19 Apr 2013

NA backs Amir, supports security measures

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Local FRIDAY, APRIL 19, 2013

Conspiracy Theories

Local Spotlight

Justice, equality and fairness for all

Unions not societies!

By Muna Al-Fuzai

By Badrya Darwish muna@kuwaittimes.net

badrya_d@kuwaittimes.net

I

t was shocking to read yesterday’s announcement by the traffic department about punishments for traffic violations. Of course, traffic violators should be disciplined and held accountable for the serious damage they cause to themselves and others. These accidents are happening all too frequently on our streets, unfortunately.

The streets in Kuwait have become like a war-zone over the past few months. There is a feeling of lawlessness and recklessness on the streets. I am not blaming the traffic department for other people’s actions. The police department cannot assume the responsibility for every driver and discipline and educate him on how to drive. It is all about self-discipline and self-consciousness.

Believe me, sometimes while driving on the streets, I wish I had the power to stop many people and punish them immediately. But I am just an ordinary citizen and have no right to do that.

Traffic department should have stepped in a long time ago to introduce harsh punishments against errant drivers. I agree with the measures they take.

We have been asking for that for many years. But, but, but..

The latest statement which came from the head of the department is what amazed me. Kuwaitis and bedoons will now land up in a lock-up and would be questioned later while an expat will face deportation.

I am well-travelled and have lived in many parts of the world - in the West and in the Middle East, but I have never seen two separate jurisdictions - one for the citizens and one for the visitors or expats. A law is a law and a crime is a crime. A crime committed at home or in the street does not have any colour, nationality, height, body proportions. Where are we heading in Kuwait?

Why can’t expats face the same penalty for breaking the same rule - whether it is about traffic or something else? A Kuwaiti or a bedoon should face the same punishment for the same crime. Why do we always hang the sword of deportation on the heads of expats? We have started using it lately in all our statements.

Are we back in the Stone Ages or is the world advancing and becoming a village? Why should we go back to any century in the past at all? Why don’t we stick to the rules of our beautiful Islamic religion based on justice, fairness and equality for all?

Guys, go back to the heritage of the legacy of Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) and His companions, and study the way they ruled. Here is just one example of justice as it prevailed during the Islamic empire. The son of Amr ibn Al-A’as, the governor of Egypt in those days, beat up an Egyptian. That man complained to the Khalifa in Medina, Omar ibn AlKhatab, who summoned Amr and his son to Medina where he made the Egyptian commoner beat the son of the governor in public. This is what Islam is all about. Where are we today so many years later? The bottom line is: the judiciary should not have two faces. It should have one face for all.

Thank you and have a nice weekend!

T

here is a lack of clear understanding in Kuwait about the difference between the terms ‘society’ and ‘union’, and what purpose they serve people. We refer to all societies and unions as non-governmental organizations (NGO)! I do not think we are using the right words here and I am not in favour of using the two terms interchangeably. The term society gives the impression that its task is of a charitable nature and it does not provide important services to its members. The term union, on the other hand, suggests that it benefits its members and acts as their advocate in across formal and legal channels of the country.

In Kuwait, we need to organize and monitor the work of many societies that are call NGOs. The terms of services of such organizations’ board of directors should also be made public. For instance, are they supposed to serve for a maximum of four years or for a lifetime? So far it seems to me that these people will serve in their positions for good. For many people, such positions define their social status. Therefore, some of them have been occupying their seats for more than 30 years. In fact, you would not have heard of many of them had it not been for the NGOs

they work with. I think they are just showing off; they do not do any real work.

I personally believe that NGO jobs should not be a lifetime affair and there must be a term limit for members. I am sorry to say that, even until today, we have not managed to bring our NGOs’ organisational structure in line with international standards. We have many issues, mostly social, which are important for Kuwaitis as well as expats - but we do not have adequate support from local NGOs. Divorce rate is high in Kuwait, but what are these NGOs doing about it? The expats here have issues, not only social and financial but also legal, because of their lack of understanding of the culture and nature of this society. I know that there are some societies that do this job as part of their religious efforts, but that is not enough. Not all expats are non-Muslims, only some are. Local NGOs do nothing to address the issues and needs of female expats. Only women in high places, such as diplomats, are offered assistance in this regard, but they already know how to handle their issues.

I think we need to consider this issue and I do believe that a society cannot resolve its issues if they are not addressed properly. If it was up to me, I would dissolve all current societies and impose new rules on all unions, starting with setting a term limit for board members and not letting them continue forever. It is not fair. The new rules and criteria for such positions should be set in such a way that people holding these positions should be committed to helping others. They should not hold on these jobs to maintain their social status.

Kuwait’s my business

Opinions about Kuwait’s booming blogosphere

By John P Hayes

local@kuwaittimes.net

S

ince my column last week about the Kuwait blogosphere, my incoming email and social media traffic has been mostly blog-related, and several blogs that highlighted the article prompted numerous comments from readers, so here we go with Part Two of a trendy topic.

Opinions vary as to the existence and value of Kuwait’s blogosphere.

“Blogs were big in 2006,” commented a reader on 248am, perhaps Kuwait’s most successful blog. “Now everybody moved on to Twitter, Instagram and other social media . . . .” Another reader opined, “To my mind your average Kuwait blogger is a female McNugget in her 20s, 30s or early 40s, employed and with a penchant to blog on the job.” Yet another reader said he thought most local bloggers belonged to a political faction, or they were MPs. All of which goes to show that people are entitled to their opinions, even if they are wrong.

Who are these bloggers?

Many people, including bloggers, use other forms of social media, especially to build their blog’s readership, but on any given day there are numerous good blogs to read in Kuwait. Females of varying ages, in fact, are bloggers, but the most popular blogs, and the most financially successful, appear to be written by males. Most bloggers probably have jobs, but as to whether or not they craft their blogs on their jobs I can’t say. I don’t know of a blog written by an MP - that’s not to say there isn’t one but some bloggers cover Kuwait politics. However, as I pointed out last week, data about Kuwait’s blogosphere is spotty at best. If only we had a directory of local blogs!

Short of an official directory, there is a free app called Kuwait Blogs, and that’s what sparked my personal interest in the local blogosphere more than three years ago (this isn’t a topic that I simply decided to write about last week). I discovered the app while preparing to move to Kuwait and it helps me monitor numerous blogs. Interestingly - no, brilliantly - a blogger developed the app, which features his blog, 248am, and also includes links to Me Blogging, Kuwaitiful, 7aji Dude, Buz Fairy, Confashions, Danderma, The Grapevine, His & Hers, Khaleejesque, Kuwait Music and others, including a few that have not blogged for a while. I’d like to know what happened to one of my favorites, Trying to be Fahad?

Why did he stop trying?

What do bloggers think?

“I do enjoy my morning fix of coffee and reading blogs,” Mona, a former blogger, emailed me, and she’s not alone. Many of us like to read the blogs just as we also like to read newspapers every morning. Why? Because we want to know what’s going on, and especially what people are saying about what’s going on. News makes for good reading, but

opinions grab our heart strings and make us laugh or cry or respond via a comment, a letter, an email, or actually physically doing something! It’s the latter, in fact, that leads people to question the motivations of bloggers.

When bloggers lose credibility Former blogger Mona bemoans the fact that Kuwait’s blogs have become “all about marketing.” While she admits to being a marketing person, she said, “We all want to watch our favorite shows, but do we have to watch the commercials, too?” In other words, she objects to blog posts that overtly promote a restaurant, a fashion shop, an electronic gadget, etc. Multiple photos of “yummy” brownies do not make good blogging.

But they may make the blogger money! “For those of us who can read an ad when we see one,” continued Mona, “the blogger’s credibility is lost.”

Fortunately, there are numerous credible bloggers in Kuwait, and next week I’ll tell you about several of them. Meanwhile, I’m interested in your thoughts, good or bad, about the Kuwait blogosphere. As one blogger told me, the best part about blogging is the friendships you make along the way. That’s true of column writing, too, and I’ve been blessed by many friendships in the year that I’ve been writing for Kuwait Times. So what do you think?

Local FRIDAY, APRIL 19, 2013

By Jamie Etheridge

L

ast summer, I took my four-year-old to a swim school for the first time. I learned to swim the old fashioned way: my dad threw our poodle into the lake near our home and then threw me in after it. “Watch the dog,” he ordered. I was five and needless to say, traumatized. But I did learn to swim that day.

In teaching my own kids to swim, I planned to use my father’s advice without the trauma. I was surprised when I first moved to Kuwait to meet so many adults who never learned to swim.

Kuwait has around 18 drownings annually, which in a country of 3.5 million isn’t statistically high at all. Still, spending time at the pool or the beach is a favorite part of childhood and I wanted my

— Photos by Joseph Shagra

kids to know water safety and basic swimming skills.

So when my oldest was three, I started her lessons. Every week, we’d head to the pool and I would very patiently doggie paddle and float on my back with my daughter first watching from poolside and then in the water with me. She loved playing in the water but no matter how many ‘woof woofs’ I barked, she wasn’t learning to swim.

Finally, I asked around and discovered that there are a credible number of swim schools in Kuwait. Everyone always says there’s nothing to do here but if you are into water and swimming, there are plenty of options. Places like the Al-Danah Swim School, Aqua Tots, BSK, the Hilton and Movenpick Bida’a not to mention diving schools offer a range of swimming lessons and activities including for adults and those already proficient in doggie paddle.

My daughter’s first lesson was mostly a disaster. She cried, refused to get into the water and refused to speak to me for the rest of the day. The next lesson she went to the edge of the water, her curiosity overcoming the fear. Still she wasn’t convinced so easily. Lessons three and four went much the same.

Luckily for me, the instructor, Coach Ali from Al-Danah Swim School, takes a step-by-step approach to teaching small children.

He patiently encouraged her with toy duckies and simple poolside techniques like basic kicks and how to blow bubbles with her face in the water. By the fifth or sixth lesson, she started to like swimming and jumping into the water without any prodding from me.

Then one lesson, the miracle happened. Something clicked in her brain and the water transformed from a terrifying abyss into a haven of fun. She suddenly was excited about swimming. She didn’t want to get out of the pool at the end of the lesson. Instead of being upset with me for taking her to swim class, she was upset when I made her get out to go home.

Now she loves to swim. She walks around the house wearing her swimsuit and goggles and begs to go for swim class. She’s even started instructing her little sister during bath time on how to blow bubbles and how to kick her feet. More importantly, she has a basic understanding of the water and how to be safe. I’m happy not only because I’ve given her the gift of fun, but also because swimming is a lifelong practice that can keep her healthy and fit and possibly save her life one day.

Local FRIDAY, APRIL 19, 2013

KT: What is your philosophy of teaching?

Coach Ali: We want everyone to learn to swim, be safe, have fun and that’s why everyone at Al-Danah Swim School is passionate about swimming.

KT: What method or technique do you find to be most effective in teaching children?

Coach Ali: Step-by-step water confidence and safety skills.

KT: What ages of children do you teach?

Coach Ali: Our priority is to teach children starting as young as six months old to love and respect the water.

KT: What are the key things a child will learn in swim classes?

Coach Ali: Learning to feel at home in water because that’s the key to good swimming. Being comfortable in water before moving on to teaching next skill or stroke technique.

Coach Ali: It’s true but now we get an average of one adult applicant per day because the swimming culture is changing slowly in Kuwait and people understand how important it is to learn how to swim in order to enjoy their holidays swimming or diving.

KT: What would make Kuwait a safer, more swim friendly place for children?

Coach Ali: Involving the children in the lessons for life and how to be safe in water.

KT: What do you think are some of the benefits - physically, mentally, emotionally, etc - for children who learn to swim at an early age?

Coach Ali: Swimming is a skill that all kids should learn and it is a skill that remains with them throughout their lives.

Children should be involved in swimming lessons to become comfortable with the water. They should learn to swim from a trusted adult so that it can be an enjoyable

KT: There are several drownings a year in Kuwait and many adults cannot swim and never learn, what do you think about that?

Health Swimming can provide varying health benefits for children. Swimming stimulates muscles and helps build strength and provides a cardiovascular workout that children can do for an extended period of time. Children will probably not be able to run for the same amount of time that they would be able to swim.

Fitness Swimming is a good way to get kids to enjoy physical exercise. Children who are overweight can swim as a great introduction to a healthier lifestyle and there are benefits to both swimming as a workout and simply playing in the pool. Kids who are active are likely to be healthier and of a normal weight.

Safety All people should learn to swim whether a child or an adult. Water safety is valuable knowledge for everyone.

Knowing how to swim can save your life in a dangerous situation. Children who know how to swim will be better equipped if they ever face a water emergency.

Lifetime skill Swimming is a lifelong activity. It can be enjoyed by both the young and the old. Swimming is very therapeutic for many elderly people, but many adults don’t take swimming lessons if they never learned to swim as a child. They may be embarrassed by their lack of abilities

experience. Children should be given opportunities to swim once they have learned how, so they can continue to build on their new abilities and develop good form and technique.

KT: What do you do when a child is scared of the water?

Coach Ali: We have a level called water adjustments where we introduce the child to the water and we go STEP-BYSTEP. We never force a child in the water.

Coach Ali teaches swimming at the Al-Danah Swim School in Salwa. The school is open allyear round and provides swimming lessons for infants, children, adults and people with special needs. For more information contact: Telephone 25662546 /7 Ext. 125 or mobile 65176060.

and avoid the water. Swimming should be introduced to a child slowly so she doesn’t become afraid of the water, as this can stay with her as she grows up.

Local FRIDAY, APRIL 19, 2013

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Local FRIDAY, APRIL 19, 2013

Living the

low life

Expat parents feel the pinch of rising cost of living in Kuwait

By Ben Garcia

T

he increasingly high cost of living, coupled with certain measures taken by the government that have negatively impacted the expatriates, parenting in Kuwait is becoming ever more challenging, particularly for expats.

Rene is a Filipino expat worker, whose wife works at a beauty salon. He works as a nurse in a private clinic, drawing KD 400 as salary, while his wife brings home KD 200.

There was a time when the couple

wanted to keep their two children, aged nine and three, with them in Kuwait, but with an increase in tuition fees and rising cost of living, he decided to simply send them back to his native land, the Philippines.

“I want to save some money and set it aside so that I can start a business some day. If they had continued to stay here, I could have been able to afford it, but then there would not have been anything left for the family or future plans by the end of the day,” he lamented.

“I cannot even save a single dinar as most of my wife’s salary and mine is just enough to fulfill the needs of the family. I could save nothing even after

working for years here,” he said. From school fees to food, paying for nanny and house rent, he would spend all the money. So much so that he could not even afford to buy a new pair of shoes for himself, he stated.

“My God, I need to ensure the survival of my family. My wife is already fed up because we cannot even save a penny. So, I told her to just return and join my children while I work here.

It is really very hard to convince her. I love my family, and want them to stay with me, but if the situation continues as it is now, I think, it will be more practical for us to simply live separately,” he said.

If Rene’s family chooses to stay back in the Philippines, he will be able to save some money from his salary. “Even though both of us are earning KD 600, most of the money goes towards housing needs. Since I have two children, most of the flat owners will not accept room rentals, leaving me with little choice but to rent the entire flat which would cost me KD 240. How much will then be left out from KD 600? We will have half that money, and will have to make do with that much amount. We have to eat

every day, pay tuition fees for my child, and pay some amount to my other child’s nanny. How much is left with me? I will have to seek financial help from my colleagues,” he admitted.

In a study published in the local media, it was reported that a five-member family living in Kuwait, whose total income is less than KD 1,000, is considered as living under the poverty line, according to the United Nations criteria based on the average per capita income of an individual living in Kuwait.

A five-member family living in Kuwait, whose total income is less than KD 1,000, is considered as living under the poverty line, according to the United Nations criteria based on the average per capita income of an individual living in Kuwait.

The UN criteria for calculating poverty considers such families whose income is 60 percent below the average national income to be living under the poverty line. The average family income was calculated as being KD 1,850, and 60 percent of this amount comes to KD 1,000, the level considered the poverty line for a five-member family in Kuwait.

Even some Kuwaiti families have been complaining about the ever-increasing cost of living in the country.

Abu Tariq has four children from his second wife.

“Even as we receive some food from the government, it is never enough. I earn slightly more than KD 1,000 from my government job, and receive some amount for my small children, but it turns out to be little. I have my own family villa. My son and a daughter from my first wife are also working now and have their own families as well, but considering the increased cost of almost everything in Kuwait, KD 1,000 for me is really not enough,” Abu Tariq pointed out.

Musaffar, a Palestinian, also had a similar complaint. “My children are already in college, and considering the high tuition fees charged in college, my salary is never enough. So, I accepted some part time jobs to help me out with the expenses.

Hamdullah, I am surviving but am really suffering.

We have already given up on some of the luxuries that our family used to enjoy, like eating in expensive restaurants or traveling. No more can we indulge ourselves like this; in fact, we have completely stopped eating out,” he said.

Local FRIDAY, APRIL 19, 2013

By Nawara Fattahova

M

any people have no idea about the interesting hobby of amateur radio, which has been around in Kuwait for about 35 years now. It has been a hobby practiced by heads of states, from presidents to kings, princes, sultans, emperors and others. The most popular members of the amateur radio aficionados include HH the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, King Abdullah of Jordan, Sultan Qaboos of Oman, Emperor of Thailand, and some Kuwaiti public personalities such as minister Ahmad Al-Humoud, Sheikha Amthal Al-Ahmad and others.

Amateur radio is a community of people who use radio transmitters and receivers to communicate with other amateur radio operators. “If you were to ask a dozen different amateurs what ham radio meant to them, chances are you would get 12 different answers. Amateur radio operators are often called ham radio operators or simply “hams”, and frequently the public is more familiar with this term than with the legal term Radio Amateur.

“The source of this nickname, for all practical purposes, was lost from the beginning,” Waleed Abul (9K2OK), Member of the Board of KARS told the Kuwait Times.

Amateur (ham) radio is truly a hobby, one that often makes a difference in an emergency situation or during a disaster. “It involves self-learning, inter-communication and technical investigation carried on between Amateur Radio Operators. Amateurs talk to local friends over the radio waves using a hand-held transceiver, communicating digitally with pocket radio to exchange personal messages or vital information in an emergency, talking to other hams anywhere in the world, or engaging in contests

with other Radio Amateurs over the airwaves. There is something for everyone,” he added.

There are 360 amateur radio societies around the world. In Kuwait, the fans of this hobby are members of the Kuwait Amateur Radio Society (KARS) located in Surra, block 2, street 12, house 2.

KARS is a general purpose radio club. “Our members vary in interest and talents and share their talents with other members interested in similar aspects of the hobby. Meetings are held weekly, and guests interested in visiting our radio club are welcome. Some of our members are active in Emergency Services, including police, Red Crescent, etc. The radio club has technically oriented members who can help with radio problems and questions. It also has people familiar with Mac and Windows computers,” noted Abul.

Over the past few years, KARS held different activities. “We held the 9K2F Failaka Island (IOTA radio trips), Mokhayam (Radios in the Desert), Support of Public Service Events like Kuwait Rally, and many more events. The members also meet and exchange information; especially the new and old members do such exchanges. This hobby provides knowledge about mathematics, physics, technology and other domains,” he pointed out.

There are about five million members around the world practicing this hobby. “In Kuwait, there are 370 members of KARS. We enjoy exchanging information and talking to members around the globe on different issues, except politics, religion and business, which are forbidden issues for us. Each member has an international code, according to the country he stays in. So for Kuwait, it is 9K, and then initials,” explained Abul.

On his part, Meshal Al-Ajeel (9K2FT), a member of KARS, explained the objectives of KARS. “We aim to promote, represent and advance the interests of radio amateurs among citizens and organize its practice in conformity with the relevant laws. We also aim to encourage awareness about the importance of radio amateurs among administrations of all the countries in the region. We educate and encourage potential radio amateurs. KARS represents radio amateurs, both nationally and internationally. We provide and encourage the exchange of ideas and information between the radio amateurs,” he stated.

“Furthermore, we establish international human relations and friendships between radio amateurs in Kuwait and abroad in a way that introduces other people to Kuwait and underlines its development and rise. Then, we are into organizing local and regional contests between radio amateurs and also participate in international contests in this field. Members also participate in conferences and symposiums about amateur radio held in Kuwait or abroad. KARS is taking part in preparing its technical staff for the purpose of providing human services in the event of any emergency or rescue of sea vessels and aircraft etc,” Al-Ajeel further said.

Members of KARS are divided into three categories: Active, ordinary, and honorary members.

Active membership is limited to Kuwaitis, who should have good conduct and should not be less than 18 years of age, and must hold a Kuwaiti amateur radio license.

Ordinary membership is available to residents of Kuwait of good conduct, not less 14 years of age. They, like active members, have all rights and responsibilities except the right to vote and be a candidate for board of director membership.

The Board may award honorary membership at its discretion to persons it deems able to help achieve KARS objectives.

“To obtain a Kuwaiti Amateur License, you must be holding an amateur license from the United States of America, where Kuwaiti amateurs receive a similar treatment. You must also be either a resident of Kuwait or on a short visit to Kuwait. Interested people can ask about the procedure to obtain the license at KARS headquarters. KARS administration will refer the application to the Ministry of Communication which is the designated authority to issue amateur licenses. The process may take from seven to ten working days,” stressed Abul.

“KARS conducts theoretical and practical training courses for the purpose of promoting skills of members on principles of electronics, methods of operation, transmission etc. These courses qualify successful attendees to obtain license from the Ministry of Communication. KARS also organizes open examinations for radio amateurs having good background and notifies the Ministry of Communication that the person succeeding in the examination is qualified for obtaining a radio amateur license,” he noted.

KARS provides a large number of advanced radio sets at its headquarters to make it easy for members to practice their hobby. “It also gives technical advice to amateurs about the type of equipment, antennae, installation etc. There is also a library containing books as well as catalogues on radio. A postal office for receiving and dispatching is also available. There is a weekly meeting for discussing and exchanging ideas,” concluded AlAjeel.

Local FRIDAY, APRIL 19, 2013

National Assembly backs Amir, supports security measures Court to review Barrak’s appeal on April 22

By B Izzak

KUWAIT: The Ministry of Interior’s Assistant Undersecretary for Border Security Affairs, Major General Sheikh Mohammed Al-Yousif Al-Sabah yesterday honored warrant officer Aqeel Al-Muttairi of the southern borders department for his sincere efforts in performing his duties. — KUNA

MoI issues statement on ‘regrettable’ event KUWAIT: The Ministry of Interior issued a statement yesterday expressing censure over the breach of security and rioting in Al-Andalus on Wednesday, and vowing those involved would be held accountable. “The Ministry of Interior expresses censure over the regrettable incidents involving protesters who engaged in acts of rioting and violence in Al-Andalus Area Wednesday, April 17, where some went as far as to fire several shots in the air, aiming to provoke security personnel who were on the scene to honor their duty, maintain law and order, and apply the rule of law in full.”

The statement went on to add, “Some protesters also used dangerous and banned fireworks against security forces, and several officers were injured and required care in hospital. “Within the same breach of law and order in the area yesterday, some protesters set fire to public property, intimidated citizens and residents, brought traffic to a complete stop, and jeopardized many interests in the vicinity.

They also prevented fire fighters from seeing to their duty and dousing the flames. “Some of those involved in said acts are now under arrest and the issue is to be taken up by the relevant authorities. The tough counter-measures would prevent repetition of such actions that jeopardize the security and stability of the homeland and the safety of citizens and residents, and would protect public and state property and the country’s higher interests.”

The ministry urged both citizens and residents to cooperate with security personnel and authorities, “whose main duty is to protect public and individuals’ safety and property within the framework of a State of Law and the guidelines of the constitution.” Meanwhile, the Parliament’s office issued a statement yesterday regarding the events that took place in the past two days. The statement said that the parliament, as it is keen on respecting the Constitution, confirms the necessity for commitment to the principles upon which it was founded and under which the Kuwaiti people had lived since the beginning of the constitutional era in 1963.

It added that the constitution distanced the head of state from any political accountability providing that he dispenses his powers through his ministers. It noted that the provisions of the Penal Code came to criminalize any defamation against HH the Amir, adding that members of parliament, as they are the legitimate representatives of the Kuwaiti people, consecrate their support to HH the Amir and refuse any defamation or insult posed against him either orally or in writing or by any other means. The statement said that the constitution stressed the independence of the judiciary and no authority shall in any way interfere in the course of justice as the judicial ruling must be respected. The statement added that any objection to the court ruling, whether civilian or criminal, once it went into effect, is an objection to the rule of law and infringment of one of the constitutional institutions (such as courts of law).

It pointed out that the Kuwaiti judiciary has always been characterized admittedly as being impartial with full integrity. — KUNA

KUWAIT: The appeals court yesterday set April 22 the date to review an appeal filed by opposition figure and former MP Mussallam Al-Barrak contesting a five-year jail term handed to him by the lower court on Monday on charges of insulting the Amir, defense lawyer Abdulrahman Al-Barrak said. The court, to be chaired by judge Anwar Al-Enezi, has the powers to freeze the jail term against Barrak temporarily until a verdict is issued from the court.

But for the procedures to start, the former lawmaker must attend the court session and if the judge decides against freezing the jail term, Barrak will be arrested immediately and sent to jail pending the trial. The lower court issued the harsh prison term against Barrak after convicting him that he has insulted the Amir and undermined his authorities in a speech he made at a public rally on October 15.

Police has so far failed to arrest Barrak who has repeatedly said that he is ready to go to jail anytime provided that authorities produce the original arrest warrant to him. Officials have said that authorities have produced the original warrant to Barrak’s lawyers and called on him to give himself up.

The court decision comes a day after the elite special forces fired tear gas and stun grenades during clashes Wednesday night with thousands of protesters, the first in about three months. The activists marched on the Al-Andalus police station hours after the special forces raided the Diwaniya of Barrak and mistreated those present.

The health ministry said medics treated 15 people, including 12 policemen from wounds. Six of them, including four security men, were taken to hospital for further treatment.

Activists however insist that the number of those wounded is much more because a majority of wounded protesters either went to hospital by private cars or were treated at a field clinic set up at Barrak’s Diwaniya.

KUWAIT: A vehicle which was set on fire during the protests on Wednesday, April 17, is pictured. — KUNA Kuwait Society for Human Rights said 19 protesters were arrested including a rights activist who was monitoring the clashes and who was wounded “with rubber bullets” according to his lawyer Abdullah Al-Ahmad.

The interior ministry meanwhile strongly condemned in a statement protesters for resorting to violence and setting ablaze some public properties, adding that the security forces were forced to retailiate after they were attacked. The statement warned that authorities will firmly confront any act of violence and any attempt to break the law, adding that security men arrested a number of people who are subjected to interrogation.In the meantime, the national assembly yesterday issued a statement in which it condemned any attempt to insult the Amir whose status is protected under the constitution. The statement also declared the assembly’s total support for His Highness the Amir and for the measures being adopted by the security forces to maintain law and order.

Kuwait makes $300m pledge for Syria aid GENEVA: Kuwait has come through with the $300 million it pledged towards aid for stricken Syrians at a January donor’s conference, the Emirate and the United Nations said yesterday, urging other nations to follow its lead. “We are matching our words with our deeds,” Kuwait ambassador Dharar AbdulRazzak Razzooqi told reporters in Geneva, detailing how the cash had been split between nine UN agencies and the International Committee of the Red Cross.

“We hope that other (countries) will come and fulfil the pledges that they

have made at the Kuwait conference,” he added. The donor conference resulted in some $1.5 billion in pledges of aidof which $520 million was specifically to help people trapped inside Syria, with the rest going to help the nations hosting refugees.

However, before yesterday, only about 30 percent of the promised cash had come through. Kuwait’s contribution brings the funding level of the January pledges to around 50 percent, according to the UN humanitarian agency, OCHA. The United Nations says more than 70,000 people have been

killed in Syria over the past two years in a conflict that broke out after the regime unleashed a brutal crackdown on a popular uprising that later morphed into an insurgency. As of Wednesday, some 1.35 million Syrians had also sought refuge in neighbouring countries, Guterres said, adding that with around 8,000 people flooding out of Syria each day, that number could easily triple by the end of the year. In its appeal for the $1.5 billion to fund its Syrian operations during the first half of this year, the United Nations had expected to see only 1.1 million refugees by June. — AFP

‘Severe’ traffic violations to be punished

KUWAIT: A delegation from the Safety and Security Department of the Kuwait University yesterday visited the Civil Defense headquarters where they were received by the operations manager, Colonel Ali Al-Reghaib, Lt. Colonel Menahi Al-Otaibi and Major Mohammed Al-Sawwagh. — KUNA

KUWAIT: MoI assistant undersecretary for traffic affairs, Maj General Abdul Fattajh Al-Ali said that citizens and bedoons would be detained for committing severe traffic violation whereas expats would be deported for doing the same.

“Law must be applied without exceptions”, he said noting that drivers committing severe traffic violations such as driving through red lights, speeding, driving without holding a driver’s license or vehicle registration or illegal use of vehicle as a taxi would be immediately detained and a special record would be made of their ‘traffic records’ to check if they had committed the same violations earlier. —Al-Rai

FRIDAY, APRIL 19, 2013

Iran’s president slams foreign presence in Gulf

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Italian parliament fails to elect state president

15

Musharraf on the run after arrest order

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WEST: Firefighters conduct a search and rescue of an apartment building destroyed by an explosion at a fertilizer plant in West. — AP

Fiery Texas blast kills 15 Plant blows up in huge fireball • Over 160 wounded WEST, Texas: Rescuers launched a door-todoor search yesterday for victims after a massive explosion at a Texas fertilizer factory killed as many as 15 people, injured over 160 and leveled much of this small Texas town.

