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WEDNESDAY 21 OCTOBER 2020 www.thepeninsula.qa4 RABIA I - 1442 VOLUME 25 NUMBER 8417

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QA first global airline with over 20 million FB followersTHE PENINSULA — DOHA

Qatar Airways has become the most followed airline on Facebook, with more than 20 million followers of its page.

The award-winning airline began its social media journey in 2012, and yesterday, it reached more than 26 million followers globally across its active social media platforms including Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and LinkedIn.

The airline first became the most popular carrier

ever on Facebook when it passed 8 million fans in December 2014, and has held the title consistently since as it continues to engage with its passengers and followers by creating inspiring and informative content.

Facebook particularly rose to be a key platform for Qatar Airways to stay in touch with its pas-sengers when the illegal blockade against Qatar was imposed in 2017, which further boosted their trust and confidence in the brand.

The airline’s steady climb to be the most liked global airline on Facebook has been a result of its increasing investment in creating engaging content for its fans.

In addition to winning fans with its viral, inno-vative campaigns such as the 100,000 tickets giveaway for medics, A350-1000 delivery cam-paign, FIFA World Cup Russia 2018 activations to name a few, and route launches, the airline was also closely followed and monitored during the

pandemic as it used its widely followed social media platforms to inform its customers about its operations and safety measures.

Qatar Airways Senior Vice- President Marketing and Corporate Communi-cations, Salam Al Shawa, said: “We are extremely proud of this achievement as we became the world’s first airline to surpass 20 million fans on Facebook, reaf-firming our position as the world’s most popular airline on the most popular social media network." �P3

Qatar welcomes move to remove Sudan from terror listQNA — DOHA

The State of Qatar welcomed US President Donald Trump’s announcement of his intention to remove Sudan from the list of State Sponsors of Terrorism.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that Qatar looks forward to the completion of the procedures to

remove Sudan from the US list as soon as possible, expressing hope that the prospective step would contribute to supporting the dem-ocratic transition process in Sudan. The statement renewed Qatar’s support for Sudan and the aspira-tions of its brotherly people to achieve economic stability, progress and prosperity.

PHCC launches new website, e-servicesFAZEENA SALEEM THE PENINSULA

Primary Health Care Corpo-ration (PHCC) yesterday launched a new website as part of its plan to provide rapid infor-mation and services to the public.

Services provided through the website will facilitate the public to apply for sick leave cer-tification, new patient regis-tration, request a report from the medical record service, new patient appointment, cancellation of appointment, and re-schedule an appointment at health centres, and medicine home delivery orders, electronically. �P3

Katara International Hunting and Falcons Exhibition opensRAYNALD C RIVERA THE PENINSULA

With COVID-19 safety precau-tions in place, the fourth edition of Katara International Hunting and Falcons Exhibition (S’hail 2020) opened its doors yesterday to an enthusiastic response from falconers and hunting aficionados alike.

Katara General Manager Dr. Khalid bin Ibrahim Al Sulaiti led the opening of the five-day event considered the biggest of its kind in the Middle East and North Africa region.

Some 112 leading companies dealing in falconry and hunting supplies and equipment from Qatar, Kuwait, Spain, Lebanon, the United States, the UK, Turkey, Pakistan, Romania, Belgium, Por-tugal, France, and Hungary have gathered at the exhibition.

President of the Qatar Olympic Committee, H E Sheikh Joaan bin Hamad Al Thani visited S’hail on its opening day yesterday. Dr. Al Sulaiti accom-panied him as he toured around the exhibition learning about its different sections, features and activities.

The first day of the exhi-bition witnessed the visits of a number of ministers and high-ranking officials, namely Min-ister of State for Foreign Affairs H E Sultan bin Saad Al Muraikhi and British Minister of State for Middle East and North Africa H E James Cleverly, and several ambas-sadors including Ambassador of Moldova H E Victor Tvircun, Ambassador of India H E Dr. Deepak Mittal, and Ambassador of Switzerland H E Edgar Doerig.

Dr. Al Sulaiti expressed

happiness at the opening of the event underlining that it is the most important international heritage exhibition hosted by Katara as it has become a global destination attracting falconers

and hunting enthusiasts from Qatar and around the world.

Inside the massive white tent erected specially for the event at Katara’s Wisdom Square are stalls offering

customised off-road vehicles, hunting and camping equipment and supplies, and tracking and training devices and other supplies for falcons, among others. �P2

Minister of State for Foreign Affairs H E Sultan bin Saad Al Muraikhi (right), and British Minister of State for Middle East and North Africa H E James Cleverly, visiting the fourth Katara International Hunting and Falcons Exhibition yesterday.

Sheikha Moza presents QF’s Akhlaquna AwardsFAZEENA SALEEM THE PENINSULA

Chairperson of Qatar Foundation (QF), H H Sheikha Moza bint Nasser recognised yesterday children and young people who exemplify great moral character through initiating projects that serve the community during Akhlaquna Day celebrations held at Education City.

H H Sheikha Moza bint Nasser presented winners of QF’s Akhlaquna Award (Cycle 3) and inaugural Akhlaquna Junior Awards.

Akhlaquna Award (Cycle 3) went to ‘Yes, I Can’, a student-led initiative. It was developed by Noora Hassen Al Maslamani, Abdullah Ahmed Al Sada, Fahad Saeed Al Hamad, Roqayya Khan Khan, Ayub Mohammed Janahi, Ibrahim Aly El Feky, Abdullah Mohamed Al Ishaq, Shahed Salem Al Dosari, Nada Juma Aldos, and Ibrahim Yousef Dor-zadeh, which aims to highlight the active role and contribution of people with disabilities.

The team has organised various campaigns, including

‘With Thanks’ to highlight the role of sanitary workers and ‘Our Land’ to protect the Qatari environment, among others. “I

would like to thank H H Sheikha Moza bint Nasser for this val-uable award. It has great meaning for us, and we’ve

participated to show our role and pay something back to our country,” said Al Hamad.

‘Life Engineers’, developed

by Hamad Abdulla Aljumaily and ‘Sign Language Translator’ created by Noora Talib Almarri and Khalood Zaid Almarri were short-listed for the Akhlaquna award and recognised at the ceremony.

The winners were chosen by public voting and an expert jury, including Director of Wijdan Cultural Center, Dr. Jassim Sultan; Dean of the College of Islamic Studies at Hamad Bin Khalifa University, a QF member, Dr. Emad El Din Shahin; and Director of the National Center for Research in Islamic Sciences and Civilization, Algeria, Professor Mabrouk Zeid Elkheir. Akhlaquna Junior Awards that recognises and cel-ebrates exemplary young stu-dents, aged between 7 and 14 years was given to children of three categories.

Fatima Faisal Al Thani of Qatar Academy Al Wakra, Hemyen Hamad Al Kuwari of Athaayen Girls Primary School, and Faisal Abdalla Al Shahwani of Ali bin Abdullah Model School, were awarded as winners of the category between grades 1-3.

Fahad Masoud Nabina of Qatar Academy Al Wakra, Abdulla Rafea Al Ahbabi of Ali bin Abdullah Model School, and AlHanouf Hassan AlEmadi of Qatar Academy Doha, were winners of the category between grades 4-6.

Fatima Saad Mohammed Almohannadi of Qatar Academy Al Khor, Mariam Ameen Abdalaa Mohamed Abdalaa Ameen of Moza bint Mohammed Prepar-atory School, and Bhagath Krishnan of Birla Public School were winners of category between grades 7-9.

“The most important task in our world today is to raise children who have trust and honesty. We also must be aware of the importance of the pivotal role of families and societies in bringing up our youth in an envi-ronment that is built on honesty and faithfulness, through our words and actions, so that this is reflected in the souls of our children," said Assistant Pro-fessor of International Rela-tions at Qatar University, Dr. Mohammed Nowaimi Al Hajri, in his keynote speech. �P2

Kuwait PM: We will continue efforts to end Gulf crisisQNA — DOHA

Prime Minister of Kuwait H E Sheikh Sabah Khaled Al Hamad Al Sabah yesterday stressed that his country will continue its efforts to end the Gulf crisis and support the Gulf Cooperation Council.

“Kuwait will continue to seek global peace,” H E the

Prime Minster pledged. At the regional level, he vowed to resolve “the issue among the brothers” in the GCC, alluding to some differences among the council member states and reiterating the pledge to pre-serve the GCC as a collective entity,” Kuna reported.

Addressing the opening session of the National

Assembly’s 5th regular session of the 15th legislative term, he said that “Kuwait is com-mitted to an unwavering foreign policy, foundations of which had been laid by the late H H Sheikh Sabah Al Ahmad”, noting the necessity for cooperation at the national level to “safeguard our interests."

On the Arabic level, the Prime Minister stated, “We support efforts for resolving pan-Arab rifts and resolving the Palestinian cause which will remain our central cause. We affirm that we stand on side of the Palestinian people for sake of reaching a just solution to the Palestinian cause.”

Chairperson of Qatar Foundation, H H Sheikha Moza bint Nasser, presenting the Akhlaquna Junior Award to a winner at Education City, yesterday. PIC: AISHA AL MUSALLAM

H H Sheikha Moza

bint Nasser pre-

sented winners of

QF’s Akhlaquna

Award, now in its

third cycle, and

inaugural

Akhlaquna Junior

Awards, during

Akhlaquna Day

celebrations held

at Education City.

The award-winning airline began its social

media journey in 2012, and yesterday, it

reached more than 26 million followers

globally across its active social media

platforms including Facebook, Instagram,

Twitter and LinkedIn.

GROUP EChelsea (ENG) 0 - 0 Sevilla (ESP)

Rennes (FRA) 1 - 1 Krasnodar (RUS) GROUP F

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Lazio (ITA) 3 - 1 Borussia Dortmund (GER) GROUP G

Dynamo Kiev (UKR) 0 - 2 Juventus (ITA) Barcelona (ESP) 5 - 1 Ferencvaros (HUN)

GROUP H Paris Saint-Germain (FRA) 1 - 2

Manchester United (ENG) RB Leipzig (GER) 2 - 0 Istanbul

Basaksehir (TUR)

YESTERDAY'S RESULTS

02 WEDNESDAY 21 OCTOBER 2020HOME

Shura Council participates in international parliamentary session on poverty eradicationQNA — DOHA

Shura Council participated yesterday in a parliamentary session on the first goal of the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals, which was held by the Inter-Parliamentary Union via video conferencing.

In the session, discussions focused on the issue of poverty and the attempt to eradicate it by 2030, as there are at least 700 million people in the world below the poverty line, which is 10 percent of the world’s pop-ulation. This poses tremendous challenges for the UN as well as governments and parlia-ments, and requires the enactment of many laws to reform legislation in many countries.

In the session, Al Shura Council was represented by Member of Council, H E Abd Al Latif bin Mohammed Al Sada.

Member of Shura Council, H E Abd Al Latif bin Mohammed Al Sada, participating in the IPU session on poverty eradication.

QA Holidays announces new ‘Stay and Spa’ staycation packagesTHE PENINSULA — DOHA

Qatar Airways Holidays announced yesterday its ‘Stay and Spa’ collection of stay-cation packages for Qatar’s citizens and residents, which include a hotel stay, breakfast, free spa treatment and room upgrade.

Packages are available at five of Doha’s top spa hotels: InterContinental Doha, JW Marriott Marquis City Center Doha, Marriott Marquis City Center Doha Hotel, Ritz-Carlton Doha, and Warwick Doha. Each of the hotels selected for Qatar Airways Holidays staycation packages offers its own unique twist, designed to help visitors switch off, relax, recharge and make the most of the upcoming half term holidays.

Qatar Airways Privilege

Club members can enjoy a five percent discount on packages. Additionally, citizens and res-idents who are not already a member of Qatar Airways Privilege Club can join and earn 3,000 bonus Qmiles when they book a staycation with Qatar Airways Holidays, which can be used to redeem future flights with Qatar Airways.

Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive, H E Akbar Al Baker, said: “With the ongoing coro-navirus pandemic limiting international travel, we have designed a new selection of staycation packages for citizens and residents to relax and recharge during the half term holiday. Qatar is home to so many incredible hotels that offer some of the best spa expe-riences in the world. Our Stay and Spa staycation packages offer incredible value for

money for those looking to treat themselves.”

The staycation packages are carefully designed to provide customers in Qatar with a much-needed change of scenery in a safe and respon-sible manner. All of the hotels selected for these staycation packages have been accredited by the Qatar National Tourism Council (QNTC) and Ministry of Public Health's ‘Qatar Clean’ initiative — a series of measures and regulations for hotels to follow to safeguard their guests and employees from COVID-19.

Deals are available for couples and families and include a hotel stay, breakfast, free spa treatment, room upgrades, and much more. Prices start from QR445 per person per night for packages booked by October 31 for stays up to November 15.

MoPH: 273 new

COVID-19 casesTHE PENINSULA — DOHA

The Ministry of Public Health (MoPH) yesterday announced the registration of 273 new confirmed COVID-19 cases. Among them, 36 were trav-ellers returning from abroad.

Also 216 people have recovered from the virus, bringing the total number of recovered cases in Qatar to 126,866. All new cases have been introduced to isolation and are receiving necessary healthcare according to their health status.

The Ministry further said that measures to tackle COVID-19 in Qatar have suc-ceeded in flattening the curve and limiting the spread of the virus. Also Qatar’s proactive and extensive testing of sus-pected cases has helped to identify a large number of pos-itive cases.

Functional art on show as Qatar Al Fann Exhibition opens at Fire StationRAYNALD C RIVERA THE PENINSULA

A rich collection of functional art inspired by Qatar’s rich cultural heritage and created by 19 Qatar-based artists is on display at Qatar Al Fann Exhibition, which opened at Doha Fire Station yesterday.

In this revolutionary project, artists took inspiration from Sadu, pearl diving, Arabic calligraphy, Qatari tra-ditional houses, the desert rose, batoola, dhow, floral design on tradi-tional Qatari women’s dresses, and Al Jassissyah rock carvings to craft useful objects such as landscape bench, tap-estry, carpet rug, decorative smart lighting poles, tree grate, trash bin, and bollard.

The collection is a product of a competition which was met with enthusiastic response from the coun-try’s art community. The selected products will be utilised in public

spaces, hotels, offices, parks, and mosques among others in Qatar and in other countries.

The launch event was attended by Indian Ambassasor H E Dr. Deepak Mittal; Andrew Humphries, Acting Chief Executive Officer of Katara Hos-pitality; Fahad Al Jahrami, Chief Project Delivery Officer Qatar at Qatari Diar; Mohamed Arqoub Al Khaldi, Chairman of the Supervisory Committee of Beau-tification of Roads and Public Places at Public Works Authority; Khalifa Al Obaidly, Director of Fire Station Artist in Residence; and Nishad Azeem, CEO of Coastal Qatar, as well as high-ranking officials from government agencies and members of the art community.

“Coastal feels extremely privileged to have the opportunity to promote Qatari Art and Heritage while providing the much deserved exposure to our artists community and support local manufacturing in line with the Qatar

2030 vision. Qatar Al Fann focuses to unveil the potential of our local artists, exhibiting and utilising their exquisite creations in public spaces,” said Azeem, adding the project is the first of its kind collaboration between private and

public sectors and the art community.

Coastal Qatar, a local company which manufactures stadium seats for the FIFA 2022 World Cup stadiums and has several Made in Qatar initiatives

under its belt, will organise the pro-duction of the selected products in Qatar through technology partnership with experts or manufacture overseas through selected sources.

“We have been keen to spark the role of artists in the community to explore new sectors and spaces in cooperation with local companies that provided an incredible and practical opportunity for Qatari artists and res-idents to express their creativity through an intuitive project such as Qatar Al Fann,” said Al Obaidly.

“It is our immense pleasure to be supporting such a visionary project like Qatar Al Fann which would be a unique endeavour even at a global level. Qatar Al Fann stands distinct for various reasons; the foremost of all is that the products represent Qatari heritage and are made in Qatar,” said Al Khaldi.

The exhibition is open to the public until October 27 at Gallery 4 of Doha Fire Station.

FROM LEFT: Nishad Azeem, Mohamed Arqoub Al Khald, Khalifa Al Obaidly, H E Dr. Deepak Mittal and Fahad Al Jahrami, at the opening of Qatar Al Fann Exhibition at Doha Fire Station yesterday.

Chairperson of Qatar Foundation H H Sheikha Moza bint Nasser, during Akhlaquna Awards ceremony, at Education City, yesterday. PIC: AISHA AL MUSALLAM

Sheikha Moza presents QF’s Akhlaquna Awards

FROM PAGE 1

This responsibility is embodied in Akhlaquna and Akhlaquna Junior, with the goal of strengthening the role of society in cultivating honesty as

a way of life for our youth,” said Dr. Mohammed Nowaimi Al Hajri.

Public joined to watch the hybrid Akhlaquna Day celebra-tions online as it was

livestreamed. The Akhlaquna Award, now

in its third cycle, was estab-lished by QF in 2017 to highlight the timeless and universal values exhibited by Prophet

Muhammad (peace be upon him), and recognise those aged from 15-24 whose projects encapsulate the importance of good morals and values, and encourage others to exhibit

them as well.For 2020, QF has also

launched Akhlaquna Junior, an award that honours school stu-dents aged from 7-14 who uphold and demonstrate the

morals and values that are the core of Akhlaquna, and illus-trate to their peers how they can be translated into actions, mindsets, and practices that benefit society.

Katara International Hunting and Falcons Exhibition opens

FROM PAGE 1

The Ministry of Municipality and Environment ‘s pavilion and the main stage where the events and activities are held are also located in the tent.

At Building 12, many visitors thronged the stalls selling a wide collection of hunting weapons, guns and ammuni-tions from some of the best international brands as well as stalls offering the best breeds of falcons. Al Gannas Associ-ation is participating with a pavilion which displays its various projects, festivals and scientific activities.

Safety measures such as checking of Ehteraz and body temperature at the entrance and social distancing are being implemented at the venue where hand sanitizers are available at all entrances and at strategic places around the area.

This year’s S’hail is distin-guished by the electronic falcon auction in which each partic-ipant receives a gold card that allows him to visit the exhi-bition anytime. The participant can view pictures and data of all kinds of participating falcons including the rarest “Hur” falcons, and follow the auction electronically.

A main feature of the event is the best pavilion competition and the best burqa (falcon hood) contest which both carry big cash prizes.

S’hai is sponsored by a number of companies and entities such as the Sports and Social Activities Support Fund (Da’am), Qatar Insurance Group, Qatar Airways, Ooredoo, Qatar Navigation Company, and Tanzifco.

The exhibition is open today, tomorrow and on

Saturday from 9am to 2pm and from 4pm to 11pm. There is a

break from 2pm to 4pm for dis-infection. On Friday, the

exhibition will be open from 2pm to 11pm.

President of Qatar Olympic Committee, H E Sheikh Joaan bin Hamad Al Thani; Katara General Manager Khalid bin Ibrahim Al Sulaiti; and other officials at the Katara International Hunting and Falcons Exhibition (S’hail 2020), yesterday.

03WEDNESDAY 21 OCTOBER 2020 HOME

MoCI, QRDI Council sign MoU to boost research and developmentTHE PENINSULA — DOHA

The Ministry of Commerce and Industry (MoCI) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Qatar Research, Development, and Innovation (QRDI) Council to enhance cooperation in research, devel-opment, innovation, and the promotion of intellectual property values.

The MoU was signed by Assistant Undersecretary for Commerce Affairs, H E Saleh bin Majed Al Khulaifi, and Secretary-General of the QRDI Council Omar Ali Al Ansari.

The MoU facilitates the exchange of data and infor-mation on topics of common interest, the development and

promotion of intellectual property values, and the exchange of expertise.

The MoU aims to bolster cooperation between both parties to synchronise national

strategies and operational plans on issues of common interest. It will enhance coordination for

developing a national intel-lectual property strategy and plan and undertake joint pro-grammes, academic studies, research, and surveys that s u p p o r t s t r a t e g i c decision-making.

The MoU also aims to coor-dinate national efforts to improve Qatar’s ranking on global indicators; advance the development of legislative and organisational frameworks, and apply policies to facilitate business activities and attract innovative investments through research and development.

The agreement will also ease the exchange of expertise, knowledge, reports, studies, and publications to support both parties’ planning and imple-

mentation efforts.Under the terms of the

partnership, QRDI will partic-ipate as a member of the Tech-nology and Innovation Support Centre to ensure that con-cerned authorities benefit from the centre’s expertise in research, development, and innovation.

Commenting on the MoU, Al Ansari said: “Today we are pleased to sign this MoU with the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, which high-lights the need for joint efforts in cooperation with the gov-ernment to develop a com-p r e h e n s i v e n a t i o n a l framework that supports an integrated system for research, development, and innovation in Qatar.”

Assistant Undersecretary for Commerce Affairs, H E Saleh bin Majed Al Khulaifi, and Secretary-General of the QRDI Council, Omar Ali Al Ansari, during an MoU signing ceremony.

Today we are pleased to sign

this MoU with the Ministry of

Commerce and Industry, which

highlights the need for joint

efforts in cooperation with the

government to develop a

comprehensive national

framework that supports an

integrated system for

research, development, and

innovation in Qatar.

Omar Ali Al AnsariSecretary-General of the QRDI Council

Qatar and UK review cooperation Assistant Foreign Minister and Spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, H E Lolwah bint Rashid Al Khater, met yesterday with British Minister of State for Middle East and North Africa, H E James Cleverly, who is currently visiting the country. During the meeting, they reviewed bilateral relations, especially in the economic and humanitarian fields, in addition to issues of joint interest.

