Edisi 23 April 2010 | International Bali Post

16 Pages Number 78 2st Year

Mexico City offers bikes in its clean air campaign

Price: Rp 3.000,-

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e-mail: info_ibp@balipost.co.id online: http://www.internationalbalipost.com. http://epaper.internationalbalipost.com.

Friday, April 23, 2010

Current decentralization system the right thing PAGE 8

IBP/Eka

Firemen trying to extinguish the fire in three store at Kuta Square on Thursday, April 22, 2010.

Due to short circuit First Look: New ‘Shrek’ premieres at Tribeca

Three stores in Kuta Square burn

PAGE 12

Denpasar (Bali Post) –

The people and the employees of the stores in Kuta Square shopping center was terrified with the fire which happened on Thursday, April 22nd 2010. The fire burnt three stores, Quiksiver, Oakley Outorized and Body & Soul. There were no casualties reported in the incident.

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However, the lost in the three stores are up to tenth million rupiah. From the preliminary investigation, the police explained that the cause of the fire was a sort circuit in one of the stores.

In order to determine the certain cause of the fire, the police department had assigned identification division and the forensic lab

to the scene. The information gathered on the crime scene, the fire was started in Quicksilver store at 8 o’clock in the morning.

When the employees were opening the store, the blaze was already very big. Then they were running for cover and some were trying to put out the fire.

The situation was getting hectic

when the fire spread to the other stores which are Oakley and Body & Soul. The firemen arrived in the scene shortly after. The fire department sent 15 units of fire trucks and managed to isolate the fire so only three stores were burnt.

One of the fireman said “the fire was very big but we can isolate it and extinguished the fire in one

hour. Three stores were burnt in the incident.

While, the head of Kuta precinct, Dodi Prawira Negara, said that he still waiting for the investigation report before announcing the certain cause of the fire.

Exploded electrical wire

In separate place, a fire incident also happened when an electricity wire exploded in the Coca Cola company in Mengwi, Badung. The fire can be extinguished in one hours and there were no casualties reported.(kmb21)

Abandoned in Malaysia, 10 TKI Report to Police Bali Post

SINGARAJA - The ten Indonesian workers (TKI) from Buleleng claimed to have been abandoned in Malaysia by the supplier of labor. Because he felt cheated, ten residents from various villages in Buleleng and outside it ultimately report to the Buleleng Police.

Buleleng Police Kompol. Made Sudirsa, Wednesday, citing the ten

workers who report to the police it is Putu Riki Kristiawan Major Roads residents Metra Singaraja, IB Road Mount Batur Citarsa from Singaraja, Komang Aryan origin Sujana Village District Patemon Seririt, Kadek Suarnawan of Roads Sumba Island Gardens, the home village of Dewa Gede Umayana Pemaron District of Buleleng, Made Sumawan origin kaliasem Village Banjar District, Eka Kamal who lived in Jalan Ngurah Rai, Singaraja, and Ketut

Arya Wijana Patemon Village District Seririt origin. Meanwhile, two more come from outside namely Made Ariyasa Buleleng Gianyar Ubud origin and the origin Bajera Gede Artawa Tabanan.

According to police reports of victims in Buleleng, they feel cheated by a perpetrator who is named M Haris from Jalan Jambu Singaraja. As a requirement to work in Malaysia, they had to pay Rp 12 million to 13 million per person.

Afterwards they were escorted by F Haris to the Ngurah Rai International Airport. Then from Jakarta to Malaysia, they were escorted by a friend M Haris. But up in Malaysia turned out they did not get a job as promised earlier. TKI tenth one had abandoned it for a week in Malaysia and finally decided to go home on his own. After arriving at their house they then report to the Buleleng Police.

Continued on page 6

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International

Friday, April 23, 2010

Bali News Governor Mangku Pastika

claims to have run the pro-people programs Gianyar (Bali Post)—

Governor of Bali Made Mangku Pastika claimed to have carried out the programs taking sides with the people, as discussed by the participants of the National Workshop at Tampaksiring Palace for three days ago. Of all the targets stipulated whose accomplishment determined in the upcoming year 2014, Mangku Pastika only concerned about the increasing transmission of HIV and AIDS cases. This was conveyed by Governor Mangku Pastika in the midst of coffee break of the last day National Workshop at the Tampaksiring Palace, Wednesday (Apr 21).

Agenda of discussion in the evaluation of the pro-people policy of President SBY comprised the eradication of extreme poverty and hunger, achievement of universal primary education, promotion of gender equality and women empowerment, reduction of child mortality, improvement of maternal health, control of HIV and AIDS, malaria and other contagious diseases, certainty of environmental sustainability, and promotion of partnership development at the global level.

Out of all discussions, the Governor Mangku Pastika said that Bali was getting better, except in the matter related to HIV and AIDS. Even those pro-people programs already exceeded the target of Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). However, the achievement of the target should not make Bali complacent because all programs had to be improved for the community of Bali.

In the poverty aspect, there were many programs having been running, starting from the Bali Mandara Health Insurance (JKBM), education, house refurbishment, improvement of unworthy house, clean water and improvement of infrastructure. In fact, the poverty rate in Bali is now only 5.13

percent from entire population. “Such number was large enough for Bali known as the Paradise Island. Despite being number three in Indonesia, after Jakarta and South Kalimantan, this needs improving so that the rate can be lowered in the future,” he explained.

Meanwhile, HIV and AIDS issues are still being felt hard to achieve the target, so in the future a solution is required in the form of education and prevention. These should be given more emphasis on how the family can prevent, not get in touch in the interactions leading to the transmission of HIV and AIDS. Additionally, Bali as a tourist destination needs to restructure and revamp the infrastructure and facilities.

For the long-term plan, tourists coming just to look for enjoyment would be reduced. It’s time for Bali to enhance the higher quality of tourism. Those coming to Bali seem to prefer enjoying the beauty of culture and nature. Therefore, the condition of future environment of Bali should be repaired. By doing so, Bali tourism could create an expensive and high quality tourism world.

Overcoming gaps

Though it had been claimed that the pro-people program in Bali has ex-

ceeded the MDG’s targets as set up by government, the implementation in Bali set aside a number of socio-economic inequalities in the south, north, east and west Bali. To these conditions, the Governor considered it necessary to launch regional development that could be made into concrete implementation. The development, among others, could be realized by the airport development plan and road shortcut in southern region. Even, there appeared a discourse to construct tourism railway networks surrounding the Bali Island. Expectedly, certain points as in West Bali could be enjoyed by tourists. “This is only a discourse of the experts who could talk to,” he said Meanwhile, Minister of Culture and Tourism, Jero Wacik, in response to the contribution obtained in the activity during the three-day National Workshop recognized that economic growth of Bali was the best among the provinces in Indonesia.

However, the growth alone is not enough in this regard. It requires the equalization in addressing the socio-economic inequalities within the society.

Not all people in the south region can enjoy the splash of the tourism progress.

In years to come, all must be generated and must work together. (kmb16)

Forced Money taken, Ex-Wife Sued Denpasar (Bali Post) -

Anger is done in Santa Maria Luisa Restaurant Ketupat I, Jalan Legian 109, Kuta, Badung, make him have to deal with the police. He has been accused of stealing with violence by her ex-husband, Haji Syamhaidar Rachmat (54). Performers take the cash in the cash register drawer restaurant, Friday (18 / 4). The husband also report cases to police Kuta.

Information, this case began when the former married couple (couples) hit a divorce case. Any division of property has not been

determined. Well, on Friday at 20:00 pm, participants came to the scene and intend to ask for money. Principals were asked the cashier restaurant. ‘’Performer indication is around USD 450 thousand,’’ police officer clearly Kuta, Wednesday (21 / 4) yesterday.

Apparently, the perpetrator was not satisfied with the money given away. He was then forced the cashier to be given more money. Because of the forbidden, then rob the victim and forcibly took the money in the drawer. ‘’Perpetrators went back to take the money as much as USD $ 1

million. It was done by way of seizing suspected perpetrators,’’ said the officer whose name was not published.

Not only taking the money, the perpetrators also damaged a cabinet, an antique bed, a table and frame and ripped a photograph. Well, deeds judged perpetrators have crossed and her husband reported the case, Tuesday (20 / 4). ‘’We are still need to investigate to understand better. Performers are being investigated in a room by investigators,’’ said Police Kuta Kanit Reskrim Iptu I Made Dayendra while justifying the case. (Kmb21)

Minister of Youth and Sport inspected Dipta Stadium Gianyar (Bali Post)—

Minister of Youth and Sports Andi Malarangeng who was in Bali in relation to his presence in the National Workshop at Tampaksiring Palace, last Wednesday (Apr 21) took his time to visit the Dipta Stadium at Buruan Village whose construction stayed to stagnate.

The arrival of Andi Malarangeng gave a great expectation to the Gianyar Regency Government in assisting the construction of such international stadium.

Andi who was accompanied by the Regent of Gianyar Tjok Oka Artha Ardana Sukawati and Gianyar of Public Works Nyoman Nuadi had time to see the condition of the stadium that once had a big name with the local priding soccer team (Persegi—Gianyar Football Association).

Minister said that Gianyar as a tourist destination was very good if having the international standard stadium. Amidst the hustles and bustles of tourist activities coming to Gianyar, of course, it could be poised by the presence of sport facilities. Tourism and sport could

make a synergy. With the visit of Minister of Youth and Sport to Dipta Stadium, will it provide a new expectation to the stadium? On that occasion, the Minister said that the proposal submitted by Gianyar Regency Government to the Minister for continuation of the development was still under study. “I have not seen the proposal, but it would be reviewed first,” he explained. The Minister himself firmly encouraged the growth of sports in Gianyar Regency.

Regent of Gianyar Tjok Arta Ardana Oka Sukawati said the regency government in making the arrangements for the Dipta Stadium area had submitted a proposal to Minister of Youth and Sports to get assistance for the continuation of such development. Approximately, the proposal worth IDR 50 billion was submitted to improve the stadium and arrangement of sports center. In years to come, the opportunity of its use would be big enough. As tourist destination, the Dipta Stadium could later be functioned as the venue of various activities both of national and international, he explained. (kmb16)

Stealing ceramics and cement, project workers arrested by police Denpasar (Bali Post)—

Detective Unit of South Kuta Police successfully uncovered a theft case occurring in the project area of Perum Beranda, Mumbul, South Kuta, Badung. Having been investigated for few days, the officers under control of Unit Chief of Criminal Detective Ardana could arrest three suspects at once, including one suspect serving as receiver of those stolen goods.

Two suspects respectively naming Imron, 31, and Tirto Ribowo, 25, a resident from Jember, East Java were theft perpetrators at the scene. Meanwhile, the suspect Nyoman Suda, 38, was the suspect fence. “The three suspects are still undergoing intensive investigation in the room of investigator,” said the Head of South Kuta Police Nanang Prihasmoko, last Wednesday (Apr 21). According

to Chief Nanang Prihasmoko, the theft case was uncovered after the foreman reported the case. Local foreman admitted to have lost a number of cement that would be used for the local project. Well, the police were doing enquiry at the crime scene and examination of witnesses. A number of witnesses were examined and raised suspicions against the suspects Imron and Tirto.

Suspicion of police was kept on deepening. Both suspects were examined intensively. Initially, the two suspects did not confess. However, the strategy of the police committing the investigation eventually could reveal it all. Both suspects had confessed. A number of 15 boxes of ceramics and 30 bags of cement were stolen by the suspects and then sold to a fence (the suspect Suda),” he said. (kmb21)

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Bali News

International

Murder Case Guide

Families Watching ’’Working’’ Judges and Prosecutors Denpasar (Bali Post) -

Tju victims of murder trials that allegedly carried Po Seng Tjoe WOI Soen, again held at the PN Denpasar, Wednesday (21 / 4) yesterday. On that occasion represented the victim’s family did Iswan Sukiato sympathetic actions before and during trial.

