Edisi 29 Oktober 2009 | International Bali Post

Daredevil flips bike over helicopter in Australia

16 Pages Number 493 1st Year

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Thursday, October 29, 2009

Climate Change affects tourism PAGE 8

BP/Ole

Arnawa (left) and Puaji seen with multiple injuries on their faces

‘This Is It’ Is For The Fans But Is It Too Much Too Soon?

PAGE 12

Riot in Lemukih village

Three victims treated in the hospital Singaraja (Bali Post) –

After having several cases happened, the situation in Lemukih village, Sawan, Singaraja is chaotic. A mass brawl happened started on Tuesday, October 27th 2009 at night through Wednesday, October 28th 2009 at dawn.

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The riot made three people injured and a house burned down.

The riot was possibly happened because the land case which involved the village with three people who owned the land certificates. They are Gede Sukrana, Komang Arnawa, both of them from Buah Banjar, and Wayan Puaji from Alasangker village.

On the previous case, Ketut Supala, the head of Buah Banjar village who is also the father in law of Puaji, was becoming the victim of a crime. Unidentified people burn his house and stole his crops and he suspected that the act is related to the land case.

The riot started on 10 pm local time when the residents of Lemukih village found a motorcycle. They suspected that the motorcycle belong to someone infiltrate the village. To find the owner of the motorcycle, the residents gather in the village office and together to find the person.

Several hours later a police car passed by on the scene and they saw three people were crying for help. The police placed them into the car and planed to bring them

to the nearest police station. The police was trying to get out from the village though Gitgit village.

The residents of Lemukih chased the police car which filled with five officers and wanted to harm the people in it. The police was trying to escape but in front of Lemukih temple, the people stop the car. They wanted to kill the three people escorted by the police. The residents were successfully dragging the people from the car and beat them.

The police could not stop them because there were too many people.

More officers from Buleleng Police Department arrived on the scene shortly and the three people were able to be rescued and rushed into the nearest hospital. They are still being treated intensively in Buleleng hospital.

Started with finding “durian” WAYAN Puaji, one of the riot victims, explained the tragedy that happened to him. “I didn’t know anything. Suddenly many people were starting to hit me,” he added. Puaji explained that on Tuesday night, he was guarding the garden owned by his father in law, Ketut Supala, along with Sukrana and Arnawa.

By using two motorcycles they went to the garden. The original guard, Nyoman Mara was unable to work at that night and he already told the three people to hide if something happened.

When they wanted to move their

motorcycle, they saw many people on the parking site. Puaji directly contacted his father in law and explained the situation. Supala call the police and the head of the village to explain that his son in law and their friend wanted to find durian fruit and not doing any harm. However, hundreds of people were starting to beat them and luckily the police was able to rescue all three of them. Puaji and Arana suffered from wound in their head and Sukrana was still unconscious because suffering from heavy injuries in the back of his head. (ole)

Burn house

Almost on the same time, a house belong to Komang Winawan was burn with flame. It seemed that the house was burned down by the people regarding the Lemukih land case. Winawan said “it obviously deliberate arson because I didn’t light any fire at that time.” (kmb15)

BP/Ole

Sukrana is lying on the bed in Buleleng hospital because suffering from heavy injuries in the back of his head.

2

International

Thursday, October 29, 2009

Bali News Thirteen Years after Serangan Reclamation

Once Made into Disposal Site of Evidences

Bali Post/eka

A fisherman is pouring the fish in Serangan. Most of the people in Serangan still work as fishermen for their living.

Beaches in Denpasar Lack of Lifeguards Denpasar (Bali Post)—

Commitment of Denpasar Government to work on tourism sector being famous for its beautiful Sanur Beach, in fact remains half-hearted. Its evidence, the availability of lifeguard becoming must in creating the security for tourists at coastal area remains insufficient. At this moment, Denpasar only has 10 lifeguards (Balawista). This condition is judged less ideal to maintain the security of visitors at Sanur Beach.

A member of Commission B of Denpasar House, I Wayan Mariyana Wandhira, following the inauguration of the Head of Denpasar House, Tuesday (Oct 27), asserted this matter. Wandhira said that the spread of beach owned

by Denpasar City ranged from Padanggalak to Mertasari Beach.

Within such zone, there were five points becoming the central of tourism activity. The five points consisted of Sunrise Beach, Le Mayeur Museum (Inna Grand Bali Beach), Sindu Beach, Semawang Beach, Segara Ayu Beach and Mertasari Beach.

It was said that out of five central points of tourism activity, lifeguards filled in not all points. His party worried if something bad happened to visitors, rescuing pro-

cess and other actions related to rescuing would find obstacle. For instance, the incident occurred on Galungan holiday not long ago. He said the incident afflicted a visitor with his family swimming at Mertasari Beach. It was unknown the cause where such visitor was washed away by waves and hooked onto a net of fisher. The rescuing effort took a long time due to the non-existence of lifeguard at that time. “It is the impact of lacking for lifeguards at tourist object like Sanur Beach,” said Wandhira who is also a resident of Sanur.

It was said that it did not only lack for lifeguards, but also its facilities and infrastructure needed more attention. If only the City Government had an obvious commitment in managing marine tour-

ism, there was possibility to make cooperation with hotels existing at the area. “Chiefly, it needs special attention to the provision of facilities and infrastructure of lifeguards.

Other than lifeguard itself, we also consider that it lacks for facilities so it requires serious attention of Denpasar City Government,” he explained.

On responding on the lacking of lifeguard, the Head of Denpasar Government Tourism Office, I Putu Budiasa, admitted to have added five lifeguards to the existing ones in Sanur. “If it until reaches the control of Serangan Beach, it needs a comprehensive study. For the time being, I think it has been covered by this number,” said Budiasa whose confirmation was asked on last Tuesday. (kmb12)

Serangan Island being famous for its seaweed potential and decorative fish has changed since 13 years ago. Particularly, this happened when Bali Turtle Island Development (BTID) committed a huge reclamation at the area known as Turtle Island.

Reclamation project reaching threefold of original extent of Serangan Island originated in the intention of BTID to establish an integrated tourist resort at location. Unfortunately, such prestigious project plan commenced by reclamation since 1996 has now left only its plan. Project realization is still left undecided. How is the look of Serangan today?

RECLAMATION of Serangan Island has changed a number of local community orders. Today, the extent of Serangan is 491 hectares. In other words, the extent of beach filled reaches 379 hectares.

This reclamation occurred at eastern, southwestern and northwestern part of the island.

This reclamation discourse has been heard when Bali was led by Ida Bagus Mantra. At that time, as governor of Bali, IB Mantra firmly rejected the plan. The reason was Serangan had its own typicality. Besides, not all regions of Bali should build starred hotels because by doing so local community could not engage in the business. Starred hotels needed great capital. On that account, he was very concerned to promote home stay that could be owned by local community. Similarly, it could make the house of local residents into accommodation for foreign tourists and this way could maximally involve local community.

Therefore, uniqueness of Bali would remain to be maintained and Balinese community would enjoy the advancement of tourism in person.

However, the plan finally passed after the IB Mantra did no more lead Bali as Governor. Nevertheless, this megaproject stayed to raise pros and cons in the midst of local community. Even, up to this moment, the problem ensued at the area has not entirely resolved though the project has taken place since few years ago.

As evidences, a number of problems also appeared to surface within the past few years. For instance, there was objection of lo-

cal residents indicating that they were forbidden to enter the area of BTID after the greening project committed by BTID. However, this problem was finally resolved after local residents made a meeting at the office of village head together with the management of BTID. A resident of Serangan, I Ketut Arya Saputra, last Tuesday (Oct 27) admitted that many impacts occurred after reclamation carried out at the area of his village. Its negative impact, he said, was the loss of livelihood of small fishers that previously earned their bread and butter at Serangan Beach. However, after reclamation, those small fishers could no more obtain fish close to their area. They should enter into deep-sea area to get fish.

More than that, seaweed farmers also afflicted the impact of reclamation. Their land for farming diminished. “Seaweed farmers also felt the impact of existing reclamation,” said Arya Saputra.

Meanwhile, local residents obtained much benefit. By the opening of road access to the territory of village that previously was isolated, they could park their vehicle conveniently in their house. Establishment of infrastructure in Serangan increased since the opening of road access to Bali Island.

Head of Serangan Village, I Made Poniman, met at the office of Denpasar Mayor, last Thursday (Oct 22) confessed that some residents could not entirely understand about the policy that would be implemented by investor at the area. This matter was caused by the project worked on by BTID has not run entirely.

Poniman also admitted on the existence of some changes transpired due the impact of reclamation taking place at the area. For instance, the matter of livelihood of coastal community entirely depending on the potential of sea of course felt disturbed due to reclamation.

Arya Saputra acknowledged that reclamation carried out by BTID was once made into the area to disposal site of evidences of criminal deeds. In addition, many local residents found murder case at the reclamation area. “On that account, the entry into BTID area is now made stricter,” said Arya Saputra. (ara)

z Founder : K.Nadha, z Chief Editor: ABG Satria Naradha z Managing Editor: Wirata z Editors: Alit Purnata, Alit Susrini, Alit Sumertha, Darmasunu, Daniel Fajry, Diah Dewi, Iwan Darmawan, Martinaya, Mawa, Palgunadi, Sri Hartini, Suana, Sueca, Sugiartha, Sutiawan, Wirya, Yudi Winanto zDenpasar: Dira Arsana, Giriana Saputra, Mas Ruscitadewi, Oka Rusmini, Umbu Landu Paranggi, Subagiadnya, Subrata, Suentra, Sumatika, Gregorius Rusmanda, Asmara Putra. Bangli: Pujawan, Buleleng: Adnyana, Gianyar: Agung Dharmada, Karangasem: Budana, Klungkung: Bali Putra Ariawan, Tabanan: Surpi. Jakarta: Nikson, Suharto Olii, Indu P. Adi, Ahmadi Supriyanto, Achmad Nasrudin, Hardianto, Darmawan S. Sumardjo, Heru B Arifin, Asep Djamaluddin, Ade Irawan, Ipik Tanoyo. NTB: Agus Talino, Syamsudin Karim, Izzul Khairi, Raka Akriyani, Nur Haedin, Suyadnya. Surabaya: Bambang Wilianto. z Development: Alit Purnata, Mas Ruscitadewi. z Office: Jalan Kepundung 67 A Denpasar 80232. Telephone (0361)225764, Facsimile: 227418, P.O.Box: 3010 Denpasar 80001. Bali Post Jakarta, Advertizing: Jl.Palmerah Barat 21F. Telp 021-5357602, Facsimile: 021-5357605 Jakarta Pusat. NTB: Jalam Bangau No. 15 Cakranegara Telp. (0370) 639543, Facsimile: (0370) 628257. Publiser: PT Bali Post

Bali News

International

3

Thursday, October 29, 2009

Forty Dogs Positive Have Rabies BASED on the estimation of 420,602 dogs existing in Bali, 40 of them were stated to be positive to rabies through laboratory test. “Forty dogs stating to be positive to rabies were found at five regencies in Bali such as Badung (26), Denpasar (4), Karangasem (4), Bangli (1) and Tabanan (6),” said the Head of Bali Animal Husbandry Services, IB Alit, last Tuesday (Oct 27). He said that one dog stated to be positive to rabies was enough to become a measurement to commit a vaccination and elimination to dog at the regency.