British Minister of State for Menahails strength of Qatar-UK tiesTHE PENINSULA — DOHA

The British Minister of State for Middle East and North Africa, H E James Cleverly, has thanked Qatar for its help in repatriating British nationals throughout the pandemic.

The Minister has also highlighted the significance of the UK-Qatar part-nership on his first official visit to Qatar yesterday. The UK and Gulf states are working in partnership to tackle coronavirus and save lives, James Cleverly said following a visit to Oman and Qatar, said a statement.

During his visit, the Minister championed the UK’s strong and his-toric ties between the respective gov-ernments as well as their leadership in preventing the spread of the deadly disease. The Minister set out the UK’s high ambition to grow its trade and investment with the Gulf, already third largest trading partner outside

the EU. At a meeting with Minister of

State for Foreign Affairs H E Sultan bin Saad Al Muraikhi, Minister Cleverly thanked Qatar for its help in repatriating British nationals throughout the pandemic.

Minister Cleverly also visited the Education City Stadium for the FIFA World Cup 2022, offering the UK’s full support to ensuring a safe tour-nament for fans travelling from all around the world. The Minister also met Group Chief Executive of Qatar Airways H E Akbar Al Baker to discuss new regional routes into the UK, which are helping to drive economic growth in the UK beyond London.

James Cleverly, said: “The UK and the Gulf are working in partnership to stop the spread of coronavirus and save lives, demonstrating our strongest ever UK-Gulf ties.”

“On my visit to Oman and Qatar,

I have seen the true strength of the bilateral relationships between our great countries. From cooperation on security, to strengthening our trade links, to sharing our unique devel-opment expertise, our ties are helping to improve our mutual prosperity.”

In Muscat, Minister Cleverly met Houthi representative Mohammed Abdul Salam. He urged the Houthis to work constructively with UN Special Envoy to Yemen, Martin Grif-fiths, and agree to his peace proposals to end the conflict and alleviate the suffering of those in need.

He also raised concerns about restrictions in northern Houthi-con-trolled areas which are preventing aid from reaching millions of those most in need and called for safe, rapid, and unhindered access for aid workers and supplies, particularly because of the risk of famine this year.

NHRC organises webinar on rights of elderly in health crisesQNA — DOHA

The National Human Rights Committee (NHRC) organised yesterday a webinar on the rights of the elderly in times of crisis.

The webinar presented a set of working papers related to the rights of the elderly in times of health crises. Head of the Inves-tigation and Legal Consultation Department at NHRC Nasser Al Marri presented a working paper on the rights of the elderly in the context of the international human rights conventions.

Social Affairs expert at the Ministry of Administrative Development, Labour and Social Affairs Reem Al Ajami presented another working paper on the social and legal protection of the elderly at the national level.

A third working paper on how to deal with the psycho-logical aspect of the elderly during the coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis was pre-sented by Head of the Psycho-logical Care Unit at the Center of Empowerment and Elderly Care (Ehsan) Salem Al Anezi.

The webinar shed light on the situation of the elderly cat-egory in the State of Qatar, both in terms of the social and legal aspects, and in terms of the measures taken for their benefit.

The NHRC called for setting up an emergency room and developing national strategies to face the crises that may be exposed to the priority care groups, whether health crises

or others.Meanwhile, the NHRC

stressed the need for realising and activating the decision to establish the National Com-mittee for Women, Children, Elderly and Persons with Dis-abilities Affairs, in addition to improving the process of pro-tecting the priority care groups and defining the appropriate behaviour to meet the health challenges that they may be exposed to.

NHRC Assistant Secretary-General, Sultan Hassan Al Jamali underlined that the NHRC continues to monitor the efforts of the state to commit to its national, regional and inter-national obligations.

Al Jamali reiterated the NHRC praise of the Cabinet decision No. (26) of 2019 on establishing the National Com-mittee for Women, Children, Elderly and Persons with Dis-abilities Affairs, which he con-sidered a call to promote the rights of the priority care groups, including the elderly.

He called on all govern-mental and non-governmental state agencies and institutions representing the National Com-mittee for Women, Children, Elderly and Persons with Dis-abilities Affairs to establish an emergency room and prepare national strategies to be put into place to address the crises that may be exposed to the priority care groups, whether they are health crises or others.

Al Jamali valued the prom-inent and important role carried out by the Center of Empowerment and Elderly Care (Ehsan), and the high-level services it provides to promote recognition of the role of the elderly and their contributions to the development of the society, as well as its compre-hensive, health, home and psy-chological care services, stressing that the rights of the elderly in time of crisis is one of the important issues that the NHRC closely monitors, given its religious, social, national and international obligations.

NHRC officials participating in a webinar on the rights of the elderly.

Director of Public Health at MoPH Sheikh Dr. Mohammed bin Hamad Al Thani (second left), Managing Director of the PHCC, Dr. Mariam Abdulmalik, (centre) with other officials during the launch of PHCC website yesterday. PIC: ABDUL BASIT/THE PENINSULA

PHCC launches new website, e-servicesFROM PAGE 1

The Managing Director of PHCC, Dr. Mariam Abdulmalik, launched the website in the presence of Director Public Health at Ministry of Public Health, Sheikh Dr. Mohammed bin Hamad Al Thani; Chair of the Healthcare Communications Committee, Ali Al Khater; Assistant Managing Director of the Administrative Affairs at PHCC, Musallam Al Nabat and several other officials at the PHCC head-quarters. The new bilingual website www.phcc.gov.qa is user-friendly, effective and designed according to the latest interna-tional standards and provides easy access to services and infor-mation of PHCC and its various departments and health centers.

“PHCC’s new website comes within the framework of PHCC’s focus on making primary healthcare services more acces-sible, aligned to the National Health Strategy 2018-2022 which focuses on population health and integrated care. Hence, PHCC’s website has been upgraded to keep pace with the substantial

and accelerated progress in the field of healthcare in Qatar, promote effective communication mechanisms with the public, and use information technology effec-tively to support health care,” Dr. Mariam Abdulmalik said.

Speaking to media on the sidelines of the event, she said that the website in Arabic and English, also supports accessibility options for persons with color blindness, visual impairment, or special needs and in accordance with international standards.

The new website is also tai-lored to fit all types of computer and smartphone screens. “PHCC’s website has shifted from its information and archival services to a new status, providing e-services that make it easier for patients to benefit from many services without going to health centres,” said Dr. Alabdulmalik.

More than 120 pages have been created with content including PHCC’s profile, patients and clients, clinics and services, and health centre information.

“The launch of website is a

new era for PHCC as we are moving to online with a number of e-services. People will no longer be required to come to a health centre to register, they can submit all documents online and receive a confir-mation that the registration is accepted or not, if any missing documents it will be commu-nicated online,” said Executive Director of Health Information and Communication Tech-nology (HICT) at PHCC, Alex-andra Tarazi.

“Also public can change the health centre according to place of residence and register dependent family members electronically without having to attend health centres.

“Soon public will be able to make and reschedule appoint-ments online. Also a mobile app will be added to the website. Patients will have much more control on the delivery time of medicines,” she added. E-services and patient infor-mation exchanged through the PHCC website will be secured against cyber attacks.

QA first global airline with over 20 million FB followers

FROM PAGE 1

Qatar Airways Senior Vice- President Marketing and Cor-porate Communications, Salam Al Shawa added: “The fact that we have grown by four million followers during the pandemic speaks for the credibility and resilience of our airline. The importance of social media to Qatar Airways as a way to directly reach our passengers cannot be overstated as we

keep aiming to create quality content while actively engaging with our followers in a way they can relate.”

“We hit 20 million followers in 2020 on Facebook, and I am confident that we will reach 30 million followers before 2022 on all platforms, as our ever-growing virtual family con-tinues to grow as they look forward to travelling often like before.”

According to the latest IATA data, Qatar Airways has become the largest interna-tional carrier between April to July by fulfilling its mission of taking people home. This enabled the airline to accu-mulate unmatched expe-rience in carrying passengers safely and reliably and uniquely positioned the airline to effectively rebuild its network.

Seven arrested for violating home quarantineQNA — DOHA

The competent authorities arrested yesterday seven people who violated the requirements of the home quarantine, they committed to following, which they are legally accountable for, in accordance with the procedures of the health authorities in the country.

It is in implementation of the precautionary measures in force in the country, approved by health authorities represented in the Ministry of Public Health (MoPH) to ensure the achievement of public safety and to curb the spread of the coronavirus.

The seven people being referred to the com-petent prosecution are Mohammed Saeed Jibran Bani Saghir Al Shahrani; Abdullah Mohammed Salem Mohammed Al Hanitem; Nasser Abdul Hadi Jaber Jrizy Al Marri; Saud Khalid Faraj Abdullah Al Abdullah; Saud Nasser Rashid Madghash Al Hajri; Mohammed Regahel Mohammed Jaber and Mohammed Zaid Haitham Al Saadi.

The concerned authorities in the State called on citizens and residents who are subject to quar-antine to fully adhere to the requirements set by the Ministry of Public Health, to ensure their safety and the safety of others.

THE PENINSULA – DOHA

The Public Works Authority (Ashghal) recently felicitated Galfar Al Misnad for successfully completing three million Safe Man Hours without LTI in the Sewer Repair Rehabil i tat ion & Replacement Framework (SRRRF) Contract.

The certificate of appreciation was received by Galfar Al Misnad’s Senior General Manager (Infra-structure), Hemachandran from Ashghal’s Khalid Ahmad Al Obaidli and Ali Hassan Al Muhannadi.The leading Qatari contracting company that is currently cele-brating 25 years of operations in the country, is grounded in the founding principle of ‘Safety First’. “This remarkable achievement is a further testament to our com-mitment to prioritizing the highest levels of safety in all activities,” said Galfar Al Misnad’s Executive Director, Satish G Pillai.

“The long journey, since the project’s inception was filled with

challenges of executing in the sewage environment, deep shafts, working in traffic congested areas in the city, responding to emergency flooding situations across Qatar. Despite these trying conditions, ‘Safety First’, was our approach,” explained Senior Project Manager, N Ravindran who executed the project.

He added that the credit of this recognition goes to the entire SRRRF team, all supporting departments, and to Galfar’s Top Management from where the values and prin-ciples of ‘Safe and Quality Working’ trickles down to the entire work-force.Galfar Al Misnad has a long association with Ashghal, notably in the construction of the Doha South Sewerage Treatment Plant. The company was also recently awarded Package 01 and Package 03 for road development in Al Wajba.

These packages were part of the nine citizens’ land plot development contracts worth QR3.6bn signed by Ashghal earlier this year.

04 WEDNESDAY 21 OCTOBER 2020HOME

Qatar participates in GCC Audit and Accounting Bureaus meetingQNA – DOHA

The State of Qatar has partici-pated in the 17th meeting of heads of GCC Audit and Accounting Bureaus, which was held yesterday via videoconfer-encing. The State of Qatar was represented by Deputy President of the State Audit Bureau H E Abdulaziz Mohamed Al Emadi.

The meeting discussed the topics on its agenda, including the memorandum of the General Secretariat on joint oversight, and the proposal to raise awareness and knowledge to exercise oversight over the goals of sustainable development, in addition to discussing topics of the 5th GCC competition for research and studies in the field of oversight and accounting.

The participants took the appropriate decisions on these topics, and followed up on

previous decisions that were taken by Their Excellencies, heads of bureaus.

Ooredoo to sponsor Lab’s connection at QU’s College of Business and EconomicsTHE PENINSULA – DOHA

Qatar’s leading telecommuni-cat ions operator has announced will sponsor the connectivity of a new FinTech Lab at Qatar University’s College of Business and Economics.

Ooredoo will be providing an independent 5G connection

to the Lab, so faculty can test heavyweight blockchain financial transactions as they conduct research into block-chain technology and prepare students for the next gener-ation of 5G and FinTech.

This 5G connection will be used primarily to test the per-formance of such transactions, which need to be tested on a

5G network for research purposes.

The new Lab will be equipped with extremely pow-erful, high-performing com-puters which will offer ample opportunity to test the capa-bility of the 5G network.

Director PR at Ooredoo, Sabah Rabiah Al Kuwari, said of the sponsorship: “We’re

immensely proud to be working with Qatar University on such a worthwhile initiative.

As part of our corporate social responsibility strategy, we’re committed to supporting research and education, and the development of FinTech is very relevant to our progress towards achieving the goals set

out by Qatar National Vision 2030.

We’re extremely excited about this opportunity to see just what our 5G network can do in the FinTech field, and excited to see yet more of what the 5G future holds.”

Commenting on this spon-sorship, Professor Mazen El Masri, Director of Qatar

University Fintech Innovation Hub, said: “We thank Ooredoo for their continuous efforts to support research and education.

Powering our Lab and technological resources with 5G connectivity enables us to open up our lab to a wider range of innovators across the country”.

Deputy President of the State Audit Bureau H E Abdulaziz Mohamed Al Emadi, participating in the meeting, held yesterday.


Qatar University’s Health (QU-Health) hosted the third part of a six-part interactive webinar series to enhance skills in designing and conducting research. The sessions have been specifically developed to address the learning gaps reported by healthcare workers in Qatar and interactively delivered by a team of experienced health researchers from QU-Health and Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC).

The interactive webinar series welcomed participants worldwide via the QU-Health YouTube channel live stream to learn more about the appraisal and design of quantitative studies.

QU-Health Associate Pro-fessor and Head of Clinical Edu-cation and Training, Dr. Hazem Elewa, led the session and com-mented, “With the current COVID-19 pandemic, it has become essential that healthcare workers stay up to date with the latest reported evidence. It is important that they understand and can appraise the published literature and identify areas they can use to enhance their practice”.

Similarly, QU- Health Clinical Lecturer, College of Pharmacy Dr. Daniel Rainkie, mentioned that “Healthcare pro-fessionals come to these sessions unaware of their skills gaps in evaluating the medical literature.

Our goal is to demonstrate a systematic approach that par-ticipants can adopt to ensure that they can better interpret and apply what they read to benefit their patients.”

Amongst other topics dis-cussed during the interactive webinar, participants were shown how to evaluate the quality of published studies using

a systematic critical appraisal process. This CPD series is being delivered at a highly critical time where there has been a marked increase in the number of pub-lications in the medical literature reporting on research related to the novel coronavirus COVID-19.

QU-Health CPD Coordinator Dr Zachariah Nazar commented, “There is tremendous creative energy coming from all fields for reporting on COVID-19. Things are happening very fast and maybe not with the same scrutiny we’re used to in science. Therefore healthcare profes-sionals should equip themselves with the necessary knowledge to scrutinize the medical literature.”

Besides, QU Health Associate Professor, College of Pharmacy Dr. Kazeem Yusuff, a presenter in the CPD session, suggested

that “These educational series provide an opportunity for the development of working rela-tionships between key institutes in Qatar. The series has the potential to provide a platform for effective continued collabo-ration in many areas related to health research and education.”

This QU-Health HMC CPD collaborative initiative was established following strategic meetings between representa-tives from the two institutes in response to the challenges iden-tified in responding to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The series is one of many efforts in education and training, which are being offered by QU-Health and HMC to healthcare professionals to support the development of their workers and the subsequent care they provide to their patients.

Galfar Al Misnad achieves 3 million Safe Man Hours at Ashghal project

Ashghal and Galfar Al Misnad officials during the event.

Safari Mall, Abu Hamour, celebrates 10th Anniversary Ambassador of India to Qatar, H E Dr. Deepak Mittal, with Safari Group Director and Group General Manager, Zainul Abideen; Director and Group Coordinator, Shaheen Backer; Regional Director of Finance, Surendra Nath, along with other Safari Group Management Staff cutting a cake to celebrate the 10th Anniversary of Safari Mall, Abu Hamour, on October 18.

QU-Health, HMC experts partner to deliver CPD education series

Pearling Season International

School accredited by QNSA


Following Qatar National School Accreditation’s (QNSA) visit under the Ministry of Education and Higher Education (Evaluation Institute) which took place from September 29 until October 6, 2020, Pearling Season International School (PSI) was granted the QNSA- Accredi-tation for its great performance and adherence to the criteria of high quality education. QNSA inspectors observed lessons, met with staff and spoke to students at PSI. The educa-tional program was thoroughly evaluated and verified to have met high standards. Principal of PSI, Clive Shepherd expressed his gratitude for the accreditation on behalf of PSI’s staff and emphasised their future vision for PSI. “We are incredibly proud to have been awarded the QNSA accreditation. Our academic and administration team have worked tire-lessly to demonstrate commitment to an outstanding education.

A snapshot of QU-Health and HMC interactive webinar.

Dr. Hazem Elewa said: “With the current COVID-19

pandemic, it has become essential that healthcare

workers stay up to date with the latest reported

evidence. It is important that they understand and can

appraise the published literature and identify areas they

can use to enhance their practice.”

THE PENINSULA — DOHA

With 170 million people working in the healthcare globally, the health sector could lead on climate change and there is motivation within the profession to act. This is the message of a new report soon to be released by the World Innovation Summit for Health (WISH) titled ‘Health in the Climate Crisis: A Guide for Health Leaders’.

The new WISH 2020 report, benefiting from a broad advisory group of experts and leaders across the environment, health and healthcare fields, is being produced in partnership with Imperial College London, under the leadership of the co-director of the Imperial College Institute of Global Health Innovation, Dr. David Nabarro. He previously served as special adviser to the United Nations (UN) Secretary-General on the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and climate change, and in March was appointed as the World Health Organization (WHO) Special Envoy on COVID-19. Climate change is one of the primary themes of the virtual gathering of global health leaders from November 15 to 19 - WISH 2020 - and several the-matic reports highlighting its challenges for healthcare will be released during the summit.

The report’s twin impera-tives, to make healthcare systems resilient to climate change and to reduce their role

in causing it, recognizes that even high-income health systems are insufficiently pre-pared to respond to major climate-related shocks, and low- and middle-income coun-tries are especially fragile. Addi-tionally, even the best adap-tation measures will be insuffi-cient if the scale of the threat from climate change is not reduced.

The authors note that with the size of its workforce, and rising health costs pushing spending to around $8 trillion globally, the healthcare pro-fession has the market power to drive change directly – especially when allied with other sectors. ‘Climate-smart’ healthcare can, in turn, reduce the sector’s 4.6% share of global emissions – to make systems greener, more resilient, and of higher quality.

Dr. Nabarro said: “Our physical and mental health are being affected by climate change all over the world. The more I look into how climate change is affecting people, the more I realize that health workers have a vital role. They can act as

advocates - drawing on their own authority and legitimacy as health workers and con-necting with people in different sectors in order to collectively ensure that people’s health is preserved and indeed optimized despite the fact that climate change causes massive chal-lenges. We hope that the report on Climate Change and Health discussed during WISH 2020 will be of value to the health professionals for the foreseeable future."In keeping with WISH’s emphasis on evidence-based, policy-oriented research, several influential reports will be released in November to align with the summit’s varied research themes. WISH has partnered with the BMJ to com-mission two collections of peer reviewed articles on the effects of climate change on infectious diseases and the growing chal-lenges of dry cities.


In recognition of World Oste-oporosis Day, which is marked annually on October 20, offi-cials at Hamad Medical Corpo-ration’s (HMC) Tobacco Control Center have warned about the link between smoking and oste-oporosis and are urging smokers to take advantage of smoking cessation services.

Head of HMC’s Tobacco Control Center, Dr. Ahmad Al Mulla, said smoking is known to increase the risk for oste-oporosis in both males and females. He said smoking decreases the body’s absorption of calcium, which is necessary for vital cellular functions and good bone health. Smoking also affects the balance of hormones in the body, including estrogen,

which is needed to build and maintain a strong skeletal system in women.

Dr. Al Mulla said there is growing evidence that smoking delays bone healing and notes

that smokers take longer to heal from fractures than those who do not smoke.

He said smoking is also known to decrease the effec-tiveness of vitamin D. Vitamin

D is required for optimal calcium absorption and is essential to good bone health.

Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, HMC’s Tobacco Control Center has continued to provide support for tobacco-dependent patients through tel-ephone-based consultations.

Since the beginning of the pandemic, the Center has increased its operating capacity threefold, providing the public with greater access to smoking cessation services.

Dr. Al Mulla is urging smokers to consider quitting, saying they should contact HMC’s Tobacco Control Center to learn more about services available.

HMC’s Tobacco Control Center can be contacted at 4025 4981 or 5080 0959.

05WEDNESDAY 21 OCTOBER 2020 HOME

The more I look into

how climate change is

affecting people, the

more I realize that

health workers have a

vital role.

Dr. David Nabarro

Co-director of the Imperial College Institute of Global Health Innovation

There is growing

evidence that smoking

delays bone healing and

notes that smokers take

longer to heal from

fractures than those who

do not smoke.

Dr. Ahmad Al Mulla

Head of HMC’s Tobacco Control Center

Smoking poses risk for bone fractures and osteoporosis

US Patent Office grants patent to QU team for adaptive securityTHE PENINSULA — DOHA

Dr. Khaled Khan and Dr. Armstrong Nhlabatsi from the College of Engineering at Qatar University (QU) have recently obtained a US Patent (No. 10,713,355) for their invention on adaptive security.

This research project was funded by the Qatar National Research Fund (QNRF). The research team led by Dr. Khaled Khan, an Associate Pro-fessor in the Department of Computer Science and Engi-neering at QU in collaboration with The Open University (UK), invented a method to enable security designers of the cloud application to make security mechanisms dynamic and adaptive.

The invention incorporates contextual attributes, which are considered in addition to rules when making an access control decision by the system.

