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Cars with sale stickers to get QR500 fine

DOHA: Doha Municipality has announced a major crackdown against car owners who put stickers on their vehicles saying they are for sale. Used cars or other vehicles can only be put on display for sale at an authorised showroom or at a licensed auction yard, the Municipality has said. Vehicles with ‘for sale’ stickers will be fined QR500 for the first time and are to be towed away by the Municipality if the violation is repeated. Their owners will be fined QR5,000. Civic inspectors and traffic department personnel are closely coordinating to jointly keep an eye on such vehicles, as also on those abandoned on the roadside or in open places by their owners. Used cars that are for sale should be taken to an authorised showroom and not parked on the roadside or left in other public places with stickers announcing sale, said Ali Nasser Al Hajri, from Doha Municipality’s Motoring Department. One of the disadvantages of selling vehicles using stickers is that there is no accountability in case of a dispute between the buyer and seller, he said. Transactions taking place through licensed outlets like a showroom are transparent and involve accountability. The showroom takes responsibility if there are problems. Moreover, cars on offer for sale through stickers, as also those abandoned by their owners, are left parked on the roadside or littered around in open spaces, and many a time it is found that some of their spare parts are missing. People, in fact, try to avoid paying commission to showrooms and thus want to find buyers directly, Al Hajri told Al Sharq. Such cars can be seen parked in large numbers in the parking lots of major shopping complexes or on the roads close to these facilities. “You can see more and more cars with stickers in their rear windows announcing sale with mobile numbers of owners written, before the start of the long summer break year after year as many people want to dispose of their cars before going on long vacations,” the official said. Such vehicles will be singled out and the owners will be intimated about the first time violation and fine, and warned that they should not repeat the violation. If the violation is repeated the vehicle would be towed away and fined QR5,000. The Peninsula

Israel must wake up to Arab Spring: Emir

The Emir H H Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani speaking at the Doha Forum at the Ritz- Carlton yesterday. DOHA: The Emir H H Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani said yesterday that the Arab revolutions have put Israel in direct confrontation with the Arab masses who have been seeking a just solution to the Palestinian issue. Opening the 13th Doha Forum and Enriching the Middle East’s Economic Future Conference at the Ritz-Carlton yesterday, the Emir stressed that poverty, unemployment, absence of decent means of living and violation of human rights were the driving forces behind the unfolding Arab revolutions. “We have heard in the past that reform has to be put aside until a peaceful settlement is reached with Israel, but everyone should realise that such thinking is no longer tenable after the Arab Spring revolutions, which were necessitated by the propensity towards reform and pursuit to implement the ensuing outcomes, and that could not be achieved unless it is coupled with the quest to find a peaceful settlement for the Palestinian cause and the Middle East conflict,” said the Emir. “The reason for this is that the Arab Spring revolutions have set Israel in a direct confrontation today with the Arab peoples and not only with their rulers. Those peoples would no more accept negotiations or the political process as an end in itself, and consequently there must be a serious effort to achieve just peace as the main objective and goal of the peace process,” he added. The opening session was also attended by the Prime Minister and Foreign Minister H E Sheikh Hamad bin Jassem bin Jabor Al Thani, H E Abdullah bin Hamad Al Attiyah, Chairman of the Qatar Administrative Control and Transparency Authority, senior diplomats and other dignitaries. “We must not forget that the prevalence of poverty, unemployment, absence of decent means of living and violation of human rights under the reign of autocratic, repressive and corrupt regimes were the driving forces behind the unfolding of Arab revolutions that have been targetting popular participation in the political and economic decision-making,” said the Emir. Achieving this goal requires beginning with developing the institutions that guarantee the scale of this participation, which cannot succeed unless coupled with plans to disseminate democratic awareness, and an active effort in the sustainable development considered as an inseparable face of the process of comprehensive reform based on a modern educational system, thus we ensure the practice of respecting others’ opinions to achieve a social interaction based on dialogue rather than violence, he added. The Emir said he felt sorrow and grief to see the Syrian people’s revolution entering its third year without a clear prospect to stop the bloody conflict. “It is no longer acceptable from the powerful countries in the international community not to act to put an end to this terrible tragedy and the worsening humanitarian disaster, while at the same time they want to determine the identity of those who defend the Syrian people under various pretexts. Sadly, this happens after the failure of all Arab and international initiatives to push the Syrian regime to listen to the voice of reason,” said the Emir. The Prime Minister, in his welcome address, stressed that the Doha Forum has proved its usefulness after a modest beginning and expanded its theme becoming a platform to discuss everything pertaining to democracy and free trade. “The Forum has important axes which had its significance if we took into account what is happening on the global arena in the political, economic and social fields and the resulting significant impacts on the Arab world, especially the countries that witnessed the Arab Spring and entered into the institutional reform process,” said the Prime Minister. The Peninsula

