8th Nov

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THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2012

Bahrain revokes citizenships of 31 Shiite activists

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Obama revives ‘hope’ with re-election win Romney concedes defeat • Amir sends congratulations

KUWAIT: Kuwait Times’ Editor-in-Chief Abd AlRahman Al-Alyan (left) meets HH the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah at Bayan Palace yesterday. — KUNA from the editor’s desk

1 vote, 1 nation

By Abd Al-Rahman Al-Alyan

WASHINGTON: Glowing with triumph, President Barack Obama revived his old theme of hope yesterday, telling Americans “the best is yet to come” after defying dark economic omens with a decisive re-election win. The 44th US president and the first African American to claim the Oval Office was returned to power after a joyless election which appears to have deepened, rather than healed, his nation’s political divide. “In this election, you, the American people, reminded us that while our road has been hard, while our journey has been long, we have picked ourselves up, we have fought our way back,” Obama, 51, said at a victory party in Chicago.

“I have never been more hopeful about America. And I ask you to sustain that hope,” Obama said, striving for inspiration rarely shown in a campaign where the prophet of hope of 2008 became a conventional, brawling politician. “I have always believed that hope is that stubborn thing inside us that insists, despite all the evidence to the contrary, that something better awaits us so long as we have the courage to keep reaching, to keep working, to keep fighting,” Obama said.

HH the Amir of Kuwait Sheikh Sabah AlAhmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah sent a cable of congratulations yesterday to Obama upon his reelection. Sheikh Sabah praised the good relations between the two countries and stressed continued keenness on furthering bonds and cooperation in all fields to benefit both sides.

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CHICAGO: US President Barack Obama, his wife Michelle, Vice President Joe Biden and his spouse Jill acknowledge the applause after Obama delivered his victory speech to supporters early yesterday. — AP (See Pages 9 & 10)

Relief, not euphoria in Mideast

myopinion@kuwaittimes.net

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would like to congratulate President Obama on winning the American people’s trust for a second term and I would like to congratulate the American people on a successful election. I hope for America’s and the rest of the world’s sake that every American person used his/her one vote wisely.

Speaking of one vote, Kuwait is only a few weeks from parliamentary elections and now voters only have one vote to cast. Yes - one vote - so people can only vote for one candidate, one friend, one cousin, one colleague or one of whoever they base their decision on. This is going to be an interesting election with many new faces, especially since many of the old faces decided to boycott the elections as a sign of disapproval with HH the Amir’s decision to change the voting system.

The opposition is trying its best to ridicule the upcoming polls and play down its significance. At first they stated that not many people will sign up for the one-vote elections, but so far this is proving to be wrong. Many of them said it’s not the quantity of participation that matters, it’s the quality! Great! That’s all we needed - more discrimination. May I remind you that whoever participates is a Kuwaiti and they have political rights like any other citizen and they all come from respectful families. How can someone claim to represent the people and make a statement about the quality of participants just because they have an opposing view?

In a meeting with editors-in-chief of Kuwaiti newspapers, HH the Amir expressed that there will be changes to help Kuwait get back on track politically and economically.

Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmed Al-Sabah radiated with enthusiasm in the room over the upcoming elections and said that this parliament will last the whole way and Kuwait will be revived from the stagnation that held back the country that was once known as the ‘Pearl of the Gulf’. His Highness also played down rumors that Qatar or any other state is paying political money to deliberately cause chaos in Kuwait and he expressed his sadness at the fact that some groups have blamed our “Gulf brothers” with such an accusation.

The truth is, part of the blame for the rumors and the political and economical problems falls on the shoulders of the government. It seems that whenever the government has a project or an agenda, MPs lobby to stop and distract the government; then they accuse them over the lack of development. MPs tend to express their views and accusations on a daily if not hourly basis while the government has no steady flow of information. Basically, we always hear one side of the story and the government never defends its agenda in a way that makes people know the truth of why the country is really in the position it’s in now. Perhaps it’s time the government appoints a spokesperson and for ministries to hold weekly briefings with the press in order to express and show their agenda to the people rather than allow people to spread rumors.

HH the Amir was adamant that the law will be upheld and people have the right to criticize, oppose and express their opinions in a constructive and respectful manner rather than the method we have seen recently in Kuwait, such as discriminating against groups, breaking the law, attacking people, breaking into the parliament etc. It is up to the government now to uphold the law and to reflect HH the Amir’s enthusiasm on Kuwait. This is a grand chance for the government to shift the country into gear and prove the opposition wrong. If the government can move the wheel of development with this parliament that is being heavily criticized by the opposition, then I think the opposition will find themselves in quite a predicament.

God bless Kuwait, its Amir and its people.

Max 32º Min 17º High Tide 04:50 & 19:10 Low Tide 11:48

BOSTON: Republican presidential candidate and former Massachusetts Gov Mitt Romney delivers his concession speech at his election night rally yesterday. — AP

DUBAI: A tweet from one of Saudi Arabia’s most influential clerics summed up the Middle East’s response to Barack Obama’s re-election: “Obama isn’t good,” tweeted Salman Al-Oudah, “But he is the lesser evil.” After four years during which he largely kept Washington on the sidelines while the Arab Spring transformed the Middle East, Obama’s re-election was met more with relief than joy in a region that welcomed him in 2008 and still has bitter memories of his Republican predecessor George W Bush.

There was cautious hope that he could reach a deal with Iran to defuse tension over its nuclear program, and prod Israel and the Palestinians closer to reviving their frozen peace talks. Above all, people said Obama was less likely than his Republican opponent Mitt Romney to start another war. “Obama was the better choice,” said Cairo schoolboy Mohammed Gamal. “At least no war had happened in his four-year term.”

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Dems keep Senate, Reps retain House States back pot, gay marriage WASHINGTON/ LOS ANGELES: Democrats held the Senate and Republicans retained the House of Representatives, projections said yesterday, raising the likely prospect of more partisan gridlock in a divided US Congress. The Republicans suffered multiple blows to their quest to take back control of the Senate, failing to win several hoped-for seats in Tuesday’s elections, as the Democrats added three to their column. The biggest reverse came in hotly-contested Massachusetts, with television networks giving the win to Democrat Elizabeth Warren, ousting Republican Scott Brown, regaining the seat of late Democratic icon Edward Kennedy.

The Republican drive for the Senate suffered its first setback in Maine, where former governor Angus King, an independent who is expected to side with the Democrats, was projected to succeed retiring Republican Olympia Snowe. The Republicans also lost seats in Connecticut and Indiana, TV networks said. The Connecticut defeat was particularly hard to take as Republican hopeful Linda McMahon spent big in her campaign but Democrat Christopher Murphy picked up the seat of outgoing independent Senator Joe Lieberman. Some 33 of the Senate’s 100 seats were up for grabs, with 23 of those being defended by Democrats, giving Republicans a chance - albeit Continued on Page 13

NEW YORK: People celebrate in Times Square as it is announced that US President Barack Obama has been re-elected early yesterday. — AFP

Oppn plans major gathering Sunday

By B Izzak KUWAIT: The opposition has decided to stay off the streets and hold a massive gathering they expect would attract tens of thousands of Kuwaitis at Irada Square opposite the National Assembly to mark the 50th anniversary of the constitution, which they accuse the government of undermining. Former Islamist MP Waleed Al-Tabtabaei said after a meeting late Tuesday night of the opposition and youth activists that it was decided to hold a gathering rather than a procession on the anniversary of the constitution, but that will not replace future processions. Opposition figures expect record numbers to turn out for the gathering, with some hoping for as many as 250,000 people.

A day before the gathering, the government will hold its own celebrations of the constitution anniversary with an unprecedented display of fireworks. The Interior Ministry said it will close the Arabian Gulf road from its intersection with the Third Ring Road to its crossing with Al-Sour Road all day on Saturday for the occasion.

Former liberal MP Saleh Al-Mulla meanwhile called for another gathering of the opposition on Monday to draw a plan to expand the popular boycott of the election. The Popular Committee for Boycotting the Election, which was launched two days ago, has appointed coordinators in all the five constituencies to organize the election boycott by forming popular committees in the constituencies.

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THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2012

Hungary seeks strategic partnership with Kuwait Top delegation meets KIA, KCCI officials

By Sajeev K Peter KUWAIT: Kuwait and Hungary are poised to bolster economic and business relations between the two countries paving the way for enhanced cooperation in a variety of fields, said a top Hungarian government official here. Talking to the Kuwait Times in an interview, Peter Szijjarto, State Secretary for Foreign Affairs and External Economic Relations at the Hungarian Prime Minister’s Office, said as part of Hungary’s ‘Look East policy’, the country is seeking allies among Arab countries.

“The Arab countries are key players in our foreign affairs strategy and as such we count on Kuwait as our strategic partner,” he pointed out.

Szijjarto arrived in Kuwait heading an official high-level economic and political delegation from Hungary on Monday in order to prepare for the first Session of the Joint HungarianKuwaiti Economic Committee scheduled to be held in Budapest in early April, 2013. Peter Szijjarto is the appointed Co-Chairman of the Hungarian-Kuwaiti Joint Economic Committee.

Hungarian Ambassador to Kuwait Ferenc Csillag was also present during the interview.

Deep-rooted Underlining the deep-rooted bilateral relations between Hungary and Kuwait, Szijjarto said his country stood very strongly on the side of Kuwait when the country was invaded by Iraq.

As part of the official program, the delegation held talks at the Ministry of Finance with Undersecretary Khalifa Al-Hamada, who is also the Kuwaiti Co-Chairman of the Joint HungarianKuwaiti Economic Committee. The meeting has agreed to enhance economic contact between the countries with cooperation forming the key agenda for the meeting. He said both sides identified the territories of cooperation that include agriculture, healthcare, petrochemical and urban planning and development. “ The meeting in Budapest will explore the possibilities of forming joint venture companies on the basis of production-sharing between Kuwait and Hungary in the field of agriculture. A Kuwaiti source could

finance the venture to produce agricultural products in Hungarian land,” he explained. He said the country has great experience and expertise in operating hospitals especially in the field of oncology.

In the field of oil and gas, he said,

Peter Szijjarto talks during the interview.—Photo by Sajeev K Peter Hungarian oil giant MOL seeks cooperation with Kuwaiti petrochemical companies in exploration of oil and gas in Kuwait. MOL is the biggest Central European oil company which is 25 percent owned by the Hungarian government. Another field of cooperation can be in the field of urban development where Hungarian companies could participate in Kuwait’s National Development Program.

“Our engineering expertise and technology support can be utilized in Kuwait’s infrastructure development in building rail and road networks and subways,” he added.

Destination The Hungarian delegation also called on Kuwait Investment Authority (KIA) officials and held talks with its Managing Director Bader Al-Saad. He said Hungary has a safe investment environment. The country has very low taxes and has little bureaucratic hurdles. The country is also politically very stable, an unusual thing for Europe.

The Hungarian side put together a list of medical tourism projects for the KIA as it is a well-developed segment in Hungary, Szijjarto pointed out.

“We have the fourth largest thermal water source in the world. Similarly, we have many hospitals and rehabilitation

centers in the country. We are looking forward to receiving Kuwaiti capital to further develop this sector. Also Kuwaiti patients can visit these places for medical treatment and wellness,” he mentioned.

Castles for sale In his talks with the KIA director, Szijjarto informed that 11 big historical places in Hungary are up for sale.

“These castles, built by rich families two or three centuries ago, represent the true Hungarian heritage and are possible places of investment,” he said.

Similarly, Hungarian state bonds are also very favorable tools for Kuwaiti investment.

The delegation, in its discussion with Kuwait Chamber of Commerce and Industry Vice President Abdul Wahab A-Wazzan and some private Kuwaiti businessmen, further shed light on potential areas of investment in Hungary, especially in automobile industry and oil and gas sector.

He urged private Kuwaiti investors to participate in Europe’s north-south oil pipeline project, a project that is expected to redraw the energy landscape of Europe. Other areas of possible investments include steel industry and renewable energy.

MOU The National Technology Enterprise Company (NTEC), Kuwait signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the National investment Office of Hungary on cooperation in the field of IT and R&D. Two other MOUs are scheduled to be signed by KCCI and KIA with their counterpart Hungarian Investment and Trade Association during the Joint Hungarian-Kuwait Economic Committee meeting in Budapest. The Hungarian delegation was joined by the Chairman of the Hungarian Chamber of Commerce and Industry and also by the Chairman of the Hungarian Innovation Office, responsible for IT and R&D development. Official meetings also took place at the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Public Works and at the General Secretariat for Planning and Development and at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The Head of the Hungarian delegation carried a letter of the Hungarian Prime Minister as well.

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2012

LOCAL

KUWAIT: His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah received at Bayan Palace yesterday Minister of Information and Minister of State for Cabinet Affairs Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah AlMubarak Al-Sabah, Board Chairman and Director General of Kuwait News Agency Sheikh Mubarak Al-Duaij Al-Sabah, Kuwait Journalists Association (KJA) Chairman Ahmad Behbehani and Chief Editors of local newspapers. The meeting was attended by Deputy Minister of the Amiri Diwan Sheikh Ali Jarrah Al-Sabah and undersecretary at the Ministry of Information Sheikh Salman Sabah Al-Salem Al-Humoud Al-Sabah.

Time ripe for cementing Kuwait-Iraq relations KJA hosts media conference

By Nawara Fattahova KUWAIT: In a first of its sorts, the Kuwait Journalists Association (KJA) on Tuesday hosted a conference along with a delegation of the Iraqi media in an event that was the highest level of media interaction between the two countries since the turbulent events of 1990. The Iraqi media delegation’s members, for most of whom it was their first visit to Kuwait, expressed their happiness at the event held on the KJA’s premises and said they were pleased with the warm welcome they received in Kuwait.

During the visit, the delegation met with His Highness the Amir

Kuwaitis still suffer from the pain caused by one person (Saddam Hussein), who, in fact, destroyed the two countries. But today we are not looking at the past, and we have agreed on certain points. The visit of HH the Amir to Iraq this year was a message that both the countries will now focus on rebuilding themselves,” he pointed out.

According to Lami, the security situation in Iraq is now definitely better.

“The sectarian fights caused rivers of blood in Iraq, but things are becoming better now. We need more time to attain complete normalcy where citizens can take safety for granted.

Peace is a prerequisite since Iraq is a diverse country in terms of sects and

KUWAIT: Faisal Al-Qinai, Secretary General of KJA awarding Muayad Lami, head at the Iraqi media delegation. —Photos by Yasser Al-Zayyat Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber AlSabah, HH the Crown Prince, HH the Prime Minister, and other officials and also visited some press and media institutions, as well as public organizations in Kuwait. They also visited some of the diwaniyas. The delegation discussed many issues important to both the countries.

Muayad Al-Lami, head of the delegation, said that the relations between the two countries had their ups and downs, but have now stabilized. “During our past visits, we agreed on many issues, but none could be carried to completion due to the gap between Kuwait and Iraq. The

religions,” he added.

He also considered this period as suitable for laying the foundation stone for developing strong relations between the two countries for the sake of next generations. “We have felt the injustice that the Kuwaitis faced during the invasion in 1990, and they, on their part, also realize the injustice that we faced during the regime of Saddam Hussein,” Lami further said. Zahra Ali, the president of the Iraqi Women Journalists Union said that more Iraqi women have joined the field of media. “The number of Iraqi female journalists has increased to 2,146, including 15

Editors-in-Chief and 40 Managing Editors. Women have an important role in the community and comprise half the society, playing a key role in forming and disseminating views,” she stated.

Dr. Talib Bahar, General Director of Al-Rasheed satellite channel noted that they were warmly welcomed by the people and Kuwaiti institutions.

“During this visit, we felt we all were part of the same family. We had taken the first step by exchanging a visit after the invasion with our delegation’s visit in 2004. And today we want to focus on building a bright future for both our countries,” he explained.

Dr. Nahidh Fadel, Dean of the Information Faculty of the Iraqi University promised to let every family in Iraq know about the warm treatment that the delegation received in Kuwait. “We will publish all the details of our visit,” he said.

He also spoke about the curriculum in Iraq, which was too politicized during Saddam’s regime. “The curriculum used to include the Ba’ath Party rules, and there was no freedom of the press or media. Today, there is total media freedom, and there are opposition newspapers criticizing the government and its head. Also, various internet websites are freely publishing articles critical of the regime,” stressed Fadel.

Fuad Ghazi, Editor-in-Chief of the Mustaqbal Iraqi newspaper noted that the purpose of this visit was to enhance cooperation and exchange between the two countries. He also spoke about the improving cultural situation in Iraq. “Some Iraqi universities have scored ratings comparable to international universities. Also, the formative arts and the domain of poetry are springing back to their earlier exalted position in the Arab world,” he said.

Faisal Ghazi, Editor-in-Chief of the Ghad Iraqi newspaper hoped this visit will be followed by a visit of the Kuwaiti media corps to Iraq.

The treasurer of KJA and the man who conducted the conference, Adnan Al-Rashed, thanked the Ministry of Information for facilitating the administrative procedures for the visit of the delegation, and for the

Bedridden Filipina maid tells ordeal

By Ben Garcia KUWAIT: Jobel, a Filipina domestic worker who came to Kuwait nearly a year ago, today lies in a hospital bed with a broken spine and a fractured leg, injuries she sustained when she jumped from a second floor apartment to escape sexual assault by two human traffickers.

The 25-year-old woman spoke to a reporter about her ordeal, which she said started shortly after reaching her employer’s house upon arriving in Kuwait last December. “I agreed to come to Kuwait on a $400 contract despite the fact that the [housemaids’ recruitment] agency said that I will be paid KD80 a month only. I agreed because I had no other choice,” she said. Jobel was welcomed at the airport by a representative from the agency who drove her to the office in Hawally where paperwork was finalized before she spent her first night “with other domestic workers at the

house of the agency’s manager.” The next morning, her employer showed up to take her to his Fahaheel house.

“I was shocked to discover that the family which had hired me had five children and lived in a large house that required a lot of work,” she explained. “But I was too afraid to refuse to work and remained patient for a few months.” Eventually, Jobel said that she had “had enough” and decided to tell her employer’s wife that she would like to go back to the office. After learning about her request, Jobel’s sponsor slapped her and later took her to a different office than the one through which she was hired. “I later realized that I was sold so that (the employer) does not lose the money he had paid to recruit me while at the same time I was being punished,” she explained.

Jobel was put in an apartment with five other women, four from Sri Lanka and one from the Philippines.

There were also two men from Sri

Lanka living in the same apartment, and she came to know after spending her first night that “they pick two women to rape after they get drunk every night”. “My compatriot came to me one night crying after one of them assaulted her. It was then that she decided to escape from the window and out of panic, I, too, decided to do the same.”

Jobel’s friend seemingly had “prior experience” as she was able to climb down the window and land safely on the ground. Jobel, however, was not as lucky. “I just jumped, and the next thing I know I was lying motionless on the ground, unable to move and screaming in pain,” she told the reporter. She was then taken back to the apartment by the two men, who after realizing she needed medical attention, called her employer as he was the person legally responsible for her. They made the call two days after the incident, however, “when they felt I was going to die,” Jobel said.

KUWAIT: A Group photo of the members of the Iraqi delegation at the KJA.

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2012

LOCAL kuwait digest

Local Spotlight

The ‘pharaohs’ we idolize

Congrats: US election

By Jaafar Rajab want to write today about Dr. Ahmad Al-Khateeb and his recent statement...“Who are you to write about him? Do you happen to have a history similar to his?

Have you practiced politics as long as he did? Have you fought, struggled and spent your life serving the country as he did? Who are you to write about a state figure who was among the team that put together the constitution? Of course, you don’t have any right to write about him!”

Fine. I’ll write about Mohammad Al-Mahri.

“No you won’t! Who are you to write about him? He is a Marja (Shiite cleric with authority to make legal decisions in accordance with the Islamic Law); and the mere thought of writing about him is an insult to his status. To begin with, what puts you in a position to write about him? What exactly do you seek to prove? Doesn’t he have the right to express his opinion?”

Ok, then, I’ll write about Musallam Al-Barrak.

“Of course not, because he is the symbol of honorable opposition. Who are you to write about Al-Barrak?

He is an MP equal to a thousand MPs who, once he speaks, makes the corrupt individuals tremble in fear.”

I’ll write about Nabeel Shu’ail then. “..and do you happen to know anything about art to talk about him? He’s a singer with a ‘golden larynx’ and you can’t even come close to a single song he writes.”

What about Essa Hajji Mousa?

“The multi-talented artist? He’s a visual artist, singer and musician. He is a bright star lighting the entire Gulf region and compared to whom, you are just a candle!”

Then I’ll write about Obaid Al-Wasmi.

“You couldn’t find anyone else to write about but ‘The Doctor’? The man who can make a statement worth more than what a dozen constitutional experts can together come up with?”

Fair enough... I’ll write about Ahmad Al-Saadoun.

“He’s the Icon. He has been a member in the parliament before you were even born. He knows the Kuwaiti Constitution and many other constitutions by heart.

Who are you to write about the speaker of the parliament?”

These are imaginary conversations which basically show the reactions I most likely elicit from many people should I decide to write a column about any of the persons mentioned above, or any other political or social figure for that matter. We live in a society in which love and hate are practiced to the extreme. We love idols, and create nothing but idols. As soon as an idol is brought down, another one is quickly installed in its place. We put our intellectual ability aside and sanctify individuals we idolize as immortal demigods. We watch them rule and give orders, then work hard to justify their mistakes because they are pardoned by their ‘history’ (whether they have a good one or not). It is like the story of the Pharaoh of the Exodus and his magicians.

We raise small pharaohs and watch them grow while in the process, we resort to nothing less than magic to defend them. But unlike the Pharaoh’s magicians who followed Moses when he proved their beliefs wrong, we continue to idolize our ‘pharaohs’ more even if their falseness is exposed. — Al-Rai

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By Muna Al-Fuzai

muna@kuwaittimes.net

would like to congratulate the United States and all our American friends for re-electing the US president, Barak Obama. I also salute Mitt Romney for his hard work, efforts and what he said and did though it did not win him a presidency but surely he won the respect and admiration of many. The US election was indeed a lesson for the rest of the world in democracy and how candidates can pursue the same objectives and still race against each other, while respecting the opponent’s mission. This is something we, too, need to learn and practice, the great spirit of competing against each other with the best interest of our country in mind, not our own.

While I was watching the US election process on TV, I wished if we could emulate the procedures and make our voters learn how people in the US approach an election with an open mind and in a straight forward way, with everyone having one vote and less tension.

Indeed, the US election was a lesson for the Arabs, and especially for the Kuwaitis, in democracy and how it can be practiced and implemented by both the ruling powers and the voters. There were no insults being hurled, no one used bad language or cursed or called each other names. Instead, it all went smoothly, openly and transparently.

The people undertook the mission and played their part by voting as per their views, beliefs, assessment of needs and expectations. Citizens everywhere bear in mind that economy and security are on the top of the agenda, not just for the US but for every country.

I do believe that economy and security should be the top agenda item for any country. Here in Kuwait, we, too, need to put these things on top of our priority list. In the last twenty years, we have not witnessed any development projects happening and our hopes in this regard have been held hostages to the obstacles put by some members of the national assembly. We, the people, always wish to practice our democracy freely and openly, without any power exerting any pressure. That is why I, among many others, felt happy to see our ally, the USA, celebrating its unity and freedom and doing so by entering into a new phase by making a democratic choice.

I would like to congratulate all our American friends, wishing them prosperity and peace.

I

In my view

Huge security apparatus

By Thaar Al Rashidi o rustle up such a huge security apparatus in the country, including security personnel from land, sea and air force besides the police, army and national guards, even coast guards, to deal with just a “few thousands” of protesters who had come out to express their opinion was not justified. Throwing such a security circle around “the power” was a solution that was a mistake committed on part of the government.

Such huge security paraphernalia, which was in no way justified, reminds me of Adel Imam’s comic play The Witness who saw nothing wherein the protagonist, finding a large number of policemen in his apartment, asks, “Are you going to war?” The story is more than that of a rally which was to last for just one-and-a-half hours, as announced by the organizers. Do you get fed up in just 90 minutes in which people come out to speak what is weighing on their hearts? It is indeed remarkable, thinking that you did not feel fed up for years altogether when the country was virtually being stolen in broad day light. Never mind, bear with us for a while.

Bear with us the same way as we have been bearing with you for long years when this country was being sliced like a birthday cake, to be gobbled up by the

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sweet lovers who hovered around.

Constitution is not the Holy Quran, that is true and we are with you on this, but resorting to enhanced security as a way to solve a political problem is not something that the constitution suggests, nor is there any logic in it.

By the way, public has not changed. These are still the same people who believe in their country, in democracy and peaceful practice. They proved this with the first ‘March of Dignity’ rally about honor of a nation.

What has changed is the security mentality, the mindset that controls the political table. That is the only change in the scene, and it will turn the table on everyone and lead to catastrophic results.

Let us wait and see what the writer employed by the Ministry of Interior to draft its declarations will write this time, and whether the Ministry is able to keep an objective approach or fall into a partisan circle. It is important to note that the Ministry of Interior is a ministry for all of us and not a partisan entity. It cannot be a Ministry of and for just one side in this clash. It is not within the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Interior to do anything except as per the law and constitution. Taking any step outside the framework laid down by law and constitu-

The column

By Fouad Al-Obaid

fouad@kuwaittimes.net Twitter: @Fouadalobaid or the better part of the last couple of weeks major political battles have been waged, on air, via social media channels, and for a historic first in post-liberation Kuwait: on the streets. Many people have come up with their own opinion about the current situation where most find themselves divided between pro-current system supporters, and a loosely termed ëoppositioní. At the end of the day both parties seem to have the interest of Kuwait at heart; their differences are in the means.

On the one hand we have had a precedent when on Oct 15 ex-MP Mussalam Al-Barak (the highest elected MP in Kuwaitís history) gave a daunting speech, with an unprecedented tone, addressing HH the Emir in person, which until that point was a social taboo.

What took aback many, was the nature of the speech by which he addressed bluntly the grievances that many Kuwaitis have to His Highnessís esteemed regard, and yet it did not stop there. In a first, a key phrase was coined ìWe will not allow youÖî defying HH in person as to his decision to change the electoral law using emergency decrees prerogatives enshrined in the constitution as per Article 71: a phrase that later was chanted by the people gathered at the speech opening up a Pandora box as to the future of Kuwaiti politics.

The decree became the talk of town as speculation even before its promulgation was rising in so far as political gerrymandering was concerned. The objective of the change was to prevent a recurrence of the 2012 Parliament that saw for the first time a clear ëoppositioní majority. Though presumably the issue was not one where veteran MPs feared loosing their seats as some suggested, what clearly emerged was a growing grass-root consciousness that once a precedent is established it would lead to further actions on the part of the Executive authority bypassing in effect Parliamentís checks.

As a counter to the decree, a broad coalition of people ñ and I stress people; for the discrepancies between the various opposing parties can not be viewed as a collective ñ who saw in that act, a final provocation to the people of Kuwait. The reason being is that after five elections all rocked with scandals not one completing itís full four year term, and in what will be a historic first: two elections in less than a year. Many have started to question the entire political system currently, along with its very ability to perform. In essence under the current system, the parliament, and the government act as two opposing teams. It is from the later that the current standoff is emanating from.

In so far as both the official government rhetoric is concerned, the view of thousands of Kuwaitis marching on the street has sent jitters to the ruling

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Kuwait and the understanding of the Dignity Movement elite, and has sent sparks to the wider Gulf region.

The desire to prevent the march in the first place saw unprecedented security measures where entire squares in Kuwait City were cordoned and heavy police presence was camped in anticipation of what was to happen later that evening.

Much talk has subsequently emerged following the severe crackdown on disarmed, peaceful protestors that marked both the spirit of Kuwait ñ in so the protestors are concerned. It was at that point that the many thousands that perhaps were curious and went to the march without much thought about the consequence, were defacto pulled into the movement, for they became the victims of direct repression. Without going into the details of numbers for whether in the tens of thousands or towards the upper limit of the estimate of as much as 150,000 protestors marching in various parts of the city in one night, what was clear was the desire to prevent such a huge showing by the government, and subsequently the language used by the official press and itís allies was one heard before from a certain northern neighbor some years ago!

Much ink, and airtime was spilled in trying to portray those present at the march as fringes of society, or as non-nationals, or as people that are attempting to disturb the tranquility and current status quo.

The reality is far from it, and despite the many news emanating from official channels the truth that I witnessed was a country coming to term with a growing realization that we are not moving in the right direction, and that we have not been moving in the right direction for a while now! Those attempting to believe their own fantasies are only fooling themselves. For regardless of who, or what is instigating the protest, they remain to be only the catalyst. The real question not asked or not honestly answered is why are seemingly well-off Kuwaitis going to the street even though numerous warnings of repression were made by the official media?!

In attempting to answer such a question, I donít believe there is one reason. There are many reasons that people personally have in joining the protest movement. Whether it be the rampant corruption that they are victim of on a daily basis ñ from simple governmental procedures taking more than they reasonably require to finish, to gross national mismanagement of assets both tangible and intangible. The most pressing issue that many Kuwaitis are faced with is the vision of black they see when consulting their own future crystal ball, a hopelessness that the future wonít be better than our current present; and that it may very well lead to a worse future so long as the government is not serious in implementing reform: reform here being the key word.

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2012

LOCAL

KUWAIT: His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah receiving at Bayan Palace yesterday in the presence of HH the Crown Prince Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, the Honorary President of Al-Kuwait Sporting Club Marzouq Ali Al-Ghanem, Board Chairman of the Club Abdulaziz Fahad Al-Marzouq as well as the footballers of the club.

US embassy holds Election Day celebration in Kuwait Inheritors of a democratic tradition KUWAIT: The US embassy held a reception on the occasion of the US Election Day at the Regency Hotel on Tuesday evening.

Attendees, who included an alumni group from US universities, diplomats, journalists and political and business figures from Kuwait, cast ballots in a mock election while watching updates and polls on a big screen.

Addressing the gathering, US Ambassador Matthew Tueller ’s said, “Tonight, we are here to celebrate Americans going to the polls. As many of you know, the US constitution provides for presidential elections every four years and establishes the basis for our representative democracy. As inheritors of a democratic tradition we understand that we must nurture it for the benefit of ourselves, our children, and future generations.

As Americans, we hold many different views but each of us has an abiding interest in preserving our democracy.”

He added, “Former President George H. W. Bush, who still holds a special place in the hear t of many Kuwaitis, said on the day of his inauguration: “Here today are

tens of thousands of our citizens who feel the understandable satisfaction of those who have taken part in democracy and seen their hopes fulfilled...On days like this, we remember that we are all part of a continuum, inescapably connected by the ties that bind.”

The Ambassador said, “Elections are great events but we know that the success of our democracy rests not only on elections, but on our readiness to respect the rights and views of those with whom we may disagree.” He also quoted President Obama as saying, “Democracy depends not only on elections, but also [on] strong and accountable institutions, and the respect for the rights of minorities.”

Tueller said, “Right now, as you can see on the screen behind me, in schools and community gathering places across the United States, American citizens of all backgrounds, and socio economic strata, and creeds, are choosing those who will represent them in the White House, in the Senate, and the House of Representatives, as well as at the state and local level. Some of the faces you see

KUWAIT: US ambassador to Kuwait Matthew Tueller is addressing the attendees at the reception held on the occasion of US election day at Regency Hotel on Tuesday evening. —Photos by Yasser Al-Zayyat

are of Republicans and Democrats; some are of people who are not affiliated with either party. By voting and expressing their differing points of view, they are sustaining the success of our society and its institutions. They may disagree with each other, but they are demonstrating a love of a country and a commitment to our Constitution that benefits us all.”

He went on adding, “This elec-

Former MP accuses opposition of seeking to ‘control the country’

By A. Saleh KUWAIT: The current ordeal in Kuwait is not caused by an emergency decree or due to the issue of a single-vote system, but because certain parties want to Kuwait to be in a state of chaos so that they can take over the country, a former lawmaker said yesterday.

“The Majority Bloc lost the support of the people after its members failed miserably to turn into statesmen,” former MP Saleh Ashour said in a statement in which he also insisted that members of the oppositionist group are “delusional if they believe they can achieve their goal of taking over and running the state.” Ashour further argued that if the opposition claims that the crisis was caused by the emergency decree “then it is important to know that nothing happened when thousands of emergency decrees were released before, some of which were rejected by the parliament.” He further urged young people to avoid allowing themselves to be used as “tools in the hands of politicians facing criminal charges who use them as pawns on the bargaining table.”

Meanwhile, third constituency candidate Basel Al-Jasser

accused the “Muslim Brotherhood in Kuwait” of controlling KD12 million “obtained through charity in Kuwait,” adding that a large part of these funds were used “to serve their electoral interests in Kuwait and support their group in Egypt, Tunisia and other places.” Al-Jasser demanded an “open investigation” into this matter “in order to ensure that charity funds given by Kuwaitis are used for charitable purposes.”

Separately, the Ministry of Information announced yesterday suspension of three news websites for two weeks for “violating the law by broadcasting news that was not conducive to national unity and spread sectarianism and tribalism.” The ministry warned that should the violations persist, the suspension of service “effective immediately” will be followed by suspension of license. In other news, the Court of First Instance set next Monday as the date for hearing in two cases filed by attorney Riyadh Al-Sane’a in which he has demanded that the elections set for December 1 be put on hold. Al-Sane’a is challenging the constitutionality of the 2009 parliament’s dissolution on the basis that it took place before the house could convene at least once since it was reinstated by a Constitutional Court ruling in June last.

Baghdad fair For the first time in 23 years, Kuwaiti companies returned to Iraq’s investment market through successful participation in the Baghdad International Fair. The Fair featured 20 Kuwaiti companies specializing in petrochemicals, electricity, food, medical equipment and other specialties. “Iraq is one of the best locations for investment in the world, given the lack of raw material and products in the local market,” director of Kuwait’s pavilion Abdullah Al-Mutairi said.

Kuwait plans to take part in next year’s event “with four times higher level of participation” compared to this year, something Al-Mutairi sees “an indication of recovery of Iraq’s economy and improvement in its relations with Kuwait.”

Causeway’s guarantee The Combined Group Contracting Company (CGC) issued a letter of guarantee from the National Bank of Kuwait to continue procedures for signing the contract of the Sheikh Jaber Causeway as per request by Hyundai, their partners in the mega project. This was mentioned in a recent letter the CGC sent to the Kuwait Stock Exchange, which mentioned that the letter of guarantee was valued at 15,862,200 Kuwaiti Dinars.

tion is also unique in that millions of Americans were able to avail themselves of early voting in a number of different states. For the first time in my life, I voted online last week. I am especially proud of our Consular Section for hosting an absentee voting event for registered voters residing here in Kuwait. We collected more than 350 early ballots from states all over America.”

He fur ther said, “ Today, the campaign is ending and Americans are mak ing their choice. Tomorrow morning, the Embassy staff and I will carry on the business of representing America and advancing our friendship with Kuwait, regardless of who wins. I n the words of S ecretar y of State Clinton: “For...democracy to thrive... leaders will need to build a culture of

cooperation that transcends political differences, what Alexis de Tocqueville, the great historian of America’s early years, termed the habits of the heart. They are at the core of every successful democracy.”

“Tonight we celebrate this occasion as a means to explain and affirm the American Presidential system as a model of democratic stability to the world,” he said.

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2012

LOCAL

Sheikha offers service pro bono to Filipina rape victim

Officer covers up for dealer in exchange of hashish KUWAIT: A border security officer helped a fugitive wanted for drug trafficking escape from Kuwait and was then caught finalizing the paper work to allow him to return to the country.

Both, the officer and the drug dealer, were arrested. The arrest came after the policeman was placed under surveillance based on information that suggested that he helped the fugitive leave Kuwait earlier this month in exchange of some hashish. He was placed under arrest on Monday night when he was reportedly finalizing procedures to allow the suspect back into Kuwait.

Police also arrested the drug dealer as soon as he made his way back into the country.

Meanwhile, a retired Ministry of Defense officer was arrested for drug trafficking after he was lured into a trap in which he sold two hashish rolls to an undercover agent for KD100. Police found 300 grams of the same drug at the man’s Farwaniya home. Based on his confessions, the man was charged with possession of drugs that he intended to sell.

Rapist at large Two teenaged brothers were allegedly assaulted sexually by a man known to their family after he lured them to the stables area the Salmi Road. The father of the two brothers, aged 15 and 13, told the police about the incident that reportedly happened three weeks ago. A case was filed at the Waha police station. The man, a stateless resident in his forties, explained that his sons trusted the suspect and went with him since he was a family friend.

Sexual assault A man sexually assaulted his stepdaughter over a period of six years, according to the victim’s testimonies, and is now a fugitive from law after the girl’s mother reported the incident at a local police station in Al-Farwaniya governorate. The girl, now 19, reportedly decided a couple of days ago to inform her mother about the predicament she was facing since the age of 13 years. By the time the police summoned the man for interrogation, he had disappeared.

Investigations are on.

Antiaircraft shells Bomb disposal squads successfully dealt with seven explosives found dur-

ing excavations at the Shaddadiya University construction site on Tuesday morning. The explosives unit personnel were called to the scene by police who responded to an emergency call about foreign objects turning up during a digging activity. The objects were recognized as seven anti-aircraft shells which, preliminary investigations indicated, were remnants of the 1990/91 Iraqi Invasion.

Forged passports An Iraqi family was held at the Kuwait International Airport after police discovered they had forged Bulgarian passports. The Iraqi man was accompanied by his wife and two daughters as he stopped in Kuwait during their journey from Iraq to a European country.

After the forgery was discovered, he confessed that he had acquired forged passports for his entire family to help them immigrate to Europe through Kuwait. Officers at the airport sent the family to the Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh police station for further action.

Love triangle Search is on for male suspect who reportedly fired gunshots at the house of a young man engaged to his cousin he wanted to marry. The incident was reported at the Taima police station recently where the groom-to-be told the officers that the suspect had earlier warned him and wanted him to break his engagement with his cousin.

Investigations are onto track down the suspect who faces attempted murder charges.

Maid held for theft A domestic worker faces charges after she was caught stealing food from her employers’ place and selling it with the help of a nearby storekeeper. A Kuwaiti woman had decided to install secret cameras at her house in AlQairawan after noticing that large quantities of food disappeared within no time. After catching the Asian housemaid red handed committing the theft, the woman brought her to the area’s police station and filed a case of theft. The maid admitted during investigations that a compatriot of hers was an accomplice in the crime as he sold the stolen items at his grocery shop, splitting the profits between them. She remains in custody as police are working to arrest her accomplice.

Lawyer criticizes Philippines Embassy

By Ben Garcia KUWAIT: A Kuwaiti female human rights lawyer criticized the Philippines Embassy yesterday for not allowing her team to visit a Filipina rape victim who was temporarily sheltered at their embassy premises. Lawyer Sheikha Fawzia Al-Sabah told the Kuwait Times that her objective was merely to extend help and lend support to the Filipina rape victim, on a pro bono basis which she said Marites (the rape victim) gladly accepted.

She said she had met Marites at her hospital bed at Mubarak Hospital, when she was recovering from the stab wound she suffered at the hands of her attacker, who was recently identified by the local authorities here as a police officer from the Traffic Police Department. After the alleged rape, Marites was stabbed on Oct 1 several times on her neck and various parts of her body with a Swiss knife by her police attacker.

“She told me at that time that she wanted me to be her lawyer, and I offered my services free of charge. She faced a horrible crime and hopefully, God willing, we can help her in many ways. Much as I want to represent her as her lawyer, the embassy has already refused us access to her. I wonder how we can extend our help now. I personally want to help Marites, especially with the kind of the crime committed against her,” she stressed.

According to Sheikha Fawzia, to her dismay, when Marites left the hospital, she was brought to the Philippine Embassy, and when she

Sheikha Fawzia Al-Sabah

assigned a lawyer from her office to see her at the Embassy, they (the embassy staff) had already refused her access to Marites. “Justice in such a crime could take up to three years in a Kuwait court and Marites is now housed in the embassy’s basement. Can she stay there without work and a valid residency permit for three years? I call upon the Filipinos to help and pray for her. I am willing to help her in whatever way possible,” she added.

Marites, a native of T’Boli South Cotabato came to Kuwait in 2006 to work as a housemaid but after spending three years with her employer, she was subsequently released and worked in a dress shop at Farwaniya. On the

night when she was attacked by the traffic police officer, she was with her friend. When the police asked for civil identification, her friend was able to provide a valid civil ID but Marites could not provide one. She was taken by the traffic police to a deserted location in Surra where she was raped, stabbed several times and left by the highway roadside half dead. She has recovered now and is currently under the embassy’s shelter. “I want Sheikha Fawzia to be my lawyer, although the embassy referred me to Attorney Ayed Al-Subaei. I want Shiekha Fawzia because she is a woman, and I am comfortable with her,” she told this reporter. Kuwait Times tried to reach the

‘Keep Kuwait Clean’

By Hanan Al-Saadoun KUWAIT: Information campaigns launched by the Municipality in government schools continued as part of the national campaign “Keep Kuwait Clean” organized by public relations department in kindergarten and elementary schools and will last till

December-end. This time, the Yarmouk kindergarten and Bahra Elementary school for girls in capital governorate were the next stations for the municipality. Necessary information and advisories were given to students to keep public utilities clean.

They were made to understand why it was important in an individual’s life and the life of a society, as

also for our environment.

Campaign organizers used drawings as an aid to explain the concepts which engaged the interest of the students to no end. The function concluded with competitions, rewards for which were distributed on this occasion. The work team of municipality was headed by Eiman Al Moosawi.

GCC citizen held for drug trading

By Hanan Al Saadoun KUWAIT: Drugs enforcement agents arrested a GCC citizen on charges of possessing and trading in drugs after prior information was received about the suspect’s activities.

Immediately, necessary information was collected and the man was approached by an undercover agent to buy some hasheesh.

The suspect was caught when he was making the delivery. After searching him, agents found on him traces of hasheesh and KD 700. A search of his residence yielded 17 kilogram of hasheesh.

He confessed that he used to obtain the drug from a compatriot of his who smuggles

it into Kuwait through the land route from a GCC state. The authorities are now coordinating with the concerned authorities to arrest the supplier of the drugs.

Road accidents Four people were injured in a car accident on Al Wafra road on the way to the farms near 7 km milestone yesterday afternoon. Five ambulances were rushed to the site of the accident, but before paramedics could arrive, one of the injured had already been taken in a private car to a hospital. The paramedics had to call the fire department personnel to extricate one injured person who was stuck inside the car. Eventually, three injured peo-

ple, including two with head injuries, were rushed to the Adan hospital. The third person suffered a fracture in his right hand apart from other injuries.

A 59-year-old Turkish expat was left with a fractured left hand in a car accident that happened early in the morning yesterday near Abdaly, at kilo 40. The injured was rushed to the Jahra Hospital.

A car accident at the 4th Ring Road opposite Al Qairawan toward Jahra left six people, including five Kuwaitis and a Saudi citizen, injured. Three Kuwaiti men, aged 19, 22 and 23 years, and two Kuwaiti women, aged 18 and 40 years, suffered injuries in the accident while a 22-year-old Saudi man was left with a

fractured right thigh. All the injured were taken to the Jahra Hospital.

A car accident on the 5th Ring Road opposite Bayan Palace left a 43-year-old Egyptian expat with a head injury. He was rushed to Mubarak Hospital and admitted to the intensive care unit. A car accident at the 6th Ring Road between Farwaniya and Al Dhajeej left two Kuwaiti men, 21 and 76 years of age, with pain in the elbows. They were taken to the Farwaniya Hospital.

A car accident on Kabd road opposite Ahmad Al Jaber base resulted in a fatal head injury for a 35-year-old Egyptian expat who died on the spot. His body was sent to the medical examiner.

Zain launches new strategy to bridge tech investment plans with future DUBAI: Zain Group, a pioneer in mobile telecommunications in 8 markets across the Middle East and North Africa, has inaugurated its 2nd annual Zain Technology Conference in Dubai, with the participation of more than 39 regional and global telecom solutions providers and partners.

The annual conference is convened in order to share the latestadvances in the telco field with Zain operating companies, while at the same time representing a focuspointfor the discussion of issues of mutual interest between the Zain Group and its leadingsuppliers and service providers.

The conference’s agenda in 2012 has been used to communicate Zain Group’s new technological leadership vision, which is summarized under its ‘Ghaduna Zain’ (Zain Tomorrow)strategy, and comprises a number of special initiatives being undertaken by the telco with the aim of remaining a leading innovator in all the markets in which it operates.

Zain Group Deputy CEO and COO, Hisham Akbar said: “The telecom sector is one of the most fortunate given that everything around us is going mobile; which is why we ask our partners to provide us with the services to sustain our operations at an optimal level.”

Akbar continued: “We have multiple important messages from our conference this year, with one of them being that we need to be more realistic in the way we operate, and look closely at the ways in which we can sustain our relevance in a quickly evolving environment.

Another key message is that we will continue to rank first as a service provider through our ongoing efforts to be pioneering in the offer of quality services without hidden charges, and remain agile and responsive to customer needs.”

Akbar added: “Customer demand and user experience we be the driver of the offer of lead-

ing class technology. As long as customer demand for new services and applications exists, there will also be demand for investment in the underlying technology required to carry those services and applications, and Zain is evolving into a commercial service provider rather than remaining just a technology-focused entity.”

Zain Group is thus looking to leverage its existing telecom competencies and technologies while at the same time giving its customer base access to additional quality voice and data services through its ‘Zain Tomorrow’ strategy.

Akbar said: “This year’s conference is being convened with an additional context. In addition to deepening our commitment to offering inno-

vative services, our newly announced ‘Zain Tomorrow’ strategy helps to reinforce our strategic goals for the forthcoming phase of development, emphasized by the presence of a large number of our partners who assist us in identifying cutting edge technologies.”

Akbar said the new strategy will require more coordinated efforts on the part of the operator in order to overcome the challenges posed by the rapidly evolving telecom sector which is converging around mobility, broadband access, and the Internet. Zain Group’s CTO, Hisham Allam, said: “The purpose of ourconference is to facilitate the exchange of the latest industry expertise, and given we have vast areas of growth in

the fields of voice and data services, such trends pose both an opportunity as well as a challenge in terms of managing the expansion in traffic efficiently.”

Allam continued: “The rise in mobile data and the growth in the usage of smartphones to access content is a reality, with smartphones representing over 90% of all mobile devices sold in Kuwait at this point in time. The increasingly sophisticated nature of modern mobile services consumers requires that we become fully aware of their needs and their expectations in terms of quality of services.”

Zain Group has already developed and approved 14 initiatives that have been tailored

to address the challenges that are to be tackled by the new operational strategy, with the initiatives being focused on innovation and creativity.

Telecom industry statistics suggest that telcos will be required to at least double their network capacity between now and 2020 in order keep up with the rise in demand for services, while the number of mobile subscribers is set to rise from 7 billion currently to 9.5 billion within the next five years. The Zain Technology Conference 2012 also hosted an exhibition for Zain partners in which they were able to showcase their latest products and services. Among the most prominent partners present at the exhibition were Nokia Siemens Networks, Ericsson, Huawei and

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2012

Philippine street kid a global inspiration

Scores missing as Bangladesh boat sinks Page 9

Page 12

DAIH: Bahraini anti-government protesters clash with riot police firing tear gas and rubber bullets after a mourning procession in Daih, Bahrain for a woman whose relatives and opposition activists say died from tear gas. (Inset) A masked Bahraini anti-government protester is prepared with protection against tear gas during clashes with riot police following a mourning procession in Daih. —AP

Bahrain revokes nationality of 31 men Manama targets clerics, activists News

in brief

‘Spurned lover’ kills 5 MOSCOW: A Russian man reportedly suffering from unrequited love for his colleague went on a shooting spree in his Moscow office, killing five and wounding another two, police said yesterday. He opened fire at the offices of the drugs company in northeast Moscow yesterday, killing five colleagues and wounding another two, the Investigative Committee said. The company’s security guards had detained him, the statement added. “On the morning of November 7, 2012, the suspect came into the office of the pharmaceutical company he works for and fired numerous shots from Saiga and Benelli shotguns that he owns,” the statement said. “As a result, three men and two young women sitting at their desks died on the spot. “One more man and another young woman were wounded, they are receiving medical help,” it said. The state RIA Novosti news agency, citing a source in the city’s law enforcement agencies, said the attacker was suffering from unrequited love and that the woman he had been pursuing was among the victims. “He told investigators that he had fallen in love with a girl who was a pharmacist, but his feelings were not reciprocated,” the source was quoted as saying. “Because of that he drank for five days and today he came in and opened fire.”

India floods kill 45 HYDERABAD: The death toll from floods in the southern Indian state of Andhra Pradesh has reached 45, officials said yesterday, amid continuing efforts to provide relief to marooned villagers. Downpours triggered by a cyclone that hit the coast further south last week have left hundreds of villages inundated and nearly 70,000 people in relief camps set up across the state for stranded people. At least 45 people have died and 1,300 houses have been damaged by the flooding, a state government official who declined to be named said. Although flood water was receding, remote villages in the Godavari region and two other coastal districts continued to reel from the devastating rains. Officials said they were trying to provide relief to flooded villages and restore rail and road traffic. Standing paddy and cotton crops also suffered extensive damage due to the unseasonal rainfall. State chief minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy on Tuesday visited flood-hit areas and vowed to provide help for the victims, especially farmers whose crops have been destroyed.

Yemeni officer shot dead SANAA: A gunman shot dead a Yemeni security officer near the interior ministry in the centre of the capital Sanaa yesterday, a police source said, blaming Al-Qaeda. Several security personnel have been killed in recent months in the unstable Arabian Peninsula country where militant groups stepped up activities during a revolt against the president.

The gunman drove away on a motorbike driven by a second man, the source said, declining to be identified. “The assassination resembles the many operations that have targeted intelligence and security officers in recent months,” the source said. “It is clear that it bears the fingerprints of AlQaeda but until now we don’t have proof,” the source added. Attacks on security officials and politicians increased after Yemen’s army, backed by US drone strikes, pushed Islamist militants out of towns in the southern Abyan province. Yemen’s uprising ousted president Ali Abdullah Saleh in February. Saleh’s successor Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi has promised to crush the militants.

DUBAI: The Bahraini government, facing an uprising led by its Shiite majority, has revoked the nationality of 31 men for damaging national security, state news agency BNA reported yesterday. The men include London-based dissidents Saeed Al-Shehabi and Ali Mushaima, son of jailed opposition leader Hassan Mushaima, as well as clerics, human rights lawyers and activists, according to Mohammed Al-Mascati, head of the Bahrain Youth Centre for Human Rights.

In April, Ali Mushaima scaled the roof of Bahrain’s embassy in London to publicize opposition demands for democratic change.

Also on the list published by BNA were two former parliamentarians from the leading Shiite party Wefaq, Jawad and Jalal Fairooz, who are of Shiite Iranian descent. The ruling Al Khalifa family used martial law and help from Gulf neighbors to put down a Shiite-led uprising against alleged discrimination that began last year, but unrest has resumed.

Shiite protesters and police clash almost daily. Bahrain, where the US Fifth Fleet is based as a bulwark against Iran, accuses Tehran of encouraging the unrest and has promised a tough response as talks with the opposition have stalled. Matar Matar, a senior member of Wefaq,

said the move was an escalation of the conflict in Bahrain and accused the government of having granted nationality to Sunni Muslim foreigners to boost their numbers in the country.

“They want to replace us as a pro-democracy movement via nationalization of mercenaries and revoking our nationality,” Matar said. “This is a reflection of a complex persecution policy against race, sect and political orientation. It is against Bahrain’s Persian minority, Shiites and the pro-democracy movement in general.” It was not clear whether the men would be expelled from Bahrain. In a similar move last December, the United Arab Emirates revoked

the citizenship of seven Islamist activists, saying they posed a threat to national security.

Some of the men had demanded greater powers for the Federal National Council, an elected body which advises the government.

Bahrain announced the move a day after the government said it had arrested four suspects in multiple bombings that killed two people in the capital Manama and accused the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah of being behind the attacks. The five home-made bombs on Monday bore the hallmarks of Hezbollah, the Shiite group allied with Iran, authorities said. —Reuters

Israel, Palestinians cautious on Obama JERUSALEM: Israeli and Palestinian leaders welcomed US President Barack Obama’s re-election yesterday, but the two sides have very different hopes and expectations for his second term in office. After four years of tense relations between Obama and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the Jewish state will look to repair frayed ties that saw the allies engage in a public row over how to address Iran’s nuclear program.

And the Palestinians will be hoping the White House will intervene in a more muscular fashion to support their cause and push for new peace talks. Israel was quick to congratulate Obama, with Netanyahu insisting that “the strategic alliance between Israel and the United States is stronger than ever.” “I will continue to work with President Obama to ensure the vital security interests of Israel and the United States,” he added.

Other Israeli ministers also stressed that they expect strong US-Israeli ties.

“I have no doubt that the Obama administration will continue its policy whereby Israel’s security is at its very foundations,” Defense Minister Ehud Barak said in a statement. “Barack Obama has been with us during the most sensitive moments,” Israeli vice prime minister Silvan Shalom told public radio. “Those who say that it will be hard and that there will be a confrontation during the second Obama term are wrong.” The comments underlined the tensions that surfaced during Obama’s first term, with the White House at times at odds with Israel over both the peace process and Iran’s disputed nuclear program.

In late September 2010, US-backed direct talks between Israel and the Palestinians ground to a halt and the White House unsuccessfully pushed

Iran hangs ten drug traffickers TEHRAN: Iran executed 10 drug traffickers in a prison in Tehran yesterday, a statement on the website of the prosecutor’s office said.

The men sent to the gallows were convicted of trafficking “hundreds of kilos” (pounds) of narcotics, the statement said. Iran, where murder, rape, armed robbery, drug trafficking and adultery are punishable by death, is among countries with the highest annual record of executions in the world, along with China, Saudi Arabia and the United States.

Two weeks ago, an announcement by Iran that it had hanged 10 convicted drug traffickers prompted expressions of concern from the United Nations and the European Union. EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton said she was “appalled” by the executions while the UN special rapporteur on human rights in Iran, Ahmed Shaheed, said he was “shocked.” Shaheed said at the time more than 300 people had been recorded executed in the first eight months of the year but the figure was probably much higher as Iran was restricting information on the number of people hanged.

He reported 670 executions in 2011 in

Iran, which has the world’s highest per capita use of the death penalty. London-based human rights watchdog Amnesty International has repeatedly called on Iran not to execute people convicted of drug trafficking, saying the sentence is excessive.

Three-quarters of executions in Iran involve drug traffickers netted in the Islamic republic’s severe anti-drug laws.

Amnesty reported on October 9 that 344 people had been executed since the beginning of the year in Iran, most of them traffickers. In 2011 it said that Iran had carried out at least 360 executions, three-quarters stemming from drug-related cases. Iran’s geographical location along an important transit route for narcotics destined for Europe and the Middle East makes it victim to a severe drug problem. Around two million people, out of a population of 75 million, are drug addicts, 400,000 of them heroin users, according to official estimates. Some 3,656 deaths related to drug use were recorded during the last Iranian year (March 2011 to March 2012), according to official figures from the health ministry. —AFP

for a renewed settlement freeze to allow the negotiations to continue. And in recent months, the White House has publicly opposed an Israeli strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities, and refused Netanyahu’s call to set red lines for its own military action against Tehran. Israeli opposition politicians have accused Netanyahu of jeopardizing ties with Washington, and Yair Lapid, head of the newly formed Yesh Atid party, called yesterday for “immediate steps to mend the shaky relationship.”

On the Palestinian side, officials in the West Bank expressed hope that Obama would intervene more directly in support of the Palestinians and peace talks. Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas congratulated Obama, saying he hoped “Obama continues his efforts to achieve peace in the Middle East,” official news agency WAFA said.

And Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erakat said he

hoped the result meant “that a Palestinian state will be implemented in Obama’s next term,” urging the US leader to back a Palestinian bid for enhanced status at the United Nations.

“We hope Obama will stop settlements immediately and not stop the Palestinians from going to the UN to get non-member status because non-member status will protect the peace process and the two-state solution,” Erakat said.

But expectations on the Palestinian side remain low. Washington last year helped sink a Palestinian bid for UN membership at the Security Council and punished UNESCO by withdrawing funding after it admitted Palestine. “There’s nothing that would make us optimistic,” a Palestinian official, speaking on condition of anonymity said.

“So far we have no indication there will be a change in his policy.” —AFP

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2012

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

Power struggle looms for Syria’s Kurds DERIK: In the northeast corner of Syria a power struggle is developing over the promise of oil riches in the remote Kurdish region, threatening to drag Kurdish rivals, Arab rebels and Turkey into a messy new front in an already complex civil war. Quietly and with little of the bloodshed seen elsewhere in Syria’s 19-month popular revolt against President Bashar Al-Assad, the Kurdish minority is grabbing the chance to secure self-rule and the rights denied them for decades.

With Syrian forces and Arab rebels entangled in fighting to their west, a Syrian Kurdish party tied to Turkish Kurd separatists has exploited a vacuum to start Kurdish schools, cultural centers, police stations and armed militias. But the growing influence of the Democratic Union Party (PYD) is concerning not only Turkey, which is worried that border areas will become a foothold for Turkish Kurd PKK rebels, but also Syrian Arab fighters who see the Kurdish militias as a threat. At the PYD’s office in the Syrian Kurdish town of Derik, where walls bear a portrait of Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) leader Abdullah Ocalan and pictures of members the party says were killed by the Assad regime, the mood is defiant. “We have our rights, we have our

land. We are not refugees here and we will protect ourselves,” said PYD activist Mohammed Said. “We cannot accept any force from outside coming here.” Along Syria’s border with Iraq, Kurdish militants in jeans and armed with Kalashnikov rifles now guard a frontier post where Assad’s army once patrolled the sparse hillsides dotted with now lifeless oil pumps.

