April 29, 2012

SUNDAY, APRIL 29, 2012

@alwatandaily

Issue No. 1419

16 PAGES

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150 Fils with IHT

Al-Juwaihel: 15,000 Kuwaitis hold US citizenship

Members of Majority Bloc say appointing populist premier is mere personal opinion Mohammed Al-Salman, Mohammed Al-Khaldi, Osama Al-Qatari and Ahmed Al-Shemmari Staff Writers

KUWAIT: A source within the Minority Bloc revealed that MP Mohammad Al-Juwaihel possesses critical documents that can indict certain Majority MPs as well as the government. The source added that Al-Juwaihel remains determined to highlight those documents during the discussion of his interpellation against the Minister of Interior Sheikh Ahmad Al-Humoud AlSabah and that the lawmaker will hand them out to journalists in the event that he is barred for showing the documents in Parliament.

It has also been reported that the members of the Minority Bloc will agree on a mechanism for discussing the interpellation during a meeting to be held over the two coming days and ahead of the scheduled parliamentary session.

Earlier, MP Al-Juwaihel announced that he obtained information from a senior US Embassy

official that more than 15,000 Kuwaitis hold the American citizenship.

Sources within the Majority Bloc affirmed that the idea of having a populist prime minister is a mere personal view of certain members of the majority, which does not necessarily represent the Bloc’s standpoint. The sources further noted that such an idea was never put forth in the Bloc’s meetings as rumored. Moreover, the sources warned that insistence on such demands may prompt certain MPs to pull out of the Majority Bloc for they do not agree on it.

“Such propositions have pushed and will continue to push certain members of the Minority to table proposed amendments to the Constitution to maintain the status quo,” the sources were quoted.

For his part, MP Abdulhameed Dashti rejected the idea of appointing a prime minister outside the ruling family, describing such demands as totally unacceptable to the people of Kuwait.

Speaking to Al Watan, Dashti noted that the demand is considered to be an interference with

Amir’s participation in Iraq’s Arab summit contributed to its success: Al-Maliki

BAGHDAD: A visiting Kuwaiti delegation conveyed on Saturday greetings of His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah to the government and people of Iraq.

During a meeting with Prime Minister Nouri Al-Maliki, former Kuwaiti minister, Dr. Mohammad Al-Busairi, a member of the delegation, said that the meeting with the Amir Sheikh Sabah was impressed by the outcome of his recent visit to Iraq and participation in the Arab summit.

Moreover, the Amir expressed keenness on maintaining communication with Iraq by visiting Kuwaiti officials, popular and media figures.

The Amir “expressed particular interest for the participation of businessmen in the visiting delegation, and I clarified to His Highness that there will be a visit by a broad delegation of businessmen to Baghdad in May, which he applauded,” Al-Busairi added.

Al-Busairi expressed desire to further elevate the level of economic cooperation between the two neighboring states, bound with historic bonds, praising outcome of the recent visit by the Iraqi premier to Kuwait.

For his part, Adnan Al-Rashed, coordinator of the delegation, expressed gratitude to Al-Maliki for the invitation to the delegation to visit the country, praising the Iraqi leadership for concern for the Kuwaiti media for sake of harmonizing views. Meanwhile, Al-Maliki affirmed that the Amir’s visit to Iraq left a positive mark on Iraqis and his participation in the Arab summit made the More on 2 event successful.

Saudi recalls ambassador to Egypt

the prerogative of His Highness the Amir who solely reserves the right to name a prime minister under the Constitution.

“In the event of naming a populist prime minister from the parliamentary majority, the fate of the people will rest in their hands,” the MP said, claiming that he personally suffered despotism at the hands of the majority. He added that the demand is in line with the majority’s attempt to “control the State and impose their agenda.”

For his part, MP Nayef Al-Merdas stated that the issue of appointing a populist premier has not been proposed to the Majority Bloc so far, pointing out that such proposals are mere personal views. He added that MP Waleed Al-Tabatabaie was only expressing his personal view when he made the pronouncement. “We don’t think time is convenient for such ideas,” the lawmaker remarked, adding that such a matter requires so many things, including the amendment of the electoral constituencies, the endorsement of parties Law which needs more time to finalize.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 2

Information minister affirms Amir’s concern for youth

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Kuwait’s balance of total public debt stands at KD 1.9 billion Compiled by Al Watan Daily

KUWAIT: Kuwait balance of the total public debt instruments, at the end of March 2012, maintained its same level of 1.9 billion US dollars since August 2011, a specialized economic report showed Saturday.

The report, by Al-Shall Economic Consultants, added that the public debt instruments consist of longer-term treasury bonds, with a balance of KD 1.8 billion (since August 2011), and treasury bills worth KD 125 million (since July 2011).

The report, based on the Central Bank of Kuwait (CBK) Monthly Monetary Statistical Overview, pointed out average interest rate on treasury bonds for one year was 1.25 percent (since March 2010) and on treasury bills for three months was More on 9 0.722 percent (since January 2012).

A protester is detained by security forces in front of the Saudi Embassy in Cairo, Egypt during a demonstration to demand the release of an Egyptian human rights lawyer detained in Saudi Arabia for allegedly insulting the kingdom’s monarch, Saturday, April 28, 2012. (AP)

CAIRO: Saudi Arabia has decided to recall its ambassador to Cairo and close diplomatic missions in Egypt after protests outside its embassy over an arrested Egyptian, state news agency SPA said on Saturday.

The embassy was closed, as well as consulates in the Mediterranean cities of Alexandria and Suez. An official spokesman, quoted by SPA, said the measures were decided in response to demonstrations outside its missions in Egypt and threats following the announcement of the arrest of an Egyptian lawyer in Saudi Arabia.

The protests were “unjustified,” the spokesman said, adding that Saudi and Egyptian em-

Malaysian police fire tear gas, clash with protesters

Pakistan wants apology for US border killings

Lebanese Druze mourners escort the hearse which carries the coffin of Sheikh Abou Mohammad Jawad Walieddine, the highest spiritual authority for the Druze community in the Middle East, during his funeral at his hometown in Baakline village, in the Chouf area, Mount Lebanon, April 28, 2012.

Sheikh Walieddine died aged 96 early Friday morning. (Reuters)

Spain temporarily suspends Schengen Treaty ahead of ECB meeting

LA JONQUERA: Spain temporarily restored border checks in its northeast and at two major airports early Saturday in a bid to discourage protesters entering the country ahead of a European Central Bank meeting in Barcelona.

The Catalan regional capital is to host an ECB governing council assembly on May 3 as the financial crisis in Spain deepens, with 24.4 percent of the work force unemployed and the economy lurching into its second recession in three years.

Spanish authorities suspended the Schengen Treaty, which allows unrestricted travel inside member nations, and imposed controls at six border crossings with France and at Barcelona and Gerona international airports. Security forces have been strengthened with 2,000 extra police on duty until midnight on May 4, when the restrictions are due to end.

At the La Jonquera border crossing in the foothills of the Pyrenees Mountains, around 50 police reinforced normal bor-

der guards and randomly stopped vehicles to ask for identity and vehicle documents.

The office of Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy said on its official website that the text of the Schengen agreement states that free movement of people in borderless Europe can be stopped temporarily “if a serious threat to public order or domestic security exists.”

Rajoy’s government has approved a number of stinging austerity measures in its five months in office with the aim of staving off a need to seek a bailout like Greece, Ireland and Portugal.

Those spending cuts, tax hikes and fiscal reforms, combined with around 50 percent of young people unable to find work, have sparked street protests.

Deputy Prime Minister Soraya Saenz de Santamaria said the government was prepared to take tough measures to ensure that violent demonstrators did not hamper other people’s right to peaceful protest. -AP

ployees of its diplomatic missions had been threatened. “Hostile slogans were shouted out and the immunity of the diplomatic representations was violated, contrary to all international regulations,” the spokesman said.

He said the violence had led to the suspension of diplomatic and consular services for Egyptian workers and Muslim pilgrims headed for Islam’s holiest sites, located in western Saudi Arabia. On Tuesday, hundreds of Egyptians protested outside the embassy demanding the release of an Egyptian human rights activist held

by Saudi authorities who claim he possessed More on 4 banned drugs.

ISLAMABAD: American attempts to rebuild its relationship with Pakistan appear to be stuck on the issue of a US apology for killing 24 Pakistani border troops last November. US officials visited Pakistan on Friday for talks on rebooting the relationship, but left without any agreement. A statement Saturday from the Pakistani president’s office said Asif Ali Zardari told the visiting US officials that Washington needed to help Pakistan reach “closure” over the killings of the soldiers on the Afghan border by following recommendations by the Pakistani parliament. The parliament has asked Washington to apologize for the incident.

The United States has expressed regret, but has declined to specifically say it is sorry. Pakistan shut US and NATO supply lines to Afghanistan to protest the deadly US air strikes, cut most contacts with Washington and ordered American drone aircraft to leave a base in the south of the country. The US wants Pakistan to reopen the supply lines, preferably ahead of a May 20-21 summit of NATO leaders in Chicago.

The Defense Department has said US forces - given what information they had available to them at the time - reacted in self-defense and with appropriate force after being fired upon from the direction of the Pakistani border in the Nov. 26 incident. The visit by Mark Grossman, who is Washington’s envoy for Afghanistan and Pakistan, was his first to Pakistan since the November incident.

Pakistan used the border incident to try to extract better terms from Washington, which sees Pakistan as an essential - if unreliable - ally against al-Qaida and vital to the sustainability of any peace deal with insurgents fighting in neighboring Afghanistan.

The border deaths were the latest in a series of incidents over the last 18 months that severely damaged US-Pakistani relations. The killing of two alleged Pakistani assailants by CIA security officer Ray Davis in Lahore in January 2011 and the US Navy SEAL raid that killed Osama bin Laden in Pakistan in May, without Pakistani permission, also contributed to the decline. -AP

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Syria accuses UN chief of encouraging ‘terrorists’

BEIRUT: A Syrian state-run newspaper accused UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Saturday of encouraging “terrorist” rebel attacks by focusing his criticism on the government, while other government media reported that the navy foiled an infiltration attempt by gunmen who tried to land on the Syrian coast in rubber boats. The editorial in Tishrin daily came a day after Ban said Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad’s continued crackdown on protests has reached an “intolerable stage.” It also followed what the state media said was a suicide attack in Damascus that left 10 dead.

Ban said the UN will try to speed up the deployment of up to 300 monitors to Syria. Only 15 are there now.

The Syrian comments were the harsh-

est against the United Nations since a cease-fire brokered by international envoy Kofi Annan was supposed to take effect on April 12 but quickly unraveled.

Annan’s plan aims to end the country’s 13-month crisis by giving space for talks between the two sides, but the UN has said the regime has broken many of its truce promises, such as withdrawing forces from towns and cities and continuing to shell opposition strongholds. Rebel fighters have also kept up attacks on Syrian security forces.

The UN says more than 9,000 people have been killed since. On Saturday, activists said army defectors clashed briefly with troops in the coastal town of Burj Islam, which is home to the presidential More on 4 summer palace.

Odds of alien life boosted by billions of habitable worlds

NEW YORK: A new estimate of the number of habitable planets orbiting the most common type of stars in our galaxy could have huge consequences for the search for life, reports SPACE. According to a recent study, tens of billions of planets around red dwarfs are likely capable of containing liquid water, dramatically increasing the potential to find signs of life somewhere other than Earth.

Red dwarfs are stars that are fainter, cooler and less massive than the sun.

These stars, which typically also live longer than Class G stars like the sun, are thought to make up about 80 percent of the stars in the Milky Way, astronomers have said.

Red dwarfs generally have not been considered viable candidates for hosting

habitable planets. Since red dwarfs are small and dim, the habitable zone surrounding them - the region where an orbiting planet’s surface water can remain liquid - is relatively close to them.

“The habitable zone would be very, very small. Consequently, the chances that you would actually find any planet at the right distance from the sun to be attractive to life was likely to be small, too,” said Seth Shostak, a senior astronomer at the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence Institute in Mountain View, California.

But the study, based on data from the European Space Agency’s HARPS spectrograph in Chile, used a sample of 102 red dwarfs to estimate that 41 percent of the dim stars might be hiding planets in More on 11 their habitable zone.

People stroll under pink cherry blossoms in a Stockholm park April 28, 2012. (Reuters)

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ALWATAN DAILY

kuwait

sunDAY, april 29, 2012

Amir’s participation in Iraq’s Arab summit contributed to its success: Al-Maliki ‘Safwan’s checkpoint closure was due to renovations as a result of increasing traffic’

BAGHDAD: A visiting Kuwaiti delegation conveyed on Saturday greetings of His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah to the government and people of Iraq.

During a meeting with Prime Minister Nouri Al-Maliki, former Kuwaiti minister, Dr. Mohammad Al-Busairi, a member of the delegation, said that the meeting with the Amir Sheikh Sabah was impressed by the outcome of his recent visit to Iraq and participation in the Arab summit.

Moreover, the Amir expressed keenness on maintaining communication with Iraq by visiting Kuwaiti officials, popular and media figures.

The Amir “expressed particular interest for the participation of businessmen in the visiting delegation, and I clarified to His Highness that there will be a visit by a broad delegation of businessmen to Baghdad in May, which he applauded,” Al-Busairi added.

Al-Busairi expressed desire to further elevate the level of economic cooperation between the two neighboring states, bound with historic bonds, praising outcome of the recent visit by the Iraqi premier to Kuwait.

For his part, Adnan Al-Rashed, coordinator of the delegation, expressed gratitude to Al-Maliki for the invitation to the delegation to visit the country, praising the Iraqi leadership for concern for the Kuwaiti media for sake of harmonizing views.

Meanwhile, Al-Maliki affirmed that the Amir’s visit to Iraq left a positive mark on Iraqis and his participation in the Arab summit made the event successful.

Al-Maliki’s statement came during his reception of a Kuwaiti media delegation visiting Iraq. The Iraqi Prime Minister said that “His Highness the Amir’s visit to the country and his participation in the Arab summit was a source of joy and pride to Iraqis.” He also thanked His Highness the Prime Minister of Kuwait Sheikh Jaber Al-Mubarak AlHamad Al-Sabah for his hospitality and reception during his visit to Kuwait a few weeks back, revealing that there would be a meeting for the two countries’ joint committee tomorrow to discuss issues of mutual interest.

Al-Maliki said that the Arab summit’s resolution called

Al-Maliki’s is seen heading a reception held for the Kuwaiti media delegation visiting Iraq on Saturday, April 28, 2012. (KUNA)

for bolstering ties amongst Arab nations on all possible levels, adding that the visit of the Kuwaiti media delegation was part of such goals.

In regards to relations, Al-Maliki said that ties between Iraq and Kuwait were based on brotherhood and understanding, stressing that what have occurred in the past was a source of discontent to current Iraqi government and people.

The Iraqi top official called on Arab media and business to operate in Iraq, noting that the situation in the country was improving on a day-to-day basis and this could be witnessed in the return of Arab diplomatic missions to the country and the holding of the Arab summit in Iraq.

Al-Maliki also touched on the issue of Iraq’s implementation of UN resolutions in relation with the liberation of Kuwait, affirming that Iraq and Kuwait would be discussing the issue during the joint committee meeting to be held on Sunday in Bagdad.

Asked about the obstacles preventing investors, namely Kuwait, from venturing into Iraq, the Prime Minister said that ever since of the Saddam regime times, Iraq had been

Al-Juwaihel: 15,000 Kuwaitis hold US citizenship CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

In the same vein, a member of the Minority questioned such demands. “It’s regrettable that the Majority made numerous demands over the past period such as financial disclosure and the appointment of senior officials. However, we haven’t seen any move so far on these issues though lesser important laws were passed,” he added. In another development, several MPs have warned the government against failure to implement the recently approved law concerning the construction of Sheikh Jaber University during the legal deadline of three years. The lawmakers in questions expressed concern that the project may face the same fate as the long-awaited Shadadiya University.

An informed source mentioned that a group of MPs will demand that the Parliament assign the Public Utilities and Education Committees to follow on said project and to oblige the Minister of Education to submit regular reports on the progress so that legal measures can be taken in case there are any unnecessary delays.

In the meantime, the Chairman of the Education

Committee Dr. Jamaan Al-Harbash called for a probe into private universities operating in Kuwait, especially the Arab Open University, which according to him, is rife with various violations and irregularities. The MP accused the University of excluding and discouraging competent Kuwaiti nationals. “This issue should be opened particularly after the recent sit-in by students, which highlighted the magnitude of their plight in the light of the Kuwait Branch’s disregard for their grievances,” he stated.

The lawmaker addressed a barrage of questions to the Minister of Education and the Minister of Higher Education Dr. Nayef Al-Hajraf asking him to shed light on the facilities offered by the State of Kuwait to the Arab Open University since its inception and inquired whether the State is officially represented in the university.

In other news, a member of the Majority revealed that the agenda of the Bloc’s meeting included the interpellation of the Minister of Finance Mustafa Al-Shamali, the timing and the possibility of including more issues.

Envoy urges Muslim scholars to fan out moderation MANAMA: Kuwaiti Ambassador in Bahrain Sheikh Azzam Mubarak Al-Sabah said here Saturday Muslim scholars should play a significant role in the dissemination of moderation and tolerance.

Meeting Sheikh Mohammad Said Al-Arradi, he

said stressed the significance of maintaining national unity and decrying sectarianism. He added that national loyalty is a core pillar of security and stability in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) member states. -KUNA

Kuwaiti Ambassador in Bahrain Sheikh Azzam Mubarak Al-Sabah is seen with Muslim Scholars on Saturday, April 28, 2012.

(KUNA)

recovering on a slow basis, indicating that “Iraq has huge oil reserves which enabled the country to increase production gradually.” He indicated that the increase of oil production and other lucrative opportunities in Iraq would help to attract investors from around the globel and hopefully from Kuwait.

Kuwaiti private sector could seek to invest in Iraq and especially in the iron, metal, and reconstruction industry industries, said Al-Maliki and added that Kuwaiti companies should be the first to open investments in Iraq.

On the matter of the closure of the Safwan border checkpoint with Kuwait, the Iraqi Prime Minister said that the action was taken to enable to renovate the facility due to increasing incoming commercial traffic to Iraq.

Attempts by the remnants of Iraqi Baath party to create tension between the two countries should be given no attention, said Al-Maliki who called on both Iraqi and Kuwaiti media outlets to both refute any allegation aimed at affecting ties.

The Iraqi official also was asked about the Iraqi stance towards the issue of the three UAE Islands occupied by Iran

and Tehran’s nuclear file, which he said that Baghdad was keen on finding a solution to the matters at hand, pointing out that the Iraqi capital would be hosting the 5+1 group meeting on the Iranian nuclear file.

As for the Iranian and UAE issue, Maliki stressed that the current Iraqi presidency of the current session of the Arab League would aim at defusing the tension between Abu Dhabi and Tehran.

Regarding the priorities in his remaining tenure as Prime Minister, Maliki hoped that he would reach an agreement in regards to pending issues such as the Iraqi debt to Kuwait, the Algiers’ accord of 1975 on sharing water resources with Iran, as well as the Iranian-Arab relations and reaching a middle ground on issues of dispute.

“Iraq does not want to head to war due to issues that could be solved by talks,” said Al-Maliki, adding that any dispute could be solved via dialogue.

Iraq’s foreign relations had been developing tremendously, said Al-Maliki, noting that commercial exchange with countries like Turkey had reached 15 billion US dollars.

He went on saying that Iraq’s current policy was to evade any attempts to interfere in the issues of other countries but welcome any kind of cooperation with all nations of the world to achieve both the interests of the Iraqi people and others.

Whether Iraq would join the GCC, the Prime Minister stated that “the GCC countries and Iraq were members of the Arab League and they are working very hard to make the league an institute that would be of economic and political strength,” adding that Iraq would be working with others and maybe join Arab and non-Arab institutions when the country become ready for such feat.

On the issue of Syria, Iraqi Prime Minister Al-Maliki said that he lived around 16 years in the neighboring Arab country, indicating that the situation there should not be handled via a “military” solution.

He feared that the Syrian crisis would evolve into a situation where the country is divided to those who are loyal to the regime and the opposition.

Al-Maliki hoped that the situation would not lead to effecting other nations including Iraq, adding that he was eager to see the situation being resolved for the sake of the Syrian people.

“Iraq will not prevent relief aid from entering Syria; however, no arms would smuggled into the neighboring through the Iraqi boarders,” stressed the Iraqi Prime Minister. He called on parties involved in the crisis to halt any kind of military backup and resort to dialogue to end the Syrian situation. -KUNA

Al-Juwaihel’s interpellation of Al-Humoud tops Cabinet’s agenda 3,000 Bedouns to be granted citizenship soon Mutairan Al-Shaman Staff Writer

KUWAIT: The interpellation that Member of Parliament (MP) Mohammad Al-Juwaihel filed against Minister of Interior Sheikh Ahmad Al-Humoud is prioritized on the Cabinet’s agenda of its weekly meeting held today, where the government will discuss the issues and points mentioned in the interpellation.

The Cabinet will also discuss whether

Minister Al-Humoud will ask for postponing the interpellation.

Sources informed Al Watan that the government wishes to continue following its current method regarding interpellations, which was followed by His Highness the Prime Minister Sheikh Jaber Al-Mubarak and Minister of Information Sheikh Mohammad Al-Mubarak regarding the quizzing filed against them by MPs Hussein Al-Qallaf and Saleh Ashour.

In addition, the Cabinet will discuss the report concerning 3,000 Bedouns (Stateless Arabs) who are part of the 1965 census, employees working at oil companies, and Bedouns with university degrees in order to grant them Kuwaiti citizenship, after two previous batches were nationalized.

Bin Jamae says government is keen to solve Bedoun’s case Ahmad Hani Al-Qahes Staff Writer

KUWAIT: The Chief of Awazem Tribe Falah Bin Jamae affirmed on Saturday that the government is serious about endorsing solutions in order to finalize the case of the Bedoun (Stateless Arabs), indicating that most Bedoun belong to ancient Arabian tribes. Bin Jamae stated that some of the Bedouns joined the Kuwaiti army forces and police where they gave great services to the country, hence their right to be granted the Kuwaiti citizenship.

The chief released his statement during a dinner held by the Chief of Hameed Tribe, Awad Nasser Bin Rumayej, in the honor of Bin Jamae Bin Jamae said that the Bedoun are members of ancient Arabian tribes that immigrated to Kuwait decades ago and settled in Kuwait like many other Bedouins, adding that people were more mobile in the past and didn’t have to face the same obstacles present nowadays for travelling.

“If a Bedoun is of Iraqi origin, as

some officials claim, then they would’ve returned back to their country or any other. We believe that the Bedouns are the sons of Kuwait, especially as some of them hold the official census of 1965.”

Bin Jamae emphasized that the attempts of lawmakers for endorsing certain regulations to tackle the case of

Kuwaiti Consulate in Guangzhou inaugurates new office

GUANGZHOU, China: Kuwait’s Consulate General in the Southern Chinese city of Guangzhou inaugurated its new office on the sidelines of the visit by Kuwait Capital Governor Sheikh Ali Al-Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah, which coincides with the signing of a twinning agreement between the cities of Kuwait and Guangzhou.In his speech at an opening ceremony, Kuwaiti Consul General in Guangzhou Abdulwahab Al-Sager expressed hope that the

governor’s visit here will take excellent relations with China, and Guangzhou in particular, a quantum leap forward, noting the close ties between the peoples of Kuwait and China as well as the two countries’ leadership’s keenness to further boost ties.

“Bilateral trade reached more than one billion US dollars by the end of last year, and we will spare no effort to achieve the objectives, including the completion of a twinning agree-

Those also entitled to be granted the citizenship are the children of Kuwaiti widows and the children of Kuwaiti divorcees who were married to Bedoun men.

Moreover, the Cabinet will discuss the report of the Ministerial Economy and Finance Committee to collect the government’s due money from companies and individuals, such as power, water, and telephone consumers.

This step will be seriously executed by governmental authorities and will target private and commercial companies, in addition to individuals, in order to provide permanent source of income that will be added to the oil’s income.

This will increase non-oil revenues and will limit unnecessary high consumption rates.

ment between the cities of Ahmadi and Zhanjiang in the near future,” Al-Sager said.

The diplomat also said his consulate will be closely following final signing of the joint venture between Kuwait Petroleum Corporation and China’s Sinopec to build an oil refinery and petrochemical complex in Zhanjiang city.

The opening ceremony was attended by Zhanjiang City Vice Mayor Zhao Zhihui, Head of the Chinese Center for International Trade

Wang Jiping, Deputy Director of Foreign Affairs Office of Guangdong Province Caifang and other senior Chinese officials. Diplomats, a large number of actors and media figures based in Guangzhou were also present. For his part, Sheikh Ali Al-Jaber said “ the expansion of our diplomatic representation across the world, namely in the Popular Republic of China, is in line with the government concern for building bridges of friendship and cooperation with

Bedoun can be considered as a positive step towards solving the case once and for all.

Regarding dissolving the National Assembly, Bin Jamae said that he doesn`t expect dissolving the current Parliament as the members of the Majority Bloc are progressing in the right direction.

Chief of Awazem Tribe Falah Bin Jamae (center) is seen at the reception held in his honor on Friday, April 27, 2012. (Al Watan)

states of the world. “Such expansion, naturally, reflects on our citizens whose interests are linked with these states and major cities, for the city of Guangzhou is one of the most active Chinese cities and has previous agreements and links with the Kuwaiti government.”

In turn, the Kuwaiti consult general expressed deep gratitude for the eminent attendees, saying this day “constitutes crowning for relations that have lasted for four decades.” -KUNA

ALWATAN DAILY

KUWAIT

sundAY, april 29, 2012

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Information minister affirms Amir’s concern for youth KUWAIT: Minister of Information Sheikh Mohammad Al-Abdullah Al-Mubarak Al-Sabah said, on Saturday, that His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber AlSabah is paying due attention to Kuwaiti youth and their relative issues.

“The hallmarks of the Amir are very clear on all youth support and development initiatives and projects,” Sheikh Mohammad said on the sidelines of the Second Arab Media Forum for Youth, kicked off here Saturday.

The Minister hailed the Amir’s sponsorship of the Second Arab Media Forum for Youth and the upcoming Kuwaiti Youth Forum, scheduled late this year.

Meanwhile, Sheikh Mohammad revealed that Cabinet has recently studied a proposal to launch a Kuwaiti Satellite to help Kuwait media keep abreast with the latest huge developments in the media domain.

He unveiled new blood will be injected into the Ministry departments shortly.

Sheikh Mohammad said that the media proved quite helpful for Arab youth during the Arab Spring events, noting they were fruits of activists’ efforts who struggled for change through “electronic dialogue.” The minister indicated that His Highness has been known, for a long time, for his personal concern and sponsorship of the youth, whom he considers as the hope of the future.

