|
|
  
Aden, Aug. 10, (YT)_ An earthquake jolted the Yemeni southern city port of Aden at 1:30 a.m. Saturday and lasted for several seconds, while another quake was felt by Aden coastal areas residents on Saturday at noon. Yemen Times has gotten confirmation on the two quakes from Aden airport meteorology department but due to shortage in observation equipment the department could not detect exactly power and epicenter of the two quakes. On the other hand no information was available on casualties or damage caused by the two quakes and no official statement was issued yet. The Yemeni Joint Meeting Opposition Parties responded on Saturday to the Supreme Elections Committee’s (SEC) ultimatum dated August 3 to submit the lists of participants in the electoral committees. The SEC called upon the opposition parties, earlier in this month, to send their lists of the nominees to be part of the electoral committees according to their own percentages based on last election. In its letter, the opposition parties said the SEC had undertaken a baseless criterion for the parties’ participation in the elections and ignored the opposition’s views entirely. The letter confirmed the opposition parties’ disapproval of SEC’s request and called for the continuation of political dialogue between parties. This disagreement between the opposition parties and SEC resulted in delaying the registration phase for the upcoming parliamentary elections scheduled for April 2003 to October instead of September. It is worth mentioning that the elections registration phase will be carried out in an entirely different way compared to last year. The new lists of voters will be prepared from scratch and will not depend on old lists which will be totally abolished. The ruling party was accused of including more than 500,000 false names in the last elections, while Islah was accused of having around 250,000 false names as well. TAIZ-On his way to work, Jameel Assarari, an employee at Taiz University was attacked last week by two security men belonging to Taiz University. He was taken aback when students were frisked down at the gate of the university by two security men using cudgels. In a press release issued by the General Yemeni Students Union (GUSU), the employee was attacked intentionally without any altercation with the university’s security men. Assarari then filed a complaint to the University Students’ Affairs Dean informing him of this attack. Last week, Taiz University campus turned to what could be called a battlefield between security men and students of the university. A number of students were illegally incarcerated at the Criminal Investigation Jail. A number of Yemeni soldiers who had fled Yemen to Syria following the 1994 civil war returned back to Yemen on August 5. The return of those soldiers came after the president had issued an amnesty decree to all soldiers who fled the country aftermath the war. The soldiers are expected to be given all their financial rights as stated in the amnesty. The Yemeni Journalist Syndicate (YJS) has strongly condemned the sending for Ibraheem Nafi’, the Editor-in-Chief of Al-Ahram Daily and the Chairman of the Arab Journalists Union to stand trial in a French Court. He was summoned last week to appear before the court under the pretext of publishing articles two years ago on A Talk of Jewish Pastry of the Arab Blood written by Adel Hammouda, a freelance journalist at al-Ahram Daily. The Chairman of the YJC and the Deputy Chairman of the Arab Journalists Union, Mahboob Ali along with Yemeni journalists have expressed their absolute solidarity with Nafi’. According to what the Chief Justice, Nafi’ was accused of having instigated hatred against Jews and diffusing discriminatory ideas. Upon hearing about this development, the Chairman of the YJS stressed that the Egyptian media in general and al-Ahram Newspaper in particular made honorable attempts to reveal to the public the truth about the Zionist acts of terrorism and injustice. As a result, the Zionist lobby found no other way but to file a lawsuit against this national Arab voice resembled in al-Ahram. Mahboob added that Israel realized that the media war had started and that al-Ahram Daily was winning its first round. “As a result, Israel has been seeking to establish a new satellite network under the pretext of spreading democratic values. This is done in a time the Arab media left not stone unturned in support of the Palestinian people,” he said. The Chairman of the YJC called upon journalists, intellectuals and supporters of freedom of press to support Nafi’ in his cause considering this trial against him a trial against all the Arab media members. He added that this step may have long-term implications on the whole Arab world. Sana’a, Aug. 7 _ A presidential decree on Tuesday had established a National Security Organization of the Republic of Yemen directly affiliated with the president of the republic. Some of the organization’s tasks are focused on watching, gathering and analyzing intelligence information on hostile activities oriented from abroad that pose threat to the country’s security, sovereignty and political system, and economic and military position. The organization would against that offer ideas and suggestions on the way of facing and dealing with them. The apparatus would also study and analyze political , economic, social, security and cultural researches and studies issued by foreign associations to get informed on the extent of their effect on the country’s national security. It also takes the task of disclosing and combating sabotage activities hostile to the