Volume 24 | Number 8082 | 2 RiyalsThursday 21 November 2019 | 24 Rabia I 1441 www.thepeninsula.qa

BUSINESS | 01 SPORT | 12

Sports Excellence Awards: Barshim is Qatar’s Athlete of the Year

Qatar and Russiato boost

economic, trade cooperation

WISE 2019 to focus on ‘What it means to be Human’

FAZEENA SALEEM THE PENINSULA

The World Innovation Summit for Education (WISE 2019) convened in the presence of H H Sheikha Moza bint Nasser, Chairperson of Qatar Foundation, yesterday in Doha and is designed to challenge the conventional way of thinking about education.

This year’s Summit held under the theme ‘UnLearn ReLearn: What it means to be Human’ and is considered to have gathered a record number of participants at Qatar National Convention Centre.

Dr Armen Sarkissian, Pres-ident of the Republic of Armenia; H E Sheikha Hind bint Hamad Al Thani, Vice-Chairperson and CEO of Qatar Foundation; a number of Their Excellencies Ministers, dignitaries, policy makers, global education leaders were among over 3,000 partic-ipants from more than 110 coun-tries at the opening session of the WISE 2019.

Minister of Education and Higher Education, H E Dr. Mohammed Abdul Wahed Al Hammadi, in his opening remarks emphasised that WISE is an important platform where discus-sions on innovation in education

have been taking place at a global level over the last 10 years.

“WISE gathering is in inter-national spotlight among those who take a keen interest in dis-cussing education in a holistic manner, and who see education as a core for human development and a tool for the uplift of soci-eties,” said H E Dr. Al Hammadi.

Making a reference to the national school curriculum of Qatar, H E the Minister said: “Human development is the cor-nerstone of Qatar’s National Vision 2030. The values of tol-erance, mutual respect, cultural understanding, understanding of the pillars of global citizenship, renunciation of intolerance, vio-lence, terrorism, and com-mitment to sustainable devel-opment have become the foun-dation of Qatar’s educational curriculum and an integral part of its construction.”

“The presence of such a large group of policy-makers, thought-leaders, researchers, teachers, and youth sends the message that education is not the respon-sibility of a particular institution, but a responsibility that we all share, because education has an impact on our world and our future as human beings,” he added.

The discussions and debates at WISE 2019 aim to address several questions including: Should schools teach students how to be happy? Will artificial intelligence make teachers obsolete? Can the latest discov-eries in neuroscience make our

kids smarter? Do students care about what they are learning? Should schools get rid of grading systems? And Should students pledge a percentage of their future salary to fund their higher education?

“I don’t have a comprehensive

answer to what and how to educate our children. I am here to learn from you; but I would like to add a few points to your discus-sions today,” said Dr Sarkissian in his special key note address.

“I believe education should have one important function

– to find talent. Every child is born with some talent, and as educators, your job is to nurture it. Secondly, you must remember that not everyone has the same privileges as you – many are deprived of basic rights such as education." �P4

H H Sheikha Moza bint Nasser, Chairperson of Qatar Foundation, with other dignitaries during the opening of the World Innovation Summit on Education 2019, yesterday. PIC: AISHA AL MUSALLAM �P2

Cabinet refers changes in human trafficking law to Shura CouncilQNA DOHA

The Cabinet yesterday praised the State of Qatar’s ranking in the Global Competitiveness Book 2019 as it has risen to the top 10 in overall compet-itive indicators from 63 coun-tries.

The Cabinet, which met yesterday with Prime Minister H E Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa Al Thani in the chair, reviewed the letter of H E President of the Planning and Statistics Authority on the State of Qatar’s ranking in the Global Competitiveness Book 2019.

The Cabinet praised the State of Qatar’s advanced level

achieved in this area, as it has risen to the top 10 in overall competitive indicators from 63 countries.

Following the Cabinet meeting, Minister of Justice and Acting Minister of State for Cabinet Affairs H E Dr. Issa bin Saad Al Jafali Al Nuaimi, stated that the Cabinet approved a draft law amending some pro-visions of Law No. 15 of 2011 Combating Trafficking in Human Beings, and to refer it to the Shura Council.

The Cabinet also approved a draft law amending some pro-visions Law No.15 of 2014 on Regulating Charitable Activities, and a draft Amiri decision on organising the charity organi-sation. �P4

QU partners with AAB to promote road safetyTHE PENINSULA/DOHA

To promote the best initiatives and practices to protect road users, Qatar Transportation and Traffic Safety Center (QTTSC) has part-nered with Abdullah Abdulghani & Bros Co (AAB) - Toyota, to launch National Road Safety Award.

QTTSC at Qatar University College of Engi-neering (QU-CENG) signed an agreement yes-terday with Abdullah Abdulghani & Bros Co (AAB) to establish a collaboration on the spon-sorship of the first National Road Safety Award Program for the State of Qatar.

The agreement was signed by CENG Dean Dr. Khalid Kamal Naji and AAB Acting CEO Murugan R K in the presence of QTTSC

Director Professor Faris Tarlochan. Secretary of the National Traffic Safety Committee (NTSC), Brigadier Mohammed Abdullah Al Malki in a ceremony held yesterday at Qatar University. The ceremony was also attended Director General of the General Directorate of Traffic (GDT), Major General Mohammed Saad Al Kharji, together with representatives from GDT, CENG and AAB.

Commenting on the agreement, Dr. Khalid Kamal Naji said: “Road safety is one of the main areas of interest in Qatar. The College of Engineering through the QTTSC continues to highlight its commitment to road safety by investing in research and awareness programs that help find sustainable solutions to the road and traffic challenges in Qatar. This agreement

demonstrates CENG’s continuous efforts to contribute to road safety in Qatar through reducing road traffic accidents and developing a safe road transport system in line with the National Road Safety Strategy 2013-2022.”

He added that every year, more than one million people die on the roads worldwide and another 50 million suffer various injuries that could lead to disabilities as well as material losses that significantly affect the state budget.

“Since the UN announced that 2011-2020 will be the ‘Decade of Action for Road Safety,’ many countries, including Qatar, have devoted their efforts in developing the road safety system,” said Naji.

Murugan said that traffic safety has always been a priority to AAB, which is reflected in the activities and programs it has developed with the Traffic Department for Traffic Safety Week over the past years. “The National Traffic Safety Award is a significant milestone in Qatar to promote the best ini-tiatives and practices to protect road users. We believe that this award will spearhead the road safety ambition and will create a good framework to achieve it,” said Murugan.

H H Sheikha Moza bint Nasser attends the World Innovation Summit for Education with a host of dignitaries and over 3,000 participants from more than 110 countries.

SC and Goal Click team up to showcase Qatari football cultureTHE PENINSULA DOHA

To mark three years to go until the start of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, the Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy (SC) and Goal Click have teamed up to tell the untold, inside story of Qatari football culture, through the eyes and words of people living in the next World Cup host nation.

This unprecedented series features personal stories told directly by more than 30 Qataris

and non-Qatari residents of the country, said a report posted on the officials website of SC.

Goal Click, the global football storytelling and photog-raphy project, gave each partic-ipant a disposable analogue camera to capture their football lives. The photos and stories show the intimate realities of Qatari football culture from the perspective of workers, fans, journalists, coaches, and both grassroots and professional players.

Driven by his passion for

photography, participant Hamad Abdulaziz took his disposable camera to the streets of Qatar and his place of work. Abdulaziz is a football coach with Gener-ation Amazing – a Qatar 2022 legacy project launched in 2009 by the SC.

Ahead of the FIFA Club World Cup beginning in Qatar on December 11, 2019, Goal Click Qatar reveals the true football culture of the next World Cup host nation and its deep-rooted passion for the beautiful game. It also shines a

light on the country’s diversity, with over 15 nationalities rep-resented by the male and female participants.

The series will be brought together in an exhibition at Darb Al Saai in Doha during the FIFA Club World Cup. Further details about the event, which is held to celebrate Qatar’s National Day on December 18, will be announced in due course.

Mead Al Emadi, the SC’s Community Engagement Manager, said: “What I love about Goal Click Qatar is that it’s

from the eyes of the people. This is people in Qatar showing eve-ryone around the world real life and our country’s diversity. People have been asked to show what football means to them – and of course everyone comes back with something slightly different.

"When I saw the photos, I saw a side of Qatar that even I had never seen before. Even as a local, I saw my country in a dif-ferent light. It’s really genuine – and I love that.”

Matthew Barrett, Founder of

Goal Click, said: “After the success of our Russian series before the 2018 FIFA World Cup, we wanted to get straight to work in Qatar.

"Goal Click gives people the power and freedom to tell their personal stories from an intimate perspective. The FIFA World Cup 2022 in Qatar has dominated the world of football news since 2010. But the voices of the ordinary people living and working in Qatar, local and expat, male and female, have been largely unheard.”

The agreement demonstrates CENG’s continuous efforts to contribute to road safety in Qatar through reducing road traffic accidents and developing a safe road transport system in line with the National Road Safety Strategy 2013-2022

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Sheikha Moza meets First Lady of Paraguay

H H Sheikha Moza bint Nasser, Chairperson of Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Development and Chairperson of Education Above All, held a meeting on the sidelines of WISE 2019 with the First Lady of Paraguay, Silvana Lopez Moreira. They discussed the importance of prioritising education to help enrol out-of-school children, as well as ongoing partnerships with Education Above All. Her Highness also met with the First Lady of Gambia, Fatoumatta Bah Barrow, where they discussed potential partnerships in healthcare and education.

Sheikha Moza presents 2019 WISE Prize for Education

FAZEENA SALEEM THE PENINSULA

Larry Rosenstock, founder of a network of unique public charter schools in the US, walked away with the 2019 WISE Prize for Education, in Doha yesterday and he was recognised for his inno-vative learning model, combining tech-nical and academic education.

H H Sheikha Moza bint Nasser, Chairperson of Qatar Foundation, presented the prestigious WISE Prize for Education to Rosenstock, CEO and Founding Principal of High Tech High, during the opening plenary session of the World Innovation Summit for Education (WISE 2019) held at Qatar National Convention Centre.

High Tech High is a network of American public charter schools in San Diego, California. Rosenstock was rec-ognised by WISE for his contribution to quality education through innovative learning model that allows students from all socioeconomic backgrounds to succeed.

On receiving the WISE Prize, Rosenstock expressed his excitement by saying “Wow” before an audience

of more than 3,000 participants from 110 countries.

Then after a long pause, he said, “I want to thank H H Sheikha Moza bint Nasser and Qatar Foundation not just for recognising my work but for cre-ating this prize, which elevates the work of educating young people globally.”

“I am tremendously honoured to receive this prize from such a distin-guished jury. For me to be in the company of past winners of this prize, who have now made an impact in edu-cation around the world, is very moving. I hope the prize will allow us to share the work of High Tech High students and teachers even more widely. The prize confirms two of my strongest beliefs: that the work of hands and minds can and must be integrated in our schools. And that all young people are capable of doing work that matters, when we give them the opportunity.”

The WISE Prize for Education is the first distinction of its kind to acknowledge an individual for an out-standing contribution to education.

“Larry’s work encapsulates the essence of the WISE Prize for Education: a decade-long commitment to edu-cation as a force for positive individual

and social transformation, manifested through impactful work and tangible achievements as a visionary educator, policy maker, thinker, and social entre-preneur,” said Stavros N Yiannouka, CEO of WISE, while announcing the WISE Prize winner.

Rosenstock has pioneered the concept of project-based education, and his model re-imagines the role of teachers as ‘designers’ who adapt their curricula and blend different subjects depending of each student’s specific needs.

The High Tech High model are shaping the present and future of edu-cation by serving as a proof point for the concepts of project-based learning, teaching 21st century skills, and dem-onstrating that systemic change through the classroom is possible.

The schools have helped prepare thousands of students of varying back-grounds for higher education, citi-zenship, and work. Ninety-eight percent of High Tech High students have been accepted to university, compared to a nationwide average of 69%.

Educators, policymakers, and leaders from all 50 US states and 30 countries have participated in High Tech High programmes.

H H Sheikha Moza bint Nasser with the winners of the 2019 WISE Awards during the awarding ceremony of the 2019 WISE Prize for Education at Qatar National Convention Centre in Doha, yesterday. RIGHT: H H Sheikha Moza bint Nasser, Chairperson of Qatar Foundation, awarding the 2019 WISE Prize for Education to Larry Rosenstock, CEO of High Tech High.

Larry Rosenstock wins WISE Prize

Pic: Aisha Al Musallam

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Katara Children’s Festival beginsQNA DOHA

Katara Children’s Festival kicked off at Katara Cultural Village yesterday on the occasion of the World Children’s Day.

The Director-General of Katara, Dr. Khalid bin Ibrahim Al Sulaiti, said that the three-day activities will take place at the courtyard opposite the Amphi-theater and Al Thuraya Plane-tarium from 4pm to 8pm.

Dr. Al Sulaiti noted that Katara has coordinated with Qatar Post to issue a special stamp for Katara on the World Children’s Day, through a chil-dren’s painting competition

entitled “Qatar in the eyes of children”. The six best drawings will be selected at the levels of the primary, preparatory and secondary schools, and valuable prizes will be awarded to the winners.

Dr. Al Sulaiti invited families to take their children to partic-ipate in this special festival, noting that the festival includes many cultural, entertainment and educational events as well as workshops, Al Dhad games, Arabic calligraphy, children’s murals, little engineer and others.

The festival will concluded with an Animated Concert by Qatar Philharmonic Orchestra.

The Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, H E Sheikh Mohamed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, with the US National Security Adviser, Robert O’Brien (left), and Member of the US Senate for Foreign Relations Committee, Senator Tim Kaine, during his visit to the United States.

Foreign Minister reviews ties with US officials

THE PENINSULA DOHA

The Public Prosecution in cooperation with the Protection & Social Rehabilitation Center (AMAN), yesterday, organised an awareness lecture on protection from harassment practices under the title “Don’t Touch Me”.

The lecture was attended by a number of employees of the Public Prosecution, in addition to a number of spe-cialists from AMAN Center, where they discussed the anti-harassment awareness cam-paign and the targeted groups,

in addition to awareness about prevention methods and how to report in case the target segment suffered any har-assment. The campaign aims to educate children on ways to protect themselves from har-assment behaviours in general and sexual harassment in par-ticular and to promote positive values in children, especially as the protection of children is the responsibility of all. This lecture is a continuation of the series of awareness campaigns organised by the Public Pros-ecution within its role and com-petencies, in collaboration with various authorities in the State.

An expert shares tips during the awareness lecture organised by the Public Prosecution in cooperation with the Protection & Social Rehabilitation Center, yesterday.

Cabinet refers changes in human trafficking law to Shura CouncilFROM PAGE 1

The draft decision and law came with the aim to updating the legislation to keep up with the latest developments.

Moreover, the Cabinet approved a draft Amiri decision amending some of the provi-sions of Amiri decision No. 44 of the 2014 establishing Qatar General Authority for specifica-tions and standardization. The amendment requires the transfer of the affiliation of the Qatari General Authority for Specifications and Standardi-zation from the Ministry of Municipality and Environment

to the Ministry of Commerce and Industry.

The Cabinet also approved a draft Cabinet decision amending the organization of some administrative units com-prising the Ministry of Finance and specifying their compe-tencies, and a draft Cabinet decision amending the organi-zation of some administrative units comprising the Ministry of Commerce and Industry and defining their competencies.

The Cabinet then reviewed the following topics and took appropriate decisions thereon: The annual report of the Com-p e t i t i o n P r o t e c t i o n

and Prevention of Monopoly Practices Committee, which was established at the Ministry of Commerce and Industry. The Committee is responsible for several functions, including the preparation of an integrated database and information regarding economic activity and updating it regularly to facilitate the work of the committee in promoting fair competition and preventing monopoly practices and conducting the necessary research. It also receives reports related to violations of the pro-visions of the law, examines them to verify whether they deserve consideration, and takes

appropriate measures.The report of the committee

for coordination between the bodies operating at Hamad International Airport (HIA) during the period from April 1 to September 9, 2019.

This committee, which is established by the General Authority for Civil Aviation, is responsible for coordinating the work of all the entities operating at HIA to facilitate the operations and activities of air transport and the movement of aircraft, passengers, goods and mail to and from the State in accordance with applicable laws and regu-lations and provide the

necessary requirements to facil-itate airport activities.

The report of the Permanent Population Committee on the status of the population of the State of Qatar 2019. This com-mittee, in accordance with the competent authorities, studies the demographics, character-istics and trends of the popu-lation, proposes the population policy of the state, observes its implementation after approval, prepares the studies and research on population aimed at knowing the social reality of the state, develops the popu-lation policies and programs and a number of other tasks.

Dr. Khalid Kamal Naji, Dean at Qatar University College of Engineering, and Murugan R K, Acting CEO of Abdullah Abdulghani & Bros Co, signing the agreement to establish a collaboration on the sponsorship of the first National Road Safety Award Program for Qatar.

WISE 2019 to unravel ‘What it means to be Human’

FROM PAGE 1

“So, never forget to share. And finally, I want to tell the youth to believe in themselves,” the Pres-ident of Armenia added.

He also lauded the efforts taken by H H Sheikha Moza, Qatar Foun-dation and Qatar for the global visionary in education. Dr Sark-issian dubbed the Qatar National Library as a ‘Time Gate’ which con-nects the past and future.

The opening ceremony saw H H Sheikha Moza presenting Larry Rosenstock, CEO, High Tech High, with 2019 WISE Prize for Education

Laureate. The opening plenary session of WISE 2019 Summit was moderated by Yalda Hakim, Pre-senter and International Corre-spondent, BBC World News.

The opening plenary session featured Max Tegmark, Co-founder, Future of Life Institute; Nicholas A. Christakis, Professor, Yale University; and Najat Vallaud Belkacem, CEO, Global Affairs, IPSOS; Former Minister of Edu-cation, France. Established 10 years ago, more than $28m dona-tions and investments raised by startups have been supported by WISE.

Qatar participates in conference on promoting women’s role in post-conflict societies in region QNA CAIRO

The ministerial conference on promoting women’s roles in post-conflict societies in the region, organised by the General Secretariat of the Arab League in cooperation with the European Union and the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), kicked off yesterday.

The State of Qatar

participates in the conference with a delegation headed by HE Qatar’s Permanent Repre-sentative to the Arab League Ambassador Ibrahim bin Abdulaziz Al Sahlawi.

Participants in the con-ference will share the lessons learned from different coun-tries when it comes to planning for post-conflict recon-struction while taking into consideration gender equality.

The conference aims to

come up with specific recom-mendations through the exchange of experiences, lessons learned and best prac-tices at the national, regional and international levels.

In a statement released by the Arab League, Assistant Sec-retary General of the Arab League for Social Affairs Ambassador Haifa Abu Ghazala underlined the impor-tance of the two-day meeting to achieve a more involvement

of women in post-conflict communities.

The European union is funding the joint project “Strengthening the capability in the Arab League Secretariat and its Member States to provide early warning and effect ive responses to impending regional crises, conflicts, and post-conflict sit-uations, “under which this conference is organized, she pointed out.

Chief of Staff meets Greek Military AttacheTHE PENINSULA/DOHA

The Chief of Staff of the Qatari Armed Forces, H E Lieutenant General (Pilot) Ghanem bin Shaheen Al Ghanem, met, yesterday, with the new Greek Military Attache to Qatar, Colonel Kyriakos Demetre, and former Greek military attache to Qatar, Colonel Panagiotis Krikis.

They discussed military relations between the two sides and ways of enhancing them. H E the Chief of Staff thanked the former military attache for his efforts in sup-porting and strengthening bilateral relations in the defence and military fields

between the two friendly countries and wished him

success in his future tasks. The meeting was attended by a

number of senior officers of the Qatari Armed Forces.

The Chief of Staff of the Qatari Armed Forces, H E Lieutenant General (Pilot) Ghanem bin Shaheen Al Ghanem, with the new Greek Military Attache to Qatar, Colonel Kyriakos Demetre, and former Greek military attache to Qatar, Colonel Panagiotis Krikis, in Doha, yesterday.

Qatar University partners with AAB to promote road safety

Event raises awareness on ways to prevent harassment

FM sends message to Italian Defence MinisterQNA ROME

The Minister of Defence of the Italian Republic, Lorenzo Guerini, has received a written message from the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, H E Sheikh Mohamed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, pertaining to the bilateral relations and means of promoting them. The message was handed over by the Ambassador of Qatar to the Italian Republic, Abdulaziz bin Ahmed Al Malki, during his meeting with the Italian Defence Minister.

Kuwait book fair opens with Qatari participationQNA/KUWAIT

The 44th Kuwait International Book Fair kicked off yesterday with the participation of 488 publishing houses representing 30 Arab and foreign countries including Qatar.

