07 Feb 2012

CR IP TI ON BS SU

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2012

Palestinian rivals agree to form unity govt

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Amir asks Sheikh Jaber to form new Cabinet Saadoun set to become next Assembly speaker conspiracy theories

Forgive and forget

By Badrya Darwish

badrya_d@kuwaittimes.net

E

lections are over. Everything went smoothly in a democratic manner with international observers who were happy with the outcome. These elections were tense this time due to pre-election skirmishes and tribal clashes over ‘Juwaihelgate’, which led to an assault on Al-Watan TV station and an attempted attack on Scope TV. Thank God, elections are over. The surprising part is that Juwaihel, who was a central attraction of disputes, got elected. We cannot say that his election victory was manipulated. But I am sure that the attack which took place on his campaign tent was one of the reasons which contributed to his victory because many people Continued on Page 13

KUWAIT: Islamist MP Waleed Tabtabaei (center) speaks during a protest in front of the Russian embassy yesterday as protesters brandish a defaced poster of Russian President Dmitry Medvedev (left). — Photo by Yasser Al-Zayyat (See Pages 3 & 7)

Max 22º Min 06º High Tide 12:24 & 23:06 Low Tide 05:31 & 14:55

KUWAIT: HH the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad AlSabah yesterday asked outgoing Prime Minister Sheikh Jaber Al-Mubarak Al-Sabah to form the new Cabinet following traditional consultations. Sheikh Sabah received MP and three-time former Assembly speaker Ahmad AlSaadoun and former speaker since 1999 Jassem AlKhorafi - who did not contest the elections - in addition to former prime minister Sheikh Nasser Al-Mohammad Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah. Sheikh Jaber, appointed just two months ago, submitted his government’s resignation on Sunday, a step required under the constitution after a general election. The new Cabinet must be ready before Feb 15 when the National Assembly is scheduled to hold its first session.

Islamist MP and member of the Reform and Development Bloc Jamaan Al-Harbash yesterday called for the appointment of strong ministers in the new Cabinet, adding that the next stage requires “statesmen” rather than ministers based on quotas like before.

Outspoken opposition lawmaker Musallam Al-Barrak also said the opposition is prepared to cooperate with the prime minister if he cooperates with them. Saadoun appears well set to become the next Assembly speaker after more groups and MPs publicly said they will vote for him.

The Islamic Constitutional Movement and the Islamist Reform and Development Bloc, in addition to his Popular Action Bloc, which together have at least 12 MPs, have already supported Saadoun. Based on a survey conducted by Kuwait Times, 24 MPs have already publicly said they will vote for Saadoun, who was speaker in 1985, 1992 and 1996.

Continued on Page 13

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TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2012

LOCAL

KUWAIT: His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah received yesterday at Seif Palace former National Assembly Speakers Ahmad Al-Saadoun and Jassem Al-Khorafi. These meetings were held within the framework of consultations ahead of formation of the new government.

Opposition blocs open to join Kuwait cabinet Lawmakers plan to amend Article 2 KUWAIT: The new Cabinet seeks active participation from opposition bloc figures to create balance in the political scene. In this manner, both the Cabinet and Parliament can cooperate on working toward a joint agenda, stated a news report quoting sources close to the government.

This alludes to the fact that some oppositionist lawmakers could be offered posts in the soonto-be formed Cabinet, unlike formations which featured membership from a pro-government lawmaker. On that regard, sources close to the opposition said that it is welcome to the idea “as long as the Cabinet is committed to certain conditions, including beginning a new approach that is different from previous ones and can appoint ministers who are credible and competent. If the opposition accepts the offer, it can either nominate any of the MPs, or representatives from outside the Parliament, said sources who spoke on condition of anonymity. They added that this subject is likely to become clearer after meetings are held between MPs and Prime Minister HH Sheikh Jaber Al-Mubarak AlSabah.

Meanwhile, Islamist lawmakers reportedly plan to discuss methods to amend Article 2 of the Constitution rendering Sharia Law as the

sole source of legislation in the country. This idea resurfaced strongly following election results in Islamists and tribal lawmakers gained a landslide victory.

According to sources, MP Mohammad Hayef invited fellow Islamist MPs to a meeting today to coordinate for the announcement of a new conservative bloc in the Parliament. Article 2 amendment will be a main topic during the meeting and MPs could propose a criteria to pass more Islamic-oriented laws, as an alternative to the constitutional amendment option which may prove unpopular among citizens.

Reactions to Islamists’ victory from other parts of the region continued, with Dr Mahmoud Hussain Secretar y General of the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt recently described it as “falling in line with the Arab Spring wave.” “The Islamists’ majority reflects people’s desire in the region to express their sense of belonging and willingness through Islamists,” he said in recent statements to the press.

In Kuwait, a leading liberal activist argued that negative aspects “resorting to sectarianism as a basis for MPs’ election” is a result of the failure of the concept of modern state in society.

“The regional conditions and sectarian ten-

sions in some countries have helped Islamist movements to emerge, leaving some effect on [Kuwait’s] parliamentary elections,” said Dr Ahmad Al-Khateeb. He served as the deputy speaker of Kuwait’s Parliament which formulated the country’s Constitution in early sixties.

“The trust placed in the Muslim Brotherhood in countries affected by the Arab Spring has found resonance in Kuwait,” Al-Khateeb said, adding that Islamists in Kuwait “were smart enough to adopt liberal national and democratic approach after they failed to achieve it,” reported Al-Rai. Meanwhile, liberal MP Abdurrahman AlAnjari announced that he would welcome an invitation to join the Cabinet, only if composed of a parliamentary majority. In other words, only if he is among eight MPs appointed as ministers.

Al-Anjari also announced that he supports opposition leader MP Ahmad Al-Saadoun’s bid for speakership.

Al-Qabas also reported that the Public Prosecution Department resumed investigations on Sunday in the suspicious multi-million dinar deposits case in which 12 former MPs as well as a current lawmaker and spouses of two other MPs are involved, reported Al-Qabas.

KUWAIT: HH the Crown Prince Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah pictured with the students at Seif Palace yesterday.

Crown prince meets students KUWAIT: His Highness the Crown Prince Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah received at Seif Palace yesterday the Chairman and board members of the National Union of Kuwaiti Students, Bahrain branch, and stressed that education and knowledge are the building blocks of strong developed nations.

His Highness encouraged the students to exert all their efforts while continuing their higher education to help serve their homeland under the leadership of the Amir and to best represent Kuwait at all interna-

tional arenas and in all fields. He also conveyed the greetings and best wishes of His Highness the Amir.

For their part, the student delegation pledged to heed His Highness’ advice and presented a commemorative token to Sheikh Nawaf. The meeting was attended

by Undersecretary at the Crown Prince Diwan for Media Affairs, Sheikh Mubarak Al-Humoud Al-Salman Al-Sabah, and Undersecretary at the Crown Prince Diwan for Local Affairs Sheikh Ahmad Al-Jaber AlAbdullah Al-Sabah. — KUNA

KNPC files request for offices in Al-Zoor

Alghanim Industries supports its employees for RunQ8 KUWAIT: As part of its ongoing commitment to corporate responsibility, Alghanim Industries was pleased to sponsor its employees’ participation in RunQ8, the 10K race recently held in Kuwait to raise awareness for road safety.

The company covered the entry fees for over one hundred of its employees.

RunQ8 was truly a team-building event for Alghanim Industries, with employees participating from its Corporate headquarters as well as from many of its businesses, including Kirby Building Systems, KIMMCO, GTRC, Alghanim Credit,

Yusuf A. Alghanim Engineering Group and Alghanim Freight.

During the awards ceremony, Alghanim Industries and its team were publicly recognized by the race organizers as having the largest corporate-sponsored team at the event. Organized by the Fawzia Sultan Rehabilitation Institute (FSRI) and Agility, the funds raised by the RunQ8 10K race will support FSRI’s initiatives in line with the ‘Decade of Action for Road Safety ’, a joint World Health Organization and UN initiative to conquer the epidemic of road injury and death worldwide.

KUWAIT: Kuwait National Petroleum Company (KNPC) has filed a request for temporary offices and space for staff and materials in Al-Zoor. The application was forwarded by Acting Assistant Director General for Organization and Planning Affairs at Kuwait Municipality, Ammar AlMaqtoof, to the Municipal Council yesterday for approval.

Al-Maqtoof said that the request was assessed by the concerned ministries and government bodies, and that the application was for warded to the Municipal Council along with the ministries and state

bodies’ responses and observations.

The ministries and state bodies’ approvals came with the condition that the contractors pledge to clear out and clean the site upon completion of the projects involved, or when the municipality requests a clearing out, with no damages caused.

It was also a condition the sites are only used for the specified functions and not put into commercial use. The contractors must sign the lease with the Finance Ministry ’s State Property and Utilities Department. — KUNA

KUWAIT: General Department of Land Border Security held flag-hoisting ceremonies recently at Kuwait’s three border outlets of Abdali (north), Salmi (west) and Nuwaiseeb (south), as part of Ministry of Interior’s preparations for national celebrations.

Suggestions for traffic regulation changes to be presented KUWAIT: Assistant Undersecretary for Traffic Affairs, Lt Gen Dr Mustafa Al-Zaabi, said that the traffic department has finalized a suggestion to ease the conditions imposed on those who are trying to obtain a driving license. The suggestion will be presented to Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior Sheikh Ahmad Al-Hmoud Al-Sabah.

The suggestion calls for driving licenses to be granted to degree-holders who have been in Kuwait for at least one year, instead of two. Expats who were born in Kuwait will be granted a driving license regardless of whether or not they have a university degree. However, the salary condition of KD 400 will remain as is.

Al-Zaabi said that the suggestion also calls for an increase in the penalty for passing through red lights and exceeding speed limits to KD 500, as well as imprisonment for up to 90 days. The penalty for having passengers in the car without holding a valid license, and driving without sufficient brakes, will be KD 100. — Al-Anbaa

Man of the Year award for Al-Zanki KUWAIT: The Oil & Gas Year (TOGY) magazine has presented Farouk Al-Zanki, CEO of Kuwait Petroleum Corporation (KPC) with the 2011 Man of the Year award. KPC said in a statement yesterday that TOGY awarded Al-Zanki this prize due to his marked job performance in oil exploration and drilling in Kuwait and his effective role in developing a program to promote the development plan of KPC for 2030 to develop exports and production of the state of Kuwait in addition to increasing the quality of refined products through sustainable means.

Al-Zanki has served as CEO of Kuwait Petroleum Corporation since September of 2010.

The Oil & Gas Year is distributed to 24,000 readers around the world, including senior industry executives and their affiliates in the financial services, engineering and construction and power generation sectors, and researchers within industry associations and government departments. —KUNA

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2012

local

(From left ) Paul Goldsmith, Ahmed Saleh, Mustafa Makhseed and Zakaria Dashti. (Centre) The committee unveiling a Bentley car.

Stage ready for third vintage car competition

By Nawara Fattahova KUWAIT: Vintage car lovers can rejoice at the oppor tunity to enjoy the Third Concours D’Elegance competition organized this month at the Marina Crescent. It will be held under the patronage of Sheikh Nasser Al-Mohammed AlAhmed Al-Sabah and the sponsorship of many toprated companies. This event is considered one of the greatest competitions involving classic vintage cars worldwide, and is unique not only in the Gulf region, but across the Middle East.

“The competition this year includes a collection of rare cars from Kuwait and abroad which is distinguished by unique and exceptional designs that hold special places in the records of the car manufacturing companies. This is an excellent opportunity for the Kuwaiti public to acknowledge and see these cars,” said Mustafa Mukhseed, Head of the Museum’s Committees during the press conference held yesterday at the Historical, Vintage and Classical Cars Museum.

On this occasion Ahmed El-Enzi, Director of Cars

Museum City, revealed the event’s date of launch.

“It will be held between Feb 15 and 18, where international competition coincides with national celebrations of Kuwait in February by celebrating the 50th Anniversary of the Constitution, helping to boost tourism in Kuwait. A lot of classic car fans and collectors in the world are keen to attend this festival that highlights the civilized face of Kuwait,” he noted. After the competition’s success over the past two years, it comes to Kuwait again. “This is one of the most famous car competitions to be held in world. The Kuwait edition is among the world’s greatest because of its Middle Eastern unique features, reflecting Kuwait’s remarkable interest in classical and luxury cars,” stated Paul Goldsmith, Kuwait Concours Consultant.

Zakaria Dashti, head of the Museum’s Media Committee expressed his happiness at the confidence exuded by the global organizers of this event. “This event started early last century requiring special, high quality organizational skills,” he stressed.

It is worth mentioning that Concours d’Elegance

is an automobile competition that judges the designs and styles of elegant, sumptuous classic cars. It started in Paris in the 1920s. At that time, Paris, a city full of art and hedonism, became the world’s cultural capital. In the up-scale social Parisian circles, people became infatuated with the extravagance of automobiles, the forefront of all the latest technologies. After, Concours d’Elegance won the hearts of people in France it expanded to appeal to people from all over the world.

This year’s jury contains famous names in the cars world, headed by the Concours’ chief judge Leonardo Fioravanti, designer of the Ferrari Daytona 288 GTO, 308 GTB and F40 among others.

Other notable judges include Sandra Button from the United States who is the Chairman of the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance; Mark Richman Design Director at Aston Martin from the UK; Arab champion Mohammed Ben Sulayem from the United Arab Emirates; Andrea Zagato from Italy; Dr Ulrich Bez CEO of Aston Martin, Horst Bruning from FIVA and Jurgen Lewandowski - Automotive Journalist from Germany; Rony Karam and Fersan

Haddad from Lebanon; Jacques Braneyre, and Nicolas Marceau from France; Shiro Nakamura Chief Creative Officer of Nissan-Infiniti from Japan; Raja Gargour Head of the Royal Cars Museum in Jordan; Christian Philippsen - Head of Louis Vuitton Classic from Belgium; Manvendra Singh from India and last but not least the designer of MercedesBenz Olivier Boulay.

Kuwait Concours d’Elegance 2012 Program Wednesday Feb 15 Opening Ceremony 7 pm, Thursday Feb 16, Judging of muscle cars 10 am to 1 pm Lectures for designers and guests at the Marina Hotel from 4 pm - open to the public 4 pm Leonardo Fioravanti - Silver Jubilee of the Ferrari F40: ‘the car that changed my life,” 5 pm Bruce Myers (Dune Buggy), 5:30 pm Olivier Boulay Head of the Beijing Design Center, Mercedes-Benz Friday Feb 17 Judging of participating cars 10am to 4pm.

Saturday Feb 18 1pm Concours Parade: Presentation of cars participating in the competition of Kuwait Concours d’Elegance.

Kuwait may release Syrian detainees Humanitarian standpoint

KUWAIT: A diesel tanker collided with road works vehicles on King Fahad Road and overturned. The tanker contained 4,000 liters of diesel.

Firemen rushed to the scene and found three vehicles on fire as Mubarak Al-Kabeer Hazardous Materials Center staff used foam to extinguish the flames. — Photos by Hanan Al-Saadoun

Seven injured in traffic accidents

By Hanan Al-Saadoun KUWAIT: A 25-year-old Saudi national suffered multiple bruises and a 30-yearold compatriot suffered a spinal injury in a car accident that took place along Salmy Road. They were admitted to Jahra Hospital.

A 26-year-old citizen suffered bruises and a 25-year- old female citizen fractured her leg in a car accident that took place along Taawon Street. They were admitted to Mubarak Hospital.

A 17-year-old citizen suffered a facial laceration in a car accident that took place near Saad Al-Abdallah. He was admitted to Jahra Hospital.

A 48-year-old Egyptian suffered an abdominal injury and a 55-year- old compatriot suffered multiple bruises in a car accident that took place along Fahaheel Road. They were admitted to Adan Hospital.

Shuwaikh store. He was admitted to Sabah Hospital. Also, a 24-year-old citizen suffered burn injuries after his car caught fire, but refused to be hospitalized.

police officers who arrested him, but was treated with respect by officials at State Security Department.

“While I was heading back to my car after taking pictures from the scene, I was stopped by a police officer who told me that photography is not allowed,” said Abdullah who added that four

in brief

Frustrated workers protest at embassy in Cairo indicate that the office received a notice from Kuwait’s Ministry of Health regarding the three medical facilities accepted by the GCC agreement, “yet the letter did not contain request to adopt the GCC recommendations”.

In other news, Minister of Health Mustafa Al-Shamali made a decision hours before the Cabinet’s resignation Sunday to form a supreme committee that will oversee the process of implementing the agreements signed with the John Hopkins University, and by which it will run the Jahra, Farwaniya, Amiri and Adan hospitals. Meanwhile, deputy director of the Cancer Awareness Nation (CAN) Campaign, Dr. Khalid AlSaleh, warned in a recent statement that cancer rates increased in Kuwait to an average of 50 cases for every 100 thousand people. His statements came during a seminar held by the Gulf Federation for Cancer Control recently in Kuwait on the occasion of the World Cancer Day. — Al-Qabas, Rai

other officers tackled him to the ground despite identifying himself as a journalist.

He added that the assault continued for a few minutes until a high-ranking officer intervened to stop the attack before he was handcuffed and taken to the Criminal Investigations General Department. — Al-Rai

KUWAIT: (Left) A Kuwaiti demonstrator holds a sign which reads in Arabic “The Arab people want the fall of Bashar [al-Assad]” as he steps on a defaced portrait of Russian President Dmitry Medvedev during a protest in front of the Russian embassy in Kuwait City yesterday. (Right) A Kuwaiti demonstrator holds a burning portrait of Russian President Dmitry Medvedev during a protest in front of the Russian embassy in Kuwait City yesterday. Foreign ministers from the sixnation Gulf Cooperation Council will meet in the Saudi capital later this week to discuss developments in Syria.—Photos by Yasser Al-Zayyat

News

Burn injuries A 42-year-old Syrian sustained burn injuries in a fire that took place in a

KUWAIT: A group of Egyptian nationals hoping to work in Kuwait protested recently in front of the medical office at Kuwait’s embassy in Cairo, against procedures at a medical facility selected for their tests, which they blame for delay.

According to sources with knowledge of the issue, some of the protestors were frustrated because of long waiting periods for test results, which in some cases reach 80 days, ultimately causing the cancellation of their visas automatically when the deadline for providing medical reports passes.

The topic raised attention specifically because Kuwait was among the Gulf Cooperation Council countries which signed an agreement last July to adopt three medical facilities in Egypt for medical test of labor forces. Since then however, the medical office only deals with the hospital against which the protests were recently made.

On that regard, the sources who spoke on the condition of anonymity

KUWAIT: As investigations are ongoing to unearth the circumstances that led to Syrian embassy being stormed on Saturday morning, dozens of Syrian nationals arrested remain in custody at the State Security Department. According to a news report, detainees have been charged with the offences of staging illegal demonstrations, storming an embassy building, property damage, assaulting police officers on duty and rioting. A detailed charge sheet containing admissions is being prepared. It will be referred to Sheikh Ahmad Al-Hmoud Al-Sabah Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Defense and Minister of Interior. If found convicted, detainees could face deportation; a move they fear because of the likelihood of being persecuted in their native country. They could be sentenced to jail in Kuwait or be released after being pardoned.

Their fate, which hinges on an assessment of confessions, lies in the hands of minister AlSabah. In the meantime, sources said that the charges pressed against Syrian detainees are enough for the ministry to deport them.

However they may be granted reprieve from a humanitarian standpoint as detainees have asserted that the storming was not pre-planned, but was an emotional reaction to the great human tragedy taking place in the country, with many having lost family members. A wave of similar incidents have taken place across Syrian embassies situated in Arab and Western countries.

In another gathering held near the Syrian embassy in Mishref Sunday, MP Dr Waleed AlTabtabaei reiterated demands that the government expel the “despicable Syrian ambassador,” and MP Mohammad Hayef demanded the immediate release of Syrian nationals that were detained the day before, reported Al-Qabas.

In other news, police arrested a press photographer yesterday who was arrested in connection with covering events at the Syrian embassy.

According to his statements, photographer Asaad Abdullah said that he was “assaulted” by

‘Crisis management center’ KUWAIT: Kuwait should devise crisis management mechanisms that are incorporated into the country’s development plan. Such preemptive measures will enable the government face natural or environmental disasters, Fatin AlMislem, Head of Environmental Strategy Office at the Environment Public Authority(EPA) said. He added that so far inferior steps have been taken. “The government should adopt an initiative to include clear-cut measures as part of criteria implemented by an independent authority formed specifically for this purpose,” said Al-Mislem. She urged that an early warning system be installed “to provide information helpful in assessing future risks.” Meanwhile, Al-Mislem exhorted government departments including the Municipality, the Kuwait Institute for Scientific Research(KISR), the Ministry of Public Works(MPW) and Ministry of Commerce and Industry(MCI) to develop a uniform seismic code for buildings constructed in Kuwait. She also asked the government to establish an office that coordinates with crisis management held in Arab countries’ offices as well as the UNESCO. DRB discusses key issues KUWAIT: The Development and Reform Bloc (DRB) held a meeting at the diwaniya of member Faisal Al-Mislem and arrived at a consensus on issues to be discussed during a new parliamentary sessions. Member Jamaan Al-Harbash said that the bloc will request an investigation into cash deposits scandal and money transfers made at the Foreign Ministry. He said that the bloc proposes the formation of a parliamentary investigation committee to discuss both issues. It also supported Ahmad Al-Saadoun’s candidacy for speakership.

GCC leaders’ vision ‘limitless towards overall development’ KUWAIT: Information Minister Sheikh Hamad Jaber Al-Ali Al-Sabah said here yesterday that the ambitions of the GCC leaders are “limitless” as they have visions towards the establishment of an Arab Gulf States union in order to achieve unity and overall development of their people.

This came during a meeting between Sheikh Hamad with members of the GCC joint production program on the sidelines of the 11th meeting of the radio directors aimed to approve the radio production plan for 2012.

Sheikh Hamad said that each GCC country enjoys a strategic location and a long history a matter that would help it achieve the aspirations and ambitions of the leaders of the Council.

He expressed hope that the strategy adopted by the institution would correspond

to the media strategy adopted by the GCC leaders.

He stressed the importance of producing information programs that will enrich the development of thought, culture, science and social relations among the peoples of the region, who are bound in blood, descent, customs and common traditions.

For his part, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Information, Sheikh Salman Sabah AlSalem Al-Sabah asserted the deep-rooted ties between Kuwait and fellow Gulf Cooperation Council states.

Sheikh Salman said during a meeting with members of the GCC joint program production that the media relations between the GCC countries are experiencing a great development and “we look forward to further cooperation in this area.” —- KUNA

Bids welcomed for water, power plant consultancy KUWAIT: Kuwait’s state technical body tasked with local development projects and initiatives invited companies yesterday to present bids for consultancy services on a gas-powered water and electricity plant in the southern area of Khairan.

The plant will provide a daily minimum output of 2,500 megawatts of electricity and

125 million imperial gallons (568.5 litres) of water, said a statement by the state body.

The gas plant will operate through the use of low-sulfur fuel oil, solar gas oil and natural gas. The tender process comes in line with the Kuwaiti government’s plans to give the private sector a larger role in development projects of the country.— KUNA

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2012

LOCAL kuwait digest

kuwait digest

Parliament’s responsibilities

Respect is earned

By Dr Yaqoub Al-Sharrah

By Khalid Al-Awadhi

ollowing the end of the elections, everyone now hopes for a parliament capable of living up to the duty of meeting the people’s ambitions and demands, and one that will avoid political tensions and instead focus on productive work that prepares for a better future.

Hopes and ambitions cannot be achieved, however, without the devoted work of the people to work toward the greater good ahead of all self-interests.

Fortunately, MPs have Kuwait’s public interest as a goal to focus on in working for the people they represent. However, they find themselves having to deal with massive responsibilities given the unprecedented circumstances that led to the previous parliament’s dissolution following a cabinet resignation.

Yet, we can’t lose hope that change for the better can be achieved, especially since a lot of people believe in the MPs’ ability to live up to their responsibilities, as long as they can focus on the following points: l Staying positive and avoiding focusing on problems which, if escalated, can turn into huge crises, such as political, tribal and sectarian conflicts. l Coming up with active measures to boost cooperation with the Cabinet as an important par tner to push for ward the development process in Kuwait, instead of competing with the government as a political rival. l Combating corruption through enforcing a set of legislation that includes administrative reform laws, wealth disclosure regulations and the establishment of an anticorruption authority. l Achieving equality among citizens and utilizing the state’s resources for the greater good instead of serving individual benefits. l Placing legislation to achieve administrative reform in all state departments in order to eliminate bureaucracy and routine procedures. l The full enforcement of the law in all fields including avoiding lawbreaking in the form of mediation with influential people, otherwise known colloquially as ‘wasta.’ l Taking extra care of young citizens by fulfilling all their needs when it comes to education, health, housing and job opportunities, in order to create citizens capable of bearing the responsibility of building the country’s future. l Giving special attention to human development as the most important form of development. This requires updating the state’s educational system to be in line with present developments as well as with requirements for future development. l Protecting the state economy and improving it by introducing multiple sources of income aside from oil revenues, and fighting the squandering of public funds.

This is summary of what most people believe are the priorities that MPs should focus on; not only to help push forward the development process, but also to meet the public demand to see an end to political infighting and instead have political efforts be based on cooperation between the parliament and Cabinet for Kuwait’s greater interest. Can the parliament live up to this challenge? Only time will tell. — Al-Rai

very time a major problem happens in our society, calls emerge demanding proper law enforcement, law enforcement that doesn’t spare anyone regardless of their social status. Such demands have increased significantly in recent years, and have reached a point where state officials calling for authority to be respected has become a regular feature in daily press and media reports. These increasing demands have, so far, been fruitless. The result? People have become less confident in the state’s law enforcement abilities, and thus more prone to violating the law.

A lack of trust in state laws is the most dangerous problem that can threaten societies. People in Kuwait no longer believe that the law can be fully implemented in their society because they feel that laws are only followed selectively, rather than collectively. A prime example of the consequences of this situation is what happened during the election campaigns when one candidate made offensive remarks against a Kuwaiti tribe, prompting some members of said tribe to retaliate by burning down the candidate’s election camp.

There’s no doubt that the revenge attack carried out by emotionally-charged tribesmen was unfortunate; first because it violated state laws, and second because the angry tribesmen still have a legal system to resort to regarding the offensive remarks made against them. But what happened is the result of the lack of commitment to the law that our society suffers from today, and which the government failed to avoid for years - something that could’ve been achieved simply by making sure that the law is fully enforced.

Kuwaiti citizens today are increasingly feeling that the law is not enforced equally on all, making them lose trust in the ability of the legal system to restore order and maintain their rights. As evident by the incident mentioned above, this is the real threat that decision makers must be alerted to now before the situation worsens. In order to avoid a scenario in which the situation spirals out of control, we first need to admit that there are flaws in the law enforcement process which must be fixed completely so that the state can regain people’s trust in its ability to maintain order. Actions speak louder than words; so Instead of making statements on a semi-daily basis about the need to respect the law, state officials must take actions to ensure that no one residing in Kuwait can get a free pass from the law. — Al-Qabas

F

kuwait digest

Challenges ahead for new govt

By Shereeda Al-Mousharji

N

ow that the battle dust has been settled down, people have begun counting gains and losses, the results are out and analysts are studying them to learn why some candidates lost their National Assembly membership. What factors led others to win with unprecedented margin of votes? How did first-time runners manage to penetrate the lines of veteran lawmakers and beat them?

Such questions and many others are the focus of diwaniya discussions nowadays, but, as usual, they will not last long and will be substituted by more important ones such as; What kind of relation will the new Parliament share with the coming Cabinet? Will the new PM choose a Cabinet that satisfies the new Parliament and be able to cooperate with it at an equal footing? Will ‘shares’ re-dominate Cabinet formation as usual?

The government has great challenges to face and people’s aspirations are even greater and have no more patience as older generations. Life’s pace is getting faster and demands are no longer withheld without expression. Tongues can no longer stand silent, streets are becoming more tempting for declaring demands, explaining stances and even judgment.

For all the aforementioned, the government will not be able to get Kuwait out of this state of idleness single-handedly; the parliament’s cooperation is essential to push things forward. Without such cooperation, we’ll remain in a limbo, exchanging accusations without scoring any goals that please the people by applauded ‘Kuwait.’

As usual, the race for the speaker’s position began early after a long time of monopoly by former speaker, Jassim Al-Khorafi. There are three candidates for the position so far; Mohammed AlSager, Ahmed Al-Saadoun and Ali Al-Rashid. I believe that resuming competition between AlRashid and Al-Sager will facilitate Al-Saadoun’s victory. However, if either of them withdraws, the government will have an upper hand if it decides to vote. — Al-Jarida

E

kuwait digest

Kuwait’s Gulliver in Lilliput!

By Fouad Al-Hashim

B

efore I congratulate some MPs and warn newcomers, let me retell an anecdote that was related to me over the phone yesterday by a prominent media personality: “I was driving my car in the Egyptian capital, Cairo a few days after our Parliament was dissolved in July 1986. I was accompanied by Egyptian media personality Wagdi Al-Hakeem when upon approaching the red traffic light, I halted and he began accusing me. “Come on, it’s so red that even a blind person can see it.’ I told him before he explained that traffic rules in Egypt were not as strict as they are in European countries. ‘Halting at a red light is optional here.’ he said.

He went on to say that they have ‘semi-traffic rules’ compared to advanced nations. He also said that the country has a semi-parliamentary system practicing semidemocracy compared to Italy.....”

At this point, my friend stopped narrating his story and laughed saying, “Well, Abu Abdul Rahman, we, Kuwaitis, also have a democracy that is different from that of Denmark ....it’ more like a ‘semidemocracy’ .....there are no election or parliamentary rules or values.

Everybody curses the other using the worst possible language. They are burning the campaign headquarters of those who speak louder than them.

We have no political parties, no authority circulation, no majority to form a Cabinet. We have no minority to form a ‘shadow government,’ and there are no development plans. Elections results showed that local and foreign ‘shaikhs’ have strongly interfered to install certain individuals to Parliament and cast others away.

We have a ruling family that is unlike those in Europe, they are

quasi rulers! Not a single woman made it to the Parliament although female voters outnumber male ones. We’re living a fantasy where shadows tell the shapes but can’t tell the features. It’s as if we’ve been doomed to live in old fairy tales like ‘Gulliver in the land of Blefuscu and ‘Gulliver in the Land of Lilliputs.’

Most of us feel ‘little’ and surrounded by giants. So let’s get back to the walls, cover our faces with hands and describe ourselves as ‘the silent majority ’ and keep remaining silent. A minority of us feel that they are giants, lions, tigers and elephants who cannot be share space in the same jungle with the ‘tiny people.’ That’s why they kill each other to get some extra room to stretch out. The silent dwarfs can no longer resist the giants who are not willing to listen to them.

Dear Abu Abdul Rahman, we are more like spectators watching a caged chimpanzees and monkeys, throwing peanuts or a banana to the more enthusiastic. The inside of our ballot boxes only look like those found in the civilized world!”

That was the end of my friend’s phone call after which he hung up without hearing any comments. All I did was to get to my desk and start writing what he said and it’s up to you to agree or disagree with him. However, I doubt that we’ll reach any decisive results. Most of us read well without comprehending what we read!

I don’t expect the new Parliament to remain in power for more than a year. Accordingly, I suggest that new speaker start building a small clinic at the National Assembly’s lobby and equip it with bandages, cotton, syringes and stitching threads needed to conduct quick surgeries. I also suggest that a small busi-

ness owner quickly rent a shop near the National Assembly to sell and rent ring boxes, batons, wheel jack, Syrian ogals lined with brass threads that can be painful when whipping others’ backs or faces.

The shops may also sell sports footware with metal front lining to kick certain spots in opponents’ backs as they have a double impact. They may damage men’s fertility forever and can knock opponents down unconscious till the Parliament is dissolved again!

If all the above fails, I promise MPs to prepare 50 pens to be used as whips that will not exempt any and lash them harder than the non-believers of Quraish did to the believers during the early days of Islam!

I received a phone call from a GCC national friend before the elections results were declared. He asked me if the winners were Qatar and Iran’s or Kuwait’s MPs! The answer is yours!

Latest news: Russia has decided to sell $10 million plus oil and gas franchises to Assad and his regime so that the country’s military facilities can enjoy the Syrian Tartus harbor!

A secret western reports: “The current Kuwaiti government has been the weakest and most lenient since 1938 and Qatar and Iran are so happy with it.” These words are from a report.

Qatar decided signed an agreement with the Turks to invest $8.6 billion in ‘Turktelecom,’ $6.2 billion to own Diniz Bank, $4.5 billion to own Turkuaz Media that owns ATV and Sabah newspaper! Money talks and knows no feelings!

The real speaker of our next Parliament will be Sheikh Yousif AlQaradhawi, the Qatari with Egyptian origins! — Al-Watan

kuwait digest

The absurdity of bad reactions

By Thaar Al-Rashidi

F

or each action there is a reaction. Newton’s well-known law can certainly be applied to the events that took place a few days ago. Never expect that a deeprooted, respectable tribe and its mark in the history of the state of Kuwait can be offended. Never think that the sons of the tribe will meet the offense, which was aired live on TV by a candidate accustomed to abusing tribes in the issue of dual citizenship, and those responsible with bundles of roses.

Now, although this candidate is in the hands of the relevant authorities, his supporters and backers are well known. The government should investigate the matter more thoroughly and take all the necessary steps to protect Kuwait’s national unity. The candidate is tearing apart national unity by offending a tribe. The tribe is a part of the social structure, and we

respect and appreciate this tribe.

Government should expose all the paperwork involved in the incident and punish those responsible as well as those in favor of such offenses.

Today we are not only facing an offence made against a tribe or group or family or sect, we are facing an offence made purposefully against the social and national unity of Kuwait. We do not propose that the family of the candidate or those supporting him should receive the same treatment dealt out by the candidate, but they should face charges for risking the state’s security, as per legal procedures dictate.

The most important point is that if this candidate is detained, it should be in accordance with the law. The scandal of millions of dinar being deposited into some MP’s account is wrong, breaking into

Abdullah Al Salem hall is wrong, offending a generous tribe is wrong, and the burning of the candidate’s location is wrong. We must recognize the wrong reactions in the same way we take note of when the wrong actions are taken. The money deposits, government corruption and offending the tribe are wrong actions. Breaking into Abdullah Al Salem hall and burning the location of the candidate are wrong reactions.

This part isn’t quite covered by Newton, but simple logic supports the theory. If the ‘action’ had not taken place, the ensuing wrong reactions would not have happened either. Do you understand, or you want us to reveal your papers, your supporters, your financers, and even those keeping a lookout for you, by offending the nation by attacking citizens for the sake of power?

kuwait digest

Keep your passports ready!

By Dr Hassan Abbas

T

he elections are over, and we can now predict the immediate future of the political landscape based on results.

As soon as preliminary results began streaming in, it was clear that outspoken candidates dominated polls in all five constituencies. This meant two things: people headed to polling stations although they

The results indicate the reality that Kuwaitis find safety only in tribal or sectarian ‘camps.’ The many problems and flaws of the government led to people losing trust in the country’s ability to secure their future. This feeling of insecurity has led people resort to the tribe, family, religious group or any other social category for shelter whenever they feel unsafe. were affected by the incidents that took place in the run up to election day. Secondly, all rosy promises about change for the better turned out to be false; results clearly show that voters stood by previous opinions. This is not surprising considering people were already influenced by sectarian and tribal affinities before election day.

Something else that the results indicate is the reality that Kuwaitis find safety only in tribal or sectarian ‘camps.’ The many problems and flaws of the government led to people losing trust in the country’s ability to secure their future. This feeling of insecurity has led people resort to the tribe, family, religious group or any other social category for shelter whenever they feel unsafe.

Furthermore, results obviously show that the opposition has gained a majority in the Parliament at the expense of the pro-government bloc. This majority - in addition to giving the opposition a self confidence and determination boost - gives very little space for the Cabinet to maneuver freely.

Meanwhile, the increase in the number of oppositionists was created by dominance of Islamists and tribal MPs, which at the expense of liberals. The result gave us a conservative opposition.

Another obvious indication is that voters lost trust in the performance of former female MPs, and were skeptical at the election campaigns of fresh female candidates running for office. Some female candidates garnered a decent number of votes like Safa AlHashem. Yet, we can say that people’s discontent in the performance of the previous female MPs has significantly damaged their seeking a parliamentary seat.

Last but not least, I’d like to tell voters to keep their passports ready because based on election results, the Parliament is likely to be dissolved again in the near future! — Al-Rai

5

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2012

Local

Fractiousness to hamper Kuwait assembly’s work NA characterized by extremes KUWAIT: Kuwaiti citizens went to the polls last Thursday after His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmed Al-Jaber Al-Sabah dissolved the chamber in December 2011 in response to popular protests and the resignation in November of the hugely unpopular prime minister Sheikh Nasser Al-Sabah. The previous parliamentary term, Kuwait’s 13th since gaining independence in 1961, had been severely marred by antagonism with the government. Many of the 50-member National Assembly felt that government officials were corrupt and not acting for the good of the country.

Kuwait’s parliament has more powers than any other in the Gulf. Under the constitution parliament may “grill” ministers, including the prime minister, forcing their dismissal should a majority vote in favor.

In response to “grilling requests” the government has frequently resorted to en-mass resignations, resulting in increased political instability as well as further antagonising opposition MPs. Since Sheikh Nasser was appointed prime minister in 2006 he presided over the resignation of four governments. In each instance the Amir has reinstated him. Until now. In December 2011, despite publicly backing Sheikh Nasser, the Amir felt compelled to replace him with another prominent member of the royal family, Sheikh Jaber Al-Mubarak Al-Sabah.

Sheikh Nasser ’s position had become untenable following accusations in September that he had bribed up to 13 members of the National Assembly to support the government on key votes. The alleged figures numbered hundreds of millions of dollars.

Public anger has not been reserved for the government and its supporters in the National Assembly; opposition members have come under fire, harangued for placing their personal agenda ahead of the national inter-

est. The result of which has been a prolonged stagnation of Kuwaiti politics, with vital economic reforms being delayed.

Kuwait has become a less attractive destination for foreign businesses and economic growth has fallen well behind regional rivals such as Qatar and Dubai.

There has been a feeling among many that the dissolving of the last parliament marked a turning point in Kuwait politics. Popular anger has grown to the point where further political fighting of the sort that characterized the last parliament cannot continue. Surely parliament and government must see that they need to work together for the sake of Kuwait?

Such is the fervent hope of its citizens.

In the run up to the elections however, opposition candidates seemed to disagree.

Many were calling for constitutional reforms, such as the introduction of elected governments, suggesting that such changes would be prioritized ahead of economic reforms.

The passions surrounding the vote resulted in unprecedented events in the build-up to the election. Although Kuwait City was largely calm on the day itself, polling stations operated smoothly and Kuwaitis carried on with normal daily activities, tensions had already spilled over.

The Jan 30 burning of controversial candidate Mohamed Al-Juwaihel’s campaign tent by tribesmen, who subsequently clashed with riot-police outside Al-Watan TV station the following night cast an unwelcome pall over proceedings.

Now that the votes have been counted and the remnants of burned election tents have been swept away, what does the future hold for this, Kuwait’s 14th National Assembly?

Talk in the aftermath has largely focused on two areas; the rise of the Islamists and the fall of women. Sunni Islamists won 23 of the seats while women failed to secure a single one with all four female incumbents losing out.

Hala Feb festival important in boosting Kuwait tourism

KUWAIT: The Kuwait Fire Services Department, Sea Rescue Department and Hawally Fire and Operations Department display their latest vehicles and equipment as part of the Hala February celebrations yesterday.

—Photos by Hanan Al-Saadoun

CBK launches cultural campaign KUWAIT: The Commercial Bank of Kuwait (CBK) launched a three-month cultural campaign hoping to highlight aspects of Kuwaiti heritage including old Kuwaiti way of life and traditions, the bank announced in a press statement released yesterday.

“The campaign is part of efforts to boost public awareness on social aspects that our predecessors committed to in order to build the country’s cultural identity,” said Sheikha Nouf Salem Al-Ali Al-Sabah, Advertisement and Public Relations Manager.

Sheikha Nouf Furthermore, Al-Sabah noted Al-Sabah that the CBK sponsored the shooting of a cultural music video performed by the Kuwait TV Cultural Band, and has launched a website where visitors can download pictures, video footage and audio files about Kuwaiti culture. The campaign lasts until May 5, 2012.

Municipality calls for removal of election hoardings, posters KUWAIT: Kuwait’s Municipality called on candidates of the 2012 parliamentary elections to remove all their headquarters and everything related to their elections campaigns. Director General of the Municipality, Ahmad Al-Subeeh, said yesterday that designated teams started, since last Friday, clearing up everything related to the election campaigns. The cleaning process usually lasts for 10 days following the elections.

Al-Subeeh advised candidates to begin removing their campaign headquarters and reminded them that should they fail to do so, the municipality will deduct the removal expenses from their insurance deposit, which was paid in advance before they set up for elections. —KUNA

KUWAIT: Several Kuwaiti citizens affirmed on Sunday that the annual celebration of the Hala February festival was an important step toward boosting the Kuwaiti tourism sector. In several interviews, citizens stressed the importance of increasing coordination between official bodies in Kuwait in a way that would guarantee benefits from the festival, pointing out that many sectors and institutions in Kuwait rely on the Hala February festival.

Hamad Al-Enezi, chairman of the board of directors of a local company, said that organizing the festival under the umbrella of a specialized governing body and planning it based on an integrated plan should be a priority in order to improve the economic outcomes of the festival.

Yousef Al-Shallal, an employee at the Ministry of Finance, noted that Kuwait has many elements often seen in popular touristic spots, such as several distinctive strategic locations, calm beaches, oceanic islands for touristic use, beautiful desert landscapes as well as traditional and historical landmarks that are of considerable importance for touristic investment.

In addition, Saad Al-Mekhlef, owner of various small businesses, explained that the marketing of festivals can be vital in boosting the economy, he stressed, however, on the importance of coordination within official bodies in order to form an integrated plan, as well as to give the private sector more space during its participation in the festival. —KUNA

To put this in perspective however, the main story of the previous 2009 election was of Sunni Islamists being decimated, falling from 21 seats to 11, while women won an historic victory in gaining their first representatives in the National Assembly. Sunni Islamists have traditionally held strong representation and women none.

The more pressing issues here are the significant gains that the opposition has made.

Whereas previously they were well balanced with pro-government MPs, they now hold 34 seats.

The conflict with the government that characterized the previous parliament is likely to be further exacerbated as the opposition seek to make their numerical advantage count.

With only 26 votes required to oust a government minister in a vote of no confidence, the opposition has greatly increased its strength.

However, the opposition is not a monolith; it is a loose coalition of many factions, including both liberals and Islamists of various persuasions. As such it is characterized by competing discourses and its affiliates ran on often competing platforms.

As the more vocal members attempt to push their agendas through parliament these divisions are likely to cause significant rifts, potentially fragmenting the coalition, with the government eager to foster such discord.

The new parliament is characterized be extremes; those who vocally supported or opposed the government won election, while those incumbents who quietly worked with it, such as the women, lost out.

This fractiousness will hamper its effectiveness, worsening political instability in country. The previous National Assembly lasted slightly more than two years, prospects of this one outliving that are slim.

Bid envelopes for Zoor power plant opened KUWAIT: Three bid envelopes for the first stage of northern Zoor power station have been opened, the technical body for assessment of development projects and initiatives said on Sunday. The bids were offered by three local and international alliances, the body’s chairman Adel Al-Roumi said in a news conference.

The winning bid is to be announced in the coming period, paving the way for a shareholding company to be created, he said. He confirmed that the companies and alliances were shortlisted in full transparency and in line with relevant international criteria as set out by world advisors, primarily the French BNP Paribas. The prospective winner will be a strategic shareholder owning 40 percent of a public joint stock company, while the remain-

ing will be put out for public subscription, he added. Al-Roumi described the share prices offered by the three alliances are “very attractive.” The first phase of the power plant project will be a mammoth step towards the national development drive in the country.

The prospective winner, once chosen, will begin immediately designing, building and operating a power generation and water desalination complex.

The new power plant is expected to cover approximately 10 percent of Kuwait’s power consumption, Ayad Al-Falah, assistant undersecretary of the Ministry of Electricity and Water for technical services said. The station will have a production capacity of 1,500 megawatts and 105 million imperial gallons of water, he added. —KUNA

20% raise for citizens KUWAIT: The government may agree to grant a 20 percent pay rise to government employees and retired citizens, reported Al-Qabas quoting an insider. Citizens who have benefitted from allowances or pay rises will not be eligible to receive the new increase. This recommendation was mentioned in a report finalized by the Civil Service Council (CSC) last week based on com-

prehensive studies held, the source said.

Meanwhile, the source noted that nonKuwaiti employees employed in the public sector have been excluded from the new proposal because a KD 50 salary raise was granted to them recently. If approved, nearly 390,000 Kuwaiti men and women will gain from the salary increase. —Al-Qabas

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2012

local

KUWAIT: Sheikh Ali Al-Sabah Al-Naser Al-Sabah cuts the ribbon to inaugurate the branch as Indian Ambassador Satish C Mehta, Lulu Group MD Yusuffali MA, CEO Adeeb Ahamed and the group executives look on.

Lulu Exchange opens in Kuwait Lulu Group plans big expansion, to invest KD 50 million in country: Yusuffali

By Sajeev K Peter KUWAIT: Lulu Group, the multinational retail conglomerate, has launched its money transfer operations in Kuwait with the opening of Lulu Exchange yesterday in Lulu Hypermarket, Al-Rai. Royal family member Sheikh Ali AlSabah Al-Naser Al-Sabah cut the ribbon to officially inaugurate the branch, the fourth in the country, in the presence of Indian Ambassador Satish C Mehta, Lulu Group MD Yusuffali MA, the group executives, Kuwaiti dignitaries, businessmen and media. “The Lulu brand enjoys considerable brand loyalty and patronage among the cosmopolitan population residing in the Middle East region. We intend to capitalize on the brand name to gain substantial market share in the retail financial services sector here,” Yusuffali said explaining the rationale behind opening the money exchange company in Kuwait. With the

opening of the Al-Rai branch yesterday, Lulu Exchange will have four branches in Kuwait including branches in Abbassiya, Farwaniya and Fahaheel.

Indian Ambassador Satish C Mehta, after the inaugural ceremony, told the Kuwait Times that a large number of expatriates repatriate their money to their home countries on a regular basis.

“Opening of more exchange companies in the country will only enhance competition in the market which in turn will help better the services being provided to the customers,” he said. He applauded Lulu management for their efforts in bringing new products and services for the benefit of their clientele. “Since the Lulu Exchange is located within the hypermarket, it will be very convenient for the customers who do not have to go elsewhere to avail money transfer services,” he said.

Expansion Lulu Group has been on a massive

expansion drive in Kuwait in the last two years. The group has already two hypermarkets in operation and the third one will start in Dajeej soon. “ We plan to expand fur ther in Kuwait. We will invest KD 50 million more in the Kuwait market and by 2015, the group will have five hypermarkets in the country,” Yusuffali told the Kuwait Times.

“Under the dynamic leadership of HH the Amir, the investment climate in Kuwait is very conducive and investment oppor tunities are plenty,” he added.

Underlining the customer-friendly vision of the group, Yusuffali said, “In view of the changing shopping concepts, we want to be closer to our customers rather than bringing them closer to us.”

Strategically located in the prime business area, Lulu Exchange offers a wide range of products and services,

catering to the demands of citizens, expatriates and corporate customers.

The services include instant money transfer, bank transfers, demand draft issuance, retail and wholesale bank notes and Western Union money transfer services, etc. The exchange company also offers services in the UAE, Oman and India through its associates.

The money market industr y in Kuwait has witnessed a phenomenal growth in the last few years with cross border remittances registering sharp increases.

“We are delighted to open our new branch in Lulu Hypermarket at Al-Rai, Kuwait. Following our chairman’s vision of being closer to our customers, we will open more branches in the country.

By the end of 2012, Lulu Exchange will have 10 branches in Kuwait, expanding fur ther into areas like Mirqab, Mahboula and Mangaf,” said Adeeb Ahamed, CEO, Lulu International

Exchange.

K.N.S Das, the General Manager of the Kuwait operations, said, the Lulu Exchange is a well-established name in the region. And I’m happy to be part of the venture as it commences its operations in Kuwait,” he told the Kuwait Times.

“In today’s fast-paced world, quick transfer of money from one country to another has become inevitable. I hope that under the leadership of Yusuffali, the Lulu Exchange will become one of the leading exchange companies in the country,” said Thomas Chandy, a member of the Kerala Legislative Assembly.

K G Abraham, NBTC Group Managing Director, in his comments, hoped that Lulu Exchange would be quite beneficial for those expatriates who belong to low-income groups, especially workers who transfer small amounts of money to their home countries from Kuwait.

Ambassador Satish C Mehta cuts the cake as Sheikh Ali Al-Sabah, Yusuffali MA, Adeeb Ahamed and Thomas Chandy MLA look on. — Photos by Yasser Al-Zayyat

Kuwait’s a leading democracy, strong parliament: French MP PARIS: The State of Kuwait is a pioneer in the region in terms of its level of democracy and a truly multi-representative parliament, French Senator Philippe Marini, who chairs the FrenchArab and French-Gulf Friendship Committee in the French parliament, said yesterday.

The senator said “...the Feb 2 elections proved the strength of Kuwaiti constitutional institutions even amid great challenge.” Citing the French Constitution as another example, the MP stressed “...great constitutions show their excellence at times of great difficulty more than any other time.”

The institutional system of Kuwait played a leading role in the relationship between parliament and the government, “This was most evident upon the transition of power back in 2006,” where Article III of the Kuwaiti Constitution was the point of reference.

Marini added that he ranks Kuwait along with Jordan and Lebanon as countries with unique, truly empowered and multi-representative parliaments. The politician referred to several factors that contribute to a democratic environment, namely freedom of the press, lively discussions and social gatherings, such as Diwaniyyas, and women’s suffrage since 2006.

“It is apparent that there is representation for different schools of thought and value systems in the Kuwaiti Parliament, with room for the formation of blocs and shifting majorities depending on the issues being discussed.”

To a question relating to his assessment of respect of Human Rights and freedom of expression, he said “Kuwait upholds and works on further promoting these values within the framework of a state of law and with the view of producing an atmosphere conducive to economic and social development and, therefore, prosperity for the people.”

He pointed out that the French Friendship Committee is keenly following up with and analyzing the results of the Kuwaiti elections. As to Kuwait’s support of other Arab and developing nations, the senator noted that Kuwait had always invested some of its financial surplus in aiding other nations, and not just Arab nations but African and Asian countries as well.

The MP also noted that states such as Kuwait have considerable credibility when they mediate and seek to promote world peace and stability, in view of their own policy of moderation, and their stability and realistic view of the global scene. — KUNA

19 illegal residents held at unlicensed factory KUWAIT: Nineteen individuals were arrested recently in connection with residence permit violation during a police crackdown on an unlicensed leather factory in Kabad.

Investigators learnt that some Asian detainees were in possession of residence permits that expired almost ten years ago. Their arrest was made after one was caught during a routine patrol done in the area. They are currently awaiting deportation. Meanwhile, police summoned the owner of the unlicensed factory who admitted to renting the facility from its Kuwaiti owner for KD 750 a month. He was jailed and faces charges include providing shelter to fugitives of law.

Harassers caught A high school student was arrested in Sulaibikhat recently after he allegedly molested three female representatives of a candidate on election day. Investigations are ongoing since Thursday when the women filed a complaint against the suspect. He reportedly touched one woman inappropriately while voting was going on. Police arrested the suspect on Sunday after tracing the vehicle through a license plate number that the women provided. The man remains in custody.

In another incident, police easily arrested a harasser after he scrawled his own cell phone number onto the exterior of a car that belongs to a woman he harassed in Salmiya.

The woman reportedly ignored him while stepping into a mall. He kept following her to win her attention. After her shopping trip, the woman found when she returned to her car

that a phone number was scribbled on the vehicle’s exterior. She headed to the nearest police station and reported the incident.

Threat messages Police are interrogating a suspect who faces attempted murder charges that were pressed by an elected lawmaker’s son. Officers at Rumaithiya police station were recently approached by a man who identified himself as the son of controversial former MP Nabeel Al-Fadhl, and requested to press charges against an individual who threatened him and his father through Twitter. He showed officers the tweets in which the suspect justifies his action as “in defense of tribesmen.” A case was filed. Meanwhile, a citizen pressed defamation charges at Sharq police station against his former friend. He accused him of verbally assaulting him through remarks tweeted on Twitter account. A case was filed for investigations.

Dispute goes awry Jahra police arrested a citizen in less than an hour after he stabbed a teammate following a football match dispute in Al-Sulaibiya.

The suspect blamed the victim for his team’s loss. The argument escalated to the point where the suspect stabbed the victim with a knife he grabbed from his car. He then drove away from the scene immediately. Police and paramedics reached the scene minutes after the incident was reported. The victim was rushed to Jahra Hospital, while officers traced the suspect’s whereabouts and arrested him using the descriptions provided by two team-

mates. The man, who was charged with attempted murder, remains in custody.

