20 Feb 2012

CR IP TI ON BS SU

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2012

www.kuwaittimes.net

RABIA ALAWAL 28, 1433 AH

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Kuwait National Day

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Opposition MPs meet to set Assembly priorities Salafists call for abolishing bank interest

Max 18º Min 07º High Tide 11:40 & 22:21 Low Tide 04:42 & 16:22

By B Izzak

KUWAIT: (Left) Minister of Information Sheikh Mohammad Mubarak Al-Sabah (left) meets Kuwait Times Editor-in-Chief Abd Al-Rahman Al-Alyan (center) and Deputy Editor-in-Chief Dr Ziad Al-Alyan yesterday to discuss the role of the media in Kuwait. During a visit to the Kuwait Times’ offices yesterday, the minister stressed on the importance of the media in ensuring security in the country and called on it to be responsible. (Right) Information Ministry Undersecretary Sheikh Salman Sabah Al-Salem Al-Hmoud Al-Sabah (second left) is seen along with the attendees after the meeting. — Photos by Yasser Al-Zayyat (See Page 2)

in the

news

UAE to naturalise ‘foreign’ children DUBAI: The president of the United Arab Emirates has issued a decree granting citizenship to more than 1,000 children of Emirati women married to foreigners, the official WAM news agency reported yesterday. “President Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed AlNahayan has issued decrees granting citizenship to 1,117 children of UAE women married to foreigners who satisfied requirements for citizenship,” WAM reported. The children will receive full citizenship when they reach the age of 18, the agency said.

Most Arab countries link nationality to blood relation from the father’s side, disenfranchising women who face various forms of gender discrimination across the region.

SAKHIR, Bahrain: Sheikh Salman bin Isa AlKhalifa (right), acting CEO of Bahrain International Circuit, and Samer Majali, CEO of Gulf Air, address journalists yesterday at the Bahrain International Circuit. — AP

Bahrain Formula 1 tickets go on sale MANAMA: Bahrain Grand Prix officials began selling tickets yesterday for April’s Formula One race in the Gulf kingdom, the latest sign the government is determined to hold the race despite ongoing protests. Bahrain’s season-opening race last year was canceled because of the unrest. This year’s race is scheduled for April 22 and F1’s governing body FIA has insisted the event will go ahead. There have been lingering doubts, though, over the viability of holding the race, given the continued political unrest that has paralyzed parts of the capital Manama. Along with the ticket launch, officials announced this year’s slogan: Unif1ed-One Nation in Celebration.

Suicide bomber kills 20 at Baghdad police academy

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KUWAIT: The opposition “majority” yesterday agreed to set its priorities for the current National Assembly term and appointed a seven-man committee to prepare a list of the most pressing issues along with the dates of discussion, MP Mohammad Al-Dallal said. All blocs and independent MPs who are part of the opposition group of 35 MPs were asked to submit their proposals within two days to the coordination committee which will finalize the issues before Thursday, said Dallal, who hosted the opposition meeting attended by 33 MPs. The coordination committee comprises of MPs Jamaan Al-Harbash, Musallam Al-Barrak, Waleed AlTabtabaei, Ammar Al-Ajmi, Bader Al-Dahoom, Adel AlDamkhi and Abdullatif Al-Ameeri, who represent various groups making up the opposition. Dallal said the discussions also focused on political reforms and the youth-sponsored Kuwait charter 2012 that has already been adopted by MP Faisal Al-Yahya, considered the youth’s representative in the Assembly. The opposition also agreed to submit proposals to form two parliamentary probe committees into the corruption scandal involving former MPs and the allegations that the former prime minister transferred public funds into his private foreign bank accounts. About 11 former and two current MPs were interrogated by the public prosecution ahead of the parliamentary elections over Continued on Page 13

Kuwaiti couple handed death for killing maid

By Ben Garcia

Iran wants talks under spectre of possible war Oil sales to France, UK halted TEHRAN: Iran is to host a highlevel team from the UN nuclear watchdog today as part of efforts to defuse dire international tensions over its atomic activities through dialogue. But other words being spoken in Israel, the United States and Britain - and Iran’s defiant moves to boost its nuclear activities - underlined the prospect of possible Israeli military action against the Islamic republic. Iran also signalled yesterday that it is ready to hit back hard at sanctions threatening its economy, by announcing it has halted its limited oil sales to France and Britain.

Continued on Page 13

TEHRAN: An Iranian man fills his motorcycle with fuel at a petrol station in central Tehran yesterday. — AFP

NYPD monitored Muslim students NEW YORK: The New York Police Department monitored Muslim college students far more broadly than previously known, at schools far beyond the city limits, including the elite Ivy League colleges of Yale and the University of Pennsylvania, AP has learned. Police talked with local authorities about professors 480 km away in Buffalo and even sent an undercover agent on a whitewater rafting trip, where he recorded students’ names and noted in police intelligence files how many times they prayed.

Detectives trawled Muslim student

Syria clamps down on capital after defiance call

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websites every day and, although professors and students had not been accused of any wrongdoing, their names were recorded in reports prepared for Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly.

Asked about the monitoring, police spokesman Paul Browne provided a list of 12 people arrested or convicted on terrorism charges in the United States and abroad who had once been members of Muslim student associations, which the NYPD referred to as MSAs. Jesse Morton, who this month pleaded Continued on Page 13

Whitney Houston buried in New Jersey

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KUWAIT: The Criminal Court sentenced a Kuwaiti couple to death yesterday after they were convicted of the first degree murder of their Filipina housemaid. “This sentence is a testimony of justice and in line with all religious canons that call for punishment of criminals,” said the victim’s lawyer Sheikha Fawziya AlSabah in her first public statement following the court’s ruling.

In mid-July 2010, 34-year-old Asria Samad Abdul was tortured by her employers before being run over several times by a car.

After their arrest, the couple confessed they mistreated the maid daily and when they feared she would die, they took her to an uninhabited area in Kabd and crushed her to death under their vehicle to give an impression that it was a hit-and-run accident.

Police later found out that the couple had earlier mistreated several other housemaids.

Sheikha Fawziya said she would demand for a “large financial compensation for the victim’s children who became orphaned as a result of this misfortune”. “The victim came to Kuwait looking for a better life, but her fate led her to two criminals who murdered her and disposed her body in the desert for no crime she committed,” she said. The lawyer stressed she will continue representing the victim’s children in the case until they obtain the compensation she is demanding for. The couple has the right to appeal the sentence.

“We were confident on the impartiality of the Kuwaiti justice system and the capability of Sheikha Fawziya Al-Sabah to uphold justice for the late Asria Abdul,” Rea Oreta, Philippine Vice Consul to Kuwait, said in a statement, adding that she hopes that the case would further strengthen the resolve of Filipino Overseas Workers to fight for their rights.

Boxers brawl inside and outside the ring MUNICH: Heavyweight boxer Dereck United Kingdom, although the whereChisora was released without charge yes- abouts of Haye are unknown. terday after an astonishing press confer“Munich-based detectives are investience brawl with bitter British gating allegations of grievous rival David Haye, who he bodily harm and threatening threatened to shoot. Chisora, behaviour by Chisora,” said a who had been defeated by spokesman for Munich police. defending champion Vitali “They are also investigating Klitschko in Saturday’s WBC Chisora’s trainer and Haye for heavyweight title clash here, assault. Both Chisora and his was detained by police, along coach were arrested at Munich with trainer Don Charles, at airport and have given stateMunich airport as he was ments, they have also named preparing to board a plane legal representation. “After conDereck Chisora home. The pair gave statesideration, prosecutors decided ments, but were released yesterday to release them at 17.45 evening and allowed to return to the Continued on Page 13

Azarenka beats Stosur to clinch Qatar Open

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MONDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2012

LOCAL

Info minister visits Kuwait Times

Surprise offer for Wataniya prepaid customers

KUWAIT: Minister of Information Sheikh Mohammad Mubarak Al-Sabah visited Kuwait Times’ offices yesterday and met Editor-in-Chief Abd Al-Rahman Al-Alyan and Deputy Editor-in-Chief Dr Ziad Al-Alyan to discuss the role of the media in Kuwait. The minister stressed on the importance of the media in ensuring security in the country and called on it to be responsible. Information Ministry Undersecretary Sheikh Salman Sabah Al-Salem Al-Hmoud Al-Sabah was among the attendees. — Photos by Yasser Al-Zayyat

KUWAIT: Wataniya is always looking for innovative ways to surprise its customers. Exciting incentives, valuable prizes and wide variety of offers always give customers something new to look forward to. Very soon Wataniya is going to launch another promotion which is designed for prepaid customers. The new promotion promises to engage its customers with a wide range of prizes which they can benefit Abdulaziz Al-Balool from.

The surprise offer will entertain and engage prepaid customers with an interactive game and Wataniya aims to reward its customers with prizes worth thousands of dinars. This exclusive offer will be launched within a few short weeks and will last for two months. All prepaid customers will be able to participate and will be eligible to win prizes.

Wataniya’s Public Relations Director, Abdulaziz Al-Balool is excited about this new offer and said, “At Wataniya, our goal is to create experiences that are memorable and interactive. We are a telecommunication company that wants to add value to our customer’s life by offering them services that go beyond the mobile. We have recently launched our GiveKuwait campaign to empower our local customers.

Now we want to do something special for our prepaid subscribers and this new surprise offer was tailored for them.”

Wataniya’s objective is to enrich customer experience and it will continue to find out-of-the-box ideas that exceed customer expectations. Presently Wataniya is offering a variety of Smartphone offers, BlackBerry plans and corporate solutions that are tailored to suit its wide customer base.

Citizens, residents urged to stand by Syrian people Ambassador predicts regime’s fall KUWAIT: General supervisor of the charitable authority to relieve the pains of Syrian people Dr Ajeel Al-Nashmi has urged citizens and residents to stand by their fellow Syrians, who fled their homes in fear of violence and killings taking place in their country. Al-Nashmi said in a press statement yesterday that the authority has launched this humanitarian campaign for the relief of the Syrian people with the blessing of His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah AlAhmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah to provide relief assistance to the victims of the ongoing events in Syria.

He stressed the need that everyone pitches in for the relief of their brothers and sisters who are subjected to brutal attacks without mercy, adding that thousands have fled to the border areas to escape the repercussions of this war.

“The affected people of Syria are appealing to your conscience to work to alleviate their suffering and heal their bleeding wounds by extending a helping hand after everyone there has been affected,” he added.

Meanwhile, the French ambassador to Kuwait, Nada Yafi, said the fall of the Syrian regime cannot be predicted, but it will happen sooner or later. “Remaining silent on the Syrian bloodshed is unacceptable,” she asserted. Yafi made the remarks during a camp held by the Kuwait National Petroleum Company (KNPC), attended by ambassadors invited by Kuwait’s Foreign Ministry.

Iranian ambassador, Rohullah Qahramani, called upon the Bahraini government to “respect human rights and avoid discrimination between Sunnis and Shiites”. He described spec-

ulation about a potential war in the region as “media propaganda”.

Iraqi ambassador, Mohammad Bahrulolom, said Iraqi Foreign Minister, Hoshyar Zebari, will visit Kuwait within days. He will hand over an official invitation to His Highness the Amir, Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah, to participate in the Arab Summit scheduled to occur in Baghdad late next month.

The camp featured an open day, including several activities in which diplomats and their family members participated. The open day was organized by the Foreign Ministry’s social and sports committee, led by ambassador Ali AlKhalid.

“This activity is held for the first time in order to incorporate diplomats in Kuwait’s national celebrations”, Al-Khalid said.

Delegation of British businessmen visits IBS KUWAIT: The Lord Mayor of the City of London, Alderman David Wooton and a delegation of British businessmen, bankers and investors visited the Institute of Banking Studies (IBS) - Kuwait’s premier financial services sector training body. They met with Prof. Yaqoub Alrefaei the Director of the IBS and the IBS management in the presence of Emad Al Abalany- Assistant General ManagerHuman Resources Division- National Bank of Kuwait.

The visit focused on how the UK financial services sector’s experience and expertise could be leveraged to the benefit of the Kuwait banking sector.

In particular discussion centered on the IBS’ Kuwaiti Graduates Development Program and how recent and future internships of participants in the UK may be best utilized to build networks and foster relationships between UK and Kuwait banks and bankers.

Prof. Yaqoub Alrefaie, Director expressed the appreciation of the Kuwaiti banking sector to the Lord Mayor and the delegation for their dedication and drive for deeper relationships and support of development.

Arabian Horse show kicks off KUWAIT: Under the sponsorship of His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, the 1st National Arabian Horse Championship Show kicked off on Saturday at “Bait Al-Arab” stables headquarters.

His Highness was represented at the event by the First Deputy Premier and Interior Minister Sheikh Ahmad AlHumoud Al-Jaber Al-Sabah.

The Amir’s representative was greeted upon his arrival by Chairman of the Equestrian Club Sheikh Dhari Fahad AlSabah, Chairman of the Arabian Horses Committee Sheikha Sara Fahad Al-Sabah, Chairman of the organizing committee Mohammad Jasem Al-Marzouq, and members of the committee.

After the customar y star t with the National Anthem and a recitation from the Holy Quran, the Amir’s envoy to the event

addressed the audiences. He said the level of organization of the championship was praiseworthy and befitting its timing, as it coincides with the State of Kuwait’s national holidays and as we mark the sixth anniversar y of His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah assuming his post as the country’s 15th Amir.

The First Deputy Premier and Interior Minister Sheikh Ahmad Al-Humoud AlJaber Al-Sabah wished the participants good luck and the guests and audiences a pleasant time, while also praising the great professionalism of Bait Al-Arab stables.

The actual show followed before the judging panel, and the Amir’s representative honored the winners with their awards.

First place went to Abdulla Salem AlSdairawi, second was Khalid bin Sheker, and third was Burhan Asan Bakir. — KUNA

Arab anti-terrorism meeting begins Youths plan protest in front of Parliament KUWAIT: Youths are planning to hold a protest on 28th February in front of the National Assembly, informed sources revealed.

The gathering is to protest the detention of those who broke into Al-Watan television channel and sending the stateless residents among them to cour t. The youths will demand during the protest that all of the accused are either sent to cour t or be released.

“We are with the application of the law, even the families of the detainees are with the law in the case of Al-Watan Television.

But it is painful that the government let all these things pile up and did not deal with them,” said MP Musallam Al-Barrak.

“Therefore we demand MPs issue a press release, during the meeting scheduled in the Diwan of MP Mohammad Al-Dalal, which refuses dual dealing in the application of the law and ignoring social justice. —Al-Anbaa

KUWAIT: Kuwait Fire Services Directorate Director, Maj Gen Jassim Al-Mansouri and the manager of the Al-Shaheen Engineering Consultants exchange documents yesterday after signing an agreement to build Ali Sabah Al-Salem fire station.

CAIRO: A group of Arab League experts on combating terrorism held a meeting here yesterday, headed by Egyptian Assistant Foreign Minister Ambassador Ashraf Mohsen and the participation of representatives of the Arab League and specialized ministerial councils.

The meeting is attended by experts representing the ministries of justice, interior and foreign affairs of Jordan, the UAE, Tunisia, Algeria, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Iraq, Oman, Palestine, Qatar, Kuwait, Lebanon, Egypt, Morocco and Mauritania. Mohsen told reporters that the participants discussed ways of strengthening Arab cooperation in the fight against terrorism within the framework of the rule of law and Arab human rights, leading to ward off the threat of terrorism from Arab communities.

He added that the meeting discussed how to benefit from Arab expertise in combating terrorism and establishing security in the communities.

The meeting reached a number of recommendations on the topics that were discussed in the promotion of Arab cooperation in the field of legislative and security capacity-building to combat terrorism, as well as anti-money laundering and terrorism financing.

He pointed out that the meeting also discussed an Iraqi memorandum on the impact of terrorism on society, in addition to a Lebanese memo on the factors helping to spread extremist ideas and terrorism in the Arab world and ways to eliminate them.

Meanwhile, the Arab League held an extraordinary meeting to formulate the Arab stance of the latest developments in wartorn Somalia. “There is a need for Arab coordination for overcoming the humanitarian, security and economic crisis in the Arab League member Somalia,” Arab League Secretary General Nabil Al-Arabi said in his speech before the meeting held here at the level of representatives of member states.

Al-Arabi added that Arabs should offer all logistic and financial help for African Union forces in Somalia and raising its number from 9,000 to 18,000 to spread security in across the Horn of African nation. He also urged the world to help Somalia government successfully complete the transitional period and form a permanent government. The Arab vision for resolving the conflict will be presented in Somalia Contact Group meeting, to be held in London next Thursday. The vision will include a number of recommendations for supporting Somalia. — KUNA

KUWAIT: First Deputy Premier and Interior Minister Sheikh Ahmad Al-Humoud AlJaber Al-Sabah, Sheikha Sara Fahad Al-Sabah, Sheikh Dhari Fahad Al-Sabah and other officials at the National Arabian Horse Championship Show.

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2012

local

Kuwait to privatize power, water desalination plants No constitutional amendment now KUWAIT: The Cabinet will refer a recommendation to the Parliament to privatize power plants and water desalination stations in Kuwait, in addition to the Consumer Affairs Department stated a recent report quoting senior Ministry of Electricity and Water (MEW) officials. Speaking on condition of anonymity, sources said that the Cabinet approved this proposal before the new Cabinet was formed, adding that the proposal is an updated version of a privatization project that was previously discussed by the Parliament’s Public Services Committee.

Assuring that this project would “remove huge burden off of the ministr y ’s shoulders,” sources explained that the MEW was encouraged to privatize all of the state’s power plants after the Parliament passed a law to establish shareholding companies to build mega projects. Sources predict that Al-Shuaibah and East Doha power plants may be privatized first.

If the project succeeds, the MEW will be able to focus on other departments as most of its budget

is spent on production and maintenance projects. They added that privatizing Consumer Affairs Departments help improve the ministry’s efforts in collecting bills.

Most Islamists believe that it is currently unsuitable to propose amendments to Article 2 of the Constitution, states a report published yesterday (Sunday) based on a statement obtained from four leading Islamist MPs. “Most Islamists believe that a constitutional amendment is not necessary when the article in its present form does not prevent proposing Islamic-oriented laws,” read the Al-Qabas report which kept the identity of four MPs anonymous. The proposed amendment calls for amending Article 2 of the Constitution to make Sharia law the only source of legislation instead. However, the Islamists agree that they need to avoid creating tensions and focus on achieving political reform and improvement of living conditions, sources said. They did not rule out the possibility of some members

insisting on giving amendment top priority, which could create some issues. Meanwhile, MP Khalid Al-Sultan clarified that his decision to adopt paper-based voting instead of electronic voting for the speaker ’s post because he was ‘informed’ “that the voting system could be manipulated to alter the results.” Al-Sultan, who led the session as the oldest of elected parliamentarian, announced plans to launch probe into the matter, reported Al-Qabas.

At least 35 MPs were to meet today at dewaniya of MP Mohammad Al-Dallal to outline priorities to focus on in their parliamentary work. In the meantime, MP Dr Waleed Al-Tabtabaei announced that around 40 MPs will sign a recommendation to approve the establishment of a confederate union for Gulf Cooperation Council countries. Al-Tabtabae added that 40 lawmakers have already signed recommendations to recognize the Syrian National Council as the official representative of the Syrian people. — Al-Rai

Cabinet holds weekly session KUWAIT: The Cabinet held at Sief Palace yesterday its weekly meeting chaired by His Highness the Prime Minister Sheikh Jaber Al-Mubarak Al-Hamad Al-Sabah.

Following the meeting, Deputy Prime Minister, Foreign Minister and State Minister for Cabinet Affairs Sheikh Sabah Al-Khaled AlHamad Al-Sabah said in a statement that the Cabinet reviewed content of the speech of His Highness the Amir at the opening of the first ordinary session of the 14th legislative term last Wednesday, which included directives and wise advices, through which HH the Amir reiterated commitment to established national principles, fostering peaceful and democratic practice, protecting national unity, respect of law and dedication to work.

HH the Amir also stressed in his speech his categorical rejection of any violation of the law or try to take rights by hand, reiterating that Kuwait had and would remain a state of law and institutions.

HH the Amir also urged the government to take all necessar y means to preserve security and stability of the homeland, stressing the need that the Cabinet adopt and consolidate the issue of national unity, combat sedition and division and to harness various media outlets to take up their noble message without deviation or instigation, and to urge everyone to overcome repercussions of the previous period and devote to work to build the

homeland and achieve ambitions of the Kuwaiti people.

The Cabinet expressed its deep appreciation for the proper guidelines of HH the Amir, which reflected HH’s keenness to follow up Kuwait’s issues and concerns of the citizens.

The Cabinet tasked its various ministerial committees to interpret these guidelines into a practical reality, so as to achieve national objectives.

It also reviewed contents of the speech delivered by HH the Prime Minister at the opening of the first ordinary session of the 14th legislative term of the National Assembly, in which he asserted that the government’s hands are stretched with cooperation with the National Assembly to address the core issues and address the existing problems, as well as achieving its progress and prosperity. HH also stressed that Kuwait is waiting for everyone to be at the level of responsibility and live up to the challenges of domestic reform, achieve comprehensive development and face the serious international developments.

The Cabinet then discussed the principles to be relied on in the preparation of the government’s action plan, in light of the directives of HH the Amir, and perceptions announced by HH the Prime Minister and in line with the approved development plan.

The Cabinet then reviewed the letters addressed to HH the Amir

from the President of Germany Christian Wulff and Senegalese President Abdoulaye Wade, tackling bilateral relations and ways to boost cooperation due to the strong ties between Kuwait and their countries.

The Cabinet also reviewed a letter addressed to HH the Amir from the Secretar y General of the International Telecommunications Union (ITU), Dr. Hamdoun Toure.

The letter is addressed to confirm the invitation of Qatari Sheikh Hamad Bin Khalifa Al-Thani to participate in Connect Arab Summit 2012, to be held in Doha next March.

Another letter was reviewed by the cabinet, is sent to HH the Amir from the founder and Chairman of Science and Technology in Society (STS) and Japan’s ex Finance Minister Koji Omi. It included a copy of the STS’s yearly declaration.

Furthermore, the Cabinet reviewed two letters sent to HH the Prime Minister from Princess Astrid, the daughter of Belgium’s Monarch, and Ali Othman Mohammad Taha, First Vice President of Sudan. Both letters tackled bilateral relations and ways to boost mutual cooperation in several fields.

The Cabinet then adopted the formation of committees, higher committees and specialized ministerial committees as a prelude to direct their responsibilities. It also discussed the latest political developments on local, regional and international levels.— KUNA

KUWAIT: Box Hill College Kuwait organized a two-day exhibition to mark national and liberation day at their compound in Abu-Halifa.— Photos by Joseph Shagra

BHCK holds exhibition to mark National/Liberation Days

By Ben Garcia KUWAIT: Brimming with patriotic fervor, a two-day exhibition began yesterday at the Box Hill College Kuwait (BHCK) to celebrate Kuwait’s National and Liberation Days. The event showcases photographs and relics from Kuwait’s past. Besides students, Dar Al-Athar Al-Islamiyah and the Kuwait’s House for National Works were among those that participated in the event.

Nadia Kawash, Student Affairs Supervisor said that the exhibition is being held to remind students about

Kuwait’s history and the national days celebrations.

“The exhibition showcases not just the creativity of our students but also other non-governmental agencies which care about Kuwait’s heritage and our past,” she said. Students exhibited some of works/products including the display of bedoon tents, the things you see in a tent, from Arab traditional cloak [bisht] to tea pots and tea-cups [stikan], home-made containers, baskets and other traditional equipment. The event was inaugurated by Dr Abdulrahman Al-Shayji, BHCK Chairman and Dr Ali Al-Refai, the college’s President.

KUWAIT: Romanian Ambassador Vasilesofineti visited Kuwait Times and discussed matters of mutual interest with Editor-in-Chief Abdrahman Al-Alyan.

Muwaizri’s plans KUWAIT: Minister of State for Housing and National Assembly Affairs, Shuaib Al-Muwaizri, said he will do his best in serving “my people and my country”. He said he does not promise any solutions before reviewing the housing issue with leaders of the Housing Care Authority, before setting about the steps to be taken to find a suitable solution to this issue.

Missing workers to be reported to Migration General Dept KUWAIT: The Ministry of Interior plans to adopt a new mechanism regarding reports about missing laborers, by which investigations are handled by the Migration General Department instead of the Criminal Investigations General Department. The proposed mechanism calls for each report about an absconding expatriate worker made to the Ministry of Social Affairs and Labor to be filed with the Migration General Department.

The case would then be scheduled for trial, said a senior ministry source in an anonymous press statement, as he is not authorized to speak about the proposal before it is made official.

The current mechanism calls for an employer to report a missing worker at the Labor Disputes Department in the Ministry of Social Affairs and Labor (MSAL). The MSAL then carries out a field investigation before giving the employer a warrant, based on which he can file a case at the police station nearest to his company. An employer cannot press charges against an employee who does not have a valid residency or already left Kuwait. However, the new mechanism aids the filing of misdemeanor charges by which cases can be resolved in court. — Al-Rai

News

in brief

KD 100,000 project KUWAIT: Minister of Communications, Engineer Salem Al-Othaina, said total costs of new projects expected to be finalized in the 2011/2012 budget amount to KD 3.6 million. This covers all ministry projects this year. Al-Othaina said the MoC has already tendered some of these projects and others are under way by local and international companies, especially typical projects which are a necessity and on the MoC agenda. Al-Othaina said current projects aim at expanding the international exchange to develop international calls and increase the capacity linking Kuwait with other countries, the mobile telephone companies and facilitate international calling. He said the state has allocated KD 100,000 for this project, and it will be executed over a number of years.

MoH to supply ambulances KUWAIT: Ministry of Health(MoH) will supply ambulances and medical teams to government organizations and the private sector after office hours.

Ambulances will be stationed at areas where public events like marathons and ceremonies, open days, sporting events and other activities are held. They will be provided at the request of the aforementioned organizations. In addition to ambulances, a mobile clinic, a doctor and nursing staff will be present to attend to any emergency situation.

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2012

LOCAL

SUV driver, motorcyclist killed in road accidents Policemen hurt in hot chase KUWAIT: The driver at the helm of a Sports Utility Vehicle(SUV) was killed in a road mishap that left two children and a domestic worker injured. The accident took place along Sixth Ring Road involving the SUV and a dump truck that was fully loaded with gravel. The impact of the crash caused the SUV to flip over and be trapped in a mound of gravel that fell from the truck. Rescuers, paramedics and police rushed to the scene as soon as the accident was reported. They rescued two children and an Asian domestic worker from the car. The driver, identified as the children’s father was pronounced dead on the scene. The rescue mission was hindered by many obstacles and the victims could not be freed easily after being buried under tons of gravel, as well as crowding.

Meanwhile, a motorcyclist died after his bike collided into a vehicle near the Fifth Ring Road.

Police and paramedics rushed to

the scene in response to an emergency call which reported the accident. The motorcyclist, a citizen in his thirties, was pronounced dead on the scene. The car’s driver emerged unscathed.

An investigation was opened into the case.

Policemen injured Two police officers were injured in an accident that took place while chasing a drug dealer.

The detectives were assigned to monitor a suspected drug dealer who sped away in an attempt to escape arrest. In the chase that ensued, officers’ patrol vehicle flipped over. They were admitted to Amiri hospital while back up police began a hunt for the fugitive.

Attempted murder An Asian man was arrested in Fahaheel shortly after stabbing his roommate in a fight that took place in an apartment. The victim was found bleeding heavily from

a stab wound in his abdominal area, and was admitted to the Intensive Care Unit of Al-Adan Hospital in a critical condition.

Investigations led police to apprehend his roommate, who admitted to attacking the victim with a kitchen knife. He remains in custody and faces attempted murder charges.

play was found at a scene where a dead body lay. Investigators reached the scene with security officers after receiving a report about a dead body found in an apartment. Police identified the victim as a Yemeni national. The body was taken for an autopsy to determine the cause and time of death. Investigations are ongoing.

Fatal fall A young man, identified as a GCC national died after falling from a building in Salmiya. The victim reportedly fell down an empty lift shaft from the height of the building’s third floor. His body was later found by the watchman. The victim succumbed to fatal injuries and his body was removed for an autopsy. An investigation was launched into the case.

Suicide attempt Medical staff from AlFarwaniya Hospital saved the life of a Nepalese woman by performing an emergency gastric lavage procedure after she swallowed an overdose of prescription medication in an attempt to commit suicide.

Paramedics rushed to a home in Ardiya where a family reportedly found their domestic worker lying unconscious in her room with empty medication bottles strewn about. Police launched an investigation into the case after her condition stabilized. — Al-Rai, Al-Anbaa, Al-Watan

Foul play Criminal investigators launched a probe into a homicide case filed after evidence of foul

Mongolia expanding investment, ties with Kuwait

Best Visual Award for ABK KUWAIT: Al-Ahli Bank of Kuwait (ABK) was awarded “Best Visual Award Retail Banks” in the Banking Web Awards 2011 Competition for its website www.eahli.com, at the Annual 2011 Banking Web Awards ceremony, held at the Phoenicia Intercontinental Hotel in Beirut recently.

This honor recognizes ABK’s continued endeavor to deliver valuable e-channel solutions and directly acknowledges the high visual quality and user-friendly structure of ABK’s retail website.

Othman Tawfiqi, head of Delivery Channels, accepted the award on behalf of the bank and remarked “this award demonstrates and recognizes ABK’s

efforts to deliver multi-channel customer communication solutions, which is a core part of the Bank’s 2012 strategy and beyond’. He went on to add “Since we live in a technology driven times, serving customers efficiently online means delivering customer convenience, which emphasizes our concept of ‘Banking at Home’. The service is not only time saving, it is also one of the safest and most confidential routes to banking from the convenience of your own home.’

Also present from ABK at the prestigious event were Mohammed Talib Behbehani, Area Manager, Sawsan Abdullah Ali, eBanking manager and Salah A. Al-Mahdi, Web Administrator.

Cold raises food prices, chicken cheaper, sugar prices not sweet KUWAIT: The global food price index is up by two percent, the first rise since July 2011 said the Kuwait Foodstuff Merchants and Manufacturers Union yesterday.

In spite of the rise, current prices are seven percent less when compared to the same period last year, said Chairman Abdallah Al-Baijan. The Kuwait Foodstuff Merchants and Manufacturers Union compares reports on international and domestic food markets, he explained.

Sugar faces the highest rise globally, followed by cooking oil, grain, dairy products and meat. Most grain recorded a 2.3 percent rise in January, while rice maintained its level. Corn, however, rose by six percent, affected by fears over the ability of South American producers to balance the global supply and demand.

Wheat prices rose by 1.5 percent as a result of the extremely cold weather globally, particularly for major producers Russia. The freezing conditions are impeding large exports from the coun-

try. Sugar also rose considerably, by 2.3 percent, due to its production being negatively affected by the warm weather in Brazil, the number one producing nation in the world.

Weather conditions have also raised the price of cooking oils by three percent, particularly palm and soya. The production of both has decreased due to the global winter season.

Meat witnessed insignificant rises last month, which did not exceed 0.5 percent. Chicken prices decreased by one percent as a result of the improving value of the US dollar against the currencies of producers like Brazil.

Beef maintained its high levels, reflecting the continuing weak supply.

Lamb and mutton continue to witness a weak demand and are less expensive.

Dairy product prices rose by 2.5 percent after a five-month consecutive dip.

The rise comes due to the weakness in the supply of butter and cheese, primarily in the United States. —KUNA

BEIJING: Mongolia is receiving massive foreign investment inflows and is developing bilateral ties with countries like Kuwait and other GCC members to foster economic links in a time when the developed economies are treading water, the government-affiliated Kuwait China Investment Company (KCIC) said yesterday.

Mining has opened the doors for investments in many of the economy’s sectors that are still quite underdeveloped, KCIC said in its weekly analysis.

Mongolia’s economic potential is enormous and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) forecasts an average growth of 14 percent for the next five years.

When most of the world’s economies are facing slowing growth, and Europe a likely recession, Mongolia emerges as one of the few countries that will grow at a staggering pace, it said.

“In 2011, we expect its economy to have grown 11.6 percent year over year, higher than 2010s 6.4 percent and its highest annual rate in 21 years.”

The wealth of coal, copper, gold, silver, and other minerals are source of 80 per cent of Mongolia’s yearly exports, and expected to grow to 95 per cent.

Soon, Mongolia will be one of the top five producers of copper in the world. “Over the next few years, the country will need to rapidly develop its infrastructure, financial sector, real estate, and other industries to meet the growing needs of a nation on the path to becoming one of the richest in the world (in per capita terms),” it said.

This bright future, however, is not without serious potential risks that stem from an overly rapid growth driven by resource-exploitation, the firm said.

“Mongolia’s democratic government will undergo elections in 2012 and populist movements have been pledging the nationalization of mining projects that had been promised to be open to foreign investment,” it said. “There is a lot of doubt as to whether the government will be committed to spending wisely, “ it said, adding that the Asian nation still faces the major task of steering its rapid growth and avoiding asset bubbles and high inflation.

The dependence on Chinese demand is also risky, it pointed out. “China has a growing domestic economy, but it is still susceptible to rapid declines in foreign demand, especially from the West, and the adverse effects would directly transfer to Mongolia.”

The nature of the mining industry, however, allows a certain level of stability, as investments in mines take several years of development and orders for resources tend to be large. Mongolia is a land of opportunity, but investors must be aware of the possible land mines along the way.

KCIC was founded in 2005 with a capital of KD 80 million by an Amiri Decree with a mandate to develop investment opportunities in Asia towards building an Asia focused asset management company.

The public company employs a team of specialists in markets in Asia and currently manages assets in excess of USD 600 million.

Key shareholders include Kuwait Investment Authority, the Sovereign Wealth Fund of Kuwait, National Investment Company, one of the leading investment banks in the Middle East, and Al Ghanim Industries, one of the largest conglomerates in the Middle East. — KUNA

Maintenance engineers inspect Entertainment City KUWAIT: A senior Touristic Enterprises Company(TEC) official met with a team of engineers representing a German maintenance company. It has been hired to supervise maintenance operations in Entertainment City. It is the second team to visit Kuwait in recent months as part of TEC’s plans to improve quality of rides at one of its major facilities in the country.

“Executive Vice President and Managing Director Khalid Al-Ghanim had instructed us to hire leading international companies to conduct studies on Entertainment City as well as periodic maintenance procedures,” said Meshar y Al-Sanousy Deputy Managing Director for Entertainment City Affairs to reporters after taking engineers on a tour around the facility. The TEC has signed contracts with TUV Rheinland and HAFEMA of

Germany to further improve quality standards and safety measures at the Entertainment

City, one of the oldest and largest leisure parks in the region.

KUWAIT: Drug authorities arrested a three member gang for using and dealing in drugs. The residence of the first suspect was stormed. He was found in the company of the second suspect, as she was using drugs with him. The two told police that a third suspect, a woman, runs the drug trade and that she has three residences. The woman was arrested and confessed to charges. — Photo by Hanan Al-Saadoun

Warning against use of foam sprays KUWAIT: The Ministry of Interior warned people celebrating Kuwait’s national anniversaries, in a week, against using foam sprays and water shooters on others, amid fear this could cause unnecessary brawls.

During the celebrations of the National Day, Liberation Day and the anniversary of the ascendance of HH the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, which fall on Feb 25 and 26, children are known to run about in the

streets — particularly Gulf Street and roads leading to it — spraying cars and passersby with foam and water.

This could cause severe accidents in addition to the stalling of traffic, acting chief spokesperson for the ministry, Col Adel Al-Hashash said in a statement.

The official also urged parents to prevent their children from sticking their heads out of car windows and sunroofs or sitting on top of the hood or the roof of vehicles. — KUNA

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2012

local Air traffic functions normally despite bad weather

KUWAIT: His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah receiving His Highness the Crown Prince Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah at Al-Seif Palace yesterday.

Kuwait marks sixth anniversary of Crown Prince’s oath of office Sheikh Nawaf ‘a successful leader’ KUWAIT: Kuwait marks the sixth anniversary today of His Highness the Crown Prince Sheikh Nawaf AlAhmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah taking oath of office after issue of Amiri Decree on Feb 7, 2006 with full parliament approval. The choice of nominee for this senior post was an unmistakably right one in view of the competence, traits, and qualifications of His Highness Sheikh Nawaf which satisfy the requirements set in the Kuwaiti Constitution. Sheikh Nawaf is a known figure of Kuwaiti development since independence, and his experience gave him a clear strategy and mode of action which puts all due stress on national solidarity and bolstering security and democracy while defending the country against foreign ploys and threat, as well as stressing moderation as guiding principle for human development.

The address Sheikh Nawaf made before parliament on his appointment also expressed his modesty. “I bow my head with both pride and humility before this great nation and its noble people, and the wise leadership of His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah,” he had remarked.

Sheikh Nawaf’s strength of character coupled with his strong ethics also served him well in all the tasks he assumed throughout his political career. Sheikh Nawaf started his career as Governor of Hawalli on Feb 12, 1962, and later served as interior minister as of March 19, 1978, then interior minister again from 1986 to 1988. He also served as minister of defense as of Jan 26, 1988, to return to the post in June 20, 1990. His other posts included that of minister of social affairs and labor as of April 20, 1991, and he was then appointed Chief of the National Guard, with Minister Status on Oct 16, 1994, then deputy premier and interior minister on July 13, 2003, and he then served as first deputy premier and minister of interior as of Oct 16, 2003.

His Highness created several specialized departments throughout his career, such as the elections department when he was interior minister and the legal contracts affairs department as minister of defense. As minister of social affairs and labor, Sheikh Nawaf ordered foundation of a hospital for patients and charges of the

social care department.

During the Iraqi occupation of 1990, Sheikh Nawaf exerted exceptional efforts that served the nation well at its time of trial. In addition to his strong leadership of the army, Sheikh Nawaf also played a great role in keeping up morale.

In belief of the goal of Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) integration, Sheikh Nawaf went out on a GCC tour in 2007, which took him to Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the UAE, and Bahrain. He went on another tour that same year with stops in Egypt, Syria, and Jordan where he exchanged views with top officials on dossiers of mutual interest and efforts to bring peace to the region.

Also in 2007, the crown prince held important meetings and met senior officials, local as well as foreign. He received Speaker of the Canadian House of Commons Peter Milliken, as well as Fujairah Crown Prince Mohammad bin Hamad AlSharqi, and Indian Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Ayah Ahmad. The officials discussed issues of mutual interest and means to bolster bilateral relations.

His Highness also paid his respects to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Saud family over the passing of crown prince and deputy premier and defense and aviation minister and inspector general prince Sultan bin Abdelaziz Al Saud.

Sheikh Nawaf enjoys the characteristics of a “successful leader” for his ample experiences which led him to achieve many accomplishments for the betterment of this country. This remark was made by Minister of Information Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah Al-Mubarak Al-Sabah; a day before marking the sixth anniversary of His Highness Sheikh Nawaf taking oath as Crown Prince, Feb 20. The Kuwaiti minister highlighted all efforts exerted by His Highness to attain security and stability for the Kuwaiti people. Sheikh Mohammad recalled that shortly after holding the office of Hawalli governor, His Highness was able to turn this city into a commercial and investment hub. His Highness also put great efforts in developing all facets of the country’s security apparatus to create a solid front to face any challenges threatening the country’s national

No smoking ban on shisha parlors KUWAIT: A recently-introduced smoking ban in public places, including restaurants, cafes and hotels, does not include shisha parlors, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry clarified yesterday.

Ali Al-Hajeri, ministry official, said the ban does not apply to designated smoking areas in cafes, restaurants and malls as long as these areas are separate from their immediate surroundings. — KUNA

unity. During his office as Minister of Interior, His Highness Sheikh Nawaf has been able to counter any terror cells activities that could disturb the peace of the country, he pointed out.

He concluded, that His Highness the Crown Prince is one of the country’s “loyal” men who has dedicated his time and efforts to sever the best interest of this nation.

Sheikh Nawaf brings in a unique blend of firmness and tolerance to all posts and tasks he assumes and his career is a long list of accomplishments and devotion, said Board Chairman and Director General of Kuwait News Agency Sheikh Mubarak Al-Duaij Al-Sabah, Sunday.

This came in a press statement marking the sixth anniversary of Sheikh Nawaf taking oath before the National Assembly as Crown Prince.

The KUNA chairman noted that the superior qualities Sheikh Nawaf showed as he assumed his duties greatly endeared him to people’s hearts. He added Sheikh Nawaf showed his leadership skills in all his posts, including as the governor of Hawalli, interior minister, defense minister, social affairs minister, and head of the National Guard. In each of these posts, he left a clear mark and achievement.

Among Sheikh Nawaf ’s special gifts is his calm amid adversity and trial, which he learned to a great degree through contact with and service alongside the late father Amir Sheikh Saad Al-Abdulla Al-Salem AlSabah and his elder brother the late Amir Sheikh Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah.

Sheikh Mubarak Al-Duaij also said the nomination of Sheikh Nawaf as Crown Prince reflects great trust and wisdom on the part of His Highness the Amir, and the Crown Prince has a long career of enviable service and accomplishment to his credit that he brings to his current duties.

Apart from great leadership, he brings in qualities such as modesty which endear him to his staff and those who work with him and inspire devotion in them as well. “History shall remember Sheikh Nawaf for his sincere and unfaltering efforts to bring prosperity and stability to the homeland and his fatherly care and attention to the needs of Kuwaiti nationals.” —KUNA

KUWAIT: The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) announced yesterday that air traffic functioned normally despite the bad weather conditions due to the dust storm passing over the country. Visibility at Kuwait International Airport (KIA) was more than 1, 200 meters, which allowed normal air traffic flow for departing and arriving flights, said Essam Al-Zamel, Operations Department Director.

The country is in the path of an air front which is stirring up dust, but the weather is expected to improve soon.

Meanwhile, the Kuwait Ports Authority announced yesterday that navigation at its ports was suspended due to low visibility.

Suleiman Al-Yahiya, Director of Marine Operations at Shuwaikh Port, said in a press statement that visibility declined to one mile, which paralyzed navigation. The halt was necessary to ensure the safety of the ships and piers.

He noted that three vessels were delayed entry into the port and they remain in a waiting area.

Another ship is ready to leave the port as soon as the weather improves.

Shuaib Ali, Assistant Director of Sea operations at Shuaiba port, said operations stopped at the port due to bad weather conditions. He said there are 10 ships waiting to enter the port once the weather clears.

Right to strike KUWAIT: Kuwait General Trade Union called upon the Justice, Awqaf and Islamic Affairs Minister, Jamal AlShehab, to respond to the demands of both ministries and find solutions for them through dialogue.

“The threat of minister Al-Shehab to punish employees in his two ministries is not the right path to stop their just demands,” the union stated.

Abdulrahman Al-Ghanim, Secretary General of the Union, said the union expressed fear and reservations towards the new Government, and the personalities known for toughness and rejection of dialogue. He said the statements by minister Al-Shehab confirmed their fears. “They speak about the resumption of the battle and taking it to even higher levels against his employees,” he said. —Al-Watan

Spanish official lauds Kuwait openness MADRID: Jose Manuel Lopez Rodrigo, Director of the Pluralism and Coexistence Foundation, praised the spirit of openness and moderation that characterize Kuwait and make it an important contributor to the process of peaceful coexistence around the world.

Rodrigo affirmed the importance of the positive role and effective contribution by the Kuwaiti Embassy in Spain. He praised embassy facilitation of the interests of Muslims in their lives, as well as its support to their involvement in Spanish society while preserving their Islamic identity. The Pluralism and Coexistence Foundation is a governmental organization created in 2004 by agreement with the Council of Ministers at the proposal of the Ministry of Justice, he added. — KUNA

KUWAIT: His Highness the Prime Minister Sheikh Jaber Al-Mubarak Al-Hamad Al-Sabah receiving the Head of Kuwait Transparency Society Salah Al-Ghazali and a number of its members at Seif Palace yesterday.

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MONDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2012

LOCAL kuwait digest

in my view

Role of new opposition

Religious tolerance in Middle East

By Mustafa Al-Sarraf he opposition, in multiparty political systems, is a minority in the Parliament whereas the majority forms the cabinet. As the opposition, the minority has the role of monitoring the majority’s performance. Conflicts between the majority and minority center around execution of national projects in fields that include the economy, education, social affairs, security, as well as local and foreign policy; with each party advocating what they believe is best for national interest.

In Kuwait, however, the story is completely different. The conflict between MPs and political blocs

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In Kuwait, however, the story is completely different. The conflict between MPs and political blocs in the Parliament is based on personal interests due to the lack of national programs presented during election campaigns by candidates or political groups. Furthermore, the lack of such programs leave voters to vote based on personal relations shared with candidates or as per sectarian or tribal backgrounds. Results of the 2012 elections clearly reflect this fact; as they produced a parliamentary majority dominated by figures with fundamentalist tribal or religious approach. in the Parliament is based on personal interests due to the lack of national programs presented during election campaigns by candidates or political groups. Furthermore, the lack of such programs leave voters to vote based on personal relations shared with candidates or as per sectarian or tribal backgrounds. Results of the 2012 elections clearly reflect this fact; as they produced a parliamentary majority dominated by figures with fundamentalist tribal or religious approach.

Kuwait’s parliament today is composed of conservative majority and a minority with moderate view. Therefore, the future political scene is set to feature conflicts not in executing national projects, but on how the nation is run; as one party looks to apply its conservative approach on state laws while the other seeks to maintain principles of the state.

The moderate minority has a duty to try and face attempts from the conservative majority to pass whatever regulations they couldn’t when they used to be a minority in the Parliament. This basically requires that the minority play the role of an active opposition if they wish to make sure that principles of democracy remain intact in Kuwait.

In the end, I would like to address voters with this question: Does the parliament election results really express how you wish to see the future of Kuwait which takes pride in its tolerant image? Or is it that you failed to assess repercussions of your decision because your judgment was clouded by certain aspects that made you overlook the political instability which stopped the country’s development? All I know is that you still have the ability to stop anyone from breaking the foundations of your state. — Al-Qabas

By Fouad Al-Obaid

fouad@kuwaittimes.net Twitter: @Fouadalobaid

I kuwait digest

Political stability? Yeah, right!

By Dr Hassan Abbas new parliamentary term has begun. Will the supporters. Their actions were reactions to the feelParliament be able perform free of tensions ing of being marginalized as a result of the previous this time? This is a wish we make at the begin- Cabinets’ performance.

I am not going to argue if tribal and Islamist lawning of every parliamentary term. We always hear statements asserting the importance of avoiding makers have the right to feel marginalized as a result pressure to focus on development in all fields. Soon of Sheikh Nasser’s policies, which is wrong, in their after the Parliament begins working, we end up bat- point of view. All I’m trying to say is that the case of tling political struggles that lead to parliamentary political instability that led to several Cabinets resigning was a direct result to the opposition bloc’s reacdissolution. tion to feeling This time around, oppressed. the Islamist majority in Corruption might have been the direct Either way, we can the Parliament has be optimistic about repeated calls for stareason behind parliamentary dissolucalls for political stability to allow the tions featured in recent years. The truth, bility that Islamist MPs development process however, is that corruption cases leadcurrently make. We to go forward. Will would have nothing their wish be realized? ing to such results are only used as a but utmost respect for Of course, such statefatal strike carried out by a party that Islamist MPs if their ments are good and is feels threatened by opponents. This is demands are accomsomething that everypanied by a national one can agree upon. clearly shown in the previous project in which none The problem lies in the Parliament. Tribal and Islamist MPs of the social catefact that political instacould not stand former premier Sheikh gories that form the bility was not only creKuwaiti society feels ated out of the feel Nasser Al-Mohammad and his supportneglected. If the parthat the development ers. Their actions were reactions to the liamentary majority process was deliberfeeling of being marginalized as a result adopts an approach ately deactivated, but that leads to social also because the of the previous Cabinets’ performance. categories feeling minority felt oppressed marginalized, this will and marginalized.

Corruption might have been the direct reason only lead to political tensions and public outrage. behind parliamentary dissolutions featured in recent Therefore, I say that it is hard to call for political stayears. The truth, however, is that corruption cases bility and announce plans to amend Article 2 of the leading to such results are only used as a fatal strike Constitution. The political situation in the country carried out by a party that feels threatened by oppo- simply will not know any stability when the nents. This is clearly shown in the previous Parliament’s majority adopts a policy that causes Parliament. Tribal and Islamist MPs could not stand social categories to become marginalized. I hope I’ve former premier Sheikh Nasser Al-Mohammad and his made my message clear. —Al-Rai

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kuwait digest kuwait digest

kuwait digest

henever social, sectarian, group or racial discrimination surfaces, we begin hearing calls to ‘protect national unity ’ that demands new legislations which fade away before appearing, onlt to disappear again. The problem cannot be ended by simply passing new laws as many exist without being enforced.

The problem is much deeper and demands serious study. This is so that they can be handled and solved starting at its roots without wasting time to emerge in different forms for different reasons.

Our social fabric has been adversely destabilized and destroyed over the past few years, which calls for a serious and responsible act , namely the government, political powers and NGOs who should all answer one very important question: What has made us socially fragmented? It did not exist twenty years ago.

Obviously, the answer to this question requires that the main reasons surrounding the issue be highlighted . The sectarian and secondary identities have been separated, with a total absence of the national identity and citizenship stated by the Constitution. We can then set a road map to enforce social integration and national solidarity that stems from providing equal opportunities, justice, equality, law enforcement, maintaining the advantages of racial and sectarian diversity and respecting them without violating general outlines.

Sustainable development or real national unity will never be achieved as long as divisions exist - it is impossible to combine all human efforts when a society is incoherent and divided in a way that can be easily utilized by any a foreign power that rejoices at our state of disintegration. They wait to interfere in our domestic affairs and destabilize our national security by transferring conflicts, which is highly dangerous and calls for joining all efforts to stop it before it’s too late! —Aljarida

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Al-Saadoun’s chair

An economic rescue plan

How to protect national unity?

By Dr Bader Al-Daihani

t saddens me to see the constant rise in intolerance toward people belonging to different faiths and beliefs.

The rise in sectarian strife in the Middle East is largely fueled by half-century of pitiful conflict between Israel and Palestine, pivotal to the ongoing geopolitical conflict. It has, time and again set our region ablaze. It is tragic to note that almost every ruler has used the excuse of an ongoing struggle in the holy-land as a pretext to maintaining the status quo. When it is no longer useful to mention Israel, today the Middle East fears Iranian dominance.

Pouring more fuel to an already tense situation, renewed calls for curbing religious freedoms are echoed from Abdullah Al-Salem Hall.

An MP has made clear his agenda to foster religious hate by barring any construction of new non-Islamic structures, and more somber. He has called for the destruction of already built edifices. It is tragic that such thoughts are being made public by a person who is entrusted to pass laws that have had a progressive outlook. What makes matters worse is the effect that such negativity has on our country and its perception. With no credible reasoning as to why we are unable to find a permanent solution to what is largely believed to be a 100,000-person dilemma the stateless in Kuwait are fellow Muslims. Instead of tackling these pressing issues, some MPs seem more interested in sowing the seeds of discord and confrontation, rather than on jumping onto the development bandwagon with a desire to work toward solving the pressing issues our nation faces.

On the issue of religious intolerance, it is not focused on inter-religious discord, rather the more painful intrareligious, multi-sect struggle that Islam today is faced with.

The growth in polarity between primarily Sunnis and Shiites is alarming, for both claim to be true believers, and as such both should cooperate to spread and live the peaceful message enshrined within our noble religion. I fear that today Islam is largely perceived as a bunch of backward thinking - and awkward looking individuals that are not able to stand for any credible issue. We are collectively weak. Our constant divisions are not helpful in addressing the many problems that the Middle East to be specific and wider Islamic World needs to be addressed and solved; between the Islamic World and the rest of the world in terms of socio-economic development.

Religion, at the end of the day, is a deeply personal issue. It is the relation between the individual and his creator, and should remain as such. If one believes that his religion is best s/he should be able to communicate his faith and it is ultimately up to the individuals to choose the path they wish to follow. States ought to guarantee equal rights to all to practice -as long as they don’t infringe upon public morals. I pray that we see a lasting peace and the start of a new era of religious understanding. Anything less would mark the beginning of a new era of maximum tension that may lead to chaos that no one is really in need of.

By Faisal Al-Zamel efore speaking about the resignation of Sheikh bear it any more, especially under the 2012/2013 Salem Al-Sabah from the Central Bank, we will budget which required spending KD 22 billion.

Kuwait’s loss is very great at the resignation of a talk a little about what is happening in Greece, which represents an example of what might happen in man who said “No” at the right time. What happened Kuwait. Salaries were doubled (for example from KD when the dinar was linked to the dollar? His vision 1,000 to KD 2,000) far from any economic indicators then was right, as the value of the dollar decreased.

He said “No” to margin in shares subject to trade, like average inflation or administrative indicators conand when the crisis of 2008 came it was found that his cerning linking increments to performance.

Maybe an employee utilized his consumption decision reduced much of the damage which could hit expenditure by committing himself to additional those dealing in the “margin”.

Today, he said “No” after a long patience. The govinstallments or maybe married again or bought a largernment totally lost ability to take the right economic er house.

The economic rescue plan requires (as in Greece) to decision. Therefore, I believe that the demand of MPs reduce his salary from KD 2,000 to KD 600. We might for nine seats in the Government through persons who represent them is an face what Greece is facacceptable choice. If not, ing and the same thing The economic rescue plan requires then Government decithat happened there last sions in recent years were Monday might happen (as in Greece) to reduce his salary issued at the wish of some here. The capital was from KD 2,000 to KD 600. We might MPs and some strategic burnt, and seven buildface what Greece is facing and the decisions were cancelled ings were set on fire. as per their hasty intenSome of them, like same thing that happened there last tion. But they do not hold churches and theaters, Monday might happen here. The capiany responsibility for dated back several cental was burnt, and seven buildings those decisions. So let turies. The public spoiled them face reality and let public utilities while they were set on fire. Some of them, like them carry the responsiwere angry at the churches and theaters, dated back bility, instead of practicing European union, who several centuries. The public spoiled authority and supervision proposed a rescue plan. together.

The plan was approved public utilities while they were angry It is true that we have by the two ruling parties at the European union, who proposed trailed in 1996, making six with a huge majority in a rescue plan.

MPs ministers. The result the country, which was the employment of exported democracy to ministerial authorities for the world, yet did not accept the results. Acceptance of KD 600 is very hard. It the personal ambition of the minister/MP and the needs psychological preparations and administrative opposition getting the majority. This means the Government will be responsible for success or failure formalities to avoid the worst effects of that step.

In Kuwait, salaries were inflated under pressure by as a group. Instead, that Minister/MP enjoys the benesome MPs. The warnings of economists did not work. fits for himself. None of those returned to his chair, as On top of those economist who made warnings was those who wanted to play played and the harm fell on Sheikh Salem Al-Sabah. He struggled for more than the state. The players did not benefit politically but two years with this disastrous policy, until he could not they benefited financially. —Al-Anbaa

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By Abdullatif Al-Duaij uring the inaugural session of the 2009 Parliament, MP Ahmad Al-Saadoun demanded that MP Khalid Al-Sultan retake his oath for violating the Constitution by adding two words to the oath the first time he took it. At that time, Al-Saadoun was not seeking anyone’s vote.

Last week, MP Khalid Al-Sultan repeated his earlier act during the inaugural session of the 2012 Parliament. He added ten words this time around. MP Ahmad AlSaadoun remained silent, however. He did not ‘jump in defense of the Constitution’ even when other MPs added whatever they liked to the oath, which has been laid down as per Article 91 of the Constitution.

Ahmad Al-Saadoun who insisted that the Constitution be followed on May 2009, stood and watched the Constitution being violated and ridiculed right before his own eyes. This approach makes me feel that Al-Saadoun chose to keep silent in order to not lose crucial votes of Islamist MPs during the speaker’s elections, which could have happened had he demanded that Al-Sultan - a leading Islamist MP - repeat the oath sans the few words. If this speculation is true, it means that Al-Saadoun did not intend to defend the Constitution when he knew it was going to be violated during the inaugural session. It further leads me to say that Al-Saadoun basically traded the Constitution which he vigorously defended in 2009, with the speaker’s post he ran for three years later!

Ahmad Al-Saadoun is always credited as being the leader of the opposition which created public pressure that led to the resignation of the previous Cabinet resulting in the Parliament being dissolved in 2009. These events violated principles of rule that led many to compare them with events of Arab Spring. Maybe after what happened during the inaugural session last week, people who marched behind the opposition in recent months realized that the so called ‘Kuwaiti Spring’ was nothing but an anti-constitution coalition between tribal and religious political groups. Evidence of anti-constitutional approach were shown in incidents where the Parliament was stormed last November.

Ahmad Al-Saadoun. The ‘Icon’. The ‘Leader’. The same man who insisted in 2009 that “no one has the right to add any word to the oath” when Khalid Al-Sultan added a couple of words to his oath. He remained silent last week when the same lawmaker committed the same violation to the Constitution he vehemently defended three years ago. I’m asking his supporters to ask their ‘Leader’ what exactly has changed in three years’ time? Is it the Constitution, ideologies? That is, of course, if any of today’s supporters dare question leaders.— Al-Qabas

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MONDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2012

Fire sweeps 3 markets in Honduras’ capital

Syria clamps down on ‘Day of defiance’ Page 8

Page 10

BAGHDAD: Security forces prepare to tow away a destroyed car after a car bomb attack outside the fortified academy near the Interior Ministry headquarters yesterday. — AP

Suicide bomber targets recruits 20 dead in Iraq police academy blast BAGHDAD: A suicide bomber detonated his car yesterday as a group of police recruits left their academy in Baghdad, killing 20 in the latest strike on security officials that angry residents blamed on political feuding that is roiling Iraq. Police said the suicide bomber was waiting on the street outside the fortified academy near the Interior Ministry in an eastern neighborhood in the Iraqi capital. As the crowd of recruits exited the compound’s security barriers around 1 p.m. and walked into the road, police said the bomber drove toward them and blew up his car.

