebels in Papua. adding that she stood against Trump’s politics. ndonesian security forces in the copper mine, operated by the Ameri- additional security forces have been Indonesia after a widely criticised Between 2009 and 2015, shootings “When he comes here, he should have eastern province of Papua are pre- can miner Freeport-McMoRan Inc deployed to the area of the province UN-backed referendum in 1969. within the mine project area killed 20 a chance to speak with activists, to see the Iparing to storm fi ve villages that “Today the joint police and military after a string of shootings since Au- President Joko Widodo has sought people and wounded 59. human rights situation in Vietnam, but he they say are being held by an armed forces have occupied various posts to gust 17 that killed one police offi cer to ease tension in the two provinces More recently, Freeport, the world’s doesn’t have a meeting (scheduled) with rebel group, police offi cials said yes- be able to take action,” said Papua po- and wounded six. by stepping up investment, freeing largest publicly listed copper pro- activists,” said Khoi, who met former US presi- terday. lice spokesman, Suryadi Diaz. The rebel group, the West Papua Na- political prisoners and addressing hu- ducer, has been grappling with labour dent Barack Obama during his state visit last Around 200 police and military “They will be taken dead or alive,” tional Liberation Army (TPN-OPM), man rights concerns. problems at Grasberg and a dispute year to discuss human rights at a round-table personnel have been deployed and he said of the around 100 rebels that on Friday denied occupying villages This is the fi rst escalation of vio- with the Indonesian government over meeting. are awaiting orders to secure the area, police say have tortured and abused near the mine, but said it was “at war” lence during his term. rights to the mine.

Thailand palace Museum removes Hitler exhibit

AFP in the Javanese city of Jogjakarta wax sculpture had been removed The Nazi-themed exhibit was a schooling for the lack of awareness fi res top royal drew swift condemnation from after the building was alerted to popular attraction for visitors to and sensitivity about the Holocaust Jakarta rights groups after details of the criticism from prominent Jewish take selfi es, and photos circulat- in Indonesia, which is home to the controversial display were pub- human rights organisation the Si- ing on social media show custom- world’s biggest Muslim population aide for ‘evil acts’ n Indonesian museum that lished in foreign media. mon Wiesenthal Center. ers — including children — posing and a small number of Jews. allowed visitors to take The exhibit features a sure- “We don’t want to attract out- with Hitler and in some cases us- In January, a controversial Aselfi es with a life-size wax footed Hitler standing in front of a rage,” Misbah told AFP. “Our pur- ing the Nazi salute. Nazi-themed cafe in the western AFP sculpture of Hitler against a back- huge photo of the gates of Ausch- pose to display the Hitler fi gure in Misbah said he thought it was Javanese city of Bandung closed. Bangkok drop of Auschwitz concentration witz — the largest Nazi concen- the museum is to educate.” “normal’ for visitors to take pho- The venue, which featured swas- camp has removed the exhibit fol- tration camp where more than The Hitler sculpture is one of tos in front of displays, but said the tika-bearing walls and photos lowing international outrage, the 1.1mn people were killed. about 80 fi gures, including world museum respected the exhibit had of Hitler, sparked global uproar senior Thai royal offi cial has been sacked for “evil acts” manager said yesterday. The museum’s operations man- leaders and celebrities, at the wax upset people from around the world. when reports about the unusual including having an extramarital aff air and forcing his De ARCA Statue Art Museum ager, Jamie Misbah, said the the and visual eff ects centre. Historians have blamed poor venue surfaced several years ago. Aalleged mistress to get an abortion, the palace has said, the latest top aide to be axed under King Maha Vajiralongkorn. Vajiralongkorn, 65, took the throne one year ago following the death of his widely revered father King Bhumibol Adulya- dej, who reigned for seven decades. He has yet to attain his fa- ther’s widespread popularity but remains insulated from any Rare Bornean clouded leopards caught on camera in Malaysia criticism by one of the world’s harshest royal defamation laws. Since ascending the throne the new monarch has axed a number of powerful palace offi cials from his father’s era. Reuters the photographer told Reuters, The latest aide to fall from grace is Distorn Vajarodaya, a Kuala Lumpur using an alternative name for the senior offi cial in the Royal Household Bureau who served as species. Grand Chamberlain under the Bhumibol and was often seen The animal’s habitat has shrunk by the ailing monarch’s side during the fi nal years of his reign. Bornean clouded leopard by a tenth each year over the last A statement published by the Royal Gazette late Friday and her two cubs were cap- two decades, the World Wildlife stripped Distorn of his royal decorations and listed his al- Atured on camera last week, Fund said, hit by poaching and leged wrongdoings — including having an extramarital aff air, strolling through a Malaysian for- deforestation for commercial “forcing” his mistress to get an abortion, and then coercing est reserve, a rare daytime sight- purposes. her into marrying another man. ing of the elusive animals in the It feeds on monkeys, small deer, “When the woman got pregnant for the second time, he wild. birds and lizards, and is the main forced her to have another abortion but the woman refused. Found only on the South- predator on Borneo, an island So he forced her to get married with another man she hadn’t east Asian islands of Borneo and shared by Malaysia, Indonesia and had a relationship with,” the statement said. Sumatra, the big cat species is Brunei. Distorn was also accused of “using the King’s name to known to zoologists as Neofelis In 2007, genetic studies showed avoid taxation in importing a foreign vehicle” to replace a diardi, with just 700 estimated to the species to be distinct from its damaged royal car. live in a habitat shrunk by poach- nearest relative, the clouded leop- The aide also allegedly ordered staff to forge documents ing and deforestation. ard, or Neofelis nebulosa, which about a donation to a royal foundation he chaired. “Seeing it in daytime is nearly was fi rst described scientifi cally Thailand’s lese majeste law, which criminalises insulting unheard of, and never with its by British naturalist Edward Grif- the monarchy with up to 15 years in prison per off ence, makes young,” said Michael Gordon, who fi th in 1821, the WWF says. it impossible to publicly counter such charges. fi lmed the animals cross a road The range of the clouded leop- Many of those purged from the new monarch’s inner circle and walk into bush in Derama- ard extends from Nepal on the have been charged with lese majeste and jailed. kot in Malaysia’s Sabah state on Indian subcontinent to southern In one of the most dramatic episodes, Vajiralongkorn di- Borneo, where camera traps fi rst China and throughout South-East vorced his third wife in late 2014 after half a dozen of her rela- spotted the cats in 2010. Asia. tives were charged with lese majeste — and later jailed — for “The Sunda clouded leop- The island clouded leopard has allegedly abusing their royal ties to him. ard is diffi cult across most of its small cloud markings, a double All media inside Thailand must heavily self-censor when range, but the last three years I stripe down its back and its greyer reporting on the royal family to avoid falling foul of the defa- have been coming to Deramakot, fur is darker than the mainland A Bornean clouded Leopard (Neofelis diardi), and her two cubs, found only on Borneo and Indonesia’s mation law. I have seen it a quite a few times,” species, the WWF says. Sumatra, photographed in the Deramakot Forest Reserve in Malaysia’s Sabah state on November 6. Gulf Times Sunday, November 12, 2017 15 AUSTRALASIA/EAST ASIA

Asylum-seekers get Second Turnbull deputy reprieve from PNG camp eviction

Reuters quits in citizenship row Sydney

AFP certainty, maintain the belief that apua New Guinea will delay by at least 24 hours Sydney I have held through my 66 years,” a plan to forcibly evict hundreds of men from an added Alexander, who played ten- Pabandoned Australian detention centre, three nis professionally in the 1970s and asylum seekers said yesterday. mbattled Australian Prime 80s, at one point rising to world Hundreds of men have barricaded themselves into Minister Malcolm Turnbull number 8. “It is my obligation that the Manus island centre for more than 11 days without Eyesterday lost his grip on I must resign and that’s what I will regular food or water, defying closure bids by Austral- parliament when another of his do.” ia and Papua New Guinea in what the United Nations coalition’s MPs resigned, the lat- Alexander will now have to run calls a “looming humanitarian crisis”. est victim of a constitutional crisis in a by-election in Sydney’s Ben- Rejecting United Nations calls to restore utilities to over politicians who hold dual citi- nelong district to return to parlia- the camp, Papua New Guinea this week said it would zenship. ment, and that race is expected to “apprehend” those responsible for the stand-off Former tennis star John Alexan- be competitive. when it forcibly evicted the men yesterday. der, who represents a Sydney dis- Joyce similarly needs to run for But several asylum seekers said Papua New Guinea trict for Turnbull’s Liberal Party, re-election in his Queensland con- offi cials told them detainees could remain until today. announced he was resigning after stituency next month, though he is “Police are talking on a microphone outside prison,” being unable to determine if he had heavily favoured to retain his seat. Behrouz Boochani, a Kurdish journalist from Iran, inherited UK citizenship from his Turnbull, anxious to recover who has spent more than four years detained in the immigrant father. his parliamentary majority, yes- camp, told Reuters. His resignation followed an Oc- terday challenged Labor to come “They’re telling the refugees to leave, saying to- tober 27 ruling by Australia’s High clean over its members who might morrow will be the last day you are here,” he said in a Court that forced fi ve other politi- hold dual citizenship through their text message. cians to quit parliament because spouses, parents or grandparents. It was not immediately clear what caused the post- they had fallen afoul of a previously “Labor should now seriously ponement. obscure constitutional rule that consider whether their members Pressure on the asylum seekers, drawn largely from bars dual citizens from sitting in the who admitted they were UK citi- Afghanistan, Iran, Myanmar, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and Senate or lower house. zens...should do the right thing, Syria, has grown in recent days as Papua New Guinea The fi ve included deputy prime resign from parliament now and tries to get them to move to three transit centres. minister Barnaby Joyce, leader of the by-elections could be held on The asylum seekers fear reprisals if they move to the the rural-based National Party, the same day as the by-election for transit centres, pending possible resettlement in the which rules in a coalition with the Bennelong,” he said. United States. Liberals. In a bid earlier this week to end The main camp was closed on October 31 and water When parliament convenes to- the crisis, Turnbull proposed a plan and power have been cut off . morrow without Alexander, Turn- that would make it compulsory for Some island-dwellers are angry at what they per- bull will control only 74 of the 150 all MPs to formally declare they are ceive as preferential treatment for the asylum seekers, seats in the House of Representa- not dual citizens and provide evi- many of them well educated, in a poor, rural society, tives, with the opposition Labor dence to support it. Labor has so far and some detainees have come under attack when on Party holding 69. snubbed the idea. release from the camp. Minor parties and independents Conservative Liberal party MP John Alexander (left) with Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull. The dual citizenship rule was The patience of Papua New Guinea authorities has fi ll the remaining seats. originally inserted into the 1901 begun to wane, however, and they moved this week to Labor front bencher Tony Burke way you look at it on the fl oor of setback on key legislation. ruling had forced him to examine constitution to ensure parliamen- remove camp fences and dismantle rainwater collec- yesterday vowed to heap pressure parliament, this is now govern- “There is no question of that his own citizenship status, even tarians were loyal solely to Austral- tion bins and makeshift shelters built to ward off the on the government by pushing ment without a majority. It’s a happening,” he said in Danang, Vi- though he was born in Australia. ia. However, critics say it is out of tropical sun and rain. legislation opposed by Turnbull’s prime minister without authority,” etnam, where he was attending a “I have always believed that I am step with the modern reality of the Under pressure, groups of men have elected to move coalition but supported by inde- he said. regional summit. Australian and solely Australian,” country, where 50% of the popula- to the transit centres. pendents. Turnbull brushed aside the like- In announcing his resignation, he said at a press conference. tion are either foreign-born or the But the exact number left is diffi cult to ascertain, “As of today, no matter which lihood of a no-confi dence vote or Alexander said the High Court “I can no longer, with suffi cient children of immigrants. though Manus Island police commander David Yapu told the Australian Broadcasting Corp about 400 re- main. Several of those remaining told Reuters they would not move, setting the scene for a potential clash, which would further stoke international criticism of Australia. Abe hails ‘fresh start’ to ties after Xi meeting Australia has used the centre, and a camp on the tiny Pacifi c island of Nauru, to detain asylum seekers who try to reach its shores by boat. Reuters Danang, of the Asia Pacifi c Economic Co- tions between Japan and China. I “With the North Korea situa- China’s statement about the It says boat arrivals will never enter Australia, even Vietnam operation (Apec) summit in the Vi- totally feel the same way,” Abe told tion at an important phase, the role meeting, released by the offi cial if found to be refugees, as this would encourage people etnamese resort city of Danang. reporters. China ought to play is very big,” Abe Xinhua news agency, cited Xi as smugglers in Asia. Ties between China and Japan, Abe said he has proposed visit- said. telling Abe that stable relations Australia says the policy prevents people drowning apanese Prime Minister Shinzo the world’s second- and third-larg- ing China at an appropriate time, China and Japan have also agreed were in both sides’ interests, and at sea, but it has been widely condemned. Abe and Chinese President Xi est economies, have been plagued which would then be followed by a to accelerate talks for an early im- that they must make unremitting Acting Prime Minister Julie Bishop said there was JJinping have hailed a “fresh by a long-running territorial dis- Xi visit to Japan. plementation of a communication eff orts to continue improving ties. no reason for the remaining men to choose to stay, re- start” to the relationship between pute over a cluster of East China At the meeting, the two countries mechanism between their military The two countries “must take jecting criticism of inadequate facilities at the transit the countries after a meeting yes- Sea islets. agreed to deepen their co-opera- forces, Abe said. constructive steps to appropriately centres. terday that saw them agree to work “At the end of the meeting, tion on North Korea and to hold a He also proposed that Japan and manage and control disputes that “Over the last few months they have travelled to more closely on North Korea. President Xi said this is a meeting trilateral summit with South Korea China co-operate in doing business exist between the two countries”, Xi East Lorengau on many occasions and never raised The leaders met on the sidelines that marks a fresh start of rela- at the earliest possible date. in third countries. added. any concerns,” Bishop told reporters in Perth. 3 US carriers lead naval Penguin parade! drill aimed at N Korea

AFP Seoul, Beijing seek peaceful, stable solution Seoul The leaders of South Korea and President Moon Jae-in and China’s China yesterday agreed on the Xi Jinping was held on the side- hree US aircraft carriers, need to manage the security situ- lines of an Apec summit. accompanied by South ation on the Korean peninsula in Xi told Moon that he encour- TKorean warships, yester- a stable way and to resolve North aged South Korea to resume day launched a joint naval drill Korea-related tensions peace- dialogue with North Korea and in a fresh show of force aimed fully after a summit meeting, the re-engage with them for reconcili- at North Korea, whose nuclear South’s presidential off ice said. ation and denuclearisation, state ambitions have dominated US For this, the two countries will news agency Xinhua reported. President Donald Trump’s ongo- strengthen strategic talks on all China has been urged by both ing tour of Asia. levels, presidential spokesman South Korea and the United The four-day exercise in the Yoon Young-chan told reporters States to take a more active role western Pacifi c involves three fl at- in Danang, Vietnam, where a in curbing North Korea’s nuclear tops — USS Ronald Reagan, USS meeting between South Korean and missile ambitions. Nimitz and USS Theodore Roo- sevelt — and seven South Korean vessels including three destroyers. the deployment of US military lating war of words with Kim, It is the fi rst such triple-carri- assets around the Korean penin- trading personal insults and er drill in the region for a decade. sula to step up pressure on the threats of military strikes and “The exercise is aimed at en- North. raising concerns about an out- hancing deterrence against And in a speech to the South break of hostilities. North Korea’s nuclear and missile Korean parliament, Trump His remarks during his Asian threats and showing off prepar- warned North Korea not to un- tour — including references to Participants compete in the Red Bull Soapbox Race in Moscow yesterday. edness to fend off any provocative derestimate the United States, Kim’s “twisted fantasies” — acts by the North,” a South Korean while off ering leader Kim Jong- have been tempered by calls for defence ministry spokesman said. un a better future if he gives up Pyongyang to come to the ne- Nuclear-armed North Korea his nuclear ambitions. gotiating table and seek a diplo- regularly denounces such mili- The North, which this year matic route out of the crisis over tary drills as rehearsals for inva- carried out its sixth nuclear test, its nuclear arsenal. sion and sometimes conducts generating by far the largest yield During talks in Beijing on its own military manoeuvres or to date, has fi red dozens of mis- Thursday, Trump urged Chinese missile tests in response. siles in recent months — all in de- leader Xi Jinping to do more to The US warships will carry fi ance of multiple UN sanctions. rein in the Pyongyang regime, out air defence drills, sea sur- Two have overfl own key US warning that “time is quickly veillance, defensive air combat ally Japan, and the regime has running out”. training and other operations, claimed that it now has the tech- The US administration thinks the US Navy said. nology to mount a nuclear war- China’s economic leverage over The exercises come on the heels head on a missile that can travel North Korea is the key to strong- of Trump’s visits to Tokyo, Seoul as far as the US mainland. arming Pyongyang into halting and Beijing this week, which were There has been speculation that its nuclear weapons and missile dominated by the question of how Kim would order another missile programmes. to counter Pyongyang’s nuclear test to coincide with the US presi- Xi said the two countries reit- weapons threat. dent’s marathon visit to the region erated their “fi rm commitment” At a summit in Seoul, Trump which ends on Tuesday. to the denuclearisation of the and South Korean President Since becoming president, Korean peninsula and the imple- African penguins wearing a Christmas-themed costumes take part in a parade at the Hakkeijima Sea Paradise in Yokohama yesterday. Moon Jae-in agreed to increase Trump has engaged in an esca- mentation of UN resolutions. Gulf Times 16 Sunday, November 12, 2017 BRITAIN