Dr. Khaled Khan pointed out that access rights to infor-mation on computer-based systems may depend on con-textual factors, such as who is accessing the data, from where, and under which threat conditions.

He said that there is a need for the dynamism of access control mechanisms consid-ering contextual factors that arise at runtime

Dr. Khan added that security threats in cloud envi-ronments are dynamic, requiring access control mech-anisms to respond to the changing nature of the threats. Current access control mech-anisms in the cloud use static

rules expressed as security policies.

Existing solutions focus on pre-designed access control measures at design time, hence not handling unknown threats that may arise at runtime. The current access control mecha-nisms do not consider runtime context -making security none-adaptive.

This project has rigorously tackled this dynamic issue of security in the cloud.

In terms of practicality of the proposed approach, mobile app developers and cloud service providers can incor-porate this invented technology in their access control mechanisms.

The team has also imple-mented a prototype to demon-strate the feasibility of the solution. The prototype uses AWARE, XACML policy engine, AXIS 2, and machine learning.

Dr. Khaled Khan has con-cluded that the adaptive nature of this invention by the QU-OU joint team is a turning point in cybersecurity.

Dr. Khaled Khan

Healthcare workers have potential to help combat climate crisis

Oman professionals

benefit from HEC

Paris in Qatar’s

program


HEC Paris in Qatar and Takatuf Oman, the Human Capital solutions provider, have successfully concluded the Emerging Leaders Program (ELP) for 23 mid-senior managers and leaders from diverse industries in Oman. The program incor-porates Takatuf’s human capital expertise and HEC Paris ’ internat ional ly acclaimed management programs, to offer a powerful learning experience to emerging leaders.

Featuring three modules and an Action Learning Project, the ELP has been specially designed to improve the leadership competencies as well as develop new com-petencies for executives, and contribute to the growth and sustainability of an execu-tive’s company.

While the first module ‘Me as a Leader’ analyzed leadership behaviors and how to develop them, the second module ‘Me as a Guide’ scrutinized how teams are managed and integrated to achieve organizational goals. The third module ‘Me as a Builder’ examined how executives can develop the future of organizations through innovation. It further built on the insights of the previous modules and focused on strategic decision making.

The third module of the program, revised to accom-modate online delivery, fea-tured workshops by prom-inent HEC Paris professors. The online closing ceremony of the program was con-ducted by Dean of HEC Paris in Qatar, Dr. Pablo Martin de Holan and Senior Manager Human Capital Consulting at T a k a t u f , C r i s p i n Garden-Webster.

Reiterating the high points of HEC Paris and Takatuf’s partnership since its inception in 2016, Dr. Martin de Holan said: “The Emerging Leaders Program is aimed at preparing Oman’s senior leaders to grow them-selves and their organiza-tions. We have witnessed the transformational journey of these participants. Learning is changing and growing, and the participants have grown and are ready to continue their journey as managers and leaders in their organi-zations and in their lives.”

Highlighting the relations between the two institutions, Garden-Webster said: “At Takatuf, we are proud to partner with HEC Paris in Qatar. Our collaboration on the program design and delivery enables us to provide a world-class learning experience for mid-to-senior level managers. After four years, we are happy to have trained numerous leaders to a range of sectors.”

QRCS educates Bangladesh refugees about hygieneTHE PENINSULA — DOHA

In celebration of the Global Handwashing Day 2020, the representation mission of Qatar Red Crescent Society (QRCS) in Bangladesh has taken part in the hygiene awareness campaigns at the refugee camps.

The community vol-unteers working at the health centers operated by QRCS in the 19 and E8 refugee camps held a series of community events and sessions for around 350 persons to raise awareness of the importance of washing hands with soap and water, as a crucial way to prevent communicable diseases, in the midst of the Coronavirus outbreak and easy transmission by touching virus-carrying objects.

Around 28 young women and men of the refugees are hired as community volunteers at QRCS’s health centers, working on a daily basis to communicate health awareness messages to refugee families and the host community. They

cover a wide range of important topics, such as: first aid, family planning, fundamental principles, and psychological support.

Since the beginning of 2020, nearly 43,214 families, or 216,070 persons, have been visited by community

awareness teams.First marked in

2008, the Global Hand-washing Day is an annual event celebrated every October. It fea-tures national and inter-national awareness cam-paigns to promote a culture of handwashing among society members.

MME records violationof burning wastesTHE PENINSULA — DOHA

The Ministry of Municipality and Environment (MME) repre-sented by Industrial Inspection and Pollution Control Department recorded a violation of burning wastes.

The violation was booked following the provisions of environmetal law.

The action was taken by municipal inspectors during an inspection visit to the site, said the Ministry of Municipality and Environment in a statement.

The violators were referred to the security agencies for taking further legal actions.

Meanwhile , Health

Monitoring Section of Doha Municipality seized 20 tonnes of food items which were found unfit for human consumption in a store of a company in the Industrial Area.

Legal actions were taken against the erring company and all seized food items were destroyed under the super-vision of Doha Municipality.

Al Sheehaniya Municipality represented by the Services Affairs Section is waging an intensive campaign disinfecting streets and dust bins following the preventive and precau-tionary measures to ensure health and saftey of citizens and expatriaes.

Solidarity with Palestinian prisoner

06 WEDNESDAY 21 OCTOBER 2020MIDDLE EAST

“I would also like, God

willing, to reaffirm our

commitment to our

democracy, respect of the

constitution, state of law

and institutions and

improve our

parliamentary practice.”

H H Sheikh Nawaf Al

Ahmad Al Jaber Al Sabah

Amir of Kuwait

Amir of Kuwait H H Sheikh Nawaf Al Ahmad Al Jaber Al Sabah greets as he arrives with Crown Prince H H Sheikh Mishaal Al Ahmad Al Jaber Al Sabah (right) and Parliament Speaker H E Marzouq Al Ghanim (extreme left) to attend the opening of the 5th regular session at the National Assembly, in Kuwait City yesterday.

QNA — KUWAIT CITY

The State of Kuwait has called for ending the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories, urging the international community to pressure Israel to cease all settlement activities.

Israel must halt all forms of settlement activities in compliance with the United Nations Security Council Resolution 2334 and lift the land-sea blockade on Gaza Strip, enforced 13 years ago, Kuwait’s Deputy Permanent Representative and Minister Pleni-potentiary Bader Al Munayyekh said, addressing the fourth com-mission of the UN General Assembly.

Al Munayyekh called on Israel to stop implementing any plans to annex parts of the West Bank and the Jordan Valley, as this vio-lates international law, the United Nations Charter and relevant Security Council resolutions.

He also called on Israel end its occupation of the occupied Palestinian territories and the Syrian Golan, in compliance with Security Council Resolutions 242 and 497.

He said that in light of the exceptional and difficult global conditions that the international community is witnessing in the wake of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, the basic and humanitarian services provided by the UN agency for refugees(UNRWA) did not stop for more than 5.6 million Pal-estinian refugees.

Affirming vital role of the UNRWA, Al Munayyekh said the agency secured online teaching for 540 Palestinian students and delivered essential supplies to one million refugees.

UNRWA is targeted with a “politicised assault,” intended to compromise its independence and tarnish its credibility, Al Munayyekh said, denouncing Israeli restrictions on the UNRWA staff works and movement in the occupied territories, according to Kuna. The State of Kuwait will maintain its unwavering support for the agency, he pledged.

He called anew upon the international community to protect the Palestinian people amid recurring grave humanitarian violations.

Al Munayyekh also urged for ending the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories in full, affirmed necessity that the Palestinian people attain their legitimate rights including their right to establish an independent state with East Jerusalem as its capital.

Kuwait Amir: National unity ‘most powerful weapon’ against challenges

Kuwait urges West to pressureIsrael to stop settlement activities

QNA — KUWAIT CITY

Amir of the State of Kuwait H H Sheikh Nawaf Al Ahmad Al Jaber Al Sabah reaffirmed yesterday commitment to democracy, respect of the constitution, state of law and institutions and improve parlia-mentary practice.

The Amir of Kuwait made the remarks at the opening of the Parliament’s 5th regular session of 15th legislative term, according to Kuwait News Agency (KUNA).

Amir called for abiding by national unity as the “most pow-erful weapon” against all chal-

lenges, dangers and crises.The Amir, who paid tribute

to the late Amir H H Sheikh Sabah Al Ahmad Al Jaber Al Sabah for his service to his nation and people, said he would continue the path of the late Amir.

“I would also like, God willing, to reaffirm our

commitment to our democracy, respect of the constitution, state of law and institutions and improve our parliamentary practice,” he affirmed.

Regarding the new expe-rience of parliamentary elections, Sheikh Nawaf Al Ahmad Al Jaber Al Sabah called on citizens for “good selection” of their future

parliament members. He said that loyalty of

Kuwaitis should always be for their nation, urging them to follow performance of their representatives at parliament in their “serious supervision, constructive legislation and f u l l c o m m i t m e n t t o constitution.

Daily COVID-19 cases in Iranexceed 5,000 in new recordAFP/QNA — TEHRAN/KUWAIT

Iran’s daily novel coronavirus caseload surpassed 5,000 infec-tions — a new record — according to official figures announced yesterday, as death rates remain high.

Health ministry spokes-woman Sima Sadat Lari said the country had registered a record 5,039 new infections in the pre-vious 24 hours, bringing the total number to 539,670.

There were also 322 new deaths, as the worst-hit country in the Middle East counted 31,034 fatalities since February. Government spokesman Ali Rabii told a press conference that “the spread of the virus is rising in 12 provinces including Tehran, and nine provinces are on alert”, urging “cooperation” to curb its transmission.

Iran announced a record 377 deaths on Monday, and has made several grim announce-ments of record-high virus cases and fatalities in recent weeks. President Hassan Rouhani said Monday that the country was

now “facing a larger wave of this virus” and called on the health ministry to increase daily testing.

The Kuwaiti Ministry of Health announced yesterday that it reported 886 new cases of coronavirus in the past twenty-four hours, brining the total of confirmed cases in the country to 117,718.

During the same period, four deaths have been recorded, bringing the total number of deaths in Kuwait to 714 cases so far. The patients in intensive care units have reached 133, bringing the total of confirmed

cases that are still receiving the necessary treatment to 7,806 cases. The Kuwaiti Ministry of Health announced earlier the recovery of 592 people over the past twenty-four hours, bringing the total number of recoveries to 109,198.

The Omani Ministry of Health announced yesterday that the total number of regis-tered cases of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) in the country has reached 111033.

The ministry said in a statement carried by Oman News Agency (ONA) that the total death toll from the disease reached 1122, while the number of people recovering from it reached 96949, bringing the cure rate to 87.3 percent.

The statement indicated that 50 cases admitted to Omani hospitals during the past 24 hours, bringing their total to 501 and 207 cases in intensive care.

The Omani Ministry of Health announced that the total number of registered cases of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) in the country has reached 110594.

Palestinian men wearing protective masks, lift placards bearing the portrait of administrative detainee in Israeli custody Maher Al Akhras whose health has deteriorated while on hunger strike for nearly 85 days, during a demonstration demanding his release, in front of the Erez crossing with Israel near Beit Hanun in the north of the Gaza Strip, yesterday.

Turkey arrests man accused

of spying for UAE: ReportAFP — ANKARA

Turkey has arrested a man accused of spying on behalf of regional rival the United Arab Emirates, Turkish state broad-caster TRT World reported yesterday.

Ahmad Al Astal, a 45-year-old Palestinian from Gaza, had Jordanian travel documents when he was taken into custody in Turkey. Astal’s family in Gaza issued a statement on social media on September 25 saying he had been “kidnapped” four days earlier.

His family said Astal was a journalist who had worked in the UAE for a decade before moving to Turkey where he worked at several media outlets, including state news agency Anadolu. TRT World quoted Turkish sources saying

that the UAE had allegedly ordered Astal to spy on the Muslim Brotherhood in Turkey as well as “other activists” after he moved to the country in 2013. The report said he also gathered information on Turkish domestic affairs.

The UAE also hosts former Palestinian strongman Mohammad Dahlan, who is often accused by Turkish media of involvement in the 2016 failed coup against Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and of a role in the 2018 murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi at Saudi Arabia’s Istanbul consulate.

Turkey offered four million lira ($500,000) last year for information leading to the capture of Dahlan, a fierce rival of his former ally Abbas in the Palestinian Fatah party.

Turkish military vehicles, part of a convoy, drive through the town of Ariha in the rebel-held northwestern Idlib province yesterday, after vacating the Morek post in Hama’s countryside.

Turkey moving military base in northwest SyriaAP — BEIRUT

Turkish troops in northwestern Syria have been evacuating one of their largest military bases in the area, which was surrounded by Syrian government troops for months, activists said yesterday.

There was no immediate comment from Turkish officials. Activists and opposition media platforms reported the military evacuation, posting footage and photos of Turkish trucks and equipment driving north of Morek.

Turkish TV station Hab-erturk quoted unnamed offi-cials saying that Turkey is moving the base to an area farther north in the north-western province of Idlib still controlled by Syrian oppo-sition forces backed by Ankara. .

It was not immediately clear whether the withdrawal is part of a deal to reposition Turkish observation points inside the opposition-held enclave or is aimed at reducing Turkey’s military presence in the area.

As part of an earlier cease-fire deal, Turkey deployed troops to man 12 observation points in the northwest to sep-arate government forces and Syrian opposition fighters and monitor the truce negotiated with Russia.

But the cease-fire failed to

curtail government advances, including the one that encircled the Turkish base in Morek late last year.

The shrinking enclave at the edge of northwestern Syria, along the border with Turkey, is the last area controlled by Turkish-backed Syrian oppo-sition forces. Hundreds of thou-sands of civilians have been dis-placed within the enclave during repeated military operations.

Many of the residents are

already displaced from other parts of Syria and sought refuge from government troops there.

The Step News Agency, an opposition media collective, said two Turkish conveys were spotted driving towards the M4 highway, an area where the Syrian opposition is in control. The agency first reported movement in the Turkish base in Morek on Sunday.

It said Turkey and Russia had negotiated evacuating

Turkish posts encircled during the last government offensive. There are believed to be three other posts encircled by Syrian government troops.

Shaam News Network, another opposition media site, said the evacuation will take a few days to complete.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the evacuation began late on Monday, and is likely to be followed by the evacuation of other bases.

A government spokesman said “the spread of the virus is rising in 12 provinces including Tehran, and nine provinces are on alert”, urging “cooperation” to curb its transmission.

Lebanon President meets UN Special CoordinatorQNA — BEIRUT

The Lebanese President, General Michel Aoun, met today, United Nations Special Coordinator in

Lebanon Jan Kubis.During the meeting, the

deliberations of the first session of the negotiations to demarcate the southern

maritime borders between Lebanon and Israel, and the mechanism that was adopted in accordance with the framework agreement reached.

Erekat critical, but stable: FamilyAP — OCCUPIED JERUSALEM

Senior Palestinian official Saeb Erekat remained in critical but stable condition in an Israeli hospital yesterday, his family said, as he continued his life-threatening battle against the coronavirus.

Erekat’s family told the official Palestinian news agency Wafa that he was receiving artificial respiration in the intensive care unit at Israel’s Hadassah Medical Center.

Late yesterday, Hadassah said Erekat’s condition remained unchanged. It said its doctors were consulting with experts around the world as they grappled with what they described as a com-plicated case due to Erekat’s history of health issues.

07WEDNESDAY 21 OCTOBER 2020 AFRICA

Lagos imposes curfew toquell growing protestsBLOOMBERG — LAGOS

Nigerian authorities declared a 24-hour lockdown in Lagos, Africa’s most-populous city, amid growing protests against police brutality that have dealt another blow to the corona-virus-battered economy.

Demonstrations that erupted on October 5 have con-tinued despite the government bowing to demands to dissolve a police unit that’s borne the brunt of the brutality allegations. Thousands of people, most of them youths, have taken to the streets of Abuja, the capital, the economic hub of Lagos and other towns, sealing off major roads and bridges, disrupting flights and bringing many businesses to a standstill.

The governor of Lagos state imposed a curfew yesterday to try and quell disruptions in a region that’s home to more than 22 million people and houses the headquarters of Nigeria’s biggest banks and other com-panies. The southern Edo state made a similar declaration on Monday, after hundreds of inmates took advantage of a chaotic demonstration to stage a prison break.

The Lagos lockdown was imposed after two police sta-tions were torched and a major expressway linking the main port city to the northern and southeastern parts of the country was sealed off. In Abuja,

soldiers dispersed protesters who had gathered in various parts of the city.

Police Inspector-General Mohammed Adamu ordered the deployment of anti-riot police to protect lives and property.

The demonstrations have cost an estimated 700bn naira ($1.8bn) in lost output so far, according to the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry. It called for grievances to be addressed through dialog, and for an end to the series of marches and street blockades that have spread to about half the nation’s 36 states.

“Over the past 12 days, eco-nomic activities have been crippled in most parts of the country,” the chamber said in a statement. “There is a great risk that the situation may degen-erate into a case of the complete breakdown of law and order.”

Nigeria’s oil industry — Africa’s biggest and the mainstay of the economy — has been unaffected and yields on the nation’s dollar bonds have

ticked up since they began, indi-cating that investors aren’t unduly concerned.

The fallout will worsen if the unrest drags on and violence that has erupted in recent days intensifies, according to Mosope Arubayi, chief economist at Vetiva Capital in Lagos.

“Locals could be scared to go to work and foreigners will fear for the security of their investment,” he said. “This will have a dire impact on the level of economic activity in the country and existing foreign investors could start exiting their position in the capital market.”

The unrest has weighed on insurance companies, whose shares accounted for three of the five biggest declines on Nigerian Stock Exchange on Tuesday. An industry index fell 1.2%, the most in a week.

“Insurance stocks are the most vulnerable” if there’s more violence and property is damaged, said Tajudeen Ibrahim, an analyst at Chapel

Hill Denham Securities in Lagos. “We will expect an upward pricing of insurance products if, due to the protests, insurance claims rise significantly in the coming quarters.”

While the government has issued a directive to its security forces not to use violence, Amnesty International accuses the police of still using excessive force. Three people were killed during clashes that erupted during a march in Abuja on Monday, bringing the total killed so far to 18, the human-rights group said on Twitter.

Most previous uprisings in Nigeria have been quashed by the security forces, but the scale of the current protests and the fact that they have been

organized on social media and have no clear leaders have made them difficult to quell.

“Communication between the two sides will likely con-tinue to be strained, given a lack of trust in the government,” Songhai Advisory, a Lagos-based risk advisory firm, said in a note to clients. It warned that policing reforms will face legal and fiscal constraints, with the nation’s federal system lim-iting the ability of the states to effect changes on a force that falls under the ambit of the national government.

Besides policing reforms, the protesters also want President Muhammadu Buhari to deliver a special state-of-the-nation speech,

and for the government to pay compensation to those who have died and improve welfare benefits for police officers.

The protesters have won backing from parliament. The Senate yesterday urged the gov-ernment to meet all their demands and the Speaker of the House of Representatives warned that the current budget won’t be passed unless pro-vision is made for victims of police brutality.

“The Nigerian government is not used to something like this,” said Japheth Omojuwa, a political activist from Abuja. “It’s difficult to say it can go this way or that way, but ultimately, the government will always have a say in how far it goes.”

People walk past a fire on the road during clashes between youth in Apo, Abuja, following the ongoing demonstrations against the brutality of Nigerian Police Force Unit, the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS).

REUTERS/AFP — KHARTOUM

Sudan has transferred the compensation it has agreed to pay US victims of militant attacks and their families, the central bank governor said yesterday.

The payment of $335m is part of a deal with the United States to get Sudan removed from its list of state sponsors of terrorism, which has been a hurdle for Khartoum as it sought debt relief and external borrowing.

Sudan has transferred the required amount, bank gov-ernor Mohamed Al Fatih Zaine-labidine told a news conference. Acting Finance Minister Hiba Mohamed Ali also said that Sudan needed to accelerate the adjustment of its foreign

exchange rate. Sudan is in the midst of an economic crisis which has accelerated since the overthrow of Islamist autocrat Omar Al Bashir last year.

Thanks to US sanctions going back to the 1990s, Sudan has been largely cut off from the international banking system. But Zainelabidine said local banks would restore corre-spondence relations next week following the US move.

The Sudanese pound has fallen on the black market to 220 versus the dollar, while the official exchange rate is around 55. But since the US announcement on Monday the pound has gained from 250 the day before on the black market.

Ali gave no details on the future foreign exchange policies.

Sudan yesterday hailed US plans to remove it from its state sponsors of terrorism blacklist, saying the move would facil-itate debt relief and pave the way to economic recovery.

Sudan is one of four nations branded by the United States as a state sponsor of terrorism — along with Iran, North Korea and Syria. The designation has severely impeded economic development in the northeast African nation, with few major foreign investors willing to run afoul of US laws.

“This decision qualifies Sudan for debt relief,” Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok said in a speech broadcast by state television.

“Today, we have debts of more than $60bn. This decision paves the way for exemption.”

“At long last, JUSTICE for the American people and BIG step for Sudan!” Trump wrote on Twitter, vowing to delist Sudan as soon as the compensation is “deposited”.

Sudan’s terror designation dates to 1993 during the rule of now-ousted president Omar Al Bashir, who hosted wanted mil-itants including former Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden in the 1990s.

Bashir was ousted in April 2019 after mass protests against his rule, and the country’s tran-sitional government has made lifting the US sanctions a pri-ority. Earlier this year, Sudan had paid compensation to fam-ilies of victims of a bomb attack on the USS Cole off Yemen’s coast in October 2000. Sudan always denied any involvement

but agreed to the settlement to fulfil US conditions for its delisting.

