DOHA // The emir of Qatar has denied accusations that his country funds extremist groups in Syria, while stressing the Gulf state’s commitment to the US-led campaign against ISIL.
"We don't fund extremists," Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani said in an interview with CNN aired on Thursday. "If you talk about certain movements, especially in Syria and Iraq, we all consider them terrorist movement."
“But there are differences. There are differences that some countries and some people (believe) that any group which comes from Islamic background are terrorists. And we don’t accept that.”
Qatar has been accused of funding Islamist groups in Syria, as well as Egypt’s banned Muslim Brotherhood, following Arab Spring uprisings.
But Qatar is now taking part in Washington’s campaign against ISIL, which has seized swathes of Iraq and Syria.
The emir confirmed this participation.
“We’ve been asked by our American friends if we can join, and we did,” he said.
But he insisted that beyond defeating extremist movements in Syria, the long-term aim should be to punish the regime of president Bashar Al Assad.
“The main cause of all this is the regime in Syria, and this regime should be punished,” he said.
“If we think that we’re going to get rid of the terrorist movements and leave those regimes doing what — this regime especially, doing what he is doing — then terrorist movements will come back again,” he warned.
More than 180,000 people have been killed in the Syrian conflict since it erupted in March 2011, according to a monitoring group. The United Nations puts the figure at 191,000.
* Agence France-Presse
Gender pay parity on track in the UAE
The UAE has a good record on gender pay parity, according to Mercer's Total Remuneration Study.
"In some of the lower levels of jobs women tend to be paid more than men, primarily because men are employed in blue collar jobs and women tend to be employed in white collar jobs which pay better," said Ted Raffoul, career products leader, Mena at Mercer. "I am yet to see a company in the UAE – particularly when you are looking at a blue chip multinationals or some of the bigger local companies – that actively discriminates when it comes to gender on pay."
Mr Raffoul said most gender issues are actually due to the cultural class, as the population is dominated by Asian and Arab cultures where men are generally expected to work and earn whereas women are meant to start a family.
"For that reason, we see a different gender gap. There are less women in senior roles because women tend to focus less on this but that’s not due to any companies having a policy penalising women for any reasons – it’s a cultural thing," he said.
As a result, Mr Raffoul said many companies in the UAE are coming up with benefit package programmes to help working mothers and the career development of women in general.
Tightening the screw on rogue recruiters
The UAE overhauled the procedure to recruit housemaids and domestic workers with a law in 2017 to protect low-income labour from being exploited.
Only recruitment companies authorised by the government are permitted as part of Tadbeer, a network of labour ministry-regulated centres.
A contract must be drawn up for domestic workers, the wages and job offer clearly stating the nature of work.
The contract stating the wages, work entailed and accommodation must be sent to the employee in their home country before they depart for the UAE.
The contract will be signed by the employer and employee when the domestic worker arrives in the UAE.
Only recruitment agencies registered with the ministry can undertake recruitment and employment applications for domestic workers.
Penalties for illegal recruitment in the UAE include fines of up to Dh100,000 and imprisonment
But agents not authorised by the government sidestep the law by illegally getting women into the country on visit visas.
Correspondents
By Tim Murphy
(Grove Press)
LA LIGA FIXTURES
Friday Celta Vigo v Villarreal (midnight kick-off UAE)
Saturday Sevilla v Real Sociedad (4pm), Atletico Madrid v Athletic Bilbao (7.15pm), Granada v Barcelona (9.30pm), Osasuna v Real Madrid (midnight)
Sunday Levante v Eibar (4pm), Cadiz v Alaves (7.15pm), Elche v Getafe (9.30pm), Real Valladolid v Valencia (midnight)
Monday Huesca v Real Betis (midnight)
Tips from the expert
Dobromir Radichkov, chief data officer at dubizzle and Bayut, offers a few tips for UAE residents looking to earn some cash from pre-loved items.
- Sellers should focus on providing high-quality used goods at attractive prices to buyers.
- It’s important to use clear and appealing photos, with catchy titles and detailed descriptions to capture the attention of prospective buyers.
- Try to advertise a realistic price to attract buyers looking for good deals, especially in the current environment where consumers are significantly more price-sensitive.
- Be creative and look around your home for valuable items that you no longer need but might be useful to others.
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