Alit continued that since rabies engulfed Bali his party has performed elimination and vaccination up to socialization. Based on the latest data, the number of dog eliminated in nine regencies in Bali amounted to 107,891 with details as follows, Badung (45,040), Denpasar (36,944), Tabanan (22,478), Gianyar (97), Bangli (913), Klungkung (44), Karangasem (403), Jembrana (2,066) and Buleleng (206).

In the meantime, rabies vaccine received by Bali Animal Husbandry Services from central government come to 240,000 allocated for 240,000 dogs.

Those rabies vaccines have been distributed to Badung (55,000), Denpasar (37,400), Tabanan (25,500), Gianyar (10,000), Bangli (5,000), Klungkung (5,000), Jembrana (5,000) and Buleleng (10,000). Meanwhile, stock of rabies vaccine available at Bali Animal Husbandry Services was 80,500 dosages.

Other than vaccination in nine regencies, it has also carried out elimi-

nation to wild dogs. Total number of eliminated dog performed since rabies engulfed Bali was some 26,698 with details as follows: Badung (4,273), Denpasar (979), Tabanan (13.935), Gianyar (57), Bangli (1,218), Klungkung (736), Karangasem (4,586), Jembrana (689) and Buleleng (225).

It was said that during the management of rabies in Bali, there were some obstacles found in the field such less awareness and lacking of knowledge about rabies. Local community had less awareness in helping the handling of rabies.

“It is caused by the less knowledge owned by community about rabies.

Sometimes, when a dog vaccination activity is held at hamlets, they were reluctant to bring their dog for vaccination,” said Alit.Other obstacle was the lacking of attendants at regency/city to commit the vaccination and dog elimination and limited fund availability.

He admitted the fund given by Bali provincial government to Animal Hus-

bandry Services to handle rabies was IDR 600 million and has been spent for some IDR 400 million for socialization and vaccination in the community.

The cost was beyond the provision of rabies vaccine because it has been provided by central government,” said Alit.He only expected the awareness of community to rabies could be progressively improved. If bitten by dog they might not be panic.

It should be cleansed by flowing water and soap for 15 minutes before bringing to the nearest community health center to asking for VAR. “Please do not kill the dog biting, but observe it first.

If it does not die within two weeks, it can be ensured that it is not infected by rabies,” explained Alit.Additionally, he said that administration of vaccine to dog would be very effective if the dog got booster vaccine or the second vaccine. “The dog obtained booster will have immunity to rabies virus,” he added. (san)

Alleged to be Drunk, a Tourist Died Denpasar (Bali Post)—

Dwellers and operator of Villa Blue Point located at Pecatu Hamlet, South Kuta Subdistrict, Badung was made shocked by the death of one of the dwellers. Victim Faulstron (34) was from Australia. Victim was found stiffly stretched out at bathroom of villa, last Monday (Oct 26) night.

It was unknown for sure the cause of his death. Clearly, before he was found dead, victim was said to drink alcoholic drink. Police officer did not dare to make sure the cause of victim’s death.

According to information, before dying he was accompanied by his girl mate, Sally, estimated to become his

girlfriend. They stayed at villa no. 403.

“The information told that victim drank beer and he was severely drunk,” said a police officer at South Kuta Sector Police.

On seeing her boyfriend turned drunk and spoke haphazardly, Sally left victim to other room. Not long later, right at 9:30 p.m. Local Time, Sally returned to his room to see the condition of victim. Sally entered into the room of victim but victim was not found at location.

Worries engulfed the feeling of Sally. She attempted to search for him from one room to another. How surprised she was when she opened door of the bathroom. Victim fell headfirst

on the floor of bathroom. Even, the victim was known to have not breathed.

The case was reported to South Kuta Sector Police to perform further investigation. Based on the investigation at location held by police, the head of victim was found swollen due to falling down. At location was also found the breaks of beer’s bottle. “Afterwards, the victim was taken to Kasih Ibu Hospital,” he said.

Chief of South Kuta Sector Police, Nanang Prihasmoko, justified the incident and his party remained to investigate the case. “We are still committing investigation in details and could not ensure the cause of victim’s death,” said Chief Nanang. (kmb21)

Robbery to the Owner of Gypsum Works

Police Difficult to Trace Perpetrator Denpasar (Bali Post)—

Police officer of Southern Denpasar Sector Police performed repeated identification right away after the incident of robbery at the house of Satroni (32) on Jalan Pulau Belitung, Babakansari Housing Complex No.27, Pedungan , South Denpasar, last Monday (Oct 26) night, a number of officers revisited the location to look for new evidences.

However, police seemed to undergo difficulty in tracing the perpetrator because based on re-identification, police could not find any fingerprints of both perpetrators entering the house of victim. Ordinarily, if perpetrator entered the house by prying jalousie windows, it must leave perpetrator’s fingerprints.

“However, we could not find their fin-

gerprints,” said a source at police station, Tuesday (Oct 27).

On seeing the action of such perpetrators (did not leave evidences—ed), this showed that perpetrators were professional. Besides, it indicated that perpetrator was old player. “Police had confident that perpetrators were well experienced in committing their action,” guessed such source whose name was asked to be made secret.

In the meantime, reconstruction performed by police was just intended to know how victim was threatened and where his position was. More than that, victim also clarified from where perpetrators entered the house and how they left the house. “It is questioned to know their modus operandi,” he ex-

plained again.

Have the perpetrators been identified? Police officers remained to make investigation. Even though there was a suspected person, but it was merely a suspicion. In other words, it was uncertain that the suspected person was the perpetrator. “The suspected person was under pursuit of police officer,” he said. As reported previously, Satroni was robbed by veiled men, last Sunday (Oct 26) at 3a.m.

Local Time. Perpetrators entered the house of victim by prying five pieces of jalousie window. Victim, his wife and his daughter were threatened with sickle by perpetrator. A number of valuables worth IDR 20 million were taken away. (kmb21)

Bali Post/edi

Officers from Denpasar Animal Department eliminate wild dogs in Sumerta Kaja village on Wednesday, October 28th 2009

Gumang Hill Purchased by Investor

Plan to Build a Villa Amplapura (Bali Post)—

After the Mimba Hill, now the western slope of Gumang Hill, Bugbug, Karangasem, was dismantled for building a villa. The villa belonging to Dutch investor was judged to have harmed the environment and have not complied with the allocation. Thus was revealed in the session of Karangasem House, last Tuesday (Oct 27). I Nyoman Sadra, on the session put into question if the villa had permit. If it had, why it was allowed to build at the slope of hill alleged to become the sacred territory of Gumang Temple.

In the meantime, the Head of Karangasem Agency for Regional Development (Bappeda), I Wayan Artha Dipa, said that he did not know about the matter of permit belonging to villa.

“Permit matter of the villa belonged to the authority of the Head of Integrated Permit Services,” he said.

Sadra regretted that the villa building was permitted on hill by means of dismantling the slopes of hill and it was made flat. The development sacrificing the conservation and beauty of nature has triggered a protest among a number of foreign nature lovers staying at Candidasa tourist resort. “If it is seen eastwardly from Candidasa Beach, the villa is obviously observed,” he affirmed.

Another member of the House,

Nengah Suparta, stated that the Dutch investor just built two villas out of the six villas planned. He thought that investor has already had a building permit.

Sadra also added that before he became a member of the House, he once put it into question to government related to the development of villa on hills. Tenganan became the property of foreign investor. Even, investor made an artesian well with the depth of 80 meters on the peak of hill. Although this matter has been informed to government the development remained to continue. Meanwhile, many local residents worried about the making of artesian well on hills would result in negative impact to other residents under the hills, such as the springs diminished or even ran dry. In fact, the water of river passing through Tenganan until Nyuh Tebel has decreased and even the rice field at the area could not be irrigated.

According to him, the land of Bali would run out because owned by foreign investor and finally it would chase away Balinese people. Now, local residents have been surrounded, hills were controlled by foreign investors and so was agricultural land. The problem is that when the land has been owned by investor local community could not know what they do inside. (013)

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Thursday, October 29, 2009

News

International

Guyana complains Britain scrapped police reform program Agence France-Presse

GEORGETOWN - Guyana Tuesday accused Britain of scrapping an 8.0 million dollar program to overhaul the country’s police force because it refused to allow British soldiers to carry out livefire training near Venezuela and Brazil.

“This decision by the (British) government is believed to be linked to the administration’s refusal to permit training of British Special Forces in Guyana using live firing in a hinterland community on the western border with Brazil and Venezuela,” President Bharrat Jagdeo’s office said in a statement.

In a two-year-old memorandum of understanding, Guyana and the Britain had expected that Guyanese police would have benefitted from improved financial management, substantial parliamentary oversight of the security sector, and greater public partici-

pation and inclusiveness in security sector issues.

Cabinet Secretary, Roger Luncheon said in statement late Tuesday that Britain unilaterally revised the security sector reform programme and abandoned it when Jagdeo was about to present his own revised version of the initiative.

British officials have told AFP that Guyana had wanted to shift the program away from policy reform to modernization.

“It could be that (London) did not fully appreciate how dearly held was our position on the nonviolation of the sovereignty of Guyana,” said Luncheon.

London had been insisting that an internationally recruited management team have oversight over the local implementing agency that would have been staffed by Guyanese and headed by a former head of the Guyana Defence Force (GDF).