In a classroom in nearby Derik, teenage girls practice reading their own Kurdish language, banned in schools until a few months ago, and Syrian Kurdish leaders express ideological loyalty to Ocalan who is jailed in Turkey.

Under Assad’s rule and his father ’s before him, Syrian Kurds were forbidden to learn their language or even to hold Syrian identity and often forced from their land, while their activists were targeted by Syrian intelligence agents.

But after Assad’s forces pulled out from the Kurdish region to fight elsewhere six months ago the PYD and its allied People’s Defense Units or YPG militia began to claim control of towns up against the Turkish border - Derik, Efrin, Kobane and Amuda. In Derik, a town of 70,000 sitting amid parched fields, daily life appears normal apart from long lines of people waiting for cooking gas.

Kurdish militia forces man improvised checkpoints made of boulders and tyres.

Committees run a Kurdish court and services such as fuel deliveries. At the city’s one open school, Syria’s Kurmanji Kurdish dialect is openly taught. “We could never say we were Kurdish before,” said Palashin Omar, 18, in the classroom running through grammar drills. “We were never respected before now.”

But there is also a clear co-existence with the Syrian state. The Syrian army maintains its own checkpoint unmolested. The PYD party office is 100 meters from the Syrian intelligence agency office and Assad’s Baath party headquarters where portraits of Assad are still on the wall. PYD activists say they allow a limited government presence for now so they can receive gasoline from Damascus, and that government forces just stay where they are, unable to act.

But suspicions have sharpened dangerous splits with other Syrian Kurdish parties who believe Assad allowed the PYD to consolidate its power and flout an agreement brokered with the smaller Kurdish National Council, or KNC alliance. “We can say the Kurdish region is liberated once the Syrian army cannot reach it,” KNC leader Abdul Hakim Bashar said. “Right now there is not a single

ALEPPO: A rebel fighter stuffs a large bundle of notes into his pocket in the northern Syrian city of Aleppo. The Syrian regime may be their sworn enemy, but rebels fighting to bring down President Bashar Al-Assad say they pay hard cash to government agents for guns and bullets.— AFP place they couldn’t reach if they wanted.”

The fate of the Kurdish region will be key in any post-Assad Syria. Most Syrian Kurds - the country’s largest ethnic minority - are wary of a Syrian Arab opposition dominated by Islamists who are hostile to Kurdish self-rule. Even Syrian Kurdish rivals are split over what type of government they want if Assad falls, whether to follow Iraqi Kurdistan’s

model of autonomy or simply more selfadministration in their areas under a new Syrian government. Whoever seizes the Kurdish plains nudging against Turkey will control a chunk of Syria’s estimated 2.5 billion barrels of crude oil reserves, including fields run by Britishbased Gulfsands Petroleum until international sanctions on Assad stopped its operations there.—Reuters

Syrian rebels target presidential palace Shells hit Alawite district

MAFRAQ: British Prime Minister David Cameron (center-left), Jordanian Foreign Minister Nasser Judeh (center-right) and United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) representative to Jordan Andrew Harper (right) walk in the Zaatari refugee camp in the Jordanian town of Mafraq, near the border with Syria yesterday. — AFP

UK PM visits Syrian refugees in Jordan ZAATARI REFUGEE CAMP: British Prime Minister David Cameron yesterday vowed to do more to help end the bloody crisis in Syria as he made a surprise visit to the sprawling Zaatari refugee camp in northern Jordan. His appearance at the camp, just 30 kilometers from the Syrian border, came at the end of a three-day Middle Eastern tour which also took him to the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia.

“Right here in Jordan I am hearing appalling stories about what has happened inside Syria so one of the first things I want to talk to Barack (Obama) about is how we must do more to try and solve this crisis,” Cameron told reporters at the camp, shortly after hearing about Obama’s re-election as US president. Dressed casually in black trousers and a dark grey shirt, Cameron made a brief stop at the portacabins where a handful of people were applying for their official UN refugee cards, stopping to chat with a smiling woman in a headscarf.

But the high-profile visit drew few onlookers. “Is it the king?” wondered a young boy in yellow plastic sandals as Britain’s premier strode down a dusty road between the rows of tents before disappearing into a school run by UNICEF where the children sang to him in Arabic. Few knew who he was and fewer still cared when they heard that the British prime minister was visiting this sprawling tent city which is home to some 36,000 refugees who fled the bloody fighting in

neighboring Syria.

“It was a shallow visit-he didn’t ask anything about what we need,” said Umm Omar, a 45-year-old teacher who was at the school when Cameron visited, but could not understand his remarks in English. “We don’t have pencils, we don’t have notebooks, we don’t even have anything to write on the board with,” she said. “This visit will never make any change,” agreed 26year-old Hayal Jabr, a maths teacher. “Many people have visited us because of our situation here and we don’t get anything.”

Several meters from the school, several young men lounged around on makeshift foam sofas inside a tent which has been turned into a coffee shop of sorts, its tables made of hardboard and breeze blocks.

None of them had any idea that the British leader was visiting. “We have no idea who comes and goes or why. And nothing changes after any of these visits,” said Abu Firas, a father of four who fled from his home city of Daraa in southern Syria three months ago.

“We came with just the clothes on our back. The nights are cold and the children don’t have enough clothes to keep warm,” he said, adding that they were given three pieces of pitta bread per person per day. So far, the West has done nothing to help the Syrian people, he said. “We don’t need food, we don’t need money, we don’t need anything except the fall of Bashar AlAssad’s regime.” — AFP

US to recruit Libya anti-militant force TRIPOLI: US officials in Libya have begun to look for recruits for a commando force which they plan to train to fight militants, a former commander of Libyan rebels who toppled Muammar Gaddafi said yesterday.

After a wave of anti-American violence in the Arab world in September during which the US ambassador to Libya died in an Islamist militant attack, President Barack Obama took measures to improve the security of US diplomatic installations in the region.

A team of about 10 Americans from the embassy in Tripoli visited a paramilitary base in the eastern city of Benghazi 10 days ago to interview and get to know potential recruits, according to militia commander Fathi Al-Obeidi. “The American team asked us for a tour of our base and we granted them permission to walk around freely,” he said. “They stood with many of our men taking down information. They asked them about their ages, backgrounds, their tribal loyalties. They wanted to know what kind of training they had received, if any.”

The Pentagon declined comment on any recent visit by a US delegation to Benghazi, referring queries to the State Department. At the same time, it acknowledged a need to develop Libyan special operations forces. “But a final decision on the program has not been made, and many details, like the ultimate size, composition

and mission of the force are still to be determined,” said Pentagon spokesman Lieutenant Colonel James Gregory.

Obeidi is a commander with Libya’s Shield, an umbrella group for various armed militias that refused to join the official army after the war that ousted Gaddafi last year, saying it was still being run by Gaddafi loyalists. He also helped a team of US marines in September lead a rescue effort that saved a group of Americans hiding in a safe house after an attack on the US consulate in Benghazi in which US Ambassador Christopher Stevens died.

Obeidi said the interviewers also took note of the types of uniforms the men were wearing and asked about their opinion on security in Libya.

He said that the team of American officials included the US charge d’affaires Laurence Pope and the future head trainer of the Libyan Special Forces team. “I’ve been asked to help pick about 400 of these young men between the ages of 19 and 25 to train for this force,” he said. “They could be trained either in Libya or abroad.” The force may be required to fight jihadi militants like those accused in the Sept 11 assault on the consulate. Gregory said only that US officials in Libya would work with Libyans “to assess their needs and develop options for ways the US can support them through this transitional period.”—Reuters

AMMAN: Syrian rebels fired mortars at President Bashar Al-Assad’s palace in Damascus yesterday but missed, in an attack underlining the growing boldness of forces fighting to end his family’s 42 years in power. Residents told Reuters the heavy-calibre shells hit a neighboring residential district that is home to members of Assad’s Alawite sect.

State-run media said at least three people were killed and seven wounded in what it described as a “terrorist attack”.

Syria’s war, which has already spilled into neighboring Lebanon and threatened to spread instability in the Middle East, poses one of the greatest foreign policy challenges for US President Barack Obama as he starts his second term. Fighters in the mainly Sunni Muslim opposition have stepped up attacks in the capital this week, setting off at least two bombs in areas populated by Alawites and assassinating two figures seen as close to the Assad administration.

The violence highlighted the sectarian dimension of a civil war that is deepening the rift between Sunni and Shiite Muslims in the region - Assad’s Alawite sect is an offshoot of Shiite Islam. An Islamist rebel unit said it targeted but missed the palace, a compound which sits on a hill overlooking the city that is mainly used for official functions. It was impossible to verify whether Assad was staying there at the time. He has several residences across the city. “This operation came in response to the massacres committed in our beloved city,” the Lions of Islam rebel group said in a statement. They said they also attacked a military airport and an intelligence facility in the capital, but there was no independent confirmation of those reports.

State television said a judge, Abad Nadwa, was killed yesterday by a bomb placed under his car.

Yesterday’s attempted mortar strike on Assad’s palace drew comparisons with a bomb attack in a highly guarded district of Damascus in July that killed four of the president’s top lieutenants. International and regional rivalries have complicated efforts to mediate any resolution to the conflict - Russia and China have vetoed three UN Security Council resolutions that

ALEPPO: A rebel fighter throws a grenade towards Syrian government forces positioned down an alleyway in the northern Syrian city of Aleppo. — AFP would have put Assad under pressure.

The United States and other Western powers have also grown increasingly frustrated by divisions and in-fighting between Syrian opposition groups. In a new push for unity, the main Syrian overseas opposition group the Syrian National Council (SNC) is meeting in Qatar to elect a new leader and executive committee. A day later the SNC and other groups will meet to form a new 50-member civilian group that will later choose a temporary government for Syria and coordinate with the revolt’s military wing. US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said last week it was time to move beyond the SNC and bring in those “in the front lines fighting and dying” - a sign of U.S. impatience with a group that has long urged international intervention in Syria.

TIT-FOR-TAT STRIKES Smoke was seen rising from Mezze 86, the mainly Alawite area where the mortars fired at Assad’s palace appeared to have landed.

“Ambulances are heading to the area and the shabbiha (pro-Assad militiamen) are firing automatic rifles madly in the air,” said a housewife who asked not to be named. A car bomb blast killed at least 11

people in the same district on Monday. Islamists, who are taking on an ever more prominent role in the war, also claimed responsibility for that attack.

State media said 10 more people were killed in a bombing on Tuesday in Hai Al-Wuroud - another district that is home to many Alawites. In what appeared to be a tit-for-tat response to those attacks, a car bomb went off on Tuesday in a working class Sunni area of the city that is a base for the rebel forces. Air strikes and artillery barrages unleashed by the Syrian military in the last few weeks have wrecked whole districts of the capital, as well as parts of towns and cities elsewhere.

Yet, for all their firepower, Assad’s forces seem no closer to crushing their lightly armed opponents, who in turn have so far proved unable to topple the Syrian leader. The Syrian Network for Human Rights, an opposition monitoring group, said Assad’s forces killed 154 people across Syria on Tuesday, mostly civilians in aerial and ground bombardment on Damascus and its suburbs, and the northern provinces of Aleppo and Idlib. Lakhdar Brahimi, the joint UN, Arab League envoy to Syria, said this week Syria could face the fate of Somalia, becoming a collapsed

state where warlords and militias rule. The Syria war has killed about 32,000 people and left many parts of the country in ruins.

ASSAD MUST FACE JUSTICE British Prime Minister David Cameron, who in the past suggested offering Assad immunity from prosecution as a way of persuading him to leave power, said yesterday the president would have to face justice. “I would like to see President Assad face full international justice for the appalling crimes he has meted out on his people,” Cameron said on a visit to Zaatari, a camp housing about 30,000 Syrian refugees in Jordan.

“I am standing with the Syrian border just behind me and every night 500 refugees are fleeing the most appalling persecution and bloodshed to come to safety and frankly what we have done so far is not working,” he added. The United Nations has put Syria’s government on a “list of shame” of countries that abuse children, saying Assad loyalists have killed, maimed, tortured and detained children as young as nine. Leila Zerrougui, special representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict, told Reuters on Tuesday the body was also investigating the opposition.— Reuters

World leaders gather in Bali DENPASAR: World leaders including Iran’s Mahmoud Ahmadinejad gather in Bali from today for a forum to promote democracy, but critics say sanctions-hit Tehran will use the talks to combat its growing isolation. The fifth Bali Democracy Forum has attracted record numbers of heads of state and government, including Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard, Afghan President Hamid Karzai and South Korean President Lee Myung-Bak. The high-profile attendees, among some 1,200 delegates at the meeting on the Indonesian resort island, reflect increasing international interest in Southeast Asia’s biggest economy, at a time of lethargic global growth.

Indonesia, the world’s third most populous democracy, hopes to show off its growing clout on the world stage by hosting a range of talks and debates over two days aimed at promoting the “principles of democracy on a global scale”. But the government-run event has been derided as a talking shop that has never produced anything beyond vague commu-

niques, with critics saying it gives unsavoury regimes a platform to falsely present themselves as legitimate. “The forum is opening its arms too widely to include everyone,” Aleksius Jemadu, from the school of government and global affairs at the Pelita Harapan University said.

“It is being used by some countries to show they can be part of the democratic world.”

Observers said the Iranian president, whose reelection in 2009 was marred by allegations of fraud, is attending the summit for the first time to build ties with friendly states as sanctions over Tehran’s nuclear program bite. Attending the summit “fits in perfectly with the Iranian government strategy of building bridges” with countries outside the West, Amnesty International Iran researcher Drewery Dyke said. Indonesia, a moderate Muslim-majority country, has maintained strong ties with the Islamic republic.

The European Union in October introduced a new package of sanctions targeting Iran’s

banks, shipping and gas imports, aimed at forcing a breakthrough in talks on Tehran’s nuclear program. “Rallying the world to isolate Iran and increase the pressure on its leadership so that they stop pursuing a nuclear weapon has been a top priority” the White House said at the time. The West claims Tehran is seeking to make an atomic bomb, while Iran claims the nuclear drive is for purely peaceful purposes.

Iran is currently chair of the Non-Aligned Movement, a grouping of 120 countries, and in August hosted a meeting of the group that it trumpeted as a triumph over the West ’s attempts to isolate it. Ahmadinejad hailed the NAM meeting as “unique in quality and in the number of participants”, although the proceedings were at times overshadowed by pressure on Iran over its nuclear ambitions. Despite the questions over Iran’s motivation for joining the democracy forum, Dyke said some good could come out of it if other countries raised Iran’s serious human rights violations, including its high number of executions.—AFP

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2012

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

Scores missing as Bangladesh boat sinks DHAKA: About 85 people are missing after an overloaded boat carrying Rohingya refugees towards Malaysia sank off Bangladesh yesterday, the second such tragedy in less than a fortnight, officials said. Bangladesh Border Guard commander Lieutenant Colonel Zahid Hasan said the wooden vessel was carrying around 110 passengers when it went down 15 kilometers off the southern district of Cox’s Bazaar. “We have now rescued 25 survivors with the help of local fishermen and a search and rescue operation is underway,” Hasan said.

“The boat was heading to Malaysia illegally,” he added. Hasan confirmed that at least two of those who had been rescued were Rohingya and that they were all being kept in custody. The latest tragedy comes after a boat carrying some 135 passengers, mostly Muslim Rohingya refugees who had fled unrest in neighboring Myanmar, sank in the Bay of Bengal on October 28. Only around half a dozen made it to safety. Hasan said that the survivors of yesterday’s accident

had either managed to be picked up by passing fishing boats or were found floating in the water by the rescue teams.

He said the wooden motorboat had a capacity of 70 passengers. “After the October 28 accident, we prevented another boat carrying nine Rohingya including women and children on November 2. And after that, this tragedy happens today,” he said. Speaking to AFP by phone, one 30-year old survivor, Zamir Hossain said there were seven or eight women on board the boat. “I spoke with one woman who told me that she wanted to work after going to Malaysia,” Hossain said. “The boat capsized after one passenger fell from the boat into the sea and the boat turned abruptly in a bid to rescue him.”

Coastguards said that they were yet to find any bodies and that bad weather and heavy rain had made the rescue effort difficult. “I have spoken with the survivors who told me that they set sail around midnight and the boat sank around four hours after,” the Bangladesh

government’s chief administrator in the area, Shamsul Islam said. “This is another case of an illegal bid to reach Malaysia.

The middlemen took money from these people, promising them to get to the country,” he said adding that most survivors were from the Teknaf area of Cox’s Bazaar.

Hundreds of thousands of Muslim Rohingya have fled Myanmar in past decades to escape persecution, often heading to neighboring Bangladesh, and recent outbreaks of violence, in June and October, have triggered another exodus.

Since the unrest erupted, Bangladesh has been turning away boatloads of fleeing Rohingya. The policy has been criticized by the United Nations but Bangladesh said it was already burdened with an estimated 300,000 of the minority group. Myanmar’s 800,000 stateless Rohingya, described by the UN as among the world’s most persecuted minorities, are seen by the government and many Burmese as illegal immigrants from Bangladesh. — AFP

TEKNAF: Rohingya refugees, who survived after their overloaded boat heading to Malaysia sank, are pictured on a fishing boat following their rescue by Bangladeshi border guards in Teknaf yesterday. — AFP

New Georgia govt detains army general, ex-minister Opposition fears witch hunt after tight election

VIENTIANE: Heads of state from Europe and Asia together with President of the European Council, European Commission and Secretary-General of ASEAN attend first plenary session during the ASEM Summit in Vientiane, Laos. — AP

Laos holds groundbreaking ceremony for Mekong dam XAYABURI: Laos held a groundbreaking ceremony yesterday for a $3.5 billion hydropower dam on the Mekong River that is opposed by environmentalists and neighboring countries because of the possible impact on livelihoods, fisheries and agriculture. “We had the opportunity to listen to the views and opinions of different countries along the river. We have come to an agreement and chose today to be the first day to begin the project,” Deputy Prime Minister Somsavat Lengsavad said at the site.

The poor Southeast Asian country has ambitions to become the “Battery of Southeast Asia” through power exports from dams across the 4,900 km Mekong. However, after pressure from neighbors, it agreed to suspend the Xayaburi dam last December, pending a study led by Japan. “Laos has made a misleading statement by saying it has already addressed environmental concerns, in an attempt to get support from the other governments. The studies that have been conducted are not yet finished,” said Kirk Herbertson, Southeast Asia coordinator for environmental group International Rivers.

Government officials from Cambodia and Vietnam, which have opposed the dam, did not respond to requests for comment. The groundbreaking ceremony, which normally celebrates the formal start of construction, went ahead the morning after 29 European and Asian states, among them critics of the dam, held a summit meeting in Laos’s capital, Vientiane. Thai construction giant Ch Karnchang Pcl has been carrying out what it called preliminary work for nearly two years, with Lao officials repeatedly playing down the extent of the work. The dam had been scheduled to be built by 2019.

A Reuters journalist at the site yesterday said substantial construction had taken place, including access roads and work on the riverbanks, but nothing appeared to have been built on the river itself. Herbertson said International Rivers had visited the site in June and noted work involving digging into the riverbed. “The groundbreaking ceremony would be the start of building the first structure on the river, so this would be the beginning of blocking the river including fish and nutrients flowing down the river,” he said.

Prime Minister Thongsing Thammavong was quoted by the Wall Street Journal yesterday as saying the plans were still under study and that the day’s event was simply an organized visit for journalists, scientists and others.

However, a banner at the site described it as a groundbreaking ceremony. Ecologists warn the livelihoods of 60 million people in the lower Mekong region, mainly in Cambodia and Vietnam, would be at risk if the dam went ahead as the design could block migratory routes of fish and deprive swathes of rice land of fertile silt.

PLAYING ROULETTE They say environmental impact assessments by Laos were inadequate and meant to appease international critics, including the United States. In Finland, at the urging of environmental groups, a government committee is looking into whether engineering firm Poyry followed international guidelines in work for the dam, Antti Riivari, a director at the Ministry of Employment and the Economy, said.

Activists say it gave misleading information about the dam’s potential impact in a report.

They also say there is a conflict of interest since it is doing engineering work on the project.

The company declined comment. “Laos is playing roulette with the Mekong river, offering unproven solutions and opening up the Mekong as a testing ground for new technologies,” said Pianporn Deetes, Thailand Campaign Coordinator for International Rivers.

Mekong basin countries - Thailand, Vietnam and Cambodia as well as Laos - are bound by a treaty to hold inter-governmental consultations before building dams. But none has veto powers and Laos is within its rights to proceed with Xayaburi, the first of 11 hydropower dams planned in the lower Mekong that are expected to generate 8 percent of Southeast Asia’s power by 2025. Thailand, another country affected by the dam, has refrained from criticizing Laos. It will buy about 95 percent of the power generated by the facility.

Ch Karnchang, Thailand’s second-biggest building contractor, has a 57 percent share in the project. State-owned Thai energy giant PTT Pcl has 25 percent and state-run Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand 12.5 percent.

Early reports of the groundbreaking ceremony sent shares in Ch Karnchang up 5.7 percent on Monday to 9.3 baht, the highest since January 2011. They ended flat at 9.25 baht yesterday.

Ch Karnchang CEO Plew Trivisvavet defended the project. “If this (would) badly affect the environment, we wouldn’t do it. This company wouldn’t do it. This is the company’s strongest policy,” he told Reuters at the site. — Reuters

TBILISI: The Georgian government detained the armed forces’ chief of staff yesterday on suspicion of abuse of power, stepping up what the opposition says is political persecution of President Mikheil Saakashvili’s allies. New Prime Minister Bidzina Ivanishvili’s coalition said after ousting Saakashvili’s party in an election last month that former officials suspected of crimes would be prosecuted. It began acting on its promise on Tuesday by detaining Bacho Akhalaia, a former interior and defense minister. General Georgy Kalandadze, the military chief of staff, and another army commander were brought in for questioning yesterday.

The opposition fears a witch hunt now that Saakashvili’s nine-year dominance has ended in the former Soviet republic, a focus of tensions between Russia and the West and a transit country for Caspian Sea oil and gas exports to Europe.

Akhalaia, who quit as interior minister over a prison abuse scandal shortly before the election, remained in detention at the prosecutor general’s office after being questioned for three hours, his lawyer said.

“The reason for his detention was that during his work as a defense minister he allegedly insulted several officers in the presence of others,” attorney

David Dekanoidze told reporters. “I’ve never ever heard such an absurd reason for detention,” Dekanoidze said. Chief prosecutor Archil Kbilashvili said Kalandadze and Zurab Shamatava, commander of the army’s Fourth Brigade, faced similar accusations. He said state investigators had evidence that Akhalaia, Kalandadze and Shamatava had insulted six servicemen in October 2011. None of the detainees has been charged but could face up to eight years in jail if found guilty of abuse of power.

ACTION OF COWARDS Akhalaia left Georgia after the election but returned this week, saying he was ready to answer any questions from law-enforcement agencies. “Akhalaia’s detention is the action of cowards. They got very scared when Bacho Akhalaia, an honest man, returned to Georgia,” said Akaky Minashvili, a member of parliament from Saakashvili’s United National Movement (UNM). The opposition fears retribution after the closely fought election and says Ivanishvili hopes to put pressure on his rival Saakashvili. In one such move, Ivanishvili said last week the government was considering cutting funding for the

News

in brief

Mali intervention strategy BAMAKO: West African army chiefs have adopted a military plan to expel Islamic extremists from northern Mali, which they have occupied for seven months, the country’s army chief Ibrahim Dembele said. “We are very satisfied,” Dembele said late Tuesday at the close of a meeting of the military brass in Bamako. “On the whole, the strategy was adopted (and) friendly troops will come here to help Mali reconquer the north.” The strategic plan is next due to be rubber-stamped by regional heads of state before being presented to the UN Security Council on November 26. The UN wants clarification on the composition of the force, the level of participation from the various west African nations as well as the financing of the operation and the military means to carry it out. The details of the plan as adopted by the military chiefs have not been made public. “It is an ambitious plan, we should expect a little over 4,000 people in case of military intervention.

We have studied all the parameters, now we await instructions from our heads of state,” said an officer from Benin who attended the meeting.

UK’s Kashmir advisory NEW DELHI: Britain has lifted its advisory against travelling to some parts of Indian Kashmir in the latest sign of the scenic region’s revival as a tourism destination. Famed for its houseboats on placid lakes, clean air and mountain scenery, Kashmir was a popular international get-away until an armed insurgency against rule from New Delhi erupted in 1989. “We no longer advise against travel to Jammu and Srinagar, nor against travel on the Jammu to Srinagar highway,” the British High Commission said in an update on its website posted Tuesday. Srinagar is Kashmir’s summer capital and home to the famous Dal Lake, while Jammu serves as the winter capital. Muslim-majority Kashmir, set in the foothills of the Himalayas, is divided between India and Pakistan along the heavily-militarized Line of Control border. It was plagued by violence for decades as local militants fought for the region to become independent or part of Pakistan, but unrest has fallen sharply in recent years and domestic Indian tourism has boomed.

Thailand, Myanmar throw weight behind Dawei zone BANGKOK: Ministers from Myanmar and Thailand met yesterday to show their support for the struggling multibillion-dollar Dawei economic zone in Myanmar and to look for ways to drum up more private sector interest. “Collaboration on Dawei is of the utmost importance to both our countries. The next step is to invite investment from the state and private sectors,” Thai Finance Minister Kittirat Na Ranong said during a break in the meetings in Bangkok. The $50 billion, 250 sq km complex was planned to include a deep-sea port, steel mills, refineries, a petrochemical complex and power plants.

However, Italian-Thai Development Pcl, Thailand’s largest construction firm and the parent of Dawei Development Co, has struggled to find the $8.5 billion needed to finance infrastructure and utilities under the first phase. Yesterday,

presidential administration next year.

“It’s nothing but political persecution,” Nugzar Tsiklauri, a member of parliament from the UNM, said of the detentions. Saakashvili, the hero of the 2003 Rose Revolution that swept out Georgia’s post-Soviet old guard, must step down next year and reforms due to take effect after a presidential vote in 2013 will weaken the president and strengthen parliament and the prime minister.

Akhalaia, 32, was appointed as Georgia’s defense minister in 2009, one year after a five-day war with Russia, and served in that post for three years.

Before that he served as the head of Georgia’s penitentiary department, where he led a struggle against the established system of “thieves in law” which ruled prisons in the former Soviet republic. Human rights groups have accused Akhalaia of a carrying out a heavy-handed crackdown on Georgia’s largest prison riot in 2006, in which seven inmates were killed, and blamed him for the ill treatment of prisoners and military servicemen. The reports of prisoner abuse led to protests in the country of 4.5 million just before the election. Akhalaia was one of several former high-ranking officials, including the defense and justice ministers, who left the country after the

Thailand and Myanmar agreed to set up joint committees overseeing infrastructure projects, including a 132-km road stretching from Dawei to the Thai border, plus water and energy needs. Another committee will advise businesses on Myanmar’s new foreign investment law. A follow-up meeting will be held in Myanmar’s capital, Naypyitaw, in December.

Funding for Dawei’s first phase will be decided in the next three or four months, with Myanmar keen for construction to begin no later than April 2013, said Somchai Sajjapong, chief of the Thai Finance Ministry’s fiscal policy office. In September, sources said Thai banks, led by Bangkok Bank and Siam Commercial Bank, would provide short-term loans to keep the first phase afloat before an expected Japanese loan of up to $3.2 billion was

secured. “There is strong interest from international banking organizations keen to provide investment loans for Dawei,” Finance Minister Kittirat said, adding Myanmar and Thailand had not discussed the involvement of a third country.

Thailand is keen to see Dawei get off the ground as it is ideally placed to provide its companies with a low-cost base for heavy industry.

Bangkok approved a $1.1 billion budget in May for Dawei-related infrastructure in Thailand. It included a four-lane highway linking towns in Thailand to Myamar plus government offices at the border and housing for Thais who will work in the zone. Dawei Development Co said last month it planned to invest more than 1 billion baht ($32 million) on infrastructure in the economic zone to promote light industry. — Reuters

KATHMANDU: Govinda Prasad Mainali (left), who spent 15 years in a Japanese prison, gestures to journalists with his mother Chandrakala Mainali at a press conference in Kathmandu yesterday. — AFP

Nepal man cleared after 15 years in Japanese jail TOKYO: A Nepalese who spent 15 “horrible and torturous” years in a Japanese jail for a murder he did not commit was formally acquitted yesterday after a retrial. Govinda Prasad Mainali, 46, was declared not guilty by the Tokyo High Court at a short hearing, even though he had been deported to Nepal weeks ago after his conviction was quashed.

The same court had in 2000 found him guilty of killing a 39-year-old woman and sentenced him to life in prison, overturning a lower court’s not-guilty verdict.

The Supreme Court upheld Mainali’s life sentence in 2003. Mainali told reporters in Kathmandu that yesterday’s pronouncement was something for which he had been waiting a long time. “To see this day, I have spent 15 years of my life inside the four walls, resorting to quiet communication with myself,” he said. “I have prayed to God and asked: what mistake have I committed? God was the only witness of my pleas.” The murder attracted lurid headlines, particularly in the tabloid press, which said the victim was leading a double life as an elite businesswoman by day and a prostitute by night.

Police in 1997 arrested Mainali, who knew the victim and lived near the Tokyo apartment where her strangled body was found.

Mainali, who had always maintained his innocence, officially asked Japan’s slow-moving justice system for a retrial in 2005. It was granted only this year. Fresh DNA evidence, also tested only this year, proved the original probe had overlooked the fact that semen found inside the woman was not Mainali’s.

DNA samples collected from her nails as well as body hair found in the room were a match with the semen, further supporting Mainali’s claim that he was not the killer, according to local media.

“I was forced to undergo 15 years of horrible and torturous time in jail despite being innocent,” he said. “Had the DNA test not been conducted, I would have been languishing in jail and probably would have died there.” The case has led to media questioning of Japan’s justice system and particularly the work of prosecutors, who take a leading role in criminal investigations. Japan has a very high rate of convictions and relies heavily on confessions. Suspects can be held for many weeks while police make their case. Critics say this leads to abuses where those arrested are ground down until they give investigators what they want.

Mainali was released from jail in June when his conviction was overturned. He was sent back to Nepal by immigration authorities because he had-during his time in prisonoverstayed his visa. But the court still went ahead with the retrial, which opened at the start of last week with the prosecution saying it now believed he was innocent. After going into recess to consider the verdict, presiding judge Shoji Ogawa said there was “a reasonable doubt” that Mainali was the guilty party.

Mainali said he had not yet decided whether to seek compensation from Japanese authorities and was discussing his options with his lawyers. No one else has been arrested in connection with the murder.— AFP

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2012

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

US Election

CHICAGO: Supporters cheer at the end of President Barack Obama’s remarks during an election party yesterday in Chicago. —AP

Emboldened Obama seeking to overcome stubborn challenges Narrow win in popular vote shows closely divided country WASHINGTON: Emboldened by a resounding election victory, President Barack Obama immediately pledged to reach across America’s political divide and seek deals on stubborn issues that dogged his first term. Obama scored a clear win over Republican challenger Mitt Romney in Tuesday’s vote, overcoming deep doubts among voters about his handling of the weak US economy.

Americans chose to stick with a divided government in Washington, however, by leaving the US Congress as it has been since the mid-term elections of 2010. Obama’s fellow Democrats retain control of the Senate and Republicans keep the majority in the House of Representatives.

After a long, bitter and expensive campaign, the 51-year-old Obama struck a conciliatory tone in his acceptance speech in the early hours of yesterday before thousands of cheering supporters in Chicago. “You voted for action, not politics as usual,” Obama said, calling for compromise and pledging to work with leaders of both parties to reduce the deficit, to reform the tax code and immigration laws, and to cut dependence on foreign oil.

Obama, who became the first black US president when he won the White House four years ago, told the crowd he hoped to sit down with Romney in the coming weeks and examine ways to meet the challenges ahead.

The problems that dogged Obama in his first term, which cast a long shadow over his 2008 election message of hope and change, still confront him. He must tackle the $1 trillion annual deficits, reduce a $16 trillion national debt, overhaul expensive social programs and deal with the split Congress.

The immediate focus for Obama and US lawmakers will be to confront the “fiscal cliff,” a mix of tax increases and spending cuts due to

extract some $600 billion from the economy at the end of the year barring a deal with Congress.

Romney, the multimillionaire former private equity executive,

nationwide popular vote remained extremely close with Obama taking about 50 percent to 49 percent for Romney after a campaign in which the candidates and their party allies

CHICAGO: US President Barack Obama and his wife Michelle celebrate on stage after Obama delivered his acceptance speech yesterday in Chicago. — AFP came back from a series of campaign stumbles to fight a close battle after besting Obama in the first of three presidential debates. The

spent a combined $2 billion. But in the state-by-state system of electoral votes that decides the White House, Obama notched up a com-

fortable victory.

By yesterday, Obama had 303 electoral votes, well over the 270 needed to win, to Romney’s 206.

Florida’s close race was not yet declared, leaving its 29 electoral votes still to be claimed. Romney, a 65-year-old former Massachusetts governor, conceded in a speech delivered to disappointed supporters at the Boston convention center. “This is a time of great challenge for our nation,” he told the crowd. “I pray that the president will be successful in guiding our nation.” He warned against partisan bickering and urged politicians on both sides to “put the people before the politics.”

‘FAILURES OR EXCESSES’ Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell gave no sign that he was willing to concede his conservative principles, in a sign of potential confrontations ahead. “The voters have not endorsed the failures or excesses of the president’s first term, they have simply given him more time to finish the job they asked him to do together with a Congress that restored balance to Washington after two years of oneparty control,” McConnell said.

Obama’s win puts to rest the prospect of wholesale repeal of his 2010 healthcare reform law, which aims to widen the availability of health insurance coverage to Americans, but it still leaves questions about how much of his signature domestic policy achievement will be implemented. Obama, who took office in 2009 as the ravages of the financial crisis were hitting the US economy, must continue his efforts to ignite strong growth and recover from the worst downturn since the Great Depression of the 1930s. An uneven recovery has been showing some signs of strength but the country’s jobless rate, currently at 7.9 percent, remains stubbornly high. — Reuters

World leaders hail Obama victory PARIS: World leaders yesterday hailed President Barack Obama’s sweeping re-election, with allies pledging to deepen cooperation with the United States on fighting the world economic slump and maintaining security across the globe.

Congratulations poured in from across the world, including fellow UN Security Council members Britain, China, France and Russia as well as its staunch Middle East ally Israel and Obama’s ancestral home in Kenya. The Taleban, however, seized on Obama’s win to lash out against US military policy in Afghanistan, and Iran’s reaction was tepid.

Russian President Vladimir Putin, whose relations with Washington have often been frosty, congratulated Obama on his victory over Republican challenger Mitt Romney. “We hope that the positive beginnings that have taken hold in Russian-US relations on the world arena will grow in the interests of international security and stability,” Russian news agencies quoted Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov as saying. Moscow was ready to “go as far as the US administration is willing to go,” Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov was quoted as saying by the RIA Novosti news agency.

Chinese President Hu Jintao, who himself is handing over power at a Communist Party congress starting this week, noted “positive progress”

in Sino-US relations over the past four years despite tensions over issues such as trade and territorial disputes involving US allies. China will “look to the future and make continuous efforts for fresh and greater progress in the building of the ChinaUS cooperative partnership,” a foreign ministry spokesman said.

Afghan President Hamid Karzai congratulated Obama and said he hoped his win would lead to “further-expanded” relations, though reaction on the streets of the war-torn nation was muted and Taleban insurgents told Obama he should withdraw forces immediately, ahead of schedule.

“Obama must by now know that they have lost the war in Afghanistan,” a Taleban spokesman said.

“They should leave our sacred land and focus on their own country instead.” Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari said he was confident relations with the United States would “continue to prosper”. Pakistan is a key ally in the US “war on terror” but relations over the past two years have grown fraught, especially after last year’s US killing of Osama bin Laden in Pakistan and botched air strikes.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, whose relationship with Obama has at times appeared tense, also joined the well wishers. “I will continue to work with President Obama to ensure

the vital security interests of Israel and the United States,” said Netanyahu, who had appeared to throw his support behind Romney during the election campaign. Elsewhere in the Middle East, Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas urged the US leader to pursue peace efforts, while Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erakat said he hoped Obama’s reelection would mean the creation of a Palestinian state in the next four years. Direct talks between Israel and the Palestinians have been on hold since Sept 2010.

Iran, facing Western pressure particularly from the US and arch foe Israel over its nuclear drive, said Obama’s win would not lead to a normalisation of ties, but said the possibility of negotiations was “not taboo”. “Relations with the United States are not simple, especially after all the pressure and US crimes committed against the Iranian people,” Fars news agency quoted judiciary chief Ayatollah Sadeq Larijani as saying. British Prime Minister David Cameron said he was looking forward to working again with his “friend” Obama on several fronts, including helping the world economy and finding a solution for the escalating Syria conflict.

“There are so many things that we need to do: We need to kick start the world economy and I want to see an EU-US trade deal,” Cameron said.—AFP

JARKARTA: Indonesian school children erupt into cheers on hearing the announcement that US President Barack Obama had won the presidential election at SDN 01 Menteng elementary school to which Obama once attended in Jakarta. — AP

How Obama won WASHINGTON: US President Barack Obama confounded political logic by triumphing over a sluggish economy to win a second term in office. A grueling and often unpleasant campaign yielded, in the end, a decisive victory, built on the strong foundations laid down months ago by his crack campaign team. Here are some of the keys to Obama’s win over Republican Mitt Romney.

his record as head of Bain Capital, and his missteps-including a refusal to divulge his complicated offshore tax arrangements and a video in which he was seen decrying 47 percent of Americans as freeloaders who paid no income taxes-played into the stereotype. By the time of Romney’s stellar performance in the first presidential debate in October, the damage had been done.

ECONOMY ‘JUST GOOD ENOUGH’ The economy, despite tepid growth rates and high unemployment, was not bad enough to doom Obama, and he appears to have finally received belated credit for halting the slide into a second Great Depression. When he took office in January 2009, the economy was losing 700,000 jobs a month, and while Americans are still dissatisfied with the economy, exit polls suggest they still blame ex-president George W Bush as much as Obama.

Obama endured months of grisly monthly unemployment numbers, which told a tale of an economy struggling to gain steam. He got a break over the last few months, as the unemployment rate dipped below the psychological barrier of eight percent. Consumer confidence and optimism began to rise along with the stock market, and Americans began to feel a bit more optimistic as house prices finally began a slow rise, despite a lingering foreclosure crisis. Often criticized as aloof and professorial, Obama, in the final days of his campaign, his voice hoarse, finally seemed to strike a chord with blue collar workers who enrich the Democratic coalition in the rustbelt. In a twist of political history, Obama was helped by the embrace of his former Democratic antagonist, ex-president Bill Clinton, who buried the hatchet after Obama’s defeat of his wife Hillary in the 2008 Democratic primary. Clinton, remembered for leading an era of economic prosperity, often made the case for Obama better than the president himself. The two Democratic giants will now stand together in history as the only two Democrats to win a second term since World War II.

THE BIN LADEN BOUNCE The killing of Al-Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden in a daring Navy SEAL raid in 2011 did not win Obama re-election. But it bolstered the image of the president as a steely commander-in-chief who kept Americans safe and defused the classic Republican attack that Democrats are weak and cannot be trusted on national security. Kudos Obama won with the Bin Laden raid, not to mention a ruthless drone war against terror suspects abroad, may have also insulated the president against a late-election furor over the killing of the US ambassador to Libya in Benghazi.

YOU’RE SO BAIN The Obama campaign made a gamble soon after Romney captured the Republican primary-to go negative. Searing Obama ads and rhetoric branded the former investment manager a corporate vulture, who bought and sold firms for his own profit and heartlessly put good Americans out of work or shipped their jobs overseas. The plan was to define Romney in a harsh light before he had the chance to introduce himself to Americans with a multimillion dollar blitz of television advertising in the swing states, like Ohio, which would decide the election. Romney’s limp defense of

THE OBAMA MACHINE For the second election running, Obama’s campaign team has reinvented the way presidential elections are won. In 2008, Obama’s political braintrust, led by the intense David Plouffe, outwitted the political machine of Bill and Hillary Clinton with a delegate collection strategy that redefined the way primary campaigns are won. This time around, they defied the strong headwinds of a slowly growing economy and re-elected their president in the face of ferocious Republican opposition. The path to victory lay in the most sophisticated voter targeting and turnout machine in history, which reached all the way down to neighborhoods and was constructed over several years. Way back in October 2011, Obama’s political high command insisted to skeptical journalists that the president, smarting from a drubbing in mid-term congressional elections, could and would win re-election. The strategy: position Obama as a populist warrior for the middle class, and brand his opponent as a rich plutocrat oblivious to the suffering of regular Americans. Obama’s team insisted all along that his coalition of young voters, Hispanics and African Americans, as well as the educated white middle class, would show up for him in 2012, just as they did in 2008. Republicans scoffed, but they were proven wrong.

According to exit polls, 93 percent of African Americans backed Obama, along with 69 percent of Latinos and 70 percent of Jewish voters, and he was able to limit his losses among white voters. Obama also won an important victory among unmarried women voters, 68 percent of whom backed him.—AFP

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2012

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

US Election

CHICAGO: A combo picture shows (left) the Democratic then presidential candidate Barack Obama and his family as they arrive on stage for his election night victory rally at Grant Park on November 4, 2008 and (right) US President Barack Obama and family arrive on stage after winning the 2012 US presidential election yesterday. — AFP

US House remains under Republican control New House may look much like the old House WASHINGTON: It may have been the most unpopular US House of Representatives in modern times, but that did not stop voters on Tuesday from leaving it firmly in Republican hands, according to projections.

While more than 18 incumbent House members from both parties were defeated, according to results available early on Wednesday, there was no obvious ideological or partisan pattern. Redrawn districts, as a result of the 2010 census, were responsible for some incumbent losses. The results might disappoint those who had hoped for new and clear marching orders from voters on such issues as the deficit or immigration.

Instead, they will get another divided Congress with deep divisions over pressing economic issues.

A contented House Speaker John Boehner told party faithful at an electionnight rally that he and fellow Republicans had “offered solutions and the American people want solutions and tonight they responded by renewing our House Republican majority.” While Boehner said he would work with “any willing partner,” he warned political opponents that he would continue battling Democratic moves to raise taxes on the rich. “With this vote, the American people also made clear there’s no mandate for raising tax rates,” Boehner said.

The results could mean at least two more years of divided US government as Democratic President Obama won re-election over Republican Mitt Romney and Democrats were projected to retain control of the Senate. With the projected Republican win in the House, the partisan brand of politics the party practiced for the past two years appeared not to have seriously damaged its brand. When the new House is sworn in next January, it will look much like the House that nearly brought about government shutdowns and a historic default on debt in 2011.

Sarah Binder, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, said Republicans could now be situated to hold their majority in the House for quite some time. She spoke of a “structural advantage” the party holds “because of the way Republican voters are spread out over the country ... with strength in suburban and rural areas.” Binder added that unexpected “wave elections,” such as the ones that swept Democrats into power in the House in 2006 and Republicans in 2010, while not the norm, could interrupt a party’s long run in the majority. The bitter partisanship in the 435-member chamber a thorn in Obama’s side - was thought to have contributed to record low public approval ratings of Congress that at one point dipped to 10 percent.

If voters did not like the overall tenor of Congress for the past two years, they seemed to remain satisfied with their individual members. Election results were still

coming in, but it appeared as if Boehner would preside over a House next year that is close to the 240 Republicans and 190 Democrats who now populate the chamber.

Currently, there also are five vacancies. With the outcome of several races still unknown, Republicans were holding at least 226 seats to the Democrats’ 173. But Republicans no longer will represent any northeastern US congressional districts, the Capitol Hill newspaper Roll Call reported. Republicans did, however, beef up their presence in southern states, the newspaper said.

FISCAL DEALMAKING AHEAD? “The upshot is that the voters are saying to President Obama and Speaker Boehner: ‘Go back to the bargaining table; finish the deal,’” said David Kendall, a senior fellow at Third Way, a centrist think tank in Washington. Kendall was referring to the intensive negotiations Obama and Boehner held during the summer of 2011, which ultimately fell apart but were aimed at bringing around $4 trillion in deficit reductions over 10 years. Following that breakdown, many congressional leaders said that only the 2012 elections could settle the DemocraticRepublican dispute over taxes and spending that stood in the way of an Obama-Boehner handshake. On election night two years ago, the so-called Tea Party faction shook Washington’s political establishment as conservative Republicans rode that small-government movement to a tidal wave victory.

Suddenly, skyrocketing federal debt, which Republicans said threatened to swamp the struggling economy and hamper job creation, dominated the national conversation. It was in large part due to the Tea Party that Republicans wrested control of the House from then-Speaker Nancy Pelosi and her fellow Democrats. Two years later, voters displayed some fatigue with the Tea Party as some of the movement’s stars were either defeated in their Senate bids or faced difficult re-election bids in the House. Two of the highest-profile Tea Party activists in the House Michelle Bachmann and Allen West were struggling to keep their seats.

Freshman Representative Joe Walsh, a Tea Party favorite, lost his race against Democrat Tammy Duckworth, an Iraq war veteran who lost both her legs in combat. The Illinois district is near Chicago, Obama’s hometown.

Even so, Republicans were not expected to abandon the central tenets of Tea Party ideology, especially with other Tea Party activists, such as Steve King in Iowa, winning re-election. “There will still be enough Republicans enamored by the Tea Party idea against raising taxes,” said Youngstown State University political science professor Paul Sracic. “We’re looking at a huge struggle in the lame-duck and next year,” he said of the post-election session of Congress and the expected fights over tax policy in 2013.—Reuters

CHICAGO: President Barack Obama with first lady Michelle Obama, Vice President Joe Biden and Jill Biden celebrate on stage at the election night party at McCormick Place yesterday. — AP

PURI: Cyclists ride on a beach passing by a sand sculpture congratulating US President Barack Obama for a second term in office in Puri, India. — AP

Democrats gain seats in Senate WASHINGTON: Democrats were poised to boost their thin US Senate majority yesterday, taking over hotly contested Republican seats in Massachusetts and Indiana while holding on to most of those they already had, including in Virginia and Missouri. While the result was no surprise, Republicans had given themselves an even chance of winning a majority, so the night represented a disappointment for them, especially for the Senate’s Republican leader, Mitch McConnell, thwarted in his twin missions of taking over the Senate and defeating President Barack Obama. Overall, Democrats were poised to boost their majority from 53 to 55, counting two independents who vote with the party in the Senate. The Republican setback was in part self-inflicted, the result of internal battles waged in the party.

Had conservative Republican Richard Mourdock not defeated veteran moderate Richard Lugar in Indiana’s primary, for example, that seat might have stayed in Republican hands instead of being

won by Democrat Joe Donnelly on Tuesday. Missouri Senator Claire McCaskill, who kept her seat on Tuesday, had been considered a vulnerable Democrat until conservative Todd Akin won the state’s Republican primar y. Akin and Mourdock stumbled badly with remarks about abortion that were widely criticized as unsympathetic to rape victims, handing Senate Democrats two of Tuesday’s biggest wins.

The election left the Senate somewhat more polarized, with generally fewer moderates and more conser vatives among the Republicans and more liberals among the Democrats. Republicans remained firmly in control of the House of Representatives, ensuring that Congress still faces a deep partisan divide as it turns to the yearend “fiscal cliff ” that threatens to crush US economic growth. With President Barack Obama retaining the White House, the status quo result portends more partisan gridlock. “That means the same dynamic. That means the same people

who couldn’t figure out how to cut deals for the past three years,” said Ethan Siegel, an analyst who tracks Washington politics for institutional investors.

It was a rough night for the some of the conservative Tea Party’s loudest and most controversial members. The movement’s leader, failed Republican presidential candidate Michele Bachmann, was fighting to keep her congressional seat in Minnesota in a race that was too close to call. Representative Joe Walsh, another Tea Party activist, soundly lost his bid for a second term representing a district outside of Chicago, and Representative Allen West was losing to his opponent in Florida, Democrat Patrick Murphy. But by early morning, the Miami Herald was reporting that outcome was too close to call.

MAJORITY MATH Republicans managed to flip one Democratic Senate seat, in Nebraska, where conservative candidate Deb Fischer, endorsed by former Republican vice presidential

candidate Sarah Palin, was the projected winner in a race for the seat of retiring Democrat Ben Nelson.

Democrat Senator Jon Tester in Montana was still locked in a close race with Republican Representative Denny Rehberg early yesterday. If Democrats pick up that seat and two others that were still too close to call, they would have 55 votes, including the independents compared to the 53 they wield now.

Two victories underscored the Senate’s shift away from moderates who are more able to find common ground. Elizabeth Warren, the winner over moderate Senator Scott Brown in Massachusetts, is a consumer activist and Harvard Law School professor unpopular with Wall Street. In a victory speech, she vowed to “hold the big guys accountable.” “To all the seniors who deserve to retire with the security they earned, we’re going to make sure your Social Security benefits are protected and that millionaires and billionaires pay their fair share,” Warren old supporters. —Reuters

Kenyan family celebrates KOGELO: Singing and dancing, the ancestral village of Barack Obama celebrated yesterday the re-election of the son of their soil, who won because he knows how to “love all people”, his grandmother said. Crowds stayed up throughout the night in Kogelo, a small village in western Kenya nestled in the hills about 60 kilometers from the blue waters of Lake Victoria, until the results showed Obama had won.

“The reason why he has won is because God has given it to him,” said Sarah Obama, 90 this year and the third wife of the paternal grandfather of the president, who has said he regards her as a grandmother. “Secondly he has got the knowledge to love all people, he doesn’t have the knowledge of division, that is why he has won,” she added, speaking in the Luo language to reporters on the lawn outside the family home. Weary from an all-night vigil but happy at the win, people cheered to welcome her-known popularly as “Mama Sarah”-and in support of the victory. “It was tough this time, nothing like last time,” said 35-year old Calvin Odinga, a chemist.

“But we were so happy Obama made it.”

In Nairobi, Prime Minister Railda Odinga praised a win he said would “reignite faith worldwide, but especially in Africa, in the restorative capacity of democracy to deliver change and discard entrenched divisions.” President Mwai Kibaki offered his own congratulations in a statement to Obama. “Kenya, as always is proud of our association with you,” he said. For Obama’s grandmother, the re-election was more important than his win four years ago. “He came back a second time, and he won,” she said. But she also sought to quell the disappointment of many Kenyans who had hoped for a visit from the president during his first term. “We cannot be bitter,” said Mama Sarah. Many in Kogelo stayed up all night as the results trickled through, some splashing out to attend coverage shown on a big screen at a hotel despite the 12-dollar ticketa small fortune for many people here. But others gathered in a small dark room nearby, with diehard supporters refusing to go to bed until the announcement was made. —AFP

KOGELO: Villagers raise their bicycles in the air to celebrate Obama’s re-election, in the village of Kogelo, home to Sarah Obama the step-grandmother of President Barack Obama, in western Kenya. — AP

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2012

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

Longing to vote, Chinese ‘re-elect’ Obama BEIJING: More than 200 Chinese citizens stepped up to a mock ballot box yesterday, overwhelmingly “re-electing” US President Barack Obama while reflecting ruefully on the lack of multiparty democracy in China. The world’s two biggest economies are choosing their leaders around the same time, a quirk of timing that highlights the stark contrast between China’s secretive communist system and America’s boisterous democracy.

The “voters” were among several hundred Chinese invited to join American citizens in the balloting at an election party organized by the US embassy. Obama emerged the landslide winner with 153 votes to 51. “It is unfortunate that China cannot have elections like this,” a beaming He Jiangtao told AFP after casting his vote. “As long as the Communist Party is in power, it is unlikely that China will

ever have democratic elections,” said He, a marketing consultant.

While Obama was re-elected to another term before the eyes of the world, China will choose its next leaders behind closed doors at its fiveyearly party congress-the 18th in the country’s history-opening in Beijing today. At the week-long congress, President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao will step down from their top party posts to make way for a new leadership that will early next yeartake the reins of the world’s most populous nation for the next decade.

Chinese citizens have no say in that choice and the mock vote thrilled some participants.

“I voted for Obama. I support the Democratic Party because it is very liberal. For me, they better represent American freedom,” Wang Zheng, manager of a travel agency said. “You

can see how excited and happy the supporters of Obama are,” Wang said, pointing to celebrations in the United States broadcast on large-screen televisions. “You won’t see anything like this after the 18th party congress, people will not be expressing their happiness like that,” he said. In parts of China, villagers can directly elect their village chiefs from tightly controlled lists of candidates. But state, provincial and national leaders are all appointed by the ruling party.

With little experience in elections, the Chinese listened as embassy staff carefully explained the US electoral system involving simultaneous voting for Congress and various ballot initiatives. Voters also lined up to take pictures with life-size photos of Obama and Republican candidate Mitt Romney as television screens beamed live election coverage from major US

networks. “The world is looking to see if China will have something new to offer with the economy and with its politics, so the (Communist Party congress) should show what road China will go down,” said He Jie, an official at a human resources agency.

He echoed growing calls by some Chinese intellectuals for political reform. “I hope they (the Communist Party) can better listen to the opinions of the people, and react to what the people want and do it for them, instead of always making decisions by themselves on what should be done,” he said. China’s outspoken netizens expressed similar sentiments.

“Congratulations to Mr Obama for being successfully re-elected as US president,” said one user of a popular micro-blogging service. “Someone asked: What is the difference between elections in America and China? The

former has genuine democracy, the latter is fooling the people. Long live the 18th party congress!”

China, which has the world’s largest number of Internet users at more than 500 million, censors Internet content it deems politically sensitive. But authorities have found it challenging to keep up with postings in Twitter-like microblogs. Officially, China congratulated Obama on his reelection, noting “positive progress” in relations in his first time. “President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao sent messages of congratulations to President Obama on his being reelected president of the United States,” said foreign ministr y spokesman Hong Lei. China will “look to the future and make continuous efforts for fresh and greater progress in the building of the China-US cooperative partnership”.—AFP

Fukushima costs soar Tepco seeks more govt support

BEIJING: Hostesses for the National Congress pose for a souvenir picture at Tiananmen Square in Beijing, China yesterday.— AP

Slogans, security fill Tiananmen Square BEIJING: Beijing’s vast Tiananmen Square was a sea of red flags, propaganda banners and police uniforms yesterday as China’s ruling Communist Party prepared to gather nearby to appoint its new leaders. More than 2,000 delegates will attend the five-yearly party congress that opens on Thursday. At its close a week later, it will unveil the top brass who will govern the most populous country and second-largest economy for the next decade.

Visitors to the square-a popular tourist site near the regime’s nerve centre and the scene of 1989 democracy protests crushed by authorities-submitted themselves and their belongings, even water bottles, to security checks. A towering floral arrangement stood 15 meters high at the centre of the square-its massive scale matching that of the nearby Great Hall of the People, the Stalinist-style building that will host the congress.

Officers kept fire extinguishers on hand, possibly fearing repeats of dozens of selfimmolations by Tibetans in western China in protest at Chinese rule.

Delegates from around the country are meant to represent the world’s largest political party with 82 million members. Yet their main task will be to rubber-stamp a leadership succession carefully chosen by the party elite. The week-long event begins on the eighthconsidered an auspicious number in China. The congress that installed President Hu Jintao as party chief 10 years ago started on the same date, while the Beijing Olympics opened on 08/08/2008. The city has deployed a vast range of security forces-military police, regular police, plain-clothes officers as well as 1.4 million volunteers, often retirees, wearing red armbards.

The highly-visible security presence put Indian tourist Nidhi Verma on edge.

“All these policemen,” she said while walking along the edge of the square. “I was not even sure it was allowed to take pictures.” The security extends even further. Objects recently banned include fruit knives, balloons, ping-pong balls (which might bear “reactionary” messages) as well as toy planes and helicopters, according to reports. Pigeon owners have been warned to lock up their birds and concerts and gatherings in public parks have been halted as have boat rides on lakes near Zhongnanhai, a private residential compound for senior leaders.

On the Avenue of Eternal Peace along the northern edge of Tiananmen, buses were instructed to lock their windows, possibly to prevent passengers from throwing flyers with political messages into the square. Taxi drivers were told to deactivate their back windows apparently for the same reason-and to watch out for potential protesters attempting to reach the square.

Petitioners coming to the capital to lodge complaints about injustices have been sent away in recent days, as have prominent critics of the regime.

Hundreds of activists have been placed under various forms of restriction including house arrest ahead of the congress, rights groups have said. Prostitutes and migrant workers have also been told to leave, according to city residents. At the same time oversized signs erected among flowerbeds at Tiananmen Square sought to remind passers-by that people are at the core of the party’s mandate.

“Thoroughly apply scientific development theory,” one said in large red script, referring to Hu’s concept of balanced economic growth meant to bolster the less well-off. “Improve the livelihood and well-being of the people,” read another.— AFP

TOKYO: Fukushima nuclear plant operator Tokyo Electric Power Co said yesterday it would have to seek more government funds to tackle the aftermath of the Fukushima disaster, as cleanup costs soar four months after the utility was nationalized. A senior minister said the government saw no alternative to providing continued support for the utility, known as Tepco. Tepco officials suggested the costs of compensation and decontamination could double to 10 trillion yen ($124.55 billion), making greater government support vital.