“We heard a big explosion and the windows of the room shattered,” said Haider Mohammed, 44, an employee in the nearby Police Sports Club, about 100 yards (meters) from the academy’s gate. He described a horrific scene of burning cars, scattered pieces of burned flesh and wounded people flattened on the ground. “Everybody here knows the time when the recruits come and go from the academy,” Mohammed said. “This is a breach of security.” Five policemen were among the dead; the rest were recruits. Another 28 recruits and policemen were wounded. Officials at three nearby hospitals confirmed the casualties. All officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to release the information. Iraq’s police are generally considered to be the weakest element of the country’s security forces, which are attacked in bombings and drive-by shootings almost every day. The last big assault on police came in October, when 25 people were killed in a string of attacks that included two bombers slamming explosives-packed cars into police stations. Recruits, too, are a favorite target. Suicide bombers killed scores of young men lined up for security jobs at training centers in Baghdad and the northern

city of Tikrit in recent years. The public outcry that followed from lawmakers and residents after those attacks spurred the government to bolster training and recruiting centers with better protection. But, as yesterday’s attacks showed, extremists are easily able to sidestep security measures.

At Baghdad’s police academy, recruits generally are escorted out of the compound to ensure their safety. But once they get to the street outside, they are on their own. It was at that point that the bomber struck yesterday. The group of recruits had left the compound’s barrier gates and were crossing the road to hail a taxi or bus ride home after finishing a two-week training course.

Shiite lawmaker Hakim Al-Zamili, who sits on parliament’s security and defense committee, said the academy’s officials should have been more careful about letting the recruits go at the same time every day. He said that was a pattern that insurgents easily noted. “This was negligence by security officials in charge of academy security,” Al-Zamili said. Al-Zamili blamed Al-Qaeda for launching the attack but raised the possibility that it aimed to ramp up bitterness among Iraqis already exasperated with ongoing political fighting that has consumed the government for weeks. “The political feuds are contributing to such security violations because they are demoralizing the security members,” he said. No group immediately claimed responsibility for the bombing, but suicide attacks are a hallmark of Al-Qaeda. The terror group’s potency in Iraq has waned since its heyday five years ago, when the country teetered on the brink of civil war. But last week, Iraqi and US officials acknowledged Al-Qaeda remains a viable threat, noting fears that local fighters in the Sunni-dominated insurgent network were shifting to Syria to aid forces opposing the regime of President Bashar Assad.

But some of Baghdad’s residents said yesterday’s attack likely was rooted in political turbulence that has shaken Iraq in recent weeks. In findings that were expected to hike already-simmering sectarian tensions, a judicial panel last week said that at least 150 attacks and assassinations since 2005 were linked to Vice President Tariq Al-Hashemi, Iraq’s highest-ranking Sunni official. The charges against Al-Hashemi, who has sought haven from arrest in the autonomous northern Kurdish region, were first brought in December by the Shiite-led government of Prime Minister Nouri Al-Maliki.

Al-Hashemi has denied the charges and is expected to give a speech in the coming days to defend himself.

“The people were expecting such attacks because of the current tense political atmosphere in the country,” said Ali Rahim, 40, a government employee. “Those poor recruits were looking to send the salary to their families and now they are going to be sent as dead bodies to these families.” Al-Hashemi is a member of the secular but Sunni-dominated Iraqiya political bloc, which yesterday accused the government of rehashing the charges on state TV at the risk of inflaming current strains.

Repeating the accusations against Al-Hashemi “will provoke the public and create more tension as political blocs are working to defuse the tension and end the crisis,” Iraqiya spokeswoman Maysoun Al-Damluji said in a statement. The judicial panel’s findings against Al-Hashemi are not legally binding, and he is entitled to a trial. But it opened the door to

let 15 relatives of those killed in the attacks allegedly linked to Al-Hashemi file lawsuits against him. Also yesterday, Iraqi investigators in the southern port city of Um Qasr said a Shiite mosque that was partially destroyed in an overnight fire was likely an act of sabotage, according

to two police officials. Almost all the furniture in the mosque, including copies of the Quran, the Muslim holy book, were burned. Officials said they suspected a rival Shiite group of the arson. No arrests have been announced. — AP

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MONDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2012

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

Syria clamps down on ‘day of defiance’ Prosecutor, judge killed in northwest Syria

SANAA: Yemeni women show their ink-stained thumbs as their hands read “February 21, a new Yemen” to show their support for tomorrow’s presidential election during a rally. —AFP

Yemen polls to mark end of Saleh’s 33-year-rule SANAA: President Ali Abdullah Saleh’s 33year-rule finally comes to an end this week when his deputy takes over in a referendumlike poll, marking Yemen as the first Arab country where an uprising led to a negotiated settlement. Saleh’s shadow however looms heavily over tomorrow’s presidential vote as he maintains a strong hold over the country’s most powerful security forces and has said he will return home ahead of the vote from the United States, where he is undergoing medical treatment. Vice President Abdrabuh Mansur Hadi is the only name on the ballot, making the election merely a vote for the 66-year-old soldier from the south, considered by most as the consensus candidate.

Two major opposition groups, the separatist Southern Movement and the northern Zaidi rebels, are boycotting the polls. The single-candidate election was a condition of a Gulf-brokered power-transition deal signed by Saleh in November after ten months of mass protests and mounting international pressure calling for his ouster.

The uprising’s main proponents have asked Yemenis to throw their support behind Hadi and posters of the vice president have been plastered across buildings and throughout the streets of the capital Sanaa. “Hadi has local, regional and international support and is a respected leader who has a vision for the future. We call on all Yemenis to participate in the election,” General Ali Mohsen alAhmar, whose defection last March tipped the balance in favour of the protesters, told AFP. Influential Nobel peace laureate Tawakkul Karman has also urged Yemenis to vote for the vice president, saying his election would mark “the fruit of the popular youth uprising.” Once Hadi takes office, he is expected to launch a national dialogue, the first step in the transitional period which will end in legislative and presidential elections within two years. But many Yemenis have expressed concern over the role of the country’s most powerful security forces, which remain under the control of Saleh’s sons and nephews, and who were responsible for much of the bloodshed that occurred during the crackdown on protests.

They also fear Saleh’s return to Yemen, which according to political sources in Sanaa, could be as early as Wednesday. “I think the remnants of the old regime pose the greatest threat to the elections,” said Mohammed Qahtan, a leader of the formal

opposition Common Forum, whose representatives hold an equal share of posts in the 34-member unity government formed in December with Saleh loyalists.

“They are trying to encourage other parties, including the northern rebels, the southern separatists and Al-Qaeda, to disrupt the election to prove Saleh is the only man capable of controlling Yemen,” he added. Saleh’s critics have repeatedly accused the veteran leader of intentionally allowing Al-Qaeda to expand its influence in the country’s lawless south and east to demonstrate that only he can fight the spread of terror.

“President Saleh is the kind of person who never gives up completely. This casts doubt on his stated intentions to comply with the settlement plan,” said one Western diplomat. Speaking on condition of anonymity, the diplomat said that those closest to Saleh, including his eldest son Ahmed, commander of the notorious Republican Guard troops, “still act independently and do not seem to be cooperating with the new authorities.”

Electoral offices and polling stations have already come under repeated attacks in the past few days in Yemen’s southern provinces, and a hardline faction of the separatist Southern Movement has called for marking tomorrow a day of “civil disobedience.” In the north, the Zaidi rebels, who have fought six wars with Saleh’s regime since 2004, have also called on their followers to boycott the vote, after denouncing the transitional agreement for granting Saleh and his closest aides immunity from prosecution for crimes committed during the uprising.

European Union diplomats actively involved in implementing the Gulf plan, have recently travelled to Aden in the south, and Saada in the north, to convince both the separatists and rebels to abandon the boycott, but their efforts were unsuccessful, political sources have said. Despite the challenges, broad international and regional support for the transition plan should be enough to allow the emergence of Yemen as the first Arab country to make an orderly transition from autocratic rule to democracy, the diplomats added. Autocrats in Tunisia and Egypt were forced to resign last year, bowing down to mass uprisings in their countries. In Libya, rebels backed by NATO forces captured and killed dictator Muammar Gaddafi in October. —AFP

Egypt delays announcing final date for election CAIRO: The judicial committtee supervising Egypt’s first presidential election since Hosni Mubarak was overthrown last year said yesterday it had yet to finalise a date for the vote, although an election official said it would be in the first week of June. The committee had been expected to announce a date yesterday, but judges on the committee told a news conference the decision was being delayed as they worked out how best to ensure Egyptians abroad would have enough time to vote. The army which took over from Mubarak in February last year has faced street protests and widespread demands they hand power to civilians sooner than the end-June deadline they had set themselves. Judges committed to meet the army’s deadline.

Farouk Soltan, the head of the committee, said the date would be set before March 10, when candidates can submit their formal nominations. The closing date for nominations would be April 8. Several hopefuls have already announced they plan to run for office, including former Arab League chief Amr Moussa and ex-Muslim Brotherhood member, Abdel Moneim Abol Fotoh. The current Arab League Secretary General Nabil Elaraby is mooted as a consensus candidate, but he has said he has no such plans. “The committee has decided to postpone announcing the schedule for elections until it can reach a solution that will allow Egyptians abroad to vote in a manner that will make their participation real,” Soltan said. This follows hiccups in voting for the estimated 8 million Egyptians living abroad during the parliamentary poll. Many complained they did not have time to register and diplomats said they were not given enough time for the count. Egypt has a population of 82 million.

President by end-June The Egyptian foreign ministry has requested voters abroad have a two-week period to cast their ballot and counting take place over a week. The committee said it was considering this request. “The committee will very soon

determine the schedule for the presidential elections, while confirming the door will open for nominations on March 10,” Soltan told the news conference, adding voting and counting will be completed by the end of June.

Government ministers had suggested the election could be held sooner, with some suggesting late May. But Soltan told reporters yesterday only his committee could set a date or give details of the race. Committee member Ahmed Shams el-Din had earlier told Reuters the vote would be in June but did not give a precise date. “Presidential elections begin in the first week of June and the president will be sworn in by the end of June,” he said. “Any runoffs will take place within the month of June, and by July we will have an Egyptian president.” Many analysts see Moussa as the frontrunner but say much will depend on what kind of backing he can secure from the Muslim Brotherhood, which emerged as the biggest bloc after a parliamentary vote. Some politicians say they want a candidate who will also have the army’s nod of approval.

Egypt has been ruled by military officers for six decades. Moussa, a popular former foreign minister under Mubarak, has said he has reached out to Islamists. Elaraby, a wellrespected and experienced diplomat, has been spoken of by the media and some parties as a potential challenger who could unite political factions wary of backing any candidate with links to Mubarak’s old era.

“I have no intention to run for the presidency, under any circumstances,” Elaraby told journalists on yesterday, after newspapers reported negotiations between parties to back him. Under new rules approved in a referendum last year, presidents will be limited to two consecutive four-year terms. Mubarak was ousted shortly before the end of his fifth six-year term. Most of his terms were secured via single-candidate referendums. In 2005 he ran in Egypt’s first multi-candidate race, but rights groups and others said the rules for that poll blocked any realistic challenge to the incumbent. —Reuters

DAMASCUS: Syrian security forces yesterday flooded a tense neighbourhood where a mourner was shot dead in the largest antiregime rally seen in Damascus, activists said, blunting calls for a “day of defiance.” With protesters more emboldened in Damascus after 11 months of revolt which has largely escaped the city, President Bashar Al-Assad’s regime also came under regional pressure as Egypt joined other Arab League states in recalling its ambassador.

Although the security deployment thwarted attempts to stage new protests in Mazzeh neighbourhood, scene of a Saturday funeral that turned into a huge anti-regime rally, business there ground to a halt, activists said. Mohammed Shami, a spokesman for activists in Damascus province, said most shops were shut in Mazzeh as well as in the Barzeh, Qaboon, Kfar Sousa and Jubar districts. Student demonstrations had been expected in Mazzeh but security forces were stationed around schools, Shami said. “Security forces are heavily deployed throughout Mazzeh,” he said.

Another activist, Abu Huzaifa from the Mazzeh Committee, said police forced the family of Samer Al-Khatib, 34, who died after being shot in neck during the mass funeral on Saturday, to bury him in a small ceremony earlier than planned, in an apparent move to prevent protests. In central Damascus shops opened as usual, witnesses said, while state television showed live interviews from Mazzeh with people who claimed life was proceeding normally.

Deeb Al-Dimashqi, a member of the Syrian Revolution Council based in the capital, told AFP earlier that “huge demonstrations” were expected, but adding that security forces had imposed a tight clampdown round the city. “There is a large security presence,” he said. In a message to Damascus residents on the “Syrian Revolution 2011” Facebook page, activists said: “The blood of the martyrs exhorts you to disobedience,” after more than 6,000 deaths since anti-regime protests erupted in March, accord-

ing to activists’ estimates.

Activists and official media reported at least six people killed yesterday. A “terrorist group” shot dead prosecutor Nidal Ghazal and judge Mohammed Ziyadeh and their driver in the northwestern province of Idlib yesterday, the official SANA news agency reported. It said that another “terrorist group” on Saturday had killed Jamal Bish, a city councillor in Aleppo. Security

the defiant city of Homs intensified in the afternoon, at the rate of 4-5 rockets a minute, said Hadi Abdullah of the General Commission of the Syrian Revolution.

He said the districts of Bab Sbaa, Bab Dreib and al-Safsafa were being targeted with sporadic shelling.

Abdullah voiced fears of the army being reinforced. “News has

Rahman told AFP. Shami said that some 15,000 people had turned out despite the snow. He said the shootings during the funerals, in which many people were wounded, were followed by a “wave of searches and arrests” across the upscale district which is overlooked by the presidential palace. Activists described demonstrations held on Friday in Damascus as “unprecedented,” saying there were 49 in all.

IDLIB: A corpse is covered after being pulled out of a water canal yesterday following an assault

by Syrian security forces. —AFP forces yesterday shot dead a woman when they stormed the town of Sukhna in Homs province as they hunted activists, the Britainbased Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said in a statement.

It also said that a man was shot dead at a checkpoint in the northern province of Aleppo. A lawyer was shot dead as troops stormed the town of Al-Ashara in the province of Deir Ezzor, according to the Syrian Observatory. Regime forces pounded the flashpoint central city of Homs for the 15th straight day, activists said.

Sporadic shelling that targeted the Baba Amr neighbourhood in

been leaked to us from army officers about a bloody attack that will burn everything in Baba Amr. We were expecting the attack two nights ago, but it could have been just delayed because of the snowstorm,” he said. Saturday’s funerals in Damascus were for four people, including two teenagers, killed on Friday when security forces fired on protesters in Mazzeh which houses many government offices and embassies.

“The funerals in Mazzeh turned into protests-it was the closest major gathering to Omayyad Square” in the city centre, Observatory head Rami Abdul

Agnes Levallois, a Paris-based Middle East expert, said the demonstrations in Damascus indicated growing pressure on the government.

“We said from the onset that the day when huge demonstrations will spill out in Damascus and Aleppo, it will be the end of the regime,” said Levallois. In a further sign that international sanctions against Assad’s regime are crippling the economy, leading Syrian businessman Faisal al-Qudsi told the BBC that foreign exchange reserves have tumbled from $22 billion (16.7 billion euros) to about $10 billion. —AFP

Bomb near car explodes in Nigeria SULEJA: A bomb planted by an abandoned car exploded outside a church in the middle of a worship service yesterday near Nigeria’s capital, wounding five people amid a continuing wave of violence by a radical Islamist sect, authorities and witnesses said. No one immediately claimed responsibility for the blast outside the Christ Embassy church in Suleja, a city near the nation’s capital Abuja. However, the area has been targeted in the past by the sect known as Boko Haram - including the Christmas Day car bombing of a Catholic church nearby that killed at least 44 people.

The explosion happened just after 10 a.m. as the church began its service, Pastor Uyi Idugboe told journalists. Security guards at the church had noticed something suspicious by the abandoned car, prompting the pastor to call everyone inside the church before the service began, he said. The bomb also apparently had been wrapped with a motorcycle chain, which sent metal shrapnel flying everywhere when the explosive detonated, witnesses said. The explosion tore away the engine compartment of the abandoned car and damaged four other vehicles nearby.

One person was seriously injured in the blast and taken to a local hospital, local police spokesman Richard Oguche said. Another four people suffered minor injuries, said Yushau Shuaib, a spokesman for Nigeria’s National Emergency Management Agency.

Authorities began to put up roadblocks yesterday afternoon to keep onlookers away and traffic snarled around the city.

While police continued to investigate, suspicion for the blast immediately fell on Boko Haram, a group that has been waging increasingly bloody attacks against Nigeria’s weak central government. Members of the sect have been blamed for killing at least 289 people this year alone, according to an Associated Press count.

The group’s leader says its campaign of violence also is aimed at avenging Muslim deaths and pushing for strict Shariah law across multiethnic Nigeria, a nation of more than 160 million people.

The sect’s attacks, including those specifically targeting Christians, have widened distrust between the two faiths in Africa’s most populous nation. Nigeria is largely split between a Christian south and a Muslim north, and most of Boko Haram’s previous attacks have taken place in the north. Bombs have struck Suleja in the past. During Nigeria’s April election, a bomb planted at an election office in the city killed 16 people.

Another bomb at a church exploded in July in the city, killing three people.

In nearby Madalla, another town in Niger state, a car bomb exploded outside St. Theresa Catholic Church there, killing at least 44 people. Authorities have blamed all the previous attacks in Suleja on Boko Haram. Meanwhile, authorities blamed the group for killing two people Saturday in Nigeria’s northeast.

There, gunmen shot dead an Islamic cleric and a local politician in separate attacks, police said. —AP

DAKAR: Senegalese demonstrators walk past a burning barricade yesterday after clashes erupted outside a mosque, which demonstrators said had been “profaned” when it was hit by tear gas grenades thrown by a police officer on February 17. Senegalese riot police fired volleys of tear gas and rubber bullets at stone-throwing demonstrators after prayers at a mosque in the Senegalese capital yesterday. —AFP

Libyan families move into remains of Gaddafi fortress TRIPOLI: It used to be the impenetrable fortress of Muammar Gaddafi’s regime. Only workers or members of the toppled Libyan leader’s inner circle could see inside. Now, six months after Tripoli fell to Western-backed rebels, dozens of families have moved into the few buildings still standing in the charred remains of Gaddafi’s Bab AlAziziya compound, setting up homes amid the rubble. Their move, largely for economic reasons they say, highlights the collision between two parts of Libyan society.

On one side are the pro-Gaddafi elite who benefited from his largesse, and on the other are ordinary people who, while not poor by regional standards, only saw a small share of Libya’s huge energy wealth. Rebels forced Gaddafi to abandon his Tripoli stronghold, a huge complex of houses, offices and storage buildings which was targeted by NATO warplanes several times during the war. They burned, looted and defaced what for years was a forbidding symbol of the autocratic leader’s power.

Days after the walls of the Bab al-Aziziya compound came tumbling down in late August, school chemistry teacher Majid moved his wife and seven children into one of its villas believed to be once occupied by one of Gaddafi’s officers.

“Before, when I would drive past Bab Al-Aziziya, I wouldn’t even dare to look at it, we were afraid to even talk in the car,” the 50-year-old said as he walked around his new large four-bedroom house with its separate guest quarters.

“We never imagined we would even enter

this place; now I am living here.” Majid said he found the house in disarray when he arrived and has since been working to restore it. He has repainted walls but a corridor is still charred. As a pot of stew steams on a cooker in the kitchen, his family sit next door watching television in a living room. Outside, a toilet lies in the grass, nearby, pieces of a broken wooden cupboard lie scattered. “It is much better than where I lived before,” he said.

Making a new home Others are not as comfortable. Behind Majid’s villa, 24-year-old Saja Mohammed al-Sahali and her husband Haithem live in a room that once passed for an office. Teapots, plastic cups and plates on a tray and suitcases of clothes, lie scattered on a carpet. Plastic flowers and plants stand in vases around the room. “There is nowhere else for us to stay. We can’t keep on paying rent, that’s why we came here. We don’t have anybody,” Al-Sahali said, fighting back tears.

“To be honest, it’s not healthy, there is no power, no water, it’s cold. There is nothing. But what can we do?” While the residents may not have deeds to their property, Haithem presents a document signed by a nearby neighbourhood military council that gives them permission to stay. It does not mention Bab al-Aziziya specifically, but cites Haithem’s needs for accommodation. The families have inhabited the last standing buildings of the sprawling complex. In front of them, piles of rubble have yet to be moved. —Reuters

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2012

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

Mugabe accuses rivals of plotting constitutional coup HARARE: Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe accused his political rivals of trying to use constitutional reforms to get rid of him, but warned that his ZANU-PF party would reject any changes threatening its future, the Sunday Mail newspaper reported.

Mugabe, who turns 88 on Tuesday and was forced into a coalition government following disputed elections in 2008, is seeking to extend his 32 years in power in an early poll that he wants held this year, a year ahead of schedule. In an interview with the stateowned newspaper, Mugabe charged that lawyers hired to draft a new national charter and rivals from Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai’s Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) had “erred” by including issues not gathered from a public survey.

Asked about clauses in the first draft that could bar him from running for another term, Mugabe said although he had not yet read the document, such a proposal and the inclusion of gay rights would not be accepted by his party. “The issue is that what is not the view of the people and not in the present constitution or has not been discussed, we will reject,” he said. “Such a constitution would be thrown out by ZANU-PF. We would not accept that. They erred if it is like that,” he said, branding the MDC cowards for trying to exclude him from the polls.

A draft constitution published early this month trims presidential powers and limits terms to a maximum of 10 years, barring Mugabe who has been in office since the southern African country’s independence from Britain

in 1980. Mugabe has been nominated as his ZANU-PF party’s candidate and intends to run in an election he wants held in 2012. Under the power-sharing deal with Tsvangirai, elections must be held by next year with a new constitution drawn up ahead of the poll.

A referendum on the new constitution is expected to be held later this year. In the interview, Mugabe mocked Tsvangirai and the MDC as impotent for protesting his recent reappointment of security commanders accused by the opposition of blocking democratic reforms. “We don’t pay attention to that because they are like barking dogs with no bite, and every village has such dogs,” he said in the local Shona language.

There was no immediate comment from the MDC on Mugabe’s interview

in which he also attacked Finance Minister Tendai Biti, a senior MDC figure, for slowing Zimbabwe’s economic recovery by starving the key farming sector of funds. “He makes some decisions and those decisions are not always of a nature that is promotive economically,” he said. In the past Biti has denied accusations that the MDC is deliberately withholding state loans to farmers from Mugabe’s party who grabbed properties from white-owned commercial farms under ZANU-PF’s controversial land redistribution programme.

Biti maintains that Zimbabwe’s slow recovery from a decade of severe economic recession caused by Mugabe’s policies is largely due to delays by ZANU-PF in adopting reforms. These include privatising loss-making state

firms across the economy and a damaging drive to force foreign-owned firms to sell a majority shareholding to local blacks. Mugabe told the Sunday Mail ZANU-PF had chosen him to continue because none of his potential successors in the party could win an election against the opposition.

He said eventually he would groom a successor but was not doing so now to avoid worsening divisions in ZANU-PF. The interview made no mention of Mugabe’s health despite regular local media reports that the veteran leader is receiving regular treatment for prostate cancer in the Far East. Asked how he would like to be remembered, Mugabe said: “Just for what I am. A man, a lover of my people and a fighter of the oppressors of my people.” — Reuters

Sarkozy presents new style Carla at first rally Image management experts sceptical of makeover

CHALONS-EN-CHAMPAGNE: Fire-fighters transfer a victim of the bus which crashed yesterday. — AP

Bus carrying Brits crashes in France CHALONS-EN-CHAMPAGNE: A coach taking 47 British holidaymakers home from a school skiing trip rolled into a ditch in northern France yesterday, killing a teacher and injuring 23 people, officials said. Six people were said to be seriously hurt, including a 13-year-old girl who was in a critical condition in hospital in Reims, they said. The majority of those on board were children. The driver, who is believed to have fallen asleep at the wheel when the coach crashed in the early hours of Sunday, has been detained, a local prosecutor said. The Interski Snowsport school which organised the trip said the dead man was a 59-year-old teacher. The British Foreign Office had earlier identified him as a 61-year-old Briton.

The British Solus travel coach was on a school trip and carrying 29 children from a school in Alvechurch, just south of Birmingham, and 18 adults in addition to two drivers, the Foreign Office said. The prosecutor said the driver, who

was slightly injured, tested negative for drink or drugs. The holidaymakers were on their way back from Italy’s popular Valle d’Aosta skiing region when the bus rolled into a ditch in rainy conditions.

It was the only vehicle involved in the crash, which happened around 3:00 am (0200 GMT ) on a motor way near Chalons- en-Champagne, between Troyes and the port of Calais. The road was partly closed for about four hours as 100 firefighters, 20 police and four emergency teams helped the victims.

Some 25 passengers are being treated for shock, the prosecutor said, adding that as many as possible would be repatriated later yesterday. They were taken to the small nearby town of Fagnieres.

The Foreign Office said the ambassador to France Peter Ricketts and his deputy Ajay Sharma were at the scene. Local officials said a second British coach came upon the accident and took the victims on board to shelter from the rain. — AFP

Drivers circle Moscow in anti-Putin protest MOSCOW: Hundreds of Moscow drivers flying white balloons and ribbons circled the Kremlin yesterday in noisy protest against Prime Minister Vladimir Putin’s likely return as president in March 4 polls. The second such auto rally in three weeks was due to be picked up in other cities as the opposition sought to keep up momentum after launching the biggest wave of anti-Putin rallies in his 12-year rule in December. “The closer we manage to get to the Kremlin, the more effective this event will be,” the protest movement’s League of Voters said in a statement.

Nearly 3,500 people had signed up for the event on its Facebook page by the time the afternoon event started in Moscow under a bright winter sky. “We all have to come out by 5:00 pm,” Russian celebrity and popular TV personality Xenia Sobchak told private Dozhd television. “Don’t be afraid if they start throwing snowballs at you.” An AFP reporter saw dozens of cheering pedestrians flashing victory signs to cars circling along the 16-kilometre (10mile) Garden Ring Road with everything from white flags to plastic bags tied to their

handles and antennas.

“Volodya, It’s Time to Go,” said a sign on one Moscow car with a young couple in the front seat, using the diminutive of Vladimir.

But some witnesses reported seeing cars emblazoned with small portraits of Putin getting into the stream of traffic and then stopping their vehicles in an apparent bid to interrupt the procession. A similar rally’s organiser in the Volga River city of Nizhny Novgorod told Moscow Echo radio that he was wrestled to the ground and beaten up by an unknown assailant moments after leaving his house for the event.

The anti-Putin movement intends to spread its reach beyond Russia yesterday by holding mini-rallies in Paris as well as San Francisco and New York. Russia has witnessed a month of weekly rival rallies between Putin foes and his state-backed supporters in advance of elections that the 59-year-old former KGB spy is almost certain to win. A poll of likely voters conducted by the Kremlin-linked Public Opinion Foundation showed Putin reclaiming the seat he held from 2000 to 2008 with 60 percent support. — AFP

MOSCOW: Motorists flying flags sporting portraits of Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin drive during a car rally to support Putin’s presidential candidacy.

The flags read: “For Putin”. — AFP

MARSEILLE: Nicolas Sarkozy staged the first major rally of his re-election bid yesterday as his former supermodel wife Carla Bruni looked on, transformed by an improbable down-to-earth makeover. With barely nine weeks to go until the first round of France’s presidential election, Sarkozy arrived at the rough-andready Mediterranean port city of Marseille to address 10,000 supporters who greeted him with wild cheers. By his side was a first lady formerly more associated with Parisian glamour and jet-set resorts, now trying to re-imagine herself as an ordinar y young mum and doting spouse.

Dressed in an elegant but sober black jacket and grey trousers, a warmly smiling Carla sat between chief of Sarkozy’s party UMP Jean-Francois Cope and Prime Minister Francois Fillon. Sarkozy has begun to close the gap between him and opposition Socialist frontrunner Francois Hollande-and thus is coming closer to a second fiveyear term in the Elysee-as polling day approaches. But the rightwinger still faces the prospect of a humiliating defeat. Yesterday’s latest poll by LH2-Yahoo! was in line with all recent surveys, forecasting that Hollande would sweep the May 6 run-off with 55 percent to Sarkozy’s 45.

The visual signals of the event were to take on a particular importance, as this was to be the first event attended by his usually glamorously aloof spouse. Her arrival was prepared as carefully as any of the Italian-born heiress’ appearances on the fashion world’s catwalks in her former life before her 2007 marriage to Sarkozy and last year’s birth of

MARSEILE: France’s President and Union for a Popular Movement (UMP) candidate for 2012 presidential election Nicolas Sarkozy (right) is cheered by First Lady Carla Bruni-Sarkozy following his speech at an electoral meeting yesterday. — AFP their daughter Giulia. For the past week she has appeared in an apparently “stolen” video adjusting her husband’s Legion of Honour medal and giving him an awkward kiss, before giving an interview in the determinedly low-brow weekly TV Magazine. In this listings magazine, distributed free with 60 local papers nationwide, she told of her love of popular soap operas like “Plus Belle la Vie,” which is set in Marseille, and cheap and cheerful gameshows like “Fort Boyard”.

In the tabloid Le Parisien and the freesheet 20 Minutes she declared meekly that she was “100 percent” behind her husband’s re-election bid, as he is the “best able to keep the country on

course ... and has done everything well.” “I’ll accompany my husband when he needs me ... in symbolic moments, in rallies,” she said, turning her back on her image as a champagne leftist and social libertarian and pledging allegiance to Sarkozy’s conservatism. Once, Paris gossips would joke about Carla’s reported campaign to develop the cultural and intellectual values of her husband, whose Rolex and Rayban nouveau-riche image has proved hard to shift. Now, she claims that thanks to him she has begun to enjoy watching reality television talent shows and football and to be learning from her husband the joys of following the Tour de France bike race. Image

management experts are sceptical that the makeover will work, or that Sarkozy himself will regain the lost affection of the French electorate, which seems to have absorbed the idea of him as a president for the rich. “It’s not at two months from election that you try to change the image of a president,” said Bruno Jeanbart, of pollster OpinionWay. “Especially as Nicolas Sarkozy has a very settled image.” And it will be no easier for Carla, warns media expert Domninique Wolton. “Carla is glamour, glossy fashion magazines. That’s not to say there’s a particular antipathy towards her, but she’s not everyday enough for people to identify with her,” he said. —AFP

Somali leaders ink deal for new govt structure MOGADISHU: Somalia’s disparate leaders have agreed on the basic structure of a new parliament and government to replace the fragile transitional body that has failed to bring peace to the war-torn country. Constant infighting, rampant corruption and bloody attacks by Islamist Shebab insurgents have undermined Somalia’s unelected Transitional Federal Government (TFG), whose Western-backed mandate ends in August. Somalia’s president, the presidents of the breakaway Puntland and Galmudug regions, and the commander of the powerful anti-Shebab militia Ahlu Sunna Wal Jamaa signed the deal under UN auspices.

The accord proposes a parliamentary system for anarchic Somalia, with both Puntland and Galmudug recognised as states within a federal system. A new 225-member lower house-including at least 30 percent women-will be nominated by “traditional elders assisted by prominent civil society members,” the agreement reads, released late Saturday after a three-day meeting.

The agreement is the latest among more than a dozen attempts to resolve Somalia’s more than two decade-old civil war, with the country split between rival factions and pirate gangs who hijack ships far across the Indian Ocean. AlQaeda allied Shebab fighters, who control large parts of central and southern Somalia where they are battling African Union-backed government forces as well as Kenyan and Ethiopian troops, immediately condemned the deal.

“The agreement is treason because it is part of a master plan of the international community to send Somalia back to colonisation,” Shebab spokesman Sheikh Ali Mohamud Rage told reporters. “The mujahedeen fighters will not accept such conferences and their outcomesinstead we fight against them and, with the help of Allah, we will win the war,” he said.

Somalia has been without an effective central government since 1991, and the leadership in the capital Mogadishu is propped up by a

MOGADISHU: A Somali government soldier looks at the wreckage of a car bomb that detonated inside the compound of the police central investigations department. — AP 10,000-strong AU force from Uganda, Burundi and Djibouti. In addition, a 1,000-member upper house-the National Constituent Assembly-will be nominated by agreement signatories “assisted by traditional leaders and civil society” groups. The upper house too must include at least 30 percent women.

“To ensure trust in the federal parliament, members must be patriotic, honest and of good standing in Somali society,” the agreement reads, noting that anyone guilty of “serious crime or crimes against humanity” will be barred. “They must respect and uphold the rights of all Somalis and demonstrate tolerance towards all,” says the deal, signed in the northern town of Garowe. Upper house members will be selected from a “cross-section of society” including repre-

sentatives from the youth, businesses, diaspora, religious and traditional leaders and “existing and emerging regional administrations.” The deal also recommends “a compensation package” to appease existing lawmakers not selected for the new parliament, many of whom command militia forces. The deal comes ahead of a London conference on Thursday aimed at mobilising international players to tackle Somalia’s multiple political and humanitarian crises. Famine zones in Somalia declared by the UN last August were announced to have improved to emergency conditions earlier this month, but despite massive international aid efforts, conditions remain grim.

A third of Somalia’s population need emergency aid and mortality rates remain among the highest in the world, the UN warns. —AFP

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2012

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

US Capitol bomb plot arrest capped long probe WASHINGTON: Within the last week, authorities say, Amine El Khalifi’s plan to wreak havoc was proceeding as hoped: An Al-Qaeda associate handed him an automatic weapon to kill security officers inside the U.S. Capitol. A bomb-laden vest would detonate the building.

He would die as a martyr. But there was a problem: The explosives were inert, the gun inoperable and the supposed Al-Qaeda member was actually an undercover officer, according to court documents. El Khalifi was arrested Friday in a parking garage on his way to carry out an attack the FBI says he kicked around for months, even detonating a practice bomb in a quarry, all with varied targets in mind.

An FBI affidavit traces the evolution of the plot from a vague plan to prepare for the “war on Muslims” to more clearly articulated visions of attacking

a restaurant and synagogue to, finally, a goal of obliterating the seat of American government. The document alleges a weeks-long flurry of final activity by El Khalifi, monitored by the FBI and coordinated through an undercover agent, to scope out the building, train in explosives and arm himself for a suicide attack.

As El Khalifi, 29, was making a court appearance Friday on a terrorismrelated charge, the FBI executed search warrants inside a gated residential community in Alexandria and at a red-brick rambler in Arlington, though it wasn’t immediately known what they found. El Khalifi is scheduled to have a bond hearing Wednesday. A public defender at El Khalifi’s initial appearance didn’t return a phone message Saturday. If he is indicted and convicted, he could face life in prison.

Authorities have released only basic biographical details about El Khalifi and haven’t described how they believe he became intent on destruction. He was born in Morocco and came to the United States in 1999, when he was 16, overstaying his visitor visa and remaining in the country illegally, court papers say. He is unemployed and is not believed to be associated with Al-Qaeda. In 2010, he aroused the suspicion of a former landlord, Frank Dynda, who leased him a one-bedroom apartment inside a brick building in Arlington before ultimately evicting him for not paying rent. He said El Khalifi lived with a woman, whose name was used to secure the lease. Dynda recalled the woman as Bulgarian and said he was under the impression they were married. She had a job, but El Khalifi appeared not to have rent money.

“She looked good on paper. He looked terrible on paper,” Dynda said. Dynda said El Khalifi periodically received heavy boxes labeled “Books” from Baltimore and advertised his apartment as some sort of luggage business, though Dynda said he never saw any luggage there. The woman moved out, and two or three other men resembling El Khalifi began staying there, Dynda said. The rent checks stopped coming.

Dynda confronted El Khalifi for being a squatter, but he said El Khalifi told him he had a right to be there and threatened to assault him. Dynda called police, but he said officers advised him to treat El Khalifi like a legal tenant. He moved out that summer. “He was going to harm me, and I think I’m very lucky to be alive today,” Dynda said. The investigation that led to El Khalifi’s arrest started last January

on a confidential informant’s tip to the FBI. The informant described a meeting inside an Arlington apartment, where a person who produced an AK47, two revolvers and ammunition said the war on terror equated with a “war on Muslims” and urged the group to prepare for battle. El Khalifi, the FBI learned, expressed agreement.

The FBI doesn’t believe he was conspiring with anyone else, and court documents in El Khalifi’s case don’t give further details about the meeting in the Arlington apartment and the other people who were there. Police are investigating others with whom El Khalifi associated, but not because they believe the associates were part of a terror conspiracy, a counterterrorism official has told The Associated Press. By December, authorities say the sting operation and El Khalifi’s own plans were taking shape. — AP

Fire sweeps 3 markets in Honduras’ capital Funerals begin for Honduras jail fire victims

COLUMBUS: Republican presidential candidate, former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum prays during the Ohio Christian Alliance conference Saturday, Feb 18, 2012. — AP

Santorum raises stakes in battle with Romney COLUMBUS: Rick Santorum courted conservatives in the U.S. Midwest in his battle with Mitt Romney for the Republican presidential nomination as President Barack Obama’s campaign team shifted gears to consider the possibility his opponent in the November election will be the former Pennsylvania senator. Campaign officials confirm Obama’s Chicago-based organization has begun combing through Santorum’s background looking for possible lines of attack. It also emailed Obama’s Pennsylvania supporters this past week asking for material that could be used against Santorum in upcoming speeches and ads. “Circumstances have changed,” explained Obama’s deputy campaign manager, Stephanie Cutter, on Saturday.

Santorum has surged in recent opinion polls after capturing Republican caucuses in Minnesota and Colorado and a non-binding primary in Missouri on Feb. 7. Several polls have shown him ahead in Romney ’s native state of Michigan, where primary voters cast ballots a week from Tuesday. He is also leading in polls in Ohio, where he declared the state “ground zero” for his campaign on March 6, or Super Tuesday, when 10 states hold nominating contests. Santorum has positioned himself as the leading conservative in the race, while Romney, a former Massachusetts governor, has struggled to win over the party’s conservative base and has been attacked for his shifting positions on sensitive issues like abortion and health care reform.

Romney not only grew up in Michigan, he is the son of a former gov-

ernor. The primaries in Michigan and Arizona on Feb. 28 mark the end of a lull in the state-by-state contests to choose delegates to the party’s national convention in late August in Tampa, Florida.

Though Santorum and Romney are close in the polls, Romney is considered the Republican front-runner nationwide, with more delegates from state-by-state voting that are necessary to claim the party’s nomination. The multimillionaire also has far more money and a much stronger campaign organization than Santorum.

The two other rivals for the Republican Party nomination are former speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives Newt Gingrich and the libertarian-leaning Texas Rep. Ron Paul.

Paul on Saturday said at a fiery campaign rally in Kansas City that the U.S. is “slipping into a fascist system where it’s a combination of government and big business and authoritarian rule and the suppression of the individual rights of each and ever y American citizen.”

Santorum campaigned Saturday for a second straight day In Ohio, where he is depending on support from the small government, anti-tax tea party movement and religious conservatives to deliver a victory on March 6. More delegates will be awarded in Ohio than in any other state except Georgia in the opening months of the Republican campaign.

Ohio and Georgia are two of the 10 contests scheduled for March 6, a benchmark for the primary campaign that often decides who can continue to the next level. — AP

Paul says US ‘slipping into a fascist system’ KANSAS CITY: Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul warned the US is “slipping into a fascist system” dominated by government and businesses as he held a fier y rally Saturday night upstaging established Republican Party banquets a short distance away.

The Texas congressman drew a couple thousand standing and chanting people to Kansas City’s Union Station as the party’s establishment dined on steak across the street at the Missouri GOP’s annual conference. Kansas Republicans were holding a similar convention in a suburb across the state line.

Paul staged his rally near the nation’s World War I museum, asserting that the US got off track about 100 years ago during the era of President Woodrow Wilson, who led the nation through World War I and unsuccessfully advocated for the nation’s involvement in a forerunner of the United Nations.

“We’ve slipped away from a true Republic,” Paul said. “Now we’re slipping into a fascist system where it’s a combination of government and big business and authoritarian rule and

the suppression of the individual rights of each and every American citizen.” Although campaign aides were aware, Paul told reporters after his speech that he did not know his rally was coinciding with long-established Missouri and Kansas Republican Party events, where Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell - a vice presidential prospect - was the keynote speaker.

Several Republicans slipped away from the banquets to join the Paul rally. Among them was Ralph Munyan, a Republican committeeman in Kansas City ’s home county, who said he agreed with Paul’s warnings of a “fascist system” and his pledge to the end nation’s involvement in wars overseas and against drugs.

“His foreign policy is one of peace,” Munyan said. Paul repeatedly denounced President Barack Obama’s recent enactment of a law requiring military custody of anyone suspected to be associated with Al-Qaeda and involved in planning an attack on the US Obama said when he signed the legislation that his administration would not authorize the indefinite military detention of American citizens without a trial. — AP

TEGUCIGALPA: A fire has swept through street markets in the capital of Honduras, a nation traumatized just five days ago by a fire that killed 358 people at a prison. Authorities say 11 people were injured and about 1,800 stalls burned, but there were no deaths.

Saturday’s fire burned through several blocks of three markets and sent thick plumes of black smoke wafting over Tegucigalpa, the capital. The fire appeared to have hit stands selling mainly clothes and sneakers. Mayor Ricardo Alvarezsaid says two women were rescued, one with a head injury and another with symptoms of asphyxiation. The blaze Tuesday night that killed 358 people was the worst prison fire in a century. It happened in Comayagua, about 55 miles (90 kilometers) north of Tegucigalpa.

Meanwhile, Hondurans are burying victims of one of the world’s worst jail fires as they search for answers about what caused the disaster. On Saturday, the death toll rose to 358 after two severely burned inmates died in a hospital. Several funerals took place in various towns around the country Friday after authorities released the bodies of the first 24 victims of a horrific inferno that has rattled this Central American nation. “This was a barbaric crime,” said Trinidad Varela, who bid a final farewell to her 28-year-old son, Edwin Ortega, in the town of Talanga, northwest of the capital. “We cannot leave it just like that.”

Four days after the blaze swept through the overcrowded Comayagua jail-which had held double its capacity with 852 inmates-the cause of the fire still was unclear. A US team from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives arrived late Thursday to investigate and Chilean experts also searched the jail. Around 60 percent of the prisoners in Comayagua had not yet been sentenced. In the Honduran capital, Tegucigalpa, exhausted families waited for their relatives’ bodies, kept at a distance because of a strong odor from the morgue. Forensic experts from seven other Latin American countries are joining the Honduran team identifying the bodies.

Under tents set up outside the morgue, the team drew blood samples from relatives of the victims for DNA testing. “There are bodies that can only be identified with DNA testing,” coroner Antonieta Zuniga said after explaining that many bodies were charred beyond recognition.

Lindolfo Hernandez, brother of one of the victims, said, “They told me that it would be difficult to give me my brother ’s body

because it is in a bad state, but I’ll stay here until they’ve done it.”His brother, jailed for 10 years for rape, was due to be released in two months.

Delmi Matute could not understand the fate of her husband’s remains. “We have been waiting here four days but they have not giv-

who told local media the fire was started by police to cover up a planned escape. National police spokesman Hector Ivan Mejia denied the suggestion and added that no prisoners had escaped.

But President Lobo acknowledged that some inmates caught up in the fire did

TEGUCIGALPA: A fire-fighter untangles a hose during a blaze at the a street market, Saturday Feb 18, 2012. (Inset) Elsa Ucles and her daughter Rosario Serrano embrace after attending the burial service for her husband Jose Serrano as they wait in line to visit surviving relatives at the prison in Comayagua. — AP en him to me. My husband died of smoke inhalation, he should be easy to identify, and they still have not given him to me,” she sobbed as she sat with stunned loved ones.

Honduran President Porfirio Lobo suspended top officials from the country’s prison system and called for foreign assistance in the investigations, amid accusations that authorities had been overwhelmed by the scale of the disaster. He pledged compensation for the victims’ families.

Human rights groups and witnesses questioned the role of the guards and the authorities, suggesting negligence or even premeditation. The Committee for the Defense of Human Rights said in a statement that firefighters arrived too late, the prison director was absent and guards failed to open cell doors to save lives. The Committee of Families of Missing Prisoners expressed concern about a complaint from a non-identified prisoner

escape, without saying how many. Besides those killed in the blaze, “other inmates fled, but they will be caught,” Lobo told reporters at a press conference. He also ordered a safety review of the nation’s 23 other jails. Leftist opposition parties blamed the blaze on “criminal negligence.” Some 500 inmates who survived the fire remained inside the jail in a wing that was not affected.

“I don’t want to stay in this prison,” said Marco Valladares, who communicated with his wife by mobile phone from inside the jail.

“It’s cursed.

We knew for a long time that the fire would happen.” Another survivor, Hector Martinez, said, “The facilities are damaged. I’m afraid.”

Honduras, which has the world’s highest murder rate — 80 per 100,000 people according to the United Nations-has 24 detention centers with a capacity of 8,000. The prison population is currently around 13,000. — Agencies

US parents get 8 yrs each in son’s death CLEVELAND: The parents of an 8year-old boy who died from Hodgkin lymphoma after suffering for months from undiagnosed swollen glands were sentenced to eight years in prison Thursday following their guilty pleas to denying him medical treatment.

Attorneys for Monica Hussing, 37, and William Robinson Sr., 40, had said the parents had financial problems and tried to get checkups for their son but couldn’t afford it. The couple was given the maximum sentence by Cuyahoga County Judge Michael Astrab, who accepted their guilty pleas last month to attempted involuntary manslaughter in a last-minute plea deal before their trial was about to begin. They were handcuffed and taken into custody immediately. Both plan to appeal the sentence.

“I loved my son,” Robinson told the judge, occasionally wiping his eyes with a tissue. He said he was sorry. “I tried to help my son,” Hussing said as family members in the courtroom quietly sobbed.

Hussing’s sister, Shelia Slawinski, cried as she stood before the judge and gave voice to her nephew, Willie Robinson. “I told my sister,” Slawinski said. “I offered to help my sister.” According to the prosecution’s pre-sentencing memo to the judge, at least eight

family members noticed Willie’s deteriorating health over a period of more than two years and most spoke to the couple about it. One relative described the boy’s swollen neck glands as the size of a softball.

“Twenty-nine months he suffered,” Slawinski said. “Twenty-nine months they had to do something and they chose not to.” Asked outside court why her sister hadn’t taken care of Willie and hadn’t enrolled him or three siblings in school, Slawinski said it was easier

CLEVELAND: Monica Hussing (right) addresses the court with attorney John Luskin during her sentencing hearing on involuntary manslaughter charges. — AP

for Hussing to stay in bed during the day and do drugs. Both parents have abused drugs, their attorneys earlier told the judge.

Hussing’s oldest daughter, Lillian, 18, defended her mother in court and said Willie was able to do the same things other 8-year-olds do.

“He was able to play, go outside,” she said. The judge looked surprised and asked the teen if she would be willing to repeat her statements under oath and possible penalty of perjury. She did. The judge compared the autopsy photo of Willie’s emaciated body to concentration camp victims. “If anybody, anybody, didn’t know this kid was sick, they are seriously, seriously disturbed,” Astrab said.

Two doctors told the judge before the sentencing that no sick child would be turned away from a hospital. Willie Robinson collapsed at his home on March 22, 2008. Prosecutors say he had begged his parents to take him to see a doctor but was rejected.

Hodgkin lymphoma is a highly treatable cancer. Lillian Hussing said earlier the family didn’t have money for medical care and tried repeatedly to get help from social services and visited a free clinic but left when told they would have to pay $180. The family soon moved to Cleveland and the boy died within weeks.

Prosecutors say that while the boy was suffering, the parents claimed financial hardship but paid $87 to have a pit bull treated for fleas.

Hussing’s defense attorney, John Luskin, said the dog belonged to Hussing’s parents and her parents paid for the treatment.

Trumbull County Children Services says it had worked with the family to provide Willie health care, getting involved after receiving a phone call in July 2007.

Agency officials said a case worker visited the family at least monthly and pushed the parents to have a medical follow-up on his swollen neck but they didn’t. However, Robinson’s attorney Thomas Rein said previously that a social worker who visited the family in January 2008 “indicated the kids were healthy and happy.” He said no one knew the boy had cancer until he died and an autopsy was performed. And Lillian Hussing said a case worker had told the family the boy’s lump looked like a swollen gland and to hold off until they could secure financial assistance before getting it checked.

About two weeks after they moved to Cleveland, she said, her brother came down with something. Her mother treated him with cold medicine and he died within three days. — AP

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2012

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

In wasting children, richer India sees ‘national shame’ Government policies fail despite reforms

KABUL: An Afghan boy selling packed peas, waits for customers on a cold and snow covered street during a snowstorm yesterday. —AP

Harsh winter kills 40 kids in Afghanistan KABUL: A harsh winter has killed almost 40 children in Afghanistan in the past month, most of them in refugee camps in Kabul with aid groups warning yesterday of more deaths as temperatures keep falling. Twenty-four children lost their lives in camps on the outskirts of the capital which houses thousands of Afghans fleeing war and Taleban intimidation in southern Afghanistan. Others died from cold in the central highlands, public health ministry spokesman Ghulam Sakhi Kargar Noorughli told AFP. “Over this past one month we have 40 deaths recorded. All have died from cold and are mostly children,” he said.

Afghanistan, a landlocked and mountainous country, has suffered its coldest winter in 15 years. International children’s charity Save the Children warned yesterday that weather conditions were expected to worsen, threatening the lives of more children in the camps. “Save the Children is warning that even more could die from cold in what is Afghanistan’s worst winter for 15 years,”

the charity group said in a statement, adding that temperatures were expected to drop as low as -17 degrees centigrade.

“This has been a brutal winter and children have little to protect them from the biting cold,” Bob Grabman, Save the Children’s country director in Afghanistan, said. “Many are trying to survive without decent shelter or blankets, without fuel, food, warm clothes or shoes,” he added. “At night the temperature falls dangerously low, threatening the lives of newborns and small children.

It’s crucial we get urgent help to families so children are protected,” Grabman added.

According to the charity about 20,000 people, fleeing insecurity caused by a Taleban-led insurgency, are living in more than 30 informal settlements in Kabul under extreme hardship. Most live in flimsy tents. Despite the flood of billions of dollars in aid from the international community after the collapse of the Taleban Afghanistan remains among the poorest nations in the world. — AFP

India group’s prosthetic leg a boon for amputees JAIPUR: Shopkeeper Mauji Lal was boarding a train four years ago when the crowd pushed him onto the tracks and he was run over. Doctors amputated his right leg and four toes on his left foot. Hobbling on a walker, he got back on a train last month for the 20-hour trip across India to this western city. He was fitted with an artificial limb and got meals and rudimentary therapy, all free. “The limb is good,” the 72-yearold Lal said. “I feel some pain and it’s still difficult to walk on it for more than an hour, but I’m getting used to it.”

Lal is one of hundreds of patients each week who arrive leaning on sticks, hobbling on crutches or carried by relatives, a near-biblical scene, at the gates of a white three-story building. For three decades, a civic group here has been changing lives with the “Jaipur Foot,” a low-cost prosthetic device that can be attached to an artificial leg of any length, depending on where the amputation occurred.

Devendra Raj Mehta, a retired civil servant and the charity’s founder, said he got the idea after his leg was broken in 43 places in 1969. His leg was saved, but during his five months recovering in a hospital, he was struck by how many impoverished Indian lives were destroyed by amputations. Six years later, he started Bhagwan Mahavir Viklang Sahayata Samiti, better known as Jaipur Foot.

In the first seven years, the group produced fewer than 50 artificial limbs. But by the 1980s, it was gaining traction and now produces customized legs of wood, plastic, rubber and aluminum in rapid succession for about $40 in materials, or $150, including labor and overhead, compared with thousands of dollars in the United States.

Producing the flexible, waterproof prosthesis at such low cost has involved cutting some rather ingenious corners. The leg’s exterior, for example, is made of beige plastic irrigation piping melted to fit. “See how strong it is?” Mehta said, banging a justcooled limb against a table edge. “And with our design, people can kneel, squat, climb trees, which isn’t possible with other designs.”

The Jaipur Foot was invented in the 1960s by an orthopedic surgeon and a craftsman with a fourth-grade education who taught crafts to patients in a hospital.

The two stopped speaking to each other before the doctor’s recent death, Mehta said, in part over who deserved credit for the invention. The foot is heavier than many Western prosthetics and has no attached shoe, allowing it to work better in mud, rice fields and on uneven ground.

And its flexibility works with Asian squat toilets, sitting cross-legged or bowing in prayer.

To date, the group has handed out 1.2 million limbs. The group, which also operates internationally, gets about a third of its funding from the Indian government - New Delhi supports projects abroad as part of “soft power” initiatives - and two-thirds from grants and donations.

Over the years, the group has set up camps or permanent clinics in Africa, Latin America, throughout India and across Asia, including Cambodia, Afghanistan and Pakistan. (The Jaipur Foot is not available in the US because it lacks FDA approval.)

Energetic and committed, with a hint of the

hauteur sometimes found in senior Indian bureaucrats, Mehta breezes through the clinic here as patients entreat him for train fare or the wheelchair cycles reserved for those who’ve lost both legs.Patients sit on long rows of plastic chairs beneath posters of Hindu gods, Islam’s holy site of Mecca and Jesus, underscoring the group’s nondenominational approach. Once registered, amputees are measured and a custommade cast is heated to 350 degrees and attached to one of several sizes of artificial feet. Voila. John Craig, a Texas-based prosthetist who has visited Jaipur Foot camps in Honduras, Uganda, Tanzania and India to assess the system for USAID funding, praises the technology, the cost and the Jaipur center’s counselling and holistic approach.

But in some of the field camps he visited, he said, those making and fitting devices may be poorly trained. And often there was limited follow-up, he said, which led some patients to reject the limb when a small adjustment could have changed their lives. “If you just fit the prosthesis and send them away without training the amputee or follow-up, you’re doing these people a disservice,” he said. “They’ll stop using it because it’s hurting.” Jaipur Foot staff members dismiss the criticism, saying they’re constantly working on improvements.

“People will find faults in everything,” said workshop manager Om Prakash. “We produce the most legs in the world, and our competitors are jealous.”

There’s little doubt that the Jaipur Foot has changed many lives. One of the most prominent users is Sudha Chandran, a professional dancer in India, who got the prosthesis after a car accident when she was 17.

Three years later, she was able to resume dancing with a specially modified version of the device, which she continues to use even though she could afford a more expensive model. —MCT

JAIPUR: A patient is watched by technicians and family members as he learns to walk with a prosthetic device. — MCT

SHIVPURI: Crying as she is put on an electronic scale, two-year-old Rajini’s naked shrivelled frame casts a dark shadow over a rising India, where millions of children have little to eat. The children are scrawny, listless and sick in this run-down nutrition clinic in central India with its intermittent power supply. If they survive they will grow up shorter, weaker and less smart than their better-fed peers. Rajini weighs 5 kg (11 lb), about half of what she should.

“She’s as light as a leaf, this can’t be good,” says her grandmother, Sushila Devi, poking her rib-protruding stomach in the clinic in Shivpuri district in Madhya Pradesh state.

Almost as shocking as India’s high prevalence of child malnutrition is the country’s failure to reduce it, despite the economy tripling between 1990 and 2005 to become Asia’s third largest and annual per capita income rising to $489 from $96. A governmentsupported survey last month said 42 percent of children under five are underweight - almost double that of sub-Saharan Africa - compared to 43 percent five years ago. The statistic - which means 3,000 children dying daily due to illnesses related to poor diets led Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to admit malnutrition was “a national shame” and was putting the health of the nation in jeopardy.

“It is a national shame. Child nutrition is a marker of the many things that are not going right for the poor of India,” said Purnima Menon, research fellow on poverty, health and nutrition at the Institute of Food Policy Research Institute. India’s efforts to reduce the number of undernourished kids have been largely hampered by blighting poverty where many cannot afford the amount and types of food they need.

Poor hygiene, low public

health spending and little education and awareness have not helped. Age-old customs discriminating against women such as child marriage have also contributed, but are far harder to tackle, say experts. In addition, shoddy management of food stocks, subsidised carbohydraterich food that fuel and fill the poor rather than truly nourishing them and real shortages in its poorest states have worsened the problem.

At the Shivpuri clinic, health worker Rekha Singh Chauhan tends to emaciated young children in a ward with a ganglion of electrical wires running cross its paint-chipped walls. “We only have a handful to take care of now, but come April, the cases will shoot up,” says Chauhan, adding that diseases such as diarrhoea and malaria will cause an influx of sick underweight children with the onset of summer. “ The situation becomes bad.

Three children are made to share a bed and many have to sleep on the floor.”

That picture jars with an India clocking enviable 8-9 percent growth over the last five years that has put money in the pockets of millions of its people and fuelled demand for everything from cars and computers to clothes and fancy homes. It has also catapulted the country onto the world stage, boosting its claim for a bigger role on forums such as the U.N. Security Council.

This month, it moved closer to buying new fighter jets worth a whopping $15 billion. Yet while the urban middle classes dine in swanky shopping malls where eateries offer everything from sushi to burritos, millions of children are dying due to a lack of food. Last month’s report by the Indian charity Naandi Foundation, the first comprehensive data since a 2005/6 study, said India’s “nutri-

tion crisis” is an attributable cause for up to half of all child deaths.

Yet India’s public spending on health, estimated at 1.2 percent of its GDP in 2009, is among the lowest in the world. “This isn’t a quick-fix that we’re looking at here, it’s not a magic bullet,” said Jasmine Whitbread, CEO of Save the Children International.

“Not just in India, but in countries around the world, we know that you can’t just rely on trickle down. There have to be policies in place, there have got to be political choices that prioritise malnutrition.” In Shivpuri, an impoverished tribal-dominated district in Madhya Pradesh state, that reality is on full display. The region’s malnutrition level for children under five matches the national average, but child mortality rates are worse at 103 deaths per 1,000. The national average is 66 deaths per 1,000, according to U.N. children’s agency, Unicef.