Queen welcomes Indian president to Britain Agence France-Presse

WINDSOR - Indian President Pratibha Patil received a red-carpet welcome from Queen Elizabeth II on Tuesday at the start of a three-day state visit to former colonial power Britain.

The queen hosted a banquet for Patil, the first Indian woman to be elected to the ceremonial role, after she was taken in a state carriage procession to Windsor Castle, where she will stay during the trip.

The queen paid tribute at the dinner to the strong, historic ties between the two countries and the contribution of India’s population in Britain.

“Britain and India have a long shared history which today is a source of great strength in building a new partnership fit for this new century,” she said in a speech to guests who included Prime Minis-

ter Gordon Brown, Harry Potter author JK Rowling and leading members of Britain’s Indian community.

The British monarch also remembered the Mumbai terrorist attacks that killed 166 people and injured more than 300 others last November.

“I would like to pay tribute to the courage and steadfastness shown by the Indian security forces and the people in the face of this great tragedy.”

Patil, the first Indian head of state to visit Britain for almost 20 years, praised the shared values of their two countries. She also invited the queen to visit New Delhi for the 2010 Commonwealth Games.

“Your Majesty, the ties between India and the UK are built upon shared values and traditions. There are numerous commonalities between our two countries,” Patil said.

AFP PHOTO/MAHMUD ZAYAT

Lebanese soldiers inspect a 107mm rocket ready to be fired from the backyard of a house in the southern Lebanese village of Hula on October 28, 2009. Four rockets ready to be fired at Israel were discovered by the Lebanese army, a day after one was launched into the Jewish state prompting retaliation, the military said.

Rockets aimed at Israel found in Lebanon Agence France-Presse

BEIRUT - Four rockets ready to be fired at Israel were discovered by the Lebanese army on Wednesday, a day after one was launched into the Jewish state prompting a barrage of retaliatory fire, the military said.

“The military has discovered this morning four rockets in the south, ready to be fired, in a house under construction belonging to the mayor of Hula,” said a Lebanese military spokesman.

“Three rockets were in the garden and one on the balcony,” the spokesman told AFP. The mayor is apparently in Beirut and not believed to be involved.

Hula is the border village from

which a Katyusha rocket was fired late on Tuesday, landing in open ground east of the Israeli town of Kiryat Shmona and starting a fire but causing no serious damage, sources there said.

The attack, which was not immediately claimed, was the latest incident in growing cross-border tensions, and an Israeli military spokeswoman laid ultimate blame on the Beirut government.

The Israeli army, she said, considered the attack as “serious, and considers that responsibility for it falls on the Lebanese government.”

She said that “artillery had opened fire on the sector from which the Katyusha rocket was fired.”

The Lebanese army said in a statement it was carried out by an “unknown party” and that Israel responded with nine rounds of artillery in the area, including one which failed to explode, causing no casualties.

The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon said it has launched an inquiry into the incident, the fourth of its kind so far this year.

Mongolia parliament approves PM resignation: state TV Agence France-Presse

AFP PHOTO/Leon Neal/WPA POOL

Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II (R) shows India’s President Pratibha Patil, Indian items from the Royal collection in Windsor Castle, southern England, on October 27, 2009.

ULAN BATOR - Mongolia’s parliament on Wednesday approved the resignation of Prime Minister Sanjaa Bayar, who was forced to step down due to ill health, state television reported.

Bayar, who was seen as an economic reformer when he first became premier of the poor but resource-rich Asian nation in November 2007, said he wished he could have seen out his term.

“I regret that I couldn’t finish what I planned to do,” he told lawmakers,

according to images of the parliamentary session broadcast live on state television. “The government still has a lot of work to do.”

Of the 63 MPs present at the session, 57 of them, or 90.5 percent, voted to approve his resignation.

Health Minister Sambuu Lambaa, cited by local media, said last month that Bayar was suffering from hepatitis C, which causes liver problems, and had sought treatment in South Korea.

Bayar took office after assuming the leadership of the Mongolian People’s Revolutionary Party

(MPRP), which ruled the country for decades as a one-party communist state until a peaceful move to multiparty politics in the 1990s.

Lawmakers again voted to keep him in his post in September 2008, two months after riots erupted in the capital Ulan Bator over a disputed June parliamentary election victory by the MPRP. Five people were killed.

The MPRP still controls the 76seat parliament, but Tsakhiagiin Elbegdorj of the opposition Democratic Party won the presidency in May, creating a virtual coalition government.

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

General Info

Thursday, October 29, 2009

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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Thursday, October 29, 2009

News Japan probes collision between navy, South Korean cargo ships Agence France-Presse

TOKYO - Japan on Wednesday launched an on-site investigation into a collision between a naval destroyer and a South Korean container vessel the previous evening, officials said.

The two ships collided late Tuesday in the Kammon Straits between the main Japanese islands of Honshu and Kyushu, sparking fires on both ships and mangling the bow of the warship and the starboard quarter of the Korean vessel.

Television footage Wednesday showed some 10 uniformed officers of the Japan Coast Guard boarding the 5,200-tonne naval escort ship Kurama, anchored at Moji port in Kitakyushu, near the collision site, to investigate the collision.

One crew member of the naval

ship was injured and five others fell ill after inhaling smoke or suffering dehydration while fighting the blaze, a coast guard spokeswoman said, adding that there were no injuries on the South Korean ship.

Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama on Wednesday apologised for the “troubles” brought by the accident, while noting that the government would concentrate on the investigation to clarify the cause of the collision.

The Kurama with some 300 crew aboard was on its way back from a fleet review on Sunday in Sagami Bay, south of Tokyo, to its home port of Sasebo on Kyushu.

The 7,400-tonne container ship with 16 people on board was on its way from the southern South Korean port city of Busan to Osaka, western Japan.

Launch of new NASA rocket delayed by 24 hours AFP PHOTO / Greg WOOD

Travis Pastrana (top) of the US performs an FMX back flip on his dirt bike over a hovering 43-foot (13-metre) helicopter (below) in front of the Sydney Harbour Bridge on October 28, 2009. Pastrana has performed other stunts around the world, including jumping out of a plane with no parachute and jumping off his motorbike into the Grand Canyon.

Daredevil flips bike over helicopter in Australia Agence France-Presse

SYDNEY - An American daredevil backflipped a dirt bike over a hovering 40-metre helicopter in front of Sydney’s iconic Harbour Bridge Wednesday in a bid to promote extreme sports.

Travis Pastrana, 26, comfortably cleared the revolving chopper blades by about four metres but the 14-time X Games medallist said it was a closer call than he would have liked.

“That was a little outside of the box. I didn’t know what to expect

with the wash and the wind, there was a little bit of turbulence up there I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone,” Pastrana told national newswire AAP. “The wind affects the bike more than the rider as the bike can take a

mind of its own up there and if you lose focus then you can land short.”

Pastrana’s stunt was aimed at promoting the MTV extreme sports series Nitro Circus, which will be filming in all of Australia’s state capital cities in May and June 2010.

Son of ex-Georgian president arrested in shooting: ministry Agence France-Presse

TBILISI - Georgian police have arrested the son of the country’s first post-Soviet president Zviad Gamsakhurdia after he allegedly shot his neighbour, the interior ministry said Wednesday.

“Tsotne Gamsakhurdia was arrested (Tuesday) night after he allegedly shot and wounded his neighbour in the back with a firearm,” ministry spokesman Shota Utiashvili told AFP. Gamsakhurdia, 33, was being

held by police and the victim was in serious condition in hospital, Utiashvili said. He refused to comment on the possible motive behind the shooting.

Gamsakhurdia was last year given a suspended sentence on charges of treason after police released a video of him meeting with Russian diplomats. He was arrested at Tbilisi airport in the wake of last August’s brief Georgia-Russia war.

His father, a Soviet-era dissident and Georgian nationalist, was ousted amid widespread unrest in 1992 and

was later found dead in mysterious circumstances.

His supporters continue to wield influence and current President Mikheil Saakashvili has sought to rehabilitate the memory of the former president.

Earlier this month Georgia’s parliament voted to create a commission to investigate his overthrow and death.

Another of the former president’s sons, Konstantine Gamsakhurdia, is the leader of the opposition Freedom Party.

Agence France-Presse

CAPE CANAVERAL Weather delays Tuesday forced NASA to postpone by 24 hours the launch of a prototype rocket designed to return astronauts to the Moon, and perhaps one day to Mars.

Standing 327 feet (100-meters) tall, the Ares I-X is the longest rocket ever built and when lift-off goes ahead it will be the first spacecraft the Kennedy Space Center has launched other than a shuttle in 30 years.

Tuesday, however, proved frustrating for space enthusiasts as first the weather, then a ship at sea, and then clouds conspired to delay the long-awaited launch at Cape Canaveral in Florida.

NASA said it would try again in a four-hour window from 8:00 am (1200 GMT) Wednesday. “Overall, the weather will improve,” a space agency official said.

The Ares I-X is a prototype of the Ares I, which NASA hopes to have in service by 2015 to replace its aging shuttle fleet that is due to be mothballed next year.

During the two-minute test flight NASA aims to gather data from more than 700 sensors placed along the rocket that should enable engineers to fine-tune its design.

The Ares craft is intended to launch mission crews into orbit in the Orion spacecraft, which is still under development.

Ares and Orion are part of Constellation, NASA’s grand program to send astronauts back to the Moon by 2020, and then on to Mars and other destinations.

The test flight is crucial as the White House is considering a report ordered by President Barack Obama’s administration that raises concerns about Ares and the whole Constellation project.

A commission, chaired by Norman Augustine, a former chief executive at aerospace giant Lockheed Martin, concluded that the program “appears to be on an unsustainable trajectory” and seeks to achieve goals not matched by resources.

The Ares rocket has suffered major development problems and its hefty price tag has fueled criticism of NASA, an agency notorious for its cost overruns.

The initial budget for the Constellation program was set at 28 billion dollars, but has swollen to at least 44 billion.

Ed Crawley, a member of the Augustine commission set up by Obama to review the space plans of his predecessor George W. Bush, said that Ares I was “not the right ship” for post-shuttle space flight.

“The question is not can we build Ares I, but should we build Ares I,” Crawley said.

