Carpenter admits threatening to kill driver for lack of fare

Dubai: A Chinese carpenter Thursday admitted threatening to kill a taxi driver because he did not have money to pay his fare.

Prosecutors charged the 46-year-old with using a knife and threatening to kill the 25-year-old Pakistani driver over a Dh50 tariff.

C.B. pleaded guilty before the Dubai Court of First Instance.

The driver, S.H. told Presiding Judge Hamad Abdul Latif Abdul Jawad that the incident happened around 2am in Bani Yas Road.

International City

"The suspect asked me to drive him to the Chinese Cluster in the International City," he said.

"When we reached the place, the defendant seemed that he lost directions to his house.

"When the meter read Dh50, the suspect asked me to pull over and drop him. The suspect said he did not have enough money to pay.

Knife pulled

"He asked me to wait for him to get the money from his house — I refused and told him to pay instantly. He pulled out a knife from his pocket and pointed it at my belly. Then he said ‘do you want the money now?'."

According to prosecution records, the defendant stepped out of the taxi and walked to a security guard standing nearby. The driver called the police. Then the suspect offered his mobile phone as payment.

When the police arrived, the knife was found when the suspect was searched.

C.B. denied threatening the driver in his statement, alleging that the knife only fell from his jacket.

The verdict will be heard on Monday.

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Green lifestyle event with an educational twist

Dubai: A lifestyle event with an educational twist is taking place at Dubai Mall until Friday showing off all kinds of innovative products available in the UAE that give shoppers more sustainable choices.

More than 70 exhibitors have set up booths and kiosks around the ground and lower ground floor as part of Epic Dubai Sustainable Living Expo.

"To be more sustainable people need to consume less but that is never ever going to happen. We want to help people put their dollars where their values are," said Nancy Wright, vice president of Vancouver-based Globe Foundation, the organisation behind Epic events. "We can make choices as consumers not to buy more, but to buy smarter," she said.

A series of live cooking demonstrations with organic produce and talks on environmental matters will also take place today and tomorrow.

Guiding principles

Around 75 per cent of the exhibitors are local and regional companies. All are vetted and allowed to exhibit if their products or guiding principles are in line with environmental policies. Greenwashing, a term for falsely claiming to have environmental policies is not uncommon among unscrupulous businesses hoping to attract consumers that seek cleaner, healthier products for them and the planet.

"All kinds of companies that want to take part in these events often have no environmental credentials. We can't open it up to them because we cannot compromise the Epic brand," said Wright.

Tarnish companies

"Companies will always greenwash and tarnish other companies that are taking steps towards sustainability. I am hoping that governments will crack down on greenwashing and give environmental credentials more meaning," she said.

"I think we have passed the peak of greenwashing and today there is less, due to increased education."

Visitors can donate Dh20 at the Goumbook stand to plant a ghaf tree, drop off their mobile phones at the Nokia stand to be recycled and try charging their phone on an exercise bike.

"A good thing about health and beauty products is that the price compared to ordinary products are competitive from a price point. It makes it an easier choice," said Wright.

Epic talks

Bee'ah, Sharjah's waste management company at 3pm

Organic Foods and Café at 4pm

Dubai Police and Lootah Group at 5pm, Goumbook at 6pm, Dubai Municipality at 8pm and Dewa at 9.30pm

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Gulf News readers offer to help a stranded mother and her children

Dubai: A Filipino mother and her four children, who have been living on charity after their Lebanese father was deported over failure to repay a loan, will fly back home today after several Gulf News readers helped them with the airfare to the Philippines.

Readers rushed to help the mother and her children, who landed in trouble after her husband was jailed for defaulting on a loan repayment and deported to Lebanon, after Gulf News wrote about them.

"This is a heart-breaking story," a reader said yesterday. "We need to help the mother and her little kids to go back home in the hope that they will join the father soon."

Mary, the mother, and her children have been surviving mainly on charity for the past year. The mother and a relative, who was staying with them, were earning a meagre income as part-time housemaids.

