12 Jan 2012

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THURSDAY, JANUARY 12, 2012

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Controversy rages as Mislem verdict upheld Disqualified candidates may go to court

Max 19º Min 06º High Tide 12:45 & 14:39 Low Tide 07:43 & 19:37

By B Izzak conspiracy theories

What’s this inferiority complex?

By Badrya Darwish

badrya_d@kuwaittimes.net

H

ello doctors everywhere! No hard feelings if you happen to have nothing better to do than to read my article. I don’t mean to mock you or underestimate your titles and the knowledge behind these titles. I know you worked hard to get this title. But lately in Kuwait I noticed that the prefix Dr is put in front of the name of every employee wherever he or she works - in the Ministr y of Commerce, the Civil Aviation, newspapers, municipality or elsewhere. Everybody has the liberty to put the title doctor in front of their name.

Continued on Page 13

KUWAIT: Protesters demonstrate on the tenth anniversary of the opening of the US detention camp in Guantanamo Bay outside the US embassy yesterday to demand the release of Kuwaiti prisoners who are still being held there. — Photo by Yasser Al-Zayyat

KUWAIT: The appeals court yesterday confirmed the conviction of former opposition MP and candidate Faisal Al-Mislem and fined him KD 200 for revealing secret bank information, triggering a controversy on whether he might be barred from contesting the parliamentary elections. There were conflicting reactions to the much anticipated ruling, with supporters of Mislem saying the verdict will have no bearing on his candidacy while opponents called on the interior ministry to disqualify him.

Mislem was taken to court after he displayed a copy of a cheque issued by former prime minister Sheikh Nasser Mohammad Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah to a former MP during a grilling of the prime minister over the issue.The bank through which the cheque was issued, Burgan Bank, sued Mislem and a head of one of its branches for exposing a banking secret, thus endangering the bank’s credibility and business. Several months ago, the lower court convicted Mislem on one of two counts and fined him KD 200 on a misdemeanor charge of exposing banking secrets. The verdict was upheld by the appeals court yesterday. Kuwaiti election law bars people convicted in dishonesty and criminal cases from running in the parliamentary elections unless they have been rehabilitated.

Lawyers supporting Mislem said the verdict will have no impact on his candidacy as the conviction is not a part of crimes stipulated in the elections law while others said that the verdict strips Mislem of the right to contest elections.

Continued on Page 13

THURSDAY, JANUARY 12, 2012

KUWAIT: Mohammed Al-Ahmad (center) speaking during the conference with other officials including Jinan Bahzad (right). — Photo by Joseph Shagra

KEPS initiates over 8 million green activities in Kuwait ‘Billion Acts of Green in the World’

By Nawara Fattahova KUWAIT: Over eight million green activities resulted from the Kuwait Environment Protection Society (KEPS) campaign ‘Million Environmental Activity in the Country’, it was announced on Tuesday at its premises in Shuwaikh. In cooperation and coinciding with the ‘Billion Acts of Green in the World’, it was organized by the international Earth Day Network with the participation of 192 countries. The campaign was launched at the beginning of last year.

The youngest participant in the campaign was seven years old. The Public Authority for Agriculture Affairs and Fish Resources (PAAAFR) registered the largest number of activities at 3,194,079. The Arab International Company for Industrial Projects leads the companies category with 1,305,000 activities. Dr. Mohammed Al-Sarawi is first in the individual category with 23,000 activities.

The Million Environmental Activity Campaign was launched on April 22, 2011 and registration is due by Dec 31, 2012.

“The total number of green activities registered in the campaign reached 8,199,878. These activities were included in the campaign of the Billion Acts of Green in the World.

Through these the Network aims to encourage environmental activities

and activate the role between different institutions to improve environmental movement in the community,” said Mohammed Al-Ahmad, KEPS Chairman and the Head of the campaign organizing committee.

There are eight categories of activities in the campaign. The International Network set the categories for events as Green Schools and Education, Awareness and Guidance, Energy, Communication, Continuing Development, Instinctive Life, Waste Recycling, and Water.

The program and registration of environmental activities in the campaign was according to the categories approved by the International Network.

“This is what happened, in fact, when the International Network announced through its website accrediting the final results of our campaign, and included it to the Billion Acts of Green world campaign.

This is a world achievement, which was praised by many organizations.

The 8 million activities is a huge number - much bigger than the population of Kuwait,” he added. Different institutions participated in this campaign.

“I would like to thank all the participants, including about 70 public institutions, private institutions, voluntary teams, environmental activists, and individuals who worked hard to regis-

ter the activities and programs in the schedule of the one million activities campaign. This huge number reflects the interest in the environment in Kuwait,” concluded Al-Ahmad.

Jinan Bahzad, KEPS Director of Programs and Activities, presented mentioning the numbers of participants and their categories. “ There were 10 ministries, 25 NGO’s and organizations, and 25 voluntary teams, in addition to tens of industrial companies related to the environmental field. We aimed to cover all sectors in Kuwait in the campaign and to verify the activities. This was amazing, as the activities were in different fields and not just planting and awareness,” she noted.

The Earth Day Network leads thousands of Earth Day events and activities worldwide each year. To catalyze global environmental activism, Earth Day Network has chosen A Billion Acts of Green as the theme for Earth Day 2011.

At over 40 million actions to date, A Billion Acts of Green(R) is the largest environmental service campaign in the world. It inspires and rewards simple individual acts and larger organizational initiatives that further the goal of measurably reducing carbon emissions and supporting sustainability. The goal is to register one billion actions before the global Earth Summit in Rio later this year.

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Oriental offers medical insurance for Indians OICL officials visit Kuwait

KUWAIT: Ambassador Satish C. Mehta (second right) addresses the press conference at the Indian Embassy yesterday. Anil Parasher (left), Dr R. K. Kaul (second left) and A. K. Saxena (right) look on.

By Sajeev K Peter KUWAIT: India’s leading insurance player, the Oriental Insurance Company Limited (OICL), will roll out an innovative medical insurance program for Indian expatriates in Kuwait, Dr R K Kaul, company chairman and managing director, said here yesterday.

The new product, a variant of the Oriental Medical Insurance program launched last year in Kuwait for individuals and families, will cover the treatment expenses of expatriates in Indian hospitals.

“The policy, to be sold in Kuwait, will cover the airfares and the treatment costs of Indian expatriates in Indian hospitals,” Dr. Kaul said, addressing a press conference at the Indian Embassy yesterday.

The company also plans to introduce a scheme for Indian doctors working in Kuwait, in order to offer them insurance cover for any liabilities or compensation incurred by them during the normal course of their duty. The new policy will cover hundreds of Indian doctors working in Kuwait who are currently not protected from any legal cases or careerrelated compensation suits being filed against them by patients or their relatives here.

In addition, the company will

launch an insurance product tailormade for the numerous Indian chartered accountants working in Kuwait, he added.

Dr. Kaul and OICL General Manager, Dr. A. K. Saxena, who arrived in Kuwait on a brief visit, will engage in discussions with the top management of Al-Mulla group, the Indian insurance company’s chief agent in Kuwait, to further bolster the existing relations between the two companies.

“Our 25 years of partnership with the Al-Mulla Group has been mutually satisfying and beneficial,” Dr. Kaul said.

The OICL specializes in non-life general insurance and offers a wide spectrum of insurance coverage in Kuwait including health, marine, fire, engineering and motor insurance. The largest foreign insurance company operating in Kuwait, the OICL has registered a 20 percent overall growth in 2011 in Kuwait.

The company has spread extensively all over India, with more than 1,100 branches. It has established an overseas presence in different countries including Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates and Nepal.

The OICL opened 90 new extension counters throughout India in the financial year 2010 to 2011, with a view to providing insurance solutions to small towns and rural populations.

“Our basic philosophy is to grow,

but to grow prudently. Today, the benefit of insurance goes to areas where it was not a few years ago,” Dr. Kaul said.

The OICL posted a growth of 14 percent and crossed the $1,225 million income mark in the fiscal year from 2010 to 2011. The company became the first Indian general insurance company in 2010 to 2011 to roll out core insurance solutions across all of its 1,000 plus offices across India.

“Ever since the opening of India’s insurance sector, the industry has witnessed tremendous growth, both in the private and public sectors,” Indian Ambassador, Satish C. Mehta, who was also present at the press conference said. “It is now very evident that these companies are not just chasing growth alone, but they are operating on the basis of business principles,” he added.

Keeping pace with the overall growth of the Indian economy, the insurance industry has witnessed a spectacular growth in the last six months, with the life insurance segment reporting a 25 percent growth and non-life segment a 26 percent growth, he added.

The press conference was also attended by OICL General Manager, Dr. A. K. Saxena, Resident Manager, Anil K. Parasher, and Al-Mulla Group representative, Amjad Kassim.

THURSDAY, JANUARY 12, 2012

THURSDAY, JANUARY 12, 2012

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KUWAIT: The place near Sharq cooperative society where fire broke out yesterday.

‘Cabinet not serious about eliminating flaws’ KUWAIT: A leading candidate blamed the government for failing to take serious measures to ban by-elections and combat vote buying. He added that these practices are held in a semi-organized manner.

“It came to our attention that there are apartments rented specifically to be used as headquarters for vote buying, with each being able collect at least 200 votes,” said third constituency candidate and former MP Ahmad Al-Saadoun. He added on Tuesday that the Cabinet needs to “enforce the law and combat [the use of] political money” to succeed.

Meanwhile, second constituency candidate and ex-MP Mohammad Al-Saqr said that Kuwait’s foreign policy is a main issue that his campaign will focus on. Al-Saqr is widely speculated to be eyeing the speaker’s post. During his participation at a seminar in Al-Sulaibikhat on Tuesday, Al-Saqr denied speculations about the possibility of him running for the speaker’s post, adding that it is ‘immoral’ to talk about this subject.

Fellow second constituency candidate and former MP Meshari Al-Ossaimi said that the past five years saw corruption spread dangerously throughout Kuwait “with corrupt cabinets joined by some corrupt MPs.” Meanwhile, former minister and lawmaker Ali Al-Rashid refused to confirm or deny speculations about the possibility of him running for the speaker’s post, if he is elected to the second constituency. “Everything at a time,” he

said, when asked to comment on the subject during the inauguration of his election campaign on Tuesday.

Third constituency candidate Shaya AlShaya said in an interview with Al-Qabas that the redundancy of grilling motions filed against the former prime minister “has contributed in corrupting the legislative authority.” At the same time, he urged Prime Minister HH Sheikh Jaber Al-Mubarak Al-Sabah to select ministers who are “capable of defending agendas they come up with,” reported AlQabas.

First constituency candidate and former MP Dr Maasouma Al-Mubarak defended the performance of female lawmakers in the previous Parliament, explaining during an interview with Al-Watan TV that they helped enforce several women-friendly laws such as housing care and the Kuwaiti women’s right to sponsor their non-Kuwaiti children. AlMubarak mentioned that irreconcilable differences exist between the executive and legislative authorities, leaving a parliamentary dissolution as the only option to prevent a major political crisis.

Third constituency candidate and ex-MP Naji Al-Abdulhadi said in an interview with AlWatan TV that Kuwait needs a prime minister who is “capable of holding ministers accountable for shortcomings before the Parliament does, “ adding that the strict implementation rather than amendments is what the Constitution needs, reported Al-Watan.

KUWAIT: The National Guard hosted a ceremony yesterday to honor cadets that took part in a training course organized by the National Guard’s firefighter and rescue unit. Commander of Logistic Support, Brig Gen Dr Abdurrahman Al-Lumaia took part in the event.

Bedoons plan to hold Friday demonstrations KUWAIT: Stateless residents plan to stage a demonstration next Friday in Taima, defying a Ministry of Interior order that bars public gatherings.

“We plan to continue demonstrating every week until we are eligible to receive citizenship. The cases of those who have security-related problems can be taken to court,” said Ahmad Al-Tamimi, Head of Kuwaiti Bedoons Committee. Nawaf AlBadr, Secretary General of the committee hinted that demonstrations could also be held on other days, instead of only Friday, reported Al-Dar.

In other news, files of nearly 2,000 stateless residents were sent Tuesday to the general secretariat of the Cabinet. A batch of them may be naturalized within three weeks, stated a report published yesterday quoting sources with knowledge of the subject. Among these files, at least 430 are children of Kuwaiti women, whereas most of the remaining cases are servicemen from the Interior and Defense Ministries. The sources who spoke on condition of anonymity said that the files were referred after the inspection process to candidates’ criminal records, reported Al-Rai.

KUWAIT: Firemen evacuate residents of the Farwaniya apartment yesterday.

Asian with 4kg of heroin in Jleeb police custody 150 evacuated in Farwaniya

By Hanan Al-Saadoun KUWAIT: A drug combating officer arrested an Asian expatriate with 4kg of heroin. The market value of the drugs is estimated at KD 150,000. Information leaked through secret sources that the Asian brought drugs to Kuwait and started trading with it. During one complete month, a detective observed him and collected information. He then got permission from the public prosecution department to search and detain him. He was arrested at his house at Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh after violent resistance. In his room they found 4kg of heroin in capsules. He confessed that the drugs are his for trading, and that a driver brought them for him through one of the borders. He was sent to the concerned authorities.

accused man is being sought by police, and only then will they know the reason for the fight.

150 evacuated in Farwaniya Over 80 firemen were needed to rescue occupants and control a huge fire that broke out in the basement of a nine storey building in Farwaniya.

Thick smoke resulted in six casualties among firemen. Four of them were treated at the site, while the other two were taken to hospital. One of the two was treated in the hospital and released, and the other remained in hospital. Over 80 firemen participated in

Asian raped Investigations are currently ongoing into the case where a suspect has been accused of sexually assaulting an Asian worker at a jakhour (animal farm) near Mina Abdullah. The victim lodged a complaint with the police station stating that a masked man assaulted him in a heavily inebriated state. A case was filed.

In other news in Salmiya, an Arab woman filed a police complaint stating that her fiancÈ sexually assaulted her and demanded that charges be pressed against him. After being summoned for investigations, the accused denied the charges and argued that she made false claims. A case was filed.

Fatal fight A deceased man in his twenties was taken to Jahra hospital on Wednesday afternoon after a fight with another young man in Saad Al-Abdulla area. Security sources said the

KUWAIT: The Asian drug dealer pictured after his arrest.

fighting the fire.

More than 150 persons were evacuated from the building down the fire ladder. Each and every apartment was checked to awaken occupants and evacuate them. Fortunately no human losses resulted from the fire.

Early yesterday morning, the Operation Center received a report about a fire in a basement. Farwaniya fire center, supported by Ardiya fire center and a technical rescue unit, proceeded to the site. They were followed by Salmiya fire center and Mubarak Al Kabeer center due to dangerous materials.

As they arrived, firefighters discovered that the basement was used to store plastic material. Smoke was dense due to the nature of the stored material. Firemen had to use the tallest ladder available in the fire department to rescue building occupants from uppermost floors.

Fire vehicles met difficulties reaching the site due to many cars parked around the building and neighboring buildings.

Firemen had to use cranes to lift vehicles from the street in order for the five fire vehicles to move freely.

Fire in Sharq A fire broke out near Sharq cooperative society, destroying the front of the commercial complex which faced the fire. The fire also resulted in setting off the fire alarm in an office of Scope Television channel, which automatically started water spraying fire extinguishers. Yacoub Al Qattan, Director of Al Hilali Fire Center, said that the fire department was obliged to disconnect power to control the fire. He said the fire investigation unit started detecting causes behind the fire, but it is still too early to discuss official findings.

No special classes for disabled students KUWAIT: High school students began taking mid-term exams yesterday, including those suffering from various disabilities.

According to a report, the special education department had sent a request last October to the ministry’s coordination office to

designate special places where students suffering from visual, hearing and mobility disabilities can appear for examination under the supervision of specialized staff. The news report states that the request has been ignored.

Officials explained that schools cannot take decisions to place disabled students in separate classrooms during exams, unless an official ministerial decree is issued, reported Al-Qabas. In other news, the State Audit Bureau reportedly plans to start a new program to

evaluate the work progress at the Ministry of Education’s Private Education Department.

According to sources, the new development took place after complaints were filed against private schools that allegedly increased their fees. —Al-Dar

No advice, just opinions and suggestions KUWAIT: Former MP Ahmad Al-Saadoun refuses to give advice to the coming government. “I receive advice and do not give it,” he said.

He draw a line at what he sees as the track of success for the government and its cooperation with the National Assembly. He said the government should keep away from influencing the election of the National Assembly Speaker, as happened in 1967.

Recalling a declaration he made to AlAnbaa in 1985, he said that in spite of all its mistakes the 2009 National Assembly has approved laws which the previous government did not implement. Such laws will make it easy for the coming Prime Minister, the pinnacle of those laws, the growth plan and privatization.

Al-Saadoun said there is no problem in financing the growth plan through the growth fund, or through the banking system.

The important thing is to start work.

He said a new law has been suggested to the Civil Service Commission to deal with the defects in the level of salaries, which caused a wave of protests. Average salaries of Kuwaiti and non Kuwaiti oil workers is KD 460, compared to KD 1,100 for those working in security sectors and KD 1,300 for judges. He said that the quick response and the wise decision

by His Highness The Amir to accept the government resignation has defused the crisis.

He suggested a draft law to preserve the oil wealth, and this law is on the agenda. If the oil reserve is 24 billion barrels, it will be enough only for 20 years. —Al-Anbaa

MOI plans stateless demo KUWAIT: Stateless residents will be allowed several days to demonstrate and express their opinions freely, and put their demands to the concerned authorities, the Ministry of Interior said in a press release.

Based on several declarations made by Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Interior and Minister of Defense, Sheikh Ahmad AlHmoud, he personally is taking care of the stateless resident problem with the concerned parties. Consequently, whoever has a

right can get it in a legal manner.

The Ministry of Interior is currently working to solve their problems and emphasizes once again that it will not allow stateless residents to organize any demonstration, regardless of its nature and aims. The Ministry of Interior hopes from all stateless residents and those who support them to co-operate to solve their problem, protect public security and avoid breaking the law so that they will not be held legally responsible.

KUWAIT: Kuwait’s 2012 National Assembly elections will be equipped with a centre that caters to the needs of journalists from inside and outside of Kuwait. Deputy Premier, Foreign Minister and State Minister for Cabinet Affairs Sheikh Sabah Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Sabah said that this centre is aimed at illustrating the transparency of the electoral process in Kuwait. For his part, Minister of Information Sheikh Hamad Jaber Al-Ali Al-Sabah said that the centre will meet all of the needs of journalists, providing them with all the necessary information to conduct their role.

MOH reconfirms ‘meningitis not pandemic’

By A Saleh KUWAIT: The Ministry of Health (MoH) recently issued a press release confirming a previous denial of a meningitis epidemic in Kuwait. The press release read: “In view of recent media and social media news about meningitis cases in Kuwait, the Ministry of Health confirms that according to WHO regulations Kuwait is meningitis epidemic-free since a pandemic disease means the existence of ten cases per 100,000 people.

The news about WHO recommending the closure of health facilities and shopping centers in Kuwait are mere rumors, as confirmed by the WHO office in Cairo. Therefore there is no need for vaccination, except for those in direct contact with verified cases or suspected ones be it in staff accommodation or among medical and administrative staff in various health facilities.

It has been scientifically proven that the type of meningitis recently detected can only be transmitted through droplets of respiratory

secretion during close contact such as kissing, sneezing, or coughing on someone, and cannot be spread by only breathing the air where a person with meningitis has been.

This means the usual concern is crowded living quarters, and that there is no need for vaccination for anyone without prolonged close interaction with a suspected or confirmed patient. Those in contact with all cases, even those of confirmed meningitis, are no longer at threat 24 hours after tak-

ing suitable antibiotics.

Annually the MOH vaccinates children, pilgrims, laborers, those in contact with confirmed patients, travelers to infected countries and people with known immunity deficiency against meningitis. The vaccination remains effective for five years.”

The press release urged everybody not to get carried away by rumors spread in social media sites and only to observe verified information from concerned official sources.

THURSDAY, JANUARY 12, 2012

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Expat loses handbag at airport

Mobile devices biggest 2012 security threat

By Sunil Cherian KUWAIT: An Indian expatriate, who is supposed to be vacationing in India, is now shuttling between unexpected case papers.

Joy Mundakkatt, a 55year-old Ministry of Information (MoI) employee who has been in Kuwait for the past 30 years, is in a state of shock Joy Mundakkatt after he lost his handbag at Kuwait International Airport last week. “I cannot stop wondering how such a theft can occur in a high security zone inside the airport,” said Joy, who lodged a formal complaint at Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh police station.

According to Joy, after the initial security checkup, he and his wife proceeded to the counter where their main luggage was checked-in. Within minutes after receiving boarding passes, the ‘Brave’-branded handbag which he had noticed left alone on the trolley, was gone. He immediately alerted the airport authorities. They checked the airport camera, which showed a Bangladeshi porter taking the bag and stooping as if to put it on the conveyer belt. An enquiry was placed at the luggage section by the officers, but no untagged handbag was found, Joy said.

Joy hopes to retrieve the bag using international airport law, by which complaints can largely be solved within the authorities of the airport without adhering to the police station outside the airport.

“I was asked by the CID if I saw someone take the handbag. I said I did not know more than the camera showed. I was then told to lodge a complaint at the police station. This incident took place on Jan 7 and since then I’m running after formalities”, Joy said.

Joy’s civil ID, driving license, credit cards, MOI entry pass, demand draft worth Indian RS 200,000, KD 250, $900, other foreign currency collected over the years from European tours and a mobile handset without a sim card were in the lost bag, Joy said. “This should be a reminder to everyone,” said Sam Painummood, Joy’s friend and former president of Kerala Art Lovers’ Association. “To be extra cautious is the passenger’s responsibility. At the same time it is frightening for such an incident to happen under the eyes of the surveillance cameras”, Sam said.

Wife beater in police custody KUWAIT: An Arab man, placed under arrest in Salmiya, is facing charges that include domestic abuse. He locked his wife inside their apartment for five days. The suspect reported his wife missing a few hours before she headed to the police station to report her assault. The woman reportedly asked the building janitor to open the apartment door. She headed to the police station after being freed, despite being in bad shape, and reported the imprisonment and physical assault. Police discovered the same woman was reported missing by her husband a few hours earlier. The husband was soon placed under arrest after the building janitor, as well as some neighbors, confirmed the woman’s story. The man eventually admitted he locked his wife up, saying she is verbally abusive and disobedient.

The woman told police he is a cheapskate. The husband remains in custody pending further action.

False alarm Seismic activity which frightened residents in Jahra turned out to be explosives, detonating in a military operation northeast of Kuwait City. Several emergency calls were received Tuesday from people reporting an earthquake.

The Kuwait National Seismic Network denied detecting any irregular seismic activity, but said that their equipment detected noises similar to those created by military explosives. A Ministry of Defense source said that an operation to detonate remnant ammo from the 1990/91 Iraqi Invasion was held at the time when the earthquake reports were made.

Attempted murder A young man, currently held at Taima police station, is facing attempted murder accusations. A case was filed after a man reported being chased from the Subbiya desert until Taima by a car carrying four people. He said the suspects targeted him with gunshots. Police were able to identify the suspects’ car, but found out that its owner is outside the country. Police learned that the car is being used by its owner’s nephew, who was later arrested as the prime suspect. Despite denying the accusations, the suspect was put behind bars after the complainant recognized the car as the one that chased him.

Contraband in jail Investigations were launched to reveal the method by which a Central Jail inmate was able to obtain an iPhone, found inside his cell during a recent crackdown. The handheld device was among cell phones and cell cards found in the possession of an Iranian inmate. He is serving time for drug trafficking and abuse. The inmate said during investigations that he used the iPhone for regular conversations.

Police are investigating if he used the device to run illegal drug-related activities from inside his cell.

Expired medication The Ministry of Health recently raided a pharmacy in Fahaheel where large amounts of expired medication were found. The MOH team obtained a warrant to carry out the operation accompanied by police officers. They had received information that the pharmacy was selling medication unfit for human consumption. A case was filed for further legal procedures.

Drug dealer held A drug dealer was arrested in Qairawan following a failed escape attempt. In his car, 1,000 drug pills were found in addition to KD5,000 in cash collected from selling drugs. The suspect stepped out of his car after he was pulled over at a street in the area and attempted to escape on foot. —Al-Rai, Al-Anbaa

Avoid giving out mobile numbers in the net

By Ben Garcia KUWAIT: A survey held by Deloitte & Touche reveals that mobile devices are considered lethal global security threats for the year 2012. “The ability to access information from anywhere at any time has become part of our daily lives; however, this ability also increases the threat to information security,” Santino Saguto, [ Technology, Media and Telecommunications] TMT industry leader at Deloitte Middle East was quoted as saying.

According to the survey, while mobile devices are considered the number one security threat for 2012, it is not the device itself that poses the threat, but the sensitive data that it carries. Earlier, visiting internet websites and giving away all your private or personal information were few of many sources that corporations in the Middle East point toward as being perilous. Now mobile devices allows access of users to the internet anywhere in the world.

In fact, M Yousuf, computer technology expert based in Kuwait believes that the survey results are a fact. “It is known to almost everybody. Even if you are not in the industry, you know that mobile devices are indeed a security threat

which can be avoided, “ he opined.

Yousuf explained that in the age where computer is dominating the world, such security threats can be dealt with accordingly. “It’s a matter of spending money and getting the right people to handle it. Computer is mind’s [human] work, there is software that can be used to handle problems. What makes it dangerous is you being mindful about the risk, but had not done anything to handle it,” he added.

Yousuf advised Facebook, Twitter and email users to avoid giving out, mobile numbers or passwords in the net. “It is dangerous to give out or saving your passwords in the net. Risk can be avoided if you don’t do that,” he stressed.

Yousuf said, memory cards that are deleted but once stored in mobile or any computer devices files can be recovered using the right software and tools.

“Many of us do not know about these things. Once you have visited certain sites or a website, and you have used your computer or mobile phones, files or documents saved; those pose a security risk. They can be recovered using the right software or a file system structure,” he added.

Yousuf observed that Saudi Arabia finds it difficult to monitor internet

usage. “You know in Saudi, women are not permitted to show skin, but in the advent of mobile devices connected to the internet and the world, they are now face the predicament of how to handle this fact. If you don’t want to be abused, stop posting your private details on the

This file photo shows a man using his smart phone for communication.

Net, constantly changing your password,” he advised.

Deloitte & Touche survey showed that lack of a budget and personnel are the biggest barriers to adequate information security, even as governments turn to stricter legislations and regulations.

According to Delotte’s Security Survey, conducted with 138 TMT companies around the world, TMT companies are generally holding steady as com-

pared to the prior year on their information security activities, budgets, governance, and reporting. “Yet, the threats to Information Technology (IT) security are on the rise, and the impact of security incidents is ever more significant. TMT organizations are not coping with the evolving environment. More than half (52 percent) of respondents to the Deloitte study indicates that security expenditures are either falling behind or catching up to with what is expected, “ the survey said.

Saguto was added that “Compliance and regulations are basic elements, yet TMT organizations, in particular, can and should use security to distinguish itself in the market. So, it can be expected that TMT companies proactively deal with information security, to make it a high priority. It will be the best organization in the sector.”

As governments work to draw up adequate legislation on the Internet, Deloitte’s research reveals that 50 percent of the companies participate in cyber initiatives with other organizations to address cyber security threats. This finding indicates that doing it alone is no longer an option in the current environment-information security protection requires teamwork.

THURSDAY, JANUARY 12, 2012

local Employers consider ambition to be most important trait KUWAIT: An employer poll conducted by Bayt.com, the region’s number one job site, has revealed that 28.8% of employers in the Middle East look for ‘hunger, drive and ambition’ as the most important factors when making a hiring decision. Salary considerations come in second with 22.7%.

Meanwhile, career track record is the least important. In fact, most employers (67.2%) will consider hiring a candidate who has relevant skills but no direct experience in the company’s field; similarly, the majority will hire a subordinate who is older than them (59.6%) or who is more skilled, capable, and qualified than themselves (74.6%).

The employers surveyed say that the majority of jobseekers are letting themselves down by presenting unpolished resumes and not doing research prior to job interviews.

The results of the survey demonstrate that spelling and grammar does count, as 21.3% of employer respondents claim that poor language on a CV is the biggest mistake that jobseekers can make. The second biggest mistake, according to 19.7% employers, is submitting a CV that is not customised for the role. Clear exaggerations (16.4%) and poor format (14.8%) also figure highly on the list, along with lack of focus and key omissions.

When it comes to interviews, 20% of employers consider poor preparation to be the biggest turn-off in potential employees; 17.5% feel that dishonesty is the worst trait an interviewee can have, followed by the candidate arriving late or asking inappropriate questions/making inappropriate comments, with 13.8% of employers citing each as the biggest turn-off. Insufficient enthusiasm for the role and poor interpersonal skills come joint fourth on the list of biggest turn-offs(12.5%), followed by inappropriate attire (7.5%) and being overly aggressive (2.5%).

“The results of our survey suggest that candidates will be more successful if they take the time to carefully review their resumes before submitting them to any potential employer. It is also worthwhile taking the time to research a company and the position applied for before an interview, as being fully prepared is clearly a key requirement across the region,” said

AmerZureikat, VP Sales at Bayt.com.

“Bayt.com provides jobseekers and employers with the tools needed to get ahead in the world of employment, by publishing frequent surveys with information relevant to the region. Moreover the Bayt.com online CV builder has fully resolved the issue of poor CV format and sloppy CV style by ensuring that a style and format of CV that is attractive, state-of-theart and uniform can be accessed very easily by all the region’s jobseekers.”

Most prospective employees are likely to be interviewed by one or two people (27.3% and 28.8%, respectively), though it is not uncommon for them to meet with more existing employees in their potential new company; 22.7% of respondents say that their interviewees will meet three people, while 18.2% claim that candidates will be interviewed by more than four.

However, no matter how many people the candidate meets, the vast majority of employers (70%) say that post-interview follow-ups are essential.

Almost 61% of employers consider the hiring practices in their company to be sophisticated, with 58.1% claiming that their organization provides training on interview skills for those involved in the hiring process.

“Bayt.com provides a wealth of information including tests, articles and guides for both employers and jobseekers online and we highly advise our community of professionals to read up on the latest interviewing trends for their target industry and truly understand the requirements of the role and the nature of the industry so they can have a meaningful dialogue with employers during the interview process” added Zureikat. Data for the Bayt.com Hiring Practices in the MENA Employer Poll was collected online from Aug 9 to Dec 22, with 637 respondents covering more than 12 countries in the MENA region.

Bayt.com is the largest and most relevant community of professionals interested in the MENA region with over 6,750,000 registered jobseekers and 40,000 employers. Bayt.com has 11 regional offices, over 200 staff and a 10-year track record of successfully matching the region’s top talent with top employment opportunities at every career level, in every industry.

KUWAIT: Oil Minister Mohammad Al-Busairi visiting the Burgan Field.

Oil markets need more supplies: Busairi KUWAIT: International oil markets still need more oil supplies, Minister of Oil Mohammad AlBusairi said Tuesday, considering current oil prices “very reasonable.” Al-Busairi, also minister of state for National Assembly affairs, said there was a well in Burgan Field that has been recently drilled and production would be the next step.

He praised the Kuwaiti male

and female engineers who were working in “very difficult” environments but determined to get the job done. KOC has an ambitious plan to drill more wells, he said. The minister said the Burgan Field, which was drilled in 1938, was producing at a good pace.

Kuwait Petroleum Corporation (KPC), added Al-Busairi, was committed to implementing its strategy to producing four million

bpd by 2020 and to maintain this level until 2030. Kuwait has been producing 3.050 million bpd since last month, he noted.

Al-Busairi also visited Gathering Center II, and got acquainted with plans to drill more wells to reach the four-million-bpd target, as well as Health, Safety and Environment (HSE) standards. The minister said KPC’s marketing department explored

new markets to sell Kuwait crude oil and derivatives, including in Africa, Europe and Latin America.

Al-Busairi said 80 percent of employees in KOC were Kuwaitis while the percentage was 100 in all Gathering Centers.

KOC Board Chairman and Managing Director, Sami AlRushaid, said the company has 64 oil drillers and 24 Gathering centers.— KUNA

Kuwait urges shutdown of Guantanamo prison Policy of detention fails to stop terrorism

KUWAIT: The Public Authority for Youth and Sports Director Maj Gen Faisal Al-Jazzaf met with Undersecretary of State Audit Bureau Abdul-Aziz Al-Hooli and its team this week. It has been assigned the task of carrying out periodic inspections across sports facilities in Kuwait. At the meeting, which took place at PAYS building, discussions were held to boost coordination between the parties.

Praise for Kuwaiti democratic approach CAIRO: Democratic experience accumulated by the people of Kuwait throughout the years will serve Kuwait’s progress and future, affirmed Egyptian Minister of Tourism Munir Fakhri.

Fakhri, interviewed on the upcoming occasion of parliamentary polls in the Gulf state, praised previous elections that were held in Kuwait for being transparent and free. But what distinguished these polls most was role of women and their winning of confidence of voters, he noted.

He praised the democratic approach adopted by the Kuwaitis, however, he called for “setting new rules for the democratic system to ensure political stability and enable diverse political trends to take

part in political action.” The Arab world, nowadays, is ushering a new historic phase where peoples of the region aspire to greater democracy, more freedoms and social justice, he added.

He called on political leaders in Arab countries to back up this popular approach for sake of maintaining stability and boosting development.

Parliamentary elections are due on February 2. Nominees had registered names for the polling. A number of them had been disqualified, or had withdrawn from the race.

The Kuwaiti parliament is fully elected. It plays crucial role in the state decision making. — KUNA

ABU DHABI: Kuwait’s delegation partaking in the 9th meeting of Arab governmental experts in international humanitarian law called here yesterday for closing down the US Guantanamo Bay detention facility in Cuba. The Kuwaiti delegation was led by Chairman of the National Permanent Committee of International Humanitarian Law Mohammad Al-Ansari.

Addressing the two-day gathering, Al-Ansari said: “By continuously calling for closing down Guantanamo Bay, we seek to respect the rules of the international humanitarian law.”

“This can be achieved by putting detention cases under full judicial supervision and restricting the rule of the executive authority to law enforcement in a framework that protects the rights of defendants and detainees, enshrined in international agreements,” he said. He called for putting all Guantanamo prisoners on judicial trials where all warrants of justice should be provided.

Al-Ansari believed that the policy of detention and arrest has failed to stop violence and terrorism so the root causes of the problem should be addressed.

The Guantanamo Bay detention camp is an extrajudicial detainment and interrogation facility of the United States located within Guantanamo Bay Naval Base, Cuba. The facility was established in 2002 by the Bush Administration to hold detainees from the war in Afghanistan and later Iraq.

The Kuwaiti legal expert regretted that US

President Barack Obama has failed to honor an earlier promise to shut down the Guantanamo Bay. All international human rights organizations and NGOs, even those in the US, have repeatedly condemned the presence of this detention center, he said.

The 9th meeting of Arab governmental experts in international humanitarian law kicked off here earlier on Tuesday. It is co-organized by the UAE and the Arab League.

Meanwhile, the US government’s failure to close the Gitmo prison is leaving “a toxic legacy for human rights”, Amnesty International said yesterday. The human rights group condemned the failing on the 10th anniversary of the first detainees arriving at the American detention centre in Cuba.

In a new report, entitled “Guantanamo: A Decade of Damage to Human Rights”, the charity said the unlawful treatment of Guantanamo detainees underlines reasons why the detention centre continues to represent an attack on human rights. It called for an end to indefinite detention at Guantanamo and the charity has set up an online petition to US President Barack Obama calling for its closure.

Of the 171 men still held at the camp, at least 12 were in the original group first transferred to Guantanamo on January 11 2002, Amnesty said.

One of them is serving a life sentence after being convicted by a military commission in 2008 but none of the other 11 has been

charged, the charity added.

Londoner Shaker Aamer, 43, is among them and his father-in-law Saeed Siddique said it has torn their family apart. Aamer, who has been held at Guantanamo since February 2002, is originally from Saudi Arabia but is married to a British citizen and has four British children. He said: “It is a great injustice for the family. The family has been torn apart for 10 years. Shaker has been detained without being charged for 10 years. Supporters have written to US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton calling for a fair trial for Aamer or his immediate release.

Kate Allen, UK director for Amnesty International, said: “It’s an absolute disgrace that Shaker Aamer is still behind bars at Guantanamo without a trial, without access to his family, almost without hope. “Britain needs to put its foot down with the Americans. We know that the Foreign Secretary William Hague has already called for Shaker’s release. He should now insist on a specific timetable for this to happen - within days or weeks, not months or years.” In 10 years, only one of the 779 detainees held at the base has been transferred to the US for prosecution in a federal court. Others have faced unfair trials by military commission and the administration is currently intending to seek the death penalty against six of the detainees at such trials, Amnesty said. Current Guantanamo detainees include those who were subjected to torture and enforced disappearance prior to being transferred to the camp, the report added. — KUNA

Charisma could make or break a candidate KUWAIT: In addition to attractive slogans, smart campaigning, and well-thought agendas, some candidates in the 2012 legislative elections have varying degrees of charisma which gives them a competitive edge and could very well prove a make-orbreak factor.

Interviewed yesterday, social and psychological consultant Dr Ibrahim Al-Ali said any social interaction leaves behind an impression of the other party one interacts with. Repeated instances of a positive impression would give a person charisma and appeal that could secure him more votes. “Things that attribute to a candidate’s appeal include appearance, commanding or distinctive voice, certain height, as well as things that could be controlled such as facial expressions, verbal expressions, and body language.”

The consultant added, “Education and qualifications, professional experience, engagement with civil society bodies and in voluntary work also come in a candidate’s favor. These aspects would particularly appeal to young voters and candidates endowed in this respect would serve

as better role models. They are more likely to show leadership qualities and focus on people’s most pressing concerns and help all take the best decisions.”

By way of comparison, Al-Ali noted that young voters had in the past often given their support to names supported by their parents or older siblings, without assessing their merits for themselves. “Nowadays, the young are more self confident and capable of discerning the candidates who would truly best represent them and best serve the homeland and have future generations’ interest at heart as well.”

The consultant urged youth at this critical juncture of our country’s political development to give their vote to the right candidate and for the right reasons, and for society as a whole to address the elections with respect of principles of equal opportunity, justice, and equality for all nationals.

“What we need, and must go for, is a candidate who would make his campaign slogans a reality, and such candidates alone would be able to restore the stance and leadership our homeland once enjoyed,” AlAli concluded.— KUNA

KUWAIT: The Ambassador of Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka C A H M Wijeratne hosted a reception at his residence this week for the outgoing Ambassador of Bhutan Dasho Sherub Tenzin. Diplomats, businessmen and media personalities attended the reception. — Photo by Joseph Shagra

THURSDAY, JANUARY 12, 2012

Nigerians defy order to end strike

Pakistan PM sacks defense secretary Page 11

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TEHRAN: In this photo, people gather around shattered glass and human remains yesterday. — AP

Bomb kills Iran nuclear scientist Officials in Iran blame killing on Israel Romney roars ahead with second US vote victory MANCHESTER: Mitt Romney, buoyed by a commanding win the New Hampshire primary, took his campaign south yesterday as the clear Republican frontrunner to take on President Barack Obama. The former Massachusetts governor and millionaire venture capitalist immediately looked to South Carolina’s January 21 primary, hoping a victory there and in Florida on January 31 could effectively anoint him the nominee. “I have a good start. I have an uphill climb in South Carolina ahead of me, but it could not have worked better last night,” Romney told the NBC “Today” show yesterday, following his victory in the New Hampshire primary, a week after a narrow win in Iowa caucuses.

Public opinion polls showed Romney leading his more conservative rivals in both of the next battlegrounds-large states where his well-oiled, well-funded campaign machine could roll up the opposition. With more than 95 percent of votes counted, Romney was set to win New Hampshire with about 39 percent, the first time since 1976 that a Republican non-incumbent wins this contest and the Iowa caucuses that precede it. After surviving a furious 11th-hour onslaught from his Republican rivals, who tarred him as a callous corporate raider who put people out of work, Romney defiantly trumpeted his business experience as his number-one asset.

A Quinnipiac College poll in Florida, a key swing state in the November election, showed Romney a likely winner over Obama by 46 to 43 percent. Romney has insisted that his private sector triumphs make him the best person to take on Obama, whose reelection bid is weighed down by the sagging US economy and high unemployment.

He has accused Obama of wanting to “put free enterprise on trial,” and yesterday accused some of his Republican opponents of having become “witnesses for (the) prosecution.” “This country already has a leader who divides us with the bitter politics of envy. We must offer an alternative vision,” Romney said in a strident speech to supporters after his victory was announced Tuesday night. —AFP

TEHRAN: An Iranian nuclear scientist was blown up in his car by a motorbike hitman yesterday, prompting Tehran to blame Israeli and US agents but insist the killing would not derail a nuclear programme that has raised fears of war and threatened world oil supplies.

The fifth daylight attack on technical experts in two years, the killer’s magnetic bomb delivered a targeted blast to the door of 32-year-old Mostafa Ahmadi-Roshan’s silver sedan as he drove down a busy street close to Tehran University during the morning rush hour. The chemical engineer’s passenger also died, Iranian media said, while a passer-by was slightly hurt.

Israel, whose military chief had warned Iran only on Tuesday to expect more mysterious mishaps, declined to comment. While many analysts saw Israeli or Western involvement as eminently plausible, the role of local or other Middle Eastern hands in a deadly shadow war of bluff and sabotage could not be ruled out.

The killing, which left debris hanging in trees and body parts on the road, came in a week of heightened tension: Iran has started an underground uranium enrichment plant and sentenced an American to death for spying; Washington and Europe have stepped up efforts to cripple Iran’s oil exports for its refusal to halt work that the West says betrays an ambition to build nuclear weapons, not the power plants Iran claims.

Iran has threatened to choke the West’s supply of Gulf oil, drawing a US warning that its navy was ready to open fire to prevent any blockade of the strategic Strait of Hormuz. However, analysts saw the latest assassination, which would have taken some preparation, as part of a longer-running, cover effort to thwart Iran’s nuclear development programme that has also included suspected computer viruses and mystery explosions.

While fears of war have forced up oil prices, the region has seen periods of sabre-rattling and limited bloodshed before without reaching all-out conflict. However, a willingness in Israel, which sees an imminent Iranian atom bomb as a threat to its existence, to attack Iranian nuclear sites, with or without US backing, has heightened the sense that a crisis is coming.

“Heinous act” Iran’s Atomic Energy Organization, which has failed to persuade the West that its quest for nuclear power has no hidden military goal, said the killing of Ahmadi-Roshan would not deter it: “We will continue our path without

any doubt ... Our path is irreversible,” it said in a statement carried on television. “The heinous acts of America and the criminal Zionist regime will not disrupt our glorious path ... The more you kill us, the more our nation will awake.” First Vice-President Mohammad Reza Rahimi, quoted by IRNA news agency, said: “Iran’s enemies should know they cannot prevent Iran’s progress by carrying out such terrorist acts.”

Preparing for its first national election since a disputed presidential vote in 2009 brought street protests against 30 years of clerical rule, Iran’s leaders are struggling to contain internal tensions. Defiance of Israel and Western powers plays well with many voters in the nation of 76 million. Israel, whose Mossad intelligence agency has a history of covert killings abroad, declined comment on yesterday’s bombing.

On Tuesday, armed forces chief LieutenantGeneral Benny Gantz was quoted as telling members of parliament: “For Iran, 2012 is a critical year in combining the continuation of its nuclearisation, internal changes in the Iranian leadership, continuing and growing pressure from the international community and things which take place in an unnatural manner.”

There was no immediate reaction to the early morning attack from the United States. Its ally Britain, whose Tehran embassy was ransacked in November, called suggestions of London’s involvement “baseless” and condemned the killing of civilians.

Motorcycle hitman The attack nonetheless, bore some of the hallmarks of the work of sophisticated intelligence agencies capable of circumventing Iran’s own extensive security apparatus and also showing some apparent care to limit the harm to passers-by. While witnesses spoke of a frighteningly loud explosion at 8:20 a.m. (0450 GMT) and parts of the Peugeot 405 sedan ended up in the branches of the trees lining Gol Nabi Street, much of the car was left intact. The containment of the blast to the vehicle suggested a charge designed both to be sure of killing the occupants but also to limit serious injury to those targeted.

Witnesses said a motorcycle, from which the rear pillion passenger reached out to stick the device to the side of the car, made off into the heavy commuter traffic. Though the scientist killed-the fourth in five such attacks since January 2010 — was only 32, Iranian media described him as having a senior role at the uranium enrichment plant at Natanz, near Tehran. —Reuters

THURSDAY, JANUARY 12, 2012

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

Iraq’s Kurds unwilling to hand Hashemi to Baghdad ARBIL: Iraq’s semi-autonomous Kurdistan region is unwilling to hand over Iraqi Vice President Tareq AlHashemi despite a formal demand from the central government that he be sent to Baghdad to face charges of running death squads. While not refusing outright to arrest the Sunni leader and send him to face trial, Iraqi Kurdish officials said the Baghdad government should accept Hashemi’s demand to be tried outside the capital. Hashemi, who denies the charges, travelled to the Kurdish region after the central government sought his arrest. He says he is willing to face the charges but does not want his trial held in Baghdad where he believes the judiciary is controlled

by Prime Minister Nuri Al-Maliki.

Iraq’s Shi’ite-led government issued an arrest warrant for Hashemi in mid-December, just as the last US troops were leaving the country. That triggered a political crisis that threatens Maliki’s fragile governing coalition, which is led by Shi’ites but claims support of Kurdish and Sunni factions. Hashemi is a senior figure of the main Sunni-backed bloc. The move against him, and the isolation of other Sunni leaders, have raised fears of a return of the extreme sectarian vio-

lence between Shi’ites and Sunnis which killed tens of thousands of Iraqis in 2006-07.

A string of bombings in mostly Shi’ite areas of Baghdad have killed scores of people in the weeks since US troops left. “The vice-president said he is ready to go to the court and if he is ready to go to the court, why must he be arrested?” said Dr Fuad Hussein, chief of staff to the president of the Kurdistan region. “They must prepare a secure and fair place for the trial and if they do that, he will go there himself,” he told Reuters.

Hashemi has suggested he be tried either in the Kurdish zone, or in Kirkuk, a city outside the Kurdistan region but where Kurdish and Sunni parties wield great power. “Kirkuk is a shared area between myself and them. There are decent and just courts there. I am awaiting a reply from Baghdad on this issue,” Hashemi told the Turkish privately owned Cihan news agency.

Kurds caught in the middle Hashemi is currently living at a guesthouse of Iraqi President Jalal Talabani, himself a Kurd, in the province of Sulaimaniya, inside the Kurdish controlled north. “Hashemi is not a fugitive,” Talabani said. “He is

still a vice president. Secondly, he is accused but not convicted and according to the law the accused is innocent until proven otherwise. He has not been convicted.” “He does not disagree with attending court. All he asks ... is to transfer the place of trial from Baghdad to Kirkuk and he is ready to go to court in Kirkuk. This is an Iraqi city which belongs to the central government.” Kurdistan judicial officials insist the central government does not have the right to send security forces to arrest Hashemi in Kurdistan, which has its own military and police.

After rising up against Saddam Hussein during the 1991 Gulf War, the Kurds won de-facto self-rule from Baghdad, a status formalized under the new Iraqi constitution drawn up after the 2003 US-led invasion.

Largely insulated from the sectarian conflict in the rest of Iraq, Iraqi Kurdistan has transformed itself from the poorest region of the country to its most prosperous. Fiercely jealous of their hard-won autonomy, Kurdish leaders are reluctant to get sucked into the deadly squabbles between Iraq’s Shi’ite and Sunni Arabs, and have largely either stood aside, or attempted to mediate between the many factions.

The flight of Hashemi to their midst has thrust the Kurds reluctantly centre stage in the unfolding political drama.

During the Saddam era, Iraq’s Kurds had closer relations with the Shi’ite leaders now in power who shared their goal of toppling the dictator, but Iraq’s Sunni Arabs, clustered in the centre of the country, are the Kurds’ immediate neighbors. Bearing in mind Hashemi’s previous vocal hostility to Kurdish aspirations, Kurdistan authorities are unlikely to sacrifice their own interests for the sake of the vice-president, analysts said, but may try to use his presence on their soil as a bargaining chip to further their strategic goals such as gaining full control of Kirkuk and its oil wealth. Masoud Barzani, the president of the Iraqi Kurdish region, proposed a conference to resolve the political differences around the issue of Hashemi, an idea later taken up by Maliki. “Of course the place, the agenda, who will be invited these are all issues,” said Hussein, Barzani’s chief of staff. “The government in Baghdad is saying, the prime minister the president are saying that they are going to invite people, but they didn’t decide when and how.” — Reuters

Assad promises to defeat ‘conspiracy’ France demands probe into killing of journalist DAMASCUS: President Bashar Al-Assad made a rare public appearance yesterday, vowing to defeat a “conspiracy” against Syria a day after he blamed foreign interests for stoking months of deadly violence. Meanwhile, a French television journalist was killed in the flashpoint city of Homs, the first Western reporter to die since protests erupted in March. He was identified by France 2 as Gilles Jacquier, an award-winning correspondent who had worked for the channel since 1999 and had covered conflicts in Iraq, Afghanistan, Kosovo and Israel. French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe called for a probe, saying in a statement: “We vigorously condemn this odious act.”

Other reporters were also wounded when a rocket exploded as they were on a government-organised trip, an AFP photographer said. The photographer said one of those hurt was a Belgian, who was hit in the eye. Jens Franssen, a reporter with Belgium’s VRT television, said around 15 journalists on the visit were in Homs, when “three or four grenades exploded near us. A French colleague probably did not survive.” The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said “rockets hit between the

quarters of Akrama and Al-Nuzha where there was a group of journalists. A Western journalist was killed, as well as six Syrians, and there were also wounded.”

Militants in Homs blamed the authorities for the incident. The Observatory did not lay any blame. Assad, speaking to tens of thousands of cheering supporters in the capital’s Omayyad Square, said that “without a doubt we will defeat the conspiracy, which is nearing its end and will also be the end for (the conspirators) and their plans.” Casually dressed in a jacket and open-necked shirt, a confident-looking Assad stood at the edge of the throng, security guards in front of him, and said: “I came here to draw from your strength. Thanks to you, I have never felt weak. His wife Asma was also present, smiling and looking relaxed. There were pro-regime demonstrations in other cities, and Observatory chief Rami Abdel Rahman claimed that “government workers had been forced to attend,” with soldiers in the southern city of Daraa “marching in civilian garb.”

“Whoever wants to talk should come down into the street,” said Assad, as he thanked his backers, many holding his portrait or waving

HOMS: A seriously injured Syrian man lies on the ground following a rocket attack yesterday. (Inset) A file picture shows Gilles Jacquier of France 2 television. — AFP

Syrian flags, for “supporting the institutions of the state and the army.” The United Nations estimated last month that more than 5,000 people had been killed in the crackdown on anti-regime protests that erupted in March, and many of them have been gunned down during street protests.

Damascus accuses “armed terrorist gangs” of fomenting the bloodshed. In a speech on Tuesday, his first public appearance in months, Assad vowed to crush “terrorism” with an iron fist. “Regional and international parties who are trying to destabilize Syria can no longer falsify the facts and events,” the embattled leader said in the nearly two-hour speech. That prompted opposition movements to accuse him of pushing Syria toward civil war and world powers to accuse him of trying to shift the blame for the 10 months of bloodletting in the protests against his regime.

Amid the finger-pointing, activists said four civilians were killed yesterday near the central city of Hama and that loyalist troops were clashing with deserters. The Syrian Observatory also said regime forces used live ammunition and tear gas to disperse students in Daraya, in Damascus province, and townspeople in the province of Idlib had declared general strike to protest against harsh living conditions. Washington said Assad used his Tuesday speech to try to deflect the attention of his people from the fact that he had committed himself to end the violence. “He’s doing everything but what he needs to do,” said State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland.

She said Assad must meet Syria’s commitments to the Arab League to end the violence, withdraw heavy weapons from cities, admit journalists, free political prisoners and allow for real political dialogue.

Juppe said Assad was “divorced from reality” and accused him of inciting violence, while vigorously condemning attacks on Arab League observers in Syria. In Istanbul, the head of the opposition Syrian National Council, Burhan Ghalioun, expressed alarm about Assad’s “dangerous speech in which he stated his determination to use violence against our own people.” “He has cut short any Arab or other initiative to find a solution to the crisis,” Ghalioun said, adding the speech showed Assad’s “determination to divide and push the country towards civil war.” — Reuters

Turkish PM back in form after surgery ANKARA: Over the past decade, Turks grew accustomed to the forceful tones of their prime minister on television, and things seemed oddly quiet when he vanished from public life for nearly a month after surgery. Now he’s back. On Tuesday, workaholic Recep Tayyip Erdogan had a full program, addressing party loyalists in parliament, meeting with the Tunisian foreign minister as well as the head of a European parliamentary assembly, holding a telephone conversation with Iraq’s prime minister and delivering a speech at a local administrators’ conference. In between, the prime minister called in the journalists who cover him for an impromptu chat and imparted some information about his health.

“Thank God, it is getting better every day,” he said. “God willing, our (work) intensity will resume in

ANKARA: In this file photo, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan addresses his lawmakers at the parliament. — AP

mid-February or in the beginning of March.” On Nov. 26, Erdogan, 57, underwent laparoscopic surgery to remove what a physician later said were non-cancerous intestinal polyps, disappearing from public life for weeks. The surgery was kept secret from the public and his aides remained tightlipped for days.

It took the normally tireless prime minister three weeks to return to work and even then, details of his schedule were scant, leaving many Turks wondering about his health. The potential implications of any health issue are big since Erdogan, 57, has loomed large over this mostly Muslim NATO ally. Under his leadership in the past decade, Turkey has boosted economic growth, raised its international profile and has become a source of inspiration for some regional activists who have helped oust autocratic leaders through popular uprisings.

