11 May 2013

IPT IO N SC R SU B

SATURDAY, MAY 11, 2013

RAJAB 1, 1434 AH

No: 15805

15 150 Fils

Global network of hackers steals $45m from ATMs

Survivor pulled from rubble in Bangladesh Woman rescued after 17 days • Death toll tops 1,000

SAVAR, Bangladesh: Bangladeshi rescuers pulled a woman alive from the ruins of a collapsed garment factory complex yesterday after she spent 17 days trapped in a basement under the rubble. Hours after officials had announced that the death toll had surged past the 1,000 mark, recovery teams who had long given up any hope of finding more survivors were stunned to hear the voice of a woman calling out for help. They then managed to pull her from the ruins in an operation broadcast live on television and watched over by growing crowds at the scene who were asked by clerics to pray for her.

After she was brought to the surface she was whisked away to a waiting ambulance, but managed a weak smile to the people gathered at the ruined Rana Plaza complex on the outskirts of the capital Dhaka. Rescuers said she appeared to have lost a lot of weight but there were no other apparent signs of injury. Army Captain Ibrahimul Islam told AFP that the woman was called Reshma. “She has been taken to the Savar Combined Military Hospital and admitted in the intensive care unit. She is fine,” he said.

Bangladesh’s fire service chief Ahmed Ali told AFP that Reshma was found in a gap between a beam and column near a Muslim prayer room in the basement of the nine-storey complex, which caved in on April 24, and appeared to have had access to water. The army officer who brought Reshma out of the rubble said that she had been found standing amid the ruins. “We first saw a pipe moving. We removed some gravel and concrete. We found her standing,” Major Moazzem, who uses only one name, told Somoy TV. “We gave her food and assured her that she would be rescued.

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SAVAR, Bangladesh: Bangladeshi rescuers retrieve garment worker Reshma from the rubble of a collapsed building yesterday, 17 days after the nine-storey building collapsed. — AFP

Kuwait launches sports clubs for women

KUWAIT: Qadsiya Club’s women basketball team listen to their coach during the Women’s Games at Salwa Al Sabah Sports Center in Qurain on Thursday. — AP

KUWAIT: Muneera Al-Shatti has loved playing basketball since she was a child but it wasn’t until Thursday that she had chance to show off her skills at a public arena in Kuwait. As part of a new initiative launching sports leagues for women, Shatti and her teammates from Salwa Al-Sabah club downed Qadsiya club 63-13 in a game that attracted several hundred men and female fans. The initiative to launch basketball, table tennis and athletic leagues for the first time in Kuwait illustrates how the landscape for women athletes is improving across the Gulf where hard-liners have long opposed women playing sports.

Several of the players, in deference to the conservative Muslim culture that is common across the Gulf, wore leggings and covered their heads with hijab. Others, however, wore shorts and T-shirts. “A competition like this should have happened a long time ago,” said Shatti, who has played in tournaments overseas and only heard

about the league in her home country while playing in neighboring Bahrain. “But I am glad it finally took place. We’ve been trying to do this for a long time and they have promised that more sports will be included in future leagues.”

Helped by government support, increased education and erosion of traditional values, football leagues for girls in the Gulf have started up in Qatar and United Arab Emirates. Saudi Arabia - which long barred girls from playing any sports recently announced it would allow sports in private schools as long as they abide by the rules of sharia, or Islamic law. Saudi Arabia’s decision is part of a wider package of reforms targeting women with the aim of ending discriminatory practices that have contributed to a host of health problems, including obesity and diabetes. The private schools’ announcement also follows a decision last year in the kingdom to allow two Continued on Page 8

LOCAL

SATURDAY, MAY 11, 2013

Mubarakiya bad odors to be removed soon

Ministers congratulate HH Crown Prince on recovery from surgery KUWAIT: A number of Kuwaiti ministers visited His Highness the Crown Prince Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad AlJaber Al-Sabah yesterday to congratulate him on recovery from a successful surgery.

HH the Crown Prince underwent a successful minor back surgery in Germany on May 4. HH Sheikh Nawaf received the well-wishing ministers at his residency in the German city of Munich with the attendance of National Guard Deputy Commander Sheikh Meshaal Al-Ahmad AlJaber Al-Sabah. The visiting ministers - namely Minister of State of Cabinet Affairs and Minister of State for Municipal

Affairs Sheikh Mohammad Al-Abdullah Al-Mubarak AlSabah, Minister of Communications and Minister of State for Housing Affairs Salem Mutheeb Al-Utheina and Minister of Commerce and Industry Anas Khaled Al-Saleh-congratulated HH the Crown Prince on the success of the surgery and wished him everlasting health and well-being.

The meeting was attended by HH Crown Prince Diwan Chief Sheikh Mubarak Faisal Saud Al-Sabah, Sheikh Ahmad Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah and Kuwait Ambassador to Germany Musaad Rashid AlHaroun. — KUNA

KUWAIT: In a bid to solve the problem of the bad odor experienced in and around the Al-Mubarakiya market, particularly since it is a historic market and making any structural changes there is difficult, Kuwait Municipality said that a contract had been signed with the KAM Biotechnology Ltd. of Canada to study what was causing these odors and then provide odor control services without affecting the historic and cultural IlatiLte of the market and its vicinity.

A municipality statement stressed that a high-tech non-chemical organic product that is accredited and approved by international and Canadian research centers as well as world environmental organization, would be used to treat the odors.

Speaking at a press conference held in this regard, the regional manager of the National Cleaning Company, Muhsen Bosheri, stressed that he was personally concerned with the bad odors at the Mubrakiya market, which holds much significance for all the citizens and people who ever lived for any length of time in Kuwait.

On his part, KAM Biotechnology founder and CEO, Professor Mongi Ferchichi said that the water used in cleaning the market was contaminated with organic material and hydrogen disulfide, which was the main cause of the bad odors. “This gas and other elements will be turned into non-harmful organic elements and the water will be cleaned,” he stressed, noting that organic waste would also be turned into hydrogen, which is an environment-friendly gas. — Al-Jarida

JP Morgan made $108m profit from contract cancellation Government advisor co-owns DOW-Chemicals KUWAIT: Now, when things are done and the Dow Chemical contract was terminated and the$2.5 billion fine paid, it seems that a new scandal still involves the Dow contract, said informed sources noting that even after the final verdict obliged Kuwait to pay the penal clause, Kuwait’s Petrochemical Industries Company (PIC) sought advice from its current consultant; the J.P. Morgan Bank for which it charged Kuwait with $17 million. The sources added that the bank also recommended immediate payment of the penal clause value.

“Things are logical enough, so far”, said the sources remaking that the illogical thing about the whole deal is that Kuwait’s financial advisor turned out to be a major partner in the Dow Chemical with 25.1 million share in its bonds and 2.08 per cent of its capital.

The question is: ‘How can one of the rivals be at the same time a financial advisor to the other side?’, wondered the sources noting that it had been natural enough that the J.P. Morgan would urge the Kuwaiti side to immediately pay the fine since it was one of the beneficiaries as a shareholder. The sources further wondered whether the Kuwaiti side knew of this partnership or ignored it for some reasons. They even hinted at the possibili-

ty that the whole thing had been carefully netted and prepared beforehand to avoid having a strange neutral advisor and risk rejecting the deal.

Moreover, the sources explained that according to the J.P. Morgan’s share in the Dow, it would get $45.7 million of the fine value in addition to the $17 million it had collected for the consultancy and the profits its shares made in a month as per market value, which all adds up the total gains the bank made to $108.8 million.

Furthermore, the sources highlighted that during the initial negotiations, PIC had suggested setting the contract’s penal clause value at only one billion dollars (5 percent of the contract value) while the Dow asked to make it $4.7 billion. “Was the whole thing a prefabricated scenario to reach a comprise with the final $2.5 billion?”, wondered the sources.

In a related development, other oil sources stressed that the Dow Chemical had had a one billion dollar loan from Kuwait’s Investment Bureau in London to compensate the Rom & Haas Petrochemicals Co. for cancelling a deal before the Dow. “At that time, and in view of the economic crisis, the Dow could not get any bank loans and thus PIC got Kuwait’s London Investment office to loan them the

money”, explained the sources wondering why the finance minister and the government had not demanded payment of the loan before paying the full fine value. “Why, then did PIC’s chairman of board and managing director, Maha Mulla Hussein spend millions on lawyers if she knew from the beginning that the fine be ultimately paid!

Meanwhile, in a related statement, the 11/11 bloc said that the Dow issue was the biggest economical crime in Kuwait’s history and that what makes things worse was that it took place right under the noses of lawmakers from the Public Action Bloc (PAB) and the Islamic Constitutional Movement (ICM) who had always bragged of being ‘public fund defenders’.

“We will never stay silent about this scandal and the people must know that the ‘bribed’ PAB and ICM members have premeditatedly contributed in this disaster when disagreed about the value of the commission each of them would get”, added the statement noting that this disagreement was the direct reason behind cancelling the contract. The statement also urged the speaker of the House, Ali Al-Rahsid to investigate the matter and hold those responsible for the considerable loss legally accountable. — Al-Watan

KUWAIT: The Bait Al-Othman Museum is a historical monument that reflects Kuwait’s long and rich history, said Governor of the Capital City Sheikh Ali Al-Jaber AlAhmad Al-Sabah here yesterday. Sheikh Ali Al-Jaber told the press after visiting Bait Al-Othman with Lord Mayor of Sheffield, Councilor John Campbell that the Museum is a great step in preserving the traditions of Kuwait. —KUNA

TEC’s new summer timing KUWAIT: Yacoub Al-Duaij Acting Director of Operations and Activities at TEC said that recreation city is open for visitors currently at the summer timing, which is from 5 pm - 1 after midnight all week days without stoppage, and Monday of evening week is specialized for women only. Adding that preparation are being made to prepare programs and recreation activities of different kinds and all workers are doing their best to provide best services.

In addition to making periodic maintenance to the games and prepare special programs for women on their special day, and distribute gifts and prizes to children, visitors can communicate through the following sites: www.faceYacoub Al-Duaij book.com/kuwaittourism

local

SATURDAY, MAY 11, 2013

French boy drowns in swimming pool KUWAIT: A 15-year-old French teenager died in an ambulance on his way to hospital after swallowing large quantity of water while swimming in one of the sports clubs in Hawally. Security received a call about the boy getting drown. A police man reached there and got him out of the pool and was taken to the medical emergency at Mubarak Hospital but he could not be revived in spite of the efforts made by doctors. A case was filed.

Al-Juwaihel arrested A member of the annulled assembly Mohammad Al-Juwaihel gave himself up to airport police as soon as he returned to Kuwait, as he was wanted to serve a three month jail for insulting a tribe over Twitter. Al-Juwaihel said he was happy to return home, and happier to have the law being implemented while he waits for the appeals court ruling. Al-Juwaihel was handed over to the concerned authorities.

Woman custom officer praised A woman customs inspector proved herself at the Kuwait International Airport after stopping an Asian passenger who was having a pack of cigarettes filled with marijuana drugs. The suspect and cigarettes were sent to the concerned authorities. Kuwait customs administration director Ibrahim Al-Ghanim said that recruiting females in customs inspection came after a long study and training and proved successful in the field.

Strange accident A strange accident occurred at Nowaiseeb border point yesterday, where a vehicle destroyed the car shade and the counter for finalizing paper works. Three parked vehicles were also affected by the accident and one citizen was injured. As per security sources, border men were surprised by the car which was heading towards them at full speed and collided with three cars, before it stopped after destroying another car shade and a counter. Sources said that the Kuwaiti driver was rushed to Al-Adan Hospital and kept under observation. Security sources suggested that the man was having some health problem which made him loose control of the car and himself.

House burgled A Kuwaiti man reported to Ali Al-Salem police station against unknown who was able to break into his house after breaking the outside door. The thief stole a safe box containing 5 birth certificates of his children children and two Kuwaiti passports and three other passports that belonged to his maids and driver, some important documents and some gold jewellery. He refused to accuse any one. A case was filed.

In the meantime, an official at MEW reported to Al-Rawdha police accusing unknown thieves of breaking into the transformer at block 5, in Rawdha and stole copper cables. A case was filed. In Surra an Indian expat reported to the police against some thief who broke the window of his car and to steal but found nothing.

Brothel raided A police force from Hawally security stormed a house in Rumaithiya after learning that it turned into a brothel. Policemen also discovered a liquor factory inside, as scores of Asians were arrested.

Hawally security director Brig Ghuloum Habeeb learned about a house in Rumaithiya full of Asian labor of both genders where the acts were being committed. Police conducted the raid and arrested many.

Reckless driving Hawally police arrested and Egyptian expat for driving recklessly.

He did not have a driver’s licence, and attempted to escape causing injury to a police officer in the process, but some passersby stopped kept him from running away. After his arrest it was found that his iqama expired and there were six travel bans against him.

Indian commits suicide An Indian expat, 29, killed himself in his sponsor’s house. A security source said a citizen told them that his driver committed suicide inside his room. Police found out the man hanged himself with a rope. Police are investigating.

Policemen attacked Fintas police arrested a citizen and his father for attacking two policemen during an event in which statements of both sides contradicted each other. A security source said that two policemen in their patrol car asked a driver to stop, but he ignored them so they followed him until he stopped near a building, then confronted the policemen, and discovered that one of them has a previous dispute with him, so he started beating him as three others appeared at the scene and joined in beating the policemen. The driver and one of his helpers were brought under control, while the two others escaped.

The source said policemen found out that the other arrested person is actually the father of the driver. Investigations are ongoing especially that the suspects claimed policed used force against them without reason, and pulled their guns against them.

MoI, National Guard hold seminar courses KUWAIT: Under the Patronage of Assistant Undersecretary General Ahmad Nawaf Al-Sabah and the presence of Assistant Director for National Security College Brig. Fawzi Yousuf AlSuwailem and Director of Strategic Studies Director Colonel Hizam A. Rahman Al-Rashidi. The National Security College finalized the seminar course for middle leaders which was

held under the title dealing with media and press conferences. The course was organized by strategic institute studies during the period 5 9 May 2013 and 17 trainees participated in it from different ministry sectors from Ministry of Interior and National Guard.

The seminar was presented by Lt General Dr Hussain Ali Al-Abdul

Razzaq, media consultant at Egyptian MoD. The seminar aims at teaching participant the way of administering press conference and how to deal with the media and how to give media declaration. Modern media was kept under focus during the seminar courses and its effects on societies. The seminar included practical training for dealing with all kinds of media.

Kuwait planning to execute mega projects LONDON: State of Kuwait plans to execute mega projects in various sectors in the coming decade in coordination with local and foreign entrepreneurs, affirmed Kuwait’s Minister of Communications and Minister of State for Housing Affairs Salem Al-Utheina.

The Kuwaiti Government is seeking to carry out guidelines of His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad AlJaber Al-Sabah rapidly with respect of execution of a number of development ventures that directly affect citizens’ daily living, said Al-Utheina during a meeting with a group of Kuwaiti students studying in the United Kingdom, late on Thursday.

Al-Utheina is a member of a highranking Kuwaiti delegation including Minister of State for Cabinet Affairs and Minister of State for Municipal Affairs Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah AlMubarak Al-Sabah and Minister of Commerce and Industry Anas Al-Saleh.

Also present at the meeting was the head of the Kuwaiti Cultural Office, Dr. Mohammad Al-Hajeri.

The Kuwaiti ministerial delegation took part, on Wednesday, in a convention on investment opportunities in Kuwait, aimed at promoting recentlyendorsed legislations intended to encourage investments and lure exter-

Salem Al-Utheina nal capitals. Elaborating, Al-Utheina stated that the government is also seeking to privatize a number of sectors, indicating in particular at Kuwait Airways, fleet of which would be upgraded very soon.

Also in this vein, the minister indicated that the government would not neglect rights of the employees serving in the sectors that would be privatized.

Moreover, the State of Kuwait will impose on companies that win investment tenders to employ Kuwaiti youth,

he said, adding that the government will privatize several sectors in coordination with local and international mega companies, noting that the process would target, in the near future, communications, transports and air navigation.

Al-Utheina expressed optimism that the privatization process would be successful, particularly in light of enactment of several legislations. For his part, Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah said in a statement to KUNA meeting of the ministers with the students was held in line with guidelines of the political leadership to listen to them about their problems. Remarks that were made by a number of students would be referred to the relevant authorities, he said, noting that some students protested high cost of living in the UK, others requested higher monthly financial allocations and a number asked for lower airfares.

The government, according to instructions of His Highness the Prime Minister Sheikh Jaber Al-Mubarak AlHamad Al-Sabah, will spare no effort in tackling any obstacles that may face the students with scholarships to study abroad, he affirmed.

Minister Al-Saleh made identical remarks urging the students to do their best to enhance their skills and serve Kuwait. — KUNA

LOCAL

SATURDAY, MAY 11, 2013

Al-Duwaisan lauds role of UK-Kuwait friendship society Delegation’s visit to UK ‘successful’ LONDON: The British-Kuwaiti friendship society plays an important role in boosting bilateral relations between the two nations, said Kuwaiti Ambassador to the UK Khaled AlDuwaisan. This statement came on the sideline of the society’s annual dinner banquet which was attended by a number of diplomats, British businessmen, and Arab media figures.

The ambassador said that the huge turnout at the celebration reflected the

strong relations between the two countries stressing that Kuwait and Britain are looking forward to further bolster ties in the future.

On his part, Chairman of the Kuwaiti-British business council and member of the friendship society, Mohammad Abdulaziz Al-Shaya lauded relations between Kuwait and the UK, affirming that both nations were keen on boosting relations particularly within the economic domain.

LONDON: Ambassador Al-Duwaisan at the Kuwait-British Friendship Society dinner banquet. — KUNA

The Kuwait Investment opportunities conference, held here last Wednesday, was a good chance for both nations to explore possibilities to boost economic cooperation, said AlShaya. Meanwhile, friendship society member Kuwaiti Minister of State for Cabinet Affairs and Minister of State for Municipal Affairs Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah Al-Mubarak Al-Sabah called on British companies to explore the investment opportunities provided by Kuwait, noting that his country was eager to bolster ties within the economic and commercial domains.

Meanwhile, the Kuwaiti ministerial delegation’s visit to the UK was a successful venture which would certainly develop relations with various domains in that industrial nation, said Minister of State for Cabinet Affairs and Minister of State for Municipal Affairs Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah Al-Mubarak Al-Sabah here yesterday. Speaking to KUNA before departure, Sheikh Mohammad indicated that the delegation, consisting of officials from Ministries of Communication, Housing, Commerce, as well as the Municipality, provided their British counterparts with details about possible investments in Kuwait.

They also informed the British about the State of Kuwait’s ambitious development plan and investment opportunities available within it. A conference on investment opportunities in Kuwait was held here last Wednesday with a large number of government officials, economists and business leaders from Kuwait and the United Kingdom attending. — KUNA

Malabar Gold and Diamonds hits 90th mark, second outlet in Kuwait KUWAIT: Malabar Gold & Diamonds opens its 90th outlet in Souk Al Watya, Kuwait today at 5 pm. This will be the group’s 2nd outlet in Kuwait and 29th in the Middle East.

The showroom displays an extensivecollection of gold, platinum and diamonds in exquisite designs and styles to suit the tastes of today’s international customers. Their latest range of jewellery in gold & diamonds specially designed for the festive season will also be available at this showroom.

The group also announced their inaugural offers that last until 17th May 2013. On every purchase of gold jewellery worth KD 250, the customers can avail a gold coin absolutely free and on buying any of their timeless and elegant diamond jewellery worth KD 250, 3 gold coins can be gained.

Old ornaments purchased from any of the jewellers in GCC can be exchanged with the brand new enchanting collection of Malabar Gold & Diamonds without any loss.

Any 22 ct old gold ornaments purchased from GCC can be exchanged with Malabar Gold & Diamonds designs by paying only making charges ensuring they don’t lose any value on the rate of gold.

The customers also get a fantastic opportunity to buy 8 gms of gold coin with absolutely no making charges.

All these offers are valid until 17th May 2013. To mark this occasion, the jewellery chain has unveiled more designs in their branded jewellery segment; Era- Uncut Diamond collection, Mine- Diamonds Unlimited, Ethnixhand crafted designer jewellery, Divine- heritage jewellery, Precia- precious gem jewellery and Starlet- kids jewellery to suit any budget and occasion.

Malabar Gold & Diamonds, one of the world’s fastest growing jewellery chains, has seen rapid growth in just 20 years of operations, currently operating 89 retail outlets, manufacturing facilities and supply chain divisions spanning 7 countries.

Targeting to have 220 outlets by 2015, the group is planning for an aggressive expansion and intends to open its 100th outlet in Kolkata in the month of August.

In Kuwait, they are all set to open another outlet in Lulu Hypermarket, Dajeej shortly.

This year, Malabar Gold & Diamonds has marked another milestone by declaring its latest CSR policies during its 20th anniversary celebrations. The group will allocate 10% of its profits for the benefit of the needy and several projects including environment conservation, women empowerment as well as to support the medical and educational sectors for the less fortunate in the society.

KUWAIT: The firefighters’ meeting in progress.

Fire fighters meet to limit obstacles

By Hanan Al-Saadoun KUWAIT: Director General of Kuwait Fire Service Directorate Maj General Yousuf Al-Ansari held a meeting with Deputy Director General for Fighting and Human Resources Development Brig Khalid Al-Mikrad in the presence of governorates directors and heads of centers to discuss matters related to enhancing the efficiency of fire fighters and limit obstacles they face while dealing with the various types of accidents.

The meeting also discussed the points of the new vision adopted by the directorate which aims at raising the competence of firemen.

Al-Ansari said the human element is the most important in the field of fire fighting and rescue as well as planning and how to direct and follow up.

Meanwhile Brig Al-Mikrad said the directorate is keen on the safety and health of its firemen which is the main factor to make fighting and rescue a success. Al-Mikrad spoke about negatives and positives that the fireman may face and special missions.

Amendments to co-op law KUWAIT: The National Assembly’s Health, Social, and Labor committee approved here administrative amendments to the cooperative societies law. The committee’s Chairman MP Salah Al-Atiqi told the press that one amendment set the legal age for joining the board of a cooperative society at 30 rather than 21. The new amendment also required that a member should attain an academic degree before joining the board, said the MP. He noted that cooperative societies’ new elections law will allow one vote rule, adding that the process to choose the position of board chairman, deputy chairman, and treasurer should be done within a period of a week.

Kuwait plans automation of exams correction process KUWAIT: Kuwait Minister of Education and Minister of Higher Education Nayef Falah Al-Hajraf announced that his ministry plans to automate the correction of secondary school exams. In press statements following a meeting with Farwaniya Education Directorate’s officials and teachers, Al-Hajraf said the Ministry has ambitious plans to employ new technology in different stages of the educational process.

A delegation will visit the Sultanate of Oman shortly to get acquainted with their experience in the automation of exam correction process, Al-Hajraf said. He added the ministry also plans to set up a central exam department to be in charge of preparing, printing, and correcting exams.

The minister unveiled that new school curricula will be taught, starting with the primary schools curricula as of the academic year 2014/2015. — KUNA

LOCAL

SATURDAY, MAY 11, 2013

Education with a difference

By Sunil Cherian

I

magine a student doing her homework in front of TV between her snacks and phone calls while her social networks are on and still can listen to music from an iPod. That brings us to difficult to imagine a teacher with her chalk-and-talk methodology. Here is where Dr Susan Baum, author of several educational books and an international faculty with the State University of New York (SUNY) interferes.

Her comprehensive strategies are designed in differentiation for all kinds of learners regardless of their abilities. She firmly believes teaching to be differentiated ‘because learners are varied’.

Last week Dr Baum was at Kuwait Bilingual School, Jahra to give a lecture on ‘Differentiated Instructions and Their Choices’. The universal educational truth she underlined - learning occurs when students are excited about what they are learning and when such excitements linked with positive memories spark motivation to stay in the struggle - holds true for teachers as well, as some Jahra teachers said.

“Today’s students are more active and energetic because visual stimulations are

more”, said Susan Baum, a grandmother who knows the pulse of today’s kids. “In a classroom with multiple intelligences, instructing students to sit quietly is adversary. Exercise lights up the brain and moving around with a partner and other activities like drawing enhance education”, Baum said. To one teacher who said ‘there’s no place in the classroom to move around’, Baum, the dynamic teacher replied: “then go to the playground”.

Teachers have great job in differentiated instructions, said Dr Baum. First is to acknowledge and celebrate individual differences among your children. The teaching content, the educational process and its product, and the learning environment are to be varied and differentiated. “Our instruction is aimed for tomorrow’s leaders and it is to be based on emotion, excitement and empowerment”.

Teaching becomes more challenged when the slow learners and early finishers in the classroom are extreme. For the fast finishers, Dr Baum offers these quips to teachers: acceleration (go faster; skip a lesson) and compacting (get rid of what the students already know).

For the so called slow catchers, the two strategies are talent developing and peer-

To teachers as well as students, Dr Baum gives a problem solving technique: SCAMPER. S: Substitute (What similarities exist?).

C: Combine (Bring something together to lessen).

A: Adapt (What adjustments can be made?).

M: Modify (Change the situation by magnifying or minifying).

P: Put to other uses (Could parts from previous idea be used?).

E: Eliminate (Could something be removed?).

R: Rearrange (Reverse the sequence).

Dr Susan Baum during the workshop learning. Talent developing is relieving a slow learner from the ‘mandatory’ writing exercise. It is better for Abdullah to spend time on building blocks than to write, write and write. Peer-learning is coupling two students in an assignment to learn from each other. Ask the musically talented bright student to compose music or to make a music instrument. Ask the not-sobright (usually the undisciplined) one to create a car model. Both are assignments but different according to talents and strength levels.

Another child-friendly method is tiered instruction, a procedure by which the teacher has a concept to teach and the teaching activity is to the whole class but differs according to the students’ abilities.

Dr Baum admits the task of the educator is many-folded in a differentiated environment. The quickest way possible for the traditional teacher to be fit into a differentiated classroom is to increase the resource materials, Dr Baum said.

And what if there aren’t enough resources? “Well, there’s an app for that”.

Boosting Kuwait capital spending KUWAIT: As hydrocarbons’ contribution to Kuwait’s GDP is predicted to fall this year, growth is increasingly seen as hinging on the success of an ambitious state investment program. However, concerns over delays to its implementation have raised questions as to how significantly it will boost GDP. In late March the Central Bank of Kuwait (CBK) issued its latest outlook report and predicted that real economic growth would come in at 1.9 percent in 2013, compared with the 6.3 percent recorded in 2012. The CBK said it expected the hydrocarbons sector’s contribution to GDP to contract by 3.4 percent this year, compared with the 8.2 per cent expansion in 2012. Last year, with energy prices rising and production at near capacity, oil GDP grew by 15 per cent, following on from the 10 per cent increase in 2011. On the positive side, the CBK predicted non-oil GDP to expand by up to 5.3 per cent in 2013, in part a reflection of higher state infrastructure spending.

The IMF has also reassessed its forecast, announcing in early April that it had lowered its GDP growth projection from 1.8 per cent to 1.1 per cent for 2013. According to the IMF’s representative in Kuwait, Ananthakrishnan Prasad, the delayed implementation of the national development program has slowed non-oil economic expansion, but he added that the fund expects more rapid progress in 2013. Indeed, the IMF has projected 4 per cent nonoil GDP growth this year, compared to 2.7 per cent in 2012.

Should Kuwait hasten the roll out of its capital works projects, the effect could be significant. In the budget for the 2013-14 financial year, which began on April 1, the government set out an infrastructure program worth $17.5bn, part of a much wider $110bn development plan first approved in early 2010. The plan comprises, inter alia, increased investment in the transport, communications and energy industries, including, in the latter case, a $14bn oil refinery.

However, last year’s performance suggests that Kuwait may have difficulty achieving its spending goals. For the first 10 months of the 2012-13 financial year, which concluded on March 31, Kuwait posted a $60.5bn surplus, according to data issued by the Ministry of Finance at the end of that month. While some of this was a result of higher than forecast oil prices, lower than projected state spending also played a part in bolstering the budgetary balance.

Revenue was 11.6 percent up on the same period for 2011-12, and almost double the budget projections for the entire fiscal term. While earnings were up, on the back of higher oil production and above expected prices, state spending had fallen well short of projections, with outlays less than half of the budgeted $48.8bn. With recurrent spending - which reflects wages, pensions and social support projects - taking up much of the expended outlays, it is clear that the government’s capital works program fell well behind sched-

ule in 2012-13. At least part of the reason for the delayed roll out of projects has been laid at the door of Kuwait’s political opposition, which blocked many of the major projects in the investment program, and even forced the cancellation of the refinery in 2008, though it was later reinstated.

However, with the opposition having boycotted the general elections of December last year over objections to changes to the electoral laws, the government has a more supportive legislature, one less likely to stall spending programs. If so, it will be a welcome development for many in the private sector. The IMF has said the low volume of public spending also resulted in the private sector being slow to invest in 2012, suggesting a wariness on the part of banks and businesses to commit too deeply to investments in an climate of economic uncertainty. A similar failure to undertake development projects in a timely manner this fiscal year could again discourage private sector investment and limit loan growth.

Some of the country’s banks, having complained of the slow pace of implementing the investment program, have restricted investment and lending opportunities, local and international media have reported. While banks and private sector players would welcome more a more rapid implementation of the state development program, investors will be mindful of the extended planning, tendering and approval processes that could moderate the flow of project roll out. — Oxford Business Group

Municipality confiscates 85 vehicles, empty drums

By Hanan Al-Saadoun KUWAIT: One of the largest field campaigns by Jahra municipality to remove neglected vehicles and scrap from Amghara area resulted in the removal of 85 vehicles along with six lorry loads of drums.

Director of Public Cleanliness and Road Occupancy Department Mamdouh Al-Najdi said a cooperation agreement between the municipality and traffic department will be launched soon to remove cars on display for sale in various areas, as those who wish to sell their cars can display them in designated areas.

SATURDAY, MAY 11, 2013

UAE Islamists deny plot, demand abuse inquiry

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Abu Qatada to leave Britain voluntarily

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Seeking office, Marcos ensures dynasty lives

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LAHORE: Pakistan’s former prime minister Nawaz Sharif addresses his supporters during an election campaign rally late Thursday. —AP

Pak to vote under threats Sharif’s PML-N expected to win, Khan’s PTI may upset cart PESHAWAR: The Taleban yesterday stepped up their threats against Pakistan’s landmark elections, warning voters to boycott polling stations to save their lives as bloody attacks targeted party offices. Campaigning ended at midnight with impassioned pleas for votes from frontrunner Nawaz Sharif, a steel tycoon bidding for a historic third term as prime minister, and cricket star Imran Khan looking for a breakthrough. Pakistan’s umbrella Tehreek-e-Taleban (TTP) movement says democracy is unIslamic and has singled out the outgoing parties for particular threat, curtailing campaigning for the Pakistan People’s Party and its main allies.

Attacks on politicians and political parties have killed more than 120 people since mid-April, according to AFP, and the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) said the elections were the most violent in the country’s history. “To revolt against this system, the TTP have planned several actions on May 11, so we appeal to the people to stay away from polling stations to save their lives,” Taleban spokesman Ehsanullah Ehsan said. The PPP has run a lacklustre and rudderless campaign in the face of the threats and with its chairman, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, too young to run.

HRCP on Friday voiced “acute concern” not just from threats and violence targeting individuals “but much more from the manner in which the violence has already impaired the fairness of the elections almost beyond repair”. It called on all institutions to “stretch themselves to their absolute limit to ensure security of voters, candidates and polling stations on Saturday so that the people can exercise their right to choose their representatives”.

The election commission says that 179 million ballot papers are being distributed to around 70,000 polling stations nationwide

under army supervision.

Most commentators expect Sharif’s centre-right Pakistan Muslim League-N (PML-N) to win but it remains unclear how far Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) can provide an upset and restrict his chances of forming a stable coalition. More than 600,000 security personnel, including tens of thousands of soldiers, have been ordered to deploy to guard against attacks on polling day.

Yesterday, a motorbike bomb killed four people and wounded 15 close to offices of different parties in the main town of North Waziristan, the premier stronghold of the Taleban and Al-Qaedalinked groups on the Afghan border.

Security officials said PML-N, PTI and right-wing religious party

Saudi king sacks air force chief RIYADH: Saudi King Abdullah has dismissed and retired air force chief General Mohammed Al-Ayesh by royal decree, the official SPA news agency reported yesterday, without elaborating why. The monarch named General Fayadh bin Hamed Al-Rowaili to succeed him, the agency added. In April, the deputy defence minister, Prince Khaled bin Sultan bin Abdul Aziz, a member of the royal family who played a key role in the 1991 Gulf War over Kuwait, was also dismissed by royal decree. Again, no explanation was given for the move. —AFP

Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam, an ally of the outgoing government, had offices nearby. Witnesses and officials said 15 people were taken to the state-run Miranshah hospital, some of them in a serious condition. In the southwest, a low-intensity bomb planted on the roof of the office of a PPP candidate in Quetta wounded five people early Friday, police said. The device detonated when supporters of former cabinet minister and PPP national assembly lawmaker Sardar Omar Gorgaj were gathering in his office.

Yesterday’s polls are the first time in Pakistan’s turbulent history that an elected civilian administration has handed power to another through the ballot box. The nuclear-armed state has been ruled by the military for half its life. More than 86 million voters have from 8 am to 5 pm to elect 272 lawmakers to the 342-member national assembly and lawmakers to four provincial assemblies. No one claimed responsibility for Friday’s bombings, but the Taleban, who consider the election un-Islamic, have carried out numerous attacks to undermine the polls and say they have dispatched suicide bombers for polling day.

The Taleban have singled out the secular-leaning PPP and its main coalition partners, the Muttahida Qaumi Movement, which controls Pakistan’s biggest city of Karachi, and the Awami National Party in the northwest. On Thursday, a son of former PPP prime minister Yousuf Raza Gilani was kidnapped and two of his aides killed in the central city of Multan. Gilani told reporters yesterday that there had been no claim of responsibility for the abduction of his son, Ali Haider Gilani, a 27-year-old PPP candidate for the assembly in Punjab province. “We should create a conducive atmosphere for the elections, so that polls look fair and transparent,” Gilani said. —AFP

I N T E R N AT I O N A L SATURDAY, MAY 11, 2013

Assad, Nasrallah threaten new frontline in Golan BEIRUT: Threats from Damascus and its Lebanese ally Hezbollah to turn the Golan Heights into a “resistance front” against Israel could end nearly four decades of calm across the increasingly tense ceasefire line separating Israeli and Syrian forces. President Bashar Al-Assad, and his father before him, kept the front line between Syria and the Israeli-occupied Golan quiet despite an official state of war between the two countries and Syria’s support for militants in Lebanon and Gaza.

But following Israel’s weekend air raids near Damascus, Assad was quoted as saying he would turn the Golan into a

“resistance front” - suggesting he had given a green light to guerrilla groups to launch retaliatory attacks. Assad’s ally Hassan Nasrallah, head of the powerful Lebanese militia Hezbollah, followed with a promise to support his efforts “to liberate the Syrian Golan”. “When Assad said this, Israeli officials mocked,” Israeli military affairs analyst wrote in Israel’s Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper. “But when Assad and Nasrallah voice the exact same threat, it should be taken seriously. Hezbollah could begin to find a foothold on the Israeli-Syrian border which, in the absence of a central government in Damascus, is becoming chaotic.”

Hezbollah fought a 34-day war with Israel in 2006, firing thousands of rockets into northern Israel. Nasrallah said that in response to the Israeli air raid, which intelligence sources said targeted weapons destined for his fighters, Syria would supply Hezbollah with more sophisticated weaponry. “If the Israeli enemy thinks it can destroy Syria, let me tell you that Syria and Hezbollah can destroy Israel,” Syrian parliamentarian Sharif Shehada told Hezbollah’s Manar television. “When President Assad says Syria has become a nation of resistance, he is certain of what he is saying”. —Reuters

UAE Islamists deny plot, demand abuse inquiry Call for independent probe

MASHHAD, Iran: Iranian officials try to save a man with a noose around his neck seconds after his public execution for killing a policeman in this northeastern city on May 8, 2013. —AFP

Murderer pardoned as he swings from gallows TEHRAN: An Iranian man condemned to the gallows for murdering a policeman was pardoned by the victim’s family and his life saved only moments after he was hanged, the Mehr news agency reported on Thursday. Relatives “cried out their pardon after the murderer had already been hanging for a few seconds” the agency said, publishing a photo of people grab the

man and holding him until they could remove the noose from around his neck. The aborted execution took place in the northeastern city of Mashhad. Under Iranian law, the family of a victim is entitled to pardon a criminal and save him from execution. In such cases, a murderer must pay blood money currently set at $36,000 and serve a prison sentence. —AFP

Kuwait launches sports...

Continued from Page 1 female athletes to compete in the London Olympic Games following months of intense pressure from the International Olympics Committee.