The annual fair will run till November 30.

From Qatar, Hamad Bin Khalifa University Press will participate in the fair for the third consecutive year. Its booth will highlight a complete catalog of works including new titles in every genre and will also host Qatari author, Amal Al Langawi, for a book signing ceremony.

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Lulu launches Apple Fest as Kashmiri apples arrive in DohaTHE PENINSULA DOHA

Lulu Hypermarkets have launched the festival of Kashmiri apples as they received the first consignment this week. Lulu is the first retail store who have brought in and introduced Kashmiri apples to the local and expatriate communities living in Doha.

The festival was inaugurated by Ambassador of India to Qatar P Kumaran, in the presence of in the presence of Mohamed Althaf, Director and other senior offi-cials from Lulu Hypermarkets, and various dignitaries from organizations namely Indian Cultural Centre, Indian Com-munity Benevolent Fund, Indian Business Professional Council and Kerala Business Forum.

Speaking on the initiative, the Ambassador has commended the efforts taken by the Lulu

Management in marketing Kashmiri apples in the region. He also added that ‘local farmers of Kashmir Valley will benefit in a big way with this initiative’.

Although several varieties of apples known to exist in cul-tivation in the valley of Kashmir, however, the festival mainly celebrates a huge col-lection of three special varieties

of freshly picked apples from the valley of Kashmir.

These major varieties namely Kulu Delicious, Red Delicious and Oval apple are unique in taste and sweetness and have vibrant hues of colors and aroma. These varieties are of com-mercial importance interna-tionally. The festival is expected to be a runaway success as always.

The initiative to export apples from Kashmir to Lulu Hyper-markets was developed in a dis-cussion held in the recent past between Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi and Yusuffali M.A., Chairman and Managing Director of Lulu Hypermarkets where it was agreed in principle to set up a logistics hub in Srinagar and start export of Kashmiri apples to Lulu stores on a regular basis.

The festival will run until November 24, 2019 at all Lulu stores in Qatar.

The Ambassador of India to Qatar, P Kumaran, cutting a cake during the opening ceremony of the Apple Fest at the Al Gharafa branch of Lulu Hypermarket yesterday. Mohamed Althaf, Director of Lulu Group International; Surinder Bhagat, First Secretary, Embassy of India; Mahesh Gowda, Vice-President, ICBF; K R Jayaraj, President, Kerala Business Forum; and several senior officials from the Lulu were present at the event. PIC: SALIM MATRAMKOT/THE PENINSULA

The Ambassador of India to Qatar, P Kumaran, commended the efforts taken by the Lulu Management in marketing Kashmiri apples in the region. He also added that ‘local farmers of Kashmir Valley will benefit in a big way with this initiative’.

QNRF announces awards for smart manufacturing joint callTHE PENINSULA DOHA

Two research projects have been awarded under the Smart Manu-facturing Call by Qatar National Research Fund and The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey.

The awarded projects are Additive Manufacturing of Con-crete for Sustainable Construction using Locally Developed Mate-rials, submitted by Dr. Eyad Mesad of Texas A&M University at Qatar (TAMUQ), a QF partner university, and Hacettepe University of Turkey; and 5G Connected and Photovoltaic Powered Next Gen-eration Greenhouse for Food Security, submitted by Dr.Robert Balog of TAMUQ and NETAŞ – a telecommunications equipment company in Turkey.

Qatar National Research Fund (QNRF), also a member of QF, and The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TÜBİTAK) received 14 applications, out of which two were awarded funding after undergoing a stringent competitive joint evaluation process. To enhance public-private Partnership in R&D between the two countries, each proposal was submitted jointly by a Qatar-based and a Turkey-based team.

This call is second in the series of calls launched under the QNRF-TÜBİTAK joint funding program with the aim to intensify cooperation between Turkish and Qatari researchers from academia and industry. The theme of the first call was cybersecurity.

Stressing on the importance of bilateral cooperation between Qatar and Turkey, Dr. Abdul Sattar Al Taie, Executive Director of QNRF, said: “This call reflects QNRF’s commitment to build partnerships with international stakeholders to develop our local human capacity in some frontier technology while mutually finding solutions to challenges that are

faced in Qatar, the region, and around the world.”

Dr Al Taie further commented that the call will enhance public-private partnership in R&D to bridge the gap between academia and the manufacturing industry which will benefit the industries and citizens in both countries. “This joint initiative will bring together expertise, resources, and expe-rience to advance the development of implementable smart manufac-turing technologies,” he added. “Science, technology, and inno-vation management activities are still input-oriented and process-oriented,” Prof. Hasan Mandal, President of TÜBİTAK, said. “However, in order to be capable of problem-solving, management mechanisms must be more output and impact oriented, effective col-laborations must be established and talents must be used. This can be possible through academy-industry collaborations.”

Professor Mandal further mentioned that TÜBİTAK and its Qatari counterpart QNRF decided to jointly fund two research projects, which reflects the impactful relation between TÜBİTAK and QNRF at the highest levels. “As both sides are announcing the results of the second joint call, related teams already started the negotiations of the third joint call” he added.

EAA celebrates 10th anniversary of PEICTHE PENINSULA DOHA

Addressing threats to education worldwide and supporting disad-vantaged children in the wake of conflicts, Protect Education in Insecurity and Conflict (PEIC), a programme of the Education Above All Foundation (EAA) founded by Her Highness Sheikha Moza bint Nasser, marked its tenth anniversary with an evening of celebration featuring distinguished guests, including world renowned artist and SDG Advocate, Forest Whitaker, along with other EAA partners, at the Museum of Islamic Art.

Commenting on the event, Forest Whitaker said, “I am grateful to EAA and P.E.I.C. in particular, for their support and outstanding work on education in conflict. We share the belief that education must be protected from conflict and promoted as an antidote to conflict.”

The evening commenced with the unveiling of a life-sized exchange mural measuring from

the Bidi Bidi Refugee Settlement, the world’s second largest refugee settlement. It was created by children and youth during a joint workshop on human rights, right to education, key values and attitudes for sustainable peace-building and advocacy through art led by PEIC and Artolution with logistical support from the WINDLE International, UNHCR, and the Office of the Prime Min-ister of the Republic of Uganda.

The workshop engaged with Ugandan, South Sudanese and

the Democratic Republic of Congo refugee children and youth to allow them to express and conceptualize their under-standing of human rights and experiences with education, peace and daily challenges they face.

The celebration, which coin-cided with the 30th anniversary of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, also featured remarks from a variety of stake-holders and partners such as youth advocates, government

officials, UN agencies, NGOs, academia and legal and edu-cation experts. A simultaneous live art performance took place, inspired by each panel discussion around the protection of the right to education, ranging from the importance of strengthening international legal framework to youth empowerment.

Those gathered reflected on a decade of successes and the work still ahead. Deliberate attacks on education have led to ongoing educational insecurity that makes it impossible for children to receive consistent education. While many advocates agree that education is a funda-mental human right, it continues to lack universal protection, par-ticularly during conflicts.

“We look forward to con-tinuing our work, thank our guests and partners for a decade of collaboration,” said Sheikh Mubarak Al Thani, Head of Global Advocacy, EAA. “It is our objective to continue to grow our partnerships and further our global efforts to secure education for all.”

Forest Whitaker speaking at the event.

HMC holds events to mark World Prematurity Day 2019THE PENINSULA DOHA

Each year Hamad Medical Corpo-ration’s (HMC) Neonatal Intensive Care Units (NICUs) care for thou-sands of babies born prematurely, providing these tiny patients and their families with high-quality specialised care.

“Last year, one in every 10 babies born at Hamad was pre-mature. Between January 2018 and September 2019, our NICU’s cared for over 4,200 babies born prematurely. Babies who are born prematurely can have a rough start due to the immaturity of their organs and still-developing brain. This predisposes these babies to a lot of risks and complications in their physical health as well as

possible adverse long-term effects or delays in their growth and development. The WWRC’s NICU provides preterm babies with the best possible care, with care plans tailored to the individual needs of each baby,” explained Dr. Hilal Al Rifai, Medical Director, Women’s Wellness and Research Center (WWRC), on the eve of World Prematurity Day, which is observed on 17 November each year to raise awareness of preterm birth and the concerns of preterm babies and their families worldwide.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), preterm babies are defined as babies born alive before 37 weeks of preg-nancy. These babies are classified as extremely preterm (less than

28 weeks), very preterm (28 to 32 weeks), and moderate to late preterm (32 to 37 weeks).

“Preterm babies are very fragile and more prone to birth complications. Complications

arising from premature birth require careful management and we provide round-the-clock

specialised care that includes placing them in incubators, mon-itoring their feeding, which can include the use of a feeding tube, replenishing their fluids, and pro-viding treatment for conditions like jaundice,” said Dr. Al Rifai.

Dr. Al Rifai added that HMC works with Sidra Medicine in the care of preterm babies who require surgical intervention to treat conditions associated with prematurity. He said the amount of time a baby spends in the NICU will vary and noted that babies have to meet several milestones before they are discharged. He noted that staff at the NICU work with parents prior to discharge to ensure they are comfortable managing any extra care that their baby requires.

HMC staff posing for a group photo during the World Prematurity Day.

Daam organises roundtable on values in school environmentQNA/DOHA

The Social and Sport Contribution Fund (Daam) organised a round-table on values and promoting positive behavior in the school environment on Wednesday with participation of a group of educa-tional and social specialists and educational leaders.

The Director-General of Daam Rashid Mohammed Al Nuaimi said in his opening remarks that edu-cational process plays an essential role in guiding human behavior and has a profound impact on achieving social and psychological harmony and building the person-ality of every human being. This comes within the context of caring for students’ behavior and

discipline, he added, noting that those in charge of the educational process should pay attention to this by identifying unacceptable behaviors and attempt to correct them into positive behavior.

He added that the organi-zation of this roundtable comes in the belief of Daam on the behav-ioral health in community with partnership between all civil society and educational institu-tions and that school is the second most important institutions responsible for socializing because of its great responsibility in directing the behavior of students and enhance their responsibility to demonstrate positive values that lead to behavioral discipline that is in line with the vision and

objectives of Daam.Director of Community

Awareness Department at Daam Jawaher Abu Alfin said that this initiative comes within the framework of achieving the stra-tegic goals of Daam, which includes promoting positive values and instilling moral values in young people.

She added that the roundtable aims to discuss values and promote positive behavior in the school environment, which is the main focus in promoting respon-sibility and positive development for students, and that the school environment provides opportu-nities for students to achieve aca-demic excellence in the teaching and learning environment to

achieve a sense of security in the school community.

She noted that the Community Awareness Department is inter-ested in adopting initiatives aimed at showing the importance and role of the family, school and edu-cational institutions in the process of guidance for the development of values and positive behavior.

The roundtable included three main sessions on the sources of educational values in the school environment and their role, strategies for building edu-cational values in the school environment in the light of devel-opmental characteristics, and the importance of building values and the challenges associated with them in the digital age.

Dr Abdul Sattar Al Taie, Executive Director of QNRF, said: This call reflects QNRF’s commitment to build partnerships with international stakeholders to develop our local human capacity in some frontier technology while mutually finding solutions to challenges that are faced in Qatar, the region, and around the world.

07THURSDAY 21 NOVEMBER 2019 HOME

Kahramaa promotes sustainability through Qatar-India Year of CultureSANAULLAH ATAULLAH THE PENINSULA

The Qatar General Electricity & Water Corporation (Kahramaa), represented by its National Program for Conservation and Energy Efficiency (Tarsheed), opened yesterday a three-day event to promote sustainability at its iconic Kahramaa Awareness Park (KAP) under Qatar-India 2019 Year of Culture, an ongoing cultural exchange programme between the two countries.

The event, which was inaugu-rated by Ambassador of India to Qatar, P Kumaran, and Kah-ramaa’s Conservation and Energy Efficiency Department’s Manager, Eng. Abdul Azeez Al Hammadi, is exclusively focused on the sus-tainable culture for the sustainable development.

A large number of students from several Indian schools, Indian community members, senior functionaries of Kahramaa and Indian Embassy were present on the occasion and enjoyed deep cultural relationship and historical cultural values of two important nations of the world.

School students presented several activities at the venue, reflecting cultural beauties of Qatar and India together and laudable conservation awareness. Students also participated in several activities to learn the

values of environment, conser-vation and energy efficiency. Few specific games conveyed the apparent message of using LED bulbs to save energy for the future.

The event aims at conveying Qatar’s conservation and energy

efficiency messages to the expatriate communities of India to protect the precious environment for the better living and let them know how Kah-ramaa is stepping up to achieve Qatar National Vision 2030.

Sodeifi, the beloved mascot of

the 24th Arabian Gulf Cup was the centre of attraction at the event. Several famous Indian eateries and brands have set up stalls at the venue to let visitors enjoy and know about Indian cuisines. The three- day event, which concludes on November 22, is expected to attract huge number of visitors.

The Ambassador of India to Qatar, P. Kumaran, said: “Gov-ernment of Qatar and Kahramaa are taking the initiative to promote the culture of sustainability among the various communities in Qatar and as the largest expatriate com-munity living in Qatar, it is important that the Indian com-munity also be involved in this programme and contribute in as positive a way, as substantive a way as possible.”

Kahramaa’s Conservation and Energy Efficiency Manager, Eng.

Abdul Aziz Al Hammadi, said that organising such event on sustain-ability which is a core idea of Qatar for Qatar National Vision 2030 to reduce the CO2 emission, to increase the efficiency and to save the resources, reflects our com-mitments for the cause.

Head of Community Awareness & Development at Kahramaa’s Con-servation and Energy Efficiency Department, Fatima Said Al Mesnad, said through highlighting sus-tainable culture, Kahramaa wants to raise public awareness of sustain-ability and to keep Qatar Green.

Kahramaa’s General Services Department Manager, Eng. Abdulla Mohsin Al Wahedi, said that Kah-ramaa is making all the efforts to protect the environment and Qatar’s natural resources for better living and to help in achieving Qatar National Vision 2030.

The Ambassador of India to Qatar, P Kumaran (third right), and Kahramaa’s Conservation and Energy Efficiency Department’s Manager, Eng. Abdul Azeez Al Hammadi (third left), opening the event at Kahramaa Awareness Park.

The three-day event at Kahramaa Awareness Park aims at conveying Qatar’s conservation and energy efficiency messages to the community in order to protect the precious environment, and to showcase how Kahramaa is stepping up to achieve Qatar National Vision 2030.

QNTC, accompanying delegation concludeparticipation at IBTM World in BarcelonaTHE PENINSULA DOHA

Qatar National Tourism Council (QNTC) concluded its partici-pation in IBTM World yesterday at the head of an eleven-strong Qatari delegation which included hotels, DMCs, exhi-bition venues and the national carrier.

Held from November 19 to 21 in Barcelona, the three-day global trade event included three networking events and several matchmaking sessions, where buyers learned more about Qatar’s unique products in business events and tourism, and its focus on memorable and authentic experiences.

Ahmed Al Obaidli from QNTC commented: “Qatar’s state-of-the-art venues, infra-structure, and our business facil-itation services make it an attractive business events des-tination. This is combined with accessibility and the openness of our visa policies, as well as a rich calendar of events making for unique cultural experiences. With the support of our partners from both the public and private sectors, we continue to enhance

the end-to-end visitor experience.”

Hosting over 150 business events in 2019 alone, Qatar is a growing hub for business events, which form an important part of Qatar’s tourism strategy. Facil-itation services and ease of doing business are furthering business

ties, with leading events com-panies such as dmg events estab-lishing a presence in Qatar.

IBTM is a leading annual global event for the meetings, incentives, conferences, events and business travel industry. The event gathers meetings industry professionals for three days of focused business opportunities, thought provoking professional education and networking to drive the Business Events sector into the future. QNTC has been leading a Qatari delegation to the annual event since 2013.

Members of the Qatari delegation during the IBTM World in Barcelona.

NHRC cooperates with Justice Ministry to educate new legal researches on human rightsQNA/DOHA

The National Human Rights Committee (NHRC) concluded yesterday lectures targeting 73 members of the 17th mandatory training course for new legal researchers 2019 at the Ministry of Justice. The four-day event was held in the framework of joint cooperation between the NHRC and the Legal and Judicial Studies Centre at the Ministry.

The NHRC’s experts presented four lectures to four different groups of legal researchers. The first lecture reviewed historical

development: ancient civilizations, heavenly religions, human rights types, characteristics, standards and sources, regional and inter-national declarations and conven-tions, while the second lecture focused on mechanisms for the protection of international con-tractual and non-contractual human rights.

The third lecture dealt with the definition of international human-itarian law, its mechanisms, sources and the challenges facing it, in addition to defining cus-tomary international humani-tarian law. The fourth lecture dealt

with the mechanisms of national protection of human rights.

The experts presented a com-prehensive definition of the NHRC, highlighting its mission to protect human rights, disseminate its culture, monitor its situation, provide legal advice and assistance to those in need, take necessary administrative and legal measures to address complaints of violations and abuses on human rights to reduce, stop and eliminate their effects, and coordinate and coop-erate with the international and regional authorities to promote and protect human rights.

They also explained the NHRC’s legal nature, key objec-tives, terms of reference and services offered through vocational training, seminars, workshops, seminars, advisory opinions,

recommendations and advice to the government on the implemen-tation of international instruments, as well as assistance in the devel-opment of national action plans and awareness-raising of the

human rights culture and its mech-anisms for receiving complaints and consideration, in addition to contribution to the preparation of reports, legal assistance and field visits.

Participants during a lecture organised by the National Human Rights Committee for legal researchers.

Zakat Fund provided financial aid worth QR21.8m in OctoberQNA DOHA

The Zakat Fund of the Ministry of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs extended financial assistance worth over QR21,790,573 during the month of October 2019, to the beneficiaries of the families registered with the fund.The financial assistance includes monthly support, one-time aid and tuition fees. This was paid to those who are entitled to receive Zakat in accordance with the Shariah regulations.

The Zakat Fund is the government entity to

which the law entrusts the jurisdiction to collect Zakat funds and pay them to the beneficiaries who meet the Shariah conditions.

The Fund provided QR10,573,071 in cyclical assistance; QR2,697,619 as one-time aid; QR7,935,574 as tuition fee assistance; QR454,309 for treatment, and QR100,000 to help to loan defaulters.

The research of social and field assistance requests conducted by the Fund’s management is aimed at ascertaining the eligibility of applicants for assistance and to ensure the delivery of the Zakat to its beneficiaries.

Hosting over 150 business events in 2019 alone, Qatar is a growing hub for business events.

H E Sheikha Alya said that the ravages of conflicts and their high human and material costs make conflict prevention and continuity an ethical and human imperative that requires a comprehensive approach in order to preserve gains and prevent renewed conflicts.

08 THURSDAY 21 NOVEMBER 2019VIEWS

Qatar reaffirms commitment to sustain peace, support reconciliation efforts to resolve conflicts

Qatar has reaffirmed its keenness to sustain peace, consolidate stability, prevent the return of conflicts and

preserve the national unity of the country, stressing the importance of national reconciliation to achieve peace and stability.

This came in a speech delivered by the Permanent Representative of Qatar to the United Nations, H E Ambassador Sheikha Alya Ahmed bin Saif Al Thani at the official meeting of the UN Security Council on ‘peace-building and sustaining peace: the role of reconciliation in the maintenance of international peace and security’.

Out of its keenness to achieve the sustainability of peace, consolidate stability, prevent the resurgence of

conflicts and to preserve national unity of States, and out of its awareness of the impor-tance of national rec-onciliation to achieve these goals, Qatar attached importance to support rec-onciliation in the context of its ongoing efforts to support the peace-building, Qatar’s Per-manent Rep-resentative to the UN said.

H E Ambassador

Sheikha Alya stressed the importance of mediation efforts and harnessing humanitarian and development assistance to support chances of achieving a sustainable peace, noting the State of Qatar’s efforts to restore stability in Afghanistan, the Darfur

region and others. H E Ambassador Sheikha Alya pointed out that one of the most important issues that con-tribute to the success, effectiveness and continuity of reconciliation proc-esses is ensuring justice and accounta-bility and preventing impunity, emphasising the need for accounta-bility for genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes and serious vio-lations of international humanitarian law and international human rights law.

H E Sheikha Alya noted the State of Qatar’s support for the United Nations Investigative Team for the Accountability of ISIS (UNITAD) and the international, impartial and independent mechanism to most serious crimes committed in Syria, stressing that the documentation and accountability for these crimes are necessary in facilitating peaceful resolution of crises and sustainable reconciliation.