Ooredoo, Messi Foundation tie up for medical aid to kids

Argentinian football star Lionel Messi and Chairman of Ooredoo Group, Sheikh Abdullah bin Mohammed bin Saud Al Thani, pose with children at Aspire Dome yesterday. See also page 28(Shaival Dalal) Doha: Ooredoo and the Leo Messi Foundation have tied up to support mobile health clinics around the world to provide medical aid for children in the Middle East, North Africa, and Southeast Asia. Ooredoo Chairman Sheikh Abdullah bin Mohammed bin Saud Al Thani and football star Lionel Messi announced the launch of the initiative during a ceremony at the Aspire Academy yesterday. The project aims to reach out to two million children by 2016. The company also plans to expand its range of mHealth services — health-based advisory and monitoring services that can be accessed on a mobile phone. Customers in Kuwait, Palestine and Iraq can already access diabetes-related mobile information and alerts. Ooredoo Qatar is trailing a 24/7 mobile health advice service, and Indosat in Indonesia is developing a similar service enabling access to doctors and health related information via text, voice and rich content. “Disease and lack of access to healthcare is a major barrier for young people in many parts of the developing world, and we see the mobile clinic initiative as a practical and effective solution. Today’s initiative will enable us to work with the Leo Messi Foundation and transform our Indonesian mobile clinic initiative into a global force for better health,” Saud Al Thani said: The Leo Messi Foundation, founded by Messi in 2007, has helped fight Chagas disease and offer scholarships for training doctors. Working with Ooredoo will enable the Foundation to extend its work into the Middle East, North Africa and Southeast Asia. “Ooredoo and I believe in making a difference in the community, and I’m proud that the Leo Messi Foundation will help Ooredoo provide much-needed healthcare and educational support for at-risk children around the world. This unique partnership with Ooredoo is another way that we can help youth make their dreams come true,” Lionel Messi said. The Foundation will also help promote and develop the programme across additional regions in Indonesia, including distributing medicine to more young people. People will be able to recognise the partnership, as there will be branded logos of the Leo Messi Foundation and Messi on the mobile health clinics and doctors’ medical kits. Indosat, part of Ooredoo, has provided more than 600,000 people in Indonesia free healthcare services through its mobile clinics programme launched in 2008. Indosat’s award-winning 16 mobile health clinics have treated people in rural areas who have limited access to hospitals and doctors. “Indosat’s mobile health clinics have been a major success in Indonesia, having treated hundreds of thousands at-risk people, mostly children and women. With support from the Leo Messi Foundation, we’ll be able to expand our mission to help more people living in Indonesia, and provide support for healthcare initiatives such as vaccination programmes,” Alexander Rusli, President Director and CEO, Indosat, said. Future markets targeted by the mobile health clinic initiative include Algeria, Tunisia and additional countries across the Ooredoo footprint. This also includes countries like Qatar that have a highly-developed healthcare infrastructure. In these countries, the mobile health clinics can be used to promote healthy lifestyles among underserved communities, youth and women. “Bringing Ooredoo’s regional and global initiative of mobile health clinics to Qatar, in partnership with the Leo Messi Foundation, demonstrates our commitment to promoting human growth and will enhance the healthcare for many people,” Waleed Al Sayed, COO, Ooredoo Qatar, said.The Peninsula

