Taliban Detains Women's Rights Activists, UN Expresses Concern
New
Age Islam News Bureau
05 November 2022
•
Underage marriage case: PTA, FIA told to remove social media content about
Karachi girl
•
AP introduces lesson in schools on Fatima Sheikh, India’s first woman Muslim
teacher
•
Princess Latifa: Friend Files Torture Complaint Against Dubai Ruler, Interpol
Chief
•
Iran, women’s rights and freedom: A foreign woman’s first-hand experience
•
Rehab for Egypt’s ‘Britney’ stirs talk on women’s rights
•
Meet entrepreneur SyedaUmamahQuadria
•
Place women right at the center of sustainable development
•
Dubai: Sheikh Ahmed confers UAE Innovation Award, Emirates Women Award to 33
winners
Compiled
by New Age Islam News Bureau
URL:
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Taliban
Detains Women's Rights Activists, UN Expresses Concern
November
04, 2022
Since
2021, the Taliban have issued a slew of restrictions controlling women's lives.
(Representational)
-------------
Kabul:
The United Nations voiced deep concern Friday after the Taliban disrupted a
press conference in Afghanistan, submitting female participants to body
searches and detaining the event organiser.
"We
have received deeply worrying reports that yesterday (Thursday) afternoon in
Kabul, a number of de facto security officials disrupted a press conference by
a women's civil society organisation," UN rights office spokesman Jeremy
Laurence told reporters in Geneva.
One
woman, ZarifaYaqobi, and "four of her male colleagues" had been
arrested at the event organised by the Afghan Women's Movement for Equality,
and remained in detention, he said.
"We
are concerned about the welfare of these five individuals and have sought
information from the de facto authorities regarding their detention."
Citing
anonymous sources, Laurence said the other female participants at the event
were held for about an hour, and were submitted to body searches and had their
phones examined before being released.
A
participant corroborated that account, telling AFP Yaqobi was the organiser of
the event intended to "launch a new women's rights movement".
"When
we started the event, the Taliban told us we could not hold it and asked the
journalists who were present to leave," Mandegar, a women's rights activist
who only wished to give her last name for safety reasons.
After
it was over, the Taliban sent in women police officers who "checked our
phones and deleted all images of the event", she said.
"They
also insulted and threatened us before they allowed us to leave one by
one."
"When
you are not even able to hold a small event to demand basic human rights, it
feels so disappointing," Mandegar said.
Since
returning to power in August 2021, the Taliban have issued a slew of
restrictions controlling women's lives, blocking girls from returning to
secondary schools and barring women from many government jobs.
Laurence
stressed that "all Afghans have the right to peaceful assembly, freedom of
expression and opinion, without fear of arrest or intimidation."
"We
urge the de facto authorities to respect these rights," he said.
He
also recalled that Afghanistan is a signatory to the Convention against Torture
and called on the Taliban "to respect the rights of all those in
detention."
Source:NDTV
https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/taliban-detains-womens-rights-activists-un-expresses-concern-3491624
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Underage
marriage case: PTA, FIA told to remove social media content about Karachi girl
IshaqTanoli
November
5, 2022
KARACHI:
The Sindh High Court has directed the heads of the Federal Investigation Agency
and Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) to remove all material from
social media regarding an underage girl, said to be a victim of child marriage.
Justice
SalahuddinPanhwar also asked the FIA and PTA to ensure that reports of
psychologists about the girl, who is residing at a shelter home on a court
order after her alleged marriage, must not be published, flashed and uploaded
on print, electronic and digital media.
Last
week, the bench while disposing of an application of alleged husband of
underage girl Zaheer Ahmed had directed the health secretary to reconstitute a
committee/board of female psychologist and psychiatric to examine the girl
after one of the psychologists, Dr Fatima Riaz, alleged that she was allegedly
being approached and pressured by the girl’s parents for a favour.
However,
the girl’s father, through his lawyer, filed an application stating that DrRiaz
had flashed her report as well as the report of DrUzma Ali on print, digital
and electronic media in violation of the provisions of the Sindh Children Act
1955.
The
counsel contended that under the law, victim’s name, parentage and age as well
as facts cannot be published and uploaded on any media forum. He also expressed
the apprehension that such practise can be repeated.