“If the costs ballooned to 10 trillion yen, double our estimate of a few months ago, we could not shoulder such a financial burden,” the company said in a statement. An earthquake and tsunami in March 2011 triggered meltdowns and radiation leaks at the Fukushima Daiichi plant, 150 miles northeast of Tokyo, causing widespread contamination and prompting mass evacuations. Tepco, which provides power to about 45 million residents of the Tokyo region, has been drawing on a 5 trillion yen fund to pay costs. It also received a 1 trillion yen capital injection in

July to avert bankruptcy.

“It is unavoidable that we will have to revise the current financial support framework,” Tepco Chairman Kazuhiko Shimokobe told a news conference. Under Tepco’s business turnaround plan announced in May, Japan’s largest utility by revenue must eventually pay back funds received from the government. Minister for National Policy Seiji Maehara, addressing a separate briefing, said: “For the foreseeable future Tepco will remain under the control of the government and we will have to support the company.”

Masashi Goto, a retired power plant designer and university lecturer, said technological and other uncertainties made it hard to estimate final costs of clean-up and decommissioning. “It also appears that Tepco underestimated the cost involved at first, probably because it would be criticized by the public by admitting to the immense scale of the catastrophe,” he said.

He said costs were likely to increase as decommissioning work, likely to take decades, progresses. Tepco has said it will have to resort to major rate hikes again if the

government fails to provide additional support. It also said yesterday it would set up a coordinating centre in Fukushima, with 4,000 staff, to oversee clean-up operations. Tepco acknowledged for the first time last month, in a document outlining company reforms, that it had failed to anticipate and tackle the March 2011 disaster. It said it had feared that implementing accident measures would alarm the public and boost Japan’s antinuclear movement.

The company is banking on restarting its undamaged Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear plant, the world’s largest, to help it return to profit in the business year starting in April 2013. But prospects appear dim for restarting its seven reactors gradually from April 2013 as safety standards for restarts, to be drawn up by Japan’s new nuclear watchdog, will probably not be issued until next year.

All but two of Japan’s 50 reactors have been halted for maintenance and safety checks to see if they could withstand an earthquake and tsunami similar to last year’s disaster, the worst atomic crisis since Chernobyl in 1986. — Reuters

Philippine street kid a global inspiration CAVITE: Cris Valdez began life unwanted by his parents and was soon scavenging in a Philippine rubbish dump, an unlikely start for a boy now hailed as an inspiration for children around the world. Valdez, 13, won this year’s International Children’s Peace Prize for his work as head of a charity organization that educates and hands out gifts to thousands of youngsters in his poverty-plagued hometown.

South African human rights activist and Nobel Peace Prize winner Desmond Tutu gave Valdez his award at a ceremony in the Netherlands in September, declaring him a “voice for the voiceless” and a “true inspiration”.

After returning to the streets of Cavite, a coastal city on the outskirts of Manila, Valdez spoke in a soft voice to AFP about his noble philosophies that emerged from personal devastation and the people who turned his life around. “I help because I see myself in children who roam and live on the streets,” Valdez said during one of his weekend community outreach programs.

“Some good-hearted people showed me love and changed my life, and I am just paying it forward.”

Valdez, nicknamed “Kesz”, was born the third of nine children from a desperately poor couple who lived with hundreds of other squatter families on the fringes of a huge garbage dump in Cavite. The city was once a picturesque, colonial Spanish enclave and fish port, but deteriorated into a mostly rundown urban mess in a familiar pattern across the country where a quarter of the population now live on less than a dollar a day. His parents called him “bad luck” because they tried to sell him when he was a baby but failed, according to Harnin Manalaysay, the head of a local Christian youth charity who eventually rescued Valdez. Manalaysay said Valdez was forced to start scavenging in the garbage dump from the age of two.

At ages three and four, Valdez was sleeping anywhere he could, including atop tombs at the city cemetery, because he frequently fled home to escape beatings by his rickshaw-driver father, according to Manalaysay. At an age when children are just learning how to make friends,

Valdez was learning to beg and steal. “I found him sleeping on a curbside covered in flies. He was very dirty and being kicked by passers by,” Manalaysay said. Manalaysay enrolled Valdez, then aged four, in his alternative learning program for street children, in which volunteer teachers use mobile classrooms on pushcarts to bring classes to the students. In between lessons, Valdez still scavenged for scraps to help out his family.

Then bad luck struck Valdez again when he was five. Fellow scavengers jostling around a dump truck accidentally shoved him into a pile of burning tyres, badly injuring his arms and back. “My father was angry when I came home and said I deserved it for being stupid,” Valdez recalled. Valdez said his mother took him to Manalaysay, who paid for his medical treatment and allowed him to recuperate at the charity worker’s shelter for street children, called Club 8586. “She came back (months) later to tell me they did not want him back anymore,” Manalaysay said. Manalaysay, a portly marine engineer whose club has been helping troubled youths for more than 27 years, became his legal guardian.

Under his tutelage, Valdez recovered, and his grades improved. He also began volunteering as a six-year-old to teach other street children about basic hygiene. When Valdez turned seven, Manalaysay asked him what he wanted as a birthday gift. “I told him I wanted other children to receive what I had: rubber slippers, toys and candies,” Valdez said. So Valdez and his guardian spent the day giving various items to street children. The giving became a yearly tradition and led to the creation of Valdez’s own charity, called Championing Community Children.

Under Manalaysay’s guidance, Valdez built the charity into one that raises funds from private donors to buy basic living items for children, including sandals, toys, food and clothes.

Volunteers, made up mostly of Valdez’s friends, also teach basic hygiene, nutrition and gardening, as well as educate children on their rights to help prevent abuse. Valdez’s charity has helped 10,000 children in Cavite over the past six years,

CAVITE: Cris Valdez, known as Kesz, cleans the wound of a slum area boy at the compound of the child rights’ advocacy group Club 8586 in Cavite City, Cavite province. —AFP according to the judging committee of the International Children’s Peace Prize, which was founded by Dutch organisation KidsRights.

“Kesz is like any other normal kid. But his achievements, and the number of people he has helped, surpass those of most adults,” Manalaysay said. Valdez’s plans for the immediate future are to continue with his charity, while making sure his school work does not suffer from his busy schedule. Eventually, he wants to work in one of the toughest jobs of all, while expanding his charity work. “I’m studying hard because I want to be a doctor... I want to help more children, not only in the Philippines, but also in other countries,” he said.— AFP

As China enters a new era, how much of Mao will stay?

BEIJING: A man carries a toy panda at Tiananmen Square in Beijing yesterday. —AP

BEIJING: In 1981, five years after his death, China’s ruling Communist Party began to save history from Mao Zedong. Today, speculation about whether it is poised to finish the job has cast a spotlight on one of the most emotive debates simmering inside the party - how much of Mao can it erase without undermining its authority. The debate is also a proxy for the more tangible battle inside the par ty over the direction and extent of future reforms. Recent omissions of the term “Mao Zedong Thought” from some policy statements have piqued speculation that the party might remove it from the party charter when it amends the document at the 18th Par ty Congress, which starts today.

To critics, boilerplate references to “Mao Zedong Thought” have been devoid of meaning for years. Mao, after all, thought revolution and communism - not harmony and capitalism. It seems clear which path the par ty has chosen for China.

Supporters, however, note that “Mao Thought” long ago was expanded to encompass much more than just Mao’s individual, and often radical, cogitations. It was, at its essence, a set of arguments that originally justified the pursuit of Marxist revolution in poor, agrarian China.

Supporters believe to this day that it underpins the party’s legitimacy and grounds it in a set of guiding principles. This year’s downfall of Bo Xilai, the former leader of the western city of Chongqing who

once had prospects for higher office, is a consequence of the battle within the par ty, exper ts say. After his appointment in 2007, Bo turned Chongqing into a showcase of proMao “red” culture and his policies for egalitarian, state-led growth. Bo’s wife has been convicted of murder and he has been expelled from the party, accused of corruption and abuse of power - charges frequently used to discredit disgraced officials.

“It’s not a question of whether they think about it or not,” a source with ties to the leadership said of removing “Mao Zedong Thought” from the party constitution. “It’s a question of whether or not they have the guts.” The party’s policymaking Central Committee approved an amendment to the par-

ty’s constitution on Monday that would update the document “to reflect the party’s latest theoretical achievements in localizing Marxism and practical experience”, the Xinhua news agency repor ted.

Details were not made public.

The new leaders expected to be anointed at the 18th Party Congress, however, have given few hints that they will espouse radical change.

Incoming President Xi Jinping and the presumed Premier, Li Keqiang, are seen at best as cautious reformers. However, sources have said Xi and outgoing President Hu Jintao successor are pushing the party to adopt a more democratic process for choosing the new leadership this month, which would be a major reform. — Reuters

NEWS Dems keep Senate, Reps retain House Continued from Page 1 slim - of gaining four seats and seizing control of the chamber. That effort unraveled further when Democrats were credited with holding onto Missouri. In Indiana and Missouri, Republicans Richard Mourdock and Todd Akin became embroiled in pre-election scandals over ill-judged comments about rape and abortion that sparked outrage.

With a dangerous combination of expiring tax breaks and federal spending cuts looming, the US economy could plunge over its so-called “fiscal cliff ” in January and Congress will take center stage after Tuesday’s votes are counted. Republican Speaker John Boehner said retaining the House had showed US voters “made clear that there is no mandate for raising tax rates” but he pledged to work with all members in Congress to achieve a fiscal breakthrough.

Another state that had been closely watched was Virginia, neighboring the US capital, but Republicans were left hugely disappointed as George Allen failed to take back the seat and conceded victory to Democrat Tim Kaine. The candidates had waged a vicious battle with the race centering on defense spending -Virginia is home to the Pentagon and major defense companies - and abortion. Key Senate races where winners were yet to be declared by the networks were the rural states of Montana, Nebraska and North Dakota.

US states also voted to legalize marijuana, allow gay marriage and keep public funding for abortions, in a string of liberal poll decisions accompanying Barack Obama’s reelection. The moves were decided among more than 170 ballot initiatives and referendums held across the country, as America voted the Democratic president back in for four more years. Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper, whose state is one of two to legalize marijuana for recreational as well as medicinal purposes, accepted his western state’s

vote -albeit with tongue in cheek. “The voters have spoken and we have to respect their will ... That said, federal law still says marijuana is an illegal drug,” he said, referring to nationwide legislation which conflicts with a number of states’ own laws. “So don’t break out the Cheetos or Goldfish too quickly,” he said, referring to two popular brands of cheesy snacks. Marijuana is known to stimulate the appetite.

Three states voted Tuesday to legalize same-sex marriage, including Maine which voted in a referendum against it in 2009, but reversed that decision with 53 percent in favor to 47 percent against. Washington state and Maryland also appeared set to approve the move, which had already been passed by state lawmakers. Both states voted 52-48 percent in favor, according to CNN projections based on partial results.

Meanwhile three states - Colorado, Washington and Oregon - voted on proposals to legalize marijuana, including for recreational use, going further than a number of states which already allow it for medicinal purposes.

Colorado backed the move by 54 percent in favor to 46 percent against, and Washington by 55 percent to 45 percent, according to CNN citing partial results. Oregon rejected it by 56 percent to 44 percent, it said.

In other closely watched initiatives, California rejected a move to ban the death penalty, and one to enforce labeling of genetically-modified (GM) foodstuffs - which would have been a US first if passed. In a more local vote, Los Angeles County voted to oblige porn actors to wear condoms while on set - the San Fernando Valley north of LA is the center of the US pornographic film industry. Florida voters meanwhile rejected a proposal to ban the use of public funds for abortion or for insurance coverage for the service, according to partial results. Fifty-five percent of voters rejected Florida’s so-called Amendment 6, with 45 percent in favor, according to NBC and CNN. — Agencies

Relief, not euphoria in Mideast Continued from Page 1 Amin, a Tehran filmmaker, told Reuters by telephone: “We hate the policies of the US and Israel, but Obama’s policies are wiser. The only chance we have for the situation not to get worse was an Obama victory.” Mira, a 32-year-old dissident Iranian journalist reached by telephone, said: “Romney seemed willing to take US foreign policy back to its Bush-era belligerent xenophobic milieu.”

The Middle East is hardly a region where any US president can expect effusive praise, but surveys have shown that most there wanted Obama to win, if only because of bitter memories of Bush and the widely resented war in Iraq. “An Obama win was expected and he is the best at this stage,” said Cairo doctor Mohamed El-Sanusy. “Let us not forget that Romney is a little Bush.”

After coming to power in 2008 promising to bring US troops home from Iraq, Obama quickly visited the Middle East, saying he wanted to re-engage with the region and soothe anger directed at the United States during the Bush years. In 2009, four months into his first term, Obama told an enthusiastic audience in Cairo that he wanted for launch a “new beginning” in relations between the United States and the region. His Republican challenger this time around, Mitt Romney, has derided that visit as part of an “apology tour”, a tag rejected by the White House.

But if Obama’s first election was greeted warmly in the Middle East, his re-election four years later was met more soberly in a tumultuous region, where the Arab Spring revolts have revealed the limits of US power to shape events. “I have the feeling that people in the region are not as enthusiastic as

they were in 2008 about the whole American presidential campaign,” said Saudi political analyst Khaled Al-Dakheel.

“There is a feeling that there is a marginal difference between the two regarding US policy on the Middle East, especially after the third debate when they focused on foreign policy.”

One man in the region who may not be pleased by Obama’s re-election is Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu - he did little to dispel the impression he favoured Romney after clashing with Obama over West Bank settlements and Iran policy and now faces a new spell of awkwardness with the White House: “I don’t think we can just assume that what happened between them over the past four years will have just evaporated,” said Sallai Meridor, a former Israeli ambassador to Washington.

On Iran, Obama initially offered unconditional talks with Washington’s old foe, but over the past year imposed harsh sanctions in conjunction with the European Union to try to force Iran to agree to abandon its nuclear program. “Obama was a tough president for Iran’s hardliners, because he exposed them as the problem. His ... efforts to engage Iran accentuated Tehran’s internal divisions, and created greater international unity,” said Karim Sadjadpour, associate at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in Washington Last year’s Arab Spring uprisings toppled more Middle Eastern autocrats than Bush, with the United States largely staying on the sidelines or playing a supportive role. Obama let France and Britain take the lead in the NATO coalition that helped bomb Libya’s Muammar Gaddafi out of power, sat back as long-term US allies were brought down by popular revolts in Tunisia and Egypt, and has ruled out US military intervention in Syria. — Reuters

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2012

Oppn plans major gathering Sunday Continued from Page 1 Since its inception on Monday night, the Committee’s Twitter account has attracted more than 20,000 followers.

The Committee has said that it will launch awareness campaigns to educate people why they should boycott the elections.

Twenty-six candidates registered their names to contest the election yesterday with just two days left for closing the registration. The new addition raised the number of candidates to 141, way short from the previous elections.

Most of those who have registered are new candidates and are unknown to the public except former Shiite MP Saleh Ashour who accused the opposition of plotting against the interests of Kuwait.

Opposition allegations of corruption in the registration process meanwhile continued yesterday. Former MP Mohammad Hayef said he will show an image for how people are intimidated into becoming candidates through pressure and the payment of huge sums of money. He said he will post on his Twitter account a picture of a candidate receiving money. Registration closes tomorrow and candidates will be given until Nov 23 to withdraw from the race.

Yesterday, General Prosecutor Dharar Al-Asousi was quoted as stressing to prosecutors that they must enforce a new law that expands broad rules banning incitement to strife and the spreading of false rumours. He said the amendments to the penal code were aimed at “social peace, security and the protection of national unity”, according to KUNA.

Obama revives ‘hope’ with re-election win Continued from Page 1 He wished the re-elected head of state success in his post and the best of health to bring his nation and people more development and prosperity. HH the Crown Prince Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah and HH the Prime Minister Sheikh Jaber Al-Mubarak Al-Sabah sent similar cables.

With only Florida among the battleground states still to be declared, Obama had 303 electoral votes - well over the 270 needed to win the White House - and Republican challenger Mitt Romney formally conceded the race. Obama had a slim lead in the national popular vote, leading Romney by 50 percent to 49 percent after drawing more than 56 million votes. Turnout appeared strong, though official figures had yet to be released. As Obama’s victory was confirmed with wins in rustbelt Ohio and his spiritual political home in Iowa, large crowds suddenly materialized outside the White House, chanting “four more years” and “Obama, O-bama.”

Republican nominee Romney, 65, deflated and exhausted, offered a classy tribute, as he consoled dejected supporters in Boston moments after phoning Obama to formally concede. “This is a time of great challenges for America and I pray that the president will be successful in guiding our nation.” Romney said. In a show of bipartisanship after a searing campaign, the president said he wanted to meet his vanquished foe to find common ground to move America forward.

Obama’s victory means that he will get the chance to embed his healthcare and Wall Street reforms deep into the fabric of American life - Romney had pledged one of his first acts would be the repeal of Obamacare. The president may also get the chance to reshape the Supreme Court in his liberal image for a generation, a move that would shape policy on issues like abortion and gay rights. The president will also look abroad as he builds his legacy, and will face an immediate challenge early in 2013 over whether to use military force to thwart Iran’s nuclear program.

Obama’s win on Tuesday bucked history, as it came with the unemployment rate pegged at 7.9 percent, the highest level for a re-elected president in more than 70 years.

Remarkably, his coalition of Hispanic, black, and young voters turned out in similar numbers to those of his heady change-fueled campaign in 2008, shocking Romney’s team and presenting a new American face to the world. But once the euphoria fades, the president will face a tough task enacting his second term agenda after Republicans, who thwarted him repeatedly in his first mandate, retained control of the House of Representatives. Democrats kept the Senate but fell short of the 60-vote super majority needed to sidestep minority blocking tactics.

Obama will soon face a showdown with Republicans on Capitol Hill over the so-called “fiscal cliff” - a combination of dramatic spending cuts and tax increases set to take effect if US lawmakers cannot cut a deal on the deficit. It remains to be seen whether Republicans - who have opposed the president tooth and nail for the last four years - will be more conciliatory after Romney’s drubbing or double down to block any potential legacy projects.

The president paved the way to victory with a staunch defense of Democratic bastions in Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and Michigan, at which Romney had made a last-minute run when he saw more conventional paths to the White House blocked. Obama also locked in swing states, including Virginia - where he became the first Democrat to win since 1964 four years ago - Nevada, Ohio, New Hampshire, Colorado and Iowa, crushing Romney’s slim hopes of a viable path to victory. Romney could only wrestle Indiana and North Carolina from Obama’s 2008 map.

The win in Iowa will be especially sweet for Obama, as the heartland state nurtured his unlikely White House dreams way back in 2007. A tear rolled down his cheek as he held his last-ever campaign rally there late Monday. His victory in Ohio represents a delayed repayment for his gutsy call in 2009 to mandate a federal bailout of the auto industry, on which one in eight jobs in the state depend.

Romney had opposed the move.

Obama won with a fiercely negative campaign branding Romney - a multi-millionaire former corporate turnaround wizard - as indifferent to the woes of the middle class. Exit polls showed that though only 39 percent of people believed that the economy was improving, around half of Americans blamed former Republican president George W Bush for the tenuous situation, and not Obama. Obama’s victory was a complete vindication for a campaign team that had predicted a close but winnable election, despite the painful after-effects of the deepest economic crisis since the 1930s Great Depression.

He was also helped by Latino voters, whose strong support was crucial in the western desert state of Nevada and the Rocky Mountain state of Colorado. Republicans had insisted right up to election day that Obama’s army, disaffected by busted expectations for his first term, would stay home, and had predicted instead a late Republican wave that would elevate Romney. The president ran for re-election on a platform of offering a “fair shot” to the middle class, of fulfilling his pledge to end the war in Iraq, killing Osama bin Laden, and starting to build a clean energy economy. The president may have been helped at the 11th hour when superstorm Sandy roared ashore, killing more than 100 Americans but giving Obama the chance to project leadership at the head of a multi-state disaster response. — AFP

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THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2012

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Issues

Obama wins, Washington unchanged

By Ben Feller S President Barack Obama’s victory means that everything he campaigned upon is alive and about to drive the political conversation with his adversaries.

Every legacy of his first term is safe and enshrined to history.

Yet big honeymoons don’t come twice and Republicans won’t swoon. If Obama cannot end gridlock in Washington, his second term will be reduced to veto threats, empty promises, end runs around Congress and legacy-sealing forays into foreign lands. Obama will push for higher taxes on the wealthy as a way to shrink a choking federal debt and to steer money toward the programs he wants. He will try to land a massive financial deficit-cutting deal with Congress in the coming months and then move on to an immigration overhaul, tax reform and other bipartisan dreams.

He will not have to worry that his health care law will be repealed, or that his Wall Street reforms will be gutted, or that his name will be consigned to the list of one-term presidents who got fired before they could finish their work.

Voters stuck with him because they trusted him more to solve the struggles of their lifetime. America may not be filled with hope anymore, but it told Mitt Romney to keep his change. And voters sure didn’t shake up the rest of Washington, either.

They put back all the political players who have made the capital dysfunctional to the point of nearly sending the United States of America into default. “Progress will come in fits and starts,” the president cautioned in his victory speech.

“The recognition that we have common hopes and dreams won’t end all the gridlock ... or substitute for the painstaking work of building consensus. But that common bond is where we must begin.”

The president likely will be dealing again with a Republican-run House of Representatives, whose leader, Speaker John Boehner, declared on election night that his party has orders from voters, too: no higher taxes. Obama will still have his firewall in the Senate, with Democrats hanging onto their narrow majority. But they don’t have enough to keep Republicans from bottling up any major legislation with delaying tactics. So the burden falls on the president to find compromise, not just demand it from the other side.

Obama won the electoral vote comfortably, but the popular vote showed the nation he leads - split right in half.

Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell welcomed Obama with both arms folded. “The voters have not endorsed the failures or excesses of the president’s first term,” McConnell said. “They have simply given him more time to finish the job they asked him to do together” with a balanced Congress. The vanquished Republican, Romney, tried to set the tone on the way off the national stage. “At a time like this, we can’t risk partisan bickering,” Romney said after a campaign filled with it. “Our leaders have to reach across the aisle to do the people’s work.”

For now, Obama can revel in knowing what he pulled off.

Obama won despite an economy that sucked away much of the nation’s spirit. He won with the highest unemployment rate - at 7.9 percent - for any incumbent since the Great Depression of the 1930s. He won even though voters said they thought Romney would be the better choice to end stalemate in Washington. He won even though a huge majority of voters said they were not better off than they were four years ago - a huge test of survival for a president.

The reason is that voters wanted the president they knew. They believed convincingly that Obama, not Romney, understood their woes of college costs and insurance bills and sleepless nights. Exit polls showed that voters viewed Obama as the voice of the poor and the middle class, and Romney the guy tilting toward the rich. The suspense was over early because Obama won all over the map of battleground states, and most crucially in Ohio. That’s where he rode his bailout support for the auto industry to a victory that crushed Romney’s chances.

The voice of the voter came through from 42-year-old Bernadette Hatcher in Indianapolis, who voted after finishing an overnight shift at a warehouse. “It’s all about what he’s doing,” she said. “No one can correct everything in four years. Especially the economy.” Formidable and seasoned by life, Romney had in his pocket corporate success and a Massachusetts governor’s term and the lessons of a first failed presidential bid. But he never broke through as the man who would secure people’s security and their dreams.

He was close the whole time. “I mean, I looked,” said Tamara Johnson of Apex, North Carolina, a 35-year old mother of two young children. “I didn’t feel I got the answers I wanted or needed to hear. And that’s why I didn’t sway that way.” —AP

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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.

Both sides see mandate, hard road ahead

By Charles Babington S President Barack Obama’s re-election, coupled with Republicans’ continued hold on the House, gives both parties a chance to rethink, and perhaps undo, the bitter partisanship that has gripped Washington for four years and frustrated Americans who see big problems going unsolved. It won’t be easy. Both sides claim, with some justification, a mandate from the voters. “We’ll have as much of a mandate as he will,” House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, said shortly before the election, correctly anticipating the results.

Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell was frostier in his post-election remarks. “The voters have not endorsed the failures or excesses of the president’s first term,” McConnell said. “Now it’s time for the president to propose solutions that actually have a chance of passing the Republican-controlled House,” he said, “and deliver in a way that he did not in his first four years in office.”

After three straight swing elections, Americans decided to keep Obama in the White House, leave Republicans in control of the House and let Democrats stay atop the Senate, with Republicans still able to block measures with filibusters. There’s an irony, or self-flagellation, there. Americans express exasperation at the partisan sniping and gridlock that pushed the nation to the brink of defaulting on its loans last year, and which might trigger new crises soon. The narrowness of Obama’s win accurately reflects the nation’s nearly 50-50 partisan divide. It’s a split that will make progress on any major issues difficult for at least another two years, and probably longer.

Every newly elected president claims a mandate, and Obama can point to the roughly $1 billion that Mitt Romney and his GOP allies spent trying to oust him. Yet, for all its tactical

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brilliance, Obama’s campaign was built on relatively modest ideas. It focused on helping the middle class, which is a coalition of identity, not ideology. It may have been a status quo election. But if the White House and congressional Republicans simply stand their ground on taxes and other issues, they run risks - not just for the nation’s well-being, but also for the legacies of a barrier-breaking president and a Republican Party that has tapped a deep vein of conservative, almost libertarian emotion.

In many ways, of course, Obama’s place in history is assured. The first black to be elected president has now joined eight other men who, since 1900, won the office more than once. His biggest first-term achievement - the “Obamacare” health delivery overhaul - is safe from repeal by a President Mitt Romney.

Obama’s other top goals, however, were largely thwarted by a united Republican Party that fought him at almost every turn. Republicans provided not a single House or Senate vote for the health care law. They beat back his efforts to end the Bush-era tax cuts for the wealthiest households.

Obama offered an olive branch in his victory speech early yesterday. “In the coming weeks and months, I am looking forward to reaching out and working with leaders of both parties to meet the challenges we can only solve together,” he said. McConnell said in 2010 that his top goal was to deny Obama a second term. On Tuesday, he lost, even though the nation’s high unemployment seemed to make Obama ripe for defeat. Some, perhaps much, of Romney’s loss will be traced to Americans’ discontent with an opposition party that refused to compromise on big issues even when it’s obvious that neither party can get everything it wants.

Boehner, Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell and other GOP officials now must

decide where to bend and where to keep standing firm. They’ll have to tip their hand soon. A package of huge tax hikes and spending cuts - known as the “fiscal cliff,” and which both parties deeply dislike - is scheduled to take effect in the new year. So far, Republicans have adamantly refused to raise taxes, even on the richest Americans, as part of a deficit-reduction package. Obama and other Democrats say such tax hikes must be part of the deal. They will point to Tuesday’s election as validation.

Boehner will point to his sustained majority.

Democrats think Obama learned some hard lessons in his first four years, including a realization that he must get deeply involved in the sometimes unpleasant business of crafting and negotiating legislation. “The American people have made it pretty clear that they are sick of gridlock and fighting,” said Jim Manley, a former Democratic Senate aide. Boehner and McConnell, he said, “have figured out that the tea party has done enormous damage to their brand, to say nothing about the economy, and that something has to change.”

At the same time, Manley said “the president is going to have to play a more forceful role in the legislative process”. Obama signaled some of his second-term goals in a recent Des Moines Register interview. The fiscal cliff’s economic threat is so severe, he said, that a congressional compromise is likely. “It will probably be messy,” the president said. “But I am absolutely confident that we can get what is the equivalent of the grand bargain that essentially I’ve been offering to the Republicans.” It calls for $2.50 in spending cuts for every $1 in new revenue. “The second thing I’m confident we’ll get done next year is immigration reform,” he said. Perhaps. Or it could prove as difficult as President George W Bush’s bid to partly privatize Social Security right after his re-election. In recent years, the very idea of

bipartisan compromise has come under growing attack, as Americans got fed up with soaring deficits, longstanding threats to Medicare and other problems left unresolved by Congress’ old practices. The anger gave birth to the tea party, which boosted candidates who vow not to compromise if they reach Washington. Passion and ideology drive the tea party. Congressional leaders, historically, are realists. They keep their committee chairmanships and party leadership posts by constantly monitoring the moods and needs of their rank-and-file colleagues.

Some Washington veterans say Boehner is posturing when he claims that his party won as big a mandate as Obama did. When Republicans see that the no-new-taxes argument lost Tuesday, Boehner “is certain to come to the table to begin to deal,” said Matt Bennett of the Democratic-leaning think tank Third Way. “Boehner and McConnell surely know that they cannot continue to be pure obstructionists and that the economic consequences of going over the fiscal cliff would be extreme,” Bennett said. But it’s not clear they can control their caucuses, he said.

Indeed, the GOP is surely about to engage in some intense self-examination and infighting. John Feehery, a former top House Republican aide, said Obama’s re-election may give the White House less clout than Democratic insiders think. “Republicans will feel they have just as big a mandate as the president,” Feehery said. It’s possible that Boehner and Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid of Nevada “will do the deals and put Obama on mute,” he said. Reid, at least for now, sounds upbeat and bipartisan. “Democrats and Republicans must come together, and show that we are up to the challenge” of tackling big problems, Reid said after the election was called. “This is no time for excuses.” —AP

Obama re-election driven by economy, turnout

By Tim Reid rowing optimism about the economy and a big turnout of the core Democratic coalition sealed President Barack Obama’s re-election victory. After years of bleak economic news, enough Americans now believe better days lie ahead for the US economy. The coalition of young, female and minority voters that propelled Obama to victory four years ago also turned out again, in huge numbers. Early exit polls reflected a pro-Obama turnout by minorities and single women so big that in some key states it exceeded numbers seen during his historic election in 2008 as America’s first black president.

Although Republican Mitt Romney did much better with independent voters than Obama on Tuesday, that advantage was wiped out in key battleground states by an enthusiasm Obama managed to engender among his core coalition that many analysts were writing off just a few months ago as dispirited and fractured. In Pennsylvania, for example, AfricanAmerican turnout exceeded 2008 levels, ABC News said. In Nevada, 18 percent of the voters were Latino - up from 15 percent in 2008, according to CNN. That rapidly growing electoral bloc backed Obama overwhelmingly, as it appeared to be doing in Florida, one of the biggest prizes with its 29 electoral college votes. By Tuesday night, Florida - a state Romney had been confident of winning - was too close to call, but appeared to be heading toward an Obama victory. Obama also opened up a large gender gap over Romney among women, several exit polls indicated.

“I thought four years ago there was an enduring Obama electorate, and that is what we’ve seen tonight,” said Tad Devine, a veteran Democratic strategist. “It’s made up of AfricanAmericans, Latinos, single women and young people,” he said. “You combine that with blue-

G

collar union workers and upper-educated whites, and you have a majority, especially in battleground states.” Devine added: “This coalition has legs. It reflects the demographic reality of America - the country is becoming less white, and there are more minorities and single people.”

Romney also appeared to have overplayed his hand when it came to his central campaign argument that the US economy was in dire straits because of Obama’s bungled fiscal stew-

270 electoral votes needed for victory fell to Obama: New Hampshire, Iowa, Colorado, Nevada, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania. By 11 pm EST, Obama had narrowly carried Ohio - and with it re-election. Obama effectively swept the American Midwest, the county’s industrial heartland. Romney’s efforts to convince voters that America’s stubbornly high unemployment rate of 7.9 percent was all Obama’s fault appeared to have backfired.

Early national exit polls revealed that about

US President Barack Obama celebrates after delivering his acceptance speech in Chicago yesterday. —AFP ardship. In politically divided states such as Virginia, Iowa and Ohio, Romney had an edge among voters who believed he would do a better job handling the economy - but only just. It was not enough for a candidate who made the economy central to his campaign.

As the night wore on, Romney’s path to victory narrowed and was all but gone by 10 pm EST (0300 GMT yesterday). State after battleground state he needed to win to get to the

50 percent of US voters still blamed former Republican President George W Bush for the country’s economic problems rather than Obama. Bill Galston, a former domestic policy adviser to Democratic President Bill Clinton, said Obama clinched victory because a range of economic factors improved in the past six months. Galston said the jobless rate had been ticking downward, the housing market appeared to have stabilized with home prices

finally rising, and consumer confidence had been improving.

A Reuters/Ipsos poll conducted in the week before the election reflected how voters’ views of the economy had been improving steadily.

In Oct 2011, several months into Romney’s candidacy, only one quarter of the country believed America was heading in the “right direction” - a key metric looked at by pollsters and a grave worry then for Obama’s strategists.

By last week, that number had risen to 45 percent. “The president’s handling of the economy had to be the centerpiece of Romney’s campaign,” Galston said. “He had no choice. But all sorts of economic signs perked up in the past six months - and just in time for the president.”

Yet Obama’s victory in the face of such a high unemployment rate was remarkable given the historical winds he faced. No US president has won re-election with an unemployment rate of over 7.2 percent since Franklin Roosevelt in 1936. No Republican has ever won the White House without victory in Ohio and the critical swing state was carried by Obama in large part because of his decision early in his presidency to bail out the bankrupt auto industry in neighboring Michigan. In Ohio, where one in 8 jobs is tied to the auto industry, an overwhelming 59 percent of voters approved of the bailout - a move opposed by Romney at the time. Of that 59 percent, three quarters backed Obama in Ohio on Tuesday.

In Ohio, according to exit polls conducted

by CNN, 37 percent of voters believed the economy was getting better, compared with 33 percent who thought things were getting worse. In Virginia, 43 percent saw things improving, compared with 36 percent who believed life was going to get worse. In those battleground states, and in others such as Colorado and Iowa, Obama enjoyed significant leads with voters on the question of who would best fight for the middle class and “people like us.”—Reuters

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2012

sp orts McIlroy defends no-show SINGAPORE: World number one Rory McIlroy has defended his decision to skip last week’s WGC-HSBC Champions tournament in China to watch his girlfriend play tennis but admits that the criticism of his no-show was fair.

The Briton returns to action at this week’s co-sanctioned Singapore Open after taking a week off to cheer on Caroline Wozniacki at the Tournament of Champions in Bulgaria, a break he said was necessary despite the disappointment of golf fans.

“I think the criticism is fair... it’s a World Golf Championship event, one of the big ones. It was a tough one to miss, especially watching it on television,” McIlroy told reporters yesterday.

“But I can’t play every week. If I had played that I would have finished the season having played in Turkey, after the Ryder Cup and the FedEx Cup stuff. It’s just too much and one event had to miss out and that was it. “I played the course at Mission Hills a couple of years ago and didn’t really like it. —Reuters

Swiss amending laws to fight corruption in sport ZURICH: Switzerland is considering tightening the rules to prevent matchfixing and cheating in sport, including possibly amending legislation to make Swiss-based international associations subject to Swiss criminal law.

In a report, officials found that measures currently taken by international associations were insufficient, and the government has tasked the defence ministry, which also oversees sport, to draw up regulatory proposals.

“Sport has to take more robust action against corruption in its own ranks,” the government said in a statement, adding that measures such as making fraud in sport a criminal offence were being considered.

“What is at stake is not just sport’s

integrity but also Switzerland’s reputation as the home to numerous international sports associations.”

Many international sporting federations and associations are based in Switzerland, including soccer’s international governing body FIFA, the International Olympic Committee (IOC), cycling’s Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) and the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). They chose Switzerland as their base due to its favourable legal framework and tax regime.

Some in Switzerland urged closing the loophole for sporting bodies in its anti-corruption law following 2010 allegations of bribery among FIFA officials for bids to host the 2018 and 2022 World Cups. —Reuters

Wrestler under IOC microscope BERLIN: Uzbek wrestler Soslan Tigiev who won a bronze medal at this year’s London Olympics is likely to have it stripped after testing positive for banned substances, a source said on Tuesday.

Tigiev, who was third in the men’s freestyle 74kg category, tested positive for drugs during the Games and is now awaiting an International Olympic Committee (IOC) ruling.

“There was a disciplinary procedure and the IOC Executive Board has staged a vote,” the source told Reuters on condition of anonymity. He said the results have not been officially announced and he did not know them. It is widely expected, however, that Tigiev will have his medal stripped as has been the case with every previous medal winner who tested positive for drugs in past Games.

Tigiev beat Hungary’s Gabor Hatos in their bronze medal match on Aug. 10. If he loses his medal he would become the second athlete from the London Olympics stripped of a medal because of a dop-

Refocused Scotland seek to maintain momentum

Courtney Lawes

Deflated England’s rebuilding continues LONDON: A year into the rebuilding process after their deflating Rugby World Cup campaign, England have laid some solid foundation stones but are still arranging the materials before putting the main structure in place.

Coach Stuart Lancaster and his assistants have undoubtedly changed the culture of the squad and, bearing in mind the widespread changes of personnel, have achieved encouraging results and performances. They remain very much a work in progress, however, with question marks over almost every position as Lancaster has made no secret that his approach is to build a team capable of winning the World Cup on home soil in 2015.

The dilemma is how much he can risk sacrificing in the name of experimentation particularly over the next month when England’s results against Fiji, Australia, South Africa and New Zealand will have such a tangible impact on their prospects three years down the line.

Assuming England have enough firepower to beat Fiji on Saturday, encouraging performances and lively debuts will be scant consolation for the probably dire consequences should they lose the remaining three.

The seedings for the 2015 World Cup will be based on the world rankings on Dec. 3 - the draw is made in London on that day - and England are desperate to hold on to fourth place behind the three big southern hemisphere nations.

If they do so Lancaster’s men would avoid the high probability of facing one of the three heavyweights in the pool phase of the tournament and they would also be likely to face a far easier quarter-final.

France and Wales are breathing down England’s neck in the rankings but the system is so complicated, with points gained weighted by the strength of opposition, that nobody is quite sure what combination of results will produce what order. What is certain is that if England were to upset the odds and win all four Twickenham tests they would be assured of a top-four ranking.

That, however, looks a big ask for a team who lost two and drew one of their tests in South Africa in June and have won only one of the last nine home games against a Tri-Nations side. Lancaster says the rankings will look after themselves so long as England produce the displays he feels they are capable of.

However, less than a year into the job after succeeding Martin Johnson, he is a long way from finding the sort of settled lineup that history shows is an essential ingredient of all World Cup-winning sides. Injuries have played havoc with England’s front row, with the absence of hooker Dylan Hartley from the entire series a real blow. Courtney Lawes is set to be fit for the Australia game but who partners him at lock is still up for debate.

Flanker Chris Robshaw has proved a great choice as captain, leading by example on and off the pitch although many observers feel he is better suited to the blindside than the number seven role he now fills in a back row that looks as unsettled as the front.

Lancaster is also some way from establishing his vital halfback combination. Danny Care seems to be in pole position ahead of Ben Youngs and Lee Dickson at scrumhalf, with Toby Flood also back in flyhalf favour and Owen Farrell more likely to be fighting for a place in the centres where the midfield malaise continues.

Manu Tuilagi seems nailed on but in which position? If he stays at number 13, Lancaster can perm any one from half a dozen contenders to fill the 12 shirt. Brad Barritt proved a defensive rock in the position last season but offers little of the sort of attacking invention that England will surely require to find a way through the brilliantly organised Tri-Nations defences. Chris Ashton, suspended for the test against Fiji, is still assured of one of the wing berths despite the try deluge of his early days drying up.

Several contenders are vying for the other wing position.

Ugo Monye, who won the last of his 13 caps more than two years ago, is back in the fold but with one try to his name and at the age of 29, it is hard to see him as the long-term answer.

Fullback too remains up for grabs. Alex Goode started there with Ben Foden slotting into the left wing - in England’s last game, the 14-14 draw with the Springboks in Port Elizabeth, but he is being pushed hard by Mike Brown, one of the form players in the Premiership this season for Harlequins.

That all adds up to a lot of uncertainty and, unless there is a shock recall for Jason Leonard, the likelihood of Lancaster achieving his goal of fielding a 2015 World Cup final team boasting 663 caps is already looking somewhat ambitious. — Reuters

LONDON: The pendulum of promise and inconsistency has bugged Scotland under Andy Robinson and maintaining momentum from a successful southern hemisphere tour will be foremost in the Englishman’s mind for the November internationals.

With world champions New Zealand and South Africa visiting Murrayfield on successive weekends, Robinson has his work cut out but the resilient Scots can point to three notable wins in June as a sign that they have a platform to build on.

Scotland failed to make it out of their pool at last year’s Rugby World Cup, then took the wooden spoon in the Six Nations after losing all five matches to leave Robinson pondering his future.

They came close against England, Wales and France but were then soundly beaten by Ireland before losing in Rome to Italy - a performance riddled with mistakes and ill-discipline that dogged them throughout the tournament. Roll on a few months and Robinson, contracted until the 2015 World Cup, is in all probability sleeping sounder at night. A youthful Scottish side upset Australia 9-6 in appalling conditions in Newcastle in early June, Greig Laidlaw kicking a penalty against a fierce wind two minutes after the siren to kickstart their Australasia tour. They then held off a furious late challenge by Fiji to win 37-25 before rounding off by securing a 17-16 win, helped by a stoppage-time try, over Pacific Nations Cup champions Samoa.

Maintaining their winning run is highly unlikely against the All Blacks who are first up on Sunday. The Scots have never beaten the men in black in 28 attempts, their only crumbs coming from draws in 1964 and 1983, the latter a 25-25 finish in which Peter Dods missed a last-minute conversion that would have won

the game for Scotland. New Zealand romped to a 49-3 win on their last visit in 2010 but Scotland bounced back a week later to surprise the Springboks 21-17, showing that they can never be underestimated at home.

Scotland, who also host Tonga in Aberdeen on Nov. 24, are ranked ninth in the world but are unlikely to break into the top eight before next month’s 2015 World Cup pool allocation draw, meaning they will not avoid one of the world’s top-two ranked sides.

Hooker Ross Ford captained the side Down Under but Robinson has handed the reins for the November internationals to Kelly Brown who will make his 50th start but his first for Scotland since picking up a head injury against Argentina in the World Cup. The back row forward was handed the armband in January but then suffered a bad leg injury, breaking his fibula in a Heineken Cup match while playing for his club side Saracens. Robinson said: “Kelly Brown is an inspirational person. He has an aura, confidence and belief about him and a firm understanding of the game.

“He has been a very persistent performer for Scotland. It’s because of these qualities that he has been appointed Scotland captain.”

Robinson will look to back-row forward David Denton, one of the few Scottish performers to emerge with any credit from the dismal Six Nations campaign, to build on his breakthrough season. Zimbabwe-born Denton missed the Australasia tour through injury but made an such an impact with his aggressive running in the Six Nations to suggest that he has the credentials to be a future British & Irish Lion. The evolving halfback pairing of scrumhalf Mike Blair and Laidlaw are also key to Scotland’s hopes of adding creativity to complement a solid pack of forwards.—Reuters

Greig Laidlaw

Italy eye progress despite meaty challenge ahead ROME: Italy take on rugby heavyweights New Zealand and Australia during November but coach Jacques Brunel believes they can continue to make progress on the field despite the huge task in front of them. The Six Nations alsorans have the luck of facing Tonga first up on Nov. 10 in Brescia before the world champion All Blacks come to Rome on Nov. 17 and the Wallabies turn up on Nov. 24 in Florence. Italy has experienced a surge in enthusiasm for rugby, with this year’s matches against England and Scotland at Rome’s Olympic Stadium garnering a combined total of 125,000 fans, but they remain a long way behind the sport’s powerhouses.

“Over the last few years Italy has grown in stature, but we want to reach an even higher level,” Frenchman Brunel told reporters. “We have the ambition to impose our play on the opposition and to see if we are a good team we need to face the best teams in the world to see what we’re

worth.”

Italy has a fairly inexperienced team, with 16 of the squad’s 31 players having 20 caps or fewer while Francesco Minto and Tommaso Iannone have yet to play for the Azzurri.

Their narrow 19-15 Six Nations loss to England in February still hurts and the wastefulness that led to that painful defeat reared its head again in the 37-22 reverse to Argentina in San Juan in June. They followed that loss with wins against the United States and Canada but at this stage in their development the Italians are above both North American sides in the world rankings and were expected to beat them. “We played eight games so far (this year), winning three and letting slip at least a couple more wins against England in Rome and Argentina in San Juan. We simply need to stop wasting chances,” added Brunel.

Brunel has a lot of good will from the Italian rugby public

after they avoided their fifth consecutive Six Nations wooden spoon by beating Scotland 13-6 in March.

He is now laying the ground work for Italy to put on a better show at the 2015 World Cup in England after they failed to reach the knockout stages in New Zealand a year ago under former coach Nick Mallett. Very few people expect anything but two heavy defeats to the Southern Hemisphere giants this month but the tests will be an indicator of how far Italy have come in a relatively short space of time having only been admitted to the Six Nations in 2000.

“The first match with Tonga needs to be very well prepared and for the other two we should make sure that it won’t be a circus,” said veteran Andrea Lo Cicero, among a core of experienced heads who hope to complement the youngsters. “Everyone’s talking about the All Blacks Show, but we’re not cannon fodder. We’re sportsmen and we’ll

Much at stake for Ireland

FRANCE: French skipper Jean-Pierre Dick sails onboard his Imoca ‘Virbac Paprec 3’ monohull during a training session off the coast of Les Sables d’Olonne. The 7th edition of the Vendee Globe solo roundthe-world race will start on Nov 10. — AFP

NHL owners and players in talks to save season NEW YORK: The National Hockey League (NHL) and players union returned to the bargaining table for nearly eight hours on Tuesday in what is seen as a last ditch effort to hammer out a new labor deal and salvage a season. Having already cancelled hundreds of regular season games along with its showcase event the New Year’s day Winter Classic, owners and players’ representatives huddled at an undisclosed Manhattan location trying to lay framework for an agreement.

Following the marathon session both sides released statements that they would not comment on the negotiations that would resume late yesterday. “With meetings scheduled to resume Wednesday, the league will not characterize the substance or detail of the discussions until their conclusion,” NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly said in a statement.

The cancellation on Friday of the Winter Classic appears to have brought a sense of urgency to negotiations that have built a steady momentum.

Following a lengthy private meeting on Saturday between Daly and NHLPA special counsel Steve Fehr that set the stage for Tuesday’s meeting, the big guns were again back at the table with league commissioner Gary Bettman and union executive director

Donald Fehr joining the talks. With the lockout at 52 days and counting, the two sides sat down for the first full bargaining session since Oct. 18 . “We’re hopeful that we’ll start bargaining and we’ll continue bargaining until we find a way to make a deal,” Donald Fehr told reporters before heading into the talks. “It’s very good to be getting back to the table.

“We hope that this time it produces more progress than we’ve seen in the past and we can figure out a way to make an agreement and to get the game back on the ice as soon as possible.”

With the chances for even a partial season slipping away talks have entered a critical stage if the NHL is to avoid losing an entire season for the second time in seven years. The importance was not lost on the players with several, including Pittsburgh Penguins captain Sidney Crosby, arriving in New York in a show of support. While no details were given it is likely the majority of Tuesday’s session centered around the main obstacle to a new deal - how to divide $3.3 billion in hockey related revenue. In its last offer, the NHL presented a six-year proposal that called for an equal split of hockey-related revenue. Under the old agreement players had received 57 percent of revenue.—Reuters

DUBLIN: Injury-hit Ireland will get a glimpse of life without captain Brian O’Driscoll this month in a test series that will determine if they are seeded for the rugby World Cup in 2015 and may also decide Declan Kidney’s future as coach.

Kidney is out of contract next year and a tenure that began with a Grand Slam victory in his first season hit a low point this year when a poor Six Nations ended in a drubbing by England and a tough tour to New Zealand concluded in a 600 humiliation.

The former Munster coach is under pressure to replicate the attacking rugby that has allowed Leinster to dominate the European club game but with Ireland’s seat among the world’s top eight nations at stake, he will take victory at any price.

Defeats to South Africa and Argentina twinned with a good November for lower-ranked Scotland or potentially even Samoa could see seventh-ranked Ireland slip out of the seedings for the next World Cup when the draw is made next month. With it would go any hope of Kidney extending his reign beyond next year’s Six Nations.

Ireland will have to do it the hard way too with O’Driscoll leading an absentee list that includes two European players of the year in Rob Kearney and Sean O’Brien, and two usually guaranteed starters in Ulster forwards Stephen Ferris and Rory Best.

Former British and Irish Lions captain Paul O’Connell should shake off a back problem to start but the Munster lock, dogged by injury in recent years, has played only twice this season.

Luckily for Ireland, the Springboks, who are first up and have lost three of their last four games in Dublin, have an even deep-

er injury crisis with Bryan Habana, Juan Smith and Frans Steyn headlining the list of those unavailable.

For Ireland, the injuries will at least force Kidney to look at who might one day replace the 33-yearold O’Driscoll whose midfield partnership with Leinster team mate Gordon D’Arcy, 32, has been virtually unbroken for almost a decade.

Munster utility man Keith Earls will likely get the nod ahead of Ulster’s Darren Cave to replace the country’s record try scorer while inform young Munster flyer Simon Zebo may replace Kearney at fullback. Mike McCarthy, Kevin McLoughlin and Chris Henry, who between them have five international starts, will likely battle it out for the back-row spaces vacated by O’Brien and Ferris.

Ferris, so influential in Ulster’s run to the European Cup final last year, has not been fully ruled out of the Nov. 24 test against Argentina but will be unavailable for the ‘A’ game against Fiji a week earlier.

While much attention will focus on whether the increasingly commanding flyhalf Johnny Sexton will be given the free rein he enjoys at Leinster, Kidney’s front-row concerns, exposed badly in March’s 309 hammering by England, remain.

The Irish scrum was demolished that day after the team lost their only top-class tighthead prop Mike Ross to injury and should that happen again in the coming weeks, Ireland will call on a player who set foot in the country only 10 days ago.

New Zealander Michael Bent, who has yet to play for Leinster after signing at the end of the southern hemisphere season, was added to the international squad a day after moving to Dublin, with his Irish grandmother to thank for the surprise call-up. — Reuters

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THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2012

S P ORT S

Shooting-victim Rola set to box for world title ULM: Germany’s former boxing world champion Rola El-Halabi is set to fulfill her dream in January to box again, nearly two years after she was gunned down by her step-father in a vicious attack.

The 27-year-old El-Halabi, who won the women’s IBA and IBF lightweight titles in 2009, will climb into the ring on January 13 when she takes on Italy’s Lucia Morelli in Ulm for the vacant IBA lightweight title. But El-Halabi’s life was turned upside down on April 1 2011 when her stepfather and former manager Hicham El-Halabi shot her in her right hand, left knee and both feet in her dressing room before she was due to box in Berlin.

The attack came after she terminated his management contract in January 2011 and he also shot two security guards before being arrested at the stadium. In November last year, he was jailed for six years by a court in Berlin.

Her injuries left her in a wheelchair for three months, but El-Halabi says her dream is to become a world champion again, but she is happy just to climb

into the ring once more.

“The relief is enormous,” she told SID, an AFP subsidiary. “This has been my

dream and I wanted to live it again.”It’s like a second birth, I didn’t want to say goodbye to this great sport. This is like

ULM: Germany’s former boxing world champion Rola El-Halabi poses during a photocall in front of the Ulm cathedral. El-Halabi is set to fulfil her dream in January 2013 to box again, nearly two years after she was gunned down by her step-father in a vicious attack. —AFP

Christmas, a birthday and Easter all rolled into one.” The Beirut-born boxer, who now lives in Ulm, Bavaria, says she had plenty of motivation to fight again.

“Actually, I have always been motivated to take the hard path, I never had anyone who has done something for me and I am taking this will to win into the fight,” she said.

“I always said I will stop boxing at the peak of my career and April 1 was definitely not that. “I didn’t retire then and that has motivated me to keep fighting and always has.” El-Halabi said her fiance has helped her through her tough journey back to full fitness, but she has no plans to stay in contact with her step father. “We have absolutely no contact,” she said. “The last time I saw him was during the trial and I don’t intend to establish contact. “I am just concentrating on myself, he has already been inside for a year. “How things will be later, I don’t know, but it’s not something I think about because it’s too stressful for me and would cost me too much energy. “I am just doing my thing and my boxing, he has no place in that.”

El-Halabi says a simple five kilometre run, just after she came out of the wheelchair following surgery for her injuries, was part of her inspiration to fight again.

“There were many points on the road back, but from a sporting perspective, a five kilometre run I did in September 2011 was certainly part of it.

“Before that, I had been sat in a wheel chair for three months and I just wanted to get through it. “I ran in terrible weather, the scars on my body, everything hurt like hell, but I got through it and that was proof for me: I could still bite.”

With a world title on the line, ElHalabi says the goal for her second career is to lift her arms in the air after victory in the ring. “In any case, I want to be a world champion again,” she said.

“I have said I want to box internationally in front of 5,000 people in Germany and fill a stadium and my big dream was to box in Ulm again. “I want to fulfill that dream and then as a winner, I can say, Ok, that was great. That’s enough.” —AFP

Bulls charge past Magic CHICAGO: Luol Deng scored 15 of his 23 points in the second half to lead the Chicago Bulls to a 9993 win over Orlando on Tuesday night, the Magic’s first loss of the season.

Deng and Nate Robinson keyed a 15-2 second-half burst when Chicago turned a five-point deficit into an eight-point lead.

Robinson hit two straight jumpers to put the Bulls ahead 74-70 early in the fourth quarter.

Joakim Noah had 20 points, nine

rebounds and five blocks for Chicago, while Robinson added 11 points and six assists off the bench.

Arron Afflalo led the Magic with 28 points, 19 in the second half. E’ Twaun Moore added a career-high 17. Glen Davis, who entered fourth in the NBA with 25.5 points per game, scored 16 but shot just 7 of 22 and fouled out. Nicola Vucevic had 16 points and 10 rebounds for the Magic, who had won three of four in

Chicago. Orlando had started the season 2-0 after trading star center Dwight Howard to the Lakers over the summer.

Thunder improved to 2-2 with their highest-scoring game of the season. Jonas Valanciunas led the Raptors with 18 points.

Thunder 108, Raptors 88 In Oklahoma, Russell Westbrook shrugged off a sore shoulder to score 19 points and Oklahoma City cruised past Toronto.

Wearing a black padded sleeve to protect his bruised left shoulder, Westbrook held Toronto’s leading scorer, Kyle Lowry, to two points on 1-of-4 shooting. Lowry exited with 1:29 left in the second quarter with a right ankle sprain and did not return. Serge Ibaka added 17 points for Oklahoma City. Kevin Durant and reserve Kevin Martin each scored 15.

The Thunder led by as many as 29 points and never trailed after Durant converted a pair of free throws with 7:44 remaining in the first quarter. Oklahoma City coach Scott Brooks rested his starters in the fourth as the

Nuggets 109, Pistons 97 In Denver, Andre Iguodala scored six of his 17 points over the final 3 minutes to help Denver hold off Detroit and snap a three-game skid.

The Nuggets broke out their new canary yellow uniforms for their home opener and played pretty snazzy, especially late in the third quarter when they began opening up a 17-point lead. The Pistons rallied late, before Iguodala closed the door with two baskets and a pair of free throws. He also finished with 10 rebounds.

Greg Monroe scored 27 points for the Pistons, who dropped their fourth straight. Detroit and Washington (0-2) are the only winless teams in the NBA. The Nuggets avoided their first 0-4 start since 1998. —AP

NBA results/standings Chicago 99, Orlando 93; Oklahoma City 108, Toronto 88; Denver 109, Detroit 97.

Eastern Conference Atlantic Division W L PCT GB NY Knicks 3 0 1.000 Brooklyn 1 1 .500 1.5 Philadelphia 1 2 .333 2 Boston 1 2 .333 2 Toronto 1 3 .250 2.5 CENTRAL DIVISION Milwaukee 2 0 1.000 Chicago 3 1 .750 Cleveland 2 2 .500 Indiana 2 2 .500 Detroit 0 4 0

DENVER: Detroit Pistons forward Jason Maxiell (54) and Denver Nuggets forward Kenneth Faried fight for possession during the third quarter of an NBA basketball game. —AP

1 1 3

SOUTHEAST DIVISION Miami 3 1 .750 Orlando 2 1 .667 0.5 Charlotte 1 1 .500 1 Atlanta 1 1 .500 1 Washington 0 2 0 2

WESTERN CONFERENCE NORTHWEST DIVISION Minnesota 2 1 .667 Oklahoma City 2 2 .500 0.5 Portland 2 2 .500 0.5 Utah 1 3 .250 1.5 Denver 1 3 .250 1.5 PACIFIC DIVISION Golden State 2 2 .500 LA Clippers 2 2 .500 Sacramento 1 3 .250 Phoenix 1 3 .250 LA Lakers 1 3 .250

1 1 1

SOUTHWEST DIVISION San Antonio 4 0 1.000 Dallas 3 1 .750 1 New Orleans 2 1 .667 1.5 Memphis 2 1 .667 1.5 Houston 2 1 .667 1.5

Marsh dismisses day/night Test concerns LONDON: Australia great Rodney Marsh has said that concerns over ball color should not stop the staging of day/night Tests, given it is more than 30 years since he played in floodlit “Supertests” during World Series Cricket.

Last month the sport’s global governing body, the International Cricket Council (ICC), announced Tests could be played under lights, with rival teams deciding on the hours of play and the color of the ball to be used.

