‘GCC-Russia can end crisis’

‘Syrian president hurdle in solution’

“THOSE who are following the political activity in the world in general and the Arab world in particular will observe that the Russian foreign policy during the reign of President Vladimir Putin has managed to stamp Russia’s authority as one of the most strongest and effective players in the Arab events in general and the Syrian episode in particular,” columnist, former MP and the representative of the State of Kuwait to the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Consultative Committee Abdulmohsen Yusuf Jamal wrote for Al-Qabas daily Monday.

“In light of the above, we infer that the visit of the GCC foreign ministers to Moscow to meet their counterpart Sergei Lavrov for the fourth time to find a peaceful formula to solve the Syrian crisis looks inevitable because the crisis has prolonged for more than expected.

“Moreover, the crisis has produced the ugliest scenarios of terrorism in the world by the Islamic State (IS) or the socalled ‘DAESH’ and the Al-Nusra Front.

“It has also become obvious that there is a wide gap in the Russian point of view and the point of view of the GCC countries on the issue of solving the Syrian crisis, particularly when it comes to deciding the fate of the Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad.

“In this context, we elucidate that the Russians see defeating terrorism should be the prime goal to end the Syrian current crisis while some GCC parties see bringing down the regime of Bashar Al-Assad and his regime is the top priority.

“However, in spite of different point of view, all the parties are in agreement over the need to find a peaceful solution for the crisis on one hand and fighting terrorism on the other.

“Not just that, the two parties are in agreement over the role to be played by Moscow in this connection given the recognition of its influence in the Arab arena in the wake of its direct intervention in Syria in addition to building many military bases in Damascus.

“This is in addition to its effective role to help transform the balance of power in favor of the Syrian government and the acceptance that has been shown by the US to this role.

“It is needless to say the consecutive meetings and strategic dialogues between the GCC countries and Russia in addition to the acceptance shown by the former to the Russian role in the Arab world in general and Syria in particular and the cooperation between the two parties to fight ‘DAESH’ and the Al-Nusra Front and the absence of insistence to change the Syrian regime, shall help facilitate finding a necessary solution to the crisis as swiftly as possible.

“In other words, the ‘cooling’ of the Syrian crisis by virtue of efforts that have been exerted by Russia and the acceptance shown by the GCC States to the Russian role, can be deemed a success for Moscow diplomacy in the Middle East, particularly following the failure of Washington in this area and lack of its diplomacy to find the necessary solution acceptable to all parties to the crisis.

“Certainly, if the Russian-GCC cooperation persists in this direction and at the same level, then we expect the two parties to arrive at a balanced solution for the current Syrian crisis as early as possible. Moreover, this prospective solution shall help stop the Syrian bloodshed as swiftly as possible.”

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Jamal

“Five years have passed since the eruption of the war in Syria and before that Iraq has been suffering from sectarian discord for ten years,” columnist Dr Nayef Al-Adwani wrote for Al-Shahed daily.

“However, each time the signs are in the offing to solve the Syrian crisis, we find the Islamic State (IS) or the so-called DAESH appears suddenly shows its ugly face by carrying out suicide operations in residential areas and the victim as always are the innocent people.

“This organization which has an Islamic feature but Western in terms of content doesn’t target political or military leaders but the innocent people chosen selectively inside mosques or at shopping malls and commercial markets and most of the time targets the poor people.

“Although the leaders and planners of this organization have chosen an attractive name ‘The Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (Sham)’ (ISIS or ISIL) sounds musical and Western in nature before changing it to its current name the ‘Islamic State’ (IS), but it is needless to say the deeds, practices and the attacks carried out by this organization show it is an organization of a Western thought and thinking and follows the Western pattern in terms of planning and implementing its operations.

“It is a leading, political, medial, military and economic organization that has the necessary strategic and military plans in addition to the sufficient financial and human resources.

“Not just that, this organization has its own Central Bank and the Ministry of Finance and an intelligence department that caps all secret services of the region, or rather the entire world.

“Furthermore, this organization has its Fatwa and legislation authority in addition to its media commission which is capable of persuading and polarizing the youth throughout the world and bring them into Syria and Iraq in spite of the intelligence and material restrictions that have been placed by the neighboring countries and in spite of the presence of the international coalition forces in the region.

“DAESH looks like a dragon and a Western monster which has the support of the concerned people as long as the Western interest are at heart and to carry out all Western schemes in the Arab world.”

“For several years we have been suffering from the phenomenon of what we call private tuitions, which has become widespread in the country among students of all ages and ranks,” columnist Dari Al-Sharida wrote for Al-Rai daily.

“In spite of the magnitude of this phenomenon and the challenge taken to the Ministry of Education by those who offer these private lessons in clear violation of the law, tutors continue to offer their services in broad daylight under the very noses of the concerned authorities but we have never heard or read in newspapers at any time of any action being taken by the ministry to stop this ‘ludicrous business’ practiced by tutors who during the day work in government schools.

“Earlier some students resorted to private tuitions to get better marks in advanced grades, but at the moment we see students from early grades putting their trust in the tutors and it lead one to wonder where is the defect.

“Is the defect in the system, the curricula, and the performance of the teachers or in general in the students themselves?

“Based on my current career in the Ministry of Education, I found the level of education of some teachers is low and for this reason we see the phenomenon of private tuitions snowballing.