Still, women’s sports remain nearly an underground activity in the kingdom, which is home to Islam’s holiest site in Makkah. Only the largest female university in the kingdom Princess Nora Bint Abdul Rahman University has a swimming pool, tennis court and exercise area for its students. No other university in Saudi Arabia has sports facilities for female students and staff. Women are also bound by strict rules when it comes to their attire, so they cannot, for example, be seen by men while jogging in sweat pants. Female athletes cannot register for sports clubs or league competitions. They are banned from entering national trials, making it impossible for them to qualify for international competitions.

Kuwait is typical of the struggle women have endured in the Gulf. The 1970s were described as the golden era where women were allowed to freely participate in sports in Kuwait, according to Naeema Al-Sabah, the

head of the Women’s Sports Federation. But in the ensuing decades, the influence of Islamic hardliners grew in the country and sports for women all but disappeared.

Hardliners believe that sports will promote immoral behavior and uniforms inappropriately reveal female bodies. The low point came a few years back when a Kuwaiti women’s football team was publicly denounced after returning from playing a regional tournament in neighboring United Arab Emirates.

“We’re taking baby steps toward progress,” Sabah said. “As with any society that is religiously strict, we need to test the waters and take small steps. Everyone in Kuwait now values sports. You see people walking and jogging every day. There is this increasing interest in playing sports in general.” Shatti said the best sign that things are changing was the number of women and girls who turned out for the basketball game. A music teacher who also cycles and jogs with her husband, Shatti is only hoping to get more chances to play. “It felt like the first step toward a better future for sports for us here in Kuwait,” she said after her team’s victory. —AP

DUBAI: Islamists charged with a coup plot in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have said they were abused in custody and, in a statement on social media, demanded an independent inquiry. The trial of 94 Emiratis, which began in March, is seen as an attempt by the U.S.-allied Gulf Arab state to address what it says is a security threat from the banned Muslim Brotherhood. The 94 were among dozens of people detained in a crackdown on Islamists over the past year amid heightened worries among officials about a spillover of unrest in other Arab countries.

In an open letter to the UAE president and vice-president published on a Twitter account belonging to the Islamist group Al-Islah, the defendants said they had been insulted, threatened and in some cases subjected to physical abuse after arrest. It was not clear how many of the 94, most of whom are in custody, had signed the letter or how it had been communicated outside prison. Most of the detainees belong to Al-Islah, which denies government charges that it is an arm of the Muslim Brotherhood. Attorney-general Saleem Saeed Kubaish said in January that group members had sought to penetrate state institutions, including schools, universities and ministries, according to state news agency WAM. The defendants are accused of “belonging to an illegal, secret organisation ... that

aims to counter the foundations of this state in order to seize power and of contacting foreign entities and groups to implement this plan,” WAM said. Local media, which have attended the trial proceedings, have said the accused deny the charges. Foreign media have been barred from attending. The group, which signed the letter dated May 7 as ‘Prisoners from the Islah group’, said they were “unjustly accused of planning to seize rule”.

“We ... have been subjected to solitary confinement for many months in tight cells with no windows and with continuous light morning and night,” the letter said. The group complained of insults and threats and said some had been physically abused or had not been allowed to speak to their lawyers. “(We call for) ... the formation of an independent committee to investigate these abuses,” said the group.

Anwar Gargash, the UAE’s state minister for foreign affairs, dismissed the letter as “nothing new”. “Actually it is a repetition of the campaign that the Brotherhood has chosen against the nation,” Gargash, who is also state minister for Federal National Council Affairs, said on his Twitter page late on Thursday. “The statement repeats this tale about torture, which it wants to attach to the nation ... and the statement disregards that the Emirates’ measures took place within a constitutional and legal framework,” he said. —Reuters

Survivor pulled from...

Continued from Page 1 We conducted the rescue work for 45 minutes.

We brought her out by using light hammers, hand saw and drilling machines.”

Jamil Ahmed, a fire service officer who was part of the rescue team, told AFP that the bulldozers and cranes which had been churning through the rubble had been ordered to stop work as soon as it emerged that Reshma was alive. “We dug a hole and there she was, standing up. She told us: ‘My name is Reshma, please save me, please save me, brother’. “We used light hammers, a hand saw and drilling machines to open up the gap. There was an air pocket inside and she had enough space to crawl about comfortably. Major Moazzem slipped into the hole and took her into his arms and then we pulled her out.” Another rescuer said that Reshma had had access to food supplies for the first fortnight of her ordeal but had run out two days ago. “She said she has not eaten for the last two days. She said she has eaten some dried food like biscuits,” said the rescuer. “She said she had found a safe place and found some air and light.” A government minister told reporters that Reshma had wept tears of joy during a brief phone conversa-

tion with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. “The prime minister has offered special prayers for her and talked to her by phone. During the conservation, Reshma cried,” said Jahangir Kabir Nanak, the deputy local government minister.

The last survivor had been found April 28, and even her story ended tragically. As workers tried to free Shahin Akter, a fire broke out and she died of smoke inhalation. Hundreds of people who had been engaged in the grim job of removing decomposing bodies from the site raised their hands together in prayer for her survival. “God, you are the greatest, you can do anything. Please allow us all to rescue the survivor just found,” said a man on a loudspeaker leading the supplicants.

“We seek apology for our sins. Please pardon us, pardon the person found alive.”

News of the rescue came as recovery teams were preparing to wrap up their work at the site after discovering scores more corpses in the tangle of concrete overnight. A spokesman for the army, which is overseeing the recovery operation, said the toll had reached 1,045, making it one of the world’s deadliest industrial disasters.

More than 3,000 workers were on shift on the morning of April 24 when the building suddenly caved in. —Agencies

INTERNATIONAL

SATURDAY, MAY 11, 2013

Israel seeking to ‘sabotage’ peace: Palestinians JERUSALEM: The chief Palestinian negotiator has accused the Israeli government of trying to “sabotage” US moves to rekindle peace talks by signing off on plans for nearly 300 new settler homes near Ramallah.

The Israeli announcement on Thursday came just days after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reportedly ordered a freeze on tenders for new West Bank settler homes to avoid harming efforts by US Secretary of State John Kerry to bring both sides back to the negotiating table. “The Civil Administration has given the green light for 296 housing units at Beit El,” said the spokesman for a defence ministry unit which administers the West Bank. He said the plan was announced last year as a compensatory measure after the government ordered the evacuation of the unauthorised Ulpana outpost on the outskirts of Beit El. Washington warned Israel that its plans for settlement housing were

“counterproductive”. “As the president said, Israelis must recognise that continued settlement activity is counterproductive to the cause of peace and that an independent Palestine must be viable, with real borders that have to be drawn,” State Department spokesman Patrick Ventrell said.

Chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erakat said the move sent a clear message to Washington that Israel was not interested in resuming the direct talks, frozen in 2010. “We condemn this new decision which is proof that the Israeli government wants to sabotage and ruin the US administration’s efforts to revive the peace process,” he told AFP. “This is a message to the American administration and a blow to the peace process,” he said, suggesting it would drag the region towards violence rather than peace.

But his Israeli counterpart, Tzipi Livni, sought to play down the devel-

JERUSALEM: Palestinians chant slogans during a demonstration in solidarity with the Al-Aqsa mosque following Friday prayers outside the Dome of the Rock yesterday. — AFP opment, news of which reached her as she was meeting Kerry in Rome on Wednesday afternoon. “There is no need for this to become a pretext for drama or anger,” she told army radio, saying she had updated the

Americans about the development.

Kerry said on Wednesday he would make his fourth trip to Israel and the Palestinian territories on May 21 or 22 for talks with Netanyahu and Palestinian president Mahmoud

Abbas. Hagit Ofran of Israel’s Peace Now settlement watchdog, who on Wednesday had confirmed that no new tenders had been issued since the start of the year, lashed out at the announcement, accusing Netanyahu of playing a double game.”This initiative proves Netanyahu is deceiving the world,” she told AFP. “On the one hand, he lets us believe that he is putting the brakes on settlement and on the other, he gives the go-ahead for an enormous building project.”

Earlier this week, senior Israeli officials quoted by Haaretz newspaper said Netanyahu had promised Kerry he would “rein in” settlement construction in both the West Bank and annexed east Jerusalem until mid-June in light of US efforts to renew negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians. In parallel, the Palestinians agreed to suspend for two months all efforts to seek international recognition. —AFP

Khamenei adviser enters Iran presidential contest Khatami urges Rafsanjani to run in race

JERUSALEM: A Jewish woman from the ‘Women of the Wall’ organization leads a prayer at the Western Wall yesterday. — AP

Arrests mar Jewish women’s prayers JERUSALEM: Jerusalem police were yesterday holding five ultra-Orthodox Jewish men who tried to disrupt landmark prayers by women Jewish activists at the Western Wall plaza in the Holy City. Police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld told AFP that 1,000 ultra-Orthodox men were kept away from a large group of “Women of the Wall” activists conducting their monthly prayer using prayer shawls, after a court ruled they could do so. “Police arrested three ultra-Orthodox men and detained another two” for public disturbances,” Rosenfeld said.

Ultra-Orthodox men had tried to break through reinforced police lines and reach the women, some calling police holding them back “Nazis” and yelling offensive remarks at the women while others blew on whistles to drown out their prayers. An AFP correspondent said they also threw bags containing liquid, water bottles, bags of rubbish, plastic chairs and eggs at the police and women worshippers. Two police officers were lightly injured and treated at the site, but no women were hurt and they managed to complete their prayers, some holding flowers alongside prayer books. When the prayer ended, police escorted the women to a bus which was hit by stones as it left the area, Rosenfeld said.

The women activists have for more than 20 years demanded to be allowed to pray using their form of liberal Judaism at the site, while wearing fringed prayer shawls and other religion-related objects and reading from Torah scrolls. But police, acting under court orders, would distance and detain them for conduct considered “provocative” to ultra-Orthodox believers, some of whom would accost the women, creating disturbances. Last month, a court determined the women’s conduct was not causing disruption, rather it was those who were attacking them, and ruled that the Women of the Wall could pray at the site using their rites. —AFP

DUBAI: An adviser to Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei joined the presidential race yesterday, with powerful conservatives keen to make the June vote a peaceful contrast to the upheaval that followed the disputed 2009 poll.

Khamenei has the final say on all matters in Iran and in theory stands above the political fray, but it is thought he wants a reliable follower in the presidency after Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s two turbulent terms in office. Reformist groups have been suppressed or sidelined since 2009 and the next president is likely to be picked from among a handful of politicians known for fealty to Khamenei, minimising the chances of political rifts leading to post-election chaos.

Former parliament speaker Gholam-Ali Haddad-Adel registered to run, state news agency IRNA reported, becoming the first of a trio of Khamenei loyalists expected to do so. Allied with Haddad-Adel are former Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Velayati and Tehran mayor Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf Iranian media say two of them will step aside later in favour of whoever appears to have the best chance of winning the election. “Our final choice will be announced after the Guardian Council’s decision,” the semi-official Fars news agency quoted Haddad-Adel as saying after registering, referring to a body which vets applicants before they are allowed to run.

The conservative council, normally made up of six clerics and six jurists, will publish the final list of candidates it has approved later this month. The June 14 vote is a test for Iran after Ahmadinejad’s re-election in 2009 ignited the biggest street protests in the Islamic Republic’s history, badly denting the legitimacy of its entrenched leaders and its hybrid clericalelectoral system. But there is little of the popular enthusiasm there was in the runup to the 2009 election when many

sensed there was a possibility of real change in Iran.

After years of ever tougher international sanctions over Tehran’s nuclear program, many Iranians care more about the economy than political infighting. The election is unlikely to have much effect on Tehran’s nuclear policy which is closely controlled by Khamenei. The most powerful person in Iran, Khamenei endorsed Ahmadinejad’s victory in 2009, rejecting opposition charges of election fraud. But the president later alienated the leader by pursuing his own policies in often provocative ways. Khamenei is now thought to want to thwart any attempt by Ahmadinejad to preserve his influence by promoting a favoured successor, possibly the outgoing president’s former chief of staff, Esfandiar Rahim Mashaie.

Conservatives are vehemently opposed to

Mashaie who they accuse of promoting a “deviant current” within Islam that undermines the role of the clergy. If he does run, it would be seen as a direct challenge to Khamenei’s authority.

Among other candidates who registered on Friday were veteran Iranian politician Mohsen Rezaie, who lost to Ahmadinejad in 2009, and reformist Mohammad Reza Aref, who served as vicepresident under former moderate President Mohammad Khatami. Khatami, who was elected in landslide victories in 1997 and 2001, has not made it clear whether he will run this time but on Friday he threw his support behind moderate former President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani and urged him to stand in the vote. “I believe the best person who can help the establishment and solve the current problems is Mr. Hashemi. —Reuters

TEHRAN: Conservative Iranian lawmaker Gholam-Ali Haddad-Adel shows his identification and inked finger to the media after he registers his candidacy for the upcoming presidential election at the election headquarters of the interior ministry yesterday. — AP

INTERNATIONAL

SATURDAY, MAY 11, 2013

Abu Qatada to leave Britain voluntarily Cleric to return when Jordan treaty ratified

VATICAN CITY: Pope Francis (right) and the Coptic Orthodox leader Tawadros II pose during a private audience in the pontiff’s library yesterday at the Vatican. — AFP

Coptic leader visits Francis VATICAN CITY: At the Vatican yesterday not one, not two, but three popes were inside the tiny city-state’s walls at the same time.

Coptic Pope Tawadros II and Catholic Pope Francis, each addressing the other as “Your Holiness”, prayed together for reconciliation among communities and nations without mention of events in Egypt. Tawadros has previously denounced a wave of anti-Christian attacks there. A short walk from where they met in the Apostolic Palace, Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI is living out his retirement in a convent in the Vatican gardens. There were no plans for Tawadros, making his first trip outside Egypt since his election in November, to meet Benedict.

The tall, black-robed Tawadros is the head of the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria, the largest Christian Church in Egypt. He is only the second Coptic pope in history to visit the Vatican. In their public speeches, neither Francis, 76, nor Tawadros, 60, made direct mention of the recent sectarian violence in Egypt between majority Muslims and Christians, who make up about 15 percent of Egypt’s population of 84 million.

Francis spoke of an “ecumenism of suffering” among Christians and in joint prayers afterwards in a Vatican chapel both leaders heard a prayer for “all countries and communities which are victims of conflict and violence” and for “peace and harmony without discrimination and injustice”. Attacks on churches and sectarian tensions increased after the rise of Islamists to power in Egypt following the 2011 uprising that overthrew President Hosni Mubarak, although Christians had demonstrated alongside Muslims for his removal. Christians in Egypt have long complained of discrimination in employment and treatment by the authorities and have called for changes in laws to make it as easy to build or renovate churches as it is for mosques.—Reuters

LONDON: Radical Muslim cleric Abu Qatada will return to Jordan voluntarily when the Jordanian parliament ratifies a deal with Britain that ensures he will receive a fair trial, the cleric’s lawyer told a London court yesterday. Abu Qatada’s pledge is a victory for the British government after nearly eight years of unsuccessful attempts to deport the cleric, who is accused of spreading radical ideas that once inspired one of the Sept 11, 2001 hijackers. Courts have repeatedly blocked deportation on the grounds that a trial in Jordan of Abu Qatada, whose real name is Mohammed Othman, risked being tainted by the use of evidence obtained using torture.

Britain last month announced it had signed a new treaty with Jordan aimed at addressing those concerns. “If and when the Jordanian parliament ratifies that treaty, Mr Othman will voluntarily return to Jordan,” Edward Fitzgerald, a lawyer representing him, told a special immigration tribunal.

That would be a relief to Home Secretary Theresa May, the British interior minister, who has faced media pressure over repeated failures to deport Abu Qatada. “The Home Secretary’s focus remains on seeing Abu Qatada returned to Jordan at the earliest opportunity,” Security Minister James Brokenshire said in a statement issued by the Home Office shortly after the news from court emerged. “We continue to pursue this case before the courts and to work with the Jordanian government to achieve this.”

Yvette Cooper, the opposition Labour Party’s spokeswoman for interior affairs, said: “This could be very good news if it means Abu Qatada returns to Jordan as soon as possible”. The deportation of Abu Qatada has become a cause celebre for some popular newspapers that have pilloried the government over the issue. The Sun tabloid has a special logo for stories on the

cleric that reads “Must try harder to kick out Qatada”. Once described by a Spanish judge as “Osama bin Laden’s right-hand man in Europe”, Abu Qatada is seen as a security risk in Britain but has never been charged with any offence there.

Jordan convicted Qatada in his absence of encouraging militants there who planned bomb attacks in 1999 and 2000, but under a 2005 agreement between Amman and London he will be retried if he eventually returns. The cleric has been in and out of jail in Britain since first being arrested in 2001 and in recent years has been living at a house in London under tight bail conditions including a 16-hour curfew and a ban on using any telecommunications equipment. He was sent back to

jail on March 9 this year after police found 17 mobile phones, 3 USB sticks, five digital mobile devices and 55 recordable CDs or DVDs in his house.

Yesterday’s court hearing was to hear his application for bail. The hearing was adjourned until March 20. Judge Stephen Irwin asked for evidence to be presented at the next hearing about how long it would take for the new treaty to come into force in Jordan. The judge also said Abu Qatada’s bail terms were aimed at “stopping this man from communicating his ideas” and the breaches had been “significant”. He asked for further evidence about the breaches to be presented at the next hearing. In the meantime, Abu Qatada remains in prison.— Reuters

LONDON: In a file picture taken on Nov 13, 2012 Jordanian terror suspect Abu Qatada arrives at his home in northwest London after he was released from prison. — AFP

Ladies swoon as Prince Harry begins US tour WASHINGTON: Britain’s Prince Harry broke hearts in Washington’s corridors of power Thursday, showing more interest in landmines than in the excited fans who greeted him at the start of a week-long US visit. Squeals ricocheted down the halls of the Russell Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill as the 28-year-old eligible bachelor inspected a photo exhibit set up by the HALO Trust, a charity favored by his late mother Princess Diana. Harry, a British army officer in Afghanistan, ignored the giddy posse of twentysomethings

WASHINGTON: First Lady Michelle Obama gestures during a surprise visit from Prince Harry at an event in honor of military mothers in the East Room of the White House on Thursday. — AP

as he chatted with Senator John McCain, 76, a Vietnam war veteran whose wife Cindy is a HALO board member.

There were no public remarks, but Harry was overheard inquiring about the price of mine detectors when he cast an eye over mannequins in cobalt blue outfits combing the polished marble floor for imaginary unexploded ordnance.

Harry is the honorary fundraising patron of HALO, the world’s biggest demining organization, which since its founding 25 years ago has unearthed more than 1.4 million landmines in 9,800 minefields around the world. “He’s very much tuned in to the landmine issue,” said HALO chief executive Guy Willoughby, who also conversed with Harry at the exhibit aptly installed outside the Senate Armed Services Committee hearing room.

Diana famously toured minefields cleared by HALO teams in Angola shortly before her death in a Paris car crash in August 1997, a year after her stormy divorce from Prince Charles, heir to the British throne. The United States is the only NATO member state not to sign the 1997 Ottawa Treaty banning landmines, but since the late 1990s, it has contributed $150 million to support HALO’s work. “The commitment of the American government to fund humanitarian mine clearance far, far, far outweighs the political niceties about whether they have or have not signed the Ottawa treaty,” Willoughby told AFP. If funding levels are sustained, he said, it would be possible to clear virtually every minefield in every erstwhile combat zone in Africa and Asia in the next five to 10 years. A State Department official said Washington

was “the world’s single largest financial supporter of demining and conventional weapons destruction,” even as it pursues “an ongoing policy review” on whether to adopt the Ottawa Treaty. “Since 1993, we have delivered over $2 billion in more than 90 countries for mine clearance, survivor assistance, mine risk education and the research and development of new demining technologies,” the official said.

Harry paid a surprise visit to the White House, where First Lady Michelle Obama offered him afternoon tea in the company of American military veterans. “He has a very busy schedule, but when he heard about this tea and all of you... he wanted to be here to personally thank you for your service,” she said as Harry kept a polite silence. Harry is on his best behavior after snapshots of the party-loving prince in a Las Vegas hotel suite - totally naked, with hands cupped over his crown jewels - spilled onto the Internet in August.

His official schedule in Washington also included a dinner at the home of British Ambassador Peter Westmacott - scallops and roasted veal were served - and a solemn wreath-laying Friday at Arlington National Cemetery. Before the dinner, at a reception for 200 invited guests that included Iraq war amputees, Harry commended the “charitable instinct” of Americans, saying they had been “enormously generous” in supporting HALO. This weekend, Harry travels to Colorado to open the Warrior Games for soldiers wounded in war. Next week, he’ll be in New Jersey to see first-hand the damage inflicted on the Atlantic seaboard state by superstorm Sandy in October. — AFP

INTERNATIONAL

SATURDAY, MAY 11, 2013

GOP sees cover-up as Benghazi debate revived WASHINGTON: The top Republican in Congress demanded on Thursday that the Obama administration release emails about its handling of last year’s deadly attack in Libya, after a dramatic congressional hearing breathed life into the party’s accusations of negligence and cover-up. US House of Representatives Speaker John Boehner called on the White House to order the State Department to make public more internal emails sent after the killings in Benghazi of the US ambassador and three other Americans.

Boehner’s remarks kept up pressure a day after the hearing - dismissed by Democrats as mostly partisan posturing - won front-page headlines following months of Republican accusations that Washington failed to respond quickly enough to the assault by suspected Islamist militants on the US mission in Benghazi. “Last November, the president said he was ‘happy to cooperate in any way Congress wants,’” Boehner told a news conference. “This is his chance.”

Republican critics believe the emails could reveal evidence that the administration initially tried to play down the assault in Benghazi as stemming from spontaneous demonstrations

by Libyans, as opposed to being a planned militant operation.

The emails are believed to detail senior diplomats’ views of who was behind the Sept 11, 2012, attacks and how administration officials discussed ways to present the incident to the public. The State Department said it had already been working with Congress to provide the emails it wants - a process complicated by secrecy rules.

Republicans have been complaining loudly about the Benghazi attack for eight months, often without much attention in the mainstream media. The killings and their aftermath have - until this week at least - failed to inflict much political damage on President Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton, who headed the State Department at the time of the attack and is considered the top Democratic prospect for the 2016 presidential race. Clinton is clearly a major focus of Republicans’ attempts to get to the heart of what they believe is a national security scandal.

Foreign Policy magazine counted 32 separate discussions mentioning Clinton during Wednesday’s hearing of the House Oversight Committee. The featured witness was Gregory Hicks, a former top US diplomat in Libya who gave a dramatic account of the night that Ambassador Christopher Stevens was killed. Congressional committees have held about a dozen hearings on Benghazi and more are in the works. There are five different committees of the Republican-led House investigating Benghazi: Oversight, Intelligence, Armed Services, Foreign Affairs and Judiciary. Chris Lehane, a veteran of congressional investigations of former President Bill Clinton’s White House, said Republicans were using the hearings just to pressure the Obama administration. “Congress using and sometimes abusing the investigative process is about as predictable as the cicadas coming to DC, although it happens much more frequently,” said Lehane, referring to an insect that emerges in huge numbers on the East Coast periodically.— Reuters

‘Political, not military’ solutions needed: Hagel Pentagon chief addresses Mideast woes WASHINGTON: The problems that plague the Middle East, including Iran’s nuclear ambitions and Syria’s civil war, require “political, not military” solutions, US Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said Thursday. Saying the “old order” was vanishing in the region, Hagel stressed in a speech that the United States would work to promote democratic reform while bearing in mind the “limitations” of American power. Although the Pentagon chief made clear that Washington had not ruled out potential military action against Iran or Syria, his remarks highlighted President Barack Obama’s cautious stance on resorting to armed force in the volatile region.

He said that regional challenges including “the nuclear challenge posed by Iran, dangerous instability in Syria, or the continuing threat of Al-Qaeda and other terrorist groups” must be addressed through “coalitions of common interests,” including Israel and other allies in the region. “A common thread woven into the Middle East fabric is that the most enduring and effective solutions to the challenges facing the region are political, not military,” Hagel told an audience at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy.

“America’s role in the Middle East is to continue to help influence and shape the course of events - using diplomatic, economic, humanitarian, intelligence, and security tools in coordination with our allies,” he said.

Arab uprisings had shaken the established political landscape in the Middle East, he said. “The old order in the Middle East is disappearing, and what will replace it remains unknown. “There will continue to be instability in the region as this process plays out and we all must adjust accordingly.” Prospects for stability in the longer run would hinge on the outcome of political transitions in Egypt, Libya and Syria, said Hagel, who traveled to the region last month. “The best hope for long-term stability relies on countries like Egypt, Libya, and Syria making transitions to democratic rule,” he said.

The United States would “remain engaged in helping shape the new order,

but we must engage wisely,” he said. “This will require a clear understanding of our national interests, our limitations, and an appreciation for the complexities of this unpredictable, contradictory, yet hopeful region of the world,” he said. The war in Syria was turning “sectarian” and the possibility the state would break apart was “increasing,” he said. The war was putting Syria’s “stockpiles of chemical weapons and advanced conventional weapons at risk, and the escalation of violence threatens to spill across its borders,” he said.

But Hagel struck a restrained tone on Syria and did not reiterate Obama’s declared “red line” warning Damascus not to use its chemical weapons. The Obama administration has faced renewed calls for intervention after US intelligence agencies said the Syrian regime probably used chemical weapons on a small-scale. But the White House says the spy services are

still investigating the allegations. After the speech, when asked about Syria, Hagel said the administration would not take any action until it had all the facts and alluded to the intelligence disaster in the run-up to the 2003 Iraq war.

“It’s fair to say that we’re all probably a little wiser today than we were before and when we take action, there is always the reality - that you accept that there may be consequences and unintended consequences may come from that,” he said.

“There are also consequences and unintended consequences that come from inaction,” he added. In answering the question on Syria, Hagel joked about his outspoken style before he took over at the Pentagon in February. He said now he had to watch his words more carefully as he was no longer a senator and he couldn’t “speak as irresponsibly as I would like”. — AFP

KAFR NABIL, Syria: Anti-Syrian regime protesters hold a poster depicting Syrian President Bashar Assad (left) Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov (center) and US President Barack Obama (right) during a demonstration in this town in Idlib province yesterday. — AP

Mexico’s abusive well-heeled get rare comeuppance MEXICO CITY: The arrogant among Mexico’s well-heeled got a sharp rebuke Thursday, when two women who crashed in a Porsche and injured a pedestrian were hauled off to jail while threatening police and proclaiming their political connections after what authorities said appeared to be an all-night drinking spree. Federal authorities, meanwhile, suspended four officials in the country’s consumer protection agency for allegedly punishing a restaurant that had angered the daughter of the agency’s chief prosecutor last month.

Mexicans have long complained about such behavior, but social media have made it easier to document and ridicule people involved, as happened with both incidents, and tolerance for such behavior has dropped.

Police officers, who get little pay and less respect, often bear the brunt of the arrogant, and traffic stops involving politicians’ relatives

can end with the threatening phrase, “You don’t know who you’re messing with.”

But the city government said it is following a policy of “zero tolerance for impunity” to the long-standing custom of wealthy or wellconnected citizens browbeating cops into releasing them. The pair of women were in a Porsche Boxster, a luxury sports car few Mexicans can afford, when it went out of control early Thursday at a street corner in Mexico City’s leafy Roma neighborhood, hitting a parked SUV and a pedestrian. When police showed up, “both women argued, saying they were related to or knew a public servant in the police department ... and threatened the officers that they would lose their jobs if they tried to arrest them,” the city’s Public Safety Department said in a statement. It said officers ignored the threats, took the women in to get medical evaluation and face charges. The city Attorney General’s Office

said it had to wait for driver of the Porsche to sober up. The pedestrian injured in the crash was taken to a hospital, where she was recovering from her injuries. Mexicans took to social media and quickly dubbed the two arrested women “The Ladies of Roma” - an echo of another pair of women who were caught on video insulting, threatening and trying to punch officers in the upscale Polanco neighborhood in 2011, earning them the sobriquet “The Polanco Ladies.”

In the case involving the federal consumer protection agency, the federal comptrollers’ office announced Thursday that it was suspending four civil servants and investigating them for allegedly punishing the restaurant in retaliation for angering the daughter of their boss.

Andrea Benitez, whose father, Humberto Benitez, is the federal attorney general for consumer protection, went to the Maximo

Bistrot in the same trendy neighborhood where the Porsche crashed and apparently didn’t get the table she wanted or had been promised April 26. Hours later, inspectors showed up with official “Suspended” signs to punish the restaurant, even though the agency never acts that fast on similar complaints from regular citizens.

The action was documented by other diners using smartphones and cellphones, and the incident blew up into an Internet sensation in Mexico. Local media have also reported in recent weeks on the flashy lifestyle of the children of allegedly corrupt members of the governing Institutional Revolutionary Party, known as the PRI. One story described how the son of an oil workers union leader had bought multimillion-dollar apartments in Miami and a Ferrari even though his father’s official salary couldn’t pay for anything near that expensive.— AP

INTERNATIONAL

SATURDAY, MAY 11, 2013

Pakistan’s youth election - but who’s listening?

ISLAMABAD: In a bustling market in a middle-class district of Islamabad, Raja Mehran rallies his friends as they prepare to campaign door-to-door for Pakistan’s general election today. The wiry 22-year-old is one of an estimated 25 million voters aged under 30 who are expected to play a decisive role in the poll, marking the first democratic handover of power after a civilian government has served a full term. The rapid rise over the past two years of former cricket star Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) party has shifted the attention of other mainstream politicians towards the young.

The PTI has preached a gospel of change, pledging to break the old structures of politics, giving 35 percent of its party tickets to under-35s and promising young people the chance to build a “new Pakistan”. In a country where entry into politics traditionally depends on family ties and patronage, the appeal of this message is obvious. Mehran the student activist has heard it and is a believer. “This is the only party which is giving tickets to youth, which actually makes them representatives of this nation,” he told AFP. “If I try hard, if I work hard for this party and for this country, definitely I can be one day prime minister of Pakistan, or any boy like me can be the prime minister of Pakistan.”

It is uncertain how far the PTI’s message will penetrate beyond the educated urban centres of Punjab, the country’s richest province, or even whether Imran Khan can translate his huge popularity into seats in parliament.

Some youngsters are unconvinced, saying that while Khan is charismatic, he lacks the experience of Nawaz Sharif, the two-time prime minister who leads the centre-right Pakistan Muslim League-N (PML-N) and is tipped to emerge on top. “I support PML-N because the leadership qualities are there,” Adnan Latif, 19, a student in the southwestern city of Quetta, told AFP. “Imran Khan is a nice person but he doesn’t know about the very difficult circumstances we have here in Pakistan, so I don’t understand why you would hand these responsibilities to him.”

Regardless of the outcome, columnist and political analyst Mosharraf Zaidi said the PTI had shifted the political discourse, forcing more of a focus on young people. “It’s already made a difference - the rhetoric of every single party is according to the idea that the majority of Pakistanis are below 25,” he told AFP. “Politicians need to find a way to engage with, excite and sustain interest in these parties among young people.”

Khan burst into the political limelight with a huge rally in Pakistan’s second largest city Lahore in late 2011. Since then the PML-N, which controls Lahore, has given scholarships and free laptops to students and built a metro-bus public transport system in the city in double-quick time.

Newspaper campaign adverts by the Pakistan People’s Party - which led the outgoing ruling coalition - this week have compared the age of Nawaz, 63, and Imran, 60, with that of Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, the party’s 24-year-old chairman - still four months away from being old enough to stand. “Only young leadership can bring a revolution.

Only a leader who truly personifies and understands the spirit and aspirations of the new generation can shape a new future,” the PPP advert says.— AFP

ISLAMABAD: In this photograph taken on April 29, 2013, youth of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) gather ahead of a door-to-door election campaign. — AFP

SRINAGAR: Relatives of slain Indian police officer Farooq Ahmed mourn during his funeral yesterday. Assistant SubInspector Ahmad was shot from point-blank range by unidentified gunmen in Pulwama town, 32 km from Srinagar, a police spokesman said. This is the second militant attack on policemen in the Valley within a fortnight.— AFP

India urges efforts to avoid China tensions Incident glossed over in meeting BEIJING: China and India need to work harder to avoid flare-ups along their disputed border and resolve those that do happen more quickly, India’s top diplomat said yesterday. On the second day of a visit to Beijing, External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid praised the relatively smooth resolution of a three-week standoff between border troops from either side that ended Monday. But in an interview with Chinese state broadcaster CCTV, Khurshid said the incident’s occurrence and duration were “two important dimensions that we need to examine further.”

“Therefore we need to do our own respective analysis as to why it happened and then, if such a thing was to happen again, which, I hope is unlikely, we should be able to resolve it much quicker than we did this time,” Khurshid said.

New Delhi had accused Chinese troops of crossing the de facto border between the countries on April 15 and pitching camp in the Depsang valley in the Ladakh region of eastern Kashmir. Although China said its troops stayed on their side of the frontier as recognized by Beijing, India moved its soldiers just 300 m from the Chinese position. A series of meetings were held and troops from both sides withdrew on Monday.

The incident was glossed over in a meeting between Khurshid and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Thursday evening, in a sign it was unlikely to harm future high-level contacts, including an important visit later this month to India by Chinese Premier Li Keqiang. Wang was quoted by China’s official Xinhua News Ageny as saying China remains committed to a negotiated resolution of the border dispute and to “jointly maintain peace and tranquility” until that happens. Khurshid was scheduled to meet later yesterday with Li and senior foreign policy adviser Yang Jiechi.

The border incident had threatened to overshadow the minister’s visit, which was intended to set the agenda for Li’s India

trip - his first overseas visit since taking on the post of premier in March. It’s unclear what triggered the incident, although the sides often accuse each other of crossing the frontier high in the western Himalayas or of violating agreements with new construction or boosted deployments. Asian giants with more than 1 billion people each, India and China have had chilly relations since they fought a brief but bloody border war in 1962. India says China is occupying 38,000 sq km of territory in the Aksai Chin plateau in the western Himalayas, while China claims around 90,000 sq km in India’s northeastern state of Arunachal Pradesh. Fifteen rounds of

talks have failed to resolve the dispute.

Despite occasional tensions, China has become India’s biggest trading partner, with two-way trade jumping from $5 billion in 2002 to nearly $75 billion in 2011.

Most of that trade is skewed in China’s favor, another source of worry for India. In a separate commentary, Xinhua praised the way the standoff had been resolved in a “quick fashion as the two-way ties are getting more mature each day.” It said both countries have an obligation “to keep a cooperative and healthy relationship because neither the region nor the world could afford to see the two countries constantly at odds.” — AP

Taleban flexing muscle in Karachi KARACHI: The threat of Taleban attacks hangs over Pakistan’s historic election, but not in some parts of the financial capital Karachi, where the militants hold sway after chasing secular parties away. A little over six months ago, what should have been the headquarters of the Awami National Party (ANP), an ally of the outgoing government, in the working class district of Sohrab Goth were abandoned. “A small group of Taleban came to the ANP office and told them to leave quickly. They didn’t even have to force them,” a neighbour said. ANP activists complied immediately. That was well before the start of the campaign for today’s polls and they have not been seen since.

The Tehreek-e-Taleban Pakistan (TTP), an umbrella militant group which has been waging a domestic insurgency for nearly six years, has launched numerous bloody attacks across the country against what it calls the “un-Islamic” polls. The ANP, which like the other secular allies of the outgoing government have been singled out for Taleban attacks, has had to close around 50 offices, some attacked in bloody strikes, in Pashtun areas of Karachi.

In Sohrab Goth, a TTP stronghold in Karachi, the militants have allowed others to campaign, notably religious parties such as the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUIF), reputedly close to the militants. “Religious parties have no problem, they can campaign. We see their supporters regularly,” said Qari Ahmadullah, a trader in Sohrab Goth’s Al Asif market. Mullah Karim Abid, the JUI-F candidate, was happy at how things were going. “Our campaign is good, there is interest among people. In Sohrab Goth, they vote for religious parties,” he told AFP. “Taleban? What Taleban?

There are no real Taleban on the ground. All these things are fabricated by authorities.”— AFP

INTERNATIONAL

SATURDAY, MAY 11, 2013

Seeking office, Marcos ensures dynasty lives Imelda nearing final chapter of tumultuous life

MANILA: Philippine Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources director Asis Perez points to a map yesterday showing where a Philippine fisheries patrol vessel manned by the coastguard shot at a Taiwanese fishing vessel the day before near Balintang island in the northern Philippines.— AFP

Philippines admits to shooting at Taiwanese boat MANILA: The Philippines admitted yesterday that its coastguard fired at a Taiwanese fishing boat in an incident that authorities in Taipei said left a crewman dead and triggered widespread outrage on the island. Taiwanese President Ma Ying-jeou demanded that the Philippines apologise for Thursday’s shooting, which the Taiwanese government said killed a 65-year-old fisherman and badly damaged the vessel.

