11th Oct

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THURSDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2012

EADS, BAE call off world’s biggest arms merger

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Egyptian preachers enjoy freedom of airwaves

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www.kuwaittimes.net

THULQADA 25, 1433 AH

Opposition raises stakes, threatens street protests Ex-MPs warn of ‘Arab Spring’ if electoral law is changed

Max 39º Min 24º High Tide 06:51 & 20:54 Low Tide 00:37 & 13:49

By B Izzak

Marriage in Kuwait loses its sparkle KUWAIT: In a luxury hotel suite, away from prying eyes, twenty Kuwaiti female guests at a traditional wedding party segregated by the sexes watch the men via a video link. The women snap pictures of the festivities on their cell phones and swap stories about how they met their husbands and their views on marriage. The contrasts between young and old in the conversation expose a shift in society that has the government worried. “The most important thing now is getting a university degree,” said Noora AlJaber, 28, who married seven years ago. “The woman should get a good certificate and the man a steady income. Only then can they think about marriage,” she said, as the women sipped fruit juice from champagne flutes.

The role of the family is extremely important in Kuwait, where large clans forge blood ties that are essential not only socially but also in politics and business. But the marriage rate is falling: in 2011 there were 359 marriages per 100,000 inhabitants, a ten percent decrease compared to 2007, according to figures from the Ministry of Justice. Around 70 percent of the marriages were between two nationals of the state, which is home to 1.2 million Kuwaitis and 2.4 million foreigners.

Continued on Page 15

KUWAIT: The opposition warned yesterday that it will not allow any change to the controversial electoral constituency law to pass easily, vowing it will fight the change with street protests while some speakers threatened protests similar to those in “Arab Spring” countries.

Speaking at a gathering in Jaber Al-Ali attended by some 2,000 people, former Islamist MP Falah AlSawwagh and other opposition speakers appealed to HH the Amir not to approve the amendment and issue it in an emergency Amiri decree.

It was the first of a series of meetings and rallies planned by the opposition in protest against what they claim to be a government plan to amend the voting system to ensure the election of a pro-government National Assembly in the general polls scheduled within two months. “Kuwait today has entered a phase of autocratic rule which does not believe in democratic and popular institutions ... corruption forces have dominated over the government institutions,” said Sawwagh.

According to the opposition, the government plans to cut the number of votes allowed to each voter from four to two or one vote, giving more freedom to corrupt candidates to buy votes. This is seen as an attempt to cut the strength of the opposition in the next Assembly.

“Today, we declare our rejection for undermining the constitution and consider any change to the law as a coup against the constitution. If you do not respect the constitution, we will not respect you,” added Sawwagh.

He said the Kuwaiti people respect and highly estimate the Al-Sabah ruling family and questioned, “why then are you scared from the people and reformists?” He insisted that the situation in the country has Continued on Page 15

KUWAIT: Opposition supporters and former lawmakers (inset) take part in a protest against a government plan to change the election law in Jaber Al-Ali yesterday. — Photos by Yasser Al-Zayyat

US sends troops to Jordan Forces to monitor Syrian chemical weapons sites

US pair share chemistry Nobel for cell receptors

BOJNOURD, Iran: Iranians surround Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s car to welcome him upon his arrival to this northeastern city yesterday. — AFP

Iran vows to defeat ‘barbaric’ sanctions TEHRAN: Iran can overcome problems caused by “barbaric” economic sanctions that Western states have imposed over its nuclear program, supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said yesterday.

“These sanctions are barbaric. This is a war against a nation... But the Iranian nation will defeat them,” Khamenei said in a speech broadcast on state television.

The all-powerful leader said the sanctions had created “problems” for the country, and that “some mismanagement” of the draconian measures was adding to those problems. He did not elaborate.

Iran’s currency, the rial, has lost 40 percent of its value against major currencies in the past week, with the central bank unable to support the rial on the open market due to a lack of foreign cash. The collapse of the rial, which has lost more than two-third of its value since the beginning of the year, has sparked a row with some politicians blaming President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s management.

Ahmadinejad has pointed the finger at the sanctions and at the other branches of government.

Continued on Page 15

STOCKHOLM: Robert Lefkowitz and Brian Kobilka of the United States won the Nobel Prize for Chemistry yesterday for identifying a class of cell receptor, yielding vital insights into how the body works at the molecular level. The big beneficiary of this fundamental work is medicine, the Nobel committee declared. The pair were honoured for discovering a key component of cells called G-protein-coupled receptors and mapping how they work. The receptors stud the sur face of cells, sensitising them to light, flavour, smells and body chemicals such as adrenaline Lefkowitz and enabling cells to communicate with each other.

About a thousand of these kinds of receptor are known to exist throughout the body. They are essential not just for physiological processes but also for response to drugs. “About half of all medications achieve their effect through G-protein-coupled receptors,” the Nobel jury said. Understanding the receptors provides the tools for “better drugs with fewer side effects,” Nobel

Islam makes inroads in Haiti PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti: School teacher Darlene where some 60 Muslims pray daily.

Islam has won a growing number of followers in this Derosier lost her home in the 2010 earthquake that devastated her country. Her husband died a month lat- impoverished country, especially after the catastrophe er after suffering what she said was emotional trauma two years ago that killed some 300,000 people and left millions more homeless. A capital from the quake. She and her two where church attendance is so daughters now live in tents outprevalent that the streets echo side the capital of Port-au-Prince, with Christian hymns on Sundays surrounded by thousands of othnow has at least five mosques, a ers made homeless and desperate Muslim parliament member and by the disaster. What’s helped pull a nightly local television program her through all the grief, she said, devoted to Islam. The disaster has been her faith, but not of the Catholic, Protestant or even drew in aid groups from around Voodoo variety that have predomithe world, including Islamic Relief nated in this island country.

USA, which built 200 shelters and Instead, she’s converted to a new GRESSIER, Haiti: Darlene Derosier, 43, a secondary school with 20 classreligion here, Islam, and built a a Muslim, posts a how-to sign on ablu- rooms. “After the earthquake we small neighborhood mosque out tion at the Al-Fattah Mosque in this had a lot of of cinderblocks and plywood, Sept 28, 2012 photo. — AP Continued on Page 15

committee member Sven Lidin said.

G-protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) are known to influence everything from sight, smell and taste to blood pressure, pain tolerance and metabolism. They tell the inside of cells about conditions on the outside of their protective plasma membranes, to which the cells can form a response - communicating with each other and with the surrounding environment. This explains how cardiac cells know to raise the heart rate when we are startled, for example. Up to half the drugs that exist today aim at these tiny protein receptors, as they play a major Kobilka role in influencing conditions ranging from allergies to depression and Parkinson’s disease.

They are targeted by everything from anti-histamines to ulcer drugs to beta blockers that relieve hypertension, angina and coronary disease.

Lefkowitz, 69, is a professor of biomedicine and biochemistry at Duke University in North Carolina, while Kobilka, born in 1955, is a professor of Continued on Page 15

BRUSSELS: A team of US military troops is in Jordan to help the government grapple with Syrian refugees, bolster its military capabilities and prepare for any trouble with its chemical weapons stockpiles, US Defense Secretar y Leon Panetta said yesterday. “We have been working with Jordan for a period of time now ... on a number of the issues that have developed as a result of what’s hapLeon Panetta pened in Syria,” Panetta told a news conference in Brussels. Panetta said those issues included monitoring chemical weapons sites “to determine how best to respond to any concerns in that area”.

The troops are also building a headquarters for themselves.

A US official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the 150-strong force of planners and specialists led by a senior US officer - were not engaged in covert operations and have been housed at the King Abdullah II Special Operations Training Center, north of the capital of Amman, since the early summer. Around 100 of these troops stayed on in Jordan after attending an annual exercise in May, and several dozen more have flown in since. But the revelation of US military personnel so close to the 19-month-old Syrian conflict suggests an escalation in the US military involvement in the conflict.

While the US has not intervened militarily in Syria, President Barack Obama has warned Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad that any attempt to deploy or use chemical or biological weapons would cross a “red line” that could provoke US action. Late last month, Panetta said Syria had moved some of its chemical weapons Continued on Page 15

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THURSDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2012

LOCAL

Stress biggest challenge for residents in Kuwait Music, poems helpful

By Ben Garcia KUWAIT: People in Kuwait get stressed when they are driving a car or are on their way to work or home, especially when they are caught in a traffic jam.

However, their reaction to stress varies as was demonstrated by those who attended an hour long lecture held at the AWARE [Advocates for Western-Arab Relations] Center in Surra on Tuesday.

Some said they feel like immediately getting a hot bath, some would cry, others would resort to smoking, writing an email, thinking about or talking with their loved ones. Some would pray and walk along the beach. Some said they would just want to leave the place where they got stressed. Still others said they felt like spending some time in the gym, and a few would visit close friends and relatives.

Stress can be fatal, according to Helen Newton, a teacher who has been in Kuwait for more than 16 years now. In fact, many people die because they are unable to deal with stress properly. They succumb to a stroke or suffer a heart attack.

Stress is the biggest challenge for anyone in Kuwait, but Newton says it

can be overcome easily if one is prepared to handle it.

She advised people to create their own little paradise at home. “Home

should be a place where you can relax and have an extra space to play with kids and loved ones. I call my place [home] a little paradise because everything I need is basically within my reach,” she said. As part of her presenta-

EC offers lower fares on child festival KUWAIT: The Touristic Enterprises Co. (TEC) is keen on participating in various activities and events to provide the best entertainment and recreational services for children, the vice managing director for the Entertainment City affairs, Meshari Al-Sanoussi, said recently.

Commenting on TEC’s participation in the First Child Festival, AlSanoussi explained that TEC has a special section offering special treats to EC visitors such as a reduced admission fare of KD 2.5 instead of the usual rate of KD 3.5 during the festival due to be held at the Conference Center and the Royal Suit, the Free Zone during October 14-16.

Further, Al-Sanoussi said that all the tickets to be sold at the festival would be valid till the end of 2012, except on Eid days and the new Hijri year holiday.

Al-Sanoussi also noted that as a platinum sponsor of the festival, TEC would also offer a KD1 ticket for the Ice Skating Rink instead of the usual rate of KD 1.5, a 50 per cent discount

tions of earrings.

From tiny flashlights to tissue papers and rehydration powder, nebulizer and drugs for an asthmatic patient like her, she keeps it all handy. She had also brought with her a collection of books and her favorite portrait of her children.

Newton said being ready and prepared at all times is what people should do religiously, especially here in Kuwait.

Besides, she admitted to accepting some extra teaching jobs to maintain her spacious house in Kuwait. “We all need a spacious place to live. With the small housing allowance (KD150) I got from school, I could not have maintained the house I call little paradise. It was only possible due to my extra income from teaching music,” she told the audience.

With 32 years of experience in teaching behind her, Helen Newton is proud to admit that she loves Kuwait so much that she has already stayed here now for over 16 years. She teaches students from the ages of 2 to 19 years. She mastered the subject of music but she also teaches other subjects such as English, Math, Science, History PE, IT Computers, Drama, Food Technology, Personal and Health Education.

Firemen rescue sailors

By Hanan Al Saadoun

and all the marine Iranians without any causality. They were handed to the Coast Guards who, too, participated in rescuing the boat.

Documents stolen A customs clearing agent who had stopped his car on the main street in Salmiya to offer Asr prayers yesterday afternoon, returned ten minutes later to find his car’s windscreen smashed and a bag inside missing. The bag contained only customs clearing official papers which could be of no use to anyone except the owner.

As the mosque was next to the Salmiya police station, all that the unfortunate man could do was to lodge a complaint against the unidentified person who stole his bag.

Meshari Al-Sanoussi on the swimming pools complex tickets, a 50 per cent discount on three-month family subscriptions in the swimming pools (KD 35 instead of KD 75) and a 50 per cent discount on one month family subscriptions in the pools complex (KD 25 instead of KD 50) throughout the festival.

the meeting with a report outlining the Gulf country’s efforts to fight the human trafficking, he said noting that the paper shed light on the Gulf state efforts at this level, including its joining of diverse treaties against this phenomenon.

Moreover, it shed some light on national laws and regulations intended to uproot human trafficking.

Al-Kanderi stated that the conferees agreed that Arab states would prepare papers about national efforts against this illegal offense. They also agreed on drafting a comprehensive Arab report, to be presented to the concerned international agencies informing the world about the Arab countries’ efforts in this domain. — KUNA

Kuwait’s hosting of Asian summit crucial for high need for states’ cooperation KUWAIT: Kuwait’s hosting of the First Asian Cooperation Dialogue Summit is crucial nowadays amid increasing need for international and regional cooperation, according to eminent experts.

The event, due to be hosted by the Gulf state on October 15-17, is part of Kuwait’s policy of adopting “significant initiatives” for welfare of peoples of the world, as stipulated by guidelines of His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, said Dr. Abdullah Al-Madani, a researcher in international relations, in remarks on sidelines of a seminar, held here today, in preparation for the summit.

Dr. Al-Madani indicated at desire of Kuwait and other states of the region “to turn to the east, a long time ago, however in fact there have been no regular meetings to serve

poems, music and musical instruments.

She played one of her favorite songs entitled ‘Music’, a chart topper from the 1970s. She read some of her favorite poems and showed some of her wellarranged cabinet showcasing her collec-

KUWAIT: The personnel from the Salmiya marine fire department along with those from Failaka fire department rescued the occupants of a boat that had drifted to shallow waters and hit a rocky surface before breaking up.

The boat coming from UAE was loaded with fruits and vegetables and was reported in trouble near the Ooah islands early in the morning. As the operation centre reacted and the two fire centers rushed safety personnel to the site, using the rescue boat “Monjad” and the “Sealand”, they noticed that the boat had already hit the rocky terrain north of Ooah islands. The body of the wooden boat had broken and water had leaked into it. The firemen rescued the sailors

Kuwait affirms keenness on combating human trafficking CAIRO: The State of Kuwait affirmed yesterday its keenness on cooperating with Arab countries to combat human trafficking in the Arab world.

Dr. Omar Al-Kanderi, legal advisor at the Kuwaiti Foreign Ministry, expressed Kuwait’s desire to establish such cooperation to eradicate this phenomenon, as he chaired the Kuwaiti delegation at a meeting of the Arab experts committee tasked with this issue.

The meeting that had proceeded at the Arab League headquarters for two days was held in line with a resolution of the Arab ministers of justice regarding map-out of a strategy to combat trade in human beings.

The Kuwaiti delegation presented

tion, Newton had brought along every single important object or piece of paper that she believed was too important to her. She displayed a collection of

states’ interests, rather than promote emotional rhetoric.”

The prominent researcher expressed hope that the summit would result in “laying basis for Asian-Arab partnership, or at least Asian-Gulf partnership,” hoping that states taking part in the summit would agree on strategies for viable and concrete joint action. Elaborating, he acknowledged difficult task of devising a viable mechanism of cooperation among nations of Asia, considering the diverse cultures, civilizations, beliefs, however he expressed confidence that tangible cooperation could be established among Asian organizations.

Abdul Khaleq Abdullah of the UAE appeared to adopt much higher aspirations, expressing hope the summit would pave way for Asian union to follow suit of the European Union. — KUNA

KUWAIT: The firemen with the rescued sailors.

News

in brief

Palestinian Ambassador to Kuwait RAMALLAH: Ambassador Rami Ihsan Tahboub swore in before President Mahmoud Abbas on Tuesday as Palestine’s Ambassador to the State of Kuwait. The swearing-in ceremony, which took place at the presidential headquarters in Ramallah, was attended by Foreign Minister Dr. Riyad Al-Maliki and Presidential Office Chairman Hussein Al-Araj. Al-Maliki appointed Tahboub as Ambassador to Kuwait on Sept 19, noting that he will officially take up his duties at the embassy in October.

Wireless operators course KUWAIT: The 5th course for wireless operators that had begun on September 23, 2012 concluded on October 7, 2012 under the patronage of assistant undersecretary General Shaikh Ahmad Nawaf Al Ahmed Al Jaber Al Sabah and Brig Mohammed Amer Al Ajmi, assistant to and deputed by general director for officer qualifications, Brig Khalid Abdulaziz Al Jinahi. The course also enjoyed the patronage of the director of officers training institute, Colonel Waleed Jassem Al Toura. Another course that had started on September 30, 2012 also concluded on October 7, 2012 with a segment on the art of dealing with public. A total of 13 trainees participated in this course.

Kuwait-Afghan cooperation KUWAIT: The Undersecretary at the Ministry of Interior, Gen Ghazi Abdul Rahman Al Omar, received Dr Asadullah Haneef Balkhi, the Ambassador of Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, in his office at the ministry yesterday morning.

Al Omar welcomed his guest and stressed the deep relationship and cooperation between Kuwait and Afghanistan. Ambassador Balkhi also expressed his country’s appreciation for Kuwait’s role and said the two countries could do a lot to achieve peace in the region. The two talked about subjects of mutual interest in a cordial and friendly atmosphere.

Electricity ministers’ meeting RIYADH: The Ministers of Water and Electricity of Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) States concluded here yesterday their 25th meeting under chairmanship of Saudi Minister of Water and Electricity Abdullah bin Abdulrahman AlHossein. Kuwait was represented in the meeting by a delegation headed by Minister of Electricity and Water and Minister of State for Municipal Affairs Abdulaziz Al-Ibrahim. In a press statement following the meeting, Minister Al-Ibrahim said the meeting tackled a plethora of key issues related to the efforts to bolster cooperation between the GCC states in the water and electricity fields. The meeting reviewed the works of technical committees and working groups specialized in the field of electricity and water. The water and electricity linkage among the region’s state were top on the agenda of the meeting.

Saudi Minister of Water and Electricity AlHossein said that electricity linkage among GCC countries, which began three years ago, is proceeding according to what has been planned and proved useful economically and technically.

Asian academic forum kicks off

KUWAIT: Two ambulances got stuck in front of the Farwaniya commercial complex as someone had parked a car blocking the emergency service vehicles.

Such careless actions could cause a costly delay in responding to critical cases.

Kuwait hopes its aid will help Syrian refugees BEIRUT: Kuwaiti ambassador to Lebanon Abdul-Al Al-Ginaea yesterday expressed hope Kuwaiti aid delivered to Syrian refugees would help in easing off their hardships.

Al-Ginaee, in a statement after meeting a delegation of Kuwaiti Zakat House that distributed relief supplies to the refugees, praised Kuwaiti charities and societies for dispatching aid supplies to the Syrians who have fled to Lebanon.

The deputy director of the house, Khaled AlHusseini, lauded role of the embassy and Kuwait

News Agency for service of Kuwait at diverse levels.

Riad Itani of the Lebanese Dar Al-Fatwa expressed gratitude for Kuwait noting that the Kuwaiti alms house has given up to $1.5 million worth of aid supplies to the Syrians in Lebanon since start of the crisis in their country.

The house, Kuwait Red Crescent Society and the Kuwaiti Al-Rahma Society granted, over the past two days, assistance supplies to thousands of Syrian refugees. — KUNA

Awqaf takes part in Frankfurt book fair FRANKFURT: Kuwait’s Ministry of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs participates for the first time in the Frankfurt International Book Fair which brings together publishers, writers and intellectuals from the four corners of the globe.

“This move is a quantum leap in the Ministry’s relentless efforts to convey its message of moderate Islam and social responsibility to the whole world,” the Ministry Assistant Undersecretary for Islamic Culture Affairs Khalifa Mothiab Al-Uthenia said on sideline of the inauguration ceremony of the 64th round of Frankfurt Book Fair.

He pointed out that the Ministry pavilion includes a host of publications about different

aspects of modern and moderate Islam.

“We aim to highlight the brilliant and tolerant teachings of Islam,” he added.

The pavilion also included translated Islamic and cultural books, CV as well as audio and visual products. The Frankfurt Book Fair is the world’s largest trade fair for books, based on the number of publishing companies represented, as well as the number of visitors. It is held annually in midOctober at the Frankfurt Trade Fair grounds in Frankfurt am Main, Germany.

Over 7,384 exhibitors from 100 countries make Frankfurt the international hub of the publishing world. — KUNA

KUWAIT: Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Sabah Al-Khalid Al-Hamad AlSabah inaugurated here yesterday an academic forum dubbed (Asia .. Future Visions) on the occasion of the first Asian Cooperation Dialogue Summit (ACD) to be hosted by Kuwait between Oct 15 and 17..

Sheikh Sabah Al-Khalid expressed in his opening address his happiness to be at the University of Kuwait, “which is an academic edifice that we feel proud of as this hall bears the name of the late Sheikh Abdullah Jaber Al-Sabah, one of the most prominent founders of educational renaissance in Kuwait.”

He also expressed his pleasure to patronize this academic forum for ACD and participate in its activities at the kind invitation of His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad AlJaber Al-Sabah.

Sheikh Sabah Al-Khalid said that Asian academic and scientific institutions, and in complementation of their leading role in community service and support of decision-makers, carry out the task of preparing cultural and academic forums, seminars and scientific discussions on the sidelines of international conferences through the use of energies and specialized expertise which in turn seek to provide a summary of their visions after a series of wealthy discussions, therefore, expanding horizons of policy makers and strategies in various fields.

He added that the invitation of His Highness the Amir to hold the first ACD summit is the culmination of the efforts of the State of Kuwait to strengthen political, economic, trade and cultural ties.

He said that the State of Kuwait and out of its belief in the activation of its vital role in shaping the future prospects of the Asian continent by means of cooperation and for the consolidation of peace and security, development and human rights and the reduction of poverty and environmental degradation, climate change and food security, has been keen since independence to strengthen and consolidate its relations with the countries of the Asian continent with the opening and expansion of diplomatic missions. — KUNA

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2012

LOCAL

Bureaucracy dampens hopes of small projects owners Delegation meets minister

Special care for children of martyrs

KUWAIT: Minister of Commerce Anas Al-Saleh listening to the small businessmen during the conference held at the Public Authority for Industry.

By Nawara Fattahova KUWAIT: Over a hundred small businessmen gathered at the Public Authority for Industry (PAI) on Tuesday evening to meet the Minister of Commerce Anas AlSaleh and discuss the problems they faced. Many of the businessmen complained about the bureaucracy in various public authorities, which, they said, dampens their ambitions. The minister began the conference by saying that his purpose in holding this event was to listen to their complaints and find solutions, to make their small projects move and grow into successful mega projects.

There were different kinds of complaints. Some said they hardly get a chance to explain the difficulties they face to those in authority. This includes adding a business activity to the license,

the difficulties faced in obtaining a license for a regular or mobile restaurant, and getting the PAI to evaluate their project ideas.

Al-Saleh noted that this was certainly not going to be his last meeting with them. “I am interested in meeting young businessmen on a regular basis to listen to their opinions and suggestions as it makes it easier for the ministry to effectively and quickly execute its responsibility towards the small projects department,” he said.

He said the government will resume the industrial land sites that were not exploited by their owners for the activities for which they were granted these lands. “These properties will be given to those who have real serious project proposals. The government is serious in finding solutions to all the problems facing

KUWAIT: Anas Al-Saleh (left) and other officials from the Ministry of Commerce and the Public Authority for Industry. — Photos by Joseph Shagra

the young Kuwaitis running small and medium businesses, especially the issue of finding industrial land at nominal prices to start their projects,” Al-Saleh underlined.

According to Al-Salah, the government was preparing the young Kuwaiti generation to lead the national economy by setting up a special department for supporting the small projects at the Ministry of Commerce, and by establishing a financial fund to support these projects. “I hope that young Kuwaitis will provide their inputs to help the citizens start their commercial and industrial businesses, which will activate the new department (Small Projects Management) at the Ministry in the best way,” he said. Al-Saleh suggested formation of a committee consisting of seven members who will collect all required

information and suggestions to help resolve the issues that businessmen faced in other institutions related to the Ministry or connected to it.

“This includes issues like the facility to issue a license, finding new industrial lands, commercial cheating and preserving intellectual property. The Ministry is trying to change a few older laws that were limiting the freedom of the small projects owners. The government will also propose to have a national fund for supporting small businesses as an important law, and it will be submitted to the Parliament soon for certain approval. In addition, any new laws will be supportive of the young businessmen, as these will allow them to stay in their job in the public sector for three years, and then leave it to fully work on their own businesses,” he concluded.

Ministry still struggles to stop blackouts KUWAIT: As the summer draws to a close, the Ministr y of Electricity and Water prepares to launch its annual comprehensive maintenance operations which cover transformers and cables around Kuwait. The exercise, which includes repairing and replacing dysfunctional parts, is meant to enhance the Ministry’s capacity to meet an

even higher demand expected next summer.

However, regular mainte nance could not prevent blackouts this summer with consumption breaking all records as total electricity load reached 11,850 megawatts on August 2n. More power trip ups were repor ted during Ramadan, when consumption levels usu-

ally peak. However, MEW officials did not see overloads as the main reason behind the recurring blackouts but often blamed the “outdated electricity network” that annual maintenance operations seem incapable of keeping up with.

Other causes included damage sustained due to construction work, including accidental

damage to underground cables during excavation.

Meanwhile, MEW’s undersecretar y assistant Ali AlWazzan recently indicated that the total electricity production in Kuwait has reached up to 14,000 megawatts a day, while daily water production has reached 660 million imperial gallons. He credited the

achievement to “a ministry plan that started in 2008 and saw execution of a number of projects involving latest technologies to ensure better conservation of Kuwait’s main source of income, which is oil,” Al-Wazzan said during a recent conference on the Geographical Information Systems (GIS) in Kuwait.

KUWAIT: Deputy Minister of Amiri Diwan Affairs Sheikh Ali Jarrah Al-Sabah affirmed that the government would continue devoting special attention to children of national martyrs.

Speaking at a ceremony, held to honor the children of martyrs of excellent record, Sheikh Ali said, “ We in line withguidelines of H is Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad AlJaber Al-Sabah would continue giving care for the children of the martyrs, encourage them and help them overcome obstacles so they may contribute to construction of Kuwait.”

He praised enormous efforts, exerted by the Martyr’s Bureau, namely the staff, for helping the children of martyrs for excellence.

Fa t m a h A h m a d A l - A m i r, t h e D i re c t o r General of the bureau, urged in her statement at the ceremony, held late on Tuesday, the children of the martyrs to follow steps of their fathers who sacrificed their souls for their beloved homeland. She lauded special care given to this segment of the society by Sheikh Nasser Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, the Minister of Amiri Diwan Affairs and the Head of the Board of Trustees at the bureau, Sheikh Ali Al-Jarrah, relatives of the children and personnel of the office.

For her part Amal Abdul Latif Al-Awadhi, speaking on behalf of families of the children, also praised these officials and the relevant authorities for implementing instructions of HH the Amir in this respect.

Hamad Ahmad Abdul Hadi, a student of excellent record, addressed the participants of the event, recalling HH the Amir ’s calls for arming the young generations with knowledge and science, hailing His Highness who with his special care for the children of the martyrs compensated them for the loss of partial parental care. Sheikh Ali, who attended the event on behalf of Minister of Amiri Diwan Affairs Sheikh Nasser Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, recalled the patriotism and loyalty of those who gave up their lives to defend their country. With these patriotic words, he encouraged the newer generations to follow the steps of those heroes and exert greater effort to build a better future for their homeland. —KUNA

4

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2012

LOCAL in my view

kuwait digest

Caught between actions, words

They are not crazy people

By Abdul Rahman Al-Rashed do not know to what extent Turkish officials understand how much damage they have suffered in the Arab world as a result of Syria; the issue itself and Turkish stances relating to it, in addition to what preceded it. However, I am sure that the Turks are more capable than others at calculating their own interests, and they know they have an important role to play that they have yet to undertake, and we do not understand why.

The story here precedes the events in Syria by years. Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyep Erdogan has always been interested in the Arab world and keen to participate positively in it, but he began on the wrong foot when he previously agreed to support al-Assad’s Syria in its foreign battles, as well as enthusiastically supporting Iran with its nuclear program. He later went on to correct these stances when the truth became clear.

Erdogan, with his charismatic leadership personality, won over frustrated Arab hearts firstly during a televised conference in Davos three years ago. At the time, he issued strong retorts to Israeli President Shimon Peres, launching attacks on Peres himself and Israel’s policy of occupation. He then threw his microphone away and angrily left his place, in the name of the Arab cause. This was followed by Turkey’s decision to send ships along with European activists to break the Gaza blockade, and when they were attacked by Israeli forces in international waters, Erdogan threatened and pledged that the Israelis would pay dearly for the attack on Turkish ships and the killing of Turkish citizens.

Subsequently, his picture was held aloft in Arab demonstrations and he became an Arab star.

However, Erdogan’s error was that he raised Arab expectations and yet did nothing except cease joint military exercises with Israel.

The biggest disappointment was Syria. The Turkish government adopted strong positions against the Bashar al-Assad regime and issued consecutive threats against it, claiming that the Turks would not stand by idly in front of the massacres being committed. However, Turkey remained idle across the border for more than a year after the massacres began.

Then it was noticeable that the Turkish Prime Minister, along with his Foreign Minister, flew to Burma and had their photos taken with displaced Muslims. Erdogan made promises to them, just as he promised the Syrians and the Palestinians before.

This was two days ahead of the Islamic Summit in Makkah, but in the end Turkey did nothing. Some commented criticizing that it was just another public relations campaign.

From Israel to Syria to Burma, Turkey has left many of those who had hung their hopes on it disappointed. Here we must objectively wonder are we expecting too much from the Turks are we, as usual, an easy victim? Can the Arabs still be won over by a few passionate media speeches, as Khomeini and Nasrallah did in the past? I think it’s a mixture of the two. Erdogan is a populist politician who knows how to gain the applause of the masses, and for this he wins his political and electoral battles.

At the same time, we, as Arabs, have expectations greater than Turkey’s ability, or we don’t take its circumstances fully into consideration. Erdogan is known for his religious and political moderation, and through his leadership - whether of his party or the government - he has proven that he possesses two main attributes: winning over public opinion and at the same time not getting involved in activities that are beyond Turkey’s ability.

The radical Islamists who came out in their thousands to welcome him at Cairo airport were later shocked by his political speech commanding them to adopt a secular political approach to the state, and anger grew towards him in both Egypt and Tunisia. The truth is that Erdogan and Turkey’s Islamists differ in their perception of the role of religion and the state compared to their Muslim Brotherhood and Salafi counterparts in the Arab Spring states. In fact, there is a wide cultural gap between them, for Erdogan is among the admirers of Ibn Arabi, whilst the Brotherhood and the Salafis follow Hassan al-Banna and Ibn Taymiyyah respectively. There is still a great hope that Turkey under Erdogan will have a significant role in Syria, and in saving the Syrian people, with greater urgency and momentum. Turkey is stronger militarily than all the Arab states, and has a direct border with Syria, unlike Saudi Arabia or Egypt, and therefore it has a significant interest in changing the regime there to satisfy the majority of the Syrian people, so as to ensure the stability of the region and Turkey’s protection.

The hope is that Erdogan’s government expands its activities in support of the Syrian opposition. We know that they were the first to support the rebels, without which perhaps the Syrian revolution would be over by now, but we also know that rumors about Turkey coming under Western pressure to prevent it from supporting the rebels further are just lies, and the opposite is more likely to be true.

Of course, this does not negate the fact that the countries of the region and Western governments are not keen to support any extremist or jihadist Syrian groups, and this is an understandable and justifiable position, but these groups only represent a small proportion of the total map of the Syrian revolution. Furthermore, we are aware of Turkey’s complex considerations with regards to the Syrian issue, and the potentially negative repercussions if it were to intervene strongly. For example, Iran could create problems inside Turkey and support the armed Kurdish opposition there, which used to be based in Syria. Yet Turkey should not be overly concerned with these considerations, because we know that the fall of the al-Assad regime is in Turkey’s best interests. A democratic Syrian regime with moderate leaders, and the stability and unity of Syrian territory rather than the emergence separate Alawite or Kurdish states are all in the interests of the Turks just as they are in the interests of the Syrians. Iran and Russia, the al-Assad regime’s current allies, would simply have to accept to deal with the new Syrian regime and respect Turkey, which will become a stronger and more positive force as a result.

By Abdullatif Al-Duaij

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edoons or stateless residents are either Kuwaitis, or people who have no other place to go except Kuwait which again means that they are Kuwaitis. Otherwise they are crazy because you have to be completely out of your mind to want to risk your and your children’s future by staying in Kuwait, unless of course you have no other choice.

It is hard to understand that someone would insist on staying in Kuwait given the situation prevailing today. Conflicts between sectarian groups and other sections of society, unusual fights among all those who call themselves political activists, an inept government, and political groups whose vision is limited to opposing the government on every issue, all of this coupled with a dark future.

We face a future marked by ambiguity and insecurity since our major concern is no longer the depletion of oil reserves or the discovery of other sources of energy. Instead, we are more concerned that Kuwaitis will end up consuming more oil income than what the state earns. In other words, the government might not be able to pay Kuwaitis’ salaries in the near future, let alone the salaries of the Bedouins. One could understand someone wanting to live in Kuwait or obtaining the Kuwaiti citizenship 40 or 50 years ago, but now things have changed as Kuwait is no more an oasis of safety but has become a repulsive force.

Is it possible that the Bedouins are hands in glove with the government who pays them money to demonstrate so that ordinary Kuwaitis realize how lucky they are with what they have and stop complaining? I would not believe that because even if you pay me a million Dinars, I would still not accept being persecuted, especially when the government does not make a promise to hand out naturalization.

It is obvious that the Bedouins cannot be crazy enough as to put their future and the future of their children in the hands of the government of Kuwait, unless they have nowhere else to go, but Kuwait.

I still do not understand the true intentions behind the United Arab Emirates’ warning to the Muslim Brotherhood, and the implied call to the Gulf Cooperation Council countries to contain and stop their activities.

We can all agree that the Muslim Brotherhood is a political group that is active in many Arab and nonArab countries, which are supposed to deal with it as per their respective rules and regulations. If they violate the law, the states have the right to prosecute and punish them in accordance with their laws that are supposed to protect their political and human rights in the first place. But if the Muslim Brotherhood is acting within the law and the constitution, as it does here in Kuwait, persecuting or limiting their activity would be a violation of their freedom.

With all due respect to the authorities in the UAE, we are committed to protecting all political activists as long as they continue to respect the state’s law, and regardless of whether we feel their approach serves the national interest or not. The main interest remains a subject of debate, but exercising opinion about it remains the right of all. Be it the Muslim Brotherhood or anyone else, as long as everyone follows the law and principles of social peace and security, they have their rights. — Al-Qabas

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kuwait digest

‘Without’ violence

By Mohammad Hayat any countries observe the International Day of Non-Violence on Oct 2 by hosting events and awareness campaigns that shed light on the importance of combating violence in all shapes and forms. They focus mainly on the dangers of the use of violence by governments against societies, which results in hurting the trust between the people and their leaders. Such violence also results in spreading hate, and goes against the principles of tolerance, cooperation, coexistence, freedom, justice, equality, safety and stability in societies.

Our government did not want that a day like this should pass unnoticed, and chose to mark it in its own way. It ensured that the idea of freedom of expression by peaceful means is seen as an exclusively Kuwaiti prerogative since the government promised to prevent any peaceful gathering on that day by people who happened to be non-Kuwaitis.

To this end, the government sent in artillery and personnel to liberate the Kuwaiti land of Taima from the colonization by the State of bedoons.

Even if this sounds too hyperbolic, it nevertheless describes faithfully the manner in which masked armed men confronted the protestors who were merely expressing their opinions peacefully. The security forces were there to put an end to their gathering by any means necessary, including violence. That all of it happened on the International Day of Non-Violence only tells the world that the government has once again failed to comprehend the meaning of freedom of opinion and expression, and continues to fail in resolving the stateless residents’ problem. I am not going to criticize the government for failing to end the Bedouin crisis because they are part of the problem in the first place.

The bedoons’ case has become politicized over the years with undeserving people being naturalized for political reasons even though thousands of deserving candidates are still waiting to receive citizenship.

They are part of the problem when they fail to

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adopt the required procedures to allow those Bedouins, which they claim belong to other countries, receive their passports, and that is simply because their claims are based on inaccurate information. Likewise, I would not criticize the members of the parliament because they, too, are a part of the problem since they stayed silent for years despite the government’s malpractices, and failed to deal with the issue with any sense of priority since it was not profitable in electoral terms.

However, I am going to criticize those who claim to be defending the constitution and the freedoms guaranteed under it. These are the people we supported when they filed a grilling motion against the prime minister after the police violently dispersed a gathering for Kuwaiti citizens in Al-Sulaibikhat. Yet, the same people keep silent when the government repeatedly suppresses the freedom of those protesting in Taima.

After all, the freedoms that the constitution stands for are meant for all, regardless of nationality.

Their position can be explained by either of these two possible reasons: one is, that they are ignorant of the true values enshrined in the constitution, or two, that their defense of public freedoms is selective based on what they stand to gain by such a stance in electoral terms.

Freedom knows no nationality, sectarian group or race. Once they find themselves helpless, people can even resort to violence. A man can survive without a citizenship, ID or civil rights, but cannot live for one day without freedom or dignity.

Once they find themselves helpless, people can even resort to violence. And violence can only breed more violence.

Once these are set up, the executive and legislative committees need to focus on resolving this humanitarian issue before it explodes as is being predicted, and should start by evaluating the work of the Central Agency for Stateless Residents in a completely impartial manner. —Al-Rai

kuwait digest

A country of experiments

kuwait digest

By Thaar Al Rashidi

Bad choice of people

By Aziza Al Mufarrej uwaiti people proved without any doubt and the members of the brotherhood nominated that they do not know how to choose their someone from the same party. If the Salaf will align MPs.” We keep hearing every now and then with another Salafi, then the urban man will not be that some ruling family members are convinced that acting differently either.

All were seeking to derive power from their own ushering in democracy was a strategic mistake that they should not have made. If, for the sake of argu- groups. They found that everything was good with ment, we assume that this opinion of the sheikhs is their own group while all evil lay with others. The most true, and I am not among those who say so, we will heinous of them were those who sold their votes.

These were bad choices that brought such MPs into find that such an opinion has some credibility.

The way Kuwait is reeling under problems is linked parliament who considered it an Aladdin’s lamp to to parliament, and what we have been going through achieve their own goals and gain financial and personal glory at the expense of the country, its dreams, the for years, is the best evidence of that.

Imagine that you give one of your sons a swanky car people, their livelihood and emotions.

The authority is adding to to go around managing his the mistake because it has business, and to help you in All were seeking to derive agreed to relinquish its duty the running of some of your power from their own groups. to impose a basis for justice affairs when you needed, but They found that everything was and equality among its citithen he disappoints you with zens, and has left the doors his selfishness, shatters your good with their own group wide open for MPs to implehopes by misusing the car, while all evil lay with others. The ment it as they see it and as drives recklessly, jumps trafmost heinous of them were per what is in their interest. fic lights and threatens the It has agreed to be lax and lives of other motorists, hits those who sold their votes. not implement the law and other people’s cars, crashes has left many ends loose to into walls and light poles and then challenges the security men pulling him over for satisfy the MPs. It has also accepted the control of his violations. If anyone draws his attention to his own some groups, and Hadas on top of the list over highmistakes, he sticks his tongue out in ridicule just like ranking centers. It has also accepted the quota system in leadership posts instead of going by competence children do. Now, what will you do?

Democracy by itself is a sublime idea, a beautiful and dedication. The authority has turned a blind eye way of life that everyone should follow because it towards corruption and has refrained from taking includes freedom and respect for the individual. The strong decisions regarding certain issues.

All this has led to what we are today experiencing mistakes in the democratic practice creep in due to one of the three factors - people, MPs or the authority. as a series of endless crises.

Our problem in Kuwait, unlike what some believe, is In Kuwait, all three are the reason why we are facing not that some sheikhs do not believe in democracy, such problems.

After 1990, the people of Kuwaiti proved decisively but that we have failed to implement a successful that they did not know how to choose their MPs. In administration.

Whenever we resort to true democracy, we will general, the Shiite voters chose a Shiite like themselves, the tribals elected an MP from their own tribe, surely find ourselves in a better shape. —Al-Watan

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country of experiments.” This is a precise description of our political situation which has been there for many years. There is hardly another country in the world where democracy has gone through so many experiments.

Today, we are on the verge of a new experiment, wondering whether and by how much will the number of votes be reduced or will they stay as they were while the area maps of the five constituencies would change.

Whatever may be the intention and irrespective of a decision about any amendment in the election law, it is clear that we are in for a new experiment and once we implement it, we will start discovering the mistakes and find out what was special about this new experiment.

The country made similar discoveries when the number of constituencies was changed to 25, and since 2008 we have lived with the system of five constituencies and four votes.

When we had 25 constituencies, we found that political money called the shots, but when we made it five constituencies, we found that control had passed into the hands of tribal, sectarian and influential interests. Though a majority opposition was able to enter the parliament, the cost was too high in the form of tribes and sectarian groups.

Yes, the five constituencies system was not the ideal choice, but it was an experiment that could have been tweaked, had it been given more time. But since we are on the verge of another experiment in our election system, we will be back to square one.

The amendment will do little except result in reorganization of forces among bickering political groups.

If the law was implemented completely in regard to the projects in the state, and if it was applied to all the contractors fully, then we would have enough financial surplus to cover the streets with tiles, not just asphalt.

Then our streets would be the prettiest among the streets in any city of the world. If the tenders were to be awarded as per law, then we would have 15 hospitals in two years and two airports, and tens of real factories. But so long as the law was implemented as a means of sharing the political pie, we would not get to see a single project. — Al-Anbaa

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THURSDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2012

Local

Iraq plans reduction in Kuwait compensation Parliament starts discussions compensation to be paid to Kuwait” for destruction during the 1990/91 invasion.

By A Saleh

KUWAIT: The Ambassador of Armenia Fady Charchoghlian visited Kuwait Times and discussed matters of mutual concern with Editor-in-Chief Abd Al-Rahman Al-Alyan.

VIVA participates in Gitex Technology Week KUWAIT: VIVA, Kuwait’s newest and most advanced mobile telecommunications service provider, announced its first participation in the Gitex Technology week to present its wide range of products to the exhibition visitors. The International Gitex Technology week will take place from Oct 14 to 18 in Dubai at the Zaabeel Exhibition Hall in the Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre , and is considered the leading IT and technology exhibition

Salman Al-Badran and attracts a majority of decision makers in the Middle East.

Commenting on VIVA’s first participation in the Gitex 2012 exhibition, VIVA’s Chief Executive Officer, Salman Bin Abdulaziz Al-Badran said: “ It’s an exciting experience, for VIVA Family, to take part in one of the world’s most anticipated IT and technology exhibitions. Our participation in the Gitex Technology Week 2012 comes in line with our corporate strategy to extend and present our services not only locally, but on a regional level. VIVA’s increase in market share and as its customer base has exceeded more than 1.2

million; our next step towards further success is to be involved in regional and international events. We will continue to pursue challenging opportunities that will further elevate VVIA’s name in regional and international conventions.”

Alongside VIVA, Saudi Telecommunication Company (STC) and VIVA Bahrain will be taking part in the exhibition and exhibiting their latest products. VIVA, through a dedicated team, will be showcasing several products and services such as, VIVA Elite, VIVA Points, B2B services, and the 42.2 MBps Internet service.

Gitex is the information and communications technology business gateway to the Middle East, North Africa and South Asia Region and was launched in 1981. It focuses on providing exhibitors with high return on investment through direct business opportunities with decision makers; GITEX has maintained its position as ‘The Industry’s Trend Setting Authority’.

VIVA is the newest, most advanced mobile telecommunications service provider in Kuwait. Launched in December 2008, VIVA makes things Possible for our customers by transforming communication, information and entertainment experiences.

The company has rapidly established an unrivalled position in the market through our customer and employee centric approach. VIVA’s quest is to be the mobile brand of choice for Kuwait by being transparent, engaging, energetic and fulfilling.

VIVA continues to take a considerable share of the market by offering an innovative range of best value products, services and content propositions; a state of the art, nationwide network and world-class service. VIVA offers Internet speed up to 42.2Mbps due to the implementation of the most advanced third generation (3G and HSDPA) network in Kuwait resulting in superior coverage, performance and reliability.

KUWAIT: The Islamic Care Society held a ceremony on the occasion of the Elders International Day in its premises in Adeliya Co-op Society, behind Kazma Sports Club. —Photos by Yasser Al-Zayyat

Increase in airport passenger movement KUWAIT: The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) reported yesterday that the total number of passengers who have used Kuwait International Airport last September amounted to 813,962 compared to 767,080 passengers in September of 2011.

The department’s monthly statistic said the number of incoming passengers amounted to 485,021 last September compared to 331,820 passengers in the same month of 2011. Meanwhile the number of departing passengers amounted to 328,941 last September compared to 331,820 passengers in the corresponding period of

2011. The statement added that the total number of flights to and from Kuwait International Airport in September was 7,335, compared to 7,232 trips in September 2011.

The number of arriving and departing commercial flights reached 6,657 flights last September compared to 6,290 trips in September of the past year.

In terms of cargo traffic, the DGCA reported that the total freight last September was about 14.152,581 kg compared to 15.463,548 kg in September of 2011. —KUNA

KUWAIT: The Iraqi parliament started discussions about ways to utilize funds that can be saved from a potential resolution to reduce the compensation due to Kuwait from five to three percent. “Iraq needs billions to rebuild its infrastructure, something that reducing the percentage of Kuwait’s compensations can contribute to,” financial parliamentary committee member Ibrahim Al-Mutlak said in a statement yesterday.

The Iraqi lawmaker counted on the “good relations” between his country and Kuwait “to resolve all issues left by the former regime”, and called the Iraqi government to use “two percent of the funds collected by reducing Kuwait’s compensation in rebuilding the almost completely non-existent infrastructure.”

Iraq’s Deputy Prime Minister, Rowsch Nuri Shaways, was quoted recently as saying that his country obtained a “green light” from the United Nations to “reduce the percentage of

Co-ops, subsidization Saudi Minister of Commerce and Industry Tawfiq Al-Rubai’ah will visit Kuwait soon to study the country’s experience in cooperative societies and subsidized food card systems, before it was adopted in the Kingdom. This was announced by Kuwait’s Minister of Commerce and Industry Anas Al-Saleh, who confirmed that the visit comes as part of “ongoing coordination” between the two countries. The recent visit of undersecretary of consumer affairs in the Saudi commerce ministry Fahad Al-Jalajel to Kuwait was also part of the same coordination exercise.

Al-Wasmi defends Qatari poet Kuwaiti lawyer and oppositionist political activist Dr. Obaid Al-Wasmi was present in Qatar yesterday to defend a poet accused of insulting the Qatari Amir, during the first trial for a case that was adjourned to Oct 22.

The family of poet Mohammad Al-Theeb AlMeri had personally urged Al-Wasm, who is also a law professor in the Kuwait University and was elected to the annulled 2012 parliament, to handle the case.

Unified vegetable prices Vegetables are set to be sold at unified prices at all co-operative societies in Kuwait and at rates close to those adopted in the Furdah wholesale market, the President of the Kuwait Union of Consumer Co-operative Societies announced recently. Abdul-Aziz AlSamhan further explained that an agreement was reached with the Kuwaiti Farmers Federation to provide vegetables “similar in quality and prices” to co-op society branches as a first step before achieving unified rates by January or February of 2013. Meanwhile, AlSamhan reiterated that eggs will continue to be sold for 990 fils per cardboard tray as per the KUCCS’ agreement with local poultry companies. The price will stay for least another two months “until the shortage crisis is resolved”.

Opposition decides to intensify actions KUWAIT: His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah met on Tuesday with members from the 1999 parliament as part of regular discussions carried out with Kuwaiti politicians regarding political developments. The delegation consisted of Meshari Al-Anjari, Meshary Al-Osaimi, Mohammad Al-Saqr, Abdulwahab AlHaroun, Abdullah Al-Roumi, Abdullah Al-Naibari, while Abbdulmuhsin AlMed’ej was unable to attend as he was abroad on account of prior engagements.

“The discussion focused on public concerns regarding potential measures to be taken by the political leadership that could add to the present crisis,” Al-Naibari told Al-Qabas follow-

ing the meeting. “Yes, we expressed concern that protests and demonstrations could increase and escalate into violence.” The recent development comes at a time when the opposition has decided to intensify its actions against what it described as a “coup against the constitution”, referring to regulations that the Cabinet seeks to pass through emergency decrees.

The opposition’s steps included holding seminars outside dewaniyas which already started last night at the dewaniya of Salem Al-Namlan, and to continue staging demonstrations at the Iradah Square on Mondays which, starting next week, will culminate in marches.

Meanwhile, sources told Al-Qabas

that the Cabinet discussed during Monday’s meeting chaired by HH the Amir a mechanism for reducing the number of votes per voter from four to two via an emergency decree. The insiders who spoke on the condition of anonymity further indicated that four ministers in attendance rejected the proposal during the meeting since they were opposed to amending the electoral law outside the parliament.

The issue of reducing the number of votes has generated much controversy since the Constitutional Court upheld the electoral law two weeks ago after rejecting the Cabinet’s challenge to its constitutionality on the basis that it breaches equality

with regards to demographic distribution within constituencies. The opposition believes that the Cabinet seeks to change the electoral law and come up with a system that favors pro-government candidates so that it can prevent oppositionists from taking control of majority seats.

Pro-government MPs, who felt marginalized in the parliament elected last February and annulled by a Constitutional Court ruling four months later, are pushing for an amended electoral law in which the number of votes per voter is reduced. In their opinion, a system in which a voter is entitled to one or two votes reflects the citizens’ orientations more accurately. —Al-Qabas

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2012

LOCAL

Two arrested among bedoon protestors Disabled child’s tormentors KUWAIT: Two of the three men who sexually assaulted a disabled child in Taima last Friday were reportedly arrested during a demonstration by stateless residents the same day, Al-Watan daily reported yesterday. The detectives were able to identify one of the suspects, who confessed committing the crime just before joining the demonstration on the same day. When he revealed the identity of his accomplices, the police discovered that one of them was already in custody for attacking police officers on duty during Friday’s demonstration.

Investigations were on to trace the third culprit, who, as per the first suspect, did not take part in the crime. The victim, who suffers a physical disability and speech impairment, was reportedly kidnapped from just outside his house and was subjected to sodomy at a remote location, before the suspects drove him back home and disappeared.

Injured maid dies A domestic worker hospitalized a year-and-a-half ago in a critical condi-

tion died on Tuesday while the man accused of brutally assaulting her continues to remain at large. The Indonesian woman was admitted to the Jahra Hospital with serious injuries as a result of a severe physical assault by her Saudi employer’s teenage son, who could have possibly fled Kuwait. Police had failed to arrest him immediately when the case was reported. The victim, who fought for her life all these months in the hospital, was declared dead on Tuesday.

Boy escapes assault A teenager had a narrow escape when he was able to avoid being hit by a truck while escaping from two men trying to assault him sexually after abducting him from Al-Abdaly desert. The panic-stricken Bedouin (stateless) boy was escorted to the Abdaly police station by a driver who picked him up from roadside. He told the officers that the two friends drove to a remote location instead of going to a restaurant as he was made to believe. The boy managed to escape by jumping through the win-

dow of the car when it slowed down, and then started running. He could easily have been crushed underneath a passing truck during the escape bid.

Investigations were on to trace the suspects.

Electrocution suspected Investigations are underway to determine the circumstances leading to the death of a man whose charred body was found on Tuesday morning in Al-Ahmadi desert. The 43-year-old Asian man was found dead by his Kuwaiti employer who hired him as a shepherd.

Preliminary investigations indicated that the victim could probably have died after coming in contact with a high voltage electric cable.

Infiltrators caught Two Iranian nationals trying to sneak into Kuwait were arrested at the Abdullah Port beach shortly after they landed there from a boat. The two were detained on Tuesday morning after a person reported seeing a number of

people arriving by a boat near a chalet before it sailed back into the waters.

During the investigations, the two admitted they paid KD250 each to be smuggled into the country. The two were detained pending further investigations about possible other suspects who might have successfully sneaked into Kuwait.

‘Busted’ husband The police were called to end a fight between a couple that started when the woman caught her husband in bed with the family’s housemaid. The two were detained by police outside their Hawally apartment even as they continued their heated exchange that involved verbal and physical assault. The 41-year-old woman explained that she returned home to find her husband and the Asian maid inside the bedroom in a compromising position. The 43-year-old man did not deny his wife’s accusations and was in custody while the police were busy summoning the maid for investigations.

