10th Jun 2013

CR IP TI ON BS SU

MONDAY, JUNE 10, 2013

Rifts exposed as Modi chosen to lead India’s opposition party

NSA: Finder and keeper of countless US secrets

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PCs out as Senegal opens world’s first tablet cafe

Nadal defies protest to win record eighth French Open

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MP threatens to grill Haifi over ‘fake’ stents

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SHAABAN 1, 1434 AH

Former MPs blast parliamentary delegation to Iran

Max 43º Min 29º High Tide 01:18 & 11:23 Low Tide 06:12 & 19:25

KUWAIT: MP Faisal Al-Kandari yesterday called on Health Minister Mohammad Al-Haifi to step down or he will file to grill him at the start of the next parliamentary term late October, alleging that the minister has sanctioned defective stents for heart patients which pose a risk to their lives. Speaking at a press conference, Kandari, who has been targeting the health minister for some time, displayed stents manufactured by a US company that are normally used for heart patients to ensure blood flow in the main arteries of the heart.

The lawmaker alleged that the minister has sanctioned shipments of stents manufactured by a British company which is not specialized in this field, and claimed that these stents could kill heart patients because they are defective. He said that the defective product did not pass through the medical stores of the ministry as required by normal procedures, but were sent directly to the local government hospital of Mubarak Al-Kabeer in Jabriya. Kandari appealed to all heart patients who installed stents at the hospital to see him in the National Assembly. He called on the health minister to resign or he will be grilled at the start of the next term in October. He also called on MPs to form a fact-finding committee to probe the allegations.

Meanwhile, former opposition MPs yesterday strongly criticized the Assembly for sending a parliamentary delegation to Iran despite the state’s alleged involvement in backing the Syrian regime and after the conviction of an Iranian spy cell in Kuwait last month. Former MP Abdullatif Al-Ameeri said that if members of the Assembly had any feeling to the massacres being committed against “our Syrian brothers” under Iranian patronage, they would not have formed a delegation to visit Tehran.

Continued on Page 15

Ramadan July 9 BEIRUT: Hezbollah supporters clash with supporters of the Lebanese Option Party during a protest in front of the Iranian Embassy yesterday. — AP

Anti-Hezb protester killed in Beirut BEIRUT: A Lebanese protester was killed outside the Iranian embassy in Beirut yesterday after gunmen from the Iranian-backed Shiite militia Hezbollah opened fire when anti-Hezbollah Shiite demonstrators approached, witnesses and officials said. The Lebanese army deployed tanks and erected roadblocks across Beirut following the shooting, fearing a flare-up in sectarian and factional hostility. Protesters had condemned Iranian and Hezbollah backing for the Syrian president

in a civil war that has been spreading across Lebanon’s border.

A Reuters journalist outside the Iranian embassy saw men with handguns and dressed in black with the yellow arm-bands of Hezbollah scuffle with a group who drew up in a bus. The gunmen drew their weapons and fired. Several protesters were hit. Lebanese security officials said a member of a Shiite party that opposes Hezbollah was killed and several were injured. They said

the protesters had not been armed.

They named the dead man as Hashem Salman of the Intima party, led by Ahmad al-Assad whose family has been politically eclipsed within the community since Iran and Syria backed Hezbollah during the Lebanese civil war in the 1980s. When the bus carrying the Intima group stopped outside the embassy, Hezbollah supporters, identifiable by their yellow arm-bands and Continued on Page 15

Erdogan warns patience ‘has limit’ amid protests

US defends data sweep WASHINGTON: The United States’ top intelligence official angrily defended his government’s secret monitoring of Internet users yesterday, insisting the vast operation is both legal and vital to national security. Director of National Intelligence James Clapper confirmed that US spy agencies use a system called “PRISM” to gather data trails left by targeted foreign citizens using the Internet outside the United States.

But he said reports by The Guardian and The Washington Post, based on leaked documents, failed to put the program in context, and insisted PRISM is overseen by a secret court under laws approved by the US Congress.

Continued on Page 15

ANKARA: A man makes a heart-shaped sign to Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his wife Emine to show support after his arrival in the capital yesterday. — AP

ANKARA: Turkey’s defiant Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan yesterday told supporters his patience “has a limit” as he went on the offensive against mass protests to his Islamic-rooted government’s decade-long rule. As thousands of protesters massed in Istanbul, the capital Ankara and the western city of Izmir, in unrest now in its 10th day, Erdogan staged his own rallies, hitting three cities in one day to fire up loyalists of his ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP).

“We remained patient, we are still patient but there’s a limit to our patience,” Erdogan told thousands of cheering AKP supporters as he landed at Ankara’s airport late yesterday. “Nobody should be

in the

news

180,000 foreign workers leave Saudi in 2 months RIYADH: Some 180,000 illegal foreign workers have left Saudi Arabia since April 1 under an amnesty that allowed them to try to sort out their papers or leave without paying a penalty, a report said yesterday. “Between the beginning of April and the start of June, 180,000 foreigners left the kingdom for good,” Okaz daily quoted Badr Malek, spokesman for the passports department, as saying. This wave brings to 380,000 the number of foreign workers who have left Saudi Arabia since the beginning of the year. Malek stressed that violators of immigration rules in the oil-rich kingdom will face penalties when the amnesty period ends on July 3, with punishment including imprisonment up to two years, and fines up to 100,000 riyals ($27,000). According to official statistics, eight million expatriates work in the kingdom.

KUWAIT: The fasting month of Ramadan is forecast to begin on July 9 on the basis of astronomical calculations, said astronomer Adel Al-Saadoun yesterday.

Saadoun told KUNA the crescent will be visible on July 8 at 10:14 am and disappear some four minutes after sunset. He added the sighting of the crescent would not be possible at any spot throughout the Muslim world, but would be seen through telescope in southern America. However on July 9, it would be visible in some countries including Kuwait. Ramadan is a yearly month of fasting observed by millions of Muslims throughout the world. Kuwaitis observe and celebrate its advent and Eid Al-Fitr marking its end.

People fast from dawn to dusk, and public eating, drinking or smoking is punishable by law. — KUNA

Iran ups cyber attacks on Israel: Netanyahu

Iran sets up space monitoring center TEHRAN: Iran said yesterday that it set up its first space tracking center to monitor objects passing in orbit overhead, the breakthrough claimed by the Islamic Republic in its space program. President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who inaugurated the facility near the town of Delijan some 200 km south of Tehran, said the center will help the country to manage “activities of satellites” but was also capable of monitoring “very remote space”, according to the official IRNA press agency. Defense Minister Gen Ahmad Vahidi said the center was for Iran’s space-related security but that Tehran would also share the acquired data with other countries. “The base is aimed at securing the country’s space facilities and monitoring space objects especially satellites that pass overhead,” Vahidi was quoted as saying. The country has nine command and control ground stations for its space program including one in Syria, the country’s main Arab regional ally.

pessimistic. Nobody should worr y.

Turkey went through many events in the past and will overcome this too,” he assured them.

His fans relished the show of strength, frequently interrupting the outdoor speech with bursts of applause and chanting: “Turkey is proud of you”. At the same time, thousands of rival anti-government demonstrators thronged the capital’s Kizilay square, where police used tear gas and jets of water to disperse demonstrators overnight, sending them scrambling and tripping over each other. The unrest first erupted on May 31 with a tough police crackdown on a Continued on Page 15

DELIJAN: Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad flashes a victory sign during the inauguration of a space tracking center yesterday. — AP

JERUSALEM: Israel has been the target of a growing number of cyber attacks from Iran and its militant allies Hezbollah and Hamas, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said yesterday. “In recent months, we have identified a significant rise in the scope of cyber attacks by Iran which are carried out directly by Iran and its proxies Hezbollah and Hamas,” he told a cyber security conference at Tel Aviv University, referring to the Lebanese Shiite militia and the Palestinian Islamist movement which rules Gaza.

“The targets are essential systems,” he said without elaborating, in remarks communicated by his office. “We are building the capability to deal with the attacks and we are holding back most of them while aspiring to build a ‘digital Iron Dome’,” he said of Israel’s vaunted missile defence system. — AFP

MONDAY, JUNE 10, 2013

LOCAL

KUWAIT: His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah attends the National Conference on E-Legislation that kicked off yesterday. — KUNA

Amir attends e-legislation conference KUWAIT: Under the sponsorship and the attendance of HH the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah the National Conference on ELegislation kicked off here yesterday.

HH the Amir Sheikh Sabah was warmly received at the venue by National Assembly

Speaker Ali Fahad Al-Rashed and the conference organizing committee. Also attended the inauguration ceremony were HH the Crown Prince Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, senior sheikhs, Deputy Chief of National Guard Sheikh Mishaal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, HH

the Prime Minister Sheikh Jaber Al-Mubarak AlHamad Al-Sabah, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior Sheikh Ahmad Al-Humoud Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, Minister of Information and Minister of State for Youth Affairs Sheikh Salman Sabah Salem Al-Humoud Al-Sabah, and several

top state officials. National Assembly Speaker AlRashed and Minister of Information Sheikh Salman Sabah Salem Al-Humoud Al-Sabah delivered speeches on the occasion. In their speeches, Al-Rashed and Sheikh Salman expressed gratitude at HH the Amir’s sponsorship and atten-

dance of the conference. They also underlined the need for a package of legislations to regulate internet transactions and deal with the repercussions of globalization and fast-paced developments in the information technology industry. — KUNA

Field test to be ‘a must’ for driver’s license: Ali ‘Drivers often lose control on roads’ KUWAIT: The candidates who filed nomination papers for the municipal elections yesterday. (From left): Abdulkader Al-Baijan, Anwar Malallah, Jassem Al-Jeddi and Mohammed Taleb.

Anti-drugs forum concludes KUWAIT: The 13th anti-drugs forum that was held by the General Administration for Fighting Drugs, in cooperation with Kuwait University and PAAET and military colleges, has come to an end. During a lecture at the Social Science College of Kuwait University, Major Thamer Mansour Al-

Hajeri explained the magnitude of drugs-related problems and their dangers to health. Emphasizing that drug dealers are working to promote drugs among the youth, especially students, with the aim to create a generation of addicted people.

Al-Hajeri said drug peddlers make

use of the exam season to promote drugs, such as captigome tablets, claiming that they help students ease their tension and study better. He pointed out the dangers of such drugs, stating that they make people unconscious and affect their brain cells and concentration abilities.

KUWAIT: People applying for a driver’s license in Kuwait may soon be required to pass a “field test” in which their driving skills will be tested on public roads, a local daily reported yesterday, quoting the state’s chief traffic police officer.

Currently, an applicant is only required to pass a written test, along with a driving test that is conducted in empty squares, under the supervision of the General Traffic Department of the Ministry of Interior. “In addition to these tests, there are plans to add a field test in order to examine a driver’s capability to drive on public roads,” said Major General Abdulfattah Al-Ali,

Assistant Undersecretary for General Traffic Affairs.

Maj Gen Al-Ali further told Al-Rai that the proposed amendments came about after “noticing that some recently passed drivers often lose control over their vehicles once they find themselves on public roads and motorways, which increases the risk of accidents and traffic jams”. The senior official did not provide a deadline for the implementation of the new rule, but indicated that it was going to be enforced “once the Interior Ministry approves an insurance project for servicemen who test drivers on the public

Cellular providers forgo transfer fee KUWAIT: Cell phone service providers agreed to forgo a fee proposed by the Ministry of Communications that a client was to pay when switching providers, starting June 15, a local newspaper reported yesterday quoting a top executive in one of Kuwait’s three companies.

“A client can switch providers from June 15 as per the terms and conditions explained by the Ministry of Communications, without having to pay the KD5 fee which local providers agreed will be handled by the company to which the client is switching,” Zain CEO Omar Al-Omar told Al-Qabas on Saturday.

Al-Omar further indicated that his company is fully prepared to implement the new service “after working with other providers and the ministry during the past seven months to update our hardware.” The same sentiments were echoed by Telecommunications Management Systems President at Wataniya Telecom Saleh Al-Houti.

“Local providers (were) supposed to meet (yesterday) with MOC representatives for the final preparations before launching the project, including a proposal put forth by the providers to forgo the transfer fee,” Al-Houti told Al-Qabas.

VIVA CEO Salman Al-Badran also insisted that his company is prepared for this project “that we have been planning for a long time.” “All three companies have agreed not to charge additional fees for transferring providers, and instead pay the KD5 on their behalf to the company hired by the MOC to implement the transfer project,” he said. — Al-Qabas

Work halted at Kuwaiti ports due to weather KUWAIT: Operations at Kuwait’s three ports of Doha, Shuwaikh and Shuaiba were halted yesterday due to limited sight as a result of dusty weather conditions, said the ports authority (KPA).

The halt is short-term, until weather conditions improve, as horizontal vision in Shuwaikh, for instance, dropped to less than half a nautical mile, said operations chief at the port Marzouq Al-Qahtani. The move was carried out on safety grounds, and in accordance with International Maritime Organization regulations stating that work should halt if sight reaches less than three nautical miles, he added.

Thus far, some seven vessels await entry to the port with another four pending departure. — KUNA

roads”. Maj Gen Al-Ali also announced a new rule that bans people who already have a driver’s license from taking driving lessons. Instead, he added, people wishing to take fresh lessons are required to relinquish their license and apply for a new one.

“There are cases, especially common among young women, who opt against driving during the first few years after getting a license, but later take new lessons when they decide to get back behind the wheel,” Maj Gen Al-Ali explained. “This is considered a violation of the traffic law,” he concluded.

News

in brief

Cash donations in Ramadan KUWAIT: Well-informed sources at the Ministry of Social Affairs and Labor (MSAL) said that the charities department would meet in the next few days with representatives of local charity organizations to discuss the possibility of allowing them to collect cash donations during the upcoming month of Ramadan. The sources added that many of the charities initially agreed to the conditions set by the MSAL to allow them to take part in the tenth cash charity donation collection project.

Further, the sources highlighted that the MSAL had asked charity organizations to file detailed reports about the donations collected during Ramadan and the projects executed with that money. Concerning this year’s project, the sources said that participating charity organizations had been asked to provide a list of the charity projects each intends to carry out with the donated sum. The conditions also include using MSALaccredited receipts to collect the donations at certain collection points to be determined by the ministry.

Notably, the amount collected by charity donations last Ramadan amounted to KD 13 million that was spent on charity projects in and outside Kuwait.

Cheating in exams Educational sources revealed that Minister of Education Dr Nayef Al-Hajraf has called upon all the officials in the ministry deal with the menace of cheating during examinations with strictness. Sources said that Al-Hajraf demanded that officials exercise strict control during exams and hold accountable those committees who fail to do their duty properly. Such committees, the minister said, should be sent for investigations as was the practice earlier.

MONDAY, JUNE 10, 2013

LOCAL

Kuwaiti doctor gets patency Diagnosis and treatment of snoring and obstructive sleep apnea KUWAIT: Dr Abdulmohsen Ebrahim Alterki, a Kuwaiti consultant in Otolaryngology, Head & Neck surgery, at the MOH, and the Chairman of ENT faculty, at Kuwait Institute of Medical Specialization (KIMS), has just received his Patency from the United States patency office (USPTO) after almost three years of

Dr Abdulmohsen Ebrahim Alterki with his Patency.

meticulous work, involving a new application and classification to help patients to be better diagnosed and treated in the area of the upper airway obstruction causing snoring and that may develop later to Obstructive Sleep Apnea.

Obstructive Sleep Apnea, can effect up to 4 percent of the population, which is as prevalent as asthma, but it is not easily diagnosed if compared to patients with asthma for example. To be more clear, 80 percent of patients with Obstructive Sleep Apnea do not know that they even have it.

Obstructive Sleep Apnea is difficult to diagnose, so it will be difficult to treat as a result, or even worst you might get the false impression that you have treated the problem, but all you have done is you have turned off the alarm, but the disease is still progressing.

One part of the patency and the most important part of it was adopting a global standard for doc-

tors working with patients diagnosed with obstructive sleep apnea to: 1-Aid medical staff in staging the problem helping to plan the treatment.

2-Give an indication of prognosis.

3-Assist in the evaluation of the results of treatment.

4-Enable facilities around the world to collate information more productively.

This protocol is used in Oncology, for almost fifty years, but no such system existed before for patients with Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA), so the real winner would be the patient, whom is the centre of our healthcare system.

This work was done under the umbrella of KFAS, Kuwait Foundation for Advanced Sience, with the direct supervision and Guidance from Sabah Al-Ahmed Centre of Giftedness & Creativity which is one the arms of KFAS, and

KAC grapples with issue of disposing of aging aircraft Fleet modernization faces hurdle KUWAIT: The higher authorities and the executive leadership of Kuwait Airways have been having continued meetings to discuss the emerging scenario for the upcoming period and how to dispose of the fleet of old aircraft that have been causing operational losses estimated at KD100 million per year.

Sources said the KAC is studying the conditions attached to supplementary loan estimated at KD 230 million from a local bank, adding that priority will be given to the bank that makes the best offer. They said this loan represents 30 percent to 40 percent of the cost of buying 25 Airbus aircraft to modernize the fleet, and the deal was not fully covered by the banks. The aircraft were expected to be received starting 2019. The sources said Kuwait Air ways is look ing for the best means to ensure the inflow of funds necessary to finance the payment for

the purchase deal, which will become due by the end of 2021. This amount is estimated at around KD680 million in addition to the supplementar y loan. Meanwhile, Director of Operations at the Civil Aviation Directorate Essam Al-Zamil said traffic to and from Turkey has not been affected. He said, “There are no bookings available due to the large number of tourists heading to Istanbul, and all flights are moving normally.”

Al-Zamil said 112 flights departed on Wednesday with 23930 passengers, while 112 flights carr ying 17280 passengers arrived in the country. He said Dubai was the first destination with 20 flights headed there. As for Thursday, Al-Zamel said the number of departing flights was 122 with 26550 passengers, while 122 flights arrived with 19746 passengers, including two additional flights. On another subject, KAC pas-

sengers headed for Geneva on Wednesday (5/6/2013) expressed resentment about violations committed by the security officials in Frankfort. The passengers were taken by surprise when they were told to leave the aircraft because airport authorities wanted to search it. The passengers lef t the plane but noticed that a few passengers remained onboard. When people asked why those passengers did not leave, they were given an explanation that left them unconvinced.

They were told that these passengers were allowed to remain on board as they had sick children.

Passengers who left the aircraft were made to go through check points and exhausting procedures once again although they were on their way to Geneva, and wondered why did the security officers not follow the law and did not implement the regulations on all.

Four popular restaurants, foodstuff market shut

By Hanan Al-Saadoun KUWAIT: The Ahmadi Municipality’s emergency team shut down four famous restaurants and a foodstuff market because of the violations that were committed. The inspectors found cockroaches and insects near the foodstuff in large numbers.

In this respect, General Director of Municipality Eng. Ahmad Al-Subaih hailed the efforts of the team that has made continued achievements and worked to stop the violations. He said he would back the faithful staff of the municipality all the way. He called upon everyone to work as a team and expressed appreciation for the efforts made by the municipality inspectors which led to positive changes in health standards at the service outlets. Al-Subaih announced that even more intense inspection will be carried out to check violations by food supplying companies during the municipal elections to prevent them from taking any undue benefit for this period. . He said on no account will anyone be allowed to sell food items not suitable as per health requirements.

He told the reporters that the municipality will concentrate its cam-

paigns to check violations by companies dealing with election campaigns and will ensure that all workers possessed the mandatory health certificates. This was being done to safeguard the health and safety of citizens. He said the inspection campaigns will be strict and will deal with everyone as per municipality regulations.

The head of the emergency team, Mishaal Aba Al-Saffi, said that five units in the governorates were shut down due to violations committed by them which endangered the safety and health of the people. He said the team handed out seven citations for lack of hygiene where food was being processed, using unfit foodstuff, opening shops on the basis of expired health papers and displaying advertisements about certain activities without obtaining a municipal license.

He said the campaigns had the full support of the head sector engineer Faisal Sadeq Khalaf and were being followed by branch director Eng. Fahad Dughaim Al-Otaibi. He concluded that the safety of consumers comes before everything else and the inspection campaigns will continue to ensure this.

Kuwaiti duo arrested for possessing drugs, curios

By Hanan Al-Saadoun KUWAIT: Drug enforcement agents arrested two Kuwaiti citizens for possessing hashish, marijuana, Ice and two guns in addition to smuggled Roman artifacts.

As security authorities received information about the two citizens indulging in such activities, they checks out their antecedents and raided their houses after observing all legal precautions. However, drugs dealer put up armed resistance when challenged by the agents.

The police officers overpowered them and put them under arrest. A search of the house led to the recovery of various kinds of Hashish, Marijuana, Ice, and 15 pieces of smuggled Roman curios.

Police found from their possession two guns, an M16 and a 9 mm pistol, besides a large quantity of ammunition. They confessed that

the guns belonged to them and the drugs were meant for trading. They said they had smuggled the Roman

artifacts to sell these at a higher price. They were sent to the concerned authorities.

KUWAIT: Smuggled Roman artifacts.

will be conducted at Dasman Diabetes Institute.

Obstructive Sleep Apnea is a slow process that can start with just simple snoring, but can have direct relation with lots of fatal diseases effecting the heart, and the brain, due to simply lack of oxygen while a sleep. Dasman Diabetes Institute is the ideal place to conduct such research due to its familiarity with conducting international research.

Dasman Diabetes Institute supports research as its mission statement says.

One of the diseases that also has a direct relation with Obstructive Sleep Apnea, is Diabetes, which is prevalent in Kuwait and its, increasing rapidly, in adults, as well as children. Due to this dilemma, a memorandum of understanding was signed between Dasman Diabetes Institute and Sabah Al-Ahmed Centre of Giftedness & Creativity to open a clinic under the supervision of Dr Alterki, to follow up patients

whom are diabetic, but suspected of having Obstructive Sleep Apnea, where this unique concept, will be

starting in few months, once the equipments and the manpower is finalized.

KUWAIT: (From left) Dr Kazem Behbehani, Director-General of Dasman Diabetes Institute, Dr Adnan Shihab Eldeen, Director General of Kuwait Foundation for the Advancement of Sciences, and Dr Omar Al-Bannai, Director General of Sabah Al-Ahmed Center for Giftedness and Creativity.

Report moots cuts in private and public payroll spending KUWAIT: Kuwait pays an average of KD460 million every year as financial support to national labor forces working in the private sector, something that needs to be addressed in any plan to cut public spending that is already extensive in the public sector. This was mentioned in the government’s assessment report for the fourth year (2013/2014) of the five-year Development Plan. The report, the details of which were published yesterday in Al-Qabas, recommends that government’s efforts to cut spending on the public sector’s payroll must be coupled with similar steps to reduce the incentives provided as part of the national program to support Kuwaiti manpower in the private sector.

Meanwhile, the Finance Ministry addressed this topic in a memorandum to be filed before the cabinet as early as this week, according to Al-Anba. In its note, the ministry described the public sector’s payroll as “inflated,” and made certain suggestions to ‘cut unjustified spending, levy extra fees for improved

services and diversify sources of income.’

“There is an exaggerated increase seen in some salaries while salaries of others need to be raised, and this inconsistency continues due to the lack of a clear plan to address what is going on in various payroll’s sections,” said a government insider who spoke on the condition of anonymity.

This comes while the parliament enters a race against time to pass a series of legislations before the end of the current term, with draft laws on the agenda of Tuesday’s session worth KD1.8 billion. In this regard, Al-Jarida said in a front page story yesterday that the ‘legislative rush’ reflects MPs’ desire to pass laws of a ‘populist’ nature in anticipation of early elections which could become a reality if a Constitutional Court ruling next week on election challenges ends up dissolving the parliament.

Tomorrow, the parliament is set to vote on a bill to increase the child support allowance from KD50 per child to

KD75, which entails a total annual cost of KD825 million. Other bills to be debated in the session include increasing the rent allowance (KD345 million annual cost), increasing the social security allowance (KD580 million annual cost), as well as establishing a KD50 million fund to support Kuwaitis studying abroad. In the meantime, the parliament could also discuss early retirement proposals for Kuwaiti women, which, if approved, would cost nearly KD2.1 billion a year, according to Public Institution for Social Security’s estimations. According to sources quoted in the Al-Jarida’s report, the government had already made it clear to parliamentary committees that it was against similar proposals due to their ‘high cost’ to the state’s budget. Since its election last December, the parliament passed a KD740 million bailout plan for bank loan defaulters, dubbed the ‘Family Fund’, as well as extra allowances for retired servicemen worth a total of KD42 million.— Al-Qabas, Al-Anba, Al-Jarida & Al-Rai

MONDAY, JUNE 10, 2013

LOCAL In my view

Letters to Badrya

A 24x7 vigil is needed

A billion salutes badrya_d@kuwaittimes.net

I

By Labeed Abdal

labeed@kuwaittimes.net

O

ver 100,000 citizens and expats have been banned from travelling as a result of court orders against them because they failed to pay the amounts due to them. In most cases, these amounts were arrears for mobile phone usage, apartment rents, car rents etc - an understandable fact given that we live in an age of consumerism.

Such cases cannot in any way be related to Kuwait or the authorities here because such aberrations are normal in any part of the world. People anywhere often owe amounts for services they utilized. In most cases, the concerned companies can always track down their debtors or verify them when people come back to them to buy their products or services. Besides, there is also a follow up procedure through collection agencies.

Meanwhile, there should be awareness. We know that some companies manipulate the situation against the debtors in their own favor.

Moreover, some companies choose salespersons with an intention to deceive the expats by making them sign tens of documents in Arabic without fully explaining their contents to them.

Actually, a premium has come to be placed on the language barrier, but then this is just one side of the story. There is, of course, another side to it also. Some of these 100,000 people were quick to accrue many debts to quickly buy a car or a mobile phone.

In certain cases, it is possible that such people may have left the country. There are certain basic rules of such transactions that must not be forgotten. One remains under an obligation to pay back one’s dues. What is even more important is that the obligations that we undertake must be such that they should be within our capabilities and financial resources.

We cannot blame Kuwait for all of this, or our neighbor, or our colleague at the work place, or a torrential rain. Eventually, it is matter of remaining alert 24 x 7 x 365. Without doubt, people should consult a trusted friend or a legal expert if they want to avoid unnecessary legal hassles or figure on a travel ban list.

kuwait digest

Retirement blues

By Hamad Al-Sarie

I

s the government really serious about retiring all those who have spent 30 years in service, whether in leading positions or supervisory jobs or as administrative managers, supervisors or department heads? The Civil Service Commission has approved granting them a financial allowance amounting to a half month’s salary for each year spent in service.

Civil Service Commission presented this proposal to the council of ministers which approved the decision along with clearing the social security to be provided. In Europe, a person completes 65 years of age to earn the right to retire regardless of the period spent in service. But in Kuwait, notwithstanding the financial cost which the state will bear, along with the assurances of social security, the Civil Ser vice Commission has adopted a policy to kick out old employees and replace them. I really wish that any leading figure of Kuwait should visit the commercial complexes and the popular cafes, to see with his own eyes the large number of youth who never completed 50 years of age, but would be found sitting in those cafes.

When the government made an offer to the officers of the MOD, the Ministry of Interior, the National Guards and the fire department, its plan was to retire high ranking people to clear the path for the middle class management to take over responsibility. But what instead happened was that the one supposed to overlook the transition remained stuck to their chairs, and the middle managers applied for retirement.

The government’s offer was for two years and it was supposed to be implemented in case of supervisory jobs, but since they remained stuck to their chairs, most of middle class management left. The state felt threatened since the allowance was not extended to them. The military office could have been paralyzed. The government felt obliged to give in to their demands and extended the offer to these leaders, who are still pressurizing to extract what remains from the middle class management.

What will happen now after the council of ministers has cleared the move to retire those who have completed 30 years in service? The high ranking officials will convince the ministers that their ministry needs them very much and that the ministry would need some of the managers and supervisors chosen by the high ranking officials. The catastrophe will strike then when new leaders are side lined and those close to top leaders will remain. The annual evaluation of employees would remain unconsidered. We wish that the council of ministers form a neutral committee, not connected to government jobs, as soon as possible, to study the files of the leading figures supposed to retire after completing 30 years in service.

If they are found to be efficient and serious in their work, there is no harm retaining them letting them assume supervisory positions. But those who have completed 30 years without showing any advancement, they better retire. The last question which imposes itself: Will the committee that proposed retiring those who have completed 30 years in service, apply the same rule to itself? — Al-Anbaa. Hamad AlSarie is Retired Lt General

kuwait digest

Looming NA crisis

By Thaar Al-Rashidi

N

That is because this case should not be solved by o one expected him to praise Ahmad AlHmoud but in his criticism, he found a route in filing grilling motions. Instead, it requires a resolution filing a grilling motion. On his part, he commit- through appointing public funds detectives in the ted violations aplenty in the Ministry of Interior and Ministry of Interior. Certain articles were surreptitiousother ministries, but chose as grounds for filing the ly incorporated in the agreement, reports were grilling motion only certain silly reasons. The aim was amended and forged and certain other reports were to somehow utilize the platform meant to file a grilling manipulated at the request of some influential people.

All of this came out clearly in motion and indulge in what is the Al-Shall report about the known in military parlance as It is, thus, a matter in which the deal. It is, thus, a matter in opening a political front against the minister.

MPs should not interfere, nor is it which the MPs should not But what is the aim of forc- an issue for a parliamentary inves- interfere, nor is it an issue for a parliamentary investigating ing the minister to discuss a grilling motion, when we all tigating committee. Instead, it committee. Instead, it needs know within the N A Council needs a criminal investigation. All a criminal investigation. All concerned people should and outside it that the grilling the concerned people should be the be sent to an investigating is a million percent personal issue? The real aim is to claim sent to an investigating authority authority at the Ministry of the head of Ahmad Al-Hmoud, at the Ministry of Interior, or to the Interior, or to the public prosand then the real no more and no less. Surely, public prosecutor, and then the real ecutor, investigation should start to people are not after Ahmad Al-Hmoud, and no one is investigation should start to find find out all the details and demanding his resignation. No out all the details and determine determine who all were involved. one asked that he be grilled. who all were involved.

This kind of work needs However, there are people professional detectives who who want to see him out of the ministry and their means to achieve this end is enjoy a clear judicial cover. It is not a matter of some stolen car, or the theft of a few thousand dinars, but a democracy.