“I say bring it on!” Marsh, who played in the “rebel” World Series Cricket run by the Australian media mogul Kerry Packer in the 1970s, which pioneered innovations now commonplace to the world game such as coloured clothing and floodlights.

“What people need to understand is that during World Series Cricket we played Supertests at night,” Marsh, one of cricket’s greatest wicket-keepers, was quoted as saying on Lords.org yesterday. “This was nearly 35 years ago and there is no reason why this can’t happen with Test matches today.”

While Test cricket attracts large crowds in England, attendances in other parts of the world for the five-day game have declined.

But supporters of day/night Tests argue they could revive

spectator interest in the format, making it easier for fans to work during the day.

Day/night fixtures proved popular with Australian crowds when introduced by Packer and have since become an accepted part of one-day games around the world.

Australia selector Marsh, 65,

embrace day/night Test matches.”

One longstanding concern raised about floodlit Tests concerns the type of ball that would be used.

The traditional red ball is not as easy to see under lights while white balls used in limited-overs matches are reckoned to be insufficiently durable for first-class cricket.

Rodney Marsh said there was no reason why floodlit cricket would not succeed at Test level as well. “Night Test cricket would be really successful on the sub-continent and in Australia, New Zealand and South Africa,” he said.

“I don’t think it’s necessary in the UK but it could easily go through until 8:00 pm (1900 GMT during the English season) with a red ball. The West Indies may also

Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC), which is responsible for the sport’s laws, have experimented in recent years with a pink ball in their traditional opening fixture of the English season against the champion county. But Marsh, who in 96 Tests from 1970 to 1984 completed a then world record 355 dismissals, said ball type should not put a block on floodlit Tests.

“If a pink ball isn’t going to be

the way to go, then why not use a white ball (or two) and play in coloured clothing?,” said Marsh, who joined MCC’s world cricket committee earlier this year.

“If they wanted to be really courageous then players could use a red ball in the day time and white clothing and then change to colours and a white ball in the evening session.”

Cricket Australia are keen to press ahead with day/night Tests, provided a suitable ball can be developed, but officials in India, world cricket’s financial powerhouse, are less enthusiastic.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) remain lukewarm to the concept following a trial in a first-class match back in 1997.

“We were the first to experiment with this and our experience was not so great,” BCCI chief administrative officer Ratnakar Shetty said last month. “At this stage we have no such proposal.”

The BCCI held the five-day Ranji Trophy final between Mumbai and Delhi under lights in Gwalior in April 1997. Bowlers struggled due to the heavy evening dew and frequent changes of the white ball.

Just two innings were completed. Mumbai, who made 630 batting first, were declared the winners after Delhi were dismissed for 559 on the last day. —AFP

Jonas Blixt

Blixt has Masters in mind at season finale FLORIDA: Swede Jonas Blixt will have one eye on the race for rookie of the year honors and also the 2013 Masters when he tees off in this week’s Children’s Miracle Network Classic at Lake Buena Vista, Florida.

Blixt, who won his maiden PGA Tour title at last month’s Frys.com Open, has recorded five top-10s on the US circuit this season and would book his place at Augusta National next year if he finishes in the top 30 in the final money list.

His main challenger for rookie of the year is American John Huh, who claimed his first PGA Tour victory at the Mayakoba Golf Classic in February and has won slightly more money than the Swede in 2012 but from a greater number of starts.

“Those are the two big goals I have this week,” Blixt told reporters on Tuesday while preparing for Thursday’s opening round at Lake Buena Vista. “It’d just be easier to win, though, right?

“First I was trying to make enough money to stay out here, then qualify for the Invitationals, and now the top 30,” he said of his widening ambitions during his maiden season.

Blixt, whose five top-10s have all come in the latter half of the season, lies 35th in the PGA Tour money list and needs to finish no worse than outright third this week to break into the top 30.

Should that happen, the Swede would achieve a life-long dream in 2013 by making his Masters debut in the opening major of the year.

“I went there four years ago for the first time (as a fan) and thought that was the coolest golf course and atmosphere I’d ever seen,” Blixt said of Augusta National. “It would be a dream come true.”

While Blixt targets a top-30 spot in the PGA Tour’s season-ending money list, the Children’s Miracle Network Classic is also the last-chance saloon for players yet to secure their full playing privileges for next year. The top 125 in the money list secure full status for 2013 so this week will be a decisive one for Americans Kevin Chappell (123rd), Billy Mayfair (125th), Gary Christian (127th) and Bill Lunde (129th), as well as Australian Rod Pampling (124th).

A notable absentee this week will be Britain’s former world number one Luke Donald who won last year’s title at Lake Buena Vista by two shots after closing with a sizzling 64.

The Englishman was unable to defend his crown because one of his children was scheduled to have a medical procedure.

“My career as a golfer places many demands on my schedule, and I’m often forced to miss some precious time with my family as I travel to play around the world,” Donald said in a statement.

“But in this case, home is where I have to be. I’m very sorry that I will be unable to defend my title ... as that tournament was an important highlight for me in 2011.” —Reuters

Top official laments loss of Spanish tournaments SPAIN: Spanish Golf Federation president Gonzaga Escauriaza says it is “a great pity” his country will host just one European Tour event next year, compared to a total of seven in 2011.

Spain was the jewel in the tour’s crown two years ago but the economic crisis in the Iberian nation has had a profound effect on top-level golf with sponsors disappearing and prize funds being withdrawn. The Andalucia Open, Mallorca Open, Castello Masters in Valencia, Madrid Masters and Andalucia Masters have all fallen by the wayside while the World Match Play Championship will shift to Bulgaria next year - leaving the Spanish Open to fly the flag on its own in April.

“We are going through a big crisis in this country and we have to work very hard in order to keep the game going,” Escauriaza told Reuters in a telephone interview.

“It’s a great pity because for so many years Spain staged six or seven events. It’s going to be difficult to recover this situation in the future.”

Escauriaza, who has been federation president since December 2008, said the biggest disappointment was the loss of the Andalucia Masters at Valderrama, a tourna-

ment won by Sergio Garcia in 2011.

The Sotogrande course staged the Ryder Cup in 1997, when captain Seve Ballesteros led Europe to victory, and also used to be the traditional venue for the end-of-season Volvo Masters before it was usurped by the Dubai World Championship from 2009.

“The saddest loss is Valderrama,” said Escauriaza. “That was a big event, it was like a meeting place for the top golfers in Europe and it had a lot of history.

“We are trying hard to bring that one back in the future but the one in Mallorca is finished and Valencia is a hopeless cause as they are really suffering from the economic crisis there.

“As for the Andalucia Open we spoke last week to (former promoter) Miguel Angel Jimenez. He is trying hard to get some sponsors back but it’s difficult there too.”

Escauriaza said that staging a European Tour event at Valderrama had lots of positive spinoffs for the region of Andalucia.

“Valderrama was a huge event with big prize money and it was expensive to run but it also brought a lot of tourists to southern Spain,” he explained. —Reuters

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2012

S P ORT S

NFL’s marquee teams find support all over PITTSBURGH: Casey Hampton can hear the chant.

It never fails. Regardless of the venue. Regardless of the weather. Regardless of the circumstances.

Preseason or the Super Bowl. Heinz Field or Houston.

If the Pittsburgh Steelers are leading late in the fourth quarter, the sound of “Here We Go Steelers, Here We Go!” while thousands of Terrible Towels twirl will reverberate inside the veteran nose tackle’s helmet. “Our fans are going to stay until the end,” said Hampton, who has watched the NFL phenomenon since his rookie year in 2001. “They’re going to ride with us. A lot of times, especially when you’re winning at the end, when the home fans clear out they’ll still be there doing their thing.”

It happened last Sunday in New York during Pittsburgh’s 24-20 victory over the defending Super Bowl-champion Giants. At a stadium typically swathed in Giants blue, the roar for the Steelers grew so loud at one point quarterback Ben Roethlisberger actually had to put his hands up to ask for quiet.

Coach Mike Tomlin wasn’t joking when he said recently the self-appointed “Steeler Nation” is everywhere. Whether it’s folks traveling from Pittsburgh to watch the black-and-gold or western Pennsylvania transplants who fill their nearest NFL stadium when the Steelers visit is unclear.

What is clear is the backing the Steelers and other marquee NFL teams receive when they don their visiting uniforms is growing.

The explosion in the secondary ticket market combined with the league’s ever expanding popularity and just plain old family ties means for teams

like the Steelers, Green Bay Packers and Dallas Cowboys, home-field advantage isn’t limited to game days where the players wake up in their own beds.

The ubiquitous Terrible Towels mean the support that greets the Steelers on the road is a little more visible than most, but Pittsburgh isn’t the hardest road ticket in the league according to brokerage site Stubhub. Even with the Cowboys stumbling to a 3-5 start, watching them on the road will cost about $196 a ticket if you go through Stubhub according to spokesperson Joellen Ferrer. The Steelers are the second-most expensive at $190.

It’s simple supply and demand. The brighter the name, the more difficult the ticket. The Giants, Cowboys, Packers, Steelers and Chicago Bears are the five toughest road tickets in the NFL for Stubhub customers. All five have a proud history littered with championships - 20 Super Bowls and counting - and dozens of Hall of Fame players, teams whose fandom is handed down generation to generation or in the case of Brad Stoller, from wife to husband.

The 48-year-old Stoller grew up in Indiana cheering for the Cowboys long before the Colts fled Baltimore for the Midwest. Dallas was at its “America’s Team” zenith at the time, the franchise’s mix of on-field success and steady stream of national television appearances making the Cowboys pretty easy to keep up with in a time when fans outside NFL markets were at the mercy of the local TV station to see what game would get beamed into their living rooms on a given week.

The combination of Jerry Jones’ arrogance and

his wife Amy’s lifelong devotion to the Steelers led Stoller to switch allegiances. Now he runs a Steelers Fan Facebook page that features more than 98,000 likes from all over the globe.

There are over 1,500 Pittsburgh Steelers bars scattered across the country, with high concentrations in retirement destinations like Florida, Arizona and Southern California, as the fans who watched the Super Steelers win four Super Bowls in the 1970s gather to enjoy the latest renaissance that’s seen two more Lombardi Trophies added in the last seven seasons thrust in by satellite.

“What I’ve found, there’s a tremendous number of people, maybe they grew up in Pittsburgh, but somewhere there’s a connection with Pittsburgh,” Stoller said. “They may live in Florida today, but when their Steelers are around, they try to make it to the game.”

When Pittsburgh won in Cincinnati last month, Stoller estimates 40 percent of Paul Brown Stadium came dressed in some variation of black-and-gold.

The lack of steady home presence for one of the league’s underachieving franchises - Cincinnati hasn’t won a playoff game in 22 years- allows Steelers fans to overwhelm the market.

Every game in Cincinnati follows a similar pattern. The Bengals fans arrive chanting “Who Dey.” Then Cincinnati starts to falter. “In the fourth quarter it gets real quiet before the Steelers start driving,” Stoller said. “Then we start chanting ‘We Dey.’” The experience is worth the hit to the wallet, though Stoller allows there is one thing about going through Stubhub that bothers him.

“The unfortunate thing for people is that tickets

are always three times higher priced for the Steelers, then as soon as they leave, you want a ticket to a Bengals game the following week and they can’t give ‘em away,” he said with a laugh.

It’s hardly a phenomenon unique to Cincinnati.

Jacksonville, Kansas City and the New York Jets who have two combined Super Bowl titles among them - struggle to keep home fans interested when their form drops.

Need proof? Tickets for the Kansas CityCincinnati game on Nov. 18 start at $7. Yes, $7. A decent meal at any stadium will cost you double that.

Compare that to the $26 minimum when Peyton Manning and the Denver Broncos play in Kansas City the next week, a cost that is likely to go up if the AFC West-leading Broncos continue to roll.

“Most (Stubhub sellers) are season ticket-holders who want to recoup some of their initial investment,” Ferrer said. “They want to retain their season seats and have that camaraderie but they realize they can also resell their tickets when the big team comes to town.”

All that selling can have a significant impact on the game. When Denver stormed past San Diego last month, the crowd at Qualcomm Stadium began roaring “defense” when the hometown Chargers tried to mount a late rally.

“It’s impressive because there’s a select few teams in the NFL that have that,” Denver tight end Jacob Tamme said. “And down in the lower level, you know? So, not only is it impressive but it’s one of those things that you can feed off of on the road, so that’s a pretty unique thing.” —AP

Ball State roll past Toledo

DHAKA: West Indies’ cricketer Sunil Narine prepares to bowl during a practice session in Dhaka, Bangladesh. West Indies and Bangladesh will play two tests, five oneday internationals and one Twenty20 match starting Nov. 13. —AP

Sammy: Gayle, Chanderpaul key to Windies in Bangladesh DHAKA: The return of Chris Gayle and experience of Shivnarine Chanderpaul should give West Indies the edge in their test series in Bangladesh, the touring side’s captain Darren Sammy said yesterday. The Caribbean team are in Bangladesh to play two tests, the first starting next week, and five one-day internationals, their first competitive action since winning the Twenty20 World Cup in Sri Lanka last month. “The atmosphere is similar to what we have seen in the Caribbean, most of our guys play in the hot sun and low slow wicket,” Sammy told a news conference.

“If we get turning wicket we have worldclass spinner in our team, if we get seam, which I highly doubt, we have fast bowler in the team to exploit. “And also we have got experienced batting line-up, last year we came here without Chris Gayle, he is in the team. “(Shivnarine) Chanderpaul is still one of the best test batsmen in the world and Marlon Samuels is in good form. “We have young

players like (Darren) Bravo and Kirk Edwards had a good series here against Bangladesh last year. “We are quite confident in what we have and what we could do and we just need to go down and execute our plans,” said Sammy.

West Indies won a two-test series 1-0 in Bangladesh last year and have bolstered side since by the return of Gayle, who was long absent due to his disagreement with Board officials. Off-spinner Sunil Narine, the ICC’s emerging cricketer of the year last season, has also strengthened their bowling attack. “We have played some good series over the years where we were competing against highranked teams,” Sammy said.

“Just like we forced ourselves to try to win the T20 World Cup, we achieved that and now that is gone and we are now looking forward to the next series which is against Bangladesh.

The first test begins on Nov. 13 in Dhaka and the second one takes place in a new venue, Khulna, a week later. — Reuters

South Africa defend status in heavyweight Australia series SYDNEY: The number one test ranking has proved notoriously hard to hang onto over the last couple of years but South Africa could take a firm grip on it if they can triumph in a mouth-watering series in Australia over the next month.

Australia were the last side to enjoy prolonged dominance of the longer form of the game and they could even wrestle back the number one spot with a convincing victory over the three-test encounter that starts in Brisbane on Friday.

To do so, however, their batsmen will need to see off Dale Steyn and the mostfeared pace attack in world cricket, while their bowling unit will have to consistently make inroads into a long and solid South African batting order.

The South Africans were triumphant in a test series for the first time on Australian soil on their last visit in 2008/9 but it is last year’s enthralling two-match series in South

BRISBANE: South Africa’s fast bowler Dale Steyn bowls during the South African cricket team’s training session at the Gabba stadium. —AP

Africa that resonate more with the players.

The series was split 1-1, but only after Australia had managed to battle back after a brutal mauling from the South African pace attack had them bowled out for 47 in their second innings in the first test in Cape Town. “It was like the first two rounds of a heavyweight boxing match, the guys had just found their feet and the Aussies were on their way home,” Steyn, the top-ranked bowler in the world, said last week.

This time they will go three rounds with tests at the Adelaide Oval (Nov. 22-26) and the WACA in Perth (Nov. 30-Dec. 4) coming after this week’s opener at the Gabba.

Australia have not lost at the Gabba for 24 years but if the wicket proves to have as much bounce as the groundsman has predicted, Steyn and his cohorts Morne Morkel and Vernon Philander should prove hard to handle. “We understand that this is a big challenge for us coming to Australia again to win and we realise there are a few unknowns,” South Africa skipper Graeme Smith said on the team’s arrival in Australia.

“A Gabba test is something we haven’t really experienced ... and we need to maximise our preparations and come together as a team quickly and understand what it’s going take to be successful here. “We are very focused on the immediate challenge and we believe that if we perform well here, it will be a stepping stone to hopefully having the opportunity to retain that number one status.”

Australia’s batting order has often proved brittle since the humiliating Ashes defeat of 2010-11 and the loss to injury of allrounder Shane Watson from the opening test was a big blow.

Lefthander Rob Quiney will instead come in for his test debut at number three behind the only slightly more experienced opening pairing of David Warner and Ed Cowan. There is more experience down the order but Ricky Ponting has been struggling with patchy form and injury, while Mike Hussey has a poor track record against the South Africans with an average of just 33.87 in 14 tests, well below his career mark of 50.07 in 73 tests. —Reuters

TOLEDO: Ball State’s Jahwan Edwards scored untouched on a 15yard run with 1:43 left to propel the Cardinals to a 34-27 victory over No. 23-ranked Toledo on Tuesday, ending the Rockets’ eight-game winning streak.

Edwards’ run around left end capped an 86-yard drive which came after Ball State’s defense had stopped the Rockets a yard short on David Fluellen’s run on fourth-and-2 at the Cardinals 15-yard line.

Ball State quarterback Keith Wenning completed 29 of 42 passes for 280 yards and three touchdowns, but was intercepted three times. Edwards finished with 105 yards on 16 carries.

Toledo’s Fluellen ran for at least 200 yards for the third game this season, carrying 34 times for 200 yards and a touchdown on the losing team.

Toledo had jumped into The Associated Press Top 25 this week for the first time since 2001 but are likely to immediately lose that status.

The victory helps Ball State, which had already qualified for a bowl, get an even better postseason trip. The loss knocks Toledo out of a possible first-place tie with Northern Illinois in the MAC’s West Division.

Meanwhile, the Superdome in New Orleans will be the site of the new marquee bowl matching the Southeastern Conference and Big 12, and the game will still be called the Sugar Bowl.

The conferences made the announcement Tuesday. The agreement between the leagues and the bowl is for 12 years, and ESPN will hold the TV rights.

The SEC has a long history with the Sugar Bowl. Seventy-one times an SEC team has played in the game, far more than any other league. The very first Sugar Bowl in 1935 matched Tulane, then of the SEC, against Temple.

“New Orleans and the Sugar Bowl are synonymous with postseason college football. For many years, fans have enjoyed the color and pageantry that New Orleans offers,” SEC Commissioner Mike Slive said in a statement. “We look forward to competing against the Big 12 as a new championship tradi-

Jahwan Edwards in action in this file photo

tion begins on New Year’s Day.” The agreement was first reported

by ESPN.com, which also reported that ESPN will pay $80 million per year to televise the game.

Several sites were vying to host the game, including Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas. Atlanta, Houston and San Antonio also submitted bids, but it came down to the Cotton Bowl in Arlington and

the Sugar Bowl in New Orleans.

“It was a very difficult decision,” Big 12 Commissioner Bob Bowlsby told the AP in a phone interview Tuesday night. He declined to parse the decision, but did say many factors were considered, from facilities to hotel space. He said despite the SEC’s long relationship with the Sugar Bowl, Texas got strong consideration. “If think if it would have

gone to Dallas, the SEC would have been fine with it,” he said.

The new college football playoff begins after the 2014 season and the first Sugar Bowl in the new format will be played Jan. 1, 2015. It will match the champions from the SEC and Big 12, unless those teams are selected to the national semifinals. In that case, two other highly rated teams from those conferences will be paired up.

“We’re pleased to have been selected to host this great game,” Sugar Bowl Chief Executive Officer Paul Hoolahan said. “This gives us the chance to extend the Sugar Bowl’s long-standing relationship with the Southeastern Conference and to develop a new relationship with the Big 12 Conference.”

The game will be part of the semifinal rotation for the new playoff system, along with the Rose Bowl and the Orange Bowl. The Big Ten and Pac-12 will continue their longtime relationship with the Rose Bowl, and the Atlantic Coast Conference has a deal to send its champion or another highly ranked team to the Orange Bowl. Another deal is being worked on that will send a team from either an SEC team, a Big Ten team, or Notre Dame to the Orange Bowl to face the ACC in years the Miami-based bowl does not host a national semifinal. At least three more sites need to be picked, and the Cotton Bowl is likely to be one of them. “Regardless of which site we chose, the other city is likely to host an access bowl, to host semifinals and will be considered to host the championship game,” Bowlsby said.

The Fiesta Bowl in Glendale, Ariz., is expected to be in the playoff rotation, and Atlanta, which hosts the Chick-fil-A Bowl, is the other leading candidate to be part of the new postseason system.

How often each site hosts a semifinal has yet to be determined.

There is also a plan being considered to add a seventh game to the rotation that would match either a Pac-12 or Big 12 team against the best team from the five other FBS conferences, including the Big East. “Both a seven-game and a sixgame model are still in play,” Bowlsby said. — AP

Chan seeks season’s first title in Moscow MOSCOW: The ISU Grand Prix holds its fourth out of six meetings in Moscow this weekend with men’s world champion Patrick Chan of Canada determined to bag his first win of the season.

The 21-year-old Toronto resident, who is hoping to seal a third consecutive world title in London, Ontario, next March, will have tough competition especially from Japan’s 2011 world championships silver medalist Takahiko Kozuka.

Home favourite Artur Gachinski, Russia’s highest-ranked skater in the GP series and the European silver medalist, is also expected to challenge for top honours.

The reigning world ice dance champions and the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympic gold medalists Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir of Canada will be out to add the Russia Cup title to the Skate Canada title they won to open the season.

To do so they will have to beat Russian pair Elena Ilinykh and Nikita Katsalapov, the bronze medalists at the European championships, who were also

fifth at the world championships, in front of their home crowd.

World championship silver medalist Alena Leonova of Russia and compatriot, Aselina Sotnikovam the former world junior champion, head the entries in the women’s section of the event.

Meanwhile, Kanako Murakami of Japan, fifth at this year’s world championships, is also in the title picture.

Russia’s European champions Tatiana Volosozhar and Maxim Trankov, who have already won a Grand Prix title this season at Skate America, are the clear favourites in the pairs’ section of the event.

The skaters can only compete in two of the season’s six Grand Prix series events, which they have nominated in advance. The Grand Prix Final, which features the six top points scorers in each section of the series, will take place in Sochi, the host city of the 2014 Winter Games in December, at the newly-built Iceberg skating rink. Moscow follows Grand Prix events in the United States, Canada and China. —AFP

Patrick Chan of Canada

18

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2012

S P ORT S

Struggling Liverpool face difficult trip to Anzhi LONDON: Liverpool’s Europa League journey takes them to Russia today, as manager Brendan Rodgers’ struggling side takes on free-spending Anzhi Makhachkala, whose big money signings have turned the former minor club into a major player in Europe.

Liverpool has been winless in the three games since its last

Europa League match, where a Stewart Downing goal earned a 1-0 win at home to Anzhi.

The obvious threat for Anzhi is former Inter Milan and Barcelona player Samuel Eto’o, purportedly the highest paid footballer in the world. Regular Liverpool center backs Daniel Agger and Martin Skrtel will be

ANFIELD: Liverpool’s Daniel Agger controls the ball during his team’s English Premier League soccer match in this file photo. —AP

tasked with stopping him.

However, Liverpool may be tempted to field 1.96-meter Sebastian Coates in central defence despite his relative inexperience, to counter the potential aerial threat of 2.03-meter striker Lacina Troare.

Close behind Liverpool and Anzhi are Udinese and Young Boys, who have four and three points, respectively. If Udinese win and Liverpool don’t, the Italian side will move ahead of them.

In Group B, leader Atletico Madrid will be looking at the game against Portugal’s Academica-bottom of the group with one point-as a chance to bounce back from a loss to Valencia at the weekend, the club’s first defeat in 23 games.

After the Valencia match, manager Diego Simeone said, “We continue fighting to be on top. This will not stop anything.” The defending champions should have two-time Europa League top-scorer Radamel Falcao in the team, despite the forehead injury he got against Valencia.

Elsewhere in the group, Plzen hosts Hapoel Tel-Aviv. Fenerbahce have relied on their away form to take them to the top of Group C, and are at home to AEL Limassol, which has just one point from its three games. Marseille host Borussia Monchengladbach.

Newcastle can secure qualification from Group D with a win at Club Bruges. Second-placed Bordeaux host bottom-of-thegroup Maritimo.

Inter Milan striker Diego Milito said this week that the team are a “united group which goes beyond any nationality.” The team is top of the AP Global Rankings after beating Juventus at the weekend, and will go into its Group H match against Partizan Belgrade full of

confidence, after nine consecutive victories. In contrast, for Partizan anything but a win and a first goal in the tournament would make progression to the next round extremely unlikely.

Russian side Rubin Kazan, top of the group, travels to Azerbaijani club Neftchi, struggling with one point from the first three games.

Lazio must win its home match against Panathinaikos to maintain pole position in Group J, but come into the match on a bad run, including a 4-0 defeat to Catania on Sunday.

Midfielder Stefano Mauri said after the loss, “We’ve got an important run of games now, I hope there’s no after effects. We have to get out of this situation with good performances and results, immediately.”

He added, “We have to dig in to overcome this difficult period. This shock has to serve as a lesson to us.

Also because I don’t think it’s possible to play worse than we did.”

Looking to usurp Lazio are Tottenham and Maribor. The London club hosts the Slovenian PrvaLiga winner, and both could eclipse Lazio.

“It’s in our hands and that’s all you can ask for,” Tottenham’s Clint Dempsey said. “Everything is still to play for and it’s about taking care of business in the next three games.”

In Group F, lowly AIK Solna host Dutch side PSV Eindhoven, and Dnipro travel to Napoli, hoping to secure qualification with a fourth win.

Former Champions League regulars Lyon lead Group I, and take its 100 percent record to Athletic Bilbao. Second-placed Sparta Prague go to Hapoel Kiryat Shmona. —AP

Ibrahimovic sparkles in new PSG playmaker role PARIS: Paris St Germain’s top scorer Zlatan Ibrahimovic proved an inspired playmaker in his side’s 4-0 thrashing of Dinamo Zagreb in Champions League Group A on Tuesday. The former AC Milan forward gave up his usual striking role at the Parc des Princes but rescued his team from a deeper position on

the pitch by setting up all four goals. “He worked for the team as he always does. He’s a fantastic player, a fantastic leader, he helps the others to improve,” coach Carlo Ancelotti told reporters.

“That’s the difference between a great player and a champion. He is a champion because he uses his

skills to make the team play better.”

PSG top the French league table and are heading into the last 16 of Europe’s elite club competition, playing very solidly but failing to sparkle.

With Argentine playmaker Javier Pastore still struggling for form and forwards Jeremy Menez and Nene

lacking in creativity, Ibrahimovic has had to swallow his frustration and change his style.

As the most successful and charismatic player at the wealthy club he joined in July, the Swede quickly became a leader on the pitch and has gradually adapted his game.

He now collects the ball deep and links up with team mates, attracting defenders and creating space for fast forwards Menez or Ezequiel Lavezzi, his partner against Dinamo Zagreb.

“He is an option when Menez and Lavezzi run through because he can stay deeper and count on his passing abilities. We can use him this way,” Ancelotti said.

Ibrahimovic has developed a fine relationship with Menez, his most regular partner, and has created many chances for him.

His outstanding technical ability and understanding of the game enable him to pick the right moment to play the decisive pass.

“He scores, he makes his team mates play, he delights them. He has the great forward’s complete set,” PSG captain Christophe Jallet said. PSG are second in their group on nine points, five ahead of next opponents Dynamo Kiev who they beat 4-1 in their opening game.

Victory in Ukraine would put the French team into the knockout stages. Leaders Porto have qualified for the last 16 and Zagreb are bottom without a point. —Reuters

Paris Saint-Germain’s Swedish forward Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

Eliseu pinching himself after helping Malaga qualify MADRID: Malaga have come a long way since Eliseu joined the Andalusian club in 2007 and the Portuguese had to pinch himself after he scored the goal that put the Champions League debutants into the last 16 with two games to spare.

Eliseu’s clinical strike in Tuesday’s 1-1 draw at seven-times winners AC Milan, his third goal of the competition, was the latest step in a remarkable journey that began in Spain’s second division.

After joining from Portugal’s Belenenses, Eliseu helped Malaga win promotion back to the Spanish top flight and an injection of Qatari cash in 2010 has seen them reach heights he could never have imagined. He might even have missed the party as media reported he was seeking a move to Benfica in the pre-season amid speculation Malaga own-

er Sheikh Abdullah Bin Nassar Al Thani wanted to sell up and cashflow problems caused delays in wage payments.

After a summer of uncertainty, Al Thani has indicated he plans to continue investing in the club and in the Champions League knockout round the players now have the perfect platform to prove to him it will be worth the effort.

“It feels as if it were only yesterday that we were down in the second division fighting to the death,” Eliseu, who can play as a fullback or midfielder and has a fearsome left-foot shot, said in an interview with Spanish TV after the Milan game.

“Now we are here sealing qualification in the San Siro, it’s a dream,” added the 29-yearold, who was born on the remote mid-Atlantic Azores islands.

“Now we have to hold on to our place and

make sure of top spot in the group and we’ll continue to fight for that.” With four of six matches played, Malaga have 10 points, with Milan on five, Anderlecht on four and Zenit St Petersburg on three.

Victory at Zenit on Nov. 21 will ensure first place and make it more likely Malaga will avoid the big guns in the next round.

Eliseu, whose goal five minutes before halftime was cancelled out by Alexandre Pato’s second-half header, said he and his team mates had been concentrating on their football rather than worrying too much about the club’s problems.

“We are on the margins of everything and focused on the pitch and there we are doing the business,” he said. “We have to carry on in the same way, above all to send a message to the owners of the club.” —Reuters

LONDON: Manchester City’s Argentinian forward Sergio Aguero reacts in this file photo. —AFP

Man City find money does not buy European success LONDON: Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini is discovering the adage ‘money can’t buy you happiness’ extends to European success after a 2-2 draw at home to Ajax Amsterdam left their Champions League hopes in tatters.

Mancini was left raging at Danish referee Peter Rasmussen, who disallowed Sergio Aguero’s effort and ignored Mario Balotelli’s late penalty appeal but his anger might have been better directed at his team and their defensive lapses.

City’s multi-million pound squad have failed to make an impact in Europe with some erratic performances. The Premier League champions, roundly criticised when outclassed by Ajax last month, were 2-0 down after 17 minutes at the Etihad Stadium on Tuesday thanks to some dismal defending.

“It is not just (the defending) in this competition but in the Premier League and everything else,” former Liverpool captain Graeme Souness said on Sky Sports.

“Tonight the problem came from set pieces. Last year with Joleon Lescott and Vincent Kompany in the team they looked unbeatable and if anything came into the box one of them was getting their head to it.

“They are a team still scratching for the performances they had last year and they are not there yet,” added Souness.

City are bottom of Group D with two points from their four games, six behind leaders Dortmund. Mathematically they still have a slim chance of reaching the knockout stage if they beat Real Madrid at home and

then win in Dortmund if other results go their way.

On top of City’s suspect defending, the British media has been full of reports of a rift between Mancini and his players as they struggle to grasp the Italian’s tactics.

They were given a lesson in slick passing and application by Ajax in their first meeting two weeks ago as the Dutch side, which cost a fraction of City’s millions, beat them 3-1.

Ajax winger Ryan Babel put that performance down to his side’s togetherness, something he said City lacked. “Against City in the first game you could see the perfect example of a real team effort by Ajax against a team of individuals,” the former Liverpool player told the Daily Mail earlier this week.

“We noticed how the frustration got the better of them during the game. And we saw how the players were directing those frustrations towards each other. That is the danger of a club with so many big-name players and so many big egos.

“When the going gets tough, they are not prepared to do the hard work for each other.” That may be undeserved given Tuesday’s fightback as Yaya Toure, at fault for the second Ajax goal, made amends with a crisp volley and the home side upped their game after the break in a desperate attempt to get the win they so badly needed.

Aguero’s equaliser in the 73rd minute preserved City’s 18-match unbeaten European home record but that will be small consolation for the big-spending club as they face an early Champions League exit for the second successive season. —Reuters

Dazzling Dortmund control destiny after 2-2 Real draw BERLIN: Borussia Dortmund’s last Champions League group game against Manchester City next month could turn out to be a dead rubber after the German champions drew 2-2 at Real Madrid on Tuesday. Dortmund, sparkling against Real, need only draw at Ajax later this month to reach the last 16, which would make a game circled as a potential winner-takes-all purely academic.

Superb again for much of the match against nine-times European champions Real after beating them 2-1 in Dortmund last month, the Germans can be excused for having one eye on the knockout stage from their perch at the top of Group D. Having grabbed four points from a possible six against Real, coach Juergen Klopp had every right to be beaming after his side made it eight points from four games, one point ahead of Real.

“We would have been quite happy to seal qualification with this game,” he told reporters. “But we won our direct comparison with Real and we were not counting on that at the start.

“We earned our point in Madrid.” It was only thanks to Mesut Ozil’s 89th minute free kick that the hosts salvaged a point to avoid only their second home defeat to a German team after Bayern Munich.

A young Dortmund team, who have won back-to-back Bundesliga titles, twice took the lead through Marco Reus and Mario Goetze, demonstrating their ambitious nature in the competition.

Fifth in the Bundesliga this season after an erratic start and with Bayern dominating,

MADRID: Borussia Dortmund’s goalkeeper Roman Weidenfeller applauds supporters at the end of the UEFA Champions League football match against Real Madrid in this file photo. —AFP Dortmund are throwing their weight behind their European push.

“It is not understood that you take Real in their own stadium to the brink of a defeat. We have drawn away against two of the world’s best teams,” said Klopp. With Ajax awaiting on Nov. 21, Dortmund, who won their only Champions League trophy in 1997, have qualification firmly in their own hands. —Reuters

Hearts fear for future after winding-up order EDINBURGH: Scottish Premier League (SPL) side Hearts warned their fans the club could be entering its “final days” after confirming yesterday they had been served with a winding-up order regarding a tax bill of nearly 450,000 pounds ($719,000).

Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC) submitted the petition in the Court of Session in Edinburgh. In an initial response, Scottish Cup holders Hearts said they were attempting to negotiate a payment plan with the tax authority and stressed the matter was unrelated to a £1.75million HMRC bill which the Edinburgh club are challenging at a tax tribunal.

Hearts said they were “endeavoring to agree a suitable payment plan with HMRC for the outstanding amount of £449,692.04”.

But the Hearts board later issued a statement urging fans to provide as much financial support as possible by buying up tickets for forthcoming home games at Tynecastle, saying

the appeal was “not so much a request as a necessity”.

The statement added: “Without the support of fans there is, as we issue this note, a real risk that Heart of Midlothian Football Club could possibly play its last game next Saturday, 17 November, against St Mirren. “This isn’t a bluff, this isn’t scaremongering, this is reality. Without your help now, we could be entering the final days of the club’s existence.”

Last season court action by HMRC forced Rangers into administration, starting a process that led to the Glasgow giants, Scotland’s most successful club, being ejected from the SPL and demoted into the fourth-tier Third Division.

New SPL rules brought in for this season have increased points deductions for entering administration and the Hearts statement added: “There are limited options for the board of directors to take to avoid the catastrophic consequences that a funding shortfall would mean for the club. —AFP

19

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2012

SPORTS

Moses gives Chelsea new life

TURIN: Juventus’ midfielder Claudio Marchisio scores during the Champions League match against Nordsjaelland.—AFP

Juventus cruise to 4-0 victory TURIN: Juventus maintained their bid for a place in the knockout phase of the Champions League by securing their first Group E win with a 4-0 defeat of Nordsjaelland here yesterday.

Antonio Conte’s Italian champions are still licking the wounds of last Sunday’s defeat by Serie A rivals Inter Milan which stopped the Turin giants’ unbeaten run at 49 games.

But two weeks after their third draw, Juve turned on the class to grab their first win in the group stages as Kasper Hjulmand’s visitors failed to reproduce their heroics that earned them a 1-1 draw in Farum.

Nordsjaelland failed to get a shot on goal even after Claudio Marchisio, Arturo Vidal and Sebastian Giovinco had given the hosts a 3-0 first-half lead and were given little hope after Fabio Quagliarella made it 4-0 midway through the second half.

Angelo Alessio, Juve’s stand-in coach while Conte serves a touchline ban, left Montenegrin striker Mirko Vucinic on the bench, preferring Alessandro Matri over Quagliarella to partner Giovinco up front.

However the stars of the opening period were midfielders Andrea Pirlo and Marchisio.

Veteran Pirlo’s dead ball skills and positioning were deadly while Marchisio’s vision and movement in the area kept the Danes on their toes all night.

Marchisio settled Juve’s nerves early when he beat defender Jores Okore to Vidal’s whipped cross from the right to beat Jesper Hansen from close range in the seventh minute.

Hansen stopped Marchisio from doubling the lead on 17 minutes when he

blocked a close-range shot following another inviting ball from Vidal.

Yet Matri, with a header, and Giovinco’s first-time effort gave Nordsjaelland a hint of what was to come. Marchisio began the move which led to Juve’s second goal, but it was Vidal’s persistence at the second time of asking that allowed him to beat Hansen from a tight angle in the 23rd minute.

Matri got another free header from Pirlo’s corner from the right and then Marchisio forced a block from Hansen after unleashing a shot from 10 yards after pouncing on a loose ball. On 37 minutes the Danish defence was sorely exposed when a sublime pass from Pirlo found Giovinco unmarked on the right and the ‘Atomic Ant’ had time to pick his spot before sending an angled shot past Hansen at the far post.

At 3-0 behind Nordsjaelland had yet to have a real shot on goal and things did not improve after the interval. Vidal saw an early strike collected by Hansen but it was to be his last contribution before being replaced by French tyro Paul Pogba.

Defender Patrick Mtiliga provided Nordsjaelland’s small delegation of fans with some cheer when he tested Gianluigi Buffon with a shot which the Juve keeper parried on 63 minutes.

However that was to be the sum of their efforts as Juve continued to dominate and were unlucky not to pile on more agony.

Late on, Matri’s frustration intensified when he missed two clear chances and, the striker was not overjoyed when his knock-on header allowed second-half substitute Quagliarella to beat Hansen with his header from close range.—AFP

Champions League tables PARIS: Champions League tables after yesterday’s matches (played, won, drawn, lost, goals for, goals against, points): Group E Chelsea Shakhtar Juventus Nordsjaelland

4 4 4 4

2 2 1 0

1 1 3 1

1 1 0 3

10 6 7 5 8 4 1 11

7 7 6 1

Group G Barcelona Celtic Benfica Spartak

4 4 4 4

3 2 1 1

0 1 1 0

1 1 2 3

8 6 3 6

5 5 4 9

Group F Bayern Munich Valencia BATE Borisov Lille

4 4 4 4

3 3 2 0

0 0 0 0

1 1 2 4

10 5 10 4 8 9 2 12

9 9 6 0

Group H Man United CFR Cluj Galatasaray Braga

4 4 4 4

4 1 1 1

0 1 1 0

0 2 2 3

9 5 4 5

4 12 6 4 5 4 8 3

9 7 4 3

Cardozo lifts Benfica into contention LISBON: An Oscar Cardozo double after coming on as a second-half substitute helped Benfica beat Spartak Moscow 2-0 in the Champions League yesterday and kept alive their chances of qualification for the knockout stages.

Cardozo’s header after 55 minutes from a Melgarejo cross and a volley 14 minutes later settled the Group G encounter and lifted the Portuguese side above their Russian rivals by a point to

set up a second-place tussle with Celtic later this month. Cardozo also hit the bar from the penalty spot after Nicolas Pareja was shown a red card 14 minutes from time as the home side avenged their 2-1 defeat in Moscow two weeks ago.

Benfica now have four points and Spartak three behind group leaders Barcelona who have nine. Celtic, who defeated Barcelona 2-1 yesterday, are on seven.—Reuters

LONDON: A 94th-minute winner by substitute Victor Moses gave Chelsea a dramatic 3-2 win at home to Shakhtar Donetsk yesterday that reinvigorated their Champions League title defence.

The champions looked set for a damaging draw that would have them left them at risk of a group-stage exit until Moses rose to meet Juan Mataís corner deep into stoppage time and register his first ever goal in the competition.

Chelsea had led twice, only for Shakhtar to reply on both occasions through Willian, as the Ukrainian champions threated to inflict more misery on Roberto Di Matteoís side after their 2-1 win in Ukraine two weeks ago.

However, Mosesí goal enabled Chelsea to draw level with Shakhtar on seven points in Group E, giving them a one-point advantage over third-placed Juventus ahead of what looks set to be a decisive showdown in Turin on November 20. ìWeíve got a crucial three points. It was crucial for us to win this tough home game,î Di Matteo told Sky Sports. ìThey are a very good side. Now itís probably going to go down to the last kick of the last game in this group. ìThe spirit that my group showed again to keep going to the endówe knew we had to score at the end, and we did so.î Fernando Torres received the golden boot for finishing as top scorer at Euro 2012 before kick-off at Stamford Bridge but his first involvement was much less auspicious.

The Spaniard failed to make meaningful contact with Oscarís inviting cross from the right, but fortune was to smile on the former Liverpool man seconds later.

Yaroslav Rakitskiyís back-pass obliged Shakhtar goalkeeper Andriy Pyatov to rush his clearance and Torres capitalised by charging down the kick to send the ball bouncing into the net. Torres tested Pyatov after skipping past Rakitskiy but Shakhtar drew level within four minutes, with Fernandinho jinking to the byline on the right before cutting the ball back for Willian to score.

Generous defending from both teams made for an open first half, with Chelsea particularly guilty of conceding possession tamely.

Fernandinho stung Petr Cechís gloves with a long-range strike and Alex Teixeria dragged the ball wide after a neat exchange involving Fernandinho and Luiz Adriano, while at the other end, Torres hit the side netting.

Shakhtar looked dangerous whenever they went forwardótestimony, perhaps, to the fact John Terry was on the Chelsea benchóbut another gaffe from their goalkeeper allowed the hosts to reclaim the lead in the 40th minute.

Pyatov raced outside his area to clear with his head but did not get enough distance on the ball and Oscar pounced in fine style, guiding home a half-volley from 45 yards to claim his fourth goal of the season in the competition. Oscar obliged Pyatov to tip over just

LONDON: Chelsea’s David Luiz (at rear) challenges for the ball with Shakhtar Donetsk’s Luiz Adriano during their Champions League Group E soccer match.—AP before the interval but it took Shakhtar just two minutes to draw level in the second half and, again, the goal came from the right.

Darijo Srna was allowed time to cross and his low cut-back allowed Willian to wrongfoot Cech again, this time with his left foot.

It was no less than the away side deserved and they came within inches of taking the lead in the 54th minute, only for Razvan Ratís dipping half-volley to come back off the post.

Chelsea increased the pressure on Pyatovís

goal thereafter, with John Mikel Obi seeing a header disallowed for offside and sending a volley inches wide, while Ramires felt he should have won a penalty for a challenge by Srna.

Had Gary Cahill not blocked from Adriano in the last minute, it might have been even worse for Chelsea, who appeared to have run out of luck until Mosesí intervention in the depths of injury time consigned the visitors to their first defeat of the season.—AFP

Valencia outfox fading BATE VALENCIA: Valencia completed the double in Champions League Group F with a 4-2 win over Belarus outfit BATE Borisov yesterday to stay level on points with pacesetters Bayern Munich, who crushed Lille 6-1.

BATE had made a bright start to the campaign, stunning group favourites Bayern on their way to winning their opening two fixtures.

But they then came unstuck at home to Valencia and the Spaniards once again outfoxed them, taking the lead in the 26th minute at the Mestalla Stadium.

Brazilian striker Jonas Goncalves broke the deadlock, firing home on the turn high into the net after controlling a cross from a Tino Costa cross.

Almost straight from the restart, it was 2-0, Roberto Soldado — who scored a hattrick in the away match — converting from the spot after Denis Polyakov fouled Andres Guardado as the latter burst into the box. Coach Mauricio Pellegrino has been struggling to conjure coherent league form from his Valencia side this season - they sit in midtable with only four wins from ten games - but this success, following their win in Belarus, should propel them towards the last 16 in Europe.

Former Barcelona midfielder Aleksandr Hleb tried gamely to spark a riposte but was unable to

SPAIN: Valencia’s Jonas from Brazil, duels for the ball with BATE Borisov’s Sergei Glebko during their Champions League Group L soccer match.—AP call on support from the suspended Alexander Pavlov as Valencia tightened their grip on proceedings. Vitali Rodionov had an early effort wide for Viktor Goncharenko’s BATE but the two goals took the wind out of the visitors’ sails as Valencia, finalists in 2000 and 2001, made it 3-0 six minutes after the restart. Algerian Sofiane Feghouli slammed home

after Fernando Gago cut through a tiring defence to find his teammate unmarked.

BATE did knuckle down to make a game of it as Renan Bressan converted for 3-1 just two minutes after Feghouli’s effort.

And suddenly the Spaniards were sweating when Dmitri Mozolevski, on for Hleb, made it

3-2 in the 83rd minute with a tapin from Rodianov’s pass as Valencia looked to be counting down the clock and cruising.

However, the hosts quickly snapped out of their complacency as Feghouli bagged his second goal of the night with four minutes remaining, cracking home a fierce drive after substitute Ever Banega had found him.—AFP

Galatasaray grab first win

LISBON: Benfica’s Brazilian forward Lima (right) vies with Spartak Moscow’s Argentinian defender Juan Insaurralde (left) during the UEFA Champions League football match.—AFP

CLUJ: Burak Yilmaz scored a brilliant hattrick to earn Galatasaray a deserved 3-1 win over CFR Cluj in their Champions League Group H game yesterday, their first away victory in the competition in more than 10 years.

The win at the Dr. Constantin Radulescu stadium spoiled Paulo Sergio’s European debut as coach of Cluj while Galatasaray revived their chances of reaching the last 16 in Europe’s elite club competition.

Group leaders Manchester United have 12 points from four matches and have

already reached the knockout stage.

Galatasaray and CFR Cluj are on four, with Braga on three.

Yilmaz opened the scoring after 18 minutes when he headed into the top corner of the goal from Hamit Altintop’s precise rightwing cross.

Senegalese winger Modou Sougou, making his first appearance for Cluj after a threeweek absence due to injury, made it 1-1 eight minutes after the break with a cool finish, with substitute Rafael Bastos providing a delightful assist.

Yilmaz’s deadly finishing stole the show, however, as the tall Turkey international netted twice within 14 minutes with an easy right-footed shot from close range and then a calm left-footer.

The 27-year-old, who joined Galatasaray from Trabsonspor in a five-million-euro ($6.38-million) deal in July, has scored all of Galatasaray’s four goals in their group matches as he hit the target in the 1-1 draw with Cluj in Istanbul last month. Cluj next host Braga, while Galatasaray are at home against United on Nov. 20.—Reuters

Chan seeks season’s first title in Moscow

Shooting-victim Rola set to box for world title

17

16

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2012

Moses gives Chelsea new life in Champions League

Page 19

GLASGOW: Barcelona’s Andres Iniesta (right) vies for the ball with Celtic’s Kris Commons (left) during their Champions League Group G soccer match.—AP

Celtic shock giants Barca GLASGOW: Celtic sent shockwaves around Europe as they produced a stunning 2-1 Group G win over Barcelona at Parkhead yesterday to end the Catalan giants’ 100 per cent record in this season’s competition.

Just as they had done in the Nou Camp two weeks ago Celtic took the lead against the run of play when Victor Wanyama headed them ahead in the 21st minute.

Barcelona, who have made a record breaking start to their domestic campaign and hadn’t previously lost in the group stages for over three years, dominated possession but lacked a cutting edge in front of goal with Lionel Messi hitting the crossbar and Alexis Sanchez heading against the post

in the first half. Fraser Forster produced heroics in the Celtic goal to deny Barcelona with the keeper superbly stopping further efforts from Alexis and Messi after the break.

Celtic’s chances were few and far between but they increased their lead in the 83rd minute when teenager Tony Watt, on as a substitute, scored a breakaway goal just 11 minutes into his Champions League debut.

Messi gave Barca hope in stoppage time when he pulled one back but the Hoops held on for a famous win the day after the club celebrated its 125th birthday.

Neil Lennon’s side, who gained revenge for their stoppage time 2-1 defeat in the Nou Camp,

now sit second in Group G on seven points just two behind the Catalan giants and could qualify with a game to spare if they get a score draw or better against Benfica in two weeks time.

With several first team players already missing Celtic had been dealt another blow before kick-off when skipper Scott Brown was ruled out with a virus and Gary Hooper failed to recover from injury. Barcelona had their own injury problems to deal with in defence but Gerard Pique found a place on the bench for the first time since September.

The Catalan giants had dominated possession at the Nou Camp and started in a similar fashion in Glasgow. However, after earning their first cor-

ner of the match Charlie Mulgrew fizzed his delivery to the back post where Wanyama rose above Marc Bartra to thump a header past Victor Valdes.

Following that it was all one-traffic towards the Celtic goal with Messi coming within inches of equalising when he collected a pass from Andres Iniesta in the box before cracking a half-volley off the bar. Alexis then sent an angled header into the turf and cannoning off the base of the post after getting on the end of a Dani Alves cross in another let-off for Celtic.

The Hoops continued to frustrate Spain’s league leaders after the break. Forster was keeping Celtic in the match and he showed his worth moments later when he got down smartly to stop

United through to last 16

Bayern rout Lille 6-1 MUNICH: Bayern Munich ran riot yesterday as Claudio Pizarro scored a hat-trick in only 15 minutes in a 6-1 hammering of hapless French side Lille in their Champions League group clash here yesterday.

The 34-year-old Pizarro needed just a quarter of an hour in the first half to wrap up his treble as Bayern raced into a 5-0 lead after only 33 minutes as the French club suffered their worst away defeat in the Champions League.

Despite the drubbing and after Valencia won 4-2 at home to BATE Borisov, Bayern are only second in the group behind Spaniards while Lille are definitely out having garnered not a single point.

Despite being only Bayern’s third- choice striker behind injured German star Mario Gomez and Croatia’s Mario Mandzuk ic, who was rested, Pizarro seized his chance having also scored twice in Bayern’s German Cup win last week.

Pizarro’s triple was the third fastest in Champions League history: the record still belongs to Blackburn Rovers’ Mike Newell who scored three goals in nine minutes against Rosenborg in December 1995.

Since losing 1-0 at home to Bayern a for tnight ago, Rudi Garcia’s Lille had won both their French league games, but were only on level terms with Bayern for five minutes.

Germany star Bastian Schweinsteiger curled a free-kick around the near post to start the rout. The lead doubled on 18 minutes when Pizarro took a return pass from France’s Franck Ribery on the edge of the area and fired home.

The third arrived on 23 minutes when Arjen Robben’s freekick crashed into Lille defender Florent Balmont and deflected into the goal with Lille goalkeeper Mickael Landreau caught out.

With less than half an hour on the clock and the Lille defence waving Bayern’s attack through

a drilled strike from Alexis and then made a second save with his legs to deny the Chilean forward.

There were more heroics from Forster in the 70th minute when he produced a superb onehanded save to stop Messi’s strike from 10 yards.

Unbelievably, Celtic then increased their lead in the 83rd minute. Forster saved a Messi free-kick and his long kick out was then missed by Xavi to allow substitute Watt to get behind Javier Mascherano and drill a shot beyond Valdes.

Messi pulled one back in stoppage time after Forster had done well to keep out sub Cesc Fabregas’ shot as the Argentine reacted quickest to lift the ball into the net from five yards.—AFP

MUNICH: Bayern’s Jerome Boateng (left) and Lille’s Tulio De Melo challenge for the ball during the soccer Champions League Group F match.—AP

numerous holes, the fourth goal came as captain Philipp Lahm found space on the right wing and Pizarro converted his 28thminute cross.

The Peru star wrapped up his hat-trick just five minutes later when he met Lahm’s cross again, this time on the far post to make it 5-0.

Something had to change in the Lille ranks at the break and coach Rudi Garcia made two Substitions to bolster his defence. Ex-Chelsea striker Salomon K alou of the Ivor y

Coast pulled a goal back for Lille when he crashed his shot in off the cross bar on 57 minutes.

But Bayern’s sixth came when substitute Toni Kroos smashed home Lahm’s pass on 66 minutes, 33 minutes after Munich’s previous goal.

Lille are not the only team to fall foul of Bayern’s Allianz Arena for tress this year as FC Basel were hammered here 7-0 in March in the Round of 16 return leg when Gomez scored four after Munich had lost the firstleg in Switzerland.—AFP

BRAGA: Late goals from substitute Robin Van Persie, Wayne Rooney and Javier Hernandez earned Manchester United a place in the last 16 of the Champions League with a 3-1 comeback win at Braga yesterday. In a match interrupted for 10 minutes by floodlight failure, the hosts went ahead early in the second half through an Alan penalty kick.

United struck back when Van Persie came off the bench and punished a blunder by Braga keepPORTUGAL: Manchester United’s Robin van Persie, from The er Beto, who inexplicably Netherlands, celebrates after scoring against Sporting Braga during rushed out of his goal their Champions League Group H soccer match.—AP and was caught in no man’s land. attack with Javier Hernandez, leaving Van Persie Rooney put United ahead from the penalty on the bench to start with. spot soon after and, with Braga in disarray, Centre back Chris Smalling played for the Hernandez made it 3-1 in injury time after a first time since injuring his metatarsal in the pregoal-mouth muddle. season. The changes did not pay off and United “Those last 10 minutes went really badly for were poor in the first half, coming to life only us. What a shame,” Braga midfielder Ruben after Van Persie was sent on with 25 minutes on Micael told Portuguese television. Group H the clock. leaders United have 12 points from four games.

Braga suffered a near-repeat of their forCluj and Galatasaray are on four points, with tunes at Old Trafford two weeks ago, when they Braga on three. gave away a 2-0 lead and lost 3-2.

United coach Alex Ferguson made several “It’s sad and we did not deserve it but we changes to the side who beat Arsenal 2-1 in the made mistakes and games are settled like that.

Premier League over the weekend, bringing in Still, we played a really good match, even better Nani, Anderson and Ryan Giggs to the midfield than at Old Trafford,” Braga coach Jose Peseiro and picking Danny Welbeck to spearhead the said.—Reuters

Business

Qatari lender QNB launches $1bn bond Page 22

ME buyers snap up luxury London homes

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2012

Page 24

Germany beginning to feel pain from crisis: ‘Wise men’

Fear holding back global recovery, says Canada PM Page 22

Page 23

BAGHDAD: Iraqi investors watch monitors at the Iraq Stock Exchange (ISX) in Baghdad yesterday. Iraq opened on November 1, its biggest trade fair, the latest step in Baghdad’s efforts to rebuild an economy battered by decades of conflict and sanctions. — AFP

World shares gain on Obama win Markets muted in Asia LONDON: World shares and gold rallied while the dollar fell yesterday after President Barack Obama was re-elected for a second term, signalling no dramatic shift in US economic policy.

Gains in Europe’s main stock markets were expected to be limited, however, as attention switches to Greece where parliament votes late in the day on an austerity package needed to secure a fresh injection of EU/IMF aid and avert bankruptcy.

“The fact the election is over is obviously positive for the market. Markets don’t like uncertainty and there was always the worry that it was going to drag on,” said Mark Priest, Head of Index & Equity Market Making at ETX Capital. “A lot depends on this vote today in Greece, so I think it is a little bit of wait-and-see.”

The FTSE Eurofirst 300 index of top European shares was up 0.3 percent by 0930 GMT at 1,119.65 points, with London’s FTSE 100, Frankfurt’s DAX and Paris’s CAC-40 opening between 0.2 and 0.6 percent higher. Relief that the U.S. election result was clear cut earlier

helped to lift Asian shares, pushing the MSCI world equity index up 0.5 percent at 332.75 points. US stock futures pointed to Wall Street opening higher as well.

Investors in most major markets were expected to be wary of extending the gains too far due to the approaching US “fiscal cliff”, a series of spending cuts and tax increases worth around $600 billion due to take effect next year that could crush growth. The dollar, which has rallied during this week’s tense run-up to the election, slipped 0.2 percent against a basket of currencies, retreating further from Monday’s two-month high. The euro rallied to a session high of $1.2876.

“You clearly see the dollar under pressure here but the key question is whether this will be sustained,” said Valentin Marinov, Director of FX Strategy at Citi. “People will be refocusing away from the election to more important issues surrounding the fiscal cliff... So we may have to endure some more uncertainty into year end.”

The dollar slipped in Asian trade yesterday

while share markets were muted after President Barack Obama won a second term in a closelyfought US presidential election. The US unit fell against the euro and yen in afternoon trade, as dealers bet that under Obama the Federal Reserve would continue the loose monetary policy that has seen it flood markets with billions of dollars. The European single currency bought $1.2840 in Tokyo, well up from $1.2788 earlier yesterday and $1.2814 in New York late Tuesday. The greenback was at 80.25 yen compared with 80.34 yen in New York. It had fallen to below 80 yen at one point.

The euro bought 103.13 yen, from 102.96 yen in New York. The dollar was also broadly lower against other Asia-Pacific currencies, falling to $1.0456 against the Australian dollar from $1.0432, to 1,084.60 South Korean won from 1,091.20 won and to Sg$1.2215 from Sg$1.2240.

Gold prices rose thanks to the weaker dollar, climbing to $1,729.40 by 1100 GMT compared with $1,679.75 late Tuesday. A clear victory had been the overriding hope, allowing the govern-

Exxon to quit oilfield: Iraq BAGHDAD: Exxon Mobil has informed the Iraqi government it wants to pull out of a $50 billion oil project, and Baghdad expelled Turkey’s state oil operator from another contract yesterday, both signals of trouble in Iraq’s petroleum policy. “Exxon has stated in its letter that it has started discussions with some international oil companies to sell its stake,” Abdul-Mahdy Al-Ameedi, director of Iraq’s contracts directorate, told reporters.

