Emirati Dr Maryam Matar, 36, says she wears 11 different hats in one week. One of them is chairperson and founder of the UAE Genetic Disease Association (GDA). She divides her time equally between Dubai and Japan – spending six weeks in each – to complete her PhD research at Yamaguchi University, in the UAE’s common blood diseases. Here, she talks about a recent Thursday in Dubai.
6am
When I get up, I get my eight-year-old daughter Sara dressed myself – though I have a nanny – because it relieves the guilt of being away from her throughout the day. She has breakfast, and I sit with her and drink my water. I try to encourage Sara to start her day thinking of others. Every day, we give her Dh5. In the kitchen we have a box which we put change into – coins, Dh5 or Dh10 notes, and at the end of the month we give it to someone in need. I learnt this from one of my Japanese colleagues, after the Fukushima disaster.
8am
I drop Sara at school, go to the gym for 20 minutes, come home and have breakfast – wholemeal bread, with butter and sometimes jam.
9am
I drive to GDA and look through my emails. I check them every three hours, checking every minute is distracting. My assistant lets me know if there’s an urgent message.
9.30am
I start counselling. We campaign in colleges and universities where we encourage people to be screened for the most common genetic disorders in the UAE, free of charge. We approach those found positive by email and tell them they are eligible for counselling. One male student who had been screened positive for G6PD (glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase) deficiency came with 12 members of his family. The mother had passed the abnormal genes on to her sons. Both parents were illiterate and I had to explain to them about genetics. The couple were cousins; his mother was his wife’s auntie. So she got that abnormal gene because of his family.
Midday
I receive an email from Lord Darzi, a former UK health minister, inviting me to be involved in an article he’s publishing about the patient-centric approach to care. I pinch myself to make sure it was real. He attended a conference in Qatar, where I’d spoken about my experience of getting the premarital investigation law approved in the UAE, when I was undersecretary of the Ministry of Health.
1pm
I have a meeting at Bourn Hall IVF Centre, as I’m their adviser. They have some cases they needed me to audit.
2.30pm
I have chicken and rice for lunch in my car. People think it’s not a good habit to eat in the car. But I feel so comfortable there. I eat in the back seat and listen to Saudi singer Mohammed Abdu’s music. I don’t answer the phone – it’s on silent. I eat slowly, and enjoy each bite.
4pm
I have a meeting about our annual GDA conference, which will be held in September. At the conference, we will announce our new society for breast cancer – which will be a separate branch of UAE GDA. It will focus on research related to breast cancer rather than awareness. We will also announce the new Celiac Disease Society to increase awareness.
6pm
I call my husband and ask him to meet me. My husband was number 27 of the suitors who asked for my hand in marriage – he was the one I accepted. We spend 30 minutes at a coffee shop, enough to push me ahead with the rest of the day.
7.30pm
I have a dinner meeting – pizza, salad and pistachio ice-cream – with a producer from a TV channel. They want me to help them develop a series of 13 programmes. He said ‘if I had a budget and a crew, what would I like to talk about?’ I told him, a subject related to the healthcare economy.
9pm
I go through my emails in the car. Sometimes at home I get distracted, but in my car it’s my world.
10.30pm
I arrive home. Home is paradise to me. My grandmother is waiting for me. She’s 87 and still very active. Whenever I come home, she’s prepared my dinner – and though I’ve already eaten it makes her happy to know things are ready for me.
I have a shower and wash my hair every night. I love pampering myself. A day cannot be complete without my favourite pillow.It’s pinkish with small roses on it.
When I compare an ordinary day in Dubai with a day in Japan, my day here is more community related; I give more back, and that’s really satisfying. When I go back to Japan, it is more about giving back to myself.
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War 2
Director: Ayan Mukerji
Stars: Hrithik Roshan, NTR, Kiara Advani, Ashutosh Rana
Rating: 2/5
Key findings of Jenkins report
- Founder of the Muslim Brotherhood, Hassan al Banna, "accepted the political utility of violence"
- Views of key Muslim Brotherhood ideologue, Sayyid Qutb, have “consistently been understood” as permitting “the use of extreme violence in the pursuit of the perfect Islamic society” and “never been institutionally disowned” by the movement.
