EFTA00992001.pdf

From: "jeffrey E." <[email protected]> To: Anas Alrasheed Subject: Re: Date: Tue, 10 Oct 2017 12:56:56 +0000 I would leave it up to you. I am always glad to meet smart people in any country or field. On Tue, Oct 10, 2017 at 2:10 PM, < > wrote: also you need to tell me if there is someone in particular you want to meet so i can organize Sent from my iPhone On Oct 10, 2017, at 2:32 PM, jeffrey E. [email protected]> wrote: too long. they will never get to the good stuff. make it shorter and put the most important up front. :)/ do you think it a good time for me to visit Kuwait. I really want to see it and you there. On Tue, Oct 10, 2017 at 1:26 PM, Anas Alrasheed < > wrote: this is my nomination letter that i wrote .. a kuwaiti trying to persuade norwegians :) when you have 2 minutes .. tell me what you think before i send it. many thanx October 1, 2017 Your Excellencies, Members of the Nobel Committee, Peace Be Upon You, I begin my letter with the greetings of peace as instructed by our Noble Prophet Mohammed. I am greatly honoured to write to you in my capacity as a social science professor, teaching mass communication for the past 20 years at Kuwait University, to nominate the Amir of Kuwait, Sheikh Sabah Al Ahmed Al Jaber Al Sabah, for the forthcoming Nobel Peace Prize for 2018. I will try to be as concise as I can while touching on the many reasons why I believe Sheikh Sabah clearly stands out as a champion for peace in our troubled world. And although some might perceive that kings and princes possess titles and abundant wealth and are therefore in no need for additional accolades and prizes, this is a flawed concept that is prejudiced by politics and was never part of the will of Alfred Noble as he himself was a wealthy man. Therefore, what is required is to look into the actions of the nominee and his work only. Sheikh Sabah's whole life bears testimony to selfless living. He was born into a royal family that has governed Kuwait and saw it through its independence, but he never EFTA00992001 opted for the typical lifestyle of a young, wealthy prince; not even the carefree lifestyle any child would naturally enjoy, although it is the right of every child to play, every teenager to explore, and every man to enjoy his life, which he only gets to live once. Instead, Sheikh Sabah dedicate his life to public service from a very young age. He was groomed as a child to practise self-discipline and to learn to listen to people's grievances and do what he could to help them, as he grew to assume his first public posts. Early in his career, as head of the Press and Publications Department, his priority was not placed on topics related to the oil industry or politics, but on the gaining and sharing of knowledge, information and good values among all Arab youth and not only Kuwaiti nationals. He launched "Al-Arabi" monthly magazine in the late 1950s to become the most widely read publication in the Arabic language, focusing on culture, literature, science, as well as topical issues in the region and around the world, with an overtone of tolerance, openness, understanding and respect. The magazine, which is still in circulation today, aims to instil good values of faith and culture in Arab youth while encouraging their pursuit of knowledge, and at the same time serves to deliver to the world a message of tolerance and true Arab cultural values. As Kuwait gained its independence, Sheikh Sabah was appointed Foreign Minister to oversee Kuwait becoming a member of the world family at the United Nations. Since that ceremony the UN gained a trusted friend and supporter in Sheikh Sabah, whose well-balanced diplomacy made him one of the longest serving foreign ministers in the world - more than 40 years of service - and gained him the title as the Dean of World Diplomacy. As Foreign Minister, he also headed the Standing Committee of Gulf Aid, which under his tenure saw humanitarian support for Yemen and Southern Sudan increased. Over his long years of service, Sheikh Sabah led or contributed to diplomatic efforts aimed at reconciling differences and promoting peace among world nations. His personal mediation for peace in the region led to a peace treaty that ended hostilities between North Yemen and South Yemen in 1972, and another treaty to end a conflict between Oman and Yemen in 1984. Sheikh Sabah was also instrumental in several mediation and reconciliation efforts, including the Taif Agreement to end the civil war in Lebanon. Additionally, Kuwait recently hosted peace talks between Yemen's warring parties, and it remains committed to any efforts to end the war and bring peace and reconciliation. However, one ominous crisis with potentially disastrous global repercussions may have been averted with mediation efforts made by Sheikh Sabah to avert escalation in the region. The on-going Qatari crisis has pitted a Qatari, Iranian, Turkish camp against EFTA00992002 a Saudi, Gulf, Egyptian camp, in a region that supplies most of the world's oil and gas. The world was aware of the magnitude of the threat, and Sheikh Sabah's unrelenting efforts to diffuse the tension drew unprecedented support from the UN, world community and the superpowers. Instead of looking after his own wellbeing at his advanced age, well into his 80s, or enjoying a round of golf as