H E Sheikha Alya said that the ravages of conflicts and their high human and material costs make con-flict prevention and continuity an ethical and human imperative that requires a comprehensive approach in order to preserve gains and prevent renewed conflicts. That com-prehensive and integrated approach includes achieving national reconcili-ation, addressing the root causes of

conflict and early warning, she underlined. Building and maintaining peace is a common task and respon-sibility among other national stake-holders that required continued international assistance and attention, she noted.

H E Sheikha Alya pointed to the vital role of the Secretary-General, the Peacebuilding Commission (PBC) and the United Nations as a whole, in addition to the relevant international and regional organizations and agencies through partnerships, local capacity-building and the provision of expertise.

To achieve success and sustaina-bility for reconciliation processes, Her Excellency stressed the need for genuine, credible and comprehensive processes for all segments of society that aimed at consolidating sus-tainable peace and addressing the roots of conflicts with the contribution of religious leaders and civil society in general.

H E Ambassador Sheikha Alya also called for an action to increase the participation, representation and contribution of women at all stages of mediation and settlement including reconciliation efforts, stressing that gender issues should be taken into account in discussions relevant to reconciliation and conflict prevention.

QNA NEW YORK

ISHAAN THAROOR THE WASHINGTON POST

QUOTE OF THE DAYThe Secretary-General expresses his heartfelt condolences to the Al

Sawarkeh family and wishes for a speedy recovery to

the injured, and he calls on Israel to move swiftly with the investigation. We are opposed to all killings of

civilians.

Farhan Haq Deputy Spokesman for UN

Donald Trump’s real Middle East plan

There are plenty of reasons not to be sur-prised by the Trump administration’s

determination that Israeli set-tlements in the West Bank do not violate international law. The decision, announced on Monday by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, is yet another unilateral act welcomed by a right-wing Israeli gov-ernment, which has already seen President Donald Trump confer recognition of Israeli sovereignty over Jerusalem and the Golan Heights.

It fits into a pattern of pol-icies pursued by David Friedman, Trump’s ambas-sador in Israel and a staunch supporter of settlements in the West Bank, that further erodes the already remote prospect of an independent Palestinian state. It plays to Trump’s domestic evangelical support - right-wing U.S. Christian voters who see divine providence in Israel’s supremacy over the Holy Land. It serves as yet one more repudiation of former president Barack Obama, who in his last month in office chose to abstain from, rather than veto, a resolution at the U.N. Security Council that called the settlements “a fla-grant violation under interna-tional law.”

And, like Trump’s other maneuvers in Israel, it may boost the sagging political

fortunes of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, a close friend and ally who could be indicted on charges of fraud, bribery and breach of trust as early as next week. His main rival, Benny Gantz, a former army chief, is trying to form a government ahead of a mid-night deadline on Wednesday. If Gantz fails, then the coun-try’s parliamentary paralysis will roll on, possibly paving the way for a third election in less than a year.

Some Israelis are urging Gantz to form a unity gov-ernment with the prime min-ister’s Likud party. Both leaders cheered Pompeo’s announcement, a stark illus-tration of how, despite their many other differences, there’s little daylight between Israel’s centrist and right-wing camps on the fate of the Palestinian territories. Israeli settler groups and various right-wing politicians renewed calls this week to begin annexing chunks of the West Bank.

Since the 1967 war, more than 700,000 Israeli settlers have taken up residence in the West Bank and East Jeru-salem, areas that would form a putative Palestinian state. Most other countries, including many of the United States’ closest European allies, remain firm in their stance that these settlements are illegal and against the interests of peace. But U.S. administrations have toed a more ambiguous line.

A 1978 State Department legal opinion declared the settlements illegal outright. But Pompeo cited a supposed precedent set by President Ronald Reagan, pointing to a 1981 interview where Reagan

said that the settlements were “not illegal.” As my colleagues observed, “Reagan went on in that interview, however, to say that settlements were ‘ill-advised.’ His subsequent 1983 peace plan said that ‘the immediate adoption of a set-tlements freeze by Israel, more than any other action,’ would enhance the prospects for peace.”

The latter is emphatically not the Trump administra-tion’s position. Rather than calling for settlement freezes, the White House has alienated and punished Pales-tinians, from cutting off avenues of aid to shuttering the main U.S. office geared toward Palestinian concerns in Jerusalem. “This is an administration that has decided to move from negoti-ation to dictation,” said Saeb Erekat, the longtime chief Palestinian negotiator, to The Washington Post. “They have moved from being pro-Israeli to pro-Israeli occupation.”

Pompeo said the adminis-tration was now simply rec-ognizing “the reality on the ground” by opting to view the settlements as legal. Aaron David Miller, a former Middle East peace negotiator under Republican and Democratic administrations, told Today’s WorldView that that “reality” was, in hindsight, somewhat enabled by the successive administrations he served.

“Since Reagan’s curious formula, we have studiously, willfully avoided taking a position on whether set-tlement activity including in East Jerusalem was legal or illegal,” said Miller, who is now a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. “For the

last 25 years, we have acqui-esced in the settlement enter-prise and failed to impose any costs” on the Israelis for their expansion of settlements.

The announcement now, Miller added, “puts a whole new edge on the imbalance of power and, should Israel ever again have a functioning gov-ernment, it would greenlight and validate a surge of set-tlement activity.”

Pompeo and his allies insist these measures create a more stable foundation for talks. But that’s a largely derided view; Western and Arab govern-ments swiftly criticized the latest move and place little stock in the quixotic peace process being led by Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law. The Trump administration has sidelined an enfeebled Pales-tinian leadership, while more and more ordinary Palestinians have given up on the dream of an independent state and are calling instead for an end to occupation and equal rights within Israel.

The decision to recognize the settlements is “an idiotic move, untethered from any strategy,” said Miller. “You can only come to the con-clusion that this is driven by domestic politics.”

Among those briefed ahead of the announcement were leading evangelical groups who back the set-tlement enterprise in Israel and whose congregations are key to Trump’s political success at home. “Donald Trump has helped Israel more than any president in American history,” Mike Evans, a member of Trump’s informal group of evangelical Christian advisers, told Today’s WorldView.

CHAIRMANSHEIKH THANI BIN ABDULLAH AL THANI

EDITOR-IN-CHIEFDR. KHALID BIN MUBARAK AL-SHAFIeditorinchief@pen.com.qa

ACTING MANAGING EDITORMOHAMMED SALIM MOHAMEDm.salim@pen.com.qa

DEPUTY MANAGING EDITORMOHAMMED OSMAN ALI osman@pen.com.qa

ESTABLISHED IN 1996

EDITORIAL

Global praise for Qatar

Qatar has once again earned global praise for its overall and inclusive economic growth. A high-level delegation comprising seven mayors from across

the United States concluded its five-day visit yesterday. The mayors, in an interaction with media, said that they were highly impressed with the all round growth witnessed by Qatar.

Bryan K Barnett, Mayor of the city of Rochester Hills, and the President of the United States Conference of Mayors; Christina M Muryn, Mayor, City of Findlay, Ohio; Buddy Dyer, Mayor of Orlando, Florida; Victoria R Woodards, Mayor, City of Tacoma; Harry LaRosiliere, Mayor, City of Plano, Texas; Chris Barnett, Township Supervisor, Charter Township of Orion; and Andrew Ginther, Mayor of Columbus, Ohio were part of the seven-member delegation.

It was first visit of six mayors and they were totally in awe with the Qatar’s development. They said Qatar has achieved a lot in a short period of time which is com-mendable. Qatar has created world-class infrastructure for upcoming 2022 FIFA World Cup. The stadiums, Hamad

International, Airport, Doha Metro, Hamad Port, high-quality road network and other supporting infra-structure will ensure that the FIFA World Cup in 2022 will be a benchmark in hosting mega global events.

“I don’t think there has been a city or country better prepared for that (hosting FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022) than Qatar. I think you are going to set the bar for prep-aration and hopefully exe-cution of a global event like the world cup,” said Bryan K Barnett, Mayor of the city of Rochester Hills, and the Pres-ident of the United States Conference of Mayors, talking to reporters on Tuesday.

They praised the Qatar National Vision 2030 and the role played by residents and

organisations to realise its goals. He also praised Qatar’s lively cultural landscape, which boasts of architectural marvel such as the National Museum of Qatar, the Museum of Islamic Art.

According to mayors, Qatar is a role model for other countries in terms of development and inclusive growth. “If you were to design a country, this is the model. You are relatively new, young but you have such a vision. You are creating cities out of blank canvas so it is a really inter-esting model for us to look at as American,” said Barnett.

It is not the first time Qatar has earned laurels from world leaders. Many leaders have come to Qatar and have been awestruck by country’s development. The way Qatar is progressing, it can be easily said that the country will continue to win praise from across countries across the world.

The stadiums, Hamad International Airport, Doha Metro, Hamad Port, high-quality road network and other supporting infrastructure will ensure that the FIFA World Cup in 2022 will be a benchmark in hosting mega global events.

The Permanent Representative of Qatar to the United Nations, H E Ambassador Sheikha Alya Ahmed bin Saif Al Thani, speaking at the event.

09THURSDAY 21 NOVEMBER 2019 HOME

Sidra introduces advanced Maternal-Fetal Medicine servicesTHE PENINSULA DOHA

Sidra Medicine, has announced the introduction of advanced Maternal-Fetal Medicine services such as prenatal screening tests; availability for second opinion ultrasounds; Amniocentesis; and Chorionic Villus sampling (CVS).

Sidra Medicine provides tai-lored, comprehensive and multi-disciplinary medical services for women, children and young people in Qatar, has now expanded its maternal-fetal medicine offering with the new services.

Prof. Karim Kalache, Division Chief of Maternal Fetal Medicine said, “Our team conducts the latest diagnostic tests and ther-apies, which allows the safest and most optimised setting during the delivery and beyond. We offer full support for the mother and her family. Our

maternal-fetal medicine experts and obstetricians specialize in individualised prenatal care, which is planned in a multidis-ciplinary setting, involving patients from the beginning.”

The new Prenatal non-invasive screening tests reduce the risk of harm to the baby. Non-invasive prenatal testing (NIPT) can be offered to accu-r a t e l y d e t e c t f e t a l

chromosomal anomalies early in pregnancy by assessing cell-free fetal DNA present in maternal blood.

“It is important that NIPT is available to all women since it

is considered accurate and safe. The method also omits unnec-essary invasive testing that can put the mother-to-be under stress. It is also important that physicians have ample

knowledge about the test to allow informed choice,” said Prof. Kalache.

Non-invasive tests are a screening tool in low-risk preg-nancies and have the advantage of reassuring the parents without undertaking the risk involved in invasive genetic testing. Invasive genetic testing like Amniocen-tesis and CVS are recommended only for high-risk pregnancies where the fetus is at risk of chro-mosomal or genetic abnormal-ities or if a fetal infection is suspected.

“NIPT is a simple blood test where the sample is taken from the mother but can provide important information about the baby. By considering non-invasive methods first, and limiting the number of needed invasive tests like Amniocentesis or CVS, we ensure a positive and reas-suring impact for both the

mother and family,” says Dr. Medhat Alberry, Senior Attending Physician, Maternal-Fetal Medicine.

“Our approach to care is based on being supportive and family focused. Within the Maternal-Fetal Medicine context, this also includes coun-selling regarding the results and discussing further options of management,” continued Dr. Alberry.

Amniocentesis is a process in which amniotic fluid is sampled using a hollow needle inserted into the uterus, to screen for abnormalities in the devel-oping fetus.

While Chorionic Villus sam-pling is a prenatal test that is used to detect birth defects, genetic diseases, and other problems during pregnancy. A small sample of cells (called cho-rionic villi) is taken from the pla-centa for testing.

Dr. Medhat Alberry and Prof. Karim Kalache

Galfar employees showcase their talent at ‘Cultural Evening’ THE PENINSULA DOHA

The talents of the Galfar Al Misnad staff and their families were on display recently at the ‘Cultural Evening’ organised by the Galfar Arts and Cultural Club (GACC) for the Qatari construction company’s executives and families.

GACC is an employee engagement initiative at Galfar Al Misnad. It serves as a platform to showcase the diverse talents within the company and thereby foster a sense of community through cultural activities. The programmes provide an enter-taining diversion from the regular routine; boost morale; and give an opportunity for the workforce to gain self-confidence in a public setting.

The evening featured a series of foot-tapping musical solos and duets by adults and children alike; a fusion song accompanied by live instrumental music; a colourful dance performance by the young children of Galfar staff; and a vibrant dance medley by the female employees of Galfar Al Misnad. During the event, the senior management also awarded

prizes and certificates to the winners of the workers’ painting competition that was conducted earlier by GACC in association with the Galfar QHSE team. The participants competed in three categories: water colour painting, crayon art and pencil sketching. The artworks were evaluated by Dr Sreekumar Padmanabhan, a renowned artist in Qatar.

The competition was held as part of the company’s Envi-ronment Awareness Campaign – 2019. Galfar Al Misnad has been operating in Qatar for almost 25 years with a staunch commitment to utilizing sustainable practices in all its activities. The company conducts Environment Awareness Month every year, with the aim to inculcate an awareness of envi-ronment protection amongst its employees and the importance of following eco-friendly habits in both the professional and per-sonal spheres. This was reflected in the theme chosen for the com-petition: ‘The Environment’. The programme ended with the senior management commending and felicitating all the participants and organizers of the successful event with certificates.

A staff of Galfar Al Misnad receives citation for winning in competition held as part of the ‘Cultural Evening’ organised by the firm.

Sidra Medicine provides tailored, comprehensive and multidisciplinary medical services for women, children and young people in Qatar, has now expanded its maternal-fetal medicine offering with the new services.

Msheireb Museums and Qatar Art Centre collaborate to support Qatari talentTHE PENINSULA DOHA

Msheireb Museums, the four heritage houses developed by Msheireb Properties in Msheireb Downtown Doha, and Qatar Art Centre announced yesterday a new collaboration to launch several events and exhibitions aimed at enriching the local cultural and artistic scene in Qatar.

The announcement was made during a press conference that took place at Bin Jelmood House in the attendance of cel-ebrated artist, Yousef Ahmad and representatives of the two entities, media and art aficionados.

Msheireb Museums and Qatar Art Centre confirmed

during the conference that the first event to take place under this new agreement will be an art exhibition for Qatari renowned artist, Yousef Ahmed, “When I remember the past”, scheduled to kick off in January 2020.

Since its opening four years ago, Msheireb Museums has evolved to become a sturdy platform for established local and upcoming talent, with its mission to play a more inter-active and engaged role towards society.

Dr Hafiz Ali, Msheireb Museums Director, said: “We are excited about this collaboration with Qatar Art Centre, where we can continue to provide a platform at Msheireb Museums to showcase Qatari talent and

their art. Such collaborations enable us to nurture local artistic calibers and revive Msheireb’s status as the city’s cultural hub.

“It is important for us to con-tinue to share the stories of Qatar, of our past, present and future and to do so through curated content by the com-munity and local talent and their artistic endeavors is our intention.” Dr Hafiz concluded.

Qatar Art Centre was estab-lished in 1997 by Sheikh Hassan bin Mohammed bin Ali Al Thani to support artists and cultural initiatives that aim to develop the community’s sense of artistic appreciation.

Sheikha Mariam bint Hasan Al Thani, Director for Qatar Art Centre, said: “This cooperation with Msheireb Museums aligns

with our strategy to enrich the cultural community in Qatar. We have a lineup of events and workshops that will encourage everyone to participate in cre-ating, learning, and under-standing art. We look forward to

showcasing the best of Qatar’s art scene with Msheireb Museums.”

In his most recent artistic ventures, renowned Qatari artist Yousef Ahmad creates a ver-nacular visual language with a

series of paintings inspired by Dr Marzook Bashir’s poem, “When I Remember the Past”, and his own childhood mem-ories. These paintings will be on display at his exhibition in January 2020.

Msheireb Museums and Qatar Art Centre officials during the event.

New Safari Hypermarket opens in Al KhorSafari Group opened its 4th Hypermarket in Al Khor, yesterday. The new Safari Hypermarket was inaugurated by Sheikh Mohammed bin Ahmed bin Jassim Al Thani, Safari Group Chairman, Hamad Dafar A A Al Ahbabi, Managing Director Aboobacker Madappatt, Safari Group Director and General Manager Zainul Abideen, Executive Directors Shaheen Backer and Shameem Backer, and other officials.

QU’s ‘Smart Start Campaign’ to promote child health awarenessTHE PENINSULA DOHA

Qatar University (QU) has launched the ‘Smart Start Campaign’ for 2019-2020, which promotes a physical and psycho-logically healthy environment targeting children ages 3-6. The campaign, which is in its second year, demonstrates the impor-tance of children health, as the child represents the future nation.

Head of the Nutrition Department at QU, Dr. Tahra El-Obaid explained that the cam-paign aimed to revive a healthy

culture and instill proper habits in children as a preventive system. Investing in healthy growth for children, she says, is the heart of the campaign.

Assistant Teacher at the QU Nutrition Department, Al-Jazi Al-Qahtani commented saying this year efforts were being made

with the aim of raising awareness in a distinctive and developed way. She added that this year the campaigns plan consists of four stations to achieve its objectives.

The first station is a breakfast station, which teaches children essential information about the

most important meal of the day. A plate station, which educates children on the main food groups and how to classify them. A sugar awareness station, which teaches children about the dangers of excess sugar intake. Lastly, a physical activity station highlighting the importance of physical activity in everyday life to ensure optimal growth and development. All stations were created to reflect a friendly, energetic and fun environment that attracts children and includes activities that promote interaction between the cam-paigns team and children.

The Head of the Nutrition Department at QU, Dr. Tahra El-Obaid, explained that the campaign aimed to revive a healthy culture and instill proper habits in children as a preventive system. Investing in healthy growth for children, she says, is the heart of the campaign.

10 THURSDAY 21 NOVEMBER 2019GULF / MIDDLE EAST

Turkey treats over 264,000 medical tourists in H1 of 2019THE PENINSULA DOHA/ISTANBUL

Inbound medical tourism in Turkey is on the rise — the nation’s healthcare facilities have treated 264,138 medical tourists in the first six months of 2019, with end of year projections estimated at one million incoming medical tourists. This forecast will generate upwards of $3.5bn in revenues, surpassing the $2.5bn generated by the end of the previous year, which saw 551,748 tourists travelling into Turkey from over 120 countries to avail healthcare treatments.

“Tourists come to Turkey for a lot more than its sights; medical tourism into our cities has been climbing steadily over the last decade,” noted Salih Ozer, Attaché of Culture and Infor-mation, Turkey. “We have been investing heavily into the growth of our healthcare sector, and we now offer high-quality treatments at very affordable prices.”

The Turkish cities of Istanbul, Ankara, Antalya, Izmir, Yalova and Adana receive the highest number of medical tourists each year, from GCC nations, including the UAE, Kuwait, Bahrain and Qatar, as well as from Germany, Russia. Azerbaijan and Iraq. The top ten clinics for medical tourists listed services under ophthalmology, obstetrics and gynaecology, oncology, cosmetic surgery, orthopaedics and cardiology as the top treatments in 2018.

‘Medical tourists from our GCC neighbours in particular come to Turkey to avail cosmetic

treatments. They are drawn in by the opportunity to combine these treatments with Turkish holidays,’ added Ozer.

Medical tourism is one of Turkey’s fastest-growing indus-tries — the nation has seen its influx of medical tourists rise from 75,000 visitors in 2007 to more than 700,000 in 2017. According to the Ministry of Health, most of hospitals have the necessary infrastructure in place for admitting international patients.

Turkey has also recently unveiled several incentives geared to lower healthcare expenses for overseas visitors. In 2018, the government unveiled VAT exemptions for non-residents undergoing medical treatments in institu-tions accredited by the Ministry of Health. The government has also made healthcare an integral part of its tourism development plan, with targets set at two million medical tourists and $10bn in revenues annually by 2023.

Salih Ozer

Israel launchesair strikes inSyria, 23 deadAFP/TEL AVIV

Israel said its warplanes carried out a “very intense” attack against Iranian forces and Syrian army targets in Syria yesterday, in raids a monitoring group reported killed at least 23 people.

In a rare confirmation of their operations in Syria, the Israeli army said they had carried out dozens of strikes against the Iranian elite Quds Force and the Syrian military, in response to four rockets fired at Israel a day before.

Britain-based monitoring group the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) said 23 people were killed in the strikes — 21 fighters and two civilians.

Sixteen were non-Syrian fighters, the group’s head Rami Abdel Rahman said.

Iran has fought alongside Syrian President Bashar Al Assad’s forces in the country’s eight-year civil war, heightening Israeli concern over the presence of its arch foe along its border. “Whoever hurts us, we

will hurt him,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement. “This is what we did overnight vis-a-vis mil-itary targets of the Iranian Quds Force and Syrian military targets in Syria after a barrage of rockets was launched at Israel.”

