Fijisun dec 2013

merry christmas VOLeUm-23 NO. 11

Recognize this guy?

He escaped from Nadro, Fiji. Name the person and win your $50.

DecemBer-2013

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Obama HealtH Care UniOn Seminar at SaCramentO

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A patriotic Ali of Fiji ( See People’s Profile page-10)

Annie KoyA report on pAge-38

SPC must remain political Fiji Sun TV covering Obama Care in sacramento Fiji sun associate editor annie Koya shares Fiji sun copy with the communication specialist sean Wherley.

Fiji Attorney Sahukhan in NZ Sachin Tandukar’s farewell from cricket world

Word famous top Indian criceketer Sachin Tandurkar, regarded as the God of cricket, got a huge warefell at the end of his over 20 years .of career.

Hayward Honda sales rep del gives 2014 new Honda Crv Key to annie Koya

Bhangra Group

Honda of Hayward on Mission Blvd led By general Manager JaCK ZHang KiCKed off a MaJor tHanKs giving sales CaMapign. fiJi sUn assoCiate editor annie Koya was one of tHe first Clients to BUy Her dreaM Car and got one of tHe Best deals.

The Secretariat of the Pacific Community must stay the course in remaining the apolitical regional organization that is people-centered in its vision and mission and fair and equitable in the delivery of its service to its members.

Those were the sentiments of the Minister for Foreign Affairs, RatuInokeKubuabola at the opening session of the 8th meeting of the conference of the Pacific community. Pacific Community, as the region’s leading technical and scientific organization, has over the years been instrumental in guiding the Pacific people towards the achievement of their development goals,” RatuInoke said. “It must stay the course in remaining the apolitical regional organisation that is people-centred in its vision and mission, and fair and equitable in the delivery of its service to its members.”

Minister Kubuabola in highlighting the 2012 Independent External Review (IER) of SPC said that the commissioning of the IER by the Director General with the approval of the Committee of Representatives of Governments and Administrations (CRGA) together with the resulting report and subsequent implementation of its recommendations had lifted the profile of SPC. “I am happy to report that our Secretariat has implemented 37 out of 42 recommendations, it is progressing implementation on a further 3 and have deferred implementation of 2 recommendations to 2014,” RatuInoke said. “They should be commended for embracing this whole heartedly.”

2

EDItORIAL

December-2013

FIJI SUN EDITORIAL STAFF

Continues from last month

B Editor-Publisher

Robbie Michaelson Contributing writer

PO BOX 54691 Hayward, CA 94544

510-677-4488 www.fijisun.org Email: fijisun@gmail.com

Tarun Tejpal remanded in police custody for six days

by Goa court NEW DELHI: Tehelka magazine founder Tarun Tejpal was on Sunday remanded in police custody for six days, a day after being arrested for allegedly sexually assaulting a woman colleague. Judicial magistrate (First Class) Kshama Joshi passed the order for Tejpal's remand on a plea by the police.

Tejpal, who was arrested at 9pm on Saturday after his anticipatory bail plea was rejected, was brought to court

by Goa Police crime branch at 11:50am today. Police had sought 14 days remand for Tejpal.

Sources in the crime branch, which is investigating the case, said that police custody was necessary to obtain a confession from Tejpal, who has allegedly raped a junior colleague in intraoffice communication, but has denied any wrongdoing in public statements. Tejpal is expected to be quizzed by police inspector Sunita Sawant, the investigating officer, about the series of events leading to the alleged rape of a woman colleague and his later flip flops.

FIJISUN

Girmit - the indentrue experience in Fiji An introduction

H. Koya (PhD)

www.fijisun-usa.com

etween 1879 and 1916 some 60,537 Indians arrived in Fiji as indentured labourers. Of these approximately 75% boarded their ship in Calcutta and the rest in Madras. Among the migrants from Calcutta there were 85.3% Hindus, 14.6% Muslims and 0.1% Christians. [1]1 The Hindus were from a variety of castes; Brahmins and other high castes comprised 16% of those who came to Fiji through Calcutta, the agricultural castes, 31.3%, artisans 6.7%, low castes 31.2%.

An analysis of ages reveals 68.7% of those who left from Calcutta were between twenty and thirty years old and 17.9% between ten and twenty; those between thirty and forty comprised 4.9%; those over forty, 0.2%.

In fathoming the reasons for migration to Fiji, one needs to consider both the general and the specific. First, the indenture system was a response to the labour needs of the British Empire; especially of plantation agriculture. The new system followed on the heels of the abolition of slavery when ‘the basic principle of … private enterprise economy was to buy in the cheapest market and sell in the dearest’. [2] The employer sought his labour at the lowest cost and desired from it the highest productivity.

This desire to maximize profit was part not only of the planter ethos but also of the forces that created and sustained economic imperialism. The plantations of the British Empire satisfied some of its needs for raw material, and one of their essentials was a cheap and plentiful supply of labour which, if not available locally, had to be imported. The end of slavery resulted in a labour shortage. A former indentured labourer wrote: ‘Negroes refused to be ensnared a second time so European glances were cast towards India and China as alternative sources’. [3] Since India was part of the British Empire and had a large population, a substantial proportion of which was in a state of poverty, it was not surprising that it provided a pool of men and women likely to go abroad to serve the needs of the plantations of the Empire in a manner similar to Indian soldiers, who were recruited in India and died in foreign battlefields to preserve the same Empire.

When one turns to the Fiji case specifically Indian indentured labourers arrived in this Pacific archipelago after its annexation by Britain in 1874 and through the efforts of its first Governor, Sir Arthur Gordon, who had had experience with such labourers while Governor of Trinidad and Mauritius. There had been a request to India to provide labourers in the preCession period but this had been declined. The Government of India was not prepared to send its subjects to the territory of an unknown government.

Yet when Fiji became part of the Empire of which India was itself a colony, then the same authorities had no hesitation in permitting recruiting for Fiji.

Sir Arthur Gordon in seeking indentured labourers was not simply influenced by his previous experience, his decision was also dictated by local needs.

He had to provideEuropean planters with a regular supply of labour when it became apparent that they could not rely on their previous source, the other Pacific Islands. Also, Gordon's native policy was based on the premise that Fijian society for its future betterment should be disturbed as little as possible and under no circumstances should Fijians be encouraged to desert their villages to become serfs of planters. Yet he had to guarantee the economic growth of Fiji, and since the major means to that end was considered to be plantation agriculture, he had to find a regular labour pool. Neither Fiji nor the Pacific could or would contribute hence recourse to an existing system in the Empire was not unexpected.

The demands of the Empire provided an opportunity for migration and Indians in need capitalised on the chance.

PanchananSaha after examining a variety of issues suggested that in spite of social and religious obstacles, thousands of Hindus, both upper and lower castes, emigrated to the colonies because of the economic conditions in their recruiting area. [4] He concluded, that the causes of emigration of indentured labourers to the sugar colonies in the nineteenth century were complex and varied ‘from the declining of handicrafts to the “failure of crops, debts, pressure .... ofzamindars” and the absence of work and the pressure of population’.

[5]Looking at factors within Indian, K.L. Gillion and Hugh Tinker also concluded that it was the push

factor that was of prime importance in the migration of Indians to other lands. [6] Evidence further suggests that it was easier to recruit in years of adverse conditions than when circumstances seemed on the mend. Nonetheless the push factor alone was not the cause. One must note that the life of Indian rural peasants did not begin to deteriorate in the 19th century, the vicissitudes they encountered were evident in earlier periods. They had not then moved abroad in such large numbers. It was India's subjection to the British Empire that provided both outlet and inducement for Indians; colonialism provided places where labour was desired and encouraged it to exploit opportunities offered for cash employment in far-off colonies.

Those whose task was to recruit labourers painted glorious pictures of the would-be destination and those in penurious circumstances fell prey to such descriptions. All who have written about the indenture system have been consistent in emphasising the role of the arkati or the recruiter's agent in enticing Indian peasants away from village life in quest of wealth.

The interviews recorded here, though they are the accounts of those who came as labourers towards the end of the system, nevertheless substantiate the claim that labourers entered into a contract in order to earn money. Hugh Tinker is accurate in asserting “that it was the pay alone which had induced [them] to leave [their] home-place and labour in an alien land”. [7] The arkati showed the way but he was assisted in some degree by the peasant's ignorance and gullibility amidst tales of easy work and quick money, which promised a better future. Even if it were not heaven, it was an escape from misery and deprivation. The arkati used deception, but one needs to explain why peasants responded readily. Their simplicity, limited knowledge or a lack of it, or credulous-

ness, provide only a partial exposition. To regard it as complete would be to dismiss thousands of labourers as simpletons.

This they were not. Most of them were, in fact, young enterprising men andwomen, otherwise they would not have overcome the rigours that awaited them. In the interviews recorded the arkati emerges as a crucial link in the chain of the indenture system. He provided the pull through suggesting how those in despair might extricate themselves from despondency.

The average peasant might not have found alternatives without the assistance or cajolement of the arkati. While arkatis misled by suggestions such as Fiji being near Calcutta, those inveigled were willing partners in the scheme. As S.N. Eisenstadt has suggested, migrants are often motivated by the desire to seek security and Indians who became indentured labourers provide evidence to substantiate this thesis. What the arkatis did was to offer a solution that would-be emigrants found timely and. appropriate. [8] Having persuaded an individual to migrate, the arkati usually had him sent to either Calcutta or Madras, the two ports of exit. There, as Kanan from Malabar, stated, “in the depot all one did was eat, drink and make merry”. There were others, like Pahalad, who remembered: All ate together, people slept with others' wives. I did not like such behaviour. All Hindus and Muslims, and all castes, were mixed. I refused to eat for four days. Some, like Pancham, enquired about caste during meals and refrained from eating near chamars. Whatever one's feelings the reality was that one had to survive, so one must eat and drink, and in the depot this had to be done alongside others irrespective of creed or caste. In the atmosphere of the depot commensality taboos could not flourish. Those recruited had ceased to be individuals, they were all labourers together, that was the only recognised common denominator; caste, religion and status by birth were of little or no consequence. The novel experience of depot life was followed by the even newer encounter of travel by ship across foreign seas. How immigrants fared varied. The experience described by Din Mohammed was common. The reality for some was, as Govind Singh said, “the food on board the ship was not very

good but then what else could you do, you had to eat”. Some like Devi Singh found the journey satisfactory with living conditions adequate and the food reasonable.

There were others like Mahabir who felt sick all the time and for fifteen daysdid not know what was happening. Lakhpat too found the journey unpleasant. For him the trip began with weeping as they embarked in their ship since they knew they were leaving their families and their homes behind.

Then on board life became painful. For a fortnight he was not well and part of his body began to swell. When given medicine and milk he refused to drink because he did not know what sort of milk it was and the Brahmin in him advised caution even in illness.

The majority, however, endured the toss and roll of the ship, its crammed conditions, and the heat of passing through the tropics. The uncertainty and the pain were all traumatic as they arrived in Fiji to face a new reality. They had come in search of money and opportunities for prosperity; once in Fiji they would have to earn one and seek the other.

The initial reaction of Indians to Fijians seems amply illustrated by the remarks of Pancham who saw them as rachaks who, according to Indian tradition were cannibals, and of Mahadeo who stated that Indians referred to Fijians as jungalees, again a term derogatory in its connotation. It was a typically arrogant attitude of one cultural group towards another, based on ignorance and prejudice. Fijian responses were hostile. In theplantations where Indians and Fijians worked together there was conflict sometimes resulting in physical exchange. Fear existed on both sides. Rahim Buksh explained that Indians travelled in groups of seven or eight with sticks because they were frightened of Fijians.

Lotan too indicated that when his group first saw Fijians they were scared.

Some feared that they might become like Fijians, particularly when they saw their hair. But it seems that in daily contact there existed mutual tolerance and according to Lotan sometimes Fijians provided succour for Indians running away from work. Devi Singh found that initially neither side appreciated the food of -the other. Gradually the situation changed but generally he found Fijians friendly, even though he could recite an occasion of strife with them.

FIJISUN

December-2013

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December-2013

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FIJISun

BUSSINESS

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December-2013

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ReSTauRanT RounD uP

Fiji Sun US plans to give a restaurant round up as we observe and experience which is going to be very personal and not intneded to hurt, damage or give preference to any restaurant over the other What we say here should be taken as a tip to improve your food quality and customer service approach to capture more business.

Reusing cooking oilthat gives an after-taste and balcting

Fiji style Goat Pulau at Raja Sweets, Winton Ave.

B

W

Tandoor: great Fiji style lamb curry and fresh salad

Moon Indian Cuisine; great for qicuk bites and samoas

C

S

elieve it or not at several restaurant where we ate out in recent weeks , we found that cooking is resued over and again. The result is that there is an after-taste and it give an immediate baltching to us. We stopped going to one in particular in our neighborhood and as such we cannot recooment them not take our guests there any long. We are withholding the name of the restaurant.

oneninetly located on Mission in Hayward, Tandoor is popular for its Fiji stye lamb curry and fresh salad that is religiously available during their lunch buffet at an affordable rate.

e were pleasantly surprised at an Aqeeqa ceremony at this restaurant when we were served very nice and appealing goal pulau cooked in the Fiji style mainly for Fiji guests. However, the host of the event observed that the taste could have been better if they knew what spices and leaves to use to enhance the aroma and taste.

ome of our family and friends who live in driving distance from Moon brag that when they need a quick bite or pick up a few dozen samosas, Moon is their famous location.

Honda of Hayward launches True Price campaign The 2014 CR-Z is available now isit your local dealer and see firsthand how the CR-Z combines efficiency and performance in a hybrid. What’s better than being the best? Being the best, three times over. Kelley Blue Book’s KBB.com has honored Honda with three of its 2013 Brand Image Awards: Best Overall Brand, Most Trusted Brand, and Best Value Brand. 2013 Kelley Blue Book Brand Image Awards are based on the Brand Watch™ study from Kelley Blue Book Market Intelligence. Award calculated among non-luxury shoppers. For more information, visit www.kbb.com. Kelley Blue Book is a registered trademark of Kelley Blue Book

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Co., Inc. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) has named the CR-Z a “2013 Top Safety Pack

CANDNI RESATAURANT TAKES THE CAKE

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ot that they are our regular sponsors but Chandni is unbeatable in terms of spaces, decoration and constantly meeting high standard in food quality. Chandni is one restaurant that does not

reuse cooking oil due to its high volume and regard for customer care and taste.

After hosting Muslims 4 Thanksgiving Dinner yesterday, we realized CHANDNI’s capability of accommodating not only

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Below Annie Koya receiving key from Salesman Del at Hayward Honda while Praveen Roger and General Manager Jack Zhang look on.

Donors are entitled for Income tax exemption order as per rules under section 80 G (5) (VI) of the Income Tax 1961

WORK AREA- ALL INDIA Established- 6 years back on 24th Jan. 2006.

Registered

Fiji Sun 20 Year in Business Celebration With AIM Fellowship and Fiji Awards Night Our 40 page 20 year old pioneer Fiji newspaper in America has doubled circulation by 5000 copies – found at major Fiji, Indian and Pakistani stores where competition unable to reach or not even wanted.

Our design and news coverage are very contemporary and well read.

Celebration a must!

TBA soon!

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by Registrar of Societies, Govt. of NCT of Delhi Under the Societies Registration Act XXI of 1860, vide Registration no. 54738 of 2006 and Approved by Ministry Home Affairs, Govt. of India under Foreign Contribution Act

Bank details for donation Donors are entitled for Income tax exemption order as per rules under section 80 G (5) (VI) of the Income Tax 1961

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Free of cost We have team of dedicated Doctors, Specialists, Psychologist, Surgeons, Gynecologists, Radiologists and Social workers on the panel of our NGO to serve the needy free of cost. We organize medical camps for the diagnosis/warning of Cancer, AIDS/HIV & Eye check up. We also organize specially designed lectures for students as preventive measure against HIV/AIDS, Cancer & Cataract

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SERUIRATU ENCOURAGES STUDENTS TO PURSUE EXCELLENCE It is the spirit of excellence that continues to propel us to achieve greater things in life. This was the message by the Minister for Agriculture, LieutenantColonel Inia Seruiratu at the annual Cadet Academic Awards Pass Out ceremony at Ratu Kadavulevu School.

Lt-Col Seruiratu reminded students of the importance of instilling discipline

through military training and for students to pursue excellence in life. “I congratulate you all for your achievements in the military training, but more importantly in your academic and sporting attainments,” Lt-Col Seruiratu said. “Today the gist of my message is to encourage you to put in a little more effort, a little more self-discipline, a little more effort in

ACCESS TO WATER AND SANITATION IMPROVES THE Government has made major inroads to provide fundamental social rights by improving access to clean water and sanitation services for majority of Fijians.

Minister for Rural and Maritime Development, Inia Seruiratu said the aggregate population accessing clean water increased to 70 per cent compared to 47 per cent in the 1990s.Similarly, he said, access to sanitation services increased to 83 per cent as of 2010 when compared to 68 per cent in 1990. “Access to clean, safe drinking water is one of the most fundamental social rights. The Bill of Rights in our 2013 Republic of Fiji Constitution guarantees access to all such basic necessities for every Fijian,” Mr Seruiratu said. Speaking at the Horizontal Learning Programme (HLP) held in Lami, the minister, however, pointed out that a disparity existed between the rural and urban population’s access to these services.“To reduce this disparity, the Rural Water and Sanitation Policy was launched in 2012, which provides a common framework and platform for all relevant

stakeholders in these sectors to work together for optimum utilisation of water resources to benefit the Fijian people, in particular the rural communities,” Mr Seruiratu said.

For 2014, Government has allocated $129.6million to the Water Authority of Fiji to support its strategies in maintaining its water resources and to provide water and sanitation services.An additional $4m has been set aside to improve rural water supply and sanitation schemes in rural areas.

The HLP is an outcomebased initiative where local governments connect with each other to identify, share and replicate the good practices of their peers.

The workshop is being held in joint co-ordination with the Fijian Government, World Bank and the Centre for Integrated Rural Development in Asia and the Pacific (CIRDAP). Experts Mark Ellery and Hossein Shahbaz of CIRDAP will conduct the four-day training for government officers, development partners and non-government organisations on best practices in relation to HLP.

the direction of excellence.

If there is at least one thing that you will take away from this proud school I hope it will be the pursuit for excellence. That pursuit will make the difference in your lives.”

Minister Seruiratu outlined the notable change since 2003 when in the history of RKS marked a significant development being designated as a “Centre for

Roadshow promotion MORE than 250 families in the remote parts of Bua in the Northern Division are now connected to the Pacific and the rest of the world through Fiji Television's paychannel, Sky Pacific. This was after hundreds flocked to Nabouwalu during Sky Pacific's Vualiku roadshow, which was aimed at giving all Fijians on Vanua Levu the medium to be able to access the best entertainment, news and documentary channels at an affordable price. Fiji TV Group CEO Tevita Gonelevu said he was impressed with the turnout in Nabouwalu, adding it had exceeded their expectations. "There is an untapped market in Vanua Levu and Sky Pacific hopes to give everyone in the North the best entertainment through our 18 channels at an affordable price, two brand new channels, National Geographic and Fox Crime were made available on Thursday.

Excellence”. “The reality is, RKS as an institution cannot achieve excellence without the commitment of its students and staff, and indeed all those who are associated with the school.

Individually you all have the potential to be excellent,” he said.

“Students, strive for personal excellence and become good citizens.

Aspire for the greater good

of all. Together we can create a “A Better Fiji for All.” Parents, Teachers and Old Scholars Association president Kalisi Ketenalagi said the ceremony was a success with high hopes and vision for the students as they endeavoured into the world. “We as parents and old scholars are proud of the students, especially with their achievements throughout the year and

the magnificent pass out parade ceremony,” Mr Ketenalagi said. “The cadet training has definitely taught them more about discipline and will be a tool in their future as they go out into the world.” Mr Ketenalagi is also thankful to the Government for the 2014 National Budget because many students will benefit from the free education grants.

NAKASI HIGH SCHOOL THANKFUL FOR GOVERNMENT SUPPORT It was a double celebration for the staff and students of Nakasi High School with the opening of a new classroom as they conducted their annual prize giving ceremony.

Chief guest at the ceremony, Commissioner Central Division Lt. Colonel Laisenia Tuitubou says education is the cornerstone, foundation and driving force for progress.

“Without better education of its population a country will not yield its true potential nor realize its full capacity in raising and improving the standard of living and wellbeing for its people,” Mr Tuitubou said.

The Government contributed a total of $39, 326.84 towards the building a new classroom and the school paid for the labor cost to ensure

access to quality education for all.

Mr Tuitubou said the performance output of students improved a lot compared to last year and needed collective effort to elevate more to the standard of education to the school.

“We have a role to play to improve our performance and provide our children with the best resources and facilities for education,” he said.

School principal, Premila Kumar said the project was a good partnership arrangement.

“Partnerships are vital if we want to move forward with the vision of the Government of today in collaboration with the Ministry of Education and the school,” Mr Kumar said. “Today you can see

the new classroom through the help of this partnership arrangement and I thank the Ministry of Education for its support and guidance throughout the year.

“We the family of Nakasi High School are grateful for this process to materialise and the dream is a real achiever.”

A parent of a Form 6 student, Nazia Khan said the construction of the new classroom would be beneficial for her son being allocated a classroom space.

“I also thank the Government for the free education and transportation so now my children can have a better education and we don’t have to struggle too hard to pay for school fees,” Mrs Khan said.

SCHOOL APPLAUDS GOVERNMENT’S EDUCATION SCHEME

Hilton Early Intervention Centre for children with special needs has applauded Government’s commitment towards the development Fiji’s education sector. School manager Mr Jowahir Lal said the 2014 budget allocation for free education will give all children the opportunity to quality education while easing the

burden on the parents.

“All children especially those with special needs are included in the education schemes and this will inspire them to excel and be the best in life,” Mr Lal said. Mr Lal highlighted that the recent visit by the Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama to the Hilton Special School boosted the morale of the school

and served as a reassurance of government’s support to schools for children with special needs.“We are grateful to the Prime Minister, for the visit during our 50 year celebrations and for his words consolidating the commitment to the schools to cater for the children’s needs,” Mr Lal said.Mr Lal, also com-

mended the Ministry of Education’s continuous support throughout the year in the school’s developments. With a school roll of 55 students, Mr Lal said that the achievements and success of the school was made possible through the dedication of the staff, parents and other donors of the school.

47,000 WASHINGTON D.C STUDENTS TASTE FIJIAN CUISINE Students throughout Washington D.C. Public Schools (DCPS) learned about Fiji and enjoyed Fijian food on Wednesday, November 20, in celebration of Fiji Food Day. The Embassy of Fiji in Washington, D.C. proudly partnered with the Embassy Adoption Program, DCPS Food And Nutrition Services, the Washington Performing Arts Society, and Powell Elementary School on this day to showcase Fiji – its culture and traditions, niche products, and Fijian

delicacies.

Fiji’s Ambassador to the United States, Winston Thompson said the Embassy of Fiji participated in the Embassy Adoption Program (EAP) for the past four years. Fiji was privileged to host one of the annual highlights of this Program – the International Food Day, an event held three times a year and usually given to ‘big countries’ with much bigger staff complements.Ambassador Thompson said that on this day, the whole public

school system in Washington, D.C. comprising 47,000 students had a chance to learn about Fiji and taste Fijian food. They learned about Fiji through fact sheets, posters, PowerPoint presentations and videos that were prepared at the embassy and disseminated by the DCPS system.

Food on the day was prepared by 110 school kitchens and funded by the DCPS Food Service.“At Powell Elementary School, we had the opportunity to put

up display booths of a number of Fiji-made products, Fijian artefacts and posters showing the beauty of Fiji as a holiday destination,” said Ambassador Thompson.He added that this is an investment for Fiji as we continue to tell American children about our country and its people, and Fiji as a holiday destination.

The children responded keenly with questions and comments.On the day of the event, students at Powell enthusiastically sang the Fijian National Anthem

without a script; a thrilling and inspiring experience indeed! They had done their own research on Fiji and made PowerPoint presentations juxtaposing life in Fiji and the US, specifically in the DC area, plus a “thank you” presentation, and a panorama of Fiji by a Grade 5 student for Ambassador Thompson and “all the Fijian people” for bringing Fiji to their classrooms The students were treated to three mekes, plus a small ‘tui boto‘and ‘taura tale‘ session, con-

cluding with the farewell song ‘Isa Lei’.

Ambassador Thompson expressed his gratitude to the EAP partner organizations, DC Public Schools and the Washington Performing Arts Society, as well as the DCPS Office of Food and Nutrition Services and Principal Janeece Docal of Powell Elementary School for this opportunity.

He thanked the DC Fijian families whose invaluable support and contribution made the day a resounding success.

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December-2013

7

President honours Saint Do Your Part and Work Hard Johns’ volunteers His

Excellency the President Ratu Epeli Nailatikau today paid tribute to the countless individuals who have volunteered for the Fiji Saint Johns’ movement.

