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Pakistan expats fret over slow quake relief
Pakistan expats fret over slow quake relief Nissar Hoath / 27 September 2013 UAE-based expatriates from the Pakistan province of Balochistan, which was devastated by a strong earthquake on September 24, have expressed their anger over delayed relief supplies to affected areas. Most of the people from the earthquake-affected areas who spoke to Khaleej Times were furious that no efforts or initiatives to launch relief campaigns are being taken by the Pakistan Embassy, community organisations and schools in the UAE. “Normally, whenever there is a natural disaster, the entire community rises up to send relief assistance and funds to the affected people. But this time the entire community, including Pakistani diplomatic missions, is sleeping,” said Haji Mohammed Saleem from Awaran, which was most affected area. He added that he and his relatives lost many family members and their properties, including domestic animals in the quake in the Labash and Malar villages of Awaran, which is about 300km from Karachi. A resident of Malar, Waheed Baloch, said even the electronic media of Pakistan is least bothered about the earthquake. “Of all the over-24 big TV channels, only one was on the ground and covering the pain of our people during grieving condition. Throughout these days since Tuesday, the channels were only running tickers about the quake and were busy highlighting the US visit of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and of other celebrities,” he said. According to him all the figures about casualties and property damages released by the media were wrong and far below. “The earthquake was so strong that it was felt even in remote areas of Western Balochistan in Iran and in India and caused an island to surface from the sea-bed in Gwadar. In Awaran alone, we have buried more than 300 people. But the media says only 400 people have died and another 400 injured. We have more 600 fatalities and over 1,000 injuries in addition to a number of villages being totally destroyed and thousands of people living under the open skies,” he added. Bashir Ahmed Al Balushi, an Omani originally from the Makkorran coast of Balochistan, was also furious about the delay in relief assistance. “Can you believe, only an army convoy with very little supply reached an affected area that too after 24 hours of the deadly quake and only 30 doctors and 300 blankets were despatched for the entire affected areas,” he added. Abdul Qadir Ismail, another expatriate resident, said he was shocked to see the silence of the Pakistani community in the region over this disaster. “A small incident in other areas of Pakistan sees the Pakistani community in the world rising to the occasion and sending relief assistance without loss of time. But this time I’m shocked that even the international community and charity organisations have not moved yet,” he said. He said one of his relatives in Labash, Awaran, Haji Yaqoub lost all his 10 family members, and his properties were also destroyed. “We don’t expect any support from the government of any other organisation. We here in the Gulf will send money to our people to help rebuild their houses and treat the injured. We will have our own relief fund formed by the Baloch community living here and elsewhere in the world as well as in Balochistan,” he added. — nissar@khaleejtimes.com Continue reading
Iran sees deal in year in historic US talks
Iran sees deal in year in historic US talks (AFP) / 27 September 2013 Iran said on Thursday it hoped to seal a deal on its nuclear program within a year as its foreign minister held historic talks with US Secretary of State John Kerry. Kerry shook hands and met briefly one-on-one with a smiling Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif on the sidelines of the United Nations in one of the foes’ highest-level encounters since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. The top US diplomat pulled his Iranian counterpart aside saying “shall we talk for a few moments” after a meeting between Iran and six world powers that aimed to revive long-stalled negotiations over Tehran’s disputed nuclear program, a US official said. They met alone with no note-takers for about 30 minutes. The US-educated Zarif, tapped by new moderate President Hassan Rohani to lead the nuclear dossier, said the talks agreed to “jumpstart” work on a deal and “move towards finalising it, hopefully, within a year’s time.” “I thought I was too ambitious, bordering on naivete, but I saw that some of my colleagues were even more ambitious and wanted to move faster,” Zarif told a think tank forum as he joined Rohani on one of a slew of appearances during his week in New York. Kerry said he and his counterparts from the great powers contact group found Zarif’s 20-minute presentation “very different in tone, and very different in the vision that he held out with respect to the possibilities in the future.” Nuclear talks will resume on October 15 and 16 in Geneva, boosting hopes Iran will bring tangible proposals to the table on how to move forward as the West seeks to rein in its atomic programme. It was an extraordinary contact between the two countries that have had no diplomatic relations since 1980, when Iranian students stormed the US embassy in Tehran and held hostages for 444 days after the revolution that toppled the pro-Western shah. It is the first time that ministers of the two countries have sat together at talks on Iran’s nuclear programme, which Tehran says is for peaceful purposes but Western officials fear could be a covert grab for an atomic bomb. Rohani swept to power in June elections on promises to ease the nuclear-related tensions with the West, which have led to tough sanctions that have caused severe economic pain in Iran. Rouhani, a moderate cleric who replaced the firebrand Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, said Iran was committed to negotiate in “good faith.” “We are fully prepared to seriously engage in the process toward a negotiated and mutually agreeable settlement and do so in good faith and with a business-like mind,” Rohani told the think tank forum. Kerry pledged to remain cautious, saying “there’s a lot of work to be done” with plenty of questions still remaining about Iran’s nuclear program. “Needless to say one meeting and a change in tone, which was welcome, doesn’t answer those questions yet,” Kerry said. But speaking separately to CBS News, Kerry said Iranian hopes for a quick deal — and relief of sanctions — were possible. Asked about Rouhani’s earlier statement that a deal could take place in six months, Kerry said: “It’s possible to have a deal sooner than that depending on how forthcoming and clear Iran is prepared to be.” In an address to a UN conference on disarmament, Rohani called on Israel to sign the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. Israel is widely believed to have a nuclear program but does not acknowledge it. “As long as nuclear weapons exist, the risk of their use, threat of use and proliferation persist. The only absolute guarantee is their total elimination,” Rohani said. A State Department official, meanwhile, cautioned that it was early days yet and the “devil is in the details.” Zarif made a “thoughtful presentation” which laid out “their desire to come to an agreement fully implemented within a year’s time,” the official said. Until the teams get “down to work at an expert level to know … what they are willing to do in concrete terms, we have a good atmosphere, but we don’t have a result yet,” the official added. EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton organised the talks with Zarif, which involved the foreign ministers of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council — Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States — as well as Germany. Continue reading