Hayatt and Wataniya organize Fund Raising Gala Dinner KUWAIT: Hayatt, a par t of Ruqayah Abdulwahab Alqatami Breast Cancer Foundation, partnered with Wataniya and hosted a gala dinner at the Sheraton Hotel to raise money for patients suffering from breast cancer. The money raised will go towards the Breast Cancer Foundation to help expatriate breast cancer patients get much needed treatment and also reinforce the importance of early detection. The funds will also help in assessing women wellness centres throughout the country to encourage all Kuwaiti women to get access to information and be entitled to the early diagnosis of breast cancer.

Emad Al-Samhan the famous party planner transformed the Sheraton Diamond Ballroom into a magnificent oriental palace where all the ladies were wearing beautiful caftans or daraas.

Laila Alghanim, President of Hayatt Ruqayah Abdulwahab Alqatami Breast Cancer Foundation was joined by almost 550 guests including dignitaries, longstanding suppor ters, sponsors and friends. Laila Alghanim dedicated her welcome speech to thanking everyone who has helped Hayatt Breast Cancer Foundation achieve so much and particularly Hayatt board members, acknowledging that the foundation’s work wouldn’t be possible without their help.

Alghanim also acknowledged the sponsors of the campaign: Wataniya, the official Partner of the 2012 campaign, Ali Abdul Wahab and Sons Group of Companies & Roche, Hayatt partners since the beginning for their unlimited contribution in supporting the treatment of certain patients, Bader Sultan & Brothers Company for their unlimited

support through the breast cancer early detection program and any other support needed, The Sheraton Kuwait , Hyatt’s longtime generous partner, Alqabas newspaper for suppor ting Hayatt from the beginning of its venture, ALFARES Jewelry Group, Osrati Magazine for suppor ting Hayatt all the way through, Emad Al Samhan for always giving the helping hand when needed, Al Hamra Real Estate Co , newly joined the partner group, Gulf Bank, Tanagra, Beidoun, Barakat Travel, Carolina Herera, Novartis and International Bank.

It was followed by the welcome address of Dr Bassam Hannoun, CEO Wataniya Telecom, the official sponsor of the gala dinner Dr. Luis Campos, President of Hayatt Scientific Advisory Board and President of Oncology Consultants Houston, Texas gave an overview on “Breast Cancer: Back to the Future “ Feras Abushaar, a brilliant teenager, gave an emotional speech, he spoke of the distress and despair of an entire family when news broke that someone you cherish dearly was struck by the disease.

He presented a video of the song he wrote to tell his love and of the whole family to his adored one struck by the disease.

Later Dr. Bassam Hannoun , the CEO of Wataniya Telecom and one of the most prominent sponsors of the event commented on the overwhelming success of the charity dinner: “It was a fantastic evening enjoyed by all. It has always been our pleasure to be associated with the Hayatt Breast Cancer Foundation and sponsor the first annual charity gala dinner and more prominent-

ly the actual second charity gala. We are delighted to be involved in such a worthwhile cause and are thankful to all the generous donors who have helped raise this superb amount of tonight.”

Dr Labiba Temmim, Executive Director & Medical Affairs at the Ruqayah Abdulwahab Alqatami Breast Cancer Foundation said: “All proceeds from tonight’s event will go towards the Hayatt Breast Cancer Foundation and will help sponsor treatment of Breast Cancer patients in Kuwait. We have established the first Hayatt Women Wellness Center where all diagnostic facilities will be available reinforcing the importance of early detection, which increases the possibility of full recovery from breast cancer. We hope that in very near future sister Hayatt centers will be opened in each governorate I am extremely grateful to everyone attended and would like to extend my gratitude and thanks to all who have contributed and supported our work. “ Working with Wataniya staff for this Breast Cancer Awareness Month Campaign, was an immense pleasure I would like to congratulate them for their professionalism, enthusiasm and efficiency. I am proud to have shared with them privileged exciting moments of true team work. Not to forget to thank Feras Abu Shaar for his immense generosity and thoughtfulness The song presented to you by Feras is going to market the song presented to you tonight , Part of the proceeds will go to “Hayatt” and part of the proceeds will be donated to a charity Foundation in the USA to encourage Breast Cancer Research.

Mona Alghanim, Finance Director at the Ruqayah Abdulwahab Alqatami Breast Cancer Foundation said “I am extremely grateful to everyone attended and would like to extend my gratitude and thanks to all who have contributed and suppor ted our noble cause.

Tonights will help sponsor the treatments of several expatriate breast cancer patients living in Kuwait.

Guests enjoyed an evening of entertainment with a high-energy performance by famous Syrian singer Diva Wad Al Bahri. It was followed by a Thank you from a Hayatt Breast Cancer Survivor who presented a photography book “Discovering Kuwait” all the proceeds will go to Hayatt. The evening ended with a surprise tombola draw.

During the month of October, Hayatt Breast Cancer Foundation conducted a number of activities one of which included hosting “Dr. Nael Al Naqeeb & Dr. Youssef Omar Memorial Lecture” with renowned oncologist Dr. Luis Compos, President “Oncology Consultants”, Houston, Texas and President of Hayatt Scientific Advisory Board.yatt Cancer Foundation The “Hayatt” Association epitomizes noble service to the community. Hayatt was founded by an insightful grandmother who was touched by her grandson’s short life to positively impact and serve underprivileged persons who have been afflicted by cancer. Importantly, this grand lady wanted to give them hope and to enlighten their life. As nonprofit organization Hayatt employees graciously and voluntarily give their time and efforts to fulfill our mission to serve these people.

NBK’s training programs for young Kuwaitis Egyptian Festival at Green Island KUWAIT: The Green Island hosts the Egyptian Festival today to celebrate the 6th of October anniversar y, the Touristic Enterprises Company announced in a statement yesterday. Green Island Supervisor Hussam AlZawawi said the event is set to feature a special ceremony to honor presidents of Egypt’s Zamalek and Ismaili sports clubs.

The festival starts at 7:30 pm and features various activities including a KuwaitiLebanese -Palestinian operetta, and displays from the Egyptian folklore and cultural arts.

Hussam Al-Zawawi

KUWAIT: National Bank of Kuwait (NBK) organizes training programs for young Kuwaitis in collaboration with renowned and prestigious universities and institutes such as Harvard University and American University of Beirut (AUB).

“Investing in human resources is investing in our future,” said Emad Al-Ablani, NBK Deputy General Manager, Human Resources Group. “NBK has trained more than 1800 Kuwaitis during 2012 as part of its commitment to supporting Kuwaiti nationals.”

Al-Ablani added: “NBK organizes training programs in collaboration with the most prestigious universities in the world as Harvard and AUB as part of NBK’s continuous drive to enhance the skills of the Bank’s young leadership members.”

Al-Ablani stressed that “NBK maintains its leading position as one of the country ’s largest employers in the private sector and is committed to supporting Kuwaiti nationals and empowering them to realize their potentials.

Annually, NBK offers more than 40 training programs including NBK Academy, the Summer Internship Program and the first of its kind in the region NBK High Fliers Program in collaboration with the American University of Beirut. NBK High Fliers Program provides future leaders with a wide

range of leadership disciplines covering topics such as finance, risk and people management skills and included classroom discussion, case studies and assignments. In collaboration with the renowned Harvard University, NBK also organizes an executive training program in line with the bank’s commitment to developing and investing in its key resource and human capital.

Emad Al-Ablani

‘Asia .. future outlook’ seminar opens KUWAIT: Insightful call by His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah to hold the First Asian Cooperation Dialogue Summit in Kuwait emanates from His Highness’ deep belief in the necessity of holding a free dialogue among nations of the continent and substantial experience in regional and international affairs, said the Advisor of the Amiri Diwan.

Ambassador Mohammad Abul-Hassan, the chairman of the information committee of the event, made the remarks during inauguration of a seminar, themed “Asia .. future outlook,” held here on Wednesday, on the occasion of the summit, scheduled on October 15-17, indicating that the seminar was held as part of preparations for the upcoming event.

Considering mounting significance of meetings of states’ foreign ministers, HH the Amir, who has substantial experience in regional and international affairs and deeply advocates free dialogue and intelligence interaction among states’ leaders, called for holding this summit, Abul Hassan said, expressing hope the summit would be fruitful in terms of “reaching solutions and consensus on some affairs in the political, economic, commercial, social and environmental sectors, for sake of greater cooperation and interaction among states of the Asian continent and other continents,” he said.

Abdul Reda Asiri, the dean of the college of sociology of Kuwait University and the supreme chairman of the forum, affirmed that the seminar was held in accordance with His Highness the Amir’s desire to boost inter-Asian cooperation, and for sake of bolstering ties among countries of the continent.

“Holding such annual meetings at the level of the Asian continent which is rich in diverse civilizations, religions, cultures, based on tolerance, amity and cooperation, affirms the fact that the peoples of the continent are dynamic and keen on achieving highest level possible of cooperation and coordination in various sectors,” Asiri said.

He indicated that Kuwait’s hosting of the Asian event would serve its strategic aspiration of transforming itself into a financial-commercial hub.

Asian nations have necessary potentials for economic integration “that could ultimately transform Asia into a distinguished economic region,” Asiri said, affirming that the Asian states enjoy all the basic resources for boosting cooperation throughout the continent.

Arshad Hurmuzlu, the Turkish presidential advisor, indicated at key role of his country, situated on the borders between Asia and Europe, noting that Turkey could be helpful in this regard, particularly at the economic level.

Participants in the inaugural ceremony, namely President of Kuwait University Dr. Abdul Latif AlBadr, and Dr. Asiri, honored the patron of the seminar, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Sabah Khalid Al-Hamad Al-Sabah, and Abul Hassan. —KUNA

Babtain highlights importance of inter-culture convergence KUWAIT: Abdulaziz Saud Al-Babtain, president and founder of the Foundation of Abdulaziz Saud Al-Babtain Prize for Poetic Creativity, highlighted on Tuesday the importance of rapprochement and coexistence among people with different cultures. “ The cultural institutions worldwide need to work together for closer cooperation and more active cooperation in order to promote convergence and dialogue among people with different cultures and religions,” he said.

Al-Babtain made the remarks on the sidelines of a symposium at the theater of the central library o f A l - B a b t a i n fo u n d a t i o n o n t h e ro l e o f ‘Ca s a Arabe’ (Arab house) - an affiliate of the Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in the dialogue among cultures. “ The cultural exchanges among different nations gained more significance in the last decade given the growing hard-line trends which pose grave risk to human civilization,” he stressed.

“Casa Arabe made outstanding contributions to the effor ts aiming to build bridges between the Arab and the Spanish cultures; we work with this foundation to promote awareness about role of Arabs in the European civilization,” Al-Babtain noted.

Casa Arabe and Al-Babtain foundation maintain close cooperation which led to the translation from Arabic into Spanish of several essential books and publishing them, he went on.

On his part, Eduardo Lopez Busquets, director general of Casa Arabe, said his organization was a consortium formed on July 2006 by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation and the Spanish Agency for International Development, the autonomous communities of Madrid and Andalusia and the town councils of Madrid and Cordoba.

The organization focuses on three area of activity namely; economy and business; education and teaching of Arabic; culture and new mass media; and the international political affairs, Busquets said.

He praised Al-Babtain role in promoting understanding and coexistence among people with different culture.

The ongoing symposium is part of the cultural activities being organized by the Embassy of Spain in Kuwait to mark Spain’s National Day which falls tomorrow. —KUNA

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2012

Punk Riot member released on appeal

US drone kills 5 militants in Pakistan Page 11

Page 10

ALEPPO: A Syrian man carries the body of his five-year-old son Mohammed Mustafa outside a hospital following shelling by Syrian government forces during battle with rebel fighters in the northern city of Aleppo. —AFP

News

in brief

Pope prays in Arabic VATICAN CITY: Pope Benedict XVI yesterday pronounced a blessing in Arabic at his weekly audience in front of 20,000 pilgrims on St Peter’s Square-the first time the language has been used at such an event. “The pope prays for all Arabic speakers. May God bless you all!” the pope said in Arabic at the audience, after a bishop read out an Arabic translation of the pope’s comments praising the results of the Second Vatican Council. The landmark Council, which began 50 years ago this week, is a “compass” for the Catholic Church “in the middle of the storms”, the pope said. As a young reformer, the then Joseph Ratzinger took part in the Council, better known as Vatican II, which revolutionized Catholic rituals. The Council brought together 2,250 bishops and lasted from 1962 until 1965. The pope has always defended the 15 “constitutions” adopted by the Council despite complaints from traditionalists in the Church over several reforms.

Israel air traffic ‘halted’ JERUSALEM: Israel’s civilian air traffic was halted for several minutes yesterday morning after an unidentified flying object was spotted inside Israeli air space, Israel’s army radio said. Air force jets were briefly scrambled and Israeli air space was closed, it said, without saying what caused the scare. The closure was lifted several minutes later. Closing Israeli air space was an “exceptional” measure which demonstrated the level of tension in Israel after the air force shot down an unidentified and unarmed drone which had entered the country ’s airspace on Saturday from the Mediterranean. Fresh details about the weekend incident emerged yesterday with both army radio and the top-selling Yediot Aharonot daily saying the air force had only managed to shoot down the drone on the second attempt. Both reports said that the first missile fired by the F-16 jet missed the drone which was eventually brought by a Panther missile, the military’s most advanced air-toair projectile. Senior air force sources quoted by Yediot played down the incident saying it was not unreasonable given the drone’s small size.

Fresh anti-Rohingya rally YANGON: Hundreds of Buddhist women protested yesterday in western Myanmar against the presence of stateless Rohingya Muslims in the violence-hit region, an organizer said. The demonstrators urged the Organization of the Islamic Conference to stop its assistance to Rohingya in Rakhine state, where tensions have been running high since deadly Buddhist-Muslim clashes broke out in June. “We protested against the OIC and also Bengalis as we don’t want them on our soil,” organizer Nyo Aye said by telephone from the state capital Sittwe.

Myanmar’s estimated 800,000 Rohingya are viewed as illegal immigrants by the government and by many Burmese, who refer to them as Bengalis. The rally came a day after hundreds of monks took to the streets of Sittwe to protest against local Muslims and the OIC’s activities. The tensions in Rakhine have spread to neighboring Bangladesh, where police said last week they had arrested nearly 300 people in connection with a wave of violence targeting Buddhist homes and temples.

50 dead; Syria rejects UN call for ceasefire Turkey issues warning; Homs hammered DAMASCUS: The Syrian regime rejected a UN call for a unilateral ceasefire yesterday as rebels confronted columns of tanks and troops sent to retake a town on the road to main battleground city Aleppo. President Bashar Al-Assad’s regime, on the back foot with rebels controlling swathes of northern Syria, insisted the insurgents must stop the violence first as it turned down the call issued the previous day by UN chief Ban Ki-moon.

“We told Ban Ki-moon to send emissaries to the countries which have influence on the armed groups, so that they put an end to the violence,” foreign ministry spokesman Jihad Maqdisi said. As he spoke, the embattled regime was sending tanks from Mastumah south of Idlib city to Maaret al-Numan, a rebel source told an AFP reporter in the nearby town of Sarmin. It had also deployed soldiers along the highway to Maaret AlNuman to secure the passage of its heavy armor to the strategic town on the Damascus-Aleppo highway.

The insurgents were battling to halt their advance, however, using rocket launchers and improvised explosive devices, the source said, adding three tanks were damaged. The intensifying battle for Maaret Al-Numan

was “very important,” said the rebels who took control of the town on Tuesday after 48 hours of fierce fighting and heavy shelling. Rebels also intercepted troops on the outskirts of Khan Sheikhun, south of Maaret Al-Numan, where intense clashes erupted even as warplanes bombed rebel zones, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. “If the rebels, who already have Maaret AlNuman and Saraqeb, take Khan Sheikhun, they will completely isolate regime troops in Aleppo because redeployments will not be able to arrive,” Observatory director Rami Abdel Rahman said.

Turkey’s top military commander, General Necdet Ozel, warned meanwhile of a tougher response if Syria keeps hitting Turkish soil, as he visited the town of Akcakale, where cross-border shelling killed five civilians last week. “We have retaliated (for Syrian shelling) and if it continues, we’ll respond more strongly,” General Ozel said, as he inspected Turkish troops on a tour of the heavily fortified border zone. Following the deadly shelling in Akcakale on Wednesday of last week, Turkey’s parliament approved the use of military force if necessary against Syria.

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has also warned Damascus not to test Turkey’s patience. NATO head Anders Fogh Rasmussen has warned against escalation along the frontier and said the alliance has “all necessary plans in place to protect and to defend Turkey if necessary.” The sabre-rattling added to growing fears of wider regional fallout from the conflict ravaging Syria, in which activists say more than 32,000 people have died, mostly civilians.

Separately, Jordan’s army denied the US military was helping the kingdom handle an influx of Syrian refugees and prepare for other scenarios, including Damascus losing control of its chemical weapons. A senior US defense official said earlier that a 150-strong force of planners and specialists-led by a US officer-was looking at ways to prevent the increasingly bloody war from spilling across Jordan’s borders. Residents of the Old City neighborhood of Homs, meanwhile, desperately pleaded for assistance as the Observatory reported heavy shelling of rebel belts across the central city and nearby Qusayr, both besieged for months.

The army has vowed to overrun the whole of Homs province by the end of the week to free up troops for northern battle zones like Aleppo, and the latest offensive has prompted hundreds of civilians to flee to neighboring Lebanon. An activist speaking to AFP over the Internet from Homs said the Old City district was “totally surrounded.” “There is no way out. Our situation is so bad it makes anyone cry,” said Abu Bilal. “The field hospitals are full of injured people needing operations and who need to be evacuated. There is no way out at all.”

The Observatory also reported heavy shelling yesterday against a string of rebel-held neighborhoods in Aleppo, which has been the theatre since mid-July of an

increasingly bloody battle between rebels and the army.

The Britain-based group reported at least 50 people killed across Syria yesterday - 18 rebels, 16 soldiers and 16 civilians. One of the civilians killed was Mohammed al-Ashram, a cameraman who had been working for the pro-government Al-Ikhbariya television channel, which said he was shot dead by “terrorists” in the eastern province of Deir Ezzor.—AFP

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2012

i n t e r n at i o n a l

Aleppo News, a media mouse that roars ALEPPO: Aleppo News must surely be the world’s smallest news agency, with a handful of amateur journalists and technicians operating from a shelled-out building in Syria’s war-ravaged second city. Its staff gather and sift through news from the front line in their makeshift Aleppo office, ready for dissemination via the Internet including on their YouTube channel. Abu Mahmud is a 20-year-old technician who prefers not to divulge his real name for security reasons. As he shows AFP their “studio”-two

laptops, an Internet connection, a table and two chairs, he insists on being filmed only from behind.

“Aleppo News took off in February,” says the student-cum-rebel, just under a year after the initially peaceful revolt against President Bashar Al-Assad began, escalating into a civil war after it was violently suppressed. “When we heard a bombardment or were alerted by walkie-talkie, a journalist would head for the scene immediately,” Abu Mahmud says. The Aleppo News studio

ALEPPO: Abu Mahmud, a 20-year-old technician, looks at a laptop at a news station in the northern Syrian city of Aleppo. — AFP

Frantic search failed to find envoy in Benghazi WASHINGTON: US State Department officials have offered their most detailed description yet of the dramatic events in Benghazi that led to the death of a US ambassador, but they backed away from earlier assertions that the events were triggered by protests against an antiIslam video. The officials were briefing reporters on the eve of a congressional hearing into on the attack last month, which is expected to focus on security missteps by the department. They described frantic and prolonged efforts to rescue Ambassador Christopher Stevens from a smoke-filled “safe haven” inside the US diplomatic compound in Benghazi where he apparently died of asphyxiation. Stevens’ death and confusion over the attack has become the subject of fierce partisan debate in Washington in the final weeks before the US presidential election on Nov 6. The State Department officials said agents crawled on their hands and knees through thick diesel smoke to try to find the missing envoy, who somehow was transported out of the compound to a local hospital.

The US government learned where he was after someone called numbers in his cell phone, the officials said. “We do not know exactly how the ambassador got to the hospital. That is one of the issues that we hope to resolve in the ongoing reviews, and the information we are still seeking,” one official said. The officials also said there was “nothing unusual” around the Benghazi mission before the assault. Earlier accounts by White House and State Department officials, including US Ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice, suggested that the attacks were triggered by protests over an antiMuslim video made in California that insulted the Prophet Mohammad.

lined what happened,” one official said.

FOCUS ON DIPLOMATIC SECURITY Officials of the State Department’s Bureau of Diplomatic Security will testify at a House of Representatives hearing on Wednesday and one key subject of the inquiry will be whether the State Department rejected requests from diplomats to increase security at the Libya mission after months of violent incidents. One senior official described the Benghazi attack as unprecedented and said security measures were always being adjusted. “We attempt to mitigate our risks. We cannot eliminate them,” the official said.

The officials described the rented villa in which Stevens was hiding as a large residence with numerous bedrooms. Half of one floor was a “safe haven” barricaded with a gate and locks. Stevens, Sean Smith, an information management officer, and five armed American security agents were in the compound the night of attack on Sept. 11. There were also four members of a Libyan militia, assigned as the local government’s protection force.

Stevens arrived in Benghazi on Sept.

10 and the next day held a series of meetings at the compound. His last visitor was a Turkish diplomat, whom he escorted to the main gate at 8:30 p.m. local time, a State Department official said. “There had been nothing unusual during the day at all outside,” the official said. The State Department officials downplayed earlier assertions that the anti-Muslim film was a trigger for the violence. “That is the question that you would have to ask others.

That was not our conclusion, that’s not saying we had a conclusion, but we out-

OVERCOME BY SMOKE He returned to try to rescue Stevens but he could not find him. He went in and out of the building several times before he was overcome by smoke. The agent went up a ladder to the roof, collapsed and radioed other agents who arrived to continue the hunt for Stevens and Smith. “They take turns going into the building on their hands and knees, feeling their way through the building to try to find their two colleagues. They find Sean.

They pull him out of the building. He is deceased. They are unable to find the ambassador,” one official said. Six security personnel from a US annex nearby arrived with members of the Libyan militia, known as the Februar y 17 Brigade. They took people from the compound and transported Smith’s body to a secure annex, running into traffic, hand grenades, and two flat tires.

The annex came under fire, killing two security personnel and wounding another. They spent hours securing the annex, then evacuated everyone on two flights. There were no classified materials that had to be secured at the mission site where Stevens had been, the official said. Asked whether anyone had counseled Stevens against going to Benghazi on Sept 11 - the 11th anniversary of the 2001 attacks on the United States - the official said: “Ambassadors must travel, ambassadors must get out and meet with a variety of individuals especially in countries that have multiple centers of energy or power. This just must happen.”— Reuters

GUNFIRE AND AN EXPLOSION At 9:40 pm, security agents in Benghazi heard loud noises at the gate, gunfire and an explosion. A large number of armed men entered the compound. One agent went to fetch the ambassador from his bedroom as well as Smith. The three entered the so-called safe haven, which had window grills and a central windowless closet area where people could take refuge.

The security agent was armed with a submachine gun and a sidearm. He radioed to other agents that he was with Stevens in the safe haven. Other agents tried to enter the villa, but they encountered a large group of armed men and retreated to another building in the compound where they barricaded themselves in. The attackers swarmed into the darkened villa and walked around in the living area. They looked through the grill into the safe area and tried to enter it but could not. The agent protecting Stevens watched their movements with a gun trained on them, ready to shoot.

The attackers carried cans of diesel fuel that they sprinkled on furniture and set on fire. The building filled with smoke and fumes, and the air inside grew black.

Stevens, Smith and the security agent moved to a bathroom in the safe area where they opened a window but still could not get enough air. They decided to leave through an adjacent bedroom.

Outside, there were shots, tracer bullets, smoke and explosions. The officials said the security agent, whom they did not identify, was suffering “severely” from smoke inhalation and could barely breathe. He left the villa first, following protocol, but when he turned back he did not see the other two.

also contains cushions and mattressesthe team both works and lives here.

Abdulrazaq, 24, small in stature but with an air of determination, makes up one half of the agency’s reporting staff of two, both of whom are embedded with fighters of the Free Syrian Army battling against Assad’s regime forces.

“I saw too many people killed by the criminal Assad regime,” says the former magazine journalist who joined Aleppo News four months ago. “Many of my friends are dead-that’s what made my mind up.” Yaarop, the other journalist, is even younger. He says he is 18. “I used to sell clothes before becoming a singer and slogan chanter in demonstrations.

But I stopped that to become a reporter,” he says. On the front line he is meticulous in his note-taking, recording on paper what he sees and filming with a small video camera, securing eyewitness reports from both residents of the embattled northern city and from the fighters themselves.

The team’s footage is uploaded to YouTube alongside the shaky amateur video shot by Syrians seeking to make a daily record of the terrible violence of a conflict that is tearing their country apart. “I go every day, but only spend a couple of hours at the front for security reasons,” Yaarop says. “I do like this job as a reporter, but above all I’m doing it for jihad,” the struggle to defend Islam. The rebellion against Assad’s minority Alawite-dominated regime, an offshoot of Shiite Islam, has been led by Syria’s Sunni Muslim majority, some elements

ALEPPO: A Syrian rebel commander prays inside a damaged mosque during clashes with government force in the Saif Al-Dawla district of the northern city of Aleppo.— AFP of whom in their rhetoric view the struggle as both national and religious.

Businessmen opposed to the Assad regime give Aleppo News enough money to keep the team going, in both materials and food.

Every day in Syria’s second city and commercial capital brings something new for the Aleppo News team to report, from artillery barrages by government forces to rebel offensives. In the afternoons, Abu Mahmud feeds their informa-

tion by low-speed Internet connection to independently-run Aleppo TV, which then broadcasts it. It was not possible for AFP to meet Aleppo TV staff or visit their transmission site. For security reasons, its members operate clandestinely from neighboring Turkey, which supports the rebellion against Assad’s regime. Aleppo News’s footage, meanwhile, goes on the Internet, adding to the countless videos that testify to the intense violence of the Syrian conflict.—AFP

Israel PM sitting pretty as election race begins Netanyahu only realistic contender JERUSALEM: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu began his re-election bid yesterday after calling snap polls that he is tipped to win, presenting himself as the only hope of facing Iran and the global economic crisis. Following his announcement late on Tuesday that the election was to be brought forward, Netanyahu fired the unofficial starting gun to a campaign expected to see Israelis go to the polls in January or February. The move ended weeks of speculation about whether he would call an early vote in order to capitalize on his popularity, with newspapers unanimous that Netanyahu was in the enviable position of being the only realistic contender. “ The election campaign begins with Netanyahu being perceived as the only one who fills the prime minister’s seat naturally,” wrote Nahum Barnea in the top-selling Yediot Aharonot daily in a piece headlined: “The Usual Candidate.”

Although Netanyahu gave no date for the election, which had been due in October 2013, most commentators suggested the vote was likely to take place on either January 22 or 29. The date is likely to be set next week when the Knesset, or parliament, reconvenes for its winter session. “My duty as prime minister is to put the national interest before everything, and so I’ve decided that for the good of Israel we must go to an election now as quickly as possible,” Netanyahu said on Tuesday.

Barnea said with no realistic opponent in the field, and the outcome largely known to both politicians and voters alike, parties would focus attention on the only variable-the make-up of the next coalition government. “In terms of Israeli democracy, this is an unfortunate reality. Many voters feel that not only is there no one to vote for, there is no one to vote against: Everyone (except for the Meretz) dreams of serving in the next Netanyahu government,” he said, referring to a leftwing party. Writing in the left-leaning Haaretz newspaper, commentator Ari Shavit said Netanyahu’s policy of doing little had served him well.

“All he offered Israelis was stability: security stability, economic stability and political stability.

But since Israel is surrounded by the stormy

world economy and stormy Arab world, Netanyahu’s make-no-progress stability turned into a political gold mine,” he wrote. “It allowed its leader to take no real steps and score no real achievement, and turned him into what seems today to be virtually the sole candidate to head the government of Israel.” Netanyahu said the move to bring forward the election was sparked by a coalition deadlock over the 2013 budget, which includes a fresh series of harsh austerity measures.

In his address, Netanyahu was quick to burnish his government’s security and economic credentials, presenting himself as the only guarantee in the face of the threat posed by Iran’s nuclear program, regional insecurity sparked by the Arab Spring, and the economic crisis. Opinion polls indicate Netanyahu, who heads the rightwing Likud party, is well placed to stay in power, although his ratings hit a low point earlier

Jordanian King names new PM AMMAN: Jordan’s King Abdullah II yesterday designated veteran politician Abdullah Nsur to form a new government after Prime Minister Fayez Tarawneh and his government resigned ahead of legislative polls.

“The king today accepted the resignation of Fayez Tarawneh’s government and asked Nsur to form a new government,” a senior palace official said. “Tarawneh’s resignation came in line with the recently introduced constitutional amendments stipulating that the government must resign following the dissolution of parliament.”

The king last Thursday dissolved the parliament and called early elections. No date has been given for the polls, but the monarch has said he wants them to be held by the end of 2012. The newly established Independent Election Commission will set the election date as it is the constitutionally mandated body to oversee the polls, the official said. Nsur, an outspoken MP and senator who has repeatedly called for sweeping reforms and a tough fight against corruption, held the portfolios of foreign affairs, planning, education and information in several governments in the 1980s and 1990s.

King Abdullah II said the new government must work to ensure that all segments of the Jordanian society take part in the election. “The primary responsibility of this government in this transitional phase is to pave the way for a qualitative leap in Jordan’s political history and democratization,” the king told Nsur in his letter of designation. — Agencies

this year after he pushed through an initial series of austerity measures. The measures, which came on the back of mass protests over the rising cost of living, sparked public anger and saw Netanyahu’s popularity slump to its lowest level since he came to power in March 2009, with 60 percent saying they were unhappy with his performance. But according to a poll published in Haaretz at the end of September, Netanyhau’s popularity has recovered from its summer low.

Likud, along with the other rightwing and ultraOrthodox parties, would take 66 of the 120 seats in parliament if the election were held immediately, the poll found. By comparison, the centreleft bloc would take only 54 votes in any general election. Netanyahu’s existing coalition, which groups rightwing, nationalist and ultra-Orthodox parties along with the centre-right Independence party led by Defense Minister Ehud Barak, currently holds 66 seats. —AFP

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu

Egyptian, Sudanese and Syrian migrants abused BEIRUT: Lebanon should probe and punish army and intelligence officials behind alleged beatings of Egyptian, Sudanese and Syrian migrant workers at the weekend, a rights watchdog said yesterday. Human Rights Watch said the abuses occurred on Sunday during a raid by armed forces on a Beirut residence, with troops assaulting at least 72 men following unofficial complaints of sexual harassment in their neighborhood.

There was no indication any of the victims were involved in any harassment, nor did the army detain or interrogate any of them.

“According to victims and other witnesses, those beaten include at least 45 Syrian, 20 Egyptians, and seven Sudanese migrant workers,” HRW said. “According to the men, uniformed members of the Lebanese army barged into the rooms where they lived and proceeded to viciously kick and beat them, before asking any questions.”

Nadim Houry, the New York-based rights watchdog’s deputy director for the Middle East and North Africa, said the soldiers “acted more like a gang than a national institution”.

The Lebanese army has not since made any statement about the attacks.

Human Rights Watch said all of the men it interviewed told it they had valid residency papers. “Lebanon’s army is not above the law and the judiciary needs to immediately inves-

tigate this attack and hold those responsible to account,” said Houry.

Speaking to AFP by telephone, he said the army “behaved like a mob wanting to defend the honor of local women, attacking the male migrant. The army did not interrogate any of the men. They simply scapegoated them.”

There were at least two minors in the group of migrants, HRW said, citing witnesses. “One Syrian migrant says he was beaten particularly viciously,” it said in a statement. “The army had found a laptop in the room that he rented with others. They asked him to open the computer but he told them that it was not his and he did not know how to operate it. The army proceeded to throw water at him and beat him repeatedly with a wooden stick,” said the watchdog.

“HRW saw the bruises on his back.”

Lebanese residents of the Geitawi area where the attack took place told HRW they tried to intervene but the army yelled at them to go indoors, the statement added. The raid was carried out by a state institution most Lebanese fear criticizing. “Beatings against migrants, both men and women, have not in the past generated social criticism,” Houry said. “In some ways, they are accepted in Lebanese society as some kind of necessary way to keep migrants in check. Therein lies the tragedy,” he added.— AFP

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2012

I N T E R N AT I O N A L Body of Mexican druglord stolen from funeral home MEXICO CITY: A major coup for Mexican authorities turned to embarrassment on Tuesday as it emerged that the body of the slain leader of the Zetas drug cartel had been stolen from a funeral parlor.

Heriberto Lazcano, described as ambitious and ruthless, was Mexico’s second most-wanted man and his killing was the government’s biggest blow against drug cartels since it deployed federal troops to fight them in 2006.

Lazcano’s corpse and that of another man were taken to a funeral home in the town of Sabinas in the northern state of Coahuila shortly after they were killed in a shootout on Sunday with naval Special Forces. But a gang of heavily-armed men wearing face masks later entered the parlor and subdued the staff, Coahuila state prosecutor Homero Ramos said. “They took the bodies, stuck them in a hearse and made the owner drive it off,” Ramos told reporters in Sabinas. The Mexican navy, which conducted the operation against the Zetas leader, said fingerprints and photographs had been used to identify the body as Lazcano’s before it was stolen. “The facial features coincide with those of Heriberto Lazcano,” the Navy said in a statement, adding that experts were still examining “information and samples taken during the autopsy.”

President Felipe Calderon praised the killing of Lazcano and called him “one of the biggest and most dangerous” drug lords in Mexico. He also confirmed reports that Lazcano was an army deserter. But the president made no comment on the theft of his body. Officials said Lazcano’s death had effectively closed the case on a shocking August 2011 attack on a casino, in which 52 people died after attackers doused the place with petrol, set it ablaze and blocked the exits. Lazcano pioneered and promoted the gruesome practice of decapitating members of rival gangs, said Ricardo Ravelo, an author who specializes in the cartels and has written a book about the Zetas. “Zeta” is the Spanish word for the letter Z. Little is known about Lazcano’s personal life, except that he liked horse races and blond women. In the city of Pachuca, capital of Hidalgo state, it is said he was an orphan who was adopted by a family in a poor neighborhood. Protected witnesses have said that Lazcano would let captured rivals starve to death because he liked to watch the process or that he would let them be eaten by wild animals, according to Ravelo.

Officials said Lazcano and another man, identified as Mario Alberto

Rodriguez, were killed at a baseball field near the Coahuila town of Progreso when the van they were in came under fire from navy troops. One man was behind the wheel when he was killed and the other was shot as he tried to flee, Ramos said, without providing further details.

Lazcano, aka “El Lazca,” was one of two main leaders of the divided Zetas cartel and one of Mexico’s most wanted men, with a $2.6 million reward on his head.

The United States had set its own award at $5 million.

The Zetas are one of Mexico’s most powerful drug gangs alongside the Pacific region’s Sinaloa federation, led by fugitive billionaire Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman. Much of the northeast is in the clutches of the Zetas cartel, which was founded by former Mexican special forces soldiers who went rogue. The commandos were originally hired as enforcers for the Gulf Cartel but turned on their employers and have fought them for control of lucrative drug routes to the United States. Mexican federal prosecutors have said Lazcano broke with the other Zetas leader, Miguel Trevino Morales, aka “Z-40,” leading to a schism in the cartel.

On Monday, Mexico announced another blow to the organization, with the arrest of a Zetas commander believed to have ordered the massacre of 72 illegal immigrants whose bodies were found in San Fernando, Tamaulipas in August 2010. Salvador Alfonso Martinez Escobedo was presented to the press by the Mexican navy along with five alleged accomplices. They were captured Saturday in Nuevo Laredo, a border city in the northern state of Tamaulipas.

Known as “Comandante Ardilla,” Martinez is suspected of involvement in the murder of an American, David Hartley, in September 2010 and the killing of a police commander who was investigating the crime.

Martinez, who worked for Morales, is also accused of masterminding the escape of 141 inmates from a prison in Tamaulipas in December 2010 and another jail break last month by 131 inmates from a penitentiary in Coahuila.

He has also been linked to other mass graves found in Tamaulipas containing more than 200 bodies and to the executions of more than 50 people nationwide.

Coahuila is one of the border states at the epicenter of Mexico’s vicious drug war, which is estimated to have claimed some 60,000 lives since the launch of a military crackdown in 2006.—AFP

Vice presidential debate could be tale of 2 Ryans Biden studying Ryan’s past positions on fiscal issues ST PETERSBURG: Republican Congressman Paul Ryan is a changed man. Presidential candidate Mitt Romney ’s running mate made a name for himself as a bold fiscal crusader, willing to make big, unpopular cuts to entitlements to get US finances in order. But since Romney tapped him in August to join his campaign, the vice presidential candidate has become more prudent, avoiding detailed discussion of his budget plan and earning the nickname “mini-Mitt” for displaying a cautious streak like his boss.

For Vice President Joe Biden, a major question heading into his debate with Ryan in Kentucky today is “a choice of which Ryan we’re going to see,” a Biden adviser said.

Instead of promoting his own budget plan, which includes caps on future Medicare spending, Ryan is talking up Romney’s more voter-friendly version, which has no spending limits, at campaign events. “The vice president has been studying up on (Ryan’s) real positions and is prepared to call him out on his actual positions,” said the adviser, who warned that “maybe there will be some dishonesty,” from the Republican.

The stakes are high for Biden, who is charged with righting a listing ship after President Barack Obama’s disastrous first debate against Romney in Denver last week, which lost him the momentum in polls ahead of the Nov. 6 election. Democrats have targeted Ryan’s budget, a severe series of spending cuts, as proof that he would hurt seniors and the middle class. One top Republican strategist said the best way for Biden to battle his opponent is to tease out the “wonky” Ryan, the congressman who loves mind-numbing fiscal details. “If I was prepping against Ryan, I would be looking for issues that Romney and Ryan disagree on and tr y and pull out Ryan the wonk, as opposed to Ryan the running mate,” the strategist said.

That would turn off television viewers not used to detailed policy arguments, and could give Biden a chance to paint the Republican team as holding different positions on Medicare. The Romney campaign has worked overtime to emphasize that House Budget Committee chairman Ryan has fallen in line with the presidential candidate on fiscal issues. “You have to remember this is a Romney-Ryan ticket, and there’s one presidential candidate, there’s one person at the top of the ticket,” Romney spokesman

Republican vice president candidate, Rep Paul Ryan Kevin Madden told reporters on Tuesday.

NO RYAN DOCTRINE An image of R yan as a congenial Midwesterner rather than a congressional budget hawk has been enhanced on the campaign trail, where he has worked to build a reputation for an easy manner with voters. Much was made in the media of Ryan cutting short an interview this week with a local television reporter whose questions he did not like, but the Wisconsin congressman was in good spirits immediately after the interview, and did not storm off as was suggested. Economic issues aside, Ryan is clearly taking his lead from Romney on foreign policy, a weak spot for the 42-year-old congressman against Biden, who spent more than 10 years on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

In Ohio on Monday, Ryan echoed much of the language and themes that the former Massachusetts governor laid out in an attack on Obama’s handling of world events during a speech at the Virginia Military Institute.

“The president is not offering the kind of spirited and principled leadership we need to create jobs here at home or to keep us

safe,” Ryan said. At a rally, he pressed home criticism of Obama over the killing of four Americans in Libya, a favorite foreign policy attack line of Romney. Ryan told voters to just turn on their televisions: “You will likely see the failures of the Obama foreign policy unfolding before our eyes,” Ryan said. “You see if you look around the world, what we are witnessing is the unraveling of the Obama foreign policy.”

Leading up to today ’s debate, R yan retreated to Florida to prepare, spending Tuesday morning focused on policy briefings before switching to debate prep. Ryan aides in recent days have begun the typical campaign ritual of playing up your opponent before a debate, portraying Biden as a seasoned professional. “ Vice President Biden has done 18 presidential or VP debates over the years - 14 in 2008,” said one R yan aide. “He’s always a focused debater. I t ’s not a setting in which he m a ke s ga f fe s.” B re nd a n B uc k , a R ya n spokesman, noted that today night will be Ryan’s “first time on the big stage.” “After the president’s performance last week, we know Joe Biden will (be) coming at us like a cannonball,” Buck said. — Reuters

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2012

i n t e r n at i o n a l

News

in brief

Switzerland leads call to abolish death penalty GENEVA: Six countries joined forces yesterday to call for the “complete abolition” of the death penalty worldwide. Launched at Switzerland’s initiative on the 10th World Day against the Death Penalty, foreign minister Didier Burkhalter signed the appeal along with his counterparts from Germany, France, Liechtenstein, Austria and Italy. “We intend to work together ... to ensure that the number of executions continues to decline, that judicial proceedings are made more transparent, and that further countries renounce the death penalty until this inhumane form of punishment has disappeared entirely,” read the appeal, published in numerous European dailies. More than 130 countries have abolished or put a moratorium on the death penalty but 50 nations continued to condone it, the statement said. In a call to other nations to join the worldwide ban, the signatories described capital punishment as a practice “for which there can no longer be any justification in the 21st century. “Killing in the name of justice is contrary to the fundamental values for which our countries stand,” the appeal said, adding that in some cases “innocent people lose their lives.”

Italy govt saves city from Mafia ROME: The Italian government has dissolved the city council of Reggio Calabria and taken over control of the southern city for fear the Mafia has infiltrated public utilities, investigators said yesterday. Eight people including seven suspected gangsters from the Fontana clan of the ‘Ndrangheta mafia and the head of the local waste disposal company, Leonia, a public-private partnership controlled by the council, have been arrested.

Interior Minister Annamaria Cancellieri announced the move on Tuesday, saying it was the first of its kind for a regional capital. An overnight cabinet meeting chaired

by Prime Minister Mario Monti approved the decision.

“It’s a preventative act and not a punishment,” Cancellieri said, adding: “This was a painful decision carried out in the interests of the city.” The local magistrate said public-private partnerships in utilities were “the new frontier for ties between mafia clans and economic and social fabric.” City contracts were “a cash reserve” for the mafia, the magistrate said. Cancellieri said Reggio Calabria would be run for the next 18 months by Vincenzo Panico, the government-appointed prefect of nearby Crotone. The ‘Ndrangheta, which is based in the Calabria region, is an international crime syndicate with a turnover of billions of euros (dollars) a year. It is particularly notorious for drug trafficking and corrupt construction contracts.

Nigerian soldiers deny killing civilians in north MAIDUGURI: Nigerian security forces dismissed reports yesterday that soldiers and police had shot dead at least 30 people in revenge for a bomb attack in the northeastern city of Maiduguri. Residents told Reuters Nigerian forces had opened fire on civilians and burned houses in the city - the headquarters of Islamist rebel group Boko Haram - after an explosion hit a military convoy there. Nurses in the Umaru Shehu hospital said they had seen 35 bodies, five in army uniform and the rest wearing civilian clothes, after the shooting on Monday. The military and police Joint Task Force (JTF) in northeastern Borno state dismissed the reports as a lie. “No civilian or terrorist was killed by the JTF troops,” task force spokesman Lieutenant-Colonel Sagir Musa said in a statement.

There was “no established or recorded case of extrajudicial killing, torture, arson or arbitrary arrest by the JTF in Borno state,” he added. Musa said the houses had been burnt in the explosion that targeted the military convoy. Residents had told Reuters the buildings were set alight hours later. Nigerian forces have launched a crackdown on Boko Haram, an insurgent group that wants to carve an Islamic state out of northern Nigeria. Analysts say the military campaign has had some success - limiting Boko Haram’s ability to carry out large scale attacks.

Anti-European tide sets UK ruling party against Brussels ‘The zombie euro-zone economies’ BIRMINGHAM: A bloodied figure climbed out of a coffin and lurched across the square screaming at passers-by, as three pale-faced women dressed as witches squawked and wailed. “We are the zombie euro-zone economies,” they cried. “We are the walking dead. We are Greece, Spain and Ireland. Give us trillions, sir, of your money to help us. Do you feel the contagion? Do you feel the disease?” Welcome to this year’s conference of Britain’s ruling Conservative Party, where hostility to the European Union and to the euro currency has reached new heights.

Europe has never been popular among British Conservatives. There is a tradition of resentment of Brussels, dating back to the era of Margaret Thatcher, who demanded and secured a rebate from the EU budget for Britain in the 1980s.

Back in 1967, French President Charles de Gaulle accused Britain of a ‘deep-seated hostility’ towards the European project. The strength of feeling today reflects a growing anti-Europe sentiment among a British public that is often ignorant of the fact the continent accounts for around half Britain’s trade and is swayed by a government and media that routinely blame the euro zone for Britain’s economic ills.

“I think there’s been a very big change,” said leading anti-Europe Conservative MP John Redwood. “Thirty years ago, many more Conservative MPs welcomed the European engagement of Britain but now euroscepticism is more fashionable, and fewer and fewer people buy into that level of engagement.”

Few Conservative MPs defend Britain’s current institutional relationship with Brussels.

What divides them is how far to go in loosening it-or whether to leave altogether. The mood is forcing policy changes on Prime Minister David Cameron’s government,

already behind in opinion polls because of unpopular austerity policies which have cut public spending.

Seeking to capitalize on the anti-European mood, Cameron said on Tuesday he will seek to negotiate a “fresh and better settlement” for Britain with the EU at some unspecified future date, and then put that package to the country in a referendum. “I’m neither in favor of out - leaving altogether - nor am I satisfied with the status quo,” Cameron told BBC Radio in an interview at the conference. “I want to change the status quo.” Whether that will satisfy mutinous elements of his own party remains to be seen. “The centre of gravity of

the Conservative Party has shifted markedly towards euroscepticism,” said David Heathcoat-Amory, a former Tory Minister for Europe who launched a pamphlet at the conference entitled “The UK and the EU: Cutting the Knot”.

“The euro has failed,” he said. “It has put a lot of people into poverty and fuelled civil unrest. They’re on the back foot in Brussels because they made a catastrophic mistake...but they only have one response: give us more power.” Heathcoat-Amory wants a radically different relationship between Britain and the EU, under which London repatriates all powers given to Brussels, then

BIRMINGHAM: British Prime Minister David Cameron and his wife Samantha are pictured following his speech on the final day of the 2012 Conservative Party Conference at the ICC in Birmingham yesterday.— AFP

Scotland to vote on independence Vote could result in breakup of Britain LONDON: Scotland will hold a vote in 2014 on independence in what could result in the eventual breakup of Britain, a British government minister said yesterday. The announcement ended months of stalemate between the Westminster government in London and the Scottish devolved administration in Edinburgh. “What will happen is that Westminster will devolve the power to the Scottish Parliament to hold a single-question referendum on whether Scotland should be in or out of the United Kingdom,” Scotland Office minister David Mundell told Sky News. “We anticipate that happening in autumn 2014.” Mundell’s comments suggested both sides had compromised over the timing and format of the referendum. “There’s a meeting on Monday,” a government source said when asked about the reported agreement, adding there was no guarantee a deal would be reached.

British Prime Minister David Cameron, who wants to keep Britain intact, had backed holding a vote as soon as possible on whether to end Scotland’s 300-year-old union with England, with a simple “yes” or “no” single question. Alex Salmond, leader of Scotland’s nationalist government, had sought a third option to be included in the vote, allowing additional powers to be passed to the Scottish parliament.

However, he had also pushed for a delay until

2014, the 700th anniversary of the Battle of Bannockburn, a famous Scottish victory over the English, giving his independence campaign more time to persuade voters to support the split.

Polls suggest between 30 and 40 percent of Scots currently support independence. The Scottish government said “substantial progress” towards an agreement had been made and a final deal was almost ready. “We are however on track for the full agreement to be presented to the First Minister (Salmond) and the Prime Minister over the next few days,” a spokesman said. Under the devolved system of government, the Scottish parliament has control over health, education and prisons. It also the power to pass laws on a range of subjects and to raise or lower the basic rate of income tax by up to 3 pence in the pound, while Scotland also has its own legal system. Cameron argues that Scots, and Britain as a whole, would be worse off if they voted for independence, as the bulk of Scotland’s funding comes from a 30 billion pound ($48 billion) grant from the UK government. However, Salmond has said an independent Scotland would be entitled to the lion’s share of North Sea oil revenues. A Scottish vote for independence would undermine the foundations of modern Britain which comprises England, Scotland and Wales. Northern Ireland and Britain make up the United Kingdom. — Reuters

Punk Riot member released on appeal Court confirms sentences for other two MOSCOW: A member of punk band Pussy Riot was freed on appeal yesterday but a Moscow court upheld prison sentences for two others imposed over a raucous cathedral protest against Vladimir Putin, who said they had got the jail terms they deserved. Moscow City Court confirmed the two-year prison sentences handed down to Nadezhda Tolokonnikova and Maria Alyokhina but suspended the sentence on Yekaterina Samutsevich. Her lawyer told the court that Samutsevich had not performed the ‘punk protest’ near the altar of Moscow ’s Christ the Saviour Cathedral in February because she had been stopped and led away before it took place.

decides on a case-by-case basis whether to adopt EU laws, while retaining the single market and free trade area so beloved by British business.

But even that doesn’t go far enough for some Conservatives, who want to see Britain leave the EU altogether and then negotiate a free trade agreement with the bloc. One of the best-attended fringe events at this year’s conference was a meeting of the anti-EU Bruges Group, simply entitled: “How Britain Can Exit the EU.” Speaking at that event, economist Tim Congdon, who has advised previous British finance ministers and is now economics spokesman for the UK Independence Party (UKIP), called for a straight in-or-out referendum.

In a move intended to deflate UKIP’s growing popularity, Cameron’s Foreign Secretary William Hague has launched what he terms the most comprehensive review ever of the balance between European and British lawmaking. It will report in 2014 - one year before Britain’s next general election. Hague and Cameron remain vague about exactly what goals they seek in a renegotiation of British membership of the EU. “The renegotiation and the popular mandate are fraught with existential risk for Cameron’s government,” wrote Financial Times political columnist Janan Ganesh. “By hinting at a repatriation of powers, he raises eurosceptic hopes that are almost impossible to meet. Few diplomats expect to achieve more than cosmetic changes to the terms of British membership.” In another measure designed to please eurosceptics, Cameron announced on Sunday that he would veto a new European Union budget if it proposed big increases in spending. “People do not like Europe,” said Gideon Skinner, head of political research at pollster IPSOS-Mori. — Reuters

In emotional statements from a courtroom cage during the appeal hearing, women from the band had earlier said they had not meant to offend the faithful with their actions but criticized the cour ts and the Kremlin chief.

“Putin is doing everything for the development of civil war in this country,” said Tolokonnikova, raising her voice to try to drown out a judge who tried to interrupt her as she began to talk about Putin. Tolokonnikova, 22, Alyokhina, 24, and Samutsevich, 30, were convicted in August of hooliganism motivated by religious hatred for a “punk prayer” imploring the Virgin Mary to rid Russia of Putin, and sen-

MOSCOW: Freed feminist punk group member Yekaterina Samutsevich (left) leaves a court in Moscow yesterday. —AP

tenced to two years in jail.

The case sparked an international outcry, with Western governments and pop star Madonna condemning the sentences as disproportionate, a view not widely shared in Russia where public opinion was shocked by the protest. In an inter view aired on Sunday, Putin defended the sentences: “It is right that they were arrested and it was right that the court took this decision because you cannot undermine the fundamental morals and values to destroy the country”. At the appeal hearing, Tolokonnikova and Alyokhina told the court their protest was purely political. “We did not want to offend believers,” Alyokhina, 24, told the court. “We came to the cathedral to speak out against the merger between spiritual figures and the political elite of our country.” Alyokhina said she did not expect the appeal would succeed, however. “I have lost all hope in our courts,” she said. Defense lawyer Mark Feigin asked the court to reverse the verdict and censure Putin. “No official ... is permitted to interfere with the court,” he said angrily.

REPENTANCE Relatives and lawyers for the trio complained of political interference in the original trial and said that Putin’s weekend comments on the case in the interview marking his 60th birthday had compromised the appeal.

“After Putin’s comments, I don’t think lawyers can do anything anyway,” Samutsevich’s father, Stanislav, told Reuters on Tuesday.

