Observer & Busness 31 Juiy 2011 - Oman Observer

RAY raises funds for
Japanese quake victims
MUSCAT — Board members
and employees of Rukun al
Yaqeen (RAY) International
LLC organised a fundraiser
in aid of the victims of the
earthquake in Japan.
The proceeds were presented
to Seiji Morimoto, Ambassador
of Japan to the Sultanate,
when he visited the offices
of RAY International last
week.
RAY International, which
has been doing business with
Japanese companies for the
last several years, was rep-
Azerbaijani
officer killed
near Karabakh
BAKU — An Azerbaijani
army officer has been killed
by Armenian forces on the
frontline close to the disputed
region of Nagorny Karabakh,
the defence ministry in
Baku said yesterday.
The Azerbaijani lieutenant
died after a bullet hit
him in the head on Friday,
a defence ministry spokesman
said, in the latest deadly
incident. Named as Lieutenant
Elshad Gasanov, he was
the 14th soldier to be killed
this year amid continued tensions
over the mountainous
region. — AFP
resented at the ceremony
by senior company executives,
including Tameem al
Mahrouqi, Managing Director
of RAY International Energy
Division, and Zakaria
Abdul Aziz, Managing Director
of RAY International
Oil and Gas Division.
In comments, Ambassador
Morimoto expressed deep
appreciation for the solidarity
and sympathy still strongly
seen in Oman as demonstrated
by RAY International,
more than four months since
LAGOS — A helicopter crash
in southwestern Nigeria has
left three people, including the
pilot, dead, an emergency official
said yesterday after a sixhour
search in a wooded area
to locate the wreckage.
The private helicopter
crashed on Friday outside Ife-
Odan in Osun state in a mountaineous
area, said Yushau
Shuaib, spokesman for the national
emergency management
agency (NEMA).
He said that three people
aboard the OAS helicopter —
the March 11 tragedy.
He presented an overview
of Japan’s current situation
and concluded with
the nation’s determination to
revive and regain its glory
and commercial brilliance,
citing its recent efforts in the
field of renewable energy,
and so on.
The donation will be deposited
into the special account
named “Friends of
Japan” and transferred later
to the Japanese Red Cross
Society.
Helicopter crash in
Nigeria kills three HARARE — Zimbabwean
authorities have released a
the pilot and two women —
died. Full details of the crash
remained unclear, including
the cause, he said.
“The crash happened in an
extremely difficult montaineous
area, difficult to access.
No vehicle or motorcycle can
access the area. It is just now
that our officers are bringing
down the three corpses,” he
said. The helicopter, travelling
from Lagos to the north-central
city of Ilorin, crashed on
a hilltop more than 1,000 feet
above sea level, he said.
4
OMAN/THE WORLD
OMAN DAILY Observer
Pvt sector on
right track
From page 1
He said the OCCI plays
a pivotal role in boosting
economy, trade and investment
at local, regional and
world levels through a series
of specialised activities and
committees that work according
to carefully studied
plans and strategies to ensure
the growth and development
of all sectors.
He pointed out that during
Ramadhan, meetings will be
held with officials and those
in charge of economic and
trade sectors in the Sultanate
to discuss issues related to
the economic sector and the
private sector in particular.
OCCI will also host other
meetings that will discuss issues
such as Islamic banking,
sectoral committees, tenders,
local products, agriculture
and fisheries, consumer
protection and scientific
research. Al Khonji called
on traders of foodstuff and
consumer goods to maintain
price stability during Ramadhan
and retain the prices
at the current levels, besides
ensuring the availability of
goods throughout the month.
— ONA
Protesters freed
after paying fine
group of 13 human rights
demonstrators who were arrested
while protesting the
detention of activists from
Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai’s
party, the group
said yesterday.
The 13 demonstrators
were part of a protest by
the group Restoration of
Human Rights, which had
gathered on Wednesday
at the high court in central
Harare to press for the release
of seven people being
held without charge in what
activists called a crackdown
on opponents of President
Robert Mugabe.