With the country already on edge from Boston Marathon attacks, the factory blew up in a huge fireball late Wednesday, destroying scores of nearby homes.

Authorities said they feared they would find a lot more bodies in the rubble of homes and businesses leveled by the force of the blast.

Sergeant Patrick Swanton of the nearby Waco, Texas police department said that officials don’t yet know caused the explosion, but are treating the site as a crime scene.

“We are not indicating that it is a crime, but we don’t know,” Swanton told US media overnight. “What that means to us is that

until we know that it is an industrial accident, we will work it as a crime scene,” he said.

Daybreak revealed a breathtaking band of destruction extending outward from the West Fertilizer Co in this small farming community about 20 miles north of Waco. The thunderous blast was so powerful that it shook the ground with the strength of a small earthquake and could be heard dozens of miles away. Searchers “have not gotten to the point of no return where they don’t think that there’s anybody still alive,” Waco police Sgt William Patrick Swanton said. He did not know how many people had been rescued.

There was no indication the blast was anything other than an industrial accident, he said. The explosion rained burning embers and debris down on terrified residents. It lev-

eled a four-block area around the plant, badly damaging or destroying up to 75 houses, a 50-unit apartment complex, a middle school and a nursing home. All that remained of one home was the fireplace and chimney.

Several buildings with smashed roofs and leveled walls still were smoking yesterday morning.

The main investigation was being led by the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Swanton said the death toll is “anywhere from five to 15 at this point” but expected to rise. Hospitals have treated more than 160 people with varying injuries. He said law enforcement and rescue officials were conducting a massive search for survivors. “They are working together, to still find survivors, to still find people that are injured and are going door to door,” he

Swanton told reporters at a briefing. “They are being very thorough, they are taking their time in their searches,” he said. The US Geological Survey recorded the force of the explosion at a 2.1 magnitude. The blast, which was felt as many as 50 miles away, destroyed an apartment complex and a nursing home and sent residents fleeing into emergency shelters. The acrid smell of smoke lingered in the air early yesterday.

Authorities said that the fire was under control, but said there was no risk of another explosion.

President Barack Obama in a statement offered the prayers of the nation to the people of West. “A tight-knit community has been shaken, and good, hard-working people have lost their lives,” he said.

Obama offered aid through the Federal

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International FRIDAY, APRIL 19, 2013

WEST: A person looks on as emergency workers fight a house fire after a nearby fertilizer plant exploded in West, Texas. — AP photos Emergency Management Administration, and promised “to make sure there are no unmet needs as search and rescue and response operations continue.”

The explosion at the West Fertilizer Company came with the nation still raw with emotion after the Boston marathon bombings Monday, which left three people dead.

Americans also were on edge following a scare in which letters apparently laced with the poison ricin were sent to President Barack Obama and a US senator in Washington. Police arrested a suspect in that case late Wednesday.

Search and rescue efforts in West could be complicated by a storm system heading into the area, with forecasters predicting heavy rains, and winds possibly heavy enough to spawn tornadoes. Swanton added that police another worry-”a small amount of looting” that has broken out at unattended homes and businesses. West, with a population of about 2,800 people, is home to a thriving Czech community dating back to the late 1800s, as immigrants settled the

American frontier. In Prague, the foreign ministry said its ambassador to Washington, Petr Gandalovic, was traveling to West to study the possibility of providing aid from his government for the injured and relatives of the victims.

The explosion came just ahead of the 20th anniversary on Friday of a deadly confrontation in Waco between federal authorities and heavily armed members of a religious group, the Branch Davidians, stoking worries about possible foul play. The Federal Aviation Administration declared a no-fly zone over the area around West, over fears another blast could bring down small aircraft. Witnesses said they were stunned by the sheer force of the blast. “It knocked me down, it knocked me back. It was like the whole road just picked up,” resident Cheryl Marich, whose home was destroyed and whose husband was fighting the blaze, told CNN. Another witness, Bill Bohannan, told the Waco Tribune-Herald: “It knocked us into the car... Every house within about four blocks is blown apart.” In the 1993 Waco

WEST: Emergency workers evacuate elderly from a damaged nursing home following an explosion at a fertilizer plant Wednesday.

In this Instagram photo provided by Andy Bartee, a plume of smoke rises from a fertilizer plant fire in West, Texas on Wednesday. siege, following a 51-day standoff, the group’s compound burned down after an assault was launched.

Firm information was hard to come by in the hours after the blast, and entry into the town was slow-going as the roads were jammed with emergency vehicles.

Authorities themselves had trouble entering the heart of the blast zone.

“It’s still too hot to get in there,” said Franceska Perot, a spokeswoman for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms.

Among those believed to be dead were three to five volunteer firefighters and a law enforcement officer. The many injuries included broken bones, bruises, lacerations, respiratory distress, and some head injuries and minor burns. Five people were reported in intensive care. In the hours after the blast, residents wandered the dark, windy streets searching for shelter. Among them was Julie Zahirniako, who said she and her son, Anthony, had been at a school playground near the plant when the explosion hit. — Agencies

WACO: An unidentified man injured by the West fertilizer plant explosion is treated by nurses from Hillcrest Baptist Medical Hospital in Waco, Texas.

BOSTON: President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama attend the “Healing Our City: An Interfaith Service” at the Cathedral of the Holy Cross in Boston yesterday, dedicated to those who were gravely wounded or killed in Monday’s bombing near the finish line of the Boston Marathon. —AP

International FRIDAY, APRIL 19, 2013

Iran’s president slams foreign presence in Gulf TEHRAN: The Iranian president yesterday slammed the West for its naval presence in the Persian Gulf while the country’s army commanders warned archenemy Israel against any military strikes on Iran.

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said “foreign presence” was the source of insecurity in the Gulf and the strategic Strait of Hormuz, a key waterway through which about one-fifth of the world’s oil supply passes. Iran, on the other hand, he claimed, has “always guarded peace and security.” The remarks typical rhetoric from the Iranian president - came ahead of a military parade in Tehran as Iran marked National Army Day. And while the Iranian president didn’t name any specific country, his remarks were an apparent reference to Western nations and the US. 5th Fleet, based in Bahrain. Iran sees the large American-led naval presence in the Gulf as foreign military meddling in the Mideast. Tehran has in the past year warned it could close the Strait of Hormuz in retaliation for tighter Western sanctions over its controversial nuclear program, but later stepped back from those threats.

Also yesterday, Iran’s navy held its own show of force near the Strait of Hormuz, with state TV broadcasting a display of Russian-made Kilo class submarines that Tehran obtained in the early 1990s. On the sidelines of the parade in the Iranian capital, Iran’s army chief of staff warned Israel. “We see Israel’s threat as a scream that comes out of fear,” said Gen Hasan Firouzabadi. “If they do anything wrong, there will be no Israel left on the world’s political map.”

Iran’s army chief Gen Attaollah Salehi also warned Israel, saying that “Iran’s army is ready to carry out” any order by the Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei against the Jewish state. In March, Khamenei warned that Iran will raze the cities of Tel Aviv and Haifa if Israel strikes Iran’s nuclear facilities.

“They (Israeli leaders) have no capability except to bark,” Salehi said. Israel sees Iran’s nuclear program as an existential threat and has not ruled out a military strike against Iran’s nuclear facilities, which the West suspects are geared to produce a nuclear weapon.

Tehran denies the charge, saying its nuclear activities - mainly uranium enrichment - are meant for peaceful purposes only, such as power generation and cancer treatment. Iran also asserts it has a right to enrich uranium under international law. During the parade, Iran showcased its S-200 air defense system, which was first displayed in September. The S-200 is a Russian-made, medium to high altitude surface-to-air missile system designed primarily to track, target, and destroy aircraft and cruise missiles.

Also on display was an Iranian-made drone, dubbed Sarir or throne in Farsi. The drone can carry missiles and has a range of 2,000 kilometers (1,250 miles), which puts much of the Middle East within operating distance of Iranian territory. The Sarir was first displayed in September. In 2011, Iran seized the American RQ-170 Sentinel drone after it went down in Iranian territory. Last April, Iran said it was building a copy of the RQ-170. Since 1992, Iran has tried to achieve a military self-sufficiency program under which it has produced light submarines, jet fighters, missiles and torpedoes. — AP

TEHRAN: A S-200 surface-to-air missile is driven past the platform where President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and other military officials are sitting during the Army Day parade in Tehran yesterday. — AFP

UAE arrests plotters linked to Al-Qaeda Cell of various Arab nationalities DUBAI: The United Arab Emirates said yesterday it had arrested a seven-member cell linked to Al-Qaeda that was planning attacks on the Gulf oil and business hub, the second time this year it has alleged a concrete threat from the militant group. The UAE, an important military, counter-terrorism and business partner of the West, said the seven were Arab nationals who had been helping Al-Qaeda with recruitment, financing and logistical support. “The cell was planning actions to target the country’s security and the safety of its citizens and residents, and was carrying out recruitment, and promoting the actions of Al-Qaeda,” WAM said.

“It was also supplying it (Al-Qaeda) with money and providing logistical support and seeking to expand its activities to some (other) countries in the region,” WAM said.

The UAE, a federation of seven emirates including Dubai and Abu Dhabi, has been spared an attack by Al-Qaeda and other militants; some analysts say the groups find it too useful as a communications and financial hub.

But in December, the UAE said it had arrested a cell of Emirati and Saudi Arabian members of a “deviant group” that was planning to carry out militant attacks in both countries and other states. The term “deviant group” is often used

by authorities in Saudi Arabia to describe AlQaeda members. Dubai police chief Dhahi Khalfan told a local newspaper in January that some of the group had links to al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), which uses Yemen as a base for international operations.

There was no immediate word on whether yesterday’s arrests were related. Some of the emirates have seen a rise in Islamist sentiment in recent years, and in the past year the federal government has started to crack down on alleged sympathizers of Islamist groups such as Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood.

A court in Abu Dhabi is currently trying 94 people on charges of plotting to seize power.

Speaking to Reuters this month, Khalfan reiterated allegations that Egypt’s Brotherhood was linked to the alleged plot, saying the group’s goal was Islamist rule in all Gulf Arab states.

Emirati political analyst Abdulkhaleq Abdullah said Gulf countries were being targeted by al Qaeda because it considered them to be agents of the West. In 2010, Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) said it was behind a plot to send two parcel bombs to the United States. The bombs were intercepted in Britain and the UAE emirate of Dubai.

The United States has poured aid into

Yemen to stem the threat of attacks from AQAP and to try to prevent any spillover of violence into Saudi Arabia, the world’s top oil exporter.

In August 2012, Saudi authorities arrested a group of suspected al Qaeda-linked militants mostly Yemeni nationals - in Riyadh. Saudi Arabia has arrested thousands of suspected militants since militant attacks between 2003 and 2006 on residential compounds for foreign workers and on Saudi government facilities in which were dozens of people were killed.

Like a number of other Gulf Arab states, the UAE buys large amounts of American military hardware. It also shares some of its military bases with detachments from the armed forces of the United States, Australia, France and South Korea, according to the British-based think-tank the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS).

More US Navy ships visit the UAE port of Jebel Ali, which can handle vessels up to the size of nuclear carriers, than any other port outside the United States, according to the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) in Washington. The UAE’s Al-Dhafra Air Base hosts a number of US fighter, attack and reconnaissance aircraft, CSIS said. — Reuters

Iran hit by second quake in days TEHRAN: A 5.2-magnitude earthquake hit northwestern Iran yesterday, only days after a deadly temblor struck near the border with Pakistan, media reported citing the seismological centre at Tehran University. There were no immediate reports of casualties or damage in the latest quake which struck at 3:09 pm (1039 GMT), at a depth of eight kilometers (around five miles), in the town of Tassouj.

“So far there are no reports of damage... We are in touch with the prefect of Tassouj and local authorities stand ready,” to deal with any crisis, ISNA news agency reported quoting

Khalil Saiie, a local official from East Azerbaijan province. A Red Crescent official, also quoted by ISNA, said there was no immediate information about any casualties in Tassouj, or in the towns of Maragheh and Shabestar which also felt the quake. It was followed by two low-intensity aftershocks.

Tassouj is located less than 100 kilometers from the provincial capital Tabriz, where the quake was also felt. On Tuesday, a huge earthquake measuring 7.8 struck southeastern Iran killing a woman and injuring more than a dozen other people.

At least 40 people were killed across the border in Pakistan

where hundreds of mud homes were levelled.

Iran sits astride several major fault lines and is prone to frequent earthquakes, some of which have been devastating.

Tuesday’s earthquake was the strongest to hit Iran since 1957.

A double earthquake, one measuring 6.2 and the other 6.0, struck northwestern Iran last August, killing more than 300 people and injuring 3,000. In December 2003, a massive quake struck the southern city of Bam. It killed 26,271 people-about a quarter of the population-and destroyed the city’s ancient mud-built citadel. — AFP

International FRIDAY, APRIL 19, 2013

More than 20 killed in S Sudan violence JUBA: A theft of 750 cattle sparked a manhunt by security forces that devolved into an attack by those forces on a medical facility, where four medical staff and a patient were killed, officials said yesterday.

More than 20 people died in total. The feud began last weekend after raiders stole at least 750 cattle in Eastern Equatoria state, near the border with Kenya and Uganda, said Felix Otuduha, a state spokesman.

A force composed of wildlife officers, police and the army tried to pursue the raiders, but in an ensuing battle the raiders killed all the police and wildlife officers,” Otuduha said. Nine security forces, five raiders and two civilians died in the clash, he said.

The rustlers had retreated to a mountainous region,

Otuduha said, which gave them the advantage of high ground.

On Monday, the state government - enraged by the cattle thefts and resulting deaths - deployed hundreds of soldiers to hunt down the raiders. But an official said those security forces instead indiscriminately shot and killed civilians and burned down houses and shops. They also attacked a hospital.

“A medical doctor was dragged out of a hospital and killed in front of the hospital. Another two medical staff were also killed ... and a patient was also killed. In the hospital alone four were killed before the soldiers set fire to the hospital,” said David Nailo

Mayo, a member of parliament.

Mayo said a final death toll isn’t yet available because the conflict is ongoing. Much of the internal violence occurring in South Sudan takes place between rival tribes, which would explain why security forces might attack civilians or even a hospital.

Col. Philip Aguer, the spokesman of the SPLA, South Sudan’s military, said army troops have been deployed to the area to stop the cattle thefts and ensure the safety of lives and property.

“If there is any accusation against the SPLA, the officers in the area will investigate how the concerned officers got involved in whatever happened,” he said. —AP

Taleban in Qatar see no early peace talks Militant leaders now biding their time

BAGHDAD: Iraqi Army soldiers inspect explosives buried in the backyard of a house seized by Iraqi security forces during recent operations in Baghdad’s Adhamiya district yesterday.—AP

Iraqi forces hunt for former Saddam aide BAGHDAD: Iraqi special forces are closing in on the most senior member of Saddam Hussein’s inner circle still on the run since the 2003 invasion, security sources said yesterday.

Troops backed by helicopters were searching for Izzat Ibrahim Al-Douri, head of Saddam’s now-outlawed Baath party, in villages around the former ruler’s hometown of Tikrit, 150 km (95 miles) north of Baghdad.

Capturing the most prominent Baath leader would be a major victory for the Shi’ite Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki before provincial elections that will measure his political muscle for the 2014 parliamentary ballot.

“We have solid information that he is in Dour since last night, now we have closed the area, announced a curfew and are searching house by house,” said one senior security officer involved in the operation. Douri was long believed to be living outside Iraq, and he was last seen in January in a video message encouraging Sunni Muslim protesters to resist Maliki’s government. Maliki is facing huge Sunni rallies in western Iraq protesting against what they see as the marginalization of their minority sect since 2003. Many Sunnis feel they have been unfairly targeted for arrest by security forces.

The Shiite leader has offered some concessions to protesters, especially in the so-called de-Baathification law - meant to keep former Baath party members out of government posts and Iraq’s tough anti-terrorism laws.

Maliki is also under pressure from other Shiite parties in his coalition, who are trying to use his concessions to Sunnis for political gain in the local elections on Saturday for provincial council members. Douri was vice-chairman of Saddam’s ruling Revolutionary Command Council until the invasion. He also headed the Army of the Men of the Naqshbandi Order or the Naqshbandi Army formed after 2007 to fight US troops.

Sunni Islamist insurgents and Al-Qaeda still carry out coordinated attacks like the string of bombings on Monday that killed 30 people in Baghdad and other cities.

Security officers involved in the Douri operation said they believed he moved between Tikrit and the towns of Dour and Hawija. One security source said Douri visited Sunni demonstrators in Tikrit before he went to Dour where he has many supporters and owns a villa.

“The special forces early this morning raided the villa of His Excellency. They searched it, but found nothing,” said Dhiyaa Ibrahim, one of Douri’s neighbors.— Reuters

DOHA/KABUL: Taleban leaders living in Qatar have held no Afghanistan peace talks with US officials in the Gulf state for more than a year and see no prospect of any soon, Taleban sources say.

A team of envoys from the Islamist insurgent group flew to Qatar in early 2012 to open talks with the US government, which has laid a greater emphasis on negotiations before a handover of security to Afghan forces in 2014.

Among the most prominent members of the delegation in Doha is Tayeb Agha, the former chief of staff to the Taleban’s reclusive leader, Mullah Mohammed Omar. But more than a year later, the negotiations held in March 2012 have not been followed by further meetings, Taleban sources familiar with the matter told Reuters. Many of the Taleban leaders living in Qatar now appear to spend their time pursuing private family activities.

Many can be seen at the shopping malls of the gas-rich Gulf Arab state, pushing trolleys loaded with merchandise and with their children in tow.

“There has been no contact from the US with us at all this year,” said a Taleban source under condition of anonymity. No date had been set to restart the talks, he said, declining to give any further details.

Talks among the United States, Pakistan and the Taleban about a possible Afghan settlement have made scant progress in the past few years. The Taliban suspended the talks in March 2012, saying Washington was giving mixed signals on the nascent Afghan reconciliation process.

“Taleban had asked for the exchange of prisoners and recognition as a group,

but as far as I know there have been no more talks,” said Mohammed Himat, counselor at the Afghan embassy in Doha, told Reuters. The talks in Doha between the Taleban and the United States in 2012 had taken place at a US military facility, he said.

Afghan officials have not held formal talks with the militants, who were toppled by US-led forces in 2001 in the wake of the Sept. 11 attacks on the United States but have proven resilient after more than a decade of war.

The Kabul government has said it wants to start talks with the Taleban to end the conflict before the planned departure of most foreign combat troops by the end of 2014. Last month, Afghan President Hamid Karzai flew to Doha and held talks with the emir, Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani, in an effort to speed up the opening of a Taliban representative office in Qatar where further talks could be held.

Karzai had initially resisted Western plans to grant the Taleban an office in Qatar, concerned that it would give the movement political legitimacy and reduce his control over the direction of any future talks. But he endorsed the proposal in late 2011 under pressure from his allies.

Other countries who had also offered to host the office were Turkey and Saudi Arabia, Himat added. However, an Afghan government official familiar with the peace talks said Saudi Arabia was not an ideal option as it was seen as having strong ties with Pakistan.

Afghan officials have long accused Pakistan of backing the Taleban or tolerating the movement’s leaders presence on its territory in the hope of using the force

as proxy to influence events in Afghanistan. Nasrullah Stanekzai, an advisor to Karzai in legal affairs, told Reuters the opening of a Doha office for the Taliban would help Afghanistan engage in direct peace talks with insurgents and limit Pakistan’s influence on the process.

With with no clear timeline of when peace talks will resume, the Taliban have continued their suicide attacks. Earlier this month, nine Taliban suicide bombers killed themselves and 44 others in an attack on a courtroom in western Afghanistan where 10 of their comrades were on trial, the biggest death toll in a single attack since 2011.

Apart from Agha, the Taleban team includes Mualavi Shahabadin Delawar, a former Taleban ambassador to Saudi Arabia; Sohail Shaheen, a former Taliban ambassador to Pakistan, Sher Mohammad Stanekzai, a former Taleban minister of public health, Qari Deen Mohammad, from northern Tajikistan province and former Taleban minister of planning, Hafez Sayed Rahman from Laghman province and the Taleban’s envoy to Abu Dhabi, diplomats said.

Qatari authorities were unavailable to confirm whether these Taliban members were living in Doha. Diplomats have said the authorities have banned them from speaking to the media.

Some can now be spotted at malls dressed in Gulf Arab robes, pushing shopping trolleys and playing with their children. “They are inactive here in Doha and are monitored very closely by the authorities, but they are free to roam around the country and travel,” Himat said. — Reuters

Iraq’s Kurds to hold local elections in September BAGHDAD: Iraq’s self-ruled Kurdish region announced yesterday that new parliamentary and presidential elections will be held on Sept 21, as violence rose ahead of weekend provincial elections elsewhere in the country. A car bomb exploded yesterday, killing three soldiers and wounding five others traveling in an army convoy in Mosul, 360 kilometers (225 miles) northwest of Baghdad. Hours later, one policeman was killed and three others were

wounded when gunmen attacked a security checkpoint in western Baghdad, police said. A government statement said that Masoud Barzani, the president of the Kurdish region, approved the date for the elections and called for transparent ballots. Following the US-led invasion that toppled Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein, the Kurdish area was recognized as an autonomous region that is in many ways politically independent from Baghdad.

Since then, the two main Kurdish parties the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan and the Democratic Party of Kurdistan - have joined forces to rule the oil-rich region.

Baghdad and the Kurds have been at loggerheads for years over several issues, including oil and control over disputed areas claimed by both sides. The vote for a new 111-seat National Assembly would be the third election in the three-province region since 2005.—AP

International FRIDAY, APRIL 19, 2013

Chad hosts summit on C African Republic crisis Violence endemic after rebel takeover

LONDONDERRY: The Dalai Lama gestures during a press conference in Londonderry, Northern Ireland, yesterday. The Tibetan spiritual leader is patron of the Derry-based charity, Children in Crossfire and is guest of honor at the Culture of Compassion event. — AFP

France won’t block US plan on Western Sahara UNITED NATIONS: France, Morocco’s traditional protector on the UN Security Council, is unlikely to use its veto to block a US proposal to have UN peacekeepers monitor human rights in the disputed territory of Western Sahara, envoys said.

The US proposal was contained in a draft UN Security Council resolution Washington circulated to the so-called Group of Friends on Western Sahara, which includes the United States, France, Spain, Britain and Russia, UN diplomats said this week on condition of anonymity.

“We don’t expect France will block,” a diplomat from one of the Group of Friends countries said on condition of anonymity on Wednesday. The diplomat was confirming a French media report. Another UN diplomat yesterday confirmed the remarks.

The draft resolution is intended to extend the mandate of the UN mission in Western Sahara for another year. It was to be put to a vote in the Security Council this month.

The idea of making UN human rights monitoring one of the tasks of the UN peacekeeping mission for Western Sahara, known as MINURSO, is something Morocco opposes but rights groups and the Polisario Front independence movement have long advocated.

France, Rabat’s traditional protector on the 15nation Security Council, has made clear in the past that it would use its veto to block on such proposals.

But that is no longer the case, diplomats said.

The US suggestion for a human rights monitoring component of MINURSO came after Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon told the Security Council he advocated “sustained” independent human rights monitoring for the territory. Morocco was annoyed by the US proposal and canceled planned joint US-Moroccan military exercises in response. In UN-mediated talks, Rabat has tried to convince Polisario, which represents the Sahrawi people, to accept its plan for Western Sahara to be an autonomous part of Morocco.

Polisario instead proposes a referendum among ethnic Sahrawis that includes an option of independence, but there is no agreement between Morocco and Polisario on who should participate in any referendum. No state recognizes Morocco’s rule over Western Sahara but the Security Council is divided.

Some non-aligned states back Polisario but France has supported Rabat.

Polisario accuses Morocco of routine human rights violations in Western Sahara and has called for MINURSO to have the authority to conduct independent human rights monitoring. That is something Polisario has called for in previous years, but Morocco, backed

by France, has rejected the idea. — Reuters

N’DJAMENA: Regional leaders went into summit talks hosted yesterday by Chad to discuss ways to end the crisis in the Central African Republic, where violence has been endemic since rebels seized power last month.

“The principal question to be dealt with during the course of this summit is that of security in the Central African Republic (CAR),” Chad’s President Idriss Deby said after proceedings opened.

“The CAR is like a wound in the heart of central Africa. We have to mobilise to put an end to this recurrent situation,” Deby told fellow leaders in the Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS).

“Armed bands loot, hold to ransom and racketeer the population,” he added, stating that the Seleka rebel alliance which ousted president Francois Bozize “is an organisation that lacks unity and the initiative of a command (structure)”.

Deby also pointed that an international ECCAS military force deployed in the Central African Republic, the 500-strong FOMAC, was “insufficient to do the job”.

The ECCAS leaders were joined by President Jacob Zuma of South Africa,

which had troops in the troubled country aiding Bozize. At least 13 of these men were killed and 27 wounded in a clash with rebels on March 23 as Seleka fighters neared the capital Bangui.

The summiteers should “draw up an assessment of the evolution of the situation in Central Africa” since decisions taken by a previous ECCAS summit on April 3, according to a Chadian diplomatic source. The source said the earlier summit had made it possible to find “institutional means” to legitimize the seizure of power by Seleka leader Michel Djotodia, who swiftly proclaimed himself head of state.

Djotodia was last Saturday elected interim president by a national transitional council of 105 members, which is acting as a constituent assembly in line with regional demands. The Seleka chief must rule for no more than 18 months. While these developments have clarified the political situation, the overall state of one of the world’s poorest countries has deteriorated since the last ECCAS summit.

Looting has been ceaseless and clashes have taken place between Seleka forces and residents angry at the lack of security, while militias who sup-

ported the Bozize regime remain active. About 20 people were killed in weekend violence. A diplomatic source even expressed fear of “a civil war” if the unrest persists.

On Tuesday, Djotodia announced police reinforcements of 500 men, with 500 others to the paramilitary gendarmerie police. He also pledged to put Seleka fighters in camps and to clear them off the streets. However, the latter step did not take place and the interim government asked the FOMAC nations to send reinforcements of 1,000 men to provide security.

Prime Minister Nicolas Tiangaye, who formerly led the political opposition, also asked for reinforcements of French troops to help pacify the capital and the blighted interior of the country, which is potentially wealthy with its reserves of diamonds and gold.

The ECCAS summit is due to discuss these issues, leading to skepticism from some observers as to which nations have the trained manpower and resources to maintain peacekeeping forces. One diplomat said the region was “fed up with always having to help the same country”. —AFP

Mugabe warns against violence during vote HARARE: President Robert Mugabe marked Zimbabwe’s 33 years of independence with a renewed call to shun violence ahead of elections later this year to choose a successor to the country’s shaky power-sharing government. “The country is now due to hold harmonised elections, and I wish to urge the nation to uphold and promote peace,” Mugabe told a rally in the capital to mark the 33rd anniver-

sary of the former Rhodesia’s independence from Britain.

He told party leaders to avoid exhorting their followers to attack opponents and said he had ordered the police to get tough on perpetrators of political violence. “You are all Zimbabweans,” Mugabe told celebrations attended by government officials including his nemesis Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai. “Go and

BERTOUA: A soldier on a motorcycle riding to the military camp in Bertoua, Cameroon. A total of 145 Central African soldiers, who fled their country after the March 24 coup, are hosted at the Bertoua military camp. — AFP

vote your own way. No one should force you to vote for me,” said Mugabe, whose ZANU-PF was largely blamed for most of the violence seen during the last elections in 2008.

More than 200 opposition members were killed around the run-off vote.

“I urge all our people to replicate the peaceful and tranquil environment which characterised the referendum” last month, Mugabe said.

Zimbabwe endorsed a new constitution in the March referendum, which was hailed by observers as credible.

Mugabe expressed the hope that talks to restore ties with the West will see the lifting of sanctions imposed on him and his inner circle for alleged rights abuses and electoral fraud.

“Zimbabwe welcomes the reengagement efforts that were recently initiated by Britain and the European Union,” he said. “We hope that these efforts will lead to the unconditional lifting of illegal sanctions on Zimbabwe.”

Elections should take place later this year after the expiry of the power-sharing government Mugabe formed four years ago with his longtime rival. A date is yet to be fixed.

Meanwhile Tsvangirai, in his own independence day message, said the end of colonial rule did not bring freedom for all. — AFP

International FRIDAY, APRIL 19, 2013

Italian parliament fails to elect state president Centre-left candidate falls short of majority

LONDON: A handout picture released by the Metropolitan Police shows custody photographs of British men (top left to right) Syed Farham Hussein, Umar Arshad, (bottom left to right) Mohammed Sharfaraz Ahmed and Zahid Iqbal. — AFP

Toy car bomb plot men jailed in Britain LONDON: Two men were jailed for up to 16 years in Britain yesterday for planning acts of terrorism including an Al-Qaedainspired plot to send a remote-controlled toy car into an army reservist centre. Zahid Iqbal, 31, and Mohammed Sharfaraz Ahmed, 25, had discussed building an explosive device using a manual entitled “Make a bomb in the kitchen of your mom-by the Al-Qaeda chef”, prosecutors said.