national security in addition to providing protection for Yemen’s borders and islands against any inroads on part of enemy elements coming from abroad. National Security Organization would undertake gathering information on spying activities and work on exposing and confronting them. The Organization is also entrusted with securing protection for the armed forces, security and other state establishments, and Yemeni diplomatic missions abroad against any hostile inroads as well as preserving the state’s political, military and economic secrets. It also undertakes adoption of arrangements ensuring protection of Yemen’s interests abroad in coordination with the foreign ministry. On Thursday August first, the World Bank approved USD 130 million in the form of credit to Yemen to upgrade the urban water supply and sanitation services. The first phase of the Urban Water Supply and Sanitation Project (UWSSP) aims to increase water supplies in densely populated urban areas through improving operation and reduction of the water scarcity. The UWSSP is also funding projects to enable the use of recycled waste water for agricultural purposes. The proposed project falls in line with the bank’s country assistance strategy for Yemen whose objectives include prompting environmental sustainability with a strong focus on water management. The urban water and waste water sectors in Yemen are confronted with major challenges in the face of increasing water shortage in the country. The sector has been unable to cover expenses and cost of new investments. In addition, the National Water and Sanitation Authority and its branches are in need of more effective managerial and technical capabilities. As services from local corporations improve, it is expected that low-income households will rely less on higher-priced water supplied by private vendors. This will ease the burden on the household budget and relieve women and children, in particular, from the time-consuming task of fetching and carrying water. The International Development Agency (IDA), an arm of the World Bank Group, which provides interest-free development assistance to the poorest countries, will issue the credit. The overall project cost is USD 150 million. The World Bank credit of USD 130 million will be disbursed on standard IDA terms with a 10-year grace period and a maturity of 40 years, and the Government of Yemen will contribute USD 20 million. On the other hand, the World Bank’s Board of Executive Directors reviewed and discussed the Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (PRSP) drafted by the Government of Yemen with extensive consultation among agencies and with civil society, including parliamentarians, academia, female groups, media as well as community based groups representing the poor. The PRSP reveals that poverty in Yemen is predominantly a rural phenomenon, with 83 percent of the poor and 87 percent of those under the food poverty line living in rural areas. It concluded that Yemen’s current public expenditures in sectors such as health and education do target the poor, but the services fall short of addressing the magnitude of the urban-rural gap and the gender gaps. In response to these challenges, the PRSP was designed around four major pillars aimed at raising the living standards of the poor. They include achieving a high and sustained rate of economic growth, enhancing human resource development, upgrading the basic infrastructure, expanding access to basic services, and strengthening the social safety nets. “The overall sense of the board meeting was that the PRSP prepared by the Yemeni authorities and civil society marks the end of the beginning. Now the real process begins in putting the poverty reduction strategy into practice,” said Mohammed Ayub, Country Director for Yemen, following the Board meeting. “I am confident that the commitment and ownership demonstrated by the government of Yemen in this first phase will continue in the implementation phase.” BY FAROUK AL-KAMALI TAIZ BUREAU Abdulaleem Ashameri, the Chairman of the Ambition Society for the Deaf and Blind Rehabilitation and Care was released last Tuesday by the security authorities in Taiz. Ashameri was arrested on August 4 and forced to leave his job as the chairman of the society to be replaced by a member of the People’s General Congress (PGC). The majority of the society’s members and staff are either the blind or deaf. Ashameri has recently lodged a complaint to the prosecuting attorney of the Taiz governorate against the General Manager of Labor and Social Affairs for abusing the power entrusted to him.Ashameri told the Yemen Times that he wouldn’t abandon the society, whose members have the right to elect the person whom they trust. In this regard, the society passed through difficult times as it was unable to pay the rent and train and rehabilitate the blind and blind. Since its establishment, the Ambition Society for the Deaf and Blind Rehabilitation and Care has been badly in need of financial assistance. Ashameri called upon human rights organizations to support the society to help the handicapped have a better and promising future. The Mass Media Training and Qualifying Institute started last week a training course in the field of TV program preparation and presentation. More than 57 trainees including new employees of the Public Corporation for Radio and Television participated in the training course. The media administration in both Interior and Agriculture Ministries and some university graduates of the Information College of Sana’a University also attended the course. The course primarily focused