The Israeli army said they had targeted about a dozen mil-itary sites, including warehouses and military command centres.

“It was very intense,” spokesman Jonathan Conricus said. The most important target, he said, was a control facility at the main international airport

Damages are seen inside a house in Damascus, Syria, after Israeli warplanes carried out intense attack yesterday.

in Damascus. “It is the main building that serves the (Iranian) Revolutionary Guards... for coor-dinating the logistic facilities of transport of military hardware from Iran to Syria and from Syria onwards,” he said.

Israel has carried out fre-quent air and missile strikes against Iranian targets inside Syria since the country descended into civil war in 2011, but rarely

comments on them. On Tuesday, four rockets were fired at Israel from Syria, with the army blaming an “Iranian force”.

Israel’s Iron Dome missile defence system intercepted the rockets. Conricus said it was the sixth time Iranian forces had tried to attack Israel directly in recent years, most recently in August. The Israeli attack yesterday began in the early hours, with a series of large explo-

sions rocking Damascus.Syria’s state news agency

Sana said Syrian anti-aircraft defences responded to a “heavy attack” by Israeli warplanes over the capital. The Israeli army con-firmed missiles were fired towards its jets but denied any were hit. In response to the fire, it said, “a number of Syrian aerial defence batteries were destroyed”.

New Israel polls loom as kingmaker refuses to back PM or rivalAFP/TEL AVIV

Israel edged closer to a third general election in a year yesterday, as kingmaker Avigdor Lieberman refused to back either incumbent Benjamin Netanyahu or challenger Benny Gantz for prime minister ahead of a midnight deadline.

Right-wing incumbent Netanyahu and centrist Gantz were nearly deadlocked after Sep-tember elections, with neither able to command a majority in Israel’s 120-seat parliament.

Both had been seeking to persuade Lieberman’s nation-alist Yisrael Beitenu party, which holds the balance of power, to

join them in coalition. Netanyahu was first given 28 days to form a ruling coalition but failed, so President Reuven Rivlin granted Gantz a similar timeframe, which was due to expire at 23:59 .

But Lieberman announced yesterday neither had convinced him and he thought new elec-tions were inevitable.

“Both are responsible” for the impasse, Lieberman said of Gantz and Netanyahu. “I have done everything in my power to form a unity government,” he added. “If we are dragged to new elections it will be because of a lack of leadership.”

If Gantz is unable to cut a deal, lawmakers will have 21

days to propose to the president a candidate capable of forming a majority. If that period then passes without a breakthrough, new elections will be called — the third in a year. Polls in April also led to a stalemate in a political system reliant on coa-lition building.

A 60-year-old former para-trooper, Gantz had no previous political experience when he declared himself Netanyahu’s electoral rival in December.

But he has posed the most serious challenge to Netanyahu since he became prime minister in 2009. Netanyahu, who is also fighting corruption allegations which he denies, has remained

caretaker leader throughout the year. Lieberman’s Yisrael Beitenu has eight parliamentary seats and his backing could be enough to put either Netanyahu or Gantz into power. But the former defence minister has proved a reluctant kingmaker.

He has been wary of backing Gantz, because even if he did they would fall short of a majority, needing at least the tacit support of the Arab Joint List to govern. Lieberman, a right winger known for his tough rhetoric on Gaza, has reiterated his opposition to allying with Arabs.

He also accuses Netanyahu of being captive to the whims of ultra-Orthodox Jews, who make

up around 10 percent of the pop-ulation, objecting to the commu-nity’s exemption from military service. Instead he called for a unity deal between his party, Netanyahu’s Likud and Gantz’s Blue and White coalition.

Both said they supported the idea including rotating the pre-miership, but they disagreed who should go first. Blue and White demanded Gantz get first go since his party won the most seats, finishing with 33 compared with the Likud’s 32. Netanyahu, however, argued that his expe-rience in the post made him the logical choice. Talks continued late into Tuesday but collapsed with mutual accusations of blame.

Iraqi protesters shut roads to ports, oil fieldAFP/BAGHDAD

Anti-government demonstrators in southern Iraq shut roads to two major ports and a key oil field yesterday, port officials said, leading to a brief operational halt.

Correspondent in oil-rich Basra province saw protesters block access routes to the ports of Khor Al Zubair and Umm Qasr, as well as Rumailah oil field. Trucks waiting to load up goods from the ports could be seen waiting empty behind crowds of demonstrators.

Khor Al Zubair is used for some heavy crude exports but also to import fuel products like benzene, while Umm Qasr is the main entry point for food and medicine into Iraq.

“Export and import activities have stopped because trucks cannot enter Khor Al Zubair or Umm Qasr ports,” one official at Basra’s port authority said. A second official later said the route to Khor Al Zubair had been reopened but Umm Qasr remained shut. Sit-ins have become a go-to tactic for Iraqis demonstrating against their government since early October.

In recent weeks, protesters have shut the road to Umm Qasr several times, causing a delay in offloading operations that on one occasion forced around a dozen ships to unload their cargo in another country.

Road closures have also impacted heavy crude from the Qayyarah field in northern Iraq from reaching Khor al-Zubair since earlier this month. The prime minister’s office has warned security forces “will not allow” protesters near key infrastructure, and riot police have forced roads open in deadly crackdowns.

More than 330 people have been killed since protests erupted on October 1 in Baghdad and across the south. In the capi-tal’s main protest camp of Tahrir (Liberation) Square, thousands gathered Wednesday to express their ongoing frustration with the government’s proposed reform measures.

Parliament met on Tuesday night to discuss a new electoral law and welfare changes, but the protesters — most of them students —turned out in even larger numbers

the next day. “Last night’s session serves their own interests, not those of the people,” said Younes, a 28-year-old protester. Crowds have spilled over from Tahrir onto three main bridges that lead to the western bank of the Tigris, where key government buildings and embassies are based. Overnight, they tried to cross two of the bridges to reach the so-called Green Zone but security forces deployed on the bridges fired tear gas to keep them back, a security source said.

Iraqi demonstrators light up candles for people killed at an anti-government protest in Baghdad, yesterday.

Houthis release seized vessels, crew members: South KoreaAP CAIRO

Iran-backed rebels fighting in Yemen released three foreign vessels yesterday that they seized south of the Red Sea, freeing 16 crew members, South Korea’s

Foreign Ministry said.The vessels had been cap-

tured by Houthi rebels on their way to the Saudi port of Jizan. Two South Korean nationals were among those set free, the ministry said.

The Houthis said they had

detained the vessels for entering Yemeni waters earlier this week and routed them to the Red Sea province of Hodeida.

The Saudi-led coalition bat-tling the Houthis in Yemen con-firmed the return of the impounded ships. “We are

continuing our efforts to maintain maritime security in the Strait of Bab Al Mandeb and the southern Red Sea,” its statement said. The coalition condemned the seizure of ships in the key oil supply route as a threat to inter-national trade.

Netanyahu approves Jordan Valley Annexation BillQNA/OCCUPIED JERUSALEM

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gave his approval to advance a bill that would have Israel apply sovereignty to the Jordan Valley.

Netanyahu’s decision comes after the announcement of the US State Department to change its position on the ille-gality of Israeli settlements in the West Bank, according to a report published by the Israeli newspaper ‘Jerusalem Post’.

Netanyahu called US Sec-retary of State Mike Pompeo’s decision “historic” during a visit the day after the announcement to the Gush Etzion region. The UN and others condemned Pompeo’s statement.

Likud MK Sharren Haskel proposed the annexation bill weeks ago, but decided to fast-track it in light of the change in US policy. “The bill has the prime minister’s full backing,” Haskel said. In the days before the September 17 election, Netanyahu announced that if re-elected, he would annex the Jordan Valley, and his cabinet voted to legalise the Mevo’ot Yeriho outpost in the Jordan Valley as a new settlement.

Haskel submitted a request to exempt her bill to annex the Jordan Valley from the man-datory six-week waiting period for any new legislation so that it can go to a vote in the plenum next week.

The request will be subject to a vote in the Knesset Arrangements Committee, led by Blue and White MK Avi Nis-senkorn while his party’s leader Benny Gantz has the mandate to build a government.

Haskel called on Blue and White, Yisrael Beytenu and Labor-Gesher to join the Likud’s efforts to annex the Jordan Valley, “in light of the one-time-only chance that we have before us” with US Pres-ident Donald Trump’s administration.

The Israeli army said they had carried out dozens of strikes against the Iranian elite Quds Force and the Syrian military, in response to four rockets fired at Israel a day before.

11THURSDAY 21 NOVEMBER 2019 MIDDLE EAST / AFRICA

Iranian people defeated ‘enemy conspiracy’: RouhaniAFP/TEHRAN

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said yesterday the country’s people had defeated an “enemy conspiracy” behind a wave of violent protests and were celebrating their victory.

Rouhani blamed the deadly unrest on “anarchists” who took to the streets “based on a plot the Zionists and Americans hatched”.

The demonstrations erupted in sanctions-hit Iran on Friday, hours after the price of petrol was raised by as much as 200 percent. Motorists blocked highways in Tehran before the unrest spread to at least 40 urban centres, with petrol pumps torched, police stations attacked and shops looted. Officials have confirmed five deaths, including of three security personnel stabbed by “rioters”.

In Shahriar, west of Tehran, mourners chanted “Death to America” in a funeral procession yesterday for one of those killed, a Revolutionary Guards com-mander. The UN human rights office said it was alarmed by reports live ammunition had caused a “significant number of deaths”.

Amnesty International said more than 100 demonstrators were believed to have been killed, and that the real toll could be as high as 200.

The full extent of the bloodshed was difficult to ascertain given a near-total internet blackout since the weekend. Rouhani told a cabinet meeting that “our people have been victorious against... the enemy’s conspiracy.

“Those anarchists who came out onto the streets were few in number,” he said, insisting “this is the biggest display of the power of the nation of Iran”.

Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said late on Tuesday that “the recent actions were security issues, not from the people... We have repelled the enemy.”

Khamenei has previously blamed the unrest on the Pahlavi royal family ousted in the 1979 Islamic Revolution and armed opposition group the People’s Mujahedeen of Iran, which Tehran considers a “terrorist”

cult. In Shahriar, thousands of mourners trailed behind a truck carrying a coffin, clutching por-traits of the slain Guard and posters that read “Down with USA”. They passed burned-out buildings, including a bank, post

office and shopping centre.One of the mourners, Younes

Abutalebi, said: “My pension is 18 million rials ($146). If it was cut... I would go begging — but I wouldn’t set fire to a bank.” Rallies against the unrest were

also held in Arak, Ardebil and Ghorghan, among other cities.

Iran’s economy has been battered since May last year when President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew the US from a 2015 nuclear agreement and reimposed sanctions.

Tensions have soared this year, with the US widening its sanctions to include Khamenei and other key entities as Iran cut its nuclear commitments.

The arch-foes came to the brink of a military confrontation in June when Iran downed a US drone and Trump ordered retal-iatory strikes before cancelling them at the last minute.

The French foreign ministry expressed “deep concern over information indicating the deaths of numerous protesters” in Iran.

It urged “respect of freedom of expression and access to means of communication, as well as the right to demonstrate peacefully”.

On Tuesday, the US aircraft carrier strike group Abraham Lincoln sailed through the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow waterway separating Iran and the United Arab Emirates. Iran regularly threatens to shut the strait if its enemies commit hostile acts.

Iranians taking to the streets in support of the government and supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in the central city of Arak, south-west of the capital Tehran, yesterday.

Zimbabwe police use tear gas, batons in oppn crackdownREUTERS/HARARE

Zimbabwean police yesterday used batons, tear gas and water cannon to beat up and disperse supporters of the main oppo-sition party who had gathered outside their party headquarters in the capital to listen to a speech by their leader.

Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) leader Nelson Chamisa said the latest police action showed that President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s gov-ernment was afraid of its citizens.

The MDC accuses Mnan-gagwa of adopting the heavy-handed tactics of his prede-cessor, Robert Mugabe who, who ruled Zimbabwe for 37 years until his generals turned against him in a coup two years ago. Mugabe died on Sept. 5.

On Sunday, Mnangagwa, defended his record in an opinion piece carried by CNBC Africa, saying his administration was opening up political and

media space. But police have this year banned several MDC gatherings, saying they feared the events would turn violent after fuel protests in January became deadly and more than a dozen people died following a security crackdown.

Hundreds of police blocked roads leading to MDC headquarters in Harare but supporters continued to gather, singing and chanting before the arrival of party leader Chamisa.

A few minutes after Chamisa entered the party building, police charged the crowd with batons and fired tear gas, causing a stampede.

Several people were injured. The Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights group said it had deployed lawyers to represent at least eight people that were arrested by police. Police spokesman Paul Nyathi declined to comment.

After Wednesday’s clashes, Chamisa told reporters and party

officials at the MDC offices that time would come when the MDC would no longer seek police per-mission for its gatherings.

“What this tells you is that we (have) a rogue regime. What this tells you is that we are in a pariah state,” he said during a speech he dubbed hope of the

nation address. “When you see a regime that is so scared of its own people, you must know that the end is nigh.”

Critics accuse Mnangagwa’s government of intolerance of dissent, pointing to protest bans and arrest of dozens of activists since January on charges of sub-

verting the government. At a magistrates court in

downtown Harare, prosecutors withdrew subversion charges against activist pastor Evan Mawarire, one of several people who was arrested during the January fuel protests, his lawyer said.

Anti-riot policemen in Zimbabwe beat a man with baton sticks as they disperse a crowd gathered to hear an address by leader of the MDC (Movement for Democratic Change) Alliance, Nelson Chamisa, in Harare, yesterday.

Nigerian President launches campaign against defecationAFP/LAGOS

N i g e r i a n P r e s i d e n t Muhammadu Buhari yesterday announced a campaign to end defecation in public, in a country where tens of millions of people going to the toilet outside poses a major health risk. “Nigeria has committed to end open defe-cation throughout the country by 2025,” a statement by the presi-dency said a day after the United Nations marked World Toilet Day.

The decree set up a new body called the Clean Nigeria Campaign Secretariat to ensure “that all public places including schools, hotels, fuel stations, places of worship, market places, hospitals and offices have accessible toilets and latrines within their premises”.

According to the United Nations children agency, Unicef, Nigeria has amongst the highest number of people prac-tising open defecation in the world, estimated at over 46 million people — almost a quarter of the population. Around Nigeria each year 87,000 children die from diar-rhoea, with more than 90 per cent of deaths caused by a lack of water, sanitation and hygiene, according to the World Bank.

Peace activistshot dead by‘stray bullet’AFP/MOGADISHU

A prominent rights activist was shot dead in Somalia’s capital Mogadishu yesterday, with security officials suggesting she had been hit by a stray bullet.

Almaas Elman Ali, who came from a leading family of peace campaigners, was trav-elling by car inside the heavily fortified airport compound when she was hit. “She was riding in a car along a road inside the airport,” said Mohamed Omar, a Somali security official. “A stray bullet hit her, and she died within a few minutes.”

Gunfire is a regular occurence in Mogadishu, although the levels of violence are far lower than in past years of heavy conflict. “There was not any gunfire in the airport, or in nearby areas before the incident occurred,” Omar said.

The sprawling airport complex includes embassies and the headquarters of African Union soldiers.

Sudan’s top Islamist politician summoned over 1989 coupREUTERS/KHARTOUM

Sudan’s most prominent Islamist politician is under investigation over former leader Omar Hassan Al Bashir’s rise to power in a 1989 coup, an official from his party said..

The investigation into Ali Al Haj, secretary-general of the Islamist Popular Congress Party (PCP), is a significant step against the Islamist political networks that supported Bashir, who was overthrown in April. Authorities went to Ali Al Haj’s home yesterday to inform him he was being summoned for questioning by the public prose-cution, Idris Suleiman, the party’s political secretary, said.

Condemning the move, Suleiman said: “Ali al-Haj is a political leader and not a military man to be charged over the 1989 coup... he was abroad when that coup happened.” Some of Bashir’s aides were arrested after his overthrow. It is not clear when Ali Al Haj will be questioned. PCP was founded by the late Islamist leader Hassan Al Turabi, who was one of Sudan’s most influential political figures, after a dispute with the former ruling National Congress Party (NCP) led by Bashir. The party later became an ally of the NCP.

The Islamist party has complained of being sidelined in Sudan’s transitional political process following Bashir’s departure.

Ethiopia’s Sidama vote on autonomy in latest test for restive regionsREUTERS HAWASSA, ETHIOPIA

Ethiopia’s Sidama people vote on self-determination in a refer-endum yesterday closely watched by other restive ethnic groups also seeking more autonomy since reforms by Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed shook up the national power balance.

The special vote for the Sidama, mostly based in the south and comprising about 4 percent of Ethiopia’s 105 million population, comes ahead of a national election next year and has brought fears of renewed violence. At least 17 people died in clashes in July between security forces and Sidama activists after the government delayed the poll by five months.

If the referendum passes as expected, the Sidama will control local taxes, education, security and laws in a new self-governing region that would be Ethiopia’s tenth. The Horn of Africa nation’s regions are emboldened by a more open political climate - and weaker ruling coalition - since Abiy took office in 2018 and eased predecessors’ iron rule.

However, that has also brought a surge of long-repressed rivalries between Ethiopia’s 80 plus ethnic groups, forcing more than 2 million people out of their homes and killing hundreds, according to the United Nations and moni-toring groups.

“Should there be irregular-ities and should autonomy not be declared, that would be a danger for Ethiopia itself because of course there will be violence,” said Dukale Lamiso, head of the Sidama Liberation Front, an activist group.

Around 2.3 million voters are registered at nearly 1,700 polling stations, the national electoral board said.

Polling stations opened at 6 am (0300 GMT) and closed at 6 pm (1500 GMT). Preliminary results are due today.

Sidama people have been proudly carrying their voter cards and told Reuters they are overjoyed at the chance to vote for statehood. One businessman in Addis Ababa said he had pro-vided transportation for his family and employees to travel back home to vote.

More than a dozen other ethnic groups are considering or already campaigning for region status.

The vote will also be closely watched for its tone prior to next year when Abiy has promised a free and fair national poll. Pre-vious elections going back to 2005 were marred by irregular-ities, violence and clampdowns by security forces.

A potential Sidama homeland would be carved out of the Southern Nations, Nation-alities, and Peoples (SNNP) region, the most ethnically diverse part of Ethiopia, a rural region of around 20 million people that borders Kenya and South Sudan.

The Sidama people want the multiethnic city of Hawassa, located 275 km from Addis Ababa, to be their capital.

The city, located on a lake and surrounded by farmland, is home to the country’s first industrial park, opened in 2017, where Western and Asian com-panies are producing clothes for export as part of Ethiopia’s ambitious industrialisation drive.

Attacks by militia leave 10 dead in DRCAFP/GOMA, DR CONGO

At least 10 civilians were killed in two attacks by militia gunmen in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, where government forces have vowed to root out armed groups, sources said Wednesday.

Seven people were killed in the city of Beni and between three and 14 were killed near Oicha, 30 kilometres (18 miles) away, according to the UN radio Okapi, which quoted the military, and local civil society.

The attacks late Tuesday were blamed on the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), a militia of Ugandan origin targeted by an army cam-paign to restore peace to DR Congo’s troubled east.

Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani blamed the deadly unrest on “anarchists” who took to the streets “based on a plot the Zionists and Americans hatched”.

12 THURSDAY 21 NOVEMBER 2019ASIA

Sena-led Maharashtra govt by November 30; Pawar meets ModiIANS NEW DELHI

A Shiv Sena-led government in Maharashtra would be formed before the first phase of the Jharkhand Assembly elections, said the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) spokesperson Nawab Malik, here yesterday.

Taking a pot shot at Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) chief Amit Shah, Malik said in a tongue-in-cheek remark: “We have defeated the ‘Chankya’ of the country.” The three parties were coming together to form the government, he added.

The first phase of Jharkhand Assembly polls will be on November 30.

While the Chief Minister would be from the Sena, minis-terial portfolios would be shared according the strength of each party, he said. The NCP and the Congress would also have deputy chief ministers in the state.

The formula, according to him, is one Minister for every four MLAs in the 288-member Assembly.

The Congress is likely to get 11 portfolios and the post of the Speaker in the Maharashtra Assembly. The rest of the port-folios would be shared by the Sena and the NCP, sources said.

He said, the NCP and the Sena will share the rotational chief ministerial formula with the Sena getting the first term.

A senior NCP leader present

at yesterday’s meeting said that the Sena would also be invited to take part in the next meeting between the Congress and the NCP.

Chief NCP spokesperson Nawab Malik added that only these three parties can form the government in Maharashtra.

Sources said the Common Minimum Programme (CMP) was to be finalised yesterday and the draft will be given to the Shiv Sena, which will return it after vetting to NCP and Congress.

