August 20, 2019

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Page 13

Memorial to victims of Boston Marathon bombing completed

By PHILIP MARCELO Associated Press BOSTON (AP) — Three stone pillars were placed Monday near the finish line of the Boston Marathon, marking the final step in a $2 million effort to memorialize the bombing that killed three people.

The understated monument of granite and bronze, which took four years to plan and develop, was supposed to be ready last year for the fifth anniversary of the April 15, 2013, attack, but underwent significant redesigns and other delays.

“We hope that this will help demarcate the sacredness of this spot and give people the opportunity to slow down when they’re here,” said Bolivian-born sculptor Pablo Eduardo as he put finishing touches on the monuments Monday.

Light spires and one of the stone pillars stand along Boylston Street after installation was finished, Monday, Aug. 19, 2019, in Continued on Page 5

Boston to memorialize the Boston Marathon bombing victims at the sites where they were killed.

Associated Press

A2 us

Tuesday 20 August 2019

news

U.S. prisons chief removed from position after Epstein’s death

By MICHAEL BALSAMO Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Attorney General William Barr removed the acting director of the Bureau of Prisons from his position Monday, more than a week after millionaire financier Jeffrey Epstein took his own life while in federal custody.

Hugh Hurwitz’s reassignment comes amid mounting evidence that guards at the chronically understaffed Metropolitan Correctional Center in New York abdicated their responsibility to keep the 66-year-old Epstein from killing himself while he awaited trial on charges of sexually abusing teenage girls.

The FBI and the Justice Department’s inspector general are investigating his death.

Barr named Kathleen Hawk Sawyer, the prison agency’s director from 1992 until 2003, to replace Hurwitz. Hurwitz is moving to a role as an assistant director in charge of the bureau’s reentry programs,

In this July 19, 2019, file photo, acting Director of the Bureau of Prisons Hugh Hurwitz speaks during a news conference at the Justice Department in Washington.

Associated Press

where he will work with Barr on putting in place the First Step Act, a criminal justice overhaul.

The bureau has come under intense scrutiny since Epstein’s death, with law-

makers and Barr demanding answers about how Epstein was left unsupervised and able to take his own life on Aug. 10 while held at one of the most secure federal jails in America.

A statement from Barr gave no specific reason for the reassignment. But Barr said last week that officials had uncovered “serious irregularities” and was angry that staff members at the jail had failed to “adequately secure this prisoner.”

He ordered the bureau last Tuesday to temporarily reassign the warden , Lamine N’Diaye, to a regional office and the two guards who were supposed to be watching Epstein were placed on administrative leave.

“This is a good start, but it’s not the end,” Sen. Ben Sasse, a Republican from Nebraska who serves on the Senate Judiciary Committee, said in a statement.

“Attorney General Barr did the right thing by removing the head of the Federal Bureau of Prisons and he ought to make every effort to prosecute every one of Epstein’s co-conspirators to the fullest extent of the law.”

The guards on Epstein’s unit failed to check on

him every half hour, as required, and are suspected of falsifying log entries to show they had, according to several people familiar with the matter.

Both guards were working overtime because of staffing shortages, the people said.

Multiple people familiar with operations at the jail say Epstein was taken off suicide watch about a week after he was found on his cell floor July 23 with bruises around his neck, and put back in a highsecurity housing unit where he was less closely monitored but still supposed to be checked on every 30 minutes.

They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to publicly discuss the investigation.

Hurwitz is a longtime bureaucrat who joined the bureau in 1998.

He had also served in the Education Department and the Food and Drug Administration and worked for NASA’s office of inspector general.

He returned to the prison agency in 2015 and was appointed acting director by then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions in 2018.

He also weathered through the death of Boston mobster James “Whitey” Bulger, who was killed in a federal prison in West Virginia in October, just after he was transferred there.

Lawmakers, advocates and even prison guards had been sounding the alarm about dangerous conditions there for years, but there has been no public indication that federal prison officials took any action to address the safety concerns.

Bulger’s killing was the third at the facility within six months.

As director of the bureau, Hurwitz was responsible for overseeing 122 facilities, 37,000 staff members and about 184,000 inmates.

Hawk Sawyer was the first woman to lead the agency and held a number of jobs during nearly 27 years there.

She worked as a psychologist at a federal correctional facility in West Virginia, served as an associate warden and then a warden at other facilities, and ultimately was nominated to lead the agency during Barr’s first stint as attorney general in the early 1990s.

“Under Dr. Hawk Sawyer’s previous tenure at the Bureau, she led the agency with excellence, innovation, and efficiency, receiving numerous awards for her outstanding leadership,” Barr said in a statement.

Barr also named Thomas Kane, a longtime bureau employee who has held a variety of leadership roles, as the deputy director.

Kane worked at the agency from 1977 to 2018, under four attorneys general, and has previously served as the bureau’s acting director, chief of staff, assistant director and deputy director.

“During this critical juncture, I am confident Dr. Hawk Sawyer and Dr. Kane will lead BOP with the competence, skill, and resourcefulness they have embodied throughout their government careers,” Barr said.q

U.S. NEWS A3

Tuesday 20 August 2019

Planned Parenthood leaves federal family planning program

By DAVID CRARY and RICARDO ALONSO-ZALDIVAR Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — Planned Parenthood said Monday it’s pulling out of the federal family planning program rather than abide by a new Trump administration rule prohibiting clinics from referring women for abortions.

Alexis McGill Johnson, Planned Parenthood’s acting president and CEO, said the organization’s nationwide network of health centers would remain open and strive to make up for the loss of federal money.

But she predicted that many low-income women who rely on Planned Parenthood services would “delay or go without” care.

“We will not be bullied into withholding abortion information from our patients,” said McGill Johnson.

“Our patients deserve to make their own health care decisions, not to be forced to have Donald Trump or Mike Pence make those decisions for them.”

Responding with its own statement, the federal Department of Health and Human Services said that Planned Parenthood affiliates knew months ago about the new restrictions and suggested that the group could have chosen at that point to exit the program.

“Some grantees are now blaming the government for their own actions — having chosen to accept the grant while failing to comply with the regulations that accompany it — and they are abandoning their obligations to serve patients under the program,” the department said.

Planned Parenthood was not the only organization dropping out. Maine Family

Planning, which is unaffiliated with Planned Parenthood, also released its letter of withdrawal Monday. The National Family Planning & Reproductive Health Association, an umbrella group for family planning clinics is suing to overturn the regulations.

About 4 million women are served nationwide under the Title X program, which distributes $260 million in grants to clinics. Planned Parenthood says it has served about 40% of patients.

A federal appeals court in San Francisco is weighing a lawsuit to overturn the rules, but so far the court has allowed the administration to go ahead with enforcement.

Oral arguments are scheduled the week of Sept.

23. Several states and the American Medical Association have joined the suit as plaintiffs. Activists are also pressing Congress to overturn the rule.

Monday was the deadline set by the government for program participants to submit statements that they intended to comply with the new rules, along with a plan. Enforcement will start Sept. 18.

Along with the ban on abortion referrals by clinics, the rule’s requirements include financial separation from facilities that provide abortion, designating abortion counseling as optional instead of standard practice, and limiting which staff members can discuss abortion with patients.

Clinics would have until next March to separate their office space and examination rooms from the physical facilities of providers that offer abortions.

The family planning rule is part of a series of efforts to

remake government policy on reproductive health to please conservatives who are a key part of President Donald Trump’s political base.

Religious conservatives see the program as providing an indirect subsidy to Planned Parenthood, which runs family planning clinics and is also a major abortion provider.

Planned Parenthood has called the ban on abortion referrals a “gag rule,” while the administration insists that’s not the case.

Maine Family Planning CEO George Hill said in a letter to HHS that his organization is withdrawing “more in sorrow than in anger” after 47 years of participating in the program.

In this June 4, 2019, file photo, a Planned Parenthood clinic is photographed in St. Louis.

Associated Press

He said the Trump administration regulation “would fundamentally compromise the relationship our patients have with us as trusted providers of this

most personal and private health care. It is simply wrong to deny patients accurate information about and access to abortion care.”q

A4 U.S.

Tuesday 20 August 2019

NEWS

Warren apologizes for heritage claim, woos Native Americans

Elizabeth Warren, 2020 Democratic presidential hopeful, speaks during the first day of the Frank LaMere Native American Presidential Forum held Monday, Aug. 19, 2019 at the Orpheum Theatre in Sioux City, Iowa.

Associated Press

By ELANA SCHOR and JOSH FUNK Associated Press SIOUX CITY, Iowa (AP) — Democratic presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren offered a public apology Monday to Native Americans over her past claim to tribal heritage, directly tackling an area that’s proved to be a big political liability.

“Like anyone who has been honest with themselves, I know I have made mistakes,” the Massachusetts senator said at a forum on Native American issues in this pivotal early voting state. “I am sorry for the harm I have caused.”

Monday’s remarks were an effort to move past the fallout from her past claims of tribal ancestry, which culminated in a widely criticized release of a DNA analysis last year. The issue nearly derailed her cam-

paign in the early days as President Donald Trump began derisively referring to her as “Pocahontas.”

Now that Warren is gaining in most polls, she’s trying to prove to voters that the controversy won’t doom her in a general election matchup against Trump.

The detailed policy agenda to help Native Americans that she released last week helped her secure a warm reception from attendees at the tribal forum.

After drawing a standing ovation, Warren said “I have listened and I have learned a lot” from conversations with Native Americans in recent months, describing herself as “grateful” for the dialogue. She fielded questions about her proposals, which include a legislative change for a Supreme Court ruling that impedes tribal governments’ ability to prosecute crimes

committed on tribal lands by those who don’t belong to a tribe.

Warren’s DNA analysis — part of a broader pushback against Trump’s disparaging nickname — showed evidence of a tribal ancestor as far as 10 generations back, but the Cherokee Nation joined some other Native Americans in rebuking the senator for attributing tribal membership to genetics. Warren later apologized privately to the Cherokee and had addressed her regret before Monday’s appearance.

As of Monday, her campaign website’s page containing a video and other materials Warren had released on the DNA analysis was no longer active.

The Native American forum this week is expected to draw 10 of her White House rivals.

New Mexico Rep. Deb

Haaland, who last year became one of the first two Native American women elected to Congress, introduced Warren on Monday after endorsing her presidential campaign last month and aligning with her for new legislation aimed at helping tribal communities. Haaland lamented that Warren’s ancestry has attracted outsized attention when Trump faces his own charges of racism.

Those who “ask about Elizabeth’s family instead of issues of vital importance to Indian Country,” Haaland told the forum audience, “feed the president’s racism.”

Warren’s remarks were well-received by attendees at the Native American forum.

Manny Iron Hawk, 62, who lives on the Cheyenne River Sioux reservation in South Dakota, said Warren “did

excellent” in her Monday appearance and has done a good job of addressing her past mistakes. “I think she did. A person has to admit their mistakes and move on.”

Iron Hawk said he had hoped to talk to Warren about tribal governance issues, but she left too quickly for him to catch her.

Snuffy Main, 64, who traveled to the conference from Montana, said he doesn’t think Warren needs to continue apologizing for claiming Native American heritage.

“I don’t understand why she is constantly apologetic for making a mistake,” said Main, who is a member of the Gros Ventre Tribe of Montana. He said he liked what Warren had to say about making sure the country honors its promises and treaties with tribes.

“If she can do even a fraction of what she promised, that would be beneficial,” he said.

Gary Funmaker, 72, of Black River Falls, Wisconsin, said Warren had “good energy to her” and he didn’t see much need for further apology.

“That’s accepted. That’s old news,” said Funmaker, a Republican who used to work for the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

Later Monday, Warren campaigned in Minnesota, a state Trump hopes to take out of Democrats’ column next year. The senator drew her largest crowd yet — 12,000 people, according to her campaign — to an outdoor rally at Macalester College, a private liberal arts school in St. Paul.

“I don’t want a government that works for giant multinational corporations.

I want one that works for our families,” she told the crowd.q

U.S. NEWS A5

Tuesday 20 August 2019

Detained immigrants sue over conditions, medical care

By AMY TAXIN Associated Press LOS ANGELES (AP) — Immigrants held in U.S. detention facilities filed a lawsuit Monday decrying what they called shoddy medical care and a failure by authorities to provide accommodations for disabilities.

In the suit filed by disability and civil rights advocates in U.S. District Court, immigrants said they’re placed in isolation as punishment and denied recommended medical treatment and surgery. Some said they’ve been denied wheelchairs and a deaf detainee who communicates in American Sign Language said he has not been provided an interpreter.

The problems harm disabled immigrants and threaten anyone in one of Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s more than 50,000 detention beds who winds up getting sick or isolated from other detainees, said Monica Porter, staff attorney at Disability Rights Advocates, one of the organizations that filed the suit.

“ICE cannot simply contract with third parties to operate its detention centers and then wash its hands of the deplorable, unlawful conditions in those deten-

tion centers,” said Tim Fox, co-executive director of the Civil Rights Education and Enforcement Center.

ICE, which largely contracts with private companies and law enforcement agencies for detention space, declined to comment specifically about the lawsuit.

An agency official said comprehensive medical care is provided to all detainees including dental and 24-hour emergency care and studies have shown about 1 percent of detainees are held in segregated housing at a given time. The lawsuit filed on behalf of 15 immigrants from countries including Sudan and Mexico and nonprofits seeks to represent immigrant detainees across the country. The suit cites problems at eight facilities including a privatelyrun center in Adelanto California, and Teller County Jail in Colorado.

Advocates said they want to see changes in medical treatment and policies for the immigrants, who are fighting deportation, and the release of immigrants under alternative programs.

The number of immigrants in detention has grown in recent years. There are cur-

rently an average 55,000 immigrants in detention each day, according to ICE. One of the plaintiffs, Faour Abdullah Fraihat, has been detained in Adelanto for more than two years and lost vision in his left eye.

While an off-site doctor recommended surgery in April, immigration authorities didn’t provide it and he was told last month his vision couldn’t be restored, according to the lawsuit.

Fraihat, 57, who has back and knee pain, said he was given a wheelchair but it was taken away after a month. For more than a year, he relied on officers to bring him food, the suit said. Another detainee at the facility about 60 miles (100 kilometers) northeast of Los Angeles said he was placed in segregation for a week after filing a grievance against an officer, the suit said.

Luis Manuel Delgadillo, a 29-year-old who has lived most of his life in the United States, was on medication for schizophrenia and bipolar disorder but his treatment shifted after he was detained in May. Since then, his mental health has suffered, prompting him to miss two court dates, according to the lawsuit.q

Gisselle Contreras, at podium, daughter of an immigrant detained at Adelanto, Calif., describes her father’s housing conditions before his final deportation to Guatemala, as she joins criminal justice, disability rights, and immigration organizations announcing a class-action lawsuit filed on behalf of thousands of people suffering in ICE detention centers for unconstitutional medical, mental health, and disability accommodations in ICE detention centers, during a news conference outside the Roybal Federal Courthouse in Los Angeles Monday, Aug. 19, 2019. At left, Anthony Diaz, an American Sign Language (ASL) interpreter.

Associated Press

Pentagon conducts 1st test of previously banned missile

By ROBERT BURNS and LOLITA C. BALDOR Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. military has conducted a flight test of a type of missile banned for more than 30 years by a treaty that both the United States and Russia abandoned this month, the Pentagon said.

The test off the coast of California on Sunday marked the resumption of an arms competition that some analysts worry could

increase U.S.-Russian tensions. The Trump administration has said it remains interested in useful arms control but questions Moscow’s willingness to adhere to its treaty commitments. The Pentagon said it tested a modified ground-launched version of a Navy Tomahawk cruise missile, which was launched from San Nicolas Island and accurately struck its target after flying more than 500 kilometers (310 miles). q

Memorial to victims of Boston Marathon bombing completed Continued from Front

Nichola Forrester, a Milton, Massachusetts, resident who completed the 2013 race long before the bombs detonated, was among those pausing to reflect on their lunch break.