But, we should not become angry or upset. This is clear collusion that resulted in the disappearance of politics, and there are two main rules of this game: the more than KD700 million. If a thief was to steal a thoufirst is that what you see is not everything, and second, sand or a couple of thousand dinars, you do what you that there are always other players behind the curtain do to him, then what are you going to do with somein a political scene. This leads us to ask a persisting one who made KD700 million vanish?

As I said, what is happening is that some people are question: Was the grilling of Hani Hussain due? In fact, the simple answer and a clearer and logical one is yes. trying to bring down Ahmad Al-Hmoud, not for anyBut us turn back the clock and try to review the Dow thing except that he is one of cleanest and most effiChemical scenes in a slow motion. We will find, or let cient ministers. But the grilling of the oil minister endus say, we will notice something very important. That ed in his resignation. It was all about hitting a leader of is that Hani Hussain in the first place was not sup- the government headed by Jaber Al-Mubarak, no posed to join the current government because the more or less. Things are not always as they look in poliDow Chemical and the multi-billion fine did not come tics, and there is always something else lurking behind today, but there was a build up to it much before Hani the curtains.

Hussain became the oil minister. Therefore, and here NOTE: As the former NA Speaker Ahmad Al-Saadoun we have to pause before we reach the scene when he became a minister. I swear, if even Abbas Al-Shaabi said in his meeting with “Al-Yaum” TV Channel two days had become a minister, he would have been grilled for back, June 16 will change the face of Kuwait forever. Let us wait and see. — Al-Anbaa the same deal and faced the same grilling questions.

kuwait digest

Stuck in virtual realities

By Waleed Al-Ghanim

A

And with more time spent on social networks, the fact sociologist in the United State decided to do something about her children spending too much time that these hours are taken away from real life interactions is obsessed with modern technology. She decided to being ignored more and more. How many family members, ban devices such as computers, smart phones and video relatives and friends have become forgotten? They could games for six months in order to encourage more time for be right there, living next to you but you were too busy family bonding. While the plan was met with strong resist- with your smart phones to even notice that they have been ance from the children in the beginning, the mother said sitting there for hours. The reason for this is that we let our that the experiment brought great benefits to her family minds become prisoners of delusional relations created by technology. eventually.

Has technology pulled you away from your family? Has This story, which Al-Qabas published last week, made me wonder about the effect of technology on our society it taken your family away from you? Has it reduced the time today. Captivating at first, technology has become an you spent with your family members? Has it made your children prefer isolation and addiction that took us away spend more time with their from reality, and has taken a toll These social networks provide a devices instead of their families? of a life lived normally and beautifully. Instead, it made androids platform where you meet hundreds Have social networks had an impact on your personal relaout of us with our faces stuck into our handheld devices and of people every day and talk about tionships and hobbies? Do you people spending most of their subjects ranging from politics, to believe that you are giving your your friends and even days in a virtual reality. economy and social life. They can family, yourself the time they truly Family gatherings and friends’ meetings have become help you keep up with day-to-day deserve? Do you agree that things of the past with the pres- updates about a person you’ve nev- diwaniyas, always known as a public forum for discussion, are ence of WhatsApp and other applications that provided er even met, yet listed as ‘friends’ in turning more and more like funerals as people are too busy alternatives for daily chats and your account. with their phones to speak with face -to-face conversations. each other?

There might be two friends Many of us have formed new e-families and virtual who have not met in person for a year, yet stayed in touch throughout that period through instant messaging. friendships we spend a lot of time with. These are taking Meeting new friends, meanwhile, has been replaced by away an important part of our life in which we could have ‘adding’ or ‘following’ ones on Facebook, Twitter, had face-to-face contact and conversations that allow for Instagram, etc. These social networks provide a platform true communication of emotions. Technology has sure where you meet hundreds of people every day and talk made our lives easier, but it must be kept under our control. about subjects ranging from politics, to economy and Otherwise the damage it can wreak on our physical wellbesocial life. They can help you keep up with day-to-day ing, mental state and family life is going to surpass its beneupdates about a person you’ve never even met, yet listed fits. It is something worth giving a second thought to before it is too late. —Al-Qabas as ‘friends’ in your account.

salute you and Safa a million times. Also, your last article dated June 6 deserves a billion salutes. I really appreciate your writings, your good ideas, wisdom, knowledge, kindness and sympathy towards the helpless and marginalized people. I have been tracking your work for a couple of years now. I like your simplicity, sensitivity and goodness. I wish you a happy and healthy long life, and salute you once again.

Rest of the world is afflicted with fascism, racism and sectarian violence or other kinds of evils. But thank god that I never faced any such things in Kuwait so far.

However, since the last nine years, I feel discriminated against when it comes to my visa status. I mean article 18 and article 20. I hope that you can understand my predicament. For the last nine years, I have been here with A20 visa. I did different kinds of jobs with various people till I ended up with a taxi company where I have been for three years now. Unfortunately, that company has no more slots for A18, because of which my boss gave me A20 status. Now, I am working with him. If the police catch me, what will happen? I will be the loser. They would not even ask me any more questions. My fate will be simple detention and then deportation. I am illegal but technically I am eligible to work here since on my part, I have done nothing wrong. Moreover, my civil record and my traffic record is also very neat, except one or two very minor violations for parking in a no parking slot etc. Madam, I belong to a poor family. My father is suffering due to a major disease and a niece of mine was diagnosed for leukemia. She is only 12-years-old. So, it is very necessary for me to stay here. My current kaffeel is a nice Kuwaiti man.

I would like to share a story.

In a village, there lived a lot of hard working people.

Most of the villagers used to sow different kinds of crops, like vegetables, fruits and grains. They were typical farmers. During one season, they faced an extensive drought as there were no rains. Farmers become desperate as there was no water in the village. People searched for a solution but there was none to be found. As days passed, the crops started wilting. As things seemed getting out of hand, one evening the farmers went to the village chief to seek his advice. He said he has no solution for such a calamity except the gods turning benevolent. So, he advised them to pray en masse. Next day, all the villagers gathered around a piece of land whereupon the chief led the service and they all prayed. Suddenly, the clouds burst forth and it started raining. But the people ran away from the place, except a boy who stayed right in the middle without any hesitation. You know the reason. This story teaches us many lessons.

Anwar

Madam, I am happy that someone is here to speak out for the voiceless.

Deportation of expats The expat community in Kuwait is terribly shocked to hear that the police are carrying out checks to arrest the illegal residents in Kuwait. While the police are eagerly implementing their policies, some important facts are being neglected and people are being humiliated. Their human rights are being violated.

Let me bring some points to the attention of the authorities about what I feel regarding this business of checking and deportation. As an individual, I support the police who search and arrest the illegal workers who have been here in Kuwait for a long time without visiting their home land. There are a lot of people who are working here on housemaid visas No 20, the holder of which is supposed to work for the sponsors alone. I don’t know about other nationals but a majority of Indians obtained visa no 20 by giving huge amounts to the brokers. These amounts could reach KD 500 or more. I know this amount could be very small for Kuwaitis, and I am not sure how much the sponsors are getting from this amount. Many of the middle class people come with a lot of expectations that they will be able to earn a lot of money in Kuwait in a short span of time. But they realize the real facts only when they reach here. They are not able to find suitable work with good salary. The accommodation facilities are very poor and below average. Many of them become mentally frustrated within a few weeks. But still they stay put, thinking that the family in India is dependent on their small income.

Many are coming here to educate their children and marry off their daughters. In India, dowry is a big issue and a normal man cannot afford to marry his daughters without a good amount of money. There are a lot of people who have come here and earned a good amount and made their life safe and secure. And I am sure that they will be thankful to Kuwait.

At the same time, there are a number of people who are coming here and have a criminal background. They are continuing their atrocious acts, such as making and selling alcohol, trading in opium, running brothels and so on. I do not think any man will ever support such activities anywhere. These people must be arrested and punished. I have heard that there are a lot of prostitution centers in Hassawi, Jleeb and other parts of Kuwait. If the ongoing checks can end this dirty business, it will bring good results. As an expat, I have no right to question the policy of Kuwait. Not only that, I am very thankful to the Kuwait authorities for all the facilities I enjoy in Kuwait. My request to the Kuwait authorities is that they should kindly grant a period of two to three months to the illegal workers to leave this country safely so that they can get all their benefits from their sponsors and leave Kuwait with a happy mind.

As I have said, many people who are working here for KD 100 or 150. They will be lending and borrowing money to or from their co-workers in order to help each other.

This unexpected arrest and deportation routine will make them more depressed and frustrated as they will have to leave Kuwait empty handed.

And also let me make it clear that the attitude of the Indian embassy and the Indian government towards the expat community in Kuwait is condemnable and not appreciated. Kuwait’s ambassador to India claimed that three months earlier, they informed the Indian embassy in Kuwait and the Indian foreign affairs ministry about their policy of deporting illegal workers from Kuwait. Yet, the Indian government remained inactive and did nothing to help their people.

This spree of unexpected arrests and deportations can lead people to suffer psychological traumas and mental imbalance. Therefore, on humanitarian grounds, please grant them a grace period of two to three months so that they can leave the country safe and secure.

I am Sajidas, a graduate in Philosophy, working in G4Security with a basic salary of KD 60.

Sajidas J S

MONDAY, JUNE 10, 2013

LOCAL

A history of friendship and cooperation 45th anniversary of establishing diplomatic relations between Albania and Kuwait

By Kujtim Morina Ambassador of the Republic of Albania to the State of Kuwait

I

t is a special pleasure for me as the first Ambassador of the Republic of Albania to the State of Kuwait to address the readers of your newspaper on the occasion of 45-th anniversary of establishing diplomatic relations between our two countries. Since 1968, when the two countries established diplomatic relations and especially after the beginning of 90s, following the democratic changes in Albania, our bilateral relations have been strengthened constantly. I know that there are countries who are commemorating 50th anniversary of their relations with Kuwait this year but for Albania, 45 years of bilateral relations means much as well and a history of mutual respect and cooperation.

First, I want to bring shortly to the attention of the public in Kuwait, some information from the archives of Albanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs on the establishing of diplomatic relations between our two countries. The first proposal came from the Albanian side through its Mission in the United Nations to the Kuwaiti Mission in this organization. On 10 April 1968, the Kuwaiti Mission in the UN responded through sending a Note to the Albanian side notifying that the Council of Ministers of the State of Kuwait had approved the establishing of the diplomatic relations with the People’s Republic of Albania at that time. The Albanian government requested publication of a joint declaration between the two parties. Given that it didn’t receive any answer quickly but the notes were already exchanged between the two countries, on 30 June 1968, the Albanian MFA published in the main official newspaper, “Zeri I Popullit” (People’s Voice), the news for the establishing of the diplomatic relations between the two countries. The Albanian Council of Ministers confirmed it with the decision no 89, dated 03.07.1968: “We decided to establish diplomatic relations with the State of Kuwait and exchange diplomatic representatives in the rank of extraordinary and plenipotentiary ambassadors. This decision enters into force immediately”.

On 8 August 1968, responded the Kuwaiti Embassy in Cairo through a Note in which it states that Kuwaiti MFA agrees for the joint declaration but prefers to do it after the summer season. This is the last document which closes the folder on

By Kujtim Morina this issue. As I mentioned before, the relations between our countries have been consolidating constantly especially after 90s. Albania has strongly condemned Iraq invasion of Kuwait back in 1990 and was in full support of the military intervention of the United States led forces for the liberation of Kuwait. There are many exchanged visits between two countries in which I can mention the official visit of the President of Albania, Bamir Topi to Kuwait, in May 2012 and the official visit of the Speaker of National Assembly of the State of Kuwait, Jassem Al-Khorafi to Tirana, in October 2011, including also other official visits from the members of cabinets of the both countries. On this occasion, I would like to hail the members of the parliamentary groups of friendship established in the both countries for the contribution that they have given for strengthening of bilateral relations. Also, I use this opportunity to highly appreciate the financial support of Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development for many projects implemented in Albania.

Tourism During the recent years, Albania has been focusing more on the development of tourism.

Brother held for helping killer flee to Saudi Arabia Mom, daughter arrested KUWAIT: Police investigating a murder case reported last week at the Mubarak Hospital’s parking lot summoned the killer ’s brother after investigations revealed that he helped the suspect flee from the country following the crime. The main suspect had reportedly used his brother ’s ID card to exit through the Nuwaiseeb Border Checkpoint to Saudi Arabia shortly after he stabbed a Kuwaiti woman to death inside her car. The latest investigations revealed that the man first headed to his brother’s house after committing the crime, following which his brother drove him personally to the southern border and handed him his own ID to help him escape. The brother, identified as a pilot in the Kuwait Air Force, was summoned for investigations along with his son who repor tedly accompanied his father and uncle for the trip. Meanwhile, Kuwaiti authorities continued to coordinate with their Saudi counterparts in search for the murderer.

Man stabbed during ‘party’ A man was hospitalized in a critical condition following a fight reported at a chalet in the southern part of the country recently. Police and paramedics reached the scene shortly after the incident was reported, and found the Kuwaiti man bleeding heavily from a deep stab wound. The man was rushed to the Adan Hospital while police discovered that the suspect who stabbed him had escaped. Investigations revealed that the quarrel started between friends who were spending the night drinking and engaging in allegedly

immoral activities. Investigations were on in search of the suspect. (Rai) Shopper collapsed A shopper died of a heart attack inside a Mubarak Al-Kabeer supermarket, according to a preliminary medical report. An ambulance was rushed to the co-operative society building where the Kuwaiti man had collapsed. Paramedics pronounced the man dead on the scene, and preliminary examination revealed he had suffered a heart attack.

The body was taken to the forensic department for an autopsy after criminal investigators examined the scene.

Mom, daughter arrested Patrol officers caught a 19-year-old Kuwaiti girl and a 21-year-old Kuwaiti youth late Friday night from a vehicle they considered was parked in a suspicious way, and took the two to the Sharq police station, where the girl’s mother was also summoned.

The two women were later arrested for assaulting police officers on duty. Patrol officers, who caught the two inside the vehicle parked behind an Interior Ministry building, took them to the Sharq police station for questioning after they failed to explain their circumstances. Police summoned the girl’s mother when she refused to cooperate and instead verbally assaulted the interrogating officer. Soon after the mother arrived, police arrest her too as she too hurled similar insults when officers explained to her the daughter’s response. The girl and her mother were referred to the proper authorities for further questioning, while the male suspect was released without pressing any charges.

child found

By Hanan Al-Saadoun KUWAIT: Security media at the ministry of Interior announced yesterday that a police patrol found a lost Asian child aged between 4 and 6 years near the cooperative society at Al-Sabah Hospital. The boy wears a white and blue T-shirt. No complaint was so far received reporting the missing of the child, the media said. The security media calls upon the relatives of the child to get in touch with the police station at Shuwaikh Industrial Area to receive the child.

The favorable geographic position of Albania, as a Mediterranean country, with a coast line of 460 km on the Adriatic and Ionian seas and with many touristic resorts in the mountainous areas and museum cities as well have made it an attractive country for the tourists. Last year, 4.7 million tourists visited Albania according to official sources. There are made many investments recent years with regard to road infrastructure, cleaningup of the beaches and other services for the touristic season. We encourage Kuwaiti citizens to visit Albania for the whole year and particularly during the summer season. This is the second year in which the Kuwaiti citizens can travel without visa to Albania for the period: 25 May to 25 September. Even for the rest of the year, the maximum time of visa procedures is ten days long. The holders of Schengen visas “C” or “D” don’t need visa to Albania. The both governments are working together to liberalize visa issuance procedures and possibly to remove them totally in the near future. During the conversations with Kuwaiti citizens and officials as well, we get the kind suggestion that we need to work more to make Albania better known as a country with its culture, traditions and business opportunities because still

Vlora Beach many Kuwaiti citizens do not have enough information. We welcome this suggestion. The tourist services in Albania have improved significantly last years with regard to hotels, restaurants, travel, agencies etc. The Kuwaiti citizens can find easily restaurants and shops in which are offered hallall products given the Muslim majority of the country and the tradition of hospitability which has many things in common with the Kuwaiti culture and traditions.

Business Kuwaiti citizens are welcomed to invest and establish their businesses in Albania. There are several successful Kuwaiti investments but it needs to explore more opportunities. There are many advantages for the foreign investors in Albania like: no limitation on the percentage share of foreign participation in companies100% foreign ownership is possible, foreign investors have the right to expatriate all funds and contributions in kind of their investment to their country of origin, a law approved in 2010 guarantees special state protection for the foreign investors in legal disputes with private third parties; low taxes, personal income tax and cor-

porate tax are only 10%. Despite the global economic crisis, the country has maintained economic growth, 4% in 2011, 3.2% in 2012 and didn’t fall into recession. The registration of new businesses is done in 24 hours with a single application procedure and a fee only 100 Albanian Lek, less than 1 euro. Albanian economy has unexploited potentials in terms of renewable energy, tourism, agribusiness, infrastructure and services. During the last years, Albanian government has paid special attention to the energy investments aiming to transform the country into an energy hub of the region.

Worthy to mention that in the past five years, more than 100 concessions have been given out for building small and medium size hydropower plants and this is a good opportunity for the Kuwaiti investors to enter in this business as well.

The Albanian embassy in Kuwait maintains very good cooperation with the Kuwaiti embassy in Albania. This is obvious because we have common goals. Let us work together, with the support of the governments of our countries to further strengthen bilateral and multilateral relations between our countries and peoples.

MONDAY, JUNE 10, 2013

LOCAL Romania and Kuwait

Half-a-century of diplomatic relations

T

he day when the two friendly countries established diplomatic relations. Relations that became stronger and stronger, based on mutual respect, mutual interests, mutual support in bilateral and multilateral arena, respect for the others, respect for human values.

For Kuwait, Romania was among the first countries to recognize its independence, in 1961. For Romania, Kuwait was the first Arab country in the Gulf that established diplomatic relations with Bucharest. Since then, the two countries and the two people proved their respect and care for each other so many times.

Whenever one was in need the other was there to help. And, this is the meaning of true friendship!

I do not recall now any certain proof of early contacts between the inhabitants of today’s Kuwait territory and those living in the Northern part of Danube River, the Romanians. But I do recall the fact that Romanian travelers that reached the Arab Peninsula centuries ago were talking about their encounter with strong, determined, hard -working people, the best divers that were bringing from the depth of

the Gulf waters the most precious pearls. The little round, shining miracles that were, and still are, the dream of every lady in the world. Romanians cherished the fight for unity, the fight for freedom, the fight for independence of all countries.

They were themselves thirsty for full independence and unity of their own country and tasted the sweetness of being totally independent in 1877, when the Ottoman Empire was defeated, and the sweetness of unity in 1918 when the Romanian modern state was created. That is why it expressed its most sincere satisfaction in 1961 when Kuwait became independent and two years later when the two countries established diplomatic relations. It should also be mentioned that Romania was there when Kuwait needed the support of all its friends in 1990, during the hardest seven month of its history.

Romania was also there, with its specialists, to extinguish the fire that was burning Kuwait’s most important national wealth, the oil. Romanian firefighters were highly appreciated for their dedication and courage.

From 1963 to the present day rela-

tions between Romania and Kuwait flourished year by year. Official and State visits, but private visits also at the highest level bridged strong and healthy political, diplomatic, economic, cultural and people to people relations.

The two countries cooperate and support each other in the international organizations, promote a wide and creative foreign policy, and a strong parliamentary diplomacy. The cooperation between Romania and Kuwait at the UN and other international organizations is always been mentioned as an example to be followed. The bilateral ties became stronger through the economic cooperation. Romanians were and present in Kuwait offering their expertise in a field in which they have a long and fruitful experience.

Oil and gas Romania was the first country in the world to start exploiting oil, in 1856. It has an important experience in producing oil equipment, building refineries and petrochemical complexes. Romania is well known for its Oil and Gas University. A huge number of oil specialists from the Middle East and North

Africa graduated from the University.

And between Romanian and Kuwaiti oil engineers and specialists there is a permanent, constructive dialogue.

Romanian companies in construction, infrastructure, health and IT are more and more present in Kuwait, while Kuwaiti investors are attracted by the Romanian real estate, agriculture and tourism. When it comes to economy and trade the highway of interests and opportunities is quiet crowded on both ways, to the benefit of both countries and peoples. It was proved again in 2011 when Romania organized the first ever economic forum in Bucharest: “Romania - GCC, doing business in South-Eastern Europe”.

Kuwait was present with a strong delegation of businessmen headed by the then Minister of Commerce, and was very active in the plenary sessions. The follow-up forum will be organized by the end of this year and there are no doubts that Kuwaiti representatives will be as constructive as always. Here we should add the over 600 Romanians working and living in Kuwait.

A community described by Kuwaiti high officials as “one of the best”: doc-

Kuwaiti envoy honored by Italian Air Force

ROME: A medal was presented to Khalaf by Italian Air Force Commander Pasquale Preziosa in a ceremony recently with the participation of Kuwait Ambassador to Rome Sheikh Jaber Duaij AlIbrahim Al-Sabah. — KUNA

ROME: Kuwait Ambassador to Sarajevo and former diplomat at the Kuwaiti Embassy in Rome Mohammad Khalaf expressed gratitude to the Italian Air Force for honoring him for the great role he played in rallying the Italian public opinion support for the Kuwait liberation war by awarding him a medal.

The medal was presented to Khalaf by Italian Air Force Commander Pasquale Preziosa in a ceremony held here recently with the participation of Kuwait Ambassador to Rome Sheikh Jaber Duaij Al-Ibrahim AlSabah. In statements to KUNA, Khalaf pointed out that he was honored due to his role in rallying Italian people support to the Italian forces participation in the international coalition that fought in Kuwait liberation war.

He thanked General Preziosa for the decoration and highlighted the strong and special Kuwaiti-Italian relations in the different domains and at the different levels. He noted that the decoration coincides with the celebrations of the Italian National Day and the 22 anniversar y of Kuwait Liberation. — KUNA

tors, teachers, engineers, technicians, nurses, specialists in various fields. In Romania, on the other side, there are more and more Kuwaitis discovering not only the beauties of the nature but also a lot of business opportunities. And, to our satisfaction, their number is growing month by month.

The celebration of the important event of half a century ago has started with the beginning of the 2013 by different cultural events in both countries and will continue all year long. Both our embassies, Romanian Embassy in Kuwait and Kuwaiti Embassy in Bucharest have a long series of projects that will be disclosed in due time.

But the most important thing is the common feeling that the last half a century meant so much for the Romanians and for the Kuwaitis, that 50 years of diplomatic relations brought us so much closer to each other that even without saying we are ready at any moment to extend any kind of support, any kind of help that the other needs.

And the name of this extraordinary feeling is: friendship!

(The Embassy of Romania, Kuwait)

Kuwait hotel occupancy falls marginally in March KUWAIT: Hotel occupancy in Kuwait reached 63 percent in March, 1.5-percent less than the same month in 2012, an economic report said yesterday.

The average daily booking fee record in March decreased by 10.8 percent compared with that in 2012 where it reached USD 277, the report, issued by Al-Tameer Real Estate Investment Company (Tameer), said on Saturday. The first quarter of the current year showed a high rate of hotel occupancy compared to the same period of last year, rising from 57 to 63 percent and the same applied to the average booking fee per day, which rose 3.6 percent compared to the same period last year.

As for the level of performance of the hotel sector in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region in March, the report noted that the hotel occupancy reached 67 percent, growing by 3.8 percent compared than the same period last year,

while the average booking fee per day reached USD 179 with an increase of 5.4 percent.

According to detailed figures, tourism conferences and exhibitions have boomed in the Gulf, especially in the United Arab Emirates, where they “emerged in terms of attracting huge investments in this vital sector,” the report went on. Dubai comes to the fore as a major destination for tourism conferences and exhibitions, followed by Abu Dhabi, the report showed, adding that growth is expected by seven percent, the equivalent of AED 1.5 million, in the period between 2013-20, according to the results of studies funded by the Abu Dhabi Authority for Tourism and Culture.

Tameer’s monthly report includes information on the hotel sector in the Gulf and the Middle East based on official sources and periodic disclosure of hotel occupancy figures. — KUNA

Lyons with the participants of the seminar.

FSRI educates medical industry in Kuwait KUWAIT: Leading multi-disciplinary non-profit organization Fawzia Sultan Rehabilitation Institute (FSRI) hosted two three-day seminars for physical therapists in Kuwait focussing on innovative and integrative physiotherapy-based treatments that combine holistic approaches with research-based clinical interventions in order to provide optimum solutions that benefit both women suffering from pelvic or pregnancy-related difficulties and cancer patients throughout Kuwait.

The seminars were conducted by Ireland-based Michelle Lyons, a physical therapist expert with over eighteen years experience working in women’s health and oncology in the USA and Ireland. Lyons has designed and implemented various women’s health pro-

grams that incorporate therapeutic pilates, yoga and nutritional consultancy into her physiotherapy treatment protocols, and currently lectures on both women’s health and oncology throughout Ireland and the UK Lyons said: “Through my years of experience, I’ve noticed that physiotherapists lack the knowledge or skill required to effectively treat women suffering from either pelvic issues or pregnancy-related complaints.

Likewise, the treatment of cancer patients is limited to traditional, by-thebook treatments, which are often ineffective. This seminar aims to teach physical therapists and medical practitioners here in Kuwait about the benefits of applying non-traditional, therapeutic elements such pilates and yoga in creating a perfect physical therapy solution

that meets the needs of each of their patients”. FSRI Medical Director, Dr Elham Hamdan added that seminars that bring in foreign expertise and nonlinear approaches in physical therapy are instrumental for medical practitioners in Kuwait in providing cutting-edge physiotherapeutic care in the region. “FSRI also aims to establish a dedicated women’s health department within its clinic in the near future, to provide Kuwaiti women with the most skilled and effective female-focused physiotherapy solutions in the region,” she said.

Fawzia Sultan Rehabilitation Institute is a leading multi-disciplinary non-profit organization that aims to empower people suffering from acute injuries and long-term disabilities, the community at large and healthcare professionals alike.

Kuwait-funded school opened in E Sudan QADARIF, Sudan: A grand ceremony was held here on Saturday to mark the inauguration of an integrated school funded by the Kuwait-based International Islamic Charitable Organization (IICO). The Barbar Al-Foqara Elementary School in Al-Qadarif state, east Sudan, covers an area of 15,000 sq m and costs up to $400,000. The funding is part of Kuwait’s pledge to the reconstruction projects in east Sudan.

The inauguration ceremony gathered IICO representative and Kuwait’s former minister of Awqaf and Islamic affairs Mohammad Al-Humaidan, Ambassador to Sudan Dr

Suleiman Al-Harbi, Director of the IICO Office in Sudan Dr Ahmad Al-Sennosi, and ruler of Al-Qadarif State Al-Dhaw Al-Mahi along with dozens of federal and provincial leaders as well as local people.

Addressing the ceremony, Al-Mahi appreciated Kuwait’s role in backing the development in Sudan’s three eastern states and hosting the international donor conference for the region under auspices of His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah in late 2010. “The Kuwaiti contributions have positive impact on the development in the region. — KUNA

MONDAY, JUNE 10, 2013

Sudan puts oil, security deals with South on hold

Germany battles to hold back flood ‘catastrophe’ Page 8

Page 9

Maliki visits Kurdistan to melt ice Shiite premier facing Sunni protests, surge in violence BAGHDAD: Iraq’s Prime Minister yesterday made a rare visit to the country’s self-ruled northern Kurdish region in a bid to melt the ice between the Kurds and the Shiite-led central government in Baghdad, as a suicide attack in Baghdad claimed the lives of seven people. The visit came as authorities said a border guard was killed and two others were wounded in clashes along the Syrian border, in the latest sign that the Syrian civil war risks spilling over into Iraq.

Nouri Al-Maliki held a Cabinet meeting in Irbil - the first in the Kurdish regional capital since the 2003 US-led invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein - as part of an initiative started last year to better understand the needs of the provinces. Maliki and government ministers arrived by military plane, where they were received on a red carpet by the region’s president, Massoud Barzani.

Barzani leads the Kurds’ largely autonomous and increasingly prosperous northern region, which has multiple government ministries, its own security forces and other trappings of an independent state. It remains part of Iraq, however, and relies heavily on a share of the federal budget controlled by Baghdad to meet its budget needs. Arguments over dueling claims to the oil-rich city of Kirkuk and other disputed territories running along the Kurdish region’s border with the rest of Iraq are one of the most serious threats to Iraq’s stability. An exchange of fire in one disputed city in November led both sides to send military reinforcements and heavy weapons into the contested area. The Kurds have signed dozens of oil exploration deals with foreign energy companies over Baghdad’s objections, including US oil majors Exxon Mobil Corp and Chevron Corp and Total SA of France. The central government does not recognize the Kurdish agreements, which offer more generous terms than its own. It believes it should manage the country’s oil policy and wants all exports to travel through state-run pipelines.

The Kurds are working on a pipeline to ship oil produced in their region into neighboring Turkey and earlier this year began trucking oil across their northern border, prompting charges of smuggling and threats of lawsuits from Baghdad. Immediate solutions to pending issues are not expected during Maliki’s visit, the first since 2010 when Iraqi politicians converged to end a monthslong dispute over establishing the government after national elections produced no clear winner.

Iraq’s state TV aired part of the meeting as Maliki was calling on Iraqis to come together so that they can face what he called “the danger” brought on by regional unrest mainly in neighboring Syria where Sunni-led rebels have been fighting for more than two years to topple Bashar Al-Assad. Fears are growing

that the ongoing fighting in Syria could further destabilize Shiite-led Iraq’s already fragile security. Predominantly Sunni rebels in Syria, including the Al-Qaeda affiliated Jabhat al-Nusra, or the Nusra Front, are fighting to try to topple Syrian Assad. His Alawite sect is an offshoot of Shiism and is backed by Shiite powerhouse Iran. “ The region is going through a new strong storm, a sectarian storm, a storm of political challenges and a storm of confusions in many countries in the region based on different reasons,” Maliki said. “The most dangerous one is the comeback of the extremist organizations like Al-Qaeda and Jabhat al-Nusra and others who are backed by (hardline clerics’) fatwas,” he added. “That has brought back the ghost of the killing not only to Iraq but to the region and as Iraq is part of the region and part of its fabric general and that we started to be affected by the storm the region is going through,” he said.

The risks posed by the Syrian unrest are growing increasingly worrying for Baghdad.

