Member of the Lebanese Parliament parks in a spot Reserved for Handicapped

That’s Lebanon?

Photo by Sara Habbouche

This is in ABC Ashrafieh.

The driver decided it was OK to threaten the photographer. No, this is not OK.

We all know handicapped people and we all know how hard their life is in Lebanon.

Update 1:

I did not know whose car it was before writing this.

- www.xkhabar.com wrote: http://xkhabar.com/news-5569.html
- www.lorientlejour.com wrote: http://www.lorientlejour.com/article/814856/son-auto-etait-garee-sur-une-place-pour-handicapes-le-depute-moukheiber-sexcuse.html

Update 2:

Mr. Ghassan Moukheiber replied:

Dear Ms. Kamel Dear All,

This conversation was brought to my attention just now. Here is what I have to say.

1 – I congratulate the attitude of all whistle-blowers including of the person who complained first;

2 – all persons accused (including a policeman, driver or MP) should be given the right to explain before any such person is verbally attacked, slandered and made guilty.

3 – the car is indeed mine, however I was never aware where my driver had parked it after I had stepped down from it; I personally have therefore nothing to to with this parking issue.

4 – If as evidenced in the picture, it was parked by my driver in a handicapped slot, and if he might have further misbehaved, then this is a legal violation that I totally disapprove and condone; I therefore apologize to all for such act and will make sure that remedial action is taken and that it certainly is never repeated.

5 – My driver has standing and permanent instructions that, as a Parliamentary plated car, I and him should be the most law abiding citizen in Lebanon and not the other way around … there are no privileges there but an increased citizen duty. Unfortunately mistakes sometimes happen and they are appropriately addressed.

6 – for many unfortunate comments that I read in this thread, please know that it was myself who wrote, as a lawyer the law 220/2000 on handicapped rights; Handicapped rights is a cause that is very present in my actions, before and after being an MP. For all those truly concerned with handicapped rights, please know that I do much more than just stopping or not in places reserved for handicapped cars, but relentlessly follow-up on the full and proper implementation of the Handicapped law. I hope the above answers all well meaning comments of those participating in this thread and wish you all involvement in Handicapped rights. I am most willing to involve you in many such ongoing actions.

Best regards.
Ghassan Moukheiber

Update 3:

Mr. Ghassan Moukheiber adds on Stop Cultural Terrorism in Lebanon:

Dear All: thanks for the comments. Please note that I am not taking any blame off anybody, nor defending my driver, since I have condoned his action as illegal, apologized and promised and will take remedial action. I have also welcomed the whistle-blower action of the first post, but simply invite you to think responsibly of the most important issue at hand: that is to promote and defend handicapped rights and politicians and MPs should not be above the law!!!. If these are the real issues, then take note that: 1- as an MP I seek no privileges and welcome holding all politicians to account; and 2- I am misleading nobody when I say that working for handicapped rights it is a life commitment, that I will pursue till full implementation of Law 220 on handicapped rights, on the parking issue and all on the many other issues that need proper implementation. Best

My opinion:

I appreciate the response, neither the photographer nor I had an idea whose car this was. My intention was never personal. I only blogged about something I personally find disturbing and shared it like I usually do. I was surprised to find out that it was actually Mr. Ghassan Moukheiber’s car. I hope this serves as a lesson to everyone. No one should be above the law, nor the employees should think that it’s OK to break the rules if they work with politicians. The driver needs to understand that Mr. Moukheiber is a public figure representing the people who voted for him and that what he did and the way he reacted is not acceptable. The employer is responsible for his employee as well. The driver should also be setting an example for people to follow; besides ABC has VIP parking spots, he could have parked there.

Could Hind Hobeika’s Instabeat, a Lebanese invention, revolutionize the world of swimming?

When I first came across the Instabeat, the first thing I did was to ask my sister who swims competitively if something like this would help her during training: “OF COURSE!!”, she said. According to her, this would help any swimmer with their training when a coach is not around to help out. “Definitely as must try”.