They were released late
on Friday after agreeing to
each pay a $10 (seven-euro)
fine for a charge of making
a public nuisance.
“We paid the fines for
them not because they were
wrong, but to avoid having
them spend the weekend in
filthy cells,” Restoration of
Human Rights spokesman
Stendrick Zvorwadza said.
— AFP
JOHANNESBURG — Malawi,
once considered a southern
African success story, risks
going down the same road as
regional basket case Zimbabwe,
said the leader of recent
anti-government protests that
left 19 dead.
Undule Mwakasungula
had been in hiding since security
forces launched a violent
crackdown to quell two days
of demonstrations that erupted
on July 20.
Re-emerging in South Africa
for a forum on Malawi
held on Friday in Johannesburg,
the chair of the Human
Rights Consultative Council
— an umbrella organisation
of rights groups that organised
the protests — said Malawi is
undergoing twin economic and
political crises that are reminiscent
of Robert Mugabe’s
Zimbabwe.
“We are almost Zimbabwe,
both in the economy and in
political governance,” Mwakasungula,
who also heads the
non-profit Centre for Human
Rights and Rehabilitation in
Lilongwe, said in an interview.
He drew parallels between Mugabe
and Malawian President
Bingu wa Mutharika, who has
been criticised for a series of
increasingly autocratic moves
seen as restricting political
freedoms.
“There are similarities in
terms of their president and
Bingu wa Mutharika, their
style of leadership. They’re
both using a heavy hand in
terms of their governance,
in terms of how they want to
rule. And also disregarding
other branches of government
— the judiciary, the legislature,”
Mwakasungula said.
Mutharika, who came to
SUNDAY, JULY 31, 2011
‘Malawi risks becoming
next Zimbabwe’
Dar al Atta launches ‘One
Riyal’ Ramadhan Campaign
LARISA Popa, 24, reacts after being crowned Miss
Universe Romania 2011 in Bucharest yesterday. Popa
will represent Romania at the Miss Universe beauty
pageant due to be held on September 12 in
Sao Paulo, Brazil. — Reuters
office in 2004, has been criticised
for expelling rivals from
the ruling party, expanding
presidential power and signing
laws that have restricted protests,
media freedom and lawsuits
against the government.
The moves have alienated
foreign donors, causing the
United States and Britain to
cut their aid to the impoverished
country at the same time
it is facing massive fuel shortages
that have forced drivers
to queue overnight for petrol.
Mutharika has also presided
over a foreign exchange crisis
that has seen international currencies
become virtually unavailable,
leaving businesses in
the import-dependent country
unable to buy goods and materials
abroad.
“Malawians right now are
frustrated,” Mwakasungula
said. “Malawians are disgruntled
in terms of how the country
is being governed, how
the economy is moving. They
want to have more voice.”
The day of the demonstrations,
Mwakasungula says he
and his fellow organisers were
rounded up and beaten by police
at the church in Lilongwe
where they had gathered to
monitor the protests.
“It was a fracas. The police
were just brutal. They were
just animals, really,” he said.
Mwakasungula said he was
briefly detained, then released
to get medical attention. Afterward,
he went into hiding.
But he said he plans to
return home and organise
another demonstration, even
though his lawyers have told
him there is a warrant out for
his arrest on treason charges
— which carries the death
penalty in Malawi.
By Hasan Kamoonpuri
MUSCAT — Dar Al Atta has launched its “One Rial” Ramadhan
Campaign designed to help needy families during the
month. The campaign was launched here yesterday by members
from Dar Al Atta.
The “One Rial” campaign will run for three months and has
been introduced to allow people to donate a minimum of one
rial from their monthly salaries which will enable Dar Al Atta
to help the underprivileged families in Muscat by providing
them with the necessary items they need during the month.
