11th May 2012

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NO: 15445- Friday, May 11, 2012

‘High’ Juwaihel hits new low SEE PAGE 10

KUWAIT: Information Minister Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah Al-Sabah (left) and MPs Ali Al-Amir (second right) and Mohammad Al-Saqer (third right) prevent Hamad Al-Matar (second left) from reaching Mohammad Al-Juwaihel (right) after Juwaihel spat at Matar during a session at the National Assembly yesterday. — Photo by Yasser Al-Zayyat

Local FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2012

From the editor’s desk

Local Spotlight

Cirque du Soleil of Kuwait

Why women love high heels

By Muna Al-Fuzai

By Abd Al-Rahman Al-Alyan Editor-in-Chief

myopinion@kuwaittimes.net

T

he moment you think politics in Kuwait couldn’t get any worse and an MP pulls out a rabbit from his hat or Eqal (the traditional black head garment). First, we had to witness a pointless five-minute grilling of the Minister of Interior which was mainly based on issues such as dual citizenship and a number of citizenships that were withdrawn by the MoI and then the decision was reversed. Can we please grow up now and just abolish the ban on dual citizenship! I really don’t see the big issue.

Many countries in the world allow dual citizenships and have no problem with loyalty. On the other hand, we have a problem with loyalty in Kuwait and trust me, you will find it with those who have one citizenship more than those with dual citizenships. As for withdrawing citizenships, what does that mean? Every time someone commits a crime, we just decide to withdraw his citizenship and claim he is not one of us?

What happens to “a once upon a time” Kuwaiti who lost his citizenship for whatever reason? He becomes bedoon and just makes the whole bedoon situation even more complicated and the cycle continues until they are a large enough group to fight for normal human rights.

Anyway, the circus doesn’t end there. A new act is introduced this term since Parliament has not done anything new over the past decade. MP Al-Juwaihel comes in with new tricks to add to the Cirque du Soleil of Kuwait.

He has added his own touches to an already embarrassing fiasco. He hangs placards with controversial comments like he is in a football stadium. Apparently spitting on other MPs is okay now and so is coming drunk to the Parliament!

The problem with Kuwait is not an issue of loyalty as much as it’s of disrespect. The government and the laws of the land are both losing respect and people are taking advantage of the corruption that is draining our country.

No matter what nationality, race or religion people are, it is the same when it comes to greed. If you allow people to walk over the law, then the majority will do just that.

KUWAIT: The view of Liberation Tower in Kuwait City before the sand blanketed the city yesterday.

— Photo by Yasser Al-Zayyat

muna@kuwaittimes.net

H

igh-heeled shoes are a type of footwear that not only elevates the wearer’s heels, but also their level of confidence!

Women love to show off their highheeled shoes! Most men do not understand the secret behind this passion except that it is a ‘feminine thing.’

I guess heels are part of a woman’s desire to look taller, sexier and elegant. Therefore, high heels come in a wide variety of styles, colours, and shapes. Some pointed heels are so high that they make the legs appear slimmer; an aspect all women love, no matter how old or young they are! High heels add delicate grace to women’s personality.

Any footwear that has heels more

than 2.5 to 3.5 centimetres long are considered ‘mid heels.’ Extremely high-heeled shoes, exceeding five inches in all are not advised by doctors. These place intense pressure on toes.

I have seen large women wearing high heels and wonder how they manage to balance their weight. It must be tough on them! I am sure many of us have seen such women in malls, and laughed. I do it all the time.

In the past, cowboys wore highheeled shoes. But, men do not wear them anymore unless they have a genuine medical reason. So, do not get me wrong here! Unless the men are transvestites, I have not seen men wearing high-heeled shoes.

Imagine what a man would look like, going to office wearing high heels!

How would he defend himself? He will certainly be misunderstood and could even become the butt of jokes. I guess he would buck under pressure, ultimately.

I believe that high heels are great if worn during certain occasions like weddings or social gatherings for a few hours. I would not want to wear them to places where I have to walk or stand for long hours. This could be painful.

It is a matter of perception, really.

The fact here is that high heels look wonderful on women, regardless of their age. Ladies, enjoy them as long as you can.

Just kiddin’, seriously

Kuwaiti citizenship: An elusive dream

By Sahar Moussa

sahar@kuwaittimes.net

I

’m Lebanese and I don’t have any intentions to get a Kuwaiti citizenship - at least not for now.

Now that this point is clear, I would like to talk about granting Kuwaiti citizenships to non-Kuwaitis. The people who are facing this problem the most are the bedoons, followed closely by Kuwaiti mothers’ kids and the majority here: the expats.

In the late 50s and the beginning of the 60s when Kuwait was fighting against the British invasion, Kuwait sought help from Bedouins who lived in the deserts surrounding Kuwait in the regional countries. These people answered the call and fought bravely till they shed their last drop of blood. It’s also important to remember that many bedoons fought the Liberation War alongside the Kuwaitis, feeling a sense of oneness and unity. How can we disregard the expats who have been born and raised in Kuwait, who have studied here and lived all their lives long enough to consider Kuwait as the only country they know and love?

Many of them feel a bond so strong with this country that they do not

hesitate to lay down their lives if necessary.

Don’t you think that these people deserve to be granted the Kuwaiti citizenship? Let’s be objective: I am not overlooking the fact that there are a lot of people who don’t deserve it and would want it for political and financial benefits.

They can actually imbalance the country; especially the newbies who came in recently and tore their passports up to claim that they belong to Kuwait.

And then there are the real bedoons. The ones whose ancestors came here 50 years ago and accepted Kuwait with open arms to the extent of believing that they didn’t need any documents to prove their loyalty and patriotism.

They believed that their genuine love for the country surpassed all paperwork and the only way to show it was by giving Kuwait their sweat and blood.

A lot of bedoons today, especially the youngsters, are struggling fiercely for rights that their ancestors deserved and feel frustrated and restrained because they can’t

be free in a country - which once upon a time their ancestors helped to free.

In every civilized country, women can grant their children their nationality; why can’t it be the same in Kuwait? I don’t think women should be treated as if they are subhuman or sub-citizens. I know that these children enjoy many privileges but my question is this: Why can’t this privilege be a right?

I can’t help wondering what the criteria are for an individual to be granted the Kuwaiti citizenship. Do I have to sing Kuwait national songs like the singer Nawal Al-Kuwaitia or act and be funny like the actor Dawood Hussien in order to be granted the Kuwaiti citizenship? Do I have to know people in high places or have wasta? According to the Kuwait Citizenship Law, ‘notable services’ will be rewarded with naturalization. Can someone please define what these ‘notable services’ are?

Local FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2012

Serving up the

tradition of hospitality ‘At the Sadu Weaving Society, we try to preserve the Bedouin style, document it, showcase it and make it available as an art form.’

By Sawsan Kazak

T

Sheikha Bibi Douaij Al-Sabah, Chairperson of Al-Sadu House Handcraft Society and Jumana Al-Othman, owner of Breakfast and Brunch are pictured.

— Photos by Yasser Al-Zayyat

he smell of freshly-brewed tea wafts through the air as you enter the open doors of the Sadu House. The high-ceilinged white room is decorated with traditional Sadu weavings, accentuating traditional Kuwaiti architecture. Atop every table sits a metal container filled with hot coals and a colourful tea kettle nestled between them. Women sit casually as they serve each other tea and enjoy each other’s company.

Every Monday, between 10 am and 1 pm, the Sadu House, located on the Arabian Gulf Road holds ‘Chai Al-Dhana.’ This ongoing event is free and open to all who wish to enjoy a good cup of tea or Arabic coffee and some sweets. On this particular day, the Chai Al-Dhana event was sponsored by Breakfast and Brunch restaurant.

“We started in January just to open the house to visitors to enjoy the house itself, not necessarily the Sadu exhibit,” said Sheikha Bibi Douaij AlSabah, Chairperson of Al-Sadu House Handcraft Society. “This allows us to meet with people and get ideas. It is a forum for people to express their views on Sadu and for us to get feedback. We get excellent feedback and it has been successful; it means we are doing something right. We take suggestions seriously, write them down and try to implement what we can every week,” Sheikha Bibi explained.

She explained that Kuwaiti culture is renowned for hospitality and the Chai Al-Dhana is an extension and reflection of that.” You come in and you have tea and a snack. We try to host a different local culinary talent from Kuwait featured every week; also free of charge,” said Sheikha Bibi. If the Chai Al-Dhana is not featured by a restaurant or local talent, the Sadu House provides the snacks.

Local FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2012

‘This venue allows people to come in, have a cup of tea or coffee without any pressure to buy anything, to celebrate the diversity of the people attending this event’

“This venue allows people to come in, have a cup of tea or coffee without any pressure to buy anything, to celebrate the diversity of the people attending this event,” Sheikha Bibi explained. Bibi explained that it is usually women who attend but everyone is welcome.”Sometimes, the odd man will show up and get nervous but we keep reassuring them that it is okay, we or not just a women-only society, we welcome everybody,” she added.

“Sadu is Bedouin style weaving. At the Sadu Weaving Society, we try to preserve it, document it, showcase it and make it available as an art form. Sometimes, when something is nostalgic, you think of it as being old- fashioned.

We try to innovate while holding on to authenticity of it,” Sheikha Bibi explained.

The Chairperson of Al-Sadu House Handcraft Society said that children and adult workshops have been organized, and feedback has been great. The children’s workshop appears to be a little more popular than the adults. Sheikha Bibi does not know why the adults seem to be more hesitant, but she expressed hope that changes with more promotion. “We cannot revive Sadu as it was in Kuwait (in the past), but we try to preserve it as an art form. We would even like to see it included in the art curriculum in Kuwait schools. This would protect and promote this part of our history and make it more available to those, including this kind of weaving or art form,” said Sheikha Bibi.

“We at the Sadu House will exhibit weavings from Kuwaitis and non-Kuwaitis, and we give the push to showcase their work. This is the promise from us, once you have learnt it from us and you get the technique right, we will give you the venue to showcase,” said Sheikha Bibi.

Local FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2012

After a makeover, Al-Othman House is set to charm oldies and youngsters alike

The Al-Othman House is pictured. — Photos by Nawara Fattahova

At home with

Kuwait’s yesteryears

By Nawara Fattahova

I

t takes a little bit of knowledge and a whole lot of foresight to know that something old might fade away unless someone rolls up their sleeves and gets ready to save it. Kuwait government had the knowledge and the insight - thus the initiative to renovate and preserve buildings of historic importance. The number of museums that dot Kuwait are set to increase, Al-Othman House being the latest addition. It is slated for a grand opening after five months, and entry is free-of-charge.

Al-Othman House or Beit Al-Othman was abandoned after its owner died and it lay in ruins. The inheritors then sold it to the gov-

ernment, which then passed it on to the National Council for Culture, Arts, and Letters (NCCAL) to conduct maintenance work. Later, the Kuwaiti Heritage team from the Voluntary Work Centre began working it and decided to turn it into a museum.

Once renovation works are completed, the museum will be opened to the public. “We are waiting for HH the Amir Sheikh Sabah AlAhmad Al-Sabah will set a date for the official launch. Only then will this museum be opened to the public. Entry will be free-ofcharge. At present, it is only opened during special occasions,” said Anwar Al-Rifai, Head of the Kuwaiti Heritage team told Friday Times.

All the rooms of Al-Othman House have been equipped with the original antique items and furniture from yesteryears; some date back to more than a 100 years. “When we took up this mission, this place lay in shambles, and it was empty. Our team visited different traditional markets, auctions, and local collectors to find old items suitable for the place. In this way, we made the place complete, and it will be a real joy for visitors.

Also, there will be a cinema room screening documentaries and short movies,” Al-Rifai added.

“We have finished restoring some rooms, and let visitors see them during special occasions. For instance, we have the bedroom, the yard, diwaniya, work office, marine museum, and others. In the future, there will be a sec-

Local FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2012

tion dedicated to theatrical outfits and possessions that were used in different shows and plays,” he added.

Al-Othman House was built towards the end of 1940s in Hawally. The Arabic style home, was divided into many adjoining quarters. It is situated in Abdullah Al-Othman Street, spread over a 900 square meter area.

The ceiling was originally using Jandel wood.

“The house has a diwaniya where late Abdullah Al-Othman welcomed his guests. It also has the first family area, in addition to another three family quarters. It includes a guest house and a huge yard used for sheep breeding,” explained Al-Rifai.

“This house is a shining example of Kuwaiti architecture, as it is located outside Kuwait City outskirts. The old house is built using cement bricks, while the other buildings were built using ferroconcrete and cement bricks walls,” he noted.

Beit Al-Othman is a rare example of a Kuwaiti house built outside the ramparts of Kuwait.”This was the main reason why the

NCCAL preserved it, making it a place to be visited by next generations. Here, the new generations will be able to see how Kuwaiti people lived, especially different sectors of society,” he pointed out.

More cultural activities will be held at this House following its opening. “Every month, there will be a concert or performance held by one of the Kuwaiti traditional folk music bands. This is so that we can prevent such kind of art and music from disappearing. We also aim to familiarise the young generation with traditional art,” explained Al-Rifai.

Owner of Al-Othman House, late Abdullah Abdullatif Al-Othman was a businessman who was involved in charity. He worked as a teacher at the Mubarakiya School, and then launched Al-Othman School in 1932. Apart from his work in this school, he also worked at the Municipality as a writer, until he rose to the rank of Director General until he resigned in 1948. He then invested and worked in the real estate field.

The Kuwaiti Heritage team consists of a group of researchers who work as volunteers.

They are divided into different committees like the Kuwaiti heritage evaluation in charge of antique pieces, publications and documents committee, marine heritage committee, and the historical buildings committee.

‘Every month, there will be a concert or performance held by one of the Kuwaiti traditional folk music bands. This is so that we can prevent such kind of art and music from disappearing’.

Local FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2012

Parrots are pictured at the Friday Market in Kuwait. — Photo by Yasser Al-Zayyat

By Ben Garcia

A

dding another feather in the cap of animal abuse in Kuwait, cases of hunted birds making their way to Friday Market have surfaced. Making an appeal to take more affirmative action to thwart illegal bird-hunting, Kuwait Society for the Protection of Animals and their Habitat (K’S PATH), a non-profit-non-governmental organization, spoke out on the need to eliminate the practice. Bird hunting season usually starts in February and ends mid-May, beginning again in fall, (October-November).

Bird-hunting, according to K’S Path, takes place almost the entire year, destroying not just their natural habitat but also the cycle of migratory pattern.”There are laws that govern bird hunting in Kuwait. What we need is not another law but a severe implementation of the existing one,” Aisha Al-Humaidhi, Chairman of K’S PATH told Friday Times. Since April, Kuwait Environment Protection Society (KEPS) has been coordinating with the Ministry of Interior through a series of meetings to counter the practice of hunting down migratory birds. They sometimes end up in the Friday Bird Market or are left dead or injured.

KEPS Board Chairman Mohammad Al-Ahmad and General Director of Al-Jahra Security Department, Major General Ibrahim Al-Tarrah, headed a recent meeting to devise mechanisms to stop illegal hunting of migratory birds for game or sale. “The meeting focused on the need to increase the presence of security patrols on highways during seasons in which migratory birds arrive in Kuwait,” said team leader Abdulmuhsin Al-Sareea in a recent statement. He further added that an agreement was reached to go ahead with inspection campaigns at locations that include chalets, farms, natural reserves and open deserts.

Illegal bird hunting is mostly rampant in uninhabited locations to the north of the country including Al-Subbiya, Al-Abdali, AlRitqa and Al-Abraq.

In fact, according to Major General Al-Tarrah, police recently arrested five people who were hunting illegally in Al-Salmi

(west), and cancelled weapons’ licenses. The K’S PATH chairman also confirms illegal sale of hunted birds at the Friday Market, in addition to the sale of smuggled birds and other animals. “It has been happening there but not only those illegally hunted in Kuwait like falcons. If the authorities here are firm enough to

Illegally hunted birds end up in Friday Market severely injured or dead implement the existing law on animal protection, then we could perhaps stop, if not eradicate this practice,” she said.

Aisha pointed out that Kuwaiti public need to be more aware.

“Educating the public on the importance of migratory birds to our ecosystem and country is the best thing K’S PATH does. We are also closely working with the Kuwaiti authority here to share our knowledge and expertise regarding animals. The Kuwaiti authority is doing something, but very little. At K’S PATH, we help injured birds; we provide them with medical care, protection, nourishment and rehabilitation before releasing them in to the wild. If they cannot [manage to survive in the wild], we design enclosures [wide cages] which serve as their sanctuary.

Two weeks ago, we released a steeped eagle into the wild, after it recovered from a dehydrating sandstorm,” Aisha added. She added that K’S PATH serves as a sanctuary for an Egyptian vulture and a short-toed eagle.

Local FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2012

Wanted:

Super rich wife ‘Toy boy’ enjoys luxurious lifestyle by mixing business with pleasure

By Lisa Conrad

“I

’m not in love with my wife, or even attracted to her; she’s over 10 years older than me. But I live well with her here,” says expatriate Ahmed, his voice laced with melancholy. Ahmed, who is of Arab ethnicity, asked his nationality to be concealed in fear that the additional detail may allow his wife, or her friends, to identify him - an understandable request, given his story.

The stereotype of young women ‘gold-digging’ by marrying older, wealthy husbands is fast being eroded by the increase of men like Ahmed. Prior to his marriage, he lived a ‘mediocre’ (in his words) lifestyle; “I’m not from a rich family. Much of the Middle East isn’t like the West or the Gulf; if your family can’t afford for you to go to University, you don’t go. If they need you to start working at a young age, then you do.” He added, “When I found out which company my wife was working for here, I knew that she was a good catch. I wouldn’t have to worry anymore, and my family wouldn’t have to worry about me. It’s a burden to have a struggling adult son.”

Ahmed now lives in the lap of luxury with his expatriate wife in Kuwait. What’s more, he insists that his isn’t an isolated case, “I know many men here who specifically seek-out successful, wealthy women to make their lives easier. It’s not uncommon at all. You don’t even have to be that handsome, just charming.”

He continued, “It’s common for women to work now, and many are really driven and ambitious, more so than most men. I think they have to work harder to prove themselves than men, so many get further in their careers.” This change in the balance of power, he added, has fuelled the prevalence of men seeking out

successful, wealthy women.

Money isn’t the only thing being pursued: whilst some of Ahmed’s acquaintances married for money, others married for nationality, “Some guys from my town back-home married European and American women of a similar age for the nationality. It’s not uncommon. Some of the marriages were for love, though.” However, according to Ahmed’s logic, marriages for money and marriages for nationality are completely different issues altogether, “I’ve seen many marriages for nationality based on love, where the passport was just a convenient factor. But marriages to older women because of wealth - that’s never based on love, and it’s a newer trend.”

Ahmed claims that his choice to marry a wealthy wife was fuelled by his lack of opportunity, but adds that it’s a two-way street, “I don’t think it’s taking advantage of the woman; it’s not as if she doesn’t know that money plays a major part in the marriage.” He added, “What’s the likelihood that a young, handsome guy will suddenly decide to marry an older woman without any motive? When it’s the other way around, men obviously know that the beautiful, much younger woman on their arm isn’t there for love.”

Apart from the obvious hike in living standards that Ahmed enjoys as a result of his marriage, he added that other factors also influenced his decision, “It’s very hard for me to find a suitable woman to marry anyway. You never know anymore, there are so many ways for people to meet without anyone ever knowing and there are operations that completely conceal any evidence.”

Rather ironically, Ahmed had considerable requirements for his future potential bride when he was on the lookout for a woman of a similar age, “She would have to have been a virgin. But now you never know. So

what’s the point anymore? Plus, the good women, who are beautiful and have a good reputation, are going to marry the rich guys.”

Can someone in such a seemingly superficial marriage still consider children, despite the circumstances?

According to Ahmed, it’s up to his wife, “She didn’t mention anything about kids yet, but if she wants them, then we’ll have them. I’m not intending to leave her, and I want children myself, too.” However, is it really ethical to bring children into an unloving marriage?

Ahmed insists that he’s being pragmatic and more considerate than many who marry for love, “At least my children will have financial stability and the choice to be whoever they want to be. Other couples are in love, yes, but maybe they’re less financially stable and their children suffer as a result.” He added, “I’ve been on both sides of the spectrum, and this side is definitely better. Plus, I know we won’t divorce, but in love marriages, the love may fade and leave the kids in a broken home.”

As unromantic as it may seem, Ahmed argued that there’s nothing wrong with his choice to marry for money and stability, adding that few marriages are love-based nowadays, especially in the Middle East, “If you’re not of the same social standing, then there’s no way you can marry the person you fall in love with.

Everyone has requirements; it’s just more shocking when they openly admit them.” He added, “It’s not just about ‘happiness’ anymore. Being stable and secure brings you long-term happiness and relaxation. The happiness love brings is temperamental, and often short-lived.”

Local FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2012

Kuwait tribunal closes ex-PM graft probe KUWAIT: A Kuwaiti special judicial tribunal decided yesterday to end its inquiry into graft allegations against the former prime minister citing a lack of evidence, a lawyer told AFP. “I was notified this morning by the ministers’ trial court that it closed its investigation in the case,” said Nawaf Al-Fuzai, who filed the complaint several weeks ago. The tribunal was investigating allegations that former Prime Minister Sheikh Nasser Mohammad Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah transferred millions of

85,000 face travel ban KUWAIT: More than 85,000 citizen and expats face a travel ban owing to court rulings, as well as financial debts. Sources said that there are nearly 40,000 citizens and 45,000 expats from ten countries like India, Bangladesh, Egypt, Syria, Lebanon, Pakistan, Philippines, Nepal and Ethiopia who face bans. Even a small debt of KD 20 could result in their names being placed on the ban list. — Al-Qabas

High oil earnings to boost govt spending KUWAIT: The outlook for Kuwait’s banking system over the next 12 to 18 months remains stable, according to a recent report by Moody’s Investor Services. Asset quality has improved markedly since the days of the global financial crisis, and lenders are well capitalized. However, the country’s lenders face other challenges, most notably, a sluggish economy that has left demand for loans - particularly on the corporate side - limited.

In early April, the ratings agency reported that it expected the banking sector’s overall asset quality to remain at a level similar to that of late 2011, when the rate of non-performing loans stood at around six percent. Moody’s noted that there are some downside risks to asset quality over the projection period, in part due to singleparty exposures, but with strong capitalization levels, the banks have room to absorb any substantial loan losses.

Indeed, according to Randa Azar, Group Head of Strategy and Research at the National Bank of Kuwait (NBK), the country’s largest bank, lenders in Kuwait and the larger region are well-capitalized.

“The starting point for many banks in the Gulf is pretty strong right now; capital adequacy and liquidity is not really a problem in the region,” she told FTSE Global Markets magazine in April, adding that “a good number of banks are already compliant with both Basel II and Basel III, at least on the capital ratio side.”

This view was echoed by Moody’s, which pointed out that the banking system’s liquidity remains at a comfortable level, bolstered by deposits from cash-rich, government-related businesses that are doing well in an era of high oil prices. Lenders also have access to government and quasi-government deposits, which have remained relatively constant, even during tough economic times.

While analysts seem to agree that funding is not an issue, there is a greater degree of uncertainty when it comes to the question of whether or not there will be demand for the capital currently sitting in the country’s banks. According to Moody’s, high oil earnings are likely to boost government spending and provide stimulus to the non-oil private sector economy, thereby creating greater demand for banking services. The ratings agency also noted that credit negative factors include “discord between the executive and legislative (parliament) branches of the government that continue to cause delays in the implementation of economic policy.”

Indeed, Ibrahim Dabdoub, CEO of NBK, in an April 16 interview with Gulf Times, made a similar point. “The business environment is still slow here, mainly because government expenditure is still slow,” he said. For first quarter of 2012, NBK reported profits of KD 81 million, compared to KD 80.7 million for the same period in 2011. “We would have loved to have better growth, but there is no demand for loans at all. There is demand on the consumer side, but not on the corporate side,” Dabdoub said. One factor that could stimulate demand for bank credit, at least in Kuwait, would be the implementation of the National Development Plan (NDP), a four-year economic program that was approved by the Parliament in February 2010.

The NDP calls for several hundred projects and initiatives in areas such as housing, health care and transport, with total spending projected to reach an estimated $108 billion and about half of this to be financed by banks. — Oxford Business Group

dollars of public funds into his bank accounts overseas.

The tribunal’s finding that there was insufficient evidence to press charges against Sheikh Nasser, a senior member of the ruling Al-Sabah family, does not spell the end of inquiries into his financial affairs.

The graft allegations are still being investigated by a parliamentary commission of inquiry formed in March and the Audit Bureau, the state accounting watchdog.

The head of the parliamentary panel, opposition MP

Faisal Al-Mislem, said in remarks published by Kuwaiti dailies yesterday that his committee found that around $313 million had been transferred by Sheikh Nasser when he was premier. He said that available evidence showed that a “part of the money was not used in the public interest.” Kuwaiti media reported last week that the former premier had told the tribunal that “all the transfers were in the service of the interests of Kuwait and contained no personal benefit.” — AFP

‘Drunk’ Juwaihel spits at fellow MP Juwaihel barred for two weeks from NA

By B Izzak KUWAIT: The National Assembly yesterday unanimously voted to prevent MP Mohammad Al-Juwaihel from entering the Assembly building or attending the meetings of committees for two weeks for spitting on Islamist opposition MP Hamad AlMatar in an unprecedented act. The incident took place while a debate on the establishment of a KD 2 billion fund to support small and medium industries for Kuwaitis was going on.

Juwaihel, a controversial figure for the past several years, spat on Matar who sat close to him and then made rude hand gestures without being provoked by Matar who attempted to physically assault him but was prevented by other lawmakers. Shiite MP Hussein Al-Qallaf immediately took Juwaihel out of the chamber.

Several MPs said that they saw Juwaihel spit on Matar while others said that Juwaihel was drunk during the incident and demanded that police arrest him and examine the percentage of alcohol in his blood.

Following a heated debate, the Assembly unanimously agreed to apply Article 89 of its internal charter to bar Juwaihel from entering the assembly building or attending meetings of committees for two weeks. Opposition MPs submitted another proposal, calling on authorities to arrest Juwaihel to examine alcohol in his blood but some MPs objected stating that the proposal was illegal.

The Assembly, however, decided to refer the proposal to the legal committee to investigate if it was legal to do so.

Islamist MP Jamaan Al-Harbash accused Juwaihel of being a tool for some members of the ruling family and some merchants who back him to insult Kuwaiti Bedouin tribes. He demanded that Juwaihel be tested for drinking alcohol immediately. Islamist MP Ammar Al-Ajmi called for the permanent expulsion of Juwaihel from the assembly, while opposition MP Ali Al-Deqbasi blamed the government for remaining silent on his unacceptable behavior. Information and Housing ministers both called for punishing Juwaihel in accordance with the law.

Qallaf, however, asked that if the same act was committed by an MP from the majority bloc, “would you have called for the same punishment?” MP Mussallam AlBarrak claimed that Juwaihel is a tool for some female members of the ruling family who use him to insult Kuwaiti tribes and are supplying him with information and documents. Information Minister Sheikh

KUWAIT: Kuwaiti MPs prevent Nayef Al-Ajmi (left) from reaching Mohammad AlJuwaihel (right) during a session at the Kuwait’s National Assembly after Juwaihel spat on MP Hamad Al-Matar. — Photo by Yasser Al-Zayyat Mohammad Al-Abdullah Al-Sabah denied the accusation.

Islamist MP Adel Al-Damkhi said that Juwaihel’s aim is to create divisions and problems in the society, while MP Mohammad Al-Khalifa demanded an investigation committee to identify who is behind Juwaihel. Juwaihel, who was elected as MP for the first time in February, has been launching a campaign against Kuwaiti tribes, accusing many of

having dual citizenships which is banned under the law.

Ahead of the February snap polls, Juwaihel’s election tent was burned down by angry tribesmen after he insulted the Mutairi tribe at an election rally.

Following the incident, MP Matar filed a lawsuit against Juwaihel. He later filed another lawsuit against opposition activist Abbas Al-Shaabi, alleging that he tried to beat him.

Police officer arrested for playing loud music KUWAIT: Jahra police arrested a first lieutenant after receiving a call from a lawyer on Wednesday. He stated that loud music was being played at an adjacent flat. Police stormed the flat and noticed the man was in an inebriated condition. They arrested him and learnt that he is a police officer. He was placed under arrest.

Sexual assault cases A Filipina expat escaped harm after two men who tried to kidnap and rape her failed after she strongly resisted their advances in Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh.

The victim filed a complaint with police stating that while waiting for a taxi, the duo approached her in a pick-up truck and offered her a free ride but did not accept it. The men then offered her KD 20 for spending the night with them but she turned her back at them. One of

the men stepped out of the vehicle and attempted to bundle her in to the vehicle, but her screams attracted the attention of passers-by. The duo fled the scene.

A man, while pretending to be ill, raped his girlfriend in his flat and asked a friend to join him. However, she resisted and escaped with bruises and grazes. A security source said that the 42-year-old woman told Salmiya police that a young man she used to meet at a public place called her late Tuesday night, claiming to be ill. He asked her to take him to the hospital. When the woman arrived, he asked her to enter his bedroom. To her surprise, she found him in good health. He then raped her.

A stranger then entered the room and tried to do the same, but she punched him and escaped. Police are investigating the case.

FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2012

Bodies found at Russian jet wreckage in Indonesia

Americans divided on Obama’s endorsement of gay marriage

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Hunger strikers close to deal with Israel: Sources

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DAMASCUS: A handout picture released by the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) shows an aerial view of the site of twin blasts in Damascus yesterday. — AFP

Suicide bombers strike Syrian capital, killing 55 Further 370 people wounded in blast DAMASCUS: Two suicide blasts ripped through the Syrian capital yesterday, killing 55 people and leaving scenes of carnage in the streets in the deadliest bombing attack since the country’s uprising began 14 months ago, the Interior Ministry said. An Associated Press reporter at the scene said paramedics wearing rubber gloves were collecting human remains from the pavement after the explosions. Heavily damaged cars and pickup trucks stood smoldering in the area. The blasts ripped the facade off a military intelligence building, which appeared to be the target.