Children's visa

The children's visas also got cancelled because they were on their father's sponsorship. Mary said her children — Joyce, 8, Jasmine, 7, Fatima, 3, and Ali, 1, — have Philippine passports and are eagerly waiting to go back home in the hope they will some day be able to rejoin their father.

"I'm very thankful to all those who helped me. I was suffering and I had no clue what to do," she said. "Readers even came to my house to bring food and medicine for my children," she said with tears in her eyes.

Husband fell ill

She said her ordeal started when her husband fell ill about three years ago. "My husband was very sick and he took the loan to pay for his heart surgery," she said. "When he failed to pay back the loan he was sent to jail and lost his job as well.

"My children do not go to school and sometimes we even stay without food," she said. "I never thought that my problems would be solved. I was helpless and I was not able to help my children," she said.

Several readers said they were touched by the story of the family. "This is very sad and we hope that the family will join the father soon," said a reader.

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District Feature: Sharjah's Al Sharq has a rich history

Dubai: Every Dh5 note has a picture of the Salem Al Mutawa mosque located in the Al Sharq area. Once the heartbeat of Khor Fakkan city, today you can barely feel its pulse.

Al Sharq area overlooks Khor Fakkan Corniche and more than 30 years ago, was the hustling bustling neighbourhood in the city, as traders, arriving at Khor Fakkan Port, used to flock to its souq among shops, which sold everything from fabrics to groceries to food.

Choosing the mosque, located in this area, as a symbol for one of the denominations of the national currency shows the significance of Al Sharq area and the major trading role it played long ago.

It is said that the mosque on the five dirham note was built some 200 years ago using gravel and palm tree trunks. The mosque was renovated in March this year and the residents living in that area now pray there. It has recently also been named after Salem Al Mutawa, a late resident of that area, who never missed any of the five prayer times at the mosque. A well which was dug in the mosque for ablution still provides sweet water. The sea is 20 metres away from this mosque.

The Al Sharq area currently houses several hundreds of people, mostly shopkeepers who work at the old style souq, which still stands alive to tell the tales of bygone years.

Thirty years ago, Al Sharq area was inhabited by Emiratis mostly and some Arabs. After the UAE became one federation in 1971, and as the country and its cities developed, the old area of Al Sharq became almost abandoned by Emirati families as they moved to live and work in the new city developments. Old Emirati residents still remember the first clinic in Khor Fakkan, which was located in the Al Sharq neighbourhood. Today, that clinic structure has become a shop for car polishing.

The Al Sharq area also had the first Khor Fakkan municipality building, which has also been abandoned. It also has a building which housed a branch of the British Bank, the first bank at that time. However, old residents of the area say the branch was closed after the security guard there was killed in that building long ago.

Trading port

Ali Abdullah Al Mirza, an 81-year-old Emirati trader and fisherman, who was a former resident of Al Sharq area, said it (the area) was the heart of Khor Fakkan city years ago because it overlooked the sea.

"It was a very busy area because ships, carrying goods and traders from around the world, would arrive to the city's port for trading purposes. It also helped the people of this city to travel to various destinations which helped open up their minds and learn a lot," said Al Mirza, who lives in another neighbourhood not far from the Al Sharq area.

Talking about how Al Sharq area looked in those days, Al Mirza said: "There were around 300 houses in this area at that time with the majority being [of] Emirati families and some Arabs. The houses were built of palm tree trunks and stones and were close to each other. The two most famous families who lived in the area were Al Naqbi families and Al Hammadi families,"

Al Mirza said although he moved to another neighbourhood, his fondest memories are of the Al Sharq area, where he spent most of his youngdays.

Sulaiman Al Naqbi, another Emirati who lived in the Al Sharq area, said: "The old souq, which has kept its old style in terms of the structure and the use of wooden doors and big locks, is a distinct feature of the area."

According to him, this souq still has some old shops, which are no longer commonly seen in other parts of the country because they have been replaced by modern developments.

"One of the shops which I am certain may not be found easily now are the shops which repair old TV sets. You can find the large boxy TV sets lying in these shops for maintenance," he said.