While opening the 2013 St. John Asia Pacific Regional Summit at the Sofitel Fiji Resort and Spa on Denarau Islands the head of State praised the efforts of the volunteers. “I am thankful to government for showing increased support towards St John Fiji, through the provision of grants to support the operations of our ambulance services and community care programs,” Ratu Epeli said.“I am inspired and am extremely proud to see that today St John Fiji is hosting a major international meeting of the Order of St John and commendations for this achievement must go to the Chairman, the evergreen Mr Sakeasi Waqanivavalagi, who has given many years of sterling service to this venerable order.”Ratu Epeli highlighted to delegates from as far as India, Hong Kong, and other countries, about the hard work done by Saint Johns Fiji volunteers since its establishment in 1939 in ensuring people get

Equal education opportunities for women and girls Students of Dilkusha

Girls (Primary) School have been reminded of Government’s commitment in providing equal education and employment opportunities for women and girls.This was emphasized by the Ministry of Information, National Archives and Library Services of Fiji permanent secretary Sharon Smith-Johns who was chief guest at the school’s annual prize giving function today.Ms Smith-Johns said some of the greatest leaders in this country are women and there are no barriers when it comes to providing equal opportunities for young girls.“We continue to see a growth in female leadership in all sectors of our nation. Don’t let anyone tell you that because you’re a girl, you can’t do much. You can do anything,” Ms Smith-Johns said.Ms Smith-Johns commended the school for its dedication in pursuing excellence in education while creating an inclusive and equal environment for all.

immediate assistance in times of need or disasters. “We now look forward with great keenness to next year to celebrate our diamond jubilee of 75 years. St John Fiji is well known in the schools for its cadet programs, in workplaces and in the fields of sports for its first aid program and service, and in the community for its ambulance services and community care programs,” Ratu Epeli said.St John Fiji is currently only able to cover the main islands in Fiji due limited resources.

“But St John Fiji is at the doorstep of a new era.

We are looking at expanding the network to other major centres in Fiji especially here in the west and in the second biggest island in Fiji – that of Vanua Levu,” Ratu Epeli, said.St. John Sub Prior Mr John Mah, who was accorded a full Fijian traditional ceremony of welcome said it would be hard forgetting the experience that he has had in Fiji.“This is the best ceremony that I have seen in my life and the traditional Kava ceremony is wonderful. Something which is not only rich but unique and I am honoured to have been accorded this chiefly ceremony.”

Students need to work hard and commit to making education a priority in order to pursue further studies and better career opportunities in life says Public Service Commission permanent secretary Parmesh Chand. Mr Chand, who was chief guest today at the annual prize giving ceremony at Tilak High School, reminded parents and students of their responsibility in prioritizing education. “Education is a joint responsibility between Government, parents and students.

Whilst Government is pro-

COCONUT INDUSTRY GRADUATES URGED TO PRODUCE HIGH QUALITY PRODUCTS

As part of Government’s current reforms to boost Fiji’s coconut industry, entrepreneurs in this sector have been urged to produce high quality coconut products to meet market demands. The call was made yesterday by the Minister for Agriculture Lieutenant Colonel Inia Seruiratu during the graduation of 10 Virgin Coconut Oil (VCO) entrepreneurs who graduated after a two month training course on coconut value adding at the Whole Nut Processing Plant in Mua in Taveuni. ““Government has invested in you.

viding for free tuition, subsidised bus fare and 100% funding of teachers, it is important for parents and the students themselves to continue working hard and make that commitment to make education a priority in your respective roles and lives,” Mr Chand said.“The onus is on you students to persevere and work hard, aspire for improved performance and also stream yourselves into areas of studies which complement your strengths and that will ultimately allow you to pursue further studies or career opportunities”. Mr

Chand paid tribute to parents for taking interest in the studies of their children and thanked the hardworking staff of the school for their commitment and dedication to the teaching profession.

He also thanked the students for their efforts throughout the year. Mr Chand congratulated the students who have excelled in their studies and received prizes. To those that missed out, “there will always be another chance for you if you continue to persevere, work hard and aspire to improve your

PRESIDENT LAUNCHES 2013 FIJI WORLD AIDS DAY MEDIA CAMPAIGN Fiji is on the right path in its journey towards an AIDS free world says His Excellency, the President Ratu Epeli Nailatikau. Ratu Epeli expressed these sentiments during the launch of the media campaign for Fiji World Aids Day at Government House yesterday.“Our message is simple. Even though we are listed as a low prevalence country, we must redouble our efforts to stop the spread of HIV,” Ratu Epeli said. “We must reduce the rate of new infections. In this connection we have too many

cases of sexually transmitted infections.”The head of state added that strategic health communication strategies in preventative programs needed to be strengthened. “We need to strengthen strategic health communication strategies in our preventative programs, and also continue with our treatment and the continuum of care services especially to our targeted population to further reduce the number of new HIV infections,” Ratu Epeli said.“As HIV testing and counselling services progresses,

CRAFTS FAIR RECOGNISES LOCAL ARTISTS The Fiji Arts Council

received a $9050 sponsorship from the Ministry of Industry and Trade to host the ‘Western Crafts Fair’ in Nadi this week.This annual event gives an opportunity to local, established and emerging artists and crafters to display their talents and skills.It also contributes towards the preservation of culture and tradition.The Western

Crafts Fair from November 28 to November 30 at Koroivolu Park in Nadi is organised by the Fiji Crafts Society and Fiji Arts Council..The Ministry for Industry and Trade permanent secretary Shaheen Ali said a major feature of this year’s event would be the handing over of 46 Fijian Crafted licence certificates on the final day of the event by the Minister

for Industry and Trade, Aiyaz SayedKhaiyum.This will bring the total number of crafters licensed under the Fiji Made and Buy Fijian campaign to 66.The event will also witness crafters receive two major awards, which include the Craftsmanship Awards and the Traditional C o n t e m p o r a r y Awards.“The success of the Fijian Crafted brand is

dependent on the support from all stakeholders,” Mr Ali said.“Government recognises Carpenters Fiji Limited and R.C. Manubhai Limited for partnering with the ministry to promote, preserve and develop our handicrafts sector as well as compliment Fijian Made and Buy Fijian campaign by contributing a combined sum of $5500 towards the total sponsorship.”

results”.

“For any graduating student, your final day at your school is not always easy. As you depart the gates of this school, on you last day here, Tilak will be but a memory,” Mr Chand added. In Mr Chand’s closing remarks he stated that “there is no limit to recording great achievements in life if you are honest, God fearing, hardworking and are prepared to embrace the good things around you to aspire and achieve the best. On that note may I wish you all the best in your future endeavours”.

Government support for Education overwhelming

Government

firmly believes education is the only door that will enable our people to follow the logic of their own ideas.

Public Service Commission permanent secretary Parmesh Chand as chief guest today at the annual prize giving ceremony at Tilak High School, highlighted Government’s continued commitment towards the development of education in Fiji.“In next year’s budget the highest share of financial allocation being $541.5million or 19% of the budget has gone to the education sector,” Mr Chand said. “This major chunk of allocation to the education sector for free education to primary and secondary students, continuation of free bus fare subsidy for eligible families, 100% funding of teachers, the continuation of support for existing tertiary students and the provision of scholarships and low interest loans for new students willing to pursue tertiary education are all meant to make Fiji a smarter nation.”“This by any measure is an enormous support and assistance for the education sector,” he added. Mr Chand said education can build a nation where people are free to solve their own problems and realize their dreams.

Barbarians provide chance for NZ talent

Eight All Blacks will play

for the Barbarians against Fiji this weekend, including a clutch of youngsters itching to show what they have learned.ll Blacks coach Steve Hansen is relishing the chance to work with some of his under-used players this week as his Barbarians prepare to play Fiji at Twickenham.The game on Saturday to celebrate Fiji rugby's centenary allows Barbarians coach Hansen a chance to further develop a handful of All

Blacks players who received little or no rugby during their season-ending tour.here are eight New Zealanders in the 23strong invitation squad.

Veteran hooker Keven Mealamu and first-season All Blacks Charles Piutau and Steven Luatua are joined by five others who took no part in the Tests against France, England and Ireland this month.They are wing Frank Halai, utility back Tom Taylor, loose forward

Luke Whitelock, lock Dominic Bird and uncapped halfback TJ Perenara.There were debuts in the Test against Japan in Tokyo on November 2 for Halai, Whitelock and Bird but after that it was time for them to put the head down and learn off the field in Europe, Hansen said."To then have them experience everyday life touring, particularly up in the Northern Hemisphere, was important," Hansen said."The

Barbarians game has no pressure of a test match but there will be a similar test-match type atmosphere with about 70,000 people going."Hansen was impressed with the attitude and work ethic of all his young tourists who weren't involved in the major Tests.

They had all been given skills to improve, and a fitness programme to complete ahead of next season.Hansen said it was too soon to select rising flanker Ardie Savea in the

Barbarians squad.The 20year-old from Wellington travelled with the All Blacks on an "apprentice scheme" in which he learned firsthand about preparing for Tests."He's not ready yet, he's only 97kg," Hansen said."One of the big things we wanted to do with Ardie was to not only get him exposed to the environment but particularly to (fitness trainer) Nick Gill and get him in the gym and see if we can get him bigger and stronger."

08

INDIA NEWS

December-2013

www.fijisun-usa.com

FIJISUN

Pak let key 26/11 operative slip away after quizzing him: Jundal

aAround a fortnight after the 26/11 Mumbai attacks, Pakistani army authorities had allegedly detained and questioned its key planner, trainer and controller Sajid Majeed alias Wassi alias Sajid Mir — the then chief of Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT)’s India operations — in Islamabad but later released him. The disclosure was made to Indian security authorities by Zabiuddin Ansari alias Abu Jundal — an LeT operative,

who was deported from Saudi Arabia and was one of the seven 26/11 Mumbai attacks’ handler along with Majeed. Pakistani national Majeed was also the alleged handler of American David Coleman Headley and had provided financial and logistic help to him for conducting surveillance of the targets for the Mumbai attacks, according to Interpol’s Red Corner Notice that was issued against him on the request

Buddhist shrines in India on IM radar Banned outfit Indian Mujahideen (IM) is planning terror strikes on Buddhist sites in the country after targeting the world famous shrine in Bodh Gaya five months back, latest intelligence inputs reveal. Inputs suggest that IM operatives have conducted a reconnaissance of many Buddhist sites, frequented by foreigners, in Odisha and Uttar Pradesh to avenge the alleged atrocities on Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar. “Arrested members of the Ranchi module of terror outfit IM, alleged to be responsible for attacks on Bodh Gaya and

the Patna rally of Narendra Modi, mapped many Buddhist shrines in the country. IM operatives have done a reconnaissance of Kuruma near world famous Konark temple and Lalitgiri in Odisha and Sarnath in UP,” said a police official who was briefed about the threat requesting anonymity.

Central counter-terror sources said the plan indicates the unabated threat the country faces five years after the 26/11 Mumbai attack. It also reflects how Indian terror operatives are getting increasingly steeped into global jehad.

File photo of Abu Jundal alias Abu Jabiuddin alias Abu Hamza, arrested by the Special Cell, in New Delhi.

Bring Facebook, Twitter under Indian law: IB chief recommendation was made to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Saturday for bringing foreign content-provider like Facebook and Twitter under Indian laws like in other countries. This was conveyed by director intelligence bureau Asif Ibrahim on the concluding day of the annual conference of Directors General and Inspectors General of Police in his address to welcome the Prime Minister.

Outling the deliberations for the last two days, Ibrahim said there was a special discussion on vulnerabilities and steps needed to be taken in order to overcome the challenges in cyber space which include constant upgradation of technology through in-house efforts.

of Indian authorities.

“According to Zabiuddin’s revelations seven LeT conspirators - Sajid Majeed, Abu Qahafa, and Zaqiur Rehman Lakhvi, including himself had orchestrated the 26/11 Mumbai attacks from a specially set-up control-room at Malir in Karachi. They had then fled to the outfit’s Baitul Mujahideen camp at Muzaffarabad in Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK) on November 30, 2008. It was

6 killed in bomb blast in village near Kundankulam N-plant Six persons including three children were feared killed after country bombs exploded at Idinthakarai, the epicentre of protests against the Kudankulam nuclear power plant in Tamil Nadu’s Tirunelveli district on Tuesday evening.The fishing village is barely 3 km from the nuclear plant.People in the village said three persons were critically injured in the explosions at Tsunami Colony around 7.30 pm.

At least two houses were also damaged. Tirunelveli collector M Karunakaran told HT search operations were on and arrange-

Closer look at Tehelka throws up more questions than answers

Who owns Tehelka? To answer this question, one has to figure out who owns Anant Media Private Limited, the company that publishes Tehelka, of which Tarun Tejpal is editor-inchief.A closer look at the balance sheet and shareholding pattern of Anant Media Pvt Ltd throws more questions than it answers.

Reason? Little known individuals and companies own a majority stake in the company that claims to be the harbinger of truth and transparency.

Tejpal and his family own about 22% in the privatelyheld company, but eight

other companies hold significant stakes in Anant Media.The majority shareholder in Anant Media is Royal Building & Infrastructure Pvt Ltd, which owns a 65.75% stake as on September 29, 2012.

Another company, KDS Corporation, holds an 85% stake in Royal Building & Infrastructure.

KDS Corporation reportedly belongs to Trinamool Congress (TMC) member of Parliament KD Singh and his family. And Singh is an old associate of Tejpal.Singh did not respond to repeated calls and an email from HT to

comment on the issue.

However, TMC spokesperson Derek O’Brien had recently tweeted: “KD Singh just clarified to me that I am not the owner of Tehelka. I have nothing to do with the publication.”It remains unclear as to when and to whom Singh sold his stake in Tehelka.Tejpal, who personally owned 39.34% — and through his family held about 45% stake in Anant Media till September 29, 2011 – brought his personal stake down to 19.25% and his family’s holding to 21.81% of September, 2012. Royal Building & Infrastructure,

there that they got the confirmation that one of the 10 suicide attackers they had sent to Mumbai, Ajmal Kasab, had been arrested,” a security agency source said. In December, 2008, Pakistan’s Federal Investigation Agency had raided the Muzaffarabad camp and arrested Lakhvi, Mujammil, Abu Al Qama and Zarar, but Majeed, Qahafa and Zabiuddin, an Indian national had managed to escape.

Tejpal, Ponty Chadha tied up for posh club

NEW DELHI: Tarun Tejpal had joined hands with controversial businessman Ponty Chadha before the latter and his brother were killed in a gun battle in the capital to establish a members-only private club in a posh Delhi locality. The club, to be named Prufrock, was meant to provide a "vibrant cultural space, where a highly accomplished, eclectic community of select urban Indians can meet and engage in an atmosphere of great intimacy with eminent people who make and shape the world".

ments have been made to light up the area.“Tomorrow the entire village will be combed with the help of bomb squad,” the collector said.According to a police official, firefighters and ambulances have reached the village.The official who did not want to be named said it was long suspected that bombs were being made in the village.The nuclear plant in Tirunelveli district, about 650km south of Chennai, became operational earlier this year.

The project encountered massive protests from anti-nuclear activists.

scheduled for December 1 at 00:49 hrs (12.49 am),” said a senior Isro scientist. “We are doing all the fine tuning on the basis of data collected. At present the spacecraft is healthy.”“This would essentially be similar to the maneuvres that we have done earlier. But in this case all the systems have to be calibrated precisely. The burn time will also be slightly longer, of around 1300 seconds.”The spacecraft has been in the Earth-bound orbits with differ-

ent apogees since its launch on November 5 from Sriharikota.

“This voyage to Mars is achieved by a complex combination of navigation and propulsion technologies, governed by the gravity of Sun and Mars, and assisted by the 440 N Liquid engine.

Further fine tuning of the trajectory is achieved using the Attitude and Orbit Control Thrusters during the trajectory correction maneuvres planned en route,” the scien-

36 injured in cylinder blast in J&K JAMMU: At least 36 people were injured two of them critically after an LPG cylinder blast in Kishtwar district of Jammu & Kashmir on Wednesday.

A police spokesperson said that a cylinder exploded at 1pm during a marriage function. "The injured were rushed to hospital while two critical injured were airlifted to Jammu for advanced medical treatment," he said.

Medical superintendent of the district hospital of Kishtwar Dr GM Naqeeb said that atleast 39 people were admitted to hospital. "Of the 39, 20 injured including two critical were referred to Jammu but as a smaller chopper was available we just airlift the most critically injured," he said.

Money paid to media houses to defame us: Kejriwa

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Sunday claimed that Rs. 1,400 crore was distributed in some media houses to defame the party and openly attacked the Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for paying the money. The allegation comes in the wake of a sting operation by media portal mediasarkar.com, which showed some AAP members allegedly accepting donations without proper verification. "I am told Rs. 1,400 crore has been distributed to a few media

Mangalyaan set to escape Earth’s influence on Dec 1 The Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro) is gearing up for the critical event of moving the Marsbound Mangalyaan out of Earth’s sphere of influence.The Trans-Mars Injection, as it is called in space science parlance, will slingshot Mangalyaan into its heliocentric orbit towards Mars.“The 680 million kmlong interplanetary voyage begins with the mother of all slingshots, code-named Trans-Mars Injection and

“Thereafter, Zabiuddin ,Qahafa and Majeed had shifted to another local camp at Chela Bandi in Muzzaafarabad,” the source said.. After some days, Pakistani army authorities called Majeed and Qahafa to Islamabad and they were interrogated.

Both were however released later,” the source added. While Majeed is absconding, Pakistani authorities later nabbed Qahafa.

tist said. The spacecraft has undergone five successful Earth-bound maneuvres since its launch. After the spacecraft moves out of Earth’s orbit, there could be some mid course corrections.

It will move into the Mars orbit on September 24, 2014.Isro workhorse PSLV C25 had successfully injected the 1,350-kg Mangalyaan orbiter into orbit around Earth about 44 minutes after a textbook launch of the Rs. 450crore mission.

houses. Who are these media houses?" tweeted AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal.

The party also held a press conference in New Delhi on Sunday in which it gave a clean chit to all its members featured in the video and reiterated it would sue the media portal's chief executive officer Anuranjan Jha as well as some other media houses. "We will soon be filing civil and criminal defamation cases against the media portal and some channels that have been telecasting the sting operation," lawyer

FIJISUN

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INDIA NEWS

December-2013

Parents guilty of killing Aarushi, rules court; Talwars to appeal in HC Dentist couple Rajesh and Nupur Talwar murdered their 14-year-old daughter Aarushi and domestic help Hemraj Banjade, a special CBI court ruled on Monday – more than five years after the crime shocked the nation. “The parents are the best protectors of their own children. That is the order of the human nature but there have been freaks in the history of mankind where the father and the mother became the killer of their own progeny. They (Talwars) have extirpated their own daughter who hardly had seen 14 summers of her life and the servant without the compunction of terrestrial ter-

rain in the breach of commandment ‘thou shall not kill’ and injunction of Holy Quran ‘take not life which god has made sacred’,” judge Shyam Lal said in his 204-page verdict.

Rajesh, 49, and Nupur, 48, broke down after they were convicted, but vowed to challenge it in Allahabad high court.

“We are deeply disappointed, hurt and anguished for being convicted of a crime that we have not committed. We refuse to feel defeated and will continue to fight for justice,” a statement on behalf of the couple read.

The couple was taken to Dasna jail. Arguments on sentencing will be held on

Speak Asia promoter held for Rs 2,200 crore scam NEW DELHI: Speak Asia promoter Ram Sumiran Pal, one of the three masterminds behind a Rs 2,200 crore online marketing fraud, was arrested by the Delhi crime branch on Tuesday. Pal, 37, and his associates duped at least 24 lakh investors in the scam extending to Singapore, Italy and Brazil among others.

The crime branch received an input that Pal, who was hiding in Dehradun, would visit Connaught Place on Monday. A trap was laid and he was arrested. "Pal is the first senior office bearer of Speak Asia to be arrested," additional commissioner of police (crime) Ravindra Yadav told TOI. Police are now on the lookout for Pal's brother Ram Niwas and Manoj Sharma. Pal reportedly told interrogators that he was living with his in-laws in Dehradun since the company shut shop in 2011 and had invested the scam money in real estate.

Besides launching construction projects for villas and luxury duplex flats in

Dehradun, Pal admitted to buying office and residential spaces in Mumbai, besides agricultural and commercial land in his hometown Shajahanpur, UP, for a luxury hotel. Pal told police that whenever the heat was on, he fled to Malaysia, boarding the flight from Kathmandu after taking the road and rail route to Nepal.

So far, nearly a dozen FIRs have been registered in different parts of the country against Speak Asia Online.

"Teams have been sent to different parts of the country.

The promoters are expected to be arrested soon," said Yadav. A special team has been formed under ACP Suresh Kaushik "to make further arrests". Explaining the modus operandi of the scam, police said Pal and his aides took over or set up multi-level marketing companies registered in foreign countries — Ad-Matrix in Singapore and Seven Rings International in Italy for instance — attracting investments due to their global profile.

Tuesday following which the judge will announce the punishment. The punishment for the couple could go up to a maximum of life term in jail. Death for murder is given in the rarest of rare cases.The court also held the couple guilty of destruction of evidence in the murder on

the intervening night of May 15 and 16, 2008, days before the birthday of the Class 9 student, at their at their Jalvayu Vihar residence in Noida.Rajesh was also convicted under section 203 of the Indian Penal Code for filing wrong information with the Noida police about the

crime. The case that saw multiple twists and turns was widely speculated to be an instance of honour killing by the couple owing to their daughter’s ‘liaison’ with Hemraj, 45, who hailed from Nepal.The verdict drew mixed reactions from people in Jalvayu Vihar.“It is a clear case of honour killing,” said Jaikishan, a resident of the housing society.

Another resident, Sneh, said, “How can parents kill their own daughter?”

Nina Sehgal, former principal of DPS, Noida, who was Aarushi’s teacher, declined to comment on the verdict.

“Aarushi was a wonderful

Sentencing Both parents sentenced to life imprisonment for murder along with an additional five years for causing disappearance of evidence. Rajesh Talwar was sentenced to an additional year in jail for giving false information in relation to an offence.

The Talwars say they will appeal the sentencing in the Allahabad High Court.

India likely to fast-track Iran port, oil plans NEW DELHI: India is looking at ways to intensify engagement with Iran after the country's nuclear agreement with the P5+1 over the weekend. A strategy session chaired by national security adviser Shivshankar Menon on Tuesday with senior officials from the ministries of finance, shipping and petroleum zeroed in on three sectors where India would try to do something extra for Iran. An Iranian ship, Dinayat, has been stranded in Mundra port in Gujarat for the past yearand-a-half over some payments owed to a Singapore-based firm.

The Iranian government has repeatedly urged India to release the ship but sources said there was a court order to seize the ship. In recent months, Iran has asked India to pay off the ship's debts from the huge amount of money kept in UCO Bank. India pays 45% of its oil payments to Iran in rupees. However, so far, India has refused to pay, because the ship is actually owned by Iran's infamous Revolutionary Guards who come under UN sanctions. India was worried that making payments on behalf of the Revolutionary Guards may be tantamount to violating the sanctions.

Members of the Shillong Chamber Coir perform during an event to mark the fifth anniversary of the 26/11 attacks in Mumbai.

Shinde: Pak should take urgent, quick action to punish attackers

Pakistan should punish those involved in the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks as enough evidence has been given to the neighbouring country, Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde said today. "We have handed over all the relevant proof to Pakistan.

We are urging them to take quick and urgent action against the perpetrators of 26/11 attack," he told reporters here on the occasion of the fifth

anniversary of the country's worst terror strike.

Shinde said for expediting the trial in Pakistan, India had permitted a Pakistani judicial commission to visit the country twice to examine and take statements of investigating officers and others in connection with the case. On terror infrastructure across the border, Shinde said despite repeated appeals, Pakistan has not taken any action.

No forward movement Shinde said for expediting the trial in Pakistan, India had permitted a Pakistani judicial commission to visit the country twice to examine and take statements of investigating officers and others in connection with the case On terror infrastructure across the border, the Home Minister said despite repeated appeals.

Court acquits all accused including Kanchi seers

PUDUCHERRY: A court in Puducherry on Wednesday acquitted all the accused, including Kanchi seers Jayendra Saraswathi and Vijayendra Saraswathi, in the sensational Sankararaman murder case. All the accused except an absconding person were present in the court when Puducherry principal district and sessions judge C S Murugan pronounced the verdict.

The judgment came more than nine years after A Sankararaman, manager of Sri Varadharajaswamy temple in Kancheepuram, was murdered.The judge

said there was no substantial and corroborative evidence to prove the murder charge against the accused. The court said the motive for the commission of the murder was not proved since Padma, wife of Sankararaman and witness number 1, and her son Anand Sharma, who is witness number 3, failed to support the prosecution case.The judge also said the chief investigation officer admittedly failed to do investigation with respect to the final letter (letter of motive) dated August 30, 2004, alleged to have been sent by Sankararaman.The

09

Sankararaman

murder case murder case that attained nationwide attention took several twists and turns, including prosecution witnesses turning hostile during the course of examination and reexamination.

Sankararaman who had levelled charges of financial mismanagement against the Kanchi seers, was found murdered on September 3, 2004. He was believed to have been

murdered by an armed gang. The Kanchi seers were charged with criminal conspiracy, misleading the court by giving false information, criminal trespass and supply of funds to carry out the criminal activity. The Tamil Nadu police arrested the senior seer on November 11, 2004, from ehboobnagar in Andhra Pradesh. The junior seer was arrested on January 10, 2005. The arrests evoked widespread uproar from pro-Hindu parties and outfits. The murder and arrests happened during the previous tenure of J Jayalalithaa's

AIADMK.Police arrested 22 others, including junior seer's brother and the mutt manager. However, the senior seer was granted bail on January 10, 2005.

The junior seer got bail on February 10 the same year. One of the accused, M Kathiravan, was murdered in March this year.

The Supreme Court in October, 2005, transferred the case from a Chengalpet court to the Puducherry court following a special leave petition, which claimed that the atmosphere in the state was not conducive for a fair and free trial.