But Doug Cooke, associate administrator of NASA’s Exploration Systems Mission Directorate, was upbeat ahead of the launch.

“This test is very important,” he told reporters last week. “The data is important to us, regardless of what comes next.”

NASA’s yearly budget is about 18 billion dollars, 10 billion of which is plowed into the human space flight program, chiefly in developing the Ares I rocket and the Orion Crew Exploration Vehicle.

The Augustine commission said an additional three billion dollars a year are needed for NASA to meet Constellation program goals or take human space flight the next step beyond the existing International Space Station (ISS).

If weather delays the test flight again on Wednesday, the team has a four-hour launch window each day until Friday.

Indonesia Today

International

Thursday, October 29, 2009

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VP attends youth pledge day anniversary celebration Antara

FOTO ANTARA/Basri Marzuki

A student of university in Palu, Centre Sulawesi, holding a mini flag during his action to support the rally of Youth Pledge Day. Vice President Boediono attends a ceremony to mark the 81st anniversary of Youth Pledge Day in Serang, Banten province, on Wednesday.

JAKARTA - Vice President Boediono attends a ceremony to mark the 81st anniversary of Youth Pledge Day in Serang, Banten province, on Wednesday.

On the occasion the newly inaugurated vice president for the first time delivered an address to mark the highlights of the 81st anniversary of Youth Pledge Day. The ceremony was attended by thousands of youths from Banten province, State Minister for Youth and Sports Affairs Andi Malarangeng, State Minister for Public Housing Suharso Monoarfa, Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Minister Fadel Muhannad, and Constitution Court (MKRI) chairman Mahfud MD. Wednesday’s ceremony in Serang, Banten, marked the anniversary of an historic event some 81 years ago when Indonesian youths from different ethnic groups and islands in the then Netherlands East Indies convened a two-dayYouth Congress in Batavia (Jakarta), to make a commitment to One Homeland “Indonesia”, One Nation

“the Indonesian Nation”, and One Language “Bahasa Indonesia”.

At that time, the archipelago was still a colony of the Netherlands, and Indonesia was a new word. But still the youth pledged to fight for that one dream homeland, and the creation of that one nation called Indonesia.

As for a national language, in 1928 the Indonesian islands had no common language, each of the more than 300 ethnic groups inhabiting this archipelago had their own language.

Nonetheless, the Congress chose Bahasa Indonesia, which was based on the Malay language, and eventually developed into the Indonesian national language.

But it was only 17 years after the 1928 Youth Pledge, at the close of World War II on 17 August 1945 that Soekarno and Hatta, on behalf of the people of Indonesia, finally proclaimed the Independence of Indonesia. And, based on the Youth Pledge principles and spirit, the 1945 Constitution came into being as the 5 Principles of the State, the Pancasila, and the Indonesian national slogan Bhinneka Tunggal Ika, which means Unity in Diversity.

Oil spill raises NTT sea temperature Antara

KUPANG - The crude oil contamination of the Timor Sea after the explosion of the Montara gas field on August 21, 2009, may also affect the weather over East Nusa Tenggara.

If the oil spill is serious, it would raise sea temperature creating cloud clusters, and may be

heavy rainfall, the head of the Kupang meteorology agency in El Tari Syapii said at his office.

Following the Montara gas field explosion, a massive spill of 500,000 liters, or 1,200 barrels, of crude oil covered the Timor Sea everyday.

Syapii said that a comprehensive scientific study needs to be done by competent institutions for credible and scientific an-

swers about the massive oil spill.

The head of Lasiana Climatology Station in Kupang Purwanto on a different occasion revealed that he still has no idea about the exact impact of the oil spill on weather over NTT. Meanwhile according to the Regional Environmental Agency

(BLHD) which had conducted a research on sea water samples, the Timor Sea waters had been seriously contaminated with oil from the Montara gas field.

He also said that based the result of physics laboratory analysis, the samples had released oil odor.

Elephant rampage through Aceh Sri Lanka refugees refuse to budge from Australian ship village, three houses ruined Antara

Antara

PIDIE, Aceh Province - A herd of wild elephants recently entered a village in Geumpang sub district, Aceh province, and ruined three houses as well as food crops.

“During the past week, a herd of about 17 elephants have been rampaging through our village. They ruined three houses and ate rice plants on our fields,” a local community chief, M Sabi, said here on Wednesday.

The three damaged houses belonged to Abdullah Saman, Yusri Yusuf and Ibnu Abbas.

All three residents along with their families had evacuated to a safer place.

Sabi said, actually two villages in Geumpang subdistrict - Gampong Pulo and Bangkeh - had been terrorized by wild elephants for the past two months. They had destroyed the villagers’ crops. The elephants also chased anyone who came into their sight.

So far, there had been no action by the authorities such as the Natural Resources Conservation Agency (BKSDA) to help the villagers overcome the problem.

“Local residents are are now forced to try to drive the elephants away by their own means and methods such as bamboo cannon. Every

night we strike the cannon to create sounds which scare the elephants away,” said Sabi.

Material loss due to the elephant rampages had yet to be counted. However, Muhammad Gapi, a local resident, said people in his area had to buy carbide as basic material to fire up the bamboo cannons with their own money.

“We have to spend Rp 100,000 each night only to buy carbide for the cannons,” Gapi said.

Last September, an elephant attack also happened in Pauh Ranap village, Riau province, killing Rinto Lumban Gaol (27), a local resident, and causing injuries to his wife whom he married just four months ago.

Edi Susanto, a witness, said the incident happened while Rinto and his wife were taking a rest in their house at n an oil-palm plantation where they were working.

His wife said a herd of elephants totaling around 15 suddenly besieged the area and destroyed the house, Edi said.

Edi explained the two managed to come out of the house and Rinto called on his wife to run and ask for help from neighbors. Rinto was unlucky.

He was trapped in the middle of the herd of angry animals. He died after being trampled by a female elephant.

“His body was crushed and almost unrecognizable,” Susanto said.

TANJUNGPINANG - Some 78 Sri Lankan asylum seekers on board the Australian vessel “Oceanic Viking” have refused to be moved to Riau Islands’ immigration detention center in Tanjungpinang, an Indonesian diplomat said.

“The Sri Lanka immigrants insist on going to Australia instead,” Sujatmiko, the foreign ministry’s diplomatic security director, said here on Wednesday.

The asylum seekers consisting of 68 men, five women and five children had been detained by Australian customs ship Oceanic Viking, around 240 miles from Padang in waters near Enggano Island.

The Oceanic Viking was only allowed to moor off Cempedak Isle, Bintan District, near Tanjungpinang town.

The Indonesian diplomat got confirmation about the asylum seekers’ refusal directly from them when he met them on the Oceanic Viking ship on Tuesday (Oct. 27).

He said Indonesia could not force them to move to the Riau Islands’ immigration detention center because it would violate international law.

They had also initially rejected health check-up by an Indonesian medical r team but they finally gave up after being persuaded by members of the Indonesian foreign affairs ministry’s team.

The Indonesian government supplies the Sri Lankans with food while they are on Cempedak Isle waters and two Indonesian Navy warships are guarding them.

“Today the Oceanic Viking ship is still in waters around 12 miles off the Bintan District coast,” he said.

The Indonesian government had allowed to the Oceanic Viking to moor near Cempedak Isle as the ship was too big to moor at Kijang harbor. The permission would expire next Friday.

The Indonesian government was willing to accept the Sri Lankan asylum seekers because of humanitarian reasons and in order to keep good relations with Australia.

He denied a report saying that Indonesia had received US$50 million as compensation for accepting the Sri Lankan immigrants.

Most of Sri Lankan and Afghanistan immigrants transiting in Indonesia on their way to Australia were coordinated by international syndicates, he said.

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Internationa

Thursday, October 29, 2009

Bali Today Climate Change affects tourism Antara

DENPASAR – The director of Sea and Coastal Areas division in Marine and Fishery Department, Subandono Diposaptono, said that the climate change affected the tourism especially the beach tourism.

“When the climate change happened globally, the sea level will become higher and the white sand will be washed away by the high waves,” he added. In addition to the increasing sea level, the temperature will become higher so the condition will make the tourists uncomfortable.

For marine tourism, the global warming will make the coral reef whiten and the view will not beautiful anymore. Sobandono said “there is also possibility of extreme current so the condition is not safe for diving.”

Currently, the sea level is increasing approximately 10 millimeters a year. Even though it is very small but if it continues then it will effect the live of living things. The ground is also become lower because the high compunction of underground water. The condition made the sea level higher but actually the ground is lower.

According to Subandono, if the

condition is not properly handled, the northern coast of Java will be gone for approximately 3 kilometers in the next 100 years. For the steep beach like in Bali, there is the need to decrease the sea level.

He also supported the concept “Tri Hita Karana” of the Balinese because it can maintain the balance of the nature. “Tri Hita Karana” promotes the good relationship between human and God, with their environment, and with each other.

Tourists are enjoying water sport activities at Tanjung Benoa, Bali. The director of Sea and Coastal Areas division in Marine and Fishery Department, Subandono Diposaptono, said that the climate change affected the tourism especially the beach tourism.

BTN/Doc

International student exchange program to promote tourism Antara

DENPASAR - Promoting Bali’s arts, culture and customs under student exchange programs with other countries is more effective than most conventional means, a local tourism worker said.

Promoting Bali’s tourism through international student exchange programs is not only much less costly but also more effective, Kawiana

Made, a tourist guide, said.

He said youths who had joined the Indonesian National Committee of Indonesian Youth (KNPI) in Klungkung district are promoting their region by holding a foreign student exchange program with other countries at Udayana University’s Faculty of Letters.

The student exchange programs are part of the Bali International Program for Asian Studies

http://static.panoramio.com

Goa Lawah that located in Klungkung was one of the object that being showed to the foreign students. Promoting Bali’s arts, culture and customs under student exchange programs with other countries is more effective than most conventional means, a local tourism worker said.

(BIPAS) initiated in 2009 in which many foreign students take part, among others from Germany, China, Finland, Denmark and Switzerland.

Meanwhile, the secretary of KNPI’s Klungkung branch, Wayan Buda Parwata, said while in Bali the foreign youths were invited to witness the local people’s activity such as palm sugar making, local teenagers painting on canvas in Kamasan village.

Paintings made in Klungkung’s Kamasan village have distinctive traditional patterns wellknown for a long time among art lovers in Indonesia and foreign countries.