The portfolios are yet to be worked out and the main dis-cussion is around the heavy-weight portfolios of revenue, home, finance, cooperatives and excise. The Maharashtra cabinet could have a total of 42 ministers plus the Chief Minister, taking the total tally to 43.

Meanwhile, the Congress seems to be unhappy with NCP chief Sharad Pawar meeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the issue of farmers’ distress in Maharashtra. Home Minister Amit Shah was also present in

the meeting. The Congress sources say the meeting is sending wrong signals when negotiation for an alliance with the Sena is going on.

The Congress has already expressed apprehension on a tie up with the Sena. The NCP-Con-gress high level committee is to meet to finalise the common minimum program (CMP). Sena MP Sanjay Raut has also claimed that there will be Sena-led gov-ernment in the state soon.

However, a top source said on Tuesday that at this point too, there is no commitment, and matters will move according to the talks, and Congress is “not in a hurry”.

Pawar has, however, ruled out any tie-up with the BJP, but said that during the meeting, supporting the Shiv Sena was not discussed.

In another development Raut shot off a letter to Venkaiah Naidu, the Rajya Sabha Chair-person, saying the change in his seating arrangement in the House has “hurt sentiments” of his party.

But what has added a fresh twist to the ongoing political drama is his statement that “no formal” word has been made about Sena’s exit from the NDA.

In his letter dated November 18, he said: “I also fail to under-stand the reason for the unwar-ranted step of re-allocation of seats since there is no formal announcement about Sena’s removal from the NDA.

Protest against removal of cover for Gandhi familySecurity personnel detain a member of the Indian Youth Congress (IYC) during a protest in New Delhi, yesterday. IYC organised a protest against the removal of Special Protection Group cover to Congress President Sonia Gandhi and party leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra.

22 farmers arrested for causing air pollutionAP LUCKNOW

Twenty-two farmers were arrested in Uttar Pradesh yesterday for setting fires to clear their fields and contributing to some of the worst air pollution in the country, a government official said.

Those arrested in Pilibhit district face charges of diso-beying a ban on burning crop waste and making the atmos-phere noxious, said state

government spokesman Awanish Awasthi.

India’s Supreme court last week ordered a fine of up to Rs100,000 ($1,420) for those polluting the air.

Air pollution in northern India peaks in the winter due to smoke from agricultural fires. The smoke mixes with vehicle emissions and construction dust.

The air quality index in New Delhi exceeded 500, about 10 times the recommended maximum, early this month, but

strong winds bought the level down to 250 this week.

On Tuesday, several oppo-sition lawmakers in India’s Par-liament demanded that the gov-ernment give incentives to farmers and provide machines to remove crop waste to stop the practice of burning fields before planting new crops.

Opposition lawmakers also demanded that coal-based power plants switch over to less polluting natural gas.

Pollution controls have

been imposed in the Indian capital region, home to 48 million people, such as banning some construction to avoid dust, reducing traffic and pro-hibiting the use of diesel gen-erators. But experts say the steps have had little effect because state governments have failed to cooperate in tackling pollution.

Data released last year by the World Health Organisation showed India had 10 of the world’s 20 most polluted cities.

Govt has to prioritise when it comes to national security: ShahIANS NEW DELHI

Asserting that normalcy has returned to Jammu and Kashmir, Union Home Minister Amit Shah yesterday said that not a single civilian was killed in police firing in the valley since the abrogation of Article 370 on August 5.

Replying to Congress leader T Subbarami Reddy’s question in the Rajya Sabha over restoration of normalcy in the valley, Shah reiterated that normalcy has returned in the valley, schools, colleges, shops and markets are open and the law and order sit-uation is extremely normal.

About Internet connectivity in the valley, Shah said: “As far as Internet is concerned, its res-toration will be carried out at an appropriate time on adminis-tration inputs. Currently, at 195 places e-connectivity zone has been created”.

While Shah was providing a detailed report on the current sce-nario in the valley, Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad countered his statements saying education is in a dismal state in the valley.

“Schools and colleges have been opened, but there is negli-gible attendance. There is no pro-vision to ensure that students are able to commute from school to their homes safely,” he said.

Commenting over Shah’s arguments on snapping Internet services, Azad said: “There has been threat from Pakistan for several years, there is nothing new about the situation. Then why such draconian measures? How will students continue their education without integral Internet services?” Replying to Azad’s query, Shah stressed that the government has to prioritise issues in view of the country’s security. “I agree that Internet services are a necessity today but when it comes to the national security, the safety of the people of Jammu and Kashmir, and our fight against terror, we need to prioritise our necessities, Shah said.

Nationalist Congress Party leader Majeed Menon asked the Home Minister to provide an estimate by when the situation in Kashmir will be restored to its normal state. The minister replied: “The situation is normal only. Schools and colleges are open, the apple industry is recovering well and normal life has resumed in every way pos-sible in the Valley.”

Shah said that no civilian has been killed in Kashmir in police firing since abrogation of Article 370 on August 5. “Not a single person has died in police firing since August 5 in Jammu and Kashmir.

Students demand justiceStudents hold placards during a march to show solidarity with the students of Jawaharlal Nehru University and to protest against proposed fee hike in the university, in Kolkata, yesterday.

Kudankulam cyber breach ‘confined to administrative block’IANS NEW DELHI

Minister of State for Atomic Energy and Space Jitendra Singh yesterday admitted to a malware attack on Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant (KKNPP), but clar-ified the cyber attack happened in the Internet circuit of the admin-istrative block and not in the plant.

Responding to a query of a

lawmaker in Lok Sabha, the Min-ister said that the attack was only confined to the “administrative office” of the KKNPP, a gov-ernment-owned Tamil Nadu-based plant.

The Minister, however, clar-ified that there was a reliable mechanism of cyber security for nuclear plants and the critical internal networks were ade-quately secured.

“It happened in the admin-istrative Internet circuit block of the KKNPP, not in the plant... That has been taken care of,” Singh said.

Assuring the security of the plant, the Minister further said,: “It is not possible to access the KKNPP”.

The Nuclear Power Corpo-ration of India Ltd (NPCIL), a public sector undertaking under

the Department of Atomic Energy (DAE), had last month accepted that there was a cyber attack on its system and also clarified that the plant systems were not affected.

The Minister informed the House that the matter was immediately investigated by DAE specialists soon after the detection of malware.

In the investigation, it was

found that the infected computer belonged to a user who was linked in the Internet-connected network for administrative pur-poses and that the plant systems were not affected by the malware.

It was then clarified that KKNPP and the other nuclear power plants’ control systems were “standalone” and not con-nected to any cyber networks.

Citizenship ofTRS legislatorcancelledIANS HYDERABAD

The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) issued a fresh order cancelling Indian citizenship of Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) MLA Chennamaneni Ramesh.

Fresh orders were issued after hearing Ramesh, who had challenged the 2017 order can-celling his citizenship.

Ramesh’s citizenship was revoked on the grounds that he held citizenship of Germany and didn’t fulfil the norms while obtaining Indian citizenship in 2009.

Ramesh, re-elected to Tel-angana Assembly from the Vemulawada constituency last year, said he would move the Telangana High Court again. The MHA didn’t take the high court orders into consideration while issuing fresh orders, Ramesh said and added, he was confident of getting justice.

In July, the HC had set aside the MHA order and directed it to hear afresh Ramesh’s submissions and complainant Adi Srinivas, the Congress leader defeated by Ramesh in 2009 elections.

Ramesh’s citizenship issue is pending since 2009 when he was elected as the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) candidate. He later joined the TRS.

LS passes Bill to monitor chit fundsIANS NEW DELHI

The Lok Sabha yesterday unan-imously passed a Bill that aims at putting in place a mechanism to ensure transparency in chit fund schemes, protect subscribers and regulate the industry.

To facilitate orderly growth of the chit fund sector, Minister of State for Finance and Cor-porate Affairs Anurag Thakur said through the Chit Fund (Amendment) Bill, 2019 the gov-ernment was making changes in the rules for starting a chit fund, which earned a negative image in the recent past.

The Minister had moved the

Bill, which seeks to amend the Chit Funds Act, 1982, on Monday.

With the amendments, the prescribed ceiling of aggregate chit fund amount for individuals would be raised to Rs3 lakh from Rs1 lakh, and Rs18 lakh from Rs6 lakh for firms. Besides, words ‘gross chit amount’, ‘share of dis-count’ and ‘net chit amount’ would be substituted with ‘chit amount’, ‘dividend’ and ‘prize amount’, respectively, in the Act.

The amended Act would confer powers upon the state governments to specify the amount up to which any chit fund shall be exempted under the Act.

Various amendments have been proposed to remove

bottlenecks and enable greater financial access to people.

Thakur had introduced the Bill during the Budget session in August and it was referred to Standing Committee.

Earlier, the government had introduced a Bill to regulate the chit fund industry in 2018, but it lapsed.

The parliamentary panel had suggested the government to incorporate elements of insurance coverage for sub-scribers. It also noted mobilising short-term funds to meet various personal needs had been a chronic problem, faced by the people in developing countries like India.

As per the consensus, the Chief Minister will be from the Shiv Sena and two Deputy Chief Ministers, one each from the NCP and the Congress, which will also claim the post of the Speaker.

13THURSDAY 21 NOVEMBER 2019 ASIA

Pakistan requests China to include Chashma Right Bank Canal in CPECINTERNEWS ISLAMABAD

Pakistan has formally requested China to include Chashma Right Bank Canal into list of China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) projects in order to meet agriculture requirements of the country.

Top official sources con-firmed that Chashma Right Bank Canal had so far remained a non-starter irrigation project from last several years and even the federal government had allo-cated some amount for con-ducting its feasibility study in the current fiscal year’s Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP) for 2019-20.

Its initial estimated cost ranges around Rs120bn to Rs150bn. It is not yet known whether China will consider pro-vision of soft loan or not because commercial loan will not provide viable preposition to execute this project.

However, both Pakistan and China in their recent official interactions have agreed to take agriculture as a key cooperation area on the basis of equality and mutual benefits, enhancing cooperation in capacity building, germ plasm resources, agricul-tural products processing, tech-nology extension, fisheries, disease-free zone construction, and market information. “Pakistan side highlighted that Pakistan had a huge water resources for agriculture sector and recommended the inclusion

of Chashma Right Bank Canal in list of CPEC projects,” top official sources said.

On issue of international cooperation and coordination under CPEC framework, both sides reviewed with satisfaction the outcomes achieved and progress made since the first meeting of the Joint Working Group on International Cooper-ation held in April 2019.

It was agreed to maintain close communication and strengthen cooperation to implement consensus reached by the leaders of both countries aimed at further deepening international cooperation and exchanges between think-tanks and the academic community.

On the subject of security under CPEC agreement, the two sides reaffirmed that security is of utmost importance to the development of CPEC. Both sides agreed that they should be highly vigilant to the threats of terrorist attacks. Chinese side appreciated

dedicated security being pro-vided by Government of Pakistan to CPEC projects and agreed that raising of Special Security Division (SSD) North and South has further enhanced security of CPEC.

Pakistani side will take all necessary measures to ensure the security of Chinese personnel and CPEC projects. The Chinese side will make best efforts to work with Pakistani side to mit-igate all threats to CPEC.

The Chinese side will con-tinue to provide support for capacity building of Pakistani side to the best of its ability.

Both sides agreed that the wide application of technology will further improve the effi-ciency of security work of CPEC, and the two sides will further enhance cooperation to establish a more effective security system with Gwadar port as pilot. The two sides agreed to enhance joint cooperation on security of CPEC in all domains.

On use of Chinese currency RMB, the two sides recognised that financing had always been a notable bottleneck for CPEC project execution. In order to fundamentally resolve the financing issue, based on the important consensus reached by leaders of the two countries, the two sides agreed to drive RMB financing in CPEC projects.

Both sides will work through their respective inter-department teams to finalise the financing arrangement, the official concluded.

Sri Lanka’s new President Gotabaya Rajapaksa (right) gestures as he arrives at the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic, in Kandy yesterday.

Gotabaya picks brother as PMAFP COLOMBO

Newly elected Sri Lankan Pres-ident Gotabaya Rajapaksa yesterday named his brother Mahinda as Prime Minister, cementing the grip on power of a clan credited with crushing the Tamil Tigers a decade ago.

Mahinda, a two-term pres-ident himself, is due to be sworn in as premier today following the resignation of Ranil Wickremes-inghe after his party suffered a humiliating defeat at the week-end’s presidential polls.

The Rajapaksa brothers are credited with brutally destroying the Tamil Tigers to end Sri Lanka’s decades-long civil war, with the security services they controlled accused of war crimes and multiple human rights abuses.

A spokesman for the new administration said Rajapaksa, 74, will be sworn in by his younger brother Gotabaya, aged 70. Two other brothers, Basil and Chamal, are also active in politics.

“Prime Minister Rajapaksa will have his cabinet appointed shortly after taking his oath of office,” said spokesman Vijay-ananda Herath.

Gotabaya was defence sec-retary under Mahinda during his decade as president which ended in January 2015.

With the older Rajapaksa taking over as prime minister, Sri Lanka will for the first time have two brothers at the helm. During the first Mahinda presi-dency, the eldest brother Chamal was the speaker of parliament.

Prime Minister Wickremes-inghe formally announced his

resignation yesterday clearing the way for the Rajapaksas to form a minority government ahead of possible snap elections early next year.

“Although we enjoy a par-liamentary majority, we respect the mandate received by Mr. Rajapaksa and we have decided to allow him to form a new gov-ernment,” Wickremesinghe said in an address to the nation.

Wickremesinghe, 70, said he informed the new president about quitting, allowing a new minority government to be formed. “The prime minister will have a final meeting with his cabinet as well as other leaders of his coalition before addressing the nation to announce his res-ignation,” his spokesman Sudar-shana Gunawardana said earlier in the day. Wickremesinghe came to power in 2015.

Two US soldiers dead in helicopter crash in AfghanistanANATOLIA KABUL

At least two US soldiers were killed in a helicopter crash in Afghanistan, the Nato-led Resolute Support mission said in a statement yesterday.

There were no details shared on the cause of the crash, which

is said to be under investigation, however “preliminary reports do not indicate it was caused by enemy fire,” the statement said.

“In accordance with US Department of Defence policy, the names of the service members killed in action are being withheld until 24 hours after notification of next of kin

is complete,” it added. However, the Taliban claimed to have shot down the chopper in south-eastern Logar province.

Zabihullah Mujahid, the group’s spokesman, said in a statement the Chinook helicopter transporting the US and Afghan forces was shot down during, killing “all 54 people onboard”.

“Following the incident, a large number of US aircraft and heli-copters arrived at the scene, cor-doned off the area and began transferring the dead from the wreckage,” Mujahid said.

This came a day after a prison swap between the US and the Taliban. Elsewhere, at least 13 Afghan security forces were

killed in the Taliban’s overnight raids in restive northern Kunduz province, local Salam Afghan-istan radio reported. However, the Defence Ministry claimed a raid by Taliban’s so-called “Red Unit” was thwarted in Kunduz’s Imam Saheb district, killing 10 insurgents and losing one soldier in an exchange of fire.

A student reacts as she gets a free anti-typhoid vaccine during the immunisation campaign at a school in Karachi, Pakistan, yesterday.

Myanmar: Suu Kyi to lead team to fight genocide accusationAP/YANGON

Myanmar’s government announced yesterday that its leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, will head a legal team it will send to the International Court of Justice in the Netherlands to contest a case of genocide filed against it by Gambia on behalf of the Organization of Islamic Cooper-ation.

The announcement was posted on the Facebook page of the office of the state counsellor, a position Suu Kyi holds along with that of foreign minister. Myanmar’s government releases much public information on Facebook.

The country’s military has been accused of carrying out mass abuses, killings and the torching of homes during a coun-terinsurgency campaign launched in western Myanmar in August 2017 after rebel attacks. The violence sent more than 700,000 members of the Muslim Rohingya minority fleeing to neighbouring Bangladesh. Myan-mar’s population is overwhelm-ingly Buddhist.

When filing the case, Gam-bia’s justice minister and attorney-general, Abubacarr Marie Tambadou, said he wanted to “send a clear message to Myanmar and to the rest of the international community that the

world must not stand by and do nothing in the face of terrible atrocities that are occurring around us. It is a shame for our generation that we do nothing while genocide is unfolding right before our own eyes.”

The head of a UN fact-finding mission on Myanmar warned last month that “there is a serious risk of genocide recurring,” and the mission also said in its final report in September that Myanmar should be held respon-sible in international legal forums for alleged genocide against the Rohingya.

Myanmar has strongly denied carrying out organised human rights abuses.

The brief announcement yes-terday night on the effort “to defend Myanmar’s national interest” did not specify that Gambia’s application to the ICJ involved genocide, but said it was “with regard to the displaced persons from the Rakhine state,” the area from which the Rohingya fled.

It said Myanmar has retained prominent international lawyers to contest the case, and that Suu Kyi will lead the team in her capacity as foreign minister. The announcement did not mention a date for the mission to the court, but the court said on Monday that it would hold public hearings on December 10-12.

Pakistan confers medal on Turkish military chiefANATOLIA KARACHI

Pakistan yesterday awarded its top military medal to Turkey’s Chief of General Staff Gen. Yasar Guler, state-run Pakistan TV (PTV) reported.

President Arif Alvi con-ferred Nishan-e-Imtiaz or Order of Excellence — a highly restricted and prestigious mil-itary award — on Gen. Guler at a special investiture ceremony at the President House in capital Islamabad.

Later, Gen. Guler called President Alvi and discussed matters of mutual interest.

Alvi, according to PTV, thanked for Turkey’s support to Islamabad on different inter-national forums, including the Nuclear Suppliers Group, Financial Action Task Force, and also for its position on the UN Security Council reforms.

“Unparalleled fraternal relationship between Pakistan and Turkey has now trans-formed into a strong strategic partnership over the years and is growing stronger,” Alvi was quoted by PTV as saying.

Gillani departs for CambodiaINTERNEWS/ISLAMABAD

Former Pakistani prime minister Yousaf Raza Gillani, despite being on the Exit Control List, left for Cambodia to attend an international summit, family sources confirmed.

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen exclusively invited Gillani to deliver his lecture at the Asia Pacific Cambodia Con-ference 2019. The interior min-istry had earlier put Gillani on the ECL in the TDAP scam.

Family sources say Gillani, along with his son MPA Ali Haider Gillani, left for Cambodia.

Pakistan’s first-ever cancer protection plan launchedINTERNEWS ISLAMABAD

Pakistan’s first-ever cancer protection plan was launched to address major challenges including affordability, which restricts access of patients to standard treatment.

The plan was launched at a ceremony held at a local hotel, which was attended by President Dr. Arif Alvi, diplomats, celeb-rities as well as government offi-cials. The plan was launched by

Jubilee Life Insurance in collab-oration with Roche Pakistan. Under this partnership, the insurance company will provide cancer protection plan against wide range of cancers, from the most common to rarest types, and offers benefit amounts from 25 percent of the sum assured for early stage cancer to 100 percent of the sum assured for late stage cancer.

According to reports, approximately, 170,000 people are diagnosed with different

types of cancers annually in Pakistan. Premium from the plan begins from as low as Rs735 per annum, subject to assessment based on gender, plan term and age. The term for the plan can be between 10 to 47 years, subject to maximum age of 65 years at maturity.

Under the plan Roche Pakistan will be extending its patient support programme to all policy holders to overcome affordability challenges in cancer treatment.

Its initial estimated cost ranges around Rs120bn to Rs150bn. It is not yet known whether China will consider provision of soft loan or not because commercial loan will not provide viable preposition to execute this project.

Immunisation drive

14 THURSDAY 21 NOVEMBER 2019ASIA

Last campus protesters hold out as schools reopen in HKAP HONG KONG

Hong Kong schools reopened yesterday after a six-day shutdown, but students and commuters faced transit disrup-tions as the last anti-government protesters remained holed up on a university campus, surrounded by police.

City officials tried to restore a sense of normalcy as primary and secondary classes resumed. Workers began cleaning up debris blocking a major road tunnel, but it was unclear when it would reopen. Officials warned protesters not to disrupt elec-tions scheduled for the weekend.

A small group of protesters refused to leave Hong Kong Pol-ytechnic University, the

remnants of hundreds who took over the campus for several days. They won’t leave because they would face arrest, and police have set up a cordon around the area to prevent anyone from escaping.

The occupation of Poly-technic capped more than a week of intense protests, the latest flare-up in the often-violent unrest that has gripped the semi-autonomous Chinese city for more than five months.

A former British Consulate employee yesterday said he was detained in mainland China and tortured by secret police trying to extract information about activists involved in the movement.