Public shooting Ahmadi police are on the hunt for a citizen who fired his weapon during a fight. Security officers reached a location near a market in Al-Fahaheel where a shooting incident was reported. Investigations soon revealed that the incident took place during a fight between a citizen and an Arab owner of a butcher shop. The shooter reportedly fired several gunshots into the air when he became outnumbered by friends before driving away.

The Arab man was taken to the area’s police station to face charges. Investigations are underway.

Failed kidnap attempt A search is currently ongoing for two suspects who disappeared following a failed attempt to abduct a teenager at a camping site. The 15-year-old was driving his all-terrain vehicle (ATV) at a camp in Al-Mutlaa desert when he was approached by two people in an SUV who expressed interest in buying his vehicle. The boy sensed something suspicious about the two strangers’ behavior when they invited him to their camp to take some rest before test driving the ATV. When he refused, the suspects reportedly attempted to bundle him into his car, but failed after the struggle caught a passerby’s attention. The Kuwaiti eyewitness informed police after he failed to catch the suspects. A case was filed at the nearest police station.

— Al-Rai, Al-Qabas, Al-Watan

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2012

6 dead, 50 trapped in Pakistan factory collapse Page 12

Queen Elizabeth marks 60 years on the throne Page 10

IDLIB: A man who witnesses say was shot by a government sniper during a demonstration lies in a hospital in Idlib, Syria. — AP

50 die as troops pound Homs UK recalls ambassador; US shuts embassy BEIRUT: Syrian forces bombarded Homs yesterday, killing 50 people in a sustained assault on several districts of the city which has become a centre of armed opposition to President Bashar Al-Assad, the Syrian National Council opposition group said.

Western countries seeking Assad’s downfall were scrambling to find a new diplomatic strategy after failing to enact a UN Security Council resolution that would have backed an Arab League call for Assad to stand aside.

Residents of Homs yesterday described scenes of panic and carnage in the city of central Syria undergoing a fierce assault by government troops, urging outside powers to intervene to halt the bloodshed.

“What is happening is indescribable,” said Wael, a resident reached by tele-

phone. “Security forces have been relentlessly shelling the city since this morning. “On the streets, there are only bodies and wounded people along with tanks,” he said. “ There are tanks ever ywhere.

People are in a state of panic and they are screaming, ‘May God help us’ or ‘Where are the Arabs?’” he added. “We feel like the world has abandoned us.”

Activists said the latest government assault on the city began at dawn with troops raining mortars and rockets on several neighborhoods. “We cannot venture outside because of the intensity of the shelling,” said Saher, another resident. “The shells are coming down like rain.”

Meanwhile, Britain has recalled its ambassador from Syria for consultations on the escalating violence in the

country, Foreign Secretary William Hague said yesterday. The decision was announced after the US said it has closed its embassy in Damascus and pulled all American diplomats out of Syria. Hague told lawmakers that Britain is using multiple channels to express its “abhorrence” at the violent crackdown on dissent by President Bashar Assad’s regime, and has summoned Syria’s ambassador to the Foreign Office to convey that message. “This is a doomed regime as well as a murdering regime,” Hague said.

“There is no way it can recover its credibility internationally.”

The United States shut its embassy in Damascus and said all staff had left the country due to worsening security. Russia fought back against blistering criticism from the West for vetoing

the resolution on Saturday. Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, who is due in Damascus today, said condemnations of Moscow’s veto had verged on “hysteria”. US President Barack Obama made clear that, however hard Western countries are prepared to lean on Assad diplomatically, they still have no intention of using force to topple him, as they did against Muammar Gaddafi in Libya last year. “I think it is very important for us to try to resolve this without recourse to outside military intervention. And I think that’s possible,” he told NBC’s Today show. Catherine Al-Talli of the opposition Syrian National Council (SNC) said bombardment of Homs resumed early on Sunday, killing 50.

Assad’s opponents say his tanks and artillery killed more than 200 people

in the city on Friday night in the bloodiest incident of the 11-monthold uprising against his rule. That attack, branded a “massacre” by France and “unspeakable” by Obama, had set the stage for intense efforts over the weekend to lobby Moscow not to block the UN Security Council resolution. But Russia has argued that the resolution was one-sided and would have amounted to taking the side of Assad’s opponents in a civil war. China also vetoed the measure, by most accounts following Russia’s lead. “It is sad that the co-authors decided to hastily put the resolution to a vote, even though we appealed to them with a request to give it a few more days” until after his own planned trip to Damascus, Lavrov said. “Some of the voices heard in the West with

India’s ‘infanticide crisis’ No girl to play with at school DEVDA: As the only girl in her noisy classroom of 22 boys, Padma Kanwar Bhatti is one defiant symbol of the toll exacted by India’s deadly preference for male children. Padma, 15, lives with her parents and two elder brothers in Devda, a village of 2,500 people in the Rajasthan state district of Jaisalmer, which has one of the worst female sex ratios in the country. “There is no other girl in my class and there are very few girls in our village,” she says hesitantly.

Padma chooses to stare at her social science text book when asked why there are less girls and more boys in her village, set in the barren lands of the Thar desert. “Girls die,” she says in Marwari, the main language of Rajasthan. Almost everyone in Devda and neighboring villages acknowledges the reality of female infanticide, a crime based in ancient custom and continued today even as much of India undergoes rapid economic and social change. “We are crazy for boys. We mourn when girls are born,” says Rajan Singhi, a farmer in Devda and a father of two boys, who is proud of his long ancestry as a member of the warrior Bhatti Rajput clan.

In most cases the killing takes place within 24 hours of a baby’s birth and the crime is committed either by the mother or the midwife, he says. “I have heard that people administer opium or thrust a small but heavy sack filled with sand or mustard seeds on the baby’s face. Many mothers do not breast feed

their daughter, starving the child to death,” Singhi says. Local historians believe infanticide in the region may have its roots in wars fought generations ago when Rajput Hindu clan elders chose to kill their daughters to save them from rape by Muslim invaders.

The Muslim attackers would plunder Hindu villages, rape girls and throw them in the village wells. “Unable to deal with the dishonour, the Rajputs chose to kill their daughters,” Umashankar Tyagi, a social historian in Jaipur, the state capital of Rajasthan said. In peace time, the custom continued to thrive, Tyagi said, explaining that “the expense of dowries, illiteracy, poverty are the new justification for infanticide”. Clan elders and state government officials say that just two Devda girls have had weddings in the village in the past 100 years.

‘Girls are buried in the desert and no-one mourns the loss’ The situation reflects a nationwide crisis in India, where the preference for boys is partly due to the key role sons play in Hindu funeral ceremonies.

Other factors are the substantial-and illegal-dowries that a father must provide for his daughter’s new family at her wedding, and the fact that sons are often seen as breadwinners and daughters as financial burdens. As many as half a million female foetuses are estimated to be aborted each year

RAJASTHAN: Padma Kanwar Bhatti smiles as she sits among a classroom of boys during a lesson in a small school in Devda, in the Rajasthan state district of Jaisalmer, which has one of the worst female sex ratios in India. — AFP in India, according to a study by British medical journal The Lancet.

In Rajasthan, local administration and senior police officials say they are aware of the atrocities committed against female infants, but the authorities appear reluctant to intervene in private family lives. “Infanticide is an open secret but it is next to impossible to prove the crime,” says Mamta Bishnoi, senior police officer of Jaisalmer district.

“Girls are buried in the desert and no one in the clan ever inquires about the newborn or mourns the loss,” says

Bishnoi, adding “we cannot dig up the entire desert to hunt for the girls.” The Jaisalmer district has one of the worst child gender ratios in India. It stands at 868 girls under six per 1,000 boys, compared with 914 girls per 1,000 boys across India, according to 2011 census data. In Devda, women are relegated to the innermost chamber of the house, and can step out only for a visit to the temple. They walk in pairs, covering their faces with bright colored scarves like a screen, so that even the shadow of a man does not fall on them. —AFP

evaluations of the results of the vote in the UN Security Council on the Syria resolution sound, I would say, improper, somewhere on the verge of hysteria,” Lavrov told reporters after meeting the foreign minister of Bahrain, one of the Arab states that has sought a tougher stance against Assad. The opposition Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said it had the names of 29 people killed in Monday’s bombardment of Homs.

Television footage showed smoke rising from buildings, with explosions echoing in the background. “This is the most violent bombardment in recent days,” said one activist in Syria who was in touch with Homs residents. Another activist said government troops were using multiple rocket launchers in the attack.—Agencies

quake kills 43 MANILA: At least 43 people were killed when a powerful earthquake triggered landslides, collapsed homes and smashed bridges across the central Philippines yesterday, authorities said. The 6.8-magntiude quake hit a narrow strait between the heavily populated island provinces of Negros and Cebu around lunchtime, with aftershocks nearly as strong causing further panic throughout the day. The worst-hit area appeared to be Guihulngan, a coastal city in Negros close to the quake’s epicenter, with 39 people confirmed killed there, according to local military commander Colonel Francisco Patrimonio.

He and local police said most of the victims had died as landslides buried homes, while others in the city of 100,000 people died as houses collapsed under the pressure of the quake itself.

“Some private homes collapsed along with our court house and parts of the public market. We got people out of the buildings but we could not evacuate the homes,” police chief Senior Inspector Alvin Futalan said. Four other people were confirmed killed in other parts of Negros, where power outages were widespread and bridges as well as other vital infrastructure had been damaged, according to Patrimonio.

He and other government officials warned the death toll may rise, with reports of dozens of other people injured or missing in Guihulngan and nearby areas.

However, they said it was impossible to determine the exact number of missing, as power and many phone lines in the region were down and roads to the mountainous areas were impassable because of the landslides.

Patrimonio said that authorities were having to deal with looting, as well as the immediate rescue efforts, as some people took advantage of the chaos. “Looting is now rampant in Guihulngan which forced us to commit (more troops) with the Philippine national police,” he said. In Cebu, a popular tourist destination and the country’s second biggest city with 2.3 million residents, hotel guests scrambled to higher floors as unfounded rumors that a huge tsunami was bearing down spread by text message. “There is news going around of tsunami waves, so we are doing our best to keep everybody calm,” Barbi Patino, a spokesman for the 17story Parklane International Hotel said shortly after the quake struck. Civil defense chief Benito Ramos said the violent shaking of buildings in Cebu - 50 kilometers from the epicenter-led to broken windows and cracks on some walls.— AFP

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2012

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

Iranians feel the pinch of sanctions Fading economy overshadows nuclear dispute TEHRAN: Each day that he struggles to buy food for his family, vegetable seller Hasan Sharafi shoulders part of the burden of Iran’s defiance of the West over its nuclear program. He can hardly bear it. “Prices are going up every day, life is expensive. I buy chicken or meat once per month. I used to buy it twice per week,” the father of four said in Iran’s central city of Isfahan. “Sometimes I want to kill myself. I feel desperate. I do not earn enough to feed my children.”

With just a month to go before a parliamentary election, Iran has been hit hard in recent months by new US and European economic sanctions over its nuclear program, which Tehran says is peaceful but the West says is aimed at making a bomb. In conversations in towns and cities across Iran, people complained of rapidly deteriorating economic conditions, likely to be the main issue in an election that exposes divisions between President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and hardline opponents.

The last time Iranians voted, in a 2009 presidential election, Ahmadinejad’s disputed victory triggered eight months of violent street demonstrations. The authorities suc-

TEHRAN: An Iranian woman gives a letter of her demands to Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (right) during his visit to the tomb of Iran’s late founder of Islamic Republic Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini. — AFP cessfully put down that uprising by dent Behnaz in the northern city of force, but since then the Arab Spring Rasht.

“I don’t know whether the prices has demonstrated the vulnerability of governments in the region to upris- are rising because of sanctions. The ings fuelled by anger over economic only thing that I know is that our lives difficulty. “My father lost his job are ruined. I have no hope for the because the factory he used to work future.” Iran’s leaders deny that sancfor 30 years was closed last month. I tions are having an economic impact, am so pessimistic. Why is this happen- but are also calling for solidarity in the ing to us?” lamented mathematics stu- face of them. In a defiant speech on

Friday, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei told Iranians sanctions would make them stronger. “Such sanctions will benefit us. They will make us more self reliant,” he said in a televised address marking the anniversary of Iran’s 1979 revolution.

“Sanctions will not have any impact on our determination to continue our nuclear course.”

Such rhetoric resonates with some Iranians, who say they are willing to endure pain to defend a nuclear program that has become a symbol of national pride.

“America uses the nuclear issue as an excuse to replace our regime with a puppet regime to control our energy resources. But we will not let them.

Nuclear technology is our right and I fully support our leaders’ view. Death to America,” said student Mohammad Reza Khorrami in the northern town of Chalous.

But the West is hoping sanctions will turn ordinary Iranians against their leaders, and there are clear signs of discontent. When you ask Iranians about the nuclear issue, many seem to see it as a distraction from the real question of economic hardship. “I am not a politician. I don’t care about the

nuclear dispute. Soon, I might not be able to afford food and other basic needs of my children,” said Mitra Zarrabi, a schoolteacher and mother of three. “What is the nuclear dispute?

Don’t waste my time asking irrelevant questions,” said 62-year-old peddler Reza Zohrabi in a marketplace overflowing with imported Chinese goods in the city of Kashan. “I’m not interested in talking about politics and the nuclear issue. I have to find ways to put bread on my family’s table.”

Iranian authorities say 15 percent of the country ’s workforce is unemployed. Many formal jobs pay a pittance, meaning the true figure of people without adequate work to support themselves is probably far higher.

Hemmat Ghorban, 32, sits in a square in Mashhad city with a group of men, waiting to get work as day construction workers.

“I used to sell fruit in a small shop in Zanjan city,” said Ghorban, who was forced to close his shop because of the increasing rent and high price of materials. “Today I earned nothing.

How am I going to support my family?

Soon my family will be homeless.

Sometimes I go without work for three or four days.”— Reuters

Fatah, Hamas ink unity pact Abbas to head interim govt

CAIRO: An Egyptian protester kicks a teargas canister fired by riot police near the interior ministry during clashes in Cairo yesterday. — AFP

Concession fails to quell violent Egyptian clashes CAIRO: Egypt’s army-backed government said it was preparing to move ousted President Hosni Mubarak to a Cairo prison hospital in an apparent bid to calm protests, but clashes continued with police firing tear gas at demonstrators hurling rocks and broken tiles. Protesters demanding a swift presidential election and an early handover of power by the army fought police for a fourth day outside the Interior Ministry, which they accuse of failing to prevent the deaths last week of 74 people after a soccer match in the Mediterranean city of Port Said.

Seven people have been killed in Cairo and five more in Suez in protests since then. “The demand is that the army step down politically and announce the start of nominations for the presidential election immediately,” said Waleed Saleh, 30, a lawyer and activist with a mask at the ready, speaking near the ministry on Sunday. The soccer disaster and tactics of security forces in dealing with protesters has added to anger at the army’s handling of the transition and fuelled calls for the army to return to barracks sooner than it had envisaged. Political figures and a civilian advisory body to the military have suggested bringing forward a presidential vote to April or May, from the June date foreseen in the transition timetable of the army, which took power after Mubarak quit. In a concession to protesters, a ministry official said Interior Minister Mohamed

Ibrahim had ordered a hospital at Cairo’s Torah prison be prepared to receive Mubarak, who has until now been in a military hospital.

Protesters have long complained the generals were sparing their former commander the humiliation of jail by detaining him in a military hospital during his trial over the deaths of protesters during the uprising that ousted him. The hospital in Torah prison, where other ex-Mubarak officials and allies are held, had been deemed by officials not fit to handle Mubarak’s treatment, though the former president’s precise ailment is unclear.

The minister earlier ordered Mubarakera officials at Torah to be split between five prisons, responding to protesters who accused the authorities of giving them special treatment by keeping them together at Torah. Those at Torah include Mubarak’s two sons and several ex-ministers and top security officials. Calls for a swifter handover of power to civilians have mounted, and the Muslim Brotherhood which has the biggest bloc in a newly elected parliament, added its voice on Saturday to calls for a faster transition.

An army-appointed civilian council set up to advise the military is proposing accepting nominations for the presidency from Feb 23, nearly two months sooner than the April 15 date previously announced. This could lead to a vote in April or May. —Reuters

US in ‘lockstep’ with Israel on Iran nukes WASHINGTON: President Barack Obama says the United States is working in “lockstep” with Israel to solve the brewing crisis over Iran’s disputed nuclear program. Obama said Sunday that the United States does not think Israel has decided whether to attack Iran, and said he hopes the standoff can be resolved diplomatically.

Obama’s comments came as Israel’s major allies in the West were working hard to talk it out of a unilateral military strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities, arguing forcefully that an attack ultimately would only strengthen the regime in Tehran.

Israel fears Iran is fast approaching a point at which a limited military strike would no longer be enough to head off an Iranian bomb. “I don’t think that Israel has made a decision on what they need to do,” Obama said during a preSuper Bowl interview with NBC. He reiterated that the United States has removed no option from consideration in dealing with Iran - an allusion to military intervention - but emphasized that Washington wants a diplomatic solu-

tion built around a world coalition. Iran insists its nuclear pursuits are for peaceful civilian purposes, not a bomb.

After years of worries about Iran’s nuclear program, world leaders are now showing real concern that Israel could attack the Islamic republic imminently - a move that might trigger a broader war and disrupt the international economy. Iran’s regime says it wants to extinguish the Jewish state, and the West accuses it of assembling the material and know-how to build a nuclear bomb. Just last week, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta would not dispute a report that he believes Israel may attack Iran this spring in an attempt to set back its nuclear program. Obama refused to say whether the United States would get notice from Israel before any potential strike on Iran. “I will say that we have closer military and intelligence consultation between our two countries than we’ve ever had,” Obama said, adding, “We are going to be sure that we work in lockstep as we proceed to try to solve this hopefully diplomatically.” — AP

RAMALLAH: Rival Palestinian factions Fatah and Hamas signed a deal in Qatar yesterday to form a unity government of independent technocrats for the West Bank and Gaza, headed by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. The move, following the failure of explorator y IsraeliPalestinian talks aimed at reviving stalled peace negotiations, was likely to be condemned by Israel and the United States, who say the Islamist Hamas cannot be part of any peace efforts. The accord aims to pave the way for Palestinian presidential and parliamentary election possibly later this year and to rebuild the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip following the 2008-2009 Israeli offensive against Hamas.

It was not known whether the deal would be implemented. No timetable was set. A reconciliation pact Fatah and Hamas struck in May 2011 has had little substantive result but both sides said they were serious about carrying out the new accord. Fatah and Hamas have been bitter rivals since the Islamist movement seized control of Gaza in a brief war in 2007 and expelled Abbas’ Fatah-led Palestinian Authority.

Yesterday’s deal provides for a government of independent technocrats to oversee preparations for elections later this year.

A vote had been mooted in May but the Palestinian election commission says more time will be needed. Abbas and Hamas head Khaled Meshaal, who signed Monday’s deal in the presence of Qatari Emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani, pledged to ensure quick implementation of the new deal, billed as the “Doha Declaration.” “ We are serious, both Fatah and Hamas, in healing the wounds and ending the chapter of division and reinforcing and accomplishing reconcili-

DOHA: Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas (left) and Khaled Mashal, chief of the Islamic militant group Hamas (right) sit with Qatar’s crown prince Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al Thani as they sign a reconciliation agreement in Doha yesterday. — AP ation,” Meshaal said in comments Fayyad-whose dismissal was one tary vote and briefly formed a televised live by Al Jazeera from of the main Hamas demands- government but it was shunned Qatar. He said Palestinians want- would be a member of the new internationally and later dised to accomplish unity and move government or when the cabinet solved by Abbas. The Palestinian for ward “to resist the enemy would be formed. Fayyad wel- Authority supports a negotiated (Israel) and achieve our national comed the accord, and was peace with Israel that would give goals.” Abbas, head of the secular expected to remain in his post Palestinians an independent Fatah movement, promised that until the new government takes state in the Israeli-occupied West “this effort will be implemented over. “The prime minister saw this Bank and in Gaza, co-existing as a response to the aspirations alongside the Jewish state. in the shortest time possible”.

There was no immediate com- of our people to restore unity to Hamas is officially sworn to the ment from Israel, which has the homeland and its institu- destruction of Israel but is open warned Abbas that turning to tions,” said a statement issued by to an indefinite ceasefire.

Hamas amounts to turning away his office. Ismail Haniyeh, who Palestinians in Gaza welcomed from peace. A senior Palestinian heads the Hamas government in the new accord. “It is a historic official said that under Monday’s Gaza, also welcomed the deal agreement for all the Palestinian agreement, Abbas would assume and said he was ready to help people and we hope it will be implemented on the ground as it the role of prime minister, replac- implement it.

The last presidential and par- was signed on television,” said ing Western-backed economist liamentary elections were held in Gaza merchant Ahmed Abu Salam Fayyad.

It was not immediately clear if 2006. Hamas won the parliamen- Imtir.—Reuters

Election preparations kick off in conflict-torn Yemen Vice president is sole candidate in Feb 21 vote SANAA: Yemen has begun a publicity campaign to get citizens to vote in the upcoming presidential election, officials said yesterday, part of a deal to ease President Ali Abdullah Saleh out of office and pull the country back from the brink of civil war. With Vice President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi the only candidate in the Feb 21 vote, Yemeni officials fear that a low turnout will dent the legitimacy of the man expected to lead Yemen during a twoyear interim period when crucial decisions, dealing with restructuring the armed forms and introducing constitutional reforms, are expected to be taken.

“Your vote protects Yemen,” read a giant poster hung in the capital Sanaa, depicting a smiling woman in a pink headscarf as she places her ballot into a voting box. Abdul Wahhab Al-Qudsi, head of the electoral commission’s external relations, said preparations for the vote were in full swing. “(Our) main committee has gone to different provinces and the subcommittee will go off this weekend,” he told Reuters. It will be the first time in 33 years that a candidate other than Saleh-

now in the United States for treatment of injuries sustained in an assassination attempt last year-will head the impoverished Arab state, located along key oil shipping routes.

Yemen is trying to recover from months of mass anti-Saleh protests and factional fighting that have allowed Al-Qaeda’s regional wing to seize swathes of south Yemen and Shiite Muslim Houthi rebels to carve out their own domain in the north.

The United States and top oil exporter Saudi Arabia, fearing that instability will allow al Qaeda to expand its base of operations in Yemen, are counting on elections to bring security back to the country and avert the threat of outright civil war. Many Yemenis feel the same way. “We will vote in order to avoid war,” Abdullah Mutlah said as he sold his customers qat- a mild narcotic plant used widely across Yemen.

Others said they felt cheated by the election, regarding it as a waste of time and money. “Why are there elections if there is no competition?” shopkeeper Saddam Abdullah said. “Why are millions of riyals being spent

on elections whose results are already known?” Despite all the preparations and costs, some Yemenis worry that the elections may not spawn a peaceful transition. Analysts said that some of the governments that backed the transition accord worry that a national unity government, comprised of Saleh’s People’s Congress Party and the opposition’s Joint Meeting Parties, would like a low turnout.

“Some of the countries that promoted the initiative feel that both sides want a weak win for Hadi so that they can blackmail him,” Yemeni political analyst Ali Hasan said.

Yemeni officials said Washington would not tolerate attempts to upset Hadi’s ascension to the presidency.

“The American administration told representatives of (both sides within the unity g ove r n m e n t ) t h a t . . . t h e U N S e c u r i t y Council will strongly confront any attempts to keep Hadi from being elected as the countr y ’s president,” a Yemeni minister who attended a meeting with US officials last week said.—Reuters

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2012

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

50 years on, Algerian war still divides the French PARIS: Fifty years on, France remains divided over how to mark the Algerian war, a bitter conflict which ended 132 years of colonial rule in the North African territory while very nearly tearing French society apart.

For years, rival factions have commemorated their own victims while drawing a veil over past responsibilities for a war marked on all sides by torture and massacres, and the final exile of French-born settlers. French communists have long commemorated the February 8, 1962 killing by police of nine demonstrators at the Paris Charonne metro station.

On Wednesday, left-leaning demonstrators will once again mark the event by rallying at the metro station which witnessed the violent police assault on a peaceful, but outlawed demonstration which had seen some 30,000 people rally to call for peace in Algeria. “ We knew the demonstration had been declared illegal, but we went with the idea we’d just be beaten up as usual rather than

News

in brief

Senegal’s Wade shrugs off Western pressure DAKAR: Senegal’s President Abdoulaye Wade, whose reelection bid has drawn fierce criticism abroad, said in his opening campaign rally that France and the United States had no right to ask him to step aside. “I do not seek the interest of the toubabs (Westerners), but that of the Senegalese people,” the 85-year-old leader said late Sunday in Mbacke, 200 kilometers east of the capital Dakar. “ The Americans and the French are not the Senegalese’s bosses. Nobody can deny our strength,” he said in a speech marking the official launch of the campaign for the February 26 presidential election. The west African country’s opposition argues that Wade’s bid for a third term is unconstitutional, and has launched a protest movement aimed at forcing him to drop out of the race.

Former colonial power France and the United States, once fervent supporters of the veteran leader, have voiced their disappointment and suggested Senegal was ready for a next generation of leaders.

Pro-EU Niinisto wins Finnish presidency HELSINKI: Pro-Europe politician Sauli Niinisto won Finland’s presidency on Sunday in an election that showed voters want to keep the country in the euro zone despite misgivings over European Union bailouts. The former finance minister won with 63 percent support, defeating pro-euro Greens Party candidate Pekka Haavisto. The two had beaten antieuro candidates, Paavo Vayrynen of the Centre party and Timo Soini of the Finns Party, in an earlier round last month. The weak showing by the eurosceptics was a relief for Prime Minister Jyrki Katainen, who like Niinisto is a member of the National Coalition party which supports conservative economic policy. Analysts said worries about Europe’s debt crisis could drag Finland’s exportdependent economy into recession may have persuaded voters to choose a steady and pragmatic pair of hands. “In tough times people want to believe that somebody is in control of the economy,” said University of Helsinki professor Tuomo Martikainen. Niinisto said Finland was and would remain supportive of European monetary union but that he understood Finnish voters’ frustration over the debt crisis.

Nigerian militants attack oil pipeline YENAGOA: A Nigerian militant group based in the oil-producing Niger Delta said it attacked an oil pipeline owned by Italian firm Eni yesterday, a strike the military said was the work of criminal gangs.

Witnesses reported a fire on the oil and gas group’s Nembe-Brass pipeline, and ENI said the damage would mean the loss of about 4,000 barrels of oil equivalent a day. A statement sent to media said it was from the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND), formerly Nigeria’s main militant threat and responsible for years of attacks on the oil industry until a 2009 amnesty. Under the amnesty thousands of militants gave up their weapons, joined training schemes and drew stipends. Security sources say remaining gangs in the Niger Delta do not have the capacity to do the damage seen in the past, which at its height cut more than a third of the OPEC-member’s output.

Several false threats purporting to be from MEND have been sent in the past and most recent damage caused to Nigeria’s oil infrastructure has been done by gangs stealing oil for illicit refining and sale, rather than due to militant strikes.

‘New Jews’ comment hurts Austria far right VIENNA: The leader of Austria’s far-right Freedom Party is taking a public relations beating after refusing to apologize for likening anti-fascist protesters to a Nazi mob and his supporters to Jews. HeinzChristian Strache’s comment that “We are the new Jews” to an undercover journalist at a Vienna ball that critics say draws right-wing extremists has caused uproar and triggered at least a temporary setback for his resurgent eurosceptic party.

Freedom’s bashing of euro zone bailouts has played well to Austrian voters ahead of parliamentary elections due by next year, boosting its chances for a return to power. In the latest Gallup poll, only 11 percent of respondents picked Strache, 42, as their preferred chancellor, down five points to a personal low after a slew of negative headlines that prompted Austria’s president to rescind a public-service medal that Strache was set to receive. The poll, for the Oesterreich paper, showed Freedom (FPO) had lost three points in just a week to 24 percent support, trailing the Social Democrats (SPO) at 29 percent and their conservative People’s Party (OVP) coalition partners at 25.

killed,” said sociologist Maryse Tripier, who took part in the rally as a schoolgirl. Fifty years on, trade unions and left-leaning political parties continue to demand that the French state fully account for its role in the killings.

Others however claim that by highlighting the Charonne massacre the Left helped bury another less well known police massacre of some 200 pro-independence Algerian demonstrators in Paris on October 17, 1961.

The death toll has never officially been made public, and may never be known, as many of the bodies were simply thrown into the river Seine. For French historian Olivier Le Cour Grandmaison, “France has still not acknowledged its responsibility for this state crime”. It was only last year that Francois Hollande, the socialist presidential candidate, and Bertrand Delanoe, the socialist mayor of Paris, paid tribute to the 200 dead.

French-born Algerian settlers, over a million of whom resettled in France as a result of Algerian independence,

have their own memorial date-July 5, 1962. On that day hundreds of them were massacred in the Algerian coastal city of Oran by pro-independence forces, despite the fact that a

ceasefire to end the war had been signed in Geneva three and a half months previously. Algerians who served as auxiliaries in the French army, the “Harkis”, many of whom also

ALGIERS: A person walks in Algiers after a snowfall. — AFP

sought refuge in France, for their part remember the systematic killings they were subjected to by pro-independence forces when French forces withdrew from Algeria.

Far-right presidential candidate Marine Le Pen, whose father fought in Algeria, last month called for France to honor the Harkis and the former settlers, while rejecting the idea of a commemoration to mark March 19, 1962 when the Geneva peace accords were signed. “It’s as if no one is able to acknowledge the suffering of others,” said French historian Benjamin Stora.

“Everyone has his own date. His own dead.

At a time when everyone should be able to jointly honor all the victims, be they Communists, Algerians, pieds-noirs (the name given to the French settlers) or Harkis,” he said. For French historian Gilles Manceron, a former deputy president of the human rights’ league, most French people “just want to turn the page” on the whole drama. — AFP

Death toll mounts as cold snap hits Europe 360 killed; Bulgarian dam bursts WARSAW: The toll from Europe’s killer cold snap hit at least 360 yesterday with nine new victims found in Poland, most of them homeless, and five drowned when a Bulgarian dam burst after torrential rain. The rain and snowstorms lashing southern Bulgaria collapsed the dam yesterday, submerging the small village of Biser under 2.5 meters of water, emergency services said. Biser mayor Zlatka Valkova told state news agency BTA three elderly men had drowned in their homes and a massive rescue effort was under way in the village of about 800 people. National radio reported two other people were killed when their car was swept off a bridge. “People are in panic,” regional mayor Mihail Liskov said on national radio. “Ninety percent of the village is under water.”

Two larger dams in southern Bulgaria risked spilling over and residents were told to prepare to evacuate. Heavy rains also triggered a landslide that derailed a train near the Turkish border. No injuries were reported. Meanwhile, temperatures in Poland plunged to as low as minus 24 degrees Celsius, bringing another deadly night for the homeless. As has been the case throughout the 10-day-old cold snap, transients have borne the brunt of the suffering, with frozen victims found in abandoned and unheated homes, fire escapes or makeshift shelters on Europe’s streets.

In a bid to save lives, Poland’s homeless shelters have dropped a ban on drunken individuals.

Monika Golebiewska, a Warsaw police officer whose beat is a daily patrol bringing food and clothing to the homeless in the city’s hardscrabble Praga district, said she

has been unrelentingly busy since the cold snap started. “New (fatal) cases are reported to us daily. Just today we got calls telling us about two new ones, one of someone who was living in a tent and another of someone in an abandoned train station,” Golebiewska said. “I’ve got more and more people to feed, but just 40 portions of soup a day.”

brought the cold snap’s toll to 23.

Hungarian authorities have reported at least 12 dead since the onset of the cold.

Italian authorities continued to clear up after a rare snow storm blanketed Rome over the weekend and crews struggled to restore power to about 60,000 homes across the country, especially in the Tuscan cities of Siena and Arezzo.

BELGRADE: A dog walks on a snow-covered street in Belgrade yesterday. — AFP Italian energy giant ENI warned Overall, 107 people have died of hypothermia in Poland since winter hit in earned it may have to cut gas supplied to November. The current cold snap began customers after shortfalls in gas imports at the end of January and across the con- from Russia. Elsewhere across Europe, tinent, authorities have reported at least authorities struggled to clear clogged 360 weather-related deaths. In neighbor- roads and runways that left tens of thouing Lithuania, where the mercury has sands of travelers stranded over the dipped to minus 31 Celsius, the deaths of weekend. After cancelling half its flights 12 more people over the weekend Sunday, operators of London’s Heathrow

Queen Elizabeth marks 60 years on the throne Good, bad times for royal family LONDON: Sixty years after she ascended to the throne in an austere Britain still facing post-war rationing, Queen Elizabeth marked the milestone yesterday with a new website that showed just how much the world has changed during her reign. The 25-year-old princess was on tour in Kenya when she became queen on Feb 6, 1952, following the death of her father, King George VI. She immediately flew back to Britain where she was welcomed by then Prime Minister Winston Churchill.

The royal family has been through tumultuous times since then. Three of the queen’s four children have divorced and every personal crisis has been dissected by world media. The most extreme case was the 1997 death of Princess Diana, ex-wife of the queen’s eldest son Prince Charles, a rare moment of mass unpopularity for the monarch who was criticized for not showing enough emotion amid a national outpouring of grief.

During her reign, the royal family has also repeatedly come under fire over its expensive lifestyle and the queen has had to give up some of her privileges, such as her beloved yacht Britannia, which was decommissioned in 1997.

But over time, the monarch’s restrained behavior and devotion to duty have endeared her to most Britons.

She also benefited from the goodwill generated by the glamorous wedding of her grandson Prince William and Kate Middleton last year. In typical low-key style, the 85year-old queen spent yesterday carrying out routine duties such as a school visit in the town of King’s Lynn in eastern England, prompting one fan to tweet that it should be renamed “Queen’s Lynn” for the occasion.

Four days of more lavish celebrations of her 60 years on the throne, known as the diamond jubilee, are scheduled for June when the weather will be warmer. These will include a 1,000-ship pageant on the River Thames and a concert at Buckingham Palace.

60 YEARS, 30 CORGIS The queen promised yesterday to “dedicate myself anew to your service”. “I hope also that this Jubilee year will be a time to give thanks for the great advances that

have been made since 1952 and to look forward to the future with clear head and warm heart,” she wrote to her subjects in a message.

The royal household launched a festive new website, thediamondjubilee.org, allowing users to send the queen a message, listing 60 interesting or amusing facts about her, and featuring a photo timeline of world events during her reign. — Reuters

DERSINGHAM: Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II visits the Dersingham Infant and Nursery School in Dersingham, Norfolk, yesterday to mark the start of her diamond jubilee celebrations. — AFP

Airport, the world’s busiest passenger hub, said its schedule was almost back to normal yesterday. While parts of Britain were beginning to warm above freezing, other European nations remained in an icy grip.

In the Czech town of Kvilda, near the Czech-German border, the temperature hit minus 39.4 Celsius, the lowest recorded in the country this winter. Switzerland also recorded year lows, dropping to minus 35.1 Celsius in the eastern Graubuenden canton on Sunday night.

The bitter cold has engulfed most of Europe and even crossed the Mediterranean into north Africa, where as many as 16 people were killed on Algeria’s snow-slicked roads or in other weather-related accidents. Rare snow also fell in southern Tunisia for the first time in some 40 years, media reported, with temperatures well below freezing in some areas of the country and villages cut off.

In France, 39 of the country’s 101 regions were on alert for deep cold or snow, down from more than half the regions at the weekend, as a new record for electricity consumption was predicted later yesterday.

Five people have died in weatherrelated incidents since the cold snap hit France, the latest a 56-year-old homeless man who is believed to have succumbed to hypothermia in a suburb of Paris.

People in the Netherlands, however, were sharpening their skates in the hope that a legendary long-distance race on frozen canals may be held for the first time in 15 years, though organizers cautioned yesterday the ice was still too thin. — AFP

Sarkozy’s ally faces charges PARIS: A former French minister will appear before a campaign financing probe today, feeding the air of suspicion hanging over President Nicolas Sarkozy’s camp ahead of a presidential vote in April. Eric Woerth, formerly Sarkozy’s budget minister and treasurer of his UMP party, will testify before judges investigating alleged illegal donations by L’Oreal heiress and France’s richest woman Liliane Bettencourt. A source close to the investigation said Woerth will be charged with illegally raising funds for Sarkozy’s 2007 campaign and “fraudulent abuse of a person’s weakness” after he allegedly received cash from Bettencourt.

The case is only one of several corruption investigations plaguing the right-wing incumbent as he prepares for a tough re-election fight against Socialist flag-bearer Francois Hollande in a two-round vote in April and May. Bettencourt is also at the centre of a series of long-standing, overlapping legal inquiries, including claims that she showered leading right-wing figures with envelopes stuffed with undeclared campaign donations.

Bettencourt’s accountant, Claire Thibout, has testified to having provided 50,000 euros ($65,000) in cash to Bettencourt’s financial manager, Patrice de Maistre, which was then handed over to Woerth for Sarkozy’s campaign.

She had allegedly been asked to provide 150,000 euros but did not have the cash at hand. Under France’s electoral code, individual election campaign contributions may not exceed 4,600 euros. A court has since found that 89-yearold Bettencourt, the billionaire heiress to the L’Oreal cosmetics and shampoo empire, is suffering from dementia and Alzheimer’s disease and has placed her under guardianship. Woerth left the government in 2010 and in 2011 police carried out searches of his home and the UMP’s offices in connection with the case. He has strongly denied the allegations.

“Nicolas Sarkozy’s camp is completely clean,” Woerth said in October, denouncing the allegations as a “shameless” smear campaign by “left-wing media”. Sarkozy vowed to lead an “irreproachable republic” when he came to office, but his camp has since been tainted by a series of scandals. Another of the most high-profile cases has been the so-called Karachi affair, in which two close aides to Sarkozy have been charged by judges investigating alleged kickbacks on a Pakistani arms deal. — AFP

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Blast kills husband of missing woman, 2 boys Tragic end to a bizarre case GRAHAM: Days after a judge ruled against him in a child custody hearing, a father and his two young sons were killed Sunday when police said he appeared to intentionally blow up a house with all three inside - a tragic ending to a bizarre case that began more than two years ago when the man’s wife went mysteriously missing in Utah. A social worker brought the two boys to Josh Powell’s home for what was to be a supervised visit, and Powell let his sons inside - but then blocked the social worker from entering, Graham Fire and Rescue Chief Gary Franz said. The social worker called her supervisors to report that she could smell gas, and moments later the home exploded.

Sgt Ed Troyer, Pierce County sheriff ’s spokesman, said emails that Powell sent authorities seemed to confirm that Powell planned the deadly blast. Troyer didn’t elaborate on the contents of the emails.

Jeffrey Bassett, who represented

Powell in the custody case, said he received a brief email from his client just minutes before Powell and the two boys died. It said, “I’m sorry,

goodbye.” The email arrived at 12:05 pm Sunday, about 10 minutes before the explosion, but he didn’t see it until two hours later, when

WASHINGTON: Pierce County Sheriff ’s deputies and Graham Firefighters work around the smoldering remains of a house near Fredrickson, Wash, where, according to a sheriff’s spokesman, three bodies were found. —AP

News

in brief

Noriega suffers ‘stroke’ PANAMA CITY: Former Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega was taken from his prison cell to a public hospital for treatment on Sunday following a ‘possible stroke’, officials said. The 77-yearold Noriega was taken to the Hospital Santo Tomas after suffering “hypertension with a possibility of a stroke,” national police said in a statement that did not elaborate on his condition. “He had symptoms that indicated a stroke,” Health Minister Franklin Vergara said later, adding that Noriega would be kept under observation in the intensive care unit for 24 hours and would undergo further tests. The ex-military ruler spent 22 years behind bars in the United States and France on drug trafficking and money laundering charges before being extradited to Panama on December 11. He returned home in a wheelchair, having difficulty walking and speaking due to strokes suffered in the past. A military dictator from 1983 to 1989, Noriega is serving three separate sentences after being convicted in absentia for crimes committed in Panama, including the murder of critics. He also faces a series of other complaints for human rights abuses. News of his hospitalization spread quickly in the Central American nation and the rumor mill was turning fast. “I’m glad he is getting the medical attention he denied me,” said Roberto Diaz Herrera, a former aide to Noriega who was later imprisoned and nearly died from illness. “I want him to recover and face the law,” said Diaz.

Mexico party picks woman candidate MEXICO CITY: A major political party in Mexico has chosen a female presidential candidate for the first time, as the ruling party bet that a charismatic former congresswoman will help it erode the lead held by its powerful rival. After easily winning the National Action Party’s primar y Sunday night, Josefina Vazquez Mota vowed to unite a party battered by a bloody drug war and help it defeat the Institutional Revolutionary Party, which ruled Mexico for 71 years before being ousted by National Action in 2000. “I will be the first woman president of Mexico in history,” Vazquez Mota, 51, told cheering supporters. The party’s vote for Vazquez Mota over two other candidates sets the race for Mexico’s July 1 presidential election. The two other major parties had already selected their candidates. Vazquez Mota faces an uphill climb against former Mexico State Gov. Enrique Pena Nieto, the front-runner in the polls who could return Mexico’s PRI to power after a 12-year hiatus. The leftist Democratic Revolution Party chose Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, who is making his second run after a razor-thin loss in 2006 to President Felipe Calderon. Mexico limits its presidents to a single six-year term.

Georgia top court overturns assisted suicide restrictions ATLANTA: Georgia’s top court yesterday struck down a state law designed to discourage assisted suicides after a legal battle brought by four members of a suicide group who said the law also violated free speech rights. The Georgia Supreme Court’s unanimous ruling concludes the 1994 state law “restricts speech in violation of the free speech clauses” of the US and Georgia constitutions. The court’s opinion held that Georgia only criminalized assisted suicides that include a public offering to assist. It said the law didn’t expressly prohibit assisted suicides, meaning some were legal in Georgia. The opinion, penned

by Justice Hugh Thompson, said lawmakers could have imposed a ban on all assisted suicides with no restriction on protected speech, or it could forbid all offers to assist in suicide that are followed by the act. But lawmakers decided to do neither, the ruling said. “The State has failed to provide any explanation or evidence as to why a public advertisement or offer to assist in an otherwise legal activity is sufficiently problematic to justify an intrusion on protected speech rights,” the ruling said. The court’s decision means the members of the Final Exit Network who challenged the law af ter they were charged in February 2009 with helping a 58-year-old cancerstricken man die, won’t have to stand trial, said attorney Don Samuel, who represents one of the defendants.

others told him Josh and the boys had been killed. He said he knew Josh was upset after being ordered to undergo a psycho-sexual evaluation recently, but he didn’t see this coming.

Powell was under investigation in the disappearance of his 28-yearold wife Susan from their West Valley City, Utah, home in December 2009. He claimed he had taken the boys on a midnight excursion in freezing temperatures when she vanished. The children, 5-year-old Braden and 7-year-old Charles, had been living with Susan Powell’s parents since Josh Powell’s father, Steven, was arrested on child porn and voyeurism charges last fall. On Wednesday, a judge had denied an attempt by Josh Powell to regain custody, saying she wouldn’t consider returning the two boys to their father until he underwent a psychosexual evaluation.

Sherry Hill, a spokeswoman for the state Department of Social and

Health Services, said the social worker who was with the children was not a Child Protective Services employee but a contract worker with a private agency that supervises visits for the state. “The visit supervisor for this particular agency had taken the children to the home. When she does that, she sits through the visit and might take notes on her observations,” Hill said. “She pulled up in the car, and the kids ran out ahead of her. He closed the door and locked it.

She wasn’t able to get in, and that’s when she smelled gas.”

Lawyer Steve Downing, who represented Susan Powell’s parents, Chuck and Judy Cox, in the custody fight, said: “It’s the most horrifying thing you can imagine happening ...The Coxes are absolutely devastated. They were always very fearful of him doing something like this, and he did it.” Bassett said he represented Powell free of charge because “every parent deserves the right to an attorney.” Powell called or

emailed him at least once a day, and often more than that, and in their conversations “he never once admitted doing anything regarding Susan.

In fact, he denied it.”

Sgt Mike Powell of the West Valley City Police Department in Utah, which is handling the investigation into Susan Powell’s disappearance, said it was too soon to say how Josh Powell’s death may impact their probe. “Quite frankly, this has obviously quickly unfolded up in Washington and we’re obviously just working through the details ourselves here,” said Powell, who is not related to the family. Kirk Graves, 39, of West Jordan, Utah, whose wife is Josh Powell’s sister, said they were stunned by the news. “We never contemplated the idea he would do something like this. You just don’t expect it from a father,” he said.

“His world was falling apart around him and he was going to lose his boys and get arrested for Susan’s disappearance. He’s a narcissist and he has no love for anyone but himself. —AP

Gingrich vows to fight ‘timid’ rival Romney GOP race turns to Colorado, Minnesota LAS VEGAS: Republican Newt Gingrich has vowed to press ahead with his struggling presidential bid after a big loss in Nevada, saying he will focus on drawing a contrast with “timid” rival Mitt Romney.

Romney, the Republican front-runner, easily thumped Gingrich in Nevada on Saturday for his second consecutive win and third in the first five contests in the state-by-state battle to pick a challenger to face Democratic President Barack Obama in the November election.

The victory gave Romney growing momentum as the race turns to the next round contests today - in Minnesota, Colorado and Missouri - and Maine’s weeklong caucuses that conclude next Saturday. It also raised questions about Gingrich’s future, but the former US House of Representatives speaker appeared on two national morning talk shows to repeat his vow to stay in the race despite big losses in Nevada and last week in Florida.

Gingrich, a former Georgia congressman, hopes his campaign can last until 10 “Super Tuesday” contests on March 6 and several later contests in March, when votes will be taken in southern states where he expects to do well. “My goal over the next few weeks is to draw a very sharp distinction between Romney’s positions, which are very - the Wall Street Journal described them as timid - and in terms of tax policies, being like Obama,” he said on NBC’s “Meet the Press.” “I hope by the time we get to Super Tuesday that I will have made the case that a genuine conservative is a dramatically better choice to defeat Barack Obama,” he said on CBS’s “Face the Nation.”

Gingrich said he hoped to pull close to even with Romney in delegates for the nomination after the Texas primary in early April. First he will have to survive

February. New polls on Sunday showed Gingrich could face a challenge from Rick Santorum, who has been vying with Gingrich to be the conservative alternative to the more moderate Romney. A Public Policy Polling survey showed Romney with a comfortable 14-point lead in Colorado over Santorum, a former

believed he would pick up steam in the race as it moves beyond the first five contests and broadened to states where Romney, the former Massachusetts governor, has not spent as much time organizing and campaigning. “I think we’re going to show improvement. This race is a long, long way from being over,” he said on “Fox

LAS VEGAS: Republican presidential candidate, former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich speaks at a news conference at The Venetian in Las Vegas, Nevada. —AFP US senator from Pennsylvania, with Gingrich in third. In Minnesota, Santorum had a slight 2-point edge on Romney with Gingrich in third. In Missouri, which is a non-binding primary that does not award delegates, Gingrich is not even on the ballot.

BIG DAY FOR SANTORUM “Tuesday has the potential to be a big day for Rick Santorum,” the Public Policy Polling memo said. Santorum said he

News Sunday.” “We believe that if you look at the national polls, our numbers are moving up.” The Romney campaign went on the attack against Santorum on Sunday, issuing a statement to reporters renewing criticism of his record in the Senate backing spending bills and local spending projects known as earmarks.

“Rick Santorum is part of the bigspending Washington establishment that ran up the national debt by trillions and stuck our grandchildren with the bill,”

Catholics protest birth control rule CHICAGO: American Catholic clergy called on the faithful to write Congress to protest new birth control rules from President Barack Obama’s administration, stepping up a campaign that began a week ago with denunciations from the pulpit at Masses across the country. The US Conference of Catholic Bishops, posted an “Urgent Action Alert” over the weekend calling on Catholics to write to their US lawmakers protesting the rule. The fight is over a provision of the health reform law announced on Jan. 20 that would require health insurance plans-including those offered by institutions such as Catholic-affiliated hospitals and universities-to offer free birth control including sterilization.

At Immaculate Conception Catholic church in the Philadelphia suburb of Jenkintown, Pennsylvania, Monsignor David E. Diamond read the congregation a letter on Sunday from Philadelphia Archbishop Charles J Chaput parishioners to contact members of Congress. “Write them, call them, visit them - and help them understand the deep resistance of Pennsylvania Catholics to this dangerous ruling,” the letter said. After Mass, John Fruncillo, 65, said he agreed with the clergy. “I told my wife on the way out that it’s about time the church started taking a stand on some of these issues.” said Fruncillo, adding that he

did not vote for Obama in 2008 and probably would not in 2012.

Republican presidential candidates Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum seized on the issue on Sunday television talk shows, criticizing the Obama administration as misguided and antiCatholic. “He (Obama) has basically declared war on the Catholic Church,” Gingrich said on “Meet The Press.” Asked if the contraceptives issue would rebound on Obama in the election, Gingrich said, “I think there are millions of people who are very disturbed by it.”

Conservative columnist Peggy Noonan wrote in the Wall Street Journal this week that the contraception ruling could cost Obama the November election because the Catholic vote is concentrated in battleground states.

The White House defended the policy, saying that only institutions such as hospitals that service a large nonCatholic community would have to offer free birth control. The administration also said the availability of birth control would reduce the number of abortions. While polls show a large majority of US Catholics ignore church teaching against contraceptives, Catholic clergy were outraged by the Obama ruling, viewing it as forcing Catholic hospitals and other services to skirt church doctrine.

Obama in 2008 won the votes of a 54 percent of Catholics, reversing a

Republican majority of the Catholic vote won by George W Bush in 2004.

Catholics are about a quarter of the US populations, with large blocs in such battleground states as Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, all won by Obama in 2008. In Wisconsin, Barbara Schrawk said she voted for Obama in 2008 but was “on the fence” this year.

“This should not be a political issue,” Schrawk, 68, said as she entered St Alphonsus Catholic church in the Milwaukee suburb of Greendale.

In the battleground state of Ohio, Donald and Katherine Miller, holding their 5-month-old daughter Anne, compared the Obama administration ruling to forcing a Jewish kosher restaurant to serve pork. “This is basically forcing Catholics to do something that is against their beliefs-puts them in a place where they have to choose between violating God or violating the laws of the country,” said Donald Miller outside a Catholic church in Cleveland.

He said Catholics should defy the law.

But some Catholics said the birth control dispute would not affect their support for Obama this year. Wally Brunelli, 70, said that while he opposes the use of contraceptives he would support Obama in 2012, as he did four years ago. “Personally I feel as if this is something that the person themselves ... should decide,” Brunelli said after church in the Milwaukee suburb. —Reuters

Romney spokeswoman Andrea Saul said.

Santorum finished a distant fourth in Nevada, behind Romney, Gingrich and US Representative Ron Paul, whose thirdplace showing was a disappointment after spending time and building a campaign organization in the state. Paul said on ABC’s “This Week” he was not sure where he might score a victory in the race.

Santorum and Gingrich have each won one state, Iowa and South Carolina respectively, while Romney has won New Hampshire, Florida and Nevada.

“It’s hard to say exactly when, but we have three or four caucus states that we believe our numbers are doing pretty good, so we have to just wait and see and continue to do exactly what we’re doing,” Paul said. Romney took command of the Republican race with his victory in Nevada, where he won a broad cross-section of Republican voters including conservatives, moderates and Tea Party movement supporters. But while vote totals were not complete on Sunday afternoon, Romney’s 48 percent showing was slightly short of the 51 percent he received when he won Nevada during his failed 2008 presidential campaign.

Gingrich and Santorum said Romney had failed to seal the deal with Republican voters and there was still room for another candidate to confront him. “The challenge is to say, do you really want to go into a fall election with a moderate candidate?” Gingrich said. “The difference between timidly trying to manage at the margins a system that has to be profoundly changed and boldly taking it on, is a very, very big difference.” Gingrich and Romney both took the day off the campaign trail on Sunday, when many Americans were more focused on the Super Bowl football championship than on politics. —Reuters

Tense police stand-off in Brazilian city BRASILIA: Troops locked down the Brazilian city of Salvador on Sunday as an elite unit prepared to besiege the legislature and arrest armed police officers whose strike action has sent homicides spiraling. A force of 2,600 army, navy and federal police was ordered to quell unrest in the northeastern state of Bahia after leading police officers went on strike on Wednesday demanding higher pay, weeks before the annual Carnival. Homicides have skyrocketed since the strike. State officials said 81 murders were reported over the past five days, more than twice the number for the same period last year. Assaults and store lootings also increased.

“There are 40 men of an elite group that arrived to capture the strikers,” a state government source said, as soldiers patrolled key intersections in the city and kept watch over its popular beaches. The head of the state legislature, Marcelo Nilo, urged the strikers to leave the building before midnight Sunday. The site “cannot be used as a refuge for those fleeing justice,” Nilo said. Scores of armed policemen demanding an amnesty have been occupying part of the building since the strike began, Bahia state government spokesman Robinson Almeida said.

