N E W S

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2014

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Malala became a global icon after she was shot and nearlykilled by the Taleban in Oct 2012 for insisting that girls had aright to an education. In a speech peppered with self-deprecat-ing humour, she used the award ceremony to call not just foreducation but also for fairness and peace. “The so-called worldof adults may understand it, but we children don’t. Why is it thatcountries which we call ‘strong’ are so powerful in creating warsbut so weak in bringing peace?” she said. “Why is it that givingguns is so easy but giving books is so hard? Why is it that mak-ing tanks is so easy, but building schools is so difficult?” Malala,who described herself as the “first recipient of the Nobel PeacePrize who still fights with her younger brothers,” triggeredapplause and also frequent outbursts of laughter during herspeech. But the underlying message was that a world that maysoon be able to send a person to Mars still allows millions tosuffer from “the very old problems of hunger, poverty, injusticeand conflicts.”

Moments after Malala received the prize, a man carrying aMexican flag walked towards her, but was caught by security.The motives of the man, who was later identified as a studentand asylum seeker from Mexico, were unknown. Before the cer-emony, Malala and Satyarthi met with 7,000 Norwegian chil-dren aged between six and 14 in the heart of Oslo. “You havegiven me so much energy,” Malala said. “You might not know

but there are so many girls who cannot go to school, there areso many boys who cannot go to school,” she said. “They havenever dreamed of any iPad, any PlayStation, any Xbox. The onlything that they dream of is a school, a book and a pen.”

Satyarthi, 60, was recognised by the Nobel committee for a35-year battle to free thousands of children from virtual slavelabour. “I refuse to accept that the world is so poor when justone week of global military expenditure is enough to bring allof our children into classrooms,” he said after receiving the prize.

“I refuse to accept that the shackles of slavery can ever be...stronger than the quest for freedom.” Malala was 15 when aTaleban gunman shot her in the head as she travelled on aschool bus in response to her campaign for girls’ education.Although she almost died, she recovered after being flown forextensive surgery in Birmingham, central England. She hasbeen based in the city with her family ever since, continuingboth her education and activism. The pairing of Malala andSatyarthi had the extra symbolism of linking neighbouringcountries that have been in conflict for decades.

After she was named as the winner, Malala said she wantedboth states’ prime ministers to attend the prize-giving ceremonyin Oslo. Although the leaders of the two South Asian archene-mies were not present in Oslo yesterday, Malala expressed opti-mism for her region. “I am... glad that we can stand together andshow the world that an Indian and a Pakistani can be united inpeace and together work for children’s rights,” she said. —AFP

Malala, Satyarthi receive peace Nobel...

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Ahmed Bitawi, the director of the Ramallah hospital,told AFP that Abu Ein “was martyred after being beatenin the chest”. Abbas said his death would not go unan-swered. “We will take the necessary measures after theresults of the investigation into the incident.”

The Israeli army, or IDF, said it was “reviewing the cir-cumstances” of the incident and had proposed a jointinvestigation with the Palestinians. A statement saidIsraeli forces had been confronted with “approximately200 rioters”. “Forces halted the progress of the rioters...using riot dispersal means,” the statement said. It said anIsraeli pathologist would be joining a delegation ofpathologists from Jordan to examine the incident.

The Islamist movement Hamas, the de facto ruler inthe Gaza Strip, issued a statement mourning Abu Ein’sdeath and calling on the West Bank-based PA to ceasesecurity coordination with Israel. “The time has come torally all our forces in facing the criminal Zionist occupa-tion and stop all sorts of security coordination with theoccupation,” a statement said. Hours later, near Ramallah,Israeli troops shot and seriously wounded a 14-year-oldPalestinian in the head during a clash at Jelazoun refugeecamp, Palestinian security officials and medics said. The

officials said the clash erupted in response to the deathof Abu Ein. Shortly before his death, Abu Ein was seen onPalestinian media berating the Israeli army for blockingthe march. “This is the occupation army which terrorisesthe Palestinians. We came to plant trees in our Palestinianland,” he said. “This is the terror of the occupation army,which oppresses our people.” Abu Ein had previouslybeen arrested and imprisoned by Israel. He was extradit-ed from the United States in 1981 over the killing of twoIsraelis in 1979 and sentenced to life in prison, butreleased in 1985 in a prisoner exchange.