The move by Exxon to quit the West Qurna1 oilfield in south Iraq will exacerbate tensions between Baghdad and the autonomous Iraqi Kurdistan region, where Exxon has signed oil deals seen as more lucrative but dismissed by the central government as illegal. Kurdistan has upset Baghdad by signing oil deals with foreign companies including Exxon, Chevron and Total . Kurdish officials say they have the constitutional right to do so, but the central government says only it controls oil policy.

Iraq’s cabinet also said it was expelling Turkey’s state-owned TPAO from its exploration block 9 oilfield for an unspecified reason, denying it was prompted by any move by the Turkish company into Kurdistan. Baghdad plans to reply to the letter from Exxon by Sunday, another oil official said. But it was unclear who would replace Exxon if it leaves the huge oilfield, which pumps around 400,000 barrels per day of crude, with minority partner Royal Dutch Shell.

Exxon has not commented publicly on its plans. Doubts about who can replace Exxon in the important project could raise questions about Iraq’s target to increase crude output to 5-6 million barrels per day by 2015 from 3.4 million bpd. Some industry sources have said Baghdad is keen to replace Exxon with companies from Russia or China as a way to hit back at major Western oil majors. But it was unclear which companies would have the financial heft to follow Exxon.

Russia’s LUKOIL and Gazprom Neft are already working in Iraq. LUKOIL, which already runs a project to develop West Qurna-2, has said that it lacks the resources to take on a project like West Qurna-1 for the moment.

Exxon is now at the heart of a long-running dispute over oil reserves and territory between the Arab-led central government and ethnic Kurds, who have run their own regional administration in northern Iraq since 1991.

Expulsion Iraq’s cabinet also decided to expel Turkey’s TPAO from Block 9, where it holds a 30 percent stake, and asked Kuwait Energy to boost its stake to 70 percent from 40 percent.

Dragon Oil holds the remaining 30 percent.

“We respect their decision. If they see such a contract renewal or stake transfer appropriate, we don’t mind either,” Turkish Energy Minister

Taner Yildiz told reporters yesterday, in response to Iraq’s plan.

Iraqi officials said the decision was not related to possible TPAO deals with Kurdistan.

“The cabinet rejected the approval of Turkey’s TPAO as a partner,” Al-Ameedi said.

“Removing TPAO has no connection with Kurdistan deals. We know TPAO has no deals in Kurdistan. But this decision was taken for other reasons.” He refused to give any further details. Iraqi oil officials said removing TPAO from the exploration project will not affect the company’s other activities in oil and gas fields across the country. TPAO has minority stakes in the two small oilfields of Badra and Maysan in the south and is running two gas fields along with Kuwait Energy in the province of Diyala and the southern oil hub of Basra, both near Iraq’s borders with Iran. “TPAO can still operate in other oil and gas projects in Iraq without being affected by removal from the exploration deal,” Ameedi told Reuters.

The expulsion comes amid tensions between Baghdad and Ankara after Turkey accused Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri Al-Maliki of sidelining Sunni Muslims since the onset of a political crisis in Iraq after US troops left in December. Maliki, a Shi’ite close to Iran, has traded insults with Turkey’s Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan several times, with the Iraqi leader calling Turkey a hostile state and Erdogan accusing Maliki of fanning sectarian

ment to work to avert the “fiscal cliff” which will dominate discussions in Congress between now and Christmas.

If Congress fails to agree how to cut spending over the medium term, there will be automatic deep spending cuts that could tip the United States back into recession, in a major blow for the slowing global economy. On equity markets Sydney gained 0.71 percent, or 31.7 points, to end at 4,516.5. Tokyo was flat, nudging down 2.26 points to 8,972.89, while Seoul closed up 0.49 percent, or 9.38 points, at 1,937.55. Hong Kong shares ended up 0.71 percent, or 155.42 points, at 22,099.85 and Shanghai was flat, edging down 0.27 points to 2,105.73. “Investors have been factoring in his win and adjusting their positions likewise,” said Kengo Suzuki, forex strategist at Mizuho Securities in Tokyo.

“The issue now is the uncertainty surrounding the US fiscal cliff, and how a divided Congress will deal with the issue,” he added.

SHK Financial strategist Daniel So told Dow

Jones Newswires: “An Obama victory ensures the continuity of US monetary policy, which is likely to be kept loose.” He added that a Romney win would likely have seen him “launch policies to incentivise fund flow back to the US, so in terms of liquidity inflow an Obama win also favours the Asian markets”.

Wall Street ended with impressive gains ahead of the election results. The Dow rose 1.02 percent, the S&P 500 climbed 0.79 percent and the Nasdaq added 0.41 percent. However, regional traders were still concerned about Europe’s debt woes after data Tuesday showed a bigger-than-expected slump in factory orders in Germany, the euro-zone’s biggest economy.

Berlin said industrial orders declined 3.3 percent in September from August after falling 0.8 percent the previous month. That is much steeper than expected. Analysts polled by Dow Jones had been pencilling in a fall of 0.5 percent.

The drop was largely due to a decline in export orders, particularly from the euro-zone where they plummeted 9.6 percent.— Agencies

Greece faces protests over austerity vote ATHENS: The Greek government overcame divisions yesterday to defeat an early challenge to an austerity package needed to secure vital international aid, but it still faced internal dissent and angry protests ahead of a final vote. Prime Minister Antonis Samaras is expected to narrowly win support for the budget cuts, tax hikes and labour reforms in a parliamentary vote late in the evening. The smallest party in his conservative-liberal coalition opposes the measures.

A ‘no’ vote could break the fragile coalition. The opposition SYRIZA party tried to block the 500-odd page bill by forcing a vote on its constitutionality, but the measure was defeated by the government’s majority. Tens of thousands of union workers were planning to gather near parliament at around 1500 GMT, on the second day of a nationwide strike that has halted public transport, shut schools, banks and government offices, and caused garbage to pile up on streets.

Backed by the leftist opposition, unions say the measures will hit the poor and spare the wealthy, while deepening a fiveyear recession that has wiped out a fifth of the country’s output and driven unemployment to 25 percent. “The bailout policies

are completely catastrophic, outrageously absurd, and an utter failure,” Alexis Tsipras, head of the anti-bailout SYRIZA, said in an interview with the Efimerida Syntakton newspaper.

“Let’s not kid ourselves. The bailouts can no longer be acceptable, not even under the toughest blackmail.” Lawmakers began a heated debate over spending cuts and tax hikes expected to be worth 13.5 billion euros which, if approved, will be key to unlocking a loan tranche of more than 31 billion euros ($40 billion) from the European Union and International Monetary Fund bailout.

The vote is the biggest test for Samaras’s government since it came to power in June.

A ‘yes’ will give Athens cash to shore up its ailing banks and pay off debt coming due late this month. Jean-Claude Juncker, chairman of the Eurogroup of euro zone finance ministers, said Greece had to continue slashing spending in its public sector. “Our Greek friends have no options or choice,” he told the Foreign Correspondents’ Association in Singapore. “They have to do it. And my impression is that the reforms which are (being) undertaken in Greece are increasingly better understood by the Greek citizens.” —Reuters

22

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2012

BUSINESS

Germany beginning to feel pain from crisis: ‘Wise men’ Key manufacturing sector hit by falling demand FRANKFURT: The German economy, which long seemed immune to Europe’s debilitating debt crisis, is now feeling the pinch and growth will be hit in the fourth quarter, a panel of top economic experts said yesterday. This assessment was backed up by new data showing that industrial output slumped in September, as the key manufacturing sector is hit by falling demand both inside and outside Germany.

It clocked up growth of as much as 4.2 percent in 2010 and 3.0 percent in 2011. But growth has been slowing this year. After expanding by 0.5 percent in the first quarter, the economy grew by 0.3 percent in the second quarter and growth looks set to slow again in the third quarter. “Economic momentum in Germany is likely to reach bottom in the fourth quarter,” the Five Wise Men wrote, confirming their previ-

the German government and the country’s leading economic thinktanks agree on projected growth of 0.8 percent this year, they are pencilling in slightly stronger growth of 1.0 percent for next year. “ The economic indicators up until October suggest that economic momentum will slow until the end of the year,” the panel said.

Domestic industrial demand is pointing downwards and recession-

BERLIN: German chancellor Angela Merkel (center) holds the annual report on the economic development in Germany released by Germany’s so-called five wise men or panel of independent economic advisors, flanked by (left to right) German Minister of Labour and Social Affairs Ursula von der Leyen, Health Minister Daniel Bahr, Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble, German economist Claudia Buch, Wolfgang Franz, member of the economic advisors panel, Economy Minister Philipp Roesler, Peter Bofinger and Lars Feld, members of the economic advisors panel at the chancellery yesterday. —AFP Nevertheless, growth should start picking up again during the course of next year, the so-called “Five Wise Men”, who advise the government on economic matters, wrote in their regular twice-annual report. Unlike most of its European neighbours, Germany has been spared the worst of the long-running debt crisis thanks to deep and painful structural reforms implemented a number of years ago.

ous March forecast for overall gross domestic product (GDP) growth of 0.8 percent for the whole of 2012.

“The growth rate will gradually pick up again during the course of 2013. And growth will reach an annual average of 0.8 percent again next year,” the experts calculated.

That makes the Five Wise Men, whose ranks include one woman, more pessimistic than most about next year’s prospects. While both

ary tendencies elsewhere in the euro area were hitting exports and investment, which were in turn putting the brakes on growth. The slowdown was clearly seen in industrial output data which showed a bigger than expected contraction of 1.8 percent in September. A day earlier, the ministry had similarly calculated that industrial orders slumped by 3.3 percent in September as the euro-zone crisis crimps both domes-

tic and foreign demand for Germanmade goods.

“German industry is being hit hard by the ongoing crisis in the euro-zone and waning demand in other key export markets, with official data now corroborating the survey evidence to indicate that the country is at risk of sliding back into contraction in the fourth quarter,” said Markit economist Chris Williamson.

The output data “will pour cold water on recent talk of a recovery in the euro-zone’s biggest economy,” agreed Capital Economics Jonathan Loynes. “Germany’s growth engine is still sputtering, if not in reverse.

Overall, the evidence is clear that the euro-zone economy has entered the final months of the year in a woefully weak state,” Loynes said. ING Belgium economist Carsten Brzeski said the latest indicators “do not give much hope that the current downward trend will reverse any time soon.

“Today’s industrial production data send a two-fold message: on the one hand, it confirms our view that the German economy could have avoided a contraction in the third quarter. However, on the other hand, it also confirms our view of gradual stagnation. In short, the German economy is stuttering but not-yet-plunging,” Brzeski said.

Turning to the inflation outlook in Germany, the Five Wise Men forecast an average annual increase in consumer prices of 2.0 percent both this year and next year, which is more or less in line with the European Central Bank’s definition of price stability. And the labour market will continue to hold up well, with the jobless rate expected to remain low at 6.8 percent this year and 6.9 percent next year, the panel predicted. The outlook for Germany’s public finances was also favourable, with a small surplus equivalent to 0.1 percent of GDP slated for this year, followed by a public deficit of 0.1 percent next year. Under euro-zone rules, member states are not allowed to run up deficit ratios in excess of 3.0 percent. —AFP

Qatari lender QNB launches $1bn bond DUBAI: Qatar National Bank (QNB), the Gulf Arab state’s largest lender, launched a $1 billion bond yesterday, lead managers said, its second debt markets foray this year. The bond, due to mature in February 2018, launched at a spread of 145 basis points over midswaps, tighter than guidance indicated earlier in the day, as demand for the deal was strong. Sources said order books reached $3 billion ahead of the launch, and that final pricing and allocations were due later yesterday. The terms of the deal are not expected to change.

QNB, rated A+ by S&P, last tapped debt markets for a $1 billion five-year bond in February,

which was issued at 3.375 percent. The bond was yielding 2.1 percent yesterday morning, according to Thomson Reuters data. Prices on the 2017 bond fell after the new upcoming issue was announced, down to a bid of 105.39 cents on the dollar from 105.4 cents on Tuesday evening, before recovering again later in the day.

QNB is 50-percent owned by sovereign wealth fund Qatar Investment Authority and seen as one of the most acquisitive banks in the region, holding stakes in regional lenders as it seeks to expand. It is currently in talks to buy the Egyptian arm of Societe Generale. QNB did not

say what the proceeds of the bond sale would be used for, but will have raised nearly $4 billion from the debt and syndicated loan markets so far this year following the sale, after securing $1.8 billion from a loan in August.

The lender reported a 10.5 percent increase in third-quarter net profit, driven by increased interest income and a drop in loan impairments.

Shares ended flat yesterday, but are trading 3.2 percent lower year-to-date. Deutsche Bank, HSBC Holdings, Mitsubishi UFJ, Standard Chartered and QNB Capital are mandated bookrunners on the deal. —Reuters

LISBON: Police officers protest in front of the Portuguese parliament, against the Portuguese government’s austerity budget for 2013. —AFP

Portuguese police stage anti-austerity protest and living conditions are getting more difficult and the 2013 budget measures are going to penalise us in our social and professional lives and hurt the national police force,” Paulo Rodrigues, head of the main police union, ASPP, told AFP. Officers say the option of early retirement at 55 was a way of compensating them for long shifts and lost Sundays and holidays, and complain their average monthly salary of 950 euros ($1,200) is not enough. —AFP

LISBON: Hundreds of Portuguese police officers marched on parliament Tuesday to protest the crisis-hit country’s plans to cut the police budget next year. Several hundred officers gathered in central Lisbon early Tuesday evening before holding a rally in front of parliament to protest plans to put a freeze on early retirement, eliminate free public transport for officers and shutter the police health care service. “Police officers aren’t recognised in their work, their working

Booming Gulf sukuk market overlooks Dana Gas debacle Egypt and Iraq’s Kurdistan. Immediately after the payment miss, prices of Dana’s sukuk and shares plunged because of fears that its bond holders, who include big foreign investment firms such as BlackRock and Ashmore Group, might declare it in default, letting them take legal action to liquidate assets backing the sukuk.

Yesterday, Dana said it had reached an “in principle” agreement with creditors to restructure the sukuk; it would pay back part of the bond and issue two new sukuk to finance the remaining amount. Details of the possible deal were not revealed.

Although indebted firms in the UAE have restructured billions of dollars of bank loans since Dubai’s real estate market crash in 2009-2010, no UAE company before Dana has failed to repay a maturing bond, conventional or Islamic.

DUBAI: When a natural gas producing company in the United Arab Emirates missed repaying a $920 million Islamic bond last week, it became the first UAE company to fail to redeem a bond on time.

But the region’s debt market barely blinked. Yields on some firms’ outstanding Islamic bonds, known as sukuk, dropped to fresh record lows as investors continued pouring money into them. Other companies laid plans for new issues of sukuk. The incident underlined the extent to which the Gulf ’s Islamic debt market, which is playing an increasingly important role in funding companies, has strengthened in the past year. Not long ago, a billion-dollar payment miss would have triggered a crisis of confidence in the market; now, it is almost ignored.

“The market has matured enough to appreciate that this is not a sukuk or Islamic finance issue but rather a credit issue,” said Rizwan Kanji, debt capital markets partner at law firm King & Spalding in Dubai. “After the potential defaults a few years ago, the market’s reaction initially was that sukuk didn’t work and as a result the market reacted negatively. Fast forward three years and we’re in a similar scenario but the market has reacted differently. You’re not seeing the headlines screaming that Islamic finance doesn’t work.”

Privately owned Dana Gas, headquartered in the emirate of Sharjah, failed last Wednesday to repay its five-year sukuk on maturity. The firm has been hit by delays in recovering revenues from operations in

Precedents In the past, Dana’s difficulties would have been seen as a reminder of regulatory and legal risks in the Gulf’s sukuk market. Islamic finance was born in its modern form only in the 1970s, leaving courts and investors with relatively few precedents to use when sukuk ran into trouble. Because of Islam’s ban on interest, sukuk are not pure debt and do not pay conventional coupons; they pay returns earned by real assets, which are temporarily leased to sukuk holders via channels such as specialpurpose vehicles. The complexity of such structures can complicate restructuring talks. —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 Egyptian pounds

.2740000 .4480000 .3590000 .2970000 .2820000 .2920000 .0040000 .0020000 .0763250 .7436110 .3870000 .0720000 .7289780 .0430000

.2850000 .4600000 .3690000 .3080000 .2920000 .3000000 .0067500 .0035000 .0770920 .7510840 .4060000 .0770000 .7363040 .0510000

CUSTOMER TRANSFER RATES US Dollar/KD .2810000 .2831000 GB Pound/KD .4504290 .4537950 Euro .3614220 .3641230 Swiss francs .2988410 .3010740 Canadian dollars .2839240 .2860460 Danish Kroner .0484410 .0488030 Swedish Kroner .0421500 .0424650 Australian dlr .2937570 .2959530 Hong Kong dlr .0362560 .0365270 Singapore dlr .2300070 .2317260 Japanese yen .0035110 .0035370 Indian Rs/KD .0000000 .0052550 Sri Lanka rupee .0000000 .0021710 Pakistan rupee .0000000 .0029510 Bangladesh taka .0000000 .0035100 UAE dirhams .0765350 .0771070 Bahraini dinars .7456550 .7512270 Jordanian dinar .0000000 .4004240 Saudi Riyal/KD .0749530 .0755130 Omani riyals .7301550 .7356110 Philippine Peso .0000000 .0069270

Al-Muzaini Exchange Co. 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

ASIAN COUNTRIES 3.513 5.200 2.939 2.163 3.268 231.370 36.459 3.448 6.847 9.176 0.271 273

GCC COUNTRIES 75.377 77.666 734.180 750.760 77.968

Saudi Riyal Qatari Riyal Omani Riyal Bahraini Dinar UAE Dirham Egyptian Pound - Cash Egyptian Pound - Transfer Yemen Riyal/for 1000 Tunisian Dinar Jordanian Dinar Lebanese Lira/for 1000 Syrian Lier Morocco Dirham

ARAB COUNTRIES 48.200 46.213 1.319 179.060 398.720 1.896 3.865 33.320

EUROPEAN & AMERICAN COUNTRIES US Dollar Transfer 282.550 Euro 362.790 Sterling Pound 453.490 Canadian dollar 284.830 Turkish lire 157.500 Swiss Franc 301.230 Australian dollar 293.710 US Dollar Buying 281.350 GOLD 332.000 167.000 86.500

20 Gram 10 Gram 5 Gram

SELL CASH 296.600 750.620 3.710 286.900 554.300 46.000 49.700 167.600 48.290 367.500 37.110 5.490 0.032 0.161 0.248 3.630 399.980 0.191 95.340 45.000 4.340 236.900 1.828

49.900 733.150 3.080 7.050 78.070 75.360 232.780 36.440 2.688 456.800 43.400 304.000 4.200 9.530 198.263 76.960 282.800 1.360

732.970 2.949 6.902 77.640 75.360 232.780 36.440 2.163 454.800 302.500 4.200 9.380

SELL DRAFT 297.100 750.620 3.453 287.400

232.800 46.200 366.000 36.960 5.220 0.031

3.280 235.400

77.490 75.245 397.945 46.239 2.163 5.221 2.940 3.454 6.839 692.485 4.505 9.255 4.380 3.360 92.045

Kuwait Bahrain Intl Exchange Co.

GOLD 10 Tola 1,830.180 TRAVELLER’S CHEQUE 454.000 282.200

Sterling Pound US Dollar

COUNTRY Australian Dollar Canadian Dollar Swiss Franc Euro US Dollar 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

SELL DRAFT 296.66 289.75 305.02 366.02 281.80 455.70 3.59 3.469 5.202 2.157 3.265 2.946 76.79 750.34 46.11 401.47 733.41 77.82 75.36

SELL CASH 297.000 285.000 306.000 370.000 282.350 458.000 3.690 3.600 5.550 2.320 3.750 3.150 77.350 749.600 48.200 399.000 740.000 77.850 75.750

Dollarco Exchange Co. Ltd 399.940 0.190 95.340

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

76.880 282.200

UAE Exchange Centre WLL

Bahrain Exchange Company 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 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

US Dollar Canadian Dollar Sterling Pound Euro Swiss Frank Bahrain Dinar UAE Dirhams

282.300 284.645 453.370 363.115 300.535 747.385 76.835

Currency Rate per 1000 (Tran) US Dollar 282.300 Pak Rupees 2.947 Indian Rupees 5.225 Sri Lankan Rupees 2.175 Bangladesh Taka 3.470 Philippines Peso 6.880 UAE Dirhams 76.880 Saudi Riyals 75.440 Bahraini Dinars 750.500 Egyptian Pounds 46.245 Pound Sterling 458.000 Indonesian Rupiah 2.990 Yemeni Riyal 1.550 Euro 367.800 Canadian Dollars 289.700 Nepali rupee 3.345

Al Mulla Exchange Currency Transfer Rate (Per 1000) US Dollar 282.050 Euro 364.000 Pound Sterling 453.950 Canadian Dollar 285.800 Japanese Yen 3.550 Indian Rupee 5.175 Egyptian Pound 46.170 Sri Lankan Rupee 2.163 Bangladesh Taka 3.462 Philippines Peso 6.840 Pakistan Rupee 2.936 Bahraini Dinar 751.300 UAE Dirham 76.800 Saudi Riyal 75.300 *Rates are subject to change

23

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2012

BUSINESS

Fear holding back global recovery, says Canada PM WEF focuses on growth strategies

AMSTERDAM: An employee arrives at the Dutch bank ING in Amsterdam yesterday. —AFP

ING cuts 2,350 jobs, posts profit plunge THE HAGUE: Dutch bank ING yesterday said it would cut a further 2,350 jobs in the coming years as it announced a sharp drop in net profits for the third quarter. Some 1,350 jobs would go from its insurance branch in Europe by the end of 2014, saving 200 million euros ($257 million) a year, while 1,000 posts would be axed from its banking branch from 2015, saving 260 million euros, ING said. Net profit for the third quarter reached just 609 million euros ($784 million), sharply down from the 1.69 billion euros posted for the same period a year ago.

The results were lower than analyst forecasts of 831 million euros as polled

by Dow Jones Newswires. “As we work to solidify strong stand-alone futures for bank and insurance, we are taking steps to increase our agility in this uncertain

environment,” CEO Jan Hommen was quoted as saying in a statement. The Dutch banking group had already in November 2011 announced that it would shed 2,000 jobs from its banking operations in the Netherlands in 2012 and 2013 in order to save 300 million euros a year.

The European Commission has told ING to restructure its business, as the Dutch firm seeks to repay 10 billion euros in state aid it received in October 2008 during the financial crisis. ING said it was making good progress in talks with the Commission over lightening the burden of restructuring. CEO Hommen said in a teleconference that the group was also “making strides” towards floating its US insurance branch. “The market has become better,” he said. —AFP

NEW DELHI: Fear of a 2008-style financial catastrophe is holding back the global recovery but business must be more confident and seek out investment opportunities, Canada’s prime minister said yesterday. “We can’t get over the overhang” of the financial crisis that followed the collapse of US investment powerhouse house Lehman Brothers, the Canadian leader said in a speech inaugurating the Indian World Economic Forum in New Delhi.

Businesses worldwide are refraining from investing because they fear a “catastrophic event” that will “send everything into a tailspin”, said Harper, adding that this “continues to restrain the global recovery”. He called such fears overblown and urged financial decision-makers to display more confidence in making investments and help repair the global economy. “Don’t worry about today’s uncertainty-look at the opportunities over the medium term,” said Harper, noting this was the strategy being pursued by Canada whose growth is the best among leading industrialised nations.

There are signs of rising global trade protectionism like that which hampered recovery from the Great Depression in the 1930s and which could still push the world into a prolonged recession, Harper conceded. “But it (protectionism) is not an avalanche-it is not yet something to panic about,”

Harper told business leaders who are discussing ways to boost India’s faltering economic growth.

“Most leaders get it on the big picture” that protectionism will harm rather than help their economies, he said. He added that

came a day after the countries clinched an agreement opening the door to Canadian exports of nuclear supplies to the energyhungry South Asian nation.

The pact ends almost four decades of awkward relations

exports, Harper said.

“Our foreign investment negotiations have come much of the way but we have to be serious about getting them across the finish line,” he said. He compared the countries to lovers depicted in

GURGAON: World Economic Forum (WEF) Managing director Borge Brende (left) listens as Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper speaks during the WEF meeting yesterday. —AP a comprehensive deal in the Doha round of world trade talks is out of reach for now and Canada instead is negotiating multilateral and bilateral trade deals with countries such as India. Canada expects to conclude a free trade pact with India next year. Harper’s speech

after India used Canadian nuclear technology to stage its first atomic test, and will allow Canadian uranium to be used to power Indian reactors. Canada is aware it can no longer rely solely on traditional big commercial partners as the United States to be markets for its

India’s Bollywood movies who must overcome obstacles to get together. “There is a kind of parallel to Canada and India and the typical Bollywood plot,” he said.

“We have to work determinedly to get to the happy ending we want.” —AFP

Shopping or just browsing?

India’s Big Data firms know BANGALORE: Shopping in a US department store? Surveillance cameras may be watching, and not because you might be a shoplifter. In minutes, video of which aisles you visited, what products you picked up and put down, what you bought and the displays that caught your fancy will be sent to a company in Bangalore, India.

“These logs can be analysed to determine propensity to purchase, what a customer’s intent, satisfaction, sentiment is,” said Dhiraj Rajaram, CEO of Mu Sigma, which says it is among the world’s biggest pure-play data analytics companies. The business of storing, decoding and analysing unstructured data - think video, Facebook updates, Tweets, Internet searches and public cameras - along with mountains of facts and figures can help companies increase profits, cut costs and improve service, and is now one of the world’s hottest industries.

It’s called Big Data, and although much of the work is done in the United States, India is getting an increasing slice of the action, re-energising an IT sector whose growth has begun to falter. One reason for the emergence of Big Data as India’s next big thing in IT is the dramatic fall in the costs of storing and working with huge volumes of data with the advent of cloud computing and open-source software programmes such as Hadoop.

“There are hundreds of (analytics) boutiques in India right now. Every other week I hear some of my friends have started on their own,” said Santosh Nair, who quit a job in an IT services provider four months ago to open Analytic Edge. The Bangalore firm has studied pharmacy sales, population trends and other data to help a US funeral company pinpoint areas for its marketing campaigns.

Services nation Others are getting into the business of data storage and processing as costs plummet. “It doesn’t mean I need a server which has 50 terabytes of space. Cloud technology helps me rent space which is cheap,” Nair said. “Ten terabytes of space might cost me about $500 a month. It’s not expensive.” That amount of data is equivalent to about 20,000 hours of CD-quality music. Globally, data output last year was estimated at 1.8 zettabytes - 1.8 billion terabytes, or the equivalent of 200 billion full-length highdefinition movies.

Millions of networked sensors in cameras, mobile phones and other devices, along with spiralling output from social media sites, are contributing to the data explosion, said a report on Big Data last year by the McKinsey Global

Institute. This has great potential for businesses, it said.

“We are on the cusp of a tremendous wave of innovation, productivity and growth, as well as new modes of competition and value capture all driven by Big Data as consumers, companies, and economic sectors exploit its potential.” As India stakes its claim in the knowledge-intensive business of Big Data, however, it stands to lose much of the cost advantage that helped it to dominate business-process outsourcing.

Instead, industry officials say, India’s success will depend on its large numbers of mathssavvy IT engineers and the skills its IT industry has picked up over 15 years as the world’s biggest outsourcing destination. “The Indian cost benefit is eroding significantly,” said Mahinder Mathrani, operating partner at the Symphony Technology Group, a Palo Alto, California-based private equity firm that is in the software and services field. “In the big data analytics space, it will be more about talent arbitrage,” he said. “Good statisticians who have a blend of business acumen and analytic skills and also technical aptitude aren’t inexpensive, even in India.”

Pool of talent India’s pool of talent will be in demand, with data analytics specialists seen globally in short supply for years to come as Big Data takes off.

But the Indian industry also believes it will gain an advantage from its broader expertise in services. “We are a services nation,” said Sundararaman Viswanathan, a manager at Zinnov, a software consultancy in Bangalore.

“For example, we had the Internet and we built the outsourcing industry around it. We are extremely good at it.”

“We can build a service which is around asking the right questions, and putting together the insights and giving it to the customer.” India’s National Association of Software and Services Companies (Nasscom) forecasts that the Big Data business in India will be worth as much as $1.2 billion within three years, a six-fold increase from current levels. That would be double the growth rate it expects for Big Data worldwide: to $25 billion from $8.25 billion.

“It’s an industry where, because of cost, skill, language and ability to learn, India stands a very, very strong advantage,” said Rajeev Baphna, CEO of Bangalore-based data services company Analyttica. “India started to focus on creating a space in this field by leveraging a number of advantages it has: One, talent; two, the ability to have a very strong process-driven delivery at lower costs that the services industry

has mastered.” It’s not just boutique firms that have entered the field. The giants of India’s outsourcing such as Infosys Ltd and Wipro Ltd have also moved into the Big Data business, but smaller firms may be better placed to deliver.

“The larger, well-established companies have a challenge,” said Symphony Technology’s Mathrani. “Their existing business models preclude them from being nimble. This is not about migrating work already being done somewhere else. It’s about solving business problems for which no specification exists.”

Growth in outsourcing Globally, Big Data is used in a multitude of applications. IBM Corp has a team of 5,000 crunching data to help oil companies find, extract and process oil more efficiently. General Electric Co said in May it could spend up to $1.5 billion to acquire data analytics companies, aiming to mine multiple data points and find ways to extend how long gas turbines, jet engines and other heavy equipment can run without unscheduled maintenance. In retail, the scope of Big Data is enormous. McKinsey has estimated that a retailer using Big Data to the full, including trends from social media such as Twitter and Facebook, can increase operating margins by more than 60 percent.

Healthcare, insurance, banking and other financial services are also big users. For India’s IT industry as a whole, the surge in Big Data comes at an opportune moment. India’s exports of software and IT services, which make up the outsourcing industry, should grow 11 to 14 percent to $77 billion to $79 billion in the year ending March 2013, according to Nasscom. But this is a tapering off from 20-plus percent growth a few years ago.

In addition, outsourcing and offshoring in the financial industry - about 30 percent of the total - has come under fire and will likely face stricter supervision after recent lapses involving offshore units in India. These include accusations by the New York State banking regulator in August that Standard Chartered Plc hid $250 billion in transactions with Iran and that the entire foreign asset compliance process of its New York branch was outsourced to Chennai, India, with no evidence of any oversight or communication between the Chennai and New York offices. In Big Data, however, while the revenue numbers are still small, the mood is upbeat. “We think this is just the tip of the iceberg,” said Rajaram at Mu Sigma. “The world is only going to change faster and faster and faster. There will be more data, more algorithms, more applications, more new technologies.” —AP

Libya’s NOC targets 1.72m bpd oil VIENNA: Libya’s National Oil Corporation (NOC) aims to boost oil output to 1.72 million barrels per day (bpd) by the end of March next year, its chairman said yesterday, but warned of the risk that strikes could interrupt production.

OPEC member Libya has lifted production much faster than analysts had expected after last year’s civil war to a current level of around 1.6 million barrels per day. But in recent months activists and local militia have sought to pursue political aims by disrupting operations in Libya’s main industry and in July forced

the closure of three major oil terminals.

“We had some drops in production.

Welcome to democracy and freedom of expression. We had strikes and we expect more of that, but it is a healthy thing,” NOC Chairman Nuri Berruien said at the North Africa Oil and Gas Summit.

He added on the sidelines of the conference that protests at the Zawiya refinery near Tripoli earlier this week had forced a one-day shutdown at the 200,000 bpd El Sharara field. The refinery also was halted due to the protests and has resumed operations, according to a refinery spokesman.

New licences Berruien said future rises in oil production would mostly come from existing fields. Libya will aim to boost production to 2.2 million bpd within five years, he said. “We strongly believe a large amount of our future oil can be in already targeted mature fields,” he said, adding that high oil prices and technological advances created a favourable environment. He said the country also would explore its potential to produce unconventional gas, such as shale.

NOC plans to proceed next year with Libya’s fourth licensing round,

known as the Exploration Production and Sharing Agreement (EPSA), Berruien said without providing details. Investing in new refining capacity will also be a priority for the NOC, he added. Despite being one of Africa’s top oil producers, Libya relies on imports for around three quarters of its gasoline consumption. “We plan to upgrade and increase the capacities of existing refineries and to study different options of adding new refineries to increase gasoline and diesel with good specifications,” he told the conference. —Reuters

DALLAS: In this photo, the outside of a Macy’s store is shown. Macy’s Inc’s fiscal fourth-quarter net income surged 50 percent, driven by a strong holiday selling season. —AP

France to give $25bn tax break PARIS: France’s government has promised $25 billion in tax credits to businesses as part of a “competitiveness pact” that it hopes will spark innovation and lower unemployment - but falls short of calls in a recent report for a “shock” to the economy. The announcement of the plan Tuesday came a day after a governmentcommissioned report - by Louis Gallois, former head of Airbus parent EADS - said the country’s ailing economy needed a big kick to stay globally competitive.

Prime Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault said the government’s plan, which includes a $500 million fund to help struggling small businesses, would put the country “back at the heart of the world economy.”

“This new French model will consist of finding a way back to creating jobs and will no longer be financed by permanent deficits,” he said.

However, the government plan has fallen short of some of the recommendations in the Gallois report and raises fears that the Socialist administration of President Francois Hollande is not doing enough to revitalize the French economy.

For example, the $20 billion tax credit is to be implemented over three years with $10 billion available in 2013 and the rest split over the following two years.

Gallois recommended in his report for the government that the breaks should happen over one or two years to have the maximum effect.

The measure also takes the form of an income tax credit, rather than a reduction in the social charges employers pay on salaries, as Gallois had suggested. The government argues that its method is designed to have immediate impact, while deferring payment until 2014 when next year’s tax bill comes due. That, however, assumes that companies will start spending and hiring right away in anticipation of the credit.

France faces several major economic challenges, including an unemployment rate of 10.8 percent, and labor regulations that make firing so difficult it has discouraged hiring. Growth has ground to a halt, and several major companies

have announced thousands of layoffs in recent weeks. France has largely sidestepped the massive budget cuts and reforms undertaken by its neighbors, despite having one of the world’s highest proportions of state spending. Unions and companies are currently in discussions to overhaul the labor market - but the issues are so touchy in France that it’s unclear how far they’ll go.

Gallois warned in his report that the biggest problem in France is that because of high labor costs, companies have to slash prices in order to compete. Without high profit margins, companies have very little to invest in product innovation and quality. Ayrault promised that the pact would give companies more room to maneuver and address this problem.

The government’s plan focuses on small businesses, often the motors of innovation and employment. It calls for small businesses to receive special help to compete internationally, and billions of euros in a new public investment bank will be reserved for smaller companies.

The government also promised to reduce red tape and to limit changes to its tax and other policies over the next five years. France has a very complex tax code - a major thorn in the side of companies, especially small ones that spend tremendous resources to figure out what they owe.

Half of the money will come from spending cuts between 2014 and 2015.

However, Ayrault did not detail what would be cut. The rest will come from new taxes, including a hike to most sales taxes apart from basics like food which will benefit from a cut - in 2014. The new measure follows a similar plan by former President Nicolas Sarkozy to lower the tax burden on companies via a blanket increase in sales tax. At the time, the Socialists campaigned against the plan and one of their first moves in office was to scrap it. The new government’s plan is similar, but lowers the sales tax on basic necessities, a move the Socialists hope will ensure the poorest people aren’t unduly burdened. —AP

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2012

business

ME buyers snap up luxury London homes LONDON: Middle Eastern buyers piled into London’s luxury home market in October as they shielded their wealth from political turmoil back home, including the Syrian civil war. The trend is not new, but a sharp increase in buying last month suggests wealthy citizens in some Middle Eastern countries believe their security is continuing to deteriorate, even as politics become more stable elsewhere in the region. Buyers from countries including Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Israel and Jordan spent 50 percent more on London property in October than they did in the same month last year, paying an average 3.5 million pounds ($5.6 million), property consultant Knight Frank estimated.

Internet traffic from the Middle East to Knight Frank’s catalogue of homes in London’s priciest neighbourhoods, such as Mayfair and Knightsbridge, jumped 10 percent in the year to October. “Things are precarious between Israel and its neighbours and the turmoil in Syria is frightening,” said Andrew Langton, chairman of high-end estate agent Aylesford International. “People are wondering ‘where next?’...They realise they had better find somewhere

else to live.” London’s relatively stable political climate and transparent legal and financial systems have made it a target for many overseas investors looking to park their wealth. Prices for the best homes have risen 52 percent from a post-credit crisis low in March 2009. The city’s attraction among Middle Eastern buyers heightened after the Arab Spring uprisings last year, which toppled governments in Egypt, Tunisia and Libya, and it has lingered via the civil war in Syria.

Political stability has begun returning to some countries, such as Egypt since June’s election of Islamist president Mohamed Morsi. But the latest London home buying figures suggest outflows of money may be increasing from some other nations.

In October, Lebanon’s intelligence chief was killed in a car bombing that the country’s political opposition has blamed on Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad. Late last month Jordan said it had foiled an Al-Qaeda plot to bomb its capital.

A collapse of Iran’s rial currency in late September and early October, triggered by Western economic sanctions against Tehran over its disputed nuclear

programme, may have accelerated capital flight from that country. “Events such as the Arab Spring and the Syrian conflict have created more instability and uncertainty and you see greater demand from people looking for safe haven assets,” said Liam Bailey, Knight Frank’s head of residential research.

High-profile High-profile buyers this year include Egyptian mobile network billionaire Naguib Sawiris, according to two people with knowledge of the transaction; he paid about 37 million pounds for a flat in Knightsbridge, British media reported. One of London’s most expensive homes currently on the market is a 45-bedroom mansion that belonged to former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Al-Hariri until his assassination in 2005. It is on sale for a price tag of between 200 and 300 million pounds, property agents said.

As overseas buyers flee political strife at home and protect themselves from reprisals, safety measures such as panic rooms and gun safes have become more popular in new high-end London homes.

Luxury development One Hyde Park has panic rooms and bulletproof windows. The project was financed by a joint venture that includes a company owned by the prime minister of Qatar.

In addition to homes, Middle Eastern sovereign wealth funds such as the Qatar Investment Authority have spent billions of pounds on offices and shops in London, including the development of Britain’s tallest skyscraper, the Shard. Qatar was the top sovereign wealth buyer of European property in the 12 months to August, spending 3.5 billion euros ($4.6 billion) on eight deals including the London Olympic athletes’ village and a mall on Paris’ Champs Elysees, data from research firm Real Capital Analytics showed.

Some market participants, such as Development Securities , have warned that overseas demand for London’s luxury homes could be hit hard when demand for the city’s safe haven role eventually eases. A May report by the property developer warned that London luxury home prices could halve if the euro zone broke up, since the appeal of sterling might disappear as weaker European currencies created bargains elsewhere. — Reuters

Saudi up for sixth day as banks rally Gulf markets mixed MIDEAST STOCKS DUBAI: Banks lifted Saudi Arabia’s measure to a six-week closing high, helping the market end positively on the week amid post-Eid investor optimism, while other Gulf markets were mixed.

Most of the Saudi banking stocks gained after shareholders in Mohammed AlMojil Group (MMG) rejected the construction company’s liquidation. Local banks are exposed to about 1.1 billion riyals of the group’s debt.

Saudi British Bank (SABB) jumped 4.3 percent and Banque Saudi Fransi rose 2.9 percent and Samba Financial Group added 2.6 percent. “This is a positive sign for the banks in terms of provisions,” said Mohammad Omran, a Riyadh-based independent analyst. “If they success in the restructuring, this would be a positive to reverse or need provisions.” Saudi Basic Industries Corp ticked up 0.6 percent,while most other petrochemicals stocks decline The kingdom’s index gained 0.3 percent to finish at its highest level since Sept 25.

It closes the week 2.2 percent higher, gaining in the usual pattern of post-Eid gains. The market faces a psychological

resistance at 7,000 levels but Bruce Powers, head of research and analysis at Trust Securities, said the market could break that barrier. “(The Saudi index) has been putting in a bottom over past few months. It could get up to 7,409, which is the 61.8 percent retracement of the larger downtrend from the April high (7,944),” he said.

Elsewhere, Dubai’s bourse slipped 0.7 percent to a five-week low as investors booked recent gains. The market on Oct 18 hit a five-month high. Analysts said it was due for a technical correction downwards before continuing higher, as outlook on technicals and fundamentals remains bullish. “We still remain bullish on Dubai - we feel the domestic economic picture is improving and credit conditions remain benign,” said Anastasios Dalgiannakis, institutional trading manager at Mubasher.

Drake & Scull and Dubai Financial Market fell 1 percent each and Emaar Properties slipped 0.8 percent. In Abu Dhabi, the benchmark was little moved.

Shares in Dana Gas rose 4.9 percent, rallying for a second session on optimism

regarding its missed sukuk maturity. The energy firm said it had reached a restructuring deal “in principle” to repay a $1 billion sukuk, potentially averting seizure of its assets.

The initial reaction to the stock price could see a reversal. “This is negative for equity holders but it’s hard to fully assess the situation without details,” said Dalgiannakis. “The element of a new convertible sukuk increases the risk of dilution for share holders and the new ordinary sukuk increases the risk of Dana adding further assets (such as those in Kurdistan) as security.” Aldar Properties and Sorouh Real Estate each slipped 1.5 percent despite posting gains in quarterly profit. The companies said their government-backed merger talks were at an advanced stage. “We have positive results from both developers but stock prices are not moving based on fundamentals - they are moving on the merger expectations,” said Ali Adou, portfolio manager at The National Investor. Elsewhere, Kuwait’s measure rose 0.3 percent, while Qatar ended flat. — Reuters

Cosmetics giant L’Oreal opens Indonesia plant JABABEKA: Cosmetics giant L’Oreal yesterday opened its biggest factory in the world in Indonesia, as it seeks to profit from strong demand for beauty products in fast-growing Asia. The French group, the world’s biggest cosmetics company, said the factory outside Jakarta would churn out 200 million products next year, with the potential to raise its output to 500 million. Joechen Zaumseil, L’Oreal vice-president for Asia-Pacific, said the 100 million euros ($130 million) plant in the Jababeka industrial zone would be its “production hub for Southeast Asia”.

He said the company planned to double the number of its customers worldwide from its current level of one billion, and it hoped the majority of those new clients would be in Asia.

L’Oreal hailed Indonesia and Southeast Asia as “the new frontier of growth” its Asian sales have jumped by around 20 percent between January and September to 3.2 billion euros. The huge new factory covers 66,000 square metres (710,000 square feet) and will have several hundred employees. It will export 70 percent of its output to Southeast Asia, with the rest destined for the Indonesian market, the country’s Industry Minister Mohamad S Hidayat said at an opening ceremony.

The increasing demand for beauty products is driven by a growth in Indonesia’s middle-class, as Southeast Asia’s biggest economy maintains a strong growth rate above six percent, even as the global economy stumbles.

L’Oreal has seen its Indonesian sales grow 30 percent a year on average in the past four years-the fastest growth it has enjoyed in any Asian country, Zaumseil said.

The cosmetics market in Indonesia, where L’Oreal has had a presence since 1986, is currently worth $1.5 billion, out of a total of $47 billion for the whole of Asia, he said. “In 10 years, Indonesia will be in the top three markets in Asia-Pacific,” he said, adding that the country would have 90 million new consumers in 10 to 15 years.

He said L’Oreal wanted 60 million of them to use its products.

More production facilities would be needed in Asia in the next three to five years to cope with growing demand, he said, but stressed that factories would also be opened elsewhere, noting that sites had been set up recently in Russia and Mexico.

Jean-Philippe Blanpain, vice-president

CIKARANG, West Java: Employees work at L’Oreal’s new factory in Cikarang, West Java, yesterday. — AFP for operations at L’Oreal, said there were no plans to close production facilities in wealthier countries and shift production to places where it would be cheaper. “We have a strategy to produce regionally. In principle,

we will keep the number of factories that we currently have in Europe the same,” he said. “We make 25 percent of our luxury products in France, where we sell only 10 percent (of our goods).” — AFP

UK regulator takes tough stance on Barclays issue LONDON: Britain’s financial regulator is taking a hard line on a type of debt being sold by Barclays to protect its capital position, as bondholders will be wiped out if the bank’s core capital ratio falls below 7 percent. That is regarded as a high “trigger” point for so-called “contingent capital” (CoCo) bonds, which allow banks to shore up their balance sheets if their finances significantly weaken, and could increase the interest rate Barclays has to pay on the bonds to attract investors. The bonds will be wiped out if Barclays’ core Tier 1 capital falls below 7 percent of its risk-weighted assets and will not - as is the case with some CoCo bonds - be converted into shares, according to the preliminary prospectus of the issue reported by IFR, a Thomson Reuters publication.

The prospectus follows a long period of negotiations between Barclays and the Financial Services Authority (FSA). Regulators are requiring banks to strengthen their capital positions to prevent a repeat of the 2008 financial crisis, when several had to be bailed out by taxpayers. The Swiss regulator has given Credit Suisse and UBS a choice of triggers at 5 percent and 7 percent for CoCo bonds, allowing them

to decide whether to pay a higher interest rate or not.

“We’re in a fairly favourable window and there should be reasonable demand, but the 7 percent trigger is going to be the most difficult part of this to sell,” said CreditSights analyst Simon Adamson of the Barclays issue.

“What investors will have to look at is the probability of Barclays losing that much capital that it risks triggering it.”

After several false starts, Barclays is optimistic it can sell the CoCos. Finance Director Chris Lucas said last week it had made progress in getting agreement with the FSA, and he is leading a roadshow to attract investors currently underway. The details of the issue will be set once the roadshow ends.

Barclays plans to launch the issue this month, and the bonds will have a maturity of 10 years. The offer is likely to be denominated in U.S. dollars and the bank could look to sell about $2 billion of the bonds, analysts and bankers said. US and Asian institutions, private banking clients and hedge funds are seen as the most likely buyers. Many European insurers, pension funds and other traditional debt buyers appear cautious about the higher risk, higher return product. —Reuters

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2012

BUSINESS

The economy Obama faces: Slow but gaining steadily Federal Reserve expects unemployment to be high

ZHUZHOU: In this photo, workers assemble cars at the factory of BAIC Motor Corporation in South China. — AP

China auto firms in ‘strategic alliance’ SHANGHAI: Two major Chinese auto manufacturers said they have formed a strategic alliance, as China seeks to consolidate the industry and create national champions able to better compete with foreign players. China is the world’s largest auto market but foreign brands dominate, helped by better brand recognition and a technological edge.

Guangzhou Automobile Group Co (GAC) and Chery Automobile Co signed the broad cooperation agreement in Beijing on Tuesday, according to a joint statement.

GAC was the country’s sixth-largest automaker by sales for the first nine months of this year, while Chery ranked ninth, according to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers. The two would cooperate on developing entire vehicles, powertrains and other key components, as well as “new energy” vehicles, the statement said, claiming it would be the first such union in the domestic industry. China has made the development of new energy vehicles, such as fully electric cars and hybrids, a priority but customers are lacking.

GAC, based in the southern city of Guangzhou, and Chery, from the eastern province of Anhui, would also cooperate in

areas such as international operations and production management, the statement said, but gave no details. The companies said the alliance would make them more competitive and allow them to pool resources, which could help cut costs. “This will contribute to a higher level of core competitiveness for China’s auto industry and the development of the entire auto industry,” they said.

Chery-known for its small, low-priced carshas just received approval for a joint venture with Jaguar Land Rover, owned by India’s Tata Motors, to make and sell luxury cars in China.

GAC has joint ventures with a number of foreign companies, including Japan’s Honda and Toyota, as well as Italy’s Fiat. The move came amid a slowdown in China’s auto industry over the last two years. China’s auto sales rose just 2.5 percent to 18.51 million units last year, compared with an annual increase of more than 32 percent in 2010. In the first nine months of this year, the country’s vehicle sales rose 3.4 percent year-on-year to 14.1 million units. Sales have been weak this year as China’s economy has slowed and a territorial row with Japan hurt demand for Japanesebrand vehicles, though other brands have moved to grab their market share. — AFP

WASHINGTON: Some reward. Here’s the assignment President Barack Obama has won with his re-election: Improve an economy burdened by high unemployment, stagnant pay, a European financial crisis, slowing global growth and US companies still too anxious to expand much.

And, oh yes, an economy that risks sinking into another recession if Congress can’t reach a budget deal to avert tax increases and deep spending cuts starting in January.

Yet the outlook isn’t all grim. Signs suggest that the next four years will coincide with a vastly healthier economy than the previous four, which overlapped the Great Recession. Obama has said he would help create jobs by preserving low income tax rates for all except high-income Americans, spending more on public works and giving targeted tax breaks to businesses.

He used his victory speech in Chicago to emphasize that the economy is recovering and promised action in the coming months to reduce the government’s budget deficit, overhaul the tax system and reform immigration laws. The jobs picture has already been improving gradually. Employers added a solid 171,000 jobs in October. Hiring was also stronger in August and September than first thought.

Cheaper gas and rising home prices have given Americans the confidence to spend slightly more. Retailers, auto dealers and manufacturers have been benefiting. That said, most economists predict the improvement will remain steady but slow. The unemployment rate is 7.9 percent. Obama was re-elected Tuesday night with the highest unemployment rate for any incumbent president since Franklin Roosevelt.

Few think the rate will return to a normal level of 6 percent within the next two years. The Federal Reserve expects unemployment to be 7.6 percent or higher throughout 2013.

Economists surveyed last month by The Associated Press said they expected the economy to grow a lackluster 2.3 percent next year, too slight to generate strong job growth. From July through September, the economy grew at a meager 2 percent annual rate. Part of the reason is that much of Europe has sunk into recession.

Leaders there are struggling to defuse a debt crisis and save the euro currency. Europe buys 22 percent of America’s exports, and US companies have invested heavily there. Any slowdown in Europe dents US exports and corporate profits.

And China’s powerhouse economy is decelerating, slowing growth across Asia and beyond.

Most urgently, the US economy will fall over a “fiscal cliff” without a budget deal by year’s end.

Spending cuts and tax increases of about $1.2

trillion will start to kick in. The combination of those measures would likely trigger a recession and drive unemployment up to 9 percent next year, according to estimates by the Congressional Budget Office. Many US employers are wary of expanding or hiring until that potential crisis is averted. That’s why analysts have said resolving, or at least delaying, the fiscal cliff should be the most urgent economic priority for the White House.

In the longer run, analysts are more optimistic. Americans are feeling generally better about the economy. Measures of consumer confidence are at or near five-year highs. And the main reason unemployment rose from 7.8 percent in September to 7.9 percent in October was that more people felt it was a good time to look for work. Most found jobs. Those who didn’t were counted as unemployed. (The government counts people without jobs as unemployed only if they’re looking for one.)

A brighter outlook among consumers is due, in part, to a steady increase in home prices after a painful six-year slump. Higher home prices can help create a “wealth effect,” making homeowners feel richer and spurring more spending.

Banks are also more likely to lend freely when home prices rise because homes are more likely to hold their value. Americans have also been shrinking debts and saving slightly more.

Household debt as a percentage of after-tax

NEW YORK: In this file photo, a man cleans up his store damaged by Hurricane Sandy, in New York’s South Street Seaport. — AP

Rich move valuables East LONDON: This picture shows a Burberry shop in central London. — AFP

Burberry announces slide in net profits LONDON: British luxury clothing and accessories firm Burberry yesterday said its net profits slumped by more than a quarter in the group’s first half following a sizeable one-off charge. Burberry said profit after tax dropped to £85 million ($136 million, 106 million euros) in the six months to September 30 compared with net earnings of £117.2 million in the first half of its 2011/12 financial year.

The group was hit by a one-off charge of £73.8 million related to the termination of a fragrance and beauty licence deal.

Burberry had meanwhile in September warned that its second-quarter earnings were impacted amid economic slowdown in key market China. The company, famous for its trench coats and trademark red, camel and black check design, added yesterday that profit before tax and exceptional items grew by 7.0 percent to £173.4 million during its first-half.

That beat analysts’ consensus forecast of £169 million, according to a survey by Dow Jones Newswires. Revenues grew 6.0 percent to £882.5 million. “Given the company’s leverage to China, either directly or through Chinese tourists visiting Europe,

we see the recent improvement in Chinese economic data as very positive for Burberry’s prospects,” Dolmen stockbrokers said in a note to clients.

Burberry’s share price fell 0.64 percent to stand at 1,244 pence in midday trading on London’s benchmark FTSE 100 index, which was up 0.20 percent at 5,896.73 points. The group also announced it was raising its interim dividend by 14 percent to eight pence a share. Burberry shares tumbled by a fifth in just one day during September, but have since recovered, after the British firm said it expected annual profits to be at the bottom end of analysts’ expectations.

Burberry was meanwhile to bring its perfume business totally in-house early next year following the end of a licence relationship with French company Interparfums. “Integrating fragrance and beauty is a significant brand and business opportunity,” Burberry chief executive Angela Ahrendts said in yesterday’s earnings statement. “One consistent brand expression, leveraged across all categories, will underpin future growth in the beauty division and our existing core business,” she added. — AFP

SINGAPORE: More of the world’s rich are moving their gold and other valuables away from the economic turmoil in the West to Asia, prompting precious asset shipping specialist Malca-Amit to rapidly expand its storage capacity in the prosperous region. Hong Kong-based Malca-Amit is one of four leading logistics companies in the world that specialise in transporting and storing precious metals. It is also the biggest diamond shipper.

Last month, the company opened Asia’s largest private vault in Hong Kong and is currently adding to its facilities in Singapore. Next year, it plans to open a vault in Shanghai, which would be its biggest in the world, a nd is also considering establishing storage in other locations in China. “We have a lot of enquiries from European banks, not because they want to move the assets necessarily to Asia, but because their clients are asking them to,” said Joshua Rotbart, general manager of Malca-Amit Precious Metals Ltd. “The clients don’t want gold held in the U.S. or Switzerland.

They want to move it here.” These clients include rich Asians who want their valuables closer to home as well as Westerners. Singapore, the well-governed city-state known for its stable economy, is so far their favoured destination.

Malca-Amit imported five times more gold to Singapore in the first half of 2012 compared to the previous six months, said Rotbart.

China’s gold fever Malca-Amit’s Singapore vaults are located in the Singapore Freeport, a privately owned secured storage facility near the airport. In one vault, silver bars each weighing 32 kgs were stacked in a locked cage, next to a cage containing gold bars sealed in anti-tampering bags. Bags of bullion coins and emeralds were lined up along the walls. “We will expand as long as the capacity of Freeport allows,” Rotbart said, as workers reinforced the walls of a newly constructed vault.

Malca-Amit rents out safety deposit boxes, which hold up to 80 kgs of goods, mostly to individual clients; stores clients’ larger holdings in the common vault, and provides designated vaults for big financial institutions. The Shanghai vault, which is scheduled to open in the second quarter of 2013, is designed to store jewels, luxury goods and fine art and will exceed the storage capacity of the company’s facilities in both Hong Kong and Singapore.—Reuters

FirstGroup freezes dividend over fiasco LONDON: Britain’s FirstGroup froze its six-month dividend yesterday after the government’s withdrawal of a major rail contract, raising the prospect of a lower full-year payout. The bus and rail operator said it had held the dividend at 7.62 pence after the British government last month tore up a deal to award it the West Coast main-line franchise after flaws were found in the bidding process.

FirstGroup chief executive Tim O’Toole said he was in talks with the government over recouping bidding expenses and other costs incurred as the company prepared to roll out the service linking London and Scotland after it was told it had won the bid. Some analysts said FirstGroup may cut its full-year payout to shareholders and push for a rights issue next year to raise money.

“The dividend will definitely be cut; and FirstGroup will have a tricky decision to take

regarding debt reduction, further asset sales and a rights issue,” said Liberum analyst Peter Hyde. The government froze the award of the West Coast line, a jewel in the crown of the UK rail network, and other rail franchise competitions after the Department for Transport (DfT) said flaws had been uncovered in its handling of bids.

Incumbent West Coast main line operator Virgin Trains, a venture between Richard Branson’s Virgin Group and Stagecoach , will continue running the service for a further nine to 13 months from December, while the DfT plans a competition for an interim agreement. “We still have an incomplete explanation from government, who clearly need to make adjustments to the mechanism they use to asses risk and changes to macroeconomic conditions between bids,” O’Toole said yesterday.

“I don’t think the franchising model is com-

income dropped from about 125 percent before the recession to 103 percent in the April-June quarter, according to the Federal Reserve’s latest data. That ratio was roughly 90 percent in the 1990s.

But thanks to record-low interest rates, the cost of repaying those debts has dropped sharply. That, in turn, will free up more money for consumers to spend on cars, appliances and other goods. Americans paid 10.7 percent of their after-tax income in interest on mortgages, credit cards and other consumer debt in this year’s April-June quarter, according to the Fed. That was down from 14 percent at the end of 2007. And it’s the lowest proportion since 1993.

“That’s 3 percentage points of disposable income that I am no longer using to pay for stuff that I bought earlier but I can instead use to buy stuff now,” noted Alan Levenson, chief economist at T Rowe Price.