“The government knows that 99 percent of us are armed. If they try to evict us there will be a bloodbath,” an unidentified police officer told the Folha de Sao Paulo newspaper. One strike leader was arrested on Sunday on charges of “incitement to violence, forming gangs and theft of public property,” officials said. Arrest warrants were outstanding against 11 other leaders. Local residents were fearful. “For the last two days I have not left my apartment,” Italian businessman Marco Baghin told reporters. “It made no sense to risk being attacked or robbed.” Bahia Governor Jaques Wagner has declared the strike illegal and asked for federal help. —AFP

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6 dead, 50 trapped in Pakistan factory collapse LAHORE: Four women and two children were killed, with dozens of others trapped under rubble when a factory collapsed in Pakistan’s city of Lahore yesterday, officials said. The three-storey building used to manufacture veterinary medicines came crashing down, probably the result of a boiler and a gas cylinder explosion at the premises in the congested Multan Road area, police said.

Rescue workers dug through the rubble with bare hands, desperate to answer trembling cries for help from people trapped beneath concrete slabs as sobbing relatives urged rescuers to do everything possible to recover their loved ones.

Police said the Orient Labs (Private) Limited factory was illegal as it was without the proper registration, and they were hunting down its three partners. The accident at the 25-year-old factory will likely highlight poor safety procedures among Pakistani manufacturers and, with a

12-year-old boy among the dead, the use of child labor. “Three bodies have been pulled out. Two are women and one a child. There are

two other bodies of women still under the rubble,” senior police official Ghulam Mehmood Dogar said at the site.

LAHORE: Pakistani rescue workers look for survivors in the debris of a building that collapsed in Lahore yesterday. —AP

Rescue workers later emerged with one of the bodies wrapped in a white sheet, and later with another body, that of a 14-year-old boy, which was put in a waiting ambulance and driven to hospital, an AFP correspondent said. Police had also reported the death, earlier, of a 12year-old boy. “Eighteen people have been accounted for and 45 to 50 are still feared to be buried under the rubble,” Dogar said. An AFP photographer said he saw the hand of a motionless woman lying under the rubble. Rescue worker Mohammad Asif also put the death toll at five, saying one boy and four women had been killed. “The workers were mostly women and children who were engaged in packing up the medicines,” Asif said.

Mohammad Akram, 50, said he ran to the site shortly after 8:00 am (0300 GMT ), desperately worried about his 10-year-old son, Asad, a packer. “I came here rushing and

weeping but luckily my son has been rescued. He is injured and alive. But my 12-year old nephew is still missing.” The main working hours were 8:00 am to 5:00 pm, but employees were quite often required to work late into the night as well, Akram said. The rescue effort was hampered by narrow lanes and it took time for heavy cranes and excavators to reach the area. “It’s a big disaster. It is too early to say when we’ll finish. We want to recover alive as many people as possible,” said rescue worker Ahmed Raza.

Workers and volunteers used everything they could-hammers, axes, chisels and shovels-to shift the rubble and pull out the injured, coated in dust, as relatives stood by, sobbing, and a crowd of local residents gathered to watch. One slightly injured girl pulled out of the rubble was too frightened and panicked to tell reporters and rescue workers what she remembered. A 55-year-old

housewife refusing to give her name accused the government of providing no security to taxpayers. “There are factories working illegally in residential areas. We have lodged complaints in the past but who will listen to us?” she said in desperation.

As the afternoon wore on, workers started to assemble search lights with the help of a generator, readying for a night of painstaking work.

“The search will continue throughout the night. We have to be very careful, it is the question of human lives,” he added. A small group of about 15 to 20 workers protested at the site, carrying the red flags of Pakistan’s Labor Party and shouting: “Who is accountable for the flood of these innocent workers? We want an answer.” Eight million people live in Lahore, 253 kilometers southeast of the capital Islamabad. It is considered Pakistan’s cultural capital and perhaps the most liberal city in the conservative Muslim country. —AFP

China defends Syria veto, doubts West’s intentions Beijing wary of West after Libya experience BEIJING: China defended its rejection of a UN resolution pressing Syrian President Bashar AlAssad to abandon power, with a top state newspaper saying Western intervention in Libya, Afghanistan and Iraq exposed the risks of forced regime change. China said its blocking, along with Russia, of the UN resolution which would have backed an Arab plan urging Assad to quit, did not amount to supporting the Syrian leader. Activists accused his forces of bombarding part of the city of Homs before the UN vote in the worst bloodshed of the 11month uprising.

“On the issue of Syria, China is not playing favorites and nor is it deliberately opposing anyone, but rather is upholding an objective and fair stance and a responsible position,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Weimin told reporters in Beijing. Western powers that initiated the UN Security Council vote on their draft resolution were culpable for not going far enough in seeking compromise, said Liu. “Our goal is for the Syrian people to escape violence, conflict and flames of war, and not to make the problem even more complicated,” he said.

“Unfortunately, the countries that proposed the resolution forced a vote despite the serious differences among various sides, and this approach was not conducive to the unity and authority of Security Council and is not conducive to the appropriate resolution of the problem. Therefore, China voted against the draft resolution,” Liu added. China’s explanation is unlikely to mollify critics in Western capitals and the Middle East.

The conflicting Chinese and Western positions have exposed a wider rift about how China should use its growing influence and whether it should foresake its long-standing, albeit unevenly applied, principle of non-inter-

ference in other countries’ domestic conflicts.

China’s siding with Russia over Syria could add to irritants with the United States. Vice President Xi Jinping, the Communist Party’s likely next leader, is due to visit there next week.

“Whatever the (Syria) resolution may have said on paper, both China and Russia worried that it could have laid the way for legitimizing another armed intervention,” said Guo Xian’gang, a senior research fellow at the China Institute of International Studies, a government-run think tank in Beijing. China is one of the five permanent UN Security Council members that hold the power to veto resolutions.

Russia and China’s veto on Saturday came a day after activists said Syrian forces killed more than 200 people in Homs. Syrian forces bombarded the city again yesterday, killing more than 50 people, the opposition said.

All 13 other members of the Security Council voted for the resolution, which also called for a withdrawal of Syrian troops from towns and the beginning of a transition to democracy. Dozens of Syrian and Libyan demonstrators threw rocks, eggs and tomatoes at the Chinese embassy in Tripoli, where they also broke windows and sprayed graffiti on walls in a show of disgust at the veto. Asked about criticisms, such as those from the US ambassador to the United Nations, Susan Rice, who said more bloodshed would be on Russian and Chinese hands, Liu said: “China does not accept such accusations.”

FRESH SEEDS OF DISASTER The People’s Daily, China’s top party newspaper, also defended the veto, and suggested that Chinese distrust of Western intervention lay behind it. “Currently, the situation in Syria is extremely complex. Simplistically support-

ing one side and suppressing the other might seem a helpful way of turning things around, but in fact it would be sowing fresh seeds of disaster,” the newspaper, which echoes government thinking, said in the commentary.

The author of the commentary used the pen name “Zhong Sheng”, which can mean “voice of China” and is often used to give the government’s position on foreign policy.

The People’s Daily spelled out broader Chinese concerns about US-backed action in the Arab world and beyond, citing the campaign in Libya. In March, China abstained from a Security Council vote that authorized NATO intervention in Libya. The resolution became the basis for the NATO air campaign that led to the overthrow of Muammar Gaddafi, despite misgivings from Beijing and Moscow about the expanded campaign, which they said went beyond the resolution.

“Libya offers a negative case study. NATO abused the Security Council resolution about establishing a no-fly zone, and directly provided firepower assistance to one side,” said the People’s Daily.

“The calamities of Iraq and Afghanistan should be ample to wipe clear the world’s eyes.

Forceful prevention of a humanitarian disaster sounds filled with a sense of justice and responsibility,” the paper said. “But are not the unstoppable attacks and explosions over a decade after regime change a humanitarian disaster?” Guo, the Beijing-based researcher, who is an expert on the Middle East, said the Libya experience probably still stung Chinese officials, who also worry about possible Western or Israeli military strikes against Iran’s nuclear facilities. “If the Libya model was applied to Syria, then it could be applied again and again, so China and Russia were more resolute this time,” said Guo. —Reuters

Scandal blow puts India govt in danger NEW DELHI: There is no clamor for an early general election in India, but the latest blow dealt to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh over a massive corruption scandal raises the risk that his wounded government could fall well before its mandate runs out in 2014.

Singh is unlikely to quit following last week’s Supreme Court order for 122 telecoms licenses to be revoked, a deeply embarrassing ruling that accused the government of “virtually gifting away an important national asset at throwaway prices”. According to Sanjaya Baru, a former media adviser to the 79-year-old prime minister, Singh has seriously considered stepping down at times during the turbulence of the past 12 months but has plodded on out of loyalty to the ruling Congress party.

Few really know the prime minister’s mind. Indeed Singh’s public silence on many matters is the butt of internet jokes, one of which has his frustrated dentist telling him: “You can open your mouth now, I’m your dentist.” Even if Singh did go, he has several ambitious colleagues who could step in to lead Congress into the next elections, hoping that they can shake off the unpopularity that has closed in on the party since it won a second five-year term in 2009. There was some rare relief for the government on Saturday, when a court cleared Singh’s interior minister of signing off on the sale of the mobile network licences, which may have cost the public exchequer up to $36 billion in lost revenues.

Buoyed by this ruling-which kept the blame for short-changing the nation from spreading across Singh’s cabinet — the Congress party is most likely to try to limp

on, just as it did through 2011.

Last year it survived the detention of a minister over the telecoms scandal, country-wide protests over corruption, flip-flopping by fickle regional parties in its coalition, and dismay over a policy paralysis as economic growth was skidding. It even blundered into an embarrassing legal face-off with the country’s army chief over his date of birth and retirement.

The question now is whether it can ride out 2012 too.

cover story. “Everyone’s waiting and bets are now on as to whether this government will survive the budget session,” it said.

“The Manmohan regime may be too much of a liability for regional parties (in the coalition) to carry the burden for much longer.”

Congress is expected to fare better in the Uttar Pradesh poll than last time, when it won a mere 22 of the state assembly’s 403 seats, in part thanks to the tireless campaigning of Rahul

NEW DELHI: Indian Navy soldiers practice for the ceremonial guard of honor for Brazilian Defense Minister Celso Amorim (unseen) opposite the North Block, which houses several Indian ministries in New Delhi. —AP BETS ARE ON Two looming events could decide that: the first is a monthlong election in the politically crucial state of Uttar Pradesh that gets under way this week, and the second is the budget session of parliament in March. “Ever since the (telecoms) scandal blew sky high in October 2010 ... the regime in Delhi has acquired the traits of a rubber band that stretches and shows great elasticity but is yet to snap,” the current affairs weekly Outlook said in a

Gandhi, scion of the NehruGandhi dynasty that has ruled India for most of its six decades of independence. But if there is only a modest improvement in its seat tally, Congress will be further weakened. This may encourage the main opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to go on the offensive. Coalition partners that Congress relies on for a parliamentary majority could also be tempted to desert it during the budget session in March. If the government fails to win enough

support in parliament for its 2012/13 Finance Bill in midMarch, then, under the constitution, it must resign, which could trigger a mid-term election.

“How many members of parliament want an election now?

There’s no mood for it. The BJP doesn’t want one because they are not sure that they can come to power,” said one political insider, who asked not to be named. “But accidents can happen.” One coalition partner that could be tempted by an early election is Mamata Banerjee, a firebrand who leads the Trinamool Congress party.

Congress relies on the 19 parliament seats that Banerjee’s West Bengal-based party brings to the ruling coalition, the United Progressive Alliance (UPA), but at times Banerjee has seemed to be its fiercest opponent and there is a risk that she could pull her support from the government.

If that were to happen, Congress may turn to the Samajwadi Party, which is expected to emerge first or second in the Uttar Pradesh election, to join and rescue its coalition. Many in Congress see 41-year-old Rahul Gandhi as the answer to the party’s troubles.

If he delivers a strong result in the Uttar Pradesh election, pressure could mount on him to take the reins of the party sooner than his current long-game plan. “If Congress does remarkably well in Uttar Pradesh, if he can claim there’s a Rahul wave, many would say that this is one way of liberating themselves from this (telecoms) controversy,” the insider said. “The argument would be: here’s a young man bringing votes back to the party and now it’s time to give the younger generation a chance.” —Reuters

QUEENSLAND: This handout photo shows flood waters surrounding a house in Charleville, Queensland. Flood waters rose yesterday in parts of Queensland. —AFP

Thousands flee as floods wreak havoc in Australia PERTH: Thousands of Australians were forced from their homes yesterday because of floods that have risen to record levels in some areas and killed one person, and authorities issued warnings for more than a dozen rivers in Queensland and New South Wales states. Australia’s coal industry, which is concentrated in Queensland and New South Wales, was largely unaffected, easing concern about a repeat of last year’s disastrous floods that sent global coal prices soaring.

But heavy rain is expected to take a toll on the region’s agriculture, particularly on cotton, sugarcane, soybean and corn. About 2,500 people were evacuated from the Queensland town of St George, where flooding is expected to reach a record level of 14 meters or higher, state police said. “We’re hearing from people whose families have lived on the property for 100 or more years who’ve never seen water in their homes who have now got water up to the roof,” Queensland Premier Anna Bligh told Sky news. “So we know that something that’s never been seen before is on its way.”

St George was also hit in 2011, when flash floods across Queensland and New South Wales killed about 35 people, swamped 30,000 houses, and wiped out roads, bridges and rail lines. The flooding across the two states this year has resulted in tens of thousands of people being cut off in the last few days, with some having to battle with deadly snakes as they scrambled for dr y

ground. The Australian Bureau of Meteorology has forecast that flooding will continue for weeks in some areas.

The town of Moree, the centre of the New South Wales’ cotton industry was cut in half by record floodwaters, and some estimated that each farm in the area could lose hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of crops. Australia is the world’s largest coal exporter and accounts for roughly two-thirds of global trade of coking coal, used for steel production. The 2011 floods pushed up global coal prices as production was brought to a near standstill. “The coal mines themselves are not experiencing any difficulties,” Queensland Resources Council chief executive Michael Roche said. “So far, the Queensland coal industry, as far as we are aware, has missed the flooding.”

On Friday, Whitehaven Coal said it had shut four mines because of heavy rain, but the mines were not flooded and no equipment had been damaged. Global miner Xstrata said there was no impact on its operations. “It’s business as usual,” spokeswoman Kathryn Lamond said. But the industry was still concerned about disruption if there was no let-up in the rain and more flooding, Roche said.

Many mines are still carrying significant volumes of water from last year’s floods, so more heavy rain is a danger. Storm damage was estimated to have cut Australia’s commodity-weighted economy’s gross domestic product growth (GDP) by A$20 billion, or 1.5 percent, in the 2010-2011 financial year. —Reuters

S Korea battles school bullying SEOUL: South Korea’s president and prime minister pledged yesterday to curb school bullying after two suicides by victims sparked public concern. Last December the middle school students, one in the southeastern city of Daegu and the other in the southwestern city of Gwangju, took their own lives. The student at Daegu left a suicide note saying he had been brutally bullied by his classmates. Two alleged attackers were arrested last month. They are accused of regularly beating the victim, forcing him to play online games at night to collect rewards for them and pushing his head underwater when he refused. Prime Minister Kim Hwang-Sik vowed “grave determination” to end school violence and warned of heav y punishment for school administrators who try to cover up cases to protect their careers.

“How has our society come to this?” he said at a televised press conference.

Kim announced new measures so bullies can be suspended for as many days as necessary, easing the current limit of 30 days a year. The number of school counselors will be increased and therapy sessions for victims will be guaranteed by law. Offenders will be required by law to attend counseling sessions. President Lee MyungBak also criticized school administrators who under-report misconduct by students for fear of receiving poor evaluations. “Fearing revenge by the attackers, they (the victims) could not even confide in their teachers or parents,” Lee said in a for tnightly radio address. “Now is high time for us all to join forces and take action to safeguard our children from school violence.”—AFP

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2012

NEWS

A man walks during a snowfall in Skopje’s city park yesterday. A cold snap kept Europe in its icy grip, pushing the death toll up as countries from Italy to Ukraine struggled to cope with temperatures that plunged to record lows in some places. — AFP

Graft, politics, Islamism shake Maldives MALE, Maldives: Few of the million or so tourists who visit the Maldives each year would catch even a whiff of the troubled politics or growing militant threat roiling the islands of one of the world’s most renowned get-away-fromit-all destinations. President Mohamed Nasheed, who initiated multi-party democracy in the Indian Ocean archipelago with an historic election victory in 2008, stands accused of adopting the autocratic methods of his predecessor and bitter rival, which he had pledged to abolish. Last month, Nasheed ordered the military to arrest Criminal Court Chief Justice Abdulla Mohamed, accusing him of being in the pocket of former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom.

Nasheed’s opponents have adopted a hardline style of political Islam to savage his religious credentials. The entry of that brand of Islam into politics has unnerved practitioners of traditionally moderate Maldivian Islam and Western governments alike, and raised worries it could threaten the nation’s toddler democracy. In the outer islands of the Muslim archipelago, there are fears that hardline militant Islam is taking root.

Taking a page from the book of Gayoom, Nasheed ordered Mohamed’s arrest and defied a Supreme Court release order, sparking more than three weeks of sometimes-violent protests by opposition parties that scented a chance for their own Arab Spring in the Indian Ocean. The reason, Nasheed says, is because the judge, like the other 200odd criminal court judges, was illegally sworn in for a life term and has blocked every attempt to bring multi-milliondollar corruption, rights abuse and criminal cases against Gayoom’s allies and relatives.

“Gayoom is running the judiciary,” Nasheed said. “When he lost the presidency, he was clever enough to carve out a territory and hide there, or get protected there. And none of the cases are moving.” So to make good on his electoral promise to enact a new constitution and establish an independent judiciary, Nasheed says he has acted outside of it. “You have to push everyone to the brink and tell them ‘You do this or we all fall’,” Nasheed told Reuters in an interview at the presidential bungalow in Male, the capital island. “I think it would be so wrong of me not to tackle this simply because I might fall or simply because people may raise eyebrows.”

‘Doubting Democracy’ And it has done just that, drawing private diplomatic rebukes from Western nations which backed his ascendancy to lead the archipelago of 1,200 islands out of 30 years of Gayoom’s rule, which was widely criticised as dictatorial. “It’s just indefensible. It’s almost like Nelson Mandela coming out and locking up all the white people,” a businessman based in Male who works with a government-linked company told Reuters, asking not to be identified. An Asian diplomat serving in Male said Nasheed was undermining the very institutions he was supposed to build.

“He is a champion of democracy by soul and heart, make no mistake about that,” the diplomat told Reuters on condition of anonymity. “But the worst thing that

has happened here is people are doubting democracy and asking ‘Did we do the right thing?’”

Even Nasheed appears uncomfortable, if unwavering. “For god’s sake, I don’t want to arrest anyone. I have no intention of keeping anyone under arrest, and the man is kept very nicely that’s no justification at all - but it’s not the kind of dump we were kept in.” There have been nightly and sometimes-violent opposition protests since the judge’s detention, prompting the government to get UN and Commonwealth assistance to break the impasse.

The protests have also prompted virulent attacks on Nasheed’s Islamic credentials. The Dhivehi Quamee Party (DQP), run by the urbane former attorney general Hassan Saeed, issued a pamphlet accusing Nasheed of attempting to undermine Islam by bringing in Christianity, establishing diplomatic relations with Israel and of doing business with Jewish businessmen. “It was a critique of the government’s religious policy, and it must be read in that context,” Saeed told Reuters in his law office near the Male port. “Our main problem is the business relationships with Jews of Nasheed and members of his cabinet.”

On Twitter, opposition-linked groups or individuals have called for Nasheed’s impeachment and, in at least one case, beheading under sharia law.

‘Tropical Afghanistan’ But while the political fray goes on with all eyes on the 2013 presidential election, Maldivian intelligence officers and Western officials say hardline Salafist and Wahhabist groups are gaining political ground in the more distant atolls and making a beachhead in Male.

The capital island is home to almost 200,000 of the Maldives’ 330,000 people, all Sunni Muslims. It is also home to the majority of the estimated 30,000 people on the islands who are addicted to heroin, according to UN estimates.

“It’s potentially a tropical Afghanistan. The same forces that gave rise to the Taleban are here - the drugs, the corruption and the behaviour of the political class,” a Colombo-based Western ambassador who is responsible for the Maldives told Reuters on condition of anonymity. “The Salafists are taking over atoll after atoll. They work on the ground and it is insidious. Nero is definitely fiddling while Rome burns.”

None of the 931,000 well-heeled tourists who came in 2011 to visit desert islands swathed in aquamarine seas, ringed by beaches of icing-sugar sands, would get a hint of that.

Most tourists are whisked straight to their island hideaway by seaplane or speedboat, where they are free to drink alcohol and get luxurious spa treatments, insulated from the everyday Maldives, a fully Islamic state where alcohol is outlawed and skimpy beachwear frowned upon. Pressure from Islamist parties prompted the government to briefly shut down all hotel spas in January, before realising they may be killing the golden tourism goose of the Maldivian economy, which is believed to account for two-thirds of gross domestic product. “Whatever winds that blow with trade from the Middle East always

stop in the Maldives first,” Nasheed said, referring to conservative influences brought back from Saudi Arabia and Pakistan over the past three decades.

“They’re really quite infiltrated into many, many islands and they have literally taken over our way of life.”

‘Nasty People’ The Maldivian government has under watch about 100 people who have links to Al-Qaeda or other militant groups, or who trained in camps in Pakistan or Afghanistan, two Maldivian intelligence officials told Reuters on condition of anonymity. “We do have a somewhat good understanding of who could be a violent extremist, who has trained in terrorist camps with terrorist groups,” one of the officials told Reuters.

“We do understand this problem is huge and if we don’t tackle it, it is going to be a big problem in the future.”

Though not on the top of Western intelligence agencies’ radars, four diplomats from the United States and Europe, including Britain, confirmed Maldivian militants were being tracked and intelligence was being shared with the government. “There are some extremely nasty people on some of the outer atolls, where you wouldn’t want to go,” an American diplomat told Reuters. The geographic isolation creates an intelligence-gathering problem, the Maldivian official said: “Surveillance is very difficult because on an island, if you send anyone in, they can easily be spotted.”

Shoe on the Other Foot The arrest of the chief justice has given Gayoom, still active through his Progressive Party of the Maldives, a chance to put the shoe on the other foot and kick Nasheed in the political arena.

“If Nasheed’s solution is to remove people from the system, when does that stop? If you allow the military to intervene in a political issue, that’s dangerous,” former Gayoom spokesman Mohamed Hussain “Mundhu” Shareef said. Shareef and Faris Gayoom, the former president’s eldest son, said Nasheed had resorted to extra-constitutional measures because he was facing an election in 2013. “We have seen abuses now we didn’t even imagine,” Faris Gayoom told Reuters in a café in Male.

“They (Nasheed) came into power after character-assassinating my father, with allegations of torture and corruption.”

The government has implicated Gayoom’s relatives and allies in human rights abuse cases and graft cases involving hundreds of millions of dollars pilfered from state institutions including the Bank of Maldives and the oil trading administration. “We totally, 100 percent deny everything,” Gayoom said. “For me, this is personal and for my father as well.”

Nasheed denied it was a vendetta against the man who jailed him 27 times, but simply a refusal to let a handful of corrupt men stop the Maldives from having an independent judiciary.

“They have their resorts, they have their property and the government can get it through the courts,” Nasheed said. “All of it goes right back to them and that is why they can’t let go of Abdulla Mohamed (the chief justice). That would be the end of them.” — Reuters

Forgive and forget Continued from Page 1 sympathized with him. What’s done is done, guys. Let’s open a new page!

The nation chose its MPs and there is no need for further dispute. There is no need to claim that someone was not eligible to be a candidate. I don’t see it appropriate that we continue our life just attacking each other and taking each other to court whether it is on false or true claims. I am referring to the news that lawyers filed a petition on behalf of voters contesting Juwaihel’s election. Don’t get me wrong. I am not in defence of Juwaihel, but I think that enough is enough. Everyone got his piece of the cake. Congratulations and let’s bury the hatchet and work together for the better-

ment of Kuwait so that we can at least catch up with what we have put on hold or have simply ignored for many years.

We are sick of digging holes for each other. Don’t send us back in history to the jahiliyya times and the wars of Dahes and Ghabra. Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) brought enlightenment to us with the religion of Islam which spread in the Arabian Peninsula and the whole world. Let’s follow his footsteps and behave in the manner of the Prophet (PBUH). Forgiveness was the quality of the Prophet (PBUH). Look how he treated his enemies in Makkah when he returned victorious. You are all educated and know the seerah nabawiya [the legacy of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH)].

Let’s forgive and forget and move on. Kuwait deserves it.

Amir asks Sheikh Jaber to form new Cabinet Continued from Page 1 Of the remaining 26 MPs, 12 are not expected to vote for Saadoun but most of the 14 others are expected to support Saadoun, giving him a majority of MPs enabling him to win even if Cabinet ministers vote against him.

Based on available information, neither of Saadoun’s two rivals - MPs Mohammad Al-Saqer and Ali Al-Rashed is expected to secure the support of more than 12 MPs. So even if all the 16 Cabinet ministers vote for one of them, he is not likely to get more than 28 votes. So, barring late-minute maneuvers or a miracle, Saadoun is certain to be the next speaker over the four coming years.

In another development, the Islamist Reform and Development Bloc yesterday called for key constitutional reforms including banning unelected ministers from becoming members of the Assembly and voting, requiring the prime minister and the Cabinet to obtain the

confidence of the Assembly before assuming power and holding Assembly sessions without the precondition of the government’s attendance. The bloc announced at a press conference that it will submit a request to form an investigation committee into a corruption scandal involving former MPs and allegations of the transfer of millions of dinars of public funds into the private accounts of the former prime minister. The bloc also said that it will support Saadoun to become the next speaker and MP Khaled Al-Sultan deputy speaker.

Also, the criminal court yesterday acquitted newlyelected MP Obaid Al-Wasmi of several charges including that he undermined the status of HH the Amir and spread false news that risk Kuwait’s image. Wasmi, a professor of law at Kuwait University, was arrested after the famous public gathering at Harbash’s diwaniya on Dec 8, 2010, when riot police beat up several MPs. Wasmi was detained for 62 days and was also charged of instigating police to disobey orders.

MALKIYA, Bahrain: A Bahraini woman shouts anti-government slogans as she gestures toward riot police firing tear gas yesterday in this western village. Daily clashes are intensifying in the run-up to the Feb 14 first anniversary of the start of Bahrain’s pro-democracy uprising. — AP

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opinion

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2012

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Issues

Israel’s Iran rhetoric has US on edge

By Stephen Collinson ints, warnings and coded political signals from Israel about a possible strike against Iran are piling pressure on US President Barack Obama and fueling an explosive election year debate. Obama personally weighed into the churning speculation on Sunday, saying he did not believe Israel had yet made a decision to attack underground Iranian nuclear facilities it views as a threat to its existence. And the president forcibly argued that “unprecedented” tougher sanctions on Iran were having a painful impact. “They are feeling the pinch. They are feeling the pressure,” Obama told NBC. Speculation about a strike on Iran’s nuclear program hit new heights when Israeli intelligence writer Ronen Bergman concluded a week ago in a New York Times magazine article that Israel would attack Iran this year.

Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak sent reverberations through Washington when he called for timely but unspecified action against Iran, adding, “Whoever says ‘later’ might find that ‘later’ is too late.” Then, Washington Post columnist David Ignatius set off alarm bells by writing that Defense Secretary Leon Panetta believed there was a “strong likelihood that Israel will strike Iran in April, May or June”. “President Obama and Panetta are said to have cautioned the Israelis that the United States opposed an attack,” Ignatius wrote. Panetta refused to elaborate, but did not contradict the article, deepening intrigue over Israel’s next move.

Even if it has not decided to act, analysts say Israel may see martial rhetoric as a way to press for more nonmilitary pressure on Iran. “Israel is effectively pressing the US Congress and the president to pass more sanctions and implement those that have passed as quickly as possible,” said Cliff Kupchan, an Iran specialist with the Eurasia Group risk consultancy. Kupchan said that the feeling that Israel could attack may also be seen as an attempt to force Tehran back to nuclear talks. Some observers in Washington calculate that Israel may be bluffing because previous military strikes, like the suspected assault on a Syrian nuclear reactor in 2007, were not preceded by saber rattling.

Israeli leaders may also not yet be ready to unleash the dire consequences of an attack, which could include reprisal missile strikes by Iran and action by allied terror groups against the Jewish state. But no one here can say categorically what Israel plans to do. The saga has again exposed divisions between the White House and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government, which may be on show again when the Israeli leader visits Washington next month. The US administration has signaled that it believes the last resort scenario that would see a strike on Iranian nuclear sites has not yet been reached. “Israel has indicated that they’re considering this... we have indicated our concerns,” Panetta told reporters last week.

Iran expert Trita Parsi said that as the White House steps up pressure on Iran, bellicose rhetoric from Israel could be helpful if it spooks Tehran over the possibility of an attack. But Parsi, author of a new book on Obama’s Iran policy called “A Single Roll of the Dice”, warned that using the implied threat of war if sanctions do not stop the nuclear program was a large gamble. “The administration knows that there are moving parts which it does not control,” Parsi said, referring to uncertainty about how Israel or Iran could react in moments of high crisis.

A unilateral military strike by Israel would have deep strategic consequences for the United States and grave political implications for Obama. Washington would almost certainly be drawn into a new conflagration in the Middle East at a time when Obama wants to claim credit for getting troops home from Iraq. Oil prices would shoot up, crimping the US economic recovery just as it speeds up and slowing jobs growth that Obama needs to win reelection. Israeli leaders, keen students and practitioners of US politics, understand this, and know Obama may be vulnerable to pressure during his reelection bid.

Daniel Levy of the New America Foundation said the tough talk from Israel and sense of crisis had not been triggered by sudden advances by Iran on its nuclear program - but politics. “The only reason why that this is anywhere near the top of the agenda where it is now is because of the American presidential election,” said Levy. “(The Israelis) know that whoever gets in next year will be in a much stronger position to lay down the law than is the case for a president in an election year.” Republicans are trying to capitalize on Obama’s discomfort, with leading White House candidate Mitt Romney accusing him of “appeasement” and using the Iran showdown to try to dent Obama’s foreign policy record. — AFP

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All articles appearing on these pages are the personal opinion of the writers. Kuwait Times takes no responsibility for views expressed therein. Kuwait Times invites readers to voice their opinions. Please send submissions via email to: opinion@kuwaittimes.net or via snail mail to PO Box 1301 Safat, Kuwait. The editor reserves the right to edit any submission as necessary.

India military buildup too little too late?

By Frank Jack Daniel ndia’s 1.3 million-strong armed forces, hobbled by outdated equipment and slow decision-making, are undergoing an overhaul as defence priorities shift to China from traditional rival Pakistan. And like a refit of the imposing but dilapidated defence ministry on Delhi’s grand South Block, it’s a plodding process. Defence chiefs are hurrying to modernise ageing weaponry as China reinforces a 3,500-km shared but disputed border through the Himalayas. It took 11 years to select France’s Rafale as the favoured candidate for a $15 billion splurge on 126 new combat jets to replace a Soviet-era fleet of MiGs dubbed “flying coffins” for their high crash rate.

At the same time, feeling encircled as China projects its fast-growing naval power from Hormuz to Malacca, India is rushing to firm up friendships the length and breadth of the Indian Ocean. India is the world’s largest arms importer with plans to spend $100 billion on weapons over the next decade. “The Indian military is strengthening its forces in preparation to fight a limited conflict along the disputed border, and is working to balance Chinese power projection in the Indian Ocean,” US Director of National Intelligence James R Clapper told the US Senate last week.

That “balance” includes a strategic alliance with Washington that in turn has stoked Chinese fears of containment. It is due to test-fire its nuclear capable Agni V rocket in the next few weeks, with a strike range reaching deep into China. In 2009, the air force reopened a high-altitude, landing strip in Ladakh last used during a 1962 border war with China. Along with other Himalayan bases, it is now upgrading the strip for fighter operations. About 500 Indian MiG-21s have plunged to the ground since the 1960s, yet the jet is still in use, raising the question of whether painfully slow defence procurement procedures can come up with new hardware faster than old equipment is sent to the scrap heap.

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According to Indian media, Russia delivered the nuclear submarine INS Chakra on a 10-year lease at the end of last month, eight years after India first asked for it. A shortfall of about 200 planes means the air force is operating at its lowest level in decades - just 33 squadrons against a goal of 45. By the time all the Rafales are delivered, more MiGs will have been decommissioned. “It’s taken too long,” said Jasjit Singh, a retired commander and director of the think tank Centre for Air Power Studies. “Can we live with a certain shortfall in the force, and for how long?”

India is developing a fifth-generation fighter with Russia and aims to fly it in 2015, as well as a fleet of 272 Sukhois, half of which have already been built. From a defence perspective, India has traditionally had the upper hand over China’s numerically superior air force, but rapid modernisation over the border may have flipped the balance. Both forces are now smaller than 20 years ago, but China’s has a fast-growing core of 350 advanced combat jets, including its own Sukhois. It also has a stealth fighter program.

India’s military modernisation plans are focused on the navy and air force, more than the army, which has traditionally squared off with Pakistan. But with Pakistan’s air force also modernising fast, India risks losing its edge on two fronts. In the 1980s, a scandal engulfed the government of then-prime minister Rajiv Gandhi over millions of dollars in kickbacks on artillery contracts for Sweden’s Bofors. Weapons purchases have since been a tortuous process, with rules rewritten several times to avoid graft.

“There has been a tremendous shortage of artillery systems acquisition after the Bofors scandal,” said Rahul Roy Chaudhury, a South Asia expert at London’s IISS security think tank. Defence Minister A K Antony is known to be very cautious, with no desire to be caught up in corruption scandals that have in recent years returned to haunt the government. On Tuesday, he made clear no deal would quickly be signed for the Rafale or any other fight-

ers. The relationship between India and China is complex, involving as much cooperation as competition. But while the generals and admirals rarely say as much publicly, India fears a repeat of a brief, humiliating 1962 border war and wants to be prepared for surprises. Seafaring officers from 14 countries from New Zealand to the Seychelles have gathered on remote Indian islands in the Bay of Bengal this week for exercises and a “meeting of minds” about maritime security. It is one of the largest such gatherings of maritime allies that India has organised, but China and Pakistan were conspicuously not on the guest list.

Predictably, since China is also a major trading partner, India’s assistant chief of naval staff, Admiral Monty Khanna, was at pains to play down China’s absence. “There are many nations that have not been invited,” Khanna said in New Delhi, adding China would not be discussed at the meeting. “India and China might share a land border but we are quite distant by sea,” he said. Distant they may be, but increasingly the world’s fastest-growing major economies find themselves jostling as they compete for resources, sea lanes and allies. A lack of friendly engagement increases the risk of misunderstandings.

This week’s exercises are being held on the Andaman Islands, where India is spending $2 billion to set up a military command and from where the contested and congested South China Sea is only a short hop away. Last year, India’s INS Airavat, an amphibious assault vessel that sailed from the Andamans was challenged in the South China Sea by a radio caller identifying himself as an official of the Chinese navy. Both sides later played down the incident.

“The Indian navy is coy about formally engaging with the Chinese navy because it feels that, if it does, it legitimises the Chinese naval presence in the Indian Ocean,” said Roy Chaudhury. “There needs to be much more communication, especially navy to navy, because they are bumping into each other more and more.” — Reuters

China gets taste of post-Dalai Lama era

By Michael Martina and Brian Rhoads hina over the years has derided the Dalai Lama as a jackal in Buddhist robes, choreographer of a separatist Peking opera and, lately, instigator of a plot that led some Tibetans to set themselves on fire and other forms of protest. Even so, China’s hardline rulers may have reason to miss him when he’s gone. The aging spiritual leader’s presence and message of non-violence have kept a damper on unrest but, once he dies, things could worsen rapidly. The protests in Tibetan plateau communities in Sichuan province in January follow a year in which at least 16 Tibetans - most Buddhist monks and nuns - have self-immolated in protests seeking a return of the exiled Dalai Lama and freedom for Tibet. China has branded the immolators as terrorists and, in a familiar refrain, Beijing on Wednesday blamed Tibetan separatist forces for fomenting hatred among the people and sparking the protests that were put down by armed police using deadly force. With unrest in once-quiet areas of the Tibetan plateau and little prospect for direct talks between China and the Tibetan government-in-exile, concern is growing that violence will boil over upon the death of the Dalai Lama.

If nothing changes, Beijing will likely respond with the same tough measures it has used for decades. “Positions have hardened,” Khedroob Thondup, nephew of the Dalai Lama, told Reuters from his parttime home in Taiwan.

The Dalai Lama has generally managed to restrain Tibet’s youth with his message of nonviolence, said Thondup, a former member of the exiled government who traveled to China 15 times for official talks before negotiations went sour. The 76-year-old monk is in good health, Thondup said, exercising daily on a treadmill, with access to on-call doctors. He recently underwent cataract surgery in New Delhi but expects he’ll live at least another 20 years. “As long as His Holiness is alive, we are non-violent and respect his views,” said Thondup, who runs a centre for exiled Tibetans in Darjeeling, India. “If His Holiness were to suddenly leave the scene, yes, there will be many more problems for the Chinese government.”

The latest violence is the worst since riots killed at least 19 people throughout Tibetan parts of

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China in 2008. What Beijing terms the Tibet Autonomous Region has remained under tight security since. Overseas advocacy groups say up to seven Tibetans were shot dead and more than 60 wounded as police snuffed out the Sichuan protests. State media said police fired in self defence. Security forces have since thrown a blanket across a huge swathe of Tibetan China. Hundreds of kilometres from the scene of the Sichuan violence, police surrounded the town of Danba with road checks in an effort to prevent the Tibetan defiance from spreading and foreign reporters from entering.

Tibetan Buddhist monasteries were sealed off by police road blocks and an official turned back reporters, saying road conditions were unsafe. That may be just a taste of what is to come. “Given the centrality of the demand among Tibetans that the Dalai Lama be allowed to return to Tibet, were he to pass away in exile abroad, it could spark an unpredictable wave of protests far greater than 2008 and an even harsher crackdown,” Nicholas Bequelin, a researcher with Human Rights Watch, said.

China has relied on a blend of investment and repression for years, from the era of paramount leader Deng Xiaoping through almost a decade under President Hu Jintao, who is due to retire in a leadership transition that begins late this year. Indeed, Hu set the tone as a former Communist Party chief of the autonomous region in 1988-89. Authorities declared martial law in Tibet in March 1989 and launched a bloody crackdown on long-running protests linked to the 30th anniversary of the abortive uprising that led to the Dalai Lama’s exile.

Like Taiwan, Tibet is a red-line issue for China’s rulers, who regard it as sovereign territory.

The man in line to replace Hu, Vice President Xi Jinping, has

done little to suggest he will take a softer line. Last year, Xi vowed to crack down on separatists at an event to mark 60 years since Tibet’s “peaceful liberation”. The thorny issue of reincarnation of the Tibetan spiritual leader also remains unresolved. The Dalai Lama has indicated he may break from tradition in calling for democratic elections or name his successor to prevent Beijing from meddling.

Beijing rejects that option, citing historical and religious practice that one Dalai cannot choose another, and asserting its power to approve any reincarnation. Some fear China will simply name its own successor, dividing Tibetans and leaving them following different Dalai Lamas, one in Tibet and one in exile.

Robbie Barnett, a Tibet expert at Columbia University, said the Dalai Lama’s death in exile would be so significant to Tibetans it could ruin prospects for a reasonable Tibetan-Chinese relationship. “If the Dalai Lama dies without any resolution, it will take a half century to build trust again,” he said. A spiral into violence would spark international concern and could ignite greater political tensions with the West and neighbouring India - which has a contested border with China and hosts the exiled Tibetan government. “There are Chinese officials who believe you can tough these things out indefinitely - which is true to some extent. But then it gives you a long-term and expensive budget problem, a credibility deficit and serious international ramifications,” Barnett said.

China stresses that it has helped lift Tibet out of poverty, spending more than 160 billion yuan and much more in subsidies over the past 60 years, providing the region with double-digit economic growth for 18 straight years.

But analysts say its approach of boosting economic development while curbing freedoms has backfired, failing to win support in Tibet proper and driving ethnic Tibetans from surrounding provinces closer to the Dalai Lama.

While Lhasa erupted in violence in the 1980s and 1990s, Tibetans in Sichuan, Qinghai and other regions were calm.

Sichuan has also seen violence and even traditions are changing.

Barnett said some in those eastern areas who typically celebrate their new year at the same time as most Chinese are delaying the holiday about a month to coincide with the new year of central Tibetans, who for centuries have been more closely aligned with the Dalai Lamas. “China has turned vast areas of the Tibetan plateau into areas of Tibetan national sentiment,” he said. “Why they imposed this policy in eastern Tibet where there were no real problems -historians are going to be asking why did we do this? Why did we lose Tibet?” — Reuters

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2012

sp orts

Injured Best ruled out LONDON: Newcastle United striker Leon Best faces a long spell on the sidelines after injuring his knee in Sunday’s Premier League victory over Aston Villa. “Leon Best will have a scan today on his injured left knee and is likely to be out for a number of weeks,” the club said on their website (www.nufc.co.uk). Local media reported Newcastle manager Alan Pardew as saying the player would be out for up to six weeks.

The 25-year-old Ireland striker was forced out of Sunday’s 2-1 home win after 14 minutes and was replaced by new signing Papiss Cisse who scored a spectacular winning goal on his debut.

There was better news for Newcastle midfielder Ryan Taylor who was carried off on a stretcher in the same game after a collision with Villa defender Stephen Warnock in the build-up to the hosts’ opening goal.

“Fortunately, Ryan Taylor did not sustain a fracture to his lower right leg which was Xrayed on Sunday afternoon,” the club said. “His injury is limited to soft tissue damage for which he is now receiving treatment from the club’s medical team.” — Reuters

NHL results/standings Results and standings from the NHL games on Sunday. Boston 4, Washington 1; New Jersey 5, Pittsburgh 2; NY Rangers 5, Philadelphia 2; Montreal 3, Winnipeg 0.

Eastern Conference Atlantic Division W L OTL GF GA PTS 33 12 5 141 102 71 NY Rangers Philadelphia 30 16 6 173 156 66 Pittsburgh 30 19 4 161 138 64 New Jersey 30 19 3 149 148 63 NY Islanders 21 22 8 125 150 50 Northeast Division Boston 33 16 2 180 111 68 27 21 7 161 171 61 Ottawa Toronto 27 19 6 161 152 60 Buffalo 22 24 6 126 154 50 Montreal 20 24 9 137 145 49 Southeast Division Florida 24 16 11 131 145 59 27 21 4 145 149 58 Washington Winnipeg 24 24 6 129 150 54 Tampa Bay 23 23 5 147 173 51 Carolina 20 25 9 137 165 49 Western Conference Central Division Detroit 35 16 2 171 126 72 32 17 4 149 136 68 Nashville St. Louis 30 14 7 126 105 67 Chicago 29 17 7 169 158 65 Columbus 14 32 6 120 174 34 Northwest Division Vancouver 32 15 5 167 130 69 25 19 8 121 133 58 Minnesota Colorado 26 25 3 135 151 55 Calgary 24 22 6 124 141 54 Edmonton 21 26 5 138 152 47 Pacific Division San Jose 29 15 6 145 117 64 25 18 10 115 116 60 Los Angeles Dallas 27 22 2 136 144 56 Phoenix 23 21 8 136 141 54 Anaheim 19 24 8 132 154 46 Note: Overtime losses (OTL) are worth one point in the standings and are not included in the loss column (L)

Lisicki, Kanepi pull out of Open GDF Suez

Monaco defeat berlocq in All-Argentina final VINA DEL MAR: Juan Monaco beat Carlos Berlocq 6-3, 6-7 (1), 6-1 in an all-Argentina final at the Vina del Mar VTR Open on Sunday for his fourth ATP title.

The top-seeded Monaco claimed his first title since winning three in 2007 - and all have come on clay.

The victory marked a breakthrough for the 27-year-old Monaco, who lost in the final at this tournament in 2008 and 2010.

“The third time is lucky they say, so this time it’s true,” he said. It was the first ATP final for Berlocq, who advanced after defeating second-seeded Juan

Ignacio Chela, another Argentine. Monaco started well and led 4-1 before going on to win the first set.

He led 4-2 in the second and seemed headed for victor y before Berlocq evened the match and won the tiebreak.

Monaco returned to form in the third set and broke Berlocq twice. Berlocq, who turned 29 on Friday, dropped only one set during the week.

The Chilean tournament is the start of a monthlong clay cour t swing across Latin America, with other events upcoming in Brazil, Argentina and Mexico. —AP

PARIS: Sabine Lisicki of Germany and Kaia Kanepi of Estonia withdrew yesterday from the Open GDF Suez. Lisicki is suffering from a viral illness while Kanepi is still recovering from a right shoulder injury.

Kanepi won the Brisbane International last month before losing in the second round of the Australian Open. “I have been suffering with inflammation in my neck and shoulder since my last match at the Australian Open and have tried to get ready to play but have not been able to,” Kanepi said.

Lisicki was seeded fifth at the Parisian tournament and lost her singles matches last weekend in Germany’s 4-1 defeat to the Czech Republic in the Fed Cup. “I don’t feel well and have (a) viral illness so I am going to go home and get better,” the Wimbledon semifinalist said. — AP

Bruins top Capitals WASHINGTON: Tim made 35 saves Sunday in the Boston Bruins’ 4-1 win over the Washington Capitals. Playing about 10 blocks from the White House - a place he famously avoided because of his political views two weeks ago when the reigning Stanley Cup champions were honored by President Barack Obama Thomas shut out the Capitals until late in the third period as the Bruins snapped a two-game losing streak.

Milan Lucic and Brad Marchand scored first-period goals, and Tyler Seguin and Rich Peverley tallied in the third for the Bruins, who built a 3-0 lead and rediscovered some offensive pop after scoring only once during their twogame skid.

Marcus Johansson scored the lone goal for the Capitals, who have lost three of four and haven’t scored a power-play goal in seven games. Tomas Vokoun, getting the call again a day after shutting out Montreal, had 26 saves.

Rangers 5, Flyers 2 At New York, Artem Anisimov had a goal and two assists and Henrik Lundqvist made 21 saves as New York continued its recent success against Philadelphia.

Marian Gaborik, Michael Del Zotto, Brandon Dubinsky and Ruslan Fedotenko also scored for Eastern Conference-leading New York, which has won six straight against Philadelphia, including their four games this season. It was Anisimov’s first points in 18 games.

Brayden Schenn and Wayne Simmonds scored for the Flyers, which lost for the third time in four games. It was their first game against the Rangers since the Winter Classic in Philadelphia on Jan. 2.

Devils 5, Penguins 2 At Newark, New Jersey, Ilya Kovalchuk had a goal and two assists as New Jersey

extended its winning streak to four games. Anton Volchenkov, Dainius Zubrus, Zach Parise and David Clarkson also scored for the Devils, who remained perfect since the All Star break while equaling their season-best win streak.

Kovalchuk has been the key to the surge

on Clarkson’s empty-net score in the closing seconds. Matt Niskanen and Evgeni Malkin scored for the Penguins who had won nine of 10.

Canadiens 3, Jets 0 At Montreal, Carey Price made 23

the first and Alexei Emelin made it 2-0 with a short-handed goal 7:20 into the second. Plekanec, who set up Emelin’s goal, was credited with his 11th goal on a power play at 11:28.

Price made a lunging glove save on Antti Miettinen, then a sprawling stop on

MONTREAL: Josh Gorges No. 26 and Tomas Plekanec No.14 of the Montreal Canadiens congratulate goalie Carey Price No. 31 on his 3-0 shutout victory over the Winnipeg Jets during the NHL game at the Bell Centre. —AFP with three goals and seven assists in the four games.

Martin Brodeur made 28 saves to improve to 11-2 in his last 13 decisions against Pittsburgh. He also got an assist

saves for his third shutout of the season and Tomas Plekanec had a goal and an assist as Montreal ended a three-game losing streak.

Max Pacioretty scored his 19th goal in

the forward’s backhand off the rebound 2:46 into the third to preserve his 15th career shutout. Ondrej Pavelec stopped 20 shots for Winnipeg, which lost its second in a row. —AP

Contador gets two year ban, set to lose Tour title

ROSARIO: Argentina’s Silvina D’Elia celebrates after scoring during the Women’s Champions Trophy field hockey final match against England. —AP

Argentina defeat Britain in final ROSARIO: Silvina D’Elia scored the lone goal in the first half as Argentina defeated Britain 1-0 on Sunday in the final of the Champions Trophy women’s field hockey tournament.

The event, seen as a key warm up for this year’s London Olympics, has now been won five times by Argentina. In the third-place match earlier Sunday, the Netherlands defeated Germany 5-4.

Japan defeated New Zealand 3-2 for fifth place. The Argentina-Britain match drew extra interest with the two countries embroiled in a dispute over the Falkland Islands, a British possession which Argentina claims and calls Las Islas Malvinas.

Thirty years ago, the two countries fought a 74-day, undeclared war over the remote South Atlantic islands. —AP

PARIS: Alberto Contador is set to lose one of his three Tour de France titles after being banned for two years by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) yesterday for failing a dope test during the 2010 race.

Contador, the Tour winner in 2007, 2009 and 2010 who tested positive for the banned anabolic agent clenbuterol, also faces losing his 2011 Giro d’Italia title and all the other victories he claimed last season.

Contador, who has 30 days to appeal to the Swiss federal court, is to hold a news conference today or tomorrow. The Spaniard’s Tour title will be handed to Luxembourg’s Andy Schleck, with Bradley Wiggins becoming the first Briton to climb on to the podium and Russian Denis Menchov finishing second.

“There is no reason to be happy now”, Schleck said in a statement. “First of all I feel sad for Alberto. I always believed in his innocence. This is just a very sad day for cycling.

The only positive news is that there is a verdict after 566 days of uncertainty. We can finally move on.

“I battled with Contador in that race and I lost. My goal is to win the Tour de France in a sporting way, being the best of all competitors, not in court. If I succeed this year, I will consider it as my first Tour victory.”

Italy’s Michele Scarponi is set to take the Giro 2011 title. “Alberto Contador is sanctioned with a two-year period of ineligibility starting retroactively on 25 January 2011, minus the period of provisional suspension served in 2010-2011 (5 months and 19 days),” CAS said in a statement.

“The suspension should therefore come to an end on 5 August 2012.” The ban means that the 29-year-old Contador, who had threatened to end his career if found guilty, will miss this year’s Tour de France and the London Olympic Games.

“In rejecting the defence argument, in particular that the presence of clenbuterol in Alberto Contador’s urine sample came from the consumption of contaminated meat,

today’s ruling confirms the UCI’s position,” the International Cycling Union (UCI), who had appealed with the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) against the Spanish federation’s decision to clear Contador, said in a statement.

Spanish cycling federation (RFEC) president Juan Carlos Castano said of the CAS decision: “We are obliged to comply with it but we don’t agree with it. “It’s very bad news for Spanish sport,” he said on national radio. “For us this journey has ended.”

CAS said they did not believe Contador’s argument that he had eaten contaminated meat during a Tour de France rest day.

“Unlike certain other countries, notably outside Europe, Spain is not known to have a contamination problem with clenbuterol in meat,” it said, adding that the burden of proof was on Contador and that the ingestion of a contaminated food supplement was more likely than the contaminated meat argument.

UCI President Pat McQuaid said: “This is a sad day for our sport. Some may think of it as a victory, but that is not at all the case. There are no winners when it comes to the issue of doping: every case, irrespective of its characteristics, is always a case too many.”

Contador, who had awaited his fate at his home in Pinto with his family and lawyers, is now expected back to competition on Aug. 6, meaning he should be able to take part in the Vuelta, which starts on Aug. 18.

Spain’s Oscar Pereiro was the last rider to be awarded a Tour victory after the race winner lost his title for failing a dope test, in 2006 when American Floyd Landis was stripped of his title following a positive test for testosterone.

Contador, one of only five men with titles in all three grands Tours is widely regarded as the greatest cyclists of his generation.

His climbing abilities have made him almost invincible in the three-week stage races, although he finished only fifth in last year’s Tour following a troubled preparation and because of a sore knee.

Contador started his career under the guidance of fellow Spaniard Manolo Saiz, a man he considers a second father, who was arrested in 2006 in the Operation Puerto blood-doping scandal.

He joined the Discovery Channel team in 2007, claiming his maiden Tour title under Johan Bruyneel - the man behind American Lance Armstrong’s record seven triumphs.

That year he was questioned about his possible involvement in the Puerto affair after media reports said his name had appeared in files of the investigation.

Contador strongly denied any involvement and was never formally charged. The following year he could not defend his Tour title after Astana were banned from the race because of their doping record. — Reuters

Three-time Tour de France winner Alberto Contador of Spain

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2012

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Pakistan whitewashes England DUBAI: Pakistan recorded its first ever whitewash against England yesterday after a 71-run victory in the third Test sealed a crushing 3-0 series win over the world’s top-ranked team. England - chasing an imposing 324-run target - was dismissed for 252 on the fourth day of the final test with fast bowler Umar Gul grabbing 4-61 and offspinner Saeed Ajmal 467.