Media proved to be an entity that can be alive if exploited by the youth. Likening this

Minister of Information Sheikh Mohammad Al-Abdullah Al-Mubarak Al-Sabah during the inauguration speech at the Second Arab Media Forum on Saturday, April 28, 2012. (KUNA)

realm “to an old man in absence of interaction by the youth.” He criticized some Arab regimes that sought to deprive the young of the media and press freedoms, “putting them behind walls of a single school of thinking.

Embassy of Netherland hosts Dutch Queen’s birthday

“They made greater error when they considered the youth as not mature enough to express language of the modern media through the new technological means and depriving them of the means of modern social commu-

proud that Kuwait won this prize for this news feature, stressing that the press and media should play a vital role in documenting heritage and tradition.

The Kuwaiti official also lauded the cooperation between Kuwait and other Arab news outlets, affirming that such cooperation be further boosted for the development of Arab media as a whole.

-KUNA

April 29:

KUWAIT: “Independence means Freedom. But Freedom needs Democracy to ensure that people can have their fair share of Freedom. Freedom unlocks relations between countries by trade, leading to economic development and growth which are essential for prosperity and stability in the world” said Ambassador of The Netherlands in Kuwait Ton Boon von Ochssee in his opening remarks during the celebration of Queen Beatriz birthday celebration held in his residence.

Ambassador Ochssee added that the celebration recognizes the importance of the word independence as linked to few crucial keywords, which are important to national and international well being.

He also reminded the crowd that independence exists for the sake of regional and global cooperation, which for Kuwait and The Netherlands relate the GCC and the European Union.

“In today’s world, unrest and financial crisis are the headlines and keywords in our newspapers. It is therefore important to remind ourselves that international cooperation and economic developments are the fundaments for our freedom and independence”, Dutch Envoy added.

The State of Kuwait and the Kingdom of the Netherlands are, therefore, eager to further strengthen their trade relations as well as enlarging their investment opportunities with the aim to contribute to people’s well being and prosperity and in that sense contributing to freedom, stability and peace close at home and to other regions in the world.

“That is why such occasion is so important: to celebrate our independence, freedom and close and fair trade relations between our countries” concluded Ambassador Ochssee.

Meanwhile, The Director of the European Department at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Waleed Al-Khubaizi, asserted on the strength of bilateral relationships between Kuwait and The Netherlands which date back to the seventeenth century, pointing out that the embassy in Kuwait is working to cement these relations.

He added, “Holland was one of the first countries that led a diplomatic crowd against Iraq as well as its participation in liberating Kuwait and its contribution to demining and clear waterway”, noting that Kuwaiti people won’t forget these positions .

Al-Khubaizi described Holland as the second largest European Partner after The United Kingdom in terms of buying more than two percent of oil products and recalled the Kuwaiti investments in Notre Dame in Holland The event was attended by members of the diplomatic community, invited guests, government officials, businessmen and members of the press. A ceremonial cutting of the cake was also held to mark the occasion.

The Dutch Queen’s birthday date back on Aug. 31, 1880, Princess Wilhelmina was born in The Hague. She was the last child of King William III and the only child to outlive him. On Aug. 31, 1885, and on the same date each year after that public birthday celebrations were held for her.

The occasion was originally known as Princesses Day (Prinsessedag) and became known as Queen’s Day in 1890 after Wilhelmina became Queen following the death of her father.

On Aug. 31, 1902, people in the Netherlands heard that Queen Wilhelmina had recovered from typhus and Queen’s Day became a true public celebration. On Sept. 6, 1948, Wilhelmina’s daughter, Juliana became queen and from 1949, the Queen’s Day celebrations were moved to April 30, her birthday.

On April 30, 1980, Beatrix, Juliana’s daughter, became queen.

Her birthday is on January 31, but the date of Queen’s Day remained the same as a way of honoring Juliana.

Hence, Queen’s Day is the Queen’s official birthday and the anniversary of her coronation.

Kuwaiti Information Ministry’s representative Sa’ad Al-Azmi receiving the award during the media event held in Algeria on Saturday, April 28, 2012. (KUNA)

THIS WEEK IN KUWAIT’S HISTORY

Dutch Envoy and spouse with Kuwaiti official during the ceremonial cutting of the cake to mark the celebration. (Al Watan Daily)

Staff Writers

dramatic events that have taken place across the Arab world and the unprecedented global technological innovations.This forum is named after the late great Kuwaiti writer, Mohammad Musaed Al-Saleh, who remained a pioneering figure in the national and Arab journalism and a unique literary writer. Moreover, the forum has chosen for this session Sheikh Nasser Bin Hamad Al-Khalifa, the chairman of the higher youth and sports authority of the UAE, as an exemplary personality.

He indicated that the forum was being granted for the youth, with the aim of encouraging the young Arabs to seek further creativity for a brighter future of the nation.

Ghalia Bu-Akook, an eminent Libyan media figure, affirmed that youth should play a role amid these drastic and rapid changes and events in the world.

The media in Libya used to serve a single person and with the revolution, it was liberated and turned to serve the homeland, instead, she added, alluding to the ousted dictatorship of the late ruler, Muammar Al-Gadhafi, who lost his life during the popular armed revolt.

Mayar Al-Ghaiti of Egypt called for mapping out new strategies for the Arab media, affirming vital role of the youth for seeking an objective and professional media.

The event witnessed distribution of awards for the best news coverage, article writing and photographing. The minister inaugurated an affiliate exhibition. -KUNA

Kuwait wins award in media event held in Algeria ALGIERS: Kuwait won the best news report award at the annual meeting for editors of news and programs held here late Friday.

The award on “the date market in Kuwait” feature was presented to the Kuwaiti Information Ministry’s representative Sa’ad Al-Azmi.

Speaking to Kuwait News Agency (KUNA), Al-Azmi said that he was very

Ricky Laxa and Jameel W. Karaki

nications, messaging and tweeting.” These regime sought to wash brains of the young for decades, belittling their traits and capabilities.

But despite these bids, the young mastered exploitation of the modern-time communication sets and tools, practically turning “into self-made journalists although some of them did not graduate from colleges and broadcast events that could have been camouflaged and forgotten,” he said alluding to young activities in some countries who expressed opposition to the ruling regimes and transmitted image of their protests and arbitrary action by security forces to the whole world through state-of-art media means, namely smart phones and the internet.

By contrast, Kuwait since its establishment as a modern state, has sought to secure a free and democratic atmosphere, setting basis of an objective and transparent information environment, where “our young citizens can express their views and practise the profession of information without conditions. On the other hand, there should be consideration to the fact that freedom is a full responsibility and there should moralistic commitment toward the society.

For his part, Secretary General of the Arab Information Forum Madi Khamees expressed gratitude to HH the Amir for patronizing the event and devoting special care for the youth, noting His Highness’ keenness on “opening all doors for them.” He called for “revising the information practices,” in shadow of the

1959: Kuwait Municipality gives out 259 housing units in Shaeb area.

1978: Amiri decree number 13/78 is issued to modify decree number 124/77 to terminate a contact with the American Independent Oil Company.

1979: Amiri decree number 18/79 is issued on the approval of establishing the Arab Planning Institute in Kuwait City, on November 20th, 1978.

1979: Amiri decree number 19/79 is issued on the approval of joining Kuwait the convention of suppressing illegal takeover of planes, held in Lahai December 16th, 1970.

2001: Kuwaiti Council of Ministers approves the support of 500 million Kuwaiti dinars from Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development (KFAED) to the Saving Bank of Kuwait to solve the problem of housing in Kuwait.

2003: Kuwaiti Parliament approves modifying a law to allow the Kuwait Fund for Arab and Economic Development to invest in 25 percent from the country’s infrastructure profits. 2004: The Executive Council for the Arab Organization for Developing Agricultures elects Kuwait as a Chairman for its Jordan meeting.

2008: The Amiri Kuwait Shiekh Sabah Al-Ahamd Al-Jaber Al-Sabah inaugurates the World Islamic Economic Forum, and gives an initiative of 100 million US dollars for launching the forum’s fund.

2009: Qadissiay Sports Club wins the 29th Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states Championship for soccer.

April 30:

1924: The Literature Club is established by a number of Kuwaiti intellectuals, with the aim of holding seminars, poetry readings and other activities.

1984: First international conference for developing capital markets in Kuwait and the Gulf Cooperation Council states and first Zakat (alms) conference open in Kuwait.

1994: The Amir, Sheikh Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah, issues Decree 52/94 establishing Kuwait’s National Library.

1999: Kuwait ranks first in fencing for those with special needs after Tareq Al-Qallaf wins the world disabled competitions held in Spain.

2002: The Ministry of Social Affairs and Labor issues a license for the “Al-Urwa Al-Wuthqa” charity which aims at providing support for scientific training centers, victims of natural disasters, the poor, and orphans and at helping the disabled and elderly.

2003: International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent chooses Kuwait to be headquarters of the regional office in the Gulf region.

2005: His Highness the Prime Minister Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah inaugurates the new building of the Public Institution for Social Security, which was established in 1976.

2007: Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe visits Kuwait for two days.

2007: Minister of Oil Sheikh Ali Al-Jarrah Al-Sabah announces a new oil and gas discovery by Kuwait Oil Company in a field south Al-Rawdatain.

2008: US-based NGO Freedom House, in a report on freedom of press, says Kuwait is in the forefront

in freedom of press, publication, and internet use in the Arab world.

May 1:

1952: Lights flood Safat Square, in a step towards expanding the use of electricity in the country.

1965: “Al-Wa’e Al-Islami” (Islamic Awareness) magazine is issued by the Ministry of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs.

1977: Inauguration of Ras Al-Ardh and Bneid Al-Gar marine clubs.

1977: Kuwaiti Chess Union is established.

1979: Inauguration of Fahaheel Marine Club.

1980: The Ministry of Planning declares Kuwait’s population at 1,355,827.

1980: Addan Hospital is inaugurated.

1990: The Amir, Sheikh Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber AlSabah, issues a decree by law to organize stock exchange operations and establish investment funds.

1999: The Ministry of Interior bans children under age of ten from sitting in front car seats.

2000: The carpets and currency exchange section of the old market is re-opened.

2005: Al-Qadsiyah Sports Club wins the 12th Cup of Crown Prince Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salem Al-Sabah for the fourth time in its history, its second in a row.

May 2:

1977: Inauguration of the Diwaniya of Nabat Poets.

1991: The UN secretary general establishes a committee for the demarcation of Kuwaiti-Iraqi borders in implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 687.

2000: The National Assembly unanimously approves a bill that allows non-Kuwaitis to own stocks in registered Kuwaiti shareholding companies.

2000: The American Georgetown University presents a certificate of honor for Kuwait in appreciation for supporting the university’s activities.

2006: Kuwaiti crude makes a new record of 65.49 US dollars per barrel.

May 3:

1814: Second Kuwaiti ruler Sheikh Abdullah the First passes away after ruling the state for some 39 years, 1776-1814. His rule saw the construction of Kuwait Wall and the first maritime battle in the nation’s history.

1985: Parliament discusses grilling filed by MPs Mubarak Al-Dwaylah, Ahmad Al-Rubei, and Hamad AlJouaan against then minister of justice and of legal and administrative affairs Sheikh Salman Duaij AlSabah over awarding small-investor support bonds to the minister’s son. The motion was retracted upon the minister’s resignation.

1995: The State of Kuwait announces it is to exchange ambassadorial representation with Vietnam.

1995: Grilling motion by MPs Mfarrej Al-Mtairi against minister of education Ahmad Al-Rubei is discussed over violations relating to Kuwait University. The minister passes a vote of confidence.

1999: Amir Sheikha Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber AlSabah issues law 2/1999 regulating transparency concerning shareholders with five percent and over stake in a company.

1999: Islamic Development Bank announces establishment of International Leasing and Investment

Company at $50 million capital which is to operate according to the restraints of Islamic Shariah.

2000: Standard and Poor credit agency awards Kuwait an A credit rating on long-term foreign currency issues, and advanced rating in many areas, reflecting the strength of the Kuwaiti economy.

2000: Kuwaiti Criminal Court upholds the death sentence issued against Alaa Hussein, the head of the so-called Kuwait Interim Government, announced by the Saddam regime during the occupation of the state in 1990. He was convicted of grand treason.

2005: The State of Kuwait and Cyprus declare diplomatic relations on ambassadorial level aiming to boost cooperation, and the agreement is signed at Kuwaiti offices at UN headquarters.

2008: Al-Shabab Club wins the Arab clubs Karate title at the second championship after winning two gold and three bronze medals.

May 4:

1959: The first Kuwaiti oil tanker named “Khathma” reached Al-Ahmadi port, and docked next to the north quay of the port. It was built December 15, 1958 in Japan with a load capacity of 46,000 tons.

1959: Sheikh Abduallah Al-Jaber Al-Sabah opened first spring exhibition for fine arts, in the hall of Al-Mubarakiyah school.

1970: The graduation of the first batch of military college.

1999: MP Abbas Al-Khadhari presented a grilling to Minister of Justice, Awqaf and Islamic Affairs Ahmad Al-Kulaib on typos in a number of copies of the Holy Quran. National Assembly was dissolved.

1999: The Amir Sheikh Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber AlSabah ordered a constitutional dissolve of parliament.

2001: Shooter Hamad Al-Afasi won world championship title and gold medal in Cairo.

2001: Actress Suad Abduallah was chosen as a representative of UNICEF in Kuwait.

2002: The Amir Sheikh Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber AlSabah opened the theatre of late Sheikh Abduallah Al-Jaber Al-Sabah in conferences’ center in Shwaikh area.

May 5:

1871: Governor of Baghdad Medhat Pasha visits Kuwait to thank it on behalf of the Ottoman State for the military supplies it offered the Turkish army while subduing Al-Ehsaa province. He presents medals and the Ottoman State flag to Kuwait’s fifth ruler Sheikh Abdullah Al-Sabah on this occasion.

1974: The Kuwaiti Judo and Taekwondo Union is established.

1974: Sheikh Fahad Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah is elected chairman of the Kuwaiti Olympic Committee. He would remain in this post until his martyrdom on August 2, 1990.

1992: A car loaded with explosives blasts in Yarmouk area on the 4th Ring Road, opposite Kuwait University, and causes damage to the house of the car’s owner, Nasser Al-Sayer - who is brother of Dean of Medicine Hilal Al-Sayer - and other neighboring houses.

4

ALWATAN DAILY

regional

Why procrastination?!

By Hossam Fathi Staff Writer

KUWAIT: The country is suddenly surrounded by dangers wherein we used to think just about the eastern front which a vicious enemy lies behind. The fronts that we have to focus on have increased at the present time to include even the western front because we could not support the Libyan Revolution on time. We also could not show a clear stance against the followers and members of Gadhafi regime. We also could not submit attractive proposals for contributing in the re-construction of Libya.

We will not forget the deterioration of the LibyaEgyptian ties because the Military Council which rules Egypt as the latter recognized the National Transitional Council late therefore NTC expressed regret to such delay.

However, weapons are smuggled into Egypt through several fronts such as the western front and the southern one which has been quiet for decades but the situation there is different now after dividing Sudan into two countries as well as the unstable political circumstances between Sudan and South Sudan. The very front has been sued for smuggling weapons and some African people to Israel.

The third front is the northern part of the eastern front - Gaza- which undergoes increasing problems that occur there every now and then through the secret tunnels and smuggling operations. hossam@alwatan.com.kw Twitter:@hossamfathy66

Egypt’s El-Baradei unveils new party

CAIRO: Leading Egyptian dissident Mohamed El-Baradei on Saturday unveiled a new party he said was aimed at rescuing last year’s uprising from a “tragic” transitional period under the ruling military.

The former UN nuclear watchdog chief and Nobel Laureate said the goal of his new Constitution Party was to “to rescue the great January revolution that has diverted from its course.”

El-Baradei, who had considered standing in next month’s presidential election but ultimately decided against it, called the military-led transitional period since the uprising ousted president Hosni Mubarak in February 2011 “tragic.”

“When we undertook the revolution, we did not imagine the situation we are in today, nor the tragic transitional period we are living today,” he said at a news conference.

The outspoken dissident and critic of the ruling generals said the economy had deteriorated while the elected parliament was not fully representative of all Egyptians.

He also criticized next month’s presidential election, which will be held before a new constitution defining the leader’s role is in place.

“For these reasons, and others, we decided the time has come to start organized political work,” he said.

“The majority of Egyptian people... undertook this revolution to achieve goals no two people would differ about.To live free in our country, for each Egyptian to have the right to a dignified life,” he said.

The military has promised to hand power in June to the winner of the election, mainly a contest between Islamists and Amr Mussa, a front-runner who served as head of the Arab League and is a former Mubarak foreign minister.

The Islamists dominated parliamentary elections held between November and January, but have clashed with the military after it refused to let them form a government. -AFP

Top Iraq politicians demand greater democracy

BAGHDAD: Top Iraqi politicians, many of whom feel marginalized by Prime Minister Nouri Al-Maliki’s style of governing, called on Saturday in Arbil for greater democracy in running the country.

Iraqi President Jalal Talabani, powerful Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, Massud Barzani, the president of the autonomous Kurdistan region, Iyad Allawi, the head of the Sunni-backed Iraqiya bloc, and Sunni parliament speaker Osama Al-Nujaifi, held a meeting in Arbil, the capital of Kurdistan in northern Iraq.

Maliki, who was conspicuous by his absence, has been accused by various sides, including Barzani, Iraqiya and Sadr, of consolidating power and moving toward dictatorship in Iraq.

The Iraqi leaders called “to put in place mechanisms that can solve the instability, and for ways to enhance the democratic process and activate the democratic mechanisms in managing the country’s affairs and preventing dangers that are targeting” democracy, a statement on the meeting said.

The leaders also discussed “the necessity of looking into solutions to end the (political) crisis, the continuation of which has become a danger to the higher national interests,” said the statement which was read by Fuad Hussein, head of the office of the presidency in Kurdistan.

Solutions should be “in accordance with the Arbil agreement, what Moqtada Al-Sadr said in his statement, and the constitutional bases that define decision-making and policies,” it said, referring to a power-sharing deal on the formation of the current government, and points made by Sadr on Thursday.

The meeting, held in the office of Talabani’s party, insisted on serving the people, providing essential services as soon as possible and to meet the urgent demands of the people, the statement added. -AFP

sunDAY, april 29, 2012

Saudi recalls ambassador to Egypt in lawyer row CAIRO: Saudi Arabia has decided to recall its ambassador to Cairo and close diplomatic missions in Egypt after protests outside its embassy over an arrested Egyptian, state news agency SPA said on Saturday.

The embassy was closed, as well as consulates in the Mediterranean cities of Alexandria and Suez. An official spokesman, quoted by SPA, said the measures were decided in response to demonstrations outside its missions in Egypt and threats following the announcement of the arrest of an Egyptian lawyer in Saudi Arabia.

The protests were “unjustified,” the spokesman said, adding that Saudi and Egyptian employees of its diplomatic missions had been threatened.

“Hostile slogans were shouted out and the immunity of the diplomatic representations was violated, contrary to all international regulations,” the spokesman said.

He said the violence had led to the suspension of diplomatic and consular services for Egyptian workers and Muslim pilgrims headed for Islam’s holiest sites, located in western Saudi Arabia.

On Tuesday, hundreds of Egyptians protested outside the embassy demanding the release of an Egyptian human rights activist held by Saudi authorities who claim he possessed banned drugs. The protesters chanted slogans against the Saudi regime as they called for the “immediate” release of Ahmed Mohammed al-Gizawi, who was arrested on arrival at Jeddah airport on April 17.

The Arabic Network for Human Rights Information, an Egyptian organization, said Gizawi was detained following a sentence of one year in prison and 20 lashes delivered against him in absentia for criticism of the Saudi government.

Gizawi, whose supporters said he travelled to the Gulf state on pilgrimage, was being targeted for his activism in favour of Egyptian detainees in Saudi prisons, it said.

Defending compatriots, he had accused King Abdullah and Saudi authorities of arbitrary arrests and torture of Egyptian nationals in the oil-rich country, according to rights groups in Egypt.

They said the lawyer, who had not been informed of his conviction, was travelling with his wife when he was arrested.

Egyptian Foreign Minister Mohammed Kamel Amr has said he instructed the country’s embassy in Riyadh “to make ur-

An Egyptian Army officer argues with protesters demonstrating in front of the Saudi Embassy in Cairo, Egypt to demand the release of an Egyptian human rights lawyer detained in Saudi Arabia for allegedly insulting the kingdom’s monarch, April 28, 2012. (AP)

gent contacts with Saudi authorities” to press for the lawyer’s release. But the Saudi ambassador to Cairo, Ahmed Adel Aziz Qattan, in a statement said no jail or whipping sentence had been passed against Gizawi, who had however been stopped in

Libya ‘must clarify’ status of Gadhafi-era supporters TRIPOLI: Libya must clarify the rules under which it disqualifies from public office individuals who stood by the regime of former leader Muammar Gadhafi, Human Rights Watch said on Saturday.

“Exclusion from public office should be based on concrete and provable claims of wrongdoing, rather than poorly defined connections with the previous government,” said HRW Middle East and North Africa director Sarah Lea Whitson. The National Transitional Council (NTC) “should amend regulations to eliminate vague and broad prohibitions on who may serve as a government official or become a candidate for election,” a statement said. HRW said current regulations bar people from holding senior government posts or running for office if they “glorified” the previous government or if they stood against the Feb. 17 revolution that overthrew Gadhafi.

“It is terribly unclear how the vetting commission will decide who can and cannot participate in the new Libya’s political life,” Whitson said in reference to a commission tasked with vetting senior officials and candidates.

With two months to go before a constituent assembly is elected, the commission’s procedural rules have yet to be published. The so-called Integrity and Patriotism Commission also vets senior security officials, ambassadors, heads of government institutions and companies, heads of universities and heads of unions, HRW said.

Its regulation excludes members and leaders of institutions active during Gadhafi’s government, including the revolutionary guards, revolutionary committee and student associations, it added.

Those involved in crimes, including torture, and those who had commercial ties with Gadhafi’s clan or stole public funds are also barred from office, the rights group said. HRW urged the interim government to refrain from determining eligibility based solely on past or present associations, give concrete proof of wrongdoing when someone is barred from office and implement an appeals process.

“Excluding candidates for elections on vague and over broad grounds violates international standards for free and fair election,” it said. -AFP

UN nuclear watchdog to resume Iran talks in mid-May VIENNA: The United Nations nuclear watchdog confirmed on Saturday it will resume talks with Iran in mid-May, more than two months after the last meeting over concerns about the Islamic state’s atomic activities ended in failure.

Gill Tudor, spokeswoman for the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), said the meeting would take place on May 14-15 at the Iranian diplomatic mission in Vienna.

“The purpose is to continue the negotiations started early this year,” Tudor said in an email.

She was commenting on a report on Friday by the official Iranian news agency IRNA, which quoted Iran’s envoy to the IAEA Ali Asghar Soltanieh as saying talks would resume.

Washington and its allies believe Tehran is working on developing nuclear bombs.

Tehran insists its activities have only civilian aims and has refused to stop enriching uranium, despite a slew of sanctions.

The IAEA last year issued a report detailing alleged Iranian research and development activities that were relevant to nuclear weapons, lending independent weight to Western suspicions.

The IAEA wants Iran to address the questions raised in the report. Iran has dismissed Western allegations as fabricated. Soltanieh told IRNA Tehran’s decision to resume talks “shows the peaceful nature of all of its nuclear activities, while showing that claims against Iran are baseless.” Western diplomats said last week Tehran still appeared to be stonewalling over the body’s most pressing demand to let its inspectors visit a key military site.

Iran has also restarted negotiations with six world powers over its nuclear program and the sides have agreed to meet again in Baghdad on May 23.

Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi said on Monday Iran was optimistic that the talks with United States, Russia, China, Germany, France and Britain would make progress. -Reuters

possession of thousands of pills considered a drug.

The pills were found concealed in cartons of children’s milk and in the covers of two copies of the Koran holy book, according to the ambassador. -AFP

Sudan rejects UN Security Council role in dispute KHARTOUM/JUBA: Sudan on Saturday rejected UN Security Council involvement in efforts to end weeks of border clashes with South Sudan, which said it repelled an attack by Khartoum-backed rebels.

“Sudan confirms that it rejects any efforts to disturb the African Union role and take the situation between Sudan and South Sudan to the UN Security Council,” Foreign Minister Ali Karti said after a month of deadly clashes which have raised fears of a wider war.

The African Union itself, in a decision last Tuesday, asked the Security Council to endorse its demand that the two Sudans halt hostilities in 48 hours, start talks within two weeks and complete a peace accord in three months. But Karti - while expressing full confidence in the AU’s role - said involvement by the Security Council would “give priority to a political position which was announced before and has a hidden agenda”.

He did not elaborate.

The South Sudanese army said on Saturday it repelled an attack by rebels backed by Sudan outside Malakal, capital of the South’s Upper Nile State.

“It was Sudan-supported militias that attacked SPLA (South Sudan army) positions” on Friday, Colonel Philip Aguer told AFP. He said his forces repulsed the attack, with an unknown number of casualties. But the rebels claimed to have surrounded Malakal, saying in a statement: “The magnanimous forces of South Sudan Democratic Army (SSDA) launched Operation Ending Corruption and surrounded Malakal ... and captured its surroundings.”

Aguer said South Sudan’s forces had

detained three rebel fighters and one vehicle. The Security Council on Thursday started talks on a resolution that could allow sanctions against Sudan and South Sudan if they do not meet the AU demands to end their fighting.

A US-drafted resolution backs the AU demands and calls for the two sides to “immediately” halt hostilities and pull their forces back into their own territory.

The text says the Security Council would review the rivals’ implementation of AU demands and could “take appropriate additional measures” under article 41 of Chapter VII of the UN charter that allows for sanctions but not military force.

After its meeting on Tuesday, the AU’s security body adopted a roadmap calling for an end to fighting, “including aerial bombardments, with the parties formally conveying their commitment in this respect to the chairperson of the Commission within 48 hours,” said the body’s security commissioner Ramtane Lamamra.

The roadmap also urged both sides to withdraw troops from the other’s territory, stop supporting rebel groups and refrain from making “inflammatory” public statements.

Despite the AU’s demand, Sudanese warplanes staged a cross-border raid on Unity State on Wednesday, the South’s army alleged.

Khartoum says the South’s continued support for rebels inside Sudan undermines the north’s stability, despite international appeals for it to stop.

There have also been repeated international demands for an end to Sudan’s air strikes on the South.

Both nations have denied backing rebels on each other’s territory. -AFP

Syria accuses UN chief of encouraging ‘terrorists’ BEIRUT: A Syrian state-run newspaper accused UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Saturday of encouraging “terrorist” rebel attacks by focusing his criticism on the government, while other government media reported that the navy foiled an infiltration attempt by gunmen who tried to land on the Syrian coast in rubber boats.