But Philippine coastguard spokesman Commander Armand Balilo said the incident took place in Philippine waters and the Filipino personnel had been properly carrying out their duties to stop illegal fishing. “If somebody died, they deserve our sympathy but not an apology,” Balilo told reporters.

Balilo said the incident happened just north of the main Philippine island of Luzon in the Balintang channel, which is part of the Philippines’ territory and not claimed by any other country or Taiwan. “This is part of Philippine waters,” he said.

Balilo said the 30-m coastguard vessel initially saw two fishing vessels and tried to approach them. He said the coastguard crew fired at the smaller of the two vessels after it tried to ram the Filipino boat. “They fired at the machinery to disable it. They were able to disable the vessel although they were not aware at the time that somebody had been hit,” he said. Balilo said the coastguard quickly left the area after it saw a third vessel, “a big white ship”, come into view.”Our people felt threatened so they left the area,” he said.

In Taipei, Ma insisted the Philippine side was at fault. “We demand the Philippines investigate and clarify the truth, to apologise, apprehend the killer and compensate,” he told reporters. Taiwanese Foreign Minister David Lin also said he was “very angry”. The incident dominated Taiwanese media, which strongly condemned the Filipinos and carried reports from the boat’s captain insisting he did not cross over into Philippine waters. “Barbaric Philippine vessel fired at our fishing boat, seasoned fisherman shot dead,” read the headline of a front-page story in the Taipei-based China Times newspaper.

Hung Yu-chih, the captain of the boat who is also the dead man’s son, told the China Times that Philippine gunmen fired several shots at them. He said one of the shots hit the fuel tank of the vessel, which had only four people on board.

Two Taiwanese fishing boats came to Hung’s rescue after he called for help, and towed the boat back to a port in southern Taiwan. In 2006, a Taiwanese fishing boat skipper was shot dead off the northern Philippines. Taipei protested then to the Philippines over what it said was the improper use of weapons.

Taiwan has ruled itself since 1949, but China still considers the island part of its territory. The Philippines, like most countries, officially recognises China over Taiwan but maintains trade ties with the island. The incident comes at a time of heightened tensions around the region over rival claims to the nearby South China Sea. China, the Philippines, Taiwan, Vietnam, Malaysia and Brunei all have competing claims to parts of the sea. China’s increasingly aggressive tactics to assert its authority over the waters in recent years have raised alarm among the rival claimants. China said on Tuesday it had sent one of its largest fishing fleets into the sea. —AFP

MARCOS, Philippines: Twenty-seven years after her dictator husband was ousted by a public revolt, Imelda Marcos has emerged as the Philippines’ ultimate political survivor: She was back on the campaign trail this week, dazzling voters with her bouffant hairstyle, oversized jewelry and big talk in a bid to keep her seat in Congress. She is widely expected to win in Monday’s congressional polls. Approaching 84, Ferdinand Marcos’ widow, who once astounded the world with a mammoth shoe collection amassed amid nationwide poverty, is nearing the final chapter of her tumultuous political life. Never showing any remorse for her past, she has against all odds succeeded in orchestrating the rebirth of a political dynasty tainted by allegations of corruption and abuse during her husband’s rule.

“I’m running for re-election,” the puffyfaced Marcos, clad in her trademark party gown, diamond and pearls, proclaimed before hundreds of villagers in Paoay town in northern Ilocos Norte province. Despite her reputation for extravagance, including expensive shopping trips and lavish beautification projects in a nation where a third of about 94 million live on $1 a day, Marcos twice ran unsuccessfully for president and won seats in the House following her return from exile. She is currently campaigning for a second of a maximum three terms to represent Ilocos Norte, a vote-rich agricultural region where many are fiercely loyal to the late dictator because of the money he poured into development.

After lingering until midnight at the town fiesta, Marcos barnstormed farming villages the following morning in the swel-

tering summer heat, showing off several “mothering centers” she had built to provide health services and livelihood training to poor villagers. She cradled newborn babies before a tangle of photographers and cameramen in the centers, each displaying a painting of a young Imelda embracing a child at the entrance. “We care and love you all,” reads a sign at the door.

Although she said she still brimmed with energy, a crew of nurses trailed her to check

her blood sugar levels. Bodyguards stood close by when she alighted from her van or the stairs. Talks with journalists strayed into the legacy she will leave behind, and she mentioned that she had decided what her epitaph would read: “Here lies love.” Marcos said she would not step down as long as she had energy. “If God will bless me with good health, as long as I’m alive and I’m strong, I’m going to give it all to the Filipino people,” she said.—AP

ILOCOS NORTE, Philippines: In this May 5, 2013 photo, former Philippine First Lady Imelda Marcos reacts as she carries a baby at a “Mothering Center” in this province in the northern Philippines.— AP

Dynastic rule tightens grip on Philippines MANILA: Another Benigno Aquino is set to become one of the Philippines’ most powerful politicians next week thanks to his name, part of what analysts warn is an increasingly destructive system of dynastic rule. The 36-year-old nephew and namesake of the current president is one of the frontrunners to be elected to the Senate in mid-term elections, with many other favourites also owing their expected success to bloodlines. Political dynasties have long been a feature of politics in the Philippines but analysts say that clan rule is becoming more entrenched, with remarkably few families dominating elected posts at national and local levels. “We say we have a democracy but we don’t actually have many options...power is being effectively monopolised,” Ronald Mendoza, an economist at the Asian Institute of Management who has extensively researched dynasties, told AFP. While other countries also have famous political dynasties - such as the Kennedys in the United States or the Gandhi family in India - Manila-based Mendoza said dynastic rule was more deeply ingrained in the Philippines. Seven out of every 10 members of the nation’s lower house belong to a political dynasty - defined as having other relatives in elected positions - with the figure climbing to 80 percent in the Senate, according to Mendoza.

One of the most famous and powerful families is the Aquino clan. The current president was propelled into office in 2010

with a landslide election victory that was largely due to a sudden surge of emotional support following the death from cancer of his mother, Corazon Aquino. She led the revolution that overthrew dictator Ferdinand Marcos in 1986, then served as president for six years. Her husband, also named Benigno Aquino, was a wealthy landowner and politician assassinated by Marcos forces in 1983.

The youngest Benigno Aquino emerged from political obscurity - he has no experience in elected office - to become one of the favourites for a Senate seat after similarly campaigning on his family name. Another political neophyte

Benigno Aquino IV

polling well is Nancy Binay, daughter of Vice President Jejomar Binay. Once a human rights lawyer, the patriarch is building his own dynasty, with two other children already holding top political posts. Other likely new senators will be JV Ejercito, son of ex-president Joseph Estrada, and Jack Enrile, son of current Senate president and former Marcos-era defence minister Juan Ponce Enrile.

Political activists say the problem is just as bad at the provincial and local levels, where families often rule regions like fiefdoms for generations, controlling the economies as well as political structures. In Monday’s elections, 18,000 local, provincial and national posts will be up for grabs but critics of dynastic rule say the event is not genuinely democratic because voters will rarely have a genuine range of choices. “Elections provide the mechanism for conferring legitimacy to elite power and create the illusion once every three years that ‘change’ is possible”, the Center for People Empowerment in Governance, a think-tank, wrote in a study on the issue.

Even when someone has the money or celebrity power to break a family’s stranglehold on an electorate, they typically start building their own dynasty. One current example is boxing champion Manny Pacquiao, a former street kid who used his hero status and wealth from sports to beat an entrenched dynastic ruler of a southern province for a seat in the nation’s lower house in 2010.— AFP

INTERNATIONAL

SATURDAY, MAY 11, 2013

School questions linger 5 yrs after Sichuan quake BEIJING: Five years after thousands of Chinese children died as their schools collapsed in an earthquake, new babies have given devastated families hope even as questions over poor building work and corruption remain. The 8.0 magnitude tremor struck Sichuan province on the afternoon of May 12 2008, entombing both Zhu Jian’s wife, a teacher, and their 10-year-old daughter in the rubble of their school in Beichuan, the epicentre of the quake. Zhu’s wife Liu Lin was pulled from the debris severely injured, and was left disabled, but the disaster killed their daughter, whose name the couple bearing deep psychological scares are unable to speak.

They were in one of 7,000 schools that were badly damaged in the southwestern province, triggering accusations of shoddy construction, corner-cutting and possible corruption, especially as many other buildings nearby held firm. Statistics from the local education department showed that 3,340 schools needed to be rebuilt. To this day Liu Lin, 38, is too traumatised to talk about her ordeal. But the couple have renewed optimism following the birth of their son Zhu Tian two years ago. “Having

a child is having hope, and without children there is no hope,” said Zhu, a police officer who rebuilt the family home using 100,000 yuan ($16,000) in savings, plus government handouts.

Authorities said 5,335 pupils in Sichuan were confirmed as dead or missing. At Beichuan Middle School alone, 1,300 students and teachers lost their lives. For many parents China’s one-child policy meant the implications - and the pain - were particularly severe. The quake left 8,000 families childless. The government adopted a series of measures to encourage them to have new children, including free reverse vasectomies, and about 2,400 babies have been born to them since. “We just had to have a descendant. That is the way in China,” said Zhu, whose wife was able to claim free maternity treatment.

But he declined to be drawn on the mistakes of the past, preferring to focus on life after the disaster.

Asked whether he believed any blame could be attached to authorities for the collapse of buildings in Sichuan, Zhu paused in thought.

“The government have done a good job rebuilding the area since the

earthquake,” he said. Many are still seeking answers on how the quake destroyed so many schools when it struck during afternoon classes. They have become known as “tofu schools” in China, likening their structural instability to the popular soft bean curd dish.

No-one appears to have been prosecuted over the school collapses. But calls for transparency from the government on how many students were killed led to beatings and arrests of activists. Among those targeted were dissident artist Ai Weiwei, who said he was badly beaten by police when he tried to testify in support of activist Tan Zuoren, who had investigated the school buildings. The earthquake aftermath marked the emergence of Ai - chosen by the authorities to help design the Bird’s Nest Stadium in the Chinese capital which hosted the Olympics athletics events three months after the tremor - as one of Beijing’s most outspoken critics. “I have made documentary films and artworks relating to it,” said Ai, who organised a citizen’s probe into the school collapses. “This is to remind people they have to respect life and also to refuse to forget what hap-

MIANYANG, China: This picture taken on May 8, 2013 shows children skating on a square in new Beichuan county in southwest China’s Sichuan province. — AFP pened.” Other prominent campaigners have signed an open letter circulating online calling for the release of Tan. The writer and environmentalist was sentenced to five years in prison in 2010 for “inciting subversion of state power” over articles he published online about Beijing’s brutal crushing of the 1989 Tiananmen protests. Ai said: “The government

tried to cover things up and to settle the situation by jailing those people who demanded the truth, and since then they never really learned anything from it.” But for Zhu and his wife, their experience has left them seeking only a future for their son.

“We just hope he is healthy, and we have nothing else to ask from him,” Zhu said. — AFP

Protests raise pressure in ‘polarised’ Malaysia Pressure mounts on long-ruling regime

NEW YORK: In this May 6, 2013 photo, South Korean President’s spokesman Yoon Chang-jung (third right top) watches South Korean President Park Geun-hye sign the guestbook as UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon looks on at the United Nations headquarters. — AP

South Korea prez fires spokesman SEOUL: South Korean President Park Geun-Hye fired her spokesman over an unspecified “unsavoury” act midway through a summit trip to the United States this week, Yonhap news agency reported yesterday. Senior presidential press secretary Lee Nam-Ki announced Yoon Chang-Jung’s dismissal, saying he was “personally involved in an unsavoury incident”, described as “an inappropriate act for a high-level official” that “hurt national dignity.”

Lee did not elaborate but said South Korea’s embassy in Washington was looking into the incident and the findings would be made public. Yonhap news agency cited a Washington police complaint as saying a 56-year-old man grabbed a woman’s buttocks in a Washington hotel on Tuesday. Yoon, who is 56, wasn’t named in the report. Yoon had returned to Seoul from Washington on Wednesday without accompanying Park on her visit to Los Angeles, the final stop of her visit to the United States, sparking speculation on why he cut his trip short, Yonhap said. Earlier this week, Park held a summit with President Barack Obama, with the two leaders united in a vow to offer no concessions when dealing with North Korea. Park also addressed a joint session of the US Congress, stressing that Pyongyang had to give up its nuclear weapons while also proposing small peace steps after months of sky-high tensions. —Agencies

KUALA LUMPUR: A planned wave of protests over disputed Malaysian elections is the most provocative challenge to the government in years, upping pressure on a long-ruling regime already smarting from the polls. Opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim offered a preview of the movement’s potential Wednesday when he rallied a huge display of citizen power in Kuala Lumpur estimated to number up to 100,000 people. Anwar says his opposition will push a nationwide campaign to dispute last Sunday’s election in which it won a majority of the popular vote but still lost to the 56-yearold government, which he accuses of massive electoral fraud.

Any move to overturn the result looks doomed to fail, with the opposition accusing the Election Commission and courts of being in the government’s pocket. But the drive could lead to instability in the multi-ethnic country if Anwar, who has battled the Barisan Nasional (National Front) government for 15 years, can deliver promised “proof” of fraud, said pollster Ibrahim Suffian. “If the opposition can produce meaningful evidence of fraud, the government may fall into a crisis of legitimacy,” said Ibrahim, who runs independent opinion researchers Merdeka Centre.

That would further squeeze Prime Minister Najib Razak, whose standing in the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO), the power behind Barisan, is less than clear. Besides losing the popular vote, the coalition ceded a number of parliamentary seats, prompting speculation over whether Najib would face a

PUTRAJAYA: Malaysian students shout slogans outside the Election Commission offices during a protest outside Kuala Lumpur yesterday. — AFP leadership challenge in party elections by Barisan, accused of corruption and year-end. In much-analysed comments authoritarianism, suffered unprecedentafter the election, influential former hard- ed losses in 2008 to its reform-minded line leader Mahathir Mohamad expressed rivals, prompting Najib to subsequently disappointment with Najib’s perform- woo disaffected minorities in a bid to win ance. “Of course, the people will question back support. That appears to have his capacity and his strategies,” Mahathir failed, with the nation’s economically said, adding “the party may take action, powerful Chinese, who make up 25 peras happened with Abdullah”. He was cent of Malaysia’s 28 million people, referring to former premier Abdullah rejecting his government in unpreceBadawi, who was dumped by UMNO fol- dented numbers Sunday. lowing a weak 2008 election showing, in Najib poured fuel on the fire after a party putsch spearheaded by Mahathir the election by appearing to blame that brought Najib to power.

Chinese for his disappointing showing.

Barisan, which is dominated by ethnic “We are more polarised and fragmented Malays, has controlled parliament for than ever,” political scientist Faisal Hazis decades while a small and ineffectual said, adding that Najib faced a “dilemma” opposition has largely looked on. But in healing the divisions. — AFP

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G7 finance chiefs gather as dollar tops 100 yen

Britain, US, Australia hunt for tax evaders

Business

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Syria oil smugglers benefit from chaos

SATURDAY, MAY 11, 2013

India car sales on a declining streak

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PITTSBURGH: A person inserts a debit card into an ATM machine in Pittsburgh. A gang of cyber-criminals stole $45 million in a matter of hours by hacking their way into a database of prepaid debit cards and then draining cash machines around the globe, federal prosecutors said.—AP

Hackers drain cash machines Global network of hackers steal $45 million from ATMs NEW YORK: The sophistication of a global network of thieves who drained cash machines around the globe of an astonishing $45 million in mere hours sent ripples through the security world, not merely for the size of the operation and ease with which it was carried out, but also for the threat that more such thefts may be in store. Seven people were arrested in the US, accused of operating the New York cell of what prosecutors said was a network that carried out thefts at ATMs in 27 countries from Canada to Russia. Law enforcement agencies from more than a dozen nations were involved in the investigation, US prosecutors in New York said Thursday.

“Unfortunately these types of cybercrimes involving ATMs, where you’ve got a flash mob going out across the globe, are becoming more and more common,” said Rose Romero, a former federal prosecutor and regional director for the US Securities and Exchange Commission. “I expect there will be many more” of these types of crimes, she said. Brooklyn US Attorney Loretta Lynch, who called the theft “a massive 21st-century bank heist,” announced the case Thursday in New York.

Here’s how it worked: Hackers got into bank databases, eliminated withdrawal limits on prepaid debit cards and created access codes.

Others loaded that data onto any plastic card with a magnetic stripe - an old hotel key card or an expired credit card worked fine as long as it carried the account data and correct access codes. A network of operatives then fanned out to rapidly withdraw money in multiple cities, authorities said. The cells would take a cut of the money, then launder it through expensive purchases or ship it wholesale to the global ringleaders. Lynch didn’t say where they were located.

It appears no individuals lost money. The thieves plundered funds held by the banks that back up prepaid credit cards, not individual or business accounts, Lynch said. Ori Eisen, a cybercrime expert and founder of 41st Parameter, a fraud detection and prevention firm, said the $45 million heist was on the “high-end” of what can be done by cybercriminals who exploit banking systems connected to the Internet.

“Given the scale of the global credit card networks, it is almost impossible to detect every kind of attack,” he said. “This attack is not the

last one, and if the modus operandi proves to be successful crooks will exploit it time and again.”

There were two separate attacks in this case, one in December that reaped $5 million worldwide and one in February that snared about $40 million in 10 hours with about 36,000 transactions. The scheme involved attacks on two banks, Rakbank in the United Arab Emirates and the Bank of Muscat in Oman, prosecutors said.

Such ATM fraud schemes are not uncommon, but the $45 million stolen in this one was at least double the amount involved in previously known cases, said Avivah Litan, an analyst who covers security issues for Gartner Inc. Middle Eastern banks and payment processors are “a bit behind” on security and screening technologies that are supposed to prevent this kind of fraud, but it happens around the world, she said. “It’s a really easy way to turn digits into cash,” Litan said. Some of the fault lies with the ubiquitous magnetic strips on the back of the cards. The rest of the world has largely abandoned cards with magnetic strips in favor of ones with built-in chips that are nearly impossible to copy. But because US banks and merchants have stuck to cards with magnetic strips,

they are still accepted around the world.

Lynch would not say who masterminded the attacks globally, who the hackers are or where they were located, citing an ongoing investigation. The New York suspects were US citizens originally from the Dominican Republic who lived in the New York City suburb of Yonkers.

They were mostly in their 20s. Lynch said they all knew one another and were recruited together, as were cells in other countries. They were charged with conspiracy and money laundering.

If convicted, they each face 10 years in prison.

The accused ringleader in the US cell, Alberto Yusi Lajud-Pena, was reportedly killed in the Dominican Republic late last month, prosecutors said. More investigations continue and other arrests have been made in other countries, but prosecutors did not have details. An indictment unsealed Thursday accused Lajud-Pena and the other seven New York suspects of withdrawing $2.8 million in cash from hacked accounts in less than a day.

Arrests began in March. Lajud-Pena was found dead with a suitcase full of about $100,000 in cash, and the investigation into his death is continuing separately. —AP

business

SATURDAY, MAY 11, 2013

Nikkei surges; Wilting yen sends ripples across Asia Yen slumps to four-year low against dollar TOKYO: Japanese equities soared to 51/2-year highs yesterday, with the dollar sailing past the symbolic 100 yen level and beefing up the outlook for Corporate Japan, but shares elsewhere in Asian shares retreated as global equities paused overnight from recent rallies. European stock markets will likely inch higher after the pan-European FTSEurofirst closed flat overnight to stay near five-year highs. Financial spreadbetters predicted London’s FTSE 100, Paris’s CAC-40 and Frankfurt’s DAX would open up as much as 0.2 percent.

US stock futures were up 0.1 percent, suggesting a slightly firmer Wall Street open after US stocks slipped from record highs on Thursday. The US currency was buoyed after Thursday’s weekly US data showed initial jobless claims fell to the lowest level in more than five years, following last week’s much stronger-than-expected monthly nonfarm payrolls report for April. “What you need to understand about what is going on in the United States is that we’re growing, this recovery is real.

There may be some bumps, but the fundamental push forward is there,” said Carl Larry, president of the Houstonbased Oil Outlook and Opinions.

The yen’s resumed downtrend bodes well for Japanese exporters and expectations of robust earnings drove the Nikkei stock average up 3 percent to its highest since January 2008. The index is up 6.4 percent, on track for its biggest weekly gain since December 2009 when it jumped 10.4 percent. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan shed 0.9 percent, after climbing to its highest since July 2011 on

Thursday. For the week, the index is set for a gain of 0.8 percent.

A strong dollar dented appetite for safe-haven US Treasuries, pushing the 10-year Treasury yield up to a 1-month high around 1.844 percent in Asia, while rallying Japanese stocks lifted 10-year Japanese government bond yields up 10 basis points to 0.690 percent, their highest since late February. “It’s global buying of the US, with more investors feeling comfortable buying the dollar.

US stocks are stabilizing four years after the Lehman collapse.

It’s a good sign for markets when funds target the US, where investors are willing to take on risk,” said Goro Ohwada, president and CEO at Japanbased fund of hedge funds Aino

Investment Corp. Signs of a steady US recovery could heighten speculation over when the Federal Reserve will begin scaling back its aggressive quantitative easing to push up US yields, attracting funds from lower-yielding countries such as Japan.

Capital flows data showed Japanese investors were net buyers of foreign bonds in the last two weeks, reversing their relentless net selling since late January. They repatriated a total of 9.33 trillion yen in January-April. The dollar extended Thursday’s gains to hit a fresh four-year high of 101.20 yen, having stalled for a month after reaching a high of 99.95 yen in early April. The euro rose to 131.91 yen, its highest since January 2010. — Reuters

TOKYO: People walk through a concourse at the Yokohama Station in Yokohama near Tokyo yesterday. The dollar soared above 100 yen for the first time in more than four years yesterday, driven by improved US economic figures and Tokyo’s aggressive credit-easing that aims to revive Japan’s sluggish economy. — AP

Japan automakers step on profit accelerator TOKYO: Japan’s automakers have wrapped up the latest earnings season on a high note, booking mostly healthy profits as a weak yen, cost-cutting and strong demand in the US and Asia inflated their bottom line. The results cement a recovery after the quake-tsunami disaster two years ago devastated sales and production, although a more recent diplomatic dispute between Tokyo and Beijing-and subsequent boycott of Japanese productsweighed on sales in China, the world’s biggest vehicle market.

The dispute was particularly tough on Nissan, which said yesterday its annual net profit barely moved from a year earlier as its exposure to recession-riddled Europe also slammed the brakes on growth. By contrast, Toyota this week said profit in its fiscal year to March more than tripled to 962.1 billion yen ($9.5 billion). The Camry and Corolla maker, which last year overtook General Motors to regain the title of world’s biggest automaker, said things would get even better and it was expecting a net profit of 1.37 trillion yen for the fiscal year ending March 2014. Honda, Japan’s third-biggest automaker, said its net profit jumped nearly 75 percent to 367.15 billion yen over the fiscal year. Smaller carmakers including Mitsubishi and Suzuki rolled out rosy results as well, cit-

ing strong growth in emerging markets and a weakening yen, which boosts automakers’ competitiveness overseas and inflates the value of repatriated foreign income.

The dollar surged past 100-yen on Thursday, to levels last seen more than four years ago, with many observers pointing to further yen weakness, as Tokyo’s policy prescription of big spending and aggressive central bank easing to boost the limp economy helps depress the currency. “The upbeat trend in Japan’s auto sector is nearly 100 percent due to the yen’s decline,” said Tatsuya Mizuno, auto analyst with Mizuno Credit Advisory. “As long as that continues, automakers should see positive results for the current fiscal year. But there are several uncertainties, including the negative impact of JapanChina relations... The situation appears calmer, but nothing has fundamentally changed.”

The long-standing dispute flared again in September when Tokyo nationalized some of a chain of East China Sea islands also claimed by Beijing, sparking huge demonstrations across China and the damaging boycott.

Germany’s Volkswagen and US-based General Motors have tried to capitalize on their Japanese competitors’ troubles in the country, but Toyota and Honda both say their sales in China were returning to normal. —AFP

G7 finance chiefs gather as dollar tops 100 yen AYLESBURY: Finance ministers and central bank chiefs from the Group of Seven top economies will gather yesterday for talks on spurring growth, with currency factors likely to feature after the US dollar surged past 100 yen. A central issue is disagreement between some countries in Europe and the United States over the scale of austerity. The G7 - comprising Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States-is expected to build on last month’s wider Group of 20 meeting, while looking ahead to next month’s G8 heads of state summit in Northern Ireland. Britain is this year president of the G8 - or G7 plus Russia-and is using the platform to also push for greater multilateral co-operation in tackling tax evasion. The two-day G7 meeting in Buckinghamshire, north of London, will begin later.

In the run-up to the high-profile event, the dollar vaulted past the key 100-yen barrier for the first time in more than four years on Thursday, as Tokyo’s aggressive stimulus efforts to lift the Japanese economy continue to depress its currency. A weak yen leads to cheaper Japanese exports. And yesterday, it raced as high as 101.42 yen, touching a level last seen on April 6, 2009, with sentiment boosted also by upbeat US labor market data.

“Finance ministers are due to discuss a number of issues including ways to get the global economy moving again, as well as the controversial topic of central banks,” noted analyst Craig Erlam at traders Alpari. “So far, they have attempted to distance themselves from suggestions that certain central banks are intentionally devaluing their currencies in order to increase competitiveness, but with more central banks cutting rates and announcing large stimulus programs, it could only be a matter of time until we see their tone change.”

Last month, G20 nations gave the green light to aggressive stimulus by Japan, despite recent heavy criticism in Europe that the Asian country is forcing down the yen’s value to help its exporters. Japan’s monetary easing has sparked sharp falls in the value of the yen, sparking fears of a global currency war in which rival nations drive down their units to gain a trade advantage. Japan maintains however that the policy is aimed at bringing growth and overcoming deflation.

Emerging economies seen leading the way. The G7 nations, which together produce about half of the world’s economic output, are slowly recovering from a late 2012 slowdown, the OECD said recently, with Japan and the United States leading the way, ahead of a struggling, two-speed euro-zone. Emerging economies were tipped to remain by far the strongest growth performers, with China expected to expand by well more than 8.0 percent in the first half of 2013, the Organization for Economic Development and Cooperation said.

Forecasts remain very uncertain however, the OECD added, with new-found buoyancy on financial markets yet to feed through to the wider economy. The US and Frankfurt stock markets have raced to record high points this week following positive economic data out of the United States and Germany, but some analysts believe the rally will be short-lived due to euro-zone debt worries.

Ahead of the G7 gathering, the United States has meanwhile called on Europe further to ease fiscal consolidation to avoid more economic damage. Europe’s leaders have been successful at removing some of the more immediate risks in the euro-zone debt crisis, a senior US Treasury official told reporters. “Now the focus needs to shift to boosting demand and employment, to avoid lasting damage to the economy,” the official told a briefing. “It’s important to recalibrate the pace of fiscal consolidation...continued sharp fiscal consolidation risks undermining demand.”

The European Union recently granted France two extra years to meet its deficit target on condition that it pursues reforms. —AFP

business

SATURDAY, MAY 11, 2013

Economy deters investors Fund slashes French property price LONDON: German fund Degi has put a Parisian office block on sale for 95 million euros ($124 million), just over half what it paid in 2008, as France’s economic woes erode its status as a top European target for property investors. The fund, owned by Aberdeen Asset Management, is selling the River Plaza complex about four miles northwest of central Paris in AsniËres-surSeine, where tenants include L’Oreal and Fujitsu, two sources close to the deal said.

The modest price tag reflects increasing concern for France’s economic health amid rising taxes, record unemployment and doubts about President Hollande’s bid to revive growth through public spending.

Aberdeen Asset Management declined to comment.

But other fund managers said they were re-evaluating the level of profit French property could deliver.

Property investors have a more pessimistic view on the French rental market than anywhere else in Europe including Greece, according to a survey last month by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS). “We are asking a lot more rigorous questions about what is supporting the French economy and have brought our return forecast down because of the economic malaise,” said Will Rowson, chief investment officer for Europe, the Middle East and Africa at CBRE Global Investors, which manages $91 billion of real estate globally.

Axa Real Estate, which owns more than 14 billion euros of French property, forecasts the market will yield total returns - a figure that includes rental growth and rises in property values - of 4.4 percent this year versus 8.2 percent in Germany and 7.8 percent in Britain. Funds are still buying property in the best streets of Paris and London to preserve wealth in the belief such buildings will remain highly-prized. But beyond the glitzy shopping boulevards and top business districts, Paris is losing its pulling power. After years of strong rental growth at mall owners like Unibail-Rodamco and Klepierre, investors now worry that the economic environment will make it hard to sustain those levels of rent as leases expire. —Reuters

American Airlines settles safety claims for $24.9m DALLAS: American Airlines has agreed to pay $24.9 million to settle $162 million in potential fines that were proposed

by US safety regulators. American called the payment “a reasonable resolution” to the Federal Aviation Administration’s claims that American had violated safety regulations involving electrical wiring on planes and other issues. The airline’s parent company, AMR Corp, disclosed the settlement Thursday in a filing with the federal bankruptcy court in New York. Airlines frequently negotiate with the FAA to reduce potential penalties. A spokeswoman for American said the airline was pleased with the settlement over a claim that FAA had lodged during AMR’s bankruptcy reorganization.

“This settlement recognizes the many changes, including enhancements to our maintenance and engineering processes, increased training, inspections, and audits that have taken place at American over the past several years that address past FAA concerns,” the spokeswoman, Andrea Huguely, said in a statement. The settlement is subject to the bankruptcy court’s approval. AMR expects to emerge from bankruptcy protection and merge with US Airways Group Inc. by the end of September.

In 2010, the FAA proposed a record penalty of $24.2 million against American over maintenance lapses that caused planes to be grounded and thousands of flights to be canceled in 2008. The FAA said that American crews had not followed proper procedures in restraining electrical wires on many planes, raising the risk of fires and fueltank explosions. The airline always insisted that passenger safety was never compromised and that the FAA’s charges were overblown. —AP

Croatia long for investors but drags feet on reforms Red tape suffocates investment DUBROVNIK: The barren Srdj plateau overlooking the mediaeval city of Dubrovnik is a real estate developer’s dream, offering breath-taking views of Croatia’s top tourist destination. That’s precisely why an Israeli-Croatian consortium began planning a billion-euro golf resort there in 2006. Seven years on, construction has yet to start. This project typifies the problems facing foreign investors in Croatia, which joins the European Union on July 1, more than 20 years after it broke away in war from socialist Yugoslavia.

Worth about 1.1 billion euros ($1.44 billion), Golf Park Dubrovnik has become tied up in red tape, everchanging municipal building plans and most recently the ire of Dubrovnik’s residents. A referendum in April, forced by civic groups who said the project would spoil the eco-system, failed due to low turnout. But the developers say the damage has been done, reinforcing Croatia’s image as hostile territory for foreign investors.

“This is the biggest greenfield investment in tourism in Croatia’s modern history,” project director Ivan Kusalic told Reuters, standing on the shrub-covered plateau that is still littered with landmines from Croatia’s 1991-95 war of independence. “A lot of investors interested in Croatia have contacted us and are watching closely.” Analysts say an over-sized state lies behind many of the problems experienced by such projects. Successive governments have hesitated in cutting the public administration and its employees’ socialist-era benefits for fear of losing votes.

In some cases the investment flow is reversing just as Croatia joins the single European market. Some local firms are moving production to neighboring Balkan countries that will remain outside the EU to remain competitive in their backyard. Foreign direct investment in Croatia peaked at around 4.2 billion euros in 2008, before the global financial crisis fully struck, and had dwindled to a mere 326 million two years later.

It climbed back to 973 million euros in 2012, but these figures pale in comparison with an investment boom over the past decade in the likes of Slovakia, Hungary and the Czech Republic in excommunist eastern Europe. Romania, the poorest member of the EU, attracted 23 billion euros between 2006 and 2008. Slovenia, Croatia’s western neighbor and a fellow ex-Yugoslav republic, blazed a trail for the Balkans when it joined the EU in 2004 and the euro zone in 2007. However, Ljubljana is now paying the price of refusing to give up state control over around half of the economy as it tries to avoid an international bailout. Croatia, by contrast, sold its banks and telecoms and oil firm after independence, but greenfield investments have been few and far between.

RED TAPE, SLOW REFORMS Tourists, who flock every summer to Croatia’s Adriatic coast and over 1,000 islands, account for almost 20 percent of national output. Yet only a handful of communist-era hotels have been sold to foreigners. Successive governments have dragged their feet on

reforms. Scandinavian-style furniture retailer IKEA, for example, had to wait five years to obtain all the necessary permits to open a store in Croatia, and hopes to begin business in 2014.

“Croatia has too many people living off the budget,” said Zrinka Zivkovic Matijevic, an analyst at Raiffeisenbank.

“Any serious reform should deeply cut (welfare and public sector) rights and the privileged groups, at the risk of losing the next elections. So far no one has been willing to do that, even though everyone knows what needs to be done,” she said. Weak foreign direct investment has contributed to a recession that has lasted four years. The current Social Democrat-led government has made improving the business climate its top priority to spur growth.

“At the moment we’re pursuing 60 different activities aimed at removing investment barriers, primarily to speed up procedures and reduce costs,” said Deputy Prime Minister Branko Grcic.

“We believe we’ll be able to unblock investment projects this year worth around 1.2 billion euros,” he said, citing the tourism, industry and energy sectors. The government also plans to invest 14.3 billion kuna ($2.47 billion) this year in projects including two power plants and an overhaul of the railways. But the challenges facing the country of 4.4 million people are great.

Croatia ranked 84th on the World Bank’s 2012 ease of doing business list, dropping four places from 2011 behind poorer Balkan neighbours Macedonia and Montenegro and former Soviet republics such as Armenia, Georgia and Kyrgyzstan. —Reuters

BARCELONA: Visitors look at the Renault Twizy Sport F1 during its presentation at Barcelona’s International Motor Show 2013 yesterday in Barcelona. — AFP

business

SATURDAY, MAY 11, 2013

Africa’s emerging middle class drives growth and democracy JOHANNESBURG: After years of headlines about Africa’s poverty, its emerging middle class is now grabbing attention as a driver of growth and democracy and an expanding pool of consumers for market-hungry retailers. Consumer demand is a motor of Africa’s economic and investment surge, and analysts see middle class buyers with swelling disposable income as fuelling this boom from South Africa to Nigeria and Kenya.

In its Africa Pulse report last month, the World Bank said consumer spending accounted for more than 60 percent of Sub-Saharan Africa’s buoyant economic growth, which it forecast would accelerate to more than 5 percent over the next three years, far outpacing the global average. “It’s probably the fastest growing consumer class in the world, as a region,” said Michael Lalor, director of Ernst & Young’s Africa Business Center in Johannesburg.

From mobile phones, cars, food, and clothes to financial services and entertainment, multinational companies are homing in on lucrative new markets as millions of Africans aspire to claw their way out of still widespread poverty. “The poor don’t drive demand in an economy, it’s the middle class that drive demand in an economy,” African Development Bank Chief Economist Mthuli Ncube said. “Reducing poverty means creating a middle class. Sometimes people think pushing the middle class means forgetting about poverty, but it’s the other side of the coin,” he added.

Global demand for African commodities, driven by China, has also boosted economic growth along with strong investment in productive industries and infrastructure. The World Bank forecast foreign direct investment in Sub-Saharan Africa will reach $54 billion by 2015, up from $37.7 billion in 2012. At the same time, a greater number of African countries are achieving relative stability in politics and economic policy, allowing the middle class to emerge.

Accurately quantifying this African middle class has become an obsession for institutions such as the African Development Bank (AfDB) and World Bank, as well as consultancies advising corporate clients seeking an edge in this booming continent.

But this is a challenging task in a very diverse region - still the least developed on the planet - where reliable data is patchy and whose more than 50 economies range from regional powerhouses South Africa and Nigeria to UN Development Index laggards such as Niger and Mozambique.

A CONSUMING CLASS “There are elastic definitions ... The middle class is very different in Kenya, for example, where you need far less disposable income than you might need in the United States,” said Ernst & Young’s Lalor. One of the most frequently quoted - and debated - studies is a 2011 report by the African Development Bank.

This said that, based on a daily per capita consumption definition of $2-20, Africa’s middle class had risen by 2010 to 34 percent of its population - or nearly 350 million people - from about 126 million or 27 percent in 1980.

Given that $2 a day or below is widely accepted globally as a poverty indicator, many economists see the AfDB’s middle class range, as cited in its 2011 report, as too broad and optimistic.

Standard Bank economist Simon Freemantle says other studies indicate a more “African-appropriate” measure of middle class level income of between $15 and $20 a day. “There, Africa’s middle class would be closer to 120 million, out of a population of just over a billion, so roughly 10 percent,” he said. Citigroup’s Africa Economist David Cowan preferred not to use the term “middle class” at all in relation to Africa. “I don’t believe there’s an African middle class,” he said, when compared with Europe or Asia. Cowan would rather speak of a rapidly expanding “huge consuming class”, with ideally $5,000-7,000 of disposable income a year ($14-19 a day). “That’s a level at which people can really make consumer purchases ... middle class in my mind should able to afford a washing machine and go out and buy a motorbike,” he said.