on training students on the basics of scenario writing and TV drama that could tackle social and economic issues in Yemen. Dr. Abdullah Ali Azzalab, the Dean of the Mass Media Training and Qualifying Institute said that the training course, which will come to a conclusion during the second half of 2002, primarily aims at training new employees. Dr. Azzalab said, “Holding such a training course has been approved by the Information Minister, Dr. Hussein Daif Allah al-Awadhi in order to enhance local expertise in the nature of work in TV and radio programs.” After the success of Apollo’s Jazeera Information Technology Exhibition (JITCOM 2002) and the Information Industry Forum in Yemen, Apollo held on August 8 a certificate honoring ceremony for participants and supporters of the exhibition. More than 46 local companies and 91 representatives of different governmental organizations participated in JITCOM 2002. The exhibition witnessed a high level of attendance and was visited by agents and representatives of international companies that were represented in the exhibition. Participating companies expressed eagerness to participate in next year’s exhibition JITCOM 2003 due to the great value they sensed in this year’s event. The honoring certificates were distributed by Deputy Minister of Industry and Apollo’s Marketing Manager. ISMAEL AL-GHABERI YEMEN TIMES STAFF Mohammed Saleh Meyad, the General Manager of the Capital Secretariat Security said that the year 2002 has witnessed an excellent record with regard to reducing the number of car thefts and other similar crimes. In comparison to last year during the same period, the recent security measures have resulted in a 9% improvement in preventing car thefts, 16% improvement in arresting bandits and 8% increase in the number of cars returned to their owners. This indicates that there is improvement in the number of seized thieves and criminals compared to last year. Due to the alarming rate of car theft attempts during the first half of 2002 in the capital secretariat, which reached more than 6713 cases, the Capital Secretariat Security committed itself to intensifying its efforts to bring those accountable to justice. More than 8,522 convicts have already been seized, while the number of cars stolen reached 256 and the loss resulting from stolen cars totaled to around YR 60 million. The authorities were able to seize more than 391 gun machines, 123 pistols, and 22 grenades during the same period. This has been successfully accomplished following the security campaign launched by security forces during the first half of 2002. Sana’a-The overall number of traffic accidents during the first half of 2002 have reached 5,164 in all governorates of the republic. More than 891 persons have been killed and 5,918 have been injured. The financial losses and damages caused by those accidents were estimated at more than YR 563 million. Car crash incidents were ranked first among other traffic accidents, which reached 2,622. These incidents can be attributed to the breakneck speed, punctures, traffic violations, bad weather, lack of continuous technical check ups, bad conditions of roads, and in many cases the carelessness of pedestrians, especially children. An agreement was signed between Yemen and the UK in London on Friday in which the UK will grant Yemen a total exceeding $38 to finance a project to expand and rehabilitate the Jumhori Hospital in Aden. The new capacity of the hospital will rise to 410 beds and the services will be modernized and enhanced. The agreement was signed by the Yemeni Minister of Planning and Development Ahmed Sufan and Mr. Alan Bieni of the UK government. ADEN-Al-Gabal Restaurant at Sheraton Gold Mohur Hotel-Aden was inaugurated last Saturday at the presence of social and political dignitaries. Aidroos Obeid, the Sales Manager at Sheraton Gold Mohur Hotel said that holding the inauguration ceremony aimed primarily at keeping in touch with hotel’s customers. In addition to this, it will pave the way for propagating for the al-Gabal Restaurant at the hotel. He indicated that the al-Gabal Restaurant aims at offering different types of food at reasonable and competitive prices. On the other hand, the invitees at the inauguration ceremony expressed their delight in the services offered by the Sheraton Gold Mohur Hotel and its fantastic reputation all over the country. Aden-The administrative staff of al-Baihani Charitable Society for Education and Culture welcomed last Friday the Parliamentary Committee’s report related to the fact-finding committee on the recent attack against al-Baihani Charitable Society. Following the attack, the students’ certificates were canceled and an attempt to close the al-Baihani religious institute was made. In a letter dispatched by the al-Baihani Society to the Yemen Times, the society trusted that the Parliamentary Committee report would give a clear picture of the recent attacks on the society. On the other hand, the society has strongly condemned the prolongation of postponing the decision by Sera Court of First Instances against the attackers. Members at al-Baihani Charitable Society demanded legal protection of its members by the security authorities in the Aden governorate. On Thursday August 8, Girls World Communication Center celebrated its fourth summer camp open ceremony in the premises of the center in Sanaa. The ceremony was attended by the students’ families and a number of guests. The students displayed creative works impressing the attending crowd. The Administrative Director of the center, Ms. Entelak al-Mutawakel expressed her hope in that