- Muslim Brotherhood at all levels has repeatedly defended Hamas attacks against Israel, including the use of suicide bombers and the killing of civilians.
- Laying out the report in the House of Commons, David Cameron told MPs: "The main findings of the review support the conclusion that membership of, association with, or influence by the Muslim Brotherhood should be considered as a possible indicator of extremism."
Lexus LX700h specs
Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor
Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh590,000
hall of shame
SUNDERLAND 2002-03
No one has ended a Premier League season quite like Sunderland. They lost each of their final 15 games, taking no points after January. They ended up with 19 in total, sacking managers Peter Reid and Howard Wilkinson and losing 3-1 to Charlton when they scored three own goals in eight minutes.
SUNDERLAND 2005-06
Until Derby came along, Sunderland’s total of 15 points was the Premier League’s record low. They made it until May and their final home game before winning at the Stadium of Light while they lost a joint record 29 of their 38 league games.
HUDDERSFIELD 2018-19
Joined Derby as the only team to be relegated in March. No striker scored until January, while only two players got more assists than goalkeeper Jonas Lossl. The mid-season appointment Jan Siewert was to end his time as Huddersfield manager with a 5.3 per cent win rate.
ASTON VILLA 2015-16
Perhaps the most inexplicably bad season, considering they signed Idrissa Gueye and Adama Traore and still only got 17 points. Villa won their first league game, but none of the next 19. They ended an abominable campaign by taking one point from the last 39 available.
FULHAM 2018-19
Terrible in different ways. Fulham’s total of 26 points is not among the lowest ever but they contrived to get relegated after spending over £100 million (Dh457m) in the transfer market. Much of it went on defenders but they only kept two clean sheets in their first 33 games.
LA LIGA: Sporting Gijon, 13 points in 1997-98.
BUNDESLIGA: Tasmania Berlin, 10 points in 1965-66
Day 5, Abu Dhabi Test: At a glance
Moment of the day When Dilruwan Perera dismissed Yasir Shah to end Pakistan’s limp resistance, the Sri Lankans charged around the field with the fevered delirium of a side not used to winning. Trouble was, they had not. The delivery was deemed a no ball. Sri Lanka had a nervy wait, but it was merely a stay of execution for the beleaguered hosts.
Stat of the day – 5 Pakistan have lost all 10 wickets on the fifth day of a Test five times since the start of 2016. It is an alarming departure for a side who had apparently erased regular collapses from their resume. “The only thing I can say, it’s not a mitigating excuse at all, but that’s a young batting line up, obviously trying to find their way,” said Mickey Arthur, Pakistan’s coach.
The verdict Test matches in the UAE are known for speeding up on the last two days, but this was extreme. The first two innings of this Test took 11 sessions to complete. The remaining two were done in less than four. The nature of Pakistan’s capitulation at the end showed just how difficult the transition is going to be in the post Misbah-ul-Haq era.
Our legal consultants
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
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World record transfers
1. Kylian Mbappe - to Real Madrid in 2017/18 - €180 million (Dh770.4m - if a deal goes through)
2. Paul Pogba - to Manchester United in 2016/17 - €105m
3. Gareth Bale - to Real Madrid in 2013/14 - €101m
4. Cristiano Ronaldo - to Real Madrid in 2009/10 - €94m
5. Gonzalo Higuain - to Juventus in 2016/17 - €90m
6. Neymar - to Barcelona in 2013/14 - €88.2m
7. Romelu Lukaku - to Manchester United in 2017/18 - €84.7m
8. Luis Suarez - to Barcelona in 2014/15 - €81.72m
9. Angel di Maria - to Manchester United in 2014/15 - €75m
10. James Rodriguez - to Real Madrid in 2014/15 - €75m
The Voice of Hind Rajab
Starring: Saja Kilani, Clara Khoury, Motaz Malhees
Director: Kaouther Ben Hania
Rating: 4/5