BBC women UK most obese nation in use Equal Pay Day to western Europe: OECD highlight Campaigners criticise dex (BMI) of 30 and above, the “Even today, we have only on junk food marketing and ad- in English hospitals in 2016-17, tritionist at Public Health Eng- gender gap ‘pathetic’ measures to tackle offi cial defi nition of obesity, in a pathetic attempt by Theresa vertising. up 11% in fi ve years. land, said: “Most countries are crisis as report shows 26.9% 2015. May’s administration to get seri- Along with smoking, obesity The increase was partly at- facing rising levels of obesity, of Britain’s population is Only fi ve of the OECD’s 35 ous about reducing the numbers is one of the two main drivers tributed to rising obesity levels, putting pressure on health and Top broadcasters take photos obese member states had higher levels and avoiding an offi cial esti- behind the biggest killers of the accompanied as it was by statis- social care systems. with equals signs to mark of obesity, with four outside Eu- mate that more than 50% of the modern world: cancers, heart tics showing one in fi ve women “While England has the worst the day UK women begin to By Haroon Siddique rope and one in eastern Europe. United Kingdom will be obese by attacks, strokes and diabetes. pregnant women have a BMI rates of adult obesity in western eff ectively work for free for Guardian News & Media The OECD’s report, which 2050. The UK has the 11th high- greater than 30. Europe, our plans to tackle this rest of year says obesity in the UK has in- “Ten years ago, a government est cancer mortality rate (221.9 Last month, the World Obes- are among the most ambitious. creased by 92% since the 1990s, department report stated that deaths per 100,000 people), ac- ity Forum predicted that unless “We’re working with industry By Alexandra Topping he UK is the most obese illustrates the scale of the public the nation was sleepwalking into cording to the OECD. eff ective action is taken, the cost to make food healthier, we’ve Guardian News & Media country in western Eu- health challenge, with fears that obesity – but no minister, either But the proportion of adults of treating ill health caused by produced guidance for coun- Trope, according to the it could bankrupt the National then or since, has woken up to with diabetes in the UK (4.7%) obesity in the UK will rise from cils on planning healthier towns Organisation for Economic Co- Health Service (NHS). the fact.” was one of the lowest, bettered $19bn (£14bn) to $31bn per year and we’re delivering campaigns eading female fi gures at operation and Development Tam Fry, chair of the National The government was heavily only by Lithuania, Estonia, and in 2025. encouraging people to choose the BBC have taken to so- (OECD). Obesity Forum, said: “One could criticised when it launched its Ireland. The US has the highest level of healthier food and lead healthier Lcial media to mark Equal Its annual Health at a Glance weep over the fi gures, the result childhood obesity strategy last The report comes the day obesity (38%), according to the lives. Pay Day and increase pressure report, published on Friday, of successive governments who year for its reliance on voluntary after offi cial fi gures were pub- OECD, followed by Mexico, New “It’s taken many years for us on bosses to address the broad- shows that 26.9% of the UK have, for the last 30 years, done action by the food and drink in- lished showing a record number Zealand, Hungary and Australia. to reach this point and change caster’s gender pay gap. population had a body mass in- next to nothing to tackle obesity. dustry and lack of restrictions of caesareans (28% of all births) Dr Alison Tedstone, chief nu- will not happen overnight.” High-profi le presenters and journalists took photographs of themselves, sometimes with a male colleague, holding pic- tures of “equal” (“=”) signs and calling for equal pay on the day when, because of the gender pay Thousands of Britons mark Armistice Day gap, women in the UK eff ectively begin to work for free until the end of the year. DPA Figures released on Friday London revealed that the gap has been stuck at 14% for the last three years, and is widening for wom- housands of people across en in their 20s. Britain marked Armistice The BBC came under fi re re- TDay, the end of World War cently after it was revealed that I in 1918, with a two-minute si- several high-profi le female em- lence yesterday to remember the ployees had salaries signifi cantly country’s war dead. lower than their male counter- Military leaders and politi- parts. cians, wearing red poppies to Only four women were among symbolise the loss of life, joined the top 20 earners. veterans and other members of The presenter Clare Balding the public at the Cenotaph war tweeted a joke video of herself memorial in central London, and fellow female employees close to Britain’s parliament and from radio and TV – presenters main government offi ces. Jane Garvey, Sue Perkins, and The two-minute silence be- Sabrina Grant, and journalists gan at 11am (1100 GMT) after 11 Lucy Siegle and Razia Iqbal – chimes from the Big Ben bell in being “mothballed for hiberna- the nearby clocktower of parlia- tion” by the comedian Anneka ment. Harry. Similar ceremonies took place The Radio 4 Today programme at nearby Westminster Abbey presenter Sarah Montague and in Plymouth, Brighton and tweeted a picture of herself pre- other cities across Britain. senting the show wearing a T- The BBC paused its news ABove: Army cadets prepare to shirt with an equals sign and the broadcasts for two minutes, lay a wreath during the Western words: “Happy #EqualPayDay ! while some shops and cafes also Front Association’s (WFA) #bbcwomen.” observed the silence. annual service of remembrance Montague said the BBC gen- In Paris, French President on Armistice Day, at the der pay gap was unfair and pro- Emmanuel Macron marked the Cenotaph in central London. fessionally damaging after it 99th anniversary of the end of was revealed that she earned World War I by laying a wreath at Right: Army, navy and RAF less than £150,000, while fel- the Arc de Triomphe, where an cadets stand to attention after low presenter John Humphrys eternal fl ame burns at the grave a two-minute silence during the was paid between £600,000 and for the unknown soldiers. WFA service at the Cenotaph. £649,000. Former president Francois Co-presenter Mishal Hu- Hollande and Nicolas Sarkozy sain tweeted a picture of herself also attended the Armistice Day holding the same symbol add- ceremony in Paris. ing: “Closing the gender pay gap Armistice Day marks the an- is about equality. It should mat- niversary of an armistice signed ter to everyone.” by France, Germany and Britain DJ Jo Whiley snapped a pic- on November 11, 1918, ending ture of herself with Radio1 col- World War I. league Greg James, saying: “It all Remembrance Day, which is adds up.” marked in Britain by the sov- Victoria Derbyshire, who ereign at a larger ceremony in hosts a current aff airs show on London, is held the Sunday after BBC, tweeted the same image Armistice Day. calling on “bosses of small fi rms, This year, Queen Elizabeth II, large corporations, charities, 91, will watch the Remembrance startups, multinationals” to “ do Day ceremony from a balcony the right thing “. for the fi rst time, allowing her Garvey, who presents Wom- son, Prince Charles, to lay a an’s Hour and was among the wreath at the Cenotaph today on female staff who called on the her behalf. corporation to take urgent ac- The queen and other members tion to “rectify injustices” over of the royal family, plus politi- pay, tweeted a tongue-in-cheek cians including Prime Minister message, writing: “New scien- Theresa May, were scheduled to tifi c research I’ve just invented attend a remembrance festival says only well-endowed men can in the evening yesterday at Lon- fully support closing the gender don’s Royal Albert Hall. A large replica poppy is seen inside of King’s Cross station to A veteran waits for the start of Armistice Day commemorations at the National Memorial Arboretum in pay gap.” The Cenotaph, which means commemorate Armistice Day, in London. Alrewas. The presenter and last year’s “empty tomb”, is a monument to Strictly Come Dancing cham- more than 1mn British military day, representatives of Britain, left some 500,000 Allied and friendship between the former About 30,000 soldiers from “The mass killings on this site pion, Ore Oduba, tweeted his personnel who died in modern France, Belgium, Canada, Aus- German soldiers dead or injured. European rivals as they opened both countries died fi ghting stand for the insanity of war,” support with a picture of Jodie wars, including nearly 900,000 tralia and New Zealand marked Also on Friday, Macron and a joint war museum at one of over the Hartmannswillerkopf Steinmeier said after a tour of Whittaker, the new Doctor in who died in World War I. the 100th anniversary of the German President Frank-Wal- WWI’s bloodiest battlefi elds mountain in Alsace, nicknamed the battlefi eld and the new mu- Doctor Who, saying he was “in- In northern France on Fri- Battle of Passchendaele, which ter Steinmeier reaffi rmed the (see also page 18). the “eater of men”. seum. spired by the Timelord today”.

Husband of UK woman held in Egypt ‘has evidence to prove her innocence’

Omar Caboo says documents had been due to appear in court “I didn’t even look in the bag. show that he did indeed suff er papers will prove she was telling ing. Clearly she’d not gone to any she was doing a “good deed” by will prove Laura Plummer, yesterday before the delay was I can’t tell you how stupid I feel,” with back pain – various medi- the truth.” attempt to conceal them. She bringing the medication, which being held for bringing illegal revealed. she told the BBC in a phone call cal certifi cates and scans which Plummer’s lawyer is under- didn’t realise they were illegal.” she had been given by a colleague painkillers into country, is She was arrested at Hurghada from her 15’ by 15’ cell in which prove that it was true.” stood to have acted for British Her brother, James Plummer, in Hull whom she had told about telling truth airport on October 9 after 29 she said 25 other women were Turner said that the Egyptian citizens in Egypt before. had previously said her family her husband’s back pain. strips of the painkillers tramadol also being held. lawyer acting for Plummer is The MP added: “Tramadol is a had been told she could face up Tramadol is the most abused By Damien Gayle and naproxen were found in her A judge in Hurghada, a resort confi dent that the evidence will controlled class C drug in the UK, to 25 years in jail, with one law- drug in Egypt, according to a Guardian News & Media suitcase. town on Egypt’s Red Sea coast, help her case as it confi rms her and is banned entirely in Egypt yer even mentioning the death government minister. Tramadol, an opioid, is a con- will decide whether to extend version of events. because it’s a recreation drug of penalty. The synthetic opioid is only trolled substance in Egypt, and Plummer’s detention or free her Among the documents are x- choice … they are desperate to “It’s just blown out of propor- available on prescription but is he husband of a Brit- Plummer faces a long prison sen- on bail. rays, medical records and a mar- stamp it out.” tion completely,” he said. “She’s often obtained illegally and used ish woman being held in tence if convicted of smuggling. The hearing could take place riage certifi cate. Turner said that Plummer’s so by the book, so routine, she as a heroin substitute, as it is TEgypt on drug smuggling Plummer said she had no idea today. The couple reportedly met four father put it well when he said just likes her own home com- elsewhere in the world. charges has reportedly produced of the legal issues surround- Plummer’s MP, Karl Turn- years ago. his daughter “wouldn’t know a forts, watches Emmerdale every A Foreign Offi ce spokeswoman evidence he believes could lead to ing the painkillers, which she er, told the Press Association: “Hopefully now her nightmare tramadol from a Panadol”, add- night or things like that, going to said its offi cials were “supporting her release. brought over for her Egyptian “Omar, the partner of Laura, has will come to an end,” her husband ing: “They weren’t concealed, bed at nine o’clock every night.” a British woman and her family Laura Plummer, 33, from Hull, husband’s bad back. come forward with evidence to Omar Caboo, 34, said. “These they were laid on top of cloth- He said his sister just thought following her detention in Egypt”. Gulf Times Sunday, November 12, 2017 17 EUROPE

Concerns over Catalans social media protest to activity on Catalonia

AFP seek release Madrid pain has said that it had noted news manipulation Sabout the Catalan crisis on social media originating “from Russian territory”, adding that the issue would be raised at an upcoming EU ministers meet- of leaders ing. Spanish media have already AFP including Spain’s main highway “The situation is sad, the poli- accused Moscow-backed out- Barcelona link to France and the rest of Eu- ticians haven’t done their jobs,” lets such as Russia Today and rope. said Robert Muni, who was pro- Sputnik – which have Spanish Since lawmakers in Catalonia testing with his children. language services – of playing ens of thousands of Cata- – a wealthy region with its own Puigdemont and four former a destabilising role in the crisis lans gathered yesterday language and distinct culture – ministers say that they are in triggered by Catalonia’s banned Tto demand the release of declared independence on Oc- Brussels because they cannot be October 1 independence refer- regional offi cials who were jailed tober 27 following a banned ref- guaranteed a fair trial back home. endum. for their push for independence erendum, pro-separatist offi cials “Although some of us are far Defence Minister Maria Do- from Spain, which has left the have come under huge pressure away from you and others are in lores de Cospedal told reporters country mired in a political cri- from Madrid. prison, we have an opportunity on Friday that the government sis. The central government has to express loudly and clearly that had established that “many The march kicked off in Barce- dismissed Catalan leader Carles we want freedom and democ- messages and interventions via lona, the Catalan capital, at 1600 Puigdemont, his government racy,” Puigdemont told Catalan social networks come from Rus- GMT and came a day after the re- and the parliament, suspended television. “We also want the re- sian territory”. gion’s parliament speaker – one the region’s autonomy and called turn home of all those in prison But she insisted that authori- of dozens of lawmakers sacked for new elections there on De- or abroad.” ties had not established whether by Madrid last month – was re- cember 21. Yesterday’s protest was organ- the Russian government was be- leased from jail after posting Barcelona’s popular mayor, ised by two pro-independence hind them or not. €150,000 ($175,000) bail. just hours before she was due to lobby groups, ANC and Om- Cospedal was responding to Thousands gathered on an av- attend the rally, railed against the nium, whose two leaders are also a journalist who asked about enue next to the region’s parlia- actions of Puigdemont’s govern- detained. “Russia’s interference in prepar- ment building waving Catalan ment. “We don’t know what’s go- ing messages that could alter the independence fl ags and chanting “They’ve provoked tensions ing to happen but we know what internal workings of some coun- “Freedom!” while some held up and carried out a unilateral inde- we want: the release of political tries”, pointing specifi cally to the banners announcing: “SOS De- pendence declaration which the prisoners,” said demonstrator Catalan crisis in Spain. mocracy”. majority do not want,” Ada Colau Maria Angels Quintana. She did not give specifi c ex- Children in riding helmets told a meeting of her party mem- Puigdemont has said he trav- amples of the types of messages climbed castells – the region’s bers. “They’ve tricked the popu- elled to Brussels after declaring that had been identifi ed. traditional human towers – as lation for their own interests.” independence in order to raise The El Pais daily wrote an others held placards bearing Eight members of the axed international awareness on the editorial on Friday denouncing caricatures of some jailed law- Catalan cabinet are currently treatment of separatists in Spain. “the intense campaign by Rus- makers. detained on charges of sedition, But the European Union, nerv- sian media that are close to the The Catalonia crisis has caused rebellion and misuse of public ous that Catalan independence Kremlin”, whose “propaganda concern in the European Union funds. could stir up separatist tensions machine” it accused of sid- as the bloc deals with Brexit and A further six fi red offi cials in- in several member states, has re- ing with the pro-independence uncertainty over the fate of the cluding parliament speaker Car- peatedly backed the government movement. region’s 7.5mn people. me Forcadell were granted bail of Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy Earlier on Friday, Spain’s For- More than 2,400 businesses this week on similar charges by in its handling of the crisis. eign Minister Alfonso Dastis said have moved their legal head- Spain’s Supreme Court. Rajoy himself will be in Bar- there was evidence of activity by quarters elsewhere. Puigdemont is in self-imposed celona today – his fi rst visit to “Russian networks, hackers”. On Wednesday a general strike exile in Belgium awaiting a hear- Catalonia since the independ- “They’re not exclusively called by a pro-independence ing on possible extradition back ence crisis erupted – to show aimed against Spain, but it’s a union caused travel chaos, to Spain after Madrid issued an support for his Popular Party manner of destabilising the EU,” blocking 60 roads and train lines EU-wide warrant. candidates in next month’s vote. People take part in the demonstration in Barcelona calling for the release of jailed separatist leaders. he told Spanish radio. Spain’s government spokes- man Inigo Mendez de Vigo, meanwhile, said that disinfor- mation on social networks was a “serious issue”. US restriction on Russian media an “The foreign minister will raise this issue which Europe must take very seriously,” he added, pointing out that stra- attack on freedom of speech: Putin tegic communications and the fi ght against disinformation were on the agenda at an EU for- Reuters Kremlin was still formulating other foreign media operating “But we will have to formu- eign ministers meeting tomor- Danang, Vietnam its response. in Russia as foreign agents. late some kind of response and row in Brussels. Kremlin-backed broadcaster Speaking to reporters at the it will mirror” the measures On Thursday, US General Russia Today has been told to end of an Asia Pacifi c Economic adopted by US authorities to- Curtis Scaparrotti, the com- ussian President register in the United States as a Co-operation (Apec) summit wards Russian media in the mander of North Atlantic Treaty Vladimir Putin said yes- “foreign agent”. in Vietnam, Putin said: “An at- United States, Putin said. Organisation (Nato) forces in Rterday that Russia would US intelligence offi cials say tack on our media in the United “I want to draw your atten- Europe, demanded that Russia respond in kind to what he said that the broadcaster tried to States is an attack on freedom tion to the fact that there is “stop meddling” in European were Washington’s measures to infl uence the US presidential of speech, without a doubt. no – and there can’t be – con- elections amid concern over restrict the freedom of speech election on the Kremlin’s be- We’re disappointed. fi rmation that Russian me- Kremlin interference in the Cat- of Russian media organisations half, an allegation the broad- “What is being discussed in dia meddled in election cam- alan crisis. operating on United States ter- caster and the Kremlin deny. the State Duma (lower house of paigns,” Putin said. Moscow is also suspected ritory. On Friday, the pro-Kremlin parliament), I saw it yesterday, Being designated as “foreign of interfering in last year’s US Putin said however that pos- speaker of the lower house it might be a little too harsh but agents” in Russia would oblige presidential election and Brit- sible plans to retaliate by de- of Russia’s parliament, Vy- it’s natural because at the level foreign media to submit regular ain’s Brexit vote, and Scaparrotti claring US media operating in acheslav Volodin, said legisla- of the legislative arm you often reports to the authorities about said he was concerned by “Rus- Russia as foreign agents may be tion could be introduced next hear extreme views, harsh judg- their staffi ng and their sources sian malign infl uence” in other Putin: we will have to formulate some kind of response. “a little too harsh”, and that the week designating US and some ment and tough proposals.” of funding. countries.

Lawmaker suspected of paying €25 per vote German parties see progress in Italian authorities have accused a leftist politician of paying €25 ($29) per vote to win his seat in regional elections held in Sicily last weekend, the daily La Stampa coalition talks despite divisions reported yesterday. Edmondo Tamajo, 41, has been charged with criminal conspiracy in relation to Reuters Friday after the two smaller parties agreeing to accept more modest in- electoral corruption, said the newspaper. Berlin dropped demands this week on tax come tax cuts than a campaign pledge On his Facebook account Tamajo stated: “I and climate policy, but later decided of €30bn-€40bn ($35bn-46bn) of have never bought a single vote and have to meet again today before a fi nal push relief. built my political career on daily acts to erman parties cited progress by full delegations for an outline deal In an interview with the German support people.” on Friday after three weeks of next week. magazine Der Spiegel on Friday, Lind- He added he was willing to co-operate with Gtalks about a three-way coali- Still, the tone was more upbeat ner also signalled a readiness to com- the investigation to clear up the situation. tion, with their leaders due to thrash than at the end of the previous week. promise on the eurozone’s European La Stampa said Italy’s financial police out remaining diff erences over trans- “We’re heading into the home Stability Mechanism, moving away have already questioned “voters who had port and climate today. stretch,” Horst Seehofer, head of the from a campaign pledge to shut down been paid who are willing to confirm the Chancellor Angela Merkel’s con- Christian Social Union (CSU), the Ba- the rescue fund. Merkel: hopes to reach agreement in the exploratory talks by November 16. charges” against Tamajo. servatives, which bled support to the varian sister party of Merkel’s Chris- The Greens for their part dropped It was unclear how many of the 13,984 far-right Alternative for Germany tian Democrats (CDU), told reporters. their insistence on fi xed dates for They must also agree how to meet rope’s biggest economic power for votes he received had been bought. (AfD) in the September 24 election, Seehofer and FDP leader Christian shutting down coal-fi red power sta- key targets for reducing carbon diox- leadership on issues ranging from La Stampa said Tamajo had been caught are trying to forge a coalition gov- Lindner said they were optimistic tions and banning cars with internal ide emissions, how to deal with the eurozone governance to transatlantic via phone tapping that targeted a large ernment with the pro-business Free that the exploratory talks could be combustion engines. pollution caused by diesel cars already relations. swath of the political elite in the Sicilian Democrats (FDP) and the environ- wrapped up next week, paving the But the parties remain divided on on the road, and whether to introduce Merkel, seeking a fourth term as capital Palermo. mentalist Greens. way for weeks of detailed negotia- whether or not to push for a eurozone a law that would ease tax rates for chancellor, hopes to reach agreement Tamajo has not so far been detained, unlike The chiefs of the parties huddled tions about the exact terms of a coali- budget, on Europe’s banking union venture capital projects. in the exploratory talks by November a rival politician from Silvio Berlusconi’s on Friday evening to review progress tion contract. and on the use of drones in military If the parties fail to reach agree- 16. centre-right party, who was arrested and in the talks thus far, but planned no But Michael Kellner, a top nego- confl icts, as well as German partici- ment, Germany could be forced into She plans to take the broad outlines placed under house arrest 48 hours after statements. tiator for the Greens, demanded more pation in foreign military missions, a new election that could unsettle of what is agreed to key conservative his election last Sunday on suspicion of tax They had initially hoped to agree compromises from the other parties. according to draft papers seen by investors at a time when many in the party leaders in fi ve meetings the fol- fraud. on the outlines of a coalition deal by The FDP this week gave ground by Reuters. European Union are looking to Eu- lowing weekend, the CDU said. Gulf Times 18 Sunday, November 12, 2017 EUROPE Poland marks independence

Participants hold umbrellas with letters making up ‘Stop Fascism’ as they take part in a rally in Warsaw, day with rallies organised by Antifascist Coalition (Antifa), to mark the 99th anniversary of Polish independence. AFP Poland’s independence in 1918. “I’m shocked that they’re al- who fought for Poland’s free- gained independence after being Poland has ever had nor will ever Warsaw business-owner Wo- Warsaw This year’s slogan was “We lowed to demonstrate on this dom”. wiped off the map for 123 years have a monopoly on patriotism,” jciech Krol, who attended the an- Want God”, which 21-year-old day. It’s … mostly football hoo- “I for one don’t identify with in a three-way carve-up between Tusk told reporters upon arriving ti-fascist rally with a huge Polish Pawel from the southern city of ligans hijacking patriotism,” said fascists. The same goes for other Tsarist Russia, Prussia, and the at Warsaw’s Chopin airport. fl ag, said he was a Tusk opponent arrying Polish fl ags and Rzeszow said was “important 50-year-old Briton Andy Eddles, people – and there are fami- Austro-Hungarian Empire. Tusk’s appearance comes at a for a long time but is now happy throwing red smoke because religion is important in a language teacher who has been lies with children here too,” said Duda invites all living former time when Warsaw has been in- with his work in the European Cbombs, tens of thou- our country”. living in Poland for 27 years. the 30-year-old Warsaw offi ce Polish presidents and premiers to creasingly at odds with Brussels Union and glad that he returned sands of people joined a march in Those marching chanted “For me it’s important to sup- worker. attend each year, and yesterday because of the PiS government’s to Poland yesterday. Warsaw organised yesterday by “God, honour, country” and port the anti-fascist coalition, “I’d say some people here do marked the fi rst time since the controversial court reforms, “I’m really happy he came. far-right nationalists to mark in- “Glory to our heroes”, while a few and to support fellow democrats, have extreme views, maybe even PiS party came to power in 2015 large-scale logging in a primae- What we want most here is as dependence day, while counter- people also shouted xenophobic who are under pressure in Poland 30% of those marching, but 70% that EU President Donald Tusk – val forest and refusal to welcome much Europe as possible. Be- protesters rallied against fascism. lines like “Pure Poland, white today,” he told AFP. are simply walking peacefully, a former Polish premier and PiS migrants. cause right now it is only global The annual march also attract- Poland” and “Refugees get out”. Main march participant Ka- without shouting any fascist slo- rival – decided to attend. Relations between PiS and pressure, and specifi cally EU ed a considerable number of sup- A smaller rally of a couple mil Staszalek however warned gans,” he told AFP. “Independence Day has always Tusk have been so tense that pressure, that has stopped us all porters of the governing conserv- thousand people earlier protest- against making generalisations Polish President Andrzej Duda been and will continue to be a Poland was the only country to from being arrested, beaten, har- ative Law and Justice (PiS) party ed what they called the “fascist” and said he was marching to hosted an offi cial ceremony to celebration of all Poles and not vote against his reelection as EU assed, and so on,” the 55-year- to honour the reestablishment of nature of the main march. “honour the memory of those mark 99 years since Poland re- just one party. No politician in president in March. old government critic told AFP. French court remands seven in terror probe