DRIVERS OF DEMOCRACY Few doubted that the emerging middle class was an important group for defining Africa’s economic and political course.

As keen users of mobile phones and the Internet, including social media networks, they were plugged into the digital world and international news and therefore had a role as opinion makers and agents of reform and change. —Reuters

Egypt report casts doubt over Centamin’s gold mine appeal Shares fall as much as 21%, biggest FTSE-350 loser CAIRO: Shares of Egypt-focused gold miner Centamin Plc fell as much as 21 percent after the company said an advisory body had made unfavourable recommendations to the court that will decide the fate of its only operating mine.

Centamin is appealing to the Supreme Administrative Court of Egypt to overturn a decision by another court to revoke its lease for the Sukari gold mine in Egypt’s Eastern Desert.

The mine, which produced 262,958 ounces of gold last year, is continuing to operate normally pending the final outcome of the court process, Centamin said in a statement. Centamin, which has a market capitalization of about $780 million, said the first appeal hearing would be on June 19. It added that the Egyptian State Commissioner’s Office had produced a report containing non-binding recommendations for the court. These recommendations were “not positive”, Centamin said. The company’s stock was

the biggest percentage loser on the FTSE350 index yesterday morning.

Speaking to Reuters by telephone, Centamin Chairman Josef El-Raghy said: “We see (the recommendations) as having no bearing on how we’ll progress our appeal process.”

He declined to reveal details of the recommendations in the report. The State Commissioner’s Office was not available for comment on Friday, a holiday in Egypt. “The office’s recommendations are advisory only and non-binding, but the apparent negative undertone has potential to make the appeal more challenging,” said Numis Securities analyst Cailey Barker. Egypt has experienced more than two years of political and economic turmoil since the overthrow of President Hosni Mubarak, hammering foreign investment and prompting budget and currency crises. Centamin has been hounded by a string of bureaucratic difficulties in Egypt in recent months.

Customs officials have held up exports and the country’s petroleum ministry has disrupted fuel supplies to the mine. The company is appealing a decision by the Egyptian Administrative Court last October that declared its right to operate the Sukari mine invalid. The ruling was suspended in March pending the outcome of the appeal. “The whole Egyptian situation with Centamin has been a rollercoaster ride,” said Carole Ferguson, senior research analyst at SP Angel. “The fact that they can’t have clarity at this stage ... will just make investors very nervous.” Centamin, also listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange , said in March that it expected the Sukari mine to produce 320,000 ounces of gold in 2013, 22 percent more than last year. The mine is located 700 km (440 miles) from Cairo.

Centamin also holds exploration licenses in Ethiopia. The company’s shares were down 14.5 percent at 39.00 pence at 1040 GMT.— Reuters

AHMEDABAD: A young Indian child walks past a car during the inauguration of Gujarat’s first Volvo Dealer’s showroom near Ahmedabad. Car sales in India fell around 10 percent in April 2013 - its sixth straight monthly decline. — AFP

Indian car sales on longest ever declining streak MUMBAI: Car sales in India slid by over 10 percent in April, industry data showed yesterday, marking the longest ever stretch of monthly declines in the country’s once redhot car market. “We have never seen a successive monthly decline of six months,” said the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM)’s senior director Sugato Sen, who called the latest numbers “not good”. Domestic passenger car sales, seen as a pointer to overall economic health, fell by 10.43 percent to 150,789 vehicles in April from the same month a year earlier.

High borrowing costs, worries over a sharp slowdown in the economy and costly fuel have kept buyers out of showrooms.

The weak demand has forced automakers to introduce “buy now, pay later” schemes, interest-free repayments and double-digit discounts. Sen said he expected the market to remain sluggish for another two to three months, but added that purchases could pick up once auto loans become cheaper.

India’s central bank last week cut its main interest rate by 25 basis points-its third such reduction this year-in an effort to kickstart sharply slower economic growth.

The Congress party-led government expects at least six percent growth this year after the economy grew by an estimated five percent in the previous year, its lowest rate in a decade. Domestic passenger car sales fell by 6.7 percent in the year to March 2013 to 1.89 million units from a year earlier-the first contraction in 10 years. Car sales are projected to grow by three-to-five percent in the 12 months to March 2014, according to SIAM, but this is far below a record 30-percent rise notched up in 201011. The declining sales have raised questions about large investments by foreign auto giants building new capacity in India.

Ford, for instance, has earmarked nearly $1 billion to build a plant in western Gujarat state that will be able to turn out 240,000 cars a year by 2014. GM, Toyota Motor Corp and Maruti Suzuki have also been boosting

capacity to meet what they hope will be big growth in a market that could equal China’s and offset weakness in the developed world. Still, India-with its 1.2-billion population, low penetration of car ownership and rising incomes-is a compelling destination for international carmakers aiming to hike sales in the longer term, analysts say.

The number of cars per 1,000 Indians is just 15 compared to 58 in China and around 800 in the United States, according to analysts. On the April sales, Mahantesh Sabarad of Fortune Equity Brokers said: “Despite the fall, the quantum of decline has been narrowing which is a good sign.”

Analysts expect demand to also be helped by forecasts of a normal monsoon, which should improve rural demand and automakers’ new model line-ups. Ford is set to launch its mini sports-utility-vehicle EcoSport while Mahindra & Mahindra will unveil its hatchback Verito Vibe. A new small car from Hyundai India is also expected, analysts say.— AFP

business

SATURDAY, MAY 11, 2013

Nissan’s annual profit growth stalls TOKYO: Japan’s Nissan said yesterday that its annual net profit had barely moved from a year earlier despite market conditions that helped rivals Toyota and Honda book soaring profits. The pair logged huge gains largely owing to a sharply weaker yen and cost-cutting that helped inflate their bottom line. Nissan, partowned by France’s Renault, has also benefited from the yen’s decline with its fourth-quarter earnings jumping due to the weaker currency. But its heavy exposure to China, the world’s biggest vehicle market, and recession-riddled Europe slammed the brakes on growth.

“Compared with its rivals, Nissan faces several uncertain factors, including its relations with Renault, its electric vehicle strategy and the China issue,” said Tatsuya Mizuno, auto analyst with Mizuno Credit Advisory. Japan’s automakers suffered from a diplomatic row between Tokyo and Beijing that sparked huge riots across China and a damaging consumer boycott of Japanese brands. Nissan’s sales to China, which make up almost one-quarter of its total sales, far higher than its domestic rivals, fell 5.3 percent on-year to 1.18 million vehicles, it said.

While sales to China last month were better than a year earlier, Nissan conceded it has lost market share as Volkswagen and USbased General Motors tried to capitalize on their Japanese rivals troubles in the country. “We are working hard to recover from the impact of the island dispute,” Chief Executive Carlos Ghosn told a press briefing yesterday. “I consider the recovery achieved completely when our market share will come back to what it was before” the dispute flared, he added.

Demand in Europe including the key Russian market and in Japan slipped from a year earlier with strong sales in the United States and emerging markets including Thailand and Brazil picking up the slack, Nissan said. Ghosn laid out a grim prediction for Europe this year as the continent remains mired in recession. “I think Europe is going to be bad, but again it’s like when you know that Europe is going to be bad then you can manage Europe,” Ghosn said. “There is no illusion.... we are not absolutely not forecasting any growth in Europe.”

However he offered a more upbeat view on Nissan’s bid to boost disappointing sales of its LEAF electric vehicle, saying governments are working on infrastructure to charge the eco-friendly cars. Consumer fears about range and not being able to charge the vehicles out on the road have been a major impediment to commercial success, analysts say. “We think that when consumers will feel comfortable by seeing infrastructure everywhere (those fears) will disappear and will help a lot to increase sales,” Ghosn said.

Overall, Nissan said it sold a record 4.91 million units globally in the past fiscal year, up 1.4 percent, as it rolled out a string of new models. It posted a net profit of 342.4 billion yen ($3.4 billion) on sales of 9.63 trillion yen for the fiscal year ended in March.

Japan’s number-two automaker-which posted a slightly lower 341.43 billion yen net profit a year earlier-said it expected earnings to rise almost 23 percent to 420 billion yen this year.

A weakening yen has helped make Japan’s exporters more competitive overseas and inflated the value of their foreign income, boosting profits. The benefit of currency fluctuations appeared likely to continue as the dollar soared past 100-yen in US forex trading Thursday, a level last seen more than four years ago. The dollar hit a record low around 75 against the Japanese currency in late 2011, setting off howls of complaints from Japanese manufacturers. Nissan shares were up 3.0 percent to 1,063 yen in Tokyo yesterday, before its latest results were published— AFP

YOKOHAMA: Nissan Motors’ “Skyline coupe” is on display at the showroom of its headquarters in Yokohama, south of Tokyo yesterday. Nissan said its annual net profit came in nearly flat from a year earlier, a result that stood in stark contrast to rivals Toyota and Honda which have booked soaring profits.— AFP

UK, US, Australia hunt for tax evaders yielding leads Three countries comb data trove LONDON: A joint effort by Britain, the United States and Australia to track down people who conceal wealth in offshore tax structures has helped identify more than 100 individuals, the UK’s tax authority said on Thursday. “The message is simple: if you evade tax, we’re coming after you,” said Britain’s Finance Minister George Osborne.

After a string of high-profile multinational companies were shown to be paying little or no tax in the UK, Britain has been pushing the European Union and other major economies to clamp down on tax evasion and avoidance. Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC) said it had teamed up with Australian and US authori-

ties to help speed up analysis of 400 gigabytes of data they have obtained. Michael Danilack, a deputy US Internal Revenue Service commissioner said the United States was willing to share this information with other countries.

UK and US officials declined to identify the source of the information. “This data is another weapon in HMRC’s arsenal,” Britain’s Osborne said. The data may overlap with data leaked to The International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ), the watchdog group said on Thursday. In April, the ICIJ and media partners began reporting on alleged tax evasion cases stemming from 260 gigabytes of information, including cash transfers

and incorporation dates. “The files illustrate how offshore financial secrecy has spread aggressively around the globe, allowing the wealthy to avoid taxes,” the ICIJ said in a statement. Britain’s HMRC said some of those identified as a result of the three-country collaboration were already under investigation for tax evasion, and more than 200 other accountants, lawyers and advisers face scrutiny over their roles in setting up offshore tax structures. Early results from the project with the US IRS and the Australian Tax Office highlighted the use of trusts and companies in territories such as Singapore, the British Virgin Islands, the Cayman Islands and the Cook Islands.— Reuters

Panasonic logs $7.5 billion annual loss TOKYO: Panasonic said yesterday it had logged another eye-watering net loss in the year to March, coming up $7.5 billion dollars short, but pledging to turn a profit over the next 12 months. The struggling electronics giant booked a 754.25 billion yen ($7.5 billion) net loss over the year to March, only slightly better than the 772.17 billion yen hole in its balance sheet the previous year, one of the worst-ever losses for a non-financial Japanese firm.

Its operating profit however jumped 268 percent to 160.94 billion yen as the firm carried out aggressive cost cutting and reform programs, while sales came to 7.3 trillion yen, down 6.9 percent. The company said the electronics industry as a

whole “continued to be in a severe business situation including sluggish demand in flat-panel TVs mainly in Japan”.

Panasonic, like key domestic rivals Sony and Sharp, has long suffered in its television business where foreign rivals have proved tough competition, while its debt has been inflated by the purchase of smaller rival Sanyo. The company also booked some 508 billion yen as a business restructuring expense. The firm said the yen’s rapid fall against the dollar and the euro toward the end of last year had mitigated its problems somewhat. The Japanese unit was trading well above 100 to the dollar yesterday, against a rate below 80 in the middle of last year. Exporters generally get

a bounce from a weakening currency because their products become more competitive overseas and their repatriated profits are worth more at home.

Ahead of the results announcement, the company’s Tokyo-listed shares closed 3.74 percent up at 749 yen. For the year to March 2014, Panasonic resolved to return to net profit of 50 billion yen and increase operating profit to 250 billion yen. But it expected annual sales to fall 1.4 percent to 7.2 trillion yen. On Thursday, rival Sony said it had booked its first annual net profit in five years, offering a glimmer of hope for the former market leader.

But the once-iconic firm’s jump back into the black was largely due to fluctua-

tions in the value of the yen and gains from a string of asset sales-including unloading its Manhattan office building for more than $1.0 billion-while its television and electronics business continues to struggle. The maker of PlayStation gaming consoles and Bravia televisions has launched a massive corporate overhaul to stem losses, including thousands of job cuts and the asset sales. Panasonic and Sharp have also begun huge restructuring plans to rescue their bleeding balance sheets. Century-old Sharp warned last year that its survival was at stake. The cashstrapped company put up its Osaka headquarters as collateral for life-saving bank loans.— AFP

business

SATURDAY, MAY 11, 2013

Syria oil smugglers benefit from chaos BEIRUT: In Syria’s eastern province of Deir al-Zor, a network of tribes and smugglers has exploited the chaos of war to create an illicit oil trade that makes European hopes of buying crude from President Bashar alAssad’s opponents a distant prospect.

Powerful Sunni Muslim tribes have deployed armed fighters around oil production facilities and pipelines that have fallen under their control and set up smuggling and trade deals, according to sources in the province including rebels, an oil company employee and people with ties to the tribes.

Deir al-Zor is critical to Syrian oil output that has more than halved in the past two years of fighting. The hijacking of the oil industry by tribes complicates Western efforts to help the Syrian opposition fund itself and will make any future reconstruction even more difficult. “Each tribe now is in control of at least a part of an oil field, it depends how big it is and how many fighters it can deploy,” said the state oil firm employee who gave his name as Abu Ramzi.

As well as production facilities, tribal fighters had seized control of pipelines, often drilling into them to extract oil.

Thousands of barrels of crude are smuggled to Turkey daily by small tankers using farm roads, said Abu Ramzi. The oil is taken to the Bab al-Hawa or Tal Abiad border posts, a source close to the smugglers in Deir al-Zor said. The price of a barrel depends on the quality of the crude oil and the cost of transport - the shorter the trip the cheaper - but it could be 8,000 Syrian pounds, slightly over $50, he said. In recent weeks, some wealthy smugglers have begun using “mobile refineries” stationed on trucks to process crude into fuel and other products. Costing up to $230,000, a medium sized mobile plant can refine up to 200 barrels a day. Fuel smuggled into Turkey sells for roughly 50 percent more than in Syria.

TRIBAL POWER Western-backed rebel commanders, who

Homebuilders can’t find enough qualified workers WASHINGTON: US builders and the subcontractors they depend on are struggling to hire fast enough to meet rising demand for new homes. Builders would be starting work on more homes - and contributing more to the economy - if they could fill more job openings. In the meantime, workers in the right locations with the right skills are commanding higher pay. Consider Richard Vap, who owns a drywall installation company. The resurgent housing market has sent builders calling again. Vap would love to help - if he could hire enough qualified people.

“There is a shortage of manpower,” says Vap, owner of South Valley Drywall in Littleton, Colo. “We’re probably only hiring about 75 or 80 percent of what we actually need.” The shortage of labor ranges across occupations from construction superintendents and purchasing agents to painters, cabinet makers and drywall installers. The National Association of Home Builders says its members have complained of too few framers, roofers, plumbers and carpenters. The shortage is most acute in areas where demand for new homes has recovered fastest, notably in Arizona, California, Texas, Colorado and Florida.

The problem results largely from an exodus of workers from the industry after the housing bubble burst.

Experienced construction workers lost jobs. And many found new work - in commercial building or in booming and sometimes higher-paying industries like mining and natural gas drilling - and aren’t eager to come back.

Hispanic immigrants, largely from Mexico, who had filled jobs during the boom were among those who left the industry and, in some cases, the United States.

Dave Erickson, president of Greyhawk Homes in Columbus, Ga, lost an employee who took a job this year in Texas. The former employee is now installing fiber-optic cable and earning 30 percent more than he did as a construction supervisor. “I think he’s frustrated with the cycle we went through in recent years,” Erickson says. A shortage of labor in a well-paying industry might seem incongruous in an economy stuck with a still-high 7.5 percent unemployment rate. But it reflects just how many former skilled construction workers have moved on to other fields. In 2006, when the boom peaked, 3.4 million people worked in homebuilding. By 2011, the figure had bottomed at about 2 million. As of last month, about 2.1 million people were employed in residential construction.

Jobs in the industry did rise 4.1 percent in April from a year earlier, faster than overall US job growth. But they’d have to surge 24 percent more to reach 2.6 million, their 2002 level - “the last time the market was normal,” says David Crowe, chief economist for the National Association of Home Builders.— AP

the European Union hoped would benefit from last month’s EU decision to allow the purchase of oil from the Syrian opposition, concede they have little immediate prospect of winning a share of the trade. The power of the tribes in the deeply conservative and traditional east of the country, and the fact that they have fighters in many of the different rebel brigades, makes tribal leaders almost untouchable. The patchwork of tribes and fragmented opposition are complicating Western efforts to find an effective response to the crisis in Syria.

The other force in the region is the al Qaeda-linked Nusra Front, which has reached an understanding with the tribes over the division of spoils, sources say. The Nusra Front has used its profits to buy more weapons and pay its fighters. The Westernbacked rebel military command fears that any attempt to take control of the oil fields would trigger a bloody confrontation and create a lasting cycle of tribal revenge.

Its immediate priority is to take over the

city of Deir al-Zor before dealing with those it calls the “oil thieves” - an emerging class of warlords linked by oil, money and arms.

“This is very difficult, people now have tasted money and also tasted the power that comes with it. They will not give up without a fight,” said a rebel commander. “The rebels do not want to clash with anyone right now.

It is a tribal province and anything could backfire against the rebels - who themselves are sons of tribes.” Some rebel sources said their commanders had made contact with some tribes, seeking to convince them to share a percentage of their profits. So far the talks have been fruitless. “We can not get close to it without blood, let’s be realistic,” one source in the rebel command said via Skype. Another source close to one of the strongest tribes in the area said the collapse of central authority after two years of conflict in Syria had allowed the tribes to become increasingly organized and powerful. “These people will not allow anybody to touch the pipelines,” he said.— Reuters

Oil slips below $104, rising supply weighs Nagging doubts on China recovery LONDON: Brent crude oil slid below $104 a barrel yesterday as rising supplies and doubts over China’s economy yesterday outweighed stronger signs of a US recovery. A firmer dollar also pressured oil. “US economic data have proved better than expected - initial jobless claims fell last week to their lowest level since the beginning of 2008 - but at the same time there are ample supplies on the oil market,” said Commerzbank. Brent was down 56 cents at $103.91 a barrel by 0938 GMT. US crude eased 67 cents to $95.72.

Investors had grown more confident after the number of Americans filing new claims for jobless aid fell last week to its lowest in more than 5 years, underlining resilience flagged earlier by a strong April employment report. But doubts persisted about the health of the world’s No 2 economy, China. While consumer inflation rose in April, China’s factory prices fell for a 14th straight month. In the first quarter, China’s gross domestic product grew by a less than forecast 7.7 percent, frustrating investors who had hoped for a strong rebound of at least 8 percent.

US investment bank Goldman Sachs said the spread between Brent and US crude could shrink to $5 in the third quarter as the bottleneck at Cushing, Oklahoma, the US midwest storage hub, eases as pipelines expand. “... the opening of the Ho-Ho pipeline that connects the Houston crude market with the refineries in St. James will allow the glut of light sweet crude that is developing in the Texas Gulf Coast to be distributed more evenly on the entire US Gulf Coast,” the bank said.

Stockpiles of US crude hit another record level last week due to growing domestic production. Expectations that further capacity utilisation could suck more oil out of Cushing and over to US refiners on Thursday pulled the spread between US crude and Brent to $7.47 - its

narrowest since 2011. The spread yesterday widened out to around $8.19. Oil may draw some support from heightened tension in the Middle East after Hezbollah

leader Hassan Nasrallah said Syria would respond to Israeli raids around Damascus by giving his group more sophisticated new weapons. — Reuters

NORTH DAKOTA: The horse head (top) and bridle are pictured in this file photo taken near Tioga, North Dakota. According to the Department of Energy the US is enjoying a boom in its crude oil reserves with 395.3 million barrels, the highest since 1982. — AFP

SATURDAY, MAY 11, 2013 www.kuwaittimes.net

Barbie Dreamhouse a pink feminist nightmare PAGE 25

Rapper Psy wows Harvard with global appeal PAGE 27

Actress Kristin Bauer van Straten attends the “6th Annual Television Academy Honors” held at the Beverly Hills Hotel on May 9, 2013 in Beverly Hills, California. — AFP

SATURDAY, MAY 11, 2013

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Gwyneth Paltrow slams the Met Gala

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he ‘Iron Man 3’ actress was among a host of stars who attended the Costume Institute Ball in New York but insists it will be her last time because she hated every minute of it. Gwyneth told USA Today: “I’m never going again. It was so un-fun. It was boiling. It was too crowded. I did not enjoy it at all.”

However, Gwyneth admitted she did enjoy spending time with her fellow celebrities and despite recently being voted the World’s Most Beautiful Woman by People magazine, was struck by supermodel Miranda Kerr’s beauty.

She said: “I was like, ‘Is it weird to be that pretty?’ And she was like, ‘No.’” Gwyneth, 40, also named the 30-year-old former Victoria’s Secret Angel the best-dressed celebrity at the star-studded event. She said: “She was wearing a black Michael Kors dress that was sort of like a sparkling bandeau, and her whole stomach was showing. “It was really beautiful. It was a little punk-y. She’s just so pretty, it’s abnormal.”

mer w old sin to think n will b he 39-year- den on tour this sum ily. He said: “Camde or controlling, I like ealed e m v m iv a fa re old son C d with his ’re not overly obsess ica Simpson - also le magng the roa ss p e about hitti rst time parents. W iously married to Je arents. He told Peo ep rev ill fi come p m e ch s b a ca y e tt w to b y o re 2 d h p 3 a nt re uick - w We’re nessa, 100 per ce have a bea he and Va and hip.” N we’re cool r been happier since lives where we were ere ready for that. “I ibly enviw e ss ur he has nev ere at the point in o life changes and we ing I could have po life. It’s y th w ur m ry e o f e y o v “W e : in rs e a is g n e in y fe zi l a magica single th and our li st r ry o e e v m th E . o e ts m th n l be pare utifu aping up to ho is a bea tiful wife w y family. These are sh lm.” m I felt this ca sioned for g time since been a lon

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Keira Knightley is honeymooning in Corsica

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he 28-year-old actress and her Klaxons musician husband James Righton, who tied the knot in the south of France last weekend, are enjoying a romantic getaway on the French island in the Mediterranean Sea. According to People, the couple were spotted “ relaxing and soaking up the sun”. Keira and James married in a small ceremony at the town hall in Mazan, 67 miles from Marseilles, before speeding back to her family’s nearby $5 million vineyard for a 50-guest reception in a silver Renault Clio. Speaking about the ceremony, Mayor Aime Navello, who oversaw the couple’s vow exchange, said recently: “Their two witnesses were Keira’s parents [Sharman Macdonald and Will Knightley].

The other people were all brothers, sisters and family. There were no other celebrities as part of the town hall ceremony. “It was held in the upper room where the weddings are usually done. There were no flowers.” It was recently revealed that Keira’s wedding band used to belong to 29-year-old James’ grandmother. A source said: “The ring he gave her was a family heirloom. He really did think it all through.

“It was an amazing wedding, the whole thing was really sweet and down to earth.”

SATURDAY, MAY 11, 2013

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Miley Cyrus stalked by ghosts in London

he 20-year-old singer and her family rented an apartment in the English capital during her 2009 European tour but they had to move to a hotel after a number of ghostly encounters.

She told British Elle magazine: “It was seriously so terrifying. One night, my little sister-it sounds crazy to tell you-but she was standing in the shower and all of a sudden, I hear her scream. I run in there and the water had somehow flipped to hot but it was still ... It wasn’t like the water had just changed, the knob had turned but she hadn’t turned it and it was burning her. She was really red. “I thought I had seen a little boy sitting on the sink watching me take a shower so I felt really freaked out. I was sitting there the next night and maybe I’m crazy, but I could have sworn I could see this little boy sitting there on the sink, kicking his feet.” The family later discovered the apartment was reportedly haunted and Miley has vowed never to stay there again. She said: “We found out that there was this older man that owned it [the bakery that had once been in the building] and his son lived with him there, and I guess the wife died or something, she had gotten sick. “So it was just the son and the dad that lived there in the bakery, and then the dad died and the son took over the bakery, and I thought I was seeing the son. I’m not even kidding. “I had to move. That’s not a lie. I will never stay there ever again.”

Ireland Baldwin can’t wait to become a big sister

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he 17-year-old model’s father Alec Baldwin’s second wife Hilaria is pregnant and she is excited about welcoming a half-brother or sister to the family. She said: “I have always wanted a sibling, I’m so excited to meet my sister. I want her to know that I’m here for whatever she needs.” Ireland - whose mother is Alec’s ex-wife Kim Basinger - also revealed she has a great relationship with her stepmother.

She told People magazine: “I love Hilaria. She saved my dad, getting him into amazing shape. And she brought him out of a bad place of being lonely.” While Ireland’s parents had a bitter break-up, she insists they have put all of their differences aside for her sake. She said: “My parents always manage to work things out. In fact they can have each other over for Thanksgiving just to make me happy. The co-parenting is intact.” Alec has previously said he can’t wait to be a father again because he regrets missing out on so much of Ireland’s childhood. He said: “It’s really like a dream come true. Because as much as I have struggled as a divorced parent - and God knows, I’ve had my ups and downs - the only thing that I regret was that I missed so much of my daughter’s childhood because of this contentious situation.”

Julia Roberts won’t attend her sister’s wedding

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he ‘Runaway Bride’ star, 45, doesn’t approve of her younger half-sister Nancy Motes’ fiance John Dilbeck and plans to boycott their upcoming nuptials because she is worried she might have to foot the bill. A source told The National Enquirer: “Julia doesn’t think much of Nancy’s husband-to-be. She’s convinced he’s sponging off Nancy, who doesn’t have much money in the first place. “Now, Julia won’t go to her wedding because she’s worried Nancy will try to tap her for more money.” Nancy, who shares the same mother as Julia, is said to work as a production assistant on ‘Glee’ because her Oscar-winning sister got her the job. Julia married her own husband Danny Moder on July 4, 2004 at her 82-acre ranch in Taos, New Mexico. The wedding was a surprise to the 60 guests, who were invited to an Independence Day party. The couple have three children, nine-year-old twins Hazel and Phinnaeus, and seven-year-old Henry. It was recently claimed Julia and her family are keen to leave Hollywood and move to Hawaii permanently so they can “live off the land” and surf all the time. A source previously said: “Julia has been into healthy eating for some time, but she got even more interested in it after deciding to lose the 10 pounds she gained while playing the Evil Queen in ‘Mirror, Mirror’. “She’s even considering moving to Hawaii, where her family vacations every year, so they can live off the land, bask in the sun and surf 365 days a year.” —Bangshowbiz

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Jessica Alba stole her parents’ car when she was 12

he ‘Sin City’ actress has revealed she was a wild child and drove her parents crazy with her rebellious antics, including going for joy rides in the family car and drinking alcohol when she was just 11. In a joint interview with her mother Cathy on ‘Entertainment Tonight’, the 32year-old screen beauty confessed she and a boyfriend experimented with alcohol, saying: “We accidentally drank Wild Turkey. How old was I? 11?” The star’s mum retorted: “It’s a little shocking. You drank Wild Turkey in sixth grade?!” But the ‘Spy Kids 4’ actress’ list of offences don’t end there - she also admitted to taking her parents’ car out for a spin, but rather than hitting the open road, Jessica would settle for the local drive-thru. She told her mother: “Do you remember when I used to steal the car and go to Jack in the Box? We would go and get food. That was our activity. I was 12.” Despite her trouble-filled childhood, Cathy is proud of how her A-list daughter - who now has two daughters of her own, Honor, four, and 21-month-old Haven, with husband Cash Warren - has blossomed into a doting mother herself. She said tearfully: “When I see her look at her babies with that unconditional love... I love you, pumpkin.”

SATURDAY, MAY 11, 2013

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Mexican filmmaker Gaz Alazraki is seen during an interview in Mexico City. —AFP

In Mexico, comedy and scandal expose class schism

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ow the mighty have fallen in Mexico-at least on movie screens and in social media. A comedy lampooning the rich has become the highest-grossing film in Mexican cinema history, with five million moviegoers laughing at the story of a construction tycoon fooling his spoilt children into a life of poverty. “Nosotros Los Nobles” (“We Are The Nobles”) has hit a nerve-or the funny bone-in a country with one of the widest income gaps in the world, where 10 percent of the people control 40 percent of the wealth while almost half live in poverty.

Then last month, in a real-life scene that could have come right from the script, inspectors from the Profeco consumer protection agency tried to close a restaurant after their boss’s daughter complained she was denied her table of choice. But the tables turned on her when Mexicans denounced her behavior on Twitter, dubbing her #LadyProfeco. Some mocked her as a daddy’s girl, asking her to shut down a volcano spewing ash, but many saw it as the latest example of the elite’s sense of entitlement.

Gary “Gaz” Alazraki, the 35-year-old director of “Nosotros Los Nobles,” said the young woman’s behavior is typical of the privileged few in Mexico, who often think they are above the law, and he wanted to use comedy to depict the disconnect between the elite and the poor. “This film was a caricature, done with lots of love, of how Mexico is today, emphasizing the good and the bad, but with a hopeful tone saying that this is only a bad period,” Alazraki told AFP. “Mexico today is similar to the United States in the 1930s: Divided social classes, a sharp wealth gap, not only between how much one or the other has, but also between the color of one’s skin,” the blue-eyed filmmaker said.

Alazraki readily admits it: He comes from the same world as the Nobles. His father, Carlos Alazraki, is a well-known advertising guru who worked on several presidential campaigns.

When he turned 18, he got mad at his father for reneging on a promise to buy him a car. But he felt bad when he saw his university friends commute by bus. “I felt a little guilty about having thrown such a fit. But it showed how disconnected I was from the realities of the country,” the filmmaker said.

In the movie, businessman German Nobletired of seeing his three children cruise through

life thanks to his deep pockets-decides to teach them a lesson by faking his bankruptcy and staging a police raid on his property to force them to get jobs. The oldest son, Javi, likes to party and fly on a private jet to Miami-until he ends up driving a bus in Mexico City’s congested streets.

The daughter, Barbie, talks down to the help and leaves bad tips, but she suddenly finds herself serving tacos in a cantina. When she learns she has to share tips with co-workers, she asks: “Are we in Cuba now or something?” The youngest, Charlie, gets kicked out of university for sleeping with a professor and takes up a job as a bank teller.

Mexican cinema has produced successful dramas in recent years, like “The Crime of Father Amaro,” which was Mexico’s box-office champ for 11 years until “Los Nobles” dislodged it last month. But Alazraki said he decided to make a “Hollywood movie in Spanish.” The movie-made with a relatively modest budget of $2.4 millionhas raked in more than $20 million over six weeks, finishing in the second spot last weekend behind Hollywood blockbuster “Iron Man 3.”

Film critics say Alazraki’s comedy resonated among moviegoers because it is an easy laugh, returning to an old formula from 1940s Mexican cinema showing the tribulations of the poor and the rich. “The poor are happy, they have a big heart and they live in the real world, while the rich are the people who must beg for affection,” Jorge Ayala Blanco, an author of 11 books on Mexican cinema, told AFP. Leonardo Garcia Tsao, a film critic for La Jornada newspaper, said the middle-class goes to the movies in Mexico, and “in this case, the film mocks the rich, which they’re not, and the poor, which they’re not either.” The audience laughed throughout the film at a movie theater in the posh district of Polanco, two blocks from a dealership that sells Ferraris while children beg for money across the street.

“It’s one of the few funny Mexican movies,” said Beatriz Arrechiga, a 35-year-old radio ad consultant. “It shows the classism in this country.

There is a message for a class of young people who depend on their dads.” Lady Profeco and her father Humberto Benitez, meanwhile, have apologized and the Maximo Bistrot voluntarily closed temporarily. While Benitez avoided the ax, lawmakers want him to testify and four of his subordinates were suspended after a probe ordered by President Enrique Pena Nieto. —AFP

India court rejects Bollywood starʼs jail plea

ndia’s highest court yesterday rejected a plea by Bollywood star Sanjay Dutt to review his conviction and five-year jail term for possessing arms supplied by plotters of the deadly 1993 Mumbai blasts. The muscular, tattooed 53-year-old was convicted by an anti-terrorism court in 2006 but was freed on bail after serving 18 months in prison. In March, the Supreme Court upheld Dutt’s conviction but cut his jail term to five years from six. He now has to serve the remaining three-and-a-half-years of his term.

The Supreme Court on Friday said there was “no merit” in the actor’s petition to review his conviction and also dismissed similar requests by six others sentenced in the case. Dutt was convicted for possessing arms supplied by Mumbai’s criminal underworld which plotted a string of deadly blasts in 1993, killing 257 people. Dutt still can file another so-called “curative” petition in which the court is asked to review its final decision but lawyers said such a plea would likely be dismissed as it would be heard by the same judges.

Dutt was likely to surrender to jail authorities on May 15, according to local media. The actor, whose mother was Muslim and father a Hindu, was acquitted in 2007 of more serious conspiracy charges in the blasts seen as retaliation for religious riots in which mainly Muslims died after the razing of an old mosque.

Despite the acquittal, Dutt was found guilty of possession of an automatic rifle and a pistol, which he insisted were only meant to protect his family amid the highly charged atmosphere in Mumbai following the mosque’s destruction. Analysts estimate about 2.5 billion rupees ($45 million) are riding in Bollywood on Dutt, whose parents were two of India’s biggest stars, with up to five films in the pipeline.

At a news conference following the March hearing, Dutt declared himself “a shattered man”. Some prominent figures had called for the actor to be pardoned, including the Press Council of India chairman Markandey Katju, a former Supreme Court judge. The actor shot to fame in the

Sanjay Dutt 1980s in a string of action movies in which he performed his own stunts, earning him the nickname “Deadly Dutt”. He is best known for playing a mobster with a heart of gold in the “Munnabhai” series. Dutt’s first wife died of cancer while his second marriage, to a model, ended in divorce. He wed for a third time in 2008 and has two young children. —AFP

Gigantic balloon creature splits opinion in Australia

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gigantic whale-like balloon with pendulous udder-like appendages, designed to mark the centenary of Australia’s capital Canberra, has divided opinion, with some branding it an ugly waste of money and others saying it is an inspiration. Skywhale, believed to be the first hot-air balloon commissioned to celebrate a city’s 100th birthday, has the flowing form of a giant pink-and-black-hued fish.

But its face could be that of a parrot, or a turtle, and the renowned artist who designed it, Patricia Piccinini, refuses to say just what it is.

Piccinini, whose work has been shown at the Venice Biennale and London’s Victoria and Albert Museum and who recently exhibited works in the US, Turkey and London, said Skywhale was a piece about “wonder and nature”. “It’s meant to inspire a sense of wonder in ‘what is it?’” she told the ABC of the towering sculpture which used more than 3.5 kilometres (2.2 miles) of fabric and took 16 people some seven months to make.

At 34 metres long and 23 metres high, the Skywhale is at least twice as big as a standard hot-air balloon and weighs half a ton. The balloon, which was made in Bristol in the United Kingdom and cost Aus$172,000 (US$173,000) has sparked outpourings on social media, with some describing it as a waste of money while

others enjoyed the sense of fun.

On the Daily Telegraph website, Tim Blair said it was the perfect symbol for the city which is home to the national parliament-”a bloated, gaseous, multi-breasted monster feeding those who dwell in its poisonous shadow while leeching off the rest of us”. “I’ve seen more attractive road kill than the grotesque #skywhale,” was once response on Twitter.

But the odd-looking balloon also drew support despite the fact that whales are never seen in Canberra, a landlocked city between Sydney and Melbourne. “The naysayers will have a go at #skywhale with knee-jerk reactions about wasting public money. I think it’s an imaginative & inspiring work,” wrote one supporter on Twitter.

The Skywhale will be officially unveiled outside the National Gallery of Australia on Saturday as part of an international sculpture symposium, before making its first flight over Canberra on Monday. The balloon, which has been designed to carry a pilot plus two passengers to an altitude of 3,000 feet, will be seen at the Museum of Old and New Art (MONA) in Hobart and the Australian Centre for Contemporary Art in Melbourne later this year. —AFP

SATURDAY, MAY 11, 2013

Berlin’s Barbie Dreamhouse a pink feminist nightmare T he opening this month of the first life-sized Barbie Dreamhouse in Europe may be the fantasy of many a little girl, but Berlin feminists are mobilising against what they call a sex-

mansion has become a lightning rod ahead of the May 16 inauguration.