Erdogan, who spearheads Turkey’s blend of religious piety and democratic politics, leads with a tight grip and there are questions about whether his party would weaken without him, and whether the country would pursue the same assertive, often brash foreign policy. Erdogan has set ambitious longterm goals for when Turkey celebrates the centenary of the republic in 2023, including making the country an influential regional actor, one of the top 10 economies of the world and a member of the European Union. The EU bid, however, is stalled for now. President Abdullah Gul, Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu and Ali Babacan, the deputy prime minister who is credited for the economic boom, are respected figures, but lack the depth of Erdogan’s popular appeal. Journalists knew something was up on Nov. 28 when nothing showed on Erdogan’s daily schedule. “There had been one or two occasions when the prime minister had nothing scheduled for the weekend and spent time with his grandchildren,” said journalist Ercan Gurses, who covers Erdogan for NTV television. “But we got suspicious that something was wrong when there was nothing on his agenda for a Monday also - not a single meeting, not one opening.”

A brief statement two days after Erdogan disappeared stated that he had undergone “successful” abdominal surgery on his digestive system. But that only fueled speculation that he had cancer, prompting hospital officials to make a more detailed statement a week later. Dr Mehmet Fuzun, dean of a university hospital that operated on Erdogan told the Dogan news agency that the prime minister had a three-hour surgery to remove polyps in his intestine and that a biopsy revealed that they were not cancerous. Fuzun said between 20 and 25 centimeters (8 to 10 inches) of his intestines were removed.

“If we hadn’t removed them, perhaps in three or five years time, they could have turned into a serious illness,” the agency quoted him as saying. On Tuesday, Erdogan told journalists that he liked to spend weekends in Istanbul, rather than in the capital Ankara, because “that’s where my doctors are.” A close aide told The Associated Press that Erdogan was already working “until 11 pm” and would resume foreign visits in March. He spoke on condition of anonymity in line with government rules.

In one of his first appearances after returning to work, Erdogan admitted that he had lost four kilograms (about 9 pounds) after the surgery. In 2006, Erdogan was admitted to the hospital after fainting in his car and being locked inside the armored vehicle when its automatic locking system was accidentally activated by panicked bodyguards. Doctors said at the time his conditions were caused by a combination of intense work and fasting for the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

Erdogan is taking up his robust schedule in the same week Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has resumed his weekly television and radio program after a hiatus of seven months due to cancer treatment. The 57-year-old president had a tumor removed from his pelvic region in June and underwent four rounds of chemotherapy from July to September in both Cuba and Venezuela. He has said he is now cancer-free, although he hasn’t revealed what type of cancer he had. —AP

OCEANSIDE: Staff Sgt Frank Wuterich (right) walks into court with his defense attorney Neal Puckette during opening statements in the Haditha murders trial at Camp Pendleton. — AFP

US court martial hears of ‘sad’ Iraq killings CAMP PENDLETON: US marines could see only “silhouettes” as they entered a house where some of a total of 24 Iraqi civilians were killed in a controversial 2005 shooting, a soldier said Tuesday. Speaking at a court martial of squad leader Staff Sergeant Frank Wuterich, another intelligence officer described the “sad” scenes following the killings in the Iraqi town of Haditha. Squad member Lance Corporal Stephen Tatum was in the thick of the house-to-house search for insurgents after an early morning bombing which killed one of their US colleagues on November 19, 2005.

On the second day of the month-long trial in California, the former Marine testified he heard between 5-15 rounds of semi-automatic weapon fire after the bombing, and was ordered by Wuterich to “treat the house as hostile.” Tatum said he felt he was not required to positively identify anyone in the house since it had been declared hostile, and could not confirm that the small arms fire came from the building.

Wuterich, Tatum and two other squad members entered the house. “As dark as it was, I didn’t see much of anything, just targets-saw silhouettes, big, small, a man kneeling,” Tatum testified. He said he threw two grenades into the house in an operation called “double fragging” to “clear” the room. “Frag and clear. Two grenades, sometimes three, are sometimes appropriate,” he said. Visibility in the house was bad because there was so much dust in the air after the grenades were thrown, added the Fallujah combat veteran, granted immunity in 2008 when he was ordered to testify for US authorities.

In all, 19 people were killed in several houses along with five men who pulled up near the scene in a car, sparking one of the

most controversial criminal cases involving US forces during the nearly nine-year-long Iraq war. The victims included 10 women or children killed at point-blank range. Six people were killed in one house, most shot in the head, including women and children huddled in a bedroom.

The other seven Marines charged in the case have been exonerated through various legal rulings, fueling anger in Iraq, where authorities had pushed for US troops to be subject to Iraqi justice before the US pullout in December.

Counter-intelligence officer Staff Sergeant Justin Laughner meanwhile said that after the bombing and killings he was “told to grab my gear and get an interpreter because there might be some wounded insurgents out there.” Laughner took his camera to photograph the bodies outside the car that drove up near the bombing scene and the bodies inside the houses swept by Wuterich’s squad.

He said he looked for identity cards on the victims but did not believe any were insurgents. Instead, he found the bodies of elderly men and women, as well as younger women and children in bedrooms and other locations in the houses.

“I didn’t want to stay in the bedroom any longer than I had to; I just thought it was all very sad. This is a sad event that happened with these people,” Laughner testified. Wuterich, 31, has pleaded not guilty to nine counts of voluntary manslaughter, along with charges of dereliction of duty and assault, for his role in the deaths of the Iraqis. If convicted of all the offenses, he could be sentenced to more than 150 years in prison. Wuterich remains on active duty at Camp Pendleton, north of San Diego, while awaiting resolution of his case. — AFP

Egypt activists promise no Israeli pilgrimage to tomb CAIRO: Egyptian Islamists and other activists vowed yesterday to prevent Israelis from making an annual pilgrimage to the tomb of a 19th-century Jewish holy man in the Nile Delta. Pilgrimage opponents have decided to stage protests on roads leading to the tomb of Rabbi Yaakov Abuhatzeira in the village of Daymouta, 180 kilometers (112 miles) north of Cairo, said Gamal Heshmat of the Muslim Brotherhood, an Islamist group which is the country’s best organized political movement.

He said that the late December and early January pilgrimage would be a “suicide mission” for Israelis, because of popular opposition to their presence in Egypt. “Normalization (of relations) with Israel is forced on the people, and the visits too come against the will of people and despite popular rejection,” said Heshmat, who recently won a seat in parliament in the country’s first elections following the ouster of former president Hosni Mubarak. Egyptian activists have rallied against the pilgrimage every year for most of the last decade. Egypt’s daily Al-Ahram newspaper reported Tuesday that 31 parties and groups had joined this year’s campaign.

The Simon Wiesenthal Center, a Jewish human rights organization based in Los Angeles, denounced the attempts to block the pilgrimage. In a Tuesday

statement, the center’s Abraham Cooper accused the Brotherhood of trying to “curb religious freedom of Jews.” “In their worldview, there is no respect for the traditions for Jews, dead or alive,” he said. A son to a chief rabbi of Morocco, Abu Hatzeira was revered by some Jews as a mystic renowned for his piety and for performing miracles. The elderly rabbi was making his way from his native Morocco to the Holy Land in 1879 when he fell ill and died in the Egyptian city of Damanhour near Alexandria. According to tradition, his followers tried to move his tomb three times, and three times heavy storms prevented them. After Egypt and Israel signed a peace treaty in 1979, Jewish devotees - mostly of Moroccan origin - have traveled annually to the site.

But Egypt has limited the numbers of pilgrims. In 2001 and 2004, two court orders banned the ceremony after opponents filed legal challenges. Since then, both Delta residents and activist groups have denounced the ceremony. The residents complain of harassment by security forces deployed to protect the pilgrims.

Activists oppose the normalization of relations with a country that Egypt fought in four wars between 1948 and 1973, and also see the defiance of the court order as part of the Mubarak regime’s general trampling of the rule of law. —AP

THURSDAY, JANUARY 12, 2012

I N T E R N AT I O N A L Legendary Soviet WWII spy dies at 87 MOSCOW: One of the legendary Soviet agents of World War II, who infiltrated a British spy school and protected the “Big Three” in the Tehran conference, died aged 87, Russia’s intelligence service said yesterday. Gevork Vartanyan, working under the codename Amir, in 1942 managed to attend an entire British training course for Russian-speaking spies in Tehran whom London then wanted to send all over the Soviet Union. According to the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) — the successor to the Soviet KGB-his work helped expose the British network which existed despite London’s wartime alliance with Moscow.

But Vartanyan’s greatest exploit was his role in ensuring security at the 1943 conference in Tehran between the Allied “Big Three” of Soviet tyrant Joseph Stalin, British prime minister Winston Churchill and US president F.D. Roosevelt that started to draw up the map of postwar Europe.

Vartanyan-aged just 19 at the time-led a group of young Soviet agents who exposed in its early stages a Nazi plot codenamed “Operation Long Jump” to assassinate the three Allied leaders at the conference. “Everyone in foreign intelligence will remember Gevork Andreyevich for his overwhelming love for the motherland and his fidelity to his duty,” the spokesman of the SVR, Sergei Ivanov, said in a statement. Russian President Dmitry Medvedev described Vartanyan as a “legendary spy, a true patriot of his country and an extraordinary personality.” “He participated in stunning special operations which have gone down in the history of our foreign intelligence,” he said in a letter of condolence to Vartanyan’s family.

The SVR said in a statement on its website that Vartanyan died on Tuesday. A source in the service told the state RIA Novosti news agency that he died at a Moscow hospital Tuesday afternoon.

During a life remarkable even by the standards of a spy and parts of which are still shrouded in secrecy, Vartanyan worked in tandem with his wife Goar, who was also an agent. According to the SVR, they worked undercover together for 30 years in different foreign countries as “illegals” after World War II. The SVR still gives no specifics about this work, saying only that it was in “extreme conditions” and in “complicated circumstances”. They only returned to the Soviet Union in 1986 with Gevork Vartanyan continuing to work in the service until 1992. ”Everything we did was important for the motherland. But the most important things cannot be discussed at the moment,” he said before his death in comments broadcast by Channel One television.

He was born in the Russian city of Rostov-on-Don, the son of an Iranian factory owner of Armenian origin, and received top honours from the Soviet Union as well as Russia and Armenia for his work.

His father had also carried out espionage work for the Soviet Union and it was for this that he took the family back to Iran in the 1930s. By the age of 16 the young Gevork was already working to expose “Fascist spies” in Iran. — AFP

Nigerians defy order to end strike Strikes hurt security as Boko Haram menace grows LAGOS: Tens of thousands protesting Nigerians defied an order to end a threeday-old strike yesterday as a union threatened oil production and deadly religious violence sparked talk of a looming civil war. The double crisis of protests and spiraling violence in Africa’s largest crude producer has left the global oil market watching anxiously and President Goodluck Jonathan facing his toughest challenge since he was elected last year.

Despite a government order late Tuesday that labeled the strike over soaring petrol prices illegal and threatened to withhold pay, protesters took to the streets as gangs of youths burnt tyres and harassed drivers for cash.

Pockets of Lagos, the largest city in Africa’s most populous nation, descended into chaos, including one upscale neighborhood, with gangs attacking a police car with sticks and ripping down signposts. The main groups of protesters in Lagos however remained peaceful, with some 10,000 people at one of the largest demonstrations dancing and singing anti-government songs. Some vowed they would begin camping out there. “I am here with my water and toothbrush because we are not leaving this arena until our demand for fuel at 65 naira ($0.40, 0.30 euros) is met,” said Akinola Oyebode, a 23-year-old at the main protest in Lagos, referring to the price of a liter of petrol before government subsidies were scrapped from January 1. “We shall not be intimidated by the police because our protest is legitimate and constitutional.” Smaller protests took

place in other parts of the city, including one calling itself “Occupy Nigeria” after the Occupy Wall Street movement in the United States. In Kano, the largest city in the north, a massive crowd thought to be in the tens of thousands marched

tion,” said Tokunbo Korodo, Lagos head for oil workers union NUPENG. “We are just waiting for the outcome of discussions between labor and government today. The outcome of that meeting, if not favourable, will lead us to shutting

LAGOS: A man carries a placard reading “Jonathan and His Government Must Go!” at Gani Fawehinmi Park protesting against President Jonathan’s government for scrapping oil subsidy yesterday. — AFP through the streets. Protesters and police clashed in Kano on Monday, leaving at least two people shot dead, but yesterday’s march started off peacefully.

Oil production has so far not been affected by the strike, but workers threatened action if the government does not respond to their demands. “We are contemplating shutting down oil produc-

down oil production.”

Tens of thousands have turned out this week for protests nationwide over the government’s move to end fuel subsidies, which caused petrol prices to more than double in a country where most people live on less than $2 per day. At least six people were killed on the first day of protests, including one person

allegedly shot by police in Lagos.

Local media reported that three others were killed in southwestern Ogun and Osun states on Tuesday, including one by a police officer, but authorities have not confirmed the deaths. Meanwhile, spiraling ethnic and religious violence in various parts of the country has fueled further chaos amid warnings of a wider conflict in a country roughly divided between a mainly Muslim north and predominantly Christian south.

Sixteen people were killed in three separate incidents in the latest such violence. An Islamic school was torched in the south on Tuesday and Islamist group Boko Haram was blamed for gunning down eight people, including five police officers, in a pub in Potiskum in the northeast. Boko Haram has been blamed for scores of attacks, and in recent weeks has claimed responsibility for violence targeting Christians, who have through their leaders vowed to defend themselves.Amid the sectarian and social turmoil, Nobel literature prize laureate Wole Soyinka, one of the country’s most respected voices, warned the nation was heading toward civil war. In addition, a statement signed by Nigerian writers, including renowned novelist Chinua Achebe, author of the novel “Things Fall Apart,” warned that the attacks were “precursors to events that could destabilize the entire country.” “Clearly, the sophistication and deadly impact of the terrorist attacks suggest an agenda to create widespread fear and, possibly, to foment anarchy or war,” it said. — AFP

German prez faces own party’s ire BERLIN: German President Christian Wulff drew criticism from his own allies yesterday for failing to disclose details of a home loan at the centre of a scandal that could cost him his job and hurt Chancellor Angela Merkel. Wulff has come under intense pressure for trying to stop the top-selling newspaper Bild publishing a story about a private home loan he received from the wife of a wealthy businessman friend in 2008. The conservative speaker of the lower house of parliament, Norbert Lammert, summed up many lawmakers’ frustration when he told Stern magazine there had been a “massive, wholesale loss of confidence” in the office of the president.

Wulff has rejected calls for his resignation from the media and opposition lawmakers but is backed by Merkel, who wants to avoid distractions to focus on the euro zone crisis. “He has in the last few days and weeks

given answers to many questions. If new questions arise, I am sure he will answer them, too, and I still regard him highly,” Merkel said at a news conference yesterday with Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti.

In an effort to defuse the scandal , Wulff made a contrite television appearance last week to admit making a “grave mistake” in calling the Bild editor. The president said he would publish on the Internet 400 questions and answers on the loan.

But his lawyers backtracked, and have instead released a summary of his position. One of Merkel’s closest allies - Peter Altmaier, the conservatives’ chief whip in the lower house - tweeted: “I wish that Christian would keep his lawyers on a short leash and put the questions/answers on the Internet.”

Wulff, who was conservative premier of Lower Saxony when he agreed the loan, has also refused to

agree to the publication of a voicemail message left for the Bild editor. According to the German media, he threatened “war” in the message if the story were published. Germans take the largely ceremonial office of president seriously.

A president is viewed as a moral compass for the nation who should uphold values, such as press freedom, that are enshrined in the constitution.

Opposition parties argue the scandal reflects badly on Merkel, who pushed for Wulff’s election as president just 18 months ago against a popular opposition candidate. However, a poll by the Forsa institute for Stern put the conservative camp up 1 percentage point at 36 percent. “People are not reproaching Merkel. They are simply judging the behavior of the president,” said Forsa chief Manfred Guellner, adding that most Germans do not view the president as a party figure. — Reuters

THURSDAY, JANUARY 12, 2012

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

Mexican parking attendant beating video causes fury MEXICO CITY: The case of a wealthy Mexican man seen on video beating a parking attendant at his apartment building has stirred anger among Mexicans stung in recent months by a series of class-discrimination scandals.

The Mexico City prosecutor’s office did not confirm the authenticity of the surveillance camera footage posted Tuesday on YouTube.

But the office issued a charge report that matched the location and actions seen on the video, and confirmed the incident involved in the allegation was indeed taped.

Prosecutors said Miguel Sacal was charged with causing injuries to the attendant in the July 8 incident in the lobby of an apartment building in the

upscale neighborhood of Bosques de las Lomas. The crime report states that Sacal asked the parking attendant to show him where the jack for his car was, and fix his flat tire.

The report said Sacal was accused of beating the attendant after he refused to change the tire. It said considerable injuries were done to the attendant’s teeth and mouth. The video that appeared on YouTube depicts a sadistic attack in which a man identified as Sacal insults the attendant, calling him a “cat” - Mexican slang that means roughly “flunky.” The man then repeatedly slaps and punches the attendant and slams his head around, as other employees make halfhearted attempts to separate the two

or simply stand by. Hugo Enrique Vega, who identified himself to local media as the victim of the beating, said he told Sacal the jack was in the trunk of his car, but he couldn’t leave his post because he had to be available to park other residents’ cars.

Vega said he felt powerless and took the beating because he was afraid of losing his job. But he later filed a crime report against Sacal.

Prosecutors said Sacal had obtained a court injunction against arrest, a tactic frequently used by wealthy people in Mexico to avoid jail, but was still formally on trial though he was not in jail.

The office said Sacal was challenging Vega’s description of the severity of his injuries.

The video was posted on the websites of Mexico’s major newspapers.

One reader, Rocio Romero Barron, wrote in the comment section: “What arrogance and cowardice this man displayed. I am also amazed by the indifference of this man’s fellow employees.”

In December, the daughter of the leading contender for Mexico’s presidency, Enrique Pena Nieto, retweeted a message calling her father’s critics a “bunch of idiots who form part of the proletariat.” That led many of Pena Nieto’s opponents to don placards reading “I’m a proletarian, too.” And in August, two upper middle -class women drew widespread anger when they were caught on video snobbily

insulting, shoving and slapping a Mexico City cop, insulting his mother and calling him a “crappy wage slave.”

In a country where most municipal police are dark-skinned and earn an average of only about 4,000 pesos ($300) a month, the sight of a taller, light-skinned woman spewing some of the worst verbal insults in the Mexican lexicon caused anger.

The women were later charged with resisting officers, insulting authorities and discrimination. Mexico has an extremely unequal distribution of income, with about 47 million of its 112.7 million people living in poverty while the country also boasts of being home to the world’s richest man, Carlos Slim. — AP

Ex-rebel Ortega starts third term in Nicaragua Ortega urges Israel to destroy nuclear arms

PORT-AU-PRINCE: Haitians walk past a body lying on a road in this file photo following the massive 7.0-magnitude quake that shattered the country. — AFP

Haiti quake victims stuck in a time warp PORT-AU-PRINCE: In the Port-au-Prince suburb of Petionville, some 2,500 people subsist in a crowded public park near open ditches flowing with human waste, a grim scene frozen in time two years after Haiti’s earthquake disaster. Valerie Loiseau, 28, recalled the fateful dayJanuary 12, 2010 — when she lost everything and her life changed forever. “I got here at 6:00 pm, a few moments after the earthquake, with my children, my daughter, a few months old, in my arms, and nothing else.” Two years after the 7.0magnitude quake visited near-biblical destruction on Haiti, killing between 200,000 and 300,000 people, she is still in the camp with her daughter Kelida, now three, playing at her feet.

Older children, half-clothed and barefoot, chase a worn football across a filthy clearing, past puddles of putrid waste water. Some 15 percent of Haiti’s entire population of almost 10 million were either killed or displaced by the quake.

Almost 520,000 survivors still live under tarpaulin in 800 camps dotted around the crowded Caribbean capital. Shocked in the immediate aftermath of one of the deadliest disasters of modern times, the international community promised billions of dollars of aid money to “build back better.”

Decentralization-away from the sluminfested, sprawling capital of three million-was the buzzword in a plan to be implemented under the watchful eye of former US president Bill Clinton. This grandiose vision now appears to have been a pipe-dream. Less than half the $4.59 billion pledged has been received and disbursed, and the coffers of the aid agencies are also drying up. While Haitian officials voice fears that the country is turning into a republic run by nongovernmental organizations (NGOs),

they also admit they have no choice.

“We are not yet ready to replace the NGOs,” Haiti’s minister of planning and external coordination minister Jude Herve Day told AFP, admitting that the outside groups bring services the state is not able to provide. More than 50 percent of the quake rubble has now been cleared, but little has been erected in its place and the pace of reconstruction is still painfully slow. Most of the hundreds of thousands of people who fled Port-auPrince after the quake have since returned to the overcrowded capital, desperate for work and food in a country still lacking another effective pole to attract labor.

Michel Martelly, a former carnival entertainer and pop singer, was sworn in as the new president in May, riding a populist wave and promising to bring the change that the country so badly needs. But faced with a parliament dominated by his political opponents, it took him five months to even get a prime minister appointed. Martelly has recently tried to nurture smaller, communitybased projects such as a flagship housing program — 6/16 — aimed at taking residents out of six camps and relocating them to 16 neighborhoods.

Alongside it, he has created the Carmen project, whereby approved home-owners receive funds to repair their houses under the supervision of certified engineers. Josef Leitmann, program manager of the World Bank-run Haiti Reconstruction Fund, sees glimmers of progress at last. “You have a vision of where the government wants to go, and that’s just critical,” he told AFP. “Second you’ve got leadership to take that vision and communicate it to people and inspire people and third you have political will to implement the vision.” — AFP

Penn State president to face alumni in Pittsburgh PITTSBURGH: Penn State University President Rodney Erickson will face a crowd of alumni later yesterday in Pittsburgh, some of whom aren’t happy about the way the school handled the Jerry Sandusky child sex abuse scandal. It’s the first of three town hall meetings scheduled this week, two months into Erickson’s tenure as president. The next will be in King of Prussia, a Philadelphia suburb, today followed by one in New York City tomorrow. The New York meeting is to be broadcast live online. Some university trustees like the meetings, but other Penn State supporters aren’t so sure about them.

Trustee Marianne Alexander said it’s good that Erickson is providing an opportunity for alumni to weigh in on the scandal and give their opinion on the university’s response to it. “It’s important for President Erickson to be able to hear what they have to say and also to explain his point of view,” said Alexander, president emerita of the Public Leadership Education Network and a resident of the Washington area.

“So I think it’s very healthy. I’m glad he’s doing it.” Sandusky faces 52 criminal counts that involve 10 alleged victims over 15 years. Gary Schultz, a for-

mer vice president, and Tim Curley, the athletic director, are charged with perjury and failure to report suspected child abuse. All three have denied the allegations and await trial. Longtime football coach Joe Paterno was fired amid the scandal. He was replaced last week by New England Patriots offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien.

Erickson is attempting to repair the school’s image with alumni, faculty, staff, and students. On Tuesday he announced that he’ll leave as president when his contract ends in June 2014.

He was named president in November after his predecessor, Graham Spanier, was ousted amid the scandal. Trustee Linda B. Strumpf of New York, retired chief investment officer for the Helmsley Charitable Trust, praised Erickson’s handling of the scandal.

“I guess what you don’t want to see is people taking out their frustrations or whatever on him,” Strumpf said. “He was not part of the investigation - he’s not part of the problem, he’s part of the solution. So I just hope those people will be civil and treat him with the respect he deserves.” Strumpf said the focus at the meetings should be on plans for the future, and not on past events such as Paterno’s firing. — AP

MANAGUA: Nicaragua’s President Daniel Ortega on Tuesday urged Israel to destroy its nuclear weapons to foster peace in the Middle East as he hosted Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad who is touring Latin America.

Speaking in a ceremony where he was sworn in for a second consecutive term in office, Ortega attacked the US “occupation” of Afghanistan and Iraq, condemned the killing of former Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi and offered a brief valediction to Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein.

Ortega - flanked by his close ally, Venezuelan leader Hugo Chavez - defended Iran’s stated intention to develop atomic energy for peaceful ends, an explanation Western powers say is a cover for a nuclear weapons program. “Simply by starting to push for talks in the region in which the steps are laid down for Israel to give up and destroy these nuclear arms, I’m certain this would bring about great peace in the region,” the former Marxist guerrilla said. Instead, western powers are ignoring those with nuclear weapons and threatening a country which only wanted atomic energy for peaceful purposes, Ortega added, pointing to Iran. “Christ never said: Israel arm yourself, arm yourself to the teeth,” said Ortega, whose speech moved swiftly from one topic to the next, backed by a musical accompaniment of strummed guitars and chanting peppered with rapped shouts.

Ortega, 66, suspended diplomatic ties with Israel in 2010 in protest after Israeli commandos staged a deadly raid on a flotilla trying to break a blockade of Gaza. Israel, which Ahmadinejad once said should we wiped off the map, is believed to have nuclear weapons.

But it has never formally admitted to possessing them. Ahmadinejad is visiting leftist leaders in Latin America known for their antagonism to the United States. His visit comes after the Islamic Republic fanned tensions with western powers by threatening to close the Strait of Hormuz, the world’s most important oil shipping lane, in response to possible new

sanctions over its nuclear plans.

In his long speech, Ortega called the killing of Gaddafi in October a “crime” and said the late Libyan leader should have been put on trial if there had been evidence against him.

With Chavez at times looking on intently from the side, Ortega took aim at arms manufacturers, and said the US invasion of Iraq had been built on falsehood. Next to Chavez sat Ahmadinejad and his interpreter.

Reflecting on the Iraq war, Ortega remembered Saddam with the words: “may he rest in peace.” Saddam was hanged in 2006, three years after he was overthrown by a US-led

MANAGUA: Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega (left) stands with Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez (center) and Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on January 10, 2012. — AFP

Snow-weary Alaska town orders extra shovels ANCHORAGE: An Alaska community digging itself out of nearly 15 feet of snow first tried Anchorage, Fairbanks and other cities when it ran short of shovels after being pummeled this week by yet another storm. It finally turned to a manufacturer Tuesday for a special order. “It’s ironic, isn’t it? The state of Alaska - you’d think they’d be ahead of the game. It’s those logistical things you just don’t plan on, or you don’t think is going to be an issue,” said Allen Marquette, a spokesman for the city of Cordova, on the east side of Prince William Sound. The snow-weary community of 2,200 was promised new shovels to be manufactured Thursday and delivered two days later - but it will be too late for the “couple more feet” of snow that touched down Tuesday, accompanied by winds of 25 to 40 mph and gusts to 55.

The latest storm hit much of southcentral Alaska. Avalanches along the Seward Highway closed the only route south out of Alaska’s largest city, cutting off Anchorage from neighborhoods to the south in Girdwood. Department of

invasion. Attending the inauguration were mostly Central American and Caribbean leaders, as well as Crown Prince Felipe of Spain.

The United States, which complained about the disputed vote that gave Ortega a landslide in November, sent representation from its embassy, according to Nicaraguan authorities. The election strengthened Ortega’s grip on power, giving him a two-thirds majority in parliament for the first time. Backed with petrodollars from Chavez, Ortega built his reelection strategy on welfare programs that have cut poverty in Central America’s poorest nation. — Reuters

Transportation spokesman Rick Feller said the department followed up with an even larger induced avalanche using explosives fired from a military-style howitzer. “That showed there was a lot of pent-up energy, and it’s been released,” he said. The highway will remain closed until noon Wednesday.

The storm knocked out power to parts of Homer on the Kenai Peninsula. Drifts accumulated to 7 feet, Feller said, and the city put out an advisory to boat owners that 16 inches of snow could accumulate and boats should be cleared.

KMXT-radio in Kodiak said flights to the island city had been canceled and three boats sank in local harbors from the weight of snow. In Valdez, the terminus of the trans-Alaska pipeline, forecasters issued a blizzard warning through Wednesday afternoon, with winds to 45 mph and accumulations of 9 of 17 inches of snow on the Richardson Highway at Thompson Pass, the road access out of the community.

Cordova, a fishing community famed for wild Copper River salmon, may have been hardest hit. — AP

CORDOVA: In this photo provided by the Alaska National Guard, guard members help dig out the fishing town. — AP

Mrs Obama: Tired of ‘angry black woman’ stereotype WASHINGTON: First lady Michelle Obama is challenging assertions she’s forcefully imposed her will on White House aides, saying she’s tired of people portraying her as “some kind of angry black woman.” Mrs. Obama tells CBS News she hasn’t read New York Times reporter Jodi Kantor’s new book that characterizes her as a behind-thescenes force in the Executive Mansion, whose strong views often draw her into conflict with President Barack Obama’s top advisers. “I never read these books,” she told CBS’s Gayle King in an interview broadcast yesterday. “So I’ve just gotten in the habit of not reading other people’s impressions of people.” In the book, Mrs Obama is said to have occasionally bristled at some of the demands and constraints of life in the White House.

In the interview, Mrs Obama said, “I love this job. It has been a privilege from day one.”“Now there are challenges,” she added. “If there’s any anxiety that I feel, it’s because I want to make sure that my girls (Malia and Sasha) come out of this on the other end whole.” The Kantor book portrays a White House where tensions developed between Mrs Obama and former White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel and former press secretary and presidential adviser Robert Gibbs. The book, titled “The Obamas,” describes Mrs Obama as having gone through an evolution from struggle to fulfillment in her role at the White House, while labeling her an “unrecognized force” in pursuing the president’s goals. Neither the president nor his wife agreed to be interviewed for the book.

“I do care deeply about my husband,” Mrs. Obama said in the CBS appearance. “I am one of his biggest allies. I am one of his biggest confidants.” But she sought to put aside “this notion that I sit in meetings.” “I guess it’s just more interesting to imagine this conflicted situation here,” she said. “That’s been an image people have tried to paint of me since the day Barack announced, that I’m some kind of angry black woman.” Mrs Obama said that she’s “just trying to be me, and I just hope that over time, that people get to know me.”

Asked specifically about an assertion of dissension between herself and Emanuel, now the mayor of Chicago, the first lady said she has “never had a cross word” with him. The same, she said, applies to Gibbs, whom she described as “a good friend, and remains so.” “I’m sure we could go day to day and find things people wished they didn’t say to each other,” Mrs Obama said. “And that’s why I don’t read these books. ... It’s a game, in so many ways, that doesn’t fit. Who can write about what I feel? What third person can tell me what I feel?” Mrs Obama said that when questions or conflicts arise involving her and the White House staff, her East Wing staff resolves the issue with her husband’s staff in the West Wing. — AP

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THURSDAY, JANUARY 12, 2012

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

Pakistan PM sacks defense secretary Tensions rise between civilian leaders, generals

This file photograph shows a beach of North Bay Island, one of the islands which make up the Andaman Archiapelago. —AFP

‘human zoo’ on Indian islands causes outrage NEW DELHI: Rights campaigners and politicians yesterday condemned a video showing women from a protected and primitive tribe dancing for tourists reportedly in exchange for food on India’s Andaman Islands. British newspaper The Observer released the undated video showing Jarawa tribal womensome of them naked-being lured to dance and sing after a bribe was allegedly paid to a policeman to produce them.

Under Indian laws designed to protect ancient tribal groups susceptible to outside influence and disease, photographing or coming into contact with the Jarawa and some of the Andaman aborigines is banned. The tribe, thought to have been among the first people to migrate successfully from Africa to Asia, lives a nomadic existence in the lush, tropical forests of the Andamans in the Indian Ocean.

India’s Tribal Affairs Minister V Kishore Chandra Deo yesterday promised to take action over the footage, terming it “disgusting”, and the home ministry has sought a report. Survival International, which lobbies on behalf of tribal groups worldwide, said the video showed tourists apparently enjoying “human zoos.” “Quite clearly, some people’s attitudes towards tribal peoples haven’t moved on a jot. The Jarawa are not circus ponies bound to dance at anyone’s bidding,” said Stephen Corry, the group’s director, in a press release.

But state anthropologist A Justin, who works on the Andaman islands, questioned whether the scenes were out of date. “Before the 2004 tsunami, people might have forced them to dance

and there may have been some much smaller violations since then,” Justin said by telephone from the capital Port Blair.

“Since the tsunami, a policy of maximum autonomy with minimum intervention has been put in place. Things are being taken care of these days. There is a lot of (security) coverage there now.”

Justin said the video appeared to be several years old, while police in Port Blair also suggested it was taken some time ago. “The video appears to be six to seven years old when Jarawas remained unclothed but now they wear dresses in public,” Director-General of Police Samsher Deol said. “Nonetheless we have launched a probe because we want to know who is the videographer who has committed an offence and we also want to know who bribed and who has been bribed,” Deol said.

The Observer report said its journalist had recently seen tourists throw bananas and biscuits to tribespeople on the roadside, and had been told by local traders how much to bribe the police to spend a day out with the Jarawa. In June last year, Survival International accused eight Indian travel companies of running “human safari tours” so tourists could see and photograph the Jarawa.

The London-based group called for tourists to boycott the road used to enter the reserve of the Jarawa tribe, who number just 403 and are in danger of dying out. The Andaman and Nicobar tropical island chain is home to four other rare tribes-Onge, the Great Andamanese, the Sentinelese and the Shompens-each numbering fewer than 350 members.

Another tribe called Bo died out in January 2010. —AFP

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s prime minister has sacked the defense secretary, his office said yesterday, in a move likely to ratchet up tension with the powerful military and raise fears of instability in a country vital to efforts to bring peace to Afghanistan. The decision comes during intense friction between the civilian government and the army over an unsigned memo that sought U.S. help in reining in Pakistan’s generals, a scandal dubbed as “memogate” that has reached the Supreme Court.

Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani’s office said in a statement retired Lieutenant General Naeem Khalid Lodhi, the top defense bureaucrat, was fired for “gross misconduct and illegal action which created misunderstanding” between institutions. Distrust between civilian leaders and the generals has bedeviled the nuclear-armed South Asian country for almost all of its existence, with the military ruling for more than half of its 64-year history after a series of coups.

A senior military official told Reuters the latest tension was “very serious”. Lodhi was replaced by cabinet secretary Nargis Sethi, who is considered close to Gilani.

If Gilani decides to dismiss the army or intelligence chiefs arguably the two most powerful men in the country-he needs the defence secretary on his side.

Historically, military chiefs recommend appointments to the civilian defence secretary post and often choose allies, usually retired generals.

“Because this one (Lodhi) is the army’s guy, they may consider this an insult,” said Hasan Askari Rizvi, an independent political analyst.

In December, President Asif Ali Zardari flew to Dubai for medical treatment, sparking rumors that he had fled the country anticipating a coup. The military, which sets foreign and security policies, drew rare public criticism after US spe-

cial forces killed Osama bin Laden on Pakistani soil in a unilateral raid in May last year, a raid seen as a flagrant violation of sovereignty.

But Pakistanis rallied behind it after a Nov. 26 NATO cross-border air attack killed 24 Pakistani soldiers, plunging already troubled ties with Washington to their lowest point in years. By going on the offensive, civilian leaders risk inviting the wrath of the military. “This is political adventurism on the part of the government,” said Mutahir Ahmed, professor of international relations at the University

Pressure on all fronts The country’s rulers also face an array of domestic challenges-from crippling power cuts to widespread poverty and growing public frustrations over corruption.

Army chief General Ashfaq Kayani last month dismissed coup rumors as speculation and said the army

ourable prime minister has leveled,” said the military in a reference to Gilani’s comments. “This has very serious ramifications with potentially grievous consequences for the country.” The memo scandal broke three months ago when businessman Mansoor Ijaz, writing in a column in the Financial Times, said a senior Pakistani diplomat had asked that the memo be delivered to the US Defense Department seeking help in reining in the military after the raid that killed bin Laden.

Ijaz later identified the diplo-

CHOLISTAN DESERT, Pakistan: In this file photo, Pakistan’s Army Chief General Ashfaq Pervez Kayani (right) and Pakistan’s Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani (left) watch a military exercise. —AP of Karachi.”Instead of stabilizing and strengthening the democratic forces, the present government is following the policy of confrontation,” he said.

A senior member of the ruling Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) said the government and the army were both digging in. “The prime minister has started throwing down the gauntlet,” the party member said.

The United States, the source of

US aided Pakistan group ‘supported’ extremists ISLAMABAD: The US gave money to a Pakistani Muslim group that organized anti-Taleban rallies, but which later demonstrated in support of an extremist who killed a leading liberal politician, the US Embassy in Pakistan said yesterday. The grant highlights the difficulties facing Washington as it seeks partners to support religious moderation in Pakistan. Last month, The Associated Press reported that the US Embassy had created a counterextremism unit to perform that mission.

US government website Usaspending.gov shows that the group, the Sunni Ittehad Council, received $36,607 from Washington in 2009. A US diplomat said that the embassy had given money to the group to organize the rallies, but that it had since changed direction and leadership. He said it was a one-off grant, and wouldn’t be repeated. He didn’t give his name because he wasn’t authorized to speak about the issue on the record.

The grant was first reported by the Council of Foreign Relations on its website. The Ittehad council was formed in 2009 to counter extremism. It groups politicians and clerics from Pakistan’s traditionalist Barelvi Muslim movement, often referred to as theological moderates in the Pakistani context. The American money was used to organize nationwide rallies against militants and suicide bombings, the embassy official said. The demonstrations received widespread media coverage, and were some of the first against extremism in the country.

The rhetoric at the rallies was mostly focused on opposing militant attacks on shrines, which Barelvis frequent but are opposed by Deobandi Muslims, Pakistan’s other main Muslim sect. Deobandis dominate the ranks of the Taleban and other extremists. Some view Barelvis as heretics. In 2011 and also this month, however, the council led demonstrations in support of the killer of Salman Taseer, a governor who was killed a year ago for his criticism of anti-blasphemy laws used to persecute religious minorities. The displays have appalled Pakistani liberals and stoked international fears that the country is buckling under the weight of extremism.

Taseer’s assassin, Mumtaz Qadri, is a Barelvi. He claimed he acted to defend the honor of the prophet Mohammed, a cause that is especially dear to Barelvis. At its rallies, the group maintains its criticism of the Taleban even as it supports Qadri - a seemingly contradictory stance that suggests its leaders may be more interested in harnessing the political support and street power of Barelvis than in genuinely countering militancy.

Two leading members of the council who have been with the group from the beginning of its existence denied receiving any American funds. The apparent discrepancy could be explained by lack of transparency within the organization. However, given the current antiAmerican climate, owning up to receiving funds from the United States would invite criticism. “This propaganda is being unleashed against us because we are strongly opposed to Western democracy and American policies in the region and in the world,” said Sahibzada Fazal Karim, the head of the council, before reiterating the group’s support for Qadri. “We are against extremism, but we support Qadri because he did a right thing,” he said.

Muslim groups and clerics in Pakistan have a long history of receiving money from foreign countries. Deobandi clerics have received millions of dollars over the last 20 years from Gulf nations to promote their austere brand of Islam and an anti-Shiite agenda. Iran has in turn funded Shiite groups. —AP

billions of dollars of aid, wants Pakistan’s civilian leaders and generals to maintain smooth ties so they can focus on helping Washington wind down the war in neighbouring Afghanistan.

supported democracy. Zardari returned from Dubai after about two weeks. Shortly before Lodhi’s sacking was announced, the military issued a statement objecting to allegations made by Gilani in an interview with a Chinese news outlet that the army and intelligence chiefs had acted unconstitutionally in the “memogate” scandal.

“There can be no allegation more serious than what the hon-

mat as the then Pakistani ambassador to the United States, Husain Haqqani, an ally of Zardari who was never liked by the military for his strong advocacy of civilian supremacy. Haqqani denied any connection with the memo but resigned as ambassador. A judicial commission has started investigating the memo in the Supreme Court and Zardari could face impeachment proceedings if a link is established with him. —Reuters

Suspected US drone kills 4 militants in Pakistan

DHAKA: A file picture shows Ghulam Azam, the controversial chief of the fundamentalist Jamaat-e-Islami party, speaking at his first major rally. —AFP

Former Bangladesh party chief jailed pending trial DHAKA: A tribunal ordered the former chief of Bangladesh’s largest Islamic party jailed yesterday pending trial on charges he instigated deadly rampages against civilians during the 1971 war of independence from Pakistan. Ghulam Azam, 89, a regional chief of Jamaat-eIslami during the war and later the party’s leader in Bangladesh, is accused of having command-level authority in attacks - including slayings, arson, rape and looting - by then-Pakistani soldiers and their collaborators on people in what was then eastern Pakistan.

The International Crimes Tribunal in the capital, Dhaka, denied Azam’s request for bail yesterday and ordered him jailed while awaiting a trial, which is expected by next year. Azam denies the charges, and his supporters say the case against him is politically motivated.

Trying the 1971 war crimes is a challenge for the government of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in part because many of the key defendants are her bitter political enemies.

International groups, including the New York-based Human Rights Watch, have urged the Bangladesh to ensure war crimes defendants receive fair trials by clarifying the definition of charges and allowing the accused to question the tribunal’s impartiality - currently not

allowed under Bangladeshi law.

Despite Azam’s retirement from Jamaat-e -Islami in 2000, he is still thought to be the de facto leader of the party, a fierce rival of the ruling Awami League party led by Hasina, who is the daughter of independence leader Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. Jamaat-e-Islami is a key partner of a political alliance led by former prime minister and opposition leader Khaleda Zia. Two leaders of Zia’s Bangladesh Nationalist Party face similar charges.

Azam went into exile after Pakistani soldiers surrendered to a joint force led

by India on Dec 16, 1971 and returned in 1978. He became party chief in 1991.

Azam arrived at yesterday’s hearing in a wheelchair and his lawyer, Abdur Razzaq, said he had sought bail citing health complications. He said the denial of bail was wrong, and noted that Bangladeshi law related to the war crimes trial does not allow the defense to challenge the ruling in a higher court during the trial process.

But any person convicted for war crimes will be able to appeal the final verdict of the tribunal in the Supreme Court. The three-judge panel, created by Hasina’s government in March 2010, also set Feb 15 for a hearing on charges for a possible indictment. —AFP

MIRANSHAH: M issiles fired from unmanned US aircraft killed at least four militants in Pakistan yesterday, officials said, ending an eight-week pause in the use of a tactic that has become a mainstay of the fight against insurgents. Drone attacks have been used increasingly in recent years in the fight against insurgents in Pakistan’s largely lawless Pashtun tribal areas in the west and northwest who fuel violence across the border in Afghanistan.

Pakistani security and intelligence officials said the missiles hit a home on the outskirts of the town of Miranshah in North Waziristan, killing at least four militants. Insurgents often dispute official versions of such attacks and the death tolls involved. The strike was the first such attack since Nov 17 and could deepen anti-U.S. sentiment in Pakistan, which was already running high after a Nov 26 cross-border NATO air attack that inadvertently killed 24 Pakistani soldiers.

“I think we were expec ting the drone strikes after a long break,” said Amir Rana, director of the Pakistan Institute for Peace Studies. “ There were even a few reports were coming from the last two, three days that they are going to be resumed.” The Nov. 26 air strike triggered a deep chill in already troubled US-Pakistan relations, prompting Pakistan to close off NATO supply routes into Afghanistan.

A source in Washington confirmed that a US operated drone had been fired at a militant target in Pakistan yesterday.

The source said no well-known militants were believed to have been targeted or wounded in the attack .

Drones armed with missiles have played a significant role in US counterterrorism operations as the Obama administration winds down the war in Afghanistan and Washington’s focus expands to militant havens in countries including Pakistan.

The United States vacated a remote air base, used to stage classified drone flights against militants, in Pakistan’s southwestern Baluchistan province last month. Pakistan had asked US forces to leave the base af ter the November air strike. The Obama administration contends that drone

strikes have helped weaken the central leadership of Al-Qaeda and put associated militant groups on the defensive. Others said the lull since mid-November had allowed militants to regroup.

MULTAN: Pakistani protesters shout slogans next to a burning US flag during a demonstration yesterday against the US drone attacks in Pakistani tribal areas. —AFP “ The militants were quite happy with this lull and they were publicly operating in the region as they were no more worried for their lives,” a security official in the region told Reuters.

Many militant groups operate in Pakistan’s tribal areas. US officials denied the drop-off in lethal drone attacks was part of a deliberate moratorium on such flights linked to the political and diplomatic uproar over the November air strike.

Officials maintained that lethal drone strikes were based on the availability of targeting intelligence and implied that such intelligence had been in short supply recently. The latest drone strike in Miranshah appears to demonstrate that if there was any kind of moratorium on such attacks, it has now been lifted. —Reuters

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THURSDAY, JANUARY 12, 2012

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

North Korea keeps door open for food-nuke deal with US ‘Nutritional assistance’ for needy, not military: US officials SEOUL: North Korea signaled yesterday it remains open to suspending uranium enrichment in exchange for US food aid, a deal that appeared imminent before leader Kim Jong Il died last month. The North complained that the United States had “drastically” changed the amount and kind of aid it would send, but said officials would wait and “see if the United States has a willingness to establish confidence” with North Korea - which observers saw as Pyongyang’s precondition for making the food-for-uranium-suspension deal happen.

The North’s statement offers an early look at

may instead choose to pursue an agreement that could be trumpeted as a diplomatic victory. The Associated Press reported before Kim Jong Il’s Dec 17 death that the United States was poised to announce a significant donation of food aid to North Korea. That would have been followed within days by an agreement to suspend North Korea’s uranium enrichment program, according to a broad outline of the emerging agreement made known to The AP by people close to the negotiations.

Discussions were suspended after Kim Jong Il’s death, as the North turned inward for an offi-

In this undated file image made from KRT video, North Korea’s new leader Kim Jong Un rides a horse at an undisclosed place in North Korea. —AP how the government now led by Kim Jong Il’s son, Kim Jong Un, will handle two of North Korea’s most pressing issues: a long-running food crisis and years of international pressure to end its nuclear program. “The North is saying it is willing to go ahead with nuclear steps if it gets the food aid it wants,” said Koh Yu-hwan, a North Korea professor at Seoul’s Dongguk University. “The North is telling the United States to provide a goodwill gesture. If Washington doesn’t, Pyongyang is threatening it will go down its own path.”

Some have feared Pyongyang may attempt to rally support around the younger Kim’s rule with a nuclear or missile test or an act of aggression against South Korea, but yesterday’s statement from an unidentified Foreign Ministry spokesman in Pyongyang suggests it

cial mourning period. Now Pyongyang looks to solidify Kim Jong Un’s power as he extends the Kim family dynasty into a third generation.

US officials have called possible food aid to North Korea “nutritional assistance,” such as vitamin supplements, and have said they want to ensure such aid goes to the needy and not the military. North Korea, for its part, has reportedly demanded rice and other grains.

North Korea, which has tested two atomic devices in the past five years, has pushed over the last year for a resumption of six-nation aidfor-disarmament talks involving the two Koreas, the US, China, Russia and Japan. But the US and South Korea demand that Pyongyang first suspend uranium enrichment and fulfill other past nuclear commitments.

Uranium enrichment could give the North

China warns US not to meddle in its affairs BEIJING: China yesterday warned the United States against interfering in its domestic affairs after Washington expressed “serious concern” over a spate of self-immolations by Tibetan monks. “The Chinese government attaches great importance to and safeguards the various basic rights of ethnic groups, including their freedom of religious belief,” foreign ministry spokesman Liu Weimin told reporters.

“We firmly oppose making use of religious affairs to interfere in China’s domestic affairs,” he said in response to a question about Washington’s concerns. State media reported Monday that a Tibetan monk died after self-immolating in the northwestern province of Qinghai, taking to 15 the number of people who have set themselves on fire in Tibetan areas in less than a year. It was the first time the Tibetan-inhabited province had been hit by such a death. Most self-immolations have taken place in neighboring Sichuan province, in what rights groups say are protests against perceived religious repression. The incident came after two former monks in Sichuan set themselves on fire on Friday-one died and another is being treated in hospital.

“We’re seriously concerned by reports that three more Tibetans have self-immolated over the past few days,” State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said Monday. “These actions clearly represent... enormous anger, enormous frustration with regard to the severe restrictions on human rights, including religious freedom, inside China.” The exiled Dalai Lama has condemned self-immolations, which many Buddhists believe is contrary to their faith, but said recently Tibetans faced “cultural genocide” under hardline Chinese rule that he blamed for the protests. But China says it has raised the standard of living for many Tibetans, pointing to huge ongoing investment poured into Tibetan areas.

Nuland said the US had also “urged the Chinese government... to loosen up in Tibet and allow journalists and diplomats and other observers to report accurately, and to respect the human rights of all of their citizens.” “And we have called the Chinese government policies counterproductive,” she added. Liu countered that China administered “religious affairs in accordance with laws so as to maintain religious order.” “The constant occurrence of self-immolations in Tibet does not meet the aspirations of people in Tibet for realizing a peaceful life,” he said. —AFP

another way to make nuclear bombs, in addition to its plutonium program. North Korea has been trying to cast Kim Jong Un, believed to be in his late 20s, as a strong, confident military leader. State TV in recent days has shown him in the cockpit of a tank, on horseback and poring over documents at night. Yesterday, the official Korean Central News Agency said he inspected military-led construction projects, including a traditional park and a meat store.

But even as North Korea pursues its nuclear weapons ambitions, it struggles to feed its own people, analysts say. The country had little arable land to begin with and has suffered from decades of economic mismanagement.

The problem is highlighted this year by the North’s repeated vows to start building a strong, prosperous country as it celebrates the centennial of the birth of founder Kim Il Sung in April.

State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland told reporters earlier this week that contact on food aid between the United States and North Korea has continued in the new year. But she added, “Were we to go forward with this, we would want to go forward in a way that gave us maximum confidence that the nutritional assistance would go to those in need, and could not be diverted to any other uses.”

The North’s statement, released by KCNA, said Washington, in talks with Pyongyang that began in July last year, proposed providing food aid and discussing temporarily lifting sanctions if Pyongyang took confidence-building measures such as suspending its uranium enrichment activities. In 2008, the United States promised to provide 500,000 tons of food aid. The US subsequently gave North Korea about 170,000 tons of food aid, but the North in 2009 rejected remaining shipments after tension flared over a planned long-range rocket test. Recent US-North Korea talks were about shipping the remaining 330,000 tons of food aid, but Washington later sought to “drastically” change the amount and the items of food assistance it was supposed to provide, the North Korean statement said.

While North Korea expressed “doubt about the US” it said it “will see if the US has a willingness to build confidence.” The statement also said unspecified “hostile forces” are spreading “unsavory” rumors that North Korea “is holding its hands out for food” after Kim Jong Il’s death.

The United States and North Korea fought on opposite sides of the 1950-53 Korean War, which ended with an armistice, not a peace treaty, leaving the peninsula in a technical state of war. About 28,500 US troops are stationed in South Korea to deter potential North Korean aggression. —AP

Japan railway chief not guilty in 2005 derailment TOKYO: The former president of one of Japan’s largest rail operators was yesterday cleared of responsibility for a crash that claimed 107 lives when a speeding commuter train smashed into an apartment building. Masao Yamazaki was found not guilty of professional negligence over the smash, which happened when the train jumped the tracks on a tight bend during the morning rush hour and ploughed into a residential tower in 2005.

The driver and 106 passengers died in the accident, which also left 550 people injured in Japan’s worst rail disaster for four decades. Yamazaki, now 68, was in charge of safety for operator West Japan Railway in 1996, when the company rebuilt tracks to sharpen the bend at the accident site in the western city of Amagasaki, near Kobe.

Prosecutors in Kobe had argued that Yamazaki should have anticipated danger and that he failed to take proper safety precautions, such as installing a device that can stop a train from travelling too fast. But Kobe District Court Judge Makoto Okada ruled there was no negligence. “There were not foreseeable factors...that would have given grounds for him to order the (speedcontrolling) device be installed,” he told the court.

The crash was Japan’s worst rail disaster since 1963 when 161 people died in Yokohama after a freight train collided with a truck and was then hit by two passenger trains. Yamazaki became president of West Japan Railway after the accident, pledging to reform the forprofit corporate culture in part blamed

for the accident, but resigned after prosecutors filed their indictment in 2009.

Survivors of the 2005 disaster and victims’ relatives accused three other former senior executives, including Takeshi Kakiuchi, who headed the railway company at the time of accident, of being responsible. Prosecutors stopped

Masao Yamazaki short of indicting them, citing a lack of evidence, but a judicial review panel found the prosecutors’ decision inappropriate which led to their indictment in 2010. Legal procedures against the men are ongoing. —AFP

7.3 quake hits off Indonesia BANDA ACEH: A 7.3-magnitude earthquake struck off the west coast of Indonesia’s northern Sumatra early yesterday, sending panicked residents onto the streets and in search of higher ground. Thousands on the island of Simeulue, 200 kilometers (124 miles) from the epicenter, ran from their homes as the ground shook, an AFP reporter on the scene said.

But after Indonesia issued a tsunami warning, the residents ran back inside to collect their belongings and then sought higher ground. A warning was also issued by the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center, but both have since been lifted. “There were no immediate reports of any damage or casualties, and that’s still the case,” Meteorology and Geophysics Agency official Tiar Prasetya said.

The agency said the under-sea quake hit at 1:37 am (1837 GMT), while the USGS reported the depth at 29 kilometres (18 miles). A soldier named Eko who was on the shore on Simeulue when the earthquake struck said he monitored the water levels in fear of another tsunami. “The water receded about a metre, which is a sign a tsunami is coming. Usually the water rushes back quickly, but that didn’t happen, so I was worried a tsunami would hit,” he told AFP. The USGS reported the epicentre was 423 kilometres (262 miles) southwest of Banda Aceh, the capital of Aceh province on Indonesia’s Sumatra island. In Banda Aceh, the ground shook for 30 seconds and terrified residents rushed out of their homes, but they returned indoors shortly after, an AFP reporter there

said. Aceh was the worst-affected area by the December 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami triggered by a giant 9.1-magnitude earthquake-that claimed 220,000 lives, three-quarters of them in Indonesia.