AFP were already on an extremist Paris watchlist. The so-called imam was in touch with a 13-year-old even people arrested in a French teenager accused of French-Swiss probe have planning a knife attack. Sbeen remanded in custo- The minor, who was ar- dy in France over a plot to stage rested in June, was the young- a terror attack, with one more est person to face prosecution suspect placed under further in France for planning a terror investigation, a judicial source attack. said yesterday. Molins on Friday told France The suspects were brought Info radio the group had “cor- before an anti-terror judge on responded on encrypted net- Friday and charged with “par- works”. ticipation in a criminal terror- He said they had been plan- ist conspiracy”, the source said. ning “to go into action with- They were among 10 peo- in the (coming) months in ple detained on Tuesday in France”. Above: A woman dressed as a France and Switzerland after Some of the suspects had WWI medical worker and people exchanging “extremely vio- described themselves as sup- This picture taken on Friday shows Macron and Steinmeier as they dressed as French WWI soldiers lent remarks” on the encrypt- porters of the Islamic State (IS) attended the inauguration of the WWI French-German memorial of take part in a ceremony ed messaging app Telegram, group, a judicial source said. Hartmannswillerkopf in Wattwiller, eastern France. yesterday at the Glade of the French prosecutor Francois The French-Swiss operation Armistice in Rethondes, Molins said. came less than a week after northern France, during the Nine of the suspects were President Emmanuel Macron Armistice Day commemorations detained in France, while the signed an anti-terror law giv- marking the end of World War I 10th, a 23-year-old Colombian ing authorities permanent French, German (WWI). woman, was held in Switzer- powers to search homes, shut land. down places of worship and Right: Britain’s Princess Anne Those held in France in- restrict the movements of sus- attends the Last Post ceremony cluded a 27-year-old Swiss pected extremists. presidents open at the Commonwealth War man described as a self-styled The new law replaced the Graves Commission of the Ypres imam tasked with indoctrina- state of emergency imposed Memorial at the Menenpoort tion, as well as a 65-year-old after the November 13, 2015 (Menin Gate) in Ieper-Ypres, army veteran and convert to Paris attacks, which left 130 WWI museum Belgium, as part of the Armistice Islam, and two brothers who people dead. Day commemorations yesterday.

DPA and the new museum. “The mass mentum that came from the French IS fighters, facing charges, Hartmannswillerkopf, France killings on this site stand for the Sorbonne speech will also be insanity of war.” taken on board by the new fed- avoid coming home: prosecutor French President Emmanuel eral government [in Germany],” he presidents of France Macron hailed the Franco-Ger- he said. About 690 French people who went to join the Islamic State (IS) and Germany reaffi rmed man alliance that is at the core of Hartmannswillerkopf moun- organisation are thought to still be in Syria and Iraq, France’s top Ton Friday the friendship the EU’s politics as “the bright- tain was coveted by the two rival anti-terror prosecutor said on Friday. between the former European est example of what our will for armies for its strategic position diff erentiate between “the idea It was also briefl y annexed by “I think that the majority of them do not want to come back rivals as they opened a joint war peace can accomplish”. overlooking the plains of Alsace. of the nation and the ideology of Nazi Germany during World War to France, considering the judicial proceedings against them,” museum at one of World War I’s “The best answer to this Steinmeier said the mountain nationalism”, he said. II. Francois Molins told Radio France. bloodiest battlefi elds. shared memory, to this tragedy, itself did not deserve its nick- “There was no real victor The inauguration came a day The fate of possible returning religious extremists has been a hot About 30,000 soldiers from is friendship between Germany name: “It is not this mountain at Hartmannswillerkopf,” the before the anniversary of the ar- topic in France, where a series of terror attacks, many of them both countries died fi ghting over and France,” Macron said. that is an eater of men, but rather French president said. “There mistice that ended fi ghting in claimed by Islamic State, have cost more than 230 lives since early the Hartmannswillerkopf moun- Steinmeier also addressed his nationalism is an eater of men.” were mostly deaths.” World War I on November 11, 2015. tain in Alsace, nicknamed the French counterpart’s attempt He took the opportunity to The Alsace region was itself 1918. Most current cases of returnees involved “a certain number of “eater of men”. at reforming European politics, warn against the rise of nation- a symbolic choice for the site: Macron announced that he women, mostly widows, with children, who may in fact be tempted “Only when France and Ger- praising his proposals for greater alism in Germany after the far- It was annexed by Germany af- would be inviting the leaders of to return to France”, Molins said. many stand together can Europe EU integration at a September right AfD (Alternative for Ger- ter the Franco-Prussian war of all the countries that took part in All adult returnees, as well as suspected child combatants from age truly succeed,” German Presi- speech in the Sorbonne univer- many) party made major gains in 1870-1871 before being returned the war to Paris on November 11 13 up, are brought before judges, Molins said. dent Frank-Walter Steinmeier sity in Paris. recent elections. to France after the German defeat next year to mark the 100th an- Younger children were cared for and rehabilitated through the said after a tour of the battlefi eld “And I am sure that this mo- Every generation must learn to in World War I. niversary of the armistice. educational system. “On this issue we need to leave aside any naïvete,” Molins argued, saying that both women and adolescents had been trained to bear arms in Islamic State territory.

Newspaper lists dead migrants and asylum-seekers German police looking for driver who steered by accident into Berlin crowd Der Tagesspiegel identifies The three children are among grants, who died because of the dulhamid, 36, froze to death in stabbing at a school in Sweden 33,293 people who’ve died thousands of victims listed by restrictive policies of Fortress Bulgaria’s mountainous border two years ago. German police are searching for the driver of a car who accidentally seeking shelter in ‘fortress a German newspaper in an at- Europe”. with Turkey after two days walk- Many of the victims come steered his rented car into pedestrians on a Berlin pavement, Europe’ tempt to put a human face on the Hundreds of thousands fl eeing ing through snow. from Syria, Afghanistan, Iraq, injuring no one but leaving investigators puzzled. tragedy that has unfolded in the wars and poverty in the Middle Others have died in fi res in ref- Eritrea and West Africa. People jumped out of the path the car that was travelling at high Reuters Mediterranean where thousands East, South Asia and Africa have ugee camps or been hit by lorries But hundreds of those who speed in the western Reinickendorf district, police said. London of refugees and migrants have tried to reach Europe in recent on motorways. have died at sea are simply iden- But while the incident initially prompted fears of an attempted died en route to Europe. years. The document also lists scores tifi ed as “unknown”. terrorist attack, police said they had determined it was a accident. Der Tagesspiegel newspaper Some European countries have of suicides; some have set fi re to Only the details of their deaths Video footage taken from a nearby business showed the driver had our-month-old Syrian said it wanted to show the vic- built fences along their borders, themselves, others have hanged are given. been forced to make an evasive manoeuvre to avoid colliding with baby Faris Ali froze to death tims “as human beings, with an as others have bickered over how themselves with sheets or The biggest single tragedy another vehicle. Fin a tent in Turkey, fi ve- origin, a past, a life”. to handle the crisis. jumped from buildings. happened in May 2016 when 550 Witnesses to the incident on Friday night were able to record the year-old Afghan Sajida Ali’s body Not all those listed drowned in Compiled from media and UN Several of those named died in people drowned after two fi shing vehicle’s registration number, police said, enabling them to locate washed ashore after a shipwreck, shipwrecks. sources, the list also includes racist attacks or other violence boats sank off the Libyan coast. and search the vehicle renter’s Berlin apartment. and tiny Samuel drowned with Some were thrown overboard. many who died after reaching after thinking they had fi nally The list compiled by Turkish- It is not clear why the driver fled the scene or whether the renter – a his mother as she tried to reach The document is headlined a Europe. found safety. born artist Banu Cennetoglu 35-year-old Moroccan – was the driver. Spain after leaving home in the “List of 33,293 registered asy- Last January, two Iraqi men, Somali teenager Ahmed Has- dates back to 1993, but most The incident took place near a bus stop and an underground Congo. lum-seekers, refugees and mi- Hardi Ghafour, 29, and Talat Ab- san was murdered in a racist deaths relate to the last six years. station. Gulf Times Sunday, November 12, 2017 19 EUROPE

$100bn climate US groups come together fund far from to honour Paris pledges assured, US states, cities and says UN businesses signed up to ‘America’s pledge’ to combat global warning have a chief combined economic power equal to the world’s third-biggest economy AFP United Nations Fiona Harvey and Jonathan Watts Guardian News & Media N Secretary General An- tonio Guterres has said Uthat a $100bn annual he US states, cities and fund to help developing coun- businesses that have tries tackle climate change was Tsigned up to reduce crucial to achieve the goals of the greenhouse gas emissions de- Paris climate deal. spite president Donald Trump’s “We need to mobilise the threats to withdraw from the agreed $100bn annually for de- Paris agreement would, if put veloping countries,” Guterres together, have the clout of the told reporters ahead of his trip world’s third biggest economy, to Bonn to attend the UN climate after the US and China. conference. “This is crucial to To date, 20 US states and more spur action and to build trust. than 50 of its largest cities, along We are far from having that en- with more than 60 of the biggest tirely guaranteed.” businesses in the US, have com- Under the Paris climate mitted to emissions reduction agreement, wealthy countries goals. Above: A woman holds up a renewed their commitment to Added together, they have an poster reading ‘America’s Pledge raise $100bn by 2020 to help economic power of about $10tn, – we still in’ at the US Climate developing countries deal with placing this group behind only Action Centre during the COP23 global warming, but there are the US as a whole ($18.6tn) and United Nations Climate Change concerns that they will not reach China ($11tn) in terms of GDP. Conference in Bonn. that target. At the Bonn conference on cli- In June, President Donald mate change, these groups joined Right: People march with a long Trump said the United States together yesterday to make banner reading ‘USA, Trump: would no longer contribute to “America’s pledge”, a commit- Climate Genocide’ at a protest the Green Climate Fund, which ment to combat global warming, in Bonn during the UN Climate helps poorer countries adapt in stark opposition to the Trump Change Conference. to climate change, when he an- administration. nounced the US withdrawal “This is very powerful,” said Nick Nuttall, communications from the Paris deal. Paul Bodnar, a former lead nego- chief of UN Climate Change, said Guterres said that carbon tiator at the climate talks for the that the organisers were willing pricing was an “extremely im- US under Barack Obama. “These to work constructively with non- portant instrument that must be states and cities would be larger state actors. developed” to cut emissions and than 195 out of the 197 countries “We are extremely support- fulfi l the goals of the Paris agree- signed up to the Paris agree- ive of the whole mass of cities, ment. ment.” states and territories who have UN negotiators meeting in Michael Bloomberg, the been aligning themselves with Bonn are trying to work out how former mayor of New York, the Paris agreement,” he said. to implement the Paris accord, led the group in vowing to take “American cities and states which aims to keep warming at measures, such as reducing coal- have been very active, which is “well under 2° Celsius” (3.6° fi red power and investing in re- welcome – and it mirrors what Fahrenheit) above pre-industrial newable energy and effi ciency, is happening elsewhere in the levels. which would substantially re- world.” Guterres will deliver an ad- duce their carbon output. His comments were echoed by dress at the conference on But some delegates want the several delegates. Wednesday which he said was companies and local govern- “We don’t turn a blind eye taking place at a pivotal mo- ments involved to go further, to anyone,” said Antonio Mar- ment. by submitting reports on their People march with placards against RWE, one of Europe’s biggest condes, the chief negotiator for The World Meteorological progress towards their emis- electricity companies, at a demonstration yesterday in Bonn during Brazil. Organisation (WMO) said in an sions-cutting goals to be subject the COP23 UN Climate Change Conference. he added: “We talk to the fed- alarming report last month that to the kind of monitoring and ac- eral government and we have the concentration of carbon di- countability that is required from sea level rises, bring droughts and Despite the geographical prox- been approached by non-state oxide in the atmosphere had national governments under the fl oods to many areas of the world, imity of the “America’s Pledge” bodies. Our policy is that we are hit its highest level in 800,000 UN process. and make agriculture impossible delegation, there are limits to willing to work with anyone who years. They have put forward a draft in huge swaths of the globe. what non-state actors can do. can move this process forward.” “We need to accelerate cli- text which, if accepted, would However, consensus on how to They are excluded from many But some activists warned mate action – and we need to mean such voluntary commit- Native American protesters are seen in the auditorium at the US strengthen the pledges is prov- of the technical talks and cannot against expecting too much from raise ambition,” said Guterres. ments were made in line with UN Climate Action Centre during the COP23 United Nations Climate ing elusive, and is unlikely to be tap into federal funds that states the America’s Pledge team. The window of opportunity to standards, and could therefore be Change Conference in Bonn. fi nalised at these talks. use to fi nance commitments to Thanu Yakupitiyage of the meet the 2° C target may close included in the national green- Meanwhile, the Trump White slow climate change or reduce its NGO 350.org said that the cli- in 20 years or less, he said, add- house gas inventories required judge America’s Pledge, we just ing how to improve their pledges House has indicated its pri- impacts. mate pledges by many mayors ing that there must be at least a from countries. want rigour on the results.” on cutting carbon in line with orities, to the consternation of More importantly, it is harder and governors were a welcome further 25% cut in emissions by Kevin Conrad, of Papua New The group’s commitments fall scientifi c advice. many delegates, by scheduling a for them to set a course for the step, but she urged still greater 2020. Guinea, told the Guardian: “We outside the pledges under the Under the Paris agreement, meeting at the talks focusing on country. ambition and concrete policies to China is the world’s top car- welcome their contributions, but landmark 2015 Paris agreement, they must hold global tempera- the future of coal and how its use But while that is missing, phase out fossil fuels. bon polluter, followed by the they should be accountable [on and are likely to fall short of the ture rises to no more than 2° Cel- can be continued with new tech- Antha Williams, head of the “America’s Pledge is a start United States, the European Un- their progress in meeting their requirements on carbon-cutting sius, which scientists say is the nologies. Bloomberg Philanthropies envi- and we’ll be holding our elected ion, India and Russia. voluntary goals]. Will they be under the pact. limit of safety, beyond which cli- The America’s Pledge report ronment team, said it was neces- offi cials, including governor Jer- A report this week said willing to be reviewed on their Trump has vowed to withdraw mate change is likely to become will be released in the alternative sary to fi ll the void. ry Brown, to his word. As we look wealthy countries were falling results, not just on the blather?” the US from this agreement, the catastrophic and irreversible. US headquarters at the talks, the “It would be better if we towards the climate summit that well short of their pledge to pro- He said the draft text was fi rst to bind developed and de- Current pledges under the US Climate Action Centre. saw leadership from the White the governor has announced for vide the $100bn annually. aimed at giving these contribu- veloping countries to a specifi c Paris agreement are inadequate The giant infl atable dome sits House, but the overarching point 2018, we want more than words; Of the $111bn invested in clean tions “a legitimacy” under the temperature goal. to reach this goal and it is es- on the edge of the conference is that cities, states and compa- we want a tangible action plan energy technologies, only $10bn UN’s rules. At the Bonn COP23 talks, timated they would bring the – which many of its supporters nies that represent more than and steps taken,” she said. was provided by rich coun- “They should be transparent,” scheduled to continue to the end world to 3° C of warming, which claim is a sign of its endorsement half of the US are showing their tries, according to the study by he said. “We do not want to pre- of the week, nations are discuss- would cause drastic changes in as a semi-offi cial player. support for climate action.” „ See also Page 27 Bloomberg New Energy Finance. Climate target too low, progress too slow: top scientist

By Marlowe Hood, AFP negotiations in Bonn. tration of carbon dioxide – the When writer and environmen- understanding – no one has con- Bonn Thousands of diplomats at main greenhouse gas – tipped talist Bill McKibben decided a tributed more,” said Michael Op- the 12-day, 196-nation talks are over 403 parts per million (ppm), decade ago to launch a campaign penheimer, a professor of geo- haggling over the fi ne print of a 40% above the pre-industrial to fi ght global warming, he asked sciences and international aff airs he world must sharply “user’s manual” for a treaty that average and the highest level in the world’s best known climate at Princeton University. draw down greenhouse gas will go into eff ect in 2020. at least 800,000 years, the UN’s scientist what he should call it. Even if humanity succeeds Temissions and suck bil- Inked in the French capital in weather agency reported this “He had in mind the name in bending down the curve of lions of tonnes of carbon dioxide 2015, the Paris Agreement calls week. ‘450.org’,” Hansen recalled. greenhouse emissions far sooner from the air if today’s youth are for capping global warming at 2° Even under optimistic sce- By coincidence, Hansen was than currently seems imagina- to be spared climate cataclysm, a Celsius (3.6° Fahrenheit). narios, that number is projected about to publish a major study ble, it would not be fast enough top scientist has warned. With the planet out of kilter to rise for decades. that concluded the ceiling for to bring CO2 levels back to 350 “This reality is being ignored after only one degree of warm- What’s the limit for a climate- CO2 levels should be 350 ppm, at ppm by century’s end, according by governments around the ing – enough to amplify deadly safe world? most. to Hansen. world,” said James Hansen, who heatwaves, superstorms and The UN’s science advisory Thus was born 350.org, proba- “You would have to extract famously announced to the US droughts – the treaty also vows body, the Intergovernmental bly the largest grassroots climate 150bn tonnes of carbon from the Congress 30 years ago that global to explore the feasibility of hold- Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), action organisation in the world. atmosphere”, more than 10 times warming was underway. ing the line at 1.5° C. has said we can “likely” stay un- “Hansen does make a com- the amount we emit each year, he Hansen: To say that we are ‘moving in the right direction’ just isn’t “To say that we are ‘moving “That is a good impulse, be- der the 2° C threshold if CO2 pelling case that many climate said. good enough anymore. in the right direction’ just isn’t cause if we go to 2° C, it is guar- levels don’t exceed 450 ppm by change impacts are occurring The technology to do that does good enough anymore,” he said in anteed that we will lose our 2100. sooner and with greater mag- not currently exist. be called climate negligence. one of the lawyers representing an interview. shorelines and coastal cities,” For Hansen, that’s a recipe for nitude than we expected,” said At 76, Hansen is thinking a lot “When the US Constitution the plaintiff s told AFP. Head of the US National Aero- said Hansen. “The only question disaster. Michael Mann, director of the about and what kind of world says ‘We the People’, that means Government attempts to have nautics and Space Administra- is how fast.” Meltwater from the Greenland Earth System Science Center that young people will be inher- young people too,” she said in an the case thrown out have failed. tion (Nasa)’s Goddard Institute Earth’s surface temperature, and Antarctic ice sheets could at Pennsylvania State Univer- iting. interview. “We have constitu- Despite his grim predictions, for Space Studies until 2013, the amount of CO2 in the at- add metres to sea levels by 2100, sity. “Jim’s past predictions have So is his granddaughter, So- tional rights, and those rights are Hansen has not thrown his hands Hansen and his 18-year-old mosphere, and sea levels have he has calculated. proven prescient and we do in- phie Kivlehan, a fi rst year univer- being violated.” up in despair. granddaughter – who is suing the all changed in lock-step over “The last time in Earth’s histo- deed ignore him at our peril.” sity student in the United States. The case is currently wending He continues, for example, to US government for contributing hundreds of millions of years, he ry that CO2 concentrations were “Hansen’s contributions to the Along with 20 of her peers, its way through the federal court campaign for a direct tax on fossil to the problem – delivered that pointed out. at 450 ppm, sea level was 25m basic science of climate change Kivlehan has sued the US federal system, and could one day wind fuels as the only realistic way to message this week at UN climate In 2016, atmospheric concen- (80’) higher,” he noted. are fundamental to our current government for what might best up before the Supreme Court, achieve the necessary cuts. Gulf Times 20 Sunday, November 12, 2017 INDIA

EDUCATION CONTROVERSY PROGRAMME HONOUR Google can’t replace University drops ‘only Unicef India hosts Dipa Karmakar gets teachers: Venkaiah vegetarian’ condition Radio4Child awards D Litt degree from NIT

Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu yesterday Following an uproar, the Savitribai Phule Pune Unicef India has hosted the second edition of the Star gymnast Dipa Karmakar, who narrowly said teachers play a key role in transforming University yesterday junked a 10-year-old rule Radio4Child awards to recognise creative and missed out on a bronze medal in the women’s the society and they can never be replaced by stipulating that only “a vegetarian, free of any innovative programming on the issues of routine vault event at the Rio Olympics last year, anything, including Google. “No doubt Google vices”, will be given gold medals, a top off icial immunisation and ending violence against was yesterday conferred a D Litt degree by is important, but it can never replace the place said. “We have withdrawn the 10-year-old circular women and children. Unicef India said it hosted the National Institute of Technology (NIT), of guru (teachers) in the life of students,” after objections were raised from various the awards in partnership with All India Radio Agartala. The 24-year-old Tripura girl, who Naidu said at a congregation of graduate, quarters. Now we shall write to the Shelar (AIR) and the Association of Radio Operators became the first Indian woman gymnast to post-graduate and doctorate degree recipients family (which had endowed the medal) to drop of India (AROI). Unicef, AIR and AROI have been qualify for the Olympics, finished fourth in at the 13th Convocation Ceremony of Kalinga this particular stipulation,” Arvind Shaligram, conducting capacity-building workshops for the final round of the women’s vault event in Institute of Industrial Technology University registrar of the university, said. He added that private FM channels as well as AIR journalists Brazil last year. Dipa’s father Dulal Karmakar Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu speaks in Bhubaneswar. “Hence the students should if the family did not agree to the request, the since 2014 to help them integrate meaningful, said his daughter is now preparing for the 18th at the 13th annual convocation of Kalinga be grateful to their gurus and at the same time university would be compelled to cancel the appealing radio jingles/talk shows on the critical Asian Games in Indonesia’s Jakarta and 21st Institute of Industrial Technology University in work to serve mother, mother tongue, and gold medal instituted out of the Shelar family’s messages of child health, routine immunisation Commonwealth Games to be held in Australia’s Bhubaneswar. motherland.” endowment. and ending violence. Gold Coast.