More than 370 people also were wounded in the attack, the Interior Ministry said in a statement. The ministry, which is in charge of the country’s internal security, said the explosives weighed more than 1,000 kilograms. Central Damascus is under the tight control of forces loyal to President Bashar Assad but has been struck by several bomb attacks, often targeting security installations or convoys, since the revolt

against him began in March 2011. The government blames the bombings on the terrorists it says are behind the uprising, which has been the most potent challenge to the Assad family dynasty in Syria in four decades. But opposition leaders and activists routinely blame the regime for orchestrating the attacks, saying they help it demonize the opposition and maintain support among those who fear greater instability.

There was no claim of responsibility for yesterday’s blasts. But an al-Qaida-inspired group has claimed responsibility for several past explosions, raising fears that terrorist groups are entering the fray and exploiting the chaos. Maj. Gen. Robert Mood, the Norwegian head of the U.N.’s cease-fire monitors in the country, toured the site yesterday and said the Syrian people do not deserve this “terrible violence.”

“It is not going to solve any problems,” he said, when asked what his message was to those who are carrying out such attacks.

“It is only going to create more suffering for women and children.” The relentless violence in the country has brought a ceasefire plan brokered by special envoy Kofi Annan to the brink of collapse. Yesterday, Annan appealed for calm and an end to bloodshed.

“The Syrian people have already suffered too much,” Annan said in a statement.

Yesterday’s explosions went off seconds apart at about 7:50 a.m. during the morning rush hour. Witnesses said the first explosion attracted curious passers-by. But seconds later, the second, far larger explosion went off, causing massive damage.

Syrian TV showed shaken young girls in tears who said they were in the Qazaz First Elementary School when the blast occurred.

An hour after the blast, the school’s gates were closed and no one was inside.

The explosions left two craters at the gate of the military compound, one of them 3 meter deep and 6 meters wide. “The house

shook like it was an earthquake,” housewife Maha Hijazi said as she stood outside her house across the street from the targeted compound.

The latest major explosion in the capital occurred on April 27 when a suicide bomber detonated an explosives belt near members of the security forces, killing at least nine people and wounding 26.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Jihad Makdissi posted a message on his Facebook page urging people to go to hospitals to donate blood. The previous deadliest attack in Damascus occurred on Dec. 23, when two car bombers blew themselves up outside the heavily guarded compounds of Syria’s intelligence agencies, killing at least 44 people. On March, 17, two suicide car bombers struck in near-simultaneous attacks on heavily guarded intelligence and security buildings in Damascus, killing at least 27 people. On Jan. 6, an explosion at a Damascus intersection killed 26, including many policemen. — AP

FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2012

RedBull F

asten your seatbelts! Two years after the second Red Bull Flugtag, the event is taking off again. If you’re an adrenalin junkie, flying enthusiast or simply love a bit of airborne fun, then you may just be crazy enough to enter the Red Bull Flugtag. This hilarious man-made aircraft flying competition is back in Kuwait at the Marina Crescent on Friday, October 19, 2012.

The 2012 Red Bull Flugtag event will be the

third of its kind in Kuwait following the hugely successful 2010 event which saw 20,000 spectators cheer on over 30 man-made flying machines as they flew into the sky before plunging into the water.

The world’s first Red Bull Flugtag took place in Vienna, Austria, in 1991. Since then, more than 100 Red Bull Flugtag events have been held around the world, from London to New York, attracting up to 300,000 spectators!

FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2012

Flugtag flies back to Kuwait

The record for the farthest flight to date currently stands at 60 meters, set in 2000 at Red Bull Flugtag in Austria, but who knows what records could be broken in Kuwait!

A six-meter high by 30-meter long launching ramp will be constructed upon a barge anchored next to the Marina Crescent. Competitors will access the take-off ramp via a long bridge. Think you’ve got what it takes to soar at Red Bull Flugtag? Then prove it! Show us your stuff and apply by simply visiting the following website: www.redbullmea.com/flugtag. Deadline for participation is June 15. But remember, even though Red Bull Flugtag is a flying competition, creativity and showmanship are part of the judging criteria, so save your plane-jane replicas for next year’s science project. We’re looking for the unusual, the head turning, and the hysterical! So think big, get sketching and show us what you’ve got.

International FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2012

Saudis emerge as key US ally against terrorists WASHINGTON: A decade after hijackers mostly from Saudi Arabia attacked the United States with passenger jets, the Saudis have emerged as the principal ally of the US against Al-Qaida’s spinoff group in Yemen and at least twice have disrupted plots to explode sophisticated bombs aboard airlines. Details emerging about the latest unraveled plot revealed that a Saudi double agent fooled the terror group, known as Al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula, passing himself off as an eager would-be suicide bomber.

Instead, he secretly turned over the group’s most up-to-date underwear bomb to Saudi Arabia, which gave it to the CIA. Before he was whisked to safety, the spy provided intelligence that helped the CIA kill Al-Qaeda’s senior operations leader, Fahd Al-Quso, who died in a drone strike last weekend.

The role of Saudi Arabia disrupting the

plot follows warnings in 2010 from the oil-rich kingdom about a plot to blow up cargo planes inside the US, either on runways or over American cities. That plot involved a frantic chase across five countries of two packages containing bombs powerful enough to down an airplane.

Twice, a bomb was aboard a passenger plane. Once, authorities were just minutes too late to stop a cargo jet with a bomb from departing for its next destination. Ultimately, no one died and the packages never exploded. It hasn’t always been this way.

Saudi Arabia, the one-time home of Osama bin Laden, failed to spot and stop the 15 Saudi-born hijackers of the 19 who carried out the September 2001 terror attacks. Questions remain whether two Saudi citizens who had at least indirect links with two of the hijackers were reporting to Saudi government officials.

US law enforcement officials accused the Saudi government of failing to help adequately in investigations of the Al-Qaida attack on the USS Cole in Yemen in 2000 and Hezbollah’s bombing of the Khobar Towers housing complex, which killed 19 US servicemen in 1996.

But a series of devastating Al-Qaida strikes against Saudi targets in 2003 and more recently, fears Al-Qaeda could try to trigger Arab Spring-style revolts in the kingdom, has energized the Saudi government in its war against Al-Qaida’s spinoff in Yemen, which is composed mostly of ex-Saudi militants. Saudi Arabia and the US - with help from Yemen’s government - have joined forces to penetrate the terror group at the highest levels.

Drone strikes have killed US-born Anwar al-Awlaki last summer and Al-Quso, his successor, more recently.

Al-Quso personally briefed the Saudi

double agent, giving him open-ended instructions to pick a US-bound plane on a day of his choosing. Al-Quso was hit in part due to information gleaned from the double-agent, according to two former officials, speaking on condition of anonymity to preserve their ability to discuss details of current intelligence matters with current officials. FBI Director Robert Mueller said Wednesday that the FBI is examining the new AlQaida bomb and urged Congress to renew wide-ranging surveillance authority to thwart similar terrorism plots. The FBI is attempting to replicate bomb, trying to determine how destructive the bomb would have been and how easy it would be for AQAP to build another. The device is Al-Qaeda’s 2.0 version of the underwear bomb that very nearly brought down a Detroit-bound airliner on Christmas Day in 2009. —AP

Americans divided on Obama’s endorsement of gay marriage

GAZA CITY: Palestinian cyber activists work during a sit-in in Gaza City in support of more than a thousand prisoners who are observing an open-ended hunger strike in Israeli jails yesterday. — AFP

Hunger strikers close to deal with Israel: Sources JERUSALEM: Israel’s prison service has offered to ease restrictions on Palestinian prisoners in a bid to end a mass hunger strike that has left several detainees close to death, sources told AFP yesterday. Just under 1,600 Palestinian prisoners are currently refusing food in a wide-ranging protest against solitary confinement, detention without charge and restrictions on family visits, education and other privileges. The strike has drawn international attention, with the European Union and United Nations expressing concern. Two of those protesting, Bilal Diab and Thaer Halahla, marked their 72nd day without food yesterday.

But an official with Palestinian prisoners’ rights group Addameer told AFP yesterday that negotiations between prisoners and the Israel Prison Service (IPS) appeared to be making progress. “According to what we have learned from the prisoners, there was a meeting last night in Nafha prison (in southern Israel) between the IPS and leaders of the hunger strike,” she said, suggesting an end to the action could be imminent. “There might be a positive response in the next few days.” The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the IPS appeared to have “agreed to allow visits for families from Gaza,” and to revoke a range of restrictions on prisoners, including a ban on education and other privileges.

And she added that an agreement on moving prisoners out of solitary confinement was also on the table. “On solitary confinement, in the meeting before this one the IPS offered to move all except for three out of 19 prisoners,” she said. “The leaders of the strike refused, and said it’s all or nothing. After the meeting yesterday, we have indications that IPS might have agreed on it.”

IPS spokeswoman Sivan Weizman confirmed the Nafha meeting, saying it was part of an ongoing process of consultations between detainees and a committee examining prison conditions. “There was a meeting at Nafha prison, but it’s not the only one,” she told AFP. “We are holding meetings with the prisoners all the time, talking to them.” —AFP

IOWA CITY: Kate Varnum was at her Iowa home watching her newly adopted infant son when news flashed that Barack Obama had become the first sitting US president to endorse equal marriage rights for same-sex couples. “I said, ‘Oh my gosh, I can’t believe this is happening,’” said Varnum, 38, a plaintiff in a lawsuit that prompted the Iowa Supreme Court to make the state the first in the Midwest to legalize gay marriage in 2009. “We are absolutely thrilled. We still have a long way to go, but this is a huge step for Obama to take.”

Americans reacted with joy, scorn and indifference to Obama’s words in a television interview on Wednesday: “It is important for me personally to go ahead and affirm that same-sex couples should be able to get married.”

An African-American bishop in Philadelphia said Obama’s position will make him think twice about supporting the president’s re-election. A bed-and-breakfast owner marveled at what he described as the country’s progress on gay rights in the past generation. A Florida business owner in a same-sex relationship worried more about the economy and wondered whether Obama’s stance was a gimmick. A Kentucky businessman said the president was injecting himself into an issue that should be left to churches.

All the while, Americans, who polls show are evenly split on the issue, debated the human and societal implications of the statement - and the political fallout for Obama this election year. In Cedar Rapids, Varnum said the president’s words were so important because she and her spouse know what being married means for same-sex couples. They were recently able to adopt their son without the time and cost of having separate adoption hearings, and after

MARYLAND: President Barack Obama waves as he board Air Force One before his departure from Andrews Air Force Base yesterday. Obama is traveling to the West Coast for a series of campaign fundraisers. His endorsement of gay marriage Wednesday sparked a fierce debate as Americans divided on the issue. — AP

Varnum lost her job last year, she and their son received health insurance coverage through her spouse’s Iowabased employer.

Varnum, an Obama supporter, had believed that he would eventually endorse gay marriage but not before the November election. She said the Iowa ruling that bears her family’s name helped pave the way for greater acceptance of gay marriage and set the stage for Obama’s change of heart “Families should be valued no matter where they live.

The tide has turned.” But Bishop Leonard C. Goins, who presides over Chestnut Hill Church, a Pentecostal congregation in Philadelphia, flatly disagreed with Obama’s gay marriage endorsement. “He’s wrong, he’s in error, it’s a mistake and it will hurt him,” Goins said, adding that he’s now in a quandary over whether he’ll con-

tinue to support the president.

Obama’s words fired up others.

Sitting at an outdoor cafe, 26-year-old West Hollywood resident Artie Calhoun said he’s pleased Obama was bridging a generational gap for gay rights. While many young people seem comfortable with gay marriage, Calhoun says, people in older generations, including his father, struggle to understand homosexuality. “If we have a voice in the White House who outwardly supports us, that absolutely helps understanding, 100 percent,” he said. In Richmond, Va, Jeff Wells was delighted at what he called a historic moment.

The bed-and-breakfast owner said he thought Obama’s prior reluctance to speak out on the issue was politically motivated, and he was “pleasantly surprised “that he had the courage to to back same-sex marriage. — AP

International FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2012

PM’s former aide takes stand at UK ethics inquiry LONDON: Britain’s phone hacking scandal came knocking on the door of Downing Street yesterday, as Prime Minister David Cameron’s former communications chief faced a grilling by a media ethics inquiry about his time as editor of a tabloid newspaper that practiced largescale illegal eavesdropping. Andy Coulson has insisted he did not know that News of the World employees were hacking voice mail messages of celebrities, politicians and crime victims in a quest for scoops and circulation.

He left the paper in 2007 after a reporter and a private investigator were jailed for hacking, and became Cameron’s powerful media chief later the same year, helping return the Conservatives to power at the May 2010 national election. He quit 10 Downing St. in January 2011 as the hacking scandal intensified.

Coulson was appearing as Lord Justice Brian Leveson’s inquiry turned its attention to the sometimes too-cozy relationship between Britain’s press and politicians. It has already examined newspapers’ relations with the public and the police.

Politicians of all parties for years sought the support of newspapers - especially Rupert Murdoch’s best-selling tabloids, whose backing was credited with the power to swing elections. Unease has been growing about what favors the newspapers may have received in return.

Russia says it foiled terrorist attacks in Sochi MOSCOW: Russian agents have foiled terror attack plans on the Black Sea resort of Sochi, host of the 2014 Winter Games, and seized a large amount of weapons and ammunition, authorities said yesterday. Russia’s secret service agency FSB discovered ten caches of arms and ammunition on May 4 and May 5 in Georgia’s breakaway republic of Abkhazia, the country’s National Anti-Terrorist Committee said. The region is very close to Sochi. The arms seized included portable surface-to-air missiles, grenade launchers, flame throwers, grenades, rifles and explosives including TNT, it said.

The FSB said it suspects the attacks targeting Sochi were being masterminded by Chechen rebel leader Doku Umarov, whom it alleges has close ties to Georgia’s secret service. The secret service said Umarov coordinated the delivery of the weapons and ammunition to Abkhazia and arranged caches for them. Umarov has previously claimed responsibility for the 2011 deadly bombing in a Moscow airport that killed 35 people. uthorities said the terrorists were planning to smuggle the explosives and arms to Sochi “between 2012 and 2014 in order to use them during the preparations and during the games.” They did not elaborate on how they came to that conclusion but maps were among the items found.

Sochi is less than dozen miles away from Russia’s border with Abkhazia, a tiny region on the Black Sea that declared independence from Georgia in 2008. Few countries other than Russia have supported its independence. Georgia and Russia, both former Soviet republics, had a brief but intense war in 2008 and are still very distrustful of each other.

However, Shota Khizanishvili, chief of staff at Georgia’s Interior Ministry, denied any links between Georgia and Umarov. “I can only say that the National Anti-Terrorist Committee is staffed with people with peculiar fantasies,” Khizanishvili told The Associated Press. “They’re always trying to accuse Georgia and its secret services of everything in any situation and without any grounds. This is a sign of a severe paranoia.” Sochi’s selection as the host of the 2014 Winter Games had sparked fears of possible terrorist activity, although no attacks have occurred so far. The city is located in the same area as Russia’s volatile North Caucasus region, which is plagued with near-daily violence linked to an Islamist insurgency that spread from Chechnya to neighboring areas in the late 1990s. The International Olympic Committee would not comment on the specific case at Sochi but said in a statement that “security is a top priority for the IOC. —AP

Leveson said he would investigate whether the relationship had “got out of hand.”

“It is obvious that politicians will want to gain support and need support for the messages they want to convey,” he said. “But ... is there a risk that there is an inappropriate press influence? “ Coulson’s appearance at the inquiry will be uncomfortable for the Conservative prime minister, whose relationships with senior executives of Murdoch’s News Corp. has embroiled him in the hacking furor. Cameron has close ties to Coulson and to Rebekah Brooks, another ex-news of the World editor and former chief of Murdoch’s British newspapers, who is due to give evidence to the inquiry today.

Both Coulson and Brooks have been arrested and questioned by police about tabloid wrongdoing, though neither has been charged. Speculation is rife about what the pair will reveal about their relations with Cameron and his Conservative Party, whose popularity is already at a low amid economic uncertainty and unrest from grassroots activists. The Murdoch-owned Times of London newspaper reported Wednesday that Brooks has retained supportive text messages from the prime minister, a personal friend, neighbor and occasional riding companion in the upmarket rural enclave of Chipping Norton.

There is an irony in Cameron’s discomfort. It was the prime minister who asked Leveson to lead an inquiry to sift through the fallout of the hacking scandal that has rocked Britain’s establishment and rattled Murdoch’s News Corp. with revelations of widespread journalistic malpractice. The inquiry has heard from reporters, police and public figures in an effort to understand why nothing was done to stop the phone hacking for so long.

Murdoch shut the 168-year-old News of the World in July after evidence emerged that it had intercepted the phone messages of a missing schoolgirl, Milly Dowler, who was later found murdered.

Murdoch has so far paid out millions to settle lawsuits from 60 actors, athletes, politicians and other public figures whose voice mails were hacked. Dozens more lawsuits have been filed. Coulson was due to give evidence after Jonathan Harmsworth, also known as Viscount Rothermere, the aristocratic owner of the Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers. Those papers and their hugely popular website have flourished on celebrity exposes, but no evidence has emerged of phone hacking, and Harmsworth said his conscience is clear. “I feel pretty confident that our newspaper has acted ethically and I am willing to stand up for us,” he said. — AP

No whiff of Arab Spring as Algerians trickle to polls ALGIERS: Algeria held its first polls yesterday since the Arab Spring amid deep voter disaffection, with the ageing ruling party confident of victory and its Islamist allies hoping for a strong showing. As it does for every election, state television-the country’s only channelshowed live footage of voters pouring into a polling station as soon as the doors opened and jostling to be the first to cast their ballot.

Interior Minister Daho Ould Kablia boasted “higher than usual” turnout in Algiers, yet many polling stations in the capital seemed largely deserted yesterday morning and the few voters were mostly elderly.

President Abdelaziz Bouteflika, who fought the French colonial power and was already a minister in Algeria’s first independent government in 1962, has said the polls should mark the rise of a new generation. In Bab El Oued, the beating heart of Algiers, the narrow tree-lined streets winding down to the seafront were unusually silent and the youth’s mood was one of bitter resignation. “I switch on the TV set and I see election coverage on the state channel. It’s like news from a foreign country,” said Mohamed, a 30-year-old employed by a water delivery company. “It’s not Algeria, it’s the land of those people in power.”

In messages exchanged on Facebook in the run-up to the vote, some young Algerians were wishing one another a “happy no-vote day” and enjoying a day off or making plans for an extended weekend at the beach. Algeria has witnessed more self-immolations than Tunisia since 2011 and people cannot understand that a state with foreign exchange reserves of $182 billion does not do more to improve their lives. Social discontent and deadly riots rattled Algeria in January 2011 when revolts were spreading across the region but the regime snuffed out the protests with a sprinkling of political reforms and pay rises.

Yesterday’s vote sees 44 parties - 21 of them newly created-battle for seats in an enlarged parliament of 462 lawmakers, in what Bouteflika has hailed as “the dawn of a new era”. His National Liberation Front (FLN), once the only party, has been steadily losing ground since pluralism was introduced in 1989 and has 136 seats in the outgoing assembly. While it could yet win the most votes, it is expected to seek alliances to govern. The FLN is currently in a coalition with the National Rally for Democracy of Prime Minister Ahmed Ouyahia and the Movement of Society for Peace (MSP), the main legal Islamist party.

The MSP hopes it can cash in on the so-called “Green wave” that swept Islamists to the helm in Tunisia, Morocco and Egypt in the wake of the Arab Spring revolts. But the MSP lacks credibility with the radical Islamist base and is often described as a token party created by the regime to occupy the religious ground. “The so-called Islamist MSP? I abhor these people. It’s all pretense,” said Hamid, a former member of the banned Islamic Salvation Front (FIS) who wears a white knitted skull cap and sports a long, bushy beard.

Many Algerians also believe the country already had its own, failed

Arab Spring when the one-party system ended and the FIS won the first round of the ensuing 1991 election, considered the last free polls to be held in Algeria. The army interrupted the vote, sparking a brutal decade-long civil war that left around 200,000 people dead and scars that are still raw. One party, the Rally for Culture and Democracy, has urged a boycott of the vote and believes the real turnout is unlikely to top 20 percent, a forecast echoed by many Algerians in the street. The interior minister gave a provisional turnout figure of 15.5 percent at 1100 GMT. The FLN’s secretary general, Abdelaziz Belkhadem, said last week he would be satisfied if 45 percent of the more than 21.5 million registered voters in the country cast a ballot. The regime has tried to assuage fears of fraud by inviting some 500 foreign election observers but Algeria is four times the size of France and few voters seemed convinced. —AFP

ALGIERS: A woman casts her ballot in the Parliamentary elections near Algiers yesterday. — AP

International FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2012

Sarkozy may face queries after legal immunity expires PARIS: Outgoing French President Nicolas Sarkozy, who has enjoyed legal immunity for the past five years, could soon be forced to explain himself to magistrates in three separate funding scandals that have dogged his time in power. France’s constitution says a president cannot be required to testify or be investigated or prosecuted until a month after leaving office, a privilege that will end in mid-June for Sarkozy, who hands over to election winner Francois Hollande on May 15.

That frees the way for Sarkozy to be summoned for questioning by judicial investigators looking into murky affairs including a 1990s submarine sale to Pakistan and relations between Sarkozy, his party and France’s wealthiest woman. “It’s written, black on white, that proceedings begin at the expiration of a time limit of one month after the end of his functions,” said Matthieu Bonduelle, president of France’s magistrates’ union. Sarkozy has denied involvement in any of the cases, which have already sparked judicial investigations and embroiled some of his wealthy friends. The allegations of scandal also clouded Sarkozy’s campaign for the 2012 presidential race, which he lost last Sunday to Hollande. One scandal involves Liliane Bettencourt, billionaire heiress of the

L’Oreal cosmetics empire. Investigators want to know if cash withdrawals from her Swiss bank accounts were used to illicitly fund Sarkozy’s 2007 presidential campaign. Bettencourt’s former wealth manager, Patrice de Maistre, is in custody and was expected to be questioned by a judge yesterday over Swiss cash withdrawals of as much as 800,000 euros in the months prior to Sarkozy’s victory. De Maistre will likely also be asked about ties to the treasurer of Sarkozy’s UMP party at the time, former Labour Minister Eric Woerth, who, like de Maistre, is formally under investigation.

“ENORMOUS CASES” In the second case, the so-called “Karachi Affair”, judges are trying to unravel a series of nebulous dealings by middlemen and possible kickbacks linked to the sale of Agosta class submarines by the French government to Pakistan in the 1990s. Sarkozy, who was budget minister and spokesman for presidential candidate Edouard Balladur at the time, has angrily rejected media speculation that he might have known of the payments. Judges want to know if they made their way to the Balladur campaign. “I can’t tell you whether, in each of these cases,

China tightens restrictions on activist’s family BEIJING: Authorities in the hometown of blind activist Chen Guangcheng have notched up restrictions on members of his extended family while he awaits permission in Beijing to travel abroad under an agreement between China and the US. Chen Guangcheng’s brother and sister-in-law have been placed under house arrest, his nephew is in police detention, and another half-dozen relatives face some form of restriction on their movements in their village in Shandong province, according to Chen, his lawyers and a rights group.

Chen’s flight from abusive house arrest in Shandong and into the protection of US diplomats which led to an agreement with Beijing to let him study in the US accompanied by his wife and children - has exposed the impunity of local officials and embarrassed the central government. “I feel that Shandong’s retribution against me has already started,” Chen said in an interview yesterday from a hospital where he is being treated for injuries suffered during his dramatic escape from his guarded farm house. His nephew, Chen Kegui, is believed to have been detained in relation to a clash he had with officials who reportedly broke into his home after discovering that the activist had escaped in late April.

The nephew’s arrest notification allegedly says he is suspected of attempted “intentional homicide,” said Liu Weiguo, a lawyer who volunteered to defend Kegui but has yet to see the notification document himself. Liu said at least one local communist party official was injured in the April 26 fight but no one died. Local Shandong police in the city and county overseeing Chen’s village said they weren’t aware of the situation with Chen’s family. Local communist party publicity officials could not be reached. Police in the activist’s town are searching for the nephew’s wife and have threatened to detain his mother, Chen

Guangcheng said.

The Chinese Human Rights Defenders, a network of activists in China, said around a dozen of Chen’s relatives in the village of Dongshigu are under some form of house arrest, including Chen’s cousin and the cousin’s son. The group says its activists have direct contact with Chen Guangcheng’s extended family members, and that they are vulnerable to retaliation by the local authorities.

“Even when the international spotlight is on Chen, his extended family has been cut off from communicating with the outside world, and his nephew is in police custody,” said Wang Songlian, a researcher with the group.

“What is going to happen once the spotlight shifts? It is extremely worrying. ”A self-taught legal activist, Chen gained recognition among human rights campaigners at China and abroad for crusading for the disabled and fighting against forced abortions in his rural community.—AP

BEIJING: A petitioner protesting about medical issues is detained by police outside the Chaoyang Hospital where blind activist Chen Guangcheng is staying in Beijing yesterday. — AFP

there are enough elements to place Mr. Sarkozy under investigation,” said Bonduelle, who is not involved with any of them. “These are enormous cases and we only know a few pieces of information that are in the press,” he added. The most recent headache for Sarkozy was the publication last month by investigative news website Mediapart of a document it said showed that deposed Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi’s government had sought to fund Sarkozy’s 2007 election campaign.

Sarkozy sued Mediapart, calling the document an “obvious fake” and a judicial investigation has been opened to ascertain the veracity of the document that Libya’s National Transitional Council has called a fake.

Sarkozy’s predecessor, Jacques Chirac, who ruled France from 1995 to 2007, was handed a two-year suspended jail sentence in December after a court found him guilty of misusing public funds for political purposes when he was mayor of Paris. Chirac was questioned within two months of leaving the presidential palace.

President-elect Hollande has pledged to change the rules so that a president, starting with himself, can be questioned while in office on judicial matters that pre-date the presidential mandate. — Reuters

Round 3 for Greek power-sharing talks ‘Things are not easy’: Venizelos ATHENS: Greek power-sharing talks entered a third and final round yesterday, as parties in the crisis-hit country struggled to hammer out a coalition deal after general elections produced no outright winner. The mandate to seek coalition partners passed to Socialist leader Evangelos Venizelos, whose traditionally dominant PASOK party was hammered in Sunday’s poll, pushed into third place with just 13.2 percent of the vote. He is the third party leader to try to find an agreement.

Antonis Samaras, whose conservative New Democracy won the most votes, and runner-up Alexis Tsipras, who heads the Radical Left Coalition, or Syriza, have already tried and failed. A major stumbling block has been Tsipras’ insistence that Greece’s tough austerity program, which is part of its international bailout commitments, be canceled or frozen. Both Samaras and Venizelos argue such a move would be catastrophic for the country, and would lead Greece out of the euro.

Venizelos has three days in which to seek some form of agreement, although since all the party leaders have already met during the previous two rounds, that looks unlikely. “Things are not easy,” he said. “I am not declaring myself optimistic. But I am declaring myself responsible, and dedicated to this aim that I believe serves the national interest.” If his efforts fail, President Karolos Papoulias will convene all the leaders in a lastditch attempt to cobble together a coalition. If that is also unsuccessful, new elections will be called for early June, prolonging the political uncertainty.

Speaking earlier in parliament, Venizelos said he believed an agreement was possible. “If the parties show a minimum level of responsibility, we believe this parliament can produce a government that is viable, responsible and one that can do something better for this country,” he said. Venizelos, however, sharply criticized a proposal by Syriza to impose a moratorium on debt payments. “This would lead the country to formal bankruptcy, cutting it off the international banking system, and world markets, halting imports and exports and lines of credit to businesses. Greece would become Albania of the 1960s.”

Markets, in the doldrums since Greece’s election stalemate, partially rebounded yesterday, with shares on the Athens Stock Exchange up 2.15 percent at

628.64 in early afternoon trading. But new unemployment figures released yesterday showed the jobless rate reaching 21.7 percent in February, after more than 900 people lost their jobs every day on average in the prior 12 months. In return for billions of euros in rescue loans from other European Union countries and the International Monetary Fund, Greece imposed harsh austerity measures that saw salaries and pensions slashed, tens of thousands of people lose their jobs and businesses close down.

Anger at the past two years of austerity and the deep financial crisis saw voters desert the formerly dominant two main parties and flock to smaller parties on the right and left. Syriza saw a strong boost, bringing the party into second place with 16.8 percent. The people have punished PASOK, because they considered it responsible for the crisis,” Venizelos said. But, Venizelos said the election result was a clear message that the Greek people rejected the dominance of any one party. “It is clear from the result that the people want a coalition government, handing no clear mandate to any single party,” Venizelos told his party’s deputies. “The Greek people want to remain in the euro.” — AP

ATHENS: Leader of the Socialists PASOK party Evangelos Venizelos, left, meets President Karolos Papoulias before the President hands him a mandate to form a coalition government in Athens yesterday. — AP

International FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2012

Bodies found at Russian jet wreckage in Indonesia Evacuation attempts to start today

KARACHI: An employee (left) of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) sits in a vehicle outside the office of the (ICRC) in Karachi yesterday. The ICRC suspended most of its aid projects in Pakistan and recalled foreign staff to the capital, following the brutal murder of a British worker. — AFP

Red Cross reviews Pakistan presence after beheading GENEVA: The Red Cross said yesterday that it was reviewing its presence in Pakistan following the murder of a British aid worker found beheaded last month. Health program manager Khalil Rasjed Dale, 60, was abducted in January and his mutilated body was found dumped in a bag on the outskirts of Quetta in the southwestern province of Baluchistan. The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) immediately froze its operations in the area and yesterday said it had decided to put on hold its activities in Peshawar and Karachi as it reviews its presence in Pakistan.