Accompanied by Attorney Ketut Bagiada, Iswan Sukiato expects law enforcement officers to work a maximum in this case. To prosecutors, it is hoped the lawsuit can be maximized. So also judges in the verdict, expected to be as severe as that little family that can treat wounds abandoned the victims. It is very reasonable to see the defendant sentenced heavy sentence, considering the heinous acts that performed on the victim. ‘’With as many as 45 stab us and a number of scratches on the body Tju Po Zinc, it is clear the defendant is extremely heinous acts. Therefore, we expect both prosecutors want a judge can impose any penalty as severe,’’ please Iswan Sukiato.

Meanwhile, the trial continued, JPU Eddy Wijaya back Artwa presenting witnesses. In the trial that

led Judge Djumain this Janto presented witnesses that no other previous owner of the motor the victim had borrowed. Witnesses confirmed that the victim borrowed bike reasons to take in defendant’s clothes. Meanwhile witnesses waiting in a depot in the way of Kediri, Kuta. Because have the victim had gone too long, witnesses contact him but no answer.

Later the witness knew there was a commotion in defendant’s house. Witnesses followed there and find many police.

Sam Milby up to the 2nd floor, had seen the victim lying covered in blood. But the witness did not see the defendant there. Witnesses also do not see any knife beside the body of the victim.

The murder case that occurred on 29 November 2009, at a boarding house Second floor, which is located on Jalan Kediri No. 59

Kediri, Tuban Badung.

Initially at around 23:50 pm, the defendant shall enter into her room, suddenly pushed by victim, until the defendant fall. Get treated like that, the defendant then emotions and anger toward the victim.

As a result, fights two guides can not be avoided. Because defeated defendant, the defendant then went into his room.

The victim ran toward the barn to retrieve a piece of iron. While bringing pieces of iron, the victim was the defendant’s room break.

Saw the victim come with holding a piece of iron, the defendant subsequently take a stainless knife. When the victim wanted to pound piece of iron, abdominal direct defendant stabbed the victim, until the knife sticking in victim’s stomach. As a result of defendant, the victim died instantly. (015)

Decayed body found near Pakerisan riverside Gianyar (Bali Post)—

A figure of rotting corpse only leaving behind the bones was found at the outskirts of Bona Dam at Pakerisan River located at the territory Subak Gaga, Biya Hamlet, Keramas Village, Blahbatuh. This once made the surrounding residents, especially the farmers of the Subak territory surprised because of such body discovery complete with clothing.

The discovery of the body was known last Wednesday (Apr 21), at around 3:00 pm Local Time.

The corpse stumbled under screw-pine shrub was first found

by I Made Tinggal. At that time, he was notified by a fellow farmer, I Made Sira, 60, a resident of Pasdalem Hamlet, Belega Village, Blahbatuh, with regard to the rotten smell around the rice field he cultivated. The odor was known around 10:00 am from his wife Mrs. Ngasti, 50. At that morning, Ngasti went to her rice field as usual. However, on her journey she came to smell less nice odor and this made her back home.

At home, her husband I Made Sira asked her why she had gone home that morning unusually.

Having been told that there was a bad odor at the rice field, finally he checked to the fields by taking Made Tinggal. On site, it was only Made Tinggal seeing it. How surprised he was when seeing the corpse. The news was disseminated and eventually was heard by a member of the mobile detective unit of Blahbatuh Police.

Having ascertained the truth, the police officer reported the case to Sector Police and Gianyar Police.

The location was far enough from local settlements and above the river flow of Pakerisan River with approximately 10 meters. At the location, condition of the body was no more intact. Numerous bones have separated from the body. In this case, police found bones of the skull, two ribs, hip bones and thigh bones. On location, police also encountered a black jacket, Seiko watch, ninjastyle black hats, white shirts and white shorts.

Chief of Blahbatuh Police Nata

Winaja in respect to the finding said police remained to investigate the case. Decomposing bodies found was without an identity.

‘So far, we have not received any reports regarding to losing person,” he explained.

Police estimated the body condition had exceeded a month. After the technical assistance of Gianyar Police did investigation at the scene, the corpse was taken to Sanglah Hospital for an autopsy. It was unknown yet about the cause of death afflicting the body found. Whether it was caused by violence or not would be known after the autopsy completed by the medical forensic team.

Earlier, around last March 2010, it was found a Federal bicycle and black slippers on the handlebar of bicycle but its owner was unknown. The bike was found lying beside the ravine by Ni Made Derek and Gusti Nyoman Kuat. When taking the bike, the bad odor had already smelled, but none thought it was from a human corpse. (kmb16)

Friday, April 23, 2010

3

Lees Interest in Wood Construction Skills Program Denpasar (Bali Post) -

In recent years, the prestige of vocational secondary schools (SMK) was started to climb. in SMKN 1 Denpasar that bears the status of standard international school (RSBI), for example, this year is seek by 1419 graduates of junior high. Of the seven courses of expertise which was held in SMKN 1 Denpasar, about 800 of them followed the landfill in the Program of Computer Engineering and Informatics. While other skills programs such as the Program Technical Skills and Procedures Air Cooling enthusiasts a rare precisely because only 20 people sought by graduates of junior high. In fact, Wood Construction Skills Program had frozen for a while because of very rare enthusiasts.

Since two years ago, SMKN 1 Denpasar is no longer open the Wood Construction Skills Program. Interest in continuing education to junior high school graduates of this program is very low, Expertise Programm said Chairman Stone and Concrete Construction Engineering SMKN 1 Denpasar Putu Gunawan, S. Pd. to the Bali Post, on Wednesday (21 / 4) yesterday.

Gunawan admitted not figure out why Wood Construction Skill Program graduates are not enthused by the SMP. In fact, the demand from businesses to

employ vocational school graduates who have competence in the field of wood construction is very high. “This time, there is a trend the majority of graduates continue their education to junior wants Skill Program Computer Engineering and Informatics (TKI).

Imagine, there are 800 new students will compete for 180 seats are available there. This means, lots of junior high school graduates who followed the landfill in the program’s expertise will be eliminated from the competition,” he said and added, of which there are three skill competencies Skills Program worker, Multimedia are seek the most by junior high school graduates.

Contacted separately, Head of Education Department of Secondary Education, Youth and Sports of Denpasar, Drs. I Wayan Supartha, M. Pd. confirmed that the Program Expertise on Timber Construction SMKN 1 Denpasar forced to be frozen for a while because of the rare enthusiast. With intensive and structured socialization, skills he hopes the program can be turned on and re-enthused by the graduates of junior high. “Demand from the business world of CMS graduates who have competence in the field of wood construction is still very high. Unfortunately, if employment opportunities are wide open it is not used, he said. (kmb13)

Independent Press,Overcome Problem Solution Nationality Denpasar (Bali Post) -

Press freedom should be managed by the journalists and the company press to fix the problem. The press must grow into professional press with highly held professional code of ethics and Law Press.

With the professionalism of the press, is expected to produce a journalistic product can lead society to make good decisions from a journalistic product information rather than the reverse in fact cause problems in the new community center.

Thus summarize the opinion of the Press Council Chairman Prof. Dr. Bagir Manan,. S.H., MCL and Members of the Press Council of Ir. Uni Lubis Zulfiani time interactive dialogue Bali TV, Wednesday (21 / 4) yesterday. Bagir Manan press do not emphasize up one step in managing the freedom of the press.

Press freedom have enjoyed about 11 years more should respond with journalistic products that can solve the nationality problem included could be the solution in making better decisions. ‘’Remember today there are dozens of regulations that could threaten freedom of media. In this context, the Press Council would have still struggled to keep New regulations not to reduce the freedom of press,’’ firmly Bagir Manan.

One strategy that may be taken of the Press Council in improving professionalism of journalists is to socialize so that understanding the code of ethics to be improved, including provid-

ing professional training and enrichment of knowledge among journalists.

Companies must also consider the press the welfare of journalists in order for the produce journalism item regarding nationality problem.

Zulfiani Uni Lubis also reminded that the Press should not be trapped in personal interests so that the behaviors deviate from the code professional ethics does not happen. Journalists must be able to offer solutions communities to take decisions and deliver the right decisions from achieve their desired information. ‘’Journalists do not grow up to be journalists drool because of personal interests. Journalists should continue to feel professionalism challenged to improve them. ‘’Standardizations to the management of the press that is now being matured Council the press is expected to be one strategy for managing press freedom in a professional,’’ he said.

Meanwhile, at an interactive session Bagir Manan and Uni Lubis Zulfiani respond to the question asker i.e. three DJs from Denpasar, Nuarta also from Made of Jimbaran and Denpasar. Asker commonly asked about the role communities in managing the press, including the importance of codes of ethics untyuk disseminated to the public. Responding to this and Bagir Manan Zulfinai Uni Lubis hope people come into the controller’s independence of journalism. Journalistic code of ethics is very important for the public to understand people also know their rights in dealing with journalists. (044)

4

News

Friday, April 23, 2010

International

Israel to US: No building halt in east Jerusalem Associated Press Writer

JERUSALEM – Aides to Israel’s prime minister said Thursday that he has officially rejected President Barack Obama’s demand to suspend all construction in contested east Jerusalem, a move that threatens to entrench a year-old deadlock in Israeli-Palestinian peacemaking.

The aides said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delivered his government’s position to Obama over the weekend, ahead of the scheduled arrival later Thursday of the U.S. president’s special Mideast envoy, George Mitchell.

They spoke on condition of anonymity because the contact between the two leaders was private.

Washington had put Mitchell’s shuttle diplomacy on hold for more than a month as it awaited a reply from Israel. Aides to Netanyahu provided no information on

AP Photo/Maya Hitij

An ultra-Orthodox Jewish man walks inside the newly renovated Jaffa Gate in Jerusalem’s Old city, Wednesday, April 21, 2010.

Jaffa Gate, one of four main gates to Jerusalem’s Old City has been reopened after a twomonth restoration project. Jaffa Gate is the most common entrance for tourists entering the Old City, home to key Jewish, Christian and Muslim holy sites.

whether the Israeli leader had offered any other concessions to the Palestinians in an effort to restart the long-stalled talks.

But with Israel eager to ease tensions with its closest and most important ally, it appeared likely the Jewish state tempered its rejection with other confidence building gestures toward the Palestinians.

The status of east Jerusalem, home to shrines sacred to Muslims, Jews and Christians, is the most emotionally fraught issue dividing Israelis and Palestinians. The Palestinians claim the city’s eastern sector as the capital of a future state, but Netanyahu has insisted repeatedly that Israel will retain control of the entire city as its capital.

Israel and the Palestinians had been set to launch U.S.-mediated negotiations last month when Israel announced plans during a visit

by Vice President Joe Biden to build 1,600 homes in a Jewish housing project in east Jerusalem.

The announcement infuriated the Americans and the Palestinians put the negotiations on hold. U.S. officials have been pushing Israel to call off the project, freeze further construction in east Jerusalem and make other goodwill gestures to the Palestinians.

Netanyahu has argued that his position on east Jerusalem mirrors the long-standing policy of past Israeli governments.

“It is just impossible and unacceptable that people try to impress us that we should limit construction in Jerusalem,” Benny Begin, a senior Cabinet minister, told foreign reporters and diplomats Thursday. “Jews and Arabs can live throughout the city. This policy will be retained.”

Nearly all of the Israeli construction in the city’s eastern sector has been in Jewish neighborhoods, where 180,000 Israelis live.

An estimated 250,000 Palestinians live in traditionally Arab neighborhoods.