Now Kerala Protest for reservation MP faces PM leaves for charges of land grab Manila today By Ashraf Padanna Thiruvananthapuram

n yet another setback to Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vi- Ijayan, offi cials yesterday can- to attend celled the title deeds of 24 acres of forestland member of parliament Joice George and his family alleg- edly grabbed in the hilly district of Idukki. George shot to fame by leading protests against a proposed law to Asean meet preserve the Western Ghats eco- system and successfully contested IANS foreign policy after then prime member states and the six states from there in the 2014 parliamen- New Delhi minister P V Narasimha Rao with which the grouping has free tary elections as a Left Democratic launched the Look East Policy in trade pacts - Australia, China, Front (LDF) candidate. 1992. India, Japan, South Korea and Vijayan had rejected the oppo- oosting trade and con- The relationship was elevated New Zealand. sition demand for his eviction and nectivity will be among to that of a strategic partnership During the course of his visit, asserted his right to the land while Bthe key priorities as Prime in 2012 and the Look East Policy Modi, apart from attending the responding in the state assembly Minister Narendra Modi begins was turned into the Act East Pol- summits, will also participate in recently. a three-day visit to the Philip- icy under the present Bharatiya a meeting of the leaders of the The chief minister had also jus- pines today that will see him Janata Party government. countries of the proposed RCEP tifi ed a similar action by Transport attend the 15th Asean-India With the initiation of eco- and an Asean Business and In- Minister Thomas Chandy accused Summit and the 12th East Asia nomic reforms in India in 1991, vestment Summit. of grabbing land for his lake resort Summit. New Delhi has been increasing In a special media brief- in the backwater getaway of Kut- Meetings with world leaders, its engagements with the eco- ing here ahead of the visit, Priti tanad. including US President Donald nomically vibrant Southeast Saran, Secretary (East) in the Devikulam sub-collector V R Trump, Chinese President Xi Asian region. Ministry of External Aff airs, said Premkumar cancelled George’s Jinping and Russian President Given China’s belligerence in Modi’s participation in the two title deeds at Kottakamboor, also Vladimir Putin, who are at- the South China Sea, the region- summits “provides a very im- a hill station much in demand tending the EAS, are likely on its al bloc also sees in India a rising portant opportunity to reiterate among holidaymakers, as the sidelines. force that can act as a balanc- our commitment to the partner- land was acquired on “improper Trump on Friday praised In- ing power in the region, with its ship”. grounds.” dia for achieving “astounding” stress on maritime security and Regarding the Modi-Duterte Premkumar replaced Sriram growth since opening its econ- in ensuring freedom of naviga- meeting, she said that the two Venkataraman, another young of- omy and heaped praise on Modi, tion through one of the world’s leaders were expected “to set fi cer whom Vijayan shunted out saying he has been working to busiest trading routes. up the stage for a quantitative after he launched an eviction drive bring the country and its people According to fi gures released change in our bilateral relations against land grabbers in the dis- together. by the Ministry of External Af- with the Philippines”. trict. Modi, who is making his fi rst fairs, trade between India and “As a key country of the region He reportedly enjoys the back- offi cial visit to the Southeast Asean stood at $71bn in 2016-17 with a large, educated and young ing of E Chandrasekharan of the Asian nation, will also hold a and comprised 10.85% of India’s population and a fast growing Communist Party of India (CPI) bilateral meeting with Philip- total global trade. economy, Philippines is an im- which is at odds with the Com- pines President Rodrigo Duterte Asean and India together portant partner of India’s Act munist Party of India (Marxist) tomorrow in Manila ahead of the comprise a population of 1.85bn, East Policy,” Saran stated, add- that leads the ruling coalition over two summits on November 14. one-fourth of the global popu- ing that there was immense po- the issue. The MP and his fam- Modi’s visit is all the more sig- lation, and a combined GDP of tential to enhance bilateral eco- ily had been maintaining that they nifi cant because this year marks $3.8tn. nomic ties. purchased the land from the origi- the 25th anniversary of the In- Investments in India from Modi meanwhile said his visit nal title holders. Now all further dia-Asean dialogue partnership Asean countries in the last 17 symbolises India’s commitment transactions of these properties and the 50th anniversary of the years had been over $70bn, ac- to continue deepening its ties stand cancelled. formation of the Asean. counting for 17% of FDI. Indian with Southeast Asia and the In- George said he was asked to The Association of Southeast investments in Asean are over do-Pacifi c region. produce the documents, which he Asian Nations (Asean) compris- $40bn. “During my fi rst visit to the did last week. es Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Talks on a Regional Compre- Philippines, I look forward to “I came to know of the govern- Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the hensive Economic Partnership have a bilateral meeting with ment action only through media. I Philippines, Singapore, Thailand (RCEP) agreement will further President of the Philippines Ro- received no show cause notice,” he Congress workers participate in a demonstration demanding that the Telangana and Vietnam. boost India’s trade and invest- drigo Duterte. I will also have in- told a local television channel. “I government implement the promised 12% reservation in jobs and education for Muslims, at India’s relationship with the ment ties with the region. teractions with other Asean and was not heard before they quashed Charminar in Hyderabad yesterday. regional bloc has emerged as a RCEP is a proposed free trade East Asia Summit leaders,” Modi the titles.” key cornerstone of New Delhi’s agreement between the 10 Asean said in a statement. Mewar royals want govt to Flight of fantasy Ivanka may attend Rahman’s concert stop Padmavati release IANS on November 28. Hyderabad The summit will highlight the theme ‘Women First, Pros- IANS Filmmaker Sanjay Leela pay obeisance to.” perity for All’, and will focus on New Delhi Bhansali has maintained that his Singh complained that since ward-winning com- supporting women entrepre- movie is a tribute to the valour of the “fi lm is about my family and poser A R Rahman will neurs and fostering economic Rajput queen Rani Padmavati. a chapter in the history of Me- Abegin his multi-city growth globally. Ivanka will Mewar royal yesterday However, Singh said that re- war”, the fi lmmakers neither ap- tour titled A R Rahman Encore lead the US delegation to the sent a letter to Prime Min- ports have indicated that Pad- proached them to verify the facts, - The Concert by setting the summit. Aister Narendra Modi, Min- mavati is based on Padmawat nor sought permission to use the tone for the forthcoming Glo- Ivanka, along with Prime ister of Information and Broad- - a “poetic imagery” by Sufi poet family’s name. bal Entrepreneurship Summit Minister Narendra Modi, will casting Smriti Irani and censor Malik Mohamed Jayasi - which, While he is concerned how the (GES) here. attend the main session of GES board chief Prasoon Joshi, among according to him, is not regarded fi lm portrays the period of war- The opening night of the on November 28 and will also others, urging them to withhold as “historically accurate”. fare, Singh also wants the mak- concert will also be the offi - attend a few sessions the next the certifi cation and release of the He said the makers of the movie ers to clarify the movie’s genre to cial opening night for the GES. day. controversial fi lm Padmavati. have not clarifi ed about “any well avoid giving the present and fu- President Donald Trump’s Rahman’s concert, be- Maharajkumar Vishvaraj Singh, established and accepted his- ture generations a “coloured view daughter and White House ad- ing held in association with son of Mahendra Singh Mewar - torical source” relied upon for the of history”. viser Ivanka Trump is expected MTV, will celebrate his 25 the 76th Maharana of the Mewar fi lm. Singh said “it is the responsi- to attend the concert, a state- years in music. The event will dynasty and a former Lok Sabha On the argument that one bility of the government to safe- ment issued on behalf of the take place in four cities - New member wrote the letter on behalf cannot judge a fi lm until it has guard the history of our country organisers said. Delhi, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad of his parents and sister Baijiraj been seen, Singh said: “The song and the dignity of its citizens”. The concert will be held on and Mumbai - during Novem- Trivikrama Kumari Jamwal. Ghoomar and publicity material The letter has also been sent November 26 at Gachibowli ber and December. “You are requested not to certi- that has released establishes gross to Minister for Human Resource Indoor Stadium here. “The production for the fy or permit the release of the fi lm inaccuracies that transgress the Development Prakash Java- GES, to be held at the Hy- show is high-tech and will in its present form,” Singh urged, limits of dramatic licence. If the dekar, Rajasthan Chief Minister derabad International Con- feature a unique and one-of- listing out seven reasons to justify fi lm professes to be history and Vasundhara Raje, and the collec- vention Centre (HICC) here, a-kind stage set up, complete his request. its maker goes on record to claim tors and superintendents of police will bring together 1,200 en- with state of the art para- “Allowing commercial inter- that he has kept in mind cultural of Udaipur, Chittorgarh, Rajsa- A Jet Airways air hostess poses for a selfie with children trepreneurs, investors and phernalia for a truly magical ests to override the sanctity of sensitivities, it is an artistic and mand, Banswara and Dungarpur. inside an aircraft during the Flight of Fantasy programme ecosystem supporters for two- experience. The event will be national pride and heritage would historic fraud to portray an in- Padmavati is set for release on organised for children by the airline ahead of Children’s and-half days of training and among the biggest homeg- be a failure on the part of the gov- correctly attired courtesan-like December 1, and the makers are Day, at Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport in Mumbai mentoring sessions, network- rown musical acts witnessed ernment and will not behove well painted doll in the song as the awaiting a censor screening, and yesterday. ing and investment match- in recent times,” the statement for times to come,” he said. very ‘queen’ the fi lm purports to subsequent clearance. making. The summit will start said. Gulf Times Sunday, November 12, 2017 21 INDIA Michelin-starred chef to set up culinary museum

IANS mater with India’s fi rst living cu- US, which has over 5,000 muse- the world, believe me, which has ple didn’t even know what some out food at temples, vessels from saucers; tiffi ns and containers, New Delhi linary museum that will eventu- ums. There is a museum in the US such diversity. And what better of these were used for. One can the Konkan, Udipi and Chettinad pots and pans; plates and thaalis; ally display over 10,000 objects. to showcase how the computer way to do it than with food. The fi nd vessels from Kashmir (and regions, an old seed sprinkler, spoons, ladles, strainers; grat- “Life is so much about a sec- was invented, somebody has put history of India’s rich tradition of cities like) Jammu, Pune, Hy- bowls dating to the Harappan ers and knives; whiskers, mix- ere’s a man who can’t just ond chance and survival. I think together one on the origin and culinary arts must be preserved derabad, Kochi and so on.” era, an ancient samovar - the list ers, churners; spice grinders and sit still: He runs a hugely- that saving even just one of a kind developments of making glass. to educate the generations to Quite appropriately, the mu- is endless. The displays will be boxes; serving dishes; rolling Hsuccessful fi ne diner in is... a victory. Most of the pieces It is fascinating to know how come,” he added. seum, spread over 25,000 sq ft., rotated all the time. pins, boards, tawas; stoves, chul- New York, his auction of a 16kg (displayed) are so iconic that they the glass in your hand has been Noting that he has been col- is shaped in the form of a giant “I have one of the oldest Indi- has; rice sieves and measuring tome on Indian cuisine raised are being showcased as a witness made. They have spent billions of lecting “bartans” (utensils) pot very similar to the ones an Jewish Seder plates (the focal tools for dry and liquid goods. Rs3mn that will go to feeding to our culture,” Khanna, the mu- dollars to showcase their culture all his life, he said: “My found in Harappa. Though it point of the proceedings on the “This is a living museum; 200,000 underprivileged chil- seum’s founder and curator, said and I thought our children too New York apartment was is set to formally open only fi rst two nights of Passover)... people can donate their unique dren, and he scored a hat-trick of the $4mn venture at the Wel- need to understand their heritage literally overfl owing with next April, the museum al- unique churners and measuring utensils and we will display them at Cannes with the premier of a come group Graduate School of and culture,” Khanna explained. them. There were so many ready boasts of thousands of and weighing tools are really fas- after screening. I will keep add- documentary on his journey from Hotel Administration of Manipal “It is a very big project I want rolling pins, utensils of objects such as the plates cinating,” Khanna said. ing to the collection as long as Amritsar to the Big Apple. University in Karnataka. to preserve all of our country’s all shapes and sizes, made by the Portuguese The display will be in a stag- I am alive. The museum should Now, Michelin-starred Chef “The idea for a museum came rich culinary history in our hum- tea strainers of dif- in India, a 100-year- gering 17 categories, among feature over 10,000 objects in the Vikas Khanna returns to his alma to me after I started living in the ble way. There is no other place in ferent types - peo- old ladle used to dole them samovars, pots, cups and near future.” Khanna said. Smog-choked Delhi calls off odd-even car rationing plan

Agencies and police – as well as female New Delhi drivers, two-wheelers and emer- gency vehicles. “The odd-even will go on. No ndia’s smog-choked capital exemption of any kind to any has called off a plan to re- one, including two-wheelers, Istrict private vehicle use after women, public offi cers or politi- the country’s top environmental cians, except essential services,” court ruled women, VIPs and NGT chairperson Justice Swa- two-wheelers could not be ex- tanter Kumar ordered yesterday. empt. Earlier yesterday the environ- Delhi and its surrounding ment court also ordered the auto- states have been shrouded in a matic implementation of the odd- hazardous fog of toxic pollut- even rule any time PM10 particles ants for nearly a week, prompt- soared over 500 and PM2.5 ex- ing authorities to roll out a slew ceeded 300 for two days straight. of measures to combat the crisis. While passing several direc- The Aam Aadmi Party govern- tives, the NGT said every entry ment said on Thursday it would point to Delhi should be prop- impose vehicle rationing for the erly managed by the city govern- world’s most polluted capital ment, the corporations should over fi ve days starting tomor- ensure there was no congestion, Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi speaks to people at a local eatery in a village on the outskirts of Ahmedabad yesterday. row in the hopes of improving and Uttar Pradesh and Haryana air quality, as doctors declared a should depute special forces at public health emergency. the border of the national capital But as the National Green Tri- to avoid traffi c jams. bunal ruled against any exemp- The tribunal also issued notic- tions – not including emergency es to the National Highway Au- vehicles and those running on thority of India (NHAI) and the greener compressed natural gas National Buildings Construction (CNG), or most of Delhi’s public Corp (NBCC) to show cause why transport – local authorities said construction was still going on. Will continue fi ght for the scheme would be halted. “Why shall your offi cials not be “At the moment we are calling imprisoned for violation of its or- it off ,” Delhi’s Transport Minis- der putting a ban on construction ter Kailash Gehlot told reporters activities,” Justice Kumar said. yesterday. The crisis comes amid the annual “We are requesting the court post-harvest burning of crop stub- to reconsider two conditions – ble and the onset of winter, which single GST rate: Rahul one on two-wheelers and the together have caused levels of dan- other on ladies – because with gerous pollutants to skyrocket. IANS “It is good that the Congress demanded that petroleum prod- ing, “Is the GST Council under in the grand old party’s Gujarat both these in place, it will be very Delhi has also banned all con- Gandhinagar and the people of this country ucts, real estate and electricity them?” unit, is accompanying Gandhi diffi cult for us to implement.” struction, barred lorries from pressured the BJP to bring down be brought under the tax’s um- Earlier, on his arrival at during his visit. He said the government would entering the city and shut down many items from 28% bracket to brella. Ahmedabad airport, Gandhi Thakore said at a gathering in struggle to cope with the ex- all schools until today. he opposition Congress 18%. However, we are not happy The party also said that said: “The people of Gujarat Prantij, “BJP will scare you, fool tra pressure on public transport Meanwhile, US passenger carri- Party yesterday claimed and we shall not stop. India does “Prime Minister Narendra Mo- are unhappy with the present you. Then Modiji will come, cry while the biggest issue was “the er United Airlines said it has tem- Tcredit for reduction of not need fi ve diff erent taxes but di’s Gabbar Singh tax is shrewd- government, especially after for Gujarat pride. Don’t get car- safety and security of women”. porarily suspended its Newark- Goods and Services Tax rates on one tax. GST needs structural ly designed” to help his wealthy the twin blows of demonetisa- ried away this time.” The Delhi government said it New Delhi fl ights due to poor air more than 200 items. change.” friends but hurts millions of tion and the GST implementa- Gandhi began his tour of will approach the green court quality concerns in New Delhi. But party vice president Rahul Earlier in a tweet, Gandhi said small traders. tion.” north Gujarat by praying at the again tomorrow, and request that The airline suspended the Ne- Gandhi said the Congress will India needs a “simple” Goods On Friday, the GST Coun- Gujarat holds elections on revered Akshardham temple, an exemptions be given to women wark-New Delhi operations from continue the fi ght for capping and Services Tax, not a “Gabbar cil slashed the tax rates on 178 December 9 and 14. Gandhi, unscheduled change in his plan, drivers and two-wheelers. Friday and has off ered “waiver the tax at 18% and promised it Singh tax”. goods from 28% to 18% and re- who is visiting north Gujarat, and visited the Patidar-domi- The “odd-even” scheme, intro- policies” to passengers travelling will do it if the Bharatiya Janata “Congress and people of the duced the rates on several other the BJP bastion over the years, nated villages of the region. duced temporarily last year, says “to, from or through” Delhi. Party government fails. country fought to lower the items. is on a three-day visit to the He was warmly welcomed vehicles with licence plates ending “We are monitoring advisories Keeping up the attack on the 28% GST rate on many items. Gandhi’s claim that the gov- state. in the Patidar-dominated in odd numbers can only be driven as the region remains under a government on the issue, Gan- Our struggle for 18% cap will ernment was forced by the Alpesh Thakore, leader of the village of Majra with slogans on odd-numbered dates, and those public health emergency, and are dhi, who is on his fourth visit continue. If the BJP will not do Congress to roll back the GST Other Backward Castes (OBC), of ‘Jay Sardar’ on his arrival. with even-numbers on others. co-ordinating with respective to Gujarat, said the decision to this, Congress will do it,” Gan- rates was criticised by the gov- Scheduled Caste (SC) and Gandhi sported a ‘Patidar’ The original scheme exempted government agencies,” a United slash the GST on majority of the dhi said. ernment with Defence Minis- Scheduled Tribe (ST), OSS Ekta cap during his visit to the vil- VIPs – such as judges, politicians Airlines spokesperson said. items was a good one. In New Delhi, the Congress ter Nirmala Sitharaman ask- Manch, who has been inducted lage. IT raids on Sasikala clan Arunachal is Indian territory: Sitharaman