Iraq’s Interior Ministry spokesman said the deadly frontier clash happened in the western Al-Waleed region, which borders Syria, and involved what he believes are members of the Free Syrian Army rebel group. The spokesman, Saad Maan Ibrahim, said Iraqi forces are increasingly coming under attack by armed groups from the Syrian side of the border. “We are determined and we have the capabilities to repel any attack on our border posts,” he said. The ministry said it foiled two other attempts by gunmen and smugglers to infiltrate Iraq’s border with Syria, forcing them to retreat back across the border.

Sadoun Al-Shaalan, a member in the provincial council of Sunni-dominated Anbar province, also said clashes along the border are increasingly common between Free Syrian Army fighters and Iraqi police guards.

He blamed the clashes on “the sectarian fighting and tension taking place in Syria and the belief by the Syria opposition that Baghdad is supporting the Assad regime in its struggle with the opposition”.

Shortly before Maliki landed in Irbil, a car bomber rammed his explosives-laden vehicle into an Iraqi army checkpoint in a Shiite neighborhood in Baghdad, killing at least seven people and wounding 18 others, officials said. The attack happened in the busy Kadhimiyah neighborhood, which last week was the focus of an annual pilgrimage that brought hundreds of thousands of Shiite faithful to a golden-domed shrine where two revered Shiite saints are buried. Authorities imposed strict security measures throughout the capital to protect pilgrims, and no major attacks occurred during the pilgrimage itself, which peaked midweek. It commemorates the death of one of the saints, Imam Moussa Al-Kadhim.— AP

Economy, nukes top agenda as Iran votes TEHRAN: Iran elects on Friday a successor to President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, whose eight years in office have been marked by stiff Western sanctions over Tehran’s controversial nuclear drive and the economic turmoil they have caused. When Ahmadinejad was reelected for a second term in 2009, widespread charges of voter fraud sparked massive street protests. Suppressed by a brutal state crackdown, those protests plunged Iran into its worst crisis since the establishment of the Islamic republic in 1979.

The Guardians Council, an unelected vetting body, approved only eight men out of 686 hopefuls to stand in the election, and the list is dominated by conservatives close to supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. That fits with Khamenei’s desire for “an orderly, calm and undisputed election,” said Alireza Nader, a researcher at the RAND Corporation, the American policy research institute. At the forefront of a Western confrontation with Iran over its nuclear programme, the United States and France have denounced the “lack of transparency” in the campaign.

Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, a prominent figure in the Iranian revolution who served as president from 1989 to 1997, was surprisingly barred from running, as was Esfandiar Rahim Mashaie, a divisive figure close to the incumbent. Considered a would-be favourite by marginalised reformists and moderates, Rafsanjani, 78, has lost much of his political stock in recent years and fallen out with Khamenei. “Between an open ballot and ‘zero risk’, the supreme leader made his choice,” said a Western diplomat in Tehran.

The candidate list consists of five conservatives, including top nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili, former foreign minister Ali Akbar Velayati and Tehran mayor Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf. Two contenders, ex-chief nuclear negotiator Hassan Rowhani and Mohammad Reza Aref, an ex-first vice president, are

appealing to the moderate and reformist bases. Ahmadinejad himself is barred by the constitution from running for a third term.

Three live televised debates with a tightly controlled format failed to ignite the lacklustre campaign, and were criticised by both viewers and participants. Public, open-air rallies are banned, and campaign posters are mostly absent across the country. Mir Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi, leaders of the 2009 protests who have remained under house arrests for more than two years, have cast a long shadow over the campaign. Their faces have appeared on some posters at a few rallies, where supporters chanted slogans demanding their release.

Last Tuesday, Khamenei called on Iranians to get out and vote in numbers, saying a high turnout would foil foreign attempts to undermine the election. However, most of the 50.5 million voters are more concerned about the dire state of the economy. Iran is staggering under the weight of repeated rounds of international sanctions - targeting oil exports and access to the global banking system - over its disputed nuclear program. The West fears Iran is seeking to develop atomic weapons, a claim Tehran hotly denies.

Over several years of negotiations, Western powers have failed so far to convince Iran to cut back its nuclear program. And parallel efforts by the UN’s International Atomic Energy Agency have failed to shed light on the intent of Tehran’s atomic activities. Some candidates and critics have blamed Jalili’s tough stance for the failure of the talks.

Tehran insists its civilian nuclear programme is for peaceful power generation and medical purposes only, denying any deviation towards military objectives. Khamenei, who has the final say in the Islamic republic’s affairs, has repeatedly said “using weapons of mass destruction, including nuclear (arms), is haram (religiously forbidden).”—AFP

IRBIL: Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri Al-Maliki (left) and Kurdish regional president Massoud Barzani look at each other as they hold a joint press conference in this northern Iraqi Kurdish city yesterday. —AFP

MONDAY, JUNE 10, 2013

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Nigeria offensive leaves scattered trash and uncertainty MARTE, Nigeria: The dusty, remote spot in Nigeria’s far northeast where the military says insurgents operated a major camp is now little more than burnt-out cars, strewn trash and unanswered questions. More than three weeks into a military offensive seeking to end a years-long insurgency by Islamist extremist group Boko Haram, Nigeria has claimed important successes, but the truth is difficult to determine. It has denied killing civilians, though it declines to provide numbers or details on casualties.

Soldiers say Boko Haram members have “scattered” in areas where the army has pushed them out, but they cannot say where, only that “hundreds” have been arrested. Thousands of residents have fled into neighbouring Niger and Cameroon, and some allege soldiers indiscriminately killed civilians in raids before the offensive officially began. The military denies this. Mobile phone lines have been cut in much of the region since the start of the offensive on May 15 and visiting remote areas independently is difficult if not impossible.

Journalists recently visited the deserted Boko Haram “camp” soldiers say they chased insurgents away from near the village of Kirenowa as part of a tightly orchestrated military tour. The tour wound into a patch of the semi-desert northeast, where acacia trees and shrubs dot the dry, flat landscape along with occasional villages of brick houses with thatch roofs. Military officials have at

times provided conflicting details of operations, including involving the camp near Kirenowa, raising further questions over which version if any is correct.

In 2009, Nigeria launched a brutal offensive against Boko Haram that killed some 800 people and forced the group underground for more than a year - but they returned with even deadlier attacks.

This time the security operation “involved not just the military but the security agencies of the country,” Brigadier General Chris Olukolade, a defence spokesman, told reporters on Thursday.

“The network this time is perfect, I mean near perfect, in the sense that the operation was planned to ensure their bases were dislocated - not just dislocated but completely wiped out.” Some say the offensive may have obliterated the possibility of legitimate dialogue, while others have expressed doubts that a military operation could lead to lasting peace.

“The entire Chinese army cannot solve this problem,” said Bulama Mali Gubio, spokesman for an influential elders’ forum in Nigeria’s Borno state, Boko Haram’s original home base. Boko Haram’s insurgency has been under way since 2009, but a series of particularly violent events preceded President Goodluck Jonathan’s state of emergency declaration on May 14 in the volatile northeast of Africa’s most populous nation. In April, the military faced accusations of major abuses after nearly 200 people were left dead in the town of Baga, with residents

MARTE, Nigeria: Nigerian soldiers patrol in the north of Borno state on June 5, 2013. — AFP alleging soldiers shot civilians and set fire to much of the community. The Red Cross put the death toll at 187, but the military insisted that only 37 people died in the fighting, while saying insurgents caused the blazes. A May 7 attack in Bama saw insurgents disguised in military uniforms break into a prison and attack several government buildings, leaving 55 people dead. Nigerian authorities later said they freed three women and six children abducted by Boko Haram during the attack. However, there were also accusations of military abuses in Bama. Ali

Elhadji, a 56-year-old who fled back to his parents’ home village in Cameroon, Gance, said Boko Haram had spread violence in Bama and soldiers brutally retaliated. He said soldiers arrived several weeks before the May 15 start of the offensive and killed indiscriminately. “ They killed all those who appeared young and who they crossed in the streets,” he told AFP recently in Gance.

“They killed many innocents.” There is no question that the insurgency mainly in Nigeria’s deeply impoverished north has been brutal. Boko Haram is blamed for

hundreds of deaths through suicide attacks, targeted killings, car bombings and other means. In declaring the state of emergency, the president said the group had taken over pockets of territory in the remote northeast. Soldiers said the extremists even raised their own flags in the Marte area. At the same time, the military’s response to the insurgency over the last several years has come under heavy criticism, with widespread accusations of extra-judicial killings, arbitrary arrests and unlawful detentions.

Diplomats and analysts have long said a military solution alone is unlikely to resolve the problem, stressing that conditions in the severely underdeveloped north must be addressed. The government in Africa’s largest oil producer has more recently sought to portray itself as offering a carrot-and-stick approach, carrying out the offensive but also forming a panel to look at possibilities for offering an amnesty to insurgents. It recently released 58 women and children who had been held in connection with the insurgency. Boko Haram leader Abubakar Shekau had demanded that the government release the wives and children of its members. But with the offensive grinding on and its details unclear, it is difficult to know what effect if any such moves have had. “Is it dialogue with the people you are pursuing with troops, with armoured tanks and with fighter jets?” Gubio said.

“Are these the people you are trying to give amnesty to?” — AFP

Germany battles to hold back flood ‘catastrophe’ Hungary braced for deluge in capital

PURI, India: Beachgoers walk past a sand sculpture created by Indian artist Sudarsan Pattnaik wishing speedy recovery to former South African President Nelson Mandela on the Bay of Bengal coast in Orissa state yesterday. — AP

Prayers for Mandela after second night in hospital JOHANNESBURG: South Africans prayed for Nelson Mandela as he spent a second day in hospital yesterday suffering a lung infection that has sparked worldwide concerns for the ailing peace icon. Mandela’s latest health scare was splashed across the front pages of local newspapers but government officials have released no updates since announcing he was hospitalised in Pretoria early Saturday in a “serious but stable” condition. The congregation at the Regina Mundi church in Soweto, a flashpoint during the anti-apartheid struggle, prayed for the 94-year-year-old national hero.

“I am coming to church today with Madiba in my thoughts. I want him to get well,” churchgoer Nokuthula Tshibasa, 38, told AFP, using Mandela’s clan name. It is the fourth hospital stay since December for the Nobel peace prize laureate, who turns 95 next month, after he was discharged in April following treatment for pneumonia.

South Africans are beginning to come to terms with the mortality of their first black president who is revered as the father of the “Rainbow Nation” multi-race democracy. “I mean Tata is 94. At 94 what do you expect?” said church goer Sannie Shezi, 36, using an affectionate term meaning father.

“He lived his life, he worked for us. All we can say is God help him. If things happen they will happen, but we still love him.”

The Sunday Times newspaper carried a front-page picture of the elder statesman smiling and waving under the headline: “It’s time to let him go”. “We wish Madiba a speedy recovery, but I think what is important is that his family must release him,”

long-time friend Andrew Mlangeni, 87, told the newspaper. The former apartheid era prisoner who was jailed for life alongside Mandela in 1964 said it was clear he was not well and it was possible he “might not be well again”. “Once the family releases him, the people of South Africa will follow.

We will say thank you, God, you have given us this man, and we will release him too.”

Mandela’s third wife Graca Machel has been at his hospital bedside after calling off a trip to London. Presidency spokesman Mac Maharaj, who also served time with Mandela in Robben Island, said Saturday he was in a “serious” condition, in an unusually sombre description of his state of health.

But he told AFP that Mandela was breathing on his own. “The truth of the matter is a simple one. Madiba is a fighter and at his age as long as he is fighting, he’ll be fine,” he said.

Mandela is revered as a global symbol of forgiveness after embracing his former jailers following his release from 27 years in prison and his latest hospitalisation triggered outpourings of concern across the globe. “No one lasts forever. But I really wish there was an exception for #Mandela,” said one post on Twitter. “Can we all just give this Great Man the dignity 2 die in peace if its his time. Has he not given us all enough #ThankU Tata #Mandela,” said another.

British Prime Minister David Cameron said Mandela was in his thoughts, while the White House has also sent good wishes.

Mandela was receiving care at his Johannesburg home when his lung problems returned. — AFP

Swiss vote for tough asylum law GENEVA: The Swiss voted overwhelmingly yesterday in favour of a controversial government move to tighten the country’s asylum law amid a spike in refugees. Some 79 percent of voters embraced changes made to the asylum law last September as applications soared to their hightest level in over a decade, according to final results of a national referendum published by public broadcaster SSR. Opponents of the asylum law revision, which includes the removal of military desertion from a list of valid grounds for seeking asylum in Switzerland, voiced deep disappointment at their defeat. “The referendum is a disaster for asylum seekers and refugees and leaves no winners,” the committee that had requested the vote on the changes said in a statement, hailing the “minority of the population that still has a conscience”.

Parliamentarian Anne Seydoux-Christie, speaking against the official line of her Christian Democratic Party, meanwhile lamented that “this marks a weakening of our humanitarian tradition, and certainly a

lack of solidarity towards what is happening in countries in serious crisis”. Celine Amandruz of Switzerland’s largest party, the populist Swiss People’s Party (SVP), however welcomed the strong support for the tougher law, insisting that nine out of 10 people who seek refuge in the wealthy country did so “for economic reasons”.

“There is clearly a need to change this system,” she said.

One of the most controversial revisions was the removal of military desertion as a valid reason for asylum. That has been the key reason cited by Eritreans, who accounted for most applications to Switzerland last year and whose country imposes unlimited and under-paid military service on all ablebodied men and women. The revision also removed the possibility, which had been unique in Europe, to apply for asylum from Swiss embassies - a change opponents described as “inhumane”, since it meant people unable to make the often dangerous journey from their country to Switzerland would remain without help. —AFP

MAGDEBURG, Germany: Thousands of emergency workers, troops and volunteers in Germany battled yesterday against central Europe’s worst floods in over a decade, while the swelling Danube put Budapest on high alert.

Rising flood waters in Germany have forced mass evacuations in what one lawmaker termed a “national catastrophe”. As Hungary braced for a deluge in its capital, bolstering sandbag barriers as the Danube is expected to reach historic levels, German rescuers focused on the eastern city of Magdeburg. Vast areas around the city were covered in a sea of brown water, sparked by recent torrential rains which have washed down the Elbe river system from the Czech Republic.

The water level in Magdeburg reached 7.45 m in the morning, up from the usual level of around two metres and worse than massive floods that struck the region in 2002, local authorities said. Despite frantic efforts to secure it, a dam broke on Sunday south of the city at the point where the Elbe meets the Saale tributary, the local crisis command said, urging the remaining 150 residents in the region to quickly seek high ground. Almost 3,000 residents were evacuated from Magdeburg’s Rothensee district, where hundreds of army troops struggled to reinforce a dyke protecting a crucial electricity facility.

President Joachim Gauck yesterday went on a tour of the flood-hit states of Saxony and Saxony-Anhalt, where in vast areas only roofs and tree tops stick out of the water and the only access is by boat or helicopter. “One cannot imagine how much remains to be dealt with,” said Gauck in view of the massive clean-up, after joining a church service in the city of Halle. So far the floods on the Elbe and Danube river systems have killed at least 18 people, including 10 in the Czech Republic. Ironically, the sun was shining brightly above Germany’s flood zone, forcing the thousands packing sandbags and helping evacuees to ask for supplies of sun block and insect repellent against mosquitos.

More townships were evacuated around the Elbe town of Barby. Some of the 8,000 residents of the nearby town of Aken were taken to safety on military armoured personnel carriers and ambulances. Chancellor Angela Merkel’s government was planning a crisis meeting with state

premiers to assess how the cost of the disaster will be shared, the Leipziger Volkszeitung daily reported in its Monday edition. “We’re dealing with a national catastrophe,” Gerda Hasselfeldt, lawmaker for the conservative Christian Social Union, who chairs a group of states in the Bundestag, told the newspaper.

There was growing anger about gawkers hindering the emergency response, which also extended in villages and towns downriver along the Elbe and its tributaries into Lower Saxony state. “Disaster tourism is a serious problem,” said Hans-Peter Kroeger, head of the associations of fire brigades, according to national news agency DPA. “Sightseers with their cars block roads and depots, get in the way of emergency responders, threaten the safety of dykes and endanger themselves.”

The situation in the Czech Republic was getting back to normal, after the crest of the flood passed through, although flood defences stayed in place after forecasts of storms and heavy rain.

“The danger lasts even in places hit by the flood” as the soil is still soaked, Prime Minister Petr Necas said Saturday after a crisis committee meeting. The rains have also severely swollen the Danube, hitting especially Germany ’s

Bavarian city of Passau, where the mighty waterway meets two other rivers, leaving thousands of homes covered in mud and debris last week and some villages abandoned and cut off.

The high river sparked emergency responses as it runs through Austria and Slovakia into Hungary on its way to the Black Sea, but so far the region has dodged a major disaster.

Hungary’s flood defences held firm yesterday morning as the flood peak moved through the northwest of the country toward Budapest. No casualties or serious injuries had been reported yet in Hungary although authorities said around 1,000 people had been evacuated. So far, around six million sandbags have been used in barriers.

The river was forecast to peak at 8.95 m in Budapest late yesterday. By morning the water level had already climbed to 8.83 m, exceeding the previous historic high of 8.60 recorded in 2006. Authorities in the capital said the flood barriers now in place are high enough to protect even the most threatened parts of the city.

“The flood peak is approaching the heart of the country,” said Prime Minister Viktor Orban. “Two very important days are ahead of us, as the capital is the most densely populated part of the country.” — AFP

SCHOENEBECK, Germany: A man inspects a sandbag wall next to the river Elbe yesterday. —AFP

UK says eavesdropping is legal, defends US spy links LONDON: Britain said eavesdropping by its GCHQ security agency was legal and no threat to privacy but would not confirm or deny reports it received data from a secret US intelligence program.

British and US newspapers have suggested that the US National Security Agency handed over information on Britons gathered under the PRISM program. In his first remarks on the subject, Foreign Secretary William Hague said the two countries did share intelligence but that GCHQ’s work was governed by a very strong legal framework.

“The idea that in GCHQ people are sitting around working out how to circumvent a UK law with another agency in another country is fanciful,” Hague told BBC TV yesterday. “It is nonsense”.

Promising he would give a statement on the subject to the lower house of Britain’s parliament today, Hague said there was no threat to privacy or people’s civil liberties. He said was limited in what he could disclose. “Of course we share a lot of information with the United States,” he said, adding that the two countries enjoyed “an exceptional intelli-

gence sharing relationship”. “But if information arrives in the UK from the US it’s governed by our laws.”

Britain’s two-party coalition government is under pressure to reveal more details of how Britain and the United States share intelligence after the reports, based on a leak, suggested such cooperation ran much deeper than was previously known. Critics said the collaboration amounted to a “snoopers’ charter by the back door”, accusing the security services of having much greater access to Britons’ phone and electronic communications than allowed under British law thanks to the clandestine US program. But Hague said such fears were misplaced. “Intelligence gathering in this country, by the UK, is governed by a very strong legal framework so that we get the balance right between the liberties and privacy of people and the security of the country.” Any intelligence gathering was “authorised, necessary, proportionate and targeted,” he added, saying he personally authorised GCHQ intercepts “most days of the week”. There is public debate in Britain about giving the security

services more powers to eavesdrop after a British soldier was brutally killed in London last month in an incident the government described as a “terrorist” attack. Douglas Alexander, the opposition Labour party’s spokesman for foreign affairs, welcomed Hague’s promise to address parliament on the subject, but said he needed to be more open. “I will be asking the Foreign Secretary in the House of Commons tomorrow to clarify the role of his Department in overseeing those legal frameworks,” Alexander said in a statement. “It is vital that the Government now reassures people who are rightly concerned about these reports.”

Britain’s parliamentary intelligence and security committee has demanded a report from GCHQ on the subject. By coincidence, its members are due in Washington today to conduct talks with lawmakers and officials in the US intelligence community. Hague said most Britons had nothing to fear. “If you are a law-abiding citizen of this country ... you’ll never be aware of all the things those (intelligence) agencies are doing to stop your

identity being stolen or to stop a terrorist blowing you up tomorrow,” he said. “But if you are a would-be terrorist or the centre of a criminal network or a foreign intelligence agency trying to spy on Britain you should be worried because that is what we work on and we are on the whole quite good at it.”

Reports about the apparent sophistication and long reach of US surveillance have also caused anxiety in continental Europe, particularly in Germany, where there are memories of the former East Germany’s Stasi intelligence service.

The country’s data commissioner has said he expects the government to put a stop to any American surveillance of German citizens, while worried lawmakers from across the political spectrum have said they want to know more. “No one has a problem with the USA keeping terrorists under surveillance - that has prevented terrorist attacks in Germany before now too,” said Thomas Oppermann, a senior lawmaker from the opposition Social Democrats (SPD). “(But) total surveillance of all citizens by the USA is completely inappropriate. — Reuters

MONDAY, JUNE 10, 2013

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Sudan puts oil, security deals with South on hold KHARTOUM: Sudan yesterday put on hold nine security and economic pacts with South Sudan but said Khartoum remained committed to good relations if the South ends support for rebels. “We will stop all nine agreements, not only oil,” Information Minister Ahmed Bilal Osman said at a news conference. “We are still committed to have good relations with South Sudan and if they are serious about implementing the nine agreements we can return to cooperate with them.”

His comments followed an order on Saturday from President Omar Al-Bashir to shut the pipeline carrying South Sudanese crude for export. Bashir’s command came after he warned the South over backing rebels, who analysts say humiliated the authorities with recent attacks. South Sudan’s government in Juba denies supporting insurgents in the north, and in turn has accused Khartoum of backing rebels on southern territory. Osman, along with Sudan’s intelligence chief Mohammed Atta, confirmed that the oil shutdown had begun.

Despite that, Osman said that some South Sudanese oil had already reached the Port Sudan export terminal and the South is free to sell it - as long as it pays the

fees owed to Khartoum. After months of intermittent clashes, Sudan and South Sudan agreed in early March to detailed timetables for normalising relations by setting up a border buffer zone and implementing eight other key pacts. These allowed for a free flow of people and goods across the undemarcated and disputed border, and a resumption of oil flows which South Sudan cut off early last year after accusing Khartoum of theft.

South Sudan separated two years ago with most of the formerly united Sudan’s oil production but the export infrastructure remained under northern control. Last September the two nations agreed to the nine pacts but they did not take effect as Khartoum pushed for guarantees that South Sudan would no longer back the rebels. In March, Juba and Khartoum finally agreed on detailed timetables to set all the deals in motion. A month later Bashir visited Juba, symbolising the then-easing of tensions.

But Atta told reporters that as recently as last Friday oil tankers destined for the Sudan People’s Liberation MovementNorth (SPLM-N) insurgents in South Kordofan state had left the South. He also alleged that rebels have “training camps” in

the South, which he said also provides weapons, ammunition, medical care for wounded, and provides travel documents for rebel leaders. South Sudan, in comments made ahead of the Khartoum news conference, vowed to cooperate with the north despite its moves to close the pipeline. “We will continue to implement the terms of the co-operation agreement,” South Sudanese Information Minister Barnaba Marial Benjamin told reporters.

However, South Sudan also accused Khartoum of sending troops southwards into disputed border zones, and Juba’s President Salva Kiir yesterday held meetings of the country’s top security task force. Juba’s army said Sudanese troops had pushed southwards across the demilitarised buffer zone into South Sudan’s Upper Nile state, claims impossible to verify independently. “It is unacceptable, and the sooner they withdraw the better,” South Sudan army spokesman Philip Aguer told reporters, adding that Juba would complain to United Nations peacekeepers. In Khartoum, Osman accused the South’s army of failing to pull out of six areas along the border, which is monitored by several dozen observers from both countries and the United Nations. — AFP

KHARTOUM: Sudanese Information Minister Ahmed Bilal Osman (left) sits next to the chief of Sudan’s intelligence service Mohammed Atta during a press conference in the Sudanese capital yesterday.— AFP

Syria forces ready Aleppo assault after Qusair win Netanyahu, Putin discuss conflict DAMASCUS: Syrian troops buoyed by victory in Qusair were preparing yesterday to launch a northern offensive, a security source said, as the conflict came to the streets of Beirut where a demonstrator was killed. A Syrian security source told AFP that after its capture from rebel forces of the strategic region of Qusair on the border with Lebanon with the support of Hezbollah fighters, the regime’s next target was Aleppo province in the north. “It is likely the battle for Aleppo will start in the coming hours or days, and its aim is to reclaim the towns and villages in the province,” the source told AFP on condition of anonymity. “The Syrian Arab army is ready to carry out its mission in this province.” The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights has reported the regime was deploying “thousands of soldiers” in

the Aleppo region, aiming to recapture rebel posts and sever supply routes from neighbouring Turkey.

On the international front, Britain said Syrian government gains on the ground had made organising peace talks harder, as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Russian President Vladimir Putin discussed Syria’s conflict by telephone. The announcement of a potential new offensive comes five days after the army expelled rebels from Qusair in central-west Syria.

Syrians were shown yesterday firing into the air and waving portraits of President Bashar AlAssad in Qusair to celebrate the government’s victory, in footage broadcast by Hezbollah’s AlManar television.

Syrian daily Al-Watan said the army has “start-

ALEPPO: Rebel fighters sit together in a building under construction close to this northern city on Saturday. — AFP

Israel PM answers critic over two-state solution JERUSALEM: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu yesterday reiterated his commitment to a Palestinian state, after his deputy defence minister said the government would not support a two-state solution. Speaking at the opening of the weekly cabinet meeting, Netanyahu - who in 2009 declared his support of a two-state solution - said he and US Secretary of State John Kerry will “try to make progress to find the opening for negotiations with the Palestinians, with the goal of reaching an agreement”. “This agreement will be based on a demilitarised Palestinian state that recognises the Jewish state, and on firm security arrangements based on the IDF (Israeli military),” he said.

His remarks came just days after Deputy Defence Minister Danny Danon, a member of Netanyahu’s ruling Likud party, rejected the notion that the government was serious about reaching a peace agreement that would lead to the formation of a Palestinian state. “There was never a government discussion, resolution or vote about the two-state solution,” Danon said in an interview with The Times of Israel news website on Thursday. If it were put Benjamin Netanyahu to a vote, “the majority of Likud ministers, along with Jewish Home will be against it,” he said, referring to a far-right nationalist faction within the government.

“Today, we are not fighting it, but if there will be a move to promote a two-state solution, you will see forces blocking it within the party and the government,” he said. “Today there is no partner, no negotiations, so it’s a discussion. It’s more of an academic discussion,” he said, adding that Netanyahu “knows that in the near future it’s not possible” to create a Palestinian state. Although Netanyahu made no direct mention of Danon’s remarks, which made headlines in the press yesterday, he stressed the need for unity within his cabinet.

“In order to face these challenges and many others, the government has to function as one unit,” he said. The Palestinians expressed little surprise at Danon’s remarks. “What the Israeli government is doing affirms these statements, and that it is trying to do whatever it can to prevent us from reaching an independent Palestinian state,” senior Palestinian official Yasser Abed Rabbo told Voice of Palestine radio. — AFP

ed to deploy at a large scale in Aleppo province, in preparation for a battle that will be fought in the city and its outskirts”. Rebels last July launched a massive assault on Aleppo, once Syria’s commercial hub. The city has since suffered daily regime bombardment and clashes.

Al-Watan also said “the Syrian army will take advantage of its experience in Qusair and Eastern Ghouta (near Damascus) to advance in the (central) province of Hama and Homs” nearby.

The Lebanese Red Cross, meanwhile, said dozens of people wounded in Qusair have been brought across the border for treatment. “Eightyseven wounded Syrians were transported by the Lebanese Red Cross from Friday afternoon to Sunday morning to hospitals in Bekaa (east) and to north” in Lebanon, said Georges Kettane, operations director of the LRC. British Foreign Secretary William Hague said Syrian regime gains made it harder to organise a US-Russian proposed peace conference. “The regime has gained ground on the ground, again at the cost of huge loss of life and the indiscriminate use of violence against the civilian population,” he told BBC television. “That makes the Geneva conference harder to bring about and to make a success.”

Syria’s main opposition coalition on Saturday reiterated that it refuses to join the peace talks dubbed Geneva 2. “What is happening in Syria today completely closes the doors on any discussions about international conferences and political initiatives,” George Sabra, interim head of the National Coalition, told reporters in Istanbul. In Jerusalem, the premier’s office said Netanyahu had spoken to Putin after Russia offered to bolster the beleaguered UN peacekeeping force monitoring the Israeli-Syrian ceasefire line on the Golan Heights. “We discussed issues linked to Syria where the situation is becoming more complex by the day,” Netanyahu said. “We saw only last week the battles which took place next to our border on the Golan,” he said after Syrian rebels clashed with Assad forces for control of Quneitra in the demilitarised zone. — AFP

MONDAY, JUNE 10, 2013

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

Evangelical Christians gain political clout in Brazil BRASILIA: When televangelist Silas Malafaia gathered 40,000 followers outside Brazil’s Congress this week, it wasn’t just to raise their arms to the sky and praise the Lord. The rally was a show of support for lawmakers who oppose abortion and same-sex marriage and a message to other politicians that they should not ignore Brazil’s fast-growing evangelical churches if they want to stay in office. “Gay activism is moral garbage,” Malafaia roared into the microphone to a cheering crowd on the grassy esplanade of the Brazilian capital.

“Satan will not destroy our family values.”

The rise of evangelical Christians as a conservative political force in Latin America’s largest nation has put the ruling Workers’ Party on guard and led President Dilma Rousseff - who is seeking re-election in 2014 - to appoint an evangelical bishop to her cabinet. The growing clout of evangelical churches is also bringing social and moral issues such as abortion to the center

of the national agenda, some say at the expense of political and economic reforms needed to restore robust growth to the world’s seventh-largest economy.

Pentecostalism was introduced to Latin America by US missionaries a century ago and has gained masses of followers in recent decades in countries like Brazil, especially among the urban poor who feel neglected by the dominant Catholic Church. With their vibrant preaching, emotional prayer and singing, evangelical Protestant churches appeal to Brazilians more than the liturgical masses of the Catholic Church. They also use electronic and social media more effectively to proselytize.