More than 20 people by a river in Banda Aceh climbed a bridge yesterday morning after the quake to look out for signs of a potential tsunami. Although the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center dropped its warning, it said: “There is a very small possibility of a local tsunami that could affect coasts located usually no more than a hundred kilometers from the earthquake epicentre.” The Indonesian agency also reported two aftershocks of magnitude 5.4 and 5, respectively about 30 minutes and one hour after the initial quake. —AFP

CILACAP: In this file photo, an Iranian illegal migrant who has been detained with dozens others after their boat landed on a beach on Java island holds his children at an immigration detention center in Central Java, Indonesia, one of major launching posts for Afghans, Iranian and Iraqis seeking refuge in Australia. —AP

New wave of asylum seeker boats raise Australian ire CANBERRA: The asylum seekers who head to Australia in rickety fishing boats are just a trickle in the global flow of refugees. But given the top-tier debate they have ignited in Australia, they might as well be an invading armada.

Only one in five refugees reach Australian shores by boat. Most apply for asylum overseas and land in scheduled flights. But the several thousand people who short-circuit the process by arriving illegally in boats have become a hot button issue that challenges Australia’s egalitarian ethos of “a fair go” for all and provides an outlet for xenophobia and resentment over urban overcrowding. “If I had my way, I’d have a navy ship bomb the bastards out of the water,” said Warren Icely, a 59-yearold ear th moving contractor from Canberra.

The issue has taken on exaggerated importance in Australia, partly because of a sense of vulnerability over a sparsely populated coast and partly because political parties cater to a minority of hard-line, often-xenophobic voters in poorer urban “swing seat” districts that often decide national races. Despite the hostility, Australia is the world’s most generous country in opening its doors to refugees.

A population of almost 23 million plans to resettle 13,750 refugees this year, which on a per capita basis betters the United States and Canada, which both welcome large numbers of refugees. But Australia’s humanitarian record has its critics, mostly over its harsh treatment of boat people. UN agencies and Amnesty International have condemned as punitive Australia’s 20-year-old policy of using prison-like camps to detain boat arrivals - many of them vulnerable refugees fleeing persecution.

Prime Minister Julia Gillard has been forced to relax that mandatory detention policy and allow more asylum seekers to live in cities outside the razor wire because the increasing pace of new arrivals is making the detention camps dangerously overcrowded. The boats are coming in larger numbers because the High Court scuttled her plan to deter them by deporting future arrivals to Malaysia where many of the sea voyages to Australia begin. The issue could even bring down Gillard’s government.

Opinion polls suggest the conservative opposition will likely win elections due in 2013 partly because it is regarded as better able to stop the boats.

The opposition has faulted Gillard’s center-left Labor Par ty for relaxing mandatory detention, accusing it of throwing in the towel to people smuggling syndicates that traffic asylum seekers from por ts in Malaysia and Indonesia. In 2011, 4,565 arrived by boat - more than one third of those in November and December alone. The danger of their voyages and the ruthlessness of the people smugglers were highlighted in December when a fishing boat overloaded with asylum seekers from Afghanistan, Iraq, Iran and Turkey and heading to Australia capsized off Indonesia with 200 losing their lives.

Refugee advocates say that even once they arrive in Australia, the refugees are denied a fair chance because they are scapegoated for government failures to provide adequate infrastructure, including public housing and transportation, in par ts of Sydney and other major cities. Polls show that many Australians erroneously lump together the issue of uninvited asylum seekers with regulated immigration and have exaggerated perceptions of the numbers of new settlers who arrive without permission by boat.

A common complaint among Australians is that boat arrivals are “queue jumpers” who buy themselves an unfair advantage over refugees languishing in squalid camps overseas by paying criminal syndicates $10,000 or more for passage in crowded vessels to Australia. “As far as I’m concerned, the ones who come in on the boats, send

them back, let them come in the proper way, take their chances like the rest of them,” said disabled Canberra pensioner Tony Yardley, 57.

“Jumping the queue, they’re risking their lives, their kids lives - it’s not on,” he added. Prof. Andrew Markus, a Monash University sociologist and historian, said the dread of people arriving by boat is part of the Australian national character rooted in its history as a tiny British outpost tucked under the Asian continent. “While the United States is born in freedom, Australia is born in terms of insecurity because there was this perception throughout the 19th century that we were a very small country on the border of Asia,” Markus said.

When a collection of British colonies federated to become Australia in 1901, the White Australia Policy ensured that British immigrants received preference for decades and those from Asia were largely blocked. That discriminatory policy was lifted in the 1970s, but Markus said border security remains “a national obsession.”

This is despite Australians sharing a land border with no one.

Undocumented immigrants living in Australia are only estimated to number 60,000, while the U.S. has more than 10 million within its borders. Markus, who studies Australian attitudes toward asylum seekers, said only 6 percent regard unauthorized boat arrivals as a major issue. That percentage nearly doubles when you include those who regard asylum seekers and immigration as the same issue. However, the more extreme attitudes attract a large share of media and political attention. “Maybe 10 percent of the Australian population is intolerant, bigoted or whatever, but that’s 1.5 million adults, so even though as a percent it’s actually just a small number, it generates a lot of attention and this is a very emotive issue,” Markus said.

“The (political) parties have got a lot of potential to stir this issue up because the amount of money that actually goes into this area is huge,” Markus added.

Mandatory detention costs $1 billion a year. The hostility is especially prevalent in the outer metropolitan “swing seat” districts, where the attitudes are fed by talk radio hosts who inflame audiences by exaggerating taxpayer-funded benefits that refugees receive.

Sydney-based Afghan refugee and freelance writer Abdul Karim Hemat, 30, said he hasn’t encountered community hostility toward refugees in the decade since he arrived in Australia in a boat from Malaysia. “The hostility is actually from the government and the media that gives a very negative portrayal of refugees,” Hekmat said. Swing-seat districts end up having more than their share of influence with the country’s mainstream political parties, including Gillard’s Labor Par ty, said Nick Economou, a Monash University political scientist. “Labor strategists feel that whatever they do, they just can’t be seen to be weak on border security,” he said.

Paul Power, of the Refugee Council of Australia advocac y group, said the prominence of the asylum seeker debate is difficult to rationalize. The increased boat arrivals to Australia will be offset by a reduction of refugees accepted through resettlement, so - in any case - Australia’s cap of 13,750 refugees this year will remain the same.

He noted that Australia, the United States and New Zealand were the only countries in the world who accept most of their refugees through ordered resettlement programs as opposed to having them mostly cross borders uninvited.

“Australia is a country which has been built on migration but it is also a country which has always controlled migration fairly carefully in terms of numbers and, in the past, in terms of region and race,” Power said. “The concepts of asylum and an orderly settlement process unfortunately never sit comfortably side by side,” he added. —AFP

THURSDAY, JANUARY 12, 2012

NEWS

KUWAIT: Protesters, some wearing orange prison jumpsuits similar to those worn by prisoners at the US detention camp in Guantanamo Bay, take part in a demonstration on the tenth anniversary of the opening of the camp outside the US embassy in Bayan yesterday to demand the release of Kuwaiti prisoners who are still being held there. — Photo by Yasser Al-Zayyat

Lingerie shops open another door for Saudi women at work RIYADH: For customers of the La Senza lingerie shop at one of Riyadh’s glitziest malls, the introduction of women-only sales teams this week ended years of embarrassment. No longer will female clients have to endure male shop assistants trying to size them up for underwear by sight through their voluminous, Islamically-approved robes. For the women who stand behind the till, King Abdullah’s order last year to make lingerie shops an exclusively female domain also marks a more profound social shift: a step forward for female employment. “I feel happy and independent. I no longer need anyone to support me financially, plus the job itself makes me strong,” said Amani, a young woman wearing a face-covering veil who was serving customers at La Senza.

Women account for only 7 percent of Saudis employed by private companies but make up almost half of all Saudis listed as looking for work, according to 2009 government figures. In this conservative Islamic kingdom, where gender segregation is strictly enforced, paid employment has traditionally been seen as an all-male preserve.

The fact that even lingerie shops were mostly staffed by men until this week had for years been seen by many Saudi women as an absurdity.

By denouncing all forms of female employment as opening the door to immoral interaction between the sexes, clerics and their enforcers, the religious police, in this case ended up forcing women to reveal intimate details of their body shape to men they did not know. “It is very comfortable now.

The shop is full of women and one can move freely and ask about anything without feeling embarrassed,” said Heba, a La Senza customer.

In a country where women are

banned from driving and need the permission of a close male relative to work, travel and even have certain k inds of surger y, female employment is another battle ground between traditionalists and those who want change. While the ruling Al-Saud family has always had a close relationship with the influential and deeply conservative Wahhabi clerics, the government has cautiously pushed for reforms that give women more rights.

“Ninety-nine percent of the society around me are accepting the situation,” said Amani. “My family supports me a lot. They tell me to do whatever you like as it is your life,” she said, nevertheless declining to give her surname to avoid causing her family embarrassment.

The clerical establishment remains unmoved, however. The Grand Mufti, the kingdom’s highest religious official, said in a recent sermon in Riyadh that allowing women to work in shops was a crime that violates Islamic laws.

Saudi political watchers say King Abdullah has tried to push cautious change, but powerful conservatives have pushed him towards the middle ground. While he disappointed women’s rights activists last year by not granting women the right to drive, he said women could vote and run in future municipal council elections and serve in the appointed Shura Council that advises the monarchy. “I think that 2012 will be an extension of government effor ts (to empower women) and even scaling up and building on those efforts,” Princess Amirah Al-Taweel, wife of Saudi billionaire Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, told Reuters in December.

Social opposition is far from the only obstacle in the way of Saudi women who want to work. Not only do they need the permission of a father, elder brother or husband, but given the ban on women

driving and lack of good public transport they need to hire a driver or rely on a male relative who can drop them off. For employers the situation is just as difficult. They have to conform to strict segregation requirements that ensure unmarried men and women will not be placed in the sor t of unchaperoned proximity that could incur the wrath of the religious police.

That need for segregated facilities helps explain the huge disparity between the 56,000 Saudi women working for private companies and the 295,000 in government posts: girls’ schools and other all-female environments make it much easier to obey the rules. But for all the difficulties, private companies want to employ Saudi women, who are perceived by some as particularly keen to work hard, said Khaled Al-Khudair, the founder of a women’s online employment agency that started up last year. His company, Glowork, advertises nearly 2,000 jobs pitched specifically at Saudi women. He said 7,500 female job applicants have signed up for his site.

More women than men graduated from higher education institutions last year, but the labour market has so far failed to catch up. Jarmo Kotilaine, chief economist of National Commercial Bank in Jeddah, said Western countries went through a similar process in the 1960s, before which time educated women frequently did not expect to parlay their degrees into careers. “Later the economic necessities changed this,” he said. But overall change is slow. “My family does not accept the idea that I work in a shop at all,” said Sarah, a sales clerk in another Riyadh lingerie store. “My husband supports me, but on condition that this would be a temporary move till I find a better job in an all-female environment, like a school,” she said. — Reuters

What’s this inferiority complex?

Continued from Page 1 In all honesty, I am mixed up. In the past when we were children, we used to think that the title Doctor is given only to the people with a stethoscope who measure your pulse, check your chest and everything else.

As we grew older, we got to know that a doctor’s title could apply to many fields ranging from science, biology, humanities and history to linguistics and math.

There are another 1,001 topics that you can do your PhD in. I can’t run all the subjects which you could go ahead and specialize in.

I met people who used to be reporters before and all of a sudden, after vanishing for few years, returned with the title Doctor. I would like to ask: What are you doctor in? The answer was: Theatre. I did not want to comment further. I was curious from where this person got his PhD. In his reply he named an east European country. How did he play theatre or even watch performances if he did not even speak the language of that country? By the way, what does a Doctor in Theatre actually mean? Please, enlighten me. Then I met someone else who is an astrologer. He calls himself Dr Y. He named a university in the US where he studied

for his PhD. The doctor could not even speak English.

How did he do his PhD then? Maybe by looking at the stars and calculating the numbers in the star signs?!

Generally speaking, most of the people I see in Kuwait are proud and insist on the fact that they are doctors. They use the title even at home. There is no more the “Baba” address. If by mistake you address him as Mr, he will be upset. He wants to be addressed as doctor. I like the way doctors address each other. In every single sentence the title doctor pops up. In a meeting I attended recently, the word doctor was mentioned more than 1,000 times. What is this?

If you are really a doctor in some field, you would not give a damn that people have to address you as doctor every time. Even if they use your nickname, you will be happy. Is this an inferiority complex or what?

From where did all these doctors graduate all of a sudden. Half of the country are doctors. Amazing! We live in a highly-educated country. There are no more bachelors or masters degree holders. By this measurement we should be the most educated nation on Earth. And our country should rank as a leader in education. Let’s hope these titles have an impact on our choice in the elections and we don’t go tribal or run after interests.

India-US hacking mystery deepens NEW DELHI: A memo that triggered a US investigation into a possible cyber-attack by Indian military intelligence is probably a fake, but it is clear from leaked documents that serious security breaches did take place. A little-known hacker group, ‘Lords of Dharmaraja’, began posting the documents last year, but only drew widespread attention after the anti-virus software firm Symantec confirmed on Saturday that a segment of its source code had been accessed by the group. Reuters has obtained a large digital cache appearing to contain emails that were posted by the group but were quickly blocked by file-sharing sites.

Dated between April and October last year, many of the emails were addressed to Bill Reinsch, a member of an official US commission monitoring economic and security ties between the United States and China, including cyber-security issues. Military and cybersecurity experts in India say the hackers may have created the purported military intelligence memo simply to draw attention to their work, or to taint relations between close allies India and the United States.

“There is some malicious intent, but to try and work out who has done it, given the current nature of the Internet, is an exercise in futility,” said Cherian Samuel, a specialist on cyber-security and Indo-US relations at India’s Defence Ministry-funded Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses. Speculation has focused on India’s neighbours, arch-rival Pakistan and China, both of which are active in cyber-operations. “It’s also possible that Pakistan’s hackers have done it, or China’s hackers,” said Mukesh Saini, an expert on cyber-security who served on the secretariat of India’s national security council, an intelligence agency, until 2006.

But if that were the case, he said, the attackers could be acting without state sponsorship. “Pro-Indian and pro-Pakistan individuals and small hacker groups have been attacking each other’s government and non-government websites, with or without the consent of their government, for a ver y long time,” he said. Two Washington sources close to the US China Commission said that while they were positive the commission was a target for Chinese intelligence, they found it hard to believe its activities were of any interest to Indian intelligence. They said it was possible that Chinese operatives forged the document to embarrass both the commission and the Indians.

Other Washington officials, however, said it was equally possible, if not more plausible, that the alleged Indian intelligence document was genuine and that the Indians were spying on the commission out of their own interest in learning about Washington’s attitudes to China. Genuine or not, the sophisticated language the document was written in suggests it was created by someone with a clear grasp of India’s bureaucratic style. Technology blog Infosec Island said yesterday it had seen more data obtained by the Lords of

Dharmaraja, including dozens of usernames and passwords for compromised US government network accounts.

Infosec Island blogger Anthony Freed said the hacker group claimed to have taken the data from servers belonging to India’s Ministry of External Affairs and the Indian government’s IT organisation, among others.

Officials in India declined to comment on the document’s content or authenticity. The alleged memo, which had a number of inconsistencies, including the letterhead of a military intelligence unit not involved in surveillance, claimed India had been spying on the USCC using know-how provided by Western mobile phone manufacturers.

While the memo looks dubious, the US-China Economic and Security Review Commission has not denied the veracity of the email cache, and US authorities are investigating the matter. The emails include conversations between US embassy officials in Tripoli, DHL and General Electric about delivering medical equipment to Libya, as well as concerns that GE was helping China improve its jet engine industry.

It is unclear whether Lords of Dharmaraja got the emails from Indian military intelligence servers, as they claim, but they first mentioned the documents in November, at the same time as they announced they hacked India’s embassy server in Paris. That breach was confirmed at the time by India’s foreign ministry, and some experts believe the cache of US emails was taken from the same source, raising the question of how they ended up there in the first place.

“An individual could have hacked someone’s personal computer and handed it over to the embassy. There are so many means and measures,” said Saini, who himself was charged with leaking secrets to Washington in 2006. He proclaims his innocence. “There may be cooperation between India and the United States, the United States may have shared them, or India could have done the hack ... or a third country may have handed it to India,” said Saini.

It is also unclear how Symantec’s source code ended up with the Lords of Dharmaraja, whose public face goes by the name Yamatough on a Twitter feed.

Yamatough, whose profile picture shows a Tibetan painting of Dharmaraja, the Hindu god of death and justice, follows many members of the “Anonymous” hacking collective, and Symantec attributes the hack to that group. “We are still investigating exactly where or how Anonymous accessed the code, but to date we have found no evidence that we shared any information with the Indian government,” Symantec said in a statement. “If the Indian government was indeed in possession of the code - as Anonymous claims and which has not yet been verified - we have no indication that it came from Symantec or as a result of our software assurance processes.” — Reuters

Controversy rages as Mislem verdict upheld Continued from Page 1 The decision on Mislem’s fate will be taken by the interior minister. Former Islamist MP Waleed AlTabtabaei has vowed to pull out of the elections if Mislem is disqualified.

In a related development, a number of the 14 candidates who were disqualified by the interior ministry on Tuesday said they will take the matter to the administrative court to rule on the issue. Shiite businessman Abdulhameed Dashti and highly controversial figure Mohammad Al-Juwaihel said in statements they will sue the interior ministry over the issue, alleging that they were barred from running in the election because of a political deal with the opposition.

Juwaihel’s lawyer Riyad Al-Sane criticized in a statement yesterday the decision, saying it was politically motivated because it was not based on a legal foundations. He said he will challenge the decision in the administrative court and will demand to suspend the

decision’s effect so as to allow Juwaihel to register again and contest the elections until a final verdict has been issued. Dashti, himself a lawyer, also said he will challenge the decision in the court, adding that his record is very clean and claimed the decision was political in nature.

Meanwhile, the first meeting between voters and candidates to be organized by Kuwaiti youth activists will be held today evening at Kuwait University. The meeting, the first of its kind in Kuwait, is like public debates between presidential candidates in many democratic countries. Voters will be allowed to ask their candidates questions on various issues without any restriction. Also, ex-MP and candidate Askar Al-Enezi yesterday called on the government to immediately withdraw Kuwaiti officers from the Arab observers’ mission to Syria because they are at risk. He said that the Kuwaiti observers are at risk from the pro-regime elements because of the Kuwaiti popular support of the Syrian revolution.

14

THURSDAY, JANUARY 12, 2012

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Issues

Romney GOP critics will get more heat

By Charles Babington itt Romney’s back-to-back victories in Iowa and New Hampshire will force his weak-but-still-standing GOP rivals to make a crucial decision: Keep eviscerating the man that many see as the inevitable nominee, or temper their criticisms and dampen whatever hopes they have of overtaking him. “President Obama wants to put free enterprise on trial. In the last few days, we have seen some desperate Republicans join forces with him,” Romney said in his victory speech Tuesday night, chastising his critics while acting as though he is already the nominee. “This is such a mistake for our party and for our nation.”

The former Massachusetts governor’s easy win in the New Hampshire primary comes just as two of his opponents have opened the most scathing line of attack yet in the Republican contest. Seizing on Romney’s record at the venture capital firm Bain Capital, they are painting him as a heartless profit-seeker who shuttered dozens of workplaces in the 1980s and ‘90s, laying off thousands of workers. The attacks have delighted President Barack Obama’s backers as they brace for an election focused on jobs. They planned all along to bash Romney with the Bain legacy and are happy to see Republicans get it started. But the events have alarmed a cross section of establishment Republicans and conservative leaders who feel Romney can beat Obama next fall if he’s not badly bloodied in a nominating process he has led from the start.

With New Hampshire over, the campaigning now moves to South Carolina. It has a history of brutal, even nasty campaigning in GOP primaries. It also has a much higher unemployment rate than Iowa and New Hampshire.

Both factors might make the state fertile ground for tales of a millionaire politician who vacuumed money out of companies and tossed them aside. “We are quickly approaching the moment when GOP leaders will announce or reaffirm their support for the front-runner and call for a civil tone in the debate so the focus can be directed toward the current officeholder,” said Republican consultant Danny Diaz.

A group backing former House Speaker Newt Gingrich plans to air TV ads showing distraught people who say they lost their jobs to Bain’s restructuring practices during Romney’s tenure years ago. Texas Gov Rick Perry on Tuesday likened Bain to vultures that ruin people’s lives.

And former Utah Gov Jon Huntsman, who finished third in New Hampshire, has taken a similar line of attack. He berated Romney for telling a breakfast group Monday: “I like being able to fire people who provide services to me.”

Romney was talking about underperforming insurance companies. But his ill-timed remark played into the Bain narrative of a tycoon who doesn’t mind killing jobs in the name of efficiency and profits. The exchanges have triggered an intraparty debate about free enterprise. That debate should not be allowed to scorch the party’s frontrunner, Romney’s allies say. “It’s a sad day in South Carolina and across this country if Republicans are talking against the free market,” said South Carolina Gov Nikki Haley. “The free market is being able to hire and fire and do what you need to in terms of being a business or a consumer.”

GOP consultant Terry Holt, said, “the last 48 hours have been about skinning Romney. But he comes out of New Hampshire stronger and looking more like the nominee, not less”. New Hampshire voters, Holt said, “might have helped inoculate Romney from future Bain Capital attacks.”

Gingrich may be the central player in the drama. Friends say he has every right to fume over hard-hitting attack ads that seriously damaged him in Iowa. A group backing Romney aired the ads, and Romney refused Gingrich’s pleas to denounce them.

Campaigning in New Hampshire, Gingrich seemed eager to fire back. He said Bain “apparently looted the companies, left people totally unemployed and walked off with millions of dollars”. Among those condemning Gingrich’s attacks were conservative radio host Rush Limbaugh, a frequent Romney critic. “Newt is parroting what The New York Times is writing about Romney,” Limbaugh said on a recent broadcast. “This is payback time. It drove him nuts, that series of ads that Romney’s super PAC ran in Iowa, and this is the result of it.” Some veteran Republicans are urging calm. Primaries always turn rough, they say, noting that Hillary Rodham Clinton showed little mercy on Obama in 2008. Others, however, said the pro-Gingrich group is going too far with TV attack ads based on a movie that rips Romney’s record at Bain. “We’ve seen it time and again,” said Phyllis Woods, New Hampshire’s Republican National committeewoman. “The Democrats tape it, preserve it and regurgitate it in their own campaigns.” — AP

M

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Peace talks flicker back to life in storm

By Ali Sawafta and Jihan Abdalla ncertainty sweeping the Middle East is raising pressure to restart the stalled Israeli-Palestinian peace process and tackle one big problem in the region that major powers believe they could, just, fix - given enough trust on both sides. The next two weeks may be crucial. Negotiators from the two sides are already holding exploratory talks under the auspices of Jordan’s King Abdullah, who will visit US President Barack Obama next week to discuss the latest developments. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas will travel to London, Berlin and Moscow - key stops to talk to members of the so-called Quartet of peacemaking powers pressing him to restart negotiations with Israel.

He suspended talks 15 months ago over Israel’s expansion of Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank. Abbas, 76, is seeking to “garner support for the Palestinians and enlighten the leaders of the respective countries on developments”, his spokesman said yesterday. The Quartet wants the two sides to state their positions on the borders and security arrangements of a future “two-state solution” by Jan 26, opening the door to a resumption of talks.

Setting yet another Middle East peace deadline meets with familiar cynicism. But this promises to be no ordinary year.

With Syria deep in crisis and Egypt in upheaval as popular revolt shakes the Arab world, the ground is shifting fast. “It would be great to inject some element of certainty,” Britain’s Middle East minister Alistair Burt said in the region this week, with characteristic English understatement.

After a year of deadlock in 2011, the door has opened a

U

crack to a potential fresh start to peace talks. “In the case that we achieve anything in the dual meetings, we will sit with his Majesty King Abdullah II and we will discuss all these elements and agree on all the steps,” Abbas said in Amman on Tuesday after talks with the monarch. “We must not be pessimistic or optimistic ... we have to use this opportunity and opportunities regardless of how hopeless they seem. There will be more meetings until Jan 26. We hope that we will be able to return to a legal basis that would allow us to return to negotiations.”

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu seems under no pressure domestically to say what is going on in Amman, where sources say both sides have agreed that only Jordan will make statements. But Abbas is under scrutiny from his supporters and critics. Palestinian analysts say that, whatever semantic contortions Abbas may use to show he has not caved in on his demand for a freeze on Israeli settlement building, the “discovery” meetings in Jordan amount to a tentative resumption of talks. The question is whether they can advance any further. “The 26th of January remains a decisive day,” said Hanan Ashrawi, former negotiator with Israel and top official of the Palestine Liberation Organisation’s executive committee. “The Americans are busy with their upcoming elections and have left the issue of peacemaking to the Quartet, to manage the conflict rather than resolve it,” Ashrawi said. “And the Quartet hasn’t really produced any new approach or innovative ideas.” “The Israelis have not in any way responded to the Quartet’s request to present their positions vis a vis borders and security, and they want to deal only with security,” she said. The Quartet comprises the United States, Russia, the European Union and the United Nations.

Britain’s Burt said “we know the expectations from the talks are not great”. But he added: “We are urging the parties to look for common ground and keep on going ... we can see on both sides a determination to get somewhere.”

Middle East diplomacy going back 20 years is replete with stock phrases. One is that “the status quo is unsustainable”. In 2012, this warning may be amplified by the forces unleashed by the “Arab Spring”, whose ultimate outcome no one knows.

The militant strain of Palestinian nationalism represented by the Gaza-based Islamist movement Hamas is feeling the wind in its sails from the success of Islamist parties in Tunisia and Egypt, and its hardliners say Abbas’s peacemaking is doomed.

Israel is wary of a chill wind from the new Egypt dominated by the Islamist Muslim Brotherhood that could sour the peace treaty it made with Cairo in 1979.

Israel’s only other Arab peace partner, Jordan, is also under pressure from the street for reform. There is no guarantee that a new sense of urgency can bridge the inborn mistrust between Israeli and Palestinians. PLO executive committee member Tayseer Khaled said: “There is a near unanimity among the factions of the PLO that the Netanyahu government wants to gain time, and to throw us into an endless cycle of political manoeuvres in order to evade the responsibilities of a serious political track that begins with stopping settlement building and ends with the agreement on borders and security.” By coincidence, the Palestinian daily Al Quds reprinted yesterday an article from exactly 20 years ago. Its headline: “Arab-Israeli sources in Washington: Talks to begin tomorrow amid assurances of progress in resolving differences.” — Reuters

Iran roar shows widening sway of military

By Brian Murphy n the high desert along Iran’s Afghan border this week, soldiers from the powerful Revolutionary Guard practiced ambush tactics in subzero temperatures. Next month, the Guard’s warships are expected to resume battle drills near Gulf shipping lanes that carry much of the world’s oil. Iran looks like a country preparing for war. But Tehran’s leaders are already using whatever leverage they can muster - including military displays and threats to choke off Gulf oil tanker traffic - to counter international pressure against the Iranian nuclear program.

A month after Iran embarrassed Washington with the capture of a CIA spy drone, the messages from the Islamic Republic couldn’t be clearer or more taunting: Tehran could turn the hook-shaped Strait of Hormuz into a dead end for tankers and hold the world economy hostage as payback for tighter US-led sanctions. Despite Iran’s escalating tough talk, there are contradictions and complications that cast doubt on the likelihood of drastic military action by Tehran that could trigger a Gulf conflict. It also shows how much Iran’s foreign policies are now shaped by its military commanders as the country views itself in a virtual state of war with Western powers and their allies.

It appears to be part of the kind of seesaw brinksmanship that has become an Iranian hallmark: Pushing to the edge with the West and then retreating after weighing the reactions. “Iran sees pressures coming from all sides and sanctions seem to be taking a major bite,” said Salman Shaikh, director of The Brookings Doha Center in Qatar. “Iran’s military is stepping up as the outside threats increase. This could well be the year that defines the direction of the Iran showdown.”

Iran has rolled out its troops and arsenals in an unprecedented display of military readiness. It wrapped up naval maneuvers earlier this month that included the first threats to block Gulf oil tankers. Ground forces also were sent on winter war games - against what a Tehran military spokesman called a “hypothetical enemy” - with US forces just over the border in Afghanistan. And the Revolutionary Guard - by far the strongest military force in Iran - said it will send its ships for more exercises in February near the Strait of Hormuz, which funnels down to a waterway no wider than 50 km at the mouth of the Gulf. The US and allies have told Iran that any attempts to blockade the strait would invite retaliation.

In response, Iran’s defense minister, Gen

I

Ahmad Vahidi, tried to shift the blame to the presence of Western forces in the region. “The point is if anybody wants to jeopardize security of the Persian Gulf, then it will be jeopardized for all,” the website of state TV quoted Vahidi as saying Sunday. For many Iranians, sanctions that could target Iran’s oil exports are disturbingly reminiscent of the UNimposed limits on Iraq’s oil industry in the 1990s. Mahmoud Shekari, the owner of a bookshop in the wealthy Tehran neighborhood of Vanak, sniffed: “If we cannot sell our oil, why should others be able to export?”

Ninia Eskandari, a 20-year-old music student, boasted that the “Strait of Hormuz is ours. ...

We can block it if others want to damage us.”

For the moment, it’s unlikely to reach that

University in Britain. “It can, however, try to keep Western forces guessing and on edge.

They are good at doing that.”

Iran also knows that blocking oil flow in the Gulf would bring serious self-inflicted wounds. Iran counts on oil for about 80 percent of its foreign currency earnings. Any disruptions would immediately start draining Iran’s treasury and leave its main oil customers, including China, India and South Korea, scrambling for new suppliers. As Iranian affairs analyst Afshin Molavi quipped: Closing the strait for Iran would be “akin to a man purposely blocking a coronary artery.”

Iran’s increased military focus is also, in some ways, a reply to threats of possible preemptive strikes against its nuclear sites. In

In this Sept 21, 2008 file photo, Iranian Revolutionary Guard members march during a parade ceremony marking the 28th anniversary of the onset of the Iran-Iraq war (1980-1988) in front of the mausoleum of the late revolutionary founder Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, just outside Tehran. — AP potentially explosive point, analysts said. Iran naval forces are significantly outgunned by Western flotillas, including the US 5th Fleet based in Bahrain that can draw on aircraft carriers and other warships in the Indian Ocean and taking part in anti-piracy patrols off the Horn of Africa. Britain is also deploying one of its biggest destroyers, HMS Daring, to the Gulf. “Iran knows it cannot realistically close off the strait,” said Paul Rogers, who follows international defense affairs at Bradford

November, Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak said his country will not “take any option off the table,” a clear reference to military action. Last week, U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta called for Israel to “work together” with Washington on emphasizing diplomatic and economic pressures on Iran. The goal of the current showdown seems aimed at making the US and Europe think twice about implementing tough new sanctions that take aim at Iran’s Central Bank and ability

to make oil sales. Iran’s economy minister called it “economic war”.

Iran already portrays itself as locked in a battle of wits against alleged Western agents and plots. On Monday, state television said a former US Marine interpreter, Amir Mirzaei Hekmati, has been sentenced to death after being convicted of being a CIA spy. The Obama administration rejected the claims against Hekmati, an Iranian-American born in Arizona, and called the prosecution a political ploy. Last month, Iran managed to capture a sophisticated CIA drone, known as RQ-170 Sentinel, and displayed the apparently intact aircraft on state TV alongside a banner that read “The US cannot do a damn thing” - a quotation from Iran’s late supreme leader, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini. Another banner depicted the American flag with skulls instead of stars.

Iran also has accused the US, Israel and their allies of waging cyberwarfare campaigns targeting nuclear facilities and being behind the killings of at least two Iranian scientists since 2010. Iran insists, however, that a Nov 12 explosion at an ammunition depot that killed the top Revolutionary Guard missile commander and at least 20 others was an accident despite persistent speculation that it was sabotage. “In this climate of feeling under siege, the Revolutionary Guard has found fertile ground to take control of policies and strategies,” said Theodore Karasik, a security expert at the Dubai-based Institute for Near East and Gulf Military Analysis.

“How Iran deals with the sanctions and the West is now all dictated, in one way or another, by the military.” It’s been taking shape for years. The Revolutionary Guard whose network stretches from Iran’s missile programs to neighborhood militias - has always held a privileged role in policy-making as guardians of the cleric-led establishment. But the Guard’s sway was sharply expanded after it took charge of the crackdown on the opposition after President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s disputed re-election in June 2009. The Guard’s planned naval exercises next month near the Strait of Hormuz - following similar war games by the regular navy that began in December - are certain to reinforce the perception that Iran’s theocracy is increasingly comfortable with letting the military set the tone, said security analyst Karasik. “The bigger questions now are: How far will the Revolutionary Guard go with the upcoming naval drills and other actions to challenge the US and the West?” he said.— AP

THURSDAY, JANUARY 12, 2012

sp orts

No rift in India team NEW DELHI: Senior batsman Rahul Dravid has batted down suggestions of a rift in India’s struggling test team and said he was working hard to correct flaws in his defense which has been repeatedly breached in the series against Australia. India trail the four-match test series 2-0. Their build-up to the third test starting in Perth on Friday has been overshadowed by Australian media reports of a rift in the side, while the tourists have also come under fire from Indian media for enjoying a gokarting session on Monday. “When you lose 2-0, that’s part and parcel of the game,” Dravid, who celebrated his 39th birthday yesterday, told reporters. “Suddenly everything is wrong. There’s absolutely no truth to those (reports about a rift)... the spirit in the team is really good.” Dravid, who has compiled 13,206 runs in 162 tests, said the karting session was not an indication of the team losing their focus. “A lot of discussions happen in the dressing room, in the course of dinner and when we go for gokarting. “Lots of conversations can happen in times like that which are very useful, and that’s how you learn. You don’t learn through sitting in meetings, having powerpoint presentations. That’s not how teams work.—Reuters

Andretti hire Hinchcliffe INDIANAPOLIS: IndyCar rookie of the year James Hinchcliffe was hired Tuesday to drive for Andretti Autosport in the 2012 season. The 25year-old Canadian will take over the team’s Go Daddy entry, which was left vacant when Danica Patrick jumped to NASCAR in October. The team had previously reached agreement with Dan Wheldon to take Patrick’s place late last season before Wheldon was killed in the seasonending race at Las Vegas. After posting three top-five finishes and seven top-10s with Newman-Haas Racing in 2011, edging out Indy 500 runner-up JR Hildebrand for rookie of the year, Hinchcliffe now joins one of the bestfunded and most successful teams in IndyCar. Andretti’s drivers have won three points titles and two Indy 500s,

though the last of those big wins came in 2007. Hinchcliffe faces the tall task of replacing Patrick, IndyCar’s most marketable driver. But Andretti said the team ranked all of the world’s available open-wheel drivers in a variety of categories and Hinchcliffe came out on top. “James is a perfect fit. He came out No 1 (overall) on all the available rankings,” said John Lopes, Andretti’s chief marketing officer. What really made the sale to Go Daddy, though, was Hinchcliffe’s affability. His strong online following and charming personality were exactly what company officials thought they needed to keep the momentum in the post-Danica era. “James is techsavvy, fast, got a good, large online presence and is that right, edgy personality we think will work,” Lopes said. —AP

England axe old guard LEEDS: England interim coach Stuart Lancaster signaled his determination to herald a new era for the side after dropping several senior players from the Six Nations squad he unveiled yesterday. Mike Tindall, the 2003 World Cup winner whose off-field drinking exploits in New Zealand cast a shadow over what was in any event a lackluster on-field performance at least year’s edition, was dropped and so were wing Mark Cueto and No 8 Nick Easter. In all there were 13 changes from the World Cup squad, with nine uncapped players included in the 32-man list announced by Lancaster for his first tournament in charge since being given temporary control following the resignation of former manager Martin Johnson. Rising backline star Owen Farrell and Saracens team-mate Brad Barritt both received their first senior call-ups along with Harlequins centre Jordan Turner-Hall and Northampton scrum-half Lee Dickson-one of eight Saints players in the squad.

Also included was uncapped Scarlets No 8 Ben Morgan, who recently declared his allegiance to England over Wales. — AFP

Sabres seeking identity to salvage season TORONTO: The Buffalo Sabres have a sense of urgency about them after stumbling through the first half of the season despite lofty expectations that came when a new owner poured money into the small-market franchise. A handful of pricey acquisitions during the offseason, which was unheard of under the team’s previous owners, sent notice to the 29 other National Hockey League (NHL) teams that the Sabres were serious about contending.

But after a decent start to the 2011-12 NHL season the Sabres were hit with injuries, at one point playing without eight regulars, and their failure to win consecutive games in two months has them five points out of a playoff spot.

“Our playoffs basically start now,” said Sabres captain Jason Pominville. “It’s

going to take everybody playing out of character and doing things that maybe they don’t normally do to get us in and get on a roll and we expect to do it.”

Many teams have salvaged a season with inspired play over the final three months of a campaign and Buffalo players are all too familiar with that possibility.

Buffalo reached the midpoint of the 201011 campaign with the same 18-18-5 record as this season’s team but went 2511-5 over the rest of the season to clinch the seventh of eight playoff spots in the NHL’s Eastern Conference. The Sabres opened the second half of their disappointing 2011-12 campaign with a 2-0 loss on Tuesday at the Toronto Maple Leafs, who have now won a season-high four successive games. The teams will play again on Friday in Buffalo.

BIG SPENDERS When Terry Pegula was introduced as the Sabres’ new owner last February he said their reason for existence will be to win a Stanley Cup, something the franchise has not done since its inception in 1970. Unlike prior years where Buffalo lost top players to teams willing to spend big on free agents, the billionaire owner’s arrival gave the Sabres an opportunity to lure talent.

The Sabres acquired defensemen Christian Ehrhoff from Vancouver and veteran Robyn Regehr from Calgary while signing free agent centre Ville Leino from Philadelphia. But a slew of injuries, sloppy defense, sub-par goaltending by former All-Star Ryan Miller and a lack of scoring from others has left the Sabres on the outside looking in for now. “We’re still

working to find our identity,” said Derek Roy, who is on pace for one of his worst offensive seasons and is the subject of trade rumors. “We give up a lot of home run plays in games so we’ve got to tighten up defensively, and that’s all five guys on the ice. We’ve got to work for each other and play hard.”

TOUGH SCHEDULE Through the first half of the season the injury-plagued Sabres had a total of 185 man-games lost to injury, 88 more than they had at the same point last year. They have also seen all but four players who began the campaign miss time with injury. “Every team goes through injuries,” said Miller. “We’ve had our fair share and for whatever reason we didn’t make up for the fact we were down personnel by

grinding out a few more wins and that’s on us.” To match last season’s second-half turnaround the Sabres will have to navigate through a tough schedule that includes a season-long, seven-game road trip starting next week. While the Sabres have a steep climb ahead if they are to make the playoffs for a third consecutive season, the players are refusing to count themselves out of the running. “I know that in the locker room we feel we have a group that is capable of winning games and getting in the playoffs and getting on a roll, but we’ve got to go out there and execute,” said Pominville. “We did it last year and last year we were in a similar spot. And we did it last year because we played hard, we played well defensively and I think we maybe stepped our game up offensively as well.”— Reuters

Stepan lifts ‘NHL-best’ Rangers over Coyotes Koivu’s hat trick drives Ducks past Stars

Al Azhari set for debut in Porsche GT3 Cup series DUBAI: Karim Al Azhari, one of the UAE’s most experienced racing drivers, says he can’t wait for his debut in the Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Middle East although he is expecting a difficult entry into the championship during the second half of the 2011-12 season. Al Azhari will make his debut in the Porsche one-make series in Saudi Arabia next month when he takes over the driving duties for Dubai-based Al Nabooda Racing from Belgian Stephane Lemeret.

“I’m absolutely thrilled,” said Al Azhari.

“It’s been a three-year wait for me since I knew the series was starting. Ever since then I’ve been eagerly anticipating my entry into the championship and I’m very excited about it. “I’ve been close to Stephane who is a very experienced driver and I’ve seen that the GT3 Cup car is very technical. I will need to put in a lot of work to perfect my understanding of the car and become successful. It’s definitely not going to be a walk in the park.”

Run by Porsche Centre Dubai, Al Nabooda Automobiles, the authorized Porsche dealer in Dubai and Northern Emirates, Al Nabooda Racing chose former

Belgian Touring Car champion Lemeret to launch its first tilt at the GT3 series. After completing the first half of the 12-round championship, he now makes way for Al Azhari who takes the wheel of the team’s GT3 Cup car for the first time in Rounds 7 and 8 taking place at Reem International Circuit, outside Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on February 15-16. Ultimately, Al Azhari aims to extend a highly successful partnership with Al Nabooda Racing, which has, to date, seen him win the Gulf Radical Championship in 2005 and 2006, followed by successive UAE GT racing titles in 2007 and 2008.

Vijay Rao, Team Manager of Al Nabooda Racing and General Manager, Porsche Centre Dubai, Al Nabooda Automobiles, said: “Karim has had a long and successful association with Al Nabooda Racing and we’re now looking forward to achieving more great things together. We’re grateful to Stephane Lemeret for lending us his great experience during the first half of the season, and Karim can build on what has been achieved so far.” Chasing his second Porsche GT3 Cup title in three seasons, Prince Abdulaziz Al Faisal is the current championship leader, with fellow-Saudi Bandar Alesayi and Oman’s Ahmad Al Harthy also in the frame after both securing early race wins. “I think the championship is wide open,” said Al Azhari. “We’ve had four different race winners so far this season and it’s going to be an exciting championship to watch. At this stage, I have no idea who is going to win it. I’ve been pleasantly surprised by the level of the top drivers. They are certainly very tough competitors, and from what I’ve seen I know I will have to work hard from now into my second season to be able to start challenging them.” After entering karting as a seven-year-old, Al Azhari ventured into motocross riding at the age of 12 before developing a passion for GT3 cars which led him into circuit racing in 2004.

NEW YORK: Derek Stepan’s goal in the sixth round of a shootout lifted the New York Rangers past the Phoenix Coyotes 2-1 in the NHL on Tuesday. Stepan beat Mike Smith high to the glove side before Rangers goalie Henrik Lundqvist stopped Coyotes captain Shane Doan to secure the win. The Rangers, who won for the 10th time in 11 games, improved to 27-9-4 for an NHL-high 58 points.

It’s their best start to a season since 1993-94, when they won the Stanley Cup. Phoenix has lost seven of nine overall.

BRUINS 5, JETS 3 In Boson, Nathan Horton’s second goal of the game keyed Boston’s three-goal third period as the Bruins beat Winnipeg. After Horton scored eight seconds into the final period, Tyler Seguin and Benoit Pouliot followed with goals over the next 6:33 to give Boston the victory in a game that featured a penalty shot by both teams. Bruins goalie Tuukka Rask stopped Chris Thorburn in the first period and Shawn Thornton beat Winnipeg’s Ondrej Pavelec in the second for a short-handed goal after he came flying out of the penalty box and grabbed a loose puck.

The last time two teams had a penalty shot in the same game was Minnesota at Phoenix on Oct 8, 2005.

FLYERS 2, HURRICANES 1 At Raleigh, North Carolina, Sean Couturier scored the game-winner 3:23 into the third period to lift Philadelphia. Brayden Schenn had the Flyers’ other goal and Sergei Bobrovsky made 35 saves. Philadelphia is 183-3 against the Hurricanes since the start of the 2006-07 season, including 10-1-1 in Carolina. Jerome Samson scored his first NHL goal for the Hurricanes, who had won four of their last five at home.

SENATORS 5, PENGUINS 1 In Pittsburgh, Milan Michalek scored twice as Ottawa easily defeated the slumping Penguins. Chris Neil, Bobby Butler and Jason Spezza also scored for the Senators, while Craig Anderson stopped 29 shots. Ottawa scored on four consecutive shots spanning the first and second period to break it open and send the reeling Penguins to their fifth straight loss - their longest losing streak in two years. Brent Johnson made just five saves on eight shots before being replaced in the second period by Marc-Andre Fleury.

MAPLE LEAFS 2, SABRES 0 At Toronto, Jonas Gustavsson had 32 saves for his second shutout in three starts to lead the Maple Leafs over Buffalo. Nikolai Kulemin and Mikhail Grabovski scored for Toronto, which won all four games on a homestand that started last Tuesday. The Maple Leafs moved eight points ahead of the struggling Sabres heading into Friday ’s rematch in Buffalo. It also gave them a three-point cushion over ninth-place Winnipeg in the Eastern Conference.

ISLANDERS 5, RED WINGS 1 At Uniondale, New York, John Tavares had a goal and assist in the second period shortly after being struck in the head with a puck to lead New York past Detroit. Kyle Okposo and

Michael Grabner also scored in the second, a period in which the Islanders had three goals on four shots. Matt Moulson started and finished the scoring for the Islanders, who have won five of six against the Red Wings since the NHL lockout seven years ago.

BLUES 3, CANADIENS 0 In Montreal, Jaroslav Halak earned a shutout in his first game back in Montreal as St. Louis extended its winning streak to four with a victory over the Canadiens. David Backes, Chris Stewart and Jason Arnott scored for the Blues. Halak, traded by Montreal to the Blues in June 2010, made 19 saves for his

WILD 5, SHARKS 4, SO At St. Paul, Minnesota, Matt Cullen scored in the third period and the first round of a shootout as Minnesota stopped San Jose’s four-game winning streak. Mikko Koivu also scored in the shootout for Minnesota to give the Wild just their second victory in 13 games.

Logan Couture and Patrick Marleau scored 22 seconds apart to tie the game with 2:44 remaining in regulation. The Sharks outshot the Wild 18-8 in the third period.

BLACKHAWKS 5, BLUE JACKETS 2 At Chicago, Viktor Stalberg scored three goals for his first NHL hat trick as the

FLORIDA: Vancouver Canucks’ Mason Raymond (21) spins around to score the winning goal in front of Tampa Bay Lightning goalie Dwayne Roloson during a shootout of an NHL hockey game in Tampa, Fla on Tuesday, Jan 10, 2012. — AP second shutout of the season and the 18th of his career.

DUCKS 5, STARS 2 In Anaheim, California, Saku Koivu scored two of his three goals in the third period as the Ducks beat Dallas for their first threegame winning streak in nearly three months. Koivu scored the tiebreaking goal with 10:28 to play and added an empty-net goal with 53.7 seconds left for his second career hat trick. Jeff Deslauriers made 26 saves in his first NHL game in nearly two years for Anaheim, which hadn’t won three straight since starting the season 4-1.

CANUCKS 5, LIGHTNING 4, SO I n Ta m p a , Fl o r i d a , M a s o n R ay m o n d scored the lone goal in the shootout to lead Vancouver past Tampa Bay. Canucks goalie Cory Schneider stopped all three shots he faced during the shootout, including one by NHL goal leader Steven Stamkos on Tampa Bay ’s final oppor tunit y. The Lightning leveled the score at 4 with a minute remaining in the third when Ryan M alone scored from near the post.

Alexander Edler, Jannik Hansen, Manny Malhotra and Ryan Kesler scored in regulation for Vancouver.

Blackhawks beat Columbus to end a fourgame losing streak. Dave Bolland and Ben Smith also scored for the Blackhawks.

Columbus was playing its first game under interim coach Todd Richards after Scott Arniel was fired on Monday. The Blue Jackets have the worst record in the NHL (11-26-5) and are off to their worst start since entering the league in 2000-01.

PREDATORS 4, AVALANCHE 1 At Denver, Pekka Rinne made 32 saves and Martin Erat and Ryan Ellis each had a goal and an assist to lead Nashville. Nick Paling and Patric Hornqvist also scored for the Predators, who have won two straight and five of six.

Nashville has won six straight against the Avalanche dating to the 2009-10 season.

Rinne was in net for all four Predators wins over Colorado last season.

FLAMES 6, DEVILS 3 At Calgary, Alberta, Curtis Glencross had a goal and three assists and Jarome Iginla added a goal and two assists as the Flames beat New Jersey. Jay Bouwmeester, Cory Sarich, TJ Brodie and Lee Stempniak also scored as Calgary won its seventh straight at home. Miikka Kiprusoff made 35 saves, including 20 in the third period to preserve the Flames’ win.— AP

THURSDAY, JANUARY 12, 2012

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Bahrain F1 reinstates sacked employees LONDON: Bahrain’s Formula One circuit, which is scheduled to host a grand prix again in April after last year’s was cancelled, said yesterday it had reinstated employees dismissed in the 2011 civil unrest. The move comes amid a ‘national dialogue’ in the Gulf state after pro-democracy protests and continuing calls from campaigners for the glamour sport, whose teams are mostly British-based, to stay away. “ The reinstatement of our BIC (Bahrain International Circuit) colleagues is part of an important initiative towards national reconciliation and unity for the kingdom as a whole,” said circuit chief executive Sheikh Salman bin Isa Al-Khalifa in a statement. “I therefore welcome back our colleagues into the BIC family as we now look to focus on the future and the important job at hand. “ The Bahrain International Circuit, and in particular the Formula One Grand Prix, is of huge significance to our country,

acting as a strong unifier, given the support it receives from all sections of Bahrain society,” he added.

The statement said the circuit had contacted the relevant staff and hoped they would return as soon as possible. However, it did not say whether all had accepted their jobs back. A number of circuit employees were dismissed after being deemed to be in breach of their contracts during the protests in February and March last year. Thousands of mainly Shiite Bahrainis took to the streets then demanding curbs on the power of the ruling Sunni Muslim Al-Khalifa family and an end to perceived discrimination. At least 35 people, including five members of the security forces, were killed in the unrest.

The grand prix, which would have been last year’s season-opener, was postponed and then finally cancelled due to the situation and the reluctance of teams, despite Bahrain’s considerable investment in the sport.

NBA results/standings NBA results and standings on Tuesday. Houston 82, Charlotte 70; Philadelphia 112, Sacramento 85; Washington 93, Toronto 78; Dallas 100, Detroit 86; Milwaukee 106, San Antonio 103; Chicago 111, Minnesota 100; Oklahoma City 100, Memphis 95; Utah 113, Cleveland 105; Portland 105, LA Clippers 97; Golden State 111, Miami 106 (OT ); LA Lakers 99, Phoenix 83. (OT denotes overtime) Eastern Conference Atlantic Division W L PCT 7 2 .778 Philadelphia NY Knicks 5 4 .556 Boston 4 4 .500 Toronto 4 6 .400 New Jersey 2 8 .200 Central Division Chicago 9 2 .818 6 3 .667 Indiana Cleveland 4 5 .444 Milwaukee 3 6 .333 Detroit 2 8 .200 Southeast Division Miami 8 2 .800 7 3 .700 Atlanta Orlando 6 3 .667 Charlotte 2 8 .200 Washington 1 8 .111 Western Conference Northwest Division Oklahoma City 9 2 .818 7 2 .778 Portland Utah 6 3 .667 Denver 6 4 .600 Minnesota 3 7 .300 LA Lakers LA Clippers Phoenix Golden State Sacramento San Antonio Dallas Memphis New Orleans Houston

Pacific Division 7 4 .636 4 3 .571 4 5 .444 3 6 .333 3 7 .300 Southwest Division 6 4 .600 5 5 .500 3 6 .333 3 6 .333 3 6 .333

GB 2 2.5 3.5 5.5 2 4 5 6.5 1 1.5 6 6.5 1 2 2.5 5.5 1 2 3 3.5 1 2.5 2.5 2.5

F1: Ferrari hire ex-Bridgestone tyre chief TOKYO: Ferrari have signed up former Bridgestone development chief Hirohide Hamashima to help Formula One’s oldest and most successful team get the most out of the Pirelli tyres and fight for the title after a difficult 2011. Team boss Stefano Domenicali also told reporters at a ‘Wrooom’ event in the Italian ski resort of Madonna Di Campiglio yesterday that Ferrari would launch the 2012 car at Maranello on Feb 3 before testing starts in Spain the following week. Hamashima, who worked closely with Ferrari during the Michael Schumacher years when they were the sport’s dominant team and Bridgestone’s most important partner, was one of several new arrivals at Maranello. Domenicali said Steve Clark had also joined from Mercedes as a track engineer.

Hamashima will “head up a new project focusing on an in-depth assessment of an area crucial to performance, which is the interaction between the car and its tyres and he will also be our technical link to Pirelli,” said Domenicali.

“He knows the world of tyres. His knowledge is fundamental and we have used this occasion to strengthen our understanding in this area,” he said.

“Last year we were not that good in exploiting all the tyres we had in hand, so that is the reason why he has come into the team.” Both men will report to technical director Pat Fry. The Japanese engineer led Bridgestone’s Formula One effort between 1997 and 2010, a period in which Ferrari won five drivers’ titles in a row with Schumacher, one with Kimi Raikkonen and also eight constructors’ championships.

Bridgestone pulled out of Formula One at the end of 2010, leaving Pirelli to take their place. Ferrari finished third overall last season, well behind champions Red Bull and McLaren, with just one win courtesy of Spain’s twice world champion Fernando Alonso.

The team have an unchanged line-up this season with Alonso and Brazilian Felipe Massa, who needs to show a significant improvement if he is to retain his place in 2013. Domenicali said the new car would be a significant departure from last year’s.

“Especially from a mechanical point of view it is a break from the past,” he said. “There are some new concepts in the car that have never been used in our previous cars.” — Reuters

Bahrain’s sovereign wealth fund Mumtalakat are major shareholders in McLaren. The race has been reinstated on the 2012 calendar for April 22, as the fourth round of 20, and Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone is keen for it to go ahead. “I hope we go to Bahrain and there’s no trouble, the race goes on, the public are happy and there are no dramas,” he said last month.

Right groups have however been urging Formula One not to return to Bahrain. “We will campaign for... drivers and teams to boycott. The government wants Formula One to tell the outside world that everything is back to normal,” Nabeel Rajab, vice-president of the Bahrain Center for Human Rights, told the arabianbusiness.com website at the weekend. “Formula One, if they come, they are helping the government to say (it is normal). We would prefer it if they didn’t take part. I am sure the drivers and teams respect human rights.” — Reuters

SAKHIR: An employee of the Bahrain International Circuit is seen yesterday, at the track in Sakhir, Bahrain, which is scheduled to host a Formula One Grand Prix April 22. — AP

Lakers overcome Suns Wizards break losing spell with Raptors romp LOS ANGELES: Kobe Bryant scored 48 points - his fifth straight game with 25 or more - as the Los Angeles Lakers defeated the Phoenix Suns 99-83 in the NBA on Tuesday for their seventh straight win at home. Bryant, the NBA’s leading scorer, was the first player in the league to top the 40-point mark this season. He was 18 of 31 from the floor and made 12 of 13 free throws. Pau Gasol added 16 points and 12 rebounds for the Lakers, who have won three straight overall.