“The recent attack against the ICRC compels us to completely reassess the balance between the humanitarian impact of our activities and the risks faced by our staff,” said Jacques de Maio, head of operations for South Asia. The organization said it was “painfully aware” of the effect of its decision on the wounded, sick and

disabled. The ICRC has worked in Pakistan since 1947, providing health care and other help for victims of violence and natural disasters. “We are currently analyzing the situation and the environment with a view to setting out a clear and sustainable way forward,” said Paul Castella, head of the ICRC delegation in Pakistan. “In the coming weeks, the ICRC will announce a decision on its future presence and set-up in Pakistan.”

Dale, a British Muslim who had been managing a health program in Quetta for almost a year, was abducted in the city on January 5 by eight masked gunmen, who forced him from his car at gunpoint as he came home from work. A source close to the case said his captors had demanded a ransom of $30 million. A note claiming to be from militant group Tehreek-eTaliban Pakistan was found with his body on April 29, a local police official told AFP. — AFP

Indian diplomat’s daughter sues NY, claims false arrest NEW YORK: The teenage daughter of an Indian diplomat who says she was wrongfully arrested and falsely accused of sending threatening emails to two of her New York City teachers has sued the city for $1.5 million, claiming civil rights violations. Krittika Biswas, the daughter of the vice-consul in the Consulate General of India in New York, was arrested and jailed for a night last year after gym and calculus teachers at her high school accused her of sending lewd and violent emails.

The next day, Biswas was suspended from John Bowne High School in the New York borough of Queens and compelled to attend classes at “an alternate location without an applicable enriched academic program, and more akin to ‘reform school,’” according to the lawsuit. Queens District Attorney Richard Brown dropped all charges against Biswas, who was 18 at the time, and ordered the records from the case sealed. A spokeswoman for Brown declined to comment because the case is sealed. Biswas has denied sending the messages and her lawyer

described the case as one of “mistaken identity.”

A representative at the high school declined to comment, and one of the teachers involved in the incident, Jamie Kim-Ross, could not be reached for comment. Biswas claimed diplomatic immunity. But the US State Department said she “does not enjoy immunity from arrest or from criminal or civil jurisdiction under international law.” “We sympathize with Ms. Biswas and her family.

We have no comment on this ongoing litigation,” State Department spokeswoman Nicole Thompson said in a statement. Biswas returned to India, where she holds citizenship, and has continued her studies there.

The lawsuit names Kim-Ross, as well as the principal at John Bowne High School, the city Department of Education, Police Commissioner Ray Kelly and others. The second teacher was not identified by name. A spokeswoman from the city’s law department declined to comment on the case because she said the city had not yet been served with the lawsuit. — Reuters

CIDAHU: Rescuers discovered the shattered wreckage of a new Russian-made passenger plane yesterday that smashed into the side of an Indonesian volcano during a flight to impress potential buyers. All 45 people on board were feared dead. Due to the remoteness of the crash site and the steep, rugged terrain, the bodies will be placed in nets and lifted by ropes to a hovering chopper, national search and rescue agency spokesman Gagah Prakoso said. Heavy mist was hampering visibility, however, forcing the postponement of evacuations until today. “So far we haven’t found any survivors, but we are still searching,” he said as teams of soldiers, police and volunteers continued to troop up the slopes.

The Sukhoi Superjet-100 - Russia’s first new model of passenger jet since the fall of the Soviet Union two decades ago - was in Indonesia as part of a six-nation tour of Asia aimed at drumming up new customers. It was carrying dozens of representatives from local airlines and journalists on what was supposed to be a quick, 50minute demonstration flight Wednesday. Some excited passengers snapped pictures of themselves smiling and waving in front of the twinengine jet before lifting off, then quickly posting them as profile pictures on Facebook and Twitter.

Just 21 minutes after takeoff from a Jakarta airfield, however, the Russian pilot and co-pilot asked for permission to drop from 10,000 feet to 6,000 feet (3,000 meters to 1,800 meters), said Daryatmo, chief of the national search and rescue agency. They gave no explanation, disappearing from the radar immediately afterward. It was not clear why the crew asked to shift course, he said, especially when they were so close to the 7,000-foot (2,200-meter) volcano, or if they got an OK. Communication tapes will be reviewed as part of the investigation. It’s unlikely they will be released to the public any time soon.

Prakoso said the plane smashed into the jagged ridge on top of Mount Salak, a long-dormant volcano at speeds of 480 miles per hour (800 kilometers per hour). It exploded and sent debris tumbling down the side of the mountain, leaving a giant earthy gash along the slope as trees in its path were stripped bare. Family members, many of whom spent a long, sleepless night at the airport, broke down in tears on hearing

news that the wreckage had been spotted, first by helicopter, then by land search-and-rescue teams. Others stared blankly ahead in disbelief.

The Superjet - developed by the civil aircraft division of Sukhoi with the co-operation of Western partners - has been widely considered Russia’s chance to regain a foothold in the international passenger plane market. The country’s aerospace industry was badly undermined in the economic turmoil following the 1991 collapse of the Soviet Union. The 75-to-95-seater plane has been touted as a challenger to similar-sized aircrafts from Canada’s Bombardier Inc. and Brazil’s Embraer SA. Potential buyers will scrutinize the crash investigation for signs of flaws in the aircraft.

“If it’s a technical fault ... then obviously that will be very serious for them,” said Tom Ballantyne, a Sydney-based aviation expert. “But if it’s pilot error or the fault of air traffic control, it won’t be quite so bad because they’ll be able to say, ‘Well, it’s not the airplane’.” The Superjet made its inaugural commercial flight last year. “It is their big hope that they will somehow get into the jet aircraft passenger market in a bigger way than they have,” Ballantyne said. “We all know that the Russians have had a dreadful record in the past with their aircraft, so this was vitally important to their industry.”

With a relatively low price tag of around $35 million, the plane has garnered around 170 orders. And Indonesia, the world’s fourth most populous nation with a fast-growing middle class, is already one of the biggest customers.

Kartika Airlines, Sky Aviation and Queen Air among dozens of airlines to have popped up in Indonesia in the last decade to meet the growing demand for cheap air travel - had ordered a total of at least 48.

All but 10 of the 45 people on board the plane Wednesday were potential buyers and journalists, said Sunaryo from PT Trimarga Rekatama, the company that helped organize the event. The others were Russians, all from Sukhoi companies, an American consultant with a local airline and a Frenchman with aircraft engine-maker Snecma. Associated Press writers Ali Kotarumalos and Niniek Karmini in Jakarta and Margie Mason in Hanoi contributed to this report. — AP

JAKARTA: Six year old Olivia cries as she and her family await information about her missing Indonesian father Steve Kamagi, one of the passengers of the ill fated Russian Sukhoi Superjet 100 at Halim Perdanakusuma airport in Jakarta yesterday. — AFP

International FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2012

House panel OKs missile defense site on East Coast Democrats criticize $5 billion project

WILSON: Jasmine Beach-Ferrara, executive director with the Campaign for Southern Equality, rallies supporters of the ‘WE DO’ campaign outside the Wilson County Register of Deeds office. — AP

For Obama, potential good news in Indiana, less so in N Carolina WASHINGTON: For Democratic President Barack Obama, Republicanleaning Indiana suddenly might be a little more winnable in the Nov 6 election. But North Carolina, a politically divided state where Obama will be in a close battle with Republican Mitt Romney, may have just gotten a little tougher for the president. Those were among the themes to emerge from uprisings among conservative voters in each state on Tuesday.

Indiana Republicans ousted their longtime senator, Richard Lugar, and North Carolina voters approved a ban on same-sex marriage, highlighting a politically touchy subject on which Obama clarified his views on Wednesday by saying for the first time he supported such unions.

In pushing aside Lugar, the longest-serving Republican in the US Senate at 35 years, Indiana Republicans placed their bets on conservative Tea Party candidate Richard Mourdock in the November race against Democrat Joe Donnelly. The result will almost certainly make Indiana’s Senate race one of the marquee contests in November - and is potentially good news for Obama. Without Lugar on the ballot, Democrats are certain to give more attention - and money - to Donnelly’s cause while trying to prevent Mourdock from adding to the growing ranks of compromiseresistant conservatives in the Senate, which Democrats are seeking to hold in the November election.

Analysts said more ads by Democrats, along with Lugar’s absence from the ballot, could help Obama in Indiana, which he won over Republican John McCain in the 2008 election but where he has trailed Romney, the presumptive Republican nominee, in recent polls.

TROUBLE FOR OBAMA? In the swing state of North Carolina, the rejection of gay marriages put a focus on Obama’s challenge in putting together the type of voting coalition he used in defeating McCain there four years ago. Before Wednesday, Obama tried to walk a fine line on the question of same-sex marriage, saying gay and lesbian couples should have the same rights as married straight couples, although he opposed same-sex marriages. But on Wednesday, three days after Vice President Joe Biden said on NBC’s “Meet the Press” that he supported legalizing same-sex marriages, Obama said in an interview with ABC that he too believed they should be legal.

Obama won North Carolina in 2008 with a huge turnout in urban areas and among black voters. He also did well among white suburban voters, in part because many of them liked his economic pitch more than they disliked his support for gay rights, according to exit polling. Tuesday’s vote revealed a motivated conservative electorate in North Carolina, one of 10 politically divided states likely to decide the presidential election, and raised questions about whether Obama can count on the same formula this November. “It’s bad for Obama,” said Merle Black, a political science professor at Emory University in Atlanta. “It shows a huge vulnerability on this kind of an issue.” Tuesday’s vote led some pro-gay rights groups to circulate petitions urging Democrats to move their national convention from Charlotte. Democratic officials dismissed that notion and said the convention - where Obama will formally be nominated for a second term - would go on as scheduled in Charlotte in early September.—Reuters

WASHINGTON: The House Armed Services Committee on Wednesday backed construction of a missile defense site on the East Coast, rejecting Pentagon arguments that the facility is unnecessary and Democratic complaints that the nearly $5 billion project amounts to wasteful spending in a time of tight budgets.

In rancorous, lengthy debate, Republicans insisted that the site is necessary in the event that Iran or North Korea develop an intercontinental ballistic missile capable of attacking the East Coast. Democrats countered that throwing billions at a missile defense system plagued by failures made no sense, especially when the threat from the two nations was highly uncertain and many in Washington are demanding fiscal discipline.

This “would be spending up to $5 billion in the next three years on a missile defense system that doesn’t work,” said Rep. John Garamendi, D-Calif., who offered an amendment to eliminate the project from the GOP-backed bill.

The chief proponent of constructing the site, Rep. Michael Turner, R-Ohio, said, “We need to proceed with missile defense whether this president wants to or not.” On a largely party-line vote, the panel rejected Garamendi’s effort, 33-28.

The committee fleshed out a blueprint for next year that calls for a base defense budget of $554 billion, including nuclear weapons spending, plus $88 billion for the war in Afghanistan and counterterrorism efforts. That compares with the administration’s proposal of $551 billion, plus $88 billion. The all-day session was expected to stretch into the early morning yesterday as the committee dealt with spending on weapons, troops and various policy issues such as the cost of health care for military retirees.

Since the mid-1980s, the Pentagon has spent nearly $150 billion on missile defense programs and envisions another $44 billion over the next five years. But it is not looking to construct a facility on the East Coast. Gen. Charles Jacoby, the head of US Northern Command and North American Aerospace Defense Command, told Congress earlier this year, “Today’s threats do not require an East Coast missile field, and we do not have plans to do so.”

The progress of Iranian and North Korean programs remains unclear. The United States and its allies accuse Iran of using its nuclear program to develop atomic weapons.

Iran insists it is producing nuclear energy. North Korea suffered a failed rocket launch last month when its Unha-3 rocket broke apart, raising questions about the immediate threat to the United States from a North Korean long-range missile. Lt Gen Patrick J O’Reilly, the head of the US missile defense program, told Congress recently that North Korea lacks the testing for a capable system and has made little progress in its spaceflight program.

Nevertheless, the committee envisions construction of the site by the end of 2015 with the Pentagon deciding on a possible location. The bill includes $100 million to study three potential sites. “I’m frustrated that they (Republican) have directed hundreds of millions of dollars to an unrequired missile defense system that our own military leaders have clearly stated they do not want and cannot even capitalize on at this time, even as Republicans claim the need for fiscal restraint,” said Rep. Loretta Sanchez, D-Calif., in a statement.

Republicans injected presidential politics into the debate, questioning President Barack Obama’s commitment to missile defense. They contended that Obama had cut a secret deal with Russia on missile defense when an open microphone in March caught him telling then Russian President Dmitry Medvedev that he would have more room to negotiate after the November election. Rep. Adam Smith, D-Wash., scoffed at the “political nonsense” of Republicans’ “automatically translating a benign comment on flexibility into a secret deal.”

In a pre-emptive move, the committee backed an amendment by Rep. Doug Lamborn, R-Colo., prohibiting any spending on implementing an international agreement on activities in space unless the pact has been ratified by the Senate or authorized by law. The idea of another round of domestic base closings lost by a 44-18 vote.

Lawmakers have challenged the savings from previous

closings. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta had proposed two rounds, but there’s no enthusiasm in Congress for that during an election year.

The committee chairman, Rep. Howard “Buck” McKeon, R-Calif., said the legislation represents a “modest” increase over the administration’s proposal and “actively rebuilds the military within the constrained resources available to us.” Smith said he was pleased that the bill includes new conditions on providing aid to Pakistan. “It is imperative that Pakistan support our counterterrorism efforts,” he said.

Election-year maneuvering over the size of the Pentagon budget is unfolding against a backdrop of worries by Republicans and Democrats that the nation’s defenses will suffer if lawmakers cannot stave off more than $500 billion in mandatory military spending cuts scheduled to begin taking effect next year.

The military service chiefs, including the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Army Gen. Martin Dempsey, have said they support the Obama plan, but some Republicans have suggested they harbor misgivings. The administration already is selectively cutting $487 billion from the Pentagon budget over 10 years, dictated by the agreement last year between congressional Republicans and Obama on a deficit-cutting plan. The Pentagon has said that approach is prudent in light of shrinking combat commitments abroad and concerns about budget deficits at home.

Panetta has stressed his concern about Congress failing to find a way around the $500 billion in mandatory automatic cuts to the defense budget over 10 years, starting in January, which he said would require a “meat-ax approach” to savings. The House bill challenges the administration’s proposal on several important fronts. One provision would block planned increases in health care fees for certain military retirees. The administration argues that the increases are overdue and the savings needed to preserve spending elsewhere.

The bill also would prohibit the Air Force from retiring certain Air National Guard planes, as called for in the administration’s plan. Numerous governors have pushed back hard against the administration’s proposed aircraft cuts and reassignments. — AP

ERIE: In this image provided by the Missile Defense Agency a Standard Missile — 3 is fired from the USS Lake Erie yesterday in the mid Pacific Ocean. — AP

Business FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2012

Merkel stresses need for austerity in Europe

Sony reports record $5.7bn full-year loss PAGE 20

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SHANGHAI: Visitors look at pearl necklaces during the Jewelry Shanghai, one of the top jewelry sector trade shows in China yesterday. China said that its trade surplus widened in April, but analysts warned weaker-than-expected import and export figures added further to doubts about the world’s second biggest economy. — AFP

US trade deficit widens sharply New jobless claims drop marginally WASHINGTON: The US trade deficit rose in March at the fastest rate in 10 months. A rise in consumer goods lifted imports to a record level, outpacing a solid gain in US exports.

The Commerce Department said yesterday that the trade gap widened to $51.8 billion in March, up from $45.4 billion in February. Imports rose 5.2 percent to a record $238.6 billion, reflecting more foreign oil, autos, cell phones and clothes. Exports increased nearly 3 percent to $186.8 billion. Sales to Europe reached an alltime high despite the region’s debt crisis.

Economists caution that export growth, a bright spot for the US economy, could slow in coming months if more European countries fall into recession. The 14 percent rise in the US trade deficit from February to March was the sharpest one-month increase since a 16 percent jump last May. For the year, the trade deficit is running at an annual rate of nearly $600 billion.

That’s about 7 percent more than last year’s gap.

New claims for US unemployment benefits fell for the second week running last week, but not as much as expected as the troubled labor mar-

ket slowly recovers, official data showed yesterday. New jobless claims totaled 367,000 in the week ending May 5, down from an upwardly revised 368,000 the previous week, the Labor Department said. Analysts had estimated

365,000 claims were filed.

Jobless claims-an indicator of the pace of layoffs-have been trending lower in recent months as the economy continues modest growth. The four-week moving average of claims fell last

Air India halts bookings to West MUMBAI: National carrier Air India yesterday suspended passenger bookings for flights to the United States, Europe and Canada because of a strike by pilots. The airline, which was already losing nearly $2 million a day, has been forced to cancel a number of international flights since its pilots began a wildcat strike by reporting in sick on Monday night.

“We are suspending booking of tickets for west-bound flights till May 15,” Air India spokesman K. Swaminathan told AFP. “There is no use of taking bookings if flights may not operate.”

The pilots are protesting against a decision to train former Indian Airlines pilots, who moved to

Air India when the two firms merged in 2007, to fly new Boeing 787 Dreamliners.

The strikers say the plan threatens their career prospects. Air India has sacked 45 of the hundreds of striking pilots since Monday. The spokesman said they were fired because “their actions were illegal”. The airline has also refused to recognize the pilots’ union.

The strike comes at a time when Air India is facing mounting problems due to rising fuel prices, competition from low-cost rivals and a record of labor disputes. The pilots ruled out halting their protest even as the Delhi High Court this week ordered them to stop their “illegal strike”. —AFP

week by 5,250, to 379,000. Last Friday the Labor Department reported the unemployment rate fell to 8.1 percent in April as hundreds of thousands dropped out of the labor force, and only 115,000 jobs were created, the lowest number in six months. A rising trade deficit slows a nation’s growth. It means the country is spending more on foreign-made products than it is taking in from sales of US-made goods. A wider deficit in March could lead the government to lower its estimate for growth in the January-March quarter. Last month, the government estimated that the economy grew at an annual rate of 2.2 percent rate in the first three months of the year, down from 3 percent growth in the previous quarter.

The government will issue its second of three estimates for first-quarter growth on May 31.

Some economists say the March trade gap will result in a downward revision in the estimated 2.2 percent annual growth rate. Others say the government had anticipated a wider deficit and think the trade report will have little effect on the updated estimate. — Agencies

Business FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2012

Oil plentiful, supply above market needs, says OPEC LONDON: OPEC is pumping enough oil to keep world markets more than satisfied and oil prices have been high largely due to geopolitical risk, the oil producing group said yesterday.

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) said its own production had risen in April to 31.62 million barrels per day (bpd) as Iraq ramped up and Libya’s oil industry recovered. And the increased flows have helped push oil down $15 from a March high of $128 a barrel. “Higher OPEC crude oil production underscores the current trend of plentiful supply in excess of market requirements,” OPEC said in its monthly Oil Market Report. Secondary sources now say that OPEC pumped 1.62 million bpd above its supply target, and demand for its own oil, in April.

The extra OPEC oil is filling gaps caused by an unusually large number of supply outages globally. Supply breaks were running at nearly 1.3 million bpd as of early April.

It has also offset a decline in exports from Iran, which is facing stiffening western sanctions over its disputed nuclear energy program.

Production figures reported directly

by OPEC members to its Vienna headquarters show even higher rates. The “direct communication” figures for March put OPEC output at 32.4 million bpd versus the 31.3 million bpd assessed by secondary sources.

Output levels directly reported by OPEC members rose even more in April.

Lead producer Saudi Arabia said it pumped 10.1 million bpd in April, up

179,000 bpd from March.

And Iran told OPEC its output in April was 3.76 million bpd, steady since February, effectively denying that supply has been impacted by sanctions against Tehran. OPEC in December set its official supply target at 30 million bpd, settling an argument that broke out in 2011 after Iran and other members opposed a Saudi-led plan to raise the production ceiling. Supply from producers outside OPEC is also on the rise, according to the report, with non-OPEC supply growth seen at 640,000 bpd this year, up 50,000 bpd on the previous forecast. “It is important to note the general consensus among various sources regarding the good performance of non-OPEC supply this year, implying more barrels will be available in the market,” said the group

which pumps more than a third of the world’s oil.

OPEC also said the decline in world oil demand growth had stopped, at least for the short-term, as the U.S. economy stabilizes and non-OPEC demand continues to grow. It said world oil demand would grow by 900,000 bpd in 2012, up 40,000 bpd from its previous assessment in April. “Given the stabilization of the US economy and the shutdown of the Japanese nuclear power plants, world demand has - at least, for the short term stopped its decline and has begun to show growth,” said OPEC. The US Energy Information Administration also raised its 2012 world oil demand growth forecast this week. The agency sees demand growth at 960,000 bpd - up 70,000 bpd from its previous estimate. — Reuters

Merkel stresses need for austerity in Europe ‘Debt reduction, growth two pillars’

HYDERABAD: An Indian worker pushes a cylinder of LPG cooking gas during offloading at a warehouse on the outskirts of Hyderabad. India must get ready to hike fuel prices in line with the upward trend in global commodity markets or risk a ballooning fiscal deficit, the country’s top economic adviser said yesterday. — AFP

Emirates airline group annual profit dives DUBAI: Dubai’s Emirates airline group posted a 61-percent slump in net profit in the year to March 31 due to unprecedented economic pressures and record high fuel prices, the company said yesterday.

Total profits for Emirates Group, including all of its subsidiaries, dropped to 2.3 billion dirhams ($629 million) in 20112012 from 5.9 billion dirhams ($1.6 billion) for the previous year, the company said. Net profits for the airline alone stood at 1.5 billion dirhams ($409 million), compared with 5.4 billion dirhams ($1.5 billion) for the same period in the year before.

“Achieving our 24th consecutive year of profit and maintaining an upward growth trajectory is an achievement that belies the industry norm,” said chairman and chief executive Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al-Maktoum. Despite a difficult operating environment, Emirates Group said it continued to invest in and expand on its employee base, increasing its overall staff count by more than 10 percent. The company also attributed part of the drop in profits to massive new investments.

“Throughout the 2011-12 financial year the Group has collectively invested close to 14 billion dirhams ($3.8 billion) in new products. This investment has garnered new customers and increased our international presence,” Sheikh Ahmed said.

During the year, Emirates acquired a staggering 22 new aircraft, its highest in any single year, funded by a wide variety of financing structures, it said. Emirates airlines, considered the world’s fastest growing carrier, has a fleet of 162 wide-bodied aircraft serving 115 destinations in 67 countries. In the past few years, it has made orders worth tens of billions of dollars including around 90 Boeing 777 planes, 73 Airbus A380 superjumbos, as well as 70 Airbus A350s. With an increased fleet, Emirates further invested in its network by adding 11 new destinations and expanding capacity to 34 cities, a record for the airline. —AFP

BERLIN: German Chancellor Angela Merkel gave little ground to those hoping she would temper her demands for austerity, telling the country’s Parliament yesterday that the only way Europe can recover from its debt crisis is if it perseveres with structural reforms alongside tough measures to bring borrowing levels down.

Merkel dismissed calls to abandon or scale back austerity measures, which involve lower government spending and higher taxes, within the European Union.

She insisted that the combination of debt reduction and growth were the “two pillars” of the strategy needed to bring the trade bloc out of the crisis.

“Growth through structural reform is sensible, important and necessary,” she told Parliament. “Growth through debt would throw us back to the beginning of the crisis, and that’s why we haven’t done it and won’t do it.”

Debate over the future of European austerity measures has flared up in recent days following elections in France and Greece. Socialist candidate Francois Hollande won France’s presidential elections on Sunday after campaigning for a greater emphasis on growth in Europe’s crisis management. Meanwhile, most people voted for anti-austerity parties in Sunday elections in Greece, stoking fears that the country would not meet the commitments it has made in return for bailout money.

Merkel said reducing debt and strengthening competitiveness needed to go hand in hand. “They aren’t contradictory, they belong together,” she said. Merkel has repeatedly cautioned against departing from the course of austerity, frustrating some European leaders whose voters have taken to the streets and the ballot boxes to oppose government spending cuts. “There is no golden path or supposed miracle cure,” said Merkel, dismissing once again suggestions that Germany might back so-called euro bonds issued jointly by the 17 nations that share the common currency. Hollande, the French presidentelect, has called for such bonds to finance infrastructure projects and thereby stimu-

BERLIN: German Chancellor Angela Merkel gestures during her speech at the German federal parliament Bundestag in Berlin. — AFP late the European economy.

She also urged patience, saying that “overcoming the crisis is a long, arduous process that will only succeed if we start at the root of the crisis, and that’s the horrendous indebtedness and lack of competitiveness of some euro countries.”

Merkel, who will be taking part in the G-8 meeting at Camp David May 18-19, also took a gentle jab at rich countries outside Europe, such as the United States, by insisting that reining in government spending was the only way to achieve sustainable growth. — AP

TAQA Q1 net profit soars on assets sale ABU DHABI: Abu Dhabi National Energy Co (TAQA), a state-owned oil explorer and power supplier, said quarterly net profit more than tripled, helped by a gain selling non-core Canadian assets.

TAQA, 75-percent owned by the government of Abu Dhabi, said on Thursday it made a first-quarter profit of 534 million dirhams ($145 million), including 378 million from the Canadian disposals. Revenue rose five percent to 5.7 billion dirhams.

The results included a one-off gain of 92 million dirhams from a change in fair value

of its Otter field acquisition in the North Sea. TAQA plans to seal a deal on acquiring 50 percent of a power plant in the Kurdish region of Iraq in the second quarter, chief executive Carl Sheldon said on a conference call. Last month, TAQA said it agreed to take a stake in a 1,000 megawatts power plant in a joint venture with Mass Global Investments Company.

TAQA, which plans to spend about $2.2 billion in capital expenditure this year, has adequate cash and credit lines to meet its funding requirements this year. —Reuters

Business FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2012

Islamic repo agreements struggle for traction DUBAI: Islamic repurchase agreements may struggle to gain wide acceptance as a tool for financial institutions because the industry lacks clear rules governing their use, participants at a major industry conference told Reuters. Liquidity management products such as Islamic repos were one of the main themes at the annual meeting of the Bahrain-based Accounting and Auditing Organization for Islamic Financial Institutions (AAOIFI) in Manama this week.

The shortage of such instruments is becoming increasingly problematic for Islamic finance as the industry grows, bankers and analysts said. By allowing investors to lend out assets for short periods, Islamic repos could help to solve the problem by giving banks a way to balance their short-term liquidity flows with demand.

So many in the industry are keen for AAOIFI, one of the world’s top standard-setting bodies in Islamic finance, to set guidelines for how repos should be

structured and used. “Some banks are flush with deposits and they need to manage this liquidity,” Srinivasan Gopalakrishnan, assistant vice president at Bahrain-based Al Salam Bank, told Reuters. “A lot of participants want AAOIFI to be more active, and for it to move faster.”

Khaled Al Fakih, AAOIFI’s secretary general, told Reuters before the meeting: “We would like to see insightful debate on repo and hedging that can help us develop standards that can benefit the industry.”

But creating instruments that are widely recognized as obeying Islamic principles is proving particularly difficult in the case of repos, and participants at this week’s meeting said there was no conclusive outcome from the discussions.

Five possible methods to create an Islamic repo were outlined in a speech by Yousef Abdullah Al Shubaily, sharia scholar at Dubai-based Minhaj Advisory, but there was no consensus on which

should be favored.

“There was not much depth” in discussions, said Zarizan Ibrahim, sharia manager at Malaysia’s CIMB. “More research should be done.”

Another delegate said: “They discussed the elements and functions in general...but there were no recommendations.” In conventional repos, an investor borrows an asset for a predetermined period during which he receives income from it. The very phrase “Islamic repo” is controversial among some scholars who fear the instruments might simply replicate conventional financial products without addressing a real economic need.

“Conceptually the benchmark is conventional financial products, and this fundamentally presents an issue for scholars,” said Paul McViety, legal director at law firm DLA Piper.

Religious principles look likely to constrain the use of Islamic repos. Calculating margin calls on

repos may be problematic since it can be seen as using an implicit interest rate. Trading the assets behind repos with third parties could be disallowed by some scholars because of Islam’s ban on pure monetary speculation; this makes Islamic repos less attractive economically.

Another issue is the practice of netting, which allows firms to effectively cancel positions within their trading books by setting them off against each other. Netting is not recognised by regulators in many Gulf countries where Islamic repos might be conducted, according to a report by Bahrain-based International Islamic Financial Market.

Zainal Abidin Mohamed, head of business banking at Malaysia-based AmIslamic Bank, said such issues needed to be addressed head-on.

“If we want to make Islamic banking more international, we need more time to discuss these,” he said on the sidelines of the conference. — Reuters

Business FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2012

French output hit as Hollande takes reins New president inherits a flagging economy

BEIJING: A ground breaking ceremony for a new hotel in Beijing, beside the city’s tallest building, the China World Tower 3. China will pursue a more “healthy,” slower growth rate under its next leadership, as other Asian countries will likely benefit from China’s recent slower growth from its previous “neck-breaking” speed, rather than Europe or the United States, the vice chairman of Beijing’s sovereign investment fund Gao Xiqing recently said. — AFP

China trade surplus widens in April BEIJING: China said yesterday its trade surplus widened in April as import growth slowed, casting doubts over the capacity of the world’s second biggest economy to rebound quickly. The country recorded a better-than-expected surplus of $18.42 billion in April, the customs agency said. Anaemic growth in imports covered weak exports, which continue to be hit by difficulties in Europe, China’s biggest market. Imports edged up just 0.3 percent year on year to $144.83 billion in April, raising questions about the government’s ability to boost domestic demand as it tries to rebalance the economy away from export dependence.

Growth in shipments abroad rose just 4.9 percent to $163.25 billion. “The export story is clear. We know the euro-zone crisis is dragging down exports. We had just not anticipated by how much,” said Alistair Thornton, economist for IHS Global Insight.