10

December-2013

PEOPLE PROFILE

bAbu LAL: Famous radio LAHErEN host

www.fijisun-usa.com

FijiSuN

Ali Shad an American patriot of Fiji

MUSIC LEADER WITH “BAY AREA GOLDEN VOICE” HAYWArD – After seeing him recite ramayan on harmonium at the ram Lila show in Modesto, I have taken liberty to refer babu Lal as Pundit which he rightly deserves. babu Lal – who hails from ba – the Koya fought – first learn music as a youngster at religious events then later he took to playing accordion an instrument commonly seen in the raj Kapoor movies. Lal is among very few Fiji musicians who play the instrument. With his leader-

ship involvement in the bay Area Golden Voice group featuring his son and son-in-law and other participants, this Hayward Unified School bus operator has expanded his talents with a two radio show called LAHreN on Punjab radio. The show can be heard on Sundays from 3 PM to 5 PM. babu Lal is close to the Koya Family. He was campaign manager for the Late Hon. S M Koya, former National Party and opposition Leader in the late Mara Government.

Teaming up with FIJI SUN USA for Valentine’s Day/AI M Fellowship and Awards Night

T

he bay Area Golden Voice will team up for double celebration at next year’s Valentine’s Day marking the 20 Year Celebration of Fiji Sun in business. The event will feature a judicial officer as chief guest, prominent Fiji personalities to deliver addresses and receive AIM Fellowship Award.

CALL BABU LAL AT 510-706-5013

Name: Arafat Mukhtar Ahmed Ali. Birth place: Suva Fiji Migrated to USA : 06/30/2001 Grandson of Mukthar Ahmed Ali Great grandson of Mr. Wahid Ali Buksh of Suva Fiji.

Graduated from Weston ranch high school in 2013, graduated from USMC in October 2013. Truly assisted and supported Mr Zahid Ali Buksh of Tracy , ca through out his journey since migrated to USA.

Zahid Buksh meets Dr. S A Sahukhan in NZ A FLASHbACK oN HIS SoCCer CAreer IN FIJI

Fiji FA boSS viES For oFc poSt AMIT RAJ

Monday, January 10, 2011

L

ONG serving Fiji Football Association president Dr Sahu Khan is one of the 11 nominees contesting for a place in the Oceania Football Confederation (OFC) executive committee.Dr Khan, who has been president of Fiji FA since 1985, has previously served the OFC executive committee and is part of the FIFA disciplinary committee as well. His term as Fiji FA president expires in October. Dr Khan is yet to confirm if he will contest for another four-year term but vicepresident Rajesh Patel said last year he would contest for the position. The 21st OFC ordinary congress will be held on Saturday in American Samoa.

OFC is the ruling body of football in the region and has 11 members, each entitled to a vote and is represented by two delegates. Three nominations have been received for the president's post. Acting presi-

Nominees for the ExEcutivE committEE » » » » » » » » » »

Martin Alufurai (Solomon Islands Football Federation) Thierry Ariiotima (FÚdÚrationTahitienne de Football) Fred de Jong (New Zealand Football) Claude Fournier (FÚdÚrationCalÚdonienne de Football) Luli Alex Godinet (Football Federation American Samoa) Lee Harmon (Cook Islands Football Association) Dr Sahu Khan (Fiji Football Association) Lambert Maltock (Vanuatu Football Federation) ToetuPetana (Football Federation Samoa) HonourableVe'ehala (Tonga Football Association

dent David Chung of Papua New Guinea is favoured to become the new president. He took up the post after ReynaldTemarii was suspended

by FIFA's ethics committee for the World Cup vote-buying saga last year. Two Kiwis Fred de Jong and Frank van Hattum are vying for the top job as well. OFC has confirmed receiving a total of 11 nominations for the executive committee that will have seven mem-

bers. FIFA president Joseph Blatter and secretary general JÚr¶meValcke are expected to be in American Samoa for the OFC election and be part of celebrations to mark the completion of second and third phase of the FIFA goal project in American Samoa. Details regarding the OFC voting process can be found in the OFC statutes which is available on the oceaniafootball.com website.

FIJISUN

jaycees

www.fijisun-usa.com

December-2013

11

Jaycees International Jaycees creed resonates with my faith!

H. Koya (PhD)

I

n a sudden twist in my police career I was posted to Labasa Police Station. I found I had a lot of leisure hours after work and the one-street downtown lacked in activities for the youth.

In an effort to find a venue for creative activity, I first attended an Apex Club dinner meeting but left vey unimpressed because their creed seem to lay emphasis on “Good Food and Good Life.”

I was looking for something broader anda more realistic creed that would strike a balance with my faith – belief in God, brotherhood of mankind and service to humanity being key components.

When I returned home that evening, I browsed through my literature folder and discovered some JCI brochures that impressed me a lot.

From its creed to leadership programs everything clearly seemed to address my passionate desire to give excellent community services.

the Jci Mission To provide development opportunities to empower young people to create positive change.

the Jci vision To be the leading global network of young active citizens.

the Jci values We Believe That faith in God gives meaning and purpose to human life; That the brotherhood of man transcends the sovereignty of nations; That economic justice can best be won by free men through free enterprise; That

government should be of laws rather than of men; That Earth's great treasure lies in human personality; And that service to humanity is the best work of life. What I learned from speaking to young business leaders and volunteers that L a b a s a Jaycees had been defunct for a few years.

As a police sergeant, second person in charge at the station level, I was in a significant position to exert some influence to help revive the Jaycees chapter. After speaking with a past president who showed no interest, I convened a meeting with some of the former and potential Jaycee members and formed a new Jaycee Chapter in Labasa. My slogan to “put Labasa Jaycees back on the map” got an almost immediate approval of many young Labasa business operators. Monthly meetings were started and held at the Labasa Town Hall chambers.

Well founded projects getting members involved with the community, I knew, created enthusiasm and excitement.

To boost the Jaycee moral and give the chapter maximum exposure I proposed and obtained approvalto host a Talent Show that ran over three months attracting a number of

Labasa singers who were seeking a venue to showcase their talents. To add to the growing popularity of Labasa Jaycees, I initiated and hosted the first Labasa Inter-secondary Oratory Contest at a well-known theater (next to Takia Hotel). At the time I was acting Divisional Police

Prosecutor at Labasa Court presided by Senior Magistrate Hon. Michael Moore (later a judge at Fiji Supreme Court) as our guest of honor.

Labasa secondary students gave a rocking performance and won a thund e r o u s applause by a packed audience.

This was followed by another landmark event – the first Jaycee R e g i o n a l Convention hosted by Labasa Jaycees. All these happened within a 10 short months of my presidency.

By now many young members were trained in meetings procedures and leadership programs.

Against the backdrop of local politicking marked by ........, I moved on my career to take a position of college instructor back in Suva.

In writing a new management course at the Royal Fiji Police College, I took into account what I learned and experienced in Jaycees. Its leadership training was very prominent in my mind which I clearly reflected in my position. The management course which was a direct result of my distance learning at TAFE, Australia - became a cause not only of my departure from the college but also from my police career with a wild card in the department causing me great distress and alarm.

Justice sir Moti tikaraM chief guest At the launching of the City Jaycees at the huge Suva City civic center, kindly granted free by then Lord Mayor Cr. Councilor Dean, Justice Sir Moti Tikaram accepted my invitation to be the guest of honor. The Fiji Times – Fiji’s first and the oldest newspaper gave front page coverage with a picture of the event featuring Justice Moti Tikaram and myself that did not go well with some Suva Jaycee officials who did not show up at the launch.

city Jaycees in suva Now with more free time and weekends off in the new job as a training officer {USP University of the South Pacific certified} I was at liberty to get more involved in social roles.

The first thing I did was create a lunch time City Jaycees downtown Suva.

40 Plus Jaycees in Bay area For some time now I have floated the idea of creating a 40 PLUS JAYCESS mainly of the former Fiji Jaycees but the message seems to have fallen on deaf years.

FIJIAN ENVOY DELIVERS STATEMENT AT UN No investigation of ON SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS Fiji army chief despite Driti claims

Fiji’s

Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Ambassador Peter Thomson, has urged the global community to recognise that inclusive and sustained economic growth is absolutely necessary for the imperative of poverty eradication.

Speaking in Fiji’s capacity as the Chair of the Group of 77 and China, Ambassador Thomson addressed the 5th Session of the Open Working Group on Sustainable Development at the UN this morning.

He reminded participants that global commitments towards sustainable development must incorporate the challenges faced by developing countries. He said that

the economic pillar of sustainable development had been neglected under the MDGs. Ambassador Thomson said that the challenge for the SDG process and the Post2015 development agenda is to incorporate macroeconomic issues to ensure the kind of inclusive growth that generates decent jobs and gives opportunities for all segments of society.

In his statement, Ambassador Thomson said the Group of 77 believed that, “In whatever formulation the SDGs may take shape, it is important that macroeconomic policy issues be recognised as of an enabling environment.”

He said the Group reiterated that SDGs must

reflect the different national realities, capacities and development plans of developing countries.

Fiji’s Ambassador acknowledged that energy is a critical element of sustainable development and that one in five people in the world still have no access to electricity.

“We urge countries, particularly industrialised countries, to refrain from excessive and wasteful consumption of energy.

We also urge effective measures, both at the national and international levels, to address national energy deficits through the development of new energy sources, especially renewable energies, and the development of appropriate technologies

relating to energy.”

Ambassador Thomson’s statement also addressed the importance of the multilateral trading system embodied in the rulesbased World Trade Organisation (WTO). He said the Group of 77 holds the view that “in order to ensure effective functioning of the multilateral trading system, one that benefits all countries, particularly developing countries, the WTO must undertake serious institutional reforms. These reforms should focus on addressing the Organisation’s structural bias, unfair rules as well as the substantial power asymmetries in negotiations between developed and developing countries.”

The Fiji Military Forces chief of staff, Brigadier General Mohammed Aziz, will not be investigated by the police over allegations levelled against him during the Pita Driti trial. Driti, who was a Land Force commander, faces up to 15 years in jail after being found guilty this week of inciting mutiny. According to Fiji media, Driti claimed he was set up by Brigadier General Aziz, who allegedly was involved a plot to exile the regime leader, Commodore Frank Bainimarama, when he

was in Sudan.

The acting police commissioner, Rusiate Tudravu, has told Legend FM News Brigadier General Aziz was interviewed by police when Driti was taken in for questioning but they found no proof of the allegations.

Fiji Village reports that Brigadier General Aziz is currently accompanying the defence minister, Joketani Cokanasiga, on an official visit to China.

Driti remains in custody until the 10th of next month for mitigation and sentencing.

12

PAKISTAN NEWS

December-2013

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FiJiSUN

Stop praising Sachin Tendulkar, Taliban warns Pakistan media ISLAMABAD: The banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan has asked Pakistani media groups to refrain from praising Indian cricket icon Sachin Tendulkar.

In a video message, Taliban spokesperson Shahidullah Shahid, flanked by two AK-47 wielding masked men, talks about Sachin's farewell to international cricket. "There is this Indian cricket player Sachin Tendulkar. It was unfortunate to see Pakistani media go to great extent to pay tribute to him," Shahid said in the video mes-

sage. "On the other hand, it was sad to know same Pakistani media badly criticized captain Misbah-ul-Haq. No matter how good Tendulkar is, don't praise him because he is Indian. No matter how bad Misbah-ul-Haq plays, he should be praised because he is a Pakistani," the video shows the Taliban spokesperson as saying.

The Pakistan media had extensively covered Tendulkar and his farewell speech was covered live. Pakistan media praised Tendulkar after he retired from

aNti dRoNe PRoteSt

the game on November 16.

Newspapers paid rich tributes to Sachin saying "the game of cricket will surely be the poorer without him".

Dawn wrote Tendulakar's retirement marks the end of a truly memorable career that spanned nearly a quarter of a century. Rated by critics and contemporaries as arguably the greatest postwar batsman to have played the game, Tendulkar continued to rewrite the record books with his brilliant batting skills since making his debut against Pakistan in

Karachi way back in 1989, it had said. The Express Tribune and Daily Times wrote Tendulkar is rightly considered the most complete batsman of his age, possessing every shot in the book and having the ability to both, tear apart bowling attacks and to control his natural aggression to suit the needs of his team.

Insaaf, an Urdu daily, wrote 'Tendulkar like cricketers are not born every day. His is widely loved and respected.' His fans must be sad as "cricket without him is surely the poorer."

Tassadduq Hussain Jillani appointed Chief Justice of Pakistan ISLAMABAD: Tassaduq

Pakistani drone protesters block Nato supply route

Hussain Jillani, known as a "gentleman judge", was on Wednesday named Pakistan's new Chief Justice, replacing activist judge Iftikhar Chaudhry who led a crusade against corruption and misgovernance.

President Mamnoon Hussain approved Jillani's elevation to the post. His appointment will come into effect from December 12, a day after Chaudhry, the longest serving Chief Justice, retires.

"The President has approved...the appointment of senior most judge Justice Tassaduq Jillani as the Chief Justice of Pakistan with effect from December

PESHAWAR: Thousands of people protesting US drone strikes blocked a road in northwest Pakistan on Saturday used to truck Nato troop supplies and equipment in and out of Afghanistan, the latest sign of rising tension caused by the attacks. The protest, led

by Pakistani politician and cricket star Imran Khan, had more symbolic value than practical impact as there is normally little Nato supply traffic on the road on Saturdays. The blocked route in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province leads to one of two border crossings used to send supplies overland from Pakistan to neighboring Afghanistan. Khan, whose Tehreek-e-Insaf party runs the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government, called on federal officials to take a firmer stance to force the US to

end drone attacks and block Nato supplies across the country."We will put pressure on America, and our protest will continue if drone attacks are not stopped," Khan told the protesters.

The demonstrators dispersed after Khan's speech, but his party put out a statement saying they will begin stopping trucks from carrying Nato supplies through Khyber Pakhtunkhwa indefinitely beginning Sunday night. That could spark a clash with the federal government. The US embassy in Islamabad declined to comment. The US leads the coalition of Nato troops battling the Taliban in Afghanistan. Drone strikes have been a growing source of friction between Islamabad and Washington. Khan and other officials regularly denounce the attacks as a

violation of Pakistan's sovereignty, although the country's government is known to have supported some of the strikes in the past. The tension has further complicated a relationship that Washington views as vital to fight al-Qaida and the Taliban, as well as negotiate peace in Afghanistan. The protest comes only two days after a rare US drone strike outside of Pakistan's remote tribal region killed five people, including at least three Afghan militants, at an Islamic seminary in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The attack outraged Pakistani officials, as did one on November 1 that killed the former leader of the Pakistani Taliban, Hakimullah Mehsud, a day before the Pakistani government said it was going to invite him to hold peace talks.

ISLAMABAD: In an apparent attempt to kill Sirajuddin Haqqani, the top operations commander of the al-Qaeda and Talibanlinked Haqqani network, the US launched drone strikes on a seminary in Pakistan's north-western district of Hangu on Thursday, killing at least eight people. Witnesses said the CIA-operated drones fired three missiles at Muftah-ul-Quran seminary before dawn in the Tal area of Hangu, a region plagued with sectarian strife. According to local sources.

ISLAMABAD: At least 10

reported. Around 80 others, including several policemen, were injured in the violence.The Punjab government decided to impose the indefinite curfew in Rawalpindi on the advice of the Commissioner and IG Police after the deadly clashes, in which a market and several vehicles and petrol pumps were burnt, spiralled out of control.Government and police officials said that the clashes started when a Shia procession was passing

through Raja Bazar area of Rawalpindi."Initial investigations suggest that some miscreants raised slogans and shouted at the participants of the procession near Fawara Chowk from a seminary belonging to another sect," a police official said."This led to some angry protesters entering the seminary and dragging out three students and beating them leading to their deaths," he said, declining to be named.Another official said the trouble spread

when someone from the procession started firing and some protesters also grabbed the guns of the policemen, leading to more deaths and violence.As panic spread, unidentified persons set a portion of the cloth market in Raja Bazaar on fire.Ten buildings were destroyed, according to reports. Some reports said Shias attacked Sunnis from a madrassa for insulting them. Some students from the seminary were allegedly burnt alive by a mob.

8 killed in US drone strikes on Pak seminary

10 killed, 80 injured in sectarian violence in Rawalpindi people, including some students of a Sunni seminary, were killed and over 80 others injured in sectarian violence that erupted in Pakistani garrison city of Rawalpindi on Friday after a clash during a Muharram procession, following which a curfew was imposed.Army soldiers were called out and all mobile services were suspended to control the situation.At least ten people were killed in sectarian violence, Dunya News channel

Pakistani doctor who

12," an official said. Jillani is a close relative of former premier Yousuf Raza Gilani and a confidante of the outgoing Chief Justice. He is often described as a "gentleman judge" and will serve for nearly seven months.

Chaudhry has built a reputation by strengthening the judiciary, often through direct confrontation with the civilian government and the powerful military.

helped CIA find Bin Laden faces murder chargeThe lawyer for a Pakistani doctor who helped the CIA find Osama bin Laden says his client has been charged with murder.Samiullah Afridi said on Friday that Shakil Afridi was charged with murder, in a case involving a boy who died after the doctor operated on him for appendicitis in 2006, in Pakistan's Khyber tribal area. The boy's mother filed a complaint against the Afridi, saying he was not authorised to carry out the surgery because he was a physician,

Nawaz chooses Lt Gen Raheel Sharif as Pakistan’s new army chief ISLAMABAD: Ignoring seniority and surprising many, Pakistan's Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Wednesday appointed Lt Gen Raheel Sharif, the third in the pecking order, as Pakistan's army chief.

Lt Gen Rashad Mahmood, the secondmost senior officer and rumored to be outgoing army chief Gen Ashfaq Pervez Kayani's choice, was made chairman of the largely ceremonial joint chief of staff committee. The change of command comes at a time when Pakistan is locked in war with the homegrown Taliban — a battle that has claimed thousands of lives — going through a phase of icy

relation with India and bracing for repercussions of the imminent withdrawal of US-led Nato troops from Afghanistan.

A ministry of defence notification said Lt Gen Sharif and Mahmood have been promoted to the rank of four-star generals with effect from Thursday. Lt Gen Sharif, 57, was born to Major Muhammad Sharif in Quetta and led a cantonment life. His elder brother, Major Shabbir Sharif, a batchmate of beleaguered former President Pervez Musharraf, was killed in the 1971 war against India and later given Pakistan's highest military award Nishan-eHaider for valour.

FIJIsun

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PAKISTAN NEWS

December-2013

13

senior leader of insurgent Haqqani network killed in Islamabad A senior leader of the

Haqqani network, one of the most feared insurgent groups fighting western forces in Afghanistan, was gunned town in mysterious circumstances on the outskirts of Pakistan's capital city on Sunday evening, Taliban and official sources have confirmed.Nasiruddin Haqqani died in a hail of bullets fired by unknown assailants as he bought bread in a shopping area just a few miles from the heart of Pakistan's government.His body was later taken away for burial in the lawless border

region of North Waziristan, apparently without the knowledge of authorities.An Islamabad police spokesman said he was unaware of either the shooting or the removal of his body, despite extensive local media coverage.Critics of Pakistan have long claimed it tolerates the Haqqani network, or even gives it some level of official support.

Islamabad does not regard the organisation as a threat to its own security and believes it may even be a useful ally in its fraught relations with Afghanistan. Intelligence

Malala Yousafzai's book banned in Pakistani private schools Pakistani education offi-

cials say they have banned teenage activist Malala Yousafzai's book from private schools across the country, claiming it does not show enough respect for Islam and calling her a tool of the west.Malala attracted global attention last year when the Taliban shot her in the head in north-west Pakistan for criticising the group's interpretation of Islam, which limits girls' access to education. Her profile has risen since then, and she released a memoir in October, I Am Malala, cowritten with British journalist Christina Lamb.While Malala has become a hero to many for opposing the Taliban and standing up for girls' education, conspiracy theories have flourished in Pakistan that her shooting was staged to create an icon for the west to embrace.Adeeb Javedani, president of the All Pakistan Private Schools Management Association,

said his organisation had banned Malala's book from the libraries of its 40,000 affiliated schools and called on the government to bar it from school curriculums."Everything about Malala is now becoming clear," Javedani said. "To me, she is representing the west, not us."Kashif Mirza, the chairman of the All Pakistan Private Schools Federation, said his group had also banned Malala's book in its affiliated schools.Malala "was a role model for children, but this book has made her controversial," Mirza said.

"Through this book, she became a tool in the hands of the western powers."

officials in Miran Shah, the capital of North Waziristan, said Haqqani's body arrived at in tribal agency at 3pm on Monday and around 25 people took part in his funeral prayers before he was buried at an unknown location.With no one taking responsibility for the killing, analysts suggested a number of possible motives for the attack.A Taliban spokesman told the BBC's Urdu service that Haqqani had been killed by Pakistan's intelligence agencies, "at the behest of the US". He vowed the group would

Pakistan breaks ground on country's largest civil nuclear power plant

KARACHI: Pakistan has broken ground on what will be the country's largest civil nuclear power plant, which is being built with help from China.

Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif performed the ground breaking ceremony in the southern city of Karachi on Tuesday.

He said the plant will take 72 months to complete and will produce 2,200 megawatts of electricity.

Critics have said that China's assistance to Pakistan would violate nonproliferation agreements. China has said the deal would be carried out in line with "international obligations'' and subject to international safeguards and supervision. Pakistan is desperately in need of additional electricity since the country currently faces rolling blackouts.

The nuclear deal with China represents a continuation of the strong alliance between the two countries.

does Pakistan have nuclear weapons ready to ship to saudi arabia?

It has long been rumoured,

and often reported, that in return for bankrolling the Pakistani nuclear weapons project, Saudi Arabia has a claim on some of those weapons in time of need. It has never been proved though, nor has it ever been clear how such a deal would work. BBC Newsnight had a stab at those questions last night, in a report saying that Saudi Arabia could obtain nukes "at will" from Pakistan. Here are the key paragraphs:Earlier this year, a senior Nato decision maker told me that he had seen intelligence reporting that nuclear weapons made in Pakistan on behalf of Saudi Arabia are now sitting ready for delivery.Last month Amos Yadlin, a for-

mer head of Israeli military intelligence, told a conference in Sweden that if Iran got the bomb, "the Saudis will not wait one month.

They already paid for the bomb, they will go to Pakistan and bring what they need to bring."The "Nato decision-maker" bit looks interesting but is somewhat undermined a bit later in the TV version by the revelation that the intelligence is thought to have originated in Israel. The trouble is lots of intelligence reports originate in Israel and some are probably

true, but the timing of this one, while talks on the Iranian nuclear programme are underway, is fairly convenient. The narrative of the nuclear cascade triggered by the Iranian programme is familiar. It is cited as the reason Iranian progress must be halted at all costs.

It also serves as a deterrent to Iran.Mark Fitzpatrick, who has followed this story through the years as a nonproliferation expert at the state department and now at the International Institute for Strategic Studies had this to say: It is not a new story, of course, but Urban came up with some new data points: a Saudi belief that it could obtain nuclear weapons from Pakistan at any time.

take revenge.Mohammad Amir Rana, the head of security thinktank in Islamabad, said Haqqani could have been killed by criminals or business rivals over something as mundane as a land dispute.Internal differences over strategy, including whether or not the group should negotiate with the Afghan government, may also have been a cause, he said.Syed Talat Hussain, a journalist, said a covert operation by the CIA could not be ruled out.

"Everyone in Pakistan knows you don't want to

put yourself in harm's way by messing with the Haqqanis," he said.

"Certainly Pakistan would not want this to happen to Haqqani."He said the US, which at times has pushed Pakistan hard to confront the Haqqani network, has once again raised the matter as an urgent problem as Afghanistan heads into a critical year during which Nato's combat mission in the country is due to end and a new president will be elected.The 36-yearold man was dubbed the "chief financial officer" of the Haqqani network,

arguably the fiercest of the three groups in the Taliban-led insurgency in Afghanistan. He organised the collection of donations and a ran business empire built on real estate and smuggling.He was the son of the founder of the rebel group, Jalaluddin Haqqani, a famous mujahideen commander who rose to prominence in the 1980s in the fight against the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan.In recent times the group has been responsible for many of the so-called spectacular attacks on Kabul.

Pakistani Taliban selects hardliner Mullah Fazlullah as new leader A militant commander who

ordered the assassination of the schoolgirl Malala Yousafzai has been chosen as the new head of the Pakistani Taliban.he appointment of Mullah Fazlullah, a notorious hardliner committed to overthrowing the Pakistani state, will be greeted with dread by the government in Islamabad as it battles a deadly domestic insurgency.Fazlullah's ascendancy also quashes any hopes of the negotiated peace deal with the Te h r e e k - e - Ta l i b a n Pakistan (TTP) the government has been pushing for in recent months."There will be no more talks as Mullah Fazlullah is already against negotiations with the Pakistan government," Taliban spokesman Shahidullah Shahid said from an undisclosed location in Afghanistan.The decision to select Fazlullah as leader of the TTP fol-

lowed days of internal politicking within the movement following the death in a drone strike last Friday of its previous leader, Hakimullah Mehsud.azlullah, who is believed to be in his late 30s, is regarded as extreme even by the standards of the movement he now leads. He led efforts to seize control his native Swat, a picturesque region a few hours' drive north of Islamabad, and ran a shadow government from 2007 until the Pakistani military reasserted control in 2009.He imposed strict Islamic law on the residents and

tasked his men to burn down music shops and prevent barbers from cutting beards. He became known as "Mullah Radio" for his daily broadcasts when he would announce the name of men ordered to be beheaded for breaking the Taliban's strict rules. It was during this time that the schoolgirl education activist Malala Yousafzai rose to prominence by writing an anonymous blog describing the terror of life under the Taliban. In October 2012, Fazlullah sent a gunman to try to kill Malala as she was travelling in a school van. She was shot in the head but survived and now lives in the UK.Perhaps most alarming for Pakistan is Fazlullah's success in setting up a base of operations in Kunar and Nuristan, provinces in eastern Afghanistan where the Kabul government has minimal control.

sunday bazar

People purchasing fresh vegetables from vendors at weekly Sunday Bazaar at Shadman.