Umm Mahmoud, an Egyptian who was entering her flat in the only tall structure in the area, said she still loves living in the area.

"I moved to Khor Fakkan 20 years ago after my marriage. My husband and I lived in this neighbourhood and saw the changes it has gone through as years passed. I still love this area and don't think of moving away because to me everything seems close. I buy my groceries from the grocery in the old souq, which is only walking distance. The mosque is very close by for my husband. We often go walking on the corniche which is a road away from here. I do miss what was once the busy nature of this area, but I have got used to the quietness," she said giggling.

Building lives

Mohiuddin, a grocer at Kirla Supermarket, said he witnessed the massive changes the Al Sharq area has gone through.

"I arrived here from Bombay [Mumbai] in 1971 and since then has been working in various shops in this souq. The shops were small boxy shops owned by Emiratis. I started working in this supermarket in 1978. This area was a mountainous area which overlooked the sea. There were no roads and the only vehicle which would move here was the old Land Rover," he recalled.

Another shopkeeper, Azad, working at Al Rayan shop, which sold everything from handbags, watches, perfumes, clothes and other things, said, although he has been working in this shop for three years, it [the shop] has been there for 32 years and has evolved with time.

"Of course, now the business is not as strong as it used to be, as my other colleagues who have been working in this shop tell me, but we still get elderly Emiratis who especially come looking for old style stuff," he said.

Al Sharq area now may not be as busy or as appealing as it used to be, but a visit there is sure to shed light on its rich history and culture. The area is filled with stories of how its inhabitants lived simply, yet comfortably despite their struggles.

HIGHLIGHTS

1 Salem Al Mutawa Mosque
The structure adorns the back of the the Dh5 note. The mosque still maintains the traditional style in which it was built and is a must-see if one is visited Al Sharq.

2 Al Sharq old souq
It houses several stores ranging from a supermarket, shops selling miscellaneous goods and shops repairing old TV sets. Even today when the shops close, the large wooden doors are locked with big metal locks.

3 Al Sharq Fort
It stands magnificently atop a a mountain. A visit to this imposing structure will reveal the rich history of the Al Sharq area.

Al SHARQ'S LOCATION
Al Sharq area is one of the oldest neighbourhoods in Khor Fakkan city. It overlooks Khor Fakkan Corniche. More than 30 years ago, it was the hustling bustling neighbourhood in the city, as traders, arriving at Khor Fakkan Port, used to flock to its shops, which sold everything from fabric to groceries to food.

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Dubai foils 44 attempts to smuggle in drugs

Dubai: Dubai Customs foiled 44 attempts to smuggle drugs in the first quarter of this year.

The announcement comes as Dubai Customs observes International Day against Drug Abuse Sunday.

As part of the Dubai Customs Department's strategy, the security and safety of the community is a priority, hence all the entry points into the emirate are protected to prevent the inflow of illicit substances, such as drugs and narcotics.

Ahmad Butti, Director General of Dubai Customs and CEO of the Ports, Customs and Free Zone Corporation (PCFC), said celebrating the day represents a chance to stress the graveness and dangers of illicit drug abuse, and the necessity of international cooperation to combat this problem which casts its shadows on people's health, the community structure, and the economic fate of countries all around the globe.

Trade hub

He added that the emirate has a strategic geographic location and is considered an important trade and finance hub in the region. Hence it is targeted by smugglers who falsely believe that the heavy trade traffic in the emirate will make it easier for them to smuggle in illicit substances through Dubai's airports and other entry checkpoints.

He said the Customs Department was successful in foiling 414 smuggling attempts in 2010 at the 19 air, sea and land entry points.

The narcotics seized included heroin, cocaine, marijuana, crystal, hashish and opium.

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Woman dies in road accident

Dubai: Driving against traffic caused one woman's death and injured three others in a horrific collision Wednesday morning.