The editorial in Tishrin daily came a day after Ban said Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad’s continued crackdown on protests has reached an “intolerable stage.” It also followed what the state media said was a suicide attack in Damascus that left 10 dead. Ban said the UN will try to speed up the deployment of up to 300 monitors to Syria. Only 15 are there now.

The Syrian comments were the harshest against the United Nations since a cease-fire brokered by international envoy Kofi Annan was supposed to take effect on April 12 but quickly unraveled. Annan’s plan aims to end the country’s 13-month crisis by giving space for talks between the two sides, but the UN has said the regime has broken many of its truce promises, such as withdrawing forces from towns and cities and continuing to shell opposition strongholds. Rebel fighters have also kept up attacks on Syrian security forces.

The UN says more than 9,000 people have been killed since On Saturday, activists said army defectors clashed briefly with troops in the coastal town of Burj Islam, which is home to the presidential summer palace. They had no immediate word on casualties. Al-Assad was not believed to be in the palace at the time of the fighting.

An image grab taken from a video uploaded on YouTube on April 28, 2012 shows Syrian troops deploying in the city of Douma. (AFP)

Tishrin said Ban has avoided discussing rebel violence in favor of “outrageous” statements against the Syrian government. “The continued disregard of the international community and its cover for armed groups’ crimes and terrorist acts ... is considered as direct participation in facilitating and carrying out the terrorism to which Syria is subjected,” the editorial said.

“Such a stance seemingly encourages those groups to go on committing more crimes and terrorist acts.”

The Syrian capital was hit by four explo-

sions Friday that left at least 11 people dead and dozens wounded. Al-Assad’s government blamed the blasts on “terrorists,” the term the government uses to describe opposition forces it says are carrying out a foreign conspiracy.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which has a network of activists around the country, said the clash in Burj Islam lasted about half an hour and the defectors withdrew shortly afterward. Rami AbdulRahman, who heads the Observatory, said the clash was close to the presidential palace.

Syria-based activist Mustafa Osso said about 30 soldiers defected and clashed with troops in Burj Islam adding that “intense shooting” lasted about 15 minutes. Osso said it was difficult to get more details because the area is tightly controlled.

The state-run news agency also said military units stationed off the Mediterranean foiled an attempt by “armed groups” to enter the country from the sea earlier Saturday - the first reported rebel infiltration from the sea. SANA said the navy forced the boats to flee, but some Syrian service members were killed or wounded.

Syrian authorities have said in the past that they clashed with rebels trying to cross from neighboring Lebanon or Turkey.

In Lebanon, military prosecutor Saqr Saqr said the army confiscated weapons that were found aboard a ship intercepted off the Lebanese coast. Saqr said an investigation was under way, adding that the 11 foreign (we don’t know if they include Lebanese) crew members were being questioned by Lebanese military police.

The Lebanese army said in a statement that the ship, “Lutfallah II,” carried a Sierra Leone flag and had three containers filled with “large amounts of weapons and ammunition” on board. It said the crew members were of different nationalities, including some Arabs, but was not more specific.

The ship reportedly sailed from Libya and stopped in Egypt and the port of Tripoli, Lebanon, en route to Syria. It was taken to the port of Selaata, north of Beirut, where the three containers were placed on Lebanese army flatbed trucks and taken away Saturday morning. -AP

ALWATAN DAILY

WORLD

sundAY, april 29, 2012

EU foreign chief lauds ‘new chapter’ in Myanmar ties YANGON: EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton hailed a “new chapter” in relations with Myanmar ahead of talks on Saturday with Aung San Suu Kyi, in the latest high-level mission to the former pariah state.

Her visit for talks with the opposition leader and the reformist regime comes just days after the European Union suspended a wide range of trade, economic and individual sanctions against the long-isolated country.

“The European Union welcomes the remarkable changes in Burma/Myanmar and has decided to open a new chapter in our relations,” Ashton said in a statement released late Friday.

“Of course reforms need to continue - we need to see further progress, in particular the unconditional release of all political prisoners and efforts to end ethnic conflicts,” she added.

“We are ready to assist with these efforts as well as with economic and social development. We will continue to support the democratic transition, including through electoral assistance and encourage trade and investment in the country.”

After her talks with Suu Kyi, Ashton will open a new EU office in Yangon that diplomats say will mostly oversee the management of aid programs but also have a political role.

Speaking in Brunei on Friday at the end of a meeting of European and Southeast Asian foreign ministers and senior diplomats, Ashton said it would be a “first step” towards establish-

Myanmar’s pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi (left) and European Union Foreign Policy chief Catherine Ashton (right), talk to the media during a press conference inside the National League for Democracy (NLD) headquarters in Yangon on April 28. (AFP)

ing a full delegation.

Myanmar, which languished for decades under a repressive junta, has announced a series

of reforms since a controversial 2010 election brought a civilian government to power - albeit one with close links to the military.

The suspension of the EU sanctions is intended to bolster sweeping reforms that culminated in opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi’s election to parliament on April 1.

Suu Kyi’s debut as a lawmaker has been delayed because the Nobel Peace Prize winner and other newly elected members of her National League for Democracy (NLD) party are refusing to swear to “safeguard” an armycreated constitution.

The veteran dissident said on Thursday she hoped the issue would be “smoothed over without too much difficulty before too long.”

On Monday Ashton will hold talks with President Thein Sein in the capital Naypyidaw.

The former army general has ushered through a broad range of changes since coming to power last year, including welcoming Suu Kyi’s party into the political mainstream and freeing political prisoners.

A steady stream of foreign dignitaries, including British Prime Minister David Cameron and US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, have visited Myanmar since the quasi-civilian government took power last year.

Canada also recently suspended most sanctions and Japan waived 3.7 billion US dollars of Myanmar’s debt.

But the United States on Wednesday ruled out an immediate end to its main sanctions on Myanmar, saying it wanted to preserve leverage to push the regime on an end to ethnic violence and other key issues. -AFP

Gunmen kill two guards in attack on Afghan governor KANDAHAR: Two Taliban militants hiding small guns in their shoes slipped into a provincial governor’s compound in southern Afghanistan on Saturday, setting off a fierce gunbattle that left two security guards and both attackers dead.

Kandahar Gov. Tooryalai Wesa said the two men made it through a pair of security checks without their weapons being detected. A guard at the last check - at the reception room for the governor’s office - noticed something suspicious and stopped them.

The attackers then pulled out the guns, shot the guards and took their weapons, Wesa said.

The ensuing gunbattle with security forces lasted about 30 minutes, said Parwiz Najib, a spokesman for the governor. One

other guard was wounded in the attack.

Taliban spokesman Qari Yousef Ahmadi claimed responsibility for the attack.Najib had initially said the two attackers were wearing suicide vests.Wesa later said the men had explosives but not suicide vests.

He said he was in his office meeting with constituents when he heard shooting out in the reception room.

“There was an explosion,” Wesa said, but he did not know whether the blast was caused by grenades or something else.

He and his guests escaped out a back door to the press office and waited out the rest of the attack.

Wesa said the assailants came under the pretext of asking for him to intercede on behalf of relatives that had been detained - a

Malaysian police fire tear gas, clash with protesters KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian police fired tear gas and water cannon in clashes with thousands of protesters demanding electoral reforms on Saturday, raising the risk of a political backlash that could delay national polls which had been expected within months.

Riot police reacted after some protesters among the crowd of at least 25,000 tried to break through barriers, in defiance of a court order banning them from entering the city’s historic Merdeka Square. They fired several dozen tear gas rounds, sending the protesters scattering through nearby streets.

Protesters also battled with police at a train station nearby, throwing bottles and chairs at officers who responded by firing tear gas rounds. Most of the protesters had dispersed about an hour after the violence began, but several hundred remained and were still taunting police.

The violence could carry risks for Prime Minister Najib Razak if it is seen as unjustified, possibly forcing him to delay elections that must be called by next March but which could be held as early as June. Najib’s approval rating tumbled after July last year when police were accused of a heavy handed response to the last major electoral reform rally by the Bersih (Clean) group. The violence on Saturday occurred shortly after a Bersih leader declared the protest a success and asked people to go home.

“They (the police) asked the crowd to disperse but did not give enough warning,” said Aminah Bakri, 27, with tears streaming down her face from the tear gas.

“They do not care.”

Some media sites put the number of protesters as high as 50,000, which would make it the biggest since “Reformasi” (Reform) demonstrations in 1998 against then Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad.

The protest presents a delicate challenge for Najib. A police response seen as violent risks alienating middle-class voters and handing the advantage to the opposition in what is shaping up as the closest election in Malaysia’s history. But Najib must be mindful of conservatives in his party, wary his moves to relax tough security laws and push limited election reforms could

Protestors clash with police during an antigovernment rally near the historical Merdeka Square in Kuala Lumpur on April 28.

(AFP)

threaten their 55-year hold on power.

Human Rights Watch was quick to condemn the police action.

“By launching a crackdown on peaceful ... protesters on the streets of Kuala Lumpur, the Malaysian government is once again showing its contempt for its people’s basic rights and freedoms,” said Phil Robertson, the group’s deputy Asia director.

Bersih, an independent movement whose goals are backed by the opposition, has a history of staging influential rallies as Malaysians have demanded more freedoms and democratic rights in the former British colony that has an authoritarian streak.

Younger Malaysians have become more politically active in recent years, chafing at restrictions on student activism. “The younger generation, especially my generation, want to be involved. Look at Lynas and Bersih.

We cannot be quiet,” said 19-year-old university student Chan Mei Fong.

The July protest was a watershed moment for Najib, prompting him to promise reform of an electoral system that the opposition says favors the long-ruling National Front coalition.

The National Front is trying to recover from its worst ever election result in 2008 when it lost its twothirds majority in parliament, giving the diverse, threeparty opposition led by former finance minister Anwar Ibrahim real hope of taking power. Najib has replaced tough security laws - ending indefinite detention without trial - relaxed some media controls, and pushed reforms to the electoral system that critics have long complained is rigged in the government’s favor.

A bipartisan parliamentary committee set up by Najib this month issued 22 proposals for electoral reform, including steps to clean up electoral rolls and equal access to media.

But Bersih has complained it is unclear if the steps will be in place for the next election.

The government says it has already met, or is addressing, seven of Bersih’s eight main proposals for the election, which will see the first use of indelible ink to cut down on fraud. -Reuters

5

NEWS IN BRIEF British soldier shot dead in Afghanistan KABUL: A British soldier was shot dead in the southern Afghan province of Helmand on Friday, the Ministry of Defense said. “Sadly, I must report that today a soldier from 1st Battalion Grenadier Guards has died of a gunshot wound sustained while on patrol in the Nahr-e Saraj district of Helmand province,” said Major Ian Lawrence, spokesman for Task Force Helmand. The soldier’s next of kin has been informed, the ministry said in a statement. The death brings the total of British military deaths in the more than 10-year Afghan war to 410. -AFP

Japan, ASEAN vow to complete trade ‘roadmap’ TOKYO: Ministers from Japan and Southeast Asia agreed to complete a “roadmap” in August to double trade in 10 years between the world’s third largest economy and the rapidly developing region. The decision was made in Tokyo at a meeting of economic ministers from Japan and the 10 member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), according to a joint press statement, released on Saturday. The two sides had first agreed to work towards the plan when they met in August last year. The roadmap will be presented for approval at a meeting of ASEAN and Japanese economic ministers in Cambodia in August, the statement said. -AFP

West African summit on Guinea-Bissau next week

common request.

“The insurgents are not stupid. They had hidden very small guns in their shoes and at two checkpoints they didn’t catch them,” Wesa said.

Police also discovered two cars parked outside the compound that had been rigged with explosives, apparently ready to be set off if there was a surge of people out into the street, Wesa said.

The police diffused those bombs, he said. Saturday’s attack is another reminder of the insurgents’ ability to strike in even some of the most secure areas of the country. Earlier this month, militants launched a large-scale coordinated attack on the diplomatic center of the capital, Kabul, and three other cities in which 36 insurgents and 11 others were killed. -AFP

PORT AU PRINCE: Six west African heads of state will discuss the situation in Guinea-Bissau at a meeting in Dakar next week, the Senegalese government said late on Friday. The presidents of Senegal, Nigeria, Gambia, Togo, Cape Verde and Guinea-Conakry, who make up a “contact group” on Guinea-Bissau, will meet on Thursday, it said. The junta that seized power in Guinea-Bissau on April 12 agreed Friday to a one-year transition back to democracy, the deployment of a regional intervention force and the release of political leaders they rounded up during the putsch. -AFP

German doctors’ plea for Ukraine’s jailed Tymoshenko Trial of jailed former prime minister adjourned until May 21

BERLIN: YuliaTymoshenko, Ukraine’s jailed former prime minister, has been on a hunger strike since last week to protest against her alleged beating in prison.

A group of German doctors have appealed to the Ukrainian government to allow her to be treated for severe back pain overseas. She was jailed last April in a case some Western governments considered to be politically motivated.

In Ukraine, a court in Ukraine on Saturday adjourned the tax evasion trial of former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko until May 21 due to the ill health of the opposition leader who is already in prison on an abuse-of-office conviction condemned by the West.

Judge Kostyantyn Sadovsky told the court in the city of Kharkiv it would be impossible to conduct hearings in the absence of Tymoshenko, who says she is suffering from chronic back pain. The European Union saw Tymoshenko’s jailing last October as politically motivated and has said its members would not ratify an association agreement with the former Soviet republic while she is in prison.

European politicians were also alarmed by Tymoshenko’s allegations she was beaten by prison guards this month which prison authorities deny while state prosecutors are investigating her com-

Karl Einhaeupl, the head of Berlin’s Charite university hospital shows a magnetic resonance image of former Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko to media at a news conference in Berlin, Germany, April 27. (AP)

plaint. Germany has offered to arrange for her treatment in a Berlin clinic but Tymoshenko’s family says she will not leave Ukraine and it is not clear if the Kiev government would let her go.

Tymoshenko, 51, who was found guilty last year of abusing her powers as prime minister in brokering a 2009 gas deal with Russia, now faces charges of tax evasion and attempted embezzlement dating back to the 1990s.

She has dismissed all charges in both

Fugitive Chinese activist ‘under US protection’

BEIJING: A leading Chinese activist who escaped from house arrest last weekend is now under US “protection” and Washington and Beijing are in talks over his status, an overseas rights group said Saturday.

Chen Guangcheng, who has been blind since childhood, fled last Sunday with the help of his supporters from under the noses of dozens of guards, and subsequently recorded a video alleging abuses against him and his family.

China Aid, a group run by the former Tiananmen Square democracy activist Bob Fu, said it had learned from a “source close to the Chen Guangcheng situation” that the activist was now “under US protection”.

“High-level talks are currently under way between US and Chinese officials regarding Chen’s status,” said the statement, which also called on the United States to ensure the safety of the activist and his family.

Fu fled China for the United States in 1996, but has been in close contact with Chen and his supporters.

On Friday, he said the activist was in a “100 percent safe” location in Beijing, while the outspoken government critic Hu Jia, who is close to Chen, told AFP the activist is likely holed up in the US embassy. -AFP

cases as part of campaign by President Viktor Yanukovich to destroy political opposition. Tymoshenko was one of the leaders of the 1994 Orange Revolution protests that doomed Yanukovich’s first bid for the presidency, and served twice as prime minister before losing the 2010 presidential election to Yanukovich.

After losing power, she and her allies faced corruption-related charges that Western leaders consider examples of selective justice. -Agencies

6

ALWATAN DAILY

OPINION

SUNDAY, april 29, 2012

To feel pain, sorrow; to learn the ultimate lesson in life Dr. Essam Abdulatif Al-Fulaij Staff Writer

W

e all have our moments of pain and sorrow. We all have our ups and downs. This is normal and it is natural, but the important thing is how we transform our dilemmas into a positive experience to learn from.

I was recently going through a book written by the Syrian writer Mohammad Al-Maghout who - in one of the chapters he entitled “I am in pain therefore I learn” - says that he learned a very important lesson, and that is when you are in pain, it is only you who suffers and only you who bears the consequences. Even if people around the loved ones and close friends sympathize and even cry with you to demonstrate their empathy, the fact of the matter is that you are the only one going through the ordeal.

The writer goes on to say that the most beautiful smile is the smile you have when you are in pain and the dearest tears are those you shed when you are all alone.

The writer then says that he himself has learned to have and share fun and happy times with other people, but the minute he goes through turbulent times, he should be on his own consoling himself. As the writer puts it later, “the only medicine and healing balm for my pains is to accept my destiny and that it is a predestined fate that no one can argue with.”

The most beautiful smile is the smile you have when you are in pain and the dearest tears are those you shed when you are all alone.

Al-Magout further raises the issue of watching others for the sake of curiosity. He says that those who tend to watch other people are mostly hated by people and they would be remembered and labeled as someone who was horribly nosy.

As for health, the writer says that in order to feel comfortable and relaxed, one needs to look after their health and well-being. As for happiness, then one must adhere strictly to ethics. Similarly, if eternity is sought after then one has to safeguard their mentality. As for the body, then its needs come after all of the above is cared for and addressed.

Certain ethical matters must not be abandoned at any cost and must be upheld at all times.The author believes that degrading people and the principle of haughtiness must be discarded, because whatever goes around comes around. He explains that perhaps one day you may be in a stronger position than many others, but to never abuse such a position for the urge for power, because there will be a time when the tables are turned and you may find yourself in a unfortunate

Al-Suwaidan lacks textual proof, only personal opinions

position, seeking the help and the assistance of others, but of course you would feel alone and abandoned then because of your previous behavior and abuse of power.

He goes on to say that all people have a problem of some kind. He acknowledges that this is not the deeper concern or the issue, but the concern arises when people expose themselves completely to others.

He also believes that age is not the watershed in our lives because we will remain children within our physiologically growing bodies.We behave like children at certain times and abandon our maturity. He thinks that such childish attitude is exemplified when we are held accountable for our mistakes. We prefer to be devious and avoid the truth and in some cases the accountability for our wrongs.

He then goes on to say that the soul is peculiar in many ways because while it is invincible we can make it sweetly tender and desirable. The minute we sweeten our souls, we find ourselves surrounded by those who care about us.

People will feel happy in our company and seek to socialize

BU QUTADA & BU NABIL Administrative employees will never benefit from the cadre, no matter what!

The man couldn’t find one single text from the Holy Quran, the Sunna or even the sayings of the Companions of the Prophet PBUH to support his claims.

Hamad Salem Al-Merri Staff Writer

I

n a recent interview with Dr. Tareq Al-Suwaidan in Al Watan newspaper published on Thursday, the man remarkably never apologized or expressed remorse over his remarks that people have the right to express their opinions, even if such opinions hold a grudge or contain profanity against the Almighty God or perhaps the Prophet of Islam Mohammad, Peace be Upon Him. On the other hand, Dr. Al-Suwaidan was apologetic and expressed remorse over his remarks against the former Prime Minister Sheikh Nasser Al-Mohammad when he cheered the crowd who sought to topple the premier. “Go ahead with your plans until the regime is toppled!” he shouted encouraging them to get rid of the premier.

In the interview, Dr. Al-Suwaidan was apologetic and said that his remarks were indeed out of order and he should not have made such statements in the first place. He explained to his interviewee that he didn’t really mean it and that perhaps it was taken out of context then and that either way he apologized for it.

Yet, Dr. Al-Suwaidan is not apologetic over his remarks concerning the freedom of expressing an opinion no matter how severe and contrary to Islamic teaching.

Now, many would think perhaps Dr. AlSuwaidan has managed to find new interpretations which permit such extreme ideas. The man never cited one single source or authority to justify such liberal views. On the other hand, he mentioned the names of his masters such as AlQardhawi, Shaltout and Al-Ali. They are some of the leading figures in the Muslim Brotherhood organization. It is remarkable that the man couldn’t find one single text from the Holy Quran, the Sunna or even the sayings of the Companions of the Prophet PBUH to support his claims and argument and only to resort to his masters to endorse such claims.

There are many texts on the other hand which clearly and strongly point to the misguidance of Dr. Al-Suwaidan.

Now for the sake of the argument we will accept the notion that the man never knew of such texts, although he should, considering that he is a leading figure in the think-tank of the group and after all a PhD holder.

But when asked about the opposition he is facing over his liberal interpretation, and which remains unsubstantiated by any text, the man resorts to insulting those who intellectually argue with him saying that his opponents are not intellectual enough and that they are learning

with us. But if we keep to appearances only then the sentiments would not last for long because people will eventually see through us and distance themselves from us.

It is also good to be natural and act natural. It is good to have fun but never at the expense of priorities and essentials. There are times when we need to define and distinguish between serious and trivial matters. So, if laughter and fun are desirable then we need to restrain them because there will be times when we are totally unmindful to what is really taking place around us.

But above all, one should be closer to God. One should feel that God is with them especially when there are matters which make us anxious, lead us to despair and give us pause for concern. Because it is the mercy of God to which we always seek to adhere. It is the mercy of God which we need most in times of crisis and strife.

We should never despair because we know God will not abandon us unless of course we seek to distant ourselves from Him and His mercy and compassion. We may not understand His wisdom sometimes, but He has His own way of dealing with matters. He alone understands the inner truth and because of this we need to rest our case to Him. Yes, we work to our goals and happiness but in the back of our minds we should remember that it is He who has the ultimate power, and if He chooses to change this then rest assure He is doing it for a good reason; most often than not it is for our own interest and benefit.

by rote.

Even then and for the sake of argument, we will accept once again the idea that we learn by rote. But as we all agree that there are certain maxims in our religions which we cannot delve into because they are already established and verified.

And of course there are other regulations which for some reason or another we may elaborate on. But no one has said before that all maxims of Islam are subject to modern interpretations for obvious reasons.

There are several issues in Islam which if we agree to use the rational thinking in line with Dr. Al-Suwaidan’s attitude then there will be serious discrepancies and no single opinion will be gleaned from it.

It is not clear what Dr. Al-Suwaidan really wants to prove with his controversial statements. Take for example one of his recent claims that all prominent Muslim scholars are or barred from entering the United Arab Emirates. Dr. Al-Suwaidan knows for well that this is not a true story and the UAE has no such policy that we know of.

Dr. Al-Suwaidan knows that in the United Arab Emirates many awards and meeting are held for the advancement of Islam inviting various scholars to the country. A man of his caliber and position in the world of academia, Dr.Al-Suwaidan is indeed hurting himself and his credentials as an academic. Instead of seeking the opinions of what some scholars are saying and not saying, he needs to resort to the maxims and laws of Islam and try to find out if he is crossing the lines or not. It is ok to make public statements but again at the same time he needs to ascertain whether such allegations are accurate or otherwise.

There are matters in the jurisprudence of Islam, which if left to the personal opinions of scholars or individuals will cause harm to the community and their understanding of the religion. We need to be careful in defining the matters which we can discuss and express our personal opinions on and matters which we believe cannot be crossed, because there are matters which have been finalized a long time ago, and it is not for us to elaborate or alter the text, context and ruling. Without a doubt, the issue that one can express his or her opinion about the Almighty God or the Prophet of Islam is not up for grabs, and should not be subjects of ridicule and blasphemy.

You know the difference because you were quite prepared to apologize over your remarks against His Highness the prime minister, but you are not willing to apologize for your remarks against the Almighty God.

Same with the manager and the undersecretary, they get nothing. Let them do their worst!

What in the world are you spouting?

No allowances!

We will give them nothing!

Um... No, no!

I’m just talking to myself, you know, a vocal workout. Of course you will get your cadre as is, no changes!

Mohmmed Thallab

mthallab@alwatan.com.kw

Further political awareness is needed Dr. Salwa Abdullah Al-Jassar

H

aving different concepts in the civil state that feels proud of democracy has increased the level of chaos. Our society at the present time faces a lot of unprecedented challenges as well as seditions that started influencing democracy itself. Those who attempt to stir sedition work to achieve a certain agenda and personal goals. It has evolved to such a dangerous extent, where some politicians aim at dividing the country and describe each other as traitors.

The trust among such politicians has also deteriorated while the culture of malicious accusations, envy and boiling hatred has grown.

They divided society into factions and that in turn contributed in further dividing society into movements and groups. However, we have to free ourselves from hatred and we have to abandon all differences because we love Kuwait and work towards achieving a promising future for Kuwait.

The MPs (members of Parliament) - who are elected to represent the people of their constituencies - only represent the voters in just a few fields now. The MPs also have to practice their legislative duties according to their constitutional rights and they should avoid talking on behalf of people about the different issues!

We need more political awareness in order to understand our duties and rights according

to state laws. We need political reforms as we have reached a critical stage in political developments which require final decisions to be made, therefore the government and national assembly have to live up to their responsibilities to lead the country to a better future. They have to enhance values of tolerance values brotherhood amongst the members of society as well as to ensure respect for the opinions of others.

We believe in democracy, but we reject moral corruption and ignoring our great values particularly, since there are certain individuals attempting to achieve personal goals even if such goals may affect the security of the country and the future of the Kuwaiti people.

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views

sunDAY, april 29, 2012

An American intervention gone partly right

programs followed a predictable but perverse pattern. Donors demanded quick results. Aid officials, in turn, designed projects that met American political needs in Washington, not Bosnian needs on the ground.

Bosnians who have helped implement foreign aid programs argue that picking a handful of projects, establishing limited goals and consistently funding them for long periods is more effective than a rushed, scattershot approach.

Some initiatives fared well. An integrated national army has been created following a massive American training effort. Some wellstaffed American police training and judicial reform programs were effective. The establishment of a new national currency gave the country’s economy initial stability. And one simple step - car license plates with no indication of where the driver resides in the country - greatly increased freedom of movement. In general, the more long-term the aid effort, the more successful it was.

Every nation, conflict and era is different, of course. New, unpredictable events shred pristine theories of international relations. But Bosnia’s story offers the lesson that foreign interventions can stop the killing, but not control the peace. One Western diplomat pointed out that Dodik, the Serb nationalist, was initially hailed as a moderate by the international community. Today, he is seen by Western diplomats as the single largest impediment to unifying the country. “Like Karzai in Afghanistan, he started out as a great popular leader,” said the diplomat, who spoke on condition of anonymity, “and things went sour.”

Over the last 20 years, I covered Afghanistan, Iraq and Bosnia. Each society is vastly different, but all three have experienced U.S.-led interventions. Iraq and Afghanistan - and the 6,400 American soldiers who have perished there and the $1.2 trillion spent - rightly cloud American views of intervention today. But not all U.S. efforts abroad have been debacles.

In the end, Bosnia is a partial success. It is not the sweeping failure that American isolationists contend. Nor is it the sweeping success that backers of humanitarian intervention hoped. An imperfect peace, though, is better than the carnage that the people of Bosnia endured.

David Rohde Reuters

S

eventeen years and 17 US billion dollars later, Bosnia is at peace today, but it is stillborn. After an international intervention nearly two decades long, Bosnia offers lessons for American officials as they wrestle with continuing violence in Syria, volatile postArab Spring transitions and leaving behind a relatively stable Afghanistan. Stopping the killing here proved easier than expected. But halting corruption, sparking economic growth and curbing poisonous local political dynamics has proved vastly more difficult.