On their visit to Klungkung, 40 km east of Denpasar, the foreign students were guided by Made Rajeg, a lecturer at Udayana University’s Faculty of Letters.

They were also invited to see some tourism objects at Pura Goa Lawah, and a handicraft weaving activity in Sampalan Village.

Made Rajeg said the student exchange program was more effective in promoting Balinese tourism than the usual promotions carried out in the market countries, on the ground that students who came here could tell about their experience in the ‘Island of Gods’ after they return to their home countries.

Moreover, during foreign student activities in Klungkung, they were also invited to attend workshops discussing Balinese culture such as customary clothing and Ba-

linese ‘Gamelan’ (traditional percussion music).

The participants of the student exchange programs always seemed very enthusiastic, he said.

More tourists from Netherlands visited Bali Antara

DENPASAR – The number of tourists from the Netherlands visited Bali increased gradually.

They come to the island not only to see the beautiful scenery or the art and culture but also to refresh their memory. .

The tourists from Netherlands like to enjoy the view in Ubud and other areas. Made Kawiana, a tour guide, said that more and more elderly tourists from Netherlands come and stay in Bali and they often spend more then one week in the island.

The tourists also like to watch “Ngaben” ceremony, not like those from Japan where t h e y d i d n ’t l i k e a f u n e r a l event. The tourists from Japan like to play on the beach and surf better.

While the tourists from Europe fond of Balinese culture and arts. They said that Balinese culture is very unique and one of a kind. The good relationship between Indonesia and the European Union made the number of tourists from Europe increasing gradually.

Based on the data by Bali Tourism Department, the number of tourists from Netherlands was increasing in the last few months.

In June 2009, the number of tourists from Netherlands was 4,842 people. It increases become 10,863 tourists in July 2009 and 10,573 in August 2009. The total number of tourists from Netherlands during January through August 2009 period was 47,074 people. The number was 35 from the total number of foreign tourists visited Bali which was 1,464,738 tourists.

al

Thursday, October 29, 2009

Balinese Culture Gedang Mekuah

Padangbai, the Past and Present Padangbai is located at Padang Customary Village. For those who remember, the name Padang was changed into Padangbai—etymologically, the word Padangbai comes from Padang Bay. Originally, this coastal village enclosed by hills, was small village that often slipped from public attention.

But in recent times, Padangbai has developed rapidly as it is located near the Dang Kahyangan Silayukti Temple—associated with the legendary priest who brought Hinduism to Bali—as one of the memorial sanctuaries for the sage Mpu Kuturan.

Mpu Kuturan was a great leader and Hindu seer that came to Bali circa the 10th century AD. South of the Silayukti Temple lies Tanjung Sari Temple of which one of its shrines is dedicated for the sanctification of Mpu Baradah (another Hindu great seer coming from Java when he intended to meet his elder brother, Mpu Kuturan).

Other than these two great temples, there is Telaga Mas Temple. It functions as a place for

ritual purification. Then, in the north is a bijou cave—complete with a sanctum—the place where Mpu Kuturan undertook samadhi during his age. Several Hindu devotees regularly visit this location on the full moon. Apart from offering prayers, some may take advantage of their visit to see the allure of the gorge along with its cobalt blue sea view.

Close to the Silayukti Temple sits a cool hill range with its luxuriant trees and forest vegetation. The allurement of Padangbai Beach along with its white sand is discernible from this fascinating hilltop.

The panorama will be increasingly attractive due to the row of traditional boats nicely parked on the beach by local fishermen after they catch fish. Similarly, there are several small vessels used as transport to Nusa Penida beyond as well as 16 ferries providing regular transport service from Padangbai harbor to Lembar on Lombok Island.

In the evening, the glamor of the beach and Padangbai Village looks so nice together with glistening

lights on the harbor and in the ships.

Padangbai has now been complemented by accommodation facilities (hotel and villas); as well as a number of cafés open in the evening to cater to tourists.

Other than beach tourism, Padangbai also offers diving. Foreign guests who take the diving package are often conveyed by a fishermen’s boat. And fishermen who have just anchored frequently bring visitors that would like to go sea sightseeing. Additionally, they can provide transport to Biastugel Beach, a white sandy beach object located south of Padangbai.

Padangbai tourist areas are situated close to Padangbai harbor. Last year, the harbor established a sloop pier to receive tourists from cruise ships. Several world cruise ships have berthed on this alluring beach every year. The ones that have frequently berthed at Padangbai include the Queen Elizabeth II and Costa Marina each bringing hundreds of passengers.

Today, Padangbai Beach can be reached within 40 minutes or an hour drive from Kuta. (BTN/Budana)

(Green Papaya Soup with Seafood) Overview: Unripe papayas are often used as a vegetable in Bali.

If these are not available, you can use summer squash or Chinese winter melon.

Ingredients: 1 unripe papaya, weighing roughly 750 gr (1½ lb) 1 cup spice paste for seafood 1 liter chicken stock ¼ liter coconut milk 2 salam leaves 1 stalk lemon grass, bruised ¼ tsp powdered black pepper 100 gr shrimps, clams, and mussels 100 gr diced firm fish 1 tsp salt Fried shallots to garnish Preparation: 1. Heat stock, add seafood, marinade and bring to boil. Simmer 2 minutes 2. Add salam leaves, lemongrass and papaya, simmer gently until the papaya is 95% tender. Add coconut milk and seafood and continue to simmer (do not boil) until papaya and seafood is tender.

3. If the stock reduces too much, add more stock 4. Season to taste with pepper and salt and garnish with fried shallots.

Note: If you wish to prepare a lighter version of this soup then leave coconut milk and seafood out. (www.baliguide.com/balifood)

Tum Bebek (Minced Duck in Banana Leaf) Overview: Tum, leaf-wrapped bundles of highly seasoned food, are made with almost any basic ingredient in Bali, ranging from eels, to chicken, pork, beef or duck.

Ingredients: 600 gr boneless duck, skin removed and minced 1 tbsp fried shallots 1 tbsp fried garlic 1/3 cup coconut milk, thick 3 tbsp basic spice paste 4 bird’s-eye chilies, sliced 1 tbsp salt 1 tsp black peppercorns, crushed 12 pieces banana leaf, cut in 20 cm (8 in) squares 12 ea salam leaves Preparation: Combine the above ingredients except for banana leaf and mix well. Fold a heaped tablespoon of the mixture into the center of a banana leaf and wrap.

Steam parcels for about 15 minutes, until well cooked. If banana leaf, use greaseproof paper in preference to aluminum foil.

The above mixture can also be used for duck satays; simply add 200g of grated coconut and double the quantity of the basic spice paste salt and pepper. Spear 2 heaped tablespoons of the paste around a large satay skewer or stalk of lemon grass. (www.baliguide.com/ balifood)

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Destinations

Thursday, October 29, 2009

International

Candidasa Bali CANDIDASA is located in hilly bank, beside of the main road between Semarapura towns with Amlapura (Karangasem). It is situated about 50 km to east way from Denpasar town or 1,5 hour from Bali’s International Airport. In the center of Candidasa there is a pool which is wide enough, and from that place we can enjoy the beautiful view of the Lombok Strait. Candidasa own beautiful beach with the black sand along the coastal and the magnificence view of the ocean. Now Candidasa is one of the famous tourist places in east part of Bali. In this place, we can find many hotels, villas, resorts and other accommodations which have been built to accommodate the visitor to pay a visit and enjoy the holiday in this beautiful area. Restaurant and art shop to sell the souvenir are also completing this area as a resort area in the tranquility of Bali.

From Denpasar town, Candi Dasa is easily reached through the highway alongside the coastal edge and about 1 hour from Denpasar town. It is recognized with the tourist place in east part of Bali and own the fascination of the beautiful beach, thrive coconut trees, tropical atmosphere and peaceful. It is an ideal place for relaxation and refresh during your vacation in Bali . Candidasa Beach owns the calm wave and peaceful atmosphere that suitable for holiday in far from town bustle. Beside of that, many others places of interest can be visited around Candidasa like Tenganan Village, Goa Lawah (Bat Cave), Kusamba Beach and others. Candi Dasa has a lot of visited by many tourists because it is the second favorite resort area after Kuta, Sanur, Nusa Dua or Ubud. (www.balistarisland.com)

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BUSINESS US financial sector will pay for failures Agence France-Presse

AP Photo/Ng Han Guan

WASHINGTON - Financial companies with more than 10 billion dollars in assets will have to pay for rivals’ failures or rescues, under draft legislation released Tuesday by the US Treasury and lawmakers.

The plan to address systemic risk in the financial sector will wind down failing institutions and end “too big to fail” bailouts that have been borne by taxpayers, the Treasury and the House Financial Services Committee said.

The proposed Financial Stability Improvement Act “provides for the orderly wind-down of failing firms and ends ‘too big to fail’ to ensure that industry and shareholders absorb the risks and costs of failure, not taxpayers,” they said in a statement.

The measure would be a cornerstone of President Barack Obama’s commitment to reform financial regulation and avert costly taxpayer bailouts of banks and other financial firms.

“The Financial Services Committee and the Obama administration are committed to ensuring that the taxpayers are never again called upon to take responsibility for Wall Street’s business decisions,” the bill’s sponsors said.

In a letter to committee chairman Barney Frank, Obama congratulated the panel for the progress made “in designing a strong package of financial reforms.”

The 253-page draft legislation would create a federal resource fund to deal with failures or rescues that would recover expended funds that had not been recouped, by imposing assessments on firms with more than 100 billion dollars in assets.

The bill would set up an interagency council to monitor and oversee the stability of the financial system and address any related threats.

It would also provide the Federal Reserve and other federal financial agencies greater authority to “regulate for financial stability purposes” and quickly address potential problems.

Among its other provisions, the bill would subject thrift holding companies to Fed supervision and give the Federal Deposit Insurance Corpora-

tion, which insures bank deposits, the ability to unwind a failing firm.

“Costs to resolve a failing firm will be repaid first from the assets of the failed firm at the expense of shareholders and creditors, and to the extent of any shortfall, from assessments on all large financial firms,” the statement said.

“In this instance, we follow the ‘polluter pays’ model where the financial industry has to pay for their mistakes — not taxpayers.”