QNB to start India subsidiary

DOHA: QNB Group has received all regulatory approvals to establish a fully owned subsidiary under the name of “QNB (India) Private Limited”, which is expected to commence operations in the third quarter of this year. QNB (India) will take the role of extending consultancy and advisory services in investment and finance for Middle East companies willing to establish businesses and/ or invest in India. As part of its international expansion strategy, QNB Group is seen to always seek presence and competition in leading markets. The economy of India is the tenth-largest in the world by nominal GDP (Gross Domestic Product) and the third-largest by PPP (Purchasing Power Parity). The Peninsula

Emir Cup bounty for fans

DOHA: Some 20 expensive cars, 11 motorcycles, 30 iPads, 30 mini-iPads, 40 Sony mobile phone handsets, a number of ‘Play Stations’ and hundreds of high-end perfumes and other goodies are to be distributed to the lucky winners from among thousands of football fans who turned up to watch the Emir Cup final soccer match that was held recently in which Al Rayyan Club emerged the winner. The Qatar Football Association yesterday announced the ticket numbers of the winners. The Association said the lucky winners must produce original tickets as well as their identity (ID) cards to collect the gifts. The winning ticket numbers were announced on QFA’s Facebook page — ‘Qatar Football Association’. The QFA said the last date to collect the gifts is Thursday, June 6. The Peninsula

Over 60 killed in Iraq car bomb attacks

Residents gather at the site of a car bomb attack at the Kamaliya district in Baghdad yesterday. BAGHDAD: More than 60 people were killed in a series of car bomb explosions targeting Shias across Iraq yesterday, police and medics said, part of the worst sectarian violence since US troops pulled out in December 2011. The attacks brought the number killed in sectarian clashes in the past week to over 200, and tensions between Shias, who now lead Iraq, and minority Sunnis have reached a point where some fear a return to all-out civil conflict. No group claimed responsibility for the bombings. Iraq is home to a number of Sunni Islamist insurgent groups, including the Al Qaeda-affiliated Islamic State of Iraq, which has previously targeted Shias in a bid to provoke a wider sectarian confrontation. Nine people were killed in one of two car bomb explosions in Basra, a predominantly Shia city 420km southeast of Baghdad, police and medics said. “I was on duty when a powerful blast shook the ground,” said a police officer near the site of that attack in the Hayaniya neighbourhood. “The blast hit a group of day labourers gathering near a sandwich kiosk,” he added, describing corpses littering the ground. “One of the dead bodies was still grabbing a blood-soaked sandwich in his hand.” Five other people were killed in a second blast inside a bus terminal in Saad Square, also in Basra, police and medics said. In Baghdad, at least 30 people were killed in car bomb explosions in Kamaliya, Ilaam, Diyala Bridge, Al Shurta, Shula, Zaafaraniya and Sadr City — all areas with a high concentration of Shias. A parked car bomb also exploded in the mainly Shia district of Shaab in northern Baghdad, killing 12 people and wounding 26 others, police and hospital sources said. In a separate incident, police said a parked car blew up near a bus carrying Shia pilgrims from Iran near Balad, 80km north of Baghdad, killing five Iranian pilgrims and two Iraqis who were travelling to the Shia holy city of Samarra. In the western province of Anbar, the bodies of 14 people kidnapped on Saturday, including six policemen, were found dumped in the desert with bullet wounds to the head and chest, police and security sources said. When Sunni-Shia bloodshed was at its height in 2006-07, Anbar was in the grip of al Qaeda’s Iraqi wing, which has regained strength in recent months. In 2007, Anbar’s Sunni tribes banded together with US troops and helped subdue al Qaeda. Known as the “Sahwa” or Awakening militia, they are now on the government payroll and are often targeted by Sunni militants as punishment for co-operating with the Shia-led government. Three Sahwa members were killed in a car bomb explosion as they collected their salaries in the city of Samarra, north of Baghdad, police said. Iraq’s delicate intercommunal fabric is under increasing strain from the conflict in neighbouring Syria, which has drawn Sunni and Shias from across the region into a proxy war. Syrian President Bashar Al Assad’s main regional ally is Shia Iran, while the rebels fighting to overthrow him are supported by Sunni Gulf powers Saudi Arabia and Qatar. Iraq says it takes no sides in the conflict, but leaders in Tehran and Baghdad fear Assad’s demise would make way for a hostile Sunni Islamist government in Syria, weakening Shia influence in the Middle East. The prospect of a shift in the sectarian balance of power has emboldened Iraq’s Sunni minority, embittered by Shia dominance since the overthrow of Saddam Hussein by US-led forces in 2003. Thousands of Sunnis began staging street protests last December against Shia Prime Minister Nouri Al Maliki, whom they accuse of marginalising their sect. A raid by the Iraqi army on a protest camp in the town of Hawija last month ignited a bout of violence that left more than 700 people dead in April, according to a UN count, the highest monthly toll in almost five years. At the height of sectarian violence in 2006-07, the monthly death toll sometimes topped 3,000. Reuters

KIDS @SUMMER: What to do with the kids in the summer?