and aides enter third day IANS region would not be conducive Gandhinagar to peace on the border. China has maintained that Arunachal IANS searched premises. The search op- the case would be closed, another Pradesh is a part of south Tibet, Chennai eration is still on. The volume and offi cial said. runachal Pradesh is In- a claim which is not accepted value of cash and documents seized The searches were conducted dian territory and the by India. would be known only after they are in connection with unexplained Aopinion of others on the Asked if the issue of giving ncome tax offi cials continued totalled after completing the entire routing of cash after demoneti- issue is not a concern for India, shelter to the Dalai Lama and the their raids for the third day to operation,” the IT offi cial said. sation through shell companies Defence Minister Nirmala Sith- Tibetan refugees was a bone of Iunearth unaccounted wealth The offi cial declined to com- allegedly connected to Sasikala araman said yesterday, days after contention in India-China rela- linked to jailed All India Anna ment on reports about seizure and her nephew T T V Dinakaran. China objected to her visit to the tions, the minister said every is- Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam of gold from one of the searched The IT department will look at border state. sue has its own “weight”. leader V K Sasikala’s relatives, premises. the routing of funds within India Asked about China’s objection “A relationship can’t be made their business associates and The reports said gold and valu- while other agencies probe fund- to her recent visit to Arunach- or broken over one issue. Every their organisations, an offi cial ables have been found in unex- ing from outside, the offi cial said. al Pradesh, the minister said: subject has its own weight,” she said yesterday. pected places in some premises. According to him, the nature “What is the problem? There is said at a press conference here. Sasikala, who is in a Bengaluru The IT offi cial also stressed of this raid “is diff erent” and it is no problem here. It is our terri- The minister is campaigning jail after being convicted in a cor- that the raids have nothing to not just searching the premises tory, we will go there.” in Gujarat for the upcoming as- ruption case along with her rela- do with the fi rst anniversary and seizing unaccounted cash. “We are not concerned with sembly elections. tives, was a close confi dante of of demonetisation. He said the “We have information about someone else’s opinion on this.” On the issue of Kulbhushan Tamil Nadu’s late chief minister department waited for the in- shell companies and the search is Sitharaman visited a forward Jadhav, a former naval offi cer J Jayalalithaa and was living with dividuals and companies to fi le in connection with their opera- army post in Arunachal Pradesh who was arrested in Pakistan and her for several decades. their tax returns for the year, and tions,” he said. Whether the bank on November 5 to take stock of accused of spying, the minister For the third consecutive day based on the data with the IT de- accounts of the people and com- the defence preparedness and said India was making all eff orts yesterday, tax offi cials continued partment, the search was carried panies would be “frozen to detect the situation along the Line of to get him back, adding that if their raids at several premises. out. suspect transactions and other Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman meets people during the BJP’s Actual Control (LAC). Pakistan allowed his wife to visit “Sizeable volume of cash and If the people concerned pay actions” would be taken only af- door-to-door campaign ahead of assembly elections, in Ahmedabad China reacted angrily, say- him, it would be a good humani- documents has been seized at the the taxes, including the penalty, ter collating the data, he said. yesterday. ing the visit to the “disputed” tarian gesture. Gulf Times 22 Sunday, November 12, 2017 LATIN AMERICA DHS chief Thousands in Puerto Rico still have no running water

By Kyra Gurney/Miami Herald not to use unpurifi ed water. areas. Although she said the bottled water Utuado, Puerto Rico But a week after he was released from the government offi cials and charity groups were denies WH hospital, Cosme de Jesus was bathing and passing out helped fi ll the immediate need, it helping his wife wash clothes on the side of the wasn’t a long-term solution. n the side of the highway, cars whizzed road. His wife had also started to feel ill. “The idea is to make it a little more sustain- by as the poor fi lled plastic bottles and As she wrung out the laundry over a metal able and for that reason it’s best to think about Opaint buckets with water fl owing out of basin, Maria Rodriguez Rivera said she had systems that can do more with less,” she said. the mountain.Nearly six weeks after Hurricane come down with similar symptoms. “I feel sick Public health offi cials have distributed iers fl Maria, they still had no running water and no- with a headache and fever,” she said. at shelters, hospitals and grocery stores across pressure on where else to bathe or wash clothes. Some — On Monday, nearly seven weeks after the the island as part of a campaign to get resi- from remote areas where bottled water was too storm, 20% of the island still had no running dents to boil water or use purifi cation tablets. expensive or diffi cult to obtain — also didn’t water. But even those with running water are strug- have anything else to drink. The situation was slightly better in San Juan, gling to boil it, Chaves Arana said. Some have And everyone was worried about getting where government fi gures showed 91% of cus- no power for their electric stoves while others sick. tomers had service, but on other parts of the are reluctant to use gas to boil large quantities “We’re drinking water from wherever we island the percentage was as low as 62. of water. immigrants can get it, because the water doesn’t come,” Even those with tap water have been advised The Federal Emergency Management Agen- said Jose Luis Gambo Rodriguez as he helped to boil it or use purifi cation tablets. With elec- cy and other government agencies have dis- Hundreds of thousands of South Americans his mother and stepfather wash clothes. “The tricity still unreliable in the places where it has tributed fi ltration systems and purifi cation are sheltering in the US under various government says there’s (purifi ed) water, but been restored and generators prone to break- tablets, but volunteer groups and charities say programmes it’s not here.” downs, water treatment plants can go down there’s still a need for more. They’re trying to For Gambo Rodriguez’s family and thou- without warning. fi ll the gaps, particularly in the most remote Reuters sands of others, the lack of clean water is pos- After reaching a peak of 83% on Sunday, ac- regions. Unions are also getting involved. The Washington ing a serious health concern. cess to running water fell below 80% the next American Federation of Teachers, a national Since the hurricane hit, there have been at day when generators failed across the island teachers union, has raised money to provide least 18 confi rmed cases of leptospirosis, a and more than 45,000 customers lost service, families and schools with water fi ltration sys- cting Secretary of Homeland Security bacterial disease spread through contact with Public Aff airs Secretary Ramon Rosario Cortes tems, since a lack of running water has been Elaine Duke on Friday denied reports that contaminated water that can be deadly if not said in a statement. By Wednesday morning, one obstacle to reopening all of the island’s AWhite House Chief of Staff John Kelly quickly treated. At least four people have died service had been restored to 85 %. schools. Public health offi cials say they’re pressured her to end protections for tens of from the disease so far, according to offi cial fi g- Puerto Rico’s water and sewage authority hopeful the number of leptospirosis cases thousands of immigrants, and said she plans to ures. It’s likely both numbers could be higher did not respond to questions about when the won’t keep climbing. remain in the Trump administration. because they don’t refl ect other suspected but entity expects full service to be restored. In late October, Puerto Rico’s state epidemi- The Washington Post reported on Thursday unconfi rmed cases in remote areas. In the meantime, fi nding bottled water can ologist told the Miami Herald the island “could that Kelly pressured Duke to end what is called Elaine Duke Doctors and nurses also report seeing pa- be a challenge even in San Juan. Prices have end up with an outbreak,” but by early Novem- temporary protected status for tens of thou- tients for other health problems related to a also increased since the hurricane, making it ber Carmen Deseda said she had a clearer pic- sands of Hondurans living in the United States. Honduran immigrants until July 2018, though lack of clean water, including gastrointestinal hard for low-income families to pay for fi ltered ture of the disease and believed the number of The newspaper also reported that Duke has offi cials said it could then be terminated. Duke illnesses and pink eye. water. cases had already reached its peak. informed Kelly that she plans to resign. decided to end the special status for Nicaraguan Although government offi cials say they’ve In the town of Humacao on the eastern edge Given the strain on Puerto Rico’s healthcare The New York Times later reported that Kelly immigrants, however, and it will expire in Janu- distributed water purifi cation tablets and bot- of the island, local offi cials were still concerned system and the communication diffi culties in “made an 11th-hour plea” to Duke that she end ary 2019. tled water throughout the island, by late Octo- about getting clean drinking water to the sur- remote areas of the island, however, it’s likely the protections. Duke said it was “a tremendous honor” to ber there were still places where residents said rounding area in late October. some suspected leptospirosis cases haven’t “The recent media reports regarding the TPS serve at DHS, and said she planned to continue the help hadn’t arrived. “I have 58,000 inhabitants and only one made it into the offi cial count. The symptoms decision-making process are seriously fl awed,” in the department’s second-highest position, The mountainous area outside Utuado in truck to take water to the upper areas,” said of leptospirosis are easily confused with other Duke said in a statement late on Friday evening. deputy secretary, once Kirstjen Nielsen, the central Puerto Rico was one of those places. Ramon Diaz, the assistant director of the lo- diseases, including dengue fever, which doc- She said she had conversations with Kelly, the nominee for DHS secretary, wins Senate confi r- Gambo Rodriguez and his family said they cal emergency management center. Diaz was tors also screen for after a hurricane because former secretary of homeland security, leading mation. hadn’t gotten any bottled water or purifi cation meeting with a water and sanitation expert standing water breeds mosquitoes. up to her decision, but that he “consistently re- “I have no plans to go anywhere and reports to tablets from the government and couldn’t af- from the nonprofi t Oxfam, which was trying There’s also no defi nitive testing for lept- iterated that, as the Acting Secretary, the cur- the contrary are untrue,” Duke said. ford to buy their own. to identify the nearby areas in most desperate ospirosis available in Puerto Rico; in order to rent decisions were mine to make and should be Thousands from both Nicaragua and Hon- Two weeks after the hurricane, Gambo need of water purifi cation systems. confi rm cases, samples have to be sent to a done in accordance with the existing law”. duras were given the special status in 1999 after Rodriguez’s stepfather started vomiting “Which ones should we prioritise?” water Centers for Disease Control and Prevention “At no time did he pressure me to terminate Hurricane Mitch devastated Central America. and came down with a fever. Wilfredo Cos- expert Andrea Chaves Arana asked, listing off laboratory in Atlanta. So far, samples from TPS for Nicaragua, Honduras or El Salvador: In all, temporary protected status protects me de Jesus went to a local hospital, where the names of several places. roughly a hundred suspected cases have been any reports otherwise are false,” she added. more than 300,000 people living in the United he said the doctor diagnosed him with lept- “All of them, because they don’t have water,” sent to the CDC, the majority of which have In the end, Duke extended the benefi ts for States. ospirosis. After treating Cosme de Jesus Diaz responded. Chaves Arana had been trav- come back negative, Deseda said. The CDC is with antibiotics, the doctor cautioned him elling the island to assess the need in remote still evaluating additional samples.

ONE SMOKER. TWO PATIENTS.

Utuado residents and recovery patient of leptospirosis Wilfredo Cosme de Jesus and his wife Maria Rodriguez Rivera washing their clothes on the side of the PR-10 road in Utuado.

TOBACCO KILLS Protest against austerity in Brazil

AFP Telma de Barros, a 57-year-old teacher reviving the recession-hit economy. Sao Paulo protesting in Sao Paulo, Brazil’s eco- The new labour law, which was ap- nomic capital where some 10,000 had proved by the Senate in July and was gathered to demonstrate, according to to go into eff ect yesterday, provides for everal thousand Brazilians dem- an AFP photographer. more fl exible contracts, eliminates ob- onstrated on Friday as part of Protests also took place in other cit- ligatory union dues and makes unions Sa day of national mobilisation ies including Rio de Janeiro and the liable for legal costs in losing court against government austerity meas- capital Brasilia. challenges. ures, including a labour law that will In Rio, thousands took to the streets, The government is now trying to soon come into eff ect. and a car was set on fi re on a bridge by push through changes aimed at rais- Demonstrators were also protest- a group of protesters earlier in the day, ing the minimum retirement age and ing against a highly-unpopular pen- causing a major traffi c jam. extending the contribution period for sion reform project and the wave of There have been other anti-austeri- full pensions. privatisation recently announced by ty protests in recent months, including “There’s no problem with the cur- President Michel Temer’s govern- a call for a general strike, but partici- rent system, but the government is ment. pation has been relatively low. inventing reasons to change it, to the “We must prevent the destruction of Temer’s government has launched a detriment of the workers. The people our country, the loss of social gains and series of austerity measures aimed at still pay the bill,” said 45-year-old pro- the threats against democracy,” said addressing a huge budget defi cit and tester Julio Telmo.

Hundreds of turtles die of microalgae poisoning

Hundreds of sea turtles found dead University of El Salvador said on Friday. examined by experts. ow many off the coast of El Salvador died of Between 300 and 400 dead sea turtles turtles died in total remains unclear. poisoning after ingesting microalgae, a were washed up in Jiquilisco Bay at the The Environment Ministry pointed toxicological study has revealed. end of October. out that the turtles’ remains could The creatures’ demise was linked to a Scientists from the university and have been carried quite far from Issued in Public Interest by GULF TIMES so-called red tide algal bloom which the Environment Ministry took their point of origin by ocean produces toxins fatal to the turtles, the samples at the site which were currents. Gulf Times Sunday, November 12, 2017 23 PAKISTAN Winter rains likely to cut US Congress authorises smog: top meteorologist $700mn for Agencies Islamabad Pakistan top government mete- orologist in Lahore said Ayesterday that winter Internews and freedom of movement rains expected to start next week Islamabad of the Haqqani network and may bring relief from weeks- Lashkar-e-Taiba in Pakistan. long smog persisting in much of The secretary will also the country. he American Congress have to certify that Pakistan Meteorologist Mohamed Aj- has authorised up to took steps to demonstrate its mal Shad said yesterday that a T$700mn in Coalition commitment to prevent the three-day spell of rain will likely Support Fund (CSF) to reim- Haqqani network and LeT start tomorrow and break the burse Pakistan for activities from using Pakistani territory smog that has been caused by carried out in support of US as a safe haven and for fund- dust, the burning of crops, in- operations in Afghanistan. raising or recruiting eff orts. dustry and brick kilns. The authorisation is includ- The certifi cation would in- The smog has caused respira- ed in the reconciled text of the clude a declaration that Paki- tory problems and irritated eyes, House and Senate versions of stan was making an attempt to and led to poor visibility, result- the 2018 National Defence Au- co-ordinate with Afghanistan ing in highway accidents, thorisation Act (NDAA-2018), to restrict the movement of Police Spokesman Mohamed which was released on Thurs- militants along the border, and Imran said movement on the mo- day. Pakistan had shown progress torways remained suspended in the The reconciled version in arresting and prosecuting morning due to ‘zero’ visibility. makes $350mn of $700mn senior leaders and mid-level He said that to avoid acci- available to Pakistan under the operatives of the Haqqani net- dents, traffi c moves in escorted CSF contingent upon certifi - work and LeT. convoys during the day. cation from the secretary of In the last two years, two Since late October, large defence that Pakistan is taking successive US defence sec- swathes of Punjab remain en- demonstrable steps against retaries Ashton Carter and gulfed in toxic smog. Air quality the Haqqani network. James Mattis refused to give indicators show high levels of The NDAA urged the de- such a certifi cation, thus pre- particulate matter, with breath- This picture taken on November 10 shows the grand Faisal Mosque covered in heavy smog in the Pakistan’s capital Islamabad. fence department to monitor venting the administration to ing conditions in urban areas Washington’s security assist- release the funds. ranging from highly unhealthy health emergency. The most recent example was in a way to curtail it in the short That in turn is a question of di- ance to Pakistan and ensure The reconciled version also to very hazardous. Umair says the government’s the campaign against fee hikes run, and to undertake diffi cult recting a range of government that the country did not use it expresses concern about the Readings from Lahore taken in response to this pressure will be by high-cost private schools, and unpopular decisions to departments staff ed with often to support militant groups. alleged persecution of various the last week of October indicate shaped by both its intention and which resulted in swift legisla- prevent it in the long run. One less-than-competent bureau- It said the US administra- political or religious groups the level of carbon monoxide its capability. On the former, it is tion and repeated assurances by needs to know, in clear and pre- crats. tion would release the restrict- in Pakistan, including Chris- at 21.29mg per metre (mpm) on reasonable to assume the gov- provincial authorities. cise terms, how much of this is Unlike dengue, which in- ed amount of $350mn if the tians, Hindus, Ahmadis, Ba- Mall Road, 17.52 in Mohlanwal, ernment will want to address the The dengue epidemic from a because of crop-burning in both cluded close co-ordination be- secretary of defence certifi ed loch, Sindhi and Hazara. and 6.94 in Gulberg’s Liberty problem. few years ago was similar, in so Pakistani and Indian Punjab, tween the health department to the congressional commit- The bill urges the secretary Market. The maximum permis- This assumption is based on far that it impacted both rich sand storms in the Middle East, and district administration, tees that Pakistan continued of defence to ensure that Pa- sible limit under World Health the fact that smog as a whole and poor households, and was motor vehicles on the roads, and tackling smog requires mobi- to conduct military operations kistan will not use any assist- Organisation guidelines is 5 impacts a cross-section of the thus tackled comprehensively emissions from factories and lising and monitoring offi cials that were contributing to dis- ance provided by the United mpm. population, including middle in the face of heightened public even residences. from a number of historically rupting safe havens, fund- States to persecute minority Writing in the Dawn newspa- and high-income households. pressure. If there’s another factor at under-funded institutions, such raising and recruiting eff orts, groups. per, columnist Umair Javed says Historically, issues confronting Contrast this with the relative play here, it needs to be iden- as the Environmental Protection this year, public outcry over the the elite are given greater con- lack of attention devoted to sim- tifi ed and made public. At the Agency, at diff erent tiers of gov- issue has been far more ampli- sideration in public policy deci- mering issues, such as low-cost very least, this will reduce public ernment. Pakistan, India agree on peaceful borders fi ed. Citizens of Lahore are us- sion-making, not just in Punjab, housing, water, sanitation, and confusion, and maybe even en- Given the generally decrepit ing social media to pressurise but all over the world. public-sector health institu- courage conscientious citizens condition of public sector gov- Pakistan and India have and the Pakistan Rangers, provincial and local government In fact, the Punjab govern- tions, which overwhelmingly to adopt socially benefi cial prac- ernance, short-term measures agreed on “constant which began on November 8 bodies. ment’s existing urban devel- impact underprivileged house- tices, such as cutting down car are likely to experience patchy endeavour” to maintain and ended on Friday, also saw Urdu news media is devoting opment agenda – ironically holds who have neither the tools and generator usage. implementation, and residents peace on borders, “utmost both sides agreeing on more greater attention to the haz- enough, a contributor to the on- to organise eff ectively, nor a To date, the government’s of the province will continue to caution and care” in dealing frequent meeting between ard posed by the phenomenon, going smog epidemic – has long truly representative voice in the short-term response has been suff er for a few more weeks. with civilians as well as field commanders. The while there are a number of on- carried an elite bias, whether it’s political process. to impose section 144 on crop- Lastly, it is apparent from ex- resuming commandant- border guarding forces have going independent eff orts to in road infrastructure develop- Given that the government burning, increase vigilance tant analysis that the problem level talks to resolve local decided to initiate dialogue crowd source and publicise air ment, utilisation of public land, will likely want to respond in of garbage burning and other has germinated over years, and issues during the bi-annual at the local level, a practice quality readings. or enacting building regulations. earnest, its capability dimension harmful urban practices, and will take many more years to talks between chiefs of their suspended one-and-a-half As a whole, there is consid- It is also true that social cam- becomes much more impor- issue its offi cial smog control resolve. To this end, a long-run border guarding forces. years ago. Both the forces erable urgency on part of the paigns led by elite or middle- tant. Capability here includes a policy. agenda for tackling environ- The three-day 44th Director have agreed to the proposal affected population as they income citizens are more likely number of factors, such as abil- These short-term measures mental pollution is crucial, and General-level meeting of the and the meetings would be try to get the government to to garner positive attention from ity to diagnose the problem, to are only as useful as the extent remains the biggest litmus test Border Security Force (BSF) held at regular intervals. deal with the issue as a public the government. mobilise public administration to which they’re implemented. of the provincial government.