Obama praised the panel for acting “quickly and in the face of substantial opposition to bring strong protections to consumers from unfair and fraudulent lending practices, to regulate derivative markets and to require banks to change compensation practices.”

But he admitted that more work was needed “to build a more stable financial system and safeguard our economy from future crises.”

A Chinese man takes a photo near a board showing Tiananmen Gate and an advertisement for gold bars on the streets of Beijing, China, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2009. China’s overseas investment in non-financial sectors nearly tripled in the third quarter from the same period last year, the government said Tuesday, as the Asian giant rebounded from the global crisis.

China says overseas investment nearly triples in third quarter Agence France-Presse

BEIJING - China’s overseas investment in non-financial sectors nearly tripled in the third quarter from the same period last year, the government said Tuesday, as the Asian giant rebounded from the global crisis.

Investment in mining, manufacturing and other non-financial sectors reached 20.5 billion dollars from July to September, up 190.4 percent onyear, the commerce ministry said in a statement on its website.

That compared with a total of 32.9 billion dollars pumped into overseas non-financial sectors in the first

nine months of 2009, an increase of 0.5 percent on the same period a year ago, it said.

The figures suggested China ramped up overseas investment in the third quarter amid signs the worst of the global downturn was over.

Investment through acquisition amounted to 14.3 billion dollars in the first three quarters, or 43.5 percent of the total, the statement said.

China is increasingly keen to buy resources across the globe as it seeks to take advantage of falling prices amid the financial crisis and secure energy supply to power its expanding economy.

Thousands protest bailout bonuses at Chicago bank meeting Agence France-Presse

AFP PHOTO/Mira OBERMAN

Thousands of protestors demonstrate for bank reform during a march to the Sheraton Hotel where the American Bankers Association’s (ABA) annual convention was being held October 27, 2009 in Chicago.

CHICAGO - Thousands of protesters chanted “the banks got bailed out, we got sold out” as they marched through the streets of Chicago on their way to a meeting of US bankers Tuesday.

Carrying signs proclaiming “Hold Wall Street accountable” and “Foreclosures ruin communities,” they demanded more help for those who have lost their jobs and their homes as they sang “hey hey, ho ho, those bailout bonuses have got to go.”

The Obama administration last week slashed executive salaries at firms rescued by taxpayer bailouts and the Federal Reserve also imposed new rules limiting compensation packages which encourage excessive risk-taking.

Critics have complained at government interference in the free market and warned that the pay cuts may stifle innovation and see already struggling firms lose top executive talent to competitors not subject to pay curbs.

But speaker after speaker here castigated the bankers who they accused of profiting from their role in bring about the financial crisis and credit crunch which dragged the United States into the deepest recession since the Great Depression.

“We cannot rest until we begin to break the

power that big banks and corporations have over our economy,” Anna Burger, secretary treasurer of the Service Employees International Union, told the crowd.

“They have spent decades rigging a system so that no matter what they do, they will always win at our expense.”

Burger called the heads of the major banks the “architects of our economic collapse” and called on lawmakers to “investigate them and, if necessary... prosecute them for what they’ve done to our country.”

The protesters lambasted the American Bankers Association and six top banks for spending 35 million dollars fighting financial reforms after accepting 17.8 trillion dollars in taxpayer bailouts and backstops.

“We demand accountability for the pain the Big Bankers have inflicted on families who face financial ruin, for joblessness, pensions wiped out, foreclosures and bankruptcy,” said Richard Trumka, president of the American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations.

“And we are here to support President Obama’s call for tough new regulations to force these bankers out of their Wild West mentality, out of their arrogance, out of their contempt for the public they’re supposed to serve.”

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Thursday, October 29, 2009

Entertainment

International

‘Crash’ director Paul Haggis quits Scientology

AP Photo/Gus Ruelas, file

Director Paul Haggis arrives at the Los Angeles Film Festival Awards Night in Los Angeles.

“CRASH” director Paul Haggis has severed his ties with the Church of Scientology, in part because of what he alleged as the organization’s stance against gay marriage. Haggis wrote a letter addressed to Tommy Davis, the head of Scientology’s Celebrity Centre. In it, Haggis said he was disappointed by the church’s tacit denial of gay rights in the debate over California’s gay marriage ban.

The 56-year-old Haggis, who won an Oscar in 2005 for co-writing “Crash,” said he was quitting the church after 35 years. “I could not, in good conscience, be a member of an organization where gay-bashing was tolerated,” Haggis wrote. The filmmaker said that he was promised that action would be taken but that he was frustrated after time passed.

“Silence is consent, Tommy,” Haggis wrote. “I refuse to consent.”

The letter, dated Aug. 19, was

published in a blog about Scientology and has since been widely circulated online. Ziggy Kozlowski, a publicist for Haggis, confirmed that the director wrote the letter. Kozlowski said the letter was intended to remain private.

Davis said Haggis’ complaints were based on misunderstandings and that he has since spoken to the filmmaker. Davis strenuously disagreed with Haggis’ claim that the Church of Scientology is in any way anti-gay. Davis said the San Diego chapter of the Church of Scientology was incorrectly characterized as supportive of Prop 8.

“We’re all for civil rights and the rights of minorities,” said Davis.

“We know what it is to be a minority and have your rights curtailed.

We’re very vocal and consistent in our stance on discrimination against anybody. We take it very seriously.”

For an organization often shrouded in secrecy, the letter offered an unusual window into a dialogue between the church and one of its famous members. Occasionally, Scientology materials are leaked.

Last year, a promotional video starring its most famous member, Tom Cruise, was watched by millions.

Haggis also said he was “shocked” that the Church of Scientology was publicly denying that it adheres to a policy of disconnection — of severing ties with a friend or family member who’s antagonistic toward Scientology. Haggis said that his wife, Deborah Rennard, was given precisely those orders and didn’t speak to her parents for more than a year.

Davis again disagreed with Haggis and said the church doesn’t mandate disconnection with anybody and that it was an entirely “self-determined decision.”

Gallstones force Eric Clapton to nix NYC concert ERIC Clapton has pulled out of this week’s Rock and Roll Hall of Fame concert in New York after undergoing gallstone surgery. Kristen Foster, a publicist for the guitarist, said Tuesday that Clapton was doing well and recuperating with his family in England.

The hall says Jeff Beck will replace the 64-year-old guitarist for Friday night’s show at Madison Square Garden. Clapton was to perform as part of a two-night celebration in honor of the hall’s 25th anniversary. Beck now joins U2, Aretha Franklin and Metallica for the final night.

The Thursday lineup includes Crosby, Stills and Nash; Stevie Wonder; and Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band. HBO will air the concerts Nov. 29.

AP Photo/Richard Drew, file Clapton’s Web site says he re- FILE - In this Feb. 25, 2008 file photo, mains committed to his 2010 Eric Clapton performs at New York’s concert schedule.

Madison Square Garden.

AP Photo/Chris Pizzello

A video image of Michael Jackson dancing looms over the crowd at the post-premiere after party for “This Is It” in Los Angeles, Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2009.

‘This Is It’ Is For The Fans But Is It Too Much Too Soon?

Michael Jackson has been called the “greatest performer of his generation” by many and even the “greatest performer of all time” by some, albeit perhaps overzealous, music fans. Naturally, everyone ate up his words when he announced his final concert during a press conference only a few months before his untimely death.

Now the footage is being released in theaters and being billed as not only just a feature film but instead a full-on fan experience. The most jaded observers of the entertainment industry have not been surprised by the mad rush to capitalize on Jackson’s extraordinary performance style, but it is hard to think anyone imagined just what a spectacle this has all become.

The most diehard Jackson fans lined up and camped out overnight for days to have the chance to be among the select few who not only got the opportunity to see “This Is It,”

the documentary about the making of Michael Jackson’s final concert, in the first screenings but also received commemorative gold tickets that could be pressed into scrapbooks and shown to their children and grandchildren.

Some fans brought their young children with them while camping out, determined to show them just what a legend Jackson was and how many people shared a love for him.

“This Is It” will only be screening for two weeks, so the fan outpouring to get their hands on the tickets is understandable. Considering this is the last time (at least until “lost

footage” from the eighties gets “leaked” when his estate dwindles even more) anyone will see MJ on stage, the fan frenzy is even expected.

However, in the day and age of the internet, camping out for the first tickets to watch something on a screennot even have the person on stage in front of you-just seems excessive.

“The fans meant everything to Michael,” Director and Choreographer Kenny Ortega explained in an interview about why the raw rehearsal footage was being cut together and released as a product that did not have the final polish of an actual Jackson show. “They were his food, his fuel, his life source, his energy, and he was energized by them and he appreciated their loyalty more than I can ever say. This film is for the fans.”

Testimony in Anna Nicole Smith hearing to resume TESTIMONY is scheduled to resume Wednesday in the hearing to determine whether Anna Nicole Smith’s doctors and boyfriend should stand trial on charges they illegally funneled drugs to the Playboy model. Testimony Tuesday focused on Dr. Sandeep Kapoor, who is charged along with psychiatrist Kristine Eroshevich and Smith’s boyfriend-lawyer Howard K. Stern.

All have pleaded not guilty. Smith died of an accidental overdose of at least nine medications at a Florida hotel in February 2007. Pain management doctor James Gagne said Kapoor was feeding Smith’s addiction to prescription medications by excessively prescribing opiates, including methadone and Dilaudid, which is nicknamed “hospital heroin,” and sedatives known as benzodiazopines.

Gagne said Kapoor began treating Smith when he took over the practice of another doctor in April 2004.

Kapoor took up the same regimen as his predecessor, who was treating Smith for pain but felt she “had a predominantly psychiatric illness and was trying to keep a lid on it with methadone,” Gagne said.

When Smith fell and fractured two ribs, “Dr. Kapoor prescribed large amounts of Dilaudid, the strongest opiate available,” said Gagne. Smith had requested Dilaudid before and failed to get it, Gagne said. By the

end of September, Kapoor wrote that he was “tapering off” Smith’s Dilaudid, but the dosages he prescribed actually increased, Gagne testified.

AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes

Dr. Khristine Erosovich and her attorney Adam Braun, right, leave for the day after testimony in a hearing to determine if two doctors and Anna Nicole Smith’s lawyer/boyfriend should stand trial on charges of conspiracy to illegally provide Smith with controlled substances, in Los Angeles Friday, Oct. 16, 2009.