In covert recordings of the pair, Iqbal suggested attaching the bomb to the toy car and dispatching it under a gate into a Territorial Army centre in Luton, the town north of London where the men live.

Iqbal was heard telling Ahmed: “I was looking and drove past like the TA centre, Marsh Road. At the bottom of their gate there’s quite a big gap. “If you had a little toy car it drives underneath one of their vehicles or something.” Jurors also heard that Iqbal had been acting as a “facilitator” for people who wanted to travel overseas for “extremist purposes” and he had direct contact at one time with a Pakistani operative with the pseudonym “Modern Sleeve”. Judge Alan Wilkie told Woolwich Crown Court in London that the pair posed “a significant risk of serious harm to the public” and told them they would spend at least 11 years and three months behind bars, although the sentence can be extended by another five years. —AFP

ROME: Italy’s parliament failed to elect a new state president in its first vote yesterday, with deep splits in the centre left torpedoing a quick victory for its official candidate Franco Marini.

Marini, a former Senate speaker, won 521 votes, well below the required two-thirds majority of 672 of the 1,007 electors, comprising members of both houses of parliament and regional representatives. A second ballot will be held later yesterday and two votes a day will continue through the weekend if necessary. Marini’s clear failure, in a vote which is key to filling a government vacuum since the deadlocked general election in February, was a slap in the face for centre-left leader Pier Luigi Bersani. He badly split his party by nominating Marini in a deal with centre-right boss Silvio Berlusconi.

Many rebellious centre-left parliamentarians voted in the secret ballot for academic Stefano Rodota, candidate of the populist 5-Star Movement of former comic Beppe Grillo.

Rodota won more than 240 votes and there were also more than 100 blank or spoilt ballots. Nichi Vendola, head of Bersani’s leftist ally SEL, said nominating Marini “was a mistake.

The result was worrying. Marini was a candidate who united the centre right, not the centre left.” He said unless things changed, his 46 representatives would keep voting for Rodota.

Roberto Fico, from Grillo’s movement, said: “The BerlusconiBersani marriage did not work, so the consensus behind Rodota is growing.” After three rounds of voting, only an absolute majority is required but the chances for Marini, 80, may decline as time passes, wrecking Bersani’s deal with Berlusconi which is aimed at helping him form a minority government. Bersani has repeatedly refused to agree to Berlusconi’s demands that they form a broad coalition government together. But it is widely believed he wants to parley an agreement on the presidency with centre-right willingness to support a minority centre-left government.

The vote for a successor to President Giorgio Napolitano, whose term ends on May 15, is a crucial step towards resolving the stalemate since an inconclusive election in February which left no party with enough support to form a government.

However the choice of Marini provoked fury in Bersani’s Democratic Party (PD) and an open revolt by his rival, Matteo Renzi, the 38-year-old mayor of Florence. Renzi described the 80-year-old Marini as “a candidate from the last century” who had no charisma or international standing, adding that he was only chosen because he was acceptable to Berlusconi.

“The PD is in fragments, it doesn’t exist anymore,” Renato Brunetta, the parliamentary leader of Berlusconi’s People of Freedom (PDL) party, told Canale 5 television.

Until the new president is elected, the paralysis that has hobbled attempts to form a government for more than 50 days since the election will continue. The PD, which controls the lower house of parliament, has the largest number of presidential electors with 430, ahead of Berlusconi’s PDL with 211 and the 5-Star Movement with 162. If no candidate succeeds in the initial rounds, the required threshold drops to a simple majority from the fourth round. But it is unclear whether Marini would

remain in the race or drop out if he failed to secure the twothirds majority. That could lead to the PD abandoning hopes of a deal with the centre right and going for a candidate like former Prime Minister Romano Prodi, one of Berlusconi’s oldest political enemies. Such an outcome is widely seen as likely to lead to an election within months.

The head of state is a largely ceremonial figure but has a number of vital political functions, as Napolitano demonstrated in 2011 when he put Mario Monti at the head of a government of technocrats to replace the scandal-plagued Berlusconi. It will be up to the new president to end the political deadlock left by the election, either by persuading the parties to come to an accord that would allow a government to be formed or by dissolving parliament and calling a new national vote. —Reuters

ROME: The president of the Italian senate Pietro Grasso (left) and the president of the Italian parliament, Laura Boldrini, react after a session for the election of the President of Italy yesterday. —AFP

ROME: Supporters of the protest Five Star movement stand in front of the Parliament during a session for the election of the President of Italy yesterday. — AFP

France’s Hollande blasts ‘homophobic’ violence PARIS: French President Francois Hollande yesterday hit out at “homophobic” acts by opponents of a samesex marriage bill following violent protests that included an overnight attack on a gay bar. The interior minister, meanwhile, asked protest organizers to throw out members of far-right organizations who have been involved in the violence, as opposition intensifies ahead of the bill’s expected final approval.

“Homophobic acts, violent acts have been committed. The right to protest is recognized by our constitution and accepted by the French. But no protest must degenerate,” Hollande said.

The landmark bill was approved by the upper house Senate last week after

being voted through the lower house National Assembly earlier this year. It has now gone back to the assembly for a second reading, and could face a final vote as early as Tuesday, under a fasttrack measure that has limited debate to 25 hours. Opponents have accused the government of rushing the bill through its final stages in the legislative process, and have upped the ante with daily protests.

On Wednesday, a several-thousandstrong protest in the streets of Paris turned ugly with cars and public property vandalized and police officers and journalists attacked. Several people were detained for questioning. In Lille, three employees of a gay bar were injured late Wednesday in an attack by

four men who smashed the building’s windows. The owner linked the incident to “tensions” over the parliament vote.

Protests against the bill-which would also legalise same-sex adoption-have also taken place in Versailles near Paris, as well as the southwestern city of Toulouse. Interior Minister Manuel Valls denounced the current climate in France as “sickening” after holding a meeting with police representatives to reinforce security measures surrounding protests and try and prevent homophobic assaults.

He warned protest organizers to beware of “hate speech” and asked them to “reject far-right groups.”

Meanwhile, debate in the lower house turned sour as pro- and anti-bill

politicians traded barbs, with Justice Minister Christiane Taubira comparing the situation to “a bad Spaghetti Western” while one member of parliament said the proposed law equated to “assassinating children”.

“What you are doing is (opening) a breach that will not close if this legal text passes through, it’s an ignominy,” said Philippe Cochet, member of the main opposition centre-right UMP party. “You are assassinating children”, he added, provoking an uproar that forced the speaker of the house to interrupt the session. When the members of parliament returned, Cochet said the term he used was “not appropriate”, but added he still believed the bill would make children more vulnerable. — AFP

International FRIDAY, APRIL 19, 2013

Musharraf on the run after arrest order Dramatic scenes outside court

MOTIHARI: A signpost announces the birthplace of British author George Orwell in front of a dilapidated residence in Motihari. — AFP

Gandhi memorial U-turn to preserve Orwell site PATNA: Plans to create a memorial park for India’s independence hero Mahatma Gandhi that would have encroached on the birthplace of British novelist George Orwell have been shelved, officials said yesterday. Last week, a state minister laid the foundation stone for the proposed Gandhi park on land surrounding Orwell’s birthplace in Motihari town in Bihar state, causing concern among fans of the writer.

“In view of questions raised by several people, the district administration has stopped the construction of the park around the premises of Orwell’s birthplace,” district magistrate Vinay Kumar told AFP. Kumar said the district administration has instructed local officials to keep away from the site housing a simple white colonial bungalow belonging to Orwell’s family.

Orwell, born as Eric Arthur Blair on June 25, 1903, lived in Motihari for a year as a child before leaving for England in 1904 with his mother and sister. His father, Richard W Blair, worked for the Indian Civil Service during the time of British rule over the subcontinent.

For years, the family’s bungalow has been left to decay.

It was damaged in an earthquake in 1934 and has since served as an occasional home to stray animals. Recently Orwell’s statue at the site of the house was vandalised.

Deo Priya Mukherjee, who heads an Orwell commemorative committee in the state, said he was delighted with the development. “We welcome the decision to stop the construction of the park at the birthplace of Orwell. The park in memory of Gandhi should be developed away from the protected site,” Mukherjee said.

“It is an unfortunate that although the place has no connection with Gandhi, some people with vested interests were trying to develop it as a place associated with the freedom fighter,” he added. Orwell, writer of such novels as ‘Animal Farm’ and ‘1984’, never returned to his birthplace and died in 1950 after a life that saw him live rough in London and Paris, fight in the Spanish civil war and serve as a wartime broadcaster for the BBC. — AFP

MASHKEL: Villagers build a makeshift shelter in the ruins of their home that collapsed after Tuesday’s earthquake in Mashkel, southwestern Baluchistan province yesterday. —AP

ISLAMABAD: Former Pakistani military ruler Pervez Musharraf and his security team pushed past policemen and sped away from a court in the country’s capital yesterday to avoid arrest after his bail was revoked in a case in which he is accused of treason.

Local TV broadcast footage of the dramatic scene in which Musharraf jumped into a black SUV and escaped as a member of his security team hung to the side of the vehicle. He sped away to his large compound on the outskirts of Islamabad that is protected by high walls, razor wire and guard towers.

This week has gone from bad to worse for Musharraf, who seized power in a coup in 1999 when he was serving as army chief and spent nearly a decade in power before being forced to step down in 2008. He returned last month after four years in self-imposed exile to make a political comeback despite legal challenges and Taleban death threats, but has since faced paltry public support. A court in the northwestern city of Peshawar on Tuesday disqualified Musharraf from running in the parliamentary election scheduled for May 11, likely squashing his hopes for political comeback. The case before the Islamabad High Court yesterday involved Musharraf’s decision in 2007 to detain senior judges, including the chief justice of the Supreme Court, when he declared a state of emergency and suspended the constitution.

The decision outraged many Pakistanis, and further fueled a nationwide protest movement by lawyers that eventually resulted in Musharraf stepping down under the threat of impeachment. Lawyers shouted, “Look who is running, Musharraf is running!” as Musharraf fled the court yesterday.

ISLAMABAD: A car carrying the lawyer of former Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf enters the residence of Musharraf after a court ordered for his arrest in Islamabad yesterday. — AFP Before he returned to the country, to prevent Musharraf from leaving as he Musharraf obtained pre-arrest bail for pushed past them.

Another of Musharraf’s lawyers, the judges’ case and two others, meaning he could not be arrested when he Ahmad Raza Kasuri, complained that the landed - a feature of Pakistan’s legal sys- court didn’t listen to their arguments. “It tem. The Islamabad High Court refused is a one-sided decision,” said Kasuri. A to extend that bail on Thursday and third Musharraf lawyer, Raja Mohammed ordered his arrest, said police officer Ali Ibrahim, said he would file an appeal Asghar. The court previously agreed to with the Supreme Court today, challengextend his bail in the case for six days on ing the decision. Musharraf’s decision to April 12. The same judge rejected a fur- flee the court could put the Pakistani ther bail extension yesterday, saying the army in an awkward situation. The forcase was “too serious” and must pro- mer general is protected by paramilitary ceed, said one of Musharraf’s lawyers, soldiers who officially report to the Interior Ministry, but are headed by senMalik Qamar Afzal.

Policemen were deployed at the ior army officers. Ali Dayan Hasan, the court who could have detained the for- director of Human Rights Watch in mer military ruler, but he managed to Pakistan, called on the military authoriescape, said Asghar, the police officer. ties protecting Musharraf to comply with Many of the policemen and paramilitary the court’s order and ensure that he soldiers at the court did not seem to try presents himself for arrest. — AP

Death sentence for India restaurant bomb plotter MUMBAI: An Indian court sentenced a cyber cafe worker to death yesterday for his role in a deadly bomb blast which ripped through a restaurant in the western city of Pune three years ago, lawyers said. Mirza Himayat Baig was found guilty earlier this week of criminal conspiracy and murder for the attack on the packed German Bakery restaurant, which killed 17 people including five foreigners.

“The court said it was the rarest of rare cases and gave the death penalty because they found him guilty of a terrorist act,” special public prosecutor Raja Thakare told AFP. Baig, in his early 30s, will appeal against the judgment to a higher court, defense counsel A Rehman said after the sentence was delivered in Pune, around 150 kilometres (90 miles) southeast of India’s financial capital Mumbai. The blast on February 13, 2010 in Maharashtra state was the first major attack in India after the 2008 assault on Mumbai by Islamist gunmen that left 166 dead. Thakare said Baig was connected to the Indian Mujahideen, a shadowy home-grown Islamist network

allegedly linked to the Pakistan-based militant group Lashkar-e-Taiba, which is blamed for orchestrating the Mumbai attack. Five co-accused in the Pune blast case are still at large, including the man believed to have planted the bomb in a rucksack left under a table, which also injured more than 60 people.

The bomb exploded while the restaurant was jammed with mainly young Indians and tourists, creating a huge hole in the wall and sending those inside fleeing and screaming in panic for their lives.

Prosecutors had told the court the conspirators planned the attack at a meeting in Colombo, Sri Lanka, where Baig was trained to make a bomb, but the defense team denied this and said he was not in Pune at the time of the blast. Baig, who used to run a cyber cafe in Maharashtra, was arrested following several months of investigation after police found explosives at his home in Latur in Maharashtra, local reports said.

Pune was hit again last August by a string of lowintensity blasts that targeted a bustling restaurant and shopping area, injuring one person. —AFP

International FRIDAY, APRIL 19, 2013

China angered by Japan’s increased jet scrambles BEIJING: China yesterday accused Japan of raising regional tensions with its increased use of fighter jets to monitor Chinese aircraft that approach a cluster of islands claimed by both countries.

The remarks from Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying came one day after Japan’s Defense Ministry said it dispatched fighter jets in response to Chinese planes 306 times during the 12 months through March 2013, up from 156 the previous year. Chinese aircraft have steadily increased patrols in the East China Sea, where the Japanese controlled islands are located. There has been only one report of a Chinese plane violating Japanese air-

space over the uninhabited islands, called Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyu in China. “We all know Japan has continuously provoked and escalated tensions over the Diaoyus,” Hua told reporters at a regularly scheduled news conference. Hua said that China is firm in its resolve to defend its claim to the islands, but that it wants to solve the issue peacefully through dialogue and negotiation, a reference to Beijing’s insistence that Tokyo at least formally concede that ownership of the islands is in dispute.

“What Japan needs to do is, not send more planes, but show sincerity and action and talk with China,” Hua said.

Simmering tensions over the islands flared violently in

September amid Chinese fury at the Japanese government’s purchasing of three of them from their private owners. Japanese businesses were attacked in several Chinese cities and Chinese patrol boats were dispatched to confront Japanese ships in waters near the islands.

The outburst was more vehement and sustained than previous rounds of anti-Japanese sentiment that were grounded in Chinese resentment over Japan’s brutal occupation of much of the country during the 1930s and 1940s. However, the risk of conflict appears to have receded in recent weeks amid back-channel diplomacy and efforts to prevent a clash at sea. — AP

N Korea lays out tough pre-conditions for talks Overture too little to reduce tension: Seoul

SINGAPRE: Singapore Navy sailors (right) observing the littoral combat ship USS Freedom (LCS 1) as it arrives in Singapore during an eight-month deployment to Southeast Asia. The US warship designed to fight in coastal areas arrived in Singapore for its Southeast Asian deployment, underlining President Barack Obama’s new strategic focus on Asia. — AFP

Cheers and Maori song as N Zealand OKs gay marriage WELLINGTON: The halls of Parliament echoed with a traditional Maori love song after lawmakers made New Zealand the 13th country in the world and the first in the Asia-Pacific region to legalize same-sex marriage.

Supporters of the bill, including hundreds of gay-rights advocates, stood and cheered after the 77-44 vote was announced late Wednesday. Then someone started signing “Pokarekare Ana” in the indigenous Maori language, and soon nearly the whole room joined in.

“They are agitated, the waters of Waiapu,” the song begins. “But when you cross over, girl, they will be calm.”

Before the vote, bill sponsor Louisa Wall told lawmakers the change was “our road toward healing.”

“In our society, the meaning of marriage is universal - it’s a declaration of love and commitment to a special person,” she said. She added that “nothing could make me more proud to be a New Zealander than passing this bill.” Fellow Member of Parliament Maurice Williamson mocked a reverend’s claim that the bill would set off a “gay onslaught.” “We are struggling to know what the gay onslaught will look like,” Williamson told his colleagues. “We don’t know if it will come down the Pakuranga Highway as a series of troops, or whether it will be a gas that flows in over the electorate that blocks us all in.”

“The sun will still rise tomorrow,” Williamson assured the bill’s opponents. And he suggested that religious objections might even be off-base:

“We had the most enormous big gay rainbow across my electorate. It has to be a sign, sir!”

Most political party leaders had encouraged lawmakers to vote by their conscience rather than along party lines. Although Wall is from the opposition Labor Party, the bill also was supported by center-right Prime Minister John Key. “In my view, marriage is a very personal thing between two individuals,” Key said. “And, in the end, this is part of equality in modernday New Zealand.”

Since 2005, New Zealand has allowed civil unions, which confer many legal rights to gay couples. The new law will allow gay couples to jointly adopt children for the first time and will also allow their marriages to be recognized in other countries. The law will take effect in late August.

“For us, we can now feel equal to everyone else,” said bank teller Tania Penafiel Bermudez, who said she already considers herself married to partner Sonja Fry but now can get a certificate to prove it. “This means we can feel safe and fair and right in calling each other wife and wife.”

“This is really, really huge,” said Jills Angus Burney, a lawyer who drove about 90 minutes to Parliament to watch the vote with her partner, Deborah Hambly, who had flown in from farther afield. “It’s really important to me. It’s just unbelievable.”

Burney, a Presbyterian, said she and Hambly want to celebrate with a big, traditional wedding as soon as possible.—AP

SEOUL: North Korea offered talks yesterday with South Korea and the United States, but laid out pre-conditions that Seoul dismissed as “absurd” and analysts said would do little to reduce soaring tensions. The demands laid out by the North’s main military body included the withdrawal of UN sanctions and a permanent end to South Korea-US joint military drills. The offer followed a month of increasingly hostile exchanges between Pyongyang, Seoul and Washington that have included threats of nuclear war and precision missile strikes. The North’s conditions were swiftly rejected by South Korea which, together with the United States, has made any talks conditional on the North putting its nuclear weapons program on the table.

“North Korea’s demands are totally incomprehensible. It’s absurd,” foreign ministry spokesman Cho Tai-Young told reporters. Dialogue has become the new focus of the blistering rhetorical battle that has trapped the Korean peninsula in an escalating cycle of military tensions ever since the North carried out its third nuclear test in February.

South Korea’s new president, Park Geun-Hye, has made tentative-and conditional-offers of talks, but the North’s initial response was to swat them away as a “crafty trick”.

Some analysts see the North’s engagement in a debate over dialogue-no matter how unrealistic the conditions-as a welcome shift from the apocalyptic threats that have been pouring out of Pyongyang.

“It’s an initial show of strength in a game of tug-of-war that at least shows a desire to have a dialogue down the line,” said Yang Moo-Jin, a professor at the University of North Korean Studies in Seoul. But others like Daniel Pinkston, a North Korea expert with the International Crisis Group, ruled out any softening of Pyongyang’s position and said those hoping for dialogue were being wilfully naive. The North, Pinkston argued, had bound itself to a course that could only end with its recognition as a nuclear power-a sta-

tus that is anathema to the United States and its allies.

“So what is there to even talk about?” Pinkston said. “The North is committed. It’s burned its bridges. Any reversal could only be made at immense domestic cost to the regime. “And there is simply no way any US administration is going to sit down and confirm a change in the status quo with the North as a nuclear state,” Pinkston said.

“We’re still firmly on a collision course, and it’s not going to end well,” he added. The first step demanded by the North’s National Military Commission was the withdrawal of “cooked up” UN sanctions that were imposed after the nuclear test in February. North Korea has repeatedly cited the sanctions as a prime trigger for the current crisis.

The other main bone of contention has been ongoing South Korea-US military drills, which have involved the deployment of nuclear-capable B-52s and B-2 stealth bombers. Both countries must provide international guarantees that such “nuclear war drills” will never be repeated, the commission said.

“Dialogue and war games can never go together,” it added. President Park’s dialogue overtures to the North received the backing of US Secretary of State John Kerry during his recent Northeast Asia tour and UN chief Ban Ki-moon urged Pyongyang to “seriously” consider Seoul’s offer.

Both Park and Kerry stressed any talks would have to be predicated on signals from North Korea that it would “change its ways” and respect its international obligations, especially with its nuclear program. But in yesterday’s statement, the North stressed it had no intention of bargaining away its nuclear weapons. “Nothing is more foolish than pressurizing (North Korea) to show its will for denuclearization first,” it said. The North’s statement made no mention of a possible medium-range missile test-the expectation of which has kept South Korean and US forces on heightened alert for the past week. —AFP

SEOUL: South Korean soldiers prepare 155 mm howitzers during their military exercise in the border city between two Koreas, Paju, north of Seoul yesterday. — AP

International FRIDAY, APRIL 19, 2013

Is it ‘terrorism’? Anatomy of a very murky word

T

he word is almost a cold comfort in post-9/11 America - a way to describe the inconceivable, to somehow explain the twisted urge to commit mass murder. So when the bombs exploded in Boston, the word quickly became inescapable: “terrorism.”

Dictionaries, and people who study the age-old activity, define terrorism as the use of violence and fear to pursue political goals. But that definition may have expanded to fill a vacuum as the nation waits to learn a motive in the Boston Marathon explosions that killed three people and maimed scores more.

President Barack Obama chose not to use the word “terrorism” in his first remarks hours after Monday’s bombing. “The word has taken on a different meaning since 9/11,” Obama advisor David Axelrod explained on MSNBC. “I’m sure what was going through the president’s

mind is, we really don’t know who did this,” Axelrod said on Tuesday morning. But, in the public discussion, there was already a palpable hunger for the term. “All the right words but one,” was the headline of an analysis by the Defense Media Network. “Only safe assumption: It was terrorism,” another editorial was headlined in the Pittsburgh PostGazette. Within hours of Axelrod’s remarks, and with no suspects or motive announced, Obama said: “Any time bombs are used to target innocent civilians it is an act of terror.” In times of tension and uncertainty, words can become malleable vessels - for cultural fears, for political agendas, for ways to make sense of the momentous and the unknown. In 2013 America, the word “terrorism” exists at this ambiguous crossroads. And the opinions you’ll find about it - this week in particular - often transcend mere lin-

guistics. Obama’s conclusion about bombs and terror made perfect sense to Jay Winuk, whose brother, a lawyer and volunteer firefighter, died on September 11, 2001 while trying to evacuate the World Trade Center after it was attacked by fanatical Muslims. “Based on what we know so far, I do consider it an act of terrorism,” Winuk said Wednesday, before news broke of a possible suspect in the case. “I don’t know that for me personally, political motivation is part of the equation.”

“Whoever did this, it seems clear that their intention was to harm, maim, kill innocent people en masse who are going about their normal activity. To me, that’s terrorism,” said Winuk, a co-founder of “My Good Deed,” a group that has established 9/11 as a national day of service.

But that definition was a bit premature for the high school seniors in Reba Petraitis’ contemporary history

class at Kent Place School in Summit, NJ. Petraitis is part of the 4 Action Initiative, which responded to 9/11 by developing a statewide curriculum for teaching children about terrorism. Her class studies the many definitions used by various US agencies and international governments and formed its own definition, which includes the intent to “intimidate, provoke a reaction or further an agenda.” On Wednesday, the students weighed Obama’s remarks but were still not ready to call the Boston attack terrorism. Yet they understood why so many people were using the word, Petraitis said.

“When it comes to attacks like this, American people can relate to the word ‘terrorism,’” one student told the teacher, according to him.

“People can’t fathom that somebody could do something as awful as this, so they latch onto it,” another student said. —AP

Image leads to hunt for Boston bombing suspect Obama resumes consoler-in-chief role

US President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama arrive to board Air Force One at Andrews Air Force Base in Maryland yesterday. Obama heads to Boston to mourn victims of the deadly marathon attacks. —AFP

US man arrested for mailing suspected ricin CORINTH, Mississippi: A man accused of mailing letters with suspected ricin to national leaders believed he had uncovered a conspiracy to sell human body parts on the black market and claimed “various parties within the government” were trying to ruin his reputation. Paul Kevin Curtis, 45, was arrested Wednesday at his home in Corinth, near the Tennessee state line. He was jailed Oxford, Mississippi, a booking office who declined to give his name, said Thursday. It was not immediately known what charges Curtis faced.

Curtis had been living in Corinth since December, but local police had not had any contact with him prior to his arrest, Corinth Police Dept. Captain Ralph Dance told The Associated Press on Thursday. Dance said the department aided the FBI during the arrest and that Curtis did not resist being taken into custody. Since Corinth arrived in the town, he had been living in “government housing,” Dance said. He did not elaborate.

Authorities were waiting for definitive tests on intercepted letters that were addressed to President Barack Obama and Republican Sen Roger Wicker. Preliminary field tests can often show false positives for ricin. Ricin is derived from the castor plant that makes castor oil.

There is no antidote and it’s deadliest when inhaled. An FBI intelligence bulletin obtained by The Associated Press said the two letters were postmarked Memphis, Tennessee. — AP

BOSTON: The painstaking work to identify a bombing suspect from reams of Boston Marathon footage yielded a possible breakthrough as investigators focused on a man seen dropping off a bag, and then walking away from the site of the second of two deadly explosions.

The discovery of the image - found on surveillance footage from a department store near the finish line - was detailed by a city politician two days after the attack that left three people dead, wounded more than 170, and cast a dark shadow over one of this city’s most joyous traditions. The footage hasn’t been made public.

President Barack Obama was travelling to Boston yesterday to play the role of consoler-in-chief at a service for victims of the Boston Marathon bombing. A scant four months after he offered solace to the families of 20 school children and six educators killed in a shooting in Newtown, Connecticut, the president again finds himself trying to heal emotional wounds after a shocking act of violence. The president, accompanied by first lady Michelle Obama, is due to speak at an interfaith service at the Cathedral of the Holy Cross.

Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick and Boston Mayor Thomas Menino are also scheduled to address the crowd.

Massachusetts Gov Deval Patrick said he shared the frustration that the person or people responsible were still at large, but he said solving the case will not “happen by magic.”

“It’s going to happen by doing the careful work that must be done in a thorough investigation,” Patrick said.

“That means going through the couple

of blocks at the blast scene square inch by square inch and picking up pieces of evidence and following those trails, and that’s going to take some time.”

The bombs were crudely fashioned from ordinary kitchen pressure cookers packed with explosives, nails and ball bearings, investigators and others close to the case said.

Investigators suspect the devices were then hidden in black duffel bags and left on the ground. As a result, they were looking for images of someone lugging a dark, heavy bag.

Investigators had appealed to the public to provide videos and photographs from the race finish line. City Council President Stephen Murphy, who said he was briefed by Boston police, said investigators saw the image of the man dropping off a bag and matched the findings with witness descriptions of someone leaving the scene. One department store video “has confirmed

that a suspect is seen dropping a bag near the point of the second explosion and heading off,” Murphy said.

Separately, a law enforcement official who was not authorized to discuss the case publicly and spoke to The Associated Press on the condition of anonymity confirmed only that investigators had an image of a potential suspect whose name was not known to them and who had not been questioned.

Several media outlets reported that a suspect had been identified from surveillance video taken at a Lord & Taylor department store between the sites of the bomb blasts. At least 14 bombing victims, including three children, remained in critical condition. Dozens of victims have been released from hospitals, and officials at three hospitals that treated some of the most seriously injured said they expected all their remaining patients to survive. — AP

This video image provided by WFAA-TV shows injured people being treated on the flood-lit the high school football field turned into a staging area after the blast in West Texas. —AP

Business FRIDAY, APRIL 19, 2013

Importers pay for Japan’s lower yen

Morgan Stanley profit dips PAGE 21

PAGE 20

WASHINGTON: International Monetary Fund (IMF) Managing Director Christine Lagarde and Deputy Director David Lipton arrive at a news conference during the Spring Meetings of the World Bank Group and the International Monetary Fund in Washington yesterday. —AP

US economy fears weigh on markets Jobs, factory data point to faltering US growth LONDON: More disappointing US economic news hit markets yesterday, adding to the sense that the world’s largest economy is waning. A number of financial assets have been under pressure over the past few days amid growing evidence that the US and Chinese economies, the world’s two biggest, may not be as robust as some investors had thought at a time when many countries in Europe are in recession.

A manufacturing survey from the Philadelphia Federal Reserve reinforced the negativity surrounding the US economy. Its main index fell to 1.3 points in April from 2.0 the previous month, in contrast to expectations for a doubling in the level. “April is shaping up to be a rather soft month,” said Jennifer Lee, an analyst at BMO Capital Markets. Though the survey is not usually at the forefront of investor attention, it was enough to turn the tide in the markets - a sign of how fragile sentiment is at the moment. In Europe, most indexes gave up earlier gains while Wall Street was markedly lower.