AFP/File/Hong Jin-Hwan

A crane lifts the stern of a sunken South Korean warship onto a barge on April 15. South Korea’s military believes that a North Korean submarine launched a torpedo attack to sink a South Korean warship last month near their disputed sea border, according to the Yonhap news agency.

S.Korean warship ‘hit

by N.Korean torpedo’ Agence France Presse

SEOUL – South Korea’s military believes that a North Korean submarine launched a torpedo attack to sink a South Korean warship last month near their disputed sea border, the Yonhap news agency said on Thursday.

The assessment was reported to the office of President Lee MyungBak and the defence ministry immediately after the ship sank last month, an unnamed senior military source told Yonhap.

“It’s our military intelligence’s assessment that North Korean submarines attacked the ship with a heavy torpedo,” the source said, adding that the subs were armed with torpedoes with 200-kilogram (440-pound) warheads.

“Since February last year, North Korea has strengthened training that showed the possibility of it launch-

ing a guerilla warfare-style provocation, rather than a skirmish.”

The South’s military intelligence command had also alerted the navy ahead of the March 26 sinking of the Cheonan that North Korea was preparing an attack, Yonhap said.

The South’s defence ministry refused to comment on the report.

Seoul has so far refrained from directly accusing Pyongyang and said only that an “external explosion” was the most likely cause of the disaster which cost the lives of 46 sailors. Pyongyang has denied it was responsible.

South Korean Defence Minister Kim Tae-Young has already raised the possibility that a mine or torpedo may have sunk the ship, following deadly naval clashes in 1999 and 2002 and a November firefight. The November incident left a North Korean patrol boat in flames and local media reports said one North Korean sailor was killed and three wounded.

The North has vowed “merciless” military action to protect what it sees as its Yellow Sea border.

South Korea’s Chosun Ilbo newspaper meanwhile quoted defectors as saying that North Korea had formed suicide attack squads known as “human torpedoes” in its navy.

It said the North’s navy operates a brigade of suicide attack squads, which have many mini-submarines capable of carrying torpedoes or floating mines.

Snow the latest challenge in China quake recovery Associated Press Writer

BEIJING – Homeless earthquake survivors huddled in thin tents against strong winds Thursday while traffic slowed on ice- and snow-slicked roads, the latest challenges to recovery in mountainous far western China.

Snow started falling early Thursday in Yushu county, the center of the disaster, and more was expected through Saturday, the state-run Xinhua News Agency reported.

More than three centimeters (1.18 inches) had fallen as of 8 a.m.

(0000GMT), Tsering Tashi, deputy head of Yushu’s meteorological bu-

reau, told Xinhua.

Thousands of people were left homeless by the April 14 quake in the remote Tibetan corner of western China. The death toll stood at 2,183 with 84 people still missing Thursday.

A 42-year-old electrician working to restore the local power supply died Thursday from the effects of altitude sickness, Xinhua reported. Yushu is about 13,000 feet (4,000 meters) above sea level.

About 80 percent of the army aid workers from outside the region have had altitude sickness, Qin Rongbin, a medical expert with the relief headquarters, told Xinhua.

In Beijing, a spokesman for the Ministry of Civil Affairs said earlier problems in getting aid to the region, a 12-hour drive from the Qinghai provincial capital, had been resolved.

The ministry spokesman, Peng Chenmin, also said he didn’t know about an order issued in recent days for thousands of Tibetan monks to leave Yushu after rushing there and being the first to help rescue survivors and bury victims.

“After the disaster happened, the central government brought in a large number of rescuers while lots of monks also participated, which can be seen in many media reports,” Peng said.

IBP/reuters

Tibetan monks talk before attending a mass prayer for earthquake victims in the quake-hit Gyegu town of Yushu county, Qinghai province April 22, 2010

International

General Info

IMIGRATION Australian Consulate General Jalan Tantular 32 Renon Denpasar Phone: +62 361 241118 Fax: +62 361 221195 (General) +62 361 241120 (Immigration)

Friday, April 23, 2010

HOSPITAL Denpasar There are 4 major hospitals usually used by foreigners Denpasar General Hospital (RSUP Sanglah), Kasih Ibu Hospital, Rumah Sakit Wongaya and Rumah Sakit Dharma Husada.

HOSPITAL Bangli Bangli General Hospital Jl. Kesumayuda 27, Bangli Phone : +62 366 91521 Gianyar

Royal Danish & Norwegian Mimpi Resort Jimbaran, Bali Phone +62.361.701 070 The Czech Republic Jalan Pengembak No. 17 Sanur, Bali Phone +62.361.286 465 France Consulate Agency Jalan Merta Sari Gang II No. 8 Sanur, Bali Phone +62.361.285 485 The Federal Republic of Germany Jalan Pantai Karang No 17 Sanur, Bali Phone +62.361.288 535 The Republic of Hungary Jalan By Pass No 219 Sanur, Bali Phone +62.361.287 701 Italian Consulate Jalan By Pass Ngurah Rai Jimbaran, Bali Phone +62.361.701 005 Honorary Consulate of Mexico Jalan Mohamad Yamin 1 A, Renon, Denpasar, Bali Phone +62.361.223 266 Honorary Consulate of The Netherlands Jalan Raya Kuta 127, Bali Phone +62.361.761 506 Honorary Consulate of Spain Komplek Istana Kuta Galleria Blok Vallet 2 No 11. Jalan Patih Jelantik Kuta, Bali Phone +62.361.769 286 USA Consulate Agency Jalan Hayam Wuruk No. 188 Denpasar, Bali Phone +62.361.222 426 Consulate General of Japan Jalan Raya Puputan No. 170 Renon, Denpasar, Bali Phone +62.361.227 628 Honorary Consulate of British Jalan Tirta Nadi No. 20 Sanur, Bali Phone +62.361.270 601 Swiss and Austria Consulate Jalan Patih Jelantik, Komplek Pertokoan Istana Galleria Phone +62.361.751 735 Honorary Consulate of Brazil Jalan Legian No. 186, Bali Phone +62.361.757 775 Honorary Consulate of Thailand Jalan Raya Puputan Renon 81, Denpasar, Bali Phone +62.361.263 310 Embassy of India Jalan Raya Puputan Renon 42-44, Denpasar, Bali Phone +62.361.241 978 Honorary Consulate of Sweden anf Finland Segara Village Hotel, Jalan Segara Ayu, Sanur, Bali Phone +62.361.282 223 Honorary Consulate of Malaysia Alam Kulkul Boutique Resort, Jalan Pantai Kuta, Bali Phone +62.361.752 520

RSUP Sanglah is the main provincial public hospital. Its facilities have improved since the emergency ward had been built in 1991. Difficult/critical cases would not become a problem anymore since it has complete equipments. It is located on Jl. Kesehatan Selatan 1 Sanglah Denpasar with : Phone : 227 911 – 15 Fax : 226 363 Kasih Ibu Hospital is a private hospital which caters for less serious cases such as diarrhea, intestinal disorders, anemia, asthma and minor accidents. Kasih Ibu is also equipped to care for pregnant women. This hospital is located on Jl. Teuku Umar 120 Denpasar.

Phone : 223 036 Fax : 268 690.

Rumah Sakit Wongaya (Public Hospital; Psychiatric Unit) Jl. Kartini, Denpasar.

Phone : 222 142.

Rumah Sakit Dharma Husada , (Private) Jl. Sudirman No 50, Denpasar Phone : 227 560, 234 824 In relating with health, Bali also has insurance and medical evacuation company, that is: AEA International - SOS Assistance Bali.

PT Abhaya Eka Astiti, Jl. By Pass Ngurah Rai No. 24X, Kuta 80361.

Phone : 755 768 Fax : 755 768 One thing that should be noted by tourists here is that the Blood Bank in Bali normally carries no stock of Rhesus (Rh) Negative blood.

Badung Bali Medical Clinics There are some medical clinics that are well known by foreigners in Bali. Some of them are western owned and operated : Bali International Medical Center (BIMC) Bali International Medical Centre (BIMC) provides excellent Primary Health Care & Emeregency Medical Services for tourists, traveler, and expatriate living in Bali.

Emeregency Room, Ambulance, Clinic Services, Insurance & Medical Evacuations also available. Open 24 hours Phone : 761 2631. Located Jl. By Pass Ngurah Rai No.100X, Kuta, Bali 80361 - Indonesia. http://www.bimcbali.com International SOS Clinic Bali Opened in 1999, offers International SOS members and visitors to Bali comprehensive primary health care and 24-hour emergency medical service.

Jl. By Pass Ngurah Rai 505X, Kuta 80361, Bali - Indonesia Phone : 720 100 Fax : 721 919 E-mail : info@sos-bali.com ttp ://www.sos-bali.com Bali Nusa Dua Emergency Clinic Jl Pratama No. 81 Phone : 771 324 Kuta Clinic Jl. Raya Kuta Phone : 753 268 Dental Clinic Dr Indra Guizot, Jl. Patimura 19, Denpasar Phone : 222 445, 234 375 DDS. Ritjie Rihartinah, Jl Pratama No. 81 Nusa Dua Phone : 771 324 Retno W. Agung, Jln. Bypass Ngurah Rai No.4A Br. Tamansari – Sanur Phone : 288 501

Clinic Mas Jl. Raya Mas, Ubud Phone : +62 361 974573 Toyo Clinic Jl. Pengosekan, Ubud Phone : +62 361 978078 Permata Bunda Clinic Jl. Patih Jelantik 50 X, Gianyar Phone : +62 361 942082 Ubud Clinic Jl Raya Ubud No.36 Campuhan, Ubud Phone : +62 361 974911 Gianyar General Hospital Jl. Ciung Wanara 2, Gianyar Phone : +62 361 943049 Karangasem Karangasem General Hospital Jl. Ngurah Rai, Karangasem Phone : +62 363 21001 Klungkung Klungkung General Hospital Jl. Flamboyan 40-4, Klungkung Phone : +62 366 21371 Negara Negara General Hospital Jl. Gelar, Negara Phone : +62 365 41006 Tabanan Laboratorium Clinic Jl. Gunung semeru No. 8, Tabanan Phone : +62 361 819260 Mengwi Clinic Jl. I Gusti Ngurah Rai 46, Tabanan Phone : +62 361 880550 Darma Kerti Hospital Jl. Teratai 16, Tabanan Phone : +62 361 812359 Tabanan General Hospital Jl. Pahlawan 14, Tabanan Phone : +62 361 811027 Singaraja Prodia Clinic Jl. RA Kartini 12, Singaraja Bali 0362 - 24-516 Singaraja Hospital Jl. Ngurah Rai 30, Singaraja Bali 0362 - 22-573 Pet Clinics Kayumas: (0361) 226934 Sayang Binatang: (0361) 483121 Satwa Kertha Husada: (0361) 263018 Pantai Sindhu: (0361) 287518 Sidakarya: (0361) 724492 Pedungan: (0361) 720026

TAXIS Praja Taxi : (0361) 289090 Bali Taxi : (0361) 701111 Ngurah Rai Taxi : (0361) 724724 Pan Wirthi Taxi : (0361) 723366 Komotra Taxi : (0361) 758855

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News

Friday, April 23, 2010

Mexico City offers bikes in its clean air campaign Associated Press Writer

MEXICO CITY – Pedaling placidly, black-suited businessmen and women in dresses and high heels wheel shiny red bikes between growling green buses, serenaded by shrill police whistles and coughing diesel trucks, the morning sunlight filtering through yellow smog.

Happy Earth Day, Mexico City. With its scofflaw drivers, gridlocked traffic and cobblestoned downtown, Mexico City isn’t the most bicycle-friendly place. But residents are being asked to take the risk for Madre Tierra as part of a larger campaign that leaders hope will clean up this 700-year-old metropolis.