The women contend their protest in the cathedral in central Moscow was an acerbic comment on the close ties between the Kremlin and Russia’s dominant church, which considers about two-thirds of the population as its flock. Russian Orthodox Patriarch

Kirill had given Putin, then prime minister, unofficial but clear support in his successful campaign for a third presidential term, likening Putin’s years in power to a “miracle of God”. Kremlin opponents said the jail terms were part of a clampdown on dissent that has produced restrictive laws and criminal cases against critics of Putin since he began his six-year term in May. “We are in jail for our political convictions,” Alyokhina said. “Even if our sentences are upheld, we will not be silent. Even if we are in Mordovia or Siberia, we will not be silent, no matter how uncomfor table it is for you.”

Tolokonnikova also told the court the group was not motivated by religious hatred. “It’s painful for me to hear that I am speaking out against religion. I have no religious hatred and never have,” she said. Sympathy for Pussy Riot is limited in Russia, where Patriarch Kirill has cast the protest as part of a concerted attack meant to undermine traditional Russian values and curb the church’s post-Soviet revival.

Parliament is considering legislation stiffening punishment for offending religious feelings and Putin has warned that such offences - against Christians, Muslims or other believers in diverse Russia - could incite violence. Prime Minister Dmitr y Medvedev said last month that they have already served enough time, while the Russian Orthodox Church has said they should repent if they want forgiveness - a request they made clear they found inappropriate.

An opinion poll conducted on Sept 2124 by the independent Levada centre found 35 percent of Russians believe the two-year sentences were appropriate, while 34 percent said they were too lenient and only 14 percent said they were excessive.— Reuters

STOCKTON-ON-TEES: Two-year-old Lola Mackay refuses to let go of the flowers she was due to give to Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge during an official visit to the CRI Stockton Recovery Service, in Stockton-On-Tees, north-east England yesterday. Stockton Recovery Service is a support for people over 18 years old who are using drugs. — AFP

French police find bomb components PARIS: French police investigating a group of Islamic extremists now believe they are dealing with an “extremely dangerous terrorist cell” following the discovery of a cache of bomb-making equipment. Paris prosecutor Francois Molins also revealed yesterday that two men involved in a grenade attack on a Jewish grocery store which triggered the investigation may still be at large. Molins said 12 suspects who have been held in custody since Saturday would be detained without charge beyond the usual four-day maximum to at least a fifth day.

The French criminal code allows for suspects to be held without charge for up to six days in cases of a “serious risk of an imminent terrorist attack” in France or abroad. “We are clearly and objectively facing an extremely dangerous terrorist cell,” Molins said, defending the extraordinary detentions as necessary to “avoid the risk of a terrorist attack in France”. He said “components useful for bomb-making” had been found overnight during police searches of buildings in the eastern Paris suburb of Torcy, where two of the suspects were detained on Saturday.

Among the components found were bags of potassium nitrate, sulphur, saltpetre, pressure cookers and headlight bulbs, “all products or instruments useful in the making of what we call improvised explosives,” Molins said. A shotgun and handgun were also found, he said. Searches were ongoing yesterday. The 12 alleged members of the cell, all under 30 and thought to have been born or brought up in France, are being held on suspicion of involvement in a grenade attack on a Jewish grocery store in the Paris suburb of Sarcelles last month and of planning other anti-Semitic attacks. A list of Jewish organizations in the Paris area was found at one of the addresses where the bomb-making components were discovered. The suspected leader of those detained, 33-year-old Jeremie Louis-Sidney, was shot dead Saturday after he opened fire on officers seeking to arrest him in a dawn raid at his home in Strasbourg. Police were led to Louis-Sidney, a convicted drug dealer who converted to Islam in prison, following forensic examination of the pin of a grenade thrown into the kosher grocery on September 19. Traces found on the pin suggested he had handled the grenade but Molins said prosecutors were not sure it was him who threw it and said two men believed to have been directly involved in the attack may still be at large. “It has not yet been established that the two individuals who carried out the attack by throwing the grenade into the grocery have been apprehended,” he said.—AFP

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2012

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

US drone kills 5

India PM Singh rails against ‘negativity’ over corruption NEW DELHI: Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said yesterday that a “mindless atmosphere of negativity” over corruption was damaging the country and he feared for the morale of civil servants. Corruption has become a hot issue since Singh was re-elected in 2009, and his government has been rocked by scandals over mobile phone licences, coalfields and the Commonwealth Games in New Delhi. “The mindless atmosphere of negativity and pessimism that is sought to be created over the issue of corruption can do us no good,” Singh told a conference in the capital.

“It can only damage our nation’s image and hit at the morale of the executive,” he said. With graft allegations erupting in many government departments, officials have been increasingly reluctant to sign documents that might mean they are named in investigations and accused of links to malpractice. “We need to ensure that even while the corrupt are relentlessly pursued and brought to book, the innocent are not harassed,” Singh said, adding that honest mistakes had to be separated from criminal activity. Many Indians complain that corruption is a part of daily life for transactions rang-

ing from getting a driving license to property sales. Graft is also seen as a major deterrent to international investment in India. The Congress-led government was shaken by a nationwide mass movement against corruption last year when activist Anna Hazare brought millions of people onto the streets during his 12-day hunger strike in Delhi. The issue has continued to dog Singh, whose previously impeccable image has been tarnished by the scandals, and it is likely to remain high on the agenda with general elections due in 2014. Singh, addressing an anti-graft conference, said economic reforms had wiped out some corruption as the country modernized over the last 20 years but the boom had also led to new opportunities for malpractice. “As our economy grows and becomes more integrated with the evolving global economy, the big challenge before our anti-corruption agencies is to keep pace with these rapid developments,” he said. Singh also took a hit at corporate India, saying it was the scene of worse corruption than the government. “Experience has... shown that big-ticket corruption is mostly related to operations by large commercial entities,” he said.—AFP

Drones target militant compound MIRANSHAH: A US drone strike targeti n g a m i l i t a n t c o m p o u n d k i l l e d f i ve insurgents in a restive Pakistani tribal region near the Afghan border yesterday, security officials said. The attack was the first since a massive anti-drone rally last weekend near the lawless region known as a stronghold of Taleban and Al-Qaeda militants, they said. “Several US drones flew into the area before dawn and fired four missiles on a compound, killing five militants,” a security official said after the strike in Hurmuz area, east of Miranshah, the capital of Nor th Waziristan tribal region.

Another security official in the northwestern city of Peshawar confirmed the attack and casualties. The identities of those killed in the strike was not immed i a t e l y c l e a r. T h e A l - Q a e d a - l i n k e d Haqqani network in Nor th Waziristan, blamed for some of the deadliest attacks in Afghanistan, is one of the thorniest i s s u e s b e t we e n I s l a m a b a d a n d Washington. The attacks by unmanned

US aircraft remain contentious-they are deeply unpopular in Pakistan, which says they violate its sovereignty and fan antiUS sentiment, but American officials are said to believe they are too important to give up. Imran Khan, Pakistan’s cricket hero turned politician, led thousands of supporters on a long drive from the capital Islamabad to the edge of the nearby tribal district of South Waziristan in a two-day protest against US drone strikes.

The rally was the first from a mainstream politician to the tribal belt described by US officials as one of the most dangerous place on Earth. Khan defied official warnings and led emotional supporters and dozens of Western peace ac tivists to Tank , the last town before the semiautonomous area.

The march passed through Tank but turned back before reaching the border with South Waziristan. Khan insisted the march-a motorcade that included several thousand vehicles-was a success. “ We have given our message -it has gone

across the world,” he told suppor ters.

“We have succeeded in raising this issue.

We came here to raise this issue, we c a m e h e re t o t a k e a s t a n d a g a i n s t drones.” “We had already made our point to the international media. Globally our message was conveyed, so we should not go ahead and put lives at risk.”

Islamist militants have k illed thousands of people in Pakistan since 2007, and US officials say the drone strikes are a key weapon in the war on terror. But peace campaigners condemn them as a breach of international law. Pakistanis call them a violation of sovereignty that breeds extremism, and politicians including Khan say the government is complicit in killing its own people. Casualty figures are difficult to obtain, but a report c o m m i s s i o n e d by l e g a l l o b by g ro u p Reprieve estimated last month that 474 to 881 civilians were among 2,562 to 3,325 people killed by drones in Pakistan b e t we e n J u n e 2 0 0 4 a n d S e p t e m b e r 2012.—AFP

Pakistan child activist battles for survival PESHAWAR: Pakistani surgeons removed a bullet yesterday from a 14-year-old girl shot by the Taleban for speaking out against the militants and promoting education for girls, doctors said. Malala Yousufzai was in critical condition after gunmen shot her in the head and neck on Tuesday as she left school. Two other girls were also wounded. Yousufzai began standing up to the Pakistani Taleban when she was just 11, when the government had effectively ceded control of the Swat Valley where she lives to the militants.

Her courage made her a national hero and many Pakistanis were shocked by her shooting. General Ashfaq Kayani, chief of Pakistan’s powerful army, visited her in hospital and condemned her attackers. “The cowards who attacked Malala and her fellow students, have shown time and again how little regard they have for human life and how low they can fall in their cruel ambition to impose their twisted ideology,” Kayani said in a statement. The military said it had a simple message, which it wrote in capital letters in the statement to add emphasis: “WE REFUSE TO BOW BEFORE TERROR.” Doctors said they were forced to begin operating in the middle of the night after Yousufzai developed swelling in the left por-

tion of her brain. They removed a bullet from her body near her spinal cord during a threehour operation that they finished at about 5 am. “She is still unconscious and kept in the intensive care unit,” said Mumtaz Khan, head of a team of doctors taking care of Yousufzai in a military hospital in the northwestern city of Peshawar. One of the girls wounded with Yousufzai is in critical condition and the other is recovering and out of danger.

The military flew Yousufzai from her home in Swat, northwest of Islamabad, to Peshawar on Tuesday. The shooting was denounced across Pakistan. The front pages of national newspapers carried pictures of a bandaged and bloody Yousufzai being brought to hospital. “Hate targets hope” the Express Tribune said in a headline. Schools closed across Swat in protest over the shooting and a small demonstration was held in her hometown of Mingora.

Another was planned in the eastern city of Lahore for later. “All Pakistanis should come together and raise their voices against such acts. If they do not do this, then they should mentally prepare themselves for their own children’s fate to be like Malala’s,” said Saeeda Diep, an organizer of the Lahore protest. Many commentators said Yousufzai’s courage con-

trasted with that of many of the country’s leaders, who fear that challenging militants will make them targets.

Pakistan’s president, prime minister, and heads of various opposition parties joined human rights group Amnesty International and the United Nations in condemning the attack. “Pakistan’s future belongs to Malala and brave young girls like her. History won’t remember the cowards who tried to kill her at school,” Susan Rice, the US ambassador to the United Nations, said on Twitter. The attack was also condemned by many leaders of ethnic Pashtun tribes in northwest Pakistan. “This attack is against Pashtun and Islamic practices,” said Khurshid Kaka Ji, leader of a jirga, or tribal council, in Swat, a one-time tourist destination of peaks and meadows where the military has battled the Taleban intermittently since 2007. “The security forces and police deployed should capture the attackers and punish them. If they do not catch these people, then the peace that Swat has gained through bloodshed will be shaken.” The Taleban claimed responsibility for the attack saying Yousufzai was “pro-West”, had been promoting Western culture and had been speaking out against them. They justified shooting her by citing instances from the

ISLAMABAD: Pakistani civil society activists carry placards with a photograph of the gunshot victim Malala Yousafzai during a protest rally against the assassination attempt on Malala Yousafzai, in Islamabad yesterday. — AFP Koran when a child or woman was killed. “Any female that, by any means, plays a role in the war against mujahideen should be killed,” said

Taleban spokesman Ihsanullah Ihsan, using the term for Islamic holy warriors to refer to the Taleban.—Reuters

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2012

i n t e r n at i o n a l

Chinese nationalists covet Japan’s Okinawa BEIJING: In a glass case at Beijing’s Imperial College, an 18th century book with a yellowed title page in bold, black characters is evidence-some Chinese saythat a swathe of modern-day Japan belongs to China. The two Asian powers are already at loggerheads over a set of tiny uninhabited islets in the East China Sea, even stoking fears of armed conflict.

But the most aggressive Chinese nationalists-tacitly encouraged by authorities-say far more is open to claim, including the island of Okinawa, home to 1.3 million people and major US military bases. The biggest of the Ryukyu Islands, which stretch for about 1,000 kilometers from Japan’s mainland almost to Taiwan, Okinawa was the centre of the Ryukyuan kingdom, which pledged fealty to both Chinese emperors and Japanese feudal lords.

For hundreds of years it paid tribute to China’s Ming and Qing dynasties, until it was absorbed by Japan in 1879. The people of the Ryukyus are considered more closely related to Japan in ethnic and linguistic terms, than to China. Some Chinese, however, see historical and cultural ties as a basis for sovereignty and dismiss Japan’s possession of the islands as a legacy of its aggressive expansionism that ended in World War II defeat. “This kind of

thing proves Ryukyu is China’s,” said electrical engineer Zhu Shaobo, looking at a Qing dynasty volume from the 1760s about Ryukyuan students on display at the Imperial College, now a tourist site.

“Ryukyuan students studied hard and the cultural level of some was not inferior to Chinese students,” explains an exhibit panel at the institution, which trained Imperial officials and some foreign students. The belief that China has a legitimate claim to the Ryukyu Islands has existed among flag-wavers in China-and Taiwan-for years. But it has been given new attention by the row over the uninhabited islets, known as the Diaoyu islands in China, which claims them, and as the Senkaku chain in Japan, which controls them.

In recent anti-Japan protests in China, some demonstrators carried signs reading: “Retake Ryukyu” and “Take back Okinawa”.

China’s government does not make such claims, but state media have carried articles and commentaries questioning Japan’s authority. In an article carried by state media in July, People’s Liberation Army Major General Luo Yuan wrote: “The Ryukyu Kingdom had always been an independent kingdom directly under the Chinese imperial government before it was seized by Japan in 1879.” The kingdom,

Thailand’s court upholds contentious royal slur law

which lasted from 1429 until 1879, had a complex history wedged between powerful neighbors.

In return for tribute to Chinese emper-

ors, trade and cultural ties flourished. But from the early 17th century, it came under pressure from Japan, suffering a punitive invasion and demands for loyalty and trib-

TARLAC: US Marines fix their tents as they arrive at Crow Valley, Tarlac province in northern Philippines to take part in the joint USPhilippines amphibious landing exercise dubbed PHIBLEX 2013.

More than 2,800 U.S. Marines and sailors from the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit based in Okinawa, Japan are taking part in the two-week air, ground and amphibious training with their Philippine counterpart. —AP

ute. Nominal independence, however, was maintained, and the “dual subordination” continued until the late 19th century when a modernizing Japan could no longer tolerate Ryukyu’s vague status. Western and Japanese scholars say Okinawa’s links to China are no basis for sovereignty claims today. Many states were part of a Chinacentered structure of international relations in Asia.

“It was a system of cultural subordination and also a way of the Chinese empire attempting to control trade,” said Gregory Smits, an expert on Ryukyu history at Pennsylvania State University. Experts see little chance of Beijing pushing a demand for Okinawa. Gavan McCormack, emeritus professor at Australian National University, called any claim “quite unrealistic”, adding it was probably “an extreme position to try and attract Japan back to the negotiating table”. Jia Qingguo, an international relations expert at Peking University, added: “I don’t think the Chinese government wants to further complicate the already complicated issue.”

Still, questions being raised over Japan’s sovereignty worry Akihiro Kinjo, a 25-yearold Okinawa native and restaurant manager in Beijing. Okinawa was the site of a deadly 1945 battle between Japan and the United States.— AFP

Indonesia on red alert Australian PM to attend Bali ceremony amid threats

BANGKOK: Two Thai “royal insult” suspects yesterday lost a landmark legal case against the kingdom’s controversial lese majeste rules as a court ruled the law was in line with the constitution. The pair, a former magazine publisher and a CD vendor, were the first to challenge the tough legislation in the Constitutional Court, as part of their defense against charges that could result in long prison terms.

The judges unanimously agreed that the rules-which carry a maximum penalty of 15 years in jail on each count-were in line with the charter, according to a court statement. “The constitution upholds and protects the institution of the monarchy which is part of Thailand’s constitutional democracy,” it said.

It was the tribunal’s first ruling on the constitutionality of Article 112 of the Thai criminal code, said Karom Polpornklang, a lawyer for one of the two suspects, Somyot Pruksakasemsuk. Somyot was arrested in April 2011 for two articles deemed critical of the royals, which appeared in a magazine he edited.

The second suspect, Aek k achai Hongkangwan, was detained a month earlier for allegedly selling CDs containing content considered offensive to the monarchy. The royal family is an extremely sensitive subject in politically turbulent Thailand. King Bhumibol Adulyadej, 84, is revered by many Thais but has been in hospital since September 2009.

Rights campaigners say the lese majeste law has been politicized. They say many of those charged are linked to the “Red Shirts” movement, whose street protests in Bangkok in 2010 sparked a military crackdown that left about 90 people dead.

The Red Shirts are broadly loyal to former premier Thaksin Shinawatra, who was toppled by royalist generals in 2006 and lives overseas to avoid a prison term for corruption that he contends is politically motivated. His sister, Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, who took office last year after a landslide election win by Thaksin’s allies, has said she will not seek to change the royal defamation law.—AFP

South Korea court upholds jail terms for cyber-bullies SEOUL: A Seoul court yesterday upheld jail terms handed down to seven South Koreans for leading an online smear campaign against a hip-hop musician that claimed his US academic degrees were fake. Eight people had appealed after their July conviction for defamation saw three of them sentenced to 10 months imprisonment, while the other five received suspended jail terms.

The court found they had spread false rumours that the rapper Tablo, a 32-yearold Korean-Canadian, had lied about having bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Stanford University.

Tablo, whose real name is Daniel Seon Woong Lee, sued in 2010 and a subsequent police investigation confirmed his degrees were authentic. Yesterday, the appeals court upheld sentences against seven of the defendants, but reduced and

suspended one of the jail terms on medical grounds. “The defendants had such a malicious motive (to defame Tablo)... We need harsh punishment to prevent such an incident from happening again,” the court said in a ruling.

Educational credentials are a sensitive issue in education-obsessed South Korea, where diplomas from prestigious colleges are considered vital to job and even marriage prospects. Some South Korean celebrities have been caught or confessed to lying about their educational background to boost their public image. The dispute over Tablo also highlighted the issue of cyber bullying of celebrities in the South-one of the world’s most wired societies. Police in 2008 announced a crackdown on malicious Internet rumor-mongers, who they blamed for the suicide of top actress Choi Jin-Sil. — AFP

KUTA: Indonesia declared its top security alert yesterday, citing “credible information” of a threat to a ceremony this week marking the 10th anniversary of the Bali bombings which killed 202 people. Shrugging off the warning, Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard vowed to attend tomorrow’s service in Bali for the victims of suicide attacks against two packed nightspots on October 12, 2002, which included 88 Australians.

Indonesia’s deadliest terror attack, by the AlQaeda-linked group Jemaah Islamiyah (JI), opened an Asia front in the war on terrorism one year after the 9/11 attacks on the United States and dealt a morale-crushing blow to Australia.

“Based on credible information, the terrorists have planned to target the Bali bombing commemoration event with a terror attack,” Bali deputy police chief I Ketut Untung Yoga Ana said. “Security at all entry points to Bali, such as airports and seaports will be intensified,” he said, adding that security was at the “highest level”.

“We are taking extraordinary security measures following this threat,” he said, after earlier announcing that 1,000 security personnel including snipers, heavily armed police commandos and intelligence agents had been deployed. Gillard is due to give an address to commemorate the Australians who were among the victims of the strike against the Sari Club and Paddy’s Bar in the Indonesian tourist island’s nightlife strip of Kuta.

Asked in Sydney whether she was concerned about travelling to Bali, Gillard said: “I do want to be in Bali for the 10-year commemorations.

“Families will be travelling there. It will be a day in which we pay our respects and remember what that moment was like for Australians.”

Friends and families of victims have poured into Bali for tomorrow’s service, some meeting at the “ground zero” site of the attacks or laying flowers at an adjacent stone memorial inscribed with the names of the dead.

A group of regular police stood guard next to the Kuta memorial yesterday afternoon with armed police patrolling the beach area, an AFP photographer saw. The Kuta attacks 10 years ago plunged Indonesia-which has the world’s largest number of Muslims-into the war on militancy and battered Bali’s tourist-reliant economy.

Tourism to Bali, which is dominated by Australian visitors, was just beginning to recover in 2005 when another suicide blast killed 20

people as they dined at the beachfront Jimbaran district. Today, Bali’s fortunes have recovered fully and Indonesia has won praise for a crackdown on militants that has left all the leading Bali perpetrators either executed, killed by police or jailed.

The nation has not seen a major attack since 2009 when blasts at two five-star hotels in Jakarta killed nine, and more than 700 JI members have been killed or put behind bars. Bali is on track to lure a record one million Australian arrivals this year as tourists flock back to the Hindu-majority Island, which is renowned for its pristine beaches, wild nightlife and welcoming locals. But despite the apparent recovery, the 2002 atrocity is seared into the memory of Indonesians - 38 of whom perished in the blastsand yesterday’s terror threat rekindled dark memories of the previous attacks.

“Bali used to be safe but you never know anymore,” said hotel developer Boy Harlin, whose friend was badly burned in the 2002 bombings.

“I’m in the hospitality industry and all my buyers

KUTA: This file photo shows an armed Indonesian policeman guarding in front of what remains of the Padi club in the Kuta tourist area following a car bomb that exploded. Indonesia will commemorate the 10th anniversary of the Bali bombings that killed 202 people, including 88 Australians tomorrow. —AFP

Key political risks to watch in Sri Lanka COLOMBO: President Mahinda Rajapaksa is under fire from the UN Human Rights Council, which adopted a US-sponsored resolution that calls on it to ensure government troops who committed war crimes during the final stages of its war against Tamil rebels are brought to justice. At home, Rajapaksa bowed to international demands in May, releasing from jail his rival and former army chief Sarath Fonseka, who immediately vowed to fight for the government’s downfall. Following are the key political risks to watch: WAR CRIMES, RIGHTS SQUEEZE? Earlier this year the UN Human Rights Council adopted a resolution put forward by

the United States urging Sri Lanka to implement the recommendations of an official Sri Lankan probe. That commission called for the prosecution of soldiers guilty of misconduct.

The government said in July it would take up to five years to try those accused of atrocities, a step critics denounced as a bluff to reduce international scrutiny. Tens of thousands of civilians were killed in 2009 in the final months of Sri Lanka’s 25-year civil war, a United Nations panel said last year, as government troops advanced on the ever-shrinking northern tip of the island controlled by Tamil forces fighting for an independent homeland.

Washington wants to force Colombo to address allegations of war crimes as part of

COLOMBO: Sri Lankan army soldiers stand during a ceremony to mark the 63rd anniversary of the army in Colombo yesterday.— AFP

wider ethno-political reconciliation to forestall renewed conflict, while Sri Lanka wants more time to pursue its own domestic process.

Adding to worries that the government is taking a heavy-handed approach to human rights, police shut down two anti-government news websites at the end of June, a move press groups said was intended to intimidate critics of President Mahinda Rajapaksa, and which drew statements of concern from the US and EU. A week after that, the government said it would tighten its media law to regulate all websites, not just printed material. A new line of confrontation may be opening with the judiciary, after a senior judge was beaten with pistols in early October, triggering a one day strike by judges, who were already angry at perceived political interference in the courts.

FONSEKA’S RELEASE Though Sarath Fonseka is not an immediate political threat to Rajapaksa, the former general is still popular among many Sri Lankans for his outspoken criticism of the government. The US had long demanded Fonseka’s release, calling him a political prisoner, while rights groups have accused both Fonseka and the president in shooting surrendering Tamil Tiger rebels in the final stage of the war. Fonseka is, however, capable of causing massive damage to Rajapaksa’s popularity, given that great numbers of Sri Lankans believe the former soldier could deliver in politics after helping to win the 25-year war. A politically savvy Rajapaksa has only remitted his sentence, ensuring Fonseka is unable to stand in an election in the next seven years. Undeterred by that, Fonseka has started public campaigns to meet his supporters, and discuss Rajapaksa’s alleged policy lapses. He has openly called for a wider opposition alliance to topple the government.

ran away after the attacks, so another attack is the last thing I want to happen.” For many Australians the bombings were a direct attack on their country. “This memorial is just another step in the journey, because it’s something that will never go away,” said Keith Pearce, 65, who flew from Perth with around 30 members of his Australian Rules football club which lost seven young men.

“Each year when we have an anniversary, you look into the boys’ eyes and you can see it’s still very raw for them.” There are also fears that although crippled, Jemaah Islamiyah is far from defeated, with old names cropping up in new terror cells that aspire to impose an Islamic caliphate across Southeast Asia by violent means. “The current threat in Indonesia is at a different scale from what it was a decade ago,” International Crisis Group Southeast Asia project director Jim Della-Giacoma said. “But recent police raids on suspected terrorists show that the threat continues and that there’s still a lot of radical thought and ideology.”— AFP

SLOWING ECONOMIC GROWTH In late September the central bank downwardly revised its projection for 2012 economic growth to 6.8 percent, a second reduction from its original 8 percent. Treasury Secretary PB Jayasundera has predicted it will be a minimum 6.5 percent depending on the impact of a drought that has started in early 2012.

Growth last year was a record 8.3 percent, but 6.4 percent in the second quarter of this year was Sri Lanka’s slowest since the fourth quarter of 2009. The government will cut spending from the 2012 budget to keep the fiscal deficit to a targeted 6.2 percent, Jayasundera has said. By April, Sri Lanka’s budget deficit was 285.8 billion rupees ($2.14 billion), almost 61 percent of the full-year goal of 468.9 billion rupees, raising concerns it may miss the target. The International Monetary Fund in June lowered its growth forecast to 6.75 percent, down from an earlier estimate of 7.5 percent, due to tough policy measures the country has implemented since February.

TEHRAN-WASHINGTON OIL SQUEEZE Despite the tension with Washington, Sri Lanka has been given an extended waiver on imports of Iranian crude after it cut imports from Iran by up to 38 percent, switching to alternatives from Oman and Saudi Arabia. However, it will have to abide by certain conditions including a further reducing imports during the six months to Dec. 31 if it wants the waiver to be extended.

Oil Minister Susil Premajayantha has said Sri Lanka, which is dependent on crude imports, took steps to reduce Iran crude purchases during the first six months of 2012 to eight cargoes per year from 13, buying four cargoes from Oman and one from Saudi Aramco. - Reuters

Outrage in China over luxury spending claims BEIJING: Chinese social media websites erupted in outrage yesterday over claims that a provincial official tried to suppress a newspaper report detailing his expensive tastes in luxury accessories. Microblog users claimed that tens of thousands of copies of a daily newspaper were destroyed on Monday after they carried a report about the senior official in the government of the southeastern province of Fujian. Users posted the alleged report from the City Times, which claimed that Li Dejin, director of the Fujian provincial communications department, owned a 50,000 yuan ($7,900) Rado watch and 15,000 yuan Hermes belt.

The newspaper is based in the southwestern city of Kunming in Yunnan province. Users of Weibo, the microblogging service of leading portal Sina.com, retweeted the post more than 100,000 times. They also left thousands of comments calling Li “Uncle Watch” and accusing him of corruption and abuse of power by seeking to suppress the story. “Thanks to the party and the government, for training so many corrupt officials over the years,” wrote one user. Calls by AFP to Fujian government offices went unanswered Wednesday while a spokeswoman at the City Times refused comment.

China’s state news agency Xinhua, in a post on one of its official Weibo accounts, called on Li to explain a photograph apparently showing him wearing the Rado watch. Communist Party and government officials are routinely accused of leading corrupt or luxurious lifestyles while hundreds of millions of Chinese still scrape by or live in poverty despite the economic boom of recent decades. The issue has become especially sensitive since a rising Communist Party political star, Bo Xilai, was felled by a scandal that saw his wife jailed for murder and Bo accused of a range of crimes and corrupt activities. Corrupt officials have met with increasing online supervision. Yang Dacai, a government official in the central province of Shaanxi, was sacked last month after Weibo users posted photographs showing him wearing expensive watches-five of which were together said to be worth more than 300,000 yuan. Other Weibo users, commenting on the latest allegations, asked how a Fujian government official was allegedly able to order the pulping of newspapers published in a different region of China.— AFP

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2012

Iran’s spy agency finds voice in cyberspace TEHRAN: A glimpse into the shadow world of Iran’s main spy agency is now a click away. In an unexpected display of outreach, the Intelligence Ministry now hosts a website with addresses of provincial offices, appeals for tips and anti-American essays that mock rising obesity rates, large prison populations and school shootings. There’s no mission statement on the site, but it appears part of stepped-up attempts

by Iran’s leadership to promote national unity and project its authority amid Western sanctions and international isolation. After protests in Tehran last week over Iran’s slumping currency, the nationally broadcast Friday prayers tapped heavily into the theme of shared sacrifice in times of trouble. And on Wednesday, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei described the sanctions as a “war against a nation.”

The new website also fits into Iran’s narrative of fighting a “soft war” in cyberspace against Western cultural and political influences. For more than a year, Iran’s leaders have touted plans for a “clean” Internet that could presumably try to block Western content, but Web experts have raised questions about its techni-

cal feasibility. “The ministry is going online to make its presence known to the Iranian public, especially the young who use the Internet,” said Meir Javedanfar, an Iranian-born political analyst based in Israel. “This is basically a show of force.”

What the new Farsi-language site, www.vaja.ir, lacks in innovation (mostly a simple list of stories and links), it makes up for in pure anti-American bluntness. Click on “America from a Different Perspective.” The list of shame includes the huge US prison population, rising obesity, school shooting statistics, why supporters of euthanasia seek to “kill grandparents” and how giant chain stores such as Walmart are smothering small businesses.

Another essay claims the chief goal of US economic sanctions is not to force concessions over Tehran’s nuclear program, but to incite civil unrest. It specifically cites US diplomat Jillian Burns, who set up Washington’s first Iranian monitoring office in Dubai in 2006 and is currently the consul in Herat in western Afghanistan, where Iran has strong cultural and economic ties. There was no immediate comment from the State Department.

Tehran-based political commentator Hamid Reza Shokouhi sees the website the web name is the Farsi acronym for the Intelligence Ministry - as part of a new image-building campaign by Iran’s ruling system in the Internet era, which has left authorities in a constant struggle to block opposition sites and Western influences. “Economic and military threats against Iran have increased. Under such circumstances, it is necessary to reduce the gap between the people and the ruling system,” said Shokouhi.

“The website is a move in this direction. This is a big deal.”

It’s far from the first time that Iran’s leadership has planted its flag in cyberspace. Websites have operated for years for Khamenei and others including President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad - in Farsi, English and Arabic. More than a dozen state-run and semiofficial news services also flood the Web around the clock. “The leadership, particularly within the hardline elements of the Intelligence Ministry, has an obsession with the notion that Washington is coordinating a soft revolution to unseat the Islamic Republic,” said Suzanne Maloney, an Iranian affairs expert at the Brookings Institution in Washington.

Part of Iran’s counterstrategy appears to be a kind of information overload in response to U.S. initiatives, such as the State Department’s launch last year of a “virtual embassy” in English and Farsi that seeks to reach out to ordinary Iranians. The site was quickly blocked by Iranian authorities, but firewall bypasses such as proxy servers are widely used by Iran’s young and tech-skilled population. “There is probably an element of mimicry here as well,” said Maloney. “The Iranians enjoy turning the table on Washington and imitating American tactics.”

Last week, a US broadcast oversight board accused Iran of jamming regional radio and television programming that includes the Persian services for the Voice of America and the BBC. And on Monday - two days after the website was launched - Iran’s Intelligence Minister Heidar Moslehi claimed that Iran’s secret services have the upper hand in the Web war with the West. “The intelligence apparatus confronts enemy measures in the cyber front,” the official IRNA news agency quoted Moslehi as saying.

The intelligence minister was at the center of one of Iran’s most public political feuds.

Khamenei last year demanded Moslehi keep the

post despite objections from Ahmadinejad, who was so angered that he boycotted government meetings for more than a week. In response, the ruling clerics arrested dozens of Ahmadinejad’s allies and left him politically weakened entering his final year in office.

A journalist at Tehran’s moderate Shargh newspaper, Soroush Farhadian, interprets the new website as an effort by intelligence agency to gain its own voice. “One of the objectives is to demonstrate its independent position rather than speaking through the semiofficial news agencies,” he said. There is also a potential for touches of candor amid the high-voltage propaganda. One article appears to buck the official line that sanctions on Iran’s oil exports are meaningless. It notes Iran has “paid heavy costs” in its showdown with the West.

“On the one hand, Iran has faced problems with a cut in its main source of revenue. On the other hand, the West has taken all measures to force Iran to give up its nuclear program,” the post said. “Despite all the costs suffered by the West to stop Iran’s nuclear program, the Islamic Republic has continued its path and the West has failed.” — AP

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THURSDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2012

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Issues

Germany feared bridesmaid role in EADS-BAE

By Marie Julien ermany feared being left on the sidelines of any tie-up between European aerospace giant EADS and British arms maker BAE Systems, analysts say, after Berlin was blamed for blocking the deal. Talks on the potential $45-billion (35-billion-euro) mega-merger, ditched yesterday, were blocked by Germany, a source close to the matter told AFP. In a terse statement, Chancellor Angela Merkel’s spokesman said that Berlin had “taken note” of the decision. “For the German government, the priority now is that EADS continues to develop positively in all its business activities,” Steffen Seibert said.

Peter Hintze, Berlin’s coordinator on the deal and a senior economic ministry official, told Der Spiegel newsweekly: “I am convinced that EADS can best show its strengths on the global market independently.” While in public, officials stressed that Paris, Berlin and London were striving for a common line, negotiations behind the scenes appeared to have become much more strained. The often turbulent relations within EADS between France and Germany were complicated this time by the involvement of Britain, with all three European powers holding a veto right over the planned merger. “The Germans are worried that there will be a duopoly with Toulouse (Airbus headquarters in southern France) in charge of civil matters and London for defence,” said Henrik Uterwedde, deputy director of the German-French Institute in Ludwigsburg, before the talks collapsed. “They want a fair share of the pie,” he told AFP. Since the potential merger was announced last month, Berlin repeated almost daily the official line: they are in talks with all players and the deal is so complex that no public statements would be made before a final decision.

Just minutes before news of the breakdown in talks, Seibert was refusing comment at a regular news briefing. But German Economy Minister Philipp Roesler had also insisted that “Germany has to preserve its interests” while recognising that this merger was an “undoubted opportunity”. With possibly less than a year to go until national elections, Berlin was sensitive to the need to protect its factories and tens of thousands of EADSlinked jobs in Germany.

There are sizeable Airbus assembly plants in Bremen, in the north of the country, as well as factories building the Eurofighter combat plane in the southern state of Bavaria. Berlin was also at pains to defend its research and development capabilities and feared being relegated to a mere cog in a wider machine whose main wheels were turning in Paris and London, analysts said.

European Aeronautic Defence and Space company chief Tom Enders, a German, already ruffled feathers in Berlin government circles by shifting the group’s headquarters to Toulouse, when it was previously split between Germany and France.

Berlin wanted to revisit this decision, a demand considered “unreasonable” by EADS since “the choice of headquarters is an economic decision”. Enders sought to calm tempers by pledging, in the country’s most widelyread daily, Bild, that he would consider job guarantees if the merger went ahead. “I am so convinced of the merits of our project that I am prepared to talk about attractive job and headquarters guarantees that I could not consider for EADS (on its own),” Enders said.

Others on the German political scene were concerned that Berlin would lose control of its say in the defence operations of the group. “My fear is that the defence activities of the firm will be divided between France and Britain,” said Martin Lindner, parliamentary vice-president of the Free Democrats, junior coalition partners in the German government. “I do not want us to be completely dependent on outsiders for such a key industry,” he told the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung daily. Analyst Uterwedde said that the deal was always about politics rather than economic or commercial considerations. “EADS is and remains a political company,” he said. Writing before the final collapse of the deal, Spiegel, however, pointed to the human side of the failed merger. “What happened between the three European countries last week is nothing short of a political-economic earthquake - a seismic tremor that potentially puts thousands of jobs at risk,” said the magazine.

Investors seemed not to share the concerns, however, pushing EADS shares more than four percent higher in yesterday’s trading. — AFP

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Egypt preachers enjoying freedom of airwaves

By Shaimaa Fayed and Yasmine Saleh hen Islamic scholar Zaghloul ElNaggar recommended the consumption of camel urine, describing it as an Islamic remedy for incurable diseases on a television show last month, the channel’s switchboard was bombarded with angry phone calls within minutes.

“Medicine is based on evidence ... Surely I don’t need to be teaching you this?” wellknown doctor Khaled Montassir told Naggar on the show, barely concealing his frustration. “I am not happy with what’s happening to Muslims because of your ideas.” Egypt’s media, once tightly controlled by the state, has become a free-forall platform for ideas, theories and advice, which can range from the ignorant to the bizarre and to what some see as outright dangerous. Much of the talk is the largely innocuous and inevitable product of democratic reforms promoted by the revolutionary movement of the Arab Spring, opening up space to new voices. But some Egyptians are concerned that such freedoms are being exploited by hardline Islamists and self-appointed religious experts to extend their influence in a society still finding its feet after months of turmoil.

The Grand Mufti, Egypt’s most senior Islamic legal official, has denounced edicts made by unqualified preachers and declarations such as those suggesting that treating the ill with camel urine is somehow an Islamic teaching. “Such talk is wrong,” said spokesman Ibrahim Negm. Egypt’s Islamist leader Mohamed Morsi won elections in June promising to be a president for all Egyptians, and one of his big tests will be how he deals with radicals whose ideologies worry mainstream Muslims and minority Christians. His allies in the Muslim Brotherhood, which has a conservative vision of society while vowing to support democracy, are under pressure to take a clear line.

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Policing the Airwaves “The Brotherhood is now in power. They need to act as rulers and ... state their position regarding such radical views and preachers,” said political analyst Nabil Abdel Fattah. When Morsi’s predecessor Hosni Mubarak was in power, the government strictly policed the airwaves, and managers of private TV channels were often harassed by state security if their guests displeased the authorities. The restrictions stifled prodemocracy activists and criticism of the Mubarak regime, but they also put a lid on advocates of religious extremism.

While some Egyptians welcome today’s lively public debates, others say that airing fanatical or eccentric ideas makes them seem more acceptable and encourages bigotry and intolerance, sometimes playing on ignorance in a religiously conservative society where many are illiterate. Government officials and media commentators were quick to condemn Abdel Moneim El-Shahat, a well-known ultra-orthodox Salafi Islamist, when he suggested last year that ancient statues including the Sphinx guarding the Pyramids of Giza be covered up as they might be idolatrous.

In February, Shahat suggested that football matches should be forbidden and only horse and camel races allowed, seen as part of his drive to strictly emulate the days of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) and shun modern activities. Other Salafi leaders have said it was against Islam to salute Egypt ’s flag or to sing the national anthem, called on Muslims to declaim as an infidel anyone who is “secular, liberal or modern”, and argued against English being taught in schools. The Grand Mufti has condemned such declarations in the name of religion. “Untrained amateurs who attempt to issue fatwas are not

authentic scholars, and their fatwas are more like independent unscholarly statements made according to their whims and desires,” his spokesman Negm said.

Thin End of the Wedge While there have been few indications that any of these suggestions have been taken seriously, they alarm moderate Egyptians who worry that they are the thin edge of the wedge at a particularly sensitive time. A 100-strong assembly of scholars, politicians, academics and others is drawing up a new constitution to determine the role of Islam and Islamic law in Egypt’s government and legal system.

Liberals and Islamists have been at loggerheads. Moderates also are concerned about how the riot of ideas may be subtly influencing the way people think and act.

Many viewers were indignant when the female host of a popular talk show agreed to a request from Assem Abdel Maged, a leading figure of the ultraorthodox Salafi group Al-Gama’a al-Islamiya, to be interviewed through a screen because she was not wearing a veil. “It would have been better for Hala Sarhan to apologise for not running this shameful episode than to accept this situation,” wrote one viewer on YouTube, where the interview was shown.

Muslim lawyer Sherif El-Hosseiny, 35,

reflected the views of many Egyptians by saying: “One of the reasons I risked my life in protests last year is to have the country go forward and definitely not have it go backward to pre-historic times.”

But for others, the public outcry shows a society still uncomfortable with an open democracy. “In the United States a film was produced insulting Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) ... and here too we have people who express rational and irrational views,” said political analyst Mustafa Al-Sayyed, adding the government had a duty to promote moderate thinking. “This is the price every society has to pay for freedom of speech,” he said.— Reuters

Revival of UK northeast tests govt

By Alan Wheatley racts of bare ground dot the vast Wilton chemical complex, a reminder of long-demolished plants that bear ghostly witness to the industrial decline of the world’s first manufacturing nation. Just over 20 years ago, 12,000 people worked at Wilton on the banks of the River Tees in northeast England.

Today, 4,000 remain. Back in 1862, Prime Minister William Gladstone marvelled at the might of next-door Middlesbrough, calling it the ‘infant Hercules’. The iron, steel, shipbuilding and mining industries of the northeast are now a shadow of what they once were.

The northeast has the highest unemployment rate and the lowest household incomes in the UK. Life expectancy is among the lowest in the country. Reviving the region is an important test for government plans to reduce Britain’s dependence on financial services and the prosperous southeast. Empty offices blight the hollowed-out city of Middlesbrough, where you can park for three pounds a day - perhaps a tenth of the cost in London. A television show in 2007 said it was the worst place to live in the United Kingdom.

Yet look more closely and there are signs of regeneration.

Offshore engineering is booming as energy companies extend the life of North Sea oil and gas fields. Teesside is building its first oil rig in a decade. Jobs are being created in renewable energy.

Things are also stirring in the giant’s chemistry set that is Wilton.

A subsidiary of Lotte, a South Korean conglomerate, is more than doubling polyethylene production, creating 350 jobs. A £300 million ($480 million) bioethanol refinery reopened last week after a year in mothballs. “I don’t like to talk about green shoots, but we’re optimistic,” said George Ritchie, a senior manager at Sembcorp, a Singapore company that bought the Wilton complex in 2003. “The site has declined. We’ve been through a torrid time. But things are probably better than they have been in the past five years.”

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Underlying Strengths Stan Higgins, head of the North East Process Industry Cluster, said his chemical industry group had identified 62 projects across the region with an investment potential of as much as £10 billion. How much of that money materialises is crucial to a part of Britain down on its luck. Direct Line, the insurance company about to float on the stock market, has announced the closure of a call centre in nearby Darlington with the loss of 500 jobs.

But the northeast has some strong building blocks. It is Britain’s only net-exporting region, thanks to chemicals, pharmaceuticals and cars. Nissan, whose plant in Sunderland is the largest in Britain, is working round the clock and is creating 3,000 direct and indirect jobs to build two new models. Hitachi of Japan has signed a £4.5 billion contract to build 92 inter-city trains at a new factory not far from where railway engineer George Stephenson revolutionised the design of early steam locomotives when he built the ‘Rocket’ in 1829.

“At that level things are very positive. But on the next rung down, you have small businesses that are struggling if they’re not in the right sector, if they’ve not got an established supply chain to sell into or if they’re dependent on consumer spending or construction,” said James Wharton, the Conservative member of parliament for Stockton South. With a parliamentary majority of just 332 votes, Wharton knows how important it is to revive confidence in the economy in time for the 2015 general election.

Faded Town, Faded Hopes An earlier Conservative prime minister from Stockton, Harold Macmillan, confidently declared in 1957 that “most of our people have never had it so good”. Try telling that to Alex Cook, 23, whose construction qualifications from a local college have failed to land him a job beyond working in bars for the past five years. Right now Cook is drawing unemployment benefit. In

return, he is working part-time for six weeks at Argos, a catalogue-based retailer, in the hope that the experience will lead at least to a Christmas job. “I’m just scrambling for anything I can get that will give me a chance,” he said in the faded workingclass seaside town of Redcar. “There are no jobs up north.

Nothing going.”

That’s not quite true. Redcar is home to a huge steel works that once employed nearly 30,000 people but closed in 2010. It was bought by Sahaviriya Steel Industries, a Thai firm, which restarted steelmaking in April. Local joy knew no bounds. In an insight into the shift in global economic power, almost all the steel slabs made by the 1,800-strong work force are being shipped to Thailand. Redcar is also getting a £75 million seafront renovation, and wind turbines will soon sit atop a row of concrete pillars being built offshore.

But the town is visibly tired, its main shopping street lined with discount stores, payday lenders and charity shops. “The government could do more for the town,” Cook said. “Our shops have been hit hard. If you stay open for business here for more than three or four months, you’re lucky.”

Blame The Banks Teesside’s headache is that the problems it faces are structural and not just of the cyclical sort that might be alleviated by, say, a government U-turn to reduce its budget deficit more slowly - a step more and more economists recommend. A common complaint is that credit is hard to come by, but banks could be retrenching for a long time as they adapt to tougher regulations and capital requirements. Francis Brown Ltd, a 110-year-old metal-bashing company in Darlington, is growing fast thanks to offshore engineering orders, but managing director Jamie Brown said his plans to expand are under threat because he cannot borrow to buy premises next door. “The financial support we were used to is nowhere like it used to be,” said Brown, whose family firm employs 110 people. “Banks aren’t willing to take on any risk whatsoever.” “The businesses we talk to are struggling to get working capital,” said Jonathan Gold, director of Rivers Capital Partners, a venture capital company based in Newcastle. The credit crunch extends to housing. Ian Cook, a real-estate agent in Guisborough, said home prices across Teesside had dropped 20 percent since 2007. But banks were reluctant to lend in case of a further decline, shutting first-time buyers out of the market.

Lost Generation of Skills The second big structural problem for Teesside is that, ironically in an area of high unemployment, many companies cannot find the skilled workers they need, be it graduate engineers or highly qualified tradesmen such as welders. “We have a massive shortage of people across the board, and that is the biggest hurdle for us and for the industry,” said Jake Tompkins, managing director of Modus, a firm in Darlington that makes underwater robots. Tompkins, incidentally, said he was confident of being able to borrow £18 million to double his fleet of remotely operated subsea vehicles to 12.

As the region’s biggest employers, chemicals giant ICI and British Steel deliberately used to train far more apprentices than they needed so that smaller firms in their supply chains could always find trained workers. But both firms are now defunct, and smaller companies have been either unwilling or financially unable to fill the gap, which keeps widening as older workers retire. In effect a generation of craftsmen has been lost.

“Apprenticeships are the foundation stone for the future. I’m pushing water uphill to try and get firms to take on apprentices,” said Ritchie, the Sembcorp manager. Higgins, the head of the Nepic chemical-processing industry group, estimates the skills shortage in his sector in the northeast alone at 16,000. But he said the issue was a national one: Britain now offers 100,000 technical apprenticeships a year, just a quarter of the total in 1989, he said.— Reuters

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2012

NEWS US pair share chemistry Nobel for cell...

Continued from Page 1 molecular and cellular physiology at Stanford University School of Medicine in California. In a teleconference with Swedish journalists, Lefkowitz admitted he had not heard the phone ring with the famous piece of news. “I was fast asleep and the phone rang. I did not hear it. I must share with you that I wear ear plugs to sleep, and so my wife gave me an elbow: ‘phone for you’. And there it was. A total shock and surprise,” he said.

Kobilka told Swedish news agency TT he was also awakened in the middle of the night at his home in California. Asked if he would be able to fall back to sleep, he replied: “I don’t think so.” “I’m still very surprised, they called me just an half hour ago, but now it is starting to slowly sink in,” he said. Kobilka said he had not yet decided what he would do with his half of the eight million Swedish kronor ($1.2 million) prize.

The grandchild of Polish immigrants to the United States, Lefkowitz grew up as an only child in a two-bedroom apartment in New York’s Bronx. He went to medical school at New York’s Columbia University, where he finished first in his class. Kobilka was born in Little Falls, a small rural community in central Minnesota, where his grandfather and father were bakers and his mother decorated the cakes. He studied biology and chemistry

at the University of Minnesota in Duluth, and then went to Yale to study medicine. In 1984, he went to Duke University, where he worked as a post-doctoral researcher under Lefkowitz. Together they put together the first genetic sequence of GPCRs. Mark Sansom, a professor of molecular biophysics at the University of Oxford, said the receptors “have for a long time been the holy grail” for research. “They are fundamental to regulation of many physiological processes, from the nervous system to taste and smell,” he told the Science Media Centre in London. “They are also a major class of drug target and are incredibly important to the pharmaceutical industry.”

On Monday, Shinya Yamanaka of Japan and John Gurdon of Britain won the Nobel Medicine Prize for work in cell programming, a frontier that has raised dreams of replacement tissue for people crippled by disease. On Tuesday, the physics prize went to France’s Serge Haroche and David Wineland for research in quantum physics that could one day open the way to supercomputers. The literature prize will be announced today, followed tomorrow by perhaps the mostwatched award, for peace. The economics prize wraps up the Nobel season on Monday. The laureates will receive their prizes at formal ceremonies in Stockholm and Oslo on Dec 10, the anniversary of prize founder Alfred Nobel’s death in 1896. —AFP

Islam makes inroads in Haiti Continued from Page 1 people join,” said Robert Dupuy, an imam or Islamic spiritual leader in the capital. “We were organized. We had space in the mosques to receive people and food to feed them.”

Derosier said she was drawn to the religion’s preaching of self-discipline, emphasis on education and attention to cleanliness. The constant washing, she said, helps her and other Muslims avoid cholera, the waterborne illness that health officials say has sickened nearly 600,000 people and killed more than 7,500 others since surfacing after the quake. “This is a victory for me,” the 43-year-old woman said about her post-quake conversion. The former Protestant spoke in the tent-filled courtyard of her home, her face framed by a clean, black headscarf. “It’s a victory that I received peace and found guidance.”

In part, the Muslim community’s growth can be attributed to the return of expatriates who adopted the faith in the US, said Kishner Billy, owner of the island’s Telemax TV station and host of the nightly program “Haiti Islam”. Billy and some others believe that Islam’s Haitian past goes back before the country’s independence in 1804, and that a Jamaican slave and Voodoo priest named Boukman who led the slave revolt that ousted French colonizers was actually a Muslim. “Islam is coming back to Haiti to stay,” said Billy, who says he converted from Christianity 20 years ago. “Future generations, my sons and daughters, will speak about Islam.”

There are no firm statistics on the number of Muslims in Haiti, just as there are no reliable figures for many things in the country, including Port-au-Prince’s exact population. A 2009 study by the Pew Research Center on the world’s Muslim population estimated that Haiti had about 2,000 devotees. Islamic leaders in the country insist the figure is much higher and growing. Islam is hardly unknown in the Caribbean; countries such as Trinidad & Tobago, Suriname and Guyana have significant Muslim populations. Many of those nations have strong roots in countries such as India and Indonesia where Islam is widespread.

The ancestors of Haitians, by contrast, were brought largely from non-Muslim areas of Africa. Haiti’s French colonial rulers also imported their Christian beliefs. The recent growth of Islam, as well as other new religions, shows Haiti is modernizing and becoming more pluralistic, said Patrick Bellegarde-Smith, a professor of

Africology at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.

“Inroads made by Islam (and by extension, by Mormonism and Rastafarianism) tell me that Haiti is very much a product of this century, subject to all winds, ill-winds and otherwise, that blow over the Caribbean nation-states,” Bellegarde-Smith wrote in an email.

Rosedany Bazille, a 39-year-old teacher who converted several months after the earthquake, said she had felt rudderless before embracing the religion and was looking for a way forward. “Islam can put people on the right path and show them who’s God,” she said. Some Haitian Muslims belong to the Nation of Islam, a USbased branch of the religion that preaches black selfdetermination. Some local members converted while serving time in US prisons before being deported back to Haiti. The group’s leader, Louis Farrakhan, visited the country for the first time last year.

The decision to convert has made some targets of discrimination. The Haitian government doesn’t recognize Islam as an official religion, nor does it honor Muslim marriages. Wearing the skullcaps or flowing head scarves typical of the religion can draw stares and finger-pointing. Derosier said her neighbors gossip that she’s evil. Voodoo, a blend of West African religions created by slaves during the colonial period, has long been a popular faith in the country, with elements followed even by some of the 85 percent of the population who claim Christian beliefs. Voodoo was once so commonly embraced that the notorious dictator Francois “Papa Doc” Duvalier used it to terrify and control the masses.