Beside his role in the PA monitoring Israeli settle-ments and the separation barrier, Abu Ein was a mem-ber of the Fatah Revolutionary Council and previouslyserved as deputy Palestinian minister for prisoneraffairs. His death follows months of tensions betweenIsraelis and Palestinians and a wave of unrest in theWest Bank and Arab east Jerusalem. Israelis are on edgeafter recent “hit-and-run” car attacks by Palestinians thatkilled five people, as well as an assault last month thatsaw two Palestinians burst into a Jerusalem synagogue,leaving four rabbis and a policeman dead. The tensionshave been heightened by Israeli announcements ofnew settlement construction in east Jerusalem and theWest Bank. — AFP

Palestinian official dies after Israel...

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Time said the virus struck doctors and nurses inunprecedented numbers, “wiping out a public-healthinfrastructure that was weak in the first place.” NinaPham, a Texas nurse who contracted Ebola while caringfor the first patient diagnosed with the killer virus on USsoil, said she was delighted to be part of the accolade.“So honored to be a part of @Time Magazine’s POY!” shetweeted. Pham and another nurse at Texas HealthPresbyterian Hospital in Dallas became infected withEbola while caring for Thomas Eric Duncan, who diedon Oct 8. Both nurses survived.

Duncan was diagnosed with the disease after travel-ling from his homeland Liberia to the United States,where he was initially sent home from hospital. OnTuesday, the United Nations’ Ebola czar, David Nabarro,welcomed widespread progress in the fight against thedeadly virus, but warned the outbreak was still surging

in western Sierra Leone and northern Guinea. He saidmore foreign health workers and specialists were need-ed in areas where the disease was still spreading quick-ly, as were more treatment units and beds.

Gibbs said governments were not equipped torespond to the crisis, the World Health Organization wasin denial and snarled in red tape, and first responderswere accused of crying wolf.

“This was a test of the world’s ability to respond topotential pandemics, and it did not go well. “It exposedcorruption in African governments along with compla-cency in Western capitals and jealousy among compet-ing bureaucrats,” Gibbs wrote. She paid tribute to thepeople in the field, those sent by charities such asDoctors Without Borders, as well as local doctors andnurses, ambulance drivers and burial teams. “Ebola is awar, and a warning. The global health system isnowhere close to strong enough to keep us safe frominfectious disease,” wrote Gibbs. —AFP

Time mag names Ebola fighters...

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in Libya” and urged “all Libyan parties to support legiti-macy represented by the elected parliament”.

In contrast to the allegations of Qatari support forIslamists in Libya, UAE warplanes in August carried outstrikes against them from neighbouring Egypt. Since Qatar’sregional and international influence rose in the late 1990s,the energy-rich US ally has been regularly accused of sup-porting or financing insurgent movements.

Experts said Qatar is not expected to sever ties withIslamists, who still have supporters within the Arab world.But it could limit the impact of the support on its politicaland economic interests, as well as its sporting ambitions. Fornow, Qatar ’s policy does not seem to have radicallychanged. This is reflected by Doha-based Al-Jazeera newschannel, whose editorial line still appears to sympathisewith Islamists. “Qatar could have made formal concessionsto save the summit and joined (official) statements. But thisdoes not (necessarily) reflect a change in its policy,” a Gulfofficial told AFP on condition of anonymity. “The coming

months will tell whether Qatar has really changed its poli-cies, or if it is unwilling, or maybe unable, to change,” he said.

Badrkhan said the concessions made at the summit donot mean that Qatar will break its relationship with Islamists.But Doha “does not want its ties with political Islam toundermine its regional and international relations, as it hasbig political and sporting ambitions that have seen set-backs,” he said, referring to a campaign of criticism sparkedby Qatar’s hosting of the 2022 World Cup. Qatar also holdsthe world’s third-largest natural gas reserves.

Doha has already asked several Islamist leaders to leaveand the Muslim Brotherhood’s spiritual guide Sheikh Yusufal-Qaradawi, whose speeches have angered the UAE, nolonger appears on Al-Jazeera, where he was a frequentguest. But Doha is still providing shelter for many others,especially those who escaped a crackdown on theBrotherhood in Egypt. Kuwaiti political analyst Ayed Al-Manaa said Qatar “chose to remain within the GCC where ithas interests”. “But we must not quickly draw conclusions”because “Egypt must also make steps towards Qatar,” hesaid. — AFP

Qatar takes pragmatic path in Gulf ties

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the meeting focused on the sufferings of the smallinvestors on the bourse and that “we will exert all effortsto search for efficient solutions and will not leave themalone”. He also hoped that government’s pledges duringthe meeting will be reflected on the ground to resolveproblems facing the bourse.