“This is the beginning. This is not a solution to our problems, but it is the beginning,” said Sudan’s acting foreign minister Omar Qamareddine.

“We are not terrorist people but we were afflicted by a regime that made us appear so,” he told a news conference.

Finance Minister Heba Ali hailed the US decision but said fundamental changes “will not be immediate”. The delisting allows Sudanese financial insti-tutions to establish ties with their counterparts abroad, and facilitate money transfers, she said. It will also allow Sudan to apply for debt relief initiatives, she added.

Defense rejects

case against

ousted Bashir

Sudan transfers compensation for US bombing victims

AFP — KHARTOUM

The trial of Sudan’s ousted president Omar Hassan Al Bashir and others over a 1989 coup heard defense arguments yesterday dismissing charges of illegal use of military force.

The latest hearing coin-cided with a mission to Khartoum by a team from the International Criminal Court (ICC), which has sought for almost a decade to try Bashir for alleged war crimes in Darfur.

The ex-president and 27 others are being tried in Khartoum accused of plotting the 1989 Islamist-backed mil-itary coup that brought him to power. “The next hearing will be held on November 3 to resume listening to defense lawyers’ arguments responding to the accusations,” said judge Essam Ibrahim.

Defense lawyers in the latest hearing refuted accusa-tions by Sudan’s prosecutor general Tagelsir Al Hebr against Bashir and the other defendants. Hebr has accused them of multiple charges including undermining con-stitutional order and using military force to commit a crime. Most of defense team walked out of the previous hearing in protest at alleged bias on the part of the prose-cutor general.

Journalists and activists protest against a proposed law to shake up the media sector by removing a requirement for television and radio stations to have official licences, outside the parliament in Tunis, Tunisia, yesterday.

Tunisian protesters say media bill would open sector to graft, extremismREUTERS — TUNIS

Journalists and activists protested yesterday outside Tuni-sia’s parliament against a proposed law to shake up the media sector by removing a requirement for television and radio stations to have official licences.

The bill’s supporters include the moderate Islamist Ennahda party and the media mogul Nabil Karoui, whose own unlicensed Nessma television station played a big role in his campaign for president last year.

However, about 300 pro-testers at yesterday’s demon-stration said that relaxing licensing rules for media channels risks giving powerful outside interests the power to interfere in Tunisia’s young democracy. “This proposed amendment presents a real threat to democracy and for the press sector,” said Mehdi Jlassi, president of the journalists’ labour syndicate. “Cancelling licences will open the door to corrupt money, politicians and perhaps extremists to control

the sector,” he said.Supporters of the bill, due

to be discussed by parliament yesterday, say it will allow the sector to grow and help establish more news channels and create more jobs.

Saif Eddine Maklouf, head of the pro-government Karama coalition in parliament, said it would be good for Tunisians to have more TV channels to choose from beside the nine now available, and he saw nothing wrong with foreigners owning media.

Kenyatta urges reform to resolve poll violenceAFP — KISII, KENYA

Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta yesterday pushed for constitutional changes to resolve the cycles of election violence in the country, a hot button issue that has divided the political class.

Kenyatta’s plea came as ahead of a much-anticipated report on suggested reforms to be issued in the coming days, after two years of public consul-tations that have seen leaders traverse the nation drumming up support for the process.

The Building Bridges Initi-ative (BBI) came about after Kenyatta and opposition leader Raila Odinga in 2018 stunned the nation by shaking hands and pledging to promote unity after a drawn-out 2017 election battle left more than 90 people dead.

“The question... requiring a constitutional consensus is therefore this: How do we resolve the winner-take-all sit-uation within a context of com-petitive politics as required by democratic practice?” Kenyatta said in an address to a crowd on a public holiday celebrating the country’s national heroes.

“This question of ‘us’ versus ‘them’ must come to an end.”

Kenya, with its diverse pop-ulation and large ethnic voting blocs, has long suffered politi-cally-motivated communal vio-lence around election time, notably after a 2007 poll when over 1,100 people died. That election led to a power-sharing

government, in which Odinga was prime minister, and a new constitution in 2010. However the 2017 election again led to chaos, with Odinga crying foul over fraud and the Supreme Court ordering a rerun due to irregularities, which Kenyatta won. “It would, indeed, be a tragedy if, come subsequent elections, we will not have resolved this dilemma,” Ken-yatta said. “Can we adopt a constitutional arrangement that takes care of our diversity as a people?”

The BBI process, and Ken-yatta’s rapprochement with Odinga, has led to a public feud with deputy president William Ruto who has suggested the pair want to create a prime minister post for Kenyatta, who is not allowed to seek a third term in 2022. “We should not give my suggestion the paro-chial interpretation of creating positions for individuals,” said Kenyatta. “I am only urging for a constitutional consensus that accommodates all communities in an election.”

The spat has called into question Kenyatta’s promise to Ruto that he would back him in the next election, with Odinga emerging as a potential successor. Kenyatta, who is an ethnic Kikuyu, and Ruto, who is Kalenjin, struck a political alliance in 2013 as both were probed by the International Criminal Court (ICC) over the 2007 violence which pitted their communities against each other.

The protesters have won backing from parliament. The Senate yesterday urged the government to meet all their demands and the Speaker of the House of Representatives warned that the current budget won’t be passed unless provision is made for victims of police brutality.

Guinea election conducted properly: African groups

AFP — CONAKRY

Representatives from regional African blocs said yesterday that Guinea’s weekend election was conducted properly, despite the oppo-sition claiming irregularities.

Augustin Matata Ponyo, the African Union’s head of mission in Guinea, said at a news conference that ballot took place “in transparency, security, calm and tranquility”. Jose Maria Neves, the head of the West African ECOWAS mission, similarly said voting had taken place according to Guinean legislation.

The announcement comes after Guinea’s leading oppo-sition figure Cellou Dalein Diallo declared he had won the election against the incumbent President Alpha Conde, 82. Official results are expected to be released within a week.

As the novel coronavirus pandemic surges around the globe once again, some coun-tries that avoided the worst of the first wave have seen a spike in cases for the first time.

The late surges are most acute in parts of Central and Eastern Europe, where coun-tries praised for low case numbers over the summer are grappling with some of highest rates of infection in the world. Some countries in Latin America, South Asia and the Middle East have seen the same.

“Countries that have avoided the first waves have no reason to be complacent,” said Yanzhong Huang, a senior fellow for global health at the Council on Foreign Relations, adding that some countries avoided the first wave of the 1918 flu pandemic only to be hit harder later. “It might be a cursed blessing.”

The surge in new cases in some countries is stretching resources, prompting new measures. New daily cases reached a record 7,482 in Poland on Monday, as the gov-ernment announced it would transform the National Stadium in Warsaw into a field hospital.

“We can see that the number of cases is growing so fast that we need to secure places for hospitalization for those who need it,” gov-ernment spokesman Piotr Müller told state television.

In the Czech Republic, where 5,059 new cases were recorded on Sunday, the health minister resigned last month and was replaced by epidemiologist Roman Primula, who has called on Czech doctors who work abroad to return home to help the country’s overburdened health-care system.

There would be a “signif-icant increase in the number of hospitalisations, severe coronavirus cases, and deaths” in the coming weeks, Primula warned in an address to the nation last week.

Only a few months ago, Poland and the Czech Republic were seen as success stories: In June, the German newspaper Die Welt wrote that Poland had “stood firm while others have stumbled”. At the time, the country of 38 million had confirmed fewer than 23,000 cases.

In early July, despite warnings from the World Health Organization, thousands attended a party in Prague to say “farewell” to the virus, which at that point had caused around 12,000 infections in the country of 10 million.

“We want to celebrate the end of the coronavirus crisis,” Ondrej Kobza, the party organizer and local cafe owner, told reporters.

Poland now has more than 183,000 confirmed cases, while the Czech Republic has around 174,000.

As of Monday, the Czech Republic had 492 new cases per 100,000 people in the past seven days, according to a Washington Post analysis, sug-gesting one of the fastest esca-lating outbreaks in the world. Poland had 140 new cases per 100,000, higher than other global hot spots such as the United States and Spain.

Other nearby countries in Central and Eastern Europe were also seeing a wave of new cases for the first time, including Slovenia, one of the first countries to declare itself virus-free in May. And there are nations that appeared to be seeing smaller or slower new waves, despite an earlier periods of relative respite.

In Latin America this

summer, Argentina and Par-aguay had been islands of sta-bility as the virus raged in neighbouring countries. But both have seen a steady, recent rise in cases since late summer, prompting new worries and restrictions.

This week, the South American Sports Organization confirmed that it would delay the 2022 South American Games in Asunción, Para-guay’s capital, by several months, as the “evolution of the COVID-19 pandemic has become unpredictable”.

Sri Lanka, a success story for South Asia earlier in the pandemic, saw a spike in new cases earlier this month that led to a stricter curfew and ban on large gatherings.

The virus has also spread widely for the first time over recent weeks in some coun-tries in the Middle East. Jordan, in response to rising cases, imposed weekend curfew this month, and Lebanon shut restaurants.

Tunisia, which some experts suggested had “beaten” the coronavirus, is seeing daily case numbers hit record highs. The country, which had ordered a coun-trywide lockdown earlier in the pandemic, is now using local curfews to fight the virus.

In some cases, the resur-gence of the virus appeared to come down to political factors. Judyth Twigg, a pro-fessor at Virginia Common-wealth University who spe-cializes in global health, pointed to public fatigue in the face of government restrictions in the Czech Republic and other parts of Europe.

“These countries put strict lockdowns in place back in the spring precisely because they knew their healthcare systems couldn’t handle a

surge of moderate or severe cases,” Twigg said. “But as the months dragged on, populist leaders responded to public pressure to reopen economies and societies, and sure enough, the virus found its way in.”

Similar surges have not yet been recorded in some coun-tries that undertook proactive measures, such Taiwan and Vietnam, while numerous African states, including giants such as Nigeria, appear to have kept the first wave under control. But the new surges in countries that had previously sidestepped major spikes show that early victories do not necessarily mean con-tinued success in beating back the virus.

Huang noted that in the spring and summer of 1918, Austria-Hungary had been spared by the first viral wave of the flu pandemic then sweeping the world, but this may have left it more vul-nerable in later, more deadly outbreaks, the devastation of which may have led to the dissolution of the empire.

Sema Sgaier, executive director of the Surgo Foundation and a Harvard professor, said that it did appear that some countries were less susceptible to the pandemic: Her foundation projects that much of sub-Saharan Africa is less likely to see large outbreaks, due in part to the young population in many nations.

But nothing is guaranteed. “COVID-19 is like an ocean wave: When it hits the right conditions, it breaks, causing turmoil”, Sgaier said. “The question is when the wave is going to reach your shore.”

Adam Taylor writes about foreign affairs for The Wash-ington Post.

The surge in new cases in some countries is stretching resources, prompting new measures. New daily cases reached a record 7,482 in Poland on Monday, as the government announced it would transform the National Stadium in Warsaw into a field hospital.

08 WEDNESDAY 21 OCTOBER 2020VIEWS

CHAIRMANDR. KHALID BIN THANI AL THANI

EDITOR-IN-CHIEFDR. KHALID BIN MUBARAK [email protected]

ACTING MANAGING EDITORMOHAMMED SALIM [email protected]

DEPUTY MANAGING EDITORMOHAMMED OSMAN ALI [email protected]

EDITORIAL

FOR the sixth year running, Qatar has launched its annual influenza vaccination campaign yesterday. Health authorities appealed to people to get vacci-nated this year particularly as a flu virus attack this season can prove more fatal as the threat of COVID-19 pandemic still prevails. A combined attack of sea-sonal flu and COVID-19 can be fatal and suffering from both together can make one’s health conditions difficult to be managed.

Announcing the launch of vaccination campaign, Chair of the National Health Strategic Group on COVID-19 and Head of the Infectious Diseases Division at Hamad Medical Corporation, Dr. Abdul-latif Al Khal, said: “Getting a flu shot this year is more important than ever because of COVID-19. The flu vaccine many not protect you against COVID-19, but it will reduce your risk of developing flu and flu-related complications and reduce the possibility of getting infected with both the flu and COVID-19 viruses at the same time.”

As we are still struggling to get over the pandemic season, it has become a national responsibility for everyone to get the flu vaccine, which is being pro-vided free through several government and private health care providers across the country ensuring wider and convenient availability for everyone.

People should ensure that they are getting the vaccine in time, that is at least two weeks before the arrival of flu season which usually begins with the onset of winter. Flu vaccine triggers the development of antibodies in our body about two weeks after vac-cination. Hence, getting a flu shot earlier will make one better prepared to face the flu season.

Some people are worried about the vaccination, because of myths, false beliefs and doubts about the effectiveness of the vaccine. An anti-flu shot is essential before every season, because a person’s immune protection from vaccination declines over time and an annual vaccine is essential for optimum protection. As the flu viruses are constantly changing, the vaccines are updated from one season to the next to ensure protection against particular viruses of the season.

The flu vaccination are crucial for people with chronic health conditions, pregnant women, children and other vulnerable groups. It will also avoid anxiety in people as several of the COVID-19 and flu symptoms are the same, such as sore throat, fever, cough etc.

In Qatar, the virus vaccine is dispensed free of cost and made available across the country and now it is our duty to get it as early as possible and play our role in protecting ourselves and those around us.

A flu shot in time saves lives

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Quote of the day

I fully support the Asean Outlook on the Indo-Pacific, which Indonesia initiated, as it has a lot of fundamental commonalities with Japan’s free and open Indo-Pacific.

Yoshihide Suga, Prime Minister of Japan

People being tested for COVID-19 at a drive-thru testing centre in Warsaw, Poland, recently.

AFP — FRANKFURT AM MAIN

Greenpeace yesterday criti-cised the European Central Bank for “bias” in its bond purchases that favour “carbon-intensive sectors” when the institution is looking for ways to address climate change.

According to a study by the environmental pressure group and the UK-based think-tank New Economics Foundation, 63 percent of bonds held by the ECB at the end of July were attached to fossil fuels, energy-intensive manufacturing, non-renewable utilities and carbon-intensive transport.

“The ECB needs a climate-friendly rea-lignment,” said Greenpeace

economist Mauricio Vargas, arguing that the bank must set “the framework for a green European financial system”.

As the bank tees up a wide-ranging strategy review, due to conclude next year, “the ECB now has the chance to listen and to correct its monetary-policy misstep,” Vargas says. The report rec-ommended that the ECB stop buying bonds issued by fossil fuel and energy-intensive companies, and instead buy bonds from the green and renewable sectors as part of its multi-trillion-euro (dollar) asset-purchase programme.

“Its corporate purchases are structurally misaligned with EU commitments to the Paris Climate Agreement and

do not adequately reflect climate-related financial risks,” the authors said.

The study also argued that the Frankfurt-based institution needs to row back on market neutrality, the principle that guides asset purchases. Intended to not favour one industry over another, the authors said it instead “hardwires a carbon bias” by in effect subsidising the companies’ debt.

Sectors with a heavy carbon footprint such as energy companies and air-lines have benefited from the ECB’s bond-purchase policies, the study said. Last week, ECB President Christine Lagarde said that the bank might revise its rules on neu-

trality in its strategy review. Implementing these pol-

icies would be “in line with the climate emergency that we are currently facing but would also support climate-related financial stability objectives,” the report said.

The move would also encourage more financial institutions to move away from business models that harmed the environment, it added. The study comes ahead of a crunch monetary-policy meeting at the central bank next week. The Paris climate pact, signed in 2015, commits nations to keep tem-perature rises below 2.0 degrees Celsius compared with pre-industrial levels by cutting their use of fossil fuels.

Some countries that avoided initial COVID-19 surge see first spike in cases

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Greenpeace knocks ECB for carbon-heavy ‘bias’

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ADAM TAYLOR THE WASHINGTON POST

09WEDNESDAY 21 OCTOBER 2020 OPINION

Consider 9/11, when some 3,000 Americans died. The US mounted a very activist response that included new security procedures at airports, crackdowns on money laundering, increased surveillance and two wars. Not all of those choices were prudent, but nonetheless they qualify as a very vigorous response.

Earlier this week, the American public watched carefully the congressional hearings of President Donald Trump’s nominee to the Supreme Court, Amy Coney Barrett. For four days, Barrett answered questions about her background and legal opinions.

To a non-American, this may have seemed like a useless exercise, given that the Republicans hold a 53-47 majority over the Democrats in the Senate, so Barrett’s con-firmation is sure to sail through.

Also, historically, the Senate has rarely rejected a president’s Supreme Court nominee. The last time this happened was in 1987, when the Democratic-controlled Senate refused to confirm Republican President Ronald Regan’s nomination of Robert H Bork for his conservative judicial opinions on key issues ranging from civil rights to abortion.

Given these hearings have a predetermined outcome, they often turn into political theatre of sorts. But this does not mean they are not important.

One of the most conten-tious aspects of Barrett’s con-firmation hearings was their timing. President Trump decided to push forward with the nomination just days after

the death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg in September. The hearings were scheduled just weeks before the US elections, amidst a public health emer-gency and COVID-19 out-breaks in the White House and Congress.

Democrats decried the fact that the Senate was spending time on this confir-mation process rather than passing a COVID-19 economic relief package, while also putting people in danger by gathering individuals in one room to conduct the hearings. This, many argued, unneces-sarily exposed Senators and others to potential COVID-19 contamination.

There are two main reasons why the Republicans are rushing.

First, the Supreme Court is set to adjudicate a case on the Affordable Care Act (ACA) – President Barack Obama’s major domestic policy achievement that reformed the healthcare system and expanded health insurance coverage – and both Trump and the Republicans are counting on Barrett to help overturn it.

Second, it is looking more and more likely Democratic challenger Joe Biden will defeat Trump in the upcoming elections, while Republicans may lose control of the Senate. Solidifying a conserv-ative majority by confirming three Supreme Court nomina-tions by the incumbent Republican president repre-sents a solid victory for the Republican party, one that could outlast a Democrat-controlled presidency and congress.

But by pushing forward

with these rushed hearings, Republicans are going against their own past practices. When President Obama had the opportunity to nominate a Supreme Court judge prior to the 2016 presidential election, Senate Republicans refused to hold any hearings and insisted the process should be delayed until after Americans voted. This time, when it is in their political interest to rush a nomination ahead of the polls, they seem to have no qualms about doing it.

Democrats on the com-mittee, for their part, are using the hearings not just to grill Bennett on important political issues that she will have to decide on as a Supreme Court justice, but also to appeal to voters. Dem-ocrats, including vice-presi-dential candidate Kamala Harris, used their allotted

time to articulate why these hearings are problematic and how they reflect the failed leadership of President Trump and the Republican Party.

Barrett gave little infor-mation about how she would rule on flashpoint issues in American politics today, such as abortion, the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare), gun rights cases, and legal dis-putes that could arise in the upcoming presidential election. She was asked about her personal views, which she masterfully avoided answering. She did, however, clearly describe her judicial philosophy, known as origi-nalism. When asked to describe this concept she said the following:

“I interpret the Consti-tution as a law, that I interpret its text as text and I under-stand it to have the meaning that it had at the time people ratified it. So that meaning doesn’t change over time. And it’s not up to me to update it or infuse my own policy views into it.”

This judicial philosophy, adopted by conservative judges reflects a very narrow view of the rights that emanate from the US consti-tution. It limits them to what is mentioned in the text and avoids interpretations that could ensure a plethora of rights that are not directly delineated or established by unchallenged legal precedent (known as “super precedent”).

The US constitution was drafted in 1787, and the last amendment was added in 1992. It is a living, breathing body of legal principles that more progressive judges interpret more liberally to better apply them to modern society and chal-lenges, known as non-originalism.

Judges that follow an orig-inalist judicial philosophy are less likely to ensure a right to affordable healthcare or a woman’s right to have an abortion, for example, and are more likely to reaffirm the rights of gun owners, upholding the provisions of the second amendment of the constitution (the right to bear arms).

Barrett clerked for one of the most conservative Supreme Court judges in US history, Antonin Scalia, whom she sees as a role model. As a Federal Appeals court judge, she issued several conserv-ative rulings, and as an aca-demic at Notre Dame Law School, she voiced her con-servative legal philosophy in various publications.

This means there is a strong possibility of her sup-porting decisions that could overturn legal precedents like the 1973 ruling in the Roe v Wade case, which established that the constitution protects a woman’s right to abortion.

Barrett’s views on the ACA are also known. She critiqued Chief Justice John Robert’s 2012 decision to uphold key parts of the ACA, arguing he interpreted the law “beyond its plausible meaning to save the statute”. The Supreme Court has agreed to hear the Trump administration-backed lawsuit against the ACA one week after the election. Trump’s two other Supreme Court nominees, Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh, will almost cer-tainly vote in favour of striking down the law.

Although initially there was public opposition to Bar-rett’s confirmation ahead of the elections, some American voters seem to be warming up to her. Some new polling reveals that 48 percent of voters want her confirmed, 31 do not, and 21 percent are undecided.

Democrats can do little to prevent the confirmation of Barrett, but their use of the hearing to address US voters may have given Biden and Democratic congressional candidates a boost. Mid-October polls show that Biden’s lead over Trump con-tinues to rise.

Three Senate Republicans on the Judiciary Committee are also facing significant re-election challengers, including the committee chairman Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, Joni Ernst in Iowa, and Thom Tillis in North Carolina. The hearings could affect their chances of re-election.

The hearings also helped mobilise grassroots women’s rights organisations. Over the weekend, thousands pro-tested Barrett’s nomination in Washington, DC and other American cities across all 50 states.