14

CONSTITUTIONAL Q

December-2013

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FiJiSun

Fiji’s new constitution on the way to democracy 2014 EDITOrIAL NOTE

The report below is taken from ABC (Australian Broadcasting Commission) that has its own bias. Without prejudice, the new constitution appears very promising and addresses some of the issues that have been eating into the essence of democracy in Fiji.

The “one man one vote” (eliminating the race-based cross-voting or double voting) is similar to what we have in US, Great Britain and India the basics of democracy to begin with. If recall rightly, it was a call made by late A D Patel more than 40 years ago “one man one vote,” for he saw the cross voting as a very wrong system that took away from democracy. The elimination of the Great Council of Chiefs which existed a class membership body and acted like a parallel government for one class of people without a voice Fijian commoners-leave aside any other races in Fiji. The only one parliament house, something unique perhaps, without a senate. For a small country with a small economy, it makes sense to have just one and two and save a lot of time, delays and money.

ELIZABETH JACKSON: Fiji's military regime has unveiled a constitution which it says will take Fiji back to democracy.

While Australia's Foreign Minister, Senator Bob Carr, has welcomed it, political parties in Fiji say they are not happy.

They wanted a constitution drawn up last year by a highly qualified constitutional commission.

But that proposal didn't please Fiji's military commander and Prime Minister, Commodore Frank Bainimarama, so he scrapped it.

Here's the ABC's Pacific correspondent, Sean Dorney.

SEAN DOrNEY: Fiji's dictator, Commodore Frank Bainimarama, has told an accountants' conference at the Denarau resort in Fiji that he is mightily pleased with the Constitution that comes into effect on September the 6th.

FrANK BAINIMArAMA: I'm very proud of this document. It embodies everything that I envisaged when I set out sixand-a-half years ago to put Fiji on a different path.

SEAN DOrNEY: The Fiji parliament was dissolved

able to the regime.

There is no media freedom in Fiji and there will be no media freedom in Fiji under this constitution.

Fiji’s Prime Minister, Commodore Frank Bainimarama

by Commodore Bainimarama in 2006.

After the elections, due in about 13 months, the new Fiji Parliament will become a 50 member House with just a single nationwide electorate.

Fiji's attorney-general, AiyazSayed-Khaiyum, explained the reasoning to that same accountants' conference.

AIYAZ SAYEDKHAIYUM: The rationale behind that, there's a number of reasons, is that because of our history we need to have members of parliament who can be responsive to every Fijian, no matter wherever they live. rUSSELL HUNTEr: It seems to me to be one of

Scenic MuSSoorie

Mussoorie under snow: a view of a resort at Mussoorie after a snowfall in Uttarakhand.

the very few steps forward in this whole constitution, in the sense that it gets rid of racially-based voting, which was divisive, and I think this will be much more inclusive.

As I say, it's one of the few plusses I see in this document.

SEAN DOrNEY: Russell Hunter was a newspaper publisher in Fiji before he was deported as part of the Bainimarama administration's attempts to control the local media. rUSSELL HUNTEr: Freedom of information takes up one sentence in this whole document. We already know that the media is cowed, if you like, by the extravagant penalties that are avail-

AIYAZ SAYEDKHAIYUM: As far as the decrees are concerned, all the decrees that have been put in place by the Bainimarama government will continue. The validity of those decrees cannot be questioned.

SEAN DOrNEY: Fiji's attorney-general, MrSayed-Khaiyum.

Although there's an extensive list of people's rights, there are also limitations. During states of emergency the normal protections of human rights provisions don't apply, and deciding on imposing a state of emergency is in the hands of the prime minister, with very little effective power given to the parliament to oppose or check any declaration of a state of emergency. One thing that has not changed is a whole chapter granting immunity to Commodore Bainimarama and those who helped in the coup or have served him since.

Those immunity provisions were already quite strong in the earlier draft.

Anthony Regan from the ANU (Australian National University) says it is going to be virtually impossible to change this constitution. The new parliament will not be able to amend any provision of it unless three-quarters of the members vote in favour. But even then it will also need another three-quarters majority vote in a national referendum.

ANTHONY rEGAN: This is one of the most difficult constitutions in the world to change. So there's very little faith the military regime is showing in the new parliament in terms of what it might do to improve or change this constitution. This constitution is effectively set in concrete.

SEAN DOrNEY: Commodore Bainimarama is confident that when the elections are held in September 2014, he will win. The older political parties in Fiji object to the new constitution, saying it is not the people's document but one drawn up in the attorney-general's office behind closed doors.

This has been Sean Dorney for Correspondents report.

FIJISUN

COOKING

www.fijisun-usa.com

December-2013

15

the enD Goal is clear: a juicy, perfectly browneD birD. but GettinG there can be tricky. Get your Game plan toGether by browsinG throuGh our top thanksGivinG turkey recipes. with these no-fail iDeas, your turkey Dinner will most certainly be a winner.

thanksgiving turkey recipes Spicy

Roast TURKEY

Amazing Chicken

Tortilla Soup!

inGreDients

inGreDients

1 -1 1/2 cuP mayonnaise 2 tablesPoons PaPrika 1/2 teasPoon cayenne PePPer 1/2 teasPoon black PePPer 2 teasPoons salt 1 teasPoon onion Powder 1 teasPoon oregano 1 teasPoon thyme 1 teasPoon garlic Powder 1 (14 lb) turkey

» 2 teasPoons olive oil

» 1 medium onion, choPPed

» 4 garlic cloves, minced

» 1 medium jalaPeno PePPer, choPPed

» 1/2 medium green PePPer

Directions » » »

» 4 small boneless

mix the sPices into the mayonnaise until thoroughly blended. tuck back the wings and slather the sPicy Paste all over the turkey, massaging it into the bird. (rub inside the bird, outside the bird and make sure to sPread it under the breast skin).

» »

roast on lowest rack oF the oven at 500°F For 30 minutes. remove the turkey From the oven and cover the breast with a double layer oF heavy duty aluminum Foil Folded into a triangle (leaving the legs and dark meat uncovered), insert a thermometer into thickest Part oF the breast and return it to

» »

»

oven. reduce the oven temPerature to 350°F. roast until the turkey temPerature reaches 161°F (14 to 16 Pound bird only needs a total oF 2 to 2 1/2 hours oF roasting). remove the turkey From the oven and let it rest, loosely covered For at least 15 minutes beFore carving.

» » » » » » »

Deep

Fried TURKEY

inGreDients 1 (14 -16 lb) whole turkey (completely thaweD, not a self bastinG or kosher, they have to much salt in them) optional brine 1 cup coarse salt or 1 cup pickling salt 1 lb brown sugar 4 oolong tea bags 2 quarts apple juice 1 inch ginger, sliced lengthwise 10 whole allspice 10 peppercorns 2 bay leaves 10 fresh sage leaves 4 sprigs rosemary 10 garlic cloves 4 quarts cold water optional injection liquiD 1/2 cup butter 4 tablespoons olive oil 5 garlic cloves, slightly smashed skin removed 2 sprigs rosemary 4 sage leaves cracked black pepper, to season optional Dry rub 1/2 cup dry rub seasonings (I use Cajun Spice Rub Mix Recipe or Sweet and Spicy Dry Rub on Ribs or Salmon)

» »

» »

In a very large pot (big enough to hold turkey) bring all the brine ingredients but turkey to boil then lower heat to simmer for 5 minutes.

Remove tea bags and cool.

Add washed turkey to cooled apple mixture and cover with ice cold water making sure turkey is completely submerged adding more water if needed.

Refrigerate for 10 to 15 hours just so the turkey absorbs the brine.

Meanwhile make injection liquid by adding cup butter, olive oil, garlic, rosemary, sage and cracked black pepper to season in a pot.

Bring to a slow simmer for 10 to 15 minutes removing any

Topping

» 1 cuP non-Fat tortilla chiPs (oPtional)

» » »

water for butter and bringing out the flavors of the herbs.

Cool drain herbs and garlic set aside for placing under the skin of the turkey.

Remove turkey from brine discard brine and rinse turkey towel dry inside and out.

Inject dry turkey in breasts and thighs the night before cooking with the butter mixture.

» » » »

» » » » » » »

Take the garlic and herbs that was set aside and place under the skin of the turkey.

Place the turkey uncovered on a rack in the refrigerator overnight.

Heat peanut oil to 350°F. Rub turkey with any oil mixture that escaped while sitting overnight then rub inside and out of turkey with dry rub mixture.

Tie legs and wings to body with cotton string.

Lower breast side up into hot oil.

Be cautious of hot splattering oil.

Maintain oil temp at 350°F. Fry 3 minutes a pound till 180°F. Remove from oil and rest for 15 minutes.

Carve and eat.

Directions » sauté onion, garlic, » » » » »

jalaPeño and green PePPer with olive oil in a large Pot until soFt. add all the rest oF the ingredients to the large Pot and bring to a boil. aFter about 15 minutes, remove the chicken breasts and shred. (two Forks work well to Pull the chicken aPart!). return shredded chicken to the Pot and simmer an additional 45 minutes. serve, toPPed with crushed tortilla chiPs iF desired.

Chicken

apple anD tea brine, injecteD, rubbeD anD Deep frieD turkey

Directions »

»

skinless chicken breasts 2 cuPs Frozen corn 1/2 cuP dry white wine or 1/2 cuP water 2 teasPoons cumin 1 teasPoon chili Powder 1/4 teasPoon cayenne PePPer 4 (14 ounce) cans chicken broth 2 (14 ounce) cans diced tomatoes 2 (8 ounce) cans tomato sauce

Garlic Bites Directions » Place chicken in shallow dish.

» in small bowl, mix » »

inGreDients

» »

» 2 boneless skinless chicken

»

» » » » »

breasts, cut into bite size Pieces 1/2 cuP olive oil 4 cloves garlic, minced 1/4 teasPoon PePPer 1/2 cuP breadcrumbs 1/4 teasPoon cayenne PePPer

» » »

olive oil, garlic, and black PePPer. Pour over chicken. cover and marinate 30 minutes. drain.

Preheat oven to 475°F. mix bread crumbs and cayenne. coat chicken. arrange in a single layer on cookie sheet. bake 10 minutes or until brown.

16

AFGHAN NEWS

December-2013

www.fijisun-usa.com

FIJISUN

Total US troop pull-out raised as Afghan leader balks at security pact

Afghanistan's

President Hamid Karzai has refused to sign a security deal with the United States, the White House said, and Washington may have to resort to the "zero option" of withdrawing all American troops from the strife-torn country next year, as it did in Iraq.

Karzai told US ational Security Adviser Susan Rice in Kabul on Monday that the United States must put an immediate end to military raids on Afghan homes and demonstrate its commitment to peace talks before he would sign a bilateral security pact.The White House said Karzai had outlined new conditions in the meeting with

Rice and "indicated he is not prepared to sign the [bilateral security agreement] promptly". "Without a prompt signature, the US would have no choice but to initiate planning for a post-2014 future in which there would be no US or Nato troop presence in Afghanistan," a White House statement quoted Rice as saying.

On Sunday, an assembly of Afghan elders endorsed the security pact, but Karzai suggested he might not sign it until after national elections next spring. The impasse strengthens questions about whether any US and Nato troops will remain after the end of next year in fghanistan, which faces a still-potent

NATO hails Jirga's support for security pact KABUL: Insisting on

early signing of BSA, NATO officials on Wednesday hailed the decision of the consultative Loya Jirga to support the security agreement.“The NATO alliance appreciates the Loya Jirga’s endorsement,” said NATO spokeswoman Oana Lungescu.

He added that it will also be important to put in place the necessary legal framework for the deployment of the NATO-led mission to train, advice and assist the Afghan security forces after 2014.” She said NATO would be working closely with the Afghan government on this issue

in the weeks ahead.

Although the grand assembly endorsed the deal on Sunday, but President Hamid Karzai is balking at on approval of the co-operation agreement and insisting for amendments and more concessions. He said the pact won’t be signed until after the April presidential vote. “The US should ensure the deal will be implemented,” the president told the concluding session of the forum.

US soldiers on the front line in the battle against Taliban insurgents in Kandahar province. Could Afghan forces alone cope?

over two years ago, US President Barack Obama pulled the plug on talks with Iraq about keeping a residual American force there after that war. In October 2011, when he announced that decision,

HPC hails key Afghan Taliban leaders' release from prison in Pakistan

White House threatens to pull all US troops out of Afghanistan

KABUL: Reports from Pakistan revealed on Wednesday that the Pakistani government has released three key leaders of the Taliban.The Taliban leaders were freed on Tuesday.Reports quote Pakistani officials on condition of anonymity that Mullah Abdul Ahad Jahangirwal, the advisor of Mullah Mohammad Omar; Mullah Abdul Mannan, the governor of Helmand in the Taliban regime; and Mullah Younus, Kabul police chief in the Taliban’s regime have released to support the Afghan peace process.

According to the officials, the released leaders of the Taliban could play vital role in peace efforts in Afghanistan.

The unique and historic

case. It is the first conviction of a British service person in a combat context for 60 years. It's the first in the context of the Islamist terrorist threat."Tomlinson accepted that open justice was of "great importance" but he said the attention of terrorists would be "uniquely attracted" to

was "not viable" to defer signing the deal until after the election, the White House said.Karzai spokesman Aimal Faizi said the Afghan leader laid out several conditions for his signature to the deal in the meeting, including a US pledge to immediately halt all military raids on, or searches of, Afghan homes.The bilateral security agreement includes a provision allowing raids in exceptional circumstances when an American life is directly under threat - but it would not take effect until 2015."It is vitally important that there is no more killing of Afghan civilians by US forces and Afghans want to see this practically.

insurgency waged by Taliban militants and is still training its own military.US troops have been in Afghanistan since leading multinational forces in ousting the Taliban regime in late 2001. Just

The White House has threatened to pull all US troops out of Afghanistan if it is unable to persuade Hamid Karzai to sign an agreement on a remaining military presence, after a tense dinner in Kabul that has strained relations between the two governments. Amid signs that patience for the process may be faltering in Washington, officials say that US national security adviser Susan Rice warned Karzai, the Afghan president, that his latest proposal to delay signing the deal until next year would jeopardise their plan to keep a security presence in the country after

Identity of soldier guilty of murder should be kept secret, court hears nature of the conviction of a British marine who was found guilty of murdering an injured Afghan prisoner means his identity should continue to be kept secret, an appeal court was told on Wednesday.Lawyers for the man, who can still be only named as Marine A, claimed that he and his family would be in danger of reprisals from Islamist terrorists if he was identified.Some media organisations, including the Guardian, have argued that the Royal Marine sergeant – and other members of the patrol who were with him at the time of the killing – ought to be named in the interests of open justice.But at a hearing before the court martial appeal court in London, A's barrister, Hugh Tomlinson QC, claimed: "This is a unique

there were more than 40,000 troops in the country. By the end of the year, they had all been withdrawn.There are still 47,000 American troops in Afghanistan. The United States has been in discussions with Afghan officials about keeping a small residual force of about 8,000 troops there after it winds down operations next year.US officials, including Secretary of State John Kerry and Defence Secretary Chuck Hagel, have said the bilateral security deal with Afghanistan must be signed by year-end to begin preparations for a post-2014 presence.Rice, who made a three-day visit to Afghanistan to visit US troops, told Karzai it

Marine A and his family.Marine A was convicted of murder earlier this month after a court martial in Wiltshire. The board hearing the case was shown a video of the moment when he shot a suspected insurgent dead.

After discharging his pistol into the helpless man's

chest, Marine A told him: "There you are, shuffle off this mortal coil, you cunt.

It's nothing you wouldn't do to us." Moments later, he said to colleagues: "Obviously this doesn't go anywhere fellas. I've just broken the Geneva Convention."Throughout the trial Marine A, together with two other servicemen, Marines B and C, who were cleared of murder, were given anonymity after the court ruled they could be targeted by terrorist groups and "lone wolves" if they were named.But just before the end of the case, the judge advocate general, Jeff Blackett, decided that all the marines who were on the patrol should be identified because he no longer accepted the argument that there was "real and immediate risk" to their lives.

the bulk of US troops pull out. "Ambassador Rice reiterated that, without a prompt signature, the US would have no choice but to initiate planning for a post-2014 future in which there would be no US or Nato troop presence in Afghanistan," said a White

House spokesman.

"Deferring the signature of the agreement until after next year's elections is not viable, as it would not provide the United States and Nato allies the clarity necessary to plan for a potential post-2014 military presence."

America isn't leaving the Middle East, unfortunately Remember how we got

here. Three months ago, the US, Britain and France were poised to launch yet another attack on an Arab and Muslim country, this time war-wracked Syria.

An unexpected, and unprecedented, vote by British MPs halted the bid to escalate the war. That stiffened resistance in the US Congress.As Obama struggled to win support, Russia seized the chance to press for the UN-supervised destruction of Syria's chemical weapons.

A deal was reached and the threat of attack abandoned. A couple of months on and Iran, Syria's closest ally, has now signed an agreement with the big powers to limit its nuclear programme in exchange for sanctions relief – and Syrian peace talks are

back on the agenda for the new year.The west's August attempt to confront the Iranian-Syrian "axis of resistance" has been turned on its head. Russia has been bolstered without lifting a finger. The closest US allies in the Middle East, Israel and Saudi Arabia, are crying betrayal and demanding their supporters sabotage the deal in Congress.In fact, both agreements simply reflect a recognition of reality after 12 years of failed wars of intervention across the Middle East. In the case of Syria, despite covert intervention by western and Gulf states, the Assad regime has been gaining ground as the rebel camp slips further into the grip of alQaida-linked sectarian jihadists.

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AFGHAN NEWS

Women's rights in Afghanistan: one step forward, two steps back?

Women's empowerment in Afghanistan was at the forefront of the international agenda after the fall of the Taliban in 2001. Now, more than 10 years later, improvements have been made, but with a weakening of political will and transition underway, it is questionable whether these advances have been sustainable and how they are impacting the day to day lives of Afghan women. Violence against women remains widespread, with 87% of women experiencing it as a pervasive violation of rights that is intricately linked to the complex social conditions the international community pledged to address.Much of the rhetoric surrounding women's rights in Afghanistan has failed to translate into action.

Women in Kabul shout slogans to urge parliamentarians to pass a bill on the elimination of violence against women earlier this year.

Promises and initial drive have not given rise to substance and although some policy frameworks have been adjusted, they have failed to influence community-level structures that exert the greatest power over the lives of women. Instead the opportunity in 2001 to change the position of women in society was

missed and any positive steps that have been made are at risk of being lost.The focus of NGOs within Afghanistan is moving ever further away from the implementation of gender projects under the guise of incorporating gender issues within the design of new or existing programmes.As a recent report on women's rights,

WounDeD uS SolDier leArnS to WAlk AgAin

gender equality and transition by the Afghanistan Research and Evaluation Unit (AREU) puts it: "a lack of political will, limited funding and weak capacity among key national and international stakeholders has meant that mainstreaming [the process of assessing the implications for women and men of a planned programme] has had little effect on standard operations."According to the senior research officer at AREU, Jennefer Bagaporo, gender mainstreaming can be effective when it is "a procedure or strategy that works for both men and women and means that their concerns and experiences – social, economic and political – are considered and integrated in policies.

17

Afghanistan's poppy farmers plant record opium crop, UN report says Afghanistan's farmers

planted a record opium crop this year, despite a decade of western-backed narcotics programmes aimed at weaning farmers off the drug and cracking down on producers and traffickers.For the first time over 200,000 hectares of Afghan fields were growing poppies, according to the UN's Afghanistan Opium Survey for 2013, covering an area equivalent to the island nation of Mauritius.Violence and political instability means there is unlikely to be any significant drop in poppy farming in the world's top opium producer before foreign combat troops head home next year, a senior UN official warned."This is the third consecutive year of increasing cultivation," said Jean-Luc Lemahieu, the outgoing Afghanistan director for the UN Office on Drugs and Crime, which publishes the report.

"The assumption is that the illicit economy is to

gain in importance in the future."

With conflict spreading to once-peaceful areas of the country and a critical presidential election scheduled for early next year, poppy fields provide both cash to networks of power-brokers and insurance to farmers at the bottom of Afghanistan's feeble economy.Portable and longlasting, the high value per kilo of opium makes it attractive to families who fear they may need to flee, or see fields of conventional crops destroyed by fighting.The total harvest was probably slightly lower than the previous peak five years ago, mostly because bad weather meant each plant yielded less of the sticky narcotic.

But the number of fields turned over to poppy is a more accurate gauge of farmers' enthusiasm for the crop and the government's ability to control it than the final production figures.

White House will not publicly apologise for Afghan war mistakes As it nears an accord that

US army Sgt Matt Krumwiede, from the 5-20 Infantry Regiment attached to 82nd Airborne Division, patrols in the Zharay district of Kandahar province, southern Afghanistan,

December-2013

will keep a residual US troop force in Afghanistan for years to come, the Obama administration is publicly adamant that it will not apologize to Afghans for mistakes it has made in its longest war. But it is possible that a communique separate from the text of the so-called bilateral security agreement may contain a “reassurance” that US troops have mistakenly killed Afghan civilians during a war that just entered its 13th yearJen Psaki, the chief State Department spokes-

woman, tied addressing civilian casualties together with reassuring an Afghan assembly, set to begin Thursday in Afghanistan, that the US is committed to Afghanistan’s security.

“The secretary offered the idea of providing the same reassurances about our security relationship and addressing past issues, such as civilian casualties, which we’ve talked about many times in the past, in some format,” Psaki said Wednesday.

“Nobody asked for an apology,” Psaki said, saying that

reports of an Afghan demand for a show of US contrition was “perhaps a game of telephone.” The Afghan president, Hamid Karzai, spoke with Secretary of State John Kerry, his principal interlocutor on the accord, over the phone for the second time in as many days. In his prior phone call, Kerry acknowledged “mistakes” made by US forces over the twelve years of war.

On Tuesday, Susan Rice, President Obama’s national security adviser, said bluntly that an apology was “not on the table.”

How Afghans see America: the cowboy that divided the village This is what an Afghan

commentator said dismissively about an article on the worldwide decline in US power. Better to be with the lion than tickle its tail, risking to agitate the mighty beast. Given the Afghans' own history of violence, the idea that might naturally means right resonates with many. It explains why in 2001, Kabul's Taliban famously shaved off their beards while the rest looked up at "Uncle Bush" as their personal savior.

Much has changed since then. The stories that Afghans tell each other about America in this final year of the war reveal the US as bewildering and unfathomable. In the plot of current Afghan history,

Uncle Sam variously turns up as the embodiment of evil and its polar opposite, a potential savior. The latest "deal" between the two countries will only add to that.Like the rest of the world, Afghans interpret their experience with the US within the context of their own dominant narratives. The story of Afghan nationalism – a small Muslim nation under threat by foreign superpowers – still resonates with nationalist opinion leaders. They regard the US as the latest empire intent on destroying the Afghans' way of life.

Often writing from the distance of exile, the authors of such tales face a serious question: how come the Afghan people defeated

"Don't be foolish. America is still the lion of the jungle!"

Afghan president Hamid Karzai speaks at the loya jirga in Kabul.

The meeting will deliberate on a US-Afghan security deal.

the Soviet Empire only to end up being occupied by America?To make sense of this departure from the "natural course" of Afghan

history, the writers resort to conspiracy theories. The Afghans' own civil war fighters, the mujahedin of past decades and the

Taliban of today, are depicted as mercenaries in the pay of Washington. In such stories, militant Islamism is seen as a US creation, 9/11 as the US government's own plot, and the war on terror as the US's agenda to stir up trouble among Muslims and weaken their resolve, making them recognize the state of Israel as legitimate.When Israel is absent from the narrative, some Afghans turn to another conspiracy theory: the US is in Afghanistan because it wants to exploit natural resources. An Afghan student I met in California summed up this view through a summation of a recent phone call to his grandmother in Kabul.

She told him that she had seen with her own eyes "American troops digging into the Afghan soil in search of precious minerals". In such theories, we find echoes of the leftist critique of US imperialism that became popular among the Afghan intelligentsia and political activists of the 1960s and 70s. After all, what united the Afghan communists and their mujahedin nemesis was their ideological hostility towards the US. Even though both sides lost their legitimacy in the eyes of a majority of Afghans, their intellectual legacy of antiAmericanism in the guise of anti-imperialism has survived the turmoil.

18

BANGLADESH NEWS

December-2013

www.fijisun-usa.com

Massive violence : 6 people killed and over 200 injured

Dhaka: Six people were

killed and over 200 injured in violent clashes at different parts of the country on the second day of the 18party alliance’s 48-hour rail-road-waterway blockade, taking the death toll to 13 in the last two days, reports UNB The BNP-led 18-party alliance enforced the blockade programme on Monday protesting the announcement of the schedule for the next general election. ccording to reports reaching the UNB news desk, two people were killed as BNPJamaat men clashed with policemen and Awami League activists at Mukundugachi Bazar in Belkuchi upazila in Sirajganj in the morning.