The
bench directed the FIA director general and PTA chairman to remove all material
regarding the underage girl from social media within two days.
“Besides,
in earlier order direction was issued that reports of both doctors may be
placed before the trial court. It is pertinent to mention that since Dr Fatima
Riaz herself contended that she was under pressure and therefore her report
shall not be considered and referred to the trial court,” the bench in its
order said.
Earlier,
the bench had ordered the health secretary to depute female psychiatric and
psychologist to examine the girl. On Nov 1, both psychiatrics/psychologists
were in attendance and DrUzma Ali argued that she had yet to finalise the
report as further visits were scheduled with the girl.
Source:
Dawn
https://www.dawn.com/news/1718993/pta-fia-told-to-remove-social-media-content-about-underage-girl
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AP
introduces lesson in schools on Fatima Sheikh, India’s first woman Muslim
teacher
Santosh
Patnaik
4th
November 2022
Fatima
Sheikh
-----------
Visakhapatnam:
At a time when little is known about one of India’s greatest social reformers
and educators, widely believed to be India’s first woman Muslim teacher, the
Andhra Pradesh Government introduced a lesson on the contribution of Fatima
Sheikh in the text-books of eighth class.
The
reformer is known to have given shelter to JyotiraoPhule and SavitribaiPhule,
the well-known social reformer couple, when they were shunted out from their
families.
It
was in 1848 that Phule couple had taken initiative against caste system and
male chauvinism. Fatima Sheikh is credited with allowing the Phule couple to
start the first all-girls school at the former’s house in erstwhile Poona in
Bombay Presidency.
Fatima
Sheikh taught at all the five schools which were run by Phules.
At
the same time she founded two schools on her own in 1851 in Mumbai.
Fatima
Sheikh underwent teacher’s training along with SavitribaiPhule at an institute
run by Cynthia Farrar, an American missionary.
Born
on January 9, 1831, she has not received the recognition she deserved. She
remains a little known activist in various parts of the country. Prior to
Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra had introduced a brief lesson on her in school
curriculum.
On
the other hand, Google had honoured her with a Doodle on its homepage in
connection with her 191st birth anniversary.
“We
believe the children, who are the future of the country, should know about the
reformers, freedom fighters and others who contributed significantly for
building the nation. We are very happy that a lesson has been introduced in
eighth class book. More awareness is required on the contribution of Fatima
Sheikh,” Kaki Prakash Rao, State general secretary of AP Primary Teachers’
Association, told Siasat.com on Monday.
AP
United Teachers’ Federation leader D. Ramu hailed the initiative of the AP
Government and said that time, moving out of home by women was considered a big
sin. Still, Fatima Sheikh along with Phules was instrumental in teaching Dalit
and Muslim girls ignoring threats by many conservative, casteist and fanatic
outfits and individuals.
Source:
Siasat Daily
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Princess
Latifa: Friend Files Torture Complaint Against Dubai Ruler, Interpol Chief
2022-November-4
TEHRAN
(FNA)- Lawyers representing a Finnish woman who tried to help Princess Latifa
flee alleged abuse in the United Arab Emirates filed a complaint against the
emir of Dubai and the head of Interpol, accusing them of torture and human
rights abuses
-----------
"I
have decided that I can no longer ignore this trauma and they cannot get away
with what they did," TiinaJauhiainen said in a statement on Thursday, The
Middle East Eye reported.
Jauhiainen,
a capoeira instructor who had befriended the princess, was with her in March
2018 when Emirati security forces, assisted by the Indian Navy, stopped their
escape boat, the Nostromo, off India's Malabar Coast.
According
to the complaint filed in Germany on Thursday, Jauhiainen was then arbitrarily
detained and tortured by UAE security forces over the course of three weeks.
Her
lawyers say she was tied up for at least six days in a confined space on two
different boats on the way back to the UAE.
Once
there, they say she was held in solitary confinement in a freezing cold room
without windows for two weeks while undergoing up to 18 hours a day of
interrogations, and also being threatened with death and torture.
According
to the complaint, Emirati security services accused Jauhianen of having
kidnapped Princess Latifa and they refused to believe that she had wanted to
escape of her own free will.