A Democratic-controlled White House, Senate, and House of Representatives would be a powerful buffer against a conservative Supreme Court. One thing Democrats can do, at least in theory, is add justices to the Supreme Court to overturn the conservative majority. The constitution does not specify a certain number of Supreme Court justices. The practice of having nine seats was decided on by Congress in 1869 and has not been changed ever since.

If Democrats control both the House and the Senate, they can pass new legislation to overturn this decision. Past attempts to do this have failed, as public opinion tends not to support such a move. However, we live in a new era, where US politics is unpredictable. And as the Senate’s top Democrat Chuck Schumer has said, “Every-thing is on the table.”

Anna Jacobs is a Doha-based researcher on US pol-itics and foreign policy.

The Amy Coney Barrett hearings were political theatre

Advocates of “herd immunity” strategies often claim that COVID-19 is rela-tively safe for the young and that most of the victims are old. This observation is correct, but the question is what to make of it. Often the implication - stated or not - is that the response to the pandemic need not be so vigorous because the loss of life, as measured in years, is less than it appears.

It is an uncomfortable but necessary discussion, they say. So be it - but once the conversation turns to which deaths matter the most, other questions about COVID-19 start to arise, almost all of which push in the direction of a very vigorous response.

When either foreign enemies or pathogens attack US lives on a noticeable scale, the pushback needs to be very hard indeed.

Consider 9/11, when some 3,000 Americans died. The US mounted a very activist response that included new security procedures at air-ports, crackdowns on money laundering, increased sur-veillance and two wars. Not all of those choices were prudent, but nonetheless they qualify as a very vigorous response.

The point is this: Had 3 Americans been killed rather than 3,000 - if, say, 9/11 was a US holiday the hijackers didn’t know about, so fewer people were working - the optimal response would not have been all that different. There were a lot of casualties, but it is also significant that several airplanes were bra-zenly hijacked and flown into major iconic buildings, the Pentagon was hit, and Con-gress itself came under threat.

Polities that do not

respond to such attacks soon find themselves out of business. Not only do they invite further intimidations, but their citizens lose faith in the government’s ability to maintain public order or shape the future of the nation. The entire US system of government may well have been at stake in the decision to respond to 9/11 in a signif-icant way.

By contrast, about 3,500 Americans die each year in fires. To repeat: That is each year. Yet Americans have not responded to deaths by fire as they did to 9/11, nor has a major public discussion ensued.

To be clear, the US probably should do more to limit the number of fire deaths. But they do not threaten the nation and con-stitutional order in the way that terrorist attacks do. How people die is crucial in helping a nation and society scale its response and frame the debate over what to do.

COVID-19 is obviously more like 9/11 than it is like

the annual toll of fire deaths. It commands the headlines every day, has created a global economic depression, is reshaping global politics and the balance of power, causes extreme stress for millions and has significantly harmed America’s global reputation. Yes, there have been some anxiety-driven overreactions, but it is inevi-table that humans will respond dramatically to a major worldwide pandemic.

To be sure, the number of US victims is high - 220,000 and counting, plus some number of excess deaths from broader causes. But the event itself is so cataclysmic that “downgrading” those deaths by saying many of the victims were elderly doesn’t make a big difference in terms of formulating an optimal response.

Furthermore, it is likely that coronaviruses will return, which is all the more reason to excel in response now. To consider another example, during the 2002-2003 outbreak of SARS-1, 774

people died worldwide, none of them in America. The countries that took that virus seriously - Korea, Taiwan and Canada, to name a few - have performed much better during the current crisis. And many of the best biomedical responses, including vaccines and monoclonal antibodies, have evolved from very serious responses to previous pandemics.

One final (rather out-landish) thought experiment: Imagine that an enemy of the US demanded that 100 90-year-old Americans be handed over each year for execution. Of course America would refuse. The age of the victims would not be a factor in that decision.

Pandemics have been civ-ilization-altering events since the beginning of human history, and they still are - especially if we do not respond properly. The need to get the response right, not the relative worth of the young to that of the old, is the main thing that we should be obsessing about.

Yes, COVID-19 is more serious for the elderly. So what?

ANNA JACOBS AL JAZEERA

TYLER COWEN BLOOMBERG

The US constitution was drafted in 1787, and the last amendment was added in 1992. It is a living, breathing body of legal principles that more progressive judges interpret more liberally to better apply them to modern society and challenges, known as non-originalism.

Solidifying a conservative majority by confirming three Supreme Court nominations by the incumbent Republican president represents a solid victory for the Republican party, one that could outlast a Democrat-controlled presidency and congress.

Supporters of Supreme Court nominee Judge Amy Coney Barrett showing their support outside the Supreme Court on Saturday in Washington, DC.

10 WEDNESDAY 21 OCTOBER 2020ASIA

Duterte takes responsibilityfor killings in war on drugsAP — MANILA

The Philippine president has said he accepts responsibility for the thousands of killings committed during police oper-ations in his crackdown on drugs, adding that he was even ready to go to jail.

President Rodrigo Duterte’s televised remarks on Monday night were typical of his bluster - and tempered by the fact that he has pulled his country out of the International Criminal Court, where a prosecutor is considering complaints related to the leader’s bloody campaign.

The remarks were also a clear acknowledgement that Duterte could face a deluge of criminal charges. Nearly 6,000 killings of drug suspects have been reported by police since he took office in mid-2016, but rights watchdogs suspect the death toll is far larger.

“If there’s killing there, I’m saying I’m the one... you can hold me responsible for any-thing, any death that has occurred in the execution of the drug war,” Duterte said.

“If you get killed, it’s because I’m enraged by drugs,” said the president known for his coarse and boastful rhetoric. “If I serve my country by going to jail, gladly.” He said, however, that drug killings that did not happen during police opera-tions should not be blamed on him, alleging that those may have been committed by gangs.

Duterte has made a crackdown on drugs a center

piece of his presidency. At the height of the campaign — which has often targeted petty dealers and users along with a handful of the biggest drug lords — images of suspects sprawled dead and bloodied in the streets were frequently broadcast in TV news reports and splashed on the front pages of newspapers.

UN human rights experts and Western governments led by the United States have raised alarm over the killings, enraging Duterte, who once told former US President Barack Obama to “go to hell.” There have been widespread suspicions that police engage in extrajudicial killings in the crackdown, allegations that they and Duterte deny.

In 2018, a court convicted three police officers of mur-dering a 17-year-old student after witnesses and a security video disproved their claim that the suspect was shot after vio-lently resisting, a common

reason cited by police officers after drug suspects are killed.

At least two complaints for crimes against humanity and mass murder in connection with Duterte’s campaign are being examined by an ICC pros-ecutor, who will determine whether there is enough evi-dence to open a full-scale investigation.

When the complaints were made, Duterte withdrew the Philippines from the world tri-bunal two years ago in a move that human rights groups said was a major setback in the country’s battle against impunity. The ICC prosecutor has said the examination into the drug killings would con-tinue despite the Philippine withdrawal.

Duterte reiterated his defiance of the court’s probe on Monday by asking, when did “drugs become humanity?” Instead, he framed the drug menace as a national security threat, as he has in the past, comparing it to the communist insurgency that the government has tried to quell for more than a half-century.

“If this is allowed to go on and on and if no decisive action is taken against them, it will endanger the security of the state,” said Duterte, a former government prosecutor.

“When you save your country from the perdition of the people like the NPAs and drugs, you are doing a sacred duty,” he said, referring to com-munist New People’s Army insurgents.

Motorcyclists ride during a “Fight COVID-19 Awareness Building Motorcycle Rally” to raise awareness about the use of wearing face masks and social distancing norms against the spread of the coronavirus, in Amritsar, Punjab, yesterday.

India commits vaccine for all citizensREUTERS — MUMBAI

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi yesterday said the government was working rapidly to ensure the supply of COVID-19 vaccines to all citizens once they are available.

In his address to the nation, Modi urged Indians to continue wearing masks and uphold social distancing rules to prevent further spread of the pandemic ahead of India’s festive season.

“Whenever the corona vaccine comes, how it reaches to every Indian as soon as pos-sible, the government is also working for that,” Modi said in a short speech in Hindi.

Earlier yesterday, India reported its lowest daily coro-navirus caseload in nearly three months, as new cases continued to decline from a peak in September.

The country reported 46,790 new infections in the last 24 hours, taking its tally to nearly 7.6 million — the second highest behind the United States. It also reported 587 deaths, taking the total to 115,197.

Experts have warned that infections could rise in India as the holiday season nears, with celebrations for the Hindu fes-tivals of Durga Puja and Diwali due this month and in mid-November, respectively.

“This is not a time for

carelessness... I want everyone to remember that we cannot be complacent in our fight against COVID-19,” Modi said.

The head of India’s clinical research body, the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) told reporters on Tuesday that drugs such as the antiviral remdesivir and anti-malaria drug HCQ, touted as potential weapons against COVID-19, were not working as expected in India.

“Debate and discussion is ongoing and at the national task force and we will take into cog-nisance the results of these trials and issue advisories accordingly,” Balram Bhargava, the Director General of ICMR, said.

‘No timeframe’

for release of

Chinese soldier,

says India

AFP — NEW DELHI

A Chinese soldier detained after straying into Indian territory near their high-altitude frontier will be handed back “after formalities are completed”, New Delhi said yesterday.

Both sides have engaged in a tense standoff along their 3,500km border since a battle in June left at least 20 Indian soldiers dead, as well as an unspecified number of Chinese casualties India announced Monday that a corporal named Wang Ya Long had been “apprehended” in the harsh mountainous area of Ladakh.

Colonel Zhang Shuili, a Chinese military spokesman, said Wang got lost while looking for Tibetan herds-man’s yak and asked for his release.

An Indian government official said yesterday that Wang “was well”, but his release would come only “after completion of formalities”.

“No timeframe is fixed as of now,” he said, on condition of anonymity.

India and China have poured tens of thousands of troops into the region since the June battle despite several rounds of talks.

Analysts say both sides are digging for a long, hard winter showdown.

Tensions have also spilled into civilian life, with some Indian nationalists demanding a boycott of Chinese goods, and the government banning a slew of social media apps from its major rival.

India is also seeking closer security ties with other coun-tries wary of China’s growing military power.

Australia announced Tuesday that it would for the first time take part in naval exercises with India, Japan and the United States in the Indian Ocean.

Meanwhile, the Indian army’s vice chief of staff, Lieu-tenant General S K Saini, is in the United States for talks and to seek other equipment for use in the China border showdown, government sources said.

Myanmar polls body defends cancelled voting in insecure areasAP — YANGON

Myanmar’s election supervisory body yesterday defended its decision to cancel voting in several areas of the country in next month’s general election, saying it could not be free and fair because of ongoing conflicts with armed ethnic rebel groups.

The Union Election Com-mission announced last week that it was canceling polling for the November 8 election in parts of the states of Rakhine, Kachin, Kayin, Mon and Shan, as well as the Bago region, all of which are troubled by various levels of unrest.

“Those particular areas cannot guarantee conditions to

hold free and fair elections and that is why the election is can-celed,” the UEC said in a statement Friday.

UEC official Myint Naing elaborated Tuesday in a virtual news conference.

“We have got the recom-mendations from the respective sub-commissions to cancel the elections in those specific areas,” he told reporters. “Also, we can consider holding the elections again in some of them by the recommendations of those sub-commissions.”

The most serious fighting is in the western state of Rakhine, where the Arakan Army, a well-armed and well-trained guer-rilla force fighting for

self-determination for the Rakhine ethnic minority, has posed a huge security challenge for government forces.

On Monday, the Arakan Army acknowledged kid-napping three election candi-dates from the ruling National League for Democracy party last week.

More than 1.1 million eligible voters in Rakhine state are losing their opportunity to par-ticipate in the election because of the canceled voting.

Especially in Rakhine, critics have charged, canceling voting could work to the advantage of the National League for Democracy by denying the like-lihood that a Rakhine

nationalist party would win the seats.

“These people in Rakhine state are now already in a civil war zone and at the same time they have lost their opportunity (to vote), so it’s like the armed resistance would be growing more than normal political practices,” said Dr. Khin Zaw Win, a Yangon-based political activist.

He and other critics charge that the election commission lacks transparency.

Saw Zin Maung Soe, founder of C.A.N.-Myanmar, a local election observation group and an adviser at the LGBTI-Inclusive Election Observation Mission of Myanmar, said it

failed to collaborate with civil society organisations, leading to a lack of trust.

“The UEC’s performance right now seems like it makes an unfair playing field for all of us and the political parties,” he said. “We are concerned for the credibility of the UEC and the winner of this election.”

The election commission has said the polls will be held on the planned date despite a coronavirus surge that is sweeping through parts of Myanmar. The National League for Democracy has said the election should go ahead, though several dozen other parties urged that it be postponed.

Ardern holds first caucus meeting after electionNew Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern speaks to media before her first caucus meeting at Parliament since last weekend’s general election, in Wellington yesterday.

Constitutional amendment needs referendum, says Sri Lankan Supreme CourtAP — COLOMBO

Sri Lanka’s highest court has ruled that four sections of a proposed amendment to the constitution that would consol-idate power in the president’s hands will need approval in a public referendum to become law because they are against the people’s sovereignty.

The Supreme Court’s ruling, announced yesterday by the parliamentary speaker, said that proposed sections that relieve the president from being responsible to Par-liament and give him immunity from lawsuits and the power to dissolve Par-liament a year after parlia-mentary elections are against public sovereignty.

The court said that a refer-endum would be required if the sections are not appropriately changed.

The constitution now allows the president’s actions to be questioned in court and disallows him from dissolving Parliament until six months before the legislature’s five-year term ends.

The top court, however, has allowed many of the conten-tious proposals, including giving the president the power to hold any number of minis-tries, appoint and sack min-isters, and appoint top judges and officials to the country’s key institutions.

Parliamentary Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena said that some sections can be rectified through parliamentary debate, and others according to the Supreme Court’s instructions.

Parliament will debate the amendment today and tomorrow, and a vote on a rec-tified bill is scheduled for Thursday evening. Support by at least 150 lawmakers will be needed to pass the amendment, as well as a referendum if required.

The amendment has run into contention with Sri Lanka’s influential Buddhist clergy that backed President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s election last year, Christian denomi-nations and some ruling party members who oppose them as a move toward making Parliament a nominal body and creating an authoritarian ruler.

With some internal oppo-sition, the government of Rajapaksa is expected to woo some opposition law-makers to ensure the amendment is passed.

Sri Lanka has had a pow-erful executive presidential system since 1978, but a r e f o r m i s t g o v e r n m e n t elected in 2015 reduced much of the presidential powers and gave them over to Parliament and inde-pendent commissions.

Espionage in Australia ‘at higher levels’AFP — SYDNEY

Espionage in Australia had eclipsed Cold War levels, the country’s spymaster told parliament yesterday, in a speech warning that citizens were being monitored and harassed by foreign powers.

Several politicians across the ideological spectrum have become embroiled in investi-gations into suspected overseas influence operations — most notably from China.

Australia’s normally tight-lipped spy chiefs have become

increasingly outspoken about the threat. “There are more foreign spies and their proxies operating against Australian interests than there were at the height of the Cold War,” said Australian Security Intelligence Organisation chief Michael Burgess.

He warned that diaspora groups living in Australia were being monitored and harassed by foreign governments.

An investigation has shown ethnic Uighur exiles from China’s Xinjiang region have been targeted while living in

Australia and other democratic countries.

Students from Hong Kong enrolled in Australian univer-sities have also reported intim-idation and threats to family back home after last year’s pro-democracy protests in the financial hub.

Burgess did not refer to China by name in his speech to lawmakers in Canberra.

But he said the foreign sur-veillance and intimidation of diaspora groups was “nothing less than an attack on Aus-tralia’s sovereignty.”

The remarks were a clear acknowledgement that Duterte could face a deluge of criminal charges. Nearly 6,000 killings of drug suspects have been reported by police since he took office in mid-2016.

11WEDNESDAY 21 OCTOBER 2020 ASIA

Japan, Indonesia strengthen ties furtherAP — JAKARTA

Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga, in Indonesia on his first overseas trip since taking office, expressed his backing yesterday for Southeast Asian efforts toward achieving peace in the South China Sea, while promoting Japan’s “free and open Indo-Pacific” concept of regional cooperation in coun-tering China.

Suga, on a four-day visit to Vietnam and Indonesia, arrived yesterday from the Vietnamese capital of Hanoi. Southeast Asia was chosen for his first trip since succeeding Shinzo Abe as prime minister last month in order to demonstrate the region’s importance to Japan.

After holding talks with Indo-nesian President Joko Widodo, Suga said Southeast Asian coun-tries are key to pursuing Japan’s “free and open Indo-Pacific,” or FOIP, and that he told Widodo that “Japan is committed to con-tributing to the peace and pros-perity in the region.”

“I fully support the Asean Outlook on the Indo-Pacific, which Indonesia initiated, as it has a lot of fundamental com-monalities with Japan’s free and open Indo-Pacific,” he said.

Widodo welcomed Japan’s

support for Southeast Asian nations and the partnership between Indonesia and Japan. “I emphasise the spirit of coop-eration to continue to be strengthened, especially in the midst of increasingly sharp rivalries between the world’s superpower nations,” he said.

“I also underlined my hope that the South China Sea can continue to be a sea of peace and stability,” he added.

Suga said the two leaders also agreed to strengthen bilateral defence ties and will

work toward holding a second “two-plus-two” foreign and defence ministerial talks.

Japan has similar ministerial talks with the US, Australia and some other countries, while Indonesia is the only member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations with that channel. The two sides also agreed to work toward achieving a defence equipment and tech-nology transfer agreement.

Japan eased its arms exports ban in 2014 and has since been promoting exports of defence equipment under efforts by Abe, who resigned last month due to health issues, to step up the coun-try’s military capability and help develop its defence industry.

Suga signed such a deal with Vietnam on Monday. Japan has defense equipment transfer deals with 11 other countries, including the US, Britain, the Philippines and Malaysia, and is negotiating with Thailand.

Japan yeserday agreed to extend a 50bn yen ($470m) loan to support Indonesia’s pandemic-hit economy, in areas such as dis-aster prevention, as well as medical supplies and equipment for medical institutions, Suga said. Japan will provide support to reinforce Indonesia’s economy through infrastructure projects

such as high-speed rail systems and the development of remote islands, he said.

“Indonesia is a maritime nation in the Indo-Pacific and a Japanese strategic partner, and Japan further promotes our cooperation in a range of areas, including efforts to overcome the coronavirus pandemic,” Suga said. Japan and Indonesia also agreed to negotiate the

easing of entry restrictions for essential business trips between the two countries.

As it promotes the FOIP vision with the US, Australia and India, Tokyo wants to convey that its respect for a rules-based international system makes it a better partner for Asean nations than China, whose escalating unilateral and military activity in the region have triggered

regional frictions.Earlier yesterday, Suga

attended a welcoming cer-emony at the presidential palace in Bogor, just outside Jakarta, Indonesia’s capital, after arriving from Vietnam. Yesterday, he was scheduled to meet people related to Japanese companies and lay a wreath at the Kalibata Heroes Cemetery before returning to Tokyo.

Japan Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga (left) and President Joko Widodo of Indonesia greeting each other during a joint press conference at the Presidential Palace in Bogor, on the outskirts of Jakarta, yesterday.

China urges India toswiftly return soldierAP — BEIJING

China’s military says it hopes India will make good on its pledge to swiftly return a Chinese soldier found lost along their mountainous border where the sides have been locked in a tense standoff.

The defence ministry issued a statement late Monday saying the soldier had been helping herders round up yaks when he lost his way on Sunday evening.

The Chinese side informed their Indian counterparts of the missing individual and were informed shortly afterward that he had been found and would be returned after undergoing a medical checkup, a spokes-person for the Western Theater Command, Zhang Shuili, was quoted as saying.

A statement from the Indian side on Monday said the soldier, Cpl. Wang Ya Long was apprehended inside Indian-controlled Ladakh’s Demchok area and was to be released soon.

It said the soldier “had strayed” across the de facto border along the eastern section of what’s known as the Line of Actual Control, a loose demarcation separating Indian- and Chinese-controlled areas.

“As per established pro-tocols, he will be returned back to Chinese officials at the Chushul-Moldo meeting point after completion of formal-ities,” the statement said.

The high-altitude standoff began in early May with a fierce brawl, and exploded into hand-to-hand combat with clubs,

stones and fists on June 15 that left 20 Indian soldiers dead. China is believed to also have had casualties, but has not given any details.

China detained at least 10 Indian soldiers, including four officers, following the deadly brawl. They were returned three days later after intense military and diplomatic negotiations.

India and China have each stationed tens of thousands of soldiers backed by artillery, tanks and fighter jets and are bracing for a harsh winter in the cold-desert region, where temperatures can fall to minus 50 degrees Celsius.

The nuclear-armed rivals have accused each other of crossing into rival territory and of firing shots for the first time in 45 years.

Relations between the two countries have often been strained, partly due to their undemarcated border. They fought a border war in 1962 that spilled into Ladakh and ended in an uneasy truce. Since then, troops have guarded the undefined border and occa-sionally brawled. They have agreed not to attack each other with firearms.

India unilaterally declared Ladakh a federal territory and separated it from disputed Kashmir in August 2019, ending Indian-administered Kashmir’s semi-autonomous status. It also vowed to take back the Aksai Chin plateau.

China was among the first countries to strongly condemn the move, raising it at interna-tional forums including the UN Security Council.