In the net Deadline for Sharif sons to surrender ends

Internews ences — Flagship Investment, stances of each case.” Moreover, the off ences al- Islamabad Al-Azizia and Avenfi eld prop- The prosecution or the ac- leged in the three corruption erties. cused could not insist on con- references were not of same The references had been fi led ducting a joint trial of off ences kind, the judge had noted. he deadline for ousted against Sharif, his sons and even if they were similar, the Sharif’s counsel had sought prime minister Nawaz daughter Maryam Nawaz and order noted. a joint trial, arguing that the TSharif’s sons to sur- son-in-law retired Captain The accused/applicant could main allegation in all three cor- render in the three references Mohamed Safdar on the orders not justify clubbing of all the ruption references was same against them lapsed yesterday, of the Supreme Court. three references for a joint trail that the assets under the names as they continued to stay away The proclamation mentioned in the circumstances of the cas- of Hassan and Hussain Nawaz from court proceedings despite that the properties of the sus- es, the written order said. were actually owned by Sharif. the issuance of a proclamation pects would be seized if they Therefore, in order to avoid The defence counsel had fur- against them last month. continued to abscond. conflicting judgements or any ther argued that the three refer- Following directives of the Sharif had requested the likelihood of ignoring defence ences had been supplemented Islamabad accountability court to club all the references that will be produced by the by the Joint Investigation Team court, the National Accounta- together. applicant separately in each (JIT) report, and six out of nine bility Bureau (NAB) had on Oc- However, Accountability reference, all the three refer- witnesses were common in ref- tober 12 pasted the proclama- Judge Bashir rejected the plea ences will be decided simulta- erences 18 and 19, while two tion order in the premises of the on November 8. neously. witnesses out of 10 were com- Federal Judicial Complex (FJA) In his written order, the The court had further said mon in all the three corruption which houses the accountabil- judge said: “Section 17(d) of that the request for single trial references. ity court. the National Accountability had been made in view of the Sharif’s counsel had argued Arrested Indian fishermen sit in a police station in the Pakistan’s port city of Karachi yesterday. In the proclamation, Hussain Ordinance (NAO) 1999 pro- convenience of the accused. that the alleged off ence was the Pakistani coast guards arrested 24 Indian fishermen and seized four boats for illegally fishing in Nawaz and Hassan Nawaz were vides a mechanism which The court noted that in the case same under Section 9(a)(v) of Pakistan’s territorial waters. asked to surrender and join the could be adopted or not of joint charges, the trial facts of the NAO in all three corruption proceedings in the three refer- depending on the circum- each case could get mixed up. references. With early warning, Karachi cools a heatwave threat

Thomson Reuters Foundation Ultimately the heatwave, with Heatwaves in October are “ex- and register these parameters In October, after spotting Jinnah Postgraduate Medi- 43-year-old garment factory Karachi temperatures that reached 41 tremely rare incidents”, he said. regularly in the weather charts, heat-producing weather condi- cal Centre in Karachi, said the worker. degrees Celsius, passed without But being unprepared for ex- which helped predict the Octo- tions moving toward Pakistan warning gave time to stock extra “We all fi ve family members, claiming lives, Karachi Mayor treme heat can be deadly. ber heat wave more accurately from Mumbai and India’s Gu- medicine, set aside beds and put including my husband, stayed hen an unseasonal Waseem Akhtar said. In 2015, a June heatwave killed and timely,” Rashid, of the met jarat state, the offi ce issued a medical staff on high alert. indoors during the heatwave and potentially deadly But the warning — the fi rst of about 1,500 people in Karachi, offi ce, told the Thomson Reuters warning to the Sind provincial “This really helped quickly ar- days and would go outside only Wheatwave loomed on its kind issued by the Pakistan Pakistan’s largest city, and left Foundation. government, the Karachi com- range medical care facilities in during night hours to buy gro- weather forecasts last month, Meteorological Department for over 70,000 hospitalised, most The Karachi offi ce also has its missioner and provincial dis- hospitals for heat wave victims ceries,” she recalled. authorities in this port city took Karachi — may set the stage for with heat stroke. own heatwave forecast division, aster management authorities, and avoid possible deaths,” she Ghulam Rasul, head of the an unusual step: They issued a more lifesaving warnings next Offi cials are now working to with advanced computer sys- Rashid said. said in an interview in her offi ce. Pakistan Meteorological De- public warning, a full week in summer as climate change drives try to avoid a repeat of that heat tems connected to fi ve heatwave For Karachi’s mayor, the alert Residents of Karachi said the partment in Pakistan, said the advance. temperatures higher. disaster — a particular challenge monitoring stations recently in- provided time to send out text unusual October heat is a worry. country may be seeing a change Before the heat hit, text mes- October temperatures in as climate change brings ever- stalled around the city, he said. alerts, contact media, warn hos- “Octobers have remained in its traditional pattern of on- sage warning of the danger went densely populated Karachi nor- hotter years, particularly in al- The system was set up follow- pitals and water and power util- always warm in the port city, shore winds blowing cooler air out to Karachi residents. mally rise no higher than 35 or ready broiling South Asia. ing World Meteorological Or- ity offi cials and set up special but I never experienced this into Karachi over the summer Hospitals set aside extra beds 38 degrees Celsius, said Abdul “We now keep a closer watch ganisation warnings that more units for heat victims in 13 city blistering heatwave in all months. for heat stroke victims. Rashid, director of the Pakistan on temperature, air, humidity frequent and intense heatwaves hospitals. my life in this month, which The lack of that wind was one Water and power company of- Meteorological Department of- (and) sunlight parameters of the were becoming a possibility in Dr Seemi Jamali, head of made our home feel like a driver behind Karachi’s October fi cials were put on alert. fi ce in Karachi. Bay of Bengal and Arabian Sea, the region. emergencies at the state-run furnace,” said Saba Karim, a heatwave, he said. Gulf Times 24 Sunday, November 12, 2017 PHILIPPINES

Xi tells Duterte Commuting in Manila China will work to protect peace

Reuters reached by both sides, work Dananag, Vietnam through bilateral channels to appropriately handle maritime issues, Xinhua hina will work with cited Duterte as saying. It Southeast Asian did not elaborate. Ccountries to safe- Duterte said earlier in the guard peace in the South week that he planned to ask China Sea, President Xi China to make clear its in- Jinping said yesterday in tentions in the South China a meeting with Philippine Sea. President Rodrigo Duterte, Since coming to offi ce 16 who pledged to handle is- months ago, the fi rebrand sues with Beijing in those leader has been conciliatory waters bilaterally. to Beijing, despite a ruling China claims almost the by an international arbi- entire strategic waterway tration court favouring the through which about $3tn Philippines in its territorial worth of goods pass every dispute with China. year, building and militaris- In the past, Duterte has ing artifi cial islands. repeatedly said he will raise Brunei, Malaysia, the the sea dispute at the proper Philippines, Taiwan and Vi- time and avoided the issue etnam also have confl icting when Manila hosted two re- claims there. gional meetings this year. “China will continue to The United States has work with Asean countries criticised China’s construc- to safeguard peace, stability tion of islands and its build- and prosperity of the South up of military facilities in China Sea region,” China’s the sea, and is concerned offi cial Xinhua news agency they could be used to re- cited Xi as saying to Duterte. strict free nautical move- The two met on the side- ment. lines of the Asia-Pacifi c US Navy ships have also Economic Cooperation carried out freedom of nav- (Apec) summit in the Viet- igation patrols in the area, namese resort city of Dan- angering China, which says ang. the territorial issues should The Philippines will, ac- be handled directly between A jeepney at a busy intersection in Manila. Jeepneys are a Filipino innovation used for commuting. cording to a consensus countries in the region. Philippine president set for drug war backing at summit Rights groups are worried that sands of people killed. citing comments of his such as he against drugs. world leaders would endorse “Duterte will enjoy the gift of tacit would be “happy to slaughter” 3mn They are expected to hold one- President Duterete silence from East Asian leaders on addicts. on-one talks on Monday and, if his murderous drug war during the Domestic opponents have ap- Trump does not bring up any human AFP upcoming summit,” Human Rights pealed to the International Criminal rights concerns, Duterte is widely Manila Watch deputy Asia director Phelim Court to investigate, pointing to the expected to trumpet the meeting as Kine told AFP. jailing of opponents, a compliant an endorsement. “We can expect East Asian leaders congress and intimidated judiciary “We will be extremely disap- hilippine President Rodrigo to exercise a diplomatic blind eye to as reasons to step in. pointed if Trump does not raise it,” Duterte will host world lead- the killings of thousands of Filipinos But the ICC has yet to respond Amnesty’s Philippine director, Jose Pers in Manila from today, hop- over the past 16 months as part of and, despite some vocal critics in Noel Olano, told reporters yester- ing their presence will quieten in- Duterte’s drug war.” the West, Duterte goes into the Ma- day. ternational criticism over his deadly Duterte won last year’s presi- nila summits full of confi dence that Duterte is hosting the two days of drugs war, which rights groups say dential elections after promising to Trump and the others will eff ective- summits as the rotating chair of the may be a crime against humanity. eradicate illegal drugs with an un- ly endorse his rule by not speaking 10-member Association of South- Duterte goes into the event ap- precedented crackdown that would against the killings. east Asian Nations (Asean). pearing confi dent that even his most see up to 100,000 people killed. In Vietnam on Thursday on the Duterte can expect blanket sup- outrageous remarks and actions will Since Duterte took offi ce, police sidelines of an Asia-Pacifi c eco- port from his Asean colleagues, be ignored, having boasted in the have reported killing 3,967 people nomic summit, Duterte said that many of whom are also shadowed by lead-up he once stabbed someone to in the crackdown. Another 2,290 when he was 16 he stabbed to death human rights controversies. death, while at the same time pro- people have been murdered in drug- someone for looking at him the “From the Rohingya crisis in My- posing to host a global human rights related crimes, while thousands of wrong way. anmar, to a sweeping crackdown on summit. other deaths remain unsolved, ac- He then off ered to host a global all forms of dissent in Cambodia to US President Donald Trump will cording to government data. summit on human rights, but in- the thousands killed in Philippines, be among leaders from 19 countries, Many Filipinos back Duterte, be- sisted that the alleged crimes of the human rights are under siege across plus the heads of the United Nations lieving he is taking necessary meas- United States, France and other na- Southeast Asia,” Rachel Chhoa- and European Union, coming for the ures to fi ght crime. But rights groups tions also be investigated. Howard, a Philippine researcher talks, which will begin with a ban- warn he may be orchestrating a Duterte, 72, last year swore at with Amnesty, told AFP. quet today night followed by sum- crime against humanity. then-US president Barack Obama The premiers of China and Russia, mits tomorrow and Tuesday. Amnesty International accuses for criticising the drug war. two other important Duterte back- But rights groups have expressed police of shooting dead defenceless But Trump and Duterte have ers, will also be in Manila. alarm and disappointment that people and paying assassins to mur- expressed mutual admiration for Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Trump and most others are likely to der addicts. other. Trump told Duterte in a tel- Abe is another key backer of Du- endorse or stay silent over Duterte’s Rights groups say police are fol- ephone call in April that he was do- terte, with the pair having estab- Anti-riot police off icers stand guard near the US embassy ahead of the Association of South violent rule, which has seen thou- lowing Duterte’s incitements to kill, ing a “great job” with his campaign lished a warm relationship. East Asian Nations Summit and related meetings in Manila, yesterday. Ahead of Trump visit, a big thumbs up from US veterans

Reuters and will try to shore up relations Department fi gures. next to a neon-lit USA sign in red, port, so people can catch up with Subic, Philippines strained by the mercurial Du- Subic has maintained its white and blue. what he’s doing. They’ve gotta terte’s notorious anti-US senti- American feel, with bars off ering A guitar hangs next to a wood give him a couple of years to get ment and his enthusiasm for bet- military discounts and restau- carving of a native Indian and an into it.” S President Donald ter ties with Russia and China. rants serving anything from ba- American Football playoff sched- Christopher Lamb, 48, a fi sh- Trump is no stranger to Others who will be in Ma- by-back ribs, buff alo wings and ule off ering hot dog promotions. erman who said he is from Flor- Ucontroversy and he has nila for the summit meetings steaks to burgers named “shot- “I’m very glad Donald Trump ida, says he shook Trump’s hand often come in for sharp criticism include Chinese Premier Li Ke- gun” and an omelette called “the is coming here, I believe he and four decades ago. both at home and overseas, but in qiang, Russian Premier Dmitry sheriff ”. President Duterte will get along,” Wearing a baseball cap and the town of Subic in the Philip- Medvedev and leaders from Ja- It has tattoo parlours, liquor said Goodman, from New Jersey. white vest, he off ers a few slurred pines, he’s a hero. pan, South Korea, India, Aus- stores with signs advertising “He’s for the American words that show his pride in Once home to one of the big- tralia, New Zealand and mem- bourbon whiskey and a Harley people...I look forward to his Trump’s rise to the presidency. gest US naval facilities in the ber-states of the Association of Davidson repair shop servicing leadership, I look forward to his “I met this man, he was noth- world, Subic is a haven for retired Southeast Asian Nations. the easy-rider motorcycles that re-election. ing then, and now he’s the most servicemen who seem thrilled The Philippines will deploy have long been a fi xture in the “I’d love to meet Trump, I’d powerful man in the world,” said that Trump is visiting the Philip- American James John Goodman (R), 51, with his colleague in a nearly 60,000 police and army town of 100,000 people, about a love to buy him a beer.” Lamb. pines, and convinced the divisive restaurant in Subic. personnel to provide security. three-hour drive north from Ma- His business partner Ronn Ol- Retiree Mike Allen, 66, from tycoon can do no wrong. The Philippines has for dec- nila. iver, 54, who runs a nearby res- Ohio, has lived in Subic for a year “Trump, I back him big time,” opponents of Trump. yet?” said McCarthy. ades been a key US defence ally Veteran James Goodman, 51, taurant of the same name, says and recognises he might be the said Mike McCarthy, a former The US president arrives in the A native of Florida who has and although the base was closed has owned six bars during his 13 veterans appreciate Trump and lone dissenter when it comes to master chief with the US capital Manila today for a sum- lived in Subic for a decade, Mc- in 1992, Subic has since received years in Subic. recognise his shrewdness. Trump. 7th Fleet, drinking in one of the mit of Asian leaders, on the last Carthy said Trump’s respect for a regular fl ow of retirees and vis- His latest venture, “Sit-n- “He knows what he’s doing, he “The military guys here, they American-themed bars that line leg of a tour that has taken him veterans meant he’s a big hit with its by US warships for repairs, re- Bull”, has bar games, live sports shocks, but he sets up his oppo- love him,” he said, with a shake of Subic’s main street, with names to Japan, South Korea, China and them and among the military. supply and exercises. and rock music that competes nents, he plays them, he knows the head. like “Alaska”, “Crazy Horse” and Vietnam. “If he asked me to come and About 220,000 Americans, with the lively chatter of tattoo- what reaction he’s gonna get,” “He says one thing one day and “Rolling Stone”. “He’s just doing things a meet him in Manila, I’d be there many of them military veterans, clad patrons in tank tops. said Oliver, a former serviceman another thing the next. He’s iso- “They won’t allow him to gov- diff erent way, his Tweeting, in a shot,” he added. live in the Philippines. The walls are adorned with and commercial fi sherman from lating us and he loves white su- ern, but he’s smarter than them, his strong words. But where Trump is set to meet Philip- An additional 650,000 visit vehicle license plates from Flor- Seattle, Washington. premacists. An American presi- always a step ahead,” he said of has he made a wrong call pine President Rodrigo Duterte each year, according to US State ida, Ohio, California and Nevada, “He needs to build more sup- dent can’t be like that.” Gulf Times Sunday, November 12, 2017 25 SRI LANKA/BANGLADESH/NEPAL