Jauhiainen
was forced to sign various confessions in Arabic that she didn't understand and
was only freed after a media outcry and intervention by the Finnish government,
her lawyers said.
Now
with her complaint, filed under the principle of universal jurisdiction, she
says she is fighting for justice "for what I was put through simply for
trying to help a friend get out of an abusive situation".
"Those
who kidnapped me and threatened and interrogated me acted with total impunity
because they knew there would never be any consequences for their
actions," she said.
The
complaint asks that Germany's Public Prosecutor General investigate and
prosecute Dubai's ruler Mohammad bin Rashid Al-Maktoum and Major General Ahmed
Naser Al-Raisi, who was the head of the UAE's interior ministry at the time and
is now the president of Interpol, over their role in Jauhianen's torture.
MEE
contacted the UAE Embassy in London for comment but did not receive a response
by the time of publication.
Last
year, the BBC broadcast videos secretly recorded by Latifa and sent to friends
abroad, in which she described her capture and her imprisonment after her
return to the emirate. She said she was being held alone, without access to
medical or legal help, in a locked villa guarded by police.
More
recently, photos of Latifa in Spain, a Dubai mall, and Iceland have emerged,
with a campaign group that has supported her saying last June there had been
"very positive steps forward" in terms of her personal freedom.
This
February, UN Human Rights Chief Michelle Bachelet said she had met privately
with Latifa, at the princess' request.
"Latifa
conveyed to the high commissioner that she was well [and] expressed her wish for
respect for her privacy," a statement by Bachelet's office said.
The
UAE has repeatedly denied that Latifa was forcibly returned home or harmed but
has never explained what happened between her dramatic capture in March 2018
and when photos were released of her in early 2021.
Source:
Fars News Agency
--------
Iran,
women’s rights and freedom: A foreign woman’s first-hand experience
04
November 2022
By:
HumairaAhad
A
beautiful and bustling city surrounded by majestic mountains, tree-laden lanes
flanked by old villas and new skyscrapers, modern and traditional in sync with
each other – Tehran is a city of dreams.
It
is a place of prominence, a wonderful home away from home for foreigners like
me. Tehran is much more than that. A city steeped in history and heritage that
has so much to offer.
I
arrived in this enchanting city some two years ago, to pursue higher education,
study mysticism, and understand history and politics, all things the place is
known for, far and wide.
This
place gave me fresh perspectives, enriching my life and the art of living. It
transformed me as a person and a researcher, and more importantly as a
progressive woman.
There
is still much more to explore and unravel. This land is known for its beautiful
flowers that are at first not clearly seen, flowers that do not wither as they
are far more aesthetic than botanical.
These
flowers feel protected and wanted. I feel it as a woman, which means decency in
many ways.
Iran,
the place I call home now, is always in news, mostly for the wrong reasons.
Showdown with the West, crippling US sanctions, nuclear program, Israeli regime
sabotages, etc.
For
the past month, following the death of a young Iranian woman in police custody,
the issue of women’s rights in Iran has suddenly caught the imagination of the world.
The
self-proclaimed human rights champions in the West, who turn a blind eye to
gross human rights abuses in the US and Europe, are accusing Iranian
authorities of killing the woman, even though all evidence, including the
forensic report, scoffs at those claims.
Let
me share my experience as a foreigner and as a woman in Iran. To be honest, I
came to this country with high hopes and I haven’t seen those hopes dashed so
far, despite the negative coverage and rampant misinformation about the country
in the mainstream media.
I
began my Iran expedition from the holy city of Mashhad where I found my
womanhood more hallowed than I had ever thought. Sitting for hours in the Imam
Reza shrine, I would speak to women from different backgrounds on different matters,
from spiritual to temporal.
Although
I come from a “progressive” society, I was brought up in a very protective
environment with the notion that a girl needs to be cautious in protecting
herself. Traveling alone to a different city, or spending evenings or late
nights outside the confines of the home was always out of the question.
I
had all these reservations in my mind when I came to Iran but each passing day
proved them wrong. I could venture out alone without fear, even after moonlight
covers everything in its balmy embrace. Seeing women roaming around with full
liberty was a pleasant surprise and it made me happy.