Pakistan Army Chief orders probe into Safdar's arrestINTERNEWS — RAWALPINDI

Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa has ordered an inquiry into the recent “Karachi incident”, a statement by the military’s media wing said on ‘yesterday.

According to Inter-Services Public Relations: “(Gen Bajwa) has directed Commander Karachi Corps to immediately inquire in to the circumstances to determine the facts and report back as soon as possible.” The statement by ISPR comes moments after PPP chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari held a press conference at Bilawal House in Karachi and asked Gen Bajwa and Director General Inter Services Intelligence

Lieutenant General Faiz Hameed to hold an inquiry into the circumstances surrounding PML-N leader retired Captain Safdar’s arrest.

Addressing reports of the police being pressurised to reg-ister a police complaint against Safdar, Bilawal said that every police officer in Sindh, from a station house officer to senior police officers, were wondering who had “surrounded IG Sindh Mushtaq Mahar’s office at 2am on Sunday night”.

“Who were the two persons who went inside the IG’s house at 2am and where was our IG taken at 4am in the morning?” he asked.

Bilawal urged Gen Bajwa and Lieutenant General

Hameed to hold an investi-gation into their institutions and determine how their people were operating in the province.

“Persons from these insti-tutions should be focusing on matters of national security and the law and order issues of the province,” he said. “Our civilian institutions and these institu-tions have to work together (to uphold the law in Sindh).”

Bilawal said that inter-ference in police matters was intolerable, adding that he had “condemned it in the strongest words.” Later on, a statement by the Media Cell Bilawal House said that Gen Bajwa and Bilawal spoke on the telephone “to discuss the Karachi incident”.

According to the statement,

the PPP chairman “expressed his appreciation” to the army chief “for taking prompt notice of the Karachi incident and his assurance of conducting a trans-parent inquiry on the incident”.

It also comes shortly after reports that several senior officers of Sindh Police, including IG Sindh Mushtaq Mahar, have decided to go on leave citing demoralisation of the police force.

An application signed by AIG Special Branch Imran Yaqoob, which has been making the rounds on social media, reads that he wishes to proceed on leave because the police high command has been “ridiculed and mishandled”, leading to demoralisation within the ranks of Sindh Police.

Shahbaz Sharif faces NAB courtSecurity officials escort Shahbaz Sharif (centre), Pakistan’s opposition leader and brother of former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, as he leaves the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) court after a money-laundering case hearing, in Lahore, yesterday.

Philippines and Vietnam brace for tropical storm SaudelREUTERS — HANOI/MANILA

Authorities in Vietnam and the Philippines braced yesterday for a tropical storm that could bring flooding and landslides in both countries, as the death toll in Vietnam from weeks of adverse weather rose to 105, with dozens still missing.

Rescue teams and disaster officials were on standby and preparing equipment in the Philippines, awaiting the arrival on the main island of Luzon later on Tuesday of tropical storm Saudel, which could bring heavy rains and cause mud slides.

Moderate early rains trig-gered some minor landslides yesterday, blocking several roads.

Vietnam’s weather agency is expecting Saudel to arrive in its central region on Sat-urday, bringing more intense rains, risking exacerbating its worst flooding in years.

Floods and mudslides during October have killed at least 105 people in central Vietnam, about a third of those soldiers, with 27 people missing, among those 15 construction workers buried under one of several deadly mudslides last week.

At least 178,000 homes, nearly 7,000 hectares of crops have been impacted and 700,000 farm animals killed, official data showed.

Vietnam’s current coffee crop harvest and bean quality should not be hurt by con-tinuous rains, traders said, while its main rice growing region will be unaffected.

State television showed people sitting on the roofs waiting for aid from rescuers in Quang Binh province, where floods have blocked roads and cut power.

Thai Cabinet approves Parliament session to debate protestsAP — BANGKOK

Thailand’s Cabinet yesterday approved a request to recall Parliament for a special session to deal with the political pres-sures from ongoing anti-government protests.

The Cabinet at its weekly meeting approved the request, which calls for a non-voting session on October 26 and 27.

The request for the session came from House Speaker Chuan Leekpai, who said Monday that both government and opposition parties supported it. Prime Min-ister Prayuth Chan-ocha had already said earlier that he sup-ports the move.

There is a deadlock between the government and the student-led protesters, who want Prayuth to step down, the constitution to be amended to

make it more democratic, and reforms to the monarchy to have it conform to democratic norms.

The protesters charge that Prayuth, an army commander who led a 2014 coup, was returned to power unfairly in last year’s general election because laws had been changed to favor a pro-military party. The protesters say a consti-tution written and passed under military rule is undemocratic.

But their more recent demand for checks and bal-ances on the monarchy has deeply angered conservative Thais — and broken a taboo, since the monarchy is con-sidered sacrosanct and tough laws protecting it from insult mean its role is not usually dis-cussed openly. It has also raised the risk of confrontation in a

country where calls for political change have a history of being met with military intervention or even violence.

The government has sought to weaken the protesters’ resolve over the past week by arresting their leaders, declaring a state of emergency for Bangkok that makes all rallies illegal, and trying to physically impede their gath-erings, including by closing mass transit stations.

However, when riot police backed by water cannons were sent in to break up a rally in Bangkok on Friday, it drew widespread criticism for the use of force and failed to discourage the protesters, who have con-tinued to gather in large numbers every day. Protests have also spread to other provinces.

Thousands protest againstnew jobs law in IndonesiaAP — JAKARTA

Protests against Indonesia’s new jobs law were held in cities across the country yesterday, with demonstrators calling on the president to revoke the legislation they say will erode labour rights and weaken envi-ronmental protections.

More than 1,000 students and workers gathered near the Presidential Palace in Jakarta to express their anger at the legislation, which was passed on October 5. Protests were also held elsewhere in the country, including in Bandung, Surabaya and Makassar.

The new legislation, which amends 79 existing laws and regulations, is expected to bring radical changes to Indonesia’s labor system and natural resources management. Pres-ident Joko Widodo’s

administration says it is needed to ease bureaucracy, attract more investment and create jobs at a time when Southeast Asia’s largest economy is reeling from the coronavirus pandemic.

While the legislation was greeted by the business com-munity, critics allege it will do more harm than good.

Those gathered yesterday, the first anniversary of Widodo’s second term, voiced their frustration at the presi-dent’s overall performance.

“Instead of making Indo-nesia more advanced, the fact is that the people are screaming because of the policies that do not take side of the majority of the Indonesian people,” Remy Hastian, the coordinator of the National Association of Uni-versity Student Executive Bodies, said in a statement.

After holding talks with Indonesian President Joko Widodo, Suga said Southeast Asian countries are key to pursuing Japan’s “free and open Indo-Pacific,” and that he told Widodo that “Japan is committed to contributing to the peace and prosperity in the region”.

12 WEDNESDAY 21 OCTOBER 2020EUROPE

UK govt suffers defeat by House of Lords over Brexit billAFP — LONDON

The upper chamber of Britain’s parliament yesterday inflicted a symbolic defeat on the government over Brexit legis-lation that critics claim trashes the UK’s reputation as a defender of the rule of law.

The government’s internal market bill is designed to reg-ulate trade among the country’s four constituent nations — England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland — after Brexit.

But it unilaterally rewrites Britain’s divorce treaty with the European Union, struck last year, sparking legal action from the 27-nation bloc.

The bill has already passed the more powerful House of Commons but in the House of Lords, peers including Anglican archbishops voted by a majority of 226 to express their “regret” over its treaty-breaching provisions.

While the vote did not alter the bill’s language, it sets the stage for detailed scrutiny by the lords in the coming weeks. Many want to strip out those elements, triggering a legis-lative tussle with the Commons

before the bill can become law.Michael Howard, a former

leader of the ruling Conserva-tives and prominent Brexiteer, was among the dissident peers who voted for the motion against the government of Prime Minister Boris Johnson.

“I want the United Kingdom to be an independent and sov-ereign state,” Howard said during the debate.

“But I want it to be an inde-pendent sovereign state that holds its head up high in the world, that keeps its word, that upholds the rule of law, that h o n o u r s i t s t r e a t y obligations.”

The government argues the bill is needed to prevent the fragmentation of the UK’s internal market once the

country is free of EU rules at the end of this year, in particular to keep Northern Ireland in the fold.

But the territory, which has a troubled history, is meant to enjoy a special status after Brexit in consultation with Brussels because it shares a border with EU member Ireland. The bloc is angry at Britain for flouting its treaty obligations and has initiated legal action against London.

Igor Judge, a former lord chief justice who proposed the critical amendment, said: “We cannot resile from the fact that we are breaking the law if this bill is enacted.”

The vote came with Britain and the EU also locked in a standoff over protracted talks about their future trading rela-tionship from next year, and the threat of a “no deal” separation is looming larger.

The EU’s chief negotiator Michel Barnier urged Britain yesterday to use the little time that remains to clinch a trade deal, but London is refusing to restart talks until Brussels p r o m i s e s t o m a k e concessions.

Britain’s Prime Minister Boris Johnson returns to 10 Downing Street after attending the weekly cabinet meeting held at the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office in London, yesterday.

UK plans tough lockdown curbs on ManchesterREUTERS — LONDON

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said yesterday he would impose tougher lockdown restrictions on the Greater Manchester region in northern England despite failing to reach a deal on funding support with local leaders.

Britain — the worst-hit European nation during the

COVID-19 pandemic with nearly 44,000 related deaths — is now seeing a second wave of the virus, recording 21,331 new cases and 241 deaths yesterday.

Johnson is resisting pressure for a second national lockdown, fearful of the disas-trous economic effects, and instead pursuing a localised strategy of imposing three tiers of increasingly stringent

restrictions in virus hotspots in England.

Johnson unilaterally imposed top tier restrictions after talks with local leaders about a voluntary move into the tier failed.

“This evening, informed by the data we have just seen, I can announce that Greater Man-chester will move to the Very High alert level,” Johnson told a news conference.

EU takes action against Malta, Cyprus for ‘golden passports’AP — BRUSSELS

The European Commission launched infringements proce-dures yesterday against Cyprus and Malta over their “golden passport” programmes, in which wealthy people can acquire EU citizenship in exchange for an investment.

The EU’s executive said the lucrative schemes are in vio-lation of EU law and undermine the “essence of EU citizenship”. Cyprus recently announced that it was ending its programme amid allegations that a top state official and a veteran lawmaker

were trying to bypass strict vetting rules. Cyprus says it will end its programme from November 1, though the Com-mission notes that the country plans to continue processing current applications.

The Cypriot programme was introduced in the wake of a 2013 financial crisis that brought the country to the brink of bankruptcy and forced it to accept a financial rescue pro-gramme from creditors.

Like a similar programme in Malta, it has attracted many foreigner investors because a passport from those EU

countries automatically grants the holder access to the entire 27-nation European Union. Around 4,000 Cypriot passports have been issued to investors under the programme, gener-ating more than ¤7bn. In Malta, the programme was among the topics investigative reporter Daphne Caruana Galizia had reported on before she was blown up by a car bomb while driving in 2017.

“The schemes remain in place for the time being, in both member states concerned and could be replaced by similar investment schemes” said EU

Commission spokesman Christian Wigand. “Malta has in fact informed the Com-mission that it envisages a pro-longation of citizenship foreign investment.” The commission set a two-month deadline for both countries to reply to letters of formal notice and can ulti-mately decide to refer the matter to the Court of Justice.

Anti-corruption watchdog Transparency International welcomed the commission’s decision, saying the scheme served “corrupt interests, not the common good.” In a report last year, the commission also

criticised Bulgaria for offering passports in exchange for money to investors without any real connections to the country.

Wigand said the com-mission has also sent a letter to Bulgarian authorities asking them to phase out their citi-zenship scheme and provide detailed information about the programme within a month.

Transparency International asked the EU Commission to scrutinise other similar schemes across the bloc, mentioning Portugal and Austria in par-ticular, to determine whether they are legal.

Spain mulls nighttime curfew to fight virus surgeAFP — MADRID

The Spanish government said yesterday it was considering imposing a nighttime curfew to halt a rise in virus infections as has been put in place in other European nations like France and Belgium.

“The possibility of imposing a curfew, I insist, is something we have to consider. We have to study that possibility and we are open to everything,” Health Minister Salvador Illa told a news conference.

The minister said “several” regional governments, which

he did not name, had proposed the measure and the central government was considering the request.

Imposing a curfew would require invoking a state of emergency and the government would want to have the support of the main opposition conserv-ative Popular Party (PP) to adopt it, he added.

A nighttime curfew would be the most restrictive anti-coronavirus measure Spain has seen since emerging in June from a national lockdown which was underpinned by a state of emergency that was

opposed by the PP.The regional government of

Madrid, which is governed by right-wing coalition headed by the PP, has wrangled with Spain’s leftist central gov-ernment over measures to fight the virus. The central gov-ernment earlier this month invoked a state of emergency in the region to impose a partial lockdown in Madrid.

But earlier yesterday the region’s top health official, Enrique Ruiz Escudero, said regional authorities were eval-uating whether a curfew was needed although he stressed it

was up to the central gov-ernment to impose one.

The state of emergency in Madrid expires on Saturday and the health minister said the central government would not extend it. Spain has become one of the pandemic’s hotspots in the European Union, with close to 975,000 registered cases and nearly 34,000 deaths.

Illa also announced that the government had authorised the purchase of 31.5 million doses of a COVID-19 vaccine currently being developed by British p h a r m a c e u t i c a l g i a n t AstraZeneca.

Germany public transport union on strike Members of German trade union Verdi demonstrate during a transport strike in the city of Dortmund, western Germany, yesterday. Verdi called the strike in support of a nationwide collective agreement for around 87,000 employees in local public transport.

Portugal rows back on making virus tracing app mandatory

AFP — LISBON

Portugal’s government is rowing back on mandatory use of a COVID-19 tracing app after suspending a parliamentary vote which would have made downloading it compulsory.

The vote on the “Stay Away Covid” app had been scheduled for Friday, when parliament is also expected to make the wearing of face masks outdoors compulsory.

“There have been many doubts on this measure,” Prime Minister Antonio Costa told broadcaster TVI in an interview late Monday, saying he had asked the speaker of par-liament to withdraw the vote from the agenda.

“It is good to have a deeper

discussion to dispel all the doubts in order for Portuguese to continue downloading the application, which is safe and respects anonymity,” Costa said.

“Stay Away Covid” tips off users when they have been in recent contact with someone test ing posi t ive for coronavirus.

To date, about two million of Portugal’s 10 million popu-lation have downloaded it — but the government says that is nowhere near enough to make it work properly.

A spokeswoman for Portu-gal’s national data protection agency CNPD, Clara Guerra, said the obligation to download the app posed privacy and ethical issues.

Italy’s Lombardy, Campania to impose curfew as infections jumpAFP — MILAN

Italy’s northern Lombardy region prepared yesterday to impose a nighttime curfew for three weeks, the most restrictive anti-coronavirus measure the country has seen since it emerged from a national lockdown in mid-May.

In the southern region of Campania, regional head

Vincenzo De Luca said a curfew would begin this weekend, but gave no details immediately on how it would work or how long it would last. Lombardy, the region at the heart of Europe’s first outbreak and hit hardest by a pandemic that has already claimed more than 36,000 lives in Italy, is struggling to contain a new surge in cases.

Lombardy’s overnight 11pm

to 5am curfew is expected to begin on Thursday night and last till November 13.

Health Minister Roberto Speranza gave his consent late on Monday to Lombardy’s more restrictive measures proposed by the regional government, after an hours-long meeting.

“It’s an appropriate and symbolically important initi-ative that shouldn’t have

particularly serious economic consequences,” Regional Pres-ident Attilio Fontana said.

Milan’s mayor, Beppe Sala, said on Facebook regional health authorities had warned that the 113 people currently in intensive care in Lombardy would rise to nearly 600 people by the end of the week, over-whelming the system, if new measures were not imposed.

More than 10,000 new COVID-19 infections were recorded in Italy on Friday for the first time ever, with Lom-bardy the worst hit, as it was in the beginning of the health crisis in February.

The region, which includes Italy’s financial hub of Milan, reported 1,687 new cases on Monday, with Campania coming a close second with

1,593. “We’re getting ready for a curfew,” De Luca said. “At 11pm on Friday everything will close in Campania.”

In the past week, from October 12-19, the number of those hospitalised with COVID-19 in Lombardy has jumped 145 percent.

Italy has tightened restric-tions recently to try to head off the second wave of infections.

Goods worth

¤500,000 stolen

from Paris homeAFP — PARIS

Burglars in Paris made off with over ¤500,000 ($588,000) in fur coats, jewellery, handbags and other luxury goods after breaking into the home of Russian billionaire Nikolai Sarkisov, a police source said yesterday.

Sarkisov, 52, is the co-founder along with his brother of RESO-Guarantee, one of Russia’s biggest insurance companies.

His 600-square-metre (6,500 square-foot) duplex is situated on Avenue Foch, one of the most expensive streets in the French capital, near the Champs-Elysees.

The thieves struck in broad daylight last week while the businessman was away in the Mediterranean resort of Saint-Tropez.

The alarm was raised on Friday by a neighbour who found the door open, the source said.

Sarkisov is yet to return to Paris and make a full inventory of the missing items, the source said.

The international jet set have been targeted in several robberies and muggings in Paris in recent years.

American reality TV star Kim Kardashian was held up at gunpoint while visiting Paris for fashion week in October 2016 and robbed of some ¤9m in jewels.

London Heathrow

launches rapid

pre-flight paid

COVID-19 tests

AFP — LONDON

London’s Heathrow airport yesterday began to roll out paid-for rapid coronavirus testing, with results in one hour, as it seeks to boost demand decimated by the deadly pandemic.

The LAMP saliva test, which does not have to be processed in a laboratory, will cost £80 ($102) per passenger and is available initially for passengers flying to Italy and Hong Kong from Terminals two and five.

The COVID-19 test will provide results more quickly than those used by Britain’s state-run National Health Service, according to the Hea-throw test providers — avi-ation services company Col-linson and logistics firm Swissport. Passengers will be asked to register online for the test before travelling to Hea-throw, which is based west of the British capital. Collinson and Swissport described the tests as a “critical step” in the aviation sector’s recovery, “restoring traveller confidence and reopening routes from the UK to the rest of the world”.

The vote came with Britain and the EU also locked in a standoff over protracted talks about their future trading relationship.

13WEDNESDAY 21 OCTOBER 2020 EUROPE

Russia, US appear ready for deal to extend nuclear pactAP — MOSCOW

Russia said yesterday it’s ready to accept a US proposal to freeze the number of nuclear warheads and extend the two nations’ last arms control pact for one year and Washington responded that it’s prepared to make a quick deal.

The statement from the Russian Foreign Ministry marked a shift in Moscow’s position after Russia and the US rejected each other’s offers regarding the New START treaty that expires in February.

The ministry noted that it’s ready for a deal if the US does the same and doesn’t put

forward any additional demands, the statement read.

The New START treaty was signed in 2010 by then US Pres-ident Barack Obama and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev. The pact limits each country to no more than 1,550 deployed nuclear warheads and 700 deployed missiles and bombers, and envisages sweeping on-site inspections to verify compliance.

After both Moscow and Washington withdrew from the 1987 Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty last year, the New START is the only remaining nuclear arms control deal between the two

countries.Russia has offered its

extension without any condi-tions, while President Donald Trump’s administration initially pushed for a new arms control agreement that would also include China.

It recently modified its stance and proposed a one-year extension of the 2010 treaty, but

said this must be coupled with the imposition of a broader cap on US and Russian nuclear war-heads. The cap would cover warheads attached to battlefield weapons, which are limited by the New START treaty that only restricts strategic nuclear arsenals.

Russia has agreed to a one-year extension but resisted a

broader cap on warheads until yesterday.

Last week, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov argued that Russia can’t agree to the US proposal to limit tactical nuclear weapons alongside nuclear warheads that arm strategic missiles and bombers until Washington agrees to withdraw its nuclear warheads from Europe.

Lavrov also noted that Moscow wouldn’t accept the US demand to have intrusive ver-ification measures like those that existed in the 1990s when inspectors were positioned at missile factories. Moscow appears to still resist the deeper

inspections, which aren’t envisaged by the New START.

Daryl Kimball, executive director of the Arms Control Association in Washington, said that “a one year politically binding warhead freeze could be a useful confidence-building measure if combined with a one year New START extension, with the option of an additional extension adding up to a total of five years.” “It would be a step in the right direction that would avert, for now, an all-out arms race,” Kimball said, adding that it would give Washington and Moscow more time for further talks on a new deal to cut their nuclear arsenals.

The New START treaty limits each country to no more than 1,550 deployed nuclear warheads and 700 deployed missiles and bombers, and envisages sweeping on-site inspections to verify compliance.

Russia to open defence ministry office in SerbiaREUTERS — MOSCOW

Russia has authorised its defence ministry to open an office in Serbia, a government document showed, as Moscow pushes to expand military ties with its traditional Balkan ally even as Belgrade seeks to join the European Union.

Serbia last month sus-pended military drills with foreign troops for six months, citing pressure from the EU to withdraw from joint exercises with Russia and Belarus.

The Russian government order, dated October 15 and signed by Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin, said the head of the proposed office would assist in resolving military and technical questions over Russian-Serbian cooperation.

The agreement, once signed by both parties, would give the Russian official in Serbia the right to visit Serbian divisions that use Russian weapons and military equipment, provided prior notice and consent were given.

In a short statement later yesterday, Serbia’s defence ministry said “a legal procedure that precedes the concluding of the agreement” had already been launched.