Most Christian Haitians identify themselves as Roman Catholics. A priest, the Rev Jean-Bertrand Aristide, was elected president in 1990 by opposing the hereditary dictatorship that continued with Francois’ son, JeanClaude “Baby Doc” Duvalier. With so much still wrong in Haiti, the need for Islam couldn’t be greater, said Billy.

Two months ago, he launched his live talk show to educate his compatriots about his adopted faith. “Haiti has gone astray. It can’t produce anything,” said Billy. “Right now Haitians just want a visa to go the United States, to Canada. They don’t want to stay in Haiti.”

With a tapestry of Makkah and praying crowds as a backdrop to his TV show one recent evening, Billy and his co-host Ruben Caries invited watchers to send questions about Islam via text messages. Billy’s BlackBerry buzzed with missives, including this one in Creole: “M vle vini Muslim” - “I want to be a Muslim.” — AP

Opposition raises stakes, threatens street...

Continued from Page 1 deteriorated to a very bad level as chaos has started and influential and corrupt people have wrested total control over the state and its institutions. Sawwagh appealed to HH the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad AlSabah to uproot corruption forces and chaos.

Member of the scrapped 2012 Assembly Bader AlDahoum said the Kuwaiti people will not allow the decision-making process to fall in the hands of one person as the time of slavery has ended. Dahoum said the opposition will not allow these emergency decrees to pass, threatening that if they are issued, the opposition will boycott the election. “If we boycott the election, we will not sit at home,” said Dahoum. “We are before a very seri-

ous turning point and the question is whether to be or not to be. If you do not respect us we will not respect you”.

Nayef Al-Merdas, a member of the 2012 Assembly, warned Kuwait could witness Arab Spring-like protests.

“We are not less than Arab peoples who have extracted their rights. We have repeatedly warned of the Arab Spring” hitting Kuwait, he said. Waleed Al-Tabtabaei said that the opposition will boycott the election if the law was changed and “we will not sit at home. We will launch protests and we will not stop until the decree and the Assembly elected on its basis fall together”. The gathering was held hours after the chief of Awazem tribe, the largest beduoin tribe in Kuwait, Falah bin Jame, said that his tribesmen will boycott the election if the election law was changed.

An Indian cyclist rides past a mural of Bollywood actor Amitabh Bachchan from his classic film ‘Deewar’ on the eve of Bachchan’s 70th birthday in Mumbai yesterday. India’s favourite film star and Bollywood legend who is known as the “The Big B” - has over 3.5 million Twitter followers and is treated like royalty in the movie-mad country. Bachchan was the first Indian actor to feature at London’s Madame Tussauds waxworks museum and was voted “actor of the millennium” in a BBC online poll in 1999. — AFP

Former state governor of California Arnold Schwarzenegger displays his book “Total Recall” on the first day of the Book Fair in Frankfurt yesterday. — AP

Iran vows to defeat ‘barbaric’ sanctions Continued from Page 1 In his speech, Khamenei called on officials to refrain from making accusations against each other, and urged them to restore unity to defeat the sanctions. “This is not an issue that the Islamic republic cannot resolve. With the grace of God, the Iranian nation will overcome all these problems,” he said.

Western powers have gradually tightened sanctions against Iran in the past two years, particularly against its vital energy sector, to pressure Tehran to abandon the controversial parts of it nuclear program.

As well as hitting its currency, the sanctions have prompted a drop in Iran’s oil exports and production, slowing its economy and boosting the ranks of the jobless. The US gov-

ernment, which is leading the sanctions, has also pointed the finger at Iran’s economic management, but said sanctions relief could quickly occur if Tehran curbed its nuclear activities.

Khamenei accused the West of “lying” over its offer to lift sanctions in return for Iran furnishing guarantees to back its claims its atomic program is intended for civilian purposes only.

Khamenei also rejected the notion that sanctions were linked to Iran’s nuclear efforts, as the West claims they are.

“The enemies - the US and some European governments - are nowadays linking the sanctions to (Iran’s pursuit) of nuclear energy. They are lying,” he said. The supreme leader argued that his country has been targeted by sanctions since the 1979 Islamic revolution for its “independence and resistance” against world powers. — AFP

US sends troops to Jordan Continued from Page 1 stocks to better secure them, but stressed that the country’s main chemical weapons sites remain intact and secure under government control.

The US military planners in Jordan, however, were not solely focused on chemical weapons. “We’ve also been working with them to develop their own military operational capabilities in the event of any contingency there,” Panetta said. “And that’s the reason we have ... a group of our forces there,” he added. About 294,000 refugees fleeing 18 months of conflict in Syria have already crossed into Jordan, Iraq, Lebanon and Turkey, or await registration there, the UN refugee agency esti-

mated late last month. Up to 700,000 Syrian refugees may flee abroad by the end of the year, it estimated.

Pentagon press secretary George Little, traveling with Panetta, said the US and Jordan agreed that “increased cooperation and more detailed planning are necessary in order to respond to the severe consequences of the Assad regime’s brutality”. He said the US has provided medical kits, water tanks, and other forms of humanitarian aid to help Jordanians assist Syrian refugees fleeing into their country. Little said the military personnel were there to help Jordan with the flood of Syrian refugees over its borders and the security of Syria’s stockpiles of chemical and biological weapons. — Agencies

Marriage in Kuwait loses its sparkle Continued from Page 1 The government, which sees itself as the guardian of traditional values and social stability, has shown its concern about the trend with a campaign called “Marriage Comes First”. The campaign, launched in March by the Justice Ministry, encourages Kuwaitis to think about matrimony before material goods, studying, a career, travelling and having fun with friends. “You are right” to want all these things, say the brightly coloured advertisements in local media. “But, MARRIAGE COMES FIRST.” Ministry officials declined to comment on the campaign. But the issue has potentially vast implications for the tiny oil producer, including its effect on the birth rate and the role of women and the family in what is still a deeply conservative society. The trend in the fertility rate has remained largely stable since 2005, although it is down to 2.3 births per woman in 2010 compared to 3.5 in 1990, according to data compiled by the World Health Organisation.

But this could change, reflecting a trend across the region, said Mona Almunajjed, a Saudi sociologist who has written about social demographics in the Middle East. “In the long term it is very important because it is going to affect the demographic curve. If women are becoming more financially independent, and marrying later, they are going to have fewer children,” she said. A slower birth rate is not always a negative in countries where the young make up a large proportion of the “age pyramid”, such as in the Gulf, said Leila Hoteit, a management consultant at Booz & Company in Abu Dhabi.

“Given the large challenge they face to employ their youth, a drop in birth rate is not necessarily a bad thing for society,” she told Reuters in an email. “The concern I would say is more around social factors: the social cohesion of families.”

Although Kuwaitis live in a far more open social environment than their counterparts in neighbouring Saudi Arabia, relationships before marriage are largely taboo and people are encouraged to marry early, usually in unions arranged according to family ties and social status. Polygamous marriages are not uncommon in Islamic societies but only small numbers of Kuwaiti men have more than one wife. Traditionally, up to a third of marriages have ended in divorce and that figure has been rising in recent years.

At the ladies’ gathering, accessed by an elevator shielded by a wooden screen to allow the women to enter and leave unseen, 22-year-old Nour Al-Rujaib said the pressure for women to marry starts from around the age of 21. “Girls want to get married so they can have freedom. We cannot travel alone,” she said, dressed in a red cocktail dress and black high heels. She said she was happy to marry early if the man could afford for her to have a comfortable lifestyle. The number of men getting married later than age 24 grew to 65 percent in 2008 from 61 percent in 2000, according to a calculation based on statistics compiled by the United Nations. For women, the number rose only slightly over the same period, from 38 percent to 40 percent.

Some urban Kuwaitis say that attempts to encourage early, traditional marriages belong in the past. “Society is much more open than when I was a teenager. You can

socialize through the Internet, go travelling more easily,” said 34-year-old Taiba Al-Jaber, who caused uproar in her family by insisting on marrying a man she had picked herself. “I was Americanized. After the Iraqi invasion, our society felt the American influence when the American troops came here. We saw movies and soap operas. But back then I guess I was already too open for my community,” she said. Her husband, a Saudi national who works in information technology, finally convinced her father he was a worthy partner after compiling a power point presentation on his family heritage and income. They married in 2007, some seven years after he first proposed.

Mohammed Al-Muharib, a married 29-year-old naval officer dressed in traditional white Kuwaiti robes, said marriage has become too costly and troublesome for some men. “Some of my friends just don’t want to get married. It has become far too expensive,” he told Reuters outside the doors of the male wedding party.

“We live in a society where the man bears the costs for almost everything - the house, food, clothes, children, a maid, cars, shopping,” he said, counting off the list on his fingers.

Inside the hotel ballroom, men danced with swords to the beat of traditional drums. The air was heavy with the scent of bakhoor, special incense worth more than its weight in gold. Some men do not want to be tied down, said his friend Abdulmohsen Al-Barjas, also 29, though he scoffed at that concern. “I think this idea is just propaganda. I am married and I am free. Us two, we went to Dubai recently, we get to travel.” Many Kuwaitis still opt for a “traditional” arranged marriage, with a courting period ranging from one week to several months, mainly in the presence of family members. The groom usually pays a cash dowry to the bride’s family to marry - sometimes amounting to tens of thousands of dollars.

Compounding the marriage problem from the government’s perspective is a rising divorce rate. The number of divorces rose 16 percent in the five years to 2011 to 172 divorces for every 100,000 inhabitants, according to Justice Ministry statistics. Kuwait had the highest total divorce rate among Gulf Cooperation Council countries, according to a 2010 report by Booz & Company. Kuwaitis say divorce and remarriage have become easier and carry less of a social stigma. Nearly a quarter of those who divorced in 2011 had been married for less than a year.

Health Ministry officials told Reuters they were considering setting up pre-marriage counselling clinics to prepare Kuwaitis for matrimony, rather than just testing them for hereditary and infectious diseases as at present. “What we need is a special centre outside the court for couples to talk over their problems, but this is difficult in our society, people go to their families instead,” lawyer Waleed Al-Dousari said. He sees himself as part lawyer, part counsellor, and handles 5-6 new divorce cases a month. When he started out six years ago, the number was half that, he said. Dousari said it is important to prevent divorce because the close-knit nature of Kuwait makes separation an especially disruptive force that pits whole families against each other. “In our society, the problems that come after the divorce can be even worse,” he said. — Reuters

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2012

sp orts Football may be Bolt’s future

Tyson gets Australia visa

TOKYO: Football may be in Usain Bolt’s future. The Olympic great said yesterday he might try his hand at the global game once he retires from the track.

“I have said I wanted to try football,” said Bolt, the world-record holder at both 100 and 200 meters. “I always wanted to try to play soccer. Maybe at the end of my career. It would be something that I would love to try. I watch it on TV and see these guy plays. I play it all the time with my friends. I played childhood matches in Jamaica and I did well. I think it is something I would like to try to do.”

Two days after saying he would like to defend his 100 and 200 meter titles at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, the 26-year-old Bolt said he may still branch out to other track events.

“To find something else to strive toward,” he said about his future goals. “I could always try the 400 meters - which I don’t want to do. I could try to run faster over both my events. I could try another event, maybe the long jump or the 400 meters. There are a few things I would like to try in sports that I could work towards. We’ll see what I decide at the start of the season.”

After becoming the first man to defend both 100- and 200-meter titles at the Olympics, Bolt said his accomplish hit him once he returned home to Jamaica. “It’s a great thing to achieve a goal you always wanted,” Bolt said.

“For me it was an honor. I have worked hard to become a legend. For me to go home after the races, sit down, and reflect on what just happened, it was emotional. “It’s a wonderful stepping stone in my life to be a legend in my sport.”—AP

SYDNEY: Former heavyweight boxing champion Mike Tyson has been granted a visa to enter Australia for a series of motivational talks next month, organisers said yesterday.

“We are thrilled and are very grateful to the Australian government for granting Mike Tyson a visa and allowing him to visit Australia for the very first time” Max Markson, CEO of tour promoter Markson Sparks said in a statement.

Tyson’s speaking engagements in Australia were supposed to include a similar visit to New Zealand, though his visa was revoked by the country’s Associate Immigration Minister Kate Wilkinson after it had been approved.

Tyson, who served three years of a six-year US jail sentence for rape, needed dispensation under New Zealand immigration laws because of his conviction. However, a youth-related charity trust which originally backed his visit to appear at the Auckland event, billed as “Day of the Champions”, said it no longer wanted to have anything to do with Tyson’s visit due to his conviction.

Tyson’s promoters applied for a new visa for New Zealand after a second community group said it would support his application in exchange for him talking to atrisk youth.

“We hope we will also receive good news about Tyson’s visit to New Zealand and are now patiently waiting on their response,” Markson added yesterday. Tyson, 46, was undisputed world heavyweight boxing champion in the 1980s but he was convicted in 1992 of raping teenage beauty queen Desiree Washington and served three years in prison.—Reuters

Former Zimbabwe coach dies CAPE TOWN: Kevin Curran, the former Zimbabwean all rounder and coach, has died in Mutare at the age of 53 after collapsing on a morning run while preparing his franchise team for a domestic game.

Curran made his international debut aged 20 and was an integral part of the Zimbabwe team at the 1983 and 1987 World Cups but played the majority of his cricket for English counties Northamptonshire and Gloucestershire and for Natal in South Africa.

He was known throughout his playing career for his physical fitness and stamina and retired in 1999 after a first-class career spanning over two decades.

“He was the epitome of good health... we are still coming to terms with this tragic loss, we are in shock,” said Zimbabwe Cricket’s managing director, Wilfred Mukondiwa.

Curran returned to live Zimbabwe in 2004 to take up a full-time position as director of the national academy and coach of the under-19 team but assumed the role of national coach a year later following the departure of West Indian Phil Simmons.

He had been head coach at the Harare-based franchise, Mashonaland Eagles, and was about to start a game against the Mountaineers. The match was postponed. “He was a great believer in the future of Zimbabwe Cricket and he came back to this country to help the rebuilding and restructuring process,” said former captain and ZC’s Director of Cricket, Alistair Campbell. —Reuters

Giants cut Reds’ lead

OAKLAND: Athletics left fielder Yoenis Cespedes (52) makes a diving catch on a line drive by Detroit Tigers first baseman Prince Fielder in the seventh inning of Game 3 of an American League division baseball series. —AP

Anderson pitches Athletics past Tigers to avoid sweep OAKLAND: Coco Crisp saved a likely home run, and Oakland’s season for at least one more game. If the center fielder had any lingering frustration about that two-run error that dearly cost Oakland in Game 2, this might have erased it.

Crisp made a spectacular leaping catch at the top of the center-field wall to rob Prince Fielder, and that was just one in a handful of defensive gems by the Athletics to back Brett Anderson in a 2-0 victory over the Detroit Tigers on Tuesday night. The A’s cut their deficit in the best-of-five AL division series to 2-1. Anderson outdueled fellow postseason first-timer Anibal Sanchez and the upstart A’s showed off stellar defense all over the diamond to avoid another playoff sweep by Detroit.

“Robbed home runs are good,” Anderson posted on Twitter late Tuesday.

“You see him hit it and you just kind of put your head down a little bit because you think you just gave up a homer,” Anderson said. “Then you see him plow through there and catch the ball and it kind of kick starts you to go out there and make pitches.”

Yoenis Cespedes hit an RBI single in the first inning and Seth Smith homered in the fifth. That was plenty on a night Triple Crown winner Miguel Cabrera, Fielder and the Tigers’ high-priced offense were shut down by the low-budget A’s.

Tigers 16-game winner Max Scherzer will try to close out the series in Game 4 Wednesday night against A’s rookie A.J. Griffin. Detroit swept the A’s in the 2006 AL championship series.

Fielder was the biggest victim of Oakland’s spot-on defense, robbed three times. First by Crisp, Oakland’s most experienced player whose blunder on Cabrera’s fly allowed two runs to score in a 5-4 loss Sunday in Detroit.

“Not to be all over-confident or anything, I think I’m going to catch everything out there,” Crisp said. “Obviously it doesn’t happen that way - duh Detroit, right?”

Crisp let out a big “Whoo!” after raising his arm to signal he’d made the grab. “I thought I had a hit,” Fielder offered afterward. “Coco’s catch, the ball was out of the ballpark and it came back,” Tigers manager Jim Leyland said. “The key to that play was he was playing deep and that enabled him to get into a spot to get up and make the catch. And it was a great catch, no doubt about it.”

A’s shortstop Stephen Drew made a tough play running to his left to stop Fielder’s grounder in the fourth and then threw to first while still off balance and in motion.

Then, in the seventh, Cespedes cut over to make a diving catch on Fielder’s liner to left field. That delighted the yellow towelwaving sellout crowd of 37,090 in this bluecollar city.

“It’s frustrating. But it’s a good team you’re playing,” Fielder said. “They’re going to make those plays, that’s why they’re here.”

After Cabrera singled with one out in the ninth, Fielder grounded into a gameending double play. Fielder is now batting .172 (11 for 64) in his postseason career .083 (1 for 12) this year. The A’s own the lowest payroll in baseball at $59.5 million.

Fielder is getting big money in Motown: $214 million over nine years.

Anderson, back on the mound for the first time since straining a muscle in his right side Sept. 19 at Detroit, worked quickly and showed no signs of a layoff or jitters in his first postseason start.

That’s just not the way the A’s have operated this year. Last week, Oakland entered its final three-game series of the regular season needing to sweep the twotime reigning AL champion Rangers to capture the AL West - and the A’s did it, sending a stunned Texas team to the one-game wild card, which it lost to Baltimore.

A club with a majors-best 14 walkoff wins and countless whipped cream pie celebrations snapped the longest postseason skid in franchise history at six games, all losses to Detroit.

The Tigers are trying to reach a second straight AL championship series after losing last year’s ALCS in six games to the Rangers.

Detroit captured the AL Central in Oakland last year and is hoping for another clinching party as soon as possible.

Anderson did his job to delay it.

He insisted he was healthy and ready to go - and manager Bob Melvin took his pitcher at his word and gave him a shot in his biggest start yet. Anderson had shown plenty when he returned in August following a 14-month absence recovering from elbow-ligament replacement surgery and made six impressive starts.

Not feeling quite 100 percent, he allowed two hits, struck out six and walked two in six innings. He was on a pitch count of 80 and was done at exactly that, though was never told about it beforehand. “I don’t know how you could expect more than we got out of him tonight,” Melvin said. Next, the reliable bullpen took over.

Ryan Cook pitched the seventh, Sean Doolittle struck out the side in order in the eighth and closer Grant Balfour finished the four-hitter for a save. The A’s staff pitched the 11th postseason shutout by the franchise, while the Tigers were blanked for the 13th time in the postseason.

The A’s had lost five straight while facing elimination in the postseason, one shy of the longest active streak by the Twins.

But this group has defied expectations ever since the first full workout at spring training back in February when the A’s lost third baseman Scott Sizemore to a seasonending knee injury. Opening day starter Brandon McCarthy took a line drive to the head Sept. 5 and needed brain surgery.

Starter Bartolo Colon was suspended for 50 games in August for a positive testosterone test. Oakland became the first team in major league history to win the division or pennant after trailing by five or more games with fewer than 10 to go. The A’s were five back of the Rangers with nine left, then won their final six, all at home with sweeps of Seattle and Texas.

Smith hit a towering drive to the deepest part of center field in the fifth for yet another timely home run for the A’s, whose 112 homers after the All-Star break led the majors. “That’s how you win postseason baseball games, with pitching and defense and timely hitting,” Smith said. “We had that. We got two runs and that’s all we needed. Anderson was great and our defense was, too.” Sanchez gave up five hits and two runs in 6 1-3 innings, struck out three and walked two.—AP

CINCINNATI: Joaquin Arias hit the ball, put his head down and ran. All he knew was that the Giants’ season depended upon how fast he made it to first. “That’s the fastest I’ve ever run to first,” the infielder said. He won the playoff dash, taking advantage of third baseman Scott Rolen’s momentary bobble to beat the throw.

Arias’ foot hit the bag, and the Giants suddenly had a little hope. After managing only one hit through the first nine innings, the Giants took advantage of a passed ball and Rolen’s error in the 10th inning for a 2-1 victory that cut the Cincinnati Reds’ lead in the division series to 2-1.

A team that’s struggled just to get hits is suddenly feeling like it has a chance against long odds. The Giants are trying to become the first team to overcome a 2-0 deficit in a best-of-five series by winning three straight on the road.

“I think we have to be really happy that we came away with a win tonight because we didn’t swing the bats very well at all,” said Buster Posey, who singled as part of the winning rally.

The Giants have struggled the last two games against Bronson Arroyo and Homer Bailey, managing a total of three hits in the starters’ 14 innings combined. They’re not sure who’s up next for the Reds, who haven’t won a home playoff game in 17 years and now have a tough decision.

Left-hander Barry Zito will pitch Game 4 on Wednesday for San Francisco, which has won the last 11 times he started. The Reds had to decide whether to try ace Johnny Cueto, forced out of the opener in San Francisco on Saturday with spasms in his back and side.

Manager Dusty Baker said after the game that they hadn’t decided whether to go with Cueto, bring back Mat Latos on short rest again, or replace Cueto with Mike Leake, who wasn’t on the division series roster.

Switching out Cueto would leave the Reds ace ineligible to pitch in the championship series should the Reds get that far.

“It’s very difficult, but it all depends on if your ace can’t go or whatever it is,” Baker said. “That’s part of the conversation - us going without him.

We realize what’s at stake.” They were hoping to avoid having to make that choice. One grounder forced the issue. The Giants managed only three hits against Bailey and the bullpen, but got two of them in the 10th - along with a passed ball by Ryan Hanigan - to pull it out. San Francisco won despite striking out 16 times.

Rolen, an eight-time Gold Glove winner, couldn’t cleanly field Arias’ grounder, which put him in a tough position. “I’ve gone through the play many times in my mind between then and now, and I think I would play it the same way,” Rolen said. “It hit my glove. I just couldn’t get it to stick.” The Reds haven’t won a home playoff game since 1995, the last time they reached the NL championship series. They scored a run in

the first, then managed only one more hit the rest of the way, wasting another dominating performance by their pitching staff.

The Reds set a season high with 16 strikeouts. Bailey matched his career high by fanning 10 in seven innings, a franchise playoff record.

He allowed only one single.

San Francisco’s one-hit wonders finally got it going against Jonathan Broxton, who gave up

off loss at home. Baker was back in the home dugout at Great American for the first time in nearly a month, recovered from an irregular heartbeat and a mini-stroke. After a pregame ovation, he settled in his red folding chair with a toothpick on his lips.

The 63-year-old manager watched his pitching staff dominate again, but fail to get that breakthrough win. The second-largest crowd in

CINCINNATI: Reds starting pitcher Homer Bailey throws against the San Francisco Giants in the first inning during Game 3 of the National League division baseball series. —AP leadoff singles by Posey - the NL batting champion - and Hunter Pence, who pulled his left calf on a wild swing before getting his hit.

With two outs, Hanigan couldn’t come up with a pitch, letting the runners advance.

Moments later, Cincinnati’s chance for a sweep was over when Rolen bobbled the ball.

A Reds team that lost a lot - closer Ryan Madson in spring training, top hitter Joey Votto for six weeks at midseason, Baker for the NL Central clincher, Cueto in the first inning of the first playoff game - ended up with another play-

Great American history was still getting the hang of playoff rooting. A video board message instructed the 44,501 fans not to wave white rally towels while the Reds were in the field - could be distracting.

Didn’t take long to get those towels twirling. Brandon Phillips led off with a single, but was thrown out at third when he tried to advance on a ball that got away from Posey. It was costly - the Reds went on to score on a walk and a pair of singles, including Jay Bruce’s RBI hit to right. —AP

Skydiver cancels second try at supersonic jump ROSWELL: Blame it on the wind.

Again. For the second straight day, extreme athlete Felix Baumgartner aborted his planned death-defying 23-mile free fall because of the weather, postponing his quest to become the world’s first supersonic skydiver until at least today.

As he sat Tuesday morning in the pressurized capsule waiting for a 55-story, ultra-thin helium balloon to fill and carry him into the stratosphere, a 25 mph gust rushed across a field near the airport in Roswell, NM. The wind rushed so fast that it spun the still-inflating balloon as if it was a giant plastic grocery bag, raising concerns at mission control about whether it was damaged from the jostling.

The balloon is so delicate that it can only take off if winds are 2 mph or below on the ground.

“Not knowing if the winds would continue or not, we made the decision to pull the plug,” mission technical director Art Thompson said.

Baumgartner’s team said he has a second balloon and intends to try again.

Thompson said the earliest the team could take another shot would be Thursday because of weather and the need for the crew

- which worked all night Monday to get some rest. The cancellation came a day after organizers postponed the launch because of high winds. They scheduled the Tuesday launch for 6:30 a.m. near the flat dusty town best known for a rumored UFO landing in 1947.

High winds kept the mission in question for hours. When winds died down, Baumgartner, 43, suited up and entered the capsule. Crews

began filling the balloon. A live online video feed showed a crane holding the silver capsule off the ground. The team’s discovery that it had lost one of two radios in the capsule and a problem with the capsule itself delayed the decision to begin filling the balloon, pushing the mission close to a noon cutoff for launch. “It was just a situation where it took too long,” mission meteorologist Don Day said.

ROSWELL: In this photo provided by Red Bull Stratos, the 55storey, ultra-thin helium balloon that was to carry extreme athlete Felix Baumgartner to his 23-mile free fall twists in the wind. —AP

After sitting fully suited up in his capsule for nearly 45 minutes, Baumgartner left the capsule and departed the launch site in his Airstream trailer without speaking to reporters. The feat, sponsored by energy drink maker Red Bull, was supposed to be broadcast live on the Internet, using nearly 30 cameras on the capsule, the ground and a helicopter.

A 20-second delay would allow them to shut down the feed if an accident occurred. The plan was for Baumgartner to make a nearly three-hour ascent to 120,000 feet, then take a bunny-style hop from the capsule into a near-vacuum where there is barely any oxygen to start his jump.

The jump poses many risks. Any contact with the capsule on his exit could tear the pressurized suit. A rip could expose him to a lack of oxygen and temperatures as low as 70 degrees below zero. It could cause potentially lethal bubbles to form in his bodily fluids, a condition known as “boiling blood.”

He could also spin out of control, causing other problems.

While Baumgartner hopes to set four new world records in all when he jumps, his dive is more than just a stunt. —AP

18

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2012

S P ORT S

Formula One: The 2012 season so far YEONGAM: The 2012 Formula One season so far, ahead of the Korean Grand Prix on Sunday: Australian Grand Prix - March 18 McLaren’s Jenson Button threw down the gauntlet to two-time defending world champion Sebastian Vettel as he relegated the German to second in a flying start to the season.

McLaren had locked down the front row of the grid and it was Button who nipped past pole -sitter Lewis Hamilton at the start and went on to dominate. Vettel grabbed a giant slice of luck when a timely safety car intervention allowed him to steal second from Hamilton late in the race. Mark Webber was fourth for Red Bull and Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso finished fifth.

Standings: Button 25 pts, Vettel 18, Hamilton 15 Malaysian Grand Prix - March 25 A nearly hour-long storm interruption threw the race into confusion and left drivers fighting just to stay on the track. Alonso emerged from the chaos at the head of the field and drove his unrated Ferrari brilliantly to win the unpredictable race, chased all the way

by Mexico’s Sergio Perez who claimed a career-high second place for Sauber.

Hamilton, heading another grid onetwo for McLaren, was happy to settle for third again after an early crash left Button outside of the points alongside Vettel, who suffered a late puncture following a collision with Narain Karthikeyan.

Standings: Alonso 35, Hamilton 30, Button 25 Chinese Grand Prix - April 15 Mercedes’ Nico Rosberg claimed what he termed an “amazing” first victory in 111 attempts as he led from pole position to take the Chinese Grand Prix in style. The German’s faultless drive in Shanghai saw him home more than 20 seconds ahead of the McLarens of Button and Hamilton, for what was also Mercedes’ first victory since the 1955 Italian Grand Prix.

Webber was fourth and Vettel fifth

after some frantic jostling for the other podium places. Alonso trailed in ninth.

Standings: Hamilton 45, Button 43, Alonso 37 Bahrain Grand Prix - April 22 Bahrain’s controversial race went off without incident after a week of angry protests away from the desert circuit that put the non-sporting focus on reform demands in the Gulf state. Vettel led from start to finish to claim his first win of the year to take over as leader of the title race. He registered his 22nd career victory with a near-flawless drive from pole position. In second came Kimi Raikkonen, the 2007 champion, and the Finn’s Lotus team-mate Romain Grosjean.

Standings: Vettel 53, Hamilton 49, Webber 48 Spanish Grand Prix - May 13 Pastor Maldonado became the first Venezuelan to win an F1 race by triumphing at the Spanish Grand Prixbefore going on to play an heroic role in a dramatic blaze in his Williams team’s garage. Maldonado’s win, in just his 24th race, was also the team’s first victory since the 2004 Brazilian Grand Prix and came on the weekend of team founder Frank Williams’ 70th birthday. He later carried his young cousin to safety after the team garage was engulfed by flames, injuring 16 people. On the track the Venezuelan produced a flawless race, holding off Alonso. Raikkonen was third.

Standings: Vettel 61, Alonso 61, Hamilton 53 Monaco Grand Prix - May 27 Webber steered his Red Bull to victory and claimed his first win this year and his team’s third successive Monaco Grand Prix victory. Webber’s second win in the race and the eighth of his career also meant six different drivers had won the opening six races of this season, for the first time in Formula One history. Webber started from pole to finish six-tenths of a second clear of Rosberg with Alonso third for Ferrari. Vettel was fourth ahead of Hamilton and Felipe Massa in the second Ferrari.

Standings: Alonso 76, Vettel 73, Webber 73 Canadian Grand Prix - June 10

Hamilton made it seven different winners in seven races when he drove with flawless speed and control to win in Montreal. He produced a magnificently judged performance in a race that passed off smoothly despite a weekend of student protests and police action resulting in around 60 arrests, to seize his first win of the year. Grosjean of Lotus came home second after an equally well-judged race to finish ahead of Perez. Hamilton’s 18th career victory came five years to the day after he had claimed his maiden win at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve.

Standings: Hamilton 88, Alonso 86, Vettel 85 European Grand Prix - June 24 Local hero Alonso became the first man to win two Formula One races this year by driving his Ferrari to victory in Valencia. Alonso, who won superbly from 11th on the grid, was followed home by Raikkonen of Lotus and seven-time world champion Michael Schumacher of Mercedes. The race was punctuated by incident, with Hamilton crashing out after a final lap collision with Williams’s Maldonado. Red Bull’s defending world champion Vettel was forced to retire despite dominating most of the race after starting from pole position, as was his nearest challenger Grosjean of Lotus.

Standings: Alonso 111, Webber 91, Hamilton 88 British Grand Prix - July 8 Red Bull’s Webber dragged himself into contention for the drivers’ world title by winning a dramatic race at Silverstone. The Australian posted a near-flawless performance to come in ahead of Ferrari’s Alonso, with Webber’s team-mate Vettel third. There was an acrimonious collision when Maldonado of Williams drove into Perez’s Sauber, and a pit-lane accident when Kamui Kobayashi braked late and hit his own mechanics at a pit stop. McLaren duo Hamilton and Button-the home favourites-finished eighth and 10th.

Standings: Alonso 129, Webber 116, Vettel 100 German Grand Prix - July 22

Alonso started from pole position and dominated the race in consummate style, leading from start to finish.

Local favourite Vettel was handed a 20-second penalty for running off the track at a hairpin exit as he tried to pass Button on the penultimate lap.

The penalty bumped him from second to fifth and left Button in second.

Button’s McLaren team-mate Hamilton had hoped to make his 100th Formula One race a memorable one, but had to retire after a series of problems including a puncture caused by debris left on the circuit following an early crash involving Massa, Grosjean and Bruno Senna of Williams.

Standings: Alonso 154, Webber 120, Vettel 110 Hungarian Grand Prix - July 29 Hamilton delivered a flawless drive from pole position to the chequered flag to revive his title challenge, resisting strong late pressure from former world champion Raikkonen. Hamilton’s win was his second of the year and the 19th of his career. Raikkonen’s Lotus team-mate Grosjean and Red Bull’s Vettel came in third and fourth, with Alonso in fifth. As they climbed the podium, a grinning Hamilton said to Raikkonen: “It’s just like old times, Kimi.”

Standings: Alonso 164, Webber 124, Vettel 122 Belgian Grand Prix - Sept 2 Button claimed his second win of the year and 14th of his career in a race marred by a horrific first-bend crash that took out Hamilton, championship leader Alonso, and Grosjean.

Grosjean’s Lotus went airborne as he tried to get past Hamilton, a move that earned the Frenchman a one-race ban and fine. Vettel took second with Raikkonen third to complete a podium of world champions. Schumacher, in his 300th Grand Prix and back at his favourite circuit where he made his debut in 1991, finished seventh.

Standings: Alonso 164, Vettel 140, Webber 132 Italian Grand Prix - Sept 9 Hamilton won his third race of the year with a commanding drive

from pole position which moved him up to second in the drivers’ standings. Sauber ’s Perez roared through the field to finish second, with Alonso claiming third to extend his championship lead. But a retirement dashed the title hopes of Hamilton’s McLaren stablemate B u t to n . Th e ra ce w a s a l s o ove r shadowed by speculation over Hamilton’s future after he admitted his team for next year was undecided.

Standings: Alonso 179, Hamilton 142, Raikkonen 141 Singapore Grand Prix - Sept 23 Vettel roared back into the title race as he survived two safety cars and capitalised on the retirement of race leader Hamilton to claim his second win of the season. The two-time defending champion moved up to second in the standings behind Alonso, who finished third. Button was second. Hamilton went out with a gearbox failure on the 23rd lap, and later put an end to intense debate about his career plans as he confirmed he would leave McLaren for Mercedes at the end of the season.

Standings: Alonso 194, Vettel 165, Raikkonen 149 Japanese Grand Prix - Oct 7 Vettel slashed the title race to just four points as he stormed to victory at Suzuka after championship leader Alonso span out on the first turn. The German escaped a chaotic start and sped away to win by more than 20 seconds ahead of Ferrari’s Massa and home favourite Kamui Kobayashi, whose first podium received huge roars from the capacity crowd. Vettel became the only man this year with back-to-back victories. Alonso was eliminated when he was hit by Raikkonen’s Lotus at the first corner and suffered a puncture.

Standings: Alonso 194, Vettel 190, Raikkonen 157. —AFP

Alonso inspired by samurai swordsman SEOUL: Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso has taken inspiration from the centuries old wisdom of a samurai swordsman as he prepares for a Formula One duel with Sebastian Vettel at the Korean Grand Prix this weekend.

The Spaniard knows he will lose the championship lead at the southern Yeongam circuit for the first time since seizing it in Valencia in June if his Red Bull rival chalks up a third win in a row.

Alonso is only four points

words are those of 17th century Japanese Miyamoto Musashi, who set out in his ‘Book of Five Rings’ teachings ranging from strategy, philosophy and battlefield tactics to self-control and spiritual calm. Musashi’s conviction that “there is more than one path to the top of the mountain” will also strike a chord with the Spaniard, whose own ascent has been slowed by others in incidents beyond his control.

Consistency, control and intelligence will all be key weapons in

could happen to the others next time,” he had said on Sunday night. “The wheel turns and that is what races are all about.”

Yeongam’s coastal track, some 400km south of Seoul, has been good and bad for Red Bull in the past, with Vettel winning there last year after retiring in the 2010 debut race.

He and Alonso are the only drivers to have won in Korea.

Red Bull clinched the constructor’s title there last season,after Vettel had wrapped up his sec-

SUZUKA: Red Bull driver Sebastian Vettel of Germany leads the field into turn one as Ferrari driver Fernando Alonso of Spain spins off the track in this file photo. —AP clear of Vettel, with five races remaining, after spinning off into the gravel at the start in Japan last weekend.

After that crushing disappointment, his response was a statement on his Twitter feed: “Five great races coming! If the enemy thinks in the mountains, attack by sea. If they think in the sea, attack by the mountains.” The

his armory.

Both Alonso and Vettel have won three races this season, both are double champions, but the 31-year-old Spaniard has years more experience under his belt than his 25-year-old rival and knows the importance of keeping calm, of strategy and seeing the bigger picture.

“What happened to us today

ond crown in Japan, but both battles are still raging this time around.

“I think that Fernando is a ver y shrewd and formidable opponent and over a season luck tends to balance itself out,” Red Bull team principal Christian Horner told reporters.

“We’ve got mixed emotions of Korea-despair in the first year to

elation in the second year. It’s important that out of this double header we get as many points as we possibly can in both championships.”

After wins in Singapore and at Suzuka, Vettel is going for a third win in a row and the team’s new ‘Double DRS’ rear wing aerodynamic package has brought a marked improvement in qualifying.

The title run-in may be looking like a two-horse race but others will be hoping to be first to a chequered flag that will be waved on Sunday by chart-topping, horse-dancing ‘Gangnam Style’ local pop phenomenon Psy. McLaren’s Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button are still in the hunt while Finland’s Kimi Raikkonen, third overall for Lotus despite not having won a race all season, cannot be written off.

Hamilton, who is leaving for Mercedes at the end of the season, was runner-up in both Korean races to date.

Raikkonen, whose F1 future may be revealed on his 33rd birthday next week if a video posting on YouTube is to be believed, will have a much revised car for his first appearance in South Korea.

“The upgrades for Korea are a big step; it is the opening of a new era for us,” said Lotus principal Eric Boullier in a team preview of the race. “We are cautiously optimistic.”

The main development is a ‘Coanda-effect’ exhaust system which technical director James Allison said was a ‘biggish change’ offering clear benefits over the previous version.

Lotus’s Frenchman Romain Grosjean, already suspended for one race earlier this season, will have to be on his best behavior after smashing into Red Bull’s Mark Webber at the second corner in Japan.

The Australian dubbed him a ‘first-lap nutcase’ with others saying it might be time for another ban. —Reuters

Romain Grosjean

Grosjean eager to make amends in Korean GP YEONGAM: Lotus driver Romain Grosjean says he is looking forward to making amends at this Sunday’s Korean Grand Prix for what he admitted was “a stupid mistake” in Japan.

Grosjean, slapped with a one-race ban over a first-corner crash in Belgium, was at it again at Suzuka last Sunday, driving into Mark Webber seconds into the race and robbing the feisty Australian of the chance of a podium finish.

A furious Webber suggested the Frenchman might need another “holiday”, or ban, labelled Grosjean’s driving “embarrassing” and branded him “a first-lap nutcase”.

Grosjean’s team also warned the 26year-old to curb his overly aggressive style.

Grosjean told the official Formula One website after the race in Suzuka that this weekend was an opportunity to put the affair behind him.

“Since Singapore (on September 23, after his ban), I’ve been trying to be really cautious at the starts and it’s been all the more frustrating to be involved in an incident in Japan,” he said.

“When approaching the first corner, I was watching Sergio (Perez) on my left to make sure there was no contact with him. I

didn’t expect such a big speed difference between me and Mark (Webber) braking into the corner, we collided and that was it.

“It was a stupid mistake. Mark came to see me after the race and was obviously not happy, but I apologised and we have to move on.

“I’ve sat down and looked at things again with the team, for sure it’s still an area we need to improve. We’re clearly focusing on this area for the next races.”

Grosjean was given a 10-second stopand-go penalty in the pits in Japan and retired from the race towards the end when it became clear he was out of the points.

Red Bull’s Webber had to scramble to rejoin the race and then made a pit stop for running repairs, returning at the back of the field before racing hard to finish ninth.

Three-time world champion Sir Jackie Stewart says he is eager to work with Grosjean and help prevent the accidents that are “jeopardising his career”.

“I would love to help Romain because I think he has enormous potential,” Stewart was quoted as saying by the BBC. “Any more accidents could jeopardise his chances of driving for Lotus next season, let alone the very best teams.” —AFP

19

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2012

SPORTS

Blonde beauty queen swaps curlers for corners VOJAKOVAC: In 2008, Tihana Nemcic was a finalist in Croatia’s Miss Sport beauty competition. Four years on, she’s breaking new ground as the first female coach of a Croatian men’s football league side.

The bubbly 24-year-old blonde took over the reins at fifth-tier regional side Viktorija Vojakovac last month, scoring a notable first in the traditionally male-dominated world of Croatian football.

Now instead of the glamour of the catwalk, she makes a nearly 120-kilometre (75-mile) round-trip from the capital Zagreb twice a week to Vojakovac for training sessions and Sunday league matches.

On the training pitch, Nemcic wears a blue tracksuit and her hair in a ponytail as she runs among the players.

“Set your pace! Don’t stop! Pass the ball precisely!” she shouts, taking com-

mand. But despite oozing self-confidence, she admits that she did have a “certain stage fright” when she took over at the amateur club, who are currently mid-table in the league.

“I’m aware that I’m a blonde,” she explained with a wry smile, mindful of her undoubted good looks but insistent that femininity and football aren’t mutually exclusive concepts.

“So far my experiences with both players and spectators have been very positive,” she said. The fact that Nemcic has been so readily accepted undoubtedly comes down to her pedigree in football and, as she says, is a logical progression.

She plays for women’s side Dinamo Maksimir Zagreb and coaches Croatia’s women’s under-17 squad as well as a football school for girls. She used to play for the national women’s team but is currently recovering from

a knee injury.

At Viktorija Vojakovac, the University of Zagreb physical education graduate is responsible for the main men’s team as well as the veterans and the juniors-some 40 players in all. “For me it was a challenge but also a logical development since I’ve been in football practically my whole life,” Nemcic explained. “I don’t see why I would be less capable than a man for the post since I’m skilled and educated for it,” she added. “(Real Madrid manager Jose) Mourinho, (former Barcelona coach Pep) Guardiola, (Manchester United boss Alex) Ferguson all have their own way of working,” she told AFP. “The essential thing for a good coach is that he is capable of transmitting knowledge.” At pitch-side, spectators watching a late training session last week were complimentary.

“Tihana is an expert, she is capable and educated. The fact that she is blonde cannot harm but can only help,” commented Nermin Orucevic.

The players agreed, although the appointment did catch some offguard. “When we heard that we will get a woman coach we were surprised,” said defender Kristian Klasan.

“But she earned her authority. We listen to her and we agreed between ourselves that it will be like that,” the 33-year-old driver added.

Nemcic-who says she is just as comfortable in a tracksuit as the high heels she wears off the pitch-is also wellrespected by the club’s junior players.

“It’s so cool to have a woman coach. She is not too strict but she knows what she wants,” 12-year-old Valentino Gudic said.

“She is very experienced, has the authority and boys listen to her,”

added the club’s director Vitomir Mijic.

It was boys-or rather a particular boythat got Nemcic into football in the first place.

“I was training in athletics and when I was 13 I fell in love with the boy who was the best footballer in town,” explained Nemcic, who was born in nearby Krizevci, some 60 kilometres northeast of Zagreb.

“I followed him to the pitch, watched his techniques. The next summer the love was gone but my love for football was born and it lasts until today.”

Whatever the reasons, Nemcic’s arrival has buoyed the team’s hopesand prompted a number of enquiries from players at other teams eyeing a possible transfer, said goalkeeper Tihomir Jagusic. “Tihana can help our club a lot. We hope to see first results within a few months,” he added.—AFP

Messi poses a headache for South American rivals

Sheikh Ali Al-Fawaz Al-Sabah

Kuwait to host International Motocross Championships KUWAIT: Secretary General of Kuwait Motor Racing Club for the Quarter Mile Sheikh Ali Al-Fawaz Al-Sabah said “Kuwait will host local, regional and international races related to motocross races for motorcycles. This sport is very popular, in addition to the large number of participants.”

Sheikh Ali said Kuwait has well known stars and they need direct sponsorship, and support from the state’s various departments in order to have Kuwait’s flag hoisted in international arenas.

Sheikh Ali said the club always lauds the cooperation between Kuwait Club for the Quarter Mile for cars and motorcycles and the international car club, because it is the official representative of

the International Federation in Kuwait.

“This cooperation will take the sport to a new level that we are looking to achieve,” he said. Sheikh Ali also thanked Nasser bin Khalifa Al-Atiya for supporting the various activities of the club.

Sheikh Ali spoke on the sidelines of an honoring ceremony by Kuwait Club for Quarter Mile Racing following the good results by Kuwaiti drivers during the second round in Qatar in the motocross.

Results were: MX-1 category, third place: Mushari Bu-Shaib, MX-2 first place: Abdallah Al-Shatti, second place: Mohammad Jaafar, fourth place: Muath Al-Ansari. Barrak Al-Jasmi and Abdallah Al-Ruwaih had to withdraw due to a technical problem during the race.

Kaka

BUENOS AIRES: Stopping Lionel Messi is the primary concern of South American teams facing Argentina in the World Cup qualifiers. This week it is Uruguay’s turn.

Argentina defend their lead in the South American group at home to Uruguay in Mendoza on Friday (0100 GMT Saturday). After seven matches they have 14 points, one more than Colombia and Ecuador and two ahead of Uruguay and Chile.

They will be looking to make amends for a poor performance in their last match, a 1-1 draw with Peru in Lima where Messi, who had scored 10 goals in his previous six internationals, had one of his quietest games for his country.

South American champions Uruguay want a second successive upset over their neighbours after their Copa America quarterfinal victory on penalties last year.

Uruguay’s coach Oscar Washington Tabarez does not believe in man-marking Messi, but rather in preventing Argentina from functioning in support of the Barcelona ace.

“Messi is a great player, among the best seen in the history of football...so I’m not going to say too much about that because it would be redundant,” Tabarez told reporters in Montevideo on Tuesday.

“But Messi has a team around him trying to ensure be shows all his potential. “So we have to work on and counter everything Argentina does for the ball to get to Messi and after Messi takes it try to mark him.”

The Uruguayans, World Cup semi-finalists in 2010, need to

recover from a poor September when they lost 4-0 away to Colombia and only managed a 11 draw at home to Ecuador.

Captain Diego Lugano believes this double away fixture will be the hardest trip for Uruguay, who play Bolivia at high altitude in La Paz next week, in the 16-match qualifying series.

“These are key (qualifying) points, much more so after the last double-header when we didn’t do well,” Lugano said.

“We’re facing two matches that are surely the most difficult of the qualifying series. An Argentina-Bolivia sequence (away) is very hard and we’re practically obliged to bring back some points,” the central defender said.

Uruguay have to manage without left wing back Alvaro Pereyra, who is suspended, and injured midfielders Diego Perez and Gaston Ramirez.

Argentina, who beat Paraguay 3-1 at home then drew 1-1 away to Peru last month, welcome back Sergio Ag¸ero but have lost fellow striker Ezequiel Lavezzi to injury.

Midfielder Javier Mascherano said good results against Uruguay and then Chile away in Santiago four days later would put Argentina well on course for a berth in the 2014 finals in Brazil.

“If we can get six out of six points it would be ideal and we would be well on track to qualifying, not certain but on the right track,” Mascherano said at Argentina’s training base outside Buenos Aires.

“For us, the match against Uruguay is a classic. The last ones we have played against them

FC Barcelona’s Lionel Messi from Argentina. were very tight (and) if we win we’d go with more confidence to Chile.”

The Chileans, whose coach Claudio Borghi is serving a fourmatch suspension for dissent, first travel to play Ecuador in the rarefied air of Quito nearly 3,000 metres above sea level on Friday (2100 GMT). Colombia, with striker Falcao in red-hot scoring form,

are at home to bottom team Paraguay in their favourite Caribbean cauldron in Barranquilla (2030 GMT) and Bolivia, at home in both fixtures, host Peru in La Paz (2000 GMT).

Venezuela, in sixth place with 11 points having already played eight matches, have a bye at the halfway stage in the competition.—Reuters

Debate over uneven format for Asian Cup

Kaka looks set to start for Brazil against Iraq SAO PAULO: Kaka looks set to be picked

by Brazil for the friendly against Iraq today, in what would mark his return to the national team for the first time since the 2010 World Cup. The Real Madrid midfielder practiced among the usual starters Tuesday, playing alongside playmaker Oscar and strikers Hulk and Neymar ahead of the match in Sweden. Coach Mano Menezes has hinted that Kaka would get a chance in midfield, even though Chelsea’s Oscar has recently taken over as the team’s playmaker.

When Menezes announced Kaka’s return to the squad, he said he believed the two midfielders could play together and would try the formation in one of the team’s friendlies. Brazil, which is not playing World Cup qualifiers because it will host the 2014 tournament, will also play Japan in Poland on Tuesday. “I’m incredibly happy to be back,” Kaka said. “I feel there’s still a lot that I can do for Brazil, there’s a lot that I can still win with Brazil. I want to return step by step. With patience, I’ll be able to regain my space in the national team.” Menezes picked Kaka for some friendlies last year but he was ruled out due to injuries. His last game was Brazil’s elimination to the Netherlands in the World Cup

quarterfinals in South Africa.

“It will be like I’m starting over,” Kaka said. “Especially after everything that I’ve been through, with injuries, surgeries and doubts about how I would be returning. It’s been more than two years, so I see it as a new start.”

Kaka’s return came as a surprise to many because he hadn’t been playing regularly for Real Madrid, but Menezes said the player’s dedication in practice and past experience with Brazil played a role in his decision. Kaka has played more with Madrid recently and came on as a second-half substitute in the 2-2 draw with Barcelona in the Spanish League on Sunday.

“My goal has always been to return to the national team, but I knew that it would take time,” he said. “I knew it would be difficult because of the injuries and because I wasn’t playing regularly. Things are finally happening again.”

With Kaka playing, youngster Lucas is set to start on the bench, along with striker Leandro Damiao, who didn’t practice on Tuesday because he is nursing a right ankle injury. Menezes also used Adriano to replace Daniel Alves, who dropped out from the squad because of a left thigh injury.—AP

SEOUL: The uneven qualifying format for the Asian Cup is sparking debate around the region, with doubts raised about giving the continent’s best teams a pass while denying the smaller nations a chance to learn from playing against their more accomplished neighbors.

This week’s preliminary qualifying draw for the 2015 Asian Cup did not include the top nations - they are given passage through to the final tournament - while the smaller countries were locked out. That removed the kind of David vs. Goliath clashes that can clutter, for instance, European qualifying for major tournaments but which can also lend the sport much of its romance while also providing the occasional upset result.

Only 20 of the Asian Football Confederation’s 47 members came out of the hat in Melbourne in the qualifying draw.

As usual, the host doesn’t have to qualify. In this case, it’s Australia. Although, the Socceroos wouldn’t have had to qualify, anyway, after reaching the final of the 2011 edition.

Defending champion Japan and South Korea have also been given a pass due to their performance at the 2011 tournament. It’s more streamlined, but it doesn’t sit well with everyone. Thailand coach Winfried Schaefer, who saw his team drawn in a tough group with Iran, Kuwait and Lebanon, is among those who prefer a system where all of the confederation members enter the same qualifying tournament.

“It should be like Europe,” Schaefer told The Associated Press. “Why can Japan and (South) Korea go directly? At Euro 2012, Poland and Ukraine were the hosts but Italy, England and Germany had to qualify.” “It is good for us to play good teams - even if we have Korea and Japan in the same group,” he said. “That is okay that is football. Korea and Japan should have to earn their place at the Asian Cup just like everyone else.”

South Korea, two-time continental champions, can plan more high-profiled and lucrative friendlies rather than qualifying for the Asian Cup, which takes place just six months after the 2014 World Cup. “Generally, it has pros and cons,” Park Yongsoo, head of Planning and Management at the Korea Football Association (KFA) told The

Associated Press. “If you look ahead to the 2014 World Cup, the host Brazil suffers in its FIFA rankings because it can’t play competitive games. “Overall though, for us, not participating in Asian Cup qualification gives us the chance to play friendly games against stronger nations all around the world. We can even take part in some tournaments. Of course, the level of the teams in Asia is improving all the time ... but when we can, we want to play teams that are stronger than us and this gives us a broader perspective.”

For the lower-ranked teams in the confederation, their route to the Asian Cup is only by winning the AFC Challenge Cup, held every two years. India and North Korea won the 2008 and 2010 tournaments respectively to qualify for the 2011 Asian Cup, when they both exited at the first stage without winning a game. North Korea has already qualified for 2015 after winning the 2012 AFC Challenge Cup, leaving the rest of Asia’s lower-ranked teams focusing on the 2014 tournament.