In Europe, the FTSE 100 index of leading British shares dropped almost 0.1 percent to close at 6,243.67 while Germany’s DAX fell 0.4 percent

to 7,473.73. The CAC-40 in France ended flat at 3,599.36. In the US, the Dow Jones industrial average was down 0.5 percent at 14,551 while the broader S&P 500 index fell the same rate to 1,543.96 despite solid earnings updates earlier from PepsiCo. and Verizon. After the market close, Microsoft, Google and IBM are due to report. So far, the first-quarter reporting season has done little to lift the gloom.

The euro recovered slightly, trading 0.3 percent higher at $1.3075. A day earlier, it took a battering when Jens Weidmann, the head of Germany’s central bank, the Bundesbank, said the European Central Bank may consider interest rate cuts. In an interview with the Wall Street Journal, Weidmann said the ECB may “adjust rates” if the data merits it.

“The market reaction was more pronounced than usual due to the fact that while other ECB board members have gone on record as suggesting rates might need to be lower, at no time has Weidmann ever suggested he might also lean in that direction,” said Michael Hewson, senior market analyst at CMC Markets. “For that reason alone, this is an important development and

could well signal a rate reduction in the next couple of months, and a possible softening of position on the part of Germany and the Bundesbank,” he added.

The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits rose last week and factory activity in the nation’s Mid-Atlantic region cooled in April, further signs of a moderation in economic growth. The softening growth outlook was also underscored by another report yesterday showing a gauge of future economic activity fell in March for the first time in seven months.

They were the latest data to indicate a step-back in the economy after a brisk start to the year as tighter fiscal policy began to weigh. “The evidence is mounting that the economy lost momentum in March and that has carried to April,” said Ryan Sweet, a senior economist at Moody’s Analytics in West Chester, Pennsylvania.

“Growth is slowing down as the tax increases and sequester take effect.”

Initial claims for state unemployment benefits rose 4,000 to a seasonally adjusted 352,000 the Labor Department said. The four-week moving average for new claims, a better measure of labor

market trends, rose 2,750 to 361,250. Despite the rise, which was broadly in line with economists’ expectations, claims held near a level economists normally associate with average monthly job gains of more than 150,000.

That helped ease concerns of a deterioration in labor market conditions after nonfarm payrolls posted their smallest increase in nine months in March. “Labor market conditions still appear to be grinding forward, but pushing against the weight of a slowing economy and subdued confidence,” said Jim Baird, chief investment officer at Plante Moran Financial Advisors in Kalamazoo, Michigan.

In separate report, the Philadelphia Federal Reserve Bank said its business activity index fell to 1.3 in April from a reading of 2.0 in March. A reading above zero indicates expansion in the region’s manufacturing. Details of the survey which covers factories in eastern Pennsylvania, southern New Jersey and Delaware, were weak. Measures of factory employment and new orders contracted.A third report supported views the economy was again headed for a soft patch this spring, in a replay of the last two years. — Agencies

Business FRIDAY, APRIL 19, 2013

Portugal launches new round of spending cuts Spain warned against ‘drastic’ budget cut

A view of the Morgan Stanley’s headquarters in New York. —AFP

Morgan Stanley profit dips NEW YORK: Morgan Stanley’s profit and revenue dipped in the first quarter. Results beat Wall Street’s expectations, but the stock still dipped in pre-market trading. Quarterly revenue from the investment bank slipped, while revenue from wealth management rose. Earnings totaled $1.2 billion, down about 12 percent from a year earlier. Per share, those earnings amounted to 61 cents, beating the 57 cents expected by analysts polled by FactSet. Revenue totaled $8.5 billion. That was down 5 percent from a year earlier, but it beat analysts’ expectations of $8.3 billion.

The earnings and revenue exclude the effect of an accounting charge related to the value of the bank’s debt. In the investment bank, revenue from trading bonds and commodities for clients fell, a common theme for banks this earnings season. The bank also made less money advising companies on strategies like mergers and acquisitions. But the investment bank did underwrite more stock and bond offerings.

The wealth management unit brought in more fees, and clients shuttled more assets to Morgan Stanley. The number of wealth management representatives fell, down about 440 to 16,300. But the annual revenue that each representative brought in rose, to about $851,000 from $780,000 a year earlier. In a statement, CEO James Gorman said the first-quarter results represented “solid momentum.” He’s been steering the bank to depend less on investment banking and more on wealth management, which doesn’t usually experience the spectacular gains of investment banking but avoids it big falls.

Last month, Morgan Stanley got the Federal Reserve’s approval to finish buying Morgan Stanley Smith Barney, the retail brokerage that it jointly owns with Citigroup. Morgan Stanley already owns 65 percent. Gorman sounded a cautiously hopeful note about the economy. The world economy, he said, “continues to have moments of fragility,” but, he added, “we believe the broad economic outlook for the next several years is stronger than in the recent past.” Like most of its peers, Morgan Stanley has been trimming expenses, including office space, equipment and marketing costs. The amount the bank spent on salaries and benefits fell 5 percent. Headcount was down 7 percent, with the bank cutting about 3,900 jobs. The stock dipped in pre-market trading, down 17 cents to $21.30. — AP

LISBON: Portugal’s government is pushing ahead with deeply unpopular austerity policies, announcing plans yesterday to save 800 million euros ($1 billion) this year about 0.5 percent of annual GDP - by slashing spending on public sector staff, goods and services. The center-right government said the new money-saving measures are needed to meet deficit targets stipulated by creditors who gave the country a 78-billioneuro bailout two years ago.

With the recent rescue of Cyprus indicating the euro-zone’s financial crisis is far from over, the bailout lenders - the International Monetary Fund, European Central Bank and European Commission-are insisting that Portugal abide by its three-year bailout agreement. That involves painful cuts to public spending and tax increases to reduce debt.

If it doesn’t comply, the creditors won’t disburse the bailout loans, which are paid in installments. They said in a brief statement yesterday that discussions on Portugal’s progress are continuing. Portugal’s deficit target for this year is 5.5 percent. Last year, it stood at 6.4 percent, above the 4.5 percent target. In 2010, it was 10.1 percent.

However, there are signs the austerity strategy is backfiring. Despite following its austerity program closely, Portugal has repeatedly missed its deficit goals. That is partly because the measures have hurt the economy, which contracted 3.2 percent last year and is forecast to shrink 2.3 percent in 2013 for a third straight year of recession. As the economy shrinks, the government loses vital revenue it needs to lower debt. And as joblessness increases, the government faces higher social welfare bills. The unemployment rate, currently at 17.5 percent, is forecast to climb to 18.5 percent in 2014. The government is trying to plug a 1.3-billioneuro hole in its budget after the Constitutional Court recently ruled that some of this year’s austerity measures were unlawful. After the 800 million euros, it still has to make up for the rest of that shortfall.

Spain, which wants Brussels to agree to

MADRID: Unemployed Juan, 36, from Madrid, begs for alms on a Gran Via street in Madrid yesterday. — AP relax its deficit targets, should avoid a “drastic” reduction to its public deficit, the head of the International Monetary Fund said in an interview published yesterday in Spain.

“Countries that are under financial stress and which follow a pattern of high debt and high deficits have to adopt immediate measures. The key question is the speed which they take those measures,” IMF head Christine Lagarde told daily business newspaper Expansion. “Our opinion is that for a country like Spain there is no objective reason to rush towards a drastic reduction in the deficit,” she added.

Spain recorded an annual public deficit equal to 7.0 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) last year, missing a 6.3-percent target it had agreed with the European Union. Now, the Spanish government wants Brussels to agree to relax its 2013 deficit target to about 6.0 of GDP from the previously agreed 4.5 percent, a government source said this month.

Spain also wants the European Union to agree to give it an extra year to bring its

deficit to below the bloc’s limit of 3.0 percent of GDP, the source said. Lagarde said Spain could return to growth next year “unless the country was forced to adopt tough fiscal consolidation measures”.

“We are advocating a reasonable and sensible financial restructuring for Spain instead of recommending an exclusive and excessive focus on deficit reduction where there only are numeric goals,” the former French finance minister added. The IMF predicts that the Spanish economy, the euro zone’s fourth-largest, will contract by 1.6 percent this year before rebounding to expand by 0.7 percent in 2014.

Struggling in a double-dip recession sparked by the collapse of a decade-long property boom in 2008, Spain has been under tight European Union surveillance since 2009.Determined to slash the public deficit despite rising public protests, Rajoy’s government has enacted spending cuts and tax increases aimed at saving 150 billion euros ($194 billion) between 2012 and 2014. — Agencies

Abramovich slips out of Russia Top 10 rich list: Forbes MOSCOW: Chelsea football club owner and superyacht enthusiast Roman Abramovich slipped out of the top 10 richest Russians in Forbes magazine’s 2013 ranking published yesterday.

The flamboyant steel, mining, real estate and telecommunications tycoon has lost $1.9 billion of his fortune and is now worth just $10.2 billion, putting him into 13th place in Russia and 107th in the world, Forbes said. Forbes did not explain Abramovich’s fall.

He is noted for having one of the world’s largest yachts that he uses to travel the world, and which recently docked in New York for the birth of his latest child. The magazine earlier this month called the arrival of Abramovich’s daughter “the most expensive baby delivery ever,” noting that the “cost for delivering little Leah Lou on American soil topped several hundred million” dollars.

Forbes yesterday also noted that Abramovich has a $1 billion art collection, and that he bought 40 works by top conceptualist artist Ilya Kabakov for $60 million earlier this year.

The list is headed for the second year running by Alisher Usmanov, an Uzbek-born Russian tycoon

whose $17.6-billion fortune comes from original investments in mining, and who has since expanded into media and other interests. Also holding a nearly 30-percent stake in the Arsenal football club, Usmanov was ranked as the 34th-richest person in

the world by Forbes.

Russia’s number two Mikhail Fridman, a former coowner of the TNK-BP oil company, was ranked 41st worldwide with $16.5 billion in wealth. The top five was rounded out by the $15.4 billion of Leonid Mikhelson, a major stakeholder in the Novatek natural gas company (ranked 47th in the world); the $15.1 billion of Viktor Vekselberg, another former TNK-BP co-owner (ranked 52nd in the world); and the $14.8 billion of Vagit Alekperov, president of Russia’s number two oil producer Lukoil (ranked 55th globally).

Two of the fastest climbers in the top 20 included Novatek’s Mikhelson, who shot up seven spots, and the company’s co-owner Gennady Timchenko, who climbed five places to number nine on the Russia list with a fortune of $14.1 billion.

Timchenko is an old acquaintance of President Vladimir Putin, although both he and the Russian leader deny this has anything to do with the company’s surge to the top of Russia’s energy sector.

Novatek, a trading company and Russia’s largest independent natural gas producer, is slowly emerging as a real rival to the energy giant Gazprom. — AFP

Business FRIDAY, APRIL 19, 2013

Importers pay for Japan’s lower yen Trade deficit quadruple in March NEW DELHI: Indian Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma (right) talks with Indian Director General of Foreign Trade Anup K Pujari (center) as Indian Commerce Secretary S R Rao (left) looks on during the launch of the country’s Foreign Trade Policy manifesto in New Delhi yesterday. — AFP

Indian exports decline despite weak currency NEW DELHI: India’s exports contracted in the financial year which has just ended, despite a sharp decline in the value of the rupee and efforts to turn the country into a manufacturing hub, data showed yesterday. Exports in the 2012/13 financial year fell by 1.76 percent on an annual basis to $300 billion, stretching the trade deficit to $190.91 billion.

“Despite the competitive advantage of a depreciation of our currency, our exports have not performed better,” Commerce Secretary S R Rao lamented at a press conference called to announce the figures.

The rupee fell by 16 percent over the year, making India’s exports cheaper in foreign markets, while neighbor and industrial powerhouse China saw its currency appreciate, he said.

Commerce Minister Anand Sharma regretted the decline but expressed satisfaction that it had been contained to less than 2.0 percent given the difficulties in the euro-zone and other developed economies. “If the demand is not there, then our exporters will struggle,” he said. India lagged global trends, however, with World Trade Organization figures showing that international commerce expanded by 2.0 percent in the 2012 calendar year.

The figures serve as another warning light for the Indian economy, which is growing at its slowest pace in a decade due to high inflation and borrowing costs as well as low corporate confidence. Annual growth is expected to be almost half the stellar levels of the previous decade at about 5.0 percent in the 2012/13 financial year, denting the re-election prospects of the Congressled government ahead of polls next year. Output from the industrial sector has barely grown less than 18 months after the launch of the ambitious and widely touted National Manufacturing Policy aimed at creating 100 million jobs. —AFP

TOKYO: Japan’s trade deficit quadrupled in March, figures showed yesterday, as the weakening yen made fuel imports much more costly, even as it helped the country’s once-squeezed exporters.

The value of goods that came into the country was 362.4 billion yen ($3.7 billion) higher than that of exports in the month, four times the gap from the same period a year earlier. Compared with March 2012, the yen was worth around 16 percent less in March this year, vastly boosting the cost of the dollar-priced fossil fuels that Japan has to import.

Exports rose 1.1 percent to 6.27 trillion yen, helped by a big bump in US-bound shipments, which soared 7.0 percent. But overall imports climbed 5.5 percent to 6.63 trillion yen with purchases of crude oil up 7.0 percent and liquefied natural gas up 8.8 percent.

“It was inevitable that the trade balance would end up with a deficit because of the impact of currency rates,” said Masahiko Hashimoto, economist at Daiwa Institute of Research.

The yen’s average rate was 94.08 to the dollar in March against 81.04 in March 2012. It has weakened further since then, and stood around the 98 level yesterday.

“The lower yen has helped ramp up exports in value but their volume has yet to show a strong recovery. There is a time lag until we see a real improvement,” Hashimoto said. “Energy imports stay high and the yen was weakening against this background, resulting in trade deficits. We are now seeing the negative side although the overall impact will be positive (longerterm),” he said.

Japan is heavily dependent on burning fossil fuels to generate electricity. Most nuclear reactors remain off-line as the nation battles safety fears in the aftermath

of the huge 2011 earthquake and tsunami that sparked a disaster at the Fukushima nuclear facility.

A trade ministry panel estimates the stalled reactors, coupled with the weak yen will make nine Japanese power com-

TOKYO: Containers are unloaded from an international freighter at the international cargo terminal in Tokyo yesterday. — AFP panies pay 3.8 trillion yen ($38 billion) more in fuel costs in the current fiscal year from this month, against pre-disaster fiscal 2010. Even compared with fiscal 2012, the 2013 burden will be up by 700 billion yen, it said. The depreciating yen is set to increase the cost of a wide range of goods, ranging from foodstuffs to jewelry.

As he took office in December, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe vowed to get the country out of 15 years of deflation. He pushed for active government spending and demanded aggressive monetary eas-

BOE job will put Carney to the test LONDON: Mark Carney is gearing up for what some have called a mission impossible: turn around Britain’s ailing economy, fix its banks and lead an overhaul of the Bank of England. Currently head of the Bank of Canada, Britain’s finance minister called Carney “the outstanding central banker of his generation.” But he may struggle if he pushes for quick change at the BoE, despite its dramatically expanded powers.

A first challenge for the BoE’s only foreign governor in 319 years will be to temper expectations when he starts in July.

“Wanted, a new governor of the Bank of England. Only superhumans need apply,” was how Ed Balls, an opposition Labour party lawmaker who was at the heart of the decision to give the bank control of interest rates in 1997, put it last year.

Britain may have slipped back into recession. Policymakers are split over what to do next and the government insists it will not spend more to get growth going again. Carney has said his role would not be “a super governor position” and he would

work with fellow policymakers to tackle “the immense challenges” ahead for the $2.5 trillion economy.

The 48 year-old has already had a taste of what he can expect from Britain’s media when newspapers splashed details of his pay and benefits worth more than 850,000 pounds a year. That kind of deal may seem normal to a former Goldman Sachs banker like Carney. But it contrasts with the mood across much of Britain, which is three years into an austerity program, and adds to the glare of the spotlight on him. Unusually for a central banker, Carney may also have to contend with speculation that he has ambitions to enter politics one day, something he had to deny categorically in November.

Yet Carney’s appointment has been widely welcomed and former policymakers say his can-do style will give the BoE new impetus.

He has signalled his preference for giving clear guidance on where monetary policy is going - something long opposed by the man he will replace, Mervyn King.

Carney can also help reshape the bank’s upper echelons over the coming year when

ing by the Bank of Japan, sending the yen tumbling against major other currencies and boosting stock prices to multi-year highs. While being lauded for reversing investor sentiment, Abe is now faced with criticism that households will feel only the

two of his deputies are expected to leave.

Britain’s finance minister George Osborne, whose austerity plan is running behind schedule and looks unlikely to return the economy to full health before the 2015 elections, is certainly hoping he will rise to the challenge.

But it remains to be seen whether the new governor can win support from the BoE’s independent policymakers for change. Four of the nine Monetary Policy Committee(MPC) members are “external” members who are expected to balance internal thinking within the bank known as the “Old Lady of Threadneedle Street.”

John Gieve, a former deputy governor, thinks Carney can muster support for a new approach.

“He is coming in as a leader. He’s a confident guy. He’s an experienced central banker who knows the patch and a few of the senior people at the Bank of England already,” he said. “Many at the bank will welcome a change, but for an institution which has been run by insiders for 20 years it will be a big shock.” — Reuters

downside of the lower yen.

He argued yesterday that consumers should start feeling the effects of his economic policies through income hikes after the summer. “I’ve asked business leaders to return favorable corporate earnings to their workers,” Abe told a morning talk show on private Nippon Television.

Economists say the trade balance will likely remain in the red in coming months but that the broader current account, which includes returns on overseas investments, will rebound to a steady surplus. — AFP

British retail sales slide in March LONDON: British retail sales sank by more than expected last month, official data showed yesterday, as shoppers shunned the high street during the second-coldest March on record.

Retail sales sank 0.7 percent in March, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) announced in a statement. That was notably worse than market expectations for a 0.4-percent drop and followed a 2.1-percent jump in February.

On a 12-month comparison, the ONS added that retail sales in March fell 0.5 percent compared with the same month of 2012. The biggest downward influence came from the non-food sector, where the quantity of goods bought slumped 2.6 percent compared with March 2012.

“March 2013 was the second coldest on record and this appears to have had a negative effect on sales in the nonfood sector,” the ONS said.

“Feedback from department stores, clothing stores and household goods stores suggested that sales were dampened by the weather as they prepared their stores for the spring season.” On April 25, the ONS will publish British gross domestic product (GDP) data for the first quarter of this year.

The flagging economy shrank 0.3 percent in the fourth quarter of 2012 compared with the previous three months.

Another contraction would place Britain in its third recession in less than four years. —AFP

Business FRIDAY, APRIL 19, 2013

Fed survey: Housing and auto sales lift US economy WASHINGTON: A strengthening housing recovery and robust auto sales contributed to moderate economic growth across the United States in late February and March, according to a Federal Reserve survey released on Wednesday.

Growth was at least moderate in all of the Fed’s 12 banking districts, and it accelerated in two New York and Dallas from January and early February. The survey suggests that the economy performed better in March than some government data on hiring and consumer spending had indicated.

That could mean the weakness might have been temporary.

The Fed survey, based on anecdotal reports, found that hiring was unchanged or improved slightly compared with the previous report. And it noted that consumer spending which drives most of the economy - grew modestly. But the report also said higher taxes and a spike in gas prices had slowed sales.

By contrast, the Labor Department said earlier this month that job growth slowed sharply in March. And retail sales declined in March by the most in nine months, a separate report said last week. The Fed survey said the recovery in home construction is gaining momentum and creating more construction jobs. It’s also boosting factory output of housing-related goods, such as lumber.

The report did note some weak spots. Several districts said manufacturers of defense-related goods had cut jobs in response to government spending cuts that started taking effect March 1. The Fed report, called the Beige Book, provides an overview of economic conditions from Feb. 22 through April 5. The information will be discussed along with other economic data during the Fed’s next policy meeting April 30-May 1.

At that meeting, most analysts expect the Fed to maintain its low interest rate policies but take no new steps. The Fed is expected to stick with its plan to keep short-term interest rates at record lows at least until unemployment falls to 6.5 percent. And it will likely continue buying $85 billion a month in Treasury and mortgage bonds to try to keep longterm rates low and encourage borrowing, spending and investing. Debate has heated up among Fed policymakers about when to start curtailing the bond-buying program, which began last fall. —AP

German parliament approves Cyprus aid Economy bounces back from downturn BERLIN: The German parliament approved an international bailout package for stricken euro-zone member Cyprus by a large majority yesterday. In the Bundestag lower house, 486 deputies voted for the measure with 104 against and three abstentions.

MPs also overwhelmingly backed a deal by euro-zone finance ministers giving Ireland and Portugal an extra seven years to repay aid they have received to allow them to consolidate progress.

Euro-zone finance ministers formally approved new terms for the Cyprus debt rescue that will cost far more than first thought — 23 billion euros ($30 billion) rather than 17 billion euros.

Euro-zone partners and the International Monetary Fund are to provide 10 billion euros of this amount while the Cypriot government will have to find the rest. Germany will kick in about onethird of the international assistance. The debt rescue involves a radical restructuring of Cyprus’s bloated banking sector, with an economy heavily dependent on financial services now expected to shrink by up to 12.5 percent over the next two years. Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble had urged MPs to back the Cyprus rescue, citing the gradual recovery of other stricken euro-zone members as evidence the aid-for-reforms strategy worked.

Speaking to the Bundestag, he said that countries such as Portugal and Ireland had shown that tough budget cutting coupled with international assistance could save a debt-mired country. “Both have undertaken enormous efforts, are fulfilling the

requirements of their (rescue) programs and are on the right track,” he said.

Schaeuble also noted substantial progress made in the past three years in taming the euro-zone crisis, with economic progress such as a hike in exports from southern European countries as well as a sharp drop

leading economic research institutes. In their twice-yearly report released yesterday, the institutes said Europe’s biggest economy should see growth, moderate inflation and fewer unemployed this year.

Fears that market turmoil from the eurozone debt crisis will flare up again and hurt

BERLIN: Spokespersons of Germany’s leading economic think tanks present their economic forecast during a press conference yesterday in Berlin. — AFP in public deficits.

Striking a conciliatory note, the usually tough-talking Schaeuble noted that Germany’s preaching of austerity in Europe sometimes lacked compassion for the sacrifices made by the people of crisis-battered countries. Germany’s economy is bouncing back from a downturn at the end of last year, according to the country’s

Germany have lessened. And companies are well positioned to export products such as cars and machinery to emerging markets. The institutes foresee unemployment falling to an average of 6.7 percent for 2013 from 6.8 percent in 2012. Inflation is expected to remain moderate, at 1.7 percent, while the government budget should be balanced.—Reuters

Nokia sales tumble puts Lumia pick-up in doubt HELSINKI: A big fall in sales of Nokia’s basic phones overshadowed a stronger performance from its Lumia smartphones in the first quarter, and it said it expected operating margins to deteriorate, sending its shares tumbling. The Finnish mobile phone maker also reported an unexpected fall in sales at its previously upbeat equipment venture Nokia Siemens Networks.

Nokia, which has fallen behind Samsung and Apple in the smartphone race, said it sold 5.6 million units of Lumia handsets in the first quarter, up from 4.4 million in the previous quarter and in line with expectations. But overall net sales fell 20 percent to

5.9 billion euros from a year earlier, while phone volumes tumbled 30 percent on the previous quarter.

It forecast margins in its devices and services business would be “approximately negative 2 percent” in the second quarter, down from a positive 0.1 percent in the first quarter.

“The shortfall is in the (cheaper) mobile phone side, where both volumes and average selling prices came lower than expected. That is of course a bit worrying, since that has been their bread and butter business in the Devices and Services unit,” said Hakan Wranne, analyst at Swedbank. “I think we will see the mar-

Stephen Elop, CEO of Nokia, introduces its newest smartphone, the Lumia 920, equipped with Microsoft’s Windows Phone 8 in New York.

—AP file photo

ket’s profit estimates for 2014 come down,” he added.

Nokia shares were down 9.5 percent at 2.385 euros at 1058 GMT, having been as low as 2.30 euros, a far cry from their 65euro peak in 2000 and even the 4-5 euros many analysts see as the sum value of the company’s parts, which include its handset business, Navteq mapping unit and stake in NSN. Investors have been growing impatient about seeing results from Chief Executive Stephen Elop, who was hired in 2010 to lead a turnaround and took the decision to switch to the untried Windows software in early 2011. —Reuters

An aerial view shows the headquarters of Finland’s Nokia, one of the world’s biggest mobile phone makers, in Espoo. — AFP

THEY ARE THE 99!

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

THE FASCINATING STORY OF THE 99 a series of thefts is being blamed on a man who feeds hyenas. When THE 99 investigate, the hyenas run wild...

Visit the99kids.com for free games featuring THE 99!

www.the99.org

The 99 ® and all related characters ® and © 2013, Teshkeel Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved.

The Story So Far: Jabbar, Raheema, and Wakila travel to an Ethiopian city, where

26

Opinion FRIDAY, APRIL 19, 2013

By Ulf Laessing

W

hen Egyptian Christian Kerollos Maher watched on television as petrol bombs and rocks rained on Cairo’s Coptic Orthodox Cathedral he had only one thought - emigration. “Egypt is no longer my country,” said the 24-year-old construction worker, standing in the courtyard of the country’s largest cathedral where one Copt and one Muslim died in sectarian clashes this week. “The situation of Christians is worsening from day to day. I’ve given up hope that things will improve,” he said. Christians, who make up a tenth of Egypt’s 84 million people, have been worrying about the rise of militant Islamists since the fall of President Hosni Mubarak in 2011.

But after days of fighting at the cathedral and a town outside Cairo killing eight - the

pound wall. “I have two children but I don’t want them to grow up under a Muslim Brotherhood regime,” said Sanouel, who slept in the cathedral compound like dozens of others after the clashes, ready to defend it if more confrontations erupted.

The trouble flared after a funeral on Sunday of four Copts shot dead last week in the town of El Khusus, north of Cairo.

President Morsi and his Muslim Brotherhood allies were quick to condemn the sectarian violence, the latest turmoil to hit a postMubarak Egypt beset by political and economic crisis. Morsi said the cathedral attack was like an attack on himself but in a rare rebuke, the Coptic Orthodox Pope, Tawadros II, said Christians were tired of promises.

“The president assured us personally that he would do everything to protect the cathedral... but in reality this was not the case,”

clashes raged for several hours. The interior ministry said Christians started the trouble by torching some cars after the funeral, angering neighbors, an account confirmed by a Reuters reporter at the scene.

GRIEVANCES Copts have long complained of discrimination in the job market, before the law and in getting permits to build churches. Now they say they were better off under Mubarak, who used to jail Islamists, although 23 people died in a bomb attack on a church in Alexandria shortly before his overthrow. Many Copts believe Muslim radicals want to eradicate Christianity, whose roots in Egypt predate the Islamic era. Some Copts were dismayed that Morsi did not attend the installation of the new pope or Coptic Christmas ceremonies.

Samir Morcos was the president’s only

Brotherhood is now taking over all state institutions. We don’t have a (neutral) police anymore as you could see at the clashes. There is no official data but church officials say many Copts have left the country since Mubarak’s overthrow. “I know so many people who have left or plan to go,” said Peter El-Naggar, a church activist and lawyer. Western diplomats said that while their countries do not record the religion of visa-seekers, anecdotal evidence suggests a high percentage of those who had left since 2011 are Copts.

The most high-profile departure was billionaire Naguib Sawiris, who settled in Europe after infuriating Muslims by tweeting a cartoon of Mickey and Minnie Mouse in Islamic dress. Compounding their misfortunes, some wealthier Egyptian Copts traditionally deposited their savings across the Mediterranean in Cyprus for safe-keeping, a senior diplomat said. They may now face large losses since accounts with more than 100,000 euros in the island’s two biggest banks will suffer a “haircut” to help pay for bailing the country out.

FIGHTING BACK The sectarian strife is a sharp contrast to the harmonious images of the anti-Mubarak revolt in Cairo’s Tahrir Square, when Copts formed protective cordons around Muslims at prayer and Muslims brandished the Koran and the Bible. Many moderate and liberal Muslims attended the cathedral’s funeral service and others were quick to come the next day after to show their solidarity and denounce Morsi and the Brotherhood.

“The attack is unacceptable to me,” said Ahmed Sharif, a Muslim. “For me, the Coptic Cathedral is a symbol of Egypt like Al-Azhar,” he said, referring to the highest Muslim authority. Sidhom, the Coptic editor, said that while some Christians might be planning to leave the vast majority would stay to confront the Brotherhood in upcoming parliamentary elections. “I am one of those who want to stay and fight back,” he said.

In last June’s presidential poll, many Copts voted for Mubarak’s last premier, Ahmed Shafiq, who came a close second. Many now hope moderate Muslims fed up with queues at fuel stations, power cuts and a rise in crime will turn against the Brotherhood at the polls, which could take place in October. But their hopes could be dashed if the weak and fragmented opposition fails to unite or sticks to threats of a boycott. “I feel frustrated (with the liberal opposition),” Sidhom said. “I hope that... they would wisely reconsider their position and take steps to participate in the elections.”