I
gradually came to realize that there was hardly any authoritarian eye watching
or any rough hand interfering while women of all age groups and backgrounds
breathed in an open, free space.
I
haven’t traveled the world but have read about it. I have friends from
different countries, and we have often discussed cultures, freedoms, and the
way of life. I have compared their lives with the lives of women in my homeland
and also with the lives of women here in Iran.
I
found that women in Iran were much higher on the evolutionary scale in many
different ways than their counterparts in the Western world.
I
was always curious to know more about family as a unit in Iran and the Covid-19
pandemic in a way provided me a chance to live in an Iranian home and
experience the local culture and hospitality closely.
Having
the liberty of comparing at least two cultures minutely (however in my mind I
do compare several cultures simultaneously because of interactions with foreign
friends), I saw women here enjoying freedom far more than I had imagined.
In
a traditional Iranian home, a woman holds higher stature. She is accorded
rights, she is heard, and she is not treated as a commodity, unlike many other
countries, including in the Muslim world.
We
know how women in some Muslim countries continue to fight for a place in their
own homes, not to talk about society at large. However, the story is different
in this country.
I
have seen women here actively involved in different walks of life, at par with
men. The literacy rate of girls in this country is 99.3 percent, which is more
than many countries in the West.
Women
can be seen selling goods in marketplaces, working in offices, busy in
workshops with handicrafts and artworks, and studying and teaching in
universities. As per statistical reports, 56 percent of students in state
universities are women. In contrast, the figure is 39 percent in the US.
Contrary
to what you hear in the Western media, many Iranian women hold key positions in
the field of politics and policy-making. Importantly, more than 1000 women
serve as judges to administer justice.
The
Islamic Republic of Iran I have seen and known promotes equality, freedom, and
social justice between peoples, social classes, and genders. There is no clash
between Islam and women’s rights, contrary to distorted media reports in the
West. Islam does not imprison women but liberates them.
Western
attempts to export freedom, women’s rights, and democracy have proved
disastrous as can be seen in places such as Afghanistan and Iraq, where Western
invasions only wreaked havoc.
One
of the stated objectives was to “liberate” women in those countries. The
pseudo-liberation of women after the devastating wars is there for everyone to
see.
These
wars only fuelled women’s rights violations and stoked the flames of
Islamophobia. Those who said Muslim women were suppressed and needed to be
liberated ended up denying them the right to make their own choices, practice
their religion freely, and uphold their identity with dignity.
The
notion that Hijab oppresses women and thus they need to be freed is far from
reality. In her seminal book ‘Politics of Piety’, US-based anthropologist Saba
Mehmood discusses how the piety movement in Egypt upheld the ideals of the
Hijab against Westernization of the Egyptian society.
Palestinian-American
anthropologist Lila Abu-Lughod in her book ‘Do Muslim Women Need Saving’
writes: “I have done fieldwork in Egypt over more than 20 years and I cannot
think of a single woman I know, from the poorest rural to the most educated
cosmopolitan, who has ever expressed envy of US women, women they tend to
perceive as bereft of community, vulnerable to sexual violence and social
anomie, driven by individual success rather than morality, or strangely
disrespectful of God.”
The
false narrative that Muslim women are helpless and vulnerable has helped
Western powers justify their imperialistic ambitions. Women have been made an
important excuse for wars in which the psyche of people is manipulated for the
vested interests of warmongers.
In
his book, ‘A Dying Colonialism’ French political philosopher Franz Fanon
mentions that in Algeria destroying the covering of Muslim women was an
important part of the colonial battle.
The
idea that progress and freedom mean adhering to Western standards is a way to
destabilize the structure of a family and society in Muslim countries. Gender
politics and selective feminism are strong tools that have been used for this
purpose for ages.
There
may be issues faced by women in Muslim societies in general and Iran in
particular but those issues can be resolved with wisdom and prudence without
allowing outsiders to hijack the narrative.
The
notion that the West is the role model needs to be examined critically and the
freedoms that Iranian women are enjoying also need to be guarded against the
plots of imperialist powers.
HumairaAhad
is presently pursuing her PhD from a university in Tehran. She has worked with
prominent media organizations in India and has been writing for various
publications in Kashmir.