“I said a prayer for them,” she said after asking a bystander to take a photo of her beside one of the pillars.

“I’m pretty sure these three victims had cheered for me when I was going through the finish line, so the least I could do was come out and show my support.”

Patricia Campbell, the mother of bombing victim Krystle Campbell, said she was grateful her daughter hasn’t been forgotten.

“I hope that this memorial will be a reminder to anyone out there who feels upset about their life and that they will stop and think,” she said by email.

The memorial — two distinct pieces separated by about a city block — marks the spots where two pressure cooker bombs detonated near the finish line, killing the three victims and wounding more than 260 others. The two pieces each feature granite pillars ringed by towering bronze and glass spires meant to bathe the sites in warm white light. Cherry trees to bloom each April have also been planted at the sites, and two modest bronze bricks have been set in

the sidewalk to honor the police officers killed in the bombing’s aftermath, Massachusetts Institute of Technology Officer Sean Collier and Boston police Officer Dennis Simmonds.

The stone pillars, which range in height from about 3 to 5 feet (1 to 1.5 meters), were gathered from places around Boston significant to the bombing victims.

One representing 8-yearold Boston resident Martin Richard was taken from Franklin Park in his family’s Dorchester neighborhood.

Another that is fused to it honors 23-year-old Boston University graduate student Lingzi Lu and was donated by her school.

Around the base of the

Inscriptions ring the base of two of the stone pillars completed Monday, Aug. 19, 2019, in Boston to memorialize the Boston Marathon bombing victims at the sites where they were killed.

Associated Press

two pillars is an inscription etched in bronze: “Let us climb, now, the road to hope.”

And the third pillar for Campbell, a 29-year-old

Medford, Massachusetts native, comes from Spectacle Island in Boston Harbor, where she’d worked.

Its inscription reads: “All we have lost is brightly lost.”q

A6 U.S.

Tuesday 20 August 2019

NEWS

California governor signs law to limit shootings by police

By DON THOMPSON Associated Press SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Spurred by the fatal police shooting of a young unarmed black man that roiled California’s capital city, state lawmakers approved changes to the nation’s oldest law governing when officers can use deadly force and it was signed by the governor Monday, though even supporters aren’t sure it will save many lives.

“It’s an open-ended question,” Gov. Gavin Newsom said after adding his signature to the bill during a ceremony in an open courtyard to hold the crowd of legislators, family members of those killed in police shootings and advocates, many of them black or Latino. “This is remarkable to get to this moment on a bill that was so controversial, but it means nothing unless we make this moment meaningful.”

Supporters and law enforcement officials said the new standards, which take effect Jan. 1, are among the nation’s most comprehensive when combined with more police training.

But they must be coupled, Newsom said, with cultural and systemic changes including more transparency and a rebuilding of trust with the community.

California’s old standard made it rare for police officers to be charged following a shooting and rarer still for them to be convicted.

It was based on the doctrine of “reasonable fear,” meaning if prosecutors or jurors believed officers had a reason to fear for their safety, they could use le-

Gov. Gavin Newsom holds up the measure by Assemblywoman Shirley Weber, D-San Diego, left, that he signed that limits the use of lethal force by law enforcement Sacramento, Calif., Monday, Aug. 19, 2019.

Associated Press

thal force.

The new law will allow police to use deadly force only when “necessary” to defend against an imminent threat of death or serious injury to officers or bystanders.

It passed with bipartisan support after major police organizations won concessions and ended their vehement opposition.

Lawmakers dropped an explicit definition of “necessary” that said officers could use maximum force only when there was “no reasonable alternative.” They also removed an explicit requirement that officers try to de-escalate confrontations. Law enforcement officials said that would have opened officers to endless second-guessing of what often are split-second, lifeand-death decisions.

The bill’s lead author, Dem-

ocratic Assemblywoman Shirley Weber of San Diego, said the major elements of the bill “are still there, and they will make a difference in California and the nation.”

The measure still contains the strongest language of any state, according to the American Civil Liberties Union, which proposed the bill and negotiated the changes.

Yet several police agencies said the new law, which replaces one passed in 1872, simply codifies policies already used in major California cities that emphasize de-escalation.

A more significant deterrent is a pending Senate bill requiring that officers be trained in ways to defuse confrontations, alternatives to opening fire and how to interact with people with mental illness or other is-

sues, said California Police Chiefs Association President Ron Lawrence.

“Officers, when they’re in that moment of fight or flight ... they’re going to resort to muscle memory and what they’ve been trained to do,” said Lawrence, chief of the Citrus Heights police department in suburban Sacramento. “Are they going to worry about the law and potentially being criminalized? Of course, but at the end of the day they’re going to resort to the way they’ve been trained.”

One catalyst was last year’s fatal shooting of Stephon Clark, whose death sparked major protests in the state capital and reverberated nationwide.

Sacramento police chased the 22-year-old black vandalism suspect into what they later learned was his

grandparents’ backyard, firing 20 times when he turned with something in his hand that turned out to be a cellphone. Clark’s relatives were among those at the signing ceremony.

Yet Plumas County sheriff’s Deputy Ed Obayashi, a use-of-force consultant to law enforcement agencies, said the new law wouldn’t have saved Clark nor changed prosecutors’ decision not to charge the officers.

Robert Weisberg, co-director of the Stanford Criminal Justice Center and an expert on use-of-force law, said he expects even the scaled back law to make a difference.

“The original impetus, of course, was to have a very, very dramatic change in the law which would significantly limit the legal power of the police to use lethal force,” he said.

But the standard already set by court rulings is that officers must have thought in the heat of the moment that deadly force was necessary, so the law’s new language “is really a kind of nominal and maybe symbolic change,” Weisberg said. “It’s still all going to be about what is reasonably necessary.”

Yet it may prompt a new attitude by police, prosecutors and the public, he said, making it less likely that police will shoot first and more likely that they could be prosecuted and convicted if they do.

“I don’t want to cast doubt on the ability of this law to change attitudes and to change police behavior,” Weisberg said. “I think that it will.”q

U.S. NEWS A7

Tuesday 20 August 2019

NYPD fires officer 5 years after Garner’s chokehold death

By JIM MUSTIAN, MICHAEL R. SISAK and TOM HAYS Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — After five years of investigations and protests, the New York City Police Department on Monday fired an officer involved in the 2014 chokehold death of Eric Garner, the black man whose dying gasps of “I can’t breathe” gave voice to a national debate over race and police use of force.

Police Commissioner James O’Neill said he fired Daniel Pantaleo, who is white, based on a recent recommendation of a department disciplinary judge.

O’Neill said he thought Pantaleo’s use of the banned chokehold as he wrestled with Garner was a mistake that could have been made by any officer in the heat of an arrest. But it was clear Pantaleo had broken department rules and “can no longer effectively serve as a New York City police officer.”

“None of us can take back our decisions,” O’Neill said, “especially when they lead to the death of another human being.”

The decision was welcomed by activists and Garner’s family, but condemned by the head of the city’s largest police union, who declared that it would undermine morale and cause officers to hesitate to use force for fear they could be fired.

“The job is dead!” Patrolman’s Benevolent Association President Patrick Lynch said at a news conference, standing in front of a police department flag hung upside down.

His voice cracking with anger, Lynch called Pantaleo an “exemplary” officer and called for union members to participate in a no-confidence vote on the mayor and commissioner.

“It’s absolutely essential that the world know that the New York City Police Department is rudderless and frozen,” he said. “The leadership has abandoned ship and left our police officers on the street alone, without backing.”

Pantaleo’s lawyer, Stuart

London, said he would use legal appeals to try to get the officer reinstated. He has insisted the officer used a reasonable amount of force and did not mean to

storefront window and then falling to the pavement. Quickly, Garner, who weighed about 400 pounds (180 kilograms), appeared distressed gasping, “I can’t

Those killings, in turn, gave fire to the Blue Lives Matter counter-movement, with police union officials arguing that the heated rhetoric against officers was making

Police Commissioner James P. O’Neill makes an announcement at New York City Police Dept. headquarters, Monday, Aug. 19, 2019.

Associated Press

hurt Garner.

Mayor Bill De Blasio, speaking at City Hall, said he hoped the decision would let the city, the department and Garner’s family move forward.

“Today, we are finally seeing justice done,” the Democrat said. “Today will not bring Eric Garner back, but I hope it brings some small measure of closure to the Garner family.”

Garner’s death came at a time of a growing public outcry over police killings of unarmed black men, which sparked the national Black Lives Matter movement.

Video of the confrontation between Garner and the officers trying to arrest him for selling untaxed cigarettes drew outrage and was viewed millions of times online.

The footage showed Garner, 43, and Pantaleo lurching against a glass

breathe,” at least 11 times before he fell unconscious.

Weeks later, protests erupted in Ferguson, Missouri, over the fatal shooting of 18-year-old Michael Brown.

Throughout the fall of 2014, demonstrators chanted “I can’t breathe” as they marched against police brutality in multiple U.S. cities.

When a state grand jury on Staten Island declined to indict Pantaelo in December of that year, protesters poured into the streets by the thousands, venting frustration that criminal charges against officers using deadly force remained rare, even with video evidence.

Then, a few days before Christmas, a man upset about the Garner and Brown cases fatally shot two New York City police officers as they sat in their cruiser in Brooklyn.

them unsafe. Some officers began turning their backs on de Blasio at funerals.

Federal authorities kept a civil rights investigation open for five years before announcing last month they would not bring charges.

City officials had long insisted that they could not take action until criminal investigations were complete.

In announcing his decision, O’Neill said Pantaleo’s initial use of a chokehold as the two men grappled was forgivable, given the struggle. But he said the officer should have relaxed his grip once Garner was on the ground.

“Had I been in Officer Pantaleo’s situation, I may have made similar mistakes,” O’Neill said. “And had I made those mistakes, I would have wished I had used the arrival of backup officers to give the situation

more time to make the arrest.”

The Rev. Al Sharpton said Garner’s family was “relieved but not celebratory.”

“Pantaleo will go home a terminated man, but this family had to go to a funeral,” Sharpton said at a news conference.

Garner’s daughter, Emerald Snipes Garner, thanked O’Neill “for doing the right thing.” She said she is urging lawmakers to make it a crime for any police officer to use a chokehold.

“I should not be here standing with my brother, fatherless,” she said.

De Blasio had never said whether he believed Pantaleo should lose his job but promised “justice” to the slain man’s family, leading union officials to say the disciplinary process appeared rigged.

Asked whether the mayor forced his hand, O’Neill said the dismissal was his choice. He called Garner’s death an “irreversible tragedy” that “must have a consequence.”

Questions about the handling of the case have dogged de Blasio during his longshot run for president, with some protesters at the recent debate in Detroit chanting, “Fire Pantaleo.”

Asked whether he was worried the police union might start encouraging officers to drag their feet when making arrests, De Blasio said he was certain officers would “do their job.”

Lynch, however, called on officers to “proceed with the utmost caution in this new reality.”

Officers “will uphold our oath,” he said, “but we cannot and will not do so by needlessly jeopardizing our careers or personal safety.”q

A8 WORLD

Tuesday 20 August 2019

NEWS

UK PM Boris Johnson faces rising Brexit strategy criticism

By DANICA KIRKA ANGELA CHARLTON Associated Press LONDON (AP) — British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is facing rising criticism of his Brexit strategy at home as he increases pressure on the European Union to reopen negotiations ahead of key meetings with his French and German counterparts later this week.

The prime minister’s office said Monday that the right of EU citizens to work in the U.K. without restrictions would end on Nov. 1 if Britain leaves the bloc without a Brexit deal.

British government officials also rejected demands by lawmakers for Johnson to recall Parliament from its summer recess so that lawmakers can scrutinize the prime minister’s Brexit strategy.

The developments came a day after a leaked report showed that the British government is preparing for widespread shortages of food, fuel and medicines in the event of a no-deal Brexit. Since taking office last month, Johnson has pledged Britain will leave the EU on Oct. 31 with or without a deal, saying the only way to force European officials to negotiate is to make sure that leaving without an agreement is a real possibility.

“Now, of course, our friends and partners on the other side of the Channel are

Britain’s Prime Minister Boris Johnson speaks with staff during a visit to the Royal Cornwall Hospital in Truro, south-west England, Monday Aug. 19, 2019.

Associated Press

showing a little bit of reluctance at the moment to change their position,” Johnson told Sky News on Monday. “That’s fine - I’m confident that they will but in the meantime we have to get ready for a nodeal outcome.”

Johnson plans to meet with German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Wednesday in Berlin and French President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday in Paris, before traveling to a summit of G-7 leaders this weekend in Biarritz, France.

Meanwhile, more than 100 British lawmakers have signed a letter asking Johnson to recall Parliament because of concerns about

his Brexit strategy. Caroline Lucas, the Green Party’s only member of Parliament, said lawmakers should return to Westminster because of the “impending national emergency” the country is facing.

“MPs should be in Parliament holding an increasingly reckless prime minister to account,” Lucas told the BBC. “He’s putting his foot on the accelerator, driving the country off the cliff edge as if he had a huge mandate and overwhelming support. Well, he has no mandate for this.”

Johnson’s government has a one-seat majority in the House of Commons and he hasn’t faced a national

election as party leader.

Johnson became prime minister after the Conservative Party selected him as its leader. He replaced Theresa May, who stepped down after Parliament three times rejected the Brexit deal she had negotiated with the EU. Jeremy Corbyn, leader of the opposition Labour Party, vowed Monday to do “everything necessary” to prevent the U.K. from leaving the EU without a deal.

This includes calling a noconfidence vote in Johnson’s government and, if it succeeds, fighting the general election with a pledge to hold a second public vote on Brexit, Corbyn said

in a speech in Northamptonshire. The public vote would include options on both sides of the question, including the possibility of remaining in the EU. “If MPs are serious about stopping a no-deal crash out, then they will vote down this reckless government,” Corbyn said. “And it falls to the leader of the opposition to make sure no-deal does not happen and the people decide their own future.”

Johnson and Corbyn are fighting for support in an increasingly fractious country where Brexit cuts across traditional party lines.

After a 2016 referendum in which the public voted to leave the EU, May spent more than two years negotiating a Brexit divorce agreement with the bloc.

It was repeatedly rejected

by Parliament, primarily because of concerns about keeping an open border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.

Johnson wants to remove the Brexit agreement’s socalled backstop clause, an insurance policy that could force Britain to remain part of the European customs union indefinitely to prevent the reintroduction of checks along the Irish border.

Macron and other EU leaders insist the bloc should not renegotiate the hardfought Brexit agreement.q

Danish PM: Trump’s idea of buying Greenland is ‘absurd’

By JAN M. OLSEN Associated Press COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Greenland is not for sale and U.S. President Donald Trump’s idea of buying the semi-autonomous Danish territory in the Arctic from Denmark is “an absurd discussion,” Denmark’s prime minister said.

Mette Frederiksen, who was visiting the world’s largest island to meet Premier Kim Kielsen, told reporters: “Greenland is not Danish.

Greenland is Greenlandic.

I persistently hope that this is not something that is seriously meant.”

In this photo taken late Friday, Aug. 16, 2019, homes are illuminated after the sunset in Tasiilaq, Greenland.

Associated Press

Frederiksen said Sunday that the Arctic, with re-

sources that Russia and others could exploit for

commercial gain, “is becoming increasingly important to the entire world community.”

Retreating ice could uncover potential oil and mineral resources in Greenland which, if successfully tapped, could dramatically change the island’s fortunes. However, no oil has yet been found in Greenlandic waters and 80% of the island is covered by an ice sheet that is up to 3 kilometers (1.9 miles) thick, which means exploration is only possible in coastal regions.