Ghanem called for activating privatization, the Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) program and the so-called ini-tiatives agency to become good alternatives for thedependence on oil.

He said the meeting reviewed a number of legisla-tions and measures that must be introduced to improvethe Kuwaiti bourse. Ghanem said that all Gulf bourseshave dropped under the influence of global markets

and the fall in oil prices, but this does not mean leavingsmall investors without help. He said the governmentpromised to take a series of measures and steps to recti-fy the situation and that the Assembly will monitor theirimplementation.

KIA Director General Bader Al-Saad, whose authoritymanages a large government fund in the bourse, saidthat KIA follows a prudent investment policy so that “wedo not cause any losses to public funds”. Some dealerssaid yesterday that the bourse’s rebound is attributed tothe activity of the KIA fund. Head of the financial andeconomic affairs committee MP Faisal Al-Shaye praisedthe government’s response on the issues raised by MPsduring the meeting. He said the meeting discussed thestatus of market makers in the bourse and the role ofgovernment-run funds and portfolios.

KSE rebounds after Assembly, govt meet

TEHRAN: Man’s best friend is seen as anything but in Iran,where city workers gun down strays and conservatives viewpet dogs as a corrupting Western influence. But in a rare ani-mal shelter in the countryside west of Tehran, hundreds oflucky pups have found mercy, and a growing number ofIranians are learning to love them. Islamic tradition holds catsin high esteem, and in much of the Muslim world people leavefood out for feral felines. Stray dogs, on the other hand, areoften seen as a public nuisance - overgrown rats with wag-ging tails.

In Iran’s Islamic republic, dog ownership is seen as a perni-cious Western import, and conservative lawmakers havecalled for it to be banned or at least heavily restricted, in linewith other regulations governing Western music and fashion.But outside Tehran, more than 500 dogs find care and affec-tion at the Vafa Animal Shelter, which was established throughan endowment in 2004 and is the country’s only licensed ani-mal refuge. “In our society, dogs are the most vulnerable ani-mals,” said Ali Sani, the shelter’s manager. “The dogs that arebrought here used to be in urban environments and werestruggling with problems and needed help.”

The shelter rescues stray dogs, who otherwise risk beingshot and disposed of by municipal workers. But pet dogsdon’t have it much better. Dog-walking in public is banned, asis allowing dogs to stick their heads out of car windows.Around 30 lawmakers have signed onto a draft bill to punishdog walkers with up to $3,000 in fines and 74 lashes, but asimilar previous attempt failed. The dispute over dogs is partof a culture war in Iran that dates back to the revolution in1979 that toppled the pro-Western shah. Conservatives havesought to impose their version of Islam on society and rid it of

Western influence. But their efforts have met with resistance,particularly from younger, more urban and more well-offIranians - the dog owner demographic - who helped electPresident Hassan Rouhani, a relative moderate, last year.

“Dog owners sometimes bring them to public, in buses forexample, or let the dog stick its head out of a car window toshow it to others. That is unacceptable,” said MohammadIsmail Kowsari, one of the parliamentarians supporting stifferpenalties. “What made us consider drawing up such a bill wasthe increasing number of those who exhibit dogs by walkingthem in public.”

Kowsari added, however, that the mere ownership of a dogwould not be criminalized, as long as it is kept indoors. Theshelter has steered clear of the debate, and does not promotedog-walking. Sani said authorities have generally been sup-portive of the shelter’s work, in part because it gathers upstrays and spays and neuters them. Homa Rashid, a doggroomer, said the shelter relies on volunteers and privatedonors - which can be a hard sell at a time of crippling inter-national sanctions over Tehran’s nuclear program. “We try toconvince people to donate, but unfortunately talking theminto helping this shelter is a very difficult job, because most ofthem say as long as there are human beings that need help,why should they help dogs?”

The shelter also struggles to find homes for dogs, with onlyaround six being adopted each month. Iranians, like manyother prospective dog owners, prefer purebreds to strays,something the shelter is trying to change. “We want to showpeople that those homeless dogs that they see in streets andalleyways can be our best friends,” said Afsaneh Zarrin, who isin charge of adoptions. —AP

Iran’s unwelcome dogs

find care at rare shelter

HASHTGERD, Iran: In this Dec 5, 2014 photo, Iranian volunteers Roya Ahmadi (left) and Asal Moghaddamrelease dogs from their cages to feed them at the Vafa Animal Shelter. — AP