Exodus Many Brazilians who join evangelical congregations say their new religion has brought meaning to their lives, that they no longer identified with the Catholic

Church. Brazil is the world’s largest Catholic nation and Pope Francis will travel to Rio de Janeiro next month on his first trip abroad as pontiff, in part to try to reverse the exodus away from Catholicism. The Catholic Church is losing followers across Latin America even among Hispanics in the United States - and opinion polls in Brazil point to the Church’s strict positions on sex and divorce as contributing factors.

A Datafolha survey in March found 58 percent of Brazilians believe the Catholic Church should accept divorce and 83 percent believe the use of condoms should be allowed, two issues where the Vatican has refused to budge and evangelical churches are more flexible, allowing followers to decide for themselves.

One in four Brazilians is an evangelical Christian today and their churches have multiplied and become wealthy institutions that own radio and television networks, finance political campaigns and

even fund their own political parties.

While Catholic priests are banned from running for public office, evangelical churches actively encourage their pastors to engage in politics and often use the pulpit to persuade their followers who they should vote for. “ Today there are 44 million mainly Pentecostal evangelicals in Brazil, which is a large social force. Obviously, this was going to change things in Congress,” said Fernando Altemeyer, a former Catholic priest who teaches theology at the Catholic University of Sao Paulo. In the last national election in 2010, evangelicals increased their presence in Congress by 50 percent and now have 68 seats in the Chamber of Deputies and three in the Senate. Though belonging to a dozen different parties, evangelicals have begun to act as a caucus in Brazil’s fragmented legislature where only the farm lobby tends to speak with one voice.

Anti-gay preacher The evangelical presence in Congress has been very much in the public spotlight since one of its members, a conservative preacher known for his racist and anti-gay statements, was named chairman of the chamber’s Human Rights and Minorities Committee. Pastor Marcos Feliciano, of the Social Christian Party, once stated that John Lennon’s murder was divine retribution for saying the Beatles were more famous than Jesus Christ. The committee’s sessions have been disrupted almost daily by demonstrators demanding Feliciano’s ouster. He has ordered guards to remove the protesters and closed the committee to the public. Congressmen from Rousseff’s Workers’ Party walked out, saying he was unfit to be chairman. His backers say the longer the controversy lasts, the more votes evangelical candidates will get in the next election because he is defending traditional family values. —AP

Trayvon Martin murder case goes to trial in Florida Zimmerman says he acted in self-defense

SAN ONOFRE: Lyn Harris Hicks, a longtime opponent of the San Onofre nuclear power plant and a nearby resident, wears a banner on her hat as she waits for a news conference in front of the plant.— AP

San Onofre nuke plant to close after bitter fight LOS ANGELES: The demise of California’s San Onofre nuclear power plant began with an attempt to fix it. A $670 million equipment swap in 2009 and 2010 went haywire, leaving Southern California Edison on Friday with two idle reactors, more than $500 million in bills and a federal decision on a possible restart nowhere in sight. The company decided to close it, permanently. The announcement triggered a celebration among environmentalists and other critics of the nuclear power industry who argued the plant was too damaged to operate safely.

“There’s a huge sense of relief for us,” said Laguna Beach Councilwoman Toni Iseman, whose community is about 20 miles up the coast from San Onofre’s twin domes. “We were just sitting with a time bomb just to the south of us.” Erich Pica, president of Friends of the Earth, said San Onofre’s closing represents an opportunity for California to use more wind, solar and other clean energy. The group waged a long fight to block the restart.

The US nuclear industry, Pica said, “is on its final trajectory downward.” The San Onofre reactors - situated along the Pacific Coast in the densely populated corridor of millions of people between San Diego and Los Angeles are the largest to shut down permanently in the US in the past 50 years, federal officials said.

It was a jolt to the nation’s nuclear power industry, which had been encouraged in recent years by development of new plants in the Southeast. Steve Kerekes, a spokesman for the Nuclear Energy Institute, an industry group, described San Onofre’s problems as unlike any other reactor and said Edison’s decision highlights a flawed, plodding regulatory system.

“This is a blow to California’s energy diversity but is not an indicator of the industry’s larger ability to reliably supply low-carbon electricity,” he said. Edison’s decision brought to a sudden end a dispute that began in January 2012, when a small radiation leak led to a shutdown and the discovery of unusual damage to hundreds of tubes that carry radioactive water in the plant’s virtually new steam generators.

San Onofre never produced electricity again. The company was facing a tangle of investigations and regulatory hurdles, along with political pressure from Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., among others. In a conference call with reporters, Ted Craver, chairman of the utility’s corporate parent, Edison International, acknowledged the company suffered a major blow last month when the NRC’s Atomic Safety and Licensing Board split with the NRC staff and rejected Edison’s arguments to restart the plant.

That left Edison facing months of possible appeals and motions, with no certainty a restart would occur. “We’ve made our decision based on the facts in front of us,” he said. San Onofre - whose first reactor operated from 1968 to 1992, with two others added in the 1980s - was capable of powering 1.4 million homes. California officials have said they can make it through the hot season without the plant as long as the summer is uneventful, but warned that wildfires or another disruption in supply could cause power shortages. It wasn’t clear how the electricity from the plant would be replaced permanently. The California Public Utilities Commission said it will work with governments to ensure Southern California has enough electricity, which could require increased energy efficiency and conservation, as well as upgrades to equipment.—AP

SANFORD: George Zimmerman’s lead attorney will be walking a fine line as he tries to convince jurors that his client didn’t murder Trayvon Martin: He needs to show why Zimmerman felt threatened by the African-American teenager while avoiding the appearance that either he or his client is racist. Because there is no dispute that Zimmerman shot Martin, 17, during a fight on a rainy night in February 2012, Mark O’Mara must convince the jury that Zimmerman pulled his 9 mm handgun and fired a bullet into the Miamiarea high school student’s chest because he feared for his life and that the fear was caused by Martin’s actions, not his race.

Jury selection begins today in the second-degree murder trial, which is expected to last about six weeks.

Martin’s killing drew worldwide attention as it sparked a national debate about race, equal justice under the law and gun control. If convicted, Zimmerman, who identifies himself as Hispanic, could get a life sentence. Under Florida law, Zimmerman, 29, could lawfully shoot Martin in self-defense if it was necessary to prevent death or great bodily harm.

O’Mara has to be careful how he characterizes Martin, said Randy McClean, an Orlando-area defense attorney. “Mr. O’Mara’s challenge is to show Trayvon wasn’t profiled, that Zimmerman either saw something that looked suspicious or something else that caused him to make contact with Trayvon.” The challenge for prosecutors trying to get a seconddegree murder conviction, meanwhile, is that they must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that while Zimmerman’s actions weren’t premeditated, they demonstrated a “depraved mind” that didn’t consider the threat his actions had toward human life.

McClean and another Orlando defense attorney, David Hill, predicted that prosecutors will attack Zimmerman, who was employed at a mortgage risk management firm, as a frustrated, would-be police officer who had a chip on his shoulder.

Zimmerman had studied criminal justice at a community college and had volunteered to run his community’s neighborhood watch program. “The state’s narrative is going to be...

Zimmerman was a powerful neighborhood watchman, a wannabe offi-

cer who liked to use his authority,” McCLean said.

The Feb. 26, 2012, confrontation began when Zimmerman spotted Martin, whom he did not recognize, walking in the Retreat at Twin Lakes, the gated townhome community where Zimmerman lived and the fiancee of Martin’s father also resided.

There had been a rash of recent break-ins at the Retreat, and Zimmerman was wary of strangers walking through the complex. He was well-known to police dispatchers for his regular calls reporting suspicious people and events.

back of his head. He said that when Martin spotted his gun holstered around his waist under his clothes, he said, “You are going to die tonight.”

Zimmerman said he grabbed the gun first and fired. Martin died at the scene.

An autopsy showed Martin was shot through the heart at close range. Prosecutors claim Zimmerman was racially profiling Martin, and Martin’s divorced parents have said the neighborhood watch captain was the aggressor in the fight. “Trayvon Martin did not have a gun. Trayvon Martin did not get out of his car to

SANFORD: George Zimmerman, accused in the Trayvon Martin shooting, leaves a Seminole County courtroom at the end of a pretrial hearing, in Sanford, Fla, Saturday, June 8, 2013. — AP Martin was walking back from a convenience store after buying ice tea and Skittles. It was raining, and he was wearing a hoodie. Zimmerman called 911, got out of his vehicle and followed Martin behind the townhomes despite being told not to by a police dispatcher. “These a———-, they always get away,” Zimmerman said on the call. Zimmerman, who had a concealed weapons permit, was armed.

The two then got into a struggle.

Zimmerman told police he had lost sight of Martin, and that Martin circled back and attacked him as he walked back to his truck. Prosecutors say he tracked down Martin and started the fight. Zimmerman told police Martin punched him in the nose, knocking him down, and then got on top of him and began banging Zimmerman’s head on the sidewalk. Photos taken after the fight show Zimmerman with a broken nose, bruises and bloody cuts on the

chase anybody,” said Benjamin Crump, the parents’ attorney.

“Trayvon Martin did not shoot and kill anybody.”

Given the low visibility on the dark, rainy night of the shooting, few residents of the Retreat at Twin Lakes were able to give investigators a good description of what happened, and several offered conflicting accounts of who was on top of whom during the struggle. But 911 calls made by neighbors captured cries for help during the fight and then the gunshot. Martin’s parents say the cries for help were from their son, while Zimmerman’s father has testified they were from his son. Voicerecognition experts could play an important role in helping jurors decide who was screaming, provided they are allowed to testify. O’Mara had raised questions about whether such prosecution experts would mislead jurors and Circuit Judge Debra Nelson has yet to rule on his con-

cerns.

For days, the Trayvon Martin shooting received no attention beyond some small items in the local news media. Sanford police, after questioning Zimmerman, let him go and local prosecutors chose not to press charges right away. That changed after Martin’s parents hired Crump, a prominent civil rights attorney. He began complaining to the news media, accusing the police and prosecutors of letting the murderer of a black child go free, and contacting other civil rights leaders including Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton to get their support.

Those events sparked protests in Sanford and around the country, with thousands demanding that Zimmerman be prosecuted. Gov. Rick Scott appointed State Attorney Angela B. Corey from the nearby Jacksonville district to re-examine the case.

Forty-four days after Martin’s death, Corey charged Zimmerman with second-degree murder and had him arrested. For the past year, Zimmerman has been free on $1 million bond and living in seclusion. His defense is being paid by private contributions through a website O’Mara set up. Outside attorneys say the challenge for O’Mara and his colleagues will be to divorce the case’s facts from the larger context of what the shooting symbolizes to some communities.

“You have to take away the controversial stuff and make it just about what Zimmerman thought, that he was scared and feared for his life,” Hill said. If his pre-trial statements are any indication, that’s exactly what O’Mara will do. O’Mara earlier decided not to invoke a “stand your ground” hearing in which a judge alone would decide whether to dismiss the case or allow it to proceed to trial. “This case, in my opinion and in my view of the facts, is a clear, straightforward self-defense case based upon the forensic evidence,” O’Mara said. “With that as a premise, this case has taken on a significance well beyond the facts.”

Nelson has already ruled that defense attorneys won’t be able to mention Martin’s past marijuana use, suspension from school and past fighting during opening statements, although Nelson left open the possibility that the defense could try again later during the trial if it could show relevance. — AP

US surveillance row washes up on Pacific allies’ shores

LANCASTER: This image provided by the Los Angeles County Sheriff ’s Department shows an alligator in Lancaster, Calif. —AP

Alligator takes pit stop near Calif intersection LANCASTER: A Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputy was suspicious. When he heard two women were spotted near a Lancaster, Calif., intersection, and one of them was holding an alligator, he didn’t buy it.

“I’m thinking, ‘Yeah, an alligator. OK,’” Deputy Michael Rust told the Los Angeles Times on Thursday (http://lat.ms/13IVx4U ).

“Maybe an iguana, but an alligator?” A 911 operator agreed. “Could it have been a lizard?” the operator tells a woman reporting “a couple girls carrying an alligator” on a recording released by the Sheriff’s Department.

Rust investigated the report Tuesday morning and found not just a 4-foot alligator, but a kangaroo and monkey too, all inside the

same van. The women explained that the menagerie is part of the “Zoo to You” program in Paso Robles that introduces kids to animals.

The animals had just visited with students at Quartz Hill Elementary and had begun the nearly 200-mile journey home when they pulled over for some emergency cleanup.

“The alligator urinated inside his cage, and it’s a long ways back to Paso Robles with the smell of alligator urine,” Rust said. “So they decided to pull over.” Rust said he gets constant calls about wildlife, but they’re usually for the kind of wildlife that live in his semi-rural area. “We get all kinds of animal calls, from bulls to bears to mountain lions,” he said. “But I’ve never heard of an alligator.” —AP

CANBERRA/WELLINGTON: Unease over a clandestine US data collection programme has rippled across the Pacific to two of Washington’s major allies, Australia and New Zealand, raising concerns about whether they have cooperated with secret electronic data mining. Both Canberra and Wellington share intelligence with the United States, as well as Britain and Canada. But both Pacific neighbours now face awkward questions about a US digital surveillance programme that Washington says is aimed primarily at foreigners.

In Australia, the conservative opposition said it was “very troubled” by America’s so-called PRISM programme, which newspaper reports say is a topsecret authorisation for the US National Security Agency (NSA) to extract personal data from the computers of major Internet firms.

The opposition, poised to win September elections, said it was concerned that data stored by Australians in the computer servers of US Internet giants like Facebook and Google could be accessed by the NSA, echoing fears voiced in Europe last week over the reach of US digital surveillance in the age of cloud computing. Australia’s influential Greens party called on the government to clarify whether Canberra’s own intelligence agencies had access to the NSA-gathered data, which according to Britain’s Guardian newspaper included search history, emails, file transfers and live chats. “We’ll examine carefully any implications in what has emerged for the security and privacy of

Australians,” Australia’s Foreign Minister Bob Carr said in a television interview yesterday, when asked whether Canberra had cooperated with Washington’s secret initiative. Both countries are members of the so-called ‘five eyes’ collective of major Western powers collecting and sharing signals intelligence, set up in the post-war 1940s.

Dotcom accusation In New Zealand, Internet file-sharing tycoon Kim Dotcom, who is fighting extradition to the United States on charges of online piracy, took to Twitter yesterday to highlight what he alleged was the role of NSA surveillance in his own case, and the cooperation of New Zealand’s spy agency. “The New Zealand GCSB spy agency was used to spy on my family because all surveillance was available to American agencies in real time,” he tweeted, referring to the Government Communications and Security Bureau. “My case against the spy agency in New Zealand will show the degree of cooperation with the NSA.” A New Zealand government spokeswoman declined to comment yesterday when asked if the GCSB cooperated with the NSA programme. “We do not comment on security and intelligence matters. New Zealand’s intelligence agencies are subject to an oversight regime, which we are looking to strengthen ...” A New Zealand watchdog in September last year found that the GCSB had illegally spied on Dotcom, founder of file-sharing site

Megaupload, intercepting his personal communications ahead of a raid on his home in early 2012

by New Zealand police, who acted on a request from the US Federal Bureau of Investigation. That raid was also ruled to have been invalid.

Australia’s spy and law-enforcement agencies want telecoms firms and Internet service providers to continuously collect and store personal data to boost anti-terrorism and crime-fighting capabilities - a controversial initiative that one government source said would be even more difficult to push through now, after news of the secret US surveillance of Internet firms.

The underpinning legislation has been the subject of almost three years of heated closed-door negotiations with companies most affected and last year was referred to a parliamentary intelligence oversight committee after drawing “big brother”-styled criticism from lawmakers and rights libertarians. Australia’s government, in developing the legislation, has drawn on similar laws used in Europe since 2006, but where it has also run into legal difficulties in some EU member countries like Germany, where it was judged unconstitutional. “I’m not sure what the legislative backing for events in the US has been. We have tried here to do ours as transparently as possible, with all the headaches that brings. This will make that worse,” a government source told Reuters, speaking on condition of anonymity because of political sensitivities. — Reuters

MONDAY, JUNE 10, 2013

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

Rival Koreas hold first talks in 2 years Koreas meet after tensions over nuke threats SEOUL: Government delegates from North and South Korea held a marathon session of preparatory talks yesterday at a “truce village” on their heavily armed border aimed at setting ground rules for a higher-level discussion on easing animosity and restoring stalled rapprochement projects. The meeting at Panmunjom, where the agreement ending fighting in the 1950-53 Korean War was signed, is the first of its kind on the Korean Peninsula in more than two years. Success will be judged on whether the delegates can pave the way for a meeting between the ministers of each country’s department for cross-border affairs. Such ministerial talks haven’t happened since 2007. South Korea has proposed they take place Wednesday in Seoul. The delegates were still talking more than 12 hours after the meeting began, but South Korean officials earlier seemed confident that they would eventually reach an agreement for the ministerial talks. It was unclear when the meeting would end or if a new round would also be held today. The intense media interest in the bureaucrats’ meeting is an indication of how bad relations between the Koreas have been.

Any dialogue is an improvement on the belligerence that has marked the relationship over recent months and years. Earlier this year, North Korea threatened nuclear war, claimed that the Korean War armistice was void, closed a jointly run factory

park and vowed to ramp up production of nuclear bomb fuel. That followed North Korean nuclear tests and long-range rocket launches and, earlier, attacks blamed on the North that killed 50 South Koreans in 2010.

“Today’s working-level talks will be a chance to take care of administrative and technical issues in order to successfully host the ministers’ talks,” one of the South Korean delegates, Unification Policy Officer Chun Hae-sung, said in Seoul before the group’s departure for Panmunjom. He said the southern delegation will keep in mind “that the development of South and North Korean relations starts from little things and gradual trust-building.”

The delegates discussed the agenda for the ministerial meeting, location, date, the number of participants and how long they will stay in Seoul, if the meeting is held there, said the Unification Ministry, which is responsible for North Korea issues.

Ministry spokesman Kim Hyung-suk told reporters earlier in the day that there were no major disputes. Reporters weren’t allowed at the venue. Analysts have expressed wariness about North Korea’s intentions, with some seeing the interest in dialogue as part of a pattern where Pyongyang follows aggressive rhetoric and provocations with diplomatic efforts to trade an easing

SEOUL: Chun Hae-sung (center) the head of South Korea’s working-level delegation, speaks to the media while standing with delegates Kwon Young-yang (left) and Kang Jong-won before leaving for Panmunjom at the Office of the South Korea-North Korea Dialogue in Seoul, yesterday. — AP

of tension for outside concessions. If the Koreas can arrive at an agreement for ministerial talks, that meeting will likely focus on reopening the factory park in the North Korean border town of Kaesong that was the last remaining symbol of inter-Korean cooperation, and on other scrapped rapprochement projects and reunions of families separated by the Korean War. Pyongyang pulled its 53,000 workers from the Kaesong factories in April, and Seoul withdrew its last personnel in May. Success will also mark a victory for South Korean President Park Geun-hye, who took office in February and has maintained through the heightened tensions a policy that combines vows of strong counter-action to any North Korea provocation with efforts to build trust and reestablish dialogue.

The Koreas have been communicating on a recently restored Red Cross line that Pyongyang shut down during earlier tensions this spring. The site of yesterday’s meeting holds added significance because the armistice ending fighting in the Korean War was signed there 60 years ago next month. The Panmunjom truce, however, has never been replaced with a peace treaty, leaving the Korean Peninsula technically at war.

Representatives of the rival Koreas met on the peninsula in February 2011 and their nuclear envoys met in Beijing later that year, but government officials from both sides have not met since.

The meeting follows a summit by U.S. President Barack Obama and Chinese President Xi Jinping in California. White House national security adviser Tom Donilon said Obama and Xi found “quite a bit of alignment” on North Korea and agreed that Pyongyang has to abandon its nuclear weapons aspirations. China provides a lifeline for a North Korea struggling with energy and other economic needs, and views stability in Pyongyang as crucial for its own economy and border security. But after Pyongyang conducted its third nuclear test in February, China tightened its cross-border trade inspections and banned its state banks from dealing with North Korea’s Foreign Trade Bank. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un late last month sent to China his special envoy, who reportedly told Xi that Pyongyang was willing to return to dialogue. South Korea’s Park will travel to Beijing to meet Xi later this month.

The talks between the Koreas yesterday could represent a change in North Korea’s approach, analysts said, or could simply be an effort to ease international demands that it end its development of nuclear weapons, a topic crucial to Washington but initially not a part of the envisioned inter-Korean meetings. Pyongyang, which is estimated to have a handful of crude nuclear devices, has committed a string of acts that Washington, Seoul and others deem provocative since Kim took over in December 2011 after the death of his father, Kim Jong Il. — AP

Japanese troops head to Calif beach for training SAN DIEGO: Japanese troops will converge on California’s southern coast in the next two weeks as part of a military exercise with US troops aimed at improving that country’s amphibious attack abilities. US and Japanese military officials said the unprecedented training, led by US Marines and sailors, will help Japan’s Self-Defense Force operate in stronger coordination with the United States, its main ally, and better respond to crises such as natural disasters.

China may see it differently, however, given the tensions between Tokyo and Beijing over a long-running dispute concerning islands claimed by both in the East China Sea. “It’s another dot that the Chinese will connect to show this significant expanding military cooperation,” said Tai Ming

Cheung, an analyst of Chinese and East Asian security affairs and director of the Institute on Global Conflict and Cooperation at the University of California, San Diego.

China asked the United States and Japan to cancel the drill, scheduled to begin Tuesday, Japan’s Kyodo News service reported, citing unnamed Japanese government sources. The Japanese Defense and Foreign Ministries would not confirm whether China had made any request but said they are going ahead with the exercises.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry did not respond to The Associated Press for comment on whether China requested a cancellation. In regard to the drill itself, Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei said: “We hope the relevant sides can focus on peace and stability in this

region, and do more to contribute to mutual trust and regional peace and stability.” US military officials said strengthening Japan’s amphibious capabilities is vital as the US focuses more attention on developing an AsiaPacific strategy amid ongoing US Defense Department budget cuts. The region has been roiled by tensions due to North Korean long-range rocket and nuclear tests and maritime territorial disputes between China and its neighbors. “If the 20th century taught us anything, it is that when democracies are able and willing to defend themselves it preserves peace and stability,” said Col. Grant Newsham, Marine liaison to the Japanese military. “Most Asian countries welcome - even if quietly stated - a more capable (Japanese force) that is also closely allied to US forces.” — AP

Philippine hero dog returns home from US

MANILA: Filipino veterinarian Anton Lim (center) carries two-year-old mongrel dog “Kabang” wearing a US red cross medal, during a press conference yesterday. —AFP

MANILA: The Philippine dog that lost half her face saving the lives of two girls returned home Saturday after treatment in the United States. Filipino veterinarian Anton Lim who accompanied the dog - named Kabang - said the mixed-breed whose snout and upper jaw had been sheared off was treated at the University of California, Davis, veterinary hospital for seven months with $27,000 in donations raised in the Philippines and abroad.

Kabang suffered the injuries in December 2011 when she jumped into the path of a motorcycle, stopping it from running over her owner’s daughter and niece in southern Zamboanga city. UC Davis veterinary Professor Frank Verstraete said doctors at the hospital performed surgery to heal her wounds, though they could not reconstruct Kabang’s jaw or snout.

Doctors had to first treat her for other ailments, including a tumor and heartworm, to ensure her wounds would heal. They took skin from her cheeks, neck, and forehead to cover up sensitive areas that were exposed on her face during surgery in March, Verstraete said. Kabang won widespread sympathy because of her injuries from what has been described as a heroic act. A nurse from Buffalo, New York, spearheaded a fund-raising campaign to bring Kabang to the United States because Philippine veterinaries could not treat her.

Lim said donations poured in from 45 countries. “It is very fulfilling that at least our hope in humanity is restored,” he said. Lim said Kabang has become a symbol of “unconditional love.” “Now, if you give unconditional love to your dog, of course they will give it back to you. So, she saved two lives so the whole world actually came together to save hers, so it is really a very nice symbol for everyone,” he said. Lim said a parade is planned for Kabang’s Sunday homecoming in Zamboanga.— AP

BEIJING: Liu Xia, wife of imprisoned Nobel Peace Prize winner Liu Xiaobo, cries in a car outside Huairou Detention Center where her brother Liu Hui has been jailed in Huairou district yesterday. — AP

Chinese Nobel winner’s brother-in-law jailed HUAIROU: A Chinese court yesterday sentenced the brother-in-law of jailed Nobel Peace Prize laureate Liu Xiaobo to 11 years in prison on charges of fraud in a case that rights activists have called another example of official retribution on the Liu family.

Supporters of Liu Hui say his case was trumped up, aimed at thwarting the increasing attention by the rights community on the plight of Liu Xia, who has remained under effective house arrest since her husband Liu Xiaobo won the Nobel Prize in 2010. The court in Huairou, a one-hour drive northeast of Beijing, convicted Liu Hui, a manager in a real estate company in the southern city of Shenzhen, on charges of defrauding a man called Zhang Bing of 3 million yuan ($490,000) with another colleague, lawyer Mo Shaoping told reporters.

“As Liu Hui’s defence attorney, I definitely do not approve of this verdict, because we see this fundamentally as a civil issue, and it fundamentally does not constitute criminal fraud. Also, there is not sufficient evidence,” Mo said. Liu Hui has maintained his innocence, according to his lawyers. In a rare statement to media, a weeping Liu Xia told reporters from the front passenger seat of her car as she drove away from the courthouse that she was extremely angry with the verdict and vowed to launch an appeal. “I absolutely cannot accept this.

This is simply persecution,” she said. “This is completely an illegal verdict.” Liu Xia said she had “completely lost hope” in the government. “I can’t even leave my house.”

After about two minutes, security forced journalists away from the car, which moved off. Liu Hui was out on bail last September, but then arrested again in January, after

several rights activists and foreign reporters forced their way past security guards late last year to visit Liu Xia, one of his other lawyers, Shang Baojun, told Reuters before the verdict. Raphael Droszewski, a first secretary at the European Union Delegation to China, told reporters outside the courthouse that the EU was deeply concerned by Liu Hui’s sentence. He called for Liu Xiaobo’s release and the ending of restrictions on Liu Xia. “As it is clear Liu Xia is under house arrest, the EU urges the Chinese authorities to end all forms of extra legal restriction on her,” he said.

Setback for reform The ruling is seen as a setback for hopes for political reform from new Chinese President Xi Jinping, whose government has detained anti-corruption activists and tightened free expression on the Internet following his appointment in March.

“Everything related to the Liu Xiaobo case previously could have been seen as the legacy of the previous leadership,” said Nicholas Bequelin, a researcher at Human Rights Watch, a New York-based advocacy group. “But with this sentence the new leadership buys into this suppression and persecution of the family. It deems the prospect unlikely that the government is amenable to the release of Liu Xiaobo, or will make any concessions on the case.”

The case will also renew international criticism of the plight of Liu Xiaobo’s family.

The verdict was handed down within hours of Xi and US President Barack Obama completing an informal summit in California. US and European diplomats were present outside the courthouse in Huairou, a one-hour drive northeast of Beijing. — Reuters

MONDAY, JUNE 10, 2013

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India oppn party names Modi to head campaign Top leaders of Modi’s own party refuse to attend meet NEW DELHI: India’s main opposition party announced yesterday that a deeply divisive Hindu ideologue will head its 2014 election campaign, indicating he would likely be its choice for prime minister if the party were to win. The appointment of Narendra Modi to head the key campaign committee was so divisive that even some top leaders of his own Bharatiya

out in the state in 2001, killing more than 1,100 people, mostly Muslims. While Modi was never charged with a crime, his critics say he did little to stop the three months of rioting. Modi has denied any wrongdoing in connection with the violence, but has never expressed remorse or offered an apology. Several top leaders of Modi’s own party refused to attend the conclave know-

PANAJI: Chief Minister of India’s western state of Gujarat Narendra Modi, (right) is greeted by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) President Rajnath Singh during the BJP’s national executive meeting yesterday. — AP Janata Party declined to attend the three-day party conference where he was awarded the post. Modi, the chief minister of the western state of Gujarat, is known for pushing a hard-line Hindu nationalist agenda. He was the top elected official in Gujarat when religious riots broke

ing that Modi’s appointment to head the party campaign committee was inevitable. They fear that the party will fare badly in the upcoming countrywide elections due to Modi’s polarizing image. Some party leaders fear that with Modi in charge, the BJP could turn off voters and coali-

tion allies, throwing away a prime chance to win control of the government from the scandalplagued Congress Party. But many also have been positioning themselves for years for the party’s top job and they are annoyed at the rise of a rival as well as worried that Modi’s centralized ruling style will leave them out in the cold if their party does take power.

Veteran party leader Lal Krishna Advani and many other senior BJP leaders stayed away from the conclave that was held in the southwestern beach resort state of Goa, sparking media reports of a rift in the party. But Rajnath Singh, BJP president, said the decision to elevate Modi as the party’s campaign chief had widespread support in the party.

“The decision was unanimous. The entire party has faith in Modi. BJP considers the 2014 parliamentary elections to be a major challenge,” Singh told reporters. But 63-year-old Modi has held up his success in transforming Gujarat into an economic powerhouse and contrasted it to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s scandal-ridden Congress Party government, which has seen its position dramatically weaken in recent years.

Rajnath Singh said people had lost faith in the Congress Party-led government and were looking to the BJP to lead the country. “We are confident that the BJP will be voted to power in 2014. We are determined to win,” Singh said. As his supporters set off firecrackers and beat drums in celebration of his appointment, Modi said he had the support of the party leadership.

“Senior leaders have reposed their faith in me,” Modi said. His priority would be to oust the Congress from power, he told party supporters.

“We will leave no stone unturned to achieve our goal of building an India free of the Congress,” he said. Congress party leaders reacted to Modi’s appointment by referring to the dissension within the BJP. “If they can’t keep a party together, how will they run the country?” asked Rajeev Shukla, a top leader and minister for parliamentary affairs. “Congress is not afraid of Narendra Modi,” Shukla said. — AP

Afghan president visits Qatar to discuss peace KABUL: Afghanistan’s president landed in Qatar yesterday to discuss his country’s stalled peace process and the possible opening of a Taleban office in the Gulf state, officials said. Foreign Ministry spokesman Janan Mosazai said President Hamid Karzai will not hold any talks with Taleban representatives now in Qatar. He will meet with Qatari officials on the sidelines of an annual conference on relations between the United States and the Muslim world.