Egypt’s Pope Tawadros II worst sectarian strife since Islamist President Mohamed Morsi was elected in June - many Copts now question whether they have a future in Egypt. An angry young fringe of a community that has lived in Egypt since the earliest days of Christianity may also be turning to violence. “The attack on the cathedral was the crossing of a red line,” said Michael Sanouel, a 23-year old technician in a steel plant. Sanouel rushed to the cathedral “to defend it” when he heard about the clashes that lasted more than five hours.

“I have been looking for a while for a job abroad, in Italy or Germany,” he said, standing next to a piece of charred wood from a tree hit by a petrol bomb hurled over the com-

Tawadros told a private TV station when he called in to a live talk show. “We have seen enough committees being formed. We want action, not words.” Youssef Sidhom, editor of the Coptic newspaper Al-Watani said the pope, elected in November, had chosen strong words because Christians inside the cathedral felt police had abandoned them by withdrawing when the clashes started.

“There is an absence of the state and the rule of law and the violence at the cathedral proves that,” he said. Police had not stopped attackers throwing petrol bombs and firing bird-shot from neighbouring houses into the cathedral compound. Live TV footage showed an almost motionless police cordon while

Christian aide until he resigned in November when Morsi gave himself greater powers.

“Some people want to destroy our state,” Morcos said. “The situation has become very dangerous.” Christians acknowledge that some of their grievances such as access to government jobs are shared by many Muslims struggling to make ends meet in a country rife with corruption and poverty. But some fear life for Copts will worsen as the Brotherhood extends its control to a growing number of state institutions.

“We are in state of depression,” said Father Metuas Nasr, a priest who said he had abandoned his church outside Cairo after repeated attacks from hardline Islamists. “The

RADICAL If the Muslim Brotherhood and more radical Salafist parties gain the upper hand, some church activists have few illusions that their youth will also become more radical. Some Copts are ready to resort to violence. A Reuters reporter saw two young men with guns and a crate of petrol bombs on the roof of the cathedral during the clashes.

A day after the clashes, the mood was still tense at the cathedral compound which also houses a theological institute, a nuns’ home and a tailor for religious vestments. Officials kept the doors closed - not just for protection but also to stop angry young Copts arriving as rumors of more violence swirled around. “We want to get in,” shouted a group of young men, banging at the door. Some showed cross tattoos on their hands but a guard told them: “Nobody is allowed in today.” —Reuters

FRIDAY, APRIL 19, 2013 www.kuwaittimes.net

Colombian actress Sofia Vergara poses for a portrait, on Wednesday, April 17, 2013 in New York. Vergara is currently on hiatus from “Modern Family,” but has several films coming out , including a starring role in the Robert Rodriguez thriller, “Machete Kills.” — AP

Food FRIDAY, APRIL 19, 2013

T

here are noodle soups and there is pho, Vietnam’s richly complex gift to the world. Pho (say: fuh) may prompt wisecracks and pun-ny T-shirts, judging by those we saw at Ho Chi Minh City’s Ben Thanh Market during a recent trip.

But in Vietnam and at Vietnamese restaurants around the world, there is artistry in its creation. From Hanoi to Ho Chi Minh City, chefs at high-end restaurants and cooks at chain eateries understand pho’s power. So do street vendors, those serving customers who slurp the restorative brew while perched on child-size plastic stools.

“When you eat a bowl of soup in Vietnam, you experience almost everything, culinarily speaking, that the Vietnamese value,” chef Charles Phan writes in his book “Vietnamese Home Cooking” (Ten Speed Press, $35). Those values? A stock that’s “never thickened,” a mix of textures, plus aromatics, often fresh herbs, toasted garlic and chopped green onions.

And while Phan notes that Vietnamese cooks prepare both brothy meal openers and full-meal noodle soups, it is the noodle soup called pho that is the worldwide star.

And breakfast in Vietnam. Each morning, despite the sultry weather, we slurped our way through huge bowls of comforting, herb-blessed pho. As a child in Da Lat, Phan recalls awakening each day to street vendors selling bowls of pho. “If you’re having a bowl of hot soup, it just really kind of balances you to start your day,” Phan told us by phone from San Francisco, home to his Slanted Door restaurants. “I just always feel calm and rejuvenated when I drink broth.”

The deeply flavored pho broth - paired with noodles and meat, usually pho bo (beef) or pho ga (chicken), plus garnishes - soothes and satisfies at breakfast (or lunch or supper). “When people walk by, when you smell the aroma from the pot, you can tell whether it’s beef or chicken,” Vu Trong Khang, a chef

at Hoa Tuc restaurant in Ho Chi Minh City and instructor for its cooking classes, told us. “You know it’s beef pho when you smell cardamom, cinnamon, star anise and cloves.”

Also influencing a stock’s flavor, says Phan: “We don’t roast the bone, we blanch the bone... And there’s none of the sweetness that comes from celery and carrot.” Instead, it comes from roasted onion, ginger, star anise and other spices in the beef stock, he adds. In chicken, only ginger and onion perfume the stock.

There are variations, of course, by region as well as from cook to cook. Khang, for example, considers the broth in Hanoi lighter in color than that served in Ho Chi Minh City, and Phan finds cooks in the north use fewer spices and varieties of meats. Whatever the variations, pho makes a delicious meal. It may not replace oatmeal at your breakfast table. Then again, slurping oatmeal isn’t OK but, as Phan says, slurping pho is perfectly fine.

BEEF NOODLE SOUP (PHO BO) Prep: 30 minutes Cook: 50 minutes Makes: 6 servings Adapted from Charles Phan’s “Vietnamese Home Cooking.”

His aromatic stock is flavored with star anise, cinnamon, clove and cardamom and simmers for at least 5 hours. Don’t have the time? You can sub with pho soup bases, which can be found in some supermarkets. Or consider simmering a light beef broth (hold the carrots and celery) with a small cinnamon stick, a whole clove, a star anise pod and a cardamom pod for an hour. To make paper-thin raw beef top round slices, freeze the meat for 15 minutes, slice thin, then pound thinner with a meat mallet.

1 pound beef brisket 3 quarts beef stock Fish sauce 1 package (16 ounces) dried wide rice noodles, cooked according to package directions 12 ounces beef top round, thinly sliced 1 bunch green onions, trimmed, thinly sliced, about 1 cup Garnishes: Thai basil sprigs, mung bean sprouts, lime wedges, jalapenos thinly sliced into rings, Sriracha sauce, hoisin sauce 1. Place brisket in a large pot; add stock. Heat to a boil over high heat; lower to a vigorous simmer. Simmer until cooked through, 30-45 minutes. To check doneness, remove brisket from pot; poke with chopstick. Juices should run clear.

2. A few minutes before brisket is ready, prepare an ice-water bath. When brisket is done, remove from pot; submerge in

Food FRIDAY, APRIL 19, 2013

ice water. Reserve cooking liquid. When brisket is cool, remove from ice water. Pat dry; thinly slice against the grain. Set aside.

3. Return stock to a boil. Season with fish sauce, if needed.

Arrange garnishes on a platter, sauces alongside. Divide cooked rice noodles evenly among large warmed soup bowls. Divide brisket slices among the bowls, then raw beef slices. (They will cook lightly when stirred into the broth.) Ladle boiling hot stock over top. Top with green onions; serve immediately with garnishes.

Stock for pho is loaded with aromatic pleasures Preparing stock for pho can be a bit involved. Or at least, it might seem that way compared with other stocks you’ve made. In San Francisco chef Charles Phan’s book, “Vietnamese Home Cooking” (Ten Speed Press, $35), he writes that the stocks “are hardly the most exciting recipes in the book, (but) they are some of the most important.”

Consider the flavor sources, from the bones to the spices.

His recipe calls for blanching bones (not roasting - because, as he explains, most Vietnamese kitchens don’t have ovens) before returning them to the pot for a long, slow simmer (five hours). He suggests making the stock one day, the soup another.

“Don’t overwater (the stock). You can always add more water to it,” Phan says. “And pay attention to the fat ratio.

Without the fat, you’re not going to taste the broth.” “You need to skim the fat,” adds Phan. “But you need to make sure that you add some back into each bowl so you don’t (lose flavor). “A flavorful broth is absolutely key to the success of that recipe.”

BEEF STOCK Prep: 45 minutes Cook: 6 hours Makes: About 6 quarts broth Adapted from Charles Phan’s “Vietnamese Home Cooking.”

He suggests discarding the solids, including oxtails and bones with marrow, once the stock is cooked. If you are a fan of either, we suggest nibbling some of the meat off the oxtail bones or dig the marrow out. Or use the oxtail meat for another meal, shredded into a ragu or barbecue sauce. And the marrow? Eat as is or spread on toast.

1 large yellow onion, unpeeled 1 piece (3 inches long) fresh ginger, unpeeled 2 pounds oxtails, in 2- to 3-inch pieces 2 pounds each: beef neck bones, shank bones, marrowbones 2 tablespoons light brown sugar 1 tablespoon kosher salt 1 teaspoon ground white pepper 1 piece (3 inches long) Chinese cinnamon 1 whole star anise pod 1 whole clove 1 black cardamom pod, optional 1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Place onion and ginger on rimmed baking sheet; roast until onion is soft, about 1 hour. Remove from oven; cool. Peel, then halve onion.

Slice unpeeled ginger into 1-inch thick coins.

2. Meanwhile, prep the bones: To ensure a pot is large enough to blanch the bones without boiling over, put the oxtails, neck and shank bones in a large pot with enough

Warm large serving bowls.

Arrange garnishes and sauces at the table.

Have broth at a full boil.

Put cooked noodles in bowl.

Top with cooked meat.

Add a few slices of raw meat.

Ladle boiling-hot broth over all.

Serve immediately.

Each person adds garnishes as desired.

KNOW YOUR NOODLES Noodles are an important ingredient in Asian dishes, from Japan’s soba (buckwheat) to the rice noodles used in Thailand’s pad thai. “Vietnamese Home Cooking” author Charles Phan offers a few tips on working with noodles, including the delicate rice noodles used in pho.

Cellophane: Also called glass noodles or bean thread noodles. Made from mung beans. Popular as a filling or in noodle stir-fries. To use, cover with hot water and soak 10 to 15 minutes.

Rice: Can be flat (thin, medium or wide) or round (called bun). Use flat noodles in pho and stir-fries; round ones (thinnest called vermicelli) in spring rolls. To use, boil dried versions in unsalted water until “tender yet still have some bite,” then rinse.

Egg noodles: Usually dried, sometimes fresh. Various sizes.

Use in soups and stir-fries. To prepare them: boil, drain, rinse, then proceed with your recipe. - MCT

3.

4.

5.

6.

water to cover by 1 inch. Remove bones. Heat water to a rolling boil. Add oxtails, neck bones and shanks back to pot. Return to a boil; boil 3 minutes. Drain pot’s contents into a colander; rinse under cold running water.

Rinse pot; add rinsed bones and marrow bones to pot.

Add onion, ginger, sugar, salt and 8 quarts fresh water to pot. Heat to a boil over high heat; skim off any foam on surface. Lower heat to a simmer; simmer, skimming as needed to remove surface scum, 4 hours.

Add pepper, cinnamon, star anise, clove and cardamom.

Continue simmering and skimming, 1 hour.

Remove from heat. Using a slotted spoon, discard large solids. Strain stock through a fine-mesh sieve into a large container. Allow to cool. Refrigerate overnight.

The next day, skim off most of the surface fat - there will probably be a lot. Leave some fat to give the stock better flavor and mouthfeel. Store in airtight containers up to 3 days in the refrigerator or up to 3 months in the freezer.

ASSEMBLING PHO Charles Phan’s tips:

Tr a v e l FRIDAY, APRIL 19, 2013

Run to the hills

Glacier National Park a mountainous haven for hikers, campers and backpackers

A young mountain goat follows its parent in a lush meadow near Logan Pass at Glacier National Park in Montana. — MCT photos

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agged peaks, a lucky glimpse of a bear or moose, and, of course, glaciers these sights are just the tip of the iceberg at Glacier National Park in northwestern Montana. Red, blue, yellow and white wildflowers fill the alpine meadows, even into August, and a few mountain goats or

The park, which sits on the Continental Divide in the Rocky Mountain Range, borders Canadaís Waterton Lakes National Park, and the two are designated an International Peace Park, Biosphere Reserve and World Heritage Site. Clearly, this place is special, compelling some visitors to return year after year. The area is a mountainous mecca for hikers, campers and backpackers, but thereís also a network of historic lodges for those who prefer a comfy bed and indoor plumbing.

The lodges are an integral part of the history of the park, which was established in 1910. The Great Northern Railway built several grand hotels and smaller chalets in the early 20th century to promote the park - and rail travel to see the ìAmerican Alps.î Itís still possible to arrive by train, thanks to Amtrakís Empire Builder, which picked us Hidden Lake is a popular 1.5-mile hike from the visitor center at Logan Pass in Glacier National Park, Montana.

Icebergs can still be seen floating in the month of August at Iceberg Lake. bighorn sheep may be grazing, too. The melting snow and rocky terrain create plenty of waterfall photo ops, and the glaciers carved out several large, windy lakes where visitors can take a boat cruise or try fishing for trout.

up in downtown Milwaukee, chugged across the Great Plains and deposited us across the street from the Glacier Park Lodge in East Glacier, Mont.

The lodges, with huge wooden beams holding up the structures, have different themes, such as American Indian at the 1913 Glacier Park Lodge and Swiss chalet at the 1915 Many Glacier Hotel, and were built a dayís ride by horseback away from one another. The lodges are rustic and pricey (our small room ran $200), but the ambience is a big draw, offering a sense of history and a reminder of genteel days of yore.

Campers may have better luck: Most campgrounds are first come, first served (though campers are advised to arrive by 8 am to snag a site at the highly coveted, wooded Many Glacier Campground), but the two that take reservations still list plen-

ty of open sites at www.recreation.gov.

Although the park is open year-round, most facilities donít open until May or June.

If Glacier is on your ìbucket list,î donít put it off too long. The Grand Canyon isnít going to disappear, but the glaciers are receding, so consider moving the park up a spot on your list. The area had 150 glaciers in 1850. Now there are 26. A computerbased model suggests that if the warming trend continues, the largest glaciers could be gone by 2030; at least one researcher says it could even be 2020.

Many visitors will want to see one of the parkís glaciers. A few can be seen from the road, but most, including the popular Grinnell and Sperry glaciers, are visible only to those who put on their hiking boots or rent a horse. Jackson Glacier is visible from an overlook on the east side of the Goingto-the-Sun Road, the 50-mile main road through the park. The road is a must-see: It goes over Logan Pass and crosses the Continental Divide.

Itís a narrow, winding road with no guard rails much of the time, so think about letting someone else do the driving while you enjoy the scenery. And donít even think about taking your RV over it - vehicles over 21 feet long are prohibited. The park operates a free shuttle service that runs from the St Maryís Visitor Center on the east side of the park to the visitor center at Logan Pass, making stops at a campground and trailheads along the way. Buses also depart from the Apgar Transit Center on the west side to take visitors to the pass.

Hikers can get on and off at specified stops.

At Logan Pass, elevation 6,646 feet, Deb Williams keeps the lines of tourists waiting for shuttle buses orderly. Deb, who hails from Minneapolis and proudly claims former Bucks player Jon Leuer as her nephew, is one of the parkís 1,000 volunteers and

Tr a v e l FRIDAY, APRIL 19, 2013

Virginia Falls near St Mary’s Lake is one of the many waterfalls that are easily accessible to hikers. has been working there for 21 summers. ìLook at my ëoffice,í itís so beautiful up here,î she said, standing in the parking lot, pointing to the peaks and meadows around her.

Visitors looking for less hiking and more history can go over the pass in one of the iconic Red Buses, 17-passenger vintage touring coaches that offer narrated tours.

The cars, which date to the 1930s, have been restored and run on cleaner-burning propane. The cost starts at $30, depending on the tour.

If you decide to drive, note that the

delight of kids (human, that is) and adults alike. Theyíre tame enough that visitors joke theyíre on the park payroll.

After gaining 460 feet in elevation, the trail reaches the overlook, which provides a stunning view of Hidden Lake below and a great spot for a sack lunch.

The trail continues - downhill - to the lake, but when we were there it was closed because of bear activity - apparently the fish were spawning so the grizzlies were in ursine heaven. Bears are both a draw for visitors and a safety concern. The park is home to about 300 grizzlies, and management takes them seriously. Trails often are ìpostedî for bears if there is significant bear activity going on, and sometimes theyíre closed, such as if a carcass theyíre feeding on lies nearby. The tinkle of bear bells on touristsí daypacks and the sight of a can of bear spray (a type of pepper spray) hanging on hikersí chests are common at Glacier. Campground hosts give new arrivals friendly reminders about keeping a pristine camp - all food and cooking utensils go in a hard-sided vehicle when not in use. (Bear boxes are provided for backpackers and bicyclists.) Luckily, these arenít Yosemite bears that have learned to get into cars.

Despite the warnings, we never saw any bears on the well-traveled trails, only scat, and a retired bear biologist who was hiking behind us on the Iceberg Lake Trail didnít expect to see any with all the people on the trail. Still, hikers are reminded to take all the precautions and talk or sing along the trail to let the bears know theyíre there, especially in areas with dense vegetation

Icy water swirls amid the carved rocks.

A female hand is compared with the cast of a grizzly bear paw print at the Logan Pass Visitor Center in Glacier National Park, Montana.

Glacier Park Lodge on the Blackfeet Reservation in Montana was built by the Great Northern Railway in 1913. parking lot at Logan Pass is usually full by 10:30 am, the park says. And youíll definitely want to stop at the pass, for the view and a hike. The 1.5-mile hike to the Hidden Lake overlook is one of the most popular in the park, and for good reason. It begins as a boardwalk crossing a large meadow of spectacular wildflowers, with steps going up the natural terraces. Eventually the boardwalk ends, and visitors can walk past any remaining snowbanks, and through an area where mountain goats romp, to the

or tasty patches of huckleberries, which are similar to blueberries.

Young backpackers Chris Huston and Amanda Roberson, who boarded our train in La Crosse, Wis., also reported no bear or mountain lion encounters on their five-day trek, though they did see a cow moose, marmots and ptarmigan. Even in the backcountry they said they saw a fair number of people, except the day they went 13.8 miles and up 2,080 feet to get over Triple Divide Pass.

As challenging as the 46-mile trip was, Chris wrote in an email after he was safely home in Rochester, Minn., ìIt is an amazing feeling to be able to look down upon everything from the top of a mountain.î Hikers willing to fork out the cash to spend the night in one of two historic, primitive backcountry huts can make the trek to see Sperry Glacier. Spending two nights at the Sperry Chalet, a steep 6.4-mile hike from the trailhead near Lake McDonald Lodge on the parkís west side, is the best way to see the glacier, which is an 8-mile round trip from the chalet. Plan on booking by November, though.

Within easier reach is Grinnell Glacier, which is a 5.5-mile hike from the Many Glacier Hotel on the parkís east side. Or

you can cheat as we did and take a boat ride across two small lakes, trimming the round trip to about 8 miles, with a 1,600foot elevation gain. The boat ride ($24.25) hooks up with a free ranger-led hike, which provided both fascinating commentary and enough chatter to scare away any bears. Although the hike is listed as strenuous, the group of 20-plus included three generations of a North Carolina family, with the young kids leading and grandparents bringing up the rear.

Ranger Bob Schuster, 70, knows the trail well: He first started working in the park in 1967. Bob grew up in Sun Prairie, Wis., and got a biology degree from St. Norbert College before moving to Oregon. He used to teach high school biology and geology during the winters, so he was happy to name the flowers and explain that Grinnell Lakeís lovely turquoise color results from ìglacier milk,î suspended fine rock particles ground up by the moving glacier.

After a lunch stop with a few trees for a windbreak, we climbed over the moraine and up to the glacier. Young and old alike bundled up tight after feeling the breeze off the ice - were impressed to see the glacier up close, well, pretty close. Bob, who has seen the glacier shrinking over the decades, said the lake at its foot has grown dramatically, and hikers no longer can step onto to the glacier because thereís too much water to get there safely.

He says the glaciers are definitely receding, though 2020 may be a little early for extinction. ìTheyíre going to be gone.î ìAs far as saving the glaciers, it would take major change,î Bob said. Even if youíre not thinking about global climate change, weather is a big concern at Glacier. It can

change quickly in the mountains, so being prepared with adequate clothing, gear and food is key.

Bob was careful not to underplay the bear danger - just be aware. But, he said, ìweather surprises some people. According to the park newspaper, the No. 1 cause of death there is from drowning. It warns that stream and river crossings can get slick at times, and falling into the water can also lead to hypothermia.

Indeed, the weather can change dramatically, even in early August. We had one night not much below 60 degrees when we were only half in our sleeping bags, but after a storm blew through two nights later it got close to 32, and the day of the glacier hike it was cloudy and in the 50s - maybe. But the T-shirts and shorts returned a day later when we did the 9mile round-trip hike to the stunning Iceberg Lake, which true to its name had plenty of icebergs left, sheltered on three sides by jagged cliffs.

On the way we saw our second moose, this time a bull. Moose also can be dangerous, but he continued to browse, head down, about 40 feet off the trail, despite the dozen camera-happy hikers trying in vain to get a good shot. Not far away, we spotted a few remaining white beargrass flowers in one of the lush meadows, but not a bear was in sight. The only grizzlies we saw were from the road, including one that ambled across the highway outside the park in broad daylight on our last day as we headed out for huckleberry pie (a must-try, according to the bear biologist, who apparently knows the food preferences of homo sapiens, too). And thatís just the tip of the iceberg at Glacier. — MCT

Health FRIDAY, APRIL 19, 2013

The miracle of dark chocolate This nutritional food satisfies your sweet tooth and promotes good health

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ho says health food has to be boring? Study after study proves that dark chocolate - sweet, rich, and delicious is good for more than curing a broken heart. Dark chocolate has recently been discovered to have a number of healthy benefits. It’s the best medical news in ages. Studies in two prestigious scientific journals say dark chocolate-but not white chocolate or milk chocolate-is good for you.

Dark chocolate lowers blood pressure Dark chocolate-not white chocolate-lowers high blood pressure, say Dirk Taubert, MD, PhD, and colleagues at the University of Cologne, Germany. Their report appears in the Aug. 27 issue of The Journal of the American Medical Association. But that’s no license to go on a chocolate binge. Eating more dark chocolate can help lower blood pressure-if you’ve reached a certain age and have mild high blood pressure, say the researchers. But you have to balance the extra calories by eating less of other things.

Antioxidants in dark chocolate Dark chocolate-but not milk chocolate or dark chocolate eaten with milk-is a potent antioxidant, report Mauro Serafini, PhD, of Italy’s National Institute for Food and Nutrition Research in Rome, and colleagues. Their report appears in the Aug 28 issue of Nature. Antioxidants gobble up free radicals, destructive molecules that are implicated in heart disease and other ailments.

“Our findings indicate that milk may interfere with the absorption of antioxidants from chocolate and may therefore negate the potential health benefits that can be derived from eating moderate amounts of dark chocolate.”

Translation: Say “Dark, please,” when ordering at the chocolate counter. Don’t even think of washing it down with milk. And if health is your excuse for eating chocolate, remember the word “moderate” as you nibble.

The studies Taubert’s team signed up six men and seven women aged 5564. All had just been diagnosed with mild high blood pressure-on average, systolic blood pressure (the top number) of 153 and diastolic blood pressure (the bottom number) of 84.Every day for two weeks, they ate a 100-gram candy bar and were asked to balance its 480 calories by not eating other foods similar in nutrients and calories. Half the patients got dark chocolate and half got white chocolate. Those who ate dark chocolate had a significant drop in blood pressure (by an average of 5 points for systolic and an average of 2 points for diastolic blood pressure). Those who ate white chocolate did not. In the second study, Serafini’s team signed up seven healthy women and five healthy men aged 2535. On different days they each ate 100 grams of dark chocolate by itself, 100 grams of dark chocolate with a small glass of whole milk, or 200 grams of milk chocolate. An hour later, those who ate dark chocolate alone had the most total antioxidants in their blood. And they had higher levels of epicatechin, a particularly healthy compound found in chocolate. The milk chocolate eaters had the lowest epicatechin levels of all.

Gives you a healthier heart Studies prove that chocolate reduces blood pressure, increases the flexibility of veins and arteries, and cuts down on stroke and heart attack risk. Most of the credit goes to flavonoids, which kill off free radicals, the unstable cells that antioxidants fight. New research from the University of Athens, however, suggests that flavonoids may be only part of chocolate’s heart-helping properties. The scientists plan more research to discover what those properties are (and, no, they aren’t accepting volunteers).

Dark chocolate contains theobromine One study found that chocolate quieted coughs almost as well as codeine, thanks to the theobromine it contains. This chemical, responsible for chocolate’s feel-good effect, may suppress activity in a part of the brain called the vagus nerve. Maria Belvisi, a professor of respiratory pharmacology at the National Heart and Lung Institute in London, says, “It had none of the negative side effects.” It has also been shown to harden tooth enamel. That means that dark chocolate, unlike most other sweets, lowers your risk of getting cavities if you practice proper dental hygiene.

Dark chocolate leads to happier kids Moms who ate chocolate daily during their pregnancy reported that they were better able to handle stress than moms who abstained. Also, their babies were happier and smiled more, a Finnish study found.

Gives you a guard against diabetes Candy as a diabetes foe? Sure enough. In a small Italian study, participants who ate a candy bar’s worth of dark chocolate once a day for 15 days saw their potential for insulin resistance drop by nearly half. “Flavonoids increase nitric oxide production,” says lead researcher Claudio Ferri, M.D., a professor at the University of L’Aquila in Italy. “And that helps control insulin sensitivity.”

Dark chocolate is good for your brain Dark chocolate increases blood flow to the brain as well as to the heart, so it can help improve cognitive function. Dark chocolate also helps reduce your risk of stroke. Dark chocolate also contains several chemical compounds that have a positive effect on your mood and cognitive health. Chocolate contains phenylethylamine (PEA), the same chemical your brain creates when you feel like you’re falling in love. PEA encourages your brain to release endorphins, so eating dark chocolate will make you feel happier.

Dark chocolate also contains caffeine, a mild stimulant. However, dark chocolate contains much less caffeine than coffee. A 1.5 ounce bar of dark chocolate contains 27 mg of caffeine, compared to the 200 mg found in an eight ounce cup of coffee.

Dark chocolate helps control blood sugar Dark chocolate helps keep your blood vessels healthy and your circulation unimpaired to protect against type 2 diabetes.

The flavonoids in dark chocolate also help reduce insulin resistance by helping your cells to function normally and regain the ability to use your body’s insulin efficiently. Dark chocolate also has a low glycemic index, meaning it won’t cause huge spikes in blood sugar levels.

Dark Chocolate is High in Vitamins and Minerals Dark chocolate contains a number of vitamins and minerals that can support your health. Dark chocolate contains some of the following vitamins and minerals in high concentrations potas-

sium, copper, magnesium and iron.

The copper and potassium in dark chocolate help prevent against stroke and cardiovascular ailments. The iron in chocolate protects against iron deficiency anemia, and the magnesium in chocolate helps prevent type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure and heart disease. If you want to add chocolate to your diet, do so in moderation. Why? Most commercial chocolate has ingredients that add fat, sugar and calories. And too much can contribute to weight gain, a risk factor for high blood pressure, heart disease and diabetes. Choose dark chocolate with cocoa content of 65 percent or higher. Limit yourself to around 3 ounces (85 grams)a day, which is the amount some studies have shown to be helpful.

Because this amount may provide up to 450 calories, you may want to cut calories in other areas or step up the exercise to compensate. www.webmd.com

Lifestyle FRIDAY, APRIL 19, 2013

This illustrations released by the MGM Resorts International shows the intersection of Las Vegas Blvd and Rue de Monte Carlo in Las Vegas. — AP

Las Vegas Strip to get New York-style public park

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as Vegas is trying to beat its reputation as a shut-in. MGM Resorts International announced yesterday that it will sink $100 million into building a park and public promenade outside of its New York-New York and Monte Carlo casinos. The project runs counter to casinos’ long-held strategy of trying to keep people inside, losing track of time as they buy more chips and flit from one pricey attraction to the next. “It’s what customers were really excited about in the ‘80s and ‘90s- the convenience of being in a single environment when you could sample so many different kinds of entertainment,” MGM CEO Jim Murren said in a telephone interview.

“Tomorrow’s consumer doesn’t want that limitation. They are far more spontaneous.”

To that end, MGM is transforming the congested sidewalks in front of its New York City and European-themed casinos into an outdoor plaza featuring trees, benches, food

trucks and shops. Construction is expected to begin in the coming weeks and last through 2014. Murren said he was inspired by New York City’s small and cosmopolitan Madison Square Park, as opposed to the more sprawling Central Park. “We’re not going to play Frisbee on the Great Lawn, but I would describe it as a city park with a dramatic boulevard,” he said.

Tourists will be able to stroll over a replica of the Brooklyn Bridge, relax in a beer garden, and enjoy a cone of frozen custard from Shake Shack, an upscale burger stand that has become a New York favorite. Artist’s renderings depict Gen Xers fiddling with smartphones under shade trees. The plaza on the stretch of Las Vegas Boulevard near Tropicana Avenue is intended to lead into a 20,000-seat arena MGM plans to build behind the two casinos. The park and arena will stretch across 10 acres; that’s 20 percent more land than the

lake in front of the Bellagio hotel-casino.