Channing Frye scored 17 points, Marcin Gortat had 16 points and 12 rebounds, and Steve Nash added 13 points and eight assists for the Suns, who had their two-game winning streak broken.

their first five games. Shawn Marion scored 14 points and Vince Carter added 11 for Dallas, which led by as many as 28 in the second half. Will Bynum scored 20 points for Detroit, which has lost five straight.

THUNDER 100, GRIZZLIES 95 In Memphis, Tennessee, Russell Westbrook scored 30 points and Kevin Durant added 22 points and 11 rebounds as Oklahoma City won its fourth straight.

Thabo Sefolosha added 12 points and James Harden had 10 for the Thunder.

WARRIORS 111, HEAT 106, OT In Oakland, California, Dorell Wright scored 20 points and made a seasonhigh six 3-pointers as Golden State spoiled Dwyane Wade’s return to the Miami lineup with an overtime victory.

Wright hit the tying 3-pointer late in regulation and converted the go-ahead 3pointer in the extra period to end Golden State’s five-game losing streak and give rookie coach Mark Jackson his most impressive victory. Wade scored a season-high 34 points after missing the last three games with a bruised left foot, but he missed shots late in regulation and overtime. LeBron James added 26 points, 11 assists and seven rebounds.

BULLS 111, TIMBERWOLVES 100 In Minneapolis, Derrick Rose scored a season-high 31 points and had 11 assists to outlast Ricky Rubio in a thrilling duel as Chicago defeated Minnesota. Luol Deng had 21 points and 11 rebounds, and Kyle Korver scored 13 points off the bench for the Bulls, who appeared to be on their way to a blowout early before Rubio led the Wolves back. The Spanish star had 13 points, 12 assists and four rebounds. Luke Ridnour added 22 points and Kevin Love had with 20 points and 13 rebounds for Minnesota.

MAVERICKS 100, PISTONS 86 In Auburn Hills, Michigan, Dirk Nowitzki scored 18 points as Dallas routed Detroit to reach the .500 mark for the first time this season. The defending champion Mavericks (5-5) started their NBA title defense slowly, losing four of

closed family emergency. Tony Parker scored 22 points for San Antonio, which has lost all four of its road games while winning all six of its games at home.

TRAIL BLAZERS 105, CLIPPERS 97 In Portland, Oregon, Gerald Wallace scored 20 points, making a key 3-pointer with two minutes left, as the Trailblazers avenged a loss to the Clippers on New Year’s Day. LaMarcus Aldridge added 18 points and seven rebounds for Portland, who has not lost in six games at home this season. Wallace’s 3-pointer put the Blazers ahead 99-90, but the Clippers narrowed it to 100-97 after Chris Paul made a layup and Chauncey Billups hit a jumper and a free throw with 25 seconds left. Portland made free throws the rest of the way to preserve the win.

JAZZ 113, CAVS 105 In Salt Lake City, Al Jefferson scored a season-high 30 points and Paul Millsap added 19 as Utah got its fifth straight win. The Jazz improved to 5-0 in Salt Lake - the team’s best start at home since beginning the 2008-09 season at 6-0.

Antawn Jamison led Cleveland with 22 points, including 13 in the third quarter, as he tried to rally the Cavs.

CALIFORNIA: Golden State Warriors’ Nate Robinson (2) is fouled by Miami Heat’s Norris Cole (30) during the second half of an NBA basketball game on Tuesday, Jan 10, 2012, in Oakland, Calif. — AP Marc Gasol led Memphis with 20 points 76ERS 112, KINGS 85 At Philadelphia, Elton Brand had a and 14 rebounds, while Rudy Gay conseason-high 21 points and 10 rebounds tributed 16 points for the Grizzlies, who as the Sixers routed Sacramento for their lost their third straight. sixth straight victory. The Sixers are 7-2 BUCKS 106, SPURS 103 and lead the Atlantic Division - the team’s In Milwaukee, Stephen Jackson had best start since Allen Iverson helped them open 10-0 on their way to the NBA 34 points and eight assists in his best finals in 2000-01. Evan Turner had 16 game since joining Milwaukee in an offpoints, 10 rebounds and eight assists, season trade to lead the Bucks over San and Jrue Holiday added 17 for Antonio. Milwaukee also got 14 points Philadelphia. DeMarcus Cousins led the and 11 rebounds from center Andrew Bogut, who had missed four games to struggling Kings with 17 points. return home to Australia for an undis-

WIZARDS 93, RAPTORS 78 In Washington, Rashard Lewis and Nick Young each had 15 points to lead the Wizards to their first win after eight straight losses. Andray Blatche had nine points and eight rebounds, and John Wall tied his season high with nine assists, although he missed nine of 12 shots. In his past two games, Wall is 6 for 21 from the field. Toronto, which was playing its second of three games in three nights, was led by Andrea Bargnani with 22 points.

ROCKETS 82, BOBCATS 70 At Charlotte, North Carolina, rookie Chandler Parsons scored 20 points and Kevin Martin added 17 points as Houston defeated Charlotte to end a four-game losing streak. Jordan Hill had a doubledouble for the Rockets off the bench with 12 points and 12 rebounds. The Rockets broke open a tight game in the third quarter and the poor-shooting Bobcats could never put together a big run. — AP

Despres wins ninth stage to regain lead

COPIAPO: France’s biker Cyril Despres checks his KTM during the 2012 Argentina-Chile-Peru Dakar Rally. — AP

IQUIQUE: Cyril Despres regained the upper hand in his ding dong Dakar Rally battle with motorcycle rival Marc Coma on Tuesday as defending car champion Nasser AlAttiyah was forced out of the race on the ninth stage.

The 31-year-old Qatari had to give up the ghost when his temperamental Hummer suffered more mechanical problems - American Robby Gordon in another Hummer won the stage to slice more time off overall leader Stephane Peterhansel’s advantage.

Three-time bike champion Despres, riding a KTM, responded to 2011 winner Coma’s win on Monday when taking the 556km stage from Antofogasta which finished with a dramatic descent down an 800 meter high dune. Despres, who timed 5hr 04min 33sec with Spaniard Coma coming in 3min 54sec behind, replaced the Spaniard at the top of the overall rankings - both were later penalized 15 minutes by race stewards in those standings for changing their engines during the stage.

Despres holds a lead of 2min 28sec and the 37-yearold Frenchman said that he had emerged from his terrible day on Monday in a positive frame of mind. “After a difficult day yesterday when you start to doubt, I had to get back to winning ways,” said Despres. “We came into this looking at a battle for seconds or minutes. It’s very competitive. “Like any top level sportsman, if you don’t like confrontation or squeezing the last ounces of strength out of yourself, then you’re not ready for a fight. But, as for me, I’m up for it.” Coma too was reveling in the engrossing tussle and even more motivated to win as he was bitter about his fellow KTM rider having had his deficit from Monday’s stage halved by the stewards.

“We’re coming to the crunch part of the rally. Cyril is a major rival and we do battle over every single kilometer. But I think it’s interesting, it’s sport,” said the

Spaniard. Gordon, 43, had been highlighted by Peterhansel as the dangerman after Monday’s stage and the American didn’t do anything to dissuade him from that point of view as he further ate into the French Dakar legend’s lead. Gordon, whose best finish was third in the 2009 edition, timed 4hr 35min 21sec, a min 38sec faster than 46-year-old Peterhansel while Monday’s stage winner Spanish driver Nani Roma was third 8min 37sec adrift.

Peterhansel - a six-time motorbike and three-time car champion - holds an advantage of almost six minutes on the NASCAR veteran entering the final five days of the race. Gordon said that he had no option but to attack in what remained of the Rally but he sounded full of confidence. “We’re in a different position to him (Peterhansel),” said Gordon. “He has to conserve his time and I’ve got to make it. We’ve got four days left, four real days of racing left (the final stage on Sunday is just 29km long) and the Hummer’s strong.”

Peterhansel admitted that Gordon had got the better of him but took the retirement of Al-Attiyah as a boost for him and his Mini team. “We’re going to fight to hold on to the slender lead we have over him (Gordon),” said the Frenchman.

“I started to wonder if Nasser was having technical problems when I saw that he wasn’t catching me up. “It means that Gordon is on his own now and for us that makes things a little bit better. There are flaws with the Hummers. I just hope that we’ll be able to take advantage of them.” Gordon’s joy was in stark contrast to that of his fellow Hummer pilot Al-Attiyah who had been plagued by problems since the start in Mar Del Plata on New Year’s Day. He lined up for Tuesday’s ninth stage in sixth position overall, eight minutes behind Peterhansel, having struggled to make up the loss of 10 minutes on the opening stage. — AFP

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THURSDAY, JANUARY 12, 2012

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Jet-lagged Tsonga slips to Kooyong defeat

MELBOURNE: Jo-Wilfried Tsonga of France hits a backhand volley during his rain-affected match against Jurgen Melzer of Austria at the Kooyong Classic in Melbourne yesterday. — AFP

Ferrer, Almagro blast into Auckland quarters AUCKLAND: Spanish guns David Ferrer and Nicolas Almagro were firing on all cylinders at the Auckland ATP International yesterday, blasting their way into the quarter-finals with ease. The top two seeds were making their first appearance in the tournament after first round byes and wasted no time stamping their mark, and showing impressive form ahead of the season’s first grand slam starting in Melbourne on Monday.

Ferrer, the world number 5, raced past Lukas Rosol from the Czech Republic 6-4, 6-2, while Almagro, 10th in the world, beat Colombian Santiago Giraldo by the same margin. Ferrer will play Alejandro Falla in the quarter-finals after the Colombian continued his charmed run with a 7-6 (7/3), 6-3 win over Potito Starace of Italy following his first-round win over seventh-seed American Donald Young.

Almagro found Giraldo difficult to shake off in the opening games with the match going to 4-4 in the first set, but when the Spaniard found his rhythm it was one-way traffic to the end. “I think I served really well and played well on the forehand and backhand,” said Almagro as he immediately

switched his attention to a looming quarterfinal encounter with German Philipp Kohlschreiber. “Tomorrow is another fight and I will see what I can do. It is going to be a tough match, and the only thing I want to do is be focused on that match right now.”

Eighth-seed Kohlschreiber, who has a 3-3 record against Almagro, survived a three-setter for the second time in three days when he dropped the first set against American Ryan Harrison before bouncing back to win 4-6, 6-4, 6-3.

Despite the physical toll of the two-hour encounter, further lengthened by a 35-minute rain break, Kohlschreiber said he was glad to have the extended time on court early in the season. “It could be easier but at the moment this is exactly what I need,” the German said.

“At the start of the second and third set I played well and aggressively and it was a very tough fight today. I felt comfortable with my game from the baseline.” Frenchman Benoit Paire, who beat former world number one Juan Carlos Ferrero of Spain in the first round continued his giantkilling run, beating fourth-seed Juan Ignacio Chela of Argentina 5-7, 6-2, 6-2. — AFP

MELBOURNE: A jetlagged Jo-Wilfried Tsonga paid the price for a flight halfway round the world yesterday as he lost his Kooyong Classic opener in straight sets to Austria’s Jurgen Melzer. The eight-man Kooyong tournament, where players face three matches in the space of four days, is a key warm-up for the Australian Open, which starts on Monday. Tsonga recorded the best grand slam performance of his career when he reached the Australian Open final in 2008 but admitted he had not adjusted to the time difference from Doha, where he won the Qatar Open on Saturday.

Canadian Milos Raonic, who arrived from Chennai after winning the Indian event, lost 6-1, 6-2 to American Mardy Fish. He withdrew a few hours later, citing exhaustion and was to be replaced in the draw by Japan’s Kei Nishikori. Tsong’s 6-4, 6-3 defeat in cold and blustery conditions drops the French world number six into the relegation round. “I’m not feeling very well. I still have jetlag. We train a lot and we all want to be ready for the Open.

Today was difficult with the conditions,” said Tsonga. “It is difficult to play in the wind. I’m not used to it anymore. I play most of my matches in big stadiums where there is little wind. When we return to conditions like this, it’s difficult for us.”

Tsonga had beaten the 30-year-old Melzer in both of their two previous meet-

Petkovic pulls out of Australian Open World number 10 withdraws with stress fracture MELBOURNE: Germany’s top-ranked tennis player Andrea Petkovic has pulled out of next week’s Australian Open grand slam tournament with a stress fracture, she said yesterday. “Sorry to announce that I had to withdraw from the Australian Open with a lower back stress fracture,” the 24-year-old said in a post on her Twitter account. “Going back home, will miss my Aussie fans!” The world number 10 suffered a knee injury in October, but returned to play her first WTA tournament at Brisbane last week where she made the quarter-finals. She was dumped out of the Sydney International in the second round on Tuesday by Pole Agnieszka Radwanska in straight sets.

Bosnia-born Petkovic, famous on tour for her post-match victory dances, upset Maria Sharapova on the way to the quarter-finals at Melbourne Park last year where she was stopped by eventual finalist Li Na. The 10th seed’s withdrawal came shortly after seventimes grand slam winner Venus Williams pulled out, also citing health reasons.

Williams has been receiving treatment for Sjogren’s syndrome, an auto-immune disease that causes fatigue and joint soreness.

A number of other contenders in the women’s draw head into the year’s first grand slam under injury clouds, including champion Kim Clijsters with a strained hip muscle, and fellow former world number one Serena Williams, who twisted her ankle in Brisbane last week. — Reuters

SYDNEY: Andrea Petkovic of Germany grimaces while a trainer treats her during a break while playing against Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland during their match at the Sydney International tennis tournament yesterday. — AP

Argentine big gun firing once again

SYDNEY: Juan Del Potro of Argentina hits a return against Lukasz Kubot of Poland during their second round match at the Sydney International tennis event. — AFP

Del Potro, Baghdatis to face off in Sydney quarter-finals SYDNEY: Juan Martin del Potro brushed aside Lukasz Kubot yesterday to reach the quarter-finals of the Sydney International, as the Argentine edges closer to cracking the top ten rankings. World number 11 del Potro, clawing his way back after a careerthreatening wrist injury, downed the 58thranked Polish player 6-4, 6-2 in blustery conditions on the Ken Rosewall Arena.

The 2009 US Open champion and Sydney top seed will take on unseeded Cypriot Marcos Baghdatis in Thursday’s quarter-finals. Baghdatis, the 2010 Sydney champion, took over two hours to subdue Australian Matthew Ebden 3-6, 7-5, 7-6 (7/3). “It was really tough conditions today,” del Potro said. “I was just really focused on my serve in the first set, and then tried to take a little opportunity, because it was really difficult to play long rallies, to feel the ball like I wanted.” Del Potro only trails world number 10 Spaniard Nicolas Almagro by 65 rankings points and said it was his goal in 2012 to beat top-ten players after winning the ATP Comeback Player of the Year award, jumping from 257 to 11th.

“I was really scared in this tournament last year because it was the first tournament after my (wrist) surgery,” he said. “But

with time and practicing I improved a lot and kept wining matches and that’s helped me to keep the confidence to play healthy and play better. “At this moment, I don’t think of my wrist, so it’s a good signal for the future.” Del Potro said winning a second grand slam was a big challenge for him. “I think I’m still far (away) to do that goal, but I’m working. I’m feeling good every day,” he said. “So I need time and do it step-by-step and then be ready for that moment.”

American second seed John Isner crashed out 3-6, 6-4, 6-3 to compatriot Bobby Reynolds, who will face Finland’s Jarkko Nieminen in the last eight.

Nieminen, a runner-up here three years ago, accounted for eighth seed Radek Stepanek of the Czech Republic 7-6 (7/5), 5-7, 6-1. French third seed Richard Gasquet cruised past Italian Fabio Fognini in straight sets and will take on Uzbekistan’s Denis Istomin in the quarters. Two more men’s seeds were knocked out yesterday with Frenchman Julien Benneteau accounting for fourth-seeded Spaniard Feliciano Lopez 6-3, 6-4 and Russia’s Alex Bogomolov Jnr eliminating Serbian fifth seed Viktor Troicki 7-6 (7/5), 6-4. Benneteau and Bogomolov will fight out the last quarter-final match today. — AFP

ings, both in 2008. “We had really tough conditions but when the wind wasn’t blowing I hit some good shots,” said Melzer. “It’s always good to get a win over a top 10 guy. “I had some good form today. I hope to keep it up this week and straight through to the Open.” Tsonga’s countryman Gael Monfils, the losing finalist in Doha, came up a winner as he beat three-time Kooyong champion Andy Roddick 7-6 (7/2), 7-6 (7/3). He will next play Bernard Tomic. “It was a tough match, very windy,” said Monfils, Kooyong runnerup last year. “I stayed focused and won it.

This is good Australian Open preparation.

Andy is always tough, this was a good match.”

Australian 19-year-old Tomic, ranked 37th, began living up to local expectations as he bids to fill the shoes of fading hero Lleyton Hewitt, scoring a 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 win over Czech Tomas Berdych. He also struggled with the wind, calling the game he had to play on court “not tennis.” “It’s good to play in the wind before the Australian Open,” said the 2011 Wimbledon quarterfinalist. “I had to just slice and try to keep the ball in the court. The winner is going be the guy who can do that, but anything can happen. “I played well, I’m happy, I’ll take a lot out of this week. It’s the most serious exhibition you can have, it’s not a show. It was a good match for preparation,” Berdych said. — AFP

SYDNEY: Wrist surgery, depression and the terrifying feeling that his career was about to prematurely end. With a ranking which plummeted to 485 in the world, pessimism swirled around Argentine giant Juan Martin del Potro last year before he mounted a scorching comeback that has him bursting with confidence and renewed belief ahead of the Australian Open. Del Potro pulverized Poland’s Lukasz Kubot 6-4 6-2 yesterday to reach the quarter-finals of the Sydney International, and continue homing in on the untouchable form that won him the US Open title in 2009, when his fifth set against Roger Federer was as commanding as tennis can be.

He was on the up back then, number four in the world and rising, but wrist surgery in 2010 wiped him off the tour for eight months. He spent most of that time worried his career was over-he openly admitted at the time he was “depressed”and that even if he did make it back on tour, he would never again scale the heights. That pessimism has been replaced by unbridled optimism, however. Del Potro combated strong winds and stiflingly hot Sydney weather to account for Kubot and set up a quarter-final against Cypriot Marcus Baghdatis.

One of the few men to beat world number one Novak Djokovic last year, Del Potro looms as one of the dangermen of an Australian Open headlined by Djokovic, Rafa Nadal, Roger Federer and Andy Murray. His ranking has gone from 485 to 11 in less than a year. “To beat these kinds of players can be a big goal for this year,” del Potro said. “I’m working for that. This time last year I was really

scared, basically in this tournament, in Australia, because it was my first tournament after the surgery. “But with time and practicing and trying to think about things other than my wrist, I improved a lot. I won matches, and that’s helped me to keep the confidence I can be healthy and play better. At this moment, I don’t think of my wrist, so it’s a good signal for the future.”

The fine print to Del Potro’s win over Djokovic in September was that the Serb retired when trailing 7-6 3-0 in the Davis Cup semi-finals. Still, Del Potro was heartened by going toe-to-toe with the world number one for two straight sets. Have no doubt that Djokovic and the rest of the upper echelon are fully aware that a fit and firing Del Potro is a frighteningly real threat to them all. It was the Argentine’s loss to Nadal in a four-set thriller at Wimbledon last year that triggered the most significant leaps in confidence and renewed belief.

“I have many good memories of last year but maybe the match against Nadal at Wimbledon was the best match of the year, for me anyway,” Del Potro said.

“Novak, well, he retire, but I was playing a really good game against him. We were the same level in the first and second sets. Then he retire, but it was a nice memory for Argentina. “It could be a big challenge for me to win a major this year because I think I’m still far from that goal.

But I’m working hard and feeling good every day. I need time to do it step by step and then be ready for that moment when it comes. “To reach the second week of the Australian Open would be a good start to the year.” — Reuters

Hewitt bemused at Australia’s stage fright SYDNEY: Lleyton Hewitt can milk a crowd like few others, the energy from the bleachers infiltrating his own bloodstream. And so it is with a mixture of mild bemusement and disbelief that Hewitt is witnessing the stage fright paralyzing Australia’s best female players on the eve of the first grand slam of the year. “I love it,” Hewitt said of the pressure that world number six Sam Stosur, number 34 Jarmilla Gajdosova and number 71 Jelena Dokic have all blamed for recent losses in Australia so far this year. “The Australian Open in 2005 was unbelievable. I came to Sydney and everyone expected me to play well, and I won Sydney and played exceptional tennis the whole week.

“Then I went to Melbourne and just rode a wave for two weeks. “As I’ve said many times before, I think it was the toughest grand slam draw that I’ve ever had, seven matches in a row against the guys that I had. “To reach the final and be two sets away from winning the tournament, I think I handled the pressure reasonably well.

“It comes back to personalities and situations. “Look at Andy Murray. He handles it pretty well in London. Everyone says he hasn’t won a slam yet but you keep making semifinals, you’re giving yourself a chance every time. “Everyone is different.” While the former world number one may thrive on the pressure, the fact the Australian women are freezing before the Australian Open gets underway at Melbourne Park must be a concern for local fans. Gajdosova cried on the court while losing 6-0 6-0 to France’s Marion Bartoli at the Hopman Cup while Stosur said she felt struck by a “bombshell” of pressure while losing 6-4 6-2 to Italian Francesca Schiavone at the Sydney International. Most recently, Dokic admitted she was so nervous in her 6-0 6-3 capitulation to Bartoli in Sydney that she could barely move her arms or legs. “I just really froze out there,” Dokic said.

“It was not about tennis. It was not about her being the better player. I just really, really got nervous. “My legs and my arms and everything, I just couldn’t move. It’s tough when you get so nervous and tight, when it kind of overtakes your whole match and you’re not able to actually play the match that you want to. “I think it’s hard. You see it with Sam also. It’s very hard to play for us at home because we want to do so well. “I think it’s like that for a lot of players and you feel the pressure. “So it’s really about us wanting to perform so well in Australia because we love it here and the crowd is so great to us and the whole country is behind us.

“That’s all it is. We just really want to ...do well.” — Reuters

18

THURSDAY, JANUARY 12, 2012

S P ORT S

Court upset but unbowed on same-sex stance MELBOURNE: Tennis great Margaret Court said yesterday she was sad her religious views were being used as fuel for a planned protest at next week’s Australian Open, but said she remained staunchly opposed to same-sex marriage. Activists are calling for people attending the year’s first grand slam event, starting Jan 16, to unfurl “rainbow flags” at the Margaret Court Arena, the third show-court at Melbourne Park named after the Australian.

Court, a 24-times grand slam singles champion and a pastor at the Victory Life Centre church in Perth, has long opposed same-sex marriage but sparked a fierce backlash from retired women’s champions Martina Navratilova and Billie Jean King, both homosexuals, when she reiterated her views

in a Western Australian newspaper recently.

Court was quoted describing advocacy of same-sex marriage as promoting “unhealthy” and “unnatural” unions. “To dismantle this sole definition of marriage and try to legitimize what God calls abominable sexual practices that include sodomy, reveals our ignorance as to the ills that come when society is forced to accept law that violates their very own God-given nature of what is right and what is wrong,” a local newspaper quoted her as saying.

Court said that she stuck by her views on same-sex marriage but denied she was antigay. “I actually love homosexual people,” the 69-year-old said in a telephone interview. “I do not have anything against them. It’s just my view (about gay marriage) and it’s in the

scriptures ... The bible will always be the TV guide to my life. “I believe marriage is something between a man and a woman.” Court said she had previously expressed to Navratilova that she would not change her views. “I said ‘Martina, God loves you but a wrong does not make a right... Don’t try to change me’.” Court, who plans to attend the Australian Open, said she was “sad” protesters might seek to use the tennis as a venue for expressing their views.

SAME SEX MARRIAGE “Minority groups can have their views (but) as soon as a Christian stands up it’s not allowed,” she said. Same sex marriage is legal in a number of countries and in several states in the United States, including New York. But

it remains illegal in Australia; although same sex partners have equal rights to heterosexual couples under other areas of the law.

The “Rainbow Flags over Margaret Court Arena” Facebook page is calling on people to break their silence in supporting the initiative. “Our Mission: To support the gay community by inundating MCA with rainbow flags during the Australian Open,” it says.

Australian Open organizers have bolstered security in recent years after the grand slam was marred by a number of violent incidents between rival ethnic camps of tennis supporters, but would not be drawn as to how they would respond to the possibility of the “rainbow” protest unfolding. “We will be having our usual security review as the tournament nears and obviously this is something

we are aware of and will need to prepare for,” tournament director Craig Tiley said.

“Margaret Court has won more grand slam titles than any other player and has been honored for her achievements in tennis. She is a legend of the sport. We respect that her playing career is second to none. But her personal views are her own and are not shared by Tennis Australia.” Equal Love, a national campaign advocating gay marriage, endorsed the initiative and said they expected at least 1,000 people to participate.

“Margaret Court has shown herself to have bigoted views... We would not think that the tournament organizers would regard people’s right for equality in love to be considered a security incident,” a spokesperson for the campaign said.—Reuters

Tomic delights in hitting the height DHL Team

DHL, United Friends, Kuwait Goans qualify for quarters KIFF League: Skynet kick AVC out in play-off KUWAIT: Skynet Raiders FC knocked out AVC Overseas Association convincingly by a margin of 3-0 in the Kuwait Indian Football Federation (KIFF) League 201112 for J P D’Mello Memorial Trophy played at the MOH Grounds, Shuwaikh.

The play-off between Skynet and AVC was held to decide 2nd spot after both teams ended level at second place with 7 points each and a goal difference of plus 2 in group B. Both team played attacking football but Skynet managed to win a deserving penalty which was unexpectedly saved

by AVC stalwart Alvaro Dias but Skynet’s Reazer Dias was quicker than the napping AVC players to pounce on the rebound and tap it home. Girish Ramesh and Durvesh Naik scored the other 2 goals. AVC kept pushing for the equalizer with all players moving up into the Skynet territory which allowed Skynet to counter attack and score 2 more goals.

The game went into rough weather in the last stages of the match. However, officiating referee Jerry Mello was incredibly lenient towards some players who were seen kicking opponents with the ball nowhere near their feet. Earlier, DHL topped group B with a comfortable 3-1 victory over Real Betalbatim who are yet to win a match in the league. Elvis Nolasco, Terence D’Costa and Anil Kumar scored for DHL. Marshall was the lone scorer for the losers. DHL’s Terence D’Costa was awarded man of the match for his disciplined and skilful display of football.

Man-of-the-match trophies presented at the end of every KIFF league game are sponsored by Kuwait’s Al Muzaini Exchange Co. In another match, former champions United Friends Club thrashed Santos FC 5-0 in a one sided match to advance to the next phase. United Friends led 1-0 at the breather. Maurice Simoes, Godwin Fernandes, Manuel D’Costa and Joaquim Rodrigues (2 goals) scored for the winners. Maurice Simoes was adjudged man of the match. The award was presented by Santos FC president Tony Dias.

In group C, Kuwait Goan Association beat Gulf Cable 2-1 to advance to the

quarters and maintain their unbeaten trail. Gulf Cable had to win this game by a good margin to secure a chance of atleast a playoff. Kuwait Goan Association showed their experience and fortitude throughout the match. They scored first through a penalty by Christovam Colaco. Later in the 2nd half man-of-the -match Josse Fernandes scored the second of the match.

Gulf Cable managed to reduce the deficit through Sinu Thomas. In yet another match, Don Bosco derailed President Bosco Leitao’s CRC Chinchinim 3-0 thereby breaking Chichinim’s unbeaten run. Don Bosco played excellent football and dominated the 2nd half. Michael Dias (2 goals) and Christopher scored for the winners. Michael of Don Bosco was adjudged man of the match.

Don Bosco have all but qualified for the next phase unless they lose by a very huge margin to spirited Curtorcares United coached by former India International Anthony Rebello. Hopes of popular Goa Maroons are withering away with Don Bosco’s progress in the group of death. All they can do is pump in maximum goals on Santos United in their last round, and hope for the best. In group D, the fortunes of Rising Stars (4 points) depend on group leaders and 6time champions Navelim YC when the latter takes on Malabar FC (2 points) in the last game.

Navelim have already qualified for the knock-out phase of the league. Malabar need a victory to advance to the next phase, a draw will see them make an unceremonious exit from the league without losing a single match. The league consists of 19 clubs affiliated to KIFF. They are AVC Sports & Cultural Association, CRC Chinchinim, Curtorcares United, DHL Sports Club, Don Bosco Oratory, FC Sparx, Goan Overseas Association, Gulf Cable Football Club, Indian Strikers, Kuwait Goan Association, Malabar United Football Club, Navelim Youth Centre, Real Betalbatim Football Club, Santos Football Club, Santos United, Skynet Raiders Soccer Club, United Friends Club, United Goans Center, and YRC Rising Stars.

Kuwait Goan Association

Skynet Raiders SC team

MELBOURNE: Bernard Tomic’s rapid rise into the top 50 at the tender age of 19 has created a tidal wave of expectation in Australia ahead of the year’s first grand slam, but the rangy Gold Coast native is merely pleased he may have finally reached his full height. Since grabbing the world’s attention with his stunning quarter-final run at Wimbledon as an 18year-old qualifier, Tomic’s ranking has soared to 37 making him far and away Australia’s greatest hope in the men’s draw at Melbourne Park. The more vital statistic for Tomic, however, is 1.96 meters, the mark where his slender frame has stopped growing.

This has allowed him to improve his court speed and pack on some muscle to compete with the brawny warriors that stalk the top 10.

“I am getting stronger and stronger. I’ve definitely stopped growing tall-wise, which is good,” Tomic told reporters at the Kooyong Classic yesterday. “You know, 6’3” - 6’5” is a good height for tennis, I think, if you can move well. “The best movers are all six-foot, six-foot-one, like Rafa (Nadal) and Roger (Federer). I think I’m moving good for my body. I can move better and I can improve more in the next year.” Tomic, the youngest player to win a match in the main draw of his home grand slam, carries an extra three kilograms of muscle into Melbourne Park this year, tipping the scales at 92.

He also carries a far greater load as the man touted to take over from Lleyton Hewitt, the battle -scarred 30-year-old whose 2002 Wimbledon championship feels like a grainy, sepia-toned dream for much of the Australian public. The sports-mad country that has produced the likes of Rod Laver, Lew Hoad and Margaret Court has proved an unhappy hunting ground for a parade of local grand slam champions in recent years. Hewitt, twice US Open champion Pat Rafter and Wimbledon winner Pat Cash have all come close but ultimately failed.

STAGE FRIGHT Australia’s US Open champion Sam Stosur has never made it past the fourth round at Melbourne Park where her face looms from billboards and has confessed to being regu-

larly struck with stage fright on home soil.

Tomic, however, has rarely looked anything but comfortable in the spotlight and ensured the glare would be a little stronger next week by beating Czech world number seven Tomas Berdych in the opening round of the invitational Kooyong Classic yesterday.

The hard-fought 4-6 6-3 6-4 victory at an atrociously windy and rainy day at the Kooyong Lawn Tennis Club in Melbourne’s

improve on. So it’s a good thing, also knowing that.”

Tomic, who took a set off practice partner and eventual champion Novak Djokovic in the Wimbledon quarter-final, talked of winning a grand slam trophy within two years following that match. Beaten but not disgraced in a straight sets defeat by Andy Murray in the semi-finals at the Brisbane International last week, the teenager may have appeared to

MELBOURNE: Tomas Berdych of the Czech Republic hits a backhand return during his match against Bernard Tomic of Australia at the Kooyong Classic yesterday. —AFP leafy east showcased a player in control of his game and excited about where it might take him. “I think (my movement) is 20 per cent at least better (than last year),” said Tomic, who has blunted the power weapons of more seasoned opponents with a tactical game employing slice, top-spin and finesse. “I’m serving better and there’s a lot more things to

have made a rod for his back in the era of Roger, Rafa and Novak. But Tomic is too busy enjoying himself to pay heed to the doubters.

“I’ve got a good shot at being seeded in the French (Open) and Wimbledon,” he said. “I haven’t got much points to defend and I think the next four or five months is going to be really, really, really fun.”- Reuters

NFL-Giants hope history repeats in Packers clash NEW YORK: Lessons from recent National Football League campaigns have the New York Giants hoping that history will repeat as they prepare to face Super Bowl champions Green Bay Packers in the playoffs on Sunday. The New Yorkers, coming off their best game of the season, a 24-2 drubbing of the Atlanta Falcons in the first round of playoffs, could be peaking at the right time, just as they did in the 2007 season when they won the Super Bowl in Feb. 2008.

Coach Tom Coughlin, whose team won their last two games to qualify for the playoffs as a wildcard, said he felt echoes of that magical season. “I am enjoying this group and I am enjoying those similarities,” Coughlin told reporters. “There are some and if we can get on a roll and play our best football right now, then yes. “ We are playing a little more like Giant football right now ... good defense, not turn the ball over, rush the ball and have some patience about it and that is the direction we are in right now.” The Giants, hit hard by injuries before and during the season, could also look to Green Bay for inspiration.

Last season, the Packers overcame early season injury woes to get their game in high gear behind quarterback Aaron Rodgers and overtake the Giants to reach the postseason as a wildcard. Rodgers then led Green Bay on a charge through the playoffs to bring the Vince Lombardi Trophy back to Lambeau Field, where the famed coach won his championships. Oddly, a pair of defeats also gave symbolic comfort

to positive thinkers in the Giants camp. The Giants, with nothing to gain in playoff seedings in the final regular season game of 2007, played all-out to tr y and derail the New England Patriots’ bid for a 16-0 record.

New York came up just short, losing 38-35, but the tilt made the Giants feel they were a match for anyone, and they proved it by beating the Patriots in a Super Bowl thriller. This season, the 11-0 Packers visited the Giants and handed them a fourth straight defeat by the identical 38-35 score, but playing Green Bay so close seemed to boost Giant confidence. New York went on to win four of their last five games. “ We played right with them to the end,” Eli Manning said about the Packers.

“There are a few things we can do better to give us a shot to win. Our play is at an all-time high for the season. That’s the most important thing.

The defense is playing outstanding.”

The Giants also can look back on beating the Packers in Green Bay for the NFC title in over time during their 2007 Super Bowl run, though that team had Brett Favre at quarterback. Rodgers this season set a record for best quarterback rating in leading Green Bay to most points scored in the NFL. “Aaron’s had a year this year that’s going to rival just about any year a quarterback can put up,” said defensive end Justin Tuck. “He’s played completely lights out. We know that the Packers are the number one seed for a reason. 15-1, playing in Lambeau Field.

“I feel as though we’ll be ready for the task.” —Reuters

Kim Clijsters of Belgium

Battle for number 1 as Kim, Serena lurk HONG KONG: Only a brave punter would bet against one of the ‘Big Four’ lifting the Australian Open men’s title, but picking a winner from the women’s draw is a hazardous task. Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer-the top three in the men’s rankings-have an enviable haul of 30 grand slams between them in a golden period for the men’s game. Just behind them lurks the hungry Andy Murray. In sharp contrast, the top three female players have a combined total of just one slam and last year there were four different champions in tennis’s blue riband events, as the women’s game waits for its next big thing.

And acknowledged superstars Kim Clijsters and Serena Williams, both ranked outside the top 10 but sharing 17 major titles, are nursing recent injuries that could take the edge off their title challenges. Belgium’s Clijsters, currently ranked 12th, is defending champion at the year’s opening grand slam, after beating Li Na in the 2011 Melbourne final, before the Chinese player went one step further at the French Open. Second seed Petra Kvitova of the Czech Republic won on grass at Wimbledon and Australia’s Samantha Stosur took the US Open title, upsetting home favourite Serena Williams in the September 11 final in New York. The name missing from the 2011 list of winners is top seed Caroline Wozniacki, still yet to win her first grand slam, whose world number one ranking is under imminent threat from rising star Kvitova. The two rivals have already clashed this year, with the Czech player winning in three sets at last week’s mixed-teams Hopman Cup in Perth, which does not carry ranking points. “It was a good match for us. It was good preparation,” said Kvitova, the breakout player of 2011 with six titles including Wimbledon and the WTA Championships, plus Fed Cup glory with the Czech Republic. —AFP

THURSDAY, JANUARY 12, 2012

S P ORT S

Real beat Malaga 4-2 on aggregate Mallorca, Mirandes overcome Kings’ Cup upsets

CAEN: Marseille’s Malian defender Djimi Traore (right) fights for the ball with Caen’s French midfielder Romain Hamouma during the French League Cup football match at the Stade Michel d’Ornano in Caen northwestern France. — AFP

Valbuena’s double sends Marseille into Cup semis CAEN: Marseille’s quest for a third consecutive French League Cup title was kept firmly afloat on Tuesday as Didier Deschamps’ side booked their semi-final ticket with a 3-0 win at Caen. Mathieu Valbuena put the south coast visitors into a seventh minute lead, Caen keeper Thomas Bosmel only managing to get a touch to the immaculately taken freekick. One time Tottenham target Loic Remy doubled the lead on 21 minutes, the France striker deftly controlling Morgan Amalfitano’s half volley in the box to tap in to an open goal. That was the 13th goal of the season for Marseille’s leading scorer who bagged a double in Marseille’s 4-0 rout of Lens to make it to into this quarter-final.

Marseille remained in almost total control, with Caen, who had disposed of Auxerre in the round of 16, posing little threat to their supremacy up to the break.

Seven minutes after the restart impressive Marseille drew further clear with Valbuena getting a double after being left clear following a neat nutmeg by Argentina midfielder Lucho. Valbuena, who has made great progress since being a bit part player in France’s disastrous 2010 World Cup finals campaign, said he had wanted to maintain the form he had shown late last year.”We are really keen to go all the way in this competi-

tion, as in the French Cup, even if our daily fare is the championship,” he said.

“It is not every day that one can go to the Stade de France and play there in finals.

“We are cup holders in this competition and we want to retain it.” Hope for Caen came in the shape of substitute Lenny Nangis, with only quick thinking by Marseille’s Spanish defender Cesar Azpilicueta denying him when he was left with an open goal on the hour mark. Emboldened, the hosts then had Marseille in a rare position, on the back foot, with Romain Hamouma’s shot narrowly going the wrong side of Gennaro Bracigliano’s crossbar.

Caen refused to go down without a fight, with Fajcal Fajr hitting the crossbar late on but Marseille were never going to relinquish such a handsome lead. The win came on the eve of Brazilian forward Brandao’s return after his loan spell with Brazilian side Gremio. Brandao, 31, faces rape charges in France over an alleged incident that occurred in March last year. Deschamps said this week it was “vital” to bring in a player because Marseille are losing four members of their squad-Souleymane Diawara (Senegal), Charles Kabore (Burkina Faso) and Andre and Jordan Ayew (Ghana) — to the Africa Cup of Nations.— AFP

Lazio scrape into Cup quarterfinals MILAN: Lazio survived a scare to scrape through to the Italian Cup quarterfinals on Tuesday by winning 3-2 from Hernanes’ stoppage-time winner after second-division club Verona had come back from two goals down. Brazilian defender Andre Dias broke the deadlock a minute before halftime and Tommaso Rocchi scored in the 57th minute to give Lazio a seemingly unassailable lead.

However, Verona stunned the Stadio Olimpico crowd by leveling through Emanuele Berrettoni and Marco D’Alessandro. The game was heading for extra time before Hernanes pounced to ensure Lazio will play either AC Milan or Novara, who meet next week.

“We believed we could do it,” Verona coach Andrea Mandorlini said. “It could have been another game in extra time.

We were a bit scared in the first half. The Olimpico is a big stadium, a lot of players were shaking a bit. But we got into the game in the second half. “But I hope this is good proof that we can compete in Serie A.” Serie A stalwart Lazio had been expected to make light work of Verona, which was only promoted to Serie B in last season’s playoffs. However, Lazio lost 4-0 at the weekend to Siena and Verona is flying high in second place in Serie B. “It’s a victory that we wanted and now we can be calmer. Otherwise it could have started more protests,” Lazio coach Edoardo Reja said. “There was a part in the first half where we played well, but I don’t know what happened after Rocchi’s goal.

“You shouldn’t leave such space when you’re 2-0 up. They had a couple of opportunities and they punished us. If Hernanes hadn’t got that free kick it would have been difficult to score.”

Despite Verona’s weakness on paper, Reja

fielded a full-strength side with only top scorer Miroslav Klose rested. The German international was a substitute for the match. Verona almost caused a shock after only 30 seconds, with Lazio goalkeeper Albano Bizzarri pulling off a great save to keep out Sasa Bjelanovic’s header.

Lazio had to wait until the 16th minute for its first sight of goal but Djibril Cisse headed over the bar.

The topflight side didn’t even go close to scoring until Giuseppe Sculli’s shot flew narrowly wide eight minutes from the break. That seemed to give Lazio confidence as it then had its best period of the game and took the lead in the 44th minute, when Dias fired home Hernanes’ corner at the far post. Cisse had two good chances in the opening minutes of the second half but his first effort was saved by goalkeeper Rafael before sending another shot narrowly wide.

However, Lazio doubled its lead shortly before the hour mark when Rocchi raced into the area and his fierce shot was deflected past Rafael by Giuseppe Pugliese.

The Verona defender atoned for his error four minutes later, racing down the left flank before crossing for Berrettoni to head Verona back into the game. Klose came off the bench and almost immediately restored Lazio’s lead, but his snap shot from outside the area was well saved by Rafael. Verona equalized in the 74th minute when Berrettoni sent a through ball to D’Alessandro, who lashed it under Bizzarri and into the back of the net. Klose almost won the game for Lazio eight minutes from time but his powerful header was just wide of the post. Lazio sealed its place in the next round when Hernanes lashed in a free kick in the first minute of stoppage time. — AP

MADRID: Holders Real Madrid were helped into the King’s Cup quarter-finals by a goalkeeping howler from Malaga’s Willy Caballero on Tuesday which gifted them a 1-0 away win. In the 71st minute, the match was goalless and tense with big-spending Malaga, who lost 3-2 at the Bernabeu, needing to score only one to go through on the away goals rule when Real substitute Karim Benzema fired tamely straight at Caballero. The Argentine keeper had made some impressive saves, but when he fell to his knees to collect, the ball squirmed between his legs and rolled over the line.

Jose Mourinho’s men are likely to meet arch-rivals Barcelona in the last eight, with the European and Spanish champions visiting Osasuna on Thursday holding a 4-0 first-leg advantage. Real will be joined in the quarter-finals by surprise qualifiers Real Mallorca and third tier Mirandes. Mallorca scored four times in seven minutes during an astonishing comeback to knock out Real Sociedad 6-3 on aggregate earlier in the evening.

The Basques led 2-0 from the first leg in San Sebastian last week and took the lead in Mallorca after 16 minutes, while disgruntled home fans whistled their own side.

FOUR-GOAL BLITZ Mallorca’s four-goal blitz started out of nowhere when Uruguayan Gonzalo Castro scored from a freekick in the 34th. Israel’s Tomer Hemed cracked in a second two minutes later, Nunes headed in from a corner and seven breath-taking minutes after scoring his first, Castro racked up the fourth. He caught out visiting keeper Enaut Zubikarai as he rolled the ball in front of him, nipping up from behind to steal it and roll the ball into the empty net. The flood of goals continued after halftime with Alfaro and Hemed bagging his second before the hour mark, with a dazed Sociedad unable to react.

Mallorca, the 2003 Cup winners, will meet either Athletic Bilbao or third tier Albacete. Mirandes claimed the scalp of a second La Liga side when they drew 1-1 at Racing Santander to progress 3-1 on aggregate.

Forward Pablo Infante, who scored one and set up the second in their 2-0 first leg victory, was the hero again for the lower league minnows. Racing took the lead through Pedro Munitis in the first half, but a red card for their defender Bernardo took the wind out of their sails and Infante won and then netted a late penalty to put the Segunda B side through. Mirandes, who knocked out Villarreal in the last round, will meet either Espanyol or second division Cordoba. — Reuters

MALAGA: Malaga’s Ruud van Nistelrooy of the Netherlands, outjumps with Real Madrid’s Sergio Ramos from Spain, during the second leg of a round of 16 Copa del Rey soccer match on Tuesday, Jan 10, 2012. — AP

Schwartzel hoping to join exclusive band of winners JOHANNESBURG: South Africa star Charl Schwar tzel will join an exclusive band of golfers if he wins a third consecutive Joburg Open title this weekend. A hat-trick of victories in the second 2012 Road to Dubai tournament would allow him to join a list of those who have won the same European Tour event three times in a row and includes Ernie Els, Sir Nick Faldo, Colin Montgomerie and Ian Woosnam.

Little Welsh wizard Woosnam got the ball rolling with three consecutive Monte Carlo Open titles (1990-1992) and Faldo (Irish Open 1991-1993), Montgomerie (PGA Championship 1998-2000) and Els (Heineken Classic 20022004) emulated him.

Reigning US Masters champion Schwartzel, 27, will be making his European Tour debut this season and compatriot Retief Goosen is the oth-

er Major winner in a 210-strong field. Former Joburg Open winners Richard Sterne of South Africa and Ariel Canete of Argentina are other contenders who tee off Thursday in the fourday, 1.3-million-euro strokeplay event. The competition shares with the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship and Singapore Open the distinction of using more than one course with play on the west and east layouts at Royal Johannesburg and Kensington Golf Club.

Schwartzel has won seven European Tour titles and says the pleasures of competing at a club near where he grew up include being able to relax and sleep at home after each round. “It is a course I played many times as an amateur and junior so it is always nice to come back. I always have a good feeling when I compete there and staying at home is cool,” he said. He

Japan’s FIFA hat-trick boosts Olympic dream TOKYO: Japan’s hat-trick of FIFA awards has boosted their bid for a historic women’s World CupOlympic double and, according to their football chief, encouraged the disaster-hit nation and Asia as a whole. Homare Sawa, whose last-gasp equalizer helped Japan win the women’s World Cup in July, said Wednesday after returning home with the Women’s Player of the Year she was dumbstruck by the honor. “My mind went blank when my name was called. Now it is slowly sinking in. I want to work hard and live up to the fame of this award,” the 33-year-old captain and midfielder told a news conference in Tokyo.

“This has marked a great start for the year and I will aim with all members of the team for the top of the London Olympics podium,” added Sawa, who has played for Japan for 18 years and became the top scorer and most valuable player with five goals at the World Cup in Germany. “I think I could give many children goals and dreams,” she said. “I could prove that nothing is impossible for Japanese or whoever.” Japan also won two more awards at FIFA’s Ballon d’Or ceremony in Zurich on Monday,

out of eight awards on offer. Norio Sasaki was named the Women’s Coach of the Year and the Japan Football Association picked up the Fair Play Award, mainly for its contribution to helping the country recover from March’s earthquake-tsunaminuclear disasters.

Sasaki said he would be trying to make his team peak at the London Games by following the example of Barcelona’s attacking game. “With Sawa at the centre, I want to complete the team-building process we have been doing since 2008,” said Sasaki, who was in charge of the team that narrowly missed a medal at the Beijing Olympics, where they lost to Germany in the third place play-off. The awards for Sawa and Sasaki marked the first time Asia has been recognized in the individual categories at FIFA’s awards. Japan Football Association president Junji Ogura said many Asians at the ceremony had rejoiced in Japan’s feats as “honors for Asia.” “I think this is proof that Asia has joined the ranks of South America and Europe,” he said. “We want to display the trophies to people in the disaster areas and give them courage.” —AFP

Crystal Palace edge Cardiff in Cup semi

ROME: Lazio Brazilian defender Andre Dias (center) celebrates after scoring during an Italian Cup soccer match between Lazio and Verona, at Rome’s Olympic stadium on Tuesday, Jan 10, 2012. — AP

LONDON: Crystal Palace drew first blood in their League Cup semi-final against fellow Championship (second division) side Cardiff City on Tuesday by winning the first leg 1-0 at Selhurst Park. A close-range header from central defender Anthony Gardner shortly before halftime gave London club Palace a slender advantage for the second leg in south Wales in two weeks.

The first league Cup semi-final not to feature a top flight club since 2000 was a lively contest and Cardiff, FA Cup runners-up in 2008, will still feel confident of booking another trip to Wembley.

They enjoyed plenty of possession and created the better chances, especially before the break most notably when Ben Turner’s header narrowly cleared

the bar. Kenny Miller should have scored for the visitors, roared on by a large travelling contingent, but his low curled shot crept just wide of the post.

Gardner, who was capped for England during his days at Tottenham Hotspur, broke the deadlock in the 43rd minute when he nodded home at the far post after Cardiff keeper Tom Heaton failed to intercept a whipped-in free kick by Darren Ambrose and the ball flicked off the head of Kagisho Dikgacoi.

Palace, who shocked Manchester United in the quarter-finals, were content to play on the counterattack in the second half as Cardiff searched in vain for an equalizer. Premier League leaders Manchester City hosted Liverpool in the first leg of the second semi-final yesterday.— Reuters

shot four sub-70 rounds in the Joburg Open last year-including a second-round 61 - to win by four strokes from fellow South African Garth Mulroy after finishing six shots clear of the field the previous season.

Mulroy won the pre -Christmas Dunhill Championship at Leopard Creek bordering the world famous Kruger National Park, but finished well down the field at the Africa Open in East London last weekend. Goosen was third in the Eastern Cape, three strokes behind winner and 2010 British Open champion Louis Oosthuizen of South Africa, after four steady but unspectacular rounds. The 42-year-old ‘Goose’ is long overdue a European Tour victory having last made a victory speech five years ago when he pipped Australian Nick O’Hern by one stroke to lift the Qatar Masters trophy. — AFP

PAOK fined, threatened BERNE: Greek club PAOK Salonika have been fined and threatened with a ban from European competition for breaching UEFA’s club licensing regulations, European football’s governing body said. UEFA said its disciplinary committee had fined PAOK, who have reached the last 32 of the Europa League, 250,000 euros ($319,000), of which 200,000 euros is suspended for a probationary period of three years.

“In addition, PAOK have been excluded from one UEFA club competition for which they qualify in the next three seasons. The exclusion is also suspended for a probationary period of three years,” UEFA said. UEFA added: “PAOK must prove that, by June 30, 2012, they have no outstanding overdue financial obligations towards employees, tax authorities, social security institutions or other clubs arising from transfer agreements incurred before 30 June 2012. “UEFA’s competent body will ensure that PAOK comply with this order.”

Former Leicester City and Greece midfielder Theodoros Zagorakis has helped rescue the club from collapse since taking over as president in 2007. However, twice Greek champions PAOK, famous for their fanatical support, still struggle to make ends meet due to the difficult financial situation in the country. UEFA licensing regulations ban clubs from taking part in European competition if they owe money to tax authorities, government social security institutions, other clubs or their own employees.

Clubs must also meet sporting criteria, which include rules governing the size of doping rooms, media officers and the coach’s qualifications, as well as minimum standards on infrastructure. These regulations will be strengthened further in the 2014/15 when clubs will have to prove that their expenditure does not exceed their generated income. —Reuters

Business

What to expect in 2012 for GCC markets Page 23

Growing wealth divide puts globalisation at risk Page 25

THURSDAY, JANUARY 12, 2012

India opens retail sector to major foreign brands

Wall St off 5-month high, energy drags

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Page 23

BERLIN: Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti, left, gestures during a news conference with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, right, at the chancellery in Berlin, Germany, yesterday. — AP

Markets must recognise Italian reforms Merkel praises technocrat Monti’s rapid reforms BERLIN: German Chancellor Angela Merkel praised Italy’s new government yesterday for the speed with which it has launched reforms, prompting Prime Minister Mario Monti to say it was important for markets also to recognise Italian economic policy progress soon.

Merkel said at a joint news conference with Monti in Berlin that his technocrat government had been quick to launch urgent budgetary measures and now structural reforms aimed at making the Italian economy more competitive in order to boost growth.

“This will strengthen Italy,” said Merkel yesterday.

Monti, while thanking the Italian people and parliament for what he called their “mature” response to very painful reforms, said his country could only make further progress within a more helpful European environment, including cheaper borrowing. “The European context must become more favourable, by permitting in good time a lowering of interest rates and greater integration of the EU,” said Monti.

Italy still faces 10-year borrowing costs of around

7 percent, widely viewed as unsustainable for an economy saddled with a debt of around 120 percent of GDP. Rome must refinance tens of billions of debt in the first four months of the year.

“In the financial markets, high interest rates could have been justified when markets were diffident about Italian economic policy, but not anymore, especially after representatives of those same markets have said they appreciated the efforts made,” Monti said.

It was up to Europe to “facilitate the transformation of good policies into lower interest rates”, he said. Speaking to investors in Frankfurt, a top ratings agency analyst said Italy needed more robust support from the European Central Bank in terms of buying its bonds. Both the ECB and Germany are deeply reticent about such action.

“It is hard to believe the euro will survive if Italy does not make it through,” said David Riley, the head of sovereign ratings for Fitch, adding that while many saw Italy as too politically and economically important to be allowed to fail, “one might also argue that it is too big to rescue”.

Manila eyes $1.5bn investments from Qatar, Kuwait MANILA: The Philippines said yesterday it expects investments totaling $1.5 billion from Qatar and Kuwait this year, with investors looking at opportunities in infrastructure, agribusiness, tourism and energy sectors.

Qatar’s sovereign wealth fund was taking a look at the Southeast Asian nation’s agriculture, energy and tourism sec tors, Manila’s Trade Undersecretary Cristino Panlilio told Reuters.

Panlilio said Qatar’s investment plans may be discussed during a state visit later this month by the Emir of Qatar.

“The Qatar Investment Authority is interested in food security, agribusiness, energy-related projects and hotels,” he said in an interview, without giving further details. Panlilio said another $500 million in investment has been committed by Kuwait and Gulf Link Holding Co (KGL), which was eyeing opportunities in the tourism, business outsourcing, and infrastructure sectors.

“KGL is open to investing in new projects, not just government projects,” he said. He confirmed a local newspaper report on Tuesday that top KGL officials had recently met with President Benigno Aquino about the global logistics group’s investment plans.