Matt Prior delayed the inevitable with an unbeaten 49 off 58 balls before he ran out of partners as last man Monty Panesar was lbw by leftarm spinner Abdur Rehman.

Pakistan won the first Test by 10 wickets and the second by 72 runs when it bowled out England for 72 while chasing 145 runs.

respectively. “We have to learn important lessons from the series - most importantly to put runs on the board and how to play spinners,” England captain Andrew Strauss said. “Whenever Pakistan had their noses in front they never allowed us to make a comeback throughout the series.”

Ajmal struck in his successive overs after lunch, triggering the England collapse when he ended Alastair Cook’s fourhour knock of 49 with Younis Khan taking a brilliant two handed diving catch to his left in the slips.

A sorry series for Kevin Pietersen (18) in which he scored only 66 runs in six innings ended with Ajmal’s brilliant delivery that went between bat and pad.

Gul also rattled the middle order in the

edged sweep in the deep that went for a boundary. Pakistan wasted its last DRS referral when Ajmal thought he had Cook lbw on 37, but the television replays clearly showed that the ball pitched outside the line of leg-stump, much to the disappointment of Pakistan captain Misbah.

Strauss and Cook resumed England’s pursuit of the 324-run target with some confidence before Gul found the outside edge of the England skipper’s bat, but wicketkeeper Kamran Akmal dropped a regulation catch.

Strauss was out soon after when he was trapped lbw by Rehman off a delivery that spun back sharply from the rough.

Even the DRS referral couldn’t help Strauss and he began the long walk after replays showed the ball would have hit the top of middle stump. Trott then swept high to Rehman in the deep off Ajmal as England went to lunch at 89-2.

Along with completing Pakistan’s first test series whitewash of England, it was also the first time for 105 years that a team had won a test match after being dismissed for less than 100 runs in its first innings. Pakistan had been bowled out for 99. The victory feat was last achieved by England, which defeated South Africa by 53 runs at Headingley in 1907 after being bowled out for 76. — AP

Scoreboard DUBAI: Scoreboard after the third and final test between Pakistan and England at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium yesterday: Pakistan first innings: 99 England first innings: 141 Pakistan second innings: 365 England second innings: (overnight 36-0)

DUBAI: Pakistan’s captain Misbah-ul-Haq holds up the trophy after winning the Test series against England after the fourth day of the third cricket Test match. — AP The whitewash has now put England in danger of missing out on the ICC’s annual jackpot of $175,000 which is awarded to the top test team in the rankings by the April 1 cut off date - a position it could lose if second-place South Africa beats New Zealand 3-0 in March.

“Wonderful performance,” said Pakistan captain Misbah-ul-Haq, who has lost only one of the 15 test matches since being appointed captain in 2010. “The victory means a lot to us because not many people gave us a chance after we were bowled out for less than 100 in the first innings.”

England’s struggle against Pakistan’s top spinner Ajmal and Rehman continued throughout the series as they ended up with bulk of wickets with 24 and 19 scalps,

space of four deliveries by removing Ian Bell (10) and Eoin Morgan (31) that brought Pakistan closer to a historic win by tea - for 173-6.

Gul, the lanky rightarm fast bowler, had Stuart Broad caught at long off when he returned with the second new ball soon after the break before Graeme Swann scooped a catch to Asad Shafiq.

Pietersen lofted Rehman over the head for a four and a six in one over, but it was the only brief highlight in an otherwise struggling England on a wearing wicket.

Earlier, Pakistan fielders had a scratchy morning after England resumed at the overnight score of 36-0. Cook, who was dropped on 4 Sunday evening, survived again on 28 when Gul misjudged a top-

A. Strauss lbw b Abdur Rehman 26 A. Cook c Younis Khan b Saeed Ajmal 49 J. Trott c Abdur Rehman b Saeed Ajmal 18 K. Pietersen b Saeed Ajmal 18 I. Bell c Asad Shafiq b Umar Gul 10 E. Morgan c Adnan Akmal b Umar Gul 31 M. Prior not out 49 S. Broad c Taufeeq Umar b Umar Gul 18 G. Swann c Asad Shafiq b Umar Gul 1 J. Anderson c Younis Khan b Saeed Ajmal 9 M. Panesar lbw b Abdur Rehman 8 Extras (b 4, lb 8, nb 3) 15 Total (all out; 97.3 overs) 252 Fall of wickets: 1-48 2-85 3-116 4-119 5-156 6-159 7-196 8-203 9-237 Bowling: Umar Gul 20-5-61-4 (2nb), Aizaz Cheema 4-0-9-0, Mohammad Hafeez 5-2-60, Abdur Rehman 41.3-10-97-2, Saeed Ajmal 27-9-67-4.

Result: Pakistan won by 71 runs Pakistan won the three-match series 3-0

WHANGAREI: Zimbabwe’s Tatenda Taibu (center) plays a shot looked on by New Zealand’s Brendon McCullum (left) and Rob Nicol (right) during the one-day cricket match. — AFP

New Zealand demolish Zimbabwe WHANGAREI: Rob Nicol stroked his second one-day international century in anchoring New Zealand to a series-winning 141-run victory over Zimbabwe at Cobham Oval in Whangarei yesterday.

Nicol began slowly but accelerated towards the end of his 134-ball innings, which included 10 boundaries and six sixes, one of which sailed out of the ground, before he was dismissed for 146 in the 49th over.

His innings was the fifth-highest one-day score by a New Zealand player. Nicol, who made a five-ball duck in the first match in Dunedin on Friday, also scored 108 not out on debut in Zimbabwe last year.

The visitors never threatened New Zealand’s 372 for six after they slumped to 17 for three following the dismissal of the side’s best batsman and captain Brendan Taylor for four. Wicketkeeper Tatenda Taibu (50) and Elton Chigumbura (63) provided some middle-order resistance however, with an 80-run partnership.

Jacob Oram, who had blasted 59 runs off 28 balls in New Zealand’s innings, finished with three for 29. New Zealand had begun slowly with Zimbabwe restricting them to 10-0 off the first five overs before Martin Guptill (77) upped the rate and looked set for a century before he was caught in the deep as he and Nicol posted 131 for the first wicket.

Oram was promoted to number three to act as a pinch hitter and he belted five boundaries and four sixes in his short stay, as the hosts accelerated through their middle overs.

Nicol then combined with teenager Tom Latham (48) for a 92-run partnership in 47 balls at the death before he was caught in the deep in the penultimate over.

Prosper Utseya finished with three for 71. New Zealand won the first match of the three-game series by 90 runs and the final game is on Thursday in Napier before the two teams play two Twenty20 internationals. — Reuters

Scoreboard Scoreboard after New Zealand beat Zimbabwe by 141 runs at Cobham Oval in Whangarei yesterday in the second of three one-day international matches.

Zimbabwe won the toss and decided to field New Zealand R. Nicol c S. Masakadza b Utsyea 146 77 M. Guptill c S. Masakadza b Price J. Oram c Chakabva b H. Masakadza 59 B. McCullum c S. Masakadza b Utseya 20 K. Williamson c H. Masakadza b Utsyea 4 T. Latham b S. Masakadza 48 D. Brownlie not out 2 A. Ellis not out 7 Extras: (w-7, b-1, lb-1) 9 Total: (for six wickets, 50 overs) 372 Fall of wickets: 131-1, 208-2, 246-3, 261-4, 353-5, 364-6 Did not bat: Kyle Mills, Tarun Nethula, Tim Southee Bowling: S. Masakadza 8-1-68-1 (w-2); Jarvis 9-173-0; Utseya 10-0-71-3; Chigumbura 8-0-55-0 (w4); Price 10-0-67-1 (w-1); H. Masakadza 5-0-36-1.

Zimbabwe H. Masakadza c Browlie b Southee 5 3 S. Matsikenyeri c Ellis b Mills R. Chakabva lbw b Oram 11 B. Taylor c B. McCullum b Mills 4 T. Taibu c Nethula b Nicol 50 M. Waller c B. McCullum b Oram 18 E. Chigumbura b Oram 63 P. Utseya not out 27 S. Masakadza c Ellis b Williamson 38 R. Price not out 0 Extras: (w-8, lb-4) 12 Total: (for eight wickets, 50 overs) 231 Fall of wickets: 5-1, 12-2, 17-3, 35-4, 62-5, 142-6, 162-7, 231-8 Did not bat: Kyle Jarvis Bowling: Mills 8-1-27-2; Southee 10-0-50-1 (w-4), Oram 10-1-29-3 (w-2); Nethula 10-0-55-0; Nicol 40-25-1, Ellis 5-0-25-0 (w-2); Williamson 3-0-16-1.

From heaven to hell, Greek sport in freefall ATHENS: Peeling paint flakes from Athens’ Olympic park. Its entrances locked, this once sparkling edifice to sporting greatness lies rotting and largely unused- maintenance costs too high for near-bankrupt Greece to operate.

The rate of decay and dilapidation in just eight years provides a visual clue to the Greek scenario, one as effective as any economist’s report or politician’s statement.

“Like heaven and hell,” Greek athletics federation chief Vassilis Sevastis told Reuters, comparing the heady days of 2004 when the Greeks staged the Olympics, with today.

Back then the country was crackling with optimism, pride and activity, as it rushed to deliver the multibillion dollar Games organizers hoped would boost the country’s growth and its modern image abroad.

The Greeks also spared no expense in preparing the foundations for a spectacular medal haul: 16 medals for a nation of just 10 million people. These days, however, Greek athletes must be satisfied with a trickle of money as they prepare for this year’s London Olympics, the debt crisis having dried up almost every revenue stream for sports, public or private.

“It reflects our reality. The country that gave birth to the notion of measure went completely over the top,” Sevastis said.

The 2004 Games that were to help shape a better future for Greece, turned into a noose as the billions of euros they cost only weighed on the country’s subsequent debt crisis.

The country’s coalition parties must tell the European Union on Monday whether they accept the painful terms of a 130 billion euro ($170 billion) rescue, which Greece needs soon to avoid a chaotic debt default.

Having squandered the first three years of preparations, organisers were told in 2000 to speed up work

or risk losing the Olympics. As a result, Greece embarked on a fouryear building frenzy, with three shifts a day, that lasted up until a few days before the Olympics.

The country dug deep into taxpayers’ pockets, dishing out an estimated $12 billion, more than double the initial projections.

“Obviously opportunities were lost,” Hellenic Olympic Committee (HOC) President Spyros Kapralos told Reuters. “The success of the 2004 Olympics was lost when the lights went out at the end of the closing ceremony as our country had no plan to capitalise on their success.”

A string of failed attempts to lease some of the facilities has only further highlighted Greece’s inability to draw any benefits from hosting the world’s greatest sports extravaganza.

Even the city’s entire southern coastline to the port Piraeus, which had been sprinkled with Olympic venues, remains fenced off, prime real estate in a state of limbo for eight years.

“The dream of the Olympics that improved our image in the world during those 16 days has been lost, and it makes me sad,” Kapralos said.

“We had a foundation of good people in 2004, a dynamic which now is lost just like the venues that have become soulless buildings.”

Kapralos still hopes Greece can return from London with six medals, but it is a challenge to see where they may win them as Greek sport continues to be shredded by the financial crisis.

The Greeks will march into the Olympic stadium first, as tradition dictates, with a team numbering around 75, or half the size of the team it sent to the Beijing Games in 2008 — athletes’ dreams another victim of boom-time profligacy.

Apart from massive budget cuts for all Greek sports federations, gone are all the state incentives for athletes to succeed on the world stage.

“The debt crisis now has affected

both sport and the National Olympic Committee. In the previous quadrennium (2005-2008) the Greek state paid around 30 million in total towards the country’s Olympic preparation,” said Kapralos, a former water polo player.

“We had agreed the same amount from the state (for 20092012). In 2010 and 2011 the amount we got from the Greek state was zero,” he said. “So our preparation has suffered.”

The cuts essentially meant the end of any effort to send a competitive team to London, and even made it near impossible for athletes to qualify as travel budgets were slashed.

The gymnastics team were unable to travel to Tokyo for their Olympic qualifiers. The weightlifting, sailing and water polo teams experienced similar problems in recent months.

The HOC had to step up and foot the sailors’ bill for the trip to Australia for the world championships while the International Olympic Committee is paying the preparation for 22 Greek athletes’ and the country’s women’s water polo team, the 2011 world champions.

Greece’s athletics competitors are left with ramshackle training facilities, their indoor training centre at the Olympic stadium leaks and athletes must use buckets to collect the water.

“It was a cataclysmic event on all levels for us,” Sevastis, who has seen annual state funding for athletics cut by more than 40 percent from 2010 to 2011, said of the 2004 Games.

“There were mistakes, there were excesses, yes, in the run-up to the Athens Games. Funding (for sport) was more than significant, sponsors came in.

“Nowadays our athletics pyramid has collapsed. Our future is neither bright nor hopeful. The passion of the athletes and their personal commitment is what keeps things afloat.” — Reuters

ATLANTA: Atlanta Braves’ Hank Aaron acknowledges the media while Braves’ Chipper Jones looks on when introduced during a news conference to unveil the club’s new alternative home uniform. The uniform pays homage to the team’s past, reflecting more of the look of the 1966 team when Aaron played. — AP

Tokyo stadium set for billion dollar facelift TOKYO: Tokyo’s iconic National Stadium is poised to receive a billion dollar renovation, turning it into a space-age venue with moving seats for the 2019 rugby World Cup, Reuters has learned. Japan will host rugby’s showcase tournament a year before the 2020 Olympics, which Tokyo has bid for again after losing out in the running for 2016.

If successful with its tender, the new-look National Stadium, located close to Tokyo’s bustling centre, would double up as the main stadium for the rugby World Cup and Olympics.

“We are in talks with the stadium owners and Tokyo government about it being the venue for both the World Cup and the Olympics,” Japan Rugby Football Union (JRFU) chairman Tatsuzo Yabe told Reuters.

“It will have seating for 80,000 to 100,000. We have to knock down the

current National Stadium - it is old and only has a capacity of around 50,000.”

Yabe said plans would include retractable seating, similar to the revolutionary Sapporo Dome, the hi-tech jewel in Japan’s crown at the 2002 soccer World Cup with a ‘floating’ pitch.

“It will have seats which can be moved in when we need the track for the Olympics and back for ball games like soccer and rugby,” Yabe said.

“It will cost around 100 billion yen ($1.31 billion). That would be the budget for it with the plan for construction to be completed by 2018.”

Tokyo’s National Stadium was built for the 1964 Olympics, the first to be held in Asia. It also staged the world athletics championships in 1991 and soccer’s Intercontinental Cup from 1980 to 2001.

Japan’s Olympic bidders had

planned to construct a new stadium on Tokyo Bay for the 2016 Games, before the city lost out to Rio de Janeiro in the International Olympic Committee (IOC) voting.

The IOC, however, raised concerns about emergency evacuation with three sides of the stadium facing the sea. Japan have plenty of options for rugby World Cup venues other than the tournament’s main stadium with the 10 grounds from the 2002 soccer World Cup among possible candidates.

JRFU officials have also indicated their desire to host games outside of Japan for Asia’s first rugby World Cup, with Hong Kong and Singapore among those reportedly in the frame.

“We may use 2002 World Cup soccer stadiums,” said Yabe. “We have about 10 stadiums across Japan (we are considering).” — Reuters

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2012

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Vettel predicts tight fight for F1 title

FRIBOURG: Swiss Davis Cup tennis player Roger Federer plays the ball during a training session in the Forum Arena in Switzerland.

Switzerland faces US in the World Group first round.—AP

US rout Belarus 5-0 to advance WORCESTER: Venus Williams returned from a five-month layoff and Serena Williams and Christina McHale won singles matches Sunday, giving the United States a 5-0 thrashing of Belarus in the first round of the Fed Cup. The Americans head to a playoff in April in hopes of playing their way back into the top tier of Fed Cup after being bounced out last year.

Venus Williams and Liezel Huber completed the rout with a doubles victory, defeating Darya Kustova and Anastasiya Yakimova 6-1, 6-2. This was Williams’ first sanctioned match since the opening round of the U.S. Open. She had been diagnosed with Sjogren’s Syndrome, an autoimmune disease that can cause fatigue and joint pain and forced her to withdraw from the Open.

McHale won in straight sets for the second consecutive day, beating Darya Kustova 6-0, 6-1 to put the US up 4-0.

Serena Williams had already guaranteed a US victory earlier in the day by defeating Anastasiya Yakimova 5-7, 6-1, 6-1. Serena blew a 4-1 lead in the opening set and slammed her racket on the court after one point, then returned to form in the next two sets. She didn’t allow a point in two straight games of the final set, which she closed with an overhead slam.

“That just goes to show you how frustrate I was out there today,” she said. “I haven’t done that in a match in a long time.” Top-ranked Victoria Azarenka of Belarus, the Australian Open champion, sat out all four singles matches with a back injury.

Venus Williams’ victory almost overshadowed the team victory, which the U.S. players celebrated with a quick parade around the cour t with the American flag.

In the first round of World Group play, Russia beat visiting Spain 3-2; Serbia won 3-2 at Belgium; Italy downed visiting Ukraine 3-2; and the Czech Republic won 4-1 at Germany.

Although a US victory was assured after the first singles, most of the 2,279 fans at Worcester’s DCU Center stuck around through another round of singles to see Venus play. It was barely two hours before Super Bowl kickoff and for those fans, Venus’ comeback trumped seeing the start of the New England Patriots’ game against the New York Giants.

Fans crowded the entrance to snap photos as she strolled onto the court.

One fan shouted, “ Welcome back, Venus!” after warmups. That was followed by a loud round of applause and some foot-stomping when she and Huber returned from the bench to open the match.

Williams served first and after hitting her first attempt long, she delivered a winner on her second to start her comeback with a 15-0 lead. Williams faltered briefly the next time she served, falling behind love-40 then rallied with Huber to win the next four points then clinching the game with an ace.

Belarus won the first two games of the second set, then Williams and Huber reeled off six straight, ending it with Williams holding serve.—AP

Jet ski championship rescheduled

Abdulwahab Al-Omar

KUWAIT: The Kuwait Sea Sports Club (KSSC) announced changes to 2012 Kuwait Jet Ski Championship schedule, as round one is pushed from February 11th to April 7th, while round two, three and four are rescheduled to May 12th, May 26th, and June 9th respectively.

The changes came in order to allow Kuwaiti jet skiers to take part in the 2012 UAE Grand Prix after the water motorsports authorities in the United Arab Emirates rescheduled the tournament’s third round to February 24th. “The KSSC makes sure to give enough time for Kuwaiti contesters to prepare for the important regional tournament”, said leader of the Kuwaiti jet ski team Abdulwahad Al-Omar in a press statement.

Kuwait’s Mohammad Burabie’a and Mohammad Al-Baaz lead standings in the super stock 1600 cc and stock 1600 cc classes in the UAE tournament. The Kuwaiti team is also set to compete in the Aquabike World Championship in Doha, Qatar next month.

JEREZ: Sebastian Vettel set out to disappoint Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone yesterday as Red Bull offered a tantalising glimpse of the car they hope will take them and their champion to a third successive title.

Ecclestone, who is very close to the German but always wants a battle down to the wire to maximise television viewing figures, said recently he hoped the 24-year-old would not dominate the season like he did in 2011.

“I hope he’s wrong obviously,” said Vettel, who won his second crown with four grands prix to spare and ended the year with 11 wins in 19 races, in a Q+A released by the team before testing starts on Tuesday.

The German expected a bigger, tighter fight this time and was as confident as he could be before the car had completed a lap. “At the beginning of last year we didn’t really expect whatever happened last year, so I think it’s the same thing again. It would be wrong to go into this season and expect 2011 to happen again, as in getting into the lead early and having a very big gap to other competitors in the championship. “So I think it will be very, very tight this year and everything else would be a surprise to be honest.”

The car shown in a brief clip on the team’s website (www.redbullracing.com) had the stepped nose adopted so far by all teams except McLaren in response to new aerodynamic regulations.

“We’ve kept more or less the same chassis shape, but had to drop the nose just in front of the front bulkhead, which, in common with many other teams, has led us to...a slightly ugly looking nose,” said designer Adrian Newey.

“We’ve tried to style it as best we can, but it’s not a feature you would choose to put in were it not for the regulation.”

Newey, who has designed championship-winning cars for three separate teams, said last year’s chassis was designed around an exhaust position that is no longer allowed.

“Whether that will affect us more than other people is difficult to know of course,” he said. “It may be that we’ve lost more than other people through that. Only time will tell, it will be good to get out to do some testing and to see where we get to.

“The (2011) exhaust allowed us to run a high rear ride height, it’s much more difficult without that to sustain a high rear height so we have to go back down and have to redevelop the car around that lower ride height,” he added.

Team principal Christian Horner said it would be hard for Vettel to do better than last year, when he was absent from the podium in only two races, but would not rule it out.

“As a driver, he’s still evolving and he’s still getting stronger.

We saw that in 2011 and I think we’re only going to see that again in 2012,” he warned.

“You forget he’s only 24 years of age and it’s such a young age to have achieved so much. I think that, as he gains experience and as he gains knowledge and matures, he’s getting stronger and stronger.”

Horner felt Australian Mark Webber, who took just one victory last season after challenging for the title the previous year, would also be back as a contender.

“I think the best tonic for Mark was to finish the year strongly, to win that final race and to go into the season having won the Brazilian GP. I think he’s had a very strong off-season,” he said. “He’s recharged his batteries, he’s trained hard and he’s come back looking fitter and leaner than ever. He’s in strong shape for the season ahead.”—Reuters

SINGAPORE: In this Sept. 25, 2011 file photo, Red Bull driver Sebastian Vettel of Germany celebrates from the cockpit just after winning the Singapore Formula One Grand Prix on the Marina Bay City Circuit.—AP

Technical chief’s exit clouds Sauber launch JEREZ: Sauber rolled out their 2012 Formula One car in the Spanish sunshine yesterday, the team shrugging off the abrupt exit of technical director James Key and hoping to score consistent points this year.

The Swiss-based outfit announced last Friday that Key was leaving to take a job in Britain with an unspecified employer.

The C31 car he helped create was presented on the Jerez pit straight with drivers Sergio Perez and Kamui Kobayashi taking off the wraps in front of a ring of photographers on a crisp and clear morning.

“I think we have a strong team,” said Mexican Perez. “James was a key person, a good leader but I think we have very good people at the team who can handle the job and the team will be together.

“I am very confident the team will be very strong,” added Perez, looking forward to his second full season. Team chief executive Monisha Kaltenborn said Key remained a Sauber employ-

ee for an unspecified period but relations had been strained for some time.

“For a while both sides have been thinking that things are not really working out,” she told reporters. “This situation is the result of that.

“We now have a structure in place which we are confident about that is the right one for the team to go ahead. It’s not any short-term solution for us but a long-term structure.”

Kaltenborn said the team, who have said four existing departmental heads will now oversee the car’s design and development, would not be replacing Key but denied that decision was due to a lack of money. “If we look back 20 years, the team have always lacked funds,” she added.

Ferrari-powered Sauber finished seventh overall last year, only three points ahead of Toro Rosso. Perez scored 14 points and Kobayashi 30.

“We want to score points on a regular basis,” said team founder Peter Sauber, making his by now standard apology for his spoken English but conveying his message clearly enough.

“I think that has to be one of our goals. And we want to improve in the championship significantly. It’s also important to finish the qualifying in the top 10 if possible.”

The new car had plenty of room for new sponsors but Kaltenborn was optimistic they would come on board before the season starts in Australia on March 18.

“We are in negotiation with new partners so I am quite confident our livery will look different by the time we hit the first race,” she said.

Chief designer Matt Morris said the car, with the ‘ugly’ stepped nose that is now commonplace among this year’s offerings with the exception of McLaren, was evolutionary and revolutionary. “The C31 is revolutionary where we had fresh ideas, particularly at the rear of the car, and it is an evolution where we knew we could carry over certain approaches,” he said.

“We had to improve on the weaknesses we identified on the C30 but at the same time we wanted to maintain its strengths.”—Reuters

Boubyan Bank lead KBC League KUWAIT: Boubyan Bank claimed the top spot at the KBC Football League standings after a 7-0 rout of the International Bank in the third week competition that featured tough bout between second and third place holders the Gulf Bank and the Kuwait Finance House (KFH).

The Gulf Bank kept its second place after defeating the KFH 2-0, keeping the latter in third place. Meanwhile, the Ahli United Bank made a statement with a blowout 10-1 win against the

Industrial Bank, while the match between the National Bank of Kuwait (NBK) and Al-Ahli Bank ended in a 2-2 draw.

Meanwhile, fourth week competitions started this Sunday with a 1-0 win for Al-Ahli United against Al-Ahli Bank. Other matches scheduled include the NBK vs. the KFH, the Industrial Bank against the International Bank, in addition to a showdown between the two top spot teams Boubyan Bank and Gulf Bank.

DOHA: The Liquigas Cannondale team ride in formation during the second stage of the Tour of Qatar, a 11.3km timetrial at the Lusail motorcycle track near the capital Doha. —AFP

Garmin win Tour of Qatar time-trial LUSAIL: American team Garmin won yesterday’s second stage of the Tour of Qatar, a 11.3km timetrial at the Lusail motorcycle track.

Belgian Tom Boonen of the Omega PharmaQuick Step, winner of Sunday’s first stage, retained the race leader’s golden jersey, with American Tyler Farrar second on the same time.

Garmin finished the time-trial ahead of Omega

Pharma-Quick Step and Sky. “We’re here with some young riders. Second by seven seconds from the machines that is Garmin,” said Boonen. “It’s really very good.

“Almost all the world’s best sprinters are here.

That promises to throw up a good spectacle.”

Farrar, ranked second because Boonen won the first stage, added: “Team time-trials are really

Garmin’s speciality. “They’re even our favourite event. We train a lot for them and today we had great legs. “I’ll obviously give the maximum over the last four stages to claim the golden jersey. But we’re at the start of the season. It’s my first race and my form is without doubt not yet at its best.” Today sees the riders tackle the 146.5km third stage between Dukhan and Al Gharafa Stadium.—AFP

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2012

S P ORT S

Preview

Barcelona dig deep with King’s Cup final in sight

BATA: Zambia’s national team players warm up at the start of a training session in the village of Machina. Zambia will face Ghana tomorrow in their African Cup of Nations semifinal soccer match. —AP

Laguna stay on top in Mexico MEXICO CITY: Santos Laguna kept its lead atop the Mexico Clausura football championship with a 2-1 victory over Pumas over the weekend. Santos leads by three points over both Atlante and defending champion Tigres.

Atlante defeated Queretaro 3-2 and Tigres defeated America 1-0 on Sunday, ending America’s undefeated start to the season.

Chivas, Mexico’s most successful club with 11 titles, continued its abysmal start to the season, losing 2-1 to Morelia to remain in last place with only one point in five matches.

In other weekend results, Cruz Azul won 2-0 against Jaguares, Pachuca defeated Toluca 4-3, Puebla drew 1-1 with Club Tijuana, Monterrey won 3-0 over San Luis and Estudiantes Tecos drew 0-0 with Atlas.

In Santos’ victory, Christian Suarez of Ecuador scored first for Santos in the 12th minute, lifting a shot past the keeper after a swift counterattack. Rodolfo Salinas made it 2-0 in 20th, but then headed into his own net from a corner 10 minutes later.

Osvaldo Martinez curled a free kick from 25 yards (meters) into the top corner in injury time to give Atlante the victory. Goals from German Alemanno and Pablo Vitti put Queretaro into the lead twice in the second half, with Martinez equalizing the first time for Atlante and Juan Ezequiel Cuevas getting the other.

Chilean Hector Mancilla got the only goal in the 35th minute for Tigres against America, deflecting a shot from the edge of the penalty area into the net.

Miguel Sabah scored two second-half goals for Morelia, after Omar Arellano had put Chivas in the lead in the 39th. It was only Chivas’ second goal of the season.

Cruz Azul maintained its unbeaten start to the season, with Brazilian Jair Pereira heading in from a corner in the 56th, and Javier Orozco getting the second six minutes later. Cruz Azul is in fourth with nine points.

Pachuca also improved to nine points, behind Cruz Azul in fifth on goal difference, after coming from 3-0 behind to defeat Toluca. Argentina’s Mauro Cejas got his second in injury time to win the game for Pachuca.

An own-goal from David Munoz and a goal each from Ivan Alonso and Nestor Calderon put Toluca 3-0 up after 16 minutes, before goals from Daniel Arreola, Marco Bueno and two goals from Cejas gave Pachuca victory.

Puebla fell behind in the seventh minute when Duvier Riascos slotted the ball into the net for Club Tijuana. United States international DaMarcus Beasley won a penalty for Puebla in the 25th and Spaniard Luis Garcia converted.

Goals from Aldo de Nigris, Cesar Delgado and Jesus Zavala gave Monterrey the win against San Luis, which has lost its last three matches.

Jehu Chiapas was sent off for San Luis in the 60th when the score was already 3-0.

In a relegation battle, Estudiantes Tecos and Atlas drew with Atlas striking the woodwork three times. Estudiantes Tecos remain four points behind Atlas in Mexico’s relegation table.—AP

Neymar scores 100th career goal in Brazil SAO PAULO: Palmeiras rallied with two late goals to spoil Neymar’s 20th birthday celebrations and 100th career goal on Sunday in the Sao Paulo state championship.

In the Rio de Janeiro state championship, Vasco da Gama won its fourth in a row and Flamengo and Botafogo played each other to a scoreless draw.

There were fights between fans before three matches throughout Brazil on Sunday, but no serious injuries were reported.

Neymar, touted as Brazil’s most promising star and the player who will likely be in charge of leading Brazil at the 2014 World Cup at home, scored for the 100th time with a header in the 66th minute. He easily found the net from the six-meter (yard) line after a free kick cross from play maker Paulo Henrique Ganso.

But two-time defending champion Santos went a man down in the 87th after substitute striker Ibson was sent off with a second yellow card, and Palmeiras took advantage with quick goals in the final minutes.

Striker Fernandao scored with a header off a corner in the 89th, then left back Juninho put Palmeiras the go-ahead goal two minutes into injury time after his low cross was deflected by a defender as goalkeeper Rafael dove the wrong way.

Palmeiras got the win despite playing without Chile playmaker Jorge Valdivia from the 40th because of an apparent muscle injury. Palmeiras and Santos are Brazil’s most successful clubs with eight national titles each.

Before the match, local media reported that Palmeiras fans were attacked by a group of Corinthians supporters as they left for the match in Sao Paulo. The Corinthians fans reportedly threw rocks at the buses carr ying Palmeiras fans.

Nobody was seriously injured but police made nearly 20 arrests.

The result kept Luiz Felipe Scolari’s side unbeaten in the regional championship and moved it to fourth in the 20-team standings with 11 points. Santos dropped to 10th. The top eight will advance to the knockout round.

The Brazilian football season does not follow the European calendar and starts in the beginning of the year. Regional championships in the 26 states take place in the first few months, with the Brazilian league running from May until December.

Also Sunday, Corinthians lost its first

points of the season by drawing Bragantino 1-1 at Pacaembu stadium in Sao Paulo. The Brazilian champion had won its first four matches to start the season.

Corinthians still leads the tournament with 13 points, the same number as Paulista, which on Saturday defeated Catanduvense 3-1 in Jundiai, and Sao Paulo, which beat Ponte Preta 3-1 in Campinas on Sunday.

Fans from Sao Paulo and Ponte Preta engaged in a confrontation with each other and police before the match, and officers had to use rubber bullets to disperse the crowd, according to local media. A few minor injuries were reported. In Rio de Janeiro, Ronaldinho’s Flamengo and Botafogo played to a 0-0 draw at the Engenhao stadium in the Guanabara Cup. Flamengo held on to the score despite playing a man down from the 72nd because midfielder Willians was sent off after complaining with the referee for being awarded a yellow card. Botafogo had Argentine German Herrera and Uruguayan Sebastian “El Loco” Abreu on attack.

Flamengo was without a coach after former Brazil manager Vanderlei Luxemburgo was fired on Thursday following a series of disputes with club directors and some players, including two-time FIFA player of the year Ronaldinho. Both teams are winless in three matches in the tournament.

The Guanabara Cup is the first stage of the Rio championship, and its winner will play for the state title against the Rio Cup champion later in the tournament.

On Saturday, playmaker Diego Souza scored twice to give Vasco da Gama - runner-up to Corinthians in the Brazilian league last year - a 2-0 win over Friburguense at Sao Januario stadium. It was the team’s fourth win in a row to start the season. Fluminense drew Duque de Caxias 1-1 in Volta Redonda on Saturday in the return of midfielder Thiago Neves.

In Porto Alegre, rivals Gremio and Internacional drew 2-2 in the Rio Grande do Sul state tournament. Earlier in the day, Gremio striker Kleber was accused by his wife in a police report of allegedly hitting her last month, according to local media. Police said they would investigate.

International fan groups fought each other near the stadium before the match, but no injuries were reported.—AP

MADRID: Injury-hit Barcelona will not be complaining if another ‘lucky’ black cat helps Lionel Messi find the net at the Nou Camp tomorrow when they bid for a third K ing’s Cup final appearance in four years.

The world and European champions host Valencia in a semi-final second leg (2000 GMT) match with Carles Puyol’s header from the 1-1 draw at Mestalla last week giving them a slight edge in the tie. Barca’s anxious 2-1 home win over Real Sociedad in La Liga at the weekend ended a run of three consecutive draws, their worst run of results this season, and a rare barren spell for top scorer Messi.

It was only after a black cat streaked across their pitch on Saturday that Messi finally broke his run of bad luck in front of goal, which included having a penalty saved during the first leg of the semi-final.

The World Player of the Year has netted 37 times in all competitions so far, but his team have looked more and more reliant on his goals and playmaking as a lengthening injury list took its toll.

David Villa, Pedro, Andres Iniesta and Alexis Sanchez have all been laid low, forcing coach Pep Guardiola to fall back on their famed youth academy of late, but the zip has been missing from the side’s play.

A nasty gash to the knee of midfielder Sergio Busquets on the weekend makes the Spanish international a doubt for Wednesday as well. “We’ll see if, little by little, we can start getting players back,” Guardiola said

SPAIN: Barcelona’s Tello (second from right) reacts with his teammates in this file photo. —AP

on Saturday, when he rested other key players such as Xavi, Gerard Pique and Eric Abidal.

“The players we have available are making a titanic effort, and they have a chance on Wednesday to secure a place in the final for later in the season, while we turn our focus on the other two competitions (La Liga and the Champions League).

Barca won the Cup in 2009, and lost in last season’s final to their arch-rivals Real Madrid, who they trail in the league by seven points.

Valencia are a distant third in

the standings and also going through a poor run of form.

Unai Emery’s side, Cup winners in 2008, were held 0-0 at Atletico Madrid on Sunday. Aside from Cup games they have yet to win in 2012.

Third-tier giantk illers Mirandes face a big cat problem in the other semi on Tuesday (2100) when they travel to the intimidating San Mames to play Athletic Bilbao, known as The Lions.

Bilbao, sixth in La Liga, can look to powerful Spain striker Fernando Llorente, who has

returned from injury scoring six times in three games. He netted both goals in their 2-1 first leg win in M iranda de Ebro last week.

Mirandes, who have an annual budget of just over 1.2 million euros compared to the 60 million euros or so at Bilbao’s disposal, grabbed a lifeline with Ander Lambarri’s injury-time goal. They are only the second club from the Segunda B to have reached the last four of the competition in its current format.—Reuters

Marseille blow two-goal lead PARIS: Olympique Marseille and Olympique Lyon lost further ground on the Ligue 1 pacesetters when the hosts blew a two-goal lead in a 2-2 draw at the Stade Velodrome on Sunday.

Marseille, who surged ahead through firsthalf goals by Benoit Cheyrou and Brandao, remained fifth with 38 points from 22 games, 11 behind leaders Paris St Germain who beat Evian Thonon Gaillard 3-1 on Saturday.

Lyon, who fought back thanks to Bafetimbi Gomis and a Souleymane Diawara own goal before halftime, stayed fourth on 39 points.

Second-placed Montpellier, three points off the pace, also won on Saturday, beating Stade Brest 1-0 as champions Lille, who have

39 points, had their game at Sochaux postponed because of a frozen pitch. Two other matches were called off over the weekend and the French League still has to decide when the Lille game, as well as St Etienne v Lorient and Caen v AJ Auxerre, will be played.

The hosts, on a four-match winning streak in Ligue 1, were without the suspended Mathieu Valbuena as well as the Ayew brothers, Andre and Jordan who are on African Nations Cup duty with Ghana. Marseille went ahead on 16 minutes when Cheyrou volleyed home following a bad clearance by the Lyon defence.

Brandao tapped in from a Morgan Amalfitano cross to double the tally in the

34th minute but Lyon fought back against the run of play.

With a clever backheel, Jimmy Briand sent the ball into the path of Bafetimbi Gomis who fired home at point-blank range to reduce the arrears two minutes later.

On the stroke of halftime, Souleymane Diawara, who returned to Marseille this week after Senegal were eliminated from the African Nations Cup deflected an Aly Cissokho cross into his own goal.

In the closing stages, Marseille keeper Steve Mandanda made a lightning quick save from Lisandro Lopez to help his team extend their unbeaten run to 13 games in all competitions.—Reuters

Syria defeat Japan as Uzbekistan down Australia

AMMAN: Syria’s Mohammad Fares jumps for the ball with Japan’s Osako Yuya during the first half of a Group C Asian qualifier for the London Olympics.—AP

AMMAN: Forced to play away from home due to escalating unrest, Syria stunned Asian heavyweight Japan 2-1 Sunday to boost its chances of qualifying for the London Olympics.

Meanwhile, Australia continued its dismal run in qualifying by losing 2-0 to Uzbekistan in Group B, failing to score for a third consecutive match and dimming its chances of reaching the games.

The only bright spot for Australia was the United Arab Emirates beating Iraq 1-0 in Group B to ensure that three of the four teams are separated by only two points.

In Group C, Bahrain revived its Olympic campaign with a 3-1 win over Malaysia to eliminate the South East Asia team. Bahrain is third, three points behind Japan and Syria.

In Group A, 2022 World Cup host Qatar drew 2-2 with Oman. The draw for Qatar, which was forced to forfeit an earlier match against Oman for fielding an ineligible player, means it likely needs victories in its final two matches to qualify.

South Korea equalized in the 90th minute to draw 1-1 with a 10-man Saudi Arabia. The goal came just minutes after Saudi midfielder Salman alFaraj was sent off after receiving his second yellow card.

South Korea remains top of the group with the draw, while Saudi Arabia is bottom and on the brink of being eliminated.

Syria, looking to bounce back from a 2-1 defeat to Japan in November, pressed from the start. That paid off when Mohammad Fares’ free kick deflected into the net off Japan striker Yuya Osako in the 19th minute.

Japan leveled in the 44th minute with an equalizer from Kensuke Nagaim but Syria’s Ahmed Saleh scored in the 90th minute.

With two matches remaining, Syria has a good chance of reaching London. That raises the prospect of protesters opposed to the Syrian violence descending on the Olympics to demonstrate against the regime.

Syria would automatically qualify if it wins the group but still has a chance by finishing second.

The three runner-ups will face off for the fourth Olympic spot. That team then will take on the four place team from Africa, Senegal, for the final Olympic spot.—AP

Pakistan whitewashes England

Contador gets two year ban, set to lose Tour title

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TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2012

Vettel predicts tight fight for F1 title

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INDIANAPOLIS: New York Giants head coach Tom Coughlin (right) hands the Vince Lombardi Trophy to quarterback Eli Manning after their 21-17 win over the New England Patriots in the NFL Super Bowl XLVI football game.—AP

Giants win Super Bowl thriller INDIANAPOLIS: Eli Manning led another fourthquarter touchdown drive and won his second Super Bowl MVP on Sunday night, leading the Giants to a 21-17 victory over the New England Patriots that provided a pulsating finish to a season that started with turmoil and a lockout.

“It’s been a wild game,” said Manning, who now has one more Super Bowl title than his older brother, Peyton. “It’s been a wild season.”

It was also a wild finish, that featured a rare scenario where the Patriots willingly allowed the Giants to score a last-minute touchdown - and New York running back Ahmad Bradshaw almost reluctantly went into the end zone for the decisive score.

The Giants got down to the 6-yard line with just over a minute left and the Patriots down to one timeout. New York could have run the clock down to a few seconds and kicked a field goal.

Patriots coach Bill Belichick did the calculations and decided on a trade-off: Give up a touchdown for some time. New England pulled up and allowed Bradshaw to run the final 6 yards with 57 seconds left. Once Bradshaw realized what was happening, he tried to stop at the 1-yard line to keep the clock going but ended up falling backward into the end zone. Patriots quarterback Tom Brady would get one last chance with the Giants defense bearing down on him, as it always does.

But the Patriots got only as far as midfield with 5 seconds left. Brady threw a desperation pass into the end zone, where the ball was batted around in a scrum before falling incomplete just beyond the reach of All-Pro tight end Rob Gronkowski, bringing the spray of confetti from above.

“You come down to one play at the end,” Brady said. “If we make it, we’re world champs. If we don’t, we’re wishing we were.” A wild finish was certainly fitting. The Giants finished with a 13-7 record but almost didn’t make the playoffs, needing a lot of help at 7-7 with two games left in the regular season. Their defense finally came together, and Manning gave them a chance in every game with his penchant for comebacks - a league-record 15 touchdowns in the fourth quarter.

Of course, his greatest career comeback was in the Super Bowl in 2008, when the Patriots were undefeated and Manning led a late scoring drive that included an enduring moment - the incredible catch David Tyree made by trapping the ball against his helmet.

The Patriots (15-4) had a chance to avoid more such history on Sunday. Brady, trying to match boyhood hero Joe Montana and Terry Bradshaw with four Super Bowl titles, had New England in range to put it away late in the fourth quarter.

Wes Welker dropped a pass at the 20-yard line

with 4 minutes left, forcing a punt that gave the Giants another chance trailing 17-15.

“It comes to the biggest moment of my life, and (I) don’t come up with it,” a red-eyed Welker said after the match. “It’s one of those plays I’ve made a thousand times.” Manning’s turn for more Super Bowl magic.

He threw a perfect 38-yard pass down the sideline to Mario Manningham, sending the ball between two defensive backs barreling down on the receiver. Manningham got both feet down before getting smacked out of bounds in front of the Patriots’ bench, a catch that was upheld on replay and reminded the 68,658 fans at Lucas Oil Stadium - one in particular - about that other catch four years earlier.

“In those situations, you are always looking to see who is going to be the guy,” Tyree said, from inside the Giants locker room. Once Manningham came down with it, the Giants sensed things had turned their way, just like four years earlier.

“I think they are both spectacular catches,” Giants coach Tom Coughlin said. “I think with Mario’s earlier tonight, the way he kept his feet inbounds and held onto the ball (while) going out of bounds was a remarkable thing.” The Patriots were thinking the same thing, too.

“I thought that play they made on our sideline

was a phenomenal throw and catch,” Brady said.

“That got them going.”

Brady set a Super Bowl record by completing 16 consecutive passes earlier in the game, topping Montana’s record. When he needed several quick completions to get moving in the last minute, he couldn’t do it.

Brady has had a tough time against this Giants defense. During the regular season, it pressured him into mistakes during a 24-20 New York win in Foxborough. The Patriots went on to win their next 10, a streak that ended when Brady faced that same defense on Sunday.

It just seems to have his number. On his first pass of the game, Brady was pressured by defensive end Justin Tuck in the end zone and threw the ball to an open spot downfield to get rid of it, resulting in a safety.

By contrast, Manning didn’t make any big mistakes and, again, was at his best under the lastminute pressure.

“He’s become confident over time, kind of grew into it,” said his father, former New Orleans Saints quarterback Archie Manning. “I always felt like you have to experience those situations before you become confident. He’s certainly had his share.”

And nobody will question anything he says again.

Manning was criticized for insisting before the

Capello to meet with FA chief over Terry row

South Africa ban agents from choosing referees JOHANNESBURG: South Africa have vowed not to allow agents appoint referees for friendly fixtures after allegations of matchfixing at pre-2010 World Cup warm-up games resurfaced.

The Sunday Times claimed matches against Thailand, Bulgaria, Guatemala and Colombia may have been fixed by Singaporean Wilson Raj Perumal, who is serving a two-year jail term in Finland for fixing matches there.

Perumal reportedly arranged the friendlies for South Africa on condition that he appoint the match officials as an under-prepared national squad desperately sought matches ahead of the global tournament.

A South African Football Association (Safa) statement released Monday said world governing body FIFA was pleased that Safa has discontinued a practice of engaging agents to source referees. FIFA appoints referees for World Cup qualifiers and continental body CAF chooses them for Cup of Nations fixtures, leaving host countries to select officials for friendlies.

“The association took a decision to revert to appointing referees (for friendlies) through our sister football associations as this will ensure full control and integrity of outcomes of all matches,” the Safa statement added. A number of dubious penalties were awarded in the 5-0 win over Guatemala-a record victory margin for the South African national team-and a 2-1 triumph over Colombia. Referees from Niger, Togo and Kenya handled the four warm-ups which triggered surprise as South Africa normally use match officials from countries in the region.

The Sunday Times said the Nigerien referee was also scheduled to handle a friendly against Denmark, but concerned Safa officials replaced him with a local at the last minute.

Zimbabwe Football Association (Zifa) officials believe Perumal may have been the mastermind behind allegedly fixed matches involving the national team and a club side between 2007 and 2009 on tours of Malaysia and Thailand.

Former Zifa chief executive Henrietta Rushwaya was arrested in Harare last week on charges of corruption, bribery and matchfixing and was granted bail Monday. Her arrest came days after 82 footballers implicated in the ‘Asiagate’ scandal were barred from representing the country, and Zifa suspended three board members last year in a related move.—AFP

season that he’s an elite quarterback. Then, with the Giants struggling, he was overshadowed by a different Manning drama.

Peyton Manning and the Colts were hoping to reach a Super Bowl in their stadium. Instead, the quarterback had neck operations and the team came apart, prompting ownership to clean house.

The week leading up to the Super Bowl was overshadowed in town by talk about Peyton’s future.

Eli insisted he wasn’t bothered by sharing the spotlight with his brother. In the fourth quarter on Sunday, he had it all to himself.

Manning was 10 of 14 for 118 yards in the final quarter with his seventh game-winning drive of the season. Overall, he completed 30 of 40 for 296 yards with a touchdown and no interceptions, leading the Giants to their fourth Super Bowl championship - two behind Pittsburgh for the record.

In the end, a Manning got to hoist the silver Super Bowl trophy in Indianapolis. “It just feels good to win a Super Bowl,” Eli Manning said.

“Doesn’t matter where you are.”

The NFL season finished on a high after being hit by a 41/2-month lockout last year following a breakdown in talks between players and team owners over a new, 10-year collective bargaining agreement. A new deal was eventually ratified by players on Aug. 4.—AP

MILAN: AC Milan forward Zlatan Ibrahimovic (right) of Sweden, challenges for the ball in this file photo. —AP

‘Ibra’ gets three-match ban ROME: AC Milan’s Swedish international striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic will miss the top of the table clash with Serie A leaders Juventus on February 25 after he was suspended for three matches yesterday.

The volatile 30-year-old - who has scored 15 times this season and lies second in the Serie A scorers list received the ban for slapping Napoli player Salvatore Aronica in the face during Sunday’s 0-0 draw for which he was red carded.

AC Milan - who are second a point behind Juve but having played a game more said they will appeal the ruling by the Italian League’s Disciplinary Commission. However, Ibrahimovic accepted that he

had slipped-up. “I made a huge error... It happens, it happens... I must learn from my mistakes,” he said.

“There is no need of video images to prove what I did, I made a mistake.

“But I have confidence in the team, it will be just as good without me.” ‘Ibra’ has a chequered disciplinary record in Italy - last season he was sent off two matches in a row while seven years ago when he was playing for Juventus he missed a title-deciding match with Milan because he was serving a suspension.

He was suspended after headbutting Inter Milan’s combative Serbian Sinisa Mihajlovic and then hit the latter’s Inter team-mate Ivan Cordoba.—AFP

LONDON: England manager Fabio Capello is set to meet Football Association chief executive David Bernstein later this week after criticising the decision to strip John Terry of the England captaincy.

The Italian boss, due to watch the Premier League match between Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur yesterday, returned to work to find himself at the centre of a media storm.

He was also rebuked by one of his predecessors as England manager rebuked him for going public with his displeasure at the way the FA kept him out of the loop in deciding to stand Terry down from the captaincy.

Terry, 31, was relieved of his duties on Friday due to an ongoing court case in which he is accused of racially abusing Queens Park Rangers centre-back Anton Ferdinand during a match last year.

But the Chelsea defender remains available for England selection as a player.

Terry’s case is not due to be heard until July 9 — after the end of this year’s European Championships in Poland and Ukraine.The FA, while not wanting to prejudge the outcome, said had Terry remained captain it would’ve been an unwelcome distraction for England’s Euro 2012 squad.

However, any hopes that move might dampen down interest in the issue were dashed when, just days later, Capello, in an interview with Italian television, hit out at his employers’ action.

Graham Taylor, England manager from 1990-93, said Capello’s “unwise” remarks could only harm the squad. “It doesn’t help the situation at all, as England go into the European Championships,” Taylor told the BBC.

“All it does is disturb everything even more. “To come out in this public fashion actually, in one respect, gives England an even bigger problem for the selection and harmony of the squad for the European Championships,” he added.

Capello, whose contract expires after Euro 2012, made his feelings plain in an interview with Italian RAI public television on Sunday.

“I don’t agree with the decision,” he said. “I spoke with the chairman (Bernstein) telling him that in my opinion Terry cannot be punished until the court’s decided-that’s the civil justice, not the sporting one-that Terry has done that which he is accused of.”

Meanwhile, former senior FA official David Davies said Capello had jeopardised his own position. “You have to ask what his motive is,” Davies told the BBC. “You have to suspect he wants to prevent John Terry retiring as a player before Euro 2012 but there are wider issues.

“A contract may have been breached, there is strong leadership now at the FA from David Bernstein. Last week he wasn’t slow to take things forward and he may not be slow to do so now.”

But Dutch great Ruud Gullit said that whatever else happened, Capello would not resign from his reported £6 million-ayear post.

“I saw him on Sunday night, but I didn’t get the feeling that he was concerned about anything,” Gullit, who played under Capello at AC Milan, said.

“I think he just wanted to put his opinion straight away and do the things he think is best for the national team,” he added at the Laureus World 2012 Sports Awards in London.—AFP

Turkmen gas exports to Iran recover from drop Page 22

India investment-grade rating under pressure Page 25

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2012

KSE stocks drop sharply Page 24

Mitsubishi to stop making cars in Western Europe Page 23

ATHENS: Pedestrians walk next to a beggar in central Athens yesterday. Parties backing Greece’s coalition government will hold a second day of emergency talks on a vital austerity deal with rescue creditors, after an intense weekend of negotiations failed to produce a breakthrough needed to avert bankruptcy in March. —AP

EU turns heat as Greece misses deadline Merkel, Sarkozy warn no more aid sans deal ATHENS: Embattled Greek Prime Minister Lucas Papademos faced growing EU pressure yesterday to agree tough new austerity measures in a new bailout as the timetable for a showdown with his coalition partners slipped.

As calls for a general strike compounded the sense of crisis, a key meeting later with heads of the socialist, conservative and far-right parties which form his coalition government was put back.

The talks, needed to secure approval of stinging austerity measures, “will very probably be held on Tuesday,” a government source told AFP, adding: “The negotiations continue, there are still questions to address.”

Papademos was to meet officials from the EU, European Central Bank (ECB) and International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Monday, aiming to wrap up weeks of negotiations and save his country from a historic default in March that could roil the 17-nation euro-zone and undercut a global economic recovery.

In Paris, German Chancellor Angela

Merkel and French President Nicolas Sarkozy ramped up pressure on Athens, as did the spokesman for a European commissioner in Brussels.

Merkel warned that Greece would receive no more EU aid to cope with the debt crisis until Athens reached a deal with the EU, ECB and IMF ‘troika’ on more spending cuts and reforms. “The Greeks gave us undertakings,” Sarkozy added.

“They should respect them scrupulously.

There’s no choice.”

A spokesman for EU commissioner Olli Rehn warned that Greece had already in effect missed the deadline to get the deal done by the coalition to reshape the economy and slash its debt in exchange for another bailout.

“The truth is that we are already past the deadline,” spokesman Amadeu Altafaj said. “ The ball is in the Greeks’ court,” Altafaj added. Meanwhile, the country’s two main unions called a 24-hour general strike today to protest the new measures, the Ana news agency said.

The measures are a death sentence for

the country, aimed at slashing salaries by 20-30 percent on top of previously imposed cuts, Ana repor ted Iannis Panagopoulos, leader of the GSEE private-sector union, as saying. While the EU has sharpened its position on providing another 130 billion euros ($170 billion) in aid to Greece, there was little news on progress at parallel but separate talks between Athens and its private creditors.