MGM already controls the Strip’s largest venue, the 17,000-seat MGM Grand Garden, located across the street at the MGM Grand.

Strip casinos have traditionally invested in grand facades and outdoor gimmicks including exploding volcanoes and dancing fountains in the service of luring people inside.

This is the town that has perfected the art of painting clouds, sun, and changing light onto the ceilings of malls and hotels to give visitors the illusion of being outside.

Visitors to Las Vegas craving desert breezes, outdoor concerts and a sense time passing have traditionally had to travel a few miles north of the Strip to Freemont Street downtown, where lower-rent casinos open onto a promenade covered by an arching LED-screen canopy. Now, casino bosses are starting to believe their patrons might enjoy a bit of fresh air. The rise of pool parties and the

Fans pose for pictures with waxwork models of English-Irish boy band ‘One Direction’ during a photocall at Madame Tussauds in central London, yesterday. The wax figures will stay in London for 12 weeks before embarking on a tour that will next visit Madame Tussauds New York and Sydney. — AFP photos

success of the statue-filled plaza at Caesars Palace illustrate people’s willingness to tolerate the 117 degree desert afternoons for a bit of people-watching and leg-stretching, Murren said.

Caesars Entertainment Corp., which operates Caesars Palace, is planning its own outdoor shopping and dining “district” on the Strip. That project, Linq, is anchored by a 550foot-tall observation wheel slated to open in 2014. Murren said he expects to see more casinos pursuing this tack as companies look to entice a new kind of patron. Modern visitors simply will not tolerate being confined to a single space anymore, he said. “They like darting in and out of events, bars, lounges, clubs,” he said. “That’s an encouraging sign for us, because in the old days, Las Vegas was a place where gamblers went on vacation.

Now it’s a place where people may go on vacation and not gamble at all.” — AP

The wax figures of French Canadian singer Celine and US musician Jimi Hendrix are seen.

Lifestyle FRIDAY, APRIL 19, 2013

One year after death, music legend Levon Helm returns in documentary

Molly Ringwald rediscovers her jazz roots

M

olly Ringwald has moved from “The Breakfast Club” to the jazz club. The redheaded actress who describes herself as “your former teen-age crush” in her Twitter bio will always live in her generation’s memories for portraying the angst of high school life as an everyday girl, teen princess and outsider in her iconic 1980s films “Sixteen Candles,” “The Breakfast Club,” and “Pretty In Pink” with writer-director

L

evon Helm, drummer and singer of root rock group The Band, left behind more than a lifetime of music when he died of cancer a year ago. The four-time Grammy winner also left a documentary film portraying his career, family and friendships that opens in New York City on Friday, exactly a year after his passing. “Ain’t In It For My Health,” directed by Jacob Hatley, was begun five years ago and takes an intimate look at the music legend, combining archival footage and photos with interviews with friends, family, collaborators and Helm himself on his farm and home in Woodstock, New York, called “The Barn.”

Helm died of cancer on April 19, 2012, at the age of 72, after playing in various versions of The Band until 1999, launching a solo career, acting and fighting back from a first bout of throat cancer in 1998 that robbed him of his voice for a time. Rolling Stone magazine ranked him in 2008 as one of the 100 greatest singers of all time. Longtime Helm collaborator and musician Larry Campbell said Jacob “was like a fly on the wall, filming Levon’s daily life and all of us around him as we worked on music and tried to get his career back on track.”

Campbell, who first met Helm in the 1970s, told Reuters the musician “was coming out of a bad financial period, a bad health period, as he’d already battled cancer once, and we all banded together to help him. And (the film) gives a great sense of his personality and magnetism.”

See what happens Those elements provide the driving force behind the film as Helm works on music, reminisces, visits doctors and drives his tractor around his farm where he performed regular “Midnight Ramble” concerts with artists such as Elvis Costello, Emmylou Harris and Dr John. “No one had to persuade him to do this,” said Campbell, who co-produced with Helms’ daughter Amy the singer’s 2008 comeback album, “Dirt Farmer,” which earned a Grammy Award for Best Traditional Folk Album. “Amy called me and said, ‘Come up to the house, let’s play some music and see what happens.’ That was the genesis of the project, and the idea was just to focus on Levon’s musical roots. “There was no pressure, no deadline, and Levon loved being on camera. He was a real natural, as you can see in the movies he did, like ‘Coalminer’s Daughter.’ So making this film was very much his idea,” Campbell said. The film isn’t all sweetness and light, however, and it doesn’t hide Helm’s bitterness about The Band’s eventual breakup and legacy, and his falling out with Robbie Robertson.

“I wasn’t there, but he felt very strongly that the five members were all equals, and that guitarist Robbie Robertson ended up making all the money,” Campbell said. “I only heard Levon’s side of the story, but he claims that Robbie didn’t write all those songs by himself and that between Robbie, the management and record companies, he was just convinced they’d all gotten completely screwed.”

“I don’t have an opinion about that,” Campbell said. “But I do know that - apart from all his huge talent as a musician Levon had this amazing depth of thought, which I only began to appreciate over the past decade. “He was a really smart guy and thought a few steps ahead - but ironically he didn’t live that way. He’d think ahead, but only live in the moment.

Campbell described “Ain’t In It For My Health” as “definitely bittersweet for me.” “He dodged more bullets than anyone I’ve ever known in terms of his health, and it all just caught up with him in the end. —Reuters

File photo shows actress-singer Molly Ringwald posing in Los Angeles. — AP John Hughes. Now the 45-year-old has taken on a new role as a jazz singer with the release last week of her album “Except Sometimes,” a collection of Great American Songbook and Broadway tunes. She sings about romance from a mature, adult perspective, interpreting such tunes as “I Get Along Without You Very Well” and “The Very Thought of You.” She also pays tribute to the late Hughes by reclaiming “Don’t You (Forget About Me),” the Simple Minds’ theme to “The Breakfast Club,” turning it into a jazz ballad. She

believes her acting experience has helped enhance her jazz singing.

“As an actor you pay attention to the words and you get into character,” she said. “I tend to do this with music as well.

I really get into the lyric.” She will be performing limited engagements at jazz clubs across the country, allowing enough breaks to spend time at home with her three children and husband, writer-editor Panio Gianopoulos. Her jazz roots run deep. Her father, blind pianist Bob Ringwald, plays traditional Dixieland jazz. She has an encyclopedic knowledge of female jazz singers - reeling off the names of those who most influenced her: Bessie Smith, Ella Fitzgerald, Anita O’Day, Blossom Dearie and Susannah McCorkle.

Ringwald considers jazz her “musical equivalent of comfort food.” Her parents encouraged her to pursue interests other than acting - singing, writing, reading and traveling - which kept her engaged in a world outside Hollywood and its club scene, avoiding the pitfalls that ensnared some of her teen co-stars. “I hear jazz and it just feels good because it reminds me of my childhood,” said Ringwald, speaking by telephone from her home in the Los Angeles area. “I started singing with my dad when I was 3 years old and really developed a close relationship with him through music that endures to this day.” Ringwald would sit in with her father’s Sacramento-based Fulton Street Jazz Band singing Fats Waller and Bessie Smith songs. She recorded her first jazz album, “I Wanna Be Loved By You, Molly Sings” with her father’s band at age 6.

Ringwald originally wanted to be a singer, making her professional debut at age 10 in a West Coast production of “Annie.” But after landing her first TV and film roles, she decided to focus on acting a choice she says she wouldn’t have to make as a teen actor today given the popularity of “Glee” and “High School Musical.” “When I started acting, it didn’t seem that there were any actors that were also singing,” Ringwald said. “I really felt to be taken seriously as an actress, I would have to just give up the idea of having a musical career.”

But she never stopped singing, most-

ly performing with her father’s band. She briefly sang the standard “Embraceable You” in the teen pregnancy film “For Keeps.” After spending much of the 1990s in Paris, Ringwald relocated to New York to do theater, including the lead roles in revivals of the musicals “Cabaret” and “Sweet Charity.” In 2005, while starring in the off-Broadway comedy “Modern Orthodox,” she got inspired to sing jazz when she met her “perfect collaborator” at a cast party. Peter Smith, an understudy, had just begun playing jazz tunes on the piano when Ringwald suddenly started singing along with him. “I grew up like everyone else watching her in movies and just thought that the only kind of music she’s going to know is like The Smiths and The Cure, all that ‘80s music,” Smith said. “But she really knew how to sing jazz.”

Smith was impressed by the quality and tone of her voice, and most of all by her “tasteful artistic choices as a singer.”

He invited her to sit in at his jazz club gigs before he left for Los Angeles. Ringwald reunited with Smith when she moved to Los Angeles in 2008 to join the cast of the TV show “The Secret Life of the American Teenager,” playing the mother of a pregnant teenager. Ringwald eventually felt confident enough to record an album in 2010 with Smith writing the arrangements. They produced it independently because she wanted artistic control, and it was later picked up by Concord.

Ringwald felt the time was right because the music that she always enjoyed singing had become more popular thanks to singers such as Diana Krall, Jane Monheit and Norah Jones. The album’s release was delayed because Ringwald had her hands full raising her twins (now 31/2 years old) and pursuing a literary career. In 2010, she published “Getting the Pretty Back,” which offered personal anecdotes and advice, and her first novel “When It Happens To You” came out last year. Ringwald is already looking ahead to recording another jazz album and is developing her own TV show. “I feel that I have grown as a person and as an artist and am able to take on more things at once,” she said. “Being a mother certainly has aided my ability to multi-task.” —AP

Studio remains in hunt for ‘Snow White’ sequel

A

follow-up to “Snow White and the Huntsman” is moving forward, though it’s still unclear if Kristen Stewart will return as the warrior princess. Universal Pictures Chairman Adam Fogelson says the studio is aiming for a 2015 release on the sequel to last year’s fairy-tale action story.

The movie became overshadowed by headlines surrounding Stewart’s affair with her “Snow White” director, Rupert Sanders. The revelation temporarily broke up Stewart’s romance with “Twilight” co-star Robert Pattinson, though they later reconciled.

Fogelson said Tuesday at the CinemaCon convention for theater owners in Las Vegas that a sequel is in the works. A studio spokeswoman says no other details are available. Stewart’s spokeswoman did not immediately return phone and email messages Wednesday about whether the actress would be back for the sequel. — AP

This publicity film image released by Universal Pictures shows Kristen Stewart in a scene from ‘Snow White and the Huntsman’. — AP

Lifestyle FRIDAY, APRIL 19, 2013

Cannes lineup celebrates world film, old favorites Cannes 2013: Films nominated in competition “A Chateau in Italy,” by Valeria BruniTedeschi “Inside Llewyn Davis” by Ethan and Joel Coen “Michael Kohlhaas” by Arnaud Despallieres “Jimmy P. (Psychotherapy of a Plains Indian)” by Arnaud Desplechin “Heli” by Amat Escalante “The Past” by Asghar Farhadi “The Immigrant” by James Gray “Grigris” by Mahamat-Saleh Haroun “A Touch of Sin” by Jia Zhangke “Like Father, Like Son” by Kore-Eda Hirokazu “The Life of Adele” by Abdellatif Kechiche “Shield of Straw” by Takashi Miike “Young and Pretty” by Francois Ozon “Nebraska” by Alexander Payne “Venus in Fur” by Roman Polanski “Behind the Candelabra” by Steven Soderbergh “The Great Beauty” by Paolo Sorrentino “Borgman” by Alex van Warmerdam “Only God Forgives” by Nicolas Winding Refn —Reuters

Veteran US comic Jerry Lewis to get Cannes tribute

T

he Cannes Film Festival’s 2013 lineup announced Thursday features work from some of the globe’s most dangerous locales for artists, and a sprinkling of works by old favorites including Roman Polanski, the Coen brothers and Steven Soderbergh.

Celebrating world cinema from countries with limited freedom of expression is clearly one of this year’s stories, with a lineup with features from Chad, China, Mexico and Iran among the 19 films competing for the Palme d’Or, one of cinema’s most coveted prizes.

“The festival is a house that shelters artists in danger,” said Cannes President Gilles Jacob, who announced the nominees yesterday.

Harking from Africa, “Grigris” by Chadian filmmaker Mahamat-Saleh Haroun, will feature alongside “The Life of Adele” from FrenchTunisian director Abdellatif Kechiche. “Zulu” - a police thriller shot in South Africa and starring Forest Whitaker and Orlando Bloom - will close the festival but is not competing. The list also includes “A Touch of Sin” by Chinese director Jia Zhangke; “The Past,” from Iranian director Asghar Farhadi, featuring Tahar Rahim and rising star Berenice Bejo who garnered attention for “The Artist”; and Mexican narco-film “Heli” by director Amat Escalante, who explores how love and family ties can provide solace in the desperation stemming from drug trafficking.

Old favorite filmmakers of the festival also fared well. Joel and Ethan Coen, who won the Palme d’Or in 1991 for “Barton Fink,” will show their latest film “Inside Llewyn Davis,” set in New York 1960s folk music scene, starring Carey Mulligan, Justin Timberlake and John Goodman. Soderbergh, who caused controversy with 1989’s Palme d’Or winner “Sex, Lies and Videotape,” is back with “Behind the Candelabra,” based on the autobiographical novel in which Scott Thorson recounts his relationship with the flamboyant pianist Liberace.

Roman Polanski’s “Venus In Fur” could give Oscar-winning Polish director his second Cannes accolade. He won in 2002 with “The Pianist.”

Organizers sifted through 1,858 submissions

File photo shows French director Roman Polanski and his wife, actress Emmanuelle Seigner posing.

File photo shows US film-making brothers Joel Coen and Ethan Coen posing for photographers.

over recent months. Some were submitted as late as Wednesday night, 12 hours before the official selection would be announced. Last year, Cannes was accused of sexism for a shortlist that included no women. This year, there is one female Palme d’Or contender, Valeria BruniTedeschi with her first feature “A Chateau in Italy.” Bruni-Tedeschi is the sister of former

French First Lady Carla Bruni. “The Great Gatsby,” with Leonardo DiCaprio in the title role and directed by Australian Baz Luhrmann, will open this year’s Cannes festival - in 3-D, no less.

The film will be making its premiere but is not entered in the competition. Hollywood giant Steven Spielberg heads the jury at the Cannes festival this year, which runs May 15-26. —AP

Malaysian star Yeoh at centre of political storm

J

erry Lewis, the US comedy star from the 1950s and 1960s who later poured his efforts into raising money for muscular dystrophy research, will get a special tribute at next month’s Cannes Film Festival, organizers said yesterday. Lewis, 87 and with a history of ill-health, has a strong following in France, which awarded him the Legion of Honour in 1984.

After launching a career in postWorld War II radio with Dean Martin, Lewis branched out on his own, mining success with manic, slapstick films such as “The Nutty Professor” and “The Delicate Delinquent.” He is best known today for launching marathon fund-raising on television for muscular dystrophy, which is emulated in France. Lewis will attend a screening of his latest film, “Max Rose,” in which he plays the role of an elderly jazz pianist facing the loss of his wife. — AFP

The president of the Cannes Film Festival Gilles Jacob listens to the general delegate of the Cannes Festival, Thierry Fremaux as they give a press conference during the presentation of the films competing in the next 2013 Cannes Film Festival yesterday. — AFP/AP photos

M

Actress Michelle Yeoh speaks during the inauguration of the Automobile Club of Gabon and the launch of a road safety campaign in Libreville. —AFP

alaysian film star Michelle Yeoh has been heavily criticized following a report that she will attend a function in support of the country’s ruling coalition as a divisive election looms.

Supporters of the political opposition, which is mounting a serious challenge in the May 5 polls, branded the 49-year-old star of “The Lady” and “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon” a traitor and government stooge. The controversy erupted after a report last week said Yeoh, Malaysia’s most internationally known celebrity, would attend a huge dinner party this Saturday attended by Prime Minister Najib Razak and other ruling coalition leaders.

The event near the capital Kuala Lumpur is being put on by a group of Malaysian ethnic Chinese business figures and aims for 55,000 guests in a bid to set a new world record, reports have said. Yeoh is a source of pride in Malaysia for her successful acting career but the reaction has highlighted Malaysia’s deeply polarized politics. Internet users said the report indicates that Yeoh supports the long-ruling Barisan

Nasional coalition, which is struggling to prevent a slide in support over persistent allegations of corruption, authoritarianism and misrule. “Instead of standing up against the corruption, she chooses to go the other way. Shame on her,” said one comment on the Facebook page “We Fully Support PKR”.

PKR is Parti Keadilan Rakyat, a member of the three-party opposition alliance. An April 12 posting on the page that says “You were once the Malaysian people’s pride but now no longer” has earned nearly 7,000 “likes” and drawn 1,300 comments-mostly condemning Yeoh.

Another comment said the star only “cares about fame, power, and money. Let’s all boycott all her future movies”. Yeoh has not publicly commented and her publicity handlers did not immediately respond to an AFP request for comment. The actress received acclaim for her portrayal of Myanmar democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi in 2011’s “The Lady” and was later made a “Datuk Seri,” a Malaysian honorary title similar to a British knighthood. —AFP

Lifestyle FRIDAY, APRIL 19, 2013

This product image released by Gillespie Florists, Inc shows the Pandora Corsage. — AP photos

T

he elaborate invitation has been proffered and accepted, the limo rented and the outfits coordinated, so what’s next when planning for prom? That traditional pop of spring, of course, in the corsage and boutonniere.

Once a sweet surprise and often all white to go with any outfit, prom flowers have made the leap into the new millennium with glitzy embellishments, jewelry attachments and a world of creativity for the florists who design them. No more scratchy, throwaway wristbands (unless you want one) and no more fumbling with straight pins as your nervous date squirms.

Today’s corsages don’t even have to be corsages.

Flowers can be worn on the head, upper arm or shoe, at the shoulder, on a necklace, as a ring or even stuck right onto a bare back or leg.

These days, flowers have taken their place as a key accessory rather than mere appendage handed over in time for photos before heading out the door. “Everyone wants to be unique and different from someone else and that’s a big deal, trying to do something different,” said Jasmine Snow, accessories editor for Seventeen magazine. “It’s so cool to be able to try these new modern takes on using fresh flowers as opposed to just doing the normal.”

Attachments: Bangles, beads, multiple

A floral headband made with a green orchid, dragonfly pin, dangling beads, blue glittered leaves, silver accent ribbon, rhinestones and a braided silver and white headband.

strands of rhinestones, fancy cuff bracelets in silver, gold or any wire creation imaginable have replaced the cheapy wristlets of corsages past.

Slap bracelets are also used as a base, easily painted or sprayed with glitter to match an overall look. Some florists stock options but invite customers to bring along their own jewelry.

“These days you can safely glue on so you don’t damage the jewelry, and then the girl has something to keep after prom instead of us being 20 years later with dry old roses. You’ve actually got this bracelet or this necklace that you can look back at and go, ‘Oh, that was so much fun,’” said Della Mendenhall, a manager and product developer at Gillespie Florists in Indianapolis.

Boutonniere holders (think ice cream cone shape) often anchor the traditional male floral in metal. They come in filigree, vine and many other designs. Magnet sets can be used to keep them in place, and they can be reused for high schoolers who plan to attend more than one prom. Sparkly broaches or decorative pins can also be used as an attachment for teens of any gender.

Embellishments: Anything goes regardless of where you decide to place your flowers - and whether you’re the one in a dress or a tux.

A tiara made of rhinestones, two peach sweetheart roses, a few small florets of white hydrangea bloom and limonium.

A boutonniere

A decorative armband.

The armband is created with rhinestones, five lavender sweetheart roses, silver leaves, silver bead sprays and metallic silver ribbon.

Lifestyle FRIDAY, APRIL 19, 2013

A floral decoration for prom shoes.

across the forehead or around-the-head wreaths.

“Or he can just pick some and she can pin them to her hair or a bun,” Bendet said. “Hair flowers are definitely a trend right now.”

She also suggests floral arrangements attached to purses or phone cases. Gillespie will make small arrangements intended for the toe or ankle strap of a shoe, either glued or tied on with ribbon, or hang an arrangement from a rhinestone-studded necklace that ties with ribbon at the back. “How about a flower you attach to a chain?” asks Bendet.

Mendenhall said sales of corsage alternatives for prom, also including elaborate upper-arm cuffs on wire bases, are a small percentage of Gillespie’s prom business in comparison to the

Colored feathers, ribbons of different textures, prints and widths and silk leaves can be mixed.

Arrangements can have dangling strands of beads or rhinestones or bejeweled pins. And in a trend borrowed from the wedding industry, plant succulents and pods are used as accents.

And in some cases, the whole shebang is sprayed with glitter!

“Everything sparkly continues to be very popular. I’ve had a couple of girls, they just want glitter all over their flowers. I’m starting to see more personalization with their whole outfit,” said Tracey Foster, owner of Twigs florists in Yerington, Nev., and writer of the blog Promflowers.blogspot.com.

wrist style. But she and Foster agree that corsages are far more elaborate, and prom planning has definitely amped up. “Now girls, and their mothers, will spend countless hours on Pinterest, Facebook and Instagram looking for prom corsage ideas, find something they like and try to find a florist who will make it happen,” Foster said.

Where does all of this leave the boys? “I have guys coming in here with printouts of a web page, saying my girlfriend gave this to me and she wants this and here’s a picture of her dress,” Mendenhall said. “This is their biggest night of the year.”—AP

How about a glow? A company called Bioconst has come up with cut flowers that offer a blacklight effect when treated with its fluorescent formulation and combined with a UV device embedded in a corsage or boutonniere. Another company sells LED kits similar to tiny Christmas tree lights to arrange among the flowers.

Placement: Wearing the prom arrangement on the wrist remains popular, but florists and designers support other placements as well, the head among them. “I love doing hair flowers,” said Stacey Bendet of Alice & Olivia. “It’s more modern.” Gillespie and Twigs are among shops offering florals attached to rhinestone-studded tiaras, more relaxed bohemian headbands worn

A flower ring. The decoration is created with a pink sweetheart rose, wax flower, beads and a few rhinestones.

Kate Spade field day ring at KateSpade.com.

The Sophia-B 1920s clear, flower brooch necklace at JewelrybyNola.com.

The Lanvin Swarovski necklace is available at Netaporter.com.

—MCT photos

S

pring flowers are in full bloom all over the city-and we’re not just talking gardens. Dresses festooned with roses, blouses splashed with tulips and blazers in prints that would rival the best floral arrangements are blossoming in boutique windows.

And the floral trend has made its way to the accessories counter too. We’ve picked through the common weeds to find pieces of jewelry that are well beyond the garden variety. These necklaces, earrings, rings, bracelets and headpieces will add some serious petal power to warm weather wardrobes. — MCT

The Vince Camuto rope bloom necklace is available at Vince Camuto.

FRIDAY, APRIL 19, 2013

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B

oo’s world turned upside down when Athena moved in last spring to share the large barn owl enclosure at the Akron Zoo. After getting a new roommate, the raptor, who had seemed happy splitting her digs with the male owl that died of old age, inexplicably became aggressive when zoo staff entered her habitat, said owl trainer Shannon Benedict of Stow, Ohio. “Whenever anyone goes in the cage, she starts shrieking and screaming so loudly you can hear her all over the zoo,” she explained.

She asked nationally recognized animal behaviorist Dr Grey Stafford for help to curb the owl’s obvious stress.

Stafford, author of the book “Zoomility: Keeper Tales of Training with Positive Reinforcement,” visited the zoo recently to conduct a behavior training seminar for the public and help staff members find solutions for stubborn behavior issues. “It’s an opportunity for our staff members to talk to someone who’s been at it for 22 years,” said mammal curator Eric Albers.

When the group arrived at the barn owl habitat, they saw Boo quietly resting in a nest box while her nemesis, Athena, had claimed Boo’s favorite perch. Benedict acknowledged she hit a roadblock while trying to help the bird learn to cope with the newcomer. “Are there any fights between the two?” Stafford asked.

Boo never confronts Athena, “just me,” Benedict said. “Well, she’s taking it out on you,” Stafford told her.

Stafford suggested Benedict try feeding the bird frequently during the day so she would associate the food Benedict was giving her with positive feelings. Eventually, the nocturnal hunter’s daytime world would begin to revolve around seeing Benedict, who represents food, and she would obsess less about her perceived territorial rights being violated, he said.

“When you leave, they should know the food leaves, too,” he said.

Stafford began his zoological career as a trainer at Sea World in Aurora, Ohio. He said his methods work with all animals, including domestic cats.

“They are just like the big cats here the lions and jaguars - when it comes to training.”

They are still felines, Albers reminded a visitor. “These guys are not all that different, but they can take your face off,” he said. It takes a lot of training to get a snow leopard to back up to the bars on its cage to await the piercing pain of an inoculation by needle, but that’s the goal, said Stafford. “We’re teaching animals to participate in their own care,” he said. Animal keepers today want to avoid anesthetics for routine exams and inoculations. An anesthetic, as well as the stress of having it administered, may skew blood test results, Stafford said.

Tara Gifford, the zoo’s animal training consultant who works with zoo staff members one day a week, concurred with Stafford. “Any time you can get a good look at an animal without anesthesia is good for the animal’s welfare,” she said while observing Zheng, a red panda, standing on a scale for the price of a raisin.

Lisa Melnik, primary trainer for the red pandas, demonstrated how she encourages 4-year-old Zheng when she enters his habitat for daily training sessions. “As always, we remem-

ber they are wild animals. We know the subtle signs of frustration and know when to back off,” she said.

Stafford was impressed that Zheng and the zoo’s wood storks seemed unfazed by noisy construction from the nearby future site of Grizzly Ridge, slated to open next summer.

“These animals are all being trained with the construction noises and they are calm,” he noted.

Stafford’s message of positive reinforcement training with Zoomility’s three R’s - request, response, reinforce - has earned

praise from TV personality Jack Hanna, director emeritus of the Columbus Zoo, who wrote the foreword in Stafford’s book.

“His work in zoos, oceanariums, and television has enabled him to apply the same principles of reinforcement training to dozens of exotic and endangered species. Along the way, he’s helped many pet owners and professionals provide better care for their animals through positive reinforcement,” Hanna wrote.

While food may be the incentive for many animals, it doesn’t always

work; some animals may require other inducements, said Stafford.

“Reinforcement can be done with toys, attention from the teacher, or a particular scent,” he said. A large cat at the zoo loved a ginger body scent trainers sprayed inside a crate so much, it didn’t want to come out when its exam was finished, said Albers. “It was just like a cat with catnip,” he said. That’s why visitors to the zoo’s website shouldn’t be surprised that the donation “wish list” includes perfumes for its scent-loving residents. —MCT

Lisa Melnik, wild animal keeper, gets “Zheng,” a Red Panda, to stand and be weighed at the Akron Zoo in Ohio. —MCT photos

Stars

FRIDAY, APRIL 19, 2013

Aries (March 21-April 19)

Situations beginning now will be cooperative and helpful to you as they progress. A general atmosphere of getting along together prevails and will continue to if you just go with the energy at hand. Taking it easy and letting things happen will let opportunities continue to grow that are already underway. The emotional energies are a bit on the cool side today and if you encounter the cold shoulder, don’t be surprised. Take a tentative step in the direction you want to test it out before you take a big leap and end up way over your head in a long fall. People taking themselves too seriously could also interfere with your goals, so try not to be one of them.

Taurus (April 20-May 20)

Restless and free-spirited, you feel like you have to loosen up and break free from restrictive situations at this time.

You seek freedom and spontaneity and have little patience with dry, tedious situations. A feeling of being at peace and stable on the emotional level is the mood at this time. Stability and permanence satisfy a deep emotional need for you. You want to be wanted more than needed by someone you can have a long term relationship with.

Gemini (May 21-June 20)

You are at cross purposes with the people in your environment who are most able to benefit you. You tend to come on too strong, to be oblivious to others’ needs and intentions, or to act inappropriately now. You feel an urgency to take positive steps to achieve your goals, but be certain that you are not overstepping yourself, as this can cause considerable enmity at this time. You are likely to be swept by a need for introspection during this period.

You have a strong need to explore your spiritual self, assess past decisions, and make plans for your future. It would be unwise for you to make any permanent decisions regarding your personal relationships until this period of self-discovery has passed.

Cancer (June 21-July 22) Make a point of not allowing others to ruin your plans today, because there will be certain individuals that won’t like what you are doing. Your priority needs to be your more significant relationships in this instance, so don’t let anyone sway your decisions. Now may be a good time to make a high end purchase like a new car. Your personal charm and attractiveness has a positive effect on others at this time. People see you as a loving and lovable person, and as someone who is aware of their needs and feelings, which can benefit you at this time. Others are willing to help and cooperate with your goals and ambitions.

Leo (July 23-August 22) Frustrated desires and obstacles to achieving your aims can evoke enormous anger in you, and you may do something rash and regrettable. Working alone is best at this time.

Realize that today will be over faster than you believe so if you can hold your temper and maybe your vocabulary you’ll be thankful you did tomorrow. Sudden realizations of overall requirements in a relationship can give you a better idea on what’s really going on.

Clear demands are more easily met and you know where you stand when the possible and impossible are sorted out. Your limitations become clearer which makes any obstacles easier to work around or eliminate.

Virgo (August 23-September 22) A strong stride established today will take you all the way to the finish line. Positive elements today are the little things in life, so invest in the small for the long haul and you’ll be sure of a return. Look to get dividends, not a big turnover, and you’ll be right in the flow as they grow. An instinctive need to be powerful and in control, you want to be the one pulling the strings and calling the shots. Sexual needs are just one of the life issues emphasized for you at this time. Just make sure you don’t take your control issues so far that your partner feels smothered.