Source:
Press TV
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Rehab
for Egypt’s ‘Britney’ stirs talk on women’s rights
Nov
04, 2022
Egyptian
singer Sherine Abdel Wahab performs in Tunis on Aug. 14, 2007.
Photo:
AFP
--------
In
the past few weeks, the story of an Egyptian pop star admitted into a
rehabilitation facility has spilled beyond celebrity gossip, and sparked new
debate on women’s rights in the conservative country.
Sherine
Abdel Wahab has long been a darling of Arab pop, but recent events have earned
her the title of “Egypt’s Britney Spears” — not for her musical talent, but
because of her family’s efforts to portray her as unfit to manage her own
affairs.
Her
fan base was shocked when she appeared sporting a dramatic new buzzcut, but
when she was last month admitted into a rehabilitation facility for an
unspecified addiction, it sparked a groundswell of debate.
“I
never would have expected that I would call Sherine Abdel Wahab Egypt’s Britney
Spears, but this is what is happening,” former influential blogger Mahmoud
Salem wrote on Facebook. “A rich and successful star and based on her choices
and her haircut, people decided that she is not OK — her parents placed her in
a facility against her will and say she is incompetent and in need of
guardianship.”
Questions
of consent and coercion were raised in a country where the government last year
proposed — without success — a draft bill aimed at restricting the rights of
nearly 50 million Egyptian women by allowing their fathers or brothers to annul
their marriages.
Nearly
8 million women out of Egypt’s 104 million people were victims of violence
committed by their partners or relatives, or by strangers in public spaces, a
UN survey found in 2015.
In
the midst of the heated online discussion, conflicting versions of events have
emerged from her family and her former husband, singer Hossam Habib.
The
Abdel Wahab family has accused Habib of being violent and wanting to take
advantage of the singer’s fame and money, which Habib denies.
Sherine
Abdel Wahab’s brother and Habib spoke by telephone on different days to tell
their side of the story on the TV program al-Hekaya, anchored by AmrAdib, one
of Egypt’s most watched show hosts.
“My
mother was begging me to save her from her addiction,” Mohammed Abdel Wahab
said, accusing Habib of beating her and saying he had been forced to admit her
into rehab.
“I
have never been violent toward a woman, and I never took a pound from Sherine,”
Habib said.
However,
weeks into her rehab stint, one voice has been missing from the raging debate —
that of Sherine Abdel Wahab herself.
In
her last TV appearance early last month, Sherine Abdel Wahab — usually known
for her candor, which has often landed her in trouble — spoke cryptically of
her supposed addiction.
“You
can be addicted to medicine, to food, to bad habits, it is not just drugs,” she
said.
In
the online din, misinformation has thrived, including claims that the singer
had died or slipped into a coma. A recording circulated on social media claimed
to be a leaked telephone call in which Sherine Abdel Wahab said she was a
victim of “a conspiracy.”
Viewed
by 1.6 million people on Facebook, the video turned out to be an old voice clip
from 2019.
Her
lawyer, Yasser Qantoush, who last month accused the family of entering her home
and having her committed against her will, has since withdrawn his complaint
from a public prosecutors’ office.
“I
saw the medical reports deeming hospitalization necessary,” Qantoush told
Adib’s show.
“Sherine
is a rare talent, she took up the torch of the great voices of the Arab world,”
said TarekMortada, a spokesman of the Egyptian musicians’ union.
Her
first album, Free Mix 3, sold more than 20 million copies.
With
seven albums, a film, a TV series role and a seat as a judge on the Arabic
version of The Voice talent show, the 42-year-old singer fascinates the
Egyptian public.
“Whether
we love her or hate her, her name is engraved on our hearts,” Mortada said.
“Sherine Abdel Wahab is a victim of her own success, too many people want
something from her.”