Nonong Araneta, president of the Philippine Football Federation (PFF), said he accepted the three-tier qualifying system and his nation’s place in the lowest tier.

“We are prepared to play any team as we are finding ways to improve,” he said. “This week we

are in Bahrain to play a friendly and then we go to Kuwait and these are difficult games.

“At the moment, we are at the highest ever FIFA ranking (No. 147) behind Vietnam (No. 140) and Thailand (No. 139) in southeast Asia and we are climbing step by step. Perhaps the next time, we will be in the top 20 ranked teams in Asia but at the moment, we are happy to try and qualify through the AFC Challenge Cup, it is a good opportunity for us.”

Cambodia is another nation that has to go through the AFC Challenge Cup route, but the national team’s former coach Scott O’Donnell believes it could be beneficial in the long term if all nations qualified together.

“From a coach’s point of view, not playing in the Asian Cup qualification is an opportunity lost. The only way teams like Cambodia can improve is by playing against better teams more often. It is not until World Cup qualifiers that teams like Cambodia get the opportunity to play teams outside of the ASEAN region.” “I would actually like to see pre-qualification qualifiers so the lower ranked teams get to play more competitive games. I know the Challenge Cup tries to serve this purpose but playing games from other regions in Asia will give the teams the opportunity to play against teams with different styles, in different climates and conditions.”—AP

MELBOURNE: Australian Football Confederation (AFC) Chairman Prince Abdullah Ibn Sultan Ahmad Shah speaks during the AFC Asian Cup Australia 2015 preliminary draw ceremony. —AP

Kaka looks set to start for Brazil against Iraq

McIlroy and Woods clash on hold as storms end day’s play

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THURSDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2012

Alonso inspired by samurai swordsman

Page 18

SHANGHAI: Roger Federer of Switzerland hits a return to Yen-Hsun Lu of Taiwan in their second round match of the Shanghai Masters tennis tournament.—AFP

Federer, Djokovic roll, Murray gets walkover SHANGHAI: Top seeds Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic cruised into the third round of the Shanghai Masters yesterday as defending champion Andy Murray progressed without even picking up a racquet. As the tournament kicked into life with the introduction of the big guns, America’s Sam Querrey sent Kei Nishikori tumbling 2-6, 6-1, 6-4 just days after his opponent became the first Japanese player to win the Japan Open.

Swiss world number one Federer, battling to cling on to his top ranking, beat Taiwanese qualifier Lu Yen-hsun 6-3, 7-5 to set up a clash with fellow countryman Stanislas Wawrinka.

Federer’s build-up to the Shanghai tournament was clouded by a death threat from a blogger in China but the 17time Grand Slam champion said he quickly put it out of his mind once he was on court. “I thought it was a good match for

me. Obviously not having been broken is a good thing early on in a tournament.

You hope it sets a trend for more to come,” he said.

Speaking about the threat, Federer said: “I felt fine, you know. There was maybe one quick thought.” But he added: “Once the match started, got under way, I never thought about it again.”

Djokovic, who will regain the world number one ranking if he wins the title and Federer loses before the quarterfinals, dismissed Bulgaria’s Grigor Dimitrov 6-3, 6-2 in just 54 minutes.

“Very pleased with my serving in Beijing and obviously the first match today,” said the second seed, who lost just five of his service points. “So that’s something that I’ve been working on, obviously.” The Serbian will next play Spaniard Feliciano Lopez, who beat German 16th seed Philipp Kohlschreiber 6-3, 6-4.

US Open champion Andy Murray did not even have to take to the court as Germany’s Florian Mayer withdrew with a rib injury, giving the Scot a walkover. He has still not played yet as the top eight seeds had a first-round bye.

“I’ll practise again. I mean, you never know whether it’s a good or a bad thing. I mean, you’re obviously prepared to play the match,” said third seed Murray, who next faces Alexandr Dolgopolov of the Ukraine. Japan’s Nishikori, suffering from an ankle problem, was brought down to earth with a bump after his title win despite a strong start against Querrey, who won five straight games from 4-1 down in the decider to seal the match.

Nishikori, at a career high of number 15 in the rankings after his weekend win on home soil against Canada’s Milos Raonic, had on-court treatment on his right ankle, which he said had been both-

ering him since last week.

“I tried to play but he had a good serve,” he said. “I broke him first in the third set but couldn’t finish the match. It’s disappointing but I was close to win with this injury. Nothing I can do,” he said.

There were second round wins for fourth seed Tomas Berdych of the Czech Republic, fifth-seeded Frenchman JoWilfried Tsonga, sixth seed Janko Tipsarevic of Serbia and 13th seed Wawrinka.

But among the seeds to fall were Raonic and the French pair of Richard Gasquet and Gilles Simon. As the season enters its final stages there are four places still up for grabs at next month’s seasonending World Tour Finals in London.

Federer, Djokovic and Murray have all qualified, along with the injured Rafael Nadal. Meanwhile, a blogger in China who made a death threat against Roger

Hornets sting Bobcats NEW ORLEANS: Anthony Davis had 22 points, nine rebounds and blocked a shot, and the New Orleans Hornets defeated the Charlotte Bobcats 97-82 in a preseason game Tuesday night.

Robin Lopez added 18 points, 13 rebounds and three blocks for New Orleans, while Ryan Anderson was 5 of 6 from 3-point range, finishing with 15 points.

Rookie Austin Rivers scored 13 points and Al-Farouq Aminu 12, while Greivis Vasquez had 11 assists.

Ben Gordon had 15 points for Charlotte, while Byron Mullens hit four 3s and finished with 14, but left with a hyperextended left knee in the fourth quarter. Team officials said they expected his injur y to be re -evaluated Wednesday. Kemba Walker and rookie Michael Kidd-Gilchrist each scored 10 points.

Down 57-46 at halftime, the Hornets surged in front for good by opening the third quarter with a 12-0 run during which Davis and Rivers combining for seven points.

In Chicago, Luol Deng scored 18 points while Nazr Mohammed added 13 points and 12 rebounds to help the Chicago Bulls beat the Memphis Grizzlies 92-88 in a preseason game on Tuesday night.

Trailing 52-49 at half, the Bulls scored the first 14 points in the third quarter to pull away. Richard Hamilton made a jumper to give the Bulls a 63-52 lead and Nate Robinson made a 3 in the corner

to extend the Chicago lead to 8165 late in the third quar ter.

Hamilton scored eight points in the third quarter and finished with 13. The Bulls played without Derrick Rose, who is still recovering from knee surgery, stemming from his torn ACL during the 2012 playoffs. Jerome Jordan led the Grizzlies (1-1) with 13 points and Ronald Murray added 11 points.

In Canton, Brandon Jennings and Monta Ellis scored 15 points apiece to lead Milwaukee to a 9780 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Tuesday night in the Bucks’ preseason opener.

Milwaukee placed six players in double figures. The Bucks pulled ahead in the second quarter and led by double figures for most of the second half.

CJ Miles paced Cleveland with 18 points. Kyrie Irving added 16 for the Cavaliers, who defeated Italy’s Montepaschi Siena in their opener Monday.

Mike Dunleavy scored 12 points while Tobias Harris, Milwaukee’s first-round draft pick in 2011, added 11. Bucks guard Beno Udrih left the game in the first quarter after he banged the back of his head on the knee of teammate Larry Sanders. Udrih was face down on the floor for a few moments while being looked at by Milwaukee’s trainer. He walked to the locker room on his own, but didn’t return after playing only 45 seconds. “I’m not sure what I hit on Larry’s leg,” Udrih

Federer said he had apologised, but remained at large after vowing to “assassinate” the world number one, according to an Internet posting. An Internet user under the name “Blue Cat Polytheistic Religion Founder 07” threatened the Swiss top seed before he arrived to play at the Shanghai Masters, prompting organisers to step up security for the event.

“I have not been arrested,” said a posting on China’s popular baidu.com site, where the original threat also appeared. “I took the initiative to contact the relevant people to apologise,” said the message, which was posted around midday on Tuesday. The original threat read: “On October 6, I plan to assassinate Federer for the purpose of tennis extermination.”

The user also posted a doctored image showing a decapitated Federer on his knees on a tennis court, with an axe-

wielding executioner standing next to him. Shanghai Masters organisers said last week ahead of the competition that they were taking the bizarre threat “seriously” while Federer himself labelled it a “distraction” after arriving in the Chinese commercial hub.

Federer’s wife and twin daughters have not travelled to China but he said that decision had nothing to do with the threats. He has been accompanied by security guards in dark suits who also stayed on the sidelines around the court when he practised on Tuesday.

Speaking after winning his opening match on Wednesday against Taiwan’s Lu Yen-hsun, the Swiss 17-time Grand Slam champion said after one quick thought he had put the issue out of his mind.

“Once the match started, got under way, I never thought about it again,” he added.—AFP

USADA: Armstrong dope conspiracy biggest in sport

NEW ORLEANS: Hornets guard Austin Rivers (25) goes to the basket against Charlotte Bobcats center DeSagana Diop (2) during the first half of an NBA preseason basketball game. —AP

said. “I just got a bump on the back of my head.”

Udrih was taken to a local hospital, where the results of a CT scan for a concussion were negative. He returned to the arena and flew back to Milwaukee with his teammates.

Guard Dion Waiters, taken by the Cavaliers with the No. 4 pick in the draft, scored two points in 14

minutes and was benched by coach Byron Scott early in the four th quar ter. Waiters drew Scott’s ire for taking a 23-foot jump shot and was immediately pulled from the game.

“I drew up a play and he messed it up,” Scott said. “To me that was a lack of focus and I figured he didn’t need to play the rest of the game.”—AP

WASHINGTON: “Overwhelming” evidence shows Lance Armstrong engaged in the biggest doping conspiracy in sports history to win the Tour de France seven times, the US Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) said yesterday.

USADA chief executive Travis T. Tygart said USADA has submitted a report on why it banned Armstrong for life in August to the International Cycling Union (UCI) and World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and released more than 1,000 pages of supporting evidence gathered in a probe of Armstrong and the US Postal Service team.

“The evidence of the US Postal Service Pro Cycling Team-run scheme is overwhelming,” Tygart said. “The evidence shows beyond any doubt that the US Postal Service Pro Cycling Team ran the most sophisticated, professionalized and successful doping program that sport has ever seen.”

That includes testimony from 26 people, 15 of them with knowledge of US Postal riders and doping activities, including George Hincapie, who admitted in a statement Wednesday that he took performance-enhancing drugs.

“It’s extremely difficult today to acknowledge that during a part of my career I used banned substances,” he said.

“Early in my professional career, it became clear to me that, given the widespread use of performance enhancing drugs by cyclists at the top of the profession, it was not possible to compete at the highest level without them.

“I deeply regret that choice and sincerely apologize to my family, teammates and fans.”

Other former Armstrong teammates who testified include Frankie Andreu, Michael Barry, Tom Danielson, Tyler Hamilton, Floyd Landis, Levi Leipheimer, Stephen Swart, Christian Vande Velde, Jonathan Vaughters and David Zabriskie.

“Different categories of eyewitness, documentary, first-hand, scientific, direct and circumstantial evidence reveal conclusive and undeniable proof that brings to the light of day for the first time this systemic, sustained and highly professionalized team-run doping conspiracy,” Tygart said.

Armstrong was banned for life by USADA and stripped of his seven Tour de France triumphs from 1999-2005 after declining the chance to challenge the doping charges against him before a USADA arbitration panel.

Armstrong, who has denied any wrongoding, said he was weary of years of allegations against him and tired of fighting, instead hoping to focus on his Livestrong foundation and anti-cancer fundraising activities. The decision not to press ahead with a defense against the charges and take the chance to contest the evidence against him came after Armstrong lost a legal fight in US court to challenge USADA’s system of hearing doping appeals.

“Lance Armstrong was given the same opportunity to come forward and be part of the solution. He rejected it,” Tygart said.

“Instead he exercised his legal right not to contest the evidence and knowingly accepted the imposition of a ban from recognized competition for life and disqualification of his competitive results from 1998 forward.”

The UCI has challenged USADA’s authority to bring charges against Armstrong but WADA backed USADA’s jurisdiction and power to press the case. The UCI could appeal the sanctions against Armstrong to the Court of Arbitration for Sport. Three US Postal team members-director Johan Bruyneel, doctor Pedro Celaya and trainer Jose Marti-have chosen to contest the charges and face a public hearing on the matter, likely later this year.—AFP

Business THURSDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2012

IMF chides EU for ‘critically incomplete’ crisis response Page 22 Trailblazer vrooms into Mideast Page 23 Economic risks still remain in Gulf: Expert

India ‘key player’ in G20: US Fed chief Page 25

Page 24

Mega EADS-BAE merger collapses Analysts say Germany shot it down PARIS: A merger to create the biggest aerospace group in the world between EADS and BAE Systems collapsed yesterday, with analysts saying Germany shot it down from fear of being sidelined. The two groups issued a statement announcing failure, and a source close to the talks said they fell through because of opposition from Germany.

It had looked late on Tuesday as if France had opened the way for an extension of the talks, with sources saying it had agreed to limit its shareholding, with France and Germany having equal shares making 18 percent together. But analysts said Germany feared that if the deal to create a giant worth $45 billion (35 billion euros) went ahead, the power behind the civilian arm of the group would shift wholly to Toulouse in southern France where airliner maker Airbus is based.

And Berlin feared that the military operations would be run from London where BAE Systems is based. “BAE Systems and EADS announce that they have decided to terminate their discussions,” the firms said in a statement ahead of a takeover deadline. BAE Systems was seen as a potential target for being taken over or being broken up if the merger fell through. The two groups insisted that the deal had been based on “sound industrial logic” which “represented a unique opportunity to create a combination from two strong and successful companies greater than the sum of the parts.”

The source, who declined to be named, said that “it did not work because the Germans blocked it.” In London, BAE Systems said it had terminated the talks because some of the governments involved could not reach an agreement. BAE Systems chief executive Ian King said the firms “were unable to reach an acceptable agreement with our various government stakeholders.”

He said: “We believe the merger presented a unique opportunity for BAE Systems and EADS to combine two world class and comple-

mentary businesses to create a world leading aerospace, defense and security group.” Shares in EADS leapt higher in Paris on the news, while those in BAE Systems fell slightly in London. Late on Tuesday, a breakthrough on state interference by France appeared to have opened the way for the deal.

The groups were aiming to form a company bigger than US rival Boeing across the civil and defense fields. The main sticking point was initially believed to have been reluctance by France to meet demands by Britain, but also by the firms themselves, for minimal government interference in the proposed group. Germany was always watchful meanwhile that it obtained as many votes in the company as France. British takeover rules had given parties to merger and takeover talks 28 days from the initial announcement to make their position clear to market authorities in London.

The clock would have stopped at 5.00 pm yesterday London time, but the two sides were entitled to ask for an extension of the deadline if they thought they were close to a deal.

In London, shares in BAE slipped by 0.37 to fell by showed a slight fall of 0.18 percent to 322.30 pence in afternoon trading, while EADS shares had leapt by 4.87 percent to 27.37 euros in Paris.

The overall indices for both markets were modestly lower, meanwhile. EADS wanted to expand in the United States and gain better access to a civil aviation market which is forecast to grow in coming years, to boost its arms industry activities, and to broaden its cost base from euros into dollars, the currency of aviation sales.

But US authorities were also following the merger talks closely because BAE Systems is an important supplier to US defense industries, and the United States is wary of possible state interference in the management of its defense contractors. In addition, Airbus is the main competitor to Boeing in the business of building airliners. —AFP

CUMBRIA: The first Astute class nuclear submarine is rolled out at the BAE Systems production plant in Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria, England.

(AP file photo)

22

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2012

BUSINESS

IMF chides EU for ‘critically incomplete’ crisis response Call to restore sagging confidence TOKYO: The International Monetary Fund urged European policymakers to deepen the financial and fiscal ties within the euro area with some urgency to restore sagging confidence in the global financial system.

The IMF’s stark tone on the euro area debt crisis in its semi-annual checkup of the world’s financial health was in marked contrast to the mood in Europe, where a European Central Bank decision to buy bonds of countries that accept an assistance program has removed immediate concerns about the survival of the euro.

“Despite many important steps already taken by policymakers, this agenda remains critically incomplete, exposing the euro area to a downward spiral of capital flight, breakup fears and economic decline,” the IMF said in its Global Financial Stability Report (GFSR) released on Wednesday. It said the euro area’s debt crisis was the main threat to global financial stability, which had weakened in the last six months to leave confidence “very fragile”.

The euro area’s plodding progress means European banks are likely to offload $2.8 trillion in assets over two years to cut their risk exposure, an increase of $200 billion from a prediction six months ago, the IMF estimated. That could shrink credit supply in the periphery by 9 percent by the end of 2013, crimping economic growth.

The report adds to a gloomy backdrop ahead of the IMF’s semiannual meeting to be held in Tokyo later this week, which will gather the world’s financial leaders.

On Tuesday, the Fund said the global economic slowdown was worsening as it cut its growth forecasts for the second time since April and warned US and European policymakers that failure to fix their economic ills would prolong the slump.

A scenario where Europe muddles through, addressing haphazardly each new flare-up in the pro-

tracted crisis rather than adopting a comprehensive plan, would prove costly, Jose Vinals, director of the IMF’s monetary and capital markets department and the main author of the financial stability report, said.

“The more time that goes by without a complete solution, the

President Vitor Constancio said his message to the IMF and World Bank gatherings is that Europe has made much progress in recent months.

“That should be encouraging for the world economy,” he told Reuters in Tokyo.

A German finance ministry

capacity to manage through this, you are still likely to see a very, very challenging growth environment in Europe for a long period of time,” Geithner said during a visit to New Delhi.

On Tuesday, ECB President Mario Draghi said the bond buy-

SENADI: IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde (right) and World Bank President Jim Yong Kim (left) visit a seaside adventure field in tsunami disaster-stricken areas that survived destruction in a coastal district in Sendai yesterday. —AFP more are the eventual costs for everybody of resolving the crisis,” he told Reuters in an interview.

Europe’s troubles should also serve as a lesson to the heavily indebted United States and Japan that delaying the necessary policy adjustments until markets force their hands would lead to “harsher economic outcomes”, Vinals told a briefing.

“We should not let the current market conditions, which have improved, lead to a false sense of security,” he said. Still, ECB Vice-

source said in Berlin that the EU’s most powerful member would strive to ensure that the debt crisis was not the sole focus of the IMF meeting. Last week, Canada’s Finance Minister Jim Flaherty expressed his latest sign of frustration over progress in resolving the crisis by saying it represented a “clear and present danger”.

US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said yesterday that resolving the euro area’s debt problems would take time. “Even if one is optimistic about the will and

JP Morgan picks Nomura banker for senior job DUBAI: JP Morgan Chase Inc has hired Ahmed Saeed from Nomura Holdings to head up its Middle East business focused on public sector clients, the US bank said in a statement yesterday. Nomura, in the process of making $1 billion in cost cuts, is cutting investment banking jobs in Dubai, sources told Reuters last month. JP Morgan, on the other hand, has been beefing up in the region and has made some top-level banking appointments this year.

Saeed was most recently a managing director at Nomura’s investment banking

ing program, although not yet in operation, provided a “fully effective backstop” for the euro zone to avoid destructive scenarios and had already helped calm market fears.

The IMF acknowledged that the ECB’s bond buying agreement had restored some market confidence and narrowed the spread between core and peripheral debt in the region. But private investors still lacked confidence in peripheral European markets and the difference between the yields on

peripheral and core debt from banks and companies remained high, threatening any recovery, it said. Under current policies, the IMF estimated European banks will shed $2.8 trillion in assets between the third quarter of 2011 and the end of 2013, higher than the $2.6 trillion it had predicted in April, further squeezing credit availability.

And if European policymakers do not fulfill promises to establish a common bank supervisor, and peripheral countries do not follow through with adjustment programs, the costs could be even higher, with $4.5 trillion in lost assets, and additional impacts on employment and investment.

Supply of credit in the periphery could tumble by 18 percent.

The IMF said risks from the eurozone could also spill into emerging markets, where growth is already slowing.

Countries in central and eastern Europe are the most vulnerable to financial shocks, given their exposure to the euro zone and their own entrenched external debts, the report said.

And while the United States and Japan have benefited from safe-haven flows away from the euro zone, the IMF said both countries need to do more to reduce their fiscal burdens in the medium term.

The US faces a so-called “fiscal cliff”-government spending cuts and tax rises due to take effect early in 2013. Japan is carrying the biggest public debt burden among leading industrialized nations at twice the size of its $5 trillion economy at a time when its social welfare spending is under constant pressure from a rapidly ageing population. “The choice today is between making the necessary but tough policy and political decisions or delaying them once more - in the false hope that time is on our side,” Vinals said. “It is not.” — Reuters

News

in brief

Maaden Q3 net soars DUBAI: Saudi Arabian Mining Co (Maaden) said its third-quarter net profit soared, beating analysts forecasts, helped mainly by higher prices of its core products. The state-controlled minerals firm made a net profit of 311 million riyals ($82.93 million) compared with 27 million riyals a year-ago, it said in a bourse statement yesterday. Five analysts polled by Reuters on average expected the company to post third-quarter earnings of 241 million riyals.

Manchanda Nakheel CEO DUBAI: Dubai developer Nakheel, whose flagship projects include islands in the shape of palm trees, has appointed Sanjay Manchanda as chief executive officer (CEO), the company said in a statement yesterday. Manchanda had been acting CEO since June 2011, prior to which he was seconded to the firm as chief financial officer and played a leading role in the company’s financial restructuring.

Nakheel, a unit of Dubai World, was forced to separately negotiate a restructuring agreement with creditors, after running into debt troubles in the wake of the global economic downturn and a collapse of Dubai’s property market.

NBAD places renminbi bond HONG KONG: National Bank of Abu Dhabi, Hong Kong branch, has completed its second offshore renminbi bond in a CNH200m ($32m) 1-year issue at 3.1%. That pricing translated to around 135bp over Libor, assuming mid-swaps. BNP Paribas arranged the deal, which will settle on October 16.

NBAD’s debut offshore renminbi bond issue was a CNH100m 1-year note issue at 2.9% in early September this year. That piece was quoted at 3.418%/2.917% in the secondary market. The borrower joins a handful of Gulf-headquartered institutions, including Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank and Emirates NBD, which have tapped the Dim Sum market. But most of the deals have been small in sizes as they have been triggered by reverse inquiries. The last Middle Eastern Dim Sum was ADCB Islamic Finance (Cayman)’s CNH100m 5year note issue at a yield of 4.125% last week.

QIIB eyes 5-yr dollar sukuk DUBAI: Qatar International Islamic Bank plans to issue a benchmark-sized, five-year dollar sukuk, arranging banks said yesterday. Benchmark-sized is normally understood to mean at least $500 million. Early price talk for the sukuk was released at 205 basis points over midswaps. HSBC, Standard Char tered and QNB Capital are mandated arrangers on the deal. Investor meetings are due to conclude in London on Monday. QIIB’s sukuk would follow a sukuk issue from Qatar Islamic Bank last week, which raised $750 million at a profit rate of 2.5 percent.

OPEC hikes world oil demand forecasts

division in Dubai, where he handled public sector clients for the Japanese bank.

He will report to Abdulaziz al-Helaissi, head of JP Morgan’s global corporate bank for the Middle East and North Africa and also to Daniel Zelikow, head of the bank’s international public sector group, the bank said.

In April, JP Morgan named Declan Hegarty, previously head of HSBC’s Abu Dhabi business as a managing director at its global corporate bank division covering the United Arab Emirates. —Reuters

VIENNA: The Organization of PetroleumExporting Countries (OPEC) raised its predictions for world oil demand for 2012 and 2013 yesterday but was pessimistic, citing major economic uncertainty ahead. This year, demand was expected to reach 88.81 million barrels per day (mbpd), OPEC said in its monthly report, upping its forecast from 88.74 mbpd last month.

This would represent an increase of 770,000 barrels per day (bpd) compared to 2011, when demand was 88.04 mbpd, according to revised figures. For 2013, demand was set at 89.60 mbpd, up from the September

prediction of 89.55 mbpd. “Economic uncertainty in the US, EU and China is determining the fate of the world’s energy use not only for the rest of this year but also throughout next year,” OPEC said.

Slower industrial production, along with high fuel prices, which contributed to lower mileage in the transportation sector, were among the main reasons behind a drop in oil use, especially in Europe, China and North America, it said.

This was counterbalanced this year by increased demand in places like Japan, which is trying to compensate for lost nuclear pow-

er, and India, which suffered mass power outages.

For next year, OPEC warned of a “downside risk, especially in the first half of the year” on world demand, due to economic uncertainty.

Risks linked to growth estimates, fuel prices and the weather “could reduce the world oil demand growth forecast by 20 percent next year,” the cartel, which pumps a third of the world’s crude, also said. The countries to watch will be the United States and China, as their level of demand “can change the rhythm of the oil demand pattern” worldwide, it added. —AFP

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 .4460000 .3600000 .2960000 .2840000 .2840000 .0040000 .0020000 .0760810 .7412350 .3870000 .0720000 .7264690 .0430000

.2860000 .4610000 .3690000 .3070000 .2940000 .2980000 .0058500 .0035000 .0768460 .7486580 .4100000 .0780000 .7339520 .0510000

CUSTOMER TRANSFER RATES US Dollar/KD .2802500 .2823500 GB Pound/KD .4496050 .4529740 Euro .3638070 .3665330 Swiss francs .2998130 .3020590 Canadian dollars .2874510 .2896050 Danish Kroner .0487810 .0491460 Swedish Kroner .0422890 .0426060 Australian dlr .2866680 .2888160 Hong Kong dlr .0361500 .0364210 Singapore dlr .2281140 .2298240 Japanese yen .0035750 .0036010 Indian Rs/KD .0000000 .0054170 Sri Lanka rupee .0000000 .0022050 Pakistan rupee .0000000 .0029670 Bangladesh taka .0000000 .0034770 UAE dirhams .0763310 .0769030 Bahraini dinars .7436650 .7492370 Jordanian dinar .0000000 .3993640 Saudi Riyal/KD .0747530 .0753130 Omani riyals .7282060 .7336620 Philippine Peso .0000000 .0068720

Al-Muzaini Exchange Co. Japanese Yen Indian Rupees Pakistani Rupees Srilankan Rupees Nepali Rupees Singapore Dollar Hongkong Dollar Bangladesh Taka Philippine Peso Thai Baht Malaysian Ringgit

ASIAN COUNTRIES 3.605 5.321 2.950 2.194 3.341 229.950 36.397 3.439 6.784 9.181 91.682

GCC COUNTRIES 75.270 77.556 733.140 749.700 76.859

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 47.900 46.284 1.317 179.940 398.150 1.894 4.924 33.391

EUROPEAN & AMERICAN COUNTRIES US Dollar Transfer 282.150 Euro 364.540 Sterling Pound 452.570 Canadian dollar 289.210 Turkish lire 154.720 Swiss Franc 300.580 US Dollar Buying 280.950

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

SELL CASH 291.700 749.950 3.700 291.700 553.800 45.900 49.600 167.800 48.030 366.800 37.070 5.540 0.032 0.161 0.246 3.700 399.630 0.191 94.670 45.200 4.340 234.000 1.827

50.300 732.500 3.100 6.990 76.000 75.290 230.690 36.410 2.686 454.900 43.000 303.200 4.200 9.530 198.263 76.890 282.400 1.360

732.320 2.965 6.790 77.570 75.290 230.690 36.410 2.195 452.900 301.700 4.200 9.370 76.790 282.000

SELL DRAFT 290.200 749.950 3.441 290.200

230.700 46.292 365.300 36.920 5.335 0.031

3.350 232.500

76.730 77.380 75.135 397.380 46.230 2.191 5.334 2.948 3.445 6.780 691.503 4.592 9.260 4.375 3.425 91.525

Kuwait Bahrain Intl Exchange Co.

10 Tola 1,891.820 TRAVELLER’S CHEQUE 452.900 282.000

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 292.91 292.59 304.22 366.01 281.55 454.56 3.68 3.457 5.308 2.195 3.327 2.957 76.72 749.67 46.29 401.12 732.76 77.75 75.29

SELL CASH 294.000 290.500 304.000 364.500 282.450 453.800 3.690 3.600 5.500 2.320 3.600 3.150 77.350 749.500 47.800 399.000 735.000 78.000 75.750

Dollarco Exchange Co. Ltd 399.590 0.190 94.670

UAE Dirhams Qatari Riyals Saudi Riyals Jordanian Dinar Egyptian Pound Sri Lankan Rupees Indian Rupees Pakistani Rupees Bangladesh Taka Philippines Pesso Cyprus pound Japanese Yen Thai Bhat Syrian Pound Nepalese Rupees Malaysian Ringgit

GOLD

UAE Exchange Centre WLL

GOLD 332.000 168.000 86.000

20 Gram 10 Gram 5 Gram

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

Rate for Transfer US Dollar Canadian Dollar Sterling Pound Euro Swiss Frank Bahrain Dinar

Selling Rate 281.900 288.495 451.740 363.585 299.600 746.325

Currency Rate per 1000 (Tran) US Dollar 281.900 Pak Rupees 2.950 Indian Rupees 5.321 Sri Lankan Rupees 2.200 Bangladesh Taka 3.450 Philippines Peso 6.830 UAE Dirhams 76.855 Saudi Riyals 75.330 Bahraini Dinars 749.400 Egyptian Pounds 46.284 Pound Sterling 456.300 Indonesian Rupiah 2.990 Yemeni Riyal 1.550 Euro 368.200 Canadian Dollars 293.900 Nepali rupee 3.395

Al Mulla Exchange Currency Transfer Rate (Per 1000) US Dollar 281.500 Euro 365.050 Pound Sterling 452.650 Canadian Dollar 290.500 Japanese Yen 3.645 Indian Rupee 5.315 Egyptian Pound 46.245 Sri Lankan Rupee 2.192 Bangladesh Taka 3.447 Philippines Peso 6.780 Pakistan Rupee 2.954 Bahraini Dinar 749.700 UAE Dirham 76.600 Saudi Riyal 75.100 *Rates are subject to change

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2012

BUSINESS

By Shakir Reshamwala

R

oomy. Capable. Powerful. The Trailblazer is back. The all-new redesigned SUV was launched in the Middle East on Sunday in a stunning ceremony in the Ras Al-Khaimah desert. Based on General Motors’ new global body-on-frame midsize truck architecture, the new-generation Chevrolet Trailblazer combines the hauling and towing capability of a body-on-frame SUV with the ride comfort and efficiency of a crossover. Inside, the Trailblazer features leading interior space and intuitive three-row tumble and fold-flat seating, representing Chevrolet’s most significant play in the competitive body-on-frame midsize SUV segment.

Put to its paces in the rolling sand dunes and gravelly mountain trails of Ras AlKhaimah, the Trailblazer revealed itself as a robust vehicle that is equally comfortable on city roads and rugged terrains alike. Vehicles destined for the Middle East are also optimized for regional climate conditions and customer preferences. Full-sized third-row seats, powerful air-conditioning, integrated running boards and a host of other safety and comfort features give the Trailblazer an edge over other SUVs in its class.

“The Trailblazer was first introduced in 2002, and it quickly became Chevrolet’s bestselling SUV. The Trailblazer show vehicle made its global debut last November at the Dubai International Motor Show, which is a reflection of the importance of this market for Chevrolet.” said John Stadwick, General Motors Middle East President and Managing Director. “Without question, the all-new Trailblazer will be one of the toughest members of the Chevrolet family - the perfect vehicle to take on the Middle East’s competitive midsize SUV segment.” added Stadwick.

Roberto Rempel, GM’s Global Vehicle Chief Engineer for Midsize Trucks and SUVs, said, “Indicative of its namesake, the new Trailblazer is equipped with authentic ‘tow anything, go anywhere’ capabilities thanks to a robust body-on-frame structure, and fourwheel-drive capability”. “We believe the new Trailblazer offers the strength, design, capability and refinement needed to compete with the world’s best off-road vehicles.” added Rempel.

Available in two- and four-wheel-drive configurations, the Trailblazer is powered by a 3.6-liter V6 with Variable Valve Timing matched with a six speed automatic transmission, which delivers an optimal balance of power, performance and fuel economy. The Trailblazer’s foundation for both its on- and off-road capabilities is its robust body-onframe architecture. With the support of an independent five-link rear suspension, a feature found in more upmarket, premium SUVs, the Trailblazer displays none of the typical characteristics of conventional body-onframe SUVs. In fact, it enjoys a combination of best-in-class luxurious ride and responsiveness.

The use of coil springs throughout also provides the Trailblazer with better suspension articulation, a useful trait in off-road conditions, in addition to providing passenger car-like handling dynamics on the road. The vehicle’s off-road capability is also backed up by its best-in-class ground clearance. “Our objective when developing the Trailblazer was to achieve ride and handling dynamics that match, and in many cases exceed, those of similar-size crossover vehicles,” said Rempel. “The Trailblazer will cater to a wide range of driving styles and requirements. It is

car-like responsive and its premium ride quality, while offering the off-road capability that our customers demand, makes it the complete SUV package.”

The Trailblazer is equipped with Hill Descent Control that allows a smooth and controlled descent in rough terrain without the driver needing to touch the brake pedal.

The depression of a button on the console enables the vehicle to descend using the antilock brake system to control each wheel’s speed. If the vehicle accelerates without the driver input, the system will automatically apply the brakes to slow it down to the desired vehicle speed. A 3.6-liter High-Feature V6 engine with Variable Valve Timing matched with a six speed automatic transmission delivers an optimal balance of power, performance and fuel economy. It is rated at 236 horsepower and 329 Nm of torque, and delivers excellent fuel economy of 12.2 L/100km.

The Trailblazer’s bold road presence was created by the GM South America Design Center in Sao Caetano do Sul, Brazil. Exterior highlights include a “body in-wheels out” design that delivers high approach and departure angles. A dramatic power dome in the hood combined with a raised cowl gives the Trailblazer a strong, purposeful appearance, while higher-mounted dual projector headlamps are positioned beneath the power dome, emphasizing the visual strength in the face of the vehicle. Also prominent is the contemporary dual-port grille - an unmistakable Chevrolet cue - that carries a three-dimensional grille mesh. The grille positioned in a more upright position conveys a sense of confidence and power.

An integrated aluminum roof rack system is free of stanchions, creating a clean, uncluttered and refined look. The system is

also fully capable of carrying loads up to 100 kg. The horizontal LED tail lamps on both the lift gate and the rear quarter surfaces provide depth and detail. A more “squared off” rear window creates presence and volume to the upper rear portion of the vehicle silhouette. The integrated running boards aid entry and exit from the vehicle and serve as enhanced protection from road debris. The 6-spoke, 18-inch machined aluminum wheels with 265/60R18-inch tires not only provide a stylish look, but are optimized for mass, ride and handling performance, stopping performance and towing capability.

The ultimate range of accessories are

RAS AL-KHAIMAH: (From left) John Stadwick, President and Managing Director GM Middle East Operations, Roberto R Rempel, Global Vehicle Chief Engineer, Midsize Trucks General Motors and Fabricio Toscano, Design Manager General Motors South America pose with the new 2013 Chevrolet Trailblazer after its launch at the Banyan Tree Al Wadi resort late on Sunday. offered to personalize each one’s drive in every way, including the roof rack cross rails, luggage carrier side rail, nudge bar, hood protector and roof spoiler. “The Trailblazer delivers a great combination of capabilities, from negotiating off-road trails to daily city driving, that we wanted to convey visually,” said Matt Noone, Director of Design for GM do Brasil.

“There’s an obvious sense of muscle in the design, but at the same time a very sophisticated appearance in line with the world’s premium SUVs. From every angle, the Trailblazer looks agile and athletic, with a refined finish that makes it a vehicle our customers will aspire to own.” The Trailblazer is available in eight exterior colors: Summit White, Switchblade Silver Metallic, Black Sapphire

Metallic, Royal Grey Metallic, Sizzle Red, Auburn Brown, Oceanic Blue and Blue Mountain.

Signature Chevrolet cues continue inside, conveying spaciousness, flexibility and a sophisticated appearance in all control interfaces. With a flowing instrument panel, integrated center stack and signature Chevrolet dual cockpit design, the interior of the allnew Trailblazer combines car-like characteristics with the boldness expected of a true SUV. The leather bucket seats match the flow lines visible in the instrument panel. A dynamic, dual-gauge instrument cluster combined with LED Ice Blue illumination with contrasting white digits and points creates a sophisticated appearance.

The seven-passenger interior offers intuitive three-row tumble and/or fold-flat seat versatility and best-in-class spaciousness in the third row. “We made the seating both flexible and intuitive. There’s no need to pull out the owner’s manual to figure out how to configure the seats,” Noone said. “The third row in the all-new Trailblazer isn’t an afterthought.

It’s an authentic third row where people can sit comfortably for long trips. Combine that with refined interior appointments and it is easy to see why the Trailblazer really is an allpurpose vehicle.”

The all-new Trailblazer comes in LT and LTZ trim levels, which are priced from AED 114,000 to AED 129,000 in the United Arab Emirates. It will be available in Kuwait soon.

24

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2012

business

Economic risks still remain in Gulf: Expert SEI sees huge potential in Kuwait market

By Ben Garcia KUWAIT: The financial world is immersed in uncertainty. In the Middle East, the turning points were revealed in two separate occasions—-the 2009 exodus of investors from Dubai and the crisis in Bahrain two years ago.

These two key episodes in the Gulf highlighted to regional investors that credit and political risks existed in the region, prompting the need for advice from organizations such as SEI’s for more prudent investments and asset management.

SEI Investments Company is a global provider of asset management, investment processing and investment operations solutions. Patrick Disney, SEI’s, Managing Director, Institutional Group, says, “The two main events helped us define the risk and benefits.” Disney was speaking with the Kuwait Times during a short visit to Kuwait to meet SEI clients. “The challenge in Dubai in 2009 reminds investors that there are risks in the Middle East. The second was when the unrest in Bahrain occurred which reminds investors that there are political risks in the Gulf,” Disney asserted. But despite difficulties, the company remains resilient and committed to the region and in fact used the economic slow-down to their advantage. “We have to be very flexible about the way we position our solutions and the segments in which we work through the crisis. Our commitment to the region has been certainly unwavering and we continue to benefit from that,” he added.

Advice for growth With the economic crisis and political situation (Arab Spring) currently still unfolding, Disney advised investors to remain firm and diversify their assets. “They come and ask for help so what do we do? We advise them to diversify their investments. Now families are diversifying their assets and investing them globally. That is the right thing to do,” he pointed out. “We have been talking to investors in the region on what to do; we offer investment strategy for institutions that are looking to invest outside the region and taking a global approach to investing and presenting our ideas on how we go about it which we believe is very distinct and unique way,” he added.

SWF cooperation In the region, SEI, which was established in 1968, works with sovereign wealth funds, pension funds and family offices. “Each of those segments has slightly different implementation of global investment solutions. Our core capability is leveraging our global investment capability. For families we help them understand how much income they require to support their next generation and helping them invest in a prudent way to make sure they have enough income to support back. With Pension Funds, we help them understands what are their liabilities are and what their payments are, their welfare system, helping them match the interest rates, risk and help them deploy money to meet their objectives and demands,” Disney explained. For the last

12 years, Disney has been heavily involved in representing the company in the United States and MENA markets. In the current environment, according to Disney, family offices are looking at the high returns and yields through their portfolio, which is almost similar to pension funds, that need to generate a certain amount of money because they have bills to pay. As a result, the key is yield enhancement and preservation “So we provide portfolio and solution approaches and give calculated risks to help them achieve their objectives,” he said.

Jahangir Aka, Senior Executive Officer SEI’s Head Middle East, emphasized the importance of the Kuwait market in the Middle East.

He said, “Kuwaitis have been investors globally for years and it’s been a good and sophisticated market for a long time. It is a well-developed market and we remain keen on opportunities here. Some of the younger markets in the region are focused on direct investing or private equity investing; as a result they are less attractive markets for us. For a more mature market like Kuwait they have a better appreciation of our capabilities and on what our approach is all about,” he added.

Comparing Kuwait to Dubai market, according to Aka, Dubai is a more expat-focused market whereas Kuwait is more on local or domestic and institutional market. “The types of buying behavior are quite different,” he added.

According to him, Middle East or the GCC has a significant concentration of wealth as large families continue to dominate the business landscape. “In fact, there has been

growth particularly in the numbers of the middle class in Dubai, Kuwait and Qatar. In Saudi we see an emergent middle class. The wealth concentration is something that actually even in the West becomes much more in the larger groups or larger families; that has always been the case in the Middle East anyway,” he said.

Asked on who is in the best position this time to come out first from the crisis, Disney noted that companies and countries which were most focused on leverage or debt have been the ones that have had most difficulty coming out of the crisis. “So when you look at

the emerging market you see they were less (affected), the sounder and established economies were the ones that were giving problems (vulnerability) so the emerging markets had less leverage so they are in the better position to come out first.” As of June 30, 2012, through its subsidiaries and partnerships, in which the company has a significant interest, SEI manages or administers $424 billion in mutual fund and pooled or separately managed assets, including $182 billion in assets under management and $242 billion in client assets under administration.

KUWAIT: Patrick Disney (right) with Jahangir Aka talking to the Kuwait Times.

India reforms cheered, impact still uncertain NEW DELHI: India’s reforms blitz has cheered markets and changed perceptions of the government but the outcome is far from assured, with the nation a long way from returning to a high-growth path, analysts say.

Since mid-September, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s Congressled government has opened the retail, broadcasting and aviation sectors and proposed inviting foreign investment into the insurance and pension industries. But some of this deregulation, which the media has dubbed the country’s second reform “big bang” since Singh as finance minister began opening India’s economy to the world two decades ago, may not have much immediate effect.

“The announcement is symbolically significant, partly because the reforms have been under discussion for years and partly because the decision shows evidence of sustained (government) momentum,” said Eurasia Group analyst Anjalika Barali.

But they may be “short on impact,” she added. Just nine of India’s 29 states say they will implement the retail reform and allow in foreign supermarkets, with the others fearful of the effect on the hundreds of thousands of small store owners.

And while US giant Wal-Mart plans to open its first outlet in the next 1824 months, other large retailers like Britain’s Tesco and France’s Carrefour, which initially expressed interest, are now struggling financially, analysts say. In the aviation sector, the government has permitted foreign carriers to

take a stake in Indian airlines, but the sector is drowning in debt and struggling with high prices of fuel and airport landing rights.

Kingfisher Airlines, owned by flamboyant liquor tycoon Vijay Mallya, is desperate for a foreign buyer, but is finding it tough to attract interest. The Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation, a consultancy, says it does not expect “any foreign airline to invest in Kingfisher in its current state with its massive ($2.5billion) debt burden, crippled fleet and poor employee morale”.

Finally, the government’s plans to raise foreign ownership caps in the massively underpenetrated insurance and pension sectors must still clear India’s fractious parliament.

The reforms have already cost the government its parliamentary majority with the exit of a key ally who has threatened to bring a no-confidence motion against its former partner when the house reopens next month.

It could be “back to the old brick wall,” warned CLSA economist Rajeev Malik, referring to the gridlock in previous parliamentary sessions.

As it slashed its growth forecast for the Indian economy this year to 4.9 percent, the International Monetary Fund said on Tuesday that the “outlook for India is unusually uncertain”.

The IMF’s 2012 forecast for Indian economic expansion was its lowest in a decade, the institution said in its World Economic Outlook report.

The moves to open up sectors of the economy to foreign investment also fall short of addressing the so-

called “structural problems” holding back the development of India’s economy, Asia’s third biggest, economists say. Rigid labor laws discourage companies from hiring, antiquated land acquisition rules make setting up industrial projects difficult, while infrastructure from roads to power is old and insufficient.

Red tape and corruption are also huge problems for businesses and the government still runs large areas of the economy, including banks, mining companies and energy groups.

Subsidies on everything from fuel to fertilizers have also blown apart the government’s budgeting, with a longdelayed move to hike the price of subsidized diesel as part of the reform package seen as a small move in the right direction.

But with general elections in 2014 and two state polls looming, the Congress-led government “knows its limits,” said Ajay Bodke, strategy head at India’s Prabhudas Lilladher investment house.

“The government has swung round perceptions of itself to being actionoriented rather than asleep,” he said.

“But they haven’t addressed the really hard stuff like substantially reducing subsidies that is the most politically treacherous.”

Investors have so far liked what they have seen from Prime Minister Singh and his reformist finance minister-shares are up nearly 10 percent since the end of August-but justifying the optimism is the government’s next challenge. — AFP

India auto body cuts year sales forecast NEW DELHI: India’s top auto industry body yesterday slashed its full-year car sales growth forecast to the low single digits as a slowing economy and high fuel costs keep customers out of showrooms.

The Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) cut its annual car sales growth forecast for the financial year to March 2013 to one-to-three percent, from an initial prediction of 10-to12 percent.

If the forecast proves accurate, it means growth this year would be the weakest since the onset of the global financial crisis in 2008-09 when annual car sales rose just 0.18 percent.

The cut in the forecast came after Indian car sales slumped in September for a second straight month, by 5.36 percent to 157,536 units from a year ago. “Economic growth is not encouraging, inflation is not under control and the cost of vehicle ownership is high,” SIAM president S Sandilya told a news conference in New Delhi.

India’s market outlook is of vital importance to global automakers from GM to Toyota which have been steering to India and China with their billion-plus populations to boost sales and counter sluggish demand in developed nations.

Interest rates remain high as the central bank seeks to counter still elevated inflation.

The industry body said it expected sales to pick up during the religious festival season, which gets into full swing this month when buying big-ticket goods is seen as auspicious, pushing car sales growth into positive territory. Car

sales for the six-month to September period were down 1.07 percent from a year earlier. The economy has slowed sharply to 5.5 percent in the most recent financial quarter from near double-digits in the past decade.

The automobile body also said it had urged the government to extend its flagship Automotive Mission Plan by 10 years.

The plan aims to achieve sales of auto and auto components of $145 bil-

lion by 2026 but if growth continues at current levels “we will be $34 billion short” of the target in 2016, SIAM director general Vishnu Mathur said.

The plan aimed to double the auto sector’s contributions to India’s gross domestic product (GDP) to 10 percent in 2016 from five percent in 2006.

Even if automobile and auto component sales picked up sharply, “we have missed the bus” to meet the 2016 goal, Mathur said. — AFP

NEW DELHI: Press photographers take pictures of a Ferrari 458 during the launching of its first dealership in India.

India’s top auto industry body yesterday, has slashed its full-year car sales growth forecast to the low single digits as a slowing economy and high fuel costs keep customers out of showrooms. — AFP

25

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2012

BUSINESS

India’s unpaid airline staff shaken by suicide MUMBAI: Frustration and anxiety are etched on the faces of staff at India’s grounded Kingfisher Airlines as they gather at Mumbai’s domestic airport each morning-not to work, but to vent their anger.

On strike to demand wages that have not been paid for up to seven months, workers told AFP how they were struggling to provide for their families, with little cause for optimism that the debt-ridden company will honor its debts.

“I’ve been borrowing money from friends who now work in overseas airlines,” said a 26-year-old engineer and the sole breadwinner of his family who said he was struggling with his mother’s medical bills for a knee problem.

Banners waved by the protestersmainly pilots and engineers-lampoon the cigar-puffing billionaire tycoon who owns the airline, Vijay Mallya, known as “the King of Good Times”.

One poster shows the liquor baron and co-owner of a Formula One racing team sitting on a toilet seat and the hands of Kingfisher employees collecting his excreta in a begging bowl.

At a gathering on Friday, many spoke grimly of the news in that morning’s papers about the wife of a Kingfisher technician who hanged herself from a ceiling fan in New Delhi. A suicide note

blamed financial stress, police said.

“How many more deaths does the airline want?” said an emotional engineer, who said he had sold off his family’s gold ornaments and insurance policies and taken loans from friends to provide for for his loved ones. “We have supported the airline for the past year, during its tough times. Look at the reward we have got,” he said, declining like others to give his name fearing a company backlash.

Loyalty to the firm still remains, the engineer said, but the 4,000 or so employees-none of whom have been paid since April and some for longerwant their salaries.

Relations between the management and its staff reached boiling point last month after a series of meetings at which Kingfisher declined to commit to when it would settle its dues, leading employees to refuse to go back to work.

The carrier grounded its fleet last week and declared a partial lock-out, blaming “recalcitrant employees”. India’s airline regulator has since warned that the license for what was once India’s second-biggest airline might be revoked.

With the suicide and protests, criticism is increasingly directed at Mallya and the contrast between his lifestyle and those of his employees who have stuck by the airline while others have joined the com-

petition. “If some of you think cancelling flights, speaking to media, or disgracing our company will produce cash and salaries, you are wrong,” was a blunt writ-

as “criminal executive officer” after reports of his $760,000 pay packet for the year to March 2012. Yet he too has reportedly not been paid since April.

MUMBAI: Striking employees of India’s Kingfisher Airlines preparing a placard before a start of a protest march at the domestic airport in Mumbai.

Frustration and anxiety are etched on the faces of staff at India’s grounded Kingfisher Airlines as they gather at Mumbai’s domestic airport each morning — not to work, but to vent their anger. —AFP ten message he delivered to staff in May. Kingfisher CEO Sanjay Aggarwal has also come under fire, depicted by posters

“We have seen the good face of Mallya and now we’re seeing the bad one,” said one striker.

But while the tycoon’s empire-spanning beer, whiskey, a cricket team and fertilizers-is not seen as in doubt, recent moves suggest he too is facing a financial crunch. His flagship United Breweries (UB), India’s biggest brewer, is in talks to sell a stake of the profitable liquor empire to Diageo, the world’s largest distiller, which analysts say could raise $800 million.

The 56-year-old is also desperate for a foreign airline to pump fresh capital into Kingfisher after India relaxed its investment policies.

But analysts are doubtful anyone will come forward to rescue a company drowning in a debt pile estimated at $2.49 billion. “Employees reflect the personality of an airline and when morale has been extinguished... it is akin to operating an airline without a soul,” said a report on Kingfisher from the Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation, an aviation consultancy.

The airline, now India’s smallest, has until October 20 to respond to the regulator and demonstrate that it is a “safe, efficient and reliable service” or risk being shut down.

For employees, too, time and patience is running out. “It is shameful if I have to ask my parents for help again,” said another technician. —AFP

Japan economy shaky as island spat hits business Recovery may go into reverse gear

MUMBAI: US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner (second left) and US Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke (second right) talk with Deepak Parekh, Chairman of HDFC bank and Adi Godrej, President of Confederation of Indian Industries (CII) & Chairman of the Godrej Group during a breakfast round table meeting with Indian CEO’s in Mumbai yesterday. —AFP

India ‘key player’ in G20: US Fed chief MUMBAI: India is becoming an increasingly “key player” on the world stage, US Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke said yesterday, after talks with the country’s central bank chief in Mumbai.

Bernanke and US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, on a two-day visit to the country to forge closer ties, met Reserve Bank of India (RBI) governor Duvvuri Subbarao in the commercial capital.

“We had a very constructive first meeting. We discussed policy challenges facing both the US and India and global challenges,” said Bernanke, the first serving Fed chief to visit the bank. “We also discussed monetary policy and banking regulations which are of mutual interest.

India is becoming more and more a key player on the G20 stage,” Bernanke added.

The visit is part of Washington’s attempts to pursue closer diplomatic links with India as an ally in Asia, as well as boosting commercial ties and access for its companies in the huge and largely untapped South Asian market.

In the capital New Delhi on Tuesday, Geithner welcomed a blitz of economic reforms in India which open the door wider to foreign firms, describing them as “obviously very promising” after meeting Finance Minister P. Chidambaram. In April, Geithner had criticized India’s deteriorating investment outlook, but last month the government invited greater foreign investment in the retail, broadcasting and aviation sectors.

Last week, the Indian government went further, proposing bigger overseas investment in the insurance and pension industries, but analysts say the country is still a long way from returning to a highgrowth path. The economy slowed sharply to 5.5 percent in the most recent financial quarter. It had logged near double-digits in the past decade.