Just a few steps from Alexanderplatz, the main shopping district of east Berlin, the 2,500-square-metre (26,900 square

This picture shows the exterior of the Barbie Dreamhouse in Berlin. —AFP ist icon. With her ironed-straight blond tresses, doe-like baby blue eyes, blinding smile and super-human measurements, the mistress of the giant Barbie

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foot) slice of Malibu lifestyle is nestled between a railway and old communist housing blocks. Inside, young Barbie fans can pretend to bake cupcakes in a

marvellous kitchen, rummage through her sequin-studded wardrobe in the blonde bombshell’s “endless” walk-in closet and lounge in her-pink, of courseliving room while admiring hundreds of dolls on display.

“For 22 euros ($29), you can have two careers-model or pop star! What kind of image is that presenting to young women?” grumbles Michael Koschitzki, the proudly feminist male leader of a grassroots group of opponents of the Barbie Dreamhouse, and a member of the youth wing of the farleft party Die Linke.

A Facebook faction called “Occupy Barbie Dreamhouse”, created in March with a wink at the New York anti-greed movement Occupy Wall Street, has drawn more than 1,000 supporters since its launch in March when the Berlin plans came to light. It regrets that “the vast majority of little girls play with a doll that, if she were real, would be anorexic and whose life would consist of waiting for Ken in the car”, Koschitzki said.

An angry fist piercing adverts for the attraction was printed on 10,000 flyers to publicise the fight against such “sexist propaganda” in a country headed by a childless woman and in which battles of the sexes are being fought on several fronts. Germany, where combining family and work is notoriously difficult, has a fertility rate among the lowest in western Europe and is debating binding quotas for female executives to diversify its overwhelmingly male-dominated boardrooms.

Having weathered half a century of feminist rage, US Barbie manufacturer Mattel notes that it has modernised

the doll’s image, moving beyond the beach beauty to create surgeon dolls and even a presidential candidate.

“Barbie has again become a tool for some to advance their own agenda,” a spokeswoman for the company’s German unit said.

The conflict is due to come to a head on May 16, the opening day, with a planned demonstration under a “Occupy Barbie Dreamhouse” banner.

“We will be very happy if we can bring together 100 people,” admits Koschitzki, whose protest group includes several leftist organisations and the initiative Pinkstinks, which is fighting against the gender-stereotyping produced by the colour’s hegemony in the little-girl universe.

Barbie’s Dreamhouse, which was conjured up by Vienna-based Event Marketing Service with a licence from Mattel and has a twin sister at a shopping mall in southern Florida, is already drawing curious families. A 28-year-old tourist who gave her name as Lucy said all the pink caught her attention, as she pulled out her camera. Having played with Barbies as a child, she did not see a problem with the Dreamhouse, although she admitted it could “influence a young girl so she thinks that everyone has to be blonde, tall and big-breasted”.

“It’s up to parents to explain that it’s just a doll and not an example,” said Emma, a 36-year-old Berlin mother of two girls, aged four and six, who shook with anticipation to get inside the doll paradise. Barbie, for her part, will have to pack her bags on August 25. The Dreamhouse will then be dissembled, placed in moving crates and sent on a tour of other European cities. —AFP

Heavy hitters return for Riviera film fest

he Coen Brothers, Roman Polanski and Steven Soderbergh return to the Cannes Film Festival from Wednesday, with a string of younger talents snapping at their heels in the race for the coveted Palme d’Or. Baz Luhrmann’s take on “The Great Gatsby” starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Carey Mulligan, will lay on the glitz when it opens the 12day fest on Wednesday evening. “Gatsby” is not in the quest for the Palme, but behind the razzmatazz of its European premiere, Luhrmann is under pressure to deliver F Scott Fitzgerald’s Roaring Twenties classic to a new generation.

The Australian director’s $100 million extravaganza has been filmed in 3D and is scored by rapper Jay-Z, with tracks from Beyonce, will.i.am and Emeli Sande. The brash formula has gone down poorly with some reviewers in the US, although others said they liked the eye candy.

Leonardo DiCaprio, Michael Douglas, Matt Damon and Ryan Gosling are among the A-listers expected to tread the Riviera red carpet, while Steven Spielberg heads an equally star-studded jury that includes Nicole Kidman, Ang Lee and Christoph Waltz.

In one of the most keenly-awaited films in competition, Douglas plays the

flamboyant entertainer Liberace, who never disclosed that he was gay during his lifetime, in Soderbergh’s biopic “Behind the Candelabra”. The film is apt in a watershed year for gay rights, with more and more states granting gay people the right to marry or adopt.

It could also be something of a swansong for Soderbergh, who has threatened to retire. The 50-year-old director and screenwriter, who shot to prominence after winning the Palme d’Or in 1989 with “Sex, Lies, and Videotape,” has complained that Hollywood studios refused to fund the new feature as it was “too gay”. In the end, it was financed by US payTV, where it will be commercially screened.

The Coen Brothers, last in competition in Cannes in 2007 with “No Country for Old Men”, have made the official selection this year with “Inside Llewyn Davis”, the story of a singer-songwriter set against the 1960s New York folk scene. The film is the second appearance at Cannes this year for Mulligan. The elfin-faced 27-year-old Briton ignored early advice to forget acting and “marry a banker” instead. She went on to earn a best actress Oscar nomination before she was 25.

Polanski, who turns 80 in August, returns with “La Venus a la Fourrure” (“Venus in Fur”), a drama starring his wife, French actress Emmanuelle Seigner. There will also be a special screening of an updated version of “Weekend of a Champion”, Polanski and Frank Simon’s 1971 film on Formula One racing driver Jackie Stewart as he attempted to win the Monaco Grand Prix.

In another documentary special screening, Stephen Frears’ “Muhammad Ali’s Greatest Fight” will recount the boxer’s battle to refuse the draft as a conscientious objector. Meanwhile, in competition, director Nicolas Winding Refn and “Drive” star Ryan Gosling collaborate again in “Only God Forgives”, also starring Kristin Scott Thomas.

Like “Drive” it is expected to shock for its violence, this time set in Bangkok gangland and filmed on location in Thailand. Other films to watch include Asghar Farhadi’s “Le Passe”, following his best foreign language film Oscar for “A Separation” in 2012 and Jim Jarmusch’s vampire romance, “Only Lovers Left Alive”.

Japan has two films in the race for the Palme d’Or including “Soshite Chichi Ni

Naru” (“Like Father, Like Son”) by Hirokazu Kore-Eda, one of his country’s leading filmmakers known for his sensitive portrayals of contemporary life.

From China there will be “Tian Zhu Ding” (“A Touch of Sin”) by former underground filmmaker Jia Zhangke. US critic John Powers has predicted Jia’s films will still be of interest 100 years from now for his “sustained effort to capture the precise moments when China’s past is being tossed on the ash heap of history”. The only woman director competing for the Palme d’Or will be Valeria BruniTedeschi, sister of former French first lady Carla Bruni-Sarkozy, with “Un Chateau en Italie”.

Women are better represented in the parallel new talent section Un Certain Regard which will be opened by Sofia Coppola’s “The Bling Ring”. The film is inspired by a true story of a group of adolescents who rob the homes of celebrities after becoming obsessed with the world of “beautiful people”.

Following controversy last year, organisers tried to head off any criticism of the number of women directors nominated saying Bruni-Tedeschi’s film had been selected because it was a good film not because it was made by a woman.

SATURDAY, MAY 11, 2013

This undated promotional image released by Sunglass Hut shows mother-daughter models Georgia May Jagger (left) and Jerry Hall posing for a sunglasses ad.

Together, they enjoy riding horses, spa days, gardening, cooking and reading the Sunday newspaper, especially their horoscopes. They share clothes now, too, and are starring in a campaign for Sunglass Hut, their first major joint modeling gig. —AP

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Getty Museum in LA lands Rembrandt, Canaletto works

he Getty Museum of Los Angeles announced Thursday it has acquired a self-portrait by Rembrandt and a painting by the Venetian artist Canaletto. “Rembrandt Laughing,” a small oil on copper work probably done around 1628, came onto the art market in 2007 after spending centuries as part of private collections. It was at first attributed to contemporaries of Rembrandt, but later authenticated by the Rembrandt Research Project.

The painter, then around 22, is dressed as a soldier and smiling broadly. The museum already had four works by Rembrandt. It has now also acquired a piece by landscape painter Canaletto, or Giovanni Antonio Canal, done around 1738. “The Grand Canal in Venice from Palazzo Flangini to

Campo San Marcuola” will be the second Canaletto displayed at the Getty Museum. The other is a scene of Rome. “The Getty Museum possesses the most significant collection of early Rembrandts in the United States, and if you had asked what addition would best cap it off, the answer would have been a self-portrait, which many regard as his greatest and most sustained achievement,” said museum director Timothy Potts.

“The Canaletto likewise is a tremendous addition to our growing collection of Italian view paintings,” Potts said. Founded by oil baron John Paul Getty, the Getty Museum is part of the world’s richest art foundation, with assets worth an estimated $7.9 billion in 2011. —AFP

1969 Hendrix telegram: Can Paul come to play?

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iles and Jimi. Jimi and Miles. Fans of the late trumpet and guitar masters have long known that Miles Davis and Jimi Hendrix had been making plans to record together in the year before Hendrix’s sudden death in 1970. But less attention has been paid to the bass player they were trying to recruit: Paul McCartney, who was busy with another band at the time.

This tantalizing detail about the super group that never was - jazz standout Tony Williams would have been on drums - is contained in an oft-overlooked telegram that Hendrix sent to McCartney at The Beatles’ Apple Records in London on Oct 21, 1969. “We are recording and LP together

said. “Of course that didn’t happen, but the telegram brings us something to dream about. This is a document, proof that they had an idea to do an album.” The telegram raises more questions than it answers. It’s not clear if McCartney was even aware of the unusual, apparently impromptu invitation

In this 1970 file photo, Jimi Hendrix performs on the Isle of Wight in England. —AP this weekend,” it says, complete with a typographical error.

“How about coming in to play bass stop call Alan Douglas 212-5812212. Peace Jimi Hendrix Miles Davis Tony Williams.”

The telegram, advising McCartney to contact producer Douglas if he could make the session, has been part of the Hard Rock Cafe memorabilia collection since it was purchased at auction in 1995. Still it has only generated attention in recent months with the successful release of “People, Hell & Angels,” expected to be the last CD of Hendrix’s studio recordings.

“It’s not something you hear about a lot,” Hard Rock historian Jeff Nolan said of the telegram, now displayed at the restaurant in Prague. “Major Hendrix connoisseurs are aware of it. It would have been one of the most insane supergroups. These four cats certainly reinvented their instruments and the way they’re perceived.” French promoter and Hendrix fanatic Yazid Manou, who has researched the telegram, says it offers a glimpse of what might have been.

“It’s amazing because of the names of the people,” he

In this July 11, 1987 file photo, Miles Davis plays his trumpet during the annual North Sea Jazz Festival held in the Hague Netherlands. —AP to rush from his London base to New York for the planned session. Beatle aide Peter Brown replied on McCartney’s behalf, telling Hendrix the following day that McCartney was on vacation and not expected back for another two weeks.

The invitation came at an extremely awkward moment for the Beatles’ bassist. It was sent the same day a prominent New York City radio station gave wide exposure to a rumor that McCartney had died in a car crash and been replaced by

a lookalike. The bizarre story, supposedly supported by hints on Beatles records and album covers, briefly gained worldwide credibility. Its dark nature apparently prompted the exasperated McCartney to retreat with his family to their farm in Scotland.

It also came at a time when the Beatles were falling apart due to business and artistic conflicts that likely would have been exacerbated by McCartney appearing on a record with Hendrix and Davis. McCartney was also still bound by a songwriting partnership with John Lennon that might have further complicated the release of any McCartney-HendrixDavis compositions. And then there is the question of what the proposed group would have sounded like. Davis was moving away from his jazz roots toward a fusion-based sound. He said in his autobiography that by 1968 he was listening primarily to James Brown, Sly and the Family Stone and, particularly, Hendrix musicians joined by a love of syncopated funk not found on Beatles’ tracks.

It is not clear either how McCartney’s melodic, subtle bass playing would have made its presence felt in a band that included Hendrix’ guitar and Davis’ trumpet. “At first, though, it sounds really weird and off the wall. But on second thought it makes perfect, Hendrix-type sense to chuck in someone who’s a great musician but comes from a different tradition,” said Hendrix biographer Charles Shaar Murray. “I regret this never actually took place... it would have been magnificent.”

McCartney is the only one of the four musicians who is still alive. His spokesman, Stuart Bell, said the former Beatle is too busy on his world tour to comb his memory for his thoughts about a telegram sent more than four decades ago.

In his autobiography, Davis said he and Hendrix occasionally jammed together at his apartment in New York City and tried to get into the studio to record but were hampered by financial matters and by their busy schedules. Murray and others maintain that Davis wanted $50,000 up front to attend the session.

The Juilliard-trained trumpeter Davis described Hendrix, who learned his chops backing up the Isley Brothers and others, as a self-taught “natural musician” who could not read music but was able to pick up complicated pieces in the blink of an eye. Davis says in the book that he and arranger Gil Evans were in Europe planning to record with Hendrix at the time of his death in London.

“What I didn’t understand is why nobody told him not to mix alcohol and sleeping pills,” Davis wrote. Hendrix’s death dashed their plans to record together, with or without McCartney. Eddie Kramer, the engineer who produced most of Hendrix’s music, said there will always be speculation about what might have been. “I think it would have been phenomenal,” Kramer said. “Lord knows where it may have gone; those huge egos in the studio at the same time! I would have loved to have done that one. But it was not to be.” —AP

SATURDAY, MAY 11, 2013

Rapper Psy wows Harvard with global appeal S

Korean pop star Psy speaks in Memorial Church at Harvard University in Cambridge, Thursday, May 9, 2013. —AP

outh Korean rapper Psy said he “partied hard” when his dance number drew its first 10 million views on YouTube last summer. Little did he know “Gangnam Style” would become the most-viewed video in the online service’s history, with a global following and nearly 1.6 billion views as of Thursday. “I partied hard to celebrate 10 million views!” Psy told about 1,000 people at Harvard University on Thursday evening, as he recalled his reaction when the song took off, making him a cultural phenomenon and leading to meetings with Los Angeles record producers.

“This is so unrealistic!” he recalled thinking. Formally dressed and speaking in sometimes-halting English, Psy spoke for more than an hour and occasionally lapsed into signature dance moves such as grasping the reins of an imaginary trotting horse. Psy’s talk was partly a homecoming as he recalled his days as a student in Boston in the mid-1990s. But it was also a seminar about the star’s surprise worldwide cultural appeal and the economic influence of East Asian culture.

Harvard professor Alexander Zahlten introduced Psy, whose real name is Park Jae-sang, as a global figure who has shown the ability of Korean music stars, video-game programmers and other entertainment figures to find overseas popularity through Internet channels.

“He’s a global citizen, and in turn influences people all over the world,” Zahlten said. “He’s deeply connected to digital culture.” After “Gangnam Style” set records, the video for Psy’s follow-up song “Gentleman” received more than 20 million hits in the first 24 hours after its release last month, easily beating the previous record of 8 million views for Justin Bieber’s “Boyfriend” in the first 24 hours.

Psy, 35, told the audience at the Ivy League school that music trumps national divides. “Music makes everyone united,” he said. “Something beyond language.” At some performances, he said, “I’m so proud. The crowd doesn’t know what the lyrics are about, but they look so happy!” Later he said the word for “style” conveyed similar meanings in all languages, and that he wrote the lyrics for “Gentleman” hoping they would find a similar worldwide resonance.

“Really , it was linguistics,” he said.

Psy also poked fun at his own less-than-stellar academic record. He said his nickname in college was “WWF” for his grades, “withdraw, withdraw, fail.” He said he kept thinking big and poked fun at his robust midsection. “I dreamed someday, some Korean artist would be well-known in the US,” he said. “I dreamed about it but didn’t dream that was me, because as you see I have a very special body type.” —Reuters

Life after Amelie: Audrey Tautou in Cannes spotlight

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udrey Tautou, this year’s Cannes Film Festival mistress of ceremonies, won hearts around the world-if not those of critics back home-as the pixie-faced heroine of “The Fabulous Destiny of Amelie Poulain”. Still wrestling with the burden of that success and famously ill at ease with the limelight, Tautou will be put to a radical test as the frontwoman for the world’s most prestigious movie festival.

Raised in a quiet corner of rural France, Tautou has largely shunned Hollywood and says she does not see herself as a movie star. Her role at Wednesday’s night’s opening ceremony will require her to put on the glitz and set aside self-effacement as she welcomes some of the biggest names in the industry, from Steven Spielberg to Nicole Kidman. “Amelie”, in which a quirky Montmartre waitress played by Tautou decides to dedicate herself to helping others out, took over $173 million worldwide and remains the highest-grossing French-language film ever released in the US. One recent interviewer, Isabelle Girard, concluded that although famous everywhere from “Hollywood to Kyrgyzstan”, Tautou was a shrinking violet who took pleasure in making herself appear invisible. “Celebrity makes me awkward. I am not comfortable with it,”

Tautou told Girard in an interview for Le Figaro. Her tendency to immerse herself in roles meant she often saw her own family almost as strangers during filming, said Tautou.

“That’s why I don’t do more than two films a year and one day I will stop... perhaps,” she said. Brought up in France’s south-central Auvergne region, Tautou enjoyed a sheltered childhood. Her parents - a dental surgeon and a doctorturned-teacher - inculcated in Tautou and her two sisters and brother a respect for education and hard work. She developed an interest in acting at school and after passing her Baccalaureate, the French high-school diploma, asked her parents to send her to theatre summer school.

In 1999, she appeared in Tonie Marshall’s “Venus Beauty”, picking up the Cesar for most promising young actress at the following year’s French film awards. Just one year later in 2001, she was catapulted into the stratosphere with “Amelie”. Some French critics did not mince their view that the film was shallower than a Paris puddle. Philippe Lancon of the daily Liberation blasted the movie for transposing “Euro Disney to Montmartre”.

Stephen Frears’ “Dirty Pretty Things” and Cedric Klapisch’s “L’Auberge Espagnole” followed in 2002 and in 2006,

she appeared with Tom Hanks in the blockbuster “Da Vinci Code”. But Tautou has struggled to shake off her image as the gamine from Montmartre. “The problem for Audrey Tautou is that she is doomed to trail clouds of ‘Amelie’ wherever she goes,” said US reviewer Anthony Lane of her performance in 2009’s “Coco Before Chanel.”

“Those inky round eyes and that pixie mug insure that hers are the features, poor thing, that social anthropologists will eternally reach for when asked to illustrate the term gamine.” Twelve years after “Amelie”, attitudes appear to be softening at home. The Nouvel Observateur, while stressing that it regarded “Amelie” as “unwatchable”, last month hinted that it saw Tautou’s recent choices in a more favourable light. “Therese Desqueyroux”, an adaptation of Francois Mauriac’s 1927 novel with Tautou in the lead role, closed Cannes last year.

Her latest film “L’Ecume des Jours” about a woman whose illness can only be treated surrounded by flowers has just been released in France. “In accepting the role as maitresse de ceremonie and presenting herself in more ambitious films,” the weekly Nouvel Observateur said, “we can hope that the second half of Tautou’s career might flourish away from mediocrity: to be more precious, rare and unique.” —AFP

A file picture from the 65th Cannes film festival in Cannes shows French actress Audrey Tautou posing as she arrives for the screening of the film “Therese Desqueyroux”. —AFP

Kate Upton goes ‘Vogue’ K

ate Upton has gone from a Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue cover model to the front page of Vogue.

Upton tells Vogue that runway modeling is “not what I set out to do” and that she desires to front a major fashion campaign and maybe even launch her own lingerie line. She also says she would like to continue acting.

Upton has appeared in “The Three Stooges” and “Tower Heist.” She’s also got a part in an upcoming film called “The Other Woman” starring Cameron Diaz and Leslie Mann. Of her various goals she says, “I’m American - more is more!” This week, Upton attended the annual Met Ball in New York, which is hosted by Vogue. The Vogue June issue goes on sale May 21. —AP

SATURDAY, MAY 11, 2013

Visitors look at an art made by piles of colorful scraped cars, entitled “2013 Rebirth” on display at an art zone renovated from an old factory in Wuhan in central China’s Hubei province yesterday. —AP

Hawn and Hudson talk mother-daughter beauty

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hen Kate Hudson first burst onto the scene with the movie “Almost Famous,” her uncanny resemblance to her mother Goldie Hawn had everybody talking. Hudson didn’t see it. But now that she’s a mother herself - of two sons, Rider and Bingham - the 34-year-old actress says she treasures the comparison. The mother-daughter pair - Hawn an Oscar winner for “Cactus Flower” and Hudson a nominee for “Almost Famous” - has never acted together, but they teamed up for an Almay ad for Mother’s Day. In a discussion of motherhood and beauty, both said their glow comes from the inside.

Hawn also said daily meditation allows her to “connect to spirit.” “Growing up with my mom there was always a sense of fun and it comes down to optimism as well,” Hudson said in an interview with The Associated Press.

“When you learn how to be optimistic and wake up in the morning and appreciate things and create that in your brain, I think you start to have an enjoyment of life and it shows.”

AP: Now that Kate is an adult and a mom herself, has your relationship gone from parent and child to friends?

Hawn: The truth is that no matter how old we are, as long as our mothers are alive, we want our mother. And it’s a very powerful relationship if it’s healthy. I miss my mother today. I think the transition does happen but I don’t think we ever lose our positioning

because we don’t want to lose our mother. It’s a very, very interesting walk.

Hudson: I think when I had Rider I think that’s when you really start to see your parents and connect with them in a different way and you start to see yourself differently as to what you put your parents through, you sort of empathize.

AP: Everyone talks about how you two look alike. Do you see the resemblance?

Hawn: I do.

Hudson: I used to say, ‘Why do people say that? I look nothing like my mom’ but I sometimes walk across a mirror and just get a glance and I see it.

Hawn: We don’t really look alike. You take

This file photo shows actress Goldie Hawn (left) and her daughter Kate Hudson at the premiere of “Nine” at the Ziegfeld Theatre in New York. —AP

all of our features and they’re not alike. What we do have is a way of being that is both very similar. Katie’s eyes are different. She looks more like my mother. It’s interesting how you can feel it’s in the DNA. Katie said it perfectly, she said, ‘Why does everybody always talk about this and that and us’ and she said, ‘What do you expect? I’m my mother’s daughter!’

Hudson: And you know what, I am damn proud of it! It’s a very repetitive question that I get a lot in my life and it’s something that I feel the rarity of being in that position is I really look at that as a real blessing because the relationship between mother and daughter is very complex and to be able to talk about the importance of the relationship is something that I look forward to. It really informed such a huge part of who I am and the confidence that I have as a woman. It really does come from the closeness that I have with mommy. Now as I get questions about mom it’s so much deeper and so much more complex that I look forward to sharing that more and more with people.

AP: What’s the best beauty advice you ever received from your mother?

Hudson: Beauty is an inside-out job and I think when you are connected to the things that you love, whether it be your children or your creativity, that they bring out a level of joy and circulate all the endorphins in your brain and then you have that, that’s when beauty starts to reveal itself. —AP

SATURDAY, MAY 11, 2013

Models display creations by the designers’ collective Wayuu during the Bogota Fashion Week, in the Colombian capital. —AFP photos

Bogota

Fashion Week

technology

SATURDAY, MAY 11, 2013

Investors challenge Dell takeover plan NEW YORK: Dell’s largest independent shareholder has teamed with activist investor Carl Icahn in another challenge to founder Michael Dell’s $24.4 billion bid to take the struggling computer maker private. Southeastern Asset Management and Icahn said in a letter sent Thursday to the Dell Inc. board that they want to let shareholders keep their stock and give them either $12 per share in cash or additional shares in a deal that keeps the company publicly traded. They said this would give shareholders a stake in future gains made by the Round Rock, Texas, company. An investment group led by Michael Dell offered earlier this year to pay $13.65 per share in a deal that would take the company private. Southeastern and Icahn criticized that proposal in a scathing letter to Dell’s board outlining their latest offer. The letter accused the Dell board of insulting shareholder intelligence by claiming to be

focused on shareholders’ best interests while accepting Dell’s offer to buy the company at a price “far below what we consider its value to be.”

“You not only sanctioned Michael Dell’s offer, which amazingly allows him to purchase the company from shareholders with their own money but, to add insult to injury, you have agreed to give Mr. Dell a break-up fee of up to $450 million,” the letter states. Southeastern and Icahn said they own about 13 percent of the company’s outstanding shares. They said that if the board does not deem their offer superior, they will work “assiduously” to convince the other shareholders to reject Michael Dell’s bid. They also would nominate a dozen directors at the company’s annual meeting to challenge the current board.

“This company has suffered long enough from very wrong-headed decisions made by the Board and its management,”

the letter states. “Do not make another by putting the company through an unnecessary debilitating proxy fight. “Allow the shareholders to decide for themselves which offer they choose.” If the company fails to give shareholders a choice, it will face “legal liability,” the letter threatened in all capital letters. Dell spokesman David Frink said a special committee of the company’s board is reviewing the letter from Icahn and Southeastern.

PC sales have been declining as people delay replacing desktop and laptop computers and spend money instead on smartphones and tablet computers. Michael Dell believes he can turn around the company by diversifying into more profitable niches such as business software, data storage and consulting. The company founder wants to do this without worrying about Wall Street’s fixation on short-term results.

But major shareholders expressed their

unhappiness with Michael Dell’s offer shortly after the company announced it in early February. In a letter to Dell’s board of directors, Southeastern CEO O. Mason Hawkins warned he would lead a shareholder mutiny unless the company came up with an alternative. A competing bid from buyout specialist Blackstone Group LP then emerged, and Icahn also made a preliminary proposal to buy 58 percent of Dell stock for $15 per share. But Blackstone said last month that it had dropped its plan to buy most of Dell’s outstanding stock for $14.25 per share due in part to the slumping PC market. The Wall Street Journal also reported that Icahn was unlikely to follow through on his preliminary offer. Icahn did not mention his preliminary proposal in the May 9 letter. Dell shares climbed 5 cents to $13.37 yesterday before markets opened. The stock has ranged from $8.69 to $15.81 over the past year. — AP

Wearable robots turn lighter, more portable ‘Powered exoskeletons’ tested in hospitals

NEW YORK: Joshua Knoller, an account manager with Nicholas & Lence Communications, looks at the Facebook page of his mother, Rochelle Knoller of Fair Lawn, NJ, on his office computer, in New York. — AP

More than just a mother, now she’s your ‘friend’

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osh Knoller, a young professional in New York City, spent years refusing his mother’s “Friend Request” on Facebook before, eventually, “caving in.” Today they have an agreement: she’ll try not to make embarrassing comments, and he can delete them if she does. “We actually got into some pretty big fights over this,” says Knoller, 29. “I love my Mom to death but she’s a crazy, sweet mother and I was a little worried about what she might post in front of my closest friends.”

As Mother’s Day approaches, 1 in 3 mothers are connected with their teens over Facebook, according to the social networking giant’s review of how users self-identify. With more than 1 billion Facebook users, that’s a lot of mothers and kids keeping in touch through social media, says Fordham University communications professor Paul Levinson, author of “New New Media.” “Facebook has been a boon to family relationships,” said Levinson.

Kelly McBride, an assistant professor of communications at LaSalle University in Philadelphia, says her students who “friend” their mothers keep their Facebook pages benign, using other social media like Instagram or Twitter for the racy stuff. “They may be willing to ‘friend’ their mother, but when they do, they take down the drinking or partying or suggestive photographs,” she says.

McBride says she’d like to get her own mother, who is 77, onto Facebook. “I’ve offered repeatedly to make her a Facebook page so I could friend her, but she just won’t do it,” she says. Parenting expert Susan Newman recommends that mothers wait until their children are independent adults before friending them. “Being a friend with your son or daughter on Facebook, to me is synonymous with reading your teenager’s diary,” she says. — AP

CHICAGO: When Michael Gore stands, it’s a triumph of science and engineering.

Eleven years ago, Gore was paralyzed from the waist down in a workplace accident, yet he rises from his wheelchair to his full 6-foot-2-inches and walks across the room with help from a lightweight wearable robot. The technology has many nicknames. Besides “wearable robot,” the inventions also are called “electronic legs” or “powered exoskeletons.” This version, called Indego, is among several competing products being used and tested in US rehab hospitals that hold promise not only for people such as Gore with spinal injuries, but also those recovering from strokes or afflicted with multiple sclerosis and cerebral palsy.

Still at least a year away from the market, the 27-pound Indego is the lightest of the powered exoskeletons. It snaps together from pieces that fit into a backpack. The goal is for the user to be able to carry it on a wheelchair, put it together, strap it on and walk independently. None of the products, including the Indego, are yet approved by federal regulators for personal use, meaning they must be used under the supervision of a physical therapist.

Gore, 42, of Whiteville, NC, demonstrated the device this week at the American Spinal Injury Association meeting in Chicago, successfully negotiating a noisy, crowded hallway of medical professionals and people with spinal injuries in wheelchairs. When he leans forward, the device takes a first step. When he tilts from side to side, it walks. When Gore wants to stop, he leans back and the robotic leg braces come to a halt. Gore uses forearm crutches for balance. A battery in the hip piece powers the motors in the robotic legs.

“Being able to speak with you eye-toeye is just a big emotional boost,” Gore said to a reporter. “Being able to walk up to you and say hello is not a big thing until you cannot do it.” The devices won’t replace wheelchairs, which are faster.

None of the devices are speedy enough,

for example, for a paralyzed person to walk across a street before the light changes, said Arun Jayaraman of the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago, who is testing a number of similar devices.

“None of them have fall prevention technology,” Jayaraman said. “If the per-

they are refined. The Indego was invented at Vanderbilt University in Nashville and tested at the Shepherd Center, a rehabilitation hospital in Atlanta. It’s now licensed to Cleveland-based Parker Hannifin Corp, which makes precision engineered products like aircraft wheels and brakes. Like

CHICAGO: In this photo, Michael Gore (center) who is paralyzed from a spinal injury, walks with the use of the Indego wearable robot under the supervision of physical therapist Clare Hartigan during a meeting of the American Spinal Injury Association at a downtown hotel. — AP son falls, they can hurt themselves badly. If you fall down, how do you get off a robot that is strapped into you?” They need to be even lighter and have longer-lasting batteries, he said. Still, Jayaraman said, the devices might help prevent pressure sores from sitting too long in a wheelchair, improve heart health, develop muscle strength, lift depression and ultimately bring down medical costs by keeping healthier patients out of the hospital.

Companies in New Zealand and California make competing devices, and all the products are becoming less bulky as

many other research participants in clinical studies, Gore receives a stipend for his participation from Vanderbilt University.

It’s unclear exactly how much the devices will cost if they become available for personal use. Some technology news media reports have said $50,000 to $75,000. Indego’s makers want to bring the cost below that, said co-inventor Ryan Farris of Parker Hannifin. Experts say it will take years of research to prove health benefits before Medicare and private insurance companies would consider covering the expense.—AP

technology

SATURDAY, MAY 11, 2013

YouTube’s pay channels go from campy to kids YouTube catches up with Netflix, Hulu, Amazon

Dan Smith

Hidden security threat: Multi function printers

I

n March 2008, an attack known as an SQL injection was used to install spyware on Heartland Payment Systems’ network, exposing 134 million credit and debit cards. The vulnerability to SQL injection was well understood; security analysts had warned retailers about it for several years. Yet, the continuing vulnerability of Web-facing applications made SQL injection one of the most common forms of attack against websites at the time.

Fast forward to 2011, when a massive breach of Sony’s PlayStation Network led to 77 million accounts being hacked and millions of dollars in lost revenue for Sony. Hackers gained entry via a hole in the network that had been open for quite some time, even though analysts continually recommended identifying and applying security controls consistently across the entire organization.

What’s notable about these attacks - as well as many others - is the fact that there were many warnings about the potential vulnerabilities in these networks, but nothing was done until it was too late. So here’s a warning for 2013: it’s time to take multifunction printer security seriously.

According to InfoTrends, there are almost 30 million printers and multifunction devices in offices and homes throughout the US and Western Europe, and most are connected to a network. This means they are just as susceptible to malware and hacker attacks as PCs -but for a variety of reasons they are often overlooked by IT professionals and used without proper safeguards by employees. To further this point, consider these telling findings. A recent Xerox-McAfee study revealed that more than half (54 percent) of employees say they don’t always follow their company’s IT security policies.

Also, half (51 percent) of those employees whose workplace has a printer, copier or MFP say they’ve copied, scanned or printed confidential information at work.

Sounds familiar?

The study goes on to say that more than half (54 percent) think computers pose the biggest security threat to their company’s network compared to other IT devices, while only 6 percent say it is MFPs. This small percentage is proof that employees simply do not realize their office MFPs really are true networked devices that behave the same way their PCs do - and have similar vulnerabilities. Pair these stats with the fact that the average organizational cost of a data breach is $5.5 Million and you have a pretty strong argument for taking this warning seriously. But I know what you’re thinking: none of those massive breaches are possible through an MFP, right? Wrong.

Just about anyone can launch full-scale attacks against a network and a company’s information assets through an MFP if its physical and electronic access points aren’t securely controlled and protected. Those attacks can be as simple as someone picking up documents left in the MFP’s output tray, to malicious worms pulling sensitive documents off the network. Consider this example of hacking the network through an MFP: Today’s combination of mobile workers, cloud printing and the continuing penetration of Android-based personal devices make it possible for an attacker to create a malware app that infects the mobile device, opportunistically attaches itself to a cloud print job, gets downloaded to a networked MFP, and from there infects the entire enterprise network, completely bypassing firewall and intrusion detection controls. In this case, it’s complexity that creates the vulnerability.

There is also the issue of something called device decommissioning. Enterprise MFPs handle large volumes of data and have integrated disk drives.

LOS ANGELES: Roger Corman’s campy B movies, children’s shows like “Sesame Street” and “Inspector Gadget,” and inspirational monologues by celebrities - these are among the offerings on 30 channels that will soon require a paid monthly subscription on YouTube. Although the world’s largest video site has rented and sold movies and TV shows from major studios since late 2008, most people watch videos on YouTube for free. It’s the first time YouTube is introducing all-you-canwatch channels that require a monthly fee.

The least expensive of the channels will cost 99 cents a month but the average price is around $2.99.

In the field of paid video content online, YouTube is playing catch up to services like Netflix, Hulu and Amazon, all of which have millions of paying customers. But with a billion monthly visitors from around the globe, the Google-owned video service hopes to quickly add subscribers and add to the money it already makes from online advertising. “This is just the beginning,” said Malik Ducard, YouTube’s director of content partnerships. The site plans to roll out a way for a broad number of partners to also launch pay channels on their own soon.

Corman, a producer and director whose influential cult classics like “Deathrace 2000” and “Piranha” earned him an honorary Oscar in 2009, said he’s kept his 400-film library off of video streaming sites until now. In an interview with The Associated Press, he said he turned down an offer from Hulu for about $5,000 to $6,000 per film several years ago, but sees promise in the YouTube offering. His channel, “Corman’s Drive-in,” will cost subscribers $3.99 per month for a rotating selection of 30 movies, refreshed with new interviews and clips from films that are in production. It is set to launch in June.

“I believed for many years that the future of motion picture distribution, particularly for the independents, is on the Internet,” the 87-year-old said. “I think the

time is now.” YouTube will keep slightly less than half of the revenue generated by the subscriptions. Corman’s wife and producing partner Julie Corman said they were taken aback at YouTube’s potential after a clip of their 2010 movie “Sharktopus” went viral with 11 million

tries would have taken a long time,” Hirsh said. Doing it with YouTube takes just a “metaphorical flip of a switch.”

As is the case with free videos on YouTube, the pay channels will be available for viewing on computers, mobile devices and Internet-connected TVs.

LOS ANGELES: In this photo, producer Roger Corman poses in his Los Angeles office. — AP views. If even 1 percent of those viewers signed up for a subscription, it would amount to a healthy revenue stream, she said.

“The numbers are astonishing. We’re waiting for the fireworks display,” she said.

DHX Media Ltd, a Canadian company that owns the rights to 8,500 episodes of children’s TV shows, is launching three paid YouTube channels, two for different age categories and one called “DHX Retro” that replays old programs such as “Inspector Gadget” and “Archie’s Weird Mysteries.” It plans to launch in 10 countries and seven languages - something that is much easier online than over traditional cable or satellite networks, according to DHX executive chairman Michael Hirsh. “Clearing a channel across 10 coun-

People who are accustomed to watching videos for free on YouTube are in for a slightly new experience. When viewers stumble upon a video requiring payment, they’ll get a free preview up to 2 minutes long before being asked to subscribe.