Today, the economy is stalled, with half of business activity generated by state-owned companies and unemployment hovering at 25 percent. The country is divided between a Serb entity whose leader talks openly of secession and a Muslim-Croat federation with worrying rifts of its own. And corruption is endemic among senior government officials on all sides.

There are successes. One, surprisingly, is security. In an outcome few expected, fighting has not erupted here since the 1995 Dayton Peace Accord ended a brutal three-year conflict. Predictions that 20,000 American troops who deployed as peacekeepers would be caught in a “quagmire” proved untrue. US forces departed in 2006 without a single American soldier being killed by hostile fire.

One lesson that emerges here is timing, according to Bosnians, Americans and Europeans. If the world is going to intervene in a conflict, the earlier, they say, the better. Bosnia today shows that the longer the fighting drags on, the more tortuous the postwar peace.

On a daily basis, Muslims, Serbs and Croats interact and exchange polite greetings here, but they live separate lives. Across the country, the 100,000 killed during the war haunt the living.

Admonitions to turn the other cheek are well and good, but there is little reconciliation.

Exhaustive but slow-moving international war-crimes trials have created a detailed historical record of the atrocities carried out here.

But Serb, Croat and Muslim nationalists all see themselves as victims and reject responsibility for war crimes committed by their own community. Future generations, one hopes, may be more accepting.

Republican presidential candidate former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney speaks to the crowd at the end of his rally in Manchester, New Hampshire April 24, 2012. (Reuters)

On a daily basis, Muslims, Serbs and Croats interact and exchange polite greetings here, but they live separate lives.

The second lesson is that without reliable local allies implementing reforms is virtually impossible. International efforts to promote more moderate political parties have failed here. Nationalist Serb, Croat and Muslim parties have won elections, consolidated power and resisted change. Foreign powers have found that they cannot control local political dynamics. Bosnians call the state of politics today “war by other means,” with nationalists continuing their struggles through words, not bullets.

“It’s difficult for outsiders to rearrange the political chairs inside these countries,” said R.

Can gold be used as a currency?

James Ledbetter Reuters

I

t worked! Kinda. I took Matthew Bishop’s challenge, and tried to spend a gram of gold like I would any other currency.

And, frankly, didn’t have a lot of luck - until I managed to find a small business where the owner just happened to be standing around. In the end, I got three lobster rolls (and free drinks, too) for one gram of gold.

Which were very tasty - thank you Snack Box! So, what did I learn on my expedition in Times Square? * When I tell the Snack Box owner that the gold is real and that “you can tell by how shiny it is”, I’m not kidding. Pure gold is really shiny. * The most surprising people turn out to know how much a gram of gold is worth, with an astonishing level of accuracy. * Gold is not a currency. I’m reasonably sure that Andrew, the guy behind the counter at Snack Box, would not have accepted

my gram of gold unless his boss was telling him to. * If you do want to spend gold, then try your luck with small businesses, and don’t expect a good implied exchange rate. * Also, bringing a film crew along is unlikely to help you at any big chain store.

Most interestingly, however, at least to me, was how much it actually cost us to obtain that gram of gold. For the purposes of the video, I was using the value of one gram of gold based on its market price per ounce.

But if you go out and attempt to buy a gold bar, you’ll never be able to find one for a mere $53. In fact, my producer wound up paying double that, in Manhattan. Even if you do a lot of searching online, you’ll be hard pressed to find one for less than $80.

We didn’t try to sell the gold - we wound up getting a delicious lunch instead - but my guess is that in most cities the effective bid/offer is absolutely enormous. And much bigger than for any major global currency.

Still, it was a fun - and tasty - experiment. If you try it yourself, do let me know the results!

Nicholas Burns, a retired senior American diplomat who worked on the Balkans for the Clinton and Bush administrations. “It’s going to be up to local people to do that.”

Today, only 600 European soldiers keep the peace. Milorad Dodik, the current leader of the Bosnian Serbs, uses veto powers and the convoluted government structure created as a compromise in Dayton to block efforts to strengthen the central government. Repeated Western efforts to update the country’s postwar constitution have failed. Foreign diplomats now hope that the carrot of European Union and NATO membership will turn voters against

hardliners.

A third and final lesson focuses on civilian aid. When it comes to postwar reconstruction efforts, less is more. The United States and Europe tried to quickly create virtually every aspect of a new Bosnian state: a new army, police force, economy, infrastructure and education system.

The $1.65 billion American civilian aid effort was too broad and too focused on immediate results, according to Westerners and Bosnians. (Ninety percent of the US money spent here - roughly $15 billion - covered the cost of the American troop deployment.) Foreign aid

David Rohde is a Reuters columnist and former reporter for the NewYork Times. He is a two-time winner of the Pulitzer Prize and the author, with Kristen Mulvihill, of “A Rope and a Prayer: A Kidnapping from Two Sides.”

The general election’s political calculations

Bosnian Muslim women wait for the start of a mass funeral ceremony in the Bosnian town of Vlasenica, 100km northeast of Sarajevo, Bosnia on Saturday April 21, 2012. (AP)

Felix Salmon is the finance blogger at Reuters. Any opinions expressed here are the author’s own.

Lawrence Summers Reuters

A

FILE - An Indian woman tries gold bangles at a jewelry shop in Gauhati, India, Tuesday, April 24, 2012. (AP)

7

rithmetic done under the constraints of politics is always suspect, and one should always examine carefully the claims of those seeking votes. But smart observers have learned to distinguish between the claims of political candidates and their advisers on the one hand, and proposals that have been evaluated by independent scorekeepers like the Congressional Budget Office on the other.

This principle has never been better illustrated than by the “budget analysis” put forward

by Governor Romney’s chief economic adviser, Glenn Hubbard, in a recent Wall Street Journal column. Hubbard constructs a budget plan he imagines that President Obama might propose someday, engages in a set of his own extrapolations and then makes a set of assertions about it.

He does not discuss President Obama’s actual plan or how it has been evaluated by the CBO. Nor does he invest his credibility in defending the claims that Governor Romney has made regarding his own fiscal plans - he simply states that, “Yes, President Obama and Mitt Romney have budgets with competing visions. But Governor Romney’s budget makes tough choices ...” without delving into the specifics or trade-offs that Romney’s “tough choices” entail.

President Obama put forward a plan earlier this year that would reduce deficits by more than $4 trillion over the next decade. It would bring discretionary spending to its lowest levels since the 1960s. It includes $2.50 in spending cuts for every one US dollar in additional revenue. It also asks everyone to pay their fair share of taxes, repealing the Bush tax cuts for families making more than $250,000, and closing loopholes and shelters like preferences for private jets, hedge fund managers and offshore investments.

The independent Congressional Budget Office confirms that it would stabilize the debt as

Romney has also proposed a massive defense buildup, even while he says he will cut spending deeply enough to balance the budget. I think it’s clear why he won’t tell voters which cuts he would make: because in the past, disclosing his planned budget cuts was politically damaging. a share of the economy - thus returning us to a tenable fiscal path. It would do that while allowing increased investments in education, research and infrastructure that are critical to stronger, shared economic growth in the years to come.

By focusing on building a strong economy for the future, it expands the tax base and reduces pressures for future tax increases.

But rather than criticize this approach, Hubbard ignores it - and instead chooses to invent a set of assumptions that bear no relationship to the president’s actual policies. His figures are not explained, but they apparently arbitrarily assume that the president must raise taxes to pay for spending above a level of Hubbard’s choosing. Rather than filling imaginary gaps in the president’s budget, which has been spelled out in sufficient detail to permit evaluation by independent experts, Professor Hubbard should perhaps fill in some of the many gaps in Romney’s plans.

Start with his tax plan. The Romney campaign has been very clear about what he is promising: $5 trillion in tax cuts on top of extending the Bush tax cuts, with those benefits heavily weighted toward the country’s wealthiest taxpayers. Romney claims to pay for this plan by ending tax shelters, principally for the wealthy, but he hasn’t specified a single tax break that he would close. Romney himself has acknowledged the lack of details in his plan, stating in reference to his tax plan that “frankly, it can’t be scored.” I have been party for many years to searches for “high-income tax shelters” than can feasibly be closed. I know of no reputable expert in either political party who would find that there is any-

thing even approaching $5 trillion in potential revenue to be generated from this source.

Romney has also proposed a massive defense buildup, even while he says he will cut spending deeply enough to balance the budget.

I think it’s clear why he won’t tell voters which cuts he would make: because in the past, disclosing his planned budget cuts was politically damaging.

We have seen this movie before.When President Clinton left the White House, our country was paying down its debt on a substantial scale.

I was privileged as secretary of the treasury to be buying back federal debt. President George W. Bush campaigned on a program of tax cuts supported by economic advisers not subject to the rigors of official budget scorekeeping. The results - trillions of dollars of budget deficits speak for themselves.

This is a very consequential election. As we continue to recover from the largest economic crisis in generations, we face a continuing need to strengthen the job market, address large fiscal challenges and build an economy that is based on sustainable, shared economic growth. Voters should have a chance to choose between clear alternatives. President Obama - consistent with his obligations as president - has laid out a multiyear budget embodying his vision for the future, and it has been evaluated by independent experts. It is time for Romney to do the same.

Lawrence H. Summers is the Charles W. Eliot University Professor at Harvard and former US Treasury Secretary. He speaks and consults widely on economic and financial issues.

8

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Abu Halifa 2371 7656 Ahmadi 2398 0304 Ardiya 2488 1273 Bayan 2538 7762 Dahar 2383 0500 Dahiya 2256 0855 Dasma 2253 1917 Fahaheel 2391 2959 Faiha 2255 2693 Farwaniya 2471 1977 Ferdous 2489 0583 Fintas 2390 4388 Hawalli 2264 1116 Jabriya 2531 5855 Jahra Ind. Area 2457 5565 / 2458 7392 Jahra North 2455 2295 Jleeb Al Shouyoukh 2431 1234 Keifan 2483 2839 Kheitan 2472 2590 Mina Abdullah 2326 1144 Nugra 2261 6662 Omariya 2474 2160

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Central Adan Amiri Hospital Da’iya Fahaheel Farwaniya Farwaniya Jahra Mubarak Al Kabir Sabah Salmiya Shuaiba

23940600 / 23941455 22422366 22510854 23919098 24883000 24725149 24570583 25311437 24815000 25739011 23261927

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Qadsiya 2257 4386 Qurain 2542 3772 Rabiah 2474 2160 Rawda 2256 0058 Riqqa 2394 1958 Rumaithiya 2562 4123 Sabah Al-Salem 2551 7229 Sabahiya 2361 5619 Salhiya (Kuwait City) 2242 7157 Salmi 2457 6576 Salmiya 2572 6950 Salwa 2562 6950 Shamiya 2484 5953 Sharq 2244 2466 Shuaiba Ind. Area 2326 1789 Shuwaikh 2481 3726 / 2484 4842 Sulaibekhat 2487 6555 Sulaibiya 2467 0672 Sulaibiya Ind. Area 2467 2728 Surra 2531 2220 Tayma’a 2457 1700 Wafra 2381 0412 Waha 2455 7902 Zour 2395 0160

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Andrology, Male Infertility and Impotence Specialist Abdullatif A. Al Salim 2533 4438

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RESTAURANT • Café Library Lounge Al-Manshar Rotana Hotel Tel: 23931000 Hang.Out Lounge Galleria 2000 Tel: 25755588 Song Bird Café Hilton Kuwait Resort Tel: 23725500 Chit Chat Café Restaurant Safir Hotel & Residences -Fintas Tel: 25455555 Lounge Café Safir Hotel & Residences -Fintas Tel: 25455555 The English Tea Room Sheraton Hotel Tel: 1835555 Waterlemon Al-Raya Tel: 22244797 Marina Mall Tel: 22997666 Le Pain Quotidien Palms Beach Hotel Tel: 25633684 Marina Crescent Tel: 22244942 Avenues Tel: 24954632 • Casual Dining Applebee’s Bneid Al-Gar Tel: 22407536 Fintas Tel: 23714559 Burgerhub Gulf road Tel: 22464818 Chili’s Bneid Al-Gar Tel: 22452200 Chili’s Al-Bida’a Tel: 22253120/1 Hard Rock Café Salmiya Tel: 25710004 Ruby Tuesdays Bneid Al-Gar Tel: 22444454 T.G.I. Fridays Bneid Al-Gar Tel: 22544300

• Chinese China Hut Tel: 25656226 China Express Jabriya Tel: 25342399 Salwa Tel: 25653230 China House Salmiya Tel: 25713339 / 60 China Lake Al-Blajat St. Tel: 25713072 / 3 China Town Salmiya Tel: 25652541 Greens Al-Wafra Complex Tel: 22516031

Tel: 1815050 • French Le Notre Gulf Road Tel: 25758888 • Indian Dawat Restaurant Bneid Al Gar Tel: 22411728 Abu Halifa Tel: 23724251 Al Alamia Mall, Jahra Tel: 24554642 Taal Restaurant Salmiya Beda’ Tel: 22253142 Winner’s Salmiya Tel: 25739954 Abu Halifa Tel: 23711374 / 5 Riggae Tel: 24895501 / 2 Jahra Tel: 24560088/8800

Gulf Royal Tel: 23925390-Fintas 22622556-Hawalli 25710448-Salmiya 22244795-Marina

Asha’s Tel: 22244502/3/9 Marina Crescent Tel: 24954700

Noodles Salmiya Tel: 25712233

Bukhara Sheraton Hotel Tel: 22422055

The Peacock Radisson Blu Hotel Tel: 25673000

Tourist Restaurant Kuwait City Tel: 22411702

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Mugal Mahal Farwaniya Tel: 24726126/7 Fintas Tel: 23915588 Salmiya Tel: 25722223/4 Sharq Tel: 22425132

• Continental Casper & Gambini’s Kuwait City Tel: 22430054 La Marina Sharq Mall Tel: 22426672 • Fast Food Burger King Tel: 22444466 Domino’s Pizza Tel: 1800800 Hardees Tel: 1888333 KFC Tel: 1888666 Little Caesar’s Tel: 1888855 Pizza Hut

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Tel: 22997000

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Sakura Crowne Plaza Hotel Tel: 24742000

AlRoshinah Restaurant Safir Hotel & Residences -Fintas Tel: 25455555

Shogun The Palms Hotel Tel: 27070022

Il Forno Restaurant Courtyard Marriot Hotel Tel: 22997000 Johnny Carino’s Salmiya Tel: 22667050 La Piazza Kuwait City Tel: 24246639 Lorenzo

Manousha Salmiya Tel: 25722607 / 8

Al-Noukhaza Crowne Plaza Hotel Tel: 24742000

Fakhr Al-Din Restaurant Kuwait City Tel: 22423180

Villa Fairouz Shaab Tel: 22652030

Shrimpy Gulf Road Tel: 22563118 Totally Fish Marina Crescent Tel: 22244960/1

Garden New Park Hotel Tel: 25634200

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Zahrat Tunis Hawalli Tel: 22662444/333

Mais Al-Ghanim Kuwait City Tel: 22402590

• Persian Kabab Al-Hijja Bnaid Al-Gar Tel: 22517512

Palm Palace Salmiya Tel: 25756331 Saj Express Kuwait City Tel: 22497822 Sarai Al-Bida’a Tel: 22253180/1 Shisha &

Sushi Club Al-Blajat St. Tel: 25712144 Wasabi Al-Bida’a Tel: 22253112 Kuwait City Tel: 22494000 • Lebanese Al-Berdawny Palace Tel: 25661117 Ayam Zaman Holiday Inn Tel: 18477777 Burg Al-Hamam Gulf Road Tel: 22529095

• Steak House Relais De L’Entrecote Al-Fanar Complex Tel: 25729600 Terrace Grill JW Marriott Hotel Tel: 22455550

Shabistan Crowne Plaza Hotel Tel: 24742000

The Gaucho Grill The Palms Hotel Tel: 25667370 -

• Seafood Al-Ahmadi Crowne Plaza Hotel Tel: 24742000

• Tex-Mex Chi Chi’s Salmiya Tel: 25625811

Al-Boom Radisson Blu Hotel Tel: 25756000

Tumbleweed Southern Grill Al-Bida’a Tel: 22253154/5

Maki Al-Blajat St. Tel: 25733561 Marina Waves Tel: 22244560

Flavors Restaurant Safir Hotel & Residences -Fintas Tel: 25455555

• Italian Ciro’s Pomodoro Kuwait City Tel: 22424004

Saj Express Kuwait City Tel: 22497822

Te l : 1 8 3 9 0 9 0

Salmiya - Jabriya - Keifan www.healthstop.com.kw

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FIVE STAR Al-Manshar Rotana Hotel Crowne Plaza Kuwait Hilton Kuwait Resort JW Marriot Kuwait City Hotel Kempinski Julai’a Hotel & Resort The Regency Hotel & Resort Le Meridien Le Meridien Tower Marina Hotel Kuwait Movenpick Albid’a Movenpick Palms Beach Hotel & Spa Radisson Blu Hotels & Resorts Refad Palace Safir International Hotel Kuwait Sheraton Kuwait Hotel & Towers Safir Hotel & Residences Kuwait

23931000 24772000 23725500 22455550 1 844 444 25766666 22510999 22831831 22244970 22253100 24610033 22824060 25673000 23908630 22530000 22422055 25455555

FOUR STAR Carlton Tower Hotel The Courtyard by Marriott Kuwait El Joan Resort Four Points by Sheraton Kuwait

22452740 22997000 23281897 22415001

Ghani Palace Hotel Holiday Inn Khalifa Resort Kuwait Continental Hotel New Park Hotel Al Bastaki Hotel Al Dana Hotel Heritage Village Palace Hotel Shiik Flamingo Hotel & Resort Swiss-Belhotel Plaza Kuwait

25710301 1 847 777 23280144 22527300 25634200 22555081 23902760 22520600 1 821 111 25725050 22436686

THREE STAR Imperial Hotel Oasis Hotel Safari House Hotel Second Home Hotel Spring Continental Hotel Ibis Hotel Salmiya Ibis Hotel Sharq

22528766 22465489 22443136 22532100 25742410 25713872 22928080

TWO STAR International Hotel Kuwait Residence Hotel

25741788 22467560

sundAY, april 29, 2012

BUSINESS

KSE advances 1.16% at close of week, trading volume spikes 22.32%

KUWAIT: Kuwait Stock Exchange (KSE) ended last week in the green zone. The price index ended last week with an increase amounted to 1.16 percent, while the weighted index advanced by 0.25 percent compared to the closings of the week before. Furthermore, last week’s average daily turnover increased by 3.37 percent, compared to the preceding week, reaching 36.57 million Kuwaiti dinars, whereas trading volume average was 496.75 million shares, recording increase of 22.32 percent. The market managed to end the week in the green zone for the third week, supported by the positive speculations, which concentrated on small stocks, especially on Real Estate sector.

See Page 10

Kuwait’s balance of total public debt stands at KD 1.9 billion

Termination of gas supply Kamel Al-Harami Independent energy analyst Exclusive to Al Watan Daily

Compiled by Al Watan Daily

KUWAIT: Kuwait balance of the total public debt instruments, at the end of March 2012, maintained its same level of 1.9 billion US dollars since August 2011, a specialized economic report showed Saturday.

The report, by Al-Shall Economic Consultants, added that the public debt instruments consist of longer-term treasury bonds, with a balance of KD 1.8 billion (since August 2011), and treasury bills worth KD 125 million (since July 2011). The report, based on the Central Bank of Kuwait (CBK) Monthly Monetary Statistical Overview, pointed out average interest rate on treasury bonds for one year was 1.25 percent (since March 2010) and on treasury bills for three months was 0.722 percent (since January 2012).

Local banks account for 96.6 percent of the total public debt instruments (approximately 95.6 percent at the end of December 2011). Thus, the total domestic public debt is about KD 1973 million, representing 4.4 percent, the size of the nominal gross domestic product (GDP) for 2011, estimated at KD 45.2 billion.

The Central Bank of Kuwait bulletin states that total credit facilities for residents, provided by local banks, scored approximately KD 25.995 billion (57.3 percent of total assets of local banks), with a slight rise of about KD 383.8 million over its amount in the end of December 2011, a quarterly growth rate of approximately 1.5 percent, reflecting continued reluctance of local banks in granting credit facilities due to the financial crisis.

Total personal facilities scored around KD 9.181 billion, 35.3 percent of total credit facilities, (approximately KD 8.947 billion in the end of December 2011). Value of installment loans amounted to about KD 5.238 billion, or 57.3 percent of total personal facilities (at the end of February 2012), some KD 2.676 billion for purchasing of securities, or 29.1 percent of total personal facilities, and consumer loans amounted to about KD 836.9 million (at the end of February 2012).

Total credit facilities for the real estate sector scored about KD 6.755 billion, representing 26 percent of the total (about KD 6.756 billion at the end of December 2011), for the trade sector about KD 2.398 billion, or 9.2 percent (approximately KD 2.307 billion in the end of December 2011), for financial institutions -other than banks- about KD 2.218 billion representing 8.5 percent (about KD 2.380 billion in the end of December 2011).

In more news, according to a Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Brief on banking, prepared by the National Bank of Kuwait (NBK), banks in the GCC countries saw 2011 as a better year than the one before.

Bank profits continued to improve and assets growth was healthy. In the current global context, the region’s economic growth is relatively good, with governments at

An Indian worker works at the manufacturing unit of Vespa scooters plant in Baramati some 150 kilometers (93 miles) from Pune, India, Saturday, April 28, 2012. Piaggio Vehicles Limited India inaugurated its plant Saturday. The Italian company has spent $30 million on its new factory in Baramati, in the state of Maharashtra, and plans to spend $20 million more to double capacity to 300,000 scooters a year by 2013. (AP)

various stages of implementing ambitious capital spending plans to boost economic growth and funding is plentiful.

However, some regional banks continued to deal with the after-effects of the 2008 global financial crisis, particularly on their asset quality.

According to the report, asset growth appeared to lose steam in 2011 and profits, while rising rapidly, remain below levels seen before the 2008 slowdown. To be sure, the GCC is not all running at the same pace. At one extreme are Qatar and Saudi Arabia where banking activity has seen a strong improvement.

Dubai spends $250 million to get full control of Atlantis in debt owed by Kerzner. Kerzner said it plans to use proceeds from the Dubai sale to reduce its debt load. Istithmar is part of Dubai state conglomerate Dubai World, which has struggled with high-profile debt troubles of its own. It owns upscale retailer Barneys New York and has a stake in performance company Cirque du Soleil.

“This acquisition is in line with our strategy of managing our assets for value and investing selectively where growth opportunities exist,” Dubai World’s chairman, Sheik Ahmed bin Saeed Al-Maktoum, said in a statement.

Istithmar’s parent Dubai World was at the heart of Dubai’s financial meltdown in 2009. It signed an agreement to restructure some $25 billion in debt last March.

The Atlantis is one of Dubai’s better-known tourist desti-

Nokia suffers second cut to ‘junk’ as S&P downgrades

CAPITALS: Cellphone maker Nokia had its credit rating cut to ‘junk’ status by ratings agency Standard & Poor’s (S&P), its second downgrade to non-investment grade status this week as the company battles falling sales and doubts over its product strategy.

The rating cut, which follows a similar move by Fitch Ratings earlier this week, sent spreads on Nokia bonds to their widest ever against mid-swaps, a bond market benchmark, and pushed the price of insuring Nokia debt against default to its highest-ever level, indicating a growing level of investor concerns about the company’s prospects.

Its shares were down 0.9 percent at 2.732 euros by 1447 GMT, not far from a 15-year low of 2.60 euros set earlier this month.

S&P said its downgrade reflected its concerns that the decline in sales at Nokia’s phone business this year could be similar to the 18 percent fall in 2011. It cut its rating to ‘BB+’ from ‘BBB-’, at which point Nokia debt is rated as too risky to be bought by many pension funds and other mainstream investors, and said the company’s credit rating outlook remained negative.

Nokia, once the world’s dominant mobile phone provider, has lost out to Apple Inc and Google Inc in the smartphone business and Chief Executive Stephen Elop is pinning hopes of a turnaround on Lumia, a new range of smartphones which use Microsoft software. But sales of the new range have so far been slow and are yet to compensate for diving sales of legacy products.

“We still expect revenue from Lumia smartphones to grow over time, but not sufficiently to offset a rapid decline in revenue from Symbianbased smartphones over the next few quarters,” S&P analysts said in a note. Nokia said it had 4.9 billion euros (6.5 billion US dollars) in net cash reserves and was trying to turn around the business.

Five-year credit default swaps (CDS) on Nokia debt rose 50 basis points to an all-time high of 645 basis points, according to Markit.

This means it costs $645,000 annually to buy $10 million of protection against a Nokia default using a five-year CDS contract.

Nokia has issued two eurobonds worth in total 1.75 billion euros and two dollar bonds worth a combined $1.5 billion. -Reuters

nations. It is a mainstay of city tours, vying for attention with the world’s tallest tower, Burj Khalifa, and more traditional offerings such as the old gold and spice markets. Ads for the hotel greet Dubai airport passengers on arrival. Atlantis opened for business in September 2008, shortly after a construction fire damaged part of the brightly painted lobby.

A lavish coming-out party for the resort two months later cost $20 million and featured a celebrity guest list that included Robert DeNiro and Lindsay Lohan. Australian pop star Kylie Minogue provided the entertainment.

The 1,537-room hotel is at the top of the Palm Jumeirah, the first of Dubai’s palm-shaped manmade islands and the only one that is developed. Visitors arrive by monorail or by traveling through an underwater tunnel. -AP

The author of this article can be reaches at naftikuwaiti@yahoo.com Disclaimer: Please note that the views and opinions presented in the column are the author’s own and do not necessarily represent those of Al Watan Daily and its staff.

Emaar Q1 net profit rises 44%, beats forecast CAPITALS: Dubai’s Emaar Properties reported a 44 percent rise in first-quarter profit on Saturday, beating analysts’ forecasts, as the developer shifted away from the battered property market and booked gains in its retail and hospitality operations.

The builder of the world’s tallest tower made a profit of 606 million UAE dirhams (165 million US dollars), compared to 421 million dirhams during the same period last year, it said in an emailed statement.

Analysts polled by Reuters had forecast an average profit for the quarter of 496.75 million dirhams.

Revenue was 1.8 billion dirhams, with malls and retail businesses contributing 651 million dirhams and hospitality contributing 403 million dirhams, the company said in its statement.

Revenues from the firm’s malls and hospitality segments grew 25 per cent compared to the same period in 2011.

Emaar, which saw sales of apartments plunge 85 percent last year, is gradually shifting its focus from the bleak Dubai property market towards the more profitable hospitality and retail sectors.

Dubai’s largest developer by market value sold 158 residential units during the period, of which 117 were in Dubai and 41 units in the international markets.

New unit sales in Dubai exceeded 620 million dirhams in the quarter, the company said.