The central bank has held interest rates unchanged since April to keep a lid on high inflation, despite pressure from business leaders and the government to cut borrowing costs and give a further boost to the flagging economy. —AFP

Regulator eases UK bank rules to support lending LONDON: Britain’s financial regulator has relaxed capital and liquidity rules on banks in an effort to stimulate lending and boost the economy, lifting bank shares. The Financial Ser vices Authority said on Wednesday the shift in policy was set out in the Bank of England’s Financial Policy Committee in September, and banks were aware of the changes.

Banks no longer need to have a 10 percent core capital ratio but can instead hold a fixed amount of capital. The aim is to get banks to strengthen their capital and also be able to dip into buffers at times of difficulty so they can keep lending. Andrew Bailey, head of the FSA’s prudential business unit, had said last week banks can cut the amount of capital they hold to the minimum requirements, and trim their cash-like liquidity buffers to help increase lending.

The regulator will also not require banks to hold extra capital against new lending that qualifies for a “funding for lending” (FLS) scheme targeted at loans to corporate borrowers.

“The goal is to avoid rapid deleveraging that would harm activity in the economy,” Andrew Bailey told the Financial Times. The shift in tone lifted bank shares, as British regulators have been among the strictest in implementing new global regulations.

“If they get a bit of leeway from the regulator, that is breathing space for

these banks which, in the short term, is good for the shares. Longer term, I stay very cautious,” Bernstein Research senior analyst Chirantan Barua said. Lloyds shares were up 3.6 percent by 0845 GMT, Royal Bank of Scotland firmed 2.6 percent and Barclays added 1.3 percent, all outperforming a 0.1 percent higher European bank index.

Analysts said there were mixed messages coming from the regulator on capital rules. Minutes of the September FPC meeting showed it wanted banks to tap outside investors for capital and said policymakers had a range of views about the existence and strength of any trade-off between tighter regulation and greater lending.

The shift to a fixed amount of capital from a capital ratio chimes with a move by the European Union’s banking regulator last week.

The European Banking Authority said EU banks, which had been required to hold capital of 9 percent of their riskweighted assets, will in future be told to hold a set amount, so they do not need to top up capital if they increase lending.

Policymakers have been attempting to stop tougher new regulations from choking off economic recovery.

FLS, a scheme that offers banks cheap finance if they increase lending to households and businesses, opened at the start of August but has yet to get credit flowing and prove its worth. —Reuters

TOKYO: The craggy island specks in the East China Sea aren’t even an economic backwater. They have no factories, no highways, no shops, no people - only goats. But the highpitched row between Beijing and Tokyo over their ownership is exacting a growing toll on Japan, threatening to send its recovery from last year’s disasters into reverse. Sales of Japanese cars in China are in a freefall. At the China Open last weekend, a representative of Sony Corp, which is a sponsor of the tennis tournament, was loudly booed at the title presentation for the women’s final. Chinese tourists are cancelling trips to Japan in droves.

And some analysts say Japan’s economy will shrink in the last three months of the year.

The business and economic shockwaves come after Japan last month nationalized the tiny islands, called Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyu in China, which were already under Tokyo’s control but are also claimed

by Beijing. The move set off violent protests in China, and a widespread call to boycott Japanese goods.

Toyota Motor Corp and Honda Motor Co dealerships were burned down in one city. Seeing footage of Toyota cars getting smashed by angry rioters, Toyota President Akio Toyoda had looked almost tearful, confiding in reporters: “I couldn’t bear to watch. It hurt as though I was getting beaten.”

A report by J P Morgan, released Tuesday, projected Japanese auto exports to China will crash 70 percent during the October-December period. The export of auto parts will slip by 40 percent about the same drop estimated for exports of other consumer products, such as electronics, it said.

The aftermath of the latest phase of the sizzling territorial spat with China will cause Japan’s economy, the world’s third biggest, to shrink 0.8 percent in the fourth quarter, according to JP Morgan. It had previously forecast no growth in the quarter. JP Morgan chief economist Masaaki Kanno fears the fallout could get worse in the months ahead, as the September sales numbers for Japanese automakers only

account for damage that started the middle of the month. Toyota said Tuesday that sales of new vehicles in China dropped 49 percent in September from a year earlier to 44,100 vehicles. Honda said September sales plunged 41 percent to 33,931 vehicles. China sales for Nissan Motor Co. slid 35 percent last month to 76,100 vehicles.

Even the most optimistic sce-

last year, after months of rebuilding.

Kanno’s report said the number of Chinese tourists would decline by 70 percent while Japanese tourists to China would fall by 30 percent.

Ayumi Kunimatu, spokeswoman for Japanese carrier All Nippon Airways, said 43,000 seats had been cancelled for flights from September through the end of November 28,000 of them from China to Japan,

deal a serious blow to Japan’s regional economies, which are already more vulnerable to such slowdowns.

China, with its growing middle class, had been one of the emerging markets that Japanese companies were counting on to boost sales amid a long stagnation in their domestic market.

Japan’s trade with China

TOKYO: Commuters driving past a construction site of an expressway in Tokyo. Finding ways to boost the slowing global economy and helping poor nations fend off financial shocks will be on the agenda at meetings this week of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank in Tokyo. —AFP nario does not foresee a recovery in Japan’s economy until the second quarter of next year, Kanno said.

“What we have ahead of us is going to be terrible,” he said. “It’s like last year’s disaster all over again.” The quake and tsunami in northeastern Japan last year hobbled the economy for months. Auto production was particularly hard hit because parts suppliers had been located in the disaster area. Flooding in Thailand that followed added to the automakers’ woes. They had only bounced back toward the end of

and 15,000 from Japan to China. Up to now, China flights had made up a quarter of ANA’s international passengers.

A person who answered at China International Travel Service in Beijing confirmed group tours to Japan had been called off. The Chinese staterun news agency Xinhua reported that more than a hundred thousand Chinese cancelled Japan trips, and the number of tour groups to Japan had plunged by 40 percent.

The tourism fallout to hot springs and ski resorts is likely to

reached record levels over the last 12 months, totaling more than $340 billion. China is Japan’s biggest export market.

Although the immediate damage is being felt in Japan, the souring relations and the realization of the so-called “China risks” are likely to crimp investments from Japan, hurting the Chinese economy as well, in the long run.

Japan not only exports to China but also has significant manufacturing investments there in areas such as autos. —AP

S African CB sounds warning on economy GRAHAMSTOWN, South Africa: South Africa’s economic outlook is deteriorating rapidly, with unrest in the mining sector and national transport strikes likely to lead to job losses, central bank governor Gill Marcus said yesterday.

Speaking to economics students in Grahamstown in the Eastern Cape province, Marcus also warned that the country faced a loss of confidence, underlined by a sharp fall in the currency.

But she reiterated her stance that the central bank had no target level for the rand.

A heavy fall in the currency on Monday to within a whisker of 9.0 to the dollar had prompted market speculation of official intervention. Marcus said it was simply too costly for a medium-sized emerging economy such as South Africa to step into currency markets.

“The daily turnover in the rand is around $25 billion, so if you want to look at where you can manage this currency to, you’re going to whistle,” she said. “We’ve got in total $50 billion in reserves - not like China which has trillions of dollars in reserves. They can do these things.”

Two months of violent, wildcat walkouts in gold and platinum mines, including the police killing of 34 strikers at Lonmin’s Marikana mine on Aug. 16, have hurt South Africa’s international investment reputation, Marcus said, citing 5.6 billion rand ($638 million) in net equity market outflows on Monday as evidence.

“That’s an indicator of a loss of confidence.

It’s a huge indicator for us of loss of confidence,” Marcus said. “The outlook at the moment is deteriorating rapidly and if you

look at the deficit of confidence, it is one of the reasons why it’s very difficult to find a resolution,” she said.

Besides the mining problems, a strike by more than 20,000 truckers is now in its third week, hitting fuel supplies around Johannesburg and affecting production at some car plants on the south coast.

Talks between the main transport union, SATAWU, and freight employers broke down on Tuesday, and the transport strike is due to widen next week with a one-day “sympathy” stoppage by port and railway workers.

The rand has recovered marginally since being beaten to 3-1/2 lows on Friday and Monday, and touched 8.64 in early trade on Wednesday. However, it pared nearly all its gains in the wake of Marcus’s comments, retracing to 8.72 by 1016 GMT. —Reuters

26

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2012

business

The refined BMW 7 Series brings new levels of comfort, luxury and power to Kuwait KUWAIT: Ali Alghanim & Sons Automotive, the BMW Group importer in Kuwait has welcomed the new and refined 7 Series model to its showrooms. This model is set to strengthen its leading position as the most dynamic and innovative luxury sedan in the premium automotive segment.

Kuwait currently ranks among the top three markets in the region for BMW 7 Series sales. This flagship model is consistently amongst BMW’s best-sellers across the GCC markets, so the new refined 7 Series, which offers new levels of luxury, comfort and power is expected to further amplify BMW’s 7 Series success story. A number of subtle but significant design and technology modifications have been made to give the car a stronger presence on the road and provide an even more luxurious and powerful driving experience.

Luxury is defined by a number of distinctive exterior design modifications which enhance the car’s sophisticated and elegant appearance. The most eye-catching exterior feature is the new Adaptive LED headlights featuring hallmark BMW corona rings and a smart accent strip, which

projects a distinctive appearance both day and night. The exterior changes have also been enhanced with a new front and rear bumper, new kidney grille and indicators integrated into the lower section of the exterior mirrors.

Top-class materials, quality workmanship and outstanding practicality enhance the levels of comfort in the interior of the new 7 Series. The driver and front passenger can relax into newly designed leather seats offering optimum lateral support and unbeatable long-distance comfort.

Individual seats are also available as an option for the rear and can be adapted to passengers’ needs. An optional Rear Seat Entertainment package comes with a new 9.2inch flat screen monitor to ensure a refreshing diversion for extended journeys, while the new 1,200-watt Bang & Olufsen High End Surround Sound System delivers unrivalled sound quality.

A class-leader in advanced technology, BMW’s ConnectedDrive features that give the driver and passengers information and services to help make their driving experience safer and more comfortable have been enhanced to ensure that the 7 Series maintains its innova-

Zain offers new packages with latest Android tablet KUWAIT: Zain, the leading telecommunications company in Kuwait, announced the launch of new flexible packages with the Samsung Galaxy Note 2, the latest Android tablet, which provides flexibility, split-screen multitasking options, and enhanced capabilities.

A press release on the occasion of the new package offers reads, “The Galaxy Note 2 is the latest smartphone which has exclusive and innovative features. The S Pen Optimized Feature is one of the most innovative functionalities of the device which allows it to perform multiple tasks with ease and at fast speed.”

The press release read, “The latest Android device provides multiple innovative features which are new to the smartphones segment. The Galaxy Note 2 allows unique experience in the field of content creation and custom-tailored solutions optimized to enhance creativity on the go.”

The special new Galaxy Note 2 offer is available for all Zain customers. The unique features of the second generation Galaxy Note devices will allow users to transfer their ideas faster and easier. It will also allow users to manage tasks more effectively. The Galaxy Note 2 device which weighs 183 grams and is only 49 mm thick sports

a high-definition, 5.5-inch screen with high accuracy and resolution of 1280 x 720 Pixels.

The Galaxy Note 2 contains a host of amazing features. It is equipped with a 1.6GHz quad-core Exynos processor, 2GB of RAM, a 5.5-inch HD Super AMOLED display, micro SD expandability and Android Jellybean 4.1 right out of the box. It features Popup Note to take notes via pop-up window. A standout feature is its Spen feature which makes the splitscreen multitasking experience enjoyable and easy. The new device has a more powerful battery.

The host of new competitive advantages allows Galaxy Note 2 users to unleash their creativity, to discover information faster, transfer their ideas to the device efficiently and to express them in a more organized way.

Zain will have the 16gigabytes device available with an option to increase the storage capacity via external memory card type. For all the picture-taking enthusiasts and professional photographers the next feature could be very attractive: The device boosts an 8-Megapixel Auto Focus Camera which records 1080p video.

The front camera 1.9 megapixel camera can record accurately a video resolution of 720 x 1280 pixels.

Mohammed Al-Hamoud wins KD 10,000 cash prize from Wataniya Telecom KUWAIT: Wataniya Telecom has announced the winner of the seventh weekly draw as part of a series of draws for prepaid customers. Mohammed Hamoud Al-Hamoud was announced as the winner this week for a cash prize of KD 10,000. The draw was held in the presence of the company representatives and under the supervision of an officer from the Consumer Protection Department at the Ministry of Trade and Industry Abdulaziz Ashkanani.

Wataniya launched this exclusive campaign last August which includes weekly draws for a chance to win KD 10,000 at each draw. To enter the draw, customers need to recharge their Wataniya prepaid lines for a minimum of KD 1 using any recharge method, such as vouchers, wataniya.com, recharge kiosk machines or Wcharger. They will get one chance to enter the draw for every fils; therefore 1000 chances for every KD 1.

On the occasion, Wataniya Telecom congratulated its customer and stated

“Winners are so thrilled and delighted whenever they are informed that they are the winners of this amazing prize every week. We would like to congratulate Mohammed Al-Hamoud winning the prize of KD 10,000 this week, and we wish all our prepaid customers the very best for the upcoming draws.”

Wataniya added “The series of draws will continue for few upcoming weeks.

This exclusive draw is considered to be the first of its kind in Kuwait offering valuable cash prizes to customers. Wataniya looks forward to engaging its customers with many more exciting campaigns and surprises in the near future.” All prepaid customers are eligible to enter the draw and win KD 10,000 by simply recharging their lines starting at KD 1 only. The more they recharge their line, the more chances they can get in the draws.

Furthermore the chances collected by the customer are valid for all the remaining draws and the customer can check the total chances by dialing *555#.

tive edge over its rivals. Tailored to the Middle East market the on board iDrive control system has an Arabic interface and navigation system. So whether you are looking for nearby hotels, need to receive or write emails, or want to plan your leisure activities, all these functions are provided with a male Arabic voice, and with an option to switch to English.

In the cockpit, the all-new multifunctional instrument display behind the steering wheel meets all of the driver’s needs. Using extended black-panel technology, BMW opens up a whole new range of display options through the 10.25-inch screen, including instruments that use different colors and graphics depending on the driving mode selected, and provides situation-specific information such as status and function displays. The Control Display in the centre of the instrument panel has also benefited from visual and technical improvements and now uses high-resolution 3D graphics.

To further enhance the ride comfort of the BMW 7 Series, all models will be fitted with air suspension and an upgraded chassis that helps give added comfort for both

front and rear passengers. In addition, there is a range of new and comprehensively revised engines mated to an eight-speed automatic transmission. Alongside the flagship BMW 760Li with its 12-cylinder engine and the entrylevel BMW 730Li engine, Middle East customers can also choose from the new six-cylinder in-line engine powering the BMW 740Li and the new V8 engine in the 750Li. Technology such as Auto Start-Stop function, Brake Energy Regeneration and the second-generation Driving Experience Control switch with ECO PRO mode and coasting function help raise the bar in terms of performance and efficiency.

Commenting on the launch, Yousef Al-Qatami, General Manager of Ali Alghanim and Sons Automotive said: “We are pleased to welcome the new BMW 7 Series to our showrooms. Its’ important design and technology enhancements give it a stronger presence and added comfort for both the driver and passengers. We are confident that the new BMW 7 Series will remain a market leader in its segment and will add another chapter to the 7 Series’ success story here in Kuwait.”

Dawat’s newest branch at Farwaniya offers 20% discount With restaurants springing up all over Kuwait, eating out is becoming one of the most enjoyable activities, as people from all walks of life can spend time with their dear ones while enjoying their favorite cuisines.

Other recreational activities in Kuwait include shopping, visiting relatives and friends, and going to the cinemas; but dining out at one’s chosen outlet is one of the most preferred activities, as it offers a chance to savor their favorite foods while also enjoying an outing away from routine lives.

Dawat has been one the favorite destinations for locals and expats alike. They started with their first restaurant in Sharq way back in 1992, and now have 4 branches located in Sharq, Abu Halifa, Jahra, and their latest one in Farwaniya, which offers the convenience of family cabins to make the dining experience more relaxed and comfortable for families.

The new branch in Farwaniya is located on the mezzanine floor of Tawfiq Commercial Complex, on Habib Menawar Street, opposite to Alghanim Electronics and has ample car parking space.

All four outlets offer authentic Indian and Chinese cuisine, in an elegant atmosphere, with an unparalleled service that offers great value. Under the dynamic leadership of veteran restaurateur Ravi Kohli, Dawat became one of the prominent restaurants in Kuwait; the mantle of leadership has now passed on to his young and energetic daughter Nikita Kohli, who as Marketing Manager has already taken the Dawat name to new heights.

The Dawat chain of restaurants is run under the flagship of Sabah & Kohli General Trading and Contracting Company, which is a prominent name among the leading business houses of Kuwait.

Speaking about what makes dining at Dawat different, Kohli, said, “At Dawat we always ensure that our dishes are freshly

cooked and are both tasty and healthy. Our talented team of chefs makes sure that when it comes to ingredients only the best items are selected and then prepared in line with age-old methods that create dishes which are easy to digest and give a wholesome delicious treat to customers. For instance, at Dawat, spices are never overpowering and used sparingly to impart a light distinct flavor.

Similarly, with regard to oil, it is used so magically that it gives all the dishes their perfect irresistible look and taste, without any of the greasy unhealthiness.”

Kohli continued by saying, “At Dawat we also give a lot of emphasis to customer service and to maintaining a quality dining experience for our customers. To encourage and thank our esteemed customers, Dawat has launched a unique campaign, which offers

Ali Abdulwahab Al-Mutawa Co, Massaleh Towers sign deal KUWAIT: Ali Abdulwahab Al Mutawa Commercial Co has signed a contract with AlMassaleh Real Estate to supply and install Nolte German kitchen and Siemens German home appliances in their new project. The tower is one of Kuwait’s largest residential projects consisting of 142 luxurious apartment units.

Nolte is considered one of largest and luxurious companies in Germany and around the world in the kitchens industry.

Since the firm was established in 1959, Nolte has been providing their best products around the world. Ali Abdulwahab AlMutawa Commercial Co will

supply all kitchens in the tower along with all Siemens home appliances, which include fridges, microwaves, washing machines and ovens.

Ali Abdulwahab Al-Mutawa Commercial Co is a leading retail and wholesale company, and one of the oldest trading companies in Kuwait enjoying over 90 years of success. The company has adopted a vigorous expansion policy and is the agent of more than 40 distinct global brands. For more information on Ali Abdulwahab AlMutawa Commercial Co visit our website at www.aaw.comor call 1804449 or direct line 97873026.

customers who dine at any of the three branches located in Sharq, Abu Halifa, and Jahra, to get discount coupons to be availed at their new branch in Farwaniya. The ongoing offer, which started on 20th September, will run until 19th December, 2012.”

The food, service, and quality you get at Dawat will surely allow you to not only savor the best of the cuisines at great value, but also ensure that you have a truly enjoyable dining experience. The unique taste and variety of their dishes will compel you to come back again and again, while your first experience at Dawat will make it your all time favorite destination, so try your favorite food at any of the three branches of Dawat and get a 20 percent discount coupon and avail it at the newest branch at Farwaniya.

Al-Oula implements retractable fuel hoses in Qurain, Sabah Al-Salem KUWAIT: Al-Oula Fuel Marketing Company “Oula” announced recently the installation of new dispensers in Al-Qurain and Sabah al Salem stations. The dispensers feature state of the art in safety characteristic in addition to hoses that allow fueling from both sides of the vehicles. The latter move forms an integral part of Oula’s strategy to improve its services at the stations and minimize wait at the petrol stations.

Abdulmohsen Khaja VP Operations stated that: “the company replaced dispensers in each station to allow fueling from both sides of vehicles in order to faster meet the needs of customers and to alleviate crowding at the stations. He added that upgrading of dispensers is an ongoing process in several stations

according to the company’s plan”.

Khaja added: “Al-Oula exerts serious efforts in order to improve the customers’ experience and improve its services. In addition, Oula seeks to maintain its leadership, thus it develops its products to improve customers satisfaction.”

It is worth mentioning that the company invests in developing new and effective methods to improve the customer’s experience at the stations making it more comfortable.

The new smart solutions being employed by “Oula” are installing the automatic tank gauging, deploying CCTV to provide security for the customers, installing new air and water towers and last but not least providing automated car wash service in most of its stations.

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2012

TECHNOLOGY

Giving Computers the Gift of Sight

front of many industries as it can provide a key competitive advantage.

The problem is that this valuable data is rarely in the right format to be consumed easily and most often resides in silos not easily accessible. To allow companies to get the most out of this resource, the data needs to be in a format that offers the greatest flexibility allowing different organizations (with different needs and perspectives) the ability to visualize, understand and use it for competitive analysis.

This session presents Xerox data analytics research and expertise and how it is being applied in order to provide better real-time information, understand complex relationships within data and predict future outcomes based on past data. The insights it uncovers is used to inform large-scale decisions or make fine-grained adjustments to improve the business performance of private and public services and influence people to reduce their environmental impact whether it be on the road or in the office.

True artificial intelligence and reasoning still remain a scientific challenge but significant progress is being made in a number of fields that contribute to achieve this objective. Two such domains are addressed in this theme - computer vision and text mining. New techniques and algorithms in computer vision mean that computers are now able to not only recognise what they ‘see’ in videos and photos but they are able to compare what they see in detail and can even go so far as to select what images are aesthetically ‘better’ than others. Xerox state-of-the-art technology in fine grained image recognition and classification is currently being applied to solve problems in the field of healthcare, transportation, retail and document workflow imaging. International benchmarking results confirm that Xerox is a recognised leader in the field without being computationally intensive requiring racks of processors thus making its approach sustainable, cost effective and flexible.

Automating complex manual tasks The invention and adoption of new technology usually leads to one of the following; it allows us to do something we were never able to do before (such as fly before the invention of the aeroplane); it can make it easier to do something we do already (such as a calculator to compute numbers) or, alternatively it can take over something we do so that we no longer have to do it ourselves (like never have to know a phone number once it has been received or recorded).

Xerox research presented in this theme focuses primarily on the last two categories and on how technology is used to capitalise on and support human expertise in particular to improve business processes.

The introduction is given by a researcher who will present the methods of study and analysis used in Xerox ethnography to achieve a thorough understanding of the workplace. This understanding is

By Islam Al-Sharaa

W

ith global revenue approaching $23 billion, Xerox is the world’s leading enterprise for business process and document management. Its technology, expertise and services enable workplaces - from small businesses to large global enterprises - to simplify the way work gets done so they operate more effectively. Services now account for more than 50 percent of the company’s revenue, and at this Media Tech Day Xerox showed how it is applying its world renowned research capabilities to support and develop the next generation of services.

The research was demonstrated in three themes which presented both the underlying expertise and, through specific technology demonstrations, the way our innovations are being integrated into Xerox business offerings.

XEROX Research Centre Europe

KUWAIT TIMES: How long does it take for an idea to translate from a prototype to an actual product?

The length of time depends on a number of factors independent of research (development, marketing and commercialization). From a technical perspective, it can be related to the underlying research e.g. Xerox started research in natural language processing in the 70’s and only started to commercialize it in the last few years. This was due to both the complexity and theory as well as the fact that computing was too slow for many years. Another example is dynamic pricing for parking which took only 1.5 years from research to implementation with the customer.

KT: With so much information being remotely and constantly collected, how much personal privacy will be sacrificed? And how secure is it?

Making information secure is easier than trusting those that actually use it. Information will be stored more intelligently in the future so we that we will know if it is used in an inappropriate context.

KT: With technology now being used to run hospitals and motorways, a breakdown of links would be catastrophic. Are there any measures to prevent such a shutdown?

Hospitals have multiple redundant networks to avoid complete shutdowns. Information is also stored in multiple places to recover from hardware and software failures.

relevant information on the Internet and relevant databases to then make a proposed text including illustrations.

KT: With circulations falling, how can technology help media companies monetize content?

Xerox doesn’t really play in the newspaper publishing industry, but we do offer personalization tools that could help newspapers and magazines create special targeted featured that are specific to a reader’s interest. Xerox technology can also help to provide customized reports that can be pushed to media companies and monetized by them.

KT: How many of these new technologies will personally benefit the individual consumer and help make his life easier?

Many of the technologies you saw at XRCE are focused on helping to change the lives of ordinary people in extraordinary ways. For example, the traffic solutions that can track license plates and locate vehicles quickly in case of an emergency or the neonatal monitoring tools that help protect a sick infant’s delicate skin by visually monitoring the baby’s vitals as well as the technology that helps computers identify the most visually appealing photographs for your digital album. All of these are unexpected innovations from Xerox that can really change the lives of ordinary people.

KT: Will information be stored on the “cloud” or on secluded servers?

Information will be stored in both with a preference for secluded servers for highly sensitive and private data.

Christophe-Legras

Raja Bala

Teaching computers to read and understand text like humans means we need to be able to program them to not only decode characters, words and sentences but to do so within a context which allows them to make connections between and across the words, facts and situations described by the language. This ultimately means being able to understand the semantic content or meaning. The text mining research team in Europe has developed technology that can today identify relations between texts in large collections of unstructured documents and also associate these with a meaning that can distinguish it from other meanings. By combining software with specialised terminology and domain specific rules e.g. medical, financial, pharmaceutical it is capable of uncovering critical information and can even detect drug side effects, illnesses and diseases.

shared with fellow scientists to ground the design of technology that is effective in achieving the right balance between automation and leveraging existing human expertise in call centres, offices, banks and schools.

KT: What new products are in the pipeline that will revolutionize the media industry?

There is a lot of work in personalized information generation whereby you can tell a computer what you want to write about and it will mine

Islam Al-Sharaa poses with Falynne Smith, Manager, Public Relations Developing Markets Operations, Xerox Corporation.

Making information and data meaningful Big, open, private, clean, dirty - you name it data is everywhere and much has been written about its explosive growth in today’s world. Every two days, we create as much new information as we did from the dawn of civilization through 2003. Data analytics has clearly moved from the backroom to the fore-

Christopher Dance

Florent Perronnin

Caroline Hagege

Monica Beltrametti

Onno Zoeter

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2012

HEALTH & SCIENCE

The doctor (in the next cubicle) will see you now NEW YORK: So much for the “I have a doctor’s appointment” excuse when seeking a three-hour lunch break from work. US companies as diverse as chipmaker Intel Corp and printer Quad/Graphics Inc have opened inhouse health clinics with doctors, nurses and even dentists to diagnose suspicious symptoms, write prescriptions and more. Most recently, they are adding services to manage chronic conditions such as diabetes.

The clinics and their lengthening list of services reflect the latest efforts to counter soaring healthcare costs. While companies have for years offered yearly flu shots or brought in yoga teachers, that hasn’t been enough to offset expenses from rising obesity rates and other conditions.

“We were beginning to see ... growing chronic conditions in our population,” says Tami Graham, director of global benefits for Intel. “All the stuff that ails America, ails Intel.” For every dollar spent on in-company programs, employers get a return on investment of $1.50 to $3, according to a 2009 study by the American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, a society of healthcare professionals.

But in-house clinics can’t do every-

thing. Workers still want and need outside specialists for complicated health needs like surgery or childbirth. And privacy concerns linger despite legal protections, with some employees worrying that personal data could cause companies to fire less-than-healthy employees. Clinics are “potentially a very good idea,” says Lewis Maltby, president of the National Workrights Institute, a legal advocacy organization. “Assuming, of course, that the medical records are really confidential. That’s a big assumption.” Proponents claim the clinics do protect employee privacy.

Employers and employees hail the services, saying they save money and time. Workers can walk to nearby clinics, rather than spending work hours commuting to doctors’ offices. And the convenience prompts many to get symptoms checked quickly. Such was the case with Quad/Graphics customer service representative Tim Liskowitz. After two days of feeling weak and exhausted , Liskowitz visited the clinic in his West Allis, Wisconsin, building. He was dangerously dehydrated and suffering from highly contagious mononucleosis. While being hooked up to intravenous fluids, Liskowitz, a diabetic, met the clinic’s diabetes care coordinator for the first time.

After getting mono “out of the way,”

Liskowitz began meeting regularly with the diabetes coordinator and found an insulin treatment that worked better than his previous regime. “It was a whole new world from there,” says the 33 year old, who recently lost 30 pounds, more than 10 percent of his body weight, with the help of clinic staff.

Stories like these have prompted companies to either add more clinic, or increase their focus on ongoing conditions like obesity. Employers “are seeing a tremendous increase in chronic conditions which is mirroring what we’re seeing in the country,” says Peter Hotz, a group vice president at Walgreen Co. A Walgreen subsidiary, Take Care Health Systems, operates on-site centers for companies. The centers can provide Xrays, physical therapy and emergency care. The division, currently operating about 375 work-site centers, has seen demand grow by “low teens” over the past three years, says Hotz. Clients are clamoring for more anti-obesity measures, so they are stepping up nutritional counseling offerings, says Hotz.

Intel has four clinics at different locations and plans to add three more in the “next year or so,” says Graham. To meet growing demand for diabetes care, some have started providing certified diabetes clinicians. Financial firm

American Express Co, which has 15 “wellness centers,” has added to its obesity and stop-smoking programs and said it has seen employee weight and tobacco use drop.

The growth in clinic demand comes as healthcare costs for employers and employees, are “galloping ahead,” says Helen Darling, president of the National Business Group on Health, a non-profit group that represents large employers’ perspective on national health policy issues.

“Unhealthy people cost a lot more,” Darline says, adding that rising obesity rates is one of the biggest culprits.

Companies will pay an average $11,664 per employee for healthcare costs this year, up 5.9 percent from last year, according to a Towers Watson/NBGH survey. Employees’ share of premium costs rose 9.3 percent, to $2,764.

Some 42 percent of US adults could be obese by 2030, adding $550 billion to healthcare costs over that period, according to a study published earlier this year in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.

That leaves room for a lot of spending on obesity prevention programs, but the clinics are costly for employers to sponsor. An average Intel clinic, for example, can cost $1 million to build

and another $1 million to run, says Graham.

And there are other drawbacks. Not everyone is thrilled about seeing a company doctor; worries abound that workers could be penalized or fired if their boss sees expensive medical conditions in their personnel records. Clinic proponents, however, say on-site facilities are operated by third-party managers who never disclose data to employers.

“There are very strict laws against that,” says Take Care’s Hotz. Maltby recommends all patients ask how medical records are kept and who has access. In addition, employees should always ask their doctor if there is a “doctor-patient relationship,” in which medical conditions are kept private, says Maltby.

“If the doctor says ‘yes,’ you can probably proceed with relative confidence,” he says. Many employees find any potential risk wor th the reward.

American Express counted more than 35,000 visits to its six US wellness centers in the past year. Quad/Graphics’s Liskowitz estimates he’s saved about 120 hours by having regular diabetes checks at his office, rather than traveling. And the convenience and follow-up has improved his life in other ways. “My wife loves it because I’m going to live now,” says Liskowitz. — Reuters

US meningitis deaths rise, calls for tighter drug rules Widening outbreak brings death toll to 12

BERLIN: Picture taken on September 18, 2012 shows an anti-circumcision poster is displayed an a Berlin street. Poster reads: “My body belongs to me! Circumcision is wrong, for boys as well”. Chancellor Angela Merkel’s cabinet yesterday passed laws to allow circumcision in Germany after a court ruled the rite amounted to grievous bodily harm, a judgement that caused international uproar. — AFP

German cabinet approves law allowing circumcision BERLIN: Chancellor Angela Merkel’s cabinet yesterday passed a draft law to allow circumcision in Germany after a court said the rite amounted to grievous bodily harm, a ruling that caused international uproar.

The new legislation, which must now be passed by the German parliament, “makes clear that circumcision is possible in Germany,” said Justice Minister Sabine Leutheusser-Schnarrenberger in a statement.

The ministry added the new text would “remove the legal uncertainty created by the judgement of the regional court in Cologne.” While considering a case brought against a doctor who had circumcised a Muslim boy, the court in the western German city ruled that the rite was tantamount to grievous bodily harm.

The decision united Jewish and Muslim

groups in opposition and caused outrage from religious and political leaders in Israel and Muslim countries. Diplomats admitted that the ruling proved “disastrous” for Germany’s international image, particularly in light of its Nazi past.

Merkel was reported to have warned that Germany risked becoming a “laughing stock” if it banned circumcision. The new bill stipulates certain provisos for a boy to be circumcised. Among these conditions, the draft law stipulates the practice must be carried out “professionally” and “with the most effective pain relief”.

An exception must also be made in individual cases if there are health risks, for example if the infant is suspected of being a haemophiliac. Germany is home to about four million Muslims and more than 200,000 Jews. — AFP

Study stokes new debate over cancer risk PARIS: Women who start hormone replacement therapy (HRT ) soon after menopause do not show higher cancer incidence within 16 years, according to a Danish study published on Tuesday that fuels scientific discord over the treatment’s safety.

Indeed, women who took HRT in the investigation had a significantly lower risk of dying or developing heart problems, the researchers wrote in a paper published on the medical website bmj.com.

The new study was hailed by a menopause awareness group but a researcher who led a wider probe into HRT said it was worryingly underpowered.

HRT has been shrouded in controversy since a Women’s Health Initiative (WHI) study in 2002 reported a higher risk of breast cancer for women who take it, a finding echoed by the Million Women Study (MWS) a year later.

“We found a significantly decreased risk of... death, heart failure or myocardial infarction (heart attack) when hormone replacement therapy was started early in postmenopause,” wrote the Danish team. “(...) (T)his finding was not associated with an increased risk of cancer, stroke, deep vein thrombosis, or pulmonary embolism.”

The MWS stirred up a storm when it claimed HRT boosted cancer risk by between 30 and 100 percent, a finding criticised by other scientists who claimed the study method was flawed.

HRT uses the female hormones oestrogen or progestogen, sometimes combined, to ease menopausal symptoms such as hot flushes, loss of sex drive and vaginal dryness.

The new study looked at 1,006 recently postmenopausal women, of whom 502 were given HRT and 504 no treatment.

Apart from the HRT group being 5.7 months older, there were no other significant differences between the groups in

things like weight, health or smoking habits.

Ten years into the study, in 2002, the women were encouraged to stop using HRT after early warnings of adverse effects from other scientists. Data was taken at this point, and the women followed for another six years.

Analysis of the data after 16 years showed that 27 of the women on treatment had died, three had suffered heart failure and five heart attacks. In the untreated group, 40 had died, eight had been diagnosed with heart failure and 11 suffered heart attacks.

Rates of stroke and cancer did not significantly differ between the groups, wrote the team whose members hail from five Danish hospitals. They did point out, though, that a longer follow-up may be necessary for more definite conclusions on cancer risk.

The report underscored several differences with the WHI study. The mean age of the Danish trial group was 50 compared to 64 for the WHI, and its members started HRT within a year of menopause, compared to 10 years. The two studies also used different drug types.

The head of the International Menopause Society, Tobie de Villiers, said the study was “of great importance, as it reflects what happens in real life where women start taking HRT at the time of the menopause.”

“In this study HRT did not cause any major harm, and indeed resulted in significant benefits,” he said in a statement.

But Francoise Clavel-Chapelon, author of a French study, E3N, which has been following 100,000 women in similar research since 1990, was strongly critical, saying the Danish research was “weak.”

Published in 2007, E3N showed that women taking the same drugs the Danish used had “more than double the risk of breast cancer,” she said. — AFP

NASHVILLE: A rare US outbreak of fungal meningitis linked to steroid injections has claimed four more lives with Florida the latest state to report at least one death linked to the illness in a widening health scare, authorities said on Tuesday.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed that two more people had died from meningitis in Tennessee, and one more in Michigan after receiving steroid injections.

Officials in Florida meanwhile said late Tuesday that a 70-year-old man died in July as a result of the same outbreak, the first in that state, bringing the number of deaths nationwide to 12. The widening outbreak has alarmed U.S. health officials and focused attention on regulation of pharmaceutical compounding companies such as the one that produced the drugs, the New England Compounding Center Inc in Framingham, Massachusetts.

Some leading Democratic members of Congress proposed tighter regulation on compounding companies on Tuesday. In Michigan and Tennessee, the two states hit hardest by the outbreak, family and friends mourned the loss of victims.

George Cary attended a memorial on Tuesday for his British-born wife of 35 years, Lilian, who died of meningitis on Sept. 30 several weeks after receiving an injection for back pain.

Standing with his two daughters at their house in Howell, Michigan, Cary said that he now would await the results of a test for meningitis after he also received an injection.

“I’m fine right now. I’m waiting to see if anything develops,” Cary said. Meningitis is an infection of the membranes covering the brain and spinal cord. Symptoms include headache, fever and nausea. Fungal meningitis, unlike viral and bacterial meningitis, is not contagious.

One of the dead in Tennessee, 80-year-old Reba Temple, was a former health director for rural Hickman County. “She was a wonderful, wonderful lady,” said County Trustee Cheryl Chessor, who attended the same church as Temple, Centerville Church of Christ.

The number of people sickened nationwide reached 121 on Tuesday, an increase of 16 cases from Monday. The potentially tainted steroid vials, which have been recalled, were shipped to 76 facilities in 23 states and some 13,000 people may have received injections from the medications, the CDC has said.

Tennessee Health Commissioner Dr. John Dreyzehner said it could be early November before all the patients stricken with meningitis are identified. This is because the incubation period may be longer than the one month health experts first thought. Of the patients who contracted meningitis in Tennessee, the latest case was reported 42 days after the injection, he said on Tuesday.

In Tennessee, Saint Thomas Outpatient Neurosurgery Center in Nashville received 2,000 vials of recalled steroid, the most of any facility in the nation.

The New Jersey Department of Health said a 70-year-old Cumberland County man was hospitalized with apparent fungal meningitis, the first

case in that state. “He developed headaches and went to the emergency room with fever and continued headaches,” the New Jersey agency said, adding that he was receiving anti-fungal medication at South Jersey Healthcare Regional Medical Center in Vineland.

The Florida Department of Health said six cases of the disease had been reported so far in the state, all in Marion County, with one death.

The federal Food and Drug Administration regulates only the ingredients and not the compounders, which are subject to a patchwork of state oversight.

Three Democratic members of the US House of Representatives called on Tuesday for a congressional probe of the meningitis outbreak. A fourth Democrat, Representative Edward Markey, whose Massachusetts district includes Framingham, said separately that he would introduce legislation to strengthen FDA’s regulatory authority.

But the office of the Republican chairman of the committee that would consider Markey’s proposal, Fred Upton, did not respond to requests seeking comment. “This incident raises serious concerns about the scope of the practice of pharmacy compounding in the United States and the current patchwork of federal and state laws,” the Democrats Henry Waxman, Frank Pallone and Diana DeGette said in a letter.

Tennessee has reported six deaths and 39 cases of meningitis, followed by Michigan with three deaths and 25 cases, Virginia with one death and 24 cases and Maryland with one death and eight cases. — Reuters

Trucking companies embracing wellness, weight-loss programs Push for healthier truckers gains momentum DALLAS: In the months after Doug Robinson started driving a truck, he noticed his clothes were increasingly more snug-fitting. He was already overweight but soon realized that spending up to 11 hours behind the wheel, frequently eating fast food and not exercising was a poor combination.

When his employer, US Xpress, took part in a weight-loss challenge sponsored by the Truckload Carriers Association, the 321-pound, 6-foot-1inch Robinson signed up. So far, he’s about 40 pounds into his goal of dropping 100. His truck’s refrigerator is stocked with chicken, tuna and vegetables. And after his day’s drive, he walks - either on trails near rest stops or just circling his truck.

“I have asthma, so with the extra weight on there, it isn’t good for me,” said Robinson, a 30-year-old from Philadelphia. “When I started losing weight, instantly I was breathing better. I was sleeping better at night.”

From trucking companies embracing wellness and weight-loss programs to gyms being installed at truck stops, momentum has picked up in recent years to help those who make their living driving big rigs get into shape.

“I think a lot of trucking companies are coming around to the idea that their drivers are their assets,” said Boyd Stephenson of the American Trucking Associations, the industry’s largest national trade association. He added that healthier employees help a company’s bottom line.

There’s an additional incentive for truckers to stay in shape - their job might depend on their health. Every two years, they must pass a physical exam required by US Department of Transportation’s Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. They’re checked for conditions that might cause them to become incapacitated - suddenly or gradually - while driving, including severe heart conditions, high blood pressure and respi-

GARLAND: In this July 11, 2012, photo, wellness coach Kara Whitcomb, front center, leads truckers in a stretching regime before their driving shifts start at Con-way Freight in Garland, Texas. From trucking companies embracing wellness and weight-loss programs to gyms being installed at truck stops, momentum has picked up in recent years to help those who make their living driving big rigs get into shape. — AP ratory disorders. While there are no weight restrictions, a commercial driver who has been diagnosed with obstructive sleep apnea and isn’t undergoing treatment will not get a medical certificate. Sleep apnea, more common among those who are overweight, leads to daytime sleepiness, a danger on long drives.

But there are obstacles for truck drivers who are mindful of their health. In addition to being seated for many hours at a time, eating options are usually limited to places with parking lots big enough to accommodate their tractor-trailers most often truck stops, which historically have not been known for wholesome food or workout equipment.

That’s something truck stop chains have been trying to change.

TravelCenters of America, which operates under the TA and Petro Stopping Centers brands, launched a

program two years ago called StayFit that includes placing small, free gyms in truck stops, offering healthier eating options and half portions, mapping walking routes near truck stops and building basketball courts in some locations.

“We wanted to remove as many barriers to drivers’ health as possible,” said TravelCenters spokesman Tom Liutkus, who said the company has gyms at 42 of its more than 240 locations, with plans to outfit them all by the end of next year. He added that the gyms have had more than 30,000 users.

Gym franchiser Snap Fitness has partnered with Rolling Strong, which provides wellness programs aimed at truckers, to open gyms at Pilot Flying J locations. The first one opened south of Dallas in June: A nearly 1,000-square-foot stand-alone building filled with weights and a dozen or

so machines. So far, more than 120 memberships have been sold for that gym.

“We know that we have an audience out there that needs help,” said Snap Fitness chief executive officer and founder Peter Taunton. By the end of the year, they also plan to install gyms inside Pilot Flying J truck stops in Georgia and Tennessee.

A monthly membership of about $30 also gives truckers access to Snap Fitness’ more than 1,300 gyms, Taunton said, 60 of which have tractor trailer-friendly parking. Pilot Flying J plans to add a function to their smartphone app to help truckers identify healthy food choices at their locations and fast food restaurants. David Parmly, the company’s employee services manager, says their truck stops have adjusted recipes to make them healthier and offer oatmeal for breakfast.— Reuters

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2012

H E A LT H & S C I E NC E

Trader turned neuroscientist explores risky highs Former Wall Street trader studies biology of risk-taking

Indian toilet scheme wins Geneva award GENEVA: An innovative scheme to provide rural Indian communities with toilets and running water in every house has scooped the first Global+5 award in Geneva.

“It’s more than water and sanitation, it’s human dignity,” said Joe Madiath, head of the Mantra project (Movement and Action network for Transformation of Rural Lives) run by Indian non-governmental group Gram Vikas.

Speaking at the awards ceremony in Geneva late Tuesday, Madiath expressed surprise that a project involving toilets “could lead to such a big prize.” The Global+5 award, created by the Geneva-based Global Journal, is aimed at honouring the “solutions to the most pressing global questions of the next five years.”

Based in Orissa in eastern India, Gram Vikas helps to provide “blanket coverage” of toilets and piped running water to communities where 85 percent of the population has no access to a toilet and 99 percent no running water.

So far, the Indian group says it has reached 988 villages, including those in hilly areas lacking electricity, claiming its project has led to a more than 80-percent drop in waterborne disease. Without such help, “rural communities remain more prone to waterborne diseases and as a result demoralised and unable to defeat the cycle of poverty,” it said in a statement.

Lack of basic sanitation is a widespread problem in Indian homes, with census data showing more households in the country of 1.2 billion people have a telephone than a toilet.

Some 47 percent of India’s 330 million households have toilet facilities while 63 percent of homes have phone connections-mostly mobiles. The award jury, which included World Trade Organization director Pascal Lamy and former Greek prime minister George Papandreou, also praised six other projects nominated for the award. In particular, they cited the “Discovering Hands” initiative which employs visually impaired women in Germany to detect breast cancer.

The 20 women trained to spot the cancer have a 50 percent better detection rate than traditional methods, the NGO said. — AFP

LONDON: When John Coates was on a winning streak during his days as a trader at Deutsche Bank and Goldman Sachs, the narcotic-like “high” he experienced was so powerful he was determined to find out more. So after 13 years on trading floors on Wall Street he moved to the neuroscience labs of Rockefeller University in New York and of Britain’s Cambridge University.

Here, the trader turned neuroscientist has been bent on uncovering the brain biology behind that high, what it did to him, and what it’s probably doing to those he left behind. What he’s come up with, after several years reading up on animal studies and some interesting experiments with spit, is that risk taking is driven by a “winner effect” - a hormonal mechanism in which each competitive victory leads to more wins. “The narcotic high was as powerful as anything I have ever felt,” Coates said in an interview during a medical conference in London, describing the experience of making huge profits and big bonuses at some of the world’s largest banks.

And as other experts in psychiatry and neuroscience at the conference agreed, the consequences of a winner effect gone out of control can lead some to become powercorrupted politicians, cruel military dictators and even surgeons who like to play god. “You become euphoric, delusional, you have less need for sleep, you have racing thoughts, an expanded appetite for risk, and less stringent requirements in the risk and reward trade-off,” said Coates.

“Basically, you become a rogue trader.”

Since publishing some initial scientific studies exploring these traits in traders, Coates says he has been contacted by researchers analyzing politicians, soldiers, and even sports people who believe his work can shed light on theirs. “As our research progressed, it became clear we were doing a lot more that studying the biology of financial risk taking, we were studying the biology of (all) risk taking,” he said. “We only have one biology, and we take it with us into whatever world we’re engaged in - whether it’s the military, sports, politics or finance.”

With evidence of extreme consequences of the winner effect - traders who turn

rogue and bring down entire banks, political leaders corrupted by power who inflict cruelty on subordinates, or soldiers who become indiscriminate killing machines unchecked by the rules of conflict - Coates is looking deeper. “When you see this transformation take place in people, they start carrying themselves like masters of the universe. And it’s not a cognitive process. It isn’t even about greed. It’s more this feeling of consummate power, a feeling that you’re dominating the world.”

RISK TAKING IS PHYSIOLOGICAL Coates says he was increasingly struck by the fact that “almost every blow-up north of a billion dollars - the sort of blowup that shakes a bank to its foundation” came down to the actions of a trader at the end of a winning streak. “ The winning streak seems to foster excessive risk-taking,” he said. Intrigued, and keen to bring his previous experience to his new role as a Cambridge research fellow in Neuroscience and Finance, Coates asked some of his former colleagues in London’s City financial district to give him some time, and some spit. Over eight consecutive business days, researchers took spit samples from 17 male traders, morning and afternoon, to measure levels of the hormone testosterone during daily trading. The results were revealing. Daily testosterone was significantly higher on days when traders made more than their one-month daily average. And on mornings when they had high testosterone levels, their profits for the rest of the day were significantly larger than when testosterone levels were low.

These findings echo similar studies of animals in the wild, which also found a testosterone-driven winner effect among males who fight over territory or a mate, for example. According to Coates, they also show without doubt that risk taking in humans is a physiological and not just a cognitive activity. “Within economics, there’s a belief that we wander around with this supercomputer in our heads that is unaffected by the body and has the ability to calculate returns, probabilities and the optimum allocation of capital,” he said. “But of course the science doesn’t support anything like that.”

IRRATIONAL EXUBERANCE Coates’ observations chimed with those of several other speakers at the conference, which gathered psychiatrists and neuroscientists to examine the phenomenon of hubris in public life - in other words what leads people in power to become corrupted and behave in arrogant and destructive ways.

Nassir Ghaemi, a professor of psychiatry at Tufts University Massachusetts, told the conference disorders like depression can often enhance political, economic and military leaders at times of crisis because depressives are more empathetic, more self critical and more realistic about the world around them.

Coates suggests what goes wrong in the case of rogue traders is that the hormonal mechanism behind the winner effect becomes pathological, fostering “irrational exuberance” and excessive risk taking. He also said it is not enough for commentators

and analysts to simply observe these activities, but argued that they should demand proper scientific studies which can provide robust answers to questions about what went wrong. “What I’m describing is overlooked scientific data,” he told the conference. “And what we’re seeing in the corporate world is a desperate need for science conducted in the workplace. It’s going to help us understand the sources of the instability, and how to control it.”

Coates’ hypothesis is that at a certain level of rising testosterone, effective risk taking gradually turns into a biological wave of excessively risky behavior. If that is the case, it should change the way traders are managed, he said. “The trouble with the banks is that their risk management systems and compensation schemes have been amplifying these biological waves, when they should be leaning against them.— Reuters

MUMBAI: A member of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) India, and PETA affiliates worldwide, Ingrid E Newkirk, is harnessed to a Victoria carriage during a protest in Mumbai yesterday.

Newkirk was protesting the alleged cruelty towards horses by forcing them to pull heavy Victoria’s. The silver-coloured Victoria’s, modelled on open carriages used during Queen Victoria’s reign in the 19th century, first appeared in Mumbai in British colonial times. —AFP

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THURSDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2012

WHAT’S ON

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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ICSK student wins second prize in IPC competition aster Omar Ashraf, student of the Indian Community School, Khaitan Branch, won the second prize in the 11th Holy Quran Memorization Competition organized by Islam Presentation Committee (IPC) during the Holy month of Ramadan, 2012. A cash prize of KD 50 was awarded to the winner.

Congratulations to Omar Ashraf on this glorious achievement!

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McDonald’s Kuwait and BOCA Juniors Kuwait form the Yellow Alliance cDonald’s Kuwait has announced their alliance with BOCA Juniors football academy in Kuwait, one of the famous and most decorated football teams in the world. The two year alliance called ‘Yellow Alliance’ is derived from the color yellow that both parties share and has been incorporated based on the mutual values that both McDonald’s and BOCA share.

The Yellow Alliance, which is the first of its kind for both parties in Kuwait, will aim to provide members of the community with the ultimate football experience. The alliance will also encourage the community members to take part in a range of appealing activities which focus on bringing the family together through the love of football. Most prominent activities include a school football tournament and a special needs training program.

“Football is a universal language through which we are able to create programs for all community members to take part in; This would not have been possible without the high level of professionalism and experience that the BOCA academy provides. McDonald’s and BOCA have very similar core values, making this collaboration a perfect fit.” commented George Khawam, Marketing Director of McDonald’s Kuwait.

The first of the major activities on the alliance’s calendar is an exciting school football league endorsed by The Public Authority for Youth & Sports.

A total of 16 schools will be pooled together into a competitive and enticing league that spans over approximately a four- month period. Families and the school communities will get to enjoy watching their children compete in a professional league and engage in a variety of supplementary events.

“As much success we have on the field, we bring that same philosophy to our academy and alliance; Our objective is to teach and build in our young players the spirit of good sportsmanship, honesty and integrity, mental endurance, fair play, confidence, truthful values, essential techniques and tactics to become effective individuals and team members”, said Ruben Lineiro, Managing Partner of Boca Juniors Academy Kuwait.

He also added: “Sports are a great way to unite for a common goal. The special needs community have a lot to offer and, when given the opportunity, can be great team players. Some of the special needs players will also be eligible to train to become mentors for future coaching positions.”

McDonald’s Kuwait continuously supports local youth sports programs, sponsors major sports competitions and focuses on promoting and encouraging an active and balanced lifestyle. McDonald’s has been a proud supporter of the Olympic Movement for the past 40 years and is an official partner of the FIFA World Cup since the 1994 tournament in the United States.

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Bollywood dance Ballerine’s Bollywoood dance course. A dance course for all every Thursday 4 to 7 at BSK - Salwa.

he German Embassy in Kuwait along with the Department of Music and Drama at the American University of Kuwait is delighted to present the Dejean Quartet at the AUK campus on Tuesday, Oct 16 at 2pm. The ensemble, which is comprised of flute (UllrichP¸hn), violin (Helmut Simon), viola (Joachim Schwarz), and cello

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Swiss-Belhotel Plaza Kuwait welcomes Romanian visitors he Swiss-Belhotel Plaza Kuwait had the opportunity to welcome the Romanian commercial group visiting Kuwait on economic mission. The Group arrived to the hotel on October 7, to attend a meeting at Chamber of Commerce and an event that was arranged by the Embassy of Romania in Kuwait.