Most of the children here are from India’s most marginalised and poorest communities, such as tribals and lower castes where literacy is poor and poverty high.

Their mothers are themselves often undernourished, forced into early marriage when they reach puberty, and give birth to underweight babies with weak immune systems. Illiteracy or lack of awareness takes its toll as well.

These mothers do not breastfeed, offering buffalo milk and contaminated water instead and making their children prone to illnesses like diarrhoea, which prevents nutrient absorption. Mostly living on less than $2 a day, these families can hardly afford anything beyond wheat chapatis that are devoid of much-needed protein and other nutrients.

India’s neglect of its young - 48 percent are stunted, 20 percent wasted and 70 percent anaemic will have serious repercussions.

The World Bank says malnutrition in the poorest countries slashes around 3 percent from annual economic growth. Malnourished children will struggle at school, if they go at all, and earn 20 percent less during their working life and are more prone to infections, including HIV, and death.

Human development goals, signed up to at the start of the millennium by 192 U.N. members, including India, are also at risk.

Reducing child malnutrition by half and child mortality levels by two-thirds of 1990 levels are unlikely to be met by India by the 2015 deadline, say experts. In comparison, neighbouring China has already achieved its target on malnutrition and under-five child mortality goals as its economic growth has been more broadbased, focusing on health, sanitation and small holder production.

While India has several schemes already running to battle malnutrition, the Indian government is now vaunting a multibillion-dollar food subsidy programme as a possible solution.

But the Food Security Bill, which guarantees cut-price rice and wheat to 63.5 percent of the population may be more a political gimmick, experts worry, than about providing nutritious food to those who need it most. “The Food Security Bill is a very good development, but it is a food security bill, not a nutrition security bill,” said Lawrence Haddad, director of the UK-based Institute of Development Studies.

For the children at Shivpuri’s nutrition centre, government plans mean little unless they put enough of the right food in their stomachs. “You see her arms?

They are almost the width of my thumb,” says Jharna, as she carried her limp, emaciated one-year-old grand-daughter, Sakshi, into the clinic. “She is too weak. She can’t even sit by herself.” — Reuters

Bodyguards, trade secure peace in West Afghanistan HERAT: Afghan businessman Seros Alaaf paid a $300,000 ransom to free his uncle from the clutches of the mafia who once stalked Herat. Now he takes no chances, with five bodyguards at his side.

Recalling the most troubled days in Afghanistan’s western city, the power ful figure in the Herat Chamber of Commerce and Industry casts around his plush office, part of the business boom that is helping to safeguard the city. “There are far fewer kidnappings these days, but it hasn’t stopped, and the only reason it’s less is that whoever has money can also pay for five to 10 bodyguards,” said Alaaf, blaming weak governance for the mafia’s rule.

But seven months after Italian troops handed responsibility for the city to Afghans, as part of the first phase of returning control to local security forces nationwide by the end of 2014, the government says security has improved. The Taleban are not the main threat in Herat. Instead rivalries for power and influence in the city fuel much of the trouble, with gunmen loyal to mujahideen leaders Ismail Khan and Gulbuddin Hekmatyar still at large.

Although it is early days and political opponents challenge claims of an improvement, Herat could be considered an example of how managing factions and a relatively flourishing economy can keep a region largely free of violence. But under the surface, there are also signs of the festering rivalries, ethnic and political, that experts consider the potential undoing of a future political settlement. The province’s religious leader, Maulavi Khudadad Saleh, a conservative popular among Herat’s Pashtuns, is at loggerheads with the city’s Westernised technocrat governor Daud Shah Saba, a Tajik.

Government is dominated by those affiliated with the Jamiat-e-Islami Islamic party, which Ismail Khan led in the western region during the Soviet war and subsequent civil conflict. But they are kept in check at least partly by Saba, who although from Herat has had a career in international development and is disconnected from the main local power factions.

Unlike the checkpoints and blast walls of the Afghan capital, Herat’s roads are free from military intrusion and its police largely unarmed.

Only 320 police work in Herat city, while in the province’s most remote district of Farsi, 160 kilometres (100 miles) away, just 42 patrol. “It’s below any kind of standard you may imagine,” says Saba. “Still security’s pretty good.” Sayed Ahmad Sami, the region’s police chief and a fellow Tajik, agrees. “Before transition there were a lot of problems like abduction and organised crime. Now it’s close to zero. For the past month there have been no abductions,” he told AFP. Change has come piecemeal and one deal at a time. Three years ago the police force was divided into factions loyal to Ismail Khan and religious leader Saleh, and kidnapping was the biggest racket in town, with ransoms fetching up to $600,000. The capture of a well-known money changer in late 2008 led to a shopkeepers’ strike, and ultimately the sacking of 12 police commanders and the former governor who was accused of being in league with the kidnappers. Government officials say security along major highways is improving and plans for major economic projects bring promise of future dividends.—AFP

CHRISTCHURCH: This file photo shows a vehicle stuck in the road after an earthquake devastated New Zealand’s second largest city on February 22, 2011. — AFP

Aftershocks put New Zealand quake city rebuilding on hold CHRISTCHURCH: Dangerous aftershocks have left the battered city of Christchurch struggling to rebuild 12 months after a devastating earthquake and raised doubts over its economic future. Much of the downtown area was destroyed and remains sealed off following the 6.3-magnitude quake on February 22 last year, which killed 185 people as it flattened office blocks, buckled roads and brought historic buildings crashing down. Hotels and shops lie empty behind the wire-mesh fences of the “red zone”, which covers most of the central business area-a ghost town of broken buildings and vacant lots with weeds poking out from exposed foundations.

The only sound of activity from within is the crash of rubble being dumped into skips as workers still toil to clear debris from the historic precinct which was once the pride of New Zealand’s second largest city. Plans are afoot for a NZ$30 billion ($24.5 billion) rebuilding programme, the largest construction effort in the country’s history, to restore Christchurch to its former glory as capital of the South Island. But constant seismic activity has frustrated the effort, with about 10,000 aftershocks recorded since September 2010, when a 7.0-magnitude quake on a previously unknown fault line began what has become a trial of endurance for the city.

No-one was killed in that quake and reconstruction was well under way before the deadly February tremor hit, lower in magnitude but shallower and with an epicentre much closer to the city centre’s already weakened buildings. Since then, there have been major aftershocks in June and December, the most recent sending terrified Christmas shoppers fleeing from stores in panic and adding more damage to the scarred city, further delaying reconstruction.

More than 60 percent of the old buildings that defined Christchurch, creating what locals called “a little slice of England”, have been lost and many more are severely damaged and need expensive reinforce-

ment. Win Clark of the New Zealand Society for Earthquake Engineering said most, with the possible exception of landmark buildings such as the Anglican cathedral, would not be rebuilt because of the danger they posed.

Some have suggested simply shifting the entire CBD elsewhere to more stable ground but Clark said that was impractical.

“The problem there is that there’s a very large investment in infrastructure-buildings, water supply, power, sewerage, all types,” he said. “It’s been damaged but to build a new city you would have to start over again from scratch at colossal cost.”

Mayor Bob Parker last year released the local council’s vision for the future, a lowrise central business district serviced by light rail with environmentally friendly buildings and large areas of parkland.

The council wants a seven-storey high limit, saying traumatised workers do not want to return to high-rise office blocks, which were the cause of most deaths when they catastrophically failed in the February shake. Clark was sympathetic but said modern building methods using techniques such as deep foundations meant there was no engineering reason preventing the immediate construction of large buildings.

“The fact that we’re going to get further aftershocks should not stop current redevelopment,” he said. New Zealand Institute of Economic Research principal economist Shamubeel Eaqub warned excessive restrictions could prompt investors to take their capital elsewhere, to cities such as Auckland, and residents would follow. He was also concerned that ongoing delays partially blamed on infighting among officialsEarthquake Recovery Minister Gerry Brownlee recently labelled Parker a “clown”was paralysing the city’s regeneration.

Eaqub said 30,000 jobs had been lost in Christchurch over the past year and the longer the rebuild took, the more difficult it would be for the city to regain its mantle as an economic powerhouse. — AFP

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2012

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

Profane video stokes Australia PM tensions SYDNEY: Leadership tensions within Australia’s ruling Labor party erupted yesterday with the release of a video showing ex-prime minister Kevin Rudd on an expletive-ridden rant about a Chinese interpreter. The two-minute video, uploaded onto YouTube by a user calling themselves “HappyVegemiteKR”, shows an irate Rudd trying to record a message in Mandarin and railing against the “****head in the embassy” who wrote the text.

“This ****ing language, he just complicates it so much. How can anyone do this?” Rudd, a former diplomat who speaks Mandarin, shouts as he slams his fist on the table in front of him. Rudd was ousted as leader in a shock party coup in June 2010 by his deputy, Julia Gillard, who scraped back into power at elections and is now badly lagging in the polls. Speculation has intensified in recent weeks

News

in brief

China bus crashes kill 28 in one day BEIJING: At least 28 people have been killed and dozens injured in three bus crashes in one day in southern China, state media reported yesterday. A bus overturned on a mountainous road in southwestern Yunnan province late Saturday, killing at least nine passengers and injuring 24, Xinhua news agency said. The injured were all taken to local hospitals, and the cause of the crash is under investigation, the report said. The bus, which was carrying 37 passengers, started its journey in the city of Chuxiong and was bound for the tourist town of Dali. In neighbouring Guizhou province, 13 people were killed and 22 injured when the tyre of the bus they were riding in blew out, causing the vehicle to career off the road, Xinhua said. In the southern Guangxi region, six people were killed when their bus collided with a truck, Xinhua said. China’s roads are among the world’s most dangerous, with traffic laws and safety widely flouted. According to police statistics, about 70,000 people die and 300,000 are injured in road accidents every year in China, Xinhua said.But the World Health Organisation said in a recent study the true figure is almost twice that number, citing hospital and medical clinic statistics.

China detains Tibetan writer BEIJING: Police in southwest China have detained a Tibetan writer amid scores of detentions in the region hit by anti-Chinese protests, a US-based broadcaster Radio Free Asia said yesterday. A team of 20 policemen took Gangkye Drubpa Kyab, 33, from his home in Seda county, Sichuan province on Wednesday last week, the broadcaster said, citing acquaintances of the popular author. Writers, singers, and artists promoting Tibetan national identity and culture have frequently been detained

by Chinese authorities, especially following protests against Chinese rule in 2008, it said.

Drubpa Kyab’s disappearance comes amid a huge clampdown in Tibetan-inhabited areas following several bouts of deadly unrest, and ahead of the March anniversary of the Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama’s flight into exile. A government official in Seda told AFP that he was unaware of the arrest of Drubpa Kyab. Police in the county did not answer phones yesterday. According to Human Rights Watch, authorities have also detained large numbers of Tibetans for political re-education after they returned from a visit to India to listen to religious teachings. The New York-based group quoted multiple sources as saying that since February 6, many recently-returned Tibetans had been detained in ad hoc centres in Lhasa, capital of Tibet, and other areas. The group said the exact number of detainees was not known, but may run into the hundreds. China has imposed virtual martial law in numerous Tibetan-inhabited regions as tensions have escalated, leading to the deaths last month of at least two people in clashes between police and locals in Sichuan, which borders Tibet. Over the past year at least 20 Tibetans, many of them Buddhist monks, have set themselves on fire in protest at what they say is religious and cultural repression.

Fujimori-era forced sterilization in Peru film spotlight LIMA: Widespread forced sterilizations during the government of Peru’s former president Alberto Fujimori, supposedly in the name of progress, are at the center of an explosive new documentary out this week. “They tied me up, and they cut me here,” said an emotional Micaela Flores, pointing to her belly, in the film “Paulina’s scar” by Manuel Legarda. She was one of thousands of women who were subject to forced sterilization during his second term in office which began in 1996.

In 1996, Fujimori’s government started a reproductive health and family planning program that included tubal ligation operations that were supposed to be voluntary.

Fujimori was convinced this would bring down the birth rate and help economic development. But in time, reports started emerging that many authorities were skipping the consent part and forcing women to undergo sterilization-especially poor, rural, less educated and disproportionately indigenous Andean women.

Many women were threatened, tricked into undergoing the surgery and sometimes offered food in exchange for permanent sterilization. And some authorities were carrying out sterilizations in unclean, substandard conditions, victims charge. According to official data 300,000 women underwent surgery under the program. More than 2,000 have filed official complaints and 18 died during of after the procedures. “The doctors would go to people’s homes and tell women that they had to use birth control, that the president was going to take care of them, give them a monthly food subsidy, or pay for their education. If they said no, they were threatened and sometimes even kidnapped,” said Andean parliament lawmaker Hilaria Supa, one of those interviewed for the documentary. “In Mollepata (southeastern Peru) doctors tied up ten women in a local medical clinic in a slum and would not let them leave until they had undergone the procedure,” said Supa, who noted that the family planning program had the financial backing “of the World Bank, United States and Japan.” —AFP

that Rudd, currently Australia’s foreign minister, is preparing to challenge for the top job. He denied this but said a suspicious person would question the “unusual” timing of the video’s release, given that it was shot several years ago when he was still prime minister. Such out-takes footage is usually destroyed but Rudd said the video in question had clearly been archived by the prime minister’s office or some other government department. Gillard’s office denied leaking the footage.

Rudd also insisted that he was a changed man and had learned to be less controlling and to consult more broadly-two key criticisms that saw him lose office. “As to whether (I have) changed in any fundamental way, that’s a judgement for others to make, but I’ve certainly reflected a lot in the past several years,” Rudd told Sky News. He said he was

“embarrassed” by the swearing and he had been frustrated with himself, not the interpreter.

Independent lawmaker Andrew Wilkie fuelled speculation of a challenge to Gillard, claiming that he and Rudd discussed the issue back in November and he “clearly wants the job back”.

“There will be a challenge and I suspect he may well be successful,” said Wilkie. Gillard admitted that the leadership tensions were hurting her government. “This kind of focus over the last few weeks means it’s more difficult for me to be out there explaining to people what’s happening in our economy,” Gillard said. She deflected questions about her leadership and said it was an “incredible privilege” to lead the country.

“I have the strong confidence of my colleagues, their strong support and my focus is on getting on

with my job as prime minister,” Gillard told reporters. But there are now open divisions within the party, with one Labor MP calling yesterday for Gillard to stand down and another condemning Rudd as a “prima donna” who had been “comprehensively rejected” by his colleagues.

Attorney-General Nicola Roxon urged Rudd to focus on his portfolio, saying he had left Labor with “a lot of challenges” and Gillard was a better leader.

Political analyst Peter van Onselen said the impasse had now reached a critical phase and Gillard had to either sack Rudd for disloyalty or call a ballot to resolve the issue within the next few days. “There’s just no way things can continue the way they are at the moment after what’s happened today, the stand-off is just utterly debilitating for the government,” van Onselen told AFP. — AFP

N Korea threatens to attack S Korea over military drill ‘There will be merciless retaliatory strikes’ PYONGYANG: North Korea will launch “merciless” strikes if South Korea goes through with planned live-fire drills near their disputed sea border, a North Korean officer said yesterday, amid persistent tension on the divided peninsula.

North Korea doesn’t want a war but its people are always ready to “dedicate their blood to defend their inviolable territory,” officer Sin Chol Ung at the North’s Korean People’s Security Forces told The Associated Press.

“We are monitoring every movement by the South Korean warmongers. If they provoke us, there will be only merciless retaliatory strikes,” Sin said. South Korea will stage regular one-day artillery drills today from front-line islands off the western coast, including one shelled by North Korea in 2010, according to Seoul’s Joint Chiefs of Staff. It said South Korea informed North Korea of its training plan yesterday.

Soon after, the North’s military issued a statement warning of the strikes and urging all civilians living or working on the islands to evacuate before the drills start. “Such move of the warlike forces is a premeditated military provocation ... to drive the overall situation on the Korean peninsula into the phase of war,” a North Korean western military command said in a statement carried by the official Korean Central News Agency.

The North frequently issues similar rhetoric against South Korea, but the latest warning comes as ties between the Koreas remain tense following the death of North Korean leader Kim Jong Il in December. South Korea has barred all of its citizens, except for two private delegations, from visiting to pay respects to Kim, and North Korea has vowed to retaliate. South Korea regularly conducts artillery drills from front-line islands. A November 2010 drill at one of the five islands, Yeonpyeong, triggered a North Korean artillery bombardment that killed four South Koreans.

Pyongyang has accused Seoul of provoking the attack by conducting drills in its territorial waters.

In Seoul, an official at the Joint Chiefs of Staff said that South Korea’s military will go ahead with today’s two-hour

PYONGYANG: This undated photo released by North Korea’s official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) shows North Korean servicemen marching during the military parade to pay respect to Kim Il-Sung and Kim Jong-Il and pledge loyalty to Kim Jong-Un at the Kumsusan Memorial Palace on the birth anniversary of late Kim Jong-Il. — AFP artillery drills and is ready to repel any North Korean provo- not forget the lesson taught by the Yeonpyeong Island cation. The official, speaking on condition of anonymity cit- shelling case,” the North’s statement said, referring to the ing department rules, said North Korea hasn’t shown any South Korean president. The North’s warning also came suspicious military activities so far. South Korea also plans four days before U.S. and North Korean officials meet in joint anti-submarine drills with the United States this week, Beijing for talks on the country’s nuclear weapons probut the training site is further south, he said. About 28,500 gram. The talks will be the first such bilateral contact since U.S. troops are stationed in South Korea as what U.S. and Kim’s Dec. 17 death. The Korean peninsula remains techniSouth Korean officials call deterrence against North Korean cally at war because the 1950-53 Korean War ended with aggression. “The Lee Myung-bak group of traitors should an armistice, not a peace treaty. — AP

China’s Xi shows US new style but questions linger WASHINGTON: After a long-awaited trip, Americans have learned that China’s likely next leader enjoys basketball and the fresh Midwestern air but are still in the dark on how he will handle rising tensions. Vice President Xi Jinping, who is on course to lead the fast-growing Asian power through 2023, journeyed through the United States for a week with a warm welcome in Washington and photo-friendly stops in Iowa and Los Angeles. The 58-year-old showed a different style from China’s typically stiff President Hu Jintao. Xi appeared at ease with Americans as he reminisced with people he met in 1985 on an exchange to Iowa and later praised the clean Midwestern air as he hopped onto a tractor.

Xi referenced films “ The Godfather” and “Mission: Impossible” and closed his trip Friday by taking in a Lakers basketball game in Los Angeles. His delegation committed to buying billions of dollars in soybeans and letting in more Hollywood movies. US Vice President Joe Biden, who was Xi’s host and traveled to China last year, said that the two have spent some 20 hours getting to know each other and have spoken of everything “from Confucius to Catholicism.”

“I strongly believe, and I think Vice President Xi does as well, that

the honest, sustained dialogue we’ve had this week can and will build a stronger relationship that benefits both our nations and our people,” Biden said. But experts saw few signs of what if any changes Xi would make as president. Xi is expected to begin the first of two five-year terms next year. Xi stuck to script by saying that China was assessing US charges of unfair trade practices and promising “constructive” dialogue on China’s human rights record, which Biden and activists said has deteriorated.

“Our top political leaders have an interest in seeing anything as new because they’ve had a really tough time with the old guys,” said Dan Blumenthal, a resident fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, a conservative think-tank. “We’re projecting a lot of our own wishes onto a man we don’t know anything about.

The fact that he may be less stiff and make a joke or two, all of a sudden that turns into that this is a guy we can do business with,” he said.

It is not the first time that US policymakers, frustrated by China’s opaque political system, have looked hard at personal traits for clues. Former leader Deng Xiaoping famously donned a cowboy hat when he visited a rodeo on a US trip in 1979, foreshadowing in some experts’ eyes his economic reforms.

DUBLIN: Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping (left), and Irish T·naiste (deputy Prime Minister) Eamon Gilmore (centre) are greeted by bagpiper Neil Carey at Bunratty Castle yesterday. — AFP

In a flip to the assessments of Xi, some US experts had hoped for smoother relations with China when Hu became president in 2003. Hu was seen as representing a more serious side as he succeeded the extroverted Jiang Zemin, who once sang Elvis Presley’s “Love Me Tender” on a visit to the Philippines.

But relations between the Pacific powers remain uneasy a decade later and China-despite Xi’s stated hopes-is shaping up to become a campaign issue in the US elections in November. Mitt Romney, a Republican presidential candidate, criticized Obama’s welcome for Xi and called China a “prosperous tyranny.” He vowed that he would toughen US policy on concerns from its currency value to human rights to defense.

Obama has moved to reassert the US military presence in Asia, where China has growing disputes with its neighbors, and told Xi that a rising Beijing must play by international “rules” on trade. But Obama also said that he welcomed China’s rise and wanted cooperation, hoping to ease widespread concerns in Beijing that the United States is trying to contain the growing Asian power. Xi is expected to lead China through a decade in which many experts believe that it will surpass the United States as the world’s largest economy and steadily expand influence.

Ralph Cossa, president of the Center for Strategic and International Studies’ Hawaii-based Pacific Forum, said that a warmer personal relationship between Xi and US leaders can only be a positive. “It could also help China’s image in the US which then makes it easier for a president to be more cordial without being accused of bending to China,” Cossa said. But China, compared with the United States, has a political system less driven by individuals. Experts say it is uncertain what level of authority Xi has on the Politburo Standing Committee, which collectively makes decisions.

Xi “may be the first among equals but he will not have absolute power,” Cossa said. “It will likely not be until his second term when, if ever, we see the real Xi emerge.” — AFP

YANGON: Myanmar dissident Buddhist monk Gambira or “Shin Gambira” attends the farewell ceremony of Ahshin Pyi Nyar Thiha, the head of the Shwenyawar monastery, yesterday. — AFP

Dissident Myanmar monk to face trial YANGON: A leading dissident Buddhist monk who was among hundreds of political prisoners released last month is facing a fresh trial in Myanmar, state media said yesterday.

Gambira “will have to face the charges of squatting” in one monastery in Yangon and breaking into two others, which led to him being detained briefly by police earlier this month, according to the state-run New Light of Myanmar. The newspaper said authorities “are taking legal steps to bring (him) to trial”. Gambira was freed in January, cutting short a 68-year jail term imposed for his key role in 2007 mass protests known as the “Saffron Revolution”, which were brutally crushed by the former junta. The monk, who goes by only one name, was taken away by authorities early on February 10 and released that night. His detention drew sharp criticism from the United States.

State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said at the time that given the “government’s stated commitment to reform and democratisation, we call on Burmese authorities to protect the fundamental freedoms of all its citizens, including all of those recently released from detention”. Myanmar’s release of about 500 political prisoners since October has been hailed by Western countries, which have long demanded the freeing of such detainees before they would consider lifting sanctions.

Since being let out of prison in January, Gambira has breached regulations by breaking into monasteries closed by the government after the monk-led demonstrations, a government official told AFP on the day he was detained. The New Light said that after questioning Gambira was taken to senior monks who reprimanded him for his behaviour and “wished for legal actions” against him after he admonished them for not helping jailed monks. —AP

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 20 , 2012

NEWS

Kuwaiti traders follow market activity at the Kuwait Stock Exchange yesterday. Kuwait is forecast to post its largest revenues and budget surplus ever this current fiscal year on the back of high oil prices and production. — Photo by Yasser Al-Zayyat

NYPD monitored Muslim students Continued from Page 1 guilty to posting online threats against the creators of the animated TV show “South Park,” had once tried to recruit followers at Stony Brook University on Long Island, Browne said.

“As a result, the NYPD deemed it prudent to get a better handle on what was occurring at MSAs,” Browne said in an email. He said police monitored student websites and collected publicly available information, but did so only between 2006 and 2007. “I see a violation of civil rights here,” said Tanweer Haq, chaplain of the Muslim Student Association at Syracuse. “Nobody wants to be on the list of the FBI or the NYPD or whatever. Muslim students want to have their own lives, their own privacy and enjoy the same freedoms and opportunities that everybody else has.”

In recent months, the AP has revealed secret programs the NYPD built with help from the CIA to monitor Muslims at the places where they eat, shop and worship. The AP also published details about how police placed undercover officers at Muslim student associations in colleges within the city limits; this revelation has outraged faculty and student groups.

Though the NYPD says it follows the same rules as the FBI, some of the NYPD’s activities go beyond what the FBI is allowed to do. Kelly and New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg repeatedly have said that the police only follow legitimate leads about suspected criminal activity.

But the latest documents mention no wrongdoing by any students. In one report, an undercover officer describes accompanying 18 Muslim students from the City College of New York on a whitewater rafting trip in upstate New York on April 21, 2008. The officer noted the names of attendees who were officers of the Muslim Student Association. “In addition to the regularly scheduled events (Rafting), the group prayed at least four times a day, and much of the conversation was spent discussing Islam and was religious in nature,” the report says. Praying five times a day is one of the core traditions of Islam.

Jawad Rasul, one of the students on the trip, said he was stunned that his name was included in the police report. “It forces me to look around wherever I am now,” Rasul said. But another student, Ali Ahmed, whom the NYPD said appeared to be in charge of the trip, said he understood the police department’s concern. “I can’t blame them for doing their job,” Ahmed said. “There’s lots of Muslims doing some bad things and it gives a bad name to all of us, so they have to take their due diligence.”

City College criticized the surveillance and said it was unaware the NYPD was watching students. “The City College of New York does not accept or condone any investigation of any student organization based on the political or religious content of its ideas,” the college said in a written statement. “Absent specific evidence linking a member of the City College community to criminal activity, we do not condone this kind of investigation.” Browne said undercover officers go wherever people they’re investigating go. There is no indication that, in the nearly four years since the report, the NYPD brought charges connecting City College students to terrorism.

Student groups were of particular interest to the NYPD because they attract young Muslim men, a demographic that terrorist groups frequently draw from. Police worried about which Muslim scholars were influencing these students and feared that extracurricular activities such as paintball outings could be used as terrorist training. The AP first reported in October that the NYPD had placed informants or undercover officers in the Muslim Student Associations at City College, Brooklyn College, Baruch College, Hunter College, City College of New York, Queens College, La Guardia Community College and St John’s University. All of those colleges are within the New York City limits.

A person familiar with the program, who like others insisted on anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss it, said the NYPD also had a student informant at Syracuse. Police also were interested in the Muslim student group at Rutgers, in New Brunswick, New Jersey. In 2009, undercover NYPD officers had a safe house in an apartment not far from campus. The operation was blown when the building superintendent stumbled upon the safe house and, thinking it was some sort of a terrorist cell, called the police emerency dispatcher.

The FBI responded and determined that monitoring Rutgers students was one of the operation’s objectives, current and former federal officials said. The Rutgers police chief at the time, Rhonda Harris, would not discuss the fallout. In a written statement, university spokesman E J Miranda said: “The university was not aware of this at the time and we have nothing to add on this matter.” Another NYPD intelligence report from Jan. 2, 2009, described a trip by three NYPD officers to Buffalo, where they met with a high-ranking member of the Erie County Sheriff’s Department and agreed “to develop assets jointly in the Buffalo area, to act as listening posts within the ethnic Somalian community.”

The sheriff’s department official noted “that there are some Somali Professors and students at SUNYBuffalo and it would be worthwhile to further analyze that population,” the report says. Browne said the NYPD did not follow that recommendation. A

spokesman for the university, John DellaContrada, said the NYPD never contacted the administration. Sheriff’s Departments spokeswoman Mary Murray could not immediately confirm the meeting or say whether the proposal went any further.

Another report, entitled “Weekly MSA Report” and dated Nov. 22, 2006, explained that officers from the NYPD’s Cyber Intelligence unit visited the websites, blogs and forums of Muslim student associations as a “daily routine”. The universities included Yale; Columbia; the University of Pennsylvania; Syracuse; New York University; Clarkson University; the Newark and New Brunswick campuses of Rutgers; and the State University of New York campuses in Buffalo, Albany, Stony Brook and Potsdam; Queens College, Baruch College, Brooklyn College and La Guardia Community College.

“Students who advertised events or sent emails about regular events should not be worried about a ‘terrorism file’ being kept on them. NYPD only investigated persons who we had reasonable suspicion to believe might be involved in unlawful activities,” Browne said. But such assurances seem to offer little comfort to some former students. One University at Buffalo student, Adeela Khan, did end up in a police repor t after receiving an email on Nov 9, 2006, announcing an upcoming Islamic conference in Toronto. The email said “highly respected scholars” would be attending, but did not say who or give any details of the program. Khan says she clicked “forward,” sent it to a Yahoo chat group of fellow Muslims and promptly forgot about it.

“A couple people had gone the year prior and they said they had a really nice time, so I was just passing the information on forward. That’s really all it was,” said Khan, who has since graduated. Khan was a board member of the Muslim Student Association at the University at Buffalo at the time. She says she never went to the conference, was not affiliated with it and had no idea who was speaking at it.

But officer Mahmood Ahmad of the NYPD’s Cyber Intelligence Unit took notice and listed Khan in his weekly report for Kelly. The officer began researching the Toronto conference and found that one of the speakers, Tariq Ramadan, had his US visa revoked in 2004. The US government said it was because Ramadan had given money to a Palestinian group. It reinstated his visa in 2010. The officer’s report notes three other speakers. One, Siraj Wahaj, is a prominent but controversial New York imam who has attracted the attention of authorities for years. Prosecutors included his name on a 3 1/2-page list of people they said “may be alleged as co-conspirators” in the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, though he was never charged.

The other two are Hamza Yusuf and Zaid Shakir, two of the nation’s most prominent Muslim scholars. Both have lectured at top universities in the US. Yusuf met with President George W Bush at the White House following the 2001 terrorist attacks. The post about the academic event was enough to get Khan’s name mentioned in the weekly MSA report, which was stamped “SECRET” in red letters and sent to Kelly’s office. There is no indication that the investigation went any further, or that Khan was ever implicated in anything. But she worries about being associated with the police report.

“It’s just a waste of resources, if you ask me,” she said. “I understand why they’re doing it, but it’s just kind of like a Catch-22. I’m not the one doing anything wrong.”

The university said it was unaware its students were being monitored. “UB does not conduct this kind of surveillance and if asked, UB would not voluntarily cooperate with such a request,” the university said in a written statement. “As a public university, UB strongly supports the values of freedom of speech and assembly, freedom of religion, and a reasonable expectation of privacy.” The same Nov 22, 2006, report also noted seminars announced on the websites of the Muslim student associations at New York University and Rutgers University’s campus in Newark, New Jersey.

Browne, the police department spokesman, said intelligence analysts were interested in recruiting by the Islamic Thinkers Society, a New York-based group that wants to see the United States governed under Islamic law. Morton was a leader of the group and went to Stony Brook University’s MSA to recruit students that same month. “One thing that our open source searches were interested in determining at the time was, where do Islamic Thinkers Society go - in terms of MSAs for recruiting,” Browne said.

Yale declined comment. The University of Pennsylvania did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Other colleges on the list said they worried the monitoring infringed on students’ freedom of speech. “Like New York City itself, American universities are admired across the globe as places that welcome a diversity of people and viewpoints. So we would obviously be concerned about anything that could chill our essential values of academic freedom or intrude on student privacy,” Columbia University spokesman Robert Hornsby said in a written statement.

Danish Munir, an alumnus adviser for the University of Pennsylvania’s Muslim Student Association, said he believes police are wasting their time by watching college students. “What do they expect to find here?”

Munir said. “These are all kids coming from rich families or good families, and they’re just trying to make a living, have a good career, have a good college experience. It’s a futile allocation of resources.” — AP

Boxers brawl inside and outside the ring Continued from Page 1 (local time, 1645 GMT). The whereabouts of David Haye are still unknown.”

Munich police searched Haye’s hotel room yesterday morning, but there was no sign of the former WBA heavyweight champion. The British Boxing Board of Control has already indicated they will launch an investigation into events leading up to the embarrassing melee in Munich, when Chisora was heard shouting that he wanted to “shoot” and “burn” Haye.

Thomas Puetz, president of Germany’s Professional Boxers (BdB) Federation, said he does not want to see Chisora box in Germany again. “We are considering a boxing ban for Chisora in Germany,” Puetz told German website spox.com. “This guy is a public menace. He has no place in a German ring. (Former German heavyweight champion) Max Schmeling would turn in his grave. I guess David Haye, as an intelligent man, is trying to promote himself, but with regards to Chisora, I doubt whether he has the mental capacity to practise a contact sport.”

On Saturday, Chisora lost to Klitschko by a unanimous points decision, but the fight inside the ring was overshadowed by the violence in the post-fight press conference between the two British fighters. Haye, 31, who was working as a TV pundit, branded Chisora “a loser”. Chisora promptly left the head table at the press conference to confront Haye, who he dubbed “an embarrassment”.

Haye, the former World Boxing Association (WBA) champion, who was defeated on points by Vitali’s brother

Wladimir in July, had insisted he wanted to fight Vitali on June 2. Adam Booth, trainer of Haye and working at the fight for the BBC, was left with a cut head, while Haye was seen brandishing a cameraman’s tripod in the scuffles which shamed the struggling heavyweight division.

Chisora was repeatedly heard shouting that he would “shoot” Haye during a barrage of expletives as the pair were separated by stunned onlookers.

Chisora, 28, won few friends in Munich after he slapped Klitschko in the face at Friday’s weigh-in, then spat water in the face of Wladimir Klitschko minutes before the fight.

Wladimir, who holds the IBF, WBO and WBA heavyweight belts, told Sky News: “I’m totally disappointed. The sport of boxing shouldn’t be like that. Bloody faces in the news conference... fighting in the ring, not out. I’m really surprised.”

Vitali, who defended his WBC title for the 10th time, said he did not respect Chisora as a person. “If you are a sportsman with millions of people watching, you have to set a good example, and Chisora didn’t do that,” Klitschko said. “I have got respect for Chisora as a fighter but no respect as a human being.” Chisora had earlier explained why he slapped Vitali. “I signed to fight Wladimir but he didn’t give me a fight (Wladimir Klitschko twice pulled out injured before fighting Haye instead of Chisora). I was out of the ring for 18 months because of that. I told my mother that when I see one of those brothers, he’s going to get a slap. Vitali drew the short straw and it was him. But I will also give Wladimir a slap and David Haye a slap if I see him.” Moments later, Chisora and Haye were trading blows.— AFP

Iran wants talks under spectre of possible war Continued from Page 1 Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi yesterday said his country was keen to quickly resume mooted talks with world powers, once a place and date were agreed. The last talks collapsed in Istanbul in Jan 2011, but Iran has responded positively to an EU offer to look at reviving them. “We are looking for a mechanism for a solution for the nuclear issue in a way that it is win-win for both sides,” Salehi said. But he added that Iran remained prepared for a “worst-case scenario”.

Such a scenario - war - remained very much the subtext of a visit to Israel yesterday by US National Security Advisor Tom Donilon. Israel has been gripped by speculation in recent weeks that it is closer to mounting a preemptive strike on Iran’s nuclear programme, though Tel Aviv has denied reaching such a decision. The United States, while not ruling out its own possible military option against Iran, was publicly being seen holding back its main Middle East ally from taking such drastic action.

Israel’s calculations will take into account an announcement by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad last Tuesday that his scientists are boosting uranium enrichment by adding 3,000 more centrifuges to a facility at Natanz. Iran also appeared to be about to install thousands of new centrifuges in another, heavily fortified enrichment facility near the city of Qom, a diplomat accredited to the UN nuclear watchdog told the BBC. Iran says the enrichment is part of a purely peaceful civilian nuclear program.

Western nations and Israel, though, fear it is part of a drive to develop the ability to make atomic weapons. A November report by the UN nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency, strongly suggested Iran’s program included nuclear weapons research. The IAEA delegation due in Tehran today is to hold two days of talks with Iranian officials on those suspicions. A previous visit on the same issue at the end of January, though, yielded no breakthrough.

Iran yesterday added to its defiance in the face of the sanctions by declaring no more crude was being exported to France and Britain, in retaliation for an EU-wide ban on its oil that will come into full effect from July 1. “Oil sales to British and French companies have ceased,” oil ministry spokesman Ali Reza Nikzad Rahbar said in a statement on the ministry’s official website. “We have taken steps to deliver our oil to other countries in the

place of British and French companies,” he said. The decision was not expected to have a big impact. France last year bought only three percent of its oil - 58,000 barrels a day - from the Islamic republic. Britain was believed to be no longer importing Iranian oil. But it was seen as a warning shot to other EU nations that are bigger consumers of Iranian oil, including Italy, Spain and Greece. Although those countries were not affected by Iran’s announcement yesterday, they are included in an EU decision to stop buying Iranian oil that was announced last month and which will take full effect from July. According to the International Energy Agency, Italy sourced 13 percent of its oil, or 185,000 barrels per day, from Iran, while Spain imported 12 percent of its oil needs, or 161,000 bpd, and Greece bought 30 percent of its needs, or 103,000 bpd.

Iran, OPEC’s second-biggest exporter after Saudi Arabia, pumps 3.5 million bpd of which it exports 2.5 million bpd. Seventy percent of the exports go to Asian countries, China and India especially. More than 20 percent, or around 600,000 bpd, go to the European Union.

Iran has been threatening for weeks to cut all oil exports to Europe because of the EU ban, but has thus far held off. Ceasing all exports to the EU would harm its own economy unless it had Asian buyers ready to pick up the contracts.

Meanwhile, Iran and Israel have shown a willingness to tangle, at least covertly. Bomb plots to kill Israeli diplomats in India, Georgia and Thailand emerged Feb 13 and 14, using similar methods to those in the murder of Iranian nuclear scientists in the past two years attributed to Israeli agents. Iran denied any involvement in the plots against the Israeli diplomats - one of whom was gravely wounded when her car was targeted in New Delhi. Israel has neither confirmed nor denied being behind the Tehran hits.

Israel and Iran have also made preparations for open conflict. The Jewish state in 2009 reportedly purchased 55 bunker-busting bombs made by the United States, and this year called off its biggest-ever joint military manoeuvres with the United States that were meant to have taken place around now. The Islamic state has been conducting several war games - the most recent, landbased ones announced yesterday in central Iran - and flaunted its ballistic and cruise missiles. And two Iranian warships sailed through the Suez Canal on the weekend and were in the Mediterranean, within striking distance of Israel. — AFP

Opposition MPs meet to set Assembly ...

Continued from Page 1 allegations that their bank accounts accepted millions of dinars of illegal deposits. Opposition lawmakers have also alleged that the former prime minister transferred millions of dollars of public funds into his foreign bank accounts. The previous government denied any wrongdoing and insisted that the money was repaid. Dallal also said the opposition is likely to propose forming a third investigation committee into diesel smuggling operations and a fourth to probe why the audiovisual law has not been properly implemented on local television stations.

Meanwhile, three youth groups sent a strong-worded letter to the opposition majority urging them to take action to secure the release of dozens of youths in connection with the storming of Al-Watan TV and the burning of MP Mohammad Al-Juwaihel’s election tent just two days before the Feb 2 elections. The youth groups threatened that they will organize a sit-in inside the National Assembly building from Feb 28 when the Assembly is due to hold its next session. Dallal said the opposition discussed the issue and saw there was some double standards in dealing with the arrested youth. On his part, MP

Yahya said he has adopted the youth charter which calls among other things for amending preventive detention rules.

Separately, MPs of the Salafist Islamic Alliance yesterday submitted 11 draft laws, one of which calls for the abolishing and banning of bank interest or what is known as usury under Islamic law. Other bills call for building labour towns, disclosure of wealth, preventing clashes of interests, establishing a public authority for the prevention of drugs and establishing a national development fund.

In another development, two lawyers yesterday filed a petition challenging the election of MP Nabeel Al-Fadl on accusation that he had been handed with too many court rulings over his controversial writings. The petition was submitted to the constitutional court which has so far received as many as 34 petitions against the election results in almost all the five constituencies. The ruling of the constitutional court on the election results is final as it cannot be challenged. Also, Islamist MP Mohammad Hayef demanded in a question to the interior minister to provide the detailed results of the general elections including the detailed distribution of votes.

14

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2012

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Washington Watch

Anthony Shadid: A man for others

By Dr James J Zogby ew York Times’ reporter, Anthony Shadid died unexpectedly last week. With his passing we lose America’s finest reporter on Arab World issues - at the time when Americans need his work more than ever. The importance of Shadid’s writings to Americans and Arabs cannot be overstated. His reporting was unique, reflecting both his understanding of the history and culture of the Arab World and his concern for its people.

Unlike so many of his contemporaries, Anthony appreciated the fact that the story of the region didn’t begin the day he got the assignment. His reporting reflected a historian’s appreciation for context. He understood contemporary Arab realities, because he knew from whence they had come. And for this reason, he also had a better sense of where Arabs were going than most of the pundits and commentators who fill our airwaves with their endless and often wrongheaded chatter.

More than that, Anthony’s work was also distinguished by a poet’s sense of texture. He wrote not with an ego, but with an eye for detail and an ear for the voices he heard. Where others “embedded” with troops, he walked the streets of war torn Arab countries “embedded” with people, bringing to life, for the rest of us, what ordinary Iraqis, Lebanese, Syrians, etc were seeing and saying and feeling. He cared about the Arab people. To him, they were not faceless objects or the “other side” of a conflict. They were real people with hopes and fears, with stories worth telling.

What he brought home to his readers were the voices of his subjects and their story as it was unfolding through their eyes. When you read a Shadid dispatch from Baghdad, Beirut, or Tripoli, it was as if you had been transported to the place. The sounds and smells of the streets where he walked, the warmth of the homes he visited, and the emotions, and concerns of the people he met - all came through in full force.

He often put himself in harm’s way to bring us stories we needed to read. He was shot and wounded by the Israeli military in 2003, covering West Bank violence; he was at risk in Iraq, staying with families whose lives were impacted by war and terror; he was kidnapped, held hostage and abused in Libya, telling the story of the early stages of that country’s revolt; and he died of a freakish asthma attack while researching a story inside Syria that no one else could or would cover in quite the same way. The last time I spoke with Anthony was after his release from captivity in Libya. He didn’t dwell on what had happened to him, he was on to the next story to tell. In a way, he was relentless in his passion for his craft. It was more than a job, it was his mission.

For his work, he won two Pulitzer prizes. But for the contributions he has made to our understanding of a region we need to know, but do not, we owe Anthony Shadid so much more. If not for him, the voices of everyday folks across the Arab World would not have had an outlet to be heard. We would not have known of the dilemma faced by ordinary Iraqis as they struggled with the life and death issues of war and occupation; we would not have seen up close the impact of Israel’s horrific bombing of Lebanon; or experienced the Arab Spring, with all its exultation and frustration from Egypt to Syria.

The Arab American Institute recognized Shadid’s work in 2007. Following a moving tribute by Hollywood actor, Tony Shalhoub, Anthony took the stage. What impressed everyone most was his quietness. He was a gentle and humble soul. His greatness lay not his projection of “self”, but in his ability to serve as a conduit for others -he told us their stories, not his own; he brought them to life and made us all aware of their reality.

Anthony Shadid was a man for others, for Arabs and Americans. He was our bridge to a world we impact so profoundly, but whose reality we do not know. And now he is gone. I grieve for him and for his family. And I grieve, as well, for the countless souls in a troubled region who told their stories to Anthony so he could relay them to the rest of us. He was a man for others. This was his greatness and this is why we must lament his passing.

N

NOTE: Dr James J Zogby is the President of the Arab American Institute.

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

Alawites to fight to death for power yria’s Alawite ruling minority will fight to the death to keep its grip on power in a country where they are despised by the majority Sunni Muslims who consider them to be usurpers, experts say. The Alawites, an offshoot of Shiism, represent only 12 percent of Syria’s mostly Sunni population of 22 million people but have the advantage of being linked to the regime of President Bashar Al-Assad. The president belongs to the Alawite community, like his late father Hafez Al-Assad who ruled the country with an iron fist for three decades until his death in 2000.

“The Alawites are afraid of being defeated by the Sunnis,” said Fabrice Balanche, who heads the Gremmo research group based in Lyon, France. “We’re at the point of no return: the regime must crush the opposition, otherwise it will be the one to fall,” Balanche said. And if that were to happen, analysts say, the Alawites will be cornered and left with few options: to try to set up a stronghold in the mountains and on the northwestern coast, head for exile or face being exterminated.

So far the Assad regime appears determined to put down pro-democracy protests against his 11-year rule. The lethal

S

crackdown against demonstrations that erupted 11 months ago has killed 6,000 people, activists say, and pitted Alawite against Sunni. According to Balanche, Syria’s elite military units are either formed of Alawite troops or controlled by Alawites, and “in order to save their skin, they will fight to the end”. “They don’t want to meet the fate of the harkis,” he said in reference to Algerians who fought alongside the French during the Algeria war. After Algeria gained independence many harkis were massacred or forced into exile.

Thomas Pierret, a lecturer at the University of Edinburgh, believes that if Assad is ousted from power, regime opponents will rise against the Alawite community and crush it in retaliation for the brutal crackdown on dissent. “There’s the risk that if Assad falls the Alawite community will simply be wiped out,” said Pierret. The Alawites have long been despised by Sunni Muslims who considered them as heretics and treated them like underdogs. Under Ottoman rule, the only Alawites tolerated in cities were those who worked as servants.

While Shiites venerate Ali - son-in-law of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) - Alawites

worship him. Alawites believe that the Prophet (PBUH) is merely the veil masking the “essence” incarnated by Ali and consider Salman Pak, the third figure in their holy trinity and companion of the Prophet (PBUH) , as the “gateway” to knowledge.

The Alawite doctrine was elaborated in Iraq in the 9th century by Mohammad bin Nusseir, a disciple of the 10th imam, dissident Ali Al-Hadi.

Their doctrine is secretive and handed down by their religious leaders, and those who reveal it to non-Alawites can face death. Unlike orthodox Muslims, Alawites believe in reincarnation, have no mosques, do not fast during Ramadan and believe that the annual Muslim pilgrimage to Makkah in Saudi Arabia is not mandatory.

For Alawites alcohol is not banned, women can go about unveiled and members of the community celebrate Muslim and Christian festivals including Christmas.

The Sunni scholar Ahmad bin Taymiyya (1263-1328) said of the Alawites: “They are the worst enemies of Muslims. Jihad (holy war) against them is an act of piety.” In 1920, during its occupation of Syria, France gave the Alawites autonomy. But in 1936 Arab nationalists obtained from the mufti

of Palestine a fatwa declaring Alawites to be Muslims, in a bid to woo them into joining their efforts to build a future independent state.

In the 1950s many Alawites in Syria were admitted to military academies and embraced the Baath party’s beliefs of secularism and pan-Arabism. Alawites rose through the ranks thanks to two coups d’etat in 1963 and 1966, much to the chagrin of the Sunni bourgeoisie in Syria who were shocked to see “the children of cleaning women” rule the country, Balanche said.

Soon the Alawites left their mountain strongholds for the cities, with large communities setting up in the port cities of Tartus, Latakia, Banias and Jableh where they are now the majority. If Assad falls the Alawites could set up an enclave within Syria, analysts believe. “Due to the deadlock, the regime could try to fall back on the coastal areas to set up an independent entity,” said Bruno Paoli, head of Arab studies at the Beirut-based French Institute of Middle East Affairs (IFPO). Balanche agrees.

“If the conflict in Syria develops as it did in Yugoslavia, an Alawite enclave could see the day” with Latakia as its capital, said Balanche. — AFP

Romney struggles for the right pitch

By Sam Youngman itt Romney isn’t singing anymore. A little more than two weeks after his off-key but enthusiastic renditions of “America the Beautiful” captured the spirit of a candidate who had won the Florida primary and seemed on the verge of locking down the Republican nomination for president, Romney is back in lackluster mode. It’s not just that Romney is facing a surprising challenge in his native state of Michigan from Rick Santorum, the former Pennsylvania senator who vaulted into contention in the state-bystate nomination battle with wins in Missouri, Minnesota and Colorado.

What alarms many Republican Party leaders and strategists are the signals they see from Romney’s campaign as he struggles to support the notion that he is the inevitable nominee to face President Barack Obama in the November election. They see the former Massachusetts governor as a candidate whose confidence appears shaken, and whose strategy and message now can seem off-key. Gone are the vibrant rallies Romney held in Florida, replaced in Michigan by a series of low-energy round-table discussions.

This week, Romney often rushed through his stump speech as if he had a plane to catch, and made awkwardly curious remarks “I love you” to a business group, and, “The trees are the right height” in Michigan - that made him seem particularly desperate for approval. “I really count body language for a lot,” said Republican strategist Rich Galen, adding with a joke that Romney, who ran for president in 2008, might have “hit the wall at the 5 1/2-year mark” of campaigning.

And then there were the two opinion pieces Romney wrote for newspapers - one in the Detroit News defending his opposition to the federal bailout of the auto industry, another in the Wall Street Journal in which he attacked Obama’s policy on China as that nation’s likely future leader, Xi Jinping, visited the United States. The moves were aimed at attracting support from conservatives who oppose government bailouts and think that Democrat Obama has not been tough enough in his trade policy with China.

But Romney’s column on the auto bailout raised questions even within the Republican Party about his strategy in Michigan, where his father was an auto executive and a governor - and where a loss in the Feb 28 primary could be devastating to his campaign. Some strategists and party leaders wondered why Romney would continue to remind Michigan voters - millions of whom have ties to the auto industry - that he opposed the $81 bil-

M

lion bailout widely viewed as having saved the industry. “I think his personal confidence is shaken,” said political analyst Larry Sabato of the University of Virginia. “He thought it was all over after Florida.

“No matter what they say,” Sabato said of Romney’s campaign, a loss to Santorum in Michigan would be a “major psychological blow”. Sabato said that the longer the campaign goes on, the more Republican voters are reminded of the concerns they have had about Romney’s ability to beat Obama. “He’s a gaffe machine, he can’t seem to connect with regular voters, he can’t seem to get out of tight spots,” Sabato said. “The only thing holding him up is a very weak field” that includes Santorum, former US House of Representatives Speaker Newt Gingrich and Texas congressman Ron Paul.

Santorum is attractive to socially conserva-

Romney has bought a total of $7.7 million of air time in Michigan and several other states, presumably to launch a wave of TV ads casting Santorum as a Washington insider and big spender of taxpayers’ money. Romney senior adviser Eric Fehrnstrom says the campaign is proceeding according to plan, and that Romney - who is in Salt Lake City this weekend to mark the 10th anniversary of the Winter Olympics he led - is sticking to his message that he “is the best person to lead on jobs and the economy”. “It’s steady as she goes,” Fehrnstrom said. “We’ve seen opponents come and go, and through it all we have come out ahead.”

Romney won Michigan’s primary four years ago, defeating Arizona Senator John McCain, the eventual Republican nominee.

This time, the challenge appears to be greater. Romney must overcome not only

Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney speaks to a group of former Salt Lake City Olympic committee members marking the tenth anniversary of the games in Salt Lake City, Utah, Saturday. — AP tive Republicans who hold significant sway in the nomination process because he is strictly anti-abortion and emphasizes his Catholic faith. In doing so, he has subtly reminded conservatives that Romney is a Mormon and that Gingrich is a converted Catholic who has been married three times. For now, Romney’s counter-attack seems focused on casting himself as a staunch conservative, a response to suspicions about his moderate stances on healthcare, abortion and other issues when he was Massachusetts governor.

Meanwhile, the independent “Super PAC” (political action committee) that supports

doubts among Republicans about whether he would be a strong enough nominee to defeat Obama in the Nov 6 elections, he must explain why he was willing to “let Detroit go bankrupt,” as he urged in a 2008 opinion piece in The New York Times in which he opposed the auto bailout. In the piece, Romney called for GM and Chrysler to go into a “managed bankruptcy” and find private financing to survive, rather than rely on a federal bailout. Financial analysts and auto industry analysts now say the tight credit market at the time made that option impossible, and that federal help was the automak-

ers’ only realistic path to survival. GM cut costs under the bailout program, went through bankruptcy and has re-emerged as a leading force in the industry. It posted a record $7.6 billion profit for 2011. Romney said Thursday he was “delighted they’re profitable,” then claimed credit for first proposing the structured bankruptcy that Obama forced the auto companies to undertake in order to receive the bailout.

“Here in Michigan, the president finally came around to my own view that Detroit needed to go through managed bankruptcy, the auto companies needed to go through managed bankruptcy to shed their excess costs,” Romney said in Grand Rapids on Wednesday. “It took (Obama) six months to get there, but he got to the same place I had suggested.” Obama’s campaign essentially mocked Romney’s effort to take a measure of credit for the auto industry’s turnaround, saying that under Romney’s no-bailout plan, the industry would have been decimated before it could have gone through bankruptcy.

To win the Republican nomination, a candidate needs the support of 1,144 party delegates from across the nation. Romney maintains the lead in the delegate race with an estimated 111 delegates, according to CBS News. Santorum has 44, Gingrich 30 and Paul 15. But hundreds of delegates remain to be won, and the “Super Tuesday” contests on March 6, when 10 states will hold contests, are likely to be a turning point for each campaign, including Romney’s. “We feel good about the state of the race,” Fehrnstrom said.

Republican strategist Matt Mackowiak, formerly with the failed campaign of Texas Governor Rick Perry, said Romney appears to be unsure of how to deal with Santorum and with the fact that the path to the nomination is more difficult than he may have expected.

“They’ve lost control of the narrative that they controlled for a long time,” Mackowiak said. “Often these things come down to momentum, and Romney doesn’t have any momentum right now. “If your strongest argument is inevitability and it’s cracked, what do you have left?”

Analysts and strategists agree that for Romney, all will be right again if he wins the Arizona and Michigan primaries on Feb 28.

Polls show him with a healthy lead over Santorum in Arizona, but Romney is even or trailing slightly in Michigan. “He can rescue himself by scoring solid wins in both Arizona and Michigan,” Sabato said. But if Romney loses Michigan to Santorum, Mackowiak said, it would cause “10 times the mess that Santorum created by winning” Minnesota, Colorado and Missouri on Feb 7. — Reuters

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2012

sp orts Autuori to coach Qatar

‘Wall of waves’ delay race

Riders gunning for Schleck

DOHA: Qatar have appointed Brazilian Paulo Autuori as national team coach, the country’s FA said on its website (www.qfa.com.qa) on Saturday.

The first task for the 55-year-old Autuori, who has managed Qatar’s Olympic side for five months, is to steer the team through their final third round match in Asian Zone qualifying for the 2014 World Cup against Iran in Tehran on Feb. 29.

Qatar are battling for the section’s remaining qualifying spot with Bahrain who face a must-win match against Indonesia while the Qataris need just a point to progress to the fourth stage of the qualifying competition with Iran.

Qatar have been without a coach since Dec. 20 when they sacked Autuori’s compatriot Sebastiao Lazaroni following their early elimination from the Arab Games.

Former Peru coach Autuori guided Cruzeiro and Sao Paulo to Copa Libertadores titles and has also managed other top Brazilian clubs including Santos, Flamengo and Botafogo.

One of the highlights of his club career came in 2005 when he led Sao Paulo to a Club World Cup triumph in Japan. — Reuters

SANYA: Volvo Ocean Race organisers will introduce the first delayed start in the event’s 39-year history yesterday over fears that a wall of 10-metre waves and 50-knot winds could smash the six boats and effectively end the competition five months early.

The decision, which has been backed by five of the teams, will see the boats return to the Chinese holiday resort of Sanya after a four-hour race around the island, starting at 0600 GMT on Sunday, to decide positions for a staggered re-start 12-16 hours later. By then, a dangerous weather system in the South China Sea should have moved on sufficiently for the fleet to resume in a pursuit race format and take on the 5,220 nautical miles (9,670 km) to Auckland in New Zealand.

Waves could be as high as three-storey buildings, according to forecasts being studied at the race’s control room in Alicante, Spain, and organisers have decided that with no way to sail round the system it was better to wait. “We have to trust the weather forecasts telling us how bad this is going to be,” said Iker Martinez, skipper of Spanish leaders Telefonica. — Reuters

OMAN: Alberto Contador’s absence will not make it easier for Andy Schleck to win the Tour de France this year, the Luxembourg rider said on Saturday.

Spaniard Contador will miss this year’s race after being banned for failing a dope test in 2010 but his absence means that many riders will now be gunning for Schleck. “Riders who were against us will not just ride for a podium finish but they will ride against me,” Schleck, who was named 2010 Tour de France champion after Contador was stripped of the title two weeks ago, said at the Tour of Oman. Contador’s 2011 results were also wiped out after his ban was backdated to January last year. Hence Schleck believes that had Contador, who finished fifth overall, missed the 2011 race, he would have won the Tour.

Contador broke away in a descent to Gap, prompting the pack led by Cadel Evans to chase in the rain with Schleck unable to follow on a tricky downhill. “I lost a minute when he attacked in the descent to Gap. If it wasn’t for Contador, Evans would not have moved,” he said. Schleck is confident he has the ability to win the race on the road despite also losing out to Australian Evans last year. — Reuters

Penguins down Flyers

NHL results/standings Pittsburgh 6, Philadelphia 4; Chicago 6, Columbus 1; St. Louis 4, Minnesota 0; NY Islanders 4, Carolina 3; Tampa Bay 2, Washington 1; Vancouver 6, Toronto 2; Phoenix 2, Dallas 1 (Overtime win); Calgary 1, Los Angeles 0.

NY Rangers Pittsburgh Philadelphia New Jersey NY Islanders Boston Ottawa Toronto Montreal Buffalo Florida Washington Winnipeg Tampa Bay Carolina

Detroit St. Louis Nashville Chicago Columbus Vancouver Calgary Colorado Minnesota Edmonton San Jose Phoenix Los Angeles Dallas Anaheim

Eastern Conference Atlantic Division W L OTL GF 37 14 5 158 33 20 5 182 32 19 7 193 33 20 4 161 25 25 8 139 Northeast Division 35 19 2 190 30 22 8 179 29 24 6 178 24 25 10 159 24 27 7 142 Southeast Division 27 19 11 144 29 24 5 159 28 26 6 148 26 26 6 163 22 26 11 153 Western Conference Central Division 40 17 2 187 36 15 7 149 33 19 6 162 31 21 7 186 17 35 6 134 Northwest Division 37 15 6 189 28 22 9 142 29 26 4 150 25 24 9 129 22 29 6 151 Pacific Division 31 18 7 165 29 21 9 152 27 21 11 124 29 25 4 150 24 24 10 150

GA PTS 114 79 154 71 177 71 158 70 168 58 130 183 180 161 173

72 68 64 58 55

160 163 169 195 181

65 63 62 58 55

137 114 152 177 192

82 79 72 69 40

142 155 163 154 172

80 65 62 59 50

139 147 126 164 168

69 67 65 62 58

PHILADELPHIA: Matt Cooke scored two goals to lead the Pittsburgh Penguins to a 6-4 victory over the Philadelphia Flyers in the NHL on Saturday.