The three-car collision, which happened at 3am at the exit of Shindagha Tunnel in the Bur Dubai direction, was caused by the driver of a Nissan Patrol, a 27-year-old GCC citizen identified as AY who was driving against traffic, said Lieutenant Colonel Abdullah Khadim, Director of Naif Police Station.

The driver collided with a taxi, which then hit a Toyota car due to the impact.

The taxi driver, a 29-year-old Asian and the Toyota driver, a 27-year-old Arab, both sustained severe injuries and were trapped inside their cars, while a passenger in the Toyota, a 26-year-old Asian woman was killed.

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Four men arrested for staging fake crime scene encounter

Abu Dhabi: Four men in the capital, who staged a fake crime scene encounter on the roof of a building, were recently arrested, a statement sent by Abu Dhabi Police said Saturday.

The men, all of whom are of Asian origin, were dressed in army uniform similar to the actual one and bullet-proof vests for the filming of a supposed crime scene on the roof of their building. They were also carrying props shaped like weapons and engaged in acting out a robbery or hijacking.

Three of them work as engineers. A concerned neighbour who believed the scene was for real, spotted them and called the police.

The names, ages and specific nationalities of the men were not revealed. Colonel Ebrahim Sultan Al Za'abi, Director of Al Sha'abiya police station, said a special police task force had been deployed to the scene.

"The report was about an area adjoining an important official building as well as residential complex and this seemed to be a serious operation for the police," Colonel Al Za'abi said.

"We surrounded the building and the residential complex, and when we reached the roof, we found the men acting out the scene, " he added.

"They claimed that they were acting out a scene from a video game and that it was sort of a hobby for them, as they also film it. Due to the serious nature of the incident, the men were arrested," Colonel Al Za'abi said.

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Man caught selling pills is charged

Dubai: An Arab man was arrested selling a banned pain killer in Ghusais on June 10, Dubai Police have said.

Upon receiving a tip-off from a source, a team from the Anti-Narcotics Department set up a trap for the man in a car park.

Police arrested the 28-year-old, identified as A.A.A., and searched his car and home in Sharjah, where over 4,000 Tramadol pills were found.

The drug is a strong pain killer sometimes used recreationally and prohibited in the UAE.

The suspect confessed that the pills were his, adding that he takes and sells them.

He was charged with owning, using and promoting narcotics and referred to the public prosecution.

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Reaching out to African students

Dubai: An old Arabic proverb says if you educate a woman, you educate an entire nation. It is a saying the Al Maktoum Foundation has taken as a fundamental principle for its work.

Over the years the foundation has built, and operates, nearly 40 schools in Africa. It is at one of these schools tucked away in a rural town in Kenya that a small group of Emirati students from Zayed University (ZU) found their calling.

Fatima Al Sayegh, Khadija Al Abbas and Arwa Al Mazroui's lives changed when their capstone graduation project landed them at a girl's school in the Kenyan town of Kajiado. Their project is Al Bedayah (Arabic for ‘the beginning') and the idea is to promote self-learning through the social media.

Their proposal was to create a website to essentially be a social media portal for self-education, on which they would tutor students in Africa. Their idea was such a hit they received the sponsorship and backing of the Al Maktoum Foundation, which exists under the patronage of Shaikh Hamdan Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai and Minister of Finance.

"The notion that students here in the UAE would help other students in Africa learn about social media was a powerful proposition," said project supervisor, Dr Badran Badra, Professor of Communication and Media Sciences at ZU. "However, I wasn't totally surprised to see an idea like Al Bedaya because of the UAE's strong tradition of helping other nations."

Tapping the global village

He added it was therefore not unusual to see Emirate students looking to other countries and societies to extend their humanitarian work.

Al Bedaya is a website that incorporates different free online tools such as Google and Wikipedia, with the aim of promoting self-education. However, the idea stemmed from the students' own learning experience at university. "As university students, we believe most of the knowledge we've retained through the years is information we sought out on our own through our investigative research," said Fatima. "We therefore believe self-education is the best kind and as the saying goes: a formal education will make you a living, but self-education will make you a fortune."