Source: Taipei Times
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Meet
entrepreneur SyedaUmamahQuadria
Sameer
Khan
5th
November 2022
SyedaUmamahQuadria,
daughter of Syed SadiqQuadri& Dr. Seema Syed, is a born and bred
Entrepreneur who comes from a long line of self-starting and career advancing
women. Having already launched 3 ventures, she’s always on the lookout for new
opportunities to grow and harness her entrepreneurial abilities. Umamah was
recently nominated for, and has since accepted, the board advisory position at
her alma matter; the State University of New York, College at Old Westbury. She
was also selected by the U.S State Department to represent the nation as an
entrepreneurial delegate at the Global Entrepreneurship Summit in 2017.
She
graduated from the University of Southern California with a Master of Science
in Entrepreneurship and Innovation and a Certificate in Technology
Commercialization. In 2017 she was awarded the Young Presidents Organization
Scholarship by the YPO Santa Monica Chapter and the Best Team Dynamics award by
the Lloyd Grief Center for Entrepreneurial Studies at USC.
Currently,
she is leading the Digital Transformation function & services at the
leading international ambulatory healthcare system in the Kingdom of Saudi
Arabia.
Source:Siasat
Daily
https://www.siasat.com/meet-entrepreneur-syeda-umamah-quadria-2449915/
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Place
women right at the center of sustainable development
November
04, 2022
Dr.
LamyaFawwaz
Climate
change is one of the most urgent and complex challenges of our time. Yet, there
may be a simple solution in sight - place women at the center of sustainable
development.
Women
play a leading role in managing, conserving and using natural resources as
consumers and community educators. But they face serious limitations in accessing
and controlling these resources, due to their underrepresentation in
decision-making spaces.
Globally,
women and girls experience the greatest impacts of climate change, which
amplifies existing inequalities and poses threats to their livelihoods and safety.
Yet, we also know that when women are empowered, it results in higher levels of
economic, social and environmental sustainability. To truly achieve sustainable
development for all, women must be championed as agents of change.
Providing
a ‘WISER’ platform
With
this realization in mind, Abu Dhabi’s renewable energy company Masdar
established the Women in Sustainability, Environment and Renewable Energy
(WiSER) initiative in 2015. It aims to advance women’s participation in
technology, policy, and leadership as it relates to renewable energy, climate
change and sustainable development. This is done by taking practical steps to
empower women, by providing training and mentorship.
Rising
awareness of the positive impact of gender equality is accelerating women’s
employment across sectors, including renewable energy. The current energy
transition, which aims to expand renewables and decarbonize existing
hydrocarbon-based energy systems, has created a significant opportunity for
women.
And
this representation will likely increase in the coming years as the renewable
energy sector is expected to create 43 million jobs by 2050. With female
representation increasing in renewable energy, the barrier for women’s entry
into the sector will gradually decline. Cultural norms will shift as more women
continue to enter the clean energy workforce.
A
viable career indeed
This
will have significant trickle-down effects, inspiring a growing number of young
girls to see renewable energy as a viable career choice. As female representation
in the clean energy industry increases, they will have the opportunity to
generate remarkable growth in several industries linked to sustainability.
Climate
action could create more than 65 million jobs in 2030—many of them in
sustainable infrastructure fields like public transit and efficient buildings.
Women’s success in the renewable energy sector will help them secure jobs in a
broader range of fields, which in turn will improve environmental, economic and
social benefits for all.
While
women’s growing inclusion in renewable energy is encouraging, we must ensure
the pace of their inclusion accelerates even more rapidly, and across the
talent spectrum. Especially important is the need to speed up women’s
representation in leadership and entrepreneurial positions.
As
the world faces the devastating impacts of climate change, we require a diverse
range of perspectives to tackle it. Entrepreneurs often bring innovations that
open the door for novel technologies and markets that impact global sustainable
development.
A
presence in entrepreneur ranks
Boosting
the number of women entrepreneurs will reduce poverty, increase GDP, and
importantly, drive sustainable development around the world. While about 30 per
cent of businesses are started by women, less than 2 per cent of venture
capital goes to female-founded companies. This lack of financing means women
don’t have the same opportunity to scale their impact.
Reducing
barriers for women is one of the main goals of the WiSER platform. For example,
we connect women, aged 25-35, with global experts who provide mentoring to
develop leadership skills and innovative thinking. We also engage young women
in active learning through community development. Earlier this year, a group of
young professional women spent a week living in an off-grid community in
Rwanda.