Commenting on the launch of the campaign, Head of Dar al
Atta Maryam al Zidjali said: “We are very happy to launch this
initiative during Ramadhan. The idea behind the “One Rial”
campaign is to help those less fortunate members of our community
by asking others to donate only one rial from their salary
to help those families that cannot afford to buy everything
they need during the month.”
She added: “People have two ways to participate in the
campaign. They can transfer one rial from their bank account
to the association’s bank account or Oman Mobile subscribers
can send an SMS with the word “donate” to 90001 and one
rial will be added to your bill. Dar al Atta is a Muscat -based
non-profit voluntary organisation which was set up in 2002. It
endeavours to better the lives of those less fortunate than themselves
both in the capital and beyond. The group periodically
organises fundraising events to help others.
Spotlight on Oman’s heritage
From page 1
The Scouts set up a factory run by wind power, dug rivers
and planted lands as a model required for the whole world.
The Sultanate's delegation visited the Mexican delegation
camp together with the Scouts from Germany, Sweden and
Spain aimed at exchanging cultures and familiarising with
other people's heritage.
The Sultanate's Scouts also performed traditional Omani
sports accompanied by Omani folklore.
The delegations from Costa Rica, Britain and Norway visited
the Sultanate's camp where they ate Omani traditional
dishes and familiarised with the Sultanate's rich civilization,
history, achievements and heritage. — ONA
S African who spilled drink on
Zuma treated like ‘murderer’
JOHANNESBURG — A South African racehorse owner who
was convicted of assault for spilling a drink near President
Jacob Zuma says he has been treated “like a murderer,” local
media reported yesterday.
“It was an accident,” Daryl Peense told the Saturday Star
of the incident at last year’s Durban July, the country’s largest
horse race, when he spilled his drink over the president.
“I understand the seriousness of the matter — if it were true
— but I feel like I am being treated like a murderer.”
Peense admitted in Durban Magistrate’s Court that he
spilled his drink as Zuma passed below his balcony, but said
it was an accident caused by people pushing to get a view of
the president.
However, one of Zuma’s bodyguards told the court he saw
Peense deliberately pour a tumbler of whisky and water over
the president’s head, missing him only because an alert guard
used his jacket to shelter Zuma. Peense, who testified that he
was drunk at the time, was found guilty on Wednesday. He
faces sentencing on September 7. — AFP
Jet runs off runway in Guyana
GEORGETOWN, Guyana — A Caribbean Airlines jet early
yesterday ran off the runway on landing at Guyana’s Cheddi
Jagan International Airport.
Several persons have had to be rescued, officials said.
Fire Chief, Marlon Gentle, said teams are still on the
ground helping passengers of the flight, which originated in
New York.
None of the 154 passengers and eight crew members was
seriously injured, authorities said.
Health Minister Leslie Ramsammy said that one person suffered
a broken leg and several others sustained minor bruises.
They were being treated at a nearby district hospital and
Guyana’s main healthcare institution — the state run Georgetown
Public Hospital Corporation.
The Boeing 737-800, operated by the Trinidad and Tobago
state-owned Caribbean Airlines, was broken in two, after running
off the runway and down a slope. Police and soldiers have
cordoned off the crash site. — AFP
‘Africa heroin trafficking hub’
VIENNA — Drug traffickers faced with restrictions to transit
routes through Asia and the Middle East are turning to eastern
Africa, driving up instability and increasing substance abuse, a
United Nations report said.
The UN’s Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) said Africa’s
emergence as an important heroin transport route in 2009
was of serious concern in a region ill-equipped to fight trafficking
or care for people addicted to drugs.
“Drug seizures and the arrest of traffickers indicated that
African drug traffickers — particularly West African networks
— are increasingly transporting Afghan heroin from
Pakistan into East Africa for onward shipment to Europe and
elsewhere,” it said in a global report on the Afghan opium
trade. — Reuters