The deceased were identified as Masum Billah, 25, ward No-3 unit Chhatra Dal joint secretary and son of Shamsul Alam of

Brief news CYCLONE ‘LEHAR’ MOVES WESTWARDS

DHAKA : The severe cyclonic storm, ‘Lehar’, over the southeast Bay and its adjoining areas moved westwards, reports UNB. It centred at 12 noon on Tuesday about 1,105 kms south of Chittagong port, 1,015 kms southwest of Cox’s Bazar port and 1,090 kms south of Mongla port.

NAVY SHIP LEAVES FOR PHILIPPINES DHAKA : BNS Samudrajoy, a Bangladeshi navy ship, left for Philippines with relief goods for the typhoon-affected people of the country, reports UNB. The ship will reach the Manila port on November 29, said an ISPR press release on Monday.

The relief items include dry food, pure drinking water, water purifying tablets, baby food, clothes and medicines.

HIZB UT-TAHRIR MAN HELD IN CITY DHAKA : Members of Rapid Action Battalion (Rab) arrested a member of banned Islamist outfit Hizb ut-Tahrir Bangladesh along with anti-government leaflets from the city’s Mohammadpur area on Monday, reports UNB. The arrested person was identified as Jamil Uddin Ahmed, 30, an active member of the militant group.

son of Abdul Majid of the village. In Chittagong, a man was killed when a human-hauler overturned after being chased by blockaders on ChittagongAnwara road at Fakirnirhat in Patiya upazila in the afternoon.The deceased was identified as Ershad Ali, 25 of the upazila.In Gazipur, a UP member was stabbed to death and 10 others were injured in a clash between the opposition and Awami League activists when both groups brought separate processions at Chupair in Kaliganj upazila in the morning. Violent incidents like vandalising and torching of vehicles, clashes between hartal pickets and police and ruling party activists, arrest of opposition leaders and activists and crude bomb blasts were also reported from a good number of districts.

FIJISUN

Witness says Khokon killed his father DHAKA, NOV 27: A wit-

ness testified at the International Crimes Tribunal-1 against Zahid Hossain Khokon that the accused had killed his ailing father with his own hands during the liberation war. Prosecution witness-6 Idris Sarder Wednesday said Khokon, a BNP leader and the chairman of Nagarkanda Municipality under Fardipur district, set fire to his houses in 1971 in cooperation with his fellow Razakars and Pakistan occupation army. “As my father was trying to flee the scene, they caught him and took him to a road.

They shot my father and left his body on the road.

Later, we found him dead lying in a pool of blood,” he said.The three-member tribunal, chaired by Justice ATM Fazle Kabir, also recorded the deposition of other witness Abdul Aziz Matabbar.

Chandmituani village and Maulana Abdul Jalil,55, a upazila-level Jamaat leader. n Dhaka, one Anwara Begum, who suffered injuries in a crude bomb blast at Tilpapara in

Khilgaon area on Tuesday afternoon died at Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH) early Wednesday.

In Satkhira, a Jamaat-eIslami activist was shot dead, and several others

467 sued in Bogra

BNP is boycotting election showing sympathy with Jamaat: PM

They leaders and activists

of 18-party alliance were sued for their alleged involvement in crude bomb explosionSome 467 leaders and activists of 18-party alliance were sued on Wednesday for their alleged involvement in crude bomb explosion and obstructing police works during the 60hour countrywide blockade in Bogra.Sub-Inspector of Shahjahanpur police station Korban Ali filed the case mention the names of 67 people out of 467.Officer-incharge ofShahjahanpur police station MahmudulAlam confirmed the matter. Police sources said some 250 crude bombs were hurled targeting police during a clash in Shahjahanpur on Tuesday that killed the Jubo Dal leader Yusuf.

Dhaka : Prime Minister

Sheikh Hasina on Wednesday said the BNP is boycotting the election showing sympathy to its main ally Jamaat-e-Islami as the High Court has banned this party, reports UNB.“They (BNP) want to save the war criminals, they want to save Jamaat. They are boycotting the election to show utmost sympathy to the Jamaat,” she said in her introductory speech at the Awami League Parliamentary Board (ALPB) meeting.The meeting was held at the Awami League President’s Dhanmondi office with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in the chair.

The ALPB sat on Wednesday for finalising the party’s nominations for the next general election.

Bangladesh hails Iran deal on nuke control DHAKA : Bangladesh has welcomed the Joint Plan of Action reached on November 24 between Iran and five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council-plus Germany in Geneva, reports UNB. “Bangladesh hopes that the deal reached among the parties will pave the way for a mutually-agreed, longterm comprehensive solution to the issue of Iran’s nuclear programme to be pursued for peaceful purposes in compliance with

injured in a clash with law enforces at Shialdanga village in Sadar upazila of the district early Wednesday.

The deceased was identified as Shamsur Rahman,35,

international norms, practices and standards,” said a Foreign Ministry statement on Tuesday.

Earlier, Iran has agreed to curb some of its nuclear activities in return for about $7bn (£4.3bn) in sanctions relief, after days of intense talks in Geneva.After four days of negotiations, representatives of the P5+1 group of nations – the US, the UK, Russia, China, France and Germany – reached the agreement with Iran in the early hours of Sunday.

had nothing to do with this matter as the High Court slapped ban on this party.

Referring to the two years under the last caretaker government, she said that the period was horrible and the people do want that type of situation in the country anymore.The Prime Minister requested the opposition leader to stop all destructive activities saying that her wishes will not be fulfilled as the people want election.She said the opposition leader will have to take the responsibility of the conspiracy to kill people by uprooting the fish plates of the railway tracks.

“Someday she will be indicted as the giver of orders.” Hasina said the present process of holding the next election is a permanent one.

Referring to the BNP’s claim that they are the most popular political party in the country, Hasina said: “If they are so popular why they are refraining from the election. What is the fear that prompts BNP to boycott the election?”She said people will not cast their votes in favor of BNP in the next election as they still

remember their (BNP’s) corruption, patronage to militancy, and other destructive activities.“The opposition leader is refraining from the election as she is afraid of not receiving the people’s mandate and defeat in the election.”About the ban on Jamaat, the Prime Minister said that the government

40 gold bars seized at Ctg airport

Army deployment anytime EC to sit with law enforcers today

CHITTAGONG :

Dhaka: The Election

Customs officials at Hazrat Shah Amanat International Airport in Chittagong seized 40 gold bars from an aircraft on Monday morning, reports UNB. Assistant Commissioner (Customs) Parvez Al Zaman of the airport customs said a Chittagongbound ‘BG 048′ flight of Biman Bangladesh Airlines from Dubai landed at Shah Amanat International Airport at about 11:05 am.

Being tipped off, a team of the customs intelligence conducted a search in the aircraft and recovered 40 gold bars weighing around 4.65 kgs from the hand luggage compartment in an abandoned condition, said Parvez.

Commission sits on Thursday with the top brasses of law-enforcing agencies to finalise strategies to make an electionfriendly environment during the country’s 10th parliamentary polls billed for January 5, reports UNB The meeting will be held at 11am with Chief Election Commissioner Kazi Rakibuddin Ahmad in the chair. Chiefs and top officials of the law enforcing agencies will participate in the meeting.

Representatives from the armed forces will also be present in the meeting as the commission has already decided to deploy army during the election, EC secretariat sources said. In the

wake of the countrywide sporadic violence following the BNP-led 18-party opposition alliance’s rail-roadwaterways blockade programme, the armed forces are likely to be deployed across the country anytime to preclude further violence.In its scheduled meeting, the commission will take the decision when the army will be deployed, said an Election Commissioner.Election Commissioner Brig Gen (retd) Zabed Ali on Tuesday said the army deployment would be prolonged if the situation demands.Meanwhile, a contesting candidate for the 10th national election is eligible to spend maximum Tk 8 per voter.

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December-2013

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Islam toDay

December-2013

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Why Muslims should celebrate Thanksgiving?

Posted by Zia Shah epigraph: and, truly, thy Lord is gracious to mankind, but most of them are not grateful. (al Quran 27:74)

By Imam Shamshad a.

Nasir of ahmadiyya muslim Community baitul Hameed mosque – 909-627-2252 – 11941 ramona ave. – Chino, Ca 91710) Can Muslims celebrate Thanksgiving? Of course they can! Muslims should celebrate Thanksgiving because it’s all about being thankful to God and that is what Islam is all about. As Muslims, we are taught that God blesses us all the time — indeed, every breath we take is a gift from God — and so we should be grateful to God all the time. To this end, Islam teaches prayers of thanks to God for every circumstance and activity — from going to sleep and waking up, to starting and finish-

ing a meal, to entering and leaving a mosque. In short, being thankful to God is part of a Muslim’s daily life and prayers.

Hand-in-hand with this fact is Islam’s requirement to deliver God’s blessings to others in the form of good works, charity or even just a kind word to a stranger so

they, too, can feel the warmth of human kindness and perhaps show their thankfulness to God by “paying it forward” however and whenever they can. This is why serving humanity and doing good deeds for God’s sake alone is a requirement of the faith. Saying you care about others means nothing if you don’t prove it with your acts of loving-kindness to God’s creatures and your fellow human beings.

This Thanksgiving Day (and every day before and after it), I am grateful to be free to be thankful to God in the manner I so choose.

Freedom of religion is perhaps the greatest liberty we are blessed with in this country. It can be argued that all other freedoms arise from this one essential freedom.

In many other nations – especially in so-called Muslim nations — the freedom to practice your religion is either non-existent, outlawed or severely restricted.

To outlaw or limit a person’s God-given right to believe and practice their religion as they choose is the

worst form of oppression because it targets not just the body or the mind, but the very soul. To deny anyone’s freedom of faith is to deny their soul’s right to communion with God. And so, in gratitude to America and its Constitution which provides for complete freedom of religious expression, I humbly and gratefully say, “Thank You.” Thanksgiving also provides Muslims with the opportunity to remember our loved ones who have passed on, and to thank our service men and women for all they do and have sacrificed so we can be free.

On this Thanksgiving, we will spend time with our families in personal thankfulness to God, but we will also show our thankfulness by doing our five daily prayers, by striving to be the best Muslims we can, and by bettering ourselves and our communities and the world in which we live. May God bless us and may we all be ever thankful to Him for all of our continued blessings.

Amen.

Muslims 4 Thanksgiving Dinner at Chandni Restaurant Koya

November 28, 2013 at 4:15 am

I

mam Shamshad ahmad Nasir is one of the most active missionaries with an excellent press relation. He is also a very good friend of mine. Great write up that I will be able to use tomorrow at Thanksgiving Dinner I am hosting for a select number of guests at the famous CHaNDNI RESTaURaNT here in San Francisco Bay area.

I have posted the even as MUSLIMS 4 THaNKSGIVING out of strong belief we Muslims must take advantage of this 4 Day long weekend not just for fun and pleasure but to devote some time offering thanks to allah.

My emphasis will be on s verse of the Holy Quran in which allah complains ” SHaKaRaN KaLEELaN” that mankind offer very little thanks to allah.

Thanks to Imam Shamshad Nasir sahib for added clarity. happy Thanksgiving.alhu mdo Lillah!

First thanksgiving Dinner by a small group of muslims and friends sponsored by the muslim News. Imam mubashir ahmad (seated extreme right) of baitul basir mosque, who also graced the occasion answered many questions by all guests over a buffet dinner.

Seema Chowdhury November 28, 2013 at 5:10 am

T

his is in reply to the article published in The Muslim Times , “Why Muslims.

Should celebrate Thanksgiving?” By Imam Shamshad A. Naser of Almadiyya Muslim Community USA, On November 28, 2013. Thanks for publishing this article about Thanksgiving. Sure, everything is a blessing and a gift of God Almighty and we must acknowledge that with a humble heart and a

content soul. God Almighty has bestowed unaccountable things to us human beings, but most of the time we just take it for granted.

We don’t even think about them as a privilege, to us they are just our birth right. Like a warm and a beautiful home, delicious and nice meals that we get, comfortable clothes that we wear, beautiful children and spouse that are a source of happiness for us and many many more.

Today , right now, even for a moment if we pause and sit in silence and look all around us, we will be able to reflect on our lives and be grateful to God, the most gracious and

merciful for all his gifts bestowed upon mankind.

May God be our guide in every step of the way and may He always extends his shade of love and mercy and shower his choicest blessings on all. Today I will end on a famous quote of William Arthur Ward, “Feeling gratitude and not expressing it is like wrapping a present and not giving it.”

So, let’s take this time to express our thanks for these wonderful blessings. Happy Thanksgivings to all.

Seema Chowdhury maple, Canada

FiJisun

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US NEWS

Four people reported dead after New York train derails Four people were reported dead on Sunday after a passenger train bound for New York's Grand Central Station derailed in the Bronx. Metropolitan Transportation Authority police say the train derailed near the Spuyten Duyvil station just after 7.20am. Pictures showed five carriages lying on their side, with one inches from the river. The derailed train was the 05:54 service from Poughkeepsie, in upstate New York, which was due to arrive at Grand Central Station in Manhattan at 07:43. It left the tracks in the Spuyten Duyvil section of the Bronx. The area, whose name translates from the Dutch to "Spitting Devil", is known for its difficult curved section of railway line and was the scene of a 10-carriage garbage train derailment only four months ago. The fire department says 130 firefighters are on the scene. A passenger calling himself Frank, who was

US advises carriers to comply with China air zone BEIJING: The United States advised US carriers to comply with China's demand that it be told of any flights passing through its new maritime air defense zone over the East China Sea, an area where Beijing said it launched two fighter planes to investigate a dozen American and Japanese reconnaissance and military flights. It was the first time since proclaiming the zone on November 23 that China said it sent planes there on the same day as foreign military flights, although it said it merely identified the foreign planes and took no further action.

in the carriage that ended up on the edge of the water, told the local ABC News channel that several people from the carriage were "leaving on a stretcher".

He was on his way to the hospital with minor head and neck

injuries, having climbed out.

Edwin Valero was in an apartment building above the accident scene when the train derailed. He says none of the cars went into a nearby body of water, but at least one ended up

a few feet from the edge.Sunday marks the end of America's Thanksgiving holiday, which annually sees many people take time off to enjoy a long weekend and travel home to their families across the United States.

December-2013

Obama visits immigratiOn hunger strikers in us capital WASHINGTON: US President Barack Obama paid a visit on Friday to hunger strikers calling for immigration reform, who are camped out on the National Mall in W a s h i n g t o n .

Accompanied by his wife, Michelle, the president stopped by the grassy esplanade several hundred meters (yards) from the White House, in a trip that was not mentioned in his official daily agenda.

The president and the first lady were visiting individuals taking part in "Fast For Families" on the National Mall to "offer their support for those who are fasting on behalf of immigration reform," the White House said.

Journalists accompanying the couple were kept at a distance. During their visit, the Obamas thanked

Bangladeshis find career in New York City's traffic Above a Korean fried chicken restaurant in Queens, Showkat Khan worked the room of mostly Bangladeshi men, speaking Bengali with a few English phrases mixed in, his enthusiastic message of opportunity broadcast through a crackling amp.

At one point, he held aloft a copy of New York City's Civil Service newspaper, The Chief. "You are here to make money in this country, and to get a better life," Khan said.

There was more than one way toward that American dream, he acknowledged, outlining a

few options. But one path seemed to stand above the others, if only because Khan had already paved the way: He is a traffic enforcement agent. Khan is part of an influx of Bangladeshi immigrants who earn a living by writing parking notices for the city, a curious and growing presence navigating the choking traffic and bumper-to-bumper sea of parked cars. Bangladeshi immigrants, who represent less than 1% of the city's population, now make up between 10% and 15% of the 3,000 traffic agents, Robert Cassar, the presi-

dent of the union representing the agents, said.

The Friday after Thanksgiving, which many New Yorkers mistakenly believe offers a holiday reprieve from usual parking restrictions, is in fact one of the busiest days of the year for traffic agents.

Mohammed Chowdhury, who is from Bangladesh and supervises traffic operations for much of Queens, said his officers might write three times as many tickets on that day.

In the last decade, union officials said, at least 400 Bangladeshi immigrants have become traffic

27

agents in NY, opening a new career path to those who traditionally find their way in this country from behind the wheel of a taxicab. City records put the number at slightly less than 200, but police officials said they suspected the number to be higher.

Salaries start at $29,000 a year, but the insurance benefits and pension are generous. A college education and citizenship are not needed; one must be legally eligible to work in the US and possess a high school diploma. Residency requirements are also slight.

the activists for their "sacrifice and dedication" according to a White House official. "The president told them that it is not a question of whether immigration reform will pass, but how soon," the official said.

Since November 12, the immigrant rights activists, who have set up a tent a stone's throw from the US Capitol building, have been on hunger strike, urging the House of Representatives to vote for an immigration reform measure already approved by the Senate.

The official said that the president told the activists "that the only thing standing in the way is politics, and it is the commitment to change, from advocates like these brave fasters, that will help pressure the House to finally act."

US HEALTHCARE WEBSITE DOWN FOR OVERNIGHT MAINTENANCE WASHINGTON: The website at the centre of President Barack Obama's healthcare reforms will be down for an extended period overnight on Friday as the government pushes to complete upgrades by a Nov. 30 deadline, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services said. The website, ealthCare.gov, will be down from 9pm EST on Friday until 8am EST on Saturday, CMS said.

'Fast & Furious' actor Paul Walker dies in car crash: Publicist 3 sisters escape parents’ house of horrors in us SANTA CLARITA, California: Paul Walker, the star of the "Fast & Furious" movie series, died on Saturday in a car crash that killed two people north of Los Angeles, his publicist said.

He was 40. Walker died on Saturday afternoon, Ame Van Iden told the Associated Press. A statement on the actor's Facebook page said he was a passenger in a

friend's car, and that Walker was in the area to attend a charity event for his organization Reach Out Worldwide.

"We... are stunned and saddened beyond belief by this news," the statement said.

The Los Angeles County Sheriff's department said that deputies found a car engulfed in flames when they responded to a report of a collision in the community of

Valencia. Two people who were found in the car were pronounced dead at the scene. The Santa Clarita Signal reports a red Porsche crashed into a light pole and tree and burst into flames.

Walker was working on "Fast & Furious 7" at the time of his death. He also starred in the suspense drama, "Hours," which is set for release this month.

Three sisters have escaped from a house in Arizona where they were allegedly held captive by their mother and stepfather for two years in filthy, elaborately alarmed and soundproofed rooms.

Two of the younger siblings, aged 12 and 13, had managed to climb through a window and run to a neighbour's house on Tuesday.

They claimed their stepfather had kicked in their bedroom door and threatened them with a knife. Police then searched the property and found a 17-year-old girl locked in her bedroom.

Tucson police chief Roberto Villasenor said the girls were malnourished and dirty, and had not bathed for up to six months. The house in which the girls were held

had been fitted with roundthe-clock video security, he said. Tucson police captain Mike Gilooly said, "They had not seen each other in almost two years."

Villasenor said loud music was constantly played in their bedrooms to conceal any noise they made, and towels were stuffed into ducts and around doors.

US calls on North Korea to release war veteran WA S H I N G TO N / S E O U L : The United States called on North Korea on Saturday to release an elderly US military veteran held in custody since last month and who Pyongyang has accused of killing civilians during the Korean War 60 years ago.

Merrill E. Newman, an 85year old former special forces officer, is in good health, his family said in a statement after getting an update on his condition from Swedish diplomats who had visited him in the North

Korean capital over the weekend. "He has received the medications that we sent him and medical personnel are checking on his health several times a day. Merrill reports that he is being well treated and that the food is good," the family said.

Sweden's North Korean embassy gives consular help to the United States, which has no mission there.

The family, based in California, called on North Korea to release Newman, who has a heart rhythm dis-

order, as an act of compassion, taking into account his health and his age. "All of us want this ordeal to end and for the 85 year-old head of our extended family to be with us once more."

Swedish embassy officials were granted access on Saturday to visit Newman, the US state department said, the first access by Western officials to him since his arrest. Newman was detained at the end of a trip to communist North Korea, formally known as the

Democratic People's Republic of Korea. The DPRK has no diplomatic relations with the United States which fought alongside South Korea in the 1950-53 war. "Given Mr Newman's advanced age and health conditions, we urge the DPRK to release Mr Newman so he may return home and reunite with his family," a state department official said in a statement.

The White House also urged Newman's release in a brief statement. On Saturday,

North Korea showcased Newman as a criminal, showing a video of him making a full confession and apology as if the battles of the Korean War were still raging. The state KCNA news agency said Newman had been a mastermind of clandestine operations and confessed to being "guilty of a long list of indelible crimes against DPRK government and Korean people". In the patchy video, Newman appears composed and is shown reading aloud from a

handwritten statement dated November 9, 2013, in a wood-panelled meeting room. At the end, he bows and places a fingerprint on the document. "I realise that I cannot be forgiven for my offensives (offenses) but I beg for pardon on my knees by apologising for my offensives (offenses) sincerely toward the DPRK government and the Korean people and I want not punish me (I wish not to be punished)," Newman was quoted as saying by KCNA.

FAISHON

28 December-2013

winter means different things to different people, depending on where you live. Brighten up the dull weather by taking a cue from the reigning trends of autumn/winter 2013, that have something for everyone.

Step out in pajamas The pajama trend continues to bring a laidback vibe to winter runways. To adopt it for this season, pair printed pajamas with kurtis in fun prints but muted colours. Pay attention to details like buttons and collars to differentiate it from nightwear. Don't settle for girly pajamas with overtly cute symbols and ultra feminine colours.

Bare a cowl neck Stay warm with a cowl neck sweater. The cowl neck is a fabulous classic style that can be dressed up or down, depending on the chill in the air. Throw on a shawl or a soft knit jacket in a pastel shade for effect. Think lemon yellow, citrus green or sky blue. Don't wear a cowl neck with a hoodie; the combination will be over the top.

Channel orange Festive and happy, the colour orange was also a rage at menswear shows during London Fashion Week Autumn/Winter 2013. Make a statement with an orange kurta or sweatshirt, and keep the rest of your outfit neutral.

Don't be shy of sporting orange in subtle ways, like on a pair of socks or a striped tie.

Flaunt opposing prints Bring an element of surprise into your ensemble through non-typical pairings and unexpected combinations in colours and prints. Think bird print with stripes or orange with navy blue and grey.

Better still, both combinations together! Don't try this idea if you are a shrinking violet!

Belt it out

A mid-thigh length belted jacket or coat is perfect for Indian winter. Not too long to look odd on our cities' streets, nor too short for warmth, it covers you up when required, and slims

D

espite the adverse consequences high heeled shoes are popular as they are elegant and fashionable. They have always been a woman's obsession since history as they not only add height but make the calves flex, giving the legs a fit and leaner look.

One must invest in heels that are comfortable to wear, easy to balance in and still look chic. Young women love investing in them as they are the most trendy party wear accessory and also make you the centre of attraction in a party for without heels a party dress is incomplete! Heels add that extra oomph to your party dress. So, for all those crazy heel fans here is a list of a few heels that top the list and are available in the market easily.

Be winter

Just because it's winter doesn't mean you have to stick to a drab colour scheme at work. A pastel piece can soften the gloomiest of days, provided the fabric is thick and winter-worthy. Layer a pastel pink crop top over a fullsleeved shirt, for instance.

Don't wear pastel all over to avoid looking like ice-cream.

Do sheer and stripes Although sheer and stripes are summer fashion trends, they were big on the ramp at Autumn/Winter 2013 fashion weeks in New York and Paris. To adopt both for winter, find a modest maxi dress with full sleeves, bright stripes and sheer panels; team it with comfy palazzo pants in a dark colour. Don't wear see-through or net without any layers.

Say yes to black-and-white Monochrome is fast becoming the new black for menswear as well. When in doubt, stick to classic blackand-white, especially for formal occasions. Ditch the tie for a monochrome bowtie.

Add a colourful pocket square for effect. Don't wear loose trousers; cropped trousers with a flat front are the norm right now.

take a sure-fire shortcut to becoming the queen of the party circuit by sporting the coolest accessories seen on the ramp. Kasmin Fernandes shows you how to do it right.

wear Party

accessories Indo-punk cuff

THE DON'TS OF WINTER WEAR

wear pastel to work

DON'T mistake warm clothing for shapeless items.

Wear clothes that lend definition to your frame.

DON'T wear so many layers that you end up looking like a walking pile.

Whenever you have more than three layers, balance them out with slim pants or jeans.

DON'T let a light winter keep you from pulling on a pair of boots. You can still opt for anklelength boots and booties in styles like lace-ups or wedge heels, or embellished with studs and spikes for a punk vibe.

DON'T be afraid to flaunt floral prints and motifs this winter. The bigger and bolder, the better.

Menswear is going through a floral revolution for Autumn/Winter 2013 - from intricate blooms to embroidered jacquards, every designer is getting in on the floral renaissance movement.

Take fashion's current penchant for punk to the next level through faux leather cuffs with desi motifs. Says designer Nikhil Thampi, "Pair these cuffs with a half-sari, maxi dress or a crop top and shorts. You can also wear them as arm bands with various Indian looks."

Cross necklace Religious motifs were huge in Fall/Winter 2013 collections. Accessory designer Chaiti Jangla suggests using a fusion of Indian and western motifs in statement necklaces, headgear and arm bands. She says, "Look for crosses along with symbols of Lord Shiva, Buddha and Mahavir to wear with your dresses."

DON'T get caught short in unpredictable weather. Turn to quilting if it's too warm for wool and too cold for layering.

Pendant teeka

Heels have now become a raged accessory in a woman's wardrobe. Here are the 6 kinds of heels a woman must own.

Heels

wedge heels

Kitten heels

The most comfortable and easy to walk in. They touch a major amount surface area compared to other heel types. It is thick and one with the sole. Wedges offer more arch support, reducing foot and ankle problems caused from the other type of heels.