House prices in Dubai have tumbled about 60 percent from a 2008 peak and no turnaround is expected this year, with supply continuing to outstrip demand.

Emaar’s 2011 earnings report showed it was owed 595 million dirhams by troubled mortgage affiliate Amlak, in which it has a 48 percent stake.

Emaar claimed the amount was fully recoverable.

The federal government cut Amlak’s debt bur-

(Photo by D.Amara)

DUBAI: Dubai says it now has full control of the Atlantis resort hotel perched atop its palm-shaped island.

State-run investment firm Istithmar World said late Friday it paid 250 million US dollars to buy out financially troubled business partner Kerzner International Holdings Ltd., which had held a 50 percent stake in the coral-colored hotel. Istithmar already owned half of the property. Kerzner will continue to operate the resort, which includes a waterpark and 18 restaurants, Istithmar said.

It agreed to give up its stake in the Dubai property and a similar resort in the Bahamas after struggling to restructure $2.6 billion in debt. Canada’s Brookfield Asset Management acquired the Bahamas property in a previously announced deal by agreeing to waive $175 million

KUWAIT: Last week’s announcement by the Egyptian government to cancel its gas deal supply with Israel raised many questions. One of the questions referred to the real intention and reason for the termination of the gas supply agreement. We know that it was purely a commercial agreement and not a political one, unlike the oil supply agreement, as the oil agreement was part of the Camp David accord, which forced Egypt to furnish oil from the Sinai Peninsula to Israel at commercially international oil prices. With any failure from the Egyptian government, US administration was ready to pay the bills.

The gas deal is however different.

The gas agreement was signed in June 2005 to supply Israel with about two billion cubic meters per annum. The price was fixed on the basis of British Thermal Unit (BTU) between 75 US cents and 1.50 US dollars per BTU. The prevailing price of $1.50 was competitive at that time and was in line with international gas prices worldwide. Any price below one dollar per BTU was not competitive by all means and by any standard in our opinion.

So the agreement was a purely commercial one and disagreements could only be because of new developments or occurrences of something that makes necessary changes and the revisions in the supply terms and conditions.

We also hope the Egyptian government has in hand better commercial alternatives that can result in better net returns, more monies to the government and better terms.

Perhaps this can be attained by switching the gas back for domestic supply instead of relying on imported petroleum products from outside sources.

Gas disputes over prices or correcting some terms of the contact is permissible as it happens very often, like the winter gas crisis between Russia and its neighbors Ukraine and other gas customers. Every winter Russia was accusing its neighbors of not paying or delaying on their payments against their gas supply agreement. At the end however both countries reached a comprise in improving on price levels.

Gas supply agreements are unlike oil contracts as the gas price is fixed on a long term basis and is negotiated every year. It is normally discussed over a five year period or longer.

Our concern is that our Egyptian brothers have a real genuine commercial alternative within their reach and it must be viable and better than the Israeli deals by miles, as otherwise they may have to pay heavy penalties. Egypt may be incurring heavy costs as results of recent blow ups of gas pipe line supply - 14 times in recent moths. They have every right in asking to pay and recover part of their security risks.

Reasonable compensation in increases gas prices is the only way to settle and put the gas supply back to its normal pattern for the remaining of the gas contract.

We know that the previous Egyptian governments were corrupt and used illegal means to enter and execute the current (cancelled) gas contract. We know that the current one is under pressure to terminate this gas supply arrangement.

The decision to terminate is not an easy one, however due consideration must have been given before reaching such a final conclusion.

Now that the termination of the deal has been announced, our hope is that it is the right one and one that will serve the Egyptian people. The better commercial alternative must prevail to safeguard the interests of all. Avoiding any unnecessary costs of litigation, arbitrations and over all any court disputes is the best route. The two parties might end up resolving the issues and can start on a new page until the expiry date of the contract as long as it serves the interests of both.

FILE - Emaar Properties’ head quarters in Dubai, are seen in this undated file photo. Emaar Properties reported a 44 percent rise in first-quarter profit on Saturday, April 28, 2012, beating analysts’ forecasts.

den by $1.1 billion, in a renewed effort to revive the lender, whose stock has been halted since 2008.

Aldar Q1 profit soars

Meanwhile, Aldar Properties, Abu Dhabi’s struggling developer currently in merger talks with rival Sorouh Real Estate, more than doubled its first quarter net profit on land and residential unit sales to the government.

The builder of the Yas Marina Formula One Circuit said in a statement on Saturday that it made a

net profit of 478.2 million dirhams ($130.2 million) compared to 189.1 million dirhams in the same period in 2011.

Analyst estimates for the company ranged from a net loss of 91 million dirhams by SICO Bahrain to a net profit of 193.2 million dirhams by Global Investment House.

Revenue for the quarter was 3.58 billion dirhams, compared to 784.7 million dirhams in the same quarter last year, the company said. The revenue boost was due to a 2.2 billion dirhams related to sale contracts signed in 2011 with the government of Abu Dhabi and other related entities, the company said.

Aldar’s total cash and bank balance was 5.8 billion dirhams at the end of the first quarter of 2012.

The company signed a 4 billion dirhams revolving credit facility with National Bank of Abu Dhabi (NBAD) earlier this month.

Aldar, rescued twice by Abu Dhabi with funds amounting to nearly $10 billion, said last month that it may merge with Sorouh in what would be a government-backed tie-up. Abu Dhabi’s largest developer by market value has been at the front of a property market slump in Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), which is facing challenges amid a huge supply of high-end homes entering the market.

Property prices in Abu Dhabi are expected to fall another 11 percent from here, a Reuters poll showed in January.

State investment fund Mubadala, which earlier owned a 49 percent stake in Aldar, transferred a 14percent stake to Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank in return for a loan facility.

Abu Dhabi has held talks to offload all or part of the 49-percent government stake in struggling Aldar in an attempt to stop its falling asset value from dragging down Mubadala. -Agencies

10

ALWATAN DAILY

BUSINESS

sunDAY, april 29, 2012

KSE advances 1.16% at close of week, trading volume spikes 22.32% KSE weekly activity, April 26, 2011

percent to end the week’s activity at 11,580.1 points. The Insurance sector was second on the losers’ list, which index declined by 0.11 percent, closing at 2,670.9 points.

KUWAIT: Kuwait Stock Exchange (KSE) ended last week in the green zone. The price index ended last week with an increase amounted to 1.16 percent, while the weighted index advanced by 0.25 percent compared to the closings of the week before. Furthermore, last week’s average daily turnover increased by 3.37 percent, compared to the preceding week, reaching 36.57 million Kuwaiti dinars, whereas trading volume average was 496.75 million shares, recording increase of 22.32 percent.

The market managed to end the week in the green zone for the third week, supported by the positive speculations, which concentrated on small stocks, especially on Real Estate sector. Moreover, selective buying on some leading stocks also supported the market, despite some profit taking operations, which limited its effect. On the other hand, many traders are in caution state, waiting for the listed companies’ first quarter results.

By the end of the week, the price index closed at 6,337.0 points, up by 1.16 percent from the week before closing, whereas the weighted index registered a 0.25 percent weekly gain after closing at 417.87 points.

growing sectors as its total market capitalization reached KD 1.74 billion, increasing by 2.77 percent. The Real estate sector was the second in terms of recorded growth with 1.47 percent increase after the total value of its listed companies reached KD 1.99 billion. The third place was for the Services sector, which total market capitalization reached KD 6.91 billion by the end of the week, recording an increase of 0.93 percent. The Food sector was the least growing with 0.42 percent recorded growth after its market capitalization amounted to KD 665.84 million.

On the other hand, the Industry sector headed the decliners list as its total market capitalization decreased by 0.56 percent to reach, by the end of the week, KD 2.16 billion.

The Banks sector was second on this list, which market value of its listed companies declined by 0.54 percent, reaching KD 12.60 billion.

Sectors’ activity

The Real estate sector dominated total trade volume during last week with 1.02 billion shares changing hands, representing 41.08 percent of the total market trading volume. The Services sector was second in terms trading volume as the sector’s traded shares were 23.80 percent of last week’s total trading volume, with a total of 591.06 million shares. On the other hand, the Services sector’s stocks where the highest traded in terms of value; with a turnover of KD 49.39 million or 27.01 percent of last week’s total market trading value. The Real estate sector took the second place as the sector’s last week turnover of KD 46.40 million represented 25.38 percent of the total market trading value.

Sectors’ indices

Six of KSE’s sectors ended last week in the green zone, while the other two recorded declines. Last week’s highest gainer was the Real estate sector, achieving 4.43 percent growth rate as its index closed at 2,363.2 points. Whereas, in the second place, the Industry sector’s index closed at 4,540.2 points recording 2.53 percent

Disclaimer: This report has been prepared and issued by the Studies & Research Department @ Bayan Investment Company on the basis of publicly available information, internal data, and other sources considered reliable. While great care has been taken to ensure that the facts stated are accurate, neither Bayan Investment Company nor any of its employees shall be in any way responsible for the contents. This report is not an offer to buy or sell any of the securities referred in the report.

Market capitalization

KSE total market capitalization grew by 0.25 percent during last week to reach KD 28.50 billion, as five of KSE’s sectors recorded an increase in their respective market capitalization, tow recorded declines, whereas the Insurance sector’s market capitalization remained the same from the week before. The Non Kuwaiti Companies sector headed the

increase. The Non Kuwaiti Companies sector came in third as its index achieved 1.11 percent growth, ending the week at 5,855.5 points. The Services sector was the least growing as its index closed at 14,442.2 points with a 0.08 percent increase.

On the other hand, the Banks sector headed the losers list as its index declined by 0.36

India cut rates to enhance growth for the inter-banking lending rates, and for the amount of deposits required by banks. By cutting the policy rate, the RBI plans to make loans cheaper and deposits less attractive, hence increasing liquidity in the economy.

The chart also shows inflation developments. Unlike most countries, India uses changes in the Wholesale Price Index (WPI) as the central measure of inflation. While being very similar to Consumer Price Index (CPI) in the sense that it represents the changes in prices of a particular basket of goods, WPI differs by focusing on goods traded between corporations rather than goods bought by consumers. The reason is that tracking Indian consumer goods is more difficult, hence less precise. Suffering from a long-standing inflation problem, controlling liquidity is important for India, as shown by their relatively high policy rate, but there is a trade-off between inflation and growth.

What does the indicator tell us?

The main interest rate used by the RBI for monetary policy actions is the “Repo rate”, the rate at which banks borrow rupees from the central bank. This rate is used as a reference

Benchmark

Ÿ KSE - Price Index

Closing

6,337.0

Ÿ Saudi Stock Exchange (TADAWUL) Ÿ Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange Ÿ Dubai Financial Market Ÿ Qatar Exchange ź Bahrain Bourse ź Muscat Securities Market Total GCC Equity Markets

Current

Return (%) YTD-12 Return

(000's shrs)

(000's USD)

(USD Mln)

2,483,758

670,228

0.26%

2,647.5

0.33%

7,541.5

0.37%

2,507.9

0.31%

1,651.9

8,661.5

1,145.2 5,839.2

0.83%

0.26%

(1.21%) (2.75%)

ź 3- Kuwait Finance House Ÿ 5- Gulf Bank

17.5%

2,755,956

14,821,330

4.4%

260,605

89,791

22.1%

994,293

403,444

(1.3%)

65,048

552,250

0.1% 2.5%

7,094 73,434

2,569 48,894

6,640,188

16,588,506

Ÿ 5- Al-Etihad Etisalat Co. Ÿ 6- Kingdom Holding Co. ź 7- Samba Financial Group ź 8- Saudi Arabia Fertilizers Co. ź 9- Riyad Bank ő 10- SABB

ź 5- Abu Dhabi National Energy Ÿ 6- Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank Ÿ 7- Union National Bank ő 8- National Bank of Ras Al-Khaimah ő 9- National Bank of Fujairah Ÿ 10- AL DAR Properties Co.

(199) (345)

(1.18%) (1.97%)

3,583

0.46%

Yield (%)

3,168

3,933

4,197

15.3

1.8

3.4%

9,640

7,064

11.1

1.4

8.0%

27.1

1.5

1.8%

0.750

(1.3%)

2,178

5,385

4,039

610

1,419

3.3

1.5

2.1%

0.435

1.2%

1,145

2,930

1,250

37.4

2.5

0.0%

8,415

4,941

NM

4.4

0.0%

1,220

1,064

33.0

3.5

1.5%

0

0

NM

1.9

0.0%

235 3,740

141 1,570

18.3 13.0

1.8 1.4

2.3% 2.1%

7.1%

3.4%

3.5%

0.0%

0.0% 0.0%

1,210

1,049

1,041

1,005 923 657

102.75

78.50

42.40 13.75

Return (%)

0.7%

0.6%

2.9% 0.7%

Market Cap.

(SAR Mln)

308,250

117,750

84,800 57,291

Volume

(000's shrs)

Value

(000's SAR)

Trailing

P/E (X)

Trailing

P/B (X)

Dividend

Yield (%)

25,042

2,580,786

10.6

2.2

4.9%

5,568

437,910

16.0

3.6

4.1%

22,824

966,647

10.9

1.8

4.7%

41,252

571,383

25.8

1.1

5.1%

555,430

9.5

2.6

4.7%

69.00

3.0%

48,300

8,101 6,299

77,260

71.3

1.8

1.0%

50.50

(6.0%)

45,450

2,081

108,819

10.6

1.6

3.3%

877

158,721

11.0

5.5

7.2%

3,288 986

82,548 36,235

11.9 12.7

1.2 2.1

5.2% 1.5%

12.30

180.75

25.00 36.70

2.1%

(0.1%) (0.4%) 0.0%

45,582

45,188

37,500 36,700

8.74

8.70

Weekly

Return (%)

0.9%

(2.9%)

(AED Mln)

69,070

33,709

8.99

(1.4%)

26,970

1.26

(6.0%)

7,844

3.22 3.18

3.00 5.00

4.51 1.13

0.3%

0.3%

3.1% 0.0%

0.0% 3.7%

2

4.5

18,018

7,520

7,487 6,927

4,961 4,616

Volume

Source: KCIC Research on DataStream, 2012.

down to the central bank’s comfort zone of four to five percent anytime soon. Food prices have been accelerating this year, and are expected to remain around the eight percent levels, as poor infrastructure and underdeveloped logistics in India increase supply-side inflation. An-

AprͲ12 A

FFebͲ12

MarͲ12 M

JanͲ12

DecͲ11 D

OctͲ11 O

NovͲ11 N

SSepͲ11

JulͲ11

AugͲ11 A

JJunͲ11

AprͲ11 A

MayͲ11 M

MarͲ11 M

JanͲ11

FFebͲ11

DecͲ10 D

OctͲ10 O

NovͲ10 N

SSepͲ10

JulͲ10

AugͲ10 A

JJunͲ10

0

AprͲ10 A

4.0

P/E (X)

24.02

P/B (X)

1.31

Dividend

Important Disclaimer: The information contained in this report is prepared by the Research Department of the Kuwait China Investment Company (KCIC) and is believed to be reliable, but its accuracy and completeness are not warranted. Research recommendations do not constitute financial advice nor extend offers to participate in any specific investment on any particular terms. Investors should consider this material as only a single factor in making their decisions.

ww.kcicͲasia.com/research

other rising problem is the country’s currency depreciation, which has made imported goods more expensive to the Indian consumer, lifting energy prices. Since energy is strongly subsidized by the government, higher costs result in a widening fiscal deficit and debt, a significant

Dubai Financial Market (DFM)

Top 10 Largest Companies by Market Cap in Dubai Price

Yield (%)

2.9%

Value

Trailing

P/E (X)

Trailing

P/B (X)

15.71

9.80

33.50

12.10

10.40 12.47 15.77

2.08

3.4%

1.07

4.8%

0.96

2.6%

1.82

3.7%

0.91 1.56

5.2% 4.4%

1.85

2.9%

(AED)

Ÿ 1- EMAAR Properties

Beta

1.44

1.58 1.48

1.21

0.88

1.50

1.03

0.80

0.72 1.34

Beta

1.23

Dividend

(000's shrs)

(000's AED)

Yield (%)

8,175

71,157

11.8

1.8

8.0%

981

8,520

9.1

1.3

2.6%

1,280

11,636

7.3

1.0

5.6%

3,820

12,162

6.0

0.8

6.2%

1,533

2,010

10.4

0.6

7.9%

675

2,141

6.5

0.9

7.7%

2,381

7,102

5.0

0.6

5.0%

198

990

5.8

1.5

5.0%

0 74,056

0 83,652

17.7 7.2

2.4 0.7

2.2% 4.4%

ő 3- Mashreq Bank Ÿ 4- Emirates Integrated Telecom. ź 5- Dubai Financial Market ź 6- Dubai Islamic Bank ź 7- Commercial Bank of Dubai Ÿ 8- Arabtec Holding P.J.S.C. ź 9- Dubai Investment ź 10- Air Arabia Co.

ROE YTD Price Chg. (%)

13.0%

7.8%

12.9%

(10.5%)

6.2%

(8.3%)

39.6%

26.3%

7.1%

(10.4%)

3.3%

1.7%

12.0%

19.4%

0.2%

0.0%

10.3% 11.3%

(0.7%) (3.9%)

ź 1- Qatar National Bank Ÿ 2- Industries Qatar ź 3- Ezdan Real Estate Co. Ÿ 4- Qatar Telecom. (Q-Tel) Ÿ 5- Masraf Al Rayan Ÿ 6- Qatar Islamic Bank ź 7- Commercial Bank of Qatar Ÿ 8- Qatar Electricity & Water Co. Ÿ 9- Qatar Fuel Co. (Wokod) Ÿ 10- Doha Bank

ROE YTD Price

Chg. (%)

25.4%

ź 3- Bahrain Telecommunications Co.

(1.1%)

0.99

ő 4- Arab Banking Corp. (Price in USD)

27.6%

31.4%

ź 5- National Bank of Bahrain

2.5%

39.0%

0.68

15.3%

8.4%

ő 7- Bank of Bahrain and Kuwait

50.1%

2.7%

ő 8- Investcorp Bank (Price in USD)

10.4% 16.8%

7.3% (9.8%)

ź 9- United Gulf Bank Ÿ 10- ITHMAR Bank (Price in USD)

1.00

1.17

Ÿ 11 Ahli United Bank (Price in USD)

ő 6- Al Baraka Banking (Price in USD)

(4.3%)

ź 1- Bank Muscat Ÿ 2- Oman Telecom Co.

7.3%

13.7%

15.8%

6.0%

5.0%

ź 5- National Bank of Oman

1.24

13.5%

0.6%

ź 6- Oman International Bank

11.7%

3.8%

ź 7- Shell Oman Marketing

0.14

25.6%

20.0%

Ÿ 8- Ahli Bank

13.6% 9.1%

(0.9%) 74.1%

ź 9- Raysut Cement ź 10- Oman Cement Co.

1.13

NA 1.52

3.600

133.30

4.0%

(1.2%) (3.6%)

0.6

3.9%

1,425

4,101

6.3

0.5

7.0%

15,462

0

0

18.8

1.3

2.2%

9,876

31,799

13.3

2.3

4.7%

9,040

75,923

87,451

NM

1.2

0.0%

7,236

14,544

7.5

0.8

6.3%

996

2,685

6.6

0.9

7.1%

100,696

359,503

20.7

1.8

1.4%

11,531 31,524

9,989 19,343

15.1 9.3

0.4 0.5

5.8% 7.4%

7,556

5,442

5,382

3,067 2,837

Return (%)

(0.7%) 4.0%

19.00

(1.8%)

26.90

0.2%

134.80

4.7%

77.30

0.4%

72.30

(2.3%)

140.20

1.4%

244.20 58.60

0.7% 0.5%

Market Cap.

(QAR Mln)

Volume

Value

0 615 0.615

Return (%)

0 8% 0.8%

0.570

(4.2%)

0.420

0.0%

0.460

(5.3%)

52,625

12.4

2.2

2.7%

1,602

232,338

10.1

3.0

5.2%

50,397

17

315

145.9

1.8

0.8%

332

43,880

11.8

1.5

1.7%

20,175

5,324

143,201

14.3

2.4

4.1%

224

17,361

13.4

1.6

5.8%

842

61,578

9.5

1.3

8.3%

217

30,775

10.8

4.6

4.6%

47 216

11,467 12,726

11.0 9.8

2.6 1.7

3.3% 7.7%

79,970

30,842

18,265

17,890

14,020

12,692 12,112

Market Cap.

(BHD Mln)

1 213 1,213 809 662

492

(0.9%)

466

0.400

0.0%

341

0.0%

796.950

0.0%

0.26 0.155

(14.5%) 47.6%

356

240

217 164

Volume

ź 3- Bank Dhofar ź 4- Omani Qatari Telecom (NAWRAS)

0.619

1.285

0.445

0.550 0.298

Return (%)

(3.1%) 0.1%

(2.8%)

(7.9%) (1.7%)

Market Cap.

(OMR Mln)

1,112 964

490

358 330

P/B (X)

Yield (%)

Trailing

P/E (X)

Trailing

(000's BHD)

P/B (X)

Yield (%)

116

27

10 4 10.4

13 1.3

4 6% 4.6%

267

155

3.8

1.0

11.8%

396

184

8.3

1.3

8.7%

12

2

6.4

0.4

0.0%

30

16

10.2

1.7

5.5%

0

0

8.0

0.8

8.6%

0

0

10.7

1.4

6.3%

0

0

121.3

0.6

0.0%

260 3,647

71 192

391.3 NM

1.0 0.8

0.0% 0.0%

(000's shrs)

(000's OMR)

2,514

1,561

Trailing

P/E (X)

Trailing

P/B (X)

Yield (%)

0.27

1.31

1.23 1.01

17.6%

10.4%

-0.1%

34.5%

11.1%

2.6%

13.0%

(7.9%)

8.8%

126.4%

2.4% 5.8%

42.0% 3.8%

Beta

0.85

1.07

0.53 0.64

0.85

1.03

1.14

0.79

0.71 1.04

ROE YTD Price

Chg. (%)

17.9%

(3.5%)

30.2%

8.9%

1.2%

(14.2%)

12.4%

19.1%

16.6%

(3.4%)

12.2%

(8.2%)

13.2%

(13.1%)

42.9%

1.2%

24.0% 17.5%

24.5% (7.5%)

Beta

2 11 2.11

0.22 0.94

0.76

ROE YTD Price

Chg. (%)

12 2% 12.2%

(7 5%) (7.5%)

26.2%

(13.6%)

15.8%

17.3%

5.7%

0.0%

0.57

16.6%

(5.2%)

9.8%

(14.7%)

0.34

13.4%

(3.4%)

0.75 0.48

0.50 1.15

0.5% 0.3% NM

0.0% (13.3%) 138.5%

Beta

ROE YTD Price

Chg. (%)

13.5% 22.6%

(1.8%)

6.1%

(18.6%)

28.4%

(15.4%)

510

655

8.6

2.0

7.8%

2,153

976.9

35.0

2.1

1.3%

1,533

888

7.5

3.0

6.9%

1,612

483

9.7

1.2

5.7%

359

13.7

1.4

4.4%

99

228

18.3

7.7

5.1%

0.5%

210

4,184

926

11.5

1.7

0.0%

219 567

233 354

14.0 16.0

2.0 1.4

4.8% 4.8%

210 205

1.14

(9.9%)

3.5% NA

0.220

(5.8%) (1.4%)

1.62

(3.1%)

6.7%

1.3

1,367

1.048 0.620

0.98

26.5%

7.2%

9.5

247

231

0.05

Chg. (%)

Risk & Return

Dividend

(9.4%) (0.2%)

0.61

Valuation Multiples

Value

0.252

2.310

5.7%

Risk & Return

Dividend

(000's shrs)

Volume

1.40

Valuation Multiples

Value

Weekly Trading Indicators

Weekly

ROE YTD Price

Risk & Return

Dividend

393

93,274

P/E (X)

Trailing

(000's QAR)

0.545 0.930

Trailing

(000's shrs)

Weekly Trading Indicators

Weekly

Yield (%)

Beta

Valuation Multiples

Weekly Trading Indicators

Weekly

145.40

(OMR)

Chg. (%)

16.4%

1.34

(6.6%)

0.859 0.608

Price

13.9%

1.30

2.670

11.0

14,583

P/B (X)

Dividend

274,342

15,840

P/E (X)

Trailing

83,678

19,797

Muscat Securities Market (MSM)

14.0%

1.31

(0.5%)

Trailing

(000's AED)

Top 10 Largest Omani Companies by Market Cap

ROE YTD Price

14.8%

(1.7%)

1.990

(BHD)

4.3%

Beta

0.6%

1.130

Price

16.7%

0.74 0.73

3.190

Value

Bahrain Bourse

ź 2- Aluminum Bahrain

1.08

0.0%

Volume

(000's shrs)

Top 10 Largest Bahraini Companies by Market Cap

12.9%

0.82

1.8%

91.45

(QAR)

22.5%

0.76

2.850

Price

6.8%

0.83

1.6%

(AED Mln)

Top 10 Largest Qatari Companies by Market Cap

21.2%

1.06

3.250

Return (%)

Market Cap.

Risk & Return

Valuation Multiples

Weekly Trading Indicators

Weekly

Qatar Exchange (QE)

Risk & Return

Valuation Multiples

Weekly Trading Indicators

Market Cap.

Headline inflation (rhs)

5.0

Risk & Return

Valuation Multiples

Weekly Trading Indicators

Weekly

Policy rate

Risk & Return

P/B (X)

(AED)

Ÿ 4- Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank

0.51%

P/E (X)

Price

ź 2- National Bank Of Abu Dhabi

641

(000's KD)

Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX)

ź 3- First Gulf Bank

0.28%

(000's shrs)

Top 10 Largest Companies by Market Cap in Abu Dhabi

Ÿ 1- Emirates Telecom. Co.

789,352

138

(KD Mln)

(SAR)

Ÿ 4- Saudi Electricity Co.

16,609 17,140

1.41%

Return (%)

Price

Ÿ 3- Saudi Telecom

126,541

0.52%

1,084

Valuation Multiples

Saudi Stock Exchange (TADAWUL)

Ÿ 2- Al-Rajhi Bank

50,331

2,025

(KWD)

Top 10 Largest Saudi Companies by Market Cap

Ÿ 1- Saudi Basic Industries Corp

77,927

Dividend

0.610 0.425

ő 9- Al Ahli Bank of Kuwait ő 10- Burgan Bank

393,830

Trailing

0.790

ő 8- Commercial Bank of Kuwait

0.22%

Trailing

0.880

Ÿ 7- Boubyan Bank

238

(%)

Value

0.600

Ÿ 6- Ahli United Bank (Kuwait)

(USD Mln)

Volume

1.4%

4

5.5

2.4%

4,615

Prepared by Camille Accad - For more information please visit: www.kcic-asia.com or email: research@kcicasia.com. KCIC is an Asia-focused investment company. Licensed and regulated by the Central Bank of Kuwait, it facilitates capital flows between the Middle East and emerging Asia by providing financial and advisory services, and managing third party capital.