Economists note that economic recoveries after financial crises tend to be painfully slow. In part, that’s because time is needed for consumers to reduce debts and for banks to recover and lend again. Paul Ashworth, an economist at Capital Economics, noted that banks have boosted lending for the past 18 months - another sign that the passage of time is helping the economy rebound. Obama “is going to have an easier time of it ... because we’re further along the road to recovery after the financial crisis,”

pletely broken and it is not something that needs months and months of work to fix.” FirstGroup said its underlying pretax profit fell 42 percent to 48.7 million pounds ($77.83 million) in the six months to the end of September. That was due to an expected fall in profit at its bus unit, which it is restructuring, and the end of some subsidies received by its rail business.

It was also hit by higher fuel costs and the absence of a one-off exceptional gain made this time last year on its UK bus pension scheme. The company said debt has risen by 244 million pounds to 2.08 billion pounds since April.

Revenue rose 2.6 percent to 3.25 billion pounds.

Shares in FirstGroup, which have fallen 40 percent this year, largely because of the West Coast rail fiasco, were 4.1 percent lower at 197.3 pence by 1013 GMT. — Reuters

Higher paper prices help Smurfit Kappa top forecast DUBLIN: Irish packaging group Smurfit Kappa posted quarterly earnings 10 percent ahead of forecast helped by stronger paper prices and a tight grip on costs, prompting it to reiterate its full-year guidance despite a weak European outlook. Like others in the packaging industry, Smurfit has been recovering from low industry price levels reached in the recession that shrank demand for consumer products such as the paper-based items it sells.

“What you’re seeing is that paper prices, kraftliner went through at 50 euros a tonne, ... that’s a help. It was also helped by less paper coming in from the States,” Smurfit’s chief financial officer Ian Curley told Reuters. He added that OCC, or waste paper, prices are continuing to rise, which will help push through further recycled price increases that are seen as necessary to restore long-term economic viability to the sector.

Smurfit, Europe’s leading producer of containerboard and corrugated packaging, said third-quarter earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) rose 6 percent year-on-year to 280 mil-

lion euros ($358 million). That compared with analysts’ average forecast of 255 million euros, and prompted some analysts to upgrade full-year estimates.

“This is a very impressive set of results ... in terms of profit growth and debt reduction - particularly in what is believed to be a very difficult economic environment in the euro zone,” said Barry Dixon, an analyst at Davy stockbrokers.

Smurfit cut debt by 10 percent year-onyear to 2.6 billion euros and shaved 20 million euros off costs in the quarter. It kept its guidance for full-year EBITDA to be in line with 2011. Smurfit snapped up a Mexican business last month for $340 million, its first major acquisition since Jefferson Smurfit merged with Kappa Packaging in 2005, heralding a new era for the business after 5years of paying down debt. Comments from Smurfit echoed an upbeat statement from UK rival DS Smith, which said it expects substantial year-on-year earnings per share growth on Tuesday. Shares in Smurfit were down 1.2 percent at 0835 GMT, underperforming the Irish market down 0.3 percent. — Reuters

Death of the cassette tape much exaggerated LONDON: The widening gap between the amount of data the world produces and our capacity to store it is giving a new lease of life to the humble cassette tape. Although consumers have abandoned the audio cassette in favour of the ubiquitous iPod, organisations with large amounts of data, from patient records to capacity-hungry video archives, have continued to use tape as a cheap and secure storage medium.

Researchers at IBM are trying to keep this 60-year old technology relevant for at least the next decade and they are getting help from rising energy costs, which are forcing companies to look for cheaper alternatives to stacks of power-hungry hard drives.

Evangelos Eleftheriou and his colleagues at IBM Research in Zurich, Switzerland, have developed a cassette just 10 cm by 10cm by 2cm that can hold about 35 terabytes of data, the equivalent of a library with 400 kilometres of bookshelves.

“It is really the greenest storage technology,” Eleftheriou told Reuters. “Tape at rest, consumes literally zero power.” Unlike hard drive storage devices, which have to be on continuously, tape systems only consume power when data is being read or recorded, giving them a carbon footprint a fraction that of their disc-based counterparts.

Latency is the biggest disadvantage.

Tapes have to be retrieved, usually by a robotic selector, and then loaded into a reading device. But for much of the world’s archived data, access time is not critical.

From legal archives and company records kept to comply with legislation like the Sarbanes Oxley Act in the United States, to data on traffic flow and weather patterns, keeping secure copies is more important than instant access.

“If you have big data then you have really big backups,” said Eleftheriou. This is borne out by an estimate from consultancy Coughlin Associates that about 400 exabytes, equal to 20 million times the content of US Library of Congress, is currently stored on tape. The new IBM cassette, originally developed with Fuji Film , packs about 29.5 billion bits on a square inch of tape using a coating made from the chemical compound barium ferrite, which maximises so-called linear density - the amount of data that can be squeezed onto a length of the tape. The other limitation is the number of tracks that can be laid down and the researchers have developed novel nanopositioning technologies that can position the read and write heads with an accuracy of 10 to 15 billionths of a metre.—Reuters

26

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2012

business

Top honors for business leaders DUBAI: Forbes ME, the Middle-East version of the leading business and economic magazine has just released the 2012 list of the region’s top Business Leaders in the Arab world that includes names from both, listed as well as private and family owned businesses. Top business leaders from across the Middle East and North Africa region, representing a multitude of industries, feature in this prestigious list. Some of the top entries in the list include Osman Sultan, CEO of Du, Abdul Razak Ali Issa, CEO - Bank Muscat, Abdulrehman Al-Fadley of Almarai, Ahmad Abdullah Abdulaziz Alzabin of ALAFCO Aviation, Fatima AlJaber, Rajah Easa Saleh Al-Gurg and Yusuffali MA, the head of Lulu EMKE Group among others.

This is the first time Forbes is featuring family and private owned business in their honor list and also the first time an Asian is being chosen. Yusuffali MA was awarded the ‘Most influential Asian Business Leader

Yusuffali MA

Kuwait Energy announces strong Q3 rise in revenue KUWAIT: Kuwait Energy, one of the fastest growing independent oil and gas exploration and production companies in the Middle East, announces an update on its financial and corporate activities during its third quarter.

Sara Akbar Highlights Q3 revenue up 24.2 percent year-onyear to $59.5 million (Q3 2011: $47.9 million) • Q3 production up 29.1 percent yearon-year to 17,520 boepd (Q3 2011: 13,568 boepd) • Q3 operating profit up 32.7 percent year-on-year to $37.7 million (Q3 2011: $28.4 million) • Q3 revenue up 12.9 percent quarteron-quarter to $59.5 million (Q2 2012: $52.7 million) • Q3 production up 3.6 percent quarteron-quarter to 17,520 boepd (Q2 2012: 16,906 boepd) • Q3 operating profit up 17.1 percent quarter-on-quarter to $37.7 million (Q2 2012: 32.2 million) • First production from the Abu Sennan concession, Egypt • Contractswere initialled for exploration, development and production at Block 9, Basra • Strategic Investment Agreement signed with Qatar First Investment Bank for a $150 million convertible debt facility • Ukraine Supreme Commercial Court rules to restore the JAA 429 agreement and to resume development operations Sara Akbar, Chief Executive Officer of Kuwait Energy, commented: “I am delighted to announce yet another special quarterly performance as we were able to regis•

ter an increase in revenues, operating profits and production. Q3also witnessed thecommencement of production from the Abu Sennan concession in Egypt following last year’s four discoveries in the area, which represents a great milestone for the Company.”

The quarter’s year-on-year increases in revenue, operating profits and production were primarily due to exploration successes of Petroshahd Company(previously East Ras Qattara concession), Egypt, development of Burg El Arab, Egypt, the start of production in Abu Sennan, Egypt and higher production from the Luzskoye field, Russia.

Financially, the Company signed a Strategic Investment Agreement during the quarter with Qatar First Investment Bank, a leading regional investor, to finance its near-term development and growth plans. The agreement is for a $150 million convertible debt facility with mandatory conversion into ordinary shares of Kuwait Energy on an IPO, of which $25 million was drawn down at the end of Q3.

The company also signed a reserve based lending facility of up to $165 million from the International Finance Corporation and Deutsche Bank, to finance its nearterm capital activities and is currently working towards financial close of this facility.

Operationally, the Company spud one exploration well during the quarter, well ASA1-X in the Abu Sennan concession, Egypt. This well was drilling at the end of the quarter. Drilling on well West-Ahmed in Area A, Egypt, which had spud during Q2 2012, was completed successfully in Q3 2012 and produced at an initial gross rate of 1,240 bopd.

13 development wells were also drilled during the quarter. This activity took place mainly in Oman (nine wells), with the remainder in Egypt, Yemen and Russia.

Kuwait Energy regained title to its 25 percent working interest in JAA 429, Ukraine, after final ruling by the Ukraine Supreme Commercial Court that restored the JAA 429 agreement to resume development operations of the Bilske and Kulychykhynske gascondensate fields located in the Poltava region.

The company also continued its CSR activities during the quarter, partnering with the Kuwait Oasis Team in the country’s largest voluntary environmental initiative, the “Kuwait Green Wall”. The company also sponsored an Iraq British Business Council conference in Baghdad with the aim of connecting Iraqi businessmen with international stakeholders.

INDIANAPOLIS: This file photo shows the corporate headquarters of WellPoint.

WellPoint said yesterday in the third quarter, it earned $691.2 million, or $2.15 per share. — AP

in the MENA region’ for his role in revolutionizing the retail sector in the region with his 104 LULU branded hypermarkets and supermarkets across the region, giving strong competition to some of the world’s top retailers.

Rajah Easa Saleh Al-Gurg, Managing Director of Easa Saleh Al-Gurg Group was honored for being the most influential Arab Woman in Family Business, while Fatima Al-Jaber got the honors for being the most influential Arab Women in Private business.

The list was unveiled at the glittering “Forbes ME CEO Forum” and gala dinner held at The Atlantis, Dubai in the presence of top business leaders and industry stalwarts. Dr Rashid Ahmed Mohammed Bin Fahad honored the top achievers and lauded their role in the economic development of the region, as well as urged them to keep supporting the young generation.

South African miners struggle for way out of shantytowns MARIKANA: Nosiphiwo Mehlwana can’t imagine moving from her one-room tin shack anytime soon.

She and her husband, a miner for the Lonmin platinum company, live in a slum across from the strike violence-scarred Marikana mine. Mine workers in South Africa endure long years on a housing waiting list and claim they usually have to pay bribes to be allocated space. “The hostels have a waiting list, it’s very difficult to live there, you always have to pay bribes,” Mehlwana said outside her shanty in Nkaneng. It overlooks a muddy veld where 34 mine workers were shot dead by police during a wildcat strike in August.

The squalid living conditions for miners were among the reasons for the bloody strike at the platinum mine in Marikana, 110 kilometres (70 miles) northwest of Johannesburg. Mehlwana’s hut is the largest of a dozen structures erected around a mucky courtyard in the sprawling Nkaneng informal settlement. There are two communal toilets and a water tap for the more than 30 inhabitants.

“It’s a kitchen, it’s a bedroom, it’s a lounge!” she jokes about her one-room dwelling. A large bed, a plastic garden chair, an electric stove, a refrigerator, a television set and a DVD player are all squeezed into a space of just 12 square metres (130 square feet). A few personal belongings are stored in cheap duffel bags and tucked away under the bed. From her door, there is a direct view of the Rowland mine shaft-one of four operated by British firm Lonmin in Marikana.

The shanty’s landlord-the first to have squatted on the piece of land in the 1990s-charges 350 rand ($40) in monthly rent, plus 100 rand ($11) for electricity. But for less rent than that, some lucky ones have moved into brick-and-mortar family units provided by the mine operator. They were recently renovated from communal hostels into one or two-bedroom apartments with a living room, a toilet and a kitchen.

“We were on a waiting list since 2005 and we only got this place last year,” said Nosimo Faleni, mother of two, whose husband has worked at the mine since 1997. “We are happy, we were in Nkaneng before.”

Under the government instituted mining charter, Lonmin has plans to build more houses, but there will not be enough for every worker. The company employs 28,000 people, and plans to provide 2,970 housing units in the next two years.

For those still in the old-style 1970s hostels, it’s an ordeal-four beds per room, no doors, no privacy.

“When it rains, we have to move the beds,” said miner Mandla Vilakazi who has lived in the hostels for four years. Most miners leave their families behind in far-flung villages in the south of the country as well as nearby nations. Food is included at the hostels, “but it is bad, and we prefer to cook by ourselves,” Vilakazi added. An electric hotplate lies on the floor near the hostel entrance for preparing their own food.

A tour of the mining town leads to Wonderkop, a sprawling township, commonly referred to as the Indigenous Village because it was originally inhabited by the Tswana ethnic group pushed there by the apartheid regime. Wonderkop streets are much brighter, lined with purple flowering jacaranda trees.

Inside Thumeka Magwangwana’s neatly painted wooden cabin is a microwave oven, a deep freezer and a flatscreen TV with a cable satellite decoder dish sprouting from the rooftop.

Yet the reality of the scarce and tough housing conditions in most mining areas is inescapable-the stench from a makeshift toilet behind the cabin, the lack of tap water. Magwangwana is unemployed but her daughter Zinzi earns 4,500 rand monthly at the Lonmin mine. After paying 520 rand in rent plus energy bills, and 1,000 towards debts, less than 3,000 rand remain to provide for Zinzi, her mother, her son and brother. There’s nothing left for the relatives back home in the impoverished Eastern Cape. “I cannot send any money to my family. I feel very ashamed, it’s a disgrace,” said Magwangwana. — AFP

Time posts higher Q3 profit NEW YORK: Time Warner Inc posted a higher third-quarter profit yesterday as growth in its cable networks offset declines in its film and TV entertainment business. Net income for the company, which owns a host of cable networks, premium TV service HBO, magazines and a movie studio, rose to $838 million, or 86 cents a share, from $822 million, or 78 cents a share, a year earlier.

The results beat the analystsí average estimate of 82 cents per share compiled by Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S. Revenue fell 3 percent to $6.84 billion. Analysts were expecting $6.89 billion. The

company affirmed its full-year outlook, which calls for earnings growth, excluding special items, at a low double-digit percentage rate from $2.89 a share last year. Analysts have forecast $3.20.

A day earlier, Time Warner peer Discovery Communications Inc cut its revenue outlook for the year. Also on Tuesday, media company News Corp reported strength in its cable unit, lifted by growth at regional sports networks, the FX cable network and Fox news channel. Time Warner logged a 4 percent revenue increase at its networks division, which includes TNT, TBS, HBO and

CNN. But the growth stemmed from subscription revenue from cable operators, while advertising in the segment fell 1 percent.

Revenue at the film and TV entertainment unit dropped 12 percent, or $400 million, from a year earlier, when the company released ‘Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2,’ the final installment in the fantasy series. Revenue in the publishing unit, whose titles include Time and Sports Illustrated, declined 6 percent, or $51 million, as advertising sales and subscription revenue fell. — Reuters

NBK ‘Best Managed Company in ME 2012’ KUWAIT: National Bank of Kuwait (NBK) was recognized as the Best Managed Company in the Middle East in the banking and finance sector in Euromoney’s annual survey of the best managed companies in the world.

Hundreds of investors and analysts at major banks and research houses in the world have voted NBK as the best managed company in the Middle East in the banking and finance sector based on market strength, profitability, growth potential

and quality of management and earnings.

NBK has consistently been awarded the highest credit ratings of all banks in the region by the major international rating agencies: Moody’s, Standard & Poor’s and Fitch Ratings. In 2012, NBK maintained its position among the 50 safest banks in the world for the sixth consecutive time. NBK ranked 34 on the list, illustrating the success of the bank’s conservative strategy, prudent risk management and dedication to service excellence.

Air Arabia passenger traffic grows 22% SHARJAH: Air Arabia, the first and largest low-cost carrier (LCC) in the Middle East and North Africa, announced that it has welcomed 458,316 passengers in October 2012, an increase of over 22 percent compared to the corresponding month in 2011.

The airline also reported that the average seat load factor - passengers as a percentage of total seats available - for the month stood at 80 percent, registering an increase of three per cent over the figure for October 2011.

“Combined with Eid break, which is a busy period for air travel across the region, October has seen Air Arabia adding set of new routes” said Adel Ali,

Group Chief Executive Officer, Air Arabia.

“As we continue expanding into new markets, more customers continue to take full advantage of Air Arabia’s affordable fares, demonstrating Air Arabia’s proven business model and product offering.”

Air Arabia recently added six new destinations to its ever growing network Erbil in Iraq, Uffa and Rostov in Russia, Odessa in Ukraine, Pristina in Kosovo and Astana in Kazakhstan. The carrier also expanded operations from its Moroccan hub and launched new flights between Morocco and London, bringing Air Arabia’s global network to reach 81 destinations.

Discover IKEA Kuwait’s new range KUWAIT: Now available at the IKEA Kuwait store, is a new unique range of products designed to accommodate safety, travel and leisure needs. In an effort to ensure a better life at home that would meet the simplest lifestyle demands, IKEA Kuwait developed a range that demonstrates the importance of the smallest details.

Developed into three separate ranges, the safety range comes in two categories meant for child and home safety called the Patrull series which include the anti- slip strip, bathtub mats, corner bumpers, door stops, safety plugs and much more.

Upptacka travel, the travel range divided into accessories and bags such as neck pillows, backpack on wheels, tote bags and briefcases are also available to ensure every

member enjoys a comfortable trip. Also to look forward to, is the NJUTA relax range, consisting of colorful slippers and bathrobes with the promise of many more products to come.

In addition, IKEA Family members are entitled to direct discounts on the exclusive newly designed product range throughout the year. The IKEA Family program grants its loyal customers in-store and out-of-store benefits, member privileges, added savings and convenience as well as improve their overall customer shopping experience.

Products at the IKEA Kuwait store represent the local market needs which are innovative, appealing and functional, to stand by its concept of ‘creating a better everyday life for the many people’.

27

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2012

TECHNOLOGY

Gabon to suspend new Mega upload site LIBREVILLE: Gabon’s government said yesterday it was suspending the website www.me.ga, which Internet tycoon Kim Dotcom had planned to use to launch a new version of his defunct Megaupload file-sharing site.

“I have instructed my departments... to immediately suspend the site www.me.ga,” announced Communication Minister Blaise Louembe, saying he wanted to “protect intellectual property rights”

and “fight cyber crime effectively”.

“Gabon cannot serve as a platform or screen for committing acts aimed at violating copyrights, nor be used by unscrupulous people,” the minister said.

The announcement came after Kim Dotcom unveiled plans last week to relaunch his file-sharing empire on January 20, exactly one year after he was arrested in New Zealand on online piracy charges.

The United States accuses Dotcom, a

38-year-old German national who legally changed his name from Kim Schmitz, of fraudulently making more than $175 million (135 million euros) on pirated movies, TV shows and other content.

The United States wants to extradite him to face charges of money laundering, racketeering, fraud and online copyright theft that could see him jailed for up to 20 years. Dotcom, who denies the charges, is currently free on bail in New Zealand

ahead of an extradition hearing in March.

The new site, www.me.ga, was to be hosted on Gabon’s .ga domain.

Louembe said the domain name had been allocated to someone in France who had then transferred it to Dotcom.

The minister said an investigation by his staff had found the site was set up to redirect traffic to another site hosted in France that would provide access to shared files.

The site was still online at 2100 GMT

Tuesday, with a message saying, “On January 19 this button will change the world.” Dotcom said on Twitter that he was the victim of a US-led “witch hunt” but was not concerned at Gabon’s move.

“Don’t worry. We have an alternative domain,” he tweeted to his 150,000 followers. “This just demonstrates the bad faith witch hunt the US government is on.

Dotcom did not reveal the alternative domain name. —AFP

‘Four more years’: Obama declares victory on Twitter Record number of tweets for political event

STOCKHOLM: A picture taken on October 16, 2007 shows the Ericsson Group headquarter in Kista, north of Stockholm. Swedish telecom equipment maker Ericsson announced yesterday that it intends to shed 1,550 jobs in Sweden in an effort to boost profits. —AFP

New XMPie step to integrate print, electronic media DUBAI: XMPie aims to integrate the world of print and electronic media making it easier for customers to create and produce personalized communications.

XMPie solutions is a cost effective method for businesses to reach out to their customers with personalized communications targeting each individual, enhancing response rates all the while resulting in an attractive ROI. Today as a growing software business unit of Xerox Corporation, XMPie has taken another major step to integrate the world of publishing and marketing, providing more value -services to print providers and better measurement and ROI reporting capabilities to marketing executives.

XMPie provides powerful, variable data publishing software that unites customer’s databases and creative content to help print service providers, marketing service firms, and small-to-medium sized

businesses and enterprises, leverage customer data and create personalized, multiphase campaigns that use today’s communication vehicles including print, web, email, and mobile.

XMPie is the only company offering such an extensive and integrated product line to the dynamic publishing community.

BENEFITS * Expand your reach with 1-1 marketing campaigns that span print, email, Web and mobile * Use variable data in images, graphics, and messages to grab and hold your target’s attention * Create campaigns with built-in response tracking tools and adjust messaging, offers and more on-the-fly * Build a Web store-front that allows you to offer personalized documents and e-mail campaigns

Facebook shares its Cloud Designs OREGON: If you invented something more efficient and more powerful than what came before, you might want to guard the recipe. Yet Facebook took the opposite approach after opening a 147,000-square-foot computing center in rural Oregon this April. It published blueprints for everything from the power supplies of its computers to the cooling system of the building. Other companies are now cherry-picking ideas from those designs to cut the costs of building similar facilities for cloud computing.

The Open Compute Project, as the effort to open-source the technology in Facebook’s vast data center is known, may sound altruistic. But it is an attempt to manipulate the market for large-scale computing infrastructure in Facebook’s favor. The company hopes to encourage hardware suppliers to adopt its designs widely, which could in turn drive down the cost of the server computers that deal with the growing mountain of photos and messages posted by its 750 million users. Just six months after the project’s debut, there are signs that the strategy is working and that it will lower the costs of building—and hence using—cloud computing infrastructure for other businesses, too.

Facebook’s peers, such as Google and Amazon, maintain a tight silence about how they built the infrastructure that underpins their businesses. But that stifles the flow of ideas needed to make cloud technology better, says Frank Frankovsky, Facebook’s director of technical operations. He’s working to encourage other companies to contribute improvements to Facebook’s designs.

Among the partners: chip makers Intel and AMD, which helped Facebook’s engineers tweak the design of the custom motherboards in its servers to get the best computing performance for the least electrical power use. Chinese Web giants Tencent and Baidu are also involved; after touring Facebook’s Oregon facility, Tencent’s engineers shared ideas about how to

distribute power in a data center more efficiently. Even Apple, which recently launched its iCloud service, is testing servers based on Facebook’s designs.

The project is especially timely for server makers such as Hewlett-Packard and Dell, which face a threat as business customers stop buying their own servers and instead turn to huge thirdparty cloud operations like those offered by Amazon. “IT purchasing power is being consolidated into a smaller number of very large data centers,” Frankovsky says. “The product plans and road maps of suppliers haven’t been aligned with that.”

Studying the designs of one of the biggest cloud operators can help suppliers reshape their product lines for the cloud era.

However, not everyone wants servers to run just like Facebook’s, which are designed for the demands of a giant online social network. That’s why Nebula, which offers a cloud computing platform derived from one developed at NASA, is tweaking Facebook’s designs and contributing them back to the Open Compute project. Nebula CEO Chris Kemp says this will help companies that need greater memory and computing resources, such as biotech companies running simulations of drug mechanisms.

Larry Augustin, CEO of SugarCRM, which sells open-source cloud software to help businesses manage customer relations, sees challenges for Open Compute. “There have always been efforts on open hardware, but it is much harder to collaborate and share ideas than with open software,” he says. Nevertheless, Augustin expects the era of super-secret data center technology to eventually fade, because the secrecy is a distraction for businesses. “Many Internet companies today think that the way they run a data center is what differentiates them, but it is not,” he says. “Facebook has realized that opening up will drive down data centers’ costs so they can focus on their product, which is what really sets them apart.”

WASHINGTON: President Barack Obama called it - in less than 140 characters. Around 11:15 pm, just as the networks were beginning to call the race in his favor, Obama took to Twitter to proclaim himself the winner over Republican candidate Mitt Romney. “This happened because of you. Thank you,” Obama tweeted.

That the president would take his message to Twitter beforetaking the stage in Chicago underscored the tremendous role social media platforms like Twitter played in the 2012 election.

Minutes later, with the race called in his favor, Obama tweeted again.”We’re all in this together.

That’s how we campaigned, and that’s who we are. Thank you. -bo.”

Through the course of a long and bitter presidential campaign, Twitter often served as the new first rough draft of history.

Top campaign aides used the Internet tool to snipe at each other, the candidates used it to get out their messages and political reporters used it to inform and entertain.

On Election Night, the tweets were flowing. By 10 p.m. EST, with the race still up for grabs, Twitter announced it had broken records.

There were more than 31 million election-related tweets on Tuesday night, making Election Night “the most tweeted about event in U.S. political history,” said Twitter spokeswoman Rachael Horwitz. Between 6 p.m. and midnight EST, there were more than 23 million tweets.

Horwitz noted the previous record was 10 million, during the first presidential debate on Oct. 3.

“Twitter brought people closer to almost every aspect of the election this year,” Horwitz said. “From breaking news, to sharing the experience of watching the debates, to interacting directly with the candidates, Twitter became a

kind of nationwide caucus.”

In the moments following Obama’s win, Twitter was in a frenzy, with a peak of 327,000 tweets a minute.

Another tweet from Obama, one that read: “Four more years” and showed a picture of him hugging his wife, became the most

websites or wait for the paper boy to throw the news on our porch,” Johnson said. “We go to Twitter and learn the facts before others read it.” The 2012 race was the first where Twitter played such an important role. Top campaign advisers like Romney’s Eric Fehrnstrom and Obama’s David

professor at the University of New Hampshire, said in an email.

Johnson said Twitter was the driving force behind some of the year’s biggest political news stories.

“The twitterverse shapes the news and public opinion,” Johnson said. “The Internet is truly a real and powerful tool in politics.”

PARIS: A person poses with a cell phone in front of a computer screen to check Barack Obama’s tweet yesterday in Paris after his re-election as US president. Barack Obama brought his sophisticated social media campaign to an emotional climax, proclaiming his victory on Twitter and Facebook just as TV networks were breaking the news. The post was his most re-tweeted — 472,000 shares in three hours-according to Twitter’s politics account @gov. It was also the most popular ever, topping a message from singer Justin Bieber, website BuzzFeed said. —AFP retweeted tweet in the history of the site. Love it or hate it, Twitter and its role in politics appears to be here to stay.

For Rob Johnson, campaign manager for Texas Republican Governor Rick Perry’s failed presidential run, Twitter “changed the dynamic this cycle and will continue to play a bigger role in years to come.”

“We no longer click refresh on

Axelrod engaged in Twitter battles through the year.

With many political reporters and campaign staff on Twitter and Facebook, social media websites were often the first place news broke. Some top news stories were kept alive or thrust into the headlines after becoming hot topics on Twitter.

“It was one heckuva echo chamber,” Dante Scala, a political science

In future elections, candidates and their campaign staffs will have to include social media as another battleground, Democratic strategist Jamal Simmons said.

“This was the first Twitter election and social media is now fully a part of our election mechanics,” Simmons said. “Going forward candidates must have an aggressive social media strategy if they want to win.” —Reuters

EMC underscores Cloud Service Market Commitment DUBAI: EMC Corporation (NYSE: EMC) yesterday announced a series of enhancements to the EMC Velocity Service Provider program.

The latest program elements usher in a new era of growth opportunities for EMC service provider and reselling partners to capture the potential of the cloud services market, differentiate their business in the marketplace, and provide more value to customers. As a result, the enhanced EMC Velocity Service Provider program is adapting to support current and anticipated growth in cloud services delivery and recognizing and rewarding those service provider partners that are delivering the most transformative IT value to enterprise customers.

PARIS: In this photograph taken on May 24, 2011 Sunil Mittal, Chairman of Bharti Airtel Limited, attends a plenary session at the e-G8 Forum in Paris. Bharti Airtel, India’s biggest mobile phone company, reported yesterday a 30-percent drop in quarterly profit, its 11th straight such fall amid rising costs and intense competition. —AFP

Examples of the new enhancements include: ● Greater tier differentiation to distinguish and support partners who are just beginning to buildout a service provider capability with EMC-powered services from those solutions providers who offer more established cloud services. Today’s announcement not only increases the benefits available to Velocity Service Provider partners who achieve the highest tiers, Platinum and Gold, but also raises the minimum requirements for each level to ensure high customer satisfaction and maximum value for our joint customers. The clear designations foster a more predictable and mutually beneficial engagement model. ● New Onramp to the Velocity Service Provider program for Velocity Solution Providers (resellers) that wish to transform their business model and become providers of EMC-powered cloud services. Velocity Solution Providers will enter the program at the appropriate tier based on their qualifications and after having met specific revenue and training requirements. Once requirements are achieved they can then begin to leverage Velocity Service Provider enablement services. ● Modified partner qualification and earned participation at tiered levels helps to

ensure, as the program continues to scale, that partners continue to be fairly assessed and rewarded commensurate with their commitment to partnering with EMC. ● Additional process automation has been designed to create repeatable and scalable processes to more efficiently grow our partners’ cloud businesses as well as EMC’s. ● Cross-program communications initiatives to bridge and stimulate mutually beneficial linkages betweenthe EMC Velocity Solution Providerand Velocity Service Provider partner communities yielding greater cloud business opportunities for both.

By strengthening partnerships with the most differentiated, innovative and proven providers, EMC is helping to serve customers seeking the most optimum cloud services available. The program requirements, eligibility and corresponding benefits increase as partners’ progress through the tiers.

Requirements have been designed with current service provider profiles as well as growth goals to adapt and flex as a partner grows with EMC. The Velocity Service Provider program is designed to create customer value by empowering partners to offer customers agile, differentiated and cost-effective public and private cloud options built on EMC technologies. By aligning EMC’s cloud computing architecture, proven expertise and go-tomarket strategy with a league of trusted service provider partners, customers will gain greater flexibility in their choice of cloud models for their applications without sacrificing control. hosters, ISVs and enterprises enabling them with the ability to create, deploy, market, sell and deliver differentiated and innovative EMC-powered public and private cloud services.

The new Velocity Service Provider program elements will be effective in early Q1, 2013.However, current partners in the Velocity Service Provider program as of Dec 31, 2012 will have until December 31, 2013 to meet the new tier requirements.

28

health & science

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2012

NYU faces growing criticism after Sandy kills lab mice ‘Shoving dry ice into freezers’ to preserve samples NEW YORK: After superstorm Sandy flooded New York University’s medical research laboratories, first accounts were of Herculean rescue efforts. Animal-care staffers spent the night watching over their furry charges and, the next morning, a bucket brigade of scientists and others hauled dry ice up 15 flights to save tissue samples and human organs kept on ice for research. But a week later a different pictures has emerged. Critics are asking whether the laboratories did everything they could - and whether they followed government guidelines - to protect the research animals.

Thousands of animals, mostly mice housed in the basement of one NYU Langone Medical Center building on the East River in Manhattan, died during the storm. The hospital also evacuated over 200 patients that night when it lost power; none was reported injured. All told, said NYU spokeswoman Jessica Guenzel, the biomedical facility lost 7,660 cages of mice and 22 cages of rats. Each cage houses between one and seven animals, she said.

“This happens again and again and (research labs) never learn,” said Fran Sharples, director of the Board on Life Sciences at the congressionally chartered National Academy of Sciences (NAS).

“Anybody with half a brain knows you do a site-specific analysis” to understand the risk of disasters, she said, “and it’s really stupid to put your animals in the basement if you’re in a flood zone.” It’s not as if scientists didn’t have recent lessons in the risk of natural disasters to biomedical research, she said. In 2001, tens of thousands of mice and scores of monkeys and dogs were lost when Hurricane Allison struck Houston; and in 2005, some 10,000 lab animals drowned when hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans. The National Institutes of Health, the nation’s primary funder of biomedical research, requires its grantees to follow the NAS animal-care guidelines. Scientists who fail to do so can have their grants revoked.

Animal-use committees at universities also make sure scientists adhere to the guidelines, said Paul Locke, associate professor at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, who served on the NAS panel that wrote the 2011 guide. NIH did not respond to questions about the guidelines, and it is not clear whether NYU in any way breached them. In a statement, NYU noted that “a vast majority of our animals used for biomedical research were unharmed during Hurricane Sandy,” and that the building where thousands did die was built according to code to withstand a storm surge of 20 percent over the worst flood of the past century. “Animal resource staff was on site continuously to mitigate the damage from the storm, but due to the speed and force of the surge, animal rescue attempts were unsuccessful,” the statement said.

Some scientists who lost years of work praised the university for organizing the rescue efforts. “The amount of effort that went into saving what we could was enormous,” said Bruce Cronstein, professor of medicine at NYU and director of its division of translational medicine; he lost an unknown number of mice to Sandy.

FLOODING AND FUMES NYU officials are also still trying to determine how events unfolded in the lab as the storm blasted New York City.

Scientists contacted by Reuters say there was a double whammy. Flooding that overwhelmed the basements drowned some animals, while toxic fumes from breaches in the diesel fuel tank and lines that supplied back-up generators killed others. Driving in from his home in the New York City suburbs last Tuesday morning, NYU neurobiologist Gordon Fishell had reached a bridge into Manhattan when his cellphone rang. A colleague had good news and bad news: “All our reagents (lab chemicals) were safe,” said Fishell. “And all our mice were dead.”

The Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals, produced by NAS’s Institute for Laboratory Animal Research, states that facilities using animals in research must “have a disaster plan. The plan should define the actions necessary to prevent animal pain, distress, and deaths due to loss of systems such as those that control ventilation, cooling, (or) heating.”

The Guide does not prohibit housing lab animals in basements and does not specifically address the threat of floods. In California and other seismic zones, basements are relatively safe during earthquakes. The natural dark of a basement also lets animal caretakers control their charges’ day-night cycle. And when animals are in the basement, any disease-causing microbes they might carry are less likely to enter the main air-circulation system. But biomedical research facilities also choose basements to keep their animals out of sight, said NAS’s Sharples, partly out of fear of animal rights activists who have been known to raid labs and threaten scientists’ lives. The issue is so sensitive that “the (NYU) administration is very clear that faculty are not to speak directly with the media,” one NYU scientist told Reuters. “I know there’s a concerted effort to not discuss the issues related to research animals.

We are being contacted by folks claiming to be reporters, but who are actually PETA activists.”

PETA - People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, the animal-rights group that has long opposed the use of animals for research - has called for an investigation into the animal deaths at NYU. “NYU knew for days the storm was coming but still left 10,000 terrified animals trapped inside their tiny cages in its secretive basement laboratories as waters rose,” said Justin Goodman, PETA’s associate director of the laboratory investigations department. “This is probably a violation of federal animal welfare policy, and it also shows once again that experimenters view animals as disposable equipment who can carelessly be left to drown during a disaster.” —Reuters

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health & science

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2012

Woman with early Alzheimer’s speaks out on illness HUDSON: Being diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease at a young age is not going to slow down Joan Uronis. In fact, Uronis sees the diagnosis that came at the age of 62 as a blessing. “I look at Alzheimer’s as a gift I have been given by God to do with what I want to do with and use it for the good of others,” she said. “And that is what I am going to do.”

This month-National Alzheimer’s Disease Awareness Month-the story of Joan and Al Uronis will serve as an example of how the disease affects families. At first, Joan Uronis found she got lost while driving to familiar places, even to the home of family members. Then she had greater difficulty doing two or more tasks at the same time. She would forget friends’ names. Last year, she got the official diagnosis.

Uronis, 63, who worked as a general manager in the health-care field for many years, and her husband, Al Uronis, 64, her caregiver, recently were named to the 20member National Alzheimer’s Association Early Stage Advisory Board. Only 4 percent of Alzheimer’s cases are considered “early onset,” which affects people who get the disease before they reach 65. Joan Uronis said the disease progresses more rapidly in early onset patients like her.

Uronis was fired from her job last year, she said, when she was having difficulty

doing what was required of her, like remembering conference calls, handling budgeting and other duties. “Alzheimer’s causes confusion, so if you have too many things going on at the same time, it is hard for your mind to grasp that,” said Al Uronis, who works as an account manager for a Cleveland company. He said he plans to work only part time next year so he can spend more time with his wife.

The lifespan of people with early onset Alzheimer’s is five to seven years, Al Uronis said. The couple has been speaking at Alzheimer’s Association meetings and traveled to Chicago for the filming of an educational video for the American College of Physicians Foundation. Joan Uronis said she has trouble following what she reads. Her husband said that when they watch a television show, she often can’t follow the storyline.

He often wonders, “Are we watching the same show?” he said, because of her difficulty following what’s happening. Her mother and uncle both had Alzheimer’s disease, Joan Uronis said. “I was a caregiver to my mom, and now I am living it,” she said.

Because she worked in the health-care field, she said, she has extra compassion for those who have the disease. This isn’t the first time Uronis has experienced a health crisis. In 1990, she had brain surgery to remove a

benign tumor. “I have always taken the challenges and turned them into opportunities,” she said. “I turned it into something positive.” Now, she said, “I have Alzheimer’s, and I am out advocating for those who have Alzheimer’s.” Pam Schuellerman, executive director of the Greater East Ohio Chapter of the Alzheimer’s Association for nearly 20 years, said Uronis was chosen to be on the national board because she was eager to talk about the disease.

“Her attitude and desire to be an advocate has a profound impact on me and the rest of the staff,” Schuellerman said. She called the Uronises’ relationship an inspiration. “I love to see how proud and supportive Al is of Joan,” Schuellerman said. “This disease affects entire families and many people in their prime like Joan. ... When she speaks, you can hear a pin drop in the room.

“It’s hard to believe that she is fighting and trying to live with a terminal illness.” Uronis said that upon learning her diagnosis she made the decision to make the best of what she faced. “I said to myself that I am ‘dying to live’-not sitting back and waiting to die,” she said. The challenges are difficult. “Our world is different,” Joan Uronis said. If she loses something, it can feel devastating. “I lost my keys and it was almost a panic,” she said. She had a hard time retracing her steps to figure out where the keys might be found. “It’s not

OHIO : Joan Uronis, left, and her husband, Al, talk about what their lives are like after she was diagnosed with early onset Alzheimerís Disease at 61, during an interview at their home in Hudson. — MCT photos like I can walk here or think of where I was said. “Or you can die to live. ... I have a lot of life ahead of me and I have a lot of things to last,” she said.

Still, she said, a person can approach a do,” she said. “I can’t change the course of fatal disease in two ways. “You can say, ‘Poor my disease, but hopefully I can be a voice me, pity me. And my life is over, and what for those who have a later stage and can’t am I going to do now?’ And then die,” she talk.” — MCT

Regular exercise raises life expectancy: study WASHINGTON: Regular moderate exercise can raise life expectancy-even among people who are overweight, a study said Tuesday. The analysis, published in PLOS Medicine, pooled selfreported data on physical activities and body mass indexes (BMIs) — a ratio of weight to height from some 650,000 people aged 40 and older enrolled in one Swedish and five US studies. “This result may help convince currently inactive people that a modest physical activity program may have health benefits, even if it does not result in weight loss,” said a summary of the analysis headed by Steven Moore of the

US National Cancer Institute.

The researchers used the studies to calculate the boost to life expectancy linked to specific levels of physical activity and found that brisk walking for up to 75 minutes per week was associated with a gain of 1.8 years in life expectancy. “Being active-having a physical activity level at or above the World Health Organization-recommended minimum of 150 minutes of brisk walking per week-was associated with an overall gain of life expectancy of 3.4 to 4.5 years,” the summary said.

Overall, the researchers concluded that less

physical activity was linked with a shorter life expectancy no matter a person’s body mass index. “More leisure time physical activity was associated with longer life expectancy across a range of activity levels and BMI groups,” the abstract of the analysis concluded. However, being active and having a normal body mass index (of 18.5 to 24.9) was associated with a gain of 7.2 years of life compared to people who are inactive and obese with a body mass index of 35 or above.

On the other hand, being inactive and normal weight was linked to 3.1 fewer years of life

compared to those who are active but class I obese and have a BMI of 30-34.9.

“These findings suggest that participation in leisure time physical activity, even below the recommended level, is associated with a reduced risk of mortality compared to participation in no leisure time physical activity,” the summary said. “The findings also suggest that physical activity at recommended levels or higher may increase longevity further, and that a lack of leisure time physical activity may markedly reduce life expectancy when combined with obesity.” — AFP

30

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2012

WHAT’S ON

Colors tell stories in Kala art competition

By Sunil Cherian

SEND US YOUR INSTAGRAM PICS hat’s more fun than clicking a beautiful picture? Sharing it with others! This summer, let other people see the way you see Kuwait - through your lens. Friday Times will feature snapshots of Kuwait through Instagram feeds. If you want to share your Instagram photos, email us at instagram@kuwaittimes.net

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Goan Culinary Club he Goan Culinary Club - Goa encourages you to log on to their website where you can find a video of Odette and Joe Mascarenhas sharing their thoughts on Goan cuisine. These videos were recorded at the launch of the Goan Culinary Club in Goa on March 3, 2012. Thanks to support from all at the Goan Culinary Club, we have made great progress in six months.

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Suhail Baddor exhibition

he school hall - packed with more than 2,000 children from four to 17 years old sitting on white paper sheets lined on the floor - falls dead silent when the painting competition starts. The organizers have closed the door to the parents, assuring responsibility for the tiny artists. For KG children, it’s an hour’s battle - some want to go home while other creative buds use the water their mothers sent them with to mix paint. The other categories - primary, secondary and high school - toil with their paint and ideas for two hours.

It is reportedly the largest mass painting competition organized annually in Kuwait. And the judging takes a long time - almost a day for the 5 judges to sort out and discuss the winning entries that number 250.

Kala (Art) Kuwait has been holding the painting competition for 7 years now. The competition, organized for students who are at Indian schools in Kuwait, has grown over the years in popularity as well as participation. The past two years have seen contestants flowing out of the school hall, even painting in the corridors. Children from Arab,

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Filipino and Sri Lankan nationalities also participate in the four categories. Two years ago the organizers had an idea for

parents to draw anything they wished.

To the organizers’ surprise, nearly all the parents wanted to draw and they had to

This file photo shows a winning entry from Kala (Art) Kuwait painting competition at Khaitan Indian Community School. the parents waiting outside the hall.

They arranged an open canvas for the

ful surprise - the winners in the fourth and the adult categories were a shy teenager and his proud father.

Kala’s VP Mukesh and Artist Sreenivasan, who are behind setting topics for the different categories, said this year too their expectations are multicolored. About 2,300 students have registered, many of them online for this year’s competition, scheduled to take place tomorrow at Khaitan Indian Community School.

Sreenivasan, an art teacher at Khaitan Indian School, said anthropomorphic elements are seemingly deep-rooted in the works of the expat children. Their works, imaginative or realistic, are exceedingly colorful. Their watermelons are always in pieces and are in detail. In a post-tsunami held competition, Sreenivasan said, I was watching a child painting for the natural disaster themed category. She drew a sparkling waterfall against the lush green background.

“Only when the painting was completed I saw that the waterfall was tears running from a weeping mother nature”.

make it a competition, opening the 5th category. And last year they had a color-

ooking at Baddor’s paintings, the first impression is the striking contrast between Suhail’s smooth and calm gradation of colors and shades on one side, and on the other, are his sharp and tense tines that are unwavering in showing firmness and roughness of what he sees and feels. His blend of colors appears to be fairly well crafted and reflects the hands of a skilled artist; but his lines tend to reveal the shyness and purity of the originality of his own vision, setting the tone for such impeccable divergence of the richness and fusion of colors.

Opening Reception: November 11, 2012 at 6:00 pm.

Following Days: 10:00 am - 2:00 pm, 6:00pm -9:00pm.

Saturdays: By appointment.

Fridays: Closed.

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KTAA invites all to the KTAA he Kuwait Textile Arts Association under the auspices of the Sadu House Invites everyone to the KTAA fall bazaar of handcrafted items, on Saturday November 17, from 10:00 am to 3:00 pm. The exhibition features quilts, bags, table linens, designer jewelry, shawls, greeting cards, crochet, hand embroidery, and lots more.

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In an evening studded with musical rhythm and the beauty of dance moves, the winners of ONATHANIMA 2012 and 8th National Tug of War Championship were submitted with prizes and tokens of appreciations.

Peter Cheranellur, well known music director inaugurated the program. Dr TA Ramesh, Country Head, Gulf Mart, Joy Sreedhar, Creative Head, 98.4 UFM, Meleena, RJ, 98.4 UFM, BP Nassar, Regional Manager, Frontline Logistics, Kaveri Mohandas, Lalitha Mani, Fixe Alencherry, Johney Kunnil, Babuji Bathery, Philip J Panicker, Raghunathan Nair and Shaji Varghese spoke on the occasion.

Fankaar Arts Hindi Play ankaar Arts, a local Hindi theater group, will perform their Hindi play ‘Le Chal’, written and directed by Arif Kazi, on Thursday, Nov 8, 2012 at 6:30 pm at the Salmiya Indian Model School, Salmiya for the newly formed association Kokan Welfare Society.

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Indian bowling league - Kuwait team pose on 2nd november 2012.

Mar Thoma organizes cultural meet he purpose of art and literature is to entertain, educate and edify the society, said Shaji George, a renowned author and orator from Kerala, India. He was delivering the key note address at a seminar organized by Kuwait center Mar Thoma Joint Fellowship at the St Thomas Mar Thoma Center in Salmiya on Saturday. Presenting the topic “Art, Literature and Spirituality: a Christian perspective” George mentioned that the ulti-

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mate goal of art or literature was to transform the social circumstances for the better. It points to what we were, what we are and what we should be. A prolific reader and author of several books that he is, George quoted profusely from world classics to substantiate his points throughout the speech, which was followed by lively discussion participated by well known writers and literary enthusiasts in Kuwait. Rev C V Symon was the

Palakkadan Mela 2012 alakkad Pravasi Association of Kuwait (PALPAK) will present a mega carnival ‘Palakkadan Mela 2012’ to mark the 5th anniversary of the establishment of the association on Friday, Nov 9, 2012 at the Indian Central School auditorium, Abbassiya from 9:00 am to 5:30 pm. Prominent Malayalam film-maker Lal Jose will inaugurate the function as Chief Guest.

A team of talented professional artists led by popular Malayalam playback singers Vidhu Pratap and Cicely from Kerala along with local singers will present a musical orchestra on the occasion. The traditional Kerala art form ‘Chakyarkoothu’ by Kalamandalam Kanakakumar and a special doll dance by Kovai Alphonse are other highlights of the event, informed PALPAK president P N Kumar.

PALPAK members and children will present several entertainment programs such as Dandia dance, Oppana, Rangavandanam, mappila dances, group dances, cinematic dances, medley numbers, PALPAK theme dance etc, during the celebration, according to Aravindakshan, general secretary of the association. Program convener Suresh Pulikkal said some of the cultural programs to be presented by the members will highlight Palakkad’s distinct socio-cultural heritage.

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Bishop Theetos welcomed to Kuwait umbai Diocesan Bishop Rt Rev Dr Thomas Mar Theetos was given a warm welcome at the Kuwait International Airport by the Vicar, Rev A Y Varghese, office bearers of Kuwait St James Mar Thoma Church along with the vicars and office bearers of other five Mar Thoma churches in Kuwait. The bishop is visiting Kuwait in relation to the Annual Convention and Family Day celebration of Kuwait St James Mar Thoma Church.

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moderator, Rev Thoms Koshy Panachimootil, Rev Chacko Thomas and Rev Binju Varghese Kuruvila, Roy Varghese, Kaippattoor Thankachen, Joy Shreedhar of UFM 98.4, Lissy Kuriakose, Babuji Batheri, Kuruvila Varghese, Biju Vellore and Premcy George expressed their views on the occasion. Convener Nebu Alexander welcomed the audience and Roy Varghese proposed vote of thanks.

Arabic courses WARE will begin Winter 1 Arabic language courses with new textbooks and curricula will begin on December 2, 2012 until January 24, 2013. AWARE Arabic language courses are designed with the expat in mind. The environment is relaxed & courses are designed for those wanting to learn Arabic for travel, cultural understanding, and conducting business or simply to become more involved in the community. For more information or registration, please log-on to our website.

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Youth Chorus song competition outh Chorus is organizing the Seventh Christian Group Song Competition on Friday, November 16, 2012 at 6:00 pm at the United Indian School Auditorium, Abbasiya. The team has to present one Christian song (Malayalam or Tamil) within seven minutes. The minimum number of members in the team should be 7 and the maximum 20, including the orchestra personnel. The first, second and third prize winners will be awarded with trophies and certificates.

In addition, the first and second prize winning teams will be given the prestigious rolling trophies - Youth Chorus ever rolling trophy for the first and Omana Jose Memorial ever rolling for the second, and Youth Chorus ever rolling trophy for the Third. All the other participating teams will be awarded with Youth Chorus memento.

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THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2012

WHAT’S ON

GUST welcomes Kuwaiti advertising pioneers he Gulf University for Science and Technology (GUST) student Talent Club organized a seminar hosting some of the top pioneers in the Kuwaiti advertising and commercial world. The speakers included: Nael Al-Awadhi, Qualitynet General Manager, Haitham Al-Hajji CEO of Caviar, Khaled Al-Refai renowned Director from Sinyar and Maryam Al-Mutairi, one of the founders of The Bustop Concept Studio.

Introducing the speakers was Talent Club member, Yousef Al-Mallek, who also works with Cinemagic, one of the most up and coming Kuwaiti production companies.

Nael Al-Awadhi, talked about Qualitynet’s recent advertisements which were aired during Ramadan 2011 and Ramadan 2012 and were a huge hit in the country. He noted that Qualitynet wanted something different in 2011, to promote the company and that is when he worked with Director Khaled Al-Refai to create the first ad hit. The next Ramadan advertisement, he worked with Bustop and he knew they wanted to maintain the level of the ad from last year. He stressed that Qualitynet believes in the Kuwaiti youth and that is why both ads were by Kuwaiti talents through and through. “We wanted to go out of the box and with an open mind and we believe in the Kuwaiti talent, so we went with it.”

Maryam Al-Mutairi spoke next, giving us a little background about her company: “We are just three girls who had a lot of ambition and wanted to branch out on our own.” She talked about the company and how clients should be open minded, otherwise, they won’t be able to share and develop their ideas. Bustop has worked on advertisements such as: Qualitynet’s “Faker Ana Khof,” Red Mango, That El-Salasil bookstore, and Zain.

Haitham Al-Hajji, founded the adver-

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tisement agency Caviar with Khaled Jafar in 1998 after graduating from university. They found the Kuwaiti market to be thirsty for a new form of communication. He was one of the first advertisers in Kuwait to create ads in the local

Finally, Director Khaled Al-Refai from Sinyar, who noted on his range of work and popularity: “I was lucky enough to work with a lot of different companies at the start of my career and got the chance to learn from a lot of talented

the fact that a good ad can have a great effect on the society.

At the end of the session, Al-Mallek opened the floor for questions; where the students had the opportunity to ask the speakers any question they wanted.

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EMBASSY OF AUSTRALIA The Australian Embassy Kuwait does not have a visa or immigration department.

All processing of visas and immigration matters in conducted by The Australian Consulate-General in Dubai. Email: info.ausdxb@vfshelpline.com (VFS) immigration.dubai@dfat.gov.au (Visa Office); Tel: +971 4 355 1958 (VFS) - +971 4 508 7200 (Visa Office); Fax: +971 4 355 0708 (Visa Office).

In Kuwait applications can be lodged at the Australian Visa Application Centre 4B 1st Floor, Al-Banwan Building Al-Qibla Area, Ali Al-Salem Street, opposite the Central Bank of Kuwait, Kuwait City, Kuwait. Working hours and days: 09:30 - 17:30; Sunday - Thursday. Or visit their website www.vfs-au-gcc-com for more information. Kuwait citizens can apply for tourist visas on-line at www.immi.gov.au/e visa/e676.htm.

EMBASSY OF CANADA The Canadian Embassy in Kuwait does not have a visa or immigration department. All processing of visa and immigration matters including enquiries is conducted by the Canadian Embassy in Abu Dhabi, UAE Individuals who are interested in working, studying, visiting or immigrating to Canada should contact the Canadian Embassy in Abu Dhabi, website: www.UAE.gc.ca or www.goingtocanada.gc.ca, E-mail: abdbi-im-enquiry@international.gc.ca. The Embassy of Canada is located at Villa 24, Al-Mutawakei St, Block 4 in Da’aiyah. Please visit our website at www.Kuwait.gc.ca. The Embassy of Canada is open from 7:30 to 15:30 Sunday through Thursday. The reception is closed for lunch from 12:30 to 13:00. Consular services for Canadian citizens are provided from 09:00 until 12:00, Sunday through Wednesday.

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dialect. “You can’t go to Lebanon or Egypt and try to sell a product in a Kuwaiti dialect, the same way you can’t sell products the way you want to with a non-Kuwaiti dialect.” Their first opportunity Caviar had was with Zain, then known as MTC, and it grew from there.

Their most popular campaigns included: “Yabeela,” “BoRashed,” and most recently “Nabe Eediya.”

people - and I still do.” He mentions that he part of the 2nd generation of Kuwaiti advertisers, Caviar was part of the first, where they changed the landscape of the advertising in Kuwait. “Today, our advertisements are of higher quality, more flavor, better casting, better storylines and definitely more related to our life.” And now, other countries are taking notice of this. He later stressed on

It was a great give and take session between them and the students took advantage of this chance. It was a great session; both the students and the speakers enjoyed it immensely and look forward to future seminars for further exchanges.

through the ‘Road to Awareness’ campaign which helped to support UNICEF projects in Romania and Pakistan, directly benefiting some 150 schools in these two countries. With the aim of raising addi-

further and higher than ever before, travelling for four days over the hills of the Tour de France. The riders started in Chamonix, finishing after a gruelling 570 km in Monte Carlo where they have

Starwood Hotels and Resorts and UNICEF whereby guests at participating Starwood hotels around the world agree to the addition of US$1 (or local currency equivalent) to their bills when they check out.

EMBASSY OF CYPRUS In its capacity as EU Local Presidency in the State of Kuwait, the Embassy of the Republic of Cyprus, on behalf of the Member States of the EU and associated States participating in the Schengen cooperation, would like to announce that as from 2nd October 2012 all Schengen States’ Consulates in Kuwait will use the Visa Information System (VIS). The VIS is a central database for the exchange of data on short-stay (up to three months) visas between Schengen States. The main objectives of the VIS are to facilitate visa application procedures and checks at external border as well as to enhance security. The VIS will contain all the Schengen visa applications lodged by an applicant over five years and the decisions taken by any Schengen State’s consulate. This will allow applicants to establish more easily the lawful use of previous visas and their bona fide status. For the purpose of the VIS, applicants will be required to provide their biometric data (fingerprints and digital photos) when applying for a Schengen visa. It is a simple and discreet procedure that only takes a few minutes. Biometric data, along with the data provided in the Schengen visa application form, will be recorded in the VIS central database. Therefore, as from 2nd October 2012, first-time applicants will have to appear in person when lodging the application, in order to provide their fingerprints. For subsequent applications within 5 years the fingerprints can be copied from the previous application file in the VIS. The Cypriot Presidency would like to assure the people of Kuwait and all its permanent citizens that the Member States and associated States participating in the Schengen cooperation, have taken all necessary technical measures to facilitate the rapid examination and the efficient processing of visa applications and to ensure a quick and discreet procedure for the implementation of the new VIS. ■■■■■■■

tional funds for those children most in need, this year a group of cyclists consisting of senior leaders and other hotel representatives from across Starwood’s Europe, Africa and Middle East region, embarked on the fifth ‘Road to Awareness’ bike ride challenge. Starwood has decided to take their brave riders a bit

climbed 170 km and a gradient of 9,000 m over the four day bike ride.

In addition to the ‘Road to Awareness’ associate fundraising campaign, Starwood continues its on-going guest fundraising efforts for UNICEF through the ‘Check Out for Children’ program, which launched in 1995. It is a partnership between

Last year, the ‘Check Out for Children’ program celebrated a remarkable milestone with $25 million raised through guest donations for children since the launch of the program.

KTMCC conducts a musical concert uwait Town Malayalee Christian Congregation’s (KTMCC) is conducting a melodious musical concert with Mizmor Harmonic, one of the emerging International Christian bands from India, as part of its 60th Jubilee year celebration. The ‘Music Fest’ will be held tomorrow, November 8, 2012, 7:00 pm at the NECK Church and Parish Hall. National Evangelical Church President Rev Immanuel Garech will inaugurate the program and KTMCC President M Mathews will preside the function.

The musical concert will be led by the legendary Roy Daniel and team. The entire performers are from India and they arc Shikku Dan Thomas (lead guitarist), Saji Abraham Mathew (base guitarist), Blessen Chacko John (violinist), Vinu Jacob (singer and keyboardist), Abilash Peter (singer), Alex Titus Koshy (drummer), Rony Korah Rajan (percussionist), Anish Puthenparabil Ulahannan (speaker) and Basil Molel Jose (keyboardist).

KTMCC is the mother congregation of all the major Malayalee Christian Congregations in Kuwait for the past 60 years. It consists of five congregations viz Mar Thoma Syrian Church of Malabar, Church of South India, St Thomas Evangelical Church of India, Pentecostal Church and Brethren Assembly. KTMCC wholeheartedly welcomes all musical lovers to the concert.