“Imports are much more worrying. They point to a real weakness in the domestic economy.” A survey of economists by Dow Jones Newswires had forecast imports to rise 10 percent and exports to increase 8.5 percent. Exports to the European Union grew a mere 0.3 percent from January to April, customs data showed, reflecting the recent string of poor data indicating a contraction in manufacturing activity in China’s workshops and factories.

Yesterday’s figures add to concern about the state of the Asian giant, which plays a huge role in the growth of the world economy. While April’s trade surplus is the second in a row, the country in February posted a huge deficit of $31.48 billion-the largest in more than a decade-owing to falling overseas demand. “Today’s trade data lent further to support our view that China’s economic growth has not bottomed out yet and that the authorities should provide more easing to stabilize momentum,” Wei Yao, economist with Societe Generale said. China’s economy grew just 8.1 percent in the first quarter, hit by weak demand at home and abroad, despite a string of government measures to help struggling small businesses and support the export sector.

The central bank in February cut the amount of cash banks must hold in reserve for the second time in three months as policymakers moved to increase lending and boost domestic consumption. Analysts expect more measures following the release of yesterday’s data. The economy grew 9.2 percent last year and 10.4 percent in 2010, but the government in March set a growth target of 7.5 percent for this year, signalling markedly lower expectation.

Economists do not expect growth to strengthen until the second half of the year, when easing measures are expected kick in and growth to pick up in Europe and the United States.

“Looking forward, there will be easing on lending as well as more structural measures, such tax cuts and more investment in social housing,” said HSBC economist Qu Hongbin. The trade data should further ease tensions with the United States, which persistently argues that Beijing keeps its currency artificially low to subsidize its exports. Last week, US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, in Beijing for annual economic talks between the two countries, called for China to continue to let its currency appreciate further. China’s trade surplus narrowed in 2011 to $155.14 billion and analysts expect it to continue to shrink this year as both exports and imports remain weak.

Markets closed flat yesterday as investors remained cautious ahead of more economic data to be released today. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index, which covers both A and B shares, edged up 1.64 points to 2,410.23. — AFP

PARIS: French industrial output fell more sharply than expected in March, adding to signs that Francois Hollande will inherit a flagging economy when he takes over the country’s presidency next week.

Statistics agency INSEE said industrial output fell almost twice as fast as predicted in March, sinking 0.9 percent compared with a Reuters forecast for a decline of 0.5 percent. The size of the drop was attributable to temporary factors, with energy consumption plunging 14.2 percent on the month after the end of February’s cold snap.

However, March’s decline in industrial output contributed to an overall 0.1 percent fall over the first three months of the year. Following on from a sharp drop in consumer spending in the same month, and contrasting with a surprise jump in German industrial output over the same period, the data painted a mixed picture of the euro-zone’s second largest economy for the start of 2012.

“We are expecting a very light con-

traction in the economy in the first quarter - of the order of 0.1 to 0.2 percent,” said Helene Baudchon, economist at BNP Paribas.

French president-elect Francois Hollande

“You can see the glass as half full, that France is holding up given the weak international situation, or you can see it half empty, that the total absence of progress over a year is not good,” she added.

After sweeping to victory in a closely fought election on Sunday, the Socialist Hollande will face his first challenge on May 15 as his inauguration as president coincides with the release of first quarter growth data for the French economy.

The figure is widely expected to show gross domestic product declined over the period or at best remained flat, although many believe the euro-zone’s second largest economy should narrowly avoid tipping into recession, defined as two consecutive quarters of negative growth.

French GDP grew 0.4 percent in the final quarter of last year, and the Bank of France said yesterday it expected the economy to remain flat in the second quarter of this year. — Reuters

HSBC plans to sell South American businesses HONG KONG: HSBC is in talks to sell assets in several South American countries, the banking giant said yesterday, as part of its plans to streamline global operations to cut costs.

Europe’s biggest bank said in a statement to the Hong Kong stock exchange, where it is listed, that it “is in discussions regarding the possible sale of its operations in Colombia, Peru, Uruguay and Paraguay”.

“HSBC will make a further announcement if or when appropriate,” the brief statement said, without elaborating on the talks. HSBC chief executive Stuart Gulliver last year announced plans to focus on high-growth emerging markets and save up to $3.5 billion through asset sales and a war on costs, including axing 30,000 jobs globally by 2013.

HSBC has already disposed of its United States credit card

and retail services business, as well as the 195-branch network primarily in upstate New York. In March, it sold its general insurance businesses in Hong Kong, Singapore, Argentina and Mexico for around $914 million. It has also sold its Canadian retail brokerage and exited retail banking in Russia, Chile and Poland.

HSBC announced Tuesday that its underlying pre-tax profits rose 25 percent to $6.8 billion in the first quarter, helped by emerging markets growth and higher income at its investment banking division.

“We have had a good start to the year,” Gulliver has said.

HSBC-which unlike many of its rivals survived the 2008 crisis without state aid-was founded in Hong Kong and Shanghai in 1865, although it remains headquartered in London. — AFP

Old Mutual sales get emerging market boost LONDON: Anglo-South African insurer Old Mutual reported better-than-expected quarterly sales, as growth in emerging markets partly offset a downturn in economically troubled Europe.

The insurer, asset manager and bank, which operates in 30 countries, had life insurance sales of 269 million pounds ($433 million) in the three months to March, down 10 percent and compared with a forecast for 262 million in a company poll.

Weaker investor confidence in Europe contributed towards a 21 percent sales slump at Old Mutual’s wealth management arm, the insurer said, partly offset by a 10 percent increase in emerging markets, led by South Africa, its historic home. Heavily indebted European countries have been slashing spending in an effort to retain creditors’ confidence, weighing on economic growth across the continent and deterring consumers from saving and investing. Old Mutual, which

has since 2009 been selling assets to cut debt and boost its share price, said a planned disposal of its majority stake in

South African lender Nedbank remained hampered by a depressed global banking sector. —Reuters

MILAN: A woman picks money in a fountain in Milan yesterday. The deep cuts in government spending have worsened the situation in many European countries, leading them into deeper economic distress and increasing already high unemployment. — AP

Business FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2012

Hitachi looks to future after wobbly year TOKYO: Japanese high-tech firm Hitachi said yesterday its operating profit fell in the year to March due to the earthquake and tsunami disaster at home and Thai floods, but it expected growth this year.

Hitachi said its group operating profit fell 7.3 percent from a year earlier to 412.28 billion yen ($5.17 billion) in the last fiscal year, blaming lower revenue from digital devices, the March 2011 disaster and floods in Thailand. Profits also took a beating due to additional costs for its overseas power generation business, it said. Total revenue rose 3.8 percent to 9.67 trillion yen.

Net profit shot up 45.3 percent to 347.18 billion yen, hitting a record high for the second consecutive year. The sharp rise stemmed largely from one-time gains from the sale of its hard disk drive business.

Hitachi, whose products range from microchips to railways, has been shifting its business focus to large-scale infrastructure projects. Its results contrast sharply with heavy losses at many Japanese consumer electronics firms, hurt by the impact of the strong yen and punishing price competition in flat-panel televisions. Hitachi expects its operating profit to rise 16.4 percent to 480 billion yen in the current year to March 2013, despite a 5.9 percent drop in revenue to 9.1 trillion yen. It forecast net profit to fall 42.4 percent to 200 billion yen. — AFP

SEOUL: Kim Hyun-suk, head of Samsung’s TV business (right) and a model pose with a 55-inch Samsung OLED (organic light emitting diode) TV during a press conference in Seoul yesterday. — AP

Samsung unveils ultra high-end TV SEOUL: South Korea’s Samsung Electronics yesterday unveiled its a new-generation premium television as global manufacturers seek to drive slowing sales with lucrative models. The world’s top TV maker will start selling the 55-inch (140 cm) model, which features advanced display technology, in Korea in the second half of the year, said Kim Hyun-Suk, the head of Samsung’s TV unit. The ultra-thin television has an organic light emitting diode (OLED) display that produces brighter and more vivid images than flatscreen panels, Samsung said in a statement after showing off the TV at it headquarters at a news briefing.

OLED, now used in mobile devices such as smartphones, is seen as a next-generation technology after the current LCD or light emitting diode (LED) displays.

“This... will be the premium of the premium TVs,” Kim told reporters. It will cost at least 10.8 million won ($9,450) in South Korea, more than double the price of current high-end sets.

The model will go on sale in the United States and Europe after its domestic debut, Kim said without elaborating on dates.

Samsung is “carefully studying” the timing of the launch ahead of this summer’s London Olympics, Kim said. TV sales generally boom ahead of major sporting events. But he said it would take two or three years for OLED TVs to become mainstream. The company will increase production of various types of TV with 55inch screens or larger in a bid to dominate the premium market, Samsung said. Research firm NPD DisplaySearch this week forecast global TV shipments this year will remain flat amid slowing demand from Europe and Japan. It said global manufacturers are rolling out more TVs with large screens to drive up growth, lifting the average size to almost 35 inches in 2012 from less than 30 inches four years ago. — AFP

Sony reports record $5.7bn full-year loss Hostile forex rates, quakes blamed TOKYO: Japanese electronics giant Sony yesterday posted a record full-year loss of $5.7 billion, but vowed it would swing back into the black this year as it embarks on a huge restructuring plan.

Sony, which is struggling to stem losses at its television division, yesterday said a strong yen and natural disasters were among the main reasons for its disastrous earnings. “Sales decreased... primarily due to unfavourable foreign exchange rates, the impact of the Great East Japan Earthquake (in March 2011)... the floods in Thailand, and deterioration in market conditions in developed countries,” it said in a statement.

The natural disasters hammered Japanese manufacturers while Sony has also blamed tough competition and falling prices, particularly in the television segment, for its struggles.

Sony’s 456.66 billion yen ($5.7 billion) loss for the year to March, its fourth consecutive year in the red, came after it said last month it would cut about 10,000 jobs and spend nearly $1 billion on an overhaul that its new chief executive Kazuo Hirai described as “urgent”.

Sales for the year fell 9.6 percent to 6.49 trillion yen, while the firm booked an operating loss of 67.28 billion yen.

Yesterday, Sony’s Chief Financial Officer Masaru Kato said the company was aiming to make its television business profitable next fiscal year, with the firm on course for a net profit of 30 billion yen in the current fiscal year on sales of 7.4 trillion yen. However, analysts have criticized the turnaround plan as not enough to win back Sony’s reputation as an innovator or vault its foreign rivals.

“The last year was horrible,” Hiroshi Sakai, analyst at SMBC Friend Securities in Tokyo, told AFP yesterday. “Some complex, bad conditions hit the compa-

TOKYO: Sony Corp Chief Financial Officer Masaru Kato bites his lips during a news conference at the company’s head office in Tokyo yesterday. — AP ny, including a soaring yen...

But there is a question as to whether Sony should keep the TV division as part of its business.” Sony’s reforms, in addition to the jobs cuts, also include expanding its PlayStation and online games business, and pushing further into emerging markets and new sectors, such as medical equipment and life sciences. “Now is the time for Sony to change,” Hirai, who replaced Welshborn US chief executive Howard Stringer earlier this year, said in April. “What is urgent is that we strengthen our core businesses while rebuilding our TV business.” Investors, however, have been unimpressed.

Sony shares are now worth 1,213 yen, down from 1,528 yen before Hirai unveiled his plan last month. Sony, along with Japan’s other electronics giants including Panasonic and Sharp, has been fighting a losing battle for

years against fierce competition offered up by competitors including South Korea’s Samsung and US-based Apple.

Falling prices, particularly in the television segment, have eaten away at their bottom line as a strong yen made their products more expensive overseas, while a stuttering global economy has also knocked sales.

Sony still generates profits in some areas, such as electronics parts, but critics have accused the company of various strategic blunders over the years including being late to enter the liquid crystal display panel market.

The firm was forced in December 2008 to slash 16,000 jobs worldwide as it came under pressure amid tumbling demand during the global financial crisis. In March, Sony announced the sale of its chemical division to the Development Bank of Japan, saying the unit did not fit with its revamp. — AFP

Scandal-hit Olympus posts $620m loss TOKYO: Olympus yesterday posted a $620 million loss in the year to March, a shortfall largely tied to a loss cover-up at the camera and medical equipment maker that hammered Japan’s corporate-governance image. The firm said it lost 48.99 billion yen ($620 million) in the fiscal year, after a scandal that sparked lawsuits and the arrest of former executives accused of hiding about $1.7 billion in investment losses.

Olympus said the result, which reversed a small profit of 3.87 billion yen a year earlier and was bigger than forecast, was largely attributed to costs related to the cover-up. The company, which declined to give an earnings forecast for the fiscal year ending March 2013, said it booked sales of 848.55 billion yen in the latest period, up slightly from the previous year.

Olympus said the results were hampered by a not-previously-announced “additional special loss” of 8.82 billion yen, which included a “revaluation of assets” as well as “losses linked to the restructuring of systems-related businesses”. The company did not give fur-

ther details, but said the additional loss also included cost tied to the liquidation of three firms central to the scandal.

Olympus bought the firms-waste recycler Altis, cosmetics maker Humalabo and microwave-container company News Chef-for nearly $1.0 billion, later admitting part of the funds were used in the scheme. The company’s shares have lost more than threequarters of their value in the wake of the scandal, diving to just 424 yen at one point from 2,482 yen the day before the chief executive Michael Woodford was ousted in October for revealing the cover-up.

And two months later it narrowly avoided being delisted as it struggled to file a revised earnings report-taking into account previous losses-on time.

Last month, Olympus held a tense shareholders’ meeting where angry investors peppered company executives with questions about the coverup, while Woodford, who exposed the scandal, threatened court action after the firm’s choices for a new board were

approved. Woodford and some of Olympus’s foreign shareholders were angered by the slate of directors, whom they derided for their lack of experience or previous connections to the disgraced company.

But with the bulk of Olympus shares held by large Japanese institutional investors, who are typically unwilling to rock the corporate boat, the board had been expected to be approved.

Critics argued the new directors’ connections to major Japanese banksalso Olympus creditors-was a conflict of interest, while they also had little experience running the company.

At the meeting, Olympus executives rebuffed Woodford’s demand to know why he was sacked. In March, the company and three former senior executives-including ex-president Tsuyoshi Kikukawa-were charged over their role in the scandal.

If found guilty, the firm faces up to 700 million yen in fines, while the executives could each be forced to pay 10 million yen and a decade in prison. — AFP

THEY ARE THE 99!

99 Mystical Noor Stones carry all that is left of the wisdom and knowledge of the lost civilization of Baghdad. But the Noor Stones lie scattered across the globe - now little more than a legend. One man has made it his life’s mission to seek out what was lost. His name is Dr. Ramzi Razem and he has searched fruitlessly for the Noor Stones all his life. Now, his luck is about to change - the first of the stones have been rediscovered and with them a special type of human who can unlock the gem’s mystical power. Ramzi brings these gem - bearers together to form a new force for good in the world. A force known as ... the 99!

THE FASCINATING STORY OF THE 99 Baghdad lies in ruins, destroyed by the marauding armies of Hulagu Khan. The brave librarians of the great Dar Al-Hikma rush to save the glory of the ancient world’s accumulated wisdom, little knowing that centuries later their efforts will bear strange fruit. While the Noor Stones were created to save the library, their power has transcended that task and in our own time has provided extraordinary abilities to an international group of young people, the world’s newest superheroes known as… The 99.

The 99 ® and all related characters ® and © 2012, Teshkeel Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved.

www.the99.org

Analysis FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2011

Obama gambles on gay marriage

By Stephen Collinson

US

President Barack Obama took a calculated gamble and stepped into the political unknown Wednesday with his firm public backing for gay marriage, after a long period of personal soul searching. Obama’s move, in an interview with ABC News, sent seismic waves through pre-election politics and sparked immediate speculation as to whether he had hindered his chances of winning a second term in November. But it also led his election foe Mitt Romney and his Republicans onto tricky ground, as the party’s social conservative base opposes same sex marriage, even as it becomes quickly more accepted across the broader political spectrum.

“I’ve just concluded, for me, personally, it is important for me to go ahead and affirm that I think same-sex couples should be able to get married,” Obama said, unveiling his bombshell. Obama has now abandoned the sheltered but increasingly untenable position that he was “evolving” on gay marriage.

The risks are clear, and dictated Obama’s previous stance, despite fierce pressure for a more unequivocal stance from Obama’s liberal base.

The sudden injection of a divisive moralsocial question could hit Obama’s prospects in battleground states that he needs in November. He has always had trouble connecting with white, blue collar, socially conservative swing voters, and Wednesday’s move will hardly help. A case in point is North Carolina, which Obama won by less than one percent in 2012. On Tuesday 61 percent in the state voted to ban gay marriage, civil unions and domestic partnerships.

Some observers feel Obama could face a backlash from religious Hispanic and African-American voters, who helped sweep him into the White House in 2008. “There

may be a few white, religious Democrats whom he could lose in Ohio,” said Professor Paul Beck of Ohio State University, adding that some Hispanics could drift away in Colorado or Florida. “Still, I think the numbers will be small who are swayed at all by the position he took today,” he said, ahead of an election shaping up to be dominated by the lagging economy.

Conservatives pledged to make Obama pay. “Today’s announcement almost ensures that marriage will again be a major issue in the presidential election,” said Tony Perkins of the Family Research Council. A senior Obama aide said it was unclear how the marriage issue would play politically, especially in battleground states such as Ohio.

Democrats shudder when they recall how ballot initiatives in swing states on social issues drove up Republican turnout in 2004 and helped defeat their presidential candidate John Kerry. Dennis Goldford, a professor of political science at Drake University, Iowa, suggested Obama’s decision reflected an “electoral and strategic calculation”.

Democrats are more likely to favor gay rights, and those who most oppose the concept tend to be conservatives who would never vote for Obama anyway, he said. “The question is whether there is anybody in the muddled middle on this issue, that this might alienate. But we don’t know at this point.” It is just possible that Obama has pulled off a political master stroke, and

US President Barack Obama participates in an interview with Robin Roberts of ABC’s Good Morning America in the Cabinet Room of the White House on Wednesday. Obama declared his unequivocal support for gay marriage on Wednesday, a historic announcement that gave the polarizing social issue a more prominent role in the 2012 race for the White House. — AP

decided to ride changing attitudes just at the right moment. As another senior official explained, public perceptions on gay marriage are changing more quickly than almost any other political issue in America. More people are coming into contact with families with single sex parents a point Obama made in his interview when he said that he had talked about the issue with his girls, Malia and Sasha.

A Washington Post poll suggests that the US public has, like Obama, been evolving. In 2006, only 36 percent backed legalizing same-sex marriage, but in the latest poll, 52 percent said they were for it. The decision was greeted with joy in the gay and lesbian community and is certain to fire up Obama’s political base, and give younger supporters seen as less energized than in 2008 a jolt.

Wealthy gay and lesbian voters are also important contributors to Obama’s reelection campaign.

One more question about Obama’s move on Wednesday was: Why now? He seems to have been pushed by Vice President Joe Biden, who said on NBC on Sunday that he was “absolutely comfortable” with same-sex marriage. A senior Obama official said that though Biden’s move had advanced the process, the president had already concluded that he had to come out for gay marriage before the Democratic National Convention in September. The official also used the issue to draw a sharp contrast with Romney, who the Obama camp has been portraying as extreme in a bid to limit his appeal to the key political middle.

He noted that Obama now favored gay marriage while Romney wanted to enshrine discrimination with a federal amendment to the US Constitution to ban it. “I believe marriage is a relationship between a man and a woman,” Romney said Wednesday. “I know other people have differing views, and this is a tender and sensitive topic.” — AFP

New hopes for Myanmar talks

By Kelly Macnamara

A

bold move by Myanmar’s president to take charge of peace talks with ethnic rebels has revived hope of an end to a war in the far north perpetuated by mutual distrust and vested interests, experts say. Conflict between Myanmar’s army and ethnic rebels in Kachin state has raged for a year, displacing around 50,000 civilians and casting a shadow over hard-won government ceasefires in other parts of the country. The reformist regime has now overhauled its negotiating team, putting the president at the helm of the process and removing some elements of the previous delegation seen by Kachin rebels as linked to army hardliners.

The involvement of President Thein Sein, who has won plaudits for a series of reform launched since he took power last year, is a “strong indication that a deal with the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) can be reached”, said Nicholas Farrelly, research fellow at the Australian National University. “This is overdue but suggests a realisation that hesitant steps will not bring peace to war-torn northern Burma. It will take bold leadership and reservoirs of goodwill,” he added, using the country’s former name.

Myanmar has signed tentative ceasefire deals with a number of rebel groups in recent months as it seeks to draw a line under civil conflicts that have racked parts of the country since independence in 1948. But fighting has continued in Kachin state since a 17-year ceasefire broke down last June, as previous government negotia-

tor Aung Thaung failed to win the KIA’s trust. An MP with the ruling army-backed party, he was seen by the rebels as actively trying to hamper talks to buy time as the army pushed for territory, and has now been removed from negotiations.

Win Min, an expert with the Thailand-based Vahu Development Institute, said the new line-up was likely to be welcomed because it boosts the political and military clout of the negotiators - adding the chief of the army for the first time as well as ethnic Shan vice president Sai Mauk Kham. He said another welcome inclusion was Railway Minister Aung Min, seen as a pivotal figure in other ceasefire deals, including with rebels from eastern Karen state, the scene of the country’s longest-running insurgency. The Kachin for their part have held out for a political deal to avoid falling “into the same vicious circle of making ceasefire, then making business-oriented regional development and finally falling into fighting again”, Win Min said.

A KIA official, who asked not to be named, told AFP that Thein Sein’s involvement was welcome. But he said the success of the talks “will depend on their policy, their willingness to talk to us. It doesn’t depend on people”.

Negotiators will be faced with the immediate task of securing a temporary halt to fighting, which appears to have gained momentum in recent weeks, despite international calls for a ceasefire.

The KIA has raised fears of an impending assault on their northern stronghold of Laiza near the Chinese border. State media have also increased the heat with claims

of rebel attacks, some wounding civilians - allegations the KIA denies. Experts said that both sides are likely to vie for strategic positions before they return to the negotiating table. Myanmar’s military, which traditionally used the ethnic conflicts as a justification for its near half century dictatorship, may also be reluctant to see an end to the fighting. “Without an internal enemy their budgets and combat strength are hard to justify,” said Farrelly.

Independent Myanmar analyst Richard Horsey said the Kachin conflict has been particularly hard to calm because on-going fighting made the military reluctant to back down while suffering casualties. But he said the KIA were uncomfortable being the only major group not to strike a deal, and were likely to be open to negotiations that gave them the same standing as other ethnic minority rebels. “There was the wrong negotiating team. It wasn’t ready to offer the same terms to the Kachin as had offered to the Karen for example,” said Horsey, citing international monitors and codes of conduct for troops as examples.

But peace may imperil the standing of rebel commanders who enjoy much greater power in a conflict situation, he added, while others benefit personally from controlling land linked to lucrative logging and mining deals with Chinese firms. The KIA may also be reluctant to lay down its arms at a time when it is enjoying a surge of popular support. “Kachin society is really animated, really angry and people feel emboldened and for the first time in years the KIA have support. They are suddenly feeling like they are the heroes,” Horsey said. — AFP

A

y

e niv rsar n

FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2012

Years

www.kuwaittimes.net Prince Albert II of Monaco and his wife Princess Charlene visit the Prince Albert II Leisure centre in La Turbie, southern France near Monaco, Wednesday, May 9, 2012.

The Prince Albert II Leisure centre welcomes between 200 and 300 children every day during the holidays as well as one hundred on Wednesday afternoons throughout the year. —AP

Fo o d FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2012

By Sawsan Kazak eru is a beautiful country that most of us might not get the pleasure of visiting. But that shouldn’t stop of experiencing Peru through its food. Peruvian recipes feature fresh sea food, fragrant spices and traditional cooking techniques. This proud country’s cuisine represents centuries of tradition and evolution. You might not be able to go to Peru, but Peru can definitely come to your table.

P

Send your recipes and/or suggestions to sawsank@kuwaittimes.net

1. AJI Hot pepper also known as chili or guindilla. It is a basic ingredient of Peruvian cuisine, found in a large variety of shapes, colors and intensity. These include aji limo, a chili pepper mainly used with fish and seafood; aji panca, large, purple, sun-dried chili pepper, a must in typical Creole dishes; fresh aji panca; aji mirasol, a milder type of chili pepper.

2. ROCOTO Very hot chili pepper, shaped like a small red bell pepper and essential in a famous dish from Arequipa called Rocoto Relleno.

3. PIMIENTO Native bell pepper of the American Tropics. Found in many varieties, including the common bell pepper used as a vegetable; hot pimientos (see ROCOTO), and mild varieties used cooked, roasted or raw in salads.

5. FRIJOL (Phaseolus vulgaris) Bean found in a great number of varieties known as bayo, canario, el caballero (large white bean), el panamito (small white bean), etc.

lar communal breakfasts, refreshments and to thicken soups and stews.

8. PALLAR (Phaseolus lunatus) Large white or green bean native of Peru, thick as a lima bean and creamy in texture when cooked.

9. CAMOTE (Ipomea batata) Sweet root-vegetable served with cebiche and used in many traditional Peruvian sweets.

10. COCA LEAVES (Erythroxlon coca) Energizing ritual plant of the Andean people. Used in desserts, infusions, refreshments and cocktails.

11. AGUAJE (Mauritia flexuosa) Palm fruit from the Amazon region used to prepare icecream and refreshments.

12. AGUAYMANTO (Physalis peruviana) Small native berry of the Andes. Pleasant flavor of mandarin and tomato, appreciated for desserts.

6. QUINUA (Chenopodium quinoa) Small grain native of Lake Titicaca (Puno). Considered the grain of the future for its high nutritional value.

13. CHIRIMOYA (Anona sp.)

Native fruit of Peru. Soft white flesh with slight sweet~ and sour taste and delicate smell. It was appreciated by the Spaniards and by present day travelers.

7. KANIH1JA Very small grain consumed roasted and ground. Of highprotein content, it is used to prepare flour and enrich popu-

14. MARACUYA (Passiflora edulis) Known as passion fruit. Used for desserts, ice-cream, juice, as well as some salads and sauces.

15. MOLLE (Schinus molle) Seeds that are known as Andean pink pepper. Used to prepare a slimming infusion or chicha. Sweet and sour taste.

16. MACA (Lepidium meyenil) Root-vegetable belonging to the radish family.

Appreciated for its invigorating qualities.

17. SAUCO (Sambucus peruviana) Elderberry, found mainly in Cuzco. Mostly used for jams and desserts.

18. YACON (Smallanthus xonchifolius) Fruit that is very popular amongst diabetics because it is low in sugar. Tastes like apple.

Fo o d

Spicy lime Sole and shrimp

FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2012

1 large whole fish (4 pounds) 8 cups water 1/2 cup cooking oil 1 large red onion, diced 1 bouquet mint leaves, chopped 1 tsp garlic, mashed 1 fresh yellow chili pepper, seeded, deveined, shredded 1/2 tsp oregano salt and pepper to taste (Tiradito de lenguado y camarones) 1 1/2 kg of sole 24 large shrimps, whole 1 cup of freshly squeezed lime juice 1 tbsp yellow chilies 1/2 tsp of finely chopped garlic 2 tbsp flat-leaf parsley, chopped salt and pepper

Garnish 1 scallion, finely chopped 2 tbsp minced flat-leaf parsley 6 boiled potatoes, thickly sliced 2 tbsp fresh lime juice.

1. Clean fish and remove bones. In a large saucepan, boil fish head, fins, backbone and tail in salted water 20 minutes.

2. Add fish fillets and cook until tender.

Remove fish fillets and serve them in each individual soup plate.

3. Continue boiling fish bones another 30 minutes.

4. Remove from heat, drain fumet over clean saucepan to discard bones and add onion, coriander, mint leaves, scallions, garlic, oregano, salt and pepper.

5. Pour fish soup (chilcano) over plates of fish fillets and boiled potato slices, add little juice and sprinkle with parsley.

Garnish 6 ears of corn 3 boiled sweet potatoes lettuce leaves 1 whole heart of beef 4 garlic cloves, mashed 2 tbsp oregano 2 tsp ground cumin 4 tbsp of red chili pepper, 1 cup vegetable oil 1 cup vinegar salt and pepper to taste wooden skewers

1. Cut the fish fillets in thin strips along the sense of the fish’s fibers.

2. Put them in a 1 inch deep serving dish, coat with lime juice and add chili peppers, garlic, salt and pepper.

3. Sprinkle with minced parsley and let stand 5 minutes.

4. Serve with lettuce leaves, slices of corn on the cob and slices of boiled sweetpotatoes.

Garnish 8 ears of corn, cooked and cut in large pieces Fried yuccas (or grilled boiled potatoes)

Preparation of shrimp Put shrimp in a sieve and pour over boiling water until red.

Remove the coral under the head and shell head and tail without separating one from the other.

Add to serving dish over pieces of sole.

1 kg of firm white fish (or optionally scallops) 2 garlic cloves, mashed 1 chili pepper (limo or verde), minced 1 cup of freshly squeezed lime juice 1 tbsp of coriander leaves, finely chopped 1 red onion, finely sliced lengthwise salt and pepper to taste

Garnish lettuce leaves slices of sweet potato Corn, in pieces or loose grains 1. Boil corn and sweet-potatoes until tender and keep warm.

2. Thoroughly wash, trim and bone fish. Cut-up in 1/2 inch cubes or in medium size or thin slices, place evenly on a 1 inch deep serving dish, and sprinkle salt and pepper to taste.

3. Cover with lime juice and season with garlic, chili pepper and sliced onion, and let stand for 10 minutes.

4. Serve cold over lettuce leaves and garnish with corn and sweet-potatoes. Add shreds of red bell pepper and sprinkle with chopped coriander leaves.