“Apart from the above, the curriculums are full of scientific and printing errors, but these mistakes are not a strong conviction and good enough reason for the phenomenon to spread so rapidly.”

“Jack Dorsey, one of the founders of Twitter, embodies the concept of human creativity as he invented this application that gives its registered members a platform to speak within 140 characters. Whatever is written is known as ‘tweets’, which is also the name for the beautiful sound made by a tiny bird,” columnist Nayef Al-Jasimi Al-Dhufairi wrote for Al-Anba daily.

“Despite the freedom to express your opinions or rather to say whatever is going through your mind, not all tweets are repeated, light and tremulous sounds. Some of the tweets are more like a donkey’s bray than the melodious sound of ‘Twitter’, because there are people who tend to distort the original concept and meaning in a way that suits them and their opinion on any issue.

“Luckily, such brays usually come from our heads whenever we hear a ‘tweet’ especially when you are on the list of optimistic friends. These brays have no regard for societal norms and many people are calling for silencing such voices once and for all.

“Twitter is a comprehensive world for everyone, so there is a need for new voices to revamp the site or its founders should come up with another ground breaking idea that will benefit everybody.”

“We cannot believe the direction, plans, visions or projects that aim to bring to an end our dependence on oil. These are just illusions which are unacceptable, but unrealistic because oil is the main basic commodity in the budgets of GCC countries,” columnist Muhammad Haza’a Al Mutairi wrote for Al Qabas daily.

“The GCC countries’ dependence on oil income surpasses 90% from their total income. For that reason any plan or vision will not be successful without depending on oil earnings.

“Oil experts around the world confirm without doubt that the 21st century until 22nd will not witness a substitute commodity that outshines the volume and power of oil. This applies exactly to the GCC member states. On this basis, all development plans and visions that have been announced will act within the distribution and diversification range of sources of income to compliment only and not to be the basic or substitute of oil.

“The economic visions and reform plans adopted by countries like Kuwait and Saudi Arabia are excellent if the object is to diversify sources of income, and deducting part of the oil income to fund them.”

“A verdict that exemplifies loftiness of our judiciary when dealing with issues related to humanity and daily life of citizens, the fast-track Court of Appeals ordered the reconnection of electricity to violating buildings, affirming that disconnecting electricity exposes lives of citizens to danger,” columnist AbdulRahman Al-Awwad wrote for Al-Sabah daily.

“The judicial verdict deserves to be regarded as a ‘humanitarian verdict’ rather than the judicial rulings, because it considers comfort, security and stability of people. This reflects the kind of judicial authority with which Kuwait is blessed, so it is a source of our pride and glory.

“The issue of disconnecting power from violating buildings is multifaceted for which building owners alone cannot be held responsible.

“The reason is that the fault arises from lack of official monitoring without any need to justify the lapses. Another reason is the widespread use of wasta (influence), so the violators know that many of them can be exempted, which encourages them to violate the laws and obtain what they regard as their right, and here lies the trick.”

“Can the Kuwait City in its present state be considered or is it worthy to be called the commercial and financial hub,” columnist Hazza Mohammad Al-Mutairi wrote for Al-Rai daily.

“The answer is certainly not. We are left alone as we see the capitals around us developing at a fast pace. These capitals have evolved with time in line with the modern world and urban system, while Kuwait is left behind instead of our dream to make it a commercial hub in the region because right in the heart of the city we have nests of garages and auto repair shops.

“Is it not a shame that Kuwait City to this day embraces workshops and shops in the midst of architectural mess which sets a bad example or portrays a bad and an ugly image which reflects the state’s failure in the area of development.

“Would it not be better to remove all this mess before deciding to remove the Al-Sawaber Complex and its inhabitants, because the city resembles a Gulf industrial area with auto repair shops and all that comes with it.

“We marvel and sigh how the state intends to put forward plans for the development of the islands and forget about the negative image of the capital, as if the motto to make the Kuwait City business and commercial center is just to promote the idea but does not reflect the reality in front of the eyes of the officials.

“How are we to believe that the capital of Kuwait will be the future financial and commercial center when we see the inability of officers to remove auto repair shops and kiosks?

“The decision to organize the capital city must take priority before any other project, if the officials are keen to make the Kuwait City the financial and commercial capital of the region.”

“For thirty years, I had served in the Embassy of Kuwait in Brasilia, the capital city of Brazil. The road planning in Brasilia is quite unique such that a person can drive all across the city without going through even a single traffic signal”, columnist Ahmad Al-Dawas wrote for Al-Seyassah daily.

“This unique road network of Brasilia relies on bridges and tunnels that resemble the planning of the Passport Roundabout opposite Rumaithiya but without any roundabouts. The design was created by the Brazilian architect Oscar Niemeyer. He also designed the UN headquarters in New York and many other distinguished buildings in Europe.

“An amazing fact is that we did not see even a single traffic accident during our time in Brasilia. The streets there are identified by numbers to facilitate people to reach any location, unlike in Kuwait where one does not know where Sharhabeel Street is and whether it is close to Tunis Street or far from Bin Al-Khaldoun Street.

“The reason behind the miserable state of our areas is that our previous ministers had given the contracts for the development of these areas to Chinese and Korean companies which had offered the lowest bids. The government has to study the Brazilian experience and determine if it can be applied in Kuwait in order to reduce the traffic jams and the number of road accidents.”

— Compiled by Zaki Taleb