Even there, conditions are

far from ideal, due to the long winter with frozen ports, 24-hour darkness and temperatures regularly dropping below minus 20 Fahrenheit (minus 30 Celsius) in the northern parts.

Trump is expected to visit Denmark Sept. 2-3 as part of his trip to Europe.

Trump said Sunday that he is interested in the idea, but it’s not a priority of his administration.

“Strategically it’s interesting and we’d be interested, but we’ll talk to them a little bit. It’s not No. 1 on the burner, I can tell you that,” the president said.q

WORLD NEWS A9

Tuesday 20 August 2019

Putin, Macron hold French-Russian talks before G-7

By SYLVIE CORBET Associated Press PARIS (AP) — French President Emmanuel Macron and Russian President Vladimir Putin vowed to give a new boost to peace talks with Ukraine and to improve Moscow’s relations with the European Union during a meeting in southern France on Monday.

But they disagreed on other issues, including Syria and the Russian crackdown on opposition protests.

Macron invited Putin to his summer residence, the Fort de Bregancon on the French Riviera, for a meeting followed by dinner, just a few days before opening a meeting of the Group of Seven nations in the city of Biarritz with U.S. President Donald Trump and other leaders.

France holds the 2019 presidency of the G-7, which also includes Britain, Canada, Germany, Italy and Japan. Russia was excluded from the group after it annexed Crimea in 2014.

Macron intends to share the outcomes from his meeting with Putin with other world leaders in Biar-

French President Emmanuel Macron, right, welcomes Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Fort of Bregancon in Bormes-les-Mimosas, southern France, Monday Aug. 19, 2019.

Associated Press

ritz Aug. 24-26.

Speaking in a joint news conference before the meeting, Macron spoke of his hope that the election of Ukraine’s new president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, provides opportunity to relaunch negotiations in Russia’s conflict with the country.

“I think Zelenskiy’s points of views, his choices are

game-changing,” Macron said.

Putin expressed “some optimism” on the subject.

Both presidents opened the door to a four-way meeting involving Ukraine, Russia, France and Germany, possibly in the coming weeks.

The conflict in eastern Ukraine has killed more than 13,000 people since 2014. A 2015 Minsk agree-

ment, brokered by France and Germany, has helped reduce fighting, but clashes have continued and political settlement has stalled.

France and Russia also agreed to push for deescalation of tensions between Iran and the U.S. Macron has taken a lead role in trying to save the 2015 nuclear accord, which has been unraveling

since Trump pulled the U.S. out of the agreement. Russia, along with Britain, Germany and China, remains a part of the accord.

“We worked a lot in recent weeks to prevent unrest” in Iran and the whole region, Macron said.

Macron and Putin said they would discuss the normalization of ties with the EU, which remain tense after Russia’s annexation of Crimea and support for separatist insurgents in eastern Ukraine.

The French president envisioned long-term relations between Moscow and Brussels based on confidence-building and security measures —on condition the conflict with Ukraine is settled.

“The relation of France and Russia, of Russia and the European Union is absolutely decisive,” Macron said.

“I know all the things that have divided us, the misunderstandings over the last decades ... I know another thing, which is that Russia is European, very profoundly, and we believe in a Europe which stretches from Lisbon (Portugal) to Vladivostok

Wildfire on Canary Islands forces 8,000 people to evacuate

By BARRY HATTON Associated Press LISBON, Portugal (AP) — An out-of-control wildfire in Spain’s Canary Islands was throwing flames 50 meters (160 feet) into the air on Monday, forcing emergency workers to evacuate more than 8,000 people, authorities said.

The blaze was racing across parched woodlands into Tamadaba Natural Park, regarded as one of the jewels on Gran Canaria, a mountainous volcanic island in the Atlantic Ocean archipelago off northwest Africa. Canary Islands President Ángel Víctor Torres said 1,100 firefighters were

being deployed Monday along with 14 water-dropping aircraft to battle the blaze that started Saturday afternoon. The local government said around 6,000 hectares (14,800 acres) had been charred in just 48 hours, villages were evacuated and two dozen roads were closed.q

The fire on the mountains of the Canary Islands in this view taken from Santa Cruz de Tenerife island, Spain, early Monday, Aug. 19, 2019.

Associated Press

A10 WORLD

Tuesday 20 August 2019

NEWS

Airstrikes hit near Turkish convoy in Syria, raising tension

By ALBERT AJI SUZAN FRASER Associated Press DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) — Airstrikes targeted a Turkish army convoy inside a rebel-held part of northwestern Syria on Monday, killing three civilians and wounding 12 others, the Turkish Defense Ministry said. Syria, however, said the Turkish convoy was carrying ammunition to rebels who have lost ground this month amid a government offensive to retake their last stronghold in the country.

The incident ratcheted up tensions in the region, a current ground zero in Syria’s long-running civil war in which Turkish, Russian, U.S. and Iranian interests are fighting.

The Turkish Defense Ministry gave no word on Turkish casualties, saying the convoy was attacked while heading to one of Turkey’s observation posts in rebelcontrolled Idlib province.

Syria’s Foreign Ministry said the convoy of armored vehicles was delivering weapons to Khan Sheikhoun, a major rebel-held town that lies on the front line of fighting along the southern edge of the Idlib enclave.

The town is a stronghold of al-Qaida-linked Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, the most pow-

Smoke rises in the background from bombardment around the area as fighters with the Free Syrian army drive their pick-up truck, left, past a Turkey Armed Forces convoy, at a highway between Maaret al-Numan and Khan Sheikhoun in Idlib province, Syria, Monday, Aug. 19, 2019.

Associated Press

erful militant group in the area.

It was not immediately clear whether the airstrikes were carried out by Syrian or Russian warplanes.

The convoy consisted of several armored vehicles and flatbed trucks carrying tanks.

The Turkish move into Idlib appears to be a message

by Ankara that it won’t allow Syrian forces to capture Khan Sheikhoun. Syrian government forces

reached its outskirts earlier Monday. The town’s fall would also cut the highway linking Idlib to northern parts of Hama province, home to one of Turkey’s 12 observation posts on the edges of Idlib province.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a war monitor, and Idlib-based opposition activist Mazen al-Shami, reported that Syrian troops reached the M5 highway north of Khan Sheikhoun, making it more

difficult for rebels and civilians to move between Idlib and rebels in northern parts of Hama province.

Under a deal reached last year between Russia and Turkey, the highway was supposed to be open by the end of 2018 but it never happened. Now, Syrian troops appear to be trying to open it by force.

The Turkish Defense Ministry’s brief statement did not provide details but “strongly condemned”

the airstrikes, adding that they were “against existing agreements as well as our cooperation and dialogue with Russian.”

The strikes hit near the highway where the convoy was traveling, Syrian activists said.

Turkey backs the rebels who have been in control of the region since 2012, while Russia backs the government of Syrian President Bashar Assad. It has vowed to take back Idlib.

Turkey’s private DHA news agency said Syrian government planes targeted the route of a Turkish military convoy carrying reinforcement vehicles and personnel. It said the convoy was heading toward two Turkish observation posts when it came under Syrian aircraft fire.

The report said the convoy could not proceed because the route between Maaret al Numan and Khan Sheikhoun was targeted, and sheltered at a safe location. The agency did not report any casualties.

The Britain-based Observatory said airstrikes believed to be from Russian planes struck near the highway and forced the nearly 25-vehicle Turkish convoy to stop.q

Palestinian leader fires advisers, wants bonuses returned

In this April 29, 2019 file photo, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas chairs a cabinet meeting in the West Bank city of Ramallah.

Associated Press

By M. DARAGHMEH Associated Press RAMALLAH, West Bank (AP) — Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Monday laid off all of his advis-

ers and ordered a former prime minister and other ex-Cabinet ministers to return tens of thousands of dollars from a pay raise he had secretly approved.

Palestinian officials said the decisions, announced in official statements, came as part of efforts to cut costs and recuperate funds after Israel stopped delivering tax revenues earlier this year.

The Palestinian Authority, which governs parts of the Israeli-occupied West Bank, has long faced charges of corruption and mismanagement.

Abbas has cycled through dozens of advisers since he was first elected president in 2005, with many continuing to receive salaries and benefits after leaving office.

The officials said Abbas would reinstate some advisers in the coming days.

They spoke on condition of

anonymity to discuss internal deliberations.

Israel stopped delivering some of the tax revenues it collects on behalf of the Palestinians to protest the Palestinian Authority’s payments to the families of militants who have been killed or imprisoned.

The Palestinians have defended those payments, saying they support needy families who are victims of the decades-long conflict.

In a separate decision, Abbas ordered former Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah and other Cabinet ministers to return bonuses the president had approved in 2017.

Documents leaked earlier this year showed that the technocratic former Cabi-

net gave its members lavish payouts. The documents showed that ministers’ pay had climbed from $3,000 a month to $5,000 — a 67% raise — and that the prime minister’s salary was raised to $6,000 a month.

Abbas had secretly approved the raises, overriding a 2004 law fixing ministerial salaries.

The raises were applied retroactively to 2014, when the Cabinet took office, resulting in bonuses worth tens of thousands of dollars.

A $10,000 housing bonus intended for ministers living outside Ramallah, where the Palestinian Authority is headquartered, was given to all ministers, including those with homes in the West Bank city. q

WORLD NEWS A11

Tuesday 20 August 2019

Protesters burn parliament building in Indonesia’s Papua

By LAODE MURSIDIN Associated Press MANOKWARI, Indonesia (AP) — Thousands of people in Indonesia’s West Papua province set fire to a local parliament building on Monday in a protest sparked by accusations that security forces had arrested and insulted students from neighboring Papua province, officials said.

The angry mob torched the building and set fire to cars and tires on several blocked roads leading to a seaport, shopping centers and offices in Manokwari, the capital of West Papua province, Vice Gov. Mohammad Lakotani said.

“The city’s economy has been paralyzed by the demonstrators,” Lakotani said. “Negotiations between protesters and the authorities are currently underway to end the riots.”

Television footage showed orange flames and gray

People display banners that read “Stop intimidation and racism towards indigenous Papuans” during a protest in Manokwari, Papua province, Indonesia, Monday, Aug. 19, 2019.

Associated Press

smoke billowing from the burning parliament building.

An insurgency has simmered in Papua since the early 1960s, when Indonesia annexed the region, a former Dutch colony. In

recent years, some Papua students, including some who study in other provinces, have become vocal in calling for self-determination for the province.

Residents of West Papua are ethnically similar to

those in Papua.

Protesters also destroyed parts of an airport in Sorong, another city in West Papua province, local police chief Mario Christy Siregar said.

He said rioters broke win-

dows and burned some belongings, but security forces were able to secure the facility and the incident did not disturb airport activities.

Lakotani said the demonstration in Manokwari was triggered by allegations that police had arrested and insulted dozens of Papuan students in their dormitories in the East Java city of Surabaya a day earlier.

Police stormed the dormitories in Surabaya, Indonesia’s second-largest city, on Sunday after Papuan students staying there refused to be questioned over allegations that they had intentionally damaged the national red-and-white flag in the dormitory’s yard.

East Java police spokesman Frans Barung Mangera said 43 students were detained but released hours later after no evidence was found that they had damaged the flag.q

Judge postpones 2nd corruption trial of Malaysia’s former PM KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) — The second trial of Malaysian’s ex-Prime Minister Najib Razak linked to the multibillion-dollar looting of the 1MDB state investment fund was delayed Monday by a week to allow his first trial to end.

Najib faces a total 42 charges of corruption, abuse of power and money laundering in five separate criminal cases brought since his shocking election defeat last year.

Najib, 65, denies wrongdoing and accuses the new government under Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad of seeking political vengeance.

Chief prosecutor Gopal Sri Ram said the last witness in

Najib’s first trial is midway through testifying and the case should end this week.

The first trial began in April on seven charges of criminal breach of trust, corruption and money laundering related to 42 million ringgit ($10.1 million) that allegedly went into Najib’s bank accounts from a former 1MDB subsidiary.

High Court Judge Collin Lawrence Sequerah agreed to postpone the second trial until Aug. 26.

In the second trial, Najib faces four counts of abusing his power to receive a total of 2.3 billion ringgit ($551 million) from 2011 to 2014, and 21 other charges of receiving, using and transferring illicit funds

linked to 1MDB. Defense lawyers asked the judge to start the trial by Sept. 3 if the first trial cannot end this week and also to give them time to study lengthy witness statements they’d just received.

Sequerah insisted the trial, which should have started in August, should not be further delayed. He said he will review the date again on Thursday.

Najib set up 1MDB when he took power in 2009 to promote economic development, but the fund amassed billions in debts and is being investigated in the U.S. and several other countries for alleged crossborder embezzlement and money laundering.

In this June 18, 2019, file photo, former Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak walks into lift as he arrives at Kuala Lumpur High Court in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Associated Press

U.S. investigators say more than $4.5 billion was stolen from 1MDB by associates of Najib between 2009 and

2014, including the money that landed in Najib’s bank accounts.q

A12 WORLD

Tuesday 20 August 2019

NEWS

Brazil’s environmental changes under Bolsonaro

By DIANE JEANTET Associated Press RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — Pressure is rising around the administration of President Jair Bolsonaro to comply with Brazil’s pledge to fight global warming, as the international community gathers in the northern state of Bahia for a weeklong UN workshop on climate change. Bolsonaro, a far-right climate skeptic, has made clear he intends to make major changes to Brazil’s environmental policy, including opening the globally vital Amazon rainforest to development and agribusiness. Countries such as Germany, France and Norway are beginning to take action.

Here’s a look at some of the key measures taken by Bolsonaro’s administration since taking office on Jan. 1 and reaction to them.

INTERNATIONAL PRESSURE Brazil’s National Institute for Space Research, a federal agency, reported a double-digit increase in deforestation in the Amazon region in the last quarter of 2018. Citing Brazil’s apparent lack of commitment to fighting deforestation, German Environment Minister Svenja Schulze decided to freeze about 35 million euros ($39.6 million) ear-

Brazil’s President Jair Bolsonaro attends a decoration ceremony of the Maua Merit Medal, in Brasilia, Brazil, Thursday, Aug. 15, 2019.

Associated Press

marked for sustainability projects in the country’s forests.

Days later, Norway also suspended its participation to the Amazon Fund, a donation-based project that fights deforestation in the vast rainforest, adding another $33 million to the tab of frozen funding. Norway has donated $1.2 billion since the fund’s creation in 2008.

Reacting to the news, Bol-

sonaro said Brazil did not need foreign help and advised Norway to “take the money” and help Chancellor Angela Merkel “reforest Germany.”

State governors in the Amazon, however, have come out against Bolsonaro’s statements, stressing the importance of foreign aid in the region.

Germany and France are also weighing using the ratification of a trade deal

between the European Union and Mercosur countries to pressure Brazil into complying with its environmental pledges within the Paris Climate Agreement.

PARIS CLIMATE AGREEMENT During the campaign, Bolsonaro said he would follow the footsteps of U.S. President Donald Trump and leave the Paris climate accord.

Just before the election, he backpedaled and said

he would remain as long as Brazil’s sovereignty in the Amazon was not threatened or challenged.

Environmental groups argue that Bolsonaro’s public support of the Paris agreement is insufficient, as his plans to open the Amazon to greater development would make it impossible for Brazil to meet its reduced emissions targets in the coming years.

The South American nation holds about 60% of the Amazon rainforest, the preservation of which is seen by scientists as crucial in the campaign to slow climate change.

INDIGENOUS LANDS During the presidential campaign, then-candidate Bolsonaro vowed that if elected, “not a centimeter” more of land would be demarcated for indigenous reserves. Within hours of taking office, he issued a series of decrees that critics said would benefit his allies in Brazil’s powerful pro-development “rural caucus.”