So I gave it a deeper look; and guess what: The invention is Lebanese! Hind Hobeika explains her motives here:

I see that the design completely changed and became more like this:

A new waterproof USB design that will allow the device to upload stored data, and the team has optimized the device’s ability to read a swimmer’s pulse from the temporal artery, using a light sensor. “Between individuals, the artery’s location varies by less than 5mm, which is covered by the light sensor’s 30 degree angle of detection,” explains Hobeika, who holds a degree in mechanical engineering from the American University in Beirut. (Source: Wamda)

Over the past year and half, we have developed 7 different versions of the prototype, and after extensive testing, we are finally happy with the current design and have a prototype that is ready to be manufactured. (Source: Indiegogo)

As to why she took on the crowdfunding route is explained in this article by Entrepreneur Levant. The same magazine interviewed her last year as well. Check the article here.

This project needs full support!

For more information about Instabeat, you can:
- Visit their Website
- Follow them on Twitter
- Check their Facebook Page

The Armenian sentiment

You get the sentiment from the streets. It’s on the walls, Sukleen recycle bins, concrete blocks, signs…

Dear Turkey, the Armenian community will never forget.

OBI Japanese Restaurant – Review

OBI, the sushi restaurant I visited is the one that recently opened on the last floor of ABC Dbayeh. (OBI has also a branch in ABC Ashrafieh)

In a relaxed and trendy atmosphere, we were welcomed by the friendly, always smiling OBI staff. The menu is quite diversified and the restaurant has got a list of specialties of its own. Before trying those, we decided to try the traditional items to see if there is any difference and tried other things at random afterwards.

We enjoyed the experience a lot. The taste: Really good especially the salmon! The rice, the colors, the smell and the portions are just right.

What we also appreciated, is that the restaurant did not “smell like fish” which was an issue for many of my friends in other sushi places.

One can easily eat 30 pieces of those When dessert came, it was so good that we had nothing to say! (Funny presentation, by the way)

And there’s an open sushi day formula on Thursday. Would I go back? Definitely yes!

Note: If you’re not a sushi fan, you can always try the beef and chicken rolls. Yes, they exist!

For more about OBI, you can:
- Visit their Website
- Check their Facebook Page
- Follow them on Twitter

Lebanon’s First Wind Turbine

Today, the Ministry of Energy and Water launched the first wind turbine project in Lebanon through the Lebanese Center for Energy Conservation (L.C.E.C) at the Hilton Beirut Metropolitan Palace Hotel under the slogan “The 500MW Wind Journey Starts with 1MW”.

The wind turbine will be built on a land owned by the Ministry in Hannoush, Chekka and linked to the national grid. The power generated will feed between 8,000 and 10,000 homes (5 amps). This site was chosen because it is a windy area, away from the population for noise pollution and bird passage.

The final goal is to generate 500MW by the year 2020. The budget is set to between $2 million and $2.5 million.

The company implementing the wind turbine project will be required to have previous experience in the field. In addition, a technical committee of engineers will have the responsibility to evaluate the performance of the project. Environmental impact will also be assessed; just like in the Beirut River Solar Snake project I previously wrote about. The expression of interest will take place in two weeks.

In parallel, the Request for Proposal (RFP) pertaining to building the first wind farm in Lebanon to generate between 50MW and 100MW is out and deadline for offer submission is on 21 May 2013.

All these projects fall under the 7-year Renewable Energy Strategy for Lebanon are part of the Ministry of Energy and Water efforts to have a clear strategy for renewable energy development in the country. Developed in a joint effort between the UNDP CEDRO project and the L.C.E.C., the strategy will take into account all initiatives and potential technologies to reach the set national objectives. The Renewable Energy Strategy was developed in accordance with the Arab Renewable Energy Guidelines prepared by the League of Arab States and the Regional Center for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency.

What’s next?

For more information about the L.C.E.C activities, you can:

- Visit their Website
- Check their FB Page
- Follow them on Twitter

Source:
- LCEC