Each channel comes with a 14-day free trial, but customers have to enter their credit card information through Google Wallet if they haven’t already. Several channels offer discounts on the monthly fee with an annual subscription, and some include features on top of access to videos. Big Think, a New York-based maker of educational videos, will give subscribers who pay $2.99 a month access to videos of luminaries like Malcolm Gladwell, but also provide live question-and-answer sessions of an hour or more with experts.—AP

NEW DELHI: Chief Executive Officer of Nokia Stephen Elop displays a Nokia Asha 501 mobile phone during its launch in New Delhi, India, Thursday, May 9, 2013. Nokia unveiled the first of a new family of Asha smartphones with the Nokia Asha 501 priced at $99. — AP

TV listings

SATURDAY, MAY 11, 2013

00:45 01:35 02:25 03:15 04:05 04:55 05:20 05:45 06:10 06:35 07:00 07:25 08:15 09:10 10:05 10:30 11:00 11:25 11:55 12:50 18:20 Lane 20:10 Bait 21:05 22:00 22:55 23:20 23:50

Monster Bug Wars I’m Alive Roaring With Pride Summer Of The Shark 2 Whale Wars Call Of The Wildman Cheetah Kingdom Animal Airport Animal Airport Wildlife SOS Meerkat Manor Cats 101 Crocodile Hunter Baby Planet Monkey Life Dick ‘n’ Dom Go Wild Bondi Vet The Really Wild Show Wildest Arctic My Cat From Hell Wildwives Of Savannah

Roaring With Pride My Cat From Hell Karina: Wild On Safari Karina: Wild On Safari Untamed & Uncut

Wacky Races Duck Dodgers Duck Dodgers Dastardly And Muttley Dastardly And Muttley Dexter’s Laboratory Wacky Races Sylvester & Tweety Mysteries Tom & Jerry The Garfield Show Bananas In Pyjamas Gerald McBoing Boing Jelly Jamm Ha Ha Hairies Baby Looney Tunes Cartoonito Tales Krypto: The Super Dog Lazytown Gerald McBoing Boing Bananas In Pyjamas Jelly Jamm Ha Ha Hairies Baby Looney Tunes Cartoonito Tales Krypto: The Super Dog Lazytown Ha Ha Hairies Gerald McBoing Boing

Tech Toys 360 Tech Toys 360 X-Machines James May’s Man Lab James May’s 20th Century James May’s 20th Century The Gadget Show How Tech Works James May’s Man Lab Dark Matters: Twisted But True The Gadget Show

00:45 Classic Car Club 01:10 An Mg Is Born 01:35 Alaska State Troopers 02:30 Birth Of A Racer 04:20 Out Of The Wild: Venezuela 05:10 Timewatch 06:05 Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations 07:00 Classic Car Club 07:25 An Mg Is Born 07:50 Classic Car Club 08:15 An Mg Is Born 08:45 Classic Car Club 09:10 An Mg Is Born 09:35 Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations 10:30 Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations 11:20 The Baby Mammoth 12:10 The Dinosaur Feather Mystery 13:05 Dinosaurs Of The Deep 13:55 I Shouldn’t Be Alive 14:50 I Shouldn’t Be Alive 15:45 Combat Countdown 16:40 Birth Of A Racer 18:25 Treasures Decoded 19:20 Treasure Quest 20:10 Alaska State Troopers 21:05 Walking The Amazon 22:00 Combat Countdown 22:55 Treasure Quest 23:50 Treasures Decoded

How Not To Become Shark

00:40 Come Dine With Me 01:30 Masterchef: The Professionals 02:15 Gok’s Fashion Fix 03:00 Coastal Kitchen 03:25 Cash In The Attic 04:15 Bargain Hunt 05:00 Holmes On Homes 05:45 Gok’s Fashion Fix 06:35 New Scandinavian Cooking 07:00 Homes Under The Hammer 10:40 Cash In The Attic 11:30 Come Dine With Me 12:20 Perfect Day 12:50 Baking Mad With Eric Lanlard 13:15 Baking Mad With Eric Lanlard 13:40 The Good Cook 14:10 The Roux Legacy 14:45 Coastal Kitchen 15:15 Bargain Hunt 16:00 Antiques Roadshow 17:00 Extreme Makeover: Home Edition Specials 18:20 Extreme Makeover: Home Edition 19:00 Celebrity MasterChef 19:55 Celebrity MasterChef 20:20 Come Dine With Me 21:15 Antiques Roadshow 22:15 Bargain Hunt: Famous Finds

00:45 01:35 02:00 02:25 02:50 03:00 03:30 03:55 04:20 04:45 05:00 05:25 05:45 06:00 06:25 06:50 07:15 07:40 08:05 08:30 08:55 09:20 09:45 10:10 10:35 11:00 11:25 11:50

17:45 18:10 18:35 19:30 20:20 20:45 21:10 21:35 22:00 22:50 23:40

BUNRAKU ON OSN ACTION HD 12:15 12:40 13:00 13:25 13:50 14:40 15:30 15:55 16:20 16:45 17:10 18:00 18:50 19:15 19:40 20:05 20:30 20:55 21:20 22:10 22:35 23:00 23:50

Baby Looney Tunes Jelly Jamm Tiny Toon Adventures Tiny Toon Adventures What’s New Scooby Doo Tom And Jerry Tales The 13 Ghosts Of Scooby-Doo The 13 Ghosts Of Scooby-Doo Sylvester & Tweety Mysteries Sylvester & Tweety Mysteries What’s New Scooby Doo Tom And Jerry Tales The Looney Tunes Show The Looney Tunes Show Taz-Mania Taz-Mania The 13 Ghosts Of Scooby-Doo The 13 Ghosts Of Scooby-Doo Tom And Jerry Tales Sylvester & Tweety Mysteries Sylvester & Tweety Mysteries Moomins Duck Dodgers

00:00 00:30 Ira...

01:30 02:30 03:00 04:00 04:30 05:00 06:00 06:30 07:00

Private Crimes Peace, Love And Murder: The Gangland Psychic Detectives Evil Up Close Private Crimes Private Crimes Crime Stories Crime Town USA Crime Town USA Psychic Detectives

07:30 09:00 10:00 14:00 15:00 16:00 20:00 21:00 21:30 22:00 23:00

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

Psychic Detectives Crime Stories Forensic Evidence Beyond Scared Straight Beyond Scared Straight Forensic Evidence Cold Case Files Very Bad Men Very Bad Men Stalker John Wayne Gacy

Wheeler Dealers Wheeler Dealers: Trading Up Fifth Gear Mythbusters Border Security Auction Hunters Storage Hunters How Machines Work How It’s Made Sons Of Guns Magic Of Science Magic Of Science You Have Been Warned Mythbusters Mythbusters Bear Grylls’ Wild Weekend Bear Grylls’ Wild Weekend Yukon Men Yukon Men Yukon Men Yukon Men Yukon Men Yukon Men Wheeler Dealers: Trading Up

18:45 19:40 20:35 21:30 21:55 22:25 22:50 23:20 23:45

Gold Rush - Season 3 Specials Jungle Gold Heroes Of Hell’s Highway Storage Hunters Storage Hunters Storage Hunters Storage Hunters Storage Hunters Glory Hounds

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

How Tech Works Patent Bending The Future Of...

The Colony Tech Toys 360 Tech Toys 360 The Future Of...

Superships The Gadget Show How Tech Works Prophets Of Science Fiction James May’s Man Lab X-Machines The Gadget Show How Tech Works Superships Superships Superships Superships Superships Patent Bending The Gadget Show How Tech Works X-Machines Unchained Reaction Space Pioneer

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

Hannah Montana Brandy & Mr Whiskers Emperor’s New School Replacements Replacements Brandy & Mr Whiskers Emperor’s New School Replacements Replacements Brandy & Mr Whiskers Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Jake & The Neverland Pirates Suite Life On Deck A.N.T. Farm Cory In The House Wizards Of Waverly Place Hannah Montana Good Luck Charlie Shake It Up Jessie Austin And Ally A.N.T. Farm Code: 9 Cheetah Girls 2 A.N.T. Farm Wizards Of Waverly Place Good Luck Charlie That’s So Raven A.N.T. Farm Code: 9 Shake It Up Austin And Ally Jessie A.N.T. Farm Go Figure Wizards Of Waverly Place Code: 9 Jessie Shake It Up Austin And Ally Wizards Of Waverly Place Wizards Of Waverly Place Jessie Hannah Montana Jonas Sonny With A Chance Sonny With A Chance

00:00 Scouted 00:55 Style Star 01:25 THS 03:15 Style Star 03:40 Extreme Close-Up 04:10 THS 05:05 THS 06:00 THS 07:50 Style Star 08:20 E! News 09:15 Keeping Up With The Kardashians 10:15 THS 11:10 THS 12:05 E! News 13:05 Scouted 14:05 Playing With Fire 15:00 Chasing The Saturdays 15:30 Chasing The Saturdays 16:00 Ice Loves Coco 16:30 Ice Loves Coco 17:00 Married To Jonas 17:30 Married To Jonas 18:00 E! News 19:00 Keeping Up With The Kardashians 20:00 Playing With Fire 21:00 Chasing The Saturdays 21:30 Fashion Police 22:30 E! News 23:30 Chelsea Lately

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

Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives Unwrapped Unwrapped Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives Heat Seekers Heat Seekers Food Wars Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives Unique Eats Chopped Iron Chef America Food Network Challenge Healthy Appetite With Ellie Krieger Cooking For Real Symon’s Suppers Staten Island Cakes Barefoot Contessa - Back To Basics Unique Sweets Chopped Barefoot Contessa Barefoot Contessa Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives Chopped Chopped Ultimate Recipe Showdown Food Wars Food Wars Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives

00:30 01:20 02:05 02:55 03:45 04:30 05:20 06:10 07:00 07:50 08:15 08:40 09:05 09:30 10:20 11:10 12:00 12:50 13:15 13:40 14:30 15:20 15:45 16:10

Dr G: Medical Examiner A Haunting Scorned: Crimes Of Passion Most Evil I Almost Got Away With It Dr G: Medical Examiner A Haunting Nightmare Next Door Mystery Diagnosis Street Patrol Street Patrol Real Emergency Calls Who On Earth Did I Marry?

True Crime With Aphrodite Jones Murder Shift Disappeared Mystery Diagnosis Street Patrol Street Patrol Forensic Detectives True Crime With Aphrodite Jones Real Emergency Calls Who On Earth Did I Marry?

Disappeared

TV listings

SATURDAY, MAY 11, 2013 17:00 17:50 18:40 19:30 20:20 21:10 22:00 22:50 23:15 23:40

Murder Shift Forensic Detectives True Crime With Aphrodite Jones Disappeared Nightmare Next Door Couples Who Kill Deadly Affairs Stalked: Someone’s Watching Stalked: Someone’s Watching On The Case With Paula Zahn

01:45 Raging Bull 03:50 Sometimes They Come Back 05:25 Pope Of Greenwich Village 07:25 The Good Wife 09:00 Bananas 10:20 A Funny Thing Happened...

Forum 11:55 The Private Life Of Sherlock Holmes 14:00 Lights! Action! Music!

15:00 A Dog’s Breakfast 16:30 What’s New Pussycat?

18:20 In The Time Of The Butterflies 19:55 Mgm’s Big Screen 20:10 Number One 22:00 The Visitors 23:25 The Taking Of Pelham 123

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

International Open House Earth Tripping David Rocco‚s Dolce Vita Market Values Somewhere In China On Surfari On Surfari Roam Graham’s World Extreme Tourist Afghanistan On Hannibal’s Trail Treks In A Wild World Deadly Arts Don’t Tell My Mother International Open House International Open House Earth Tripping Earth Tripping Market Values Market Values Somewhere In China Scam City On Hannibal’s Trail Treks In A Wild World Deadly Arts Don’t Tell My Mother On Surfari On Surfari Roam Graham’s World Extreme Tourist Afghanistan Scam City My Sri Lanka With Peter Kuruvita My Sri Lanka With Peter Kuruvita Don’t Tell My Mother

00:00 01:00 02:00 03:00 04:00 05:00 06:00 07:00 08:00 09:00 10:00 11:00 12:00 13:00 14:00 15:00 16:00 17:00 18:00 19:00 20:00 21:00

Blowdown Race To The Bottom of The Earth Search For The Super Snake Naked Science Dangerous Encounters Pirate Patrol Great Migrations World’s Toughest Fixes Blowdown Race To The Bottom of The Earth Search For The Super Snake Naked Science Dangerous Encounters Pirate Patrol Great Migrations World’s Toughest Fixes Blowdown Bones of the Buddha In The Womb Wild Russia Caught In The Act Breakout

00:00 World’s Deadliest 01:00 World’s Wildest Encounters 01:55 Untamed Americas 02:50 World’s Deadliest Animals 03:45 Maneater Manhunt 04:40 Bite Me With Dr. Mike Leahy 05:35 Warrior Bees 06:30 Fish Warrior 07:25 Monster Fish 08:20 Salmon Wars 09:15 World’s Deadliest Animals 10:10 Built For The Kill 5 11:05 Mother Croc 12:00 The incredible Dr. pol 13:00 Untamed Americas 14:00 World’s Deadliest Animals 15:00 Maneater Manhunt 16:00 Dolphin Army 17:00 World’s Deadliest Continent (AKA Australia’s Deadl 17:30 World’s Deadliest Continent (AKA Australia’s Deadl 18:00 Maneater Manhunt 19:00 World’s Deadliest 20:00 Untamed Americas 21:00 World’s Deadliest Animals 22:00 Maneater Manhunt 23:00 Dolphin Army

00:00 02:00 04:15 06:00 08:00 09:45 PG15 11:15

Piranha 3DD-R Bunraku-18 Season Of The Witch-PG15 Thor-PG15 True Justice: Urban Warfare-PG15 Green Lantern: Emerald KnightsTransformers: Dark Of The Moon-

14:00 15:45 17:30 20:15 22:00 23:45

True Justice: Urban Warfare-PG15 Deadly Hope-PG15 Transformers: Dark Of The MoonHouse Of The Rising Sun-18 Nick Of Time-PG15 The Shining-R

01:30 The Vow-PG15 03:15 The Wild Thornberrys Movie-PG 05:00 Marion Jones: Press Pause-PG15 06:00 Muhammad And Larry-PG15 07:00 Warbirds-PG15 09:00 The Vow-PG15 11:00 Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close-PG 13:15 Spooky Buddies-PG 15:00 A Separation-PG15 17:15 The Speed Of Thought-PG15 19:00 On The Inside-PG15 21:00 The Five Year Engagement-18 23:15 Pariah-18

00:30 01:00 01:30 02:30 03:00 03:30 04:00 04:30 05:30 06:00 06:30 07:00 08:00 08:30 09:00 09:30

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart The Colbert Report George Lopez: It’s Not Me It’s You Legit Breaking In Friends Seinfeld The Tonight Show With Jay Leno Til Death Arrested Development Samantha Who? Late Night With Jimmy Fallon Seinfeld Til Death Breaking In Go On

10:00 10:30 11:00 12:00 12:30 13:00 13:30 14:00 14:30 15:00 15:30 16:00 16:30 17:00 18:00 18:30 19:00 19:30 20:00 21:00 21:30 22:00 23:00 23:30

00:00 01:00 02:00 03:00 04:00 05:00 06:00 07:00 08:00 09:00 10:00 11:00 12:00 14:00 15:00

Cougar Town Samantha Who? The Tonight Show With Jay Leno Arrested Development Seinfeld Til Death Samantha Who? Friends Cougar Town Go On The Daily Show With Jon Stewart The Colbert Report Arrested Development Late Night With Jimmy Fallon Breaking In Happy Endings The Neighbors The Office The Tonight Show With Jay Leno The Daily Show With Jon Stewart The Colbert Report Saturday Night Live Legit Late Night With Jimmy Fallon

Breakout Kings Survivor: Caramoan Smash Treme American Idol Smash Breakout Kings Smallville C.S.I. New York Glee American Idol Survivor: Caramoan Smallville C.S.I. New York Breakout Kings

16:00 18:00 19:00 20:00 21:00 22:00

Smallville C.S.I. New York The Glades Criminal Minds The Mob Doctor Sons Of Anarchy

00:15 02:00 04:00 06:15 08:00 10:00 11:45 13:15 16:00 17:45 19:30 22:15

The Keeper Piranha 3DD Bunraku Season Of The Witch Thor True Justice: Urban Warfare Green Lantern: Emerald Knights Transformers: Dark Of The Moon True Justice: Urban Warfare Deadly Hope Transformers: Dark Of The Moon House Of The Rising Sun

00:00 Venus And Vegas-PG15 02:00 Analyze This-PG15 04:00 Smooch-PG15 06:00 Hop-PG 08:00 Police Academy 7: Mission To Moscow-PG15 10:00 The Smurfs-PG 12:00 Smooch-PG15 14:00 Arthur-PG15 16:00 The Smurfs-PG 18:00 The Year Dolly Parton Was My Mom-PG 20:00 Bad Teacher-18 22:00 How To Make Love To A Woman

01:00 Mad Bastards-PG15 03:00 Swing Kids-PG15 05:00 You And Me-PG15 07:00 Paws-PG 08:45 Departures-PG15 11:00 Butch Cassidy And The Sundance Kid-PG 13:00 The Way-PG15 15:15 Departures-PG15 17:30 The Conspirator-PG15 19:30 S. Darko-PG15 21:15 The End Of The Affair-18 23:15 Roadie-18

01:15 Toyz Goin’ Wild 02:45 Quest For A Heart 04:15 The Lucky Dragon 06:00 Cinderella II: Dreams Come True 08:00 Emperor’s Secret 10:00 Treasure Buddies 11:30 Happy Feet Two 13:15 The Hairy Tooth Fairy 2 14:45 Scooby-Doo! Music Of The Vampire 16:15 Mandie And The Secret Tunnel 18:00 Treasure Buddies 20:00 Brave 22:00 The Hairy Tooth Fairy 2

00:15 Bel Ami-18 02:00 Battle For Terra-PG 03:30 This Means War-PG15 05:30 Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol-PG15 07:45 Unmatched-PG15 09:00 Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax-PG 10:45 Sherlock Holmes: A Game Of Shadows-PG15 13:00 Into The Wind-PG15 14:00 A Cinderella Story: Once Upon A Song-PG 16:00 Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax-PG 18:00 The Big Year-PG 20:00 The Girl-PG15 22:00 J. Edgar-18

PARIAH ON OSN CINEMA

00:00 Amphibious-18 02:00 Big Miracle-PG 04:00 Tinker Bell And The Secret Of The

Wings-FAM 06:00 A Mother’s Choice-PG15 08:00 Project Nim-PG15 10:00 Austin Powers In Goldmember 12:00 Big Miracle-PG 14:00 Valentina-FAM 16:00 Project Nim-PG15 18:00 The Beaver-PG15 20:00 My Week With Marilyn-PG15 22:00 Hanna-PG15

02:00 03:00 05:00 07:00 10:00 11:00 11:30 13:30 15:30 16:30 17:00 19:00 21:00

Trans World Sport NRL Premiership NRL Premiership Live AFL Premiership Trans World Sport ICC Cricket 360 Live Super Rugby Live Super Rugby Trans World Sport Futbol Mundial Live Super Rugby Super Rugby Live PGA Tour

00:00 WWE SmackDown 02:00 Super Rugby 04:00 PGA Tour the Players Championship 10:30 Live NRL Premiership 12:30 Live NRL Premiership 14:30 Futbol Mundial 15:15 ICC Cricket 360 15:45 Live Top 14 18:00 AFL Premiership 20:30 Inside The PGA Tour 21:00 Super Rugby 23:00 Super Rugby

00:00 01:00 03:00 03:30 06:00 07:00 09:00 11:00 11:30 12:30 15:00 16:00 16:30 Cup 18:30 20:30 21:30 23:30

Trans World Sport Pro 12 Total Rugby AFL Premiership Golfing World Pro 12 Top 14 Total Rugby Trans World Sport Live AFL Premiership Asian Tour Golf Show Total Rugby Live Rugby League Challenge

00:00 00:30 02:30 03:30 04:30 05:00 07:00 09:00 10:00 11:00 12:00 18:30 19:00 20:00 22:00

Mobil 1 The Grid WWE SmackDown WWE Bottom Line Ping Pong World US Bass Fishing NHL WWE SmackDown WWE Bottom Line WWE Vintage Collection UAE National Race Day Series PGA Tour Mobil 1 The Grid European Le Mans Series NHL WWE SmackDown

NRL Premiership Trans World Sport Live Pro 12 AFL Premiership

TCM01:35 The Gypsy Moths 03:20 Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore18 05:10 Key Largo-PG 07:05 San Quentin-PG 08:20 Red Dust-FAM 09:45 Giant-PG 13:00 A Star Is Born-FAM 16:00 Dark Victory-PG 17:45 The Barretts Of Wimpole Street19:30 Ice Station Zebra-FAM 22:00 Brass Target-PG

W H AT ’ S O N SATURDAY, MAY 11, 2013

The English Madrasa conducts Sports 2013

T

he English Madrasa for Islamic Studies conducted its first Sports event at the Rawda Public Garden. The function started off with the recitation from the Quran by Abdul Rahman Ameer followed by the presidential address by the Madrasa Principal Faisal Manjeri. Under the guidance of the Sports convener Sameer Mohammed the competitions were conducted among the Students from various age groups who competed under 9 different categories. Various sports items included 100M race, 50M race, Lemon and Spoon race, tug of war, 100M walking, water filling, ball throw, musical chair and long jump. Prizes were distributed to the various winners by Fareedudheen (PTA President), Mohammed Khaled (PTA Secretary), Mohammed Saleem (PTA Treasurer), Zahida Azghar (PTA Member), Faisal Manjeri (Principal), Anwar Saed (KIG Gen. Sec.), Ansar Moideen, Ashraf Vaakath, Warda Anwar (IWA President) and other dignitaries present at the gathering.

The individual championships in their respective age groups were bagged by: Ahyan Irfan - Junior Kids, Mohammed Abdul Wahid - Kids Boys, Afeefah - Kids Girls, Hajara Ashiq - Sub Junior Girls, Ikhtiarudheen - Sub Junior Boys, Ayisha Imran - Junior Girls, Ahmed Faad - Junior Boys, Firas Faisal - Senior Boys and Laila Sameeha - Senior Girls.

Various sport events such as 100M walking, 100M race, lemon and spoon and tug of war were also conducted for the parents. The overall championship cup was awarded to the Green group.

‘Cinderella Rockerfella’ at KNES

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uwait National English School (KNES) students from years 7 and 8 recently took to the stage to give an excellent performance of “Cinderella Rockerfella” - a modern take on the traditional Cinderella story in pantomime form. The students sang, danced and acted their hearts out to the great appreciation of the whole audience including the school’s director Madame Chantal AlGharabally. All the hard work paid off and a new school tra-

Announcements The TIES Center’s ‘trip’ he TIES Center cordially invites those who are interested in its trip to the Historical, Vintage and Classic Car Museum, which is the first museum in Kuwait specializing in old cars on May 30th at 6:00 pm. Revisit past memories or learn something new. If you love cars then this is the trip for you. Even if you don’t love cars, come anyway; you will enjoy the trip. For more information/registration, log onto: www.tiescenter.net.

T

Basketball Academy he new Premier Basketball Academy offers coaching and games every Friday and Saturday from 10 am onwards for 6 to 18 year olds, boys and girls. Located in Bayan Block 7, Masjed Al-Aqsa Street by Abdullah AlRujaib High School. Free Basketball and Tee Shirts for all participants, with certificates and special awards on completion of each 6 week course. Qualified and experienced British and American Coaches, Everyone Welcome.

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KPFA honored by Kuwait Red Crescent Society

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akistan Friendship Association (KPFA) was recently honored by the Kuwait Red Crescent Society (KRCS) for its tremendous contribution in promoting the brotherly relations among the two nations and working closely with KRCS in times of any calamity in Pakistan. The appreciation certificate was received by the President of KPFA Rana Ijaza and Executive Council member Khalid Amin from the Vice Chairman of KRCS Yousaf Al Maraaj who presented the certificate on behalf of KRCS Chairman Barjes Humoud Al Barjes. KPFA President also presented the badge of KPFA to Yousaf as a memento.

dition was born!

This was the first time any of the students had ever performed on stage and it proved to be a very positive experience, summed up by this quote from one of the students: “I’m so sad it had to end. I loved the whole cast and all the rehearsals together. I couldn’t ask for a better cast or play.

We were one big happy family and it was the best experience ever!”

W H AT ’ S O N SATURDAY, MAY 11, 2013

Embassy Information

ICSK Junior celebrates nursery graduation day

I

t was a nursery graduation day with a difference in ICSK Junior Branch on April 24, 2013, when the curtains opened at the ICSK Senior Auditorium. Keeping in mind that April 22nd was Earth Day, everything about the event was planned with a specific purpose. The backdrop showed the caption, “Save the Earth”.

A special globe which glowed with light and a lighted tree were the centre of attraction and the programme was a celebration of life on earth. The backdrop was a combination of drawings of a six year old artist, Master Steve Sunil and the event was a dedication to Earth Day. The traditional lighting of the lamp inaugurated the programme. This was followed by a dance by the little boys and girls dressed in their traditional wear welcoming the audience, carrying small lighted lamps.

The Principal Incharge Mrs. Gayatri Ravindran spoke in her welcome speech how this programme was planned with a difference. She said that the seed of greatness lies in each child and it is our responsibility to nurture that seed and help it to grow. She also said that by celebrating music, dance and colours small children become aware of a form of Mother Earth - Life. And in a special message to take care of the environment, the dignitaries were presented with saplings as ‘Gifts of Life’.

A dance drama was presented on unity in diversity and how if we come together as one, we can make many changes in our lives. This was followed by a fashion parade, where students dressed up as trees, flowers, their favourite cartoon characters and professionals. They were ushered in by talented young comperes of ICSK Junior, Diya and Shivani. Little nightingales among the graduates came up to sing some beautiful numbers. In keeping with the theme, Junior Branch Choir presented a beautiful song “We are the world”, and Master Benjamin appropriately

sang “What a wonderful world”.

A scintillating dance performance by the tiny tots brought the house down as the children showed their dancing abilities. There were thunderous applause of “Once More!” resounded in the auditorium, proving that given proper training and motivation, small children can amaze us.

Students with 100% attendance were honoured with mementos. Master Shawn delivered the vote of thanks with the clarity and confidence of a practised speaker.

ment and appreciation, quoted that every child is divine and it was our duty to help them achieve their dreams. He expressed great happiness in seeing these tiny tots graduate and make their way up the academic ladder.

While presenting a memento to Master Steve Sunil, Mr Vijay Karayil, Honorary Secretary to the Board of Trustees appreciated the creativity in children and said that the management would always encourage any effort to identify such talents in the

EMBASSY OF AUSTRALIA The Australian Embassy Kuwait does not have a visa or immigration department.

All processing of visas and immigration matters in conducted by The Australian Consulate-General in Dubai. Email: info.ausdxb@vfshelpline.com (VFS) immigration.dubai@dfat.gov.au (Visa Office); Tel: +971 4 355 1958 (VFS) - +971 4 508 7200 (Visa Office); Fax: +971 4 355 0708 (Visa Office).

In Kuwait applications can be lodged at the Australian Visa Application Centre 4B 1st Floor, Al-Banwan Building Al-Qibla Area, Ali Al-Salem Street, opposite the Central Bank of Kuwait, Kuwait City, Kuwait. Working hours and days: 09:30 - 17:30; Sunday - Thursday. Or visit their website www.vfs-au-gcc-com for more information. Kuwait citizens can apply for tourist visas on-line at www.immi.gov.au/e visa/e676.htm.

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EMBASSY OF CANADA The Embassy of Canada in Kuwait does not have a visa or immigration department. All processing of visa and immigration matters including enquiries is conducted by the Canadian Embassy in Abu Dhabi, UAE. Individuals who are interested in working, studying, visiting or immigrating to Canada should contact the Canadian Embassy in Abu Dhabi, website: www.UAE.gc.ca or www.goingtocanada.gc.ca, E-mail: abdbi-imenquiry@international.gc.ca. The Embassy of Canada is located at Villa 24, Al-Mutawakei St, Block 4 in Da’aiyah. Please visit our website at www.Kuwait.gc.ca. The Embassy of Canada is open from 07:30 to 15:30 Sunday through Thursday. The reception is open from 07:30 to 12:30. Consular services for Canadian citizens are provided from 09:00 until 12:00, Sunday through Wednesday.

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The Chief Guest Ashok Kalra, Honorary Chairman to the Board of Trustees, said in his speech that ICSK is filled with talented children who just need an opportunity to show what they are capable of. He was amazed at the performance of the small children who completely stole the show. He also assured the parents that ICSK was committed to identify and nurture the talents of students and for every talented student who leaves the school after completing his/her studies, there are a hundred waiting to take their place. ICSK can be proud of the talent pool in her students. The Guest of Honour, Mr. Rajan Daniel, Honorary Vice-Chairman to the Board of Trustees, in his words of encourage-

students.

The program was attended by Mr Dinesh Kamath, Honorary Treasurer and Dr Kamlesh Kumari, Honorary Joint Secretary, PAC Representatives Mr George Mathew of Junior Branch, Mr Mughal Akbar of Amman Branch, Mr Ninan Joseph of Khaitan Branch, Principals and Vice Principals of all the branches and PAC members of Junior Branch.

A special photo session of the young graduates in their gowns and hats completed a very memorable programme. The evening was also special as it witnessed cent per cent participation of all its students who have moved from the Kindergarten to the Primary level.

EMBASSY OF CYPRUS In its capacity as EU Local Presidency in the State of Kuwait, the Embassy of the Republic of Cyprus, on behalf of the Member States of the EU and associated States participating in the Schengen cooperation, would like to announce that as from 2nd October 2012 all Schengen States’ Consulates in Kuwait will use the Visa Information System (VIS). The VIS is a central database for the exchange of data on short-stay (up to three months) visas between Schengen States. The main objectives of the VIS are to facilitate visa application procedures and checks at external border as well as to enhance security. The VIS will contain all the Schengen visa applications lodged by an applicant over five years and the decisions taken by any Schengen State’s consulate. This will allow applicants to establish more easily the lawful use of previous visas and their bona fide status.

For the purpose of the VIS, applicants will be required to provide their biometric data (fingerprints and digital photos) when applying for a Schengen visa. It is a simple and discreet procedure that only takes a few minutes.

Biometric data, along with the data provided in the Schengen visa application form, will be recorded in the VIS central database. Therefore, as from 2nd October 2012, first-time applicants will have to appear in person when lodging the application, in order to provide their fingerprints. For subsequent applications within 5 years the fingerprints can be copied from the previous application file in the VIS. The Cypriot Presidency would like to assure the people of Kuwait and all its permanent citizens that the Member States and associated States participating in the Schengen cooperation, have taken all necessary technical measures to facilitate the rapid examination and the efficient processing of visa applications and to ensure a quick and discreet procedure for the implementation of the new VIS.

HEALTH SATURDAY, MAY 11, 2013

Australian sky-gazers witness ‘ring of fire’ Eclipse crosses Australia, Pacific SYDNEY: Sky-gazers across the Australian Outback were among the lucky few to witness a solar eclipse yesterday as the moon glided between Earth and the sun, blocking everything but a dazzling ring of light. The celestial spectacle, known as a “ring of fire” eclipse, is the second solar eclipse visible from northern

Australia in six months. In November, a total solar eclipse plunged the country’s northeast into darkness, delighting astronomers and tourists who flocked to the region from across the globe to witness it.

Yesterday’s eclipse, also called an annular solar eclipse, is not considered as

SYNDEY: The moon crosses in front of the sun during a partial solar eclipse seen through an iron cross on a church yesterday. —AP

scientifically important or dramatic as November’s, because the moon is too far from Earth - and therefore appears too small - to completely black out the sun.

Unlike a total solar eclipse, which essentially turns day into night, an annular eclipse just dims the sunlight.

“A total eclipse is overall far more spectacular, far more emotional,” said Andrew Jacob, an astronomer at Sydney Observatory. Still, he said, yesterday’s eclipse “will give you a nice ring of sunlight in the sky - it will be quite different.”

At remote outposts across Australia, scientists and spectators gathered to watch as the eclipse began casting its approximately 200-kilometer-wide (120-milewide) shadow at dawn over Western Australia, before moving east through the Northern Territory and the top of Queensland state. The shadow was drifting across Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands and the tiny island nation of Kiribati, and will eventually end in a largely uninhabited area of the Pacific Ocean.

The eclipse lasted between three and six minutes, depending on its location, and blacked out around 95 percent of the sun at its peak. A partial eclipse was visible to people in other parts of Australia, Indonesia, New Zealand and the South Pacific. US astronomer Jay Pasachoff, who traveled to Australia to view his 57th solar eclipse, drove to a remote hill in the Outback about 50 kilometers (30 miles) north of the Northern Territory town of Tennant Creek, where he and around 100 others enjoyed one of the best and longest views of the eclipse in Australia.

Amateur astronomers clicked away on cameras and local high school students measured the drop in temperature as the moon moved in front of the sun and blocked out much of the light. The moment, Pasachoff said, was magical.

“The color of the light changes in an eerie fashion, and you sense that something very strange and weird and wonderful is going on,” said Pasachoff, an astronomy professor at Williams College in Massachusetts. —AP

Two people in France ill after contact with coronavirus victim LILLE: Two people who had contact with a Frenchman who is seriously ill with the new SARS-like coronavirus have fallen sick and been admitted to hospital, health officials in northern France said on Thursday. One is a patient who shared a ward with the 65-year-old man infected with the virus when he was in a hospital in the town of Valenciennes, northern France, at the end of April, and the other is a doctor who treated him there.

The 65-year-old carrier, who fell ill on his return from a trip to Dubai, has since been transferred to an isolated intensive care wing in a hospital in Douai, near the northern city of Lille, where he is in a critical condition.

The ARS local health authority said the two other men were in individual rooms in separate hospitals, one in Lille and the other in the nearby town of Tourcoing, and that tests had been carried out on both of them. “They show symptoms which require a special infectious dis-

eases consultation,” the ARS said in a statement. “The results of the tests carried out on these two people will be known soon and will be made public.”

As France reported the 65-year-old as its first case of the coronoavirus on Wednesday, the World Health Organisation said it would send experts to visit a Saudi hospital from which the virus has spread, killing seven people so far. The French case brought the total number of known infections worldwide to 31, of which 18 resulted in death.

Coronavirus is from the same viral family that triggered the outbreak of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) that swept the world from Asia in late 2003, killing 775 people. Despite there being no evidence so far of sustained human-to-human transmission, health experts’ concerns aregrowing over clusters of new cases. —Reuters

SEATTLE: This file photo shows filets of Copper River Salmon from Alaska in Seattle. —AP

Fish oil doesn’t help prevent heart attacks Eating fish is good for your heart but taking fish oil capsules does not help people at high risk of heart problems who are already taking medicines to prevent them, a large study in Italy found.

The work makes clearer who does and does not benefit from taking supplements of omega 3 fatty acids, the good oils found in fish such as salmon, tuna and sardines. Previous studies have suggested that fish oil capsules could lower heart risks in people with heart failure or who have already suffered a heart attack. The American Heart Association recommends them only for people who have high levels of fats called triglycerides in their blood, says the group’s president, Dr Donna Arnett of the University of Alabama at Birmingham.

Fish oil capsules failed to prevent flare-ups of atrial fibrillation, a common heart rhythm problem, in a large study in 2010. The new study was led by the Mario Negri Institute for Pharmacological Research in Milan. It tested 1 gram a day of fish oil versus dummy capsules in 12,513 people throughout Italy.

They had not suffered a heart attack but were at high risk of having one because of diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, smoking, obesity or other conditions. Most already were taking cholesterol-lowering statins, aspirin and other medicines to lower their chances of heart problems.

Researchers at first planned to compare the rate of death, heart attacks and strokes in the two groups, but these were less frequent than anticipated. So they started measuring how long it was before people in either group suffered one of these fates or was hospitalized for heart-related reasons. After five years, the rate was the same - about 12 percent of each group had one of these problems.

“They’re very high-risk people and so the level of other treatments was very high,” Arnett said. “When you’re being aggressively treated for all of your other risk factors, adding fish oil yielded no additional benefits.” Results are published in Thursday’s New England Journal of Medicine. Makers of fish oil supplements helped pay for the study. Eating fish is known to help protect against heart disease, and the Heart Association recommends it at least twice a week.