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athematics teachers of ICSK Junior Branch had a special workshop conducted by Dhaval Bathia on Sept 19 on techniques of Vedic Mathematics and Memory improvement.

Teaching Mathematics is a skill and a sci-

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ence and when the legacy of Vedic Mathematics is made available to the teacher, teaching abstract concepts becomes easy. Bathia brought back the legacy to life in a highly interactive session on how Maths Teachers could bring

KTAA meeting The Kuwait Textile Arts Association under the auspices of the Al Sadu House Takes pleasure in inviting you to an exciting evening with renowned fashion designer, Sonali Dharmawenda, as she shares the exotic art and world heritage craft at Batik Design from Sri Lanka. Come meet your 2012-2013 Executive Committee, sign up for quilt group and fibre arts group meetings and workshops galore. Also sign up for the KTAA Member Bazaar which will be held on the 24th of November. If you were a member last year, now is the time to renew’ If you have a friend who is interested, encourage her to join. You can pay at any one of our scheduled activities where there is always a KTAA member to welcome you.

We Need You Thinking of getting into netball Want to try it for the first time? Want to have fun getting fitter? Pre season training & games every Tuesday for 8 weeks, starting on 9th October 2012, 6:30 pm at TES (The English School).

CRYchess 2012 Friends of CRY Club (FOCC), Kuwait announces 9th Nov. 2012 as the date of the hugely popular Chess Tournament for children of all ages upto high-school. All children, amateur or professional, can join/clash with other enthusiasts and support a good cause. “CRYchess 2012” will be held on Friday, 9th Nov. 2012 at the Fahaheel Al-Watanieh Indian Private School (FAIPS) - DPS, Ahmadi, from 0930 - 1630 hrs. The players will be allocated groups by their age, to play in the Swiss pairing format. The lucky winners will walk away with the Trophies, however certificates and medals are awarded from Child Rights & You (CRY) to all participants.

‘Leniency of Islam’ n unprecedented initiative of KTV2 (English channel) is the new program by the name ‘Leniency of Islam’ presented by Shaikh Musaad Alsane and directed by Hamid Al-Turkait. The program is mainly meant to address the expatriates living in Kuwait. Religious questions are received through the program email qislam@tv.gov.kw and sms can be sent to- 97822021 and answered by the lecturer and Imam in Awqaf Ministry Shaikh Musaad Alsane - a Master Degree holder in Sharia and fiqih from Kuwait University. So don’t forget to watch the program every Friday at 1:00 pm.

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(Cornelius Schmaderer) will give a brief performance and discuss their instruments and their idiosyncrasies with students and guests. Afterwards, the professional musicians will meet with student instrumentalists for individual study.

The 2 pm performance-discussion, held in the AUK Multipurpose room, is open to the public.

The guests had city tour and savors the traditional Kuwaiti cuisine, since it was the first visit for the majority of guests. “We will make sure that their stay will be remarkable and will let them feel at home” said Ali Haddad, General Manager.

ICSK Junior conducts special math workshop for teachers

UPCOMING EVENTS Hallowen party Kuwait Irish Society proudly presents Hallowen Party 2012, Children 3- 10 years old, Friday 19th October 5 pm - 7 pm. The English Academy, Jabriya. Competitions - Fancy Dress and Pumpkin Lantern! Games, Parade, Prizes! (bring your own pumpkin lantern). Register by Sunday 14th October 2012 Entry fee on admission

Musical performance and discussion

excitement into their classes by teaching students short methods using Vedic Mathematics. Healso gave tips on how to improve memory skills in students through fun words and picturisation.

Dhaval Bathia, a world renowned

Mathematician, and author, wrote his first book when he was only 17 years of age. He has trained over 200,000 students and his training programs have been certified as the world’s best. With many awards to his credit, Bathia is passionate about spreading the love of mathematics among the student community.

Principal Incharge Gayatri Ravindran welcomed Bathia and the group of enthusiastic teachers and was sure that both teacher and the taught would benefit from these techniques. The students have to stop being afraid of Maths, she said.

PAC members K P Suresh, Biju Abraham and Ajay George were also present and hoped that children would find the subject more interesting and fun and grow to love the subject after learning these techniques.

Bathia was in Kuwait for special workshops on Vedic Mathematics and Memory Techniques for four days, on a special invitation from ICSK.

BEC T10 cricket tournament launched he 2012 BEC T10 Cricket tournament was launched on the 8th of October 2012 at the Head Office of Bahrain Exchange Company. The programme release was done by E.D. Titus -Director & General Manager of BEC Exchange. Titus handed over the BEC bat to Mr. Jimmy Scaria - President of Red N Black Cricket team.

The launching of the official invitation for participation is an eagerly awaited Event in the Cricketing calendar of Kuwait.

Organised by the Red N Black Team, along with BEC. The BEC T 10, is a soft ball tournament and is unique as participation in it is available to the cricket loving people who play cricket using soft balls. Last year, there was a huge turnout of teams and the Organisers were forced to limit the playing teams to the first 32 who had

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registered for the same.

This year already, the Red N Black team has started receiving enquiries about the prospective dates of the tournament. The dates therefore the tournament will be held are from 26th of October 2012 to 23rd November 2012. The total number of teams participating will be limited to 32.

Apart from the trophies, there will be valuable prizes for the Winners, Runners Up, Second Runners Up, Man of the tournament etc.

There will also be a Fair play Award apart from other prizes. Talking about the tournament. Titus said , that the cricket tournament is sponsored by BEC Exchange as part of its social responsibilities to the people of Kuwait. BEC believes in promoting sports for the better health of the community.

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THURSDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2012

WHAT’S ON

Embassy Information

GUST MBA organize case writing workshop he Gulf University for Science and Technology (GUST) MBA program department, organized a two-day Case Writing Workshop for GUST professors. The goal of the workshop was to enable each par-

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ticipant to write an original, field-based, case ready for release and a preliminary teaching note. The course was attended by 20 of GUST’s MBA professors who were asked to commit, full time, to the individual,

small and large group sessions in the workshop. The lectures were conducted by Professor Michiel R. Leenders of Richard Ivey School of Business.

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.

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IKEA Kuwait launches ‘IKEA Family Card’ s a method of expressing its gratitude to its loyal customers, IKEA Kuwait launched its new and free customer loyalty program on October 1st in its store. The IKEA Family card, as part of the IKEA Family loyalty program, is designed to guarantee family members an enjoyable shopping experience at IKEA Kuwait while gaining more rewards with every purchasing visit to the store.

The IKEA Family card grants its loyal customers instore and out-of-store benefits, member privileges, added savings and convenience as well as improve their overall customer shopping experience.

Cardholders could get instant discounts throughout the year on the exclusive IKEA Family product range in the IKEA Family Shop, while also acquiring select product discounts periodically along with exclusive food and beverage offers at the IKEA restaurant.

Families can also look forward to receiving 10% discounts on a selected range at the Swedish Food Market. Moreover, individuals seeking a healthy diet could enjoy a tailor-made meal with a 15% discount on the entire ‘Healthy Range’ in the restaurant.

Furthermore, families are now able to participate in various in-store activities from family fun-filled events to sustainability activities, and can even increase their chances of winning a KD 100 gift card every month for every time the card is used in-store.

In addition, IKEA Kuwait is offering its family card members an exclusive preview on new campaigns and offers through e-Shots and e-Newsletters to get a head start on their shopping requirements.

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Opportunity Plan Presentation meeting n Opportunity Plan Presentation (OPP) will be conducted today (October 11) at 7pm at Sheikha Complex, Bilajat Street, Salmiya (Near Al-Seif Hospital) by the biggest marketing company in the Philippines, known as the Alliance in Motion Global (AIM

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Global). The presentation will be hosted by the Phoenix Team in association with AIMONE and DTA Rockstars Kuwait. A millionaire created by AIM Global Jogui Guillermo will be their guest speaker. Everyone is invited especially Filipinos. Come and be a millionaire yourself!

GCC private sectors roles discussed at AUK he Center for Gulf Studies (CGS) at the American University of Kuwait (AUK) hosted Dr. Steffen Hertog, Senior Lecturer of Comparative Politics at the London School of Economics and Political Science, , to give his insight in a public lecture entitled “Diversified But Marginal: The GCC Private Sector as an Economic and Political Force”. The lecture, which took place at the AUK campus, discussed the main reasons why the private sector in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries appeared to be successful in terms of employment generation, capital formation, and economic diversification, yet remains politically marginalized and largely dependent on the state.

Dr. Hertog attributed this phenomenon to the nature of the rentier state that characterizes most GCC economies and state structures. The GCC state is the primary driver of demand, and state spending is the main driver for economic growth within the private sector.

The lack of taxes has decoupled the private sector from the state, creating a one-sided relationship where the private sector is dependent on the state and does not contribute to the financing of public services.

Another factor leading to the marginalization of private sectors, according to Dr. Hertog, is the rigid divide in the foreign and local employment forces, as well as, the public and private wealth. The private sector employs mostly foreign workers and contributes little to national employment; which dominates the public sector. Stateowned enterprises usually provide

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the most productive jobs for nationals, who, in turn, fuel consumer demand. As most wealth is privately held, the private sector also offers few investment opportunities for citizens, compromising the linkages to the national population at large.

This vicious cycle is the main reason why local businesses experience marginalization in economic policy-

making and politics.

In order to alter the status quo, Dr. Hertog outlined several options available for the private sector to adopt. These include: an acceptance of taxation, the reforming of corporate governance, and most importantly, an increase in the employment of nationals through increased use of technology and improved human resources.

Employing more nationals in the private sector, however, will also require a change in state policy to reduce the incentives among the local population for seeking public employment.

Concluding the discussion with a series of questions from the audience, Dr. Hertog touched on several topics, including the available statis-

tics about business sizes in the GCC, the correlation between democratic practice in GCC states and private sector involvement in public policies.

Dr. Steffen Hertog is a senior lecturer in comparative politics at the London School of Economics and Political Science. He was previously Kuwait Professor at the Chaire Moyen Orient at Sciences Po/Paris.

His research interests include Gulf politics, Middle East political economy, political violence, and radicalization. Dr. Hertog has also been published in numerous prestigious journals. His book Princes, Brokers and Bureaucrats: Oil and State in Saudi Arabia was published by Cornell University Press in 2010.

The Center for Gulf Studies (CGS) at the American University of Kuwait aims to promote greater cultural understanding of and increased intellectual interest in the Gulf, by facilitating free and open academic discourse on a range of issues that both shape and challenge this critical region of the world. The goal of the CGS is to enable scholars, as well as political and civil society actors, both within and outside the region to contribute and add value to the burgeoning field of Gulf Studies, while at the same time informing and engaging the general public. To this end, the CGS encourages, supports, and cultivates interesting and original research on the Gulf, while regularly organizing a variety of public academic events such as lectures, roundtable discussions, and conferences.

Uganda anniversary s we celebrate Ugandaís Golden Jubilee and Independence Anniversary, we, the Ugandan Community here in Kuwait invite you to join us at the AWARE Centre (Villa 84, Street 50, Block 3, Surra) on the 16th of November at 6pm.

We will be having a Ugandan Day where we will show case Uganda, its people, and its crafts. We will then crown it all with a Ugandan Buffet. All are welcome.

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GULAB awards Gracy Morais t a function commemorating the 30th year celebrations of popular Konknni magazine, GULAB conferred its first ever title upon a Konknni Tiatr Artiste, Gracy Morais, in Kuwait. Gulab Konknni Mogui Kuwait felicitated Gracy, popular Konknni stage actor and singer in Kuwait, bestowing the coveted title “Shining Star of Konknni Stage in Kuwait”. Gracy received the memento from the hands of Fausto Da Costa, Editor of Gulab Magazine, who was on a short visit while Vice President of the Konkani Mogi Kuwait (KMK), Salazar placed a crown with a glittering star on Gracy’s head aptly matching with the title conferred on her.

Gracy has been an active member on Kuwait Konknni Stage for the last thirteen (13) years acting in several local tiatros, participated in musical shows, and competitions, has been a member of Kuwait Goa Tiatristanchi Sonvstha (KGTS), GWS, Crystal Focus Club, and has toured some of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) States and the United Kingdom. She has also played the main protagonist in Kuwait’s first Konknni feature film titled “BLACK Nhesop Atanchem Fashion” produced and directed by T-Bush and premiered in Kuwait.

Gracy has to her credit Best Actress and Best Singer (Female) awards at the prestigious Kala Academy Tiatr Competition in 1997 in Goa, and several other awards in Kuwait for her versatility and intensity of portraying any character in tiatrs (dramas), grace, singing and acting prowess. She has featured both singer and actor in of several Konknni CDs and VCD produced in Goa, India, and Kuwait. She also has a flair for writing short Konkani essays and poems.

The function was organized by Konkani Mogi Kuwait and attended by special invitees along with KMK committee members headed by Domnic Fernandes. Gracy hails from the picturesque village of Ribandar in Goa and has a MBA degree in Healthcare Sciences, and together with her husband, Augusto and her two children, continues to enjoy her cherished talents of singing, acting and social work. She is the daughter of (Late) Luis Rodrigues (musician) and Milagrina Rodrigues.

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Write to us Send to What’s On upcoming events, birthdays or celebrations by email: local@kuwaittimes.net Fax: 24835619 / 20

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, U.A.E. 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-imenquiry@international.gc.ca.

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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. ■■■■■■■

EMBASSY OF FRANCE The Embassy would like to inform that starting September 2nd, 2012, visa demands for France will be handled by the outsourcing company “Capago - MENA Company”. Capago - MENA’S Call Center will be operational starting Sunday August 26 for setting appointments beginning September 2nd (+965 22270555).

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EMBASSY OF INDIA The Embassy of India will remain closed on OCT 24, 2012 -Wednesday-Dussehra (Vijaya Dashami) ■■■■■■■

EMBASSY OF NIGERIA The Nigerian embassy has its new office in Mishref. Block 3, Street 7, House 4. For enquires please call 25379541. Fax25387719. Email- nigeriakuwait@yahoo.com or nigeriankuwait@yahoo.co.uk.

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EMBASSY OF PERU The Embassy of Peru is located in Sharq, Ahmed Al Jaber Street, Al Arabiya Tower, 6th Floor. Working days / hours: SundayThursday /9 am - 4 pm. Residents in Kuwait interested in getting a visa to travel to Peru and companies attracted to invest in Peru are invited to visit the permanent exposition room located in the Embassy. For more information, please contact: (+965) 22267250/1.

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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: from Sunday to Thursday is from 13.00 to 17.00 pm; Friday from 10 to 1 pm; Saturday from 10 am to 1 pm. On October 28, 2012 the working hours of the polling station from 8 am to 8 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, OCTOBER 11, 2012

TV PROGRAMS

00:45 01:35 02:25 03:15 04:05 04:55 05:20 05:45 06:10 06:35 07:00 07:25 08:15 09:10 10:05 11:00 11:55 12:50 13:15 13:45 14:40 15:35 16:00 16:30 17:25 17:50 18:20 19:15 19:40 20:10 20:35 21:05 22:00 22:25 22:55 23:50

I Was Bitten I’m Alive The Magic Of The Big Blue Monster Bug Wars The Animals’ Guide To Survival Animal Battlegrounds Dark Days In Monkey City Vet On The Loose Vet On The Loose Wildlife SOS Talk To The Animals The Jeff Corwin Experience Dogs 101 America’s Cutest...

The Animals’ Guide To Survival World Wild Vet Wild Animal Repo Wildlife SOS Rescue Vet Animal Cops Houston The Animals’ Guide To Survival Dark Days In Monkey City Talk To The Animals Cats 101 Chris Humfrey’s Wildlife Chris Humfrey’s Wildlife Dogs 101 Wildlife SOS Rescue Vet Animal Battlegrounds Dark Days In Monkey City The Animals’ Guide To Survival Wild Animal Orphans Wild Animal Orphans Max’s Big Tracks Animal Cops Miami

23:50 Animal Cops Houston 00:30 Antiques Roadshow 01:25 Twiggy’s Frock Exchange 02:20 10 Years Younger 03:10 Living In The Sun 04:00 Saturday Kitchen 2008/09 04:25 Saturday Kitchen 2008/09 04:50 MasterChef 05:15 Living In The Sun 06:05 MasterChef 06:30 Saturday Kitchen 2008/09 07:00 MasterChef Australia 07:45 MasterChef Australia 08:10 Twiggy’s Frock Exchange 09:05 10 Years Younger 09:55 Bargain Hunt 10:40 Antiques Roadshow 11:35 Extreme Makeover: Home Edition 12:15 Gok’s Clothes Roadshow 13:05 MasterChef 14:00 MasterChef 14:55 Bargain Hunt 15:40 Antiques Roadshow 16:30 Extreme Makeover: Home Edition 17:10 Gok’s Clothes Roadshow 18:00 Home Cooking Made Easy 18:30 Nigel Slater’s Simple Suppers 19:00 Rhodes Across Italy 19:45 Come Dine With Me 20:35 Extreme Makeover: Home Edition 21:20 Antiques Roadshow 22:15 Bargain Hunt 23:00 Extreme Makeover: Home Edition 23:45 Gok’s Clothes Roadshow Edition 00:15 01:10 02:05 03:00 03:55 04:20 05:15 05:40 06:05 07:00 Junior 07:50 08:45 09:40 10:05 10:55 11:25 12:20 13:15 14:10 14:35 15:30 16:25 Junior 17:20 18:15 19:10 19:40 20:05 20:35 21:30 22:25 23:20

Deception With Keith Barry Mythbusters Mythbusters Mythbusters Border Security Dealers How Do They Do It? How It’s Made Extreme Fishing American Chopper: Senior vs Mythbusters Ultimate Survival Border Security Dealers How It’s Made Deception With Keith Barry Mythbusters Mythbusters Border Security Dealers Ultimate Survival American Chopper: Senior vs Extreme Fishing Mythbusters How Do They Do It? How It’s Made Border Security Dealers American Guns Hellriders Ultimate Cops

23:20 Surviving Disaster 00:35 Mega Builders 01:25 Space Pioneer 02:15 Stephen Hawking’s Grand Design 03:05 The Gadget Show 03:35 Sport Science 04:25 Through The Wormhole With Morgan Freeman 05:15 Scrapheap Challenge 06:05 Mega Builders 07:00 Space Pioneer 07:50 Stephen Hawking’s Grand Design 08:40 Head Rush 08:43 Weird Connections 09:12 How Does That Work?

09:40 Through The Wormhole With Morgan Freeman 10:30 The Gadget Show 10:55 The Gadget Show 11:20 Mega Builders 12:10 Scrapheap Challenge 13:00 Space Pioneer 13:50 Stephen Hawking’s Grand Design 14:45 Through The Wormhole With Morgan Freeman 15:35 The Gadget Show 16:00 Head Rush 16:03 Weird Connections 16:32 How Does That Work?

17:00 Mega Builders 17:50 NASA’s Greatest Missions 18:40 Scrapheap Challenge 19:30 Weird Or What?

20:20 How The Universe Works 21:10 The Gadget Show 21:35 The Gadget Show 22:00 Weird Or What?

22:50 How The Universe Works 23:40 Sport Science 20:20 Bang Goes The Theory

00:15 00:40 00:55 01:10 01:30 01:55 Pooh 02:00 02:25 02:50 03:20 03:40 04:05 Pooh 04:10 04:35 05:00 05:15 05:30 05:50 06:00 06:15 06:30 06:45 07:00 07:15 07:45 08:10 08:20 08:35 08:50 09:05 09:15 Pooh 09:20 09:35 09:45 09:55 10:20 Pooh 10:45 11:10 11:35 12:00 Pooh 12:10 12:25 12:40 13:05 13:15 13:30 13:55 14:20 Pooh 14:45 15:00 15:15 15:25 15:55 16:20 16:30 16:45 17:10 17:40 17:55 18:10 18:20 18:35 19:00 19:05 19:25 19:40 Pooh 20:05 20:20 20:30 Pooh 20:35 20:40 20:45 21:00 21:25 21:40 21:55 Pooh 22:20 22:30 22:45 22:55 23:20 23:35 23:50 00:25 00:50 01:20 02:15 03:10 04:05 04:30 05:00 05:55 07:00 07:25 07:55 08:50 09:15 09:45 10:40 11:05 11:35 12:30 13:25 14:20 15:15 15:40 16:10 17:05 17:30 18:00 18:55 19:50 20:45 21:40 22:05 22:35 23:30

Little Einsteins Jungle Junction Jungle Junction Little Einsteins Special Agent Oso Mini Adventures Of Winnie The Lazytown Little Einsteins Jungle Junction Little Einsteins Special Agent Oso Mini Adventures Of Winnie The Lazytown Little Einsteins Jungle Junction Jungle Junction Little Einsteins Special Agent Oso Special Agent Oso Jungle Junction Jungle Junction Handy Manny Special Agent Oso Lazytown Mickey Mouse Clubhouse The Hive Jake & The Neverland Pirates Jake & The Neverland Pirates Handy Manny The Hive Mini Adventures Of Winnie The Mouk Mouk The Hive Mickey Mouse Clubhouse New Adventures Of Winnie The Art Attack Imagination Movers Lazytown Mini Adventures Of Winnie The Handy Manny Jungle Junction Imagination Movers The Hive Special Agent Oso Lazytown Mickey Mouse Clubhouse New Adventures Of Winnie The Jake & The Neverland Pirates Mouk The Hive Imagination Movers Lazytown Jungle Junction Handy Manny Art Attack Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Jake & The Neverland Pirates Jake & The Neverland Pirates The Hive Mouk Imagination Movers A Poem Is...

Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Jungle Junction New Adventures Of Winnie The Jake & The Neverland Pirates The Hive Mini Adventures Of Winnie The A Poem Is...

A Poem Is...

Mouk Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Jake & The Neverland Pirates Special Agent Oso New Adventures Of Winnie The Timmy Time Jungle Junction Handy Manny Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Special Agent Oso Special Agent Oso Lazytown Gotta Grudge Gotta Grudge Pro Bull Riders 2010 World Combat League TNA: Greatest Matches Re-Evolution Of Sports Re-Evolution Of Sports Enfusion Pro Bull Riders 2010 Ride Guide Mountainbike 2009 Ride Guide Mountainbike 2009 Winter Dew Tour 10/11 X-Traordinary X-Traordinary Alli Presents Fantasy Factory Fantasy Factory Pro Bull Riders 2010 Mantracker Fight Girls World Combat League Fantasy Factory Fantasy Factory Winter Dew Tour 10/11 X-Traordinary X-Traordinary Mantracker Pro Bull Riders 2010 Fight Girls World Combat League Re-Evolution Of Sports Re-Evolution Of Sports TNA: Greatest Matches Enfusion

00:05 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives 00:30 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives 00:55 Charly’s Cake Angels 01:20 Charly’s Cake Angels 01:45 Unique Sweets 02:10 Unique Sweets 02:35 Kid In A Candy Store 03:00 Kid In A Candy Store 03:25 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives 03:50 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives 04:15 Guy’s Big Bite 04:40 Outrageous Food 05:05 Crave 05:30 Chopped 06:10 Barefoot Contessa 06:35 Barefoot Contessa 07:00 Iron Chef America 07:50 Barefoot Contessa 08:15 Barefoot Contessa 08:40 Crave 09:05 Charly’s Cake Angels 09:30 Jenny Morris Cooks Morocco 09:55 Cooking For Real 10:20 Cooking For Real 10:45 Healthy Appetite With Ellie Krieger 11:10 Unwrapped 11:35 United Tastes Of America 12:00 Chopped

12:50 13:15 13:40 14:05 14:30 14:55 15:20 15:45 16:10 16:35 17:00 17:25 17:50 18:15 18:40 19:05 19:30 20:20 21:10 21:35 22:00 22:25 22:50 23:10 23:40 Bite

Guy’s Big Bite Cooking For Real Barefoot Contessa Barefoot Contessa Crave Charly’s Cake Angels Jenny Morris Cooks Morocco Food(Ography) Unwrapped Barefoot Contessa Barefoot Contessa Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives Guy’s Big Bite Unique Sweets Charly’s Cake Angels Chopped Iron Chef America Crave Crave The Big Cheese The Big Cheese Food(Ography) Food(Ography) Guy’s Big Bite23:40 Guy’s Big

00:30 Ghost Lab 01:20 Psychic Witness 02:05 Behind Mansion Walls 02:55 American Greed 03:45 Dr G: Medical Examiner 04:30 Ghost Lab 05:20 Psychic Witness 06:10 Disappeared 07:00 Life Or Death: Medical Mysteries 07:50 Street Patrol 08:15 Street Patrol 08:40 Real Emergency Calls 09:05 Who On Earth Did I Marry?

09:30 On The Case With Paula Zahn 10:20 FBI Case Files 11:10 Disappeared 12:00 Life Or Death: Medical Mysteries 12:50 Street Patrol 13:15 Street Patrol 13:40 Forensic Detectives 14:30 On The Case With Paula Zahn 15:20 Real Emergency Calls 15:45 Who On Earth Did I Marry?

16:10 FBI Case Files 17:00 Disappeared 17:50 Forensic Detectives 18:40 Mall Cops– Mall Of America 19:05 True Crime With Aphrodite Jones 19:55 Who On Earth Did I Marry?

20:20 Nightmare Next Door 21:10 Couples Who Kill 22:00 I Was Murdered 22:25 I Was Murdered 22:50 Nightmare Next Door 23:40 Dr G: Medical Examiner

00:15 00:45 01:40 02:05 02:35 03:00 03:30 03:55 04:25 05:20 05:45 06:15 Planet 06:40 Planet 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 Planet 14:00 Planet 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 Planet 21:30 Planet 22:00 22:25 22:55 Planet 23:20 Planet 23:50

Delinquent Gourmet Long Way Down Bondi Rescue Bondi Rescue Bondi Rescue Bondi Rescue Danger Beach Into The Drink

By Any Means Bondi Rescue: Bali Bondi Rescue: Bali Food Lover’s Guide To The Food Lover’s Guide To The Delinquent Gourmet Delinquent Gourmet Long Way Down Bondi Rescue Bondi Rescue Bondi Rescue Bondi Rescue Danger Beach Into The Drink

By Any Means Bondi Rescue Bondi Rescue Food Lover’s Guide To The Food Lover’s Guide To The Delinquent Gourmet Delinquent Gourmet Long Way Down Bondi Rescue Bondi Rescue Bondi Rescue Bondi Rescue Danger Beach Into The Drink

By Any Means Delinquent Gourmet Delinquent Gourmet Food Lover’s Guide To The Food Lover’s Guide To The Bondi Rescue: Bali Bondi Rescue Food Lover’s Guide To The Food Lover’s Guide To The

16:00 18:00 20:00 22:00 20:00 22:00

The Net-PG15 The Warrior’s Way-PG15 Transporter 2-PG15 The Resident-18 Fighting-PG15 Homecoming-18

01:30 The Boondocks 02:00 The Big C 03:00 30 Rock 03:30 Breaking In 04:00 Two And A Half Men 04:30 The Tonight Show With Jay Leno 06:00 Friends 07:00 Late Night With Jimmy Fallon 08:00 Two And A Half Men 08:30 30 Rock 09:30 Cougar Town 10:00 New Girl 11:00 The Tonight Show With Jay Leno 12:00 Friends 12:30 Two And A Half Men 14:00 Breaking In 14:30 New Girl 15:00 Cougar Town 16:30 Friends 17:00 Late Night With Jimmy Fallon 18:00 30 Rock 18:30 Baby Daddy 19:00 The Simpsons 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 Family Guy 22:30 The Big C 23:30 Late Night With Jimmy Fallon 23:30 Late Night With Jimmy Fall on 00:00 01:00 02:00 03:00 04:00 05:00 06:00 07:00 07:30 08:00 09:00 10:00 11:00 12:00 12:30 13:00 14:00 15:00 16:00 16:30 17:00 18:00 19:00 20:00 22:00 23:00 23:00

White Collar Combat Hospital Supernatural Grimm Bunheads Franklin & Bash White Collar Emmerdale Coronation Street Castle Supernatural Combat Hospital Bunheads Emmerdale Coronation Street The Ellen DeGeneres Show Castle White Collar Emmerdale Coronation Street The Ellen DeGeneres Show Castle Parenthood The X Factor U.S. American Horror Story Grimm Grimm

00:30 Carrie-18 03:00 Never Back Down 2: The Beatdown-18 05:00 Tremors-PG15 07:00 Enter The Phoenix-PG15 08:45 In The Line Of Fire-PG15 11:00 Kingdom Of Heaven-PG15 13:30 Spider-Man-PG 15:30 In The Line Of Fire-PG15 17:45 Dad Savage-PG15 19:30 Survival Of The Dead-18 21:00 13 Assassins-18 23:15 Dread-18 23:00 Luster-18

00:00 01:00 01:55 02:50 03:45 04:40 05:35 06:30 07:25 08:20 09:15 10:10 11:05 12:00 13:00 14:00 15:00 16:00 17:00 18:00 19:00 20:00 21:00 22:00 23:00 23:00

Hunter Hunted Monster Fish Zambezi Built For The Kill Caught In The Act The Living Edens Secrets Of The King Cobra Zambezi Built For The Kill Caught In The Act Python Hunters Lizard Kings Swamp Men Hooked Zambezi Built For The Kill Caught In The Act Python Hunters Swamp Troop Swamp Men Zambezi Built For The Kill Caught In The Act Python Hunters Lizard Kings Hunter Hunted

00:00 02:00 04:00 06:00 08:00 10:00 12:00 14:00

Homecoming-18 Faster-PG15 Piranha-R Across The Hall-PG15 Shanghai Noon-PG15 Fatal Secrets-PG15 The Warrior’s Way-PG15 Shanghai Noon-PG15

SHARQIA-1 THE APPARITION :2D FRI THE EXPATRIATE :2D THE APPARITION :2D THE EXPATRIATE :2D THE WORDS :2D THE EXPATRIATE :2D THE EXPATRIATE :2D NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:30 PM 1:00 PM 3:30 PM 5:15 PM 7:45 PM 9:45 PM 12:05 AM

SHARQIA-2 TAKEN2 :2D TAKEN2 :2D TAKEN2 :2D TAKEN2 :2D TAKEN2 :2D TAKEN2 :2D TAKEN2 :2D NO SUN+TUE+WED

12:45 PM 2:45 PM 4:45 PM 6:45 PM 8:45 PM 10:45 PM 12:45 AM

SHARQIA-3 HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET AL SULTAN AL FATIH (Turkish) HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET AL SULTAN AL FATIH (Turkish) HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET NO SUN+TUE+WED

12:30 PM 2:30 PM 5:15 PM 7:30 PM 9:45 PM 12:30 AM

MUHALAB-1 THE WORDS :2D THE EXPATRIATE :2D THE APPARITION :2D THE WORDS :2D THE EXPATRIATE :2D THE EXPATRIATE :2D NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:30 PM 3:45 PM 6:00 PM 8:00 PM 10:15 PM 12:30 AM

MUHALAB-2 AL SULTAN AL FATIH (Turkish) :2D THE WOMAN IN THE FIFTH AL SULTAN AL FATIH (Turkish) :2D WON’T BACK DOWN :2D THE WOMAN IN THE FIFTH THE WOMAN IN THE FIFTH NO SUN+TUE+WED MUHALAB-3 TAKEN2 :2D FRI HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET TAKEN2 :2D HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET TAKEN2 :2D HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET TAKEN2 :2D NO SUN+TUE+WED FANAR-1 HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET AL SULTAN AL FATIH (Turkish) HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET AL SULTAN AL FATIH (Turkish) HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET NO SUN+TUE+WED

12:45 PM 3:30 PM 5:30 PM 8:15 PM 10:45 PM 12:45 AM

1:30 PM 1:00 PM 3:30 PM 5:45 PM 7:45 PM 9:45 PM 12:05 AM

12:30 PM 2:45 PM 5:30 PM 7:45 PM 10:00 PM 1:00 AM

FANAR-2 WON’T BACK DOWN :2D DREDD :3D THE EXPATRIATE: 2D THE EXPATRIATE: 2D WON’T BACK DOWN :2D THE EXPATRIATE: 2D NO SUN+TUE+WED

12:45 PM 3:30 PM 5:45 PM 8:00 PM 10:15 PM 12:45 AM

FANAR-3 WA ALAIK YA HABEEB AL SALAM AIYYAA: 2D (Hindi) WA ALAIK YA HABEEB AL SALAM AIYYAA: 2D (Hindi) WA ALAIK YA HABEEB AL SALAM NO SUN+TUE+WED

2:00 PM 4:00 PM 7:00 PM 9:00 PM 12:05 AM

FANAR-4 TAKEN2 :2D TAKEN2 :2D TAKEN2 :2D TAKEN2 :2D TAKEN2 :2D TAKEN2 :2D TAKEN2 :2D NO SUN+TUE+WED

12:30 PM 2:30 PM 4:30 PM 6:30 PM 8:30 PM 10:30 PM 12:30 AM

FANAR-5 THE WORDS THE APPARITION THE WORDS THE APPARITION THE WORDS THE APPARITION NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:30 PM 3:30 PM 5:15 PM 7:30 PM 9:30 PM 11:45 PM

01:15 MacGruber-18 03:15 Winnie The Pooh-FAM 05:00 Country Strong-PG15 07:00 Mars Needs Moms-PG 09:00 Honey 2-PG15 11:00 Captain America: The First Avenger-PG15 13:15 Cars 2-FAM 15:00 African Cats: Kingdom Of Courage-PG 17:00 Honey 2-PG15 19:00 Mr. Popper’s Penguins-PG 21:00 Paranormal Activity 3-18 23:00 Friends With Benefits-18

MARINA-1 THE WOMAN IN THE FIFTH THE APPARITION :2D THE WORDS :2D THE APPARITION :2D THE WOMAN IN THE FIFTH THE WOMAN IN THE FIFTH NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:30 PM 3:45 PM 5:45 PM 8:00 PM 10:00 PM 12:05 AM

MARINA-2 HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET WON’T BACK DOWN :2D AL SULTAN AL FATIH (Turkish) :2D HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET NO SUN+TUE+WED

12:30 PM 2:30 PM 4:45 PM 7:30 PM 10:15 PM 12:30 AM

00:00 Marco Antonio-PG 02:00 Supertramps-FAM 04:00 Space Chimps 2: Zartog Strikes Back-PG 06:00 The Lucky Dragon-PG 08:15 Toyz Goin’Wild-PG 10:00 Sammy’s Adventure: The Secret Passage-PG15 12:00 Space Chimps 2: Zartog Strikes Back-PG 14:00 Winner & The Golden Child: Part I-FAM 16:15 Mickey’s Twice Upon A Christmas-FAM 17:45 Sammy’s Adventure: The Secret Passage-PG15 20:00 Return To Halloweentown-PG 22:00 Mickey’s Twice Upon A Christmas-FAM 23:30 Winner & The Golden Child: Part I-FAM

MARINA-3 THE EXPATRIATE: 2D TAKEN2 :2D THE EXPATRIATE: 2D TAKEN2 :2D THE EXPATRIATE: 2D TAKEN2 :2D NO SUN+TUE+WED

2:00 PM 4:30 PM 6:30 PM 8:45 PM 10:45 PM 1:00 AM

00:15 The Answer Man-PG15 02:00 Rebound-PG 04:00 Letters To Juliet-PG15 06:00 My Last Five Girlfriends-PG15 08:00 How Do You Know-PG15 10:00 Morning Glory-PG15 12:00 Lottery Ticket-PG15 14:00 How The Grinch Stole Christmas-PG 16:00 Morning Glory-PG15 18:00 Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story-PG15 20:00 Dinner For Schmucks-PG15 22:00 The 41-Year-Old Virgin Who...18 22:00 Frenemy-18 01:00 03:30 05:30 07:30 09:00 11:00 13:00 15:00 16:45 PG15 19:00 21:00 23:30

Kings And Queen-18 I Capture The Castle-18 The Color Of Money-PG15 Miles From Nowhere-PG15 Boy-PG15 The Game Of Their Lives-PG15 Tresor-PG15 Boy-PG15 When A Man Loves A WomanThe Recruit-PG15 Any Given Sunday-PG15 Arlington Road-PG15 Square Grouper-18

David Rocco’s Dolce Vita 1

23:00 Naked Science

KNCC PROGRAMME FROM THURSDAY TO WEDNESDAY (11/10/2012 TO 17/10/2012)

AVENUES-1 AL SULTAN AL FATIH (Turkish) :2D AL SULTAN AL FATIH (Turkish) :2D AL SULTAN AL FATIH (Turkish) :2D AL SULTAN AL FATIH (Turkish) :2D AL SULTAN AL FATIH (Turkish) :2D NO SUN+TUE+WED AVENUES-2 PREMIUM RUSH (2D-Digital) THE APPARITION :2D

PREMIUM RUSH (2D-Digital) THE APPARITION :2D PREMIUM RUSH (2D-Digital) THE APPARITION :2D NO SUN+TUE+WED

6:30 PM 8:45 PM 11:00 PM 1:15 AM

DREDD :3D BAIT (3D- Digital) DREDD :3D BAIT (3D- Digital) DREDD :3D NO SUN+TUE+WED

AVENUES-3 THE EXPATRIATE: 2D THE EXPATRIATE: 2D THE EXPATRIATE: 2D THE EXPATRIATE: 2D THE EXPATRIATE: 2D THE EXPATRIATE: 2D NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:00 PM 3:15 PM 5:30 PM 7:45 PM 10:00 PM 12:15 AM

AVENUES-4 THE EXPATRIATE: 2D THE EXPATRIATE: 2D THE EXPATRIATE: 2D THE EXPATRIATE: 2D THE EXPATRIATE: 2D THE EXPATRIATE: 2D NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:00 PM 3:15 PM 5:30 PM 7:45 PM 10:00 PM 12:15 AM

360 º- 7 WON’T BACK DOWN :2D 1:45 PM THE WORDS :2D 4:15 PM WON’T BACK DOWN :2D 6:30 PM NO WED (17.10.2012) French Film Festival Show“The Artist”6:30 PM WED (17.10.2012) French Film Festival Show“War is declared” 8:30 PM WED (17.10.2012) THE WORDS :2D 9:00 PM NO WED (17.10.2012) WON’T BACK DOWN :2D 11:00 PM

AVENUES-5 TAKEN2 :2D 12:30 PM TAKEN2 :2D 2:45 PM NO SAT (13/10/2012) Special Show “THE EXPENDABLES 2(2D-Digital)” for Ms. Rana Al Bassam 2:45 PM SAT (13/10/2012) TAKEN2 :2D 5:00 PM TAKEN2 :2D 7:15 PM TAKEN2 :2D 9:30 PM TAKEN2 :2D 11:45 PM NO SUN+TUE+WED AVENUES-6 HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:45 PM 4:00 PM 6:15 PM 8:30 PM 10:45 PM 1:00 AM

AVENUES-7 TETA RAHIBA(2D-Digital) AIYYAA: 2D (Hindi) ENGLISH VINGLISH :2D (Hindi) AIYYAA: 2D (Hindi) TETA RAHIBA(2D-Digital) NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:00 PM 3:30 PM 6:30 PM 9:30 PM 12:30 AM

AVENUES-8 WA ALAIK YA HABEEB AL SALAM WA ALAIK YA HABEEB AL SALAM WA ALAIK YA HABEEB AL SALAM WA ALAIK YA HABEEB AL SALAM WA ALAIK YA HABEEB AL SALAM WA ALAIK YA HABEEB AL SALAM WA ALAIK YA HABEEB AL SALAM NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:15 PM 3:15 PM 5:15 PM 7:15 PM 9:15 PM 11:15 PM 1:15 AM

AVENUES-9 THE WOMAN IN THE FIFTH THE WOMAN IN THE FIFTH THE WOMAN IN THE FIFTH THE WOMAN IN THE FIFTH THE WOMAN IN THE FIFTH THE WOMAN IN THE FIFTH NO SUN+TUE+WED

12:45 PM 3:00 PM 5:15 PM 7:30 PM 9:45 PM 12:05 AM

AVENUES-10 THE WORDS :2D WON’T BACK DOWN :2D THE WORDS :2D WON’T BACK DOWN :2D THE WORDS :2D NO SUN+TUE+WED

2:15 PM 4:30 PM 7:00 PM 9:15 PM 11:45 PM

AVENUES-11 TAKEN2 :2D TAKEN2 :2D TAKEN2 :2D TAKEN2 :2D TAKEN2 :2D TAKEN2 :2D NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:30 PM 3:45 PM 6:00 PM 8:15 PM 10:30 PM 12:45 AM

360º- 1 THE EXPATRIATE: 2D 2:00 PM THE EXPATRIATE: 2D 4:15 PM THE EXPATRIATE: 2D 6:30 PM NO TUE (16.10.2012) THE EXPATRIATE: 2D 8:45 PM NO TUE (16.10.2012) French Film Festival Show“The Intouchables” 9:00 PM TUE (16.10.2012) THE EXPATRIATE: 2D 11:00 PM NO TUE (16.10.2012) THE EXPATRIATE: 2D 1:15 AM NO SUN+TUE+WED 360º- 2 AL SULTAN AL FATIH (Turkish) :2D AL SULTAN AL FATIH (Turkish) :2D AL SULTAN AL FATIH (Turkish) :2D AL SULTAN AL FATIH (Turkish) :2D AL SULTAN AL FATIH (Turkish) :2D NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:30 PM 4:15 PM 7:00 PM 9:45 PM 12:30 AM

360 º- 3 THE APPARITION :2D PREMIUM RUSH (2D-Digital) THE APPARITION :2D PREMIUM RUSH (2D-Digital) THE APPARITION :2D PREMIUM RUSH (2D-Digital) NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:00 PM 3:15 PM 5:30 PM 7:45 PM 10:00 PM 12:15 AM

360 º- 4 THE IMPOSTER THE IMPOSTER THE IMPOSTER THE IMPOSTER THE IMPOSTER NO SUN+TUE+WED

2:30 PM 4:45 PM 7:00 PM 9:15 PM 11:30 PM

12:30 PM 3:15 PM 6:00 PM 8:45 PM 11:30 PM

360 º- 5 WA ALAIK YA HABEEB AL SALAM FRI+SAT WA ALAIK YA HABEEB AL SALAM WA ALAIK YA HABEEB AL SALAM WA ALAIK YA HABEEB AL SALAM WA ALAIK YA HABEEB AL SALAM WA ALAIK YA HABEEB AL SALAM NO SUN+TUE+WED

2:00 PM 4:15 PM

360 º- 6 BAIT (3D- Digital)

2:15 PM 4:15 PM 6:15 PM 8:15 PM 10:15 PM 12:15 AM

1:15 PM

3:30 PM 5:45 PM 8:00 PM 10:15 PM 12:30 AM

360 º- 8 HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET NO SUN+TUE+WED

12:45 PM 3:00 PM 5:15 PM 7:30 PM 9:45 PM 12:05 AM

360 º- 9(VIP-1) HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET NO SUN+TUE+WED

12:45 PM 3:00 PM 5:15 PM 7:30 PM 9:45 PM 12:05 AM

360 º-10(VIP-2) TAKEN2 :2D TAKEN2 :2D TAKEN2 :2D TAKEN2 :2D TAKEN2 :2D TAKEN2 :2D NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:30 PM 3:45 PM 6:00 PM 8:15 PM 10:30 PM 12:45 AM

360 º- 11 THE WOMAN IN THE FIFTH THE WOMAN IN THE FIFTH THE WOMAN IN THE FIFTH THE WOMAN IN THE FIFTH THE WOMAN IN THE FIFTH THE WOMAN IN THE FIFTH NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:45 PM 4:00 PM 6:15 PM 8:30 PM 10:45 PM 1:00 AM

360 º- 12 TAKEN2 :2D TAKEN2 :2D TAKEN2 :2D TAKEN2 :2D TAKEN2 :2D TAKEN2 :2D NO SUN+TUE+WED

12:30 PM 2:45 PM 5:00 PM 7:15 PM 9:30 PM 11:45 PM

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

1:30 PM 4:15 PM 7:45 PM 10:00 PM 12:45 AM

360 º- 14 TETA RAHIBA(2D-Digital) TETA RAHIBA(2D-Digital) TETA RAHIBA(2D-Digital) TETA RAHIBA(2D-Digital) TETA RAHIBA(2D-Digital)

2:15 PM 4:30 PM 6:45 PM 9:00 PM 11:15 PM

360 º- 15 AIYYAA: 2D (Hindi) ENGLISH VINGLISH :2D (Hindi) AIYYAA: 2D (Hindi) AIYYAA: 2D (Hindi) NO SUN+TUE+WED

2:30 PM 5:30 PM 8:30 PM 11:30 PM

AL-KOUT.1 TAKEN2 :2D THE WOMAN IN THE FIFTH TAKEN2 :2D THE WOMAN IN THE FIFTH TAKEN2 :2D TAKEN2 :2D TAKEN2 :2D NO SUN+TUE+WED

12:30 PM 2:30 PM 4:30 PM 6:30 PM 8:30 PM 10:30 PM 12:30 AM

AL-KOUT.2 THE EXPATRIATE: 2D WON’T BACK DOWN :2D THE EXPATRIATE: 2D WON’T BACK DOWN :2D THE EXPATRIATE: 2D THE EXPATRIATE: 2D NO SUN+TUE+WED

12:30 PM 2:45 PM 5:15 PM 7:30 PM 10:00 PM 12:15 AM

AL-KOUT.3 HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET THE APPARITION :2D HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET THE APPARITION :2D HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:30 PM 3:30 PM 5:30 PM 7:45 PM 9:45 PM 12:05 AM

AL-KOUT.4 AL SULTAN AL FATIH (Turkish) :2D THE WORDS :2D WA ALAIK YA HABEEB AL SALAM AL SULTAN AL FATIH (Turkish) :2D WA ALAIK YA HABEEB AL SALAM WA ALAIK YA HABEEB AL SALAM NO SUN+TUE+WED

12:45 PM 3:30 PM 6:00 PM 8:00 PM 10:45 PM 12:45 AM

BAIRAQ-1 TAKEN2 :2D TAKEN2 :2D TAKEN2 :2D TAKEN2 :2D TAKEN2 :2D TAKEN2 :2D BAIRAQ-2 HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET THE WORDS :2D HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET THE WORDS :2D HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET NO SUN+TUE+WED

1:30 PM 3:30 PM 5:30 PM 7:30 PM 9:30 PM 11:30 PM

1:45 PM 4:00 PM 6:15 PM 8:30 PM 10:30 PM 12:45 AM

Classifieds THURSDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2012

ACCOMMODATION

DIAL 161 FOR AIRPORT INFORMATION

Airlines JZR QTR JZR JZR SAI ETH GFA UAE ETD FDB MSR QTR JZR KAC THY DHX JZR KAC BAW JZR KAC KAC FDB KAC KAC KAC KAC KAC UAE ABY IRA QTR IZG IRA FDB ETD BAB GFA UAE MEA JZR MSR MSC SYR MSR GFA KAC FDB OMA KNE QTR SVA RJA KAC JZR KAC QTR KAC JZR JZR ETD UAE UAL GFA SVA JZR TAR JZR KAC ABY KAC KAC QTR BAB FDB KAC MSR MSC RBG JZR KAC KAC KAC JAI KAC KAC AXB FDB OMA MEA QTR GFA ALK UAE JZR ETD BBC ABY QTR JZR AIC GFA UAL JZR DLH MSR THY KLM JAI

Arrival Flights on Thursday 11/10/2012 Flt Route Time 185 DUBAI 00:15 148 DOHA 00:20 539 CAIRO 00:30 267 BEIRUT 00:50 441 LAHORE 01:30 620 ADDIS ABABA 01:45 211 BAHRAIN 02:20 853 DUBAI 02:25 305 ABU DHABI 02:30 67 DUBAI 03:10 612 CAIRO 03:20 138 DOHA 03:25 503 LUXOR 03:55 544 CAIRO 04:10 770 ISTANBUL 04:35 170 BAHRAIN 05:00 555 ALEXANDRIA 06:00 412 MANILA/BANGKOK 06:15 157 LONDON 06:30 529 ASSIUT 06:40 206 ISLAMABAD 07:15 382 DELHI 07:30 53 DUBAI 07:45 302 MUMBAI 07:50 332 TRIVANDRUM 07:55 352 COCHIN 08:05 284 DHAKA 08:15 362 COLOMBO 08:20 855 DUBAI 08:25 125 SHARJAH 08:30 605 ISFAHAN 08:35 132 DOHA 09:00 4161 MASHAD 09:10 617 AHWAZ 09:15 55 DUBAI 09:20 301 ABU DHABI 09:30 436 BAHRAIN 09:35 213 BAHRAIN 10:00 871 DUBAI 10:45 404 BEIRUT 10:55 165 DUBAI 11:05 618 ALEXANDRIA 11:25 401 ALEXANDRIA 12:00 341 DAMASCUS 12:05 610 CAIRO 13:30 219 BAHRAIN 13:40 672 DUBAI 13:40 57 DUBAI 13:45 645 MUSCAT 14:00 472 JEDDAH 14:15 140 DOHA 14:25 500 JEDDAH 14:30 640 AMMAN 14:55 788 JEDDAH 15:00 257 BEIRUT 15:00 546 ALEXANDRIA 15:05 134 DOHA 15:15 118 NEW YORK 16:00 535 CAIRO 16:00 357 MASHAD 16:20 303 ABU DHABI 16:35 857 DUBAI 16:55 982 WASHINGTON DC DULLES 17:10 215 BAHRAIN 17:20 510 RIYADH 17:20 177 DUBAI 17:30 328 TUNIS/DUBAI 17:35 777 JEDDAH 17:40 176 GENEVA/FRANKFURT 17:45 127 SHARJAH 17:45 502 BEIRUT 18:00 542 CAIRO 18:15 144 DOHA 18:20 438 BAHRAIN 18:40 63 DUBAI 18:45 104 LONDON 18:45 624 SOHAG 18:55 405 SOHAG 19:00 3553 ALEXANDRIA 19:05 175 DUBAI 19:15 618 DOHA 19:20 674 DUBAI 19:25 614 BAHRAIN 19:30 572 MUMBAI 19:35 774 RIYADH 19:40 562 AMMAN 19:50 389 KOZHIKODE/MANGALORE 19:55 61 DUBAI 20:00 647 MUSCAT 20:10 402 BEIRUT 20:15 146 DOHA 20:25 221 BAHRAIN 20:35 229 COLOMBO 20:55 859 DUBAI 21:15 135 BAHRAIN 21:15 307 ABU DHABI 21:25 43 DHAKA 21:25 129 SHARJAH 21:30 136 DOHA 21:35 513 SHARM EL SHEIKH 22:00 981 CHENNAI/HYDERABAD 22:25 217 BAHRAIN 22:35 981 BAHRAIN 22:40 239 AMMAN 22:55 636 FRANKFURT 23:10 614 CAIRO 23:35 772 ISTANBUL 23:40 411 AMSTERDAM/DAMMAM 23:40 574 MUMBAI 23:50

Airlines AIC UAL DLH MSR THY SAI ETH UAE FDB ETD MSR QTR QTR JZR GFA THY KAC BAW FDB JZR ABY JZR KAC KAC IRA UAE QTR KAC FDB ETD IRA BAB JZR IZG GFA KAC KAC MEA KAC JZR UAE MSR MSC SYR JZR GFA FDB MSR KAC OMA JZR KAC KNE KAC RJA JZR SVA QTR KAC KAC ETD JZR JZR QTR UAE GFA JZR TAR ABY UAL SVA JZR QTR FDB BAB RBG MSR MSC JZR KAC JAI FDB KAC KAC KAC OMA MEA KAC GFA DHX ALK ABY ETD UAE QTR KAC KAC JZR BBC QTR AXB GFA KAC JZR KAC

Depature Flights on Thursday 11/10/2012 Flt Route Time 976 GOA/CHENNAI 00:05 981 WASHINGTON DC DULLES 00:25 637 FRANKFURT 00:30 615 CAIRO 00:35 773 ISTANBUL 02:15 442 LAHORE 02:30 621 ADDIS ABABA 02:45 854 DUBAI 03:45 68 DUBAI 03:50 306 ABU DHABI 04:05 613 CAIRO 04:20 139 DOHA 04:50 149 DOHA 05:40 164 DUBAI 06:55 212 BAHRAIN 07:05 771 ISTANBUL 07:10 545 ALEXANDRIA 08:10 156 LONDON 08:25 54 DUBAI 08:25 256 BEIRUT 09:00 126 SHARJAH 09:05 534 CAIRO 09:10 671 DUBAI 09:20 787 JEDDAH 09:35 606 MASHAD 09:35 856 DUBAI 09:40 133 DOHA 10:00 101 LONDON/NEW YORK 10:00 56 DUBAI 10:05 302 ABU DHABI 10:15 616 AHWAZ 10:15 437 BAHRAIN 10:25 356 MASHAD 10:30 4162 MASHAD 10:35 214 BAHRAIN 10:45 541 CAIRO 11:30 165 ROME/PARIS 11:45 405 BEIRUT 11:55 501 BEIRUT 12:00 776 JEDDAH 12:15 872 DUBAI 12:20 623 SOHAG 12:25 406 SOHAG 13:00 342 DAMASCUS 13:05 176 DUBAI 13:20 220 BAHRAIN 14:25 58 DUBAI 14:25 611 CAIRO 14:30 561 AMMAN 14:40 646 MUSCAT 15:00 174 DUBAI 15:05 673 DUBAI 15:05 473 JEDDAH 15:15 617 DOHA 15:45 641 AMMAN 15:50 512 SHARM EL SHEIKH 15:55 505 JEDDAH 16:00 135 DOHA 16:15 773 RIYADH 16:25 613 BAHRAIN 16:30 304 ABU DHABI 17:20 238 AMMAN 17:30 538 CAIRO 17:40 141 DOHA 17:45 858 DUBAI 18:05 216 BAHRAIN 18:20 134 BAHRAIN 18:20 328 TUNIS 18:25 128 SHARJAH 18:25 982 BAHRAIN 18:30 511 RIYADH 18:35 266 BEIRUT 18:50 145 DOHA 19:20 64 DUBAI 19:25 439 BAHRAIN 19:30 3554 ALEXANDRIA 19:45 607 LUXOR 19:55 402 ALEXANDRIA 20:00 184 DUBAI 20:05 283 DHAKA 20:15 571 MUMBAI 20:35 62 DUBAI 20:40 331 TRIVANDRUM 20:50 343 CHENNAI 20:55 351 COCHIN 21:05 648 MUSCAT 21:10 403 BEIRUT 21:15 543 CAIRO 21:30 222 BAHRAIN 21:35 171 BAHRAIN 21:50 230 COLOMBO 21:55 120 SHARJAH 22:10 308 ABU DHABI 22:20 860 DUBAI 22:25 137 DOHA 22:35 301 MUMBAI 22:40 205 ISLAMABAD 22:45 554 ALEXANDRIA 23:00 44 DHAKA 23:05 147 DOHA 23:10 390 MANGALORE/KOZHIKODE 23:10 218 BAHRAIN 23:30 411 BANGKOK/MANILA 23:40 528 ASSIUT 23:50 415 KUALA LUMPUR/JAKARTA 23:50

Directorate General of Civil Aviation Home Page (www.kuwait-airport.com.kw)

Accommodation available, near Jabriya Indian School, Jabriya. Central A/C flat, decent Muslim couple or two working ladies only. Call 66795253. (C 4173) 10-10-2012 Sharing accommodation in Khaifan bloc 4 from Nov 1st in one room, KD 70 only for one working lady. Contact: 60413536.

