Brunei High Commissioner in the United Kingdom Pengiran Dato Paduka Haji Maidin bin Pengiran Haji Hashim and his family attended a thanksgiving ceremony at the surau of Brunei Hall recently, in conjunction with the 26th National Day celebration. Also present were Brunei officers and students residing in London. The event began with mass Maghrib prayers, .
The Millennium Restaurant’s “European Buffet Weekend” has received overwhelming response in the past two days. One of the main features of the evening was freshly made pasta. Customer Lim Wei Chung told the Bulletin, “The Italian food is simply delicious. I hope that the promotion would last longer.” Meanwhile, Millennium Restaurant Manager Galdin said, “We .
Four young kids are proving that you are never too young to be IT-savvy. Following in the tradition of their father, Dr Haji Kamsani bin Haji Ahmad, a lecturer in ITB for almost 22 years and author of several IT books. The siblings are aged from 10 to 19 but are delving into e-School software. .
The community of Mukim Berakas ‘A’ commemorated Prophet Muhammad’s birthday at the Sufri Bolkiah Mosque, Perpindahan Berakas, after the main celebration at Taman Haji Sir Muda Omar Ali Saifuddien, in the capital yesterday morning. The main highlight of the event was the ‘dikir syarafil annam’ led by Penghulu Mukim Berakas ‘B’, Cikgu Haji Ahmad bin .
Tutong District yesterday marked the birthday of Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) with a procession. Altogether, over 8,000 Muslims took part in the procession. The guest of honour at the event was Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Health, Dato Paduka Awg Hj Salam. The Acting Tutong District Officer, Hj Muhammad Suffian bin Hj Bungsu in his .
PARAMARIBO (SURINAME), Feb 28 (NNN-CNN) — During their inter-sessional meeting next month in Dominica, CARICOM Heads of States are expected to take a decision regarding suspension of the common external tariff (CET) on cement, Suriname?s minister of Trade and Industry said in a statement.
Trade Minister Clifford Marica, who is the chairman of the Council for Trade and Economic Development (COTED) disclosed that Suriname and several other CARICOM member states applied for suspension of the CET to import cement from outside the region.
However, COTED, during its special meeting earlier this month in Guyana, dismissed the applications since Trinidad Cement Ltd. (TCL) has indicated that the company could guarantee to meet the demands of cement in the region.
According to Marica the interested member states filed a protest against the dismissal since during the past several years a shortage of cement has been created in order to increase the price of the product.
After ample deliberations during the COTED meeting in Guyana, the matter remained unsolved.
Marica disclosed that three options to resolve the issue were tabled: taking cement from the suspension list; lowering common external tariff; allowing CARICOM countries to import 15 percent of the demand from outside the region.
COTED could take a decision since in order to do so, amendments should be made to the Treaty of Chaguaramas. Only the CARICOM Heads have the authority to make such changes.
Therefore, it has been decided, said Marica, that the COTED would make the necessary preparations and present this issue to the Heads of Government for a resolution during their meeting in March.
For the past three years Suriname has imported cement from outside the Caribbean, after receiving a CET waiver from CARICOM. However, this waiver expired in November 2009.
While the decision to suspend the CET was procedurally wrong, the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) in August 2009 ruled in favour of CARICOM. The CCJ ruled that there were procedural flaws in the decision of CARICOM’s secretary-general Edwin Carrington to authorize suspension by Jamaica in September 2008.
In November 2008, it was COTED which had authorized suspension of CET on cement for one year for seven member states.
Carrington testified before the court that, after receiving Jamaica?s request for suspension, he sent out inquiries to member countries to establish whether they could supply cement. The Trinidad and Tobago government replied with a ?no objection? to the suspension.
According to the CCJ Carrington was wrong to have accepted a ?no objection? reply from Trinidad as sufficient for an approval of Jamaica?s request.