COUNTRY CODES Libra (September 23-October 22) At this time you will want to branch out; you have the energy to do more and take on more challenges. This is a very good time to begin implementing the plans and promises that you have made to yourself, as any new endeavor is likely to succeed. You may be feeling somewhat insecure about your current love relationship and unsure how to relieve your fears because you’re not really sure what is sparking your feelings of insecurity. If you can’t identify something in your mate that is causing your doubts, look to your past experiences for the cause. It’s likely you’re comparing your current relationship with a past bond that ended on a bad note. While there may be similarities, your current romance is very different and very unlikely to go down the same road as any of your past loves.

Scorpio (October 23-November 21) You can’t expect to fix something if the tools you’ve been using just don’t work. You need a whole new strategy to deal with the issue. How willing you’re prepared to experiment and explore new approaches will determine your success. The key for you just now is open-mindedness. You gain what and who you want through diplomacy or charm, rather than by being forthright and bold. You are willing to make concessions in order to maintain harmony in your environment. Light and pleasant interactions characterize this time period.

Sagittarius (November 22-December 21)

Someone’s inconsistent or indecisive actions will be impacting upon you and causing you to react in the same way. You must take charge of a situation, know your own mind and make decisions irrespective of other people’s agendas today. Aroused both mentally and physically are feelings that will be reinforced by conversation and those subtle signals. Let your feelings flow and they will carry you along without your having to make much of an effort. Don’t plan what to say, just say it as whatever comes out first is probably the most sincere, so don’t over think your reactions, just go with the gut.

Capricorn (December 22-January 19)

Though you may want some inspiring challenge in your affinity with friends today, don’t push your views too strongly.

You don’t need to be over the top to make a good impression. Two people may be competing for your affection or consideration at the moment. Enjoy yourself and the people around you just take care not to take anyone or even yourself too seriously right now, it’s more a energy of play and adventure rather than seriousness and commitment.

Aquarius (January 20- February 18)

At this time you are more temperamental, impassioned and inclined to act on the dictates of emotion and desire rather than reason. Minor annoyances and others’ idiosyncrasies aggravate you more than usual. You are in a fighting mood. Your relationships with your family and the women you are closest to, are likely to be stormy. You are in harmony with the people in your immediate environment and there is a sense of ease and of flowing with, rather than fighting against or resisting, what is going on around you. Enjoy their company and do something fun and interactive together, maybe even get a bit on the wild side.

Pisces (February 19-March 20)

Your sense of the situation is probably pretty accurate today, especially if you’re telling yourself to let sleeping dogs lie, and allow general agreement to form without making a bid deal of it. Exude emotional stability (or at least pretend to) and you’ll find yourself brought in as expert and friend. This is an upbeat, refreshing time period. Progressive changes in your life and relationships make this an enjoyable, exciting time. The changes are not likely to be extraordinary in scope, but a definite enlivening of your relationship to others is evident. the thrill of the challenge.

Commitments begun now will turn out well and satisfying for all.

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

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

Stars

FRIDAY, APRIL 19, 2013

Word Search

Yesterdayʼs Solution

C R O S S W O R D 1 6 4

ACROSS 1. Armor plate that protects the chest.

5. Herbs of temperate regions.

12. The bill in a restaurant.

15. (of persons) Highest in rank or authority or office.

16. Relating to or caused by wind.

17. Title for a civil or military leader (especially in Turkey).

18. Tree of low-lying coastal areas of southeastern United States having glossy leaves and racemes of fragrant white flowers.

19. The batting turn of a cricket player or team.

20. An undergarment worn by women to support their breasts.

21. In the shape of a coil.

23. (Akkadian) God of wisdom.

24. (anatomy) Of or relating to a cavity or chamber in the body (especially one of the upper chambers of the heart).

26. Type genus of the Caviidae.

28. A mountain peak in the southern Sinai Peninsula (7,500 feet high).

30. A crystalline metallic element not found in nature.

32. A bluish-white lustrous metallic element.

33. Letters and packages that are transported by aircraft.

37. The shape of a raised edge of a more or less circular object.

39. A soft white precious univalent metallic element having the highest electrical and thermal conductivity of any metal.

42. God of fire.

43. Not elegant or graceful in expression.

48. Fermented alcoholic beverage similar to but heavier than beer.

49. Surround so as to force to give up.

51. A gonadotropic hormone that is secreted by the anterior pituitary.

52. Swedish oceanographer who recognized the role of the Coriolis effect on ocean currents (1874-1954).

54. A primeval personification of air and breath.

55. 16 ounces.

56. A silvery ductile metallic element found primarily in bauxite.

57. A woody climbing usually tropical plant.

58. A large continuous extent of land.

61. Most important element.

63. A metric unit of volume equal to one tenth of a liter.

64. A river in north central Switzerland that runs northeast into the Rhine.

65. A fastener (as a buckle or hook) that is used to hold two things together.

67. A town in western Washington.

71. An internal representation of the world.

74. The state of matter distinguished from the solid and liquid states by.

75. A short novel.

78. An Arabic speaking person who lives in Arabia or North Africa.

79. 10 hao equal 1 dong.

80. Resembling or characteristic of or appropriate to an elegy.

81. Someone who works (or provides workers) during a strike.

82. Of southern Europe.

83. Remorse for your past conduct.

84. A river in north central Switzerland that runs northeast into the Rhine.

Daily SuDoku

DOWN 1. Informal terms for a meal.

2. The act of grasping.

3. Of or relating to a seizure or convulsion.

4. A city in central southwestern Iran.

5. Following surreptitiously.

6. Adult female chicken.

7. Lacking companions or companionship.

8. A name that has been assumed temporarily.

9. Estrangement from god.

10. Italian violinist (1782-1840).

11. An insect or other arthropod between molts.

12. A sock with a separation for the big toe.

13. A city in northern India.

14. Any of numerous local fertility and nature deities worshipped by ancient Semitic peoples.

22. Fly a plane.

25. A narrow elongated opening or fissure between two symmetrical parts.

27. A radioactive element of the actinide series.

29. A state in midwestern United States.

31. A medium (art or business) that disseminates moving pictures.

34. Small terrestrial lizard of warm regions of the Old World.

35. Situated away from an area's coast or border.

36. Of or relating to the spleen.

38. American Revolutionary leader from Virginia whose objections led to the drafting of the Bill of Rights (1725-1792).

40. A Mid-Atlantic state.

41. A river that rises in western New Mexico and flows westward through southern Arizona to become a tributary of the Colorado River.

44. Greek lyric poet remembered for his odes (518?-438? BC).

45. United States labor organizer who ran for President as a socialist (1855-1926).

46. A corporation authorized by Congress to provide a secondary market for residential mortgages.

47. Belonging to or prescribed for celiac disease.

50. Old World shorebird with long pointed wings and short legs.

53. The capital of the Democratic Republic of the Congo on the Congo river opposite Brazzaville.

59. Biennial weed in Europe and America having large pinnate leaves and yellow flowers and a bitter and somewhat poisonous root.

60. Dried root of two plants of the genus Polygala containing an irritating saponin.

62. A region of northeastern France famous for its wines.

66. Type genus of the Percidae.

68. South African term for `boss'.

69. A program under which employees regularly accumulate shares and may ultimately assume control of the company.

70. Divisible by two.

72. A flat-bottomed volcanic crater that was formed by an explosion.

73. A French abbot.

76. United States sculptor and architect whose public works include the memorial to veterans of the Vietnam War in Washington (born in 1959).

77. Resinlike substance secreted by certain lac insects.

Yesterdayʼs Solution

Yesterday’s Solution

Sports FRIDAY, APRIL 19, 2013

FRENCH LEAGUE PREVIEW

ITALIAN LEAGUE PREVIEW

Marseille rely on strong defense in home straight PARIS: Despite a heavy international presence up front, Olympique Marseille are relying on their defense of steel in their bid for a Champions League direct qualifying spot.

Second-placed OM, who take on second-from-bottom Stade Brest tomorrow (1500 GMT), have not conceded a goal in their last five Ligue 1 outings, thanks to sterling performances by centre backs Lucas Mendes and Nicolas N’Koulou, while keeper Steve Mandanda produced a worldclass performance in the 0-0 draw at Lille last Sunday.

The club have Andre-Pierre Gignac to thank for the goals that gave them their last two wins but have gained little from the presence of Andre Ayew in the starting line up, with the Ghana striker unable to score in 10 weeks. Younger brother Jordan has also been missing in action and has not scored since Jan 26. Marseille are clinging on to second place, two points ahead of Olympique Lyon and four ahead of both St Etienne and Nice with six matches left.

“There is a collective momentum, a desire not to concede a goal, to stick together,” coach Elie Baup told the club’s website (www.om.net). “It shows that we are not ready to let our place on the podium slip. We are going to continue like this.” Marseille will be comforted by the fact that Brest have the worst attack in Ligue 1, having scored 29 goals this season.

Runaway leaders Paris St Germain, who lead Marseille by nine points on 67, take on Champions League hopefuls Nice on Sunday (1900) looking to make amends for their elimination in the French Cup quarter-finals by Evian Thonon Gaillard on Wednesday. Fifth-placed Nice will be without teenage striker Neal Maupay who has been ruled out until the end of the season with a knee injury. “It is a big blow for him and for us because we need everyone,” said coach Claude Puel, who will also be without suspended striker Eric Bautheac.

Today (1830), third-placed Lyon travel to Montpellier who will surrender their title at the end of the season but still have an outside chance of clinching a Europa League spot. Lyon are back in the mix for a direct qualifying spot for the Champions League after a 3-1 win over Toulouse ended a three-game losing streak last weekend. “We need to confirm this against Montpellier. The Toulouse win gave us something to cheer about after a very difficult period,” Argentine striker Lisandro Lopez, who has had a below-par season, told reporters.— Reuters

Eintracht host Schalke as European race heats up BERLIN: Eintracht Frankfurt have achieved their season aim of staying clear of the relegation zone but the promoted side are desperate to get their push for Champions League soccer back on track after a recent run of poor form. Eintracht will be eager to recover quickly from last week’s defeat to Augsburg and a home victory over fourth-placed Schalke 04 tomorrow would take them within a point of their opponents in the final Champions League qualifying spot.

Up until the winter break, Eintracht were the surprise team of the season, doggedly staying in touch with leaders Bayern Munich until a run of three wins in their last 12 games saw them slip off the pace at the top of the standings. “There is no need to keep talking about Europe,” coach Armin Veh fumed after their defeat to relegation-threatened Augsburg on Sunday.

“We played exactly the way we should not play against a team fighting to stay up. What we have to learn is to keep fighting, even if things do not always go according to plan.” With only four points separating Eintracht (42) and Schalke (46), a win would put them back in contention for the Champions League with four games remaining. “We will do everything we can to win against Schalke,” defender Sebastian Jung said. “If we do that then the cards will have been shuffled again.”

Veh could have leading striker Alexander Meier available after an injury sustained last week turned out to be less serious than originally thought. Schalke, on an opposite path to their opponents after slumping late last year before recovering over the past few months, will hope to finish off their roller-coaster season with another Champions League spot.—Reuters

ROME: Juventus’ players celebrate at the end of a Serie A soccer match between Lazio and Juventus in Rome on Monday, April 15, 2013. Juventus won 2 - 0. —AP

Juve hopes to show Serie A supremacy ROME: AC Milan desperately needs a win to revive its hopes of direct qualification for the Champions League. Juventus hasn’t beaten Milan in Serie A since 2011 and wants to demonstrate its supremacy as it marches toward a second consecutive Italian title. With their last two meetings decided by questionable decisions from the referee, Sunday’s match in Turin is attracting extra hype. With six rounds remaining in the Italian league, Juventus holds a comfortable 11-point lead over Napoli. Milan is third, a further four points behind. The top two finishers gain direct entry to the Champions League, while the thirdplace finisher enters the last round of playoffs for the top European competition.

Milan is hoping Mario Balotelli will be cleared to play after an appeal is heard today on his threematch suspension for insulting an official. Balotelli already sat out a 1-1 draw with Napoli last weekend.

Milan beat Juventus 1-0 in November after a suspect penalty from Robinho, and the teams drew 1-1 in the second half of last season after Milan midfielder Sulley Muntari had a goal disallowed despite replays showing it was clearly over the line. “This time we’re hoping we

can kick the ball in a bit harder,” Milan attacking midfielder Kevin Prince Boateng said. “But the match with Juventus is special no matter what, so there’s no reason to add extra hype.” Boateng had to exit in the first half against Napoli after getting his ankle bruised. “I’m fine,” he said. “At first I thought it was worse but I’m better and hope to be available against Juve. We want to finish second and to do so we’ve got to win in Turin.” Milan striker Stephen El Shaarawy is also expected back in the lineup after being benched at the start against Napoli, although midfielder Mathieu Flamini, who has scored in Milan’s last two matches, which were both draws, is suspended.

After getting eliminated from the Champions League by Bayern Munich last week, Juventus bounced back with a convincing 2-0 win at Lazio on Monday. Arturo Vidal scored both goals against Lazio, earning headlines labeling him as “King Arthur” and declarations from Juventus management that he is not for sale, despite reports saying he could command as high as a 30 million euro ($40 million) transfer fee now. While Milan had a rough start to the season, it has earned the same number of points as Juve since

the ninth round. And with Balotelli’s arrival in January, Milan is shaping up as Juve’s top challenger for next season.

So Juventus would like nothing better than to force Milan to play Champions League qualifying in August, thus complicating the Rossoneri’s preparations for next season. Juventus last beat Milan in Serie A in October 2011. Also this weekend, Napoli hosts Cagliari and struggling Inter Milan faces Parma.

Inter was eliminated from the Italian Cup semifinals by Roma on Wednesday to mark the Nerazzurri’s fourth consecutive defeat, leaving coach Andrea Stramaccioni’s job at risk.

In its last four matches, Inter has been outscored 11-6. Also Sunday, Catania hosts Palermo in the alwaysheated Sicilian derby, which concluded with the death of a policeman in clashes in 2007. Palermo captain Fabrizio Miccoli will likely miss the match due to a left leg muscle injury. In November, Miccoli scored the opening goal in Palermo’s 3-1 win in the first derby this season.

Also this weekend, it’s: Genoa vs Atalanta; Udinese vs Lazio; Bologna vs Sampdoria; Fiorentina vs Torino; Roma vs. Pescara; and Siena vs Chievo.—AP

Sports FRIDAY, APRIL 19, 2013

SPANISH LEAGUE PREVIEW

Malaga battling for European berth despite ban MADRID: With seven games left in the season, Malaga’s players have put the Qatar-owned La Liga club in a strong position to secure a lucrative place in Europe for next term even though they know their efforts could all be in vain. Fifth-placed Malaga, who play at fellow European hopefuls Valencia, one place below them in sixth tomorrow (2000 GMT), have earned a UEFA ban from continental competition from next season due to delays in payments to creditors.

They are appealing the sanction at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) and are confident they will be allowed to take up their place in the Europa League, Europe’s second-tier club competition, or the elite Champions League if they manage to overhaul fourth-placed Real Sociedad. Their hearing at Lausanne, Switzerland-based CAS is on May 14 and a decision is expected sometime around the middle of June, a Malaga spokesman said yesterday.

Malaga and Valencia both have 50 points from 31 matches, with Malaga ahead thanks to a superior goal difference, while Sociedad, who play at

struggling Osasuna on Sunday (1700), are four clear in fourth on 54 points. As well as off-field problems, the players, whose wages were delayed amid doubts over the commitment of owner Sheikh Abdullah Al Thani, have had to cope with the bitter disappointment of this month’s Champions League exit at Borussia Dortmund.

They were within touching distance of a place in the last four on their debut in the competition but conceded two goals in added time and the German side went through instead. Malaga picked themselves up to snatch a last-gasp 1-0 win at home to Osasuna last weekend and midfielder Manuel Iturra believes they are in good shape for the end of the campaign. “The entire team is at an excellent level, both physically and in football terms,” he told a news conference on Wednesday.

“I hope that we can keep it up because this is the most important part of the season and will define what happens next year,” added the Chilean. Malaga have some tough games remaining, including trips to

play leaders Barcelona and secondplaced champions Real Madrid, but Iturra noted that Sociedad still have to play Real and Valencia at home.

“They have difficult games left as well against direct rivals so the fight for the fourth Champions League place is going to be a close one,” he said.

“We’ll take each game at a time knowing that the points available at our Rosaleda stadium must stay at home if we want to be in the mix for fourth.”

SEASON SURPRISE In French coach Philippe Montanier’s second term in charge, Sociedad have been the surprise of the season after a 21-game run with only one defeat - a 4-3 reverse at Real Madrid in January when captain Xabi Prieto scored a hat-trick. They finished as La Liga runners up to Real Madrid in 2003 but since then have spent three seasons in the second division and slipped into financial administration. They have successfully developed a team built around a majority of youth academy players and blended them with imports such

Faltering Tottenham look to do Man United a favor MANCHESTER: After slipping out of the Champions League qualification places, Tottenham will look to halt its traditional end-of-season slump by beating Manchester City on Sunday to potentially set up an early end to the Premier League title race. Manchester United has been on the brink of a record-extending 20th English title for weeks and it could finally be clinched at home against Aston Villa on Monday if second-place City loses at White Hart Lane. On current form, that is unlikely, with Tottenham imploding in the league to compound its exit in the Europa League quarterfinals last week.

City has won its last four matches in all competitions, delaying United’s inevitable championship.

The potential return of wingers Gareth Bale and Aaron Lennon from injury will boost Tottenham’s chances of a first league win in four, an all-tofamiliar slump that has dropped the team down to fifth place below London rivals Arsenal and Chelsea. “We have to stay together and to go for that topfour place in the Premier League,” Tottenham defender Jan Vertonghen said. “We have had a rest, we clear our heads and we come back against Manchester City.

“A lot of players could be coming back, important players, and we only have big games now City, Chelsea, all cup finals. We go for the highest place possible.” The fight for third and fourth place, which sees four teams separated by five points with Everton also in contention, is proving to be much more

LONDON: Manchester United’s Serbian defender Nemanja Vidic (right) battles with West Ham United’s English striker Andy Carroll during the English Premier League football match between West Ham United and Manchester United at the Boleyn Ground, Upton Park on April 17, 2013. —AFP exciting than the title race. Missing out on Champions League football for a second straight season would be a bitter blow to Tottenham, which finished fourth last season but was denied a place in Europe’s top competition by Chelsea winning the Champions League.

Like last season, Tottenham put itself in a strong position heading into the run-in but has been beaten by Liverpool and Fulham in recent weeks and also drawn at home to Everton.

Arsenal has taken advantage, winning

four of its last five matches and can put even more pressure on its north London rival by beating Fulham away tomorrow. “My belief was always strong and still is,” said Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger, who has qualified for the Champions League every season since joining the club in 1996. “I’m confident we’ll do it.

“We just have to make sure we don’t depend on the results of the other teams. Therefore what is the most important thing is to win our next game.” — AP

as Mexico striker Carlos Vela. “I don’t think things could be going any better for us right now,” defender Inigo Martinez said on Wednesday. “You can see that we are in good shape and playing well and more than capable of beating any opponent and staying up there in the table,” he added. “Now is when we have to give everything, even more than we have been.” Barca, meanwhile, have a 13point lead over champions Real at the top and victory in their next three matches, including tomorrow’s game at home to Levante (1800), will clinch a fourth La Liga title in five years.

They could get their hands on the trophy sooner if their arch rivals, who host seventh-placed Real Betis tomorrow (1600), slip up. Real have long-since given up on their title defense and winning a 10th European crown is their overwhelming priority.

Jose Mourinho’s side play the first leg of their Champions League semifinal at Dortmund on Wednesday, with Barca at Bayern Munich the previous day. The return legs are the following week. — Reuters

United can seal title if City lose to Spurs LONDON: Manchester City’s grip on the Premier League trophy could be prised away once and for all this weekend as Roberto Mancini’s side face Tottenham Hotspur knowing defeat would allow Manchester United the chance to be crowned champions on Monday. A sense of inevitability has hung over the title race for several weeks but below it, the season is reaching a nerve-jangling climax both in the battle to qualify for next year’s Champions League and to stay in the top flight.

City go to White Hart Lane 13 points behind United, who play Aston Villa at Old Trafford on Monday when the title race could be decided. City would like nothing more than to prolong the title fight for another week, but that could be scuppered with Tottenham embroiled in a scrap with Chelsea, Arsenal and Everton for third and fourth places. While City’s pride is at stake, the repercussions of Sunday’s match are likely to be far more serious for Spurs whose hopes of a top-four finish are under threat from their London rivals.

United top the table with 81 points, followed by City on 68, Chelsea 61, Arsenal 60, Spurs 58 and Everton 56. City, Spurs and Chelsea have played 32 games, all the rest 33.

Andre Villas-Boas’s side were in pole position for third place a few weeks ago before defeats by Liverpool and Fulham and a home draw with Everton handed the initiative back to Arsenal and Chelsea. Chelsea moved into third spot with a 3-0 win at Fulham on Wednesday to climb a point ahead of Arsenal, held to a 0-0 home draw by Everton on Tuesday.

Arsenal’s tomorrow kickoff at Fulham means they can apply more pressure before Chelsea go to Liverpool and Spurs play City. Tottenham’s players have had a breather since losing to Basel on penalties in the Europa League, although the break may not have been long enough for Welsh winger Gareth Bale to recover from the ankle injury he sustained in the first leg of the tie. Without him and the injured Aaron Lennon and Jermain Defoe, Tottenham are a far less dangerous side and concern is mounting in north London that the club will suffer a near-miss for the second season in a row. They finished fourth last year but were denied a Champions League spot by Chelsea who finished sixth but won the European Cup to take their place. —Reuters

Sports FRIDAY, APRIL 19, 2013

NL Capsules

Bucs hammer Cardinals 5-0 Burnett flirts with no-no PITTSBURGH: A J Burnett took a no-hitter into the seventh inning nearly 12 years after throwing the only one of his career, pitching the Pittsburgh Pirates to a 5-0 victory over the St Louis Cardinals on Wednesday night. Burnett (1-2) lost his bid with two outs in the seventh on Carlos Beltran’s double to right-center. That was the lone hit given up by the 36-year-old right-hander in seven dominant innings. Burnett struck out eight. He got the 2,000th strikeout of his 15-year career when he caught Beltran looking in the second. Mark Melancon, Tony Watson and Jason Grilli completed the one-hitter. Burnett’s no-hitter came on May 12, 2001, for the Florida Marlins in San Diego. That game was also notable for his nine walks. Burnett walked none against St Louis. Cardinals rookie Shelby Miller (2-1) pitched well despite taking his first loss in four career decisions.

PADRES 7, DODGERS 2 Clayton Kershaw gave up his first three home runs of the season in a span of three innings and the San Diego Padres beat the Los Angeles Dodgers to finish a three-game sweep. Everth Cabrera, Chris Denorfia and Kyle Blanks all connected off Kershaw (2-2), who entered with a 1.16 ERA in three starts. But the 2011 NL Cy Young Award winner left this one trailing 5-1 after throwing 109 pitches in 5 1-3 innings. Boosted by the return of slugger Chase Headley from a broken thumb, the Padres pounded out 13 hits and beat one of baseball’s best pitchers.

After arriving with a 2-10 record, San Diego earned its first sweep at Dodger Stadium of three or more games since July 2006.

It was the first series between the NL West rivals since their wild brawl last week in San Diego. Cabrera had three hits and scored twice as the Padres sent Los Angeles to its fourth straight defeat.

Headley was back at third base and went 1 for 4 with a late RBI single. Brad Brach (1-0) retired Skip Schumaker on a comebacker with the bases loaded in the fifth.

NATIONALS 6, MARLINS 1 Ross Detwiler departed with a lead for the third start in a row and this time the bullpen held on as Bryce Harper and the Washington Nationals beat the Miami Marlins. Harper, back in the Nationals’ lineup after missing one game with the flu, hiked his average to .364 with four hits and improved to 9 for 20 against Ricky Nolasco (0-2). Harper hit two solo homers off Nolasco on opening day. Detwiler (1-0) allowed one run in seven innings, which increased his ERA to 0.90. He left his first two starts with the Nationals ahead 5-1 and 4-1, but both times received no decision.

BREWERS 4, GIANTS 3 Pinch-hitter Blake Lalli lifted a long single in the bottom of the ninth inning that sent the Milwaukee Brewers over the San Francisco Giants. With the score tied, one out and the outfielders playing in, Lalli stepped to the plate for just the sixth time this season. Lalli lofted a deep fly ball well over the head of left fielder Gregor Blanco for his first hit of 2013. Milwaukee extended its longest winning streak this year to three. Brewers starter Kyle Lohse did not allow a hit through the first five innings as Milwaukee built a 3-0 lead. Jim Henderson (2-0) pitched the ninth.

Santiago Casilla (1-1) took the loss.

REDS 1, PHILLIES 0 REDS 11, PHILLIES 2 Jay Bruce hit a pair of bases-loaded singles that sent the Cincinnati Reds to a couple of wins over Philadelphia. First, the Reds finished their game suspended overnight by rain. Several hundred fans were in the stands to see Phillippe Aumont (1-2) pick the game up in the bottom of the ninth and give up Bruce’s bases-loaded single only four batters later. Aroldis Chapman (2-0) got the win without even warming up on Wednesday - he’d retired the last three batters before the rain came the previous night. Then, the Reds completed their first series sweep of the Phillies since 1996. Bruce hit a bases-loaded single that highlighted a five-run rally in the second inning off left-hander John Lannan (0-1). Reds starter Mike Leake (1-2) drove in a run with his first career triple during the big inning.

INTERLEAGUE ROYALS 1, BRAVES 0 Wade Davis pitched seven sharp innings, Jeff Francoeur had an RBI single and the Kansas City Royals stopped Atlanta’s 10game winning streak. The Braves were seeking their first 13-1 start since 1994. But the Atlanta hitters - who homered five times off the Royals on Tuesday - were shut down. Davis (2-0) gave up five hits, didn’t walk anyone and struck out seven. Greg Holland worked a scoreless ninth for his third save. Mike Minor (2-1) allowed five hits, including Francoeur’s single in the fourth, and in six innings. The left-hander’s ERA over three starts is 0.95. — AP

SEATTLE: Justin Smoak #17 of the Seattle Mariners is tagged out at home for the final out by catcher Brayan Pena #55 of the Detroit Tigers in the fourteenth inning at Safeco Field on April 17, 2013 in Seattle, Washington. The Tigers defeated the Mariners 2-1. — AFP AL Capsules

Red Sox thump Indians CLEVELAND: Converted closer Alfredo Aceves coasted through five innings, Mike Napoli and Daniel Nava drove in two runs apiece and the Red Sox, bonded by the tragedy in Boston, struck quickly against Justin Masterson and beat the Cleveland Indians 6-3 on Wednesday night for their fifth straight win. Aceves (1-0), who began the season in Bostonís bullpen, took a shutout into the sixth before giving up three runs. Andrew Bailey, filling for injured closer Joel Hanrahan, worked the ninth for his first save.

Napoli had an RBI single in the first when the Red Sox scored three off Masterson (3-1), who has already beaten two Cy Young Award winners this season and came in without allowing a run in 19 straight innings. Nick Swisher and Jason Giambi homered for the Indians, who dropped their third in a row. The Red Sox hung a gray ì617 Boston Strongî jersey in their dugout, just as they did for Tuesdayís emotional series opener - one day after the deadly marathon bombings back home. The jersey has become a symbol of unity for the club, which will be back at Fenway Park on Friday to open a 10-game homestand.

Shane Victorino, Jacoby Ellsbury and Mike Carp had three hits apiece as the Red Sox built Aceves a 5-0 lead.

TIGERS 2, MARINERS 1, 14 INNINGS Detroit catcher Brayan Pena held onto Prince Fielderís relay throw and absorbed a collision with Justin Smoak at home plate for the final out, and the Tigers outlasted the Seattle Mariners in 14 innings.

Smoak singled with one out off Joaquin Benoit, and with two outs Dustin Ackley doubled into the right-field corner. Third base coach Jeff Datz didnít hesitate in waiving Smoak around with the potential tying run. Torii Hunter started the relay from the outfield, and Fielderís throw was up the third base line a bit. Pena, however, caught it in plenty of time and held onto the ball as Smoak crashed into him.

Detroit took the lead in the top of the 14th when Penaís basesloaded groundout scored pinch-runner Don Kelly. The conclusion came long after starters Felix Hernandez and Max Scherzer pitched gems in a game that included a whopping 40 strikeouts. Drew Smyly (1-0) worked one inning for the win. Benoit earned his first save of the season. According to the Mariners, it was the second time in major league history that both teams had more than 18 strikeouts. The only other time was June 16, 2001, when the Giants and Padres both struck out 20 times in a 15-inning game. Detroit batters tied the team record for most strikeouts in a game with 21 - five by Fielder, who was hitless in six at-bats. Charlie Furbush (0-1) took the loss.

RAYS 6, ORIOLES 2 Kelly Johnson and Shelley Duncan homered, James Loney had three RBIs and Tampa Bay beat Baltimore to snap a four-game skid.