The KGL Group has a $200 million investment in Global Gateway Development Corp, a private firm constructing the $2 billion Gateway Logistics Center at the Clark Export Processing Zone in Pampanga province, north of Manila, according to the newspaper report.

“If it’s a government project they are going to run after, bidding is a must. But if it’s a private sector project, then it’s subject to negotiations,” Panlilio said regarding the investment process. —Reuters

The warning pushed the euro down to within touching distance of a new 16-month low versus the dollar. Merkel’s personal relations with Monti’s predecessor, Silvio Berlusconi, were very tense and she and French President Nicolas Sarkozy took a tough stance on his reluctance to begin spending cuts once Italy became a focus on market speculation about the euro zone debt crisis spreading from Greece. Monti told Merkel “Europe no longer has to fear Italy as a possible source of contagion for the euro zone, but can count on Italy to play its proper role beside Germany and France and other countries in the drive for stability and growth”.

The premier, a former European Commissioner appointed in November to try to reassure markets Italy can manage its debt mountain, confirmed Merkel and Sarkozy would visit him on Jan. 20 to see for themselves the reforms his government has begun. Merkel made clear the euro zone’s top priority at the start of 2012 was to secure a second aid package for Greece, an issue which needed to be resolved before Europe could start working out how to boost growth and jobs.

That hangs on finalising a deal for private creditors to take a 50 percent writedown on their Greek bondholdings, which remains elusive with time running short. “The euro zone’s first obligation this year is to resolve a second Greek programme and finalise these negotiations with the banks so that we can then concentrate on structural problems in the euro zone,” Merkel told the news conference with Monti.

She also said Germany would be prepared if necessary to pay more capital up front into the euro zone’s permanent bailout mechanism, the ESM, which is due to come on stream in the middle of the year. The statement helped the euro claw back some losses and German Bund futures retreat from the day’s highs.

“The Merkel comments about Germany being ready to put more money into the ESM ... seem like a change of tack. It seems a more proactive approach to the crisis,” a bond trader said.

Both leaders played down the option, pushed by Sarkozy who is seeking re-election this year, of a new financial transaction tax in the euro zone rather than the whole European Union if non members of

the currency zone, like Britain, keep opposing it.

Monti said he was once a student of Nobel laureate economist James Tobin, credited with the transaction tax idea in the early 1970s, but that Italy saw it only on a global or EU scale. “I’m not sure it makes sense only at euro zone level,” said Monti.

Merkel, whose own conservatives back the euro zone going it alone with the tax but lack the support of their Free Democrat (FDP) coalition partners for this, backtracked on comments made on Monday about the tax maybe applying to just the euro states.

She said Berlin would push for the tax through the EU for now, rather than just the euro zone, because “the government cannot represent that position, no matter what I said before”.

In an earlier interview with German daily Die Welt, Monti had said Italy needed help to reform, otherwise it could fall prey to anti-European populists. “I cannot be successful with my policies if the policies of the EU do not change. If that doesn’t happen, Italy-which has always been a pro-European country-could flee int. — Reuters

Egypt up on Orascom Telecom return hopes, Gulf mixed CAIRO/DUBAI: Egypt’s main index reached a three-week high yesterday on hopes Orascom Telecom will pull the market higher when it resumes trade following a tentative deal to resolve a dispute over its Algerian unit Djezzy.

Markets were mixed in the Gulf, with Qatar National Bank rebounding a day after investor disappointment at the proposed dividend knocked its shares down the most since late-2009. Investors in Egypt targeted heavyweight stocks hit hardest in the market’s steep decline last year, with property developer Talaat Moustafa Group up 5.4 percent and Ezz Steel gaining 5.8 percent.

A long-running row over Djezzy’s fate has weighed on Orascom’s share price, but on Monday Vimpelcom, which acquired most of Orascom in April, said it had agreed to sell a majority stake in the unit to Algeria’s government pending an agreement on price.

OT’s local shares have been suspended since Nov. 24 pending its split into two listed companies - a second listing, Orascom Telecom Media and Technology, will include the assets excluded from Vimpelcom’s takeover but the firm’s global depositary receipts have gained 18 percent this week.

“The rise in the GDRs is all because of Djezzy. If the stocks start trading in the next couple of days they will catch up with the GDRs. Both should rise by at least 25 percent,” said Ahmed Abu Taleb, foreign sales trader at Pharos Securities.

If Orascom’s two listings were to gain 10 percent, it would lift Cairo’s main share index by 1 percent, he added. Both stocks will start trading a day after an official announcement on the split is published in newspapers. No date has yet been fixed.

Cairo’s benchmark climbed 0.8 percent to its highest finish since Dec. 19. In Qatar, QNB rose 1.7 percent, after dropping 5.2 percent on Tuesday, and led bank stocks higher. Doha Bank climbed 3.1 percent and Commercial Bank of Qatar added 1.1 percent.

Saudi Arabia’s Bank Aljazira rose 0.6 percent to a six-month high after the lender’s fourth-quarter profit beat forecasts. It reported a fourth-quarter profit of 110 million riyals ($29.3 million) as it swung from a loss a year earlier. “ The management attributed the growth in net income to increased total operating income and lower operating expenses,” a note from NCB Capital said.

“From lower operating expenses, we believe lower net provisions are the key reason behind the net income increase.”

EGYPT The index rose 0.8 percent to 3,766 points.

QATAR The benchmark climbed 1 percent to 8,711 points.

SAUDI ARABIA The benchmark rose 0.2 percent to 6,486 points.

KUWAIT The measure eased 0.06 percent to 5,717 points.

DUBAI The index fell 0.5 percent to 1,334 points.

ABU DHABI The benchmark rose 0.1 percent to 2,365

points.

OMAN The index inched down 0.08 percent to 5,710 points.

BAHRAIN The measure lost 0.5 percent to 1,129 points. — Reuters

RENTON: Members of the 737 management team applaud fellow Boeing employees while the company celebrated the increased production rate of 737 line to 35 planes per month at the Renton factory in Renton, Washington, Tuesday. The increased production secured the new generation 737 Max production line in Renton. — AP

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THURSDAY, JANUARY 12, 2012

BUSINESS

Saudi Arabia oil output nearing capacity limit Riyadh traditionally sets aside 1.5m bpd DUBAI/RIYADH: Top oil exporter Saudi Arabia is nearing its comfortable operational production limits and may struggle to do much to make up for shortages that arise from new sanctions imposed on Iran by the West, Gulf-based sources said.

The kingdom, now pumping just under record rates of 10 million barrels per day, has poured billions of dollars into its vast oil fields, which on paper should ensure it has the ability to ramp up to 12.5 million bpd. Longstanding oil policy by Riyadh, the heavyweight in the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), sets aside some 1.5 million bpd as protective spare capacity.

But industry sources said pumping anywhere near the declared production capacity might involve extracting heavy crudes the market might not want. It would also be difficult to sustain higher rates for lengthy periods.

“There is very little unused capacity in the Gulf,” said

an oil official in the region. “Saudi Arabia could comfortably manage an extra 500,000 barrels a day or so and, if pushed, could go up to 11 million (barrels a day).”

A steady rate beyond 10 million bpd would offer immediate relief to world oil markets, but it would take the kingdom’s production to untested levels. Saudi officials are confident, however, of achieving higher flows. “Saudi Arabia can easily make 1 million to 1.5 million (barrels per day) available,” a Saudi source said about output beyond current volumes.

Since June of last year, Saudi Arabia and its Gulf allies Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates have been cranking oil out after failing to convince Iran and other OPEC members to agree a coordinated increase to cover the supply disruption from Libya’s civil war.

The trio has kept up the higher pace, despite the return of Libyan crude, to supply rising demand from Asia and in effort to bring oil prices below $100 a

barrel to help nurture global economic growth. Increased deliveries have left Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates producing nearly flat out.

That will make it a stretch to fill a sizeable gap left by any punitive cuts in Iran’s oil exports of about 2.5 million bpd. After spending huge amounts on fortifying their production, the Gulf countries are now reluctant to push output to the very brink and leave them bereft of a supply cushion.

The United States and its allies in Europe and elsewhere are trying to put pressure on Iran to curb its nuclear programme, worried that Tehran is attempting to develop its own atom bomb.

Iranian oil officials said shipments from the Islamic Republic are continuing as normal. There are, however, reports that some traditional buyers of Iranian crude, such as China, may be looking elsewhere. This may be part of a negotiating ploy over contract renewals.

The European Union has

HSBC sees Dubai meeting 2012 debt maturities DUBAI: HSBC Holdings expects Dubai to meet its upcoming debt obligations this year and said international banks’ appetite to refinance the emirates’ liabilities will not be impacted by the euro zone crisis.

Government-related entities in Dubai have bonds worth $3.8 billion maturing in 2012, according to a Moody’s report last month. Data from The Royal Bank of Scotland show that the total value of Dubai loans maturing this year are over $5 billion.

“We’re not concerned with regards to Dubai’s ability to meet its debt obligations, that’s not only in the medium term but certainly in the context of this year,” Paul Skelton, regional co-head of global banking, Middle East North Africa, at HSBC told Reuters in an interview.

“There is sufficient liquidity and sufficient ways at the borrowers’ disposal to get things done. International banks are still here and will continue to support Dubai Inc,” he added.

Moody’s reckons that the total debt of the government and related entities stands at $102 billion. That would amount to around 125 percent of the emirate’s gross domestic product (GDP). Just months after Dubai World asked creditors for a standstill in 2009, the IMF estimated Dubai’s total debt at $109 billion.

With the real estate market still sagging, the stock market moribund and many banks reluctant to lend because of global financial instability, investors have

worried that some of those bonds might be restructured, with changes to repayment terms that disadvantage creditors.

Such speculation prompted Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed al-Maktoum, chairman of the Dubai Supreme Fiscal Committee, to declare on Dec. 7 that restructuring was not on the cards, though he said the government might look into refinancing part of the debts, presumably through issuing new bonds or loans.

A chunk of $3.8 billion in bonds is due next year from a trio of state-linked firms seen as having the highest refinancing risk.

Those firms are Dubai Holding Commercial Operations Group (DHCOG), part of the ruler’s private holding company, DIFC Investments (DIFCI) and Jebel Ali Free Zone (JAFZA).

Skelton noted that there will be more refinancing of maturities compared to last year.

“I think it’s possible because there is still an ability for them to refinance as and when required,” he said. The euro zone debt crisis should not have a big impact on international banks operating in the United Arab Emirates and other Gulf states. “It is still in the early stages to see how the euro zone crisis will affect this but clearly in terms of access to liquidity, despite the fact that some European banks are having restrictions, that will not impact Dubai’s ability to refinance,” Skelton said. —Reuters

brought forward a ministerial meeting that is likely to match new US measures to tighten the financial screws on Tehran. At stake are roughly 500,000 bpd of Iranian exports to EU members.

The US has long embargoed Iranian crude, but the new sanctions target institutions that deal with Iran’s central bank.

Asia’s big consumers of Iran’s oil - Japan, China and India are already taking precautions. Tokyo has asked Saudi Arabia and the UAE to help it to plug any gap.

And China’s Premier Wen Jiabao is set to visit Saudi, the UAE and Qatar amid signs that Beijing wants to expand its options as the U.S. ratchets up measures against Iran.

Despite the diplomatic efforts, there have been no hard requests from buyers. “So far, there are no extra orders (from buyers) that would require Saudi to increase production,” a Gulf industry source told Reuters. He repeated Riyadh’s vow to meet any extra demand. —Reuters

Commerce minister sponsors 2012 HORECA KUWAIT: Kuwait needs an improvement in its exhibition industry field in order to help reinforce the general work environment and stimulate commercial and touristic activity in the country.

This was stated by Minister of Commerce and Industry Dr. Amani Buresli in a statement released yesterday, in which she announced that she will be attending as a sponsor the 2012 HORECA Kuwait exhibition which takes place between the 22nd and 24th of January 2012 at the Arraya Ball Room - Courtyard Marriott Hotel.

“Exhibitions play a major role in developing economies as estimations indicate that global the exhibition business reached a value of over $300 billion last year”, said Buresli, who is also Kuwait’s Minister of Development Affairs. The minister also pointed out “Kuwait’s dire need for more exhibitions promoting nonoil sectors as part of ambitions of the development plan in diversifying sources of income.

The 2012 HORECA Kuwait is a comprehensive event covering the hospitality, catering and food industr y sectors in Kuwait and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). It is organized by the Leaders Group for Consulting & Development in cooperation with Hospitality Services of Lebanon, and feature participation of leading companies in hospitality and catering fields.

ATHENS: Foreign Minister of the United Arab Emirates Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al-Nahyan speaks during a business forum in Athens yesterday. —AFP

Abu Dhabi 2011 inflation slows to 2-yr low of 1.9% Dubai, another of the seven emirates in the federation, have yet to release December consumer price data. Abu Dhabi makes up 57 percent of the $297 billion UAE economy.

Housing and utility costs, which account for 38 percent of the Gulf emirate’s consumer expenses, dropped by 0.7 percent month-on-month in December, after remaining stable in the previous two months, the data showed.

Food prices, a major inflationary factor last year, resumed their monthly upward trend, rising by 0.4 percent, after a similar fall in November. Transport costs were unchanged. Clothing and footware prices fell by 13.8 percent on average in 2011, while food and housing costs were up by 7.6 percent and 1.5 percent, respectively.

Analysts polled by Reuters in December expected an average inflation in the UAE of 1.6 percent in 2011 and 2.4 percent this year, up from 0.9 percent in 2010 but lower than expected in the previous survey in September. UAE central bank governor Sultan Nasser al-Suweidi said in June that inflation was likely to be lower than 3 percent as the real estate sector remained under pressure.

In January, the country raised minimum pensions of former military and government employees, which followed a plan, announced in November, to increase wages of some state employees.

Both moves are expected to encourage consumer spending but also increase the fiscal burden. —Reuters

DUBAI: Inflation in oil-producing Abu Dhabi eased to a two-year low of 1.9 percent last year from 3.1 percent in 2010 as a fall in clothing prices partly offset higher food, housing and utility costs, data showed yesterday.

Consumer price growth in the United Arab Emirates member picked up again in December with its rate doubling to 1.2 percent year-on-year, the data from the Statistics Centre Abu Dhabi (SCAD) showed.

But living costs in the emirate, which sits on 10 percent of global oil reserves and accounts for 90 percent of UAE oil output, continued to edge down on the month, easing by 0.2 percent in December, as new housing units came on to the market.

“As the housing supply...increases, we continue to expect this downward pressure on rents and therefore a moderating influence on the overall consumer price index,” said Giyas Gokkent, chief economist at National Bank of Abu Dhabi.

“We are in a disinflationary period.

Global food prices are off significantly from the peak that they saw in February of 2011 and at the same time the dollar continues to be strong against major currencies and that by itself is a disinflationary factor,” he said.

The UAE has remained politically stable despite a wave of unrest across the Arab world last year. But like other Gulf oil exporters it has responded by boosting spending on social welfare. The UAE and

Nakheel in talks with banks for new Palm island project the Gulf Arab emirate after it overstretched itself building islands in the shape of palms and other ambitious projects. The developer completed the restructuring of a total of $16.06 billion in debt, including $8.71 billion of government debt which is to be converted into equity, last year.

Earlier this month, Lootah said the company is on track to deliver 7,000 units by end of the year and is also tendering new contracts in its retail segments. Nakheel plans to issue the second tranche of its Islamic bond by June, he said, which will be used to settle contractor claims. —Reuters

DUBAI: Troubled Dubai developer Nakheel is in talks with banks to raise financing for a new project on its man-made island Palm Jumeirah, worth at least 300 million dirhams ($81.68 million), its chairman said yesterday.

“We have all the financial options available to us. We’re in talks with banks. Banks are showing interest,” Ali Rashid Lootah told reporters. The project, named “The Point”, is likely to be concluded by the end of 2013 and includes residential homes, retail shops, cafes and restaurants at the tip of the island, Lootah said.

Nakheel was hit by a property slump in

EXCHANGE RATES Commercial Bank of Kuwait US Dollar/KD GB Pound/KD Euro Swiss francs Canadian Dollar Australian DLR Indian rupees Sri Lanka Rupee UAE dirhams Bahraini dinars Jordanian dinar Saudi riyals Omani riyals Philippine peso Egyptian pounds

.2730000 .4270000 .3520000 .2890000 .2690000 .2830000 .0040000 .0020000 .0756480 .7370130 .3820000 .0710000 .7225090 .0040000 .0430000

.2820000 .4380000 .3630000 .3020000 .2780000 .2920000 .0070000 .0035000 .0764080 .7444200 .4030000 .0780000 .7297700 .0072000 .0530000

CUSTOMER TRANSFER RATES US Dollar/KD .2786500 .2807500 GB Pound/KD .4299570 .4331970 Euro .3544570 .3571280 Swiss francs .2917950 .2939940 Canadian dollars .2711000 .2731430 Danish Kroner .0476640 .0480230 Swedish Kroner .0401450 .0404470 Australian dlr .2850450 .2871930 Hong Kong dlr .0358840 .0361550 Singapore dlr .2155070 .2171310 Japanese yen .0036200 .0036470 Indian Rs/KD .0000000 .0053610 Sri Lanka rupee .0000000 .0024730 Pakistan rupee .0000000 .0031090 Bangladesh taka .0000000 .0034580 UAE dirhams .0758950 .0764670 Bahraini dinars .7394190 .7449910 Jordanian dinar .0000000 .3971000 Saudi Riyal/KD .0743260 .0748870 Omani riyals .7240480 .7295050 Philippine Peso .0000000 .0064050

Al-Muzaini Exchange Co. Japanese Yen Indian Rupees Pakistani Rupees Srilankan Rupees Nepali Rupees Singapore Dollar Hongkong Dollar Bangladesh Taka Philippine Peso Thai Baht Irani Riyal - Transfer Irani Riyal - Cash

ASIAN COUNTRIES 3.598 5.337 3.154 2.436 3.341 213.250 35.672 3.580 6.336 8.873 0.271 0.273

GCC COUNTRIES 74.150 76.402 722.230 738.540 75.715

Saudi Riyal Qatari Riyal Omani Riyal Bahraini Dinar UAE Dirham Egyptian Pound - Cash Egyptian Pound - Transfer Yemen Riyal/for 1000 Tunisian Dinar Jordanian Dinar Lebanese Lira/for 1000 Syrian Lier Morocco Dirham

ARAB COUNTRIES 47.500 46.282 1.272 189.860 392.670 1.865 6.003 33.814

EUROPEAN & AMERICAN COUNTRIES US Dollar Transfer 277.950 Euro 370.650 Sterling Pound 431.930 Canadian dollar 268.420 Turkish lire 153.940 Swiss Franc 300.620 Australian dollar 277.000 US Dollar Buying 277.750

Bahrain Exchange Company COUNTRY Australian dollar Bahraini dinar Bangladeshi taka Canadian dollar Cyprus pound Czek koruna Danish krone Deutsche Mark Egyptian pound Euro Cash Hongkong dollar Indian rupees Indonesia Iranian tuman Iraqi dinar Japanese yen Jordanian dinar Lebanese pound Malaysian ringgit Morocco dirham Nepalese Rupees New Zealand dollar Nigeria

SELL CASH 291.400 744.120 3.880 274.500 549.500 44.600 49.100 167.800 48.220 361.200 36.710 5.610 0.032 0.207 0.247 3.740 396.800 0.189 91.360 46.300 4.300 226.100 1.813

47.700 726.790 3.250 6.710 77.400 74.710 217.140 37.060 2.654 436.500 41.500 297.800 4.900 9.260 198.263 76.290 280.200 1.290

726.610 3.120 6.365 76.970 74.710 217.140 37.060 2.453 434.500 296.300 4.900 9.010 76.190 279.800

10 Tola

TRAVELLER’S CHEQUE 434.500 279.800

Sterling Pound US Dollar

SELL DRAFT 289.900 744.120 3.365 273.000

217.100 46.369 359.700 36.560 5.415 0.031

Australian Dollar Canadian Dollar Swiss Franc Euro Sterling Pound Japanese Yen Bangladesh Taka Indian Rupee Sri Lankan Rupee Nepali Rupee Pakistani Rupee UAE Dirhams Bahraini Dinar Egyptian Pound Jordanian Dinar Omani Riyal Qatari Riyal Saudi Riyal

293.07 278.76 299.51 361.02 435.50 3.69 3.368 5.347 2.454 3.357 3.105 76.11 743.72 46.37 397.78 726.66 77.10 74.66

293.00 280.00 305.00 362.00 438.00 3.70 3.750 5.590 2.660 4.250 3.260 76.85 743.75 48.30 397.15 728.00 77.50 75.00

Dollarco Exchange Co. Ltd 396.480 0.188 91.360 3.400 224.600

Rate for Transfer US Dollar Canadian Dollar Sterling Pound Euro Swiss Frank Bahrain Dinar

Selling Rate 278.500 275.585 436.990 366.765 298.040 737.505

UAE Dirhams Qatari Riyals Saudi Riyals Jordanian Dinar Egyptian Pound Sri Lankan Rupees Indian Rupees Pakistani Rupees Bangladesh Taka Philippines Pesso Cyprus pound Japanese Yen Thai Bhat Syrian Pound Nepalese Rupees Malaysian Ringgit

75.800 76.445 74.225 392.025 46.238 2.441 5.241 3.106 3.401 6.331 683.150 3.675 8.935 5.865 3.370 92.510

Kuwait Bahrain Intl Exchange Co.

GOLD 1,714.930

UAE Exchange Centre WLL

GOLD 315.500 159.000 81.500

20 Gram 10 Gram 5 Gram

Norwegian krone Omani Riyal Pakistani rupees Philippine peso Qatari riyal Saudi riyal Singapore dollar South Africa Sri Lankan rupees Sterling pound Swedish krona Swiss franc Syrian pound Thai bhat Tunisian dollar UAE dirham U.S. dollars Yemeni Riyal

Currency Rate per 1000 (Tran) US Dollar 279.600 Pak Rupees 3.097 Indian Rupees 5.360 Sri Lankan Rupees 2.460 Bangladesh Taka 3.365 Philippines Peso 6.405 UAE Dirhams 76.225 Saudi Riyals 74.715 Bahraini Dinars 743.300 Egyptian Pounds 46.297 Pound Sterling 437.000 Indonesian Rupiah 3.190 Yemeni Riyal 1.550 Jordanian Dinars 363.400 Euro 363.400 Canadian Dollars 279.900 Nepali rupee 3.690

Al Mulla Exchange Currency Transfer Rate (Per 1000) US Dollar 278.550 Euro 362.300 Pound Sterling 436.100 Canadian Dollar 277.000 Japanese Yen 3.625 Indian Rupee 5.285 Egyptian Pound 46.196 Sri Lankan Rupee 2.445 Bangladesh Taka 3.310 Philippines Peso 6.315 Pakistan Rupee 3.081 Bahraini Dinar 741.750 UAE Dirham 75.850 Saudi Riyal 74.400 *Rates are subject to change

23

THURSDAY, JANUARY 12, 2012

BUSINESS

What to expect in 2012 for GCC markets Markaz Economic Report KUWAIT: The overall GCC markets as measured by the S&P GCC Composite index lost 8% in 2011 after gaining 13% in 2010; this is a significant outperformance of MSCI EM, which was down 21%, and the MSCI World Index, which lost 10%.

However, GCC markets were down for the year; the largest decline was in Bahrain which lost 20% given the high degree of political unrest and resultant economic ramifications followed by Kuwait with a loss of 16%. The best performance was in Qatar, which managed to stay in the green with a 1% gain. A recent report released

by Kuwait Financial Centre “Markaz”, “What to expect in 2012”, points out that regardless of the stock market performance, governments in the region are busy investing in infrastructure.

The report notes that 10 fingers may not be enough to count the stressful events in 2011:Arab Spring, nuclear disaster in Japan, Wall Street protests, Death of Osama Bin Laden and Col. Gadhafi, Greek mess, European banking crisis, unemployment in the Western world, recessionary and deflationary fears, high volatility in stock markets, loss of AAA status to US treasuries, gold price peaking, etc.

In spite of all this, the S&P 500 stayed put and did not budge down. However, emerging markets and GCC cracked under pressure and ended up in the red. In spite of reasonably strong oil price and stable economies, GCC stock markets decided to dance more to the tune of global events than regional ones, breaking the traditional correlation between oil price and stock market performance. Stable earnings and attractive valuations did not encourage much of foreign investment interest who viewed the Arab Spring with trepidation.

Consequently, liquidity dried up in certain markets rather severely mainly due to lack of bank lending, lack of market depth and lack of institutional investors.

For 2012, the authors have adopted a Neutral view of the markets due mainly to lackluster market liquidity and activity which is overshadowing more positive indicators on the economy and earnings.

They are Positive on Saudi Arabia and Qatar due to positive economic growth prospects, earnings potential and market liquidity.

Governments can do well by introducing long pending capital market reforms (including introducing derivatives market) and opening up foreign investment limits to broad base ownership and help elevate some markets to MSCI Emerging Market status.

Country Views Saudi Arabia - Positive The authors maintain a Positive outlook on Saudi Arabia for 2012 due to positive

economic activity (especially a projected decline in inflation and increase in government spending) in addition to healthy earnings growth. Positive factors also arise in terms of attractive valuation and market liquidity which has been picking up.

The 2012 budget is expected to show a surplus of just USD 3bn due to lower revenue and spending in the coming year.

Revenues for 2011 came in at USD 296bn as oil prices and production increased due to political unrest in the region; these are expected to go down to USD 187bn in 2012 as the global slowdown affects key trading partners like China.

Spending is expected at USD184bn, 14% lower than expenditure in 2011, although spending on jobs, housing and other public service projects is expected to continue.

Housing property prices are expected to rise in 2012 as the kingdom continues to grapple with residential real estate shor tages for its growing population.

According to CB Richard Ellis, only 35% of locals own homes, with low and middleincome families making up around 80% of unmet demand.

As for corporate earnings, these are expected to grow 19% in 2012 versus a growth of 27% in 2010. Support is expected to come from the Banking sector, which the authors expect will grow at 16% in 2012 in addition to a healthy 20% growth in commodities.

As previously mentioned, market liquidity is up in the Kingdom. Value Traded came in at USD 291 bn for 2011, a 44% YoY growth.

Kuwait - Neutral The view on Kuwait remains Neutral due to poor market conditions, more muted economic growth and continued drying up of market liquidity.

The economy is expected to grow by 4.5% in 2012 following a growth of 5.7% in 2011, as oil prices soften and government spending pulls back. Inflation, which is expected to have jumped to 6.2% in 2011, due to subsidies and grants, is forecasted to come back down to 3.4% in 2012, which is on par with the long-term average.

Fiscal and Current Balances are expected to remain the highest in the Gulf, at 13% and 29% of GDP, respectively, in 2012.

Overall earnings growth is expected at 23% in 2011 followed by a slight moderation to 18% in 2012 due to muted growth in the banking and Telecom sectors.

UAE - Abu Dhabi, Dubai: Neutral The authors have Neutral view on Abu Dhabi while maintaining the same on Dubai (although with a slightly Negative bias). The view of Abu Dhabi is predicated on weak

market conditions and the possibility of additional aid being extended to Dubai.

The UAE economy grew at an estimated 3.3% in 2011 and is expected to show a growth of 3.8% in 2012. Inflation is expected to remain at a manageable 2.5% for the year. Lack of liquidity is a problem as value traded in the UAE continues to dry up.

The Dubai budget for 2012 makes it clear that conservatism and cautiousness is the way moving forward; revenues are expected at USD 8.3bn for the coming year, the majority of which is expected to come from fees and service charges. USD 3.4bn of the budget (40%) has been allocated to salaries and wages while 35% will go to operating expenditures. Development projects spending is placed at USD 1.6bn while USD 350mn is set aside for loans and interest payments.

The emirate still struggles with a debt overhand of about USD 15bn, mainly related to Dubai World and Dubai Holding.

The Dubai real estate sector, while bottoming out, will continue to battle oversupply issues with residential prices expected to decline by about 15% as supply continues to outstrip falling demand. Abu Dhabi suffers from supply-demand imbalances, which would dampen prices there.

Corporate earnings are expected to rebound in 2011 after the Real Estate sector suffered a significant loss in 2010 (due to Aldar Properties) before moderating to a growth of 23% in 2012 as banks are expected to show a growth of 26% while telecoms grow at 6% versus a decline of 14%. The Real Estate sector is expected to have bottomed-out in 2011 and would return to profitability in 2012.

Qatar - Positive The authors remain Positive on Qatar owing to its high economic growth prospects, healthy banking sector and heavy government support in addition to increasing liquidity.

The economy is expected to show another year of double-digit growth, boosted to a forecasted 19% in 2011 (due to high commodity prices) before falling back to a more sustainable 6% in 2012. The moderation of growth comes due to a self-imposed moratorium on the development of new hydrocarbon projects until 2015 as LNG production has hit 77 million tonnes a year, a 10-yr CAGR of 15%. High government spending and investments in the non-hydrocarbon sector is expected to boost growth to 9%.

Inflation remains well under control despite the growing economy, remaining at a steady 4% through 2012. Qatar corporates are expected to show earnings growth of 14% for 2011, driven by Commodities and Real Estate. Banks are expected to grow 10% while Telecoms are flat due to ForEx losses which have squeezed earnings.

For 2012, the report shows that banks are expected to grow at about 14% as lending continues while provisions decline further.

Likewise, Telecoms are forecasted to have a slightly better year, growing at around 10%.

Some softness is foreseen in Commodities, growing at 30% versus an estimated 50% in 2011.

Qatar has been leading in terms of liquidity strength, taking the second place for the year at USD 22.7bn, a 22% growth.

Oman - Neutral The authors have maintained their view on Oman at Neutral due to moderate earnings growth, lower liquidity and declining economic growth.

Real GDP is expected to have grown at 4.4% in 2011 to decline to 3.6% in 2012 as economic growth slows. Consequently, inflation is also expected to decline through the years; it is forecasted at 3.8% in 2011 before declining to 3.3% in 2012.

Given healthy oil prices, the government balance is expected to remain quite healthy, at about 10% of GDP in 2011 before falling to 6% in 2012.

Full year corporate earnings are forecasted to show a decline of 25% to USD 1.4bn due to telecoms and financial services weakness. For 2012, the authors expect banking to pick up to a growth of around 13% from 7% in 2011e, while Telecoms, which were down 24% in 2011e, should see a moderate growth of about 5%.

Bahrain - Neutral The outlook on Bahrain is Neutral but verging on Negative due to weakened corporate earnings outlook in addition to negative investor sentiment and market liquidity.

From a 24% annual growth in 2010 we expect FY 2011 corporate earnings to be flat in 2011 due to financial services weakness before expanding by about 7% in 2012.

The report provides an outlook for 2012 by using the five forces framework which includes 1. Economic Factors, 2. Valuation Attraction, 3. Earnings Growth Potential, 4.

Geopolitical Developments, and 5. Market Liquidity.

1. Economic Factors: GDP Growth: According to the latest economic forecasts from the IMF, Real GDP across the GCC is expected to show a growth of about 6.7% in 2011 to moderate to a rate of 4% in 2012.

Growth in 2011 was driven by spiking crude oil prices at the beginning of the year on account of political turmoil coupled with increased government spending. Growth in Saudi Arabia is expected at 6.5% in 2011 due to high oil revenues as the Kingdom ramped up production to compensate for lost Libyan production. This is expected to come down by about half in 2012 as the situation stabilizes in Libya while oil demand

on a whole is slated to come down as the world economy slows. Kuwait GDP growth was up as well on account of higher oil revenues, estimated at a rate of 5.7% in 2011, but is expected to come down by around 4.5% in 2012.

Inflation: Both Saudi Arabia and Kuwait saw jumps in inflation during 2011 due to government grants and subsidies. Saudi inflation is expected to remain in the 5% range in 2012 due to continued high rent and food prices which make up a combined 46% of the CPI basket. Kuwait’s inflation is expected to come down by half in 2012 to about 3.4% while Qatar inflation is expected to double.

Fiscal Deficits: Fiscal Balances expanded throughout 2011, mainly due to high oil revenues from the beginning of the year; however, they are expected to tighten in 2012 as government spending increases while a slowdown in global economic conditions reduces oil prices and, subsequently, government revenues.

Current Account Balance: According to the IIF, the consolidated current account balance of the GCC is estimated to top $285 bn in 2011 (from $150 bn in 2010) on account of a positive commodities environment, epitomized by the oil spikes during the year and increased production out of Saudi Arabia. This is expected to come down slightly to $227bn in 2012.

Broad Money Growth: Money Supply (M2) growth was down sharply in 2010 across most GCC countries except Qatar where growth came in at 23%, i.e. on par with its 2003-2009 average. There was a slight pickup in M2 growth in 2011, but not significantly. Saudi, Oman and Kuwait registered 12%, 9% and 10% growth rates, respectively, while M2 growth in Qatar surged to 27%. Notably, the UAE saw M2 growth decelerate to 4%.

2. Valuation Attraction: Going forward into 2012, we expect corporate earnings to top USD 64bn, a 19% annual growth (See Earnings Growth Potential below).

Consequently, the GCC-wide PE should decline to 11x with all country valuations declining.

3. Earnings growth potential: Earnings growth is expected to continue a steady growth in 2012, topping USD 64bn, which would bring it back to the levels reached in 2007 prior to the on-set of the global crises with the UAE set to grow at 23% while Saudi Arabia and Kuwait are forecasted to show an earnings growth of around 19% each.

4. Market Liquidity: Value traded has picked up in 2011, expanding by 19% to USD354bn. Growth was driven by Saudi Arabia and Qatar; the former increased 44% for the year while the latter expanded 22% to usurp the position of second most liquid market in the GCC.

India opens retail sector to major foreign brands More choices for consumers

MUMBAI: High-rise buildings are seen behind old low-rise ones in Mumbai, India. A skyscraper building boom in China and India may be a sign of an impending economic correction in two of Asia’s largest economies, according to a new report by Barclays Capital. —AP

China and India skyscraper boom may herald downturn MUMBAI: A skyscraper building boom in China and India may be a sign of an impending economic correction in two of Asia’s largest economies, according to a new report by Barclays Capital. Barclays has mapped an “unhealthy correlation” between construction of the world’s tallest buildings and impending financial crises over the last 140 years.

Today, China is home to half of the world’s skyscrapers - defined as buildings over 240 meters (787 feet) tall - currently under construction. India, which has just two skyscrapers, is seeing its first skyscraper building boom, with 14 under construction, including the world’s second-tallest tower, in the financial capital Mumbai.

“Building booms are a sign of excess credit,” Andrew Lawrence, director of property research at Barclays Capital in Hong Kong, said yesterday. Historically, skyscraper construction has been characterized by bursts of sporadic, but intense activity that coincide with easy credit, rising land prices and excessive optimism, but often by the time skyscrapers are finished, the economy has slipped into recession, Lawrence said.

The Great Depression hit as the finishing touches were being put on three record-breaking buildings in New York: 40 Wall Street, the Chrysler Building and the Empire State Building, which were all completed between

1929 and 1931, Barclays noted in a Jan. 10 report. The economic and oil crises of the 1970s coincided with the completion of the twin towers at New York’s World Trade Center, in 1972 and 1973, and Chicago’s Sears Tower in 1974.

The Asian financial crisis hit as Kuala Lumpur’s Petronas Towers were finished in 1997. Dubai’s $4.1 billion Burj Khalifa, completed in 2010, is now the world’s tallest building.

As it was being built, Dubai nearly went bust and the world slid into the Great Recession.

“Thankfully for the world economy, there is not currently a skyscraper under construction that is planned to overtake the height of the Burj Khalifa,” the report said.

However, signs of trouble are escalating in China and India. Today, China gets the dubious distinction of being the world’s “biggest bubble builder,” as it erects ever more and ever higher towers, Barclays said. Home to 53 percent of the 124 skyscrapers now under construction globally, China is primed to increase its stock of skyscrapers by 87 percent.

About 80 percent of new buildings are going up in tier two and three cities, away from developed coastal areas of the Pearl River Delta and Yangtze River Delta, which Barclays called “evidence of the expanding building bubble.”

Lawrence, who was lead author of the report, said China’s property market is already wobbling. —AP

NEW DELHI: India’s government has allowed foreign brands such as Adidas or home furnishings giant Ikea to open 100-percent owned shops, but will continue to block the entry of supermarkets.

The retail reform allowing wholly foreign-owned “single brand stores” into the country was announced late Tuesday by the left-leaning government, which had initially announced sweeping plans to throw open the sector.

I n December, it said it planned to allow in foreign supermarket chains such as WalMar t, but it backtracked two weeks later amid parliamentary opposition and protests from small shopkeepers.

Major Western brands such as Adidas already own shops in the booming retail centres and shopping malls of major cities, but they are currently obliged to operate with a local partner.

“Foreign direct investment (FDI) up to 100 per cent, under the government approval route, would be permitted in single brand product retail trading,” the Department of Industrial Polic y and Promotion (DIPP) said late Tuesday.

The condition is that the foreign companies owning more than 51 percent of their shops in India source a minimum of 30 percent of their products from small-scale local “cottage industry” suppliers. “ The move will not only mean more FDI but lead to employment and also lead to more choices for consumers,” the secretary general of business lobby group FICCI, Rajiv

Kumar, said in a statement. “The sourcing clause will lead to a direct benefit for the SME (small and medium-sized enterprises) sector,” he added.

But Arvind Singhal, chairman of Gurgaon-based retail consul-

pliers be small in scale also limits the options of large companies such as Ikea. “If they come here and do find good local suppliers, what happens when those suppliers soon become too big to be included? This

to reform the retail sec tor,” Singhal said. “On this thinking, multi-brand supermarkets will never be allowed here.”

Other analysts said brands like Adidas, Louis Vuitton or Gucci, which are already in

NEW DELHI: Indian pedestrians walk in front of the Adidas store in New Delhi yesterday. India’s government has allowed foreign brands such as Adidas or home furnishings giant Ikea to open 100-percent owned shops, but will continue to block the entry of supermarkets. The retail reform allowing wholly foreign-owned “single brand stores” into the country was announced late Tuesday by the left-leaning government, which had initially announced sweeping plans to throw open the sector. —AFP tancy Technopak, told AFP he was sceptical that foreign companies would be rushing to open 100-percent owned stories because of the local supplier condition. “This is an unfeasible demand. If a foreign brand like Ikea comes to India they want their own suppliers, who are very efficient,” he said.

The insistence that the sup-

means that the reform will not mean very much,” he said.

The change to the foreign direct investment rule does not require parliamentary approval.

The government U-turn on allowing in supermarkets was forced after an ally in the ruling coalition threatened to quit over the move. “I wonder about the government’s real intention

I ndia, might look to expand their presence, while others would be unlikely to jump in with a 100-percent owned store.

“Action may not come from new players. Only those who understand the Indian markets and its challenges and policies will be interested,” Anil Talreja, a partner with consultancy Deloitte India, said. —AFP

THURSDAY, JANUARY 12, 2012

business

KSE index closes at 5,717.1 points GLOBAL DAILY MARKET REPORT KUWAIT: Kuwait Stock Exchange (KSE) pulled back yesterday. The price index reached near Monday’s level (lowest level in 7 years). The market’s heavyweights succumbed to the selling pressure. All major indices edged lower. The market has been on a bear run for a while now, bringing Global General Index (GGI) YTD losses to 1.77 percent in 8 sessions only.

NBK ECONOMIC BRIEF

Market Indices Global General Index (GGI) ended the day down by 0.21 percent, at 176.15 point. Market Capitalization was down for the day, reaching KWD28.82bn. On the other hand, KSE Price Index closed at 5,717.1 point, shedding 3.200 points (0.06 percent) from its previous close.

Market Breadth During the session, 101 companies were traded. Market breadth was skewed towards decliners as 38 equities retreated versus 27 that advanced.

Daily Trading Activity Volume and values of shares traded on the exchange closed down, decreasing by 16.45 percent and 8.83 percent respectively. The total amount of shares traded today reached 229.13mn shares, with an aggregate value of KWD23.04mn. services stocks accounted for 32.97 percent of the volume of those shares traded during today’s session, trading was specially intense on the counter of Kuwait Business Town Real Estate Company which witnessed 40.40mn of its shares changing hands. Moreover, shares traded on the counter of Hits Telecom Holding Company and Al Salam Group Holding Company exceeded 44.02mn shares.

Top Gainers and Biggest Decliners In terms of top gainers, Kuwait National Cinema Company was the top gainer for the day, adding 10.0 percent to its share value and closing at KWD1.100. On the other hand, share price of Gulf Petroleum Investment Company retreated by 7.69 percent and closed at KWD0.030, making it the biggest decliners in the market.

Sectors Wise The retreat was broad based, with five out of the eight sectors ending the day on a lower note. Banking stocks succumbed to selling pressure and lost 0.80 percent, as measured by Global Banking index. National Bank of Kuwait

Kuwait heads for massive surplus

(NBK) shed 1.75 percent and closed at KWD1.120. Ahli United Bank followed. The scrip closed down by 1.22 percent at KWD0.810. Real Estate stocks followed, with Global Real Estate index shedding 0.27 percent. The retreat was led by 6.58 percent drop reported by Kuwait Real Estate Holding Company, at KWD0.0355. Injazzat Real Estate Development Company, Munshaat Real Estate Projects Company and National Real Estate Company each shed 5.56 percent, 4.08 percent and 1.61 percent, respectively. Industrial stocks were also marginal losers, with Global Industrial Index down by 0.13 percent. National Industries Group (Holding) was the only loser in the sector down by a 4.31 percent.

On the flip-side, Global Services Index reported a daily gain of 0.60 percent. Zain, Hits Telecom Holding and Alrai Media Group Company each clocked 1.16 percent, 7.04 percent and 4.76 percent in gains. But it was the Insurance sector that led the pack of advancers.

Global Insurance Index added 0.88 percent during the day. Al-Ahleia Insurance Company’s 3.09 percent climb bolstered the sector’s performance.

Investment sector managed to close in positive territory as well, with Global Investment Index up by 0.23 percent. Heavyweight Kuwait Projects Company (Holding) support the index

by adding 3.39 percent to close at KWD0.305.

Corporate News Alargan International Real Estate Company said it has received the approval of the country’s Capital Markets Authority (CMA) to issue up to KWD26.5mn (USD94.9mn) in bonds. The fiveyear bonds will be issued in two tranches, the property developer said in a statement posted on the Kuwait bourse website. The company, also known as Alargan Group, did not disclose what it planned to do with the money raised.

Oil News Price of Kuwaiti crude oil dropped by USD0.15 cents to USD111.67pb on Tuesday compared to USD112.67pb the day before, Kuwait Petroleum Corporation said in a statement on Wednesday.

This decrease comes as part of expectations of U.S. crude rising stockpile of crude; one million barrels last week, in addition to low oil demand

by European countries. International oil markets still need more oil supplies, Minister of Oil Mohammad Al-Busairi said, considering current oil prices “very reasonable.” Al-Busairi, also said there was a well in Burgan Field that has been recently drilled and production would be the next step. Kuwait has been producing 3.05mn bpd since last month, he noted.

KUWAIT: Eight months into fiscal year (FY11/12), total government spending stood at KD 7.1 billion, slightly lower than the previous comparable period (-0.8% y/y).

Demand-impacting spending* is also off a mere 1% compared to the 8 months of FY10/11. l Total revenues reached KD 18.7 billion, up a strong 42% y/y. driven by high oil prices and revenues. Revenues are already at 140% of budget for the full fiscal year. Eight months into the fiscal year, Kuwait’s budget reveals a massive surplus of KD 11.6 billion.

We forecast a KD 9-10 billion surplus for the entire fiscal year (as spending accelerates later in the year). l At KD 7.1 billion, the state has so far spent 37% of the FY11/12 budgeted amount, falling slightly short of the 5-year average for 8 months. Spending typically picks up towards yearend. l Spending on chapter 1, wages and salaries, reached KD 1.6 billion, an increase of 8.3% from the comparable period of FY10/11. Salary hikes that were approved last year by the government on top of the usual annual raises were behind the stronger spending on this chapter. l Spending on chapter 2, goods and services, were KD 1.3 billion, up 5.4% y/y. The increase came mostly from the cost of fuel incurred by the Ministry of Electricity and Water (MEW ) which typically makes up more than two thirds of this category. l Spending on chapter 3, vehicles and equipment, was KD 58 million, down 7.4% y/y. This chapter remains a small (and volatile) spending category with minimal impact on aggregate figures.

l 8 months into FY11/12, spending on chapter 4, projects, maintenance and land purchases, reached KD 666 million. At 27% of budget, spending on this chapter seems to be lagging slightly behind the historic average.

Compared to the same period of FY10/11, it is down 17%.

Spending (or reporting) should generally pick up towards the close of the year. l Chapter 5, transfers and miscellaneous expenditures totaled KD 3.6 billion, slightly off compared to the same period of FY10/11.

The decline was driven primarily by lower subsidies but partially offset by larger tranfers to social security (PIFSS). At 39% of budget, spending on this chapter seems to be falling behind historic trends mostly due to delays in other transfer payments. lRevenues reached KD 18.7 billion, well above the budget figure for the full year. The increase was largely driven by strong oil receipts. Kuwait export crude (KEC) averaged around $108 pb in the first 8 months of FY11/12 compared to an average of $76 pb during the same period of FY10/11. l Non-oil revenues totaled KD 967 million, up 10% y/y. The increase came mostly from “miscellaneous revenues and fees” likely related to compensation payments from the United Nations Compensation Commission (UNCC).

Meanwhile, “land sales” and “property fees”, though small categories, saw good growth likely related to improved real estate sales this year.

25

THURSDAY, JANUARY 12, 2012

business

Nissan-Renault see more record sales in 2012 DETROIT: Nissan-Renault will achieve another sales record this year after posting a 10 percent jump in global sales to 8.03 million vehicles in 2011, alliance chief Carlos Ghosn said Tuesday. With a host of fresh products and demand set to grow in all markets except Europe-where Ghosn predicts a three percent drop in sales this yearboth the Japanese and French carmakers should continue to expand sales beyond the records set in 2011, he said. “I’m foreseeing another record year for the alliance in 2012,” Ghosn told reporters on the sidelines of the Detroit auto show. The results put Nissan-Renault within sight of German rival Volkswagen, which posted sales of 8.13 million vehicles and is hoping to overtake Toyota and General Motors for the top global spot.

“Are we going to go faster or slower than other car manufacturers, I cannot tell you,” Ghosn said. “The problem is not to be number one, number two, number three. The important thing is to get the scale. “When you have eight million cars, scale is not the problem for you. The only challenge you have is making sure that scale works for you.”

Nissan’s sales rose 14.4 percent to 4.67 million vehicles worldwide in 2011 while Renault’s sales were up 4.6

percent at 2.72 million vehicles, he said. Russia’s Avetovaz, part of the alliance, posted a 12 percent gain to 638,000 vehicles.

“I’m pretty confident Nissan is going to have very strong growth in 2012,” Ghosn said. “I’m also confident that Renault will be able-even though Europe is going to be tough-to improve its performance. I think Russia also is going to be a big opportunity so Avetovaz should also progress.”

Nissan-Renault has been working to expand its stake in Avetovaz from 25 percent to 50 percent, something Ghosn told AFP would “most likely” be achieved in the first quarter of this year. Ghosn also predicted further consolidation in the global automotive industry. “We are an industry which needs scale. Scale is not going to substitute talent, but talent alone is not going to make it,” Ghosn told the Automotive News World Congress.

“We’re going to need to work together because we know that mergers and acquisitions don’t work in our industry.” While Nissan-Renault has now reached the economies of scale necessary to compete in the global automotive industry, Ghosn said it is always open to new ties with other carmakers. “Anybody can call and say ‘I have a

small pickup truck is doing very well with an eight percent market share in its segment. “We are very encouraged that coming with the right product, we can make big inroads,” Ghosn said.

Southeast Asia-where the alliance is increasing capacity in Indonesia and Thailand-”is going to be another prior-

new proposal for you.’ We’ll always listen,” Ghosn said. “There are plenty of opportunities in the world where we’re going to have new frontiers.”

India-where the alliance holds just one percent market share-is a major target for growth. “We’re going to be introducing a lot of very ultra-low-cost

DETROIT: Scion FRS is displayed during the press preview at the North American International Auto Show at the COBO Center yesterday in Detroit, Michigan. — AFP ity,” he said, adding there is also plenty of room to grow in Africa. Renault will

cars,” Ghosn said, noting that production is ramping up there and the Dost

soon launch an offensive in China and “leverage Nissan’s experience and best practices to begin manufacturing operations in the world’s largest car market,” he said.

China is Nissan’s biggest market and it has increased sales there from 40,000 units in 2002 to 1.25 million in 2011 in partnership with Dongfeng.

The record-setting sales by Japan’s second-largest automaker in 2011 were remarkable given the disruptions caused by the devastating March quake and tsunami, Ghosn said.

Nissan’s supplies were not as badly hit as those of Toyota and Honda, but its factories were still impacted, and Ghosn admitted Nissan is now suffering from a bit of a perception problem.

Nissan managed to get its production up to 80 percent of capacity by midMay and had fully recovered by September. Honda and Toyota-which took much longer to recover-will be able to post stronger sales growth in 2012 when compared to 2011’s depressed levels.

“Maybe I’ll have less of an advantage than people who suffered more from the quake, but I still consider 2012 as an opportunity for us because hopefully some of these headwinds will settle,” Ghosn said. — AFP

Growing wealth divide puts globalisation at risk Resentment sowing ‘seeds of dystopia’: WEF

NEW YORK: Specialist Jason Hardzewicz works at his post that trades NYSE Euronext on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange Tuesday. The European Union’s antitrust regulator is moving toward blocking the $10 billion merger between stock exchanges NYSE Euronext and Deutsche Boerse, two people close to the merger said Tuesday. — AP

Wall St off 5-month high, energy drags NEW YORK: US stocks pulled back from five-month highs in early trading yesterday, with pressure on the euro testing the view that US equities were decoupling from the single currency. Energy shares led equities lower as U.S. crude futures posted their fourth decline in five days. The S&P energy sector index fell 1.1 percent and an index of oil services companies dropped 1 percent.

The euro fell near 16-month lows against the U.S. dollar after Fitch warned of dire consequences for the currency if the European Central Bank does not take more action. US equities have been struggling to delink from the performance of the euro, a trend that became the norm in the last quarter of 2011 as traders fretted over possible sovereign defaults in the euro zone.

Steve Goldman principal at Goldman Management in Short Hills, New Jersey, said the market was still very aware of what is happening in European debt markets, ahead of Spanish and Italian bond auctions later this week. “US markets are tethered to that, even though we still want to move higher,” he said.

“Even US banks are diverging from the European banking system.”

But the link has been weakening. The

50-day correlation between the S&P 500 e-mini futures contract and the euro crossed the zero line this week after four months of being in positive territory, indicating they were no longer on the same path.

The Dow Jones industrial average was down 36.21 points, or 0.29 percent, at 12,426.26. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index dipped 3.39 points, or 0.26 percent, at 1,288.69. The Nasdaq Composite Index was off 0.83 points, or 0.03 percent, at 2,701.67.

The U.S. Federal Reserve will release its Beige Book, a summary of anecdotal information on current economic conditions around the United States, at 2 p.m.

EST (1900 GMT). The report may offer more evidence the economy’s health is slowly being restored.

Supervalu Inc shares dropped 10.3 percent to $7.53 after quarterly sales at the third-largest U.S. supermarket chain missed estimates. Clothing retailer Urban Outfitters Inc, grappling with piled-up inventory and declining margins, said its chief executive resigned unexpectedly, sending the company’s shares tumbling 18.4 percent to $23.98.

The Dow and S&P 500 hit five-month highs on Tuesday. — Reuters

LONDON: A backlash against rising inequality - evident from the Occupy movement to the Arab Spring - risks derailing the advance of globalisation and represents a threat to economies worldwide, according to the World Economic Forum.

Severe income disparity and precarious government finances rank as the biggest economic threats facing the world, according to the group’s 2012 Global Risks report released on Wednesday.

The 60-page analysis of 50 risks over the next decade precedes the World Economic Forum’s (WEF) annual meeting in two weeks’ time in the Swiss ski resort of Davos, and paints a bleak picture of an increasingly uncertain world. Over the past four decades, Davos, which brings together politicians, central bankers and business leaders, has become a byword for globalisation. Now confidence about the steady gains from the onward march of the global marketplace is faltering.

Rising youth unemployment, a retirement crisis among pensioners dependent on debtburdened states and a yawning wealth gap have sown the “seeds of dystopia”, according to the report, based on a survey of 469 experts and industry leaders.

For the first time in generations, people no

longer believe their children will grow up to have a better standard of living. “It needs immediate political attention, otherwise the political rhetoric that responds to this social unease will involve nationalism, protectionism and rolling back the globalisation process,” said Lee Howell, the WEF managing director responsible for the report.

The unsustainable level of government debt in many countries had already been highlighted as a top threat in the previous two WEF risk reports but the chronic nature of fiscal deficits means the issue remains centre stage. “We’re seeing governments kicking the can down the road and not trying to get their hands on it,” Howell said.

Since last January, the euro zone’s debt crisis has spread and deepened - toppling governments in Greece and Italy - while the United States has lost its triple-A credit rating, after failing to stabilise its debt position.

There will be a greater focus than ever in Davos this year on the failures of the modern market economy, including discussion on the uncertain future of capitalism, a subject that would have got short shrift in the years before the financial crisis.

In an increasingly interconnected world, the WEF report also highlights the risks posed

by cyberattacks against individuals, corporations and nations. “The Arab Spring demonstrated the power of interconnected communications services to drive personal freedom, yet the same technology facilitated riots in London,” said Steve Wilson, chief risk officer for general insurance at Zurich Financial Services. US President Barack Obama’s defence strategy this month showed cyber warfare to be a growing focus for governments, while companies got a wake-up call last April when hackers stole Sony Playstation online data for millions of users.

“It’s completely mind-boggling how complex the world is becoming and it is hard to understand the risks that come from that,” Wilson said. Other threats identified in the 2012 report include the risk that financial and other regulatory systems designed to safeguard the modern world may no longer be up to the job, as well as rising greenhouse gas emissions and looming water shortages.