Since a police siege of the campus began on Sunday, police

have arrested 700 people who left campus to surrender, while another 300 minors were allowed to go home but may still face prosecution, Chief Super-intendent Ricky Ho told reporters.

It was unclear how many protesters remained on campus, but they appeared to number fewer than 100. About two dozen scrounged through supplies in the cafeteria looking for food in the morning. Trash littered public areas, and a stench per-meated the campus.

There were scattered inci-dents of protesters stopping trains by opening emergency doors and blocking traffic, but on a much smaller scale than last week.

Television footage showed long lines at some stations because of train delays. A few stations remained shut due to damage from earlier protests.

A group of protesters, joined by students in uniform, blocked traffic at one intersection. Others in the area argued with them, removing some of the metal bar-riers that protesters carried into the street.

Even as the latest violence wound down, a fundamental divide suggested the protests in the former British colony are far from over.

Office workers joined pro-testers at lunch time in the central business district to show support for the movement, as

they have every day since last week. Police kept the crowds on the sidewalks, so they wouldn’t block traffic.

Hong Kong’s protests began in June over an extradition bill that would have allowed sus-pects to be sent to China to face trial. Opponents saw it as a threat to the “one country, two systems” framework that gives Hong Kong its relative autonomy.

The bill has been withdrawn, but protesters now demand fully democratic elections and an independent investigation into police actions in suppressing the protests. City leaders have rejected these demands and said violence must stop before mean-ingful dialogue can begin.

Protesters also have called on the government not to cancel Sunday’s neighbourhood council elections. Chief Secretary Matthew Cheung, Hong Kong’s No. 2 official, said officials are “extremely keen” to hold the vote.

A rescue diver entering the sewage system to search anti-government protesters who escaped after being barricaded by police, yesterday.

Sewer escape bid byprotesters thwartedAFP HONG KONG

Two pro-democracy protesters were arrested yesterday as they emerged from a manhole on a Hong Kong road outside a besieged campus, in a thwarted escape bid from inside the university.

Two male protesters holed up in the campus for days were detained along with four people lowering ropes to help them out from the drainage system, police said.

They apparently crawled through fetid sewers to a

manhole outside a housing estate around half a kilometre from city centre grounds of the Hong Kong Polytechnic Uni-versity (PolyU), the scene of the dramatic siege by police.

The group were arrested for a range of offences including “taking part in a riot” and “assisting offenders”, chief superintendent Ricky Ho said.

The city’s fire service said in the evening that, “no person has been found trapped inside the (sewer) system.” But many others have been arrested while trying to breach police lines, some receiving beatings.

Police officers are seen outside the Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) in Hong Kong, yesterday.

Thai court removes popular politician from ParliamentAP BANGKOK

Thailand’s Constitutional Court ruled yesterday that a popular pro-democracy opposition leader violated election laws and cannot keep his seat in Parliament.

The court said Thanathorn Juangroon-gruangkit, the 40-year-old head of the new Future Forward Party, violated a regulation barring owners of media companies from running for Parliament.

The court rejected Thanathorn’s claim that he sold his holding in a media production company before the deadline needed to be a candidate.

The ruling had been expected. Thanath-orn’s party, which finished third in a March general election, has been a thorn in the side of Thailand’s conservative establishment, in whose favour the courts have consistently ruled. The party is disliked by the estab-lishment not only for its anti-military stance, but also because of its strong popularity.

There are many other cases pending against Thanathorn and his party, and there is a widespread belief that the deck is stacked against it and it will end up being disbanded,

with its leaders banned from political office for several years.

About 100 fervent supporters mobbed Thanathorn as he arrived for the court hearing and gave him an even more enthu-siastic reception on his way out.

“We shouldn’t be concerned. It’s important for us to continue on our cam-paigns and there are so many things that we have to work on,” Thanathorn told reporters after the ruling. “We should be focusing on

what really benefits people. The public can decide for themselves whether or not what happened to us is just.”

Thanathorn was never allowed to take his seat in the lower house of Parliament because of the Election Commission’s pre-liminary finding that he had violated the law. According to an initial court ruling, he was suspended because he could be guilty as charged.

However, the court did not suspend 32 members of Parliament from the coalition formed by the pro-military Palang Prach-arath Party who faced similar complaints. It said those cases had not been filed and proc-essed by an investigative committee.

On Monday, Thanathorn raised the issue again, announcing he was suing the Election Commission’s members because they had acted improperly by forwarding his case to the Constitutional Court before it was ade-quately investigated.

Thanathorn had announced before the ruling that he would continue to be active polit-ically no matter what the verdict, and he went from the court to a shopping area where he took part in campaigning for support for his party’s policy to end military conscription.

Future Forward Party leader Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit speaks to journalists after the court hearing in Bangkok, yesterday.

US gifts new security ship to Vietnam AFP HANOI

The United States is giving Viet-nam’s coast guard a second cutter vessel, US Secretary of Defence, Mark Esper, said yesterday, vowing to maintain a routine military presence in the flashpoint South China Sea.

The new security ship “rep-resents another concrete symbol of our strengthening rela-tionship”, Esper said at the Dip-lomatic Academy of Vietnam after a tour through South Korea, Thailand and the Philippines.

Washington wants to counter Beijing’s expanding influence in the region and the fiercely contested South China Sea is a source of major tension.

China has built military installations, rammed vessels and sent survey ships into dis-puted territory in the resource-rich waterway, parts of which are also claimed by several Southeast Asian countries, including Vietnam.

The US has hit out with so-called “freedom of navigation” forays into the waters and the first-ever joint maritime drills

with members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations this year.

Esper, who was confirmed as President Donald Trump’s defence secretary in July, said similar activities will continue.

“We will also maintain a routine military presence in the South China Sea, to demonstrate the seriousness of our com-mitment,” he said, adding that the US will “fly, sail and operate wherever international law allows”.

Esper and his Chinese

counterpart met at a security summit in Bangkok on Monday.

The cutter vessel, which will be handed over next year, is the latest example of ramped up political and defence links between the US and Vietnam.

Earlier this year Washington handed over six patrol boats and equipment worth $12m, the third of a planned four deliveries.

Security and trade ties between the former wartime foes deepened after Washington and Hanoi restored diplomatic ties in 1995.

2,887 days: Abe becomes Japan’s longest-serving PMAFP TOKYO

Shinzo Abe entered the history books as Japan’s longest-serving premier yesterday, but many of his ambitious goals, including a constitutional revision to strengthen the military, appear far from reach.

Yesterday marked Abe’s 2,887th day in office, topping the record previously set by Taro Katsura, a revered politician who served three times between 1901 and 1913.

The 65-year-old is also the second-longest-serving leader of the Group of Seven major economies behind only German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who has been in office since 2005.

Abe’s grip on power remains firm as he passes the landmark, with his tenure likely to last until at least September 2021 and no clear successor yet on the horizon.

But the premier has plenty of unfinished business, saying earlier this year after a cabinet reshuffle that he hoped to “take on the challenge to create a new country”.

He has reiterated his long-cherished ambition of revising

Japan’s post-war constitution to change the status of the coun-try’s Self Defence Forces.

But opposition parties have refused to move forward with procedures for the revision, and Abe has seen his reputation tar-nished by the resignation of two cabinet ministers and a cro-nyism scandal.

He is currently mired in a row over inviting too many of his supporters to a costly cherry blossom viewing party, forcing the government to scrap the annual event next year.

Speaking to reporters yes-terday to mark the record, he was peppered with questions about the latest scandal, which shows little sign of going away.

“I’ve made efforts every single day to carry out the pol-icies I promised and these daily efforts have led me to this day,” Abe said.

He vowed to do his “utmost” in the two years he has remaining as president of his Liberal Democratic Party (LDP).

Despite recent missteps, however, experts say Abe’s ruling coalition faces no major threats in parliament, and there are no obvious pretenders to his office.

US Secretary of Defence Mark Esper (left) shaking hands with Vietnam’s Defence Minister Ngo Xuan Lich during a welcoming ceremony at the Defence Ministry in Hanoi, yesterday.

Mahathir hintsat cabinetreshuffle REUTERS KUALA LUMPUR

Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad said yesterday he would consider a cabinet reshuffle to address growing public discontent over his young government’s handling of the country, days after a stinging by-election loss.

His Pakatan Harapan (PH) coalition suffered its worst elec-toral defeat on Saturday since coming to power last May when the opposition scored a more than 15,000-vote majority in a by-election for the Tanjung Piai parliamentary seat.

Mahathir said leaders in his Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia outfit felt a cabinet reshuffle was needed to address public com-plaints on issues such as high living costs and the economy.

Arrests ordered in Philippines vaping banAFP MANILA

Just hours after Philippine Pres-ident Rodrigo Duterte announced he would ban e-cigarette use, police were ordered yesterday to begin arresting people caught vaping in public and to confiscate the devices.

The abrupt prohibition, revealed by Duterte late Tuesday, adds to a growing global backlash against a product once promoted as less harmful than smoking.

Duterte called the devices “toxic” and said vaping intro-duced “chemicals” into the user’s body.

He then threatened to arrest anyone vaping publicly in a country that already has some of Asia’s toughest anti-smoking rules.

The president, a former smoker, is notorious interna-tionally for his deadly anti-nar-cotics crackdown, but he has also targeted tobacco with a wide-ranging ban on smoking in public.

Bougainville to hold vote for independenceAFP ARAWA, PAPUA NEW GUINEA

The resource-rich Pacific archi-pelago of Bougainville will hold a landmark referendum on independence from Papua New Guinea on Saturday, a vote that could create the world’s newest nation and prompt a dash for influence among regional powers.

Voters in the verdant, con-flict-marked isles will decide if they want independence or greater autonomy within PNG, an ethnically diverse nation of eight million.

The referendum is designed to draw a line under a brutal 10-year civil war that killed 20,000 people — 10% of the pop-ulation — before it ended in 1998. Around 200,000 registered voters will cast their ballots over two weeks, with results expected around December 15.

Since a police siege of the campus began on Sunday, police have arrested 700 people who left campus to surrender, while another 300 minors were allowed to go home but may still face prosecution.

15THURSDAY 21 NOVEMBER 2019 EUROPE

UK Conservatives under fire for Twitter deception in debateAP LONDON

Britain’s Conservative Party was accused yesterday of trying to deceive voters by changing the name of its press office Twitter account to “factcheckUK” during a televised election debate between Prime Minister Boris Johnson and opposition Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn.

Rebranded to resemble a neutral fact-checking account complete with a big check mark, it posted a series of tweets sup-porting Johnson during Tues-day’s debate. It later reverted to the name “CCHQ Press” and restored the party logo to its profile.

Organisations that seek to combat political misinformation cried foul.

“It was an attempt to mislead voters,’’ Will Moy, chief exec-utive of the London-based fact-checking website Full Fact, told the BBC. “And I think it is inap-propriate and misleading for a serious political party to behave that way.”

Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab defended the party’s actions, saying the Twitter account was clearly linked to the Conservatives and claiming voters would not be perturbed by “the social media cut and thrust.” “We make no apology for having an instant rebuttal to all the nonsense and lies put out,” Raab told the BBC.

Twitter said in a statement

that it had “global rules in place that prohibit behaviour that can mislead people.” The company pledged to take “decisive cor-rective action” if there were any more attempts “to mislead people by editing verified profile information,” but did not censure the Tories for their account switch.

The manipulation of the account in a high-profile event put the issue of the rise of digital campaigning squarely in the public eye.

All political parties are devoting much of their campaign spending to the digital realm as they battle to win the UK’s December 12 election.

Despite parliamentary reports urging new regulations to combat misinformation or regulate the way digital ads are targeted at voters, officials in Britain have made no significant changes to laws governing online ads, social media and election disinformation.

In a reflection of

the confusion, the Electoral Commission, which regulates campaign finances, issued a statement warning that “voters are entitled to transparency and integrity from campaigners in the lead-up to an election.’’

Critically, however, it pointed out that it doesn’t have “a role in regulating election campaign content.’’ With the absence of law, campaigns have already been pressing the boundaries to get attention. The Conservative Party became embroiled in controversy earlier this month when it posted a video on social media containing a misleading edit of a television interview with Keir Starmer, a senior Labour Party figure. The video had been altered to show Starmer failing to answer a question about Brexit, when, in fact, he responded quickly. The chairman of the Conservative Party described the doctored video as lighthearted satire.

It comes as the Conservative Party is trying to raise its online game in this election, after being outperformed by Labour during the last campaign in 2017, when the opposition party exceeded expectations and the Tories stumbled.

The Conservatives have hired young New Zealanders Sean Topham and Ben Guerin to oversee digital strategy, and Australian Isaac Levido as overall campaign director. All three have worked with Lynton Crosby, an aggressive Australian political strategist.

A cyclist travels past the battle bus of Britain’s opposition Liberal Democrats leader Jo Swinson on her arrival for a general election campaign visit in Cambridge, yesterday.

Liberal Democrats unveil ‘stop Brexit’ manifestoAFP LONDON

Britain’s Liberal Democrats launched their election mani-festo yesterday, pledging to scrap Brexit and spend a so-called £50bn “Remain bonus” on public services and narrowing inequality.

The pro-European party, which has vowed to halt Britain’s departure from the EU if it wins a majority, also outlined policies to tackle climate change, expand free child care and recruit more teachers.

Meanwhile, it reiterated an eye-catching pledge from the last election to legalise cannabis and create a “regulated market”,

promising to stop jailing people for the possession of drugs for personal use.

“The first step of our plan for a brighter future is simple: stop Brexit and use the Remain Bonus to invest in public services,” the Lib Dems said in a 100-page manifesto.

“By keeping the UK in the EU, we can get on with tackling the real issues facing our country, using the... £50 billion to invest in public services and tackle inequality.” Independent analysts call the £50bn ($65bn) figure “a fair assessment of the best available forecasts” that compare economic growth if in or outside the EU.

But they also warn

it contains “a high degree of uncertainty.” “We shouldn’t treat £50 billion as definitive,” fact-checking charity Full Fact has said.

The December 12 general election comes with Britain increasingly divided over how to, or even if it should, implement the result of a 2016 referendum when voters chose to pull Britain out of the European Union.

The Lib Dems, led by Jo Swinson, are hoping to capitalise on trenchant opposition to Brexit to catapult itself from perennial smaller party into a serious con-tender for government. It claims to be the only political party committed to stopping Brexit.

25 migrants found in refrigerated container on UK-bound ferryAFP THE HAGUE

A ferry crew found 25 migrants in a refrigerated container on a boat sailing from the Netherlands to Britain on Tuesday, emer-gency services said.

The cargo vessel bound for Felixstowe returned to the Dutch port of Vlaardingen, near Rot-terdam, as soon as the stow-aways were found, they said in a statement. The people found in the container received medical

attention at the port and two were taken to hospital for further treatment for possible hypothermia.

The discovery comes the month after 39 Vietnamese people were found dead in a refrigerated truck in Britain, again laying bare the risks of illegal migrant routes to Europe.

“On board a ship it turned out that several people were found in a cooling container. The ship returned to the harbour,” said the Rotterdam region emer-

gency services on Twitter.“The 25 people were taken

off the ship and given the medical care they need. Earlier the message came from the ship that no people died.

“Two people were trans-ported to hospital for extra medical care. Twenty-three people were transferred to a police location after a medical check-up.” DFDS Seaways, which operates the cargo ferry, said that the migrants had come on board on a lorry trailer, De

Telegraaf newspaper said.The driver of the truck had

been arrested, it added. A bus took away the mainly male group, some of whom were wrapped in silver thermal blankets. Their nationalities were not immediately known.

The mayor of Vlaardingen, Annemiek Jetten, said “more and more” people were trying to cross the Channel and had not been put off by the deaths of the Vietnamese migrants.

“I think people are so

desperate that they keep trying, despite the tragic events in the UK not so long ago,” Jetten told broadcaster NOS.

She added that it was not clear if more people were trying to get to Britain before immigration laws become tougher after its scheduled exit from the EU next year. Separately on Tuesday Dutch border police intercepted a bus carrying 65 Moldovan nationals including children who were planning to claim asylum, Dutch media reported.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel (left) shakes hands with Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic during a meeting at the Croatian government headquarters in Zagreb, yesterday.

Germany to push France on EU expansion: MerkelBLOOMBERG BRUSSELS

Germany will push France so that blocked talks for countries in the Western Balkans to join the European Union can start, Chancellor Angela Merkel said yesterday.

‘We must now talk with France, and we will do this very intensely, about which elements exactly will have to improved or changed in the accession process,’ Merkel said during a joint press conference with Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic in Zagreb.

‘We want an agreement about this as soon as possible,

so that we will be able to make progress in the concrete cases.’

Merkel’s comments come after French President Emmanuel Macron blocked the EU’s plan to start membership negotiations with North Mace-donia and Albania at a summit in October. Macron argued that no date should be set for opening accession deliberations until the bloc revamps its whole enlargement approach.

But Merkel said that the Western Balkan countries needed to have a realistic accession perspective.

‘We cannot distance our-selves from the promises we have made,’ she said.

Greece to shut down three largest migrant campsAFP ATHENS

Greece will shut down the three largest of its overcrowded migrant camps on islands facing Turkey, and replace them with new closed facilities with much larger capacity, officials said yesterday.

“Decongesting the islands is a priority at this stage,” the gov-ernment’s special coordinator for migration Alkiviadis Stefanis, a former army general and chief of staff, told a news conference. The three camps to be closed, on the islands of Lesbos, Chios and Samos, currently house over 27,000 people under terrible

conditions that have been repeatedly castigated by rights groups and the Council of Europe. They have a nominal capacity of just 4,500.

The Greek government said it would replace the camps with new closed facilities for identifi-cation, relocation and deportation with a capacity of at least 5,000 people each. Smaller camps on the islands of Kos and Leros are also to be remodelled along these lines and enlarged, Stefanis said.

Instead of being allowed to move freely in and out of the camps, asylum-seekers will now be locked up until they are granted refugee status and relo-cated to the mainland, or they are

rejected and sent back to Turkey, officials said.

The government has vowed to relocate 20,000 asylum-seekers to camps on the mainland by early 2020. The new conserv-ative government which came to power in July has already passed a law stiffening asylum require-ments for migrants, and has pledged to deploy additional border patrols.

Stefanis also said yesterday that new criteria would be issued for the operation of NGO groups helping migrants, many of whom have fled the war in Syria.

“Only those (NGOs) that meet the requirements will stay and continue to operate in the

country,” said Stefanis, who is also deputy defence minister.

Prime Minister Kyriakos Mit-sotakis on Tuesday accused the European Union of treating coun-tries on the bloc’s external fron-tiers as convenient places to park migrants. “It cannot go on like this,” Mitsotakis told German newspaper Handelsblatt.

“Europe regards arrival coun-tries such as Greece as a con-venient parking spot for refugees and migrants. Is that European solidarity? No! I will no longer accept this.” The International Organization for Migration last month said that Greece’s mainland camps are already nearly full or past capacity.

European centre-right set to install Tusk as leaderAFP ZAGREB

Europe’s main conservative parties are set to choose former EU Council President Donald Tusk as the leader of their pan-Europe grouping at a two-day meeting in Croatia.

The former Polish prime minister will be tasked with boosting the fortunes of the European People’s Party (EPP) — which includes German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s CDU and France’s Republicans. The EPP is still the largest group in the European Parliament but it is under increasing pressure from far-right, liberal and green blocs, which all made gains in May’s European elections.

Tusk, 62, will replace France’s Joseph Daul to become the EPP’s first leader from the European Union’s eastern states. At the start of the meeting Tusk vowed to fight against “political populists, manipulators and autocrats” in what appeared to be a ref-erence to Hungary’s Prime Min-ister Viktor Orban.

Orban’s Fidesz party was suspended from the EPP group earlier this year because of the Hungarian government’s anti-Brussels poster campaign.

“Let us all stand together on this most important political battlefield, on one side parties of irresponsible populism, on the other, our party of respon-sible popularity,” Task told the participants. “I’m ready to fight and I hope you are ready too.”

Among the pressing issues Tusk faces is a renewed dispute about EU enlargement.

Roughly 2,000 participants in Zagreb will discuss ties between the EU and the Western Balkans.

European Commission president-elect Ursula von der Leyen said earlier this month that Europe had “asked a lot of North Macedonia and Albania, (and) they’ve fulfilled it all.

“Now we must be true to our word and start accession talks,” she said.

Putin praisesZelenskiyahead of talksAFP MOSCOW

Russian President Vladimir Putin yesterday praised Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskiy as “likeable” before the two face off at a summit on the conflict in eastern Ukraine.

“We don’t know each other, we have only spoken on the phone,” Putin said at an investment forum in Moscow.

The Russian president added however that although he has “no relationship” with his Ukrainian counterpart, a former comedian inaugurated in May, he believes “Zelenskiy is a likeable man and sincere.” “I think he really wants to change the situation for the better, including in the Donbass,” he said, referring to the area of eastern Ukraine run by Russia-backed separatists.