“People who choose to eat more fish are more likely to eat heart healthier diets and engage in more physical activity,” and studies testing the benefit of supplements may not be able to completely adjust for differences like these, said Alice Lichtenstein, director of the cardiovascular nutrition lab at Tufts University in Boston. The results do show that people can’t rely on a pill to make up for a bad diet, she said. “It is sort of like breaking a fish oil capsule over a hot fudge sundae and expecting the effect of the calories and saturated fat to go away,” she said. —AP

WHO: Cambodia can end HIV infections by 2020 PHNOM PENH: Cambodia is on track to become one of the few countries in the world to successfully reverse its HIV epidemic and may eliminate new infections by 2020, the World Health Organization said yesterday. The Southeast Asian nation has reduced its HIV prevalence rate from a 1998 peak of 1.7 percent among people aged 15-49 to 0.7 percent in 2012 across the whole population, the WHO said in a joint statement with the Cambodian health ministry. “Cambodia is moving towards an AIDS-free generation and is one of the few countries globally to have successfully reversed its HIV epidemic,” the statement said, adding it was on track to meet the 2020 goal. —AFP

HEALTH SATURDAY, MAY 11, 2013

SATURDAY, MAY 11, 2013

Al-Madena Al-Shohada’a Al-Shuwaikh Al-Nuzha Sabhan Al-Helaly Al-Fayhaa Al-Farwaniya Al-Sulaibikhat Al-Fahaheel Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh Ahmadi Al-Mangaf Al-Shuaiba Al-Jahra Al-Salmiya

22418714 22545171 24810598 22545171 24742838 22434853 22545051 24711433 24316983 23927002 24316983 23980088 23711183 23262845 25610011 25616368

Hospitals Sabah Hospital

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Amiri Hospital

22450005

Maternity Hospital

24843100

Mubarak Al-Kabir Hospital

25312700

Chest Hospital

24849400

Farwaniya Hospital

24892010

Adan Hospital

23940620

Ibn Sina Hospital

24840300

Al-Razi Hospital

24846000

Physiotherapy Hospital

24874330/9

MATRIMONIAL Looking for brides working in Kuwait for Hindu Ezhava brothers 32 and 27 year old Mulam Chittra (stars) from Kottayam, Kerala. If interested please contact. Email: kuwaitmail2013@yahoo.com (C 4412) 11-5-2013 Proposals invited for a born again Christian girl, 31 years, 165cm height, working in Kuwait Multinational Company, completed B.A Literature and Masters in Management Hospital.

Interested parents of professionally qualified boys working in India or abroad please contact: Email: lijotk@gmail.com (C 4410) 9-5-2013

SITUATION WANTED

Clinics Rabiya

24732263

Rawdha

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Adailiya

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Khaldiya

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Khaifan

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Shamiya

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Shuwaikh

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Abdullah Salim

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Al-Nuzha

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Industrial Shuwaikh

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Dasmah

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Bneid Al-Ghar

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Al-Shaab

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Al-Kibla

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Ayoun Al-Kibla

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Mirqab

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Sharq

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Salmiya

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Jabriya

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Maidan Hawally

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Bayan

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Indian experienced generator operator/ mechanic seeking suitable job. Contact: 66368027. (C 4405) 7-5-2013 CHANGE OF NAME I, Yodati Mahesh, holder of Indian Passport No. H0552947 hereby change my name to Yedoti Mahesh.

(C 4411) 9-5-2013 FOR SALE Jeep Mitsubishi (ASX) 2011, dark gray color, full options, excellent condition, 68000km, price KD 3,300/-. Contact: 66729295. (C 4406) KIA Sorento - SE Jeep, model 2006, full options, sky blue color, excellent condition, price KD 1,750. Contact: 50994848. (C 4407) 7-5-2013 ACCOMMODATION Sharing accommodation available for decent bachelor/family, non-smoking, one big room, Amman Street, opposite to Al-Rashid Hospital. Contact: 66232356.

(C 4408) Sharing accommodation available for ladies or bachelor Filipino only near Big Jamiya Farwaniya. Available from May 10, 2013. Contact:

66158188.

Accommodation available for non-smoking decent bachelors, with separate bathroom and C-A/C, sharing with Sri Lankan family in Khaitan near Carmel School.

Contact: 66704630.

(C 4409)

Prayer timings Fajr: Shorook Duhr: Asr: Maghrib: Isha:

03:30 04:59 11:44 15:20 18:30 19:56

information SATURDAY, MAY 11, 2013

DIAL 161 FOR AIRPORT INFORMATION In case you are not travelling, your proper cancellation of bookings will help other passengers use seats Airlines BBC QTR JZR JZR SAI ETH GFA PIA UAE ETD FDB RBG MSR OMA QTR QTR THY DHX FDB KAC BAW KAC JZR KAC KAC JZR FDB KAC KAC KAC UAE KAC ABY QTR IRM FDB ETD GFA IAW JZR IRM MSC KAC JZR JZR UAE MSR KNE KAC QTR FDB KAC IRC MSR SVA JZR KNE ABY SYR KAC KNE KAC QTR RJA KAC JZR JZR ETD JZR UAE ABY SVA GFA UAL JZR KAC JZR KAC IZG

Arrival Flights on Saturday 11/5/2013 Flt Route 43 DHAKA 148 DOHA 267 BEIRUT 539 CAIRO 441 LAHORE 620 ADDIS ABABA 211 BAHRAIN 239 ISLAMABAD 853 DUBAI 305 ABU DHABI 67 DUBAI 555 ALEXANDRIA 612 CAIRO 643 MUSCAT 138 DOHA 6130 DOHA 770 ISTANBUL 170 BAHRAIN 69 DUBAI 412 MANILA 157 LONDON 416 JAKARTA 529 ASSIUT 206 ISLAMABAD 382 DELHI 503 LUXOR 53 DUBAI 302 MUMBAI 352 COCHIN 344 CHENNAI 855 DUBAI 362 COLOMBO 125 SHARJAH 132 DOHA 1186 TEHRAN 55 DUBAI 301 ABU DHABI 213 BAHRAIN 157 BAGHDAD 165 DUBAI 1188 MASHAD 401 ALEXANDRIA 284 DHAKA 325 NAJAF 241 AMMAN 871 DUBAI 610 CAIRO 480 TAIF 672 DUBAI 140 DOHA 57 DUBAI 790 MEDINAH 6692 MASHAD 575 SHARM EL SHEIKH 500 JEDDAH 257 BEIRUT 472 JEDDAH 123 SHARJAH 341 DAMASCUS 788 JEDDAH 470 JEDDAH 538 SOHAG 134 DOHA 640 AMMAN 118 NEW YORK 535 CAIRO 125 BAHRAIN 303 ABU DHABI 357 MASHAD 857 DUBAI 127 SHARJAH 510 RIYADH 215 BAHRAIN 982 WASHINGTON DC DULLES 177 DUBAI 176 GENEVA 777 JEDDAH 502 BEIRUT 4167 MASHAD

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

KAC QTR KAC FDB NIA GFA KAC KAC KAC MSC JAI RBG KAC FDB OMA ABY JZR IRA MEA MSR AXB KNE KLM ALK UAE ETD QTR GFA QTR FDB AIC KNE JZR JZR UAL KAC KAC DLH JZR JAI THY

542 144 104 63 251 219 618 774 674 405 572 553 562 61 647 129 189 607 402 618 489 462 415 229 859 307 136 217 146 59 975 474 239 185 981 786 614 636 513 574 772

CAIRO DOHA LONDON DUBAI ALEXANDRIA BAHRAIN DOHA RIYADH DUBAI SOHAG MUMBAI ALEXANDRIA AMMAN DUBAI MUSCAT SHARJAH DUBAI MASHAD BEIRUT ALEXANDRIA COCHIN MEDINAH AMSTERDAM COLOMBO DUBAI ABU DHABI DOHA BAHRAIN DOHA DUBAI CHENNAI JEDDAH AMMAN DUBAI BAHRAIN JEDDAH BAHRAIN FRANKFURT SHARM EL SHEIKH MUMBAI ISTANBUL

Airlines AIC JAI UAL DLH KLM BBC JZR THY SAI ETH PIA UAE FDB RBG MSR OMA ETD QTR QTR QTR FDB GFA THY JZR JZR KAC BAW FDB JZR JZR JZR KAC KAC ABY KAC UAE FDB

Departure Flights on Saturday 11/5/2013 Flt Route 976 GOA/CHENNAI 573 MUMBAI 981 WASHINGTON DC DULLES 637 FRANKFURT 413 AMSTERDAM 44 DHAKA 502 LUXOR 773 ISTANBUL 442 LAHORE 621 ADDIS ABABA 240 SIALKOT 854 DUBAI 68 DUBAI 556 ALEXANDRIA 613 CAIRO 644 MUSCAT 306 ABU DHABI 139 DOHA 149 DOHA 6131 DOHA 70 DUBAI 212 BAHRAIN 771 ISTANBUL 240 AMMAN 164 DUBAI 537 SOHAG 156 LONDON 54 DUBAI 256 BEIRUT 324 AL NAJAF 534 CAIRO 789 MADINAH 671 DUBAI 126 SHARJAH 787 JEDDAH 856 DUBAI 56 DUBAI

18:15 18:25 18:45 18:55 19:00 19:05 19:10 19:25 19:25 19:30 19:35 19:40 19:55 20:00 20:00 20:05 20:10 20:10 20:15 20:30 20:35 20:35 21:05 21:10 21:15 21:30 21:35 21:45 22:00 22:20 22:25 22:25 22:30 22:40 22:40 22:40 23:00 23:10 23:20 23:20 23:45

Time 00:05 00:20 00:25 00:30 00:55 01:30 01:30 02:20 02:30 02:45 03:35 03:45 03:50 03:55 04:15 04:20 04:20 04:25 05:15 05:45 06:30 07:00 07:10 07:10 07:25 07:45 08:25 08:25 08:50 09:10 09:10 09:15 09:25 09:30 09:35 09:50 09:55

ETD QTR KAC IRM JZR GFA KAC KAC KAC IAW JZR MSC IRM JZR JZR MSR KNE UAE FDB KAC QTR IRC MSR KAC ABY KNE KAC SYR SVA JZR KAC KNE RJA KAC JZR JZR QTR ETD JZR ABY UAE SVA GFA JZR UAL JZR IZG QTR FDB GFA NIA KAC RBG MSC JAI FDB ABY KAC OMA KAC IRA MEA MSR KAC KNE DHX KLM ETD ALK UAE KAC QTR KAC GFA FDB KAC QTR JZR KNE KAC KAC

302 133 101 1187 356 214 541 165 501 158 776 406 1189 176 124 611 481 872 58 561 141 6693 576 673 124 473 617 342 505 188 773 461 641 785 238 512 135 304 538 128 858 511 216 184 982 266 4168 145 64 220 252 613 554 402 571 62 120 331 648 351 604 403 607 543 475 171 415 308 230 860 381 137 301 218 60 205 147 554 471 411 283

ABU DHABI DOHA LONDON IMAM KHOMEINI MASHHAD BAHRAIN CAIRO ROME BEIRUT AL NAJAF JEDDAH SOHAG MASHHAD DUBAI BAHRAIN CAIRO TAIF DUBAI DUBAI AMMAN DOHA MASHHAD SHARM EL SHEIKH DUBAI SHARJAH JEDDAH DOHA DAMASCUS JEDDAH DUBAI RIYADH MADINAH AMMAN JEDDAH AMMAN SHARM EL SHEIKH DOHA ABU DHABI CAIRO SHARJAH DUBAI RIYADH BAHRAIN DUBAI BAHRAIN BEIRUT MASHHAD DOHA DUBAI BAHRAIN ALEXANDRIA BAHRAIN ALEXANDRIA ALEXANDRIA MUMBAI DUBAI SHARJAH TRIVANDRUM MUSCAT KOCHI ISFAHAN BEIRUT LUXOR CAIRO JEDDAH BAHRAIN DAMMAM ABU DHABI COLOMBO DUBAI DELHI DOHA MUMBAI BAHRAIN DUBAI ISLAMABAD DOHA ALEXANDRIA JEDDAH BANGKOK DHAKA

Directorate General of Civil Aviation Home Page (www.kuwait-airport.com.kw)

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

SATURDAY, MAY 11, 2013

Word Search

Yesterdayʼs Solution

C R O S S W O R D 1 8 6

ACROSS 1. The 11th letter of the Hebrew alphabet.

5. Having escaped, especially from confinement.

12. The executive agency that advises the President on the federal budget.

15. Widely cultivated in tropical and subtropical regions for its fragrant flowers and colorful fruits.

16. Of or pertaining to or characteristic of Italy or its people or culture or language.

17. A close friend who accompanies his buddies in their activities.

18. American political cartoonist (1840-1902).

19. The first compartment of the stomach of a ruminant.

20. Lower in esteem.

22. A dark-skinned member of a race of people living in Australia when Europeans arrived.

25. According to the Old Testament he was a pagan king of Israel and husband of Jezebel (9th century BC).

26. The syllable naming the fourth (subdominant) note of the diatonic scale in solmization.

28. A white metallic element that burns with a brilliant light.

29. A strip of land projecting into a body of water.

33. Having a tail.

37. An angular shape made by folding.

40. Roman Emperor who was the adoptive son of Trajan.

43. A group of Niger-Congo languages spoken primarily in southeastern Mali and northern Ghana.

44. A federal agency established to coordinate programs aimed at reducing pollution and protecting the environment.

45. Italian actress best known for her performances in tragic roles (1858-1924).

47. The corporate executive responsible for the operations of the firm.

49. A state in northwestern North America.

50. The dull explosive noise made by an engine.

52. A line that forms the length of an arrow pointer.

54. Amount of a charge or payment relative to some basis.

56. Cubes of meat marinated and cooked on a skewer usually with vegetables.

58. A game in which numbered balls are drawn and random and players cover the corresponding numbers on their cards.

59. Any place of complete bliss and delight and peace.

60. A basketball shot made with one hand from a position under or beside the basket (and usually banked off the backboard).

61. A Hindu prince or king in India.

63. A region of Malaysia in northeastern Borneo.

66. The act of grasping.

68. A Chadic language spoken south of Lake Chad.

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

73. A fatty deposit in the intima (inner lining) of an artery.

77. Any of several small ungulate mammals of Africa and Asia with rodent-like incisors and feet with hooflike toes.

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

79. A cut of pork ribs with much of the meat trimmed off.

80. The elementary stages of any subject (usually plural).

81. An associate degree in applied science.

82. Thin-shelled freshwater mussels.

83. The longer of the two telegraphic signals used in Morse code.

Daily Sudoku

DOWN 1. Valuable fiber plant of East Indies now widespread in cultivation.

2. Jordan's port.

3. The basic unit of money in Uruguay.

4. Made warm or hot.

5. A genus of Mustelidae.

6. A plaster now made mostly from Portland cement and sand and lime.

7. (Arthurian legend) The battlefield where King Arthur was mortally wounded.

8. On or toward the lee.

9. Any of several low-growing pines of western North America.

10. (Akkadian) God of wisdom.

11. A nucleic acid consisting of large molecules shaped like a double helix.

12. Large elliptical brightly colored deep-sea fish of Atlantic and Pacific and Mediterranean.

13. An independent group of closely related Chadic languages spoken in the area between the Biu-Mandara and East Chadic languages.

14. (pathology) An elevation of the skin filled with serous fluid.

21. Pertaining to or constituting a base or basis.

23. A member of a nomadic people of the northern Ural mountains.

24. Take away a part from.

27. Old World wild swine having a narrow body and prominent tusks from which most domestic swine come.

30. A river that rises in central Germany and flows north to join the Elbe River.

31. Spread or daub over.

32. A small ball with a hole through the middle.

34. (Irish) Ancient Irish god (probably a god of the sun).

35. A liquid solution that results from elution.

36. Become dark or darker.

38. A ridge that forms a seam between two parts.

39. An official prosecutor for a judicial district.

41. (Assyrian) God of fire and light.

42. Any of various edible seeds of plants of the family Leguminosae.

46. A clergyman who watches over a group of people.

48. (Greek mythology) One of the mountain nymphs.

51. Offering fun and gaiety.

53. Pitiable in circumstances especially through abandonment.

55. A public promotion of some product or service.

57. The dialect of Malay used as the national language of the Republic of Indonesia or of Malaysia.

62. Declare or acknowledge to be true.

64. A city in northern India.

65. South African term for `boss'.

67. Chocolate cookie with white cream filling.

69. (Babylonian) God of storms and wind.

70. A small cake leavened with yeast.

71. United States writer (born in Poland) who wrote in Yiddish (1880-1957).

74. Administration of a nutritionally adequate solution through a catheter into the vena cava.

75. 10 hao equal 1 dong.

76. A loose sleeveless outer garment made from aba cloth.

Yesterdayʼs Solution

Yesterday’s Solution

SPORTS

SATURDAY, MAY 11, 2013

Lagares, Baxter lift Mets over Pirates NEW YORK: Rookie center fielder Juan Lagares robbed Andrew McCutchen of a go-ahead hit in the top of the ninth inning, then pinch-hitter Mike Baxter’s single in the bottom half sent the New York Mets over the Pittsburgh Pirates 3-2 Thursday night.

Baxter delivered his second winning pinchhit in three days. His 10th-inning single Tuesday beat the Chicago White Sox. This time, Baxter batted for Lagares and won it.

Lagares was equally responsible for the victory. With a runner on first and two outs, McCutchen hit a loud shot into faraway right-center field. Lagares glided back, perfectly timed his leap and plucked the ball at the top of the fence as he rammed into the padded wall. Marlon Byrd singled to start the Mets’ ninth off Jason Grilli (0-1). Andrew Brown sacrificed and Baxter followed by grounding a single up the middle, easily scoring Byrd. Bobby Parnell (4-0) pitched the ninth. The Pirates have lost four of five.

Pedro Alvarez hit a solo home run in the eighth off Mets reliever LaTroy Hawkins that made it 2-all.

BRAVES 6, GIANTS 3 Brian McCann hit a two-run homer and an RBI single in his third game this season since coming off the disabled list, and

Atlanta beat San Francisco to begin a fourgame series between NL division leaders.

Julio Teheran (2-0) pitched seven efficient innings after his last scheduled outing was rained out Saturday. Craig Kimbrel earned his 100th career save, becoming the second-youngest pitcher to do so. Buster Posey hit a two-run homer and an RBI single, but the Giants were done in by the fifth inning when the Braves batted around. San Francisco (20-15) fell into a first-place tie in the NL West with Arizona. Ryan Vogelsong (1-3) gave up six runs and seven hits in 4 13 innings. He is winless in five starts.

DIAMONDBACKS 2, PHILLIES 1 Patrick Corbin won his fifth consecutive decision to start the season and drove in a run to help Arizona beat Philadelphia.

Corbin (5-0) scattered four hits over 6 1-3 innings and allowed one run to lower his ERA to 1.75. The left-hander became the first pitcher to throw at least six innings and allow two or fewer runs in his first seven starts of a season since Ubaldo Jimenez had 12 straight such outings for Colorado in 2010. Heath Bell threw seven pitches in a scoreless ninth for his third save in three nights since taking over for injured closer JJ Putz. Cole Hamels (1-5) gave up two runs

on six hits and five walks in six innings.

Phillies manager Charlie Manuel set a franchise record with his 1,332nd game as the club’s skipper. The 69-year-old Manuel, the 51st manager in the team’s 123-year history, passed Gene Mauch, who managed Philadelphia from 1960-68.

and four walks in three innings, his first loss since Game 2 of the World Series at San Francisco last October. It was his shortest career start other than an outing at Cleveland in August 2011 when he was taken out after two innings because of a long rain delay.

INTERLEAGUE NATIONALS 5, TIGERS 4 Ryan Mattheus, Drew Storen and Rafael Soriano combined for shutout relief after Dan Haren nearly squandered a four-run lead, and Washington beat Detroit to complete a two-game sweep of the AL champions. Ryan Zimmerman had three hits, helping the Nationals to their first four-game winning streak of the year. Tigers pitcher Doug Fister (4-1) had an RBI single in the second off Haren (4-3), but the Nationals made it 5-1 in the bottom half on consecutive run-scoring singles by Zimmerman and Adam LaRoche. Haren allowed four runs and nine hits in six innings, giving up a three-run homer to pinch-hitter Matt Tuiasosopo. Soriano converted his 12th save in 13 chances, retiring Prince Fielder on a game-ending flyout to the center-field warning track with a runner on. Fister gave up five runs - four earned - on eight hits

YANKEES 3, ROCKIES 1 CC Sabathia and five relievers held Colorado to four hits, Robinson Cano smacked a solo homer and New York beat Colorado in a game that was delayed more than two hours by rain. Cano also had an infield single in the third inning for his 1,500th hit as the Yankees took two of three from the Rockies. A steady rain delayed the first pitch by 8 minutes. In the fourth, another thunderstorm halted the game for 1:59. That break meant the end of the day for Sabathia, who allowed one run and one hit in four innings. A stream of relievers picked up where he left off. Adam Warren (1-0) picked up his first big league win by getting five big outs after the delay.

Mariano Rivera pitched the ninth to remain perfect in 13 save chances. Jeff Francis (1-3) threw four innings and gave up two runs before rain forced the umpires to signal for the tarp. — AP

Indians end series with a convincing blowout CLEVELAND: Jason Kipnis, Nick Swisher and Mark Reynolds hit indisputable home runs and Scott Kazmir struck out 10 in six innings, leading the Cleveland Indians to a 9-2 win over Oakland on Thursday and a four-game sweep of the Athletics. The Indians ended the series with a convincing blowout, one day after they won 4-3 with the help of a blown call in the ninth inning when umpires, after watching a video replay, ruled that an apparent tying home run by Oakland’s Adam Rosales was a double.

Major League Baseball acknowledged the umpires made an “improper call,” but executive vice president Joe Torre said the decision is final. Kipnis hit a two-run homer in the first off Bartolo Colon (3-2) for the Indians, who won for the 10th time in 11 games and improved to 13-4 since April 20. Kazmir (2-1) allowed one run and five hits and has won back-to-back starts for the first time since 2010. Josh Donaldson homered for the A’s, who fell to .500 (18-18) for the first time since April 4.

TWINS 5, RED SOX 3 Oswaldo Arcia hit a two-run homer and Minnesota capitalized on a costly throwing error by Boston starter John Lackey to beat the struggling Red Sox. Lackey’s wild throw to second on a potential inning-ending double play gave the Twins another chance in the sixth and they responded with four unearned runs to take a 5-2 lead. The Red Sox lost for the sixth time in seven games and fell out of first place in the AL East. Kevin Correia (4-2) pitched 5 1-3 innings for the Twins and Glen Perkins pitched the ninth for his eighth save in eight chances. Lackey (1-3) allowed six hits and one walk and struck out eight in seven innings.

ANGELS 6, ASTROS 5 Mark Trumbo hit a two-run double in the eighth inning before Alberto Callaspo’s goahead sacrifice fly sent Los Angeles to a win

over Houston. The struggling Angels snapped a four-game skid and avoided an embarrassing sweep against last-place Houston in a game that took 4 hours, 7 minutes - the longest nine-inning game this season. Josh Hamilton and Brendan Harris homered for the Angels. Garrett Richards (23) pitched a scoreless seventh for the win and Ernesto Frieri got five outs for his fifth save. Hector Ambriz (0-2) took the loss.

RAYS 5, BLUE JAYS 4, 10 INNINGS Luke Scott drew a bases-loaded walk with two outs in the 10th inning to give Tampa Bay a victory over Toronto. The Rays loaded the bases on Evan Longoria’s double off Aaron Loup (1-3) and two walks. The game featured a rare matchup of reigning Cy Young Award winners, however David Price and R.A. Dickey were not involved in the decision. Dickey allowed three runs and five hits, walked five and struck out five in six innings for the Blue Jays. Price worked eight innings for Tampa Bay, yielding four runs two earned- and seven hits in eight innings.

Kyle Farnsworth (2-0) pitched one inning to get the win.

ROYALS 6, ORIOLES 2 Alex Gordon and Eric Hosmer homered in a four-run fourth inning, Jeremy Guthrie pitched effectively against his former team and Kansas City avoided a three-game sweep. Gordon and Hosmer both connected against Freddy Garcia (0-1) with a runner on.

Mike Moustakas also homered for the Royals, who snapped a three-game skid. The three home runs were a season high for Kansas City, which began the game with an AL-low 19 long balls. Facing the Orioles for the first time since they traded him to Colorado in February 2012, Guthrie (5-0) allowed one earned run, seven hits and three walks in six innings to lower his ERA to 2.28. Garcia retired the first 10 batters he faced before getting into trouble in the fourth. — AP

NEW YORK: New York Mets’ Mike Baxter (left) celebrates with Marlon Byrd after Baxter hit a walk-off single to score Byrd during the ninth inning of a baseball game against the Pittsburgh Pirates at Citi Field. — AP

SPORTS

SATURDAY, MAY 11, 2013

One dead after America’s Cup boat capsizes SAN FRANCISCO: British double Olympic sailing medalist Andrew Simpson died Thursday when a 72-foot catamaran of Swedish team Artemis capsized during America’s Cup training on San Francisco Bay, officials said.

Simpson, a 36-year-old who won Olympic gold in 2008 and silver in 2012 in the keelboat star class, was trapped under the Artemis Racing boat for about 10 minutes, according to a statement on the America’s Cup website.

“It is with immense sadness that Artemis Racing confirms the tragic death of crewmember Andrew ‘Bart’ Simpson today in San Francisco,” the team said in a statement.

“Despite attempts to revive him, by doctors afloat and subsequently ashore, his life was lost,” it said. “The entire Artemis Racing team is devastated by what happened,” said Artemis chief executive Paul Cayard. “Our

heartfelt condolences are with Andrew’s wife and family.”A spokeswoman for the San Francisco Fire Department, Mindy Talmadge, said Simpson was pronounced dead at the St. Francis Yacht Club.

“Our dispatch center was notified... that an Artemis boat had capsized and one person was reportedly in the water 10 or 15 minutes.

One of the chase boats pulled the gentleman out of the water and began CPR,” Talmadge said. “Rescue workers continued CPR as the man was transported to the St Francis Yacht Club, where paramedics were waiting.

Unfortunately, they ended up pronouncing him dead at the Saint Francis Yacht Club,” she said.A second crew member suffered injuries not thought to be life threatening, she said.

Twelve people were on the boat when it capsized and all have been accounted for.

The yacht involved is an AC72 catamaran, the Swedish team’s first, according to the online statement, which said the incident occurred between 12:30 pm and 1:00 pm. The AC72 boats developed for the America’s Cup were described by event organizers as “speedsters” powered by 130-foot tall wing sails and with the ability to hydrofoil-essentially rise out of the water to reduce drag.

They can reach top speeds in excess of twice the windspeed, and place strenuous physical demands on crew members. The catamarans have been adopted for the venerable yachting competition this year in a bid to make the event more exciting. The Oracle syndicate, owned by software billionaire Larry Ellison, defeated Switzerland’s Alinghi in a trimaran to win the last edition of the America’s Cup in 2010. “Today is a sad day for all of us in

Blackhawks eliminate Wild Penguins blank Islanders 4-0 CHICAGO: Marian Hossa scored twice to back a strong effort by goalie Corey Crawford, and the Chicago Blackhawks beat the Minnesota Wild 5-1 Thursday night to win their first-round playoff series 4-1. Chicago is moving on in the postseason for the first time since the championship run in 2010, and will face either San Jose or Detroit if the Red Wings get past Anaheim. The way the Blackhawks have dominated, anything less than a trip to the Stanley Cup finals would be a disappointment for them.

They got off to a record start and captured the Presidents’ Trophy for finishing with more points than any other team. Now, they’re eyeing the biggest prize of all. And after bowing out in the first round the past two years, they sure are looking good.

Senators 6, Canadiens 1 Craig Anderson made 33 saves and Cory Conacher scored twice on a shaky Peter Budaj as the Senators advanced to the second round. Ottawa took the bestof-seven series 4-1 and put a punctuation mark on its dominance in moving on for the first time since 2007, when the Senators lost in the Stanley Cup finals to the Anaheim Ducks. The victory gives Ottawa time to rest up and heal bruises from the physical series before the conference semifinals begin next week. Zack Smith, Kyle Turris, Daniel Alfredsson and Erik Condra also scored for Ottawa, underdogs as the seventh seed in the East, but bolstered down the stretch by the return of top players on defense Erik Karlsson and Jared Cowan.

NEW YORK: Matt Cooke #24 of the Pittsburgh Penguins hits Matt Carkner #7 of the New York Islanders into the boards in Game Four of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals during the 2013 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs. — AFP PK Subban scored for injury-struck Montreal.

Penguins 4, Islanders 0 Tomas Vokoun stopped 31 shots in his first playoff start in six years and the Penguins took a 3-2 lead in their firstround series. Sidney Crosby, Tyler Kennedy and Douglas Murray scored during a seven-minute stretch in the second period and Kris Letang added a power-play goal in the third as Pittsburgh moved a step closer to advancing to the second round. Game 6

is today in New York. Evgeni Nabokov made 23 saves for the Islanders, but also gave up breakaway goals to Crosby and Kennedy and botched a lazy wrist shot from Murray that gave the Penguins all the offense they would need. Vokoun was thrust into the lineup after Pittsburgh coach Dan Bylsma benched Marc-Andre Fleury, who had started 79 straight postseason games but struggled in a 6-4 loss in Game 4. The 36-yearold Vokoun didn’t look intimidated by the stage as the Penguins restored a little order to a wide-open series. — AP

Malaysia cry foul over Lin Dan wildcard KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia’s singles coach has suggested a conspiracy after badminton chiefs handed four-time Chinese winner Lin Dan a wildcard for this year’s world championships, a report said yesterday. Tey Seu Bock told the New Straits Times that the wildcard entry for the double Olympic championwhich could affect the chances of Malaysia’s world number one Lee Chong Wei-gave China an unfair advantage. “I don’t understand the reason behind BWF’s decision to give Lin Dan a wildcard despite China having three players in the men’s singles. I cannot help thinking that people want China to win the title,” he said.

“Chong Wei will now have to face four China players, which is a huge mental challenge but it is not impossible for him to

win.” The Badminton World Federation (BWF) gave Lin special permission to play the world championships after his ranking dropped to 41 following an eight-month break since last year’s Olympics in London.

“What we have been hearing is that Lin Dan has been seriously contemplating retirement and it is a real surprise that China have accepted the wildcard,” the coach said. “It will be tricky as Lin Dan will be unseeded and there is a possibility he could meet Chong Wei as early as the first round and this is going to be a massive challenge.” Malaysia’s Lee, a three-time world player of the year, has been irresistible in many tournaments but he is still searching for his first world or Olympic title after a heartbreaking series of losses to Lin. —AFP

the sailing community,” the Oracle team said in a statement. “Andrew Simpson was a great person, a terrific sailor, and a good friend to all of our team. Our thoughts are with his family and the entire Artemis team. He will be dearly missed.”

The Louis Vuitton Cup to decide a challenger will be held July 4 through September 1, with Artemis scheduled to take on Team New Zealand and Italy’s Luna Rossa for the right to take on Oracle for the America’s Cup in September. Oracle Racing’s AC72 capsized in spectacular fashion in October on San Francisco Bay, but no one was injured.

Veteran skipper Russell Coutts capsized a similar but smaller catamaran in San Francisco Bay in June 2011. Talmadge said she did not know what sequence of events led to the Artemis Racing craft’s capsizing. — AFP

Nuggets’ Ujiri named NBA’s top executive DENVER: Even as Masai Ujiri accepted the NBA’s executive of the year trophy from club President Josh Kroenke on Thursday, the Denver Nuggets general manager said he would have given it up gladly in exchange for a deep playoff run. “It’s a little bittersweet for me,” Ujiri said at a news conference a day after the Nuggets’ George Karl took the trophy for coach of the year. “I would trade that to be playing right now.” Ujiri, the first African-born GM in major American sports, built the Nuggets team that won an NBA franchiserecord 57 games and went an NBA-best 38-3 at home before going down in the first round.

“There was an unbelievable energy in this city and that’s why we had kind of a little disappointment when we lost to the Golden State Warriors, who’s not such a bad team from what they are doing right now,” Ujiri said. “We hope to kick their butts next year but they’re not too bad right now. We understand we are a growing team. We knew there were going to be pains. This is part of the process and we’ll continue to grow.” Ujiri assembled a team that had nine players average between 8 and 16.7 points and the city, the Nuggets’ fans and the organization embraced the club’s persona as a team without a superstar that nevertheless got the job done. Until the third-seeded Nuggets were beaten in six games by the sixth-seeded Warriors, led by their fast-rising star, Stephen Curry.

Ujiri said that after the Nuggets’ first-round exit, his disappointment was so keen he didn’t even watch basketball for several days. He finally tuned in Wednesday night to watch an NBA playoff game and came to the office Thursday recharged, spoiling to get started on next season. “We’ve got work to do,” he said. “I think we’re beginning to get over our emotional state. You know what? You have to move on.”

Ujiri said he’s confident his deal, which expires in the summer, will be renewed or extended. “Josh and I continue to have conversations. I’m very positive that things will work out,” he said. And he said a top offseason priority will be to lock up Andre Iguodala with a long-term deal. “He’s a great kid and I think he’s great for our basketball team,” Ujiri said.

“There’s a lot he brings to our program and we’re proud of him and the year he had. We hope we auditioned ourselves well for him. It’s going to be his decision, but we’ll do everything on our part as an organization. We want him back.” He vowed the Nuggets will be back for another playoff run next season. “Our goal is to be better and to be better in the playoffs, and we’re going to do everything we can to get there,” he said. Ujiri totaled 59 points and received eight first-place votes from a panel of his fellow team basketball executives throughout the league. The Los Angeles Clippers’ Gary Sacks finished second with 28 points (three first-place votes) and the Houston Rockets’ Daryl Morey and the New York Knicks’ Glen Grunwald finished tied for third with 25 points (four first-place votes). Ujiri, who spent three years with the Toronto Raptors before joining the Nuggets, was named to his current position on Aug. 27, 2010. He worked for the Nuggets organization as a scout from 2003-07, and served as the team’s director of international scouting during the 2006-07 season. Ujiri’s predecessor, Mark Warkentien, won the honor in 2009. Denver’s Vince Boryla also won the award in 1984-85. — AP

sports

SATURDAY, MAY 11, 2013

Basketball: Russia target clean sweep MOSCOW: Russian men’s and women’s basketball clubs have a chance this weekend of sweeping every European trophy for the first time in the country’s history, in a throwback to Soviet domination of the sport. With two women’s tournaments and the men’s second-tier European cup already secure, CSKA Moscow just need to win the Euroleague title to complete an extraordinary clean sweep. Lokomotiv-Kuban from the Russian southern city of Krasnodar clinched their first-ever continental trophy by downing Bilbao Basket 64-75 in the Eurocup final at Charleroi, Belgium.

This year’s Russian female champions UMMC from Ekaterinburg grabbed their second women’s Euroleague title by beating Turkish outfit Fenerbahce 82-56 in the final, while Dynamo Moscow bagged the women’s Eurocup beating another Turkish side, Kayseri. Meanwhile, a rampant CSKA Moscow will challenge for their third Euroleague title in the Final Four tournament, held in London this weekend. The Red Army side will take on their old foes Olympiakos in the semi-final, while Spanish arch rivals Real Madrid and Barcelona will determine the other finalist.

The Soviet Union-with the full might of the USSR republics including the basketball-mad Baltic states-were a global force in the game, famously defeating the United States for gold in the 1972 Olympics. The rise of club basketball in Russia seems paradoxical as the game is currently out of fashion compared to a true basketball boom after the collapse of the USSR, when Russian youth discovered for themselves the NBA basketball stars. But the wave of basketball popularity brought into the sport dozens of young talents, the best of whom are now playing for Russian and NBA professional clubs.Flagship side CSKA Moscow-winners of 24 Soviet and 20 Russian titles, four European Champions cups and who twice topped the Euroleague-served an example for other sides.

CSKA have always had solid funding, attracting sponsors with their stable top-class performance both in the national championship and the European cups. The club, currently owned by one of Russia’s biggest mining companies Norilsk Nickel, have never bought players wholesale, instead pursuing a shrewd transfer policy allowing them not only to perform well on the pitch but also to retain good chemistry in the dressing room. The club has bet on a combination of home-grown talents and European basketball stars like their current charismatic leaders, Greek player Theodoros Papaloukas and Serbian star guard Milos Teodosic.— AFP

Unheralded Castro leads as McIlroy, Woods lurk PONTE VEDRA BEACH: Unheralded Roberto Castro fired a 63 to tie the course record for a three-shot lead over Rory McIlroy and Zach Johnson with Tiger Woods lurking after Thursday’s first round of the Players Championship. The world class leaderboard also included US Open champion Webb Simpson, US Ryder Cup players Steve Stricker and Hunter Mahan in a group with Woods another shot back on 67, but it was Web.com graduate Castro who stole the spotlight.

Staging a clinic with his irons to receptive greens, Castro, ranked 267th in the world, made seven birdies and an eagle to match the mark shared by Greg Norman and Fred Couples in his debut on the Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass. “It gives me proof that when you play great, you’re good enough,” Castro, 27, said about the confidence boost he gained from a brilliant round that set the bar in the morning wave. Castro’s playing partner, Jason Bohn, said he had never seen anything quite like the red-haired American’s round.

“Ultra impressive,” said Bohn, who shot a four-under 68. “I’ve never seen a 63 shot like that. His iron play was like a clinic, he had so many kick-ins. That’s the highest score he could have shot. He was awesome.” Castro had six birdie putts within five feet, including four within two feet and did not make a single putt of more than 10 feet in his 63. World number two McIlroy also took advantage of greens softened by last week’s heavy rains to reverse a trend of poor results for him at Sawgrass, where he had never broken par or made the cut in three prior appearances in the tournament.