his peers do, he again proved his selflessness and took the initiative, shuttling tirelessly between the various capitals, and succeeded in stemming further escalation, despite the difficulties of abstaining from food and water from dawn to dusk during the holy fasting month of Ramadan. Today, he continues with his intense diplomatic efforts, with the same determination, to bring all parties to the negotiating table, with full backing from the world community. Sheikh Sabah's pursuit as a peacemaker is only matched by his humanitarian efforts to alleviate human suffering around the world. Testament to this is the designation of the Amir as a Humanitarian Leader, and Kuwait as a Global Humanitarian Centre. Sheikh Sabah hosted three Syria aid conferences in Kuwait, where donor countries pledged a total of approximately $20 billion dollars to support the plight of millions of Syrian refugees. And as I understand, your country, Norway, has participated in the organisation of the third conference in the United Kingdom. Kuwait itself has been the third largest donor following the United States and the United Kingdom. This is quite impressive, given the small geographical size of Kuwait, that under the leadership of Sheikh Sabah, it has become the world's largest donor to humanitarian aid in terms of its level as percentage of GDP, standing at 1.3 per cent. Most of this aid is channelled through the United Nations and its various organisations, which understand more than anyone else how valuable and indispensable this reliable support is to our troubled world, when many nations started to feel donors' fatigue. Other than emergency relief, Sheikh Sabah has also looked at the long-term interest of poorer countries. The Kuwait Fund for Economic Development, which the Amir supervises, has extended loans on concessionary term totalling over $19 billion to finance development projects in 106 countries. The well-balanced foreign policy that Sheikh Sabah put in place, which focuses on assistance, support and respect, is one of the main reasons why such a large alliance of world nations came together to liberate Kuwait from the Iraqi invasion in 1990. It appears that the good deeds that Kuwait and its Amir have done to the world had paid back Contributing simultaneously to global emergency relief and resolution of conflicts, on the one hand, and supporting the development of poorer nations, on the other, Sheikh Sabah has demonstrated that he has a firm understanding that reducing the gap between poor and rich countries is a main catalyst for the reduction of conflicts and world peace. EFTA00992003 In his home country Sheikh Sabah was behind two major reforms with far-reaching consequences. During his tenure as prime minister in 2005, a law was passed giving women in Kuwait suffrage rights for the first time. Within weeks after that law was passed, he appointed the first woman minister in his cabinet. As Amir of Kuwait he ratified a number of legislations in 2006, including the Publications Act, which opened the door for numerous media organisations to obtain licenses and operate. Kuwait was soon ranked the top country in the Middle East in "Reporters Without Borders" Press Freedom Index. Restrictions were also lifted on licensing of public-benefit associations and civic society organisations. This also helped to revive cultural life and led to the opening of several theatres, an opera house and cultural centres, and it greatly added to the cultural richness and tolerant environment of the City of Kuwait, where people from more than 120 nationalities live, and where worshippers of different faiths go to their respective mosques or churches to pray, which is not very common for countries in the region. However, as an academic, I have to be objective and mention the one thing that may be controversial in some parts of the world, though we see it as just, which is the capital punishment. Our courts have issued the death sentence in a number of cases, and they were executed this year after Sheikh Sabah approved them. I should, however, clarify that our justice system is quite thorough; the Kuwaiti Constitution guarantees defendants three levels of court hearings to allow for full defence, and the death sentence is passed only when guilt of a crime is established beyond the shadow of a doubt. At any rate, the debate on the capital punishment is beyond the scope of this letter. But I should emphasise the fact that as Head of State, Sheikh Sabah had pledged to protect the country's constitution and laws. To confirm that justice always prevails, it may be worth citing that one of the convicts sentenced to death was a relative of Sheikh Sabah's. I understand that cultural differences are part of life, and there will always be differences in peoples' customs, traditions, values, race, faiths and perspectives. And I trust that universal values common to all cultures are the things that matter for the Nobel Prize, such as the contributions by a nominee that have benefited humanity. In the spirit of Alfred Nobel's will, he wished nominees to be looked at fairly, regardless of their respective status, fortune or the size of their country; but rather, have their work evaluated in terms of fostering fraternity between nations, and promoting peace congresses. This is what Sheikh Sabah has