Governments and corporations must also stay abreast of a host of “X” factors - emerging concerns with still unknown consequences such as the risk of a volcanic winter or a major accident involving new technology, such as genetically modified organisms or nanotechnology. — Reuters

Lennar q4 net income falls, new orders rise MIAMI: Lennar Corp.’s fiscal fourth-quarter net income dropped 5 percent, partly on higher expenses, but revenue rose as the homebuilder delivered more homes. Lennar also said yesterday that the housing market is starting to stabilize because of low home prices and low interest rates, making it more appealing to consumers to buy.

Its shares rose 57 cents, or 2.7 percent, to $21.33 in morning trading. Homebuilders are a bellwether for the housing market and the economy. While new homes represent less than onefifth of the total housing market, construction of houses has a major impact on the economy.

Each new home creates an average of three jobs and generates

$90,000 in taxes, according to the National Association of Home Builders.

For the period ended Nov. 30, Lennar reported net income of

$30.3 million, or 16 cents per share. That’s down from $32 million, or 17 cents per share, a year ago. This was the Miami company’s seventh straight quarter with

CALIFORNIA: In this Jan. 6, 2012 photo, Lennar homes are advertized for sale in San Jose, Calif. Lennar Corp.’s fiscal fourth-quarter net income dropped 5 percent. — AP

a profit, but its performance narrowly missed the 17 cents per share that analysts polled by FactSet predicted. Selling, general and administrative expenses increased to $112.5 million from $102 million. Corporate, general and administrative expenses rose to $28.5 million from $25.1 million.

Revenue climbed 11 percent to $952.7 million from $860.1 million, handily topping Wall Street’s estimate of $874.6 million.Revenue for its Rialto Investments unit, which buys troubled loans and properties from banks, more than doubled to $46.5 million from $19.7 million. Lennar, which sells homes for entry level and moveup buyers as well as retirees, said home deliveries rose 9 percent to 3,375 homes. — AP

Talent shortage threatens Gulf retail banking expansion DUBAI: On Dubai’s busiest thoroughfare, Sheikh Zayed Road, the white, orange and blue shop front of Sharjah Islamic Bank’s gleaming new branch stands out among the soaring apartment blocks, furniture shops and car dealerships that mirror the Gulf state’s growing wealth.

Faced with weaker corporate loan books and an uncertain global economic outlook, Gulf Arab banks are vying for space in prime locations across the Gulf as they seek to expand their retail branch networks to service increasingly prosperous domestic clients. At a time when fee-generating corporate business, including capital markets activity and mergers and acquisitions, is limited and, where present, restricted to international names, local banks are refocusing on traditional banking services for growth.

“Most banks in the region are focusing to get a steady source of revenues from retail banking and a steady source of customer growth,” said Suvo Sarkar, general manager of consumer and elite banking at National Bank of Abu Dhabi (NBAD) . His bank aims to open 10 branches a year until 2015, expanding its branch network, now covering 12 countries, to 150.

Some 85 percent of bank executives in the Gulf said their banks plan to invest in retail operations over the next three years,

according to survey by consultancy firm Accenture. But as banks expand, a growing talent shortage is creating intense competition for staff. That threatens to derail growth in the retail market and is sending banks’ labour costs sharply higher as they try to keep up with pay increases in the public sector. Fresh graduates want the more highprofile jobs available in corporate banking, which are seen to offer a more exciting career path. Meanwhile, government policies aimed at boosting local participation in the economy are drawing local citizens to the public sector.

“Most banks seem to be hiring, but at the front end (in)business development, people involved in revenue building,” said Islam Shikoh, recruitment manager at Dubaibased lender Mashreq. “The war for that talent is pretty intense and it’s getting more intense as the market picks up.”

Banks in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), comprising the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar and Saudi Arabia, have always had to compete with the public sector for local employees, with the latter seen to offer higher wages, shorter hours and better benefits.

“It is definitely tough competition,” said NBAD’s Sarkar. “We believe though that we provide broader and longer-term career

opportunities and a much more entrepreneurial culture.”

The political unrest of the Arab Spring has prompted governments to ramp up spending to head off social problems, including raising public sector salaries, putting pressure on banks to follow suit.

Many banks in Qatar, including Qatar National Bank , increased salaries for Qatari employees by 60 percent last year after the government raised wages for state employees by at least that amount.

In the UAE, the government doubled the wages of some public sector workers last month to mark the 40th anniversary of the country’s founding. “Many GCC governments have often publicly recognised the need to get a higher proportion of nationals in the private sector, but massive pay increases in the public sector are counterproductive to this aim,” said Toby Simpson, managing director of The Gulf Recruitment Group in Dubai.

In Saudi Arabia, a bank with more than 500 employees must ensure that at least 49 percent are locals or face possible fines and visa restrictions, according to Accenture, under a policy that stipulates quotas for companies’ local hires. It was tightened last year. The focus on local employment is creating retention issues, not just in banking

but across the economy, with nationals regularly moving around. The head of Saudi retailer Fawaz Abdulaziz Alhokair Co told Reuters in October that 60 percent of staff at his firm broke their contracts to move to another company after a short period of time. “We have our national programme which helps to monitor the training our Emirati staff receive, but once the effort is put in then retention is a challenge as with a limited pool, a lot of banks want to hire them,” said Mashreq’s Shikoh.

Retail banks have devised incentives to woo and retain high-calibre employees in addition to attractive remuneration packages, including the chance to study for masters’ degrees and fast-track career programmes to managerial positions. “It’s like you have created a business class for the internal staffing programme,” Shikoh said.

Despite such efforts, retail banking will always struggle to compete with corporate banking in offering graduates an attractive career. “I’d always pick investment banking over retail,” said one Omani at a major bank.

“At the end of the day, it’s a more high-value product and it is more international, rather than locally driven.”

The one bright spot for the retail banking sector is in niche areas such as Islamic banking or ladies banking - where branches are

staffed exclusively by women for a femaleonly clientele. They are enjoying a rebound in hiring after years of struggling to attract enough staff.

“A few years ago, Islamic banking faced lots of difficulties in recruiting people as the graduates leaving university weren’t aware of Islamic finance,” Adnan Ahmed Yousif, chief executive officer of Bahrain’s Al Baraka Banking Group said. “Now, the situation has completely changed as you have too many names. Many universities, both here and in Europe, have started to include Islamic banking in their finance qualifications and you have graduates from Islamic courses too.” The number of female graduates in the region is also rising, helping boost the talent pool. National Bank of Abu Dhabi says more than 50 percent of its latest graduate intake were women.

With Europe’s banking sector in the doldrums and financial institutions laying off bankers in developed markets, retail banks in the Gulf might provide an attractive prospect for expatriate bankers looking for work. “I moved here a little over four months ago and I’ve already had four or five friends contact me from home asking about relocating as the job situation is so dire right now,” said one American banker now working in Dubai. — Reuters

26

THURSDAY, JANUARY 12, 2012

business

Yusuf A Alghanim & Sons presents ‘12 Ways to Save in 2012’ campaign KUWAIT: Yusuf A. Alghanim & Sons Automotive is starting off the New Year with a bang as the company presents yet another New Year surprise to its customers with ‘12 Ways to Save In 2012’ upon purchase of a new Chevrolet vehicle. Throughout this month, customers will receive a cash voucher of KD 212 that can be utilized across 12 different items ranging from: 3rd party insurance & registration, discount towards a 3 year 60,000km service contract, window film, paint protection, full insurance assistance, accessories, trade-in assistance, discount towards a navigation system, leather seats, chrome package, undercoat protection and Xenon lights.

As Kuwait’s sole distributor for Chevrolet range of cars, Yusuf A. Alghanim & Sons Automotive understands the choices today’s customers seek and accordingly offers a spectrum of Chevrolet vehicles to suit individual tastes and lifestyles. From space to safety to design and comfort, the Chevrolet lineup is just as dynamic this 2012.

The 2012 Chevrolet Traverse is a car for every family. Powered by a 3.6L, V6 engine

generating 281 HP, the traverse is an expressively styled, well-equipped crossover with seating for 8 passengers. Having earned a fivestar frontal and side-impact crash test rating and equipped with three rows of airbags, rear ultrasonic parking assist, StabiliTrak electronic stability control system with traction control system, the Chevrolet Traverse offers you a 360-degree safety system. With 12 ways to save in 2012, one can add a combination of window film, paint protection, Xenon lamps, and undercoat protection among other options.

Just like its predecessors, the 2012 Camaro is here with all the trappings that make it a true muscle car. The 2012 Camaro is available in two variants, a powerful 6.2L V8 automatic transmission pumping out 426 hp and an impressive 3.6L direct Injection V6 engine sporting a 6-speed automatic transmission pumping out an amazing 323hp. The ‘12 ways to save in 2012’ offer allows enthusiasts to accessorize it with window film, rally stripes, xenon lamps and body kit among other options that will turn heads on the road.

For those seeking a chic and modern sedan vehicle, the 2012 Chevrolet Cruze brings alluring options that include style, power and performance with a coupe-style exterior and a spacious world-class interior. The Chevrolet Cruze is powered by a 1.8 L, 4-cylinder engine that generates 140 HP, and boasts a 6-speed transmission that is exclusive in its class.

Owners can benefit from the ‘12 ways to save in 2012’ offer and add a combination of leather seats, Xenon lamps, and window film Take advantage of the ‘12 Ways to Save in 2012’ and add your very own touch to your new Chevrolet at Kromozone. Kromozone boutique features the world’s latest and trendiest interior, exterior and entertainment accessories, all installed with extreme care and precision by certified professionals.

Yusuf A. Alghanim & Sons Automotive strives to ensure that customers get the most distinguished experience, from purchase through ownership. With the world’s biggest and most advanced automotive service center, customers do not have to worry about their vehicles’ service and maintenance needs.

BMW Group Middle East steps up a gear with 9% sales growth Record sales for MINI brand Twin roundtables engage 70 CEOs in Pearl Initiative goals DUBAI: The Pearl Initiative held two CEO roundtables on ‘Good Governance’ in Dubai and Riyadh, involving more than seventy CEOs from a wide variety of industry sectors, to engage with regional leaders on good practices in governance and transparency, and to ensure the private sector is involved in driving forward the agenda of The Pearl Initiative. Held, by design, under Chatham House Rules to promote open discussion and input of views, the sessions were introduced and moderated by Imelda Dunlop, Pearl Initiative’s Executive Director.

The Pearl Initiative was established in 2010, in cooperation with the United Nations Office for Partnerships,to promote a culture of good governance, transparency and accountability in the GCC and the Arab world beyond. These pillars are vital to foster competitive economic growth, spur job creation and enhance sustainable social development in the region.

The two roundtables brought together an esteemed group of opinion leaders, role models, decision-makers and otherwise influential people in the public, private and third sectors. In both roundtable sessions, introductory remarks were made by guest speakers Professor Peter Eigen, founder of Transparency International, and Professor Gesine Schwan, President of the Humboldt-Viadrina School of Governance in Berlin and Social Democratic Party candidate for the federal presidential elections in Germany in 2004 and 2009.

The roundtables highlighted the role of civil society organisations such as The Pearl Initiative as a key part of the “magic triangle of good governance”, along with the private sector and government, in promoting better governance and transparency

and fighting corruption. It is vital, it was said, that civil society organisations are themselves transparent and well-governed.

As Peter Eigen commented “the private sector has the capacity to do a lot of good in the world.”

Badr Jafar, President of Crescent Petroleum and co-Initiator of the Pearl Initiative, illustrated the importantrole of the roundtables when he said “these workshops are a great example of how the private sector can work collaboratively to highlight common issues and identify incentives to work towards potential solutions for sustainable economic development.” At the two roundtables, a series of proposals were put forward by participants for addressing regional shortcomings in governance practice. As Imelda Dunlop, Executive Director, Pearl Initiative commented, “the roundtables’ proposals can be considered the first step in a regional Pearl Initiative Program on Good Governance, aimed at providing private and public sector leaders with a forum in which to learn, influence thinking and exchange ideas”.

She added that The Pearl Initiative hascommitted to lead small, tailored leadership roundtable sessions focused on peer-topeer exchange of knowledge, issues faced and experiences; to hold practitioner-level workshops to help participants gain access to practical tools for implementation; to research and disseminate useful good practice examples across the spectrum of corporate governance areas; and to provide a forum through which the private sector can engage in a dialogue with governments and civil society on cross-cutting issues of transparency, accountability and governance.

Elliott wave principles in action applied to the Euro

By Kamel Mansour he Euro is in its final week of downtrend to hit an Intermediate Bottom and then reverse its negative sentiments into bullishness for couple of weeks despite the negativity that currently surrounds news on Europe.

In my previous article on the Euro in June 2011, and I quote “....we still have, at least, 12 months to go for this current sub-wave - that topped in May 2011 - to finalize ...The key element in the impending move from May 2011 is whether the market will unfold in 3 sub-waves or 5 sub-waves. Irrespective of the unfurling of these sub-waves, we are unmistakably moving downward to, at least, 1.2000 marks on the Euro in the next few quarters ....”

At the time of the previous publication in June 2011, the market topped at 1.4694 on June 7th, 2011 and since then that price has not been seen at all.

The market is currently hovering around 1.27 marks on the Euro, down 20 full points or 13.6 % in circa seven months. The Euro has not finished its major downtrend and the target, at least, 1.2000 still holds.

It is fruitless to buck the trend. The investor who still has any doubt about the Elliott Principles should hearken really closely to know that this theory is valid to those who can decipher its waves.

The readers should expect updates whenever a wave is about to form or a major change in trend is to occur. After all, why should investor/ trader get burnt in the daily movement if the

T

intermediate movement conveyed by Elliott would reap more remuneration.

I want to reiterate that the only deviation from the original Principles was the new plotting technique, to which the Principle’s analysis was applied; a personally devised technique to eliminate the inflationary factor embedded in the price itself.

Recap of the Waves in Motion Primary II (P2) wave commenced in June 2010 and Topped on May 3rd, 2011 at 1.4939. Thereafter, the market commenced its decent and the Euro is virtually in its final days to form the bottom as a result of finalizing the fifth minor from October 27th, 2011, which will be the First Intermediate Wave (I1) of Primary Wave 3.

To put things into perspective, these wave formations are in descending order of Size and the Primary is bigger in Form than the Intermediate. Then comes the Minor and next the Minute.

The myriad spectrum of investors, such as: Financial Institutions, brokerage firms, fund managers, commercial companies, etc. can benefit from outcome of the Elliott Principles and in order “To accomplish great things, we must not only act.... not only plan, but also believe! (Anatole France)”. I have quoted this in the June 2011 article on the Euro and I wanted to stress it again as it is a great philosophical pre-requisite for the comprehension of Elliott Principles.

With this exceptional tool you can protect, with confidence, yours and your company’s current and future investments. Not to say the least that the rewards speak for themselves.

KUWAIT: Building on an impressive performance in 2010, latest figures from BMW Group M iddle East have revealed a 9% increase in new car sales in 2011 - the most successful year in BMW Group’s history in terms of regional sales.

With a total of 18,657 BMW and MINI vehicles delivered to customers across 14 Middle East markets, the company’s yearend results clearly demonstrate the continued strength of both brands in the region with most of its importers reporting an increase in sales in 2011 and a number of markets recording double digit growth.

The UAE remained the biggest market, accounting for 47% of BMW Group Middle East’s 2011 sales. Abu Dhabi was the highest volume selling market, with a 23% growth and 4,436 cars sold while Dubai also witnessed an increase of 23% with 4,395 cars sold. Other top performing markets included Qatar by 26% (1,265 cars), Saudi Arabia, with a 2% sales increase (3,072 cars) and Kuwait and Bahrain both with a 6% increase.

Also among the markets with the biggest growth were Yemen and Pakistan with 37% and 27% growth respectively.

Commenting on the Group’s successful year-end performance at the official press conference, Dr. Joerg Breuer, Managing Director, BMW Group Middle East said: “The Middle East is enjoying robust growth across all sectors of the automotive industry, with the luxury segment in particular growing substantially. These market factors coupled with the commitment of our importer partners and the launch of seven beautifullydesigned and technologically-advanced new models during 2011, have helped drive our 9% sales growth.”

The company’s flagship BMW 7 Series remained the highest volume selling model with 4,511 cars sold. Combining ultimate style, comfort and luxury with supreme driving dynamics and pleasure, the 7 Series has been designed around BMW ’s robust EfficientDynamics strategy to reduce fuel consumption and emissions and is the most fuel efficient engine in its class.

The BMW 5 Series also showed growth with 4,286 cars sold and a 30% increase. The other best selling BMW models included the X6 Sports Activity CoupÈ (2,620 cars), X5 Sports Activity Vehicle (2,510 cars) and the BMW 3 Series (2,033 cars).

MINI recorded another year of exception-

al sales, achieving a 77% growth in 2011 across eight Middle East markets and sales of 1,108 cars - the strongest growth ever since the brand was launched in the Middle East eleven years ago, and an impressive achievement when operating in a market that predominantly favours large, luxury cars.

In the UAE, Dubai was the biggest MINI market, with an increase of 164% (493 cars) while Abu Dhabi saw growth of 63% (196 cars).

While MINI sales continue to be led by the MINI Hatch, January’s launch of the new MINI Countryman - the first MINI with four

BMW Premium Selection, the company’s pre -owned programme that offers customers the same peace-of-mind motoring as if they were purchasing a new BMW. The best year since the programme launched in 2007, 2,761 BMW vehicles were sold through the programme in eight markets, representing an increase of 140% on the previous year.

Breuer added, “It has been a great 12 months and we anticipate that 2012 will be as successful for BMW Group in the Middle East. Together with our importer partners, we remain committed to driving our BMW Group brands forward in the Middle East

doors and four wheel drive capabilities - was a strong contributing factor to the brand’s 2011 success, as was the November arrival of the all-new MINI CoupÈ - the first two-seater MINI and sportiest model to join the portfolio. In addition, three new dedicated MINI showrooms were launched in Dubai, Bahrain and Abu Dhabi to cater for the brand’s progressive growth.

Another area of the business that saw growth for BMW Group Middle East was

with the investment in facilities, customer service and the launch of new models.

“We will see some exciting new models added to our portfolio that will include the all-new BMW 3 Series and the BMW 6 Series Gran CoupÈ. There will also be another addition to the MINI family - the MINI Roadster will both add an exciting new dimension to the brand’s portfolio and will help contribute to the growth of the BMW Group brands in the region.”

Gulfmart launches new format mini Supermarket KUWAIT: Gulfmart, the fastest growing supermarket chain in Kuwait, is determined to open 2012 with a bold display of its assertive expansion strategy. The supermarket chain, which is wellknown all over Kuwait through its highly successful large-format Gulfmart Supermarkets, is now looking to replicate this success by expanding its footprint into niche residential areas with mini supermarkets. The first Gulfmart Mini Supermarket is slated to open at the landmark Titanic Building in Salmiya.

The Gulfmart Mini Supermarket will be inaugurated

by Satish C Mehta, Ambassador of India to Kuwait at 6pm tomorrow. The new Mini Supermarket, which is located in the heart of Salmiya residential area in Block 10, Building 57 and 58, on Street 1 of Al Dhahak Bin Qays Street, is visible from all around with its distinctive blue awning and widely recognized brand signage.

Speaking to the media about Gulfmart’s aggressive new growth strategy labeled 25/25, Mohammed Ashfaq Shaikh, Business Development Manager for the Group, said the revised expansion plan aims to open 25

Mini Supermarkets all over Kuwait. He went on to add that the new mini-marts will supplement and strengthen Gulfmart’s ongoing plans of opening 25 large-format Gulfmart outlets in the country by 2013.

Underlining Gulfmart’s upbeat sentiment on the future of retailing in Kuwait, Remesh T.A., Country Manager for Gulfmart added that in addition to opening several more Gulfmart Mini Supermarkets across the country, “We will be opening, within the first quarter of this year, a further three large -format Gulfmart Supermarkets in the areas of Salwa, Fahaheel and Farwaniya.

As we push ahead simultaneously with both large-format and miniformat supermarkets, we will be able to provide customers with the widest shopping options.

Consumers will have the choice of convenience and easy accessibility provided by our Mini Supermarkets, as well as greater variety and wider selection provided by our larger Supermarkets.”

“Our new Mini Supermarkets are designed to ensure that it provides the best service to our customers through convenient,

easily accessible locations close to their residences. Rather than having people drive long distances to the nearest supermarket or shopping mall, and undergoing the hassle of braving traffic and vying for parking spaces, our customers will be able to walk over to the closest Mini Supermarkets, especially when they need to buy something that urgently needed in the kitchen or home,” said the country manager.

Speaking on behalf of the Group Merchandising Team, Mr. Fakhruddin Kabir said that through a string of innovative retail schemes and products, the Gulfmart brand has achieved singular success in winning the trust and patronage of a large customer base in Kuwait. With the combined efforts of staff and management we have managed to transform Gulfmart into ‘the supermarket of choice’ among customers who are looking for the widest selection of competitively priced value products.

Through launching the new concept of Mini Supermarkets, Gulfmart aims to highlight convenience and localization as its main theme. While the interior space of 80 to 120 square meters

in a Gulfmart Mini Supermarket falls well-short of the over 2000 square meter space of its Supermarkets, the shelves within the Mini supermarkets are stocked with a range of everyday items, including groceries, toiletries and many consumable goods that reflect the tastes of people living within the locality, whether they be from the Indian sub-continent, Arab communities or Kuwaitis.

Positioning the mini supermarkets as convenient neighborhood supplements to its existing ten larger Supermarkets, Gulfmart aims to satisfy every section of its wide customer base.

“Going above and beyond what is required to ensure convenience, choice, value and quality for customers has been the norm at Gulfmart, and we look forward to continuing this at our Mini Supermarkets as well,” said the Group Director, Arif Shaikh.

“We are very grateful to our large customer base in Kuwait for their support over the years, and we look forward to enjoying their continued patronage at our new format Gulfmart Mini Supermarkets,” concluded the Director.

THURSDAY, JANUARY 12, 2012

TECHNOLOGY

Automakers embrace high-tech in safety drive LAS VEGAS: Automakers displaying the latest technology at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) are relying on sensors, digital cameras and connectivity in a drive towards a common goal - eliminating accidents. Germany’s Mercedes-Benz is among those pursuing what is known as “active security” to build a car that would have a “less than one percent chance of getting into a crash,” outside of a driver being drunk, a spokesman said. Doug Newcomb of auto industry experts Edmunds.com said that while they don’t want to admit it too openly, automakers are even working on “autonomous” cars like the celebrated self-driving vehicles tested by Internet giant Google.

“It’s very controversial,” Newcomb said, but the Google experience, which saw just a single accident -

and that due to human error - tends to show that “cars are smarter than many drivers.” Don’t expect to turn over the steering wheel anytime soon, but experts say the improved auto safety features on display at the CES gadgets fair here in Las Vegas and in research labs are leading to a “semi-autonomous” car.

In some luxury models, onboard computers can already take control of the brakes or the steering wheel.

Ford currently offers a lane-keeping system which features a digital camera mounted on the windshield that is focused on the lane markings ahead as a car drives down the road. “If you drift off your lane, there will be an audible warning and a shake of the steering wheel,” said Wes Sherwood, a Ford spokesman. “It

will steer you back” in the event of repeated incursions, he said. Restricted for now to high-end models, the lane-keeping aid will be extended for the first time this year to mid-range vehicles like the Ford Explorer and the Ford Fusion. “Consumers really question how much control they want the car to take,” Sherwood said. “(But) in general, people like it. It’s very subtle.” Ford has sold 300,000 vehicles equipped with the system since 2009.

Mercedes has a similar lane-keeping system and another for blind spot monitoring to detect the presence of an unseen car to the side. Radar-like sensors are also being used to make sure drivers keep a safe distance from cars in front of them and can brake automatically in the event of a sudden deceleration.

The increased connectivity in cars will also help keep a driver better informed, leading to greater safety. “A connected car is proactive,” Dieter Zetsche, the chairman of Daimler and head of Mercedes-Benz cars, said during a CES keynote address.

Mercedes-Benz’s telematics system, mbrace2, is capable of scouring the Web for information on safety hazards, such as ice, in order to alert a driver. Newcomb of Edmunds.com said he believes the connectivity in a vehicle will increasingly come via the omnipresent smartphone, which automakers are already synching with the LCD screens on dashboards. Over time, the device seen as a leading cause of many accidents could help to prevent them. — AFP

Intel smartphone to debut in China Lenovo, Motorola to make Intel-powered phones

HONG KONG: A man operates the ‘iDroid’ using a smartphone at the Hong Kong Toys and Games Fair yesterday. — AFP

Toymakers aim to buck gloom at fair HONG KONG: A smartphone-controlled robot that fires foam bullets and a model of a tyrannosaurus with real bones are among the attractions drawing the crowds at Asia’s largest toy show this week. Aiming to shake off the global economic slowdown, about 2,000 exhibitors from 43 countries are displaying their wares at the Hong Kong Toys and Games Fair, the second largest in the world and now in its 38th year. The 30 cm plastic “iDroid” robot sports wraparound glasses that light up when controlled by smartphone systems via Bluetooth.

“The concept came about one day when we were thinking how to incorporate the latest technology with something fun for the kids,” Eddie Yu, chief marketing officer of the robot’s maker, Hong Kong-based Globalactive Technology Ltd, told AFP. “Everyone has a smartphone these days, so naturally we thought it could be used to control a cool toy,” he said, using his phone to make the robot per form Michael Jackson’s Moonwalk to the delight of the young audience. At other times it fires a toy machine gun at giggling toddlers, swivelling its mechanical arms.

Across the hall, Maja von Hohenzollern, a member of Germany’s former royal family, was debuting her line of pink princess baby clothing, accessories and furniture. Decked out in a sparkling bright pink dress suit, the blue -eyed blonde said: “Ever y girl deserves to feel like a princess - a real princess.” “All the items here are based on the things I used as a child,” she added.

The fair - the second biggest after the Spielwarenmesse event in Nuremberg, Germany - ran until yesterday, and while it’s all fun and games on the inside, manufacturers are having a tougher time outside. The toy industry, which heavily relies on Chinese factories, has been hit

hard by the sluggish US economy and eurozone debt crisis. Hundreds of toy factories in China have shut down since the 2008 financial crisis. Rising labour and raw material costs in China have added to pressures on manufacturers.

Chinese company Shantou Qunsheng Toys used to have more than 5,000 factories in Guangdong province. The company, which makes cheap board games and plastic toys, said production plants are closing down one by one. “Sales have dropped so much - about 30-40 percent just last year,” sales manager Maggie Chen told AFP. “Business just keeps going down. It’s pretty bad. We need to find new markets, outside the US and Europe.

Maybe we can find better opportunities in South Africa, South America, the Middle East or Russia.”

For Philippe Rousseau, director of French-based company OID Magic, rising costs at mainland Chinese factories have cut profitability for his company. “Rising wages and prices of product materials have affected us,” he said. Luckily some buyers still have cash to splash. “People here are willing to spend,” said local toymaker Calvin Lam. “We’ve been experiencing 10-20 percent growth in sales annually.”

But not everyone is in a mood to play - about a dozen demonstrators caused a stir on the first day of the show on Monday, protesting at what they described as a lack of improvement in working conditions at Chinese toy factories. Waving a giant banner reading “Toy Un-Fair”, the protesters accused major Chinese toy suppliers to US firms of violating labour rights. “Excessive overtime hours, poor work safety standards and the lack of social insurance at these factories are only some of the things US companies are turning a blind eye to,” protester Debbie Chan said. — AFP

Kaspersky anti-virus gets excellent results KUWAIT: Kaspersky Anti-Virus 2012 has been granted the highest award in independent anti-virus software performance testing carried out by respected research laboratory AVComparatives in Nov 2012. The testing was made up of several different types of individual trials, all of which evaluated the load anti-virus software places on a PC. The trials were conducted on a new computer containing an Intel Core i5 processor and running the Windows 7 operating system. Computer performance was measured with and without anti-virus software installed, and then the two results were compared.

Performance was judged based on both synthetic testing (benchmarking) and with the application of scenarios a user commonly comes across in real world situations. The scenarios covered such commonly used operations as copying files, installing and launching applications, downloading files from the Internet, and archiving files.

In the synthetic test, which used the third-party PC Mark 7 Professional benchmarking software, Kaspersky Anti-Virus 2012 found itself firmly among the leaders. System performance with the software installed was just 1.1 percent lower than that of the

system with no anti-virus installed. In the realistic testing scenarios Kaspersky Lab’s product scored 90 points - the highest score awarded based on the minimal influence it had on system performance. In the overall results, Kaspersky Anti-Virus 2012 was awarded the highest rating given in the testing - “Advanced+”. Interestingly, the testing showed that the products of several other manufacturers, including McAfee, BitDefender and TrendMicro, had a markedly greater impact on PC performance on the whole.

Commenting on the results, Oleg Ishanov, Head of Infrastructure Development and Deputy Director of Antimalware Research at Kaspersky Lab, said: “In working on the 2012 version of our home products, we put the greatest emphasis on optimizing the process of scanning files and minimizing the impact of the anti-virus program on such tasks as launching applications, downloading files, and surfing the web. AV-Comparatives’ testing proves how our solutions protect a computer without impacting on performance. Thus, the myth about Kaspersky Lab’s products significantly affecting system resources stays exactly just that - a myth.”

LAS VEGAS: US chip titan Intel yesterday announced it will move into the booming smartphone market with a China debut of a handset made by Chinese computer powerhouse Lenovo. “The best of Intel computing is now coming to smartphones,” California-based Intel’s chief executive Paul Otellini said during a presentation on Tuesday at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas. “It is coming first to China, the largest market for smartphones in the world.”

Lenovo senior vice president Liu Jun joined Otellini on stage to introduce the K800 smartphone, powered by an Intel processor and Google’s Android software. The smartphone features a rich 4.5-inch multi-touch screen and can stream video wirelessly to Lenovo televisions. The smartphones will run on the China Unicom network when they are released in the second quarter of the year. The smartphone’s price has yet to be finalized, but could fall in the $600 to $700 range, according to Lenovo.

Intel has created a “reference device” to show off the prowess of its smartphone chip technology to other hardware makers.

Motorola Mobility, which is being bought by Google in a $12.5-billion deal, has also allied with Intel to make an array of mobile devices based on Intel chips in the coming years.

Motorola’s first Intel-based smartphone should in the hands of telecom carriers for validation by midyear, with handsets released to the market soon thereafter, according to company chief Sanjay Jha. “We are delighted to be partnering with Intel to deliver smartphones and tablets based on Intel’s Atom processor to consumers and businesses,” Jha said. “Though there are five billion mobile subscribers in the world, less than 800 million are using a smartphone today,” he said. “With Android as the leading smartphone operating system globally and advancements in computing technology, we see tremendous opportunity.”

Intel has been under pressure to field small, powerful chips for mobile devices as consumer lifestyles and preferences shift from

LAS VEGAS: Liu Jun, senior vice president at Lenovo, introduces an Intel based smartphone with Intel president and CEO Paul Otellini during the 2012 International CES trade show Tuesday. — AP desktop or laptop computers to smartphones and tablets. Demand for personal computers has shown little momentum during the past year while it has exploded for smartphones, particularly in emerging markets. Intel built its fortune on powerful chips for personal and business computers, while companies like Qualcomm and NVidia have staked out territory in a mobile gadget processor market ruled

by Britain-based ARM Holdings.

Apple licensed ARM technology to make chips for the California company’s coveted mobile gadgets. To make matters worse for Intel, ARM chips have been making inroads with makers of personal and business computers. “You had a situation where ARM was starting to encroach on Intel territory and Intel couldn’t push back,” said independent Silicon

Valley analyst Rob Enderle. “It is critical that Intel establish itself as a viable competitor everywhere ARM is,” he added. “It appeared we were moving to the post-PC era and Intel needed to show that we are not.”

The arrival of a post-personal computer era was declared by Apple’s late co-founder and chief Steve Jobs as iPads and iPhones changed lifestyles around the world. The alliances with Lenovo and Motorola Mobility should help Intel avoid perceptions that the company is becoming irrelevant and buy it time to adapt to the changing market, according to Enderle. “Right now, at least creating the perception they are still in the game is real important to Intel,” he said. “But at the end of the day, people have to want and buy these phones.” — AFP

LG unveils Optimus dual SIM smartphone

This screen shot provided by Google shows the Personal Results page. — AP

Google makes search personal SAN FRANCISCO: Google yesterday wove content from its social network and Picasa photo-sharing service into its search formula to serve up personalized results to online queries. “Search plus your world” was billed as a major change to the leading Internet search engine. “There is a huge amount of content on the Web today but, at a certain point this content is nameless and faceless,” Google’s Ben Gomes told AFP. “The most relevant content is from people you know, so we are introducing your personal world to search.”

People signed into Google accounts will be able to have the search engine include in results content approved for sharing by them or friends at Google+ or Picasa. “I’ve been trying it out and it really changes the nature of search for me,” Gomes said.

“Now when I search for Bangalore I not only see information about the city but I see pictures of the house where I grew up.”

A cursor hovering over an image will reveal where the picture was shared online and by whom, according to Gomes. “We want to show you your personal data and data from

friends,” Gomes said. “We want to use Google+ and circles as the underlying infrastructure.” Google’s social network lets users share comments, pictures, videos or other online content based on which “circles” friends, family, coworkers or acquaintances fall into.

Google is also enhancing searches for information about people by factoring in Google+ posts.

And Google will show which celebrities or other prominent people are commenting at the social network about topics of searches. Personal data woven into results is protected with encryption and other security on par with that used to safeguard Google’s email service, according to Gomes.

“We’ve gone above and beyond on control because we know people are sensitive with personal data,” he said.

Google plans to weave its social network into an array of its properties and services as it builds an online community in a market dominated by Facebook. Globally popular microblogging service Twitter was quick to blast the changes to Google’s search engine, arguing that real-time “tweets” with dramatic ramifications will sink deeper on results pages. —AFP

KUWAIT: LG Electronics (LG), a global leader and technology innovator in consumer electronics, mobile communications and home appliances, have added another advanced, convenient Smartphone in their mobile offerings, the LG Optimus NET P698.

Find harmony in both your work and private life with Optimus NET Dual SIM that helps you separate and manage both sides of your life. “The Optimus NET Dual SIM packs the features of several Smartphone’s and enables users to segregate it into Private and Personal applications.

The ergonomic design provides easy usage of the touch screen phone while the advanced yet easy to use applications makes the phone extremely useful for business and pleasure,” said Mr. D. Y. Kim, President, LG Gulf FZE. The Optimus NET Dual SIM allows users to conveniently combine news, contents, friends and family in one place. It makes your Smartphone experience rich with integrated SNS widget and DLNA content sharing, while remaining affordable.

Enjoy extra functionality with the advanced 1500mAh battery as well as a faster application start-up and web browsing experience. As the Smartphone comes with the latest Android 2.3 Gingerbread, the user does not have to worry about constantly updating the OS. The 3.2 inch screen provides a cleared and sharper optimized view for multi-media applications. The Optimus NET Dual SIM also boasts of an improved and enhanced touch performance while the Optimus 2.0 UI provides emotional enhancement. This allows users to customize the home screen and menu preference. Compatible at sharing information with other devices through the advanced DLNA, shake and flick the phone to send and receive content. The inbuilt Social Plus application provides richer widgets enabling quicker update. LG’s latest offering comes packed with features in a slim and sleek design with minimized buttons and metallic points.

THURSDAY, JANUARY 12, 2012

H E A LT H & S C I E NC E

Stranded Mars probe to crash into ocean Curiosity fails to detect life during mission

VATICAN CITY: This handout picture released by the Vatican Press Office yesterday shows a rare Cuban crocodile presented by a member of Rome’s “Bio Park” zoo (right) to Pope Benedict XVI. — AFP

Endangered Cuban croc meets Pope VATICAN CITY: A rare Cuban crocodile met a bemused Pope Benedict XVI in the Vatican yesterday, as Rome’s Bio Park zoo celebrated its centenary with the ecofriendly pontiff. A staff member from the zoo-which has 1,200 animals and is visited by 700,000 people a year-presented the 60-centimetre (23.6-inch) long crocodylus rhombifer crocodile to the pope, who smiled bravely. The pontiff places particular importance on supporting and defending nature. “Truly the world is dark wherever men and women no longer acknowledge their bond with the Creator and thereby endanger their relation to other creatures and to creation

itself,” he said in a speech on Monday.

The Cuban crocodile is on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) endangered species list: its population has dropped by 80 percent and it only survives on a small area of the island.

The Bio Park’s croc will make its return to Cuba around the same time that the pope makes a scheduled trip to the island in March. The 84-year-old pontiff, who seemed in good spirits, was also entertained at the end of the weekly general audience with a performance by clowns, acrobats and jugglers from several different circuses. —AFP

Hospital rooms may be as noisy as chainsaws Everybody knows hospital rooms are noisy, but now a study has confirmed it-with the added finding that noise levels may sometimes spike to nearly that of a chainsaw.

“The hospital environment is certainly not a restful environment,” said Vineet Arora, at the University of Chicago, who led the study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine.

In a study of about 100 adult patients at their medical center, she and her colleagues found that noise levels in patient rooms at night tended to be lower than during the day, but almost always exceeded recommendations for average and maximum noise level. According to World Health Organization recommendations, noise in hospital rooms generally shouldn’t get above 30 to 40 decibels. But Arora’s team found that the average noise level in patient rooms was close to 50 decibels, and sometimes spiked to as high as 80 decibels-almost as loud as a chainsaw.

Much of the extra noise at night was due to talking between doctors and nurses, but the loudest interruptions were likely from alarms and intercoms, she said. Higher maximum noise levels in individual rooms were linked to sleep disruptions in their occupants, with patients sleeping over an hour less in

the hospital than they’d reported sleeping at home. They often also had restless, poorquality sleep.

“One of the most common complaint that patients will report is that they had a difficult night sleeping,” Arora said-and that could delay their recovery. “It could be part of a cycle of: you’re sick, you get bad sleep, and you’re not able to get better as quickly.” But other medical experts said noise may not be the only culprit for poor patient sleep, noting that the illness for which the patients are hospitalized may also play a part. More noise may be a reflection of more nurses having to come in and out, checking on patients or giving them medicine- indicating that they may be sicker than those with less noisy rooms. “That doesn’t mean that ... noise is not a factor-noise is certainly a factor,” said Sairam Parthasarathy, who studies patient sleep at the University of Arizona in Tucson but was not involved in the study.

Parthasarathy suggested that patients keep their blinds open during the day to get natural sunlight, wear noise-cancelling headphones if sound on the ward is disturbing them, and walk around during the day if they’re physically able.— Reuters

CHENGDU: A panda climbs a tree in its new enclosure at the Chengdu Giant Panda Field Research Centre yesterday. — AFP

China launches project to free captive pandas DUJIANGYAN: China yesterday released six young captive pandas into semi-wild enclosures as part of a project aimed at helping the endangered bears adapt to the wild and eventually go free. Previous attempts by Chinese authorities to release pandas into the wild have proved unsuccessful. The last bear that was set free in 2006 was found dead after 10 months, apparently killed by wild pandas. This time round, scientists are releasing the six pandas in stages in a bid to increase their chances of survival, as they try and bring the number of endangered bears in the wild up from the current 1,590. Yesterday, Xing Rong, Xing Ya, Gong Zai, Ying Ying, Zhi Zhi and Qi Qi-aged between two and fourambled slowly into their new enclosures in the southwestern province of Sichuan to the flash of cameras.

They will stay in their enclosures in Dujiangyan for a minimum of two months before being let out in a much larger hillside valley nearby, which has been fenced off. Eventually, if all goes well, they will be

released into the wild. Qi Dunwu, head of animal behavior at the Chengdu panda base near Dujiangyan, told AFP the valley had been kitted out with security cameras to enable vets to observe the pandas without disturbing them.

The bears will be left to fend for themselves to learn crucial survival skills, and scientists plan to gradually reduce human interactions until they can live in the wild without any assistance. There have already been 10 attempts at setting pandas free over the past 30 years, and only two are thought to have been successful as the bears find it very hard to survive on their own, the official Xinhua news agency said.

Of the 10, Xiang Xiang-the panda that was set free in 2006 — was found killed, another is also believed to have died, and six of the animals were sent back to the Chengdu base after they lost too much weight, it said. But scientists hope that releasing six strong, young pandas togetherunlike previous attempts to release the bears individually-will help them survive. — AFP

LOS ANGELES: A NASA spacecraft hurtling toward Mars prepared to fire its thrusters yesterday to put itself on course for an August landing. Engineers closely tracked the oneton rover nicknamed Curiosity, which has been cruising along since rocketing from Earth last November. The engine firing is the most important task Curiosity will perform during its 352-million-mile flight to the red planet, but it’s not unprecedented. Previous robotic explorers have had to adjust their paths several times en route to ensure a bull’seye landing. “Just because this is a well-traveled road to Mars given the number of trips we’ve made, I’m very careful to not let that experience cause us to be complacent,” said Arthur Amador of the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, which manages the $2.5 billion mission. At the time of the course correction, Curiosity will have racked up 80 million miles and will be traveling at 10,200 mph relative to the Earth.

The day before, the team uploaded commands calling for the spacecraft to fire its

eight thrusters for nearly three hours yesterday afternoon, redirecting it closer to its target. Though it will execute the move without human interference, engineers will be on standby in the off chance that they have to abort. “We should be very, very close to our desired aim point at the top of the Martian atmosphere” after the maneuver, Amador said. If Curiosity did not tweak its position, it will miss Mars altogether.

Engineers did this by design to prevent the rocket’s upper stage that hoisted the spacecraft from hitting the red planet. Once Curiosity separated from the upper stage and was on its way, the team has several chances to fine-tune its trajectory before touchdown.

Curiosity, whose formal name is the Mars Science Laboratory, is aiming for a 96-milewide crater near the Martian equator that boasts a towering mountain in the center. The six-wheel, nuclear-powered rover planned to drive to the lower flanks and examine the layered deposits to determine whether the area once had conditions capable of supporting

microbial life. Armed with a suite of instruments including a laser to zap into bedrock and a jackhammer, Curiosity is more sophisticated than previous Mars surface spacecraft.

Despite its capabilities, it won’t be able to detect life. Instead, it will hunt for the chemical building blocks of life during its two-year mission. Since Curiosity is too heavy to parachute to the surface, it will be lowered using a tether system similar to the sky cranes used to plop heavy equipment into remote sectors on Earth - a nail-biting move come August and a first for NASA. Even before arrival, Curiosity has not sat idle. Several weeks after launch, Curiosity turned on its radiation detector to monitor high-energy particles streaming from the sun and exploding stars. Once at Mars, it will measure radiation levels on the surface.

Curiosity’s voyage contrasts sharply with another space probe targeted at the Mars moon Phobos. Launched weeks earlier than Curiosity, Russia’s Phobos-Ground probe got stranded in Earth’s orbit and was expected to fall back to Earth this weekend. — AP

Unclear data on child cancer rates near French nuke sites PARIS: An “excess number of cases” of childhood leukaemia around 19 French nuclear plants occurred bet ween 2003 and 2007, a researcher said yesterday. That excess cancer rate disappeared, however, when the data was extended to cover a longer period, Jacqueline Clavel of France’s Centre for Research in Epidemiology and Population Health said. French scientists led by Clavel found 14 cases of leuk aemia in children living within five kilometers (three miles) of the nuclear power facilities during the shorter sixyear span.

This was nearly double the national rates for the same type of cancer in the relevant age group. “But when we looked at the period from 1990 to 2007, this excess risk did not persist,” Clavel said in an interview with AFP, commenting on their study, published last week in the International Journal of Cancer.

“The link with the very weak ionizing radiation emitted by these nuclear plants-when they are

functioning normally-cannot be established.” Still, the apparent surfeit of more recent cases cannot be ignored, she added.

“This increased incidence is limited to the zone five kilometers around the facilities, and was not at all observed beyond that,” she said by phone. “Nor was it specific to one nuclear plant or one type of plant.” In the study, Clavel and colleagues assessed cancer risk in relation to two factors: proximity to a nuclear power source, and an estimate of exposure to radiation.

The very low doses of radiation, combined with the fact that risk did not seem to diminish gradually over distance, “does not argue in favor of radiation as a causal factor for the excess cancer cases,” she added, calling for further study.

One possible explanation gaining currency among epidemiologists-who study the patterns of disease in society-has to do with the unusually high turnover of residents around nuclear plants.

The constant influx of people brings with it new viruses and bacteria, meaning that the local population is constantly exposed to pathogens to which they have not built up immunity.

That such “population mixing” could underlie higher rates of childhood leukaemia has been been postulated for similarly anomolous excesses near two nuclear power facilities in Britain, and one in Germany. The assumption in this scenario is that leukaemia at an early age is more likely in the presence of cer tain-as yet unknown-viral infections.

“Childhood leukaemia could belong to that large category of illnesses which are rare responses to some more common infection,” Leo Kinlen, a researcher at the Cancer Epidemiology Unit at the University of Oxford, noted in a recent study. “However, such is the emotive power of radiation that it had effectively pushed infection out of mind.”

Radiation was immediately suspected as a culprit in the ear-

ly 1980s when researchers found nine cases of leukaemia and the related non-Hodgk in’s lymphoma-nearly 10 times the expected rate-near the Sellafield nuclear processing plant in Cumbria, northwest England.

Subsequent studies, however, could not establish a firm link.

More recently, a 2008 government-backed study showed, as in the French probe, a doubling of leukaemia in children under five within five kilometers of 16 nuclear power plants in Germany, but over a longer time period (1980 to 2003). How to interpret these results remains controversial, with some experts suggesting that the “population mixing” theory fits less well in Germany. Statistically, the small number of cases involved make it difficult for researchers to pin down a clear cause-and-effect relationship. “We really need to work on an international scale to have a greater number of cases,” said Clavel, citing rapid population turnover is a “potential factor.” — AFP

Snowy owls make rare journey to central US SMITHVILLE: Something white is providing a lot entertainment in parts of the United States this winter, and it’s not snow. The center of attention is the snowy owl, a stately white bird that has ventured from its Arctic home to Kansas, Oklahoma and other central states in unusually large numbers due to a shortage of food in the far north. The owl is drawing both serious bird-watchers and casual observers who may know best it as Hedwig, the companion of Harry Potter in books and movies.

At Smithville Lake north of Kansas City over the weekend hundreds of people stopped at viewing points to watch three snowy owls along the shore or sitting on a marina roof. About 35 snowy owls have been sighted in Missouri and 75 in neighboring Kansas, said ornithologist Mark Robbins of University of Kansas. Usually, one or two may visit the area every couple of years, he said.

“Never in recorded history have there been this many in Missouri and Kansas,” Robbins said. Sightings have also been reported in other central US states as well as in Oregon, the northeast and Mid-Atlantic states. The owls have been seen as far south as southwest Missouri and northeast Oklahoma, said Jeff Cantrell, a naturalist for the Missouri Department of Conservation in Springfield, Missouri.

“It’s a big, charismatic bird,” Robbins said. But many of the birds are also suffering, he said. They have come south because their favorite food - small rodents called lemmings - are in short supply in the Arctic, Robbins said. That comes on the heels of a year when they were abundant, which resulted a healthy population of snowy owls. They are searching for food, mostly rodents and small birds, Robbins said. He said climate change did not seem to be a factor in the migration.

Some of the visiting owls are a third of their normal weight, Robbins said. Others, he said, have been killed by cars or overhead power lines - uncommon obstacles in the Arctic. The owls venturing into the lower 48 states are generally females and immature males, which have white heads, white bodies with brown spots, and yellow eyes.

Smithville Mayor Brian Fullmer lives near Smithville Lake and saw a snowy owl on his neighbor’s roof. He said there are reportedly as least five owls in the area.

“It’s been quite a thrill for the residents of Smithville to see them landing on our roofs and flying around the area,” Fullmer said. The owls have kept the community of 8,425 people bustling with visitors. But the owls will probably head back the Arctic by March, Robbins said.

“If I could keep the owls here year around, I would,” Fullmer said. — Reuters

This NASA image obtained January 10, 2012 shows the line of Saturn’s rings as they disrupt the Cassini spacecraft’s view of the moons Tethys and Titan. Larger Titan (3,200 miles, or 5,150 kilometers across) is on the left. Tethys (660 miles, or 1,062 kilometers across) is near the center of the image. This view looks toward the Saturn-facing sides of Tethys and Titan. — AFP

Statin use linked to more diabetes in women: Study NEW YORK: Cholesterol-lowering drugs known as statins may be linked to an increased risk of diabetes in middle-aged and older women, according to a US study-but researchers said the benefits of the drugs still make them valuable for people at risk. The study, published in the Archives of Internal Medicine, found that among the thousands of women looked at, those who reported using any kind of statin at the start of the sixto seven-year study were nearly 50 percent more likely to be diagnosed with diabetes than those not taking statins.

“Statin medication use in postmenopausal women is associated with an increased risk for diabetes mellitus,” wrote Yunsheng Ma of the University of Massachusetts Medical School in Worcester, and his colleagues. The group used data from the Women’s Health Initiative, including more than 150,000 diabetes-free women in their 50s, 60s and 70s.

As part of that larger trial, some of the women were prescribed diet changes or took daily hormone therapy or vitamins, while others weren’t told to change their diet or lifestyle. At the start of the study in the mid1990s, the women filled out health questionnaires that included whether or not they were taking statins, as well as information on other diabetes risks, such as weight and activity levels. The researchers then followed participants for six to seven years, on average.

In total, just over 10,200 women developed diabetes, with women who reported using any kind of statin-about one in 14 of the participants — 48 percent more likely to

be diagnosed with diabetes than those not taking statins. That was after considering other known diabetes risks. Previous studies, mostly in men, have suggested a smaller 10 to 12 percent increase in diabetes among statin users, said Naveed Sattar, a metabolism and diabetes researcher at the University of Glasgow who did not take part in the study.

Those numbers may be more accurate because they come from trials in which participants were randomly assigned to take a statin or not, which can better account for possible differences in groups of patients, he said, noting that this kind of observational study can’t prove cause-and-effect.

Still, “broadly speaking, this kind of confirms that statins may well increase diabetes risk,” Sattar said.

The reasons why remain unclear, but the effect of statins on the muscles and liver may lead the body to make slightly more sugar than it normally would, or cause users to exercise a bit less, he added.

While this means that a bit more caution may need to be taken in broad statin use, the benefits still outweigh the potential risk for people with heart disease, he and other experts aid. Instead, statin users should try to reduce their risk of diabetes in other ways, such as by losing weight and getting more exercise, and should have their blood sugar regularly monitored. “The conclusion still stands that overall, those people who’ve got existing heart disease or have had previous strokes, they still would get vast benefit from statins,” Sattar said. — Reuters

THURSDAY, JANUARY 12, 2012

H E A LT H

Heart disease more likely in people with psoriasis NEW YORK: People who suffer from psoriasis may want to pay extra attention to heart risks, since they may be at a greater risk for blocked arteries than those who don’t have the skin diseasealthough the risk increase is not that high, according to a US study. And the longer patients have psoriasis, the higher their risks are, said researchers, whose findings were published in the American Journal of Cardiology.

“One of the things that we’ve come to understand is that psoriasis is not a disease that’s just limited to the skin,” said April Armstrong of the University of California, Davis, who worked on the study. Armstrong and her colleagues used records of patients who had undergone a heart scan called coronary angiography to compare the results of patients with and without psoriasis.

Psoriasis patients have patches of thick, red and scaly skin, which are thought to be caused by the immune system mistakenly attacking the body’s own cells.

Among the nearly 9,500 patients included in the analysis, just over 200 were diagnosed with psoriasis.

Compared to the other patients who underwent the heart screening, they were more likely to have a history of high cholesterol and to be heavier.

Overall, 84 percent of patients with psoriasis had narrowing of the arteries that supply blood to the heart-a condi-

tion called coronary artery disease-compared to 75 percent of patients without the skin condition. The researchers also found that the longer patients had psoriasis, the greater this risks were.

“Our advice to patients with psoriasis is to make sure they get screened for their modifiable cardiovascular risk factors,” said Joel Gelfand, a professor of dermatology at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia. These modifiable risk factors include smoking, blood pressure, cholesterol, glucose levels and body mass index (BMI), a measure of weight relative to height, added Gelfand, who was not involved with the study.

Armstrong said that while the study did not prove that the condition causes heart disease, the skin rash may be a sign that there is inflammation inside the body, too. The findings fit with past studies that showed a connection between heart disease and inflammatory diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, said Richard Krasuski, director of Adult Congenital Heart Disease Services at the Cleveland Clinic, who was not involved with the study.

“Certainly what they come up with makes biological sense,” he added, although he cautioned that the rise in risk wasn’t overwhelming and the findings were based on patients from only one medical center. — Reuters

World’s deepest sea vents reveal unknown creatures Snake-like fish, flea-like crustacean found PARIS: The ocean’s deepest volcanic vents, kilometers below the surface, are teeming with life forms never before seen that thrive near super-hot underwater geysers, according to a new study. Eyeless shrimps and white -tentacled anemones were photographed bunched around cracks in the ocean floor spewing mineral-rich water that may top 450 degrees Celsius (842 degree Fahrenheit), researchers reported on Tuesday.

The vents-baptised the Beebe Vent Field in honor of the first scientist to venture into the deep ocean-were discovered on the Caribbean seafloor in the Cayman Trough, south of the Cayman Islands. Some five kilometers (three miles) below the surface, the trench is home to the world’s deepest known “black smoker” vents, socalled for the cloudy fluid that gushes from them.

During an expedition in 2010, a team lead by marine geochemist Doug Connelly of Britain’s National Oceanography Centre and University of Southampton biologist Jon Copley used a deep-diving robot submarine to explore the trough. The researchers also found previously unknown vents on the

upper slopes of nearby Mount Dent, which rises some three kilometres from the sea floor. Its peak remains the same distance beneath the surface waves.

“Finding black smoker vents on Mount Dent was a complete surprise,” Connelly said in a statement.

“Hot and acidic vents have never

been seen in an area like this before.” The discoveries suggest that active deep-sea volcanic vents are more widespread around the globe than previously thought, he added. Cameras on the submarine captured startling images of a new species of ghostly-pale shrimpdubbed Rimicaris hybisae-that had

This handout picture received from the National Oceanography Centre at the University of Southampton on January 10, 2012 shows a lab photo of Rimicaris hybisae, the world’s deepest known vent shrimp. — AFP

gathered in clusters of up to 2,000 specimens per square metre.