Dustin Jeffrey scored the go-ahead goal 37 seconds into the third period, and Jordan Staal, Pascal Dupuis and James Neal also had goals for the Penguins, who are now level with Philadelphia for fourth place in the Eastern Conference.

Jaromir Jagr scored two goals against his former team, and Eric Wellwood notched his first NHL goal for the Flyers. Philadelphia lost for the sixth time in eight games.

and an assist as the Islanders completed a four-game season sweep of Carolina.

Kevin Poulin made 33 saves for the Islanders, who pulled within six points of eighth-place Toronto in the Eastern Conference playoff race.

Tavares has 24 goals this season, six against Carolina.

Canucks, who have won six of seven.

Coyotes 2, Stars 1 In Glendale, Arizona, Radim Vrbata scored his careerhigh 28th goal 1:15 into overtime as Phoenix beat Dallas. Mikkel Boedker also scored his first goal in 21

Blackhawks 6, Blue Jackets 1 In Columbus, Ohio, Jonathan Toews and Patrick Sharp both had a goal and two assists as Chicago finished a nine-game trip with a victory over Columbus.

Patrick Kane added a goal and an assist, and Viktor Stalberg also scored. Stalberg has eight goals in five games against Columbus this season - matching his total against the rest of the NHL in 51 games.

Corey Crawford had 33 saves for the Blackhawks, who have won two straight following a nine-game losing streak. Marcus Kruger and Sami Lepisto added thirdperiod goals for Chicago.

Blues 4, Wild 0 In St. Louis, Barret Jackman broke an NHL-high, 150game scoreless drought and Brian Elliott made 13 saves to lift the Blues past Minnesota.

The Blues won for the sixth time in seven games and earned its league-best 26th home win. Jackman scored his first goal since Jan. 7, 2010, to give the Blues a 2-0 lead early in the second period. Minnesota has lost seven straight, its longest streak since an eight-game skid from Dec. 13-28, 2011. The Wild have scored just nine goals in the last seven games.

Lightning 2, Capitals 1 In Tampa, Florida, Steven Stamkos scored his NHLleading 40th goal of the season as Tampa Bay beat Washington.

Stamkos became the first Lightning player to have three consecutive seasons of at least 40 goals when he scored 1:50 into the second period.

Tom Pyatt also scored, and Mathieu Garon made 23 saves for the Lightning. Brooks Laich had the lone goal for the Capitals.

Islanders 4, Hurricanes 3 At Uniondale, New York, John Tavares had two goals

LOS ANGELES: Kings goalie Jonathan Quick eyes the puck before stopping a shot on goal during the first period of their NHL hockey game against the Calgary Flames. —AP Frans Nielsen and Kyle Okposo also scored for the Islanders.

Canucks 6, Maple Leafs 2 At Vancouver, British Columbia, Alex Burrows and Daniel and Henrik Sedin combined for 10 points in Vancouver’s thrashing of Toronto.

Burrows scored two goals, Daniel Sedin had a goal and three assists, and twin brother Henrik added four assists. The Sedins’ outburst came after both had gone three games without a point.

It was Vancouver’s 10th straight win over Toronto, covering a span of more than eight years. Manny Malhotra, Sami Salo and Kevin Bieksa also scored for the

games and Mike Smith stopped 30 shots for the Coyotes. Michael Ryder scored his 22nd goal and Kari Lehtonen had 31 saves for Dallas, which played without leading scorer Jamie Benn.

Flames 1, Kings 0 In Los Angeles, Miikka Kiprusoff made 28 saves for his 44th NHL shutout to lead Calgary. Michael Cammalleri scored the only goal of the game early in the third period against his former team. Kiprusoff passed Turk Broda on the NHL career victory list with his 303rd win, moving into a share of 24th place with Olaf Kolzig. The Kings are even with Calgary in eighth place in the Western Conference, but the Flames have one more win. —AP

Busch edges Stewart to win Shootout DAYTONA BEACH: The pack is back. And so is the Big One. Kyle Busch edged Tony Stewart in a thrilling finish to the first race of 2012, using a sling-shot pass Saturday night on the last lap of the exhibition Budweiser Shootout to beat the defending NASCAR champion to the checkered flag.

It gave Busch a victory in a wild race that included two incredible saves by the eventual winner to stay in contention in the 75-lap sprint around Daytona International Speedway.

“I don’t know how many times I spun out, but I didn’t spin out, you know?” smiled Busch, who gave Toyota its first Shootout victory.

The event was a preview of next weekend’s season-opening Daytona 500, and showed that NASCAR has successfully broken up the two-car tandem racing that dominated restrictor-plate racing last year. Fans were overwhelmingly opposed to that style of racing - NASCAR said earlier this month surveys showed over 80 percent of those polled hated the tandem - and the sanctioning body worked hard through the offseason to develop a rules package that would separate the cars.

“The pack racing is back, and that gives the drivers a little more control and adds a lot of excitement for the fans - and that’s the biggest thing: the fans wanted pack racing back and NASCAR listened and delivered,” Clint Bowyer said.

It was obvious at the start that the new rules worked as the drivers were lumped into a big pack and raced two-andthree wide for almost the entire race. Although it led to two big accidents - including an accident that sent Jeff Gordon skidding on his roof for what he said was the first time in his career - the drivers were nearly unanimous in their approval of the racing.

“I actually had fun racing at Daytona again, which I haven’t had for a while,” said Stewart, who was beat by .013 seconds - the blink of an eye - to the finish line.

“I don’t know what the consensus is from everybody else, but I had more fun as a driver tonight than what we’ve had in the past.”

Dale Earnhardt Jr., a strong critic of the tandem racing, also was thrilled with the new product despite having his night ruined in one of the many accidents.

“I like this kind of racing better. At least I know what to expect,” he said. “And I feel like I’ve got a better chance with this style than I did last year.”

The first multi-car accident was a mere nine laps into the race, and began when David Ragan nudged Paul Menard to trigger the nine-car pileup.

A later wreck with two laps remaining sent Gordon sliding on his roof for roughly 1,000 feet. The four-time NASCAR champion ultimately climbed out the window with his car still upside down, but, like Earnhardt, praised the racing.

“It’s pretty wild and crazy, but I liked this better than what we had last year. Definitely,” he said.

Gordon’s accident began when he ran into the back of Busch, who used his second save of the night to avoid the accident. An earlier save left fellow competitors in awe.

“There aren’t many people, ever, who could have done that,” said three-time champion Stewart, who was behind Busch on the first save.

Busch shrugged off his saves in Victory Lane. “Stab and steer - that’s what you do - and some braking. There were brakes involved too,” Busch smiled. Of his pass of Stewart, Busch said he’d learned from previous mistakes.

“I’ve seen the move done before, it was my turn to do it this time,” he said. “He knew he was a sitting duck as soon as we got clear of everybody. He knew the race was over. He knew the winner.”

The race went to a two-lap overtime sprint to the finish, and the drivers ultimately were paired in tandems over the final push. Stewart conceded that the winner likely won’t be the leader on the final lap of the Feb. 26 Daytona 500.

“I think history shows that you want to be that second guy, especially here, it just seems like for some reason you can make that move here,” Stewart said. “It just seems like that second spot is kind of the one you want to be in. I’m not ruling out that you can’t win it from being that lead car.

You’ve got to plan ahead for it. “You knew it was coming; it was just a matter of what to do to guard against it.”

As wild as Saturday night was - only 10 of the 25 cars entered finished on the lead lap - few thought the Daytona 500 would be a carbon copy. With no points on the line in the Shootout, it’s viewed as a throwaway race for drivers to push the limits.

Over 500 miles in the biggest race of the year? Drivers might be a bit more cautious. “You saw an intensity level tonight you won’t see for the 500,” Jeff Burton said. “What happens in the 500 every year, it always happens, everybody is pretty calm. Then it gets about halfway and it starts to get a little more intense. Then those last 100 miles, there’s just caution after caution after caution, and you get a mad dash for the end.” —AP

DAYTONA BEACH: Kyle Busch (18) slides sideways to avoid a wreck as Jeff Gordon (24) heads to the wall before his car slid on its side and then rolled, during the NASCAR Budweiser Shootout auto race at Daytona International Speedway. —AP

Kenny out of sprint as Hoy advances in style LONDON: World champion Jason Kenny’s chances of representing Britain in the individual sprint at the Olympics suffered a blow yesterday when he was knocked out of the London track World Cup while rival Chris Hoy advanced.

Kenny seemed to lack energy as he was comfortably beaten 2-0 by German Maximilian Levy in the quarter-finals while Hoy, who won the keirin event on Saturday, narrowly edged France’s Gregory Bauge in a nail-biting decider.

Olympic champion Hoy, who took three gold medals at the Beijing Games, took the decider in dramatic fashion to join Frenchman Kevin Sireau and Germans Maximilian Levy and Robert Foerstemann in the last four.

Bauge and Hoy had to re-start after the Frenchman was adjuged to have rolled backwards from a standstill position as the crowd held its breath.

Four-times Olympic champion Hoy stole the inside line and held off Bauge in the home straight, being declared the winner after a photo finish to trigger deafening roars from the standing partisan crowd.

Only one rider from each nation is allowed to take part in the men’s individual sprint. Kenny, however, will still have a chance to impress at the April 4-8 world championships in Melbourne.

Hoy was the last of three Britons standing in the event after Team Sky’s Matt Crampton was easily beaten by Sireau, the 200 metres flying start world record holder.

Foerstemann had no trouble in going past Japanese Kazunari Watanabe. The semi-finals will start at 1400 GMT. —Reuters

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2012

sp orts

Mickelson shares Riviera lead

THAILAND: Yani Tseng of Taiwan poses with the trophy after winning the LPGA Thailand golf championship in Pattaya. — AP

Tseng wins LPGA Thailand CHONBURI: Top-ranked Yani Tseng successfully defended her LPGA Thailand title for her 13th LPGA Tour victory, with birdies on the final two holes yesterday to hold off playing partner Ai Miyazato by a stroke.

The 23-year-old Taiwanese star shot a 6-under 66 to finish at 19-under 269 on Siam Country Club’s Pattaya Old Course.

She opened with a 73, then shot consecutive 65s to enter the final round a shot behind Miyazato.

Before the tournament she made a wish on a lucky Thai statue. “I had some luck out there,” Tseng said. I shot 1 over the first round, but I came back very soon and played 20 under the next three days. I felt like I could improve a lot and I feel like something gave me luck.” She also visited the statue last year. “I just wish I could win this tournament,” she said.

Last year, Tseng won the event for the first of her seven 2011 LPGA Tour victories, including major victories in the LPGA Championship and Women’s British Open. The five-time major champion finished the year with 12 worldwide victories. She has 33 career worldwide professional victories.

“I feel much more pressure coming into this year,” Tseng said. “Last year, when I started, I was nothing. I was just in the top five in the world, but I don’t have 12 wins or world No. 1 title. After last year, I have world No. 1 and I had 12 wins and that pressure keep going on and on.”

On the par-5 18th, she came through with the pressure on, nearly holing her 104-yard approach and tapping in for the winning birdie.

“It was an incredible shot. I think it’s the shot of the week,” Tseng said.

“Especially, I saw that Ai hit it so close and I knew she was going to make that putt. So, I tell myself, ‘I need to get this close.’

“It was tough. I had 104 to the pin and a little uphill. I know my ball is going to spin a lot, so I just tried to keep it low and not spin too much. ... I was very proud of myself for hitting that shot into 18 and making birdie to win.”

Miyazato, the Japanese player who won the 2010 tournament, also birdied the final two holes in her 67. “Of course, Yani is No. 1, so I knew it wouldn’t be easy today,” Miyazato said. “I kind of expected her to play that way.”

South Korea’s Jiyai Shin, tied for the lead with Tseng after a birdie of her own on the par-4 17th, had a 67 to finish two strokes back.

Tseng eagled the par-5 opening hole and Miyazato had a birdie, leaving them tied at 15 under. Tseng took the lead with a birdie on the par-4 third, and added birdies on the par-4 sixth and par5 seventh. At the turn, she had a threestroke lead over Shin and four-shot advantage over Miyazato.

“I played really well on the front nine, but it was tough on the back nine, especially when you see Jiyai and Ai keep making birdies,” Tseng said. “It got tight down the stretch. It was tough. I feel like I had lots of emotions today.”

Shin, playing a group ahead of Tseng and Miyazato, birdied the par-4 10th to pull within two and gained another stroke when Tseng bogeyed the hole.

Tseng pushed her lead to two with a birdie on the par-3 12th, but bogeyed the par-4 13th.

Miyazato birdied the 10th and pulled within one of Tseng with a birdie on the par-4 15th, then matched Tseng with a par on 16 and the birdies on 17 and 18.

“Overall, I played really well and I’m very happy that I could finish strong today,” Miyazato said about her season debut. “I really enjoyed playing with Yani, but next time I want to win.” South Korea’s Amy Yang shot a 69 to finish fourth at 14 under.

Sixteen-year-old Thai amateur Ariya Jutanugarn followed her third-round 65 with a 74 to tie for 12th to 7 under. She played the final five holes in 4 over, making a double-bogey 7 on No. 18. Last year, Jutanugarn won the US Junior Girls’ Championship and was the Rolex Junior Player of the Year.

Seventeen-year-old American Lexi Thompson had five back-nine birdies in a 66 to tie for 14th at 6 under. “I’m really happy with the way I’m hitting it,” Thompson said. “I’m playing consistent.

Just need to get a few more of those putts to drop like today.”

Second-ranked Suzann Pettersen had a 78 to drop into a tie for 21st at 4 under.

She began the round four strokes out of the lead.

Michelle Wie closed with a 73 to tie for 38th at 1 over. Morgan Pressel had a hole-in-one with an 8-iron on the 136yard eighth hole. She finished with a 71 to tie for 49th at 4 over. — AP

Wright clinches NZ Women’s Open CHRISTCHURCH: Australia’s Lindsey Wright birdied the par-5 18th for a 4under 68 and a one-stroke victory yesterday in the New Zealand Women’s Open.

Wright finished at 10-under 206 at Pegasus Golf Club in the event sanctioned by the Ladies European Tour and Australian Ladies Professional Golf.

Wright clinched her first win on either tour with seven birdies, including three in a row on holes No. 7, 8 and 9. She also had one double bogey on the par-4 13th.

“It’s unbelievable. It’s still sinking in,” Wright said. “I putted really well all day and the last six holes I was really nervous. American Alison Walshe and Australia’s Jessica Speechley finished in a share of second place. Walshe closed with a 69, and Speechley had a 65, the lowest round of the tournament.

Canada’s Lorie Kane and Australia’s Stephanie Na shot 69 to finish equal

fourth at 8 under.

Fourteen-year-old Lydia Ko, who had a share of the second-round lead with five other golfers, fell to 17th place after shooting a 74.

The South Korean-born New Zealander, the world’s top-ranked amateur, became the youngest winner of a professional tour event last month in the Women’s New South Wales Open.

The 32-year-old Wright was formerly the world No. 12, but took time away from golf after a loss of form. She sank a 4-meter (13-foot) putt for birdie on the final hole to seal the win and avoid a three-way playoff with Walshe and Speechley.

“I looked at the leaderboard and saw Alison Walshe up there and Speechley at 9 under and thought, ‘No I can make this putt. Just keep your head down, just hit a great putt,’” she said. “My caddy was more shocked that I was I think.” — AP

PACIFIC PALISADES: Phil Mickelson played some audacious golf but stayed on track for a second consecutive PGA Tour victory by ending Saturday’s third round of the Northern Trust Open in a tie for the lead.

Winner of last week’s Pebble Beach National Pro-Am, the American left-hander ground out a one-under-par 70 in dazzling afternoon sunshine at Riviera Country Club to finish level with compatriot Keegan Bradley (66).

Mickelson, who began the day one ahead of the chasing pack, mixed two birdies with a lone bogey to post a seven-under total of 206 at an iconic venue where he triumphed in 2008 and 2009.

He had chances to regain the outright lead over the closing stretch but narrowly missed a 10foot birdie putt at the 16th and failed to birdie the par-five 17th after driving into the left rough.

“This was a great round for me because I did not play well,” Mickelson told reporters after hitting only seven of 14 fairways and watching his tee shot at the parfour 15th end up in the hem of a spectator’s shorts.

“Yesterday and today I didn’t play the best. I wasn’t far off. I hit some good shots at times that didn’t quite turn out, but I was playing very defensive all day just trying to make pars.

“Now, there’s a lot of players that are right in it, within a couple shots of the lead, and it’s going to take a good round tomorrow. But I’m pleased that I put myself in it.”

Bradley, who clinched his first major title at last year ’s PGA Championship, birdied two of the last three holes to match the day ’s lowest score and join Mickelson at the top. Americans Bryce Molder (66), Jonathan Byrd (69) and Pat Perez (70) were a fur-

ther stroke back in a tie for third at six under.

“I feel very comfortable out there,” Bradley said after recording six birdies and one bogey. “I love the golf course. It fits my eye very well and I seem to be able to figure out these greens, which makes it a lot easier.”

Bradley was delighted that he will play with his mentor Mickelson in late yesterday’s final round. “I really look up to him... and any time you play with Phil means you’re playing pretty well,” the 25-year-old said.

“I love Phil. Everything he’s done for me is great, and if I didn’t win tomorrow, I would hope he would.” Mickelson made a good start to the third round with a two-putt birdie at the parfive first to remain a stroke in front of his closest pursuers.

He bogeyed the par-three fourth after failing to reach the green off the tee and then parred the next five holes to reach the turn at six under, tied for the lead with Bradley and Dustin Johnson.

Watched by huge galleries, Mickelson picked up another shot at the par-five 11th, after hitting a superb utility wood from the fairway on to the fringe of the green and two-putting, to briefly lead by two. Though Bradley moved into a share of the lead with birdies at the 16th and 17th, Mickelson stayed level at the top as he mainly scrambled his way to pars on the last seven holes.

“Tomorrow is a big day for me,” Mickelson added. “I’ve led from start to finish here, or all the way, and I would like to do it to the finish. I love this golf course.”

British world number one Luke Donald, playing his first event on the 2012 PGA Tour, carded a 71 to end the day seven strokes off the pace in a tie for 26th. —Reuters

LOS ANGELES: Ryo Ishikawa, of Japan, hits on the 11th fairway during the third round of the Northern Trust Open golf tournament at Riviera Country Club. — AP

Kramer, Nesbitt lead at speedskating worlds

MOSCOW: Canadian Cristine Nessbitt stands during the Women’s 1500m event at the ISU World Allround Speed Skating Championships. — AFP

MOSCOW: Sven Kramer missed out on a podium place in the 1,500-meter race yesterday but remained at the top of the men’s standings after three races, while Christine Nesbitt won the women’s 1,500 with a new track record to reclaim the lead at the World Allround Speedskating Championships.

Kramer finished fourth, 0.48 seconds behind winner Havard Bokko of Norway, who finished in a time of 1:46.82, but preserved a 2.20-second advantage over fellow Dutchman Jan Blokhuijsen going into the final - and his favorite - 10,000meter race.

Defending champion Ivan Skobrev was 0.12 seconds behind Bokko in second. He was followed by Blokhuijsen at

1:47.22.

Nesbitt of Canada clocked 1 minute, 55.95 seconds at the Krylatskoye Ice Stadium oval. She shaved off 1-hundredths of a second from the previous mark set by Claudia Pechstein in 2008.

Defending champion Ireen Wust of the Netherlands was 1.03 seconds behind in second, followed by Cindy Klassen of Canada at 1:57.61.

Nesbitt, the overall World Cup leader this season, won the 500-meter opener on Saturday, but finished sixth in the 3,000-meter event to stay second behind Wust in the allround standings after the first day. She has a 2.70-second advantage over Wust ahead of the final 5,000meter race. —AP

Kruger bags Avantha Masters NEW DELHI: Jbe Kruger of South Africa won his first European Tour title yesterday, protecting his overnight lead by shooting a 3under 69 for a two-shot victor y at the Avantha Masters.

The 25-year-old Kruger made four birdies and overcame a bogey on the 17th to finish with a 14-under total of 274. Jorge Campillo of Spain and Marcel Siem of Germany were two shots back in a tie for second. Jose Manuel Lara of Spain and Australian Marcus Fraser finished joint fourth at 11 under.

Kruger finished second on the Asian Tour three times in 2010, while his best previous result on the European Tour was third at the Africa Open the same year. His best on this year’s European Tour has been ninth at the Joburg Open in South Africa.

“I’m relieved to have finally won, but I think I needed those second positions to appreciate this victory,” Kruger said. “I kept my feet to the ground and by the time I was on the 14th I knew victory was inevitable. I had kept an eye on the leaderboard because I like to know what’s going on,” Kruger said.

“There was no pressure even when I made my only bogey of the day on the 17th. The wind probably switched directions as I hit a pretty good shot and it flew about 19 yards off the fairway,” Kruger said he hoped to improve his per formance in the coming months. “I aim to finish in the top 60 of the European Tour and get as far as I can in the world rankings,” added Kruger, who had finished tied 16th here last year. Meanwhile, Peter Whiteford of Scotland, who held the lead after two rounds, was disqualified for signing a card with an incorrect score in the third round.

While playing his approach shot on the 18th fairway, Whiteford felt his ball may have moved but neither incurred a penalty nor brought it to the notice of officials while signing his card for a 72 that had kept him in joint-second position. On Sunday the rules committee reviewed the events and determined that Whiteford’s ball had moved and he was “disqualified for signing for a score lower than taken.” — AP

GURGAON: South Africa’s Jbe Kruger poses with his trophy after winning the Avantha Masters golf tournament. — AP

Australia beat Britain in Olympic team pursuit test LONDON: World champions Australia struck a psychological blow ahead of the Olympics as they beat Great Britain in the men’s team pursuit final yesterday in a World Cup event at the London Olympic velodrome.

Australia’s quartet, featuring Jack Bobridge, Rohan Dennis, Alexander Edmondson and Michael Hepburn, clocked a new Australian record of 3min 54.615sec to claim the gold as Britain settled for silver in 3:56.330.

New Zealand beat Belgium for the bronze.

Britain, who set the world record of 3:53.314 on their way to gold in Beijing four years ago, started fastest to take the slimmest of leads over Australia after the first of the 4km event.

But from then on, the quartet of Steven Burke, Ed Clancy, Peter Kennaugh, and Geraint Thomas were playing catch-up as the Australians steadily increased their lead over the remaining nine laps.

The result will be a huge morale-boost for Australia ahead of this summer’s Olympics in London, which will be preceded by another confrontation between the pursuit superpowers at the April 4-8 world championships in Melbourne. “It’s great to come here and do what we aimed to do, and that was to win, but also to take back a little information about the track,” said Bobridge.

“Being the world champions and coming here and doing such a good time, a new Australian record... obviously we’re still five, six weeks out from the worlds (championships) but it’s a good sign for the worlds and the Olympics and we just have to keep chipping away.” In just four days of competition there have been four new world records at the Olympic velodrometwo each in the women’s events of the team sprint and team pursuit, with Britain and Australia sharing the glory. —AP

17

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2012

SPORTS

Australia thrash India

HAMILTON: South Africa’s Richard Levi (left) bats as New Zealand’s wicketkeeper Brendon McCullum looks on during the second Twenty20 international cricket match. —AFP

Levi sets records as S Africa hammer NZ HAMILTON: Opening batsman Richard Levi took advantage of the small boundaries at Seddon Park to blast a world record 13 sixes and guide South Africa to an eight wicket win over New Zealand to level their Twenty20 series in Hamilton yesterday.

Levi, who only made his debut on Friday in Wellington, also brought up the fastest international Twenty20 century off 45 balls as he scored 117 not out to help the visitors chase down New Zealand’s 173 for four with four overs to spare. New Zealand had won the first match of the series in Wellington.

The powerfully-built Levi was brutal to a wayward New Zealand attack who bowled into his arc allowing him to smash the ball across the ropes from mid-off around to deep backward square-leg.

“It was good fun. Every shot I played seemed to come off,” Levi said in a televised interview. “The leg-side boundary on (one) side of the wicket is fairly short so I was trying to target it.”

Captain AB de Villiers (39 not out) simply ticked the strike over to the 24-year-

old who wasted little time in bringing up his century when he pushed the ball into the covers for a rare single.

West Indies opener Chris Gayle had held the previous record for sixes in a Twenty20 international with 10, while Gayle and Brendon McCullum had shared the record for fastest century.

Both had achieved the mark in 50 balls.

Martin Guptill top-scored for New Zealand with 47 from 35 balls and New Zealand captain McCullum said he felt they had still posted a competitive score.

“We thought we had a chance,” McCullum said. “We would have liked up around that 190-200 target but when someone comes and plays an innings like that there’s not much you can do, so hats off to him.

“We weren’t allowed to bowl well. I thought Richard played an unbelievable innings. “It didn’t matter what our bowlers did they couldn’t pull it back.

They tried but some days you’re beaten to the punch and that was the case today.” The final match of the Twenty20 series is on Wednesday at Eden Park in Auckland. —Reuters

Scoreboard Scoreboard after South Africa beat New Zealand by eight wickets in their second Twenty20 international at Seddon Park in Hamilton yesterday: South Africa won the toss and chose to bowl New Zealand R. Nicol run out 23 M. Guptill c A. Morkel b De Lange 47 B. McCullum c Ontong b Botha 35 K. Williamson not out 28 J. Franklin c De Villiers b M. Morkel 28 C. De Grandholmme not out 3 Extras: (b-1, w-5, lb-3) 9 Total: (for four wickets, 20 overs) 173 Fall of wickets: 1-37, 2-97, 3-114, 4-159 Did not bat: N. McCullum, D. Bracewell, K. Mills, T. Southee, R. Hira Bowling: Botha 4-0-22-1; Tsotsobe 3-0-23-0 (w-1); M. Morkel 4-0-38-1; De Lange 4-0-43-1 (w-4); Parnell 2-0-15-0; Duminy 3-0-28-0.

South Africa R. Levi not out 117 H. Amla c Franklin b N.McCullum 2 W. Parnell st B. McCullum b Nicol 4 AB de Villiers not out 39 Extras: (w-10, lb-2) 12 Total: (for two wickets, 16 overs) 174 Fall of wickets: 1-25, 2-41 Did not bat: JP Duminy, J. Ontong, A. Morkel, J. Botha, M. Morkel, M. De Lange, L. Tsotsobe Bowling: N. McCullum 2-0-18-1 (w-1); Bracewell 2-0-37-0; Southee 4-0-40-0 (w-2); Nicol 1-0-10-1 (w-1); Hira 4-0-34-0 (w-1); Mills 2-0-26-0; Franklin 1-0-7-0.

BRISBANE: Ben Hilfenhaus marked his return to the limitedovers international arena with a five-wicket haul as Australia beat World Cup champion India by 110 runs yesterday to retake the lead in the Tri-series standings.

The Australians rebounded from an eight-wicket loss to Sri Lanka on Friday with a comprehensive performance against an Indian team which was further demoralized when skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni was suspended for one match due to a slow over-rate at the Gabba.

Mike Hussey and Peter Forrest scored half centuries as Australia tallied 288 for five after winning the toss and batting.

Hilfenhaus and Brett Lee then tormented the top order, taking two wickets apiece in their opening spells to have India reeling at 36-4. Only skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni defied the Australian attack, scoring 56 from 84 balls, including a driven six and a boundary on consecutive balls from Lee, before he was out to Hilfenhaus in the 38th over.

In his first ODI since 2009, Hilfenhaus returned a career best 5-33 to let the Australian selectors know he’s still a viable option in the one-day format.

“It’s a long time since I’ve seen an Australian team bowl as well as they did tonight,” said Ricky Ponting, who was standing in for injured Michael Clarke as captain for the second game in three days. “Full credit to Brett and Ben that opened the attack - their new ball spells were outstanding.

Ben to come away with five-for in his first game back in a while was a great reward for him. “We had their batsmen under control pretty much from the first couple of overs.”

It wasn’t a happy day for Sachin Tendulkar, who is still one short of his 100th international century. The 38-year-old Tendulkar hurt his left shin while fielding in the 25th over and didn’t return for the remainder of the Australian innings.

He was caught at third man, attempted to upper cut Hilfenhaus, to extend his stretch without a hundred to 29 innings since his 111 against South Africa in the World Cup on March 12.

Apart from Dhoni, the India batsmen struggled against the pace and bounce of the Australian attack. By contrast, all of the Australian batsmen contributed except Ponting (7), whose form slump in the oneday format continued with his fifth consecutive dismissal for single figures.

Matthew Wade (45) and David Warner (43) got Australia away to a steady start with a 70-run opening stand. Warner made an uncharacteristically cautious start before belting Zaheer Khan for two boundaries and a driven six

Hirscher closes gap in World Cup race BANSKO: Austrian Marcel Hirscher boosted his Alpine skiing World Cup ambitions by winning a slalom in Bansko the day after he dominated a giant slalom. With his Bulgarian double, the 22-year-old took his season tally to eight wins and collected 200 points in two days to intensify the pressure on his two rivals for the World Cup globe.

Winning on Sunday in a combined time of one minute and 52.64 seconds, Hirscher also celebrated his second double of the season after Adelboden last month.

Fastest in the morning run of Sunday’s slalom, the skier from Annaberg did not falter in the afternoon, beating compatriot Mario Matt by 0.16 seconds.

Matt, who had won Bansko’s inaugural slalom a year ago, was subsequently disqualified for a gate infringement with Sweden’s Andre Myhrer taking second place. Italian Stefano Gross was third.

Hirscher is now only 18 points behind injured Croatian Ivica Kostelic in the overall standings and a parallel slalom in Moscow on Tuesday evening could help him take the lead.

The other leading contender in the men’s competition is Swiss speed specialist Beat Feuz, who took a weekend off to save some energy after his downhill victory in Sochi.

Recovery might well be the key with a month of racing left as Hirscher shunned the past two weekends of competition to rest.

“I have strengths and resources in me which I didn’t suspect. But I’m also tired. It’s a long season and long days, like yesterday, with the press conference and the medal ceremony. I was not aware of how much energy it takes out of you,” he said.

While saying he was not thinking about the season finale just yet, he has

BANSKO: Austria’s Marcel Hirscher celebrates on the podium after winning the Men’s Slalom at the FIS Alpine Skiing World Cup in Bansko. —AFP beeen considering scoring points in other disciplines.

“I trained in super-G in Schladming and I was doing alright. We’ll see. I don’t want to overdo it because I must also think about the giant slalom World Cup which is within reach,” he said.

Hirscher also progressed in the

slalom World Cup standings, trailing Kostelic by only 35 points in the discipline.

The Croat, who underwent knee surgery last Monday, is not expected back in action before March 10 for two technical races in the Slovenian resort of Kranjska Gora. —Reuters

BRISBANE: Australia’s Michael Hussey pulls the ball to the boundary for four runs during their one-day international cricket match against India. —AFP within four balls to significantly boost Australia’s run-rate.

Just when he was looking set, Warner misjudged a slower ball from Pathan and meekly chipped to Tendulkar at mid-wicket. The Australians slipped to 83-2 at Ponting’s dismissal and were 117-3 when Wade was out.

Mike Hussey (59) and Forrest (52) shared a 100-run fourthwicket stand to restore the innings before Pathan struck twice to remove them both in the 44th over.

But Pathan’s double break-

through barely seemed to hamper Australia, with Dan Christian and David Hussey (26 not out) belting 65 in the last six overs.

Christian scored an unbeaten 30 from 18 balls, including four consecutive boundaries off Vinay Kumar in the 49th over.

Pathan troubled the Australian batsmen at times with some variation in his pace but his figures blew out to 3-61 when he conceded 15 runs in the last over.

Dhoni said his fast bowlers were hampered by the hot and

humid conditions at the Gabba and let the Australian batsmen get away in the last 10 overs after containing them well for 40 overs. He will miss Tuesday’s match against Sri Lanka due to his ban for India’s slow over-rate.

India had its share of chances, but some missed opportunities were costly.

Wade was dropped in the first over when he edged Zaheer Khan and was put down by Rohit Sharma, who dived to his right in front of Tendulkar at first slip.

Hussey was on one when he was given out after a review of a stumping appeal but was recalled when umpire Billy Bowden realized that TV official Bruce Oxenford had pushed the wrong button and had meant to flash “not out” on the scoreboard. Bowden chased Hussey as the Australian batsman walked toward the pavilion, calling him back to the crease.

Hussey was also dropped by Umesh Yadav at midoff when he was 32 and just avoided a runout, surviving to surpass 5,000 runs in limited-overs internationals before he was out trying to lift the runrate.

Speculation about Ponting’s future in the one-day setup will intensify after the 37-year-old batsman was out in single figures for the fifth consecutive innings the first time that has happened in his career. Ponting said the Australian batting was disciplined, but he was disappointed again with his own form.

“To bounce back the way we did today and show the energy we showed throughout the game was a real momentum turner for us as far as the series is concerned,” he said. “It’s fair to say I’ve struggled in the first five games.”

“When you’re going through a lean trot like I’ve had the last couple of games, you obviously want to turn that around.” —AP

Scoreboard Scoreboard after Australia beat India by 110 runs in the seventh match of the one-day international Tri-series, also featuring Sri Lanka, at the Gabba in Brisbane yesterday: Australia won the toss and elected to bat.

Australia innings M. Wade c & b Sharma 45 D. Warner c Tendulkar b Pathan 43 R. Ponting c Pathan b Khan 7 P. Forrest c Kohli b Pathan 52 M. Hussey c Raina b Pathan 59 D. Hussey not out 26 D. Christian not out 30 Extras (b-2, lb-12, w-12) 26 Total (five wickets, 50 overs) 288 Did not bat: B. Lee, M. Starc, X. Doherty, B. Hilfenhaus Fall of wickets: 1-70 2-83 3-117 4-217 5-223 Bowling: Z. Khan 10-0-46-1 (4w), V. Kumar 10-0-60-0 (1w), I. Pathan 10-0-61-3 (5w), S. Raina 10-0-44-0, U. Yadav 7-0-46-0 (1w) R. Sharma 3-0-17-1 (1w)

India innings G. Gambhir c Wade b Lee 5 S. Tendulkar c Doherty b Hilfenhaus 3 V. Kohli c Hussey b Hilfenhaus 12 R. Sharma c Wade b Lee 0 S. Raina c Wade b Christian 28 M. Dhoni c Christian b Hilfenhaus 56 R. Jadeja c Forrest b Starc 18 I. Pathan c Wade b Hilfenhaus 19 V. Kumar b Lee 6 Z. Khan c Wade b Hilfenhaus 9 U. Yadav not out 6 Extras (lb-4, w-10, nb-2) 16 Total (all out; 43.3 overs) 178 Fall of wickets: 1-8 2-15 3-16 4-36 5-82 6-114 7-149 8-162 9168 10-178 Bowling: B. Hilfenhaus 9.3-1-33-5 (1nb, 1w), B. Lee 10-0-493 (1nb, 3w), D. Christian 6-0-27-1 (2w), M. Starc 8-0-36-1 (2w), X. Doherty 10-0-29-0 (2w)

Vonn grabs super-combi title after race canceled RUSSIA: Another day, another title for Lindsey Vonn. A day after clinching her fifth consecutive World Cup downhill title, the American sealed her third straight super-combined trophy yesterday after the final race in the discipline this season was canceled due to heavy snowfall on the Sochi 2014 Olympics course.

The International Ski Federation (FIS) had initially said the race might be rescheduled for Are, Sweden, next month, but then scrapped that idea.

“You never want to have a (title) clinched with a canceled race,” Vonn said. “I had it happen to me last year at the finals for the overall globe, and I’ve won a super-combined title before in this way when they canceled the last super-combined in Crans Montana. ... I would love to have another chance to be on the podium, but today was just not meant to be.”

Vonn now has 14 World Cup titles in her career, and she’s on course to add two more before the end of this season with a fourth overall globe and a fourth super-G title.

After the cancellation in Crans Montana two years ago sparked controversy, the FIS created a rule which states that a title can be awarded if two of three races are completed in a discipline.

With just two super-combi races completed this season, Vonn took the title with 180 points, 55 points ahead of Slovenia’s Tina Maze and

60 points in front of Austria’s Nicole Hosp.

Both completed super-combi races were held in St. Moritz, Switzerland, last month. Vonn won the first and finished second behind German rival and friend Maria Hoefl-Riesch in the other.

“It’s a joke with just two races,” said Hoefl-Riesch, who finished fourth in the standings, 70 points behind. “They should only have super-combi at world championships and Olympics. In World Cup, it’s too much for the fourevent skiers.”

The FIS seems to share HoeflRiesch’s view, with no more supercombi races on the World Cup schedule in future years.

Organizers first delayed the start of yesterday’s race by a halfhour, then an hour, then called it off completely, ending the Alpine test events for the Sochi Games on a sour note.

“I definitely think it was the right decision,” Vonn said. “All the girls talked in the finish after the second inspection and we all felt it wasn’t safe enough and we gave them some time to keep working on the course, and they definitely made progress, but unfortunately the snow was just rotten, it was just like sand - an endless pit of nothing - there’s no surface.

“It’s not safe enough to race and I’m really happy with the decision, because safety is the most important thing and we’re all safe today,” Vonn added.

Thursday’s downhill training session was also canceled due to heavy snowfall and low visibility, although there was also criticism about a lack of course workers.

“The snow here is really difficult to prepare, because you have (an artificial base layer) and then comes 10-20-30 meters of natural snow and you have to mix it,” said Wolfgang Mitter, an Austrian who is coordinating the races for the Russian ski federation.

There were only about 200 slippers on hand to prepare the courses here, whereas there are often twice that many at other World Cup stops.

“There are some things to improve,” Mitter said. “We will educate much more (slippers) all over Russia.” Mitter said 50 extra volunteers from Sochi came up Saturday, but they didn’t help much.

“If they don’t know how ski sport works you cannot work with them,” Mitter said. “You need specialists. You need hundreds (of) experienced people, and we will educate them, as we did in the last year and a half. You have to have a complete men’s team and women’s team - maybe about 600700 (people). You need it if there are conditions like today.”

V o n n a n d t h e o t h e r t o pra n k e d w o m e n n o w t ra v e l t o Moscow for a special parallel event Tuesday, while the full circuit resumes in Bansko, Bulgaria, next weekend. —AP

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2012

S P ORT S

Obama to Ali: ‘You shocked the world’ LAS VEGAS: President Barack Obama lauded Muhammad Ali Saturday as he joined a host of celebrities in offering birthday wishes to the boxer known simply as “The Greatest.”

“Happy birthday, champ,” Obama told Ali through a video message, saying he wished he could have attended the swanky dinner gala in Las Vegas featuring some of the biggest names in sports, film, television and music.

“As a fighter, you were something spectacular,” Obama told Ali, who turned 70 last month. “You shocked the world, and you inspired it, too. And even after all the titles and legendary bouts, you’re still doing it.” About 2,000 people attended the gala to celebrate Ali’s life and generate millions of dollars for brain research, a mission Ali’s family says is important to him in part because of his nearly 30-year battle with Parkinson’s disease.

A set of gloves Ali used to defeat Floyd Patterson in 1965 in Las Vegas — the first heavyweight title fight in Sin City — sold for $1.1 million.

The gloves came with one of the original posters used to promote the fight, which had Ali’s chosen name as a subscript to Cassius Clay, the name he was born with. When Ali converted to Islam, many people resisted calling him by his new name. Ali entered the room and sat at a table with his family before bidding began on the gloves.

Lorenzo Fertitta, the billionaire majority owner of Ultimate Fighting Championship, won the gloves,

which organizers had said earlier they hoped would fetch $500,000.

NFL great Jim Brown said Ali represents the greatest of America, because at one time people only recognized his athletic ability and didn’t like what he had to say. That changed over time, he said.

“America started with slavery and ended up with a black president,” Brown said. “Muhammad Ali was a part of that ... a big part.”

Ali’s wife, Lonnie Ali, told the star-studded crowd that her husband’s greatest wish has always been to inspire and help others. She said he feels that his life really began when he retired from the ring.

“Muhammad’s gift of inspiration is timeless, and now more relevant than ever,” she said after being introduced by music icon Quincy Jones.

Lonnie Ali introduced a video montage of her husband’s life, including clips from his work with children.

“People look for miracles, people look for wonders, people expect surprises of all kinds,” Ali said in the video. “Yet the greatest wonder, the greatest miracle, the greatest surprise is to be found in one’s heart.”

Guests arriving on the red carpet included former NFL player Franco Harris, supermodel Cindy Crawford, actor Samuel L. Jackson, Ali’s children and grandchildren and Chuck Wepner, who fought Ali in 1975 for the heavyweight title and lost. “I would go anywhere in the world for Muhammad Ali’s birthday,” Wepner said.

One of Ali’s daughters, Rasheda Ali, said the gala is

a chance for friends, family and A-list celebrities who look up to her father to show their respect for his life and legacy as a humanitarian. In return, she said he’ll be honored to see them there.

“He has not left that need to help others,” Rasheda Ali said. “That’s one of his core values — his charity and his giving.”

The gala — with tickets starting at $1,500 per plate — was held at the MGM Grand, the site of most of boxing’s major fights the past two decades.

Many famous faces sat at tables adjacent to two rings — actors Terrence Howard and Anthony Hopkins, boxer Manny Pacquiao, hip hop artist Common and singer Lenny Kravitz, among others.

They performed songs and gave tributes to a fighter who went 56-5 in the ring with 37 knockouts and became one of the world’s most famous athletes because of his personality and willingness to publicly stand up for his beliefs.

Stevie Wonder, who performed earlier in the day at Whitney Houston’s funeral, sang “Keep Our Love Alive” and “Superstition.” Rasheda Ali said Wonder was the performer her father was most looking forward to seeing.

Kravitz, Snoop Dogg, John Legend, Slash, Kelly Rowland and Cee Lo Green also performed. LL Cool J rapped “Mama Said Knock You Out” along to a remixed version of the song that included Ali audio, such as his famous “Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee” quote.

Tennis champion Andre Agassi said Ali has shown

the world that each person has a duty — regardless of their occupation — to live for more than him or herself and help others.

“What he did with his platform was unparalleled and the impact he’s had as a result, we still feel to this day, which is why we’re all out here tonight,” Agassi said. “We’re grateful to what he’s done. He’s been a leader — we’re also challenged and charged with a duty of figuring out a way to do more.”

Ali has lived for nearly 30 years with Parkinson’s disease, a degenerative brain condition that some doctors say can be brought on by punches to the head.

The gala raised funds for the Cleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health and the Muhammad Ali Center in Louisville, Kentucky, a cultural attraction that celebrates Ali’s life and pushes educational goals on a wide range of topics for adults and children.

Larry Ruvo, chairman of the clinic’s fundraising arm, Keep Memory Alive, said he’s not sure whether the fundraiser will exceed its record of $27 million, but he hopes so.

Magician David Copperfield auctioned off a fournight trip to his set of 11 private islands in the Bahamas for $300,000.

Boxing promoter Bob Arum said during a pre-gala reception Friday night that Ali will go down as one of the most important Americans in history.

“Without Muhammad Ali, there wouldn’t have been an Obama,” he said. “There wouldn’t have been a mixed-race president.”—AP

Klitschko retains WBC crown on points

MEMPHIS: Grizzlies forward Rudy Gay (22) eludes pressure from Golden State Warriors forward Dorell Wright during the second half of an NBA basketball game.—AP

Spurs roll over Clippers LOS ANGELES: Gary Neal hit go-ahead 3-pointers in regulation and overtime and Tony Parker scored 30 points as the San Antonio Spurs held off the Los Angeles Clippers 103-100 on Saturday for their NBA-leading 10th consecutive victory.

Neal stole the ball and hit a 3-pointer to even the score with 5.7 seconds left in regulation, and his 3 with 25 seconds to go in overtime put the Spurs up 100-98.

Neal finished with 17 points. Matt Bonner added 13 points and Tim Duncan had 11 points and 17 rebounds for the Spurs, who are 6-0 on their current nine-game road trip.

Blake Griffin had 22 points and 20 rebounds, and Chris Paul and Randy Foye each scored 21 points for the Clippers.

Nets 97, Bulls 85 In Chicago, Deron Williams scored 29 points and Kris Humphries had 24 points and 18 rebounds as struggling New Jersey beat Chicago to end an eightgame losing streak.

Chicago’s Derrick Rose missed his fifth straight game because of back pain, and the Nets took advantage, jumping out to a 22-3 lead while rolling to their first victory since Feb. 1.

Williams scored 21 points in the first half and hit five 3-pointers in the game.

He also had eight assists. Humphries narrowly missed season-highs for points (25) and rebounds (19). Carlos Boozer

and Mike James each scored 16 points for Chicago.

Grizzlies 104, Warriors 103 In Memphis, Tennessee, Tony Allen scored on a tip-in with 5.6 seconds left to lift the Grizzlies past Golden State for their fourth straight victory.

Allen scored after Rudy Gay missed a shot to the right of the lane. Memphis also won off a miss from Gay on Friday night, beating Denver 103-102 on Dante Cunningham’s tip.

The Warriors had one last shot after Allen’s tip-in, but David Lee was called for an offensive foul with less than a second left, sending the Warriors their third straight loss.

Gay scored 19 points, O.J. Mayo had 18 and Marc Gasol added 17 points and 13 rebounds. Stephen Curry led the Warriors with 36 points, matching his season high.

Trail Blazers 97, Hawks 77 In Por tland, Oregon, LaMarcus Aldridge had 19 points and 10 rebounds in his return from a left ankle injury as the Trail Blazers ended a four-game home losing streak.

Nicolas Batum had 22 points to help Portland avoid losing five straight at home since the 2005-06 season. Joe Johnson had 19 points for Atlanta, and Josh Smith added 14 points and 10 rebounds. The Hawks have lost six of their last nine games.—AP

NBA results/standings San Antonio 103, LA Clippers 100 (OT); New Jersey 97, Chicago 85; Memphis 104, Golden State 103; Portland 97, Atlanta 77. (OT denotes overtime win) Eastern Conference Atlantic Division W L PCT Philadelphia 20 11 .645 Boston 15 14 .517 NY Knicks 15 16 .484 Toronto 9 23 .281 New Jersey 9 23 .281 Central Division Chicago 25 8 .758 Indiana 18 12 .600 Milwaukee 12 18 .400 Cleveland 11 17 .393 Detroit 10 22 .313 Southeast Division Miami 24 7 .774 Orlando 20 11 .645 Atlanta 19 12 .613 Washington 7 24 .226 Charlotte 4 26 .133

GB 4 5 11.5 11.5

Oklahoma Denver Portland Utah Minnesota

5.5 11.5 11.5 14.5

LA Clippers LA Lakers Golden State Phoenix Sacramento

4 5 17 19.5

San Antonio Dallas Memphis Houston New Orleans

Western Conference Northwest Division 23 7 .767 17 14 .548 6.5 17 15 .531 7 15 14 .517 7.5 15 16 .484 8.5 Pacific Division 19 10 .655 18 12 .600 1.5 11 17 .393 7.5 12 19 .387 8 10 20 .333 9.5 Southwest Division 22 9 .710 20 11 .645 2 18 14 .563 4.5 17 14 .548 5 7 23 .233 14.5

MUNICH: Vitali Klitschko comfortably retained his WBC heavyweight title on Saturday, scoring a unanimous points decision over British challenger Dereck Chisora in Munich’s Olympic Hall to ensure his family maintained a global stranglehold on the division. The 40-year-old Ukrainian, whose younger brother Vladimir holds the WBO, IBF, WBA and IBO crowns, improved his record to 44-2 but was forced to go the distance against the former British and Commonwealth champion, who made more enemies than friends with his antics before and after the 12 round clash.

“I am happy to defend my title. It was a good performance from Chisora. I don’t want to make excuses - it was not easy - but I saw every punch from Chisora. I am upset because I wanted to finish the fight before 12 rounds,” Klitschko said in a ringside interview.

The taller Klitschko set the foundations for victory by dominating his shorter opponent in the opening rounds, his longer reach allowing him to pound Chisora with punishing rights from a distance.

Chisora, who had slapped his rival at the weigh-in on Friday and also spat water into Vladimir’s face during the pre-fight ceremonies, recovered well and rattled Klitschko with a solid uppercut in the fifth round as he gained in confidence.

Klitschko, some 15 centimetres taller than the Briton, continued to cause damage with his big right but failed to land the decisive blow as he gradually ran out of steam and was content to edge the latter rounds to secure the points win.

The judges scored the bout 118-110, 118-110 and 119-111 in favor of the Ukrainian with a

defiant Chisora, who continued to stare down both Klitschko brothers after the decision, demanding a rematch as the 12,000 crowd booed and jeered him.

“This booing, I don’t. As long as they paid money to watch the sport I love, I don’t mind,” he said. “I want another fight. There will be a rematch or I will fight his younger brother,” added Chisora, who lost his third bout in his last four contests to fall to 15-3.

The heavily favoured Klitschko looked more tired than usual in the closing rounds and praised his opponent’s tenacity but not his demeanour.

“He tried to punch me to my body but I have a strong stomach. It didn’t hurt,” he added. “I have respect for Chisora as a fighter, but not as a human. He set a bad example for boxing and all fighters. He came from Great Britain but he is not a gentleman.”—Reuters

MUNICH: Ukrainian WBC World Champion Vitali Klitschko (left) punches British boxer Dereck Chisora in the WBC World Heavyweight Championship in the Olympic hall in Munich.—AFP

Azarenka wins Qatar Open DOHA: Victoria Azarenka extended her domination over Samantha Stosur to win her third successive title of the year at the WTA Qatar Open yesterday, taking her 2012 record to 17 straight wins.

The Belarusian world number one showed no signs of discomfort from her overnight injury scare in the semi-finals against Agnieszka Radwanska by beating a listless Stosur, the US Open champion, 6-1, 6-2 in a one-sided final. The Qatar Open was Azarenka’s 11th title, 10 of them coming on hard courts, as she maintained her perfect record against the Australian who she has beaten in five career clashes beginning in 2008, with none of the matches going to three sets.

Sunday’s win also completed a remarkable 12 months for Azarenka who lost to Daniela Hantuchova in the first round in Doha in 2011, a defeat that led her to contemplate retirement before being talked out of it by her mother and grandmother.

“I am really proud of the way I played today,” said Azarenka, fighting back tears. “I was not 100 per cent after my fall yesterday and I knew I had to adjust my game and everything went according to plan.”

Stosur, who was playing her first final of the year, was bidding for her fourth title, but Azarenka was too good for the world number five despite rarely hitting top gear.

The Australian Open champion broke Stosur in the third game of the first set from 40-all when the Aussie hit a ball long and then netted an easy volley.

Stosur again made crucial unforced errors in her next service game, putting a forehand into the net and then missing an easy smash before a powerful forehand return fetched Azarenka her second break.

The Belarusian then retained her serve to lead 5-1 and, following another error-ridden service game by Stosur, clinched the set with a fine volley. The second set was also played along the same pattern as Stosur failed to reduce her errors and soon Azarenka had taken a stranglehold on the match by racing to a 3-0 lead. And although the Australian managed to win two service games, Azarenka then broke her again in the eighth game to maintain a hundred per cent record in finals this year. “Last year I lost in the first round and watched someone else lift this beautiful trophy,” Azarenka said. “But now I have this for myself.”—AFP

QATAR: Belarus’ Victoria Azarenka holds up the trophy after her victory against Australia’s Samantha Stosur in the Qatar WTA tennis open final match.—AP

Raonic tops Harrison to advance to SAP Open final SAN JOSE: Defending champion Milos Raonic advanced to the SAP Open final by beating American Ryan Harrison 7-6 (4), 6-2 on Saturday.

The Canadian piled up 20 aces behind a powerful serve that reached 150 mph (242 kph) in the comfortable conditions of the indoor arena. Raonic relied on his serve to force a first-set tiebreaker and cruise past the 19-year-old Harrison after breaking for 3-1 in the second set. “I think I got a few free points today,” Raonic said.

After Raonic’s rapid rise stalled last year with a slip at Wimbledon, he’s making his way back from hip surgery through a similar path. Raonic has dropped only two service games in two years at San Jose and his baseline game is only growing stronger.

“It was all really new to me last year. I felt it all flew by really quickly,” said the 21-year-old Raonic.

“Whereas now, going through all these things again and playing well and everything, I feel like I know how to deal with it all. There’s not stress around it.” Raonic will play Uzbekistan’s Denis Istomin — who upset Andy Roddick in the quarterfinals — on Sunday. Istomin beat Frenchman Julien Benneteau 6-3, 6-7 (4), 6-3 to move into only his second ATP Tour final and first since 2010. Harrison is still searching for his first ATP Tour final. He has lost three times in the semifinals on tour.

Fresh off a Davis Cup debut that helped the US sweep Switzerland in the first round last weekend, Harrison surged to the semifinals in impressive fashion. He was the first teenager to reach the semifinals at San Jose since Andy Murray in 2006 and 2007, and he did it despite flying 6,000 miles across nine time zones to get here immediately after the Davis Cup tie and switching from

clay to indoor courts. Harrison beat Raonic in the third round at Indian Wells last year but couldn’t touch the hard-serving Canadian in the climatecontrolled conditions on Saturday. Raonic rose to as high as No. 25 in the rankings last year — the highest ever for a Canadian — before his season derailed when he injured himself by falling at Wimbledon. He still earned ATP Newcomer of the Year honors after earning his first title at San Jose.

Raonic, who mimicked 14-time Grand Slam champion Pete Sampras’ serve as a kid, now has another chance to match his childhood idol: He’s one win away from becoming a back-to-back champion in San Jose — something Sampras did with victories in 1996 and 1997.

“I think there are a lot of similarities. It’s pretty fluid for both,” he said. “I still think there’s a lot more work I need to do to serve as well as him.”—AP

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2012

S P ORT S

Atletico held by Sporting MADRID: Atletico Madrid squandered the chance to move up to fourth in La Liga as they were held to a 1-1 draw by relegation-threatened Sporting Gijon under new coach Javier Clemente yesterday.

The visitors have set their goal on winning a place in the Champions League following an impressive star t under coach Diego Simeone with the side unbeaten in eight matches in all competitions.

Atletico striker Radamel Falcao missed the first opening inside the first five minutes when he shot straight at keeper Juan Pablo and then Diego Godin headed over from close range.

Atletico did take the lead after 20 minutes but it was through a stroke of good fortune as Adrian Lopez scuffed a shot and the ball came off Roberto Canella for an own goal.

Sporting did get back into the game through a scrappy goal from Sebastian Eguren before half time but after the break Atletico continued to waste chances with Falcao in particular guilty.

Later yesterday, Barcelona entertain third-placed Valencia looking to find a way back into the title race after Real Madrid’s 4-0 win over Racing Santander on ITALY: Cesena’s Yohan Benalouane of France (left) vies for the ball with AC Milan’s Stephan El Shaarawy, during their Serie A soccer match.—AP

Milan back on top ROME: AC Milan stormed back to the top of Serie A with a 3-0 win at lowly Cesena yesterday as they made light of the absence of Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

In two games since the big Swede has been suspended for slapping Napoli’s Salvatore Aronica, Milan have won both.

Ghana midfielder Sulley Muntari, on his debut, and versatile Dutchman Urby Emanuelson both scored their first goals for the club with Robinho adding the third as Milan went a point clear of Juventus, although having played a game more.

The two Italian giants meet next week in a top of the table clash at the San Siro.

Juventus had taken over at the summit on Saturday with a 3-1 win over 10-man Catania. Daniel Pudil scored Cesena’s consolation goal and defeat sees them go bottom of the table.

Milan were quick out of the blocks and could have had three goals inside the first 10 minutes. Muntari turned smartly in the box from Ignazio Abate’s deflected cross but shot just past the upright.

Francesco Antonioli then tipped over an Emanuelson shot from distance before the two Milan midfielders combined to put in captain Massimo Ambrosini one-on-one but the goalkeeper saved with his legs.

Robinho almost caught out Cesena when nipping onto a deflected croass but he headed wide. The breakthrough came on 29 minutes as Thiago Silva thumped a free-kick goalwards that Antonioli spilled, allowing Muntari to nip in and score.

And just two minutes later Emanuelson countered with Robinho before cracking in a low shot from outside the post inside the corner. Cesena did create a pair of chances but Christian Abbiati tipped over Vincenzo Iaquinta’s header while Adrian Mutu headed over from six yards.

And 10 minutes into the second period

it was game over as Robinho took a pass from Abate, surged between two defenders and finished into the far corner for his third goal in a week.

Pudil gave the home fans something to cheer about midway through the second period with a precise volley into the far corner Iaquinta had a couple more chances but couldn’t find the net while Milan substitute Stephan El Shaarawy went through one-on-one with Antonioli but was denied by the goalkeeper.

Roma moved up to fifth and sent Inter Milan, who lost 3-0 at home to Bologna on Friday night, down to seventh with a 1-0 win over Parma.

Fabio Borini scored the only goal from a tight angle after being played in by Miralem Pjanic. Lecce came from a goal down to beat Siena 4-1 to boost their hopes of beating the drop this season.

Lecce remain two points from safety but with Siena the team occupying the final survival position it was a crucial success.

Cristiano Del Grosso had given the visitors the lead with a back post volley from six yards but Lecce came roaring back. Luis Muriel equalised before the break from close range following a melee at a corner.

And the Colombian then went on a mazy run, jinking his way into the box before earning a second half penalty.

Muriel did flop easily to the ground but having grabbed the forward around the waist with both arms, Alessandro Gazzi could have no complaints, protest as he did. David Di Michele converted the spotkick before Lecce added two late goals.