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Information

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Starwood launches campaign to support Ethiopia education n support of Starwood Hotels and Resorts’ fifth annual associate fundraising campaign ‘Road to Awareness’, Sheraton Kuwait and Four Points by Sheraton Kuwait raised $3,500 in a fund raising bazaar that was held on Nov 3, 2012 at the Sheraton Hotel. This year’s ‘Road to Awareness’ campaign raises money for UNICEF’s Early Childhood Care and Education programme in Ethiopia.

The aim of the project is to provide the most disadvantaged children in rural communities with pre-primary education so they are better prepared to start going to school.

In Ethiopia, over 80 percent of the population live in rural communities and many children have to survive on less than $1 a day. A lack of education and no access to pre-school is seen as one of the key barriers to a child not being able to reach their full potential and escape a life of poverty.

The money raised through Starwood’s ‘Road to Awareness’ campaign - which includes local fundraising initiatives across hotels in Europe, Africa and the Middle East as well as an annual fundraising bike ride - will help tackle this by giving thousands of the most vulnerable children in Ethiopia access to pre-school and the chance of a brighter future. Starwood’s support will contribute to the construction of 10 pre-schools, provide pre-school education to up to 50,000 children aged six and enable UNICEF to train 10,000 young instructors to aide their learning.

In 2011, Starwood raised over $600,000

Embassy

EMBASSY OF INDIA The Embassy of India will remain closed on the following days during the month of November 2012: Nov 13, 2012 - Tuesday - Deepawali Nov 25, 2012 - Sunday - Muharram ■■■■■■■

EMBASSY OF LEBANAN Due to exceptional circumstances Lebanon is going through currently, a mass celebration that was planned next Wednesday, Nov 14, 2012 at the Lebanese Embassy’s garden has been called off.

Ambassador of Lebanon to Kuwait Dr Bassam Al-Nu’mani welcomes well wishers on the occasion of Independence Day at his residence on Thursday, Nov 22, 2012 between 9:00 am and 1:00 pm.

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EMBASSY OF UKRAINE

The Embassy of Ukraine in the State of Kuwait would like to remind that the external polling station No 90046 was created in the Embassy’s premises at the following address: Hawalli, Jabriya, bl.10, str. 6, build. 5. The working hours of the polling station: Sunday from 13.00 to 17.00 pm; Monday from 13.00 to 17.00 pm; Tuesday from 13.00 to 17.00 pm; Wednesday from 13.00 to 17.00 pm; Thursday from 13.00 to 17.00 pm; Friday from 10.00 to 13.00 pm; Saturday from 10.00 to 13.00 pm On October 28, 2012 the working hours of the polling station from 8.00 am to 20.00 pm. Please be advised to refer to the Embassy to check your data in the Electoral Register as well as to pick up your personal invitation from the polling station if you did not receive this document by post.

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2012

TV PROGRAMS

00:50 01:45 02:35 03:25 04:15 05:05 05:55 06:20 06:45 07:10 07:35 08:00 08:25 09:15 10:10 11:05 12:00 12:55 13:50 14:15 14:45 15:40 16:35 17:00 17:30 18:25 18:50 19:20 20:15 20:40 21:10 21:35 22:05 23:00 23:25 23:55

Animal Cops Phoenix I Was Bitten I’m Alive The Magic Of The Big Blue Mutant Planet Wildest Africa Wild Britain With Ray Mears Orangutan Island Vet On The Loose Vet On The Loose Wildlife SOS Monkey Life The Jeff Corwin Experience Dogs/Cats/Pets 101 America’s Cutest...

Wildest Africa World Wild Vet Gator Boys Wildlife SOS Shamwari: A Wild Life Animal Cops Phoenix Wildest Africa Orangutan Island The Really Wild Show Dogs/Cats/Pets 101 Chris Humfrey’s Wildlife Chris Humfrey’s Wildlife Dogs/Cats/Pets 101 Monkey Life E-Vets: The Interns Wild Britain With Ray Mears Orangutan Island Wildest Africa Wild Animal Orphans Wild Animal Orphans Max’s Big Tracks

23:50 Animal Cops Houston 00:00 Extreme Makeover: Home Edition 00:45 Come Dine With Me 01:35 Antiques Roadshow 02:30 Baby Borrowers USA 03:15 Baby Borrowers USA 04:00 Living In The Sun 04:55 House Swap 05:40 Saturday Kitchen 2008/09 06:05 Saturday Kitchen 2008/09 06:30 Living In The Sun 07:25 House Swap 08:10 MasterChef Australia 08:55 MasterChef Australia 10:25 Baby Borrowers USA 11:10 Baby Borrowers USA 11:55 Bargain Hunt 12:35 Antiques Roadshow 13:30 Extreme Makeover: Home Edition 14:10 Baking Made Easy 14:40 Baking Mad With Eric Lanlard 15:00 Baking Mad With Eric Lanlard 15:25 The Hairy Bakers 15:50 Bargain Hunt 16:35 Antiques Roadshow 17:30 Extreme Makeover: Home Edition 18:10 Come Dine With Me 19:00 Glamour Puds 19:30 Glamour Puds 19:55 Out Of The Frying Pan 20:45 Come Dine With Me 21:35 Extreme Makeover: Home Edition 22:20 Antiques Roadshow 23:15 Bargain Hunt EditionEdition 00:15 01:10 02:05 03:00 03:55 04:20 04:50 05:15 05:40 06:05 07:00 07:50 08:45 09:40 10:05 10:30 10:55 11:25 12:20 13:15 14:10 14:35 15:05 15:30 16:25 17:20 18:15 19:10 19:40 20:05 20:35 21:00 21:30 22:25 23:20

Dynamo: Magician Impossible Mythbusters Mythbusters Mythbusters Border Security Dirty Money Auction Kings How Do They Do It? How It’s Made Extreme Fishing Street Customs Mythbusters Ultimate Survival Border Security Dirty Money How Do They Do It? How It’s Made Dynamo: Magician Impossible Mythbusters Mythbusters Border Security Dirty Money Auction Kings Ultimate Survival Street Customs Extreme Fishing Mythbusters How Do They Do It? How It’s Made Border Security Dirty Money Auction Kings American Guns Behind Bars Chris Ryan’s Elite Police

23:20 Surviving Disaster 00:40 Gadget Show - World Tour 01:05 How Tech Works 01:35 The Colony 02:25 Through The Wormhole With Morgan Freeman 03:15 Nyc: Inside Out 04:05 Weird Connections 04:35 The Colony 05:25 Da Vinci’s Machines 06:15 Gadget Show - World Tour 06:40 How Tech Works 07:05 Meteorite Men 08:00 Through The Wormhole With Morgan Freeman 08:50 How Do They Do It? 09:15 How Do They Do It? 09:40 Head Rush 09:43 Bigger, Better, Faster, Stronger 10:10 How Stuff’s Made 10:40 Meteorite Men 11:30 Gadget Show - World Tour 11:55 How Tech Works 12:20 Nyc: Inside Out 13:10 Da Vinci’s Machines 14:00 Through The Wormhole With Morgan Freeman 14:50 Sport Science 15:45 How Do They Do It? 16:10 How Do They Do It? 16:35 Weird Connections 17:00 Head Rush 17:03 Bigger, Better, Faster, Stronger 17:30 How Stuff’s Made 18:00 Gadget Show - World Tour 18:25 How Tech Works

18:50 19:40 20:30 21:20 22:10 22:35 23:00 23:50 20:20

Under New York Meteorite Men Weird Or What?

Da Vinci’s Machines Gadget Show - World Tour How Tech Works Weird Or What?

Meteorite Men Bang Goes The Theory

00:20 Little Einsteins 00:50 Special Agent Oso 01:15 Lazytown 01:40 Jungle Junction 01:55 Jungle Junction 02:10 Handy Manny 02:30 Mickey Mouse Clubhouse 02:55 Winnie The Pooh: Tales Of Friendship 03:00 Lazytown 03:25 Special Agent Oso 03:50 Imagination Movers 04:20 Handy Manny 04:40 Special Agent Oso 05:00 Timmy Time 05:10 Lazytown 05:35 Little Einsteins 06:00 Jungle Junction 06:15 Jungle Junction 06:30 Little Einsteins 06:50 Special Agent Oso 07:00 Special Agent Oso 07:15 Jungle Junction 07:30 Jungle Junction 07:45 Handy Manny 08:00 Special Agent Oso 08:15 Little Einsteins 08:45 Mickey Mouse Clubhouse 09:10 The Hive 09:20 Jake & The Neverland Pirates 09:35 Jake & The Neverland Pirates 09:50 Handy Manny 10:05 The Hive 10:15 Animated Stories 10:20 Mouk 10:30 Mouk 10:45 The Hive 10:55 Mickey Mouse Clubhouse 11:20 New Adventures Of Winnie The Pooh 11:45 Art Attack 12:10 Imagination Movers 12:35 Mickey Mouse Clubhouse 13:00 Winnie The Pooh: Tales Of Friendship 13:10 Handy Manny 13:25 Jungle Junction 13:40 Imagination Movers 14:05 The Hive 14:15 Special Agent Oso 14:30 Lazytown 14:55 Mickey Mouse Clubhouse 15:20 New Adventures Of Winnie The Pooh 15:45 Jake & The Neverland Pirates 16:00 Mouk 16:15 The Hive 16:25 Art Attack 16:50 Doc McStuffins 17:05 Art Attack 17:30 Jake & The Neverland Pirates 17:45 Art Attack 18:10 Mouk 18:25 Mouk 18:40 Jake & The Neverland Pirates 18:55 Jake & The Neverland Pirates 19:10 Mickey Mouse Clubhouse 19:35 New Adventures Of Winnie The Pooh 20:00 Animated Stories 20:05 Timmy Time 20:20 Winnie The Pooh: Tales Of Friendship 20:25 Doc McStuffins 20:40 Jake & The Neverland Pirates 20:55 Jake & The Neverland Pirates 21:10 The Hive 21:20 Timmy Time 21:30 Mouk 21:45 Handy Manny 22:00 Mickey Mouse Clubhouse 22:25 The Hive 22:35 New Adventures Of Winnie The Pooh 23:00 Timmy Time 23:10 Animated Stories 23:15 A Poem Is...

23:20 Winnie The Pooh: Tales Of Friendship 23:30 Jungle Junction 23:45 Handy Manny 23:55 Mickey Mouse Clubhouse ecial Agent Oso 23:50 Lazytown 00:30 01:25 01:50 02:20 03:15 04:10 05:05 05:30 06:00 06:55 08:00 08:25 08:55 09:20 09:50 10:15 10:45 11:40 12:05 12:35 13:30 14:25 15:20 16:15 16:40 17:10 17:35 18:05 18:30 19:00 19:55 20:50 21:45 22:40 23:05 23:35

00:15 00:40 01:05 01:30 01:55 02:20 02:45 03:10 03:35 04:00

M1 Challenge Gotta Grudge Gotta Grudge Pro Bull Riders 2011 World Combat League Enfusion Dragrace High Dragrace High M1 Challenge Pro Bull Riders 2011 Ride Guide Snow 2009 Ride Guide Snow 2009 Tread BMX Tread BMX The Alli Show The Alli Show Winter Dew Tour 10/11 Fantasy Factory Fantasy Factory Pro Bull Riders 2011 Mantracker I’ll Do Anything World Combat League Fantasy Factory Fantasy Factory Tread BMX Tread BMX The Alli Show The Alli Show Mantracker Pro Bull Riders 2011 I’ll Do Anything World Combat League Dragrace High Dragrace High Enfusion

Have Cake, Will Travel Guy’s Big Bite Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives Heat Seekers Charly’s Cake Angels Charly’s Cake Angels Unique Sweets Unique Sweets Have Cake, Will Travel Have Cake, Will Travel

04:25 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives 04:50 Heat Seekers 05:15 Guy’s Big Bite 05:40 Grill It! With Bobby Flay 06:05 Unwrapped 06:30 The Next Iron Chef 07:10 Barefoot Contessa - Back To Basics 07:35 Barefoot Contessa - Back To Basics 08:00 Food Network Challenge 08:50 Barefoot Contessa - Back To Basics 09:15 Barefoot Contessa - Back To Basics 09:40 Healthy Appetite With Ellie Krieger 10:05 Healthy Appetite With Ellie Krieger 10:30 Kelsey’s Essentials 10:55 Cooking For Real 11:20 Cooking For Real 11:45 Food Crafters 12:10 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives 12:35 Heat Seekers 13:00 The Next Iron Chef 13:50 Guy’s Big Bite 14:15 Cooking For Real 14:40 Barefoot Contessa - Back To Basics 15:05 Barefoot Contessa - Back To Basics 15:30 Food Crafters 15:55 Charly’s Cake Angels 16:20 Unique Eats 16:45 Chopped 17:35 Barefoot Contessa - Back To Basics 18:00 Barefoot Contessa - Back To Basics 18:25 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives 18:50 Heat Seekers 19:15 Guy’s Big Bite 19:40 Unique Eats 20:05 Unique Eats 20:30 Chopped 21:20 The Next Iron Chef 22:10 Food Crafters 22:35 Food Crafters 23:00 Unique Eats 23:25 Unique Eats 23:50 Unwrapped

00:15 00:45 01:40 02:05 02:35 03:00 03:30 03:55 04:25 05:20 05:45 06:15 06:40 07:10 07:35 08:05 09:00 09:25 09:55 10:20 10:50 11:15 11:45 12:40 13:05 13:35 14:00 14:30 14:55 15:25 16:20 16:45 17:15 17:40 18:10 18:35 19:05 20:00 20:30 21:00 21:30 22:00 22:25 22:55 23:20 23:50

Pressure Cook Long Way Down Bondi Rescue Bondi Rescue Bondi Rescue Bondi Rescue Danger Beach Into The Drink

By Any Means Bondi Rescue Bondi Rescue David Rocco’s Amalfi Getaway David Rocco’s Amalfi Getaway Pressure Cook Pressure Cook Long Way Down Bondi Rescue Bondi Rescue Bondi Rescue Bondi Rescue Danger Beach Into The Drink

By Any Means Bondi Rescue Bondi Rescue David Rocco’s Dolce Vita 1 David Rocco’s Dolce Vita 1 Pressure Cook Pressure Cook Long Way Down Bondi Rescue Bondi Rescue Bondi Rescue Bondi Rescue Danger Beach Into The Drink Perilous Journeys Pressure Cook Pressure Cook David Rocco’s Dolce Vita 1 David Rocco’s Dolce Vita 1 Bondi Rescue Bondi Rescue David Rocco’s Amalfi Getaway David Rocco’s Dolce Vita 1 David Rocco‚Äôs Dolce Vita 3

23:00 Naked Science 00:00 Hunter Hunted 01:00 Monster Fish 01:55 Zambezi 02:50 Unlikely Animal Friends 03:45 Unlikely Animal Friends 04:40 Triumph of Life 05:35 Africa’s Deadliest 06:30 Zambezi 07:25 Unlikely Animal Friends 08:20 Unlikely Animal Friends 09:15 Dangerous Encounters 10:10 Fish Warrior 11:05 Ultimate Predators GPU 12:00 Orca Killing School 13:00 Nordic Wild 14:00 Unlikely Animal Friends 15:00 Freaks & Creeps 16:00 Dangerous Encounters 17:00 Fish Warrior 18:00 Ultimate Predators GPU 19:00 Zambezi 20:00 Unlikely Animal Friends 21:00 Unlikely Animal Friends 22:00 Dangerous Encounters 23:00 Fish Warrior Zoo Confidential 23:00 Dangerous Encounters 00:00 D.E.B.S-18 02:00 Constantine-PG15 04:00 Ronin-18 06:00 Barricade-PG15 08:00 Men In Black-PG15 10:00 Arachnophobia-PG15 12:00 Takers-PG15 14:00 Men In Black-PG15 16:00 Rocky II-PG15 18:00 Takers-PG15 20:00 A Dangerous Man-18 22:00 Sinners & Saints-18 The Rite-18hting-PG15 22:00 Homecoming-18 00:30 The Daily Show With Jon Stewart 01:00 The Colbert Report 01:30 American Dad 02:00 Entourage 02:30 Louie 03:00 How I Met Your Mother 03:30 Last Man Standing 04:00 Two And A Half Men 04:30 The Tonight Show With Jay Leno

05:30 Seinfeld 06:00 Seinfeld 06:30 Friends 07:00 Late Night With Jimmy Fallon 08:00 Two And A Half Men 08:30 How I Met Your Mother 09:00 Seinfeld 09:30 Seinfeld 10:00 Modern Family 10:30 New Girl 11:00 The Tonight Show With Jay Leno 12:00 Friends 12:30 Two And A Half Men 13:00 Seinfeld 13:30 Seinfeld 14:00 Last Man Standing 14:30 New Girl 15:00 Modern Family 15:30 The Daily Show With Jon Stewart 16:00 The Colbert Report 16:30 Friends 17:00 Late Night With Jimmy Fallon 18:00 How I Met Your Mother 18:30 Baby Daddy 19:00 Whitney 19:30 New Girl 20:00 The Tonight Show With Jay Leno 21:00 The Daily Show With Jon Stewart 21:30 The Colbert Report 22:00 American Dad 22:30 Entourage 23:00 Louie 23:30 Late Night With Jimmy Fallon Fall on 00:00 Parenthood 01:00 Combat Hospital 02:00 Smash 03:00 Justified 04:00 Bunheads 05:00 Warehouse 13 06:00 Parenthood 07:00 Emmerdale 07:30 Coronation Street 08:00 Royal Pains 09:00 Smash 10:00 Combat Hospital 11:00 Bunheads 12:00 Emmerdale 12:30 Coronation Street 13:00 The Ellen DeGeneres Show 14:00 Royal Pains 15:00 Parenthood 16:00 Emmerdale 16:30 Coronation Street 17:00 The Ellen DeGeneres Show 18:00 Royal Pains 19:00 Necessary Roughness 20:00 The X Factor U.S. 22:00 American Horror Story 23:00 Downton Abbey Grimm23:00Grimm 01:00 03:00 05:00 07:00 09:00 11:00 13:00 15:00 17:00 19:00 21:00 23:00

Bats-18 The Daisy Chain-PG15 Judge Dredd-18 Enter The Phoenix-PG15 Dangerous Flowers-PG15 Judge Dredd-18 Little Big Soldier-PG15 Dangerous Flowers-PG15 Law Abiding Citizen-18 Get Rich Or Die Tryin’-18 Hostel: Part III-18 Sniper: Reloaded-18

00:00 Big Fat Important Movie-PG15 02:00 The Breakfast Club-PG15 04:00 Just Go With It-PG15 06:00 Say Anything-PG15 08:00 The American President-PG15 10:00 The Marc Pease ExperiencePG15 12:00 Baby Geniuses-PG 14:00 Austin Powers In GoldmemberPG15 16:00 The Marc Pease ExperiencePG15 18:00 The Trip-PG15 20:00 Lemony Snicket’s A Series Of Unfortunate-PG 22:00 The Men Who Stare At Goats18 22:00 Frenemy-18 00:00 02:00 04:00 07:00 PG15 08:45 10:45 12:15 PG15 13:45 15:15 16:45 18:30 21:00 22:45

Gigli-18 The Color Of Money-PG15 Nixon-18 Moonlight And ValentinoThe Color Of Money-PG15 Ice Dreams-PG15 Ike: Countdown To D-DayBound By A Secret-PG15 Ice Dreams-PG15 Skirt Day-PG15 The Great Gatsby-PG Frozen-PG15 Vanity Fair-PG15 Square Grouper-18

00:15 03:30 PG15 05:15 06:45 09:00 11:00 13:00 PG 15:00 17:00 19:00 21:00 23:00

Nixon-18 My Best Friend’s WeddingSpooky Buddies-PG Courageous-PG15 Senna-PG15 Water For Elephants-PG15 Marley & Me: The Puppy YearsThe Tender Hook-PG15 Senna-PG15 Unstoppable-PG15 A Little Bit Of Heaven-18 Priest-18

01:15 Turandot-PG 03:15 Tom Tom & Nana-FAM 04:30 The Ugly Duckling Goes On Holiday-FAM 06:00 The Smurfs-PG 08:15 Micropolis-FAM 10:00 The Search For Santa Paws-PG 11:45 Cats Don’t Dance-FAM 13:00 The Adventures Of Don Quixote-FAM 14:30 Turandot-PG 16:00 Queen Of The Swallows-FAM 18:00 Princess Lillifee-FAM 20:00 The Search For Santa Paws-PG 22:00 The Adventures Of Don Quixote-FAM 23:30 Queen Of The Swallows-FAM

KUWAI

KNCC PROGRAM FROM THURSDAY TO WEDNESDAY (8/11/2012 TO 14/11/2012) SHARQIA-1 ALEX CROSS (DIG) HERE COMES THE BOOM (DIG) HERE COMES THE BOOM (DIG) ALEX CROSS (DIG) HERE COMES THE BOOM (DIG) ALEX CROSS (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:30 PM 3:30 PM 5:45 PM 8:00 PM 10:30 PM 12:45 AM

SHARQIA-2 MISS MOMMY (DIG) LEGENDS OF VALHALLA: THOR WRECK-IT RALPH (DIG-3D) LEGENDS OF VALHALLA: THOR MISS MOMMY (DIG) MISS MOMMY (DIG) MISS MOMMY (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

12:30 PM 2:30 PM 4:15 PM 6:30 PM 8:15 PM 10:15 PM 12:15 AM

SHARQIA-3 FLIGHT (DIG) FLIGHT (DIG) THE SWEENEY (DIG) FLIGHT (DIG) FLIGHT (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

2:00 PM 4:45 PM 7:30 PM 9:45 PM 12:30 AM

MUHALAB-1 ALEX CROSS (DIG) HERE COMES THE BOOM (DIG) ALEX CROSS (DIG) THE SWEENEY (DIG) HERE COMES THE BOOM (DIG) ALEX CROSS (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:00 PM 3:30 PM 5:45 PM 8:00 PM 10:15 PM 12:30 AM

MUHALAB-2 MISS MOMMY (DIG) DAMARUKAM (DIG)(TELUGU) FRI FLIGHT (DIG) THU+SAT+MON FLIGHT (DIG) FLIGHT (DIG) FLIGHT (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

2:00 PM 4:00 PM 4:00 PM 7:15 PM 10:00 PM 12:45 AM

MUHALAB-3 LEGENDS OF VALHALLA: THOR WRECK-IT RALPH (DIG-3D) LEGENDS OF VALHALLA: THOR HOTEL TRANSYLVANIA(DIG-3D) MISS MOMMY (DIG MISS MOMMY (DIG) MISS MOMMY (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

12:15 PM 2:30 PM 4:45 PM 6:30 PM 8:45 PM 10:45 PM 12:45 AM

FANAR-1 THE SWEENEY (DIG) THE SWEENEY (DIG) THE SWEENEY (DIG) THE SWEENEY (DIG) THE SWEENEY (DIG) THE SWEENEY (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:00 PM 3:15 PM 5:30 PM 7:45 PM 10:00 PM 12:15 AM

FANAR-2 WRECK-IT RALPH (DIG-3D) HERE COMES THE BOOM (DIG) WRECK-IT RALPH (DIG-3D) HOTEL TRANSYLVANIA(DIG-3D) HERE COMES THE BOOM (DIG) HERE COMES THE BOOM (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

12:45 PM 3:00 PM 5:15 PM 7:30 PM 9:30 PM 11:45 PM

FANAR-3 ALEX CROSS (DIG) NO TUE+WED TAKEN2 :2D NO TUE+WED ALEX CROSS (DIG) NO TUE+WED PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG) NO TUE+WED ALEX CROSS (DIG) NO TUE+WED ALEX CROSS (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED FANAR-4 LEGENDS OF VALHALLA: THOR MISS MOMMY (DIG) LEGENDS OF VALHALLA: THOR LEGENDS OF VALHALLA: THOR MISS MOMMY (DIG) MISS MOMMY (DIG) MISS MOMMY (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED FANAR-5 FLIGHT FLIGHT FLIGHT FLIGHT FLIGHT NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:45 PM 4:00 PM 6:15 PM 8:30 PM 10:45 PM 12:45 AM

12:30 PM 2:30 PM 4:30 PM 6:15 PM 8:00 PM 10:00 PM 12:15 AM

1:30 PM 4:15 PM 7:00 PM 9:45 PM 12:30 AM

MARINA-1 ALEX CROSS (DIG) ALEX CROSS (DIG) HERE COMES THE BOOM (DIG) LED ZEPPELIN: CELEBRATION DAY HERE COMES THE BOOM (DIG) ALEX CROSS (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:30 PM 3:30 PM 5:30 PM 7:45 PM 10:15 PM 12:30 AM

MARINA-2 FLIGHT (DIG) FLIGHT (DIG) THE SWEENEY (DIG) FLIGHT (DIG) FLIGHT (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:45 PM 4:30 PM 7:15 PM 9:30 PM 12:15 AM

MARINA-3 HOTEL TRANSYLVANIA(DIG-3D) LEGENDS OF VALHALLA: THOR WRECK-IT RALPH (DIG-3D) LEGENDS OF VALHALLA: THOR MISS MOMMY (DIG) MISS MOMMY (DIG) MISS MOMMY (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:00 PM 3:00 PM 4:45 PM 7:00 PM 8:45 PM 10:45 PM 12:45 AM

AVENUES-1 THE SWEENEY (DIG) 1:15 PM THE SWEENEY (DIG) 3:45 PM THE TWILIGHT SAGA: BREAKING DAWN - PART 1 (Re-Release) 6:15 PM THE SWEENEY (DIG) 8:45 PM THE SWEENEY (DIG) 11:15 PM AVENUES-2 ALEX CROSS (DIG) ALEX CROSS (DIG) ALEX CROSS (DIG) ALEX CROSS (DIG) ALEX CROSS (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED AVENUES-3 FLIGHT (DIG)

FLIGHT (DIG) FLIGHT (DIG) FLIGHT (DIG) FLIGHT (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

4:15 PM 7:00 PM 9:45 PM 12:30 AM

AVENUES-4 HERE COMES THE BOOM (DIG) HERE COMES THE BOOM (DIG) HERE COMES THE BOOM (DIG) HERE COMES THE BOOM (DIG) HERE COMES THE BOOM (DIG) HERE COMES THE BOOM (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

12:30 PM 2:45 PM 5:00 PM 7:15 PM 9:30 PM 11:45 PM

AVENUES-5 FLIGHT (DIG) FLIGHT (DIG) FLIGHT (DIG) FLIGHT (DIG) FLIGHT (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:30 PM 4:15 PM 7:00 PM 9:45 PM 12:30 AM

AVENUES-6 LEGENDS OF VALHALLA: THOR HOTEL TRANSYLVANIA(DIG-3D) LEGENDS OF VALHALLA: THOR HOTEL TRANSYLVANIA(DIG-3D) LEGENDS OF VALHALLA: THOR ALEX CROSS (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:00 PM 3:15 PM 5:30 PM 7:45 PM 10:00 PM 12:15 AM

AVENUES-7 TAKEN2 :2D NO TUE+WED TAKEN2 :2D NO TUE+WED PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG) NO TUE+WED TAKEN2 :2D NO TUE+WED TAKEN2 :2D NO TUE+WED PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED AVENUES-8 LOOPER (DIG) NO TUE+WED LED ZEPPELIN: CELEBRATION DAY NO TUE+WED LED ZEPPELIN: CELEBRATION DAY NO TUE+WED LED ZEPPELIN: CELEBRATION DAY NO TUE+WED LOOPER (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED AVENUES-9 WRECK-IT RALPH (DIG-3D) LEGENDS OF VALHALLA: THOR WRECK-IT RALPH (DIG-3D) WRECK-IT RALPH (DIG-3D) FLIGHT (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED AVENUES-10 HERE COMES THE BOOM (DIG) NO TUE+WED HERE COMES THE BOOM (DIG) NO TUE+WED HERE COMES THE BOOM (DIG) NO TUE+WED HERE COMES THE BOOM (DIG) NO TUE+WED HERE COMES THE BOOM (DIG) NO TUE+WED HERE COMES THE BOOM (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:15 PM

5:45 PM 8:00 PM 10:15 PM 12:30 AM

1:45 PM 4:00 PM 6:45 PM 9:15 PM 11:45 PM

2:00 PM 4:15 PM 6:30 PM 8:45 PM 11:00 PM

12:30 PM 2:45 PM 5:00 PM 7:15 PM 9:30 PM 11:45 PM

12:45 PM 3:00 PM 5:15 PM 7:30 PM 9:45 PM 12:05 AM

360 º- 1 FLIGHT (DIG) FLIGHT (DIG) FLIGHT (DIG) FLIGHT (DIG) FLIGHT (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

12:30 PM 3:15 PM 6:00 PM 8:45 PM 11:30 PM

360 º- 2 ALEX CROSS (DIG) ALEX CROSS (DIG) ALEX CROSS (DIG) ALEX CROSS (DIG) ALEX CROSS (DIG) ALEX CROSS (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:15 PM 3:30 PM 5:45 PM 8:00 PM 10:15 PM 12:30 AM

360 º- 4 LEGENDS OF VALHALLA: THOR LEGENDS OF VALHALLA: THOR LEGENDS OF VALHALLA: THOR LEGENDS OF VALHALLA: THOR TAKEN2 :2D TAKEN2 :2D NO SUN+TUE+WED

2:00 PM 4:15 PM 6:30 PM 8:45 PM 11:15 PM 1:30 PM 3:45 PM 6:00 PM 8:15 PM 10:30 PM 12:45 AM

360 º- 5 FLIGHT (DIG) 1:30 PM SAT FLIGHT (DIG) 4:15 PM NO THU THE TWILIGHT SAGA: ECLIPSE (Re- Release) 7:00 PM FLIGHT (DIG) 9:45 PM FLIGHT (DIG) 12:30 AM NO SUN+TUE+WED 360º- 6 WRECK-IT RALPH (DIG-3D) WRECK-IT RALPH (DIG-3D) WRECK-IT RALPH (DIG-3D) WRECK-IT RALPH (DIG-3D) WRECK-IT RALPH (DIG-3D) HERE COMES THE BOOM (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

2:15 PM 4:30 PM 6:45 PM 9:00 PM 11:30 PM

360 º- 7 TAKEN2 :2D TAKEN2 :2D TAKEN2 :2D TAKEN2 :2D TAKEN2 :2D

1:30 PM

360 º- 8 HERE COMES THE BOOM (DIG) NO TUE+WED

4:00 PM 6:15 PM 8:30 PM 10:45 PM 1:00 AM

360 º- 9(VIP-1) HERE COMES THE BOOM (DIG) HERE COMES THE BOOM (DIG) HERE COMES THE BOOM (DIG) HERE COMES THE BOOM (DIG) HERE COMES THE BOOM (DIG) HERE COMES THE BOOM (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:45 PM 4:00 PM 6:15 PM 8:30 PM 10:45 PM 1:00 AM

360 º-10(VIP-2) FLIGHT (DIG) FLIGHT (DIG) FLIGHT (DIG) FLIGHT (DIG) FLIGHT (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

12:30 PM 3:15 PM 6:00 PM 8:45 PM 11:30 PM

360 º- 11 THE SWEENEY (DIG) THE SWEENEY (DIG) THE SWEENEY (DIG) THE SWEENEY (DIG) THE SWEENEY (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

2:15 PM 4:45 PM 7:15 PM 9:45 PM 12:15 AM

360 º- 12 MISS MOMMY (DIG) MISS MOMMY (DIG) MISS MOMMY (DIG) MISS MOMMY (DIG) MISS MOMMY (DIG) MISS MOMMY (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

2:00 PM 4:15 PM 6:30 PM 8:45 PM 11:00 PM 1:15 AM

360 º- 13 THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN THE DARK KNIGHT RISES RESIDENT EVIL: RETRIBUTION THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN RESIDENT EVIL: RETRIBUTION NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:15 PM 4:00 PM 7:30 PM 9:45 PM 12:30 AM

3:30 PM

AVENUES-11 MISS MOMMY (DIG) MISS MOMMY (DIG) MISS MOMMY (DIG) MISS MOMMY (DIG) MISS MOMMY (DIG) MISS MOMMY (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

360 º- 3 HOTEL TRANSYLVANIA(DIG-3D) HOTEL TRANSYLVANIA(DIG-3D) HOTEL TRANSYLVANIA(DIG-3D) HOTEL TRANSYLVANIA(DIG-3D) ALEX CROSS (DIG)

HERE COMES THE BOOM (DIG) NO TUE+WED HERE COMES THE BOOM (DIG) NO TUE+WED HERE COMES THE BOOM (DIG) NO TUE+WED HERE COMES THE BOOM (DIG) NO TUE+WED HERE COMES THE BOOM (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:00 PM 3:15 PM 5:30 PM 7:45 PM 10:00 PM 12:15 AM

2:30 PM 4:45 PM 7:00 PM 9:15 PM 11:30 PM 1:45 PM

360 º- 14 PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG) NO TUE+WED PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG) NO TUE+WED MISS MOMMY (DIG) NO TUE+WED PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG) NO TUE+WED MISS MOMMY (DIG) NO TUE+WED PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED 360 º- 15 LOOPER (DIG) NO TUE+WED LOOPER (DIG) NO TUE+WED LED ZEPPELIN: CELEBRATION NO TUE+WED LED ZEPPELIN: CELEBRATION DAY NO TUE+WED LED ZEPPELIN: CELEBRATION DAY NO TUE+WED LOOPER (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

12:45 PM 3:00 PM 5:15 PM 7:30 PM 9:45 PM 12:05 AM

12:30 PM 2:45 PM 5:15 PM 7:45 PM 0:15 PM 12:45 AM

AL-KOUT.1 MISS MOMMY (DIG) LEGENDS OF VALHALLA: THOR WRECK-IT RALPH (DIG-3D) LEGENDS OF VALHALLA: THOR MISS MOMMY (DIG) MISS MOMMY (DIG) MISS MOMMY (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

12:30 PM 2:30 PM 4:15 PM 6:30 PM 8:15 PM 10:15 PM 12:15 AM

AL-KOUT.2 FLIGHT (DIG) FLIGHT (DIG) FLIGHT (DIG) FLIGHT (DIG) FLIGHT (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:30 PM 4:15 PM 7:00 PM 9:45 PM 12:30 AM

AL-KOUT.3 THE SWEENEY (DIG) ALEX CROSS (DIG) THE SWEENEY (DIG) ALEX CROSS (DIG) THE SWEENEY (DIG) ALEX CROSS (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:30 PM 3:45 PM 6:00 PM 8:15 PM 10:30 PM 12:45 AM

AL-KOUT.4 HERE COMES THE BOOM (DIG) TAKEN2 :2D HERE COMES THE BOOM (DIG) HERE COMES THE BOOM (DIG) HERE COMES THE BOOM (DIG) TAKEN2 :2D NO SUN+TUE+WED

12:30 PM 2:45 PM 5:00 PM 7:15 PM 9:30 PM 12:05 AM

BAIRAQ-1 LEGENDS OF VALHALLA: THOR HOTEL TRANSYLVANIA(DIG-3D) LEGENDS OF VALHALLA: THOR WRECK-IT RALPH (DIG-3D) LEGENDS OF VALHALLA: THOR HERE COMES THE BOOM (DIG) HERE COMES THE BOOM (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

12:30 PM 2:15 PM 4:15 PM 6:15 PM 8:30 PM 10:30 PM 12:45 AM

BAIRAQ-2 HERE COMES THE BOOM (DIG) MISS MOMMY (DIG) HERE COMES THE BOOM (DIG) MISS MOMMY (DIG) MISS MOMMY (DIG) MISS MOMMY (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

2:30 PM 4:45 PM 6:45 PM 9:00 PM 11:00 PM 1:00 AM

BAIRAQ-3 FLIGHT (DIG) FLIGHT (DIG) FLIGHT (DIG) FLIGHT (DIG) FLIGHT (DIG) NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:30 PM 4:15 PM 7:00 PM 9:45 PM 12:30 AM

PLAZA MISS MOMMY (DIG) FLIGHT (DIG) NO TUE+WED MISS MOMMY (DIG) THE SWEENEY (DIG)

3:45 PM 5:45 PM 8:45 PM 10:45 PM

Classifieds THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2012

DIAL 161 FOR AIRPORT INFORMATION

Airlines JAI THY JZR JZR QTR ETH GFA UAE ETD FDB MSR QTR DHX THY JZR JZR JZR BAW KAC KAC KAC FDB KAC IRA IRA KAC KAC UAE GFA KAC IZG ABY QTR FDB ETD GFA BAB FDB JZR MSC MEA UAE SYR MSR GFA FDB KNE KAC KAC SVA QTR KAC JZR KNE QTR OMA JZR KNE KAC UAE JZR ETD RJA GFA SVA KAC QTR ABY UAL KAC JZR RBG KAC BAB FDB TAR MSC KAC KAC KAC KAC KAC OMA FDB JAI AXB MSC MSR JZR ABY QTR ALK MEA QTR KAC GFA ETD UAE JZR JAI FDB DHX AIC JZR GFA JZR UAL BBC DLH

Arrival Flights on Thursday 8/11/2012 Flt Route 574 MUMBAI 772 ISTANBUL 267 BEIRUT 539 CAIRO 148 DOHA 620 ADDIS ABABA 211 BAHRAIN 853 DUBAI 305 ABU DHABI 67 DUBAI 612 CAIRO 138 DOHA 170 BAHRAIN 770 ISTANBUL 503 LUXOR 555 ALEXANDRIA 529 ASSIUT 157 LONDON 412 MANILA 354 COCHIN 206 ISLAMABAD 53 DUBAI 382 DELHI 605 ISFAHAN 617 AHWAZ 302 MUMBAI 332 TRIVANDRUM 855 DUBAI 223 BAHRAIN 284 DHAKA 4161 MASHAD 121 SHARJAH 132 DOHA 55 DUBAI 301 ABU DHABI 213 BAHRAIN 436 BAHRAIN 69 DUBAI 165 DUBAI 403 ASSIUT 404 BEIRUT 871 DUBAI 341 DAMASCUS 610 CAIRO 219 BAHRAIN 57 DUBAI 472 JEDDAH 546 ALEXANDRIA 672 DUBAI 500 JEDDAH 140 DOHA 788 JEDDAH 257 BEIRUT 470 JEDDAH 134 DOHA 645 MUSCAT 535 CAIRO 474 JEDDAH 118 NEW YORK 857 DUBAI 357 MASHAD 303 ABU DHABI 640 AMMAN 215 BAHRAIN 510 RIYADH 502 BEIRUT 144 DOHA 127 SHARJAH 982 WASHINGTON DC DULLES 542 CAIRO 177 DUBAI 3553 ALEXANDRIA 786 JEDDAH 438 BAHRAIN 63 DUBAI 327 TUNIS 405 SOHAG 176 GENEVA 618 DOHA 674 DUBAI 104 LONDON 774 RIYADH 647 MUSCAT 61 DUBAI 572 MUMBAI 393 KOZHIKODE 401 ALEXANDRIA 618 ALEXANDRIA 189 DUBAI 129 SHARJAH 146 DOHA 229 COLOMBO 402 BEIRUT 136 DOHA 562 AMMAN 221 BAHRAIN 307 ABU DHABI 859 DUBAI 135 BAHRAIN 576 COCHIN 59 DUBAI 372 BAHRAIN 981 CHENNAI 239 AMMAN 217 BAHRAIN 185 DUBAI 981 BAHRAIN 43 DHAKA 636 FRANKFURT

Time 0:30 0:35 0:45 0:50 1:00 1:45 1:50 2:35 2:45 3:05 3:10 3:45 5:15 5:30 5:55 6:00 6:35 6:40 6:45 7:35 7:40 7:45 7:45 7:50 7:55 7:55 8:15 8:40 8:45 8:45 8:50 9:05 9:10 9:15 9:20 9:55 10:05 10:45 11:20 11:35 11:55 12:50 12:55 13:05 13:35 13:50 14:10 14:15 14:15 14:30 14:35 14:55 15:05 15:10 15:30 15:40 16:25 16:30 16:35 16:40 16:45 16:50 16:55 17:15 17:20 17:40 17:50 17:55 17:55 18:05 18:15 18:20 18:30 18:40 18:45 18:55 19:00 19:15 19:20 19:35 19:35 19:50 19:55 20:00 20:10 20:15 20:20 20:25 20:30 20:35 20:45 20:55 21:20 21:25 21:25 21:30 21:35 21:40 21:50 21:55 22:00 22:00 22:30 22:45 22:50 23:05 23:25 23:45 23:55

Airlines AIC AXB UAL DLH JAI ETH THY FDB UAE ETD MSR QTR QTR JZR GFA KAC THY FDB BAW IRA IRA JZR JZR KAC GFA KAC ABY KAC UAE FDB ETD QTR IZG GFA JZR BAB FDB KAC KAC KAC MSC MEA KAC JZR SYR MSR UAE GFA FDB KAC KNE KAC KAC SVA JZR KNE QTR KAC OMA JZR KNE ETD JZR QTR UAE RJA GFA JZR SVA ABY JZR QTR RBG JZR UAL FDB BAB TAR MSC KAC FDB KAC KAC OMA JAI AXB ABY KAC MSC MSR KAC DHX ALK MEA ETD QTR GFA FDB KAC JZR UAE JAI DHX KAC QTR GFA JZR KAC KAC

Depature Flights on Thursday 8/11/2012 Flt Route 976 GOA 390 MANGALORE 981 WASHINGTON DC DULLES 637 FRANKFURT 573 MUMBAI 621 ADDIS ABABA 773 ISTANBUL 68 DUBAI 854 DUBAI 306 ABU DHABI 613 CAIRO 139 DOHA 149 DOHA 164 DUBAI 212 BAHRAIN 545 ALEXANDRIA 771 ISTANBUL 54 DUBAI 156 LONDON 606 MASHHAD 616 AHWAZ 256 BEIRUT 534 CAIRO 787 JEDDAH 224 BAHRAIN 671 DUBAI 122 SHARJAH 101 LONDON 856 DUBAI 56 DUBAI 302 ABU DHABI 133 DOHA 4162 MASHHAD 214 BAHRAIN 356 MASHHAD 437 BAHRAIN 70 DUBAI 541 CAIRO 501 BEIRUT 165 ROME 406 SOHAG 405 BEIRUT 785 JEDDAH 176 DUBAI 342 DAMASCUS 611 CAIRO 872 DUBAI 220 BAHRAIN 58 DUBAI 673 DUBAI 473 JEDDAH 617 DOHA 561 AMMAN 505 JEDDAH 188 DUBAI 471 JEDDAH 141 DOHA 773 RIYADH 646 MUSCAT 238 AMMAN 475 JEDDAH 304 ABU DHABI 538 CAIRO 135 DOHA 858 DUBAI 641 AMMAN 216 BAHRAIN 184 DUBAI 511 RIYADH 128 SHARJAH 266 BEIRUT 145 DOHA 3554 ALEXANDRIA 134 BAHRAIN 982 BAHRAIN 64 DUBAI 439 BAHRAIN 328 TUNIS 404 ASSIUT 283 DHAKA 62 DUBAI 351 KOCHI 331 TRIVANDRUM 648 MUSCAT 571 MUMBAI 394 KOZHIKODE 120 SHARJAH 343 CHENNAI 402 ALEXANDRIA 619 ALEXANDRIA 543 CAIRO 171 BAHRAIN 230 COLOMBO 403 BEIRUT 308 ABU DHABI 137 DOHA 222 BAHRAIN 60 DUBAI 361 MUSCAT 554 ALEXANDRIA 860 DUBAI 575 KOCHI 373 BAHRAIN 205 ISLAMABAD 147 DOHA 218 BAHRAIN 528 ASSIUT 411 BANGKOK 415 KUALA LUMPUR

Time 0:05 0:15 1:10 1:20 1:30 2:45 2:55 3:45 3:50 4:00 4:10 4:50 6:05 6:55 7:00 7:30 7:35 8:25 8:45 8:50 8:55 9:05 9:15 9:25 9:30 9:40 9:45 9:50 9:55 10:00 10:05 10:10 10:15 10:40 10:45 10:50 11:25 11:30 11:45 11:50 12:35 12:55 13:00 13:50 13:55 14:05 14:15 14:20 14:30 15:05 15:10 15:45 16:00 16:00 16:05 16:10 16:15 16:25 16:40 17:15 17:30 17:35 17:40 17:45 17:50 17:55 18:15 18:30 18:35 18:40 18:45 18:50 19:00 19:05 19:10 19:25 19:30 19:45 20:00 20:30 20:40 20:45 20:55 20:55 21:10 21:15 21:15 21:15 21:20 21:25 21:40 21:50 21:55 22:20 22:20 22:25 22:30 22:40 22:40 22:45 22:50 22:55 23:00 23:00 23:10 23:50 23:50 23:55 23:55

Directorate General of Civil Aviation Home Page (www.kuwait-airport.com.kw)

FOR SALE Daihatsu Sirion 2012, 20 km, automatic, 5 door, KD 2100. Contact: 60976100.

(C 4202) 6-11-2012 Lancer 2009 outlander 2009. Ph: 99481300. Lancer Ex GLS 2011 model, silver color, km 21,000 only, original paint, under warranty, KD 3,900. Ph: 66052331.

(C 4197) Toyota Corolla 2008, dark grey color (CC 1600). KD 2300. Tel: 66729295.

(C 4200) Offer for photo studios, Fuji Frontier 340 Machine for sale in a very reasonable price. For inquiries please call 55127477. (C 4198) 5-11-2012 Toyota Land Cruiser, white color, 2009 model, V8, full option, excellent condition, 86,000 km only. Call 66026259, 66158602.

(C4199) 4-11-2012 Mitsubishi Galant, 2006 model, silver color, beige interior, 1,25,000 km, serviced by dealership, owned

by American lady, price KD 1,500, o.n.o. 99405067.

(C 4196) 3-11-2012 SITUATION WANTED Australian now in Kuwait looking for a traveling partner to Canada and USA male or female, share cost. Email: gulfinportexport@hotmail.com (C 4203) 6-11-2012 Western educated “Project Manager” with 2 EngineeringDegrees (Civil/Elec.), 4-Master

Degrees (Project Mgmt/ Engineering/ Education & Training/ MBA), plus 17-years experience in Middle East/ Australia, seeking Executive Position. Contact: 65695468 email: rav@engineer.com (C 4195) 4-11-2012

SITUATION VACANT Required Indian or Sri Lankan driver for a Kuwaiti family, light work and good salary. Contact: 99709076.

(C 4204) Required camp keeper, Indian or Sri Lankan, with good salary. Contact: 99709076. (C 4205) Required English speaking nanny/ maid. Please call 99824597. (C 4201) 6-11-2012 House driver, 20-30 years old, 3-5 years experience driving in Kuwait, speak

No:

15621

and read English, transferable residency.

Call 99747679. (C 4194) LOST Mohammed Aslam, Indian Passport No 2021183, issued in Kuwait on May, 30, 2010 is lost. If anyone finds please contact: 97427077, 97915756 6-11-2012

112 Prayer timings Fajr:

04:45

Duhr:

11:32

Asr:

14:35

Maghrib:

16:57

Isha:

18:16

34

s ta rs CROSSWORD 2

ACROSS 1. The compass point midway between south and southwest.

4. Cause to be more favorably inclined.

11. (Babylonian) God of storms and wind.

15. South American wood sorrel cultivated for its edible tubers.

16. Pigment mixed with water-soluble glutinous materials such as size and egg yolk.

17. (New Testament) Disciple of Jesus.

18. Committee formed by a special-interest group to raise money for their favorite political candidates.

19. Type genus of the Oniscidae.

20. (botany) Of or relating to the axil.

21. Scottish writer of adventure novels (17211771).

23. A loud harsh or strident noise.

25. The federal agency that insures residential mortgages.

26. British composer (1857-1934).

27. Of or relating to Gnosticism.

29. A primeval personification of air and breath.

32. Used of a single unit or thing.

33. Oval reproductive body of a fowl (especially a hen) used as food.

34. Soft white semisolid fat obtained by rendering the fatty tissue of the hog v 1.

35. A light springing movement upwards or forwards.

37. (obstetrics) The number of live-born children a woman has delivered.

41. Scale-like structure between the base of the wing and the halter of a two-winged fly.

43. A member of the Siouan people formerly living in the Missouri river valley in NE Nebraska.

46. A feeling of strong eagerness (usually in favor of a person or cause).

47. An enclosed space.

48. A light touch or stroke.

51. An informal term for a father.

53. Belonging to or on behalf of a specified person (especially yourself).

54. A festival featuring African-American culture.

56. Capital and largest city of Indonesia.

58. The branch of computer science that deal with writing computer programs that can solve problems creatively.

60. (Islam) The man who leads prayers in a mosque.

63. A condition (mostly in boys) characterized by behavioral and learning disorders.

64. English monk and scholar (672-735).

69. Tropical starchy tuberous root.

73. Any plant of the genus Episcia.

75. (Scottish) A narrow secluded valley (in the mountains).

77. A river in north central Switzerland that runs northeast into the Rhine.

78. God of the underworld.

79. A soft silver-white ductile metallic element (liquid at normal temperatures).

82. Take in solid food.

83. A city and port in northern Jutland.

84. Divulge information or secrets.

DOWN 1. Piece of solid food for dipping in a liquid.

2. A fraudulent business scheme.

3. A city in east central Texas.

4. An island consisting of a circular coral reef surrounding a lagoon.

5. A republic in northwestern Africa on the coast of the Atlantic.

6. Veloute or brown sauce with sauteed chopped onion and dry white wine and sour cream.

7. In the direction against a stream's current.

8. A former agency (from 1946 to 1974) that was responsible for research into atomic energy and its peacetime uses in the United States.

9. A resentment strong enough to justify retaliation.

10. A change for the better.

11. A flat wing-shaped process or winglike part of an organism.

12. A style of glazed earthenware.

13. A genus of Indriidae.

14. English theoretical physicist who applied relativity theory to quantum mechanics and predicted the existence of antimatter and the positron (1902-1984).

22. United States tennis player (born in Czechoslovakia) who won several singles championships.

24. A wooden pin pushed or driven into a surface.

28. A rare chronic progressive encephalitis caused by the measles virus and occurring primarily in children and young adults.

30. A landlocked republic in southern central Africa.

31. Annual to perennial herbs of the Mediterranean region.

36. A genus of Ploceidae.

38. Fear resulting from the awareness of danger.

39. An Indian side dish of yogurt and chopped cucumbers and spices.

40. A communist state in Indochina on the South China Sea. 42. An edge tool used to cut and shape wood.

44. A pilgrim who journeys to Mecca.

45. A city in southern Turkey on the Seyhan River.

49. A river in north central Switzerland that runs northeast into the Rhine.

50. A soft silvery metallic element of the alkali earth group.

52. A state in northwestern North America.

55. In such a manner as could not be otherwise.

57. An officer who acts as military assistant to a more senior officer.

59. A magnetic tape recorder for recording (and playing back) TV programs.

61. (slang) The act of stealing.

62. An indehiscent fruit derived from a single ovary having one or many seeds within a fleshy wall or pericarp.

65. The capital of Western Samoa.

66. A Gaelic-speaking Celt in Ireland or Scotland or the Isle of Man. 67. A fee charged for exchanging currencies.

68. A hazy or indistinct representation.

70. The lower house of the parliament of the Republic of Ireland.

71. Fallow deer.

72. An Arabic speaking person who lives in Arabia or North Africa.

74. A plant hormone promoting elongation of stems and roots.

76. A graphical record of electric currents associated with muscle contractions.

80. A metallic element having four allotropic forms.

81. 16 ounces.

Yesterday’s Solution

Word Search

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2012

Yesterday’s Solution

STAR TRACK Aries (March 21-April 19)

Outer circumstances are favorable for completing old projects and beginning new ones. Projects may seem almost magical in the way they work out for you. This is a great time to get things accomplished. You find that you are able to bring more imagination to bear on your goals and ambitions now.

You appreciate your particular situation and enjoy support from those around you. This afternoon is a good time for surrounding yourself with friends and young people and for having a good time. You might find your ideals taking a more spiritual turn, thus involving you more in community and religious projects. If you are partaking in the holiday celebrations, now is a good time to plan and purchase some of the things that are needed.

Taurus (April 20-May 20)

A friend in need or something you believe in could suffer from a lack of your attention. Pay close attention to the tendency to be dismissive. You may be called upon to lend a helping hand when it comes to group work; this will go well. You are easy to communicate with and may find yourself the healer between races, belief systems or job identities. For example, a warehouse worker and a corporate worker may not ever meet each other unless you come along to help others cross boundaries. Optimism and a yearning to explore all kinds of new horizons are some of the focal points in your life.

You look for ways to stretch your horizons and open new doors of opportunity. No matter where you are, you help to build solid social bridges.

Gemini (May 21-June 20) You may shine in your particular job or find that promotion or practical insights come with ease. This is a very good day for making progress at work. You could represent or speak for your company or communicate about your skills. Things are happening and your career or path may depend on your own drive—which is strong now. You may have a new offer for a job opportunity today. You are able to use good common sense and can feel the trends and make all the right moves. Circumstances may urge you to great effort and hard work. Things are working with rather than against you so do not hold back. However, do not overdo and try to go too far too fast. You will not break anything if you go with the flow and let things take their natural course.

Cancer (June 21-July 22)

You are entering a time in your professional life where everything is going your way. Small problems can be solved quickly, resulting in the eventual elimination of the irritating ones that may have been hounding you recently.

It would be good to consolidate and tie down the advances you have made up to now. Before leaving this afternoon, you might want to go through your desk or files and rid yourself of the things that do not serve you or your company. It is a good feeling to have your business in order. You tend toward mental pursuits and admire intelligence; a trip to the library may be in order after work today. There is an emphasis on communication—expression of ideas and the connections between things, places and people.

Leo (July 23-August 22)

You look for ways to pull in extra funds, perhaps a second job or taking a chance on some moneymaking deal. You are an action person who seems to get things moving. The circumstances of your life suggest extroversion— with style. Self-discipline is the important issue now and this is what you teach others through your own dealings. Today you may be looking for a new vehicle. A better means of transportation has been needed for some time and now is the time to look around and make some decisions— patience. There are opportunities to improve your career through travel, writing or by studying some new technique. General good feelings and a sense of support and harmony make this a happy time. A family meeting keeps you on your toes.

Virgo (August 23-September 22)

Skillful communication is the key to your career this Wednesday. You could talk someone out of a lawsuit or perhaps, into the newest and most expensive product on the market. You will be saving yourself and perhaps another, much frustration, money and time. Proceed with high hopes and raised aspirations. Your attitude and talents move in the direction of most positive self-expressions—other people listen and learn. You could be leading a group discussion today and it may deal with some sort of academic crusade.

You could be most persuasive, swaying others to your way of thinking. True wisdom lies in discovering that there are no ultimate answers, only good questions. Good conversations with those you love are possible and pleasant.

Libra (September 23-October 22) This is a great time to be in the workforce and interactive with the public.

You can expect a little boost, some extra support or recognition from those around you. Psychological values and material possessions become very important for you now. Possessions, your surroundings and things in general, are in a state of change: what is old and familiar are left behind or changed so thoroughly as to be unrecognizable. Time may stand out in your mind as either moving too fast or too slow. Depending on your age—you may make life-style changes. Financial gain and material well-being are among the brighter prospects looming before you now. This can be a very productive time in your life . . . could even be a Midas-touch experience; enjoy.

Scorpio (October 23-November 21)

There are the makings for a bright and witty day. You should be able to get your ideas understood with ease. Your communication skills are at a highwater mark. You seem to gravitate to those things that last and hold true.

Matters of law, religion and philosophy of the most resolute kind hold your interest. A shopping expedition may have you in more of a saving mood than a spending mood today. The urge to see big results from your investment efforts may be teaching you that you really do not need many of the products or things you thought you needed in the past. You may want to just get out and walk this afternoon in order to gain some focus or just have some thoughts of your own. Tonight—a romantic dinner is in the making.

Sagittarius (November 22-December 21) At heart, you have a deep sense of responsibility and purpose. This seriousness today is genuine and felt by others. Someone may need your advice regarding work problems. You seem to gravitate to the truth of matters. You do not believe everything you hear—a gamble or story that is hard to believe should be checked out today. Anything that cannot wait for you to research is risky—drop it! There are new opportunities to gain recognition in your job now. You have plenty of enthusiasm and warm up to people quickly when you make the effort. You have an inner self-confidence that burns with its own light. You also have an opportunity to network this evening. You must push to come out of that quiet shell of yours, as a networking effort is important.

Capricorn (December 22-January 19)

You may not value something extraordinary or unusual today, although someone might try to push a new idea toward you. Instead, you find yourself appreciating what is quite normal or ordinary. It may take you a little longer before you invest your money into a risk taking deal—certainly, no easy money plot will cross your path! Whether you are in sales or in some type of public relations job, you enjoy helping people and are willing to give advice when asked. Everyone seems to be in such a hurry . . . interruptions, confusions, difficult communications and a determination to sway your thinking in some areas. More than one person will seek your advice about sensitive matters. Weather permitting; get outside for a bit of exercise later today.