Bolsonaro transferred responsibility for delineating indigenous territories from the Justice Ministry to the Agriculture Ministry, which one lawmaker described as “letting the fox take over the chicken coop.” q

Zapatista rebels extend control over areas in south Mexico Associated Press MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexico’s Zapatista indigenous

rebel group announced that it is extending its control over so-called “auton-

In this Jan. 1, 2019 file photo, members of the Zapatista National Liberation Army, EZLN, attend an event marking the 25th anniversary of the Zapatista uprising in La Realidad, Chiapas, Mexico.

Associated Press

omous” zones to 11 more areas in the southern state of Chiapas.

The Zapatistas do not hide their dislike of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, but when he was asked about the announcement Monday, López Obrador said the expansion was “welcome.”

“Go ahead, because that means working to benefit the villages and the people,” López Obrador said.

“The only thing we don’t want is violence.”

A statement signed by Zapatista “subcommander” Moises and posted over the weekend called it an “exponential growth that allows us to break the blockade again.”

But some of the new autonomous zones are likely to be controversial.

Some are on land the Zapatistas seized after they staged a brief armed uprising in 1994 to demand greater rights for the indigenous.

But at least one of new rebel “autonomous” towns, Nuevo Jerusalen, is located in the ecologically sensitive Lacandón jungle, a nature reserve.

The Zapatistas have suggested in the past that indigenous communities would establish their own reserves, where nature and farming could co-exist. But experts say that slash-andburn agriculture, cattle and thin jungle soils make it

almost impossible to have both settlement and conservation.

The Zapatistas generally forbid law enforcement agencies and government inspectors from entering their communities, and practice traditional forms of self-governance. They also have established their own educational systems.

At least since 2006, the Zapatistas’ leadership has publicly and frequently insulted López Obrador.

The statement posted Saturday was no exception; the Zapatistas called him “the new overseer,” and claimed a dozen indigenous activists had been killed since he took office on Dec. 1.q

A13

Tuesday 20 August 2019

NEW at Solanio, The Ritz-Carlton:

Pizza Plus Italian Delight

lunch that is still wallet-friendly, and no need to say this, but for the kids, this is the bomb. “We introduced the pizzas because of high demand from our guests and it really turns out great. Families love it. Also locals discovered our new menu and come for example before playing their Sunday Bingo at the casino.”q

PALM BEACH — The Ritz-Carlton, Aruba tops with their Italian restaurant Solanio with a casual trattoria ambiance and an elegant, yet cozy setting but most importantly delicious Italian cuisine. Added to this gastronomy from Southern Europe cuisine is the unforgettable pizza. Because of high demand this savory dish that is originally from Napoli, is new on the lunch menu and comes to your table between noon and 2 pm daily in optima forma.

The traditional Margherita; the tropical Hawaiian; the fancy Prosciutto; the macho Meat Lover’s, the healthy Veggie, the fine Funghi and the cool Burger pizza are ready for you to be explored, all priced between $20 to $26. Gluten-free and vegan are an optional too. The Ritz-Carlton never goes standard, so in this case, offering a gourmet pizza means the dough is just tasting better, the sauces make a difference and the toppings have a pure, and solid flavor. This is not your ordinary pizza; this is a Godfather’s delight.

Pizza Pick The pie man behind the scenes is Aruban Anthony Koolman, responsible for the fact that you will be back once you tasted his pizza delight. It is like the classic line, “I’m gonna make you an offer; you cannot refuse.” “We make our own dough resulting in a semi-focaccia with honey and olive oil. The trick is, not to use too much in order to create this crispy crust. Then it goes for six to eight minutes in a wood fired oven on a temperature of 450-475 degrees Fahrenheit.” He continues explaining the fresh ingredients that are used, and the authentic Italian toppings.

“You have the choice to add some fresh Parmesan cheese or three home-made infused oils.” The concept is ideal whenever you’re craving a quick, great-tasting

The Ritz-Carlton, Solanio L. G. Smith Boulevard #107 Palm Beach, Aruba T: (297) 527-2222 http://www.ritzcarlton.com/en/hotels/ caribbean/aruba/dining/solanio

A14 LOCAL

Tuesday 20 August 2019

Insular Echo Alert

Episode XXXI

Flying mammals

Our fragile local biosphere is about the tiny regions of the surface of our planet that sustains life of species not found elsewhere. Life can only handle as much stress which economic progress demands of it. Revenue seekers in most of the time do not consider a green approach. Consequences are in our face, results of a free for all attitude ignoring irreparable damage to the island as whole as our sustainable economic asset as top tourist destination. Lessons learned here and elsewhere must be put in action. Isn’t it exactly our nature, plants and animals that really take care of our ecosystem and life on this rock? Isn`t this the only industry we depend upon? Irony is that since 1987 a rough estimate of 72% of what was left of a forest covered Oranjestad in the 17th century (beginning for Cumanå area, close to the Airport, stretching North East to Ponton hill , than South to the bay). Imagine big old 300 year Kwihi trees ( Prosopis Juliflora) whit thickness of 4 to 5 feet in diameter.

Pic.4. Our nocturnal visitors a pollinators, nectar and fruit eater Glossophago longirostris

Pic1. A young Kwihi decorating our side roads

Etnia Nativa’s point of view is decimation of natural habitat is desertification.

Thankful that we are out of the so called hurricane belt however to bulldoze one football pitch size of land after another for Aruba is worse than all-natural disasters, just to build houses for sale. The effect on such a small island will soon

reach its tipping point. A sign of overpopulation, nature destruction and stress will also raise the cost of healthcare, doing business, safety and security in general.

Bats navigate by echolocation and they are nocturnal.

These flying mammals bring many benefits to our ecosystems. More than eight species live in our national park and elsewhere and different species provide different benefits.

Some pollinate plants, others eat insects, many serve as prey to other animals, and they all inspire scientific discoveries. Some species live in batholite formations and in many islands caves,

Pics. 2 & 3 One of many victims of this destructive approach is our bat population.

abandoned houses, mines and in cavities that form within mature Breba cactuses. Caves are complex and unique ecosystems that provide homes for a diversity of creatures from insects to amphibians and fish as well as mammals like wood rats and bats. Many of these creatures can only survive within the cave, and they rely on nutrients carried into the cave by water or other animals. Bats benefit caves by providing important nutrients in their guano (better fertilizer than cow manure!) that support the growth of communities of cave organisms.

Continued on Page 15

LOCAL A15

Tuesday 20 August 2019

Insular Echo Alert

Episode XXXI

Continued from Page 14

Bats eat insects, “ are so-called ‘insectivorous’. They feast on insects each night, adding up to more than 3 million AWG worth of pest control each year on the island. When bats are around to eat insects, there are fewer insect pests causing damage to crops and gardens. If agriculture is to become the next call, farmers don’t have to invest as much in pesticides. Imagine a teenage boy eating 200 quarter-pound burgers -- that’s how much a bat eats in insects on an average night!

Several species of bats of Aruba eat nectar. Many types of our endemic plants of our ecosystem rely on bats for pollination and seed dispersal, such as quedebexii, huliba the agave species, candelabra cacti’s etc., All around the island and in our national park, long-nose and long-tongue bats are perfectly adapted to pollinate these plants, and they provide extensive value to the agricultural industry.

So next time you see our agave in bloom, happy mocking birds, a zooming humming bird and delicious cactus dates, say thank you to the bats. Just as some bats rely on thousands of insects each night for survival, other animals in the ecosystem rely on bats for their calories. Hawks, falcons, and owls eat bats, and mammals like cats, and rats and intrusive reptiles like boas sometimes attack bats while they roost. Technological advances in engineering has incorporated some of bats’ special features like of their wing membranes and echolocation have inspired Drones that have thin and flexible bat-like wings are. The wingsuits used by base jumpers take more than a few tips from bats’ aerodynamic feacher. q

Pic.5. an agave variety in bloom

A16 LOCAL

Tuesday 20 August 2019

Exposition ‘The Self’ in library San Nicolas

Loyal visitors honored at Costa Linda Beach Resort

SAN NICOLAS — The Library in San Nicolas will be hosting two exhibits per year of works made by local artist Lilly Peterson. This new concept will start with a series of artwork made by Peterson titled ‘The Self’.

The works are created based on therapeutic methods of art therapy. The eighteen paintings tell the story of the recovery after the loss of a loved one. The opening of the exhibition is on the 22nd of August at 5 PM until 7 PM. The paintings will be on show until February 2020 during the regular opening hours of the library. For more information please consult Facebook page Biblioteca Nacional Aruba. q

EAGLE BEACH — Recently, Darline de Cuba had the great pleasure to honor loyal and friendly visitors of Aruba as Goodwill Ambassadors and Distinguished Visitors at their home away from home.

The honored are: Monica Liliana Albisu, resident of Argentina, 30 years consecutive Clairlee Hawn-Hirsch, resident of USA, 34 years consecutive Silvia Noemi Albisu, resident of Argentina, 32 years consecutive Julian Manuel Serruya, resident of Argentina, 10 years consecutive

The symbolic honorary title is presented on behalf of the Minister of Tourism, as a

token of appreciation to the guests who visit Aruba between 10-20-35 and more consecutive years.

De Cuba thanked them for choosing Aruba as their vacation destination and as their home away from home for so many years together with the members of Costa Linda: General Manager Luigi Heredia, Miriam Rodriquez, Lina Asaytuno, Gloria Janga.

Top reason for returning provided by the honorees were: The warm inviting sun The gracious treatment from everyone The absolute feeling of safety everywhere/anytime The unending selection of Restaurants.q

A17

Tuesday 20 August 2019

WHO DAT?

Tiger Woods, center, walks to the 13th green during the final round of the BMW Championship golf tournament at Medinah Country Club, Sunday, Aug. 18, 2019, in Medinah, Ill. Associated Press

Early end of season for Woods doesn’t take away from Masters

By DOUG FERGUSON AP Golf Writer MEDINAH, Ill. (AP) — For the fifth time in the last six years, August on the PGA Tour means no more Tiger Woods for the rest of the season. Only now he’s healthy.

He also is the Masters champion. And that makes it a season he wouldn’t trade.

“Very special to win my 15th major and get my fifth jacket,” Woods said Sunday.

“Those are special moments to be able to have an opportunity like that.

And the rest of the tournaments I didn’t really play as well as I wanted. But at the end of the day, I’m the one with the green jacket.”

Rarely has Woods smiled so wide after not meeting a goal.

His season ended at Medinah, where he won two PGA Championship titles at the peak of his game and his health.

Continued on Page 18

Hill rallies Saints to 19-17 victory over Chargers New Orleans Saints quarterback Taysom Hill, left, throws under pressure from Los Angeles Chargers defensive end Anthony Lanier during the second half of a preseason NFL football game Sunday, Aug. 18, 2019, in Carson, Calif.

Associated Press Page 19

A18 SPORTS

Tuesday 20 August 2019

USOPC proposes more athletes on board as part of overhaul

By EDDIE PELLS AP National Writer DENVER (AP) — The U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee is taking steps designed to help athletes in the wake of Olympic sexabuse scandals, proposing an increase in their numbers on its board and a recasting of its mission statement to include the job of promoting their well-being.

These changes are part of a proposal, released Monday, to rewrite the USOPC bylaws.

The proposal comes 20 days after federal lawmakers — looking for a shake-up in the wake of the Larry Nassar scandal — rolled out their own drastic overhaul of the law governing the USOPC. The USOPC portrayed its proposal as merely a first step and, indeed, the measures lack many of Congress’ more aggressive proposals, which included a quadrupling of funds for the U.S. Center for SafeSport and a provision that gave Congress authority to fire the entire USOPC board.

And while the USOPC did mention the Borders Report

— a detailed examination of the troubled federation released earlier this summer — it fell far short of implementing all the recommendations in that report, either. It did heed athletes’ calls for more representation, proposing an increase of their makeup on the board from 20% to 33%.

But under this proposal, the extra 13% could come not from the Athletes’ Advisory Council but from the U.S. Olympians and Paralympians Association, an alumni group that had gone largely unmentioned in much of the reform talk to this point.

The USOPC would change the top line of its mission statement to read: “empower Team USA athletes to achieve sustained competitive excellence and well-being.” Previously, the well-being part was not mentioned.

The USOPC will hear comments on the proposal for 60 days before the board votes on it.

Its leaders say athletes are at the center of the overhaul they are trying to execute in the wake of Nassar

In this July 23, 2016, file photo, a representation of the Olympic rings are displayed in the Olympic Village in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Associated Press

and other sex-abuse scandals, though critics say the process is taking too long and not going far enough.

In reality, there is no quick way to overhaul an 87page document that is filled with legalese and tiptoes through the confusing nature of the relationship involving the USOPC, the national governing bodies (NGBs) that run the individual sports and the athletes.

The USOPC proposal would give athletes more say in the way they govern themselves and in the running of the federation itself. It doesn’t delve into the diffi-

culties of finding active and recently retired athletes who can devote the time and brain power to running these complex organizations. Some of the most drastic rewriting would come in the area of the USOPC-NGB relationship.

NGBs are responsible for the day-to-day running of the sports they oversee. They get money from the USOPC and need the federation’s blessing to be part of the Olympic pipeline, though the direct lines between NGBs and the USOPC has always been murky.

Under new rules — which

are very much like what Congress proposes — the USOPC would take greater control over NGBs, calling for annual audits and a more formalized compliance mechanism.

That would, in theory, leave no doubt that the USOPC is ultimately responsible for an athlete’s welfare — a status that was left dangerously hazy, as has been revealed in numerous legal filings and congressional hearings, to say nothing of the testimony of dozens of gymnasts who spoke during Nassar’s sentencing hearing.q

Woods watching the guys on TV.” It will be the 15th time in his career that Woods did not show up to defend a title on the PGA Tour, remarkable considering that Fred Couples only won 15 times in his career. The other occasions of not defending a title usually involved a change in the schedule, a tournament ending or Tiger Woods hits from a bunker on the 13th hole during the health reasons. final round of the BMW Championship golf tournament at This is the first time because Medinah Country Club, Sunday, Aug. 18, 2019, in Medinah, Ill. Associated Press he wasn’t eligible.

It was mildly surprising that onship next week at East Woods even made it to Continued from Page 17 Medinah to give it a try, Lake.

He closed with an even- “It’s disappointing,” and he looked fairly norpar 72 in the BMW Cham- Woods said about not re- mal, except for some rust. pionship and tied for 37th, turning to Atlanta. “I wish I He gave it his best shot at nowhere near what he could have. Last year cul- returning to the scene of needed to move into the minated in a pretty spe- perhaps the biggest motop 30 in the FedEx Cup cial moment for me, and it ment in golf last year — a and advance to the sea- would have been nice to victory at East Lake, with son-ending Tour Champi- go back there. But I’ll be thousands of fans spilling

inside the ropes to watch Woods cap off his comeback from four back surgeries by beating the best players.

And then he did it again where it really matters — a major.

Woods needed some help from Francesco Molinari’s tee shot into Rae’s Creek on the 12th hole in the final round at Augusta National , and similar blunders by Brooks Koepka and Tony Finau, but he looked like the Woods of old instead of an old Woods with his mistake-free finish for a 15th major, his first in 11 years.

Just like that, the count to Jack Nicklaus and his 18 majors was on again. Instead, that was as good as it got.

Woods spoke vaguely of his back not being right in the cold of Bethpage Black for the PGA Championship in May, his first tournament since the Masters.

He never got on track at Pebble Beach for the U.S. Open. After another long break, he missed the cut at the British Open and then simply wanted to get home.

But he won the Masters, and that makes up for a lot.

“It’s like I told him coming off 18, he’s got the jacket.

That’s all that matters,” caddie Joe LaCava said.

“I’d be lying if I told you I wasn’t disappointed with the second half of the season. If I was happy and satisfied, I shouldn’t be in the industry.”q

SPORTS A19

Tuesday 20 August 2019

Vikings show passing depth, versatility in win over Seahawks

By The Associated Press MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Rookie tight end Irv Smith Jr. and backup wide receiver Brandon Zylstra each had touchdown receptions for Minnesota and the Vikings displayed depth and versatility in their passing game in a 25-19 exhibition victory over the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday night.