Regarding COTED?s decision the CCJ ruled that it had found no basis for TCL?s claim that that decision was ultra vires. However, CARICOM was ordered to pay half of TCL?s legal costs. — NNN-CARIBBEAN NET NEWS
CAIRO, Feb 28 (NNN-KUNA) — Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas is to hold next Tuesday a round of negotiations with Egyptian president Hosny Mubarak in Sharm El-Sheikh to brief him on the results of his latest Asian and European tour.
Palestinian ambassador to Cairo and Palestinian permanent delegate to the Arab League Dr. Barakat Al-Fara said in a press statement today that these negotiations come as a completion of the ongoing consultations between Palestine and Egypt and that president Abbas is always interested in consulting and coordinating stances with the Egyptian leadership.
Al-Fara also hailed the level of coordination between the two brotherly countries, praising in the meantime the Egyptian stances supporting the Palestinian people and their legitimate leadership in all fields.
He also pointed out that this session will precede a meeting to be held by the Arab peace initiative, better known as the follow-up committee, in the Arab League’s headquarters in the presence of president Abbas, Arab foreign ministers who are of the committee’s members, the Arab League Secretary General Amr Moussa in order to reach a decision on the peace process.
Al-Fara said that the Palestinian leadership represented in president Abbas is always keen on coordinating stances with other brotherly Arab states, especially on political affairs, pointing out that president Abbas is going to brief the foreign ministers of the committee’s members on the results of the contacts conducted by the Palestinian leadership and the US notions related to the peace process and negotiations.
Abbas’ visit to Cairo comes at the close of a tour that included a number of Asian countries comprising South Korea, Indonesia and Pakistan, followed by a visit to France and Belgium where he convened with president Nicholas Sarkozy who told him that he requested from US president Barack Obama to hold a special meeting on the Palestinian cause on Paris.
Abbas demanded from the EU during his recent visit to Brussels to help put an end to the suffering of the Palestinians and halt the storming of the Palestinian refugee camps in central Gaza by the Israeli occupation forces. — NNN-KUNA
RIYADH, Feb 28 (NNN-KUNA) — Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh arrived here Saturday on a three-day visit to Saudi Arabia.
Saudi-Indian relations are expected to get a major push during talks to be held by the Indian prime minister with Saudi leaders, mainly Saudi King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud.
Sing is the first Indian premier to visit Saudi Arabia in 28 years.
Saudi-Indian trade exchange hit around 103 billion Saudi riyals in 2009. Over 250 Indian companies are operating in Saudi Arabia, running investments worth 5.7 billion riyals. — NNN-KUNA
RIYADH, Feb 28 (NNN-KUNA) — Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud received in his palace here on Saturday visiting Prime Minister of the Republic of Yemen Ali Majawwar.
Saudi Press Agency reported that King Abdullah and Majawwar discussed prospects for cooperation between the two countries and ways of strengthening them in all fields to serve the interests of the two countries and peoples.
The meeting was attended by both countries’ senior officials. — NNN-KUNA
SANAA, Feb 28 (NNN-KUNA) — President Ali Abdullah Saleh received here on Saturday a letter from his Turkish counterpart Abdullah Gul.
The letter, conveyed by the Turkish Assistant Undersecretary of Foreign Ministry for Middle East Affairs, tackled the brotherly relations and areas of the joint cooperation between the two countries and means of boosting them to serve the common interests of the two countries’ peoples.
In his letter, President Gul affirmed his country’s support to Yemen at the different levels so as to maintain security, stability and unity of Yemen.
The Turkish President confirmed also Turkey’s keenness to boost relations with Yemen at the various political, economic, investment and cultural areas, adding that President Saleh’s visit to Turkey in 2008 was a turning point in the Yemeni-Turkish relations.
In his meeting with the Turkish official, President Saleh lauded the Yemeni-Turkish brotherly relations and described them as strong and historical, noting to the growing development they witness. — NNN-KUNA