“It’s now that we need to act, and we are urging other urban leaders around the world to do the same — to improve quality of life for their citizens and the health of our planet,” Mexico City’s environmental secretary, Martha Delgado, said Wednesday during a phone interview while visiting Washington to share Mexico City’s successes with government leaders and counterparts.

This spring the city launched Ecobici, installing 1,100 bikes at 85 stations throughout the center of the city. In its first three months, 4,000 people have paid $24 for user cards they swipe at a rack to release a bicycle for a half-hour. City officials hope to register 24,000 people in the first year.

With 50,000 trips taken to date through Mexico City’s harrowing streets, city officials are delighted with the results: zero accidents, zero thefts.

Introduced in Europe in the 1960s, bike sharing has evolved from a few, informal programs when do-gooders put free bikes out on city streets to high tech systems now used in dozens of cities from Shanghai, China, to Santiago, Chile.

One of the largest is in Paris, where three reported fatalities early on and more than 7,500 thefts led to some serious concerns. But Paris pressed on, opening more bike stations and educating drivers; now studies show the 115,000 bike trips a day have significantly eased traffic.

Ecobici is part of Mexico City’s 15-year Plan Verde, a $1 billion-per-year program supported by Mexico’s federal government, the World Bank and the United Nations.

The plan includes a new, energy efficient bus system, once-a-week no-drive days for all cars, and subway system improvements. Every Sunday, 16 miles of downtown streets are closed to car traffic, allowing cy-

clists and pedestrians to safely cruise their city. Parks are staying open later and rooftop gardens being installed.

“This is exactly what we need big cities in emerging economies to be doing,” said Mauricio Cardenes, director of Latin America issues at the Brookings Institution.

Here’s how the Ecobici system work: Users can check out a bike for 30 minutes at a time. They return it to any of the bike stations, and 10 minutes have to pass before they check out another one. If a bike is kept out longer than a half hour, small fees start to accrue. The bikes have adjustable seats, and they come with lights that go on automatically when ridden and have small racks to hold purses or groceries.

Luis Rodriguez, a downtown office worker, wiped sweat from his forehead as he snapped his Ecobici onto a rack this week.

“The government is doing a good job with this,” he said. “It saves me money, gets me to work more quickly and it’s healthy for me.”

A 15-minute bike commute can burn 11 pounds of fat a year, reducing the risk of heart disease as much as 20 percent, according to SmartBike, which builds Ecobicis for about $700 each in Oslo, Norway. In addition, it says, commuting cyclists are less exposed to air pollution than commuting motorists, and just one person switching from driving to cycling to work for a 6mile trip each way saves 1.3 metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions a year.

That said, Rodriguez, 35, and every Ecobici user interviewed, said they are gravely concerned about drivers who don’t follow rules that allow cyclists to have their own lane.

They told of near misses with buses, aggressive drivers leaning on their horns, cars on sidewalks, cars going the wrong way on one-way streets, virtual mayhem at traffic circles.

“Nobody respects the bicyclist,” said Gustavo Gonzalez, slipping an Ecobici from a downtown rack. “But I like it.

It’s a very good program. I wish they’d extend it further.”

City leaders do plan to add designated bike lanes, and thousands more bikes as well. They say they have no choice.

(AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills)

A man rides his bicycle past an ‘Ecobici’ station in Mexico City, Wednesday April 21, 2010. This spring the city government launched ‘Ecobici’, a bike sharing program, installing 1,100 bikes at 85 stations throughout the downtown area.

Threat of new, larger Icelandic eruption looms Associated Press Writer

(AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

A plume of ash, dust and steam is seen coming from a volcano erupting beneath Iceland’s Eyjafjallajokull glacier, Wednesday, April 21, 2010 in Eyjafjallajokull, Iceland.

REYKJAVIK, Iceland – For all the worldwide chaos that Iceland’s volcano has already created, it may just be the opening act.

Scientists fear tremors at the Eyjafjallajokull (ay-yah-FYAHlah-yer-kuhl) volcano could trigger an even more dangerous eruption at the nearby Katla volcano — creating a worst-case scenario for the airline industry and travelers around the globe.

A Katla eruption would be 10 times stronger and shoot higher and larger plumes of ash into the air than its smaller neighbor, which has already brought European air travel to a standstill for five days and promises severe travel delays for days more.

The two volcanos are side by side in southern Iceland, about 12 miles (20 kilometers) apart and thought to be connected by a network of magma channels.

Katla, however, is buried un-

der ice 550 yards (500 meters) thick — the massive Myrdalsjokull glacier, one of Iceland’s largest. That means it has more than twice the amount of ice that the current eruption has burned through — threatening a new and possibly longer aviation standstill across Europe.

Katla showed no signs of activity Tuesday, according to scientists who monitor it with seismic sensors, but they were still wary.

Pall Einarsson, professor of geophysics at the Institute of Earth Sciences at the University of Iceland, said one volcanic eruption sometimes causes a nearby volcano to explode, and Katla and Eyjafjallajokull have been active in tandem in the past.

In fact, the last three times that Eyjafjallajokull erupted, Katla did as well. Katla also typically awakens every 80 years or so, and having last exploded in 1918 is now slightly overdue.

Abandoned...

From page 1 Riki Kristiawan, one of the victims said yesterday he and his friends were promised jobs in one of the famous hotels in Malaysia. Before leaving, they even had a deal about the salary, bonus and facilities for them while in Malaysia. After participating in the registration and hand over the money worth USD 12 million, Riki and his colleagues when he arrived in Malaysia claimed not to be given work according to the foregoing appointments.

While in Malaysia, Riki and his friends in the hotel admitted without a clear job.

“Rather than have our fate is not clear, we then turn to Bali with the rest of the cash register,” he said.

In separate places, head of the Office of Manpower and Transmigration (Disnakertrans) Buleleng District Dra. Made Sulastri surprised to hear cases of fraudulent claims by unscrupulous businessmen TKI labor services. For that, he will immediately conduct detailed about the case and promised further investigation to the presence of Malaysia’s employees’ agency. Moreover, cases of fraud often happen. While concerning of fraud, Disnakertrans handed handling of this case fully to the police. (Kmb15)

International

Indonesia Today

Friday, April 23, 2010

7

Police question 10 witnesses of Koja riot Antara

FOTO ANTARA/Jo Seng Bie

A biker pass the warehouse of Drydocks Graha at Tanjunguncang, Batam on Thursday. Thousands of furious Indonesian factory workers set fire to cars and a warehouse Thursday after an Indian company executive called them “stupid,” police and media reports said.

Indonesian workers riot, burn cars over ‘stupid’ slur Agence France-Presse

JAKARTA - Thousands of furious Indonesian factory workers set fire to cars and a warehouse Thursday after an Indian company executive called them “stupid,” police and media reports said.

Nine people were reportedly injured when workers went on the rampage at a factory belonging to PT Drydock World Graha in Batam city, a special economic area south of Singapore.

“An Indian company executive called us, Indonesian workers, ‘stupid’ and this made us very angry,” a worker called Disra was quoted as saying by Antara news agency.

Around 400 police were called to

the scene and evacuated 41 unidentified foreign staff from the seaside factory in boats, Antara reported.

Up to 20 cars were set alight, along with a warehouse belonging to the company.

Local police commander Leonidas Braksan addressed the crowd through a loudspeaker and appealed for calm.

“I am on your side. I want you all to keep working well. Your families

are waiting for you and your salaries at home,” he said, according to Antara.

He said any foreigner who had insulted Indonesia should leave the country, bringing cheers from the workers who also sang the national anthem and other patriotic songs.

“The workers spontaneously burned cars as they felt offended and angry after a company executive, who is an Indian national, called Indonesian people stupid,” national police spokesman Zulkarnain told AFP. “The situation is now under control and we escorted the protestors outside the company’s complex.”

Susno Duadji quizzed for third time Antara

JAKARTA - National police independent investigators quizzed former chief detective Commissioner General Susno Duadji for the third time here Thursday.

“Susno is questioned as a witness for the Gayus Tambunan case,” Susno Duadji’s lawyer Zul Armain Aziz said.

His client would have arrived at the National Police headquarters at 11.00 am, he said.

Susno Duadji, who had been questioned twice, namely on Tuesday and Wednesday, always avoided journalists after his questionings.

He was the first who revealed the mafia case and engineering practices within the police force in connection with Tambunan’s money laundering and corruption cases.

During Tuesday’s session, police

investigators raised 40 questions but Susno Duadji only answered 38 questions.

According to Deputy Chief of the National Police’s public relations division Senior Commissioner Zaenuri Lubis, the remaining two questions were answered on Wednesday.

Lubis, however, declined to disclose the specific matters Susno Duadji had been questioned about.

“In general, Susno was questioned as a witness in the Gayus Tambunan case,” he said.

Apart from that, the police appreciated Susno for his cooperation during the questioning, Lubis said.

Meanwhile, Susno Duadji’s lawyer, Zul Armain Aziz, said his client was questioned as a witness for eight suspects in the Gayus Tambunan case.

The police investigators asked his client about Gayus Tambunan’s bank account of Rp25 billion, he said add-

ing that during the questioning, Susno Duadji was not yet confronted with any suspect.

The case of rogue tax official Gayus Tambunan came under the spotlight after the police named him suspect in connection with a suspicious Rp25 billion bank account in his name.

At least 12 middle ranking officials of the Indonesian finance ministry were allegedly involved in tax brokering cases.

In connection with Tambunan’s case, the police had arrested Haposan Hutagalung, who was Tambunan’s lawyer from June 8 to September 1, 2009, and two middleranking police officers.

The Gayus Tambunan fiscal mafia case had also triggered a suspension of Lampung provincial police chief Brig Gen Edmon Ilyas from his position to facilitate an investigation into his alleged involvement.

JAKARTA - Jakarta metropolitan police investigators have questioned ten witnesses of the April 14 riot in Koja, North Jakarta, that claimed three lives.

“The police investigators have questioned a number of witnesses,” the Jakarta metropolitan police’s spokesman Senior Commissioner Boy Rafli Amar said here Thursday.

The witnesses consisted of local residents and workers of the Tanjung Priok seaport who saw or heard about the deadly clashes between local residents and Jakarta city public order personnel.

In assisting the witnesses to answer the police questions, the police investigators used video recordings of the incident, he said.

The police investigators’ findings would be a reference for law enforcers to take proportional legal actions against those involving in the incident, he said.

The investigation itself was the police’s accountability to the people, he said adding that the ongoing police probe was different from the one being conducted by the Jakarta provincial government’s fact finding team.

The April 14 street war between public order personnel and local residents was triggered by the authorities’ order to demolish illegal buildings inside the compound of the tomb of Habib Hasan bin Muhammad Al Hadad, popularly known as “Mbah Priok”.

Three public order personnel were killed. They were identified as M. Soepono, a resident of Tugu village, Koja sub-district, North Jakarta, Israel Jaya (Bekasi), and Ahmad Tadjudin (West Jakarta).

A day after the riots, the Jakarta provincial government initiated a meeting attended by all related parties to resolve the problem.

The last Wednesday clashes had caused great public concern and the head of Nahdlatul Ulama (NU)’s Aceh chapter, Tgk.Faisal Ali, shared the public concern.

“We deplore the rioting. It would not have happened if the Jakarta provincial government had focused on seeking the best solution to the problem by social and peaceful means, not violence and power,” he said.

The government could not demolish a Muslim figure’s tomb or a site that locals had frequently used for Islamic rituals because such an act would trigger public anger, he said.

In response to the deadly incident, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono had ordered a halt to operations or renovation efforts at the compound of the tomb in the Koja area, North Jakarta.

He said the clash that happened in Tanjung Priok should and could have been avoided if security personnel had studied the social conditions in the field beforehand.