Matt Moore (3-0) gave up two runs and five hits in 6 2-3 innings.

Although his streak of scoreless starts ended at two, the left-hander has accounted for three of the Raysí five wins this season. The six runs were the most the Rays scored in a game since a 6-0 win over Cleveland on April 6. Following that victory, Tampa Bay lost seven of

eight before turning it around against the Orioles. After going 1 for 34 with runners in scoring position in their previous five games, the Rays went 4 for 11 in those situations, including a two-run double in the fourth by Loney that put Tampa Bay ahead for good. Loney went 3 for 3 to raise his batting average from .167 to .242. Adam Jones homered for the Orioles, who had five hits. Chris Tillman (0-1) allowed four runs and six hits in four innings to fall to 1-4 against the Rays. Tampa Bay manager Joe Maddon missed a portion of his teamís first win in a week. He was ejected in the fifth inning by umpire Brian Knight, who called Johnson out on a stolen base attempt.

ATHLETICS 7, ASTROS 5 Bartolo Colon pitched six crisp innings, Josh Reddick doubled in two runs during a six-run first and Oakland defeated Houston to complete another three-game sweep. The Athletics swept a three-game series at Houston during the first week of the season. Seth Smith had three hits for the Aís, who improved to an AL-best 12-4. They sent 11 batters to the plate and chased Bud Norris (2-2) in the first inning, then won behind Colon (2-0) and three relievers. Jose Altuve had three hits and Carlos Pena homered for the second straight day for Houston. Pinch-hitter Rick Ankiel also homered for the Astros. Colon beat Houston for the second time this season. He has not walked a batter in 19 innings this year. Grant Balfour got Altuve to ground into a game-ending double play for his third save.

WHITE SOX 7, BLUE JAYS 0 Tyler Flowers hit a three-run homer and Jose Quintana pitched 6 2-3 sharp innings to lead Chicago over Toronto. Alex Rios also homered against his former team to back Quintana (1-0), who held the Blue Jays to five hits with two walks while striking out seven in his third start of the season. J A Happ (2-1) allowed six hits, including two homers, and five runs in 5 2-3 innings to end a string of four consecutive quality starts by the Blue Jays. Jose Bautista missed his third straight game with a sore back.

INTERLEAGUE YANKEES 4, DIAMONDBACKS 3 Pinch-hitter Travis Hafner connected for a tiebreaking homer with two outs in the eighth inning to lead CC Sabathia and the Yankees past Arizona. Brett Gardner had a tying, two-run single in the seventh for New York. Stymied by Wade Miley for six innings, the Yankees broke through and won for the seventh time in eight games. Sabathia (3-1) gave up a two-run homer to Paul Goldschmidt in the first, then settled down for his third straight win after struggling on opening day. It was his second consecutive outing of eight innings. Mariano Rivera pitched the ninth for his fourth save. Injured for most of last season, Rivera posted his first back-to-back saves since April 10-11, 2012. Hafner sent the first pitch he saw from reliever David Hernandez (0-1) into the right-center stands for his fourth home run with his new team. — AP

Sports FRIDAY, APRIL 19, 2013

Business as usual for European Tour LONDON: Golf’s European Tour is keeping a close eye on developments on the Korean peninsula ahead of the Ballantine’s Championship in Seoul next week but organizers say it will be business as usual. There has been hostility in the region for weeks because of United Nations sanctions imposed on North Korea for a nuclear test.

Yesterday, the North offered the United States and South Korea conditions for talks while also saying denuclearisation of the peninsula could begin when the US removed weapons the isolated state says Washington has deployed in the region.

“We are closely monitoring the political situation in Korea but at the moment we do not perceive any problems in terms of the Ballantine’s Championship taking place as scheduled,” the European Tour’s director of international policy Keith Waters said in a statement. Six-times tour winner Alvaro Quiros said earlier this month that he

would not compete in the South Korean tournament. “I don’t think it’s a good moment to go there,” said the Spaniard. “It would be a stupid idea with the way things are. “I don’t want to mess with my life just to play in a golf tournament.”

The tension has eased somewhat since Quiros made his comments and the tour said his views were not representative of all the players. “The Quiros situation is the only one we’ve had,” a tour spokesman told Reuters.

“Conversations have taken place with the players and we’ve sent messages to reassure them that everything will be run as normal. “The players are pretty happy with everything that’s in place. Damian Turner, our championship manager and staging director, is out there at the moment dealing with the infrastructure and setting up of the tournament.

“He said it is work as usual and the locals are going

about their normal day-to-day business. Most of them are showing little interest in what is happening in the North and preparations for the tournament are going well.”

World number seven Louis Oosthuizen of South Africa and US Ryder Cup players Dustin Johnson and Zach Johnson are among the golfers due to take part in the event which carries a prize fund of 2.2 million euros ($2.87 million).

“The European Tour will keep us up to date on relevant issues and are liaising with key decision-makers including the Foreign Office,” said the tournament sponsors. “We will continue to monitor the situation and take direction from the European Tour who are responsible for liaising with the players. We fully support the European Tour but respect the decision of individual players to make their own choices.” The sixth edition of the Ballantine’s Championship will be staged at the Blackstone Golf and Country Club and starts next Thursday. — Reuters

Nadal cruises into quarters Error-strewn Murray in shock Monaco exit MONACO: Eight-time defending champion Rafael Nadal extended his Monte Carlo Masters winning streak to 44 matches by beating Philipp Kohlschreiber 6-2, 6-4 yesterday, while second-seeded Andy Murray was thrashed 6-1, 6-2 by Stanislas Wawrinka in the third round. Murray dropped serve five times and made a number of sloppy unforced errors, lasting less than an hour against the 13th-seeded Wawrinka, who had won their two only previous meetings on clay.

Murray was jeered off the court. “Just looked at the stats ... 24 unforced errors is far too many.

That’s a set’s worth. That’s where half the points went,” a despondent Murray said. “I hope that’s not going to be the case over the next five, six weeks. I’ve had tough losses on the clay before and I’ve come back well from them. Hopefully today will be the same.”

Earlier, the third-seeded Nadal comfortably dispatched Kohlschreiber without facing a single break point. The Spaniard next faces Bulgaria’s Grigor Dimitrov. “He’s playing well,” Nadal said. “He’s able to play very well, very aggressive, very good technique. He’s (a) complete player.” Sixth-seeded Jo-Wilfried Tsonga also advanced with a clinical 6-3, 6-0 win against Jurgen Melzer, breaking the Austrian player four times, and fourth-seeded Tomas Berdych again struggled on his serve as he lost 6-4, 6-2 to Italian Fabio Fognini.

Later, top-ranked Novak Djokovic was playing No 14 Juan Monaco. Nadal picked off Kohlschreiber from the back of the court, clipping a forehand winner past him to break and then holding to love to move 5-3 up in the second set. The Spaniard served out the match, clinching victory when the German scooped a backhand into the net. Sixth-seeded Jo-Wilfried Tsonga also advanced with a clinical 6-3, 6-0 win against Jurgen Melzer, breaking the Austrian player four times, and fourth-seeded Tomas Berdych again struggled on his serve as he lost 6-4, 6-2 to Italian Fabio Fognini.

“Is my first time to quarterfinal here in Monte Carlo. With the Italian people, I think they’re happy. I’m Italian, so I feel home here,” said Fognini, who next plays seventh-seeded Richard Gasquet after he beat No 9 Marin Cilic 7-5, 6-4. “I have another opportunity to play a great match, I think on center court tomorrow with full stadium. I’m just happy for that.”

Tsonga did not concede a single break point and took a little under one hour to win, setting up a quarterfinal against Wawrinka.

Tsonga broke at the start of the second set

when he sent a powerful forehand down the line that Melzer could not return, and secured another break in Melzer’s next service game when the Austrian was forced to the back of the court and sliced a backhand into the net.

After breaking Melzer again, the Frenchman served out the match. “It’s difficult to assess

my game because he was not really playing his best,” Tsonga said. “But I’m happy I was able to do the job. When you play tennis, you always try for perfection. “Dimitrov beat Florian Mayer of Germany 6-2, 6-4. Later, topranked Novak Djokovic played No 14 Juan Monaco.— AP

MONACO: Spain’s Rafael Nadal returns the ball to his German opponent Philipp Kohlschreiber during a Monte-Carlo ATP Masters Series Tournament tennis match yesterday in Monaco. — AFP

Controversy lingers as F1 heads to Bahrain MANAMA: Formula One moves to Bahrain this weekend, with the Grand Prix in the tiny, resource-rich Gulf kingdom again taking place against a backdrop of long-running dissent and continued protest. The race was shelved in 2011 due to pro-democracy protests by the minority Shiite Muslim population but resumed last year, despite calls for it to be axed due to claims of human rights abuses and heavy-handed police tactics against protesters. The race itself passed off without incident, although four members of the Force India team were caught up in a petrol bomb attack and two returned home early.

The run-up to Sunday’s race has again witnessed an increase in protests by hardline groups and a crackdown by the Bahrain authorities, prompting fresh calls for F1 to question its annual presence in the country on ethical grounds. Young Shiite protesters who took the streets sounding drums have called the race “the Formula of blood”.

Formula One supremo supremo Bernie Ecclestone, though, has dismissed concerns about holding the race in the country, while the Bahrain government has pledged to take “appropriate” measures to ensure security.

One notable absentee from the race will be Jean Todt, as he seeks re-election as president of world motorsport governing body the FIA, a number of newspapers, including Britain’s The Guardian and The Times, have reported. On the track, Germany’s Sebastian Vettel of Red Bull leads the drivers’ championship on 52 points from Finland’s Kimi Raikkonen in the Lotus (49) and Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso (43), who won last week’s Chinese Grand Prix in Shanghai with ease. Mercedes team chief Ross Brawn, though, believes that the race will show whether they have a car fast enough to challenge Red Bull and Ferrari after Lewis Hamilton secured pole position and then finished a creditable third in China.Brawn, who masterminded Michael Schumacher to his seven drivers’ titles with Benetton and Ferrari, said he felt Mercedes were within reach of fighting for titles but needed to confirm their potential on Sunday. —AFP

Sports FRIDAY, APRIL 19, 2013

Olympian Okoye chases NFL dream

EDINBURGH: Britain’s Sir Chris Hoy announces his retirement from cycling at a press conference in Edinburgh, Scotland yesterday. — AFP

British most successful Olympian Hoy retires LONDON: Six-times Olympic champion Chris Hoy, who spearheaded a golden period of British track cycling dominance, announced his retirement yesterday content that he had nothing left to prove after a long and stellar career. Britain’s most successful Olympian, who won two golds at the 2012 London Games to add to three from Beijing four years earlier and his first in Athens in 2004, said the time was right to quit the saddle having exhausted “every last ounce of effort and energy”.

“I am officially announcing my retirement. It was not a decision I took easily or lightly, but I know it’s the right decision,” Hoy told a news conference in Edinburgh. The 37-yearold had been deliberating for months whether to compete in the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow in his native Scotland, and in the velodrome named after him, but said it would be one championship too far. “Nothing would give me more pleasure than going to Glasgow, but I don’t want to be there for the numbers.

“I feel I have got every last ounce of effort and energy out of myself. I made it to London and I was successful but maybe people don’t realize just how much that took out of me.

“Trying to go on for another year would have been too much and I didn’t want to just turn up and wave to the crowd and get the tracksuit.” Hoy won his first Olympic gold in the 1km time trial at the Athens Games and followed up by winning the team sprint, keirin and sprint in Beijing, the first Briton since 1908 to win three gold at one Games.

Last year in London he secured two more golds in the team sprint, helping clock a world record time, and keirin to overtake rower Steve Redgrave as the Briton with the most gold medals. Fellow British cyclist Bradley Wiggins has also won seven Olympic medals with Hoy ahead of the Tour de France winner on ‘gold difference’. International Olympic Committee president Jacques Rogge said Hoy’s tears of joy after clinching his sixth Games gold was the defining moment of London 2012. Hoy, who also won a silver medal in the team sprint at the Sydney Olympics in 2000 and 11 world titles, has been at the forefront of British cycling success in recent years. Britain won seven of the 10 track cycling gold medals up for grabs in London, equaling their 2008 tally. “I have been in the sport for 19 years and witnessed how the sport has changed out of all recognition. It has gone from a minority sport to a major sport and to have been part of the journey is a massive honor,” he said. “I don’t want it to be a sad moment, I want to celebrate it and to be happy because I know it is the right decision.— Reuters

LONDON: British discus thrower Lawrence Okoye has embarked on a remarkable bid to become an American Football star even though he has never played the sport. The 21year-old from Croydon, south London, finished 12th in the Olympic Games’ discus final last August. But while on a discus training camp in the United States at the start of this month he decided to apply to try out for the National Football League (NFL).

That meant attending Atlanta’s Regional Combine, the first round of selections. There, he impressed to be chosen for the Super Regional Combine in Dallas, in front of all 32 NFL teams. Now Okoye has been given the chance to enter the NFL draft at Radio City Music Hall in New York from April 25-27. Over seven rounds, teams have the chance to sign players - mostly from US colleges - with the Kansas City Chiefs, the worst team from last year’s season, making the first selection.

Showing off some of the drills he has learnt already, with the help of the London Warriors at the London Soccerdome in Greenwich, Okoye on Wednesday explained American Football had always been something he wanted to try. “I don’t want to look

back in 50 years and think I missed out on this opportunity,” said Okoye, whose transition to discus from being a coveted rugby player at school was swift enough to break the British record two seasons running.

He only received proper training from the age of 18, having deferred a law degree at Oxford to pursue an opportunist dream of competing at the Games in his home country. While admitting he had achieved nothing yet, he has set his sights high and wants to become an elite player in a league where the top stars are rewarded with multi-million dollar contracts. “Success would be becoming a dominant player in the league,” he said. “I feel like I have the talent to get it done. I wouldn’t count success as being on the roster for years and not playing.

“In 2010, when I started discus, nobody would have thought that I would have got to the level I did in two years, so I’m looking at doing something similar. “This is a different ball game and it is going to be tough.” Okoye has already visited last year’s Super Bowl runners-up the San Francisco 49ers, as well as several other teams, to show off his talents. He can take heart from the success of Michael Carter, who won a silver

medal in shot put at the 1984 Olympics and went onto have a dominant NFL career with the 49ers.

But he is not setting himself a timescale, despite having previously said he might return to discus, arguing throwers do not reach their peak until their late 20s. “I’m not going to put a limit on it,” he said. “I could be playing next year, or in two years, or in four years. “For all I know, this could happen slowly or quickly.”

Okoye, whose father played for his college American Football side in Nebraska, believes the skills set required to excel in discus and rugby can also be put to good use in the NFL. “The discus is all about producing power from the ground up and that is what football is all about and what playing in the line of defense is all about and from rugby I know a lot about foot placements and how to make tackles,” he said. “But you can transfer as many skills from the sports as you want, it’s no replacement for playing the game itself and obviously I have no experience of playing football, so that’s what I’ve got to keep working on. “It’s something that I want to prove to myself more than anything. I’ve had whispers in my ear for a long time saying I should be in this and I finally decided I’m going to try.”—AFP

Flames clip Red Wings Sabres beat Bruins 3-2 in shootout CALGARY: Steve Begin scored two goals in the third period, and Calgary held on to hand playoff-hopeful Detroit a one-goal loss. Begin took advantage of a pair of blunders by goalie Jimmy Howard to score his third and fourth goals of the season. Lee Stempniak also scored for the Flames (17-22-4), who won all three games against the Red Wings this season.

Gustav Nyquist and Johan Franzen scored for the Red Wings (20-16-7), who are 2-2-2 in their past six games.

Detroit dropped to ninth place in the Western Conference, two points behind Columbus and the postseason cutoff. Miikka Kiprusoff made 36 saves to earn his first win since he topped St Louis on March 24. Howard, who signed a six-year, $31.8 million contract on Tuesday, stopped 14 shots

Northeast Division, but have one game in hand on the Canadiens. Both teams trail Eastern Conference-leading Pittsburgh by nine points.

There was heightened security at TD Garden where cars entering the garage were searched, and fans were checked with wands and patted down.

There was a pregame period of silence and a slideshow of scenes from the Boston Marathon in which three people died and more than 170 were wounded when two bombs went off near the finish line on Monday. Vanek also scored in regulation for Buffalo.

Daniel Paille and Chris Kelly both gave Boston one-goal leads that the Bruins failed to hold. The 10th-place Sabres are two places and two points below the Eastern Conference’s postseason cutoff, but have only four games to go.

Sabres 3, Bruins 2 Drew Stafford scored the only shootout goal after Buffalo tied the game in the final minute of regulation, and the Sabres beat the Bruins 3-2 on Wednesday night in the first pro game in Boston since the marathon bombings on Monday. The Sabres forced overtime with 26.6 seconds left when Cody Hodgson scored his 14th goal of the season, tipping in Thomas Vanek’s pass into the slot during a power play.

Boston still clinched a playoff berth by gaining one point. The Bruins are tied in points with Montreal atop the

PENGUINS 6, CANADIENS 4 Brenden Morrow scored two goals for the second straight game and Pittsburgh beat Montreal to move closer to clinching the top seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs. The Penguins lead the Canadiens by nine points in the fight for the top seed.

Both teams have five games remaining. Brandon Sutter added two goals for Pittsburgh, and newly acquired Jarome Iginla and Doug Murray also scored for the Penguins, who had little trouble with the Canadiens despite playing without injured stars Sidney

Crosby (broken jaw) and Evgeni Malkin (shoulder).

Marc-Andre Fleury stopped 31 shots, and Pittsburgh dominated in racing to a quick 4-0 lead. Brian Gionta, Alex Galchenyuk, Gabriel Dumont and Andrei Markov scored for the reeling Canadiens, who have lost three straight. Peter Budaj started in goal but was pulled after stopping just six of the nine shots he faced in the first period. Carey Price relieved and allowed three goals on 20 shots, absorbing the loss.

BLUE JACKETS 3, DUCKS 2, OT Fedor Tyutin scored 2:19 into overtime, and Columbus won its fifth straight game and moved into eighth place in the Western Conference with a victory over Anaheim. Blake Comeau and Matt Calvert also scored for the Blue Jackets, who rallied to win and jumped two points ahead of Detroit. Columbus moved within one point of seventh-place St Louis, which has two games in hand. Sergei Bobrovsky made 26 saves. The Ducks, who already have clinched a postseason berth, lead Los Angeles and San Jose by six points in their bid for their second Pacific Division title.

Defenseman Sami Vatanen scored his first NHL goal, one day after Anaheim recalled him from the minors, and David Steckel ended a 32-game goal drought. Viktor Fasth stopped 25 shots.— AP

Sports FRIDAY,APRIL 19, 2013

Lakers down Rockets; get No 7 seed Jazz defeat hands Lakers playoff berth LOS ANGELES: Steve Blake scored 24 points, Pau Gasol added his seventh career triple-double, and the Los Angeles Lakers secured the seventh playoff seed in the Western Conference with a 99-95 overtime victory over the Houston Rockets on Wednesday night. Dwight Howard had 16 points and 18 rebounds, and the All-Star center blocked James Harden’s shot in the final seconds of overtime for the Lakers, who only clinched a playoff berth about 10 minutes before tipoff in their season finale. After winning once more without Kobe Bryant and Steve Nash, Los Angeles will face second seeded San Antonio in the first round.

Chandler Parsons hit a tying 3-pointer from three steps behind the line at the regulation buzzer for the Rockets, who will face top-seeded Oklahoma City after losing four of six to end the regular season.

WARRIORS 99, TRAIL BLAZERS 88 Stephen Curry set a NBA single-season record for 3-pointers with 272 and Golden State defeated Portland in the teams’ season finale. It was the 13th straight loss for the Blazers, equaling the franchise record set in the 1971-72 season. Curry surpassed Ray Allen’s single-season 3-point total of 269 set in 2005-06. Needing two for the record, Curry opened the game with two straight misses from beyond the arc, but hit his first midway through the first quarter before making the record-breaker with 6:49 to go in the second. His backcourt teammate Klay Thompson led the Warriors with 24 points. Golden State earned the Western Conference’s sixth seed and will face Denver in the first round of the playoffs.

LaMarcus Aldridge had 30 points and a seasonhigh 21 rebounds for Portland, which lost its eighth straight at home.

GRIZZLIES 86, JAZZ 70 Zach Randolph had 25 points and 19 rebounds and Memphis ended Utah’s playoff hopes. The Grizzlies’ victory meant the Los Angeles Lakers were assured of making the playoffs even before their late game against the Houston Rockets. Mike Conley finished with 14 points for Memphis, which won its second straight and fifth in the past six. Darrell Arthur finished with 11 points for the Grizzlies, who took the West’s fifth seed and will facec the Los Angeles Clippers in the first round. Al Jefferson scored 22 points and grabbed 16 rebounds to lead Utah, the only Jazz player in double figures.

The Jazz managed only 32 percent shooting and were outrebounded 57-47.

BULLS 95, WIZARDS 92 Carlos Boozer had 19 points and 15 rebounds to help the Bulls clinch the fifth seed in the Eastern Conference with a win over the Wizards in the regular-season finale. Kirk Hinrich added 18 points and Nazr Mohammed had a seasonhigh 17 for the Bulls, who will face the Brooklyn Nets in the opening round of the playoffs. It sure wasn’t easy. A J Price scored a career-high 24 points and John Wall overcame a slow start to finish with 23 for the Wizards, who kept coming back every time it looked as though the Bulls were ready to put them away.

HEAT 105, MAGIC 93 Dwyane Wade scored 21 points and handed out 10 assists, Mike Miller added 21 points and the Miami Heat wrapped up the regular season with a win over the Magic. The Heat (66-16) became the 14th team in NBA history to finish with a winning percentage over .800, and did so with LeBron James away from the team for the day while tending to a personal matter. Orlando finished with the NBA’s worst record, 20-62.

Rashard Lewis scored 16 points, Juwan Howard added 12 and Ray Allen scored 10 for Miami. The Heat have home-court advantage throughout the playoffs, and will open against the

Milwaukee Bucks on Sunday. Nik Vucevic had 20 points and 13 rebounds for Orlando. Only once have the Magic won fewer games in a season their inaugural year, going 18-64 in 1989-90.

KNICKS 98, HAWKS 92 Carmelo Anthony won the scoring title without playing, and the Atlanta Hawks lost their chance to move up in the East standings. Chris Copeland scored 33 points on a night that belonged to the benches, and the Knicks wrapped up their winningest season in 16 years by beating the Hawks. With Anthony and just about every important player on either side sitting, the Knicks finished 54-28, their most victories since going 57-25 in 1996-97. New York is the No 2 seed in the Eastern Conference and will host the No 7 Boston Celtics tomorrow.

NETS 103, PISTONS 99 Brook Lopez scored 20 points and reserve Andray Blatche added 15 as the playoff-bound Nets held off the Pistons. Kris Humphries had 11 points and Joe Johnson added 10 for Brooklyn, winners of two straight. The Nets wrapped up their first regular season after leaving New Jersey and will open their first playoff series in six years at home against the Chicago Bulls on Saturday.

The Bulls clinched the No. 5 seed in the Eastern Conference when Atlanta lost to the New York Knicks. Will Bynum had 23 points for the Pistons, who snapped a four-game winning streak. Andre Drummond scored 13 points and Greg Monroe added 12 points and 12 rebounds. Detroit will miss the playoffs for the fourth straight season, totaling 201 losses in that stretch.

TIMBERWOLVES 108, SPURS 95 Derrick Williams had 21 points to help the Timberwolves beat the Spurs, ending a 16-game losing streak at San Antonio. Chase Budinger added 15 points and Greg Stiemsma and Ricky Rubio had 12 points apiece for Minnesota, won on the Spurs’ home court for the first time since Jan 14, 2004. Gary Neal had 17 points, Tim Duncan had 17 points and 14 rebounds, Tony Parker had 15 points and eight assists for the Spurs, who had previously clinched the Western Conference’s second seed. Duncan, Parker and Manu Ginobili did not play in the final quarter of the regular season finale. San Antonio opens the playoffs by hosting either the the Los Angeles Lakers, who took the seventh seed.

RAPTORS 114, CELTICS 90 DeMar DeRozan scored 24 points, Rudy Gay had 19 points and nine rebounds, and the Toronto Raptors routed the Boston Celtics, finishing their season with five straight wins. Jonas Valanciunas scored 18 points, Alan Anderson had 16 and Kyle Lowry had nine points and eight assists as the Raptors matched their longest winning streak of the season. Jordan Crawford scored 16 points, Terrence Williams had 12 and Avery Bradley 11 for the Celtics, who played for the first time since Monday’s bomb attack near the finish line of the Boston Marathon. Players from both teams gathered at midcourt before tip-off to observe a moment of silence.

BUCKS 95, THUNDER 89 Rookie John Henson scored a career-high 28 points and grabbed 16 rebounds, Brandon Jennings had 17 points and the Bucks beat the Thunder in a regular-season finale lacking any postseason implications. Needing to score 70 points to surpass New York’s Carmelo Anthony, Kevin Durant conceded the NBA scoring title and joined starting center Kendrick Perkins and key reserves Kevin Martin and Nick Collison in suits on the Thunder bench. Russell Westbrook extended the NBA’s longest active consecutive games played streak to 394 by playing the first 7 minutes, helping the Thunder score the game’s first seven points and build a 20-9 lead. The Bucks didn’t pull ahead until Henson’s two-hand-

NEW YORK: Brooklyn Nets Reggie Evans (right) drives against Detroit Pistons Greg Monroe during their NBA game at the Barclays Center on April 17, 2013 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. — AFP ed slam early in the fourth quarter, during a 27-6 run. Reggie Jackson led Oklahoma City with a career-best 23 points.

MAVERICKS 99, HORNETS 87 Darren Collison scored 25 points, Dirk Nowitzki added 16 and the Dallas Mavericks finished their worst season in 13 years on a winning note, beating New Orleans in its final game as the Hornets. The Mavericks (41-41) avoided their first losing record since going 40-42 in 1999-2000 - also the last time they missed the playoffs. AlFarouq Amini had 16 points and a career-high 20 rebounds for New Orleans, which will become the Pelicans next season. Eric Gordon also scored 16 for the Hornets. Nowitzki, who also had a team-high nine rebounds, scored nine points in the third quarter, including a three-point play on a jumper and his one-legged step-back shot at the buzzer for a 75-64 lead. The Hornets got within six in the fourth quarter, but Collison scored eight straight points to key an 18-4 run that put the Mavs ahead by 20.

BOBCATS 105, CAVALIERS 98 Kemba Walker had 24 points and seven assists, and the Charlotte Bobcats defeated the Cavaliers to avoid finishing in the NBA cellar for a second consecutive season. The Bobcats (2161) finished one game ahead of the Orlando Magic, who lost their season finale to the Miami Heat. Josh McRoberts added 20 points and eight rebounds as the Bobcats closed the season with three straight wins, matching a season high.

Gerald Henderson added 15 points. Kyrie Irving had 24 points and 10 assists for the Cavaliers, who finished with the third-worst record in the league (24-58) after losing 16 of their last 18 games, including their last six. With the win the Bobcats became the first team in NBA history to triple their win total from the previous season.

Charlotte finished last year’s lockout-shortened season 7-59 and its .106 winning percentage was the worst ever.

76ERS 105, PACERS 95 Dorell Wright scored 23 points and Evan Turner added 16, leading Philadelphia to a victory over short-handed Indiana in what was likely Doug Collins’ final game as the 76ers coach. The organization has already scheduled morning

news conferences with the managing owner and Collins, who spent almost the entire game glued to his seat and spoke mostly with a hand covering his mouth. Philadelphia (34-48) finished the season by winning three of its final four games but still out of the playoffs. The Pacers (49-31) were led by Gerald Green who had a career-high 34 points. Lance Stephenson had 12 points, but the Pacers again failed to win their 50th game and head into the postseason with five losses in their last six games. Indiana rested four starters - Paul George, George Hill, Roy Hibbert and David West.

NUGGETS 118, SUNS 98 The Denver Nuggets secured the third seed in the Western Conference playoffs by routing the Suns behind 21 points from Wilson Chandler and 20 from Andre Iguodala. They will face sixth-seeded Golden State in the first round, opening at home - where they’ve won a franchise-best 23 straight games to finish with the league’s best home mark at 38-3, eclipsing the old record of 36-5 set in 1976-77, their first year in the NBA. They also won an NBA franchise record 57 games overall, besting the 54-win seasons of 1987-88 and 2008-09. Luis Scola’s 17 points and 11 rebounds led the Suns, who wrapped up the second-worst season in franchise history with a mark of 25-57, the worst in the West. The only one that was worse for the Suns was their inaugural NBA season in 1968-69, when they went 16-66.

CLIPPERS 112, KINGS 108 Jamal Crawford scored 24 points, including several big shots down the stretch, and the Clippers locked up the No 4 seed in the West and home-court advantage in the first round of the playoffs. Chris Paul had 25 points and 11 assists for the Pacific Division champion Clippers (56-26), who will open against fifth-seeded Memphis (56-26) in Los Angeles. The Clippers won three of four games against the Grizzlies this season. DeMarcus Cousins had a seasonhigh 36 points and a career-best 22 rebounds, and Marcus Thornton scored 21 to rally Sacramento from an 11-point deficit in the fourth quarter before the Clippers took control.— AP

FRIDAY, APRIL 19, 2013

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