Lacking normal eyes, the shrimp have a light-sensing organ on their backs, presumably to help them navigate in the faint glow of the deep-sea vents, said the study, published in the peer-reviewed journal Nature Communication. A related species, Rimicaris exoculata, has been found living at the edge of another deep-sea vent 4,000 kilometers away on the MidAtlantic Ridge.

“Studying creatures at these vents, and comparing them with species at other vents around the world, will help us to understand how animals disperse and evolve in the deep ocean,” Copley said. “One of the big mysteries of deep-sea vents is how animals are able to disperse from vent field to vent field, crossing apparently large distances.” Elsewhere at the Beebe Vent Field, the scientists saw hundreds of white anemones lining the cracks where warm, copper-rich water seeps from the sea bed. The vents on Mount Dent also thronged with the new shrimp, along with a snake-like fish, an unknown species of snail and a flea-like crustacean called an amphipod. —AFP

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Upcoming events Comedy workshop A free short-form improv comedy workshop will be held at the ASK teachers’ apartments for laughter and food. Come join us if you like “Whose Line is it Anyway?” and want to play similar improv games. Drinks and snacks will be provided on Friday, January 13 mankerb@ask.edu.kw at 4pm at the ASK teacher apartments which is located at the Dina/Dana Building off Route 30, behind the Platinum Gym and near the Alia Hospital in Mahboulah.

Aware Center Arabic lessons The AWARE Management is glad to inform you that Winter 1 Arabic language courses will be on until today (January 12th). AWARE Arabic language courses are designed with the expat in mind. The environment is relaxed and courses are designed for those wanting to learn Arabic for travel, cultural understanding, and conducting business or simply to become more involved in the community. We cater to teachers, travelers & those working in the private business sector. Arabic classes at the AWARE Center are unique because students are provided with the chance to practice their Arabic through various social activities that aim at bringing Arabs and Westerners together.

AWARE Arabic courses highlight: l Introductory to Level 4 Arabic language basics l Better prepare you for speaking, reading and writing Arabic l Combine language learning with cultural insights l Taught in multi-nationality group settings l Provide opportunities to interact with Western expatriates and native Kuwaitis/Arabs.

For more information or registration, call 25335260/80 ext 105/104/0 or log onto: www.aware.com.kw.

Get ready get set - RunQ8 Registrations are now open for RunQ8, the annual 10km charity race to be held on January 21, 2012. Organized by the Fawzia Sultan Rehabilitation Institute (FSRI) and Agility, the race route will run from Marina Crescent in Salmiya along the Gulf Road up to the Third Ring Road and back. The race is aimed at supporting health issues affecting our community and raising awareness around them. In its second year, RunQ8 is promoting road traffic safety. 2011-2021 has been named the UN Decade of Action for Road Safety with a goal to stabilize and then reduce global road traffic fatalities by 2021. In Kuwait, traffic accidents are the third leading cause of mortality and a large number of people and their families are affected by the debilitating effects of injuries caused by road accidents. Last year, the race raised over KWD 50,000 for the Kuwait University’s Community Eye Health Care Initiative that supports Vision 2020, a joint initiative of the World Health Organization (WHO), and the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness (IAPB). RunQ8 invites all members of the community to join in this initiative and help support road traffic safety in Kuwait. To register contact the FSRI office 25720338 or visit the race websitewww.Runq8.org for more details.

There are also pre-race articles and videos produced by FSRI’s specialized sports trainers, physiotherapists, nutritionists and psychologists to help get you ready for the race. Please see our website www.runQ8.org and our Facebook page for updates on our running and walking clinic, race events, and other initiatives.

Vichar Bharati seminar on Swami Vivekananda On the occasion of Swami Vivekananda’s 150th birth anniversary, Vichar Bharati, an affiliate of Seva Darshan Kuwait, will hold a seminar on Swami Vivekananda on Friday, January 20, 2012 at the Indian Central School, Abbasiya.

Vivekananda is regarded as the patriot saint of modern India and an inspirer of her dormant national consciousness. His Philosophy and vision became the eye-opener for millions across the world. Vivekananda’s unique message still remains as “an unopened gift” to mankind and Vichar Bharati aims to enlighten its members and well wishers with the message of this great visionary. Eminent speakers from the Indian community in Kuwait will deliver thoughts on various aspects of Vivekananda’s life. Suresh V Balakrishnan, HOD, English Department at Bharatheeya Vidhya Bhavan will deliver a speech on Swami Vivekananda and Man-making. Sajeev K Peter, Business Editor, Kuwait Times will speak on the role of Swami Vivekananda in propagating Indian culture and heritage. Dr Srikumar T S, Scientific Consultant, Kuwait Foundation For The Advancement of Science, will deliver a speech on ‘Swami Vivekananda, the Patriot and the Voice of India.’ Krishno Sarkar (Planning Engineer, KNPC) will talk on ‘Swami Vivekananda - The Role model of the Youth’ while Satyanarayanan S, Electrical Supervisor, Al Julaih Petroleum Company, will speak on Spiritual Perceptiveness of Swami Vivekananda.

For more details and information please contact vbkuwait@gmail.com KERA Winter Fest tomorrow Kuwait Ernakulam Residents Association (KERA) is conducting a Winter Fest on Friday, January 13, 2012 at Mangaf Auditorium from 5pm onwards. KERA family members will present cultural programs. For more details call Jomy Augustine (General Convener) 66874364, 66900455

BAIA hosts contemporary dance performance

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aturday December 10 was a night to remember for The British Academy of International Arts. Not only did the visiting Italian contemporary dancer Gabriele Montaruli dance and perform in the Shakespeare Theatre at the BSK campus but BAIA also said a fond farewell to an esteemed and long time member of BAIA, Augustine Tchantcho. The night started with a warm introduction by the Italian Ambassador Signor Fabrizio Nicoletti Then it was the turn of Signor Montaruli who performed an ethereal piece, a lesson in contemporary dance as he wowed the audience with his high energy choreography.

He used a wide range of techniques such as floor work, release technique and classical ballet movement. He created a stirring 25

minute performance based on the concept of a lie. The dance involved an interesting prop, a plastic sheet.

The sheet seemed to represent the facade of a lie and Signor Montaruli purposefully used it to hinder his dancing but greatly improve his performance. More impressive still is that Signor Montaruli claimed that 85% of his performance on stage was improvised. Earlier in the week a group of 40 BAIA Junior and Senior students had taken part in a contemporary dance workshop with the maestro.

Following this performance the spotlight moved to Augustine Tchantcho who took to the stage and was honored for great service over many years with the British Academy of International Arts.

During his time with BAIA he gained distinction in drama, music and

dance at examination and performance levels. He is now moving to France to continue his theatrical education. Touching words from his peers were conveyed before Augustine did what he does best and sang and Ain’t No Mountain High Enough by Marvin Gaye. The night ended with an informative question and answer session with Gabriele Montaruli. A performance of this caliber in Kuwait is rare and was an eye opening experience to many BAIA students in attendance.

A truly fitting end to the BAIA autumn season.

Ernakulam District Association celebrates Christmas, New Year

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rnakulam District Association organized Christmas and New Year celebrations on 6th, Jan 2012 at the ‘Pravassi auditorium’ in Abbassiya. The EDA general secretary Madhu Warrier welcomed the audience and gave a brief introduction about the history of xmas and wished everybody a happy & prosperous new year. The EDA President Roy Yoyaki in his speech spoke

about EDA activities and congratulated the Central committee members and the area unit members for their active participation. Advisory committee Chairman Abdul Rahim explained about the current issue of ‘mullaperiyar dam’.

Geo Mathai, Gigi Mathen, Laxy Raju, the program convener Maxi Joseph were also felicitated by the audience after cutting of the xmass

& new year cake. The audience stood with lighted candles, and then took the oath to express their solidarity with the govt of Kerala and the people, for their struggle to solve, and succeed the mullaperiyar issue; - that is to construct a new dam for ‘the safety of Kerala, and water for Tamil Nadu’.

Carnatic Music Forum classical event

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uwait Carnatic Music Forum is organizing a 2-day classical music festival ‘Saint Satguru Thyagaraja’ devotion. The 2-day event (January 12 and 13) will be held at Indian community school, senior branch Salmiyah. The program will feature famous musicians from India and around Kuwait including Trichy S Ganesan; Karunagapilly S Balamurali; Perunna G Harikumar and Kottyam B Unnikrishnan . Tomorrow’s event will start in the morning by 9.00 am. The aim of the program is to provide a platform for the local artists to perform their skills. The program will have a grand finale with eminent musicians around Kuwait. The pancharatna aalapanam will be led by Shri Trichy S Ganesan.

Trichy S Ganesan, is a leading Indian Carnatic vocalist working with All India Radio Madhurai as a staff artist. He is

also conferred with many awards such as Madurai Kalanidhi, Madura Gana Sutha, Sangeetha Choodamani,Sangeetha Sevarathna,Sangeetha Poornashree,Sangeetha Thilakam,Pancharthnam, Kaanchi Kaamakodi Aasthana Vidhwan And Sindhooram.

He learned the nuances of carnatic music initially from his father Shri Trichy Subramania Iyer and mother Smt.Lakshmi. Later he studied the music in detail from Swathi Thirunaal Music College. He has 35 years of experience as a performing artist.

Kottayam B Unnikrishnan is a leading Ghatom artist and is an assistant professor in mrudangam at Swathi Thirunal Music College, Trivandrum. He has many concerts to his credits in India and abroad with top leading artistes from Carnatic music world.

OCYM free medical camp

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s part of yearly program, Orthodox Christian Youth Movement (OCYM), the spiritual organization of St Gregorios Indian Orthodox Maha Edavaka, Kuwait, is arranging a Free Medical Camp tomorrow (13th January) in Kuwait at Indian Central School, Jleeb Al Shuyoukh, Abbassiya, in coordination with Kuwait Heart Foundation. KHF is providing their Mobile Cardiology Unit for testing blood sugar, blood pressure and cholesterol for this camp. This camp is mainly for the welfare of the expatriate working community in Kuwait, specially from labor camps.

Those who are interested to avail this facility, please contact at ocym@iocq8.org on or before 10/1/2010.

Cinemagic schedule Thursday, January 12 at 7:30pm THE DINNER GAME Each week, Pierre and his friends organize what is called as “un dÓner de cons”. Everyone brings the dumbest guy he could find as a guest. Pierre thinks his champ -FranÁois Pignon- will steal the show. Saturday, January 14th at 7:30pm THE GREAT DICTATOR In Chaplin’s satire on Nazi Germany, dictator Adenoid Hynkel has a double... a poor Jewish barber... who one day is mistaken for Hynkel.

Thursday, January 19th at 7:30pm THE BEAT THAT MY HEART SKIPPED Should Tom (Duris) make like his thuggish father or pursue his dream of becoming a pianist?

Saturday, January 21st at 7:30pm THRONE OF BLOOD A ruthlessly ambitious lord, egged on by his wife, works to fulfill a prophecy that he would become Emperor. Thursday, January 26th at 7:30pm GREASE Good girl Sandy and greaser Danny fell in love over the summer. But when they unexpectedly discover they’re now in the same high school, will they be able to rekindle their romance? Saturday, January 28th at 7:30pm AKIRA A secret military project endangers Neo-Tokyo when it turns a biker gang member into a rampaging psionic psychopath that only two kids and a group of psionics can stop. Cinemagic Kuwait, is organizing these events as part of its efforts to contribute to the development of an internationally competitive Kuwaiti audio-visual production industry, partly by bringing the filmmakers and audiences together and by Increasing the public’s interest in - and appreciation for - the art of film-making. Cinemagic movies are screened in the old Salmiya, on the roof on top of Alghanim Electronics and LG. Entrance is free of charge and includes refreshments, popcorn and much more.

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THURSDAY, JANUARY 12, 2012

W H AT ’ S O N

Embassy Information EMBASSY OF BRAZIL The Embassy of Brazil requests all Brazilian citizens in Kuwait to proceed to the website www.brazil.org.kw (Contact Us Form / Fale Conosco) in order to register or update contact information. The Embassy encourages all citizens to do so, including the ones who have already registered in person at the Embassy. The registration process helps the Brazilian Government to contact and assist Brazilians living abroad in case of any emergency. nnnnnnn

Landmark Group to host ‘Art Olympiad’

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andmark Group Kuwait is all set to host the Art Olympiad 2012 for the fifth consecutive year on January 18th from 8.00 am - 2.00 pm at JW Marriott. This initiative has been a part of Landmark Group’s ongoing corporate social responsibility where young artists have an opportunity to showcase their skills. As always, Landmark Group is keen on maintaining an excellent rapport and creating awareness about relevant issues among the youth with constant activities and events, while setting a platform for approx.150 students from schools of repute across Kuwait. Art Olympiad provides a grooming platform to the future citizens of the world by helping them improvise their flair and encourage their innovative ability through art.

Saibal Basu, Chief Operating Officer of Landmark Group, Kuwait said, “It is extremely important to get children involved in creative projects and have their talents recognized at a young age. During the past four years, through the Art Olympiad, we have been trying to inspire children to pick up a brush or pencil and draw or paint and create something out of their imagination on a given topic. The Art

Olympiad has become an annual event, and we hope to continue to raise the spirits of the students and encourage them to express their views strongly and in an innovative manner.”

He added, “The positive and enthusiastic feedback we have received from schools and students as well as the growing number of participants are a clear indication of the successful

Takaud picks new marketing officer

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he Takaud Savings & Pensions Company - the MENA region’s new personal pension and savings company based in Bahrain - has announced the appointment of Paul Bromley as Chief Marketing Officer. Paul joins Takaud from NEXUS Brokers where he was Commercial Director. Prior to this, he was Regional Life and Takaful Manager at AXA Insurance (Gulf ). The appointment follows official approval in September from the Central Bank of Bahrain for Takaud to begin its operations. Takaud aims to launch its initial product range in selected MENA countries later this year.

The company is a member of the KIPCO Group. “We are excited to welcome Paul to our team. He has extensive experience and expertise in the region’s personal finance industry. This will be invaluable as we prepare to launch the MENA region’s first range of personal pension and savings products. Through our innovative product range, people in our region will soon have new ways to secure their future and save for their retirement,” Abdallah Kubursi, Takaud’s CEO, said.

engagement the Landmark Group has with the community. We are committed to the Kuwaiti society and are extremely pleased to receive such positive responses on the various activities, including the most recent ‘Beat Diabetes’ initiative which was held for the second time in November 2011.”

The participating schools for this year’s Olympiad are: Indian English

Academy School, Dasman Model School, The New Kuwait Philippines International School, Kuwait Bilingual School, Fahaheel Al Watanieh Ind Pvt School Ahmadi, The English School Salmiya, Indian Educational School, Indian Community School, Khaitan, Kuwait English School, Salwa, Carmel School Kuwait, Kuwait American School, Salmiya, The English School Fahaheel and more.

Students will be judged on the basis of creativity, workmanship, overall impression and relevance to the theme. The judges for the event are famous Kuwaiti artists Assad Bunashi and Ahmad Jowhar along with Houssam Afyouni, Founder and Chief Creative Officer, Raad Afyouni and Hussam Yassin, Managing and Creative Director, Lemonad. A total of 8 winners will be selected at the end of the competition. Each winner will be awarded with exciting grand prizes and many other valuable gifts. They will also receive certificates and trophies in recognition of their participation, and their schools will be given a plaque of appreciation.

EMBASSY OF CANADA The Embassy of Canada is located at Villa 24, Al-Mutawakel St., Block 4 in Da’aiyah. Please visit our website at www.Kuwait.gc.ca. The Embassy of Canada is open from 07:30 to 15:30 Sunday through Thursday. The reception is closed from 12:30 to 01:00 pm for lunch break. Consular Services for Canadian Citizens are provided from 09:00 until 12:00 on Sunday through Wednesday. Canada offers a registration service for all Canadians travelling or living abroad. This service is provided so that Consular Officials can contact and assist Canadians in an emergency in a foreign country, such as a natural disaster or civil unrest, or inform Canadians of a family emergency at home. The Embassy of Canada encourages all Canadian Citizens to register online through the Government of Canada Travel Website at www.voyage.gc.ca.

The Canadian Embassy in Abu Dhabi provides visa and immigration services to residents of Kuwait. Individuals who are interested in visiting, working or immigrating to Canada are invited to visit the website of the Canadian Embassy to the UAE at www.UAE.gc.ca. nnnnnnn

EMBASSY OF CYPRUS The Embassy of the Republic of Cyprus requests Cypriot citizens living in Kuwait to register with the Embassy. This registration service is provided so that the Embassy can update its contact list and assist Cypriot citizens in cases of emergencies.

Registration information can be emailed to cyprusembassykwt@gmail.com or faxed to 22253227 or given by phone to 65906048 (Mrs Christine). nnnnnnn

IKEA Kuwait holds Facebook contest for its loyal fans

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KEA Kuwait announced yesterday the launch of its “IKEA Kuwait’s Biggest Fan Contest”, in an effort to offer its loyal fan base the chance to win a wide range of innovative gifts.

The contest will run through until February 2, 2012.

IKEA Kuwait is now granting its old and new customers the chance to start their New Year with an exciting range of new products that cater for their houses. Participants need only to fill in an online form that is present on IKEA Kuwait’s Facebook page and choose their favorite options from across three products that are available. Contestants will have to post their comments about why they deserve to win and how will the product improve life at home. Three winners will be chosen depending on their entries about each product such as eclectic and modern Kiplan twoseater sofa, a fashionable Maskros pendant lamp and a practical IKEA 365 + cookware set that includes a pot and saucepan with a lid and a frying pan.

To get started, customers need only to ‘like’ the IKEA Kuwait Facebook page.

The page will also enable customers to stay up-to-date with the latest promotions and newest collections. Winners will be contacted by the IKEA Kuwait’s team and can collect their gift at the IKEA store. Contestants interested in

EMBASSY OF GERMANY The Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany in Kuwait wishes to announce that as of 1 May 2011, the external service provider Al Qabas Assurex is operating a Visa Application Centre in support of the German Embassy. Short-term visa applications for travels to Germany (e.g. for tourism, visits, business) are to be submitted to the service provider Al Qabas who for your convenience will ensure that all relevant documents are included in your application.

Your personal appearance at the Application Centre is not required. Address of the Visa Application Centre: Al Qabas Assurex Sanabel Tower (Al-Babtain) Mezzanine (M3) opposite Sharq Mall Kuwait 22924444 Fax: 22924442 Further information are available on the following websites: www.kuwait.diplo.de www.qavisa.com nnnnnnn

EMBASSY OF KENYA

joining the IKEA Kuwait Facebook contest can log onto www.facebook.com/ikeakuwait to enter and win their favorite item.

The Embassy of the Republic of Kenya wishes to request all Kenyans resident in or training through Kuwait to register with the Embassy. We are updating our database. This information is necessary in order to facilitate quick assistance and advise in times of emergency. Kindly visit in person or register through our website www.kenyaembkuwait.com. The Embassy is located in: Surra Area - Block 6 - Street 9 Villa 3 Tel: 25353362 - 25353314; Fax: 25353316. nnnnnnn

EMBASSY OF NIGERIA The Nigerian embassy has its new office in Mishref. Block 3, Street 7, House 4. For enquires please call 25379541. Fax- 25387719.

Email- nigeriakuwait@yahoo.com or nigeriankuwait@yahoo.co.uk nnnnnnn

EMBASSY OF PERU Peruvian Permanent Expo will be temporarily closed from December 2lst 2011 to January 21st 2012. The Expo will reopen on January 22nd 2012 and offer once again “Peruvian Private Gastronomy Tasting Lunches” and much more like Peruvian culture, tourism, trade and great possibilities of investment. nnnnnnn

EMBASSY OF UKRAINE We’d like to inform you that in response to the increasing number of our citizens who work in the state and the need for 24-hour operational telephone in case of emergency the Embassy of Ukraine in the State of Kuwait has opened “hotline telephone number” (+ 965) 972-79-206.

Write to us

Christmas, New Year celebration at Apachia

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pachia Institute celebrated Christmas and New Years with staff and family members at the Salmiya branch of the institute. Santa Claus distributed gifts for the young marking the joyous occasion. As Saji Jacob, the MD of Apachia said in his speech, it is a joyful moment for everyone to remember this special holiday season in Kuwait and around the globe. CEO of Apachia Institute, Stephanie McGehee also wished all the staff members a wonderful New Year.

Send to What’s On upcoming events, birthdays or celebrations by email: local@kuwaittimes.net Fax: 24835619 / 20

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00:50 I’m Alive 01:45 Animal Cops Houston 02:40 Wildest Africa 03:35 Wild France 04:30 I’m Alive 05:25 Dogs 101 06:20 Animal Cops Houston 07:10 Monkey Life 07:35 Wildlife SOS 08:00 Gorilla School 08:25 Dick ‘n’ Dom Go Wild 08:50 Talk To The Animals 09:15 The Really Wild Show 09:40 Breed All About It 10:10 Dogs 101 11:05 Dogs 101 12:00 Michaela’s Animal Road Trip 12:55 Snake Crusader With Bruce George 13:20 Wildlife SOS 13:50 RSPCA: On The Frontline 14:15 RSPCA: On The Frontline 14:45 Animal Cops Houston 15:40 Wildest Africa 16:30 Monkey Life 17:00 Dick ‘n’ Dom Go Wild 17:30 Talk To The Animals 18:00 The Really Wild Show 18:25 Dogs 101 19:20 Extraordinary Dogs 19:45 Extraordinary Dogs 20:15 Snake Crusader With Bruce George 20:40 Breed All About It 21:10 Dogs 101 22:05 Wildest Africa 23:00 Animal Kingdom 23:25 Animal Kingdom 23:55 Untamed & Uncut

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

Holby City Eastenders Doctors New Tricks Big Top The Green Green Grass Balamory Tellytales Penelope K, By The Way The Roly Mo Show Buzz & Tell Tweenies 3rd & Bird Nina And The Neurons Balamory Tellytales Penelope K, By The Way The Roly Mo Show Buzz & Tell Tweenies 3rd & Bird Nina And The Neurons Big Top After You’ve Gone The Weakest Link Eastenders Doctors Casualty Spanish Flu: The Forgotten The Green Green Grass Big Top The Weakest Link Eastenders Doctors Casualty Spanish Flu: The Forgotten The Weakest Link Eastenders Doctors Big Top Keeping Up Appearances Elephant Diaries The World’s Toughest Driving dinnerladies The Green Green Grass Walter’s War Keeping Up Appearances As Time Goes By Casualty

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

Bargain Hunt Antiques Roadshow Indian Food Made Easy Indian Food Made Easy What To Eat Now - Autumn What To Eat Now - Autumn Come Dine With Me 10 Years Younger Fantasy Homes By The Sea Cash In The Attic USA Cash In The Attic USA Indian Food Made Easy What To Eat Now - Autumn Bargain Hunt Masterchef Australia Masterchef Australia Bargain Hunt Antiques Roadshow Come Dine With Me 10 Years Younger Masterchef Masterchef Fantasy Homes By The Sea House Swap Bargain Hunt Antiques Roadshow Indian Food Made Easy Indian Food Made Easy What To Eat Now - Autumn What To Eat Now - Autumn Bargain Hunt Masterchef Masterchef Masterchef Bargain Hunt

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

Johnny Bravo Scooby Doo Where Are You! The Perils Of Penelope Pitstop Droopy: Master Detective The Flintstones Johnny Bravo Duck Dodgers King Arthur’s Disasters The Scooby Doo Show Popeye Classics Tom & Jerry Popeye The Jetsons The Flintstones Looney Tunes Pink Panther & Pals Tex Avery Duck Dodgers The Garfield Show Pink Panther And Pals Bananas In Pyjamas Baby Looney Tunes Gerald McBoing Boing Jelly Jamm New Yogi Bear Show Puppy In My Pocket The Garfield Show Pink Panther And Pals The Scooby Doo Show Tom & Jerry Dastardly And Muttley Top Cat New Yogi Bear Show Puppy In My Pocket Jelly Jamm Baby Looney Tunes Bananas In Pyjamas The Jetsons Duck Dodgers Scooby Doo Where Are You! The Garfield Show Pink Panther And Pals The Perils Of Penelope Pitstop Puppy In My Pocket Looney Tunes Tom & Jerry The Scooby Doo Show Scooby-Doo And ScrappyScooby Doo Where Are You! A Pup Named Scooby-Doo Jelly Jamm Baby Looney Tunes Gerald McBoing Boing Bananas In Pyjamas New Yogi Bear Show Pink Panther And Pals The Garfield Show Dastardly And Muttley Tom & Jerry The Garfield Show Dexters Laboratory

THURSDAY, JANUARY 12, 2012

TV PROGRAMS

Years

00:40 Samurai Jack 01:05 Samurai Jack 01:30 The Marvelous Misadventures Of Flapjack 02:20 Bakugan Battle Brawlers 02:45 Bakugan Battle Brawlers 03:10 Best Ed 04:00 Ben 10: Ultimate Alien 04:25 Adventure Time 04:50 Generator Rex 05:15 Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated 05:40 Grim Adventures Of Billy & Mandy 05:55 I Am Weasel 06:55 Powerpuff Girls 07:45 Angelo Rules 08:00 Casper’s Scare School 08:30 The Amazing World Of Gumball 08:45 Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated 09:15 Ben 10: Ultimate Alien 09:40 Batman: The Brave And The Bold 10:05 Angelo Rules 10:30 Chowder 10:55 Adventure Time 11:20 Eliot Kid 11:35 The Marvelous Misadventures Of Flapjack 12:00 Ben 10 12:25 Sym-Bionic Titan 12:50 Courage The Cowardly Dog 13:15 I Am Weasel 13:40 Best Ed 14:05 Cow & Chicken 14:30 My Gym Partner’s A Monkey 14:50 Eliot Kid 15:15 Bakugan Battle Brawlers 15:40 Ben 10: Alien Force 16:05 Courage The Cowardly Dog 16:30 Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated 16:55 The Amazing World Of Gumball 17:10 Adventure Time 17:35 Regular Show 18:00 Cow & Chicken 18:25 Generator Rex 18:50 Ben 10: Ultimate Alien 19:15 Angelo Rules 19:30 Total Drama World Tour 19:55 Hero 108 20:25 Sym-Bionic Titan 20:50 Adventure Time 21:25 The Grim Adventures Of Billy & Mandy 21:50 Courage The Cowardly Dog 22:25 The Marvelous Misadventures Of Flapjack 22:50 Cow & Chicken 23:00 Ben 10 23:25 Ben 10 23:50 Courage The Cowardly Dog

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

Connect The World Backstory World Sport The Situation Room World Report Anderson Cooper 360 Piers Morgan Tonight Quest Means Business Erin Burnett Outfront World Sport Talk Asia World Report World Report World Sport World View World Business Today Backstory Mainsail World One Piers Morgan Tonight News Stream World Business Today International Desk Global Exchange CNN Marketplace Middle East World Sport Mainsail International Desk Quest Means Business CNN Marketplace Europe Piers Morgan Tonight

BLOOD AND BONE ON OSN ACTION HD

00:15 Destroyed In Seconds 00:40 Animal Cops South Africa 01:35 Dirty Jobs 02:30 Overhaulin’ 03:25 Ultimate Survival 04:20 Mythbusters 05:15 How It’s Made 05:40 How It’s Made 06:05 Dirty Jobs 07:00 Mythbusters 07:50 Gold Rush: Alaska 08:45 Coal 09:40 How It’s Made 10:05 Cake Boss 10:30 Border Security 10:55 Auction Hunters 11:25 Through The Wormhole With Morgan Freeman 16:00 Overhaulin’ 16:55 Ultimate Survival 17:50 Mythbusters 18:45 Cash Cab Us 19:10 Border Security 19:40 Auction Kings 20:05 How It’s Made 21:00 Cake Boss 21:30 Surviving The Cut 22:25 Miami SWAT 23:20 Who Survived?

00:40 The Gadget Show 01:05 The Gadget Show 01:35 The Colony 02:25 The Tech Show 02:50 Weird Or What?

03:40 What’s That About?

04:35 How Does That Work?

05:00 How Stuff’s Made 05:25 Engineered 06:20 Da Vinci’s Machines 07:10 The Future Of...

08:00 The World’s Strangest UFO Stories 08:50 How Does That Work?

09:15 How Stuff’s Made 09:40 Weird Or What?

10:35 What’s That About?

11:25 Engineered 12:20 Da Vinci’s Machines 13:15 The Gadget Show 13:40 The Gadget Show 14:05 The Future Of...

14:55 How Does That Work?

15:20 How Stuff’s Made 15:50 The World’s Strangest UFO Stories 16:40 The Tech Show 17:05 Da Vinci’s Machines 18:00 The Gadget Show 18:50 Engineered 19:40 Bang Goes The Theory 20:30 Science Of The Movies 21:20 Da Vinci’s Machines 22:10 Space Pioneer 23:00 Bang Goes The Theory 23:50 Science Of The Movies

00:00 00:25 01:15 02:00 02:50 03:35 04:25 05:15 06:00 06:20 06:45 CODY 07:05 07:55 08:10 09:00 10:30 10:45 12:00 12:45 13:30 14:20 14:45 15:00 16:30 16:35 17:00 17:25 17:50 18:35 18:41 20:00 20:25 21:15 22:00 22:25 23:15

KIM POSSIBLE FAIRLY ODD PARENTS STITCH REPLACEMENTS EMPEROR’S NEW SCHOOL STITCH REPLACEMENTS FAIRLY ODD PARENTS HANNAH MONTANA RECESS THE SUITE LIFE OF ZACK AND WIZARDS OF WAVERLY PLACE PHINEAS AND FERB SHAKE IT UP GO FIGURE HAVE A LAUGH GOOD LUCK CHARLIE SHAKE IT UP Good Luck Charlie SUITE LIFE ON DECK WIZARDS OF WAVERLY PLACE FISH HOOKS HARRIET THE SPY: BLOG WARS HAVE A LAUGH SUITE LIFE ON DECK Fairly Odd Parents Good Luck Charlie SHAKE IT UP HAVE A LAUGH SHAKE IT UP Good Luck Charlie HANNAH MONTANA SUITE LIFE ON DECK SONNY WITH A CHANCE SHAKE IT UP WIZARDS OF WAVERLY PLACE

00:20 SPECIAL AGENT OSO 00:50 JUNGLE JUNCTION 01:15 LITTLE EINSTEINS 01:40 HIGGLYTOWN HEROES 02:10 JO JO’S CIRCUS 02:30 SPECIAL AGENT OSO 03:00 JUNGLE JUNCTION 03:25 LITTLE EINSTEINS 03:50 HIGGLYTOWN HEROES 04:20 JO JO’S CIRCUS 04:40 SPECIAL AGENT OSO 05:10 JUNGLE JUNCTION 05:35 LITTLE EINSTEINS 06:00 HIGGLYTOWN HEROES 06:30 JO JO’S CIRCUS 06:50 JUNGLE JUNCTION 07:15 HIGGLYTOWN HEROES 07:45 HANDY MANNY 08:00 SPECIAL AGENT OSO 08:15 JUNGLE JUNCTION 08:45 MICKEY MOUSE CLUBHOUSE 09:10 THE HIVE 09:20 HANDY MANNY 09:35 JAKE & THE NEVERLAND PIRATES 10:05 THE HIVE 10:15 MINI ADVENTURES OF WINNIE THE POOH 10:25 TIMON AND PUMBAA 10:45 THE HIVE 10:55 MICKEY MOUSE CLUBHOUSE 11:20 IMAGINATION MOVERS 11:45 ART ATTACK 12:10 IMAGINATION MOVERS 12:30 JUNGLE JUNCTION 12:45 LazyTown 13:10 HANDY MANNY 13:25 JUNGLE JUNCTION 13:40 IMAGINATION MOVERS 14:05 THE HIVE 14:15 SPECIAL AGENT OSO 14:25 LITTLE EINSTEINS 14:50 LazyTown 15:15 MICKEY MOUSE CLUBHOUSE 15:40 JAKE & THE NEVERLAND PIRATES

15:55 JAKE & THE NEVERLAND PIRATES 16:05 HANDY MANNY 16:30 THE HIVE 16:40 JAKE & THE NEVERLAND PIRATES 16:55 IMAGINATION MOVERS 17:20 SPECIAL AGENT OSO 17:30 HANDY MANNY 17:45 ART ATTACK 18:10 THE HIVE 18:20 SPECIAL AGENT OSO 18:30 JUNGLE JUNCTION 18:45 HANDY MANNY 18:55 JAKE & THE NEVERLAND PIRATES 19:25 THE HIVE 19:35 LITTLE EINSTEINS 20:00 MINI ADVENTURES OF WINNIE THE POOH 20:05 MICKEY MOUSE CLUBHOUSE 20:30 ANIMATED STORIES 20:35 HANDY MANNY 20:50 JAKE & THE NEVERLAND PIRATES 21:20 THE HIVE 21:30 MINI ADVENTURES OF WINNIE THE POOH 21:33 A POEM IS...

21:40 JUNGLE JUNCTION 21:55 MICKEY MOUSE CLUBHOUSE 22:20 JAKE & THE NEVERLAND PIRATES 22:35 SPECIAL AGENT OSO 22:50 LITTLE EINSTEINS 23:15 TIMMY TIME 23:25 HANDY MANNY 23:40 JUNGLE JUNCTION

00:25 Kendra 00:55 Style Star 01:25 E!es 03:15 25 Most Stylish 04:10 Sexiest 05:05 Extreme Hollywood 06:00 25 Hottest Hollywood Cougar Tales 07:50 Behind The Scenes 08:20 E! News 09:15 Kendra 10:15 THS 12:05 E! News 13:05 Fashion Police 13:35 Extreme Close-Up 14:05 Keeping Up With The Kardashians 14:35 Keeping Up With The Kardashians 15:00 Style Star 15:30 E!es 16:25 Behind The Scenes 16:55 Ice Loves Coco 17:55 E! News 18:55 E!es 19:55 Scouted 20:55 Chelsea Lately 21:25 Scouted 22:25 E! News 23:25 Chelsea Lately 23:55 Kourtney & Khloe Take Miami

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

Extreme Forensics Ghost Lab Psychic Witness I Almost Got Away With It FBI Case Files Extreme Forensics Ghost Lab Psychic Witness Killer Outbreaks FBI Files Forensic Detectives Undercover Killer Outbreaks Real Emergency Calls Who On Earth Did I Marry?

On The Case With Paula Zahn Disappeared FBI Case Files Killer Outbreaks Real Emergency Calls Who On Earth Did I Marry?

On The Case With Paula Zahn Disappeared FBI Files Forensic Detectives FBI Case Files Real Emergency Calls Killer Outbreaks Who On Earth Did I Marry?

On The Case With Paula Zahn Disappeared Kidnap And Rescue Fugitive Strike Force

00:00 Treks In A Wild World 00:30 Stonehenge Decoded 01:00 On The Camino De Santiago 01:30 Word Travels 02:00 Cruise Ship Diaries 02:30 Killer Dragons 03:00 Pressure Cook 03:30 Master of Disaster 03:30 Pressure Cook 04:00 Around The World For Free 04:30 Megastructures 05:00 Nomads 05:30 The Border 06:00 Treks In A Wild World 06:30 Naked Science 2.5 07:00 On The Camino De Santiago 07:30 Stonehenge Decoded 07:30 Word Travels 08:00 Cruise Ship Diaries 09:00 Pressure Cook 09:30 Megastructures 09:30 Pressure Cook 10:00 Around The World For Free 10:30 Alaskan Killer Shark 11:00 Nomads 11:30 Master of Disaster 12:00 Treks In A Wild World 12:30 Megastructures 13:00 Bondi Rescue: Bali 13:30 Alaskan Killer Shark 13:30 Bondi Rescue 14:30 Megastructures 14:30 Naked Lentil 15:00 First Ascent 15:30 Geologic Journey 15:30 The Best Job In The World 16:00 David Rocco’s Dolce Vita 2 16:30 David Rocco’s Dolce Vita 2 16:30 Nat Geo’s Most Amazing Photos 17:00 David Rocco’s Dolce Vita 17:00 Nat Geo’s Most Amazing Photos 17:30 David Rocco’s Dolce Vita 17:30 Megastructures 18:00 Departures 18:30 Nat Geo’s Most Amazing Photos 19:00 Bondi Rescue: Bali 19:00 Nat Geo’s Most Amazing

HOW DO YOU KNOW ON OSN CINEMA Photos 19:30 Bondi Rescue 19:30 Super Factories 20:00 Bondi Rescue 20:30 Dangerous Encounters With Brady Barr 20:30 Naked Lentil 21:00 First Ascent 21:30 The Best Job In The World 21:30 World’s Toughest Fixes 22:00 David Rocco’s Dolce Vita 2 22:30 World’s Deadliest Animals 23:00 David Rocco’s Dolce Vita 23:30 Naked Science 2.5

00:00 Midnight Meat Train-18 02:00 A Lonely Place For DyingPG15 04:00 Snow White: A Tale Of Terror18 06:00 The Haunting Of Molly Hartley-18 08:00 Rocky-PG15 10:00 The Manchurian CandidatePG15 12:15 Ong Bak 2-PG15 14:00 Rocky-PG15 16:00 What Lies Beneath-PG15 18:15 Ong Bak 2-PG15 20:00 Paranormal Activity-PG15 22:00 Blood And Bone-18

01:00 The Heavy-18 03:00 Alabama Moon-PG15 05:00 Slipstream-PG15 07:00 Love The Beast-PG 09:00 Alabama Moon-PG15 11:00 Flipped-PG 12:45 The Great Debaters-PG15 15:00 How Do You Know-PG15 17:15 Flipped-PG 19:00 Takers-PG15 21:00 Pirates Of The Caribbean: On Stranger Tides-PG15 23:30 Of Gods And Men-18

12:00 Two And A Half Men 12:30 Will And Grace 13:00 Melissa And Joey 13:30 Tyler Perry’s House Of Payne 16:30 The Office 18:00 Friends 18:30 Friends 19:00 30 Rock 20:00 The Tonight Show With Jay Leno 21:00 The Daily Show With Jon Stewart 21:30 The Colbert Report 22:00 The Big C 22:30 The Ricky Gervais Show 23:00 The Cleveland Show

01:00 02:00 03:00 04:00 05:00 07:00 08:00 08:30 09:00 10:00 11:00 13:00 14:00 15:00 17:00 18:00 19:00 20:00 21:00 22:00 23:00

Strikeback Terriers Once Upon A Time White Collar Good Morning America Law & Order: Los Angeles Emmerdale Coronation Street The Ellen DeGeneres Show The Martha Stewart Show The View Once Upon A Time Law & Order: Los Angeles Live Good Morning America The Ellen DeGeneres Show Emmerdale Psych Love Bites Love Bites Rescue Me White Collar

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C.S.I. Off The Map Strikeback Surface C.S.I. How I Met Your Mother Coronation Street House Off The Map How I Met Your Mother Coronation Street The Ellen DeGeneres Show House

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C.S.I. Tower Prep The Ellen DeGeneres Show House Psych Love Bites Love Bites Rescue Me Supernatural

01:00 The Gene Generation-18 03:00 Perrier’s Bounty-18 05:00 Child’s Play 2-18 07:00 Altitude-PG15 09:00 Top Gun-PG15 11:00 Collateral-PG15 13:00 Patriot Games-PG15 15:00 Top Gun-PG15 17:00 Prince Of Persia: The Sands Of Time-PG15 19:00 Windtalkers-PG15 21:15 Restitution-PG15 23:15 Game Of Death-PG15

00:00 Ed-PG 02:00 Roommates-PG15 04:00 A Film With Me In It-PG15 06:00 Miami Rhapsody-PG15 08:00 Chasing Papi-PG 10:00 Not The Messiah: He’s A Very Naughty Boy-PG15 12:00 Easy Virtue-PG15 14:00 Knucklehead-PG15 16:00 Ed-PG 18:00 Away We Go-PG15 20:00 The Shape Of Things-PG15 22:00 Griff The Invisible-PG15

01:00 03:45 05:45 07:45 09:30 11:00 13:15 15:15 17:30 19:45 21:15 23:30

Boogie Nights-18 Taking Woodstock-18 Patch Adams-PG15 Flying By-PG15 Don’t Fade Away-PG15 Invictus-PG15 Coco Before Chanel-PG15 Dance With Me-PG Glorious 39-PG15 Raising Cain-PG15 Sideways-18 On The Edge-18

01:00 Blue Valentine-18 03:00 Ramona And Beezus-PG 05:00 The Wronged Man-PG15 07:00 I, Robot-PG15 09:00 Bond Of Silence-PG15 11:00 Malibu’s Most Wanted-PG15 13:00 The Client List-PG15 15:00 Jane Eyre-PG15 17:00 Bond Of Silence-PG15 19:00 Dance Flick-18 21:00 Pirates Of The Caribbean: On Stranger Tides-PG15 23:15 Two Lovers-18

00:00 The Adventures Of Don Quixote-PG15 02:00 Legend Of Sleeping BeautyPG 04:00 Dork Hunters And The Pirates Of Tortuga Island-PG15 06:00 The Country Bears-PG 08:00 The Adventures Of Don Quixote-PG15 10:00 Cats & Dogs-PG 12:00 Turandot-PG 14:00 Pocahontas & The Spider Woman-PG 16:00 Mars Needs Moms-PG 18:00 Cats & Dogs-PG 20:00 The Archies In Jugman-FAM 21:45 Pocahontas & The Spider Woman-PG 23:45 Mars Needs Moms-PG

00:15 Relative Stranger-PG15 02:00 Super-18 04:00 Ways To Live Forever-PG15 06:00 Legendary-PG15 08:00 Fly Me To The Moon-PG 10:00 A Trace Of Danger-PG15 12:00 Legendary-PG15 14:00 Citizen Jane-PG 16:00 A Trace Of Danger-PG15 17:45 Lottery Ticket-PG15 19:30 Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps-PG15 22:00 Predators-18

00:00 01:00 02:00 05:00 07:00 08:00 11:00 14:00 15:00 16:00 18:00 19:00 22:00 22:45

RWC Tournament Highlights Volvo Ocean Race Highlights Cricket Twenty20 WWE SmackDown Volvo Ocean Race Highlights Cricket Twenty20 Live Cricket Twenty20 Volvo Ocean Race Highlights Trans World Sport RWC Tournament Highlights Volvo Ocean Race Highlights Cricket Twenty20 WWE NXT Live European Challenge Cup

01:00 Trans World Sport 02:00 European PGA Tour Highlights 03:00 Scottish Cup 07:00 Trans World Sport 08:00 Scottish Premier League Highlights 08:30 Scottish Cup 10:30 Futbol Mundial 11:00 Live Cricket Twenty20 14:00 ICC Cricket World 14:30 World Hockey 15:00 Scottish Premier League Highlights 15:30 Futbol Mundial 16:00 European Tour Weekly 16:30 Trans World Sport 17:30 Horse Racing 21:30 Trans World Sport 22:45 Live European Challenge Cup

00:00 03:00 04:00 05:00 06:00 07:00 08:00 08:30 09:00 10:00 11:00 12:00 12:30 13:00 17:00 18:00 19:00 22:00

Cricket Twenty20 World Cup of Pool World Pool Masters US Bass Fishing FIVB Beach Volley Ball Volvo Ocean Race Highlights European Tour Weekly ICC Cricket World FIVB Beach Volley Ball World Cup of Pool World Pool Masters Futbol Mundial European Tour Weekly Live European PGA Tour Volvo Ocean Race Highlights Trans World Sport Cricket Twenty20 European PGA Tour

01:00 03:00 04:00 05:00 07:00 09:00 10:00 11:00 12:00 13:00 14:00 15:00 16:00 17:00 18:00 19:00 20:00 21:00 22:00 23:00

V8 Supercars Championship Speedway FIM World Intercontinental Le Mans Cup UFC Unleashed WWE SmackDown Speedway FIM World Intercontinental Le Mans Cup V8 Supercars Championship WWE Experience WWE Vintage Collection WWE Bottom Line Intercontinental Le Mans Cup Speedway Powerboats WWE Vintage Collection WWE NXT UFC The Ultimate Fighter UFC 142 Countdown UFC Unleashed WWE NXT

00:00 01:00 03:00 Rides 04:00 05:00 09:00 10:00 11:00 12:00 13:00 14:00 15:00 15:30 16:30 17:30 Paris 18:30 19:30 20:30 21:00 21:30 22:00 23:00

Down the Line Globe Trekker World’s Greatest Motorcycle Food Tripper Cruise 1st Planet Food Globe Trekker Culinary Asia Cruise 1st Floyd Around the Med Globe Trekker Sophie Grigson In The Souk Cruise 1st Rose Parade Inside Walt Disney Studios Globe Trekker Cruise 1st Floyd Around the Med Floyd On Spain Sophie Grigson In The Souk Cruise 1st Third Class Traveller

Classifieds THURSDAY, JANUARY 12, 2012

DIAL 161 FOR AIRPORT INFORMATION

Airlines KLM JZR JZR ETH THY UAE QTR DHX MSR FDB ETD GFA KAC THY DHX FCX JZR JZR BAW KAC KAC FDB IRA KAC KAC JZR KAC IRA KAC UAE ABY QTR ETD FDB GFA KNE JZR RKM MEA SYR MSC KAC MSR KAC GFA MSR FDB MSR UAL GRF OMA QTR KNE SVA KAC RJA KAC KAC JZR LMU KAC QTR JZR MLR ETD JZR UAE KAC GFA SVA ABY JZR ALK JZR MSC TAR FDB KAC JZR KAC KAC KAC KAC KAC KAC KAC FDB JAI OMA MSR KAC DHX MEA GFA LMU QTR UAE JZR KAC KLM AIC JZR UAL AXB BBC DLH

Arrival Flights on Thursday 12/1/2012 Flt Route 447 AMSTERDAM/BAHRAIN 267 BEIRUT 539 CAIRO 620 ADDIS ABABA 772 ISTANBUL 853 DUBAI 138 DOHA 370 BAHRAIN 612 CAIRO 67 DUBAI 305 ABU DHABI 211 BAHRAIN 544 CAIRO 770 ISTANBUL 170 BAHRAIN 201 DUBAI 503 LUXOR 555 ALEXANDRIA 157 LONDON 412 MANILA/BANGKOK 206 ISLAMABAD 53 DUBAI 617 AHWAZ 352 COCHIN 302 MUMBAI 531 ASSIUT 332 TRIVANDRUM 605 ISFAHAN 362 COLOMBO 855 DUBAI 125 SHARJAH 132 DOHA 301 ABU DHABI 55 DUBAI 213 BAHRAIN 789 JEDDAH 165 DUBAI 310 RAS ALKHAIMAH 404 BEIRUT 341 DAMASCUS/DEIREZZOR 9621 SOHAG 382 DELHI 610 CAIRO 672 DUBAI 219 BAHRAIN 621 ASSIUT 57 DUBAI 606 LUXOR 982 WASHINGTON DC DULLES 93 KANDAHAR/DUBAI 645 MUSCAT 140 DOHA 745 JEDDAH 500 JEDDAH 552 DAMASCUS 640 AMMAN 788 JEDDAH 284 DHAKA 257 BEIRUT 407 ALEXANDRIA 546 ALEXANDRIA 134 DOHA 535 CAIRO 403 COLOMBO/DUBAI 303 ABU DHABI 357 MASHAD 857 DUBAI 118 NEW YORK 215 BAHRAIN 510 RIYADH 127 SHARJAH 777 JEDDAH 227 COLOMBO/DUBAI 177 DUBAI 9623 SOHAG 328 TUNIS/DUBAI 63 DUBAI 542 CAIRO 125 BAHRAIN 786 JEDDAH 618 DOHA 614 BAHRAIN 674 DUBAI 104 LONDON 774 RIYADH 562 AMMAN 61 DUBAI 572 MUMBAI 647 MUSCAT 618 ALEXANDRIA 178 GENEVA/FRANKFURT 372 BAHRAIN 402 BEIRUT 217 BAHRAIN 409 ASSIUT 136 DOHA 859 DUBAI 135 BAHRAIN 502 BEIRUT 445 AMSTERDAM 981 CHENNAI/HYDERABAD 239 AMMAN 981 BAHRAIN 389 KOZHIKODE/MANGALORE 43 DHAKA 636 FRANKFURT

Time 0:30 0:45 0:50 1:45 2:15 2:35 2:40 2:55 3:00 3:05 3:10 3:15 4:40 4:50 5:15 5:30 5:55 6:00 6:40 6:45 7:40 7:45 7:50 7:50 7:55 8:00 8:05 8:15 8:20 8:30 9:00 9:05 9:15 9:20 9:55 11:20 11:20 11:45 11:55 12:35 12:45 12:45 12:55 13:20 13:25 13:30 13:50 13:55 14:05 14:15 14:15 14:20 14:25 14:30 14:35 14:40 14:50 15:00 15:00 15:10 15:20 15:25 16:25 16:40 16:50 16:50 16:55 16:55 17:15 17:20 17:40 17:45 18:00 18:15 18:30 18:35 18:40 18:50 19:00 19:10 19:15 19:20 19:25 19:35 19:40 19:50 20:00 20:10 20:15 20:45 20:55 21:00 21:20 21:25 21:30 21:35 21:40 21:55 22:00 22:05 22:05 22:45 23:00 23:35 23:45 23:50

Airlines AXB UAL AIC DLH KLM KAC ETH THY KAC FDB UAE DHX MSR ETD QTR THY JZR GFA FDB KAC BAW IRA KAC JZR KAC IRA JZR KAC KAC UAE ABY ETD FDB QTR GFA JZR KAC KAC KNE JZR RKM MEA MSC SYR KAC JZR MSR GFA MSR FDB KAC MSR KAC KNE OMA UAL RJA JZR LMU KAC SVA KAC KAC KAC QTR JZR ETD MLR JZR QTR GRF UAE GFA ABY SVA JZR JZR ALK FDB TAR MSC JZR FDB KAC KAC DHX KAC JAI OMA MSR KAC DHX KAC LMU MEA GFA FCX QTR KAC JZR UAE KAC KLM JZR KAC KAC

Departure Flights on Thursday 12/1/2012 Flt Route 394 COCHIN/KOZHIKODE 981 WASHINGTON DC DULLES 976 GOA/CHENNAI 637 FRANKFURT 447 AMSTERDAM 283 DHAKA 621 ADDIS ABABA 773 ISTANBUL 381 DELHI 68 DUBAI 854 DUBAI 371 BAHRAIN 613 CAIRO 306 ABU DHABI 139 DOHA 771 ISTANBUL 164 DUBAI 212 BAHRAIN 54 DUBAI 545 ALEXANDRIA 156 LONDON 606 MASHAD 671 DUBAI 256 BEIRUT 551 DAMASCUS 604 ISFAHAN 534 CAIRO 787 JEDDAH 101 LONDON/NEW YORK 856 DUBAI 126 SHARJAH 302 ABU DHABI 56 DUBAI 133 DOHA 214 BAHRAIN 356 MASHAD 165 ROME/PARIS 541 CAIRO 790 JEDDAH 776 JEDDAH 311 RAS ALKHAIMAH 405 BEIRUT 9622 SOHAG 342 DAMASCUS 785 JEDDAH 176 DUBAI 611 CAIRO 220 BAHRAIN 622 ASSIUT 58 DUBAI 561 AMMAN 607 LUXOR 673 DUBAI 746 JEDDAH 646 MUSCAT 982 BAHRAIN 641 AMMAN 124 BAHRAIN 408 ASSIUT 617 DOHA 505 JEDDAH 501 BEIRUT 613 BAHRAIN 773 RIYADH 141 DOHA 238 AMMAN 304 ABU DHABI 404 DUBAI/COLOMBO 538 CAIRO 135 DOHA 82 BAGHDAD 858 DUBAI 216 BAHRAIN 128 SHARJAH 511 RIYADH 266 BEIRUT 134 BAHRAIN 228 DUBAI/COLOMBO 64 DUBAI 328 TUNIS 9624 ASSIUT 184 DUBAI 62 DUBAI 343 CHENNAI 331 TRIVANDRUM 171 BAHRAIN 351 COCHIN 571 MUMBAI 648 MUSCAT 619 ALEXANDRIA 543 CAIRO 373 BAHRAIN 675 DUBAI 410 ALEXANDRIA 403 BEIRUT 218 BAHRAIN 102 BAHRAIN 137 DOHA 301 MUMBAI 554 ALEXANDRIA 860 DUBAI 205 ISLAMABAD 445 BAHRAIN/AMSTERDAM 528 ASSIUT 415 KUALA LUMPUR/JAKARTA 411 BANGKOK/MANILA

Time 0:40 0:45 0:50 1:20 1:45 2:40 2:45 3:15 3:30 3:45 3:50 3:55 4:00 4:00 4:55 5:50 6:55 7:00 8:25 8:30 8:40 8:50 9:00 9:00 9:10 9:15 9:15 9:25 9:35 9:40 9:45 10:00 10:05 10:10 10:40 10:50 11:45 12:00 12:05 12:15 12:50 12:55 13:30 13:35 13:40 13:50 13:55 14:20 14:30 14:35 14:45 14:55 15:05 15:10 15:15 15:20 15:35 15:50 15:55 15:55 16:00 16:15 16:20 16:25 16:30 17:15 17:35 17:40 17:40 17:45 18:00 18:10 18:15 18:25 18:35 18:45 19:05 19:10 19:20 19:25 19:30 19:55 20:40 20:55 21:00 21:00 21:05 21:10 21:15 21:45 21:55 22:00 22:10 22:15 22:20 22:25 22:30 22:35 22:45 22:45 22:50 23:00 23:05 23:35 23:45 23:55

Directorate General of Civil Aviation Home Page (www.kuwait-airport.com.kw)

ACCOMMODATION Full furnished single room with separate bathroom available with small Muslim family in 3 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms C-A/C flat in Hawally, Tunis Street, near Sadique roundabout behind Commercial Bank.

Contact: 97794619.

(C 3826) A two bed room central A/C flat with two bathrooms and large hall for rent. Most of the household

furniture for sale including bedroom set with two cupboards, IKEA dressing table, Fridge, Two coffee tables, Dining table with 4 chairs, Two seater sofa, Kitchen cabinets etc. Call 65053439 12-1-2012

SITUATION VACANT A gift wrapping and gift basket designer with basic knowledge on flower arrangement required for a high end gifts shop.