The website www.al-bedaya.org is split into three parts: lessons, research and fun. During their eight-day trip to Kenya the ZU students tutored over 40 female students. The students learned how to access free education web tools such as BBC Learning in order to quench their thirst for knowledge.

"The website essentially teaches how to use Google and social networking sites because of the vast amounts of news we get on Twitter for example," said Fatima. "The tutorial includes blogs and sites like YouTube and most useful Web2.0 user-generated interaction sites to bring the global village to the tip of the students' fingers."

Changing perspectives

Mohammad Bin Ganem, Secretary General of the Al Maktoum Foundation, said an initiative like Al Bedaya has a reciprocal benefit for both sets of students.

"It is important for our country's young women to know other civilisations around them and see how they suffer and struggle to survive," said Bin Ganem. "In our country, the UAE, the youth take everything for granted and therefore if they see the realities of life in other nations their perspectives will change."

Fatima affirms Bin Ganem's opinion as the recent public relations and advertising graduate believes she has found her calling in Al Bedaya. "I never thought my capstone project would be what I'd want to do for a living but it is," she said. "It's not something I expect to find a profit from because it's more personal, but right now we are exhausting all our efforts to keep Al Bedaya alive."

The recent ZU graduates are in talks with the Al Maktoum Foundation to continue the project in more of the foundation's African schools. This initiative not only educates African students to equip them for the development of their nations but to serve as an example for African women.

"When we asked some of the girls if they think they can have an impact on their society they weren't very positive; because in their culture a woman's place is in the kitchen," said Fatima.

"[But] as Emirati women we were an example to them because years ago, in a culture with similar views as theirs; no one would have thought we'd now see women taking up active and powerful roles in our society."

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Awareness drive helps cut pedestrian deaths in Dubai

Dubai: Pedestrian death toll continues to decline on Dubai roads, with a 35 per cent drop in fatalities during the first three months this year as compared to last year, the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) announced Tuesday.

Statistics show a huge improvement in pedestrian safety over the years, Hussain Al Banna, director of Traffic at the RTA's Traffic and Roads Agency said.

During the first three months of this year, 11 pedestrian fatalities were recorded as compared to 17 during the same period last year, he said.

Over 67 per cent of the accidents took place in the night, Al Banna said.

Further drop

"We will continue with our awareness efforts this year and expect a further drop in pedestrian fatalities; which already dropped from 78 cases in 2009 to 43 in 2010."

Last year, the pedestrians killed in traffic accidents hit a record low in a decade with 2.8 cases per 100,000 of population. In 2001, five cases were recorded per 100,000 of the population.

The number climbed steadily going from 6.8 in 2004 to an all time high of 9.5 in 2009. The number has been dropping since 2009.

In 2008, seven cases were recorded and 4.4 cases in 2009.

Positive trend

Al Banna attributed the positive trend to awareness campaigns organised by RTA to enhance pedestrian safety, particularly among workers, as well as the building of foot bridges across the city.

"The awareness campaign carried out by the RTA this year started off at the workers' accommodation at Sonapur and covered Al Quoz, Jebel Ali, Al Barsha, Al Ghusais schools complex and RTA customer service centres."

Be attentive

It focused on educating workers on the importance of being attentive and making sure the road is clear of traffic before crossing the road.

Earlier, the RTA had identified seven areas where the most number of accidents involving pedestrians took place — including Al Quoz, Al Wasl, and the service roads of Shaikh Zayed Road.

But this year, so far, the accidents were not concentrated in certain areas, but rather spread out.

"RTA has been successful in reducing the number of fatalities caused by traffic accidents during the last three years, and the situation improved year after year.

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MARKETING EXECUTIVE - nadia - Sharjah

Job Description An International trading company requires an Arabic speaking Marketing Executive with four years similar experience. You will be responsible for Sales/ Marketing of active pharmaceutical ingredients, Generating/ Identifying new business, servicing existing clients, achieving sales targets etc. Must have excellent relationship with pharmaceutical industries based in MENA region. A Graduate with excellent communication skills is a must.

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