By Isabel Ovalle The summer vacation is around the corner for the kids in the house and Doha’s parents are getting ready for the extra days off. Among expatriate families, it’s very common to go back home once the schools close, especially when extreme summer temperatures hit the city. If the mother doesn’t work, she and the children might leave the country for up to three months. However, if that is not the case, mums and dads must wheel out their web searching skills or make use of the phone tree to organise the children’s free time. Patricia Rocha, a licensed marriage and family therapist who works in Qatar mostly with expatriate families, admitted that it was not easy to find answers to the question: What to do with kids in the summer? “Parents usually find relief -- for them as caregivers and their kids as students -- in taking a break from class projects and other activities that go with the school year; however, as most parents have experienced, summer presents its own list of demands,” said the expert. The first suggestion for parents is to be creative in order to reduce the stress felt when the kids are off school. “The key is to keep the children busy even though there are not lots of options or activities to choose from in Doha. The activity should depend on the age of the child, but some of the options are aqua parks, camel races, desert trips, the zoo, summer camps, libraries, play areas in shopping malls or bowling outings,” said Rocha. In the summer months, parents need to become resourceful when searching for things for their kids to engage in. “Instead of bike rides, parents may need to search for indoor activities that can still provide a way to channel their energy in a physical way and provide recreation. Despite the fact that bike rides are not difficult over the summer in Qatar, swimming lessons may be an option to consider, or workshops, or play dates at home, and movie watching with friends,” continued the therapist. In addition, Rocha highlighted the importance of maintaining some kind of routine and consistency in the children’s lives. “Having activities and some kind of routine helps kids make sense of their day: morning, noon, and night. They also respond better if there is a plan and they know what to expect. Children feel safe that way,” she explained. The expert identified providing a structured and nurturing environment in which children can prepare for life as adults as one of parents’ biggest responsibilities. “Even during summer or less structured time during the year, parents can still set daily chores to teach children responsibility, like completing certain chores or tasks in order to have access to the summer activity privileges.” On the other hand, part of the flexibility that summer offers should be used to provide children with time to play, an activity which should not be underestimated because it stimulates creativity and imagination, builds social skills and self-esteem and helps children to learn about the world, while also providing an opportunity for kids to work out their feelings, said Rocha. To offer a helping hand, Doha Mums, a group that brings together more than 1,400 women, has listed some of the nurseries that offer special camps during the summer. Doha Mums founder and administrator, Roxanne Davis, recommends that local mums contact the group and take part in their regular play groups and other activities. To entertain the kids, she suggests being creative and keeping the children cool by organising activities like making popsicles. In addition, she said the Doha Mums library, comprising up to 4,500 books and a scanner to keep track of borrowed books, would soon be relocated to a bigger place. The Doha Mums list of nurseries that will have activities during the summer months includes more than 20 establishments. Most of the summer activities commence in mid-June and conclude at the end of August, while some continue until mid-September. The price range begins at approximately QR500 per week and goes up to QR900. Nurseries and kindergartens offer services from 6.45am to 4.30pm in some cases, featuring courses for children aged two months to five years. Doha Mums has also given a thought to older kids, who can attend some of these camps: Evolution Soccer; Legacy Sports Summer Camp; Oxford Learning; Regatta Sailing Academy; Sherborne Qatar School; Tornadoes Summer Sports Camp and VCUQatar. The price and age range of these camps varies depending on the services offered. In some, the activities are for children up to 15 years old and can be paid for daily, while specialised courses have to be paid for fully. VCUQatar also offers activities for children over 16. More information can be found at dohamums.com and on the websites of the different establishments. The Peninsula