“To what extent he is able to carry this out, I don’t know yet,” Putin said.

“Some positive steps have been taken,” he added, naming the pull-back of troops and equipment along a portion of the line of contact between Ukrainian forces and the sep-aratists. The pull-back com-pleted early this month was a precondition for a face-to-face meeting during a summit mediated by leaders of France and Germany aiming to end the five-year conflict.

The summit is scheduled in Paris on December 9.

PM Boris Johnson’s party changed its twitter handle to ‘factcheckUK’ to resemble a neutral fact-checking account during the election debate and posted several tweets in support of Johnson.

16 THURSDAY 21 NOVEMBER 2019EUROPE

Malta mogul arrested injournalist murder caseAFP VALLETTA

Malta yesterday arrested a tycoon in connection with the murder of journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia, the day after an alleged middleman was offered a pardon to identify the mastermind behind the killing.

Maltese national Yorgen Fenech was detained on his yacht at dawn as he tried to leave malta, a police source said, in the latest development in the long-running case that has raised questions about the rule of law in malta.

Before her 2017 murder, which sparked outrage and pro-tests in the Mediterranean island, Caruana Galizia reported on cor-ruption — including alleging that a company owned by Fenech was connected to high-level politicians.

Caruana Galizia’s son Andrew said Prime Minister Joseph Muscat “has blood on his hands” for protecting those involved.

The Maltese government has faced a torrent of criticism over its handling of the case. The mur-dered journalist’s family called yesterday for the tourism min-ister and the prime minister’s

chief of staff to resign over alleged planned payments from Fenech’s company.

Fenech was intercepted just after 5:30am local time (0430 GMT), and his sleek white and blue yacht Gio was accompanied back to port.

“We have arrested a man as part of our investigations into the murder of Daphne Caruana Galizia,” a high-ranking police source said.

“He was on his boat at the time of arrest,” he said, defining Fenech as “a person of interest” in the case.

Caruana Galizia, described by supporters as a “one-woman WikiLeaks”, had highlighted cor-ruption in malta, including among politicians, before she was blown up by a car bomb.

Prime Minister Joseph Muscat said on Tuesday that he had promised a pardon if an alleged middleman arrested last

week named the person who ordered the attack, which made headlines around the world.

Three men are facing trial for allegedly carrying out the brutal killing, but the mastermind has not yet been identified.

The 53-year-old blogger left behind a husband and three sons, who accused Muscat of filling his office with crooks and creating a culture of impunity that turned malta into a “mafia island”.

Fenech is the director and co-owner of Electrogas, which won a multi-million euro con-tract from the Maltese state in 2013 to build a new gas power station.

He was also director of one of the country’s most powerful businesses, the Tumas Group, which runs among other things the Hilton malta and Portomaso Casino.

But in company documents, Fenech resigned the post last week and was replaced by his brother Franco.

A leaked malta Financial Intelligence Analysis Unit (FIAU) report identified Fenech as the owner of a company in Dubai called 17 Black.

Caruana Galizia had written in her blog about 17 Black some eight months before her death,

alleging it was connected to Maltese politicians.

Much of her work had been centred on what the huge Panama Papers data leak unveiled about corruption at the highest levels in malta.

Leaked emails revealed in court appeared to show that Panama companies owned by then energy minister Konrad Mizzi and Keith Schembri, the government chief of staff, stood to receive payments from 17 Black.

The alleged planned

deposits into the two offshore companies were for unspecified services.

“It’s time for Mizzi and Schembri to resign and be placed under surveillance,” son Andrew Caruana Galizia said on Twitter after Fenech’s arrest.

If Muscat had not protected the pair, “my mother would still be alive”, he wrote.

Mizzi is currently the tourism minister.

Andrew’s brother Paul tweeted that “we got here in spite of Joseph Muscat”, as a protest

was called for later Tuesday outside the prime minister’s office.

The prime minister said there was no evidence he knew of linking politicians to the murder, and insisted it was his order for police to increase surveillance that prevented Fenech’s “potential escape”.

Malta had repeatedly refused to open a public inquiry into the killing but made a surprise U-turn in September and appointed a retired judge to head the probe.

Policemen leaving the luxury yacht Gio, owned by Yorgen Fenech, after it was escorted back into the Portomaso Marina in St Julian’s, Malta, yesterday.

France promises cash and debt reduction for hospitals to quell unrestREUTERS PARIS

France will absorb $11.06bn of public hospital debt, the government said, part of emer-gency measures aimed at ending months of street protests by fed up doctors and nurses.

In a televised address, French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe (pictured) also promised an additional 1.5 billion euros over three years for hospitals, as well as an 800 euro bonus for 40,000 nurses and carers earning less than 1,900 euros per month.

The government hopes the package will stave off further unrest by hospital staff at a time public anger is mounting over pension system reform, the next phase of President Emmanuel Macron’s economic and social reforms.

“The hospital crisis is nothing new. But it has gone through one of its acutest phases in recent months,” Prime Min-ister edouard Philippe said. “Healthcare workers can’t go on like this any longer.”

The 10 billion euros to be taken over by the state repre-sents nearly one third of the total debt burdening the public hos-pitals’ balance sheets.

The hospital protests began in March and have rumbled on for months.

Thousands of health workers marched through Paris

last Thursday carrying banners that read “public hospitals in life threatening emergency.”

Medics say multi-billion euro spending cuts on public health have stretched a healthcare system that was once the envy of the world to breaking point, with elderly patients left for hours on trolleys and doctors exhausted by stressful conditions.

With a 2020 public deficit expected at 2.2 percent of eco-nomic output, government’s budget for next year has some wriggle room to absorb the extra funds for hospital without pushing the deficit over the EU-imposed 3 percent limit.

Since 2004, public hospitals have paid for their costs from the income they receive from the state for treatments.

The state regulates how much it pays hospitals for each medical intervention.

Caruana Galizia’s son Andrew said Prime Minister Joseph Muscat “has blood on his hands” for protecting those involved.

Son of former German president stabbed to deathAP BERLIN

The son of former German pres-ident Richard von Weizsaecker was stabbed to death while he was giving a lecture at a hospital in Berlin where he worked as a head physician, police said.

A 57-year-old man is in custody after a man jumped up from the audience at the Schlosspark-Klinik and attacked Fritz von Weizsaecker with a knife on Tuesday evening. Another man who tried to stop the attack was seriously wounded.

“We cannot yet say anything about the attacker’s motive,” said police spokesman Michael Gassen, adding that the suspect is still being questioned.

Von Weizsaecker died at the

scene despite immediate attention from colleagues.

The 59-year-old was the son of one of Germany’s most esteemed presidents, who was the country’s head of state — a largely ceremonial post — from 1984 to 1994. The former pres-ident died in 2015.

Fritz von Weizaecker was one of the ex-president’s four children.

Von Weizsaecker studied and worked at several hospitals in Germany and abroad, including the Harvard Medical School in Boston and a hospital in Zurich, Switzerland. His fields of expertise were internal med-icine and gastroenterology.

On Tuesday night, he was giving a lecture about fatty liver disease, an increasingly common medical condition.

The lecture was open to everybody and local media reported that several colleagues were among the audience as well.

The murder of von Weizsaecker echoes a similar incident from 2016, when a man fatally shot a doctor at Berlin’s Benjamin Franklin Hospital before killing himself.

The von Weizsaeckers are one of Germany’s most prom-inent families. Richard von Weizsacker was not only one of the most popular but also one of the country’s most respected presidents.

In 1985, then-West German President von Weizsaecker called the Nazi defeat Germany’s “day of liberation” in a speech marking the 40th anniversary of the war’s end.

Policemen, firefighters and medical staff stand in front of the hospital after a doctor was stabbed to death at the Schlosspark-Klinik in western Berlin neighbourhood of Charlottenburg, yesterday.

Ukraine says Russia returned ships in bad conditionREUTERS KIEV

Ukrainian naval ships, captured by Russia last November and released on Tuesday to be returned to Ukraine, are in very poor condition and cannot move independently, the commander of Ukraine’s navy said yesterday.

Russia seized three ships in the Kerch Strait last year after opening fire on them and wounding several sailors. Moscow said the ships — two small Ukrainian armoured

artillery vessels and a tug boat - had illegally entered its terri-torial waters. Kiev denied that.

The dispute has caused friction between Moscow and the West, which has backed the Ukrainian position that the ships should not have been held.

The Kerch strait, which sep-arates mainland Russia from Crimea, is the only outlet from the Azov Sea, where Ukraine has major cities and ports, and Ukraine says it cannot be denied access.

Ukrainian navy chief Vice

Admiral Ihor Voronchenko told Ukrainian television’s ‘4th channel’ the ships had not yet reached Ukrainian territorial waters because they were being towed so slowly.

“They do not go on their own. The Russians ruined them — even took off lamps, power outlets and toilets. We will show the whole world the Russian bar-barism towards them.”

President Volodymyr Zel-enskiy is due to greet the ships in the port of Ochakiv in the southern Mykolayiv region.

Moscow returned the sailors who had been on board the ships to Ukraine in September as part of a prisoner exchange.

The release of the ships took place ahead of a four-way peace summit on eastern Ukraine set for December 9 in Paris.

The leaders of France, Germany, Russia and Ukraine will meet in an attempt to advance efforts for a peaceful resolution to the conflict that has killed more than 13,000 people in five years.

Kosovo charges two people with terror offencesAP PRISTINA

Kosovo prosecutors have filed terrorism charges against two people suspected of supporting or fighting with the IS group in Syria.

A prosecutors’ statement said they had accused a woman, identified only as FZ, as fighting with the IS group in Syria. She was among 110 Kosovo citizens repatriated from Syria in April.

A man identified as F Ll was accused yesteray of using his Facebook page to encourage people to join terror groups, downloading hate speeches from IS and hailing a recent murderous attack in Sri Lanka.

If convicted, the woman could face a prison sentence of more than 15 years and the man up to five years.

Putin predicts more exits from EU by 2028ANATOLIA MOSCOW

Russian President Vladimir Putin claimed yesterday that some Eastern European countries can leave the EU by 2028, when they stop receiving donations and grants and start paying them back.

Speaking at a plenary meeting of a capital investment forum in Moscow, Putin com-pared the EU with former Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) in terms of economic problems and political administration.

“At the turn of 2028, some

Eastern European countries will reach a level of economic devel-opment when they will no longer be recipients of grants and various types of support from the European budget, but will have to pay as the UK does.

“And I’m not sure if they will not have the same thoughts as the UK has today (on withdrawal from the EU),” he said.

There are currently contra-dictions around the tax allo-cation in the EU, as the signif-icant part of taxes collected in the advanced countries goes for the support of economically weak states, Putin added.

Responding to a question on

whether the crisis that preceded the collapse of the USSR can be compared to the current internal difficulties of the EU, Putin said Russia is interested in preserving its biggest business partner, the EU, because the results of the fall of the Soviet Union were “worse than the most negative expectations”.

As for the political adminis-tration, the president said the number of decisions adopted by the EU administration and binding all EU countries is higher than the number of decisions taken by the Supreme Soviet of the USSR and binding the Soviet republics.

17THURSDAY 21 NOVEMBER 2019 AMERICAS

Navy retaliating against SEAL helped by TrumpAP SAN DIEGO

A Navy SEAL whose rank was restored by President Donald Trump after being convicted of posing with a dead body was summoned to appear before Navy leaders, and his attorney said they are trying to remove him from the elite force in retaliation for Trump’s actions.

Attorney Timothy Parlatore said the Navy is holding a review board proceeding to remove Special Warfare Operations Chief Edward Gallagher’s Trident pin,

which designates him as a SEAL.Parlatore filed an inspector

general’s complaint on Tuesday accusing Naval Special Warfare commander, Rear Adm Collin Green, of insubordination for defying Trump.

“What I’m hearing is that the rear admiral said very disparaging comments about the president and stated his disagreement with the president’s actions and said therefore I want to move forward in removing his Trident,” Par-latore said.

Naval Special Warfare spokes-woman, Capt Tamara Lawrence,

said in a statement that Green “remains focused on delivering a capable, ready, and lethal mar-itime special operations force in support of national security objec-tives, which includes assessing the suitability of any member of his force via administrative processes.”

Trump on Friday ordered a promotion for Gallagher, the Navy SEAL convicted of posing with a dead IS captive in Iraq in 2017. Gal-lagher was in line for a promotion before he was prosecuted, but he lost that and was reduced in rank after the conviction.

Last month Adm Mike Gilday, the US chief of naval operations, denied a request for clemency for Gallagher and upheld a military jury’s sentence that reduced his rank by one step.

Parlatore said then that ruling would cost Gallagher up to $200,000 in retirement funds because of his loss of rank from a chief petty officer to a 1st class petty officer.

Gallagher was accused of killing the wounded IS captive in his care in Iraq in 2017 and shooting at civilians but ultimately was acquitted of those charges.

Michelle Obama, Lady Gaga, J Lo to join Oprah on wellness tourAP NEW YORK

Oprah Winfrey’s going on tour, and she’s bringing a rock star line-up with her, including former first lady Michelle Obama and Grammy - and Oscar-winner Lady Gaga.

Live Nation announced that Winfrey’s wellness arena tour with WW (Weight Watchers Reimagined) — dubbed “Oprah’s 2020 Vision: Your Life in Focus” — will also include guest appearances by Jennifer Lopez, Dwayne Johnson, Amy Schumer, Tina Fey, Tracee Ellis Ross and Kate Hudson.

On the tour, Winfrey will hold one-on-one conversations with the superstars, the first with Lady Gaga on January 4, 2020, in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

The tour will also visit St. Paul, Minnesota (Fey); Char-lotte, North Carolina (Schumer); Atlanta (Johnson); Brooklyn, New York (Obama); Dallas (Ellis Ross); San Fran-cisco (Hudson); and Los Angeles (Lopez).

Winfrey will wrap up the tour on March 7 in Denver with best friend Gayle King.

Brazil seeks arrest of Paraguay’s CartesAP RIO DE JANEIRO

Brazilian police are seeking the arrest of former president Horacio Cartes of Paraguay as part of an investigation into money laundering.

On Tuesday, Brazilian authorities alleged Cartes pro-vided $500,000 to a criminal organisation at the request of Dario Messer, a Brazilian asso-ciate who was then a fugitive

facing corruption charges, pros-ecutors told reporters.

Messer informed Cartes that he needed the funds to pay for legal fees and “it was shown that money was in fact made available,” prosecutor José Augusto Vagos said.

Brazil will seek Cartes’ extra-dition, the federal police said in an e-mail. Authorities said earlier they had asked Interpol to put out a red notice for the arrest of Cartes. Interpol didn’t respond to

a request for information.The former president

remains in Paraguay and is “at ease because he had no com-mercial ties to Dario Messer,” his lawyer, Carlos Palacios, said.

Earlier this year, Brazilian police arrested Messer, the alleged leader of a group of Bra-zilian illicit money changers who delivered bribes as part of the “Car Wash” kickback scheme, the biggest corruption scandal in Brazil’s history.

Police officers are seen outside the house of Paraguay’s former President Horacio Cartes after a Brazilian judge issued an arrest warrant for Cartes, in Asuncion, Paraguay, yesterday.

Court urged to block another$3.6bn in border wall fundsBLOOMBERG WASHINGTON

Environmental and political activists are back in court in an effort to persuade a federal judge to block $3.6bn in border wall funding from the Defense Department that President Donald Trump made available by declaring a national emer-gency in February.

The Sierra Club and the Southern Border Communities Coalition plan to ask US District Judge Haywood Gilliam today to rule that Trump and the Defense Department broke the law by using a purported national emergency as an “end-run” around Congress’s refusal to fund the projects.

The same judge earlier this year prohibited the use of $2.5bn for construction of parts of the wall in California, Arizona and New Mexico. The US Supreme Court stepped in, however, and allowed construction to proceed while the administration appealed the judge’s ruling.

The $3.6bn was made available through a different pro-cedure and Gilliam had declined to block the use of those funds in May because the administration hadn’t yet disclosed what it planned to do with the money. According to the American Civil

Liberties Union, which is arguing the case on behalf of the two organisations, construction using the $3.6bn will start as soon as Friday.

“To fund the border wall, defendants are stripping billions of dollars from military con-struction projects that DoD pre-viously told Congress were nec-essary to support service-members and military missions,” according to the organisations.

The fight over the wall funding caused a 35-day partial shutdown of the government that was resolved when Con-gress approved $1.375bn for the project that Trump has made a key goal of his presidency. Trump declared a national emergency at the southern border in February that required the use of military construction funds.

The Sierra Club and SBCC argued that US law under which Trump declared the emergency doesn’t authorise the use mil-itary funds for civilian law enforcement purposes.

The law only allows the president to use money that was approved for military con-struction projects to fund a declared war or a national emergency that requires the use of the armed forces, according to the organisations.

US diplomat says he followed Trump orders on UkraineREUTERS WASHINGTON

A senior US diplomat said yesterday that President Donald Trump expressly ordered him and others to help a pressure campaign against Ukraine, and gave testimony in the impeachment inquiry that for the first time put the US secretary of state and vice-president at the heart of the controversy.

Gordon Sondland, the US ambassador to the European Union, said he “followed the president’s orders” to work with Trump’s personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani to push Ukraine to carry out two investigations that would benefit Trump politically as he runs for re-election in November 2020.

Sondland’s testimony was among the most significant in the four days of public hearings in the Democratic-led House of Repre-sentatives impeachment inquiry that has captivated Washington and threatens the presidency of Trump, a Republican.

The ambassador, a wealthy hotel entrepreneur and Trump donor, detailed Trump’s active participation in the Ukraine con-troversy. Sondland depicted Sec-retary of State Mike Pompeo as actively engaged in the efforts to get Ukraine to carry out the investigations, including one tar-geting Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden, and described Vice President Mike Pence as aware of the efforts.

Going much further in describing the broad involvement of administration officials than he did in prior tes-timony behind closed doors, Sondland also made clear that

he was a reluctant participant in the pressure campaign on Ukraine and that he personally opposed Trump’s withholding of US security aid.

“Everyone was in the loop. It was no secret,” Sondland said.

Testifying to the House Intel-ligence Committee, Sondland said he told Pence that a freeze ordered by Trump of $391m in security aid to Ukraine appeared to be part of the pressure cam-paign. The aid was approved by Congress to help Ukraine fight Russia-backed separatists. In a statement, Pence’s chief of staff denied that any such conver-sation occurred.

Trump in a July 25 phone call asked Ukrainian President Volo-dymyr Zelenskiy to carry out two investigations. One involved Biden and his son Hunter, who had worked for Ukrainian energy company Burisma. The other involved a debunked conspiracy theory promoted by some Trump allies that Ukraine, not Russia, interfered in the 2016 US election.

Democrats accuse Trump of abusing his power by using the security assistance and an offer to Zelenskiy of a prestigious visit to the White House as leverage to pressure a vulnerable US ally to dig up dirt on domestic political rivals.

Sondland described Trump in May telling him along with

Energy Secretary Rick Perry and then-US special envoy to Ukraine Kurt Volker to work with Giuliani — the former New York mayor who held no US gov-ernment job — on Ukraine policy.

“We did not want to work with Mr Giuliani. Simply put, we played the hand we were dealt. We all understood that if we refused to work with Mr. Giuliani, we would lose an important opportunity to cement relations between the United States and Ukraine. So we followed the president’s orders,” Sondland said.

Sondland said the three worked “at the express direction of the president of the United States” with Giuliani, who at the time was actively trying to get Ukraine to conduct the politically motivated investigations.

The efforts by Giuliani to get Zelenskiy to investigate the Bidens “were a quid pro quo for arranging a White House visit” for the Ukrainian leader, Sondland said, using a Latin term meaning to exchange a favour for another favour.

Trump has said he did nothing wrong in the Ukraine matter and specifically denied any quid pro quo. Yesterday, the president said he does not know Sondland - his own appointee - well but he seems like a “nice guy.”

Biden, the former vice-pres-ident, is a leading candidate for the Democratic nomination to face Trump in the November 2020 presidential election. Trump has accused Biden of cor-ruption without offering evi-dence. Biden has denied any wrongdoing.

The investigation could lead

the House to approve formal charges against Trump — called articles of impeachment — that would be sent to the Republican-controlled Senate for a trial on whether to remove him from office.

Few Republican senators have broken with Trump.

The committee’s top Repub-lican, Devin Nunes, accused Democrats of waging an “impeachment crusade” against Trump.

“They know exactly what kind of damage they’re inflicting on this nation. But they’ve passed the point of no return,” Nunes said.