Kirk Cousins led the starters for two drives, the last one yielding a chip-shot field goal by Dan Bailey, and finished 6 for 8 for 68 yards without a turnover.

Second-string quarterback Sean Mannion made up for an interception that safety DeShawn Shead returned 88 yards for a score by finding Smith with a short throw into the end zone just before halftime.

Then Kyle Sloter delivered the touchdown pass to Zylstra in the third quarter, polishing off a decent night for an offense that underwent an offseason scheme change after an underwhelming first year with Cousins at the helm.

The first team took two turns for the Seahawks, too, and Russell Wilson went 6

Minnesota Vikings tight end Irv Smith celebrates with teammate Bisi Johnson (81) after catching a 3-yard touchdown pass during the first half of an NFL preseason football game against the Seattle Seahawks, Sunday, Aug. 18, 2019, in Minneapolis.

Associated Press

for 9 for 82 yards without a turnover after sitting out the preseason opener. He had a 33-yard completion to Jaron Brown, who has a starting wide receiver spot for now following the retirement of Doug Baldwin. Firstround draft pick D.K. Metcalf did not play because of a leg injury. Brown’s catch set up the first of four

field goals by Jason Myers.

Seattle’s pass rush was strong in the first half, with Barkevious Mingo pressuring Mannion as he threw before Chad Beebe was expecting the ball after his turn on a hitch route. The blocking for Minnesota will continue to be the most scrutinized aspect of the team, and the starting of-

fensive line, missing injured right tackle Brian O’Neill, was vulnerable in spots.

Cousins and rookie center Garrett Bradbury shared a botched under-center snap resulting in a fumble the Vikings recovered.

Mannion went 11 for 14 for 88 yards. Sloter finished 11 for 13 for 116 yards.

SAINTS 19, CHARGERS 17

CARSON, Calif. (AP) — Taysom Hill had 191 yards of offense and directed three second-half scoring drives to help New Orleans past Los Angeles.

In a game where Philip Rivers and Drew Brees were sideline observers, Hill supplied most of the quarterback highlights. The thirdyear, all-purpose player was 11 of 15 for 136 yards and a pair of touchdowns and ran for 55 yards. New Orleans trailed 17-3 at halftime. Hill threw a 27-yard TD pass to Austin Carr with 3:10 remaining in the third quarter to bring the Saints (1-1) to 17-10. Hill then directed an 11-play, 69-yard drive midway through the fourth quarter that culminated in a 1-yard TD pass to Devine Ozigbo. The Saints went for 2, but Hill was sacked by Anthony Lanier II. Following a Chargers punt, Hill drove the Saints into field goal range, where Will Lutz made a 28-yarder with 1:08 remaining.

Troymaine Pope returned a punt 81 yards for a TD for the Chargers (0-2). Andre Patton had five receptions for 62 yards.q

Gordon back with Patriots while on non-football injury list

By JIMMY GOLEN AP Sports Writer FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (AP) — Oft-suspended wide receiver Josh Gordon returned to the New England Patriots’ practice field on Monday without pads and without saying when he might be able to play again.

Gordon was seen stretching on the field during the portion of the team’s workout that was open to the media. In the locker room before practice, he declined a request for an interview.

“I don’t have time today,” he said. “I’ll be around, though.”

The Patriots placed Gordon on the non-football injury list on Sunday, two days after the NFL reinstated him from an indefinite suspension that cost him the final three games of the 2018 regular season and the team’s Su-

per Bowl run. Commissioner Roger Goodell said Gordon could participate in team meetings, conditioning and individual workouts while working himself back into shape.

A 2012 second-round draft pick by the Cleveland Browns, Gordon was suspended for the first two games of the 2013 season for violating the league’s substance abuse policy but still caught 87 passes for nine touchdowns and a league-leading 1,646 yards and was named to the AllPro team.

He was suspended again in 2015 and missed two whole seasons. In interviews, he has acknowledged using Xanax, cocaine, marijuana and other narcotics, and he said in 2017 he smoked pot before “probably every game of my career.”

The Browns traded him to New England in Septem-

New England Patriots wide receiver Josh Gordon warms up at NFL football practice, Monday, Aug. 19, 2019, in Foxborough, Mass.

Associated Press

ber, pairing him with Tom Brady and a locker room that was supposed to be more disciplined than

the one he left behind in Cleveland. He had 40 receptions for 720 yards and three touchdowns before

he said on Dec. 20 that he was stepping away from football to concentrate on his mental health.q

A20 SPORTS

Tuesday 20 August 2019

Quintana, Cubs beat Pirates 7-1 in Williamsport

By The Associated Press WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. (AP) — José Quintana pitched seven crisp innings, Anthony Rizzo hit a two-run homer and the Chicago Cubs beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 7-1 on Sunday night in the MLB Little League Classic.

Nicholas Castellanos and Jason Heyward also connected as Chicago earned its second straight win since consecutive heartbreaking losses to the Phillies and Pirates.

The Cubs took two of three in the unusual weekend set and remain in a virtual tie with St. Louis for the top spot in the NL Central.

Starling Marté had three hits for Pittsburgh, including his 21st homer in the ninth.

Mitch Keller (1-2) allowed six runs in 4 1/3 innings.

With grinning Little Leaguers dressed in their uniforms filling the stands at BB&T Ballpark, Quintana (11-7) allowed five hits and walked none. The left-hander improved to 7-0 in nine starts since his last loss June 22.

BRAVES 5, DODGERS 3 ATLANTA (AP) — With AllStar outfielder Ronald Acuña Jr. benched for not hustling, Rafael Ortega stepped up with a sixthinning grand slam to lift Atlanta over Los Angeles.

Acuña was pulled before the fifth after failing to run out a drive off the right field wall in the third. The ball bounced off the wall for a long single. The 21-year-old Acuña likely would have had an easy double if he had hustled from home plate.

Chicago Cubs’ Anthony Rizzo, left, celebrates with Kris Bryant (17) after hitting a two-run home run off Pittsburgh Pirates relief pitcher Chris Stratton during the fifth inning of the Little League Classic baseball game at Bowman Stadium in Williamsport, Pa., Sunday, Aug. 18, 2019.

Associated Press

Braves manager Brian Snitker followed Acuña into the tunnel for an apparent conversation during the fourth inning before Adam Duvall entered the game in left field in the fifth, with Ortega moving from left to center.

The move by Snitker came in a 2018 playoff rematch and the decisive game of a three-game series between the top two teams in the National League.

Ortega, recalled from the minors Tuesday, made the most of his second start with the Braves with his first career slam off Dustin May (1-2).

Anthony Swarzak (3-3), Chris Martin, Shane Greene and Mark Melancon combined for four scoreless in-

nings of relief. Melancon pitched a perfect ninth for his fourth save.

Cody Bellinger hit a threerun homer in the first for the Dodgers. He leads the majors with 42 home runs.

CARDINALS 5, REDS 4 CINCINNATI (AP) — Paul Goldschmidt hit a tworun homer, Tommy Edman added a solo shot among his three hits and St. Louis held off Cincinnati to split their four-game series.

Jack Flaherty (7-6) had his scoreless streak snapped at 23 innings, but allowed only one run in five frames as the Cardinals stayed in first place in the NL Central, just ahead of the Chicago Cubs.

Carlos Martinez gave up three straight hits and two

runs to open the ninth but hung on for his 14th save, striking out Eugenio Suàrez to end it. Suàrez homered early but also committed a costly error at third base and grounded into an inning-ending double play with the bases loaded in the seventh.

Reds rookie Aristides Aquino went 0 for 2 with two walks after hitting 10 home runs in his previous 11 games.

Alex Wood made his fifth start for the Reds after spending the first four months of the season on the injured list with a lower back problem. Wood (1-2) gave up eight hits and five runs — four earned — in five innings.

NATIONALS 16, BREWERS 8 WASHINGTON (AP) — Juan

Soto hit two of Washington’s team record-tying eight homers in a 16-8 rout of Milwaukee.

Matt Adams and Victor Robles hit back-to-back homers in the first to give the Nationals a 4-0 lead, and Anthony Rendon and Soto did the same in the third as the advantage ballooned to 13-0. Washington has gone for back-to-back homers ten times this season.

Erick Fedde (4-2) won his third consecutive start, allowing four runs on ten hits over five innings and striking out two.

Chase Anderson (5-3) lost for the first time since June 21, allowing a career-high ten runs on nine hits with one strikeout in 2 1/3 innings.

PADRES 3, PHILLIES 2 PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Austin Hedges had four hits, including a tiebreaking homer in the seventh, and Joey Lucchesi pitched six strong innings to lead San Diego past Philadelphia.

Luis Urías also went deep for the Padres, who had lost seven consecutive rubber games before taking two of three in Philadelphia.

Lucchesi (8-7) gave up two runs on three hits with four strikeouts and two walks.

Hedges belted an 0-2, 78mph curveball from Jared Hughes (3-5) over the wall in left with one out in the seventh to put San Diego up a run.

Kirby Yates struck out the side in a perfect ninth for his NL-leading 35th save in his 38th chance.q

Braves claims speedy OF Billy Hamilton off waivers

Boston Red Sox third baseman Rafael Devers, left, tags out Kansas City Royals’ Billy Hamilton, right, who tried to advance to third on a flyout during the fourth inning of a baseball game at Fenway Park in Boston, Wednesday, Aug. 7, 2019.

Associated Press

ATLANTA (AP) — The Braves have claimed outfielder Billy Hamilton off waivers from the Kansas City Royals to bolster their injury-plagued roster.

The 28-year-old Hamilton is a five-time Gold Glove finalist and switch-hitter who gives Atlanta some defensive options and speed off the bench. He played in 93 games for the Royals, hitting .211 with 18 stolen bas-

es. Hamilton spent six years with the Reds before signing with Kansas City as a free agent for this season. He is a career .242 hitter with 295 stolen bases, including four straight seasons with more than 50 steals in Cincinnati.

The Braves also announced that right-handed reliever Wes Parsons was claimed off waivers by Colorado.

Atlanta designated him for assignment last week.

In addition, Atlanta optioned right-hander Bryse Wilson to Triple-A Gwinnett and recalled right-hander Jacob Webb.

The NL East-leading Braves announced the moves during an off day Monday.

They are short-handed because of injuries to outfielders Nick Markakis, Austin Riley and Ender Enciarte, as well as shortstop Dansby Swanson.q

SPORTS A21

Tuesday 20 August 2019

Greinke gets 200th win, pitches Astros past A’s 4-1

By The Associated Press OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Zack Greinke threw seven smooth innings for his 200th win, helping the AL Westleading Astros avoid a fourgame sweep.

Alex Bregman had a threerun homer among his four hits to back Greinke (13-4), who won his third straight start since coming over in a July 31 trade with Arizona.

Roberto Osuna got three outs for his 27th save as the Astros stopped a five-game slide.

Marcus Semien homered for Oakland, which had won four in a row. Brett Anderson (10-9) allowed four runs in five innings.

METS 11, ROYALS 5 KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Pete Alonso hit his 40th home run to break the National League rookie record, capping a late outburst by New York against Kansas City.

Michael Conforto launched a long homer in the first inning and drove in four runs.

Amed Rosario put the Mets ahead 6-4 with a two-run single in the seventh, and Alonso went deep in the ninth. He snapped a tie with Cody Bellinger, who hit 39 home runs for the Dodgers in 2017 on the way to winning Rookie of the Year honors.

Alonso also had an RBI double and scored three times during his second consecutive three-hit game. Rosario had three hits and three RBIs, and Joe Panik added three hits as the top four batters in the Mets’ lineup combined to go 11 for 18 with nine RBIs and seven runs.

New York scored six times in the seventh to turn a 4-3 deficit into a 9-4 lead. J.D. Davis tied it with a pinch-hit RBI single.

Royals reliever Kevin McCarthy (2-2) was charged with four runs in one-third of an inning.

Jeurys Familia (4-1) allowed one run in two innings.

INDIANS 8, YANKEES 4 NEW YORK (AP) — Mike Clevinger struck out 10 in five shutout innings to win his seventh straight decision, Mike Freeman had three extra-base hits and

Houston Astros pitcher Zack Greinke works against the Oakland Athletics in the first inning of a baseball game Sunday, Aug. 18, 2019, in Oakland, Calif. Houston Astros pitcher Zack Greinke works against the Oakland Athletics in the first inning of a baseball game Sunday, Aug. 18, 2019, in Oakland, Calif.

Associated Press

Cleveland tamed New York for a four-game split between AL pennant contenders.

A day after manager Aaron Boone and two other Yankees were ejected for again ranting against umpires, it was a relatively quiet afternoon.

Freeman hit a three-run homer and a pair of doubles. Oscar Mercado homered and drove in three runs, and Francisco Lindor also connected for the Indians. Clevinger (8-2) limited the Yankees to three hits and walked two.

CC Sabathia (5-7) came off the injured list after being out with knee tendinitis, and his original team scored four times against him in the second. Sabathia lasted three innings, allowing four runs and four hits. The veteran lefty is 0-3 in his last five starts and hasn’t won since June 24.

RED SOX 13, ORIOLES 7

BOSTON (AP) — Rafael Devers went 4 for 5 with a homer, two doubles and four RBIs as Boston rallied from an early six-run deficit to complete a three-game sweep of Baltimore.

J.D. Martinez added three hits and two RBIs, and Sam Travis hit a solo homer for the Red Sox, who won their fifth straight as they try to climb out of a deep hole for the second AL wild card. Boston trails Tampa Bay by 6½ games.

In his last eight games, Devers is 20 for 37 with 12 extra-base hits and 14 RBIs. He raised his season RBI total to 101.

Renato Núñez had a threerun homer and four RBIs for last-place Baltimore, which dropped its seventh in a row.

Marcus Walden (8-2), the fourth of six Red Sox relievers, worked a scoreless inning. Paul Fry (1-5) took the loss.

RAYS 5, TIGERS 4 TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — JiMan Choi’s two-run single in the bottom of the ninth completed a rally from a late three-run deficit, and Tampa Bay kept itself in the AL’s second wild-card spot and avoided a series loss to woeful Detroit.

The Rays trailed 4-1 after seven before coming back with two in the eighth and then the winning hit in the ninth.

Travis d’Arnaud reached to open the ninth against Joe Jimenez (3-7) on shortstop Gordon Beckham’s throwing error and went to second when Willy Adames walked. The Rays loaded the bases on Mike Brosseau’s one-out infield single before Choi singled to center.

Tampa Bay pitchers set a three-game series team record by recording 49 strikeouts, including 12 on Sunday. Detroit finished

with three walks, with two coming in the ninth off Jose Alvarado (1-5).

TWINS 6, RANGERS 3 ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Jorge Polanco cleared the bases with a tiebreaking triple in the eighth inning, helping Minnesota to its first-ever four-game sweep of Texas.

Polanco hit a two-out liner to the gap in right-center field off Emmanuel Clase (02). Minnesota maintained a 2½-game lead over Cleveland in the AL Central.

Reliever Sam Dyson (5-1) allowed Shin-Soo Choo’s tying homer in the seventh but escaped further damage. Taylor Rogers struck out Rougned Odor looking as the potential tying run in the ninth for his 19th save in 25 chances.

MARINERS 7, BLUE JAYS 0 TORONTO (AP) — Yusei Kikuchi pitched his first shutout in the major leagues, throwing a two-hitter that led Seattle over Toronto.

Kikuchi (5-8) struck out eight, walked one and retired the final 14 batters in his first win since beating Baltimore on June 23.

It was his 26th start for the Mariners and first complete game.