Another Colombian Juan Cuadrado went on another eye catching run on the counter-attack before cleverly chipping goalkeeper Gianluca Pegolo while Davide Brivio scored his first ever goal in Serie A with a rasping free-kick.—AFP

Lyon stumble again in race for C League spot PARIS: Lyon lost precious ground in the race for Champions League qualification after a dismal 1-0 loss at Bordeaux yesterday left them three points behind thirdplaced Lille, who have a game in hand.

Remi Garde’s side won 1-0 at home to APOEL in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie on Tuesday, but they were toothless in attack at Stade ChabanDelmas and were undone by a 41st-minute header from Yoan Gouffran.

Lyon’s defeat-their ninth of the seasonleft them in fifth place, level on 39 points with Marseille, Rennes and Saint-Etienne, who romped to a 4-0 win at home to Rennes to steam into contention for a Champions League berth.

In yesterday’s late game, Carlo Ancelotti

faces his first major test as Paris SaintGermain coach when the league leaders tackle second-placed Montpellier at Parc des Princes.

Montpellier trail PSG by only a single point and both teams are undefeated in all competitions in 2012, with Rene Girard’s side still to concede a goal.

On Saturday, a 76th-minute Mathieu Debuchy strike gave Lille a 1-0 win at Lorient that strengthened the champions’ grip on third place, eight points behind Paris.

Fourth-placed Marseille, who host Inter Milan in the Champions League on Wednesday, were held 1-1 at home by Valenciennes but they also have a game in hand on Lyon.—AFP

Saturday put them 13 points clear.

Meanwhile, Real Madrid’s Germany midfielder Sami Khedira has spoken out against the arrests of three Tunisian journalists who re-published pictures of the footballer and his semi-naked girlfriend.

The Real Madrid star, whose father is Tunisian, posed for the erotic pictures with his model girlfriend Lena Gercke in GQ magazine, but three journalists from Tunisian newspaper Attounissia have been arrested for re-publishing the images.

Three members of staff have been detained by state officials for allegedly offending public morality. “I heard about the matter on Thursday evening and find it very, ver y sad and unfor tunate that such a thing happened,” the 24year-old Khedira told German daily Bild.

“I respect the different religions that exist and also the faith that people have, but I can not understand that people can not express themselves freely.”

The GQ pictures show the couple in various states of undress while one shot shows only Khedira’s arm covering the breasts of his model girlfriend and have caused controversy in Tunisia.

The organisation Repor ters Without Borders has called for the immediate release of the trio, which includes the newspaper’s managing director, who could face up to five years in jail.

Khedira came off the bench in Real’s 4-0 win over Racing Santander on Saturday night which left them 13 points clear of rivals Barcelona at the top of the Spanish league.—AFP

Spanish League results/standings Granada 4 (Lopez 12, Jara 57, Uche 60, 86) Real Sociedad 1 (Gonzalez 10); Athletic Bilbao 3 (Amorebieta 58, Dominguez 60, Toquero 61) Malaga 0; Real Mallorca 4 (Victor 41, 65, Marti 53, Nunes 67) Villarreal 0; Sporting Gijon 1 (Eguren 37) Atletico Madrid 1 (Canella 20-og) Playing later: Levante v Rayo Vallecano, Barcelona v Valencia Spanish league table ahead of yesterday’s late matches (played, won, drawn, lost, goals for, goals against, points): Real Madrid Barcelona Valencia Bilbao Espanyol Atletico Levante Malaga Osasuna Sevilla Vallecano Mallorca Getafe Granada Sociedad Real Betis Villarreal Racing Gijon Aragoza

23 22 22 23 23 23 22 23 23 23 22 23 23 23 23 22 23 23 23 22

20 14 11 8 9 8 9 9 7 7 8 7 7 8 7 8 6 4 5 3

1 6 7 9 6 8 5 4 10 8 4 7 7 4 6 2 8 11 5 6

2 2 4 6 8 7 8 10 6 8 10 9 9 11 10 12 9 8 13 13

79 63 35 37 26 32 29 28 26 24 27 23 23 21 26 25 23 18 21 18

21 16 22 30 27 28 29 35 37 26 32 28 30 32 34 31 34 30 44 38

61 48 40 33 33 32 32 31 31 29 28 28 28 28 27 26 26 23 20 15

Schalke lead title race BERLIN: Schalke 04 put themselves back in the German league title race yesterday with a 4-0 hammering of VfL Wolfsburg while leaders and defending champions Borussia Dortmund finished the weekend with a three-point lead.

The Royal Blues bounced back from last Saturday’s 3-0 defeat at second-placed Borussia Moenchengladbach and go four th in the table behind ‘Gladbach and Bayern Munich, who are third.

Five points now separate the Bundesliga’s top four teams. “I told the team after the game that they do not have to train tomorrow,” said delighted Schalke coach Hubb Stevens whose team host Viktoria Plzen in the Europa League on Thursday, then Bayern in Munich in the league on Sunday. “ We played well, the only thing I would be critical of is that we failed to exploit our opportunities. But you could really see how much fun the team was having, as they should do.”

Former Spain striker Raul netted after just 10 minutes and then a superb cross from Austria defender Christian Fuchs was converted by Dutch star KlaasJan Huntelaar on 15 minutes.

Huntelaar was denied his second on 36 minutes when Wolfsburg’s Swiss goalkeeper Diego Benaglio saved his penalty, but Schalke grabbed the third just after the break when midfielder Joel Matip fired home.

Huntelaar then joined Bayern’s Mario Gomez as the league’s joint top scorer when he headed home another Fuchs cross on 72 minutes to leave him with 18 goals in 21 league games. It was a bitter return for Wolfsburg

GERMANY: Wolfsburg’s Marco Russ (right) holds the trousers of Schalke’s Teemu Pukki of Finland during the German First Division Bundesliga soccer match.—AP

coach Felix Magath, who was sacked by the Royal Blues in February 2011.

Ex-Germany goalkeeper Timo Hidebrandt made his first Bundesliga appearance for 22 months when he came on for injured Schalke goalkeeper Lars Unnerstall who broke his collarbone in the first-half.

On Saturday, Dor tmund earned a 1-0 win at struggling Hertha Berlin while Bayern lost some ground with a goalless draw at bottom side Freiburg.

The draw leaves the bottom three teams-Kaiserslautern, Augsburg and Freiburg-all on 18 points. Bayern lag four points behind Dortmund.

The leaders’ only goal came

when a bullet header from Dor tmund striker Rober t Lewandowski was parried by Hertha goalkeeper Thomas Kraft with winger Kevin Grosskreutz on hand to hit an over-head shot on 66 minutes.

Her tha, who sacked coach Michael Skibbe last Sunday after five straight defeats, remain 15th in the league and Otto Rehhagel, who led Greece to the Euro 2004 title, has been appointed to the vacancy.

Borussia Moenchengladbach took their chance to take second place from Bayern after a 2-1 win at Kaiserslautern.

The win came at a price as midfielder Patrick Herrmann scored Gladbach’s first goal after

only nine minutes, but was later carried off with a broken collarbone and is expected to be out for the next six weeks.

Werder Bremen, fifth in the league, earned the bragging rights in the north German derby with a 3-1 win at Hamburg.

Bayer Leverkusen, who were beaten 3-1 at home by holders Barcelona in the Champions League in midweek, bounced back to stay sixth with a 4-1 win over Augsburg, who are second from bottom.

Nuremberg pulled themselves up to 12th and out of the relegation mire with a 2-1 win at home to Cologne, who drop to 14th, just two places above the relegation zone.—AFP

Pirates crash in Africa JOHANNESBURG: Orlando Pirates of South Africa crashed 3-1 at home to Recreativo do Libolo of Angola yesterday in the first shock of the 2012 CAF Champions League.

Domestic media build-up to the first round, first leg at Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in Indian Ocean city Port Elizabeth was dominated by talk of the Buccaneers going all the way this year and winning the title a second time.

But dreams of emulating the 1995 team and conquering the continent were all but extinguished by the unheralded Angolans and Pirates will have to score at least three goals in Luanda early next month to have any hope of surviving.

Libolo, appearing in the premier PanAfrican club competition for only the second time, raced into an early two-goal lead and struck again midway through the sec-

ond half before Pirates got a stoppage-time consolation.

M aieco Henrique punished comical defending to open the scoring on 12 minutes with a close-range shot and struck again soon after when he picked up a headed clearance, raced through unopposed and unleashed a thunderbolt.

Pirates’ defence was all at sea again after 63 minutes and Camara swept a loose ball inside the box past stand-in goalkeeper Senzo Meyiwa before Rooi Mahamutsa pulled one goal back.

It was a result no one in South Africa foresaw, and a shattering blow for longserving club chairman Irvin Khoza, who wanted continental glory after winning all the domestic trophies during the past 18 months.

Just one week after winning the Africa

Cup of Nations against the odds, Zambia had further cause for celebration as Power D ynamos travelled to Madagascar and thumped Japan Actuel 5-1 in Antananarivo.

Mulenga Mukuk a and Felix N yanda scored twice each and Simon Bwalya was also on target for the visitors, who led 1-0 at half-time, while Rindra Rakotondrabe was the lone Actuel marksman.

Debutants Platinum of Zimbabwe also displayed impressive away form to triumph 4-2 against Green Mamba in Swaziland with Donald Ngoma scoring twice and Allan Gahadzikwa and Sadiki Ali once each.

Former Wigan Athletic striker Amr Zaki struck in the closing stages to salvage a 1-1 draw for five-time champions Zamalek of Egypt after hosts Young Africans of Tanzania had taken a first-half lead through Hamisi Kiiza.—AFP

Celtic go 17 points clear at top of SPL

FRANCE: Bordeaux’s Yoan Gouffran (center) vies for the ball with Lyon’s Bakary Kone (right) during their French Division One soccer match.—AP

GLASGOW: Celtic ended a week they started four points clear at the top of the Scottish Premier League with a colossal 17-point advantage after a 5-0 win away to Hibernian yesterday.

Second-placed Rangers’ 10 point penalty for going into administration, and subsequent 1-0 loss at home to Kilmarnock on Saturday, had left Celtic in a strong position even before they kicked-off at Easter Road.

But Gary Hooper’s double, as well as goals from Antony Stokes, Charlie Mulgrew and

substitute Ki Sung-Yueng saw Celtic pile on the agony for both arch-rivals Rangers and, indeed, second-bottom Hibernian.

Stokes headed Celtic into a 14th minute lead against his former club when he was first to Mulgrew’s inswinging cross.

And six minutes later Celtic were 2-0 in front when, after Stokes had beaten three defenders, the unmarked Hooper scored the first of his two goals.

The second half was only two minutes old when Mulgrew added a third goal, with a

curling free-kick from more than 20 yards out. Another long range shot, this time from Hooper, bounced over goalkeeper Graham Stack’s arms to make it 4-0 before Kris Commons’s drive deflected off fellow substitute Ki to complete the scoring 13 minutes from time.

Earlier, St Johnstone missed the chance to go fourth after sharing the points in a goalless draw away to Aberdeen at Pittodrie in yesterday ’s other Scottish top-flight match.—AFP

Azarenka wins Qatar Open

Kruger bags Avantha Masters

18

16

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2012

Obama to Ali: ‘You shocked the world’

Page 18

LONDON: Liverpool’s Luis Suarez (right) vies for the ball against Brighton and Hove Albion’s Alan Navarro during their English FA Cup fifth round soccer match.—AP

Three own goals help Reds rout Brighton LIVERPOOL: Two own goals from Liam Bridcutt and a third by Lewis Dunk helped Liverpool to a 6-1 win over second-tier Brighton at Anfield here yesterday as they set up an FA Cup quarter-final tie with Stoke.

The Reds, who have not won any silverware since the 2006 FA Cup, face another Championship side in Cardiff in the League Cup final at Wembley next weekend.

But they also moved into the last eight of the FA Cup with a convincing display against Gus Poyet’s team. Martin Skrtel

made the breakthrough in the fifth minute and although Kazenga Lua Lua pulled Brighton level, Bridcutt’s first own goal sent Liverpool in ahead at the interval. Andy Carroll scored a third with a low finish just before the hour, Bridcutt and Dunk scored own goals and, after missing a penalty, Luis Suarez added a sixth from close range. It was the first time in history a team had scored three own goals in one FA Cup tie. With Suarez, Carroll and Steven Gerrard starting for the first time together, Liverpool wasted little time in going ahead. Gerrard’s corner picked out Skrtel,

who peeled away at the near post and glanced a header past Brighton keeper Peter Brezovan.

But the visitors drew level when Lua Lua made Jordan Henderson pay for giving away an unnecessary free-kick on the edge of the area by driving the ball powerfully past Reina at the goalkeeper’s near post. As the hosts continued to offer all of the attacking threat, Carroll headed wide from a Charlie Dam cross, Jose Enrique missed with a right-foot shot after a strong run and Inigo Calderon hacked off the line after Suarez had beaten Brezovan

with a stabbed shot. Charlie Adam drilled over from 25 yards and Carroll also saw a header from a Gerrard cross fly narrowly over the bar. Lua Lua missed the chance to add a second for Brighton when he saw his effort hit the side-netting after another impressive run.

Brighton were once again grateful for Brezovan, who tipped over from a bending Gerrard free-kick. But just before the interval the Reds went ahead thanks to Bridcutt’s own goal.

Brezovan pushed a corner straight into the air but blocked Suarez’s follow-up and

when Glen Johnson headed towards the corner, Sam Vokes headed away only for the ball to bounce into the net off Bridcutt. Liverpool continued to do all of the pressing after the restart, with Suarez’s neat chip held by Brezovan. Henderson failed to worry Brezovan with a longrange effort but Liverpool scored a third just before the hour.

Gerrard slipped a pass wide for Stewart Downing and the winger provided a low cross for Caroll to produce a neat finish at the near post for his sixth goal of the season. With just under 20 minutes

Stoke end Crawley’s run

Spurs’ Cup dream on hold after stalemate STEVENAGE: Premier League title-chasers Tottenham Hotspur were held to a shock goalless draw away to third tier Stevenage in the fifth round of the FA Cup here yesterday.

Spurs did put the ball in the net early in the second half but saw the goal ruled out for offside and now the club in third place in the Premier League must try again at home in a replay for a place in the quarter-finals.

“I’ve been around long enough to know what to expect,” said Tottenham manager Harry Redknapp. “I have managed teams in the lower divisions and seen Premier League teams knocked out.

“Stevenage are a difficult team to play and worked their socks off. The pitch was bumpy and the ball was bobbling everywhere - but they are a good side bang in form. They worked hard and are on a good run.

“We are still in the cup and are at home now.

It gives us a big chance but I wouldn’t underestimate them by any chance.”

Redknapp is the favorite to become the next permanent manager of England but, asked about his chances of succeeding Fabio Capello, he added: “I’ve just got to get on with the job here (at Tottenham).

“We are sitting third in the league at the moment and I can’t take my eye off that because Tottenham have been fantastic to me.

I’ve just got to keep doing the job.

“If I start thinking about other things it would relay through to the players. I can’t do that.” Delighted Stevenage manager Gary Smith said: “We had one or two half-chances we should have made a little bit more of - our dead ball situations are better than that - but overall the performance was outstanding.” As for the replay, Smith added: “We’ve got every chance...we’ll go there with a lot of energy and belief.

“They’ve got a very tough schedule coming

up. They’ve got Arsenal and Manchester United, with us plugged in somewhere in the middle.”

Tottenham survived an early appeal for handball in the box when the ball struck captain Michael Dawson and the opening exchanges also saw Jermain Defoe stab just wide at the near post.

Spurs’ Louis Saha almost broke the deadlock in the 35th minute when he chested the ball down in the box but the challenges of two defenders saw the France international fire the ball over.

Dawson saw an effort hacked off the line and Stevenage’s counter attack took them all the way to the Spurs area and Scott Laird’s header from Luke Freeman’s free-kick had to be palmed over by goalkeeper Carlo Cudicini.

Tottenham started the second half with a 25-yard drive from Bale that Stevenage goalkeeper Chris Day, a former Spurs player, did well to tip round his left-hand post.

Stevenage continued to retaliate however and Michael Bostwick was just too high with a long-range effort but they had linesman Darren Cann to thank for not falling behind in the 55th minute.

The home defence failed to deal with a Rose cross from the left and Saha applied a closerange finish that went in off Scott Parker on the line. The England midfielder may have been trying to get off the pitch but only succeeded in getting the goal disallowed for offside.

Stevenage’s Joel Byrom fired just over and then forced Cudicini into a fumbling save that required New Zealand defender Ryan Nelsen to clear before Chris Beardsley could pounce.

Home substitute Don Cowan fired wide in stoppage time before the final whistle confirmed Stevenage were in the quarter final draw where, if they win the replay, they will be at home to another Premier League side in Bolton.—AFP

remaining Liverpool scored a fourth when they broke quickly from a Brighton corner and when Gerrard’s initial effort was blocked by Brezovan, the Liverpool captain’s cross was again turned into his own net by Bridcutt.

Suarez could have made it six after Dirk Kuyt was pulled down by Craig Noone in the area but the Uruguayan’s penalty was pushed away by Brezovan.

But with five minutes remaining, Enrique’s cross was headed back across goal by Carroll and Suarez nodded in from just a couple of yards out.—AFP

LONDON: Tottenham Hotspur’s Louise Saha fights for the ball with Stevenage Borough’s Ron Henry during their English FA Cup fifth round soccer match.—AP

LONDON: Stoke City booked their place in this season’s FA Cup quarter-finals with a 2-0 win away to fourth-tier Crawley Town yesterday despite playing most of the match a man down after Rory Delap was sent off.

Goals either side of half-time, courtesy of a Jonathan Walters penalty and a Peter Crouch header, saw Stoke, last season’s beaten finalists, make it into the last eight.

Stoke’s victory ended the FA Cup run of League Two side Crawley, the lowest-ranked club left in the tournament, who also reached this fifth round stage of English football’s leading knockout competition last season.

But Premier League Stoke suffered an early setback when defender Delap was shown a straight red card by referee Mike Jones for a lunging challenge on Crawley’s David Hunt in the 17th minute.

For most of the first half Stoke, beaten in the Europa League by Valencia on Thursday, were on the defensive and Crawley nearly scored when Crouch almost put through his own net. Crawley’s Kyle McFadzean came close when his 30yard shot forced a save from Stoke keeper Asmir Begovic.

But three minutes before half-time McFadzean found himself playing an unwanted role when he upended Ryan Shawcross in the Crawley box.

Jones wasted little time in pointing to the spot and Walters’s driven low penalty had too much on it for Crawley keeper Rene Gilmartin.

Stoke, who lost to Manchester City in last season’s final at Wembley, went into the break 1-0 up and seven minutes after half-time England striker Crouch had doubled their lead in typical fashion.

Glenn Whelan’s free-kick picked out the tall forward at the far post and Crouch, rising above the Crawley defence, headed the ball back across goal and beyond the reach of Gilmartin.

Premier League teams Everton, Bolton and Sunderland are all in yesterday’s draw for the quarter-finals following wins on Saturday.

So too are second tier Championship team Leicester, who beat Premier League Norwich 2-1 on Saturday in the only upset of the fifth round so far.

Chelsea will also be in the hat but they must beat Birmingham in a replay to be sure of a quarter-final spot after being held to a 1-1 draw on Saturday.—AFP

DIFCI hires Moelis for $1.25bn bond options Page 22

Greeks stage new protests on eve of euro-zone bailout Page 23 MONDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2012

Cyprus hopes gas riches to avert Greek contagion Page 25

BMW reveals the new BMW 6 Series Gran Coupe Page 26

KUWAIT: Kuwaiti traders follow the stock market at the Kuwait Stock Exchange yesterday. The KSE index gained 1.7 percent yesterday, its largest one-day gain in 11 months, to close at a seven-month high. —Photo by Yasser Al-Zayyat

Kuwait stocks jump to 7-month high Regional bourses upbeat amid rising global confidence KUWAIT/DUBAI: Regional markets rallied yesterday as upbeat global sentiment spilled over. In Kuwait, the index gained 1.7 percent, its largest one-day gain in 11 months, to close at a seven-month high.

Local investors bought small-caps but a trader said trading did not reflect company fundamentals.

“You have crazy valuations in companies that are not worth their valuations,” said a Kuwait-based trader who asked not to be identified. Small-caps surged with Al Safwa Group up 9.4 percent, Al Ahlia Holding jumping

16.7 percent and Gulf Finance House climbing 7.8 percent.

Egypt’s bourse hit a seven-month high after the finance minister said it will sign a $3.2 billion loan agreement with the International Monetary Fund.

Cairo’s main index rose 2.9 percent to its highest close since June 21. “The IMF negotiations and the clearer timetable for presidential elections are boosting confidence in the market. Investors are pouring fresh cash into Egypt,” said Chamel Fahmy of Pharos Securities.

Presidential elections will be held

in the first week of June, several weeks ahead of the previously announced end-June deadline for the vote. Palm Hills jumped 10 percent, Egyptian Resorts and Amer Group surged 9.7 and 9.5 percent respectively.

In Dubai, the index made its largest one-day gain in almost a year, up 3.6 percent to its highest close since June as improving local fundamentals brought back buying momentum.

Bellwether Emaar Properties gained 3.9 per cent, Dubai Financial Market jumped 7 percent and Air Arabia rose 6.5 percent. “ The UAE

economy is faring better than what the market was telling us-things are stabilizing and we’ve had some good corporate earnings,” said Fadi Al-Said, head of investments at ING Investment Management. “The market is in an overbought situation technically but valuations are still distressed.” Analysts expect Dubai’s market to consolidate at these levels with some profit-taking in the coming sessions. Regional sentiment is supported by gains in world stocks, which hit a 6-1/2-month peak on Friday on hopes that Greece will seal a long-

awaited bailout deal this week.

“Good news internationally reflected well on local sentiment which is also excited about seeing the rally continue on the back of good Emaar numbers and other company distributions,” said Haissam Arabi, chief executive at Gulfmena Investments. In Abu Dhabi, the index ticked up 0.6 percent. Dana Gas jumped 6.8 percent, Sorouh Real Estate surged 5.1 percent and Aldar Properties gained 3 percent. In Saudi Arabia, petrochemical stocks led gains as the index rose 0.6 percent to a nine-month high. Trading

Greece’s euro entry shrouded by doubts BRUSSELS: Greece’s accession to the European bloc three decades ago, and its subsequent entry into the euro-zone, were mired in controversy due to questions over its economy and accusations it was cooking its books.

When Greece on January 1, 1981, entered the European Economic Community (EEC) that preceded the European Union, it became the poorest member of a club of rich nations that hoped to anchor the Balkan state to democracy after the end of a military dictatorship lasting from 1967 to 1974. While the German foreign minister at the time, Hans-Dietrich Genscher, admitted Greece’s accession as a 10th member would bring not only advantages but also extra burdens for all, the move gave the bloc a new Mediterranean dimension-bolstered five years later by the arrival of Spain and Portugal.

Athens, linked since 1961 by an association accord with the Common Market, officially applied for membership of the European bloc in 1975, a year after the end of the junta’s dictatorship. Issues over agriculture, and worries over not upsetting Athens’ arch rival Turkey, itself linked to the bloc by an association accord, slowed down the accession process.

After it joined the EEC in 1981, Greece was accused of numerous violations of the rules of the bloc’s Common Agricultural Policy (CAP).

Greece had to wait until 2001 to enter the EU’s single currency zone, because it did not meet the criteria required by the bloc’s Maastricht Treaty notably a public deficit limited to three percent of gross domestic product and inflation at no more than 2.7 percent.

French President Nicolas Sarkozy recently said that admitting Greece a decade ago had been “an error.” At the EU’s June 2000 summit, Greece received the green light to enter the euro-zone on the basis of its 19971999 accounts. The level of its public deficit in 1999 — 1.8 percent according to the Socialist government at the time-was in fact well above the level fixed by the Maastricht Treaty.

In September 2004, a new conservative government in Athens revised the figures showing that the deficit since 1997 had passed the ceiling of three percent of GDP. EU finance ministers called on Greece to rapidly correct its excessive deficits and called for the officials responsible for the erroneous statistics which had led to euro-zone entry to be named.

Two weeks later the EU’s executive commission launched infringement procedures against Greece for non-respect of the bloc’s statistical regulations. After winning elections in October 2009, the government of Socialist Prime Minister George Papandreou revealed that the deficit was much bigger than what its conservative predecessors had reported. After a 110-billion-euro bailout agreed in May 2010 proved insufficient, northern euro-zone partners Greece accepted in October 2011 that a bigger rescue would be needed. But with northern euro-zone countries losing patience over Greece’s record of delivery, and many new strings being attached before hardliners would pass a package more than double the size of the first, Finance Minister Evangelos Venizelos said this week that some countries no longer want Greece in the euro-zone. —AFP

was heavy, with investors bullish on the local economy.

Bellwether Saudi Basic Industries Corp (SABIC) was the main support, rising 0.5 percent. Advanced Petrochemical added 2.5 percent and Methanol Chemicals surged 9.9 percent. Elsewhere, Qatar’s benchmark rose from Thursday’s two-week low, gaining 0.9 percent.

Gulf International Services surged to a six-week high, up 10 percent, after proposing a cash dividend of 1.3 riyals per share and 10 percent bonus shares. —Reuters

Sanctions crippling Syria: Businessman

PARIS: An unidentified woman (right) exchanges her French francs for euros at the counter of a branch of the Banque de France in Paris. Six centuries after the first one was minted and a decade after they went out of circulation, the last French francs are being exchanged for euros, severing France’s final link to its former national currency. — AP

Swiss banks may be forced to make tax checks GENEVA: Swiss banks could be forced to carry out checks on the tax status of foreign assets they hold under a new “clean money” strategy being proposed by the finance minister, it was reported yesterday.

Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf wants banks to go a step further than requiring a tax declaration from foreign customers, according to the Sonntags Zeitung.

She wants them to examine suspected cases of evasion to ensure they are respecting the law.

Sonntags Zeitung paper described the proposal as “explosive” as banks have so far fought against compulsory checks.

Widmer-Schlumpf, who as well as being finance minister is also the current Swiss president, will put the suggestion to ministers on Wednesday the newspaper said, citing several sources close to the finance department. Widmer-Schlumpf is under pressure to

reach an agreement with the United States over undeclared assets in Swiss accounts, as Switzerland tries to maintain the reputation of its banking industry. US authorities are probing 11 Swiss banks as part of a clampdown on offshore tax evasion-an investigation that recently prompted the collapse of Wegelin, the country’s oldest private bank.

Three of its bankers have been charged with conspiring to help American clients hide funds.

In the coming months, Bern is expected to finalize a tax accord with Washington, similar to one already drawn up with Britain and Germany. “We support the intentions of the finance minister,” president of Widmer-Schlumpf’s Conservative Democrats party, Hans Grunder, told the Sonntags Zeitung. The head of the Socialists Christian Levrat said the suggestions “seem to go in the right direction.” —AFP

LONDON: The Syrian economy is being crippled by foreign sanctions and the government is “slowly disintegrating” under anti-regime protests, a leading Syrian businessman told the BBC yesterday.

Faisal Al-Qudsi, the son of a former Syrian president who was heavily involved in the country’s economic liberalization, said sanctions were affecting the entire country, not just President Bashar Al-Assad’s regime. “The apparatus of the government is slowly disintegrating and it’s almost non-existent in trouble spots like Homs, Idlib, Deraa,” he told the BBC World Service in London.

“Courts are not there, police are not interested in any sort of crime and it is affecting the government very, very badly, every day it continues.” Qudsi said Iran was sending “quite a lot of cash” to support Syria through Iraq, but it was not enough, adding that most of the top businessmen he knew had left because of fears for their safety.

“Since April tourism has stopped, and that’s about 15 percent of GDP (gross domestic product). Since November the oil exports have stopped and that’s another 30 percent of GDP that’s gone,” he said. “With the sanctions on exporting goods and products from Syria to the rest of the world, Syrian products can only be exported to Jordan, Iraq and Lebanon.

“So, effectively the foreign exchange reserves of the central bank have come down from $22 billion (16.7 billion euros) to about $10 billion and it is dwindling very rapidly.” The European Union has imposed oil and arms embargoes against Syria in response to a crackdown that has left more than 6,000 people dead, according to rights groups, and is currently planning a new set of restrictions.

The United States and Canada have also imposed sanctions, while Arab nations have banned transactions with the Syrian government and central bank and frozen Syrian government assets in Arab countries. — AFP

22

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2012

business

DIFCI hires Moelis for $1.25bn bond options Dubai firm eyeing viable options DUBAI: DIFC Investments (DIFCI), the investment arm of the firm that runs Dubai’s financial free zone, has hired US investment bank Moelis & Co to advise on options for a $1.25 billion Islamic bond maturing in June, three sources familiar with the matter said yesterday.

The DIFCI bond, along with a $2-billion Islamic bond from Jebel Ali Free Zone (Jafza) which matures later this year, are in the spotlight as investors weigh Dubai’s refinancing risks in 2012. DIFCI, whose assets range from aerospace to retail, saw profits wiped out in 2010 mainly due to the devaluation of its property portfolio in the aftermath of the 2008 global financial crisis which ended Dubai’s real estate boom. It posted a $272 million loss for 2010.

Standard & Poor’s estimated this month that DIFCI will need to raise $900 million in order to meet 2012 maturities, noting the government is likely to help the firm meet its obligations.

DIFCI, which repaid a $200 million loan to Deutsche Bank in December, had $119 million in cash at end of 2011, against $1.4 billion of

debt falling due in 2012, S&P said. “It makes some sense to hire an independent advisor for the sukuk. They (DIFCI) went slow on the hiring process but this should hopefully give them some viable options,” one banking source familiar with the matter said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Among options that may be considered are refinancing the Islamic bonds or using funds from the emirates sovereign wealth arm to help repay the debt. Dubai’s government has said it had no plans to restructure the debt.

Refinancing the DIFCI or Jafza maturities through a new issue would require the companies to offer attractive profit or coupon rates on new issues, likely higher than that paid on the existing 2012 maturities.

DIFCI’s Managing Director Shahli Akram Juma declined comment. A spokeswoman at Moelis, an independent advisory firm which has worked on several restructurings in the Gulf Arab region, declined to comment. Moelis’ highest-profile role was advising the Dubai government on the

Solidarity not for free, EU official tells Greece

$25 billion debt restructuring of flagship conglomerate Dubai World. In 2010, it was also hired by Zabeel Investments, owned by the crown prince of Dubai, sources told Reuters last month.

Both DIFCI and Jafza are viewed as strategically important to Dubai, which means the state cannot afford to let them fail. Current prices on the Islamic bonds, or sukuk, indicate investors are pricing in state support. DIFCI’s $1.25 billion Islamic bond maturing in June was seen at 94.25 levels on Friday, while JAFZA’s November 7.5 billion dirham ($2 billion) sukuk was last bid at 92.5/93 cents on Saturday.

Both bonds have seen a steady recovery from October lows at 87-88 levels amid heightened euro-zone debt worries at the time. The Gulf Arab emirate has clawed its way back from the depths of its crippling 2009 debt crisis, but still faces a massive debt burden, with approximately $15 billion in bonds and loans maturing this year alone, according to the International Monetary Fund. — Reuters

Prosecutors may charge Olympus over scandal

VIENNA: Greece should stop looking for scapegoats abroad for its problems and work harder to get itself out of its economic mess, EU Justice Commissioner Viviane Reding said yesterday in an interview.

“I wish the Greeks would concentrate on rebuilding their state rather than blaming scapegoats outside Greece for their plight,” Reding, who is also vice-president of the European commission, said in an interview with the Austrian daily Kurier.

“It’s understandable that the (EU) finance ministers no longer want to stand by and watch as promises are not kept.”

“Solidarity does not come for free, Greece must also earn this help,” Reding said in the interview, published in German.

Euro-zone finance ministers are to meet in Brussels on Monday to finalize a second Greek bailout to write off 100 billion euros ($130 billion) of debt and provide a loan of 130 billion euros.

But patience is running thin in Europe with Greek reform delays, while in Athens tough austerity measures have been greeted with violent protests. “I am confident they (the finance ministers) will agree on the package. But under some conditions.

The money should not flow into a bottomless pit,” Reding said, echoing comments

by Germany’s Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble.

Berlin has been at the forefront of efforts to help Greece out of its debt crisis but has also earned nasty portrayals in Greek media as a revived Nazi regime ordering Athens around.

“Germany has already paid a lot to Greece. Now a similar gesture is needed in return, otherwise solidarity will dry up,” the EU commissioner urged on Athens’ part. — AFP

TOKYO: Japanese prosecutors are considering indicting Olympus Corp as a company for falsifying its financial reports to conceal huge investment losses in a $1.7 billion scandal, Kyodo news agency reported yesterday, quoting investigative sources.

Tokyo District Public Prosecutors and the watchdog Securities and Exchange Surveillance Commission (SESC) have apparently determined they can make a case against the camera and medical equipment following the Tokyo Stock Exchange’s decision last month to keep the company listed, Kyodo said. Olympus is likely to be indicted as a corporation when prosecutors charge chairman and president Tsuyoshi Kikukawa, 70, and six other people arrested last week, Kyodo said.

The company would face up to 700 million yen ($8.82 million) in penalties if found guilty, Kyodo said. Tokyo prosecutors on Thursday arrested Kikukawa, former executive vice president Hisashi Mori and former auditor Hideo Yamada on suspicion of violating the Financial Instruments and Exchange Law, officials said on Thursday. Also apprehended were former bankers Akio Nakagawa and Nobumasa Yokoo and two others suspected of helping hide huge investment losses through complex takeover deals.

The three former executives had been identified by an investigative panel, commissioned

by Olympus, as the main suspects in the fraud, seeking to delay the reckoning from risky investments made in the late-1980s bubble economy. The scandal was exposed in October by chief executive Michael Woodford, who was sacked by the Olympus board after querying dubious deals later found to have been used to conceal the losses. Woodford campaigned to win his job back, but gave up that bid last month, blaming cosy ties between management and big Japanese shareholders and citing the strain on his family. Olympus is counting on

an April 20 shareholders’ meeting to mark a turning point in the scandal, with at least six of its 11-member board, including its current president, set to resign. Olympus in December filed five years’ worth of corrected financial statements plus overdue first-half results, revealing a $1.1 billion dent in its balance sheet, triggering talk it would need to merge or forge a business tie-up to raise capital. Last Monday it forecast a $410 million full-year loss due largely to its ailing camera operations. Its core endoscope business appeared unscathed by the scandal and its president said the firm might not need outside capital. —Reuters

NEW DELHI: A Kingfisher Airlines aircraft prepares to land at the Indira Gandhi International Airport in New Delhi. India’s loss-making Kingfisher Airlines has cut its schedules and admitted a glitch over tax payments in the latest signs of trouble for the carrier. — AFP

India’s loss-making Kingfisher cuts flights MUMBAI: India’s loss-making Kingfisher Airlines has cancelled as many as 32 flights a day, it said at the weekend, also admitting a glitch over tax payments in the latest signs of trouble for the carrier.

The company, which showed a third quarter loss of $88 million last week, has been beset with difficulties caused by soaring fuel costs and high local sales taxes, as well as a domestic price war.

The airline admitted to the cancellations in a statement released late on Saturday that blamed some of the disruptions on bird strikes. It said a full daily schedule of 240 flights should return to operation over the next week. Kingfisher also confirmed its bank accounts were “attached by tax authorities”, meaning payment of tax deducted at source had been queried by revenue officials.

“This has happened in the past. We have

resolved issues before and will do so again,” the firm said, dismissing concerns about its future as “media speculation”.

Kingfisher, owned by colorful brewing magnate Vijay Mallya, has never posted a net profit since it started operating in 2005 and has seen its passenger market share slump in recent months to 12 percent.

A quarter of Kingfisher is owned by local banks and some have refused to lend the company more cash unless fresh capital is raised. Questions about Kingfisher’s financial viability grew after it axed its lowcost Kingfisher Red service to concentrate on its full-fare business in September.

India’s airline industry-once a symbol of the country’s economic progress-is now plagued by high jet fuel prices, fierce competition, price wars and inadequate airport infrastructure, with Kingfisher one of the worst-hit firms. — AFP

Egypt to sign IMF loan next month CAIRO: Egypt expects to sign a $3.2 billion loan agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) next month and will receive one-third of the funds immediately upon signing, Finance Minister Mumtaz Al-Saeed was quoted yesterday as saying.

The loan accord would be signed during a visit to Egypt in March by IMF regional director Masood Ahmed, AlAhram newspaper quoted him as saying.

Egypt would receive another one-third of the loan in three months and the final one-third in six months. The loan, which has a interest rate of 1.2 percent, would be used to support the 2012/13 budget and to compensate for the depletion of Egypt’s foreign reserves, Al-Ahram quoted Saeed as saying.

Saeed told Reuters by telephone that the contents of the Al-Ahram article were accurate, but declined to give fur-

TOKYO: Former Olympus Corp Chairman Tsuyoshi Kikukawa speaks at a press conference in Tokyo to announce the Japanese camera and precision instruments maker dismissed Michael Woodford as president over management discord and appointed himself to double as president effective on the day. — AP

ther details. Egypt last month began negotiating the $3.2 billion package to plug widening budget and balance of payments deficits widened by the economic and political turmoil of the past year. Egypt said it wanted to seal an accord within weeks.

The IMF has said Egypt would have to line up substantial commitments from international donors before it would agree to any financial package.

Economists estimate that Egypt needs about $10-12 billion in external funding over the next year and a half. Al-Ahram quoted Saeed as saying Egypt was negotiating with the World Bank for another $1 billion, but that the fate of economic aid promised by several Gulf states was still not clear. Any loan agreement would have to be subsequently approved by the IMF’s board of directors, the IMF has said. — Reuters

EXCHANGE RATES Commercial Bank of Kuwait US Dollar/KD GB Pound/KD Euro Swiss francs Canadian Dollar Australian DLR Indian rupees Sri Lanka Rupee UAE dirhams Bahraini dinars Jordanian dinar Saudi riyals Omani riyals Philippine peso Egyptian pounds

.2730000 .4370000 .3630000 .3000000 .2760000 .2950000 .0040000 .0020000 .0753090 .7337140 .3830000 .0710000 .7192740 .0040000 .0430000

CUSTOMER TRANSFER RATES US Dollar/KD .2774000 GB Pound/KD .4391660 Euro .3648360 Swiss francs .3019320 Canadian dollars .2785000 Danish Kroner .0490220 Swedish Kroner .0412340 Australian dlr .2973730 Hong Kong dlr .0357750 Singapore dlr .2205090 Japanese yen .0034890 Indian Rs/KD .0000000 Sri Lanka rupee .0000000 Pakistan rupee .0000000 Bangladesh taka .0000000 UAE dirhams .0755550 Bahraini dinars .7361020 Jordanian dinar .0000000 Saudi Riyal/KD .0739930 Omani riyals .7208000 Philippine Peso .0000000

Al-Muzaini Exchange Co. ASIAN COUNTRIES

Japanese Yen Indian Rupees Pakistani Rupees Srilankan Rupees Nepali Rupees Singapore Dollar Hongkong Dollar Bangladesh Taka Philippine Peso Thai Baht Irani Riyal - Transfer Irani Riyal - Cash

3.598 5.337 3.154 2.436 3.341 213.250 35.672 3.580 6.336 8.873 0.271 0.273

.2807500 .4450000 .3690000 .3080000 .2850000 .3030000 .0070000 .0035000 .0760660 .7410880 .4000000 .0775000 .7265030 .0072000 .0500000 .2795000 .4424900 .3675980 .3042180 .2806080 .0493930 .0415470 .2996240 .0360460 .2221780 .0035160 .0057030 .0023730 .0030900 .0034040 .0761270 .7416740 .3953320 .0745530 .7262570 .0065950

Saudi Riyal Qatari Riyal Omani Riyal Bahraini Dinar UAE Dirham

GCC COUNTRIES 74.150 76.402 722.230 738.540 75.715

Pakistani rupees Philippine peso Qatari riyal Saudi riyal Singapore dollar South Africa Sri Lankan rupees Sterling pound Swedish krona Swiss franc Syrian pound Thai bhat Tunisian dollar UAE dirham U.S. dollars Yemeni Riyal

ARAB COUNTRIES Egyptian Pound - Cash 47.500 Egyptian Pound - Transfer 46.282 Yemen Riyal/for 1000 1.272 Tunisian Dinar 189.860 Jordanian Dinar 392.670 Lebanese Lira/for 1000 1.865 Syrian Lier 6.003 Morocco Dirham 33.814 EUROPEAN & AMERICAN COUNTRIES US Dollar Transfer 277.950 Euro 370.650 Sterling Pound 431.930 Canadian dollar 268.420 Turkish lire 153.940 Swiss Franc 300.620 Australian dollar 277.000 US Dollar Buying 277.750 GOLD 315.500 159.000 81.500

20 Gram 10 Gram 5 Gram

COUNTRY

Australian dollar Bahraini dinar Bangladeshi taka Canadian dollar Cyprus pound Czek koruna Danish krone Deutsche Mark Egyptian pound Euro Cash Hongkong dollar Indian rupees Indonesia Iranian tuman Iraqi dinar Japanese yen Jordanian dinar Lebanese pound Malaysian ringgit Morocco dirham Nepalese Rupees New Zealand dollar Nigeria Norwegian krone Omani Riyal

SELL CASH

302.500 741.070 3.610 283.700 547.300 45.400 50.200 167.800 47.160 371.100 36.620 5.810 0.032 0.167 0.244 3.620 395.180 0.189 93.780 46.500 4.280 236.000 1.805 50.000 723.800

SELL DRAFT

301.000 741.070 3.340 282.200

222.900 46.178 369.600 36.470 5.655 0.032

10 Tola

75.870 278.600

Dollarco Exchange Co. Ltd Selling Rate

US Dollar Canadian Dollar Sterling Pound Euro Swiss Frank Bahrain Dinar UAE Dirhams Qatari Riyals Saudi Riyals Jordanian Dinar Egyptian Pound Sri Lankan Rupees Indian Rupees Pakistani Rupees Bangladesh Taka Philippines Pesso Cyprus pound Japanese Yen Thai Bhat Syrian Pound Nepalese Rupees Malaysian Ringgit

278.550 280.810 444.180 366.640 303.495 737.635 75.815 76.460 74.240 392.100 46.150 2.344 5.660 3.075 3.323 6.528 683.270 3.595 9.125 5.865 3.630 92.445

Rate per 1000 (Tran)

US Dollar Pak Rupees Indian Rupees Sri Lankan Rupees Bangladesh Taka Philippines Peso UAE Dirhams Saudi Riyals Bahraini Dinars Egyptian Pounds Pound Sterling Indonesian Rupiah Yemeni Riyal Euro Canadian Dollars Nepali rupee

Currency

Transfer Rate (Per 1000)

302.79 284.06 308.05 369.53

446.00 3.70 3.550 5.790 2.650 4.250 3.200 76.35 741.00 48.00 395.00 728.00 77.25 74.60

278.600 3.066 5.680 2.340 3.370 6.565 75.955 74.450 740.700 46.112 445.200 3.190 1.550 373.400 285.200 3.690

Al Mulla Exchange

UAE Exchange Center WLL Australian Dollar Canadian Dollar Swiss Franc Euro

444.18 3.56 3.356 5.659 2.344 3.545 3.072 75.84 741.06 46.17 396.36 724.06 76.82 74.39

Kuwait Bahrain Intl Exchange Co.

TRAVELLER’S CHEQUE 444.000 278.600

Sterling Pound US Dollar

Currency

723.620

306.100 4.200 9.240

Sterling Pound Japanese Yen Bangladesh Taka Indian Rupee Sri Lankan Rupee Nepali Rupee Pakistani Rupee UAE Dirhams Bahraini Dinar Egyptian Pound Jordanian Dinar Omani Riyal Qatari Riyal Saudi Riyal

Currency

394.850 0.188 93.780 3.560 234.500

3.075 6.540 76.650 74.400 222.920 38.520 2.350 444.000

GOLD 1,801.640

Rate for Transfer

Bahrain Exchange Company

3.160 6.870 77.080 74.400 222.920 38.520 2.655 446.000 42.500 307.600 4.200 9.410 198.263 75.970 279.000 1.310

303.00 284.00 307.60 371.10

US Dollar Euro Pound Sterling Canadian Dollar Japanese Yen Indian Rupee Egyptian Pound Sri Lankan Rupee Bangladesh Taka Philippines Peso Pakistan Rupee Bahraini Dinar UAE Dirham Saudi Riyal *Rates are subject to change

Transfer Rate (Per 1000)

278.250 369.300 443.700 282.000 3.575 5.664 46.110 2.347 3.340 6.530 3.070 741.000 75.800 74.300

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2012

business

Greek saga continues to pressure markets NBK MONEY MARKET REPORT KUWAIT: The US dollar had a mixed performance against its major counterparts towards the end of the week as uncertainties rising from the Greek debt situation provoked a highly volatile environment in the FX market. The euro reached a high of 1.3287 boosted by the Greek parliamentary vote at the beginning of the week, but failed to break the 1.3300 level, as markets remained cautious on Greece. The single currency then dropped dramatically as Moody’s Investor Service downgraded a number of European countries and warned to strip France and the UK of their top rating, citing the debt crisis. Additionally, the less favorable news flow and the delay of the second Greece aid package from the troika added more pressure on the euro as it reached a low of 1.2973.

However, on Friday sentiments improved, induced by better-than-expected claims from the US labor market helping the currency regain some of its losses to close the week at 1.3145. The sterling pound opened the week at 1.5775 and reached a high of 1.5862.

Cable quickly lost its gains, in parallel with the euro, and reached a low of 1.5642. The currency erased its losses on Friday as it closed the week at 1.5830.

Similarly, the Australian Dollar has weakened from relatively firm levels amid the current contraction in risk, despite a better than expected employment figure, as it reached a low of 1.0625. The Aussie recouped its losses, reached a high of 1.0798, and closed the week at 1.0702. Finally, the Japanese Yen dropped sharply against the greenback throughout the week as the BOJ unexpectedly added JPY 10 trillion to an asset-purchase program after the economic slide fuelled criticism that the central bank was slow to act. The USDJPY dropped to a low of 77.35 at the beginning of the week, only to surge gradually towards a week high of 79.62. The Yen closed the week at 79.55.

Housing data Builders took initiative on more homes than

expected in January, helped by better weather conditions, adding signs that the real estate market is stabilizing. Housing Starts rose to 699,000 annually from December’s 689,000 pace. Builders reported that more orders are a result of a pick-up in hiring, cheaper properties and borrowing costs at record lows.

Retail sales climbed in January as Americans took advantage of post-holiday discounts, showing households are being economical in their spending.

The 0.4% gain followed little change the 0.1% increase in December. January’s advance was half the

0.8% expected by the market, reflecting an unexpected decline at auto dealers.

Europe Moody’s Investor Services cut the debt ratings of six European countries including Italy, Spain and Portugal, and said it may strip France and the UK of their top ratings, citing Europe’s debt crisis. Slovakia, Slovenia and Malta also had their ratings lowered.

The euro weakened following the announcement from Monday’s high of 1.3285 to a low of 1.3150 in early trading on Tuesday.

Commodity Update

Oil rallies as metals take a breather

By Ole S Hansen, Head of Commodity Strategist

O

il markets received most of the attention this week with Brent crude trading back above 120 dollars per barrel as several geopolitical events collectively increased the risk of supply disruptions. The rally among industrial metals came to a halt due to weaker Chinese demand while a dramatic narrowing of the price gap between espresso and filter coffee caught some headlines.

The DJ-UBS commodity index rose 0.8 percent as gains in energy were off-set by a slide in industrial metals with the LME Metals index falling by 3 percent while precious metals traded sideways. The dollar notched up small gains as investors continued to go hot and cold on the Greek bailout and the S&P 500 reached a nine month high as the US economy continued to improve.

Brent above 120 Minor supply disruptions from countries such as Yemen, Syria, Nigeria, Sudan and not least Iran, the world’s third-largest oil exporter, have all collectively caused increased competition for Brent crude with more Asian buyers looking for alternatives to regular suppliers. South Sudan is the latest joining the line of countries with supply problems as a dispute with North Sudan over pipeline transit fees has caused the flow of 260,000 barrels per day to grind to a halt. Combining this with on-going tensions surrounding the disruptions of shipments from Iran and elsewhere the price of Brent crude has continued to rally. Refineries in Asia are looking for alternative supplies and this has increased the competition for Brent crude with output from the North Sea already running at low levels.

Weak fundamentals As a result the price of Brent crude has rallied to an eight-month high above $120 per barrel and once again moved into the danger zone where global demand fundamentals, if prolonged, could begin to slow.

In 2011 the price of Brent spiked to $127 on the removal of Libyan oil and stayed above 120 dollars for one month. At current prices Brent crude is already trading 9 percent above the 2011 average and priced in Euros it is only two percent from the 2008 peak as the rally in oil has been accompanied by a strengthening dollar.

While so many uncertainties persist, a move back towards last year’s high cannot be ruled out with sellers few and far between. Support can be found towards 116.50 while resistance is at 123 ahead of 127.

Copper pauses Industrial metals which have rallied strongly during the last three months experienced a quick reversal this week as data from China pointed towards slowing demand. Considering China consumes more than 40 percent of most industrial metals news that smelters were increasing exports due to soft internal demand helped trigger the reversal. The metals which saw the

biggest retracements were lead and zinc while the price of High Grade Copper briefly traded below the recent lows before consolidating. A move below $2.85 per pound on the front month contract could signal a deeper correction towards 2.70.

Precious metals Gold and silver continue to consolidate while searching for the next trigger.

Direction has increasingly been dictated by economic data with positive news encouraging “risk on” trades supporting equities and commodities, including gold. The welldefined trading range between 1,700 and 1,760 held once again with a 40 dollar move in either direction expected once it breaks.

The World Gold Council (WGC) in its annual report estimated that China in 2012 would overtake India as the biggest consumer of gold as both consumer demand and central bank buying would continue.

The council also believes that China’s central bank made significant gold purchases during the last quarter of 2011 where prices generally hit a soft patch. This goes to show that major setbacks in the gold market are likely to be met by continued strong physical demand, especially from China as the central bank continues to build its gold holding in order to diversify its currency reserves. Central Banks in general expanded their gold reserves in 2011 by adding 440 tons, the most in almost 50 years and according to the WGC a similar amount could be bought in 2012 with the higher price not acting as a deterrent.

The price difference between the two different qualities of coffee has narrowed dramatically during the last few weeks.

While the price of high quality Arabica coffee has fallen12 percent year to date Robusta coffee, the lower and more widely consumed quality, has rallied by 20 percent.

Prices had been falling steadily into January as the outlook for a bumper crop in Vietnam, the world’s largest producer of Robusta, had speculators selling themselves short in expectation of lower prices in the future. As it turned out Vietnam shocked the market when it announced a sharp reduction in the amount it exported during January and it raised worries about shortages as the two other major Robusta exporters, Indonesia and Brazil, usually only begin their harvests in April and July respectively.

The rally and subsequent outperformance will undoubtedly run out of steam soon but not until short positions have been covered and food producers and trading houses manage to secure supplies.

According to analysts, this year’s Vietnamese crop is still expected to be a record and the feeling is that farmers there held back supplies in order to achieve higher prices, something that seems to have worked out spectacularly.

EU carbon The up until recently depressed market of carbon emission allowances received a welcome boost this week which put further distance to the sell-off during 2011 where the price halved on European recession fears combined with oversupply of allowances.

The gains which represent the biggest weekly gain in six months occurred after the region’s politicians took steps towards reducing the overhang of supply with the current surplus expected to reach more than 1 billion metric tons by the end of the year, threatening the system’s ability to curb carbon emissions.

Greek situation The Greek saga continued last week as the postponement of the Greek aid package from the troika and the flow of negative news fuelled volatility and uncertainty in the market. The Greek situation remains unclear. However, what had been viewed as constructive developments in the situation over the past month has obviously broken-down alongside the continued delays in getting the euro-zone officials to approve the second bailout package for Greece. Meanwhile, the head of the Euro group of EU finance ministers, Jean-Claude Juncker, said that sub-

stantial progress had been made on the Greece aid package and expressed confidence that an agreement on the matter would be reached on their next scheduled meeting on February 20. On the other hand, other media reports indicated that Germany, the Netherlands and Finland are taking a tougher position on the Greece aid package conflicting with the more optimistic comments from Juncker.

German GDP Germany performed better than expectations in the market in the fourth quarter even as the sovereign debt crisis devastated the Euro Zone’s largest

economy. Gross domestic product in Germany, fell 0.2% from the third quarter, beating projections for a 0.3% decline.

Inflation British inflation dropped sharply in January as the effect of a rise in 2011 sales tax fell away, supporting Bank of England forecasts for a sharp easing of price pressures this year and providing some relief for cash-strapped consumers. Consumer prices dropped to 3.6%, its lowest annual rate since November 2010.

UK retail sales unexpectedly rose for a second month in January as discounting at furniture and household-goods stores attracted customers. Sales including fuel rose 0.9% from December, when they rose 0.6%. Analysts expected a drop by 0.3%. Bank of England Governor Mervyn King said this week that the economy should “gradually” recover this year as cooling inflation helps reduce a squeeze on consumers’ finances, while the European debt crisis will weigh on growth. The recovery in retail sales may falter with unemployment at a 16-year high and confidence at what Nationwide Building Society says is a “subdued” level.

Japan Japan’s economy shrank 0.6% in Q4 2011 from the previous quarter as a global economic slowdown, Thai floods and a strong yen weighed on the economy just as it was emerging from a recession created by last year’s devastating earthquake. The decline was bigger than economists’ expectations for a 0.3% contraction, and followed a revised 1.7% expansion in previous quarter.

Kuwait Kuwaiti Dinar at 0.27795 The USDKWD opened at 0.27795 yesterday morning.

Rates - 17 February 2012

Greeks stage new protests on eve of euro-zone bailout Crucial €130-billion deal likely today ATHENS: Hundreds of banner-waving protesters staged a rally in Athens yesterday to protest at deep budget cuts as euro-zone ministers prepare to approve a new 130-billion-euro bailout for the debt-laden nation. Hundreds of police were also out for the latest demonstration, held a week after parliament passed new austerity measures, sparking violent protests which saw gangs of rioters torch dozens of buildings in the Greek capital.

“Poverty and Hunger Have No Nationality,” read one banner carried by demonstrators on Syntagma square outside parliament. “We Are Greeks, Merkel and Sarkozy Are Freaks” said another, referring to the German and French leaders.

Police put the number of protesters at 1,500. The latest budget cuts include a 22 percent cut in the minimum wage, while pensions of more than 1,300 euros ($1,700) a month will be slashed by 12 percent, further adding to the economic hardship of ordinary Greeks.

“Everyone should take to the streets,” one protester, taxicab owner Gregoris Militis, 52, told AFP. “People aren’t taking taxis anymore except for emergencies.”

Greece’s private and public sector unions joined forces to call Sunday’s protest, rejecting what they brand “unacceptable demands” set by the European Union and the International Monetary Fund, saying they violate workers’ rights and collective

agreements. Radical leftist parties are also due to stage a second protest in Athens on Sunday afternoon. “ We are ashamed of our politicians, aren’t you?” said a banner in orange, the colour of a new party calling itself Creation Again.

“The measures are the worst thing that could have happened.

It is outrageous. All the people

and work harder to get itself out of its economic mess, “I wish the Greeks would concentrate on rebuilding their state rather than blaming scapegoats outside Greece for their plight,” Reding, who is also vice-president of the European commission, said in an interview with the Austrian daily Kurier. The latest Greek cuts

ATHENS: Protestors use a megaphone during a peaceful protest against the fresh austerity package in front of the Greek Parliament in Athens yesterday. — AFP are suffering. Shortly we will be asking ourselves where the bread is?” said pensioner Christos Artemis.

EU Justice Commissioner Viviane Reding said in an interview that Greece should stop looking for scapegoats abroad for its problems

are aimed at reviving the nation’s moribund economy which is battling a 350-billion-euro debt mountain, by making businesses more attractive to investors and reducing the size of the parallel economy.

The measures, which total 3.2

billion euros, were drawn up in return for the new bailout which euro-zone finance ministers are due to finalize in Brussels today to try to save Greece from bankruptcy and a possible exit from the euro.

On Saturday, the cabinet approved cuts that made up a 350 million euro shortfall in the package. A senior official told AFP in Brussels last week however that a 5.5 billion euro hole remains.

The second bailout deal would write off 100 billion euros of debt and provide a loan of 130 billion euros to Greece, which already received a 110 billion euro rescue approved in May 2010.

Time is of the essence for the coalition government led by Prime Minister Lucas Papademos because without the bailout Greece will be unable to meet a bond repayment of 14.5 billion euros on March 20.

EU partners see Greece as the victim of chronic financial mismanagement by dynastic political forces-what Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti last week called a “perfect catalogue” of errors.

The new bailout has been likened to the aid equivalent of a hospital drip, with a small army of EU officials heading to Athens to make sure Greece delivers on its austerity pledges.

The Italian government said Friday after telephone talks that German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Monti and Papademos were “confident that a deal can be reached on Greece at the Eurogroup”. — AFP

Greek bailout is key but real rebound still far off

BRUSSELS: Belgian based Greeks and sympathizers demonstrate against the Greek government and the economic situation in Greece in front of the Greek embassy in Brussels on Saturday.—AP

ATHENS: The euro-zone bailout Greece is desperate to clinch this week may rescue its banking and financial system but the path to real economic recovery will be long and hard, economists have warned. “If the (economic recovery) memorandum is implemented, it can certainly save Greece from bankruptcy,” said Miranda Xafa, head of EF Consulting and a former board member for Greece at the International Monetary Fund.