Sondland’s testimony cast more light on the role of Pompeo, a close Trump ally who has declined to defend State Department witnesses who have been attacked by Trump and other Republicans for cooper-ating with the impeachment inquiry.

Sondland provided corre-spondence showing he and Pompeo communicated about his effort to get Zelenskiy to commit to undertake investiga-tions as a way to free up the security aid, which was provided in September after the contro-versy had become public.

“All good. You’re doing great

work; keep banging away,” Pompeo told Sondland in early September, according to email correspondence cited in his testimony.

Sondland said even as late as Septembver 24, the day the House launched its impeachment inquiry, Pompeo was directing Volker to speak with Giuliani.

Sondland said he told Pence in September “that I had con-cerns that the delay in aid had become tied to the issue of investigations.”

“The vice-president nodded, he heard what I said, and that was pretty much it,” Sondland testified.

US Ambassador to the European Union, Gordon Sondland (centre), arrives to testify during the House Intelligence Committee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, yesterday.

President Trump said that he does not know Sondland — his own appointee — well but he seems like a “nice guy”.

Michigan man faces murder trial for allegedly poisoning wife’s cereal

AP/DAVISON

A Michigan man accused of killing his wife by spiking her cereal with heroin has been ordered to face trial on a murder charge.

Judge Christopher Odette found enough evidence to send Jason Harris to trial after a multiday hearing. The medical examiner had classified Christina Ann-Thompson Harris’ 2014 death as an accidental overdose. But investigators now believe she was poisoned at their home in Davison, 100km north of Detroit.

Jason Harris’ co-workers said he had been looking for a hit man. David Groshong said Harris approached him for drugs so his wife “would go to sleep and quit nagging.”

Harris has pleaded not guilty. A woman moved into his home two months after Christina’s death. Harris also collected $120,000 in life insurance payments.

18 THURSDAY 21 NOVEMBER 2019AMERICAS

Human rights situation in Nicaragua ‘critical’: OASREUTERS MANAGUA

The Organization of American States (OAS) said that Nicaragua was experiencing a “critical human rights situation” that had upset the country’s constitutional order, following President Daniel Ortega’s crackdown on oppo-nents.

Major demonstrations last year left some 300 people dead. Pro-tests — including two hunger strikes by mothers of detained activists — have started up again in recent days, leading to clashes

with Ortega supporters and arrests.The report by a commission

of the Washington-based OAS followed United Nations crit-icism earlier in the day of the arrest of 16 anti-government protesters on charges it said

seemed “trumped-up.”The OAS recommended a

special session of its general assembly be convened immedi-ately to review affairs in the country.

“It is clear that Nicaragua is experiencing a critical human rights situation that urgently demands the attention of the Inter-American community and the world at large,” the OAS said.

The Nicaraguan government did not immediately respond to a request for comment. It has previously dismissed the cre-ation of the OAS commission,

viewing it as an attempt to interfere in its affairs.

On Monday, Nicaraguan authorities said the 16 detainees were suspected of planning ter-rorist attacks in the Central American country.

Those detained include prominent student protesters such as Nicaraguan and Belgian national Amaya Coppens, who has been arrested previously.

Rupert Colville, a spokesman in Geneva for the UN High Com-missioner for Human Rights, told reporters the arrests looked like an attempt to silence criticism of

the Nicaraguan government.“We are very concerned that

these apparently trumped-up charges may constitute a renewed attempt to stifle dissent,” said Colville.

He also urged the gov-ernment to respect the rights of a separate group of hunger strikers in Managua’s cathedral.

The Roman Catholic Church on Monday accused groups linked to the government of beating a priest and violently taking control of the cathedral.

“We condemn these acts of desecration, harassment and

intimidation, which are not con-tributing to the peace and sta-bility of the country,” the Church said in a statement.

On Monday, seven mothers of people detained earlier by authorities had said they would begin a hunger strike in the cathedral to demand the release of their children before Christmas.

Colville said everyone who may have been “arbitrarily detained” in the country should be released. “The government must end the persistent repression of dissent and the ongoing pattern of arbitrary arrests”.

Morales blames oppn for 30 deaths in BoliviaANATOLIA ANKARA

Former President Evo Morales held the opposition that took charge of the country after his ouster is responsible for civilian casualties during protests since he left Bolivia.

“The dictatorship of (self-proclaimed interim President Jeanine) Anez, (Opposition leader Luis Fernando) Camacho and (Former President Carlos) Mesa has already caused 30 deaths and dozens of wounded with repression by the police and armed forces,” Morales tweeted yesterday.

He urged the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights and the UN to denounce and deter the “massacre of indig-enous brothers who ask for peace, democracy and respect for life on the streets.”

On Tuesday, Morales pro-testers blocked access to a gas plant near the capital of La Paz, cutting off the fuel supply.

Police and military forces crackdown on protesters and at least three people died and 30

were wounded during the confrontation, according to an ombuds-man’s office in Bolivia.

Morales said the death toll from political unrest rose to at least 30, not 26, as several other reports claim.

Turmoil in Bolivia began in October, when the indigenous leader Morales won a fourth term as president. He f a c e d i m m e d i a t e resistance from oppo-sition parties that chal-lenged election results. Protesters took to the streets claiming the ballot was rigged.

After weeks of upheaval, Morales resigned under military pressure and moved to Mexico, where he was offered political asylum.

The conservative Anez, who had been serving as a senator at the time, then proclaimed herself interim president.

Public demonstrations have yet to subside since Morales left the country, however, with

mostly rural and indigenous pro-Morales supporters taking to the streets in numerous cites including La Paz as well as Sacaba and Cochabamba.

Morales’s backers insist the ouster of the elected former president was a coup.

Also yesteday, morales said from asylum in Mexico that he

wanted to return to Bolivia, and would help in dialogue and efforts to restore peace if he were allowed to do so.

Morales said at a news con-ference that he was Bolivia’s “president-elect,” a reference to his claim to have won the October 20 vote despite allega-tions of fraud.

Former Bolivian President Evo Morales holding a news conference, in Mexico City, yesterday.

The OAS recommended a special session of its general assembly be convened immediately to review affairs in the country.

Body of missing woman found in eastern Missouri AP ST LOUIS

A body found during a search in a remote area of eastern Missouri was positively identified as that of a St Louis County woman who disappeared this month, author-ities said yesterday.

Jennifer Rothwell’s body was found on Monday night about 72km northwest of her home, St Louis County police said. Roth-well’s husband, Beau Rothwell, 28, is jailed without bond on charges of second-degree murder and evidence tampering.

Police said he provided information that helped lead them to the area near Troy, Mis-souri, where the body was found.

Authorities had been searching since last week for Jennifer Rothwell, a chemical engineer, though she was pre-sumed dead.

Beau Rothwell was spotted on November 11 on video pur-chasing cleaning products, including bleach, carpet cleaner

and gloves, according to a police probable cause statement. His wife was reported missing on November 12, and her car was found abandoned less than 3.2km from their home later that day.

Beau Rothwell was arrested on November 13 after a search of the couple’s home, the same day police announced the case was being investigated as a homicide. Detectives who searched the home found a wet carpet soaked with bleach and large areas of blood, some of which got into the underlying carpet pad, the probable cause statement said.

Beau and Jennifer Rothwell received chemical engineering degrees from the University of Missouri-Columbia in 2013. They married in 2015 in St Louis County.

KMOV-TV reported that Jen-nifer Rothwell’s mother, Robin von Hausen, said her daughter had just moved to western St Louis County with her husband and worked at DuPont.

19THURSDAY 21 NOVEMBER 2019 HOME

CROSSWORD MALL ROYAL PLAZA

Ooredoo launches new Digital Flexi PacksTHE PENINSULA/DOHA

Qatar’s leading telecommunications company yesterday announced the launch of its Digital Flexi Packs. Flexi Packs offer the lowest rates in the market in their segment, free endless data from the QR20 pack and above, and much more. Customers can choose a Flexi Pack starting from QR5 and up to QR200 and get great rates on calls, SMS and data.

QR20 packs and above give customers free endless data, new cheaper out-of-bundle rates for local and international calls and data, in addition to a points selection system to manage spending for each service via the Ooredoo app, Customers can choose a Flexi Pack with a set number of points, then choose how many points they want to allocate each to local calls, interna-

tional calls, SMS and data via the Ooredoo App. Each Flexi Pack has a different number of

points and allowances, starting from 30 points valid for one day with the QR5 pack and up to 3,100 points valid for 30 days with the QR200

pack. If data is fully consumed, customers who have selected the QR20 pack or above can benefit from endless Internet at reduced speed and stay connected until pack renewal.

Speaking of the versatility and value of Flexi Packs, Manar Khalifa Al Muraikhi – Director PR and Corporate Communications at Ooredoo – said: “We’re committed to making sure we have products and services to suit the daily needs of our customers. Our Flexi Packs offer phenomenal value and unrivalled flexibility, meaning cus-tomers get a great deal for their money and the freedom to use their data, calls and SMS allow-ances however they choose.”

Customers can buy Flexi Packs online at www.ooredoo.qa and can also subscribe by dialling *121# or via the Ooredoo App.

QNL hosts training program for conservation experts from IraqTHE PENINSULA DOHA

Qatar National Library, in collabo-ration with the Ministry of Culture and Sports, recently concluded an intensive training program for a delegation of conservation specialists from the Republic of Iraq. The sessions focused on preserving documentary heritage in libraries and cultural institutions in the Middle East.

The training, which was also attended by library specialists from the Ministry of Culture and Sports, was hosted by the Library in its role as the International Federation of Library Associations and Institu-tions (IFLA) Regional Preservation and Conservation Center (PAC) for Arab Countries and the Middle East.

Experts from the Library shared best practices during a series of practical sessions focusing on the science of conserving and preserving the manuscripts and collections of heritage libraries. Participants also got the chance to experiment with

the latest equipment and technol-ogies in the Library’s Conservation Lab, which are used in the resto-ration, maintenance and study of such collections.

Stephane Ipert, Preservation and Conservation Manager at the Library, said: “We continue to

provide experts from the wider region with the latest skills and knowledge to preserve valuable her-itage material in their institutions. It was a pleasure to work with Qatar’s Ministry of Culture and Sports to deliver this training program for our colleagues from a number of cul-

tural institutions in Iraq.” “In our role as IFLA’s Regional

Preservation and Conservation Center for the Arab region, we welcome collaboration with insti-tutions in Qatar and beyond to work with us to find sustainable solutions for preserving the rich documentary heritage of this region,” added Ipert.

The training program also included theoretical lectures on the importance of preserving Islamic manuscripts and the digitization of heritage collections; a detailed explanation of digitization proc-esses conducted at the Library; risk management and evaluation in libraries; and the key elements that should be available in the evalu-ation and response plans.

The Library hosted a training program for experts from Jordan in June this year in collaboration with UNESCO Office in Amman, and a training program for a group of Tunisian experts is currently underway in cooperation with Qatar’s Ministry of Culture and Sports.

The sessions focused on preserving documentary heritage in libraries and cultural institutions in the Middle East.

Jack Daniel is a Malayalam movie starring Dileep Pillai and Anju Kurian in prominent roles. It is a drama directed by SL Puram Jayasurya. ... Jack Daniel is not a new or variety one it’s something good.

JACK DANIEL

Aayushmanbhava (2D/Kannada) 2:00pmAkashaganga II (2D/Malayalam) 2:00pmFrozen II (2D/Animation) 2:15, 4:30, 6:30 & 7:15pmSanga Thamizhan (2D/Tamil) 4:30 & 11:30pmPagalpanti (2D/Hindi) 4:00pm21 Bridges (2D/Action) 7:00pmAdithya Varma (2D/Tamil) 8:30 & 11:15pmJack And Daniel (2D/Malayalam) 8:45 & 11:30pmMiracle In Cell No. 7 (2D/Turkish) 9:00pm

Frozen II (2D/Animation) 10:30am, 12:45, 3:00, 5:15 & 7:30pm; Adithya Varma (2D/Tamil) 10:30am, 4:45 & 11:00pm; Pagalpanti (2D/Hindi) 11:30am & 5:30pm21 Bridges (2D/Action) 9:45pm & 12:00pmJack And Daniel (2D/Malayalam) 1:45 & 8:00pmSanga Thamizhan (2D/Tamil) 2:30 & 8:30pm; Akashaganga II (2D/Malayalam) 11:30pm

LANDMARK

AL KHOR

Pagalpanti (2D/Hindi) 1:00, 6:15, 11:15pmAayushmanbhava (2D/Kannada) 3:30pmJack And Daniel (2D/Malayalam) 12:30, 3:15, 6:00, 8:45, 11:30pm & 2:15amAdithya Varma (2D/Tamil) 12:30, 6:15pm & 1:30amAndroid Kunjappan 5.25 (2D/Malayalam) 3:15 & 8:45pmSanga Thamizhan (2D/Tamil) 9:15pmKD (2D/Tamil) 3:30pmAkashaganga II (2D/Malayalam) 12:00am

ASIAN TOWN

ROXY

FLIK Mirqab Mall

21 Bridges (2D/Action) 10:10am, 2:10, 4:10, 6:15, 8:10, 10:20pm & 0:20amAdithya Varma (2D/Tamil) 6:10pmBehind the Trees 11:30pm & 0:35amCharlie’s Angels (2D/Action) 10:25am, 11:40am, 11:55pm & 0:25amFrozen II (2D/Animation) 10;30am, 11:00am, 11:30, 12:40, 1:10, 1:40, 3:20, 3:50, 5:00 , 5:30, 7:40, 9:20, 9:50pmFrozen II (3D/Animation) 2:50 & 7:10pmJack And Daniel (2D/Malayalam) 3:05 & 9:30pmJoker (2D/Crime) 11:10pmLast Christmas (2D/Comedy) 10:30am, 12:35, 2:40, 4:45, 6:55 & 9:00pmMaleficent: Mistress Of Evil (2D/Adventure) 2:00, 4:25 & 6:50pmTerminator: Dark Fate 11:25pm

10 Minutes Gone (2D/Action) 1:30, 1:45, 10:00 & 10:30pm; 21 Bridges (2D/Action) 11:30, 3:15,6:00, 8:00, 7:45, 3:50, 10:00, 10:30 & 11:45pmAdithya Varma (2D/Tamil) 1:30, 3:30, 8:00 & 10:00pmFrozen II (3D/Animation) 10:30am, 11:30am, 12:30, 12:45, 1:30, 3:00, 3:40, 5:00, 5:15, 5:30, 6:00, 6:30, 7:15, 7:30, 8:10, 8:15, 9:30pm; Jack And Daniel (2D/Malayalam) 1:30, 3:20, 7:40 & 11:30pmSanga Thamizhan (2D/Tamil) 10:30am, 12:30, 4:40, 8:40 & 11:00pm; Pagalpanti (2D/Hindi) 10:30am, 12:30, 5:00, 7:00 & 11:30pm

Jack And Daniel (2D/Malayalam) 2:00, 8:45 & 11:30pmAkashaganga II (2D/Malayalam) 2:00pmFrozen II (2D/Animation) 2:15, 4:15, 6:15 & 7:45pmAdithya Varma (2D/Tamil) 8:15 & 11:15pmSanga Thamizhan (2D/Tamil) 4:30pmPagalpanti (2D/Hindi) 4:45pmLast Christmas (2D/Comedy) 7:00pm10 Minutes Gone (2D/Action) 9:45pm21 Bridges (2D/Action) 11:30pm

Sanga Thamizhan (2D/Tamil) 2:15pmKabaddi Kabaddi Kabaddi (2D/Nepali) 2:15pmFrozen II (2D/Animation) 2:00, 4:00, 6:00 & 7:30pmAayushmanbhava (2D/Kannada) 5:00pm 21 Bridges (2D/Action) 8:00pmLast Christmas (2D/Comedy) 9:30pmAdithya Varma (2D/Tamil) 11:15pmBehind The Trees (2D/Horror) 9:45pm10 Minutes Gone (2D/Action) 7:00pmPagalpanti (2D/Hindi) 11:30pmJack And Daniel (2D/Malayalam) 8:45 & 11:30pm

20 THURSDAY 21 NOVEMBER 2019MORNING BREAK

Fire Station houses strong batch of artists in residenceRAYNALD C RIVERA THE PENINSULA

Come June next year, the Doha Fire Station promises a stunning smorgasbord of artworks sure to delight art lovers with a strong batch of new artists in residence who provided a peek into their exciting works in progress yesterday.

A computer engineer and business analyst by trade, Qatari artist Muna Al Bader goes back to her traditions while exploring a fresh take on her artistic style which she has been working on for the past years.

“For the past years, I have worked on a series on tradi-tional wedding ceremony and this year I’m doing similar exploring traditional music and folklore which I express using a single colour which is blue because in my opinion it represents happiness and sadness at the same time as it’s a colour taken from the sky and the sea,” Al Bader told The Peninsula during the Open Studio Night yesterday.

In her murals and paintings, she has experi-mented in coming up with dif-ferent shades and layers of blue in a style which results into emotionally charged works filled with life.

“Being an art is t

in residence will give me opportunity to develop my work. Within the residency, I’m implementing some new works — same colour and theme but executed in a dif-ferent way,” she said.

Winning first place in an art salon when she was starting motivated Al Bader to further her craft taking work-shops and exhibitions from Qatar to as far as Turkey, the UK and France.

Australian Jaser Alagha is another artist in residence who challenges his artistic practice through exploring the mar-riage between digital and physical art.

Having a Communications degree, Alagha’s background is filmmaking but has always done visual art on the side including painting and sculpture and now he is trying to mix animation and painting with focus on memory as theme.

“ I want to explore mem-ories and how they shape us because it’s a field that’s always of interest to me and I’ve always explored it in films I made before, in essays I wrote in university. The idea of memories and what they mean to you is interesting to me. What is real is the one you remember because that’s what

makes you think of who you are,” he said.

He describes the resi-dency, which is his first, as exciting and he finds it great to have a studio space he can access 24/7.

Syrian multidisciplinary artist Suzana Joumaa was of the same view of the advan-tages of having a residency at the Fire Station.

“I’m optimistic because the mix of artists from different backgrounds and ages benefit everyone because the more seasoned artists give their experience and the younger ones provide freshness in this artistic dialogue among

us,” said Joumaa.“I’m a multidisciplinary

artist. I do interior design, printmaking and printing and I would like mix together all the arts that I love in this project, so I will have a func-tional sculpture, a painting, and of course music,” she said.

In its fifth cycle, the Fire Station Artists in Residence program provides a creative outlet for artists to nurture their talents by providing them with access to fully-equipped studios, curatorial guidance, mentorship and a rich port-folio of lectures, workshops and talks. Currently, there are 18 artists in the program.

FROM LEFT: Qatari artist Muna Al Bader, Syrian artist Suzana Joumaa and Australian artist Jaser Alagha during the Open Studio Night held at Fire Station yesterday. PIC: BAHER AMIN/THE PENINSULA

A third of Africa’s tropical flora threatened with extinction: StudyAFP/WASHINGTON

A third of the species of tropical plants in Africa are potentially threatened with extinction, according to a preliminary estimate published yesterday by the journal Science Advances.

The most authoritative list of threatened species is the

famous “Red List” maintained by the International Union for Con-servation of Nature (IUCN).

While this list is relatively complete for mammals and birds, it is full of gaps when it comes to plants, only 10 percent of which have been assessed. These assessments are fastidious and time-consuming, and there

are more than 350,000 plant species in all.

To work around this problem, a team coordinated by a botanist from the French National Research Institute for Sustainable Development, Thomas Couvreur, carried out a computer analysis of the status of more than 22,000 vascular

plant species in tropical Africa.To perform the analysis, they

used information compiled in a database called Rainbio that is maintained by the French Foun-dation for Biodiversity Research.

The result was that 32 percent of the species, or nearly 7,000, were classified as likely or potentially threatened, based

on either of two criteria recog-nized by the IUCN -- a recent reduction in population size or geographical distribution.

The regions found to be most at risk were Ethiopia, the center of Tanzania, the southern Dem-ocratic Republic of Congo and the forests of West Africa.

This rapid method is “a

cost-effective way to initiate the Red List assessment process for a large number of species,” the researchers wrote.

But “the two approaches are complementary. There still needs to be an important international effort to evaluate all the plant species in Africa,” Couvreur said in a statement.

WEATHER TODAY

Courtesy: Qatar Meteorology Department

Minimum Maximum18oC 25oC

HIGH TIDE 00:13 – 11:29 LOW TIDE 04:37 – 19:36

Moderate temperature daytime with scat-

tered clouds and slight dust to blowing

dust at places at times, relatively cold by

night.

FAJRSHOROOK

04. 35 AM05. 55 AM

11. 20 AM02.23 PM

04. 46 PM06. 16 PM

ZUHRASR

MAGHRIBISHA

PRAYER TIMINGS