6

6.0

Trailing Trailing

Market Cap.

2.400

Ÿ 4- National Mobile Telecom. Co.

106,973

Weekly Chg.

Weekly

0.740

Ÿ 2- ZAIN

6.5

Ÿ 2- Emirates NBD

Weekly Trading Indicators

0.0%

8

70 7.0

Valuation Multiples

Price

1.060

7.5

3.0%

Kuwait Stock Exchange (KSE)

Top 10 Largest Kuwaiti Companies by Market Cap

ő 1- National Bank of Kuwait

Market Cap.

Value

9.0%

10

8.0

26-Apr-2012

Volume

1.16%

8.5

26-Apr-12

Benchmark

417.9

Ÿ KSE - Weighted Index Ÿ KSE - KAMCO TRW Index

Weekly

12

KAMCO Research

Weekly Trading Indicators

Index

%chg, YoY

9.0

KAMCO Research GCC Week No.17 GCC Equity EquityMarkets MarketsReport Reportforfor Week No. 17 GCC Equity Markets Weekly Performance

Since 2010 %

What are the economic and financial implications?

A 50bps cut in the policy rate would indirectly inject more liquidity, as loans become cheaper and deposits less attractive. As such, investments and private consumption, which were already gradually improving, could benefit and get better in the quarter ending in June.

However, inflationary pressures on goods may also increase. Inflation has been easing in 2012 - one of the reasons why RBI decided to loosen their policy stance - but is not expected to come

problem for India. The government needs to finance more investments in an economy that crucially needs it, thus the need of cutting oil subsidies has increased recently. These cuts, however, remain politically unpalatable due to the upcoming elections. The recent rate cut will in the short-term stimulate some growth, but the country needs some structural reforms such as consolidating the fiscal deficit and increasing foreign investment inflows, which will consequently strengthen the Indian rupee.

IN: Inflation vs. Interest rate

MayͲ10 M

Why is this graph important?

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) recently cut its policy rate by 50 basis points (bps) in response to slowing domestic growth. In the fourth quarter of 2011, India’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) eased to 6.1 percent, the lowest since 2009. Hampered by high interest rates, growth has been easing in the past two quarters, and is expected to remain weak for the quarter ending in March. The investment sector has been the most affected by the high rates, but consumption has also weakened in 2011. The last time policy rates were cut in India was in April 2009, and the RBI has been on a tightening phase for the past two years already, hiking rates 13 times by a total of 375bps, as curbing inflation had been RBI’s primary objective during that period. However, policy rates were untouched since November, as India found itself in a transition phase, where inflation was coming down, but still high, whilst growth was also slowing down. The RBI faced a tough choice between stimulating the economy and curbing inflation - and expectations that come with it.

By cutting its policy rate, RBI has shown that its priority has shifted to a less inflation-curbing and a more growth-enhancing stance.

0.88 0.66

1.29 1.02

(19.2%)

12.2%

(6.9%)

0.99

10.4%

(10.0%)

42.1%

(3.5%)

0.81

10.9%

(17.0%)

14.6% 8.6%

37.9% 43.5%

0.38

0.97 0.99

LIFE

What Constitutes ‘Healthy Eating?

When you commit to healthy eating, it means more than choosing fresh veggies over French fries. It’s changing the way you eat, too.

The American Diabetes Association offers these guidelines for healthy eating: • Choose a variety of healthy foods, including lean meats, fresh vegetables and fruits, whole grains and non-fat dairy products.

• Limit portion sizes.

• Avoid eating too much of the same type of food.

• Eat meals regularly throughout the day at evenly spaced intervals.

• Don’t skip any meal.

sunDAY, april 29, 2012

Odds of alien life boosted by billions of habitable worlds NEW YORK: A new estimate of the number of habitable planets orbiting the most common type of stars in our galaxy could have huge consequences for the search for life, reports SPACE. According to a recent study, tens of billions of planets around red dwarfs are likely capable of containing liquid water, dramatically increasing the potential to find signs of life somewhere other than Earth.

Red dwarfs are stars that are fainter, cooler and less massive than the sun. These stars, which typically also live longer than Class G stars like the sun, are thought to make up about 80 percent of the stars in the Milky Way, astronomers have said.

Red dwarfs generally have not been considered viable candidates for hosting habitable planets. Since red dwarfs are small and dim, the habitable zone surrounding them - the region where an orbiting planet’s surface water can remain liquid - is relatively close to them. “The habitable zone would be very, very small.

Consequently, the chances that you would actually find any planet at the right distance from the sun to be attractive to life was likely to be small, too,” said Seth Shostak, a senior astronomer at the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence Institute in Mountain View, California.

But the study, based on data from the European Space Agency’s HARPS spectrograph in Chile, used a sample of 102 red dwarfs to estimate that 41 percent of the dim stars might be hiding planets in their habitable zone. “The number of habitats might increase by a factor of 8 or 10,” Shostak told SPACE. Difficult environments

One of the largest concerns about planets circling

red dwarfs is radiation. A red dwarf’s habitable zone is generally closer to it than Mercury is to our sun, so a planet there would receive a strong shock of particles when storms erupted on the red dwarf.

“They could essentially give everything on the surface that’s exposed to the sky ... a heavy dose of radiation,” Shostak said. “It could be fatal.”

However, if the alien planet had a magnetic field, this could provide some protection. So, too, could an ocean of water.

Life that evolved beneath an ocean might be shielded from the brunt of the radiation.

Another problem with planets tightly bound to their host star is a phenomenon known as tidal locking, in which one side of the world is perpetually turned toward the sun and receiving almost all of the heat.

But this isn’t considered as big of a problem now as it had been.

For one thing, research over the past few years has indicated that the presence of other planets can ease the grip of the parent star, keeping a planet from being perfectly stagnant.

Furthermore, if the planet has an atmosphere, it might also boast wind, which could move the hot atmosphere to the dark side and the cool atmosphere to the sunlit side.

“Clearly, if it’s too cold on one side and too hot on the other, somewhere in the middle there’s that lovely Goldilocks zone where everybody wants to build their condos,” Shostak said.

Even with these challenges, the sheer influx of tens of billions of potentially habitable planets improves the chances of finding alien life.

Individualistic, patriotic cultures are most innovative: study

NEW YORK: Americans love to celebrate an individualminded US culture that has produced great innovators such as Thomas Edison or Steve Jobs. But recent research suggests the individual entrepreneur or scientist may not hold the only key to a country’s innovation engine according to LiveScience.

Two fascinating patterns emerged in a recent study covering 20 years worth of data on culture and innovation around the world. First, individualistic cultures did enjoy higher rates of innovation, but innovation had a weak link to freedom for independent thinking - the bread and butter of innovators.

Second, some countries with a strong “institutional collective” attitude of patriotism or nationalism enjoyed high rates of national innovation alongside the US and more individualistic countries, according to LIVE Science.

“Japan, Singapore, South Korea, Sweden, and Taiwan are all examples of national cultures which rank as both highly institutional collective and highly innovative,” said Mark “Zak” Taylor, assistant professor of international affairs at the Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta. Such countries have people who often value loyalty to a corporation, university or nation far more than local “tribes” or themselves as individuals. Their willingness to sacrifice at the expense of the individual allows their societies “to take the risks and make the hard sacrifices to innovate,” Taylor said.

But unlike nationalism or patriotism, a “tribal” collective culture based on loyalty to family and friends - common in countries such as the Philippines, India, Turkey, Mexico, Argentina and Portugal - had a negative impact on innovation.

Individualistic countries like the US did well on measures of innovation, such as highly cited technology patents or scientific publications, but their success could not be explained by the weak connection between independent free-thinking and innovation. Instead, innovation had a strong link to the freedom allowing for the individual pursuit of happiness.

One possible explanation is that innovators thrive in an individualistic culture that allows them to do what makes them happy. But Taylor suggests that individualistic consumers who demand new technologies and goods for their happiness may also play an overlooked role (In other words, it could be more about the iPhone shoppers and less about Steve Jobs).

The study had other twists as well. The individual freedom to pursue happiness had a stronger positive effect on scientific publications rather than technology patents. By contrast, a country’s patriotism and nationalism appeared to give a bigger boost to technology rather than science.

Taylor is first to admit that measuring culture and innovation can prove tricky - and he was quick to bring up the reminder that correlation between innovation and culture does not mean cause and effect. Still, he drew upon past surveys involving tens of thousands of people over many years to cancel out possible “noise” and errors to find the clearest patterns.

“By far my strongest finding is that individualism aids innovation,” Taylor said. “No matter which measure I used for individualism, or for innovation, or regardless of what other factors were controlled for, the correlation came through strong and significant.”

Culture also represents just one of many factors affecting innovation, Taylor cautioned, and so a negative cultural impact does not automatically doom a country’s innovation.

But he still found that individualism (or lack thereof) had a big impact on innovation even if its importance was balanced among many factors.

Whatever their cultural mindset, countries cannot expect to simply ride waves of patriotism or individual happinessseekers to the top of the innovation charts. Each country must also reward its citizens for pursuing the science and technology careers or entrepreneurial startups that lead to innovation.

So what countries look among the most promising for future innovation? Taylor pointed to Denmark, New Zealand and Australia as ranking highly on cultural individualism. The latter two countries have invested more in natural resources and agriculture rather than high-tech industry, but they could change their tune - and future prospects - with the right societal nudges and rewards.

FILE - Artist’s impression of sunrise from the surface of Gilese 581c, an Earthlike planet in the habitable zone of its red dwarf star. (Agencies)

New type of intellectual disability discovered NEW YORK: A new type of intellectual disability thought to affect cognitive development by disrupting the functioning of brain cells called neurons has been discovered, according to LiveScience.

The disability and the gene behind it were found by researchers at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH). CAMH Senior Scientist Dr. John Vincent and his team found a mutation in the gene NSUN2 among three sisters with intellectual disability, a finding to be published in the May issue of the American Journal of Human Genetics. The discovery was made after mapping genes in a Pakistani family, in which three of seven siblings had intellectual disability as well as muscle weakness and walking difficulties, says Dr. Vincent, who heads the Molecular Neuropsychiatry and Development Laboratory in the Campbell Family Mental Health Research Institute at CAMH. Intellectual disability is a condition in which individ-

uals have limitations in their mental abilities and in functioning in daily life. It affects one to three per cent of the population, and is often caused by genetic mutations.

Another study in the same journal, submitted together with the CAMH-led research, also identified NSUN2 gene mutations in Iranian and Kurdish families with intellectual disability. As with the Pakistani family, first cousin marriages in these families carrying the mutations increased the likelihood of intellectual disability among their children, and enabled researchers to focus on areas to map genes.

“The combined results from these two studies mean that NSUN2 is among the most common causes of intellectual disability resulting from recessive genes,” says Dr. Vincent. As a recessive disorder, a child must inherit one defective NSUN2 gene from each parent to develop intellectual disability. This gene, located on chromosome 5p, encodes a type of protein called an RNA methyltrans-

Plastic trash in oceans may be ‘vastly’ underestimated

Pieces of plastic debris found in the oceans are smaller than many people think.

(Agencies)

NEW YORK: An oceanographer who noticed a disappearing act in which the surface of the ocean went from confetticovered to clear now suggests wind may driving large amounts of trash deeper into the sea, according to LiveScience.

Oceanographer Giora Proskurowski was sailing in the Pacific Ocean when he saw the small bits of plastic debris disappear beneath the water as soon as the wind picked up.

His research on the theory, with Tobias Kukulka of the University of Delaware, suggests that on average, plastic debris in the ocean may be 2.5 times higher than estimates using surface-water sampling.

In high winds, the volume of plastic trash could be underestimated by a factor of 27, the researchers report this month in the journal Geophysical Research Letters.

Plastic waste can wreak havoc on an ecosystem, harming fish and other organisms that ingest it, possibly even degrading a fish’s liver; the trashy bits also make nice homes for bacteria and algae that get carried to other areas of the ocean where they could be invasive or cause other problems, the researchers noted.

In 2010, the team collected water samples at various depths in the North Atlantic Ocean. “Almost every subsurface tow we took had plastic in the net,”

Proskurowski told LIVE Science, adding that they used a specialized tow net that isolated certain layers of the water, so it would only open at a specific depth and close before being pulled up.

Next, they combined the trash tally with wind measurements to come up with a mathematical model, which allowed them to calculate the amount of debris at different depths on average as well as look at how that amount changed with different conditions, such as on a windy day.

They found 2.5 times more debris in the layers of water below the “surface water” (defined as the top 9.8 inches or 25 centimeters) as was found in that surface section. The debris was distributed down to a depth of about 65 to 82 feet (20 to 25 meters).

The findings mean the estimates of plastic litter in the ocean, conducted by skimming the surface water only, may in some cases vastly underestimate the true amount of plastic debris there.

“The scope of the [plastic debris] problem is not just at the very surface but goes down to 20 meters or so, and that plastic is distributed throughout this layer,” Proskurowski said during an interview.

He and his colleagues plan to publish a simplified version of the model so others investigating ocean plastics can use it.

ferase.

At the cellular level, the researchers found that the mutated protein was prevented from reaching its target area within the nucleus of a cell. As a result, it was unable to perform its normal role in cell division and/or RNA methylation.

Collaborators from the Wellcome Trust Centre for Stem Cell Research in Cambridge, UK, showed which type of brain cells were likely to be most affected by this mutation. They are called Purkinje cells, a type of neuron that responds to the neurotransmitter GABA. Purkinje cells also control motor coordination, which were affected in the Pakistani family.

“We speculate that the muscle effects may result from the accumulation of the NSUN2 protein outside its target area in the nucleus,” says Dr. Vincent. To date, Dr. Vincent’s lab has identified five genes causing different forms of recessive intellectual disability.

Bullied kids more likely to self-harm NEW YORK: Children who are bullied are more likely to deliberately hurt themselves, a new study shows. Kids between the ages of 5 and 12 who were frequently bullied were three times more likely to harm themselves, compared with children who weren’t bullied, according to the study, according to LiveScience.

“Prevention of non-suicidal self injury in young adolescents should focus on helping bullied children to cope more appropriately with their distress,” the authors wrote in their conclusion.

The researchers at King’s College London looked at more than 1,000 pairs of twins, at ages 5, 7, 10 and 12. The children were interviewed, and so were their mothers (separately), and asked whether each child had been bullied, and if they had ever deliberately harmed themselves.

Of the 237 children who were victims of

frequent bullying, 18 (8 percent) reported harming themselves, whereas 44 (2 percent) of the 1,904 children who had not been bullied reported harming themselves.

The link was slightly stronger among girls, the researchers noted.

Kids who had experienced adversity in their family life, such as poverty or a parent with a mental illness, and kids who had been maltreated were at the greatest risk for self-harm, the study showed.

Previous studies have linked being bullied with behavioral problems during adolescence, but few have looked at whether bullying increases the risk of self-harm, the researchers said.

Programs aimed at preventing bullying are needed, and so are efforts to help children cope with the emotional distress of being bullied, the researchers said.

Blueberries, strawberries may ward off mental decline

NEW YORK: Women who eat more berries may have a lower risk of cognitive decline in old age, a new study suggests, according to LiveScience. Researchers found that women who had a higher berry intake delayed cognitive aging by up to 2.5 years, as shown by their scores on memory and thinking tests.

Blueberries and strawberries, which have high levels of compounds called flavonoids, seemed to offer the greatest benefit, the researchers said. “We provide the first epidemiologic evidence that berries may slow progression of cognitive decline in elderly women,” said Elizabeth Devore, an instructor at Harvard Medical School in Boston. “Our findings have significant public health implications, as increasing berry intake is a fairly simple dietary modification to test cognition protection in older adults.” The study showed an association, not a cause-and-effect link, and more work is needed to confirm the findings.

Still, there are plausible ways to explain how berries protect cognitive function. Stress and inflammation may contribute to cognitive impairment, and flavonoids have antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, the researchers said. Increasing consumption of flavonoids could mitigate the harmful effects.

Previous research of flavonoids, particularly a group of compounds called anthocyanins, has been done with animals and very small trials in older persons, the researchers said. These studies have also suggested greater consumption of foods with these compounds improves cognitive function.

The researchers used data from 16,000 women taking part in the Nurses’ Health Study, which began in 1976 and is conducted by researchers at Harvard Medical School and its affiliated hospitals. Participant completed health and lifestyle questionnaires, and between 1995 and 2001, researchers assessed their cognitive function every two years. Women included in the present study had a average age of 74. Findings showed that increased consumption of blueberries and strawberries appear to slow cognitive decline in older women. A greater intake of anthocyanins and total flavonoids was also associated with reduce cognitive degeneration. The authors caution that while they did control for other health factors in the modeling, they cannot rule out the possibility that the preserved cognition in those who eat more berries may be also influenced by other lifestyle choices, such as exercising more.

12

ALWATAN DAILY

Technology

APP OF THE WEEK

SUNDAY, APRIL 29, 2012

Wave to the future with Samsung’s Smart TV Michael A. Kolarov Staff Writer

Jumanah Al-Ghadban Staff Writer

App: iGUST - Gulf University for Science & Technology Category: Education Price: Free Platform: iOS Works with: iPhone, and iPod Touch Briefly: This special app is for students who are attending GUST (Gulf University for Science & Technology). They have launched their official app, which includes many features that are important to GUST students as well as many others. Some of the things you will be able to find in the app are: GUST news and upcoming events, the academic calendar, staff and faculty directory, course descriptions, contact information, maps and directions, final exam schedule, a GPA calculator tool, and an announcements section. All of this will be available also via push notification system in which you get an alert when something new is happening. So if you’re a college student hurry and download it to enjoy all of its features.

TECH TALK Apple courts EPIX for upcoming TV: Apple Inc began talks earlier this year to stream films owned by EPIX, which is backed by three major movie studios, on devices including a long-anticipated TV, according to two people with knowledge of the negotiations. -Reuters Google disputes FCC claims of obstruction: Google said it would have been of little help to US regulators to give them access to the engineer who wrote a computer program that let its Street View cars collect emails, passwords and other personal data from people’s home wireless networks. “The fact that the engineer was legally unavailable did not leave any significant factual questions unanswered,” Google wrote in a letter to the Federal Communications Commission’s Enforcement Bureau on Thursday. Google was fined $25,000 by the FCC for impeding its investigation into the matter, in which the company’s Street View cars collected the Wi-Fi data over several years while crisscrossing the globe taking panoramic pictures of streets. -Reuters Skype debuts on PlayStation Vita game handsets: Skype made its debut Tuesday on PlayStation Vita, making its leading Internet video or voice calling service available on Sony’s sophisticated videogame handset. A Skype application for PS Vita devices began rolling out to PlayStation Store in the United States and was due to become available for download in Europe and Asia on Wednesday. -AFP Google raises bounty on software bugs: Google on Monday raised to $20,000 its bounty on software bugs that hackers could exploit for cyber attacks on the Internet giant’s online services. The maximum reward for exposing a vulnerability that would let an intruder’s code get up to mischief in a Google datacenter was ramped up from the $3,133.70 payout set when the bounty program launched in November of 2010. -AFP

KUWAIT: Samsung launched their first bold step towards the future with their new Smart TV line up at a conference in Kuwait on Monday. The Smart TV lineup is the world’s first television with a built in HD camera and microphone, it features motion and verbal control technology and it recognizes commands in 26 languages including Arabic.

Commenting on the launch, Vinod Nair, General Manager TV Business, Samsung Gulf Electronics, said: “Samsung’s latest Smart TV line-up stems from our vision to provide consumers with the most innovative products in home entertainment. Samsung is a pioneer in the Smart TV segment and this lineup continues to raise the bar in design, performance and picture quality in addition to a host of interactive features that offer viewers more content, a smarter interface, intuitive controls and more.”

The General Manager’s description was not an exaggeration as the interface is truly a smart one. During the launch the audience took the opportunity to test the TV’s controls, the voice commands and hand gestures that made its usage much easier than navigating with a remote control. The Smart TV also caters to all audiences in which its usage is sufficiently self explanatory that no extra instructions are needed to operate the system.

One doesn’t need a remote control to use this TV, the user can simply issue verbal commands to the television to change channels, or increase and decrease the volume. Alternatively, the user can wave their hands to the TV and it will do these things for them.

The TV also features facial recognition, with that the TV can be programmed to disallow the user’s children from viewing or accessing content a parent would disallow.

The televisions can also make use of the Google Android app market, as well as a specific app market designed for the Smart TV, apps include news, children’s content, and even Skype. Though the Skype website is officially blocked in Kuwait, the actual application can be used, and accounts can be created through the app rendering Government blocking of the Skype website a waste of time.

The Samsung app market features what’s called “Smart Content” and delivers more robust and personalized content, such as a series containing more than 400 hours of interactive Home Fitness

A screen capture of the Samsung Smart TV Hub Interface.

instruction, and an entire section devoted to educational material for children.

The Smart TVs are fully compatible with Cloud computing which is a recent development that enables users to share content such as photos, videos, programs, and more. Smart TV comes with a feature called “Family Story” which is a cloud based offering which allows the sharing of photos, messages, and reminders on a virtual bulletin board. Family Story is accessible though the many devices including the new TV’s, mobile phones, tablets, and even PCs. The television is designed with the future in mind, it comes with a system is called “Smart Evolution”, which is an expansion port

on the back of the TV where users can attach upgrade kits to keep their TV in line with the latest technologies. Samsung calls them “Evolution Kits” and will be sold separately over time so if a consumer purchases a TV in 2012, they can attach an Evolution Kit in 2016 which will keep it up to date. Once connected to the Internet, the TV will automatically keep its software up to date with no user intervention required, making it user friendly with even those who aren’t tech-savvy.

Samsung’s new Smart TV line is available at all major electronics stores across Kuwait and prices range from KD499.9 up to KD1099.9

Google launches storage service for personal files TED blends animation

SAN JOSE: Google is hoping to build the world’s largest digital filing cabinet in the latest attempt to deepen people’s dependence on its services.

The Internet search leader began its pursuit of the audacious goal Tuesday with the much-anticipated debut of Google Drive, a product that stores personal documents, photos, videos and a wide range of other digital content on Google’s computers.

By keeping files in massive data centers, users will be able to call up the information on their smartphones, tablet computers, laptops and just about any other Internet-connected device. Content can also be more easily shared among friends, family and co-workers by sending links to the information instead of emailing large attachments.

Google Drive is offering the first five gigabytes of storage for free. Monthly prices for additional storage will range from $2.49 for 25 gigabytes to $49.99 for one terabyte, equivalent to five laptops with 200-gigabyte drives.

The service is initially available through a Web-based interface or as a software installation on Windows-based computers, Mac computers, laptops running on Google’s Chrome operating system and smartphones powered by Google’s Android software. A version compatible with Apple Inc.’s hot-selling iPhone and iPad is due in the next few weeks.

It may be several weeks before Google Drive is available throughout the world. Many Google users were simply told Tuesday to check back and request to be notified.

Offering online storage is part of a technological shift away from storing personal files on a single machine in a home or office. Users instead are entrusting data to computing hubs accessible just about any time at any place with Internet access. The concept has become popularly known as “cloud computing.”

For all its technological know-how, Google is a late arrival in what is shaping into the Internet’s version of storage wars. Other combatants with a head start include two other technology heavyweights, Apple and Microsoft Corp., and pioneering startups such as Dropbox Inc. and Box Inc.

Google is hoping to differentiate its storage service by equipping it with more convenient and powerful tools.

Google Drive will draw upon the company’s expertise in Internet technology for text and images to make it easier to find data quickly. It can search within documents, for instance, while Dropbox looks for file names. It also includes optical character recognition that can search for specific words contained in scanned newspapers or other sources.

Google Drive is gearing up five years after word first leaked that Google was working on an online file storage service, then called Gdrive. The lengthy delay made it seem as if it all might be an urban legend, until Tuesday.

In a blog post, Google poked fun at itself for taking so long, likening Google Drive’s announcement to the sighting of the Loch Ness Monster.

But Google still has plenty of time and, more importantly, plenty of firepower to topple the competition, said Gartner Inc. analyst Michael Gartenberg. “We are entering this era where the personal cloud is going to be more important than the personal computer, so to remain relevant Google needed a service like this,” he said.

Even so, the new service threatens to amplify the privacy concerns that already have been swirling around Google as it gathers a trove of personal information through search requests, correspondence sent through Gmail, videos watched on YouTube and posts on the Google Plus social network.

This marks Google’s second foray into online storage.

Following Apple’s lead, Google last November opened a music store that included free storage for up to 20,000 songs per user.

Google Drive is starting out by undercutting the 5-year-old Dropbox, which has emerged as an early leader in online storage by attracting more than 50 million users who collectively sync about 500 million files a day.

Dropbox indicated it is counting on its unwavering focus on online storage to fend off Google, which has diversified from Internet search into email, photo sharing, social networking, online video and smartphones.

But Google’s deep pockets haven’t always been enough to overcome the early lead of smaller companies that carved out new niches on the Internet. -AP

with education at new website PARIS: The non-profit group behind the thought-provoking TED conferences launched a website devoted to video lessons cleverly crafted to captivate students.

A beta version of TED-Ed website went live at ed.ted.com on Wednesday with an open invitation to teachers to use video clips from its nascent library or Google-owned YouTube for assignments.

TED curator Chris Anderson introduced the website as an innovative, open platform for using video in education. “It allows any teacher to take a video of their choice and make it the heart of a ‘lesson’ that can easily be assigned in class or as homework, complete with context, follow-up questions and further resources,” Anderson said.

TED-Ed’s mission is to make learning irresistible by teaming top teachers with talented animators in fun videos that entertain while imparting knowledge.

The website -- backed by a $1.25 million commitment from US department store chain Kohl’s -- lets teachers build real-world lessons around educational videos. “This new platform allows them to take any useful educational video, not just TED’s, and easily create a customized lesson plan around it,” Anderson said.

“Great teaching skills are never displaced by technology,” he continued. “On the contrary, they’re amplified by it.

The website is the second phase of a TED-Ed project started last month with the launch of an education channel on YouTube.

“We want to show that learning can

gears

2013 Dodge Durt, a restyled version of Giulietta Compiled by Jameel W. Karaki Staff Writer

AGEINCES: The highly symbolic first joint-venture vehicle from the Fiat-Chrysler alliance is heading to showrooms as the 2013 replacement for the Dodge Caliber compact car. Essentially a restyled, reengineered version of the sporty front-wheel-drive Alfa Romeo Giulietta 4-door hatchback, the new US-built model will be the 2013 Dodge Dart.

With the resurrection of an iconic model name from the 1960s, Dodge hopes to challenge the latest set of compact sedans from its competition with the 2013 Dodge Dart.

The Dart sedan will be a longer, wider version of the seductive Alfa Romeo Giulietta, a curvaceous four-door hatchback available only in Europe.