Serbia, whose military mainly uses ex-Soviet weapons technology, has procured MiG-29 fighter jets as well as Mi-35 helicopter gunships, T-72 tanks and armoured personnel carriers from Russia in recent years.

On October 10, in a show of revamped military power,

Serbia’s army staged a major training exercise, demon-strating combat use of Russian-made weapons, including the Pantsir anti-aircraft system. It also displayed combat drones

recently acquired from China.Serbia is performing a del-

icate balancing act between its ambition to join the EU and tra-ditional ties with Russia and China, which support its refusal

to recognise the independence of its former southern province Kosovo.

Russia, meanwhile, is vying to keep Serbia within its sphere of geopolitical influence.

A file photo shows Russian-made MiG-29 fighter jets parked on a runway during the air show at Batajnica military airfield in Belgrade, Serbia.

Danish submarine killer recaptured after prison escapeAP — COPENHAGEN, DENMARK

A Danish man convicted of torturing and murdering a Swedish journalist on his homemade submarine made a dramatic but brief escape from a suburban Copenhagen prison yesterday, reportedly taking a hostage to break out before police recaptured him.

Peter Madsen was quickly apprehended near the Hersted-vester prison where he is serving a life sentence for the killing of Kim Wall.

Justice Minister Nick Haekkerup called the escape attempt "very serious.”

"It goes without saying that convicted prisoners who have committed the worst possible crimes should not be able to escape from the custody of the authorities,” Haekkerup tweeted.

Police said Madsen appeared to be carrying fake weapons, including a "bogus”

explosive belt. "When we came, he threw away something that looked like a firearm,” said Mogens Lauridsen, operations chief of the suburban Copen-hagen police.

Madsen, one of Denmark's most notorious criminals, was

captured about five minutes after the escape and around 500 metres from the facility. Prison personnel who followed him saw that he had jumped into a passing white van and informed police.

Lauridsen said that they

don't believe Madsen had an accomplice.

Police officers then found on Madsen "what seems to be a belt with explosives,” Lau-ridsen said. He was handcuffed, officers stepped back and Madsen was left on the side of a road while a bomb squad investigated the belt, Lauridsen said.

"It seems to be a bogus belt,” he said, adding it was unclear whether Madsen had made it or the object which looked like a firearm.

Prison head Hanne Hoegh Rasmussen told a news con-ference that the escape was being investigated and that she couldn't immediately confirm media reports that Madsen took a female prison psychologist hostage inside the prison.

"No one has been injured physically,” Hoegh Rasmussen said, adding that prison staff were getting psychological support.

Refugees protest in AthensIraqi refugees protest in front of the European Union offices in Athens yesterday to demand improvement of the conditions for Iraqi refugees in the country. Iraqis demand asylum, settling a status for people with special needs and inclusion in EU resettlement programme.

Hungary MPs back new Supreme Court presidentAFP — BUDAPEST

Hungarian MPs on Monday approved a new president for the country’s supreme court in the face of fierce criticism from judges, who fear for the inde-pendence of the judiciary.

Two-thirds of lawmakers in the parliament dominated by Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s

Fidesz party backed 52-year-old Zsolt Andras Varga in the vote. The nine-year appointment of Varga, a law lecturer with links to Orban loyalists, was bitterly opposed by the National Judicial Council (OBT), a supervisory body. Thanks to changes in the law, the supreme court chief no longer needs five years of expe-rience as a judge.

The OBT saw the changes as designed to smooth Varga’s path, making his election “con-trary to the principle of judicial independence,” spokesman Viktor Vadasz tweeted. Orban has faced waves of criticism from the European Union over allegations he has systematically dismantled checks to his power, including the courts.

Belarus labelsopposition’s Telegram channelas ‘extremist’AFP — MINSK

A court in Belarus has described as “extremist” the Nexta Live opposition Telegram channel, which mobilised protesters during the ongoing post-election rallies in the country, according to documents published yesterday.

The Poland-based channel, with close to two million subscribers, and its logo are now “extremist mate-rials”, according to a ruling by the Minsk Central District Court made available online.

The court ordered the Belarus information ministry to “immediately” take action and limit access to Nexta Live’s resources in Belarus on the Internet.

N e x t a , m e a n i n g “somebody” in Belarusian, has been one of the major sources of information on the protests in Belarus which erupted after the landslide victory of long-standing President Alexander Lukashenko in an August election.

The channel was founded in 2015 by popular Belarus blogger Stepan Svetlov. He is currently facing several criminal charges in Belarus and resides in Poland.

Telegram is a hugely popular social media platform in the former USSR region as a messaging service both for private communication and sharing information and news.

The opposition accuses Lukashenko of rigging the election and believes that his main challenger Svetlana Tikhanovskaya, now in exile in Lithuania, was the real winner. The channel and its logo have also been added to the Belarus list of extremist materials found on the infor-mation ministry’s website.

A police marksman observes convicted killer Peter Madsen threatening police with detonating a bomb while attempting to break out of jail in Albertslund, Denmark, yesterday.

Poland delays

emergency

COVID-19 debate

REUTERS — WARSAW

The Polish parliament post-poned an emergency debate yesterday on new rules to boost the number of medics available to treat COVID-19 cases, as Poland reported its second steepest daily rise in the number of cases since the start of the pandemic.

The ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party wants to launch financial incentives for doctors treating COVID-19 patients and make hiring physicians more flexible.

It also wants to make wearing face masks in public legally binding, amid reports that courts have been striking down fines issued by the police, cit ing faulty legislation.

However, opposition cen-trists said the new rules could force women doctors to join COVID-19 teams shortly after giving birth, and appealed to PiS to clarify the conditions under which medics would be required to work.

Poland reported 9,291 new infections yesterday, the second highest daily figure after last Saturday’s 9,622 cases.

Doctors have urged PiS to provide more support for the healthcare system after local media reports of patients dying when ambulances couldn’t find a hospital to admit them.

An emergency parlia-mentary sitting was postponed until Wednesday after the opposition objected to being shown draft legislation only late on Monday.

“It was impossible for responsible opposition to prepare sufficiently,” Cezary Tomczyk, who heads the par-liamentary caucus of the biggest opposition party, Civic Coalition. The opposition says PiS wasted time in the summer focusing on a presidential election campaign ahead of a July 12 ballot instead of pre-paring for a second wave of the pandemic.

The country of 38 million has now recorded 192,539 confirmed coronavirus cases and 3,721 deaths.

The health ministry said that as of yesterday COVID-19 patients occupied 8,962 hos-pital beds and were using 725 ventilators, up from 8,375 and 672 respectively a day earlier.

Albania, Greece take maritime dispute to ICJAP — TIRANA, ALBANIA

Balkan neighbours Albania and Greece said yesterday they have agreed to refer a dispute over their maritime borders in the Ionian Sea to the Nether-lands-based International Court of Justice. The joint decision was announced during a visit to Tirana by Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias.

“We have agreed to pass on this case to international justice,” Dendias said after a meeting with Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama.

Rama said that taking the disagreement to the court in The Hague would “(join) the dots based on the (court’s) expertise and international maritime law.” Greece has recently launched a push to delimitate its sea borders with neighbouring countries.

Tirana and Athens inked a deal to define their maritime border in 2009, when Albania was governed by the Demo-cratic party that is now in opposition. But Rama’s Socialists, then in opposition, had challenged the agreement in court, claiming it cost the country 225 sq. kilometres of territorial waters. Albania’s

Constitutional Court nullified the agreement nine months l a t e r , d e e m i n g i t unconstitutional.

“That issue will not be at our discretion, nor that of the Greek side, but of international justice and in that way we shall focus on our economic (and) regional cooperation,” Rama said. Relations between Greece and post-communist Albania have been at times uneasy, largely over minority rights, and Albania’s repealing of the 2009 Ionian Sea agreement was another field of tension.

Dendias said yesterday that Greece would soon nullify the formal state of war still in place between the two countries since World War II, when fascist Italian forces invaded Greece through the Albanian border before being forced to retreat deep into Albania.

European Union member Greece has long backed Alba-nia’s desire to eventually join the 27-nation bloc.

The governments in Tirana and Athens have said that the ethnic Greek minority in Albania and the large population in Greece of Albanians who emi-grated there after the fall of communism serve as bridges linking the two countries.

14 WEDNESDAY 21 OCTOBER 2020AMERICAS

Indigenous Colombians inlargest show of strengthAFP — BOGOTA

Thousands of indigenous Colom-bians staged a symbolic trial of President Ivan Duque in the country’s capital on Monday to demand an end to growing violence on their land.

The demonstrators also want a say on major development projects, and for the full imple-mentation of a 2016 peace plan that ended half a century of insurgency by the rebel Revolu-tionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC).

Colombia’s southwest has a large indigenous population and has been one of the areas worst affected by a wave of violence which has resulted in at least 42 massacres this year, according to the United Nations.

Dozens of armed groups remain active in Colombia, fighting over the lucrative drug trade in the world’s largest pro-ducer of cocaine.

Protestors gathered in Plaza de Bolivar, next to the presi-dential palace in Bogota, to the sound of drums and bugles.

Demonstrations began on

October 10 in the southwest and gradually advanced to the capital, with approximately 7,000 people traveling by bus and sometimes by foot for nine days.

The indigenous groups arrived Sunday in Bogota to demand a face-to-face meeting with the president on the rise in violence from guerrillas and other groups financed by drug trafficking.

President Duque, a conserv-ative, has not met the protesters, claiming he is avoiding crowds during the pandemic.

“Even if the president did not show his face, today we tell him that he has cowardly barricaded himself in,” Hermes Pete, senior advisor to the Regional Indigenous Council of Cauca (CRIC), said.

In response to Duque’s absence, the protesters organised a symbolic trial, denouncing the government for what they say is a violation of their fundamental rights.

Today they will join the “national strike,” an anti-gov-ernment movement that began in late 2019.

Flanked by the traditional Indigenous Guard, who sported vests, radio telephones and staffs decorated with multicoloured ribbons, the group managed to fill part of Plaza de Bolivar in one of the largest shows of strength in recent years from Colombia’s indigenous people -- who make up 4.4 percent of its 50 million population.

“We want peace, equality,

respect and for them to stop killing us,” said Carmen Pito, 53.

“The government must listen to us and receive us, we deserve respect like everyone else,” she said, walking with her cane amid shouts of support for the indigenous people as they passed through the city.

Faced with the severe eco-nomic crisis brought on by the coronavirus pandemic and a country on the brink of one million infections, the

Colombian president expressed his annoyance at the “crowding”, although he avoided referring to the request for a direct meeting with the protesters.

The government has rejected face-to-face talks, insisting that the political debate takes place in Congress.

Duque claimed his “spirit was open to dialogue,” but only “without ultimatums or having to appeal to terms like trials.”

He has faced numerous protests during his two years in office, prompted by alleged abuses by the armed forces, controversial economic and education pol-icies, and a marked increase in violence against human rights activists.

His government is accused of not establishing order in ter-ritories left by FARC rebels, allowing new organizations funded by drug trafficking to grow in strength.

Colombian indigenous people demonstrate against the government in Bogota, on Monday.

Canada-China spat heats up over ambassador’s alleged threatAP — TORONTO

The diplomatic spat between Canada and China grew more heated on Monday as Beijing denounced press criticism of its ambassador to Ottawa, only to have Canada’s deputy prime minister and opposition leader echo the criticism.

The exchange comes at a moment when ties between the countries are at their lowest point in years, largely due to China’ outrage over Canada’s detention of a top executive of Chinese tel-ecoms giant Huawei and the sub-sequent arrest of two Canadians.

The new friction arose when China’s ambassador to Canada, Cong Peiwu, branded pro-democracy protesters in Hong Kong as violent criminals and said if Canada grants them

asylum it would amount to inter-ference in China’s internal affairs.

“If the Canadian side really cares about the stability and the prosperity in Hong Kong, and really cares about the good health and safety of those 300,000 Canadian passport-holders in Hong Kong, and the large number of Canadian companies operating in Hong Kong SAR, you should support those efforts to fight violent crimes,” Cong said in a video news conference from the Chinese Embassy in Ottawa.

Asked if his remarks amounted to a threat, Cong replied, “That is your interpre-tation.” Canada’s deputy prime minister, Chrystia Freeland said in Parliament on Monday that the ambassador’s comments “are not in any way in keeping with the spirit of appropriate diplomatic countries between two

countries.” Freeland said Canada will speak out for human rights in China and said Canada will support its citizens living in Hong Kong. “Let me also reassure the 300,000 Canadians in Hong Kong that a Canadian is a Canadian and we will stand with them.” Freeland said.

Her statements came hours after Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian told reporters that his government had complained to Canada over press criticism of Cong’s remarks. He said Canadian leaders “did not verify, but also condoned the anti-China com-ments spreading across the nation and made groundless accusations against China.” He didn’t specify the media crit-icism, but the Toronto Sun on Saturday published an editorial calling on Cong to apologize,

adding. “If he won’t apologize and retract his threats, boot him back to Beijing.” Meanwhile, Erin O’Toole, the leader of Canada’s main opposition Conservative party, said Monday that Cong had threatened Canadians in Hong Kong and called on the envoy to either apologize or leave.

Cherie Wong, the executive director of Alliance Canada Hong Kong, a group that advo-cates for Hong Kong’s pro-democracy movement, called Cong’s comment a “direct threat” to all Canadians.

“It should not be lost on Canadians living in Hong Kong or China, they could be next. Ambassador Cong suggested so himself,” Wong said.

Protests against the Hong Kong and mainland Chinese governments swelled last year,

and Beijing clamped down on expressions of anti-government sentiment in the city with a new national security law that took effect June 30.

The law outlaws subversive, secessionist and terrorist activity, as well as collusion with foreign powers to interfere in the city’s internal affairs. The US, Britain and Canada accuse China of infringing on the city’s freedoms.

Cong also rejected Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s assertion that China is engaging in coercive diplomacy by impris-oning two Canadian men in retaliation for the arrest of a Chinese Huawei executive on an American extradition warrant. The executive, Meng Wanzhou, is living under house arrest in Vancouver while her case wends through a British Columbia court.

Virus cases riseabove 200,000in Canada

REUTERS — TORONTO

Canada reported a new COVID-19 milestone on Monday with total infections rising above 200,000 since the pandemic began in early March and as the country’s second wave was expected to be worse than the first.

Ontario and Quebec, which account for around 60 percent of Canada’s 37.6 million people and just under 80 percent of the country’s reported COVID-19 cases, have seen sharp increases in cases in recent weeks. Both provinces have taken fresh measures to curb the spread of the virus.

Less-populated prov-inces, including Manitoba and Alberta, are also seeing wor-rying increases.

Total cases rose by 3,289 to 201,437 while deaths reached 9,778, an increase of 18 over the previous day, gov-ernment data released on Monday showed.

Although the increase in deaths from COVID-19 remains relatively low in Canada compared with the early months of the pan-demic, Canada’s chief medical officer, Dr. Theresa Tam, said on Monday she was concerned the country will see an uptick in “severe impacts” of the virus in the coming weeks.

A tally found the global count of COVID-19 cases had crossed 40 million as of Monday. Canada announced on Monday that its border with the United States would remain closed until at least November 21, as cases in the US remain high.

Late season wildfires rage across ColoradoREUTERS — DENVER

Colorado firefighters were struggling on Monday to get ahead of the state’s largest wildfire on record, which grew markedly over the last few days, and smoke drifted over the population corridor of the drought-stricken state.

New fires continue to erupt, including an 8,800-acre blaze that ignited in the mountains above Boulder that incinerated at least 26 homes, according to the sheriff’s office.

The latest figures from the US Drought Monitor showed that the entire state of Colorado was at some level of drought, and officials said this was con-tributing to the outbreak of wildfires.

“It’s extremely late; it should be snowing by now,” said Larry Helmerick, spokesman for the Rocky Mountain Area Coordination Center, a federal interagency wildfire tasked with dis-patching resources across the region.

There have have been few lightning strikes in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado, so it is believed most of the wildfires are human caused, Helmerick said. Tinder-dry fuels and high winds are causing flames to spread rapidly.

“It’s so dry that it’s hard to get a handle on them,” he said.

Of the 12,000 wildland firefighters in the United States, more than 3,000 are battling

blazes in Colorado and Wyoming, Helmerick said.

The largest blaze in Colorado, the Cameron Peak Fire, has scorched 203,634 acres in the Arapaho and

Roosevelt National Forests since it ignited in mid-August and is 62 percent contained, according to InciWeb, a wildfire tracking site.

Wildfire managers estimate

that more than 50 structures have been destroyed in the Cameron Peak blaze, another 50,000 are threatened and almost 13,000 people have been evacuated.

Cameron Peak Fire, the largest wildfire in Colorado’s history, burns trees outside Drake, Colorado, US.

Brazil’s Bolsonaro ‘indirectly’

censors media: RSFAFP — BRASÍLIA

Far-right President Jair Bolsonaro’s government threatens press freedom in Brazil by using “indirect censorship,” including virulent attacks against journalists, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) said yesterday.

The watchdog group said in its quarterly report that Bol-sonaro and his inner circle, including his three politician sons, had verbally attacked jour-nalists and the media more than 100 times from July to September.

“This stance of open hostility toward the press has become the government’s trademark,” it said.

The Bolsonaro adminis-tration has also used “disinfor-mation” and restrictions on

official statistics to “control public debate and politicize official communications struc-tures,” RSF said.

Other examples include law-suits against journalists by Bol-sonaro allies, which the group deemed “judicial harassment;” cases of government officials blocking journalists from fol-lowing their social media accounts; “opaque” management of official data on the coronavirus pandemic; and 13 new laws that restrict the public’s access to information, it said.

Sometimes called the “Tropical Trump” for the hardline policies, vitriolic rhetoric and reliance on social networks he shares with the US leader, Bolsonaro won election in 2018 with a campaign heavy on attacks against the traditional news media.

Morales signals return to Bolivia after ally’s poll winAFP — LA PAZ

Exiled former president Evo Morales on Monday signalled his intention to return to Bolivia after his leftist heir Luis Arce’s sweeping presidential election victory.

Arce, a former economy minister under Morales, claimed victory in Sunday’s election after exit polls sug-gested a crushing triumph over centrist rival Carlos Mesa.

Mesa conceded on Monday, saying Arce’s 20-point margin of victory was “very forceful and very clear.”

“It is up to us, as befits those of us who believe in democracy... to recognise that there has been a winner in this election,” said Mesa, a former president.

Exit polls handed over 52 percent of the vote to Arce, with Mesa mustering just 31.5 percent -- upending predictions

he would force a second round runoff in November.

Private polling companies showed Arce winning by a similar margin. Official results are expected to take days.

Despite the coronavirus pandemic, a record 87 percent of Bolivians voted, according to the Supreme Electoral Tribunal, exceeding the average partici-pation of 80 percent.

Arce, 57, said his victory was a “return to democracy” for the divided South American country.

“We have recovered democracy and we will regain stability and social peace,” he said.

Much attention now focuses on Morales, whose authori-tarian 14-year grip on power left a bitter aftertaste for many Bolivians outside his largely indigenous Movement for Socialism (MAS) party.

“Sooner or later we are

going to return to Bolivia, that is not in debate,” Morales told a press conference in Buenos Aires.

“My great desire is to return to Bolivia and enter my region. It is a matter of time,” said Morales, who was ousted amid protests after his victory in 2019 elections was annulled over rigging allegations.

Morales resigned on November 10 after losing the support of the armed forces in the midst of the crisis that left 36 dead and hundreds wounded.

Thwarted in his attempt to secure a fourth term, he initially fled to Mexico, but has since settled in neighbouring Argentina after leftist Alberto Fernandez’s election victory there.

Morales thanked Fernandez and Mexican President Manuel Andres Lopez Obrador for their support.

He also hailed congratu-latory messages from other leftist leaders, Venezuela’s Nicolas Maduro and former Uruguayan president Jose Mujica.

Cuba’s Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez lauded a “peo-ple’s victory” that would “return justice and wellbeing to the brotherly Bolivian people. Viva Evo!” Morales said he had even received a call from Argentine Pope Francis on Monday.

“I felt that I was not alone,” he said.

The office of UN chief Antonio Guterres lauded “highly participative and peaceful” elections, and encouraged political leaders to work together for national reconciliation.

Arce was credited as the architect of the country’s eco-nomic miracle under Morales, who became the country’s first indigenous president in 2006.

The indigenous groups arrived Sunday in Bogota to demand a face-to-face meeting with the president on the rise in violence from guerrillas and other groups financed by drug trafficking. President Duque, a conservative, has not met the protesters, claiming he is avoiding crowds during the pandemic.

15WEDNESDAY 21 OCTOBER 2020 AMERICAS

Trump seeks campaign boost in PennsylvaniaREUTERS — WASHINGTON

US President Donald Trump headed to the battleground state of Pennsylvania yesterday with hopes of rekin-dling the 11th-hour surge of support that powered his surprise 2016 victory.

But with more than 30 million early ballots already cast with two weeks to go before voting ends on Election Day November 3, time is running short in his contest against Dem-ocratic challenger Joe Biden.

National polls show former Vice President Biden holding a wide lead on Republican Trump, though the contest is closer in swing states including Pennsyl-vania, Florida and North Carolina.

Trump has gained some ground on Biden in Pennsyl-vania, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll released on Monday, which showed the challenger leading by 49 percent to 45 percent, slightly narrower than a week earlier.

Trump was due to hold a rally in Erie, in the state’s northwest corner, at 7pm Eastern Time. Biden has no events planned.

Trump’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic, which has killed more than 219,000

Americans and thrown millions out of work, has taken a heavy toll on his re-election prospects.