“But no one can save Greece from recession at this point” she told AFP last week amid on-again, off-again, on-again hopes for a rescue agreement. The Greek parliament has approved a series of measures worth 3.2 billion euros in return for a new euro-zone bailout providing 100 billion euros ($132 billion) in aid and another 30 billion euros to bolster its banks. A bond write-down expected by private creditors would be worth another 100 billion euros. Euro-zone finance ministers were to discuss today whether Greece now qualifies for the bailout, which it needs to avert a default on March 20, when a bond issue worth 14.4 billion euros comes up for redemption. Violent protests in Athens against the plan highlight popular unrest as austerity policies undercut growth and politicians struggle to stick to their commitments.

Meanwhile, Greece’s macro-economic indicators are flashing red. Figures released last week showed a five-year recession accelerating to a seven-percent contraction in the fourth quarter of 2011, outracing an earlier estimate of 5.5 percent for the whole year included in the latest budget.

Estimates for this year already point to a contraction of between four and five percent.

This is due to Greece’s “twin deficit,” Xafa explained. “Consumption, private and public has to come down, and output has to increase, but it cannot be done instantly” she said.

The Greek economy has not kept pace with global developments and does not produce the kinds of goods or services in demand elsewhere at competitive prices. “If Greece had implemented the structural reforms that were in the first memorandum, we would not be in this condition now,” Xafa noted in reference to Athens’ initial loan agreement with the EU and IMF in 2010.

While stabs at change were made, authorities pulled their punches when it came to a drastic overhaul of privileges in the public sector, the traditional voter pool for successive governments. “In the pension system, there were only horizontal cuts. They should have brought pensions much closer to the contributions of the people,” Xafa said. “It’s a very unfair system. Public sector pensions are very high because they are close to politicians. They did not want to touch the special interest groups from which they derive their political power”.

Vassilis Monastiriotis, a senior lecturer in the political economy of South Eastern Europe at the London School of Economics, said measures now demanded by Greek creditors were “very one-sided” and “produce more austerity.” “They reduce incomes, more they also reduce investment confidence,” Monastiriotis argued. Inside Greece, even business-oriented economists say wages were not the main obstacle to restoring competitiveness.— AFP

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2012

business

Kuwait equities upbeat GLOBAL DAILY MARKET REPORT KUWAIT: Equities at the Kuwait Stock Exchange (KSE) kept up the bullish trend yesterday as small cap stocks staged a session of solid per formance.

Seven out of the eight sectors ended the day in the positive territory. Kuwait’s benchmark makes its largest one-day gain in 11 months, reaching a sevenmonth closing high.

Global General Index (GGI) ended the day up by 1.22 percent, at 181.72 point. Market Capitalization was up for the day, reaching KD29.58bn. On the other hand, KSE Price Index closed at 6,083.4 point, adding 101.2 points (1.69 percent) from its previous close.

Market breadth On the broader market for equities, breadth was skewed in favor of advancing stocks 99 to 13. The gains were accompanied by growing trading activity. Volume and value of the shares traded on the exchange increased by 17.06 percent and 11.83 percent respectively. Al Safwa Holding Group was the most actively traded stock, with investors exchanging 82.72mn of its shares. The company saw its share value improve by 9.38 percent during the day.

In terms of top gainers, Investors Holding Group Company was the top gainer for the day, adding 17.24 percent to its share value and closing at KD0.017. On the other hand, share price of Kuwait Syrian Holding Company retreated by 7.14 percent and closed at KD0.026, making it the biggest decliners in the market for the day in a row.

Sector-wise On a sector-by-sector basis, the Global Non-Kuwaiti Index

spearheaded gainers during the day, climbing by 2.66 percent.

UAE cement companies saw their share values appreciate during the session. Umm Al Qaiwain Cement Industries Co and Fujairah Cement Industries Co reported climbs of 8.33 percent and 6.02 percent respectively. Ithmaar Bank was the biggest gainer in the sector, adding 9.09 percent closed at KD0.024.

Real estate stocks performed too robustly today with the sector index adding 2.33 percent.

Investors Holding Group Company was the biggest percentage advancer during yesterday’s session, clocking 17.24 percent in gains. Investment

stocks too were notable advancers, housing 2.12 percent in sector gains. Kuwait Projects Company (Holding) 1.56 percent climb bolstered the sector’s performance. Meanwhile, International Financial Advisors (IFA) saw its share value appreciate by 3.23 percent, to close at KWD0.064, its highest level this year. Investors traded an impressive 265.41mn of the company’s shares yesterday.

confirmed that it had informed Kuwait Stock Exchange (KSE), on December 25, 2011, of divesting a property in Saudi Arabia at a total value of KD6.69mn. The company also said that it expected profit of KD119mn from the deal. Abyaar added that it is keen on informing competent authorities of any operations that may affect its financial statements, in line with the transparency principle.

Corporate news Abyaar Real Estate Development Co sent a clarification about the local press news headlines “Abyaar sells Saudi asset to settle KD10mn debts”. The realty developer

Oil news The price of OPEC basket of twelve crudes stood at $118.13pb on Thursday, compared with $117.95pb the previous day, according to OPEC Secretariat calculations.

Chinese companies buy into Europe PARIS: Chinese automakers have returned in force to Europe, buying up brands and plants after early efforts to get a foothold in one of the world’s largest car markets failed.

Great Wall Motor is the latest China entrant, with production at its plant in Bulgaria due to start Tuesday, giving it access to the European market of some 500 million people with a very competitive line up which may give Europe’s established firms pause for thought. Prices for its base Voleex C10 model, the Steed 5 pick-up and Hoover H5 four-by-four run from just 8,000 euros to 14,700 euros ($10,600 to $19,400) and the company, which has 10 sites in China, says is aiming for production of 500,000 vehicles overseas by 2015. Analysts said it may be surprising that Chinese firms seem so determined to get into Europe, a saturated market where car sales are declining, but there are benefits for them, especially in terms of branding and prestige. “It is a way for them to make progress in quality levels,” said Yann Lacroix, analyst at Euler Hermes in Paris. In Britain, Geely Motors plans to start selling a mid-range sedan by the end of the year at a very competitive 10,000 pounds ($15,460, 12,000 euros). Announcing the move in December, the company, which owns Sweden’s Volvo Cars, said “the leaps and bounds made in manufacturing mean that China’s car makers are rapidly closely the gap with Europe’s establishment.

“We will be aiming to widen our range just as quickly as possible, probably at least a new model range every year for the next four to five years.”

Reflecting the growing global ambitions of Chinese automakers, Geely bought Volvo from US auto giant Ford for $1.5 billion in 2010, less than a quarter of what Ford paid for the company in 1999. “In that way, the company made a very significant technological jump,” Lacroix noted.Meanwhile, China’s largest home-grown carmaker Chery Automobile has established its

base in Italy with local company DR Motor and at the end of last year bought a Fiat plant at Termini Imerese in Sicily. Chery is developing its own marque for Europe, Qoros, in cooperation with an Israeli company which should make its first model next year.

Chinese auto companies have also shown an interest in acquiring those European firms which have run into hard times as their home market falters. Beijing Automotive Industry Holding Co expressed an interest in acquiring General Motors’ European operations grouped in the Opel business as the US motor giant collapsed into bankruptcy from which it has only just emerged.

In the event, GM-which has large Chinese operations of its own-turned down the sale on concerns about technology transfer and decided to keep Opel. Similarly, it refused to sell its Saab auto business to two Chinese firms Youngman, a constructor, and distributor Pang Da-with the unit eventually being taken on by a Dutch group before it failed and was forced to file for bankruptcy in December.

Swedish press reports have said Youngman may still be interested in buying the company and ready to make a multi-million-dollar bid.

Youngman showed keen interest in snapping up Saab before it declared bankruptcy but its efforts were thwarted by the GM which balked at transferring the necessary technology licenses. Analysts said that Chinese manufacturers got off to a bad start in Europe in their first efforts as critics highlighted safety concerns and lack of individual styling. Since then, China has emerged as the world’s largest auto market, coveted by the major US and European brands as a major source of growth and profits, and standards have improved dramatically. “ We are seeing spectacular progress,” said a spokesman for Euro NCAP, the safety standards authoritiy which tests all autos for safety in Europe. — AFP

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MONDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2012

BUSINESS

Chinese automaker sets European foothold in Bulgaria SOFIA: With a brand new Bulgarian plant set to start churning out cars by end-February, China’s Great Wall Motor hopes to establish a foothold to expand sales across Europe, says its local partner Litex Motors. “This is the first plant for a Chinese automaker that will produce in Europe and for Europe,” Litex Motors marketing director Ivo Dekov said in an interview with AFP ahead of the plant’s opening on February 21.

The industrial assembly facility in the northern village of Bahovitsa will initially employ 150 workers, capable of making 4,000 automobiles per year from China-imported kits. “But production will increase as the markets here and in other

European countries develop,” Dekov said.

“Depending on demand, we can produce an annual 50,000 vehicles with 2,000 workers on two shifts, or even 71-72,000 on three shifts,” he said confidently. Bulgaria’s qualified and competitive workforce as well as its low taxes made the poor EU newcomer an ideal starting base to enter the common EU market for Great Wall Motor, one of the biggest sports utility vehicle makers in China, Dekov said.

“Our partners consider Europe a strategic market and count on entering it gradually but permanently, with good products and a successful strategy.”

“But it is only natural that our primary goal is to also become a leader in the domestic market,” he added.

Litex signed a deal for a joint venture with Great Wall Motor in 2009 that would allow the Chinese group to export tax-free to the common EU market.

Now the Bulgarian group aims to achieve the same market shareabout 30 percent-as other automakers with locally produced cars in neighboring Romania, Serbia and Turkey, according to Dekov.

“Of course, we will need time to do that as we are only learning to walk right now,” he said.

The plant, which has been test producing since mid-November, is

ready to start sales immediately of two locally-assembled Great Wall models-the Voleex C10 city car and the Steed 5 pick-up, with prices ranging between 16,000 and 25,000 leva (8,200-12,800 euros, $10,70016,700).

Over 200 imported vehicles were already sold in Bulgaria between mid-October and end-2011, Dekov said. “I consider this a great success!

On the whole, interest in the brand, the plant and the vehicles has been huge and customers’ reactions have been thoroughly positive.” The cars’ affordability, a five-year guarantee and other car equipment included in the starting price will help Litex compete well in a market where the

ratio of new-to-used car sales is just 1:10 compared to Europe’s 1:3, the group believes.

The 24-hour delivery of spare parts through 17 dealerships and after-sales service points in Bulgaria-set to grow to 20 this yearwas another competitive advantage, he added. “This year we will also add three more models to the plant’s production range, including the Hover H6 SUV,” Dekov said.

“Great Wall Motor’s overall plans for Europe are to offer a total 8-10 models by 2016,” he added. Great Wall, which sells cars in 120 countries, is the only Chinese automaker to have obtained Whole Vehicle Type Approval to market several of

its models in the EU. China-made Great Wall Motor cars have already been selling in Italy since 2006.

“Plans are to start sales in Bulgaria and cover the other European and Balkan countries with what we supply,” Dekov said. In the long run however, Litex hopes to start making some parts here rather than only assembling China-imported kits, and talks have already started with possible subcontractors, he added.

Litex Motors, which made the bulk of the investment in the new Bulgarian plant, will also start building welding and painting units to add to the simple assembly lines over the next few years. —AFP

Cyprus hopes gas riches to avert Greek contagion Residents watch crisis unfolding in Athens

FRANKFURT: A worker walks under an A 380 aircraft as about 200 workers of the apron control went on a warning strike for higher wages at the international airport in Frankfurt. —AP

Strike at Frankfurt airport to continue FRANKFURT: A stoppage by ground crew at Frankfurt airport which has grounded hundreds of flights will continue for another 24 hours after operator Fraport rejected a proposed settlement from an arbitrator.

Out of a total of about 1,300 flights a day, 172 were cancelled on Thursday and 290 on Friday, most of them operated by German flagship carrier Lufthansa.

Workers want higher pay, arguing their jobs have become more complex following the introduction of a fourth runway last October.

Some 200 crew who marshal planes at Europe’s third-largest airport plan to strike for 24 hours from 0400 GMT today, the GdF trade union said yesterday.

The union accepted a settlement plan from arbitrator Ole von Beust, an ex-mayor of Hamburg. Fraport rejected the deal.

“We are prepared to talk, if GdF is ready to compromise,” a spokesman for Fraport

said yesterday.

Frankfurt is Europe’s third busiest airport behind London Heathrow and Paris Charles de Gaulle, serving over 56 million passengers in 2011 and employing over 70,000 people. Bankhaus Lampe analyst Sebastian Hein estimated the revenue lost

by Lufthansa over Thursday and Friday at about 40 million euros ($52.65 million), while Metzler’s Juergen Pieper said one day’s strike could cost between 2-3 million in profits.

A strike by Lufthansa pilots in 2010 that was suspended after one day cost Lufthansa 48 million euros in lost revenues.

So far, Fraport has not resorted to legal measures, such as taking out a temporary injunction, to avert the strike. Court action was used last year to avert a planned strike

by German air traffic controllers during the peak summer period. In 2010 pilots from Air Berlin and Lufthansa were forced by judges to call off strikes. —Reuters

NICOSIA: On the resort island of Cyprus, whose stricken economy is closely linked to Greece, residents and politicians are nervously watching the crisis unfolding in Athens but hoping that a giant offshore gas discovery will save them.

In December, US firm Noble Energy said it had discovered gas reserves of up to eight trillion cubic feet (225 billion cubic metres) beneath the seabed south of Cyprus, which has an estimated value of 100 billion euros ($131 billion). “And it is just the beginning,” said hydrocarbons expert Pierre Godec.

The reservoir, named Aphrodite after the Greek goddess, born according to legend in Cyprus waters, is situated some 40 kilometers (24 miles) from Israel’s Leviathan and Tamar fields, also discovered by Noble and Israel’s Delek Energy.

On Monday, Cyprus launched a new licensing round for its 12 remaining offshore exploration blocks, which it hopes to award by the end of the year, despite the strong objections of Turkey.

Noble’s announcement was a ray of hope for Cypriots, who experienced their first recession in 30 years in 2009. The economy, already hit by the euro-zone debt crisis, was sent deeper into turmoil by a deadly munitions blast last July that destroyed the island’s main power plant.

The Greek crisis has aggravated the difficulties facing Cyprus, which, apart from the breakaway Turkish statelet in the north, has strong cultural and economic ties to Greece.

Cypriot banks are heavily exposed to Greek sovereign debt and have already had to write-off two billion euros the country owed them, economists say, a hefty sum for a country with less than 900,000 inhabitants. The top three rating agencies have all downgraded Cyprus, restricting its access to international debt markets, with Fitch warning that the country would need a Greek-style European bailout.

But in a boost to the euro-zone country, and aided by the expectation of future gas earnings, Cyprus managed to secure late

last year a 2.5-billion-euro Russian loan to help cover its financial requirements for 2012. “The situation in Cyprus is not as bad as Greece, far from it,” said economist Costas Apostolides, stressing that Cypriot banks had deposits of around 60 billion euros, and that measures had already been taken to reduce the country’s debt.

As an example, Cypriot public debt, which stands at around 61 percent of GDP, compares with a figure of 160 percent in Greece.

And the unemployment rate is only seven percent , in contrast with 20 percent in Greece.

But the International Monetary Fund estimated Cyprus’s public deficit at some 7.0 percent of GDP in 2011, way above the 3.0 percent limit set by the European Union.

So the fund and the European Commission ordered the island nation, which joined the eurozone in 2008, to adopt a debt reduction plan. Cyprus has already raised taxes and frozen public sector salaries in a bid to avoid a bailout. But few Cypriots are willing to accept the kind of tough austerity measures imposed on

US gas prices highest ever for this time of year

Firms rant against inertia of the Swedish model STOCKHOLM: Swedish companies, relatively unscathed by the European debt crisis, dislike the Swedish economic model’s inertia, want reforms to boost their competitiveness, and want to adopt the euro, their representatives say.

“I think Sweden should join the euro...

We benefit a lot from the single market, which is not sustainable without the single currency,” said Urban Baeckstroem, who heads the Confederation of Swedish Enterprise, the country’s main employer’s organization representing some 60,000 businesses.

European Union member Sweden rejected the common currency in a 2003 referendum and Baeckstroem acknowledged that “we haven’t lost anything so far,” by standing outside the bloc.

According to a December poll however, nearly nine out of 10 Swedes want to hold onto their krona.

“It’s not a short-term matter for Sweden (but) more of a long-term one,” Baeckstroem said at a meeting with international media.

But if Sweden wants to remain competitive in the long run, industry players insist it must act soon, not only to move towards embracing the euro but also to reform Sweden’s womb-to-tomb welfare state, which is seen weighing heavily on business flexibility.

The problem, many say, is that Fredrik Reinfeldt’s centre-right coalition government has proven hesitant to introduce farreaching reforms since coming to power in 2006.

“They don’t have to do much because they didn’t promise much,” joked Elisabeth Thand Ringqvist, the head of the Swedish Federation of Business Owners, representing some 70,000 entrepreneurs.

While the Financial Times named Sweden’s Anders Borg the world’s best finance minister last year, Thand Ringqvist, who served as an advisor at the Swedish enterprise ministry between 2006 and 2010, said she felt he had done little but deal with the here and now.

The real question, she said, is “What do

we need to do now to be somewhere in 10 years?”

And the main answer? “You need to loosen the laws... (The existing) laws lock people in,” she told AFP, insisting that present labor laws in Sweden make it difficult for employees to change jobs and locations. Reinfeldt recently proposed helping people change careers at 50, but according to Thand Ringqvist, current Swedish labour laws would prove a major obstacle to that plan, since employees who switch companies after 20 years lose all the benefits of seniority that otherwise largely shield them from layoffs.

Reinfeldt also recently suggested gradually pushing Sweden’s retirement age up to 75 from today’s 65-year limit, but the proposal was met with wide-spread criticism.

“Why not 85?” ranted Baeckstroem, insisting that it was “more important to get young people to work than forcing people to work more.” Not long ago, Swedes were on average entering the workforce at the age of 21, he said, lamenting that today the average jumping-off age is 28, sporting multiple degrees and accumulated personal experience.

“There are many years lost,” he said, blaming the government for not taking advantage of the years of economic bliss to lower taxes, which remain among the highest in the world, or reform the labor market. “The trick is not to have high tax rates, but high tax revenues,” he said, insisting the Swedish model with its generous tax-financed welfare state “can be sustained if we correct a few things.”

Without questioning globalization, which benefits large Swedish companies like Atlas Copco and Ericsson, Baeckstroem stressed the need to “improve the climate in Sweden” for small businesses too.

At the end of January, blue collar union leader Stefan Loefven took over as head of the Social Democrats, which have been in opposition and crisis-mode since 2006 following virtually a century of dominating Swedish politics and overseeing the creation of the Swedish welfare state. —AFP

Greece, and local newspapers regularly publish articles raising hopes about the potential benefits of the newly found gas reserves.

“The gas will change our quality of life, not straightaway, but over the next ten years we could become like the oil-rich kingdoms in the Gulf, countries where life is good,” said Cleonthios Adamou, a computer teacher.

Economist Apostolides estimated that, with a bit of luck, the government would get one billion euros per year in gas revenues, “which amounts to a third of our budget.”

But others caution against betting on a future hydrocarbons windfall. “Some are already taking the future revenues into account in their behavior, and politicians fear that will make the electorate resist any (austerity) efforts, as the gas will not be sold for another eight to ten years,” said Godec, the energy expert. Economist Zenon Kontolemis agreed, warning of the “strong (temptation) to spend the money even before it comes in.” —AFP

BARCELONA: People demonstrate in support of Greece at the Catalunya square in Barcelona. The placard reads in Catalan: “We are with Greece”. —AP

Oil reliance fuels Nigeria’s poverty LAGOS: A feckless political system and excessive reliance on an oil industry that generates few jobs have conspired to reverse Nigeria’s battle against poverty despite economic growth, analysts say.

Many see Nigeria as a classic victim of the “resource curse” where oil or mineral wealth leads to the neglect of other economic sectors, exposes the country to volatile price swings, and fuels corruption and strife. Nigeria is Africa’s top oil producer, but the number of Nigerians living on less than a dollar a day rose to 61.2 percent in 2010 from 51.6 percent in 2004, the National Bureau of Statistics said in a report this week.

The figures marked a regression for Africa’s most populous nation-where the poverty rate had declined between 1996 and 2004 — and showed Nigeria has not shared in the progress made elsewhere on the continent.

“It remains a paradox... that despite the fact that the Nigerian economy is growing, the proportion of Nigerians living in poverty is increasing every year,” said Yemi Kale, the head of the statistics bureau.

Nigeria’s economy grew at an average 7.6 percent between 2003 and 2010, according to the World Bank. Analysts said that while the lucrative oil industry has fuelled growth since crude was discovered some 50 years ago, the sector’s dominance has been a curse for the poor, causing neglect in areas like agriculture.

“What we need is the opportunity for sectors involved with non-oil exports to provide jobs,” said Olufemi Deru, former head of the Lagos Chamber of

Commerce, a key private sector grouping.

He said Nigeria has failed to come up with an effective agriculture policy.

“We should not be importing so much rice. This is a staple food for both the rich and the poor,” he said and suggested Nigeria restrict imports on basic foodstuffs to force a rise in agricultural production.

The United Nations Development Program (UNDP) said in a 2010 report that, across Africa, extreme poverty declined from 1990 to 2008 but that progress was halted by the onset of the global economic crisis.

Some dispute those figures, and the UNDP has said its 2005 to 2008 assessments were based on projections, not hard data. The African country that has clearly made the most progress is Rwanda-small both geographically and by population-where a powerful executive branch led by President Paul Kagame is largely able to act unilaterally. Poverty rates in the Great Lakes state, destroyed by the 1994 genocide, dropped from 57 percent in 2005 to 45 percent in 2010, roughly the period when Nigeria saw worsening poverty, according to government statistics.

“The problem is the structural differences in the Nigerian situation,” Yemisi Ransome-Kuti, an activist and World Bank consultant on poverty reduction, told AFP. Governments in Nigeria’s 36 states have significant authority-which they often use for personal enrichment, not the public good-and can stymie initiatives that clash with regional political interests, said Ransome-Kuti. —AFP

NEW YORK: Gasoline prices have never been higher this time of the year in the US at $3.53 a gallon, prices are already up 25 cents since Jan. 1. And experts say they could reach a record $4.25 a gallon by late April.

“You’re going to see a lot more staycations this year,” says Michael Lynch, president of Strategic Energy & Economic Research, referring to people staying at home on their vacations. “When the price gets anywhere near $4, you really see people react.”

Already, W. Howard Coudle, a retired machinist from Crestwood, Missouri, has seen his monthly gasoline bill rise to $80 from about $60 in December. The closest service station is selling regular for $3.39 per gallon, the highest he’s ever seen.

“I guess we’re going to have to drive less, consolidate all our errands into one trip,” Coudle says. “It’s just oppressive.” The surge in gas prices follows an increase in the price of oil.

Oil around the world is priced differently. Brent crude from the North Sea is a proxy for the foreign oil that’s imported by US refineries and turned into gasoline and other fuels. Its price has risen 11 percent so far this year, to around $119 a barrel, because of tensions with Iran, a cold snap in Europe and rising demand from developing nations. West Texas Intermediate, used to price oil produced in the US, is up 4 percent to around $103 a barrel. That’s 19 percent higher than a year earlier. Higher gas prices could hurt consumer spending and curtail the recent improvement in the US economy.

A 25-cent jump in gasoline prices, if sustained over a year, would cost the economy about $35 billion. That’s only 0.2 percent of the total US economy, but economists say it’s a meaningful amount, especially at a time when growth is only so-so. The economy grew 2.8 percent in the fourth quarter, a rate considered modest following a recession.

High oil and gas prices now set the stage for even sharper increases at the pump because gas typically rises in March and April. Every spring, refiners suspend operations to switch the type of gasoline they make.

Supplies of wintertime gas are sold off before March, when refineries need to start making a new formula of gasoline that’s required in the summer. —AP

SAN DIEGO: A sign displays gas prices at a gas station in San Diego. Some analysts are starting to worry that rising fuel costs will undermine consumer spending and stymie economic growth. —AP

26

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2012

business

BMW reveals the new BMW 6 Series Gran Coupe First four-door BMW Coupe to go on sale in the Middle East mid 2012 KUWAIT: BMW Group Middle East has confirmed that the all-new BMW 6 Series Gran Coupe - the first four-door Coupe in the history of the brand ñ will go on sale in the Middle East in the middle of this year.

Mak ing its global debut at the Geneva International Motor Show in March, the third model in the BMW 6 Series line-up follows in the tracks of the Convertible and Coupe that launched in the region early last year, and is set to establish a new benchmark in the top-class premium segment in terms of aesthetics, emotionality and modernity.

Venturing into a new vehicle segment once again, BMW channels athletic elegance, powerful engines and sophisticated chassis technology to make the new BMW 6 Series Gran Coupe

a handsome addition to its 6 Series range. The latest model also makes its mark with exclusive equipment features and a level of practicality unmatched by its premium four-door Coupe rivals. The BMW 6 Series Gran Coupe integrates the stand-out looks and dynamics of a Coupe into a fresh new model. Front-end design points to a BMW 6 Series identity with individual character embodied by model-specific electroplated bars between the air intake and fog lamps; twin round headlights with three dimensional light rings; optional adaptive LED headlights; a distinctive silhouette with flowing Coupe-style roof line and an elegant take on the Hofmeister kink.

The interior design creates a harmonious link between the front seats and the rear, and

Re delisting its shares in Kuwait Stock Exchange A statement by The Investment Dar KUWAIT: The Investment Dar Co KSCC issued a statement in which it expressed its astonishment at the announcement of the Capital Markets Authority’s decision to delist the company ’s shares in the Kuwait Stock Exchange. The Company said that it had not been informed in advance of any details related to the delisting issue, and that it had fulfilled all filing requirements and submitted some weeks earlier all the relevant information to the regulators in accordance with the court approved restructuring plan. The Investment Dar went on to

express its surprise that unlike other listed companies which had been given a grace period to take necessary actions relating to their financial positions, The Investment Dar had not been granted a similar grace period, either now or previously.

The Investment Dar intends to communicate in writing with the Capital Markets Authority in order to clear up the confusion surrounding the reasons for the issuance of the delisting decision while preserving its rights to take the necessary legal actions to protect its rights.

Gulf Bank’s red customers enjoy latest blockbusters at just 500 fils during National, Liberation Days KUWAIT: In an exclusive joint promotion with Kuwait National Cinema Company (KNCC), Gulf Bank is offering all its red(TM) customers special discounts to watch the latest blockbusters during the National and Liberation day holidays.

Red(TM) customers will be able to see the latest movie screening at only 500 fils instead of KD 3 by using their red ATM cards to purchase cinema tickets from ticket kiosks in all KNCC cinema theatres throughout Kuwait. Najla AlEssa, Executive Manager-Consumer Banking Group at Gulf Bank said: “Individuals enjoy National and Liberation Day celebrations by going out with friends and families. Our figures indicate that Kuwaiti youth enjoy going to the cinema regularly to spend their free time, and as such we, at Gulf Bank, are always committed to providing our customers with the right rewards that are tailored to meet their specific needs and add value to their daily life. Gulf Bank is pleased to congratulate the Kuwaiti people on this glorious occasion”. Gulf Bank’s red(TM) program caters to university and college students aged 17 to 24 years old. There is no deposit required to open the account or minimum balance charge.

Najla Al-Essa, Executive Manager, Consumer Banking Group at Gulf Bank To join Gulf Bank’s red program or to find out more of its benefits, customers can visit one of the Bank’s 55 branches or contact the Customer Contact Centre on 1805805 for assistance and guidance.

Customers can also log on to www.egulfbank.com, Gulf Bank’s website.

The winners of the Al Najma Daily Draw are :Mohammad Hassan AbdulRaheem Ali — KD 7000, Haya Abdullah Ali Faleh — KD 7000, Mohamed Omar Shahid — KD 7000, Sondos Abas Abdulsaheb Al-Safar — KD 7000, Ahmad Salem Moslem Al-Mohry — KD 7000.

The Commercial Bank of Kuwait announces the biggest daily draw in Kuwait with the launch of the new Najma account. Customers of the bank can now enjoy a KD 7,000 daily prize

which is the highest in the country and another 4 mega prizes during the year worth KD 100,000 each on different occasions: The National Day, Eid Al-Fitr, Eid Al-Adha and on June 19 which is the date of the bank’s establishment.

With a minimum balance of KD 500, customers will be eligible for the daily draw provided that the money is in the account one week prior to the daily draw or 2 months prior to the mega draw. In addition, for each KD 25 a customer can get one chance for winning instead of KD 50.

Commercial Bank of Kuwait takes this opportunity to congratulate all lucky winners and also extends appreciation to the Ministry of Commerce and Industry for their effective supervision of the draws which were conducted in an orderly and organized manner.

Upcoming Mega Draw on Tuesday, February 28, 2012 for KD 100,000 on the occasion of Kuwait’s National and Liberation Day holidays.

kW/450 hp. The BMW TwinPower Turbo technology of the new-generation engines include VALVETRONIC fully variable valve timing which further enhances both power and efficiency across the engine speed range.

BMW EfficientD ynamics measures unmatched in the segment — including Auto Start-Stop function and ECO PRO mode, which helps reduce fuel consumption by up to 20% depending on the model and individual driving behaviour ñ which come as standard with all engine variants. The new BMW 6 Series Gran Coupe also has a range of BMW ConnectedDrive features that give the driver and passengers information and services to help make their driving experience safer and more comfortable.

JTC further expands its power rental division Company responds to increasing market demand KUWAIT: Jassim Transport & Stevedoring Company WLL (JTC) has further expanded its Power Rental Fleet Division by receiving the first 15MW of a 54MW order for diesel generators. The Power Rental division, which was launched in April 2011, provides top-quality power generation solutions and has rapidly emerged as one of the leading providers of temporary power in the region.

The delivery is the first batch of orders placed for 54 Mw generators which will be completed by the end of 2012. A further 80 generators of smaller sizes will be delivered to Kuwait between January and March, this year.

With its far-reaching logistics network, JTC can offer the generators to any location in the region. Clients will greatly benefit from increased cost effectiveness, convenience and safety enhancement of the equipment.

Andreas Mohr, JTC CEO, said: “The market for diesel generators in Kuwait and the region is very promising. The delivery of these generators is a result of the cooperation of valued partners including Dale Power Solutions and Instant Access who were willing to customize their standard product to meet the needs of JTC’s customers.”

He added: “ The equipment has been designed specifically for the harsh operating environment of the Middle East rental market

and is finished to the highest standard. They incorporate features which enable rapid mobilization as standalone units, or they can be easily integrated together to form mini power stations.

“These generators are extremely quiet and are perfect for installations where keeping noise to a minimum is preferable. They are also fitted with the latest safety features required for use in safety critical oil and gas applications.” With the new expansion JTC is reacting to the shortage in installed electricity capacity

New Kenyan initiative aims to tackle endemic graft

Al Tijari announces winners of Najma Account draw KUWAIT: Commercial Bank of Kuwait held the Al Najma Account draw yesterday. The draw was held under the supervision of the Ministry of Commerce & Industry represented by Abdulaziz Ashkanani.

embodies the perfect combination of elegance and dynamics. The BMW 6 Series Gran Coupe boasts Dakota leather upholstery and heated front seats, electric seat adjustment with memory function for the driver and front passenger, 2-zone automatic climate control with extended features, automatically dimming exterior and rear-view mirrors, electric steering wheel adjustment, and the Radio Professional with HiFi loudspeaker system and USB audio interface.

The BMW TwinPower Turbo engine available for the BMW 6 Series Gran Coupe majors in sportiness and efficiency with the six-cylinder in-line petrol engine in the BMW 640i Gran Coupe outputting 235 kW/320 hp, and the BMW 650i Gran Coupe V8 engine outputs 330

NAIROBI: Efforts to tackle corruption in Kenya, which is regularly flagged by watchdogs as one of the world’s most graft-ridden nations, have been as plentiful as they have been ineffective.

Politicians in the East African nation are often accused of filling their pockets with public funds, the police are notorious for actively seeking out bribes and most people accept graft as the price of doing business.

Yet Ipaidabribe.or.ke, a new online initiative based on a similar website set up in India, aims to allow ordinary citizens to report day-to-day corruption and thereby pressure the government into taking action.

The website, already creating a serious buzz, was started by Antony Ragui last year. He says he was sick of people talking about corruption without doing anything to challenge it.

The many high-profile scams down the years — including the infamous Goldenberg scandal, which saw the government accused of the fictitious export of gold and diamonds — are estimated to have leached billions of dollars of public funds. It was that kind of corruption that Patrick Lumumba, the latest in a long line of anticorruption chiefs, was supposed to tackle when he was appointed in 2010. Yet, one year later, Lumumba was forced out, and none of the ministers he had been investigating were brought to book — an all-too-familiar story for Kenyans. Ragui, who runs the website on a voluntary basis, is well aware that such efforts have fallen by the wayside when they become about powerful personalities, and is instead targeting the system itself, at a grass-roots level. The website does not name names, instead targeting the most graft-ridden government bodies.

“If you target people, they start fighting back, so it isn’t about reporting people, it’s about changing systems,” he told dpa. “If I fire one policeman, another one comes and takes bribes. The system is wrong, it’s corrupt.” John Githongo, the former corruption tsar who was forced to flee Kenya for several years after uncovering top-level graft that was ultimately brushed under the carpet, has no doubt about the effect of the problem on the Kenyan economy. “(If not for corruption), we would be like Singapore, but far richer,” he told dpa in an earlier interview. “It’s the primary manufacturer of poverty and inequality.” Virtually all Kenyans have stories to tell about bribes they had to pay to access basic services. —MCT

within the region and is ready to supply geographical areas, residential and commercial properties not currently connected to the local grid around the region’s countries.

The first batch was officially handed over to JTC by Tim Wilkins, Managing Director of Dale Power Solutions and DPS Kuwait agents Instant Access, represented by Chris Brocklehurst.

JTC is committed to continual investment in power generation related equipment and aims to expand its presence regionally.

Burgan Bank releases a new identity for premier banking ‘Bringing lifestyle into banking’ KUWAIT: Burgan Bank announced yesterday the re-launch of its Premier Banking Segment proposition with a new identity and unique value added features to provide its customers with an extensive array of exclusive benefits that cater to their lifestyle needs.

“Bringing Lifestyle into Banking” is the new philosophy of Premier Banking at Burgan Bank. The new identity brings

Haneen Al-Rumaihi, Head of Marketing at Burgan Bank together affluence with priority & recognition, which its Premier Banking Customers aspire to. Bringing lifestyle into Banking is the bank’s new initiative to fulfill our Premier Banking Customers’ sophisticated personal and professional banking needs by providing a unique standard of service and exclusive benefits.

The bank’s Premier Banking Customers can now enjoy more personalized and val-

ue added services. The new Debit VISA Platinum card for Premier Banking Customers is designed to provide unmatched convenience and benefits with highly rewarding features. Some of these new features include free access to the Airport Pearl Lounge in Kuwait, free Valet parking at selected malls, value added Premier rewards program providing round the year discounts on selected retail outlets throughout Kuwait.

Haneen Al-Rumaihi, Head of Marketing at Burgan Bank said: “Lifestyle is synonymous with the values of our Premier Banking service. We continue to develop our financial products and services to accommodate the varied needs of our customers. This initiative does not only serve to include banking solutions, but it aims more at integrating banking into the lifestyles and daily needs of our customers in an effort to provide a complete, and sound lifestyle solution.”

Burgan Bank continues to provide a comprehensive banking experience that contributes its Premier Customers’ affluent lifestyle. Exclusivity, personalized services through a dedicated Personal Banking Executive, Premier Lounges will ensure a shortened waiting time and better combination of service quality and a customized service. Burgan Bank is dedicated to provide superior lifestyle services to its Premier Customers.

To find out more about Burgan Bank’s Premier Banking service as well as its latest promotions, customers are required to visit their nearest Burgan Bank branch or contact the call center on 1804080. For more information, customers can log on to the bank’s website on www.burgan.com

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MONDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2012

TECHNOLOGY

HP showcases education initiatives at Educational Truck Tour KUWAIT: HP yesterday presented the latest affordable and collaborative education solutions at the HP Freedom to Learn on the Go! Educational Truck Tour at the College of Education Campus in Kuwait University.

During the truck tour, HP provided students, teachers, staff and faculty with a hands-on experience of the latest HP products and innovations.

These solutions aim to facilitate and transform the learning experience by providing more collaboration in the classroom as well as professional development for teachers outside the classroom. Extending their education portfolio, HP introduced the Digital Learning Suite for a virtualized classroom environment to help schools do more with less. The integration of virtualization solutions in the classroom means schools can lower overall IT costs, improve data security and enable productivity which means teachers can focus on teaching instead of troubleshooting and students can access their educational materials in the classroom, at home or anywhere they have access to the web.

“HP and our partners have a long history of transforming how we educate our youth, from KG to grade 12 all

the way through to higher education,” said Salim Ziade, General Manager, Personal Systems Group, Middle East, HP. “Our vast portfolio of products, solutions and services such as supercomputing systems, with 24x7 support services and financing options. We work collaboratively with educators, administrators and our technology partners to build campuses that are adaptive and capable of managing change with minimal disruption or expense whilst ensuring secure access to information, data and applications.”

HP Technology in the Classroom The HP Technology in the classroom (HP TC Thin Client) initiative is designed to provide teachers with the skills they need to integrate technology throughout their personal and professional lives. Through a series of interactive courses, HP shows teachers how to use IT resources in an efficient way which in turn allows them to successfully navigate the constantly changing environment of technology integration in the classroom.

In Kuwait, HP has provided educational organizations and institutions such as the Ministry of Education, Kuwait University and The Public

Authority for Applied Education and Training with its newst educational initiatives.

Recently, HP has partnered with educational institutions in Kuwait to provide high school teachers and students in the educational districts of Hawalli and Farwaniya with 29,000 laptops/ HP will be give teachers access to 4,000 laptops by April, and to students at the start of the 2012-2013 school year. All laptops supplied will be from the newer model of the 43XXs laptop that operates the second generation of Intel Core i5 and includes aUSB3 and HDMI. HP has also launched free training programs to support 250 high school teachers in Kuwait. These programs enable teachers to learn ways to incorporate technology in the educational process. Teachers successfully developed their presentation and communication skills with students, and have been able to make technology part of the school content, involve students in the teaching process, , help them be more proficient in using technology in various aspects of education and everyday life and help them enrich their capabilities of using advanced teaching methods that meet global standards.

HP team with the Vice Dean of the College of Education in Kuwait University.

Computer company seeks developing nation market Closest competing device to Aakash is Apple’s iPad MONTREAL: A British technology company claims to have developed the world’s least expensive computer tablet for wireless Internet access. At a cost of as little as $35 apiece, Datawind Ltd hopes to supply a market of billions of customers, many in underdeveloped countries.

The student tablet released in October costs $35, but Datawind released an updated version of the Aakash computer tablet this month for the commercial market that costs $50. It comes with more features.

Aakash is the Hindi word for “heaven.” The Aakash tablets reached their first users last fall under an information technology program sponsored by the Indian government. The company provided 100,000 of the tablets, which were designed at its Montreal facility, to Indian students.

Customers have been contacting Datawind with “in the range of about 30,000 orders every day,” said Suneet Singh Tuli, Datawind’s chief executive officer, during a telephone interview with AFP. “It is huge. We have already received over three million individual hand users pre-booking on this.”

Datawind’s market research shows sales are likely to continue rising. In the late 1990s, there were 750 million people connected to the Internet and many others using mobile phones, Singh said. Since then, “the number of mobile phone user subscribers has ballooned to almost six billion while the number of Internet subscribers was at two billion,” he said.

He hopes Datawind’s Aakash will help to fill the four billion person “gap,” he said. “We believe the gap primarily exists because of affordability,” Singh said. Other companies that offer wireless Internet access devices include Apple, Samsung and

Research in Motion. The closest competing device to the Aakash is Apple’s iPad. Singh said they are not Datawind’s competitors because they seek a different kind of customer. “It is a totally different game,” he said. “iPad people have laptops and computers and want multimedia devices for

were offered easier wireless access and more affordable smartphones.

Whether Aakash will be the breakthrough that provides access to the low-income customers is speculative.

Some computer specialists say its shortcomings include dim screens, slow responses to com-

Nevertheless, Datawind officials say they are drumming up market interest for their tablets.

They met recently with World Bank officials to discuss the potential of using the Aakash tablets as educational tools in countries where the cost of iPads is prohibitive.

After India, Datawind plans to

Single-atom transistor busts the records PARIS: Researchers in Australia said yesterday they had made with pinpoint accuracy a working transistor consisting of a single atom, marking a major stride towards next-generation computing.

The device comprises a single phosphorus atom, etched into a silicon bed, with “gates” to control electrical flow and metallic contacts that are also on the atomic scale. “Our group has proved that it is really possible to position one phosphorus atom in a silicon environment, exactly as we need it, with near-atomic precision, and at the same time (incorporate) gates,” said lead scientist Martin Fuechsle.

Transistors, which switch or amplify electrical flow, are the building blocks of computer chips. For more than 50 years, the semi-conductor industry has been upholding Moore’s Law, the celebrated prediction by Intel Corp. pioneer Gordon Moore that the number of transistors on a chip would double every 18 months or so.

But the astonishing run of success could hit a wall by the end of this decade without a breakthrough in miniaturising transistors. The team made the transistor from a silicon crys-

tal that was placed in a vacuum.

To etch it, they used a device called a scanning tunnelling microscope, which is able to see atoms and manipulate them using a super-fine metal tip. Phosphorus atoms were deposited in a nano-scale “trench,” covered with an inert layer of hydrogen, and the unwanted ones were then weeded out. A chemical reaction welded the “transistor” atom to the silicon surface.

The minute device operates in ultra-cold temperatures provided by liquid helium. It is not a finished product but proof-of-principle, designed to show that single-atom devices can be built and controlled.

Scientist have made atomic-scale transistors in the past, but through a chance find rather than by design, said Michelle Simmons, director of the Centre for Quantum Computation and Communication at the University of New South Wales, where the work was carried out.

“But this device is perfect,” she said.

“This is the first time anyone has shown control of a single atom in a substrate [chip base] with this level of precise accuracy.” The research is reported in the specialist journal Nature Nanotechnology. — AFP

Mouse and keyboard should match the user

Indian students seen holding the Aakash tablet. more mobility.”

Among low-income people in underdeveloped countries, “they are looking for their first device,” he said. In India, where Singh traces his origins, only eight percent of the 1.2 billion people are connected to the Internet, according to an Indian trade association that tracks Internet access.

Internet giant Google predicted in September that the number of India’s Internet users could triple in three years if they

mands, a limited number of applications and autonomy for its batteries that is too brief.

Singh also acknowledges that it would be difficult for his company to dominate the market.

“I am sure there will be competition over time,” he said.

“Right now we are alone because nobody wants to focus on that market.

The biggest players don’t want to make devices at that level because it impacts their legacy products.”

sell its tablets in Thailand, Egypt, Brazil and Latin America.

“The whole attempt here is to create the right set of applications for the customer,” Singh said.

For customers who do not need the Bluetooth system to connect different electronic devices, “the most important thing is the price,” he said. “And within that price, they primarily want to get Internet access, want to have good multimedia ... and then basic applications.” — AFP

Tips for PC security

From purchase to disposal BERLIN: The safeguarding of your PC does not end with just a virus protection plan and a firewall. Individuals should think about security beginning at the time of purchase and all the way up to the disposal of the device, according to the German Federal Office for Information Security (BSI).

“PCs with the current Microsoft Windows can be safeguarded with just a few simple measures to make possible an adequately secure usage of the services of the internet,” the Bonn-based office announced in a compilation of concrete suggestions.

When buying a computer, individuals should make sure they have the most current hardware and the newest version of the operating system. That is currently Windows 7, though Windows 8 is expected to come out in the autumn. The BSI experts recommend a 64-bit processor because only special security mechanisms from Microsoft can be used with it. Pre-

installed software which is not needed should be de-installed.

A free virus protection program is sufficient for adequate protection against malware, according to the BSI. The pay programmes did offer more comfortable controls and additional functions such as a child protection filter or selective supervision of the browser and email, but users should not forget about the requirement to extend the licence after 12 months.

And filters should be activated for the browser. The BSI alluded especially to the secure Sandbox technology from Google Chrome and wrote: “Comparable mechanisms are either more poorly implemented in other browsers or do not even exist.”

No special backup software is necessary as long as the corresponding capabilities from Windows 7 are used. Users should think about external storage media such as DVDs or external hard drives when buying the PC. A backup of data is recommended at least once a

week. Internet security is also a duty of the provider. Therefore, individuals should not only look at the price, recommends the BSI. “For example, you should ensure that the internet provider tries to actively protect you from internet crime,” wrote the BSI. One example in this case is the assistance of providers in the anti-Botnet initiative. A Botnet is a networking of infected computers which can be externally controlled and attack other computer systems without the knowledge of the owner.

Before the disposal of a computer, the BSI recommends that all data on the hard drive is wiped out. Emptying the recycle bin in Windows is not enough. The best way is to remove the hard drive and physically destroy it. Alternatively, a Linux system can be started from the CD-ROM drive with the command to delete the hard drive. Another possibility is a secure encryption of the hard drive and the destruction of the encrypting code. — dpa

BERLIN: With or without a cable, special keys or an ergonomic shape - when buying a mouse and keyboard there are a lot of decisions to be made. The experts say that the most important factor is what will the devices be used for - game players will have different needs to office workers.

How the user experiences the computer depends a lot on the input devices, according to a study by the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) in Zurich. For example the wrong keyboard can lead to wrist problems. Users should think carefully before buying input devices. In the office particularly a person’s hands are on the keyboard and mouse all day so it’s vital that they’re comfortable. “The size of the mouse should not be based solely on the size of the hand,” said Christoph Giese of the German computer magazine Chip. “It’s also important how the user holds the mouse.” For example some users put their whole hand over the mouse so the mouse must match the size of the palm while other people who use just three fingers on the device can live with a smaller model.

With modern mice which use optical scanning a mouse pad is no longer required.

In this case the important thing is that the mouse is on the right surface. Glass, precious metals, mirrors or black velvet should be avoided, according to Giese.

When choosing a keyboard the situation is similar to picking a mouse: whether it has forward or backward-inclined keys, a wrist rest or a split keyboard layout, what matters most are individual needs. Many keyboards now come with keys that can be programmed to carry out special functions such

as volume control. Good keyboards can be purchased for 70 to 80 euros.

When game-playing is the goal personal taste is again the dominant factor. “While one player likes to use the keyboard for game functions, another prefers to use the mouse buttons, for example in first-personshooter games to shoot or jump,” said Frank Stoewer of German computer magazine PC Games Hardware.

The number of special keys also depends on the game, for example command combinations that can be achieved with a single keystroke. But a good player keyboard requires more than just gimmicks and macro-keys, according to Stoewer: “The feel, the ergonomic aspects such as height adjustment, the wrist rest, a clear layout, the shape, as well as the tactile feel of the keys, in my opinion these are more important.”

Cable-free keyboards and mice have long been available and latency is no longer an issue for these wireless devices, said Stoewer. However, there are other drawbacks such as the need for batteries. Devices that communicate wirelessly are clearly preferable to ones that communicate via infrared with a receiver, Giese said.

The touchscreen keyboards of tablet computers can be difficult to operate. In this case an external keyboard can be attached.

“Buyers should always look first at the accessories shop of the manufacturer for the right parts for their device,” said Giese. Thanks to Bluetooth, mice and keyboards are compatible with most tablets. Connections have a range of at least 10 metres and are less susceptible to interference than radio technology, although more power is used. — dpa

Wireless mouse for PC.

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2012

H E A LT H & S C I E NC E

J&J consumer health segment recalls infant Tylenol TRENTON: Recall-plagued Johnson & Johnson is pulling all infant Tylenol off the US market because some parents have had problems with redesigned bottles, introduced three months ago, that the company touted as a big safety improvement to make measuring doses easier.

Instead, 17 parents or caregivers have complained that a protective cover on the top of the bottles didn’t work correctly. It’s meant to limit how much of the liquid pain and fever reducer can be drawn into a plastic syringe. But when those consumers inserted the plastic syringe, it pushed the protective cover, or flow restrictor, into the bottle. J&J ’s M cNeil Consumer Healthcare unit, which has had about

25 product recalls since September 2009, said Friday that it is recalling all 574,000 bottles of grape-flavored, liquid Infants’ Tylenol from stores nationwide. “Today’s news about the Infants’ Tylenol recall is clearly disappointing after all the progress that McNeil has been making to ensure its products meet the highest level of quality and consumer satisfaction,” CEO William Weldon said in a statement.

Last spring, Weldon told shareholders at J&J’s annual meeting that the company was simplifying the packaging to “help a mom, dad or caregiver ensure the correct dosing.” Weldon told The Associated Press then that he thought the new design would become the industry standard.

Infants’ Tylenol is one of the first nonprescription medicines reintroduced after all the recalls and an ongoing factory shutdown have kept most McNeil medicines off the market, some for nearly 2 years. That’s cost the company well over $1 billion in lost revenue, plus many millions to rebuild one factory and upgrade others.

M cNeil spokeswoman Bonnie Jacobs said it was too soon to say when the product will return to the market. “ We are looking at various alternatives for the redesign of the dosing system and will set a timeline ... once we’ve reviewed all the options,” she said.

The company said customers can continue to use the infant Tylenol if

the bottle’s flow restrictor remains intact. If not, they can request a refund by contacting McNeil at 1-888-2226036 or www.tylenol.com.

While babies are particularly vulnerable to excessive doses of medicine, J&J said there have been no reports of anyone being harmed. The new infant Tylenol bottle comes with a plastic syringe that’s to be inserted into the flow restrictor at the top to help measure the right dose. The syringe has an opening in the tip but no needle.

Consumers are to insert the tip of the syringe into the flow restrictor, turn the bottle upside down and then draw out the right dose using the milliliter markings on the syringe. That’s then squirted into the baby’s mouth.

McNeil changed the design to make it easier to get the dose right and to limit spillage if the bottle is knocked over, McNeil spokeswoman Barbara Montresor said. The prior version had an open -topped bottle and a dropper with a flexible bulb at the top, similar to a turkey baster.

M cNeil is par t of the consumer health business segment at J&J, which is based in New Brunswick, N.J. The company ’s prescription drug and medicial device divisions each have issued at least two recalls in the last couple years. Reasons for the recalls have included nauseating package odors, small glass or metal particles in liquid medicines and wrong levels of active ingredients. — AP

US govt panel favors WTC cancer claims Illnesses include asthma, acid reflux and chronic sinus problems

MGS participates in ‘e-health GCC conference’ KUWAIT: Mediterranean Sea & Gulf For Computer Systems “MGS” Kuwait explored GCC opportunities for their unique technology at “E-HEALTH GCC Conference”; the largest healthcare conference & exhibition focusing on the emerging technologies for healthcare.

The event took place in Kuwait at JW Marriott Hotel 7th 8th Feb, the first landmark forum “E-HEALTH GCC Conference organized by “Universal International Group” was officially sponsored by the Kuwait Ministry of Health, Executive Board of the Health Ministers’ Council for GCC States and the Central Agency for Information Technology, Government of Kuwait (CAIT) and focused on Emerging Technologies in Healthcare, Hospital Management Information Systems, Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) for Healthcare, Picture Archiving & Communication Systems (PACS) Telemedicine and innovative Medical e-learning systems and solutions MGS leader in providing specialized enterprise IT and business solutions and consultan-

cy services in different industries showcased specifically their full range of healthcare Solutions and Services at the exhibit. The first e-Health GCC Conference saw presentations from different health care professionals and companies that offer technology solutions.

MGS had presentations for two of their partners Open Text & Kofax.

MGS is specialized in Patient Record Automation. They provide for the healthcare industry Enterprise Content Management Suite for healthcare, an integrated Document Management system (IDMS) & Imaging to capture, manage and deliver information for enhancing patient core & controlling costs.

“MGS helps healthcare organizations eliminate paper documents by creating a central repository for all patient records that can be integrated with, and accessible from, their existing EMR system under security policy” said Assem Al Rashidi - Executive Manager, MGS. Dr Ahmed Al-Barrak, Associate Professor of Health Informatics, Medical Informatics and Conference Chairman said their objective was to bring together healthcare providers and

information technology experts to exchange information and demonstrate the marketready applications.

“Technology is invading every place now; it is a platform where we conduct our activities. Healthcare is one of the fields and we are trying to address the challenges connected to electronic health records, telemedicine, telehealth, decision support, medication, medical errors, patient safety and security,” he said. “If you are here today in Kuwait and if you want to work in Saudi, your health record here can be transferred to Saudi,” he said.

Saji John, Partner Manager, OpenText, Middle East also explained products and services they offer. OpenText offers healthcare records management, enhancing the existing EMR [Electronic Medical Record] systems which were originally created on paper to hardcopy-handwritten notes, prescriptions, faxed test results, emailed referrals and other data.

“What we do is aggregate the content in a single repository so that it can be available in order to provide better healthcare at reduced cost,” he said. OpenText focuses on the return of investment as fast as possible and adopts systems to their requirements. Security wise, OpenText according to John ‘is absolutely fantastic’. “It is certified by lots of government regulations and the US Department of Defense, for example, has awarded OpenText for having the highest level of security for ECM systems. We comply with about 20 different regulations,” John said.

Neil Briody, Sales Manager Kofax said they participated in the conference as it gave them an opportunity to understand the challenges that the healthcare organizations within the GCC is facing, particularly Kuwait.

He aimed to comprehend how technology can help them address their issues with efficiency, reduce cost and ultimately provide excellent service for patients. Kofax deals with the private and public sectors, providing various products and solutions to health organizations, capturing information regardless of formats and types, streamlining the process and ultimately, managing the information.

“Lots of organizations still rely on paperbased documents for their day-to-day activities. We are an organization that can eliminate the unnecessary paperwork,” Briody said. Kofax technology is important as it helps organizations become more efficient and importantly, provide better services to customers. For over 20 years, Kofax has been a leading provider of document-driven process automation solutions. The global financial crisis has affected almost all the companies, but according to Briody, Kofax somehow managed to capitalize on the crisis and helped many companies lower their expenses and save money.

NEW SOUTH WALES: This photo taken on February 8, 2012 shows cancer survivor Jay Allen speaking about the melanoma he discovered on his ankle in 2007. Australia’s most populous state of New South Wales has announced tough new laws banning commercial solaria tanning units from December 31, 2014. —AFP

NEW YORK: A $2.76 billion aid program for people sickened by World Trade Center dust should be expanded to include those who have at least some types of cancer, members of a government advisory panel said yesterday.

Congress set aside a huge pot of money last year to compensate and treat people exposed to the clouds of toxic soot released during the collapse of the twin towers on Sept. 11, 2001, but lawmakers concerned about runaway costs and illegitimate health claims also limited the program to people suffering from a relatively short list of illnesses, including asthma, acid reflux and certain chronic sinus problems. So far, cancer hasn’t made that list, mostly because scientists have yet to see strong evidence that people exposed to the dust are getting the disease at higher rates than the general public. The scientific debate is still in its early stages, but at a meeting Thursday in New York, members of the World Trade Center Health Program Scientific and Technical Advisory Committee said they thought evidence of a cancer link would eventually be found, given the sorts of toxins that were present at the site. They agreed, with near unanimity, that it was reasonable to expand the program now while the research continues.

Waiting for harder evidence that could still be years or decades away could mean that deserving

people are denied care when they need it most, said panel member Dr. William Rom, director of the division of pulmonary and critical care medicine at New York University’s medical school. “I just don’t think we can wait that long,” he said. The committee was less resolved about which cancers to cover. Tens of thousands of people were exposed to the dust from the trade center’s destroyed 110-story towers. Many are now of an age when cancer is common. Some are suffering from types of cancer for which there is “no biological plausibility at all” of a trade center tie, Rom said.

Members of the committee spent much of the day Thursday talking about where to draw the line.

Some favored a tailored list that would only include types of cancer for which there was a plausible connection to toxins present on 9/11. Others suggested leaving the decision in the hands of federal administrators, or even individual doctors, who would evaluate patients on a case-by-case basis.

The committee’s recommendation, now due by an extended deadline of April 2, is advisory only. It can be accepted, rejected or taken piecemeal by the program’s administrator, Dr. John Howard, director of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health.

The 17-member committee itself is not purely a scientific panel. Besides doctors with experience

treating occupational diseases and injuries, it includes Manhattan neighborhood activists and union officials representing city firefighters, police officers and municipal workers.

One of those union representatives, Valerie Dabas, a human resources analyst for the Patrolmen’s Benevolent Association, said she was opposed to putting any limits on what types of cancer are covered because gaps in medical knowledge could lead to someone being denied care.

“I think it would be very dangerous,” she said.

Overall, the panel is short on cancer specialists, but its chairwoman, epidemiologist Elizabeth Ward, studied cancer for years for the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health and is now vice president for intramural research at the American Cancer Society.

The committee’s evaluation on the 9/11 cancer issue was prompted by a study published in September of cancer rates among city firefighters.

The study identified some small spikes in particular cancer types that were cause for concern, but it generally failed to find a significant increase in cancer rates. Out of the 9,000 firefighters in the study group, researchers found only four more cancer cases than they expected, based on rates in the general public.

That increase is small enough to have been caused by chance.

astronauts move crane, skip shields

HYDERABAD: Indian medical volunteer administers a dose of Polio immunization to a child passenger through the emergency window of a train at a railway station in Hyderabad, India, yesterday. India celebrated a full year since its last reported case of polio last month, a major victory in a global eradication effort that seemed stalled just a few years ago.— AP

CAPE CANAVERAL: Two spacewalking astronauts moved a construction crane outside the International Space Station on Thursday, a cumbersome job that took so long they scrapped hanging shields to protect against space junk.

Russians Oleg Kononenko and Anton Shkaplerov spent more than three hours struggling to move the 46-foot crane, using another boom. By the time it was locked into its new position, the two were beat.”It’s huge. We’re all hot and bothered,” one of the spacewalkers told Mission Control outside Moscow. The crane wobbled and flapped back and forth as the astronauts relocated it on the Russian side of the orbiting complex. Flight controllers urged them to be careful and avoid banging into the space station.