Tom Murphy hit a two-run homer and the Mariners went deep four times. Kyle Seager hit a leadoff homer against Toronto opener Wilmer Font (2-1).

ANGELS 9, WHITE SOX 2 ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Shohei Ohtani, Kole Calhoun, Matt Thaiss and Anthony Bemboom all homered to lead Los Angeles over Chicago.

Ohtani hit his first home run since July 27 and just his second since the All-Star break. He has a nine-game hitting streak, the longest of his young career.

Calhoun added his careerhigh 27th homer, a solo shot in the fourth inning.

Thaiss hit a three-run homer in the second inning off White Sox starter Dylan Cease (5-6).

Angels rookie Griffin Canning (5-6) pitched seven innings for just the second time. Eloy Jiménez homered and tripled for the White Sox.q

A22 sports

Tuesday 20 August 2019

NFL’s Trust gives players Plan B when careers end (suddenly)

By EDDIE PELLS AP National Writer Devin Fuller got his first taste of the NFL’s business side during his rookie minicamp.

One of the receiver’s would-be teammates had a bad practice. Not much later, that player got pulled out of a meeting. Not much after that, the player was no longer Fuller’s teammate. “I was like, ‘Wow, so it’s like that?’” Fuller said.

In the coming weeks, as training camps break and the regular season beckons, it will be like that for hundreds of rookies and young veterans vying for the NFL’s most-vulnerable roster spots. They are the interchangeable backups and special teams players whose current health, glimmers of untapped potential and cheap contracts factor into their value every bit as much as their playmaking ability.

There will be about 1,200 cuts before the Aug. 31 deadline for teams to trim their rosters to 53 players.

For the multitude of veterans whose dreams end before Game 1 of the regular season, there’s a chance to walk away with something more than a pink slip at the end of their NFL careers, even if those careers lasted only a couple of seasons.

The Trust is a multi-pronged benefits program created out of the 2011 collective bargaining agreement between the league and the players’ union. With a budget of around $29 million a

In this Aug. 18, 2016, file photo, Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Devin Fuller runs the ball in the second half of an NFL preseason football game against the Cleveland Browns in Cleveland.

Associated Press

year, it offers players with two or more credited years on NFL rosters a scholarship award to continue their education, health screenings, gym memberships and even free training for players such as Fuller, who haven’t given up on making a roster again.

“I wasn’t surprised it existed, but I was surprised at all the things it offered,” said Fuller, a seventh-round draft pick of the Atlanta Falcons in 2016, who spent two seasons on injured reserve and has never been on an active roster.

The Trust came into being in 2013, after the league and union negotiated a number of benefits designed to better the retirements and recognize the efforts of the

thousands of NFL retirees.

With a board of directors composed of executives at both the NFL and the players’ union, this organization also provides career counseling and a state-of-theart health screening that gives players a sense of where they stand after their years in football.

“The fact is that when you leave the NFL, there are no avenues out there where you can apply that skill set and keep on working,” executive director Bahati VanPelt said. “Nobody is going to take his shoulder pads, helmet and cleats and move across the country and walk into the HR department and say: ‘Here I am, I’m ready to play football.’ We’re ap-

proaching these players as they get ready to compete in a completely different space.” While the average NFL salary hovers at around $2.1 million, according to Forbes Magazine, that number is skewed by the enormous sums paid to the top players, along with the way those contracts are structured — often with huge signing bonuses up front but not as much guaranteed money on an annual basis.

The majority of players, however, hover at or slightly above the league minimum, which this season will be $378,000 for a rookie and $473,000 for a fifth-year player. For most, getting to that fifth year takes hard work and some

luck. An Associated Press analysis of career lengths found that, since 2005, the average amount of playing experience on an NFL roster has shrunk from 4.6 to 4.3 years. In 2005, there were 784 players with three years’ experience or less on opening-day rosters and 714 with five or more years.

In 2018, the gap widened to 852 and 644.

It means a player making the league minimum or slightly more, if he got a signing bonus as a rookie, and then was good (and fortunate) enough to stay on the active roster for an entire season, might clear $3 million over four years, before hitting retirement at 25. “There’s a perception that NFL players leave the game the way that Tom Brady and Peyton Manning and Ray Lewis leave the game,” VanPelt said. “But in reality, we know most guys, the teams will move on from, as opposed to them moving on from the teams.” Fuller landed an “externship” at The Trust, tasked with helping spread the word about some of the benefits that not all players knew existed.

After the 32 NFL teams make their cuts, a few hundred players will wait a few hours, or days, and then be re-signed to practice squads, at lesser pay.

Some will get spots on other teams’ 53-man rosters.

Many more will wait longer for the phone to ring. For a good number of them, it never will. q

Former Cleveland coach David Blatt diagnosed with MS

In this file photo dated Friday, Jan. 8, 2016, Cleveland Cavaliers head coach David Blatt directs his team during NBA basketball game against the Minnesota Timberwolves, in Minneapolis.

Associated Press

PIRAEUS, Greece (AP) — Former Cleveland Cavaliers coach David Blatt has been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis.

In a statement posted Monday on the website of Greek club Olympiakos, Blatt said he was diagnosed with condition, which attacks the central nervous system, “a few months ago” and has experienced fatigue, weakness in his legs and balance

problems. “I am a coach and my job is to lead and teach and inspire a lot of people. Not being as agile or active doesn’t affect my ability to do those things,” Blatt said in the statement.

“How could I possibly complain? I absolutely cannot and will not.

It’s wasted effort and while I ask my players and staff to be the best version of themselves, I must ask and even demand from my-

self to do the same.” Blatt was appointed coach of Cleveland in June 2014 and took the team to the NBA finals in his first season, losing to the Golden State Warriors.

He was fired partway through the 2015-16 season, in which Cleveland won the NBA championship for the first time under coach Tyronn Lue. He has coached Olympiakos since June 2018.q

SPORTS A23

Tuesday 20 August 2019

Mystics break WNBA record with 18 3s, top Fever 107-68

By The Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Elena Delle Donne scored 25 points and hit three of Washington’s WNBA-record 18 3-pointers in the Mystics’ 107-68 victory over the Indiana Fever on Sunday.

The Mystics (20-7) scored the most points in a WNBA games this season. They have won six in a row, averaging 95.3 points during the run, and 11 of their last 12. Washington broke the 3-point record of 17 set by Seattle last year against Las Vegas.

Aerial Powers added 19 points, going 4 of 6 from 3-point range, and Ariel Atkins, who also hit 4 3s, had 14 points for the Mystics.

Washington never trailed and scored 18 consecutive points to open a 20-2 lead. The Fever (8-17) twice trimmed it to seven points in the second quarter and once in the third.

Delle Donne made 7 of 10 from the field, 3 of 4 from 3-point range and grabbed nine rebounds. The Mystics shot 49% (37 of 76) from the field, hit 18 of 39 from behind the arc and made all their 15 free throws.

Tiffany Mitchell led Indiana with 17 points.

SUN 78, WINGS 68 UNCASVILLE, Conn. (AP) — Courtney Williams scored 18 points and Connecticut beat Dallas to clinch a playoff berth.

Jonquel Jones had 16 points and 10 rebounds for her 14th double-double of the season, and Jasmine Thomas added 16 points and nine assists. Connecticut (19-8) has won three games in a row and eight of 10.

Shekinna Stricklen converted a 3-point play to make it 35-32 with 39 seconds left in the first half and Connecticut led the rest of the way. Allisha Gray’s layup with just under four minutes left in the fourth quarter cut the Wings’ deficit to six, but Thomas answered with a 3-point play to spark a 9-0 spurt that pushed the Sun’s lead to 78-63 with 1:47 to go.

Gray tied her career best with 22 points for Dallas (918). Arike Ogunbowale added 20, and Isabelle Harrison had 11 points and tied her career high with 13 rebounds.

STORM 82, LYNX 74 SEATTLE (AP) — Jordin Canada scored 14 points to and Seattle never trailed against Minnesota.

Jewell Loyd and Natasha Howard had 13 points apiece, Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis added 11 and Mercedes Russell and Alysha Clark scored 10 apiece for Seattle (15-13).

Clark made a pull-up jumper, stole a pass and then fed Canada for a basket that made it 11-0 midway through the first quarter. Minnesota went 0 for 5 from the field and committed six turnovers during that span.

Odyssey Sims scored 18 of her season-high 30 points in the third quarter for the Lynx (13-14).

MERCURY 78, LIBERTY 72 PHOENIX (AP) — DeWanna Bonner scored 17 of her 30 points in the fourth quarter and had 10 rebounds to help Phoenix beat New York, extending the Liberty’s losing streak to eight games.

Leilani Mitchell scored 17 points, and Yvonne Turner added 13 for Phoenix (13-13), which was without Brittney Griner (suspension), Diana Taurasi (back), Sancho Lyttle (knee), Essence Carson (calf) and Alanna Smith (ankle).

Tina Charles had 23 points — 15 in the first quarter — and 13 rebounds for New York (8-18).q

In this March 22, 2019, file photo, Villanova head coach Jay Wright speaks during a news conference at the men’s college basketball NCAA Tournament in Hartford, Conn.

Associated Press

With Villanova and USA Basketball, Jay Wright on double-duty

By TIM REYNOLDS AP Basketball Writer Jay Wright immediately accepted a chance to be an assistant coach with USA Basketball for this year’s World Cup. And then he checked his calendar.

Villanova students are headed back to school this week — while the Villanova men’s basketball coach will be halfway around the world for the next month or so. It has been, and will continue being, a major schedule challenge for Wright as he’s tasked with both helping USA Basketball win a gold medal while his players are on campus getting ready to start their seasons. “It was a snap ‘yes.’ That’s the problem,” Wright said. “And then after you think about it, you’re like, ‘wow.’ Only then do you realize what you’re missing at home.” Logistical matters weren’t going to keep him from being part of the staff of assistants that include Golden State’s Steve Kerr and Atlanta’s Lloyd Pierce — all working under USA Basketball head men’s coach Gregg Popovich of the San Antonio Spurs.

“This is basketball heaven,” Wright said.

It’s not uncommon for college coaches like Wright to be part of the USA Basketball mix, which can collide with college calendars. At the most recent World Cup in 2014, Duke’s Mike Krzyzewski was the head coach and Syracuse’s Jim Boeheim was one of the assistants — and that tournament ended in mid-September.

But at this tournament, which starts Aug. 31 in China with the Americans playing their first game against the Czech Republic a day later, Wright is the only college coach on the U.S. roster. Popovich, Kerr and Pierce all have some time before their ‘real’ teams start practice. Wright doesn’t have that luxury. “He’s kind of doing double-duty right now,” Popovich said. “He’s

keeping touch with his kids, and obviously doing a great job with the USA team. But he hasn’t forgotten about his Villanova guys.”

To make this work, Wright rearranged Villanova’s summer schedule, everything from player workouts to coaching meetings. He was able to do his usual gamut of recruiting, but his usual start-of-semester matters like meeting with parents and having newcomers get acclimated now will fall on his staff of assistants until he returns.

The Americans needed a 17-hour flight from Los Angeles before arriving in Melbourne, Australia, where they resumed practice on Monday. They’ll play three games in Australia, the first of those coming on Thursday, before heading to China next week. Popovich believes in a style of coaching where everyone gets a chance to argue all parts of the game — a participatory approach, like he uses in San Antonio. Wright is primarily helping with the U.S. defensive schemes, but he also gets his opportunity to offer suggestions for the offensive plans. And he’s usually one of the last coaches still working on the floor after practice, running groups through shooting drills. “We’re meeting in the morning, watching film, meeting with the team, practicing, going back, watching film, then watching film with the team,” Wright said. “And then we all go to dinner, but all we talk about at dinner is basketball.”

Wright guided Villanova to national championships in 2016 and 2018. Over the last four seasons, only Gonzaga has won more games than the Villanova — the Bulldogs have 130 wins, the Wildcats 129. And he has plenty of USA Basketball experience, like a gold medal as coach at the 2005 World University Games and a select team coach before the 2010 World Cup and 2016 Olympic runs by the senior national team.q

A24 TECHNOLOGY

Tuesday 20 August 2019

U.S. extends limited reprieve on tech sales to China’s Huawei

By FRANK BAJAK Associated Press The Trump administration has extended a limited reprieve on U.S. technology sales to Huawei, even as questions remain over how much of an effect broader sanctions are having on the Chinese technology giant.

Huawei has become enmeshed in the trade war between Washington and Beijing, with President Donald Trump showing a willingness to use the sanctions as a bargaining chip. The U.S. government blacklisted Huawei in May, deeming it a national security risk, meaning U.S. firms aren’t allow to sell the company technology without government approval.

At the time, the U.S. exempted a narrow list of products and services. That exemption would have expired Monday, but the Commerce Department extended it for another 90 days, as expected.

Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said the main aim of Monday’s announcement is to give smaller U.S. internet and wireless companies that rely on Huawei more time to transition away from reliance on its products.

“Some of the rural companies are dependent on Huawei, so we’re giving them a little more time to wean themselves off,” Ross said in an interview with Fox Business Network.

Other exports to Huawei officially remain restricted, though it’s not clear how

In this Aug. 1, 2019, file photo U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross attends a meeting of the 17th Latin American Infrastructure Leadership Forum, in Brasilia, Brazil.

Associated Press

much is in practice. Those sanctions, for instance, don’t bar U.S. telecom companies from buying Huawei equipment. And U.S. semiconductor companies that supply Huawei have determined that the export sanctions don’t apply to a significant portion of their sales.

“Most of the ongoing shipments of U.S. semiconductors to China are not covered,” said Paul Triolo, an analyst with the Eurasia Group global risk assessment firm.

The greater effect appears to be on Google’s Android mobile operating system, which Huawei can no longer use in its smartphones.

Huawei has developed its own operating system as

a replacement, though executives say they still hope to be able to keep using Android.

Huawei released a statement saying Monday’s extension “does not change the fact that Huawei has been treated unjustly.” The company said the extension “won’t have a substantial impact on Huawei’s business either way.”

Huawei is China’s biggest phone maker, and sales to the company account for a significant portion of revenues for some U.S. suppliers.

The extended limited reprieve applies to technology sales and transfers necessary for “the continued operations of existing networks and to support

existing mobile services, including cybersecurity research,” Commerce said in an updated order Monday. Shares of U.S. computer chipmakers Intel, Qualcomm and Micron — all of which sell to Huawei — rose after Monday’s announcement.

While U.S. companies are allowed to request approval to sell technology beyond what’s covered in the limited reprieve, Ross said the government has yet to grant any such licenses.

The Commerce Department is also adding 46 Huawei affiliates to the list of 69 already affected by sanctions. Huawei called that decision “politically motivated” and in violation of “basic principles of free

market competition.” Half of the newly listed affiliates are based outside China.

Adam Segal, director of cyberspace policy at the Council on Foreign Relations, said that probably reflected additional research to identify the full scope of Huawei purchasing globally. Triolo said the sanctions have had only limited effect mostly because there is no consensus in the Trump administration on Huawei policy.

Its China hawks want Huawei banned not just from U.S. government networks but from all U.S. telecommunications and have been trying to persuade U.S. allies to impose blanket bans. But others in the administration seem inclined to use Huawei sanctions as a lever in ongoing trade negotiations.

Trump himself has sent mixed signals. The extension was announced a day after he told reporters the U.S. shouldn’t be doing business with Huawei.

In May, Trump issued an executive order in May under which the Federal Communications Commission is studying whether to institute a ban on Huawei equipment in U.S. telecom networks.

Segal said “mixed messaging and inconsistencies” on Huawei by Trump administration officials are apt to reinforce concerns in Beijing about the credibility of any trade deal that might be reached with Washington.q

19-year-old accused of threatening abortion clinic on iFunny

This undated screen shot provide by the U. S. Attorney’s office in the Northern District of Illinois shows one of several threatening posts that appeared on Farhan Sheikh’s iFunny social media account.