Dh15.8b housing loans, projects for Abu Dhabi
Dh15.8b housing loans, projects for Abu Dhabi (Wam) / 26 September 2013 The Abu Dhabi Executive Council, at a meeting chaired by Gen Shaikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces and Chairman of the Council, on Wednesday approved housing loans and infrastrucrure projects worth Dh15.8 billion. The Council adopted a number of development projects related to infrastructure and social development sectors, and endorsed a new batch of housing loans for citizens. It also discussed advancing work at a number of projects in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, including the nuclear energy project, stressing the importance of such projects and their role in adopting efficient solutions for clean energy. General Shaikh Mohammed bin Zayed addressing the Abu Dhabi Executive Council meeting on Wednesday as Shaikh Hazza bin Zayed Al Nahyan, National Security Advisor, looks on. — Wam — Dh3.1billion payment of housing loans for 1554 beneficiaries: The Council decided to allocate Dh3.1 billion as a new installment of housing loans for 1,554 beneficiaries. The decision clearly illustrates the keenness of the President, His Highness Shaikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, to secure a social environment with high life quality to all citizens. This would help develop a stable upbringing of individuals and their families and furthermore strengthen social cohesion, which is very essential for the development and progress of all nations. The new loans will benefit 689 beneficiaries from Abu Dhabi, 756 from the Eastern Region and 109 beneficiaries from the Western Region. Names of the beneficiaries will be announced later on and they will be notified about the procedures of imbursement in a way that serves their free choice of the designs of their new houses or they may complete their houses that are still under construction. Dh4.3 billion for Al Ain New Hospital Project: As part of the government efforts to improve health and medical services in Al Ain, the Council approved Dh4.3 billion to fund Al Ain new hospital project. Abu Dhabi Health Services Company (Seha) has been assigned to conclude an agreement with a contractor to carry out the project. Upon completion, the hospital will help provide fully integrated medical services and enhance health safety. Besides, it will upgrade the emirate’s status as a scientific hub with distinguished health and social services that could match what we can see in the developed countries. The new hospital will accommodate 719 beds distributed for general medicine, surgery, children’s ward, maternity, ICU, medical rehabilitation, VIP patients and royal suites. It will also include 104 advanced specialized clinics, 17 units for X-ray, CT Scan and MRI techniques as well as 22 specialised units for endoscopy diagnosis. Dh5.2billion for implementing 1st, 3rd and 4th stages of Al Mafraq-Al Ghuwaifat road project: During the meeting, the Council designated the Department of Transport (DoT) to conclude agreements with contractors to implement the first, third and fourth sections of the 248km-long Al Mafraq-Al Ghuwaifat Road Development Project with a total cost of Dh5.291 billion. This includes constructing 15 upper intersections and providing the road with electricity posts. The project is one of the initiatives of the DoT’s strategic plan designed to improve the transport sector and enable it work more efficiently to better serve the economy of the Emirate. Meanwhile, the project will help reduce car accidents, improve road safety, accommodate traffic curtail traffic jams and shorten travel time when travelling to the Western Region or Saudi Arabia. The DoT has already completed the second part of the project, the 80km-long Al Ruwais Road. Sections A &B of Abu Dhabi-Dubai Road Project: The Council also assigned the DoT to reach agreements with contractors to carry out construction work of sections A and B of Abu Dhabi-Dubai Highway Road Project with a total cost of Dh1.966 billion. The 62km two-way road project with four lanes for each direction extends from Seeh She’ib area to Suwaihan Road. It includes six intersections, three for each section, in addition to bridges designed to protect the gas pipelines. High-voltage cables that intersects with the road track will also be removed. Lighting work and other relevant facilities are included in the project. The project is seen as an additional strategic road linking Abu Dhabi Emirate with Dubai and the northern emirates. It will ease traffic congestion along the current Abu Dhabi-Dubai highway. The new road will also connect Khalifa Port with the industrial zone area and serve the other industrial areas and the emerging populated areas and housing projects particularly in Al Falah area. Dh810 million to finance a power generation linkage project: The Council decided to forward an Dh810 million project to contractors who will import, install and modify air cables used to link the newly established power generation stations with other stations in the area. The project aims to transport the generated electricity from the new station to other areas to meet the increasing demand on electricity as a result of the population growth and economic and urban development in the emirate particularly in the Western Region. Dh132 million allocated for sewage water treatment plant project in Al Ruwais: The Council approved a project to set up a sewage water treatment plant in Al Ruwais (Western Region) with a total cost of Dh132 million. Abu Dhabi Sewage Services Company was assigned by the council to conclude a contract with a company to execute the project. The new plant aims to meet demands resulting from the ongoing expansion in industrial zones in Al Ruwais. It goes in line with the development plans of the Higher Foundation for Specialized Economic Zones and the labour towns in Al Ruwais. The project includes the establishment of a wastewater reclamation plant with a capacity of 15000 cubic metre a day. There will be also a receiving station which could receive 16 tanks and a 10km water pumping pipeline to convey treated water to the forest areas reservoirs in Ghayathy area. The new plant takes into account any environmental damages as it is provided with a system to treat bad scents at all stages and another system for monitoring. Continue reading