Aquarius (January 20- February 18)

You are an early riser. Others are just getting up by the time you have completed half of a day’s work. This tendency of yours is beneficial to you; it helps you to greet the day with a feeling of success. If you are soon to be taking a test, exam or study, you may have to have a long talk with yourself in order to get enough rest—perhaps some breathing exercises would be helpful. Because you tend to rush to complete anything undone, you may finish most any project quickly and look for the next project. Relax occasionally—create a bit of poetry or a jingle, or write a short story. This will lighten your spirit and keep you from pushing others beyond their energies. This is a good day to absorb and take in new impressions as well as information.

Pisces (February 19-March 20) You may feel emotionally frustrated today. This could be because of your own busy schedule. Make way for possible difficulties—understand that you are not alone and possibly could help guide someone else by the way you handle yourself. Work through any problem as quickly as possible—you could become bogged down in details. Your enjoyment of life may be temporarily blocked, but later today, you will enjoy a visit with an old friend. A loved one sympathizes with your frustrations and may encourage you. The way you deal with necessities and obligations—health and work in particular—is in a state of transformation. A new diet or exercise program is in the works. Love is a wonderful friend this evening.

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2012

i n f o r m at i o n For labor-related inquiries and complaints: Call MSAL hotline 128 GOVERNORATE Sabah Hospital

24812000

Amiri Hospital

22450005

Maternity Hospital

24843100

Mubarak Al-Kabir Hospital

25312700

Chest Hospital

24849400

Farwaniya Hospital

24892010

Adan Hospital

23940620

Ibn Sina Hospital

24840300

Al-Razi Hospital

24846000

Physiotherapy Hospital

24874330/9

Kaizen center

25716707

Roudha

22517733

Adhaliya

22517144

Khaldiya

24848075

Keifan

24849807

Shamiya

24848913

Shuwaikh

24814507

Abdullah Salim

22549134

Al-Nuzha

22526804

Industrial Shuwaikh

24814764

Al-Khadissiya

22515088

Dasmah

22532265

Bneid Al-Ghar

22531908

Al-Shaab

22518752

Al-Kibla

22459381

Ayoun Al-Kibla

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

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

Hawally

ST TAT TE OF K KUW WA AIT

Tel.: e 161

DIRECTORA ATE T GENE GENERAL OF CIVIL AVIA V AT TION PARTMENT A METEOROLOGICAL DEP DA AY: Y Weednesday

Ext.: 2627 262 - 2630

07/11/2012

BY Y DA AY:

Sunny with light to moderate north westerly wind, with speed of 08 - 28 km/h and some scattered clouds will appear

BY Y NIGHT:

apFair with light to moderate north westerly wind, with speed of 06 - 26 km/h and some high clouds will ap pear No Current Warnings arnin a

WA ARNING

34 °C

24 °C

22451082

KUW WAIT A AIRPOR RT

33 °C

17 °C

Al-Mirqab

22456536

NUW WAISEEB A

34 °C

19 °C

Sharq

22465401

WAFRA A

35 °C

17 °C

Salmiya

25746401

SALMI

32 °C

17 °C

ABDAL LY

34 °C

17 °C

Jabriya

25316254

JAL ALIY YAH A

33 °C

18 °C

Maidan Hawally

25623444

FA AILAKA

32 °C

21 °C

Bayan

25388462

AHMADI POR RT

32 °C

24 °C

Mishref

25381200

UMM AL-MARADEM

30 °C

25 °C

W.Hawally

22630786

WARBA A A - BUBY YAN A

33 °C

16 °C

Sabah

24810221

Jahra

24770319

ST TAT TION

SFC. CHART

07/11/2012 0000 UTC

4 DA AYS Y FORECAST Temperatures DA AY

DA AT TE

WEA ATHER T

Thursday

08/11

New Jahra

24575755

West Jahra

24772608

Friday

South Jahra

24775066

Saturday

North Jahra

24775992

Sunday

North Jleeb

24311795

Al-Ardhiya

24884079

MAX.

MIN.

Wind Direction

Wind Speed

sunny + scattered clouds

33 °C

17 °C

NW-VRB

06 - 26 km/h

09/11

sunny + scattered clouds

34 °C

17 °C

VRB-SE

06 - 28 km/h

10/11

Relatively humid + scattered clouds

35 °C

18 °C

SE-SW

12 - 35 km/h

11/11

sunny + scattered clouds

33 °C

18 °C

SE-NW

15 - 40 km/h

PRA RA AYER Y TIMES

RECORDED YESTERDA AY AT KUW WAIT A AIRPORT

Fajr

04:44

MAX. Temp.

34 °C

Sunrise

06:05

MIN. Temp.

18 °C 67 %

Firdous

24892674

Zuhr

11:32

MAX. RH

Al-Omariya

24719048

Asr

14:36

MIN. RH

Sunset

16:58

MAX. Wind

Isha

18:18

TOT TA AL L RAIINF FA ALL L IN 24 HR.

23900322

All times are local time unless otherwise stated.

13 % NW 36 km/h 00 mm

07/11/12 03:03 UTC

V1.00

T1.06

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

Dr. Salem soso 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

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

Kaizen center 25716707

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

Soor Center Tel: 2290-1677 Fax: 2290 1688

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

Expected Weather e for the Next 24 Hours

KUW WAIT A CITY

Fintas

Al-Shohada’a

INTERNATIONAL CALLS

07:00

Issue Time

MIN. REC.

24710044

22418714

Fax: 24348714 WWW.MET.GOV V.KW .

MAX. EXP P.

N.Kheitan

Al-Madena

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 0093 Albania 00355 Algeria 00213 Andorra 00376 Angola 00244 Anguilla 001264 Antiga 001268 Argentina 0054 Armenia 00374 Australia 0061 Austria 0043 Bahamas 001242 Bahrain 00973 Bangladesh 00880 Barbados 001246 Belarus 00375 Belgium 0032 Belize 00501 Benin 00229 Bermuda 001441 Bhutan 00975 Bolivia 00591 Bosnia 00387 Botswana 00267 Brazil 0055 Brunei 00673 Bulgaria 00359 Burkina 00226 Burundi 00257 Cambodia 00855 Cameroon 00237 Canada 001 Cape Verde 00238 Cayman Islands 001345 Central African 00236 Chad 00235 Chile 0056 China 0086 Colombia 0057 Comoros 00269 Congo 00242 Cook Islands 00682 Costa Rica 00506 Croatia 00385 Cuba 0053 Cyprus 00357 Cyprus (Northern) 0090392 Czech Republic 00420 Denmark 0045 Diego Garcia 00246 Djibouti 00253 Dominica 001767 Dominican Republic 001809 Ecuador 00593 Egypt 0020 El Salvador 00503 England (UK) 0044 Equatorial Guinea 00240 Eritrea 00291 Estonia 00372 Ethiopia 00251 Falkland Islands 00500 Faroe Islands 00298 Fiji 00679 Finland 00358 France 0033 French Guiana 00594 French Polynesia 00689 Gabon 00241 Gambia 00220 Georgia 00995 Germany 0049 Ghana 00233 Gibraltar 00350 Greece 0030 Greenland 00299 Grenada 001473 Guadeloupe 00590 Guam 001671 Guatemala 00502 Guinea 00224 Guyana 00592 Haiti 00509 Holland (Netherlands) 0031 Honduras 00504 Hong Kong 00852 Hungary 0036 Ibiza (Spain) 0034 Iceland 00354 India 0091 Indian Ocean 00873 Indonesia 0062

Iran 0098 Iraq 00964 Ireland 00353 Italy 0039 Ivory Coast 00225 Jamaica 001876 Japan 0081 Jordan 00962 Kazakhstan 007 Kenya 00254 Kiribati 00686 Kuwait 00965 Kyrgyzstan 00996 Laos 00856 Latvia 00371 Lebanon 00961 Liberia 00231 Libya 00218 Lithuania 00370 Luxembourg 00352 Macau 00853 Macedonia 00389 Madagascar 00261 Majorca 0034 Malawi 00265 Malaysia 0060 Maldives 00960 Mali 00223 Malta 00356 Marshall Islands 00692 Martinique 00596 Mauritania 00222 Mauritius 00230 Mayotte 00269 Mexico 0052 Micronesia 00691 Moldova 00373 Monaco 00377 Mongolia 00976 Montserrat 001664 Morocco 00212 Mozambique 00258 Myanmar (Burma) 0095 Namibia 00264 Nepal 00977 Netherlands (Holland) 0031 Netherlands Antilles 00599 New Caledonia 00687 New Zealand 0064 Nicaragua 00505 Nigar 00227 Nigeria 00234 Niue 00683 Norfolk Island 00672 Northern Ireland (UK) 0044 North Korea 00850 Norway 0047 Oman 00968 Pakistan 0092 Palau 00680 Panama 00507 Papua New Guinea 00675 Paraguay 00595 Peru 0051 Philippines 0063 Poland 0048 Portugal 00351 Puerto Rico 001787 Qatar 00974 Romania 0040 Russian Federation 007 Rwanda 00250 Saint Helena 00290 Saint Kitts 001869 Saint Lucia 001758 Saint Pierre 00508 Saint Vincent 001784 Samoa US 00684 Samoa West 00685 San Marino 00378 Sao Tone 00239 Saudi Arabia 00966 Scotland (UK) 0044 Senegal 00221 Seychelles 00284 Sierra Leone 00232 Singapore 0065 Slovakia 00421 Slovenia 00386 Solomon Islands 00677

36

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2012

lifestyle G O S S I P

Lohan thinks police are conspiring against her indsay Lohan thinks the police are conspiring against her. The ‘Liz & Dick’ actress believes Los Angeles cops have a “vendetta to bring her down” after they are pushing for her to be jailed for lying about her car crash in June, TMZ.com is reporting. Lindsay still claims she wasn’t driving her Porsche during the accident on the Pacific Coast Highway, but several eye witnesses are insisting she was behind the wheel. The 26-year-old star is “terrified” of going back to jail because Judge Stephanie Sautner has told her she will violate her current probation if she breaks the law again. She is allegedly saying: “One car accident could ruin everything for me.” Lindsay is on probation since being found guilty of stealing a necklace in July 2011, for which she was sentenced to 120 days in prison and 480 hours of community service, and is telling friends she has since done everything right to abide by the law. The party-loving starlet’s publicist Steve Honig recently quit after a rollercoaster few months for the actress, which also saw her accuse mother Dina Lohan of taking cocaine. A source recently told RadarOnline.com: “Prosecutors and cops think there is more than enough evidence for the judge to find Lindsay in violation of probation and are hopeful that this time, she will face the maximum penalty for lying to cops. “Remember, the burden is much lower for a probation violation, just the fact that Lindsay will be charged with a crime is enough for her probation to be revoked and sent to jail.”

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Minaj

thrilled at Obama victory icki Minaj is still in shock over President Barack Obama’s election victory. The president was re-elected by the American public on Tuesday, defeating Republican Mitt Romney, and the ‘Starships’ singer is thrilled he will be in power for another four years as she never thought it would happen. She tweeted: “So inspiring, dreams do come true... CONGRATULATIONS MR. PRESIDENT!!!!!!!!!! “Cried the first time he was elected and this time was just so surreal ... never thought I’d see this in my lifetime. #GodBlessAmerica (sic)” And Nicki wasn’t the only celebrity pleased with the result. Lady Gaga took to her twitter page to speak of her joy, writing: “I JUST GOT OFF STAGE IN COLUMBIA!! CONGRATULATIONS MR. PRESIDENT @BarackObama We are so proud to be American tonight! YES!!! YES! YES!! (sic)” Despite being Canadian, Justin Bieber - who now lives in Los Angeles - is very excited Obama is once again in power as it means everyone in the United States will eventually be entitled to healthcare regardless of their income. He tweeted: alot of emotions right now. congrats President Obama ... Im Canadian. Im good. #FreeHealthcare :) (sic)” However, Donald Trump was not pleased with the result and thinks it is a disaster for America. He ranted: “We can’t let this happen. We should march on Washington and stop this travesty. Our nation is totally divided! Lets fight like hell and stop this great and disgusting injustice! The world is laughing at us. This election is a total sham and a travesty. We are not a democracy! Our country is now in serious and unprecedented trouble ... like never before.”

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Campbell hosts huge party for boyfriend in India

Brooke Shields’ Bobbi Kristina Brown Mother Teri smashes boyfriend’s car Dies at 79 B

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rooke Shields’ mother and former manager, Teri Shields, died on Oct. 31 at the age of 79,a spokeswoman for the actress told TheWrap. The elder Shields had been battling dementia. Born in Newark, NJ, in August 1933, Shields divorced Brooke’s father, Francis Alexander Shields, shortly after the 1965 birth of their daughter. As Brooke’s career as a young model and, later, actress began to blossom, Teri developed a reputation as the ultimate stage mother, eager to occupy a corner of the the spotlight that shone on her child. Her judgment would also be called into question as Brooke took racy assignments at a young age, such as her infamous Calvin Klein ad, when a teenage Shields told the camera, “You want to know what comes between me and my Calvins? Nothing.” Shields’ portrayal of a prostitute in the 1978 film “Pretty Baby,” which was released when Brooke was just 12, also raised eyebrows. The elder Shields also appeared alongside her daughter in the films “Wanda Nevada,” “Endless Love” and “Backstreet Dreams.” Teri Shields would find herself in the center of a scandal one more time in her later years, when a tabloid reporter checked her out of a New Jersey assisted-living home and took her to a steak house. Though police determined that there was no criminal activity involved, the 2009 incident forced Brooke to go public with the news that Teri suffered from dementia and had been placed in a nursing home. A spokesman for Brooke Shields has not yet returned TheWrap’s request for comment.

obbi Kristina Brown has smashed up her boyfriend’s brand new car. The aspiring actress - the daughter of the late Whitney Houston and Bobby Brown - accidentally struck Nick Gordon’s Camaro with her own vehicle in the parking garage of their Georgia apartment complex on Monday causing severe damage to the front of his sports car. According to gossip website TMZ.com, Bobbi had followed Nick back to their apartment in her own Camaro and as she tried to back into the parking space next to his, she messed up the manoeuvre and struck his vehicle. Although the 19-year-old reality TV personality didn’t refer to the incident directly on twitter, she posted on Monday: “Some great days can turn sour quick. Take advantage of your happiness. (: Xxxo (sic)” The accident comes just weeks after Bobbi Kristina and Nick were involved in another crash that damaged his car. The couple had been arguing at the time of the collision which destroyed the entire front end of the vehicle - and Nick’s Camaro was the only car involved. No one was injured. After the accident, the car was left without a front bumper and right front tyre, and the airbags were deployed, but it somehow got back to the couple’s apartment. Police visited the house soon after the accident following a noise complaint, but no one answered the door.

An incident report shows officers saw the vehicle parked outside the property with its hazard lights on, and it appeared to have been driven in a “damaged state”.

Pattinson: Fame can send people crazy obert Pattinson admits fame can send people “crazy”. The ‘Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 2’ actor has become one of the most famous men in the world since starring in the vampire franchise but says his global super-stardom can take its toll. When asked if he’d lost some of his sanity over the years, the 26-year-old hunk said: “Maybe I didn’t even have any sanity to begin with! I feel like that has happened a little bit. I’ve seen a lot of people dealing with fame and they go crazy quickly and it’s frightening.” Robert recently forgave his ‘Twilight’ co-star and long-term girlfriend Kristen Stewart for cheating on him as she is the only person who can

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understand his life. Kristen had an affair with her ‘Snow White and the Huntsman’ director Rupert Sanders, and despite initially breaking off their relationship, Robert wanted to give it one more chance as they have a deep connection because they starred in the ‘Twilight Saga’ franchise together. A source said: “He started thinking nobody else would understand his life. His rational voice told him not to toss a three-year relationship for one infidelity. “Rob weighed his options. He wouldn’t even know where to start if he wand Kristen were to break up for good. They have a very deep connection.

Plus, they’re young. All relationships at that age have drama.”

Diaz renovating her house star-studded guestlist including Kate Moss and Bob Geldof gathered in India Wednesday for a lavish 50th birthday party arranged by supermodel Naomi Campbell for her Russian billionaire boyfriend. Campbell has organized extravagant celebrations for Vladimir Doronin in Jodhpur, hiring out the huge fort that dominates the city, flying in Diana Ross for a live performance and booking a whole five-star hotel for accommodation. Reports that a number of the 200 guests, who include the Duchess of York Sarah Ferguson, would play elephant polo were dismissed by Campbell in a statement issued by her spokesman. Some animal rights campaigners believe the sport is cruel and had criticized Campbell for planning to hold a game, but she said she was “extremely upset” by the claims and that no polo was ever planned as part of the celebrations. Colorful sofas, cushions and carpets were being laid out in courtyards inside the Mehrangarh Fort ahead of the party on Wednesday evening, with the fort’s dramatic walls expected to be lit in pink and yellow lights. A huge mock poster of Doronin as James Bond and Campbell as a Bond girl was also on display at the venue as hundreds of workers rushed to complete last-minute preparations. The Press Trust of India news agency said that 12 chartered planes had been laid on to bring in guests, who were chauffeured in vintage cars from the city’s small airport to their rooms at the luxury Umaid Bhawan Palace hotel. “We have provided them with 50 policemen and 50 home-guards, who will take care of the security arrangements outside the fort and from the airport,” senior Rajasthan state police officer Rahul Prakash told PTI. Campbell, 42, has been dating Doronin since 2008 and the couple currently live together in Moscow. They have a record of throwing elaborate parties for each other, with Doronin hosting a major party for Campbell’s 40th birthday on the French Riviera.

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ameron Diaz has been renovating her house.

The ‘Gambit’ actress splashed out on a Beverly Hills mansion in 2010 but she has only just found the time to make it into the home she wants this year. Cameron has finally been able to invite people over after clearing the countless unpacked boxes she had scattered around. The Hollywood beauty - who also has a New York apartment - said: “This past year I’ve been in LA mostly redoing that property and making it really homely. Before, it was just a disaster, boxes everywhere, nowhere for anybody to sit. “And I really got to enjoy it this summer with family and friends. Half is done now. That part is really dialled in, we’re sweet.” Despite all her hard work, Cameron is still sleeping in her guest room as work on the master bedroom isn’t yet complete. In an interview with ELLE magazine, she added: “My bedroom is gutted at the moment. I’m sleeping in the guest room. But once that’s done, I will have a fully renovated home. So I’m very excited.” Denise Richards’ kids thought she was the “coolest mom” when she appeared in a Disney show. The 41-yearold actress famously played Christmas Jones in James Bond movie ‘The World Is Not Enough’ but she says her daughters, Sam, eight, Lola, seven, and one-year-old Eloise are too young to appreciate the iconic role and prefer her more family-friendly work.

She told the USA Today newspaper: “Today, my kids are too young to understand. It was on TV a few weeks ago and they had no interest in watching yet.

So no, I’m not the coolest mom yet for being in a Bond movie. I was the coolest mom when I did an episode of ‘Kickin’ It’ on Disney.” Denise says her 007 role was mocked because of the skimpy outfits she

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wore, but she thinks the franchise’s sexiness is one of the reasons why the films are so appealing. She said: “There are not too many scientists who run around in little shorts with a tattoo. So many people made fun of how I was dressed when the movie came out.

That’s part of the appeal of Bond. These Bond girls

are so outrageous and if I did really look like a scientist, the Bond fans would have been disappointed.

“The biggest thing I got out of it was being part of something so iconic. I couldn’t look at how big it was, though, because that would have been too much pressure. I just had to do my job.” —Bang Showbiz

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2012

lifestyle M u s i c

scar-winning director Ang Lee said yesterday that he worked hard during the four-year shooting of Yann Martel’s “Life of Pi” to give the $100 million art house film appeal for general audiences. The movie stars Indian Suraj Sharma, who plays a boy who drifts on the open sea with a Bengal tiger and a hyena after a ship carrying the rest of his family, sinks. “As an art house film, you can explore the philosophical issues,” Lee said at a news conference. “But for a popular film, we also need to make the audience feel touched, and that was the difficult part.”

Lee said initial reaction to the film had been positive, leaving him to conclude that his “risky experiment” would be a success. A major problem in the filming, Lee said, was coping with animals on a roiling sea - a problem Lee solved by filming in 3D. “As a new technology, 3D gives the film additional appeal,” he said. Much of

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the film was shot in Taiwan, Lee’s home. He said that one of the key settings - a large water tank built at a studio in the central city of Taichung - allowed the 150-strong foreign crew to use its imagination freely and not be restrained by traditional Hollywood production values. “I was relieved that they enjoyed their work in Taiwan. ... We couldn’t have made the film if it were not here because of all the help we received,” Lee said. The film is scheduled to premiere in Taiwan and the United States on Nov 21. — AP

Taiwan director Ang Lee and Indian actor Suraj Sharma attend a press conference in Taipei yesterday. — AFP

or anyone who cringed just a little while watching the trailer for “Lincoln” and worried that it might be a nearparody of a Steven Spielberg film, with its heartfelt proclamations, sentimental tones and inspiring John Williams score, fret not. The movie itself is actually a lot more reserved than that - more a wonky, nuts-and-bolts lesson about the way political machinery operates than a sweeping historical epic that tries to encapsulate the entirety of the revered 16th president’s life. That was a smart move on the part of Spielberg and screenwriter Tony Kushner, a Pulitzer prize-winner for the play “Angels in America” who also wrote the script for Spielberg’s “Munich.”

Talky and intimate but also surprisingly funny, “Lincoln” focuses on the final four months of Abraham Lincoln’s life as he fought for the passage of the 13th Amendment to the Constitution, abolishing slavery, and strove to unite a nation torn apart by the Civil War. (It is based partly on Doris Kearns Goodwin’s best-seller “Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln.”) This tumultuous period provides a crucible to display everything Lincoln was made of, both his folksiness and fortitude. He tells long, winding anecdotes to enlighten and charm those around him but also forcefully hammers home his points to get what he wants.

Totally unsurprisingly, Daniel Day-Lewis inhabits the role fully. He disappears into it with small details and grand gestures, from his carriage to the cadence of his speech, and the Academy should probably just give him the best-actor Oscar now and get it over with. Although “Lincoln” itself often feels too conservative, stagey and safe, Day-Lewis’ performances is full of so many clever choices that he keeps it compelling. Of course, the film has all the top-notch technical hallmarks we’ve come to expect from Spielberg: It’s handsomely staged and impeccable in its production design. But despite the dramatic streaks of misty white light streaming from the outdoors into these dark, solemn rooms of power - a signature of his longtime collaboration with Oscar-winning cinematographer Janusz Kaminski - “Lincoln” is much more muted from an aesthetic standpoint than last year’s equally old-fashioned “War Horse.” This is a movie that’s easier to admire than love; it’s impressive but not exactly moving.

But it is unexpectedly humorous. The process of cajoling and coercing members of Congress to vote for passage of the amendment provides several estimable character actors with wonderfully showy roles. Tommy Lee Jones does a spin on his cantankerous screen persona as the quick-witted, fiercely verbal Republican congressman from Pennsylvania, Thaddeus Stevens, a strong proponent of abolition. David Strathairn is the sharp-minded and condescending Secretary of State William Seward, who was Lincoln’s foe before becoming a member of his cabinet.

F This film image released by Music Box Films shows Dree Hemingway, left, and Karren Karagulian in a scene from ‘Starlet.’ — AP

mismatched-friends drama whose overall sensitivity is belied by a couple of clumsily contrived plot points, Sean Baker’s “Starlet” pairs story and setting perfectly. Set in California’s San Fernando Valley where, according to production designer Mari Yui and high-def director of photography Radium Cheung, primary colors simply do not exist, the film is as pale as its protagonist’s blonde hair - distractingly so, though the look does suit a film about seeking connection in a soulless world. Dree Hemingway plays Jane, a frighteningly skinny 21 year old who finds $10,000 rolled up in a Thermos bought at a yard sale. Conscience-struck, she tries to return the loot to the ornery 85 year old who sold it to her, but Sadie (Besedka Johnson) won’t even let her get a sentence out. “I told you, no refunds!” she shouts, slamming the door in Jane’s face.

Johnson’s performance received special recognition on the festival circuit, and if the nod comes partly because it’s the actress’ late-in-life acting debut, it probably didn’t hurt that Johnson is admirably committed to this sketchy premise, rebuffing Jane’s inquiries with such baffling ferocity that the girl has to stalk her way into Sadie’s life.

Hemingway finds soul in a vacant-looking

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character, a girl whose passive acceptance of the sleaze around her (like her drug-abusing roommates’ lifestyle) makes her seem unlikely to pursue a friendship both challenging and far outside her world. Starlet is the name of Jane’s Chihuahua, but the movie’s title hints at the way Jane and her friends make their living; the script is slow to reveal details, but Baker’s camera doesn’t flinch when it’s time to show the character going to work, and this part of Jane’s life is a provocative counterpoint to scenes in which she ferries Sadie to the grocery store and sits playing Bingo with her.

The elder woman has her own secrets, and viewers may come to accept her initially outrageous behavior as a natural response to deep pain. But “Starlet,” thankfully, keeps armchair psychology to a minimum, and is best when these two women (and the dog) are alone in the frame, trying to be human beings in a place where humanity can be a liability. “Starlet,” a Music Box release, is not rated. 107 minutes. — AP

uperstorm Sandy, which darkened Broadway for four days, predictably ravaged the box offices around Times Square, with shows losing more than $8.5 million. The Broadway League, the national trade association for the Broadway industry, released data Tuesday that showed, as expected, all shows took a hit. One of the hardest hurt was the Matthew Broderick musical “Nice Work If You Can Get It,” which lost $538,853.

Since the storm actually affected two weeks of data, the league estimates that grosses managed just $33.66 million for past two-week period, a drastic fall from the same time frame last year when the box offices earned $42.2 million.

Attendance also plunged 19 percent from the 10year average. The storm, which struck last Monday, forced all 40 Broadway theaters to shutter the night before. All shows were up and running by Thursday night, but the damage had been done, though few expect the pain to last.

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File photo shows billboards advertising Broadway shows in Times Square, in New York. — AP

rammy-winning duo The Civil Wars have canceled their upcoming tour dates, citing irreconcilable differences. The folk-pop duo Joy Williams and John Paul White released a statement Tuesday announcing that because of “internal discord and irreconcilable differences of ambition” they were unable to “continue as a touring entity at this time.” Although they used the language of divorce, the duo added, “Our sincere hope is to have new music for you in 2013.”

Williams and White are both married, but to other people. Williams had a baby this summer with husband Nate Yetton, the duo’s manager. Earlier this year the pair canceled part of their European

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tour. The duo found unexpected success with their 2011 debut album, “Barton Hollow.” With backgrounds in gospel and rock, they met when they were both asked to contribute to a country project and found chemistry. Back then, the pair framed their partnership in terms of courting. White told The Associated Press that after two songwriting sessions, “I finally got up the nerve to ask her out, as it were.” “In a musical way,” Williams said. — AP

There are almost too many great supporting players in juicy, tantalizingly small parts. You’d love to see more from all of them, including Lee Pace as a grandstanding Democrat railing against the amendment on the House of Representatives floor, Michael Stuhlbarg as a conflicted congressman, Hal Holbrook as the powerful Lincoln ally Preston Blair and Jackie Earle Haley as the vice president of the Confederacy. And then there are James Spader, John Hawkes and Tim Blake Nelson as the cynical, glad-handing trio hired to lobby the toughest Democrats and secure those final, crucial votes; their banter is a consistent source of laughs.

It gets to the point where major figures in Lincoln’s life Sally Field as his wife, Mary Todd Lincoln, and Joseph GordonLevitt as his elder son who’s eager to see combat - don’t register as powerfully as they should because the script is just so packed. And that effort to contain so much history in one feature film especially extends to the ending. This is no spoiler we all know what happened to Lincoln - but there’s a beautifully photographed moment that occurs before his assassination that would have left the film on the most perfectly lovely, poignant note. Instead, it keeps going - and becomes the movie you might have feared “Lincoln” would be. “Lincoln,” from DreamWorks Pictures and 20th Century Fox, is rated PG13 for an intense scene of war violence, some images of carnage and brief strong language. Running time: 150 minutes.

Three stars out of four. — AP

This undated publicity photo released by DreamWorks and Twentieth Century Fox shows, Daniel Day-Lewis, center rear, as Abraham Lincoln, in a scene from the film, ‘Lincoln.’ — AP

“It will come back to its former life, there’s no question about it. Broadway is New York and everyone celebrates the theater in this city,” said Barry Weissler, who has been producing work on Broadway since 1982. “It’s catch-up time.” Most shows on Broadway have eight performances a week, but Sandy forced many, including “The Phantom of the Opera,” “The Heiress,” “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?” and “Chicago” to put on just six shows. “Glengarry Glen Ross” and “Evita” only managed five shows. Altogether, 48 individual performances were canceled.

Other shows that took a beating include “Wicked,” which lost $490,996, though it still managed to pull in $1,166,275. The least hurt was “Rock of Ages,” which lost just $59,209. Sandy joins other recent shocks to have rocked Broadway finances, including the Sept. 11 attacks, which shuttered theaters for two days, and Hurricane Irene in 2011 that wiped away a weekend’s revenue.

“Storms will not stop us, the terrible tragedy of 9/11 will not stop us. Theater will continue. It’s one of the oldest art forms known to man and it will continue,” said Weissler, who together with his wife, Fran, has produced such shows as “Grease,” “Chicago” and “Annie Get Your Gun.” The league said that the losses from Hurricane Irene were actually larger than for Sandy. Not only were 66 individual performances scrapped for Irene, but the storm struck during the busy summer, not the slower fall.But Sandy may have hurt off-Broadway theaters more. The SoHo Rep and The Bank Street Theater lost power and had some flooding, while many other downtown theaters lost power, including the MCC Theatre and SoHo Playhouse. The Canal Park Playhouse canceled all November and December performances.—AP

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2012

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he Regent’s Canal towpath is a tough trail. It is narrow, crowded, bumpy with cobblestones in places, and bicyclists often end up in the canal.

There are narrow passageways under bridges, wide enough for one person, who must duck. As an American, I never did figure out if one should walk or pedal on the right or left. From what I could see, traffic on the towpath was pretty much a free-for-all that could not be blamed on one puzzled tourist.

But the canal is a hidden gem that stretches across London’s north side. It is a greenway, a walkway designated by the queen and a look at London’s colorful past. A narrow ribbon of water is tucked between rows of warehouses and other buildings in a picturesque urban landscape. It is used by walkers, runners and bicyclists, some of whom are commuting to work at London’s high-rise Canary Wharf area near the eastern terminus.

The canal runs 8.6 miles, from Little Venice in Maida Vale in the west, to the Limehouse Basin, London’s docks and the River Thames in the east. Its western terminus is the Paddington Arm of the Grand Union Canal that ran from the Midlands.

Part of the appeal of the Regent’s Canal is the hundreds of colorful houseboats that ply its waters.

They are known simply as narrowboats, because the maximum width of boats on the canal is 14 feet, 6 inches. Some are active homes. Others appear to be mothballed in basins that adjoin the canal. The canal has 13 locks and three tunnels. It can handle narrowboats up to 74 feet long with a draft of 4 feet, 10 inches. The maximum headroom is 8 feet, 2 inches.

It is quiet today, surrounded by parks, apartments, commercial office space and warehouses. Cafes are popping up. It has a festive outdoorsy feel. The towpath also provides a link to the Broadway market, with more than 100 food stalls and some of London’s tastiest street food.

Canal locks like City Road Lock and Sturts Lock near Islington are popular spots for locals to picnic and hang out. The Regent’s Canal retains elements of its industrial heritage and planners want to combine that with its recreational uses. Elements along the canal include locks, lock cottages, wharves, lay-bys, bridges, bridge guards, horse ramps and boundary markers. (Horse ramps were built to allow teams that had fallen into the canal to get back onto the towpath.)

An estimated 35,000 boats ply Great Britain’s canal system that stretches 2,200 miles. That includes about 6,000 narrowboats. The canal was proposed by Thomas Homer in 1802. It was developed by John Nash, who hired James Morgan to be the engineer. It opened in 1820, named after the Prince Regent (later King Edward IV).

In the northwest, the canal runs adjacent to 489-

road and canal systems in 1948 under the British Transport Commission. The use of the canal as a shipping hub continued into the 1960s when rail and roads surpassed the canal system.

In 1963, the canals were taken over by British Waterways London. The Regent’s Canal Dock was shut down in 1969. London has a canal museum on the Battlebridge Basin in the King’s Cross neighborhood. It was established in 1992 in a former Victorian ice warehouse on New Wharf Road. The basin was once home to factories that did everything from producing marmalade to bottling Guinness. For more information, check out www.canalmuseum.org.uk.

Today the Islington Boat Club offers boating and instruction on the four-acre City Road Basin where wharves and warehouses once boomed. Nearby is the Wenlock Basin. The City Road Basin was the home of flour and timber wharves operated by such companies as Fellows, Morton and Clayton. In the early 1900s, it was home to operations of British Drug Houses and Pickfords, the well-known removals company.

Near City Basin Lock was a stable where canal horses were housed. It was one of three along the Regent’s Canal. The others were at Hampstead Road Lock in Camden and at the Old Ford Lock in Victoria Park, Tome Hamlets. The canal includes three tunnels. The longest is at Islington and it stretches 960 yards. Shorter tunnels run 272 yards and 53 yards.

In the old days, the boats were powered through the tunnels by what was known as legging. Boatmen

The boats pictured are anchored near the Islington Tunnel.

It is narrow and rough, and bicyclists may end up in the water.

acre Regent’s Park, which was being developed at the same time. The land was acquired by King Henry VIII in the 16th century as royal hunting grounds.

That park includes an outdoor Shakespeare theater, the 36-acre London Zoo, Queen Mary’s Gardens, a boating lake and excellent sports facilities. Nearby is Primrose Hill, London’s one-time dueling venue. In the east, it runs by 218-acre Victorian Park, which was opened to the public by Queen Victoria in 1845.

Boat tours and water taxis are available between Little Venice and Camden Lock through private companies. For details, check with the Jenny Wren (www.walkersquay.com), London Waterbus Co. (http://londonwaterbus.com), Regent’s Canal Pleasure Boats (http://floatingboater.co.uk) or Jason’s Canal Boat Trips (http://jasons.co.uk). The Waterbus company has three boats on the National Register of Historic Ships.

The canal where it joins with the Grand Union Canal was originally dubbed Browning’s Pool after poet Robert Browning, who lived there from 1862 to 1887. Browning later named the area Little Venice.

The Regent’s Canal quickly became England’s busiest, and wharves quickly sprang up along it and adjoining basins. The basins-some of which survive today-became home to industrial operations.

Items being shipped from across England arrived via canal, and cargoes from seagoing vessels were transferred to horse-drawn canal barges. Those shipments were transferred at the Regent’s Canal Dock (the Limehouse Basin) at the East End docks. Coal and building materials were the most-shipped commodities. In 1830, the 1.3-mile Hertford Union Canal opened with three locks off the Regent’s Canal. After the first railroad was built in London in 1837, the canal continued to do well. The rail and canal seemed to work together to transport goods including coal, stone, ice and manure.

There were two proposals in the 19th century to turn the canal into a railroad. But that never happened. The British government nationalized the rail,

would lie on planks aboard the canalboat and move the vessel by walking on the side walls of the tunnel.

In 1826, a steam-powered chain tug was built to speed up getting boats through the tunnels.

Boats can go through the tunnels but walkers, joggers and bicyclists must detour because the towpath doesn’t go through the tunnels. Part of the Regent’s Canal towpath is also part of the Jubilee Greenway, a 37-mile walking path through London.

The Jubilee Greenway starts at Buckingham Palace and links Green and Hyde parks and Kensington Gardens Royal Park with Paddington Station and the Grand Union Canal at Little Venice. It then follows the Regent’s Canal through Camden.

The greenway connects to East London through Victoria Park to the River Thames where the Woolwich Foot Tunnel connects Greenwich and the South Bank at Tower Bridge and back to St James via Westminster.

The walkway was launched in 2009. It is 60 kilometers long, one kilometer for each year that Elizabeth II has been queen of England. The trail is continuous and makes use of existing walking and cycling routes wherever possible. The Jubilee Greenway is part of the Inspire program run by the London Organizing Committee of the 2012 Summer Olympics and the 2012 Summer Paralympics. The project is being managed by the Jubilee Walkway Trust. You can get information at www.walklondon.org.uk/jubileewalkwaytrust. For canal information, contact the Canal and River Trust at http://canalrivertrust.org.uk. For London tourist information, check out www.visitlondon.com.

— MCT

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Boats can be up to 74 feet long. The maximum headroom is 8 feet, 2 inches.— MCT photos

By Brian J Cantwell hile financial planner Beth Oliver spent a week here in a weaving workshop learning the difference between warp and weft, her husband, former Los Angeles Times photo director Larry Armstrong, spent sunny October days doing plein-air painting at scenic Ebey’s Landing and Deception Pass. For Oliver, it was an “education vacation.” For her husband, it was the perfect place to practice a favorite hobby. The California couple found a just-right holiday for partners with divergent interests.

“All day long we do exactly what we want, with no conflicts whatever,” Oliver said. “And in the evenings, we have a little drinkie, a little dinner. We’ve really been making a dent in the mussel population.”

For that, mouthwatering thanks go to Penn Cove’s famous shellfish farm and local eateries that feature the island specialty.

Oliver was one of 10 students from around the Northwest and across the nation to take part in a recent beginner workshop at The Weavers’ School on Whidbey Island, led by Madelyn van der Hoogt, a Coupeville resident who for the past 25 years edited two national magazines dedicated to weaving. Van der Hoogt started her weaving school in Missouri in the 1980s and moved it in 1993 to Coupeville, where classes occupy the basement level of her home on a quiet back street. Some 30 looms crowd the work space.

In one of Washington’s oldest towns, with a pleasant abundance of well-preserved Victorian homes that are part of a national historical reserve, the click-clack of old-fashioned wooden looms fits right in.

“There are bed-and-breakfasts here within walking distance, it’s an easy place to come, and if your family comes along, there’s lots for them to do,” van der Hoogt says.

“Students come from all over the world.”

Her school is one of the few places, she says, that you can come and weave on a loom that’s all prepared for you, so you can move from loom to loom to learn different types of weave. In the recent class, Janell Neulinger, an Intel worker from Portland

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who has a doctorate in solid-state chemistry, worked on a color gamp, a bright rainbow of hues in a systematic sequence of sections of equal size. Nearby, Patricia Hatfield, a retired health-care manager from Texas, labored over a pattern called Summer and Winter.

“It’s very tactile, whereas before everything in my life was numbers and spreadsheets,” Hatfield said, happily stomping with stockinged feet on numbered treadles that helped guide the yarn. “Clack! Clack!

Clack!” went the beater bars, used to tightly pack woven threads. It wasn’t a quiet room.

Barbara Kerschner, from Centralia, worked on a Swedish Snowflake pattern in magenta yarn. “I’ve been to Coupeville before, but never for a workshop,” she said. “This has been a really fun experience.”

In a series of lectures, van der Hoogt regaled the group with how-to tips and suggestions on what yarns are suited to what uses. “Superfine merino is the most shrinking, fulling wool,” she told them during my visit. For a newcomer to the craft, listening in is akin to eavesdropping on a coffee-shop conversation in a foreign language.

By way of translation: Warp is the set of lengthwise yarns held in tension on the loom. Weft is the yarn that is inserted crosswise over-and-under the warp threads.

“Fulling” is-well, you just have to take the class ...

When class is over, the good news for workshop-goers is that they get to explore Coupeville and Whidbey Island.

The town was named for homesteaders Thomas and Maria Coupe, who arrived in 1852. Their home built of redwood brought from San Francisco still stands near the bluff at the edge of Penn Cove. Some ideas for after class: • Take the self-guided walking tour of historic homes and structures, ranging from the Coupe home to the circa1889 Methodist Parsonage. Print out a detailed guide from the Ebey’s Landing National Historical Reserve website: www.nps.gov/ebla/upload/WalkingTo urPanels.pdf.

• Stroll through shops and eat your way along historic Front Street, edging

Beth Oliver operates her loom at the Weavers’ School in Coupeville.

The Blue Goose Inn in Coupeville.

Penn Cove. Dip a walnut caramel roll in a cup of hot coffee for breakfast at the Knead and Feed bakery/cafe (4 N.W. Front St), a town favorite since the 1970s, and later slurp a cone of rocky road at Kapaw’s Iskreme, in the building that was the Island County Abstract Office (21 N.W. Front St) when it was built in 1890. (Insider information: A “single” cone is three scoops, and you get to choose three flavors.)

In the old post office, the Touch of Dutch shop (11 N.W. Front St) offers 35 types of licorice, while the Front Street Grill (20 N.W. Front St) offers a dozen styles of fresh-from-the-cove mussels (coconut green curry is the star, going really nicely with a glass of sauvignon blanc).

• Tour the Island County Historical Society Museum, 908 N.W. Alexander St, to see Whidbey Island’s first automobile (steered with a tiller, from 1902) and the old coffee roaster used by the Stewart brothers, specialty-coffee pioneers here in 1969 (when Starbuck was still just a character in “Moby-Dick”).

• Explore the historic, gull-crowded town wharf, jutting 500 feet into Penn Cove and offering front-row views of Mount Baker. Kim’s CafÈ here gets raves for its chowder and Vietnamese pho soup.

If a cool breeze blows in off the Strait of Juan de Fuca, just a few miles to the west, wrap a cozy muffler around your neck.

Don’t have one? Better sign up for the next weaving workshop. — MCT

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2012

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Photo provided by Charmaine Noronha shows hikers in wetsuits and helmets wading in Salome Creek in Salome Canyon, in Arizona’s Tonto National Forest.

was about to follow a man I’d just met through a sweltering desert, into the crevices of a canyon, over wet boulders, down a waterfall, through a bone-chilling creek, down rock faces and up through the desert again. “Sometimes while you’re in the canyon, you won’t be able to hear me,” said my (hopefully) trustworthy canyoneering guide Chuck Chapman as I and three others embarked on a canyoneering adventure in Tonto National Forest, a sprawling desert landscape about 75 miles (120 kilometers) from Phoenix. “If I tap my helmet along the way, I expect you to respond by tapping yours to tell me you’re OK.” Several things raced through my mind in response as we prepared to throw caution, and apparently our bodies, to the wind and rock face of Salome Canyon.

Such as: When are you not OK when you are lowering yourself into a canyon? If you are not OK, would Chapman realize before it’s too late?

Also: Was staying out until 3 am the night before doing this really the best idea? Did the wet suit make me look fat? Should I really have eaten two slabs of chocolate for breakfast?

And was the world ready for “127 Hours, Part Deux?” I certainly was not. Then Chapman added, “But you should you be fine,” and motioned us to follow him on my first foray into canyoneering. Canyoneering started in Europe during the 1970s, but it’s probably best-known from the 2010 film, “127 Hours” in which James Franco portrayed Aron Ralston, a real-life canyoneer whose arm got stuck under a boulder in a remote slot canyon in Utah.

Ralston was eventually forced to amputate his own arm to free himself.

As harrowing as that sounds, canyoneering, while exciting, can be done safely - and without too much difficulty - by the average person in the company of an experienced guide. I was a novice in all that it entails: rock climbing, bouldering, rappelling and wet suit wading.

The idea of the sport is to navigate a canyon using water flow as your trail, down into waterfalls, creeks, and whirlpools. While canyoneer-

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earing round glasses, a buttoned vest and blue wingtip oxfords, Shaheen Sadeghi can’t walk down Anaheim, Calif ‘s Center Street Promenade without being greeted by every shop owner on this three-block stretch of newly opened restaurants and boutiques. He’s the developer who transformed what was once a row of lackluster office buildings into his vision of retro-American retail opportunity, complete with all the telltales of new urbanism: baroque logos, penny tiles, wainscoting and Rockwellian facades. He calls the aesthetic “hip blue-collar worker.”

Among the mix of stores is a haberdashery, yoga studio, raw-food cafe and a barber that plans to serve beer (it’s called Barbeer) and whose staff members wear suspenders and bow ties. Sadeghi says he’s still looking for a florist and “hard-core coffee.” In a city better known for Mickey Mouse than macchiatos, Sadeghi is changing the face of downtown Anaheim.

As founder of LAB Holding, he’s also the man behind the Lab and the Camp in Costa Mesa, Calif, the pioneering “antimall” shopping concepts that house his mix of small businesses aimed at youth culture. Now, not far from the Promenade, he’s focusing on the next phase of downtown Anaheim’s revamp: a grand food hall in a former Sunkist citrus packing plant. The

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ing hot spots include Mexico’s Copper Canyon, Colorado, the Pyrenees in Spain, the Blue Mountains in eastern Australia, New Zealand and Costa Rica, Utah reigns supreme as a destination for the sport, with Arizona as a close rival.

As we hiked the Saguaro cactus-studded desert of Tonto park toward the salmon-, rustand white-speckled sandstone of the canyon, the landscape’s appeal was obvious. The

Photo provided by Charmaine Noronha shows her rappelling over Salome Creek in Salome Canyon, in Arizona’s Tonto National Forest.

expanse of wilderness stretched out beyond where the eye could see; an eagle glided through the cloudless sky, dipping into and out of the Sierra Ancha Mountain range.

An hour or so after we began our hike, we were in the chilly Salome Creek. Wearing wet suits and helmets, our gentle descent and careful balancing over slippery, small rocks, gave way to crab-crawling, scrambling, sliding and gliding over wet granite boulders. It was like a

nearly 100-year-old, 42,000-square-foot Spanish revival Packing House, owned by the city of Anaheim, has undergone more than two years and several million dollars of renovations. “It was like heart surgery,” says Sadeghi, whose company is the developer-operator.

It’s set to open in the spring with 20 to 25 restaurants and food shops, picked by an in-house team led by Sadeghi, who is known as a shrewd, sometimes controversial curator of retailers. He chooses vendors who hew to his assessment of cultural zeitgeist, whether that’s via vintage design elements or veganism. The Packing House is the anchor of the 3-acre Packing District, which also includes a renovated Packard dealership that now houses an Umami Burger and Anaheim Brewery, and a park, still under construction, for farmers markets, food trucks, gardens, picnic areas and two cafes.

As for the Packing House, Sadeghi sees it as a place of gathering inspired by markets such as Mercado del Puerto in Montevideo, Uruguay; Boqueria in Barcelona; and Granville Island Public Market in Vancouver, Canada.

Sadeghi is considering a cheese shop, vegetable market, fish market, restaurants serving Mexican, Asian, Middle Eastern and Argentine cuisine, specialty desserts such as organic popsicles

The Packing House in Anaheim, California was former Sunkist citrus packing plant. — MCT photos

This April 19, 2012 photo shows Salome Creek in Salome Canyon, in Arizona’s Tonto National Forest. — AP photos real-life game of Tetris as we descended from one boulder to the next, through crevices and slender slots, problem-solving as we went along, becoming one with the canyon.

The Arizona desert sun, which often feels hot enough to fry an egg on concrete, turned deceptive as we headed down, sometimes glistening on the water, sometimes hiding behind rock peaks and leaving the creek in dark, chilly shadows. The water temperature was a cool 59 degrees Fahrenheit (15 Celsius), and the chill intensified when we approached a small waterfall. The only way down was to channel our Spider-Man senses and attempt to latch onto the slabs of rock face buttressing the waterfall before we shot down the gushing water into the creek. Shouts of “Wheee!” soon turned into “Aaaah! It’s freezing!”

We waded through, then after a short lunch break, climbed up the rocks to undertake what would be the highlight of the five-hour adventure: rappelling. Harnessed to an unyielding point above, we slithered over narrow juts in the rock, our backs literally up against the rock wall, high above the water, before reaching the spot where we would glide down. As a firsttime rappeller, my heart raced, in a good way, as I latched onto the wiry rope. I slid down, feeling all Indiana Jones-like up in this temple of beauty. We were never in a dangerous spot, so I never needed to tap my helmet to let the guide know I was OK. But I did appreciate the opportunity to tap into the world of canyoneering.

and ice cream, coffee shops, spice shops and bars. And “no national brands,” says Sadeghi, whose anti-chain approach toward building shopping centers also applies to the way he thinks people want to eat. “People are tired of shopping malls and supermarkets. There’s a resurgence of food artisans and non-chain operators.”

The Packing House foyer, with its original arched windows and wood floors, leads to a two-story warehouse of a space rehabilitated by Thirtieth Street Architects. Its saw-toothed roof is lined with hundreds of clerestory windows that let light stream in across the currently empty hall, where interior design work is just beginning. Renderings show individual shops and stalls that will range from 300 to 2,000 square feet and will come already equipped with kitchens and furnishings for vendors. In the plans are a full bar upstairs, another downstairs and a performance venue. Diners will eat communally indoors or outside on a redwood deck with Chinese elms and a carbon steel fireplace designed by landscape architect Ken Smith. Two circa-1940 railroad flatcars will serve as a patio.

So why a food hall instead of another “anti-mall”? “Five years ago there was a transition from consumption to living well,” he says. “People are not spending $300 on jeans; they want dinner

If you go Salome Canyon: Easily reached by car, located about 75 miles (about 120 kilometers) from Phoenix.

Canyoneering tours by 360 Adventures, http://www.360-adventures.com/ , $400 for one person, $200 for each additional person; groups of four or more are $200 per person. Fee includes permits, park entry fees, skilled guides, transportation, gear, wet suits, safety equipment, lunch, water, snacks and dry day packs.

Hiking time, five hours, but the expedition lasts a few hours longer due to breaks for snacks and dinner.

TIPS: Wear comfortable hiking shoes (but not boots) with good grips or consider buying water-resistant hiking shoes, and wear a bathing suit under your wet suit. — AP

with friends.” It’s the continuation of a trend and the evolution of Sadeghi’s Camp in Costa Mesa, Calif. It opened in 2002 aimed at the young, eco-conscious and sports-minded who might spend a lot on hiking, biking, snowboarding or surfing. But now 60 percent of the shopping center is made up of food-related businesses, including Taco Asylum, Native Foods vegan restaurant and Ritual Cleanse juice-cleanse specialist.

The next question is whether people will come. Center Street isn’t booming yet, and the intersection of Anaheim Boulevard and Santa Ana Street, where the Packing House is located, isn’t exactly bustling. “We’re 1 miles from Disneyland and the convention center; there are 20 million visitors a year,” notes Sadeghi, who expects to attract some of the overflow. He says restaurants and shops in the Packing House will reflect Anaheim’s diverse community of Asians, Latinos and Middle Easterners. “We’re part of the community of the future.”— MCT

Developer Shaheen Sadeghi stands inside the under construction Packing House in Anaheim.

Ang Lee: ‘Life of Pi’ more than an art house film

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THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2012

An artisan arranges painted earthenware oil pots or diyas ahead of Diwali in Hyderabad. Diyas, which are lit and placed around the home, are in demand during the festival which marks the victory of good over evil and commemorates the time when Hindu God Lord Rama achieved victory over Ravana and returned to his Kingdom Ayodhya after 14 years of exile. — AFP

Daredevil Gazans run free with parkour

ohammed Jakhbir leans back, braces himself, and then leaps off the roof of a Khan Yunis hospital building, flipping backwards before landing on the next roof over.

He whoops with delight at performing the dangerous feat, his favorite of the moves he practices with his team-the first parkour group in the Gaza Strip. Parkour, also known as free running, is an extreme sport that involves getting around or over urban obstacles as quickly as possible, using a combination of running, jumping, and gymnastic moves including rolls and vaults.

Practitioners leap from roof-to-roof, run up the side of buildings until they flip backwards, vault over park benches, or cartwheel along walls. In Gaza, it’s still a novelty, and as Jakhbir and four members of his 12-man crew demonstrate their skills in the grounds of the southern city’s Nasser hospital, a crowd of patients and doctors look on, some filming with their cell phones. “He’s like Spiderman!” says one onlooker as 23-year-old Jakhbir runs up a wall, seemingly defying gravity as he scales the facade.

As the crowd grows, the team decides to move to a quieter spot. Their practice sessions

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Palestinian youths practice their parkour skills, also known as free running, in the town of Khan Yunis, in the southern Gaza Strip, on October 7, 2012. — AFP photos

it,” he says with frustration. “I want people to change their ideas about sports, all sports,” he adds, raising his voice. “They need to understand that sport is something very important. Athletes can raise Palestine’s name throughout the world.”

Jakhbir and other Gaza Parkour members were able to do just that earlier this year, when an Italian group called Unione Italiana Sport Per Tutti invited them to Italy. “They were able to make our biggest dream come true, which was to get past the biggest obstacle of all-the Israeli checkpoint-and travel abroad,” Jakhbir says.

The trip took them to Rome and four other Italian cities, where they met with other enthusiasts, showing off their skills and learning a few new ones. “We talked to people about our lives in Gaza, that we’re living under a siege, and in a continually tense situation. We face financial, social and political obstacles,” Jakhbir recalls. The parkour Gazans practise three times a week, mostly in a cemetery on the outskirts of Khan Yunis, which is quiet and usually empty. In between modest headstones, they practise running and tumbling, and compete to see who can hold handstands the longest.

They’ve spray painted “Gaza Parkour forever” on some of the walls, but they acknowledge the team has an uncertain future. Jakhbir and Abu Sultan say they’d like to continue parkour professionally, and are hoping to eventually win either local or international support that would allow them to commit to the sport full-time. “Parkour teaches us we can overcome our problems even if we fail once or twice,” says Jakhbir. “We have

are occasionally interrupted when onlookers call the police to complain, and they prefer to avoid having to make a run for it. “When we first started practicing, we could do it anywhere. But gradually we found people would complain and the police would come. It became a game, we’d practice until they arrived and then run away,” Jakhbir laughs.

He’s been practicing parkour for seven years, ever since his friend Abdullah showed him a documentary called “Jump London”. It instantly

appealed to them, and they started to learn more about the sport online. “We would watch clips and try to imitate the moves that we saw.

Gradually we started to make our own clips,” he says. “Now sometimes people even request that we make clips to show them certain moves. It’s been a long journey for us, seven years, but now we have a real team.” Jihad Abu Sultan, 24, joined the team four years ago after seeing some of Jakhbir’s clips on YouTube. He had a background in both kickboxing and kung-fu, but saw something different in parkour. “It uses physical strength more than any other sport... I was so impressed by it, especially the jumping involved,” he says.

‘It makes me feel free’

One of Abu Sultan’s specialties is a move in which he flips his body in a full circle with one hand resting on a wall for him to pivot around.

He’s also an accomplished tumbler, throwing himself along the ground in a series of handsprings, rolls and twists. “Parkour teaches us to overcome obstacles,” he says. “It makes me feel free, it makes me feel my body is strong, that I can overcome anything.” But practicing parkour in Gaza hasn’t been easy. At times they’ve had to shift practice locations because the areas have

been targeted by Israeli air strikes. And both Abu Sultan and Jakhbir have battled disapproval from their families. “At first, my parents forbade it,” admits Abu Sultan. “They tried to stop me, especially after I was injured, but they couldn’t.

It’s in my blood.”

Jakhbir’s parents told him to stop practicing parkour and find a job. He graduated with a degree in multimedia from Gaza’s Islamic University, but has been largely unemployed ever since. “They told me there was no future to

to try and we can achieve our goals in life.” — AFP

Corsican epic wins France’s top book prize F rance’s top literary prize, the Goncourt, yesterday went to Jerome Ferrari for a Corsican epic, set in a village bar on the violencewracked Mediterranean island. “Le Sermon sur la Chute de Rome” (The Sermon on the Fall of Rome) tells of a young man who packs in his philosophy studies to open a bar with an old friend, hoping to turn it into a haven of peace and friendship. But things take a radically different turn as drink, sex, corruption-and the violence for which Corsica has become known-cast their shadow over the young idealists’ plans. Himself a philosophy teacher, currently at the French lycee in Abu Dhabi, the French novelist previously taught in the Corsican capital Ajaccio.

His Goncourt win comes with Corsica making

headlines over a jump in violence, with 38 murders and 117 attempted murders since the start of 2011, for a population of just over 300,000 — the highest homicide rate in Europe. Most of the slayings, police believe, have been linked to feuds over control of protection rackets targeting tourist businesses and lucrative property development on an island that remains relatively unspoiled.

But rather than a crime novel, his book is a sweeping fable on frustration, disappointed hopes and the futility of human endeavours, set against Corsica’s dramatic mountain scenery. Its title refers to a sermon delivered by the mediaeval philosopher Augustine following the 410 sack of Rome, from which Ferrari quotes the lines,

“The world is like a man, it it born, it grows and it dies.” The lesser-known Renaudot literary prize went to a Rwandan writer, Scholastique Mukasonga, for “Notre Dame du Nil” (Our Lady of the Nile), which tells of a group of young girls trying to escape the 1994 genocide.

Mukasonga, herself a Tutsi living in France, lost much of her family in the massacres. Her novel was a surprise win as it was not part of the official selection put before the Renaudot panel of judges. For the Goncourt, Ferrari beat out competition from 11 novelists including the 27year-old Swiss Joel Dicker for a crime novel openly inspired by the US master Phillip Roth-to the extent of drawing an accusation of plagiarism.

“La verite sur l’affaire Harry Quebert” (The Truth

About the Harry Quebert Case), tells of a young writer working to clear the name of his old mentor, accused of murdering a teenager 30 years earlier.

At odds with its mostly ecstatic reviews, France’s Nouvel Observateur attacked the book as a “pale rehash” of Roth’s classic work “The Stain” about a writer and his one-time professor unfairly accused of racism. Parallels run from the broadly similar plotline to specifics like a main character born to a Jewish family in Newark, or the small US university town setting, in this case called Athena, the other Aurora. But as Nouvel Observateur acknowledged Dicker does make plain his debt to Roth-whose name he gives to Quebert’s lawyer in the novel. — AFP