FOUNDER & PUBLISHER Kowie Geldenhuys EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Paulo Coutinho www.macaudailytimes.com.mo TUESDAY T. 20º/ 27º Air Quality Good MOP 8.00 3414 “ THE TIMES THEY ARE A-CHANGIN’ ” N.º 12 Nov 2019 HKD 10.00 TWO HK MEN IN DETENTION, ONE JASON NI SAYS GOING CHINESE E-COMMERCE GIANTS ALIBABA ON THE RUN ARE REPORTEDLY AND JD.COM REPORTED NEARLY USD60 RESPONSIBLE FOR A CASINO VIP PLASTIC-FREE IS GOOD BILLION IN SALES YESTERDAY PART WAY ROOM INVESTMENT SCAM FOR BUSINESS THROUGH SINGLES DAY P4 P7 P11 AP PHOTO HONG KONG UNDER SIEGE P8 Myanmar was accused yesterday of genocide AP PHOTO at the U.N.’s highest court for its campaign against the country’s Rohingya Muslim minority, as lawyers asked the International Court of Justice to urgently order measures “to stop Myanmar’s genocidal conduct immediately.” Gambia filed the case on behalf of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation. Thailand A court has issued arrest warrants for the former head of a major national park and three park employees accused of killing an ethnic Karen environmental activist. India Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s governing party has suffered a big setback in western Maharashtra state after its longtime ally broke away and joined two other parties to form the new state government. The Shiv Sena split with Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party yesterday and decided to form a coalition government with the BJP’s key opponents, the Congress party and National Congress Party. AP PHOTO Australia’s most populous state declared a state of emergency INTERVIEW All about Grand yesterday due to unprecedented wildfire Alliance Prix 66: News, danger as calls grew views and for Australia to take more action to counter with the interviews - the full climate change. New coverage - starting South Wales state neighbors Emergency Services with a look at the Minister David Elliott said residents were to spread Queen of Races facing what “could be that will roar on the most dangerous French: bushfire week this Guia Circuit from nation has ever seen.” Bascaule P2 Thursday More on backpage P4 page 2 www.macaudailytimes.com.mo MACAU 澳門 12.11.2019 tue MACAU’S LEADING NEWSPAPER WILLIAM BASCAULE Q&A DIRECTOR AFM Alliance Française’s modernizing programs, aims to collaborate with Hengqin, Zhuhai LYNZY VALLES in. I would like to find a way to re- novate those facilities. LLIANCE Française Macao A(AFM) has outlined its goals VALLES LYNZY MDT – Are you looking to re- for the next year, with a focus on novate the place or move out to a strengthening its collaboration private commercial building? with local universities, renovating WB – We are looking at both op- its premises and launching online tions, but the market price is very study options for students who high, so because we have been want to practice their French. here for 32 years, it’s more conve- Speaking to the Times, nient and cheaper to stay. But it William Bascaule, AF director, is still a lot of money to renovate. remarked that the non-profit Moving out also means going to organization has been through the private sector and depends changes in the past two years on the landlord who may increase following his mandate. rent. For us it’s a bit difficult. Bascaule previously headed Alliance Française Shanghai for MDT – Will there be plans to ten years before heading to the put your education online as a Macau SAR. platform to practice French? For the director, the lack of WB – It’s a tricky situation. I competition in the city has be- know there are many solutions on- come one of the challenges for line […] but you need to be able to AFM. Thus, the organization have some human interaction and pledged to continue providing practice and do a lot of things that a modernized curriculum for its are not convenient online. It’s really students. more difficult than what it seems. AFM also aspires to participa- to six years old and seven to 11 MDT – How many students just the program a little bit to have People sometimes are scammed te in the Greater Bay Area initia- years old. However, we stopped does AFM have at this moment? different activities for most groups. by marketing, which [promotes tive through collaborating with doing the 12-16 years old classes WB – We formerly had some online platforms as] an easy solu- neighboring regions including due to content quality concerns. 900 students but for all the rea- MDT – Looking further ahead, tion to learn a language. […] We’re Zhuhai and Hengqin. sons that I have mentioned, we what are your goals for the next going to start providing some sim- MDT – Was it better to choose are down to 800. We lost around year? ple solutions for people to be able Macau Daily Times (MDT) - those particular classes? 100 because of the classes we de- WB – There are still a lot of thin- to start. Not to learn French online You have been leading the orga- WB – During [my] first year, cided to close but I guess it’s going gs to do. We also focus on develo- because I don’t think it is fully pos- nization for the past two years. we were recreating a lot con- to come back as soon we are able ping our collaboration with uni- sible but to be able to practice their What are the measures that tent for a lot of different pro- to provide good quality classes for versities in Macau because that is French online. have progressed or new ones grams. We are a small team and them. really important. We are the only that you’ve implemented? we could not focus on official institution that pro- MDT- Do you see AFM taking William Bascaule (WB) - We everything at the same vides classes, so what we do part in this whole Greater Bay had a big problem with the con- time. It was a good choi- ”We will clearly in universities is really im- Area project? If so, what role tent of our courses. […] It’s been ce. We decided to focus portant for Macau becau- would the organization take? a long time since we have chan- on the adult classes and have to redefine se no one else in the city is WB – We will clearly have to ged our content and moderni- stop [teaching] after the ourselves. I would say doing that. redefine ourselves. I would say zed it. I would say that the AF B2 level. We focused on We are giving French [collaboration] with Hengqin and does not have any competition, levels A1 to B2 as well as [collaboration] with classes to these students Zhuhai. It would be interesting which means that you don’t have developing programs for as their extracurricular ac- because we need to find the right to push yourself or go the extra children. Hengqin and Zhuhai. tivity. solution to provide our services in mile. As a team, that’s what we It is an important time those areas. Do we have to open tried to achieve – to modify our MDT - Can you remark on for me to keep focusing on the- new small annexes and offices content, and I think it was well any differences in leading MDT – The academic term is se universities. We signed a new near Zhuhai or Hengqin? I don’t done. Everything now is clearer Shanghai and Macau? about to end. Are there any plans Memorandum of Understanding know yet but for sure we will be and [higher in quality] in terms WB - The students are really for the new term? with City University and we are part of that project and we need of program content and the le- different there. The motivation WB – The first phase was to developing extra curriculum clas- to redefine ourselves and solu- vel of information that we pro- and the purpose of learning create content. The second phase ses. We are also working on an tions to be able to provide these vide to our students. The second French is completely different. was to test it on the ground. The educational trip to allow these stu- services to these people who will thing that was lacking were clas- Shanghai is such an aggressive third phase is to tweak the pro- dents to go to France. […] Another [fill] the demand. We are already ses for children. The thing that and competitive market. You’re gram a bit – we are already in that [goal] is to focus on the renovation working with Sun Yat Sen Univer- surprised me when I arrived is always trying to have the best phase. We understood that it was of our facilities. We’ve been in the sity in Zhuhai. For now, we provi- that Macau is a family town. I product and improve. If you difficult to mix the kids and same same place for 32 years. This buil- de the official exam. Twice a year, clearly understood that we had don’t do that, you’re going to content. There were just too many ding and its facilities start to beco- they send their students to Ma- to develop that because there close soon. That was the biggest and we do not have enough facili- me less appealing for the people. I cau. It’s going to be interesting to was a demand. We developed flaw in AF – the lack of compe- ties, teachers and revenue to run think people would like to have a see how we can develop all those classes for children aged three tition.