Dodge says the front-wheel-drive compact sedan will come with one of three fourcylinder engines: a 2.0-liter, a 2.4-liter and a turbocharged 1.4-liter. The 2.0-liter develops 160 horsepower, while the 2.4-liter makes 184 hp. Both will be offered with either a six-speed manual transmission or a six-speed automatic. The turbocharged 1.4liter puts out 160 hp and is joined to either a six-speed manual or a six-speed dual-clutch automated manual. It’s expected to lead the family with estimated 40 mpg fuel economy and great driving character.

With a four-wheel independent suspen-

The 2013 Dodge Dart should offer the same quick reactions and sure-footed handling as its Italian relative. (Agencies)

sion, the 2013 Dodge Dart should offer the same quick reactions and sure-footed han-

dling as its Italian relative, with the good body control and heavy-effort steering that

you expect from a sport sedan. The exterior sports a muscular look with a split-crosshair grille, Charger-like tail lamps, rear dual exhaust and optional 18-inch wheels. Inside, expect a display screen in the dash cluster that allows you to switch between an analogstyle digital instrument display and an 8.4inch, overly square touchscreen for navigation and multimedia systems. The Dart will also offer blind spot monitoring, a rearview camera and xenon headlights.

At the wheel, the Dart’s seats are comfortable front and rear, and the seating position isn’t as low as you’d expect from the car’s lines. Soft-touch materials on most parts of the dash coordinate nicely with harder plastic elements, though big swathes of hard black textured plastic still crop up in a couple of places inside the littlest Dodge.

Dodge doesn’t consider the Dart a replacement for the lackluster Caliber, which the automaker considers a hatchback. Expect the Caliber to officially become an unpleasant memory when a Dart hatchback arrives. Not a sure thing, of course, but we’ve spied multiple prototypes of the hatch configuration in hot-weather testing, and a Dart hatchback sedan should match well against the Focus four-door hatch.

The Dart goes on sale in the spring, starting at around $16,000, and will compete head-to-head with the Ford Focus, Honda Civic and Hyundai Elantra.

The non-profit group behind the thought-provoking TED conferences launched a website devoted to video lessons cleverly crafted to captivate students. (AFP)

be thrilling,” Anderson said when TED-Ed went live at YouTube. “By turning great lessons into vivid scholastic tools, these TED-Ed videos are designed to catalyze curiosity,” he continued.

Videos were designed to be captivating and short, lasting no longer than 10 minutes so teachers could easily show them to students in real-world classrooms.

The channel’s offerings joined more than a half-million education-oriented videos on dedicated pages of Google-owned YouTube at youtube.com/edu. -AFP

Adobe to launch new software suite for designers

NEW YORK: Adobe is launching the latest version of its software package for designers and Web developers. Adobe Systems Inc. unveiled Creative Suite 6 on Monday at an event in San Francisco. CS6 includes Photoshop, Illustrator and other programs.

Unlike previous versions, which came shrinkwrapped in a box, Creative Suite 6 will be available on a monthly subscription basis as part of Adobe’s Creative Cloud offering. Subscriptions will start at $50 a month for those who sign up for a year. Subscribers will be able to download programs such as Photoshop, InDesign or Illustrator, store their work online and share files with others. This will likely make the pricey software package more desirable to new customers who may not want to shell out thousands of dollars upfront. Scott Morris, a senior marketing director at Adobe, compared the new pricing policy to the company’s decision nearly a decade ago to start selling its design-software products in one package.

Selling CS6 through subscriptions should also help Adobe reduce piracy, a persistent problem for companies that sell shrink-wrapped software.

Customers will still be able to buy CS6 as a packaged software suite, just as they can still buy the programs separately. Prices for CS6 range from $275 for the cheapest upgrade to $2,599 for the full “Master Collection.” -AP

ALWATAN DAILY

entertainment Song Of The Day

Fahad AlSabah Staff Writer

Song: Work Out (Funkymix) Artist: J. Cole Album: Work Out - Single Genre: Rap/Hip-Hop In short: J. Cole got his big break when a verse of his replaced André 3000’s on the single version of Beyoncé’s “Party”, and has since been delivering the goods. “Work Out” was the lead single off his debut LP released in 2011, helping it bow atop the Billboard Hot 200 albums chart.

To listen to the song visit www.alwatandaily.com E-mail your feedback to falsabah@alwatandaily.com

The Buzz Usher debuts new songs during off-Broadway play Usher debuted new songs in an unconventional way Friday night: The singer danced to his new music as part of the offBroadway play “Fuerza Bruta: Look Up.” “Fuerza Bruta” is the fast-paced and acrobatic play in which the audience stands as performers dance and jump around on the walls, onstage and on the floor with the crowd. Usher worked as its lead “Running Man,” beginning the show on a treadmill, bursting though paper-made walls as his No. 1 R&B tune “Climax” blasted in the background. There was also a plastic pool suspended above the crowd, where dancers moved and splashed around to songs, including one slow groove with lyrics like: “It’s raining inside your bed.” Water hit the crowd throughout the night, which included members of the press and industry insiders at the invite-only event. Usher debuted 12 songs Friday. He’ll release his seventh album, “Looking for Myself,” on June 12. -AP

Howard Stern to be strict on America’s Got Talent Howard Stern has never been one to hold his opinion back, and that apparently extends to his upcoming stint as a judge on “America’s Got Talent.” The first footage of outspoken radio host Stern in his new capacity as “AGT” judge has emerged, and the self-proclaimed King of All Media makes it clear that he won’t be coddling any contestants if they don’t make the grade. “I’ve gotta stick to my guns,” Stern asserts in the clip. “You gotta get the very best talent. I don’t want to go buzzer-crazy, but I’m going to be a strict judge, and I’ve gotta stick to that.” Indeed, shots of Stern in action on the upcoming season indicate that he isn’t afraid to throw out a zinger or two. -Reuters

sunDAY, april 29, 2012

Nugent says he’s insulted by concert cancellation LOS ANGELES: Ted Nugent said he was insulted by the cancellation of his planned concert at an Army post over his comments about President Barack Obama.

Commanders at the Fort Knox, Ky., post nixed Nugent’s segment of a June concert after the rocker and conservative activist said at a recent National Rifle Association meeting that he would be “dead or in jail by this time next year” if Obama is re-elected.

Nugent told The Associated Press this week that his words were not intended as a threat against the president.

“To think that there’s a bureaucrat in the United States Army that would consider the use or abuse of First Amendment rights in determining who is going to perform at an Army base is an insult and defiles the sacrifices of those heroes who fought for the US Constitution, Bill of Rights,” Nugent said.

Nugent said he had received messages of support from troops and noted that the Secret Service had met with him and closed its case about the remarks.

“There is nothing in my spoken word or written word that could be even wildly considered by any stretch of the imagination to

be a threat to anyone,” Nugent said.

Asked to clarify the remarks at the NRA convention, Nugent said: “A whole bunch of us ... believe ... we are in danger of being improperly and criminally jailed - I mean criminally on the part of the government.”

Earlier in the week, Nugent pleaded guilty to transporting a black bear he illegally killed in Alaska, saying he was sorry for unwittingly violating the law.

He told the AP that he advises fellow hunters, “even when you are aghast at a maniac, inexplicable, illogical law, please abide by those laws at all costs.”

Nugent said the prosecution in US District Court was the result of a “witch hunt” by federal officials over his activism.

“We the people are turning up the heat,” he said. “And that’s why I’m being singled out by certain fish and game agencies and certain US attorneys.” The AP was not successful in obtaining comment from Jack Schmidt, the assistant US attorney who prosecuted Nugent this week in Ketchikan, Alaska. An email seeking comment from Karen Loeffler, the US Attorney for Alaska, was not immediately returned. -Reuters

FILE - In this May 1, 2011, file photo, musician and gun rights advocate Ted Nugent addresses a seminar at the National Rifle Association’s 140th convention in Pittsburgh.

Struggling OWN announces six new summer series LOS ANGELES: Oprah Winfrey’s struggling OWN network announced on Friday the launch of six new series that will debut during its summer schedule.

The push for new programming comes amid a prolonged period of tumult for the fledgling network. OWN has seen a number of high-level personnel shakeups, layoffs and disappointing ratings that included Rosie O’Donnell’s talk show, which was canceled in March, after just five months. (The network is, however, up 14 percent year-to-date in its key demo of women 25-54, and 9 percent in total viewers.)

First of the new programming to debut, at 9 p.m.

June 4, is “Are You Normal, America?” - a game show in which two contestants compete to determine their normalcy. “Along the way, audiences will be entertained, enlightened and ultimately comforted by the fact that we’re all pretty abnormal ... but that’s what makes life fun!” is how the network describes it.

Next to premiere will be “Lives on Fire,” which explores “the extraordinary worlds of four remarkable women who risk their lives every day to take command during California’s most dangerous disasters.” That will

debut June 8 at 9 p.m.

Other additions to the roster include: “Million Dollar Neighborhood” (June 9 at 9 p.m.), in which a debtridden town is challenged to increase its net worth by $1 million in three months; “Real Life: The Musical” (June 9 at 10 p.m.), where amateur singers team with a vocal coach and choreographer to stage a live “flash musical” that “surprises someone they love.”

“Super Saver Showdown,” a July competition reality series that pits “ two obsessed bargain hunters competing to see whose coupon clipping, super saving, and DIY skills are THE BEST!”; and “Lovetown, USA” (August), which chronicles Winfrey’s visit to Kingsland, Georgia, where she called on the community to hold a “love rally” and challenged the populace to “open their arms and hearts to the possibilities of all kinds of love.”

“Oprah’s Next Chapter” and the documentary series “Our America With Lisa Ling” will also be returning. Winfrey’s interview show “Oprah’s Next Chapter” will feature episodes devoted to Neil Patrick Harris and spiritual healer John of God. -Reuters

Louis Armstrong’s last trumpet recording now a CD

John Mayer stumps for vets on Capitol Hill John Mayer is piping up for America’s veterans. The “Waiting for the World to Change” crooner made a stop in Washington D.C. on Wednesday to attend the Grammys on the Hill event, where he was one of the night’s main attractions. Mayer was honored for his efforts to support veterans in their transition back to civilian life, along with his work in promoting music education programs. On the red carpet at the Liaison Capitol Hill hotel, Mayer took a moment to talk about promoting his two causes on Capitol Hill. He was optimistic about lawmakers’ willingness to help returning vets, offering, “I don’t think you’re gonna meet anybody who’s ever gonna vote ‘nay’ on something to do with returning combat veterans.” The singer-songwriter also addressed the issue of helping vets reintegrate and find jobs as they return from war in the Mideast.

His strategy for helping music education stay in play in Washington was simple: “You don’t have to put it high on your list of things to do, you just have to not put it on your list of things to cut,” he said. Mayer, who’s currently taking his act on the road in an 18-city tour, shared the spotlight two other fellow honorees, California Rep. Howard Berman and the Hialeah Gardens High School, recipient of a Grammys grant to benefit is music program. Mayer is releasing a new album, “Born and Raised,” after his tour concludes in Phoenix on May 6. -Reuters

Mariah Carey and Nick Cannon renew wedding vows Mariah Carey and Nick Cannon say “I do” - again. A publicist for the pair says they renewed their vows Friday at the Eiffel Tower in Paris, France. Spokeswoman Cindi Berger said the couple celebrated with an “intimate ceremony after a romantic dinner at the beautiful Jules Verne restaurant” just after midnight local time. Carey, 42, and Cannon, 31, married in the Bahamas in 2008 after a whirlwind romance that began just months earlier. Carey gave birth to their twins, son and daughter Moroccan and Monroe, last April. -Reuters

Ryan Seacrest signs on as Today correspondent Ryan Seacrest has officially joined up with Matt Lauer and the rest of the “Today” show team. Seacrest will serve as a special correspondent on the morning-TV staple, NBC said Friday. The correspondent job is part of a new multi-platform deal with NBCUniversal. The two-year deal also extends Seacrest’s on-air hosting duties for NBCU property E!, as well has his broadcasting and producing duties for NBC, which include news, entertainment and sports programming.

Seacrest contributes to NBC primetime news and NBC entertainment programming. Beginning with this summer’s London games, the “American Idol” host will also pitch in with the network’s Olympics coverage. -Reuters

13

NBC fires Miami reporter over edited Zimmerman tape

LOS ANGELES: In what is either an eerie coincidence or fodder for conspiracy theorists, a second NBC employee has been fired over an edit of Trayvon Martin shooter George Zimmerman’s 911 call to police. Miami NBC affiliate WTVJ has fired 13-year veteran reporter Jeff Burnside, after the station aired an edited version of the tape suggesting that Zimmerman’s fatal shooting of 17-year-old Martin in late February might have been racially motivated. Two other employees have been disciplined over the tape edit, which aired on March 19. The Miami incident echoes that of NBC’s “Today” show, which aired a misleadingly edited tape of Zimmerman’s call on March 27. On the “Today” segment,” Zimmerman is heard to say, “’This guy looks like he’s up to no good... he looks black.

However, the full transcript of the 911 calls reveals a crucial bit of excised dialogue between Zimmerman and the police dispatcher.

“This guy looks like he’s up to no good. Or he’s on drugs or something. It’s raining and he’s just walking around, looking about,” Zimmerman said during the 911 call, according to the transcript.

The officer speaking to Zimmerman then asked, “OK, and this guy - is he black, white or Hispanic?”

To which Zimmerman responded, “He looks black.”

That incident led to the firing of an NBC News producer. In response to the incident, the station will be hiring an assistant news director and adding safeguards. “We take this incident very seriously and apologize to our viewers,” a spokesman for the NBC-owned station told TheWrap in a statement. “After conducting an extensive investigation, we are putting a more stringent editorial process in place to ensure this does not happen again.” Martin was shot by neighborhood watch member Zimmerman after purchasing Skittles and a soft drink at a local convenience store. He was unarmed.

Since news of Martin’s shooting became widespread, it has become a topic of passionate debate, with some suggesting that Martin’s shooting was racially biased, and others - namely, Geraldo Rivera claiming that Martin’s hooded sweatshirt contributed to his death. “I am urging the parents of Black and Latino youngsters, particularly, to not let their children go out wearing hoodies,” Rivera said. Zimmerman has been charged with second-degree murder. -Reuters

Chris Colfer of Glee writes his Hollywood ticket

FILE – In a June 21, 1971 file photo jazz great Louis Armstrong practices with his horn at his Corona, New York home on June 21, 1971. (AP)

WASHINGTON: A live recording of Louis “Satchmo” Armstrong playing his trumpet for one of the last times is being released to the public for the first time.

On Jan., 29, 1971, Armstrong was a featured performer at the National Press Club in Washington, celebrating the inauguration of fellow Louisiana native Vernon Louviere as the club’s president. On Friday, Armstrong’s performance was played back in the same place for musicians, historians and some who were there for the original performance. The new album is called “Red Beans and Rice-ly Yours: Satchmo at the National Press Club.” Amy Louviere, who was 11 when Armstrong played for her father’s inauguration at the club, recalled the audience’s delight when he pulled out his horn 41 years ago. Later Armstrong made her say “spaghetti” to get her to smile for a picture, she said.

“He just captured the audience,” she said. “They were thrilled.” Looking back, the performance was Armstrong’s goodbye in many ways. It was the last recording made of him performing live that was meant to be played back some day. His only later performances on trumpet were quick TV snippets with Dick Cavett and Johnny Carson. His health had been suffering for years after a heart attack and trouble with his kidneys.

Armstrong stayed home resting for much of 1969 and 1970, according to Ricky Riccardi, the archivist for the Louis Armstrong House Museum in New York and author of “What a Wonderful World: The Magic of Louis Armstrong’s Later Years.”

He felt strong enough, though, to make a come-

back with a few short performances in Las Vegas and then in Washington. That’s when he surprised the crowd - which included such politicians as Hale Boggs and George Romney - by pulling out his trumpet for tunes like “Hello Dolly” and signing his autobiography with “Boy From New Orleans.” Armstrong died less than six months later on July 6, 1971.

“He had such a love of performing,” Riccardi said.

“He had been off the scene for so long that I think he cherished any opportunity to get in front of an audience if he was feeling up to it.” His doctors tried to pace him. Riccardi found a letter from Armstrong to his physicians not long before the press club concert where he complained of having shortness of breath. It was becoming too much for him. Armstrong told fellow musicians that the best way to die would be to die on stage. By 1971, he was thin and ashen - still telling great stories, but a little of his spark is gone, Riccardi said. His performance in Washington, though, sounded as good as ever and better than some of his material from the year before, Riccardi said. And the audience knew this was a special moment.

A limited release of 300 LPs on vinyl were copied from the press club for those in attendance. Over 40 years, they were largely forgotten. Armstrong is often credited with being the inventor of the jazz solos, Royal said. Before then, there had been more focus on group improvisation. He broke racial barriers with his broad appeal and was an ambassador from the US to the world through jazz, Royal said. -AP

NEW YORK: When “Glee” star Chris Colfer was 8, he began writing a novel. He wrote two pages, called it the first chapter and proudly showed it to his grandmother. “She said, ‘OK, could use some development,’” laughed Colfer in a recent interview. That memory was worked into his script for the movie “Struck by Lightning,” which premiered at this year’s Tribeca Film Festival. Colfer wrote and stars in the movie. He plays Carson, an ambitious high-school senior who blackmails his fellow students into helping him get into Northwestern University. The 21-year-old actor came up with the idea for the story when he was a teen as a way to vent about his teachers and classmates. He then taught himself how to write a screenplay.

“I would go to my local Borders in Fresno (Calif.) and I would study Sofia Coppola’s ‘Marie Antoinette’ published screenplay. I’d sit there - ‘cause I couldn’t afford it - and I’d read it and I’d read it and I’d teach myself how to screenwrite and how to, you know, frame everything.” Allison Janney plays his mother, and Colfer says he always pictured her in the part. “I always had her voice in my head for some reason. Always, always,” he said. Janney said she was unaware the part was written for her, but loved it immediately.

“I was blown away by Chris’ script,” she said. “The writing has always been the most important thing to me, and I had an instant connection to his script. The characters were funny and flawed, especially the part of his mother. Then I met with him and was completely charmed by him. ... How can he be so talented and accomplished and charming and be so impossibly young? I can’t wait to see what’s next for him. Maybe directing?”

Dermot Mulroney, Christina Hendricks and Sarah Hyland (“Modern Family”) also star in the movie.

Colfer has just finished a psychological drama he hopes to shoot independently this summer. He also adapted a pilot for the Disney Channel based on Florence Laughlin’s children’s book “The Little Leftover Witch.”

He also inked a deal to publish two children’s books. “The Land of Stories,” which will be in bookstores in July, is essentially the completion of that story he began writing when he was 8. “It came from me being a young, curious kid holding a book in my hand and wishing with all my heart that I could just fall into the book and go on these adventures with all the characters,” he said. Colfer said he told his parents when he was growing up that he was going to write and act, and he has made good on those bold declarations. His portrayal of gay teen Kurt Hummel on the Fox show “Glee” has earned him a Golden Globe Award and two Emmy nominations.

Despite the opportunities he’s had since “Glee,” Colfer says he cannot ever really get used to fame. “I don’t think anyone can prepare you for it. ...

You find different ways of dealing with it and getting used to it, but it’s not something you can totally settle your mind into. For me, I always feel like I have this massive responsibility because of the kind of platform that ‘Glee’ gave me. I can never do anything that disappoints anyone. That’s my biggest fear - disappointing those people who look up to me.” -AP

14

ALWATAN DAILY

AROUND TOWN / TIME OUT

SUNDAY, APRIL 29, 2012

If you have an event you wish to include, please email: aroundtown@alwatandaily.com

Feature o f

graffiti

the day

moderately confused

GUST Student Business Club organize trip to Dubai KUWAIT: The Gulf University for Science and Technology (GUST) student-run club, the Ruwwad Business Club, organized a 4-day trip to Dubai with a group of 22 students and their families and accompanied by Dr. Sulaiman AlAbduljader, Assistant Professor of Economics & Finance at GUST, as the trip supervisor.

This trip’s purpose was to educate the group about the nature of business in Dubai.

On their first full day, the group visited the Dubai Mercantile Exchange for an informative lecture about the nature of business and exchange there.

They we were also given a tour of the premises where they were given a walk-through of what a standard working day at the Mercantile Exchange was like.

After the tour, they went to experience Burj Khalifa; an experience the entire group hasn’t tried before!

During the trip, the group got the opportunity to visit Abu Dhabi, and got to visit a remarkable university: Masdar Institute, which is truly one of a kind.

They were presented interesting facts and information about the building itself which is 100% GREEN! Being Green is no easy task, as

Month a t

the group learned, but has essential benefits to the environment: the building consumes 45% less electricity than any other building in Abu Dhabi, 95%+ of sources and items within the building are recycled, openings in the ceiling allow sunlight in the day to save electricity and the tour of the Institute was given using their Personal Rapid Transit vehicles, smart vehicles that detect their way around campus through sensors and work on a battery life instead of emitting intoxicating fuels.

The group also visited Dubai’s historical landmarks including the

Dubai Museum where we got to learn about the early Emirati culture through ancient artifacts that were discovered as well as instruments and tools used back in the day.

There was also a stop at the Dubai Chamber of Commerce where they learned that diversification is the key to Dubai’s success.

This trip assisted in fulfilling the mission statement of the Ruwwad Business Club which is to take what business students learn in the classroom, and see its application in the real world, not just in Kuwait, but on a global scale.

Sudoku

Elementary

Intermediate

Advanced

General A n n o u n c e m e n t s

a glance

Diwaniya presentation May 1/ 7 p.m. /The AWARE Center: The AWARE Center cordially invites interested Western expatriates to its diwaniya presentation entitled, “Criminal Laws in Islam,” by Dr. Teresa Lesher. Criminal law in Islam aims to safeguard the community and exists when there is potential harm to a second party. Join Dr. Teresa Lesher for a discussion of Islamic law (shariah) regarding the penalties for the major crimes, including murder, manslaughter, armed aggression, theft, rape, adultery, slander and intoxication, and how these rules protect the citizens’ material, spiritual and social development. Q&A follows a 20-minute presentation.

Marriage counseling session

K’S PATH invites applicants for the adoption of pets Sepp is a Domestic Long Haired (DLH) male cat. He will be 2-years-old April 2012. This friendly, laid-back boy loves a good cuddle and likes a high vantage point in a cat tree or ledge to look out from. He would do best in a home with children over 12 years of age.

To adopt, contact +965 67006122 or visit the website www.kspath.org

May 2/ 6 p.m. - 8 p.m. / TIES Center: TIES Ladies Club invites all ladies to a lecture on Marriage Institution by Joanne Hands (Psychologist, Licensed Counselor, Marriage & family Therapist). The lecture will cover on a brief introduction to the stages of marriage institution, a successful approach to the day to day marriage life, tricks of nourishing and improving your marriage relationships and techniques of overcoming the marriage challenges. Refreshments will be served.

For more information please contact us on 97228860/2523015/6 or emailinfo@tiescenter.net.

Mario is a gentle and affectionate 6-years-young Spitz male. This friendly boy does great with people and dogs of all ages.

Annual speech contest

Pretty Little Things Charity Edition April 28 - May 1/3:00 p.m. - 10:30 p.m/Sadu House: Try new things, meet the people behind regional brands, help raise funds to refurbish a part of the orphanage, chat under the stars by candlelight and stay a while. Opening day will be April 28 at 7:00 p.m. with special appearance by Fishyface booth and the event will extend from April 29 to May 1 from 3:00 p.m. until 10:30 p.m. held in Sadu House; Gulf Road; in front of the National Museum of Kuwait. Come and meet: Razan Al Azzouni, Fyunka, Sotra Boutique, Th\\’haba, May Jewelry, Paper Design Nest, The Yard, Peices By Farah, AK Eco Gioelli, Muneera Alsharhan, So Lulu, Baby B, Lina Jewelry Design, and more! For more information visit Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/ events/122809627847930/.

May 5/ 2 p.m. - 8p.m. /AIS: The Annual Inter-Gavel Club Contest showcases the communication skills of young children through speech contest. This speech contest will be amongst the members of 14 Gavel Clubs mentored by the members of internationally recognized toastmasters in Kuwait. This year’s contest will be held at American International School, Maiden Hawalli. Entry to this event is absolutely free but a prior registration is required.

Holiday Notice The Embassy of India will remain closed on Sunday, May 6, 2012 on account of “Buddha Purnima”.

Bread baking course April 19- May 10/ 6 p.m.-8 p.m. /TIES Center: TIES Ladies Club invites all ladies the unique course of preparing the ancient traditional food “The Bread Baking”.

Baking of different kinds of breads will be demonstrated including Old English Toast, Italian Bread Stick, Strawberry Sweet Heart and many more. For more information please contact us on 97228860/2523015/6 or emailinfo@ tiescenter.net.

Dilbert

Open House for Indian Citizens Ambassador of India would be holding an Open House for Indian citizens to address their problems\grievances on Wednesdays of the second and the fourth weeks of every month between 1500 hrs and 1600 hrs in the Embassy. In case Wednesday is an Embassy holiday, the meeting will be held on the next working day. To ensure timely action/follow-up by the Embassy, it is requested that, wherever possible, Indian citizens should exhaust the existing channels of interaction/grievance redressal and bring their problems/issues in writing with supporting documents.

Nancy

Horoscopes Aries: March 21 - April 19

Some underhanded and not altogether honest machinations could be happening at the workplace, Aries. You could be offended by it, and you could also worry if it threatens your job. Then you might also consider what you’re doing there, if it’s that sort of organization. These inner conflicts could signify the need to focus on the realities and discern exactly what you want to do. Then go for it.

Taurus: April 20 - May 20

Today you might feel a little out of sorts, Taurus, and your concentration could be diminished. You might even have a little trouble focusing on your work. Don’t worry about it. It’s more mental than anything else, and it will pass. You might feel the need to drink coffee all day to stay alert. Try to exercise some restraint on this, since it could be counterproductive. Hang in there.

Gemini: May 21- June 21

Today doubts, uncertainties, and insecurities could plague a love relationship, Gemini. Does your beloved share your passion? Is your friend being honest and open with you? Does this relationship have a future? The only way to get past this inner turmoil is to take one step at a time and take a good long look at the results of each step.

Cancer: June 22 - July 22

A member of your household could be going through some rough times, Cancer, and as a result might become overly dependent on your moral and emotional support. This is flattering, but it could also be a drain on your energy. Carefully consider what you really need to say to your friend. Sometimes you have to hit a person over the head with the truth (figuratively speaking) in order to wake them up.

Leo: July 23 - August 22

Some blatantly untrue gossip could reach you today, Leo. When you think about it, you’ll see that what you heard defies all logic and is actually rather ludicrous. However, the person who reports it to you could be so dynamic and persuasive that you believe it for a little while. Remember to check the facts in such situations.You’ll stay grounded in reality rather than get caught up in fantasy.