Life Style

International

Computer users in an Internet cafe in Istanbul on September

World’s tigers years away from extinction - experts Reuters -

States on Wednesday

KATHMANDU – Tigers could become extinct in the wild in two decades unless the world ramps up conservation efforts to halt the decline in their population, wildlife experts said on Wednesday. Barely 3,500 tigers are estimated to be roaming in the wild in 12 Asian countries and Russia compared with about 100,000 a century ago, experts and conservationists said.

Tigers are being illegally killed for their body parts and Asia is a hotspot for the illegal wildlife trade which the international police organisation Interpol estimates may be worth more than $20 billion a year. Skins sell as rugs and cloaks on the black market, where a skin can fetch up to $20,000 in countries like China.

Habitat destruction and depletion of prey base were other perils facing the “Asian heritage”, conservationists said. “A business as usual approach in tiger conservation will doom the tiger population in the next 15 to 20 years,” Mahendra Shrestha, programme director of the Washington-based Save the Tiger Fund told Reuters on the sidelines of a conference on tiger conservation.

He said law enforcement, patrols to stop poaching and the preservation of remaining habitat would improve the situation. “There is hope.

We can do it. It is not rocket science. It does not require a lot of new activities,” Shrestha said. “But there has to be strong political will to conserve tigers and also strong global international support for the activities of the tiger range countries.”

Tigers still roam terrain in Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Russia, Thailand and Vietnam. John Seidensticker, chief scientist at the Smithsonian National Zoo’s Conservation Ecology Center, said tiger habitat had declined by 40 percent in the last decade due to destruction of forests.

“Our challenge is to make landscapes with tigers alive worth more than landscapes where tigers have been killed,” Seidensticker said. “I think we have a decade from where we will slip from being caretakers to undertakers.”

over the private sector corporation that administers the Internet, opening it up to greater international oversight.

AFP/File/Ugur Can

Web Surf to Save Your Aging Brain Surfing the Internet just might be a way to preserve your mental skills as you age. Researchers found that older adults who started browsing the Web experienced improved brain function after only a few days.

“You can teach an old brain new technology tricks,” said Dr. Gary Small, a psychiatry professor at the Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior at the University of California, Los Angeles, and the author of iBrain. With people who had little Internet experience, “we found that after just a week of practice, there was a much greater extent of activity particularly in the areas of the brain that make decisions, the thinking brain — which makes sense because, when you’re searching online, you’re making a lot of decisions,” he said. “It’s interactive.” rology and epidemiology at Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York City and director of the Einstein Aging Study. “Our study is often referenced as the crosswordpuzzle study — that doing puzzles, writing for pleasure, playing chess and engaging in a broader array of cognitive activities seem to protect against age-related decline in cognitive function and also dementia.”

The new study takes the use-it-orlose-it concept into the 21st century.

For the research, 24 neurologically normal adults, aged 55 to 78, were asked to surf the Internet while hooked up to an MRI machine. Before the study began, half the participants had used the Internet daily, and the other half had little experience with it.

After an initial MRI scan, the par-

13

3, 2009. The United loosened its control

Small is co-author of the research, which was scheduled to be presented Monday in Chicago at the Society for Neuroscience annual meeting.

“This makes intuitive sense, that getting on the Internet and exploring and getting new information and learning would help,” said Paul Sanberg, director of the University of South Florida Center of Excellence for Aging and Brain Repair in Tampa. “It supports the value of exploring the Internet for the elderly.”

Most experts now advocate a “use-it-or-lose-it” approach to mental functioning. “We found a number of years ago that people who engaged in cognitive activities had better functioning and perspective than those who did not,” said Dr. Richard Lipton, a professor of neu-

Thursday, October 29, 2009

ticipants were instructed to do Internet searches for an hour on each of seven days in the next two weeks.

They then returned to the clinic for more brain scans.

“At baseline, those with prior Internet experience showed a much greater extent of brain activation,” Small said.

After at-home practice, however, those who had just been introduced to the Internet were catching up to those who were old hands, the study found.

“This is a demonstration that, over a relatively short period of time, patterns of brain activation while engaging in cognitive activities change,” Lipton said. “That is at least a first step toward gaining insight into the mechanisms that might allow cognitive engagement to influence brain function.”

REUTERS/Jayanta Shaw/Files

A wounded male Royal Bengal Tiger sits in a cage at a veterinary zoo hospital in March 16, 2009.

Energy group BG says third-quarter profits slide Agence France - Presse

AFP/File/Shaun Curry

Energy producer BG Group said Wednesday that net profit tumbled 43.5 percent in the third quarter due to weaker natural gas prices and lower-than-expected output.

LONDON – Energy producer BG Group said Wednesday that net profit tumbled 43.5 percent in the third quarter due to weaker natural gas prices and lower-than-expected output. Net profit sank to 484 million pounds in the three months to September, compared with 857 million pounds a year earlier. The company, whose operations extend from Norway to Brazil, said in a quarterly earnings release that revenue dived 32 percent to 2.25 billion pounds.

Production rose five percent to 56.6 million barrels of oil equivalent, or 615,000 barrels per day, during the reporting period.

However, analyst consensus forecasts had been for an output increase of 8.2 percent. The lower-than-expected production gain was largely due to a delay in the start-up of the Hasdrubal facility in Tunisia, BG said.

Despite tumbling profits, BG Chief Executive Frank Chapman gave a confident outlook for the company, with higher production levels expected during the fourth quarter. “These re-

sults demonstrate once again the strength of BG Group’s integrated gas business and this, together with current production levels around 700,000 barrels per day, up 12 percent on the fourth quarter of 2008, provides us with confidence in the outlook for the group’s performance,” Chapman said.

“BG Group has assembled an array of material, long-life projects and we are now entering a period where we can look forward to these projects driving exceptional growth to the end of the next decade.”

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Thursday, October 29, 2009

International

Agassi admits using crystal meth Agence France - Presse

LONDON - Tennis great Andre Agassi has admitted he tested positive for hard drugs during his career and lied to sporting authorities to escape a ban, reports said Wednesday. Agassi, one of the world’s greatest tennis players with eight Grand Slam titles, reveals in his autobiography to testing positive for the highly addictive drug crystal methamphetamine.

The champion, now 39, also says that he has always secretly hated playing tennis and lived in fear of his bad-tempered and violent father. In the book, serialised in London-based The Times newspaper, Agassi reveals how he took crystal meth in 1997 when his form was falling and he was having doubts about his impending marriage to US actress Brooke Shields.

He duped the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) into believing he had taken the drug — possession of which carries a maximum five-year jail sentence in the United States — by accident, according to the newspaper ’s website. The repercussions for Agassi’s career could have been disastrous if the positive test was made public at the time.

In the book, Agassi recounts sitting at home with his assistant, referred to only as Slim, and being introduced to the drug. “Slim dumps a small pile of powder on the coffee table. He cuts it, snorts it. He cuts it again. I snort some. I ease back on the couch and con-

sider the Rubicon I’ve just crossed,” he said.

“There is a moment of regret, followed by vast sadness. Then comes a tidal wave of euphoria that sweeps away every negative thought in my head. I’ve never felt so alive, so hopeful - and I’ve never felt such energy. “I’m seized by a desperate desire to clean. I go tearing around my house, cleaning it from top to bottom. I dust the furniture. I scour the tub. I make the beds.”

That same year he received a phone call from a doctor working for the ATP informing him that he had failed a drugs test - for which he could face a three-month suspension for using recreational drugs.

“My name, my career, everything is now on the line. Whatever I’ve achieved, whatever I’ve worked for, might soon mean nothing. Days later I sit in a hard-backed chair, a legal pad in my lap, and write a letter to the ATP. “It’s filled with lies interwoven with bits of truth. I say Slim, whom I’ve since fired, is a known drug user, and that he often spikes his sodas with meth - which is true.

Then I come to the central lie of the letter. I say that recently I drank accidentally from one of Slim’s spiked sodas, unwittingly ingesting his drugs. I ask for understanding and leniency and hastily sign it: Sincerely. I feel ashamed, of course. I promise myself that this lie is the end of it.” The ATP reviewed the case — and threw it out, the newspaper cites the book as saying.

(AP Photo/Denis Poroy)

Los Angeles Lakers’ Kobe Bryant, left, and Denver Nuggets’ J.R. Smith dive for a loose ball during the first quarter of an NBA preseason basketball game Friday, Oct. 23, 2009 in San Diego.

Lakers star Bryant gets another ring full of bling Agence France - Presse

LOS ANGELES - Kobe Bryant may have been last one to receive his championship ring Tuesday set with 14 brilliant round-shaped diamonds but he was one of the first to put it on in the dressing room.

The 31-year-old superstar collected his fourth National Basketball Association championship ring Tuesday in an pregame ceremony as the Los Angeles Lakers opened their defence of their title with a 99-92 win over the Los Angeles Clippers.

But just like his other three rings, Bryant says he plans to wear this one just once before putting it away for good in a locked safe. Bryant was one of the few Lakers to take the ring

out of its black box and wear it around the dressing room after the game at Staples Center arena.

“I never wear them except for the night that I get them,” he said. “I do that and then I go home and put them in a vault.” Bryant said he enjoys that first day with the ring and uses the moment to reminisce about the past season.

But asked why he doesn’t wear them more than once he said, “because it is time to move on to the next one.”

Bryant’s ring features a laser

image of his face and his jersey number on the side and is topped with 14 white round-shaped diamonds surrounding the NBA championship trophy. The band is made of 15 karat yellow and white gold to commemorate the 15 championships the Lakers have won.

The newest Laker Ron Artest knows what motivates Bryant, who was the last player to be presented with the ring. “I know once he gets that ring, he’s going to put it away and look right away at getting the next one,” Artest said.

Els hits out at European Tour over scheduling Agence France - Presse

(AP Photo/Vincent Yu)

Andre Agassi reacts during a friendly exhibition against Pete Sampras at the Venetian Hotel in Macau Sunday, Oct. 25, 2009.

The two American tennis greats revisited one of the sport’s greatest rivalries in the 1990s. They last played in the U.S. Open final in 2002.

SINGAPORE - Ernie Els hit out Wednesday at the European Tour for scheduling the World Matchplay Championship to clash with the Singapore Open. The big South African is the defending Matchplay champion and a seventime winner of the event, but instead of being in Spain he is in Singapore where he is committed to play under contractual obligations with sponsor Barclays.