“It’s a little closer ... than I’d like it to be,” a voice called out.

The astronauts said the crane was awkward to handle.

Spotty communications complicated the work. At times, the radio links were so poor that the controllers repeatedly informed the spacewalkers, “unintelligible, unintelligible.” And at the beginning of the spacewalk, a balky ring at the hatch held the two men up.

In the end, Kononenko and Shkaplerov did not have enough time to install any micrometeorite shielding on one of the station’s oldest compartments. Space debris is a major threat to the space station. NASA’s compartments were launched with armor already in place, while Russia’s were not.

Station construction wrapped up last year, with the close of the shuttle program. The shielding will be saved for a future spacewalk; the next one isn’t scheduled until August. The pace of spacewalks has slowed considerably since construction ended at the 250-mile-high lab. Besides the crane work, the spacewalkers hung out a science experiment and, before going back inside, took a sample swab from an area covered by thermal blankets to check for any growth.— AP

Remote-controlled chip implant delivers bone drug WASHINGTON: Medication via remote control instead of a shot? S cientists implanted microchips in seven women that did just that, oozing out the right dose of a bone-strengthening drug once a day without them even noticing. Implanted medicine is a hot field, aiming to help patients better stick to their meds and to deliver those drugs straight to the body part that needs them.

But Thursday’s study is believed the first attempt at using a wirelessly controlled drug chip in people. If this early-stage testing eventually pans out, the idea is that doc tors one day might program dose changes from afar with the push of a button, or time them for when the patient is sleeping to minimize side effects.

The implant initially is being studied to treat severe bone-thinning osteoporosis.

But it could be filled with other types of medication, said co-inventor Robert Langer of th e M assac h usetts I n s t i t ute of Technology.

“It’s like ‘Star Trek,’” said Langer, who coauthored the study appearing Thursday in the journal Science Translational Medicine.

“Just send a signal over a special radio wave, and out comes the drug.” Today ’s medication implants continuously emit their drugs until they run dry. One example is a dime -sized wafer that oozes

chemotherapy directly onto the site of a surgically removed brain tumor, targeting any remaining cancer cells. Another is a contraceptive rod that is implanted in the arm and releases hormones to prevent pregnancy. A next step would be more sophisticated implants that release one dose at a time, programmable to skip or add a dose as needed, said biomedical engineer Ellis Meng of the University of Southern California. Meng wasn’t involved with the MIT study but also is developing t hi s k i nd of te c hnol ogy, a nd c a l l e d Thursday’s report “an important milestone.”

Women with severe osteoporosis sometimes are prescribed daily injections of the bone-building drug teriparatide, known by the brand Forteo. But many quit taking it because of the hassle of the shots.

In the study, the microchip held doses of that drug inside tiny wells that are sealed shut with a nano-thin layer of gold. Sending a wireless signal causes the gold on an individual well to dissolve, allowing that dose to diffuse into the bloodstream, Langer explained.

In a doctor ’s- office procedure, the microchip was implanted just below the waistline into eight women with osteoporosis in Denmark. Testing found one microchip wasn’t responding to the signals. The other seven women had their implants pro-

grammed to automatically emit a once-a-day dose beginning eight weeks later.

The chips could have begun working right away, said Robert Farra, CEO of MicroCHIPS Inc., a Massachusetts company that has licensed the device and funded the study.

But animal research showed a scar tissue-like membrane forms around the pacemakersized implant. So he waited until that blockage formed to signal the first of 20 once-aday doses to begin, to see if the drug could get through. Blood testing showed the implant delivered the drug as effectively as the women’s usual daily injections, and the device appeared to be safe, the researchers reported. It will take large-scale studies to prove the implant works as well as the longused shots, cautioned osteoporosis specialist Dr. Ethel Siris of New York-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University.

“They’re a long way from proving that this mode of administration is going to work,” she said. But it’s an intriguing idea because “it’s daunting to have to take a daily shot.” Farra said his company hopes to begin a largerscale test, using a chip that can hold 365 doses, in 2014. While doses of this osteoporosis medicine typically aren’t adjusted, he said, the eventual goal is for patients to carry a cell phone-sized device that would provide wireless feedback to the doctor who programs their implants. — AP

H E A LT H

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2012

Violent videogames boost vision in some adults VANCOUVER: Playing a videogame that involves shooting enemies on a battlefield has helped some adults who were born with a rare eye disorder improve their vision later in life, scientists said on Saturday.

The research shows that some sensory abilities that may seem permanently impaired can be improved in adulthood, according to lead investigator Daphne Maurer of McMaster University in Canada.

Maurer and colleagues followed children born with a rare cataract disorder in both eyes that required surgery and corrective contacts. All were deprived of normal vision as infants between three and 10 months.

As these children grew to adults, their vision improved but never reached 20/20, and they showed some deficits in face perception, sharpness, direction of motion, peripheral and binocular vision. Since previous research on people with certain eye disorders had shown improvements after playing a type of videogame known as a first-person shooter, in which the player wields a gun and blows up foes, Maurer decided to try it on her subjects.

Six patients between the ages of 19 and 31 were tracked for a period of one month, in which they played the Electronic Arts (EA) videogame “Medal of Honor” for a total of 40

hours-no more than two hours a day, five days a week.

Five of the six showed improvement in their vision, each moving closer to 20/20 from baseline ranges of 20/32 to 20/100, with improved ability to recognize faces, see small print and judge the direction of moving dots.

“About two-thirds of the things we measured improved simply from playing an ac tion videogame,” Maurer told repor ters at the American Association for the Advancement of Science annual convention in Vancouver.

For the average person, that ’s about the same as being able to read two lines smaller than they presently can on an eye chart, she added. “I think it tells us that the visual nervous system is still plastic enough to either form or reveal connections in adulthood... and we suspect that might be true for any kind of visual defect.” Maurer, who said she is not a “gamer,” admitted some reticence to ask ing people to play a violent videogame for her study. “Certainly we don’t relish ask adult patients who are nongamers to play a firstperson shooter for 40 hours,” she said.

“They know what they are getting into and they know there is a small risk they may become addicted to

such games as a result of our intervention. That is why we limit them to 10 hours a week and no more than two hours a day.”

However, the visual benefits of the game were so great that it made the effort worthwhile, she said.

The fast-paced game requires players to monitor what is right in front of them and what is in the peripher y, increasing levels of dopamine and adrenaline that may make the brain more flexible to improvements in visual acuity.

“It is also called adrenaline for action, because you not only have to make a judgment based on what is going on on the screen but you have to act on it and you have to act on it from a real world perspective,” she said.

“So we think the manufacturers built into these games the effective ingredients for retraining the visual brain in adulthood.” Now, Maurer and colleagues are working on creating their own videogame for patients, gleaning the same characteristics of Medal of Honor but adding some elements to train people’s brains to improve binocular vision.

“We are currently as a network (with other scientists) building our own game which we hope will be even better because it won’t be violent,” Maurer said. — AFP

CONCORD: This image taken on Feb 13 in Concord, N.H. features a Spiced Plum Crisp dish. A good place to start when looking for more healthy desserts is fruit, which not only packs plenty of its own noadded-sugar sweetness, it also tends to have gobs of fiber and nutrients. — AP

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MONDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2012

W H AT ’ S O N

Third Géant Easy supermarket opens at Egaila

G

éant Easy supermarket, located at Al-Liwan Mall in Egaila, next to Fintas area, will open its doors to customers today at 10.30 am. With an area of over 30,000 square feet, the third Géant Easy supermarket in Kuwait will display a wide variety of products, including groceries, frozen foods, bakery products, butchery, fish, home linen, household items, household accessories, cosmetics, perfumes, electronics and mobiles. The choicest meat-cuts will also be available at the butchery, while the cheese and deli counter will offer a fabulous selection of cheese and cold-cuts.

In addition to providing easy and convenient access to customers in the neighborhood of Egaila and Fintas, the new GÈant Easy supermarket promises an all-round great shopping experience through its contemporary design and layout, spaciously wide aisles, easy to follow signage, warm customer service and a no-frills philosophy of offering customers quality products at the lowest prices.

Commenting on the decision to open the third outlet of Géant Easy in Kuwait, Arif Shaikh, Group Director of BMA, the UAE based retail conglomerate that represents global retail giant Géant in the GCC markets of Bahrain, UAE and Kuwait, said, “Our main brand GÈant hypermarket, which opened in 2009 at 360 Mall, is doing extremely well. Our plan is to grow our market share in Kuwait by getting into niche areas through opening another six Géant Easy supermarkets in Kuwait this year. The Liwan Mall location offers yet another great opportunity to further showcase our Easy format supermarkets in Kuwait. The decision to open a store in Egaila was based on the tremendous potential we see for retailing here, as it is in an ideal catchment area.”

According to Mohammed Ashfaq, Head of Group Business Development, “The response that we continue receiving at our two existing Géant Easy supermarkets in Kuwait is simply overwhelming. The footfall that we pulled into the two stores from day one was beyond our expectations and we expect to replicate the same success with our new supermarket at Egaila. The tremendous success of Géant Easy format has encouraged us to open more of similar outlets in the country and we will continue to offer great bargains at these outlets to ensure that we become the first choice for shopping in every area we operate.”

Speaking about the imminent opening of Egaila branch, Remesh T.A. the Country-Head of Géant Easy supermarkets in Kuwait, said, “By opening easily accessible locations all over Kuwait we aim to provide customers with a convenient shopping experience.

Along with the new opening in Egaila, and our two successful outlets that have been operating since August 2010 in Salmiya and in Souk Jleeb from September 2011, we plan on opening an outlet each in Sulaibikhat and Farwaniya by the first quarter of this year. In addition, as part of our aggressive expansion plan, four more Géant Easy supermarkets are slated to open in different parts of the country by the end of 2012.”

Announcements Kuwait Improv Fun lovers of Kuwait unite. A get together by people who love to surprise, be surprised and just be about at anything are welcome to Kuwait Improv, a gathering, reminiscent of the famous American TV program Whose Line is it Anyway, informally organized

by American School of Kuwait teacher Brad Manker.

No histrionic talent required, but a willingness to share. Please contact:mankerb@ask.edu Tulu speaking classes Here’s a great opportunity for parents who always wished their children could learn Tulu. Tulu Koota Kuwait, in its objective towards promoting Tulu language and culture, is pleased to announce the opening of Tutu Speaking Classes “Tulu Siri” at Indian Public School Salmiya @ 11:30 am. For more details kindly contact Ramesh Kidiyoor97204716/99596457,Shalini Vijay 66502369,Tharendra P. Shettigar 66757979,Jayalaxmi Karkal - 66958848, Sathyanarayana Salian - 66585077,Vanitha Dias94996459. And our Website: www.tulukootakuwait.org Email: info@tulukootakuwait.org Palpak 4th AGM Palakkad Pravasi Association of Kuwait (Palpak) is conducting its Fourth Annual General Body Meeting on February 24, Friday at Hiphop Auditorium, Fahaheel from 10 am. The main agenda include as following, annual report on the activities during the year of 2011, the audited accounts report for the year of 2011. All members of Palpak are kindly requested to treat this as an official Invitation and attend the said Annual Genera1 body meeting on time. For more details please contact President P.N.Kumar (99771830) and General Secretary Aravindha Shan (66535989).

Music festival On March 1, 2012, the “Blend Music Festival,” a mellow acoustic get-together of several local musicians, will take place in Bayt Lothan, the official sponsor, host, and curator of the event. This event will be FREE of charge and open to everyone to attend. We hope to see you all there, and here’s to a great start to 2012! The “Blend Music Festival” will be the first of many concerts to be held; there are a handful of musicians on board, and more will be added to the sets at a later stage. Here is the program for March 1st: 1- Ali Sleeq with Gary Ruston & Kevin Owen = JAZZ; 2- Hadi Sarieddine, Bader Nana, & Sarj = ROCK; 3- Lewis Chapman - FOLK / ROCK. Free Arabic language course IPC and all its branches are opening free Arabic language course for ladies accessible in beginners and advanced levels. Class will commence on March 2, 2012. Islamic and Quran courses are also presented in different languages. Registration is on! Call the nearest IPC branch: Rawdah: 22512257 / 97290278; Salmiyah: 25733263 / 97533263; Mangaf: 23723002 ext. 124/123; Jahra: 24558830 / 97533948; Khaithan: 24730137.

Alvis, Ayres, Reids

Barakat Group

British Ladies Society annual ball

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he British Ladies Society hosted the 2012 Valentines Ball under the Kuwait night sky in the gardens of the British Embassy on 17th February.

Amec

The evening started with a VIP reception on the terrace where Dr Labiba Temmim and Laila AlGhanim represented Ruqayah Abdulwahab AlQatami Cancer Foundation and Mrs Caroline Barakat represented Help For Heroes, the two nominated charities for the year and John Reid attended on behalf of sponsors Amec, Lee Williams of N-Bar salon and Al Rashed of Cameo.

Chatting with members of the British Ladies Society were local ar tists Deborah Reeve and Thuraya Al Baqsami who both donated works of art to the raffle.

Ladies were presented with a Valentines rose bouquet on entering the garden and the gentlemen were given a fashionable red bowtie thanks to sponsorship from Amec and The Avenues to go with the theme of the night. Every guest received vouchers courtesy of The Entertainer Kuwait as well as Premium Choice. Chef Austen Reid of The Regency Hotel created a world-class menu of Scottish smoked salmon and lobster with wasabi cream

followed by rack of veal and confited shallots. The meal was completed with the essential at any Valentines celebration; a heart shaped wild strawberry mousse with passion fruit cream, pierced with Cupid’s arrow.

The Ball was attended by 250 members and guests of the BLS’s growing community reflecting the multinational and multicultural diversity of Kuwait today. The fundraising raffle received a wide variety of in-kind contributions which were extended by brands such as Q8 Realtor, Al Corniche Club, Al Fares Jewellery, Sahara Kuwait, Radisson Blu, NBAR, The Entertainer, Milano, Dental Spa, Luna Missoni, Kuwait Times, Cameo, Al Fozan, Trendz Salon, Al Yousifi Electrical, Tristar Motorcycles, Annelies Macintosh, Hard Rock CafÈ and Kerry Sellers Photography.

Dancers from around Latin America brought a taste of “Strictly Come Dancing”, to Kuwait, with Tango, Salsa and Merengue, which delighted and inspired the crowd.

Guests danced the night away under

the stars to the music of Mike Seals and his wonderful band “Bar-None” or took a chance to relax out in the Fizz Whizz and Sheesha Chill Out Zone.

Holly Napier and Imogen Reid

KES hosts BSME conference

K

uwait English School recently hosted a BSME conference on how to teach an outstanding PE primary lesson.

The seminar was for PE teachers from around the Gulf region and affiliated to BSME. The attending schools were as follows: Kuwait English School, The English School (Kuwait), The New English School

(Kuwait), Kuwait National English School, Doha English Speaking School, Dahrain British School (Saudi Arabia), St. Christopher’s School Bahrain, British School of Kuwait and English School Fahaheel (Kuwait).

The seminar was led by Brian Coates who flew in from the UK on behalf of BSME. The aims of the day were: 1. To identify outstanding pedagogi-

cal approaches to ensure effective application to the National Curriculum.

2. Consider a variety of relevant assessment for learning strategies.

3. Identify and promote an effective learning environment matched to Ofsted inspection criteria.

All the staff at KES who attended the course found it extremely helpful and will disseminate the relevant parts to

other members of the department at the next INSET opportunity.

Brian Coates was very complimentary of the host school and the organisation of the day, not to mention the warmth he received from the delegates, associates and the Higher Management of KES. Particular thanks to Helen Searle who acted as the link and principal coordinator on behalf of BSME.

Annual football festival

T

he Annual Lycee Francais de Kuwait Football Festival took place at the Salmiya Sports Club on Saturday and proved to be a huge success with over 30 participating teams aged from 5 to 13 years.

The French Football teams were joined by 16 teams from the Premier GOAL Academy in asociation with

Everton F.C. and sponsored by Porsche Centre Kuwait, Behbehani Motors Company.

Matches were 6 or 7 a side and organised into six age categories. All the teams played six games, encouraged by their coaches, teachers and hundreds of enthusiastic parents.

The event was sponsored by

Wataniya who provided all the players with colourful team shirts.

Refreshments were kindly provided by Booz, Coca Cola and the Holiday Inn. There was an energetic dance and gymnastics display along with some rock and roll drumming from the LFK students prior to the presentation ceremony, when all the players received

individual medals and trophies were awarded to the top teams in each group. Congratulations went to all participants for the high levels of skill, teamwork and sportsmanship displayed throughout the day. Pictured are some of the participating players.

Talent show of classes 1 & 2 of GIS

O

n February 9, Gulf Indian School (GIS) witnessed a spectacular event as the little ones of class 1 & 2 showcased their talents to a packed auditorium.

The programme commenced with a welcome speech followed by the Principal’s address. The Principal, Shyamala Divakaran in her speech, eulogized the untiring and enthusiastic work of the teachers and students who put up the show. GIS’ young talents filled the auditorium with the fervor of patriotism as they moved to the tune of ‘Mere Desh ki Dharthi’. This was followed by an array of colourful dances. The musical play highlighting the importance of healthy eating mesmerized the spectators with their ‘orange, apple, carrot....’ costume and lithe movements to the melodies.

The audience feasted their eyes on the enthralling beauty of the various dance forms as unravelled in the entire show.

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W H AT ’ S O N

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2012

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

Chawki Barakat, (center) Henry Barakat (Center right) & Edmond Barakat (Center left) with other guests.

Chawki Barakat

Mais Alghanim wins 1st place gold at Service Hero Awards

O

nce again, Mais Alghanim gets recognized for their service excellence by receiving the highest customer satisfaction scores and succeeded in winning the 1st place award at the Hero Service, Kuwait competition.

Mais Alghanim won first place in the Casual Dining category and received the Gold Award for the Country Wide Winners; topping 346 companies in 17 different private industry categories.

The awards were based on a threemonth voting drive that collected over 13,000 direct customer votes through an online-based survey that was then

validated and reviewed to ensure empirical and authentic findings.

Customers rated the companies based on a 10-point scoring system that measures customer expectations versus actual customer satisfaction across eight service dimensions. The eight dimensions were: reliability, speed, product quality, and value for money, location of offering, staff quality, call center and website.

These two awards offer a very meaningful honor and are an accurate form of measurement, since the results are derived from the consumers of Kuwait to convey what brand truly exceeds the

norms of customer satisfaction and service excellence.

Mais Alghanim out performed last year’s results and did not settle for Silver Award Country Wide customer satisfaction. This goes to prove that they are an impeccable organization that excels on continuously improving themselves internally and externally.

Chawki Barakat, General Manager of Mais Alghanim Restaurant expressed his honor in receiving such awards that reflect the opinion of their customers, adding that the relationship between Mais Alghanim and their customers goes back to 1953 with several genera-

tions growing up experiencing first hand Mais Alghanim’s unique Hospitality. He further stated, “Our focus on customer service has never changed ‘The Customer Always Comes First’ and we use that mantra to manage our company in every aspect.”

Chawki Barakat concluded by thanking the devoted members of Mais Alghanim family for achieving this triumph, calling them “The true winners of these awards.”

The best way to validate the results yourself is to simply pay Mais Alghanim a visit and experience their service first hand.

EMBASSY OF BANGLADESH The Embassy will remain closed 26 and 27 February 2012 on the occasion of National Day and Liberation Day of the State of Kuwait. nnnnnnn

EMBASSY OF CANADA The Embassy of Canada is located at Villa 24, Al-Mutawakel St., Block 4 in Da’aiyah.

Please visit our website at www.Kuwait.gc.ca. The Embassy of Canada is open from 07:30 to 15:30 Sunday through Thursday. The reception is closed from 12:30 to 01:00 pm for lunch break. Consular Services for Canadian Citizens are provided from 09:00 until 12:00 on Sunday through Wednesday. Canada offers a registration service for all Canadians travelling or living abroad. This service is provided so that Consular Officials can contact and assist Canadians in an emergency in a foreign country, such as a natural disaster or civil unrest, or inform Canadians of a family emergency at home. The Embassy of Canada encourages all Canadian Citizens to register online through the Government of Canada Travel Website at www.voyage.gc.ca.

The Canadian Embassy in Abu Dhabi provides visa and immigration services to residents of Kuwait. Individuals who are interested in visiting, working or immigrating to Canada are invited to visit the website of the Canadian Embassy to the UAE at www.UAE.gc.ca. nnnnnnn

EMBASSY OF KOREA The Embassy of the Republic of Korea wishes to inform that it has moved to Mishref.

New Address: Embassy of the Republic of Korea Mishref, Block 7A, Diplomatic Area 2, Plot 6 The Embassy also wishes to inform that it will be opened to the public on the following office hours: Saturdays to Thursday Morning: 8:00 am to 12:30 pm Lunch Break: 12:30 pm to 1:00 pm Afternoon: 1:00 pm to 3:30 pm nnnnnnn

GES students visit Kuwait Times

G

ulf English School (GES) visited Kuwait Times last week. The tour and the presentations were most informative and the students really enjoyed the visit. The Grade 10 students were taken around where Marketing Director Adnan Saad and Computer and IT Manager Islam Al-Shara briefed them on various stages from editing news to page layout and the printing process. The students left Kuwait Times with a wealth of knowledge that should prove valuable for their exams.

Balakrishna to visit Kuwait Prominent Telugu film Hero Nandamuri Balakrishna coming to Kuwait on 5th April 2012 for 2 days upon the invitation of Pravasaandhra Telugu Desam, NBK seva samithi. Nadamuri Balakrishna is popularly known as “Balayya” and “NBK” by his fans and admirers. He is the son of the former Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh and Telugu film legend Nandamuri Taraka Rama Rao. He then starred in many critical and commercial films and established himself as one of the leading contemporary actors of Telugu Cinema. In addition to films, Balakrishna is associated with several philanthropic and social organizations activities.

FCC symphony Mga Kababayan 2LOY- NA- 2LOY sa February 24, 2012 “Awitan at Indakan” As part of FCC culminating for the year 2012 and simple way of conveying, it’s sincerest thanks and gratitude to all those in one way or the other have been very supportive to FCC project and activities, FCC is organizing annual concert dubbed as “AN FCC SYMPHONY” on FRIDAY 24,2012 AT 5:00PM at Jabriya Medical Theater beside Blood Bank & Kuwait Dental Association. A conglomerate of a Filipino champions along with FCC Kids will bring back live on stage songs from Disney movies & Broadway musicals with concluding numbers from sixties.It is worthwhile mentioning that funds raised during the previous concerts were given our scholarship program in the Philippines. This year, proceeds of the project will be donated to elementary school in Payatas in Manila were the Smokey Mountain is located. It is therefore our fervent hope that you will support this event, as it is an FCC’s ultimate goal to those who are lee privilege.

Join us and be apart of this noble endevor.

For more details call Bong (99530665) Cynthia ( 99169310).

KBC hosts spring camp Feb 24 The Kuwait Banks Club invites staff members of local banks and their families to its spring camp in Al-Julaiah for an open day to be held on Friday, February 24, 2012, announced social committee director Reem Al-Wuqaiyan.

A special entertaining program is scheduled for the event featuring competitions for participants of all ages, Al-Wuqaiyan said in a statement made recently to the press. The open day is held simultaneously with Kuwait’s national celebrations at the end of the month.

EMBASSY OF INDIA The Embassy of India will remain closed on the following dates during the month of February 2012.

National Day of Kuwait - Feb 25, - Saturday.

Liberation Day of Kuwait - Feb 26, - Sunday. nnnnnnn

EMBASSY OF MYANMAR Embassy of the Republic of the Union of Myanmar would like to inform the general public that the Embassy will move its office to new location at Villa 35, Road 203, Block 2, AlSalaam Area in South Surra. The Embassy wishes to advice Myanmar citizens and travellers to Myanmar to contact Myanmar Embassy at its new location from 26 January, 2012. Tel. 25240736, 25240290, Fax: 25240749, e-mail:myankuwait11@gmai1.com nnnnnnn

EMBASSY OF PHILIPPINES For emergency, please contact the Consular hotline at 65184433. The Philippine Overseas Labor Office and other attached agencies shall continue to operate and hold office in Jabriya until 15 March 2012. All your passports and other consular concerns will be processed at our new location, except of course labor issues.

Regular working hours of the Embassy shall resume in Faiha. nnnnnnn

EMBASSY OF RUSSIA Embassy of the Russian Federation invites all the Russian residents in Kuwait to visit the Consulate for registration and updating your database. This information is necessary for prompt notice, assistance and warning in case of emergency. The consulate reception hours: 10:00 - 13:00, Sunday - Wednesday. The Embassy is located in Kuwait City, Daiya, Block 5, Diplomatic campus, Plot 17. Tel: (+965) 22560427, 22560428. Fax: (+965) 22524969, e-mail: rusposkuw@mail.ru, consdepkuw@mail.ru Information also available on the website: www.kuwait.mid.ru

Spring time exhibit at ESF

T

he English School Fahaheel recently put on show a beautiful exhibit entitled “Flowers” at the ESF Gallery. The exhibition was a fitting welcome to Spring which is just around the corner. Colourful artistic displays made “flowers” a very successful and Art

Exhibition. A big thank you to Mrs Johnson - Middle School Art. The ESF Gallery will inaugurate a new Exhibition marking the National and Liberation Days “Colour My World” on 23 February.

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EMBASSY OF VENEZUELA Embassy of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, request Venezuelan citizens living in Kuwait to register with the Embassy.

This registration service is provided so that the Embassy can update its contact list and assist Venezuelan citizens in cases of emergencies.

Registration Information 25324367 or by email: embavenez@gmail.com. From Sunday to Thursday from 8.30am till 2 pm.

Write to us Send to What’s On

Kerala Expats Football Association, Kuwait (KEFAK), a newly formed organization of football lovers among Keralites in Kuwait, held a meeting recently.

upcoming events, birthdays or celebrations by email: local@kuwaittimes.net Fax: 24835619 / 20

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2012

TV PROGRAMS

00:50 Animal Cops Houston 01:45 Untamed & Uncut 02:40 The Beauty Of Snakes 03:35 Wild France 04:30 Crocodile Feeding Frenzy 05:25 The Animals’ Guide To Survival 06:20 Escape To Chimp Eden 06:45 Dolphin Days 07:10 Animal Cops Houston 08:00 Gorilla School 08:25 Growing Up...

09:15 The Really Wild Show 09:40 Project Puppy 10:10 Your Pet Wants This 11:05 The Animals’ Guide To Survival 12:00 Michaela’s Animal Road Trip 12:55 SSPCA: On The Wildside 13:20 Wildlife SOS 13:50 Animal Precinct 14:45 Animal Cops Phoenix 15:40 The Animals’ Guide To Survival 16:30 Echo And The Elephants Of Amboseli 17:00 The Really Wild Show 17:30 Chris Humfrey’s Wildlife 18:00 Talk To The Animals 18:25 Dogs 101 19:20 Must Love Cats 20:15 Gorilla School 20:40 Wildlife SOS 21:10 Escape To Chimp Eden 21:35 In Too Deep 22:05 The Animals’ Guide To Survival

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

00:05 00:30 03:50 05:35 07:15

Chimp Family Fortunes Lark Rise to Candleford Monarch Of The Glen The World’s Toughest Driving After You’ve Gone Big Top Balamory Gigglebiz Bobinogs Poetry Pie Fimbles Little Robots Nina And The Neurons Balamory Charlie and Lola Gigglebiz Bobinogs Poetry Pie Fimbles Little Robots Nina And The Neurons Last Of The Summer Wine After You’ve Gone The Weakest Link Keeping Up Appearances Doctors The Planets Monarch Of The Glen Last Of The Summer Wine After You’ve Gone The Weakest Link Keeping Up Appearances Doctors The Planets Monarch Of The Glen The Weakest Link Eastenders Doctors Holby City Last Of The Summer Wine Supernova Waking The Dead After You’ve Gone Keeping Up Appearances Red Cap Supernova The Weakest Link Holby City

Cash In The Attic USA Antiques Roadshow Masterchef What Not To Wear Cash In The Attic USA

08:00 08:45 09:10 10:25 11:10 12:00 12:50 13:40 15:20 16:05 16:50 17:35 18:20 19:05 20:55 21:15 22:55 23:40

Fantasy Homes By The Sea James Martin’s Brittany Masterchef Australia Bargain Hunt Antiques Roadshow Come Dine With Me 10 Years Younger Gok’s Fashion Fix Fantasy Homes In The City House Swap Bargain Hunt House Swap Cash In The Attic USA Masterchef Cash In The Attic USA Gok’s Fashion Fix Bargain Hunt Antiques Roadshow

00:00 Wacky Races 00:20 Dastardly And Muttley 00:45 New Yogi Bear Show 01:10 Duck Dodgers 01:35 The Perils Of Penelope Pitstop 02:00 Tom & Jerry Kids 02:25 A Pup Named Scooby-Doo 02:50 The Jetsons 03:15 Puppy In My Pocket 03:40 Popeye 04:00 Tom & Jerry 04:25 Looney Tunes 04:50 Scooby Doo Where Are You! 05:15 Droopy: Master Detective 05:40 Wacky Races 06:00 The Flintstones 06:25 A Pup Named Scooby-Doo 06:50 Popeye Classics 07:00 The Garfield Show 07:30 Bananas In Pyjamas 07:55 Baby Looney Tunes 08:20 Gerald McBoing Boing 08:45 Jelly Jamm 09:00 Pink Panther And Pals 09:50 Puppy In My Pocket 10:15 The Scooby Doo Show 10:40 Scooby Doo Where Are You! 11:05 The Flintstones 11:25 Duck Dodgers 11:50 Tom & Jerry Kids 12:15 Pink Panther And Pals 12:40 Wacky Races 13:00 Jelly Jamm 13:15 Baby Looney Tunes 13:40 Bananas In Pyjamas 13:55 The Garfield Show 14:45 A Pup Named Scooby-Doo 15:10Scooby-Doo And Scrappy-Doo 15:35 Looney Tunes 16:00 Puppy In My Pocket 16:50 Pink Panther And Pals 17:40 Tom & Jerry 18:20 The Garfield Show 19:10 The Scooby Doo Show 19:35Scooby-Doo And Scrappy-Doo 20:00 Jelly Jamm 20:15 Baby Looney Tunes 20:40 Gerald McBoing Boing 21:05 Bananas In Pyjamas 21:30 Pink Panther And Pals 21:55 Tom & Jerry 22:20 Looney Tunes 22:45 Scooby Doo Where Are You! 23:10 Droopy: Master Detective 23:35 The Flintstones

00:40 Samurai Jack 01:30 The Marvelous Misadventures Of Flapjack 02:20 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 And Mandy 05:55 I Am Weasel 06:55 Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated 07:20 Powerpuff Girls 07:45 Angelo Rules 08:00 Casper’s Scare School 08:30 The Amazing World Of

Gumball 08:45 Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated 09:15 Ben 10: Ultimate Alien 09:40 Batman: The Brave And The Bold 10:05 Angelo Rules 10:30 Chowder 10:55 Adventure Time 11:20 Eliot Kid 11:35 The Marvelous Misadventures Of Flapjack 12:00 Ben 10 12:25 Sym-Bionic Titan 12:50 Courage The Cowardly Dog 13:15 I Am Weasel 13:40 Best Ed 14:05 Cow & Chicken 14:30 My Gym Partner’s A Monkey 14:50 Eliot Kid 15:15 Bakugan Battle Brawlers 15:40 Ben 10: Alien Force 16:05 Courage The Cowardly Dog 16:30 Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated 16:55 The Amazing World Of Gumball 17:10 Adventure Time 17:35 Regular Show 18:00 Cow & Chicken 18:25 Bakugan: Gundalian Invaders 18:50 Ben 10: Ultimate Alien 19:15 Angelo Rules 19:30 Total Drama World Tour 19:55 Hero 108 20:25 Sym-Bionic Titan 20:50 Adventure Time 21:25 The Grim Adventures Of Billy & Mandy 21:50 Courage 22:25 The Marvelous Misadventures Of Flapjack 22:50 Cow And Chicken 23:00 Ben 10 23:50 Courage The Cowardly Dog

00:20 Replacements 01:10 Fairly Odd Parents 02:00 A Kind Of Magic 02:45 Stitch 03:35 Replacements 04:25 Fairly Odd Parents 05:15 Stitch 06:00 Hannah Montana Forever 06:20 Recess 06:45 Timon And Pumbaa 07:05 Phineas And Ferb 07:30 Good Luck Charlie 07:55 Fish Hooks 08:10 Wizards Of Waverly Place 08:35 Mickey Mouse Clubhouse 09:00 Jake & The Neverland Pirates 09:25 Handy Manny 09:40 The Hive 09:47 Mini Adventures Of Winnie The Pooh 09:50 Recess 10:15 So Random 10:40 Have A Laugh 10:45 Hannah Montana Forever 11:10 Suite Life On Deck 11:35 Jake & Blake 12:00 Sonny With A Chance 12:25 Wizards Of Waverly Place 12:45 Phineas And Ferb 13:10 So Random 13:30 Suite Life On Deck 13:55 Wizards Of Waverly Place 14:20 Have A Laugh 14:30 Shake It Up 14:55 Shake It Up 15:20 My Babysitter’s A Vampire 15:45 Fish Hooks 16:10 The Adventures Of Disney Fairies 16:40 The Adventures Of Disney Fairies 17:05 Timon And Pumbaa 17:30 Wizards Of Waverly Place The Movie 18:56 Fish Hooks 19:10 Good Luck Charlie 19:30 Have A Laugh 19:35 Wizards Of Waverly Place 20:00 Hannah Montana Forever 20:25 Phineas And Ferb 20:50 Shake It Up 21:15 Fish Hooks 21:35 Recess 22:00 Wizards Of Waverly Place The Movie 23:35 Sonny With A Chance

LOVE THE BEAST ON OSN CINEMA

00:40 07:00 07:50 08:45 09:40 10:05 10:30 10:55 11:25 16:00 16:55 17:50 18:45 19:10 19:40 20:05 20:35 21:00 21:30 22:25 23:20

Deception With Keith Barry Mythbusters Gold Rush Swords: Life On The Line How Does It Work?

Cake Boss Border Security Auction Hunters Brew Masters Overhaulin’ Ultimate Survival Mythbusters Cash Cab Us Border Security Auction Hunters How It’s Made How Does It Work?

Cake Boss Gold Rush Swords: Life On The Line Swamp Loggers

00:40 Sci-Fi Science 02:25 The Tech Show 02:50 How the Universe Works 05:30 Stephen Hawking’s Universe 07:10 Sci-Fi Saved My Life 08:00 The Gadget Show 08:50 How Does That Work?

09:15 How Stuff’s Made 09:40 Meteorite Men 10:35 Human Body: Ultimate Machine 11:25 Kings of Construction 12:20 Junkyard Mega-Wars 13:15 Through the Wormhole with Morgan Freeman 14:05 Weird or What?

14:55 How Does That Work?

15:20 How Stuff’s Made 15:50 The Gadget Show 16:40 The Tech Show 17:05 Junkyard Mega-Wars 18:00 Through the Wormhole with Morgan Freeman 18:50 Kings of Construction 19:40 Building the Future 20:30 Mighty Ships 21:20 Junkyard Mega-Wars 22:10 The Gadget Show 22:35 The Gadget Show 23:00 Building the Future 23:50 Mighty Ships

00:40 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives 01:05 Reza, Spice Prince Of India 01:30 Good Eats 01:55 Grill It! With Bobby Flay 02:45 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives 03:35 Barefoot Contessa - Back To Basics 04:25 Chopped 05:15 Kid In A Candy Store 05:40 Good Eats 06:05 Luke Nguyen’s Vietnam 06:30 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives 06:50 Food Network Challenge 07:35 Barefoot Contessa - Back To Basics 08:00 Food Network Challenge 08:50 Reza, Spice Prince Of India 09:15 Barefoot Contessa - Back To Basics 09:40 Good Eats 10:05 Healthy Appetite With Ellie Krieger 10:30 Paula’s Best Dishes 10:55 Luke Nguyen’s Vietnam 11:20 Bobby Chinn Cooks Asia 11:45 30 Minute Meals 12:10 Unwrapped 12:35 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives 13:00 Good Eats 13:25 Guy’s Big Bite 13:50 Aarti Party 14:15 Bobby Chinn Cooks Asia 14:40 Barefoot Contessa - Back To Basics 15:05 Healthy Appetite With Ellie Krieger 15:30 Unwrapped 15:55 Paula’s Best Dishes 16:20 Andy Bates Street Feasts 16:45 Chopped 17:35 Guy’s Big Bite 18:00 Barefoot Contessa - Back To Basics 18:25 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives 18:50 Aarti Party 19:15 Good Eats 19:40 Luke Nguyen’s Vietnam 20:05 Reza, Spice Prince Of India 20:30 Restaurant: Impossible 21:20 Andy Bates Street Feasts 22:10 Easy Chinese: San Francisco 23:00 Reza, Spice Prince Of India 23:50 Mexican Made Easy

00:00 Mickey Mouse Clubhouse 00:25 Jake & The Neverland Pirates 00:40 Special Agent Oso 00:55 Little Einsteins 01:20 Timmy Time 01:30 Jungle Junction 01:45 Handy Manny 01:55 Mickey Mouse Clubhouse 02:20 Special Agent Oso 02:50 Jungle Junction 03:15 Little Einsteins 03:40 Higglytown Heroes 04:10 Jo Jo’s Circus 04:30 Special Agent Oso 05:00 Jungle Junction 05:25 Little Einsteins 05:50 Higglytown Heroes 06:20 Jo Jo’s Circus 06:40 Special Agent Oso 07:10 Jungle Junction 07:35 Little Einsteins 08:00 Higglytown Heroes 08:30 Jo Jo’s Circus 08:50 Jungle Junction 09:15 Higglytown Heroes 09:45 Handy Manny 10:00 Special Agent Oso 10:15 Jungle Junction 10:45 Mickey Mouse Clubhouse 11:10 The Hive 11:20 Handy Manny 11:35 Jake & The Neverland Pirates 12:05 The Hive 12:15 Mini Adventures Of Winnie The Pooh 12:20 Mouk (Cema) 12:45 The Hive 12:55 Mickey Mouse Clubhouse 13:20 Imagination Movers 13:45 Art Attack (Cema) 14:10 Imagination Movers 14:35 Special Agent Oso 14:45 Lazytown 15:10 Handy Manny

15:25 Jungle Junction 15:40 Imagination Movers 16:05 The Hive 16:15 Special Agent Oso 16:25 Little Einsteins 16:50 Lazytown 17:15 Mickey Mouse Clubhouse 17:40 Jake & The Neverland Pirates 18:05 Mouk (Cema) 18:20 Handy Manny 18:30 The Hive 18:40 Jake & The Neverland Pirates 18:55 Imagination Movers 19:20 Lazytown 19:45 Art Attack (Cema) 20:10 The Hive 20:20 Special Agent Oso 20:30 Jungle Junction 20:45 Handy Manny 20:55 Jake & The Neverland Pirates 21:25 The Hive 21:35 Little Einsteins 22:00 Mini Adventures Of Winnie The Pooh 22:05 Mickey Mouse Clubhouse 22:25 101 Dalmatians 22:50 Jake & The Neverland Pirates 23:20 The Hive 23:30 Mini Adventures Of Winnie The Pooh 23:35 A Poem Is...

23:40 Animated Stories 23:45 Mouk (Cema)

00:25 Kendra 00:55 Style Star 01:25 15 Unforgettable Hollywood Tragedies 03:15 E! Investigates 04:10 Sexiest 05:05 Then And Now 05:30 Wildest TV Show Moments 06:00 40 (More) Crimes Of Fashion 07:50 Behind The Scenes 08:20 E! News 09:15 Kourtney & Kim Take New York 10:15 THS 12:05 Fashion Police: 2008 Grammy Awards 13:05 Dirty Soap 14:05 Keeping Up With The Kardashians 15:00 Style Star 15:30 THS 16:25 Behind The Scenes 16:55 Bridalplasty 17:55 Kourtney & Kim Take New York 18:55 THS 19:55 Fashion Police: 2008 Grammy Awards 20:55 Chelsea Lately 21:25 Dirty Soap 22:25 Fashion Police: 2008 Grammy Awards 23:25 Chelsea Lately 23:55 Keeping Up With The Kardashians

00:00 00:50 02:30 03:20 04:35 05:00 05:50 07:30 2008 09:00 09:25 11:05 11:55 12:45 13:35 14:25 15:15 16:05 16:55 17:45 18:10 19:50 20:40 21:30 22:20 23:10

Cowboy U Aiya TV Ed’s Up Dr Danger BMX Masters 2010 Kenny Belaey’s Big Time AMA Motocross 2011 Ride Guide Mountainbike IFMXF 2011 Alli Presents Simpel Session 2011 Best Of The Streets Dragrace High Mantracker I‘ll Do Anything World Combat League Best Of The Streets Dragrace High IFMXF 2011 Alli Presents Simpel Session 2011 I’ll Do Anything Mantracker Fantasy Factory World Combat League

00:40 Scorned: Crimes Of Passion 01:30 I Married A Mobster 01:55 I Was Murdered 02:15 The Will: Family Secrets Revealed 03:05 Kidnap And Rescue 03:50 Scorned: Crimes Of Passion 04:40 I Married A Mobster 05:05 I Was Murdered 05:25 On The Case With Paula Zahn 06:15 Disappeared 07:10 Mystery ER 08:00 The Prosecutors 08:50 Forensic Detectives 09:40 Murder Shift 10:25 Life Or Death: Medical Mysteries 11:10 Real Emergency Calls 11:35 Who On Earth Did I Marry?

11:55 True Crime With Aphrodite Jones 12:40 Disappeared 13:25 Murder Shift 14:15 Life Or Death: Medical Mysteries 15:00 Real Emergency Calls 15:25 Who On Earth Did I Marry?

15:50 True Crime With Aphrodite Jones 16:35 Disappeared 17:20 The Prosecutors 18:10 Forensic Detectives 19:00 Murder Shift 19:45 Real Emergency Calls 20:10 Mystery Diagnosis 20:55 Who On Earth Did I Marry?

21:20 True Crime With Aphrodite Jones

00:00 00:30 01:00 02:00 03:00 03:30 04:30 05:30 06:00 06:30 07:00 08:00 09:00 09:30 10:30 11:30 12:00 12:30

Travel Madness Earth Tripping Meet The Amish Young Global Hotshots Bondi Rescue Endurance Traveller Long Way Down Destination Extreme Travel Madness Earth Tripping Meet The Amish Young Global Hotshots Bondi Rescue Endurance Traveller Long Way Down Destination Extreme Travel Madness Earth Tripping

THE LAST AIRBENDER ON OSN MOVIES HD

00:00 Fatal Secrets-PG15 02:00 The Spirit-PG15 04:00 Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within-PG 06:00 Fighting-PG15 08:00 Friday Night Lights-PG15 10:00 You Got Served-PG15 12:00 Secret Window-PG15 14:00 Friday Night Lights-PG15 16:00 Fast Lane-PG15 18:00 Secret Window-PG15 20:00 Gothika-18 22:00 RoboCop 3-PG15

01:00 Nine Dead-PG15 03:00 Eat Pray Love-PG15 05:30 Love The Beast-PG 07:15 Hoodwinked Too! Hood vs.

Evil-PG15 09:00 Alabama Moon-PG15 11:00 Adventures Of A Teenage Dragonslayer-PG 12:45 Battle: Los Angeles-PG15 15:00 Mars Needs Moms-PG 17:00 I Am Number Four-PG15 19:00 Ice Dreams-PG15 21:00 Jonah Hex-PG15 22:45 No Strings Attached-18

03:00 Friends 04:00 Dharma And Greg 06:00 Malcolm In The Middle 08:30 Friends 12:00 Malcolm In The Middle 12:30 Dharma And Greg 13:30 Just Shoot Me 14:00 Friends 16:30 How I Met Your Mother 18:00 Friends 18:30 Friends 19:00 Modern Family 19:30 Hot In Cleveland 20:00 Community 20:30 Wilfred 21:00 The Daily Show Global Edition 21:30 The Colbert Report Global Edition 22:00 Enlightened 22:30 Hung

00:00 01:00 02:00 03:00 04:00 05:00 06:00 07:00 08:00 08:30 09:00 10:00 11:00 12:00

Unforgettable The Closer Top Gear (US) Body Of Proof Off The Map The Closer Good Morning America Tower Prep Emmerdale Coronation Street The Ellen DeGeneres Show The Martha Stewart Show The View Unforgettable

01:00 Madso’s War-18 03:00 Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within-PG 05:00 Sleep Dealer-18 07:00 The Sorcerer’s ApprenticePG15 09:00 Rocky III-PG15 11:00 Behind Enemy Lines-PG15 13:00 King Arthur-PG15 15:15 Rocky III-PG15 17:00 Age Of The Dragons-PG15 19:00 Rollerball-18 21:00 RoboCop 3-PG15

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

Nativity!-PG Bob Roberts-PG15 Lost In Yonkers-PG Happy Ever Afters-PG15 Tooth Fairy-PG 5 Dollars A Day-PG15 My Father The Hero-PG15 Miami Rhapsody-PG15 Nativity!-PG My Sassy Girl-PG15 The Trip-PG15 Tank Girl-PG15

01:00 I Capture The Castle-18 03:00 Flicka 2-PG15 05:00 Too Big To Fail-PG15 07:00 City Of Life-PG15 09:00 Post Grad-PG15 11:00 The Last Airbender-PG 13:00 Lottery Ticket-PG15 15:00 Everybody Wants To Be Italian-PG15 17:00 Post Grad-PG15 19:00 The Last House On The Left 21:00 Les Miserables 25th Anniversary-PG15 23:00 The Trip-PG15

00:30 Quest For Zhu-PG 02:00 Christopher Columbus-PG 04:00 Shipwrecked-PG 06:00 Columbus III: The New WorldPG 08:00 Quest For Zhu-PG 10:00 Furry Vengeance-PG 12:00 102 Dalmatians-PG 14:00 Columbus III: The New WorldPG 16:00 I’ll Be Home For Christmas-PG 18:00 Furry Vengeance-PG 20:00 Pocahontas & The Spider Woman-PG

01:00 06:00 07:00 10:00 14:30 15:00 18:30 21:30 22:00 22:30

ODI Cricket Highlights Volvo Ocean Race Snooker The Welsh Open European PGA Tour Volvo Ocean Race Highlights Premier League Darts Snooker The Welsh Open Volvo Ocean Race Highlights ODI Crickert Highlights Super League

01:00 02:00 05:00 07:00 08:00 09:00 10:00 11:00 13:00 14:00 15:00 17:00 18:00 19:00 22:00 23:00

WWE Bottom Line UFC UFC Unleashed WWE Bottom Line WWE Experience Speedway Intercontinental Le Mans Cup V8 Supercars WWE NXT WWE Experience WWE SmackDown Power Boats UIM Speedway UFC UFC 144 Countdown UFC The Ultimate Fighter

00:00 Scottish Premier League 02:00 Snooker 05:00 ODI Cricket Highlights 05:30 Trans World Sport 06:30 Futbol Mundial 07:00 Scottish Premier League 11:00 World Cup Of Pool 12:00 World Pool Masters 13:00 Bass Fishing 14:00 Super League 16:00 Top 14 18:00 ODI Cricket Highlights 18:30 Volvo Ocean Race 19:30 Futbol Mundial 20:00 Trans World Sport 21:00 Scottish Premier League Highlights

00:00 ODI Cricket Highlights 00:30 Super League 02:30 Top 14 04:30 Scottish Premier League 06:30 FIVB Beach Volley Ball 07:00 Golfing World 10:00 Top 14 12:00 Futbol Mundial 12:30 Golfing World 13:30 Volvo Ocean Race 14:30 ODI Cricket Highlights 15:00 Scottish Premier League 19:00 Golfing World 20:00 European PGA Tour Highlights 21:00 ODI Cricket Highlights

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

UFO Hunters The Universe Mud Men Pawn Stars Storage Wars Ancient Aliens The Universe UFO Hunters The Universe Mud Men Pawn Stars Storage Wars Ancient Aliens The Universe UFO Hunters The Universe Mud Men Pawn Stars Storage Wars Ancient Aliens The Universe UFO Hunters The Universe Investigating History Ice Road Truckers Ice Road Truckers UFO Files

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

Glam Fairy Open House Homes With Style Open House Videofashion Daily Videofashion News How Do I Look?

Whose Wedding Is It Anyway?

Married Away Clean House Videofashion News Videofashion News Videofashion Daily Open House How Do I Look?

Whose Wedding Is It Anyway?

Clean House Dress My Nest Mel B: It’s A Scary World How Do I Look?

Giuliana & Bill Kimora: Life In The Fab Lane Jerseylicious Designer Marathon Tia And Tamera Tia And Tamera Clean House: New York Giuliana & Bill Kimora: Life In The Fab Lane

00:00 Globe Trekker 01:00 Cruising The Amazon 02:00 Indian Times 03:00 Essential 03:30 Cruise Today 04:00 Inside Luxury Travel-Varun Sharma 05:00 Globe Trekker 07:00 Planet Food 08:00 Globe Trekker 09:00 Planet Sports 10:00 Intrepid Journeys 11:00 Planet Food 12:00 Flavours Of Mexico 12:30 Life’s A Trip 13:00 Globe Trekker 14:00 Planet Food 15:00 Globe Trekker 16:00 The Ethical Hedonist 17:00 Globe Trekker

01:10 02:45 04:20 07:30 08:00 09:35 11:15 12:55 14:25 16:15 17:40 19:25 21:30 23:00

Wise Guys The Split Doctor Zhivago-PG TCM Presents Under...-U Billy The Kid-PG Kismet-FAM Blackboard Jungle-PG Live A Little, Love A Little-PG Young Bess-FAM Viva Las Vegas-FAM Show Boat-FAM The Yearling-FAM My Favorite Year-PG Heart Of Darkness

Classifieds MONDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2012

ACCOMMODATION Sharing accommodation available in a C-A/C flat in Abbasiya for 2 Christian bachelors or Christian couple from 1st March.

Contact: 65625804.

(C 3876) 20-2-2012

DIAL 161 FOR AIRPORT INFORMATION

Airlines QTR JZR KLM PIA JZR JZR ETH THY UAE QTR DHX MSR FDB ETD GFA RBG KAC DHX FAH JZR JZR BAW KAC KAC FDB KAC KAC KAC KAC UAE ABY QTR ETD FDB GFA KAC JZR RKM MEA IRC MSR MSR BAB KAC GFA SYR FDB RBG UAL OMA QTR KNE SVA RJA KAC JZR KAC KAC QTR JZR JZR ETD UAE KAC GFA SVA ABY JZR ALK FDB KAC KAC KAC KAC KAC AIC KAC KAC FDB KAC JAI JZR MSR DHX GRF MEA GFA QTR UAE JZR KLM TAR JZR UAL BBC DLH PIA

Arrival Flights on Monday 20/2/2012 Flt Route 138 DOHA 185 DUBAI 447 AMSTERDAM 205 LAHORE 267 BEIRUT 539 CAIRO 620 ADDIS ABABA 772 ISTANBUL 853 DUBAI 148 DOHA 370 BAHRAIN 612 CAIRO 67 DUBAI 305 ABU DHABI 211 BAHRAIN 3555 ALEXANDRIA 544 CAIRO 170 BAHRAIN 201 DUBAI 503 LUXOR 555 ALEXANDRIA 157 LONDON 412 MANILA 206 ISLAMABAD 53 DUBAI 352 COCHIN 302 MUMBAI 284 DHAKA 362 COLOMBO 855 DUBAI 125 SHARJAH 132 DOHA 301 ABU DHABI 55 DUBAI 213 BAHRAIN 344 CHENNAI 165 DUBAI 310 RAS ALKHAIMAH 404 BEIRUT 6521 LAMERD 623 SOHAG 610 CAIRO 436 BAHRAIN 672 DUBAI 219 BAHRAIN 341 DAMASCUS 57 DUBAI 3557 ALEXANDRIA 982 WASHINGTON DC DULLES 645 MUSCAT 140 DOHA 745 JEDDAH 500 JEDDAH 640 AMMAN 788 JEDDAH 257 BEIRUT 550 SOHAG 546 ALEXANDRIA 134 DOHA 561 SOHAG 535 CAIRO 303 ABU DHABI 857 DUBAI 118 NEW YORK 215 BAHRAIN 510 RIYADH 127 SHARJAH 777 JEDDAH 227 COLOMBO 63 DUBAI 542 CAIRO 744 DAMMAM 786 JEDDAH 618 DOHA 674 DUBAI 975 CHENNAI 104 LONDON 774 RIYADH 61 DUBAI 552 DAMASCUS 572 MUMBAI 177 DUBAI 618 ALEXANDRIA 372 BAHRAIN 81 BAGHDAD 402 BEIRUT 217 BAHRAIN 136 DOHA 859 DUBAI 135 BAHRAIN 445 AMSTERDAM 327 TUNIS 239 AMMAN 981 BAHRAIN 43 DHAKA 636 FRANKFURT 239 SIALKOT

Departure Flights on Monday 20/2/2012 Time 0:20 0:20 0:30 0:40 0:45 0:50 1:45 2:15 2:35 2:55 2:55 3:00 3:05 3:10 3:15 3:15 4:40 5:15 5:30 5:55 6:00 6:40 6:45 7:40 7:45 7:50 7:55 8:15 8:20 8:30 9:00 9:05 9:15 9:20 9:55 10:35 11:20 11:45 11:55 12:00 12:30 12:55 12:55 13:20 13:25 13:45 13:50 14:00 14:05 14:15 14:20 14:25 14:30 14:40 14:50 15:00 15:15 15:20 15:25 16:10 16:25 16:50 16:55 16:55 17:15 17:20 17:40 17:45 18:10 18:40 18:50 18:55 19:10 19:15 19:25 19:30 19:35 19:40 20:00 20:05 20:10 20:25 20:45 21:00 21:15 21:20 21:25 21:35 21:40 21:55 22:05 22:35 22:45 23:00 23:45 23:50 23:55

Airlines

Flt

Route

Time

AXB

390

KOZHIKODE

0:05

UAL

981

WASHINGTON

0:45

AIC

982

AHMEDABAD

1:05

DLH

637

FRANKFURT

1:20

PIA

206

PESHAWAR

1:40

KLM

447

AMSTERDAM

1:45

ETH

621

ADDIS ABABA

2:45

THY

773

ISTANBUL

3:15

FDB

68

DUBAI

3:45

UAE

854

DUBAI

3:50

RBG

3558

ALEXANDRIA

3:55

DHX

371

BAHRAIN

3:55

MSR

613

CAIRO

4:00

ETD

306

ABU DHABI

4:00

QTR

139

DOHA

4:40

QTR

149

DOHA

5:40

JZR

164

DUBAI

6:55

GFA

212

BAHRAIN

7:00

FDB

54

DUBAI

8:25

KAC

545

ALEXANDRIA

8:30

BAW

156

LONDON

8:40

KAC

549

SOHAG

8:55

JZR

256

BEIRUT

9:00

KAC

671

DUBAI

9:00

JZR

534

CAIRO

9:15

KAC

787

JEDDAH

9:25

JZR

560

SOHAG

9:30

UAE

856

DUBAI

9:40

ABY

126

SHARJAH

9:45

ETD

302

ABU DHABI

10:00

FDB

56

DUBAI

10:05

QTR

133

DOHA

10:10

GFA

214

BAHRAIN

10:40

KAC

165

ROME

11:45

KAC

541

CAIRO

12:00

JZR

776

JEDDAH

12:15

KAC

103

LONDON

12:30

RKM

311

RAS ALKHAIMAH

12:50

MEA

405

BEIRUT

12:55

IRC

6522

LAMERD

13:00

MSR

624

SOHAG

13:30

KAC

785

JEDDAH

13:40

MSR

611

CAIRO

13:55

GFA

220

BAHRAIN

14:20

FDB

58

DUBAI

14:35

RBG

3556

ALEXANDRIA

14:40

KAC

551

DAMASCUS

14:40

SYR

342

DAMASCUS

14:45

KAC

673

DUBAI

15:05

KNE

746

JEDDAH

15:10

OMA

646

MUSCAT

15:15

UAL

982

BAHRAIN

15:20

RJA

641

AMMAN

15:35

SVA

501

JEDDAH

15:45

KAC

617

DOHA

15:55

JZR

176

DUBAI

16:00

KAC

743

DAMMAM

16:15

KAC

773

RIYADH

16:25

QTR

141

DOHA

16:30

JZR

238

AMMAN

17:15

QTR

135

DOHA

17:25

ETD

304

ABU DHABI

17:35

JZR

538

CAIRO

17:40

GRF

82

BAGHDAD

18:00

UAE

858

DUBAI

18:10

GFA

216

BAHRAIN

18:15

ABY

128

SHARJAH

18:25

SVA

511

RIYADH

18:35

BAB

437

BAHRAIN

18:55

JZR

134

BAHRAIN

19:05

ALK

228

DUBAI

19:10

FDB

64

DUBAI

19:20

KAC

283

DHAKA

20:15

FDB

62

DUBAI

20:40

KAC

331

TRIVANDRUM

21:00

DHX

171

BAHRAIN

21:00

KAC

351

KOCHI

21:05

JZR

184

DUBAI

21:05

JAI

571

MUMBAI

21:10

MSR

619

ALEXANDRIA

21:45

KAC

543

CAIRO

21:55 22:00

DHX

373

BAHRAIN

MEA

403

BEIRUT

22:20

GFA

218

BAHRAIN

22:25

FAH

102

DUBAI

22:30

QTR

137

DOHA

22:35

JZR

554

ALEXANDRIA

22:45

UAE

860

DUBAI

22:50

KAC

205

ISLAMABAD

23:00

KLM

445

BAHRAIN

23:05

TAR

327

DUBAI

23:35

JZR

528

ASSIUT

23:35

KAC

411

BANGKOK

23:55

Directorate General of Civil Aviation Home Page (www.kuwait-airport.com.kw)

To let from March 1, 2012, 1 semi furnished big room with attached toilet from a 3 bed room spacious flat in B’neid Al-Ghar. Ideal for executives. Rent KD 75/- for single occupancy and KD 95/- for double occupancy.