Associated Press

By MICHAEL TARM AP Legal Affairs Writer CHICAGO (AP) — A 19-year-old from Chicago is charged with making a threat after he posted messages through a social media site typically used to produce humorous memes, saying he would carry out an attack on a city abortion clinic, according to a federal complaint unsealed Monday.

Farhan Sheikh posted a

statement on his iFunny page last week that said he intended to go to the clinic this Friday, Aug. 23, to “slaughter and murder any doctor, patient, or visitor” he saw there, the complaint says.

Addressing the FBI in the statement, he added he wasn’t joking.

“I am NOT a satirical account,” it said. “I post what I mean, and I WILL carry out what I post.” He also

allegedly wrote: “May god forgive me for what I am going to do soon.”

The complaint says Sheikh subscribed to the iFunny account of “ArmyOfChrist,” the purported user name of 18-year-old Justin Olsen, who was charged earlier this month in Ohio with threatening an agent.

He allegedly posted support for mass shootings and for any attacks on Planned Parenthood.q

BUSINESS A25

Tuesday 20 August 2019

Where’d all the stocks go? Nasdaq’s CEO on shrinking market

By STAN CHOE Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — The stock market is a much less crowded party than it used to be.

In the late 90s, when a bevy of hot dot-com companies were rushing to sell their shares on public markets, investors had more than 7,500 U.S. stocks to choose from. The dot-com bust culled many of those stocks, though, and the number has continued to shrink steadily, now down more than half from its 1998 peak.

That’s doing a disservice to the typical investor, says Adena Friedman, chief executive officer of Nasdaq, who spoke recently with The Associated Press about how it can make income inequality worse. She also touched on how trading markets are striving to open up to the world, even as politicians push for more insularity. The conversation has been edited for clarity and length.

Q: What’s behind the shrinking number of stocks?

A: Companies are taking a lot longer and waiting to go public. A big part of the reason is that there are other sources of capital that they can use to drive growth in their companies.

Private capital is just incredibly abundant and readily available, and there are early-stage investors who are willing to take a lot of risk to get into these growth companies.

So they have more choice. Then the rules of the government made it possible for them to have more shareholders as a private company than they used to. They weren’t forced into the public market based on just having too many shareholders.

They’re going to wait until they feel like they’re mature enough to handle the disclosure obligations and the scrutiny associated with going public.

Q: And that’s a bad thing?

A: The net result is that a lot of what I call average investors — people who are saving for their retirement, who are saving

In this Wednesday, July 31, 2019, photo NASDAQ President and Chief Executive Officer Adena Friedman poses for a photo at NASDAQ headquarters in New York.

Associated Press

for their education or their kids’ education — those investors don’t get the chance to invest in those companies early in their life.

They miss out on the growth and the opportunity that those companies provide.

And that, I think, is what we really have to pay a lot of attention to as a society: making it more attractive for companies to go public and making it so more investors have a chance to invest in that growth.

We always say markets are the most democratic part of the capital market system — any person can come in and invest $100 and find a company that they really want to buy or an ETF or any sort of any investment, and they all have equal access to the markets. That’s not the case for private companies.

It’s really reserved for the wealthier parts of society.

Q: Do all these recent highprofile IPOs, like Lyft’s and Uber’s, mean the trend is shifting?

A: We do have companies that are coming out and going public. We had 189 IPOs last year. We’ve had almost 100 IPOs this year. So we know that we’re giving

investors access to some great companies, but some of them — a lot of the bigger tech companies — are later in their life cycles.

So they’ve already gone through a big growth wave before the public investors get a chance to invest in them.

Q: A lot of IPOs recently have been for moneylosing companies, and critics say it’s reminiscent of the dot-com bubble. Is there such a thing as too many IPOs? A: No. Nasdaq was formed in 1971, and we founded our listings business on one premise: We wanted younger companies to be able to tap the public market. So before Nasdaq was created, you had to already be successful before you could actually get public investors to help grow your company. You had to be profitable, and you had to have a record of profitability, and that held back thousands of companies from being able to use the public markets to grow their companies so that they could become profitable.

I can name some really

interesting companies — Intel, Applied Materials, Comcast and Paccar — those four companies went public in our first class of listings, and all of them are in the Nasdaq 100 today.

They were not profitable companies, but they were building scalable profitable companies that were changing the world.

I believe that the public market should be for companies to discuss their story, back up their story with numbers and facts and figures, fully disclose the opportunities and the risks of the company and let investors decide: Do they have a scalable business model that will grow to profitability, or don’t they?

Don’t make it so that the company already has to have reached a certain point before a public investor even gets the chance to invest in it.

Q: The stock market is close to a record high, and this has been the longest running bull market on record. Does it feel to you now like it did at prior peaks, like 2007 before the Great Recession or 2000 before the dot-com bust?

A: I don’t try to compare.

I would say that when I look back on some of the true bubbles that existed, I would not say I feel like we’re in that kind of environment.

I think people see these companies come out, and they can see a big total addressable market.

They can see how these companies could grow and change an industry and maybe even change the world. And I think they see an optimistic view as to what the growth characteristics of the economy are. And they couple that with: What are my alternatives?

My alternatives are really low interest rate debt.

Other asset classes just don’t yield the same kind of return.

I would say there’s more foundation behind what we’re experiencing today than there was, certainly at the height of the internet bubble.

Q: Nasdaq is making a lot of investments in technology, and its technology is used in markets all over the world.

Can you point to some of the more interesting examples?

A: Our technology today is used in 130 markets around the world. Our job is to allow other markets to create a fair and mature experience for their capital markets.

The Indonesia Stock Exchange uses our trading technology, our clearing technology and our surveillance technology.

They’re creating a good market for foreign investors to come in, and it allows them to focus on educating their local citizens on how to become investors.

But our technology is also applicable outside the capital markets. We have technology that is used to support certain sports betting. We have a platform that’s used by the Hong Kong Jockey Club, it’s used by the Australian racing authority and we’re deploying it into Sweden as well.

We know how to run complex auctions, so our technology can be used there as well.q

A26 COMICS

Tuesday 20 August 2019

Mutts

Conceptis Sudoku

6 Chix

Blondie

Mother Goose & Grimm

Baby Blues

Zits

Yesterday’s puzzle answer

Sudoku is a number-placing puzzle based on a 9x9 grid with several given numbers. The object is to place the numbers 1 to 9 in the empty squares so that each row, each column and each 3x3 box contains the same number only once. The difficulty level of the Conceptis Sudoku increases from Monday to Sunday.

CLASSIFIED A27

Tuesday 20 August 2019

Doggy Con: a pop culture convention for furry fanatics

By ANDREA SMITH Associated Press ATLANTA (AP) — Atlanta’s scorching August heat didn’t stop Megan Nelson from slipping on a long faux fur coat and dressing up like Cruella de Vil for her first Doggy Con convention, a pet event for costumed canines inspired by the upcoming Dragon Con convention.

Doggy Con drew hundreds of dog owners and spectators Saturday to an Atlanta park for their own small cosplay convention, dressing up like fictional characters from video games, movies and other corners of the pop culture universe. For Nelson, that meant strutting and posing for photos alongside her dog Darla, a young chocolate Labrador Retriever mix sporting a Dalmatian costume.

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A28 SCIENCE

Tuesday 20 August 2019

Blooms, beasts affected as Alaska records hottest month

By DAN JOLING Associated Press ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — Alaska has been America’s canary in the coal mine for climate warming, and the yellow bird is swooning.

July was Alaska’s warmest month ever, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Sea ice melted.

Bering Sea fish swam in above-normal temperatures. So did children in the coastal town of Nome.

Wildfire season started early and stayed late. Thousands of walruses thronged to shore.

Unusual weather events like this could become more common with climate warming, said Brian Brettschneider, an associate climate researcher at the University of Alaska Fairbanks’ International Arctic Research Center.

Alaska has seen “multiple decades-long increases” in temperature, he said.

“It becomes easier to have these unusual sets of conditions that now lead to records,” Brettschneider said.

Alaska’s average temperature in July was 58.1 degrees (14.5 Celsius). That’s 5.4 degrees (3 Celsius) above average and 0.8 degrees (0.4 Celsius) higher than the previous warmest month of July 2004, NOAA said.

The effects were felt from the Arctic Ocean to the world’s largest temperate rainforest on Alaska’s Panhandle.

Anchorage, the state’s largest city, on July 4 for the first time hit 90 degrees (32.22 Celsius) at Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport, 5 degrees higher than the city’s pre-

Central Florida resident Paul Leake photographs a dahlia garden in Town Square in Anchorage, Alaska, Thursday, Aug. 15, 2019.

Associated Press

vious recorded high of 85 degrees (29.44 Celsius).

Sea ice off Alaska’s north and northwest shore and other Arctic regions retreated to the lowest level ever recorded for July, according to the National Snow and Ice Data Center at the University of Colorado.

Arctic sea ice for July set a record low of 2.9 million square miles (7.6 million square kilometers). That was a South Carolina-size loss of 30,900 square miles (80,000 square kilometers) below the previous record low July in 2012.

Sea ice is the main habitat for polar bears and a resting platform for female walruses and their young.

Several thousand walruses came to shore July 30, the first time they’ve been spotted in such large num-

bers before August.

Effects were less obvious in the Bering Sea off Alaska’s west coast. Lyle Britt, a NOAA Fisheries biologist who oversees the agency’s annual Bering Sea groundfish survey, was on a trawler east of the island of Saint Matthew during the first week of July.

“The temperature out there for us was in the high 70s,” Britt said. “On those boats, everything up there is designed to conserve heat, not vent heat. It was unbearably warm inside the boat.”

On the ocean bottom, Britt’s crew for the second consecutive year found scant evidence of a “cold pool,” the east-west barrier of extremely cold, salty water that traditionally concentrates Pacific cod and walleye pollock, the species that make fastfood fish sandwiches, in the southeastern Bering Sea. Alaska’s wildfire season

started in April. July’s dry and hot temperatures extended it. An expected rainy season marked by southwest winds pushing up moisture and soaking fires did not show up on time, said Tim Mowry, spokesman for the state Division of Forestry.

“It extended our fire season through the month of July,” Mowry said.

Alaska by mid-July can usually free up crews to fight fires in other states, but only about 15 people have left this year. High fire danger around Anchorage, the Kenai Peninsula and the Matanuska-Susitna Borough has kept crews in Alaska.

“We’ve pretty much held on to all our resources instate at this point,” Mowry said.

A burn ban and water sprinkler restrictions remain in place for Haines, just outside the Tongass National Forest. July extended a

drought in the rainforest, said Rick Thoman, another climate expert at the International Arctic Research Center.

Cities in the southern half of the rainforest have limited or no hydropower because of low water levels. That means power has to be generated by burning diesel fuel, Thoman said.

July was the hottest month measured on Earth since records began in 1880, NOAA reported Thursday.

And a United Nations report earlier this month warned that global warming threatens food supplies around the world.

But Alaska’s recent heat has had silver linings. Barley and other crops are ready to harvest, said Stephen Brown of the University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service.

The growing season has been extended by a month, and if extra days become the norm, they will expand what can be grown in the state. Brown used heat radiated from his blacktop driveway to grow fruit not usually seen outside greenhouses.

“I’ve got a bumper crop of tomatoes and jalapenos this summer,” he said.

On the other hand, the weather has stressed birch trees and left them vulnerable to leaf-eating insects.

“That gives the leaf miners opportunity to really whack them good,” he said. “I’m looking at my lawn right now, and I need to rake leaves.”

Brettschneider, the climate researcher, sees mostly negative effects from the hot July and climate warming.

Alaska looks the way it does because of the temperature regime, he said, and in 50 years, Alaska may look like Idaho.

“We should expect changes. We should expect the forests to be in different locations. We should expect wildlife to move. We should expect plants to move.

And in many cases, if they can’t move fast enough, we should expect them to just go away,” he said.q

PEOPLE & ARTS A29

Tuesday 20 August 2019

Vince Gill weighs hard truths with emotional depth on ‘Okie’

By KRISTIN M. HALL Associated Press NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Vince Gill might make people break down in tears when they listen to his vulnerable new record in which he sings about regret, marriage, faith, sexual abuse and hard choices.

But then again, so did he.

When the country singer recorded his song “When My Amy Prays,” about his relationship with God through his wife Amy Grant, he choked up. His normally pristine tenor voice faltered. He decided to leave it as is.

“I don’t so much anymore feel like I want to get impressed by music as much as I want to get in it and be moved,” said the 21time Grammy winner at his home in Nashville after finishing a recent European tour with The Eagles.

“There’s a lot of life tied up in these songs and it gets somewhat emotional sometimes.”

“Okie,” out Friday, is one of his most personal and honest albums in years, full of songs that he waited a lifetime to write and record.

Forty years into an unprecedented career, 62-yearold Gill has always been

In this Feb. 1, 2016 file photo, Vince Gill poses for a photo at his home in Nashville, Tenn. Gill doesn’t hold back on weighty topics of regret, faith, his marriage and sexual abuse on his new record “Okie” coming out on Aug. 23, 2019.

Associated Press

known for his emotionally wrought performances of songs like “Go Rest High on That Mountain,” written after the death of his brother, or heart-wrenching love songs like “Whenever You Come Around.” But “Okie” reveals a lot about Gill’s core truths, whether it’s spiritual or life lessons or wisdom he’s gained from other songwriters like Guy Clark and Merle Haggard.

“These days it’s awful hard to get a fair assessment of what truth is,” Gill said. “Because people are afraid to tell the truth sometimes because they’ll get barbecued for it, you know. And that’s no way to live. It’s no way to be.”

One of the most striking songs on the album is “Forever Changed,” about child sexual abuse. Gill doesn’t assume he knows

what that is like, but he said he was inspired by an experience he had as a seventh-grade kid.

“I was on the basketball team and the basketball coach, the gym teacher called me into his office,” Gill said.

“I’m sitting on his desk and the hand goes on my leg and it goes further and further up.”

Gill said he ran away and

nothing further happened, but he thought about it a lot and kept trying to find the right words. “Sometimes the innocent don’t have a voice,” said Gill.

“When you’re a kid and somebody is abusive to you, you don’t know how to handle it.

You don’t know how to deal with it.”

He sang the song when he was rehearsing for a show years ago and a woman in his band heard it and ran off the stage crying.

“She came to me later and said, ‘How did you know that’s my story?’” Gill said.

On “What Choice Will You Make,” Gill writes from the perspective of a woman abandoned and shunned because of an unplanned pregnancy, and he asks the listener to just empathize. In a time when women’s reproductive choices are highly politicized, he just wanted to put people in her shoes when no answer seems like the right one.

“Its intent is not me telling you what you should or shouldn’t do,” he said.

“I like seeing it be told in the hands of kindness, rather than the hands of judgment.”q

Uzo Aduba post-’Orange’: ‘The work will come.’

By RYAN PEARSON Associated Press LOS ANGELES (AP) — Uzo Aduba said the upcoming FX limited series “Mrs. America” encompasses a whole lot of what she loves best about acting.

“It’s a story of women. It’s bringing great women together, incredibly talented women who I have respected and admired for years,” she told The Associated Press in a recent interview.

Featuring Aduba as the late U.S. Rep. Shirley Chisholm, Cate Blanchett as conservative activist and orange juice queen Phyllis Schlafly and Rose Byrne as feminist Gloria Steinem, the show is based on the true story of the 1970s battle over the Equal Rights Amendment.

There’s more to the slew of stars onboard. Tracey Ullman will play “The Feminine Mystique” author Betty Friedan and Margo Martindale is U.S. Rep. Bella Abzug, known for — among other things — her statement hats. James Marsden, Sarah Paulsen, Kayli Carter, John Slattery and Jeanne Tripplehorn will also appear.

Aduba said she also has long admired the late Chisholm, who was the first black woman elected to Congress.