They are comfortable and easy to carry off as they have a small heel and go with any outfit. They're not age bias as they can be worn by elderly people also as they don't have a very high heel. They can be labeled as 'young girl stilettos' and they never run out of fashion.

FIJISUN

Must

CHIC down your physique. Pick one in mustard yellow. Don't resort to a boring black coat.

If you must, get one with interesting pockets and details.

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High heeled boot Ankle boot, a knee high boot, risky thigh high version or cowboy boots. Boots work great for a night out on the town or a casual meeting with family and friends.

They are comfortable and stylish.

evening sandals These are great to have for formal affairs like weddings or celebrations and they also work great to dress up with jeans or a casual dress.

They aren't very high like the stilettos and mostly have moderate or medium heels.

Take a cue from American singer Alicia Keys, and pair your maang teeka with a glamorous dress. Create a modern pendant teeka by clipping a brooch pin to your favourite pendant.

Metallic tote A plethora of metallic outfits are gracing the streets, the runways and the celebrity fashion scene.

One of the easiest ways to wear metallics is in accessory form, especially handbags. A metallic tote will instantly up the glam factor of a plain outfit.

Boho nath Earlier this year, celebrities like pop singer Katy Perry and actress Sonam Kapoor took the nath to the international red carpet, after they made a splash at fashion weeks in London and Paris.

Since then, it has gained popularity as a unique accessory.

Channel a hippy vibe on the dance floor by pairing a delicate nath with a boho headband or headscarf, a kurti in a trippy print and a maxi skirt. Keep the makeup simple.

Shoulder dusters As the name suggests, these are long, luxurious earrings that skim the wearer's shoulders.

Shoulder dusters are the hottest things in earrings right now, so use them freely to amp up your party wear. Don't wear a necklace with these.

Candy colour midi rings Midi rings — also known as fingertip rings and firstknuckle rings — became a rage after Hollywood celebs like Rihanna and Beyonce were spotted flaunting gold-tipped fingers.

This season, look for midi rings in candy colours or embellished with baubles in fruity shades.

FIJISUN

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cRIcKeT

December-2013

29

India vs South Africa: no sledge, still plenty of hammer One of the surprises a rookie Indian umpire got when he went to South Africa a year ago as part of an umpires’ exchange programme was the way its players handled aggression.

Anil Chaudhary, recently appointed to the ICC panel, recalls, “I was officiating in a domestic game. There was this batsman who went down writhing in pain after being hit by a delivery from a fast bowler. Before I could get to him, he got up and took fresh guard. Apart from a glare, there were only a few words exchanged. I looked at the other umpire, a local, and he said with a smile, ‘Welcome to South Africa’.

While the heat is on Down Under as Australia finally rediscover bite in their cricket and sledging, all eyes will be on the young India leaving on Sunday night for the month-long tour of South Africa. It is certainly not an easy place to play, especially Tests, on bouncy tracks against tearaway fast bowlers and a formidable opposition. But if India are unlikely to find one thing Australian, it could well be that ‘unbridled, untamed aggression’.

Incidents galore India’s relationship with Australia has been tumultuous with the ‘Monkeygate’ in 2008 easily the ugliest. Although

Dhawan enters top-10 of ODI batting rankings I

ndian batsman Shikhar Dhawan on Sunday entered the top 10 of the ICC rankings for One-Day International (ODI) batsmen for the first time after moving up two places to ninth.

Dhawan was rewarded for his 159 runs in three matches against the West Indies with a best-ever 736 points.

Left-hander Yuvraj Singh also moved up a place to 70th while Virat Kohli leads the table.

In the bowlers' rankings, offie Ravichandran Ashwin has moved up three places to 14th while pacer Mohammad

Shami has made a remarkable jump of 14 places to 50th. Pakistan spinner Saeed Ajmal maintains his hold on the No.1 rank while Ravindra Jadeja is in the third spot.

India have had some bitter confrontations on the field in South Africa, especially between Allan Donald and Rahul Dravid in the mid90s and S Sreesanth the batsman and paceman Andre Nel, they were more spur-of-the-moment outbursts. That is something the International Cricket Council (ICC) takes a more lenient view of than those where an entire team targets a player, and which can spiral out of control.

Former India opener, WV Raman, who has toured South Africa with India, can’t understand why a big deal is being made about a few words being exchanged in the middle. “This happens, this

Dhoni stumps selectors, says Gambhir should be in team for SA tour MUMBAI: Gautam Gambhir's presence was felt by his absence on Sunday. In a curious turn of events, Indian skipper MS Dhoni launched a veiled attack on the Sandeep Patil- led selection committee while addressing the media prior to the team's departure to South Africa for a series comprising three ODIs and two Tests.

It was apparent that Dhoni didn't like the exclusion of Gautam Gambhir for the series when he was asked who would perform the role of the third opener in the series. "Gambhir is our third opener," he stressed while leaving the media contingent stunned.

When reminded that Gambhir wasn't part of the squad that flew out to SA late on Monday,

is a reality and nothing new,” he told HT. “Every team does it. If it doesn’t happen, the whole charm of playing will be lost.”

Former all-rounder Manoj Prabhakar draws a distinction between the aggression of Australia and South Africa players. “Yes, the South Africans are very aggressive, but they put all of that in their game,” he said. “They are men of good character. Mind you, this type of aggression can be unnerving too.” On the 1992 tour he went, an altercation took place between Peter Kirsten and Kapil Dev, after the home batsman was run out for backing up too far after being warned earlier, but it didn’t

Despite recent friction between the two bodies, Cricket South Africa and the BCCI have shared a cordial relationship over the years. And the IPL also has brought players from both countries closer with AB de Villiers and Virat Kohli sharing the same dressing room like Ishant Sharma and Dale Steyn.

But that bonhomie will be put to the test, and there are still some down there baying for blood. Mike Haysman, a former cricketer turned commentator recently tweeted a newspaper image with a comment warning the Indians.

Unsurprisingly, that image was of English batsmen hopping at the Gabba!

Playing without Sachin a challenge: Dhoni MUMBAI: Mahendra Singh Dhoni says playing in alien conditions and that too without Sachin Tendulkar is a big challenge for his side but the Indian skipper is hopeful that playing Onedayers first will allow his batsmen settle well ahead of the Test series against South Africa. India will play threematch ODI series ahead of two-Test series in South Africa.

"If you see there is always a new start," Dhoni said about absence of Tendulkar, who retired recently last month.Dhoni said his batsmen have plenty of experience in the shorter format of the game and playing ODIs first will give them confidence for the Tests."Many of them have had good exposure if not in Tests, but in ODIs. It is a new challenge for all of them and a new learning curve. It is

always a challenge when you go outside. Which length to bowl and to adjust to the bounce of the wickets.

It is good to start with ODIs. As the batsmen can play their shots and express themselves and carry it into the Tests," he said ahead of team departure.

Asked who will perform the duties of the third opener in Tests, which has only two regulars in Shikhar Dhawan and Murali Vijay, Dhoni surprised everyone by naming Gautam Gambhir, who is not part of the 17-member squad. "If you see, Gautam is definitely our third opener that we are considering. As of now, Vijay and Shikhar they have done really well for us. So third opener as of now is Gautam."

Later he clarified, "I know (gambir not being in team) but he is the third opener.

But he never asked if he is

part of the team."

Nevertheless, the statement

by Dhoni makes it clear that Gambhir is still in the scheme of things for at least Test side. Asked who was likely to replace Tendulkar at number four in the Test squad, Dhoni they are to yet to decide on that. "We are not decided on number 4.

No one is going to replace anyone else," he said before adding in lighter vein, "If possible we will omit the number 4. And try to bat 1,2,3, 5,6... and 12."Bowling in slog overs has been a worry for India but Dhoni was hopeful of a better performance in South Africa. "In different conditions the statistics would be different. There will be pace and bounce on offer for the fast bowlers. Along with the yorkers, they can use bouncers and a little bit pace. So we will see how it goes," he said.

India 2nd in ICC Test rankings

‘It helps that the ODIs are first up’ India begins its sixth tour of South Africa in 20 years with a three-match ODI series, the first of which will be at the Wanderers, Johannesburg, next Thursday. On the head-tohead count, South Africa has clearly had the upper hand in the shorter format of the game, winning 19 of the 25 at home, whereas India has managed to put it across the host only in five games. South Africa, which notched up its 100th Test match recently, must be hoping to sustaining its excellent showing against the India; in the 15 Tests at home against India — all since its return to the fold a little over two decades ago — South Africa has won seven matches, India two, and six have ended in draws.

Mahendra Singh Dhoni, who has played four Test matches in the Rainbow Nation, will want to make amends to his team’s recent results playing away — 4-0 loses in England and in Australia.

erupt into a major issue.

Home away from home The South Africa fans too have played a role in keeping things cool. Wasim Jaffer, the opener on the 2006-07 tour who hit a century in the Cape Town Test, says, “Unlike in Australia, where the crowd joins in, the fans in Johannesburg and Durban (where India will play most of their cricket) include a large number of Indians. There could be an odd word or banter from their players to unnerve ours but it won’t be like the Brisbane Test. The sledging in Brisbane got a bit too much even by Aussie standards because they were coming off losses and were really desperate for a win.”

India fast bowler R Vinay Kumar married his long-time girlfriend Richa on 28th November 2013. The 29-year-old, who was part of the Indian team in the ODI series against West Indies, met Delhi girl Richa a few years ago.

The Indian cricket team continued to be second in the ICC Test rankings with R. Ashwin topping the allrounders’ chart in the latest list issued on Sunday.

India are placed behind South Africa with 119 points, which is just 12 less than the Proteas’ tally. The teams are set to clash in a two-Test and thee ODI series starting December 5, in South Africa.

Cheteshwar Pujara is the best-placed Indian batsman at sixth with Virat Kohli following him at a distant 20th spot. In the bowlers’ list, R. Ashwin is fifth, followed by Pragyan Ojha at ninth.

Meanwhile, New Zealand and the West Indies will begin their contest in a three-Test series from December 3 in Dunedin with an aim to

improve their ratings points in the team standings, the ICC said in a statement.

West Indies enter the series in sixth position on 95 ratings points, while New Zealand start off in eighth place with 75 ratings points.

If New Zealand was to win the series by a margin of 2-0, they can rise up to 82 ratings points, while a 3-0 series sweep will hand the home team a rise of eight ratings points to thereby finish at 83.

In both scenarios (New Zealand winning 2-0 and 3-0), West Indies will move down to seventh place behind Sri Lanka. If New Zealand win the series by either 1-0 or 2-1, or even if the series is drawn 0-0 or 1-1, there will be no change in West Indies’ final position on the table.

30 December-2013

INDIAN SPACE mISSIoN

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FIJISUN

Isro's

Mars mission

EntErs sEconD stagE Indian

Probe begins journey to Mars

I

ndia's mission to Mars has embarked on its 300-day journey to the Red Planet.

Early on Sunday the spacecraft fired its main engine for more than 20 minutes, giving it the correct velocity to leave Earth's orbit. It will now cruise for 680m km (422m miles), setting up an encounter with its target on 24 September 2014. The Mars Orbiter

I

ndia's first mission to Mars left Earth's orbit in the early hours of Sunday, clearing a critical hurdle in its journey to the red planet and overtaking the recent efforts of rival Asian giant China.

The success of the spacecraft, scheduled to orbit Mars by next September, would carry India into a small club of nations including the United States, Europe, and Russia, whose probes have orbited or landed on Mars. India's venture, called Mangalyaan, faces further hurdles still on its journey to Mars. Fewer than half of missions to the planet succeed. "While Mangalyaan takes 1.2 billion dreams to Mars, we wish you sweet dreams!" India's space agency said in a tweet soon after the event, referring to the citizens of the world's second-most populous country.

China's Mars probe rode piggyback on a Russian spacecraft that failed to leave Earth's orbit in November 2011.

The spacecraft disintegrated in the atmosphere and its fragments fell into the Pacific Ocean last year.

India's mission showcases the country's cheap technology, encouraging hopes it could capture more of the $304-billion global space market, which includes launching satellites for other countries, analysts say.

"Given its cost-effective technology, India is attractive," said Rajeswari Pillai Rajagopalan, an expert on space security at the Observer Research Foundation think-tank in Delhi.

India's low-cost Mars mission has a price tag of 4.5 billion rupees ($73 million), just over a tenth of the cost of NASA's latest mission there, which launched on November 18.

Homegrown companies — including India's largest infrastructure group Larsen & Toubro, one of its biggest conglomerates, Godrej & Boyce, state-owned aircraft maker Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd and Walchand Nagar Industries — made more than twothirds of the parts for both the probe and the rocket that launched it on November 5. India's probe completed six orbits around Earth before Sunday's "slingshot", which took it into a path around the sun to carry it towards Mars.

The slingshot requires precise calculations to eliminate the risk of missing the new orbit. "Getting to Mars

is a big achievement," said Mayank Vahia, a professor in the astronomy and astrophysics department of the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research in Mumbai.

"If the spacecraft is half a degree out in its direction, or if the velocity is a few kilometers too fast or slow, the slingshot will not work."

India's space agency will have to make a few midcourse corrections to keep the probe in its new path.

The mission's next big challenge will be to enter an orbit around Mars next year, a test failed in 2003 by Japan's probe, which suffered electrical faults as it neared the planet.

"You have to slow the spacecraft down once it gets close to Mars, to catch the orbit, but you can't wait until Mars is in the field of view to do it - that's too late," Vahia said.

India kicked off its space program 50 years ago and developed it rapidly after Western powers levied sanctions over a 1974 nuclear weapons test, driving the country's scientists to develop their own rocket technology.

Five years ago, India's Chandrayaan satellite found evidence of water on the moon.

By contrast, India has had mixed results in the aerospace industry.

Hindustan Aeronautics has been developing a light combat aircraft since the early 1980s, with no success. The Mars probe plans to study the planet's surface and mineral composition as well as search the atmosphere for methane, a chemical strongly tied to life on Earth. A Nasa mission, Curiosity, did not find any significant amounts of the gas during recent tests.

"We have planned right now four mid-course corrections; first one will be around December 11 - plus or minus a couple of days depending on the deviation," Mission (MOM), also known as Mangalyaan, is designed to demonstrate the technological capability to reach Mars orbit. But the $72m (£45m) probe will also carry out experiments, including a search for methane gas in the planet's atmosphere.

MOM tweeted: "Earth orbiting phase of the #Mangalyaan ended and now is on a course to encounter Mars after a journey of about 10 months around the Sun." The head of the Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro) K Radhakrishnan said the operation to leave orbit

had passed off well.

Since launch on 5 November, the craft has progressively raised its orbit around Earth with a series of engine burns.

The manoeuvres were all successful apart from the fourth, carried out on 11 November, during which a problem with the liquid fuel thruster caused the MOM to fall short of the mark.

But Isro has made plans for the eventuality that changes need to be made to the 1,350kg spacecraft's course.

"We have planned right now four midcourse corrections; first one will be around December 11 - plus or minus a couple of days depending on the deviation," the NDTV news channel reported V Koteswara Rao, Isro's scientific secretary, as saying. On Earth, the majority of atmospheric methane (CH4) is produced by living organisms. The gas has previously been detected in Mars's atmosphere by orbiting spacecraft and by telescopes on Earth.

But Nasa's rover Curiosity recently failed to find the gas in its atmospheric measurements.

If the MOM can detect methane, one possible source could be Martian microbes, perhaps living deep beneath the surface. But CH4 can also be produced by geological processes, including volcanism.

India's PSLV rocket the second choice for the mission after a beefier launcher failed was not powerful enough to send the MOM on a direct flight to Mars. So engineers opted for a method of travel called a Hohmann Transfer Orbit to propel the spacecraft from Earth to Mars with the least amount of fuel possible.

FIJISUN

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December-2013

31

Billy Slater on brink of Rugby League World Cup final berth Australia veteran Billy Slater is a strong chance to return for Saturday's Rugby League World Cup final against New Zealand.

Slater missed Australia's 64-0 semi-final demolition of Fiji after aggravating a knee injury in the quarter-final against the USA. Even the 30-year-old thought his Rugby League World Cup was over but his left knee has responded well to around-the-clock icing and the Melbourne Storm fullback is now considered better than a 50-50 chance of playing.

MORE: New Zealand clinch spot in Rugby League World Cup final | Australia march into Rugby League World Cup final If Slater does complete

a miracle recovery he will force Greg Inglis back to the centres, with veteran Brent Tate the man likely to drop out of the starting side. Meanwhile, the Kiwis are sweating on the availability of Sydney Roosters superstar Roger TuivasaSheck after he suffered a lower-leg injury late in his side's dramatic 20-18 semi-final victory over England. The 20-year-old, who scored a double at Wembley, will be monitored by medical staff early in the week before a decision on his availability is made. Veteran back-rower Frank Pritchard is also under an injury cloud with a hamstring injury that kept him out of the semi-final.

But it is not all bad news on the injury front for the

defending champions, with giant winger Manu Vatuvei certain to return after sitting out the England game with a groin injury.

Meanwhile, Kangaroos skipper Cameron Smith said his side's impressive performances in their past four games will count for

nothing against the dangerous Kiwis in the Rugby League World Cup decider at Old Trafford.

The Kangaroos have not conceded a try in their past four outings and will enter the decider as favourites. But Smith, one of five current squad members who played in the shock 34-20 Rugby League World Cup final defeat to the Kiwis in 2008, said recent form will count for nothing on Sunday. "As we've learned in the past the results in the last four weeks don't matter at all, all that matters is how we perform next weekend," he told NRL.com. "It was great to get the win (against Fiji) but we all know what's ahead of us, we're playing against the

Kiwis who are a very good side and they got us the last time we played in a World Cup final.

"They had a really close (semi-final against England) and only just scraped home in the last 10 or 20 seconds but I know they'll be well prepared for next week."There's going to be a lot of questions about who's had the better preparation – we sort of started with a harder match and they finished with a harder match. "But we're not too concerned with how they're travelling or whether they're building or what's happening in their camp, we're worrying about ourselves and I think we've improved each week."

Paul John makes three changes as Wales Sevens announce squad for Dubai and South Africa on World Series

W

Australia run in 11 tries to sweep past Fiji and reach RLWC final T he World Cup final will be a repeat of 2008 as Australia brushed past Fiji for a victory that was in stark contrast to the semi-final that went before it. The Kangaroos have barely been troubled throughout a pursuit of a trophy they consider their own and this game proved to be no different as they ran in 11 tries. More impressively they have not conceded a try in the four games since their opening-day win over England and will be as sure as they can be heading into a clash with New Zealand, the side who toppled them in the final five years ago. As Australia headed out to warm up they had to step over England players, who were still laid strewn on the Wembley turf. It was a strange sight but as is always the case with the green and golds, nothing fazes them and Fiji were duly sent packing.

These two sides met at the same stage five years ago and Australia were 52-0 winners and, with Tim Sheens' side also coming out on top when they met in the group stage three weeks ago, there were few thoughts of an upset. If there were, they were put to bed early on as Australia set their stall out, with a showand-go from Jonathan

Thurston and the half-back's subsequent goal putting them 6-0 up.

Greg Bird was then denied a score by the video referee after it was deemed the Fiji defence had been obstructed, before the same man won Australia with possession with a big hit on Fiji captain and former Australia international Petero Civoniceva - playing in his last game at the age of 37.

The mistake proved to be costly as Darius Boyd dotted down in the corner after smart work from Greg Inglis and, although the goal was missed, a third try soon arrived from Cooper Cronk as he was played in by Jarryd Hayne, the versatile back who played for Fiji in the last World Cup. The Parramatta man rubbed salt in the wounds by scoring himself in the 22nd minute, finding a way in after a left-to-right move, before James Papalii scored from close range three minutes after coming on. Hayne grabbed a second on the hooter, with James Tamou and Boyd ensuring the points continued in the second half.

Hayne completed his hat-trick and further scores from Brett Morris and Andrew Fifita completed the rout as Fiji ran out of steam.

ales head coach Paul John has made three changes to the Welsh Sevens side for the second round of the 2013/14 HSBC Sevens World Series in Dubai.

Will Thomas broke his jaw during the season opener on Australia's Gold Coast and is replaced by Ashley Evans, a try scorer in Wales Under 20s' semi final and final at the IRB Junior World Championship in France earlier this year.

Luke Morgan and Jason Harries are also named in the squad, replacing Alex Webber and Iolo Evans, who has a broken hand.

"Ashley played Under 20s earlier this year and did well and has been training well for the last couple of weeks so he deserves a go," said John.

"Luke, who has been part of our core group all year and been training

really well and had a good week last week so has been selected. He was with us in Wellington last year and is an exciting prospect. He is quick, good on his feet, works hard and iis on an upward spiral.

"Jason was unlucky to miss out on the Gold Coast trip, and was part of the Hong Kong squad that reached the final earlier this year. It just shows the competitiveness in the squad, especially up front, but Jason thoroughly deserves to be there.

Wales had mixed for-

Wales Squad for Dubai and South Africa: Ashley Evans, Rhys Jones, Lee Wiliams, Chris Knight, Luke Morgan, James Davies, Alex Walker, Rhys Shellard, Jason Harries, Adam Field, Samuel Cross, Adam Thomas. tunes in Australia, going unbeaten on day one including a 22-19 win over

Fiji, before losing both matches on day two.

With John acknowledging that all four sides in Wales' pool will believe they can make the Cup competition, the head coach is hoping his side can play all three matches "like we do when we play against side like Fiji.

"There is no such thing anymore as an easy pool, the other three sides make it a tricky group as everyone thinks they'll have a chance of making the quarter finals. "We haven't beaten Scotland or Spain for a while and Australia speak for themselves. The first two games are massive, and points difference will be important too in a pool where anyone can beat anyone. "We have an opportunity as equally as the others do but we need to be on top of our game and need to play like we do when we play against sides like Fiji."

Rugby League - Slater in World Cup fitness race Australia full-back Billy Slater is working around the clock to be fit for Saturday's World Cup final against holders New Zealand.

Slater missed last Saturday's semi-final against Fiji after aggravating an old knee injury in the Kangaroos' quarter-final win over the United States but coach Tim Sheens told a news conference at Old Trafford that he is improving every day. "Billy trained today," Sheens said. "We'll wait and see what happens tomorrow and then there'll be another session on Friday. "What I saw today at least gives us some hope that he will be available. "He's pretty resilient and the other thing is that over here it's 24/7 treatment. You don't get that at home.

"We've had two physios working very well with him in camp and he's been working very hard himself." Sheens confirmed that Greg Inglis will once more deputise at fullback and that both players ran in the position at training on Wednesday. Captain Cameron Smith revealed that Inglis, who will

revert to centre if Slater recovers in time, has been leading the battle to get the Melbourne player fit. "He got a fair work-out today, I'll tell you that," Smith said. "Big Inglis got hold of him a couple of times and threw him around. "He had to tackle a few of our forwards and a few of our guys got stuck into tackling him. "The one thing I can say is that he'll give himself every opportunity.

He's very diligent with his recovery and his rehab and he'll be working around the clock to get himself right. "The issue he's had is

not so much the damage in his knee because he hasn't got much in there to damage. "He's already got rid of all his ligaments in his knee, it's just the swelling in there." While Slater remains Australia's only injury concern, New Zealand coach Stephen Kearney still has doubts over left winger Manu Vatuvei and second rower Frank Pritchard, who both missed the semifinal win over England with groin and hamstring injuries respectively Right winger Roger Tuivasa-Sheck, whose two tries in the 20-18 win over England took his total for the tournament to eight, has recovered from an ankle injury. "Manu Vatuvei trained fully with the group today," Kearney said.

"We'll just have to wait and see how he pulls up from today's session and maybe call on him tomorrow. "Frank Pritchard is going to have a run in the morning which we'll make a call on also. Those are two main concerns. "Alex Glenn and Jason Nightingale are good to go if it doesn't work out for those two.

32

BANGLADESH NEWS

December-2013

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FIJISUN

Parliament election on January 5

The next parliamentary

election will be held on January 5, 2014, Chief Election Commissioner Kazi Rakibuddin Ahmad on Monday announced, which was rejected by the main opposition BNP and its allies. The BNP-led opposition called a 48hour blockade of roads, rail and waterways across the country from 5am on Tuesday in protest.

Alliance activists also vandalised vehicles, hurled crude bombs and attacked several election offices and police camps and stations across the country on Monday.

Jubilant activists of the ruling Awami League brought out processions in the capital and other districts, supporting the schedule.

Brief news 127-KG GANJA SEIZED IN LALMONIRHAT LALMONIRHAT : Police in a drive seized 127-kg ganja from Kulaghat Bazar area under Sadar upazila of the district on Monday, reports BSS.On a tip-off, a team of police from Sadar thana conducted a drive in the area and seized the ganja from a truck. Police also seized the truck, said Md Jamir Uddin officer-incharge (OC) of the thana.

Sensing the presence of the police the ganja trader and truck driver managed to flee away, the OC added.

TWO YOUTHS IMPRISONED FOR TAKING GANJA NILPHAMARI : A mobile court here on Tuesday convicted two youths and sentenced them to three months imprisonment for taking ganja in Syedpur upazila, reports BSS. The convicts are Al-Amin, in Shahebpara Karkhana gate area and Kamruzzamal, in Shashkandar Dangapara of the upazila.

ONE KILLED, 20 INJURED IN CLASH HABIGANJ : A man was killed and 20 others were injured following a clash between two rival groups at Nayagaon village under Lakhai upazila of the district on Monday night, reports BSS. Officer-in-charge of Lakhai thana Nazim Uddin said the clash erupted in the night between two groups backed by Jolil Member and Malek Member respectively of the village over establishing supremacy in the area.