Contact: 60914165. (C 3868) Sharing available for Christian family, C-A/C, room + bathroom, near Learners Academy, Abbassiya. Small family or two bachelors. Contact: 66265733 / 24346514.

(C 3869) 12-2-2012

FOR SALE 2005, Chevy Trail Blazer XL, 7 seater, maroon, good condition, lady driven, brand new tires, KD 2500. Call 67005485.

(C 3875) 19-2-202012 Chevrolet Optra 2009 is on immediate sale for KD 2,350/- as expat leaving Kuwait. Showroom maintained and in excellent condition. Contact: 99754454.

(C 3867) 11-2-2012

CHANGE OF NAME I, Sobhana Kumari, holder of Indian Passport No. F0925466 hereby change my name Sara Saad Mubarak Salman. (C 3870) 20-2-2012 I, Medamalli Venkata Subbaiah, holder of Indian Passport No: F4933824, resident of S/o M. Subbaiah, Kuppavari Palli ( Village), Seetharampuram (Post), Rajampet (Mandal), Kadapa District, Andra Pradesh, have changed my name to Medamalli Sreenivas.

I, Anis s/o Ali Mohammed, holding Indian Passport No.E1091168, R/o 147/10 Najampura, Bohrawadi, Udaipur (RAJ ), have changed name to SHABBIR ALI MOHAMMED s/o Ali Mohammed in future be called and known by new name. (C 3873) I, Pappu Lal s/o Mohan Lal, holder of Indian Passport No. E5530889 hereby change my name to KAMALESH DEVRA. (C 3874) 16-2-2012 I, Vinod Kumar S/O Narinder Kumar holder of Indian Passport No. H4590145 hereby change my name to VINOD KUMAR GOGNA. (C 3871) 14-2-2012 I, Sobhana Kumari, holder of Indian Passport No. F0925460 here by change my name Sara Saad Mubarak Salman. (C 3870) 13-2-2011

SITUATION WANTED Diploma Engineer/ 16 years project sales experience (9 yrs in Kuwait) seeking suitable position from reputed companies. Contact: 55339596/ 99759183. (C 3860) 7-2-2012

SITUATION VACANT A Kuwaiti woman is looking to hire a driver. No residency transfer required. Contact: 99215511. (C 3872) 16-2-2012 A Kuwaiti woman is looking to hire a driver. No residency

transfer required. Contact: 99215511. (C 3872) 16-2-2012

MISCELLANEOUS Original guaranteed Palestinian virgin olive oil, large black and green olives for sale. Tel: 66517417 Whole Floor or small villa needed for rent in Shaab, Mansoriya, Nozha, Abdullah Al-Salem or Shamiya. Direct contact with owner. Tel: 9989018-99169016 A camp for rent in Kabed including five tents with all services. Complete privacy + game arcade. Tel: 97177714 Size 36 air pressure gun for sale in addition to a scope, safety lock. Shooting range 350 meters +bag+25 shots.

Price KD 70. Tel: 97790478 A 3700 watt, 2012 model ASTRA generator for sale.

Japanese parts assembled in China with pressure and gas meters. Price KD 85. Tel: 60066891 For rent in Hawalli a one bedroom (4x4m) and a 7x3.5 m reception+ terrace, fully equipped kitchen and bathroom. Tunis street, behind Al-Andalus pharmacy. Tel: 99683200 A 2008 white, 1600 CC Nissan Sunny. Price KD 1700. Tel: 99553221 A 2008 dark blue 6 cylinder Toyota Prado with Beige sued interior, low mileage, touch A/C, CD, cruise control, front and rear sensors for sale. Price KD 6650. Tel: 99275550 A 2009 white, 6 cylinder Toyota Prado with 40,000 mileage touch A/C, CD, cruise control, front and rear sensors for sale. Price KD 7850. Tel: 9747750855809093 A 2009 YUKUN Suburban GMC XL with low mileage and beige sued interior, electric seats, cruise control, super headlights, rear camera, remote recording and rear sensors. Price 8550. Tel: 99301914 For rent a two storey villa and a basement in Mangaf including 8 rooms, laundry room, yard, parking. Rent value KD 1000. Tel: 97996900 A storey and half for rent in Mangaf including two 3 bedroom apartments with 2 baths, reception, kitchen, driver room each. Tel: 66989887 For rent a ground floor in Qurain comprising of four rooms, large reception, 5 baths, maid room, courtyard, parking. Rent value KD 550. Tel: 66989887 A fully central air-conditioned two room annex in Mangaf with separate exit and shaded car parking for rent to expatriates. Tel: 67753557 For rent in Ashbelia: two

No: 15365

apartments with 3 bedrooms, bath, kitchen and maid room each plus a yard in between. Tel: 90001594 A 2005 Mini Cooper for sale. Tel: 99224855 A 2006 Lumina for sale with genuine factory paint.

Price KD 2100. Tel: 69945429 A 2009 Touareg for sale.

Price 6350. Tel: 96670777 Senior English teacher for Pakistani, bilingual schools, T.M.A., Ielts, Toefl, IBT K.S.S., social studies and math. Tel: 99577430 For sale: a 375 square meter house in Omariya, fully rented for KD 600.

Price KD 185,000. Tel: 66815590 Transportation ser vice available. Payment in advanced conditioned for all areas. Tel: 66678633 The smallest and most up to date recording device (2012 model) for sale.

Finger size, voice activated, records up to 600 hrs, made in Japan. Free delivery. Tel: 99773818 Original guaranteed Palestinian virgin olive oil for sale. Tel: 55740271 Upholster and tailor needed with good experience.

Salar y determined per experience. Tel: 97813458

TUITION Business management teacher with doctoral degree for universities, institutions, corporate & all student levels. Over 10 years experience.

Call 66495951. (C 3817) Mathematics teacher, Intermediate and secondary Exams models, Easy method, Exams from past years with solutions. 97301901 English teacher (3) years experience, looking for a job and ready to start with all educational stages.

55963993 Mathematics teacher for Universities, Institutions, Foreign Schools, Administrative, American, English, Australian, Bahrain, Electric and Gulf Sciences, Algbra Prel, Mathematics, intermediate, gmat, sat college, math98, 110 pre calculus geometry. 97619261 A Syrian Arabic language teacher. Masters in methods of teaching and follow up of 10th grade and 11th grade students. 97934291

Islamic education teacher for elementary and intermediate stages. Experienced in Kuwait curricula. Easy explanation, and summary of the subject, training for exams.

66292985 Syrian Arabic language teacher for elementary and intermediate stages.

Experienced in following learning difficulties, and those weak in reading and writing. 97264100 Female senior Mathematics teacher with more that 30 years experience in Kuwait, to teach secondary, intermediate and elementary stages.

Religious and applied, communications and navigation institutions, special courses and secretariat institution.

97926737 Computer teacher for secondary and intermediate.

Practical on laptop, power point projects, front page, visual basic data, universities and applied institutions.

50603063

FOR RENT For rent at Salmiya, Apt 3 BR + 3 toilets + hall + kitchen + satellite, excellent location. Foreigners and expats only, no mediators.

Tel: 66060299. (14183) For rent commercial Apt at the sea, excellent location, 190 square meter, suitable for (beauty saloon, consulting office, lawyers office).

Tel: 66060299. (15004) For rent Apt at Salmiya 2 BR + 2 toilets + maid room + hall + kitchen and balcony for families only. Rent KD 280/-. Tel: 66980123.

(15007) For rent basement at Hawalli, excellent location, plastic floor, C-A/C, for serious only, please call: 66980123. (C 25997) Furnished Apt for rent in Salmiya 2 BR + hall + kitchen + satellite & DSL + parking, families only. Rent KD 450/-. Tel: 66297171. (C 14941) For rent, one floor in a commercial complex in Salmiya, at main street suitable for Coffee Shop or Restaurant for serious only call: 66980123. (15006) For rent floor at South of Surra, 4 BR + maid room + 4 toilets, hall and elevator. KD 800/-. Tel: 66604095.

(15041) For rent complete floor at Jabriya, 5 BR out of which 4 are master BR + 5 toilets + hall and elevator KD 750/-.

Tel: 66604095. (15103)

34

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2012

stars CROSSWORD 594

STAR TRACK

CALVIN & HOBBES

Aries (March 21-April 19) Your energy is high and your creative mind is busy, ready to be applied to whatever creative work you have decided to throw yourself into now. Considerable success is sure to be yours—your concentration is at a high. You are expressive and if it is help you need, it is help you will receive. Perhaps you are ice sculpturing or wood carving and intend to win an award. Lady luck is on your side—you are buoyed with confidence. You will succeed at any project you attempt. Make sure both your expectations and abilities are in balance. You are considerate to friends and family. Companionship is most rewarding and you should take every opportunity to be with your friends in fun gatherings now. There are some fun projects within your grasp.

Taurus (April 20-May 20) You have a love of life today that manifests itself in good cheer and generosity. This is a time when relationships, especially with women, are good. There is an aspect of good fortune. Parental instincts may come to the forefront now and you may make every effort to placate any discord in the home.

Also, there is a strong wish to make your surroundings as pleasant as possible. The accent all day is on sociability. This should be one of those nice days when everything goes well. A time that is great for social get-togethers with lighthearted conversation.

You will be full of energy at this time and ready to take on the world. Any past tensions can easily be forgotten. It is a perfect day to go to a concert, take a drive or start a vacation.

POOCH CAFE ACROSS 1. A master's degree in business.

4. A source of danger.

10. A benevolent aspect of Devi.

13. The sense organ for hearing and equilibrium.

14. Evergreen Indian shrub with vivid yellow flowers whose bark is used in tanning.

15. Beyond or deviating from the usual or expected.

16. A loose sleeveless outer garment made from aba cloth.

17. Enter a computer.

19. A river in southeastern Australia that flows generally northwest to join the Darling River.

21. A small piece of cloth.

22. A Hindu prince or king in India.

23. 300 to 3000 kilohertz.

24. A federal agency established to coordinate programs aimed at reducing pollution and protecting the environment.

26. Jordan's port.

29. Having the wind against the forward side of the sails.

33. Rich and superior in quality.

37. Committee formed by a special-interest group to raise money for their favorite political candidates.

38. According to the Old Testament he was a pagan king of Israel and husband of Jezebel (9th century BC).

40. A river in north central Switzerland that runs northeast into the Rhine.

41. An unforeseen obstacle.

43. Norwegian mathematician (1802-1829).

45. A metric unit of volume or capacity equal to 10 liters.

46. A radioactive element of the actinide series.

47. Relating to the deepest parts of the ocean (below 6000 meters).

49. Someone who works (or provides workers) during a strike.

53. Greek mythology.

57. An association of countries in the western hemisphere.

61. American prizefighter who won the world heavyweight championship three times (born in 1942).

62. The law enforcement agency in the Justice Department.

63. Inability to urinate.

64. Having undesirable or negative qualities.

65. Title for a civil or military leader (especially in Turkey).

66. Burrowing herbivorous Australian marsupials about the size of a badger.

67. Used of a single unit or thing.

DOWN 1. (statistics) Approximating the statistical norm or average or expected value.

2. A small cake leavened with yeast.

3. The biblical name for ancient Syria.

4. Provincial capital and largest city of Nova Scotia.

5. 100 avos equal 1 pataca.

6. The capital of Croatia.

7. An elaborate song for solo voice.

8. An area in which something acts or operates or has power or control.

9. Diabetes caused by a relative or absolute deficiency of insulin and characterized by polyuria.

10. The capital and largest city of Mongolia.

11. Tough Asiatic grass whose culms are used for ropes and baskets.

12. Type genus of the Amiidae.

18. A peninsula between the Red Sea and the Persian Gulf.

20. Fast-growing herbaceous evergreen tree of South America having a broad trunk with high water content and dark green oval leaves.

25. A number of sheets of paper fastened together along one edge.

27. English actor noted for his portrayals of Shakespeare's great tragic characters (1789-1833).

28. Type genus of the Alcidae comprising solely the razorbill.

30. (Babylonian) God of storms and wind.

31. Disturb in mind or make uneasy or cause to be worried or alarmed.

32. The median ridge on the breastbone of birds that fly.

34. (Akkadian) God of wisdom.

35. An amino acid that is found in the central nervous system.

36. In bed.

39. A transuranic element that has not been found in nature.

40. An elaborate song for solo voice.

42. Light informal conversation for social occasions.

44. East Indian tart yellow berrylike fruit.

48. A white soft metallic element that tarnishes readily.

50. Open-heart surgery in which the rib cage is opened and a section of a blood vessel is grafted from the aorta to the coronary artery to bypass the blocked section of the coronary artery and improve the blood supply to the heart.

51. The largest continent with 60% of the earth's population.

52. A river in central Italy rising in the Apennines and flowing through Florence and Pisa to the Ligurian Sea. 53. (informal) `johnny' was applied as a nickname for Confederate soldiers by the Federal soldiers in the American Civil War. 54. A metabolic acid found in yeast and liver cells.

55. A feeling of strong eagerness (usually in favor of a person or cause).

56. An officer who acts as military assistant to a more senior officer.

58. The 23rd letter of the Hebrew alphabet.

59. The ball-shaped capsule containing the vertebrate eye.

60. Perennial herb of East India to Polynesia and Australia cultivated for its large edible root yielding Otaheite arrowroot starch.

Yesterday’s Solution

Gemini (May 21-June 20) You enjoy being around people in general today; the rapport between you and your significant other should be especially strong at this time. With this understanding, you both can be nurturing without being pushy.

Unfortunately, your rapport with food and drink could also be strong. Work is definitely on the back burner, although you could be inspired to do something to beautify your home or surroundings. A new job offer may come from a surprising source this afternoon and could possibly be worth your consideration. Whatever your financial situation is, keep in mind that your job for this year is to build up reserve funds.

Building up reserve funds will provide some security and a little stress relief. It may be a time to plan your next vacation.

Cancer (June 21-July 22)

NON SEQUITUR

Your emotions have taken a short vacation, giving you some time to calmly reflect on where you are and where you are going. If something puzzles you, an older, wiser head may give guidance. If any problem arises, you can handle it methodically and without panic. You may take comfort in the past, with its old ways and old solutions. If they worked once, they will probably work again.

This afternoon, you may become more actively involved on a social level—taking a bigger part in collective events and developments. A friend or acquaintance may not want to follow through on some responsibilities today and this could cause you a great deal of discomfort. You have little patience with people who do not live up to their word. Practice meditation.

Leo (July 23-August 22) Practice meditation as often as possible and count your blessings today—this is indeed, your day. Be flexible with regard to the old routine. You will be receiving lots of attention regarding your talents. There are discussions around continued education and you may want to take some sort of creative writing class—others encourage you. You always have a lot of interesting things to say. If you are self-employed or earn a living by means of your wits—do something different for today! Loved ones, children and other people or things dear to your heart are emphasized today. There is a chance to understand those around you and to have a special time with someone you love. General good feelings and a sense of support and harmony make this a happy time.

ZITS

Virgo (August 23-September 22) This morning you may find yourself giving lectures or teaching some sort of self-help class. You have a supersensitive awareness of the moods and needs of others, making you a fine teacher. This afternoon financial ties or obligations grab your attention. Your instinctive orientation is to have things organized and set up for tax time or perhaps to use an accountant. Be careful when you talk about home improvements with family members this evening. If you are not flexible, others could respond to your ideas in a negative way. There may be a little time to do things with friends this evening, even though it may only be catching up with each other’s activities over the phone. You appreciate harmony and are willing to share your cheerful attitude.

Libra (September 23-October 22)

MOTHER GOOSE AND GRIMM

Today you are interested in grasping the widest view of a concept—this could be an interesting day. You will find others want to join in the conversation—input and ideas from people are welcome.

These contributions reinforce and widen your vision as well as fill in a few gaps of information. You gain fresh insight at this time. You can become distracted this afternoon, so if you hear something you think might benefit you, write it down.

You have a festive spirit and it’s best to act on it now. You should do well at social gatherings and activities you hold at home for friends or relatives. Your sensitivity to others is heightened and increases your physical attractiveness—expressing affection should come easily and is most positive.

Scorpio (October 23-November 21) This is a great day to get things done, whether you are alone or with others, especially if you lead. You take an interest in social activities and pursuits like religion and volunteer work. However, this could be the day you move, put things in storage or repair an existing housing problem. Your mental attitude is positive—this is the time to discuss any problems with friends and get them out in the open and solved. With your guidance, others will know just what to do and their progress will be fast. Reward the people that have helped you—perhaps a pizza party or some other fun way to show your appreciation. There may be numerous romantic interests in your life right now. As such, you may spend a great deal of time and effort toward balancing commitments.

Sagittarius (November 22-December 21) Logic prevails. You can think about all of your relationships— friendships, associations or love affairs—and discuss them without emotions getting in the way. This is a good day for fun communication between best friends. This time indicates that relations with partners are both easygoing and rewarding. Later this afternoon, you and this friend may find a used book store to enjoy. Find a book about some intriguing new subject to you or a new creative project. A common interest in spiritual and mystical values among family members may occur at this time. You are gracious and understanding to friends and relatives. This is an excellent time to engage in activities with members of the opposite sex. It’s also a good time to give Mom a call.

Capricorn (December 22-January 19)

To

Your emotions could be difficult today. You could be confusing to yourself and others; meditate and focus. If you are teaching a religious class or guiding young people, you will be able to help others easily and in turn, help yourself. You have a love of life that manifests itself in good cheer. This is a time when relationships are good. There is also an aspect of good fortune. You show a great deal of interest in all family matters, particularly with regard to the general living environment. Try to relax now since anxiety can be paralyzing. Your power to effect a positive change in a special relationship is greater than you can imagine at this time. Your inner resources and emotions are accented. Expect a sense of support and goodwill from those around you.

Yesterday’s Solution Yester

Aquarius (January 20- February 18) There is an interest in religion and philosophy, with many questions being raised about mysterious topics like your purpose in life. Relationships are the order of the day. Being with the people you care about and that care about you is an important part of this day. There may be an occasion to celebrate and visit with each other. If you have a collection of pictures of people everyone knows, it might be fun to share the event or adventures.

Chores are definitely on the back burner, although you could be inspired to plan future projects that will help to beautify your home surroundings. You might want to think about what plants you would like for the spring planting. This is a good time to get new seedlings started inside.

Pisces (February 19-March 20)

Word Sleuth Solution

Your experiences will be out of the ordinary and you will likely feel very generous today. Great opportunities may emerge in particularly in spiritual affairs. Good things are easily attracted to you today. There is much energy at this time that is best applied out-of-doors, engaging in activities that are both carefree and pleasant with friends and relatives. You face tremendous responsibilities in relationships with loved ones and are apt to have difficulty expressing wants and desires openly to companions. You should try during this time to loosen up and enjoy your companions without being afraid to voice true feelings. Games and exercise, such as the ones today, would bring several opportunities to clear away difficulties and deepen friendships.

A

y

e niv rsar n

Years

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2012

i n f o r m at i o n

FIRE BRIGADE STATE ST TAT TE OF KUWAIT K KUW WAIT A

112

Tel.: T e el.: 161

DIRECTORA DIRECTORATE ATE T GENE GENERAL ERAL OF CIVIL A AVIATION V VIA ATION T DEPARTMENT METEOROLOGICAL DEP D PARTMENT A DAY: DA AY: Y Sunday

WWW .MET.GOV V.KW . W WWW.MET.GOV.KW

19/02/2012

Ministry of Interior

Ext.: 2627 262 27 - 2630

Fax: 24348714

07:00

Issue T Time ime

Expected Weather Weather for the Next 24 4 Hours Dusty with moderate freshening att times north westerly wind, with speed of 20 - 40 km/h

BY Y DA DAY: AY:

website: www.moi.gov.kw to fresh north westerly Dust will w subside gradually with moderate m westeerly wind, with speed of 20 - 45 km/h

NIGHT:: BY Y NIGHT

For labor-related inquiries and complaints: Call MSAL hotline 128

Dusty weather

WARNING W ARNING A STATION ST TATION T

MAX. EXP EXP. P.

MIN.. REC.

KUWAIT KUW WAIT A CITY

19 °C

15 °C

24812000

KUWAIT AIRPORT KUW WAIT A AIRPOR RT

19 °C

14 °C

Amiri Hospital

22450005

NUWAISEEB NUW WAISEEB A

21 °C C

15 °C C

Maternity Hospital

24843100

WAFRA W AFRA A

20 °C

12 °C

Mubarak Al-Kabir Hospital

25312700

SALMI

18 °C

11 11 °C

Chest Hospital

24849400

ABDALY ABDAL LY

20 °C

13 °C

Farwaniya Hospital

24892010

ALIYAH JAL ALIY YA AH

20 °C

13 °C

Adan Hospital

23940620

FAILAKA F AILAKA A

19 °C

14 °C

Ibn Sina Hospital

24840300

PORT AHMADI POR RT

21 °C

16 °C

Al-Razi Hospital

24846000

UMM AL-MARADEM M

19 °C

16 °C

Physiotherapy Hospital

24874330/9

WARBA BUBYAN W ARBA A A - BUBY YA AN

18 °C

14 °C

Hospitals Sabah Hospital

Clinics

SFC. CHAR CHART T

19/02/2012 0000 UTC

4 DA DAYS AYS Y FORECAST

4732263

Roudha

22517733

DAY DA AY

DA DATE AT TE

WEA WEATHER ATHER T

Adhaliya

22517144

Monday

20/02

Khaldiya

24848075

Tuesday Tuesday

Keifan

24849807

Wednesday Wednesday e

Shamiya

24848913

Thursday

Shuwaikh

24814507

Abdullah Salim

22549134

Fajr

05:05

MAX. Temp.

MA AX. T emp.

25 °C

Al-Nuzha

22526804

Sunrise S i

06:24 06 24

MIIN. IN Temp.

Temp.

MIN.

12 °C

Industrial Shuwaikh

24814764

Zuhr

12:02

MAX. RH M

68 %

Asr

15:15

M RH MIN.

21 %

Sunset

17:40

MA AX. W ind MAX. Wind

Isha

18:57

TOT TAL AL RAI INF FA ALL L IN 24 HR. TOTAL RAINFALL

22515088

Dasmah

22532265

Bneid Al-Ghar

22531908

Al-Shaab

22518752

Al-Kibla

22459381

Ayoun Al-Kibla

22451082

Al-Mirqab

22456536

Sharq

22465401

Salmiya

25746401

Jabriya

25316254

Maidan Hawally

25623444

Bayan

25388462

Mishref

25381200

W.Hawally

22630786

Sabah

24810221

Jahra

24770319

New Jahra

24575755

West Jahra

24772608

South Jahra

24775066

North Jahra

24775992

North Jleeb

24311795

Al-Ardhiya

24884079

Firdous

24892674

Al-Omariya

24719048

N.Kheitan

24710044

Fintas

3900322

22418714

Al-Shohada’a

22545171

Al-Shuwaikh

24810598

Al-Nuzha

22545171

Sabhan

24742838

Al-Helaly

22434853

Al-Fayhaa

22545051

Al-Farwaniya

24711433

Al-Sulaibikhat

24316983

Al-Fahaheel

23927002

Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh

24316983

Ahmadi

23980088

Al-Mangaf

23711183

Al-Shuaiba

23262845

Al-Jahra

25610011

Al-Salmiya

25616368

POLICE STATION

Rabiya

Al-Khadissiya

Al-Madena

Temperratures Temperatures MAX.

MIN.

Wind Direction Direction Wind

Wind Wind Speed

dusty

17 °C

10 °C

NW

25 - 50 km/h

21/02

cold + raising du dust ust

16 °C

07 °C

NW

25 - 45 km/h

22/02

dust cold + raising du ust

17 °C

07 °C

NW

25 - 45 km/h

23/02

cold + scattered clo ouds clouds

18 °C

08 °C

W -VRB W-VRB

06 - 28 km/h

PRAYER PR RA AYER Y TIMES

RECORDED D YESTERDAY YESTERDA AY AT AT KUWAIT KUW WAIT A T AIRPORT AIRPORT

unless All times are local time un nless otherwise stated.

Al-Madena Police Station Al-Murqab Police Station Al-Daiya Police Station Al-Fayha’a Police Station Al-Qadissiya Police Station Al-Nugra Police Station Al-Salmiya Police Station Al-Dasma Police Station

22434064 22435865 22544200 22547133 22515277 22616662 25714406 22530801

THE PUBLIC AUTHORITY FOR CIVIL INFORMATION Automated enquiry

NW W 53 km/h

about the Civil ID card is 1889988

00 mm

19/02/12 03:03 UTC

V1.00

T1.06

PHARMACIES

AIRLINES

ON 24 HRS DUTY GOVERNORATE

PHARMACY

ADDRESS

PHONE

Ahmadi

Sama Safwan Abu Halaifa Danat Al-Sultan

Fahaeel Makka St Abu Halaifa-Coastal Rd Mahboula Block 1, Coastal Rd

23915883 23715414 23726558

Jahra

Modern Jahra Madina Munawara

Jahra-Block 3 Lot 1 Jahra-Block 92

24575518 24566622

Capital

Ahlam Khaldiya Coop

Fahad Al-Salem St Khaldiya Coop

22436184 24833967

Farwaniya

New Shifa Ferdous Coop Modern Safwan

Farwaniya Block 40 Ferdous Coop Old Kheitan Block 11

24734000 24881201 24726638

Hawally

Tariq Hana Ikhlas Hawally & Rawdha Ghadeer Kindy Ibn Al-Nafis Mishrif Coop Salwa Coop

Salmiya-Hamad Mubarak St Salmiya-Amman St Hawally-Beirut St Hawally & Rawdha Coop Jabriya-Block 1A Jabriya-Block 3B Salmiya-Hamad Mubarak St Mishrif Coop Salwa Coop

25726265 25647075 22625999 22564549 25340559 25326554 25721264 25380581 25628241

Kuwait Airways Jazeera Airways Jet Airways FlyDubai Qatar Airways KLM Air Slovakia Olympic Airways Royal Jordanian Reservation British Airways Air France Emirates Air India Sri Lanka Airlines Egypt Air Swiss Air Saudia Middle East Airlines Lufthansa PIA Alitalia Balkan Airlines Bangladesh Airlines Czech Airlines Indian Airlines Oman Air Turkish Airlines Aeroflot

171 177 22924455 22414400 22423888 22425747 22434940 22420002/9 22418064/5/6 22433388 22425635 22430224 22921555 22438184 22424444 22421578 22421516 22426306 22423073 22422493 22421044 22414427 22416474 22452977/8 22417901/ 2433141 22456700 22958787 22453820/1 22404838/9

PRIVATE CLINICS Ophthalmologists Dr. Abidallah Al-Mansoor 25622444 Dr. Samy Al-Rabeea 25752222 Dr. Masoma Habeeb 25321171 Dr. Mubarak Al-Ajmy 25739999 Dr. Mohsen Abel 25757700 Dr Adnan Hasan Alwayl 25732223 Dr. Abdallah Al-Baghly 25732223 Ear, Nose & Throat (ENT) Dr. Ahmed Fouad Mouner 24555050 Ext 510 Dr. Abdallah Al-Ali 25644660 Dr. Abd Al-Hameed Al-Taweel 25646478 Dr. Sanad Al-Fathalah 25311996 Dr. Mohammad Al-Daaory 25731988 Dr. Ismail Al-Fodary 22620166 Dr. Mahmoud Al-Booz 25651426 General Practitioners Dr. Mohamme Y Majidi 24555050 Ext 123 Dr. Yousef Al-Omar 24719312 Dr. Tarek Al-Mikhazeem 23926920 Dr. Kathem Maarafi 25730465 Dr. Abdallah Ahmad Eyadah 25655528 Dr. Nabeel Al-Ayoobi 24577781 Dr. Dina Abidallah Al-Refae 25333501 Urologists Dr. Ali Naser Al-Serfy 22641534 Dr. Fawzi Taher Abul 22639955 Dr. Khaleel Abidallah Al-Awadi 22616660 Dr. Adel Al-Hunayan FRCS (C) 25313120 Dr. Leons Joseph 66703427 Psychologists /Psychotherapists

Paediatricians

Plastic Surgeons Dr. Mohammad Al-Khalaf

22547272

Dr. Khaled Hamadi

Dr. Abdal-Redha Lari

22617700

Dr. Abd Al-Aziz Al-Rashed

Dr. Abdel Quttainah

25625030/60

Family Doctor Dr Divya Damodar

23729596/23729581

Psychiatrists Dr. Esam Al-Ansari

22635047

Dr Eisa M. Al-Balhan

INTERNATIONAL CALLS

22613623/0

Gynaecologists & Obstetricians DrAdrian arbe

23729596/23729581

Dr. Verginia s.Marin

2572-6666 ext 8321

Endocrinologist

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36

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2012

LIFESTYLE G o s s i p

Collins practical joke fears ily Collins thought she was the victim of a prank when she was offered the lead role in ‘Mirror, Mirror’. The 22-year-old actress admits she was initially “angry” when she received a call asking her to play Princess Snow White - the biggest part she has ever had - because she was convinced it was a joke being played at her expense, and became overwhelmed with emotion when she realized the offer was genuine. She said: “It was April Fool’s Day, so when I got the phone call I thought someone was playing a prank on me.

“I was quite angry and thought, ‘If this is someone’s idea of a joke, it’s not funny.’ But then, when I realized it was true, I burst into tears and started screaming. It’s the role of a lifetime.” Lily - who is the daughter of musician Phil Collins and his second wife Jill Tavelman has always wanted to be an actress but felt it was important to complete her education before embarking on her chosen career path.

She told Hello! magazine: “I could have started earlier than I did but I wanted to wait until I’d finished high school because I wanted to be ready, mentally and emotionally, to take on the rejection side of this business.”You get told ‘no’ so many times that if you are the sort of person who takes ‘no’ as a deterrent, then maybe this isn’t the right profession to being.

“I’ve always been driven, which I think is something I’ve inherited from both my parents and I wanted to put off my career until I felt ready to face all the nos.”

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Grantfaces ugh Grant is having a midlife crisis.

The 51-year-old actor - who became a father for the first time last September when actress Tinglan Hong gave birth to his daughter Jessica - is “embarrassed” by his new obsession with cars and thinks it stems from questioning his life as he gets older. He said: “I have a new obsession with cars. It’s almost too embarrassing to talk about. “Motor racing. I go on motor racing trips. I get taught how to drive and now go to bed and read my iPad all about how crankshafts work or disc brakes. It’s weird. I don’t know where it’s come from. “It’s a midlife crisis. That’s exactly what’s happening to me.” Hugh - who has previously dated Elizabeth Hurley and Jemima Khan - admitted he is only just

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Adele sred

midlife crisis

beginning to understand women. He told Total Film magazine: “I think [women being inexplicable] is the fascination, isn’t it? I’ve got a bit better at it I think, but I’m a late developer. “I’m 51 and just beginning to see some of the stuff that’s going on that we, as men, are generally moronic about.” The actor also claimed he enjoys appearing on ‘sexiest film star’ lists, but insists they are not his only targets. He said: “All of those [lists] are pluses. I can’t pretend I don’t have an ego, and any man would like a bit of that. But it’s not my raison d’etre.”

dele gets stomach cramps on the red carpet because she gets so nervous. Although she was the main attraction at the Grammy Awards last Sunday. leaving the ceremony with six prizes, the 23-year-old singer doesn’t enjoy attending glitzy events because all the attention freaks her out. She revealed: “I hate the red carpet. I don’t feel insecure, I just feel like, ‘Oh, I don’t want to do this.’ I literally get a stomach cramp. At the VMAs last year I felt really out of my comfort zone because there were so many superstars there. But that’s been the case from day one. I never feel like, ‘Oh, yeah, I should be here.’ And I was missing my best friend’s hen night. So I was a bit bitter that I wasn’t there, to be perfectly honest.” However, being invited to A-list events does have some

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carpet nerves

perks for Adele. One thing the ‘Rolling in the Deep’ hitmaker remembers vividly is meeting her biggest musical idol Beyonce Knowles. Adele - who shares her middle name Blue with Beyonce’s baby daughter Blue Ivy told Vogue magazine: “Beyonce has been a huge and constant part of my life as an artist since I was about 10 or 11. I love how all of her songs are about empowerment. Even when she’s married and Jay-Z put a ring on it, she releases ‘Single Ladies’. Go get yours.

Go get what you deserve. I think she’s really inspiring. She’s beautiful. She’s ridiculously talented, and she is one of the kindest people I’ve ever met. I’m the total opposite. I can moan my ass off; I can be lazy. She makes me want to do things with my life.”

Sheeransurprised by song s success d Sheeran didn’t expect ‘The A Team’ to be successful. The British singer’s track spent seven weeks in the UK top 40 singles chart last year but he admits he didn’t think it would do so well because it tells the tale of a drug-addicted teenage prostitute. He said: “I didn’t really expect it to take off with ‘The A Team’ because of what it’s about but [the next single] ‘Lego House’, I kind of knew where it would end up if it got the right radio play. “I just knew that I would end up in a position where the success would kind of take hold, so people would either think you were intensely cool for tour success or people would think you were s**t for your success.” Despite his success, Ed has been dubbed “boring” by critics but he insists he doesn’t mind. He added: “I think I got one good review [for my album ‘+’]. “If Adele’s seen as boring, then I’m happy to be boring as well. I’ve had worse.”

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Victoria loves being pregnant he singer-turned-fashion designer - who has sons Brooklyn, 12, Romeo, nine, and six-year-old Cruz, plus seven-month-old daughter Harper with husband David Beckham - hasn’t ruled out having more kids in future but doesn’t want to miss any moments in her other children’s lives. She said: I love being a mum and my children are my priority. “The thing is I’m not against having more children. I feel lucky having the kids I have and I guess I do like being pregnant. But definitely not just yet. I want to enjoy the kids I’ve got right now. Our entire lives are planned around their lives. We don’t want to miss anything in their lives. Ever.”

Victoria, 37, caused concern last week when she appeared pale and tired and she admits she has found it difficult combining work with family life following Harper’s birth. She said in an interview with the Daily Mirror newspaper: “I’m not going to lie about it, I’m tired. I’m really tired but I’m also very happy with my life. “I’m basically just like any woman who’s working and has lots of children - it’s tough. “I’m not getting much sleep at all. Harper’s not sleeping that great, and I’ve been taking Skype business calls throughout the night too because of the collections. I’m up with the baby as all mums are and I wouldn’t have it any other way. There’s not a team of people doing it for me. “It’s actually been crazy. I had Harper, I was working on the collection and I was straight back into it. I took a lot on board. I’m tired. You can’t look your best all the time.” Despite being known for her slender frame, Victoria insists she has been in no hurry to get her figure back since giving birth last July. She said: “After Harper arrived I did work out to get my body back but -quickly stopped. “I guess once Harper finally starts sleeping all the way through the night then I will start working out again. “I feel better mentally and I feel more with it. I’m actually craving being on a treadmill and maybe doing a bit of yoga.”

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Harrisdiscusses female Bond aomie Harris’ ‘Skyfall’ character sees herself as “a female Bond”.

The British actress plays mysterious Eve in the forthcoming James Bond movie and though details about the film are being kept under wraps, she says her alter ego is a match for the iconic spy. She said: “My character would like to see herself as a female bond but I don’t think anyone’s really a match for Bond.” Naomie refused to give much away about her character but she has been heavily involved in action

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role

training and using guns. She added: “I kickbox and do a lot with guns. I started off terrified by the sound of a gun let alone having any idea how to hold one but now I really enjoy it. “I started off yoga and running and I’ve also been doing stunt training and gyrotonics three times a week.” ‘Skyfall’ - which sees Daniel Craig play James bond for the third time - is released in cinemas in October.

Minogue

fears over future communication

ylie Minogue is worried she’ll have to start using “walkietalkies” to communicate to her boyfriend when she’s older. The 5ft 1in singer fears she’ll start to shrink in the future and admits if she does it will make talking to her 6ft 4in boyfriend Andreas Velencoso very difficult. The 43-year-old beauty said: “I’m still waiting for my growth spurt. It’s never too late. I’m sure I’m going to end up about 4ft 10in. My boyfriend is around 6ft 4in so we’ll end up communicating with walkie-talkies in the future. But I guess that’s why God invented high heels.” Kylie - who successfully beat breast cancer in 2005 - also revealed how she gets fed up with people always asking her whether she’s going to have children. She told Stylist magazine: “It’s such a personal question and between my age and being a cancer survivor, it’s a different story to when I was asked this 25 years ago. I get it; I get that people want to know and all of that but it does start to get boring slash annoying. I have started to refuse to answer certain questions but it took me a while to understand that this was fully acceptable. I think that confidence only comes with time.” —Bang Showbiz

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37

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2012

LIFESTYLE M u s i c

&

M o v i e s

Berlin film fest crowns Italian prison docu-drama he 62nd Berlin film festival wraped up yesterday after awarding its Golden Bear top prize to Italy’s veteran directors Paolo and Vittorio Taviani for their gripping prison docudrama “Caesar Must Die”. The picture shows reallife murderers and mafiosi from a high-security jail in Rome staging Shakespeare’s tragedy “Julius Caesar”, with their own personal dramas giving resonance to the play’s themes of betrayal and vengeance. “We hope that when the film is released to the general public that cinemagoers will say to themselves or even those around them ... that even a prisoner with a dreadful sentence, even a life sentence, is and remains a human being,” Paolo Taviani, 80, said.

“Thanks to the sublime and simple words of Shakespeare, these prisoners for a few days came back to life. It was only a handful of days but they experienced passion and energy and I would like to dedicate this to them.” His brother Vittorio, 82, read out the names of the inmates who took part in the film as he accepted the prize from the jury president, British director Mike Leigh, at a gala ceremony late Saturday.

The Jury Grand Prix runner-up prize went to “Just the Wind” by Bence Fliegauf, which was inspired by a spree of killings of Roma in Hungary in 2008 and 2009 in which six people died including a five-year-old boy. Rachel Mwanza, a 14-year-old from the Democratic Republic of Congo, appearing in her first movie, the moving Canadian child soldier drama “War Witch”, accepted the Silver Bear award for best actress from jury member Jake Gyllenhaal.

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The film tells the story of Komona, a girl in a country strongly resembling DRC who is snatched from her village by armed rebels, forced to gun down her parents and made her commander’s mistress. Mwanza was one of Kinshasa’s street children before director Kim Nguyen discovered her. She learned to read while working on the film. “I had a very hard life and when I met Mr Kim, I knew that for me it was a chance so that’s why I worked hard because I knew this work was going to give me something better in my life,” she told reporters.

Denmark’s Mikkel Boe Folsgaard, who played mad king Christian VII in a costume drama based on a true story, “A Royal Affair”, took best actor.

The film, starring James Bond villain Mads Mikkelsen as the king’s personal physician who seduced his queen and with her plotted to bring Enlightenment reforms to the tiny state, also won best screenplay. Germany’s Christian Petzold won best director for “Barbara”, a haunting drama about a woman plotting to escape communist East Germany which had been tipped to win at the first major European film festival of the year. “Caesar Must Die” emerged as an early crowd pleaser among the 18 contenders. It was the first Golden Bear for Italy since 1991 when “The House of Smiles” by Marco Ferreri claimed the prize. The Tavianis, known for the socially engaged films they have been making for half a century, captured the Palme d’Or in Cannes in 1977 for “Padre Padrone”, which also used amateur actors, and the Jury Grand Prix for

List of winners of 62nd Berlin film festival

Italian directors Vittorio and Paolo Taviani celebrate after receiving the Golden Bear prize awarded for their film “Caesar Must Die” (Cesare deve morire).

—AFP/AP photos “The Night of the Shooting Stars” in 1982.

Last year, the harrowing Iranian family drama “A Separation” captured the Golden Bear and swept the acting prizes and is now nominated for two Oscars. Its director Asghar Farhadi served on this year’s jury. The Alfred Bauer Prize for a work of particular innovation went to the Portuguese melodrama”Tabu”, a two-part black-

and-white melodrama set in contemporary Lisbon and colonial Africa about an illicit love affair. German cameraman Lutz Reitemeier took an award for outstanding artistic contribution for his work on the Chinese epic “White Deer Plain” by Wang Quan’an.

And the jury gave a special Silver Bear to the Swiss drama “Sister” about a young boy who

Golden Bear for best film: “Cesare deve morire” (Caesar Must Die), Paolo and Vittorio Taviani. Italy Jury Grand Prix Silver Bear: “Csak a szel” (Just the wind), Bence Fliegauf.

Hungary/Germany/France Silver Bear for best director: Christian Petzold for “Barbara”. Germany Silver Bear for best actress: Rachel Mwanza in “Rebelle” (War Witch). Canada Silver Bear for best actor: Mikkel Boe Folsgaard in “En Kongelig Affaere” (A Royal Affair). Denmark/Czech Republic/Germany/Sweden Silver Bear for outstanding artistic contribution (camera): Lutz Reitemeier, “Bai lu yuan” (White Deer Plain). China Silver Bear for best screenplay: Nikolaj Arcel and Rasmus Heisterberg for “En Kongelig Affaere” (A Royal Affair).

Denmark/Czech Republic/Germany/Sweden Alfred Bauer Prize for work of particular innovation: “Tabu” by Miguel Gomes.

Portugal/Germany/Brazil/France Best first feature film: “Kauwboy” by Boudewijn Koole. Netherlands Golden Bear for best short film: “Rafa” by Joao Salaviza. Portugal/France Teddy for best film with gay or lesbian context: “Keep The Lights On” by Ira Sachs.

United States. —AFP steals skis from a posh Alpine resort to support himself and his older sibling. Alongside hard-hitting international cinema, the 11-day event offered serious star wattage including Angelina Jolie presenting her directorial debut, “In the Land of Blood and Honey”, and Meryl Streep accepting a Golden Bear for her life’s work. —AFP

Hungarian director Bence Fliegauf poses with his sil- German director Christian Petzold poses with the ver bear for the “Jury Grand Prix” for his movie Just Silver Bear he received as best director for the movie The Wind (Csak A Szel).

Barbara.

Congolese actress Rachel Mwanza poses with her Silver Bear for Best Actress in the film War Witch (Rebelle).

Whitney Houston buried after emotional tribute op diva Whitney Houston was expected to be buried yesterday after an emotional farewell during which Hollywood stars, music greats and loved ones praised the “sweet miracle” of her talent. She will be buried in suburban Westfield, New Jersey, next to her father, John Russell Houston, who died in 2003.

On Saturday, a gold-colored hearse delivered Houston’s body to Newark’s New Hope Baptist Church, where she sang as a child. Actor Kevin Costner delivered an emotional tribute to the singer, whose death at the age of 48 prompted sadness and respect from fans and contemporaries worldwide.

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Clive Davis, the legendary producer who became Houston’s mentor, said he was spellbound when he met her in 1983.

“You wait for a voice like that for a lifetime. You wait for a face like that, a smile like that, a presence like that, for a lifetime. And when one person embodies it all, well, it takes your breath away,” Davis said. “Cissy, your daughter stepped forward and shattered me with her version of ‘The Greatest Love Of All,’” Davis said, looking at Houston’s mother, a gospel singer and one-time backing artist for soul queen Aretha Franklin.

And Costner, in a frank recollection of

Fans sign artwork by artist Mark G at the funeral service for Whitney Houston on February 18, 2012 in Newark, New Jersey. —AFP “I urge us all inside and outside, across the nation and around the world, to dry our tears, suspend our sorrow and perhaps our anger just long enough, just long enough to remember the sweet miracle of Whitney,” Costner said.

The four-hour service ended with an audio recording of “I Will Always Love You,” regarded by many as Houston’s signature track and the theme of “The Bodyguard,” the 1992 box office smash hit in which she costarred with Costner. While Houston’s musical success took her away from New Jersey across the world, countless friends and relatives told of how the singer never lost sight of Newark and the community that shaped her.

his time spent with Houston, told how the singer almost missed out on her role in “The Bodyguard,” on account of her skin color and lack of acting experience. “We could also think about another singer, was a suggestion. Maybe somebody white.

Nobody ever said it out loud, but it was a fair question,” Costner recalled of questions posed to him at the time by the movie’s producers.

“I told everyone that I had taken notice that Whitney was black. The only problem was I thought she was perfect for what we were trying to do,” he said, crediting Warner Brothers for agreeing. The movie became a blockbuster. “You made the picture what it was,” said Costner. “A

lot of guys could have played my part, but I believe you were the only one who could have played Rachel Marron at that time. You were as beautiful as a woman could be.”

Newark Mayor Cory Booker set the tone for the service, which opened to joyous gospel singing from the New Hope Mass Choir. “We are here to mourn our loss, but to celebrate her life. God is in heaven, and with him is one of our angels, Whitney Houston,” Booker said.

Streets near the red-brick church, which has been adorned with floral tributes, candles, balloons and condolence cards in recent days, were sealed off as the memorial service was by invitation only. Fans were respectfully asked to stay away from the church, which had a capacity of only 1,500, for fear of crowds disrupting the event, but several hundred turned up regardless. “I just wanted to get as close to her as I could,” Tamecca Melvin, from New Jersey, told AFP. “I’ve loved her, I grew up with her. Even though she was a megastar, she was a homegirl.”

Motown legend Stevie Wonder belted out an adaptation of his hit “Ribbon in the Sky,” changing some of the words to honor Houston’s memory. But Houston’s ex-husband, soul performer Bobby Brown, with whom she had a daughter during a turbulent 15-year marriage, said he was asked to leave the service. Brown later said in statement that he and his children “were seated by security and then subsequently asked to move on three separate occasions,” and that he was prevented from seeing the daughter he had with Houston. “In light of the events, I gave a kiss to the casket of my exwife and departed as I refused to create a scene,” Brown said in a statement released to US media.

Whitney Houston sold more than 170 million records during a near three-decade career, but in later years fought a long and public battle against substance abuse while trying to keep her performing talent alive.

Speculation has raged since her death that the singer may have succumbed to a lethal cocktail of prescription drugs and alcohol, though official results from her autopsy may not be made public for up to eight weeks. —AFP

Italian singer Emma poses with her prize at the Ariston Theatre in Sanremo on February 18, 2012 at the 62nd Italian Music Festival in Sanremo. —AFP

Sudan mourns

musical icon Wardi S udan mourned yesterday the death of musical icon Mohammed Wardi, a former prisoner who spent years in self-imposed exile but who died on home soil after seeing his beloved nation divided. “Mohammed Osman Wardi, Sudan’s lead singer, passed away... in Khartoum,” the official SUNA news agency said in a brief dispatch. Wardi was born in 1932 on the island of Sawarda in far-northern Sudan. He began singing at the age of five, had his first hit in 1960, and still filled a

An undated family handout picture shows Sudanese musical icon and former exile Mohammed Wardi in Khartoum. —AFP Khartoum concert hall on New Year’s Eve 2010, when he was carried on stage for a rare show in his twilight years.

“Everybody in Sudan loves Mohammed Wardi,” a man from the western Darfur region said. The Sudanese political activist group Girifna wrote in an online post that it “is saddened by the death of one of Sudan’s revolutionary icons.” President Omar al-Bashir, cabinet ministers and musicians were among thousands who gathered to pay their respects to Wardi early yesterday when he was buried at a central Khartoum cemetery. Wardi had gone into self-imposed exile shortly after Bashir, an army officer, seized power in a 1989 coup backed by Islamists.

The singer moved to Egypt and then Los Angeles to receive medical treatment for kidney trouble. Tens of thousands of Sudanese greeted him at the airport when he first returned in 2002, vowing no retreat from the leftist views often heard in his moving songs. “I am a human being, and every human being is against dictatorship and I will continue to denounce it,” he told AFP in June 2002. “The atmosphere does not encourage creation. Freedom is essential to the blossoming of art.” He said he did not regret the time he spent in detention under former president Gaafar alNimeiry, who took power in 1971 after a three-day communist coup which Wardi applauded. The singer was jailed for 18 months.

Wardi sang patriotic as well as romantic songs about the Nile River and everyday Sudanese life in Arabic and his native Nubian dialect Halfawi. Just over a year ago, he told AFP that the 2005 peace deal which ended 22 years of civil war with southern Sudan had encouraged his return with hope for “the unity of all Sudan.” But, speaking with sadness just before South Sudan voted overwhelming for independence, he said he had been singing about a united nation for more than five decades and he hoped “that even if south Sudan chooses secession, one day it will reunite with the north”.

The South became independent last July. Political analyst Magdi El Gizouli wrote in a tribute that Wardi “will be missed”, not only in Sudan but around the region.”His legacy... extends beyond music,” Gizouli said.He recalled hearing Wardi’s songs over loudspeakers as a school student and said the lyrics “were probably a primer in political education.”—AFP

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2012

lifestyle F A S H I O N

Flash mobs, elegant gowns dominate London fashion show

Models present creations

by Alice Temperley during the Temperley London show at London Fashion Week in central London on February 18, 2012.

— AFP /AP photos

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tella McCartney used a flash mob, Issa relied on colorful floral prints, and Alice Temperley turned to 18th Centur y paintings for inspiration as London Fashion Week moved into high gear Saturday. It was a day of elegant, sexy dresses, raucous performances, and beautiful detailing as London designers showed what makes their fashion approach unique. While some designers looked to the east for inspiration, Kinder Aggugini set his sights on cowboy chic, evok ing the streets of Laredo in an impressive catwalk show that used acid-

drench silk with western motifs.

The imaginative shows left little doubt that London’s sense of self-reliance is growing as the 2012 Olympics approach.

Britain may be gripped by economic gloom, but the designers see no reason for pessimism. “ Things are difficult business-wise,” Aggugini said before his show. “But it has sparked creativity. I see a lot more talent germinating. I see a lot more newness than I ever did.” McCartney certainly tried something new, turning her back on the traditional catwalk show and instead having a group of models dressed in her creations emerge from a sitdown dinner for an unusual, choreographed romp. The models were passed on chairs held high by waiters and gyrated on tables with abandon, rarely slowing down enough to give the audience a careful look at the gowns.

But what they could see looked great.

“It was a good idea, and she made it work,” said former model Bianca Jagger, wearing a signature white suit. “It was nice to see something different, something dramatic.

The clothes looked great. And the food was delicious.” The menu included duck with black truffles, chestnuts and Jerusalem ar tichokes, beetroots with Sicilian blood oranges, saffron risotto, and Wigmore cheese with still more black truffles, along with a variety of wines and Veuve Clicquot champagne.

Brazilian designer Daniella Helayel, whose label is known as Issa, also scored with audiences Saturday night. Long a favorite of the former Kate Middleton (now the Duchess of Cambridge), Helayel made liberal use of furr y caps and fur trim around the shoulders, the brown and gray nicely offsetting her dresses’ forest greens and splashes of red. The prints were radiant, with oversize floral motifs, and red and-blue swirls that looked like the models were wrapped in bubbling lava. “I loved the really juicy colors,” said Bobby Jackson, a 36-year-old chef from Vancouver who came to see the show with a friend. “The paisley prints are very hot this season.”

The color ful shows offset a certain severity that developed early Saturday.

John Rocha draped his models in voluminous black dresses that clung to their bodies like trash bags. Jasper Conran showed off a set of austere-looking brown, bronze, and black creations that harkened back to 1920s trench coats or even 19th-century bloomers. Even young designer Henry Holland - whose work tends to be quite eye -catching - went with patterned clothes mainly in blue, black or crimson.

Rocha’s billowing black womenswear was among the most original of the lot, although the work may not find much pur-

chase outside the Goth community. Black lace, black leather-looking sleeves, black veils and webbed tops were in evidence, as well as what looked like furry black legwarmers.

Cutaways and veils added a touch of sex to the show, but some creations - like the Dublin-based designer’s big rumpled greenish dress - looked as if their models had fallen into upscale supermarket sacks.

The super-short haircuts sported by Jasper Conran’s models matched the severity of their clothes. Take out a sparkle here and hike up a top there and the dresses could

easily have been worn into an office. A very strict office at that. Fortunately there was Aggugini, whose big pink cowboy hats and super-sheer tops brought smiles to the standing-room-only crowd.

London Fashion Week has a number of hotly anticipated shows in the coming days, with the lineup including Vivienne Westwood, Burberry, Christopher Kane, McQ and others. The biannual bash features more than 100 shows. It’s expected to generate orders in the region of 100 million pounds ($160 million.)—AP

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2012

lifestyle

John Rocha

F A S H I O N

Chung named style ambassador

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lexa Chung has been named the British Fashion Council as young style ambassador. The 28year-old presenter - who joins cultural ambassador Laura Bailey and young ambassador Poppy Delvingne - is “proud” to have been asked to champion UK designers in her new role. She said: “I always name London first when asked which city in the world has the best style.

“There’s something so inherently rebellious about how people naturally style themselves. Brits aren’t afraid to experiment or take risks with how they look; perhaps that’s why London has always been home to the most dynamic and daring designers in the world.

“I adore fashion and am proud that it’s now officially my job to champion those London designers - both new and established - that inspire me so much.” The British Fashion Council (BFC) are equally thrilled to have “hugely influential” Alexa on board.

BFC chief executive Caroline Rush said: “We’re delighted to announce this role for Alexa. She is hugely influential in both the fashion industry and to the wider public, who have voted her as winner of the British Style Award at the British Fashion Awards for two years running.” — Bang Showbiz

Kinder Aggugini

Bellucci new face of Dolce & Gabbana make-up

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onica Bellucci has become the new face of Dolce & Gabbana make-up. The stunning actress - who appeared in Dolce & Gabbana’s spring/summer 2012 campaign - will join the likes of Scarlett Johansson and Felicity Jones in representing the Italian fashion house’s cosmetics. Domenico Dolce said: “We love Monica and have worked with her many times over the past 20 years. Her beauty is timeless. She expresses the Dolce & Gabbana woman perfectly,” Stefano Gabbana added: “She is ravishing - a true Italian icon.”

To celebrate the appointment, Monica will launch her own limited-edition range with the brand - Monica Lipstick Collection.The 47-year-old star said: “I’m delighted to be collaborating with Domenicoand Stefano on Dolce & Gabbana The Make Up. I have always adored theaesthetic of Dolce & Gabbana and it’s so exciting to be involved with theircreative process.” — Bang Showbiz

Berlin film fest crowns Italian prison docu-drama

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2012

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Rio awash with revelers for carnival street bash

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he Rio Carnival came alive Saturday with more than two million revelers in outlandish costumes staging a mammoth, frenzied samba-driven street festival in the city center. Drawing the huge crowds, a day after legendary King Momo declared the Carnival officially open, was the Cordao da Bola Preta-one of Rio’s oldest and most popular blocos street parties. While the eagerly awaited highlight of the Carnival, the parades of elaborately decorated fantasy floats and scantily dressed women in the Sambadrome, attract mainly the wealthy and foreign tourists, blocos are for all.

“Bola Preta is one of the most traditional blocs of the Carioca (Rio) Carnival and everybody participates, particularly blacks (from the favelas),” participant Sandrah Sagrado told AFP. “Bola Preta brings everybody together, people from all districts and neighboring towns,” Denise Chagas concurred.

Organizers said 2.5 million people took par t in the street parade that lasted nearly seven hours. Police put the turnout at 2.3 million.

Spurred on by the thumping pulsating samba beat of a marching brass band, Bola Preta fans strutted along Rio Branco Avenue in outlandish costumes, from Cleopatra or Pope to clowns and crossdressers wearing masks, bright red or fluorescent green wigs and oversized glasses. Under sunny skies and in a goodnatured atmosphere, men in baby diapers or wearing garish pink or green tutus danced and sang. Others spor ted football star Neymar’s famous Mohawk hairstyle in multicolored hues or tried to scare women in their monster disguises. Black polka dots on white

attend on the advice of his doctors. But he promised to watch the parade on television and root for his beloved samba school. In Rio, the top 13 competing samba schools were to parade dancers, musicians and elaborately decorated fantasy floats at the renovated Sambadrome last night .

Rio is facing increasing competition from rival Sao Paulo, which staged sumptuous parades in its own sambadrome Friday and Saturday. But Cariocas, as Rio residents are

is the signature style for Bola Preta (black ball) outfits as, according to city lore, a beautiful, curvy woman in a polka-dot dress was the inspiration for the bloco’s name.

Igor Moreira, 23, and four friends came bedecked in a Winnie Mouse outfit, complete with polka dot skirts, black stockings and tops. “It’s just for fun. This is Carnival, anything goes,” he said with a giggle. In 2008, as it celebrated its 90th anniversary, Bola Preta was listed as a Rio Cultural Heritage along with its signature song and Carnival classic “Quem Nao Chora Nao Mama” (the squeaky wheel gets the grease). Some 171 street parties were scheduled across the “Marvelous City” this weekend and 400 during the five -day Carnival, which officals hope will attract four million people, including 850,000 tourists.

Other Brazilian cities, including Sao Paulo, the

country’s economic capital, and Salvador de Bahia, the heart of Afro-Brazilian culture, also celebrated the annual pre-Lent festival in style.

On Friday Sao Paulo held spectacular parades of allegorical floats paying tribute to Brazil’s rich African heritage at its own sam-

Dancers perform during a carnival parade in Sao Paulo, Brazil, Saturday. — AP/AFP photos badrome. Meanwhile Brazil’s former president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who is recovering from cancer radiation therapy, on Saturday thanked a Sao Paulo samba school for its planned tribute to his life but said he could not be with them. “Gavioes da Fiel,” the samba school of the Corinthians, the Sao Paulo soccer team of which Lula is a die-hard fan, said earlier this week it would honor the popular former president with a Carnival parade late Saturday extolling his life of struggle and overcoming the odds.

“From the bottom of my heart, I am grateful for your tribute in dedicating your parade this year to my life story,” the 66-year-old Lula said in a video message released by his foundation. The popular former president, who was released from a Sao Paulo hospital Friday after completing radiation therapy for his larynx cancer, said he would not be able to

called, will be keen to show that they can indeed put on “the greatest show on earth,” one that will be broadcast to a worldwide television audience. The contest between the R io samba schools for the title of Carnival champion is watched with the same fervor as football matches in this soccermad nation. —AFP