Note: To make hot chilies mild, seed and devein peppers and wash in cold water. In a bowl, cover chilies with boiling water and soak for a few minutes; rinse and repeat three times changing hot water every time.

1. Cut the heart in 1 inch cubes. Place them in a bowl, cover with vinegar, add salt, garlic, peppers, cumin, oregano, panca chili and oil. Mix and marinate at least 2 hours.

2. Remove meat, dry on paper towel and insert 3 pieces on each wooden skewer.

3. Grill anticuchos over a strong fire (3-4 minutes each), and keep turning and brushing with marinade while they cook, until golden brown. A “brush” of tied-up shredded corn leaves is traditionally used.

4. Serve very hot on a platter garnished with cooked pieces of corn, fried yuccas or slices of boiled potatoes browned on the grill.

Pets FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2012

Looks like puppy love Pups create calm for university students, attention for animal advocacy

U

A beagle puppy gets a chin scratch from University of Akron student during Akron Law’s Puppy Day outside West Hall, in Akron, Ohio.— MCT photos

University of Akron junior Melissa Stump takes a break from her studies to play with a puppy.

niversity of Akron student Chris Meta sent cell phone photos of the brindle-coloured Plott hound to his wife, hoping she would agree to take the dog into their pack that already includes three mixed-breed dogs. Meta, of Youngstown, Ohio, was stoically standing up to pressure from fellow law school friends advising him to throw caution to the wind and just take the dog home.

He said the decision was “on the fence right now” as he held the coonhound’s leash while snapping shots of the dog named Ohana. “I need to walk away right now,” he said. “The last thing I need to hear is, ‘No, honey,’” as a response, he said.

A dozen or so puppies and older dogs arrived near West Hall in the law school complex on the University of Akron campus on a recent morning with the express purpose of visiting with students as they walked to classes.

The ploy worked. Crowds of students were drawn to the animals as if by magnets. The intent of the event, sponsored by the Student Animal Legal Defence Fund, a national student organization dedicated to animal advocacy through the creation of humane laws, was a way to help students de-stress as finals week begins, said Elisa Wood, a second-year law student and vice president of the campus organization. It also helped bring awareness to SALDF, she said.

“Preparation for finals is a very intense time and is very stressful. The dogs remind them there is a world outside of law school,” said Wood, originally from Dayton, Ohio.

Many of the 25 or so students in SALDF count volunteering with homeless animals as a way to fulfill an annual pro bono requirement for law school. They work as handlers for animals at weekend adoption events for Paws and Prayers pet rescue, the group that provided the animals.

John Chapman, a Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, city prosecutor and a University of Akron law school graduate, has remained an ardent volunteer with the rescue group, specializing in the placement of puppies. “One hundred and four puppies have stayed at my house and have gone on to happy homes,” he said. He teams up in the effort with a coonhound named Holly who teaches the puppies that it’s not OK to bite, he said.

As students and faculty advisers played Frisbee with border collie Jake and tug-of-war with a boxer named Max, others sat on the ground inside a small fenced-in area where a family of black collie-mix puppies entertained them with their antics. SALDF adviser Ann Schiavone, who helped arrange for the puppy meet-andgreet with students, said it was a great way to bring attention to the 3-year-old organization. “Everyone has different opinions on animal laws, but we are all united in our love of animals,” Schiavone said. — MCT

University of Akron senior Megan Wilhelmy takes a break from her studies to cuddle with a puppy.

Chris Meta (left) shares a quiet moment with Ohana.

BOOKS

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Dead Babies by Martin Amis

es, okay, so this isn’t a horror novel as such. But it’s a good example of the kind of more mainstream novel that inhabits much of the same emotional territory while managing to avoid being tarred with the “horror” brush. Check out John Fowles’s The Collector and, of course, Bret Easton Ellis’s American Psycho for other examples. Literary.

any of Straub’s novels are hard to categorise, skating somewhere along the literature/crime/horror boundary.

They’re all good, but Ghost Story is more straight-down-the-line horror, a wonderfully subtle and complex tale of the impact of a visitor on a small community. A modern classic.

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h, go for it, here’s another King. Creepy par excellence.

Few writers are as skilled at both the long and short form: King walks all over both. Novellas, too, of course - look at Different Seasons for four superb examples, three of which you’ll recognise from the cinema. Masterful.

The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson

B

radbury is perhaps best known for his lyrical science fiction short stories. However, he wrote a lot of stunning horror ones, too - check out The October Country or ‘The Illustrated Man’ for some great examples. This, one of his relatively few novels, is a charming tale of small-town scares that successfully brings his strengths into the longer form.

Old school.

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M

H

orror is blessed with a number of great stylists and Jackson is right up there. Both this and ‘We Have Always Lived in the Castle’ demonstrate an extraordinary ability to evoke disquiet and melancholy from the simplest of things, and to keep gradually racking them up until you think your head will melt. Has one of the greatest opening paragraphs in horror, too. Spooky.

The Killer Inside Me by Jim Thompson

Ghost Story by Peter Straub

Pet Sematary by Stephen King

H

alf of this list can be filled with King’s novels, of course, and there are others like The Shining, The Stand and It which perhaps deserve to be here more on individual merit.

But Pet Sematary wins the nomination by being the one that disturbed the most on first reading. Lean, sombre and veined with dread, this is horror, pure and simple. Chilling.

ny list of top horror books must contain a sprinkling of short story collections because that’s where so much of the genre’s very best work is done.

Campbell is one of the field’s true giants and a master of the short form. Elegiac, disturbing and very memorable, this collection of beautifully crafted tales is modern British horror at its very best.

Eerie.

Night Shift by Stephen King

Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury

Dark Feasts by Ramsey Campbell

FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2012

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nother matter of definition, this one. Thompson’s a crime writer, without doubt, and this story of a local sheriff out of control is certainly pitched nothing like horror. But as a glimpse into the mind of the dangerous, it’s far more effective than an armful of typical serial killer-style horror novels. Noir.

Health FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2012

Embrace the sun - with protection How important is sunscreen when it comes to shielding our skin?

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usinesswoman Joanna Cheng panicked when a year of swimming under the sun resulted in large, dark spots on her skin. A trip to the dermatologist confirmed permanent damage; unless she opted for laser treatment, which might erase only 90 percent of the problem, her mottled skin will never be the same again. Cheng, 41, laments her decision to swim without sunblock for a “good, bronze tan”.

There’s beauty and charm in skin that’s genetically predisposed to light freckling and pigmentation, but dark spots and heavy pigmentation indicate sun damage. Sunblock can help reduce that,” says Bobbi Brown training manager Carina Choo.

Will it really? There have been concerns, suggesting that not only do sunblocks provide little protection from UV rays, those thick, white goops of cream actually cause more harm than good.

First and foremost, it is important to understand the difference between UVA (ultraviolet-A) and UVB (ultraviolet-B). The Skin Cancer Foundation, an international organisation dedicated to reducing the incidences of skin cancer through research and public awareness, explains that UVA comes from long-wave solar rays known to penetrate the skin deeply, and is considered the main culprit behind wrinkling, leathering and other aspects of photoaging.

UVB, on the other hand, comprises short-wave solar rays that are known to cause sunburn. Sunlight is important for healthy skin, but just a small amount will do. Dr Steven Chow, a senior consultant dermatologist and secretary of the General Asian Academy of Dermatology and Venereology explains that available evidence shows that in temperate countries, anything from 5 to 30 minutes of sunlight exposure between the hours of 10am and 3pm, twice a week, is sufficient to prevent vitamin D deficiency. There are two kinds of sunblocks in the market today. First, there is the physical sunblock, which deflects or scatters UV radiation with its active ingredients titanium dioxide and zinc oxide.

Then there is the chemical sunblock, which supposedly works by absorbing the energy of UV radiation before it affects the skin.

Online sources have listed several scientists who invented the concept of the SPF rating system in the 1930s.

Amongst them are Austrian scientist Professor Franz Greiter, who introduced Glacier Cream, the first commercially viable sun protection cream; Milton Blake, an Australian chemist who is credited for being the first to experiment with sunscreen formulas in his kitchen; and L’oreal Cosmetics founder Eugene Schueller who created sunscreens in his laboratory and marketed them.

Paula Begoun, an American author known for her wellresearched views on skincare and cosmetics, believes that skin darkening is the natural response to sun damage and SPF is not the only guide when buying sunscreens. “All the SPF number lets you know is how long you can stay in the sun without burning when wearing that product. However, it only refers to protection from UVB radiation, without giving you information about protection from UVA radiation,” she writes in her book, The Beauty Bible: Your Ultimate Guide To Smart Beauty, a well-received book that evaluates skincare formulations based on their ingredients and compares the company’s claims to the latest studies about that ingredient.

This sheds some light as to why skin ageing - and even cancer - happens despite wearing sunblock. “If that SPF 15 or SPF 30 (sunblock product) doesn’t contain avobenzone, titanium dioxide or zinc oxide, you are receiving minimal protection from UVA radiation and it is a dangerous product to consider using,” she asserts in her book. Dangerous because the user now spends more time in the sun, thinking that the product offers more protection than it does in reality.

According to Begoun, these facts about SPF are worth noting: apply sunblock liberally 20 minutes before sun exposure and reapply every 40 to 80 minutes if you are sweating or swimming.

If you use an ordinary moisturiser over sunscreen, the effectiveness of the first product will be diluted; press-powder foundations make an “iffy way to get sun protection for the face, but make a great makeup touch up and sunscreen application midday”; and that SPF 15 and SPF 8 do not add up to SPF 23.

Nowadays, many sunscreens are rated as “PA+”, “PA++” or “PA+++”. PA, which stands for Protection Grade of UVA, measures the ingredients’ protective effect against UVA. As there is currently no standard measure of UVA absorption, the PA serves to estimate the amount of protection offered. PA+

is sufficient for most activities but should you plan to stay in the sun for long hours, opt for PA+++ or higher, if possible. The consequences of sun exposure can be grimmer than a bad case of pigmentation - there’s melanoma, a dangerous and often fatal form of skin cancer.

In 2006, the National Cancer Registry of Malaysia published statistics that revealed that skin cancer occurred in 295 people in a 100,000 population. Patients admitted that denial was the most frequent reason for putting off seeing the doctor about a suspicious lesion on the skin, accounting for 71% of all cases of skin cancer. The illness tends to develop in old age, from the 50s onwards but unfortunately for some, from the 30s.

Linda, a cured cancer patient from Florida, shares her harrowing experience at the Skin Cancer Foundation website: “Although I never went to a tanning salon, I had a few bad sunburns when I was little, and I grew up without applying sunblock because I didn’t consciously go out in the sun to tan. However, in May last year, I was diagnosed with malignant melanoma and had a tumour removed from my leg.”

Her experience, like many others, suggests that sunscreen is necessary, after all, in reducing skin cancer risks. “I have not heard

Protection 101 Always use a sunscreen with SPF15 or higher.

Use at least one ounce to cover your arms, legs, neck and face.

Protect your lips by using sunscreen lip balm.

Avoid using sunscreen on babies younger than six months - instead, use hats, clothing and shade for protection.

If you wear makeup, think about products that contain sunscreen.

Choose broad spectrum products that guard against the sun’s UVA and UVB rays.

The sun’s rays are strongest between the peak hours of 10 am to 4 pm.

of people who have developed cancer from wearing sunscreen.

Rather, what I do see happening is people developing cancers from high exposure to the sun,” Choo says. Contrary to these findings, alternative reports have emerged, purporting that substances used in sunblocks and sunscreens are the cancer-causing culprit.

AOL News, an American global Internet services and media company, published an article in May last year that alleges that “almost half of the 500 most popular sunscreen products may actually increase the speed at which malignant cells develop and spread skin cancer because they contain vitamin A or its derivative”. According to researchers at Environmental Working Group, a non-profit organisation that carries out controversial research, most sunblocks may prevent sunburn, but not ultraviolet light from destroying skin cells and causing tumours (and lesions).

From these studies, a few ingredients have been identified as being potentially harmful to the human body including oxybenzone, which penetrates the skin and enters the bloodstream, while vitamin A and its derivatives - retinol and retinyl palmitate “may speed up the cancer that sunscreen is supposed to prevent”.— www.thestar.com

Beauty FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2012

Weapons of mass

distraction

It’s never too late to learn to apply some glamorous war paint

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makeup counter-full of liquids, powders, tubes and brushes-may appear daunting to someone who has never applied makeup before. It is difficult to determine which products are necessary and which products best fit your particular skin type and tone. Making an appointment for a makeup consultation at a department store or salon may be a good first step, but once the consultation is over, you are on your own.

Foundation: Choose a foundation that matches your skin tone and fits your skin type. Test the foundation on the back of your hand to see if it is a good match. The foundation should match exactly or be slightly lighter than your normal skin tone. For oily skin, choose a powder foundation. A liquid foundation works best for dry skin or for extra coverage. Apply a moisturizing cream with your fingers before applying the foundation. Let it set for a few minutes. Place dots of foundation around your face using your fingers or a makeup sponge. Make sure to include dots on your chin and the tip of your nose. Blend the dots using the sponge or your fingers to cover your entire face. Take extra time blending in the foundation around your hairline and chin.

Eye makeup: Choose a colour of eye shadow that complements the colour of your eyes, such as warmer shades for blue eyes and greens and golds for brown eyes. Purchase a waterproof mascara with a brush that is proportionate to your eyelashes: a thicker brush for long lashes, a thinner brush for short lashes. Apply eye shadow starting at the inner corner of your eye, stopping just before the outer corner, using an eye shadow brush.

Only apply the shadow to the lid of your eye. One coat should be enough to create the desired effect. Place the mascara wand at the top of your eyelashes and move it from root to tip to get the mascara on your lashes. Two or three swipes should cover the lashes on one eye.

Repeat for the other eye and do the same for the bottom set of lashes, moving slowly because they are often shorter and it is easier to accidentally poke your eye.

Lipstick and liner: Choose a lipstick shade by dabbing a bit of it on your lips with a cotton swab to see if you like the colour. Purchase a lip liner that is two shades lighter than your chosen lipstick colour. Outline your lips using the lip liner. To create a straighter line, start from the outer edge and stop at the centre. Swipe the tube of lipstick on your top and bottom lip or use a lipstick brush. Blot your mouth with a tissue to remove any excess lipstick.

Blush: Choose a colour of blush that closely resembles the colour of your cheeks when they are flushed, or one that matches your lipstick colour. Smile a wide smile to outline where to place the plush, sometimes called the “apples” of your cheeks. Use a full powder brush to tap on the blush, while still smiling. Start at the roundest part of your cheek and move diagonally towards your temple. Once you have tapped on the blush, swoop the brush across your cheek to blend it in.

—www.ehow.com

Conceal it well

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t is not just the concealer but also the right way of applying the concealer that gives you the desired look. So make sure that when you apply concealer you follow the right way.

Applying the concealer You should apply the concealer in the inner corners of the nose by the eyes and the dark areas under the eyes. To give a perfect look to your skin gently pat the concealer on with your fingertips and then cover the entire under-eye area and outside area of the eyes.

When you are using liquid or solid foundation then you should apply the concealer only after the foundation but when you are using a cream-to-powder foundation then you should use the concealer first and then only the foundation.

To apply concealer, dot it on and then blend gently with a dry wedge sponge or clean finger. It will help you in concentrated pigment and intense seamless coverage of the intended area. You can also dot some concealer over foundation, before powder for added coverage.

To keep things as natural as possible, apply your foundation first and then top up the cover on only the inner half of the under eye. This way if you have the beginnings of fine lines, you are not adding weight to the outer half and showing off the problem. If you are not using a color corrector then you should apply your foundation as normal. After that apply nearly dried concealer over the foundation in light patting strokes.

And then reapply a bit of foundation in the same way. While using liquid or solid foundation, best results could be obtained by applying concealer afterwards. But when using a cream-to-powder foundation, concealer should go on first.

A neutral shade of under eye concealer can help you neutralize the purple or brown tones of bruising, under eye circles and other concealing challenges.

Concealer should cover entire under-eye, including outside of eye to give it lift.

You should also note that the darker the circle is around your eyes the darker the concealer should be. You should test

the color of a concealer over the foundation that you apply. If you find that the effect is invisible then it means you have chosen the correct shade.

How to use concealer ● You should apply the concealer with a fine brush or with pointy cotton swabs ● Remember that the concealer is only meant to hide small blemishes or unevenness in the skin and not to cover up major skin flaws ● This makeup must be applied in a very directional manner otherwise it runs the risk of giving you look of a ‘cake‘ ● When you are using your hands to apply the concealer you should always use little amount of it. A good rule is that it should be in such amount that you are able to see your fingertip when you have taken the concealer on it www.womanjunction.com

Lifestyle FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2012

Musical artist Stevie Wonder sings and plays the piano during an “In Performance at the White House” concert in the East Room of the White House May 9, 2012 in Washington, DC. President Obama and US first lady Michelle Obama hosted the concert to celebrate composer Burt Bacharach and lyricist Hal David who will be honoured with 2012 Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song. — AFP

by Can’t provided to o h p le fi r Willis of This 1979 ctions shows Victo le. —AP p u o d e Stop Pro up, The Village P ro g p o p the

Court

victory for ex-Village People lead singer

W

hen it comes to compiling a list of the great songwriters of the past 50 years, Victor Willis’ name likely wouldn’t merit more than an asterisk. Far better known as the cop in the novelty disco act the Village People, Willis is also remembered for a number of drug-related troubles in the early 2000s that nearly up-ended his post-Village People days. Yet there he was this week, being mentioned in the same breath as Bob Dylan and Bruce Springsteen, after he won a court battle to claim at least a third of the copyrights for such songs as “Macho Man,” “Y.M.C.A.” and “In the Navy” that he co-wrote for his old group.

The former “Macho Man,” who says he has a new album titled “Solo Man” coming out in a few weeks, declined to say what kind of payday he expects Monday’s ruling by US District Judge Barry Moskowitz to bring him. “But those songs, they gross millions a year, so it could be a significant thing,” he noted with a chuckle. Willis was a musician-actor who, among other things, had appeared on Broadway in “The Wiz” when Jacques Moreli decided to cash in on the disco craze in 1977 by putting together a group made up of beefy, macho-looking guys dressed as a biker, a construction worker, a cop, a cowboy and an Indian chief.

Willis, who was the group’s lead singer, was soon dancing up a storm with his cohorts to catchy beats while disco balls glittered and music blared around the country and in Europe. The Village People sold tens of millions of records in the 1970s, and Willis co-wrote all the big hits. But he also signed away his copyrights to the songs for a cut of the profits that today ranges from 12 to 20 percent. “I was very young and naive,” he said by phone from New York on Thursday. “I didn’t know at that point what I was going to be giving away. So If they put a contract in front of me, I signed it.”

He said he suspects many other young artists did as well, and he hopes his court victory this week will eventually benefit them, too. When Congress updated federal copyright law in 1978, it allowed songwriters to reclaim such signedaway copyrights after 35 years. That’s something that over time is expected to affect the rights to songs by Dylan, Springsteen, Tom Petty, Billy Joel and others. After Willis sought to get the copyrights to 33 songs back, the owners, Can’t Stop Productions and Scorpio Music, sued to stop him, arguing that he was simply a “worker for hire” for the Village People and therefore had no stake in the songs. They also argued that because his co-writers didn’t join him in seeking their share of the copyrights Willis shouldn’t be granted his share either.

The companies dropped the “worker for hire” argument before Moskowitz issued his ruling Monday. The ruling determined that Willis didn’t need to join with the others.

Still to be determined is just how much of the copyrights he’ll control, one third or one half.His co-writers are credited as Moreli and Henri Belolo, although Willis says he and Moreli really wrote the songs. —AP

Composer George Benjamin:

Don’t label me,

R

ats “stream like hot metal, to the rim of the world” and children, lured by the music of a Pied Piper-like exterminator, disappear into a hillside in British composer George Benjamin’s eerie 2006 mini-opera “Into the Little Hill”. Benjamin claims they’re still alive, and perhaps better off, inside that hill, where the “piper” leads them after the minister fails to pay him for exterminating the rats, but one can’t help but wonder how much oxygen they’re getting. “Written on Skin”, his next opera and again a collaboration with British playwright Martin Crimp, will have its premiere at the prestigious Aix-en-Provence festival in France in July.

But despite its provocative title, and the unsettling nature of his first opera, Benjamin, 52, swears up and down nothing happens that is nearly as nasty as the title might suggest. “People I’ve mentioned it to, particularly women, go ‘phwew’, as if it’s got something quite erotic about it,” he said in a recent interview at his London home, in a leafy neighbourhood, with an environmentally friendly Toyota Prius hybrid parked in the narrow driveway outside. A retrospective of his music this weekend at London’s Southbank Centre is the occasion for the chat, the fact that he is one of Britain’s leading composers is the reason.

“But the ‘skin’ we’re talking about is parchment, on the whole,” Benjamin continues. “Because it’s the story of an illuminator entering the kingdom of a lord in the 13th century in Provence, hence the premiere in Aix, and the lord’s wife becomes interested in him and trouble ensues, of a pretty extreme kind, eventually.”

More than that he’s not giving away, at least not in this interview at his home where he has a grand piano in the living room, and American soprano Renee Fleming’s latest CD on his stereo. He does briefly produce a copy of the score, as if to prove that a composer renowned for taking his time getting his notes on paper has done the job, long before opening night.

“I wrote 95 to 100 minutes of music in 26 months, and fully scored as well, so when the last note was written the piece was completely finished. So statistically I am accelerating,” he laughs. “But I still find it very hard. At least with opera, the blockages don’t last months, they last days or

I’m British

weeks.” And what style of music would that be, for a composer who, despite his comparatively young age, is about to have a retrospective that is a London 2012 Festival countdown event- counting down, of course, to the Olympics which start in July?

Is it in the category of music which goes by the ghostly, or perhaps sci-fi-sounding name “spectral”, referring to compositions that emphasise tone colour over harmony, melody and all that old-fashioned stuff?

That’s how Benjamin’s music is described on the Internet, but he is having none of it.

“I don’t like the idea of joining any groups or being filed under any particular drawer. I think your job as a composer is to be independent...I am, after all, from this country and I believe in independence, being outside and doing your own thing.”

Music lovers can hear a whole weekend of Benjamin’s “own thing”, which is not a huge body of work, from his seminal orchestral piece “Antara” for chamber ensemble and electronics on Saturday, to his later “Palimpsests” for full orchestra on Sunday, with music of his hero, the late Hungarian composer Gyorgy Ligeti, thrown in, at Southbank. But don’t go expecting to hear “Written on Skin”. Not a peep until July.

Here’s what else Benjamin had to say about his apprenticeship with France’s mystical and birdsong-loving musical giant Olivier Messiaen, how he’s yet another composer bowled over by movie director Stanley Kubrick and his use of music in films and why even if you’ve never heard of Benjamin or anything he’s written, he suggests you open your ears: Q: Messiaen was your main teacher and you had a very productive apprenticeship with him in Paris in the 1970s.

Apparently he helped you to avoid falling into the clutches of the Darmstadt school of music, which with its formalism and advocacy of 12-tone music-rather than lovely melodies- produced pieces that, for some people, gave music a bad name.

A: “Messiaen said break away from Darmstadt...I’m glad I was 20 years old and I didn’t feel the obligation to become a Darmstadt-type composer.

And it has to be said that it only really

George Benjamin lasted in its tremendous pulling power for about a decade, if that...But Europe had been through the worst catastrophe in a thousand years, so some things had to be examined from the root.

Seeing in an abstract way was a noble thing to do but it led to a form of music that was too esoteric and that became a form of really horrid academicism quite quickly.”

Q: So Ligeti, who did love a tune, and Kubrick, who used some of his music for “2001: A Space Odyssey” and other films, were more your style?

A: “Apart from (Disney’s) “Fantasia”, his (Kubrick’s) are the only films that really use music in a dignified and grown up way. I like the way he choreographs his apparently spontaneous narratives to music, literally. In “The Shining” the editing and the actors’ words are all inserted and timed according to the music underneath. It gives the feeling of being spontaneous and natural but it’s a ballet, in fact.”

Q: Why should anyone who thinks music began and ended with Pachelbel’s “Canon” come to your retrospective?

A: “The world changes, music changes, music has always changed, music will always change. Not every piece written is a glowing masterpiece...but if you’re sufficiently curious you come across some amazing pieces which will speak to you, if you have an open mind and ear.” — Reuters

Lifestyle FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2012

Slaying of Jennifer Hudson’s family goes to jury T

he fate of the man accused of killing Academy Award winner Jennifer Hudson’s mother, brother and young nephew was handed to a jury Wednesday after prosecutors said a “tsunami” of evidence pointed to his guilt. William Balfour, the estranged husband of Hudson’s sister, is accused of slaughtering his in-laws in October 2008 and then hiding his 7-year-old stepson’s body to try to cover his

File photo shows Academy Award winner US singer Jennifer Hudson at the Screen Gems premiere of ‘Think Like A Man’ held at ArcLight Cinemas Cinerama Dome in Hollywood, California. —AFP

William Balfour who is charged in the murders of the mother, brother and nephew of singer and Oscar winner Jennifer Hudson. — AFP

crimes. It was three days before the boy’s desperate mother and aunt learned that he was also dead and not just held captive somewhere.

“This defendant was fueled by his obsession, his jealousy,” assistant state’s attorney Jennifer Bagby told jurors. “He told her again and again: If you leave me, I’ll kill you. I’ll kill your family first. You’ll be the last to die.” Hudson and her sister Julia broke down into silent tears after prosecutors showed the grisly crime scene photos. Their mother, Darnell Donerson, 57, dead on the floor in her nightgown. Their brother, Jason Hudson, 29, dead in bed wearing nothing but green underwear. Little Julian King’s lifeless arm stretched out on the back seat of his uncle’s stolen sport utility vehicle, his crumpled body on the floor.

The murders in Chicago’s South Side upended Hudson’s life less than two years after the one-time “American Idol” contestant collected a best supporting actress Oscar for her role in “Dreamgirls.” The two week long trial opened a window onto the troubled Englewood neighbourhood where Hudson was raised and which her family never left.

Many of the witnesses had criminal

records and several testified about how Hudson’s brother was a smalltime drug dealer. Defense attorney Amy Thompson insisted that police failed to look into Jason Hudson’s drug connections, and instead decided Balfour was the only suspect.

“They decided right away who did this and they decided to build a case rather than investigate a crime,” she said in closing arguments.

Thompson accused police of planting crucial evidence-like the keys to the Jason Hudson’s stolen vehicle found on Balfour when he was arrested-and tore apart the credibility of witnesses. “My client is an innocent man,” an impassioned Thompson told jurors.”You tell them all to do the right thing-to find the people who actually committed this crime and let William Balfour go free.” Prosecutor James McKay excoriated Thompson’s conspiracy theory, telling jurors that if police wanted to frame Balfour they would have done a better job and put some of his DNA on the gun or in the stolen SUV. He insisted that a “tsunami” of evidence pointed to Balfour’s guilt.

There was gun powder residue on

his steering wheel and clothing. Cell phone records and witnesses showed him to be nearby. A witness who saw Balfour driving a white SUV up to his girlfriend’s house. And the girlfriend who testified that Balfour confessed to the murders. There were also six witnesses who testified that they’d seen him with the murder weapon-a handgun belonging to Jason Hudson that had gone missing a couple months earlier.

Perhaps the most damning fact was that Balfour did nothing to help search for the missing Julian or comfort his estranged wife, McKay said.

Instead, Balfour hid at a girlfriend’s house and made phone calls to frantically try to build a false alibi before he was tracked down by police. “This crime wasn’t motivated by money or drugs-this was personal,” McKay said.

A vindictive drug dealer wanting to send a message would have killed Julian in the house, not driven his body away and hidden the stolen vehicle, McKay said. “The only message you send by doing that is not to Jason, it’s to that child’s mother,” he said before urging jurors to find Balfour guilty and “give justice to Darnell and to Jason and to Julian.” —AFP

Iggy Pop album shuns ‘humiliating’ record labels

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Houston’s

mother releases new gospel songs

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hitney Houston’s mother has released a new album of gospel tunes, her first new music since her daughter’s death and in more than a decade. Cissy Houston’s “Walk on By Faith” was released by Harlem Records on iTunes this week and includes songs such as “Living Shall Not Be In Vain.”

Harlem Records rep Bill Coyle said Wednesday her last album was in 1997.

He says she started working on the album last year and musically arranged all four tracks. Cissy Houston has kept a low profile since her superstar daughter died in February, giving just one interview.

Whitney Houston was 48 when she drowned in a Beverly Hills, Calif., hotel bathtub on the eve of the Grammy Awards. An autopsy showed cocaine played a role in her death.—AP

US singer Iggy Pop holds a microphone to sing during a press conference to present his new album ‘Apres’, on May 9, 2012 in Paris. —AFP

unk pioneer Iggy Pop has taken his new solo album, a French-flavoured line-up of cover songs, straight to his fans online, shunning record majors convinced it would be a flop. “They would have preferred that I do a rock album with popular punks, sort of like ‘Hi Dad!’ I was not going to do that!” the 65-year-old American quipped at a press conference for the record launch in Paris on Wednesday. “What has a record company ever done for me but humiliate and torment and drag me down?” the sinewy rocker said of his move to sell it online in CD and download forms.

Entitled “Apres” (After), the record has the francophile Iggy Pop crooning his way through tracks by the likes of Edith Piaf and Georges Brassens, his second French-inspired album after the 2009 “Preliminaires” (Preliminaries). Though he went it alone in creating the record, Iggy Pop was contractually obliged to offer it to his longtime label Virgin EMI.

“They didn’t want it. They didn’t think they would make any money, they didn’t think my fans would like it-very sensible attitudes for a sensible sort of person-but that’s a different sort of person than I am.”