They
worked with community members to gain a more in-depth understanding of how to
tackle energy challenges. Programs like these give young women unique
opportunities to upskill and advance their careers in climate-related roles.
Building
and maintaining momentum to elevate more women as leaders in sustainable
development is critical. Our #IAmWiser campaign was launched to highlight the
huge impact women have in creating a sustainable world. We are calling on
policymakers, industry leaders and the public to pledge support for women as
agents of sustainable change.
We
are providing a clear call for action for women and those who support them. I
hope you will pledge with us and support us as we work to turn these pledges
into concrete progress, so that more resources can be mobilized to help women
enter and lead in renewable energy, climate change, and all areas that
positively impact sustainable development.
Source:GulfNews
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Dubai:
Sheikh Ahmed confers UAE Innovation Award, Emirates Women Award to 33 winners
November
02, 2022
SajilaSaseendran
Dubai:
The Dubai Quality Group (DQG) conferred the 4th UAE Innovation Award and the
18th Emirates Women Award to 33 winners at a grand ceremony held at the
headquarters of the Dubai Police Officers Club in Dubai on Wednesday.
Patron
of DQG, Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, Chairman of Dubai Civil Aviation
Authority and Chairman and CEO of Emirates Airline and Group, presented the
awards in the presence of Abdulla Al Basti, secretary general of The Executive
Council of Dubai, Dr. HazaaKhalfan Al Nuaimi, DQG chairman, Lieutenant-General
Abdullah Khalifa Al Marri, commander-in-chief of Dubai Police, and a group of
senior leadership figures in the UAE.
He
conferred the UAE Innovation Award to 11 winners from government and private
entities in the UAE and GCC and the Emirates Women Award to 22 women who
excelled in various walks of life in the country.
Sheikh
Ahmed said: “I am pleased to attend the Dubai Quality Group Awards ceremony to
award the distinguished pioneer winners who enhanced the culture of innovation
on the local and regional levels. They were able to raise the innovative
practices, in line with the vision of the UAE leaders to make Dubai a hub of
excellence and innovation.”
Al
Nuaimi expressed delight to honour the winners under the patronage of Sheikh
Ahmed “who always supports the DQG’s awards, especially the Emirates Women
Award, that encourages the women of the UAE to achieve the highest
professionalism and to encourage women entrepreneurship.”
He
said the UAE Innovation Award, which was launched under the guidance and
support of Sheikh Ahmed in 2016, in its fourth cycle has “effectively raised
the level of innovative practices of the organisations based on a world-class
framework, standard, new categories and criteria.”
UAE
Pioneers Award
The
pioneers in practising innovation, who achieved outstanding results in the 4th
cycle of the UAE Innovation Award, were honoured in three catogories as given
below.
PLATINUM
CATEGORY
Dubai
Municipality
Emirates
Global Aluminium - EGA
GOLD
CATEGORY
Public
Prosecution-Dubai
Emirates
National Oil Company - ENOC
The
General Administration of Customs, Abu Dhabi
Petroleum
Development Oman
SILVER
CATEGORY
Arabian
Automobiles Company
Aster
Pharmacy Group
Aster
Hospitals, UAE
Farnek
Services LLC
BRONZE
CATEGORY
Knauf
LLC
The
winners of the 18th cycle of the Emirates Women Award were awarded (in no
order) as below.
Distinguished
Employee Award
Col.
Samira Abdalla Hassan Ali Al Ali
Col.
MunaSurourMarzouq Al Shuweihi
Vanitha
Joseph Bruno
Leadership
Award
Dr.
Naseem Mohammed Rafee Abdulla
Mariam
Mohamed Al Hammadi
Dr.
Hanan Abdulla Al Mheiri
Professional
Award
Amal
Abdulla Mohamed Almulla Al Mheiri
Dr.
GhitaHarifi
Young
Employee Award
AlreemAbdulrahman
Abdulla Hussain
NajlaRahma
Ibrahim Alshamsi
Aisha
Saeed AlMazrouei
Entrepreneur
Award
Dr.
Mariam Salim Shaikh SalimHusein
Dr.