In a televised address to the nation at 7:35pm, the CEC said his commission had “no time to delay” for a political consensus between the Awami League and the BNP on the polls-time administration. He said army would be deployed to hold a free, fair and unbiased election and ensure the safety of the voters and election officials. The CEC also vowed not to make the voters hostages to “hooliganism and muscle power.”

Rakibuddin warned that any election official failing to remain impartial during the polls would face legal actions according to the laws. The sales of nomination papers will start from on Tuesday at the offices of

all returning officers and assistant returning officers across the country, according to EC’s Senior Assistant Secretary Farhad Hossain. The last day for filing nomination papers is December 2 and the last date for withdrawal of candidature is

Help workers in Bangladesh: US Senator DHAKA : US Senator

Robert Menendez has said no one will want to wear clothes made in Bangladesh if they are stained with the blood of workers, reports UNB.Menendez in his November 24 write-up for CNN said international companies must continue to require their supplier factories to abide by strict safety and labour standards.The latter will require long-term, well-resourced programs to educate their suppliers on workers’ rights and constructive workermanagement relations.They should also implement a zero-tolerance policy for suppliers who consistently engage in antiunion activity.November 24 marks one year since a tragic fire at the Tazreen Fashions factory in Bangladesh killed 112

workers. When the fire alarms went off that day, managers acted with indifference and forced workers to stay at their stations.

Months later, devastation again struck Bangladesh’s workers when the Rana Plaza building collapsed, killing 1,131. Inspectors had declared the building unsafe, yet management compelled the workers to enter with threats of lost pay or termination.These twin tragedies galvanized world attention on the terrible conditions under which Bangladeshi workers produce over $20 billion worth of clothing for consumers abroad each year.For many Americans, Bangladesh is a far-off nation on the other side of the world. The challenges workers face there seem distant.

December 13. The returning officers will scrutinise the nomination papers on December 5-6. In his speech, the CEC said the commission had already completed all preparations to hold the next polls in line with the constitution.

“According to the constitu-

All-party government to ensure fair poll: PM The Prime Minister said

her party has no intention to snatch away the people’s voting rights Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina today reiterated her call to the main opposition party to join the all-party poll-time government so that no confusion arises about the fairness of the next election.Saying that her invitation in this regard is still open, the Prime Minister said: "I have invited all to join the poll-time government as we have no intention to rig the vote, which we have been proven over the last five years in all local and national elections."She said this while inaugurating the newly constructed building of the Dhaka Bar Association and laying the foundation stone for the Chief Judicial Magistrate Building on Dhaka Court premises.

tion, we can no more wait as we obliged to hold the polls by January 24, 2014,” said the CEC. “We do not have time to delay.”

Rakibuddin urged all political parties to contest the polls burying all of their differences through discussions and reach a consensus to take democracy forward. “On Tuesday, I can assure the voters that we will do everything needed to enable you to reach the polling stations without fear and return home safe,” said Rakibuddin. “Holding elections in 300 constituencies on a single day is really difficult in a populous country like ours. So, we have decided to deploy the popular and trusted armed forces in the polls

EC may deploy army for a longer period The Election Commission has planned to deploy the armed forces for a long period, along with regular law enforcement agencies, if required, to maintain law and order ahead of and after the 10th parliamentary polls. The commission would make the final decision on the issue at its meeting with the law enforcement agencies after examining reports of the intelligence agencies and field level EC offices, EC officials said. They said the commission had discussed army deployment at its meeting on Tursday. The EC would sit with the chief of the law enforcement and intelligence agencies at 11am tomorrow at the National Economic Council auditorium, a senior official said. The EC officials also said they had invited the principle staff officer of the Armed Forces Division, the

2m girls fall victim to early marriage in northern region Unicef report says one in

three girls are married at 15-19 and this rate is highest in the worldAround 2m adolescent girls fell victim to early marriage in the country’s northern region.

According to a Unicef survey, early marriage is a common phenomenon there and it is prevailing because of various reasons, especially due to lack of awareness among parents, so-called activities of dishonest matchmakers, marriage without birth registration, absence of social security, illiteracy and poverty.A good number of girls of middle-class families are being forced to get married at an immature age.And many of them are

divorced not long after their marriage because of dowry, premature motherhood, diverse health risks, dropping out of schools and mainly repression at their in-laws’ houses.This propensity is on the sharp rise even after various interventions from the government and non-government organisations in addition to local administrations.Early marriage has a bearing on development of Bangladesh where it still remains a big challenge, according to a report of the Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies.The report said one-third of girls get married at age 1519 and this rate is highest in the world. The rate of

early marriage between the age 15 and 19 declined by 5% to 37.5% in the 10 years to 2011.According to findings of several reports, girls’ education helps check early marriage.Girls fall prey to early marriage in the country’s northern districts, including Rangpur, Thakurgaon, Lalmonirhat, Kurigram as they are unaware of their reproductive health risks.“Child marriage is a serious problem for the country. Maternal death cannot be reduced without checking early marriage,” said Giasuddin, project manager of the Family Planning Association of Bangladesh.Adviser of Plan International

besides the VDP, Ansar, police, Rab, BGB and Coast Guard.”

“The Election Commission has amended the electoral code of conduct to ensure a level-playing field for all, putting some restrictions on the prime minister of the interim government, the opposition leader, ministers and other privileged persons,” said Rakibuddin. The restrictions would remain in force until the publication of the gazette of the election results, he said. Citing to some restrictions, the CEC said the premier, the opposition leader, the ministers and other privileged persons would not be eligible to campaign with state facilities, but they would get security.

Bangladesh Zinat Afroz identified dowry and risk of sexual repression as key reasons behind early marriage in Bangladesh.

Many mothers marry off their children at an early age thinking that they will have to give smaller amount of dowries at that age and their children will not have to be harassed sexually.Early marriage means early pregnancy and girls who become mothers face manifold health complications, including malnutrition.

According to a statistic, there are now 6m adolescent girls among a total population of 31m in the northern districts of the country.

home secretary, police, Rapid Action Battalion, Border Guard Bangladesh, the Detective and Special branches of police, the Coast Guard, Ansar and the VDP to the meeting.

Chief Election Commissioner Kazi Rakibuddin Ahmad on Tursday said the commission would discuss the current law and order situation with the law enforcers. Election Commissioner Zabed Ali said: “If the situation demands, the commission may deploy army for a long period to hold the election in a free, fair and neutral manner.” Normally army is deployed for five to seven days during the national polls. But the armed forces were deployed for 12 days – the longest period so far – for the February 15, 1996 elections.

Ctg fire kills mother, 2 children CHITTAGONG : A women and her two children were burnt to death in a fierce fire that broke out at Panchpukuria village in Fatikchhari upazila early Wednesday morning, reports UNB. Five houses were also gutted by the blaze.The deceased were identified as Sumi Nath, 25, wife of Milon Nath of the village, their daughter Barhsa Kumar Nath, 2, and son Shrabon Nath, 1.

Ataur Rahman Bhuiyan, officer-in-charge of Fatikchhari police station, said the fire originated from the kitchen of Laxmibaran Mahajan of the village and soon engulfed five houses killing Sumi and her two children around 4:00am.

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AFGHAN NEWS

December-2013

33

Pakistan promises to help Afghan officials meet key Taliban figure Nawaz Sharif makes first trip to Kabul since taking power and offers full support to Afghan peace process

P

akistan’s prime minister said he was committed to helping find peace in Afghanistan and that a deal had been reached to allow Afghan negotiators to meet a highprofile Taliban commander.

Speaking during his first visit to Kabul since taking power in May, Nawaz Sharif said next year marked a “milestone” as foreign forces left the country and urged an end to what he called the “destructive cycle of conflict.”

His one-day visit comes at a crucial moment.

President Hamid Karzai is

locked in dispute with Washington over a deal to allow American troops to remain in Afghanistan beyond the end of 2014.

At the same time, Afghan negotiators are desperate to meet Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, who

was captured by Pakistan in 2010 when he was the Taliban’s deputy leader.

They believe he could be instrumental in persuading his comrades to reach a settlement with Kabul.

Pakistan says he has been released but Afghan

officials complain he remains under the tight control of local security agencies.

After meeting Mr Karzai, Mr Sharif said: “Mullah Baradar has been released, we discussed this matter at length today

dying man to “shuffle of this mortal coil you c***”. He then turned to other members of his patrol and said: "Obviously this doesn't go anywhere, fellas. I just broke the Geneva Convention." He had told the trial he thought the man was already dead, but was convicted of murder by a sevenman military board. Two marines acquitted of the same charge and two others who earlier had their charges dropped are also fighting the order to name them.

Hugh Tomlinson QC, acting for Marines A, B and C, told the Court Martial Appeal Court: “We say that the evidence establishes real and immediate risk. If it doesn't go that far it plainly establishes some risk, and that risk is to life and limb and also psycho-

logical harm.”

He continued: “It is a unique case.

It is certainly as far as we are aware the first conviction of a British service person in a combat context for 60 years. "There were several murder convictions during the Second World War. It is not clear to me whether any of them were for murder in the context of an operation. "But, more importantly, it is the first in any of the modern conflicts, Afghanistan or Iraq, and it is the first in the context of the modern Islamic terrorist context." Marine A faces life in prison when the military board next week decides his minimum sentence. The sentence will be served in civilian prison. Mr Tomlinson told Lord Chief Justice Lord Thomas, sitting with Mr

Justice Tugendhat and Mr Justice Holroyde, that prison was no guarantee of safety.

He said: “Marine A will be in custody because he has been convicted, but the fact is custody is no guarantee against attack.” There was a "long-standing" threat to UK military personnel from terrorist groups and extremists, he told the judges. "There can be no doubt, we say, on any view, that the risk increases if these individuals are named. That is particularly so in relation to Marine A and his family." Counsel for Marine D said the men would face “a lifetime of looking over one’s shoulder”, if named.

Jeff Blackett, judge advocate general, ruled earlier this month the men must be named in the interests of open justice and said he was unconvinced there was a “real and immediate risk” to their lives.

and we jointly have agreed on a mechanism and we will see it is properly implemented, and anybody who is sent by the president to Pakistan to talk to Mullah Baradar, we will carry out the instructions given to us by the president and make sure that such meeting takes place.”

Pakistan has long been accused of backing insurgent groups in Afghanistan as part of a strategy designed to retain influence in its backyard.

However, the current government insists a stable and secure neighbour is in its best interests.

“I... urge all the stakeholders to seize this moment and join hands to support peace efforts,” said Mr Sharif. “It is imperative to reverse the destructive cycle of conflict. “Pakistan will continue to extend all possible facilitation for the Afghan peace process.”

There is a barely a process worthy of the label at present. Talks have been stalled since a Taliban office opened in Qatar in June, enraging Mr Karzai who complained its flag and brass name plate gave it the trappings of an embassy for a government in exile.

Last week a loya jirga assembly of elders and influential leaders called for Mr Karzai to sign by the end of the year a security pact with Washington that would set the terms for as many as 15,000 American troops to stay beyond the end of 2014.

However, the Afghan president on Friday rounded on Nato forces over an air strike that he said killed a two-year-old boy in the southern province of Helmand. So far he has refused to sign the deal and insists it wait until after presidential elections in April.

Marine A 'faces attack by radicals if named' Six aid workers shot

A

Royal Marine and his family are at risk of attack if he is named after being convicted of murdering a badly wounded Taliban captive in Afghanistan, a court hears A Royal Marine convicted of murdering a Taliban captive could face attack from terrorists if he is named and his family would also be at risk, a court heard. The experienced sergeant would be a target for Islamist radicals and may not even be safe in prison.

Lawyers for the man, identified only as Marine A, said his family would be at “increased risk” if his identity were disclosed. His case is so unique he should be granted anonymity they argued, as they appealed a decision by the military’s most senior judge to name him in the interests of open justice.

Helmet camera video of the killing showed him tell the

dead in Afghanistan

The Taliban murdered six Afghans working on literacy projects for a French charity on Wednesday, according to officials in the northern province of Faryab.

The men were pulled from their vehicles and shot, said Nabi Jan Malakhail, police chief of Faryab, which borders Turkmenistan.

Their deaths will inflame fears that insurgents are intensifying attacks on workers engaged in governmentbacked projects as the clock ticks towards presidential elections in April.

The Agency for

Technical Cooperation and Development (Acted) confirmed the deaths and condemned the attack Adrien Tomarchio, a spokesman, said: "They were killed in the course of their work to support development in the north. We deplore the deaths of our colleagues while they were carrying out their duties.

"Today our thoughts are with the families and relatives of our lost colleagues and to our teams in Afghanistan." The group runs development projects across Afghanistan.

Nato apologises over drone attack that 'killed Afghan child'

T

he most senior American military commander in Afghanistan telephoned President Hamid Karzai late on Thursday night to express regret for an air strike which killed and wounded civilians in Helmand province, according to a senior Afghan official.

Earlier Mr Karzai said the deaths threatened the chances of deal that would allow American troops to stay in the country beyond the end of next year.

US-led Nato forces on Friday said they would investigate the drone strike, which the Afghan president said killed a twoyear-old boy.

Civilian casualties have been one of the most sensitive issues during the 12year campaign.

An official in the Karzai administration said Gen Joseph Dunford telephoned Mr Karzai to apologise for the incident and promised a joint investigation.A statement released later by the Nato-led International Security Assistance Force (Isaf) said the missile had targeted a known insurgent riding a motorbike.

“We are aware that according to the Governor of Helmand Province that in addition to the insurgent being killed, there was one child also killed and two women injured. Isaf, along

with Afghan authorities, will immediately conduct an investigation into the incident,” it said.

“ISAF deeply regrets any civilian casualties

caused by this airstrike yesterday.”

The deaths could not have come at a more awkward time.

Some 75,000 Nato

troops remain in the country and are due to leave by the end of next year.

Last week a loya jirga gathering of elders and tribal heads asked Mr Karzai to sign a bilateral security agreement – governing the terms under which US troops could remain beyond 2014 – by the end of this year.

However, Mr Karzai has so far refused and upped the stakes by saying he would cancel the deal if there were even one more raid that killed civilians.

Washington has said it cannot wait and must have a deal in place soon if it is to make plans for troops to remain.

Mr Karzai’s spokesman Aimal Faizi fur-

ther stoked tensions by saying that President Barack Obama had broken his recent promise "to respect the sanctity and dignity" of Afghan civilians in the same manner as US citizens.

“That is how the US respects the sanctity and dignity of homes in the US, bombing a residence for an individual?” Mr Faizi said in an email to the AFP news agency.

“It is just another example of not fulfilling the commitments of the past.”

Analysts say Mr Karzai fears becoming a lame duck president if he signs the deal now and wants to cement a reputation as a strong, nationalist leader.

34

HINDUISUM

December-2013

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Yatra Kailash

'Kailash mansarovar' is Godly home of lord shiva which must be visited once in life time in Earthly birth. The Pilgrimage to Kailash mansarovar from india ,Nepal and Devotees from West Country is seen every years.Many Devotee had their wonderful unimaginable experiences due to high climatic condition and lack of atmosphere.

Manasarovar

above sea level with an approximate area of 320 Sq. Kms. It is indeed one of the holiest & most revered lake in the Universe for Hindus. The circumference of Lake is 90 Kms. & takes approximately Three Hours to cover the Parikrama. First Sight of the Holy Lake takes away all the hardships & sufferings of the pilgrims & revives the mind & soul. A ritual Bath at Mansarovar is considered to attain Moksha and a drink of its water relinquishes the sins of lifetime.

K

ailash Manasarovar is a Scared Himalaya Mountain Situated in Tibet. Holy Kailash Manasarovar is also Famous as Mount kailash,Kailash Parvat. The Word Kailash manasarovar is derived from Two words Kailash + Manasarovar where Kailash Refers to Mountain or home of lord shiva where as Manasarovar Refers to Lake in Mountain.

According to Skanda Puran,Supreme Hindu Text,It is described that Kailash manasarovar is supreme mountains where God shiva dwells and is residential himalaya home of shiva. Where as the Lake situated in Mount Kailash name as Manasarovar or Lake manasarovar is described as Supreme Holy Lake where god shiva and Indra swimmed as Swan.

The Hindu Sanskrit words 'Parvat' or 'Himalaya Parbat 'also refers to mountain or Home of shiva,so it is also known as Kailash parvat.which Simply means home of bhagwan 'Shiva'.

It is Said in Hindu Key Text that 'Kailash mansarovar' is Godly Home of lord shiva which must be visited once in Life time in Earthly birth. The Pilgrimage to Kailash mansarovar from India ,Nepal and Devotees from West Country is Seen every years.Many Devotee had their wonderful unimaginable experiences due to high climatic condition and lack of Atmosphere. Except Vehicles Drive,many hours foot walk or incase if someone is very tried is gone through Himalaya Yak drive.Many Devotee do their struggle and hard drive to reach home of god shiva.

Devotee Chant ,worship god and Takes holy bath(snan) in Lake mansarovar and forgets

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all their troubling life and Sumbit onself to param beautiful holy dham for the momenet. Many devotee forget moment when reach mount kailash with struggle journey.One can feel full love and Get God shiva easily if someone go for pilgrimage to mansarovar.

Lake Mansarovar in Mount Kailash and Holy Mounatin Kailash are two of the holiest pilgrimage areas to devotees of Hinduism.Each year thousands of devotees undertake the Scared journey through the mountains and plains of Nepal and China to reach this sacred land in Tibet.

According to Hindu religion,

the Mansarovar lake was first created in the mind of the Lord Brahma. Hence, in Sanskrit it is called "Manasarovar", which is a combination of the words Manas and Sarovar. The lake, in Hindu mythology, is also supposed to be the summer abode of swans, who are considered as very wise and sacred water birds. It is also believed the Devas descend to bathe in the lake between 3 and 5 am the time of the day known as Brahma Muhurta,Brahma auspicious time.

sTorY of MouNT

Kailash - MYTh lEGEND sCriPT.

YaTra - To Kailash MaNasarovar laKE - GoD shiva MouNT Kailash.

It is the abode of lord Shiva and his divine consort Parvati.

It expounds the philosophy of PURUSHA and PRAKRITI SHIVA and SHAKTI. The radiant SILVERY summit is the throne of TRUTH, WISDOM and BLISS-SACHIDANANDAM. The premordial sound AUM from the tinkling anklets of LALITA PRAKRITI created the visible patterns of the universe and the VIBRATIONS from the feet of Shiva weaved the essence of ATMAN - the ultimate truth. The spreading resonance and limitless patterns constitute the grosser forms of all matters to accurate scale. This is the cosmic dance visualized in millions of forms by the devotees. The silvery mount is the apex where the sound and the lights merges and the true Yogi transcends both these and merges into OM. Mind is the knot tying consciousness and matter this is set free here. This is the heart of Indian Philosophy and civilization and the grand Manasarovar reflects the total Shaivam consciousness. The sprawling lake lies below Holy Kailsah The Abode of Lord Shiva & Godess Parvati in Western Tibet 4560 Meters

Many devotee are seen every year from India and Western country in Nepal,which is the main entrance to enter Border of China and China to tibet.

Main Auspicious Season to visit Mount kailash is June August. Many other place to see in kailash manasarovar yatra are ,Other places to See are Gouri Kund at 5608 m, also called the Lake of compassion as referred to in the shiva Purana this is the setting for the legend of Parvati and how Ganesh acquired his elephant head bathing in the emerald waters of the kund.Hindus who walk around the 32-mile circumference of Mount Kailash use the term parikrama. They believe that lord Shiva, one of their three main gods, resides atop what they call Mount Meru. Tibetans refer to the clockwise circumambulation as a kora. Both words mean the same thing pilgrimage. Doing a walk around the mountain can away a lifetimes worth of sins.

A Single circumambulation around Mount Kailash wipes away the sins of a lifetime.The other place in Mount kailash to visit are Godly and holy which is very important to visit in kailash yatra if possible.

FIJISUN aries

March-21 to April-20

caNcer

June-22 to July-23

libra

September-24 to October-22

caPricoN

December-23 to Januar-20

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This is a lucky month for many of you.

The first two weeks of the month are constructive for you. You will be pleased that at last you have better opportunities to please yourself. During mid-month children will bring a good deal of pleasure to the parents.

Circumstances may allow the business folks to extend their plans, to put more money into projects, to forge ahead on a wider front.

This is a buoyant month for many of you. During the first half of the month you need to go for true love relationship instead of physical pleasure. As far as the career is concerned during the second half of the month you will be able to develop a trustworthy relationship with your business partner. Discuss all the pros & cons to expand your business.

This is a good month for many of you. During the first half of the month, if you do have choice, take the more adventurous path in business front. On personal or family front, life will be hectic. You will be busy attending parties and occasions. Do not hesitate to ask influential people for their support or financial backing for practical schemes.

This is a lucky month for you as your health and energy conservation habit will benefit you immensely as you plan to go on a long journey in the first half of the month. Despite a busy schedule, you will be easily able to cope up with the tiredness. Your emotional urge brings desired results-as you are able to attract the attention of your partner.

You will eagerly look forward to this new relationship for happiness in the second half of the month.

STARS/ SCIENCE taurus

April-21 to May-20

leo

July-24 to August-23

scorPio

October-23 to November-22

aquaries

January-21 to February-19

December-2013

This is a general month for you. During the first half of the month, you would feel like enjoying all golden moments.

There are many plans that you would like to put into action now. Influential people will assist you in the mid-month.

The second half of the month is the time to make best use of the most opportunities that come in the way.

Glorious days at the time of Christmas and the new year. You can expect the unexpected during the month end.

gemiNi

This is a pleasant month. Some of you cannot afford to beat about the bush. You should lay your cards on the table. It would seem that you have been keeping certain emotional feelings bottled up inside you. The second half of the month mixed.

Family life will be pleasurable throughout the month as you will be spending maximum time between your loved ones.

virgo

This is a satisfactory month for you.

During the first half of the month any kind of patients should take a complete rest to avoid the problem from aggravation. But it is high time for you to stop taking alcohol if you consume-otherwise it could compound the problem. During the second half of the month your highly impolite behavior would send wrong signal to your partner.

This is a sensitive month. You need to take care during the first half of the month as far as emotional feeling is concerned. You may be acquiring a fresh ambition and could also be entering a new circle of friends or acquaintances, club activities will be fun at this time. During the second half of the month you will be quite energetic and positive. You not only have confidence but charm too.

May-21 to June-21

August-24 to September-23

sagittarius

November-23 to December-22

Pisces

February-20 to March-20

This is a happy month for many of you. During the first half of the month, you will start with a good deal of determination and optimism. You will be determined to sort out problems at home. The second half of the month is good for taking long journeys for the sake of change and a break from routine. Women will be busy in shopping throughout the month but keep looking at the family budget. Creative work will appeal to most of you by the end of the month.

This is a normal month for you. During the first half of the month you should be careful about your health. Go for a checkup to. Strictly following the dietary restrictions would be very essential to prevent it from relapsing. During the second half of the month make some serious efforts to keep your love fresh like precious things. Romantic evenings with your partner for a candlelight dinner would make a perfect beginning.

This is an exciting month for many of you. The first half is good for consulting professional advisors.

Efforts made at improving yourself as a person will be helped by favorable circumstances. The second half of the month might turn out to be a truly happy time for romance. The preparation for New Year celebration will consume quite a lot of your spare time.

This is a thoughtfully delighted month for many of you. Try to line up discussions with professional people during the first half of the month, especially if you have any social connection with them.

Agreements that can work in your favor in the next year can be made this month. The second half of the month is favorable for marriage proposals. Do not let shyness inhibit you.

Why science needs imagination and beauty

H

OW dO tHe Best scientists sOlve liFe’s Greatest mysteries? a nOBel Prize Winner takes yOu inside His mind and exPlains WHy tHe key is imaGinative Play.

A

lbert Einstein famously said: “Imagination is more important than knowledge.” They’re both important, says physicist and Nobel Prize recipient Frank Wilczek, but knowledge without imagination is barren. Take his subject of theoretical physics.

As Wilczek says a lot of what you do is to try to understand Mother Nature’s mind and her sense of beauty to see how the laws of physics could be more beautiful.

Not many people truly appreciate what happened in physics in the last part of the 20th Century. We understood at a level whose profundity would be difficult to exaggerate what matter is. We really have the equations for the differ-

ent fundamental building blocks of matter – the different particles have mathematical characterisations that are precise and elegant.

They have no secrets, in principle we have the equations.

The bad news, however, is we are not so good at solving them. There are still gaps in fundamental understanding, we have very good equations or practical purposes, but they are kind of lopsided; they are beautiful but not quite as beautiful as they should be given they are close to God’s last word in some sense. We’re trying to think of better ways to solve the equations, which takes a lot of imagination because they describe an unfamiliar world – it’s a very small world and things

35

What causes a beer belly?

Of course beer is pretty calorific, as are the snacks we crave to accompany it. But why does it specifically affect men’s guts?

Greg Foot explains all.

W

behave differently in it.

The only way to get experience is to play around with the equations and imagine how they might behave in different circumstances, it’s more like imaginative play than anything else.

The laws we have discovered, especially in the quantum world are so strange you have to

play with them in your mind. Usually what you envision is wrong, but its mind expanding and every once in a while you see something that may be right.

Sometimes it even is right.

The questions we are now able to ask are so compelling, so extraordinary. What is most of the Universe made of?

Are the laws of physics ultimately unified? What was the Big Bang like?