Grouped within the I nstitute of International Finance (IIF), negotiators representing banks, insurance companies and private institutional investors held talks on Sunday on cutting some 100 billion euros from the roughly 200 billion in Greek government debt they hold. After five hours of talks on Sunday, Papademos did manage to get limited agreement with his coalition partners on a state savings target of 1.5 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) that would include the implementation of reforms to lower production costs and a scheme to recapitalize Greek banks.

Repor ts said outstanding issues

Dubai stocks rally, Gulf indices mixed MIDEAST STOCK MARKETS DUBAI: Dubai builder Arabtec made its largest gain in nearly two years yesterday to reach a 27-month closing high, dominating trade on the emirate’s index. Gulf Arab markets were mixed, taking their cue from an upbeat opening in Asia before some gave back gains as European stocks declined.

Arabtec rose 9.2 percent to its highest close since November 2009 and accounted for more than a quar ter of all shares traded on Dubai’s benchmark.

But there was no news on the builder, which is forecast to report a 55 percent drop in fourth-quarter profit according to analysts polled

by Reuters. “We are moving beyond fundamentals with this t ype of move on Arabtec,” said Julian Bruce, EFG-Hermes director of institutional equity sales.

Telecoms operator du made its largest drop in seven weeks, falling 2.3 percent after the firm said it had been instructed to pay a royalty of 15 percent on its 2011 net profit,

plus a further 5 percent of revenue.

Dubai’s index climbed 0.6 percent to 1,476 points, a five-month closing high, but failed to hold above 1,500 points, which is seen by investors as an important hurdle.

“These psychological levels are ridiculous really, but there are people who look at these and believe they are significant and that’s all it takes,” said Ibrahim Masood, senior investment officer at Mashreq bank.

“Retail investors have locked in some short-term gains.” First Gulf Bank, down 0.9 percent, was the main drag on Abu Dhabi’s benchmark, which eased from Sunday’s 12-week high.

“The feeling of improved sentiment at a grass roots level in the UAE has started to spill over into equities,” said EFG’s Bruce. “It’s too soon for everyone to become overenthusiastic, but there are signs of improvement in the real estate, retail and hospitality sectors and the market was very cheap.”

Kuwait’s Agility rose 2.8 percent

after the logistics firm said it would receive $23.1 million in a court case win.Saudi shares retreated, slipping from Sunday ’s 12-month peak as retail investors opted to lock in recent gains, while Qatar’s benchmark rose for a ninth session since late-January’s three-month low as traders shrugged off their disappointment over bank dividends to accumulate shares at lower prices.

“I’m quite convinced that most of what we see in the region is sentiment- driven on the back of the global market tone becoming much better than it was last year,” said Mashreq’s Masood. “As long as we keep getting positive news from Europe and good numbers from the US, this should continue. Our rally isn’t a localized phenomenon.”

European shares fell on worries Greece would fail to come up with the political commitments needed to avoid a potential sovereign debt default, taking the shine off a US jobs report that had brightened the global economic outlook. — Reuters

included the size of cuts to complementary pension programs, a reduction in the minimum wage demanded by the EU, IMF and ECB, and the number of civil service job cuts. The troika “is putting less emphasis on fiscal targets and more emphasis on the structural and labor market issues that really matter for Greece,” Berenberg Bank chief economist Holger Schmieding commented.

Greece is burdened with a debt total of about 350 billion euros and must pay 14.5 billion euros in bonds due on March 20. Athens is under intense pressure from the ‘troika’ to cut its total debt burden down to 120 percent of GDP in 2020 from 160 percent at present.

EU commission spokesman Altafaj s a i d t h e G re e k g o ve r n m e n t w a s engaged in an unprecedented effort, having “lived beyond its means for a very long time.” Analysts at Citi said the talks “are at a critical phase right now and it seems that the Europeans are less likely to blink than in was the case in previous rounds.” — AFP

EU crisis could halve China’s growth: IMF WASHINGTON: An escalation of Europe’s debt crisis could slash China’s economic growth in half this year, the International Monetary Fund said yesterday, urging Beijing to prepare stimulus measures in response.

The IMF, in an economic outlook report on the world’s second-largest economy, highlighted China’s vulnerability to global demand. “The global economy is at a precarious stage and downside risks have risen sharply,” the IMF said.

“The most salient risk is from an intensification of feedback loops between sovereign and bank funding pressures in the euro area, resulting in more protracted bank deleveraging and sizable contractions in credit and output in both Europe and elsewhere.”

The IMF outlined the negative impact if the eurozone crisis tipped Europe into a deep recession, dragging China’s growth lower mainly due to shocks through trade. In that “downside scenario” China’s growth would fall by around 4.0 percentage points this year from the 8.2 percent rate the IMF projected in January, the Washington-based institution said. In that case, “China should respond with a significant fiscal package.” “The weak external outlook underscores the importance of accelerating the transformation of China’s economy to reduce its vulnerability to the vagaries of global demand.”

The IMF forecast last month that its “downside scenario” would shave 1.75 percentage points off 2012 global growth, currently projected at 3.3 percent.—AFP

Oil to stay below $115 barring surprises: Kuwait KUWAIT: Oil prices are expec ted to stay between $100 and $115 a barrel until mid-year, barring “surprises and geopolitical changes,” Kuwait’s Oil M inister Mohammad AlBusairi said yesterday.

“Oil prices are not expec ted to slide below $100 a barrel or go above Mohammad Al-Busairi $115,” throughout the first six months of 2012, “barring surprising events or geopolitical changes,” said Busairi, cited by the state-run KUNA news agency.

He said all indications show that the oil market is balanced and that prices are suitable for consumers and producers, adding that “Kuwait production remained unchanged” at around 3.0 million barrels per day. Earlier, a top Kuwaiti oil executive said oil prices could soar to as high as $160 a barrel if tension over an Iranian oil embargo persists or in the event of conflict.

“If the embargo on Iranian oil persists, or in case of a military move over the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, oil prices are expected to soar to around $150 to $160,” Kuwait Petroleum Corporation board member Ali Al-Hajeri said.

Hajeri said such a price would not last long, however, and would return to “normal levels” once the reasons for the rise disappear. The European Union has slapped an embargo on Iranian oil imports, and Tehran has repeatedly threatened to shut the Strait of Hormuz, a strategic waterway for Gulf oil exports, if it was not allowed to export its crude.

Hajeri called the current price of between $100-105 “fair and acceptable to producers and consumers,” and said any higher price would be counterproductive to the global economy.

World oil prices sank yesterday as concerns over the unresolved Greek debt crisis overshadowed worries about supply disruptions in the Middle East and Africa. New York’s main contract, West Texas Intermediate crude for delivery in March, dropped $1.05 to $96.79 a barrel. Brent North Sea crude for March delivery shed 67 cents to $113.90 a barrel in London morning deals. — Reuters

22

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2012

business

Turkmen gas exports to Iran recover from drop Fall stemmed from technical factors: Official

KARACHI: Pakistani stockbrokers look at the share prices on a monitor during a trading session at the Karachi Stock Exchange (KSE) in Karachi yesterday. The benchmark KSE-100 index was 12188.02, with increase of 205.40 points in the morning session. — AFP

Du shares fall after royalty fee change DUBAI: Shares in telecoms operator du made their largest drop in seven weeks yesterday after the United Arab Emirates firm said it had been instructed to pay a royalty of 15 percent on its 2011 net profit, plus a further 5 percent of revenue.

Using du’s earnings statement for the first nine months of 2011 - the most recently available - this works out to be a tax rate of about 39.5 percent, according to Reuters calculations.

This is less than the 50 percent the firm had provisioned for, but markedly higher than the previous year’s 15 percent royalty fee on annual net profit.

“This is marginally on the high side expectations were for something between 25 and 35 percent, but it’s still less than what du had provisioned for and should be taken as a positive,” said Irfan Ellam, head of equity research at Emirates NBD. Investors seemed concerned about the move, with du’s shares ending 2.3 percent lower on the bourse, their biggest fall since

Dec. 21. Du launched services in 2007, while 2010 was the first year for which it paid a royalty.

Rival Etisalat, which operates in 17 countries, usually pays 50 percent of its net profit in royalties, including money earned abroad. The UAE accounted for about three-quarters of Etisalat’s revenue in the third quarter of 2011.

“Du only has domestic operations, while Etisalat has multiple foreign units,” added Ellam. “One would expect the government would want a level playing field for du and Etisalat and so charge the same royalty fees to both companies for their home operations.

“Etisalat may pay something different for its international revenue.” UAE royalty rates are among the highest regionally.

Operators such as Qatar Telecom, Oman Telecommunications, Saudi Telecom Co and Kuwait’s Zain pay between 5 and 22 percent tax, according to their earnings statements. — Reuters

Jordan’s Housing Bank 2011 net profit up 13% AMMAN: Jordan’s Housing Bank for Trade and Finance yesterday posted a 13 percent year-on-year rise in 2011 net profit to 100 million dinars, bolstered by healthy growth in its core retail and commercial business.

The country’s second lender had assets of 6.9 billion dinars ($9.7 billion) at endDecember, up 3.9 percent from a year previously, it said in a preliminary statement which still needs approval from the Central Bank of Jordan. Chairman Michel Marto said the bank’s healthy results, which came despite uncertainty in the region and the economic slowdown, were due to growth in its core commercial and retail business and better profitability of its foreign subsidiaries. “The results reflect the financial solvency of the bank and its strong capital base and the soundness and quality of its loan and investment portfolio,” Marto said in the statement. The bank has a presence

in Syria, the Palestinian territories and Algeria, where it has a joint venture bank, and a branch in Bahrain. It also has representative offices in Iraq, Libya and the United Arab Emirates. The bank’s total loans portfolio, which includes credit to government bodies, rose 3.5 percent to 2.7 billion dinars at the end of 2011 from the same period in 2010, while total deposits rose 3 percent to 5.4 billion.

Housing Bank’s main shareholders are Qatar National Bank with over 35 percent followed by Libya’s Foreign Bank with a 15 percent shareholding and Kuwait’s Real Estate Investment Consortium with a stake of over 10 percent. Jordan’s state pension fund also has a 15.4 percent shareholding.

Gulf Arab investors along with Jordanian businessmen own the remaining shares of the bank, which has the largest branch network in the country. — Reuters

TEHRAN: A 50 percent drop in Turkmen gas exports to Iran has ended before causing any problems to the supply of heating fuel in midwinter, Iranian officials said.

In a statement posted on the National Iranian Gas Company (NIGC) website yesterday, NIGC Managing Director Javad Oji said supplies of gas from Turkmenistan had fallen due to very cold weather in Central Asia. But Tehran’s envoy to Turkmenistan said the drop in supplies to the Islamic state was shortlived.

The problem that led to a cut of around 50 percent of Turkmen gas exports to Iran has been resolved, Mohammad Mousa HahshemiGolpaygani told the semi-official Fars news agency. “The drop stemmed from technical problems and sub-zero temperatures.”

Oji said that, although cold weather in Iran was stoking demand for heating gas, no Iranian city had suffered supply problems during the brief cut, which semi-official news agency Mehr

said reduced flows from 20 million cubic metres a day (mcm/day) to 10 mcm/day.

Turkmen government officials could not immediately be reached for comment on the reasons for the cut in exports to Iran. Iran sits on the world’s second-largest gas reserves but has to import gas, because its own consumption has risen more markedly than its production.

Iran exports gas to Turkey and Armenia when it can but relies on Turkmenistan to supply the extra gas it needs during cold winter months for heating. Turkmenistan also exports gas to Europe via Russia, where bitterly cold weather has led to shortages in the gas it supplies to parts of the EU in the past year, and to China across neighboring Kazakhstan.

Russian gas export monopoly Gazprom said on Saturday it had brought supplies to European countries back to normal after lowering them for six days while unusually cold weather in Russia raised domestic demand. The European

Dubai’s JAFZA in bank talks over $2bn sukuk maturity DUBAI: Dubai’s Jebel Ali Free Zone is in talks with banks about how to repay its 7.5 billion dirhams ($2 billion) Islamic bond due November, with most of the liability set to be rolled over using a syndicated loan and a new sukuk, sources said. The Dubai government-owned free zone is in talks with Dubai Islamic Bank, National Bank of Abu Dhabi and Standard Chartered about how to meet the obligation, two sources told Reuters yesterday, although the banks have not been formally appointed to any role.

While details have not been finalized, the majority of the sum will be rolled over into new facilities, with a small amount coming from internal cash reserves.

“They are likely to pay back 500 million dirhams themselves, then raise as much as they can with a loan, and then get the rest from the sukuk,” a banking source said. “It is just discussions and there is nothing on paper yet ... but the way it was discussed was do the syndication first and then the sukuk. The sukuk maybe in September, after Ramadan, would be my guess.” A spokesman for JAFZA declined to comment.

JAFZA chairman Hisham Abdullah alShirawi told Reuters in December it was talking with financial institutions to refinance the Islamic bond and, while asset sales might be considered to raise funds, it would not need government assistance. A request for proposals was sent out to banks two or three months ago by investment bank Rothschild, which is advising JAFZA, the same source said, although some of the plan detailed in the document has now been amended.

No mandates for the sukuk have been awarded, according to two sources, with the potential for additional fee-generating business to be used as a carrot to attract as many banks as possible onto

the loan, one of the sources said.

“If there is a loan element to the package, it would be interesting to see which banks currently have the capacity to extend balance sheet to JAFZA and support the deal,” said a Gulf-based analyst, who spoke on the condition of anonymity. “There would be investor interest in a sukuk, because people like the JAFZA model. But it all depends on what the company is willing to pay. In the current environment, JAFZA is unlikely to price at the tighter end of pricing seen on recent deals from Dubai entities.”

JAFZA’s November maturity has been highlighted in recent months as one of the biggest refinancing challenges in the Gulf region in 2012. In a note to clients on Feb. 1, Exotix said that without asset sales, government assistance or new debt, JAFZA would face a $1.7 billion liquidity shortfall at the maturity date.

“Although our base case remains that JAFZA can repay the large $2 billion sukuk, a potentially deteriorating economic and financing environment over the next year can pose large risks to JAFZA from an execution and refinancing perspective,” it said.

JAFZA’s last financial statement, for 2010, recorded cash reserves of 493.5 million dirhams. Asset sales could increase the amount of capital JAFZA has to assist in repayment. Sources told Reuters last month its parent company, Economic Zones World, a unit of Dubai World, was looking to offload its stake in British-based warehouse property developer Gazeley to do that. The bid yield on JAFZA’s sukuk fell below 8 percent for the first time since July on Feb. 2 and has crept back up since. It was bid at 94.500 yesterday, to yield 9.77 percent. The original bond was managed by DIB and also Barclays , Deutsche Bank and Lehman Brothers. — Reuters

Commission said yesterday that gas supplies to the European Union from Russia improved over the weekend but had not fully returned to previous levels. In 2008, Turkmenistan stopped sending gas to Iran during a dispute, but the countries signed a new agreement in 2009 and have since opened a new pipeline link and Iran’s imports have risen sharply over the past year.

Tehran has come under intense pressure from Washington and its European allies over the last few months to drop its disputed nuclear program. The EU agreed last week to freeze the assets of Iran’s central bank as part of sanctions aimed at stepping up pressure on Iran’s disputed nuclear program, which the West suspects is aimed at making weapons and Tehran says is purely for energy generation.

The tougher trade embargo has meant major EU banks have pulled back from financing grain shipments to Iran, a major importer of foodstuffs and animal feed. — Reuters

Abu Dhabi firm TNI slashes jobs ABU DHABI: Abu Dhabi-based investment firm, The National Investor (TNI), has shed more than half of its workforce and is planning more job cuts in a bid to reduce costs in response to tough financial markets, several sources told Reuters yesterday.

Like a number of rival Middle Eastern investment firms, TNI is struggling to boost revenue and remain profitable in depressed capital markets post the global financial crisis.

TNI, which operates in private equity, investment advisory and asset management businesses, had the first round of layoffs last year reducing its workforce to the current level of around 55 people the sources told Reuters.

“The latest round of redundancies began last week with more expected. Most lay-offs are in investment banking and equities,” one source familiar with the matter said.

The company blamed “restructuring efforts” for headcount reductions, the sources said.

TNI officials declined to comment when contacted by Reuters. TNI’s board wants the firm to break even and is cutting jobs to offset the lack of revenue growth, the source said speaking on condition of anonymity. Privately owned TNI’s revenues declined 13 percent to 161.9 million dirhams ($44.1 million) in fiscal year ending 2010-11. Net profit plummeted to 2.2 million dirhams versus 30.8 million dirhams the previous year. The firm had advised on initial public offerings of companies such as Aldar Properties and Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank. TNI’s investment banking business has been sluggish as mergers and acquisitions and initial public offerings (IPOs) show no signs of recovery in the short term, the firm said in its latest annual report. The firm has advised on IPOs of companies such as Aldar Properties and Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank.

The firm also divested its equity interest in a brokerage business and is in the process of divesting its equity interest in one of its proprietary portfolio companies, expecting to complete the sale during financial year 2011-12, TNI said in the report. TNI is also in the process of liquidating its business in Saudi Arabia and plans to shut down its Riyadh office “in the interests of cost control and conserving cash during the liquidation process,” the annual report said.

Dubai-based investment firm Shuaa Capital made significant layoffs as part of a drive to cut costs. Two of Kuwait’s largest investment firms, Global Investment House and Kipco Asset Management Co (KAMCO) have slashed nearly 100 jobs, sources told Reuters last month. — Reuters

EXCHANGE RATES Commercial Bank of Kuwait US Dollar/KD GB Pound/KD Euro Swiss francs Canadian Dollar Australian DLR Indian rupees Sri Lanka Rupee UAE dirhams Bahraini dinars Jordanian dinar Saudi riyals Omani riyals Philippine peso Egyptian pounds

.2730000 .4350000 .3600000 .2980000 .2760000 .2950000 .0040000 .0020000 .0752140 .7327900 .3830000 .0710000 .7183680 .0040000 .0430000

.2805000 .4430000 .3680000 .3070000 .2840000 .3030000 .0070000 .0035000 .0759700 .7401550 .4000000 .0770000 .7255880 .0072000 .0500000

CUSTOMER TRANSFER RATES US Dollar/KD .2770500 .2791500 GB Pound/KD .4370050 .4403170 Euro .3625060 .3652540 Swiss francs .3005040 .3027820 Canadian dollars .2783300 .2804400 Danish Kroner .0487620 .0491310 Swedish Kroner .0412670 .0415790 Australian dlr .2969700 .2992210 Hong Kong dlr .0357240 .0360650 Singapore dlr .2224590 .2241450 Japanese yen .0036090 .0036360 Indian Rs/KD .0000000 .0057620 Sri Lanka rupee .0000000 .0024500 Pakistan rupee .0000000 .0030980 Bangladesh taka .0000000 .0033230 UAE dirhams .0754600 .0760320 Bahraini dinars .7351730 .7407460 Jordanian dinar .0000000 .3948370 Saudi Riyal/KD .0739000 .0744600 Omani riyals .7198910 .7253480 Philippine Peso .0000000 .0065960

Al-Muzaini Exchange Co. ASIAN COUNTRIES

Japanese Yen Indian Rupees Pakistani Rupees Srilankan Rupees Nepali Rupees Singapore Dollar Hongkong Dollar Bangladesh Taka Philippine Peso Thai Baht Irani Riyal - Transfer Irani Riyal - Cash

3.598 5.337 3.154 2.436 3.341 213.250 35.672 3.580 6.336 8.873 0.271 0.273

Saudi Riyal Qatari Riyal Omani Riyal Bahraini Dinar UAE Dirham

GCC COUNTRIES 74.150 76.402 722.230 738.540 75.715

Pakistani rupees Philippine peso Qatari riyal Saudi riyal Singapore dollar South Africa Sri Lankan rupees Sterling pound Swedish krona Swiss franc Syrian pound Thai bhat Tunisian dollar UAE dirham U.S. dollars Yemeni Riyal

ARAB COUNTRIES Egyptian Pound - Cash 47.500 Egyptian Pound - Transfer 46.282 Yemen Riyal/for 1000 1.272 Tunisian Dinar 189.860 Jordanian Dinar 392.670 Lebanese Lira/for 1000 1.865 Syrian Lier 6.003 Morocco Dirham 33.814 EUROPEAN & AMERICAN COUNTRIES US Dollar Transfer 277.950 Euro 370.650 Sterling Pound 431.930 Canadian dollar 268.420 Turkish lire 153.940 Swiss Franc 300.620 Australian dollar 277.000 US Dollar Buying 277.750 GOLD 315.500 159.000 81.500

20 Gram 10 Gram 5 Gram

COUNTRY

Australian dollar Bahraini dinar Bangladeshi taka Canadian dollar Cyprus pound Czek koruna Danish krone Deutsche Mark Egyptian pound Euro Cash Hongkong dollar Indian rupees Indonesia Iranian tuman Iraqi dinar Japanese yen Jordanian dinar Lebanese pound Malaysian ringgit Morocco dirham Nepalese Rupees New Zealand dollar Nigeria Norwegian krone Omani Riyal

SELL CASH

302.100 740.140 3.640 283.300 546.600 45.400 50.200 167.800 48.110 368.800 36.580 5.860 0.032 0.195 0.249 3.740 394.680 0.188 94.580 46.500 4.280 235.100 1.802 49.300 722.890

SELL DRAFT

300.600 740.140 3.307 281.800

225.700 46.177 367.300 36.430 5.710 0.032

10 Tola

75.780 278.300

Dollarco Exchange Co. Ltd Selling Rate

US Dollar Canadian Dollar Sterling Pound Euro Swiss Frank Bahrain Dinar UAE Dirhams Qatari Riyals Saudi Riyals Jordanian Dinar Egyptian Pound Sri Lankan Rupees Indian Rupees Pakistani Rupees Bangladesh Taka Philippines Pesso Cyprus pound Japanese Yen Thai Bhat Syrian Pound Nepalese Rupees Malaysian Ringgit

278.200 280.595 439.850 366.650 302.195 736.705 75.720 76.360 74.145 391.605 46.169 2.432 5.721 3.082 3.307 6.524 682.414 3.720 9.090 5.855 3.665 92.330

Rate per 1000 (Tran)

US Dollar Pak Rupees Indian Rupees Sri Lankan Rupees Bangladesh Taka Philippines Peso UAE Dirhams Saudi Riyals Bahraini Dinars Egyptian Pounds Pound Sterling Indonesian Rupiah Yemeni Riyal Euro Canadian Dollars Nepali rupee

Currency

Transfer Rate (Per 1000)

302.50 283.53 305.87 366.55

445.00 3.70 3.600 5.840 2.650 4.250 3.240 76.30 739.48 48.20 394.50 728.00 77.25 74.60

278.200 3.074 5.720 2.445 3.310 6.570 75.845 74.340 739.900 46.130 444.400 3.190 1.550 369.800 285.300 3.690

Al Mulla Exchange

UAE Exchange Center WLL Australian Dollar Canadian Dollar Swiss Franc Euro

441.63 3.69 3.304 5.694 2.442 3.575 3.080 75.74 740.13 46.18 395.86 723.15 76.73 74.30

Kuwait Bahrain Intl Exchange Co.

TRAVELLER’S CHEQUE 441.500 278.300

Sterling Pound US Dollar

Currency

722.710

304.600 4.300 9.220

Sterling Pound Japanese Yen Bangladesh Taka Indian Rupee Sri Lankan Rupee Nepali Rupee Pakistani Rupee UAE Dirhams Bahraini Dinar Egyptian Pound Jordanian Dinar Omani Riyal Qatari Riyal Saudi Riyal

Currency

394.360 0.187 94.580 3.590 233.600

3.085 6.530 76.560 74.310 225.870 39.390 2.435 441.500

GOLD 1,809.780

Rate for Transfer

Bahrain Exchange Company

3.160 6.800 76.990 74.310 225.670 39.390 2.658 443.500 42.600 306.100 4.300 9.370 198.263 75.880 278.700 1.300

304.00 284.00 309.00 371.00

US Dollar Euro Pound Sterling Canadian Dollar Japanese Yen Indian Rupee Egyptian Pound Sri Lankan Rupee Bangladesh Taka Philippines Peso Pakistan Rupee Bahraini Dinar UAE Dirham Saudi Riyal *Rates are subject to change

Transfer Rate (Per 1000)

277.850 367.100 441.300 281.500 3.645 5.685 46.100 2.431 3.270 6.520 3.075 740.040 75.700 74.200

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2012

business

Global oil demand forecasts may be cut LONDON: The International Energy Agency may reduce its world oil demand forecast for 2012 this week due to a weaker outlook for the world economy, even though some evidence points to stronger consumption in the latter part of the year. All three of the most closely watched monthly oil forecasts from the US government’s Energy Information Administration, the IEA and producer group the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) are due for release this week.

Since their January forecasts, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Jan. 24 reduced its estimate for world economic growth to 3.3 percent from 4 percent, saying the outlook had deteriorated in most regions. That has a bearing on the Paris-based IEA’s oil demand projections as the agency says it “relies

extensively, but not exclusively” on IMF economic estimates in forecasting world demand.

The IEA’s last monthly report on Jan. 18 said oil demand was falling for the first time since the global economic crisis of 2008-2009. The IEA reduced its 2012 demand growth forecast by 220,000 barrels per day (bpd) to 1.1 million bpd. “I expect the IEA to cut 2012 demand by about 0.3 million bpd,” said Olivier Jakob, oil analyst at Petromatrix in Zug, Switzerland. “Downward revisions need to come due to the IMF having lowered its world GDP forecast, and the IEA moves in line with the IMF numbers.” Yet there are signs of economic health rather than weakness. The United States created jobs at the fastest pace in nine months in January, a report on Friday showed, indicating stronger

fuel demand in the top oil-consuming nation. Jan Stuart, head of energy research at Credit Suisse, also thought a downward demand revision was on the cards, even though evidence was pointing the other way.

“I expect to see IEA and OPEC to revise down estimates for 2012 demand - wrongly. I think what they are going to do is take revised downward revisions of global GDP as their principal guide,” he said. “We think that more recent indicators and signals and data points show that in fact a global recovery is gaining pace and not de-accelerating.” The EIA issues its report today, OPEC on Thursday and the IEA on Friday.

OPEC, whose members pump more than a third of the world’s oil, left its demand figures virtually unchanged last month and saw the risk firmly to the

downside. A worsening of the euro zone debt crisis would reduce Europe’s already slowing demand and could spill over to emerging economies, OPEC said. However, OPEC said the issue had so far had little effect on demand outside the region.

Speaking to Reuters in an interview last week in London, OPEC Secretary General Abdullah Al-Badri said Europe remained a worry. “We are really concerned about the EU sovereign debt crisis. If it is not solved...it will affect almost every country,” he said.

“Demand, the price and everything.”

Last month’s EIA report trimmed the forecast for world oil demand growth in 2012 by 120,000 bpd, or almost 9 percent, to 1.27 million bpd. The EIA remains the most bullish on demand of the three agencies. Some analysts do

not expect to see substantial reductions to the IEA’s demand outlook for this year and say estimates for the second half could even be increased.

“We do not expect to see any material downward revisions to annual oil demand growth for 2012,” said Harry Tchilinguirian, an analyst at BNP Paribas who used to work for the IEA. “Potentially, heating oil and gasoil demand in the first quarter may be trimmed further lower due to a mild start to the Northern hemisphere winter,” he said. “However, the better-thanexpected trends in activity indicators like the ISM (US Institute for Supply Management) and PMI (Purchasing Managers Index) in China and the United States could lead to upwards adjustments to oil demand forecasts for the second half of 2012.” — Reuters

Mitsubishi to stop making cars in Western Europe 1,500 workers face layoff at NedCar plant

ATHENS: A curio seller shows old 1,000-drachma bills used before Greece’s adoption of the euro currency to a customer at an outdoor market in Athens yesterday. — AP

Jordan Telecom 2011 profits drop 5.6% AMMAN: Jordan Telecom Group, the country’s sole fixed-line operator, said yesterday 2011 net profits fell 5.6 percent to 89.8 million dinars ($126.6 million) as operating costs rose and investment income fell.

The telecom group, in which France Telecom owns a 51 percent stake, said revenues of its integrated mobile, internet and fixed-line business rose 2.4 percent to 411.8 million dinars in 2011.

Jordan Telecom saw growth in broadband 3G services boosting the 2011 bottom line in a sector which has seen a fierce turf war among three operators and is hit by sluggish economic growth Jordan Telecom’s chief financial officer Raslan Diraniyah said most of the growth was driven by the fast growing broadband internet services which rose a healthy 20 to 25 percent last year compared to 2011.

“This is the first time in three years we

see a growth in revenues after stable growth and this performance was despite competition pressure in the market and the economic slowdown,” Diraniyah told Reuters. The group’s total subscriber base, which includes fixed lines, grew by 17.7 percent reaching 3.55 million subscribers at end of December 2011 compared to 3 million at end of 2010, the firm said.

But operating expenses went up 8.7 percent over the year to 248 million dinars at the end of December 2011 due to higher costs of marketing 3G services, while the company earned lower interest on its bank deposits of around 280 million dinars. The firm’s mobile subsidiary Orange has over 34 percent market penetration. Kuwaiti telecoms operator Zain is the largest mobile operator in Jordan with around 2.7 million subscribers and a market share of around 37 percent in a market with almost 100 percent penetration. — Reuters

AMSTERDAM: Mitsubishi Motors Corp said yesterday it will stop building cars at its Netherlands factory - the company’s only plant in Western Europe - at the end of 2012. The decision will likely lead to layoffs for the 1,500 workers at the “NedCar” plant in the southern city of Born, which produces Colt and Outlander models.

The company said in a statement that “due to the wildly fluctuating operating environment which automobile manufacturers currently face” the factor y was “not viable” and Mitsubishi could not find a place for NedCar in its “global production operation structure.”

Last week, Mitsubishi forecast it will have sold 113,000 cars in Europe during its financial year ending March 31, 2012. That’s down 7.4 percent from a year earlier, and the company said sales were weakening in the second half as Europe’s debt crisis intensified. Mitsubishi expects an operating loss in Europe of €219 million ($287 million) for the period.

Relatively high production costs in the Netherlands were also almost certainly a factor, though the company would not confirm that.

Mitsubishi broke ground on a new plant in Indonesia earlier this year that will produce Outlanders. The company said it will continue to sell cars in Europe built in Thailand and Japan.

Union leader Henk van Rees said Mitsubishi has previously touted the Dutch plant as “the best kid in the class.”

“Today they’re throwing that best kid in the class out with the trash,” he said. Workers plan to strike today to coincide with a visit by

Mitsubishi’s international chief Hiroshi Harunari.

Mitsubishi spokesman Daniel Nacass said “we’re not (necessarily) talking about closure” of the Born plant. But “we’re not going to be building a new line of cars there,” he said by telephone from France.

The company’s Dutch operating officer Joost Govaarts said at a press conference Monday the

company has been in talks with several potential buyers.

The Netherlands’ Economic Affairs Minister Maxime Verhagen said he planned to help find a buyer that is willing to continue production in the Netherlands, and that Mitsubishi has agreed to sell the Born factory for nominal price of €1 - if the buyer is willing to retain the workers. —AP

BORN: The logo of the car factory NedCar in Born yesterday. Japan’s Mitsubishi Motors said yesterday. it would stop manufacturing automobiles at its NedCar plant by the end of 2012, blaming a difficult operating environment in the debt-hit continent.— AP

Saudi OSP cuts may attract Asian buyers SINGAPORE: Saudi Arabia’s surprise cut to the March official selling prices (OSPs) of its heavy and medium crudes to Asia could put further pressure on Iran, which is struggling to retain its share of the regional market, industry sources said yesterday.

Some market players were expecting the kingdom to marginally raise prices of the two grades.

The announcement comes after China, the top buyer of Iranian oil and also the fastest expanding major oil importer, cut its imports from Iran by nearly half for the third straight month.

“I can’t imagine the Saudis did not have the Iran situation on their minds when they priced their heavy and medium barrels,” a Singapore-based trader said. “No

way you can ignore the current geopolitical situation, especially with refiners in Asia already running contingencies to cut back crude imports from Iran.”

The kingdom’s state oil firm informed customers on Sunday that it had set the OSP for March Arab Heavy barrels to Asia at the Oman/Dubai average minus 85 cents, down 40 cents from the previous month. The Arab Medium grade was pegged at the Oman/Dubai average plus 25 cents, down 50 cents from February.

Regional refiners and traders had expected Saudi Arabia to narrow the spread between the heavy and medium and the lighter grades, due to the strength of the Asian fuel oil market.

A strong fuel oil market means refiners may have been willing to pay a higher price for crude because of the profit they would earn from processing a barrel of oil into the product, giving Saudi Arabia an oppor tunity to earn more from each cargo sold. “Even though the fuel oil cracks in Asia have eased the past few sessions, it is still relatively strong,” another Singapore based trader said.

Asia’s front-month March fuel oil crack was at a discount of $3.36 a barrel midday yesterday, versus year ago levels at a discount of $8.45 a barrels, Reuters data showed. The entire 12-month forward curve for the fuel oil-Dubai cracks, as of midday Monday, was $5-$6 a barrel higher than the same curve on a similar date a

year ago, the data showed.

Tensions between Iran and the West worsened last month when Washington and the European Union imposed the toughest sanctions yet on Tehran in a bid to force it to abandon its nuclear program. The measures are aimed at block ing out the secondbiggest OPEC oil exporters’ sales of crude. Saudi Arabia is the only oil producer with significant spare capacity to replace any fall in supply from its regional rival Iran, which is under increasing pressure from the United States and Europe over its nuclear program. Most heads of top Asian oil consumers have toured the Middle East to secure supplies of additional oil as sanctions make it difficult to do business with Tehran. — Reuters

China extends Iran oil import cuts SAO PAULO: The signs of Sao Paulo’s Guarulhos international airport being refurbished. Brazilian government privatized three international airports —one in Brasilia and two, Guarulhos and Viracopos, in Sao Paulo— for a total amount of $14.305 million, in an auction at Sao Paulo’s stock market yesterday.—AFP

Boeing faces new problem with Dreamliner WASHINGTON: US aircraft manufacturer Boeing said yesterday it had discovered a manufacturing error that would require repairs in the fuselage section of some 787 Dreamliners.

“Boeing has found that incorrect shimming was performed on support structure on the aft fuselage. There is no short-term safety concern,” the company said in a statement to AFP. Shims, or spacers, are used to fill small gaps that occur between parts that don’t fit together exactly.

“While it’s not unusual for build issues to arise, we have standard processes in place to ensure we are delivering the highest quality products to our customers,” Boeing said. “We have the issue well defined and we are making progress on the repair plan,” it said.

“We work closely with the FAA (the US Federal Aviation Administration) on every airplane we deliver and hold ourselves to the highest standards of performance on safety.”

Citing an unnamed person with knowledge

of the problem, the Seattle Times reported Sunday that Boeing was inspecting all the airplanes already built to determine the extent of the problem. Boeing has completed assembly of about 50 Dreamliners to date and has delivered five to All Nippon Airways (ANA) of Japan. A total of 865 of the planes have been ordered by 59 clients.

Aviation website Flightglobal reported that the problem had been detected on a plane destined for ANA and another on a plane for Qatar Airways. The plane entered service last year after more than three years of delays. A problem with faulty shimming arose in 2010 in Italy, the newspaper noted.

Mechanics at a plant there applied too much torque when tightening fasteners, and the consequent compression of the shims degraded the composite material.

At that time, those manufacturing quality issues with the horizontal tails added months of delays to the jet program, the Times said.

Many airplanes had to have their tails extensively reworked. —AFP

BEIJING: China will halve its crude oil imports from Iran in March compared to average monthly purchases a year ago, as a dispute over payments and prices stretches into a third month, oil industry sources involved in the deals said yesterday.

China is the top buyer of Iranian oil, taking around 20 percent of total exports, but it has since January cut purchases by around 285,000 barrels per day (bpd), or just over half of the total daily amount it imported in 2011.

Negotiators from both nations, however, are expected to hold talks as early as this week in Beijing to resolve the payments dispute, the sources said, adding that the European Union embargo on Iranian crude gave China an advantage in any talks.

Officials from Sinopec Corp, Asia’s top refiner that processes nearly 90 percent of China’s Iranian oil purchases, are expected to meet counterparts from the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC), the sources added. Term supply contracts are usually agreed upon by January.

“For March loadings, it will be the same cuts as the previous month,” said one senior trading official. A second industry official, whose firm processes Iranian oil, said: “Our Iranian volumes disap-

peared for the whole of the first quarter.” Last year, China imported 27.76 million tons, or about 555,000 bpd, of Iranian crude, a record amount and a 30 percent increase on the previous year. Tensions between Iran and the West rose last month when European Union leaders agreed to embargo Iranian oil

by July and to freeze the assets of Iran’s central bank, joining the United States in a new round of measures aimed at discouraging Tehran’s nuclear development program.

Iran has warned that it could cut off oil exports to Europe before July 1, and also threatened to close the vital Strait of Hormuz shipping lane, a move Washington said it would not tolerate.

The reduced volumes from Iran coincide with a drop in Sudanese crude oil supplies due to a dispute over transport fees between the north and the newly independent south, but industry sources said Sinopec appeared to be unaffected as it had secured alternative supplies. Sinopec, through its trading arm Unipec, has already snapped up additional cargoes from Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Russia, Australia and West Africa. The refiner is likely to buy more crude from the spot market to cover March requirements, traders said.

TOKYO: A pedestrian walks past a share prices board in Tokyo yesterday. Japan’s share prices rose 93.05 points to close at 8,924.98 points at the morning session of the Tokyo Stock Exchange, buoyed by strong gains on Wall Street last week after robust jobs data. — AFP China is also set to boost Iraqi oil liftings by some 50 percent this year versus last. Analysts said that well-supplied China is unlikely, then, to become the main buyer of any surplus crude that Iran decides to sell to ease the effect of sanctions, despite the strong political and trade ties between the two nations.

Iranian oil minister Rostam Qasemi, however, is due to visit China within the next 10 days to

discuss a range of energy issues, according to a report on the Iranian oil ministry’s website published on Saturday. “Extra supplies from Saudi Arabia would be the most obvious alternative (to Iranian crude), but China has also been buying greater volumes of other grades like (Russia’s) ESPO on the spot market, and been prepared to pay higher premiums for them,” said a Singapore-based Western trader.— Reuters

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2012

business

KSE stocks drop sharply GLOBAL DAILY MARKET REPORT KUWAIT: Kuwait Stock Exchange (KSE) edged sharply lower yesterday. The retreat sent the market to its lowest level in seven trading days. No news was out to explain the retreat. Global General Index (GGI) ended the day down by 0.44 percent, at 178.85 point.

Market capitalization was down for the day, reaching KD29.3bn.

On the other hand, KSE Price Index closed at 5,840.2 point, shedding 17.8 points (0.3 percent) from its previous close.

Market breadth Market breadth was clearly negative yesterday, with decliners outpacing advancers by an 54 to 25 margin. Volume and value of shares traded on the exchange increased by 14.32 percent and 2.14 percent respectively. Buying was clearly obser ved on shares of AlMadina for Finance & Investment Company, with 16.74 percent (49.08mn shares) of the market’s total volume attributable to the scrip. The stock was also the biggest percentage gainer in investment sector, up 7.04 percent. At the same time, International Financial Advisors (IFA) staged its third straight winning session, adding 1.92 percent. But a 2.35 percent loss by National Investment Company drove the Global Investment Index down by 0.33 percent.

In terms of top gainers, Real Estate Trade Center Company was the top gainer for the day, adding 10 percent to its share value and closing at KD0.055.

On the other hand, share price of Al Safat Investment Company retreated by 7.58 percent and closed at KD0.061, making it the biggest decliners in the market for the day in a row.

Sector-wise By sector, seven out of the eight sectors lost ground.

Shares of Livestock Transport & Trading Company paced decliners in food sector with a 3 percent slide, sending the Global Food Index down by 1.33 percent.

Kuwait Foodstuff Company (Americana) too slipped 1.37 percent.

Hits Telecom Holding Company five session winning streak came to an end. Zain was the major loser in services sector with a 1.14 percent drop.

The services index pulled back 0.28 percent. Elsewhere in services sector, Agility says gets joint arbitration award of

$41.3min from Switzerland’s supreme foodservice. Its share of transfer is reported to be about $23.1 million, to be booked in future profits. The scrip closed up by 2.82 percent at KD0.365.

Real estate stocks dropped 0.77 percent, with Injazzat Real Estate Development Company shedding 4 percent. Earlier, the company announced that it has signed a preliminary agreement with a local bank to sell one of its assets for a total value of KD11.75mn, with an expected profit of KD0.2mn, to settle part of its debt obligations. The sole advancer during yesterday ’s session was the insurance sec-

tor, up 0.01 percent. 1st Takaful Insurance Company rose 9.80 percent, on 1 trade.

Corporate news Aref Energy Holding Company announced that its 80% subsidiary, Khalifa Duaij AlDabbous and Brothers, has been awarded a four-year tender offer by Kuwait Oil Company to maintain, repair, and replace crude oil pipelines in south and east Kuwait.

The price of OPEC basket of twelve crudes stood at $110.82pb on Thursday, compared with $110.62pn the previous day, according to OPEC Secretariat calculations.

Oil dips below $114; Greece, Iran in focus LONDON: Oil slipped under $114 a barrel yesterday as traders and investors worried that a failure to agree a deal with Greece for a second bailout would suppress demand in the euro-zone, but renewed tensions with Iran kept a floor under prices.

“There’s still not much confidence over the euro-zone economies, and that is limiting upside from strong US data and the tensions in Iran,” said Ken Hasegawa, a commodity derivatives manager with Newedge Brokerage in Tokyo.

Front-month Brent crude was down 85 cents to $113.73 a barrel by 0948 GMT, ending four straight days of gains. Brent rose 2.8 percent last week to settle near a three-month peak on Friday, after a positive US jobs report fuelled hopes of stronger demand in the world’s biggest economy.

US crude was down 77 cents at $97.07 a barrel, after posting a loss of 1.73 percent last week.

It is being hindered by stock builds at the key delivery point of Cushing and very mild winter weather which is reducing US demand for heating oil.

Analysts and traders said the retracement in Brent reflected profittaking after Friday’s leap due to surprisingly robust US non-farm payroll data and concerns going into the weekend about supply disruption from Iran and Syria.

“We’re now near the top of the trading range, and unless we take out this $115 there is a risk of further profittaking,” said Carsten Fritsch, an analyst at Commerzbank in Frankfurt.

Christopher Bellew, a trader at Jefferies Bache in London, agreed. “It was very strong on Friday night and I think it got a bit overdone, it made such a rapid advance. Now we are seeing a bit of a consolidation,” he said.

Market participants are waiting to see if Greek coalition parties accept the painful terms of a new bailout deal to avoid a messy default. This was expected yesterday, but a Greek government official has denied this dead-

line. “One of the key risks in the European situation is the possibility that Greece will not achieve agreement to the austerity measures being required of them,” said Ric Spooner, chief market analyst with CMC Markets in Sydney. European shares were down in early trading, reflecting the concerns, and the euro also took a hit. Fritsch added that a Greek deal would remove one negative factor and oil might test $115 again, but it would not be sufficient to push prices above that: “We would need further news from Iran or the economic side to do that.”

The dollar was up 0.67 percent against a basket of currencies at 0937 GMT. A stronger dollar makes commodities priced in dollars more expensive for buyers using other currencies.

Meanwhile in Iran leaders continue to threaten military action in the increasingly tense stand-off with world powers over Iran’s nuclear ambitions. Iran’s deputy Revolutionary Guards commander said on Sunday that Tehran would target any country used as a launchpad for attacks against its soil.

This latest warning comes days after the country’s supreme clerical leader threatened reprisals for the West’s new ban on Iranian oil exports and the US defense secretary was quoted as saying Israel was likely to bomb Iran within months to stop it assembling nuclear weapons.

But comments by US President Barack Obama over the weekend that he does not want to see more conflict in the Middle East might help to cool tensions. In Syria an explosion ripped through an oil pipeline feeding a main refinery in the city of Homs on Monday, the second in a week to hit the pipeline.

Western and Arab states voiced outrage on Sunday after Russia and China vetoed a UN resolution that would have backed an Arab plan urging Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad to give up power. — Reuters

25

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2012

business

Cars, software, services threaten EU-India trade deal BRUSSELS/NEW DELHI: Hopes of India and the European Union striking a free trade deal at a summit this week are fading fast, with differences over duties on cars and market access for software and service companies standing in the way of an accord. At stake is an agreement that would create one of the world’s largest freetrade zones by population - covering 1.8 billion, or more than a quarter, of the world’s people.

Disagreement over duties on car imports, India’s tariff on European cars is nearly 10 times greater than Europe’s on Indian vehicles, and a dispute over access for Indian software companies to the EU market are set to scupper an agreement, with time running out on negotiations. EU leaders will meet their Indian counterparts in New Delhi on Feb. 10, having declared at a summit last year that they hoped to sign a free-trade deal before the meeting.

Publicly, officials in both Brussels and New Delhi are remaining upbeat.

“We’re trying to wrap things up, see what you can close, see what you can’t close,” said one senior Indian government official, speaking on condition of

anonymity. “ Things are slowly but surely falling into place.”

But not everyone is hopeful. The EU ambassador to India suggested in January that the best that could be expected from the summit was a “political framework” for a deal further down the road, without a timeline being set. With the Doha round of global trade talks effectively dead, the world’s major economies are looking more to bilateral trade agreements.

The European Union, the world’s largest trading bloc by value, struck a deal with South Korea last year and is in negotiations with Japan, Canada, Malaysia and others.

For India, an Free Trade Agreement (FTA) would help its rapidly growing companies expand into the EU, the country’s biggest trade partner, the buyer of more than 40 billion euros ($52 billion) worth of Indian goods and services in 2010. Europe, large parts of which probably sank into another recession last quarter, wants access to a vast, young, vibrant market of 1.3 billion potential customers.

Trade between the two is growing the total value of EU-India goods and services exchanged was 86 billion

euros in 2010. While trade with India represented just 2.4 percent of the EU’s total, the percentage has been gradually increasing. But while there are advantages to be gained on both sides from closer trade ties, the current economic fortunes of the two could not be more different.

India, Asia’s third-largest economy after China and Japan, has enjoyed two decades of rapid growth powered

by IT and outsourcing, even if manufacturing has lagged, weighed down by red tape and creaky infrastructure.

Europe has been mired in financial difficulties, with rising unemployment and a debt crisis that has forced three countries to seek emergency loans and left several others on the brink.

Autos are a core export for Europe.

Premium brands such as BMW AG and Volkswagen Group’s Audi would like to sell more to India’s newly wealthy.

But Indian places tariffs of 60 percent on imported EU cars, while the EU takes just 6.5 percent of the price of cars imported from India, according to the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA). As a result, the EU exported just 4,002 cars to India in 2010, compared to

223,000 imported from India.

“These are prohibitive tariffs,” said Ivan Hodac, ACEA’s secretary general.

“The market is basically closed to us.”

Last year, with FTA negotiations under way, a high-profile Indian politician wrote to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh asking for autos to be excluded from any deal.

“The industry people here...would like a few more years before they feel that they are really able to match up with the global players,” said Biswajit Dhar, a New Delhi-based trade expert.

“We’re still not right out there in terms of scale.” So far, negotiations have established that India would be prepared to cut tariffs to 30 percent, according to Hodac, but it may not be sufficient to make a deal possible.

“Negotiating between equals means that at the end somewhere in time, not too far from now, we have to open markets - zero tariffs,” said Philippe de Buck, director general of lobby group Business Europe. “You can’t open the market without any reciprocity.”

For its part, India wants to ease visa regulations that restrict growth for the software and services companies, such

as Tata Consultancy Services or Wipro, that have driven Indian growth. The companies want to deliver services to European customers in a way that involves engineers staying for a short period in the EU to do things such as installing systems. But some EU countries are wary of allowing more foreign workers at a time of rising joblessness.

“If we’re entering into an FTA there has to be some preferential treatment for the partner country, otherwise why are you entering into an FTA?” said Manab Majumdar, Assistant Secretary General of the influential business lobby group FICCI. The EU has its own wish-list for better access to growing Indian sectors, such as in legal services or supermarkets.

In November New Delhi decided to open its supermarket sector to foreign retailers such as Tesco and Carrefour , only to row back on the decision after protests from domestic retailers and opposition politicians. Brussels wants to see that big-ticket reform back on track.

As recently as November, India’s trade minister said India and the EU expected to finalize an FTA by early 2012. — Reuters

India investment-grade rating under pressure S&P cites weak policymaking, inflation

NUSA DUA, Bali: A new construction building for a new hotel is seen near a beach in Nusa Dua on the Indonesian island of Bali yesterday. Indonesia said its economy grew at the fastest rate for 15 years in 2011, spurred by strong household consumption and private investment in Southeast Asia’s biggest economy. — AFP

Indonesia posts 6.5% GDP growth for 2011 JAKARTA: Indonesia said yesterday its economy grew at the fastest rate for 15 years in 2011, spurred by strong household consumption and private investment in Southeast Asia’s biggest economy.

The country, which has become a magnet for foreign money, posted a 6.5 percent rise in gross domestic product last year-the quickest pace since the 1997-98 Asian financial crisis-putting it on track to hit the government’s 6.7 percent forecast for this year. The strong figures were led by a 4.7 percent rise in domestic demand, which accounted for around 60 percent of GDP, and an 8.8 percent surge in private investment, according to a government official.

Government spending also rose 3.2 percent, the official added. With a population of 240 million, Indonesia has become a focus for foreign investors who ploughed $20 billion into the economy in 2011, up from $17 billion the year before.

Singapore, Japan and the United States were among top investors, tapping into the country’s growing mining and telecommunications sectors, as well as winning contracts for much-needed infrastructure developments. Last week, the government said Indonesia posted a 29 percent surge in exports last year, reaching $203.62 billion and surpassing an official target of $200 billion.

The data came after Fitch ratings in December granted Indonesia an investment-grade credit rating after 14 years of junk status, followed by a similar move from Moody ’s Investors Service last month. But as some developed nations remain in the economic doldrums and others begin to make slow recoveries, Indonesia expects lower demand for its exports to slow its rapid growth to 6.43 percent in the first quarter. “This year’s economic growth will depend on the government’s strategy to cope with the continuing global crisis,” said Central Statistics Agency spokesman Suryamin, who goes by one name. Credit Suisse in a report yesterday held a more pessimistic view, forecasting annual growth this year at 6.0 percent, warning Indonesia’s loose monetary policy could overheat the economy later this year. “Indonesia may be the only country in Asia to show virtually no signs of an economic slowdown whatsoever, but this has not stopped its central bank from delivering more in the way of rate reductions than any other in the region to date,” the report said.

Meanwhile, Indonesia’s bourse was one of Asia’s best-performing markets last year, gaining 3.2 percent as many exchange’s around the world contracted amid tough global economic conditions.

The market has soared around 5.0 percent so far this year. — AFP

DHAKA: Bangladeshi police detain an investor during a protest in front of The Dhaka Stock Exchange in Dhaka yesterday. Protesters took to the streets of Bangladesh’s capital after the country’s main stock index plunged 6.0 percent, deepening a crash that has seen the bourse’s value tumble 31 percent this year. — AFP

NEW DELHI: India’s prized investment-grade credit rating is facing pressure due to weak government policy-making, slower economic growth and stubborn inflation, ratings agency Standard & Poor’s warned yesterday.

Asia’s third-largest economy is battling high prices, a weak fiscal position and slower growth on the domestic front, while uncertainty in global financial markets and Europe’s sovereign debt problems are adding pressure.

“The negative factors, combined with the government’s weak policy formulation and implementation, may lead us to a tipping point,” warned S&P credit analyst Takahira Ogawa. India’s economic reform process has been paralyzed by a string of political scandals that has taken the sheen off Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s Congress-led

government. India’s economy has also slowed under the brunt of 13 interest rate rises since March 2010 as the central bank sought to tame inflation from near double-digits to its current two-year low of 7.47 percent.

“The balance of risk factors for the sovereign credit rating may be shifting slightly toward the negative,” the ratings agency said in a report. S&P said it did not expect to downgrade or revise its “stable” outlook on its investment grade “BBB-” long-term sovereign credit rating on India in the near future. But the government’s ability to implement measures to improve economic growth and rein in its fiscal deficit would be vital to boost investor confidence, Ogawa said. “Our stable outlook on the ‘BBB-’ long-term rating on India currently reflects our expectation of

strong economic growth in the medium term and gradually improving fiscal performances,” Ogawa said. India’s “BBB-” rating is considered investment grade and is one notch above “junk,” which carries a higher risk of default.

S&P in 2007 hiked India’s credit rating to investment-grade, a move that paved the way for global funds to invest in government bonds and other debt in the country.

A higher credit rating makes it cheaper to borrow money. India’s economy is forecast to expand by around seven percent this fiscal year to March 31, down from 8.4 percent last year, while its fiscal deficit is expected to be higher than its planned 4.6 percent of gross domestic product due to ballooning subsidy programs targeting the nation’s poor millions. — AFP

UK gas prices shoot to 6-year high due to cold

MUMBAI: Ajay Piramal, chairman of the Piramal Group, addresses a press conference in Mumbai yesterday. India’s Piramal group reposed faith in British phone giant Vodafone’s local arm, as it raised its stake in the telecom firm which appears to have emerged unscathed from a recent apex court verdict. — AFP

German industrial orders rise in Dec BERLIN: Germany, the euro-zone’s biggest economy, saw the release of further favorable economic data yesterday with industrial orders in December partly reversing steep falls seen the previous month. The economy ministry calculated that industrial orders rose by 1.7 percent in December from November, after dropping by 4.9 percent the previous month.