“As we have already said, any official negotiations regarding peace with the Taleban can take place only between the high-ranking Taleban representatives and the High Peace Council of Afghanistan,” Mosazai told reporters. The indirect contacts come as NATO forces draw down in preparation for handing the lead for security to Afghan forces in the coming weeks ahead of a full pullout by the end of next year. That development has made both military and political developments crucial. Karzai’s office said yesterday evening that he had arrived in Doha along with senior ministers and advisers. “During this visit, the President will meet with Qatari officials to discuss Afghanistan’s peace process and bilateral relations between the two countries,” his office said in a statement.

Both Afghanistan and the United States support the opening of a Taleban political office in Qatar as part of an effort to rekindle talks with the insurgent group, which has been waging war against the government and US-led military coalition for nearly 12 years. But first the Taleban must renounce all ties to AlQaeda and other terrorist groups and accept Afghanistan’s constitution.

Afghanistan insists all talks must be carried out by the peace council, a group

formed by President Hamid Karzai to try and find ways to initiate negotiations with the insurgents.

The council has so far failed to start any form of negotiations with the Taleban since US-initiated peace talks collapsed last year. It is made up of influential Afghans, former Taleban and tribal elders from all Afghan ethnic groups.

Taleban representatives have met officials from more than two dozen countries, participated in international forums in Tokyo and France, and recently visited Iran - a traditional enemy. But they have steadfastly refused to talk to the peace council or Karzai’s representatives, saying they represent a “puppet government.”

Mosazai reiterated the Afghan government’s support for the opening of a Taleban office in Qatar, but “only under the conditions and principles which would be acceptable for the Afghan people.” He would not comment on the recent trip to Iran by Taleban representatives. “Unfortunately the Taleban have very good relations with foreign countries, but they have enmity with the Afghan people, they are killing Afghan people while they are carrying out terrorist attacks,” Mosazai said.

In southern Kandahar, an insurgent roadside bomb killed two police officers and a child in the Arghasan district, said provincial police chief Gen Abdul Raziq.

Violence in parts of Kandahar has increased in recent weeks as Afghan forces battle the Taleban in their southern heartland. Provincial spokesman Javed Faisal said eight Taleban were killed, two were wounded and eight others were arrested on Saturday during an operation in the Zhari and Maiwand districts.— AP

China ex-railways minister tried for graft BEIJING: China’s former railways minister went on trial yesterday charged with accepting millions of dollars in bribes, state media reported, in the first high-profile corruption case under President Xi Jinping.

The ex-minister, Liu Zhijun, stood trial in a court in Beijing, the official Xinhua news agency reported in a brief dispatch.

According to the indictment, Liu took advantage of his position to help 11 people win promotions or contracts, and accepted 64.6 million yuan ($10.5 million) in bribes between 1986 and 2011, Xinhua reported.

“Liu’s malpractices have led to huge losses of public assets and of the interests of the state and people, and he should be subject to criminal liabilities for bribe-taking and abuse of power,” Xinhua quoted the indictment as saying. The stakes are high for Liu. Under Chinese criminal law, the death penalty can be imposed for taking bribes over 100,000 yuan.

State television reported that the trial was held at the Beijing No. 2 Intermediate People’s Court. It showed footage of the bespectacled Liu entering the courtroom and later standing before a panel of judges.

Xinhua reported that prosecutors presented evidence, while Liu’s defence attorney argued on his behalf. About 50 people were in attendance, the report said, including 60-year-old Liu’s family members.

“The judgement will be announced on a day to be decided,” Xinhua said. Liu’s lawyer Qian Lieyang told the website of the People’s Daily newspaper the Communist Party mouthpiece-that Liu did not object to the charges against him and that the debate in court focused on the amount of money involved in the case.

Qian said Liu argued that he did not think 49 million yuan of the amount stated in the prosecutor’s charge amounted to bribery. Liu, known as the “father” of China’s high-speed rail network for his role in pushing its development, was promoted to minister in 2003 after decades of work within the railway industry, and sacked in 2011.

He was expelled from the ruling Communist Party in November in a move

widely seen as paving the way for the trial.

Charges were filed in April, Xinhua reported at the time. It cited the indictment as saying the circumstances surrounding the charges were “especially serious”. China’s rail system-which has cost hundreds of billions of dollars-has been one of its flagship development projects in recent years, and it now boasts the world’s longest highspeed network. But a high-speed crash in the eastern city of Wenzhou in 2011 that killed some 40 people sparked a torrent of public criticism that authorities had compromised safety in their rush to expand the network.

China announced in March it was switching control of the railway ministry’s administrative functions to the transport ministry and handing its commercial functions to a new China Railway Corporation.

Liu’s trial comes as China’s new leaders, President Xi and Premier Li Keqiang, have vowed to fight corruption, which the Communist Party has identified as a threat to its continued rule of the world’s most populous country. In January, Xi was quoted by state media as telling the Central Commissionfor Discipline Inspection-the party’s corruption watchdog-that there would be “no leniency” against wrongdoing. Last month, Xinhua reported that China is investigating a former top state planner for alleged “serious disciplinary violations”-phrasing which typically refers to corruption cases.

Liu Tienan, deputy director of the National Development and Reform Commission, was under investigation by the Communist Party agency tasked with probing corruption and other malpractice by party members and was dismissed from the party. Bo Xilai, former party chief of the southwestern metropolis of Chongqing, is also expected to face trial for allegedly taking bribes and helping cover up the murder of British businessman Neil Heywood.

Bo’s wife, Gu Kailai, was convicted last year of the murder and received a suspended death sentence, typically commuted to life in prison.— AFP

‘Raped’ Irishwoman in India hospital after drug overdose KOLKATA: An Irish charity worker, allegedly raped by an Indian businessman, has been taken to hospital after an overdose of prescription drugs, a medical official and police said yesterday. The 21year-old woman was discovered unconscious in her hotel room on Saturday and taken to a hospital in the eastern city of Kolkata, a medical official at the hospital told reporters. “She had consumed a cocktail of sleeping pills, pain killers and other drugs,” said Sudeshna Lahiri, deputy director of the Calcutta Medical Research Institute. “It is a case of drug overdose,” Lahiri said. “The medicines were pumped out of her stomach,” she said, adding that she would be better in several days.

“She was found unconscious in her hotel room on Saturday by a fellow Irish national who is staying in the same

hotel,” she said. The woman filed a complaint with police on June 1 saying that an Indian businessman had drugged and raped her in his home in the city.

The Irish national, an engineering student who came to India to volunteer with a local charity, had befriended the businessman at a busy market and they decided to party together to celebrate her birthday, before going back to his house, police have said. The woman had been due to make a more detailed statement to police on Saturday about the incident, a police officer said, confirming she had been taken to hospital. The alleged assault comes as India faces intense scrutiny over its efforts to curb violence against women, following the fatal gang-rape of a student on a bus in New Delhi last December which sparked violent protests. — AFP

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MONDAY, JUNE 10, 2013

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Protests rocking Turkey unnerve Arab Islamists

By Jailan Zayan he pro-secular protests rocking Turkish cities have sent ripples across the Arab world, unnerving Islamist leaders who have long touted Turkey as a successful model of political Islam, analysts say.

Thousands of Turks have joined in mass anti-government demonstrations, defying Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s call to end the worst civil unrest of his decade-long rule. Turkey’s unrest began when police cracked down heavily on a small campaign to save an Istanbul park from demolition, spiralling into nationwide protests against Erdogan and his Islamist-based Justice and Development Party (AKP), seen as increasingly authoritarian.

Across the Mediterranean, Arab Spring countries are keeping a close eye on events. Islamist-led Egypt and Tunisia “must be worried about the problems faced by Erdogan’s Turkey, a supposedly successful model” of political Islam, said Antoine Basbous director of the Paris-based Observatory of Arab countries. Tunisia and Egypt - where unprecedented revolts led to the ouster of longtime dictators in 2011 and propelled Islamists to the forefront of politics -have repeatedly pointed to Turkey as a good example of a moderate Islamist democracy.

The Islamist party Ennahda which won post-revolution polls in Tunisia has openly expressed its admiration for the “Turkish model,” while Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi who addressed the AKP’s congress in September 2012 lauded Erdogan’s party as a “source of inspiration”. But both Arab states have been suffering increasing polarisation between Islamists and secularists, with Islamists in power accused of failing to live up to their promise of guaranteeing rights and freedoms.

In Egypt, many are drawing parallels between the anti-AKP protests and the mass rallies scheduled for June 30 against President Morsi on the first anniversary of his assumption of power. But members of Morsi’s Freedom and Justice Party say such parallels are only aimed at pulling the rug from under the Islamist regimes. “What is going on in Turkey has nothing to do with daily or economic needs. It is intended to promote the idea that Islamic regimes, which have made economic achievements and proved to the world that they can stand in the face of all external challenges, have failed,” Murad Aly, the FJP’s media adviser, said in a newspaper interview.

But Basbous argues that the Turkey protests are serving to remind liberals and secularists in the Arab world “that they were the motor of change” during the 2011 uprisings. However, that will not necessarily translate into change on the ground because the secular opposition in the Arab Spring countries remains weak and poorly organised, he said. In Tunisia, political analyst Sami Brahem said: “There are attempts to export what’s happening in Turkey to Tunisia. It may not inspire a major protest movement, but (the situation in Turkey) can be a moral support to secularists.”

Some see the protests in Turkey as part of a regionwide discontent with political Islam, despite the stark differences in context - Erdogan was elected three times, with a steady increase of votes each time. “At the end of the day, what matters is not the soundness of the analogy, but public perceptions of it and its ability to capture the imagination, which it seems to be doing right now,” said Hesham Sallam, Washington-based political analyst at Georgetown University.

More than two years after their uprisings, Egypt and Tunisia are struggling with economic crises, and to some analysts, it is the failing economies, rather than ideology, that would drive new protest movements.

The political uncertainty in Tunisia is taking its toll on the economy, crippling foreign investments and threatens a recovery of tourism which accounts for seven percent of GDP and employs 400,000 Tunisians. In Egypt, the government has been in talks for months over a multi-billion-dollar loan from the International Monetary Fund that is contingent on strong support from domestic political actors and a commitment to key reforms. “The failure of governments to fulfil (economic and social) promises can lead to a new protest movement,” said Brahem. — AFP

T

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NSA: Finder and keeper of US secrets

By Kimberly Dozier n email, a telephone call or even the murmur of a conversation captured by the vibration of a window they’re all part of the data that can be swept up by the sophisticated machinery of the National Security Agency. Its job is to use the world’s most cutting edge supercomputers and arguably the largest database storage sites to crunch and sift through immense amounts of data. The information analyzed might be stolen from a foreign official’s laptop by a CIA officer overseas, intercepted by a Navy spy plane flying off the Chinese coast, or, as Americans found out this past week, gathered from US phone records.

Code -breakers at the Fort Meade, Maryland-based NSA use software to search for keywords in the emails or patterns in the phone numbers that might link known terrorist targets with possible new suspects. They farm out that information to the 16 US intelligence agencies and to law enforcement, depending on who has the right to access which type of information, acting as gatekeeper, and they say, guardian of the nation’s civil liberties as well as its security.

The super-secret agency is under the spotlight after last week’s revelations of two surveillance programs. One involves the sweeping collection of hundreds of millions of phone records of US customers.

The second collects the audio, video, email, photographic and Internet search usage of foreign nationals overseas - and probably some Americans in the process - who use major Internet companies such as Microsoft, Google, Apple, and Yahoo. The NSA was founded in 1952. Only years later was the NSA publicly acknowledged, which explains its nickname, “No Such Agency”.

According to its website, NSA is not allowed to spy on Americans. It is supposed to use its formidable technology to “gather information that America’s adversaries wish to keep secret,” and to “protect America’s vital national security information and systems from theft or damage by others,” as well as enabling “network warfare, a military operation,” that includes offensive cyberoperations against US adversaries.

The agency also includes the Central Security Service, the military arm of codebreakers who work jointly with the agency.

The two services have their headquarters on a compound that’s technically part of Fort Meade, though it’s slightly set apart from the 5,000-acre Army base. Visible from a main highway, the tightly guarded compound requires the highest of clearances to enter and is equipped with electronic means to ward off an attack by hackers.

Other NSA facilities in Georgia, Texas, Colorado and Hawaii duplicate much of the headquarters’ brain and computer power in case a terrorist attack takes out the main location, though each one focuses on a different part of the globe. A new 90,000-sqm storage facility in Salt Lake City will give the agency untold additional capacity to store the massive amounts of data it collects, as well as adding to its analytical capability.

“NSA is the elephant of the US intelligence community, the biggest organization by far with the most capability and (literally) the most memory,” said former senior CIA official Bruce Riedel, who now runs the Brookings Intelligence Project.

NSA’s experts include mathematicians and cryptologists, a term that means everything from breaking codes to learning and translating multiple foreign languages.

There also are computer hackers who engage in offensive attacks like the one the US and Israel are widely believed to have

A

been part of, planting the Stuxnet virus into Iranian nuclear hardware, damaging Iran’s nuclear development program in 2010.

Then there are “siginters”, the signals intelligence experts who go to war zones to help US troops break through encrypted enemy communications or work with a CIA station chief abroad, helping tap into a foreign country’s phone or computer lines.

“More times than we can count, we’ve made history, without history even knowing we were there,” reads a quote on the NSA’s Web page by the current director, Gen. Keith Alexander.

NSA workers are notoriously secretive.

They’re known for keeping their families in the dark about what they do, including their hunt for terrorist mastermind Osama bin Laden. NSA code-breakers were an essential part of the team that tracked down bin Laden at a compound in Pakistan in 2011. Their mission tracking Al-Qaeda and related terrorist groups continues, with NSA analysts and operators sent out to every conflict zone and overseas US post, in addition to surveillance and analysis conducted at headquarters outside Washington.

The director of national intelligence, James Clapper, said in a statement Saturday that the NSA’s programs do not target US citizens. But last week’s revelations show that the NSA is allowed to gather US phone calls and emails and to sift through them for information leading to terrorist suspects, as long as a judge signs off. Lawmakers are questioning the scope of the information gathered, and how long and how much of it is kept. “Does that data all have to be held by the government?” asked Sen Angus King, a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee.

King, a Maine independent, was briefed on the program this past week, but would not discuss how long the government holds on to the phone records. “I don’t think there is evidence of abuse, but I think the program can be changed to be structured with less levels of intrusion on the privacy of Americans,” he said.

While NSA has deferred any public comment to Clapper, it offered an internal article written by director of compliance John DeLong, who’s is in charge of making sure NSA protects Americans’ privacy.

DeLong writes that privacy protections are being written into the technology that

sifts the information, “which allows us to augment - not wholly replace - human safeguards.” The NSA also uses “technology to record and review our activities. ...

Sometimes, where appropriate, we even embed legal and policy guidance directly into our IT architecture.”

What that means is that the data sifting is mostly done not by humans, but by computers, following complicated algorithms telling them what to look for and who has a right to see it.

“Through software, you can search for key words and key phrases linking a communication to a particular group or individual that would fire it off to individual agencies that have interest in it,” just like Amazon or Google scans millions of emails and purchases to track consumer preferences, explained Ronald Marks, a former CIA official and author of “Spying in America in the Post 9/11 World.”

Detailed algorithms try to determine whether something is US citizen-related or not. “It shows analysts, ‘we’ve got a US citizen here, so we’ve got to be careful with it,’” he said. Another way counterterrorist officials try to protect US citizens is through centers where operators from the military, CIA, NSA, FBI, Treasury and others sit side by side. When one comes across information that his or her agency is not supposed to access, it’s turned over to someone in the center who’s authorized to see it.

But the process isn’t perfect, and sometimes what should be private information reaches agencies not authorized to see it.

“When information gets sent to the CIA that shouldn’t, it gets destroyed, and a note sent back to NSA saying, ‘You shouldn’t have sent that,’” Marks said. “Mistakes get made, but my own experience on the inside of it is, they tend to be really careful about it.” Analysts need that level of detail because they are no longer looking for large networks, but small cells or individuals that carry out “lone wolf” attacks, as the Boston Marathon bombing is thought to have been. “If we are going to fight a war or low intensity conflict that has gone down to the level of individual attacks by cells of one or two people, if you are looking for total risk management, this is the kind of thing you’re going to have to do,” Marks said. —AP

NEWS

MONDAY, JUNE 10, 2013

Lions perform during a show at Ukraine’s National Circus in Kiev yesterday. — AP

Iran reformists struggle with few options DUBAI: Despite four years of non-stop pressure, arrests and intimidation, Iran’s dissidents still find ways to show their resilience. Protest messages still ricochet around social media despite Iran’s cyber cops’ attempts to control the Web. Angry graffiti pops up and then quickly painted over by authorities. Mourners at the funeral of a dissident cleric flashed V-for-victory gestures and chanted against the state. But just a look at the sidewalks around Tehran’s Mellat Park shows how far Iran’s opposition has fallen as the country prepares for Friday’s presidential election.

Four years ago, girls on rollerblades sped around the park delivering fliers for the reform camp’s candidate-hero Mir Hossein Mousavi.

Emerald-colored headscarves and wristbands representing Mousavi’s Green Movement were in such demand that bloggers would list shops with available fabric. This time, there are just a few subdued election placards for candidates considered fully in sync with Iran’s ruling clerics. Security forces and paramilitary volunteers are never far away.

Mousavi and other opposition leader, Mahdi Karroubi, are under house arrest and hundreds

more activists, bloggers and journalists have faced detention as part of relentless crackdowns since Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s disputed re-election in 2009 brought accusations of vote rigging and something Iran has not seen since the 1979 Islamic Revolution: Huge crowds in the streets chanting against the leadership.

Iran’s forces for reform are not so much crushed as now bottled up tightly. Now the election that marks the end of Ahmadinejad’s eightyear era also brings another moment of political transition: Whether the loose affiliation of reformists, liberals and Western-leaning activists can somehow remain relevant in a time when the guardians of the Islamic establishment are consolidating their defenses.

“There is no shortage of people in Iran who would like to see a different way of being governed and a different world view from the leadership,” said Theodore Karasik, a security and political affairs analyst at the Dubai-based Institute for Near East and Gulf Military Analysis. “Trouble for them is that they now fragmented and disorganized. This is exactly what Iranian authorities want to see.”

The entire process has been derided by Western governments and rights groups as a farce after Iran’s election overseers - all loyal to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei - blacklisted former president Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani from the ballot despite his lofty status as one of the architects of the 1979 Islamic Revolution. For Iran’s rulers, the relatively moderate Rafsanjani represents an unsettling force who could breathe some life into the battered opposition.

Any momentum toward a backlash over Rafsanjani’s barring quickly dissipated. He grumbled over the rebuff and Iranian reformist websites buzzed with complaints. But there have been no major street protests, suggesting - once again - there are only remote chances for a revival of the 2009 mass demonstrations. His backers have retreated to election boycott calls or drifted to other candidates who have no apparent intention to shake up the system.

The only significant public show of dissent before the election came in a coincidence of timing. Some mourners at the funeral procession of dissident Ayatollah Jalaluddin Taheri, who died last Sunday in the central city of Isfahan, used the

US defends data sweep Continued from Page 1 “Over the last week we have seen reckless disclosures of intelligence community measures used to keep Americans safe,” Clapper said, dubbing PRISM “one of our most important tools for the protection of the nation’s security”.

“PRISM is not an undisclosed collection or data mining program,” he said. “It is an internal government computer system to facilitate the government’s statutorily authorized collection of foreign intelligence information from electronic communication service providers under court supervision.”

President Barack Obama’s national security spokesman Ben Rhodes said the administration was investigating whether the leak had put Americans or US interests in danger, implying that legal action may be considered. “What we’re focused on doing right now... is frankly doing an assessment of the damage that’s been done to the national security of the United States by the revelations of this information,” he said. The service providers - Internet titans like Google, Yahoo! and Facebook - also hit back, insisting they had not given direct access to customer data.

“Press reports that suggest that Google is providing open-ended access to our users’ data are false, period,” Google’s CEO Larry Page and chief legal officer David Drummond said in a message on their official company blog. “We had not heard of a program called PRISM until yesterday,” they said, adding: “We provide user data to governments only in accordance with the law.” Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg described the press reports as “outrageous,” insisting that his firm only provided user information to the authorities when compelled to by law.

Yahoo! issued a similar denial. “The notion that Yahoo! gives any federal agency vast or unfettered access to our users’ records is categorically false,” general counsel Ron Bell said. “We do not voluntarily disclose user information.

black clothing, wearing pistols on their belts, attacked the vehicle with batons, smashing its windows. The two groups scuffled in the road and the Hezbollah men drew their weapons and opened fire. Several people appeared to be hit and fell, the Reuters journalist said. Lebanon’s official news agency put the number of wounded in the incident at three.

The clash between Shi’ites, one of the main religious groups in Lebanon, was relatively unusual. There has been recent fighting between Shiite supporters of Hezbollah and Lebanese Sunni Muslims who support the mainly Sunni rebels in Syria. Tension between Sunnis and Shiites has risen in Lebanon and across the Middle East, notably in Iraq, since the Syrian civil war began in 2011. Last week, Hezbollah fighters played a key role in helping troops loyal to Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad retake the strategic town of Qusair, near the Lebanese border, further inflaming Sunni anger at Hezbollah and Tehran.

Lebanese troops yesterday strung barbed wire across

Islamic Revolution founder Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini - to say that a low turnout will only help Iran’s “enemies” such as the US and Israel.

Most of the eight hopefuls cleared to run are bathed in pro-establishment credentials, including such insider figures as top nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili and Khamenei adviser Ali Akbar Velayati. Some reformists have migrated toward former nuclear negotiator Hasan Rowhani as a sort of default, since he is closely aligned with Rafsanjani. Khatami’s former vice president, Mohammad Reza Aref, has made a strong bid to draw reformist voters, speaking with the most passion about freedoms Wednesday during the second television debate among the eight candidates. “An unprecedented security atmosphere has been imposed in recent years that caused lack of motivation among students,” he said. “The solution is not confrontation, elimination or shutting down. We are living in the age of communications.” Others have gravitated to Tehran Mayor Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf in hopes his hands-on reputation could halt the downward slide of Iran’s sanctions-wracked economy. — AP

Erdogan warns patience ‘has limit’ amid...

The only disclosures that occur are in response to specific demands.”

Under PRISM, which has been running for six years, the US National Security Agency can issue directives to Internet firms demanding access to emails, online chats, pictures, files, videos and more uploaded by foreign users.

The initial press reports that revealed the secret program suggested the NSA had some form of back door access to the servers of firms including Microsoft, Yahoo, Google, Facebook, AOL, Skype, Apple, PalTalk and YouTube.

But Clapper’s statement described a system whereby the government must apply to a secret US court for permission to target individuals or entities then issue a request to the service provider. “The government cannot target anyone under the court approved procedures... unless there is an appropriate, and documented, foreign intelligence purpose for the acquisition,” Clapper said. Such a purpose, he continued, could be “the prevention of terrorism, hostile cyber activities or nuclear proliferation”. He admitted that data on US citizens might be “incidentally intercepted” in the course of targeting a foreign national, but said this would not normally be shared within the intelligence community unless it confirmed a threat.

PRISM was revealed shortly after The Guardian uncovered another intelligence program under which the NSA hoovered up the telephone records of millions of US citizens from the private telecoms provider Verizon. Obama has defended the phone and Internet data trawls as a “modest encroachment” on privacy needed to keep Americans safe from terrorism. But civil liberties and privacy groups have raised alarm at both programs, which some have branded “Orwellian” and possibly unconstitutional.

There have also been concerns abroad. British opposition lawmakers have demanded an inquiry into a report the British signals intelligence agency GCHQ received PRISM data from its US ally and used it in reports. — AFP

Anti-Hezb protester killed in Beirut Continued from Page 1

march to revive the opposition chants from 2009 such as “death to the dictator”, according to video clips posted on the Internet. But the outburst did not seem to inspire other rallies around the country. “There is significant opposition in Iran to a lot of things, international relations, crackdowns on the Internet, but its dispersed over all classes of society and without a real focus,” said Rasool Nafisi, an Iranian affairs analyst at Strayer University in Virginia. “There is opposition, but I doubt you can call it a movement.”

Opposition voters now face the choice of whether to boycott the polls or turn to whatever they see as the least objectionable candidate. So far, the top figures of the reform movement, like former President Mohammad Khatami, have not given an indication to their supporters which avenue to take - meaning a unified strategy may only emerge at the last minute, if at all. A likely major indicator in the final vote will be how many eligible voters stayed away, in comparison to a reported 85 percent turnout in 2009. It worries officials enough that Khamenei used one of the country’s most somber occasions - the memorial ceremony marking the death of

roads around central Beirut and along the highway running south through suburbs that are a stronghold of Hezbollah support. Demonstrators, including Sunnis and members of Lebanon’s large Christian community as well as Shiites opposed to Hezbollah, had marched in the direction of the Iranian mission. Following the shooting, streets were very quiet in central Beirut as people stayed indoors, fearing more violence.

Beirut has been rebuilt after 15 years of civil war that ended in 1990, but security has proven elusive, jeopardising the hope of restoring its prosperity. Hotel owner Ali Hammoud said yesterday’s violence risked deterring tourists: “What happened today makes us feel there is a very difficult period ahead. We are bringing disasters upon ourselves by interfering in others’ affairs ... No one will come to Lebanon now; our concern now is just to stay alive.” A member of the Lebanese parliament who supports the Sunni former prime minister Saad Hariri said Hezbollah must pull its fighters out.

“Hezbollah has driven Lebanon into a tunnel without end,” said Nuhad Mashnouq. “There will be an inevitable calamity in Lebanon ... They must withdraw from Syria.” — Reuters

Continued from Page 1 campaign to save Istanbul’s Gezi Park from demolition. The trouble spiralled into nationwide protests against Erdogan and his party, seen as increasingly authoritarian.

More than 4,000 demonstrators, many of whom are young and middle-class, have been injured and three people have died in the unrest so far, tarnishing Turkey’s image as a model of Islamic democracy. Erdogan yesterday maintained his tough line against the protesters, dismissing them as “anarchists” and “terrorists”. “The youth that curses its prime minister cannot be my youth,” he said earlier in the southern port of Mersin, at a sports centre packed with tens of thousands of flagwaving AKP loyalists. “If you care about democracy, this prime minister is at your disposal,” he added.

In the southern city of Adana, he urged a large crowd to respond to the demonstrations by voting for the AKP in next year’s local polls. “I want you to teach them a first lesson through democratic means at the ballot box.” Adana also saw violence overnight, with police dousing demonstrators with tear gas. There were also reports of stone-throwing, pro-government rioters joining the fray. The government insisted Saturday that the protests were “under control”, but hours later some of the largest crowds yet packed Istanbul’s Taksim Square, the epicentre of the demos, with people peacefully singing and dancing through the night. Taksim has seen no police presence since officers pulled out last weekend.

In a fresh bid to calm the turmoil, the man who ordered the initial police crackdown, the governor of Istanbul Huseyin Avni Mutlu, apologised on Twitter and said he wished he was with the protesters camping out

on Taksim Square. “I salute the young people of this country who chose to sleep on the square under the stars instead of in their warm beds.” Deputy Prime Minister Huseyin Celik on Saturday dismissed any talk of calling early elections to resolve the crisis. “You don’t decide on early elections because people are marching on the streets,” he told reporters in Istanbul.

Sitting on a blanket in Taksim Square, architect Buse Albay, 25, said she would keep protesting against the premier for “as long as it takes until he goes away”.

Nearby, Aykut Kaya, a 23-year-old IT student, added: “It was amazing, so beautiful to see everyone together” in the overnight rally. He said he hoped Erdogan was paying attention. “Please see us. We are here... We all need freedom.”

Erdogan has faced international condemnation for his handling of the unrest in Turkey, a NATO member and key strategic partner in the region for the United States and other Western allies. The national doctors’ union says the unrest has left two protesters and a policeman dead while almost 4,800 people have been injured across Turkey. Erdogan added yesterday that over 600 police officers have been hurt in the clashes.

Critics accuse the assertive leader, in power since 2002, of forcing conservative Islamic values on Turkey, a mainly Muslim but staunchly secular nation, and of pushing big urban development projects at the expense of local residents.

Opposition to Turkey’s leader is intense, but his AKP party has won three elections in a row, having presided over strong economic growth. Turkey will hold both local and presidential elections next year. The AKP plans to launch its first campaign rallies in Ankara and Istanbul next weekend. A general election is scheduled for 2015.—AFP

MP threatens to grill Haifi over ‘fake’...

Continued from Page 1 “Iran’s hands are full with Syrian blood and the Kuwaiti judiciary has proved the Iranian involvement in spying and plotting terrorist attacks in the country and still members of the single-vote Assembly are visiting it,” Ameeri said. He however thanked God because “this Assembly represents only a minority of the Kuwaiti people whose majority are convinced that Iran poses a real danger against Kuwait”.

The delegation is headed by MP Ahmad Al-Mulaifi and includes Shiite MPs Adnan Abdulsamad, Ahmad Lari and Abdulhameed Dashti, in addition to MP Saud Al-Huraiji.

The delegation began the visit on Saturday. Former MP Mohammad Al-Dallal said the visit represents a “major insult and humiliation” against the struggle of the Syrian

people and it gives a wrong message, especially after the final verdict against the Iranian spying cell.

In another development, the defense team of opposition leader and former MP Musallam Al-Barrak yesterday filed a petition at the cassation court against a ruling issued two weeks ago by the court of appeals. The court of appeals had annulled a five-year jail term against Barrak on charges of insulting HH the Amir at a public rally and decided to conduct the trial itself. The defense team told the cassation court that the appeals court should have sent the case back to the lower court to conduct a new trial. Barrak’s defense team also asked the court of appeals to suspend the trial until the cassation court issues its verdict. The appeals court then postponed the case until June 24 to issue its ruling on whether to suspend the trial or not.

MONDAY, JUNE 10, 2013

S P ORTS Mourinho hurt Spanish football, Iniesta says

Two Jordanian athletes criticize Paralympics ban

Luiten wins Lyoness Open for 2nd European Tour win

MADRID: Jose Mourinho did more harm than good to Spanish football during his controversial three-year tenure as coach of Real Madrid, Barcelona and Spain midfielder Andres Iniesta was quoted as saying yesterday.