President Yudhoyono also ordered a thorough investigation into the incident and find the real cause of the mass violence.

Some activists of Forum for Environment (WALHI) Yogyakarta doing action in front of DIY Provincial Parliament, Yogyakarta, April 22, 2010. Action is being done to commemorate Earth Day, they demands to halt natural resource exploration that could lead to decreased capacity of the environment and lead to ecological disasters.

FOTO ANTARA/Noveradika

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Internationa

Friday, April 23, 2010

Bali Today

Foto Antara/Nyoman Budhiana

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (3left) said the current decentralization system of the government is correct so that the development activities of central government and regional administrations had been running well.

Current decentralization system the right thing Antara

TAMPAK SIRING - President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said the current decentralization system of the government is correct so that the development activities of central government and regional administrations had been running well.

When opening the last-day plenum of the national working conference at the Tampak Siring Palace in Bali Wednesday, the Head of State said the success is reflected in the joint efforts of the central government and regional administrations in overcoming development problems comprehensively.

The President said the three-day working conference at the Tampak Siring retreat had tried to identify problems and find a comprehensive.

“In the discussions that had been done you contributed to achieving the aims of the working meeting.

Those that you have said on the occasion are the right things to find a solution and improvements. That is the true importance meeting,” he added.

The President said the three days and nights were obviously not enough to discuss and settle all the problems, but their discussions had produced comprehensive solutions.

On Wednesday before the conclusion, the coordinating ministers reported the results of discussions of each working group and then the President gave directives and guidance as well as close the working conference.

Leaves Denpasar for Jakarta

Yudhoyono and his entourage left Ngurah Rai airport for Jakarta Thursday at 9 a.m. local

time after a four-day working visit in Bali.

The president was on a four-day working visit to the island resort of Bali to attend a national working conference at Tampak Siring Palace from Monday through Wednesday.

The meeting was attended by all cabinet ministers, governors, provincial legislative council (DPRD) chairmen, state enterprises leaders, and state institution officials.

The meeting produced a recommendation on economic development and social welfare, containing pro-people programs, just and fair development, and achievement of the Millennium Development Goals by 2015. into a presidential instruction and sent to all provinces and districts for implementation.

Before President Yudhoyono closed the working meeting on Wednesday, Vice President Boediono in his directives to the participants asked the governors to form special teams in their respective provinces to monitor the implementation of the recommendations produced at the Tampak Siring national working conference.

“I ask the governors to form special teams in their respective regions to monitor what we have

agreed on. The teams should work in mutual consultation and through dialogs with central government authorities,” the vice president said.

The vice president also emphasized the importance of the implementation of the meeting’s results.

He said the implementation of the action plan made at the threeday national working conference should not take a long time.

“Everything will become clear if we focus on the implementation of the conference’s results,” Boediono said, adding that after returning to their respective provinces, the governors should implement the results of the meeting.

He noted that a number of ministries already had special units to respond to and implement the presidential instruction issued at the meeting.

In addition, he said, at central government level there was a presidential working unit to monitor and supervise the implementation of development programs (UKP4) headed by Kuntoro Mangkusubroto.

President Yudhoyono closed the meeting on Wednesday afternoon and then gave directives to the participants and asking them to implement the recommendations as soon as possible.

Getting in Touch with Local Culture Robinson Crusoe might not originally have planed to explore the pristine tropical Island of Màs a Tierra. However, since the ship he went with was wrecked by vicious storm, he had no choice but attempted to save himself to nearest island.

Like blessing in disguise, he has fallen in love with the island for some 28 years. He could do many things and obtain valuable experiences while waiting for the time to return home.

At that time, he probably did know about the terms agrotourism. Yet, without being realized he has enjoyed a variety of tourism activities. He got acquainted with local tribes and did farming as the local did.

Agrotourism is similar to what might have been carried out by the figure Robinson Crusoe in the novel authored by Daniel Defoe. It is the form of tourism taking advantage of rural culture as tourist attraction.

Its focus lies on cultural landscape. It’s worth noting here that the culture does not only include the arts and tradition, but culture in the general sense as in the seven universal elements of culture that also embrace the system of livelihood, equipment, technology, language, religion and so forth. Actually it’s a comprehensive and sustainable tourism development. By this, local people are enabled to be widely involved in various activities, not merely as passive spectators.

On the other hand, through this activity visitors have a good opportunity to get acquainted with many aspects of rural life, starting from agricultural occupation, local products, traditional culinary, custom and tradition as well as lifestyle of local people.

In agricultural field, for instance, there are areas producing characteristic local variety of rice like at Penebel; snakefruit at Pupuan and Sibetan; strawberry at Bedugul; and tangerine at Bondalem and Tejakula to name a few. Then what is making different from that of other regions across the archipelago? This disparity concerns with the tradition and lifestyle. In Bali, visitors will be able to see that local farmers have traditional organization managing the irrigated and non-irrigated farming named subak. Uniquely, they perform ritual to express their gratitude to God on the prosperity obtained from farming on particular days and specifically on Tumpek Bubuh (the nearest one

falls on 21 February).

Moreover, this kind of tourism will bring visitors closer to nature and other rural activities beyond farming. Even, they can participate in those activities. For instance, if Bali has rich traditional dances, visitors can join to learn some of them. As a result, visitors do not only visiting Bali to feel the pleasure of touring, watching cultural performance and seeing the enchanting panoramas, but also experiencing in person the local lifestyle. Other than agriculturalrelated activities, Bali retains a wide variety of unique ones that are worth visiting. There are handicraft making, traditional painting, (seasonal) coffee harvesting, fishing and many more.

And if possible, they can stay with the local community.

Visitors participated in agrotourism are ideally expected to be more active than the average tourists while on trips. In essence, there are some categories of activity in agrotourism namely the family-oriented activities like sporting and cycling; participatory activities like learning to dance and cook traditional food; nature-oriented activities like horse riding, elephant safari, trekking; farmingrelated activities like seasonal harvesting, exploring local fruits at traditional market and so forth. These activities can complete the existing tourism product. In Bali, this tourism has become an alternative to avoid the market saturation of those very same products.

Agrotourism does not only enrich the existing tourism products and provide alternative to visitors. To local community, it poses an empowerment that enables to them get involved in the tourist activities. In general, it will make an even distribution of tourist visits to villages and working opportunity. To sum up, this community-based tourism will make available more opportunity to wider community.

Hopefully there will be no cases like the closing access to see the beautiful view of terraced rice field as the field’s owner gets nothing from ‘his property of attraction.’ By this development, at least the land owner gets additional benefits from valued asset he has apart from his harvest.

By doing so, he would feel the benefit of tourism while remaining cultivating his land. Do you think he will sell his land providing him with such double impacts? (BTN/punia)

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Friday, April 23, 2010

Balinese Culture Jukut Kakul (Snail Soup) OVERVIEW: The French are not the only ones to have a liking for snails. The Balinese gather snails in the rice fields. But you can use the canned variety. Cucumber, zucchini or any other summer squash can be used instead of green papaya.

INGREDIENTS: 200 gr unripe green papaya 1 liter chicken stock ½ cup spice paste for seafood 1 stalk lemon grass bruised 2 salam leaves 1 tbsp oil 48 canned snails, washed and drained 1 tsp salt Freshly ground black pepper Fried shallots to garnish

BTN/Doc

Tourist trying the pearl bracelet. Bracelet accessories are ordinarily made from various raw materials such as silver, gold, pearl and many others. However, the trend and demanding market is bracelet of silver in combination with pearl. Its dominant consumers are foreign tourists vacationing in the area.

Pearl-Silver Combination Bracelet:

The Current Trend of Tourists Bracelet accessories are ordinarily made from various raw materials such as silver, gold, pearl and many others. However, the trend and demanding market is bracelet of silver in combination with pearl. Its dominant consumers are foreign tourists vacationing in the area.

Ni Kadek Artini, an owner of art shop in Ubud market, last Monday (Mar 22), recognized, other than bracelet accessories made from silver material especially targeted for female adolescents and adults, pearl bracelet also became an option to many consumers. Even, the use of this type of bracelet by tourists was trendy enough that could make

them look more beautiful and attractive. “Moreover, its price is also quite affordable, namely only IDR 100,000 per unit,” she said.

Attraction of foreign tourists to this pearl bracelet accessory, other than being beautiful and interesting, it is also made from original raw material. These conditions make foreign tourists spending holiday in this area never miss the chance to buy a pearl bracelet becoming one of the interesting souvenir products.

“Normally a tourist buys more than 3 pieces for gift to colleagues in their home country,” explained Artini while adding that accessories craft denoted one of the art crafts whose demand almost never lacked. Fluctuation of de-

mand indeed occurred in line with the season of tourist visit to this destination.

Meanwhile, Ni Wayan Pujiani, another accessories vendor also admitted, request of the pearl bracelet within the past couple of months was favored again by foreign consumers. Previously, such pearl handicrafts once fell stagnant of demand. However, due to the high innovation of the accessory makers combining silver with pearl the products became one of the captivating handicrafts winning the heart of many foreign customers. “Retail sales of pearl bracelet are good enough and daily can reach 10 pieces. Most buyers are foreign tourists,” said Pujiani. (BTN/BB)

”The Song of My Heart” book launched IBP

MANGUPURA – Physical limitation is not an obstacle in creating a work. A book entitled “The Song of My Heart” was launched on Wednesday, April 21st 2010 in Four Seasons Hotel. The book is the compile of works by the writers joined in Dayu Wid, Desy and Agung (D”AD) community writers.

Dayu Wid said “I can not remember things and I have the limitation in my memory. I rather to put my life experiences into writing and poems.” She said that she was very

miserable when she was a child.

The book was launched on the same day with Kartini Day. Dayu Wid also suffered from discrimination in her life. “Even tough it was very bitter but I am very grateful because many people care about me,” she added.

On the launching of the book, she was reading some of her poems with tears. “The book is the proof that I don’t surrender to our limitation then we can achieve something. Hopefully this book will be useful for many people and become an inspiration to the people who have limi-

tation like us,” she said.

Desy and Agung were also attended the event but only reading poems without giving any comments.

In the opening ceremony of the event, there are some dancers performing traditional Balinese dancing. They were also children with limitation who are trained by Ketut Gd Bendesa S. Sn. Bendesa said that the children have talent to become artists. In order to master the movements of a dance, they need a month. “We are using sign language to make them easier to understand,” he added. (iah)

PREPARATION: Peel the papaya, cut in half lengthwise and remove the seeds, then cut it lengthwise in 4 or 6 slices. Cut crosswise into slices about 0.5 cm thick.

Combine stock, spice paste, lemon grass, salam leaves and oil in a large pot. Bring to boil, and then simmer for 5 minutes. Add papayas and simmer until almost tender. Add the snails and continue cooking until the papaya softens.

Season with salt and pepper to taste and garnish with fried shallots.

Helpful hint: If you do not care for snails. You can substitute 12 dried black Chinese mushroom. Washed and soaked I warm water for 20minutes. Add them together with the papaya to ensure they will be tender by the time the papaya is cooked. (www.baliguide.com/balifood)

Sambal be tongkol (Tuna Fish Salad) OVERVIEW: Although this is made with fresh tuna in Bali, you can also use drained canned tuna as a substitute. Season the canned tuna and combine with seasonings, but do not attempt to fry it.

INGREDIENTS: 4 fresh tuna steaks, weighing 100 gr each ¼ cup seafood spice paste 1 tsp salt ½ tsp crushed black pepper 1 tbsp freshly squeezed limejuice 2 tbsp oil 1-cup sambal matah Fried shallot for garnish PREPARATION: 1. Season fresh tuna steaks with seafood spice paste, salt pepper and lime juice.