So he went ahead and put the album on sale online, as a CD on the French website venteprivee.com, and in digital form on several download platforms. Iggy Pop-real name, James Newell Osterberg-was lead singer of The Stooges, a 1960s1970s garage rock band that influenced heavy metal and punk rock and whose live acts included Pop taking drugs, self-mutilating, verbally abusing the audience and leaping off stage. His best-known solo numbers include “Lust for Life”, “I’m Bored” and “Real Wild Child”. Though he will probably work with a major with the newly-reformed Stooges, Iggy Pop said as a solo artist he was unlikely to go back. “I’ve always had a very rough time in the big time music business,” he joked. “I got kicked off every label.”—AFP

Tim McGraw launches line of signature headphones

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ountry music star Tim McGraw says his daughters love wearing his new headphones around the house. Just don’t ask them to go past the front door. “It’s tough to get them to go outside of the house,” McGraw joked of his three daughters, ages 10, 13 and 14, who balk at being seen wearing the headphones, which prominently feature his signature. “I’m probably the most uncool person they know in their eyes.”

His wife, Faith Hill, isn’t embarrassed. “She wears them all the time, and was a big part of

their design,” McGraw says. McGraw is the first country artist to have his own line of headphones. The JBL Tim McGraw Artist Series was created in partnership with Harman International Industries and includes both onear and in-ear styles. The singer says he’s a “Neanderthal when it comes to electronics,” but knows what he likes and insisted on creating the proper acoustic soundscape. And because he has 32 No.1 hits under his belt, he knows something about the sound of music.

“The main thing was getting the sound the

way I liked it, going through prototypes and saying, ‘I like the bass a little sharper here, I like the midrange a certain way,’” he says. McGraw is also joining Paul McCartney and Maroon 5 in JBL’s “Hear the truth” campaign. Too many artists, he says, go through fads, but the ones that last have “the truth inside their soul.”

“And to be involved with Paul McCartney is a huge deal to me.” McGraw felt the cost of the headphones should be affordable. They retail for $129.95 for an over-the-ear model and less than $50 for an in-ear version. —AP

Lifestyle FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2012

Marilyn Monroe

beckons film galaxy to Cannes 2012 D

ruggy roadtrips, soul-searching drama and stylish gangland flicks go head to head on the French Riviera next week as a galaxy of stars and directors converge for the Cannes film festival. David Cronenberg, Ken Loach and Michael Haneke headline the pick of 22 international filmmakers vying for the Palme d’Or award at the 65th edition of the world’s top cinema showcase from May 16 to 27. Star-wise, the 2012 line-up promises to dazzle with Nicole Kidman, Marion Cotillard, Jessica Chastain, Kylie Minogue, Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson and Brad Pitt just a few of the A-listers expected in town.

Hollywood icon Marilyn Monroe, who herself never walked the Cannes red carpet, was chosen as the face of this year’s filmfest in a tribute 50 years after her death. Palme d’Orwinner Nanni Moretti of Italy heads the jury, with help from eight jurors including the actor Ewan McGregor and fashion designer Jean Paul Gaultier. Festival general delegate Thierry Fremaux, who cherry-picked the selection from among almost 1,800 entries, was particularly excited about this year’s American crop. “These past few years American cinema has been split between two extremes, with big studio blockbusters on one side, and small independent movies on the other,” he told AFP. “There used to be a culture of mainstream auteur cinema, of grown-up auteur cinema.

That’s the cinema we should be seeing again this year.” US director Wes Anderson strikes a joyous keynote with Wednesday’s opening film “Moonrise Kingdom”, a pre-teen elopement story whose star-packed cast includes Bruce Willis as a small-town cop. Two US auteurs are running for Cannes gold: Lee Daniels’ keenly awaited “The Paperboy” stars Kidman opposite John Cusack and Zac Efron in the tale of a reporter investigating a death row case.

The second is Jeff Nichols, whose “Mud”, about two teenage boys who form a pact with a fugitive, was a surprise entry.

American stories loom large throughout the line-up, though often told by foreign direc-

tors. Canada’s Cronenberg brings Manhattan thriller “Cosmopolis”, adapted from Don DeLillo’s novel. It stars Robert Pattinson as a billionaire asset manager journeying through the city in a stretch limo.

Brazil’s Walter Salles has adapted Jack Kerouac’s cult novel “On the Road”, while Australians John Hillcoat and Andrew Dominik bring two US-set works: bootlegging drama “Lawless” and the mobster flick “Killing Them Softly”. Among the European giants, Austria’s Haneke will show “Amour” (Love), starring Isabelle Huppert as the daughter of a woman hit by a stroke. In the absence of Lars Von Trier-banned from last year’s festival after incendiary remarks about Hitler-fellow Dane Thomas Vinterberg injects a dose of icy Nordic drama with “The Hunt”.

Britain’s Loach returns for the 17th time with comedy “The Angel’s Share”, about exoffenders who turn to whisky-making.

One of three French filmmakers in the race, Jacques Audiard has cast Cotillard as a killer-whale trainer hit by a tragedy in “Rust and Bone”. Romania’s Cristian Mungiu, who scooped the 2007 Palme for a Communistera abortion drama, returns with “Beyond the Hills” about two orphans, while Italian Matteo Garrone takes on TV culture with “Reality”.

Asia gets a look-in with two South Koreans: Im Sang-soo with erotic thriller “Taste of Money”, and Hong Sang-soo with “In Another Country”. And Palme-winning Iranian Abbas Kiarostami returns at 71 with “Like Someone in Love”, a Japan-set tale about a student who works as a prostitute.

Cronenberg father and son will both be in Cannes, with Brandon Cronenberg showing his debut “Antiviral” in parallel new talent section “Un Certain Regard”, chaired by British actor and director Tim Roth.

Seventeen directors show work in that section, including the only two women in competition. Buzz-making films being screened out of competition include Philip Kaufman’s “Hemingway and Gellhorn”, with Kidman playing the writer’s war reporter third wife opposite Clive Owen. —AFP

George Clooney, Obama’s celebrity activist-in-chief

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eorge Clooney, who hosted a star-studded fundraiser for Barack Obama yesterday, is a Hollywood A-lister turned activist for liberal causes like Sudan, Haiti-and now the US leader’s reelection. The movie heartthrob’s $40,000-a-plate dinner is being tipped as possibly the biggest presidential fundraiser ever, bolstering Obama’s coffers to the tune of $12 million as he gears up for a fierce re-election fight. Clooney will welcome at least 150 people at his 7,400-square foot home in Studio City, where catering and security preparations have been underway for days. Locals are bracing for snarled traffic when the celebrities descend on Clooney’s mansion.

The 51-year-old Oscar-winning actor has long been used to turning heads, but his stature has been further enhanced by his campaigning activities of recent years, arguably making him Obama’s celebrity activist-in-chief. It is all a long way from the young actor who made his name as a doctor in TV medical

drama “ER” in the 1990s. Even though his first bigscreen lead role, in 1997’s “Batman and Robin,” was widely panned, Clooney became an A-list star with role in the high-seas blockbuster “The Perfect Storm” in 2000.

In that year he formed his own production company with director Steven Soderbergh, Section Eight Productions, and together they turned out such hits as 2001’s “Ocean’s Eleven,” followed by sequels in 2004 and 2007. But Clooney also broached more thoughtful fare like in the 2005 spy thriller “Syriana,” which earned him a best supporting actor Oscar, and the black-and-white film “Good Night, and Good Luck” about freedom of speech and governmental abuse of power. His growing political interests also came to the fore in last year’s primary season thriller “Ides of March,” while Hawaiian-set family drama “The Descendants” won a best adapted screenplay Oscar. —AFP

Actor George Clooney attends the White House Correspondents Association Dinner in Washington, DC, in this April 28, 2012 photo. —AFP

From Ewan

McGregor to Jean Paul Gaultier: The Cannes jury

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rom Ewan McGregor to Jean Paul Gaultier, here is the line-up of the jury, headed by Palme d’Or winner Nanni Moretti, that will call the shots at the 2012 Cannes film festival running from May 16 to 27.

Nanni Moretti, 58. The first nonAmerican to lead the jury since 2009, the high-brow Italian filmmaker has brought six films to Cannes over the years, including last year’s comedy “Habemus Papam” (“We Have a Pope”). His “Caro Diario” (“Dear Diary”) won best director in 1994, while “La stanza del figlio” (“The Son’s Room”) scooped the Palme d’Or, the filmfest’s top prize, in 2001.

Hiam Abbass, 51. The Palestinian actress is best known for her part in the 2008 “Lemon Tree” by Israel’s Eran Riklis, about saving a citrus grove from destruction.

Abbass, who speaks Arabic, Hebrew, French and English, has just finished directing her first feature film, entitled “Heritage”.

Andrea Arnold, 51. The British filmmaker’s first two feature films-”Red Road” in 2006 and “Fish Tank” in 2009 — both won the jury prize at Cannes. Her third, adapted from Emile Bronte’s “Wuthering Heights”, hit screens last year.

Emmanuelle Devos, 48. An icon of French auteur cinema, Devos has worked closely with director Arnaud Desplechin, but is best known abroad for her part in Jacques Audiard’s 2001 thriller “Read my Lips”.

Jean Paul Gaultier, 60. The only juror from outside the film industry, the French fashion designer known for his trademark kinky corsets and mariner’s stripes is a lifelong film-buff, who has created costumes for the likes Pedro Almodovar and Luc Besson.

Diane Kruger, 35. The German-born model got her break as a Hollywood actress in the 2004 blockbuster “Troy”. She went on to star in Quentin Tarantino’s Nazi-bashing “Inglourious Basterds”, which competed for the Palme d’Or in 2009. Kruger is currently on screen as Marie Antoinette in “Farewell My Queen”, a drama set around the French Revolution.

Ewan McGregor, 41. The Scottish actor shot to fame as a roguish junkie in Danny Boyle’s dark comedy “Trainspotting” in 1996.

Since then his screen roles have swept from the Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi in George Lucas’ “Star Wars” prequel trilogy, to the eponymous “Ghost Writer” in Roman Polanski’s 2010 thriller.

Alexander Payne, 51. The US filmmaker is known for such bittersweet comedies as the 2002 “Monsieur Schmidt” with Jack Nicholson, or the vineyard-set roadtrip “Sideways”, which earned him an Oscar two years later. The director, who is of Greek descent, scooped another screenwriting Oscar this year for “The Descendants”, a Hawaii-based family drama starring George Clooney.

Raoul Peck, 59. The award-winning Haitian director, who grew up between Congo, France, Germany and the United States, served briefly as Haiti’s culture minister in the 1990s. His film credits include “The Man by the Shore” in 1993 and the 2000 documentary “Lumumba” about the Congolese president. —AFP

Lifestyle FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2012

Harry Potter coming world to Japan J

Twin actors James and Oliver Phelps (C-R and C-L) — who played as Fred and George Weasley in all Harry Potter movies, Warner Bros Consumer Products president Brad Globe (L), Universal Studios Japan president Glenn Gumpel (2nd L) and Universal parks and Resorts Global Business Development president Michael Silver during an announcement at a press presentation in Osaka on May 10, 2012. — AFP

Joshua Ledet wows ‘American Idol’ judges

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ackstage at “American Idol,” Hollie Cavanagh was bubbly and confident, practicing vocal riffs and giggling with fellow teenage contestant Jessica Sanchez. By the show’s end Wednesday, Cavanagh was the sole finalist to be found wanting by the judges - and

In this May 3, 2012 photo released by Fox, the remaining competitors from the singing competition series, ‘American Idol,’ from left, Phillip Phillips, Hollie Cavanaugh, Josh Ledet and Jessica Sanchez, are shown in Los Angeles. — AP

possibly by the viewers who decide which singer will exit. “Sorry, baby,” judges Steven Tyler and Jennifer Lopez both told Cavanagh, 18, of McKinney, Texas, after she delivered a version of Bonnie Raitt’s “I Can’t Make You Love Me” that they found emotionally wanting and unsuited to her big voice. She won praise for her performance of Journey’s “Faithfully,” but her three competitors all drew undiluted acclaim from Tyler, Lopez and Randy Jackson.

“Neither man nor woman has sang that good with that much compassion, ever,” Tyler told gospel singer Joshua Ledet, 20, of Westlake, La., after his performance of James Brown’s “It’s a Man’s World.” Ledet’s take on Josh Groban’s “You Raise Me Up” also had the judges cheering. Sanchez, 16, of San Diego, earned her own show of respect for versions of Etta James’ “Steal Away” and Jennifer Holliday’s “And I’m Telling You (I’m Not Going).” “You’re just one of the best,” Lopez told her. For soulful Phillip Phillips, 21, of Leesburg, Ga., the raves came for performances of Creedence Clearwater Revival’s “Have You Ever Seen the Rain?” and “Volcano”

by Damien Rice.

“I love you because you’re your own guy, said Jackson, adding: “Amazing.” Who will claim victory at the show’s May 24 finale? The impressive field makes a prediction impossible, according to one judge. “It seems like it’s gonna be a real race to the finish. I don’t know who’s gonna win,” said Lopez, who’s scheduled to perform, along with 2008 “Idol” winner David Cook.

If the tight race is causing a rift among the singers, it didn’t show Wednesday as they clowned around with each other between performances. But the youngest contestant, Sanchez, showed the pressure as she waited to perform “Steal Away.” She sat quietly backstage, her face tense and her foot bobbing slightly. Then she went out and wowed the crowd. — AP

apanese fans of boy wizard Harry Potter will soon be able to explore the magical world of Hogwarts when Universal Studios Japan expands its theme park with a half-billion dollar investment. The company is going to boost the footprint of its park in Osaka, western Japan, by one fifth, with new attraction The Wizarding World of Harry Potter slated to open in 2014, a spokesman said Thursday.

“We will build several attractions, including a school for wizards,” he said. The company later added a recreation of wizarding village Hogsmeade would be among the attractions. James and Oliver Phelps, who played the Weasley twins in the Harry Potter movies, were greeted by dozens of Harry Potter fans dressed as characters from JK Rowling’s books at the official announcement in Osaka. The blockbuster series has been a huge success in Japan, sparking long queues of costume-clad fans at bookstores every time the Japanese translation of a new novel was released.

Cinematic releases of each instalment have also proved wildly popular. The Harry Potter commercial juggernaut, with its seven books, eight films and huge merchandising operation, has made made author Rowling a millionaire many times over. Brad Globe of Warner Brothers, the studio behind the movie franchise, said the Universal Studios Japan expansion was a boon for Harry buffs.

“Harry Potter continues to captivate generations of fans around the world and we are delighted to announce this partnership... that will allow us to bring the magic of The Wizarding World of Harry Potter to Asia,” he said. “We think this is the perfectly timed next step in bringing the magical world of Harry Potter to life for even more fans.” The operator of Universal Studios Japan, which opened in 2001, is a private firm licensed by the US Universal group. It has attractions featuring Sesame Street, Peter Pan’s Neverland, and the Land of Oz, among others. —AFP

Ashton Gresham and his sister Georgia, step great grandchildren of author C. S. Lewis, read their famous relative’s books during the preview for ‘The Chronicles of Narnia: The Exhibition’ at the Powerhouse Museum in Sydney yesterday. Based on the popular film series and C.S. Lewis’ timeless children’s books, the exhibition features over 150 costumes, creatures, characters, props and set dressings from the film trilogy. — AFP

Lifestyle FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2012

Celebrity hairdresser

Vidal Sassoon

dies at 84

British artist Marc Quinn poses in front of his work ‘The shadows of the clouds’, on the eve of his exhibition ‘The Littoral Zone’ at the Oceanographic museum of Monaco, yesterday in Monaco. This exhibition, running from tomorrow to October 15, 2012, will unveil numerous Marc Quinn’s paintings, sculptures and installations. — AFP

A model presents a creation by UK Vidal Sassoon Academy as part of the Hair Brazil Fashion Show, in Sao Paulo, Brazil, on March 25, 2012. —AFP

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ioneering British celebrity hairdresser Vidal Sassoon died Wednesday at his California home, the Los Angeles Police Department said. He was 84. Officers were called to his home on Mulholland Drive in Bel Air. He appeared to have died of natural causes, said LAPD spokesman Kevin Maiberger. Family members were present at the time, police said. Referred to by some as the “founder of hairdressing,” Sassoon is said to have pioneered the bob haircut and, after opening his first salon in London, launched a network of outlets around the world.

Sassoon, who grew up in England, had reportedly been fighting leukemia, according to the LA Times, although no further details were immediately available on the cause of death. The flamboyant hairstylist, who launched a successful hair-care product range with the slogan “If you don’t look good, we don’t look good,” had lived in the United States since the 1980s. He was famed for so-called “wash and wear” cuts, easy to maintain, as opposed to the rigid hairstyles of earlier eras. “When I first came into hair, women were coming in and you’d place a hat on their hair and you’d dress their hair around it,” he told the LA Times in a 1999 interview.

“We learned to put discipline in the haircuts by using actual geometry, actual architectural shapes and bone structure. The cut had to be perfect and layered beautifully, so that when a woman shook it, it just fell back in.” Born to Jewish parents in London, Sassoon spent seven years in a Jewish orphanage after his father, Jack Sassoon, abandoned his family for another woman, according to the IMDb movie industry database. His father’s family was from Thessalonniki, Greece and his mother’s family was from Spain. He was evacuated to the English countryside during World War II, and fought for Israeli in Arab-Israeli War in 1948. He later founded the Vidal Sassoon International Study for Anti-Semitism.

Sassoon opened his first salon in 1954 in London, and his career took off in the swinging 60s, when his clients included Mia Farrow for “Rosemary’s Baby” in 1968 and Glenda Jackson for her Oscar-winning role in 1969’s “Women in Love.” A 2010 documentary “Vidal Sassoon: The Movie” explored his life from London’s impoverished East End via an orphanage to his fame and fortune as hairdresser to the stars. Sassoon, who married four times, was awarded the Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 2009 Queen’s Birthday Honors List for his services to British hairdressing and charity. He was a life-long fan of Chelsea Football Club. Sassoon is survived by his fourth wife Rhonda and three children from a previous marriage. — AFP

Van Gogh museum

unveils new willow watercolor

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young Vincent van Gogh was so struck by a dead willow leaning “lonely and melancholy” over a pond near The Hague that he knew at once he had to paint it. “I’m going to attack it tomorrow morning,” he wrote to his brother Theo on July 26, 1882. The Van Gogh Museum unveiled the painting yesterday, the first addition in five years to its world-famous collection of works by the postimpressionist master.

At a time when the artist was still honing his skills in perspective, anatomy and proportion using pen and pencil sketches, the watercolor was a bolt from the blue, although its muted tones are still a far cry from the exuberant and colorful oil paintings that characterized Van Gogh’s later works.

“It’s a very elaborate, well done watercolor and that’s quite extraordinary in this period of Van Gogh’s oeuvre,” said Marije Vellekoop, the museum’s curator of prints and drawings.

“Out of the blue, in the summer, in July, he makes a series of watercolors ... with a lot of detail, but also very painterly, fluent.”The willow trunk droops over the water and a path wends its way to the horizon, where a windmill stands near a railroad depot. Not unusually for a Dutch summer, gray clouds dominate the sky, but Van Gogh also captured the occasional splash of deep blue as the clouds broke. The sky was almost identical yesterday morning - low gray clouds scudding over the landmark Amsterdam museum - as director Axel Rueger revealed the painting to the media.

Rueger said the painting, bought at auction in London earlier this year for ?1.5 million ($1.9 million), filled a gap in

This photo released by the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam, Netherlands, yesterday, shows an 1882 water colour of a pollard willow by Vincent van Gogh from his early Dutch period. —AP the museum’s collection of Van Gogh works. “What’s so special is it is for the first time a rather substantial work that he executes in color,” Rueger told The Associated Press. “It comes from a very small group of works he makes at the time and we didn’t have anything like that in our collection.” For now, it will hang at the Van Gogh Museum. Later this year it and dozens of other paintings will be shifted across the Amstel River to the Hermitage Amsterdam while the Van Gogh Museum closes for several months for renovations.

Van Gogh wrote enthusiastically to

Theo a few days after completing the painting, and included a sketch. The letter, on faded brown paper, hangs next to the completed painting in the museum. In it, Van Gogh says he considers the willow the best of a series of watercolors he painted that summer. “I think he was very happy with the result and he was also confident that he could also work with color,” said Vellekoop. — AP

Te c h n o l o g y FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2012

Let the games begin

Role-playing fever strikes with new PC games

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ith summer time approaching, thoughts might not naturally turn to computer roleplaying games, but that hasn’t stopped three major titles from releasing sequels. That means PC gamers will have to choose between summer weather; a fantasy adventure with Risen 2: Dark Waters; a multiplayer game of the masses, Tera; or pure action with Diablo 3.

And there’s more. Fans of classic dungeon games can spend time with the exotic Legend of Grimrock.

And if you’re still not happy, there’s a motocross race game, Mud: FIM Motocross World Championship.

Risen 2: Dark Waters takes players on a sabre-rattling adventure through the Caribbean. In true Monkey Island style, the game revolves around pirates, with a

story based on rum, honour and sea monsters. Both PC and console versions are planned.

This time, the nameless hero is on the trail of mysterious deep-sea monsters threatening the islands. For the first time, players have guns. And the gnomes, who until now have just been in the background, can be recruited as helpers. Developers at Piranha Bytes have also put some effort into the animation. Sword fights now allow players more options, from classical fencing to dirty tricks - which include pulling a gun, punching and kicking.

Players can also decide if they want to act in alliance with the pirates, the Inquisition or the natives as they seek to solve the puzzle. The game costs 45 euros (60 dollars) for PCs, 50 euros for consoles. The

old faithful of action/role-playing games is going into its third round on May 15 when Diablo 3 hits shelves.

When the game starts, players can choose between one of five different character classes: barbarian, witch doctor, wizard, monk or demon hunter. Unlike in predecessor versions, the hero’s guild does not stay hidden in dark catacombs this time, but comes out into the daylight of Sanktuario, meaning the players have to fight hordes of monsters and colossal opponents while solving tricky puzzles.

Just like in Diablo 2, the world of play is randomly generated, so that players can always explore new combinations. A specialized physics engine means that characters can realistically interact with opponents and the environment. Thanks to Battle.net, also owned by the developers, multi-player games are possible. The gruesome role-playing game, recommended for players aged 16 and up, costs about 55 euros The Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game (MMORPG) Tera comes from South Korea. Tera is actually an acronym for The Exiled Realms of Arborage.

The fantasy role-playing game gives players the option to pick a character from seven different ethnic groups and eight different classes. The team has opted to use the graphics engine used by Unreal 3, which allows a very detailed and effects-rich gaming world.

Recommended for players aged 12 and up, it costs about 45 euros. The retro role-playing game Legend of Grimrock requires players to lead a band of four through dark dungeons and halls. Characters are operated from a first-person perspective and, in a delightful retro throwback, can only pivot in 90-degree turns.

Along with fussy combination puzzles, players also have to deal with awful creatures hiding in every corner. Numerous weapons and shields are hidden behind multiple hidden doors, each with their own well-hidden locks. The game is recommended for players aged 16 and up and can be downloaded for 13 euros from Steam.

And racing fans also have something to look forward to with Mud: FIM Motocross World Championship. It lets them take on the role of motocross legends like Tony Cairoli and Ken Roczen to tear up one of the 12 stretches of the official Motocross World Championships. Players also have the choice between 14 different models of motorcycle.

And there’s a novel twist: during the race the ground can actually get torn up. A PC version for 35 euros is planned, as well as Playstation and XBox versions for about 45 euros each. — dpa

Stars

FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2012

Aries (March 21-April 19) This is a very lucky day for making plans or decisions and finding your way through just about any problem you may discover. Positive energies are available with respect to love and money. You feel successful and able to handle difficult situations. Good advice from a guide or older person may be forthcoming. Social plans can be made for this evening and new contacts will boost career prospects. There is a growing sense of self-confidence. You could do well in politics or community endeavors. Others will find your basic fairness and evenhandedness helpful where there are political concerns—regardless of the candidate. You can be direct, candid and to the point, sometimes a little bit harsh—this energy always is concerned with truth.

Taurus (April 20-May 20) Your attitude is one full of optimism now making this an excellent time to work toward a raise or a promotion, to plan a trip or take a vacation. You are likely to hear some good news regarding something of importance today. Your sensitivity to others has improved but there are possibilities of being deluded—pay close attention. You will gain great success and attention through your professional life. Being in the spotlight is common to you during this time and you should realize that it is a good time to be humble and see where you can be of most help. You may look to the social setting to improve your professional standing. You should rely on your natural abilities to succeed in all your affairs. There is inner harmony in a love relationship now.

Gemini (May 21-June 20) You may expend a great deal of effort to secure finances now.

This may come about through associations you have with people in important positions. Careful—it might be a little too easy to spend newfound finances unwisely during this time. Care and prudent thought must be given to the practical use of money. This is also a day in which all relationships can be exalted. Besides being creative and affectionate, you are very sociable. This is a period of personal growth. You want to reshape the world and help others. This feeling will extend to love interests. There is deep self-understanding and this instills an element of practicality in romantic endeavors. You will not be deluded by this day. Companionship with others is most rewarding.

Cancer (June 21-July 22) You may not be able to communicate as clearly as you would like today. This may be the day you are called on to teach or talk about something in which you would like to have more understanding.

Initiate any changes that you think would better serve your purpose.

Financial gain through speculation looks positive but you must take care in how you allocate the benefits or money that you receive. Study and mental self-control are in the picture now. There is likely to be an emphasis on reading, writing, studying and all forms of information exchange. This will all serve as a path for personal as well as professional development. On the home front . . . an upcoming marriage, birth or reunion may happen sooner than you think.

Leo (July 23-August 22) In the workplace there may be plenty of challenges. However, you seem to be the one that can find the answer or at least point others to the right direction. Helping others may be what interests you the most right now. You are very creative in many ways and it takes someone with lots of creativity to be helpful to other people. If you deal with the public, you may need more breaks than the average allocated times—take every opportunity to refurbish your energies. There are optimism, there is faith and there is a tendency to take chances at the deepest emotional levels particularly when it comes to your personal life. This afternoon you may enjoy working with plants around home. Activities with friends will help to work off any of the stress from work.

Virgo (August 23-September 22) With positive zeal to burn today you could promote any idea, project or even yourself. The results and reactions of others will be positive. The changes you have been thinking of making for today, tomorrow and the next day may need to be thought through carefully. There are positive aspects now, but if you act too quickly you could find yourself wanting to take back your ideas or choices—have a plan. This is the time to push for a raise, new job or a vacation. A new romance may enter the picture.

Expect interruptions and criticisms from others this afternoon—they will help and teach you. You have a deep respect for knowledge and wisdom and may enjoy the insights that an older person will bring into your life today.

COUNTRY CODES Libra (September 23-October 22) Although the workday flows easily enough, your mood may be pensive. Cleaning up your work area and organizing your thoughts may take up much time this morning. There is some involvement in the promotion and publication of a booklet, memo or some other form of written material this afternoon. There are job improvements, safety hints and other ideas that members of a group, business or club have submitted recently. A round table discussion may produce a creative idea for future business opportunities as well as some incentives regarding employees. You will be helping to organize a creative idea for profit. You find yourself feeling more private and in a stay-at-home mood this evening. This is a good afternoon to spend time with family.

Scorpio (October 23-November 21) This is a good time to complete projects or resolve business problems. The longer you wait, the more things can go wrong.

You are filled with an urge to work hard and get things done. Do not put off tomorrow what you can do today—then you can be truly relaxed. During this time, additional responsibilities are placed on you in the context of the home setting—which you actually will enjoy. Also, you should open up to relatives since it is a good time to seek emotional support. Any previous conflicts between you and a family member will be healed this day. Understanding of loved ones is heightened. Don’t be surprised if someone comes to you for help—you have learned to listen very well. This is a good evening to just listen to music.

Sagittarius (November 22-December 21) Consciously, plan and take extra time to stay organized with projects for now. The instinct to be powerful and in control seems strong.

This may lead to a greater interest in investing. There are all sorts of communication interactions today along with lecturing, teaching or learning a new technique. You seem to have a good command of the English language with the willingness to excel. You could resist someone’s ideas today and it might be a good idea to look at your reasoning. This is an aesthetic and artistic time to be sure, but it is also a practical and materialistic time. You have developed a keen appreciation for the value of things, including the money it takes to buy them. A social gathering this evening will find you at your most elegant.

Capricorn (December 22-January 19) Interaction with co-workers may bring about inspirations.

Group discussions before beginning the workday may clear the air of any problems and create inspirations leading to better business.

Important acquisitions and projects demanding your attention will have the right direction with your care and attention. Choose people to be on your team that have the winner’s circle in their vision. You merge your natural ability of taking control with your sensitivity to create a positive result to any complicated matter. Plan a get together of co-worker friends at the noon meal—business matters can be left behind. This may involve the beginning of an exercise group or a sports team. There is a sense of harmony this evening while walking with nature.

Aquarius (January 20- February 18) Circumstances may seem to conspire to push you into successful creative efforts today. Your sense of humor shines and a drift between you and another employee disappears today. Do not push your point of view too strongly. There may be some serious decisions made about the future of a project, investment or term of employment with your business at this time. The results of your efforts are successful, mainly because of your infectious good attitude. If you concentrate on whatever task is at hand, you usually excel. Your artistic and creative side can be enjoyed this evening. You may be more interested in relaxing and enjoying your surroundings, rather than passing them by in such a hurry. Enjoy music with a loved one this evening.

Pisces (February 19-March 20) Much attention will be given to some special program, project or other business matter. This is a time you will need to be a bit more flexible and agree to be moved from your own duties to help another co-worker or higher-up. You have powerful energies spilling into your life today helping you to make a positive difference with the choices you make and guiding you in ways that help others. Team spirit is valued, along with anything group oriented. You may get away from the routine this afternoon by finding something completely different to enjoy for a change—return of independence. However, make sure both your expectations and abilities are realistic before diving into something you may not be able to get out of without a great deal of frustration.