Portuguese Mourinho quit Real three years before the end of his contract after a 2012-13 campaign without major silverware and has returned to former club Chelsea. His stint in the Spanish capital was overshadowed by a series of ugly incidents and he alienated a significant section of Real’s own fans when he benched club captain and goalkeeper Iker Casillas, a Spain team mate of Iniesta’s. “You just have to look at the facts,” Iniesta said in an interview published in yesterday’s edition of El Pais newspaper when asked if Mourinho had harmed Spanish football. “Yes he damaged Spanish football, in general more harm than good,” added the 29-year-old. “But I don’t like talking about that person at all. So if you don’t mind we’ll leave it at that.”

Mourinho, 50, was an assistant coach at Barca in the late 1990s and has also managed Porto and Inter Milan.—Reuters

AMMAN: Two Jordanian paralympians who were cleared of sexual harassment by a court in Northern Ireland two weeks ago said in their first public comment yesterday that they were unfairly pulled out of the Paralympics.

The May 28 ruling cleared athletes Motaz Al-Junadi, 46, and Faisal Hammash, 36, who were sent home after accusations of sex offenses surfaced during a training camp in Northern Ireland in 2012 ahead of the London Paralympic Games. The Northern Ireland court ruled not to prosecute the athletes and withdrew all charges due to a lack of evidence. In a press conference in Amman, the athletes said they sensed “conspiracy and betrayal.”

“We are innocent. We went to represent Jordan in London Paralympics, but there are some people who did not want us to succeed,” Al-Junadi said. “We are professional athletes and we have a clean record; we sense a conspiracy against us and we will not stop until we find those who are working against us,” he said. “People were happy to see us and they wanted to take photos with us; they looked at us as heroes and we enjoyed their company, but why this thing happened we don’t know.”

Al-Junadi, Hammash and coach Omar Qaradhi faced a series of charges, including sexual assault and voyeurism. “We understand what sexual harassment means but we are not that type of people; I participated in 50 international events and I consider myself a dedicated athlete,” he said.—AP

ATZENBRUGG: Joost Luiten of the Netherlands won the Lyoness Open by two shots for his second European Tour title. After holding a three-stroke lead overnight, Luiten shot a 71 in the final round Sunday to finish at 17-under-par 271 on the Diamond Country Club course.

“It’s a great feeling, it’s been a great week,” said Luiten, whose previous win came at the Iskandar Johor Open in Malaysia in November 2011, two months after finishing third in Atzenbrugg.

The victory was Luiten’s third European Tour top10 finish of the season and 20th overall. The win will move him up from 137th to just inside the top 100 of the world rankings. Thomas Bjorn of Denmark (68) finished second at 15 under, while Liang Wen-chong of China (66) and Romain Wattel of France (69) shared third, another stroke off the pace. Luiten bogeyed the first hole but led throughout the day. His closest challengers after the third round, Spaniards Jorge Campillo (72) and Eduardo de la Riva (73), failed to threaten.—AP

Blue Jays edge Rangers

NEW YORK: Matt Harvey No. 33 of the New York Mets singles in the bottom of the seventh against the Miami Marlins during the game at Citi Field. —AFP

Marlins see off Mets NEW YORK: In the longest major league game in more than three years, Adeiny Hechavarria hit an RBI single in the 20th inning and the Miami Marlins outlasted the New York Mets 2-1 on Saturday, well after Matt Harvey left with lower back tightness following another stingy start.

Steve Cishek retired Daniel Murphy on a fly ball to the left-field warning track for the final out of a game that took 6 hours, 25 minutes. It started 51/2 hours before the Belmont Stakes about 13 miles away - and still ended around an hour after winner Palace Malice crossed the finish line. The last big league game to last as long also involved the Mets, according to STATS. It came when they beat St. Louis 2-1 in 20 innings on April 17, 2010.

It was the longest game by far in the history of Citi Field, which opened in 2009, and it matched the longest in Marlins history - a 7-6 loss to the Cardinals in 20 innings on April 27, 2003. Harvey and Miami’s prized rookie, Jose Fernandez, hooked up in a pitchers’ duel early.

And when neither punchless lineup could break a 1-all tie, the only savior for both teams was that neither had played since Wednesday, so they had fresh arms in the bullpen. By the 13th inning, the game had been turned over to a pair of starters: Miami’s Kevin Slowey (2-5) and Shaun Marcum (0-7) for the Mets. Both were originally scheduled to start Saturday before getting skipped when Friday night’s game was rained out.

PIRATES 6, CUBS 2 In Chicago, AJ Burnett pitched into the ninth inning and Pedro Alvarez and Russell Martin homered to lead Pittsburgh over Chicago.

Burnett (4-6) gave up four hits and three walks with five strikeouts in 8 1-3 innings to improve to 5-0 in his career at Wrigley Field. He had a shutout until Alfonso Soriano’s two-run home run to left with one out in the ninth ended a string of 18 straight scoreless innings by Pirates pitchers. Burnett held the Cubs hitless until Nate Schierholtz’s double down the line in right leading off the fifth. He threw 112 pitches and left after Soriano’s home run.

The Pirates tagged Cubs starter Jeff Samardzija (3-7) for eight hits, including Alvarez’s two-run home run in the fourth, his team-high 13th of the year. The right-hander struck out seven and walked one in six innings.

PADRES 4, ROCKIES 2 In Denver, Kyle Blanks hit a two-run homer off the foul screen and Eric Stults tossed seven solid innings, helping San Diego to the victory over Colorado. Everth Cabrera had three hits, including a bloop RBI double, and stole two more bases, running his season total to a major league-leading 28.

Jeff Francis (2-4) struggled in his first start since coming off the disabled list with a strained

left groin. He allowed four runs and six hits in four innings. Stults (5-5) never really ran into trouble against his former team, giving up seven hits and two runs (one earned) for his first win in four starts. Dale Thayer pitched out of a jam in the eighth and Luke Gregerson closed out the ninth for his second save in three chances.

BREWERS 4, PHILLIES 3 In Milwaukee, Jean Segura homered and Jonathan Lucroy hit a tiebreaking RBI double in the sixth inning, lifting Milwaukee past Philadelphia. Domonic Brown hit his NL-leading 19th home run, and had a two-run double in the eighth to account for all of the Phillies’ runs.

Tyler Thornburg (1-0) pitched two innings of scoreless relief to earn his first major league victory. A top prospect for the Brewers coming into the season, he joined the team Wednesday despite going 0-7 with a 6.75 ERA in 12 starts for Triple-A Nashville. Francisco Rodriguez pitched the ninth for his fourth save in four chances.

REDS 4, CARDINALS 2 In Cincinnati, Mat Latos turned in seven solid innings and Cincinnati broke out of its slump to beat St. Louis. Devin Mesoraco homered and drove in two runs, and Jay Bruce also homered as the Reds snapped a three-game losing streak and scored more than two runs against St. Louis for the first time in the last seven games between the teams. Latos (6-0), who got the decision in Cincinnati’s last win over St. Louis on April 29, allowed eight hits and two runs with no walks and five strikeouts against a Cardinals team that went into the game leading the National League in hitting. The Reds, who’d lost five of their last six games against St. Louis, scored four against St. Louis rookie left-hander Tyler Lyons (2-2). He gave up six hits and a walk with two strikeouts in 5 1-3 innings.

Jonathan Broxton pitched a scoreless eighth and Aroldis Chapman allowed one hit and hit a batter in the ninth while earning his 16th save.

BRAVES 2, DODGERS 1 In Los Angeles, Kris Medlen pitched 6 2-3 scoreless innings and hit his first major league home run, Dan Uggla also went deep, and Atlanta continued its recent stretch of dominant starting pitching in a victory over Los Angeles.

Medlen (3-6) scattered five hits, struck out six and allowed only one baserunner as far as third.

That was in the sixth inning, when the righthander retired Andre Ethier on a flyball to shallow center field and fanned Scott Van Slyke after Nick Punto led off with a double and advanced on a groundout by Adrian Gonzalez.

Craig Kimbrel pitched a scoreless ninth for his 18th save in 21 attempts. Stephen Fife (1-1) allowed two runs and nine hits with seven strikeouts in his third start of the season.—AP

TORONTO: Rajai Davis’ RBI single in the 18th inning lifted the Toronto Blue Jays to a 4-3 win over the Texas Rangers on Saturday in a game that matched the longest in club history for both teams.

Texas equaled a season high with its third straight loss. Emilio Bonifacio hit a one-out single in the 18th and took third with two outs on a wild pickoff throw by Ross Wolf (1-1). Davis followed with a bouncing single down the third base line, sending the Blue Jays streaming out of their dugout in celebration and ending a game that started under sunny skies but finished with the stadium lights on.

Wolf was Texas’ fifth pitcher and worked 6 2-3 innings, almost as many as starter Yu Darvish, who went seven. Aaron Loup (3-3), the ninth Toronto pitcher, went one inning for the win.

YANKEES 3, MARINERS 1 In Seattle, Andy Pettitte allowed three hits over 7 1-3 innings to earn his 250th career victory to lead the Yankees past the Mariners. It was Pettitte’s 213th victory as Yankee, putting him third on the franchise’s career list behind Whitey Ford (236) and Red Ruffing (231). Pettitte (5-3) had six strikeouts and no walks in his 85-pitch effort. He has 1,940 strikeouts as a Yankee, 16 behind all-time leader Ford. David Robinson worked out of a jam in the eighth and Mariano Rivera took over in the ninth, earning his 630th career save, adding to his major league record. Jayson Nix had a pair of RBI singles and Brett Gardner had three hits, including two doubles. The Yankees scored a two-out run off Joe Saunders (4-6) in the first inning.

RED SOX 7, ANGELS 2 In Boston, David Ortiz rebounded from a rough first game with a long two-run homer and drove in three runs to help Clay Buchholz improve to 9-0, earning the Boston Red Sox a split of a day-night doubleheader. The victory snapped Boston’s ninegame losing streak against Los Angeles.

Buchholz gave up two runs on six hits, striking out four and walking one over 6 2-3 innings to match Arizona’s Patrick Corbin (9-0) as the majors’ only unbeaten pitcher with at least nine wins, but he left in the seventh with what the team called “neck tightness.” The Red Sox jumped ahead 2-0 against CJ Wilson (4-5) with two runs in the first on consecutive RBI doubles by Jonny Gomes and Pedroia. Ortiz’s RBI double made it 3-0 in the second. In the first game, Mark Trumbo and Erick Aybar each drove in two runs as the Angels beat the Red Sox 9-5 for their team-record sixth straight win at Fenway Park. Mike Trout added a pair of doubles high off the Green Monster and collected three hits for the Angels. Tommy Hanson (3-2) allowed two runs in five innings for the win.

Ortiz went 0 for 5, struck out twice and stranded six runners, and Felix Doubront (4-3) gave up three runs and six hits over six innings.

WHITE SOX 4, ATHLETICS 1 In Chicago, John Danks pitched three-hit ball over eight innings for his first victory in more than a year, and the White Sox won for just the second time in 12 games.

Adam Dunn and Paul Konerko homered. Alex Rios drove in the go-ahead run, and the White Sox handed the Athletics just their fourth loss in 22 games. Dunn connected leading off the second to tie the score at 1-all, and it stayed that way until the eighth. Alejandro De Aza led off with an infield single against Sean Doolittle (3-1) and moved up on a sacrifice bunt by Alexei Ramirez before Rios broke the tie with a single to center. Konerko followed with a two-run drive to left to cap the rally.

That made a winner of Danks (1-2), who struck out six and walked one. Addison Reed worked a scoreless ninth for his 18th save in 19 chances.

RAYS 8, ORIOLES 0 In St. Petersburg, Jeremy Hellickson pitched six

TORONTO: Elvis Andrus No. 1 of the Texas Rangers steals second base in the first inning during MLB game action as Munenori Kawasaki No. 66 of the Toronto Blue Jays takes the throw in front of the bag. —AFP scoreless innings and six different Tampa Bay players drove in runs. Taking up where they left off in allowing just two hits in a 2-1 victory in the opener of a three-game series at Tropicana Field, Rays pitchers limited the Orioles to four singles to beat their AL East rivals for the fifth straight time.

Hellickson (4-2) worked through a fifth-inning jam before watching the Rays break it open with five runs in the bottom half of the inning, three on Luke Scott’s bases-loaded double. The Tampa Bay starter and three relievers combined to retire the last 15 batters to finish the combined four-hitter.

Evan Longoria, Ben Zobrist, Yunel Escobar, James Loney and Jose Lobaton also drove in runs for the Rays, who roughed up rookie Kevin Gausman (0-3) in his fourth major league start.

TIGERS 6, INDIANS 4 In Detroit, Prince Fielder hit a bases-clearing double in the second inning and Detroit held on to beat Cleveland. The AL Central-leading Tigers have won the first two games of the series to build a season-high 41/2-game lead over the Indians.

Rick Porcello (3-3) gave up two runs - one earned - and three hits while striking out seven over six innings. Ryan Raburn hit a two-run homer

off reliever Luke Putkonen to pull the Indians within two runs in the seventh inning and they had a shot to at least get even in the ninth.

After Phil Coke pitched 1 1-3 innings of scoreless relief, Jose Valverde pitched a shaky ninth for his eighth save in 10 opportunities. Carlos Carrasco (1-1) gave up six runs and 10 hits over four-plus innings in what might be his last start for a while.

ROYALS 7, ASTROS 2 In Kansas City, Ervin Santana pitched seven snappy innings and Kansas City finally backed him up with some offense. Santana (4-5) entered the game with the worst run support among qualifying pitchers in the American League, a big reason why he already had six fruitless tries to win his 100th career game.

He finally reached the milestone thanks to a seemingly endless series of singles and doubles off Astros starter Erik Bedard (1-3), who failed to make it through the fifth inning.

Meanwhile, Santana allowed five hits in seven innings, striking out six without a walk. The only damage he allowed came on an RBI single by Jose Altuve and a solo homer by Chris Carter. Lorenzo Cain had a pair of RBIs to lead the Royals.—AP

MLB results/standings LA Angels 9, Boston 5; Toronto 4, Texas 3 (18 innings); Miami 2, NY Mets 1 (20 innings); Pittsburgh 6, Chicago Cubs 2; Minnesota 4, Washington 3 (11 innings); Detroit 6, Cleveland 4; NY Yankees 3, Seattle 1; Chicago White Sox 4, Oakland 1; Tampa Bay 8, Baltimore 0; Boston 7, LA Angels 2; Kansas City 7, Houston 2; Milwaukee 4, Philadelphia 3; Cincinnati 4, St. Louis 2; San Diego 4, Colorado 2; Atlanta 2, LA Dodgers 1; San Francisco 10, Arizona 5.

American League National League Eastern Division Eastern Division W L PCT GB Atlanta 38 24 .613 Boston 38 25 .603 Philadelphia 31 32 .492 7.5 NY Yankees 36 26 .581 1.5 Washington 29 31 .483 8 Tampa Bay 34 27 .557 3 NY Mets 23 34 .404 12.5 Baltimore 34 28 .548 3.5 Miami 17 44 .279 20.5 Toronto 27 34 .443 10 Central Division Central Division St. Louis 40 22 .645 Detroit 34 26 .567 Cincinnati 37 25 .597 3 Cleveland 30 31 .492 4.5 Pittsburgh 37 25 .597 3 Minnesota 27 31 .466 6 Chicago Cubs 24 35 .407 14.5 Kansas City 27 32 .458 6.5 Milwaukee 24 37 .393 15.5 Chicago White Sox 26 34 .433 8 Western Division Western Division Arizona 35 27 .565 Oakland 38 26 .594 San Francisco 32 29 .525 2.5 Texas 36 25 .590 0.5 Colorado 33 30 .524 2.5 LA Angels 27 35 .435 10 San Diego 29 33 .468 6 Seattle 27 36 .429 10.5 LA Dodgers 27 34 .443 7.5 Houston 22 41 .349 15.5

Froome wins Criterium du Dauphine RISOUL: Briton Chris Froome’s chances of going one better than his second place finish in the 2012 Tour de France could not look stronger as the Team Sky rider triumphed in the Criterium du Dauphine yesterday. Second on the final stage at Risoul behind Italy ’s Alessandro De Marchi, Froome completed the arduous eight-day race 58 seconds ahead of team mate Richie Porte.

Spain’s Dani Moreno was third, two minutes and 12 seconds back. Regarded a key dress rehearsal for the Tour de France which starts on June 29, Froome finished third in the mid-week time trial, then claimed the lead and clinched a stage win at Thursday’s first mountain top finish at Valmorel.

He comfortably defended his lead on the weekend’s final two Alpine stages and now succeeds Sky team mate and 2012 Tour de France winner Bradley Wiggins as the champion of France’s third biggest

stage race. His next target is to follow Wiggins’ wheel tracks in the Tour itself.

“I couldn’t have expected anything better now that with Richie we’ve finished in the two top spots overall. And this is a great test regarding what we’ll face up to in July in the Tour de France,” Froome told reporters. The final day’s racing, held in wet, foggy conditions, was won by De Marchi after taking part in an early breakaway of 24 riders, although a late attack

by Froome came close to denying the Italian. The race leader charged away two kilometres from the finish with Porte on his wheel to try and bridge the gap on De Marchi, at that point nearly two minutes ahead, but despite ripping into his advantage, Froome fell 24 seconds short and settled for second.

“I wasn’t at all sure I was going to be able to make it until the final kilometre, I knew Sky were driving hard behind,” De Marchi said. “It was touch and go right up

until the finish.”

Earlier in the stage Froome’s Tour rival Alberto Contador of Spain crashed and fell on a damp descent from the Col de Vars.

He was uninjured but still lost time when he dropped back in an unsuccessful bid to assist Saxo-Tinkoff team mate Mick Rogers maintain a top three place overall. And while Contador finished a below-expectations tenth overall, Froome said he was in top form for the Tour.“I know I’m going to do everything possible to win there, and there are good reasons to trust a team like this one. But in cycling, nothing is ever guaranteed,” the 28-year-old said. “It’ll be a huge advantage having two riders [himself and Porte] aiming for the top spots in the overall classification.

“Now I can have a glass of wine with my team-mates to celebrate the victory and then go back to work, checking out the route of several of the stages.”—Reuters

FRANCE: Britain’s Christopher Froome celebrates his overall leader yellow jersey on the podium with second placed in the overalls Australia’s Richie Porte (left) and third placed Spain’s Daniel Moreno Fernandez (right) at the end of the 155.5 km eighth and last stage of the 65th edition of the Dauphine Criterium cycling race. —AFP

MONDAY, JUNE 10, 2013

S P ORTS

Kiwis survive Malinga scare in dramatic win SCOREBOARD Scoreboard in the Champions Trophy Group A match between New Zealand and Sri Lanka in Cardiff yesterday: Sri Lanka innings K.Perera c BMcCullum b Mills 0 T.Dilshan b McCleneghan 20 K.Sangakkara c Williamson b NmcCullum 68 M.Jayawardene lbw b Vettori 4 L.Chandimal c Ronchi b Mills 0 A.Mathews b McCleneghan 9 L.Thiriman run out 9 T.Perera c Vettori b McCleneghan 15 R.Herath not out 8 S.Eranga c Mills b NmcCullum 0 L.Malinga c Taylor b McCleneghan 2 Extras (lb-1 w-2) 3 Total (all out, 37.5 overs) 138 Fall of wickets: 1-0 2-27 3-33 4-34 5-65 6-82 7118 8-135 9-135 10-138.

Bowling: Mills 6-0-14-2, McCleneghan 8.5-043-4 (1w), Vettori 6-1-16-1, Southee 7-1-25-0 (1w), N.McCullum 8-0-23-2, K.Williamson 2-016-0.

New Zealand innings M.Guptill c Jayawardene b Eranga 25 L.Ronchi c Sangakkara b Eranga 7 M.Williamson lbw b Malinga 16 R.Taylor lbw b Herath 0 J.Franklin lbw b Dilshan 6 B.McCullum b Malinga 18 D.Vettori lbw b Malinga 5 N.McCullum Lbw b Malinga 32 T.Southee not out 13 K. Mills run out 3 M.McCleneghan not out 1 Extras (lb-8 w-5) 13 Total (for nine wickets, 36.3 overs) 139 Fall of wickets: 1-14 2-48 3-49 4-49 5-70 6-80 7-115 8-122 9-134.

Bowling: Malinga 10-2-34-4 (2w), Eranga 8-045-2 (1w), Herath 10-0-36-1, Dilshan 6.3-1-12-1 (1w), Perera 2-0-4-0.

Sri Lanka won the toss and chose to bat Result: New Zealand won by one wicket

Maidana stops Lopez CARSON: Argentina’s Marcos Maidana stopped Josesito Lopez late in the sixth round of their welterweight bout Saturday night, finishing a tumultuous fight with a furious rally for his third straight victory. Cuba’s Erislandy Lara also survived the first two knockdowns of his career and stopped Alfredo Angulo in the 10th round of a similarly entertaining 154-pound bout in front of a sellout crowd outdoors at Home Depot Center.

Maidana (34-3, 31 KOs) absorbed ample punishment from Lopez in a back-and-forth meeting of two willing brawlers, with Lopez particularly dominating the fourth round.

Maidana rallied and knocked down Lopez with an overhand right in the sixth, following it with a crushing right uppercut that left Lopez wobbly and glassy-eyed.

Maidana has won five of his last six bouts, and this victory should set him up for a bigmoney fight against another welterweight star, or even fellow Argentine Lucas Matthysse in the future.

“My character and my guts got me this victory,” Maidana said through a translator. “In the second round, he hit me in my hip, and it was like I was paralyzed. The pain lasted for two rounds, and that’s when he landed the shots.

But my desire to win got me through it. He underestimated my power, and I knew I could knock him out.”

Lara was knocked down in the fourth and ninth rounds by the brawling Angulo, but the former Cuban amateur star apparently broke Angulo’s orbital bone around his left eye while peppering him with dozens of big shots. The fight ended when Angulo abruptly turned his back and walked to his corner in the 10th, in too much pain to continue.

The main event matched that bout’s excitement and violence. Maidana came out with his usual aggression, knocking back Lopez in the first two rounds, but Lopez (30-6) replied with big combinations and more push in the third and fourth. Maidana went to the canvas in the fourth, but it was ruled a slip. Maidana rallied again in the fifth, and he finished the fight with Lopez trapped on the ropes when referee Lou Moret stepped in.

“I felt like it was a premature stoppage,” said Lopez, who has lost three of his last four bouts.

“He hurt me a little, but we’re professionals, and we fight in situations like that. He stunned me with a good right hand, but I was not out of the fight.”

Lopez led 48-47 on two judges’ scorecards at the time of the stoppage, with Maidana leading 48-47 on the third. The biggest crowd in Home Depot Center history packed the outdoor stadium south of downtown Los Angeles, filling the site of several memorable brawls in recent years. Golden Boy promoter Richard Schaefer said the 8,629 fans surpassed the previous attendance record for Israel Vazquez ’s third fight with Rafael

CARDIFF: New Zealand survived a hostile spell from sling-arm fast bowler Lasith Malinga to carve out a tense one-wicket win over Sri Lanka in the Champions Trophy yesterday.

The Black Caps messed up a simple chase of Sri Lanka’s 138 all out and were reduced to 122-8, before the last-wicket pair of Tim Southee and Mitchell McClenaghan saw them through in the 37th over.

Left-arm seamer McClenaghan set up the victory with 4-43 after Sri Lanka won the toss and elected to bat, but Malinga stole the thunder with 4-34 that almost secured his team an improbable victory. The dramatic win helped New Zealand end a six-match losing streak against the Sri Lankans and claim full points in their first match of the eight-nation tournament.

New Zealand were cruising at 48-1 when Sri Lanka hit back with three wickets for one run in the space of eight deliveries.

When James Franklin fell legbefore to Tillakaratne Dilshan in the 15th over, New Zealand had lost half their side for 70 runs. Nathan McCullum, who followed his two wickets with a defiant 32, put on 35 for the seventh wicket with his brother Brendon, before Malinga removed both batsmen in three balls to make it 122-8.

The ninth wicket of Kyle Mills fell when five runs were needed, and even though Malinga conceded just one run in the next over, Dilshan gave away four runs to seal the Black Caps’ win.

“I was incredibly nervous at one stage,” a relieved New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum said at the

presentation ceremony. “Sri Lanka are always a dangerous side and we panicked a bit in the middle.

“The ball started stopping a bit in the second innings. It was very important to scrape through. We have enough experience to deal with situations like this, although it did get tough towards the end. “But I thought we played well for the majority of the match. Our bowlers were the reason that we won the game today.”

Sri Lanka, who had won 10 of their last 11 completed 50-over games against New Zealand, let themselves down with a sloppy batting display in the first session.

Veteran Kumar Sangakkara played a lone hand for the Islanders with 68, his 75th one-day half-century, but five of the other six toporder batsmen failed to reach double figures as the team folded in 37.5 overs. Sri Lanka never recovered after losing Kusal Perera off the first ball of the match when Brendon McCullum flew to his left at second slip to pick up a brilliant catch off Mills. “ We probably needed 30-40 more runs,” said Sri Lankan captain Angelo Mathews. “This was not the 200-run wicket that we originally thought, but we still need to toughen up a bit.

“Malinga almost won it for us.

We have two more games and we need to tighten up in batting. The bowlers and fielders showed good character.”

New Zealand next play Australia in Birmingham on Wednesday, a day before Sri Lanka clash with hosts England at the Oval in London.—AFP

CARDIFF: Sri Lanka’s Lasith Malinga delivers a ball during the 2013 ICC Champions Trophy cricket match between Sri Lanka and New Zealand at The Cardiff Wales Stadium. —AFP

Palace Malice defeats Oxbow, Orb in Belmont

Marcos Maidana Marquez on March 1, 2008.

Even before Maidana and Lopez hit the ring, the show could have been stolen in the penultimate bout. Lara outboxed Angulo in the opening three rounds, picking him apart with left hands and short shots inside - but Angulo abruptly changed the story in the fourth round when he knocked Lara to the canvas with a big left hand. Lara got up unsteadily, but recovered to survive the round.

Although Lara fought a smarter, more efficient bout in the ensuing rounds, he went down again in the ninth when Angulo caught him with another left hand, punctuating the shot by standing over the fallen Lara. The Cuban got up - and he finished the fight in the 10th with one last big combination to Angulo’s face with 1:10 left. Angulo absorbed the shots, but abruptly turned his back and walked to his corner while Lara celebrated the win.

“I was still winning the fight, even when he knocked me down,” Lara said through a translator. “I knew I was going to stop him in the later rounds. He caught me with good shots, (but) I fought too hard to get here, through sharkinfested waters in Cuba, to let a few knockdowns get in my way. Angulo had good power, but I used my movement and stepped and slid around him and landed my big left hand.”

Lara led 85-84 on two judges’ scorecards at the time of the stoppage, and Angulo led 86-83 on the third card. The Associated Press also had Lara up 85-84. “I wanted to stand in front of him and give the fans a good fight,” Lara said. “That’s when I got caught.”

Earlier, junior middleweight prospect Jermell Charlo kept his unblemished record with a narrow unanimous decision over Demetrius Hopkins, the nephew of Bernard Hopkins. The cautious technical bout didn’t impress the sellout crowd, which booed both fighters.—AP

NEW YORK: Palace Malice followed a perfect script to upstage the Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes champions on Saturday and win the Belmont Stakes, the final race of the Triple Crown for three-year-old thoroughbreds.

Palace Malice, who was 12th in the Kentucky Derby, won by 3 1/4 lengths with Mike Smith aboard after prevailing in a stretch run duel with Preakness winner Oxbow, who finished second ahead of late closing Derby winner Orb. The Belmont victor had set the early pace in the Derby only to fade at Churchill Downs, but on a sunny day with the track rated fast despite Friday’s rains, Palace Malice maintained his powerful stride, this time racing without blinders.

“Blinkers off, honestly,” Smith said about the difference in his horse this time. “He was just enjoying the trip, sucking all the air in.”

Palace Malice skipped the Preakness, the middle race of the series, and seemed stronger down the stretch as he surged to the lead in the last quarter mile and pulled away from Oxbow, who won the Preakness leading wire-to-wire.

Jockey Smith saluted trainer Todd Pletcher’s game plan for Palace Malice, who paid almost $30. “Likely you’ll be sitting right outside of Oxbow, just keep your eye on him and you just play it from there,” Smith said about his pre-race talk with Pletcher. “That’s really what we did.

“We thought Freedom Child would probably be in front. I knew Oxbow would be sitting right of him, and we just parked ourselves right outside of him.”

Smith said his winning move past Oxbow and his rider, Gary Stevens, was like a movie moment. “I was keeping a close eye on him,” Smith said about the ride as he headed toward the end of the backstretch. “I felt I was moving better.

“When I ranged up next to him, it was like a movie scene. He looked over to me. I could see his face clear as day. He says, ‘go on little brother,

ELMONT: Jockey Mike Smith holds the Belmont Stakes trophy in the winner’s circle after riding Palace Malice to win the race at Belmont Park. —AP Orb, the 2-1 favorite who won the Derby on a you’re moving better than me. Just ride off your win.’ “And I won. He run second. You couldn’t sloppy track, trailed far back in the field before have written this script any better. Trained by mounting a rousing charge down the stretch Pletcher, who had a record five runners in the with Joel Rosario astride that came up short.

Palace Malice paid $29.60 $11.20 and $6.70 14-horse field, Palace Malice fulfilled some early high hopes for the colt, who won only one of his for a $2.00 wager in the mile and a half race, the first seven races, with his lone victory a maiden longest test of the Triple Crown. Oxbow returned $9.90, $6.10, and Orb $3.90. race at Saratoga.

Smith said Palace Malice made a dream run.

“It’s huge. We always felt like he had a big one in him. He needed to put it all together,” Pletcher “Today was our day,” the jockey said, giving said from the winner’s circle. “We were quietly Pletcher a full share of the credit. “It ran exactly like he wrote it. Perfect plan.”—Reuters confident coming in.”

Castroneves gets 1st IndyCar victory of the year at Texas FORT WORTH: Helio Castroneves still knows how to climb the frontstretch fence to celebrate a victory at Texas. And welcome back to Victory Lane, Roger Penske.

Castroneves led the final 132 laps Saturday night for his and Team Penske’s first victory this season, and the fourth of the driver’s career at the 11/2-mile, high-banked track.

“Texas is awesome. I love this place,” Castroneves said after celebrating by climbing up the fence as he had done in previous victories. “ The car was absolutely on rails.”