Virgo: August 23 - September 22

Virgo, today you could feel the need to work on your finances - pay bills, make deposits, and plan a budget for next month - but your heart won’t be in it. Your mind is probably on more interesting projects. If you try to force it, you’ll be unable to concentrate, so it could be a waste of time. It won’t hurt if you wait a few days.

Libra: September 23 - October 22

Usually, Libra, you have pretty good powers of focus and concentration. However, today you might find that these powers are flagging. Working could be difficult, and you could even find yourself dwelling on disappointments from your past. You might want to stop and try to figure out why these memories are coming up now.

Releasing them could reset your concentration back to normal.

Scorpio: October 23 - November 21

A strange person promoting him- or herself as a mindreader of sorts could come onto the scene today, Scorpio.This person, however, is more mixed up than mindful. Therefore, take any predictions with a grain of salt, if not the whole shaker. Chances are good that none of them have any basis in reality. Trust your intuition. Your insights should be far more dependable than those of the so-called psychic.

Sagittarius: November 22 - December 21

Your financial goals could seem vague and uncertain at this time, Sagittarius. Perhaps you face a crossroads in your life as far as income goes, and you might not be sure which way to go. Or else you could be planning to make some purchases and have a hard time deciding which are most important.

Capricorn: December 22 - January 19

A colleague’s motives could seem rather sinister today, Capricorn. This person has a definite agenda of his or her own that may not take into account the needs or feelings of anyone who could conceivably stand in the way. This person isn’t to be trusted. Don’t excuse his or her behavior. The best course of action now is to stay out of the way and protect yourself on all levels.

Aquarius: January 20 - February 18

Today doubts may crop up for you concerning certain spiritual concepts that you’ve embraced for a long time, Aquarius. Don’t let this cause a crisis. It could just be a normal part of your inner growth.

Instead, go back and read the old books that got you started, and then read some new ones and try to view the ideas from your current perspective. You could find they aren’t so doubtful after all.

Pisces: February 19 - March 20

Some disturbing dreams could bring up doubts you may have about the motives of someone you consider a friend, Pisces. This person might have been acting strangely, and you could be wondering about the future of your friendship. It’s important to look at the symbols in the dreams and try to analyze what they’re telling you.

ALWATAN DAILY

SPORTS

SUNDAY, april 29, 2012

15

Cricket

India unsure about Tendulkar in MP role Caption FILE - This file picture taken on April 2, 2011 shows Indian cricketer Sachin Tendulkar celebrating victory during the final of ICC Cricket world Cup 2011 match between India and Sri Lanka. (AFP)

NEW DELHI: Sachin Tendulkar’s nomination to India’s parliament was met with widespread bemusement Friday, with many questioning whether the publicly apolitical batting superstar will have the time or inclination to serve as an MP. President Pratibha Patil approved the government’s nomination of Tendulkar late Thursday, offering him one of the 12 seats in the Rajya Sabha, or upper house, that are reserved for presidential appointees.

He is the first active sportsman to receive the honor, with the seats normally gifted to people who have distinguished themselves in the arts, sciences or social services. The adoration of the cricketer in India verges on religious worship, a fact not lost on Friday’s newspaper headline writers, with the Times of India announcing that “God has a New House”. But while a number of sitting MPs welcomed the celebrity star power Tendulkar could bring to their affairs, the reaction of media commentators and some of the “Little Master’s” fellow cricketers was one of puzzled caution.

Tendulkar, who turned 39 on Tuesday, has played more Tests (188) and one-day internationals (463) than any other player since his debut in 1989.

He is the highest run-getter in both forms of the

game and last month became the first batsman to complete 100 international centuries -- 51 in Tests and 49 in one-dayers. Despite recent speculation about his retirement, Tendulkar has given no indication that he plans to hang up his pads, leading some to question how he could fit an MP’s duties into his hectic playing schedule.

Noted cricket commentator Harsha Bhogle suggested the nomination was a cynical ploy to gain “political mileage” out of Tendulkar, who has rarely, if ever, spoken out on political issues or professed any party affiliation. “I don’t think it is the greatest idea,” said Bhogle.

“He does not have the experience of governing or doing social work.” Tendulkar has not yet commented to indicate whether he will accept the honor. But news of the nomination broke just hours after he and his wife called on ruling Congress party president Sonia Gandhi at her residence in New Delhi. An editorial on the Times of India labelled Tendulkar’s nomination a populist move that made little sense. Pointing out that that Tendulkar’s cricketing duties kept him on the road for 216 days last season, the Times said nominating an active sportsman “defeats the purpose” of choosing eminent people who can enrich parliamentary debate. -AFP

Formula one

Red Bull’s Vettel taking nothing for granted

Red Bull driver Sebastian Vettel of Germany (right) celebrates in the paddock with Red Bull team members after winning the Bahrain Formula One Grand Prix, April 22, 2012. (AP)

ENGLAND: Sebastian Vettel made clear this week that despite his triumph in the desert in Bahrain last Sunday he is taking nothing for granted in the Formula One title race. Four races into the new F1 season, the defending double world champion and current leader conceded that neither he, nor his Red Bull team, were feeling confident of defending their titles.

The 24-year-old German, who blitzed to his second drivers’ crown last year with a dominant early-season run, on his way taking 12 victories and 18 pole positions, admitted things are not the same in 2012 as 2011.

“It is so tight now and we are not feeling as confident as we used to feel,” he said. “We need to do some work, to test things.” Although there were signs of a Red Bull revival in last weekend’s controversial Bahrain Grand Prix, where he was victorious ahead of resurgent 2007 champion Finn Kimi Raikkonen for Lotus, neither he nor his team appear to be convinced.

“I don’t feel happy with where we are now, but I do feel there is a great potential in the car,” he explained.

“So many small things can make a big difference, especially in qualifying, and also they can have a big impact in the race.” Vettel’s win at the Sakhir circuit last Sunday was his first in four races that this year have delivered four different winners, a mixture of results that suggests

the season ahead may be wide open.It is the first time in 29 years that the opening four events have produced four different drivers on the top of the podium, a factor created, many critics say, by the poor consistency and durability levels of the Pirelli tires.

Seven-times champion German Michael Schumacher has criticized Pirelli for the quality of the tires and suggested that they are turning the world’s leading motor racing formula into a tires-management contest.

Vettel and Red Bull have been reluctant to be drawn into the argument over the tires after an early season run that saw them take just one podium finish in the first three races before Bahrain - and saw Australian Mark Webber reel off four successive pole positions.

Vettel believes one of the keys to a sustained Red Bull recovery will be in tire management in cooler and more variable conditions and also the team’s performances in qualifying. Vettel’s triumph in Bahrain followed his first pole of the season and he hopes that is a signal that things are improving just as their main rivals are hitting a few problems. Like his rivals at McLaren and MercedesBenz Vettel knows it is vital not to fall away from a competitive level of performance at this early stage of the season ahead of the opening European race, the Spanish Grand Prix at Barcelona, on May 13. -AFP

Sports

Saudi Arabia considers allowing women sport clubs: paper LONDON: Saudi Arabia has set up a ministerial committee to consider allowing women’s sports clubs, Al-Watan daily newspaper reported on Saturday, despite opposition to female exercise from religious conservatives. Abdullah Al-Zamil, a senior official from the General Presidency of Youth Welfare, the top Saudi sporting body, said the committee was being formed to end the “chaos” surrounding women’s sports clubs which are effectively unregulated, Watan reported. “The mission of the committee is focused on building a system for these clubs,” the newspaper, owned by a member of the Saudi royal family, reported Zamil as saying. In the austere desert kingdom, powerful clerics have long argued against women playing sports or doing physical exercise, forcing female gyms to be designated as expensive “health centers”.A member of the top clerical body in 2009 said girls should not play sports lest they lose their virginity by tearing their hymens. State-run girls schools are banned from doing sports, but private girls schools are

allowed to offer sports classes. The General Presidency of Youth Welfare only regulates male clubs and its head was recently quoted saying he would not endorse Saudi women athletes at the 2012 Olympics.

Human Rights Watch has called on the International Olympic Committee to bar the kingdom from the London games unless it fields a woman athlete.

The most likely woman candidate to compete under the Saudi flag, equestrian Dalma Malhas, represented the kingdom at the junior Olympics in Singapore in 2010, but without official support or recognition.

Saudi women are barred from driving and need the permission of a close male relative to work, travel or open a bank account, but King Abdullah last year said they could vote in municipal elections, the country’s only public polls. Saudi Arabia’s only female deputy minister, Noura Al-Fayez, has written to HRW saying there is a plan to introduce physical education at girls’ state schools. -Reuters

Consistent Aussies continue progress ROSEAU, Dominica: Australia’s 2-0 series win over West Indies, capped by a 75 run victory in the third test on Friday, was not an emphatic statement that all is well with the former world champions but it still showed Michael Clarke’s team are making progress.

The 4-0 series triumph over India prior to this campaign was a clear sign Australia can dominate in familiar home conditions but winning in the Caribbean required some different qualities.

The current West Indies team, blooding young, inexperienced players, particularly in their top order batting, does not present one of the sternest tests in international cricket at the moment.

But the contemporary Caribbean surfaces, slow and turning, do offer a challenge of their own and Australia, with a number of players making their first appearance in the region, handled themselves well. The Australians don’t have the headline names that lit up some of the teams of the past - there is no intimidating opening batsman, no paceman to really strike fear into opponents and no world-class spin threat.

But there is a batting line-up that has enough quality and promise, matched with the remaining experience in Mike Hussey, Clarke and former skipper Ricky Ponting, to get enough runs, especially when helped by a tail that twice produced match-winning contributions.

The seam attack will certainly enjoy better fortune on more favorable surfaces while spinner Nathan Lyon shows real promise.

Australia’s cricket team pose with the Frank Worrell Trophy after winning 2-0 the cricket Test series against West Indies on the final day of their third match, April 27, 2012. (AP)

Behind the sticks, Matthew Wade, who kept well and made a key century in the third test, showed himself to be an able alternative to Brad Haddin who had to sit out the series.

No player will head home having had such an outstanding tour that will define their career, but Clarke will look around the airplane and struggle to find a player who hasn’t made a key contribution at some stage.

“Individually players mightn’t have performed as well as they would have liked but as a team we still got the result done and I think that’s a really good sign

of a great team,” Clarke said. “I’ve said for a long time that the focus is the team having success, the team winning games of cricket and unfortunately in this game you can’t always perform individually.”

Clarke now heads off to the Indian Premier League and Australia as a team will focus on the shorter forms of the game until November’s home tests against South Africa. And while Clarke himself acknowledges they are still some way from recapturing the top ranking in test cricket, he can feel well satisfied with the progress made under his maturing captaincy. -Reuters

Basketball

Shortened season over, time for the NBA postseason WASHINGTON: The sprint to the NBA playoffs is over and the postseason lineup is one of the most intriguing ever.

LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony, the young and confident Oklahoma City Thunder looking for an early knockout against the defending champion Dallas Mavericks, two Los Angeles teams shooting for one title and the venerable San Antonio Spurs looking for a second lockout-season title. Yes, the shortened yet surprisingly successful regular season is the books and the playoffs promise to be even better.

“I think our fans are hungry for the playoffs,” Commissioner David Stern said. “Our network partners are excited by the prospect, and you know, I think, I can tell you, I’m looking forward to it in the same way. So I think it’s going to be great.”

It starts with the Chicago Bulls, the overall No. 1 seed, hosting the Philadelphia 76ers. Then it’s Miami against New York, with James and Anthony just a couple of the big names in a series loaded with star power.

And with history. The teams met four straight years from 1997-00, the Knicks winning three of the series and earning a draw in the fights.

The animosity doesn’t exist between these players - James and Anthony have known each other since high school before entering the league together in 2003 - but you bet it’s still around for the organizations and fans.

“Once the ball tips off, it’s a series that we’re both trying to win,” Miami’s Dwyane Wade said. “Obviously it makes great headlines and makes everyone in the organization really tuned in to what’s going on. It’s kind of like they’re looking at us like, ‘All right, go get it done for us.’ But when the ball tips off, it’s another game against a very talented opponent.”

Also, the Indiana Pacers host the Orlando Magic, who playoff hopes seem to have left along with Dwight Howard, before the Mavericks visit the Thunder in the nightcap.

Dallas eliminated Oklahoma City in five games last year on its way to the NBA championship. The teams ended up in the first round this season after the Thunder fell into the No. 2 seed with a late-season stumble, and the Mavericks could never put together a run to move up. The rest of the series start today.

San Antonio hosts Utah in the opener, followed by the Lakers against Denver. Boston visits Atlanta before Memphis welcomes the Clippers in the two 4-5 series at night.

The Celtics have the higher seed as Atlantic Division champions but the Hawks get home-court advantage based on their better record. The Grizzlies snatched home-court advantage from the Clippers by winning their final six games while Los

FILE - Baron Davis (85) of the New York Knicks shoots over LeBron James (6) of the Miami Heat during a game at American Airlines Arena, Feb. 23, 2012. (AP)

Angeles dropped three of its final four.

And now they get the marathon playoff schedule instead of the 120-day sprint of this regular season. Often dreaded for how spread out the first round is, four games in nine days, such as the Heat and Knicks have, now will be welcomed by teams who had to play four times in five nights during the season.

The Heat want their first one with James, Wade and Chris Bosh but won’t look too far ahead toward another berth in the finals just yet. -AP

Pistons show improvement, but rebuilding continues

DETROIT: If there was one game that stood out in the Detroit Pistons’ season, it may have been the March 21 contest at Denver.

That was the night Detroit trailed by 22 points after the first quarter, rallied behind a 45-point effort from Ben Gordon - then lost by one in the final seconds when the Nuggets made a layup while drawing a foul, missed the free throw and scored on a putback for a four-point possession.

The ending was emblematic of the Pistons, who are becoming competitive again but still have plenty of work ahead.

Tom Gores, who just completed his first season as owner, has made the goal clear for next season. ‘’We’ve got to make the playoffs,’’ Gores told reporters Thursday night before the season-ending win against Philadelphia.

The next day, president of basketball operations Joe Dumars agreed it’s time for the franchise’s three-year playoff drought to end.

Detroit went 25-41 in its first season under coach Lawrence Frank and was never much of a factor in the playoff chase. But the Pistons played .500 basketball after a 4-20 start, a sign that perhaps the worst is over for the rebuilding franchise.

Detroit was in disarray after the 2010-11 season, when players struggled under coach John Kuester. Gores took over the team during the offseason, and Frank was hired as the new coach. After the lockout, the Pistons parted ways with Richard Hamilton but brought back Tayshaun Prince and Rodney Stuckey, choosing to remake the roster gradually instead of breaking it up completely.

Detroit started poorly, losing three straight games by at least 23 points during one January stretch, but the team rebounded with a run of seven wins in nine games in February.

The Pistons potentially could take advantage of an amnesty clause that allows teams to waive a player and have his salary taken off the cap. And Gordon would be the most likely candidate because of his $55 million contract.

Jonas Jerebko, a second-round pick in 2009, averaged 8.7 points this season in 64 games after coming back from a torn Achilles’ tendon. But Austin Daye, a first-round pick the same year as Jerebko’s selection, started only four games in 2011-12 and didn’t seem to have the coaching staff’s trust.

So Detroit has plenty to sort out during what will be another important offseason. At least this time, the Pistons enter the summer on a reasonably positive note. They went 9-9 down the stretch after starting the season as pushovers. -AP

SUNday, april 29, 2012

SPORTS

Sports Editors Highlight

LONDON: Interim Chelsea manager Roberto Di Matteo believes his bid to secure the job full-time will not come under threat from Pep Guardiola, who will quit as coach of Barcelona in a few weeks. Di Matteo’s Blues beat Guardiola’s defending European champions in the semi-finals of the Champions League on Tuesday to book their place in the final against Bayern Munich.

Guardiola had been considering quitting his post since December and on Friday announced he would quit at the end of the season. Although the 41-year-old Spaniard says he plans to take a sabbatical, speculation is rife Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich will try to make him an offer he cannot refuse. Abramovich is said to have long craved the concept of ‘Barcelona in blue shirts’, identifying Guardiola as the perfect manager to deliver that vision. -AFP

Football

Villa dig in for point at West Brom Van Persie rescues Arsenal as Gunners stay third LONDON: Aston Villa missed the opportunity to extricate themselves from the relegation dogfight on Saturday after scrapping their way to a 0-0 draw at West Bromwich Albion.

With relegation rivals Bolton being held to a 2-2 draw at Sunderland, Villa could have eased their fears of demotion by going five points clear of the bottom three had they won at the Hawthorns.

However Alex McLeish’s side were forced to settle for a goal-less draw which leaves Villa perched just three points clear of the bottom three with

two games remaining. But McLeish’s side rode their luck on their way to what could be a vital point, benefitting from a controversial refereeing decision

by Mark Clattenburg during the second half.Clattenburg failed to spot a blatant handball on the goal-line by Alan Hutton which blocked a goal-bound Liam Ridgewell header.

However Villa recovered well from that scare to create the better of the chances over the remainder of the afternoon, and Ben Foster needed to be on top form to keep Gabriel Agbonla-

hor, Chris Herd and Charles N’Zogbia at bay.

Villa were also grateful for the return of defender Richard Dunne after a two-and-a-half month injury lay-off with a broken collarbone.

Dunne’s reassuring presence helped Villa to only their second clean sheet in nine games.

However Villa had goalkeeper Shay Given to thank for a superb last minute save that denied Albion a winner, the Irishman blocking Peter Odemwingie’s late volley. -AFP

Rampant Chelsea close in on QPR

Arsenal’s Robin van Persie (right) scores past Stoke City’s Bosnian goalkeeper Asmir Begovic during the English Premier League football match between Stoke City and Arsenal, April 28, 2012. (AFP)

STOKE, England: Robin van Persie’s 35th goal of the season cancelled out Peter Crouch’s opener as Arsenal picked up a 1-1 draw at Stoke. While Arsenal knew a victory would have tightened their grip on third place in the Premier League and they controlled the game throughout, a draw does their hopes of Champions League football next season little harm.

At a venue they have rarely enjoyed, they fell behind early on through Crouch’s header. But Van Persie, who faces speculation about his future with only one year remaining on his contract, touched in for his second goal in eight games. Although Arsenal have endured a miserable record at the Britannia Stadium in recent years, they began with real purpose and Yossi Benayoun should have opened the scoring when he was sent through by Van Persie after robbing Ryan Shotton. But the Israeli midfielder, who is on loan from Chelsea, could only manage a scuffed finish from a good position.

Van Persie went closer when he was picked out by a neat cross from Tomas Rosicky but Asmir Begovic turned the Dutchman’s header around the post. The hosts had barely threatened but they took the lead with only eight minutes gone. The ball was played out to Matthew Etherington on the left flank and the winger

sent over a cross that was guided into the corner by Crouch.

Just before the break, former Arsenal winger Jermaine Pennant’s free-kick picked out Shawcross but the Stoke captain’s header was deflected wide of goal before Robert Huth’s long-range effort also flew offtarget.

Arsenal continued to press after the interval and worked space on the right through Alex Song but Van Persie’s diving header flew straight at Begovic from Bacary Sagna’s cross. Shawcross had to be alert to block Benayoun as the Israel midfielder was about to shoot after a fine run into the area.

The Stoke defender was also well-placed to pull off another important block after Kieran Gibbs had burst into the area and hit a shot. Dean Whitehead had a powerful shot deflected over as the hosts enjoyed a rare spell of second-half pressure. Van Persie thumped a free-kick against the wall and when the rebound fell for Thomas Vermaelen, the Belgian defender saw his follow-up blocked by Shawcross, with the visitors appealing for a handball.

There was still a late scare for the visitors, when Rory Delap’s long throw reached Crouch in the area but Sagna hacked the ball to safety. -AFP

Wolves stage stunning performance at Swansea LONDON: Relegated Wolves finally showed some belated fight as they recovered from 4-1 down to earn a remarkable 4-4 draw at Swansea on Saturday.

Terry Connor’s side were officially relegated last weekend after Manchester City condemned them to their eighth defeat in nine matches and they could have been forgiven for throwing in the towel after falling 3-0 down and then trailing 4-1 at the Liberty Stadium.

But somehow they summoned up the kind of spirited comeback that has been sorely missing for most of a miserable campaign.

Andrea Orlandi struck in the first minute before Joe Allen and Nathan Dyer extended Swansea’s lead within 15 minutes.

But Wolves rallied as Steven Fletcher and Matt Jarvis pulled goals back either side of Danny Graham scoring Swansea’s fourth, before second-half strikes from David Edwards and Jarvis secured a point.

Swansea had made the perfect start thanks to Orlandi’s header from Scott Sinclair’s cross just 25 seconds into the match.

Brendan Rodgers’ team increased their advantage

after four minutes when Graham and Gylfi Sigurdsson linked well to free Allen and the midfielder’s shot deflected in off Richard Stearman. It got even worse for Connor’s side as Swansea bagged a third goal in the 15th minute.

Wolves got a goal back when Kevin Doyle found space down the left and delivered a pinpoint cross for Fletcher to direct a free header over Michel Vorm in the 28th minute. But that only proved brief respite as Swansea notched their fourth after 31 minutes.

When Dyer’s initial shot rebounded back to him, the winger lofted a lovely ball for Graham to coolly slot his 13th goal of the season.

That should have been game over for Wolves, but the visitors punished poor defending to snatch a lifeline in the 33rd minute. Wolves had enough momentum now to believe a comeback was on if they could get a goal early in the second half.

They did just that in the 54th minute as Edwards held off Garry Monk to steer the ball past Vorm. And a stunning fightback was completed in the 69th minute when Jarvis slid in to convert Fletcher’s cross. -AFP

LONDON: Queens Park Rangers will attempt to do what Barcelona could not and beat Chelsea when the two meet at Stamford Bridge on Sunday afternoon. The Blues will be on a high following their Champions League semi-final progression at the Nou Camp, and midfielder Florent Malouda is confident that the squad can still compete for a top four finish in the league despite European and domestic cup finals on the horizon.“Big games are our daily bread, and are the best way to prepare for the future,” said Malouda. “We are happy to be in the two finals but the best way to prepare is to keep the confidence and win other games coming up. We have to win our big games now, we must win every league game to be in the top four. That’s our target. Everybody is fit and ready to do it, we have the quality of course, the ability to win games and be solid, so it’s our mission to win every game in the league and prepare to play Champions League football against next season.”

Chelsea captain John Terry is to stand trial in July accused of racially abusing Rangers defender Anton Ferdinand during the last league match between the two sides at Loftus Road on October 23.

The Premier League has announced that pre-match handshakes between the two

FILE - Chelsea’s Fernando Torres (right) vies with Queens Park Rangers’ Fitz Hall (left) during the English FA Cup fourth round football match between QPR and Chelsea, Jan. 28, 2012. (AFP)

sets of players on Sunday have been cancelled because of the pending legal case.

Chelsea are unbeaten at home against QPR in the last 15 meetings.

The Blues have won seven and drawn one of the last eight matches they’ve

played following a Champions League tie and haven’t lost at home in 2012.

Rangers have lost five straight games on the road and have picked up fewer points away from home than any other Premier League side. -AP

Dortmund close in on another record after rout STUTTGART, Germany: German champions Borussia Dortmund closed in on another record on Saturday as their 5-2 win over relegated Kaiserslautern took their unbeaten run to 27 league games. Having broken the Bundesliga record for the longest unbeaten run in a season, Dortmund are now just one behind Bayern Munich’s record of 79 points collected in a single Bundesliga season, which they managed twice in the 1970s.

Having been confirmed league

champions for the second season last weekend, Dortmund picked up their fifth straight win with Paraguay striker Lucas Barrios hitting a hat-trick. Dortmund got off to an inauspicious start at Kaiserslautern as Brazilian defender Felipe Santana scored an own goal after only 16 minutes to put the hosts ahead.

But the champions roared back just two minutes later as Barrios scored two goals in eight minutes to put the guests into a 2-1 lead.

Germany’s teenage star Mario Go-

Kaiserslautern’s Konstantinos Fortounis(center) and Dortmund’s US defender Neven Subotic (right) vie for the ball during the German first division Bundesliga football match, April 28, 2012. (AFP)

etze netted his first league goal for five months, following a groin problem, on 33 minutes to make it 3-1 at the break.

Although Kaiserslautern pulled another goal back just after the break, it was one-way traffic from then on as Barrios completed his hat-trick on 55 minutes before Croatia midfielder Ivan Perisic scored Dortmund’s fifth on 78.

Fresh from their penalty shootout victory heroics at Real Madrid on Wednesday to reach the Champions League final against Chelsea, Bayern enjoyed a 2-0 win at home to Stuttgart. Germany stars Mario Gomez and Thomas Mueller scored for the Bavarians at Munich’s Allianz Arena, their last game at home before the Champions League final.

Moenchengladbach’s goalless draw at Augsburg confirms their fourthplaced finish which means they have to win a play-off to qualify for next season’s Champions League.

Bayer Leverkusen’s ex-Germany striker Stefan Kiessling hit the winner in their 1-0 win over Hanover 96 which means they finish fifth and gives them a Europa League place for next season.

Stuttgart will finish sixth, which means a Europa League qualification play-off.

Wolfsburg, who enjoyed a 3-1 win over Werder Bremen with ex-Germany striker Patrick Helmes scoring twice, are vying with Hanover for seventh spot and the final chance to claim a European place. -AFP

Schalke clinches Champions League place BERLIN: Bundesliga top scorer Klaas-Jan Huntelaar struck twice for Schalke to secure automatic qualification for next season’s Champions League with a 4-0 win over Hertha Berlin on Saturday. Huntelaar scored in the 32nd minute before taking his season tally to 27 in the 88th, with Lewis Holtby and Raul Gonzalez also scoring.

Huntelaar opened the scoring with a crisp shot through Hertha goalkeeper Thomas Kraft’s legs, before Holtby finally sealed Schalke’s win in the 71st minute.

Raul signed off in front of the home fans with a close-range finish after a Schalke corner in the 84th, and then headed on a free kick for his former Real Madrid teammate Huntelaar to score his second.

It was Huntelaar’s 46th goal in all competitions this

season. Cologne failed to take advantage of Hertha’s loss despite Lukas Podolski’s 47-minute equalizer after Mensur Mujdza put Freiburg ahead in the 36th.

Karim Guede restored Freiburg’s lead in the 54th, Daniel Caligiuri scored with a fantastic strike in the 84th, before Sebastian Freis rounded off the scoring against his former side in injury time.

Cologne, which has conceded 71 goals this season, hosts Champions League finalist Bayern next weekend, while Hertha welcomes Hoffenheim led by former coach Marcus Babbel.

Former Germany captain Michael Ballack was thanked for his service to Leverkusen but had to be happy with a place in the reserves against Hannover. He was on the pitch to see Stefan Kiessling score the allimportant goal in the 75th. -AP

Raul Gonzalez of Schalke and his children say farewell to the fans after winning 4-0 the Bundesliga match between FC Schalke 04 and Hertha BSC Berlin, April 28, 2012. (AFP)