2. Heat oil in frying pan and cook tuna steaks for 3 minutes on each side over high heat. Do not over cook.

Set aside and allow cooling down, and then breaking the tuna into small chunks. Place in salad bowl, add sambal matah and mix well.

3. Season to taste with salt and pepper and garnish with fried shallots. Serve at room temperature with steamed rice. (www.baliguide.com/balifood)

9

10

Destinations

Friday, April 23, 2010

International

Ubud Traditional Market WELCOME to Ubud Traditonal Market where the existence is not far different from other market which is there are in urban area. Ubud Traditional Market as a society economics center, it apposite to the existence of Ubud Empire that is Puri Saren. Market which is unfolding from west to easterly divided become two group with different purpose. The block at the west is for a traditional artistic market and the block located in the east as an everyday traditional fundamental market requirement. This market is opened every day about at 08:00 until 18:00 , even some from them still open until nighttime. While traditional market for the fundamental requirement is opened everyday at 06:00 - even before that there is morning market started at 04:00 morning.

The art crafting are sold in this art market consisted of various crafting, from traditional until contemporary crafting which its price is relatively cheap.

You can do the transaction directly to the merchant which generally can be bargained. All the crafting sold in this place you can bring home as souvenir like slipper, wood idol, bag, clothes, matting, painting and a lot of more. (www.balistarisland.com)

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Friday, April 23, 2010

11

BUSINESS Britain’s debt hits record 152.8 billion pounds: official Agence France-Presse

LONDON - Britain’s public net borrowing, or debt, hit a record 152.8 billion pounds in the 12 months to March, official data showed on Thursday, but this was below the government’s forecast ahead of an election.

The office for national statistics said the borrowing amount was 65.9 billion pounds higher than in the same period of 2008/

WASHINGTON - G20 nations on Wednesday stressed the need for further measures to tackle unemployment as the global economy emerges from a crippling recession that has cost millions of jobs worldwide.

Labor ministers from the world’s twenty most important economies met for the first time in Washington in an attempt to coordinate jobs policy and work up joint recommendations for G20 leaders to discuss later this year.

“We looked at ways to help G20 leaders put employment at the center of economic policy coordination,” said Hilda Solis, US Labor Secretary.

“At the same time we developed a list of recommendations that will help to achieve this ambitious but necessary goal.”

In recommendations that will be taken up when leaders meet in Toronto in June, the G20 said that “as some countries begin to experience economic recovery, continued attention must be paid to job creation and job preservation.”

Governments should embark on “vigorous implementation of existing policies and consideration of additional employment measures,” the ministers added.

Eying entrenched levels of long-term unemployment, the G20 also recommended that social protection systems be strengthened.

“Significant numbers of people, including the most disadvantaged, will remain unemployed even after recovery takes hold, and others will need help to adjust to structural changes in our economies.”

changes in the yuan-dollar

09, as a record recession slammed the country’s tax revenues.

Finance minister Alistair Darling, whose Labour Party is fighting to remain in power, had recently forecast that public net borrowing was set to hit a record 167 billion pounds in 2009-2010.

Cutting public debt, while not choking off recovery, is at the heart of campaigning ahead of Britain’s general election on May 6.

G20 underscores need for job growth Agence France-Presse

Chart showing

Measures by G20 countries to stem the tide of the world economy crisis have saved or created around 20 million jobs, according to the United Nations’ International Labour Organisation.

The two-day meeting was hailed as a historic first by Solis even though some ministers were unable to attend because of disrupted air travel to and from Europe.

It was scheduled during a Pittsburgh meeting of G20 leaders in September at the behest of President Barack Obama.

One in ten Americans in the labor market is currently unemployed, presenting Obama with perhaps his biggest domestic challenge.

“At the end of the day, recovering from the crisis and restoring sustained and balanced growth that creates enough good jobs for our people are goals that we cannot accomplish alone in our own countries,” said Solis.

“In an integrated global economy, we have to work together.”

But the meeting comes amid a growing gap between emerging nations — which have seen their economies recover quickly from the crisis — and the United States, Europe and Japan, which have seen unemployment drag on the economy.

According to one delegate familiar with the talks, there was disagreement among members about whether such a diverse group of countries could agree on what collective action is needed.

“It is not clear what the next steps of this are, there are very different opinions on that,” said the diplomat.

monthly average exchange rate from 2005-2009.

Developing world joins anti-China clamour on yuan Agence France-Presse

SINGAPORE - China has fought a long-running battle with Washington over its currency, but now its key developing partners are joining the fray in pressing for a stronger yuan to reorient world trade.

The criticism from the likes of Brazil and India risks denting China’s argument that the United States has a self-serving interest in eroding its new economic and diplomatic prowess.

Brazil, Russia, India and China form the so-called BRIC group of countries — which Beijing has promoted as a counterweight to Western domination of financial affairs in fora such as the G20, which meets in Washington this week.

But both Brazil and India have now gone public with their preference for a gradual appreciation of the yuan, which they say would level the playing field for their own exports.

Their comments have made it “much more challenging for China to argue that it is the developed world ganging up on the developing world”, said Ben Simpfendorfer, a Hong Kong-based economist at Royal Bank of Scotland.

“They also make it more challenging because China likes to play the leader of the developing world. It is clearly challenging to do this while your exports are producing job losses in the developing world,” he said.

Chinese leaders have long rejected US, and European, complaints that it grabs an unfair trade advantage by keeping the yuan artificially weak against the dollar.

During the global crisis of the past two years, the currencies of most developing countries gained against the enfeebled dollar, making their exports more expensive compared to

China-made goods.

“This has given rise to spreading awareness that emerging markets are effectively subsidising China’s expansion,” said a commentary by Moody’s Economy.com.

“Evidence that China’s currency is overvalued is growing stronger, and the voices of those demanding a correction are becoming louder.”

On Tuesday, Reserve Bank of India governor Duvvuri Subbarao said China was among the countries that keep their currencies “artificially low” and as a result, “our exports get hurt”.

“So I am sure that if China revalues the yuan, it will have a positive impact on our external sector,” he told reporters in Mumbai.

Brazil’s central bank chief Henrique Meirelles believes a yuan revaluation is “absolutely critical for the equilibrium of the world economy”, according to Thursday’s Financial Times.

In the United States last month, Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said China “should revert to where they were before the financial crisis and allow the yuan to go up gently again”.

While a stronger yuan will raise some costs, it can also help douse inflationary pressures in China itself, he said, echoing the International Monetary Fund which said Wednesday that a yuan realignment was “essential”.

A senior Southeast Asian finance official told AFP his country would

also like to see the yuan strengthen, but said the sense among his regional colleagues was not to comment publicly.

“No one wants to displease China, basically,” he said on condition of anonymity.

China has defended the yuan’s peg against the dollar — which since mid-2008 has stood at a rate of about 6.8 — as necessary to protect jobs and prevent social unrest in its dramatically changing economy.

But with China’s economic growth projected at sizzling rates of 10 percent this year and next, a revaluation of the yuan is both in China’s interests and the world’s, the IMF said in its report.

Moody’s Economy.com said it expects China to allow a gradual appreciation of the yuan starting in the third quarter when the global economic recovery is likely to be on firmer ground.

“Beijing is keenly aware that the free ride gained from a fixed exchange rate has limitations,” it said.

Simpfendorfer expects China to allow the yuan to strengthen to 6.5 by the end of the year, despite its longstanding refusal to bow to US pressure.

“The arguments they apply to the United States don’t necessarily hold for Brazil and India, so it is much more challenging for them to argue why the currency shouldn’t move against the (Brazilian) real and the (Indian) rupee.”

12

Friday, April 23, 2010

Entertainment

International

Patti Smith rescued from penury by song royalties Reuters

LOS ANGELES – Not every rock ‘n’ roll icon is awash in cash. Some, like rock poetess Patti Smith, have endured hard times fairly recently in their careers.

Smith, receiving a lifetime achievement award in Hollywood on Wednesday from songwriting royalties group ASCAP, recalled how the 1994 death of her husband, punk rocker Fred “Sonic” Smith, left her a widowed mother of two young children.

“I was actually down on my luck,” she said.

“And what helped bail me out and helped me get back to my feet were the ASCAP checks that I got for ‘Because the Night,’” Smith said, referring to her best-known song.

ASCAP, the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers, collects royalties on behalf of its member songwriters and copyright holders from public performances, such as on the radio and TV, and in bars, restaurants and concert halls.

Songwriters benefit especially when their songs are covered by other artists. In the case of Smith, whose renown overshadows her record sales, versions of “Because the Night” by co-writer Bruce Springsteen and by folk group 10,000 Maniacs are the gifts that keep on giving.

She said that when she released her first album, “Horses,” in 1975, she knew nothing about royalties.

“I just thought you did your record and that was it. And the first time I got these checks, I said, ‘I already got paid for that song.’ So I’m grateful in good times, and I was very grateful in hard times.”

Smith, who steadfastly denies categorization and especially disdains the sobriquet “Godmother of Punk,” received the Founders Award at ASCAP’s 27th annual pop music awards dinner honoring the writers and publishers of last year’s most-performed songs.

She also sang four songs with her band, including fiery versions of “Because the Night” and “People Have the Power.”

The songwriter of the year award went to Lukasz “Dr. Luke” Gottwald, who co-wrote five of ASCAP’s biggest hits last year: Britney Spears’ “Circus,” Katy Perry’s “Hot N Cold,” Kelly Clarkson’s “My Life Would Suck Without You,” Miley Cyrus’ “Party in the USA,” and Flo Rida’s “Right Round.”Perry thanked Gottwald “for making me rich.”

Jason Mraz won the song of the year award for his ballad “I’m Yours,” which he performed, while rock band the Killers won the Vanguard Award for their work in helping “shape the future of AmeriIBP/ist can music.”

Patti Smith

AP Photo/Peter Kramer

From left, actors Cameron Diaz, Eddie Murphy, Mike Myers and Antonio Banderas attend the premiere of ‘Shrek Forever After’ during the 2010 Tribeca Film Festival in New York, on Wednesday, April 21, 2010.

First Look: New ‘Shrek’ premieres at Tribeca Associated Press Writer

NEW YORK – One thing hasn’t changed with “Shrek”: Puss in Boots still steals the show. The fourth and supposedly final “Shrek” film, “Shrek Forever After,” premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival on Wednesday night at New York’s Ziegfeld Theatre.

It was a glitzy affair for the film, the first in the franchise to be released in 3-D. Given the box-office boost 3D films have seen — particularly since “Avatar” — the film’s studio, Dreamworks, expects a 3-D “Shrek” to be a hit, capping a franchise that has already earned more than $1 billion at the domestic box office.

“Shrek Forever After,” which will be released May 21, returns the voice cast of Mike Myers (Shrek), Cameron Diaz (Fiona), Eddie Murphy (Donkey) and Antonio Banderas as Puss in Boots, the Zorrolike feline.

The film takes the shape of “It’s a

Wonderful Life.” A mid-life crisis comes to Shrek, now a father of three, who laments the loss of his younger, wilder days as a fearsome ogre. The evil magician Rumpelstilskin (Walt Dohrn) makes a dubious deal with Shrek, the result being that Shrek was never born and never married Fiona.

The bizarro world Shrek encounters — something like the sideways shifts of ABC’s “Lost” — is a mishmash of mostly the familiar fairy tale characters, but with different twists of fate. The Gingerbread Man, so meek in previous “Shrek” movies, is now a kickboxing warrior.

Puss in Boots, too, has been inverted. In this “Shrek,” the debonair swashbuckler has turned out an obese house cat, too lazy to shoo a mouse drinking from his bowl. He doesn’t even have his namesake’s footwear.

The character, something of a sensation after his debut in “Shrek 2,” won many of the laughs at the premiere of “Shrek Forever After.”