Still, this race was different from his victories in the past - 2004, 2006 and 2009 - at a track so often known for drivers getting to go flat-out and side-byside just about every lap. Different setups and tires have changed that.

“Very, very different, nothing like the previous ones,” Castroneves said. “Hardly went flat-out. When I took the lead, I was able to go flat-out. Other than that, the entire race was very, very difficult to go flat. ... Setup is a big part of it, and I’m very fortunate to have the great guys in my group.”

Former series champion Sam Hornish Jr. was the only other three-time IndyCar winner at Texas. His last came for Penske, who now has eight victories at the track

which hosted its 25th IndyCar race.

Castroneves won with an average speed of 177.257 mph and finished 4.7 seconds ahead of Ryan Hunter-Reay of Andretti Motorsports. The combined margin of his previous three victories at Texas was 1.0038 seconds. Hunter-Reay led 35 of 228 laps.

“The drivers had to drive it tonight,” Hunter-Reay said. “I’ll tell you, that was interesting. That was hard to even get by some of slower traffic. You were just searching everywhere for grip. I had so many catches out there that I thought were going into the wall. It’s going to be tough to go to sleep tonight.”

With six other top-10 finishes in the first seven races, Castroneves entered the night tied with Marco Andretti for the season points lead.

Andretti, who led the first 53 laps after starting on the front row, finished fifth. He dropped to second, 22 points behind Castroneves.

Castroneves took the lead from Andretti, going around him in Turn 3 on lap 96, and stayed there for his 28th career victory. He is the seventh driver to win in eight races this season. “Running like a Swiss watch,” Castroneves said.

“Everything was smooth.”

Before Oriol Servia spun out right in front of him on lap 113, Castroneves had

built a 14-second lead over defending race winner Justin Wilson. Castroneves was able to get around Servia’s car without any issue. That ended a sequence when Castroneves went 61 laps without a stop before going into the pit during that caution.

“He drove a flawless race.” Penske said. “I think Helio had probably as good of execution as we’ve had in a long time.”

Only five drivers finished on the lead lap, and they all were in Chevrolets, with Indianapolis 500 winner Tony Kanaan third, followed by Ed Carpenter and Andretti. The highest-finishing Honda was Dario Franchitti, just ahead of Castroneves teammate Will Power, the polesitter.

While nothing obscene, a clearly frustrated Andretti motioned with his hand to Sebastien Bourdais while completing a pass less than 70 laps in at Texas.

It was a week earlier in the first race of the Detroit doubleheader that Andretti was the target when Sebastian Saavedra flashed both of his middle fingers after the two made contact on the track. That motion by Saavera was caught on live television, and earned him a $30,000 fine from IndyCar. Bourdais was placed on probation for the rest of the season for comments

made toward officials on pit road after an accident with Power in Sunday’s race in Detroit. Power also was put on probation until the end of the season for throwing his gloves at Bourdais.

Andretti gave up the lead when he pitted after 53 laps. He had led only 38 laps in the first seven races, including 31 at Indianapolis last month. But he got in front for only four more laps at Texas.

Wilson started 20th, but had moved up to fifth within the first 85 laps. He finished 15th, two laps behind Castroneves. The command for drivers to start their engines was given by Jennifer Simonds and Anna “Sam” Canaday, teachers who used their bodies to shield kindergarteners when an EF5 tornado made a direct hit on Plaza Towers Elementary School in Moore, Okla., on May 20.

CJ Gillaspie, captain of the West Volunteer Fire Department, which lost five members in a fertilizer plant explosion April 17, waved the green flag as the honorary starter.

Texas was the fourth of five races in a four-week span for IndyCar, which started with the Indianapolis 500 before the doubleheader weekend at Detroit. The series is in Milwaukee next Saturday before only one race the following three weeks.—AP

TEXAS: Helio Castroneves, of Brazil, holds up the trophy in Victory Lane after winning the IndyCar auto race at Texas Motor Speedway. —AP

MONDAY, JUNE 10, 2013

S P ORTS

Spain hold on for 2-1 friendly win over Haiti MIAMI: World champions Spain held on for a 2-1 win over Haiti in a friendly on Saturday as they warmed up for this month’s Confederations Cup. After Fernando Torres went close with a spectacular volley, Vicente del Bosque’s team grabbed the lead in the eighth minute with a low drive from 25 yards by Santi Cazorla.

The Spaniards doubled their advantage in the 19th minute when Juan Mata chipped the ball to Cesc Fabregas, who glanced in a header.

It looked likely to be a one-sided game with Spain strolling around and Haiti, who have struggled in recent years in CONCACAF competition, chasing the ball in the heat and humidity.

Spain introduced Barcelona midfielders Andres Iniesta and Xavi in the second half and almost made it 3-0 when Roberto Soldado struck the post in the 70th minute.

But Haiti stuck at the task and delighted their fans in the 36,535 crowd at Sun Life Stadium with a goal in the 76th minute.

The ball fell to left back Wilde-Donald Guerrier, who showed electric pace and great composure to burst past the Spanish defence, round substitute keeper Pepe Reina and slot home.

It was just reward for Haiti’s efforts but Spain kept their cool in the final minutes to

Photo of the day

ensure they avoided a potentially embarrassing scoreline. “In the first half, I think we played to our level, we controlled the ball and created chances,” said Del Bosque.

“After the break we put less pressure on, played with less intensity and Haiti were able to see more of the ball and play better, but overall it was a good test for us.”

The biggest smile after the game was on the face of Haiti goalscorer Guerrier, who revealed that his son Cristiano, named after Real Madrid winger Cristiano Ronaldo, had been born just a day before the game. “It was a great honor to play against the world champions and I think we showed that Haiti is not only about the earthquake we had, but we showed that we have talent,” said the defender.

“I was very pleased to get a goal against the number one team in the world. They are great players but they are human beings, they aren’t from another planet.”

The Spaniards play another friendly, against Ireland on Tuesday at New York’s Yankee Stadium, before heading to the Confederations Cup in Brazil where they will face Uruguay, Nigeria and Tahiti in Group B. Haiti will also head to Brazil to play Italy in a friendly on Tuesday, which will also serve as a fundraiser for the victims of the 2010 earthquake in the country.—Reuters Ken Roczen races during the AMA Pro Motocross Championship 2013 in Blountville, Tennessee, USA. www.redbullcontentpool.com

Salah hat-trick keeps Egypt on winning trail

NETANYA: Spain’s midfielder Inigo Martinez (right) challenges Germany’s forward Kevin Volland during the 2013 UEFA U-21 Championship Group B football match. —AFP

Italy, Norway show under-21 class as England crash out TEL AVIV: Italy and Norway outclassed Israel and England at the Euro Under-21 championships on Saturday to virtually seal the fate of the Group A. Italy, who beat England 1-0 in the first game, top the standings with six points and Norway are second with four. Israel still have a slim chance of advancing but England are out. The Italians ensured qualification for the semi-finals by crushing the hosts 4-0 on a sultry night in Tel Aviv as Israel played more than half the match with 10 men. Earlier, Norway stunned England 3-1 in Petah Tikva. Parma striker Ricardo Saponara put Italy ahead in the 18th minute when he easily slotted the ball low past Israeli goalkeeper Boris Kleyman. But Israel hopes were dashed when midfielder Eyal Golasa was sent off in the 37th minute for a strong challenge on Saponara and Italy completely dominated the rest of the match. Italy’s top striker Lorenzo Insigne was substituted due to a leg injury, but there was only one team in contention for the remainder of the match.

Atalanta’s Manolo Gabiadini made it 2-0 in the 42nd minute with a powerful strike from the edge of the area and he added his second in the 53rd minute with a fierce free kick. Israel, down to 10 men, abandoned any attempt to attack and Italy took full advantage. Alessandro Florenzi sealed Israel’s fate in the 71st minute, capitalising on a crisp passing move to shoot through the legs of defender Ben Vahaba and into the net.

“Sometimes it can be more difficult to face a team like Israel than England, but they scored the goal at the right time to

ensure they avoided danger,” Italy coach Devis Mangia told reporters.

Israel coach Guy Luzon was happy with his team. “I cannot fault my players for the way they played, they did all they could and were excellent until we went a man down but from that point there was no way for them to stand up to far better opponents,” he said.

England dominated early possession against Norway but failed to breach the powerful Scandinavian defence and paid the price by conceding twice from defensive errors.

Frederik Semb Berge scored the first goal from a corner when he stabbed the ball low into Jack Butland’s net. England continued to apply pressure but Norway pounced with an excellent second goal in the 34th minute as Jo Inge Berget struck a diagonal shot into the top corner.

Marcus Eikrem scored Norway’s third in the 52nd minute from close range and England’s penalty converted by Craig Dawson was a mere consolation.

“It means a lot for Norwegian football.

We created more chances than England and although there are so many good teams here, I have great hopes for our players,” Norway coach Tor Ole Skullerud said. England coach Stuart Pearce admitted his team had not been good enough.

“We got out of it what we deserved which was not much. Not enough of my players delivered a performance today for whatever reason,” he said. The Netherlands take on Russia in Jerusalem and Spain meet Germany in Netanya in Group B later yesterday.—Reuters

Botafogo win, Pato held RIO DE JANEIRO: Dutchman Clarence Seedor f scored his first goal of the Brazilian championship in a 2-0 win for Botafogo at Ponte Preta while Alexandre Pato drew another blank for Corinthians as they were held 0-0 by Portuguesa.

Seedorf, 37, gave Botafogo an early lead with a shot on the turn from near the penalty spot against opponents who were playing under interim coach Ze Sergio after Guto Ferreira was sacked on Thursday. Antonio Carlos headed the second before halftime of Saturday evening’s game to leave Botafogo with 10 points from five games, two ahead of Cruzeiro, Coritiba and Bahia.

Former AC Milan striker Pato complet-

ed his 10th game without scoring as world club champions Corinthians drew for the third time in their first five matches, leaving them 12th. Pato has been free of muscular injuries which plagued him in Italy since his move in January but has been unable to rediscover his scoring touch. Flamengo, who fired coach Jorginho on Thursday, notched their first win of the competition by beating Criciuma 3-0 away with two goals from midfielder Gabriel, the second direct from a corner which crept in at the near post. Internacional, led by Brazil’s 2010 World Cup coach Dunga, were held 2-2 at Cruzeiro, the third draw in their opening five matches.—Reuters

JOHANNESBURG: Mohamed Salah scored a hat-trick as Egypt whipped Zimbabwe 4-2 yesterday to maintain a perfect 2014 World Cup qualifying record.

The ‘Pharaohs’ top Group G with 12 points from four victories and could win it later Sunday if secondplace Guinea fail to collect maximum points at home against Mozambique.

Congo-Brazzaville and Tunisia drew in Gabon and Sierra Leone respectively Saturday, leaving Egypt as the only one of the 40 second-stage competitors boasting a 100 percent record.

It was a disappointing outcome for Zimbabwe at a sunny but chilly National Stadium in Harare after losing narrowly in Cairo three months ago, and they remain bottom of the table.

Salah, who helped Swiss club Basel reach the Europa League semi-finals this year, put Egypt ahead for the second time just before half-time and bagged a second-half brace.

Veteran midfielder Mohamed Abou Trika put the visitors ahead on five minutes and Germanybased Knowledge Musona levelled midway through the half before Salah opened his account.

Salah scored again on 76 minutes and substitute Knowledge Billiat reduced arrears only for the Egyptian to complete his hat-trick and condemn Zimbabwe to a third loss in four outings.

Although Egypt won the Africa Cup of Nations a record seven times between 1957 and 2010, they have appeared at the World Cup only twice, and the last time was 23 years ago.

Jonathan Pitroipa, voted the best footballer at the 2013 Cup of Nations in South Africa, threw a lifeline to Burkina Faso with the goal that edged Niger 1-0 in Niamey.

It left the ‘Stallions’, who finished runners-up to Nigeria in the Africa Cup this year, four points behind Group E frontrunners Congo and the countries clash in Pointe-Noire next weekend.

A late first-half brace from Islam Slimani set up Group H leaders Algeria for a 3-1 triumph in Benin

HARARE: Zimbabwe’s Ovidy Karuru (left) vies with Egypt’s Kenawi Ahmed (right) watched by Egypt’s Fataha Mahmoud (center) during a 2014 World Cup qualifying football match. —AFP with Nabil Ghilas adding a matchclinching third goal after coming off the bench.

This was a must-win match for third-place Benin and Rudy Gestede was first to score at Stade Charles de Gaulle in Porto Novo, but Badarou Nana Nafiou got a second-half red card as they hunted an equaliser.

Meanwhile, Congo, Ivory Coast and Tunisia took giant leaps on Saturday towards winning their World Cup qualifying groups although they were all overshadowed by the exploits of a resurgent Ethiopia.

A 2-1 victory in Botswana for Ethiopia means they are also in line to secure a place in the final phase of the African preliminaries if they win again next weekend.

First-half goals from Getaneh Kebede and Saladin Seid, his fourth of the campaign, kept Ethiopia top of Group A with 10 points from four matches. They are two points ahead of 2010 World Cup hosts South Africa, their next opponents.

Ethiopia qualified for the 2013

African Nations Cup after an absence of more than three decades and proved difficult opponents in the finals.

South Africa won 3-0 in the Central African Republic to keep alive their hopes in a match played in neutral Cameroon because of the precarious situation in Bangui where the government was recently overthrown by rebel fighters.

Congo and Tunisia lost their 100 percent records but away draws inched them closer to winning their respective groups.

Giant defender Christopher Samba withdrew on the eve of the game but Congo held neighbours Gabon to a 0-0 draw in Franceville to earn a six-point lead over their second-placed opponents in Group E. Third-placed Burkina Faso, on three points, can close the gap when they play in Niger.

A late equaliser from Fakhreddine Ben Youssef gave Tunisia a 2-2 draw at closest challengers Sierra Leone and a fivepoint lead in Group B. The Tunisians can clinch top spot by

winning in Equatorial Guinea next weekend.

African Footballer of the Year Yaya Toure was among the scorers as Ivory Coast triumphed 3-0 in Gambia to take their points tally in Group C to 10 from four games.

Morocco also beat Tanzania 2-1, leaving the Ivorians four points clear with two matches to play.

Zambia retained their one-point lead over 2010 World Cup quarterfinalists Ghana in Group D after sinking Lesotho 4-0.

Ghana won 3-1 in Sudan on Friday with two goals from Asamoah Gyan. Papiss Cisse put Senegal ahead in Angola in Group J but Guilherme Afonso equalised to earn a 1-1 draw, the fourth in as many matches for his team.

Senegal lead Uganda by one point with Angola and Liberia one point further back. Six more qualifiers will be played late yesterday.

The 10 group winners go through to the playoffs in October and November to determine the five African qualifiers for Brazil 2014.— Agencies

Pressel takes two-shot lead NEW YORK: Morgan Pressel shot a two-under-par 70 on Saturday to seize a two-stroke lead going into a 36-hole late yesterday finish at the weather-delayed LPGA Championship at Locust Hill outside Rochester, New York.

The short-hitting Pressel, looking for her first LPGA Tour win in five years and her second major championship title, relied on her accuracy on a course playing extremely long after heavy rains, stood at six-under-par 138. “I just hung in there,” said Pressel. “I feel calm out there.”

Tied for second behind the American were world number one Inbee Park and her South Korean compatriot Chella Choi.

Park, winner of three tournaments this year including the season’s first major, the Kraft Nabisco, made five birdies and a bogey in firing a 68, while Choi registered 73 for 140.

Another shot off the pace were

South Koreans Jiyai Shin (73), the Women’s British Open champion, and Amy Yang (70) and Australian Sarah Jane Smith, who posted a 69 to move up the leaderboard.

Defending champion Shanshan Feng of China bounced back from her first-round 74 with a 70 that put her at level par 144. Lightning and heavy rains scrubbed Thursday’s scheduled opening round, setting up the marathon finish.

Pressel, starting at the 10th hole, surged to a three-shot lead with birdies on three of her first six holes before giving two strokes back with bogeys at the 16th and 18th.

The 25-year-old, who became the youngest ever winner of a women’s major when claimed the Kraft Nabisco major in 2007 as an 18 year old, improved her lead by a second stroke with a birdie on her penultimate hole.

“I feel like I’m hitting the shot that I’m seeing and can put the ball where I want to,” said Pressel, who

has been bothered by injuries in recent seasons.

“We got a marathon day tomor-

row and hopefully I see a lot of really good shots in my head and execute them all.”—Reuters

NEW YORK: Morgan Pressel hits her tee shot on the ninth hole during the weather-delayed third round of the Wegmans LPGA Championship at Locust Hill Country Club. —AFP

Salah hat-trick keeps Egypt on winning trail

Kiwis survive Malinga scare in dramatic win

MONDAY, JUNE 10, 2013

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Castroneves gets 1st IndyCar victory of the year at Texas

Page 17

PARIS: A combination of AFP pictures made yesterday, shows Spain’s Rafael Nadal biting the Muskeeters trophy during his eight victories in the menís French Tennis Open at the Roland Garros stadium. (From top left to right) Nadal bites his trophy on June 11, 2012, on June 5, 2005, on June 11, 2006, on June 10, 2007, on June 8, 2008, on June 6, 2010, on June 5, 2011 and on June 9, 2013. — AFP

Nadal shakes off protesters, Ferrer Wins record eighth French Open title PARIS: A bare-chested protestor who jumped on to court with a red flare and the dogged resistance of fellow Spaniard David Ferrer could not stop an irrepressible Rafa Nadal from storming to a record eighth French Open title with a 6-3 6-2 63 win yesterday.

The claycourt king was left startled in the sixth game of the second set when a man wearing a white mask leapt over from the stands and ran towards Nadal as he lit the flare.

The protestor ran around waving the flare before he, and another bare-chested accomplice, were bundled away by security staff. It was the second such interruption within the space of a few minutes as a man and a woman were also led away from high up in a different section of the stands after shouting protests and waving a banner declaring ‘Help!

France tramples on children’s rights’.

At Roland Garros, though, Nadal revels on trampling on his opponents and as he became the first man to win the same major eight times, his record at the spiritual home of claycourt tennis stood at a jaw-dropping 59-1.

“I never dreamed about this kind of thing (winning eight titles),” third seed Nadal, who returned to the tour in February after seven months out with a knee injury, said before being handed the Musketeers’ Cup by Olympics 100 metres champion Usain Bolt.

Ferrer had to settle for receiving the loudest round of applause from the 15,000 fans and a runners-up cheque for 750,000 euros. “These two weeks I played very good tennis but I would like to say that he deserves everything, he’s the best,” Ferrer told the crowd.

The ugly incidents in the second set momentarily overshadowed Nadal’s relentless charge towards the title on a unseasonably cold day in Paris with the temperature stuck at 16 degrees Celsius.

The grey, dank and chilly atmosphere that greeted the players on Philippe Chatrier Court was certainly not to Nadal’s liking but he soon warmed to the task of grinding down an opponent whom he had trounced in their last 16 claycourt clashes.

A wild forehand from Ferrer handed Nadal the first break of the match for a 2-1 lead but the fourth seed hit back immediately by employing some astute baseline tactics.

A brilliant backhand down the line winner after he had lured Nadal into the net with a drop shot brought up break point. He then engaged the champion into a lengthy rally which Nadal ended by ramming a backhand into the net to relinquish his serve.

But the man who has the number 7 stamped on the heel of his shoes to symbolise his seven Roland Garros triumphs went a break up again in the seventh game.

Nadal outwitted the 31-year-old Ferrer with a backhand passing shot winner to go 4-3 ahead but was in danger of surrendering the advantage in the next game when a misjudged lob floated long to hand his rival break point.

A blistering forehand winner took care of that problem and Ferrer meekly surrendered his next service game by slicing a backhand into the net to lose his first set at this year’s tournament. Perhaps inspired by the presence of the fastest man on

earth, Bolt, who followed proceedings behind a pair of dark glasses despite not a ray of sun in sight, Nadal hurtled into a 31 lead in the second. Ferrer stepped up his effort to break the Nadal serve in an astonishing fifth game, which lasted 10 minutes and featured four deuces, four break points and an incredible 29-shot rally which Nadal polished off with a whipped backhand winner.

For all Ferrer’s effort, he could not stop Nadal moving 4-1 ahead and as the fourth seed’s “e-he” grunting got louder, Nadal’s winners started flying faster.

But just when Nadal looked that he would soon be rolling in the clay in celebration, the protesters took over and for the second time in four years raised security fears at the Open.

In the 2009 final, Roger Federer’s final against Robin Soderling was also interrupted when a man jumped down from the stands and tried to put a hat on the Swiss champion.

Yesterday though, nothing could stop Nadal from collapsing on to his back in triumph after he put a full stop to the match with yet another screaming forehand winner. —Reuters

Vettel wins maiden Canadian Grand Prix

No dirt trackers yet as Lions go Country

MONTREAL: Sebastian Vettel claimed the 29th victory of his record-breaking career yesterday when he triumphed for Red Bull at the Canadian Grand Prix for the first time to boost his lead in this year’s drivers world championship.

Starting from his third consecutive pole position at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, the defending triple world champion came home in unchallenged fashion at the end of a serene showing of dominant driving from the front.

It was the 25-year-old German’s third win this season and he delivered it in a time of one hour, 32 minutes and 9.143 seconds.

He finished a luxurious 14.408 seconds clear of second-placed Fernando Alonso of Ferrari who fought from sixth on the grid to finish on the podium.

“Yes, we’ve won Canada, the car was amazing,” Vettel said over the team radio.

Later he added: “ Finally we got our first win, it’s off the list now and it was great to win.

“The sun came out as well so it doesn’t get any better. We had good races here before but it didn’t come together to win, then I lost it in the last lap two years ago which was my fault but I made up for that today.”

BRISBANE: Hard on the heels of their toughest match of the tour so far, the British and Irish Lions face what will be their weakest opposition when they take on the Combined Country XV in Newcastle tomorrow. Coach Warren Gatland probably learned more about his players in the first 20 minutes on Saturday when his side were under the cosh from the Queensland Reds than he had in the previous 160 minutes of action on the tour.

He was encouraged that they kept their nerve and came through the match 22-12 winners to remain unbeaten after three games but that sort of strong challenge looks like being the exception rather than the rule outside the tests.

Still mulling his best selection as the tour moves inexorably towards the three-test series, the New Zealander will try out a few new combinations against an opposition that will be just as willing as the Reds but considerably less able.

That does not mean Gatland is not grateful to get another chance to look at players in match conditions as he looks to firm up large parts of his test side before next Saturday’s match against the New South Wales Waratahs.

“To be honest, the tour’s probably about

Lewis Hamilton was third for Mercedes after racing at the front and leading for three laps. It was his third podium finish of the year in seven races with his new team.

Australian Mark Webber came fourth in the second Red Bull ahead of Monaco winner Nico Rosberg in the second Mercedes, Jean-Eric Vergne of Toro Rosso - who came home a best-ever sixth - and Briton Paul Di Resta of Force India.

Felipe Massa finished eighth in the second Ferrari, after starting from 16th on the grid, ahead of Kimi Raikkonen of Lotus and Adrian Sutil in the second Force India.

Raikkonen’s result meant he equalled German legend seven-time champion Michael Schumacher’s record of 24 consecutive points finishes.

Vettel’s win lifted him to 132 points at the top of this year’s championship. Alonso is second on 96 and Raikkonen third with 88. Hamilton has 77 in fourth.

While Vettel and Red Bull celebrated there was disappointment for Williams. The British outfit had high hopes of picking up their first points of the season from Valterri Bottas who had qualified in third but were out of luck again when the Finnish rookie trailed in 17th.— AFP

MONTREAL: Canadian Formula One Grand Prix winner Red Bull driver Sebastian Vettel of Germany celebrates in the hairpin corner at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in Montreal. — AFP

two matches too short for us, you’d like a couple more warm-up matches before you go into that first test,” he said.

“We’d probably need to start formulating that side, particularly going into that Waratahs match, and looking at combinations too.”

In a throwback to the days when Lions tours went 20 matches or more, the tourists will face a mix of New South Wales and Queensland players from Super Rugby, big city clubs and more modest outfits in what the Australians call “the bush”.

Stuart Hogg starts at flyhalf to give Owen Farrell and Jonny Sexton a rest after the specialist number 10s both featured in all of the first three matches and the Scot will be expected to get plenty of ball out the centres.

The midfield is one of the more difficult selections Gatland has to make and this week’s partnership features Ireland’s Brian O’Driscoll and Welshman Jamie Roberts, who combined so well in South Africa four years ago.

Gatland’s determination to give everybody a fair crack of claiming a test shirt means a distinct “dirt-trackers” team of the sort that would usually contest such midweek matches has yet to emerge. — AFP

Business

Ambitious plans to turn Johannesburg into ‘NY’ Page 22 Weak dollar ahead of US job report Page 23

MONDAY, JUNE 10, 2013

UK lawmakers meet to thrash out bank reforms

American auto industry to go on hiring spree Page 25 Page 23

SHANGHAI: A fruit vendor takes a nap at a market yesterday. China’s inflation eased to 2.1 percent year-on-year last month from 2.4 percent in April, official data showed with analysts citing a steep fall in vegetable prices as the biggest factor leading the decline. —AFP

Chinese investment in US grows Chinese firms in US employ 30,000 Americans RALEIGH: The biggest-ever Chinese acquisition of a US company faces hurdles in Washington from lawmakers and regulators, but in much of America, Chinese investment is quietly booming. With over $10.5 billion of deals by Chinese companies in the United States so far this year, 2013 is on pace to be the largest year ever for mergers and acquisitions of US firms by Chinese companies, according to Thomson Reuters data.

Almost every week, the North Carolina state government receives a “a wonderfully overwhelming amount of inquiries” from Chinese companies looking to set up shop, says April Kappler, the state official in charge of drawing investment from Asia. Home to one of the headquarters of Chinese-owned personal computer maker Lenovo Group Ltd, North Carolina is fighting hard to draw computer component and software companies, machinery makers and pharmaceutical firms from China.

To promote trade and investment, the state has offices in Hong Kong and Shanghai, and its mayors and governor travel to China frequently to meet potential investors. The Chinese businessmen who come “always joke about trees, tees and PhDs for all the greenery, golf courses and all the higher education institutions,” said Jean Davis, the state’s director of international trade.

North Carolina universities - Duke, the University of North Carolina and North Carolina State - tap the connections of professors and graduate students from China. UNC

does a joint degree with Tsinghua University, known as “the MIT of China.” North Carolina State University meteorology professor Lian Xie set up the Carolina China Council 10 years ago to link local economic development boards to investors back home.

He is now raising funds to build the first Chinatown in North Carolina, a complex of restaurants, shops and hotels. His group hopes to break ground in September on a 25acre (10-hectare) site near the RaleighDurham International Airport. North Carolina is fifth in the ranks of US states receiving Chinese investment, following California, New York, Texas and Illinois, according to the New York-based Rhodium Group, an advisory firm that runs a database that tracks investments.

‘One of the few bright spots’ Figures on total Chinese business investment in the United States differ. According to Rhodium’s database, which covers only direct investments, the accumulative total is $23 billion, most of it since 2008. Another much broader measurement by Washington think tank Heritage Foundation includes big portfolio investments by Chinese sovereign wealth funds and reckons Chinese investments in the United States between 2005 and 2012 were worth $50 billion.

“No matter whose data you use, the twoyear period of 2012-13 is very, very strong for Chinese investment in the US,” said Derek Scissors, an economist who compiles the Heritage Foundation figures. The Chinese

stake in US businesses is small compared with leader Britain with more than $440 billion and second-place Japan’s roughly $300 billion.

But with the American economy still pulling itself out of the 2008-2009 slump and crisis-hit Europe reluctant to buy into the United States, “China was one of the few bright spots” in 2012, Rhodium Group researcher Thilo Hanemann told a US congressional panel last month. Raymond Cheng, chief executive of Hong Kong-based SoZo Group, a matchmaking firm that brought a $100 million Chinese plant to rural Alabama that will employ 300 people making copper tubes, said Southern states were “really open and welcoming.” Pockets of the South “need jobs more than anybody else,” said Cheng, who is also trying to bring Chinese manufacturers to other nearby states like Mississippi.

‘Level of anxiety’ In Virginia, China’s Shuanghui International Holdings wants to buy Smithfield, the world’s biggest meat producer. At nearly $5 billion, it would be the biggest Chinese acquisition in the United States if it goes ahead. But a few US lawmakers have aired concerns about the Chinese meat company’s safety record, and the deal will be scrutinized by the Treasury’s Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, which reviews deals for national security concerns.

While the purchase is expected to go through eventually, that kind of political and

regulatory fuss turns off other Chinese companies. Despite aggressive efforts by mayors and governors to court them, Chinese companies often seem wary of promoting themselves too loudly. “A lot of these companies want to invest in the US, but they want to stay under the radar because there’s a level of anxiety related to Chinese investment,” said North Carolina state official Kappler.

She said she had to keep mum about an impending $40 million investment that would create 200 jobs because the wary firm did not want it known that it was from China.

Many Chinese firms recall the uproar that sank the 2005 rejection of China National Offshore Oil Corp’s $18.5 billion attempt to buy US energy company Unocal. That chilled Chinese investment in the United States for two years. “ There is absolutely this view among Chinese companies that the US is a difficult environment to operate in and there’s antiChinese prejudice. It’s not well-founded,” said Scissors. Chinese firms in the United States employ at least 30,000 Americans, says Hanemann. That is a far cry from the 800,000 US workers employed by Japanese companies or the 1.8 million Chinese who work for US-invested firms in China.

Chinese direct investment is small compared with the $3 trillion invested by foreigners in the US economy overall. The country also holds about $1.25 trillion in U.S. government bonds, according to the Treasury Department. —Reuters

Spain consumers put brakes on spending MADRID: Spaniards are buying fewer cars, fewer clothes and even cutting back on smoking as a grinding recession and rising unemployment force them to slash spending, dealing a severe blow to manufacturers and shops. Last week, the headlines surrounding big brands such as Spanish fashion retailer Blanco and tobacco group Altadis highlighted the fallout of the consumer slump in Spain.

Blanco, a budget high street chain which has 300 shops in 27 countries and 2,000 employees, said it had filed for insolvency due to “the difficult economic situation facing the country which has touched consumer spending and credit markets very specifically”.