“It represents authenticity and truth, and it’s a story that wants to tell the truth about that time. The hard and the good truth. That’s exciting for me,” the “Orange is the New Black” costar said of her new show,

which is in production and doesn’t yet have a release date.

The ERA battleground contributed to the rise of the Moral Majority, shifting the cultural and political landscape. It’s written by Emmy-winner Dahvi Waller, who was in the “Mad Men” stable. Blanchett is an executive producer and it’s the first time the Oscar winner has appeared in a series in a regular role.

The period show could have devolved into a startransformation parade (executives recently released photos of the stars in character), but Waller’s scripts have “given so much to the story, to give us something to really do and say,” Aduba added.

Now that “Orange” has

This May 22, 2019 photo shows actress Uzo Aduba posing for a portrait in Los Angeles.

Associated Press

wrapped up on Netflix, she said she remains optimistic about her professional future.

“Anything is possible,” she said. “I know it because

I’ve seen it. ... The work will come. How fluidly and quickly it comes, I don’t know, and what comes, I really don’t know, but I know it will come.”q

A30 PEOPLE

Tuesday 20 August 2019

& ARTS

Ending a drought for R-rated comedies, ‘Good Boys’ is No. 1

By JAKE COYLE Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — The R-rated comedy, left for dead by some Hollywood studios, again reached No.1 at the box office over the weekend thanks to the raunchy coming-of-age tale “Good Boys,” about a trio of 12-year-olds on a crude misadventure.

“Good Boys” surpassed expectations to debut with $21 million, according to

studio estimates Sunday, dethroning the “Fast & Furious” spinoff “Hobbs & Shaw,” which slid to second with $14.1 million in its third weekend. Not since Melissa McCarthy’s “The Boss” came in No. 1 all the way back in April 2016 has an Rrated comedy topped the North American box office.

“This is like a unicorn sighting,” said Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst for data firm Comscore.

This image released by Universal Pictures shows Jacob Tremblay, from left, as Max, Keith L. Williams as Lucas and Brady Noon as Thor in the film, “Good Boys,” written by Lee Eisenberg and Gene Stupnitsky and directed by Stupnitsky.

Associated Press

In recent years, R-rated horror has largely taken the place of R-rated comedy at the box office, as Hollywood has increasingly ceded the genre to TV and streaming services. But Universal Pictures, which released “Good Boys,” has kept the flame. The studio was behind “The Boss” as well as the intervening years’ highest grossing domestic comedies: 2017’s “Girls Trip” and 2018’s “Night School.”

“Good Boys” broke out of a crowded late-summer field of new releases. The weekend’s other new widely re-

leased films — the animated sequel “The Angry Birds Movie 2,” the shark attack sequel “47 Meters Down: Uncaged,” the Bruce Springsteen-inspired drama “Blinded by the Light” and Richard Linklater’s Cate Blanchett-led “Where’d You Go Bernadette” — all fizzled.

“Good Boys” rode a buzzy premiere at South By Southwest, good reviews (80% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes) and the imprimatur of producers Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg (“Good Boys” is much like a tween version of “Superbad”) to

notch the best opening for an original comedy this year. Second place is Universal’s body-switch comedy “Little.”

Directed by Gene Stupnitsky (who co-wrote the script with Lee Eisenberg), “Good Boys” stars Jacob Tremblay, Keith L. Williams and Brady Noon as sixth graders trying to make it to their first kissing party. The movie’s muchwatched red-band trailer traded on its ironies. As Rogen says, Tremblay, Williams and Noon are all too young to see their own movie alone.q

The Rock announces wedding on Instagram Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — With a simple “We do,” Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson announced his wedding to his longtime girlfriend on Instagram. A photo of the movie star and Lauren Hashian was posted on the social media site. Both were wearing white, and they were standing overlooking the ocean. The post said the date of their apparent nuptials was Sunday, in Hawaii.

Johnson’s representative did not immediately return calls asking for comment. The couple have been dating for several

In this Feb. 22, 2015, file photo Dwayne Johnson, left, and Lauren Hashian arrive at the Oscars at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles.

Associated Press

years and have two young daughters. Johnson also has a teenage daughter from a previous marriage.

Johnson has a lot to cele-

brate this month. His movie “Hobbs and Shaw” has been a box office success since being released earlier in August.q

PEOPLE & ARTS A31

Tuesday 20 August 2019

‘Easy Rider’ star, 1960s swashbuckler Peter Fonda dies at 79

By LINDSEY BAHR ANDREW DALTON Associated Press LOS ANGELES (AP) — Actor Peter Fonda, the son of a Hollywood legend who became a movie star in his own right after both writing and starring in the counterculture classic “Easy Rider,” died Friday at his home of complications from lung cancer. He was 79.

“I am very sad,” Jane Fonda said in a statement.

“He was my sweet-hearted baby brother. The talker of the family. I have had beautiful alone time with him these last days. He went out laughing.”

Born into Hollywood royalty as Henry Fonda’s only son, Peter Fonda carved his own path with his nonconformist tendencies and earned an Oscar nomination for co-writing the psychedelic road trip movie “Easy Rider.” He would never win that golden statuette, but he would later be nominated for his leading performance as a Vietnam veteran and widowed beekeeper in “Ulee’s Gold.”

Fonda was born in New York in 1940 to parents whose personas were the very opposite of the rebellious images their kids would cultivate. Father Henry Fonda was already a Hollywood giant, known for playing straight-shooting cowboys and soldiers. Mother Frances Ford Seymour was a Canadian-born U.S. socialite.

He was only 10 years old when his mother died. She had a nervous breakdown after learning of her husband’s affair and was confined to a hospital. In 1950, she killed herself. It would be about five years before Peter Fonda learned the truth behind her death.

Fonda accidentally shot himself and nearly died on his 11th birthday. It was a story he told often, including during an acid trip with members of The Beatles and The Byrds during which Fonda reportedly said, “I know what it’s like to be dead.”

John Lennon would use the line in The Beatles song

“She Said She Said.”

Fonda went to private schools in Massachusetts

couldn’t appreciate and nurture Peter’s sensitivity, couldn’t see him as he was.

“’Easy Rider’ depicted the rise of hippie culture, condemned the establishment,

In this Friday, Oct. 23, 2009 file photo, Peter Fonda, poses atop a Harley-Davidson motorcycle in Glendale, Calif.

Associated Press

and Connecticut as a child, moving on to the University of Nebraska in his father’s home state, joining the same acting group — the Omaha Community Playhouse — where Henry Fonda got his start.

He then returned to New York and joined the Cecilwood Theatre, getting small roles on Broadway and guest parts on television shows including “Naked City” and “Wagon Train.”

Fonda had an estranged relationship with his father throughout most of his life, but he said that they grew closer over the years before Henry Fonda died in 1982.

“Peter is all deep sweetness, kind and sensitive to his core. He would never intentionally harm anything or anyone. In fact, he once argued with me that vegetables had souls (it was the ‘60s),” his sister Jane Fonda said in her 2005 memoir. “He has a strange, complex mind that grasps and hangs on to details ranging from the minutiae of his childhood to cosmic matters, with a staggering amount in between. Dad

Instead he tried to shame Peter into his own image of stoic independence.”

Although Peter never achieved the status of his father or even his older sister, the impact of “Easy Rider,” which just celebrated its 50th anniversary, was enough to cement his place in popular culture.

Fonda collaborated with another struggling young actor, Dennis Hopper, on the script about two weedsmoking, drug-slinging bikers on a trip through the Southwest as they make their way to New Orleans for Mardi Gras.

On the way, Fonda and Hopper befriend a drunken young lawyer — Jack Nicholson in a breakout role — but raise the dander of Southern rednecks and are murdered before they can return home.

Fonda’s character Wyatt wore a stars-and-stripes helmet and rode a motorcycle called “Captain America,” re-purposing traditional images for the counter-culture.

Actress Illeana Douglas tweeted her condolences Friday with the hashtag “RIPCaptainAmerica.”

and celebrated freedom,” Douglas wrote. “Peter Fonda embodied those values and instilled them in a generation.”

Fonda had played bikers before “Easy Rider.” In the 1966 Roger Cormandirected “Wild Angels,” in which he plays Heavenly Blues, leader of a band of Hells Angels, Fonda delivers a speech that could’ve served as both a personal mantra and a manifesto for the youth of the ‘60s.

“We wanna be free!” Fonda tells a preacher in the film. “We wanna be free to do what we wanna do. We wanna be free to ride. We wanna be free to ride our machines without being hassled by the man! And we wanna get loaded!”

Fonda produced “Easy Rider” and Hopper directed it for a meager $380,000. It went on to gross $40 million worldwide, a substantial sum for its time.

The film was a hit at Cannes, netted a best screenplay Oscar nomination for Fonda, Hopper and Terry Southern, and has since been listed on the American Film Institute’s ranking of the top 100 American films. The es-

tablishment gave its official blessing in 1998 when “Easy Rider” was included in the United States National Film Registry for being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant.”

In 1969, he told The Associated Press that, “As for my generation, it was time they started doing their own speaking. There has been too much of the ‘silent majority’ — at both ends of the generation gap.”

He did reflect later in a 2015 interview with The Hollywood Reporter that it may have impacted his career prospects: “It certainly put a nail in the coffin of ‘the next Dean Jones at Disney.’ “ Fonda’s output may have been prolific, but he was not always well-regarded, which he was acutely aware of. But he said that “Ulee’s Gold,” which came out in 1997, was the “most fun” he’d ever had making a movie. He wore the same wire-rimmed glasses his father wore in “On Golden Pond,” although he said beyond that he was not channeling Henry Fonda in the performance. He lost out on the Oscar to Nicholson, who won for “As Good as It Gets.”

Nicholson said in his acceptance speech that it as an honor to be nominated alongside “my old bike pal Fonda.”

He remained prolific for the rest of his life with notable performances as the heel in Steven Soderbergh’s “The Limey,” from 1999, and in James Mangold’s 2007 update of “3:10 to Yuma.”

He’d even play himself in an episode of the spoof documentary series “Documentary Now!” about life as “an Oscar Bridesmaid.”

Fonda is survived by his third wife, Margaret DeVogelaere, his daughter, actress Bridget Fonda and son, Justin, both from his first marriage to Susan Brewer.

“In one of the saddest moments of our lives, we are not able to find the appropriate words to express the pain in our hearts,” the family said in a statement.

“As we grieve, we ask that you respect our privacy.”q

A32 FEATURE

Tuesday 20 August 2019

Songbirds silenced as Colombia fights wildlife trafficking

By JOSHUA GOODMAN Associated Press BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) — The metal doors of a shoebox-sized cage open up and a bird tagged #811 launches into a giant aviary. The palm-sized finch performs a midair pirouette, lands on a willow branch and curiously twitches its saffron-colored head sideways, as if surprised by its good fortune.

“That’s what it feels like to be free,” said Juan Camilo Panqueba, a veterinarian at a quarantine center in Colombia’s high Andean capital, far from the canary’s natural habitat along the humid, Caribbean coast.

The moment of liberation contrasts with the dreadful conditions in which the finch was found. Three weeks ago, authorities in the capital seized 32 finches in a surprise raid on a cockfighting ring where a high-stakes, booze-filled songbird contest billed as “the clash of titans” on social media was taking place.

While sparring by way of song has been a pastime throughout the Caribbean for centuries, trapping wildlife without a license — even species like these saffron finches, or Sicalis flaveola, which are not threatened — is a crime in Colombia, though one that authorities ignored in a country overrun by drug cartels, leftist guerrillas and other armed groups Until now.

Taking advantage of a decline in violence, and spurred by a growing awareness of Colombia’s importance as the country with the second highest biodiversity in the world, authorities are going after animal trafficking like never before. Last year, police seized more than 34,600 animals illegally poached from the wild — a 44% increase over 2017. Many were detected by a pack of 16 feather- and skin-sniffing dogs stationed at airports and bus stations.

“Just because it’s a tradition doesn’t make it right,” said Maj. Paula Ortiz, head

In this Aug. 5, 2019 photo, canaries caught from the wild by animal traffickers sing in their cages in a quarantined area of a wildlife center before being freed in Bogota, Colombia.

Associated Press

of a 500-strong police unit that combats environmental crimes.

Prosecutors are also more aggressively going after the criminal networks that thrive on the illegal trade, whose profits trail only drug and arms smuggling, according to police. Globally, the wildlife trade is worth more than $10 billion, according to the United Nations’ Office on Drugs and Crime.

The focus on law enforcement coincides with a debate about the rights of wild animals raging in Colombia and around the world.

This month, judges on Colombia’s constitutional court heard arguments in a long-running case over the fate of an endangered Andean spectacled bear named Chucho, who years ago was taken from a na-

ture reserve and locked up a zoo in Barranquilla. A lawyer claiming to act on the bear’s behalf successfully sued to have Chucho released. If the high court upholds that ruling it would be the first time a wild animal in Colombia has ever been granted habeas corpus rights similar to those enjoyed by human beings.

The seizure of the 32 birds was the result of an undercover operation led by members of Bogota’s environmental secretariat.

In May, with police they seized 16 birds, including an endangered cardinal, locked in small cages in three working-class apartments. Leads from that raid allowed authorities to clandestinely penetrate a network that organized last month’s event.

A video posted on a closed Facebook group promised

In this Aug. 5 , 2019 photo, a veterinarian walks past animals that were rescued from animal traffickers, in the rehabilitation area of a wildlife center in Bogota, Colombia.

Associated Press

participants and the paying public plenty of whiskey and “something wonderful” as they cheered on the birds hanging in cages above an artificial turf ring.

The owner of the bird with the biggest pipes, as measured by judges counting chirps on a giant abacus with a star at one end, was to take home a $100 prize.

Officials from the environmental secretariat say the birds were subjected to prolonged abuse by their captors, mostly migrants to the capital from the Caribbean coast and Venezuela, who kept them in the tiny cages and force them to listen to loud music around the clock in an effort to spur them to sing.

In the wild, the birds croon to defend their territory or court a mate.

“For them, it was like torture,” said Panqueba, the veterinarian, who is technical supervisor at the cityrun wildlife center where the birds are cared for alongside more than 1,000 animals, among them rainbow-colored macaws, endangered sea turtles and tiny titi monkeys — all of them rescued from traffickers.

While the aim is always to return the animals to their natural habitat, many are unfit to survive in the wild, having developed diseases or grown too accus-

tomed to human beings. In the case of the canaries, 11 of the 32 tested positive for a parasite that needs to be treated before they can resume flight.

Not all bird lovers support the crackdown.

Carlos Castellano, a Colombian judge for the World Ornithological Confederation, believes authorities are criminalizing a rich cultural tradition. Birds have been bred in captivity for their colors, shape or song since at least the 14th century, he said, and the tradition is especially rooted in Latin America, where the practice arrived with the Spanish conquistadores.

“I wish it were so easy to obligate a bird to sing,” joked Castellano, whose singing sidekick “Caruso” in 1989 won Colombia’s only top prize ever at the World Ornithology Championship, held in Italy. “If a bird isn’t happy in its cage, which is its home by birth or destiny, it won’t ever sing, no matter what you do.”

While Castellano acknowledges that taking the birds from the wild is illegal, he accuses authorities of overlooking the fact that their abundant population, widely distributed throughout Latin America and a colonizing presence even in urban areas, isn’t at risk.

Even breeders like himself need to supplement their domestic population from time to time with wild specimens, he says.

“This is going to convert a cultural tradition into a clandestine activity,” Castellano said.

Authorities want to deliver a blow to the highly organized, dangerous syndicates behind the illegal trade. While wildlife trafficking is punishable with jail sentences of four to nine years, few of the more than 3,500 people caught in the act so far this year for environmental and wildlife crimes are currently behind bars. Many are repeat offenders. In the case of the canaries, prosecutors for the first time are trying to stiffen the punishment by adding conspiracy charges.q