Shortly before the premiere, Banderas said he believed the “Shrek” films have been popular because they’re enjoyed by both kids and parents — “but most especially by the parents.” He credited a loose atmosphere for the films’ tone.

“We are absolutely not conditioned to say the lines in a specific way, but they allow us to improvise a lot,” said Banderas. “I know that is not the method used in all animated movies.”

Cartoon Network reviving “Looney Tunes” Reuters

LOS ANGELES – Cartoon Network is launching its first awards show and ramping up its efforts in the live-action arena.

The network also said Wednesday during its “upfront” presentation to advertisers that it is launching a new version of Warner Bros.’ classic “Looney Tunes” series starring Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck.

“Cartoon Network’s Hall of

Game,” honoring professional and amateur athletes, is set to debut early next year. Also in the sports arena, Cartoon announced “Run It Back Sunday,” which condenses a full NBA game in one hour with fun facts and special effects. Additionally, NFL star Tony Gonzalez and his 8-year-old son Nikko will appear in the next installment of the shortform series “My Dad’s a Pro.” Meanwhile, “The Looney Tunes Show” takes Bugs and Daffy out of

the woods and puts them into the suburbs with “colorful neighbors” including Yosemite Sam, Granny, Tweety and Sylvester. “Looney” will also have classic characters singing original songs in twominute music videos called “Merrie Melodies” and the Road Runner and Wile E. Coyote in computeranimated shorts.

The Looney Tunes cartoon

IBP/ist

Life Style

International

Friday, April 23, 2010

13

Earth Day: No more burning rivers, but new threats Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON – Pollution before the first Earth Day was not only visible, it was in your face: Cleveland’s Cuyahoga River caught fire. An oil spill fouled 30 miles of Southern California beaches. And thick smog choked many cities’ skies. Not anymore.

On Thursday, 40 years after that first Earth Day in 1970, smog levels nationwide have dropped by about a quarter, and lead levels in the air are down more than 90 percent. Formerly fetid lakes and burning rivers are now open to swimmers.

The challenges to the planet today are largely invisible — and therefore tougher to tackle.

“To suggest that we’ve made progress is not to say the problem is over,” said William Ruckelshaus, who in 1970 became the first head of the Environmental Protection Agency. “What we’ve done is shift from the very visible kinds of issues to those that are a lot more subtle today.”

Issues such as climate change are less obvious to the naked eye. Since the first Earth Day, carbon dioxide levels in the air have increased by 19 percent, pushing the average annual world temperature up about 1 degree Fahrenheit, according to the

AP Photo/Mark Duncan

Wayne Bratton poses on his tour boat, ‘Holiday’ docked on the Cuyahoga River in Cleveland Tuesday, April 20, 2010.

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

“We’ve cleaned up what you can see and left everything else in limbo,” said Kathleen Rogers, president of the Earth Day Network.

Improvements took shape in the form of the Clean Air Act, the Clean Water Act and changes in the way businesses treat the environment, said Denis Hayes. Those reforms, he added, grew out of the first Earth Day, an event Hayes helped coordinate.

“It is the most powerful, sweeping, society-wide change America has had since the New Deal,” Hayes said. “The air is cleaner despite the fact that we have twice as many vehicles traveling twice as many miles.”

Nancy Sutley, head of the White House Council on Environmental Quality, said progress in the past 40 years is about more than just laws. It’s also about innovation that made cleaner cars. And that innovation, Sutley said, “is going to be the answer for tackling climate change.”

No place illustrates progress more than the Cuyahoga River.

Cleveland’s main river used to periodically catch fire. On June 22, 1969, trash and an oil slick ignited.

The river burned for half an hour,

drawing national attention to water pollution nationwide.

People didn’t swim in the river at the time, and anyone who fell in needed to be checked by a doctor.

“The river bubbled like a cauldron. There were all kinds of chemicals in there, and that was what was bubbling at the bottom,” said Wayne Bratton, a boat captain then and now, and the first president of the Cleveland Harbor Conservation Committee.

On Tuesday, Wayne Bratton was aboard his boat, The Holiday. He looked over the starboard side at Collision Bend and described by telephone what he saw: “I’m looking at a lot of gulls, there’s a loon, a lot of black heron.”

People now fish in the river, which holds 60 species. There’s a spiffy amphitheater on the river bank, which never would have been built when the water had a dreadful stench, Bratton said.

It’s not just the Cuyahoga. In 1957, the Public Health Service declared the Potomac River unsafe for swimming. Now Rogers lets her children swim in it. “I don’t even wash them off any more,” she said.

World’s Longest Bug And ‘Ninja’ Slug Discovered in Borneo AN eccentric bunch of species have recently come out of hiding in the rainforests of Borneo, including the world’s longest known stick insect - think two skinny pencils endto-end, a slug that shoots “love darts,” and a color-changing frog, scientists announce today.

The new WWF report details the 123 newly identified species that have been discovered since February 2007 when the three countries that make up Borneo agreed to conserve 85,000 square miles (220,000 square kilometers) of tropical rainforest, designated as the Heart of Borneo (HoB).

That’s a rate of discovery of three species per month. Previously, scientists have estimated that there are about 2 million known species of life on Earth, and anywhere from 5 million to 100 million species that remain undiscovered.

“As the past three years of independent scientific discovery have proven, new forms of life are constantly being discovered in the Heart of Borneo,” said Adam Tomasek, who leads the WWF project.

Here’s an introduction to the new gang: Longest insect - Measuring more than 1.6 feet (0.5 meters) in length, the world’s longest stick in-

sect, called Phobaeticus chani, was found near Gunung Kinabalu Park, Sabah. So far, only three specimens of the species have been found, all in the Heart of Borneo.

Fiery snake - Kopstein’s Bronzeback snake (Dendrelaphis kopsteini) is about 5 feet (1.5 meters) long. Its neck is colored a bright orange, which fuses into an iridescent and vivid blue, green and brown pattern that extends the entire length of its body.

Color-changing frog - Called Rhacophorus penanorum, this small frog species, whose males grow to just 1.4 inches (3.5 centimeters), was discovered in Gunung Mulu National Park, Sarawak, in the Heart of Borneo.

Also called the Mulu flying frog, the amphibian has a small pointed snout and is unusual in that the species has bright green skin at night but changes color to display a brown hue during the day. Its eyes follow suit to change color as well. And while the minute animal may not fly with the birds, it uses its webbed feet and aerodynamic flaps of skin on the arms and legs to glide from tree to tree.

Spectacled bird - Named because of its prominent eye-rings, the spectacled flowerpecker has a grey body

with bright white arcs above and below its eyes, a white throat and white tufts at the breast sides. Scientists think the flowerpecker is a canopy specialist, feeding off fruits high in tree canopies. Ninja slug - This green and yellow slug (Ibycus rachelae) was discovered on leaves in a mountain forest at altitudes up to 6,233 feet (1,900 meters) in Sabah, Malaysia. The slug sports a tail that’s three times the length of its head, which it wraps around its 1.6-inch-long (4 cm) body as if a pet cat. In fact, its discoverers initially planned to name the slug Ibycus felis, after its feline inspiration. Instead, they named it after the girlfriend of one of its discoverers, Menno Schilthuizen of the Netherlands Centre for Biodiversity ‘Naturalis.’

Maybe there’s more to the name than meets the eye: The slug species makes use of so-called love darts.

Made of calcium carbonate, the love dart is a harpoon-like structure that pierces and injects a hormone into a potential mate. The dart could increase the slug’s chances of reproduction.

“The distinction between slugs and snails is not so strict in that part of the tropics, because most of the slugs, including the new one we described, are semi-slugs meaning they still have a

shell but the shell is so small that it can’t retract its body into it,” Schilthuizen told LiveScience.

And though they’ve found several new slug and snail species, Schilthuizen said this rainforest environment isn’t ideal for the animals. That’s because the soil is highly acidic, which dissolves the

animals’ limestone shells.

Overall, the Heart of Borneo is now called home by 10 primate species, more than 350 birds, 150 reptiles and amphibians and a staggering 10,000 plants that are found nowhere else in the world, according to the new report.

AFP/HO/File/Orang Asli

This WWF Malaysia photo shows the “Phobaeticus chani”, the world’s longest stick insect measuring 56.7cm in lenght (with the body of 35.7cm), with only three specimens of the creature have ever been found, discovered near Gunung Kinabalu Park, in the “Heart of Borneo”, in the tropical rainforest that borders Malaysia, Indonesia and Brunei.

14

Sport

Friday, April 23, 2010

Forward Richard Jefferson #24 of the San Antonio Spurs takes a shot against Jason Kidd #2 of the Dallas Mavericks in Game Two of the Western Conference Quarterfinals during the 2010 NBA Playoffs at American Airlines Center on April 21, 2010 in Dallas, Texas.

Ronald Martinez/Getty Images/AFP

Jefferson hounds Mavs, helps carry Spurs in Game 2 Associated Press Writer

DALLAS – Richard Jefferson bounded right out of Spurs coach Gregg Popovich’s doghouse.

Knowing he was among the guys Popovich thought “played like dogs” in the opener, Jefferson scored 17 of his 19 points in the first half to help San Antonio beat the Dallas Mavericks 102-88 in Game 2 on Wednesday night to tie their first-round series at a game apiece.

Jefferson responded exactly the way Popovich hoped. He matched his Game 1 points in the opening minutes and was 7 of 9 by halftime, several coming during a 12-1 surge that broke the game open for good.

Tim Duncan scored 17 of his 25 points in the second half, many dousing Dallas rallies. He also had 17 rebounds.

“We went to Tim just about every other time down the stretch,” Popovich said. “He came through by scoring and rebounding at the other end. He did a really good job of scoring when they cut it to six or eight.”

Mavs star Dirk Nowitzki went from hardly missing in Game 1 to hardly making. The Spurs didn’t even smother him; merely knowing they were creeping his way threw Nowitzki out of whack. He missed

six of his first seven shots, and even missed a free throw after having made 88 in a row. He finished with 24 points, down from 36 in the opener.

The Mavericks played their best only after they seemed to have buried themselves — down 16-5 early, they got within one by the end of the quarter; down 80-60 late in the third quarter they scored 12 straight points; down 13 again early in the fourth, they clawed within five. However, they never led and have now given away home-court advantage.

Game 3 is in San Antonio on Friday night, and the folks in the Alamo City probably can’t wait. They’re especially looking forward to seeing Mavs owner Mark Cuban, who fanned the flames of the rivalry in recent days by repeatedly saying, “I hate the Spurs.”

The Spurs built their leads by play-

ing smart. They held onto the ball (only nine turnovers, down from 17 in Game 1), forced their way to the rim, then took advantage of the space that opened up for longer-range jumpers. In the gamebreaking second quarter, their insideout attack produced 34 points on 68 percent shooting.

“They were a hot-shooting team and we were unable to keep them from being a hot-shooting team,” Dallas coach Rick Carlisle said. “When the ball’s in the air, it’s anybody’s ball. They came up with all those plays. They got the loose balls and they were more opportunistic.”

Manu Ginobili had 23 points, including a 3-pointer with 1:48 left that he punctuated with a celebratory punch as fans began rushing toward the exits.

Tony Parker, still coming off the bench, had 16 points and eight assists.

International

Fans bid farewell to boxer Valero Associated Press Writer EL VIGIA, Venezuela – Weeping relatives and fans gathered around the coffin of former boxing champion Edwin Valero on Wednesday, mourning the troubled fighter who killed himself after slaying his wife.

Hundreds in this small town in southwestern Venezuela attended the funeral Mass for a fighter who rose to international fame before quickly falling into disgrace. Many wiped tears from their faces during the ceremony.

Fans, friends and family members later brought Valero’s coffin to a gym where he once trained before his body was buried at a nearby cemetery.