53 detained Bangladesh chief justice quits over arson attacks in amid fl ak over charter verdict Bangladesh IANS IANS the parliament of its power to announced his “sick” leave BNP secretary general Dhaka Dhaka impeach apex court judges. on October 3, a day before the Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir Ruling party leaders also at- vacation ended. accused the government of tacked Sinha for his observa- He left Bangladesh for Aus- forcing Sinha to go abroad to he Bangladesh police angladesh’s Chief Justice tions on Bangladesh’s politics, tralia on October 13, to stay with “establish its full control over have detained 53 peo- Surendra Kumar Sinha past dictatorships, Election his eldest daughter Suchana the judiciary”. Tple in connection with Bhas resigned, six weeks Commission, corruption, gov- Sinha. “It’s now clear to the entire arson attacks on the homes of after he went on long leave amid ernance and judiciary in the Before leaving, he issued a nation that the government has Hindus over a rumoured Face- criticism by the ruling party verdict. statement, saying he was “not taken all the steps to send the book post by a local “insulting over his decision to scrap par- The Awami League accused sick” and was “quite embar- chief justice abroad by force,” religion”. liament’s authority to impeach him of “belittling” the Father rassed” about how a specifi c Alamgir said. More than 30 homes belong- Supreme Court judges. of the Nation Bangabandhu political quarter, including A day after Sinha’s departure, ing to Hindu families in Rang- The president’s offi ce said Sheikh Mujibur Rahman in some ministers and Prime Min- the Supreme Court in a rare pur’s Thakurbari village were yesterday that it had received a some of the observations. ister Sheikh Hasina herself, had statement described Sinha’s ransacked and looted before letter of resignation from Sinha, The opposition Bangladesh criticised him over one of the statement as “misleading”. being set on fi re by a mob on who is abroad. Nationalist Party (BNP) of verdict. According to the apex court, Friday over the “derogatory” Sinha, the country’s fi rst former premier Khaleda Zia had On October 2, the chief jus- Sinha faces 11 specifi c charges, status posted by a Hindu man, Hindu chief justice in Muslim welcomed the verdict, which tice applied to President Abdul including graft, money laun- Bdnews24.com reported. majority Bangladesh, took of- restored the Supreme Judicial Hamid for a one-month leave dering and moral lapse, for One person, 30-year-old Ha- fi ce on January 17, 2015. His Council provision in the con- that ended on November 1. which his colleagues in the ap- bibur Rahman, was killed when tenure was to end in Janu- stitution, a system introduced While on leave, the chief jus- pellate division refused to work the police opened fi re to ward off ary next year, Bdnews24.com during the party founder Ziaur tice requested the president to with him. the angry mob that turned vio- reported. Rahman’s military rule to sack extend his leave till November A government order said lent and set fi re to several homes. He came under fi re from the top court judges. 10, which ended on Friday. President Hamid appointed Eleven others were injured in the ruling Awami League party af- Sinha sat in his offi ce for the On August 1, the Supreme Justice Abdul Wahhab Miah as violence. ter the top court in July this last time on August 24 before Court had published the full ver- the acting chief justice. He will Police fi led two cases over the year scrapped the 16th consti- the annual vacation of the apex dict on the annulment of the 16th perform the duties until a new incidents and arrested 53 people, tutional amendment, stripping court started. The government amendment to the constitution. appointment. Chief Justice Surendra Kumar Sinha said Police Superintendent Mi- zanur Rahman. One of the victims, Dulali Rani told the Dhaka Tribune: “A mob came to our neighbourhood on Friday afternoon and started ransacking our home without Feasibility report suggests any provocation. They even took our cattle. “They burned everything, even my cooking pots. We do not have a place to sleep at night, and two rail routes for Nepal no way to cook food.” Several villagers said that if someone posted a derogatory Agencies the team met with offi cials of try,” said Upadhayaya, adding, to get expert’s insights from status on Facebook, hold that Kathmandu the ministry of physical in- “Despite these geological chal- this trip. Besides, they have as- one person accountable for his or frastructure and transport lenges, the team has concluded sured us to provide technical her action. (MoPIT) and suggested them that railway can be constructed support like training our man- The status was allegedly put team of foreign experts to move ahead with railway- in these two routes.” power in railway engineering,” on social media by Thakurbari in their feasibility report related projects. The team pointed out that added Upadhayaya. village native Titu Roy, but very Ahas suggested two rail According to the department Syaprubeshi was at the low al- Both sides have also ap- few villagers admitted to seeing routes – Kathmandu-Kerung of railways (DoR) spokesperson titude in comparison to Kerung pointed focal persons for these it, the daily reported. and Kathmandu-Pokhara- Prakash Bhakta Upadhayaya, that might obstruct upward projects. A senior divisional One of the witnesses said Men drive three-wheel taxis known as tuk-tuks in Colombo. Lumbini – for Nepal, local the Chinese team cleared out movement of railway. The engineer from DoR will oversee thousands of protesters from media reported yesterday. many technical reservations, cross-border railway connec- the projects for Nepal. six nearby villages band- The team from China had ar- especially geological ones. tivity has been one of the major The detailed report of the ed together after the Jumma rived in Nepal to conduct pre- “The altitude variation be- interests of Nepal over the years. fi eld visits is expected to be prayers and attacked the Hindu liminary studies on possible tween Syaprubeshi and Kerung According to Upadhayaya, released shortly. neighbourhood. Lanka’s new railroads. The team wrapped up and the gap created between In- who also accompanied the vis- Nepal and China have also A three-member investiga- its fi ve-day trip on Friday, with dian and Tibetan tectonic plates iting Chinese team in its fi eld agreed to expedite co-opera- tion committee was formed to a positive note for development after the 2015 earthquake were trips, the team has assured of tion in the fi eld of cross-border probe the situation. The district of railways in Nepal. our major concerns. The team of technical support required for railway connectivity. “They are administration said it is mak- emission checks After completing the fi eld experts has cleared out our con- the these railway projects. willing to support us. It’s now ing special arrangements to trips to Kerung, Pokhara and cerns, paving the way for devel- “As we lack resources and up to us how we move ahead,” compensate the victims of the to hit import Lumbini as part of their study, opment of railroads in the coun- manpower, we had the chance said Upadhayaya. attacks. of tuk-tuks UN immunises Rohingya refugees AFP phase out fossil fuel vehicles Colombo by 2040, replacing all state- IANS Bazar, Bangladesh, since Au- owned vehicles with electric United Nations gust 25, when attacks by or hybrid models by 2025. rebels on Myanmar police and ri Lanka will adopt “We are moving towards security posts touched off tougher vehicle emis- environmentally-friendly ve- he United Nations and the retribution. Ssion standards early next hicles and we will insist on Bangladeshi government More than half of new arrivals year, the fi nance minister said, the new standards for all new Tare stepping up eff orts are staying in the Kutupalong- a move that will eff ectively imports into the country from to immunise Rohingya refugees Balukhali expansion site, which halt the import of tuk-tuks the new year,” Samaraweera living in overcrowded camps merges several pre-existing from neighbouring India. told reporters in Colombo. and makeshift shelters, as the settlements with new land al- From January, the South He added that the govern- number of suspected measles located by the Bangladeshi Asian country will follow the ment would slash import cases is on the rise, the UN has government, said OCHA. environmentally-friendly taxes on three-wheelers that said. As of Friday, the Rohingya Euro 4 emissions standard as are electric-powered to help Measles, a childhood killer Refugee Crisis Response Plan adopted by European nations, owners replace the current disease which can be particu- has received $143.5mn, or a Mangala Samaraweera said. gasoline fl eet. larly dangerous among unim- third of requirements. Donors The new norms will have a The government will also munised and malnourished pledged a total of $360mn for huge impact on the import of arrange cheap credit for children, is one of the major the response last month, and the tuk tuks - a favourite mode of electric taxis and buses. health risks for the refugees who United Nations urges donors to transport in Sri Lanka, with Sri Lanka had around have fl ed their homes in Myan- disburse this money as quickly 1.5mn already in the country. 6.8min vehicles, most im- mar’s Rakhine State, said the of- as possible. Rohingya refugee children wait in a queue to collect food in Palongkhali makeshift refugee camp in Cox’s Almost all come from In- ported from Japan and India, fi ce of the spokesperson for the On Friday, UN Secretary- Bazar district of Bangladesh. dia and are considered major on its roads at the end of 2016, UN secretary-general, Xinhua General Antonio Guterres re- polluters. including nearly 720,000 cars. reported. newed his call for unfettered hu- stops, but also we need to insist sert the right of return ... for all lies largely on the problems re- The government had said In the absence of public mass The Offi ce for the Coordina- manitarian access to Myanmar’s on unhindered humanitarian ac- the population that fl ed to Bang- lated to citizenship for the Ro- in October it planned to re- transit options, rickety three- tion of Humanitarian Aff airs northern Rakhine State and de- cess to all areas of Rakhine State, ladesh and to the areas of origin hingyas - an Indo-Aryan Muslim strict imports of the ubiqui- wheelers are a popular trans- (OCHA) said that Rohingya ref- manded the dignifi ed return of including the northern part of - not to be placed in camps, not minority in overwhelmingly tous three-wheel taxis in a bid port option as well as a key ugees continue to fl ee into Bang- the Rohingya refugees to their this region,” he told reporters having access to the places where Buddhist Myanmar - and to the to reduce road accidents and source of employment for lo- ladesh, although at a slower rate homes. here in New York prior to his trip they left.” legal status of this population congestion. cals, with an increasing number than in previous weeks. “We insist on the need to to Bonn, Germany for a UN cli- Guterres emphasized the im- “that has been discriminated and The announcement also of young men becoming As of Wednesday, 613,000 make sure, not only that all vio- mate conference. portance of addressing the root that is stateless at the present comes as Sri Lanka moves to tuk-tuk drivers. refugees had arrived in Cox’s lence against this population “We insist on the need to reas- cause of the problem, which re- moment.” Bangladesh to introduce e-passports with German assistance

By Mizan Rahman February, sources in the home project will rise by 7.50bn taka project within the shortest selves, handle all types of secu- process—from enrolment and biometric information and the Dhaka ministry and the department if it does not get implemented possible time. rity aspects, including the soft- document generation to data holder’s name, date of birth and of immigration and passports within 10 years. “We’ll set up the required ware, security features and other management and public key other biographic information. (DIP) said. According to the proposal, a equipment at all 65 Bangladesh contents of the e-passport. Of infrastructure (PKI), person- An e-passport will cost 12,000 angladesh will introduce The security service division passport booklet factory will be missions abroad and 71 pass- the 50bn taka project cost, 27bn alisation and document usage taka and would have a 10-year e-passports instead of of the home ministry has pre- set up in Dhaka, where a building port offi ces in the country. At taka will be needed to produce for border controls. After e- duration. For the introduction of Bmachine-readable pass- pared the draft of the agreement for printing is being constructed the same time, we will set up 50 30mn booklets and 23bn taka to passports are introduced, it will such passports, the Bangladesh ports (MRPs) and is now set to to be signed. It is under consid- by DIP. e-gates at as many immigration set up the equipment, machin- become impossible to make fake Passport Rules 1974 would be sign with German state-owned eration of authorities concerned. As part of the proposed points at all international air- ery, software networking and the passports,” he said. amended. company Veridos GmbH by De- The prime minister wants project, 30mn e-passports ports, seaports and land ports like,” he said. Sources said seven overseas Sources said DIP has is- cember to implement the mega- to implement the 50bn taka e- would be made and distributed in the country. Of the 30mn e- The country representative companies have already shown sued 17.6mn MRPs till date, project. passport project under govern- among the existing MRP-hold- passports, we’ll import around of Veridos GmbH, Faiyazul Huq interest in providing e-passport since those were introduced in A memorandum of under- ment-to-government deal, but ers in the country. 10mn and produce 20mn at the Raju, said that the agreement booklets. April 2010. standing (MoU) was signed the home ministry and DIP are DIP Director General Masud passport factory. We’ll need $14 would be signed by December. The e-passport will be a bio- At least 118 countries, in- with the German company in favour of inviting an open ten- Rezwan told newsmen that they to import an e-passport, while “Veridos works with third- metric passport containing de- cluding India, China, Malay- during Prime Minister Sheikh der, the sources added. will complete all the process it will cost $8 to make one in the generation electronic passport tailed features of the holder. It sia and the UAE, have already Hasina’s visit to that country in The real cost of the proposed of implementing the proposed passport factory. We will, our- solutions that cover the entire will have a microchip containing introduced e-passports. Gulf Times 26 Sunday, November 12, 2017 COMMENT

Chairman: Abdullah bin Khalifa al-Attiyah Editor-in-Chief: Faisal Abdulhameed al-Mudahka Deputy Managing Editor: K T Chacko

P.O.Box 2888 Doha, Qatar [email protected] Telephone 44350478 (news), 44466404 (sport), 44466636 (home delivery) Fax 44350474 GULF TIMES Will the multilateral trade deal survive with TPP’s new name?

Eleven countries that formed part of the original Trans- Pacifi c Partnership (TPP) trade pact have decided to go ahead with the multilateral deal, after US President Donald Trump ditched it, but its success depends on whether the bloc members can achieve the intended free and open trade among the $12tn anchor consumer market. During the last few days, the leaders of the nations that would enter the multilateral trade pact, minus Canada, have been closeted in talks on the sidelines of the Asia- Pacifi c Economic Co-operation (APEC) summit in the Vietnamese resort of Danang to help the deal survive without the United States. The deal, which still needs to be fi nalised, would now be Qatar fulfi lling obligations called the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacifi c Partnership (CPTPP). TPP’s progression to CPTPP is said to be a refl ection of the high environmental and labour standards in the deal, including the ability to take enforcement action against towards humanitarian work countries that breached those provisions. in the history of the United Nations, humanitarian action, especially pillars of the Qatar National Vision President Trump has already made it clear that he prefers QNA Doha launched in 2014 until 2016, has when providing assistance to protect 2030, has paid considerable attention country-to-country agreements rather than multi-nation provided a unique opportunity to civilians, without distinction of to youth, improved opportunities and deals such as the TPP. consult on the challenges facing religion, colour or race.” expanded options for them. Qatar stressed the need to share This interest is considered a He is also lobbying for E ambassador Tareq bin Ali humanitarian action, with a wide range TPP was one of Faraj al-Ansari, Director of of relevant stakeholders, governments, the burdens and responsibilities of complete disincentive to investing in the removal of barriers International Co-operation civil society organisations, experts and all countries of the world in dealing the future of human capital, “which the centrepieces to investment from US HDepartment at the Foreign communities aff ected, he said. with global crises, such as the crisis of can devise solutions to end the crises companies. Ministry has affi rmed that Qatar He added Qatar participated in all displaced persons and refugees on a of today’s world, such as poverty, of Obama’s continues to fulfi l its obligations stages of the consultative process, large scale, he added. hunger, the effects of climate change, TPP was one of the towards humanitarian action despite noting that Doha hosted the World He said Qatar fi rmly believes in conflicts, violent extremism and so-called Asia centrepieces of former the siege. Youth Consultative Summit, from the need to involve young people in terrorism which were rejected by all President Barack Speaking at Conference of the September 1-2 , 2014, with the shaping the future of humanitarian divine laws and international laws”, “pivot” “Youth Initiative for the Middle East participation of more than 350 young action and play a pivotal role in the ambassador said. Obama’s so-called Asia and North Africa”, organised by Reach men and women in order to convey the determining their future, noting The development policy of Qatar “pivot,” an economic, political and military realignment Out To Asia (Rota), al-Ansari, praised voices of youth as a key part in shaping that this forum represents a direct gives priority to the needs of young toward a region seen as key to America’s future. the donors’ conference for Syria, the future of humanitarian work to translation of this commitment. people for future development, held in Doha on October 18 and the decision-makers around the world. Qatar stressed the need for “particularly in the field of education The Trans-Pacifi c Partnership was originally conceived meetings of mobilising support and He said that the consultative concerted global eff orts to ensure under the fourth development as a trade and investment agreement among Pacifi c Rim establishing partnerships between conference came out with the “Doha the reduction of human and material objective, as an important nations such as Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Qatar’s private and public institutions Declaration on the redrafting of the losses resulting from disasters, he said. component of the establishment of for humanitarian assistance as well as humanitarian agenda” which included He also called for the development integrated and peaceful societies Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, the US relevant United Nations specialised priorities and recommendations after of resilience and adaptation in the with strong institutions based on and Vietnam. agencies and the continued presence continuous eff orts, consultations and humanitarian response process. justice, accountability and efficiency On some measures, the trade deal would have been the of Qatar in its generous humanitarian analysis of great importance. He pointed out that the Qatari in accordance with goals 11 and 16 of “largest ever” outside of the World Trade Organisation assistance in troubled regions of the He noted that this great eff ort has humanitarian work has proved a high the international development goals world. resulted in the commitment of the ability at the levels of transparency for sustainable development,” he (WTO)—it was meant to cover 40% of the global The ambassador said that these Rota programme to raise the capacity and the delivery of fi nancial transfers noted. economy. eff orts prove the wise leadership of His of young people in humanitarian work, to the benefi ciaries through offi cial He said that the achievement of the Interestingly, two major emerging economies – China Highness the Emir Sheikh Tamim bin as a key strategy to crystallise and channels in accordance with the goals of sustainable development and Hamad al-Thani, to place Qatar over materialise the recommendations of best international standards and the recommendations of the World and India, have been left out of the TPP trade negotiations the siege. the World Humanitarian Summit on international resolutions governing the Summit on Humanity depended on with some experts already warning that the multilateral He said that the holding of this the ground. work of development, humanitarian the involvement of young people and trade deal might adversely aff ect them. event comes in light of the delicate and Qatar believes in the adoption of and relief. special attention to instilling a culture complex humanitarian conditions and dialogue and political solutions to Qatar stressed the commitment to of peace and development in their Partly to counter China’s growing dominance in Asia; conditions of confl ict, displacement resolve disputes, avoid crises, and support education, albeit in the midst future leadership. Japan had been lobbying hard for the TPP pact, which aims and asylum. partnership in peace-building and of crises, so that no one would miss the Ambassador al-Ansari expressed to eliminate tariff s on industrial and farm products across He noted that many face the death contribute to international security future generation of children or young his thanks and appreciation to Her caused by the confl icts and the and stability as a strategic option set people, he added. Highness Sheikha Moza bint Nasser, the 11-nation bloc whose trade totalled $356bn last year. successive humanitarian challenges out in the Qatar National Vision 2030. He explained that the QUEST Chairperson of the Board of Directors To reach agreement on pushing ahead with the deal, in the Middle East and North Africa, It is consistent with its international initiative to support the education of of the Education Above All, for her some 20 provisions of the original agreement will now be pointing out that civilians were commitments and fi rm humanitarian displaced people and Syrian refugees tremendous eff orts in supporting suspended. aff ected by these incidents, especially positions, al-Ansari underlined. within the framework of investing education and humanitarian work the youth, women and children. He said that Qatar has always in youth education is one of the through the Foundation. But any kind of deal looked doubtful at the weekend, He said that the World called on the international initiatives that represents this policy He also praised the distinguished when the TPP leaders’ summit was called off after Humanitarian Summit was a glimmer community and the humanitarian on the ground. eff orts of the Rota programme Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau did not attend. of hope and a milestone in the history community to respect and comply He stressed that Qatar’s to organise the event in Doha, in of humanitarian action. with international humanitarian international co-operation strategy, addition to the benefi ts of the World After initially seeming to deliver a critical blow to the fate The largest consultative process law and to respect the rules of which has become one of the eight Humanitarian Summit. of the deal, Canada later returned to the table, apparently due to persuasion by other member countries. Canada, which has the second biggest economy among remaining TPP countries after Japan, had said it wanted to ensure an agreement that would protect jobs. The TPP has a new name and it looks like getting a new lease of life in Vietnam, but the question remains whether the multilateral trade deal will be compelling enough without the US, the largest and the most attractive economy in the world. Also, the CPTPP still has many loops to jump, including legislative approval by all of its 11 proponents.

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2017 Gulf Times. All rights reserved Qatar charitable organisations distribute food in Syria. Gulf Times Sunday, November 12, 2017 27 COMMENT Protecting dirty investments By Nathalie Bernasconi- broader trade pacts, such as the North Osterwalder and Jorg Haas American Free Trade Agreement (Naf- Geneva ta), the Energy Charter Treaty, and the EU-Canada Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA). Because olutions to the climate crisis these treaties were designed to shield are often associated with big foreign investors from expropriation, conferences, and the next two they include investor-state dispute Sweeks will no doubt bring settlement (ISDS) mechanisms that many “answers.” Some 20,000 del- allow investors to seek compensation egates have now descended on Bonn, from governments, via international Germany, for the latest round of United arbitration tribunals, if policy changes Nations climate change talks. aff ect their business. The talks in Bonn should focus on This has handcuff ed governments the implementation of the Paris cli- seeking to limit fossil-fuel extraction. mate agreement. And the path forward Compensation from ISDS cases can is clear. The only way to keep the rise be staggering. In 2012, an American in global temperatures within the limit investor fi led a lawsuit against the set in Paris – “well below 2C” higher Quebec government’s decision to deny than pre-industrial levels – is to shift a permit for hydraulic fracturing under capital away from fossil fuels and to- the Saint Lawrence River. Arguing that ward zero-carbon projects. To do that, the denial was “arbitrary, capricious, we must change how global energy and illegal” under Nafta, the Delaware- investments are governed. based energy fi rm sought $250mn in At the moment, the very gov- damages. ernments leading the fi ght against In January 2016, the TransCanada climate change continue to support energy company used Nafta to sue the and protect investment in fossil-fuel United States, claiming $15bn in losses exploration, extraction, and transpor- after President Barack Obama denied a tation. Rather than investing in ef- permit for the Keystone XL oil pipeline. fi cient housing, zero-carbon mobility, (The company suspended its suit after renewable energy, and better land-use President Donald Trump approved the systems, these governments say one project in January 2017). thing but still do another. And in July 2017, Quebec agreed to According to the most recent World pay nearly $50mn in compensation The very governments leading the fight against climate change continue to support and protect investment in fossil-fuel exploration, extraction, and transportation. Energy Investment report from the to companies after cancelling oil and International Energy Agency, global gas exploration contracts on Anticosti as a possibility, but as a necessity. Last by energy fi rms against host coun- CETA. Hulot said France would ratify legal and policy frameworks at the re- expenditure in the oil and gas sec- Island in the Gulf of Saint Lawrence. month, the UN Conference on Trade tries, with some challenging national the treaty only if it contained assur- gional, national, and international levels. tor totalled $649bn in 2016. That was These and other payments are in ad- and Development convened a high-level environmental policies, such as the ances that its climate commitments These agreements should promote and more than double the $297bn invested dition to the hundreds of billions of meeting in Geneva, with the goal of nuclear phase-out in Germany. Russia could not be challenged before arbitra- facilitate zero-carbon investments. Big in renewable electricity generation, dollars in subsidies that continue to developing options for comprehensive and Italy have already withdrawn from tion tribunals. Fossil-fuel projects meetings like the one getting underway even though achieving the Paris agree- fl ow to the fossil-fuel industry. reform of the investment regime, in- the ECT; other countries should do the could also be exempted from invest- this week and the Paris Climate Summit ment’s target implies leaving at least Big payouts do more than drain cluding the renegotiation or termination same or commit to renegotiating it. ment protection in new environmental next month can kick-start these conver- three quarters of known fossil-fuel public coff ers; the mere threat of them of some 3,000 outdated treaties. Moreover, countries should put treaties, such as the Global Pact for sations. – Project Syndicate reserves in the ground. As these num- discourages governments from pursu- Governments should start by over- climate concerns at the center of their the Environment presented by French bers suggest, institutional inertia and ing more ambitious climate policies, hauling or exiting the Energy Charter trade and investment negotiations, President Emmanuel Macron to the z Nathalie Bernasconi-Osterwalder entrenched industry interests continue owing to fear that carbon-dependent Treaty, the world’s only energy-specif- such as by carving out fossil-fuel UN General Assembly in September. is director of the Economic Law and to stand in the way of shifting invest- industries could challenge them in ic investment pact. The ECT’s invest- projects from investment clauses. That Rebalancing the global investment Policy Program at the International ment into sustainable energy. international tribunals. ment protections and lack of climate is essentially what France recently regime is only the fi rst step toward a Institute for Sustainable Development Much of the problem can be traced Fortunately, this state of aff airs is not provisions are no longer appropriate. proposed, when ecology minister zero-carbon economy. To shift capital (IISD). Jörg Haas is Department Head: to bilateral investment treaties and set in stone. Many governments now see Since its inception, the ECT has served Nicolas Hulot announced his country’s from fossil-fuel heavy initiatives to green International Politics at the Heinrich investment rules embedded within reform of the investment regime not just as the basis for more than 100 claims intention to enact a “climate veto” to energy projects, countries will need new Boll Foundation. Weather report Three-day forecast Sounding the alarm on biodiversity loss TODAY High: 33 C In October 2010, global leaders met in address the state of land degradation of 2005. It will examine the health of Low : 24 C By Robert Watson Inshore: Strong wind expected at places Norwich Aichi, Japan, where they produced the and restoration at regional and global terrestrial, freshwater, and marine Strategic Plan for Biodiversity 2011- levels. ecosystems, and the impact of factors 2020, which included 20 ambitious The reports will highlight trends and including acidifi cation, rising sea ith the United Nations’ targets – such as halving global plausible futures, outlining the best surface temperatures, trade, invasive MONDAY climate change conference habitat loss and ending overfi shing policy options available to slow the species, overfi shing, pollution, and High: 29 C underway in Bonn, – that signatories agreed to meet by degradation of ecosystems, from coral land use changes. Low: 22 C WGermany, rising global 2020. Safeguarding biodiversity is reefs to rainforests. Taken together, The success of eff orts to Cloudy temperatures are once again at the top also specifi cally included in the UN’s the IPBES assessments will represent reverse unsustainable uses of the of the world’s agenda. But why care Sustainable Development Goals. the global scientifi c community’s world’s natural assets will require about the increase in temperature, if not Yet progress toward these global consensus view on the state of policymakers to reconsider the value TUESDAY because of its impact on life on Earth, biodiversity goals is likely to fall biodiversity and ecosystem services. of biodiversity for their people, High: 30 C including human life? dangerously short of what is needed to Moreover, the reports will highlight environments, and economies. But Low: 22 C That is an important question to ensure an acceptable future for all. the close links between biodiversity the fi rst step is ensuring that we have Sunny consider, in view of the relative lack of Policymakers have largely agreed on loss and climate change, which should the best peer-reviewed knowledge attention devoted to a closely related the importance of holding the increase be addressed simultaneously. The available to make sound decisions; the and equally important threat to human in global temperature to less than 2C world will not be able to meet the goals forthcoming IPBES assessments will Fishermen’s forecast survival: the startling pace of global above pre-industrial levels – the goal of the Paris agreement – or many of move us in that direction. OFFSHORE DOHA biodiversity loss. of the Paris climate agreement. But too the SDGs, for that matter – unless If the full consequences of climate Wind: NW 10-20/30 KT The availability of food, water, few leaders have shown any sense of it takes into account the state of change are to be addressed in our Waves: 3-6/12 Feet INSHORE DOHA and energy – fundamental building urgency about stemming biodiversity biodiversity and ecosystem services. lifetime, we must recognise that Wind: NE 12-20/25 KT blocks of every country’s security losses. The sustainable future we want Today, most governments separate human activity is doing more than just Waves: 2-4/5 Feet – depends on healthy, robust, and depends on ending this indiff erence. their environmental authorities from adding a few degrees of temperature to diverse ecosystems, and on the life Toward that end, the those focusing on energy, agriculture, the annual forecast. By early next year, Around the region that inhabits them. But, as a result Intergovernmental Science-Policy and planning. This makes it diffi cult to we will have the data on biodiversity Weather Weather of human activities, planetary Platform on Biodiversity and address climate change or biodiversity and ecosystem services to prove it, and today Max/min tomorrow Max/min Abu Dhabi biodiversity is now declining faster Ecosystem Services (IPBES), which I losses in a holistic way. New types of the policy options to change course. – Sunny 31/27 Cloudy 29/26 Baghdad Sunny 25/12 M Sunny chair, will release a series of landmark innovative governance structures are Project Syndicate 26/12 than at any point in history. Many Dubai Sunny 32/27 Sunny 31/22 policymakers, however, have yet to reports next March on the implications needed to bridge these policy silos. Kuwait City Sunny 28/16 Sunny 28/15 recognise that biodiversity loss is just of biodiversity decline. Prepared over After the release of IPBES regional z Robert Watson, Strategic Director Manama Cloudy 31/24 Cloudy 29/23 as serious a threat as rising sea levels three years by more than 550 experts reports next year, a global assessment of the Tyndall Centre for Climate Muscat Sunny 29/25 Sunny 29/23 and increasingly frequent extreme from some 100 countries, these building on them will be published Change Research at the University Riyadh Sunny 28/14 Sunny 28/14 weather events. expert assessments will cover four in 2019. This will be the fi rst global of East Anglia, is Chair of the Tehran M Sunny 18/07 Sunny 18/08 This lack of suffi cient attention world regions: the Americas, Asia overview of biodiversity and ecosystem Intergovernmental Science-Policy comes despite international and the Pacifi c, Africa, and Europe services since the authoritative Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem commitments to protect biodiversity. and Central Asia. A fi fth report will Millennium Ecosystem Assessment Services (IPBES).