You just say them and they have such grandeur. The more you learn about the equations, the more you learn about physics, the more you learn how beautiful it is. That’s the real value, it’s an ornament to the human mind.

hen you drink beer, your liver has to go into overdrive to detoxify the alcohol.

Now add a few packets of crisps to the equation, maybe some peanuts and those calories are there to stay. Beer itself is pretty calorific stuff, to the tune of around 150 calories a unit so why beer makes you fat, well that starts to seem obvious. Now why does it give you a beer belly specifically? Well the answer is down to two things apparently gender and age. After about the age of 35 most men's metabolisms start to slow down. While men tend to put weight on their... bellies, women's fat stores commonly go on their backside and hips.

36

December-2013

SACHIN’S SPECIAL

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FIJISUN

As Sachin leaves billions in tears, Dhoni salutes 'role model'

A

n emotional Sachin Tendulkar gave a heartwarming speech thanking his family, coaches, teammates, friends and fans as he brought the curtains down on his phenomenal career on Saturday, saying it was hard to believe that his life between "22 yards in the last 24 years" had come to end.Trying hard to control his emotions, Tendulkar had the Wankhede crowd spell-bound as his words drew thunderous applause from his fans after the hosts crushed a hapless West Indies by an innings and 126 runs in the master batsman's farewell match to complete a 2-0 series whitewash.

"It's hard to believe that my life on the cricket field is coming to an end," said Tendulkar in his farewell speech asking cheering fans at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai to settle down.

As he thanked his family, Tendulkar said that it was his father who gave him the freedom to play and the power to chase his dreams. "The most important person in my life is my father and every time I do something special I dedicate it to my father," he said. Next in the list was his mother Rajni, who came to watch him for the first time in his farewell match, and the other immediate family members."I don't know how she managed a naughty child like me. She just prayed and prayed since the day I started playing the game. For four years I stayed with my uncle and aunt when in school, they treated me like their own son," he said.

"My eldest brother Nitin doesn't like to talk much but he said, 'whatever you do, I know you will give 100%'. My first cricket bat was presented to me by my sister Savita. It was a Kashmir willow. She still continues to fast while I bat," he said.

"Ajit my brother, we have lived this dream together. He sacrificed his career for me, he took me to (Ramakant) Achrekar sir first. Even last night he called me to discuss my dismissal.

Even when I'm not playing we will still be discussing technique. If that hadn't happened, I would have been a lesser cricketer," he added.He acknowledged his wife Anjali for "bearing with all my dreams, frustrations and all the rubbish I spoke".

"You are the best partnership I've had in my life," Tendulkar told Anjali.

Tendulkar's two children, son Arjun (14) and daughter Sara (16), were also present at the ceremony and Tendulkar promised them a lion's share of his time now as reward for being patient when he missed their special days for cricket.

"The two precious diamonds of my life Sara and Arjun. I've missed out on several birthdays, holidays, annual days. I know for 14-16 years I've not spent enough time with you. But I promise you that the next 16 and the many more after that are yours," he said.

Tendulkar also thanked his inlaws for, most importantly for let-

ting him marry Anjali.He also did not forget to thank his friends but didn't name anyone in particular.

"In the last 24 years my friends have made terrific contributions. They have been with me while I was stressed. They have been with me even at 3am when I was injured. Thanks for being there for me."

He said that the turning point of his career came when his brother took him to cricket coach Achrekar.

"Sir took me to all over Mumbai on his scooter to make sure I got enough match practice," said Tendulkar as he talked

about 82-year-old Achrekar who groomed him. "I was extremely delighted to see Achrekar sir in the stands. I used to ride on his scooter and play two matches a day. Sir took me along to make sure I played. On a lighter note, Sir never said 'well played' because he didn't want me to be complacent. You can push your luck now, Sir, since I'm not playing cricket anymore," he said. He also thanked the Mumbai Cricket Association and the BCCI for their support "during all times, good or bad".

His teammates, Tendulkar said, were his family away from

home.

"Thanks to all the senior cricketers who have played with me. All the coaches."

"It is going to be difficult to not be a part of the dressing room."

In the end, Tendulkar thanked the media and his fans.

"I know my speech has become long. I want to thank people who have flown in from different parts of the world here. I want to thank my fans from the bottom of my heart. 'Sachin, Sachin' will reverberate in my ears till I stop breathing," he said, drawing a deafening applause from the crowd.

Tendulkar played the game he loved the most with dignity and left the 22-yard strip as dignified as ever. Sachin carries a stump as he walks out of the ground at Wankhede. (PTI)On his retirement bash, speciallyminted coins, embossed with Tendulkar's image on one side, were presented to match officials.Tendulkar himself received a momento from Maharashtra Cricket Association president Sharad Pawar on behalf of the the Sri Lankan government, a special trophy from Star CEO Uday Shankar. He was also felicitated by Mumbai commissioner of police Satyapal Singh and the MCA. Dhoni salutes 'role model' India skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni saluted "role model" Tendulkar for inspiring an entire generation of cricketers.

"I think it's the biggest match

in the cricketing history. It's something we won't witness again. Thank you Sachin for being such a role model for all of us. Not only as a cricketer, but the way he has led his life, he is a role model for all," said Dhoni at the post-match presentation ceremony. Dhoni also had words of appreciation for his batsmen and bowlers for putting up an impressive show.

"I think it's a complete performance from the side. It was fantastic. The batsmen batted really well and when the opportunity came the bowlers got wickets. I think there was much for spinners in Kolkata but the way (Mohammed) Shami bowled, he gave us the edge that we needed. You want that kind of individual performances to boost the morale," he said.

A dejected West Indies skipper Darren Sammy conceded that India taught them a lesson on how to play Test cricket.

"We have to pull together and come out even stronger. It's a reality check (for us). We came here on the back of winning six Tests but India taught us how to play Test cricket," he said.

Fitting farewellAfter his side completed the formalities of a victory over West Indies, Tendulkar collected a stump as a memento and wiped tears from his eyes as he slowly made his way off the field through a mobile guard of honour formed by his team mates. As television coverage broadcast images of a huge banner in the stands proclaiming "Legends Never Retire", the 40year-old Tendulkar shook hands with opposing players and staff before climbing the stairs leading to the dressing room.

Earlier, responding to chants of "We want Sachin, We want Sachin" from a packed Wankhede Stadium crowd, Dhoni allowed Tendulkar to bowl two final overs in his 200th Test match, fittingly at his home ground. A wicket was not forthcoming for the world's most prolific run-scorer but he did show off a full repertoire of deliveries in his cameo, offering leg-spin, offspin and an immaculate googly which tail-ender Shane Shillingford somehow defended.

The regular bowlers returned to finish off a match that will be largely forgotten as a contest but remembered as a fitting farewell for a man who may be small in stature but cast a giant shadow of greatness over cricket in India and beyond. His son Arjun, who was doing the duty of a ball-boy, stood applauding at the boundary line. Starting the day at 43 for three, the West Indies were skittled out for a paltry 187 in their second innings as Pragyan Ojha completed a match-haul of 10 wickets taking his second fivefor. Cricket without Tendulkar As Team India begins a life without Tendulkar, one question that will haunt everyone is that who will fill the void left by him. Cricket lovers now look up to the likes of Virat Kohli, Cheteshwar Pujara and Rohit Sharma to keep the flag of Test matches high for India.

FIJISUN

SACHIN’S SPECIAL

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December-2013

37

Cricket is like oxygen to me

My diamonds

my association with the sport will continue: Sachin

hen, the two precious diamonds of my life, Sara and Arjun.

They have already grown up.

My daughter is 16, my son is 14. Time has flown by. I wanted to spend so much time with them on special occasions like their birthdays, their annual days, their sports day, going on holidays, whatever.

I have missed out on all those things.

Thanks for your understanding. Both of you have been so, so special to me you cannot imagine. I promise you [that] for 14 and 16 years I have not spent enough time with both of you, but the next 16 years or even beyond that, everything is for you.

My in-laws, Anand Mehta and Annabelle, both have been so, so supportive. Before you start clapping, the most important thing they did was allowing me to marry Anjali, so thank you very much.

In the last 24 years that I have played for India I have made new friends, and before that I have had friends from my childhood. They have all had a terrific contribution.

T

H

e will not take guard in an international game again, but Sachin Tendulkar and cricket will remain inseparable. As the nation speculates on his future, he declared that post-retirement too he would be part of cricket.

“Cricket is oxygen to me. Out of the 40 years of my life, I have spent 30 playing cricket; 75 per cent of my life has been cricket. My association with the sport will continue, maybe not immediately, but in the near future,” Tendulkar said on Sunday, addressing a packed press conference on his retirement. It was only 24 hours since his retirement, so he wasn’t sure in what capacity he would return to the game.

For starters, Arjun Tendulkar will have a full-time coach. Don’t be surprised to see Sachin zooming from one maidan to another, driving Arjun to play different games in a day.

That was a common sight during his cricket education when coach Ramakant Achrekar used to take him from one corner of Mumbai to another on his scooter.

STILL DIGESTING “For 24 years to play for the country, that is the biggest thing for me. During those years, there were different challenges but the desire to play for the country was so strong I had to find solutions to them. During that journey, I had the support of the family, coaches, friends, players a lot of people were with me. But last night when I sat back and thought about it…till now it has not sunk in that I won’t play cricket again. I will go somewhere and play some cricket,” he said.

THE 22 YARDS The lasting memory of Tendulkar bidding adieu will be his walk to the centre square, where he bent and touched the Wankhede wicket in thanksgiving and respect, tears rolling down his cheek. “The wicket is like my temple.

Whatever I have achieved in life, it’s done between those 22 yards. “I said earlier that when I went to the pitch and stood in those 22 yards, I realised this was the last time I was standing in that place, in front of a packed stadium as a part of the Indian team. This will never happen again. I got emotional and couldn’t control my tears.” The swell of emotion at his farewell was something that had never been experienced by the world’s cricketing fraternity.

Tendulkar strode cricket like a colossus and his home crowd did him proud by giving a send-off befitting his farewell. “These are things no one can plan for. It is something which is decided by god. I have been very fortunate to get this kind of love from the public, cannot ask for anything more from god,” he said, switching to Marathi.

“There have been many wonderful moments. You guys might have noticed that I could not look up while shaking hands with my teammates and the West Indies players. I didn’t want to be rude, but I didn’t want anyone to see my face, with me in tears. In spite of all this, I know the decision (to retire) I took was correct.”

THE FIRST DAY Sunday was the first morning he woke up as a retired cricketer. He said it is yet to sink in, and that it will take some time to get used to a relaxed routine. “This morning I woke up at 6.15 — because of my body clock — and realised I don’t need to quickly have a shower and be ready for the match. I made myself a cup of tea, enjoyed a lovely breakfast with my wife. It was a relaxed morning.”

Straight from Tendulkar’s heart to family and friends A

ll my friends. Settle down let me talk, I will get more and more emotional. My life, between 22 yards for 24 years, it is hard to believe that that wonderful journey has come to an end, but I would like to take this opportunity to thank people who have played an important role in my life.

Also, for the first time in my life I am carrying this list, to remember all the names in case I forget someone. I hope you understand.

It’s getting a little bit difficult to talk but I will manage.

The most important person in my life, and I have missed him a lot since 1999 when he passed away, my father. Without his guidance, I don’t think I would have been standing here in front of you.

He gave me freedom at the age of 11, and told me that (I should) chase my dreams, but make sure you do not find short cuts. The path might be difficult, but don’t give up, and I have simply followed his instructions. Above all, he told me to be a nice human being, which I will continue to do and try my best. Every time I have done something special (and) showed my bat, it was (for) my father.My mother, I don’t know how she dealt with such a naughty child like me. I was not easy to manage. She must be extremely

Brother’s sacrifice

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jit, my brother, now what do I talk about him? I don’t know. We have lived this dream together. He was the one who sacrificed his career for my cricket. He spotted the spark in me. And it all started from the age of 11 when he took me to Archrekar Sir, my coach, and from there on my life changed. You will find this hard to believe but even last night he called to discuss my dismissal, knowing that there was a remote chance of batting again, but just the habit we have developed, the rapport we have developed, since my birth, has continued and it will continue. Maybe when I’m not playing cricket we will still be discussing technique.

Various things we agreed upon, my technique, and so many technical things which I didn’t agree with him, we have had arguments and disagreements, but when I look back at all these things in my life, I would have been a lesser cricketer.

patient. For a mother, the most important thing is that her child remains safe and healthy and fit.

That was what she was most bothered and worried about. She took care of me for the last 24 years that I have played for India, but even before that she started praying for me the day I started playing cricket. She just prayed and prayed and I think her prayers and blessings have given me the strength to go out and perform, so a big thank you to my mother for all the sacrifices. In my school days, for four years, I stayed with my uncle and aunt because my school was quite far from my home, and they treated me like their son. My aunt, after having had a hard day’s play, I would be half asleep and she would be feeding me food so I could go again and play tomorrow. I can’t forget these moments. I am like their son and I am glad it has continued to be the same way.My eldest brother, Nitin, and his family, have always encouraged me. My sister, Savita, and her family, was no different. The first cricket bat of my life was presented to me by my sister. It was a Kashmir willow bat.

But that is where the journey began. She is one of those many who still continue to fast when I bat, so thank you very much.

Best partnership

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he most beautiful thing happened to me in 1990 when I met my wife, Anjali. Those were special years and it has continued and will always continue that way. I know Anjali, being a doctor; there was a wonderful career in front of her.

When we decided to have a family, Anjali took the initiative to step back and say that ‘you continue with your cricket and I will take the responsibility of the family’. Without that, I don’t think I would have been able to play cricket freely and without stress.

Thanks for bearing with all my fuss and all my frustrations, and all sorts of rubbish that I have spoken. Thanks for bearing with me and always staying by my side through all the ups and downs. You are the best partnership I’ve had in my life.

38

December-2013

UNION NEWS

www.fijisun-usa.com

FIJISUN

Obama Care at Union seminar in sacramento Exclusive coverage by FIJI SUN TV

More than 5000 participants attended a 3-day Union seminar at the Sacramento Convention Center On enrollment day, over 500 people signed up for the Obama Health Care. The process involved assessing each and carefully completing paperwork.

ObamaCare FaCts

Facts on the affordable Care act W

e present the facts on Obama Care (ObamaCare), the health care plan for America.

Our goal is to help you understand the Affordable Care Act. Decide for yourself what you think about the new health care law, based on the facts and not the talking points.

(ObamaCare Facts Image Public Domain, Photo by Chuck Kennedy; U.S. Government Work) •

The official name for "ObamaCare" is the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA). It is also commonly referred to as Obama care, health care reform, or the Affordable Care Act (ACA).

• The Affordable Care Act was signed into law toreform the

health care industry

by President Barack Obama on March 23, 2010 and upheld by the supreme court on On June 28, 2012.

• ObamaCare's goal is to give more Americans access to affordable, quality health insurance, and to reduce the growth in health care spending in the U.S. What is ObamaCare?

• The Affordable Care Act expands the affordability, quality, and availability of private and publichealth insurance through consumer protections, regulations, subsidies, taxes, insurance exchanges, and other reforms.

• The fact is ObamaCare does not replace private insurance, Medicare, or Medicaid

FIJISUN

bollywooD

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December-2013

39

Married people

NEED TO gO TO a

psychiatrist

K a n g a n a

K

angana Ranaut, 25, is stubborn, has high self-esteem, is sensitive and bold, and has carried herself entirely on her own shoulders. Despite many obstacles in her career, she has made it. Weeks ahead of her upcoming film 'I Love New York', she talks to TOI about the one thing she wished she could undo in her life, her attachment to her sister and why she will never get married. Excerpts: Let's talk about your childhood?

I come from Surajpur, a valley in Himachal Pradesh near Manali that is named after my great grandfather Sarju Singh Ranaut.

He was a minister for 15 years and I always had a desire to go out and explore like him. I come from a big family not in terms of money, but reputation and grew up in a protective mountain environment. My grandfather was an IAS officer, my father ran a construction business and my mother a teacher. I moved to a hostel in Chandigarh to pursue Science, but got exposed to art and culture that attracted me. I had a close encounter with dissection that depressed me. I knew that Science was not for me. Ever since I was a child, I would start crying seeing anyone in pain. I wanted to quit studies and move to Delhi to pursue sculpting. My father slapped me for the first time at 15 and I told him, 'If you slap me I will slap you back'. I felt raising your hand on anybody is inappropriate and always had a high regard for my self. My dad asked me to leave the house and I did so without a single penny in my pocket.

How did you sustain yourself in Delhi being a single girl at the age of 15?

I lived with my best friend Jaspreet, who was ten years older to me. I started modelling and joined the Asmita theatre group at the India Habitat Centre.

I did everything a girl that age can

do to damage herself for food and shelter. After a month, my father came to give me 50,000 to look after myself as that is all he could afford. But I did not accept the money, and till date it is the most damaging thing I did in my life, as it scarred my relationship with him. Today, when I am successful, my father, who is also a selfmade man, is trying to find a part of my success, which is his also and he is not able to. My theatre guru Arvind Gaur said, 'If you do theatre all your life, you will be wearing a khadi ka kurta, bitch about film stars and will not have money to treat yourself if you fall sick'. I just needed one person in my life to tell me that I could do it and he became God to me.

You are now doing I Love New York, Bullet Raja, Krrish 3, Queen, Shootout At Wadala, Revolver Rani. Have you finally found your place in the film industry?

There was a constant struggle to be accepted by the film industry.

Even after Gangster being a success, I was considered a B-grade actress and was a sidekick even though I was good at what I did and was jobless for two years.

People who come from filmi families feel people like me don't deserve to be here. Star kids are considered blue blood babas and babies even though they are older to me, whereas a Jenny from the hill, as I am referred to, is always someone to be made fun of. They can't understand that everybody who comes from a humble background need not be a gold-digger who is hungry for money. People have humiliated me and scared me. I was humiliated at a music launch of a film where the two big stars had me

removed from the posters. Just that the film had already been shot otherwise they would have wanted me to be dropped out of the film too. They wasted time and money to destroy my career.

I am a soft target and don't have a big daddy. I am deeply sensitive and that is what makes me a good artiste. I have never sucked up to anybody. Tanu Weds Manu changed my life after which I have never looked back.

Was there a period when you lost hope?

I don't put up a fake front. The most difficult part of my life was when I came to this city, I was badly treated, fell into a trap and was misunderstood. I was stalked

everywhere. I had no work after Gangster for two years and my sister Rangoli met with an accident that destroyed her looks. My struggle with my parents combined with the industry not accepting me made me feel alienated. I had decided to pack my bags and run from this place to live a life of anonymity. But it was too late as people recognised me.

How is your relationship with your father?

After my father saw Gangster, he did not talk to me as there was a kissing scene in the film. I would get messages from my grandfather asking me to drop my surname. But I love my father and if there was one thing that I could

The fact that I have gifted my parents, my sister and my brother each a house and have nothing today gives me satisfaction. I have made mistakes and put myself below my intelligence in the past, but today I feel happy, complete and appreciated.

change going back in time, I would have accepted the money he wanted to give me so that he could feel a part of my success today.

Who is your emotional anchor?

Rangoli's tragedy affected me badly. I am super sensitive, did not have work at that time and went in to the zone of 'why do women live?' My parents could not handle it and my mother kept fainting every half hour, so I sent my them back and looked after Rangoli and got her treated at the best places. One of the perks of my profession is that even when I did not have work, I could go and cut a ribbon somewhere and earn money to look after my sister. We formed a bond during that time.

You are known to flirt with your co-stars. Is that true?

I am a free-spirited young girl and flirt with my co-actors not to get work out of them, but to have fun as a young girl as they are good looking men. I have everything in terms of assets, in fact even

things I don't need. So what else can I want from a man.

Do you see yourself getting married?

No, I don't want to ever get married. I cannot even handle a fulltime boyfriend. I have so much to do everyday and cannot address the person's needs of just wanting to be around them. People who get married need to go to a pychiatrist. Even if people are happily married, a legal contract for possessing someone's body and soul is so needy. If someone does that to me I will lose interest in that person.

Why did you choose to date an Englishman as against known Indian actors?

I like intelligent people and most actors don't have knowledge of the world around them. I was dating a scientist, but it could have been a teacher or a doctor but it needs to be a person who is selfmade and with whom I can have a conversation. My priority is not to date a known man.

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he has scored a hat-trick of hits on the Bollywood pitch, with each film offering a different flavour of her versatile talent, but Deepika Padukone is in no mood to rest. She is raring to go with more multifarious roles and says she will continue to give them all her 100 %. Her first big hit of the year, "Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani" saw her impress the audience as nerdy Naina, and she followed up its success with her South Indian act as Meenamma in the box office record-breaking "Chennai Express". Deepika's latest release "Goliyon Ki Raasleela Ram-Leela", in which she plays a Gujarati girl, has also made its way to the Rs.100 crore club. "It is magical," the 27-year-old told IANS on phone as she shared her sentiment post the film's success, but she was quick to add that "nothing has changed".

Her debut in Hindi films was like a fairytale - she entered with Shah Rukh Khan in 2007 blockbuster "Om Shanti Om" and the reincarnation drama turned out to be a perfect springboard for the success and popularity that she continues to revel in even today. In fact, she is enjoying much more. However, a career graph can't be "planned", says the tall and dusky beauty, who made a natural transition from the modelling world to the big screen."I've always believed that everyone has one's own pattern, the only thing that I can do is to work with the best of my ability, to work honestly and whole-heartedly and to know that I'm giving your 100 %. I think the results follow eventually," said Deepika, who is the daughter of Ujjala and former badminton star Prakash Padukone, who was one of the world's best badminton players

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fter being part of Bhojpuri, Hindi, Tamil and Telugu films, actor Neetu Chandra has debuted in a Greek film in which she plays an Indian Goddess of Love.

Titled Block 12, the film directed by Kyriacos Tofarides,

I am including my first film 'Om Shanti Om', where I played a heroine from the 1980s... So, from the start of my career, I have had the opportunity to play various characters. I am glad that I haven't been slotted as doing just one kind of character or just being stuck to doing one kind of cinema."

If you give your 100%, results will follow: Deepika in his time. She is also ready to take on more new kinds of films. Independent films? She drove the conversation to her first 2014 release - Homi Adajania's "Finding Fanny", an English language film produced by Saif Ali Khan's Illuminati Films.

"I'll call it alternate, because it will be pitched differently and it will look slightly different from some of the other films that I have done in the past," explained Deepika, who finds it "strange" to dissect her films into mainstream commercial and alternate cinema. "I think it

experience of playing such different characters and yet getting the act right each time? "I think in my case, it's just that the films are doing well commercially, that people are sitting up and noticing that each of my films is different from the other in terms of characters. "But if you step back a bit, you will realise that even in between 2009 and 2011, the films I did didn't do well commercially, whether it was 'Khelein Hum Jee Jaan Sey', where I played a freedom fighter, to 'Break Ke Baad' to 'Karthik Calling Karthik'... "I am

late the resources and people of the country. The film is a political, allegorical comedy. When asked about the difference she found in filmmaking in India and Greece, the 29year-old says, "Every industry has its own ups and downs but

people over there are much more disciplined. They start shoots on time. But the film industry in India is much richer than theirs."

When asked why he chose Neetu, Tofaridez said, "My co-producers are in India and they suggested that I sign someone from India and then I selected Neetu."

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is convenient from the audience's point of view to categorise films, but for an actor, what I bring to a film is the same. The only thing probably different in 'Finding Fanny' is that it's an English language film. That was the first time for me, but in terms of my approach to a film, in terms of what I bring to a film or character, that doesn't change with the type of film I do. "It doesn't matter if I am doing a 'Chennai Express', I'm less or more committed. My enthusiasm for every film will be the same, irrespective of the budget of the film or the way the film looks." How about her

including my first film 'Om Shanti Om', where I played a heroine from the 1980s...

So, from the start of my career, I have had the opportunity to play various characters. I am glad that I haven't been slotted as doing just one kind of character or just being stuck to doing one kind of cinema."

Her debut in Hindi films was like a fairytale she entered with Shah Rukh in 2007 blockbuster "Om Shanti Om"

I'm not shrewd enough to join politics : Sonakshi

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Neetu to play Indian goddess in Greek film has been included in the Cinema of the World section of the International Film Festival of India this year. "This script was written five years back. This is my first international film and I play an Indian Goddess in the film.

It's a beautiful love story," Chandra says.

Block 12 is based on the issue of how big powers manipu-

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Rajkumar and Bullett Raja up for release, actor Sonakshi Sinha, 26, is one busy bee these days. The speed with which her films have been releasing, she seems to have broken the record of 'film factory' Akshay Kumar.

The actor was recently in Delhi to motivate people to vote. When asked if she has any political ambitions like her actor-turnedpolitician father, Shatrughan Sinha, she quipped, "No, just because my father is a politician, I don't think it's reason enough for me to be one too! I believe one needs to have the aptitude." She also added, "I am not shrewd enough... I cannot handle as many

people as my father does... I don't think I have enough people skills to do that. There are a lot of things that one needs to keep in mind before taking up such a drastic step.

Naam ke liye toh, I'd rather not." No political ambitions right now. But anyone special in her life? "At this point of time, no! I am so busy with what I am doing that I don't have time for anyone. And love is some-

thing you can't really push. When it has to happen, it will happen.

So, I am ready to wait for it," she says. Previously, she wasn't ready to date someone from the industry. What's her take now? "Actually, earlier I was averse to it, but I really don't know where else I'll find love. I'm shooting non-stop. So, I think now I'll have to be open to dating someone from the industry," she said.

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GALLERY

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FIJI DAY CELEBRATION October, 2013 at San Rosa, California, USA

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