“The increase was due to a strong increase of 4.3 percent in overseas demand,” notably from noneuro-zone countries, the ministry said in a statement. Orders from the euro-zone dropped by 6.8 percent, but orders from outside the single currency area jumped by 12.3 percent.

Domestic orders, on the other hand, were down by 1.4 percent month-on-month, the ministry calculated. Taking the fourth quarter as a whole, German industrial orders fell by 1.4 percent, the ministry said. “The outlook for industrial output is therefore subdued. At the same time, the continued improvement in business confidence at the start of the year suggests that an end to the current phase of weakness is in sight,” it said. Last month, the widelywatched Ifo business climate index for the third month in a row. Analysts cautioned that the monthly orders data are notoriously volatile.”As such, we wouldn’t read too much out of one-month swings,” said Annalisa Piazza of Newedge Strategy. “The German economy has certainly moderated in the fourth quarter, as demand from abroad was hit by the global slowdown but today’s data seem to suggest that factory activity has not collapsed,” she said. “If anything, a slight pick-up is expected in the first quarter of this year, given the upswing in business confidence indicators.” — AFP

LONDON: UK spot gas prices rose to their highest levels since early 2006 yesterday morning as extreme cold continued to sweep across Britain and most parts of Europe.

Bitterly cold weather throughout Europe has left large parts of the continent struggling to cover gas and power demand, while forecasters warn that low temperatures would continue into next week.

Gas prices for within-day delivery were trading at 79 pence per therm 0815 GMT, and prices for delivery on Tuesday were at 78.50, up around 4 pence since Friday afternoon. The increases mean that day-ahead gas prices were at levels not seen since early 2006, when prices spiked after Russia cut off all gas supplies to Ukraine and an explosion rocked the UK’s Rough storage gas platform. Prices have shot up some 50 percent since the beginning of the cold spell.

It also surpasses the spike in January 2009, when Russia cut gas supplies to Europe through Ukraine for two weeks.

Traders said the main reason for the price spike was concern that a glitch in Norwegian flows could cause serious disruptions in the UK. Unlike flows from Russia, which last week had to reduce exports to Europe in order to cover its own rocketing domestic gas demand, Norwegian gas flows have held up since the beginning of the

cold snap.

The ongoing cold weather means the UK gas system was short of supply yesterday, despite healthy Norwegian flows.

Daily demand was forecast at 396.6 million cubic metres (mcm), 68 mcm above the seasonal norm, according to National Grid data.

With expected supplies of 383.2 mcm, the system was 13.4 mcm short, implying the need for more withdrawals from gas storage. UK storage sites were 65.33 percent full on Sunday, down from around 75 percent at the beginning of the year but still some 5 percent above the European average, according to Gas Infrastructure Europe. Send-outs from British gas storage sites were just under 110 mcm on Monday, according to Point Carbon, down from a peak of 130 mcm last week but up from around 60 mcm at the end of January.

At 59.75 pounds per megawatt-hour (MWh), UK spot power prices were also high, reaching levels last seen in winter 2010. The UK’s Met Office kept its Level 3 Cold Weather Alarm in place, saying, “There is a 100 percent probability of severe cold weather and icy conditions between 1000 (GMT ) on Sunday and 1000 on Thursday in parts of England.” Meteoalarm, a European weather warning system, kept weather warnings in place for large parts of Europe. — Reuters

NEW YORK: Trader Joseph Tarangelo (left) works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. Markets were in a jittery mood yesterday as talks dragged on between Greek political leaders over a fresh austerity package that is required if the debt-ridden country is to get a crucial bailout package. —AP

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2012

business

CBK operating profit before provisions KD101.3m in 2011 NPL down from 15.4% in 2010 to 6.7% in 2011

Al Mazaya Holding awards 30 villa contract to Metac General Cont KUWAIT: Al Mazaya Holding announced offering new residential plots for construction of 30 villas in The Villa which will be sold at a later date. Al Mazaya had decided to preserve these plots as part of the company’s assets to be sold when the demand in the UAE real estate market rises.

The announcement came after the company completed and delivered all the residential units at The Villa in Dubai Land in 2010. The step comes on the back of the recovery in Dubai real estate market following four years of cautious anticipation.

Al Mazaya’s monitoring of the real estate market showed a rising demand for ready residential projects which provide a family friendly environment such as what “The Villa” offers to residents.

Al Mazaya Holding signed a contract worth Dh31 million with Metac General Contracting to build 30 residential villa. The plots are from 3600 to 7500 square meters and are expected to be delivered by end of 2012.

Speaking on the occasion of Al Mazaya Holding’s offering residential plots in The Villa, the company’s CEO Eng Naif Al Awadi said: “From the beginning of the instability we have been vigilant in the region’s real estate market; we decided to complete and deliver all the then ongoing projects on which we commenced construction before the global financial crisis hit. We intended, also, to suspend the launch of new projects until we can see the supply demand balance, the regulations and prices. We focused on completing the already commenced projects, including The Villa on Dubai Land, and reserved Al Mazaya’s assets in other parts of the Emirate with the aim to offer them for construction and sale on the right time”.

“The plots we are offering for construction today are among the assets that Al

Mazaya retained. We have noticed a growing demand for projects situated in populated and vital areas such as The Villa, which enjoys a family atmosphere, a stylish living environment and natural beauty. We are keen to design innovative units that cater to various lifestyles with special attention to perfect execution and finishing”, he added.

“Al Mazaya has managed to restructure its projects and to agree with investors on the date of delivery, specifications of units and payment schedule. Al Mazaya has committed to a business plan for the previous period, therefore was able to introduce its business plans for the coming period and to launch new projects that meet the market demand for short term profit and speculation”, he added.

“We have a portfolio of projects in Dubai which we will be sequentially launched at the right time. The new villas project in The Villa is a step forward in this direction as real estate developers are not able to wait for loans and finance to move the market, but they can launch highly demanded projects that can be sold or rented to achieve a type of positive and objective movement in the market”, he said.

The Villa in Dubai Land extends over an area of 35 million square feet on Al Ain Road near the Exit 18. The project includes 1814 villas with design inspired by Spanish Santa Victoria architectural system. The residential neighborhood has 5500 to 16000 square feet units with a living environment that combines all elements of nature from green spaces, leisure facilities, mosques, health clubs and other amenities. The villas feature state of the art designs inspired by the architecture of Spanish ancient cities such as Cordoba, Granada, Valencia, Marbella and Mallorca.

KUWAIT: Commercial Bank of Kuwait announced an operating profit before provisions for the period of KD 101.269 million (2010: KD 93.609 million) an increase of 8%. This was allocated as provisions against the loan and investment portfolios resulting in a net profit attributable to shareholders of the parent bank for the year to 31st December 2011 of KD 0.810 million.

Commenting on the financial results for the period, Chairman Ali Yousef Al-Awadhi said that the planned strategy, to be a leading retail bank in Kuwait and to be the best bank for commercial business while outperforming our peers in profitability, is moving well ahead. Al-Awadhi noted that although other performance indicators showed a return to profitable growth with net interest income of KD 91.6 million up 4% on last year and operating income up 5% the Board of Directors’ decided to protect the bank’s capital base and shareholders’ value by allocating the Operating Profit as provisions against the loan and investment portfolios.

Al Awadhi went on saying that Commercial Bank is moving well ahead according to its planned strategy that aims at strengthening the bank’s financial position, reduce the percentage of NPLs and generating income from the bank’s core business activities. Al-Awadhi explained that nonperforming loans are 6.7% of gross loans as at December 2011, down from 15.4% at 2010. Al Awadhi further explained that the downward trend of the Kuwait economy is a result of weak government spending, the slug-

gish performance of KSE and the related negative impact on assets values, noting that the improvement in the economic and business environment will positively reflect on the banking sector and on Commercial Bank. Commercial Bank’s financial position and balance sheet is strong with additional judgmental provisions that provide the bank with more comfort when taking up businesses, added Al-Awadhi.

The bank continues to demonstrate its cost control leadership with operating expenses down 5% on 2010. Operational efficiency is a competitive advantage for the bank which continues to maintain one of the lowest cost/income ratios with 22.03% for 2011.

Commercial Bank’s total assets at the end of December 2011 reached KD 3.714 billion (2010: KD 3.623 billion) with shareholders equity of KD 530.5 million (2010: KD 465.9 million). The capital adequacy ratio at December 2011 is 18.58% (2010: 19.96%) which exceeds the minimum 12% required by the Central Bank of Kuwait. The bank recently adopted international best practice when calculating its capital adequacy ratio by no longer recognizing as a credit risk mitigant its own shares pledged as collateral. This resulted in a slight reduction in the bank’s ratio.

The bank continues to have a strong capital base with more than twice the international ratio required by Basel II. Commercial Bank of Kuwait takes the opportunity to thank the bank’s valued customers for their trust and confidence, the Executive Management team and staff for their hard work

Ali Yousef Al-Awadhi

and loyalty and shareholders for their continued support and faith.

Commercial Bank of Kuwait provides its corporate and retail customers with wide spectrum of banking products and services through one of the largest full service branch networks in Kuwait.

Royal Capital wins ‘Newcomer Fund of Year Award’ ABU DHABI: Royal Capital announced that its MENA Fixed Income Fund won the ‘Newcomer Fund of the Year Award’ at the 2012 MENA Fund Manager Performance Awards ceremony held at The Address Downtown Hotel in Dubai, UAE. Commenting on the award, Royal Capital’s Chairman, Mubarak Matar AlHamiri, said: “This is the second award that we receive in three months and we are proud of such accomplishments in such challenging financial markets.”

“Over the last couple of years Royal Capital’s MENA Fixed Income Fund has successfully established itself as one of the best performing funds in its asset class within the region supported by a professional, dedicated and experienced team.”

Head of Royal Capital’s Business Development, Meshal Al-Faras, received the award on behalf of the company during the ceremony, which was attended by

approximately 300 of the industry’s professionals from across the MENA region.

Al-Faras said: “The Fund has made major achievements during the past two years and this award confirms the strong performance of our Fixed Income Fund since its inception in March 2010. This is the only MENA Fixed Income Fund that is rated by Standard & Poor’s with an ‘A’ rating in its asset class.”

The open-ended Bahrain registered Fund is a US dollar denominated and offers weekly liquidity. Royal Capital is a private joint stock company headquartered in Abu Dhabi, UAE. The company was established by prominent investors from across the MENA region; with Abu Dhabi and Kuwait based shareholders Royal Group and KIPCO Group respectively, being the major shareholders. The Company is licensed by the Central Bank of the United Arab Emirates as a Financial Investment Company.

Meshal Al-Faras receives the award on behalf of Royal Capital.

Qatar Airways CEO opens new premium lounge at Heathrow

3 winners daily in Midas Furniture Feb campaign first time in Kuwait KUWAIT: In the first offer of its kind in Kuwait, Midas Furniture is giving customers an unprecedented opportunity to win up to 100% of their purchase value three times a day. For every KD 50 spent, customers will be entered into a draw to win 100%, 50% or 25% of their purchase value. There will be three winners per day, and with the offer lasting until February 29th, the chances of winning are considered unusually high.

The campaign is Midas’s latest effort to strengthen bonds with loyal customers and reach out to new customers who seek premium furniture and accessories from the world’s finest brands this February.

“Our promotional offers are not just about generating new sales. Ultimately, they fall under our strategy aimed at bringing Midas closer to its customers. As Midas continues to grow both in Kuwait and throughout the region, it becomes more important for us to extend our appreciation with rewarding offers,” explained Russell Brown, Midas Regional Director Retail Division.

Generous offers are only one facet in the company’s customer-based strategy. As a company that considers its name to be synonymous with “elegance”, Midas has been meeting its 18-year commitment towards offering higher quality products and the largest range of styles from some of the most sought after manufacturers from around the world. The huge diversity of its customer base is reflected in the wide variety of styles available.

“Our ability to not only satisfy virtually all

tastes, but to elevate the overall shopping experience to world-class standards, has been one of the determining factors in our growth success in the Kuwait and regional markets. Instead of visiting several different shops that vary in quality, selection, service and display methods, our customers have the luxury of visiting a state-of-the-art showroom that encompasses all styles in easy-tobrowse sections within a unique shopping environment of the highest standards,” added Russell.

Main sections include Modern, Transitional, Classical, Kids and accessories.

Russell gave special emphasis on the Accessories section, which aims to help customers add touches of elegance to their homes with a large selection of vases, candles, chandeliers, silverware, bathroom accessories, carpets and so much more.

Midas Furniture was established in 1993 based on the unique vision of providing high-quality furniture and accessories at affordable prices. Its strategy has been guided by a commitment to creating innovations of inspiration, providing a foundation to grow throughout regional markets, both in terms of product selection and company infrastructure.

Today, Midas is one of the largest furniture retailers in home and office furniture, with branches located throughout the GCC and Arab world. A total of nine showrooms and 1,200 employees represent the Midas brand in Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Dubai, Qatar, Jordan and Iraq.

LONDON: Qatar Airways has officially opened its new premium lounge for first and business class passengers at London’s Heathrow Airpor t in front of VIP guests drawn from the diplomatic world, travel industry, corporate business leaders and the British media.

Located airside at Terminal 4, the lounge is Qatar Airways’ first dedicated facility for premium passengers outside its Doha hub, where the carrier operates the award-winning Premium Terminal.

Qatar Airways Chief Executive Officer Akbar Al Baker officially opened the lounge in front of over 50 invited guests before giving them a tour of the facility.

The event marked the start of another busy year for the carrier, with the launch of new routes, as well as additional capacity on the London Heathrow - Doha route, being stepped up from four to five flights a day, effective March 25.

The lounge reinforces the importance of the UK as one of the airline’s busiest routes.

Guests at the opening discovered a lounge designed to resemble a boutique hotel or private member’s club rather than a conventional airport facility for an airline. They experienced the ultimate in luxury and Five-Star service which reflects the airline’s drive to excel in all areas of operations.

Qatar Airways recruited lounge staff from Five Star hotels and restaurants to work in the theatrestyle Global Brasserie kitchen, innovative Delicatessen, and elegant Signature Martini bar that are key features of the new Heathrow lounge which can accommodate over 90 passengers.

The lounge also includes private shower facilities, with heated floors and mirrors, hotel-style towels and luxury branded toiletries and amenities.

Business and leisure travellers can stay connected with free Wi-Fi throughout the lounge, discreet

Qatar Airways CEO Akbar Al Baker addresses media at London Heathrow. power sockets at every seat and a business centre that includes PCs and printers.

Following a landmark year in 2011, which saw Qatar Airways introduce 15 new destinations to its network and win the coveted Skytrax Airline of the Year Award, the airline’s new Heathrow lounge is set to become the benchmark for international airport lounges.

Speaking at the official opening, The State of Qatar ’s Ambassador to the United Kingdom, Khalid bin Rashid bin Salim Al-Hamoudi Al-Mansouri, congratulated Al Baker, stating: “Qatar Airways has been continuously setting the standards in the aviation field across the globe for over a decade. This new lounge raises the bar yet again and reflects all that is best in Qatari standards, hospitality and luxury.”

Qatar Airways CEO Akbar Al Baker said that the new lounge reflected the impor tance of extending the airline’s award-winning service beyond the signature Premium Terminal in Doha.

“London has long been one of our best-performing routes, so

Heathrow was an obvious choice for our first Premium Lounge outside Doha,” he told guests.

“With frequency on our highly popular Heathrow route soon rising to five flights a day, it was

vitally important that we provided a dedicated facility for our loyal customers travelling in our premium cabins and enjoy the comforts of an airport facility before departure.

Qatar Airways CEO Akbar Al Baker (left), with Khalid bin Rashid bin Salim Al-Hamoudi Al-Mansouri (centre) and BAA Chief Operating Officer Normand Boivin.

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2012

TECHNOLOGY

Boycott Apple? Calls grow to improve China work conditions SAN FRANCISCO: Faux news anchor Jon Stewart was having a spot of modern existential angst on a recent episode. Comedian and host of the Daily Show was commenting about growing reports of widespread worker exploitation at China’s massive electronics factories when suddenly he was seized by an epiphany.

“It’s an abomination, yet I am complicit,” he shrieked in mock horror. Stewart, whose love for shiny Apple gadgets is a recurring theme on the show, contemplated giving up his iPhone, only to be dissuaded by a friendly female voice emanating from his pocket.

“I thought we were forever,” said Siri, the iPhone’s vaunted voice-powered assistant.

It was a funny moment, but like all Stewart’s best jibes, it had a troubling echo of truth.

Apple has long been famous for appealing to liberal and artistic trendsetters who generally regard the exploitation of workers as badly as they do racism, sexism, failing to recycle and other violations of political correctness.

And yet they are at the vanguard of an Apple fetish that has left the company sitting on a 100billion-dollar mountain of cash, selling a record 37 million iPhones in the last quarter and making a tidy profit of 13 billion dollars.

Executives at the company headquarters say they are “outraged” about the onslaught of bad publicity that culminated in last week’s New York Times piece detailing the human cost of Apple gadgets.

“Employees work excessive overtime, in some cases seven days a week, and live in crowded dorms. Some say they stand so long that their legs swell until they can hardly walk. Under-age workers have helped build Apple’s products, and the company’s suppliers have improperly disposed of hazardous waste and falsified records,” the report said.

In a company-wide email that was quickly leaked to the press, Apple chief executive Tim Cook said Friday that Apple cared about every worker in its supply chain, and that accusations to the con-

trary were “patently false and offensive to us.”

He pointed out that Apple had recently become one of the first tech companies to join the Fair Labour Association, allowing the international monitoring group to audit its supply chain.

Nevertheless, the press has been filled in recent days with calls for an Apple boycott to force the world’s largest electronics company to pressure its suppliers to improve working conditions.

“Should consumers boycott Apple?” the Los Angeles Times asked. Dan Lyons, the influential technology columnist of The Daily Beast and Newsweek, called the labour practices “barbaric.” “(We) have turned a blind eye to it because we want our gadgets, and we don’t want to pay fair prices for them,” he said.

Brooke Crothers, former editor-at-large of tech site Cnet, points out that targeting Apple alone ignores the equally egregious labour practices that are behind the gadgets of all its high tech competitors. He understands why Apple is the focus of the exposes, given its high profile, penchant for secre-

cy, huge profits and trendy image. But a boycott of Apple “opens a pandora’s box that taken to its logical conclusion would mean eschewing pretty much all devices made in China,” he argued.

“Human-intensive mass production is ugly and has a long history of ugliness.” Yu Zhou, a geography professor at Vassar College and author of The Inside Story of China’s High-Tech Industry, believes that the answer is not a boycott but a complete reworking of the global structure of the electronics industry.

This would be loosely modeled on the Fair Trade system developed for coffee and other agricultural products, in which third-party researchers set base prices for commodities based on responsible environmental and humane practices.

While it might not be a perfect system, he said in a column in the Huffington Post: “We must move beyond the existing corporate social responsibility system monitored entirely by profit-maximizing corporations. If they are part of the problem, they cannot be counted on to fix it.” — dpa

Google, Facebook remove content on India’s order US Internet standards are not acceptable

SAO PAULO: A participant checks his computer inside a tent at the camping area of the VI edition of the Campus Party event in Sao Paulo, Brazil, yesterday. The Campus Party is an annual week-long, 24-hour technology festival that gathers around 7,000 hackers, developers, gamers and computer geeks. The event is held Feb. 6-12. — AP

Bigger US role against companies’ cyberthreats?

WASHINGTON: A developing Senate plan that would bolster the government’s ability to regulate the computer security of companies that run critical industries is drawing strong opposition from businesses that say it goes too far and security experts who believe it should have even more teeth.

Legislation set to come out in the days ahead is intended to ensure that computer systems running power plants and other essential parts of the country’s infrastructure are protected from hackers, terrorists or other criminals. The Department of Homeland Security, with input from businesses, would select which companies to regulate; the agency would have the power to require better computer security, according to officials who described the bill. They spoke on condition of anonymity because lawmakers have not finalized all the details.

Those are the most contentious parts of legislation designed to boost cybersecurity against the constant attacks that target U.S. government, corporate and personal computer networks and accounts. Authorities are increasingly worried that cybercriminals are trying to take over systems that control the inner workings of water, electrical, nuclear or other power plants.

That was the case with the Stuxnet computer worm, which targeted Iran’s nuclear program in 2010, infecting laptops at the Bushehr nuclear power plant. As much as 85 percent of America’s critical infrastructure is owned and operated by private companies. The emerging proposal isn’t sitting well with those who believe it gives Homeland Security too much power and those who think it’s too watered down to achieve real security improvements. One issue under debate is how the bill narrowly limits the industries that would be subject to regulation.

Summaries of the bill refer to companies with systems “whose disruption could result in the interruption of life-sustaining services, catastrophic economic damage or severe degradation of national security capabilities.”

Critics suggest that such limits may make it too difficult for the government to regulate those who need it. There are sharp disagreements over whether Homeland Security is the right department to enforce the rules and whether it can handle the new responsibilities. U.S. officials familiar with the debate said the department would move gradually, taking on higher priority industries first.

“The debate taking place in Congress is not whether the government should protect the American people from catastrophic harms caused by cyberattacks on critical infrastructure, but which entity can do that most effectively,” said Jacob Olcott, a senior cybersecurity expert at Good Harbor Consulting.

Under the legislation, Homeland Security would not regulate industries that are under the authority of an agency, such as the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, with jurisdiction already over cyber issues.

“Where the market has worked, and systems are appropriately secure, we don’t interfere,” said Sen. Joe Lieberman, I-Conn., chairman of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee. “But where the market has failed, and critical

systems are insecure, the government has a responsibility to step in.” The bill, written largely by the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee and the Senate homeland panel, is also notable for what it does not include: a provision that would give the president authority to shut down Internet traffic to compromised Web sites during a national emergency. This ‘“kill switch” idea was discussed in early drafts, but drew outrage from corporate leaders, privacy advocates and Internet purists who believe cyberspace should remain an untouched digital universe.

While the Senate is pulling together one major piece of cybersecurity legislation, the House has several bills that deal with various aspects of the issue. A bill from a House Homeland Security subcommittee doesn’t go as far as the Senate’s in setting the government’s role. Still, it would require DHS to develop cybersecurity standards and work with industry to meet them.

“We know voluntary guidelines simply have not worked,” said Rep. Jim Langevin, D-R.I. “For the industries upon which we most rely, government has a role to work with the private sector on setting security guidelines and ensuring they are followed.”

Stewart Baker, a former assistant secretary at Homeland Security, said the government must get involved to force companies to take cybersecurity more seriously.

Concerns about federal involvement, he said, belie the fact that computer breaches over the past several years make it clear that hackers and other governments, such as China and Russia, are already inside many industry networks.

“They already have governments in their business, just not the US,” said Baker.

“For them to say they don’t want this suggests they don’t really understand how bad this problem is.” Industry groups have lobbied against the Senate bill’s regulatory powers and say new mandates will drive up costs without increasing security.

They say businesses are trying to secure their networks and need legal protections built into the law so they can share information with authorities without risking antitrust or privacy violations.

In a letter to lawmakers this past week, the US Chamber of Commerce said any additional regulations would be counterproductive and force businesses to shift their focus from security to compliance.

Liesyl Franz, a vice president at TechAmerica, which represents about 1,200 companies, said businesses would prefer to work with the government to enhance security rather than face more regulations. She said companies coping with the potential security risks, market consequences, and damage to corporate reputations, are defending against cyberthreats.

Senior national security officials were on Capitol Hill last week to talk to senators about the growing cybersecurity threat. After the meeting, Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, said she’s always had a sense of urgency about it, adding, “I hope the briefing gives that same sense of urgency to members to put aside turf battles.” She said senators are reviewing concerns raised by the Chamber about the bill. — AP

NEW DELHI: Google India has removed web pages deemed offensive to Indian political and religious leaders to comply with a court case that has raised censorship fears in the world’s largest democracy, media reported yesterday.

The action follows weeks of intense government pressure for 22 Internet giants to remove photographs, videos or text considered “antireligious” or “anti-social.”

A New Delhi court yesterday gave Facebook, Google, YouTube and Blogspot and the other sites two weeks to present further plans for policing their networks, according to the Press Trust of India.

For India’s more than 100 million Internet users, the government says, US Internet standards are not acceptable. The case highlights the difficulty India faces in balancing conservative religious and political sentiments with its hope that freewheeling Internet discourse and technology will help spur the economy and boost living standards for its 1.2 billion people.

Google India did not say Monday which sites were removed but had said it would be willing to go after anything that violated local law or its

own standards. Indian officials have been incensed by material insulting to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, ruling Congress party leader Sonia Gandhi and religious groups, including illustrations showing Singh and Gandhi in compromising positions and pigs running through Mecca, Islam’s holiest city.

“There is no question of any censorship,” Communications Minister Sachin Pilot said in Bangalore. “They all have to operate within the laws of the country. ... There must be responsible behavior on both sides.”

Anyone hurt by online content should be able to seek legal redress, he said. The government has warned it has evidence to prosecute 21 sites for offenses of “promoting enmity between classes and causing prejudice to national integration.”

The government has asked the sites to set a voluntary framework to keep offensive material off the Internet. Facebook India submitted a compliance report to the court yesterday, but it also joined Yahoo and Microsoft in questioning its inclusion in the case, saying no specific complaints had been presented against them, PTI

reported. The sites did not immediately comment after the hearing.

Prosecutors, who sued on behalf of a Muslim religious leader who accused companies of hosting pages that disparage Islam, said they would provide the companies with all relevant documents. The court gave the companies 15 more days to report back.

India is Facebook’s third-fastest growing market, after the U.S. and Indonesia. The California based company, with $3.7 billion in revenues last year, has seen its hoped-for launch in China held back by rules requiring censorship of material seen by the Chinese government as objectionable or obscene.

The issue of country-specific censorship sparked global outcry in recent weeks, after Twitter said it would allow tweets to be deleted in countries where the content breaks local law.

Twitter insisted the new policy would help freedom of expression and transparency by preventing the entire site from being blocked. But dissidents and activists who have embraced Twitter in their campaigns accused the site of betraying free speech. — AP

Kaspersky Lab joins Samsung alliance program

TAIPEI: A woman looks at an Internet website in Taipei yesterday showing Taiwanese comedian A-Ken dressed up as Apple’s late founder while praising the virtues of a tablet from Taiwanbased Action Electronics that runs on Google’s Android operating system during a 20-second commercial. A Taiwanese TV commercial featuring a Steve Jobs look-alike as an angel complete with white wings and a halo has caused an uproar amid charges it displays insufficient respect for Jobs. — AFP

ISPs must do more on web radicalisation LONDON: Internet service providers (ISPs) must do more to monitor online content and bring in a code of practice because the web plays a role in most, if not all cases of violent extremist radicalisation, a committee of British lawmakers said yesterday.

The Internet was a more significant way for extremists to promote their agenda and seek recruits than prisons, universities or places of worship, parliament’s Home Affairs committee said in a report.

“More resources need to be directed to these threats and to preventing radicalisation through the Internet and in private spaces,” committee chairman Keith Vaz said.

“These are the fertile breeding grounds for terrorism”. Politicians and security officials have for years warned of the problem the Internet posed, but little has been offered as a solution, partly because of the difficulties in imposing rules without restricting freedom of speech.

Last week, prosecutors said four Islamists, who admitted plotting to bomb the London Stock Exchange, had been inspired by the online propaganda of Anwar al-Awlaki, a U.S. citizen linked to al Qaeda’s Yemeni branch who was killed last year in a CIA drone strike.

Officials also say a young woman who stabbed a lawmaker in his London offices in 2010 had been radicalised solely by online material. “We suggest that the government work

with Internet service providers in the UK to develop a code of conduct committing them to removing violent extremist material,” the committee said in its report, titled “The roots of violent extremism”.

However, trade body the Internet Service Providers’ Association told the committee ISPs were not best placed to determine what constituted violent extremism and said it would be impractical for them to monitor all material because of the sheer volume of content.

Last year Norman Bettison, Britain’s lead police officer on the counter-radicalisation strategy known as Prevent, told Reuters the issue could only be solved through global agreement, as enforcement action could only be taken against websites in the country were they were hosted.

Two years ago, Britain launched a specialist police unit to tackle UK websites promoting extremist material, and this had received 2,025 referrals, about 10 percent of which had led to websites or web pages being taken down.

Bettison told the committee this was “a pebble thrown into the world wide web ocean”. While the committee concluded support for violent Islamism was in decline, it said the British government paid “only lip service to the threat from extreme far-right terrorism”, which it warned posed a growing risk. — Reuters

DUBAI: Kaspersky Lab, a leading developer of secure content and threat management solutions, announces that it has become a Golden Member of the Samsung Enterprise Alliance Program. The new global partnership is ushering in much closer cooperation between the companies and inclusion of Kaspersky Lab’s products on a wide range of Samsung devices.

Commenting on the new partnership, Garry Kondakov, Chief Sales and Marketing Officer of Kaspersky Lab, said: “We are very glad to begin the new global partnership with Samsung Electronics and to take our cooperation to a whole new level. Our membership in the Samsung Enterprise Alliance Program will help us further develop our mobile solutions based on Samsung’s vast experience, and also expand the distribution of our solutions through Samsung Electronics’ global network, improving our market positions on a global scale.”

The Samsung Enterprise Alliance Program is a comprehensive partner program designed to provide differentiated benefits for sales, marketing and solutions’ development to enable leading domestic and global independent software vendor and systems integrator partners to create new profit models through Samsung Electronics’ mobile solution business.

As part of the Golden Partnership package Kaspersky Lab is to supply Kaspersky Mobile Security and Kaspersky Tablet Security to Samsung to protect both private and corporate Android-based Samsung mobile devices. These solutions ensure the highest class of security based on advanced protection against privacy violation, device loss or theft, annoying calls and messages, as well as malicious software.

Under another part of the program, Kaspersky Lab is to provide consumer security software to protect Samsung PCs, notebooks and netbooks running on Windows OS. For corporate products Kaspersky Lab is to supply Kaspersky Endpoint Security, different business models, and a flexible approach to achieve the best security for each corporate customer.

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2012

H E A LT H & S C I E NC E

Dar Al Shifa Hospital launches ‘Shifa Camp’ in Lebanon Dar Al Shifa Hospital announces the launch of “Shifa Camp”, a health program that includes activities that helps change one’s lifestyle and is a sustained method of weight l o s s. Th e Ca m p w i l l t a k e p l a ce i n a re s o r t b a s e d i n Hammana in Lebanon which is known for its beautiful scenery, fresh air and mild temperature. The “Shifa Camp” which will commence from 1st April 2012 until 28th April 2012 includes a range of programs such as nutrition, fitness, tourism, as well as stress management techniques.

Dar Al Shifa’s latest initiative is to help individuals lose and control their weight through engaging in a healthier lifestyle. The camp will include an array of interactive activities under the supervision of specialists, dieticians,

and psychotherapists.

Nadeen Jawhary Head of Dietary Department at Dar Al Shifa Hospital commented: “Shifa Camp comes as part of Dar Al Shifa Hospital’s strategy of providing effective ways of Obesity treatment to its patients. This new initiative will include revolutionary international best practice methods of managing individuals’ weight and changing lifestyles all under the supervision of medical professionals.

We urge those interested to sign up with Dar Al Shifa to receive optimal solution to weight management, and to start leading a healthy life. For more information on how to subscribe to the program, please contact phone no.: 22231480 and secure your bookings since the places are limited.

Latest illnesses point to raw milk’s popularity Outbreak of bacterial infections

BHUBANESWAR: Health department officials wearing protective gear throw disinfectant over culled birds before burying them in a pit at a poultry farm in Bhubaneswar, India, yesterday. The bird flu virus that swept much of the globe three years ago can still be found in a handful of countries, including Indonesia, Bangladesh, China, Egypt, India and Vietnam. Officials estimate thousands of birds could eventually be culled. — AP

Eyeing greener acres, new farmers reap growing US aid HALLSVILLE: Dan Pugh wishes he had a bigger tractor and his wife Laura worries about their chickens in the winter weather. But as new farmers putting down roots in rural Missouri, the Pughs are counting on more rewards than regrets in trading their city lives for the country.

A better quality of food and life are among the factors that caused Dan, 47, to leave a career in sales last year and move Laura, 48, and their two young children to 50-acres (20 hectares) of rolling pastureland they call Honey Creek Farm. The Pughs will plant their first crop of organic spinach and lettuces in the next few weeks on ground they tilled behind the barn they converted into a two-bedroom home.

They are shopping for sheep and hogs. And though their first hives of bees mysteriously died, Laura is determined to develop a successful honey operation as well.

“The whole food and farming system is so out of whack,” Dan Pugh said. “We want better and we can do something to help other people eat better.”

For those who remember the American TV series, call it the “Green Acres” effect. Fueled by an economic downturn that has curtailed the upward mobility of many corporate jobs, general dissatisfaction with suburban stresses and growing discontent with what they see as the ills of industrialized agriculture, thousands of families across the United States have left suburban cul de sacs and headed to the countryside - forging a new demographic of family farmer.

The U.S. government is not only monitoring the trend, it is encouraging it - backing loans for land purchases and operating expenses as well as grants for seminars and workshops to train people how to be farmers. Governmentbacked loans to new farmers have more than doubled in the past decade.

The goal is to reverse a worrisome trend: U.S. Census data through 2007 showed a lack of young farmers to replace aging operators the average age of U.S. farmers rose from 52 in 1987 to 55 in 2007. The government hopes that new census data due this year will show more young farmers, a factor that government leaders say is critical for the future of food production.

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack has set a goal of creating 100,000 new farmers in the next few years. Department of Agriculture programs target youth, women, Hispanics, American Indians and returning military veterans. It does not matter if the want-to-be farmers have agriculture in their background or have never set foot outside the city, there are programs to help them buy land and equipment and figure out what to grow.

“The farming population today is aging rather rapidly,” Vilsack said in an interview. “Over 30 percent of the current farm population is over the age of 65. We have a whole generation that is set to retire. The question is then who will take over those operations. We need generations of leaders in American agriculture to continue our position as the number one agricultural country in the world.”

U.S. agriculture leaders say change is under way in Washington to support new farm practices and they say a rural renaissance is not only a way to add diversity to food production but also a means for bolstering the economy and reversing a decline in rural populations.

Beginning farmers are defined as anyone who has run a farm or ranch for less than 10 years. There are currently more than 450,000 beginning farms, about 21 percent of the nation’s 2.1 million family farms, according to the USDA. But the government wants more.

To encourage more would-be farmers, USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) last year launched a “Start2Farm” website and is heavily marketing a range of financial and educational assistance programs.

On Jan. 20, FSA announce a new rule to expand loan opportunities. It also said it was

expanding to all 50 states a program that guarantees farmland purchase contracts for beginning farmers and ranchers.

“This is to try to make sure rural America has a chance to thrive economically,” said Chris Beyerhelm, FSA’s deputy administrator for farm loan programs. “This is a focus of this administration.”

Loan programs for beginning farmers and ranchers were introduced in 1992 but had little impact. So the 2008 Farm Bill greatly expanded assistance to include loans, commodity payments, conservation payments, and training programs. Since 2008, the number of loans to beginning farmers and ranchers has climbed from just over 9,000 to more than 15,000.

Last year, the FSA issued obligations totaling $1.77 billion to new farmers and ranchers, up from $1.59 billion in 2009, $1.2 billion in 2008 and $839.5 million in 2002.

Farmers in Iowa, the largest U.S. corn-producing state, received the most - last year new Iowa farmers got $118.6 million in beginning farmer program loans. New farmers in Nebraska, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Georgia, and Arkansas are other top recipients.

But every U.S. state is represented in the disbursements that can go to children of farmers who want to return to a family farm, as well as people who have no farming background or connections.

Howard Buffett, the son of billionaire investor Warren Buffett, runs a foundation focused on global food concerns and said his 29-year-old son recently traded in a career with the U.S. Defense Department to become a Nebraska farmer.

“We have a real challenge in this country in getting the next generation into agriculture,” Buffett said. “Getting kids to come back to the farm is really difficult but really important.”

Universities around the country offer grantfunded educational courses on fundamentals that include finding farmland to buy, food safety, financing and agricultural practices, as well as specific training on topics like “grazing goats,”“Chickens 101” and “Basic Beekeeping.”

“It is not just a movement that is taking place in the middle of the country. It is all over,” said Debi Kelly, an extension associate with the University of Missouri who helps manage beginning farmer programs.

Pending bills in Congress would set up a micro-loan program for new farmers for everything from vegetable farms to small dairy farms. And backers of beginning farmers are also lobbying to add to the 2012 farm bill language that would ease hurdles for them to get crop insurance.

“Farming has become an incredibly sexy topic and occupation for young people,” said Ferd Hoefner, policy director for the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition. “I’ve never seen anything like it in my experience.”

One factor spurring these next-generation farmers is a growing subculture that is highly critical of what conventional agriculture has become.The documentary “Food Inc.,” which depicts the nation’s food supply as controlled by a handful of corporations that often put profit ahead of consumer health, was a call to action for some.

They worry that unlabeled genetically modified foods are harmful and fear that overuse of farming chemicals is damaging the soil and the food grown in it. They are angry about the way poultry, hogs and cattle are confined and dosed with antibiotics before slaughter.

It is too early to know if the new breed of farmer will have a significant influence on reversing the trend toward fewer and larger farms, or on the reliance on genetically modified seeds and chemical applications for crops, or on the shopping and eating habits of consumers. But as the movement builds, conflicts already are festering as the younger, urbanized approach challenges the tenets of modern US agriculture. — Reuters

WASHINGTON: An outbreak of bacterial infections on the East Coast illustrates the popularity of raw, unpasteurized milk despite strong warnings from public health officials about the potential danger.

Even presidential candidate Ron Paul has joined the cause of consumers looking to buy unprocessed “real foods” straight from the farm, saying government shouldn’t deny them that choice.

An outbreak of campylobacter illness is a reminder of the potential hazards, however. Raw milk from a dairy in Pennsylvania is now linked to 38 cases in four states, and the farm has temporarily suspended sales. Campylobacter can cause diarrhea, cramping, abdominal pain, and fever and can be lifethreatening if it spreads to the bloodstream.

Consumers who want unpasteurized milk have to work to find it. It’s against federal law to transport it across state lines, and most states don’t allow it to be sold in stores off the farm. Twenty states prohibit raw milk sales altogether.

The government says the milk is unsafe because of the pathogens cows may encounter on the farm. A wide variety of pathogens besides campylobacter, can be found in raw milk - including salmonella, listeria, E. coli and others - and those sickened could suffer from stroke, kidney failure, paralysis or death, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The agency points out that raw milk killed many people - especially young children - before the onset

of pasteurization, which kills disease-causing germs by heating milk to high temperatures for a specific period of time.

The CDC says pasteurized milk is rich in proteins, carbohydrates and other nutrients, and that heat only slightly decreases thiamine, vitamin B12, and vitamin C. While the government contends that milk is a minor source of those nutrients, raw milk advocates say that’s proof that pasteurization makes milk less wholesome and pure.

The government doesn’t keep records of raw milk consumption or sales, but it’s clear that the product is popularized by a larger food movement that encourages less processing and more “real food.”

Raw milk goes a step further than organic milk free of added growth hormones. Organic milk, too, has enjoyed a sales boost in recent years.

“We are pushing for consumer choice and freedom and a variety of dairy options for people,” said Kimberly Hartke of the Weston A. Price Foundation, an activist group that advocates “restoring nutrientdense foods to the human diet.”

Price was a dentist who studied global nutrition around the turn of the 20th century.

Advocates say far more illnesses are caused each year by leafy greens, deli meats and other products produced in much larger quantities than raw milk.

“To outlaw or ban any natural food because it could possibly make you sick is an extreme posi-

tion, because there is no safe food,” Hartke said.

That’s a position that presidential contender Paul, a physician, understands. He appears to have acknowledged the potential risks of raw milk when he said last summer that “what I’m doing in politics is not exactly the medical opinion.”

Still, he said, “as long as you don’t force other people, and as long as you don’t defraud people, you ought to have a choice.”

Supporters of raw milk are passionate, and the issue has become one of the most animated food debates. Raw milk consumers and Price foundation representatives have held protests in Washington to fight Food and Drug Administration crackdowns on some farms that sell raw milk.

The fact that there’s even a debate infuriates many in the public health community.

“The intensity with which raw milk supporters believe in this product is almost unheard of, certainly for a food,” said Sarah Klein, an attorney for the Center for Science in the Public Interest. “It’s like snake oil.”

Klein says advocates often mislead consumers by describing bucolic settings and happy cows.

“These are still animals; they defecate inches from where the milk is produced,” she said.

“They stand in it, they swat their tails through it. That’s all very natural. It’s just a matter of course that raw milk is contaminated.”

The owner of the Pennsylvania dairy, Your Family Cow farm in

Chambersburg, posted a message on the farm’s website last week saying that several customers had called them to say they had been experiencing “acute diarrhea, fever and stomach cramps.”

Owner Edwin Shank said in the posting that the farm’s testing had shown samples to be negative for campylobacter and speculated that the illnesses may be from another cause. But the Pennsylvania health department has linked the outbreak to the farm, and a spokeswoman for the Maryland’s health department says an unopened bottle from the farm tested positive for campylobacter.

Raw milk sales are illegal in Maryland, but the state has four illnesses from the outbreak. Those sickened presumably drove to Pennsylvania and brought the milk back for their own consumption, said Maria Said of the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.

One person is also sick in New Jersey and two in West Virginia, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Health. Thirty one people are sick in Pennsylvania, many of them in Franklin County, where the farm is located.

Pennsylvania has had at least seven disease outbreaks linked to raw milk consumption since 2006, involving almost 200 people, according to the health department. Pennsylvania is one of 17 states where some type of raw milk sales are allowed, according to the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture. — AP

Contraception mandate angers religious groups NEW YORK: The Obama administration’s decision requiring church-affiliated employers to cover birth control was bound to cause an uproar among Roman Catholics and members of other faiths, no matter their beliefs on contraception.

The regulation, finalized a week ago, raises a complex and sensitive legal question: Which institutions qualify as religious and can be exempt from the mandate?

For a church, mosque or synagogue, the answer is mostly straightforward. But for the massive network of religious-run social service agencies there is no simple solution. Federal law lays out several criteria for the government to determine which are religious. But in the case of the contraception mandate, critics say Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius chose the narrowest ones.

Religious groups that oppose the regulation say it forces people of faith to choose between upholding church doctrine and serving the broader society.

“It’s not about preventing women from buying anything themselves, but telling the church what it has to buy, and the potential for that to go further,” said Sister Carol Keehan, president of the Catholic Health Association, representing some 600 hospitals.

Keehan’s support for the passage of the Obama health care overhaul was critical in the face of intense opposition by the US bishops. She now says the narrowness of the religious exemption in the birth control mandate “has jolted us.” She pledged to use a one-year grace period the administration has provided to “pursue a correction.”

The US Health and Human Services Department adopted the rule to improve health care for women.

Last year, an advisory panel from the Institute of Medicine, which advises the federal government, recommended including birth control on the list of covered services, partly because it promotes maternal and child health by allowing women to space their pregnancies. The regulation includes a religious exemption if an organization qualifies. Under that provision, an employer generally will be considered religious if its main purpose is spreading religious beliefs, and if it largely employs and serves people of the same faith. That means a Catholic parish likely would qualify for a religious exemption; a large church-run soup kitchen probably would not.

Employers that fail to provide health insurance coverage under the federal law could be fined $2,000 per employee per year. The bishops’ domestic anti-poverty agency, Catholic Charities, says it employs 70,000 people nationwide. The fine for the University of Notre Dame, the most prominent Catholic school in the country, could be in the millions of dollars.

HHS says employers can appeal a decision on whether they qualify for an exemption. But Hannah Smith, senior counsel for the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, said, “The mandate vests too much unbridled discretion in the hands of government bureaucrats.”

QATAR: An elederly man undergoing an eye examination from a Ugandan ophthalmic clinical officer serving with the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) inside a tent in Qatar internally displaced people’s (IDP) camp in the Wardhigley District of the Somali capital Mogadishu. — AFP Mandates for birth-control coverage are not entirely new for religious groups. Twenty-eight states already require contraceptive coverage in prescription drug plans. Of those states, 17 offer a range of religious exemptions, while two others provide opt-outs of other kinds. However, opponents of the HHS regulation say there is no state mandate as broad as the new federal rule combined with a religious exemption that is so narrow.

Even in states where the requirement already exists, the issue is far from settled. Wisconsin’s 2009 contraception mandate did not include a religious exemption, but allowed an exception for employers who self-insure. While some dioceses in the state were able to self-insure, others couldn’t afford to do so. The Diocese of Madison, Wis., ended up offering a policy with birth-control coverage, but asked employees to follow church teaching and not use the benefit. Local bishops continued to lobby state lawmakers for an exemption. But leaders knew a national health care overhaul was in development and hoped the federal law would be an improvement, said John Huebscher, executive director of the Wisconsin Catholic Conference, the public policy arm of the state’s bishops.

In California, whose religious exemption served as the model for the Obama administration, dioceses and some church-run agencies were able to self-insure, said Carol Hogan of the California Catholic Conference, but that option is for the most part unavailable under the federal health care law.

Church-run groups could have stopped offering insurance to their employees, but considered that option unfair to workers.

The bishops have responded sharply to the reg-

ulation, launching a nationwide campaign against the mandate. Bishops in more than 140 dioceses issued statements that were read at Mass last weekend. Bishop William Murphy of Rockville Centre, N.Y., called the requirement “a radical incursion on the part of our government into freedom of conscience.” Bishop David Zubik of Pittsburgh wrote that “the Obama administration was essentially saying ‘to hell with you,’ particularly to the Catholic community by dismissing our beliefs, our religious freedom and our freedom of conscience.”

The Becket Fund had previously filed two federal lawsuits over the regulations on behalf of Belmont Abbey College, a Catholic liberal arts school near Charlotte, N.C., and Colorado Christian University, an evangelical school near Denver. Both challenge the mandate as a violation of several freedoms, including the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, which says the government cannot impose a substantial burden on the free exercise of religion. The fine for Belmont Abbey would be more than $300,000 for the first year, and more than $500,000 for Colorado Christian, Smith, the Becket Fund counsel, said.

Many conservatives are also supporting legislation by Rep. Jeff Fortenberry, R-Neb., that would codify a series of exceptions to the new health care law on religious and conscience grounds. For religious-affiliated employers, the requirement will take effect Aug. 1, 2013, and their workers in most cases will have access to coverage starting Jan. 1, 2014. Women working for secular enterprises, from profit-making companies to government, will have access to the new coverage starting Jan. 1, 2013, in most cases.— AP

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2012

H E A LT H

Surprises about Planned Parenthood cancer testing C A L I F O R N I A : To m a ny p e o p l e, breast cancer screening means a mammogram. But for millions of poor, mostly young women who visit Planned Parenthood, it is usually just a physical exam by the only health professional they may ever see. Those clinical breast exams are controversial - government advisers don’t endorse them. Yet for some, this simple exam has helped spot breast cancer. And Susan G. Komen for the Cure isn’t the only group paying Planned Parenthood to do them - the government does, too.

Komen actually funds relatively few.

Surprises like these are emerging about both groups in the dustup ove r K o m e n’s d e c i s i o n to b a r Planned Parenthood from future grants because of a probe spurred by anti-abortion groups.

The decision was reversed on

Friday after a huge backlash, with critics saying Komen was hurting the very women it aims to serve.

Th e y a re wo m e n s u c h a s Ti n a Love, an independent filmmaker in Santa Barbara, Calif., whose sisterin-law is famed breast surgeon Dr. Susan Love. Four years ago, when she was 41, Tina Love went to a Planned Parenthood clinic in Santa Barbara.

“I had a lump and I didn’t have health insurance,” she explained.

The agency sent her for a free mammogram, which led to her cancer being diagnosed and treated. It’s not known exactly how many cancers Planned Parenthood has found.

B u t j u s t l a s t J u n e, K o m e n s a i d screenings it paid for caught 177 cancers over the last five years.

Some things you may not know about Planned Parenthood: Most of

its ser vices - 71 percent - are for birth control and testing and treatment of sexually transmitted diseases. Abortions made up 3 percent of its services in 2010.

Cancer screening accounted for about 15 percent. Most of Planned Parenthood’s clients are too young for breast cancer screening under most guidelines, although they are p r i m e a g e fo r ce r v i c a l c a n ce r screening. About 80 percent are under 35.

Planned Parenthood doesn’t follow the U.S. Preventive Services Task Fo rce g u i d e l i n e s, w h i c h d o n o t endorse clinical breast exams and re co m m e n d m a m m o gr a m s o n l y every other year starting at age 50.

Instead, Planned Parenthood does a physical breast exam on any woman of any age as part of a regular physical, and refers for mammograms any

women 40 and older.

Komen paid for just 170,000 of t h e m o re t h a n 4 m i l l i o n c l i n i c a l breast exams Planned Parenthood performed nationwide over the last five years, and just 6,400 of Planned Parenthood’s 70,000 mammography referrals in that time.

The government has long paid Planned Parenthood for ser vices related to cancer and sexually transmitted diseases. The group gets federal and state money for breast cancer screening service through a progr a m fo r p o o r a n d u n i n s u re d women.

Dr. Vanessa Cullins, a vice presid e n t w i t h P l a n n e d Pa re n t h o o d Federation of America, defended its use of clinical breast exams.

The exam, in which a doctor feels the breast for lumps, is “a good tool” when followed with mammograms

and other tests as needed, she said.

In women who may not see other doctors, “we are encouraging breast self-awareness” so that if a lump is found, they’ll seek help, she said.

It worked for Michele Azzaro, 45, of Dallas, who first went to Planned Parenthood when she found a lump back in her 20s.

It turned out not to be cancerous, and a mammogram provided through Planned Parenthood ruled out cancer again last year.

Azzaro is unemployed and has no i n s u r a n ce, a n d h a s re l i e d o n Planned Parenthood for cholesterol tests and pretty much all her medi c a l n e e d s fo r m o re t h a n t wo decades. “Without having their services, I honestly don’t know what I would do,” she said. “I’m grateful they’ve been there for me and millions of other women like me.” — AP

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TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2012

W H AT ’ S O N Greetings

R

etaj Mansoor Awad Al Saadi celebrated her second birthday recently. Best wishes from father Mansoor Awad Al Saadi, Abdullah Al Saadi, Rashad Al Saadi, Khalid Al Saadi, Nasar Al Saadi, Abdul Rahman Al Saadi.

Fire prevention week at ABS

A

t ABS student safety is a top priority. To further instill the importance of fire safety, the Kindergarten Department participated in Fire Safety Week from January 29 - February 1.

The week was filled with useful infor-

mation on what to do in case of a fire or emergency. On Monday, January 30, the local fire brigade visited the school to talk about fire safety, show us firefighter protective gear, and teachus about fire extinguishers.

The students were allowed to try on helmets, spray water from the fire hoses and climb into the big red fire engine. On Tuesday, January 31, the school conducted a fire drill where the KG students practiced evacuating the building and per-

forming “STOP, DROP, and ROLL”. The Fire Safety Week was finished off with discussions on how to call for help (dial 112) and why we should NEVER touch matches or lighters.

H

appy birthday to our dearest son Vamsi who celebrated his first birthday on Dec 19. May God shower you with a lot of blessings. Best wishes coming from father, mother, uncle, grandfather, grandmother, uncle Jalal Ahmed chunnu Mollah, Abdul Kader Mollah, Sara Kader, Khalil Kandari, Jalal Uddin and all Friends and relatives in India and Kuwait, Philippines, Indonesia and Sri Lanka.

Upcoming events

Celebrate ‘Hala February’ at the Regency Hotel

Kuwait Improv Fun lovers of Kuwait unite. A get together by people who love to surprise, be surprised and just be about at anything are welcome to Kuwait Improv, a gathering, reminiscent of the famous American TV program Whose Line is it Anyway, informally organized by American School of Kuwait teacher Brad Manker. No histrionic talent required, but a willingness to share.

Please contact:mankerb@ask.edu

T

he Regency Hotel invites guests to take advantage of a host for special promotions coinciding with Kuwait celebrations commemorating the liberation, and provides visitors to Kuwait with a wonderful opportunity to experience the Kuwaiti culture and spirit.

The Regency hotel invites you to celebrate “Hala February” with multitude of special room packages including complimentary breakfast at Silk Road Restaurant, fruit basket and a refreshing welcome drink.

The Regency Hotel overlooking the azure waters of the Arabian Gulf features an excellent choice of dining experience. Start your morning with steaming coffee and delicious breakfast buffet at Silk Road Restaurant, and indulge yourself throughout the day with the finest lunch or dinner buffet dishes from around the world.

Cruise trip Hala Feb cruise on 26/2/2012 for families & couples. Six hours trip to Failaka island. Cruise timings: 9 am to 3 pm & 3 pm to 9 pm. Tel: 55630229.