It is the second time in three years that Els has found fault with

the scheduling after being unable to play the Volvo Masters in 2007 when it too clashed with Singapore. At the time he was leading the European Order of Merit and claimed missing the Masters prevented him finishing the year on top of the money list.

“It has been a little controversial for me,” he said about this year’s scheduling. “The one year here the European Tour put the Volvo Masters up against the Singapore Open (in 2007 when it was an Asian Tour event) and I could not play the final event on the European Tour and it cost me the money title.

“So I was not very pleased about that and the fall out from that, the criticism I got about European Tour players playing in an Asian event. “We have got more controversy this week because of the Matchplay which they have put up against the Singapore Open, I do not understand that. It is a tournament I have won seven times.”

The World Matchplay Championship, which has run since 1964, leaves England’s Wentworth Golf Club this year for the first time in its history after a break in 2008 after HSBC pulled out as headline sponsor.

Sport

International

Thursday, October 29, 2009

15

Real Cup-hijacked by third division minnows Agence France Presse

MADRID - Real Madrid were given a Spanish Cup shock on Tuesday when third division minnows and unheralded city neighbours Alcorcon dished out a 4-0 drubbing to the nine-time European champions.

The tiny provincial side, with a miniscule annual budget of just 1.2 million euros - 300 times less than their esteemed visitors - added a notable footnote to their modest history in front of their home fans at the 3,000-capacity Estadio Municipal de Santo Domingo.

Real were undone by the club which was only founded in 1971 with an own goal by former Liverpool defender Alvaro Arbeloa, Borja Perez’s brace, and Ernesto Gomez.

Not pleasant viewing for Real president Florentino Perez and club director Jorge Valdano watching from the stands.

If they fail to overturn the lopsided scoreline in the second leg of

this Last 32 tie it will by no means be the first time Real Madrid have bid a hasty farewell to the Copa del Rey. The Spanish giants, who last collected the title way back in 1993, were kicked out of Spain’s premier cup competition in 2008 by Third Division side Real Union, a loss that triggered the dismissal of coach Bernd Schuster.

Real’s embarrassing defeat on Tuesday came despite the presence of Raul and Chilean coach Manuel Pellegrini welcoming back injured strikers Karim Benzema and Ruud van Nistelrooy but Portuguese winger Cristiano Ronaldo and Argentine forward Gonzalo Higuain, who also missed the club’s 0-0 draw

with Sporting Gijon last weekend, were still sidelined.

Frenchman Benzema was injured in both feet while Dutchman van Nistelrooy has been out for several weeks with a thigh muscle injury.

Pellegrini elected to rest several top players, including Iker Casillas, Sergio Ramos, Xabi Alonso and Kaka, for the match.

Tuesday’s reverse came after a bad seven days which started with Real losing to AC Milan in the Champions League and then the goalless draw at Gijon.

Alcorcon’s achievement meanwhile knocked a sizeable dent in Pellegrini’s pre-match assertion that Real’s ambition was “to win every competition”.

Eight arrested in Man Utd cup clash violence Agence France - Presse

(AP Photo/Jon Super)

Police dogs are brought in to control away fans during Barnsley’s English League Cup soccer match against Manchester United at Oakwell Stadium, Barnsley, England, Tuesday Oct. 27, 2009.

LONDON - Eight football fans were arrested as hooligans went on the rampage at Manchester United’s League Cup clash at Barnsley, police said Wednesday. Violence broke out and food kiosks were ransacked as trouble flared at Oakwell, where visiting English champions United won 2-0 in the fourth round tie on Tuesday night.

Riot police were pelted with bottles as they battled to restore order in the north stand concourse and police dogs were used to drive fans back from the pitch. Eight catering staff were trapped inside a food kiosk and had to barricade themselves in a store room for around 25 minutes as fans broke in and stole cash from the till and food from the shelves.

Pitch-side stewards also had food hurled at them. “No-one was injured during this time but one police officer suffered a minor facial injury,” said a spokesman for South Yorkshire Police. “Eight fans were arrested, four Manchester United fans and four Barnsley fans.

“They have been taken to Barnsley police station.” Elsewhere in Barnsley, two people were also arrested after fans jumped onto railway tracks in a bid to stop a train leaving the town.

“The club is going to launch a full investigation as soon as possible after substantial damage was caused in the concourse of the north stand,” said a spokesman for Championship side Barnsley. “A complaint has been made to the police and we will be taking a look at CCTV footage of the incident before we can comment further.”

AP Photo/Paul White

Real Madrid’s Cristoph Metzelder of Germany, centre reacts with other players during a Copa del Rey soccer match after Alcorcon scored at the Santo Domingo stadium in Alcarcon on the outskirts of Madrid, Tuesday Oct. 27, 2009.

Spurs boss sees brighter future for Bentley Agence France - Presse

LONDON - Tottenham manager Harry Redknapp is optimistic that misfit midfielder David Bentley may have turned the corner at White Hart Lane after inspiring his team to victory over Everton in the fourth round of the League Cup. The former Blackburn star created the first of Spurs’ goals in a 2-0 win on Tuesday which heaps more pressure on disgruntled Toffees manager David Moyes, who refused to turn up to the post-match press conference. “His (Bentley) attitude in training has not been as good as it could have been, I’ve told him and he accepts it, but I thought he was fantastic here,” Redknapp said of his inconsistent midfielder.

“He’s a decent boy with great ability but with Aaron Lennon playing so well I think he couldn’t see any light at the end of the tunnel. He got the opportunity and took it with both hands.

It will be very hard not to play him at the Emirates,” the ex-West Ham boss said, referring to Saturday’s north London derby with Arsenal.

“It all depends on David Bentley.

It’s up to him to keep performing like that, whether he wants to stay or leave, but I want to keep him.” Former Arsenal player Bentley was named the man-of-the-match but admitted when

picking up his award that his attitude had been questionable of late, claiming that his mind had wandered away from football.

“It’s been a difficult time since I’ve been here. I’ve encountered every problem in the book and it’s just nice to get my head down now and hopefully concentrate on football,” he said. “I just looked to enjoy myself and give 100 per cent. Sometimes my efforts have been lacking at times because I haven’t been fully focused on football.”

The 15-million-pound man had looked threatening in the early stages of Tuesday’s victory without an end product, and it was no surprise that when he found his range Spurs took the lead. His curling ball into the box evaded everyone until it reached Tom Huddlestone at the far post, the former Derby man smashing an emphatic leftfoot drive past Tim Howard in the Everton goal.

Victory was sealed by Ireland’s Robbie Keane who scrambled home a volley after Tim Howard had saved the striker’s penalty kick, inspiring the White Hart Lane faithful to believe they could make it three finals in as many years. Redknapp admitted that the team’s performance had given him a headache after rare starters Roman Pavlyuchenko, Gareth Bale and Alan Hutton all impressed.

Tottenham Hotspur’s Robbie Keane, left, celebrates with Wilson Palacios after scoring against Everton during their fourth round English League Cup soccer match at the White Hart Lane stadium, London, Tuesday Oct. 27, 2009.

(AP Photo/Tom Hevezi)

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Thursday, October 29, 2009

Button aiming to end season in style AP

World champion Jenson Button says his sights are set on ending the season in style in Abu Dhabi this weekend, even though he has already wrapped up the title”.

Force India has ‘exceeded expectations’ FORCE India boss Vijay Mallya says his team has exceeded its own expectations this season, and is now aiming to be solidly in the midfield next year.

The Silverstone-based squad had not scored any points before this year, but a strong second half of the season has seen Force India emerge as a contender for points and even for podium finishes in some races.

Mallya says Force India can be very proud of its achievements this year, and is optimistic his team can keep its momentum going and be closer to the front in 2010. “At the start of the year, we wanted points but I also wanted to show a genuine improvement in every area of the company,” said Mallya.

“We have learned from the mistakes of last season and have really tightened up processes, procedures and working practices, which has ultimately helped us to score points and be proud of our achievements.

I would say this year has even exceeded our expectations as we have secured a podium, pole and fastest lap. We can be really proud of this.”

“All the same we have had opportunities we haven’t been able to make the most of, for example Interlagos, Suzuka and Monza.

This slightly mutes the satisfaction, but it does give a lot of cause for optimism - if we can get into a similar position next year and follow through all the chances we could be solid midfield in both championships.”

Mallya is also hopeful his team

will have a strong final race of the season in Abu Dhabi this weekend, where he is aiming to make up for the disappointment of the Brazilian Grand Prix, where he reckons Adrian Sutil could have finished on the podium. “Brazil was a missed opportunity to score points.

Adrian was in a prime position to get some decent points, perhaps even a podium, but it was not to be,” Mallya added.

“But the Abu Dhabi aero configuration is roughly similar to Brazil and Valencia, and even though we can’t expect rain, we can expect a reasonable level of performance in qualifying that should put us in a good position for the race. We could technically move up a position in the championship as we’re just 13 points behind Renault, but it will be tough so we need to consolidate what we have already.”

“Toro Rosso have been looking very strong in recent races so it’s a matter of personal pride to keep them behind. Ninth place in the championship is one position higher than last year and we need that improvement to validate all the progress we’ve made this year.”

Force India boss Vijay Mallya says his team has exceeded its own expectations this season, and is now aiming to be solidly in the midfield next year

World champion Jenson Button says his sights are set on ending the season in style in Abu Dhabi this weekend, even though he has already wrapped up the title. The Brawn GP driver clinched the crown in Brazil, when rivals Rubens Barrichello and Sebastian Vettel failed to score the points they needed to keep the championship race open to this weekend’s race.

However, even though his main job is done, Button is keen to not ease off this weekend - as he targets a strong end to his campaign. “It’s a fantastic feeling to be going into the final race having achieved my ambition of winning the drivers’ championship and with the team having wrapped up the constructors’ championship in Brazil,” explained Button.

“We want to finish the season in style with a great result but we can be a little more relaxed in our ap-

proach to the weekend.” Although the Yas Marina circuit is new to everyone, Button is sure that it will help deliver an exciting end to the season.

“It’s always fun to try a new race track, particularly one which looks as unique as Yas Marina with the unusual pitlane exit and the day/ night race,” he said. “I’m sure Abu Dhabi is going to host an exciting weekend and a great finale to the 2009 Formula 1 season.”