Leila Soudah
Business
Award
Rasha
Sharif Ahmad AlDhanhani
Social
Work Award
Muna
Mohammed Abdulla Alameri
LameesEbrahimMussaAbuhlaiqa
WafaHasanKhalifaAlShamsi
The
Innovator Award
Nour
Hussein TawfiqShakhour
Noora
Saeed Mohammed Al Shehhi
HessaJaffar
Hassan Al Jawi
Culture
and Arts Award
Maria
Elena Murphy
Honouring
sponsors, jury
The
ceremony also witnessed Sheikh Ahmed honouring and appreciating the sponsors
and jury of both the awards.
Lt.
Gen. Abdullah Khalifa Al Marri received the honour for Dubai Police General
Command that sponsors the annual awards ceremony of DQG while Abdul Hamid
Ahmad, CEO and Editor-in-Chief of Gulf News, received the honour for Gulf News,
the official media partner.
Dubai
Electricity and Water Authority, Burjeel Hospital, ARJMST and The Fantasia Dxb
Creative Event Company were also honoured as sponsors.
The
Jury Members of Emirates Women Award who were honoured included Colonel Salah
Al Marzooqi (chief assessor), Dr. Alia Humaid Al Qassimi, Dr. AmnaKhalifa and
Dr. Mariam Mattar.
The
jury members of the UAE Innovation Award who were honoured include Dr. Arif Bin
Fadhel (head of jury), Dr. Eng. HumaidSaif Saeed, Dr. Khaled Khalifa Al
Mazrouei and Fatima Ahmed MuradAlmandoos.
Winners
speak
Ahmed
Saeed Albedwawi, director of Excellence and Knowledge Department at Dubai
Municipality, said: “We thank the DQG for this opportunity and for all their
endeavours during the entire journey starting from the submission phase till
the successful organisation of the awards ceremony today. It is a great honour
for us to be awarded the Platinum Award in the Innovation Category. This
recognition assures how Dubai Municipality embraces excellence in innovation
management and how it perceives innovation as a sustainable way of doing
business. This is definitely the output and result of the entire DM team and
the reflection of its leadership vision.”
Wayne
Bryant, head of change and continuous improvement at Petroleum Development
Oman, expressed delight over his company being the only winner from outside the
UAE.
“This
is not my award. There has been many years of hard work and dedication of
everybody involved in change and continuous improvements in PDO to get us to
this stage. To be able to get the gold award in our first attempt is just
absolutely brilliant. All I can say is thank you to everybody in PDO who has
helped out and got continuous improvement embedded in the business to allow us
to win this. I believe it’s down to just the hard work and habits of making
tomorrow better than today and innovating at every opportunity using the data
that we have around us to drive the improvements and deliver benefits for the business.
Col.
MunaSurourMarzouq Al Shuweihi, who won the award for Distinguished Employees,
said it was an honour for her 31 years of service with Sharjah Police. “I have
been working with Sharjah Central Jail for 25 years. I worked for the Forensic
Department prior to that. I feel honoured with this recognition. I remember I
was a bit nervous when I first joined the Central Jail. But, with my seniors’
support and advice, I faced the challenges. Now, I am in charge of supervising
everything related to male and female prisoners. We have a lot of initiatives
for the prisoners, for their wellbeing and to transform them into responsible
citizens.”
Dr.
GhitaHarifi, who won the Professional Award, is a consultant rheumatologist at
Mediclinic Parkview Hospital. She said: “Women empowerment has always been one
of my priorities during my career. And I’ve always been giving a lot of time
also to that. So being recognised as one of the women who had impact in the
Emirati society is something that means a lot to me. It’s a moment of pride and
joy. And also, it’s something that would push me to do more, and to give back
more to the society that I’m part of.”
Nour
Hussein TawfiqShakhour, is a mother of four who works with the Abu Dhabi Police
and also pursues a PhD in British University in Dubai. On winning the Innovator
Award, she said: “I consider this as a unique award for a distinguished
employee. As a Human Resources specialist, I deal with all the aspects related
to the analysis of human resources and try to make sense of the data we have to
help take informed decisions that would give more direction and will affect the
strategic planning of Abu Dhabi Police in a positive way. My PhD is about
agility and being agile. I’m just implementing this in my life also to be as flexible
as I can.”
Source:GulfNews
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