Tulu speaking classes Here’s a great opportunity for parents who always wished their children could learn Tulu. Tulu Koota Kuwait, in its objective towards promoting Tulu language and culture, is pleased to announce the opening of Tutu Speaking Classes “Tulu Siri” starting from the 10th February at Indian Public School Salmiya @ 11:30 am. For more details kindly contact Ramesh Kidiyoor-97204716/99596457,Shalini Vijay 66502369,Tharendra P. Shettigar - 66757979,Jayalaxmi Karkal - 66958848, Sathyanarayana Salian 66585077,Vanitha Dias-94996459. And our Website: www.tulukootakuwait.org Email: info@tulukootakuwait.org Palpak 4th AGM Palakkad Pravasi Association of Kuwait (Palpak) is conducting its Fourth Annual General Body Meeting on February 24, Friday at Hiphop Auditorium, Fahaheel from 10 am. The main agenda include as following, annual report on the activities during the year of 2011, the audited accounts report for the year of 2011. All members of Palpak are kindly requested to treat this as an official Invitation and attend the said Annual Genera1 body meeting on time. For more details please contact President P.N.Kumar (99771830) and General Secretary Aravindha Shan (66535989).

Lecture on construction Lecture on Do you wonder why Kuwait is always “under construction?” Dr. Farah Al-Nakib will be discussing her theories on why Kuwait City is forever being demolished and built anew since the 1950’s.

Mark your calendar, tell your friends - because this is a talk you will not want to miss today, February 7 at 7 pm at the Dar Al-Athar-Al-Islamiyyah’s Amricani Cultural Center.

Spiritual experience For a rewarding, spiritual and informative experience.

This is a 1 1/2 tour of one of Kuwait’s most famous landmarks ladies are required to cover (long sleeves and long ankle length skirt, otherwise the mosque will provide a cloak; If you have your own scarf you’re welcome to bring it). Cameras are allowed and children are welcome. This tour meets directly at the Grand Mosque at 9:15am on February 11. Directions to the Grand Mosque: Take Gulf Street towards the Kuwait Towers. Pass Souq Sharq with it on your right. Pass the Dickson House and Ministry of Planning with them on your left. By Seif Palace there is a large roundabout.

Take the 2nd exit off the roundabout. The Grand Mosque is now on your left. At traffic lights turn left.

Grand Mosque is on your left.

French concert Don’t miss the 1st concert of 2012 organized by the French Institute in Kuwait featuring talented musicians Smadj (Oud - Electro), Orhan Osman (Bouzouki) & Eric Gaulthier (Clarinet)! Sure to be a fantastic crowd pleaser! Ne manquez pas le 1er concert de l’annee 2012 organisÈ par l’Institut franÁais du Koweit. avec Smadj (Oud - electro), Orhan Osman (Bouzouki) et Eric Gaulthier (Clarinette)! On Monday, February 13 at the Kuwait Boy Scout Theater from 7:30pm - 9pm.

Golden Era Club On February 10, the Golden Era Club will hold a workshop on “Positive Thinking & The Law of Attraction” to be conducted by ardent and successful practitioner, Wilson Crawford D’Souza (of Lemonade International Fame). The workshop will be followed by a unique ‘Human Bingo’ session. As always, all seniors (60+ years) are invited to join in the fun, frolic and friendship! From 5 pm - 7pm at Rumaithya, Block 2, Sate AlHusari Street, House #34, Next to Abu-Tammam Intermediate School for Boys Registration/more info: goldenera60@yahoo.com or 9717-2788/6620-8183.

The Regency Hotel’s stunning coastal setting provides a broad range of leisure options with a direct access to two secluded beaches, and five swimming pools, one of them located in the ladies lounge and reserved only for ladies These exclusive offers combined with the hotel’s attractive features provide an exciting festivity, the hotel is located near to the modern shopping areas, where “Hala February” promotions and entertainments are at their high point; the hotel’s robust WAN and wi-fi connection ensures that the guests’ communications needs are duly met during their stay throughout the festival period.

“Hala February” is the prime time to experience Kuwait’s hospitality at the Regency Hotel. The hotel’s facilities, friendly staff and family touch create the perfect atmosphere for the holiday.

Marina Hotel Kuwait participates in HORECA

M

arina Hotel Kuwait recently participated in the Horeca Kuwait 2012 exhibition for Hospitality and Food. The culinary competition which was organized for chefs attracted a large number of participants from across the leading hotels in Kuwait, food industries and food companies participated in the exhibition.

The three day event saw the participation of seven chefs from Marina Hotel Kuwait who attended the different categories including live traditional Arabic mezza, live cold sandwich making, live cooking from the basket and cold platter of fish, meat or poultry with great interest and enthusiasm.

Talking about their participation in the exhibition, Mr. Nabil Hammoud,

General Manager of the hotel said: “We consider HORECA to be an important event and a platform for business opportunities. It’s the perfect place for us to showcase the talents of the hotels chef’s and a pleasure participating in the competition organized.”

The participating chef’s were Chef Wael Alkhlief, Chef Niroshan Sanjeewa Makawita Liyanage, Chef Ligorio D’Souza, Chef Sampath Priyashantha Karunagoda Mudalige, Mohamed Abd El Hamid Abd El Hamid Farahat, Edirimunige Jagath Kumara De Silva and Ashan Darshana. The Chef’s won bronze medals in all categories.

A multi disciplinary three day event, the HORECA exhibition attracted a large number of visitors.

Nabil Hammoud (center) with chefs

Sahara Kuwait Resort wins gold medal at Horeca culinary art competition

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The Sahara Kuwait Resort winning team with Hassan Bayerli, The General Manager and Mohamed Najia, The General Secretary of Kuwait Hotels Owners Association.

he Culinary Art Show took place during HORECA Kuwait from 22nd 24th January at the Arraya Ballroom, Courtyard Marriott Hotel. The Culinary Art Show is a competition which allow the chefs from different distinguished Hotels/ Resorts /Restaurants to show their flair and skills as they compete against other chefs in Kuwait.

A panel of local and international judges awarded medals and certificates

to the most outstanding competitors in each category. The team of Sahara Kuwait Resort consisted of Chaminda Gamage (Sous Chef) and Ismael Abulkhader (Commis) lead by Executive Chef: Mohammed Dorra won the Gold Medal against 15 teams from all over Kuwait in the “Live Cooking Basket” category.

GLEE-esque show choir This Valentine’s Day step into a musical Love Story performed by Vocal Rhapsody, KLT’s first ever GLEE-esque show choir. Vocal Rhapsody’s “Love Story” - is a show choir production with hit songs from artists such as Journey, Queen, Katy Perry and Meatloaf. It promises to be an exciting evening for all with some classic songs that everyone will enjoy. contact: http://www.theklt.com Cultural program On the 10th of February 2012, Friday at 3:30 pm. A cultural program will be staged at the Carmel School Kuwait, Khaitan. This will include a Book Fair and an Art Competition with a Musical Drama (JanatarDak). It is written n Directed by Rafiqul Islam Bulu and organized by the Bangladesh Udjapon Committee Kuwait. This is an open invitation, All are welcome.

Sadu weaving workshop This workshop is of four weeks duration, and it will be held twice a week. The morning group sessions are on Monday and Wednesday from 9am to 12pm. The evening group are on Sunday and Tuesday from 4:30pm to 7:30pm. A total of 8 sessions of three hours each.

This workshop will be held from January 22nd to February 18th.

For more Information kindly contact Sadu House at: info@alsadu.org.kw

CIC Workers Forum gave a sendoff to their colleague Ibrahim Kutty who is leaving Kuwait after 35 years of service.

31

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2012

W H AT ’ S O N

Embassy Information EMBASSY OF BRAZIL The Embassy of Brazil requests all Brazilian citizens in Kuwait to proceed to the website www.brazil.org.kw (Contact Us Form / Fale Conosco) in order to register or update contact information. The Embassy encourages all citizens to do so, including the ones who have already registered in person at the Embassy. The registration process helps the Brazilian Government to contact and assist Brazilians living abroad in case of any emergency. nnnnnnn

EMBASSY OF CANADA The Embassy of Canada is located at Villa 24, Al-Mutawakel St., Block 4 in Da’aiyah.

Please visit our website at www.Kuwait.gc.ca. The Embassy of Canada is open from 07:30 to 15:30 Sunday through Thursday. The reception is closed from 12:30 to 01:00 pm for lunch break. Consular Services for Canadian Citizens are provided from 09:00 until 12:00 on Sunday through Wednesday. Canada offers a registration service for all Canadians travelling or living abroad. This service is provided so that Consular Officials can contact and assist Canadians in an emergency in a foreign country, such as a natural disaster or civil unrest, or inform Canadians of a family emergency at home. The Embassy of Canada encourages all Canadian Citizens to register online through the Government of Canada Travel Website at www.voyage.gc.ca.

The Canadian Embassy in Abu Dhabi provides visa and immigration services to residents of Kuwait. Individuals who are interested in visiting, working or immigrating to Canada are invited to visit the website of the Canadian Embassy to the UAE at www.UAE.gc.ca. nnnnnnn

EMBASSY OF KOREA The Embassy of the Republic of Korea wishes to inform that it has moved to Mishref.

New Address: Embassy of the Republic of Korea Mishref, Block 7A, Diplomatic Area 2, Plot 6 The Embassy also wishes to inform that it will be opened to the public on the following office hours: Saturdays to Thursday Morning: 8:00 am to 12:30 pm Lunch Break: 12:30 pm to 1:00 pm Afternoon: 1:00 pm to 3:30 pm nnnnnnn

EMBASSY OF INDIA The Embassy of India will remain closed on the following dates during the month of February 2012.

National Day of Kuwait - Feb 25, - Saturday.

Liberation Day of Kuwait - Feb 26, - Sunday.

‘Kuwaiti women will never give up’

T

he International Women’s Group gathered at the Radisson Blue on Feb 5 to attend a talk delivered by Dr Moudi Al-Homoud on the position enjoyed by Kuwaiti women in society.

Sebel van Tonder, wife of the Ambassador of South Africa and President of the International Women’s Group expressed concern, along with other members, on the recently held election results. Dr Moudi reassured that the country’s women are determined to continue fighting for their rights. van Tonder said that a Kuwaiti speaker is usually invited to speak so as to commemorate the National Day and Liberation Day.

Dr Moudi, an exemplary Kuwaiti woman, was chosen as key note speaker this time. The IWG has members from many different countries, who are unfamiliar with the role and achievements of women in Kuwait.

In the beginning of her speech, Dr Moudi highlighted the hard-

ship faced by Kuwaiti women during the last thirty years. She felt that the election results are a major setback to women in the country and vowed to fight back.

She asserted that it is important for Kuwaitis to unite, as men and women, as Shia and Sunni, as Bedouin and urban settlers to face

the world. She added that women need immense support so that they can actively participate in political activities.

In a question and answer session that followed, different issues pertinent to the rights and role played by women was discussed.

Dr Moudi did not expect sweep-

GUST graduate accepted at Mountbatten NY

F

ayed, a 3.95 GPA graduate, was also one of GUST’s most active students, whether through academic related events or extracurricular activities. GUST strives to recognize students like Fayed and their potential for growth and success and so continuously alert all students about different programs: locally, regionally and internationally. One of the programs was Mountbatten. The announcement for Mountbatten as well as other scholarship programs are sent regularly to GUST students by the International Programs Office - part of the Academic Affairs Department at the university and also includesthe organization of annual summer scholarships to US universities, including University of Missouri St. Louis and starting Summer 2012, Florida International University.When she heard about Mountbatten, Nada jumped for the opportunity and applied.

Mountbatten Institute is an

exchange program that provides unique international study and work opportunities for graduates in association with the Graduate School of Management and Social Sciences of St. Mary’s University College, Twickenham, London. It combines an MBA in International Business Practice along with a one year of paid relevant work experience in the biggest financial capital of the world - New York and in some of the biggest firms there, including: Deutsche Bank, JP Morgan Chase, Citi, American Express, Royal Bank of Scotland, etc.

Mountbatten offers a 12-month program of a full-time paid internship in one of the sponsor companies while studying part-time towards attaining an MBA degree taught by professors from NYU, Harvard and Columbia University. This includes an additional semester of intensive study in Naresuan University, Bangkok, Thailand upon completion of the 1 year in New

York with the opportunity to visit the business centers of Asia in India, Singapore, Hong Kong as part of the dissertation research for your MBA. Both qualifications are awarded by St. Mary’s University College, Twickenham, London, UK. Fayed, is ecstatic: “Getting my MBA has always been my goal. My Bachelor’s was just the first step on the ladder!

GUST Accounting Department and Professors did a great job in preparing me for such work environment. It wasn’t just about the extensive accounting coursework; it was beyond the classroom experience. They introduced me to the rigorous world of Financial Accounting that helped in preparing me for my career.”

GUST is extremely proud of Fayed’s achievement and wishes her continued success in her journey and hopes that all their students find the path towards their dreams and prosperity.

ing changes to take place with Islamists being voted to power and went on to say that decisions can only be made in consultation with the executive and legislature.

She reiterated that the country’s future is not bleak although tribal elections have created considerable schisms in society, in response to an ambassador’s spouse’s question. The former minister recalled having sailed through tougher times during 1960’s and 70s, underlining that women were more marginalized then, but have carved their own niche today in every field through grit and determination. Women will never give up, she stressed.

ESF IGCSE options evening The English School Fahaheel will hold an “Options Evening” on Tuesday February 7, for prospective IGCSE students in the Lloyd Webber Theatre. ESF gallery presents ‘flowers’: The English School Fahaheel is proud to announce the opening of a new art exhibition at the ESF Gallery. “Flowers” will run through to February 18th. ESF Gallery timings 8am-2pm.

HMWA seerat program Hyderabad Muslim Welfare Association (HMWA) will hold a yearly programme on the life of Prophet Mohammed (PBUH) titled “Rafanaka Laka Zikrak” on 10th Feb soon after Friday prayer in Masjid-e-Abdullah Al Mehri next to famous Edi Stores and in front of Titanic building in Salmiya. Prominent scholars from Kuwait will speak on the selected topics focusing life of Prophet (PBUH) and his message to whole humanity and in particular to Muslim Umma. For details call 99481599, 50605074, 66605881.

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EMBASSY OF MYANMAR Embassy of the Republic of the Union of Myanmar would like to inform the general public that the Embassy will move its office to new location at Villa 35, Road 203, Block 2, AlSalaam Area in South Surra. The Embassy wishes to advice Myanmar citizens and travellers to Myanmar to contact Myanmar Embassy at its new location from 26 January, 2012. Tel. 25240736, 25240290, Fax: 25240749, e-mail:myankuwait11@gmai1.com nnnnnnn

EMBASSY OF PHILIPPINES For emergency, please contact the Consular hotline at 65184433. The Philippine Overseas Labor Office and other attached agencies shall continue to operate and hold office in Jabriya until 15 March 2012. All your passports and other consular concerns will be processed at our new location, except of course labor issues.

Regular working hours of the Embassy shall resume in Faiha. nnnnnnn

EMBASSY OF RUSSIA Embassy of the Russian Federation invites all the Russian residents in Kuwait to visit the Consulate for registration and updating your database. This information is necessary for prompt notice, assistance and warning in case of emergency. The consulate reception hours: 10:00 - 13:00, Sunday - Wednesday. The Embassy is located in Kuwait City, Daiya, Block 5, Diplomatic campus, Plot 17. Tel: (+965) 22560427, 22560428. Fax: (+965) 22524969, e-mail: rusposkuw@mail.ru, consdepkuw@mail.ru Information also available on the website: www.kuwait.mid.ru nnnnnnn

EMBASSY OF UKRAINE We’d like to inform you that in response to the increasing number of our citizens who work in the state and the need for 24-hour operational telephone in case of emergency the Embassy of Ukraine in the State of Kuwait has opened “hotline telephone number” (+ 965) 972-79-206. nnnnnnn

Comedy play Indian Cultural Society proudly presents new concept of comedy play “Mujhse Shaadi Karogi” with Bhagyashree & Akshay Ananad along with Krutika Sharma, Prairna & Navin Agarwal on 17th Feb at 7 pm sharp at Dr Kamil Al Rays auditorium American International School near Police station Maidan Hawally Kuwait. The Chief Guest for the event will be Ambassador of India, Kuwait and the guest of honor will be prominent personalities from Kuwait. For more information log on to ics.kuwait@gmail.com Music festival On March 1, 2012, the “Blend Music Festival,” a mellow acoustic get-together of several local musicians, will take place in Bayt Lothan, the official sponsor, host, and curator of the event. This event will be FREE of charge and open to everyone to attend. We hope to see you all there, and here’s to a great start to 2012!

The “Blend Music Festival” will be the first of many concerts to be held; there are a handful of musicians on board, and more will be added to the sets at a later stage. Here is the program for March 1st: 1- Ali Sleeq with Gary Ruston & Kevin Owen = JAZZ; 2- Hadi Sarieddine, Bader Nana, & Sarj = ROCK; 3- Lewis Chapman - FOLK / ROCK.

EMBASSY OF VENEZUELA Embassy of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela , request Venezuelan citizens living in Kuwait to register with the Embassy. This registration service is provided so that the Embassy can update its contact list and assist Venezuelan citizens in cases of emergencies. Registration Information 25324367 or by email: embavenez@gmail.com. From Sunday to Thursday from 8.30am till 2 pm.

Write to us Send to What’s On upcoming events, birthdays or celebrations by email: local@kuwaittimes.net Fax: 24835619 / 20

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e niv rsar n

00:20 Karina: Wild On Safari 00:50 Animal Cops Houston 01:45 Untamed & Uncut 02:40 Shark Attack File 03:35 Dogs 101 04:30 Karina: Wild On Safari 04:55 Karina: Wild On Safari 05:25 Amazing Animal Inventions!

06:20 Escape To Chimp Eden 06:45 Dolphin Days 07:10 Animal Precinct 08:00 Gorilla School 08:25 Chris Humfrey’s Wildlife 08:50 Talk To The Animals 09:15 The Really Wild Show 09:40 Breed All About It 10:10 Must Love Cats 11:05 Amazing Animal Inventions!

12:00 Michaela’s Animal Road Trip 12:55 SSPCA: On The Wildside 13:20 Wildlife SOS 13:50 Dogs 101 14:45 Animal Cops Philadelphia 15:40 Amazing Animal Inventions!

16:30 Echo And The Elephants Of Amboseli 17:00 The Really Wild Show 17:30 Chris Humfrey’s Wildlife 18:00 Talk To The Animals 18:25 Dogs 101: Specials 19:20 America’s Cutest...

20:15 Gorilla School 20:40 Wildlife SOS 21:10 Escape To Chimp Eden 21:35 Dolphin Days 22:05 Amazing Animal Inventions!

23:00 Big Five Challenge 23:55 Venom Hunter With Donald Schultz

00:45 01:15 01:45 02:35 03:05 03:30 04:00 04:20 04:30 04:45 05:00 05:05 05:25 05:35 05:50 06:10 06:20 06:30 06:45 06:50 07:10 07:20 07:35 08:05 08:35 09:20 09:50 10:20 11:10 12:00 12:30 13:00 13:45 14:15 14:45 15:35 16:25 17:10 17:40 18:10 19:00 20:00 20:50 21:20 21:50 22:40 23:25

Eastenders Doctors Waking The Dead Last Of The Summer Wine As Time Goes By Keeping Up Appearances Balamory Charlie and Lola The Large Family Bobinogs Buzz & Tell Tweenies Little Prairie Dogs Nina And The Neurons Balamory Charlie and Lola The Large Family Bobinogs Buzz & Tell Tweenies Little Prairie Dogs Nina And The Neurons Last Of The Summer Wine As Time Goes By The Weakest Link Eastenders Doctors Holby City Mutual Friends Keeping Up Appearances Last Of The Summer Wine The Weakest Link Eastenders Doctors Holby City Mutual Friends The Weakest Link Eastenders Doctors Holby City Great Expectations New Tricks Oliver Twist Oliver Twist Lark Rise to Candleford The Weakest Link Holby City

00:10 01:00 01:55 03:10

Antiques Roadshow Masterchef Masterchef 10 Years Younger

04:00 Fantasy Homes By The Sea 04:45 Gok’s Fashion Fix 05:35 Gok’s Fashion Fix 06:20 Fantasy Homes By The Sea 07:05 Antiques Roadshow 08:00 Cash In The Attic USA 08:20 What To Eat Now - Summer 08:50 Masterchef Australia 09:15 Masterchef Australia 10:25 Bargain Hunt 11:10 Antiques Roadshow 12:00 Come Dine With Me 12:50 10 Years Younger 13:40 Fantasy Homes Down Under 14:25 Fantasy Homes Down Under 15:10 Fantasy Homes By The Sea 15:55 Holmes On Homes 16:40 Bargain Hunt 17:25 Antiques Roadshow 18:15 Fantasy Homes Down Under 19:00 Raymond Blanc’s Kitchen Secrets 19:30 Raymond Blanc’s Kitchen Secrets 20:00 10 Years Younger 20:50 Fantasy Homes Down Under 21:35 Fantasy Homes Down Under 22:20 Bargain Hunt 23:05 Antiques Roadshow

00:00 00:20 00:45 01:10 01:35 02:00 02:25 02:50 03:15 03:40 04:00 04:25 04:50 05:15 05:40 06:00 06:25 06:50 07:00 07:30 07:55 08:20 08:45 09:00 09:25 09:50 10:15 10:40 11:05 11:25 11:50 12:15 12:40 13:00 13:15 13:40 13:55 14:45 15:10 Doo 15:35 16:00 16:50 17:15 17:40 18:05 18:20 19:10 19:35 Doo 20:00 20:15 20:40 21:05 21:30 21:55 22:20 22:45 23:10 23:35

Wacky Races Dastardly And Muttley New Yogi Bear Show Duck Dodgers The Perils Of Penelope Pitstop Tom & Jerry Kids A Pup Named Scooby-Doo The Jetsons Puppy In My Pocket Popeye Tom & Jerry Looney Tunes Scooby Doo Where Are You! Droopy: Master Detective Wacky Races The Flintstones A Pup Named Scooby-Doo Popeye Classics The Garfield Show Bananas In Pyjamas Baby Looney Tunes Gerald McBoing Boing Jelly Jamm Pink Panther And Pals Pink Panther And Pals Puppy In My Pocket The Scooby Doo Show Scooby Doo Where Are You! The Flintstones Duck Dodgers Tom & Jerry Kids Pink Panther And Pals Wacky Races Jelly Jamm Baby Looney Tunes Bananas In Pyjamas The Garfield Show A Pup Named Scooby-Doo Scooby-Doo And ScrappyLooney Tunes Puppy In My Pocket Pink Panther And Pals Pink Panther And Pals Tom & Jerry Tom & Jerry The Garfield Show The Scooby Doo Show Scooby-Doo And ScrappyJelly Jamm Baby Looney Tunes Gerald McBoing Boing Bananas In Pyjamas Pink Panther And Pals Tom & Jerry Looney Tunes Scooby Doo Where Are You! Droopy: Master Detective The Flintstones

00:40 Samurai Jack 01:05 Samurai Jack 01:30 The Marvelous Misadventures Of Flapjack 02:20 Bakugan Battle Brawlers 02:45 Bakugan Battle Brawlers

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2012

TV PROGRAMS

Years

03:10 Best Ed 04:00 Ben 10: Ultimate Alien 04:25 Adventure Time 04:50 Generator Rex 05:15 Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated 05:40 Grim Adventures Of Billy And Mandy 05:55 I Am Weasel 06:55 Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated 07:20 Powerpuff Girls 07:45 Angelo Rules 08:00 Casper’s Scare School 08:30 The Amazing World Of Gumball 08:45 Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated 09:15 Ben 10: Ultimate Alien 09:40 Batman: The Brave And The Bold 10:05 Angelo Rules 10:30 Chowder 10:55 Adventure Time 11:20 Eliot Kid 11:35 The Marvelous Misadventures Of Flapjack 12:00 Ben 10 12:25 Sym-Bionic Titan 12:50 Courage The Cowardly Dog 13:15 I Am Weasel 13:40 Best Ed 14:05 Cow & Chicken 14:30 My Gym Partner’s A Monkey 14:50 Eliot Kid 15:15 Bakugan Battle Brawlers 15:40 Ben 10: Alien Force 16:05 Courage The Cowardly Dog 16:30 Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated 16:55 The Amazing World Of Gumball 17:10 Adventure Time 17:35 Regular Show 18:00 Cow & Chicken 18:25 Bakugan: Gundalian Invaders 18:50 Ben 10: Ultimate Alien 19:15 Angelo Rules 19:30 Total Drama World Tour 19:55 Hero 108 20:25 Sym-Bionic Titan 20:50 Adventure Time 21:25 The Grim Adventures Of Billy & Mandy 21:50 Courage 22:25 The Marvelous Misadventures Of Flapjack 22:50 Cow And Chicken 23:00 Ben 10 23:25 Ben 10 23:50 Courage The Cowardly Dog

00:15 00:40 01:35 02:30 03:25 04:20 05:15 05:40 06:05 07:00 07:50 08:45 09:40 10:05 10:30 10:55 11:25 15:05 16:00 16:55 17:50 18:45 19:10 19:40 20:05 20:35 21:00 21:30 22:25 23:20

Destroyed In Seconds Moments Of Terror Dirty Jobs Overhaulin’ Ultimate Survival Mythbusters How Does It Work?

How It’s Made Dirty Jobs Mythbusters Wreckreation Nation One Man Army How Does It Work?

Cake Boss Border Security Auction Kings X-Machines X-Machines Overhaulin’ Ultimate Survival Mythbusters Cash Cab Us Border Security Auction Kings How It’s Made How Does It Work?

Cake Boss One Man Army Taking On Tyson Daredevils

00:00 00:25 00:50 01:15

KIM POSSIBLE FAIRLY ODD PARENTS FAIRLY ODD PARENTS STITCH

THE WARLORDS ON OSN ACTION HD

01:35 STITCH 02:00 REPLACEMENTS 02:25 REPLACEMENTS 02:50 EMPEROR’S NEW SCHOOL 03:15 EMPEROR’S NEW SCHOOL 03:35 STITCH 04:00 STITCH 04:25 REPLACEMENTS 04:50 REPLACEMENTS 05:15 FAIRLY ODD PARENTS 05:35 FAIRLY ODD PARENTS 06:00 HANNAH MONTANA 06:20 RECESS 06:45 TIMON AND PUMBAA 07:05 PHINEAS AND FERB 07:30 Good Luck Charlie 07:55 FISH HOOKS 08:10 WIZARDS OF WAVERLY PLACE 08:35 MICKEY MOUSE CLUBHOUSE 09:00 JAKE & THE NEVERLAND PIRATES 09:15 JAKE & THE NEVERLAND PIRATES 09:25 HANDY MANNY 09:40 THE HIVE 09:47 MINI ADVENTURES OF WINNIE THE POOH 09:50 RECESS 10:15 SO RANDOM 10:40 HAVE A LAUGH 10:45 HANNAH MONTANA 11:10 SUITE LIFE ON DECK 11:35 JAKE & BLAKE 12:00 SONNY WITH A CHANCE 12:25 WIZARDS OF WAVERLY PLACE 12:45 PHINEAS AND FERB 13:10 SO RANDOM 13:30 SUITE LIFE ON DECK 13:55 WIZARDS OF WAVERLY PLACE 14:20 HAVE A LAUGH 14:30 PHINEAS AND FERB 14:55 Good Luck Charlie 15:20 MY BABYSITTER’S A VAMPIRE 15:45 FISH HOOKS 16:10 Good Luck Charlie 16:40 Good Luck Charlie 17:05 Good Luck Charlie 17:30 MOM’S GOT A DATE WITH A VAMPIRE 18:47 PHINEAS AND FERB 19:10 Good Luck Charlie 19:30 HAVE A LAUGH 19:35 WIZARDS OF WAVERLY PLACE 20:00 HANNAH MONTANA 20:25 PHINEAS AND FERB 20:50 SHAKE IT UP 21:15 FISH HOOKS 21:35 RECESS 22:00 SHAKE IT UP 22:25 SHAKE IT UP 22:50 WIZARDS OF WAVERLY PLACE 23:15 WIZARDS OF WAVERLY PLACE 23:35 SONNY WITH A CHANCE

00:00 Mickey Mouse Clubhouse 00:25 Jake & The Neverland Pirates 00:40 Special Agent Oso 00:55 Little Einsteins 01:20 Timmy Time 01:30 Jungle Junction 01:45 Handy Manny 01:55 Mickey Mouse Clubhouse 02:20 Special Agent Oso 02:35 Special Agent Oso 02:50 Jungle Junction 03:05 Jungle Junction 03:15 Little Einsteins 03:40 Higglytown Heroes 03:55 Higglytown Heroes 04:10 Jo Jo’s Circus 04:30 Special Agent Oso 04:45 Special Agent Oso 05:00 Jungle Junction 05:15 Jungle Junction 05:25 Little Einsteins 05:50 Higglytown Heroes 06:05 Higglytown Heroes 06:20 Jo Jo’s Circus 06:40 Special Agent Oso 06:55 Special Agent Oso 07:10 Jungle Junction 07:25 Jungle Junction 07:35 Little Einsteins 08:00 Higglytown Heroes 08:15 Higglytown Heroes 08:30 Jo Jo’s Circus 08:50 Jungle Junction 09:00 Jungle Junction 09:15 Higglytown Heroes 09:30 Higglytown Heroes 09:45 Handy Manny 10:00 Special Agent Oso 10:15 Jungle Junction 10:30 Jungle Junction 10:45 Mickey Mouse Clubhouse 11:10 The Hive 11:20 Handy Manny 11:35 Jake & The Neverland Pirates 11:50 Jake & The Neverland Pirates 12:05 The Hive 12:15 Mini Adventures Of Winnie The Pooh 12:20 Lazytown 12:45 The Hive 12:55 Mickey Mouse Clubhouse 13:20 Imagination Movers 13:45 Art Attack (Cema) 14:10 Imagination Movers 14:35 Special Agent Oso 14:45 Lazytown 15:10 Handy Manny 15:25 Jungle Junction 15:40 Imagination Movers 16:05 The Hive 16:15 Special Agent Oso 16:25 Little Einsteins 16:50 Lazytown 17:15 Mickey Mouse Clubhouse 17:40 Jake & The Neverland Pirates 17:55 Jake & The Neverland Pirates 18:05 Handy Manny 18:20 Handy Manny 18:30 The Hive 18:40 Jake & The Neverland Pirates 18:55 Imagination Movers 19:20 Lazytown 19:45 Art Attack (Cema) 20:10 Lazytown 20:30 Jungle Junction 20:45 Handy Manny 20:55 Jake & The Neverland Pirates 21:10 Jake & The Neverland Pirates 21:25 The Hive 21:35 Little Einsteins 22:00 Mini Adventures Of Winnie The Pooh 22:05 Mickey Mouse Clubhouse 22:25 101 Dalmatians 22:40 101 Dalmatians 22:50 Jake & The Neverland Pirates 23:05 Jake & The Neverland Pirates 23:20 The Hive 23:30 Mini Adventures Of Winnie The Pooh 23:35 A Poem Is...

23:40 Animated Stories 23:45 Jungle Junction

00:25 Kendra 00:55 Style Star 01:25 E!es 02:20 THS 03:15 25 Most Stylish 04:10 Sexiest 05:05 Extreme Hollywood 06:00 THS 07:50 Behind The Scenes 08:20 E! News 09:15 Scouted 10:15 THS 12:05 E! News 13:05 Kendra 13:35 Kendra 14:05 Keeping Up With Kardashians 14:35 Keeping Up With Kardashians 15:00 Style Star 15:30 THS 16:25 Behind The Scenes 16:55 Khloe And Lamar 17:25 Khloe And Lamar 17:55 E! News 18:55 THS 19:55 E!es 20:25 Kourtney & Kim Take York 20:55 Chelsea Lately 21:25 Kendra 21:55 Kendra 22:25 E! News 23:25 Chelsea Lately 23:55 Keeping Up With Kardashians

00:40 01:30 02:15 03:05 03:50 04:40 05:25 06:15 07:10 08:00 08:50 09:40 10:25 11:10 11:35 11:55 12:40 13:25 14:15 15:00 15:25 15:50 16:35 17:20 18:10 19:00 19:45 20:10 20:55 21:20 22:10 23:00 23:50

00:00 01:00 01:55 02:50 03:15 03:45 04:40 05:35 06:30 07:25 08:20 09:15 10:10 10:35 11:05 12:00 13:00 14:00 15:00 16:00 17:00 17:30 18:00 19:00 20:00 21:00 22:00 23:00 23:30

The The

New

The

Dr G: Medical Examiner Ghost Lab A Haunting Nightmare Next Door Nightmare Next Door Dr G: Medical Examiner Ghost Lab A Haunting Mystery Diagnosis FBI Files Forensic Detectives Murder Shift Mystery Diagnosis Real Emergency Calls Who On Earth Did I Marry?

On The Case With Paula Zahn Disappeared Murder Shift Mystery Diagnosis Real Emergency Calls Who On Earth Did I Marry?

On The Case With Paula Zahn Disappeared FBI Files Forensic Detectives Murder Shift Real Emergency Calls Mystery Diagnosis Who On Earth Did I Marry?

On The Case With Paula Zahn Disappeared Couples Who Kill Deadly Women

Will Work For Nuts Africa’s Secret Seven Hollywood Bear Tragedy Monkey Thieves Monkey Thieves Living With Big Cats Caught In The Act Great Migrations Caught Barehanded I, Predator The Invaders Hollywood Bear Tragedy Monkey Thieves Monkey Thieves Living With Big Cats World’s Deadliest Animals Monster Jellyfish Ultimate Shark The Invaders Killer Shots Monkey Thieves Monkey Thieves Sumatra’s Last Tiger Monster Jellyfish Ultimate Shark The Invaders Killer Shots Monkey Thieves Monkey Thieves

00:00 Storm Warning-18 02:00 Let Me In-R 04:00 RoboCop-PG15 06:00 The Warlords-PG15 08:00 The Karate Kid II-PG 10:00 Last Breath-PG15 12:00 Superman/ Batman: Apocalypse-PG15 14:00 The Karate Kid II-PG 16:00 Odysseus: Voyage To The Underworld-PG15 18:00 Superman/ Batman: Apocalypse-PG15 20:00 Tortured-18 22:00 Drunken Master-PG15

01:15 Brothers-18 03:15 Red-PG15 05:30 Freestyle (2010)-PG15 07:15 Tomorrow, When The War Began-PG15 09:00 Elle: A Modern Cinderella Tale-PG15 11:00 Prom-PG15 13:00 Tomorrow, When The War Began-PG15 15:00 Fly Me To The Moon-PG 17:00 Revenge Of The Bridesmaids¬-PG15 19:00 Easy A-PG15 21:00 Bound By A Secret-PG15 23:00 Homecoming-18

03:00 03:30 04:00 05:30 06:00 08:30 09:00 12:00 12:30 13:00 13:30 14:00 16:30 18:00 18:30 19:00

Friends Friends Dharma And Greg Tyler Perry’s House Of Payne Malcolm In The Middle Friends Tyler Perry’s House Of Payne Malcolm In The Middle Dharma And Greg Tyler Perry’s House Of Payne Just Shoot Me Friends How I Met Your Mother Friends Friends Modern Family

RED ON OSN CINEMA 19:30 Parks And Recreation 20:00 The Tonight Show With Jay Leno 21:00 The Daily Show With Jon Stewart 21:30 The Colbert Report 22:00 Weeds 22:30 Funny Or Die Presents 23:30 Late Night With Jimmy Fallon

PG15 10:45 13:00 15:00 17:00 19:00 21:00 23:15

00:00 01:00 02:00 03:00 04:00 05:00 07:00 08:00 08:30 09:00 10:00 11:00 12:00 13:00 14:00 15:00 17:00 18:00 18:30 19:00 20:00 21:00 22:00 23:00

01:00 The Maiden Heist-PG15 03:00 Antwone Fisher-PG15 05:00 Flash Of Genius-PG15 07:00 Knucklehead-PG15 09:00 The Prince And Me 4: Elephant Adventure-PG15 11:00 The Eclipse-PG15 13:00 The Last Song-PG15 15:00 Percy Jackson And Lightning Thief-PG15 17:00 The Prince And Me 4: Elephant Adventure-PG15 19:00 The Prince And Me 4: Elephant Adventure-PG15 21:00 Bound By A Secret-PG15 23:00 Elevator Girl-PG15

Desperate Housewives Breaking Bad Top Gear (US) Revenge The Gates Good Morning America Eureka Emmerdale Coronation Street The Ellen DeGeneres Show The Martha Stewart Show The View Desperate Housewives Revenge Eureka Live Good Morning America The Ellen DeGeneres Show Emmerdale Coronation Street Grey’s Anatomy Private Practice Royal Pains Terriers The Gates

00:00 01:00 02:00 03:00 04:00 05:00 06:00 07:00 07:30 08:00 09:00 10:00 11:00 12:00 12:30 13:00 14:00 15:00 16:00 16:30 17:00 18:00 19:00 20:00 21:00 22:00 23:00

Cold Case Top Gear (US) Breaking Bad Desperate Housewives Revenge The Gates Cold Case How I Met Your Mother Coronation Street House Top Gear (US) Desperate Housewives Revenge How I Met Your Mother Coronation Street The Ellen DeGeneres Show House Cold Case Parks And Recreation Coronation Street The Ellen DeGeneres Show Parenthood Grey’s Anatomy Private Practice Royal Pains Hawthorne In Plain Sight

01:00 03:00 05:00 07:00 PG15 09:00 11:00 13:00 15:00 17:00 19:00 21:00 23:00

The Wolfman-18 RoboCop-PG15 Medium Raw-PG15 A Lonely Place For DyingX-Men-PG15 Planet Of The Apes-PG15 The Next Karate Kid-PG X-Men-PG15 Hurricane Season-PG15 Full Metal Jacket-18 Drunken Master-PG15 Survival Of The Dead-18

00:00 Guarding Tess-PG 02:00 Cop Out-PG15 04:00 Born Yesterday-PG15 06:00 My Father The Hero-PG15 08:00 Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement-FAM 10:00 Nanny Mcphee And The Big Bang-PG 12:00 The Adventures Of Rocky And Bullwinkle-FAM 14:00 You Again-PG15 16:00 Guarding Tess-PG 18:00 The Lonely Guy-PG15 20:00 Elevator Girl-PG15 22:00 It’s Complicated-PG15

01:00 03:15 05:00 07:00 09:00

Wolf-18 Babies-PG15 Not Since You-PG15 Preacher’s Kid-PG The Young Black Stallion-

The Remains Of The Day-PG15 Make It Funky!-PG15 On Broadway-PG15 Leaving Normal-PG15 Gilles’ Wife-PG15 Secretariat-PG15 Ghost-PG15

The

00:30 Scottish FA Cup 02:30 European PGA Tour 07:00 Scottish Cup 09:00 Golfing World 10:00 World Cup Of Pool 11:00 World Pool Masters 12:00 Bass Fishing 13:00 Trans World Sport 14:00 Scottish Cup 16:00 Sevens World Series 19:00 Scottish Cup 21:00 Futbol Mundial 21:30 Scottish Premier League Highlights 22:00 Trans World Sport 23:00 ODI Cricket Highlights 23:30 Golfing World

The The The

01:45 Time Kid-FAM 03:45 Last Of The Mohicans-PG 06:00 The Country Bears-PG 08:00 Winner & The Golden Child: Part I-FAM 10:00 Tom And Jerry & The Wizard Of Oz-FAM 11:45 The Country Bears-PG 14:00 Zorro And Scarlet Whip Revealed-PG15 16:00 Tom Tom & Nana-FAM 17:45 Tom And Jerry & The Wizard Of Oz-FAM 19:30 I’ll Be Home For Christmas-PG 22:00 Zorro And Scarlet Whip Revealed-PG15

00:00 The Kid-18 02:00 The Man Who Came With The Snow-PG15 03:45 Cats & Dogs: The Revenge Of Kitty Galore-PG 05:30 South Solitary-PG15 08:00 Head Over Heels-PG15 10:00 Diary Of A Wimpy Kid-PG 12:00 Sounds Like Teen Spirit-PG15 14:00 Get Low-PG15 16:00 Head Over Heels-PG15 17:45 Jane Eyre-PG15 20:00 Ironclad-18 22:15 Gulliver’s Travels-PG

01:00 03:00 04:00 04:30 05:00 07:00 09:00 10:00 14:30 15:00 16:00 18:00 20:00 22:00 22:30 23:00

Super League Trans World Sport ODI Cricket Highlights Futbol Mundial Super League Super League Trans World Sport European PGA Tour ODI Cricket Highlights Trans World Sport Scottish Cup Super League Super League Futbol Mundial ODI Cricket Highlights Scottish Cup

00:00 01:00 02:00 03:00 04:00 05:00 06:00 07:00 08:00 09:00 10:00 11:00 12:00 13:00 14:00 15:00 16:00 17:00 17:30 18:00 19:00 20:00 21:00

WWE Experience V8 Supercars V8 Supercars Speedway Le Mans Series Highlights UFC Unleashed UFC Unleashed WWE NXT WWE Bottom Line Speedway Intercontinental Le Mans Cup V8 Supercars Championship V8 Supercars Championship WWE Bottom Line WWE Vintage Collection Intercontinental Le Mans Cup Speedway Power Boats UIM Power Boats UIM WWE NXT WWE Experience UFC Unleashed UFC 143

00:00 Top 14 Highlights 00:30 Sevens World Series 04:30 World Pool Masters 05:30 US Bass Fishing 06:30 FIVB Beach Volley Ball 07:00 Golfing World 08:00 European PGA Highlights 09:00 ODI Cricket Highlights 09:30 Anglo Welsh Cup 11:30 Trans World Sport 12:30 Golfing World 13:30 Super League 15:30 Anglo Welsh Cup 17:30 ODI Cricket Highlights 18:00 European PGA Highlights 19:00 Golfing World 20:00 Trans World Sports 23:00 European PGA Tour

Tour

Tour

00:00 01:00 02:00 03:00 04:00 05:00 06:00 07:00 08:00 09:00 10:00 11:00 12:00 13:00 14:00 15:00 16:00 17:00 18:00 19:00 20:00 21:00 21:30 22:00 22:30 23:00

Ancient Aliens Ax Men Tales Of The Gun Ice Road Truckers Ice Road Truckers UFO Files Ancient Aliens Ax Men Tales Of The Gun Ice Road Truckers Ice Road Truckers UFO Files Ancient Aliens Ax Men Tales Of The Gun Ice Road Truckers Ice Road Truckers UFO Files Ancient Aliens Ax Men Tales Of The Gun Pawn Stars Pawn Stars Pawn Stars Storage Wars Mud Men

00:05 01:00 02:00 02:25 02:55 03:50 04:20 05:15 06:10 07:05 08:00 08:30 09:00 10:00 10:25 10:55 11:50 12:50 13:50 14:15 14:45 15:45 16:10 16:40 17:35 18:30 19:25 20:25 21:20 22:15 23:10

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Jerseylicious Homes With Style Open House Videofashion Daily Videofashion News How Do I Look?

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Clean House Dress My Nest Mel B: It’s A Scary World How Do I Look?

Giuliana & Bill Giuliana & Bill Kimora: Life In The Fab Lane Jerseylicious Glam Fairy Fashion Police Giuliana & Bill Clean House: New York Wicked Fit Glam Fairy

Classifieds TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2012

DIAL 161 FOR AIRPORT INFORMATION

Airlines QTR JZR RBG JZR ETH THY UAE OMA QTR DHX MSR FDB ETD RJA GFA KAC FAH JZR JZR KAC BAW DHX KAC JZR KAC FDB KAC KAC KAC UAE ABY QTR ETD FDB IRA GFA IRA JZR RKM MEA MSR MSR JZR KAC GFA KAC FDB UAL GRF QTR SVA KAC RJA KAC KAC JZR QTR KAC KNE JZR JZR ETD UAE FDB GFA SVA ABY JZR RBG ALK JZR KAC FDB KAC KAC JZR KAC KAC KAC KAC KAC KAC FDB KAC JAI OMA DHX MEA GFA QTR UAE JZR KAC AIC KLM JZR UAL AXB BBC DLH

Arrival Flights on Tuesday 7/2/2012 Flt Route 138 DOHA 185 DUBAI 3564 ASSIUT 539 CAIRO 620 ADDIS ABABA 772 ISTANBUL 853 DUBAI 641 MUSCAT 148 DOHA 370 BAHRAIN 612 CAIRO 67 DUBAI 305 ABU DHABI 642 AMMAN 211 BAHRAIN 544 CAIRO 201 DUBAI 555 ALEXANDRIA 529 ASSIUT 416 JAKARTA 157 LONDON 170 BAHRAIN 412 MANILA 503 LUXOR 206 ISLAMABAD 53 DUBAI 352 COCHIN 302 MUMBAI 332 TRIVANDRUM 855 DUBAI 125 SHARJAH 132 DOHA 301 ABU DHABI 55 DUBAI 605 ISFAHAN 213 BAHRAIN 619 LAR 165 DUBAI 310 RAS ALKHAIMAH 404 BEIRUT 623 SOHAG 610 CAIRO 201 DAMASCUS 672 DUBAI 219 BAHRAIN 512 TEHRAN 57 DUBAI 982 WASHINGTON DC DULLES 93 KANDAHAR 140 DOHA 500 JEDDAH 546 ALEXANDRIA 640 AMMAN 562 AMMAN 284 DHAKA 257 BEIRUT 134 DOHA 678 ABU DHABI 945 JEDDAH 561 SOHAG 1535 CAIRO 303 ABU DHABI 857 DUBAI 59 DUBAI 215 BAHRAIN 510 RIYADH 127 SHARJAH 777 JEDDAH 3561 ALEXANDRIA 227 COLOMBO 177 DUBAI 614 BAHRAIN 63 DUBAI 542 CAIRO 744 DAMMAM 787 RIYADH 786 JEDDAH 618 DOHA 674 DUBAI 166 PARIS 104 LONDON 774 RIYADH 61 DUBAI 552 DAMASCUS 572 MUMBAI 647 MUSCAT 372 BAHRAIN 402 BEIRUT 217 BAHRAIN 136 DOHA 859 DUBAI 135 BAHRAIN 502 BEIRUT 981 CHENNAI 443 AMSTERDAM 239 AMMAN 981 BAHRAIN 389 KOZHIKODE 43 DHAKA 636 FRANKFURT

Time 0:20 0:20 0:40 0:50 1:45 2:15 2:35 2:50 2:55 2:55 3:00 3:05 3:10 3:10 3:15 4:40 5:30 6:00 6:20 6:25 6:40 6:40 6:45 7:25 7:40 7:45 7:50 7:55 8:05 8:30 9:00 9:05 9:15 9:20 9:45 9:55 10:50 11:20 11:45 11:55 12:30 12:55 13:00 13:20 13:25 13:40 13:50 14:05 14:15 14:20 14:30 14:30 14:40 14:45 15:00 15:00 15:25 15:30 15:40 16:10 16:25 16:50 16:55 17:05 17:15 17:20 17:40 17:45 17:50 18:10 18:15 18:35 18:40 18:50 18:55 19:05 19:10 19:15 19:25 19:30 19:35 19:40 20:00 20:05 20:10 20:15 21:00 21:20 21:25 21:35 21:40 21:55 22:00 22:05 22:05 22:45 23:00 23:35 23:45 23:50

Airlines UAL AIC BBC JZR PIA DLH RBG KAC ETH THY FDB UAE OMA ETD MSR DHX QTR QTR JZR GFA RJA JZR KAC FDB BAW KAC KAC JZR KAC JZR KAC JZR KAC UAE ABY ETD FDB QTR GFA IRA KAC IRA KAC JZR RKM MEA MSR KAC JZR MSR GFA FDB KAC KAC UAL RJA KAC SVA JZR KAC KAC KAC KAC QTR KNE JZR QTR ETD JZR FDB GRF UAE GFA ABY RBG SVA JZR JZR ALK FDB JZR KAC FDB KAC KAC JAI OMA DHX KAC DHX MEA GFA FAH QTR KAC JZR UAE KAC KLM JZR KAC

Departure Flights on Tuesday 7/2/2012 Flt Route 981 WASHINGTON 976 GOA 44 DHAKA 502 LUXOR 240 SIALKOT 637 FRANKFURT 3562 ALEXANDRIA 283 DHAKA 621 ADDIS ABABA 773 ISTANBUL 68 DUBAI 854 DUBAI 642 MUSCAT 306 ABU DHABI 613 CAIRO 371 BAHRAIN 139 DOHA 149 DOHA 164 DUBAI 212 BAHRAIN 643 AMMAN 200 DAMASCUS 545 ALEXANDRIA 54 DUBAI 156 LONDON 677 ABU DHABI 671 DUBAI 256 BEIRUT 511 IMAM KHOMEINI 1534 CAIRO 561 AMMAN 560 SOHAG 101 LONDON 856 DUBAI 126 SHARJAH 302 ABU DHABI 56 DUBAI 133 DOHA 214 BAHRAIN 604 ISFAHAN 165 ROME 618 LAR 541 CAIRO 776 JEDDAH 311 RAS ALKHAIMAH 405 BEIRUT 624 SOHAG 785 JEDDAH 176 DUBAI 611 CAIRO 220 BAHRAIN 58 DUBAI 551 DAMASCUS 673 DUBAI 982 BAHRAIN 641 AMMAN 613 BAHRAIN 501 JEDDAH 786 RIYADH 617 DOHA 743 DAMMAM 501 BEIRUT 773 RIYADH 141 DOHA 946 JEDDAH 238 AMMAN 135 DOHA 304 ABU DHABI 538 CAIRO 60 DUBAI 82 BAGHDAD 858 DUBAI 216 BAHRAIN 128 SHARJAH 3563 ASSIUT 511 RIYADH 266 BEIRUT 134 BAHRAIN 228 DUBAI 64 DUBAI 184 DUBAI 361 COLOMBO 62 DUBAI 343 CHENNAI 351 KOCHI 571 MUMBAI 648 MUSCAT 171 BAHRAIN 543 CAIRO 373 BAHRAIN 403 BEIRUT 218 BAHRAIN 102 DUBAI 137 DOHA 301 MUMBAI 554 ALEXANDRIA 860 DUBAI 205 ISLAMABAD 443 BAHRAIN 528 ASSIUT 411 BANGKOK

Time 0:45 0:50 1:00 1:05 1:10 1:20 1:25 2:40 2:45 3:15 3:45 3:50 3:55 4:00 4:00 4:30 4:40 5:40 6:55 7:00 7:10 7:30 7:40 8:25 8:40 8:55 9:00 9:00 9:15 9:15 9:20 9:30 9:35 9:40 9:45 10:00 10:05 10:10 10:40 10:45 11:45 11:50 12:00 12:15 12:50 12:55 13:30 13:40 13:50 13:55 14:20 14:35 14:40 15:05 15:20 15:35 15:35 15:45 15:50 15:50 16:15 16:15 16:25 16:30 16:35 17:15 17:25 17:35 17:40 17:50 18:00 18:10 18:15 18:25 18:30 18:35 18:45 19:05 19:10 19:20 19:55 20:20 20:40 20:55 21:05 21:10 21:15 21:50 21:55 22:00 22:20 22:25 22:30 22:35 22:45 22:45 22:50 23:00 23:05 23:35 23:55

Directorate General of Civil Aviation Home Page (www.kuwait-airport.com.kw)

FOR SALE Honda Accord 2003, sky blue color, mileage 300,000 kms, owner driven, excellent condition, new tires, registered up to Dec 2012.

Contact 99456340 (C 3857) 5-2-2012

CHANGE OF NAME I, M. Madhavan, holder of Indian Passport No. H5961296, son of M. Muthukrishanan, converted in Islam and do now hereafter be known by my new name M. MOHAMED SHARIF. (C 3855) 1-2-2012

LOST Policy No. 633000545 issued by the State Life Insurance, Gulf Zone on the Life of Mr. Riaz Ahmed is reported to have been lost.

Anyone finding the same or claiming any interest in it should communicate with the State Life office. Tel: 22452208/9. (C 3856) 2-2-2012

MISCELLANEOUS Original guaranteed Palestinian virgin olive oil, large black and green olives for sale. Tel: 66517417 Whole Floor or small villa needed for rent in Shaab, Mansoriya, Nozha, Abdullah Al-Salem or Shamiya. Direct contact with owner. Tel: 9989018-99169016 A camp for rent in Kabed including five tents with all services. Complete privacy + game arcade. Tel: 97177714 Size 36 air pressure gun for sale in addition to a scope, safety lock. Shooting range 350 meters +bag+25 shots.

Price KD 70. Tel: 97790478 A 3700 watt, 2012 model ASTRA generator for sale.