Despite rising cases of the highly contagious disease, which landed Trump in hospital for three days, he has resumed a heavy schedule of campaign travel including rallies where his supporters pack together tightly, many not wearing masks.

Trump continues to call for an end to social restrictions, which medical experts say could limit the spread of coro-navirus, and for the country to re-open for business. On Monday he lashed out at top infectious disease expert Dr. Anthony

Fauci, calling the highly respected figure a “disaster.” Trump’s path to victory is nar-rowing in the state-by-state race that determines who will

sit in the White House on January 21, 2021.

Reuters/Ipsos polling also shows Trump trailing in Wis-consin and Michigan, the two other Rust Belt states that he narrowly carried four years ago. Trump also trails in Arizona and the two are effectively tied in Florida and North Carolina.

More than 30 million votes have already been cast, according to the University of Florida’s US Elections Project, more than one-fifth of the total vote in the last presidential contest four years ago.

Early returns show regis-tered Democrats outpacing Republicans in most states that track party affiliation. Trump has repeatedly characterized absentee voting as unreliable, though experts say it is as secure as any other method.

His campaign and the Republican Party have sought,

with mixed success, to limit mail voting in states that expanded it in response to fears of spreading COVID-19 at crowded polling places.

In Pennsylvania, his cam-paign has failed to prevent offi-cials from setting up ballot drop boxes, a popular option in many other states.

On Monday, the US Supreme Court also allowed state officials to count mail ballots that arrive up to three days after the November 3 election, rejecting a Republican effort to reject all those that arrive after Election Day. Early in-person voting, already underway in many states, will begin in Wisconsin,

Utah and Hawaii yesterday.Trump and Biden will face

off in a final televised debate tomorrow, their second such matchup after Trump backed out of last week’s planned appearance over a disa-greement about the virtual format following his COVID-19 infection.

People wait in line to cast their ballots outside Frank P Zeidler Municipal Building on the first day of in-person early voting in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, yesterday.

Trump demands A-G Barr investigate Hunter BidenBLOOMBERG — WASHINGTON

President Donald Trump demanded that Attorney General William Barr open an investigation of former Vice President Joe Biden’s son, just two weeks before Election Day.

“We’ve got to get the attorney general to act,” Trump said yesterday in a phone interview with the TV show “Fox & Friends,” in response to a question about whether a special prosecutor should be appointed to probe unsubstan-tiated allegations against Hunter Biden.

“And he’s got to act fast. He’s got to appoint somebody,” Trump added, saying it should be done before the November 3 election.

The president has publicly

called for Barr to probe a number of his political oppo-nents ahead of the election, including former President Barack Obama and Minnesota Congresswoman Ilhan Omar, in addition to the Bidens.

In 2016, Democrat Hillary Clinton’s lead over Trump in public opinion polls narrowed considerably in the closing weeks of the race after then-FBI Director James Comey said his agency was re-opening its investigation of her handling of official email while she was sec-retary of state. Clinton has blamed Comey’s announcement for helping put Trump in office.

Trailing Biden in most opinion polls, Trump has zeroed in on a New York Post report that highlights docu-ments purporting to show

Hunter Biden’s business dealings in Ukraine and China.

The Post, citing unverified emails from a laptop it said had been abandoned at a Delaware

computer repair shop, reported that Hunter Biden introduced a Ukrainian businessman to his father. The emails provided no proof of a meeting, and the Biden campaign said his cal-endars turned up no record that the former vice president ever met with the businessman.

The laptop’s hard drive was reportedly given to Trump ally Steve Bannon, who gave it to Rudy Giuliani’s lawyer, Robert Costello. Giuliani, the former New York mayor and Trump’s lawyer, gave it to the Post.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation has probed whether the emails described by the newspaper are part of a Russian disinformation oper-ation to interfere in the 2020 election, according to a person familiar with the matter.

Hunter Biden

Tribes make new move to shut down Dakota Access PipelineAP — BISMARCK

Native American tribes opposed to the Dakota Access Pipeline once again have asked a federal judge to stop the flow of oil while the legal battle over the line’s future plays out.

The Standing Rock Sioux and other tribes succeeded on their first attempt, only to have an appeals court overturn US District Judge James Boasberg’s shutdown order earlier this year. Now, they’re asking the judge to clarify his earlier ruling to satisfy the appellate judges and then to again order the line to cease operations, the Bis-marck Tribune reported.

The tribes argue that potential harm to their water supply outweighs any economic impacts of shutting down the line, which has been moving North Dakota oil to Illinois for more than three years.

“The Tribes are irreparably harmed by the ongoing oper-ation of the pipeline, through the exposure to catastrophic risk, through the ongoing trauma of the government’s refusal to comply with the law, and through undermining the Tribes’ sovereign governmental role to protect their members and respond to potential disasters,” attorneys Jan Hasselman and Nicole Ducheneaux wrote in a

Friday filing.Tribes fear a spill into the

Missouri River just north of the Standing Rock Reservation would pollute their water supply. Pipeline operator Energy Transfer and the Army Corps of Engineers both maintain the pipeline is safe. Prolonged pro-tests in 2016 and 2017 drew thousands of people to camps near the river crossing and resulted in hundreds of arrests.

US Department of Justice spokeswoman Danielle Nichols declined to comment Monday on the tribes’ filing. The Corps and Energy Transfer have until November 20 to file a formal response.

A man walks past a mural of Dr. Anthony Fauci by the artist SacSix in the East Village of New York City, yesterday. Dr. Fauci has recently been the focus of President Donald Trump’s criticism of the coronavirus. Trump has said that Fauci’s medical advice is flawed, despite being trusted by the majority of Americans.

Mural of Fauci

Final Trump-Biden debate will feature ‘mute’ buttonREUTERS — WASHINGTON

The final debate between Pres-ident Donald Trump and Demo-cratic rival Joe Biden will feature a mute button to allow each candidate to speak uninter-rupted, organisers said on Monday, looking to avoid the disruptions that marred the first matchup.

The Trump campaign voiced objections to the change — made after the president repeatedly talked over both Biden and the moderator at last month’s debate in violation of its agreed-upon rules - but said the Republican would still take part in the Thursday night event, one of his last chances to reach a large prime-time audience before voting ends on November 3.

The Presidential Com-mission on Debates said each candidate’s microphone at the debate in Nashville, Tennessee, would be silenced to allow the other to make two minutes of opening remarks at the beginning of each 15-minute segment of the debate. Both microphones will be turned on to allow a back-and-forth after that time.

“President Trump is com-mitted to debating Joe Biden regardless of last-minute rule changes from the biased com-mission in their latest attempt to provide advantage to their favored candidate,” campaign manager Bill Stepien said.

The Biden campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

More than 30 million Amer-icans have already cast their ballots, limiting Trump’s chances of reframing a contest that

national and state opinion polls show him trailing.

Trump repeatedly inter-rupted Biden during a chaotic and ill-tempered debate on Sep-tember 29, at one point pro-voking Biden to snap: “Will you shut up, man?” ‘

Trump backed out of a second scheduled debate set for last Thursday over a disa-greement about the virtual format following his COVID-19 infection. At that time, he raised concerns about having his microphone muted.

“You sit behind a computer and do a debate - it’s ridiculous, and then they cut you off whenever they want,” Trump said in an October 8 interview on Fox Business.

Earlier on Monday, Trump’s campaign said it was unhappy with the announced set of topics for tomorrow’s debate, arguing that it should focus more on foreign policy and asserting that the nonpartisan group was tilted toward Biden.

“I will participate but it’s very unfair that they changed the topics and it’s very unfair that again we have an anchor who’s totally biased,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One as he returned to Washington from rallies in Arizona.

Kristen Welker of NBC News, a respected White House reporter, is slated to anchor the debate.

Biden’s campaign said both sides previously agreed to let moderators choose the subjects. It said Trump wanted to avoid discussing his stewardship of the coronavirus pandemic, which surveys show is the top issue for voters.

SC rejects Republican bid to limit mail-in voting in PennsylvaniaREUTERS — WASHINGTON

The US Supreme Court on Monday allowed an extension of the deadline for mail-in absentee ballots in Pennsyl-vania for the November 3 elec-tions, declining a Republican request to block a lower court’s ruling that gave voters more time.

The justices, divided 4-4, left in place a Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruling in favor of state Democrats that had extended the deadline for state election officials to receive mail-in ballots postmarked by the evening of Election Day until three days later.

The brief court order noted that four of the court’s five con-servative justices would have granted the request. There are currently only eight justices on the usually nine-member court following the death last month of liberal Justice Ruth Bader

Ginsburg, which left the court with a 5-3 conservative majority. Chief Justice John Roberts joined the three liberal justices in denying the request, with five votes needed for it to be granted.

The decision highlights the impact that President Donald Trump’s Supreme Court nominee, Amy Coney Barrett, could have as a potential deciding vote in election-related cases if — as expected — she is confirmed by the Republican-led Senate next week. In her confirmation hearing last week, Barrett did not commit to stepping aside in any election cases involving Trump.

“With nearly a million votes already cast in Pennsylvania, we support the court’s decision not to meddle in our already-working system,” Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro, a Democrat, said in a statement.

Nato would seek

early summit

with Biden,

if electedREUTERS — BRUSSELS

The Nato military alliance is considering a summit in March in Brussels to welcome a new US president if Democrat candidate Joe Biden wins, diplomats and officials said, with a gathering in the first half of next year if Donald Trump is reelected.

While the US-led alliance agreed last year to hold a summit in 2021, a meeting in the spring would be an early chance to repair transatlantic ties if Biden were to be voted into the White House on November 3, after a bruising four years under Trump. Trump has said that the Western alliance is “obsolete” and some allies are “delinquent” as well as issuing a veiled threat in July 2018 to pull the United States out of the alliance.

He also announced his intention earlier this year to cut the US troop contingent in Germany, faulting Berlin for failing to meet Nato’s defence spending target and accusing it of taking advantage of the US on trade. Biden, who leads in opinion polls, is seen in Europe as offering a shift in US policy away from Trump’s ‘America First’ agenda, which has under-mined European priorities on issues from climate to the Iran nuclear deal. “Most allies want a Biden victory next month, but they would obviously work with a reelected Trump adminis-tration,” one diplomat at Nato’s Brussels headquarters said.

A March summit “would give Biden a platform to bring Europe and North America back together and also give Nato a chance to put the Trump era behind it,” a second diplomat said.

National polls show former Vice-President Biden holding a wide lead on Republican Trump, though the contest is closer in swing states including Pennsylvania, Florida and North Carolina. Trump has gained some ground on Biden in Pennsylvania, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll released on Monday.

16WEDNESDAY 21 OCTOBER 2020

W ALRUWAIS : 28o → 31o

W ALKHOR : 27o → 32o

W DUKHAN : 28o → 31o

W WAKRAH : 20o → 34o

W MESAIEED : 20o → 34o

W ABUSAMRA : 24o → 31o

Relatively hot daytime with some clouds and mild by night.

Minimum Maximum28oC 34oC

WEATHER TODAY

LOW TIDE 01:50 – 15:19

HIGH TIDE 07:57 – 18:42

PRAYER TIMINGSPPPPRAYRRRAAAYARA MMMMIINNNNNNNNNGGGGGGMMMMMMMMMIIINNNNNNGGGGNNNNGGGIINNNNGNNNNNNNNN

PRAYERTIMINGS

FAJR

SUNRISE

04.17 am 05.35 am

DHUHR 11.19 am

ISHA 06.34 pmMAGHRIB

ASR 02.35 pm05.04 pm

Crew in no danger after ISS issues resolved: RussiaAFP — MOSCOW

The International Space Station is now working normally with no danger to its occupants after the crew managed to resolve a series of technical issues over-night, Russia’s space agency said yesterday.

The crew aboard the ISS had reported issues with the oxygen production system, a toilet and the oven for preparing food.

“The problems that occurred on board the ISS during the night of 19-20 October have been fully resolved by the crew,” Russia’s space agency Roscosmos said

in a statement.“All the systems of the

station are working well and there is no danger to the crew or the ISS.”

The crew had reported over-night that the toilet on the Russian segment of the ISS was out of order, that the water systems used to supply oxygen to the crew were empty and that there were problems with heating food.

The issues arose as half of the six person crew — Nasa’s Chris Cassidy and cosmonauts Anatoly Ivanishin and Ivan Vagner — are preparing to leave

for an arrival back on Earth early tomorrow.

The issues were the latest technical problems to hit the ISS, whose crew have had to manage an array of troubles in recent weeks.

The orbital lab’s first module was launched over two decades ago in 1998 and there have been growing concerns about its age.

Last week, the oxygen supply system in the Zvezda module of the Russian segment of the station failed. Roscosmos said at the weekend that this has now been repaired.

Trams go through a park on a cold autumn day in Moscow, Russia.Tram service in Moscow

Scientists raise alarm over signs of vaccine ‘hesitancy’AFP — PARIS

Scientists called for urgent action to improve public trust in immunisation as research suggested sizeable minorities in some nations may be reluctant to be vaccinated against COVID-19.

With few effective treatments and no cure for the coronavirus, companies and governments are racing to develop vaccines in a bid to arrest the pandemic.

But there is increasing concern that “vaccine hesitancy” is also on the rise, with misinformation and mistrust col-ouring people’s acceptance of scientific advances.

In a new study published yesterday in Nature Medicine, researchers in Spain, the United States and Britain surveyed 13,400 in 19 countries hit hard by COVID-19 and found that while 72 percent said they would be immunised, 14 percent would refuse and another 14 percent would hesitate.

When extrapolated across whole populations this could amount to tens of millions of people who may avoid vac-cination, the authors said.

“These findings should be a call to action for the international health com-munity,” said co-author Heidi Larson, who runs the Vaccine Confidence Project at London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.

“If we do not start building vaccine literacy and restoring public trust in science today, we cannot hope to contain this pandemic.” Researchers found that people who had least faith in their gov-ernments were less likely to accept a vaccine — and even those who had been ill with the virus were not more likely to respond positively.

While in China 88 percent of respondents said they would take “a proven, safe and effective vaccine”, the highest of all the countries surveyed, the proportion dipped to 75 percent in the US and was as low as 55 percent in Russia.

“We found that the problem of vaccine hesitancy is strongly related with a lack of trust in government,” said study coordinator Jeffrey Lazarus, of the Bar-celona Institute for Global Health.

When asked if they would accept an approved, safe vaccine recommended by their employer, only 32 percent of respondents completely agreed.

Acceptance rates again varied widely by country, with China again having the most clearly positive responses (84 percent either completely or somewhat agreed) and Russia with the least (27 percent).

People were less likely to accept a vaccine if it was mandated by their employer, the authors said.

The study, released at the Union

World Conference on Lung Health, found greater acceptance of vaccines among people earning more than $32 a day.

They also found older people were more likely to accept a vaccine than those under 22.

In a new initiative launched yes-terday and supported by the Vaccine Alliance Gavi, scientists involved in vaccine development will appear in a series of videos on social media to help raise public confidence in their work.

The researchers and clinicians in the UK, United States, South Africa, India and Brazil will be posting under the hashtag #TeamHalo — a reference to the circle of global scientific endeavour -- on TikTok, Twitter and Instagram.

“I’m used to s p e n d i n g t i m e pipetting samples and analysing data,” said Anna Blakney, a par-ticipating bioengineer who is part of the vaccine development team at Imperial College in London.

“TikTok is a new frontier for me but I’m enthusiastic about demystifying our work and making it acces-sible to the world.” Earlier this month a

study in the journal Royal Society Open Science found up to a third of people in some countries may believe coronavirus misinformation and in turn be less open to immunisation.

And recent research from Cornell University found that US President Donald Trump was the world’s biggest driver of COVID-19 misinformation, because of his promotion of what the researchers termed “miracle cures”.

Meanwhile, the speed of devel-opment has caused concerns in some countries, with Russia’s announcement in August that it would begin roll-out of the Sputnik V vaccine before crucial phase 3 trials criticised as premature.

Robots may

encroach up to

800 million jobs

around the globe

BLOOMBERG — NEW YORK

Advances in automation technology threaten a significant share of jobs in industries accounting for nearly a quarter of the global workforce, according to Bloomberg Economics’ estimates.

In a report released yesterday, economists Ziad Daoud and Scott Johnson said that could mean as many as 800 million people face a high exposure to the risk of their employment becoming obsolete. The Gulf Cooperation Council, Czech Republic, Slovakia and Japan are most vul-nerable to disruption from automation, they wrote.

That’s because those countries have a large segment of the workforce in the kind of simple, routine roles that can be most easily replaced by machines or already rely on cheap labour for tasks. Examples include clerical support in Japan or plant operations in central European nations.

Greater automation risks creating higher income inequality, the economists wrote.

While robots were pre-viously thought to threaten mainly low-skilled jobs, now they are seen replacing roles that can be broken down into simple mechanical steps instead.

Those often fall in the middle of the income dis-tribution, resulting in a polarisation effect.

It’s not all bad news though.

Some of the most-exposed countries also have rapidly aging populations, meaning the technology could help offset demo-graphic headwinds in their economies, Daoud and Johnson said.

DFI to deliver safe and exciting 8th Ajyal Film Festival

RAYNALD C RIVERA THE PENINSULA

The Doha Film Institute (DFI) is set to deliver a safe and exciting eighth edition of its flagship Ajyal Film Festival with several options and opportu-nities for jurors to enjoy expe-riencing this year’s jury programme.

Speaking at a Zoom meeting with local media yes-terday, Fatma Hassan Alre-maihi, Festival Director and Chief Executive Officer of DFI, stressed they have been working closely with concerned government entities to ensure a safe festival for the young

jurors.“We’re working with the

Ministry of Education. We’re talking to students in schools and universities to let them know that we are really working hard to deliver a safe festival, taking into consider-ation all necessary precautions. We’re working very closely with the Ministry of Public Health and all government entities,” said Alremaihi.

This year’s festival jury pro-gramme will be in a hybrid format combining online and onsite offerings.

“Everything will be available online for anyone who registers as a juror; they

can watch films, attend Q&A’s and Ajyal Talks. Jurors whose ages are 18 and above can come and watch all their films in Katara while those below 18 years old can watch one film at Katara one time,” she explained.

Safety precautions will be applied during the screenings including checking the Ehteraz app and body temperature and ensuring social distancing. The

jurors will be watching the films with their peers in s m a l l e r groups, she stressed.

“I want to give the p a r e n t s peace of mind. I want to assure them that when they register their

kids, they have options. It can be online or if they want they can bring them to the festival to watch a film. We have every option available for everyone who cannot come but there are opportunities for people to come and enjoy the festival on the ground,” she said.

One of the online features of this year’s festival is the virtual juror’s hub, an online space where the jury members

can meet their peers and their mentors and talk, she added.

Unlike the previous editions of the festival, this year’s jury programme starts earlier and is longer, from the previous seven days to 11 days. “We spread the programme over 11 days so they have less time in front of the screen because they also have to be in front of the screen for school; we have taken all these things into con-sideration,” she said, adding the programme will be easier and smoother.

On expanding the age range covered by the jury programme from 8 to 21 to 8 to 25, she said there are many jurors who had finished the programme when they passed the age of 21 and still wanted to go through the Ajyal jury experience and they wanted to be given a chance.

This year’s film festival will run from November 18 to 23 and the Jury Competition pro-gramme will be from November 11 to 23.

Fatma Hassan Alremaihi, Festival Director and Chief Executive Officer of DFI

Palestinian filmmaker to hold masterclass todayRAYNALD C RIVERA THE PENINSULA

Multi-award-winning Pales-tinian filmmaker Elia Suleiman is holding a masterclass today, Doha Film Institute (DFI) has announced via social media.

To be conducted via Zoom, the not-to-be-missed event promises to be an insightful session to be hosted by Filmlab Palestine as part of Palestine Cinema Days, said the DFI.

Born in Nazareth in 1960, Suleiman is best known for his 2002 film Divine Intervention which won the Jury Prize at the Cannes Film Festival and the Best Foreign Film prize at the European Awards in Rome.

He directed his first two short films while living in New York from 1981 to 1993. His feature debut, Chronicle of a Disappearance, won the Best First Film award at the 1996 Venice Film Festival.

His latest feature It Must Be Heaven screened in compe-tition at the 2019 Cannes Film Festival was the winner of the Jury Special Mention and FIPRESCI Critics’ Award. This surreal comedy which stars Suleiman as himself explores identity, nationality and belonging, in which he asks the fundamental question: Where is the place we can truly call home?

This film was Palestine’s entry for Best International Feature Film at the 92nd Academy Awards. It was the opening film of last year’s edition of Ajyal Film Festival

presented by the DFI.Suleiman, who is currently

artistic adviser at DFI, recently conducted a filmmaking workshop organised by the DFI.

Palestine Cinema Days is an annual event organised every October aimed at “placing Pal-estine on the map of the inter-national film industry and movie landscape, in addition to promoting local and inter-national films across several venues in different cities within Palestine.”

Launched in 2014, Palestine Cinema Days features “a unique programme of renowned international film screenings for adults and children, along with panel dis-cussions, professional film workshops, specialised pro-grams for children, and net-working opportunities.”

Those who wish to join the masterclass may sign up at https://fb.me/e/3B75wrA3d

Acclaimed filmmaker Elia Suleiman

Safety precautions will be applied during the screenings including checking the Ehteraz app and body temperature and ensuring social distancing. The jurors will be watching the films with their peers in smaller groups, Alremaihi stressed.

with ooredoo one terms and conditions apply sheikha moza … · 2020. 10. 20. · japan to boost...

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