done with distinction. As for the abolition or reduction of standing armies, it is a matter that applies to Kuwait too, not only because of our small nation and small army, but due to the fact that EFTA00992004 Kuwait's Constitution, to which Sheikh Sabah made contributions and voted for its approval in the 1960s, forbids the initiation of war or carrying any hostilities against other nations. Do kings and princes need further accolades and recognition? I cannot answer on behalf of my Amir, and despite its global prestige and significance, the Nobel Peace Prize might be his least concern. But I can talk for my country when I say that Kuwait under Sheikh Sabah's rule has been a strong and active advocate for peace, love and giving, especially when these values are most needed. I think it's time to encourage this kind of model nation. Furthermore, I believe that with the universal respect it enjoys, the Nobel Peace Prize would also be seen as a global message for all parties to the several conflicts in our troubled but globally sensitive region to refrain from escalation and look for solutions and reconciliation via diplomatic means. The Nobel recognition may also give further impetus to Sheikh Sabah's drive to end the war in Yemen and other crises in the region. In this way, the Nobel Peace Prize would have surpassed its goal of recognising past achievements to supporting the future in world peace. In conclusion, I am honoured, as a Kuwaiti citizen and an academic, to nominate my Amir, Sheikh Sabah Al Ahmed, for consideration for the Nobel Peace Prize 2018. And as I started I end by saying : Peace Be Upon You. Sincerely yours, Anas Al-Rasheed Associate Professor Department of Mass Communication College of Arts Kuwait University On Mon, Oct 9, 2017 at 11:19 PM, < wrote: very well.. keep us posted♦ Sent from my iPhone On Oct 9, 2017, at 11:10 PM, jeffrey E. <jeevacation®gmail.com> wrote: Will know Wednesday On Mon, Oct 9, 2017 at 10:05 PM < > wrote: are you coming to gcc? Sent from my iPhone EFTA00992005  On Oct 9, 2017, at 10:04 PM, jeffrey E. <[email protected]> wrote: Lots happening. Maybe your part of world after 15th On Mon, Oct 9, 2017 at 8:40 PM < wrote: if you need to see me i can come for a day Sent from my iPhone On Oct 9, 2017, at 9:32 PM, jeffrey E. <[email protected]> wrote: in paris? You? Plans ? please note The information contained in this communication is confidential, may be attorney-client privileged, may constitute inside information, and is intended only for the use of the addressee. It is the property of JEE Unauthorized use, disclosure or copying of this communication or any part thereof is strictly prohibited and may be unlawful. If you have received this communication in error, please notify us immediately by return e-mail or by e-mail to [email protected], and destroy this communication and all copies thereof, including all attachments. copyright -all rights reserved please note The information contained in this communication is confidential, may be attorney-client privileged, may constitute inside information, and is intended only for the use of the addressee. It is the property of JEE Unauthorized use, disclosure or copying of this communication or any part thereof is strictly prohibited and may be unlawful. If you have received this communication in error, please notify us immediately by return e-mail or by e-mail to [email protected], and destroy this communication and all copies thereof, including all attachments. copyright -all rights reserved please note The information contained in this communication is confidential, may be attorney-client privileged, may constitute inside information, and is intended only for the use of the addressee. It is the property of JEE Unauthorized use, disclosure or copying of this communication or any part thereof is strictly prohibited and may be unlawful. If you have received this EFTA00992006  communication in error, please notify us immediately by return e-mail or by e-mail to [email protected], and destroy this communication and all copies thereof, including all attachments. copyright -all rights reserved please note The information contained in this communication is confidential, may be attorney-client privileged, may constitute inside information, and is intended only for the use of the addressee. It is the property of JEE Unauthorized use, disclosure or copying of this communication or any part thereof is strictly prohibited and may be unlawful. If you have received this communication in error, please notify us immediately by return e-mail or by e-mail to jeevacation®gmail.com, and destroy this communication and all copies thereof, including all attachments. copyright -all rights reserved please note The information contained in this communication is confidential, may be attorney-client privileged, may constitute inside information, and is intended only for the use of the addressee. It is the property of JEE Unauthorized use, disclosure or copying of this communication or any part thereof is strictly prohibited and may be unlawful. If you have received this communication in error, please notify us immediately by return e-mail or by e-mail to jeevacation®gmail.com, and destroy this communication and all copies thereof, including all attachments. copyright -all rights reserved EFTA00992007