Japanese parts assembled in China with pressure and gas meters. Price KD 85. Tel: 60066891 For rent in Hawalli a one bedroom (4x4m) and a 7x3.5 m reception+ terrace, fully equipped kitchen and bathroom. Tunis street, behind Al-Andalus pharmacy. Tel: 99683200 A 2008 white, 1600 CC Nissan Sunny. Price KD 1700. Tel: 99553221 A 2008 dark blue 6 cylinder Toyota Prado with Beige sued interior, low mileage, touch A/C, CD, cruise control, front and rear sensors for sale. Price KD 6650. Tel: 99275550 A 2009 white, 6 cylinder Toyota Prado with 40,000 mileage touch A/C, CD, cruise control, front and rear sensors for sale. Price KD 7850. Tel: 9747750855809093

A 2009 YUKUN Suburban GMC XL with low mileage and beige sued interior, electric seats, cruise control, super headlights, rear camera, remote recording and rear sensors. Price 8550. Tel: 99301914 For rent a two storey villa and a basement in Mangaf including 8 rooms, laundry room, yard, parking. Rent value KD 1000. Tel: 97996900 A storey and half for rent in Mangaf including two 3 bedroom apartments with 2 baths, reception, kitchen, driver room each. Tel: 66989887 For rent a ground floor in Qurain comprising of four rooms, large reception, 5 baths, maid room, courtyard, parking. Rent value KD 550. Tel: 66989887 A fully central air-conditioned two room annex in Mangaf with separate exit and shaded car parking for rent to expatriates. Tel: 67753557 For rent in Ashbelia: two apartments with 3 bedrooms, bath, kitchen and maid room each plus a yard in between. Tel: 90001594 A 2005 Mini Cooper for sale. Tel: 99224855 A 2006 Lumina for sale with genuine factory paint.

Price KD 2100. Tel: 69945429 A 2009 Touareg for sale.

Price 6350. Tel: 96670777 Senior English teacher for Pakistani, bilingual schools, T.M.A., Ielts, Toefl, IBT K.S.S., social studies and math. Tel: 99577430 For sale: a 375 square meter house in Omariya, fully rented for KD 600.

Price KD 185,000. Tel: 66815590 Transportation ser vice available. Payment in advanced conditioned for all areas. Tel: 66678633 The smallest and most up to date recording device (2012 model) for sale.

Finger size, voice activated, records up to 600 hrs, made in Japan. Free delivery. Tel: 99773818

No: 15352

MATRIMONIAL A proposal comes from a man, an Engineer, 50 years old seeks an Asian woman, decent, working, respectful preferable, who is coming recently to Kuwait. Email: bareer_96@yahoo.com (C 3859) Orthodox well-settled parents invite proposals for their son, 28, 180cm, fair, MBA (Finance) from a reputed institution, employed in reputed bank in Kuwait from parents of professionally qualified God-fearing girls. Contact: dr.matt32@gmail.com 7-2-2012 Proposals invited for Keralite Orthodox Christian boy (38, 5 7” whitish), God fearing Computer Engineering diploma working in Kuwait having family visa status seeking alliance from nurses and other professionals. The boy will be coming to Kerala in the middle of March. Contact email: dilkoshy@asianetindia.com (C 3858) 5-2-2012

SITUATION WANTED Diploma Engineer/ 16 years project sales experience (9 yrs in Kuwait) seeking suitable position from reputed companies. Contact: 55339596/ 99759183. (C 3860) 7-2-2012

FOR RENT For rent at Salmiya, Apt 3 BR + 3 toilets + hall + kitchen + satellite, excellent location. Foreigners and expats only, no mediators.

Tel: 66060299. (14183) For rent commercial Apt at the sea, excellent location, 190 square meter, suitable for (beauty saloon, consulting office, lawyers office).

Tel: 66060299. (15004) For rent Apt at Salmiya 2 BR + 2 toilets + maid room + hall + kitchen and balcony for families only. Rent KD 280/-. Tel: 66980123.

(15007) For rent basement at

Hawalli, excellent location, plastic floor, C-A/C, for serious only, please call: 66980123. (C 25997) Furnished Apt for rent in Salmiya 2 BR + hall + kitchen + satellite & DSL + parking, families only. Rent KD 450/-. Tel: 66297171. (C 14941) For rent, one floor in a commercial complex in Salmiya, at main street suitable for Coffee Shop or Restaurant for serious only call: 66980123. (15006) For rent floor at South of Surra, 4 BR + maid room + 4 toilets, hall and elevator. KD 800/-. Tel: 66604095.

(15041) For rent complete floor at Jabriya, 5 BR out of which 4 are master BR + 5 toilets + hall and elevator KD 750/-.

Tel: 66604095. (15103) For rent new elegant Apt at Al-Shaab for newly Weds, 3 BR + maid room + 4 toileets + hall + elevator. KD 650/-.

Tel: 94097080. (14899) For rent new ground floor at Granada, 4 BR + maids room + 4 toilets + hall, special entrance, C-A/C and marble. KD 700/-. Tel: 94097080. (C 14893) For rent Deluxe Apt South Al-Surra, 3 BR + maids room + 3 toilets + elevator. KD 600/-. Tel: 97713024.

(15106) For rent Deluxe 1st floor with elevator at Al-Adan 4 master BR + large hall + 2 parking. KD 650/-. Tel: 94097080. (15107) For rent ground floor at AlSurra 3 BR + maids room + 3 toilets + hall, special entrance. For foreigners and expats. KD 650/-. Tel: 94097080. (15108) For Deluxe Apt new at AlRihab, 2 BR + 1toilet + hall + elevator, C-A/C, ceramic.

KD 280/-. Tel: 97719024.

(15110) For sale Trail Blazer Car, model 2007, agency painting, meter 110 km, one owner, KD 1,450/- on top of installments. Tel: 66297171.

(15016)

34

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2012

stars CROSSWORD 581

STAR TRACK

CALVIN & HOBBES

Aries (March 21-April 19) You should experience all the benefits of this most powerful planet. This is a good time to lead the way on a project—at work or home. Your imagination is unusually heightened. Your desire to succeed is strong, not only financially, but personally as well. Your energy is high and your creative ideas are flowing, ready to be applied to whatever work is at hand. If you give your best effort now, considerable success will certainly follow. Harmony with friends and loved ones is important today. This afternoon may be a good time to socialize and enjoy those personal friends that bring you joy. Now is the time to improve any relationships that need work—the positive energies are in your corner. Hold fast to friends and family— they are a great source of strength.

Taurus (April 20-May 20) You feel good and your mind is in top condition for the work that is set before you today. Good eye-hand coordination and a sustained effort make almost any task run well. You will be pleased to find that during the tense moments today, everyone seems to exhibit a great deal of control. If you remember your priorities, this can be a very productive day. You can expect a little boost as well as some recognition from your peers this afternoon. You are in touch and in harmony with all; the lines of communication are open. You will probably find that you are appreciated for your ability to act and get things done. You will want to take advantage of a family gathering this evening to express your appreciation to loved ones. Family discussions are fruitful.

POOCH CAFE ACROSS

1. Greater than normal in degree or intensity or amount.

5. Any of numerous low-growing cushion-forming plants of the genus Draba having rosette-forming leaves and terminal racemes of small flowers with scapose or leafy stems.

10. Type genus of the Muridae.

13. Small buffalo of the Celebes having small straight horns.

14. Tropical Asian starlings.

15. Electrical conduction through a gas in an applied electric field.

16. The skin that covers the top of the head.

18. The front of the head from the forehead to the chin and ear to ear.

19. Any of various dark heavy viscid substances obtained as a residue.

20. A genus of Ploceidae.

21. An esoteric or occult matter that is traditionally secret.

23. To make a mistake or be incorrect.

26. Large bamboo having thick-walled culms.

29. A constellation in the southern hemisphere near Telescopium and Norma.

30. A corporation's first offer to sell stock to the public.

36. Old World nocturnal canine mammal closely related to the dog.

38. An interest followed with exaggerated zeal.

39. Adult female chicken.

40. Widely cultivated in tropical and subtropical regions for its fragrant flowers and colorful fruits.

41. An esoteric or occult matter that is traditionally secret.

43. German organist and contrapuntist (1685-1750).

45. A woman hired to suckle a child of someone else.

46. United States writer of poems and plays about racial conflict (born in 1934).

52. Jordan's port.

57. Floor covering consisting of a piece of thick heavy fabric (usually with nap or pile).

58. African tree having an exceedingly thick trunk and fruit that resembles a gourd and has an edible pulp called monkey bread.

60. The 7th letter of the Greek alphabet.

61. The Tibeto-Burman language spoken in the Dali region of Yunnan.

62. Naked freshwater or marine or parasitic protozoa that form temporary pseudopods for feeding and locomotion.

63. A light touch or stroke.

DOWN 1. A fastener for a door or lid.

2. A ruler of the Inca Empire (or a member of his family).

3. A pointed instrument used to prod into motion.

4. Ground snakes.

5. Diabetes caused by a relative or absolute deficiency of insulin and characterized by polyuria.

6. Encountered generally especially at the present time.

7. (Irish) Mother of the ancient Irish gods.

8. An indehiscent fruit derived from a single ovary having one or many seeds within a fleshy wall or pericarp.

9. Having the leading position or higher score in a contest.

10. New Zealand conifer.

11. A mountain range in western Russia extending from the arctic to the Caspian Sea. 12. Leave immediately.

17. Genus of tropical Old World trees.

22. A small cake leavened with yeast.

24. Copy that is not the original.

25. The district occupied entirely by the city of Washington.

27. Any of various strong liquors distilled from the fermented sap of toddy palms or from fermented molasses.

28. Small European freshwater fish with a slender bluishgreen body.

31. The basic unit of money in Bangladesh.

32. Mild yellow Dutch cheese made in balls.

33. Title for the former hereditary monarch of Iran.

34. The fatty flesh of eel.

35. A nucleic acid consisting of large molecules shaped like a double helix.

37. Cubes of meat marinated and cooked on a skewer usually with vegetables.

42. Having undesirable or negative qualities.

44. Jordan's port.

47. A shade of blue tinged with green.

48. East Indian cereal grass whose seed yield a somewhat bitter flour, a staple in the Orient.

49. An aggressive remark directed at a person like a missile and intended to have a telling effect.

50. A Chadic language spoken south of Lake Chad.

51. According to the Old Testament he was a pagan king of Israel and husband of Jezebel (9th century BC).

53. The sound made by a cow or bull.

54. A compartment in front of a motor vehicle where driver sits.

55. A loose sleeveless outer garment made from aba cloth.

56. A doctor's degree in education.

59. Before noon.

Yesterday’s Solution

Gemini (May 21-June 20) Your mind may feel like it is on a racetrack today. It is moving in fast motion and insights are flashing in and out of the blue. This is a great day for looking at the whole picture and getting the idea of balance and blending as well as a few facial responses from customers. You know when things are working together well because of the response you hear from the crowd, if there is a crowd.

It may not have seemed possible, but you are able to get many things accomplished today. You may be caring for animals this afternoon. While you are with friends and family this evening, you will want to use your energy constructively—being slow to worry is a good idea. Romance is in the air tonight; it may be the perfect time to enhance or deepen a love relationship.

Cancer (June 21-July 22)

NON SEQUITUR

This is a favorable time for working in groups. Group work may be necessary when you or another co-worker requires any research or sorting as two or three can accomplish the work so much faster than one.

Sometime today, if you are in a technical field such as computers or phones, you may have to deal with a customer that needs more time than other customers. While this may not be the greatest thing for people working on commission, it will give you honor and high esteem with this customer who will return to you as a better consumer— with more understanding of the product you sell. If you don’t sell him or her anything, your attitude will get you a recommendation that will be valuable. A little exercise this evening will be suitable.

Leo (July 23-August 22) Work on a project of a large or complicated manner comes knocking at your door today. It may mean a bonus but the best in the end result is your ability to be flexible and organized. If you can get one other person to work with you, at his or her own pace, you will succeed in accomplishing a project that will help many people. You are apt to enjoy considerable success at work.

Changes in the workplace may include getting a new boss, new co-workers, embarking on a totally different project or taking an interest in a new field of work. You may be of great help to someone this afternoon without even being aware of it. This evening friends or family will want to help you relax and if you usually cook . . . you won’t have to tonight.

ZITS

Virgo (August 23-September 22) You attract optimism and optimistic people. Many projects come to fruition at this time, especially large ones— recognition is also easy to find. Your ideas gain a great deal of attention. This is a fine time to engage in some new business dealings or investments. However, compromise should be exercised whenever possible. Mental stimulation from others is helpful right now and it’s a good idea to make every effort to return the act of kindness. At home this evening, it would be wise to foster a sense of togetherness and team play among family members. You should probably try hard to squelch the desire to do everything by yourself. Insights into purchases for the family can be considered now: house, car, etc.

Libra (September 23-October 22)

MOTHER GOOSE AND GRIMM

This is definitely a day of progress, particularly if you are allowed to take the lead. You attract people to work with you whose energy matches your own energies. Communication with a co-worker is positive. You are able to handle most any situation. If you are still fired up at the close of the day, become involved in an exercise program. It will help you to release any excessive energy. You may find yourself working hard to make time for your family this week. This is a period of optimism and a good time to evaluate existing relationships, or start a new one. You are coming into a period of greater than usual emphasis on emotional security, which is likely to manifest as putting down roots somehow. Real estate becomes a bigger part of your life goals.

Scorpio (October 23-November 21) You are happy to be with others in a working agreement today.

You may be sought after as just the person for a particular job. Your management and organizational skills are in high focus. It is important during this time to effectively communicate your ideas to co-workers and those who work under you. Parental instincts may come to the forefront and you make every effort to appease any discord. Also, there is a strong wish to make your surroundings as pleasant as possible. You truly desire fun and should not hesitate to get to know new people and form new acquaintances. Also, love is in full bloom during this time and it is a good time to fully demonstrate the depth of affections to loved ones. Harmony is in your life—enjoy it!

Sagittarius (November 22-December 21) You may find the push to sign contracts, conclude business deals or make future plans. If you have had an advisor, this is a good thing. If you have not had an advisor, one should be provided. When signing important papers, it is important to know what you are doing, particularly if you are involved in a real estate deal. Your sharp mind will see all aspects from all angles. Any high-level mental pursuits should be rewarding and stimulating today. Welcome all new ideas!

There are new concepts that you are aware of and may find yourself talking about with co-workers. Later, this afternoon, you should take every opportunity to get outside and enjoy the out-of-doors. Work will seem easier and you should feel more relaxed once you engage in a little exercise.

Capricorn (December 22-January 19)

To

If ever there was a day to work with groups, this is it! Your acute sensitivity to other people’s moods could enable you to fine-tune those moods as you would a violin. You could obtain anything you wish to obtain or sell anything you want to sell to people—they will think you have done them a favor. Awareness of your monetary situation is a good thing now—it may be difficult to gauge. Leave those large purchases for another time—you must be judicious in personal decisions about finances. You should love being around people today, especially those to whom you are emotionally attached and better yet, older friends with whom you can reminisce. This is a time to cement your ties to others, to make sure they are rock-solid.

Yesterday’s Solution Yester

Aquarius (January 20- February 18) This time marks a period of introspection and evaluation of goals. You may feel lonely and self-critical at this time—do not be too hard on yourself. Focus your energy on self-discovery instead. There may be much responsibility at this time and much of your work is recognized by people that may not express their appreciation. Perseverance, however, is crucial to your own sense of accomplishment—you will be glad you finished what you set out to accomplish. You may take on an easygoing manner to friends and family this afternoon. The need to relax and enjoy the home setting is essential. You may decide to do some sort of creative work that will add to the atmosphere or comfort of your surroundings. It’s a good time to ask favors from someone close.

Pisces (February 19-March 20)

Word Sleuth Solution

Self-discipline and a sense of self-worth become important issues in your life just now. A fear of asserting yourself can hold you back—as can coming on too strong. The trick is learning to make the most of your personal talents and abilities, working within your limitations instead of feeling hemmed in by them. Colors are brighter, images sharper, music more moving.

Emotions run deep, especially with a special partner or loved one. Previously bland relationships could now border on love or hate. Intensity rules! You can control this, so enjoy the good parts and audit anything else. You are full of energy and will enjoy giving someone a helping hand today. Distribute advertisement to local businesses for a children’s theater group.

A

y

e niv rsar n

Years

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2012

i n f o r m at i o n

FIRE BRIGADE STATE ST TAT TE OF KUWAIT K KUW WAIT A

112

Tel.: T e el.: 161

DIRECTORA DIRECTORATE ATE T GENE GENERAL ERAL OF CIVIL A AVIATION V VIA ATION T DEPARTMENT METEOROLOGICAL DEP D PARTMENT A DAY: DA AY: Y Monday

WWW .MET.GOV V.KW . W WWW.MET.GOV.KW

06/02/2012

Ministry of Interior

Ext.: 2627 262 27 - 2630

Fax: 24348714

07:00

Issue T Time ime

Expected Weather Weather for the Next 24 4 Hours Mostly y sunny with north westerly to light variable wind, with speed of 06 - 20 km/h

BY Y DA DAY: AY:

website: www.moi.gov.kw with speed of 06 - 20 km/h and some Cold with w light variable wind changing chan nging to light south easterly wind, w k scatter ed clouds will appear scattered

NIGHT:: BY Y NIGHT

For labor-related inquiries and complaints: Call MSAL hotline 128

No Current Warnings Warnin a gs

WARNING W ARNING A STATION ST TATION T

MAX. EXP EXP. P.

MIN.. REC.

KUWAIT KUW WAIT A CITY

21 °C

11 1 1 °C

24812000

KUWAIT AIRPORT KUW WAIT A AIRPOR RT

20 °C

04 °C

Amiri Hospital

22450005

NUWAISEEB NUW WAISEEB A

20 °C C

07 °C C

Maternity Hospital

24843100

WAFRA W AFRA A

21 °C

04 °C

Mubarak Al-Kabir Hospital

25312700

SALMI

18 °C

04 °C

Chest Hospital

24849400

ABDALY ABDAL LY

20 °C

04 °C

Farwaniya Hospital

24892010

ALIYAH JAL ALIY YA AH

19 °C

04 °C

Adan Hospital

23940620

FAILAKA F AILAKA A

19 °C

07 °C

Ibn Sina Hospital

24840300

PORT AHMADI POR RT

18 °C

11 11 °C

Al-Razi Hospital

24846000

UMM AL-MARADEM M

17 °C

14 °C

Physiotherapy Hospital

24874330/9

WARBA BUBYAN W ARBA A A - BUBY YA AN

19 °C

05 °C

Hospitals Sabah Hospital

Clinics

SFC. CHAR CHART T

06/02/2012 0000 0 UTC

4 DA DAYS AYS Y FORECAST

4732263

Roudha

22517733

DAY DA AY

DA DATE AT TE

WEA WEATHER ATHER T

Adhaliya

22517144

Tuesday Tuesday

07/02

Khaldiya

24848075

Wednesday Wednesday e

Keifan

24849807

Thursday

Shamiya

24848913

Friday

Shuwaikh

24814507

Abdullah Salim

22549134

Fajr

05:14

MAX. Temp.

MA AX. T emp.

20 °C

Al-Nuzha

22526804

Sunrise S i

06 35 06:35

MIIN. IN Temp.

Temp.

MIN.

04 °C

Industrial Shuwaikh

24814764

Zuhr

12:02

MAX. RH M

70 %

Asr

15:08

M RH MIN.

14 %

Sunset

17:30

MA AX. W ind MAX. Wind

Isha

18:49

TOT TAL AL RAI INF FA ALL L IN 24 HR. TOTAL RAINFALL

22515088

Dasmah

22532265

Bneid Al-Ghar

22531908

Al-Shaab

22518752

Al-Kibla

22459381

Ayoun Al-Kibla

22451082

Al-Mirqab

22456536

Sharq

22465401

Salmiya

25746401

Jabriya

25316254

Maidan Hawally

25623444

Bayan

25388462

Mishref

25381200

W.Hawally

22630786

Sabah

24810221

Jahra

24770319

New Jahra

24575755

West Jahra

24772608

South Jahra

24775066

North Jahra

24775992

North Jleeb

24311795

Al-Ardhiya

24884079

Firdous

24892674

Al-Omariya

24719048

N.Kheitan

24710044

Fintas

3900322

22418714

Al-Shohada’a

22545171

Al-Shuwaikh

24810598

Al-Nuzha

22545171

Sabhan

24742838

Al-Helaly

22434853

Al-Fayhaa

22545051

Al-Farwaniya

24711433

Al-Sulaibikhat

24316983

Al-Fahaheel

23927002

Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh

24316983

Ahmadi

23980088

Al-Mangaf

23711183

Al-Shuaiba

23262845

Al-Jahra

25610011

Al-Salmiya

25616368

POLICE STATION

Rabiya

Al-Khadissiya

Al-Madena

Temperratures Temperatures MAX.

MIN.

Wind Direction Direction Wind

Wind Wind Speed

partly cloudy

21 °C

06 °C

SE

12 - 35 km/h

08/02

scattered partly cloudy + scatte ered rain

23 °C

12 °C

SE

20 - 45 km/h

09/02

Cloudy + scattered d rain

22 °C

14 °C

SE

12 - 32 km/h

10/02

cloudy + scattered d rain

22 °C

14 °C

NE-N

12 - 35 km/h

PRAYER PR RA AYER Y TIMES

RECORDED D YESTERDAY YESTERDA AY AT AT KUWAIT KUW WAIT A T AIRPORT AIRPORT

unless All times are local time un nless otherwise stated.

Al-Madena Police Station Al-Murqab Police Station Al-Daiya Police Station Al-Fayha’a Police Station Al-Qadissiya Police Station Al-Nugra Police Station Al-Salmiya Police Station Al-Dasma Police Station

22434064 22435865 22544200 22547133 22515277 22616662 25714406 22530801

THE PUBLIC AUTHORITY FOR CIVIL INFORMATION Automated enquiry

NW W 39 km/h

about the Civil ID card is 1889988

00 mm

06/02/12 03:06 UTC

V1.00

T1.06

PHARMACIES

AIRLINES

ON 24 HRS DUTY GOVERNORATE

PHARMACY

ADDRESS

PHONE

Ahmadi

Sama Safwan Abu Halaifa Danat Al-Sultan

Fahaeel Makka St Abu Halaifa-Coastal Rd Mahboula Block 1, Coastal Rd

23915883 23715414 23726558

Jahra

Modern Jahra Madina Munawara

Jahra-Block 3 Lot 1 Jahra-Block 92

24575518 24566622

Capital

Ahlam Khaldiya Coop

Fahad Al-Salem St Khaldiya Coop

22436184 24833967

Farwaniya

New Shifa Ferdous Coop Modern Safwan

Farwaniya Block 40 Ferdous Coop Old Kheitan Block 11

24734000 24881201 24726638

Hawally

Tariq Hana Ikhlas Hawally & Rawdha Ghadeer Kindy Ibn Al-Nafis Mishrif Coop Salwa Coop

Salmiya-Hamad Mubarak St Salmiya-Amman St Hawally-Beirut St Hawally & Rawdha Coop Jabriya-Block 1A Jabriya-Block 3B Salmiya-Hamad Mubarak St Mishrif Coop Salwa Coop

25726265 25647075 22625999 22564549 25340559 25326554 25721264 25380581 25628241

Kuwait Airways Jazeera Airways Jet Airways FlyDubai Qatar Airways KLM Air Slovakia Olympic Airways Royal Jordanian Reservation British Airways Air France Emirates Air India Sri Lanka Airlines Egypt Air Swiss Air Saudia Middle East Airlines Lufthansa PIA Alitalia Balkan Airlines Bangladesh Airlines Czech Airlines Indian Airlines Oman Air Turkish Airlines Aeroflot

171 177 22924455 22414400 22423888 22425747 22434940 22420002/9 22418064/5/6 22433388 22425635 22430224 22921555 22438184 22424444 22421578 22421516 22426306 22423073 22422493 22421044 22414427 22416474 22452977/8 22417901/ 2433141 22456700 22958787 22453820/1 22404838/9

PRIVATE CLINICS Ophthalmologists Dr. Abidallah Al-Mansoor 25622444 Dr. Samy Al-Rabeea 25752222 Dr. Masoma Habeeb 25321171 Dr. Mubarak Al-Ajmy 25739999 Dr. Mohsen Abel 25757700 Dr Adnan Hasan Alwayl 25732223 Dr. Abdallah Al-Baghly 25732223 Ear, Nose & Throat (ENT) Dr. Ahmed Fouad Mouner 24555050 Ext 510 Dr. Abdallah Al-Ali 25644660 Dr. Abd Al-Hameed Al-Taweel 25646478 Dr. Sanad Al-Fathalah 25311996 Dr. Mohammad Al-Daaory 25731988 Dr. Ismail Al-Fodary 22620166 Dr. Mahmoud Al-Booz 25651426 General Practitioners Dr. Mohamme Y Majidi 24555050 Ext 123 Dr. Yousef Al-Omar 24719312 Dr. Tarek Al-Mikhazeem 23926920 Dr. Kathem Maarafi 25730465 Dr. Abdallah Ahmad Eyadah 25655528 Dr. Nabeel Al-Ayoobi 24577781 Dr. Dina Abidallah Al-Refae 25333501 Urologists Dr. Ali Naser Al-Serfy 22641534 Dr. Fawzi Taher Abul 22639955 Dr. Khaleel Abidallah Al-Awadi 22616660 Dr. Adel Al-Hunayan FRCS (C) 25313120 Dr. Leons Joseph 66703427 Psychologists /Psychotherapists

Paediatricians

Plastic Surgeons Dr. Mohammad Al-Khalaf

22547272

Dr. Khaled Hamadi

Dr. Abdal-Redha Lari

22617700

Dr. Abd Al-Aziz Al-Rashed

Dr. Abdel Quttainah

25625030/60

Family Doctor Dr Divya Damodar

23729596/23729581

Psychiatrists Dr. Esam Al-Ansari

22635047

Dr Eisa M. Al-Balhan

22613623/0

Gynaecologists & Obstetricians DrAdrian arbe

23729596/23729581

Dr. Verginia s.Marin

2572-6666 ext 8321

Endocrinologist

25665898 25340300

Dr. Zahra Qabazard

25710444

Dr. Sohail Qamar

22621099

Dr. Snaa Maaroof

25713514

Dr. Pradip Gujare

23713100

Dr. Zacharias Mathew

24334282

(1) Ear, Nose and Throat (2) Plastic Surgeon Dr. Abdul Mohsin Jafar, FRCS (Canada)

25655535

Dentists

Dr. Fozeya Ali Al-Qatan

22655539

Dr. Majeda Khalefa Aliytami

25343406

Dr. Shamah Al-Matar

22641071/2

Dr. Ahmad Al-Khooly

25739272

Dr. Anesah Al-Rasheed

22562226

22618787

Dr. Abidallah Al-Amer

22561444

Dr. Faysal Al-Fozan

22619557

Dr. Abdallateef Al-Katrash

22525888

Dr. Abidallah Al-Duweisan

25653755

Dr. Bader Al-Ansari

25620111

General Surgeons Dr. Amer Zawaz Al-Amer

22610044

Dr. Mohammad Yousef Basher

25327148

Internists, Chest & Heart Dr. Adnan Ebil Dr. Mousa Khadada Dr. Latefa Al-Duweisan

22666300 25728004

Dr. Nadem Al-Ghabra

25355515

Dr. Mobarak Aldoub

24726446

Dr Nasser Behbehani

25654300/3

Soor Center Tel: 2290-1677 Fax: 2290 1688

info@soorcenter.com www.soorcenter.com

3729596/3729581

Neurologists

22639939

Dr. Abd Al-Naser Al-Othman

Dr. Sohal Najem Al-Shemeri

25633324

Dr. Jasem Mola Hassan

25345875

Gastrologists Dr. Sami Aman

22636464

Dr. Mohammad Al-Shamaly

25322030

Dr. Foad Abidallah Al-Ali

22633135

Dr. Naif Al-Mutawa, Ph.D. 2290-1677 Susannah-Joy Schuilenberg, M.A. 2290-1677

25339330

Dr. Ahmad Al-Ansari 25658888 Dr. Kamal Al-Shomr 25329924 Physiotherapists & VD Dr. Deyaa Shehab

25722291

Dr. Musaed Faraj Khamees

22666288

Rheumatologists: Dr. Adel Al-Awadi

Dr Anil Thomas

Dr. Salem soso

INTERNATIONAL CALLS

25330060

Dr. Khaled Al-Jarallah

25722290

Internist, Chest & Heart DR.Mohammes Akkad

24555050 Ext 210

Dr. Mohammad Zubaid MB, ChB, FRCPC, PACC Assistant Professor Of Medicine Head, Division of Cardiology Mubarak Al-Kabeer Hospital Consultant Cardiologist Dr. Farida Al-Habib MD, PH.D, FACC Inaya German Medical Center Te: 2575077 Fax: 25723123

2611555-2622555

William Schuilenberg, RPC 2290-1677 Zaina Al Zabin, M.Sc. 2290-1677

Afghanistan Albania Algeria Andorra Angola Anguilla Antiga Argentina Armenia Australia Austria Bahamas Bahrain Bangladesh Barbados Belarus Belgium Belize Benin Bermuda Bhutan Bolivia Bosnia Botswana Brazil Brunei Bulgaria Burkina Burundi Cambodia Cameroon Canada Cape Verde Cayman Islands

0093 00355 00213 00376 00244 001264 001268 0054 00374 0061 0043 001242 00973 00880 001246 00375 0032 00501 00229 001441 00975 00591 00387 00267 0055 00673 00359 00226 00257 00855 00237 001 00238 001345

Central African Chad Chile China Colombia Comoros Congo Cook Islands Costa Rica Croatia Cuba Cyprus Cyprus (Northern) Czech Republic Denmark Diego Garcia Djibouti Dominica Dominican Republic Ecuador Egypt El Salvador England (UK) Equatorial Guinea Eritrea Estonia Ethiopia Falkland Islands Faroe Islands Fiji Finland France French Guiana French Polynesia

00236 00235 0056 0086 0057 00269 00242 00682 00506 00385 0053 00357 0090392 00420 0045 00246 00253 001767 001809 00593 0020 00503 0044 00240 00291 00372 00251 00500 00298 00679 00358 0033 00594 00689

36

RAJESH TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2012

lifest yle G o s s i p

wo producers of Tom Cruise’s upcoming thriller “One Shot” were slapped by a breach of contract suit in Los Angeles Superior Court on Friday by a former producer on the project. Kevin Messick, a producer on “Batman Forever” and “The Other Guys,” alleges that Don Granger and Gary Levinsohn of Mutual Film Company edged him out of the film adaptation of Lee Child’s best-selling novel. Messick is asking for unspecified damages, his producer’s fees and the rights to participate in any upcoming sequels. The franchise rights are important because Jack Reacher, the army-major-turned drifter that Cruise will play, is featured in multiple Child novels. “If defendants had honored the Joint Venture Agreement, Messick is informed and believes and therein alleges that

T

Paramount Pictures would have hired Messick to be a producer of the Picture as well as any sequels, remakes, or derivative works based on the picture,” the suit reads. Levinsohn and Granger declined to comment. Messick said that he first joined the project in 2005 andhelped to develop the picture, renew Paramount’s options for the film rights, and search for a screenwriter. However, he claims that beginning in July 2010, Granger and Levinsohn began excluding him from meetings with the production team, but continued to assure him that he would remain involved in the project. Messick claims that he eventually grew so frustrated at being shunted aside that he wrote an email to Granger in June 2011, stating, “I’m getting the message loud and clear that you have no

intention of involving me with (the Picture) am I wrong?” The next month, the studio announced that Cruise would star in the green-lit picture. Following that announcement, Granger claimed that he would work to get Messick credit, but said that he and his partner were not getting “our deal” on the film. He claimed that their failure to secure that deal nullified their oral agreement with Messick, according to the suit. Among other causes of action, the suit alleges breach of contract, breach of fiduciary duty, and fraud.

Kravitz enny Kravitz has been enjoying Super Bowl weekend, but his reasons are more personal than sports-related. The rocker had a chance to reconnect with some National Football League legends whom he’s had connections with in the past. Kravitz said Sunday that Joe Namath used to live across the street from him when he was growing up and the Hall of Famer used to play catch with him.

He got a chance to meet up with Namath recently and reconnected with him on Saturday night at the NFL Honors. The musician also chatted with another great, Jim Brown, who was a friend of his mother’s, actress Roxie Roker. Kravitz was one of the performers at the official NFL pre-game party at Lucas Oil Stadium on Sunday.

L

ohn Travolta not only knows who’s going to win the Super Bowl, but by how much. The movie star had this prediction when asked for a winner of the battle between the New England Patriots and the New York Giants: “37-34, Giants.” He wasn’t the only celebrity making predictions. Nick Cannon and Danny DeVito both picked the Giants, while Adam Sandler felt the Patriots had the edge (though he was admirer of the Giants Victor Cruz’s salsa dance: “I like watching him do it,” he said).

Donnie Wahlberg spent time besides the Patriots bench just before kickoff.

Asked who he thought was going to win, he said: “The Patriots. I know it.”

The Boston-area native said he was partying with the Patriots after the game - “win or lose.”

J

noop Dogg demanded clean socks after getting soaked at a pre-Super Bowl party on Saturday .The ‘Wet’ rapper surprised everyone - including himself - with his athletic abilities when he played in the DirecTV Sixth Annual Celebrity Beach Bowl flag football match, but wasn’t impressed when he was named Most Valuable Player (MVP) and had a bucket of ice water poured over his head to celebrate. After his performance on the pitch he told the New York Post newspaper: “People are telling me they didn’t know I was that athletic. I didn’t know I was athletic either.” After his soaking at Indianapolis’ Victory Field which was converted into the world’s largest indoor beach for the event - Snoop retired to the locker room, reportedly “unhappy because he got wet” and demanded new socks. A staff member was overheard saying: “Snoop isn’t coming out of the locker room because he doesn’t have any socks,” and another demanded a younger member of the team remove theirs, telling them: “Take off your socks, Snoop needs a dry pair!” Snoop then re-appeared and headed to a gifting tent where he became intrigued by a pair of hair straighteners, which he tried out on himself. Later DirecTV held an after party which attracted stars including pop singer Jordin Sparks, Katy Perry and David Arquette.

he Super Bowl has attracted so many stars to the city that even The Fray admits to being a little starstruck. The band performed at the National Football League’s official party at Lucas Oil Stadium ahead of the Super Bowl on Sunday.

In the days before the big game, lead singer Isaac Slade said they were in a restaurant with “Glee’s” Matthew Morrison, then another VIP walked by NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell. Later, they saw Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones. Slade said, “It’s been surreal, it’s kind of a ‘SNL (Saturday Night Live)’ skit.” The band also enjoyed plenty of starstudded events leading up to the big game - for guitarist Joe King, maybe a little too much. King said: “I feel like I’m a sponge and I’ve had enough.”

T

S

isele Bundchen had to console husband Tom Brady after his team lost the Super Bowl. The Brazilian supermodel was in the stands as she watched Tom’s New England’s Patriots take on the New York Giants at the NFL showpiece game in Indianapolis, Indiana, and after they were defeated she ran down to give him a hug. Tom looked very appreciative of his stunning wife’s support but he later admitted nothing would be able to console him following

G

iss Piggy has challenged George Clooney to a wrestling match at the Orange British Academy Film Awards (BAFTAs) 2012. The outspoken puppet star of new movie ‘The Muppets’ is the official red carpet host of the film awards, and is looking forward to the possibility of meeting ‘The Descendants’ star, who is dating former wrestler Stacey Kleiber. Miss Piggy said: “I don’t wrestle girlfriends. However, if George wants to wrestle, bring it on! Best two out of

M

the loss. He said: “It always comes down to one or two plays in this game and if you make it, you’re celebrating. If you don’t, then you don’t sleep for a week. I give [the Giants] a lot of credit for the plays they made. They deserved to win and hopefully we’ll be back at some point.” Gisele - who has a two-year-old son, Benjamin, with Tom loves going to watching her handsome husband play and recently admitted she acts like a “cheerleader” when she does. The 31-year-old beauty -

three falls? Winner gets a dinner?” She also promised that the ceremony could be a career highlight for a number of actors’ career, not because they could win awards, but because they will get to meet her. She added: “Imagine the likes of George Clooney, Jean Dujardin, Michael Fassbender, Gary Oldman and Brad Pitt achieving the very pinnacle of their careers by getting a chance to speak with the one and only moi - Miss Piggy!

“Naturally, I will be asking questions that only moi would dare to ask.” Miss Piggy - famed for her diva personality and glamorous outfits also thinks there’s only one star who can compete with her in the glamour stakes, Lady Gaga, and has given an insight into her daily beauty regimen. She said: “I wake up at the crack of dawn, realize it’s far too early to get up, then go back to bed and sleep until midmorning. Then first thing, I meet with my personal trainer. Not only is he a gorgeous hunk, but he does the workout for me,” she revealed. “Hey, if I’m paying, then he’s sweating, not moi. After a relaxing massage and a healthy brunch, my diva-certified crew of stylists, hairdressers, make-up artists and sycophants arrives to prepare me for the day.” The BAFTAs take place at London’s Royal Opera House this Sunday.

who married the NFL star in February 2009 - said: “He’s such a gentle giant. I’m so proud of him.

When I go to watch him play, I’m like this big cheerleader, jumping up and down for him. I was born such a passionate person. I don’t know if that’s my blessing or curse!”

— Bang Showbiz

37

LIFESTYLE T R A V E L

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2012

A

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e niv rsar n

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2012

Years

lifestyle T r a v e l

The exterior of Biserica Sf Vasile cel Mare Church (St Basil the Great) in Bucharest.

The interior of Biserica Sf Vasile cel Mare Church.

By Laurie Hertzel

O

n Sunday morning in Bucharest, I knew just what I wanted to do: I wanted to go to church. I also wanted to go down to the Old City, visit a few museums and buy a warm pretzel from a sidewalk stand. But mostly I wanted to go to church. Bucharest is studded with nearly 300 exquisite churches, some dating to the 1500s. During Communist times, Nicolae Ceausescu tore some of them down, and he hid others inside mammoth apartment blocks, but Romania has always been a religious country and even he knew he couldn’t obliterate them.

My plan was to find St Nicholas, a Russian Orthodox church with seven onion domes, which I had happened upon a few nights before in the rain. I had peered inside and watched a dark-clad figure light candles and was captivated by the gold and icons and extravagant, over-thetop beauty. The last time I was inside an Orthodox church was in Russia, 20 years before. Old women in headscarves knelt, crossing themselves and kissing every icon within reach. The doors of the iconostasis swung open and the priest sailed out, gorgeous in tall hat and robes, swinging his incense shaker and followed by a cloud of sweet smoke and chanting boys.

I wanted to see all this again. So on Sunday, my last morning in Bucharest, I packed up my camera, 50 lei (about $17), and my map, and set out. Almost immediately, I heard singing. When a friend asked if I wanted to go to Bucharest, my reply was flippant. “Sure. Will I have to learn Hungarian?” “That would be odd,” came her dry response, “since they speak Romanian.” Bucharest, Budapest-I knew nothing about either. Exploring Bucharest, though, turned out to be a fascinating trek through a city of contrastsancient churches next to crumbling Communist-era flats; deserted storefronts with broken windows next to vibrant cafes; sophisticated hipsters texting on iPhones and sharing the sidewalk with packs of feral dogs.

In the past few weeks, University Square in Bucharest’s city center has been disrupted by demonstrations against the president and the government. But on this Sunday in November, all was peaceful.

Now a member of the EU, Romania is on the Black Sea, tucked between Hungary and Ukraine. It spent 34 years as a reluctant member of the Warsaw Pact, but it has always looked to the West-especially to France-rather than the East. Its language is similar to French and Italian.

Bucharest’s many parks, wide boulevards and broad sidewalks are reminiscent of Paris. Its architecture is a glorious jumble of Baroque, Byzantine, neo-classical, Art Deco, traditional Romanian and Communist hideous.

Officially, the population is 2 million, but the actual

number is probably closer to 4 million because of unregistered residents who have moved here for jobs and school.

At one time, Bucharest was known as “Little Paris,” and as I walked the streets of the city center I could see the French influence in ornate buildings adorned with scrolls, cupids and marble pillars.

At the end of Kiseleff Boulevard stood a little Arc de Triomphe-quite like the one in Paris, but only about half its size. The singing led me to St Basil the Great Church, a tidy white building with gold trim and a bell-shaped gate. A carved wooden troitsa (traditional Romanian cross) stood in the front garden, across from a small, roofed structure glowing with burning candles-one end marked for the living, the other for the dead.

I pulled my scarf over my hair and climbed the church steps. Inside, it was much as I remembered from 20 years ago-every inch of wall space devoted to icons, some painted, some pounded out of silver or gold. The vaulted ceiling was covered in murals, and overhead a blazing chandelier dripped with crystal beads, icons and golden-winged birds.

The nave was packed, and I stood shoulder to shoulder with worshipers, listening to the priest sing the liturgy. A woman knelt and closed her eyes. I was suddenly seized with the uncomfortable voyeurism of a tourist and tiptoed back out the door. But as I walked down Calea Victoriei (Victory Street), I heard singing again and again; there were five old churches along this stretch, and at each one, the haunting sound and beautiful architecture pulled me in.

In Bucharest, wild dogs were everywhere-sleeping in doorways; trotting along sidewalks; pawing through garbage. Every night, I heard fierce barking outside my hotel. They looked like ordinary dogs, though scruffy and skittish, but each year about 6,000 people are bitten, and in the past five years two people have been killed.

The government has launched programs to deal with the dogs, including neutering them and euthanizing them, but none has proved successful. The problem began when Ceausescu seized houses and demolished entire neighborhoods for his massive projects. Families were forced into blocks of flats, and many set their pets free. The abanAn ornate section of the George Enescu Museum, which highlights the life and work of the Romanian composer and musician. It is housed in a palace that became state property in 1955.

doned animals bred, and bred again, and now an estimated 50,000 feral dogs roam the city.

Ceausescu’s execution on Christmas Day 1989 marked the end of 45 years of communism, but Romania’s problems did not end with his death. The dogs are one challenge. Another is unclaimed property-houses and commercial buildings that were nationalized long ago. Now, streets of bright new businesses and high-end shops are interspersed with abandoned buildings and weedy lots. In most cases, ownership is either unknown or snarled in bureaucratic red tape. Entrepreneurs are reluctant to begin renovation, lest owners reappear, and so a sort of paralysis has gripped the city.

The St Nicolae Tabacu Church in Bucharest.

— MCT photos

Religious artifacts and icons in the Museum of the Romanian Peasant.

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built in 1808 (and still a hotel). Merchants from the countryside slept there before market day, parking their carts in the cobbled courtyard.

The Old City today is an odd and wonderful mix of new and old-one block deserted, the next block lively with bright cafes and galleries. All the length of Lipscani Street stood blue tents, where artists sold jewelry, scarves, candy and furs. A gypsy fortuneteller, a live parrot perched on his bowler hat, cranked out a tune on a barrel organ.

A food vendor in a knitted cap made kurtos colac (chimney cake), a Transylvania specialty. He wound thin strips of dough around a wooden cylinder which he rolled over hot coals, then rolled the hot bread in cinnamon and crushed nuts. Oh, gosh, it smelled good. But by then I was out of money. I had squandered my last few lei at a food cart with a sign that said, as near as I could tell, “chili sandwich.” I felt recklessly adventurous handing over my money, but the mysterious chili sandwich turned out to be nothing more than a hot dog.

Late in the day, on my way back to my hotel, I got briefly lost, turned a corner, turned another corner, and there it was-St Nicholas! I peered through the iron fence at its massive arched front door and gleaming domes.

The service was over, but I had already been to churchagain and again-and there was no longer any need to go inside. — MCT

“Bucharest feels like a place on the verge of coming alive,” I told one of my Romanian friends as we sipped drinks one evening. “Yes,” she sighed. “It has felt that way for 10 years.” At the edge of the Old City on Sunday morning, Revolution Square was nearly deserted. It is fronted by buildings of great architectural beauty: the 18th-century White Church, the ornate Romanian Athenaeum opera house, and the National Museum of Art (formerly the Royal Palace), where I happily squandered an hour looking at portraits of serious women with thick black eyebrows, and men with fabulous hats.

At one end of the square loomed the former headquarters of the Communist Party, where, on Dec 21, 1989, Ceausescu, in fur hat and overcoat, addressed the enormous, jeering crowd that he only gradually realized had turned hostile. The old dictator fled, but he was captured and executed four days later.

From that amazing place-the very spot where revolution began-it was just a few steps to the heart of Medieval Bucharest. The Old City is where Bucur the Shepherd built a church in the 1300s, establishing the city, and where Vlad the Impaler had his palace in the 1400s. (Bucur’s church no longer exists, but Vlad’s palace remains.)

In the Middle Ages, this was the center of commerce, its winding cobblestone streets named for tradesmen: furriers, shoemakers, hatters, goldsmiths and blacksmiths. This is where you’ll find Bucharest’s oldest church, the Old Court Church, built in 1559, and its oldest inn, Manuc’s,

Kretulescu Church, circa 1722.

North Korean accordion players are a YouTube hit

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group of North Korean accordion players is proving to be an unlikely hit on YouTube, attracting nearly 320,000 viewings in five days with their spirited version of a 1980s pop song. Five students of Pyongyang’s Kum Song School of Music are seen performing the mid-80s hit “Take on Me” by Norwegian group a-ha, a rare performance of popular Western music in the reclusive communist state. The performance last December was filmed by visiting Norwegian artist Morten Traavik, who posted the clip on the videosharing website on February 1.

He has invited the three men and two women to play a mixture of Korean and international hits during the Festival Barents Spektakel, a cultural event to be held in Norway from February 8 to 12. It could not immediately be confirmed that the accordion players had accepted the invitation. Most artistic performances and exhibitions in North Korea are used to perpetuate the personality cult around the Kim dynasty, which has ruled the country since its creation in 1948. A Lunar New Year concert last month featured the titles “Cantata to Comrade Kim Jong-Il” and “We Long for You, General”-a reference to the former leader who died on December 17. — AFP

A gypsy fortune teller in the Old City of Bucharest.

A baker sells pretzels and gingerbread outside the Museum of the Romanian Peasant.

A cross outside Biserica Sf Vasile cel Mare Church.

Traditional Romanian crosses are wooden because it was believed that you carry your cross with you after death; stone would be too heavy.

Gabi Dobre and Cristian Lupsa, Romanian journalists, at a restaurant in the Old City of Bucharest.

The Old City of Bucharest seen on a Sunday morning.

Britain marks Charles Dickens bicentenary

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ritain on Tuesday marks the 200th anniversary of the birth of Charles Dickens, acclaimed as one of the finest writers of the English language and one whose novels have become enduring classics. Events will take place around the country to mark the bicentenary, including a street party in the city of Portsmouth, on England’s south coast, where he was born on February 7, 1812. Prince Charles, the heir to the throne, and actor Ralph Fiennes will be among guests at the laying of a wreath at Dickens’ grave at Westminster Abbey in London. Dickens’ books remain cornerstones of English literature and the latest film version of one of his greatest novels, “Great Expectations”, starring Fiennes and Helena Bonham-Carter, is currently in production.

Claire Tomalin, a leading biographer of the author, says there is no one to compare with Dickens today.

“He had extraordinary energy and he was extraordinarily hard-working. His first three novels-’The Pickwick Papers’, ‘Oliver Twist’ and ‘Nicholas Nickleby’came out in monthly installments,” she told AFP. “When he was halfway through ‘The Pickwick Papers’ he started writing ‘Oliver Twist’, so each month he was writing two installments of quite different novels. “Can you imagine doing that now?” Dickens’ nov-

els were informed by his own early experiences, from the happy boyhood he spent in Kent in southeast England, before his father was thrown into the debtors’ prison, to the childhood of poverty into which he was thrust.

At a tender age, Dickens was forced to work in a blacking factory, attaching labels to bottles of leather polish, which inspired one of his best-known works, “David Copperfield”, first published as a novel in 1850.

Later, despite only intermittent schooling, Dickens found work as an office boy in a law firm. He was 15.

“The most extraordinary thing about his life is that nine years later he was famous as the author of ‘The Pickwick Papers’,” said Tomalin.

“He did it by learning shorthand, by becoming a law reporter, a parliamentary reporter and a newspaper reporter. “He was a writer of genius. After Shakespeare he was the greatest inventor of character.” Dickens had a less-publicized life helping to run and to finance a house for “fallen women”, offering prostitutes a new start away from their old lives in a large house in London. This most Victorian of callings occupied years of his life, yet he still found time to father 10 children and maintain a prodigious output of books, articles and give numerous lectures.

Unlike many of the great writers and artists, Dickens was a star in his own time-and Tomalin says that was because he gave readers what they wanted.

“He wanted to show that ordinary people were as interesting as rich, famous, grand people,” she noted.

“He succeeded in that. He was really funny, he made people laugh. “And he also wanted people to cry and he did that with pathos and by writing thrilling plots.”

Actor Simon Callow, who starred in “Four Weddings And A Funeral” and has also written a biography of Dickens, will be leading events in Portsmouth where he will read from “David Copperfield” at a church service on Tuesday. “It’s going to be a dangerously moving occasion. I really made the strong decision to come to the place where he was born rather than to Westminster Cathedral where he never wanted to be,” he said. — AFP

Producers on Tom Cruise film sued for breach of contract

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Madonna arrives in a golden throne for the Super Bowl.

Madonna performs during the NFL Super Bowl XLVI game halftime show on February 5, 2012 at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Indiana. —AFP

Super Bowl halftime show T

Madonna performs.

he NFL and a major television network are apologizing for another Super Bowl halftime show. There was no wardrobe malfunction, nothing like that glimpse of Janet Jackson’s nipple eight years ago that caused an uproar and a government scrutiny. Instead, it was an extended middle finger from British singer M.I.A. during Sunday night’s performance of Madonna’s new single, “Give Me All Your Luvin.’” In front of some 110 million viewers on NBC and uncounted others online, she flipped the bird and appeared to sing, “I don’t give a (expletive)” at one point, though it was hard to hear her clearly. The NFL and NBC wasted little time in responding. “The obscene gesture in the performance was completely inappropriate, very disappointing and we apologize to our fans,” said Brian McCarthy, spokesman for the NFL, which produced Madonna’s halftime show.

The risque moment came during the biggest TV event of the year. The screen briefly went blurred after M.I.A.’s gesture in what was a late attempt - by less than a second - to cut out the camera shot. “The NFL hired the talent and produced the halftime show,” NBC spokesman Christopher McCloskey said. “Our system was late to obscure the inappropriate gesture and we apologize to our viewers.” Jackson’s infamous oops during the 2004 halftime show raised a storm of controversy and put CBS in hot water with the Federal Communications Commission amid questions about the responsibility of

TV networks to police their airwaves.

Justin Timberlake ripped off Jackson’s bustier, exposing her breast for ninesixteenths of a second, a moment for which CBS was fined $550,000 by the FCC. The network challenged the fine and last fall, a federal appeals court ruled against the FCC despite an order from the US Supreme Court to review the case. The three-judge panel reviewed three decades of FCC rulings and concluded the agency was changing its policy, without warning, by fining CBS for fleeting nudity.

This year’s game, in which the New York Giants beat the New England Patriots 21-17, is expected to challenge last year’s record of being the most-watched US TV event ever. M.I.A. is best known for her 2007 hit “Paper Planes,” a Grammy nominee for record of the year that memorably features a sample of the Clash song, “Straight to Hell.” It was featured on the soundtrack to the movie “Slumdog Millionaire.” After the incident, McCarthy said that M.I.A. had not done anything similar during rehearsals and the league had no reason to believe she would pull something like that during the actual show.

Madonna had admittedly been nervous about her performance, hoping to position herself as the queen of a new generation of pop stars with an opulent show and a sharp performance that mixed her new release with more familiar songs. She seemed like Roman royalty when muscle-bound men carried her extravagant throne across the football field to the stage for her opening song, “Vogue.”

Singer Madonna and Nicki Minaj perform.

Nicki Minaj, Madonna and M.I.A. perform.

Madonna performs with Redfoo and Sky Blu of LMFAO.

M.I.A. performs.

Madonna and Ceelo Green perform.

Guests Cee Lo, Nicki Minaj and dance rockers LMFAO also appeared with Madonna. The singing and dancing on “Vogue” was smartly choreographed, as Madonna moved more deliberately - she is 53 - but still adroitly. She briefly appeared to stumble at one point while trying to make a step on the stage set, but recovered in time. She let a tightrope walker make the more acrobatic moves during a performance of “Music.”

Madonna carried gold pompons for a performance of her frothy new single.

Twitter was alight with questions about the vocals being lip synched or augmented by tapes, particularly during this song.

The best guest was clearly Cee Lo, who joined Madonna for the final song, “Like a Prayer.” They were joined by a robed chorus in the show’s most soaring performance. With a puff of white smoke, Madonna disappeared down a trapdoor in the stage, and lights on the field spelled out “World Peace.” The performance was also carried live on SiriusXM Radio, giving Madonna the biggest single audience of her career. For all the elaborate choreography and flashy effects, the finger incident is the more likely headline from the event. Earlier, Kelly Clarkson, Blake Shelton and Miranda Lambert offered some pregame patriotism. Shelton and Lambert did a twangy duet on “America the Beautiful” and Clarkson, in a simple black dress, sang “The Star Spangled Banner” without a hitch after last year’s performer, Christina Aguilera, flubbed a line. —AP

Madonna performs with Cee Lo Green.

Madonna performs.