Top-ranked Woods, the 2001 winner, led the way among the afternoon starters, making four consecutive birdies from the

ninth hole and adding another at the 16th and appeared poised to tie for second on 66. But Woods’s approach aimed at the back right pin at 18 trickled over the edge of the green and down a slope. He hit a

Roberto Castro weak chip that hung in the fringe and needed two strokes to get down, ruining his bid for his first bogey-free round at Sawgrass in 56 tries. Woods was pleased with his round. “I made a couple key putts here and there, and I really took care of the par-fives. I birdied all of them today, which is nice,” said Woods, the only three-

time winner this season.

Also in the group that included Woods was Casey Wittenberg and Ryan Palmer, with Bohn and Swedes Henrik Stenson and David Lingmerth, Australian Greg Chalmers, Ireland’s Padraig Harrington and Spaniard Sergio Garcia another shot back. Castro, whose best PGA Tour finish is a tie for seventh at last year’s Greenbrier Classic and whose best result this year is a tie for 16th at Phoenix, gained a jolt of momentum as he finished his opening nine. Starting on the back nine, he made the turn in five-under 31 with birdies on each hole of the challenging finishing stretch called “The Gauntlet.”

He two-putted the par-five 16th from 65 feet, tapped in at the par-three 17th island green from 19 inches and at the par-four 18th from 23 inches. Castro eagled the par-five second hole after hitting a three-iron inside four feet for sole possession of the lead. He followed that with birdies from 21 inches at number four and from 18 inches at the sixth. “I hit it close a lot,” said Castro, whose aunt, Jenny Lidback, played on the LPGA Tour and whose family on his mother’s side comes from Peru.

Hitting it as close as possible at the parthree eighth hole that was playing 233 yards was Michael Thompson, who made the only ace of the day with a perfect three-iron. Castro set up his irons with his own accuracy off the tee, hitting all but one fairway.

He had 10 one-putts and 26 putts in all.

Defending champion Matt Kuchar was eight shots off the pace after opening with a one-under 71, while four-times major winner Phil Michelson was a further shot back after mixing four birdies with two bogeys and a double-bogey.— Reuters

Alonso on top in wet practice in Spain BARCELONA: Local favorite Fernando Alonso led a Ferrari one-two in a damp first practice for the Spanish Formula One Grand Prix yesterday while Jenson Button failed to set a lap time in his heavily updated McLaren. Alonso produced a lap of one minute 25.252 seconds right at the end of the session on a drying track but the time more than five seconds slower than the fastest in pre-season testing at the Circuit de Catalunya - was purely a crowd-pleaser.

Plans to provide more track action by giving drivers an extra set of prototype longlasting hard tyres were stymied by the weather, with leaden skies and drizzle replacing yesterday’s sunshine. Felipe Massa was just behind his team mate in 1:25.455 while Frenchman Jean-Eric Vergne was third fastest in a Toro Rosso with compatriot Romain Grosjean fourth in a Lotus.

Red Bull’s triple world champion and overall leader Sebastian Vettel was 19th quickest of the 22 cars, waiting until the track was drying late in the session before venturing out for a proper lap, with Australian team mate Webber 20th. Kimi Raikkonen, second overall and 10 points behind Vettel, managed the eighth best lap for Lotus. All teams have brought updates to the first race of the European season but former champions McLaren and Williams have more riding on them than most after struggling in the first four races in Asia and the Middle East.

The weather deprived both of the chance to put in meaningful miles, with Button and Mexican team mate Sergio Perez spending part of the session watching from the garage as McLaren erred on the side of caution. Button was already resigned to that before the session started, however. “We won’t be running so much in the wet. When you turn up to a place with new parts, you don’t normally have a lot of them so I don’t think we’ll be doing a lot of wet running,” he

told reporters. McLaren sporting director Sam Michael added: “We’ve got enough parts for two cars, but we’re limited on spares so we’d like to avoid crashing or going into gravel.”

Button, the 2009 world champion, has finished no higher than fifth so far this season after winning the final race of last year in Brazil with what was then deemed to be the fastest car. McLaren, who brought out a significantly new car this season instead of

the more evolutionary approach favoured by others, have been working overtime to fix the aerodynamic problems with the team using up one of their ‘jokers’ so mechanics could break an overnight curfew. “I think we have to reserve judgment until we actually drive the car. There’s a lot that’s different,” Button said. “It looks nice. There’s some really cool looking little bits on the car but I don’t think it’s going to be enough to really fight right at the front,” he added.— Reuters

MONTMELO: Ferrari’s Spanish driver Fernando Alonso drives during the second practice session at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmelo near Barcelona yesterday ahead of the Spanish Formula One Grand Prix. — AFP

sports

SATURDAY, MAY 11, 2013

Everton feel the pinch of Moyes’ departure

SAINT-GERMAIN-EN-LAYE: Paris Saint-Germain’s French Goalkeeper Ronan Le Crom takes part in a training session yesterday at the French L1 football club PSG’s training camp in Saint-Germain-en-Laye, near Paris. — AFP French League Preview

PSG try to avoid further bumps on the title road LYON: Paris Saint-Germain could wrap up a first French title since 1994 this weekend, but given recent troubles they may be expecting further bumps in the road as they travel to Lyon tomorrow. PSG could have sealed the deal a week ago, and given they were hosting mid-table Valenciennes, they could have been forgiven for putting the champagne on ice.

Yet that turned into an unexpected banana skin, and not just because the champions-elect dropped two points. They lost centre-back Thiago Silva to a red card before half-time and saw five players booked as they needed a late leveler from Alex to snatch a share of the spoils. What’s more, sporting director Leonardo got himself into hot water with an apparent shove on referee Alexandre Castro in the tunnel after the game, leading to a temporary ban.

That came just a week after PSG had both Marco Veratti and David Beckham sent-off in an ill-tempered 1-0 victory at relegation-threatened Evian before goalkeeper Salvatore Sirigu also saw red after the final whistle. Although Beckham will be back to face Lyon, Sirigu and Veratti are still banned for another match, while Silva must sit out two games. Leonardo, who has protested his innocence and claims to have been pushed into Castro, will also be absent as Champions League chasing Lyon look to stall the Parisians’ title party for another week at least.

Taking on Remi Garde’s team with several first choice players missing is far from ideal for PSG, particularly as their opponents have important objectives to play for. Lyon currently hold third place, the final Champions League qualifying position, but travel to fourth-placed Nice in a week. If they drop points to PSG, they could risk falling out of the top three altogether should they lose to former coach Claude Puel’s side next week. Lyon have been in inconsistent form recently, winning three of their last four, although having lost three on the bounce before that.

Should PSG win they will definitely secure a third league title but they might already be champions if Marseille lose at home to Toulouse today. Carlo Ancelotti’s side have a sevenpoint lead with only nine points still up for grabs. If the southern giants draw then a point would be enough for PSG too, while a defeat for Marseille would hand the title they last won 2010 to their bitter rivals. It would take a remarkable collapse for PSG not to be crowned champions and Lyon are only four points behind Marseille in the race for direct qualification for the Champions League group stages next season.

Even so, Marseille coach Elie Baup refused to say who he would be cheering for tomorrow. “Our worry is to keep concentrated on the (Toulouse) match. We have to be ready because the finishing line is not far,” he said. “First things first, we have to succeed in our match against Toulouse. They’ve just had a great performance (in beating Lille 4-2).” Lille’s defeat last week hurt their Champions League qualification chances, leaving them six points behind Lyon. Nice, who trail Lyon by three points, and Saint-Etienne, a point further back, look to be the only two remaining threats to a top three finish.

They travel to Evian and Lorient respectively.— AFP

PARIS: Once lauded as ‘The Bank of England Club’, Everton had to wave goodbye to manager David Moyes as they were no longer able to satisfy the ambitions of a man restrained by the Merseysiders’ financial straitjacket. The Goodison Park side, founder members of the Football League and nine-time champions, were once one of the English game’s superpowers, both on and off the field.

But the Premier League of the 21st century, with its global stars and mind-boggling television deals, is a different beast from the cosy old First Division. Despite being unable to compete with the foreigninjected cash reserves of Manchester United, his new employers, as well as Manchester City and Chelsea, the 50-yearold Moyes was widely praised for his 11year Everton career.

He guided them to the top eight every season since 2006. But with Everton only once reaching the Champions League-a brief, painful flirtation in 2005, which started and ended in the qualifying roundsMoyes knew that he would never have the finance that will be freely on tap at Old Trafford. Everton were dubbed ‘The School of Science’ in the championship-winning seasons of 1962-63 and 1969-70, and one of the Big Five in 1984-85 and 1986-87, when they won the last two of their titles.

Back then, they would have expected a financial windfall from two European Cup campaigns.

However, the 1985 Heysel disaster, which sparked a six-year ban on English clubs playing in Europe, also led to the break-up of that Howard Kendall-coached squad. With the exception of an FA Cup triumph in 1995, honors have been impossible to come by ever since. At the start of the 2011-12 season, chairman Bill Kenwright revealed the brutal state of

finances at the club. The sale of their Bellefield training base in the city raised £9 million ($13.9 million, 10.6 million euros), which went-along with revenue from player sales-immediately to the bankers in an effort to reduce debts of £45 million.

In a leaked document, Kenwright admitted he had even received three death threats during his tenure, despite his drive to find new investment. His search for backers was not helped by the club’s longdrawn out saga of attempting to find a new home away from their ageing Goodison Park ground. “There has to be a reason nobody is buying Everton. There is a rea-

son-there’s no money in the world, there’s no point in me being replaced, we need someone with money,” Kenwright told a fans’ forum.

The club has since battled to cling onto some of their most high-profile playing assets. However, there has already been speculation that the likes of Leighton Baines and Marouane Fellaini may be targeted to follow Moyes to Old Trafford. If Moyes has the impossible task of matching Ferguson’s achievements at Old Trafford, his successor at Goodison Park will have an equally imposing job of keeping Everton in the chasing pack.— AFP

David Moyes

Moyes contract shows value of stability PARIS: Throughout all the whirlwind furor surrounding Alex Ferguson’s retirement and David Moyes’s appointment as Manchester United manager, one crucial element in the Red Devils’ recent success could not fail to be noticed: stability.

Having given their previous manager more than 26 years at the Old Trafford helm to rebuild and revamp a faltering side before turning them first into title winners and then establishing a legacy of achievement, United’s directors handed Moyes a six-year contract. While that may not match the hasty eight-year deal Newcastle offered Alan Pardew following their surprise fifth-placed finish last season, it is still a hefty contract in the modern age.

Yet it proves how important stability and continuity is considered at the Manchester United institution. This is no knee-jerk reaction or stop-gap appointment in the post-Ferguson era. United have picked Moyes, and they plan to keep him. Such an attitude contrasts sharply with the example displayed by other teams, such as Chelsea where Rafael Benitez was picked to replace Roberto Di Matteo in November, but only on an interim basis until the end of the season.

Benitez is the 10th Chelsea boss in billionaire Russian owner Roman Abramovich’s 10 years at the club.

United’s chiefs deserve a certain share of Ferguson’s remarkable success at the club for having stuck by the Scot through some of the more difficult periods, notably at the beginning of his tenure.He took three-and-a-half years to win his first trophy, the FA Cup in 1990, and another three more years before delivering a league title. His side finished 11th twice and 13th once in his first four seasons whilst just under a decade ago United went three seasons without the title as they appeared to have been surpassed by first Arsenal and then Chelsea. That a three-year period without winning the Premier League should be so noteworthy just goes to show how much success Ferguson brought to United.

Since the inception of the Premier League, that period from 2004-2006 was the only time when United gave up their crown for more than a year at a time, and they twice held onto it for three years in a row. Numerous times during that period, Ferguson was written off or questioned by pundits before always proving his detractors wrong. Such long-sightedness has stood United in good stead and the club does not look likely to change that approach any time soon. Such vision is not shared by everyone, though.

Take Blackburn, for example, who fired Sam Allardyce in December 2010 when sit-

ting 13th in the table-a move described by Ferguson as “absolutely ridiculous”.

Blackburn survived that season but were relegated a year later. Owners Venky’s have since fired three more managers and only narrowly escaped relegation to thirdtier League One this season. Things are even more drastic on the continent and Italy in particular. While he remains the exception rather than the rule, Palermo president Maurizio Zamparini has changed coaches four times this season alone as his team battles against relegation. In 26 years as a club president with first Venezia and then Palermo he has gone through 43 different coaches, some of which were fired more than once. He may have brought Palermo back up to Serie A after a 31-year hiatus but the lack of stability has certainly contributed to their struggles this season. A six-year contract would be unheard of in Italy where Massimiliano Allegri was given only two years when hired by AC Milan. Even after winning Serie A in his first season, that was only enough to earn a two-year extension when his contract was up.

The majority of Italian coaching contracts, which are usually signed through the course of a season following someone else’s unhappy sacking, run either until the end of the current campaign or the following one. —AFP

sports

SATURDAY, MAY 11, 2013

Amir Shooting Tourney set to conclude today

By Abdellatif Al-Sharaa KUWAIT: HH the Amir Sheikh Sabah AlAhmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah Shooting Tournament will be concluded today, bringing to a close a shooting season full

Fuhaid Al-Daihani

of activity and achievements. HH the Amir will be represented by Information Minister, State Minister for Youth Affairs Sheikh Salman Sabah Al-Salem Al-Hmoud Al-Sabah in the closing ceremony.

Competitions which began Thursday evening were very strong and shooters were keen on good results to win the prestigious cup, not overlooking the fact that the result will count as members will be selected from the national teams to participate in tournaments outside Kuwait.

Secretary General of the Arab and Kuwait Shooting Federations Obaid AlOsaimi said HH the Amir Shooting Tournament was held over three days starting Thursday, and results of the shooters are very promising and added that there are some new shooters who showed great skills, especially in the rifle and pistol disciplines while moving towards making significant achievements. He said that owing to the importance of this tournament, all Olympic events were included in addition to archery. Al-Osaimi said National Guard, military, police associations and club shooters participated in addition to out-

Chiefs toss Force out 22-21 in Super Rugby PUKEKOHE: All Blacks flyhalf Aaron Cruden kicked 17 points in an unexpected starting appearance for the Chiefs who edged the Western Force 22-21 in Super Rugby yesterday. Cruden was listed to begin the match in the reserves, to enjoy a small respite in the 13th round, but was promoted into the starting lineup when fullback and regular goal kicker Gareth Anscombe was diagnosed with a broken toe. The Hamilton-based Chiefs needed Cruden’s conversion and five penalties to edge the 13th-placed Force by a point; to remain atop the New Zealand conference but a point behind the ACT Brumbies on the overall tournament standings.

Winger Pat Dellit scored a try in each half for the Perthbased Force who outscored the defending champions by two tries to one. The Chiefs led 22-11 immediately after halftime but the Force enjoyed the better of a scrappy second half, closing within a point when flyhalf Jayden Hayward converted Dellit’s second try in the 61st minute. The Chiefs had seemed in control of the match in the first half, scoring a try through Lelia Masaga and leading 19-11 at halftime. But they lost all momentum in the second half, couldn’t reach the gain line, began to slip off tackles and were lucky to save the match against the Force, who finished with only 14 men.

The Force conceded long strings of defensive penalties in both halves and tighthead prop Kieran Longbottom was sinbinned in the 71st for deliberately collapsing a scrum, though it seemed he had lost his footing on a wet and sub-standard playing surface. The wet conditions confounded attempts from both sides to play fluent, attacking rugby. Dellit’s tries for the Force were well taken and Masaga scored after a steady buildup by the Chiefs but both sides made too many handling errors to make the match entertaining.

“It’s a win but pretty frustrating,” Chiefs captain Craig Clarke said. “We made a few errors and I know it’s wet but we’re probably pretty disappointed. “The conditions were a bit difficult.

The ball’s a bit wet but it’s not the worst conditions you could play in. Obviously, it’s still not an 80-minute performance from us.” The Force may have been fortunate to have been awarded their first try to Dellit in the third minute from what seemed a forward pass. But they were unlucky to be as heavily penalized as they were for the remainder of the first half when it seemed the Chiefs also infringed frequently at breakdowns. The Force played more assertively in the second half and, after Cruden had kicked the last points for the Chiefs in the 44th minute, threatened to snatch the match with Dellit’s second try. “The second half was good for us,” captain Matt Hodgson said. “We let them get away to a good start with a lot of stupid penalties in our own half and they kicked away to a good lead. “We’re a team that has a good system in place and when we stick to it we get results. We did that in the second half.”—AP

standing Qatari shotgun shooters who are keen on participating along with the Kuwaiti shooters in HH the Amir shooting tournament.

He said a special event was held for the differently-abled and they showed highly-skilled techniques.23 shooters from KSSC and the military associations exerted great efforts in the preliminaries before National Guard shooter Hamad Abdallah won the cup by scoring 194.9, while his colleague Suhail Jasim ended in second place by scoring 187.4 and Bader Al-Muhaini from the military association was at third with 168.7.

In the differently-abled category, shooter Nizar Ramadhan won first place in the 10m rifle event by scoring 520.12 points while Mohammad Hawwash was second by scoring 515.8. Meanwhile Atif Al-Dousary was third with 437.

In the 10m event, pistol shooter Khalid Mallouh was first with a score of 471.3, Tawfeeq Ashkanani second with a score of 467.3 and Ali Mohammad Khalifa third with 366.2 points.

In the 10m air rifle event, shooter Abdallah Al-Harby from the Military Association was first by scoring 201.6

points while KSSC shooter Mubarak AlSubaiee was second with 188.9 and his colleague Mohammad Adel third with a score of 177.8 The closing ceremony will be held at 5 pm today at Sheikh Sabah AlAhmad Olympic Shooting Complex.

Shahad Al-Hawal

Reds poach Sharks with first half feeding frenzy Reds bleed Sharks 32-17 BRISBANE: The Queensland Reds capitalised on a brilliant first half to coast to a 32-17 win over the Sharks in their Super Rugby match in Brisbane yesterday. The Reds shrugged off the absence of injured captain James Horwill and a disappointing draw to the lowly Western Force a week ago, notching up four tries and a bonus point six minutes before halftime at Lang Park. Winger Rod Davies scored a brace of tries, with the Faingaa twins, hooker Saia and inside centre Anthony, scoring one each for the 2011 champion Reds.

The shell-shocked Sharks restored some pride with second-half tries for winger Piet Lindeque and replacement flanker Derick Minnie, but the Reds coasted home to give outgoing coach Ewen McKenzie his first win over the Durban-based South Africans.

The five-point victory also ensured the Reds kept the heat on the rival ACT Brumbies who lead the Australian conference in the southern hemisphere competition with seven rounds left before the playoffs.

“Very happy, we spoke all week a bit more about playing a bit more expansive rugby, a bit more creative rugby,” scrumhalf and stand-in skipper Will Genia said in a pitchside interview. “We weren’t too disciplined in our structures in the second half... All credit to them for forcing their way back into the game.”

Reds flyhalf Quade Cooper boosted his chances of selection in the Wallabies squad for the upcoming tour against the British and Irish Lions, booting three conversions and two penalty goals and having a hand in all of the Reds’ tries. The New Zealandborn pivot set up Saia Faingaa for the Reds’ first try in the sixth minute and was the first link in a magical second to Davies 10 minutes later.

Starting behind the Reds try-line,

Cooper ran the ball out of defence rather than booting it to safety, setting up a blistering run down the left wing by centre Chris Feauai-Sautia. Feauai-Sautia gave the ball off to livewire winger Digby Ioane, who cut back inside and sent it to Genia.

Rather than risk passing the ball forward to Davies, who was streaming down the right wing, the pint-sized scrumhalf grubbed a kick along the ground that bounced up perfectly for the winger to gather and carry across the line.

Cooper then set up Anthony Faingaa for the Reds’ third try five minutes later, dispatching a flat pass to put the inside centre over at the left corner. The Reds had their fourth try and a bonus point six minutes before the break with Cooper drib-

bling a kick behind the Sharks’ 22-metre line, and Davies enjoying the spoils of a ruthless clean-out by his team mates.

The bamboozled Sharks headed for the sheds trailing 29-3, but emerged a different side after halftime. They had their first try within five minutes of the break when flyhalf Patrick Lambie fed Lindeque at the right corner. Minnie gave the Sharks faint hope of snatching victory when he sneaked away from a line-out drive to cross for his team’s second try, trimming the lead to 12 with 14 minutes left. Cooper, however, calmly slotted home his second penalty kick to release the pressure in the 73rd minute, allowing his team to coast to a confidence-building win ahead of their tough road trip to South Africa. — Reuters

BRISBANE: Reds player Digby Ioane is tackled by a Sharks player during the Super Rugby game in Brisbane yesterday. — AFP

SPORTS SATURDAY, MAY 11, 2013

SPL Preview

Celtic aim for title party finish GLASGOW: Celtic striker Georgios Samaras is looking to finish the season with a flourish as the champions prepare to host St Johnstone in a title party at Parkhead today. The Hoops will be presented with the Scottish Premier League trophy following their penultimate league game of the season.The Glasgow giants have struggled for form since clinching their second successive title with several first team players being rested for the defeat against Motherwell and last week’s draw with Ross County.

However, manager Neil Lennon will have a full squad to pick from for the match against St Johnstone as Celtic begin their preparations for the Scottish Cup final against Hibernian on May 26. Victory at Hampden would deliver the domestic double for the Hoops, and alongside their achievement of reaching the last 16 of the UEFA Champions League, Samaras reckons it would make a special season an outstanding one.

“We have had some days off and missed some games but we have a full squad now and are looking forward to the game against St Johnstone,” the Greek

striker, who will collect his third title in six seasons at Celtic, said.”It will be a great day for everyone. After all the hard work we have had all season - from the start of July to now is almost 10 months - and it’s a day we can enjoy and the fans can enjoy the game with no pressure, and then we can have a nice celebration.

“We have had a very tough season with a lot of games and not much rest, and you need some rest to protect your body from injuries and I feel fresh again.”

The Hoops are going for their 12th consecutive home win in the SPL, and their manager wants them to give the fans a title party to remember in their final outing at Celtic Park this season.

“Everyone’s back,” Lennon said. “The guys we wanted to have a break have had their break so it’s been intensive training this week and we’ll go really strong for the game today and hopefully we can celebrate with a great performance.” Tomorrow, crisis club Hearts host Edinburgh rivals Hibernian at Tynecastle.

Hearts lead 10th-placed Hibs by one point, although the Easter Road side have a game in hand over their city rivals.

The three league games between the clubs so far this season have ended in draws but Pat Fenlon’s side knocked Hearts out of the Scottish Cup on their way to the final. Hearts future remains uncertain following bankruptcy proceedings against Ukio Bankas, to whom they owe £15 million. And manager Gary Locke knows that the fans will be desperate to end the season with a derby win to give them something to cheer about. “It would be great for the club to finish above Hibs,” Locke said. “But that isn’t the target for me. The target is to finish the best of the rest in the bottom six.

“By beating Hibs that will help us along the way but it is going to be a difficult game. “They have a cup final to look forward to and I know all the players there will be looking to try and impress Pat over the next few games. “We want to be as high up the league table as we can and put behind us what has been a pretty disappointing season.” Elsewhere tomorrow, relegated Dundee take on Kilmarnock at Rugby Park while Inverness Caledonian Thistle will hope to clinch a European spot with a win against Dundee United. —AFP

German League Preview

Bayern lift league title Bayern look at tradition, golden oldies in title party BERLIN: Bayern Munich will collect their first silverware for three years today when they are presented with the Bundesliga shield and chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge insists it won’t be the last trophy they lift this season. And Rummenigge has his sights firmly set on the Champions League final. After hosting Augsburg at Munich’s Allianz Arena, Bayern will be

This will be Bayern’s third Champions League final in four seasons with Rummenigge insisting they have learnt the lessons from defeats to Chelsea last year and Inter Milan in 2010. “We have learnt our lesson from Madrid in 2010, then in Munich last year. Our team will win the Champions League in 14 days,” Rummenigge wrote in the Bayern magazine. Before the Wembley

MUNICH: Bayern Munich’s defender Holger Badstuber (seventh right) and his teammate midfielder Toni Kroos (fourth left) pose with employees of the new Bayern Munich Fan Shop which opened yesterday. —AFP handed the league trophy having won the Bundesliga title at the start of April, a record six games before the season’s end with a massive 20-point lead.

It was Bayern’s first trophy success since May 2010 as rivals Borussia Dortmund dominated the league for the next two seasons. The Bavarian giants are sure to name a weakened side against an Augsburg team in the mire of the relegation battle as Bayern focus their attentions on the Champions League final against Dortmund at Wembley on May 25.

showpiece, Bayern plan to celebrate their 23rd German title in style, with the customary beer showers expected when players empty huge glasses over each other on the pitch today.

Fans attending the Bavarian derby have been asked to come in traditional costume, with brass bands and shoe-slapping dances part of the celebrations. Coach Jupp Heynckes, who celebrated his 68th-birthday on Thursday, steps down at the end of the season, to be replaced by Pep Guardiola. But before he goes, he hopes to

lead Bayern to the first ever treble of European, league and cup titles by a German side. “There are two big finals yet to come, that is why we need rhythm, so we have to preserve our form,” said Heynckes.

Training tomorrow has already been cancelled, but Bayern have a big three weeks ahead of them as they face VfB Stuttgart in the German Cup final the today after their Wembley date on May 25.

Bayern had a minor injury scare on Wednesday when key midfielder Bastian Schweinsteiger limped out of training with an ankle knock after a crunching tackle from centre-back Dante. “You train like you play. It’s an old saying, but it’s still true,” said Bayern goalkeeper Manuel Neuer.

With second-place in the Bundesliga and next season’s Champions League place secured, Dortmund travel to midtable VfL Wolfsburg looking to keep their first-choice side free from injury. Defensive midfielder Ilkay Gundogan is nursing a leg knock from last Saturday’s 1-1 draw with Bayern in Dortmund, while reserve centreback Patrick Owomoyela is out for the season after injuring his hip. Fourth-placed Schalke 04 can move a step closer to securing a spot in next season’s Champions League when they host Stuttgart having extended the contract of promising Germany midfielder Julian Draxler until 2018.

There is plenty to play for at the foot of the table with Werder Bremen, Fortuna Duesseldorf, Augsburg and Hoffenheim all battling to stay up. Bottom side Greuther Fuerth are already relegated and they can avoid an unwanted Bundesliga record if they pick up their first home league win of the season against Freiburg. No other team has ever gone a whole Bundesliga campaign without at least one home win and Fuerth are desperate to finish their debut season in the top flight without the most unwanted of records. —AFP

Italian League Preview

Under-fire Allegri eyes Champions League hotspot MILAN: AC Milan coach Massimiliano Allegri is looking for a potentially job-saving victory against Roma tomorrow, knowing that would be enough to clinch Serie A’s final Champions League spot. Allegri has dragged Milan from the abyss of their worst ever Serie A start to the brink of Europe’s premier club competition, but speculation in the press suggests his job depends on pushing his team over the finishing line. Milan took a giant step towards claiming third place, which offers Champions League football through a preliminary round, with a 4-0 rout of Pescara on Wednesday. With a four-point lead over fourth-placed Fiorentina and just two games left, the Rossoneri can cement third with a win.

And with his job likely to hinge on such a scenario, Allegri is taking nothing for granted. “We hope to take the win tomorrow against Roma that would mathematically guarantee us third place. But we have to remain focused,” he said. A Milan defeat and a win Fiorentina would resurrect the Florentine side’s hopes of competing against Europe’s big boys next season, but coach Vincenzo Montella does not appear too hopeful.

He indicated that Fiorentina, who have played some cracking football this season thanks to the likes of striker Stefan Jovetic and playmaker Adem Ljajic, would be happy just to secure fourth spot and a guaranteed Europa League place.

“Our season has been very positive and we’ve made few errors.

We can’t change anything, but we have no regrets,” said Montella. “I want to consolidate this fourth place.” A Fiorentina win would give La Viola a four-point lead over Udinese with one game remaining and mathematically secure fourth place.

That would leave the fight for the final Europa League spot down to fifth-placed Udinese and Rome pair Lazio and Roma, who are both two points adrift.

Udinese and their on-form striker Antonio Di Natale host Atalanta looking for a seventh consecutive win. Lazio have also built momentum, at least in terms of scoring goals. After a turbulent season, Vldaimir Petkovic’s side completed a 6-0 rout of Bologna last weekend - when Miroslav Klose scored a club record five goals - and then ended Inter Milan’s hopes of European football with a 3-1 win at the San Siro Wednesday. In the event Udinese hold on to fifth, one of the capital clubs will have a chance to secure Europa League qualification by winning the Italian Cup final on May 26. —AFP

SPORTS SATURDAY, MAY 11, 2013

Ronaldinho boosts Confed Cup chances SAO PAULO: Ronaldinho seems to be thriving again just at the right time. The two-time world player of the year significantly increased his chances of making Brazil’s squad for next month’s Confederations Cup after a superb performance in the Copa Libertadores. Ronaldinho “put on a private show,” as read a headline in a local newspaper on Thursday, a day after leading Atletico Mineiro to a 4-1 rout of Sao Paulo and a spot in the quarterfinals. The performance comes just five days before coach Luiz Felipe Scolari announces Brazil’s squad for the World Cup warm-up tournament that begins on June 15.

Ronaldinho was in need of a good performance after struggling in his last appearance with Brazil’s national team, a 2-2 result against Chile which drew loud jeers from nearly 50,000 home fans in Belo Horizonte just a few weeks ago. The high-profile Copa Libertadores match in Belo Horizonte attracted all the attention in Brazil and Ronaldinho took advantage of the spotlight.

“Another show by Ronaldinho,” read a headline at the Estado de Minas newspaper. Scolari has hinted that he will pick between veterans Ronaldinho and Kaka for a spot at midfield in his Confederations Cup squad. And while Kaka is struggling to get a chance to play with Real Madrid, Ronaldinho is making the most of his matches with Atletico Mineiro.

The former Barcelona star set up one of the three goals scored by striker Jo and took control of the match from the start at the Independencia Stadium on Wednesday. He nearly scored himself just three minutes into the game, but his free-kick shot struck the crossbar as Sao Paulo goalkeeper Rogerio Ceni could only watch. Ronaldinho displayed some of the skills that made him one of the best players in the world while playing in Europe in the last decade. Near the end of the match, he used nifty moves to dribble past two defenders at once near the sidelines, bringing the Atletico fans to their feet. —AP

Matches on TV (Local Timings)

English Premier League

Aston Villa v Chelsea Abu Dhabi Sports HD

Spanish League Bilbao v Mallorca Al-Jazeera Sport +2 Valladolid v Coruna Al-Jazeera Sport +2 Osasuna v Getafe Al-Jazeera Sport +6 Espanyol v Real Madrid Al-Jazeera Sport +2

14:45

17:00 19:00 21:00 23:00

Italian League Juventus v Cagliari 19:00 Al-Jazeera Sport +1 Catania v Pescara 21:45 Al-Jazeera Sport +1 German Bundesliga Bayern Munich v Augsburg 16:30 Dubai Sports Schalke v Stuttgart 16:30 Dubai Sports Wolfsburg v Dortmund 16:30 Dubai Sports French League Marseille v Toulouse Al-Jazeera Sport +4 Ajaccio v Troyes Al-Jazeera Sport +10 Bastia v Montpellier Al-Jazeera Sport +4 Brest v Sochaux Al-Jazeera Sport +7 Valenciennes v Stade Rennes Al-Jazeera Sport +8

18:00 21:00 21:00 21:00 21:00

Photo of the day

Competitors perform at the Red Bull Mini Drome at Axelborg, Copenhagen, Denmark.

—www.redbullcontentpool.com

Cahill eyes glorious finale for Chelsea BIRMINGHAM: Chelsea defender Gary Cahill has challenged his side to finish the season in triumphant style as they aim to qualify for the Champions League and win the Europa League in their remaining three games. The midweek failure to beat Tottenham means Rafael Benitez’s side must win at Aston Villa today if they are to go into the Europa League final against Benfica with a top four finish already secured.

Anything less could mean the trip to Amsterdam on May 15 is overshadowed by continuing uncertainty about their chances of playing in next season’s Champions League. The odds are stacked in favor of the Blues, with the 22 draw against Spurs ensuring they sit third, three points ahead of Andre Villas-Boas’s side in fifth, and two points clear of Arsenal in fourth.

And while Villa have shown improved form to move clear of the bottom three, Benitez’s side would expect to overcome a team that has struggled for form and confidence for much of the season. Victory in their two remaining Premier League games - they play Everton at Stamford Bridge on the final day of the season and over Benfica will mean Chelsea finish third, guaranteeing passage to the Champions League group stage, and again collect silverware.

And England centre-back Cahill said: “There are three games left in total and they will determine our season. “It is a huge game today followed by the Europa League final which is obviously massive. So we go again and we are in a good run of results at the moment and decent form.” Chelsea’s search for a new manager is attracting almost as much attention as their efforts on the pitch with Frank Lampard adding his support for the return of former manager Jose Mourinho.

Lampard, who has not been offered a new contract to remain at the club, said: “I think it would be a great thing for the club. He is a successful manager and he would be a great thing for any club. “It’s hard to comment with

the season still ongoing and with the manager not here or chosen yet. It would be easy to speculate. “But he is certainly one of the greatest, if not the greatest, manager in world football.” Villa have won five of their last eight matches, which has lifted them to 13th on 40 points and the verge of safety.

And boss Paul Lambert insists Chelsea will face a different team to the one they thrashed 8-0 at Stamford Bridge in December. “We’re a threat, I think everyone knows we have players who can hurt teams. I’m pretty sure Chelsea will know we have guys on top of their game,” Lambert said. “But we know it’ll be hard. The beauty of it is everybody apart from us and our fans expect Chelsea to win, because of the team they are. “The onus is on us to make the running and we’re certainly

playing well enough. We’ll see if we can hurt them. “The defeat hurt like it did for everyone else. But the team never let heads go down, never wilted, kept going and now the fruition is there for everyone to see - we’re playing really well.”

Villa captain Stiliyan Petrov will lead out his team mates for the traditional lap of honor at the end of Villa’s final home game of the campaign today after announcing his retirement on Thursday. The Bulgarian is fighting against leukaemia but is currently in remission. “For Stiliyan himself, the most important for me was for him to survive that horrible illness,” Lambert said. “I’m delighted first and foremost that he’s alive - he said that himself, that’s vital. For him to go out and do this will make it a great occasion.” —AFP

LONDON: Chelsea’s Spanish striker Fernando Torres (left) falls after being fouled by Tottenham Hotspur’s Belgium defender Jan Vertonghen (right) during the English Premier League football match between Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur at Stamford Bridge on May 8, 2013. —AFP

SATURDAY, MAY 11, 2013

Sports

Everton feel the pinch of Moyes’ departure

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MADRID: Rafael Nadal from Spain serves the ball to David Ferrer from Spain during the Madrid Open tennis tournament yesterday. — AP

Nadal unhinges Ferrer Nadal reaches Madrid Open semis MADRID: Rafa Nadal recovered from accidentally striking himself in the face with his racket to see off Spanish compatriot David Ferrer 4-6 7-6 6-0 in the Madrid Open quarter-finals yesterday. World number four Ferrer, ranked one place above Nadal following the Majorcan’s seven-month layoff with a knee injury, showed why he is considered one of the most tenacious competitors on the circuit to take the first set of the last-eight clash at the clay Masters event.

Nadal clung on to edge the second-set tiebreak 7-3 and then switched up a gear in

the decider to set up a semi-final meeting today against Japanese 14th seed Kei Nishikori or Spanish wildcard Pablo Andujar.

Nadal had a scare when leading 4-0 in the third set when his racket bounced up off the court as he was stretching down to play a shot and struck him above the eye.

After a brief interruption he was able to continue and closed out the victory on his first match point when he broke Ferrer for a seventh time. “It was a very tight match,” Nadal said in an interview with Spanish television broadcaster La Sexta.

“I think maybe David deserved more than me to be in the semi-finals but that’s sport for you,” the 26-year-old added. “In the third set David dropped his intensity a bit and I didn’t have to do all that much. “I was playing aggressively on my forehand and I am very pleased with how that is going, it’s working much better than in the events leading up to Madrid.” Nadal has managed to avoid the fate of world number one Novak Djokovic, who was upset by unseeded Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov in the second round on Tuesday.

Second seed and defending champion

Roger Federer became another high profile casualty on Thursday when he lost his thirdround match to Nishikori of Japan. Former world number one Nadal has won four titles since his return from injury in February and will be chasing an eighth Roland Garros crown in Paris starting later this month.

In yesterday’s remaining quarter-finals on the other side of the draw, British third seed Andy Murray meets sixth-seed Czech Tomas Berdych and seventh seed Jo-Wilfried Tsonga of France plays Swiss 15th seed Stanislas Wawrinka. — Reuters