Valero, famed for an impressive record of 27 straight knockouts and a huge tattoo of President Hugo Chavez on his chest, was arrested Sunday in the stabbing death of his 24-year-old wife. Police said the boxer hanged himself in his cell early Monday.

The killing, coupled with Valero’s suicide, shocked many Venezuelans.

Many have been asking what went wrong in his life and why authorities hadn’t stepped in to protect his wife, Jennifer Carolina Viera, after numerous reports of domestic violence.

A boxer who was close to Valero, Jose Luis Varela, lamented that many of the fighter’s friends didn’t urge him to seek help to deal with what had become a serious drug and alcohol addiction. “We didn’t want to see that he had problems,” Varela said.

During Wednesday’s Mass, Priest Esteban Gudino told parishioners he hoped Valero “receives the mercy of our Lord.”

“It’s a tragedy for all of use when the life of a youngster ends like this,” Gudino said from the church’s pulpit.

“Hopefully, this will serve others to emulate his positive side, and they’ll distance themselves from drugs and alcohol.”

The fighter’s mother-in-law, Mary Finol, told reporters at her daughter’s funeral Tuesday in El Vigia that Valero was addicted to cocaine and had grown increasingly violent before he was arrested for his wife’s murder.

“We knew that he used cocaine beginning at 12 years of age,” Finol said, adding that her daughter had told her that Valero “didn’t sleep, didn’t eat, got high everyday and was increasingly violent.”

Valero’s fans shouted “Champion!

Champion!” from a caravan of motorcycles and cars that accompanied the hearse carrying the coffin, a Venezuelan flag draped over it.

Fellow boxer and friend, Joel Finol, broke down in tears. “It broke my heart to see him like that: dead,” he said.

Venezuelan news reports since 2008 had repeatedly linked the former WBA super featherweight and WBC lightweight champion to domestic violence incidents, but the fighter and his supporters rejected those reports.

No Venus for US against Russia in Fed Cup Agence France Presse

(AFP/File/Alfredo Estrella)

Venus Williams, seen here in February 2010, will not compete for the United States in this weekend’s Fed Cup semifinal tie against Russia because of nagging leg injuries similar to those of sister Serena.

BIRMINGHAM, Alabama – Venus Williams will not compete for the United States in this weekend’s Fed Cup semi-final tie against Russia because of nagging leg injuries similar to those of sister Serena.

“I waited until this moment in hopes that I would have an opportunity to play, but I am being advised by my medical support team that I will need more time to recover,” Williams said in a statement Wednesday.

The elder Williams sister wore wrappings on both legs in a finals loss to Kim Clijsters earlier this month at a hardcourt event in Miami.

“She has been trying to get better,” Fernandez said. “Obviously I knew it was going to be tough for her because she hurt herself at the end of the Miami tournament and couldn’t hit balls until the last week or so.

“I did everything I could do to give her as much time as possible to see if she got better. She’s not quite there.”

Fernandez will send Melanie Oudin, Bethanie Mattek-Sands and Liezel Huber against the Russians and fill the spot she was holding open for Venus with either Sloane Stephens or Christina McHale.

(AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)

Relatives mourn during the funeral of former world boxing champion Edwin Valero in El Vigia, western Venezuela, Wednesday, April 21, 2010. Valero committed suicide in his jail cell Monday after he was arrested in his wife’s murder.

Sport

International

Friday, April 23, 2010

15

N’Zogbia arrested over suspected driving test scam Agence France Presse

AFP PHOTO DDP / OLIVER LANG

Bayern Munich’s Dutch striker Arjen Robben and Olympique Lyonnais’ Brazilian defender Cris vie for the ball during the first leg UEFA Champions League semi-final football match FC Bayern Munich vs Olympique Lyonnais at the Allianz Arena in the southern German city of Munich on April 21, 2010. Bayern Munich won the match 1-0.

Coach praises 10-man Bayern for downing Lyon

LONDON – Wigan’s French winger Charles N’Zogbia has been arrested on suspicion of getting someone else to sit part of his driving test, police said on Thursday.

The 23-year-old, who lives near Manchester, was taken into police custody on Wednesday at a driving test centre on suspicion of fraud by false representation after turning up to do the practical part of his examination.

It is understood officials called police after suspecting he had got someone else to take the theory section of his test.

A spokeswoman for Greater Manchester Police said: “At about 8.30am on Wednesday April 21, 2010, police working alongside the Driving Standards Agency arrested a 23-year-old man at Sale driving test centre on suspicion of fraud by false representation.

“The man has been bailed until June 3 2010 pending further inquiries.”

N’Zogbia, who joined Wigan from Newcastle last year, scored the winning goal for his side in the upset 3-2 win over Arsenal on Sunday.

Latics manager Roberto Martinez admitted N’Zogbia had made a naive mistake as a result of being badly advised.

“The way I see the whole situation is that Charles has been badly advised, and he’s made a naive mistake,” Martinez said.

“We’re going to look into every single detail before I give my full side of the story, but what is important is Charles has reacted in a very mature way.

“We need to remember he is a very young man, but he knows he is also a public figure, and he needs to make sure he becomes a stronger and more experienced human being.

“In that respect we’ll help him to ensure he is available to do what he does best which is playing football. “We’ll collaborate with the police and with Charles to make sure we get out of this situation in a positive way.”

Agence France Presse

MUNICH, Germany – Bayern Munich coach Louis van Gaal praised his side for their 10 win over Lyon in Wednesday’s Champions League semi-final, first-leg, as both sides finished with ten-men.

Dutch winger Arjen Robben hit the winning goal, which will give Bayern a slender advantage for next Tuesday’s second leg in France.

Since joining Bayern from Real Madrid in August 2009, Robben has now scored 20 goals in all competitions, but none so important as his 69th-minute strike.

“I am very happy,” said van Gaal whose side are still on course of the treble of Champions League, Bundesliga and German Cup titles.

“1-0 is a good result and means we don’t have to take any risks for the second-leg, so we have done very well.”

The first-half dismissal of Bayern’s Franck Ribery for a dangerous challenge was cancelled out when Lyon’s France defender Jeremy Toulalan was also dismissed just after the break for a second yellow card.

Both Toulalan and Ribery will now miss the second-leg, as will Bayern’s Danijel Pranjic who picked up his third yellow card of the Champions League campaign.

“This was a very dubious red card against Ribery,” said van Gaal. “There is always the chance

they can be given and Ribery gave the referee the posibility, he stayed on his feet longer than was necessary.”

With captain Mark van Bommel suspended, defender Philipp Lahm took charge and he admitted it would be hard to comfort Ribery after a difficult week.

All the pre-match hype was around Ribery, who was questioned by French police at the weekend after being involved in the under-age call-girl scandal which has rocked the French football team.

“It will be hard to comfort Franck after his red card, he is an excellent footballer who always wants to win,” said Lahm.

“It is bitterly disappointing for us that he is suspended for the second-leg.”

But Lahm praised his side for showing plenty of composure, even after Ribery’s dismissal. “It was tremendously important that we kept our composure, even with ten men,” said Lahm. “We played well and held the ball well.”

Having had his chances to score, Ribery was shown a straight red by referee Roberto Rosetti on 37 minutes for a dangerous foul on Lyon’s striker

Lisandro Lopez as he bodychecked the Argentinian while fighting for the ball.

Bayern’s fans were braying for blood after Rosetti flashed his red card, especially as Lopez was quickly on his feet after initially writhing in agony.

Lyon were also reduced to ten men after the break when France defender Toulalan tripped Robben to send the Dutchman tumbling to the turf to earn himself a yellow card on 51 minutes.

Then just three minutes later, he kicked away Bastian Schweinsteiger’s leg when challenging for a ball and Rosetti was reaching for his red card before Schweinsteiger landed on the pitch on 54 minutes.

The winning goal came with 20 minutes left when Robben launched his shot from well outside the penalty area which gave Lyon goalkeeper Hugo Lloris no chance.

But Lyon coach Claude Puel insisted that the tie was far from over “though it’s a shame we didn’t manage to hang on to our numerical superiority to impose our game a little more and get a better grip on things. “But it’s all to play for in the return.”

(AFP/File/Graham Stuart)

Wigan midfielder Charles N’Zogbia vies for the ball during the English Premier League football match against Fulham.

N’Zogbia has been arrested on suspicion of getting someone else to sit part of his driving test, police said.

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Friday, April 23, 2010

I N T E R N A T I O N A L

Sport

F1 equipment expected in Europe today

Formula 1’s car and equipment are expected to land back in Europe later today, following the air chaos delays caused by the Icelandic volcano, easing fears that teams faced a major headache to get ready in time for the Spanish Grand Prix.

AFP PHOTO / POOL

Track marshalls recover the Force India-Mercedes car of Vitantonio Liuzzi of Italy after a crash during the Formula One Chinese Grand Prix in Shanghai on April 18, 2010. Liuzzi crashed out during the first lap of the race. Formula 1’s car and equipment are expected to land back in Europe later today, following the air chaos delays caused by the Icelandic volcano.

Happy Hayden eyes more progress NICKY Hayden says there is still work to do before he is fully competitive despite a significant step forward this year, but he admits he has been pleased with the way things are going so far.

The 2006 world champion struggled with the handling of the Ducati during the most part of last year, but began to make progress towards the end of the season.

Hayden enjoyed a strong seasonopening race in Qatar, where he was just pipped to a podium place by Honda’s Andrea Dovizioso.

The Ducati rider admits he is feeling more comfortable on his bike this year, but reckons there is still progress to be made.

“I would say it kind of started toward the end of last year, the middle of last year,” said Hayden during an Indianapolis GP teleconference. “We started to get some momentum going.

“I was faster than it really looked.

We had some bad luck, some incidents, you know, where we didn’t finish some races that hurt us every time we tried to get momentum going.

“But, for sure, this winter the bike is a little bit different, and I just feel a lot more comfortable on it and also with the team. It’s the second year with the team after a long time on Honda’s. It was a big change last year. I certainly didn’t adapt the way I wanted to. But this year things seem to be going a lot better.

“The communication with the team is a lot better than it was last year. I feel comfortable. I like the

bike. We’ve been quick testing, but we still got some areas we need to improve on. So we’ve got a lot of work to do.”

The American says the changes made to his bike’s engine for this year have been key in helping im-

prove his situation “I would say the engine certainly is smoother,” he said. “And on the bottom, it just gives you a bit better feel when you open the power and try to accelerate out of the corner. This engine, you got more connectivity.

Although a large number of team personnel and other F1 staff are still trapped in China as airlines try and find available space on planes, teams will at least breath a sigh of relief that cars and equipment are now on their way back.

The FOM freight planes, which are used to ship the equipment, had been trapped in Europe until earlier this week, but airspace restrictions meant they were able to get out and head to Shanghai.

After getting the planes loaded yesterday, they are due to get back to the UK later today - when more team personnel are also expected to return Red Bull Racing team principal Christian Horner said: “The cars and freight will arrive back today, probably beating the team home by an hour or two.”

Although the loss of a few days may not seem a lot, with teams planning major upgrades for the

Barcelona race then time was always going to be tight to turn the F1 cars around after four races on the road.

But Horner believes that the extra week’s gap in the calendar meant there would be minimal disruption.

“Thankfully, the way the calendar is with the extra week between the Chinese and Spanish Grand Prix, it has a very limited impact,” he said about the delay. “There’s still over a week to turn the cars around and a lot of the components for the next race are produced here in the factory.

“The factory hasn’t been affected obviously the turnaround components are a little bit out of sync now coming back two or three days late, but with the additional week, we’re confident it won’t cause us any major issues.”

With air schedules getting back to normal, the return of the freight and staff to Europe will also erase any concern that the Spanish GP could be under threat.