Applicants must send CV to

giftwrapq@gmail.com 12-1-2012 A Kuwaiti family looks to hire a driver (full time).

Contact: 99774658.

(C 3823) Required house cook, Indian nationality - male, attractive salary. Contact: 99062666. (C 3822) 11-1-2012 Required two drivers for a Kuwaiti family at monthly salary KD 100 and must be having at least five years experience. Call 97554010.

(C 3815)

FOR SALE Toyota Corolla 2012 model, gray color, alloys wheel, sensor, mileage 5000km, under warranty 3 years, price KD 4,950/-. Contact: 55522942. (C 3818) Mitsubishi Lancer 2004 GLX, Price KD 850/-, Mitsubishi Box 2006, Price KD 2,000/-. Contact: 66052331. (C 3820)

34

THURSDAY, JANUARY 12, 2012

stars CROSSWORD 555

STAR TRACK

CALVIN & HOBBES

Aries (March 21-April 19) This is the time you could be asking some questions about your progress in life. You may be in a reflective mood. Perseverance should be exercised as much as possible since slow and steady win the race. The old Zen saying that, “When you look for approval, you become a prisoner,” is not too far off-center for you just now. At this time, you may actively become concerned about the welfare of others and how you fit into their life. You may gain many answers for yourself when you volunteer and give of your time and talents. Your efforts will be rewarded. You desire to succeed. You concentrate on the new ways to invest as well as the personal appeal. This is a good time to lead or plan a new project, for your imagination is unusually heightened.

Taurus (April 20-May 20) Your nature will most likely be very enduring, as you take a positive attitude to just about all aspects of your life. This is an excellent time to sit down alone and get many things accomplished. You enjoy your many intellectually-based friendships. Your ability to truly appreciate friends and family is increased. You should experience all the benefits of your platonic relationships. Your creative energy is in sync with your loved one and this time could prove most rewarding. This may mean a business in the home, creative teaching, enhancing your living quarters, etc. You have arrived at a place in your life where you are feeling in balance with your life and you can be a good example or mentor for others. Tonight is for relaxing.

POOCH CAFE ACROSS 1. A condition (mostly in boys) characterized by behavioral and learning disorders.

4. Relating to or characteristic of the Celts.

10. Hawaiian dish of taro root pounded to a paste and often allowed to ferment.

13. A constellation in the southern hemisphere near Telescopium and Norma.

14. The amount that a container (as a wine bottle or tank) lacks of being full.

15. A drug combination found in some over-the-counter headache remedies (Aspirin and Phenacetin and Caffeine).

16. Extremely pleasing.

17. 1 species.

18. Seed of a pea plant.

19. Small terrestrial lizard of warm regions of the Old World.

21. Angular distance above the horizon (especially of a celestial object).

22. Small tropical American tree bearing edible plumlike fruit.

24. Title for a civil or military leader (especially in Turkey).

26. The 10th letter of the Hebrew alphabet.

28. (botany) Of or relating to the axil.

31. The agent to whom property involved in a bailment is delivered.

35. Cubes of meat marinated and cooked on a skewer usually with vegetables.

36. An official prosecutor for a judicial district.

38. Either of two large African antelopes of the genus Taurotragus having short spirally twisted horns in both sexes.

39. (folklore) A small grotesque supernatural creature that makes trouble for human beings.

41. A light strong brittle gray toxic bivalent metallic element.

42. Being three more than fifty.

43. Climbing salamanders.

48. An insecticide that is also toxic to animals and humans.

49. Concerning those not members of the clergy.

50. An interest followed with exaggerated zeal.

52. Cast or model anew.

55. A confusion of voices and other sounds.

59. A loose sleeveless outer garment made from aba cloth.

60. The brightest star in Cygnus.

63. A strip of land projecting into a body of water.

64. The syllable naming the fifth (dominant) note of any musical scale in solmization.

65. A name that has been assumed temporarily.

66. (Old Testament) Cain and Abel were the first children of Adam and Eve born after the Fall of Man. 67. Either extremity of something that has length.

68. The iridescent internal layer of a mollusk shell.

69. Type genus of the Alcidae comprising solely the razorbill.

DOWN 1. A Chadic language spoken south of Lake Chad.

2. (informal) Exceptionally good.

3. A Chadic language spoken south of Lake Chad.

4. A Russian prison camp for political prisoners.

5. A flat wing-shaped process or winglike part of an organism.

6. A river in central Europe that arises in northwestern Czechoslovakia and flows northward through Germany to empty into the North Sea. 7. Support column consisting of a steel cylinder filled with concrete.

8. One of the most common of the five major classes of immunoglobulins.

9. All the New World monkeys except marmosets and tamarins.

10. An informal term for a father.

11. An organization of countries formed in 1961 to agree on a common policy for the sale of petroleum.

12. The United Nations agency concerned with civil aviation.

20. God of death.

23. Uncomfortably cool.

25. A radioactive element of the actinide series.

27. A Russian river.

29. A historical area and former kingdom in northwestern Spain.

30. A French abbot.

32. Set down according to a plan.

33. A town in north central Oklahoma.

34. Make editorial changes (in a text).

37. The blood group whose red cells carry both the A and B antigens.

40. Deciduous shrub widely cultivated for its white or pink or red flowers.

41. A river in central Europe that arises in northwestern Czechoslovakia and flows northward through Germany to empty into the North Sea. 44. The United Nations agency concerned with the interests of labor.

45. A native of ancient Troy.

46. Used of locations.

47. Light informal conversation for social occasions.

51. The capital and largest city of Bangladesh.

52. An informal term for a father.

53. Very dark black.

54. King of Saudi Arabia since 1982 (born in 1922).

56. Any of numerous local fertility and nature deities worshipped by ancient Semitic peoples.

57. Surpassing the ordinary especially in size or scale.

58. A Russian river.

61. The sense organ for hearing and equilibrium.

62. A fatal disease of cattle that affects the central nervous system.

Gemini (May 21-June 20) You will feel intellectually competitive, but take care when trivialities begin to irritate you. If you remember your priorities, it can be a very productive day. You are most likely able to spend some time with co-workers and people apart from work. This could mean an opportunity to network or to build on friendships. You look to the social setting to improve your professional standing— certainly, you know an opportunity when you see it. Try to keep some sense of reality in your interactions with friends. Try not to put undue strain on any personal relationships at this time. This is a good time to engage in some kind of physical activity. You have a desire to do something completely different now. To work off extra energy— perform a good deed activity.

Cancer (June 21-July 22)

NON SEQUITUR

You are obliging to others at this time and can be more influential than you realize. There may be many opportunities for you to succeed as well as help others succeed as you may be teaching new techniques or training new people. The powers that be tend to like having you in the same job identification because they trust your reasoning powers and your ability to get along with everyone. When you are ready to move forward in your job position, you will need to create a file that will demonstrate your abilities to move into new areas . . . leaving no arguments. There is a steadiness in your emotional life. Some project you are working on at home this evening could get plenty of positive publicity if that is what you want.

Leo (July 23-August 22) Your sharp and alert mind is full of opinions and information that you are dying to share with everyone—especially those with whom you may be working on some volunteer project. Also, you are eager to take in all sorts of information from everyone else—leading to frequent encounters and a busy telephone. This should be a very electric day! Your communication skills are sharp. On a more mundane level—it is an excellent day to talk on the phone. This evening, you could be susceptible to acting spontaneously, without thinking clearly about the implications involved. Take time before making any major decisions or conclusions just now. This period marks an excellent time to be with loved ones—particularly to celebrate a special event.

ZITS

Virgo (August 23-September 22) If you find yourself having to work or choosing to work today, for the most part, you should try to combine both work and pleasure in the best productive way possible. Communicating with friends and family is at a high just now. Your timing should be perfect and those around you should find you most natural and alive. While you have a fine ability to detect another person’s true feelings, you should not let your high aspirations cloud your judgment of other people’s abilities and talents. Try and see people for who they truly are. Expressing affection should come easily at this time and can do much good for your disposition.

Romance is heightened in your personal relationships—there is time to actively cultivate a special relationship tonight.

Libra (September 23-October 22)

MOTHER GOOSE AND GRIMM

Scorpio (October 23-November 21) You may feel as though you could conquer the world today.

Work issues are taken care of quickly and customer relations are positive. You look forward to the end of the day when you can do a little gym exercise or ride your bicycle through the neighborhood. Additionally, this is a time when your powers of creativity are great. You may encourage your co-worker friends into taking an interest in some evening restaurant that has a little entertainment. There is plenty to talk about and you will find yourself getting to know your co-workers as well as you know your neighbors. This seems to be the time of year when you get a lot of mail, perhaps catalogs too. You may spend the evening clearing away all the mail and looking through a few catalogs.

Sagittarius (November 22-December 21)

You should find no problem in communicating with regar This is a good day to dive in and work in teams or groups. There may be a bit of competition but it seems to make the work and time go faster. Before you know it the work and the day have ended. You may sense that family status or conditions are changing and you look around your living area to see what you can do to update and provide space to those who might enjoy visiting with you. There could be additions to the family circle through marriage or new birth. Also, this is a time when you may spend a great deal of time engaged in intellectual pursuits. This may be a good time to work out of your home or take in a border. Your sense of humor is sharpened and you want to have some fun so you might enjoy planning the next gathering for family or friends.

Capricorn (December 22-January 19)

To

Yesterday’s Solution

There may be numerous romantic interests or, at the least, opportunities in your life. This period marks a time when you seek intellectual stimulation in both social and leisure activities. As such, you may spend a great deal of time and effort balancing commitments. Your emotions should be sailing on relatively calm seas, giving you an unhurried chance to sit down and take stock of things. Follow advice offered by a mentor or elder family member. Your understanding of the needs of others places you as the key character that people come to when they are in need of an understanding ear. People are your best friends so surround yourself with them and enjoy. You should work hard to also make time for your family during this period.

You have done well these last few days, considering the load of responsibilities. All of that warmth and affection that you have shows through to everyone. Today your friendly attitude carries over to those you do not know and as usual . . . you make a life customer from any person that stops to ask a question. You enjoy teaching and if you ever get tired of what you are doing or you decide to take on an extra job, you could consider coaching or teaching. Relaxation comes through fun activities in the afternoon. Your secret for happiness is that you usually give of your time and energy without expectations. You are entering a period of personal change and you may decide that it is time to update your wardrobe. A new suit or just a jacket would be a nice touch.

Yesterday’s Solution Yester

Aquarius (January 20- February 18) If you take the initiative, a work goal that seemed beyond your reach earlier may be obtainable now. In-depth discussions and probing conversations find you at your mental best. Around a conference table today, you are able to hold everyone’s attention. Be prepared for questions because you will gain their interest. Your analytical abilities are at a high point. Some long-term projects can be completed this afternoon. This is a good time to try and foster a sense of togetherness among family members. Expressing affection comes easily at this time and can do positive things for everyone’s disposition. Your understanding of the needs of others is in perfect balance with knowledge of your own needs. People are your best friends—enjoy.

Pisces (February 19-March 20)

Word Sleuth Solution

You are able to express your feelings to others in a positive way.

This is a good day to reflect and help others. On the subject of spending money . . . care and judicious thought must be given to the practical use of money. You should take caution in engaging in enterprises that entail the accruing of many debts. The emphasis now is mostly on your communicative abilities. This is an excellent time to sway others to your cause through clever arguments, for your thinking is most lucid and grasping. Be careful, though, of taking it to the extreme in trying to find a logical reason for every event that occurs—especially the actions of loved ones. Family matters that need attention will receive closure. This evening there is time to enjoy your friends.

A

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Years

THURSDAY, JANUARY 12, 2012

i n f o r m at i o n

FIRE BRIGADE

112

STATE ST TATE T OF KUWAIT K KUW WAIT A

Tel.: T el.: e 161

DIRECTORA DIRECTORATE ATE T GENE GENERAL ERAL OF CIVIL A AVIATION V VIA ATION T METEOROLOGICAL DEP D PARTMENT A DEPARTMENT DA AY: Y W DAY: Wednesday eednesday

Fax: 24348714 WWW .MET.GOV V.KW . W WWW.MET.GOV.KW

11/01/2012 1 1/01/2012

Ministry of Interior

Ext.: 262 2627 27 - 2630

Issue Time Time

07:00

Expected Weather Weather for the Next 24 4 Hours

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

BY Y DAY: DA AY:

Cloudy y to partly cloudy with light variable wind changing to li light ight to moderate south easter easterly rly wind, with chance might speed of o 08 - 30 km/h with a chanc ce for scattered rain that mig ght be thundery at times

BY Y NIGHT: NIGHT:

with easterly westerly Cloudss will decrease gradually wit th light to moderate south ea asterly changing to north wes sterly wind, with chance speed of o 15 - 38 km/h with a chanc ce for fog forming No Current W Warnings aarnings

WARNING W A ARNING STATION ST TATION T

Al-Madena

22418714

Al-Shohada’a

22545171

Al-Shuwaikh

24810598

Al-Nuzha

22545171

Sabhan

24742838

Al-Helaly

22434853

Al-Fayhaa

22545051

Al-Farwaniya

24711433

Al-Sulaibikhat

24316983

Al-Fahaheel

23927002

Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh

24316983

Ahmadi

23980088

Al-Mangaf

23711183

Al-Shuaiba

23262845

MAX. EXP EXP. P.

MIN.. REC.

KUWAIT KUW WA AIT CITY

22 °C

14 °C

24812000

KUW WA AIT AIRPOR RT KUWAIT AIRPORT

22 °C

10 °C

Al-Jahra

25610011

Amiri Hospital

22450005

NUW WA AISEEB NUWAISEEB

22 °C C

13 °C C

Al-Salmiya

25616368

Maternity Hospital

24843100

WAFRA W AFRA A

22 °C

10 °C

Mubarak Al-Kabir Hospital

25312700

SALMI

21 °C

10 °C

Chest Hospital

24849400

ABDALY ABDAL LY

22 °C

10 °C

Farwaniya Hospital

24892010

ALIYAH JAL ALIY YA AH

22 °C

11 1 1 °C

Adan Hospital

23940620

FAILAKA F A AILAKA

22 °C

13 °C

Ibn Sina Hospital

24840300

PORT AHMADI POR RT

19 °C

15 °C

Al-Razi Hospital

24846000

UMM AL-MARADEM M

20 °C

17 °C

Physiotherapy Hospital

24874330/9

WARBA BUBYAN W ARBA A A - BUBY YA AN

22 °C

13 °C

Hospitals Sabah Hospital

Clinics Rabiya

SFC. CHAR CHART T

11/01/2012 1 1/01/2012 0000 UTC

POLICE STATION

4 DA DAYS AY YS FORECAST Temperatures Temperratures

4732263

Roudha

22517733

Adhaliya

22517144

Khaldiya

DAY DA AY

DA DATE AT TE

WEA WEATHER ATHER T

MAX.

MIN.

Wind Wind Direction Direction

Wind Wind Speed

Thursday

12/01

cold + raising du ust dust

18 °C

10 °C

NW

20 - 45 km/h

Friday

13/01

clouds cold + scattered clo ouds

16 °C

07 °C

NW

15 - 35 km/h

24848075

Saturday

14/01

dust cold + raising du ust

15 °C

03 °C

NW

15 - 40 km/h

Keifan

24849807

Sunday

15/01

cold

15 °C

02 °C

NW

15 - 38 km/h

Shamiya

24848913

Shuwaikh

24814507

Fajr

05:20

MA AX. T emp.

MAX. Temp.

Abdullah Salim

22549134

S i Sunrise

06:44 06 44

MI IN Temp.

IN. Temp.

MIN.

11 1 1 °C

Al-Nuzha

22526804

Zuhr

11:56 1 1:56

MAX. RH M

74 %

Industrial Shuwaikh

24814764

Al-Khadissiya

22515088

Dasmah

22532265

Bneid Al-Ghar

22531908

Al-Shaab

22518752

Al-Kibla

22459381

Ayoun Al-Kibla

22451082

Al-Mirqab

22456536

Sharq

22465401

Salmiya

25746401

Jabriya

25316254

Maidan Hawally

25623444

Bayan

25388462

Mishref

25381200

W.Hawally

22630786

Sabah

24810221

Jahra

24770319

New Jahra

24575755

West Jahra

24772608

South Jahra

24775066

North Jahra

24775992

North Jleeb

24311795

Al-Ardhiya

24884079

Firdous

24892674

Al-Omariya

24719048

N.Kheitan

24710044

Fintas

3900322

PRAYER PR RA AYER Y TIMES

RECORDED D YESTERDAY YESTERDA AY AT AT KUWAIT KUW WAIT A T AIRPORT AIRPORT 21 °C

THE PUBLIC AUTHORITY FOR Automated enquiry

Asr

14:49

MIN. RH M

18 %

17:08

MA AX. W ind MAX. Wind

N 39 km/h

Isha

18:30

T OT TA AL L RAI INF FA ALL L IN 24 HR. TOTAL RAINFALL

00 mm

11/01/12 11/01/12 02:39 UTC

22434064 22435865 22544200 22547133 22515277 22616662 25714406 22530801

CIVIL INFORMATION

Sunset

unless All times are local time un nless otherwise stated.

Al-Madena Police Station Al-Murqab Police Station Al-Daiya Police Station Al-Fayha’a Police Station Al-Qadissiya Police Station Al-Nugra Police Station Al-Salmiya Police Station Al-Dasma Police Station

about the Civil ID card is 1889988

T1.06

V1.00

PHARMACIES

AIRLINES

ON 24 HRS DUTY GOVERNORATE

PHARMACY

ADDRESS

PHONE

Ahmadi

Sama Safwan Abu Halaifa Danat Al-Sultan

Fahaeel Makka St Abu Halaifa-Coastal Rd Mahboula Block 1, Coastal Rd

23915883 23715414 23726558

Jahra

Modern Jahra Madina Munawara

Jahra-Block 3 Lot 1 Jahra-Block 92

24575518 24566622

Capital

Ahlam Khaldiya Coop

Fahad Al-Salem St Khaldiya Coop

22436184 24833967

Farwaniya

New Shifa Ferdous Coop Modern Safwan

Farwaniya Block 40 Ferdous Coop Old Kheitan Block 11

24734000 24881201 24726638

Hawally

Tariq Hana Ikhlas Hawally & Rawdha Ghadeer Kindy Ibn Al-Nafis Mishrif Coop Salwa Coop

Salmiya-Hamad Mubarak St Salmiya-Amman St Hawally-Beirut St Hawally & Rawdha Coop Jabriya-Block 1A Jabriya-Block 3B Salmiya-Hamad Mubarak St Mishrif Coop Salwa Coop

25726265 25647075 22625999 22564549 25340559 25326554 25721264 25380581 25628241

Kuwait Airways Jazeera Airways Jet Airways FlyDubai Qatar Airways KLM Air Slovakia Olympic Airways Royal Jordanian Reservation British Airways Air France Emirates Air India Sri Lanka Airlines Egypt Air Swiss Air Saudia Middle East Airlines Lufthansa PIA Alitalia Balkan Airlines Bangladesh Airlines Czech Airlines Indian Airlines Oman Air Turkish Airlines Aeroflot

171 177 22924455 22414400 22423888 22425747 22434940 22420002/9 22418064/5/6 22433388 22425635 22430224 22921555 22438184 22424444 22421578 22421516 22426306 22423073 22422493 22421044 22414427 22416474 22452977/8 22417901/ 2433141 22456700 22958787 22453820/1 22404838/9

PRIVATE CLINICS Ophthalmologists Dr. Abidallah Al-Mansoor 25622444 Dr. Samy Al-Rabeea 25752222 Dr. Masoma Habeeb 25321171 Dr. Mubarak Al-Ajmy 25739999 Dr. Mohsen Abel 25757700 Dr Adnan Hasan Alwayl 25732223 Dr. Abdallah Al-Baghly 25732223 Ear, Nose & Throat (ENT) Dr. Ahmed Fouad Mouner 24555050 Ext 510 Dr. Abdallah Al-Ali 25644660 Dr. Abd Al-Hameed Al-Taweel 25646478 Dr. Sanad Al-Fathalah 25311996 Dr. Mohammad Al-Daaory 25731988 Dr. Ismail Al-Fodary 22620166 Dr. Mahmoud Al-Booz 25651426 General Practitioners Dr. Mohamme Y Majidi 24555050 Ext 123 Dr. Yousef Al-Omar 24719312 Dr. Tarek Al-Mikhazeem 23926920 Dr. Kathem Maarafi 25730465 Dr. Abdallah Ahmad Eyadah 25655528 Dr. Nabeel Al-Ayoobi 24577781 Dr. Dina Abidallah Al-Refae 25333501 Urologists Dr. Ali Naser Al-Serfy 22641534 Dr. Fawzi Taher Abul 22639955 Dr. Khaleel Abidallah Al-Awadi 22616660 Dr. Adel Al-Hunayan FRCS (C) 25313120 Dr. Leons Joseph 66703427 Psychologists /Psychotherapists

Paediatricians

Plastic Surgeons Dr. Mohammad Al-Khalaf

22547272

Dr. Khaled Hamadi

Dr. Abdal-Redha Lari

22617700

Dr. Abd Al-Aziz Al-Rashed

Dr. Abdel Quttainah

25625030/60

Family Doctor Dr Divya Damodar

23729596/23729581

Psychiatrists Dr. Esam Al-Ansari

22635047

Dr Eisa M. Al-Balhan

INTERNATIONAL CALLS

22613623/0

Gynaecologists & Obstetricians DrAdrian arbe

23729596/23729581

Dr. Verginia s.Marin

2572-6666 ext 8321

Endocrinologist

25665898 25340300

Dr. Zahra Qabazard

25710444

Dr. Sohail Qamar

22621099

Dr. Snaa Maaroof

25713514

Dr. Pradip Gujare

23713100

Dr. Zacharias Mathew

24334282

(1) Ear, Nose and Throat (2) Plastic Surgeon Dr. Abdul Mohsin Jafar, FRCS (Canada)

25655535

Dentists

Dr. Fozeya Ali Al-Qatan

22655539

Dr. Majeda Khalefa Aliytami

25343406

Dr. Shamah Al-Matar

22641071/2

Dr. Ahmad Al-Khooly

25739272

Dr. Anesah Al-Rasheed

22562226

22618787

Dr. Abidallah Al-Amer

22561444

Dr. Faysal Al-Fozan

22619557

Dr. Abdallateef Al-Katrash

22525888

Dr. Abidallah Al-Duweisan

25653755

Dr. Bader Al-Ansari

25620111

General Surgeons Dr. Amer Zawaz Al-Amer

22610044

Dr. Mohammad Yousef Basher

25327148

Internists, Chest & Heart Dr. Adnan Ebil Dr. Latefa Al-Duweisan

22666300 25728004

Dr. Nadem Al-Ghabra

25355515

Dr. Mobarak Aldoub

24726446

Dr Nasser Behbehani

25654300/3

Soor Center Tel: 2290-1677 Fax: 2290 1688

Neurologists

22639939

Dr. Mousa Khadada

info@soorcenter.com www.soorcenter.com

3729596/3729581

Dr. Sohal Najem Al-Shemeri

25633324

Dr. Jasem Mola Hassan

25345875

Gastrologists Dr. Sami Aman

22636464

Dr. Mohammad Al-Shamaly

25322030

Dr. Foad Abidallah Al-Ali

22633135

Dr. Naif Al-Mutawa, Ph.D. 2290-1677 Susannah-Joy Schuilenberg, M.A. 2290-1677

25339330

Dr. Ahmad Al-Ansari 25658888 Dr. Kamal Al-Shomr 25329924 Physiotherapists & VD Dr. Deyaa Shehab

25722291

Dr. Musaed Faraj Khamees

22666288

Rheumatologists: Dr. Adel Al-Awadi

Dr Anil Thomas

Dr. Salem soso

Dr. Abd Al-Naser Al-Othman

25330060

Dr. Khaled Al-Jarallah

25722290

Internist, Chest & Heart DR.Mohammes Akkad

24555050 Ext 210

Dr. Mohammad Zubaid MB, ChB, FRCPC, PACC Assistant Professor Of Medicine Head, Division of Cardiology Mubarak Al-Kabeer Hospital Consultant Cardiologist Dr. Farida Al-Habib MD, PH.D, FACC Inaya German Medical Center Te: 2575077 Fax: 25723123

2611555-2622555

William Schuilenberg, RPC 2290-1677 Zaina Al Zabin, M.Sc. 2290-1677

Afghanistan Albania Algeria Andorra Angola Anguilla Antiga Argentina Armenia Australia Austria Bahamas Bahrain Bangladesh Barbados Belarus Belgium Belize Benin Bermuda Bhutan Bolivia Bosnia Botswana Brazil Brunei Bulgaria Burkina Burundi Cambodia Cameroon Canada Cape Verde Cayman Islands

0093 00355 00213 00376 00244 001264 001268 0054 00374 0061 0043 001242 00973 00880 001246 00375 0032 00501 00229 001441 00975 00591 00387 00267 0055 00673 00359 00226 00257 00855 00237 001 00238 001345

Central African Chad Chile China Colombia Comoros Congo Cook Islands Costa Rica Croatia Cuba Cyprus Cyprus (Northern) Czech Republic Denmark Diego Garcia Djibouti Dominica Dominican Republic Ecuador Egypt El Salvador England (UK) Equatorial Guinea Eritrea Estonia Ethiopia Falkland Islands Faroe Islands Fiji Finland France French Guiana French Polynesia

00236 00235 0056 0086 0057 00269 00242 00682 00506 00385 0053 00357 0090392 00420 0045 00246 00253 001767 001809 00593 0020 00503 0044 00240 00291 00372 00251 00500 00298 00679 00358 0033 00594 00689

A

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THURSDAY, JANUARY 12, 2012

Years

lifestyle G o s s i p

H

alle Berry and Olivier Martinez are reportedly engaged. The 45-year-old actress - who was previously married to baseball player David Justice for four years until 1997 and tied the knot with Eric Benet in 2001 before separating two years later is set to tie the knot with her ‘Dark Tide’ co-star after the 46-yearold Frenchman proposed with an emerald-and-diamond ring. A source told the new issue of Us Weekly magazine: “Halle had given up on being married, but she trusts Olivier. He makes her feel safe.

He’s a keeper!” The actress agreed to marry Olivier - who she has been dating since autumn 2010 - because she was impressed with how he treats Nahla, her three-year-old daughter with former boyfriend Gabriel Aubry. A source said: “Halle is very serious about this marriage. She’s ready. Olivier has become her rock. “Halle feels

F

ormer “Designing Women” star Annie Potts is connecting with her TV and family roots in the new ABC series “GCB.” Potts plays a Dallas socialite in the prime-time comedy-drama also known as “Good Christian Belles.”

She says she sees a lot of “my beloved Dixie Carter” in the show.

Carter, who died at age 70 in 2010, starred with Potts in CBS’ “Designing Women” sitcom that aired from 1986 to 1993. Potts told the Television Critics Association on Tuesday that her “GCB” character, Gigi, also reflects Potts’ own mother. Series executive producer Robert Harling is a longtime friend of Potts and called her mom, Dot, “magnificent.” Potts’ mother died a year ago. With a smile, Potts said they can use all her stories in “GCB.” The series, which debuts March 4 on ABC, also stars Kristin

Chenoweth, David James Elliott and Leslie Bibb. Bibb plays Amanda, a former teenage “mean girl” who goes home to mom (Potts) after her marriage breaks up and has to readjust to a tough world of money and gossip. The “GCB” title is a cleaned-up version of “Good Christian Bitches,” the 2008 novel by Kim Gatlin that inspired the series. Harling said the series is a “love letter to Texas” and is about a faith-based group of people but not any particular religion.

Olivier has made a connection and a commitment to her and her daughter.”The couple would love to have a child together and friends say they will consider adoption if they can’t conceive naturally. The insider told America’s Star newspaper: “Halle would love to have more kids, but she knows it might be difficult because of her age and the fact that she’s diabetic.”If they can’t conceive, they’d definitely consider adoption.” The pair are expected to tie the knot in California early this summer and Halle is said to be happier than ever. The source said: “Deciding to marry again is huge for Halle. But friends have never seen her this happy and fulfilled.”

No new evidence in

Wood death probe US

police have found no new evidence that the mystery 1981 death of Hollywood actress Natalie Wood was a homicide rather than an accident, The Los Angeles Times reported Tuesday. The LA County Sheriff ’s Department reopened the file into the screen icon’s drowning in November, assigning two murder detectives to revive the case which has long fueled speculation, despite being deemed an accident at the time. But William McSweeney, the sheriff’s chief of detectives, told the LA Times that several weeks of new interviews and other investigative work had turned up no evidence that the death was a homicide. “At this point, it is an accidental death. Nothing has been discovered to suggest changing that at this time,” he told the newspaper. The death of the “West Side Story” and “Rebel Without a Cause” star at age 43 has long been a Hollywood mysterybut was thought to have been laid to rest, until November’s surprise announcement that police were reviving a probe. The captain of the boat on which the couple were holidaying said her actor husband Robert Wagner had a fierce row with his wife shortly before she vanished, and then delayed a search which could have saved her.

Dennis Davern, former captain of the

“Splendour”-and who has co-written a book about the tragedy-said he thought Wagner was responsible for her death on the night of November 29, 1981. Wood was found drowned about a mile away from the yacht. Police reports said she was wearing a nightgown, socks and a down jacket, and had multiple bruises on her body and arms and an abrasion on her left cheek.

A publicist for Wagner said in November that his family supported the police probe, while warning against people “trying to profit from the 30 year anniversary of her tragic death.”

E

va Longoria knows marriage can be tough, but she was startled to hear what a “Desperate Housewives” co-star had to say on the subject. Longoria, who split in 2010 from athlete-husband Tony Parker, was promoting her ABC television show Tuesday with other cast members at a Television Critics Association meeting. Felicity Huffman, discussing her character’s marital woes on “Desperate Housewives,” claimed that 60 percent of first marriages and 80 percent of second unions end in divorce. Huffman didn’t cite a source for the percentages. Longoria, with exaggerated panic, responded, “It gets higher?”

Then she looked on the bright side, suggesting the third time would be the charm. “Desperate Housewives” will end its eight-year run this season on ABC.

T

he 38-year-old actress and her producer husband Scott Stuber - who tied the knot in September - are expecting a baby at the end of June after conceiving while on their honeymoon, and are “thrilled” at the prospect of becoming parents.

Writing on her official website, Molly said: “I am absolutely, positively, downright over the moon to announce that we are pregnant! There are simply no words to describe the feeling . I finally get what they mean when they say pregnant women GLOW. “Our little bundle of joy is a honeymoon baby, due at the end of June. A first pregnancy is a nerve-wracking experience of course, but mostly we are just thrilled and excited. We can’t wait to meet him or her.” The blonde beauty also admitted she chose an unconventional way of telling her husband he was going to become a father, and opted for delivering the news via a fortune cookie. Molly added: “I hijacked the fortune cookie and typed a new message so that when he opened his cookie at the end of the meal, he found out he was going to be a daddy. “You can only imagine how nervous I was during the entire meal (I think I ate a total of two bites.), but the look of surprise and pure joy on his face was priceless.”

T

he British model - who split from boyfriend, ‘Doctor Who’ actor Matt Smith, in November - admitted she always decides whether members of the opposite sex would be a suitable pairing for her by their choice of footwear. She said: “You can always judge a man by his shoes. I couldn’t tell you what makes a bad pair of shoes, but if I saw them I would just know.”

However, any men hoping to impress the 22-year-old beauty may wish to avoid donning a baseball cap, as Daisy explained the sporty choice of hat “disgusts” her and she thinks the only person who can pull off the

look is rapper Jay-Z. Speaking as part of a shoot for men’s fashion website MrPorter.com, she added: “I like a good beanie hat on a man, but baseball caps disgust me - they’re so juvenile. “If a man loves his baggy jeans and feels comfortable in them, he can wear them at any age, but I think that there’s an age limit of 14 for baseball caps. But if you’re a rapper like Jay-Z you can get away with it.”

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indsay Lohan is being sued by a paparazzi photographer. Grigor Baylan is taking legal action against the actress after he was run over when she was trying to make a fast departure from a Hollywood nightclub - despite the fact she wasn’t driving the car. The photographer’s lawyer, Neil Steiner, told gossip website TMZ that the actress is being targeted in the case because her assistant was at the wheel and operating under her instruction. Mr Steiner said he had contacted Lindsay’s insurance company to settle the claim but they only made an “insignificant offer”. The lawyer insisted he is only seeking “reasonable compensation” for his client, who was medically treated for

orthopaedic and neurologic injuries following the incident, which took place on January 10, 2010. Lindsay has had a string of legal difficulties in recent years and is currently carrying out community service as part of her sentence for breaking her probation in relation to a 2007 DUI (driving under the influence) case. However, she was praised at a recent hearing for the way she has behaved and got on with her court-ordered work after previously being reprimanded for not fully carrying out her punishments. The ‘Mean Girls’ star is next scheduled to appear in court on January 17 for a status hearing over her probation.—Agencies

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f some incarnation of “Glee” were to be developed for the Christian Broadcasting Network, it probably would look a lot like “Joyful Noise.” You have your squeaky-clean reworkings of pop tunes from various decades, which are intended to please viewers of all ages; some romance, although nothing too hot and heavy; and a large dollop of prayer, as the characters struggle to find answers with the Lord’s help. It really is rather canny the way writer-director Todd Graff’s film caters to these large, wholesome audiences, ones that are largely underserved in mainstream multiplex fare, all at once.

That does not mean it is effective as entertainment. Especially during the musical numbers - which theoretically should serve as the most rousing source of emotion, since the film is about a gospel choir there is a weird disconnect, a sense that the songs are simultaneously overproduced and hollow, and repeated cutaways to reaction shots of singers nodding and smiling further undermine their cohesion.

A powerful performance of Michael Jackson’s “Man in the Mirror” toward the start is a rare exception. If there is one useful nugget to be gleaned here, though, it is that virtually anything can be turned into a gospel song; apparently “Yeah” by Usher could be about Jesus if you wanted it to be.

A progressive push for contemporary music vs. the tug of traditional spiritual tunes is at the core of

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“Joyful Noise” and represents the primary source of tension. That is how little is at stake here. When the church choir in depressed, small-town Pacashau, Georgia, loses its leader (Kris Kristofferson) to a heart attack, veteran singer Vi Rose Hill (Queen Latifah) is tapped to take over, rather than the late director’s widow, G.G. Sparrow (Dolly Parton). Vi Rose is a modest, conservative Christian nurse raising her two teenage kids on her own while her husband is away serving in the Army. G.G. is all sass and big hair and folksy metaphors, usually involving animals: “There’s always free cheese in the mousetrap, but trust me, the mice there ain’t happy.” It is who you might imagine Parton’s “Steel Magnolias” character had become a couple decades later, if you were to ponder such questions.

Anyway, Vi Rose and G.G. hurl passive-aggressive barbs at each other in a continuation of a longstanding hatred that never is fully explained, and probably should have been. Guess they just plain don’t like each other. So when G.G.’s nebulously naughty grandson, Randy (Jeremy Jordan), moves back to town and promptly falls for Vi Rose’s blossoming, 16-year-old songbird daughter, Olivia (Keke Palmer), the women’s animosity boils over and threatens to destroy the entire choir as we know it, right as they are gaining momentum in the annual National Joyful Noise Competition.

Graff, who previously directed the similarly musical “Camp” and “Bandslam,” jumps around awkwardly between catfights, performances and surreptitious snuggle sessions between the two young stars, both of whom can really sing (Jordan has appeared on Broadway in “Bonnie and Clyde”). Sometimes Graff veers wildly off course, as he does with a subplot in which a female church singer has sex with one of her fellow choir members, and when he dies soon afterward, she is branded a man-killer throughout the nationwide gospel-choir circuit. A fantasy duet in which G.G. and her late husband sing and dance in the front yard goes on for an eternity.

There also is a subplot in which Randy tries to prove himself to Vi Rose by taking her teenage son with Asperger’s syndrome (Dexter Darden) under his wing; clearly the film means well by including this storyline but it feels wedged-in from a narrative perspective. Except for a climactic confrontation in which Vi Rose finally snaps and unleashes her frustration on the rebellious, ungrateful Olivia, very few sounds in “Joyful Noise” ring true. “Joyful Noise,” a

Warner Bros. pictures release, is rated PG-13 for some language, including a sexual reference. Running time: 118 minutes. One and a half stars out of four.

Motion Picture Association of America rating definitions: G - General audiences. All ages admitted.

PG - Parental guidance suggested. Some material may not be suitable for children.

PG-13 - Special parental guidance strongly suggested for children under 13. Some material may be inappropriate for young children.

R - Restricted. Under 17 requires accompanying parent or adult guardian.

NC-17 - No one under 17 admitted.—AP

In this film image released by Warner Bros., Dolly Parton, foreground from left, Keke Palmer and Queen Latifah are shown in a scene from “Joyful Noise.” — AP

Dolly Parton (left) and Queen Latifah are shown in a scene from “Joyful Noise.”

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or Lynne Ramsay, motives are vague, sometimes unknowable things. In the Scottish director’s films - three features, including the new “We Need to Talk About Kevin” - characters act out awkwardly and unpredictably, baffled and nullified by deadly predicaments that are, in some measure, of their own making. A young woman walks away from her suicide boyfriend and heads to Spain, taking credit for his unpublished novel (“Morvern Callar”). A boy’s roughhousing secretly drowns a playmate in blighted 1970s Glasgow (the exceptional “Ratcatcher”). Guilt doesn’t just weigh heavily, it obliterates.

“We Need to Talk About Kevin,” Ramsay’s first film in nearly 10 years, is about a woman wracked by the trauma of having mothered a mass-murdering teenage son. Eva Khatchadourian (Tilda Swinton) is a suburban wife to a cheerful, oblivious husband, Franklin (John C Reilly). Her waking nightmare is enforced by constant flashbacks, mulling over her mothering of Kevin (as a teen, played by Ezra Miller) from infancy and until the fateful high school massacre.

In this film publicity image released by Oscilloscope, Tilda Swinton (left) and John C Reilly are shown in a scene from “We Need to Talk About Kevin.” — AP It is, to be sure, a parent’s horror story. The origin of this real-life demon is traced back to birth and even earlier, pondering the arrival of a bad seed and his subsequent nurturing. The film opens in ominous tones with a younger Eva at the La Tomatina festival in Valencia, where she and the masses are covered in blood-like tomato. Back in present day (in which Eva is alone, desolate and slightly unkempt), she remains splashed in red, only it’s her house vandalized in revenge with red paint. (Red and tomatoes are a recurring motif.) Eva makes her way grimly through her days. She’s ostracized by the townspeople, some of whom simply walk up to her on the sidewalk and smack her. She has managed to land a job as a clerk in a travel agency, having been previously a globetrotting travel writer.

Swinton, a moviegoer’s pleasure even in darkness such as this, plays Eva as meekly resigned to her desolation. When religious advocates ask her whether she knows where she is going in the afterlife, she

answers certainly that she is going to hell: “Eternal damnation. The whole bit.” It is a riveting, layered performance and one that pairs interestingly with hers in “The Deep End” as a deeply protective mother. How did things go so off the rails? The flashbacks show Eva’s unease in pregnancy, staring fearfully at the bare bellies of fellow mothers-to-be. She wistfully recalls happier, more liberated days in New York City before Franklin, against her wishes, led her to the suburbs. Even at birth, she is advised by the doctor to “stop resisting.”

When the baby comes, they seem mismatched from the start. Eva cannot keep him from screaming, but Franklin somehow sooths him immediately. As a toddler, Kevin already has formed his fierce, manipulative opposition, refusing to say “mommy” and calling her “dumb.” Eva’s attempts at motherly care - cold though she is - are eventually beaten down and she breaks, at one point seething: “Every morning mommy wakes up and wishes she was in France.” In another moment of weakness, she turns violent.

By the time Kevin is a teenager, he’s a smart, cynical, vulgar, sneering sociopath. He remains sweet to his blissfully unaware father, who calls him “Kev” and, tragically, greases his interest in archery. In a role that inevitably pulls toward horror cliche, Miller is believably nihilistic: “There’s no point. That’s the point,” he says. The script by Ramsay and Rory Stewart Kinnear, adapting Lionel Shriver’s acclaimed novel, artfully blends these two timelines evoking Eva’s interior consciousness, where every moment recalls a precursor to the tragedy, a debate of her role in it.

The visually gifted Ramsay and cinematographer Seamus McGarvey give the movie an ethereal, atmospheric feeling, aided by Jonny Greenwood’s pulsating score. At times, the film swaps Eva for Kevin: How much of Eva is in Kevin? And vice versa?

The focus blurs in and out. The structure of the film leads it on a track that cannot go anywhere but where it must: The massacre at the school. But leading suspense toward the fateful scene is dramatically unsatisfying. That it happened, which was long ago established, is not the reveal “We Need to Talk About Kevin” needs. It is a pursuit of “why,” the answer to which the film fails to grasp.

Perhaps this is as it should be: The formation of such a monster can only be a mystery. But this thoroughly well-crafted, if rigidly conceived film could use a little more talking - at least some therapy! about Kevin. “We Need to Talk About Kevin,” an Oscilloscope Laboratories release, is rated R for disturbing violence and behavior, some sexuality and language. Running time: 112 minutes. Two and a half stars out of four.

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ritish Prime Minister David Cameron yesterday urged independent UK film makers to focus on box office success, ahead of a review to be published next week into the government’s policy on the movie industry. The film industry contributes an estimated 4.2 billion pounds ($6.5 billion) to the economy each year, including from independent pictures that do well commercially and blockbusters like the “Harry Potter” series, which are made in Britain but bankrolled

by Hollywood studios.

“The UK film industry, the skills and crafts that support it, and our creative industries more widely, make a 4 billion pound contribution to our economy and an incalculable contribution to our culture,” Cameron said.

He was due to visit Pinewood Studios, where hit movies like the James Bond franchise were shot, later yesterday to meet small and medium-sized businesses involved in film.

“But in this year when we set out bold ambitions for the future, when the eyes of the world will be on us, I think we should aim even higher, building on the incredible success of recent years,” Cameron added in a statement. “Our role, and that of the BFI (British Film Institute), should be to support the sector in becoming even more dynamic and entrepreneurial, helping UK producers to make commercially successful pictures that rival the quality and impact of the best international productions.

“Just as the British Film Commission has played a crucial role in attracting the biggest and best interna-

tional studios to produce their films here, so we must incentivize UK producers to chase new markets both here and overseas.” Two recent, low-budget independent British films made a major splash both in terms of ticket sales and awards.

“The King’s Speech” won four Oscars including best picture in 2011, and earned $414 million in global ticket sales on a production budget of just $15 million, according to Boxofficemojo.com. Two years earlier, “Slumdog Millionaire” was the big winner picking up eight Academy Awards including best picture and hitting $378 million at global box offices from a $15 million budget. According to official figures, UK films accounted for 14 percent of the global 2010 box office tally of $31.8 billion. But 12.6 percent was accounted for by UK movies wholly or partly financed and controlled by US studios.

Former Labour culture minister Chris Smith is set to publish the findings of his review into the film sector next week. It is expected to provide incentives to British film makersto develop projects that deliver commercial as well as cultural success, while the BFI is likely to be urged to reinvest returns back into successful companies. The review is also likely to support the work of the British Film Commission which promotes Britain as a place to produce movies. — Reuters

Indian singer Kailash Kher poses with actor Amitabh Bachchan during the release of his new album “Kailasha Rangeele” in Mumbai on January 10, 2012. — AFP

Bollywood Actor Hrithik Roshan receives flowers as he celebrates his 38th birthday in Mumbai on January 10, 2012. — AFP

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io de Janeiro’s winter 2012 fashion week kicked off on a sober note Tuesday, with a utilitarian collection in industrial-strength denims from star designer Alexandre Herchcovitch.

Internationally, Rio is almost synonymous with saturated hues and minuscule spandex- based separates, but Herchcovitch dared do drab with a collection that would have been at home on the more commercial catwalks of Milan or New York - where he also shows. But Herchcovitch was the sole dark and serious note in an otherwise color-drenched day that included a sumptuous kimono collection from Patachou and rhinestone and silk flower-covered offerings at Acquastudio.

For his second line, the cheaper more youth focused Herchcovitch label, the Sao Paulo-based Herchcovitch looked to the proto-hipsters of 1980s-era New York, sending out models in shirtdresses and bustier catsuits in bleach-splattered raw denim. Cropped leather jackets and vests topped off the outfits, which were accessorized with ‘80-style sunglasses and wedges with translucent plastic heels. The girls’ hair was teased into fluffy clouds that resembled the nest of a particularly large and enterprising rodent. Among the biggest names in Brazilian fashion, Herchcovitch shows his premium label in New York. Known for a wacky eclecticism that was utterly lacking from Tuesday’s show, Herchcovitch has garnered considerable critical acclaim.

Most of the day’s excitement came from lesser-known houses, like Acquastudio, another Sao Paulo-based brand, which sent out ladylike dresses in a pastel rainbow.

Bouquets of eyepopping silk flowers that glinted with Swarovski crystals covered the 1950s-inspired dresses, with nipped waists and full skirts. Rhinestone-covered socks peeked over the lace-up booties. Patachou designer Erika Frade looked east for a sophisticated, Japanese-influenced collection. The kimono was the star of the show, sent out in gold lame as a glimmering wrapdress, in crisp poplin as a boardroomready work shirt and in red leather for vava-voom glamour.

At Alessa, little silk dresses and lowslung trousers came in muted oriental prints, some of them culled directly from the Turkish kilims that lined the catwalk. It was a solid effort from designer Alessa Migani, who skipped down the runway in a silk carpet-print caftan, taking deep bows as the audience hooted warmly. Only Cantao elicited a more enthusiastic response. The brand delivered a snug collection of woolen winter wears, including maxi sweaters and shorts knit from chunky yarn. Still, with Southern Hemisphere summer temperatures in the mid-80s outside, it was hard to imagine donning any of the snugly sweaters or the gauzy woolen leggings. — AP

Models wear creations from the Acquastudio fall-winter fashion collection during Fashion Rio 2012 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Tuesday.

Models parade creations from the Patachou fall-winter fashion collection.

Models wear creations from the Herchcovitch fall-winter fashion collection during Fashion Rio 2012 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Tuesday. — AP photos

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Models parade creations from the Alessa fall-winter fashion collection.

Models parade creations from Cantao fall-winter fashion collection.

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odarte designers Kate and Laura Mulleavy are slated to design their first opera costumes for the Los Angeles Philharmonic production of Mozart’s “Don Giovanni” in May, which will be staged by modernist director Christopher Alden. The pair will join a creative team that includes conductor Gustavo Dudamel and architect Frank Gehry, the latter doing the set design.

The production will be a homecoming for the Los Angeles designers, who started their label in 2005 and have been recognized internationally for their artistic approach to fashion and their handcrafted technique. “It only took a few seconds to say ‘yes,’” Laura Mulleavy said. “My grandmother sang opera, and if she were alive today, this would be her proudest moment.”

Although the sisters didn’t meet Dudamel until after they had signed on, they cited their

respect for him as a factor in the quick decision.

“He’s a larger-than-life figure in Los Angeles,” Laura said. “It’s amazing to see someone so artistic, doing something that you’re not used to seeing, on a billboard here.”

Although still in the beginning stages of the project, the designers said the costumes “won’t be oriented to a period in history but will be more abstract.” In 2010, the Mulleavys designed costumes for the film “The Black Swan.” Their work is in the permanent collections of several museums, including the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, where their “Fra Angelico Collection” is on view through Feb 5 in the Italian Renaissance gallery, alongside the artworks that inspired it.

Alden, who has done extensive opera and theater work, replaces Paul Curran, who reportedly had to step down from the production due to scheduling issues. Dudamel will be conducting

“Don Giovanni” for the four performances, May 18, 20, 24 and 26, at Walt Disney Concert Hall.

This will be the first of the LA Phil’s Mozart trilogy, for which the composer’s operas will be staged with set designs by architects, working with fashion designers. Up first is Gehry, who designed Disney Hall. “The Marriage of Figaro” is set for next year and “Cosi fan Tutte” will be performed in 2014. — MCT

Sisters Kate, right, and Laura Mulleavy are designers for Rodarte and are set to design costumes for the Los Angeles Philharmonic production of Mozart’s ‘Don Giovanni.’ — MCT

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Chinese sculptor Chen Wenling poses in front of his work “Childhood-Horizon” at Art Stage Singapore, an international contemporary art fair at the Marina Bay Sands Convention and Exhibition Centre yesterday. The fair is a major showcase of modern Asian works and draws buyers from around the world. — AFP

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ll you need to make a movie is a girl and a gun, the New Wave director Jean-Luc Godard once said. It’s also the formula for a best-selling book of portraits of American women and the guns in their lives. Saucily titled but seriously presented, “Chicks with Guns” is going into its third printing, after selling about 12,000 copies since its October 1 release-and no-one is more surprised than the photographer herself. “I’m absolutely astonished, and actually slightly perplexed,” Lindsay McCrum told AFP by telephone from San Francisco. “‘Publishers don’t want photography books’: I was told that repeatedly.”

Coffee-table books are indeed a niche market, typically selling a couple of thousand copies at best to lovers of fine art photography. Then again, they rarely get glowing reviews from the National Rifle Association (NRA). “Chicks with Guns” features more than 80 women of all ages, mostly from the southern and western states, posing with their coveted pistols, rifles and shotguns, often in pastoral settings reminiscent of a Gainsborough landscape. Many are hunters. Others are police officers or skeet shooters. Some keep a pistol by their beds for protection. None fit the comic-book stereotype of a bikini-clad pin-up sexing it up with a sub-machine gun.

Alongside the images are a few words from the subjects themselves. A surprising number fondly recall how their affection for guns was passed onto them by their fathers, grandfathers and, less frequently, their husbands. “I got interested in hunting because Dad is my hero,” says Laura of Livingston, Montana, pictured in a Stetson hat, leather chaps and a Winchester Model 94 carbine, with the snow-capped Rocky Mountains off in the distance. Beguiling in a red ballroom gown outside her gated residence, with a Belgian-made Auguste Francotte 20-gauge shotgun on her lap, Windi of Houston, Texas confesses: “I never wear perfume, but I love the smell of cordite.” “Look, I’d rather die defending myself than be a victim,” says Lake, bound to a wheelchair since childhood, gazing out the window of her rural California

home with a Smith and Wesson .357 Magnum and pet Chihuahua in her hand.

‘Who are these people?’

McCrum, a Connecticut native with no previous interest in guns, embarked on the project after a January 2006 article in the Economist magazine about a surge in the number of women hunters in America caught her eye. “There’s nothing dress-up. This is very authentic. This is very much who these people are,” said McCrum, who used a Mamiya 645AFD camera with a digital back and as much natural light as possible. “Once I learned the fact that there are 15 to 20 million (women) who have guns, I was just really curious: who are these people?

Because the numbers are really large, but the profile was really low.”

In a thumbs-up review that no doubt helped sales, the NRA’s American Rifleman magazine said: “These women aren’t Vogue models... Their guns are only a small extension of themselves, an addendum to their lifestyles.” Peggy Tartaro, editor of Women and Guns magazine, said “Chicks with Guns” in some ways recalled another, more autobiographical book, “She’s Got a Gun” by gun-owning Georgia photography professor Nancy Floyd, published in 2008. Just out in bookstores is “Girl Hunter” by Georgia Pellegrini, a petite young restaurant chef from New York who favors personally shooting the turkey and boar that winds up in her frying pan. Recipes are included.

Despite such myth-shattering tomes, the notion of women with guns remains a bit of a novelty. If anyone ever pitched the idea of a photo book about guys with guns, Tartaro said, “I don’t think you’d get the coffee-table treatment.” — AFP

An employee of Kramerbooks & Afterwords displays “Chicks with Guns” a new coffee table book by Lindsay McCrum. — AFP photos

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ndian writers dominate the shortlist of authors competing for Asia’s top English-language literary prize, with a debut Pakistani novelist also among those vying for the $30,000 award. An unprecedented seven authors, including three from India and writers from Pakistan, South Korea, Japan and China, will compete for the 2011 Man Asian Literary Prize after judges expanded the shortlist from its usual five. BBC correspondent Razia Iqbal, who heads the judging panel, said the shortlist had been expanded to accommodate the current strength of Asian contemporary fiction and “the imaginative power of the stories now being written about rapidly changing life” in the region.

This file photo shows retired Pakistani civil servant and author Jamil Ahmad reading a book at his home in Islamabad. — AFP “This power and diversity made it imperative for us to expand the 2011 Man Asian Literary Prize shortlist beyond the usual five books,” she said in a statement from London Tuesday. The prize, limited to Asian authors whose books are either written in English or translated into English, was founded in 2007 and shares the same sponsor as the Man Booker Prize, among the world’s top literary awards. The seven shortlisted books include Rahul Bhattacharya’s “The Sly Company of People Who Care”. Set in Guyana, it chronicles a man’s decision to give up his job and travel to escape his humdrum life. Bhattacharya, an Indian cricket journalist, said his shortlisting was a welcome surprise akin to finding money in the street. “I am trying to block the idea from my mind that such a prize exists, leave alone thinking whether I will win it,” he told AFP in New Delhi. “Just being nominated is a huge bonus.” Another shortlisted work is “Rebirth” by Indian doctor and author Jahnavi Barua, about a young woman faced with an uncertain marriage and portraying the bond between a mother and her unborn child. “Indian writing in English has always been strong, but Asian writing both in English and in other languages is very strong at the moment with writers ranging across topics and lots of young authors emerging,” Barua told AFP. Amitav Ghosh’s historical epic “River of Smoke”, the second volume of a planned trilogy, charts the storm-tossed journey of a convict ship from Calcutta into China’s crowded harbors. The three Indian authors will compete against “The Wandering Falcon”, the debut by Islamabadbased author Jamil Ahmad set in the border areas of Pakistan, Iran and Afghanistan in the decades before the rise of the Taliban. As a member of the Civil Service of Pakistan, Ahmad was posted in Pakistan’s embassy in Kabul before and during the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979. —AFP