Live issues Obesity tied to serious knee injury complications

By Lisa Rapaport hospitalised with knee dislocations people with severe obesity were more Another limitation is the reliance Reuters Health who were also obese rose from 8% at than twice as likely to have vascular on billing codes to identify obese the start of the study period to 19% injury. Patients with less extreme patients, which might under- by the end, the study found. obesity were still 77% more likely to represent the overall rate of obesity nee dislocations are Obese people were also about twice have vascular injury than non-obese in the study, the authors note. becoming more common as likely as normal-weight patients to individuals. Researchers also lacked data on long- Around the world among obese people, and have vascular injury, or blood vessel Obese patients also typically had term patient outcomes. Weather Weather these patients are more likely damage, the study also found. longer and more costly hospital stays Even so, the findings add to today Max/min tomorrow Max/min K Athens P Cloudy 21/14 T Storms 19/13 than normal-weight individuals to “The effects of obesity go far than non-obese people. evidence that knee dislocations Beirut M Sunny P Cloudy 28/20 develop blood vessel damage that can beyond the effects on general health With a vascular injury, patients and vascular damage can be worse 25/22 Bangkok I T Storms 33/26 T Storms 32/26 lead to amputations, a recent study that are well known,” said lead study were hospitalised for around 15 for obese individuals, said Dr Berlin M Cloudy 07/01 P Cloudy 06/-2 suggests. author Dr Joey Johnson of the Warren days, compared to only about 7 days Alexandra Gersing, a researcher at Cairo P Cloudy 28/16 P Cloudy 28/15 Knee dislocations happen when the Alpert Medical School at Brown without vascular injury. the University of California, San Cape Town P Cloudy 21/16 M Cloudy 20/14 patella, or kneecap, slips out of its University in Providence, Rhode Average hospitalisation costs were Francisco, who wasn’t involved in the Colombo Showers 29/26 Showers 29/26 Dhaka M Sunny 32/21 M Sunny 31/20 normal position, often as a result of Island. $131,478 for vascular injury cases study. Hong Kong S Showers 26/23 P Cloudy 26/23 trauma, intense exercise or physically Because the study also found compared to $60,241 for patients While weight loss is a good way to Istanbul P Cloudy 19/13 P Cloudy 18/13 challenging work. But for obese the risk of vascular injury rose without vascular damage, the study help avoid these issues, even without Jakarta I T Storms 32/26 S T Storms 32/25 people, knee dislocations are often with increasing degrees of obesity, also found. losing weight there are things people Karachi Sunny 33/21 Sunny 29/20 London Showers M Sunny 07/04 can do, Gersing said by e-mail. 08/01 due not to trauma or excessive force patients may benefit from losing About 2% of obese patients Manila P Cloudy 32/24 P Cloudy 32/25 but to strain from carrying excess weight even when they can’t shed had amputations. This wasn’t “In obese individuals that are not Moscow Showers 05/-1 M Cloudy 03/01 body weight. enough pounds to stop being obese, meaningfully different from non- able to lose weight, knee stability New Delhi Sunny 29/16 Sunny 29/16 For the current study, researchers Johnson said by e-mail. obese people after researchers can be increased by increasing the New York P Cloudy 09/04 P Cloudy 09/03 Rain 08/02 examined data on more than 19,000 Overall, just 1,075 patients, or accounted for whether patients had strength of muscles surrounding the Paris 11/03 P Cloudy Sao Paulo P Cloudy 28/13 Sunny 25/12 knee dislocations from 2000 to 2012, about 6%, had vascular injuries vascular injury. knee joint,” Gersing advised. “Knee Seoul M Sunny 11/03 S Showers 13/03 including almost 2,300 injuries during the study, researchers report The study wasn’t a controlled stability can thereby be improved up Singapore S T Storms 30/26 T Storms 31/25 sustained by overweight and obese in the Journal of Orthopaedic experiment designed to prove whether to a certain extent in order to prevent Sydney P Cloudy 21/14 P Cloudy 21/14 people. Trauma. or how obesity directly causes knee knee dislocations and consequently Tokyo Clear 16/09 Clear 17/09 The proportion of patients Compared to non-obese patients, dislocations or vascular injuries. the associated vascular injury.” Gulf Times 28 Sunday, November 12, 2017 QATAR

Qatar’s labour law NU-Q honours students has evolved over the years: resident

atar’s labour law has evolved over the for academic distinction Qyears and the amend- ments made to it improved t a luncheon hosted by its dean, Hend al-Thawadi, Fatema al-Theyab, the working conditions of Northwestern University in Qa- Sana Ansari, Hisham Ashour, Urooj the labour force, Doha resi- Atar (NU-Q) recognised the aca- Azmi, Ali Bahzad, Huda Barakat, Nada dent Mohamed Farman told demic excellence of 84 students named Bedair, Asmaa Benkermi, Achira Bhat- Qatar Urdu Radio live show to the Dean’s List for the Spring 2017 tacharyya, Omaima Es-samaali, Vibhav Haqeeqat. semester. Gautam, Mohamed Hassan, Mohamed “In 2011, Qatar increased “As an NU-Q student, you have dealt Humam, Basmah Kamran, Sarhan Khan, the number of police offi c- with diff erent factors across the pro- Jemina Legaspi, Lana Mahmoud, Sa- ers to monitor the health, grammes, including diff erent types of maya Mahmoud, Younes Mana, Valeria security and management rigorous coursework, from essays and Marinova, Amanda Melhem, Ibtesaam of the labour force by their tests to research papers and documen- Mohamed, Amina Niksic, Noor Own, employers in many parts of tary,” said Everette E Dennis, dean and NU-Q dean and CEO Everette E Dennis Dean Dennis with students Nada Bedair Mohamed Qandas, Samaia Samara, Ayza the country. Later in 2014, CEO, NU-Q. “The work you have done with student Lolwa al-Thani. and Amina Niksic. Sheikh, Lama Zaidieh, Mohamed Hus- Qatar has built accommo- here is among the best and I hope that sain, Amal Ali and Shuhan Zhang. dation for labourers as per you take the time to enjoy making the are worth this recognition,” said media List. Of these, 31 students are in the Those from the journalism and stra- international standards and Dean’s List and being recognised today industries and technology senior Amna journalism and strategic communica- tegic communication major are Habibah today Qatar has the larg- as one of the best among the best.” al-Khayat. tion major and 53 are in the media in- Abass, Malek al-Manaa, Rouda al-At- est labour city in the region To qualify for the Dean’s List, media “Getting on the Dean’s List is important dustries and technology major. tiyah, Mairam al-Dubhani, Nasser al- located in Mesaimeer,” Far- Mohamed Farman industries and technology majors at to me because it solidifi es the hard work I Those from the media industries and Hitmi, Manar al-Jamal, Alyaa al-Maz- man explained. NU-Q achieve at least a 3.75 grade point put into my work throughout the semester, technology major are Adam Abou-Gad, rouei, AlGhalya al-Meslemani, Nayla He discussed the health venture of the Gulf Times and average (GPA) for the semester, and giving me a sense of achievement and ac- Ahmad Abudayeh, Maysam al-Ani, Ali al-Naimi, Lolwa al-Thani, Sara al-Tha- facilities for labourers and Qatar Media Corporation journalism and strategic communica- complishment,” said journalism and stra- al-Baker, Shaikha Alderbesti, Abdullah ni, Ifath Arwah, Shakeeb Asrar, Jueun added there are regulations Urdu Radio. It is broadcast tion majors achieve a 3.7 GPA. tegic communication senior Neha Rashid. al-Hor, Alia Alkhater, Amna al-Khayat, Choi, Mariam Feroun, Aamer Hassan, in place not only for con- from Sunday to Thursday on “NU-Q’s programmes are rigor- “Personally, I think it also motivates me to Lolwa al-Khori, Saad al-Mana, Maha Xiran Liu, Wakeeha Mailk, Meher Me- struction workers but also FM107. ous and demanding, and I am there- keep my GPA up, which I think can help me al-Marzoqi, Bothayna al-Moahammadi, hab, Anzish Mirza, Shageaa Naqvi, Noor for domestic workers. One can log on to Qatar fore proud of my ability to maintain a when applying to graduate school.” Amal al-Muftah, Aisha al-Muhannadi, Odeh, Zeena Ojjeh, Asmahan Qarjouli, Haqeeqat, which aims to Urdu Radio on Facebook good academic standing across all my Eleven sophomores, 19 juniors, 34 Rawan al-Nassiri, Noof al-Subaie, Al al- Neha Rashid, SaraSarwar, Oma Seddiq, engage and interact with the and ‘@QatarUrduRadio’ on courses. All these late nights studying seniors, and 20 recent graduates earned Thani, AlJawhara al-Thani, Maryam al- Sarah Shaath, Rumana Shaikh, Nicholas large South Asian expatriate Twitter for feedback and and endless hours fi lming and editing their place on the Spring 2017 Dean’s Thani, Noor al-Thani, Thamer al-Thani, Wong and Sarah Zainel. community in Qatar, is a joint comments about the show. More than 100 take part in Lake fest fi rst Aspire Park run

ore than 100 recreational runners Academy, coming in third after fi nishing the aged 12 years and over competed race in 20 minutes and 56 seconds. Mtogether with 29 student-athletes Karmoussi, a student-athlete at Aspire from Aspire Academy in the fi rst Aspire Academy who competes in the 800m and Park Run Challenge Series, organised by 1,500m and who fi nished third in the 3K Aspire Zone Foundation (AZF), yesterday race, said: “Competitions like these are a morning. great opportunity for student-athletes at Abdulla Aziz (adult) and Ilyass El Ouali Aspire Academy to see how we measure up, (junior) won the 3K and 6K races, respec- and provide useful indicators of our per- tively. formance leading up to the 2018 Summer The 3K race started at 7.30am with 60 Youth Olympics.” recreational runners and 22 student-ath- Alanoud al-Mesnad, acting head of letes from Aspire Academy taking part. Ab- Events at AZF, said: “We had more than 100 dulla Aziz (adult) secured fi rst place after participants take part so we’re very happy fi nishing the race in nine minutes and 46 with the big turnout and involvement of seconds. Second-place winner Ethan Ben- large numbers of recreational runners in nett (junior) trailed seconds behind, fi nish- Qatar. Today’s event is part of a challenge ing the race in nine minutes and 54 seconds, series that will resume in early December while Adnan Karmoussi, a young athlete when we’re expecting an even larger par- from Aspire Academy, fi nished in third The top three in the 6K category. ticipation. place completing the race in 10 minutes and “Qataris and expatriates over the age of 12 10 seconds, AZF said in a press statement. “record time”, fi nishing in 19 minutes and years are all welcome to sign up for the races The 6K race followed at 8am with more 54 seconds. Mehdi Mersni (adult) followed – both men and women.” than 76 recreational runners and seven stu- in second place after fi nishing in 20 minutes Meanwhile, 17-year old runner El Ouali dent-athletes from Aspire Academy taking and 35 seconds, with Muawia Abdulrahman from Al Ahli Sports Club, who won the 6K part. Ilyass El Ouali (junior) won the race in Balla, another young athlete from Aspire race, praised the competition organisers by

saying: “The event was very well organised and I really enjoyed taking part. Students from Aspire Academy provided a very high standard of competition and I wish them all the best of luck.” Qatari participant Abdullah al-Kaabi was part of the Q-tri team comprising seven Qatari recreational athletes who take part in various swimming, running and cy- cling competitions around Doha. Speaking on behalf of his team, he said: “We thank Aspire Zone Foundation for doing such a wonderful job in organising great compe- titions like this. We’ve enjoyed our time today, but we need to build up our stamina and speed, particularly for the 6K race.” The second Aspire Park Run race will be held on December 2 at Aspire Park, behind Italian performers showcased a Venetian-inspired presentation during the three-day Aspire Lake Coff eeshop Company. Adults and young Festival, which concluded yesterday. The event, organised by Aspire Zone Foundation in collabora- people interested in taking part can sign up tion with Katara and Ooredoo, provided Qatar residents and visitors with a “one-of-its-kind show through www.lifeinaspire.qa never seen before in the country”. Runners taking part in Aspire Park run. Fourth Katara European Jazz Ajyal Festival introduces Festival concludes today he fourth Katara European Jazz Festival, who off ered the public a glimpse of traditional ‘Al Ahali’ programme organised by Katara – the Cultural Village jazz tones - their music drawing inspiration TFoundation, will conclude today. from numerous travels with shades of oriental, The event is being held in co-operation with classical, jazz integrated with modern fl avours. he fi fth Ajyal Youth Film Festival, The Ajyal Jurors, nearly 500 of them its borders. The talks for this year include the embassies of 11 European countries in Qatar: Noa Lur from Spain and Grzech Piotrowski being presented by Doha Film Insti- this year, are in three categories: Mohaq relevant and topical sessions on media’s Austria, Bulgaria, France, Germany, Italy, Po- from Poland took centre stage at Katara yes- Ttute (DFI) from November 29 until (children aged 8 to 12 years), Hilal (13 to infl uence on our daily lives, overcoming land, Portugal, Spain, the Netherlands, Romania terday, with jazz enthusiasts listened to some December 4, has expanded its community 17 years) and Bader (18 to 21 years). Par- adversity through art, the horrors of child and Switzerland. Polish classical and folklore music as well as outreach this year with the launch of the ents of the jurors in all three categories traffi cking and human rights abuse, and Over the past few days, the festival has at- playful Spanish tones by the vocalist, Noa ‘Al Ahali’ programme for parents. can enrol for the ‘Al Ahali’ programme an In Conversation with celebrated visual tracted jazz lovers from diff erent age groups Lur. The programme aims to strengthen the and become active participants at this artist and fi lmmaker Shirin Neshat. and nationalities, further highlighting Katara’s The closing day of the festival will see per- interaction of the community with the year’s Ajyal Youth Film Festival, where On the closing day, parents are invited “keenness to reach out to diff erent cultures and formances from the Netherlands and Austria festival by opening its doors to the parents they will gain access to designated seats to attend the award ceremony to applaud people from all walks of life”, according to a press behind building 5 at the Cultural Village. Dutch of the Ajyal Jurors to join in a variety of for parents at select screenings and talks. the winners of this year’s festival, chosen statement. singer Ntjam Rosie is scheduled to enthral guests festival happenings, according to a press Parents interested in the programme by the young Ajyal Jurors. On November 8, the festival kicked off with as they listen to her tones that are “full of hope statement. should send an e-mail to ajyalparents@ Tickets go on sale from November 15 and performances by German band Favo and a Bul- in these tumultuous times”, at 7pm. The festival Fatma al-Remaihi, CEO of DFI, said: dohafilminstitute.com are priced at QR25 for general screening. garian jazz show by the Hilda Kazasyan Band. will also feature David Six from Austria, a per- “The ‘Al Ahali’ programme is a fi rst at Parents can take part in the opening of Tickets are available for purchase online at The next day, the audience enjoyed an Italian formance where integration, the organic unity of Ajyal, where the parents of our young ju- the Ajyal Jurors’ Hub on November 28 at www.dohafi lminstitute.com or from the band, the Filomena Campus Quartet, following composition and improvisations meet, at 9pm rors, who are at the heart of the event, can Katara – the Cultural Village, the venue of Ajyal Box Offi ce in Katara Building 12 or which the Marc Perrenoud Trio from Switzer- today. now join them in watching the fi lms and Ajyal Youth Film Festival. Starting on No- the Ajyal FNAC Ticket Outlet, FNAC Qa- land played contemporary jazz. On the same day, On the sidelines of the festival, workshops by attending various Ajyal Talks. This is part vember 30 for three consecutive days, they tar (at Lagoona Mall). visitors also enjoyed some traditional European renowned artistes are being held in co-operation of our commitment to broaden the un- are invited to attend the Ajyal Talks series. While Katara is the cultural partner, tones from Portugal, by the Lokomotiv band. with Qatar Music Academy. Those interested derstanding of cinema, more so because Ajyal Talks provide an inspiring interac- Qatar Tourism Authority is the strategic As for Friday’s shows, visitors had a date with also have the opportunity to attend a ‘Vocal and by involving the parents, we can facilitate tion with people who have a positive in- partner and Occidental Petroleum Corpo- renowned Romanian band Pan Terra and French Songwriting’ workshop by well-known artiste stronger familial bonding and encourage fl uence on youth, and highlight the issues ration and Ooredoo are the principal part- jazz musicians Mohamed Najem and his friends, Ntjam Rosie, from 4pm-5pm. them to work together creatively.” aff ecting youth in the region and beyond ners.