every educational institution would take the center as an example to follow as this attempt is considered the first in its kind and has been implemented by the center itself with no involvement of second parties in its organization. “However, we can not deny that some organizations did cooperate in sponsoring the event including Shell, Total, Canadian Nexen, British Council and Amideast, which we thank very much” Ms. Entelak commented. The center has guaranteed especial active summer vacation packages for girls to encourage them to practice new skills and exploit their hidden talents. “We work here to help girls coming from low-income families work and study. Through this center, some hard working and intelligent girls managed to get scholarships” she added. “We are going to design an integral curriculum through which we can raise awareness about a lot of issues that concern the society including social, environmental and health issues. The center has a magnificent library established with collaboration of British Council, and which contains language books and references” she said. The center adopted a diploma program to rehabilitate the secondary school graduate girls, who have to wait for one full year before enrolling into the university. The center ensures that this year is spent on useful activities including learning English, computer, internet and other various activities. Several Yemeni coastal cities and regions are currently receiving a significant number of tourists from Gulf States especially Saudi Arabia. Sources in the Ministry of Tourism said that the current summer is witnessing the highest number in decades of tourists coming from Gulf countries. Aden, Hadramout, and Hodeidah were the main destinations of those tourists due to their reasonably cooler temperature compared to that in most Gulf countries this time of the year. The sources said that tourists coming from the Gulf are mobilizing the labor force of the hotel business and the tourism industry in general, especially after the significant improvement of relations between Yemen and the GCC. Bakatheer Establishment for Literature and Arts organized on Saturday August 4, a cultural evening hosting Mr. Abdulkareem Al Khamisi, who gave a lecture on the future of culture. The lecture was initiated to identify culture as knowledge, charity and thought. Khamisi said that culture should be of good values and morals in compliance with our religion’s instructions. The lecturer also referred to the types of culture including self-interested, opportunism, and rational cultures and confirmed that the future of any culture lies in its present. He concluded his speech by saying, “the future of culture is still unpredictable as its present is rocking between ebb and tide.” What is needed is to pay an attention of focus of literature which signifies the originality of nations and their permanent in this universe. BY MOHAMMAD ABDURAHMAN YEMEN TIMES STAFF A human rights training course for police officers is expected to start today August 12 in Sana’a. The course has been organized by the Human Rights Information and Training Center (HRITC) under the patronage of the Interior Minister Dr. Rashad al-Alimi will last two days. It will focus on training police officers to handle cases and treat citizens in a manner that guarantees their dignity and human rights. More than 32 participants representing different governorates in Sana’a, Aden, Lahj, Taiz, Hadramout, Ibb, Abyan, Hodieda, Dhamar, and Jawf will take part in this course. Participants will be receiving lectures on human rights, international treaties, and local legislation. The course has been held in collaboration with the Danish Embassy and with the participation of a number of law professors in the field of human rights and law. BY MOHAMMAD AL-MASANI YEMEN TIMES STAFF Within the framework of human rights program of the Sisters Arabic Forum (SAF) to enhance Yemeni women’s political participation, a seminar on the Egyptian woman’s experience in politics was held in Sana’a last Friday. The seminar was organized by SAF in coloration with Oxfam-Britain and other partners in order to benefit from the Egyptian women’s political experience. The seminar focused on how to benefit from participating in the upcoming elections. During the seminar, Dr. Amal M. Faed, an expert in women’s political affairs and a member of the Political Office of the Egyptian Nasserite Party delivered a speech revolving around effective means of the Egyptian women’s experience in the political and parliamentary arenas and how Yemeni woman could benefit from such experience. The seminar was attended by Mr. Izzeddin al-Asbahi, the Chairman of the Human Rights Information and Training Center along with representatives of several NGOs as well as party representatives and journalists. Mrs. Amal al-Basha, the Chairwoman of SAF told YT that the seminar aimed at promoting Yemeni woman’s participation in the upcoming elections as a nominee and voter. Within a program that started 7 months ago, the SAF demanded separate constituencies for women and called upon the authorities to allow women representatives to take part in the Supreme Election Committee. “We are seeking to learn from the Egyptian women’s political experience. We also want to avoid the difficulties and problems to guarantee strong presence and good performance of the Yemeni women in the upcoming election” Mrs. Amal said. |
Advertise | Subscribe | Feedback | Discussion
Yemenis Abroad | Weather | Classified
Postcards | Links | Newsletter
Opinion Poll
Any comments or suggestions should be emailed to Yemen Times Webmaster