8-10-2012 Apartment to share decent working ladies, Salmiyah, restaurant street, exactly behind Platinum. Contact 66920590. (C 4161) 7-10-2012

For Rent

WANTED URGENTLY

Style home real estate services

Following personnel for

Available for rent 3/4 bedroom deluxe aparts in Salwa, Al Salmiya, Mishref, Al Shaab, Surra, and south Surra for foreigners and diplomatic persons.

Phone: 22457757 - 94091155 Email: stylehome_kwt@yahoo.com

a waste Management Company Should have the following requirements 1. Transferable residence No 18.

2. Heavy duty truck mechanics with all round knowledge including hydraulics (5 years experience).

TUITION A 22 years (moderator and examiner) highly experienced Math, teacher in IB, SAT ’s, IGCSE available.

Contact: 66920590.

(C 4162) 7-10-2012

3. Store keeper with 5 years experience in truck/car spare parts management.

4. Bill Collector (must have own car & D / license).

5. Work Shop Manager - minimum 5 years experience in heavy vehicles.

Details of employment will be given at the interview.

Apply - email: wwjobs@hotmail.com

MATRIMONIAL Proposals invited for a girl, God-fearing (Marthomite, 30yrs/160 cm) born and educated in Kuwait and Mangalore, MDS Doctor presently working in India, from Post Graduate boys Mathomite/CSI, God-fearing and having good family background. Email: mathewjacob201@hotmail.com (C 4153) Marthoma parents working in Kuwait invite proposals for daughter 25/162, M.Sc Biotech, from parents of professionally qualified boys (Marthoma/ CSI/ Orthodox). If interested contact: jlovedale87@yahoo.com (C 4175) 11-10-2012 24 year old daughter BSc passed Pakistani/ Canadian dual citizen. Highly qualified professionals from Pakistan age up to 29 years can contact at email: d3sak@yahoo.com (C 4172) 9-10-2012

SITUATION VACANT Live-in maid wanted for a small family in Farwaniya.

Full time.

Contact: 50833103.

10-10-2012 SITUATION WANTED Australian Engineer with two-Engineering (Civil/ Elect) & four Master Degrees (Engg/Prog Mgmt/ Education/MBA). 23 years experience in Dubai/ Qatar/ Australia, looking project Mgr / QHSE Mgr job.

Contact: 65695468.

(C 4160) 7-10-2012

No:

CHANGE OF NAME I, Mr Achankunju Baby, son of Mr Baby Mathew, Ancy Villa, Bharanickavu P.O., Alappuzha District, Kerala, holder of Indian Passport No: J4441990 hereby changed my name to Mathew Achankunju Baby. (C 4174) 10-10-2012 I have changed my name from Maria Vilfrida Alzira Monteiro to Alzira Wilfrida Maria Monteiro as per Gazette No. U-9920.

(C 4169) I, Faustino Rosario Monteiro holder of Indian Passport No:

F2522327 have change my name to alias Bobby to Faustino Rosario Bobby Monteiro as per Gazette No. U-9921.

(C 4170) I have changed my name from Vita Quirino Monteiro to Vita De Jusus Maria Monteiro as per Gazette No. X-18770. (C 4171) 9-10-2012 I, Koripelli Laxmi, Indian Passport No: G7568742, wife of Abdulkhader residing at D. No: 40-34-12, Dharmanagar, Kancharapalam, Visakhapatanam, has changed my name as NASIMBANU. (4165) 7-10-2012

15595

FOR SALE Complete household furniture, crockery, electronics, salon items, going for a give -away price. Call: 50693289. (C 4167) 9-10-2012 Box delivery van Nissan high roof, 2008 model.

Lancer 2009 GLX. Phone: 66052331. (C 4166) 8-10-2012 Used 2 sofa bed, color brown, good condition, in Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh. Price each KD 15. Call 66762737.

(C 4163)

GOVERNMENT WEB SITES Kuwait Parliament www.majlesalommah.net

The Public Institution for Social Security www.pifss.gov.kw

Ministry of Interior www.moi.gov.kw

Public Authority of Industry www.pai.gov.kw

Public Authority for Civil Information www.paci.gov.kw

Prisoners of War Committee www.pows.org.kw

Kuwait News Agency www.kuna.net.kw

Ministry of Foreign Affairs www.mofa.gov.kw

Ministry of Awqaf and Islamic Affair www.islam.gov.kw

Kuwait Municipality www.municipality.gov.kw

Ministry of Energy (Oil) www.moo.gov.kw

Kuwait Electronic Government www.e.gov.kw

Ministry of Energy (Electricity and Water) www.energy.govt.kw

Ministry of Finance www.mof.gov.kw

Public Authority for Housing Welfare www.housing.gov.kw

Ministry of Commerce and Industry www.moci.gov.kw

Ministry of Justice www.moj.gov.kw

Ministry of Education www.moe.edu.kw

Ministry of Communications www.moc.kw

Ministry of Information www.moinfo.gov.kw

Supreme Council for Planning and Development www.scpd.gov.kw

Kuwait Awqaf Public Foundation www.awqaf.org

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 11, 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

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 KUW K WA AIT

el.: 161 Te

DIRECTORA AT TE GENERAL GENE OF CIVIL AV VIA ATION T METEOROLOGICAL DEP PA ARTMENT

WWW.MET.GOV V..KW

Humid weather especially over coastal areas with light to moderate south easterly to southerly wind, with speed of 10 - 32 km/h and some scattered clouds will appear

BY Y NIGHT:

Humid weather especially over coastal areas with light to moderate south easterly to light variable wind, with speed of 06 - 30 km/h with a chance for fog forming early morning\n No Current Warnings arnin a

WARNING A

40 °C

28 °C

22451082

KUW WA AIT AIRPOR RT

40 °C

24 °C

Al-Mirqab

22456536

NUW WA AISEEB

41 °C

24 °C

Sharq

22465401

WAFRA A

43 °C

21 °C

Salmiya

25746401

SALMI

41 °C

22 °C

ABDAL LY

Jabriya

25316254

42 °C

25 °C

JAL ALIY YA AH

41 °C

24 °C

Maidan Hawally

25623444

FA AILAKA

36 °C

28 °C

Bayan

25388462

AHMADI POR RT

32 °C

28 °C

Mishref

25381200

UMM AL-MARADEM

33 °C

31 °C

W.Hawally

22630786

WARBA A A - BUBY YA AN

34 °C

30 °C

Sabah

24810221

Jahra

24770319

New Jahra

24575755

West Jahra

24772608

ST TATION T

DA ATE T

MIN.

Wind Direction

Wind Speed

11/10

humid + scattered clouds

39 °C

23 °C

S-SE

10 - 32 km/h

12/10

relatively hot + high clouds

39 °C

22 °C

VRB-NW

08 - 30 km/h

relatively hot + raising dust

38 °C

21 °C

NW-N

15 - 40 km/h

relatively hot + raising dust

37 °C

20 °C

NW-N

15 - 40 km/h

North Jahra

24775992

Sunday

14/10

North Jleeb

24311795

Al-Ardhiya

24884079

23900322

MAX.

Friday Saturday

Fintas

WEA AT THER

Thursday

13/10

24710044

10/10/2012 0000 UTC

Temperatures DA AY

24775066

N.Kheitan

SFC. CHART

4 DA AY YS FORECAST

South Jahra

24719048

RA AY YER TIMES PRA

AY AT KUW WAIT A AIRPORT RECORDED YESTERDA

Fajr

04:28

MAX. Temp.

41 °C

Sunrise

05:47

MIN. Temp.

23 °C

Zuhr

11:35

MAX. RH

83 %

Asr

14:54

MIN. RH

Sunset

17:23

MAX. Wiind

Isha

18:39

TOT TAL AL RAIINF FA ALL L IN 24 HR.

06 % SE 43 km/h 00 mm

All times are local time unless otherwise stated.

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

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22617700

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25625030/60

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23729596/23729581

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22635047

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22613623/0

Gynaecologists & Obstetricians DrAdrian arbe

23729596/23729581

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2572-6666 ext 8321

Endocrinologist

25665898 25340300

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25710444

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22621099

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25713514

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23713100

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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

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25739272

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22562226

22618787

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22561444

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22619557

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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

INTERNATIONAL CALLS

BY Y DA AY:

KUW WA AIT CITY

Al-Omariya

Al-Shohada’a

Expected Weeather for the Next 24 Hours

MIN. REC.

24892674

Ext.: 2627 262 - 2630

22418714

Fax: 24348714

MAX. EXP P.

Firdous

PHONE

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

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36

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2012

LIFESTYLE G o s s i p

Michaelsopens

music room at Arizona hospital

ormer Poison frontman Bret Michaels is showing off a new room for patients and their families at the Phoenix hospital where he was treated for a brain hemorrhage. The musician officially opened the Bret Michaels Hospitality and Music Room inside St Joseph’s Barrow Neurological Institute on Tuesday. The room is located near patients’ rooms and features relaxation areas for patients and their families. It is decorated with a music theme and features Michaels’ personal music memorabilia. Michaels says he’s thrilled to give back to a hospital he credits with saving his life. He was treated at the hospital in April 2010 for a subarachnoid hemorrhage, a life-threatening type of stroke. He then returned to St. Joseph’s in 2011 to undergo a heart procedure.

F

Cage, Christensen sign on for

Outcast

rclight Films is getting into the China business, with the feature film “Outcast,” which is being presented to buyers ahead of next month’s AFM with a cast that includes Hayden Christensen and Nicolas Cage, a person familiar with the project has told TheWrap. Budgeted at $25 million, the film is set in 10th Century China, and follows a warrior who attempts to redeem himself by saving a princess. James Dormer is writing the script for the feature, which will mark the directorial debut for stunt man, Nick Powell. Arclight

A

for AFM

Films is selling worldwide rights to the project, which is aiming to film next year. Dormer has worked on a number of British television series, including the BBC’s spy show, “Spooks.” Cage recently signed on to “I am Wrath” for Emmett/Furla, and David Gordon Green’s southern drama, “Joe.” Reps for Christensen did respond for comment to TheWrap.

Stewart received Ekland s under wear in the post od Stewart used to receive packages from Britt Ekland with her underwear in. The ‘Maggie May’ singer dated former Bond girl Britt for two years from 1975 to 1977 and he admits when they were first together the pair used to enjoy a passionate life. He said: “We were very intimate, very quickly. Within a week, I knew I was falling in love. In the early heat of our relationship we spent a lot of time having sex in a Malibu beach house that belonged to another former husband, Lou Adler. “Later, during enforced spells of separation, Britt would send me love notes in packages that often contained a pair of knickers.” Although they enjoyed a very racy relationship, Rod claims the pair were very romantic with each other and she taught him about the world of art. He said: “It was a genuinely romantic time. She knew about paintings and antiques. I prided myself on having an eye, but I didn’t really. It was Britt who taught me how to look.” However, when the relationship turned sour, Rod began to “drift off”, proving to him even being with the world’s most beautiful woman would not necessarily make him happy. Writing in his autobiography ‘Rod’, currently being serialized in the Daily Mail newspaper, he said: “I started drifting off, just disappearing and not coming home, only to find Britt waiting up and asking, ‘Where have you been?’“Britt thought that she and I were headed for marriage. Yet I knew all along, deep down, that I wasn’t anywhere near wanting to set-

R

Lawrence the new face of Miss Dior he ‘Hunger Games’ actress is to front their new handbag collection from March 2013, replacing Mila Kunis, who currently stars in campaigns for the brand. Jennifer is delighted at the new job, and believes the fashion house is “iconic”. She said: “It’s such a dream to represent an iconic brand that is synonymous with high fashion.” Jennifer - who is dating her ‘X-Men: First Class’ co-star Nicholas Hoult - has been making tentative steps into the fashion world recently, fronting British Vogue’s November edition this year and appearing inside American Vogue in their September issue. The 22-year-old beauty recently stated she was “tired” of seeing Hollywood women look like “lollipops” with big heads on stick thin bodies, and said she would not lose weight to conform. She said: “Oh god, yes, I’m so tired of the lollipops. I mean, if I looked like that I wouldn’t be tired of it, obviously, but it’s hilarious, the way I’m supposedly the overweight one. “Like, they (the paparazzi) got me at the movies yesterday and the caption read something like, ‘Curvy star cannot wait to dig into a tub of popcorn’. I mean come on! I’m just a normal girl who likes to eat!”

T

Britneyto take part in Whitney tribute ritney Spears will take part in the Whitney Houston tribute. The ‘Toxic’ singer is “humbled” to have been chosen to co-host the ‘We Will Always Love You: A Grammy Salute to Whitney Houston’ event alongside Halle Berry, actress Taraji P Henson and rapper LL Cool J, in order to celebrate the legacy of the late superstar. Britney shared the news with her 20 million twitter followers by posting: “I am both honored and humbled to take part in the GRAMMY salute to Whitney Houston tomorrow ... She’ll always be 1 of my heroes! (sic)” The one-hour special is being filmed in Los Angeles on Thursday, before airing on US television channel CBS on November 13. Britney will be introducing segments featuring interviews and iconic footage of the ‘I Will Always Love You’ singer from the Nokia Theatre stage, according to the Hollywood Reporter. Whitney was found dead in a Los Angeles hotel bathtub in February. Her cause as death was ruled as accidental drowning and the effects of cocaine use and heart disease. Jennifer Hudson, Usher and Celine Dion, Yolanda Adams and CeCe Winans are set to perform at the event.

B

scared

by Alex s behavior

Osbourne s

hantelle Houghton was “scared” by Alex Reid’s erratic behavior. The reality TV star discovered a worrying scrapbook her ex-fiance had compiled about her before they decided to separate in September, just a few days after the cage fighter was arrested for allegedly trying to force entry into their Essex home in South East England. In an interview with Britain’s OK! magazine, Chantelle said: “I don’t know what the truth is anymore. I even found a book in my bedroom in which Alex had written things down about me. It was points, things that had happened, things I’d said, a compilation of things I’d done. “It’s difficult to find that and not wonder about it. The book scared me.

My heart raced really fast. I didn’t understand it. There were questions he’d written down in it asking, what is a man?” Chantelle admitted she was “in denial” about Alex’s behavior - which included him often cross-dressing as his female alterego Roxanne - in the weeks that followed the birth of their daughter Dolly, who is now four months old, and she now believes that he never really loved her and was just taking advantage of her fame. The bubbly blonde said: “I sometimes feel like he never even liked me, let alone love me, and was with me for all the wrong reasons.

“I wanted Dolly to have her mum and dad at home. I asked Alex to be a better person; I wanted him to get

C

star-studded 60th haron Osbourne celebrated turning 60 with a star-studded episode of ‘The Talk’. The outspoken TV personality enjoyed her milestone birthday on her CBS chat show, where fellow hosts Julie Chen, Sara Gilbert, Sheryl Underwood and Aisha Tyler arranged for memorable clips of her time on ‘The Talk’ to be aired as well as other highlights from her life and career. Sharon said: “I just can’t believe it because a blink of an eye and it’s gone.” The birthday girl was then surprised by a visit from her husband; rocker Ozzy Osbourne, and their daughter Kelly Osbourne, who turned up to congratulate her.

Kelly said to her mother: “Thank you so much for supporting me.” Ozzy said: “She’s so determined. When she wants to do something, she does it.” A clearly touched Sharon responded by saying: “I don’t know what to say. I’m speechless for once.” Her son - newlywed Jack Osbourne - appeared via video with his new wife Lisa and baby Pearl to wish his mother a happy birthday. The celebrations didn’t stop there though as her ‘America’s Got Talent’ co-star Nick Cannon stopped by with a bundle of balloons and a video clip of his wife Mariah Carey wishing Sharon a happy birthday was played. Last week, Sharon admitted she was happy to be turning 60, saying: “With every age there’s a down and a plus.

You get wisdom, you get inner strength, you get empowered.

I’m 60 and I’m healthy and I’m happy and I’m not going to waste it worrying. “I never thought I’d get here, let alone everything else. My life now is a bonus, really.”

Houghton was

S

Thornton

selling Jolie marital home

illy Bob Thornton is selling the mansion he previously shared with ex-wife Angelina Jolie for $10 million. The 57-year-old actor - who was married to the ‘Salt’ star from 2000 to 2003 - has listed the Beverly Hills home for sale at $9.995 million, 12 years after paying Guns N’ Roses guitarist Slash just $3.75 million for the property. According to the Los Angeles Times, the Spanish-style abode boasts nine bedrooms and eight bathrooms and it could be ideal for a health-conscious individual as it features a gym, swimming pool, spa and a tennis court. Musicians keen to follow in the footsteps of Billy - who began his career as a singer/songwriter and has released three albums before starring in hit movies ‘A Simple Plan’ and ‘Bad Santa’ - by making good use of the Californian home’s recording studio. A two-story living room is one of the main features of the mansion, which includes a library where the director and screenwriter will have no doubt spent many an hour, and the 11,012-square-foot property - which was built in 1929 - also has the looks thanks to the fountains in its half-acre outdoor gated area. Since Billy and Angelina’s split in 2003, he has been in a relationship with makeup effects crew member Connie Angland - with whom he has a daughter, Bella, and resides in California - while the 37-year-old actress is currently engaged to Brad Pitt and the couple raise Maddox, 11, Pax, eight, Zahara, seven, Shiloh, six, and four-year-old twins Knox and Vivienne. —Agencies

B

37

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2012

LIFESTYLE F e a t u r e s

Modern life, TV wrestling come to

Nepal Himalayas

n the Nepalese hamlet of Simen, five days’ walk from the nearest town, children pay for schooling with wood or animal dung, and life appears untouched by modernity-but change is coming. Just two valleys away in Dho Tarap village, business is booming and satellite dishes that beam in American wrestling are set up beside traditional prayer flags as the

I

and accepted in lieu of cash. “The school doesn’t have much money,” says his teacher Sonam Tsering, 26, over salty Tibetan tea prepared on a wood-burning stove in the kitchen of Shree Tsering Dolma primary school.

“Students have to bring 50 kilograms of firewood and if they can’t do that they many bring yak and horse dung.” Upper Dolpa, a hidden land of

Yak, sheep and goats provide milk, butter and meat, and the wool and hides are used for cloth and boots.

Most locals speak a Tibetan dialect called Dolpo, and the literacy rate is about 20 percent. Pupils study just six months of the year due to the harsh winter, and in summer most also spend weeks with their parents on the hazardous task of harvesting yarchagumba, a wild fungus prized for its alleged aphrodisiac qualities.

Flatscreens and ‘Wrestlemania’ Closed to trekkers until 1989, Upper Dolpa is ranked one of the worst places in the world for food security by the UN World Food Program (WFP), due to its inaccessibility and harsh terrain. But, a few days’ walk away, in Dho Tarap village the pleasures and problems of 21st-cen-

Tashi Teachers weighing firewood collected by parents too poor to pay in cash for their children’s education in the ancient Himalayan hamlet of Simen in Upper Dolpa, some 500 kilometers (300 miles) north-west of the Nepalese capital Kathmandu. —AFP photos high Himalayan landscape of Upper Dolpa opens up to the outside world.

The contrast between the two settlements points to the future for one of the highest inhabited regions on Earth, and local children like Pema Lama are likely to lead lives full of bewildering new experiences. Pema’s parents cannot afford the 3,000-rupee ($35) charge for six months of schooling and, like most of their neighbors, send the children to classes with wood or yak dung which is weighed

deeply notched canyons and swollen rivers, is virtually sealed off from the rest of Nepal by passes more than 5,100 meters above sea level. The region is marked by high peaks abutting the Tibetan plateau, with trails snaking along high cliffs for farmers and nomadic herders who take their shaggy, black yak south for winter grazing. Small fields planted with barley, buckwheat, potatoes and radish are cultivated, but yield just enough food to sustain families.

This August 2012 photo shows flamingos on the Atacama salt lake (Chaxas Lagoon) at the “Los Flamencos” National Park in Chile. —AP photos

A teacher weighing yak dung collected by parents too poor to pay in cash for their children’s education in the ancient Himalayan hamlet of Simen.

tury living are clearly in evidence. In the comfortable Caravan Guest House, one of a number of hotels springing up in what some claim is “the world’s highest village”, Jyampa Lama, 42, watches his new flatscreen TV. He moved to the village, 4,200 meters above sea level, 18 years ago to cash in on the increasing number of yarchagumba harvesters passing through and the nascent trekking trade, which had begun drawing increasing numbers of tourists to hike the region’s rugged terrain.

“There are 252 houses here now and maybe five to 10 have televisions.

Most people still don’t know what is happening in the outside world, or even inside the country. But that is changing,” he said. “A new generation is now going to school, learning Nepali with the help of international donors and learning to keep in touch with the outside world.” Lama said since he bought his television he had been able to keep up with domestic and world news and invite friends around to watch English Premier League football and professional wrestling group WWE’s “WrestleMania”-a particular favorite.

Upper Dolpa is expected to benefit financially from a further opening up to the Western world with the new Great Himalayan Trail, one of the longest and highest trekking routes in the world, passing right through the region. SNV, the Dutch development organization behind the trail, is training locals in villages across its 1,700kilometre stretch to provide services for trekkers and offer a better selection of cuisine and Western toilets. But the tourist dollar brings with it dangers of its own, according to Amchi Namgayal Rinpoche, 44, a senior Tibetan lama who has spent his life in Dho Tarap.

“People have a bit of money now and craftsmanship is slowly disap-

Photo shows a man walking with his llamas down a street in San Pedro de Atacama, Chile.

A photo shows a hamlet of Simen from “the world’s highest village”.

A photo shows a Buddhist monastery - or gompa - overlooking the settlement of Dho Tarap. pearing. They used to craft thanka paintings here (traditional religious scrolls) and even make their own shoes,” he said. “Tourists come in with flashy clothes and shoes and, if people have money, they want the same.

When people have money, there is always something to want.” Television, he says, is a mixed blessing as the images of Western culture can be corrupting. “It’s OK to see the outside world,” said the monk, who watches Nepali programs on his own television. “But our people need to retain their culture and take the good examples from the outside world, not the bad ones.” —AFP

A photo shows Amchi Namgayal Rinpoche, a senior Tibetan lama, walking at his monastery in the village of Dho Tarap.

Photo shows a petroglyph of a two-headed creature in Yerbas Buenas.

Chile’s Atacama Desert: Book tours carefully ere in one of the driest deserts on earth, it’s not the sun, dehydration, altitude or arsenic-contaminated drinking water that are likely to get you, but the tour guides. As challenging as it sounds, the Atacama desert in northern Chile is becoming an increasingly popular add-on destination for those traveling to Peru, Easter Island or Patagonia. Exploring this mysterious landscape begins with a two-hour flight from Santiago to Calama, then a 90minute bus ride past copper mines to the small town of San Pedro, population 3,000, elevation 7,900 feet (2,400 meters).

In this picturesque Andean village of adobe buildings built around a centuries-old church, one quickly notices the abundance of hotels, restaurants, Internet cafes, souvenir shops, trekking stores and tour agencies. The latter advertise trips to see geothermal geysers, float on a salt lake, hike up volcanoes, ski down a sand dune or visit with an astronomer who will show you through powerful telescopes why this is one of the best stargazing locations in the world.

We booked our tours in advance, but relied on our hotel to choose the agency.

That turned out to be a mistake. Tour operators here are not required to be licensed, and I learned after the fact that some threads on Lonely Planet’s online Thorn Tree travel forums for the area warn about disorganized and downright deceitful tour companies.

We had two unpleasant experiences before we hit our stride. Our first tour

H

Photo shows llamas grazing off the highway in Chile’s Atacama.

was supposed to be an afternoon trip to Valle de la Luna (Moon Valley) to watch the sunset. Although we had booked an English tour, the guide spoke only Spanish, and responded to a request that he translate his talk by complaining about “stupid” Americans. Rather than endure four hours of animosity, we asked the driver to stop the bus and got off, as did seven others.

Walking back into town, we went instead to the Museo Gustavo Le Paige, a small museum packed with artifacts, including a room filled with gold treasures. Here, tours are given at set times in Spanish, French or English and are well worth the few dollars charged. The docent provided insight into the complex culture and tradition of the Incas and indigenous people of the region, as well as the changes wrought by the arrival of the Spanish.

We ended up coming back to that docent for guidance after our next adventure, a trip that began with a stop in Laguna Chaxa in the Salar de Atacama, one of the largest salt flats in the world, where we saw two species of flamingos feasting on krill. We continued on past terraced hills and ancient irrigation canals on our way toward the alpine lakes of Lagunas Miniques and Miscanti.

And then the bus broke down.

We were stranded for two hours with no food and no bathrooms, while the driver braved choking diesel fumes trying to repair the problem. The guide told us it was too far to continue on foot - a four-hour walk - but assured us another bus would be along shortly. Competing

tour buses refused to pick us up on their way in, though eventually, one stopped on the way out and took us to the closest town. (Apparently, a trip to the lake is considered a “tour” while a lift to town is called a “rescue.”)

In town, the frustrated guide cursed and walked off the job when we asked if we could forgo lunch and have the replacement bus, which had finally arrived, take us to the lakes we’d come so far to see. Fortunately, the bus driver was happy to oblige, though we were stunned when we arrived at the lakes less than a mile (1.6 kilometers) beyond the disabled bus. It turned out our guide was new to town and it was his first run on this route.

Hoping to avoid future fiascos, we decided to go back to the museum and ask the docent if she gave tours. She wasn’t available but put us in touch with another employee, who said he’d arrange for a van the following day.

Meanwhile, happy to share his knowledge, he walked with us through town, explaining Incan symbols we would not have recognized in everything from the multi-colored flags to the fence tops.

Ultimately, he took us to a small, out-ofthe-way restaurant, the Baltinache, which, reflecting the cultures of the couple that owns it, featured the delicious food of two indigenous groups, the Lickanantay and Mapuche.

The next morning we were picked up and taken to Yerbas Buenas, a site known for rocks decorated with more than a thousand petroglyphs, and then on to the Valley del Arcoiris (Rainbow Valley).

With the valley to ourselves, the hills in various shades of red, green, brown and white were mesmerizing. This guide’s knowledge and professionalism were obvious. He thoughtfully brought a magnifying glass so we could examine the minerals, and treated us to a snack of wine and cheese.

He also told us of other expeditions, which we hadn’t seen advertised. I only wished we had more time, having learned the hard way the importance of doing your homework when planning a trip to an out-of-the-way place.

If you go Getting there: LAN Chile Airlines offers daily round-trip flights from Santiago, the capital of Chile, to Calama.

From Calama, you can get direct bus service to San Pedro de Atacama.

Accommodations: Hotels in San Pedro range from backpacker basic to a Relais & Chateaux property at $1,500 a night.

Tour recommendations: Cosmo Adnino, cosmoandino(at)entelchile.net; Thematic Research Discoveries at atacamaplanet(at)lycos.com; EcoExplor, info(at)ecoexplor.com; and stargazing, info(at)spaceobs.com —MCT

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he title “Smashed” refers not so much to the nearly perpetual state of inebriation that a young husband and wife put themselves in but rather to the way the wife finds her existence truly shattered when she tries to get sober. Staying at least slightly drunk all the time is easy, as Mary Elizabeth Winstead’s character knows well. It’s a blissfully ignorant existence, one big party. But once you stop drinking, the reality you’ve shoved aside returns with a vengeance. This battle with the bottle (and with bottled-up demons) is a frequent film topic, and “Smashed” deserves some credit for mostly avoiding the sort of histrionics that can be staples of the genre.

Instead, director James Ponsoldt’s film, from a script he co-wrote with Susan Burke, is understated to a fault. The bottom isn’t low enough, the struggle isn’t difficult enough, and the characters (especially the supporting ones) don’t feel developed enough to provide necessary context for our heroine’s journey. “Smashed” is the rare movie that feels too short, too thin and it ends on an unsatisfying and rather unconvincing note, despite some recognizable, raw moments that preceded it. Winstead (“Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter,” “Scott Pilgrim vs. the World”) gets to show the full range of her abilities, though, in her heaviest dramatic role yet. She stars as Kate Hannah, a first grade teacher living in the culturally mixed, hipsterish Los Angeles neighborhood of Highland Park with her slacker

writer husband, Charlie (Aaron Paul of “Breaking Bad”).

When we first see her, she’s waking up to her daily hangover, the edge of which she takes off with a beer in the shower. These first scenes are an early indication of the kind of roving, handheld camerawork that will pervade throughout, a needless means of further magnifying an obvious sense of instability. Still a mess while teaching class - but functioning charismatically from her buzz - Kate suddenly vomits in front of her astonished students and tells a hasty lie to cover it up. Her nerdy, nosy principal (Megan Mullally) feels sympathy for her but the vice principal, Dave (Nick Offerman), recognizes in Kate the traits of a fellow alcoholic.

Nine years sober now, Dave takes Kate under his wing and invites her to the low-key AA meeting he attends. There, she meets the warmly funny woman (Octavia Spencer) who will become her sponsor. And voila! Kate stops drinking. No withdrawal, no depression. Well, she has one slip, but the next time we see her after that, she’s receiving her one-year cake to celebrate her sobriety and pondering the quiet, dry life that (hopefully) awaits her. The obligatory rift develops with her still-raging husband; they fell in love getting hammered together, how could they possibly survive as a couple if only one of them is still drinking? Paul does what he can with an underwritten role: His character is depicted as little more than an immature, hard-

B File photo shows film director Tim Burton and wife Helena Bonham Carter as they arrive for the UK Premiere of ‘Dark Shadows’, at a central London cinema. — AP

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his year’s London Film Festival has Ben Affleck, Dustin Hoffman and the Rolling Stones - and it’s bookended by one of the city’s premiere cinematic couples.

Britain’s biggest film showcase opens Wednesday with the London-based American director Tim Burton’s “Frankenweenie,” the animated tale of a boy and his beloved - but dead - dog. It ends Oct 21 with Mike Newell’s “Great Expectations,” which stars Burton’s partner, Helena Bonham Carter, as haunted Miss Havisham.

Highlights of the 56th annual festival include the world premiere of Rolling Stones documentary “Crossfire Hurricane”; Hoffman’s directorial debut, “Quartet,” about a group of aging opera stars; Affleck’s Iran hostage thriller “Argo”; and “The Sessions,” in which a polio patient in an iron lung enlists a sex surrogate so he can lose his virginity. — AP

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partying trust-fund kid, so it’s hard to feel emotionally invested in whether he and Kate can make it work.

Similarly, Offerman plays a level-headed, loyal friend, which makes some weirdly inappropriate comments to Kate seem to come out of nowhere, simply for the sake of an awkward laugh. Faring the worst of all in just one scene is Mary Kay Place as Kate’s lonely, long-drinking mother, who functions simply as someone to blame for her daughter’s genetic predisposition toward alcoholism.

Still, an unadorned Winstead dives headlong into all the highs and lows required of her - she’s as much of a wreck happily singing karaoke as she is urinating in the middle of a liquor store.

She seems more game than the film itself is in exposing deeper truths. “Smashed,” a Sony Pictures Classics release, is rated R for alcohol abuse, language, some sexual content and brief drug use. Running time: 85 minutes. Two stars out of four. Motion Picture Association of America rating definition for R: Restricted. Under 17 requires accompanying parent or adult guardian. — AP

rian Wilson says he felt blindsided by a news release from his Beach Boys band mate Mike Love that ended the good vibrations on the band’s 50th anniversary tour. Wilson answered Mike Love’s recent explanation in The Los Angeles Times with a response in the newspaper Tuesday. Love says he was simply trying to clear up confusion about post-50th anniversary dates when he issued the news release, but many - including band members Wilson, Al Jardine and David Marks took the release as news of a firing.

“As far as I know I can’t be fired - that wouldn’t be cool,” Wilson wrote in the Times. “The negativity surrounding all the comments bummed me out. What’s confusing is that by Mike not wanting or letting Al, David and me tour with the band, it sort of feels like we’re being fired.” The dueling newspaper notes are the latest turn in what’s been an off-and-on again relationship for decades. Wilson and Love are cousins and founding members of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame band that helped crystallize the California sound of the 1960s. Wilson stopped touring regularly in 1964, notes Love, who has led a version of the band on the road for the last 13 years.

As the 50th anniversary of the Beach Boys’ founding approached, Wilson and Love agreed to perform with the band’s surviving early members for a new album and tour. Wilson, the creative force behind many of the band’s iconic hits, said everything exceeded his expectations. “Mike kept saying throughout the tour ‘ The whole is greater than the sum of its parts,’ and both Al and I agree, which made us all think that he wanted to continue,” Wilson wrote. “We originally started out with 50 shows, but the success and the demand kept growing and we obliged. No one

This film image released by Sony Pictures Classics shows Aaron Paul as Charlie Hannah, left, and Mary Elizabeth Winstead as Kate Hannah in a scene from ‘Smashed.’ — AP

knew in the beginning that this was going to be so rewarding and popular with our fans. Once we got cooking we were all stoked!”

Earlier this year, the band released a new album that debuted at No. 3 on the Billboard 200. Love’s news release ended those feelings, though. It came just before the Beach Boys were to play the last of 75 50th anniversary shows late last month in London. Love wrote in an article that the 50th anniversary tour was always finite and that the new dates in smaller venues had long been set for the lineup toured by him.

“To avoid public confusion, and at the request of Brian’s representative, we had a press release sent out detailing the differences between the two Beach Boys tours and its varying lineups,” wrote Love, who noted that over a decade ago he was granted an exclusive license to tour as the “Beach Boys.”

“I was surprised that Brian and Al said they were surprised by this announcement.

Some media outlets interpreted all of this as me firing the band.” Wilson says the expectation was that both sides would help craft and approve the news release.

That didn’t happen and now he thinks it’s Love’s turn to reach out. “That’s it in a nutshell, all these conversations need to be between the shareholders, and I welcome Mike to call me,” he wrote. — AP

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uke Bryan just keeps getting hotter. The rising country music star is the lead nominee for this yearís American Country Awards with seven. He beat out established stars like Taylor Swift and Lady Antebellum in a field announced yesterday .Lady A and Zac Brown Band are next with six nominations apiece, while Eric Church and Swift took five nods each for the third annual fan-voted awards.

Bryan, Swift, Lady A, Zac Brown Band and Jason Aldean are up for the nightís top honor, artist of the year. Bryan also has nominations in the album, single and video of the year categories. The ACAs will air live Dec 10 on Fox from Las Vegas with Kristin Chenoweth and Trace Adkins returning as co-hosts. Voting is open on the showís website. — AP

In this July 13, 2012 file photo, Zac Brown of the Zac Brown Band performs on NBC’s ‘Today’ show in New York.

Charles Kelley, left, and Hillary Scott of the group Lady Antebellum perform at the 2012 CMA Festival in Nashville, Tenn.—AP photos

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File photo shows Taylor Swift performs at iHeart Radio Music Festival at the MGM Grand Arena in Las Vegas.

In this June 2, 2012 file photo, The Beach Boys perform at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles. — AP photos

Mike Love, right, of The Beach Boys, performs alongside fellow band member David Marks at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles.

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North Korean romantic comedy about a female coalminer who dreams of becoming a trapeze artist was given a rare screening before a South Korean audience yesterday. South Korea normally bans all forms of media from the North but the government made an exception for the romantic comedy “Comrade Kim Goes Flying”, screening at the 17th Busan International Film Festival (BIFF). “We are proud to say that we have played our part in the cultural exchange between North and South Korea,” said festival director Lee Yong-kwan, adding that he hoped more films from the North would be screened in the future.

The screening saw BIFF extend its first ever invitation to a team behind a North Korean production.

The film’s co-director Kim Gwang-hun was unable to attend, but fellow directors Anja Daelemans, from Belgium, and Brit Nicholas Bonner made the trip.

“There just wasn’t enough time to arrange for Kim to come as we only received the invitation in late September,” said Bonner. “But we are thrilled to be here. It is an exciting opportunity for North Korean film and our dream now is to see the film released in cinemas in South Korea,” he said.

Comrade Kim stars Han Jong-Sim as a young woman who works in a coalmine but follows her dream of becoming a trapeze artist. The filmmakers said they aimed to make a piece of pure entertainment, albeit one with distinctly North Korean characteristics. “We wanted people to come out of the cinema with a smile,” said Daelemans, who received Oscar nominations as producer for her two short films Gridlock (2002) and Tanghi Argentini (2006). “I think there are two types of movies-movies you make for yourself and movies you make for an audience. This is a movie for the audience,” she said.

“We intended to make a film, full stop,” added Bonner. “You can’t not want to make that film.”

Bonner previously made North Korea-focused documentaries “The Game of Their Lives” (2002), “A State of Mind” (2004) and “Crossing the Line” (2006), and is one of the driving forces behind the Koryo Group

that arranges tours to the country. He met Daelemans at the Berlin film festival in 2002 and the concept of Comrade Kim later evolved over a few glasses of whiskey. The film had its world premiere at last month’s Toronto International Film Festival and also screened at the Pyongyang International Film Festival in North Korea. The filmmakers are currently looking for an international distribution deal. BIFF has only twice previously screened North Korean films. Director Shin Sang-ok had both “Salt” and “Runaway” on the programme in 2001, while in 2003 there was a special screening section of five films from the country. Comrade Kim will screen again on Friday, the day before this year’s BIFF closes. — AFP

Movie director of ‘Comrade Kim goes Flying’, Nicholas Bonner, speaks during an interview with AFP at the 17th Busan International Film Festival in Busan yesterday. — AFP

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A photo shows a golden set of three NZ$10 (8.16USD) coins.

A photo shows golden set of three NZ$1 (0.82USD) coins bearing images of characters from the upcoming new Hobbit film trilogy.

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ew Zealand will release commemorative “ The Hobbit” coins worth thousands of dollars ahead of next month’s premier of director Peter Jackson’s latest Tolkien epic. The coins featuring characters such as Bilbo Baggins and Gandalf the wizard will be legal tender in the country, New Zealand Post said, although their face value will be only a fraction of the cost collectors will be expected to pay. The most expensive, made from one ounce (28.3 grams) of pure gold, will set Tolkien enthusiasts back NZ$3,695 ($3,020) but has a face value of just NZ$10, while the cheapest is a NZ$1 coin retailing for NZ$29.90.

The coins go on sale from November 1 and New Zealand Post said it expected strong international interest in the build up to the premiere of the first of the three Hobbit movies in Wellington on November 28. Jackson, who was responsible for the Oscar-winning adaptation of Tolkien’s “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy, announced earlier this year that he would make three films from “The

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Hobbit” book, rather than two as originally planned.

British actor Martin Freeman, from “The Office”, takes on the central role of Bilbo Baggins, who is swept into an epic quest to reclaim the lost Dwarf Kingdom of Erebor from the fearsome dragon Smaug. Other big names appearing include Cate Blanchett, Ian McKellen, Barr y Humphries, Stephen Fry, and Billy Connolly. New Zealand enjoyed a huge tourism boom after the original trilogy and is hoping to repeat the success with the Hobbit movies, launching a campaign branding the country “100% Middle Earth” to coincide with the premiere. — AFP

ed Zeppelin will not be reuniting any time soon.

That message came through loud and clear Tuesday with sarcasm, stoic silence, and even the occasional barb at reporters that dared to ask.

Just the mere mention of the topic set lead singer Robert Plant off at their news conference for the bands upcoming concert film, “Celebration Day.” But at the film’s premiere later in the evening, guitarist Jimmy Page set the record straight, sort of, about a potential reunion.

“I think it’s disappointing for people when the answer is no,” Page said. But he later added: “That’s what it is now.”

“Celebration Day” covers their 2007 reunion concert at London’s 02 Arena. Original members Plant, Page, and John Paul Jones, as well as Jason Bonham,

An undated handout photo received yesterday shows a set of stamps bearing the images of characters from the upcoming new Hobbit film trilogy, in Wellington. — AFP

the son of the late John Bonham, played the onetime tribute concert to honor Atlantic records founder Ahmet Ertegun. “Once the idea was proposed, ‘Would we do the concert?’ It had to be Jason,” Page said. Since the death of Bonham in 1980, the band has only played a handful of gigs, with the 2007 tribute concert being the last time. The group enlisted the younger Bonham, a successful drummer in his own right, to play with the band.

On the red carpet, Bonham said he understands why the fans want something more from the band, but feels there’s good reason to put it to rest. “I think it’s probably frustrating to the public when they see how good it is, and they go, ‘why won’t you do anymore?’They don’t get it,” Bonham said. “But you know what, there’s a time, and for me it’s when John

Bonham was in Led Zeppelin.” Jones, the band’s bassist, eloquently said all the band’s energy went into that performance. “We focused on the show and that was it. Fortunately it was on film,” Jones said.

Page was conscious of Led Zeppelin’s uninspired performance at the Atlantic Records 40th Anniversary concert in 1988. So the band rehearsed for about six weeks prior to the London show. “You have to understand, any other group would be a doing a warm-up gig, and then they would have like two or three concerts in a row. We could have done more than one, with the demand, but we only had one shot and we had to be super-duper confident on it, and it went well,” Page said.

During a news conference earlier in the day, the band first became uncomfortable with a question about “anticipating something bigger for the band.”

“We’ve been thinking about all sorts of things, and then we can’t remember what we were thinking about,” singer Plant said testily. He then referred to this reporter by the pejorative term “schmuck.” As the questions mounted about anything to do with their future, the band responded with silence. At one point, Page mentioned that the reunion concert was five years ago and that if there was a chance they were reuniting, people would have heard. “Seems pretty unlikely, doesn’t it?” Page said. “Celebration Day” will be released worldwide on Oct. 17 on 1,500 screens before its release on DVD Nov 19. — AP

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he current production of “Jesus Christ Superstar” that’s touring the United Kingdom will be able to be seen without a plane ticket. “Jesus Christ Superstar UK Rock Spectacular” will be shown at hundreds of movie theaters across America on Oct 29 and again on Nov. 1. The show was recorded on Oct 4-5 in Birmingham, England.

It stars former Spice Girl Melanie Chisholm as Mary Magdalene and Ben Forster in the title role. Forster was the winner of the UK’s primetime contest show “Superstar.” The cast also includes comedian Tim Minchin, the co-writer of West End smash musical “Matilda.” Another revival of the 1971 Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber rock opera on Broadway closed this summer after 116 regular performances and 24 previews. — AP

This undated image released by Boneau/Bryan-Brown shows Ben Forster as Jesus Christ, left, and former Spice Girls member Melanie Chisholm, as Mary Magdalene, in ‘Jesus Christ Superstar’ currently touring in London. — AP

Musicians John Paul Jones, Robert Plant, Jimmy Page and Jason Bonham attend the ‘Led Zeppelin: Celebration Day’ premiere at the Ziegfeld Theater in New York. — AP photos

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Paul Stanley attends the ‘Led Zeppelin: Celebration Day’ premiere at the Ziegfeld Theater.

Mick Jones attends the ‘Led Zeppelin: Celebration Day’.

ox might not have gone to MIPCOM looking for a divorce - but it got one anyway. The network put in a pilot order for a new series, “Divorce Hotel,” at the conference in France. The project, which comes from A. Smith & Co. Productions and BASE Productions (the same people who brought us “Hell’s Kitchen” and “America Ninja Warriors”), revolves around a real-life Dutch business, the Divorce Hotel, where couples check in to end their marriages as quickly as possible.

Yes, really. “A dedicated team of attorneys, counselors, and mediators condense the normally lengthy and expensive divorce process into a whirlwind weekend packed full of emotional ups and downs,” according to a description of the project. “On Sunday, the newly-exes check out of the Divorce

Hotel single, ready to move on to the next phase of their lives.”You won’t get that kind of service at Disneyland. And if the team of professional splitter-uppers fail to do their jobs?

“In some cases, the couple may not go through with it, and they leave still married,” the announcement continues. “Whatever the outcome, every Divorce Hotel experience has extremely high-stakes.” Highstakes? You don’t say...Arthur Smith, Kent Weed, Mickey Stern and John Brenkus will serve as executive producers on “Divorce Hotel. — Reuters

Hobbit treasure to become legal tender in New Zealand

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THURSDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2012

An Indian daily wage laborer walks past a mural of Bollywood actor Amitabh Bachchan from his classic film “Deewar” on the eve of Bachchan’s 70th birthday in Mumbai yesterday. India’s favorite film star and Bollywood legend Bachchan - who is known as the ‘The Big B’ having over 3.5 million Twitter followers is treated like royalty in the movie-mad country. Bachchan was the first Indian actor to feature at London’s Madame Tussauds waxworks museum and was voted ‘actor of the millennium’ in a BBC online poll in 1999. — AFP

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oy Lichtenstein, the American painter whose comic book-inspired canvases gave the Pop Art movement some of its most vivid images, is getting his first major retrospective since his death 15 years ago. Beginning Sunday, the National Gallery of Art in Washington will be exhibiting 130 of his paintings, drawings and sculptures, reflecting a long and prolific career that ended when he passed away at the age of 73. The show moves to the Tate Modern museum in London next February and, in a less expansive form, to the Centre Georges Pompidou in Paris in July.

Its curator Harry Cooper called Lichtenstein, a New York native, “one of the most popular” modern artists alongside his contemporary Andy Warhol. “I don’t think he would want to be considered, above all, an American painter,” Cooper told AFP. “He’s a great modern painter. He had a great visual culture, a great background, training in all the history of art.” The show begins with an early work, “Look Mickey,” gifted to the National Gallery of Art by the artist in 1990.

The work depicts Donald Duck hooking his own tail while fishing on a pier with a guffawing Mickey Mouse. It was an early example of Lichtenstein’s appropriation of Ben-Day dots-the tiny colored pixels that made possible the high-volume printing of pulp comic books in the 1950s and 1960s.

Lichtenstein’s intention, Cooper said, was to turn the language of comics into a work of art. Also in the retrospective is “Whaam,” from 1963, arguably Lichtenstein’s bestknown work, showing one fighter plane blowing up another in mid-air with a minimum of painterly detail and a maximum sense of impact.

“He doesn’t denounce, and he doesn’t celebrate, either,” Cooper said. “We sometimes don’t know what the tone is, what the point of view is. That’s part of the definition of Pop Art... a kind of removal of the artist. Lichtenstein remains highly sought after by collectors. Last November, Christie’s auction house sold his 1961 work

“I Can See the Whole Room... and There’s Nobody in It!” for a record $43.2 million dollars in New York. — AFP

A 1963 canvas, Whaam! — AFP photos

People tour a retrospective of US pop artist Roy Lichtenstein, including his 1964 canvas, ‘Ohh... Alright’.

People tour a retrospective of US pop artist Roy Lichtenstein, including his 1961 canvas, ‘Look Mickey,’ at the National Gallery of Art in Washington on October 9, 2012.

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aced with tumbling sales, publishers from crisis-battered eurozone countries gathered at the world’s biggest book fair yesterday determined to weather the storm for a brighter future. Greece, in the midst of painful reforms and cuts to stave off bankruptcy, is in fighting mode and has boosted the number of publishers at the Frankfurt Book Fair by a fifth, its official here said. But it has also halved the size of its national stand compared to last year with publishers opting to be part of that to save costs rather than exhibiting individually, Catherine Velissaris, director of Greece’s National Book Centre said.

“They have a lot of meetings. They have no intention of throwing in the towel. They are there, they are going to fight,” she told AFP. “Oh for an end to the crisis! I won’t hide from you the fact that we are shattered,” she said adding that even wars did not generally last as long as the six years of recession that Greece has suffered. Greek publishers could survive a 20-25 percent fall in sales but are being suffocated by banks’ failure to lend while also not being paid by booksellers who have their own loans to pay back, she said.

Spanish publishers, among the more than 7,000 exhibitors at the annual fiveday event for insiders from the book and multimedia industries, paint a similar picture of falling sales and shop closures. But Spain’s Federation of Editors is trying to shore up the future for publishers as the country faces a question mark over whether it will need bailing out and anti-austerity protestors take to the streets. Director Antonio Maria Avila told AFP by telephone from Madrid through an interpreter that they were talking to the government to urge it to reform intellectual property rights to help fight literary piracy.

Other steps include calling for VAT on Internet-bought books to be cut from 21 percent, as well as changes in the regional states to enable better distribution and greater variety of books, he said. Ofelia Grande, of Madrid-based Siruela publishers, said they had taken the initiative to publish story-driven “upmarket commercial fiction” in a departure from its usual more prestigious literary writers.

Sales are down about 10 percent for the first half of 2012 compared to the same period a year earlier, she said adding that the possibility of selling to Latin American countries helped but was not enough. “Many bookstores have closed in Spain, mainly the independent

ones, and those independent ones are the most important for the literary independent publishing houses like us,” she said. “We have to work more and more and more to have not even the same results, just to be alive, to maintain (ourselves),” she added.

Paulo Oliveira, chief executive of Portuguese publishing house Grupo Betrand Circulo, said they were probably publishing a third fewer new titles a year but were trying to hone their selection to pick the best ones. And he said having weighed up whether to come to the Frankfurt show, his company had decided it was worth the investment. “The Portuguese companies who are trying to prepare the future are here. We are facing the crisis, it’s a problem, but we are looking into the future, preparing the future,” he said. Katja Boehne, the fair’s press officer, said they had been pleasantly surprised that attendance figures had remained steady and saw it as a “symptom of the crisis” that exhibitors felt the need to keep in touch with business partners. — AFP

Visitors look at books on display at the 64th Frankfurt Book Fair in Frankfurt, central Germany, yesterday. — AFP