Afghanistan 0093 Albania 00355 Algeria 00213 Andorra 00376 Angola 00244 Anguilla 001264 Antiga 001268 Argentina 0054 Armenia 00374 Australia 0061 Austria 0043 Bahamas 001242 Bahrain 00973 Bangladesh 00880 Barbados 001246 Belarus 00375 Belgium 0032 Belize 00501 Benin 00229 Bermuda 001441 Bhutan 00975 Bolivia 00591 Bosnia 00387 Botswana 00267 Brazil 0055 Brunei 00673 Bulgaria 00359 Burkina 00226 Burundi 00257 Cambodia 00855 Cameroon 00237 Canada 001 Cape Verde 00238 Cayman Islands 001345 Central African Republic 00236 Chad 00235 Chile 0056 China 0086 Colombia 0057 Comoros 00269 Congo 00242 Cook Islands 00682 Costa Rica 00506 Croatia 00385 Cuba 0053 Cyprus 00357 Cyprus (Northern) 0090392 Czech Republic 00420 Denmark 0045 Diego Garcia 00246 Djibouti 00253 Dominica 001767 Dominican Republic 001809 Ecuador 00593 Egypt 0020 El Salvador 00503 England (UK) 0044 Equatorial Guinea 00240 Eritrea 00291 Estonia 00372 Ethiopia 00251 Falkland Islands 00500 Faroe Islands 00298 Fiji 00679 Finland 00358 France 0033 French Guiana 00594 French Polynesia 00689 Gabon 00241 Gambia 00220 Georgia 00995 Germany 0049 Ghana 00233 Gibraltar 00350 Greece 0030 Greenland 00299 Grenada 001473 Guadeloupe 00590 Guam 001671 Guatemala 00502 Guinea 00224 Guyana 00592 Haiti 00509 Holland (Netherlands)0031 Honduras 00504 Hong Kong 00852 Hungary 0036 Ibiza (Spain) 0034 Iceland 00354 India 0091 Indian Ocean 00873 Indonesia 0062 Iran 0098 Iraq 00964 Ireland 00353 Italy 0039 Ivory Coast 00225 Jamaica 001876 Japan 0081 Jordan 00962 Kazakhstan 007 Kenya 00254 Kiribati 00686

Kuwait 00965 Kyrgyzstan 00996 Laos 00856 Latvia 00371 Lebanon 00961 Liberia 00231 Libya 00218 Lithuania 00370 Luxembourg 00352 Macau 00853 Macedonia 00389 Madagascar 00261 Majorca 0034 Malawi 00265 Malaysia 0060 Maldives 00960 Mali 00223 Malta 00356 Marshall Islands 00692 Martinique 00596 Mauritania 00222 Mauritius 00230 Mayotte 00269 Mexico 0052 Micronesia 00691 Moldova 00373 Monaco 00377 Mongolia 00976 Montserrat 001664 Morocco 00212 Mozambique 00258 Myanmar (Burma) 0095 Namibia 00264 Nepal 00977 Netherlands (Holland)0031 Netherlands Antilles 00599 New Caledonia 00687 New Zealand 0064 Nicaragua 00505 Nigar 00227 Nigeria 00234 Niue 00683 Norfolk Island 00672 Northern Ireland (UK)0044 North Korea 00850 Norway 0047 Oman 00968 Pakistan 0092 Palau 00680 Panama 00507 Papua New Guinea 00675 Paraguay 00595 Peru 0051 Philippines 0063 Poland 0048 Portugal 00351 Puerto Rico 001787 Qatar 00974 Romania 0040 Russian Federation 007 Rwanda 00250 Saint Helena 00290 Saint Kitts 001869 Saint Lucia 001758 Saint Pierre 00508 Saint Vincent 001784 Samoa US 00684 Samoa West 00685 San Marino 00378 Sao Tone 00239 Saudi Arabia 00966 Scotland (UK) 0044 Senegal 00221 Seychelles 00284 Sierra Leone 00232 Singapore 0065 Slovakia 00421 Slovenia 00386 Solomon Islands 00677 Somalia 00252 South Africa 0027 South Korea 0082 Spain 0034 Sri Lanka 0094 Sudan 00249 Suriname 00597 Swaziland 00268 Sweden 0046 Switzerland 0041 Syria 00963 Taiwan 00886 Tanzania 00255 Thailand 0066 Toga 00228 Tonga 00676 Tokelau 00690 Trinidad 001868 Tunisia 00216 Turkey 0090 Tuvalu 00688 Uganda 00256 Ukraine 00380 United Arab Emirates00976

W h a t ’s O n FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2012

A celebration of contemporary trends Pakistan fashion extravaganza

T

he recently held Pakistan Fashion Extravaganza, organized and executed by the members of the Pakistan Women’s Forum of Kuwait, in collaboration with Fashioneastas.com and Designers Lounge Dubai, proved to be an evening of highfashion and sheer glamour. This was the very first time that fashion trends from Pakistan have ever been put on display in Kuwait, and what a well-received performance it turned out to be. The featured designers were Sana Abbas, Naz Junaid, Waseem Noor, Lubna Elahi, Maharani, Alishae and Uzma Hai Attended by over 200 ladies at the Holiday Inn in Salmiya on April 27, the perfectly executed gala event offered a brilliant showcasing of contemporary designer couture from eight very talented designers of Pakistan. Flowing fabrics, bold colors and modern cuts, accentuated with traditional hand-worked embroideries, were carried on stage by beautiful, professionally trained models, leaving the audience dazzled not only with Swarovski and diamante encrusted formal designs, but also practical and casual every day pret. The complete array of outfits on display offered an excellent representation of modern Pakistani fashion.

The guest of honor of the event was Shaikha Hessa Al-Salam AlSabah. The event was attended by Dr. Husna Iftikhar, wife of the Pakistani Ambassador to Kuwait, as well as wives of the ambassadors of Republic of Bangladesh (Punam Shahad), Republic of Nepal (Sita Paudel), Republic of Sri Lanka( Jayalakshimi Marry Ann Wijeratne), Mynamar (Mu Mu Cho), Brunei Dar al Salam (Pengiran Muspapa Aliuddin), Republic of Indonesia (Eva Adamhar), Republic of Korea (Hee Sookkim).

The organizing committee added further interest to the evening’s program by treating the audience to a choreographed dance act, similar to that which is performed at a ‘mehndi’ (henna) ceremony during traditional Pakistani wedding festivities. The dance, performed by a group of young Pakistani school girls was an

energetic and wonderfully coordinated effort to show-case another aspect of Pakistan’s rich culture. The performance was aptly closed by a beautiful visual display of a complete and elaborate Pakistani bridal ensemble.

Highlights of the event also included an exciting raffle draw where many lucky guests won various fabulous prizes. Due to the generous contributions of the event’s sponsors, the list of prizes included mobile phones, free salon sessions, gift hampers as well as dinner vouchers at various hotels in Kuwait.

The event was sponsored and supported by Kuwait Bahrain Exchange Company, Western Union, Spring Flows, Chash of India Salon, Strands Salon, Alghanim Electronics, Toni and Guy, Fashioneastas.com, and Sheraton Hotel.

At the end of the evening, guests were given the unique opportunity to purchase the glamorous outfits and place custom orders as well. Proceeds from this event have been directed towards charities working to improve educational opportunities for underprivileged children.

Efforts of the PWF organizing committee demand praise and appreciation for putting together such a wonderfully executed and wholesome representation of their country and culture. The success of their first event makes it safe to say that the ladies in Kuwait are now looking forward to attending similar exciting events under the PWF banner in the future.

PWF-Kuwait is a non-profit organization founded in 2006 by Mrs Yasmeen Muzaffar with the concept that women can make a significant contribution to society alongside the International community to achieve their common goals and is affiliated with the Pakistani Embassy in Kuwait. The current president is Yasmin Mirza, and her executive committee includes Shaheen Rizvi (Vice President), Fauzia Patel (Executive council member), Uzma Nadeem(Treasurer), Saira Zobair,(Executive council member), Saira Khan (General

NAFO anniversary ‘Samagamam’ today

Birthday greetings

W

ishing a happy birthday to our son Aromal Sunil who celebrated his third birthday on May 9,2012. Wishes come from Achu (Sunil), Dhanya (Amma), Uncle (Anil, Arun, Anu, Jiju, Manoj and grandfather Bashkaran.

Secretary) and Munira Shariff (Executive council member) Over the years PWF has contributed its fair share in promoting Pakistani culture and improving the image of our women as motivated and committed towards making a difference in the lives of the less fortunate. It has also supported the welfare of women in Pakistan. The members have made considerable strides in all fields of cultural and social activities organized by various associations in Kuwait.

This has helped them to generate funds for a worthy cause. With the induction of fresh, young and enthusiastic members, PWF will continue to forge ahead in their mission to uphold this beacon of light. PWF is actively involved in charitable causes both in Kuwait and in Pakistan, as well as other countries where relief support has been required.

Fashioneastas.com is an online boutique founded by Ziana Sakhia in 2010. Ziana currently resides in Kuwait and is an active member of the PWF. In a short span of two years, Fashioneastas.com has become a globally recognized boutique featuring eastern prÍt and couture designer collections catering to clients all over the world. Their collections are fashionable, yet affordable. Fashioneastas.com allows customers living across the globe a chance to shop for a wide variety of trendy, Pakistani designer clothing from the comfort of their home. They currently feature 9 fashion designers, as well as designers for shoes and clutches.

Designers Lounge Dubai is independent luxury boutique and houses designer prÍt porter apparel from over fifty top Pakistani and Indian designers. It was established in 2000, by Razia and Nadir Shariff, when they realized the need for a store where ladies could purchase the latest collection of ready to wear designer outfits.

Their motto has been to showcase “Affordable Wearable Designer Outfits” and is renowned for launching upcoming designers and making them household names in the Fashion industry.

N

AFO Kuwait (National Forum Kuwait) will celebrate its 9th anniversary today at the American International School, MaidanHawally, at 6.30 pm. T K A Nair, the adviser to the Prime Minister of India, has arrived in Kuwait yesterday to attend the event as the chief guest.

Indian Ambassador Satish C Mehta will be the guest of honor. Well-known Mohiniyattam exponent and recipient of many awards Vinita

Nedungady, popular Malayalam playback singer Rajalakshmi and violinist and promising playback singer Vivekanandan also arrived here yesterday to perform during the cultural extravaganza ‘Samagamam’. Touted as a nostalgic event of harmony and festivity, ‘Samagamam’ will showcase a multi-dimensional visual experience before the audience. For more details, please contact: contact@nafoglobal.org

TV Listings FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2012

00:45 Untamed & Uncut 01:40 Maneaters 02:35 Wild Britain With Ray Mears 03:00 Wild Britain With Ray Mears 03:30 The Snake Buster 03:55 The Snake Buster 04:25 Wildest Africa 05:20 Wildlife SOS 05:45 Escape To Chimp Eden 06:10 Last Chance Highway 07:00 Echo And The Elephants Of Amboseli 07:25 Baby Planet 08:15 Dick ‘n’ Dom Go Wild 08:40 Extraordinary Dogs 09:10 Dogs/Cats/Pets 101 10:05 Wildest Africa 11:00 Animal Precinct 11:55 Animal Cops South Africa 12:50 Vet On The Loose 13:15 Vet On The Loose 13:45 Wild Africa Rescue 14:10 Wildlife SOS 14:40 Wildest Africa 15:30 Echo And The Elephants Of Amboseli 16:00 Dick ‘n’ Dom Go Wild 16:30 Growing Up...

17:25 Dogs/Cats/Pets 101 18:20 America’s Cutest...

19:15 Wildlife SOS 19:40 Escape To Chimp Eden 20:10 Great Ocean Adventures 21:05 Wildest Africa 22:00 Killer Crocs 22:55 I Was Bitten 23:50 K9 Cops

00:00 Newsday 00:30 Asia Business Report 00:45 Sport Today 01:00 Newsday 01:30 Asia Business Report 01:45 Sport Today 02:00 Newsday 02:30 Asia Business Report 02:45 Sport Today 03:00 Newsday 03:30 Hardtalk 04:00 BBC World News 04:30 World Business Report 04:45 BBC World News 05:00 BBC World News 05:30 World Business Report 05:45 BBC World News 06:00 BBC World News 06:30 World Business Report 06:45 Sport Today 07:00 BBC World News 07:30 World Business Report 07:45 Sport Today 08:00 BBC World News 08:30 Hardtalk 09:00 BBC World News 09:30 World Business Report 09:45 Sport Today 10:00 BBC World News 10:30 BBC World News 11:00 GMT With George Alagiah 11:30 GMT With George Alagiah 12:00 BBC World News 12:30 World Business Report 12:45 Sport Today 13:00 Impact 13:30 Our World 14:00 Impact 14:30 World Business Report 14:45 Sport Today 15:00 World Have Your Say 15:30 World Have Your Say 16:00 The Hub With Nik Gowing 16:30 The Hub With Nik Gowing 16:40 Weekend World 17:00 The Hub With Nik Gowing 17:30 World Business Report 17:45 Sport Today 18:00 World News Today With Zeinab Badawi 18:30 World Have Your Say Extra 18:40 Weekend World 19:00 BBC World News 19:30 Middle East Business Report 20:00 BBC World News America 20:30 World Football Focus 21:00 BBC World News 21:30 Sport Today 21:40 Weekend World 22:00 BBC World News America 22:30 Our World 23:00 BBC World News 23:30 Newsnight

00:30 01:20 02:10 03:00 03:25 03:50 04:15 04:40 05:05 05:30 05:55 06:00 06:25 06:50 07:15 07:40 08:05 08:55 09:45 10:35 11:25 11:50 12:15 13:05 13:30 13:55 14:20 14:45 15:35 16:25 17:15 17:40 18:05 18:30 18:55 19:20 19:45 20:10 21:00 21:25 21:50 22:00 22:50 23:15 23:40

Bakugan: New Vestroia Powerpuff Girls Courage The Cowardly Dog The Amazing World Of Gumball Ben 10 Adventure Time Powerpuff Girls Generator Rex Ben 10: Ultimate Alien Ben 10: Ultimate Alien Angelo Rules Casper’s Scare School Eliot Kid The Amazing World Of Gumball Adventure Time Regular Show Grim Adventures Of...

Courage The Cowardly Dog Ben 10: Ultimate Alien Powerpuff Girls Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated Ed, Edd n Eddy Ben 10: Alien Force Bakugan: Gundalian Invaders Redakai: Conquer The Kairu Camp Lazlo Powerpuff Girls Angelo Rules Grim Adventures Of...

The Amazing World Of Gumball Adventure Time Regular Show Ben 10 Bakugan: Mechtanium Surge Hero 108 Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated Courage The Cowardly Dog Ben 10: Alien Force The Powerpuff Girls Cow And Chicken Codename: Kids Next Door Ben 10 Ben 10 Chowder

00:00 Fading Of The Cries-18 02:00 The Grudge 3-18 04:00 Sanctum-18 06:00 Game Of Death-PG15 08:00 The Librarian: The Curse Of Judas Chalice-PG15 10:00 Snake In The Eagle’s Shadow-PG15 12:00 Tracker-PG15 14:00 The Librarian: The Curse Of Judas Chalice-PG15 16:00 No Time To Fear-PG15 18:00 Tracker-PG15 20:00 The Spirit-PG15 22:00 Thick As Thieves-18

00:45 02:30 05:30 07:15 PG15 09:00 11:00 13:00 15:00 17:00 PG15 19:00 21:00 23:00

08:00 08:10 08:25 08:50 09:15 09:40 10:05 10:30 10:55 Heroes 11:20

Lost Boys: The Thirst-18 My Name Is Khan-PG15 Africa United-PG15 Elle: A Modern Cinderella TaleJustice For Natalee Holloway-PG15 Spud-PG15 Miles From Nowhere-PG15 Stonehenge Apocalypse-PG15 The LXD: The Uprising BeginsEasy A-PG15 The American-18 Season Of The Witch-PG15

Phineas And Ferb Phineas And Ferb Pair Of Kings Iron Man Armored Adventures Iron Man Armored Adventures I’m In The Band Phineas And Ferb Kid vs Kat The Avengers: Earths Mightiest Aaron Stone

11:45 12:10 12:35 13:00 13:25 13:45 14:10 14:35 15:00 15:25 15:50 16:15 16:40 17:05 17:30 17:55 18:20 18:45 19:10 19:35 20:00 20:25 20:50 21:20 21:45 Heroes 22:10 22:35 23:00

Rekkit Rabbit American Dragon Kick Buttowski Phineas And Ferb I’m In The Band Kid vs Kat Pair Of Kings Zeke & Luther Rekkit Rabbit Pokemon: Black And White Timon And Pumbaa Kickin It Pair Of Kings Zeke & Luther Scaredy Squirrel Phineas And Ferb Phineas And Ferb I’m In The Band Rated A For Awesome Kick Buttowski Fort Boyard - Ultimate Challenge Zeke & Luther Escape From Scorpion Island Aaron Stone The Avengers: Earths Mightiest

20:00 21:00 22:00 23:00

Private Practice House The River Boardwalk Empire

Phineas And Ferb Kid vs Kat Programmes Start At 6:00am KSA

03:00 04:00 05:00 07:00 08:00 08:30 09:00 10:00 11:00 12:00 13:00 14:00 16:00 17:00 18:00 18:30 19:00

Revenge Boardwalk Empire Live Good Morning America Switched At Birth Emmerdale Coronation Street The Ellen DeGeneres Show The Martha Stewart Show The View Desperate Housewives Revenge Live Good Morning America Switched At Birth The Ellen DeGeneres Show Emmerdale Coronation Street Grey’s Anatomy

00:00 Pete Smalls Is Dead-18 02:00 Bob Roberts-PG15 04:00 Finding Lenny-PG15 06:00 Josie And The Pussycats-PG15 08:00 Flubber-PG 10:00 Little Secrets-PG 12:00 Feed The Fish-PG15 14:00 Kung Fu Dunk-PG15 16:00 Little Secrets-PG 18:00 Fat Albert-PG 20:00 Hitch-PG15 22:00 I Now Pronounce You Chuck & Larry-PG15

01:00 Blood Out-18 03:00 Rollerball-18 05:00 D.E.B.S-18 07:00 True Justice: Dark Vengeance-18 09:00 Rocky-PG15 11:00 Ladder 49-PG15 13:00 Riddles Of The Sphinx-PG15 15:00 Rocky-PG15 17:00 Four Brothers-18 19:00 Never Back Down 2: The Beatdown-18 21:00 Sugarhouse-18 23:00 The Thaw-PG15

01:00 03:00 05:00 07:00 09:00 10:30 13:00 15:00 16:30 18:30 20:45 23:00

Fragments-18 Indecent Proposal-18 A Simple Twist Of Fate-PG15 Stone Of Destiny-PG15 MacHEADS-PG15 Dead Poets Society-PG15 Paws-PG MacHEADS-PG15 Little Man Tate-PG Entre Les Murs-PG15 The Sting-PG Vanity Fair-PG15

01:00 Super-18 03:00 Lies In Plain Sight-PG15 05:00 Everybody Wants To Be ItalianPG15 07:00 Freestyle (2010)-PG15 09:00 Mars Needs Moms-PG 11:00 Chronicles Of Narnia: Voyage Of The Dawn Treader-PG 13:00 Too Big To Fail-PG15 14:45 Oceans-PG15 16:30 Mars Needs Moms-PG 18:15 Leap Year-PG15 20:00 Hop-PG 22:00 Eat Pray Love-PG15

00:00 Pocahontas & The Spider WomanPG 02:00 Christmas In New York-PG 04:00 The Three Bears: The Amazing Adventurers-PG15 06:00 The Wind In The Willows-PG 08:00 Last Of The Mohicans-PG 10:00 The Spy Next Door-PG 12:15 Quest For Zhu-PG 14:00 Marmaduke-PG 16:00 Free Birds-FAM 18:00 The Spy Next Door-PG 20:00 How The Grinch Stole ChristmasPG 22:15 Quest For Zhu-PG

SPUD ON OSN CINEMA

00:00 MSNBC Hardball W/ Chris Matthews 01:00 MSNBC Politicsnation 02:00 Live NBC Nightly News 02:30 ABC World News W/ Diane Sawyer 03:00 MSNBC The Ed Show 04:00 MSNBC The Rachel Maddow Show 05:00 MSNBC The Last Word W/ Lawrence O’Donnell 06:00 NBC Nightly News 06:35 ABC Nightline 07:00 ABC World News W/ Diane Sawyer 07:30 Live NBC Nightly News 08:00 MSNBC The Rachel Maddow Show 09:00 MSNBC The Last Word W/ Lawrence O’Donnell 10:00 ABC World News Now

10:30 Live ABC World News Now 11:00 NBC Early Today 11:30 ABC America This Morning 12:00 ABC America This Morning 12:30 Live ABC America This Morning 13:00 Live ABC America This Morning 13:30 MSNBC First Look 14:00 Live NBC Today Show 17:57 Live MSNBC Hardball W/ Chris Matthews 18:38 Live MSNBC The Ed Show 19:19 Live MSNBC The Rachel Maddow Show 20:00 MSNBC Andrea Mitchell Reports 21:00 MSNBC Newsnation 22:00 MSNBC Martin Bashir 23:00 MSNBC The Dylan Ratigan Show

00:00 02:05 04:00 06:00 08:00 10:00 12:00 14:00 16:00 18:00 20:00 22:00

The Town-18 The Flyboys-PG15 Justin Bieber: Never Say Never-PG Diary Of A Wimpy Kid-PG Family Gathering-PG15 Call Of The Wild-PG15 Country Strong-PG15 Soul Surfer-PG15 Family Gathering-PG15 Unstoppable-PG15 Hop-PG Scott Pilgrim vs. The World-18

01:00 02:00 03:00 04:00 05:00 06:00 07:00 10:30 12:30 14:30 18:00 19:00 22:00 23:00

WWE NXT UFC The Ultimate Fighter Super Rugby Highlights Trans World Sports European PGA Tour Highlights WWE NXT Premier League Darts Live Super Rugby Live Super Rugby Premier League Darts WWE NXT WWE SmackDown UFC The Ultimate Fighter Super Rugby

00:30 01:30 02:00 02:30 03:00 06:00 06:30 07:00 08:00 08:30 09:00 10:00 10:30 11:30 12:00 14:00 15:00 15:30 16:00 18:00 20:30 23:30

European PGA Tour Highlights NRL Full Time Futbol Mundial Total Rugby Sevens World Series Futbol Mundial SPL Highlights Trans World Sport Mobil 1 The Grid Futbol Mundial Super Rugby Highlights Total Rugby Golfing World NRL Full Time Live NRL Premiership Trans World Sport European Tour Weekly Total Rugby Super Rugby AFL Premiership Sevens World Series Golfing World

01:30 02:30 06:00 07:00 08:00 09:00 09:30 10:30 11:30 12:00 13:00 13:45 16:00 18:00 19:00 19:30 21:30 22:00

Trans World Sport Premier League Darts World Cup Of Pool Golfing World European PGA Tour Highlights Total Rugby AFL Highlights Trans World Sport Scottish Premier League Highlights Golfing World Futbol Mundial Live NRL Premiership NRL Premiership Trans World Sport Total Rugby NRL Premiership Futbol Mundial Live Rugby League Challenge Cup

01:00 03:00 04:00 05:00 06:00 08:00 10:00 11:00 12:00 12:30 22:00 23:00

WWE SmackDown WWE Bottom Line UFC Unleashed Live UFC The Ultimate Fighter UFC Unleashed WWE SmackDown WWE Bottom Line WWE Vintage Total Rugby Live Sevens World Series Trans World Sports UFC The Ultimate Fighter

FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2012

ACCOMMODATION One bedroom available for Keralite couples or a working lady in Abbassiya near Maliackal Jewellery with a Christian family from June.

Contact 99494671. (C 3993) Sharing accommodation for a new couple available at Mangaf near petrol station, looking for Indian or Philippines. Contact between 7 to 9 am and 4 to 6 pm. Tel: 23719415.

(C 3995) 8-5-2012 Wanted room-mate Indian only, near Garanada Cinema and KFH, Khaitan. Contact: 66141908 after 5pm only.

(C 3989) Sharing accommodation available in Salmiya, Block-4, for male bachelors, prefer vegetarians.

Contact: 50181570. (C 3990) 7-5-2012 FOR SALE 2002 Camry, 4 cylinder for sale, excellent condition, Al Sayer maintained, 190,000 km, KD 1950. Contact: 55700857. (C 3996) 9-5-2012 2009 Mitsubishi Lancer, golden color, 81,000 km. KD 1,800.

Mob: 66729295.

(C 3992) 2011 Daihatsu Grand Max bus, automatic transmission, sliding side doors, air condition, mileage 7,500 km. Price KD 2,400. Tel: 50699345. (C 3991) 8-5-2012 Laptop HP, Core2Duo, Ram

1GB, HD 120 GB, Wifi, Bluetooth, Display 15.4”. PC Siemens Core2Duo, Ram 2 GB, HD 160 GB, DVD Writer, Card reader, LCD 17” Multimedia, both excellent condition.

Contact: 99337034.

6-5-2012

MATRIMONIAL 32 year, Orthodox boy (5’9”) working as sales manager in a MNC logistic company invites proposals from God fearing and well educated girls.

Email: maibu007@gmail.com (C 3993) 10-5-2012 Marriage proposals invited from parents of RC Christian Nadar family, 30 years old boy, fair, 163 cm height, working in Dar Al Shifa hospital, engineering department.

Email: benadict.xavier@gmail.com (C 3988) 7-5-2012

I, Shaik Younus, S/o, Shaik Ahmed, resident of H.No. 171-341/2, Darga Barhanashah, Santoshnagar, Hyderabad that I am holder of Indian passport No. E-6703568 issued Hyderabad, A.P. that I am intending to change my name as Shaik Younus instead of my old name Mohammed Younus.

(C 3986)

SITUATION WANTED Experienced Roman Catholic Christian Sri Lankan lady need to work in American, European, British family, living maid or nanny babysitting, cooking, house work.

Contact: 55493669. (C 3994) 9-5-2012

Hospitals Fajr: Duhr: Asr: Maghrib: Isha:

03:30 11:44 15:20 18:31 19:57

THE PUBLIC AUTHORITY FOR CIVIL INFORMATION Automated enquiry about the Civil ID card is 1889988

CHANGE OF NAME I, Bhasha Venkatesh holder of Indian passport No. E5976797 hereby change my name to Bhasha Chalapathy.

10-5-2012 I, Aniquinna Mariana Pereira has changed my name from Mariquinna Lucas R/O Cortalim, Goa, India, hereafter all dealings in my new name. (3997) 9-5-2012 I, Vohra Kutbuddin Kikabhai holder of Indian passport No. E6247160 hereby change my name to Raja Kutbuddin Kikabhai.

(C 3985)

112 Ministry of Interior website: www.moi.gov.kw For labor-related inquiries and complaints: Call MSAL hotline 128

Sabah Hospital Amiri Hospital Maternity Hospital Mubarak Al-Kabir Hospital Chest Hospital Farwaniya Hospital Adan Hospital Ibn Sina Hospital Al-Razi Hospital Physiotherapy Hospital

24812000 22450005 24843100 25312700 24849400 24892010 23940620 24840300 24846000 24874330/9

Clinics Rabiya Rawdha Adailiya Khaldiya Khaifan Shamiya Shuwaikh Abdullah Salim Al-Nuzha Industrial Shuwaikh Al-Qadisiya Dasmah Bneid Al-Ghar Al-Shaab Al-Kibla Ayoun Al-Kibla Mirqab Sharq Salmiya Jabriya Maidan Hawally Bayan

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Sports FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2012

Athletes and anger: When passion boils over NEW YORK: New York Knicks star Amare Stoudemire scored 20 points in an NBA playoff win Sunday, but the bandage on his left hand reminded fans that he’d recently made headlines in quite a different way: smashing the glass of a fire extinguisher case after losing in Miami six days earlier. Of course, he’s hardly the first pro athlete to hurt himself in frustration.

Phillies pitcher Ryan Madson broke his toe in 2010 when he kicked a chair after blowing a save, for example. A couple years before, Khalil Greene of the San Diego Padres broke his left hand by punching out a storage chest in the dugout. And New York Yankees fans will recall pitchers Kevin Brown and A J Burnett injuring their hands in angry confrontations with a wall and some doors, respectively.

What’s with this behavior? How can

professionals get so upset they harm themselves? Sports psychologists say it can happen in the high-pressure world of winning and losing, with people who identify themselves with their performance and, frankly, are supposed to be aggressive. But after all, one expert notes, it can happen to us ordinary mortals, too.

When you get angry, your heart beats faster and blood pressure rises. In men, testosterone levels can rise. Some research shows heightened activity in the left side of the brain.

With all that going on, things can happen. Stoudemire cut his hand after the loss last week when he swung his arm backward and hit the glass on the case.

“Everybody gets upset,” he explained to reporters. “You’re so passionate for the game.” That’s certainly true of the pros,

says Jack Watson, a professor of sport and exercise psychology at West Virginia University who has studied anger and violence in sports. Athletes commit a lot of their time, energy and identity to their sport, he said. So when they lose or don’t come through in the clutch, “it actually affects their self-perception of who they are,” he said. “The anger is an expression of ... extreme frustration, because the way they define themselves has been negatively influenced.”

Even when they hit some inanimate object, it might make them feel better by releasing pent-up tension, he said.

“Professional athletes have been trained their whole lives to be physical, to express themselves in physical ways,” Watson said.

They’re paid to be aggressive while playing, and “being able to turn that switch off

and being able to get back to what society expects of you, it’s probably difficult at times.”

In fact, physical off-the-field expressions of frustration are probably more acceptable in sports than in an ordinary office, said Jonathan F Katz, a sports psychologist in New York City who works with amateur, collegiate professional athletes and teams. If somebody did in an office what Stoudemire did, “it would probably be looked at much more negatively,” he said. Katz said athletes frequently do things like that, but if they’re not stars it rarely gets noticed publicly. And the biggest stars are often cut a bit of slack because “in this world, we tend to tolerate bad behavior on the part of people who excel. That’s not uncommon in the sports world,” Katz said. —AP

Grizzlies stay alive as Heat close out Knicks

WASHINGTON: Brian Boyle #22 of the New York Rangers and Jason Chimera #25 of the Washington Capitals battle for the puck at Verizon Center on Wednesday. — AP

Capitals beat Rangers to force game 7 WASHINGTON: The Washington Capitals put a devastating Game Five loss behind them with a 2-1 win over the Rangers on Wednesday, sending their NHL Eastern Conference playoff series to a decider in New York. The Caps had been seconds away from victory on Monday before the Rangers grabbed a last-gasp equalizer and went on to claim the overtime win. On Wednesday, Alex Ovechkin and Jason Chimera gave the home team a 2-0 lead and while Marian Gaborik pulled one back for the Rangers in the final minute, the Caps hung on to level the best-of-seven series at 3-3.

“Tough” was how Washington’s Matt Hendricks described the Game Five loss. “We knew if we came out and played the same way and stuck to our guns we’d have a great chance to force a Game Seven,” he told reporters. Washington’s rookie goaltender Braden Holtby further enhanced his reputation in a remarkable postseason campaign, making 30 saves to keep New York at bay until the closing seconds. He was less than a minute away from his first postseason shutout when Gaborik sneaked a puck in off the back of a Capitals defender to set up a tense finale. “We’re going to play a good road game, that’s in our mind,” Holtby said of Saturday’s series decider. “We’re ready for it. We’re going to put in a good effort.”

Neither team are strangers to pressure-packed Game Sevens as both needed deciders to win their opening series, the Rangers eliminating Ottawa while the Caps ended Boston’s hopes of defending their Stanley Cup title. The Rangers, top seeds in the East, are looking to advance to their first conference final since 1997 while Washington has not been there since 1998. The Capitals had won four straight Southeast Division titles only to fall flat in the playoffs, but this season they are Stanley Cup contenders despite the unfamiliar role of seventh-seeded underdogs. — Reuters

MIAMI: The Miami Heat hammered the final nail into the injury-ravaged New York Knicks’ coffin with a 106-94 win to clinch their place in the second round of the NBA playoffs, while the Grizzlies avoided elimination by beating the Clippers in Memphis. Missing Iman Shumpert, Baron Davis and Jeremy Lin through injury, while Amar’e Stoudemire played with a badly cut hand, the Knicks had staved off elimination on Sunday but could not repeat the feat in Game Five in Miami. After Sunday’s loss, when Dwyane Wade missed a three-pointer on the final possession that would have closed out the series, the Heat were determined not to give the Knicks a sniff of hope on Wednesday.

LeBron James scored 29 points while Wade netted 19 as the Heat wrapped up the best-of-seven Eastern Conference series 4-1 to set up a second-round matchup with Indiana.

“They do an unbelievable job,” James said of the Pacers. “We will savor this win tonight, but then get to work

tomorrow and get ready for Indiana.”

Carmelo Anthony, who scored 41 points in Game Four, scored 35 to lead the seventh-seeded Knicks.

In the Western Conference, the Grizzlies flirted with another secondhalf collapse but regained control to beat the Clippers 92-80 and narrow the series deficit to 3-2. The Grizzlies saw a 24-point third-quarter lead trimmed to six midway through the fourth, bringing back memories of their series-opening defeat when they blew a lead of 27.

“It brought back bad memories in the back of our heads,” Marc Gasol told reporters.

“We did a better job of executing, got rebounds and made some free throws,” added Gasol, who had 23 points while Zach Randolph scored 19.

The frustrated Clippers team accrued five technical fouls and Chris Paul sat out for the final minute with an aggravated groin issue. Paul finished with 19 points and Mo Williams led the visitors with 20 off the bench. Game Six is on Friday in Los Angeles. — Reuters

MIAMI: Miami Heat forward LeBron James (left) blocks a shot by New York Knicks center Tyson Chandler during the first quarter of an NBA basketball game Wednesday. — AP

Puma win back-to-back legs MIAMI: American skipper Ken Read steered Mar Mostro into Miami on Wednesday to win Leg 6 of the Volvo Ocean Race, putting Puma Ocean Racing back into contention in the grueling round-the-world race. Puma won its second straight leg, ending an epic 17-day match race with Camper of New Zealand-Spain.

Puma also won Leg 5 from Auckland, New Zealand, to Itajai, Brazil. The consecutive leg victories are a huge comeback for a crew that has been playing catch-up since the first leg, when it was left stranded in the south Atlantic Ocean after its mast shattered. Because Mar Mostro - it means “sea monster” - had to be shipped from a remote island to Cape Town, Puma scored zero points on that leg.

“I can’t say it was unexpected,” said Read. “This is what our team always expected. It’s kind of a confidence that’s been brewing for a while. It’s all happening. It’s all good.” Puma led the entire leg, which covered 4,800 nautical miles. Puma beat Camper into Miami by about five nautical miles. Read said the rival boat was in sight almost the whole leg, and other boats in the fleet closed the gap at times. “It was a hard leg,” he said.

“There were tons of weather features. There are times when you say, ‘It’s not going our way.’ But for some reason we figured out

how to make it go our way. It seems like we did so many good things in this leg. We’ve got a bit of a roll going. That’s a good thing. Momentum is a good thing.”

Read said most of the leg was sailed in fairly light wind. Mar Mostro would build a lead, and then run into a wall where there was no wind, allowing other boats to close the gap. “We were the first to figure out how to poke our nose out of it. It happened five or six times where you’d sail into a pothole, and that lead you worked so hard to get has literally evaporated in hours,” he said. “You had to start all over. The reality is, it’s really easy to crack in those situations. “It would have been so easy to lose, and nobody on board would allow it to happen. It was wonderful to see.”

Puma is in fourth place, 17 points behind overall leader Telefonica of Spain. With six of nine offshore legs complete in the race that will cover 39,000 nautical miles, Telefonica leads with 164 points, followed by Groupama with 153, Camper 149 and Puma 147. “Given that we gave away 30 points on the first leg, it says a lot for this team,” Read said. After an in-port race on May 19, Leg 7 to Lisbon, Portugal begins the next day. The race is scheduled to finish in Galway, Ireland, in early July. — AP

Sports FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2012

In Laos, ‘bamboo curtain’ yields to pro golf LUANG PRABANG, Laos: It’s 7:00 am in Luang Prabang and beneath a jagged line of mountain peaks, highranking communist party officials are among a small but powerful crowd gathered silently at the first tee. One swish of the driver and a white ball fizzes down the fairway, prompting warm applause as professional golf finally arrives in secluded, povertystricken Laos, long isolated behind the “bamboo curtain”. It’s a small but important step for the Southeast Asian backwater, which has watched as growing neighbours China, Thailand, Vietnam, Myanmar and even Cambodia embraced the game.

Last week’s Luang Prabang Laos Open, at a UNESCO world heritage site on the banks of the Mekong, offered total prize money of $80,000, loose change in a sport where the best players can command $1 million just to turn up and play. But such a purse had never been offered for any sport in the Lao People’s Democratic Republic, a one-party state whose only other big sporting event, the 2009 Southeast Asian Games, was held in reduced form due to lack of facilities.

While golf has penetrated nearly every corner of upwardly mobile Asia, it had barely registered in land-locked, hilly Laos, where a bloody civil war

ended in 1975 but left it behind the “bamboo curtain” dividing Communist and free-market parts of the continent.

Even military-run Myanmar enjoys a healthy golf scene inherited from British colonialists. North Korea’s affinity with the game is underlined by its claim that the late Kim Jong-Il shot 11 holes-in-one on his first round.

However, times change and with Laos’s gradual introduction of freemarket economics in the 1980s, and the arrival of its two-company stock exchange last year, golf was an inevitable consequence of the drive for prosperity - at least for the elite.

“Golf is necessary for the country, and also the high-ranking people play golf,” says Khampeng Vongkhanty, vice chairman of the Lao National Golf Federation (LNGF), a body overseen by the Ministry of Education and Sport.

“Because when they have meetings outside the country, everybody plays golf. So now most of our staff or our high-ranking people play.”

Laos’s embryonic golfing community so far consists of only one professional, eight courses - five in the capital, Vientiane - no coaches and almost no pro shops, meaning clubs and other equipment have to be bought in Thailand. Despite this, Khampeng says golf is now “booming” in aid-depen-

dent Laos, one of the world’s poorest countries where roughly a quarter of the 6.5 million, mainly rural, inhabitants lives below the poverty line.

For decades Laos was known primarily for its “golden triangle” opium trade, and it remains deeply agricultural, with low scores on many development indicators.

But Luang Prabang Golf Club, the South Korean-funded resort venture which hosted the tournament in Laos, opened the doors on its marbled clubhouse last year, while Vietnamese money is behind a plush course being built in Vientiane. While golf is plainly in the sights of the ruling Lao People’s Revolutionary Party, the national federation says money for tournaments, new courses, coaching and equipment must all come from sponsors and investors.

“We have no golf school. We have no PGA (professional golf association) in Lao PDR. So our players must be trained by pros from neighbouring countries,” says Khampeng. “The policy of our government is waiting for investors to build golf courses,” he adds.

This strategy has paid off in Luang Prabang, where tuna tycoon Lee GangPil has gambled $30 million on a 7,443yard course minutes from the provin-

cial city’s elegant French colonial architecture and Buddhist temples.

Tourism officials were quick to see the marketing potential of a televised golf tournament, and the LNGF is already eyeing a spot on the bigger, richer Asian Tour. “Golf can take off - it will be led by the tourism,” says Chris Jordan, senior vice-president, golf, at World Sport Group, which runs the ASEAN PGA Tour. “Your middle and upper middle class will see this on the TV and think, it’s a decent-looking golf course, it’s in the middle of a UNESCO world heritage site, let’s go up there for the weekend.”

Although this approach may work for Luang Prabang, success appears much more distant for Laos’s players, whose shortcomings were brutally laid bare at their first national open.

Spearheaded by Daliya Saidara, the country’s lone professional and a regular on Thailand’s domestic tour, all 16 Laotian players missed the cut in an inauspicious outing for the home contingent. “I’ve played on the Thai tour for many years but playing in Laos, everybody is looking at me and looking up to me,” complained Daliya, 22, an archery enthusiast who has also played tennis for Laos. “I’m the only pro, there’s so much pressure on me.

It’s very tough.”—AFP

An island that only punishes the pursuers SEOUL: Hu Mu of China plays a shot during the 31st GS Caltex Maekyung Open Golf Championship at the Nam Seoul Golf and Country Club yesterday. — AFP

Eight share lead in Seoul SEOUL: Eight players including an unheralded Aussie who turned pro less than a year ago shared the lead after the first round of the GS Caltex Maekyung Open in Seoul yesterday.

The leaders all shot four-under-par 68s at Namseoul Country Club, the third stop on the OneAsia tour, which has 14 events this year with a total purse of over $16 million. Australian Kalem Richardson, Japan’s Koichi Kitamura, Hu Mu of China, American Garrett Sapp and South Koreans Kang Kyung-Nam, Park Sang-Hyun, Kang Wook-Soon and Hur In-Hoi were all jostling for position.

But it was Richardson, 24, who stole the limelight in his first full OneAsia event. “I sneaked out and played nine holes on Tuesday and then had a full practice round yesterday,” he said. “Funnily enough it wasn’t very good then. I didn’t play very well at all, but today was different,” he told OneAsia. “I really enjoyed myself out there today. Things just went sort of well.” Richardson, who only turned pro in August, added: “The big difference between playing as an amateur and a professional is around the greens. You just can’t afford to let anything slip around the greens. You really have to try and make everything,” he said.

At the other end of the age and experience spectrum but also atop the leader board was veteran Kang Wook-soon, 45, who rolled back the years with a blemish-free round. —AFP

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Florida: It is the most famous hole at The Players Championship. It can be argued that of all the par 3s in golf, none is more recognizable than the island-green 17th at the TPC Sawgrass. The theater is endless. The punishment is severe. For all the hype and occasional terror, however, the par 3 has rarely kept a player atop the leaderboard in the final round Sunday from winning the richest prize on the PGA Tour. Since moving to the TPC Sawgrass in 1982, only one player came to the 17th hole in the final round at least tied for the lead and found the water. That was Phil Blackmar in 1991, who made double bogey and paved the way for Steve Elkington to win.

Len Mattiace was chasing in 1998 when he went water, bunker, water again and made 8. Sean O’Hair had to gamble in 2007, went into the water twice and made a 7. But there have been more good things happen to a leader over the years. Fred Couples (1996) and Craig Perks (2002) were among those to make pivotal birdies on their way to winning. Lee Janzen scrambled for par from the bunker when he won in 1995. The only time the 17th consistently became decisive was when the PGA Tour forced the situation by having the suddendeath playoff start on the most theatrical hole on the course. Paul Goydos was in a playoff with Sergio Garcia in 2008 when he hit first and went into the water. The tournament effectively ended when Garcia found dry land. A year ago, it wasn’t the water but the strong grain in the grass.

David Toms three-putted, missing a 31/2foot par putt.According to Golf World magazine, the 17th at Sawgrass on paper

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Florida: Tiger Woods of the United States hits his tee shot on the 11th hole during the first round of The Players Championship yesterday. — AFP might look like a pushover. For the last in the third round, and the few who even three years, it has ranked Nos. 137, 140 saw it included none other than PGA Tour and 114 in difficulty of all par 3s on the Commissioner Tim Finchem.

Couples made one of the most bizarre PGA Tour. The 17th produced more birdies and eagles (238) than bogeys or worse pars on the hole - a tee shot in the water, a (181). And among the four par 3s at penalty drop, and a third shot that Sawgrass, it played as the easiest. Even so, plopped into the cup on the fly. The it will not lack for action as The Players biggest debate is whether an island should be a green so late in the round.

Championship got underway yesterday.

The memories are endless - aces and Woods has long believed it would be bet8s, short misses and the long, winding ter on the front nine. If someone has a putts for birdie. Tiger Woods hit perhaps train wreck, he would have the back nine the most famous putt on the island green to atone for the mistake. “I have always when he holed a 60-footer for birdie that said this - I think 17 is a great hole, but not broke three directions and dove into the the 17th,” he said. “I think it’s a perfect cup in the third round of 2001. Not so eighth hole or something like that.”

Along with his long birdie putt in 2001, memorable is that Robert Allenby made the same putt - only a little bit longer - ear- Woods holed perhaps a more important lier that day. The difference is it was early putt on the 17th. —AFP

Sports FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2012

Still No. 2? City plays for Premier League title LONDON: Manchester City always seems to be second best in its own backyard, like a little brother overshadowed by his bigger and stronger sibling.

He’s already done the things you want to do, and has done them better anyway. And when you finally do something he hasn’t done? Well, he’d probably beat that, too. In England’s third biggest city, Manchester United always seems to one-up Manchester City. What happened when City won its most recent English league title in 1968?

United won the European Cup, the most prestigious trophy in club football.

The season City was promoted to the Premier League after four years away?

United won it, for the 13th of its 19 league titles. That time City convinced

Argentina striker Carlos Tevez to ditch United and move across town? United still beat City in the League Cup semifinals, and went on to win the trophy.

United’s dominance over its neighbor was even on display at Old Trafford, the stadium nicknamed the “Theatre of Dreams.” Hanging from the stands was an annually updated banner counting the years - it had reached 34 when it was finally brought down last season - since City last won a trophy of any kind.

But little brother looks set to come out on top Sunday in the world’s most popular league. After decades of watching its biggest rival lift trophy after trophy, City can win the English Premier League title in its final match of the season with a victory against struggling

Queens Park Rangers. “I came to City to make history,” said Yaya Toure, the driving force in City’s midfield. “I want to win it for our fans.”

Satisfyingly for those fans, there is almost no chance of being upstaged this time because of United’s failure to win the Champions League or either of England’s domestic cup competitions.

Instead, City can become English champion for the first time in 44 years and leave United empty-handed for the first time in seven seasons - a remarkable reversal in a city where red has been the color of success for more than a generation. “Forty-four years is unbelievable,” Toure said. “It is too many years.”

The difference these days, of course, is money. City’s abundance of it and

United’s lack of it. While United is still paying interest on debt incurred in the 2005 takeover by the Glazer family that also owns the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, City has spent about 400 million pounds ($635 million) on new players since being bought by in 2008 by Sheik Mansour, a member of the Abu Dhabi ruling family. “No one can match their financial resources. No one,” United manager Alex Ferguson said. “We have to accept that and try to do things in a different way.”

City, however, knows all too well that money doesn’t necessarily bring success. After all, the club paid a then British record 1.44 million pounds (then about $3 million) for Steve Daley in 1979. — AP

Serena upsets Wozniacki, Federer survives Raonic

SAO PAULO: Paulinho (left) of Brazil’s Corinthians, vies for the ball with Fernando Gimenez of Ecuador’s Emelec at Pacaembu stadium on Wednesday. — AFP

Boca, Vasco, Corinthians in quarterfinals SANTIAGO: Argentina’s Boca Juniors and Brazilian sides Vasco da Gama and Corinthians reached the quarterfinals of the Copa Libertadores on Wednesday. Boca Juniors won 3-2 at Chile’s Union Espanola, advancing on a 5-3 aggregate over two legs.

Vasco da Gama defeated Lanus of Argentina on penalties. Lanus won the second-leg match 2-1 for a 3-3 aggregate to force the shootout. Corinthians progressed with a 3-0 home victory against Emelec of Ecuador. The aggregate was also 3-0. Velez of Argentina and Paraguay’s Libertad reached the quarterfinals on Tuesday.

Boca entered the game with a goal advantage after a 2-1 win in its home leg, and built on that as Juan Insaurralde scored in the 26th minute and Pablo Mouche made it 2-0 in the 50th. Jean Pineda got one back for Union in the 62nd to make it 4-2 on aggregate but Juan Roman Riquelme scored in the 68th to reestablish the three-goal buffer, and Union’s reply through Oscar Jaime’s goal in the 71st was too little too late.

In was a perfect night for Riquelme, the former Barcelona and Villarreal playmaker. On the opening goal, Riquelme took a free kick from the right side and kept the shot on the ground for Insaurralde to slide in and chip it behind keeper Eduardo Lobos.

Mouche scored off a pass from Riquelme after a Chilean defender failed to clear the ball in the area. Riquelme then added his own goal, scoring from a counterattack as the Chileans were pressing forward. Boca will face either Fluminense or Internacional in the quarterfinals. Fluminense is the best placed of the two Brazilian clubs after securing a 0-0 draw in the away leg. Vasco led 2-1 from the first leg and extended that advantage Wednesday as Nilton scored in the 19th minute on a 20-meter drive. Mario Pavone replied for Lanus in the 61st and the tie was level on aggregate when Teofilo Gutierrez drove in a rebound from a save in the 78th. Pavone almost scored in the 89th - a goal that would have put Lanus through - but was foiled when Vasco keeper Fernando Prass deflected the header over the crossbar. Prass came up with another key save on Pavone in stoppage time.—AP

MADRID: Serena Williams staged a recovery at the expense of Caroline Wozniacki as the American reached the quarter-finals of the Madrid Masters 1-6, 6-3, 6-2 yesterday in a battle of former world number ones. The comeback win in 1hr 42min put Williams into a showdown with second seed Maria Sharapova, who earned her last-eight place when opponent Lucie Safarova withdrew before their match with stomach illness. Williams sleepwalked through the opening set as Denmark’s sixth seed had it all her own way in half an hour. “I had a slow start today, I don’t know why,” said Williams. “I was sluggish and mentally maybe fighting some demons. “I started trying to play better, the first set was not me at all. I knew I had to get better. I just tried to play my game.”

After trailing a set and 1-2, the momentum suddenly shifted in Williams’ favour, with the ninth seed breaking for 3-2 with a backhand down the line and finishing a run of a dozen points in succession to lead 4-2.

Williams, the 2009 runner-up to Dinara Safina, levelled at a set each and ran off with the third to end with four breaks of serve in a disheartening loss for Wozniacki. Wozniacki had been bidding for a sixth quarter-final of the season but, having won six titles in 2011, she is still searching for her first of 2012.

The Dane rolled her ankle earlier in the week but said that was not a problem in her loss. “It is feeling better, which is a huge plus. I can take a lot of positives from this match into the French Open,” she said. “I believe in myself, the confidence is there. I can beat anyone on a good day.” Williams has now won ten straight matches and has claimed the last six when facing Sharapova, the world number two and recent Stuttgart champion.

Polish fourth seed Agnieszka Radwanska advanced over Italy’s Roberta Vinci 7-6 (7/1), 6-4 while Lucie Hradecka beat Elena Makarova of Russia 6-2, 7-6 (7/5). In the men’s third round on the blue clay of the Caja Magica, Czech sixth seed Tomas Berdych ended the injury comeback effort of Frenchman Gael Monfils, the number 12,

MADRID: Roger Federer from Switzerland returns the ball to Milos Raonic from Canada during the Madrid Open tennis tournament on Wednesday. — AP with a comprehensive 6-1, 6-1 victory.

Late on Wednesday, Roger Federer sweated out a tough win in his first match on Madrid’s blue clay, holding off Canada’s Milos Raonic 4-6, 7-5, 7-6 (7/4) to survive into the third round of the Masters 1000.

The Swiss needed two and a quarter hours to beat the 23rd-ranked youngster with 36 winners and 37 unforced errors in a battle which was not decided until a third-set tiebreaker.

“I was trying to weather the storm,” said the Swiss. “I don’t know where my game is at now and I don’t care. I’m happy to train well and be playing some matches.” Federer was to face Richard Gasquet yesterday, who beat Serb Viktor Troicki 7-5, 6-3.

Federer held off seven Raonic break points and ended the Canadian’s streak of first serve points at 44 for the week.

Federer took victory in his first match

since losing in the Miami third round to Andy Roddick on March 26. He has now won 78 of his last 79 matches against players outside the Top 20.

“To do something here means I have to come back in a few hours and play (Richard) Gasquet. It could be a tough week. I”m happy to be playing good tennis. It’s a big win, this could create good things. It was a struggle for me tonight. But my level was good. I’m happy were I am this season.”

Raonic stayed in the fight with 16 aces and 21 winners. “If I can get things going my way, I can build confidence.

Today I stepped on court believing I could win, and left the court knowing I could have won,” said the Canadian.

Spanish clay powerhouses Rafael Nadal and David Ferrer got on and off the controversial blue clay courts as quickly as possible with the Iberian pair racing into the third round. — AFP

Sports FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2012

All eyes on London as Doha hosts Diamond League DOHA: The outdoor athletics season gets under way proper today when the Qatar Sports Club hosts the first leg of the prestigious 14-meet Diamond League, with all eyes on this summer’s Olympic Games in London. Jamaican sprint star Usain Bolt will be absent, however, having preferred to make his season debut on home soil last weekend (with a world lead of 9.82sec over the 100 m) and European bow in Ostrava, Czech Republic, later this month.

But a top-quality field has nevertheless been assembled for the kick-off of the global circuit that also sees events held in Shanghai, Rome, Eugene (USA), Oslo, New York, Paris, London and Monaco before the London Olympics.

The second part of the season recommences in Stockholm on Aug 17, and takes in Lausanne (Switzerland), Birmingham (England) and Zurich before climaxing in Brussels. World 800m champion David Rudisha of Kenya was in no doubt about what the season had in store.

“This year is an Olympic year and that is my main focus, my priority,” Rudisha said.

“Doha is the first stepping stone towards that goal. To win the Olympics is important and that is what I’m so far missing.”

Comments echoed by many of the athletes gathered in a sweltering Doha where daytime temperatures are currently topping 40 degrees Celsius and organisers are hoping to attract more people into the stadium than last year’s distinctly average attendance for the early-evening event.

Star draws include not only Rudisha, who

was deprived of an early season showdown with Ethiopian upstart Mohammed Aman (late withdrawal), but also former joint world record holders Asafa Powell and Justin Gatlin facing off in the men’s 100m. “We’ve competed against each other nine times and I’ve won six,” said Gatlin, who bounced back from a four-year doping ban in remarkable style by claiming a second world indoor 60m title in Istanbul in March (after his previous gold in 2003).

“It feels good to be in strong competition again. I’m always a competitor at heart. It will be a great gauge for me going into the next phase of my season.”

Gatlin actually matched Powell’s thenrecord 9.77sec over the 100 m in Doha in 2006, the result later rescinded after the American failed a doping test, but he insisted he had only good memories of the Qatari capital. “The night I broke the record was a magical night,” the 30-year-

DOHA: (From left) Runner Asafa Powell of Jamaica, track and field sprint athlete Allyson Felix of the US, International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) President Lamine Diack and athlete Vivian Cheruiyot of Kenya pose during a press conference yesterday. — AP

old Brooklyn native said. “I could see history being made on the track. Doha’s a very special place for me and definitely an important part of my journey.”

The US will be hoping for a sprint double with American Walter Dix, silver medallist in both the 100 and 200 m at last year’s world championships in Daegu, the strong favourite in the 200m.

Ethiopian running legend Kenenisa Bekele also runs in the 3000m, likely to be pushed all the way by a strong Kenyan contingent led by Augustine Choge and Edwin Soi, recently crowned world indoor silver and bronze medallists, Eliud Kipchoge. The defending 5000 m and 10,000 m Olympic champion, and world record-holder in both events, Bekele has spent almost two years on the sidelines due to a string of injuries, making his comeback last September when he won the 10,000 m in Brussels.

In his first ever outing in Doha, the Ethiopian has also opted to put himself under pressure by opting to race a 3000 m - an event he has not competed in since his triumph at the World Athletics Final in Thessaloniki in Sept 2009. The women’s 3000 m will feature the reigning world champion in both the 5000m and 10,000m, Kenya’s Vivian Cheruiyot.

Cheruiyot will be joined by teammate Pamela Jelimo, the Olympic 800m champion and recently-crowned world indoor champion going for a morale-boosting victory in the two-lap event on the long road to London. — AFP

Olympic flame lit for London Games Jacques Rogge

Rogge eyes retirement with pride in the past PARIS: Jacques Rogge has plenty to do when he retires as President of the International Olympic Committee in just over a year’s time and he says he will do so proud of the legacy he leaves behind. The 70-year-old Belgian, at the helm since he was elected to replace Juan Antonio Samaranch in 2001, said there was much to be pleased about as he contemplates life after 12 years as head of sport’s most powerful governing body. His successor will be elected in Buenos Aires in September next year. “Normally with regards to legacy you only speak about that when people die,” he told AFP in an interview this week at IOC headquarters in Lausanne, Switzerland.

“I didn’t take the mandate up to leave a legacy and historians can write about that in 20 years time if they so wish. However... I took up the baton of Samaranch and I believe I will leave behind some notable successes.

The quality of the Olympic Games under my presidency have been very well organised, the Youth Olympic Games (his brainchild) has been a very great success. I have fought against doping and illegal betting and I will leave with the financial revenue in a very strong state. This (money) is not a good thing necessarily and not the essence of what we are about but without money you cannot cook!” Rogge, an orthopaedic surgeon by profession, said that his sporting background - he was an Olympic yachtsman and played rugby for Belgium - had given him some important lessons in how to address his responsiblities as head of the IOC. “I am blessed by a very diversified upbringing,” said Rogge, who was also a ringside boxing doctor and was once told in no uncertain terms by his wife that she would not do his laundry when he came back from bouts spattered in blood. —AFP

ANCIENT OLYMPIA, Greece: The Olympic flame was lit in Ancient Olympia in Greece yesterday, in a solemn ceremony filled with mystery and tradition that signals the final countdown to the start of this year’s summer Games in London. Actors in ancient Greek costume invoked the god Apollo in the ruins of the 2,600-year-old Temple of Hera, using a concave mirror to harness the sun’s rays and kindle a flame on the torch for a relay that will take it around Greece and Britain.

Dignitaries at the ceremony included the president of the International Olympic Committee Jacques Rogge, as well as the head of the London organising committee, Sebastian Coe. “We promise to protect the flame, to cherish its traditions and stage an uplifting torch relay of which we can be proud,” Coe said in a speech, vowing the event would “lift the spirits and hopes of people across Britain and across the world”.

After thanks to the god Apollo, “king of the sun and the idea of light”, in the shadow of the Greek, British and Olympic flags, the flame was handed to the first relay runner, Greece’s Liverpool-born open water swimming champion Spyros Gianniotis. He then passed it to 19-yearold British boxer Alexander Loukos, whose father hails from the Greek island of Lesbos and grew up in the east London borough where the Olympic Stadium is situated. Gianniotis said after the full rehearsal at the temple on Wednesday that the torch ceremony was “a very big

ANCIENT OLYMPIA, Greece: The first torchbearer - swimmer Spyros Gianniotis - runs with the Olympic flame yesterday during the lighting ceremony at the ancient sanctuary where the Olympic Games were born in 776 BC. — AFP moment” for him, adding: “It is very mov- gymnast Li Ning, who lit the cauldron at ing. I am trembling from the emotions. It is the last Olympics in Beijing in 2008.

The London Olympic Games torch will the highest honour for an athlete to do tour the United Kingdom and also visit the this.”

The ceremony marks the start of a Republic of Ireland before it arrives at the week-long torch relay, which will take it to Olympic Stadium in east London on July five major Greek archaeological sites, 27 to a worldwide television audience of including the Acropolis, before it arrives at billions. The torch’s route in Britain starts the old Olympic stadium in Athens, site of on May 19 at Land’s End, the southernthe first modern Games in 1896. A British most tip of England to begin a 12,875-km delegation will receive the flame at a journey. From June 3-7, it will visit night-time ceremony on May 17. The last Northern Ireland and then the Republic of flame-bearers in Greece will be the Ireland - the only country outside the weight-lifter Pyrros Dimas and the Chinese United Kingdom on the torch route. —AFP

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ANCIENT OLYMPIA, Greece: A high priestess holds a torch with the Olympic flame during the lighting of the flame ceremony yesterday. — AP