Clothing sales in Spain are down by 8.7 percent this year, the seventh consecutive year that they have fallen, according to clothing retail lobby group ACOTEX. Altadis, a French-Spanish offshoot of British-based Imperial Tobacco, then announced it would axe nearly 10 percent of its staff in Spain as cigarette sales slumped in the face of no-smoking bans and a booming black market in the recession-hit country. The company said its cigarette sales had gone up in smoke in Spain, with volumes slumping by 40 percent in the past four years.

It blamed the drop on the smoking ban which came into effect in Spanish cafes and restaurants on January 1, 2011 as well as “a considerable increase in illegal sales, pro-

voked largely by the situation of economic crisis.” Sales of tobacco have plunged from 4.51 billion packages in 2008, the year the country’s economic downturn began, to 2.67 billion packages in 2012.

“In Spain we are not only facing a financial, economic and employment crisis, it is also a crisis in confidence and that is reflected in consumer spending, which does not stop falling,” said Celia Ferrero, the vice-president of ATA, an association that represents small entrepreneurs. Spain, the eurozone’s fourthlargest economy, is still struggling to overcome the aftermath of a property bubble that imploded in 2008, destroying millions of jobs and sending debt levels soaring.

The jobless rate has rocketed to a record 27 percent and this, combined with sharp government spending cuts and tax hikes aimed at slashing a ballooning public deficit, has led consumers to tighten their wallets. Retail sales in Spain fell 2.6 percent in April-the 34th straight monthly decline. “The rise in unemployment has caused families to set priorities when making purchases. Obviously they can’t deprive themselves of essential items such as food and basic supplies, but consumption of other items declines,” said Rocio Algeciras, a spokeswoman for Spanish consumer group FACUA. “We are very concerned that this will continue as the state of the economy and

MADRID: A protestor carries a noose while holding a banner with others reading “financial impunity” during a protest against financial impunity, mortgage fraud and housing rights yesterday. — AP employment will not improve,” she added. The cut off in March, the eighth consecutive government predicts the unemployment rate monthly decline. Electrical retailer Darty will will not fall below 25 percent until 2016. close its 43 stores in Spain in June. The compaAutomakers predict some 700,000 cars will ny’s Spanish operations posted a loss of 15.6 be sold in Spain this year, compared to yearly million euros ($20.4 million) last year. sales of 1.5 million vehicles recorded before Spain has lost nearly 47,000 small business, the start of the economic crisis. Spanish con- along with the half a million jobs which they sumers are also switching off their mobile had created, since the start of the economic phones in droves. Some 300,000 phones were crisis, according to Ferrero. — AFP

Egypt falls for sixth session MIDEAST STOCK MARKETS DUBAI: Egypt’s bourse tumbled to a six-month low yesterday as local investors sold on growing fears of a new bout of political instability, ahead of a planned mass demonstration on June 30 against President Mohamed Morsi. Gulf markets were mixed. The organisers of “Tamarod” (Rebel) say they have collected more than seven million signatures for a petition calling for Morsi’s removal and early elections, with the aim of securing 15 million - more than the 13 million votes Morsi received in last year’s presidential election before the protest.

A prominent Egyptian blogger on Thursday began a hunger strike in protest at his detention and to raise awareness of what activists say is a widening crackdown on dissent in the north African country. Last week, the public prosecutor referred a group of 12 political activists to trial on charges of inciting violence near the Muslim Brotherhood’s headquarters in March.

Cairo’s benchmark lost 2.9 percent, breaking the key technical level of 5,000 points to hit its lowest level since December 2012. Egyptians were net sellers to regional and foreign buyers, bourse data showed. No stocks were spared from selling pressure. Large-caps Commercial International Bank and Orascom Telecom lost 8.6 and 4.6 percent respectively. In Qatar, Barwa Real Estate jumped 5.2 percent to a 21-week high after a unit of the Gulf state’s sovereign wealth fund bought assets worth $7.1 billion from the company to help reduce its debt pile. Doha’s benchmark climbed 0.5 percent to its highest close since September 2008. The market, up 11.7 percent year-to-date, is playing catchup to regional gains.

“Qatar’s rally is more of a regional and global catch up,” said Sebastien Henin, portfolio manager at The National Investor. “Locals have put their money back in the market but for bluechips, especially banks to see earnings growth, people are waiting on major infrastructure plans.” Elsewhere, UAE markets slipped as investors booked gains in property stocks.

Dubai’s index fell 0.9 percent, but is still up 47.9 percent in 2013. Heavyweight Emaar Properties shed 1 percent. Builder Arabtec lost 5.1 percent after it launched a $650 million rights issue yesterday. Trading volumes declined on both UAE bourses, with foreign investors away for the weekend and local investors cautious ahead of Wednesday’s announcement from index compiler MSCI on whether it will upgrade the UAE and Qatar to emerging market status. “The main two catalysts in the UAE are the MSCI decision and the upcoming second-quarter earnings,” said Marwan Shurrab, fund manager and head of trading at Vision Investments. “We still see a lot of potential in the market.” Abu Dhabi’s benchmark declined 0.3 percent, down for a second session in three since it hit a 55month peak. In Kuwait, the market fell 1.6 percent, extending its losing streak for a third session in profittaking but the market is still up 33.2 percent in 2013.

Elsewhere, Saudi Arabia’s measure eased 0.04 percent.

Declines in banks and petrochemical shares outweighed gains in the real estate sector. —Reuters

MONDAY, JUNE 10, 2013

BUSINESS

Ambitious plans to turn Johannesburg into ‘NY’ 10-yr scheme set to cost $10bn JOHANNESBURG: City authorities in Johannesburg, South Africa’s economic hub, have unveiled an ambitious plan to undo urban inequalities of the apartheid era and turn the continent’s wealthiest city into the “New York of Africa”. City mayor Parks Tau says the 10-year scheme, which is set to cost some $10 billion (7.5 billion euros), will lead to a “new era” for Johannesburg and its 4.4 million inhabitants. Plans are on the cards for an extensive new road and railroad network, better houses and revamped buildings to spruce up the city, originally built on a gold rush in the late 19th century.

The inspiration for change is the cosmopolitan New York City in the United States, with its attractive bridges, roads and efficient subway network and parks. “We are re-inventing the city of Johannesburg,” Tau said. “We are turning this city into a New York of Africa,” he added. Officials say the project will correct urban planning dating back to white minority rule, which pushed designated black areas to the outskirts of the city, with poor access to transport and other infrastructure and services.

“This is a major step in reversing the inequalities caused by the apartheid regime,” Tau told AFP. In some cases, commuting between the city centre and northern suburbs currently takes up to nearly two hours. A network of enhanced public transportation enabling people in outlying areas to make connections by trains, buses and taxis will be

established, together with cycle paths.

Alison Todes of the University of Witwatersrand’s School of Architecture argues that the time has come for an efficient transport system that will also help reduce the city’s carbon footprint. “The city is quite spread out and a lot of people use private cars. Less travel time and less cars on the road will also be good for the environment,” Todes said.

The launch three years ago of a high speed train service linking Johannesburg and the administrative capital Pretoria was a milestone in providing efficient public transport. But the train serves limited routes and high fares make it inaccessible to the bulk of the working class, who rely on crowded privately-run minibus taxis and ageing state-owned metro trains. “Our economy is growing, so we saw a need to prioritise investment on infrastructure to boost the economic capacity of the city,” Tau said.

The city will finance the renovations from its own coffers. Despite its established wealth, boasting the largest concentration of dollar millionaires in the country, parts of Johannesburg are dirt poor.

Clusters of palatial homes protected by gates and electric fences stand side-by-side with sprawling slums that have no running water and sanitation.

Nearly half a million of Johannesburg’s population lives in informal housing. Some have been on a waiting list for state-subsidised houses for 15 years. Almost a fifth of the total renovation budget

will be channelled to low-cost housing schemes dubbed “corridors of freedom”. “Housing is the biggest challenge facing the city. We can’t claim to be a world class African city when we still have people living in poor conditions,” Tau said.

Building improvements will also reach into the inner city, which has seen an exodus of large businesses due to decay and high levels of crime.

Business giants like the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, Africa’s largest bourse, left the oncethriving central business district for northern suburb Sandton-now the continent’s richest square mile. Many mining firms and banks joined the exodus to the north, though a few have started moving back.

“It is our goal to create a safe, business-friendly environment,” Tau said. In 2009, closed-circuit surveillance cameras were installed in areas around the inner city to help fight crime. But the main opposition Democratic Alliance (DA) party worries that the municipality will not be able to monitor spending adequately, amid daily reports of public sector corruption. For the past three years the city has failed to get a clean bill of health from the country’s auditor general. “We don’t dispute that it is a great investment, but we need assurances that public funds would be handled efficiently,” DA spokesman Mmusi Maimane said. “My main concern is that there is no capacity to handle such a huge budget,” he said. —AFP

A steeper yield curve could encourage equity investment

By Hayder Tawfik

T

he recent corrections in 10 years governtment bond yield in the US and Europe may have started the process of a shift in the yield curve that will get

steeper over the coming months.

Historically, a steep yield curve always indicated a global economic recovery and with the absence of inflation this could be very positive for equity investmentsand could be a long-term “buy” signal for equity investors.

The US Treasury yield curve, that measures the difference between 2 year bond yield and 30 years is a a very good indicator for future expectations about the economy, inflation and Federal Reserve policy. A much higher yield on longer dated bonds i.e. with a maturity of 30 years relative to the 2 year yield, feeds expectation that the economy will start growing much faster than the last few years. There is always a big lag in the policy changes and the actual economic activities. The Feral

Reserve cut rates aggressively back in 2008 and since complemented it with big Quantitative Easing measures. These two plicies have been working and now the stpeenes of the yield curve may tell us that the economy is aggressively reflating.

I think the recent corrections in the global stock markets was about to happen after a tremendous rally over the last few years. But, this rally in equities is still in place and will remain playable as the rasons for further gains is a stronger economy and good corprate growth without any inflation pressures. The danger for bond investors is that the Federal Reserve keeps short term interest rates near zero for longer than anticipated particularyly in the ebsence of infaltionary pressure. Also, banks will benefit form a steep yield curve as they borrow cheap and invest the money in higher yielding bonds earning from the carry tarde.

I think the weak global economic environment will make sure that the yield curve will stay steep for much longer period than recent history so that its effects will lead to much stronger economic growth. There is also the chance that the yield curve could steepen further in the coming months as the US Treasur y and most of other economies continue selling record amounts of government bonds. For international investors the advice is to saty on the sidlines till those yields become very attarctive. As for equity investors the advice is to be cauious and try to position themselves in those sectors that will benefit the most into any acceleration of global economic growth.

—Hayder Tawfik is the Executive Vice President of Asset Management, at Dimah Capital.

Bahrain bank Al-Khair eyes retail push DUBAI: Bank Al-Khair, a Bahrain-based investment bank, expects its potential merger with local player Khaleeji Commercial Bank to help provide it with retail banking exposure and more stable revenues, a top executive said. Unlisted Al-Khair and Khaleeji, both Islamic banks, set up a committee to study the feasibility of a merger, with any agreement subject to due diligence and approvals by shareholders and the regulator, Khaleeji said in a bourse filing earlier this month.

A merger would create an entity with paid-up capital of about $500 million and assets in the range of $600 million to $1 billion, Jonathan Holley, Bank AlKhair’s acting chief executive and head of investment banking, said in an interview yesterday. “Our motivation is to acquire a retail skill set. That will represent a bigger and more stable platform for growing and help us diversify into more consistent revenue streams,” Holley said.

Khaleeji has seven retail branches in Bahrain and investments worth about 100 million dinars ($265 million) outside the country. An independent firm is now finalising valuations for the two businesses, the executive said, adding that a deal would probably involve both cash and an exchange of shares. Khaleeji would be expected to remain listed on the Bahrain bourse after the deal. “Basically, the valuations will drive ownership post-closing. We don’t know the merger ratio yet. On the surface, they are about equal,” Holley said.

A deal would also help Khaleeji, which has a market value of about $162 million, expand into regions such as Turkey and Saudi Arabia, where Bank Al-Khair has operations. —Reuters

ADDIS ABABA: Sudan’s President Omar Al-Bashir is seen during the 20th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of the Heads of State and Government (OSOA) at an African Union meeting. —AFP

Sudan set to shut S Sudan oil flow KHARTOUM: Sudan on Sunday prepared to stop the oil flow from South Sudan on the orders of President Omar Al-Bashir but an expert said the process could take weeks. Bashir said petroleum companies working in South Sudan will be informed about “shutting down the pipeline” from Sunday, the official SUNA news agency reported. The order came after Sudan’s leader warned the South over backing rebels, who analysts say humiliated the authorities with recent attacks.

South Sudan’s government in Juba denies supporting insurgents in the north.

“I think if you do it properly it would take 45 days,” to stop the oil without causing damage, said the independent expert who asked not to be further identified. “It’s not like opening and closing a water tap.” At a press conference scheduled for 1100 GMT Sudan’s Information Minister Ahmed Bilal Osman was expected to comment further on relations with South Sudan. This will be the second closure of South Sudan’s oil wells and the Sudanese pipeline system in about 18 months.

Production had only resumed in early April after the two countries agreed on detailed timetables to normalise relations, after intermittent border clashes, by implementing the oil deal and eight other security and economic pacts. In early 2012 the South stopped its crude production after accusing Khartoum of theft in a dispute over export fees. The previous shutdown “went very well”, the expert said, adding Sudan’s oil ministry has enough experience to safely close the system and its pipeline running 1,500 kilometres (930 miles) to the Port Sudan terminal.

Thousands of wells on the South Sudanese side will need to be shut one by one and the pipeline flushed, he said. “You need to evacuate the oil somewhere,” the expert said. “If they do not do that properly the oil will gel. It’s not easy to reverse it to liquid again.” The expert was not sure what point the oil had reached in the pipeline but said “it should be close to Port Sudan”.

Bashir warned on May 27 that he would block the oil if the South’s government pro-

vides assistance to rebels fighting in South Kordofan and Blue Nile states, or in the Darfur region. Khartoum has long accused South Sudan of supporting rebels in the north, a complaint which for months held up implementation of the oil and security pacts.

Bashir’s late-May threat came at a ceremony following the army’s recapture of Abu Kershola in the far north of South Kordofan. Rebels held Abu Kershola and its garrison for a month after seizing it during a coordinated attack on several areas including the strategic and previously peaceful town of Umm Rawaba in North Kordofan.

Analysts called the initial attack a humiliation for the authorities.

More recently there were very strong rumours that the “liberation” of Abu Kershola only resulted from a withdrawal by rebels of the Sudan Revolutionary Front coalition, one Sudan analyst told AFP. “The problem is that nobody has seen any evidence” of continued South Sudanese support to the insurgents, the analyst said. “They (Sudan) have their own internal difficulties and they want to use South Sudan as a scapegoat,” South Sudanese Information Minister Barnaba Marial Benjamin told AFP. South Sudan split from Sudan in July 2011 in the wake of a referendum vote for independence under a peace deal that ended a 22-year civil war.

Independence left key issues unresolved, including how much the landlocked South should pay for shipping its oil through Sudan’s export infrastructure. In a March report the Small Arms Survey, a Swiss-based independent research project, said it found no evidence of weapons supplies from Juba to the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N) after the South’s independence. “There are, however, some reports that both SPLM-N and JEM are benefiting from other kinds of assistance,” including logistics, fuel and food, the report said. SPLM-N has been fighting for two years in South Kordofan and Blue Nile states. Analysts say they have been assisted by JEM, the Justice and Equality Movement of Darfur. —AFP

EXCHANGE RATES Malaysian ringgit Irani Riyal Irani Riyal

Commercial Bank of Kuwait US Dollar/KD GB Pound/KD Euro Swiss francs Canadian Dollar Australian DLR Indian rupees Sri Lanka Rupee UAE dirhams Bahraini dinars Jordanian dinar Saudi riyals Omani riyals Egyptian pounds US Dollar/KD GB Pound/KD Euro Swiss francs Canadian dollars Danish Kroner Swedish Kroner Australian dlr Hong Kong dlr Singapore dlr Japanese yen Indian Rs/KD Sri Lanka rupee Pakistan rupee Bangladesh taka UAE dirhams Bahraini dinars Jordanian dinar Saudi Riyal/KD Omani riyals Philippine Peso

.2770000 .4310000 .3680000 .3020000 .2780000 .2940000 .0040000 .0020000 .0771240 .7513970 .3930000 .0720000 .7366120 .0370000 CUSTOMER TRANSFER RATES .2841000 .4338920 .3707360 .3043390 .2795430 .0497330 .0443660 .2963730 .0365940 .2291130 .0029600 .0000000 .0000000 .0000000 .0000000 .0773800 .7538810 .0000000 .0757800 .7382100 .0000000

Al-Muzaini Exchange Co. Japanese Yen Indian Rupees Pakistani Rupees Srilankan Rupees Nepali Rupees Singapore Dollar Hongkong Dollar Bangladesh Taka Philippine Peso Thai Baht

ASIAN COUNTRIES 2.932 5.024 2.900 2.258 3.144 230.650 36.845 3.667 6.786 9.355

.2880000 .4470000 .3760000 .3170000 .2920000 .3020000 .0069000 .0035000 .0778990 .7589480 .4110000 .0770000 .7440150 .0440000 .2862000 .4370990 .3734770 .3065880 .2816100 .0501010 .0446940 .2985640 .0368650 .2308060 .0028810 .0052870 .0022880 .0029190 .0036810 .0779520 .7594530 .4048090 .0763400 .7436660 .0069870

Omani Riyal Qatari Riyal Saudi Riyal

94.271 0.271 0.273 GCC COUNTRIES 76.297 78.615 743.150 759.930 77.919

Saudi Riyal Qatari Riyal Omani Riyal Bahraini Dinar UAE Dirham

EUROPEAN & AMERICAN COUNTRIES US Dollar Transfer 286.000 Euro 380.950 Sterling Pound 447.880 Canadian dollar 283.170 Turkish lira 152.940 Swiss Franc 309.520 Australian Dollar 273.700 US Dollar Buying 284.800 GOLD 265.000 134.000 70.000

SELL DRAFT 275.96 283.06 313.19 382.40 285.40 448.60 3.04 3.676 4.990 2.240 3.132 2.890 77.77 759.61 40.24 406.18

Rate for Transfer US Dollar Canadian Dollar Sterling Pound Euro Swiss Frank Bahrain Dinar UAE Dirhams Qatari Riyals Saudi Riyals Jordanian Dinar Egyptian Pound Sri Lankan Rupees Indian Rupees Pakistani Rupees Bangladesh Taka Philippines Pesso Cyprus pound Japanese Yen Thai Bhat Syrian Pound Nepalese Rupees Malaysian Ringgit

Selling Rate 284.700 282.665 444.855 377.565 307.285 753.750 77.490 78.145 75.885 401.330 40.092 2.248 4.987 2.885 3.656 6.745 698.380 3.920 9.370 4.065 3.220 91.970

Bahrain Exchange Company COUNTRY

UAE Exchange Centre WLL COUNTRY Australian Dollar Canadian Dollar Swiss Franc Euro US Dollar Sterling Pound Japanese Yen Bangladesh Taka Indian Rupee Sri Lankan Rupee Nepali Rupee Pakistani Rupee UAE Dirhams Bahraini Dinar Egyptian Pound Jordanian Dinar

748.000 79.500 77.000

Dollarco Exchange Co. Ltd

ARAB COUNTRIES Egyptian Pound - Cash 40.200 Egyptian Pound - Transfer 40.194 Yemen Riyal/for 1000 1.335 Tunisian Dinar 177.310 Jordanian Dinar 404.040 Lebanese Lira/for 1000 1.919 Syrian Lier 3.108 Morocco Dirham 34.458

20 Gram 10 Gram 5 Gram

742.22 78.81 76.24

SELL CASH 283.000 283.000 299.000 372.000 288.000 438.500 3.300 3.740 5.400 2.460 3.420 2.985 78.800 763.500 40.500 415.000

British Pound Czech Korune Danish Krone Euro Norwegian Krone Scottish Pound Swedish Krona Swiss Franc Australian Dollar New Zealand Dollar Uganda Shilling Canadian Dollar Colombian Peso US Dollars Bangladesh Taka Cape Vrde Escudo Chinese Yuan Eritrea-Nakfa

SELL CASH Europe 0.4362595 0.0063924 0.0464885 0.3715460 0.0453490 0.4199538 0.0393970 0.2995971 Australasia 0.2610040 0.2170407 0.0001130 America 0.2726910 0.0001449 0.2826500 Asia 0.0036113 0.0031587 0.0454461 0.0164500

SELLDRAFT 0.4452595 0.0183924 0.0514885 0.3790460 0.0505490 0.4274538 0.0443970 0.3065971 0.2730040 0.2270407 0.0001130 0.2816910 0.0001629 0.2847500 0.0036663 0.0033887 0.0504461 0.0195500

Guinea Franc Hg Kong Dollar Indian Rupee Indonesian Rupiah Jamaican Dollars Japanese Yen Kenyan Shilling Malaysian Ringgit Nepalese Rupee Pakistan Rupee Philippine Peso Sierra Leone Singapore Dollar Sri Lankan Rupee Thai Baht Bahraini Dinar Egyptian Pound Ethiopeanbirr Ghanaian Cedi Iranian Riyal Iraqi Dinar Jordanian Dinar Kuwaiti Dinar Lebanese Pound Moroccan Dirhams Nigerian Naira Omani Riyal Qatar Riyal Saudi Riyal Sudanese Pounds Syrian Pound Tunisian Dinar UAE Dirhams Yemeni Riyal

0.0000442 0.0341420 0.0049330 0.0000241 0.0028441 0.0028429 0.0033194 0.0872890 0.0029864 0.0028631 0.0062778 0.0000727 0.2242216 0.0022088 0.0089197 Arab 0.7488788 0.0381002 0.0127888 0.1447792 0.0000792 0.0001731 0.3960509 1.0000000 0.0001746 0.0221536 0.0012095 0.7285995 0.0775585 0.0754000 0.0462984 0.0027525 0.1730062 0.0760996 0.0012845

Al Mulla Exchange Currency US Dollar Euro Pound Sterling Canadian Dollar Japanese Yen Indian Rupee Egyptian Pound Sri Lankan Rupee Bangladesh Taka Philippines Peso Pakistan Rupee Bahraini Dinar UAE Dirham Saudi Riyal *Rates are subject to change

Transfer Rate (Per 1000) 285.400 377.050 442.350 277.550 2.925 5.030 40.245 2.256 3.677 6.768 2.902 760.050 77.800 76.250

0.0000502 0.0372420 0.0049970 0.0000292 0.0038441 0.0030229 0.0035494 0.0942890 0.0031864 0.0029031 0.0067478 0.0000757 0.2302216 0.0022508 0.0095197 0.7573788 0.0401302 0.0192888 0.1465692 0.0000797 0.0002331 0.4035509 1.0000000 0.0001946 0.0461536 0.0018445 0.7395995 0.0783415 0.0760400 0.0468484 0.0029725 0.1790062 0.0775496 0.0013845

MONDAY, JUNE 10, 2013

BUSINESS

Weak dollar ahead of US job report NBK WEEKLY MONEY MARKET REPORT

V

olatility continues to overwhelm the FX markets as the uncertainty over the US job report added more speculation on whether the Fed will start unwinding its QE program. In the past few weeks, the market was bullish on the dollar on the belief that positive data would prompt the Fed to unwind some of its $85 billion monthly purchases. However, disappointing manufacturing figures joint with a disappointing ADP report raised concerns that the Non-farm payrolls might upset the market, which pushed investors to cut some of their long positions on Thursday. The dollar index opened the week at 83.27 it dropped to a low of 81.077 amid the private sector jobs data.

Finally, the index closed the week at 81.67 recouping some of its losses amid a better than expected non-farm payrolls figure.

The euro gained against the greenback throughout the week as better than expected figures from the EU manufacturing sector combined with cautiousness towards the US dollar boosted the currency to an almost three-month high.

Finally, on Thursday the euro gained some momentum as the ECB President Mario Draghi the recent improvements in economic data. The Euro opened the week at 1.3000 and reached a high of 1.3304 amid the ECB meeting. Lastly, the currency closed at 1.3218.

The Sterling Pound moved in tandem with the euro against their US counterpart. Cable also gained on the back of a series of better than expected data combined with investors unwinding their long dollar positions. Last week, the BoE kept their key lending rate and asset purchase program unchanged in Mervyn King’s last meeting as Governor of the bank. Sterling opened the week at 1.5196, and soared against the greenback to a high of 1.5683. The currency erased some of its gains and closed the week at 1.5558.

The yen gained dramatically against the US Dollar as uncertainty over the US labor market dictated trading throughout the week. On Friday, the greenback suffered its biggest intra-day drop in three-years against the yen as investors reversed their risky trades ahead of the NFP. The USDJPY opened the week at 100.55, only to break the 100.00 psychological barrier amid a disappointing Manufacturing figure from the US. On Friday, the pair dropped below the 98.65 support level and continued to reach a

2-month low of 95.00. The JPY closed the week at 97.56. A higher Yen threatens to weaken the Bank of Japan’s stimulus efforts, which have weakened the Japanese currency, boosting up the nation’s exports.

The Australian dollar dropped against the greenback as the Reserve Bank of Australia kept its key lending rate unchanged and opened the door for further easing. Additionally, a report showed that China’s manufacturing activity shrank in May pushing the Aussie even lower. The currency opened the week at 0.9605 and climbed to a high of 0.9792 amid disappointing manufacturing data from the US. However, the currency lost all of its gains and dropped to a low of 0.9432 after the RBA’s decision. Finally, the currency closed the week at 0.9497.

ECB Interest Rate Decision The European Central Bank left interest rates unchanged on Thursday and said it had discussed a number of other policy options it could take if the Euro zone economy does not emerge from recession later this year. ECB President Mario Draghi said economic conditions did not warrant moves such as taking the deposit rate into negative territory or cutting its main rate from a record low of 0.50 percent. However, these and other unconventional options, including very long-term loans to banks, measures to

Unemployment report Employment increased more than estimated in May and the unemployment rate climbed from a four-year low as more Americans entered the labor force, showing that the world’s largest economy is continuing to weather the effects of higher taxes and federal budget cuts. Payrolls rose 175,000 last month after a revised 149,000 increase in April that was smaller than first estimated. The unemployment rate climbed to 7.6 percent from 7.5 percent as more people enter the labor force.

Trade balance widening in April The trade deficit in the US widened in April from a more than three-year low, reflecting a rebound in imports of consumer goods and business equipment that eases concern slowdown in eco-

hence an expansionary business environment. The HSBC flash estimate is released a week before the beginning of the month, when official and final HSBC PMI are released, and it covers 85 to 90 percent of the data included in the final HSBC PMI reading. The manufacturing PMI is often used as a lead indicator on the condition of the economy, since China’s industrial sector makes up approximately half of the economy.

The weak manufacturing PMI figures are in line with the other monthly indicators, which depict a sluggish sector.

Although industrial production growth increased slightly, it came in lower than expected, while fixed asset investments growth came down to 20.1 percent YoY, from 20.7 percent in March, mainly due to a slowdown in the manufacturing sector. Exports are expected to ease back to low single-digit rates in May, down from double-digit growth in the previous month. However, in spite of the relatively dire manufacturing sector, the services sector remains resilient. Retail sales were stable in April, as it grew from 12.6 percent to 12.8 percent YoY, in-line with expectations. Even the PMI services figures were rather positive: according to HSBC, the services sector remained above 51 in May, while NBS’s indicator remained stable at above 54. Chinese authorities have already introduced a large amount of credit in the economy since the winter, but clearly most of it has not translated into the manufacturing sector.

There are two main takeaways from this: first, that increase in credit is flowing into the services sector. Indeed, services have been resilient in Q1, being the only sector whose contribution to growth accelerated (from 8.1 percent to 8.3 percent) - in contrast to the industrial sector’s contribution to growth which eased from 8.1 percent to 7.8 percent. This is a very encouraging development for a leadership trying to move away from export and investment driven growth, to a more domestic services driven economy.

Secondly, if the industrial sector continues to weaken, authorities, pressured to achieve a 7.5 percent GDP growth target, will most likely further loosen their fiscal and monetary policies, especially as inflationary pressures remain relatively low.

Expect the expansion of the services sector to remain the Chinese leaders’ main medium-term structural goal, which should support economic growth and the strengthening of the industrial sector to remain a shorter term goal, yet still a crucial one for 2013.

UK services Similarly, Britain’s service sector grew much faster than expected in May with new business increasing at its fastest rate in over three years indicating that the economy is picking up speed. The Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) for services rose to 54.9 in May from 52.9 in April. That was the strongest reading since March 2012.

Bank of England interest rate decision The Bank of England voted against restarting its bond buying on Thursday and left interest rates at a record low, bringing to an end Governor Mervyn King’s final Monetary Policy Committee meeting. The decision to leave policy unchanged before the arrival next month of King’s successor, former Canadian central bank chief Mark Carney, was widely expected by economists, as recent data suggests Britain’s recovery is gathering strength. Both the key lending rate and asset purchase program were kept unchanged at 0.50 percent and £375 billion respectively.

Australia GDP unchanged, lower than expected Australia’s economy posted a second straight quarter of moderate growth as a drop in business investment offset gains in trade and consumer spending at the start of 2013, a disappointing result that only reinforced the case for lower interest rates. The Australian economy grew at 0.6 percent slower than the expected 0.8 percent.

Jobless claims The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits fell last week, pointing to moderate job growth despite slowing economic activity. Initial claims declined by 11,000 to a seasonally adjusted 346,000.

KCIC WEEKLY ANALYSIS ON ASIA

A

Manufacturing disappoints the market Manufacturing in the US unexpectedly shrank in May at the fastest pace in four years, showing slowdowns in busi-

EU’s biggest countries such as Spain, Italy, France, Germany, and Greece saw increases.

ADP employment indicates sluggish recovery The private sector added 135,000 jobs in May, the ADP National Employment Report showed on Wednesday, an acceleration from April but missing forecasts for a gain of 165,000. April’s private payrolls were revised to an increase of 113,000 from the previously reported 119,000 gain.

Manufacturing PMIs suggest sluggish growth fter showing signs of recovery at the start of this year, the Chinese economy has been slowing down ever since. Already, the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) eased in the first quarter of 2013 from 7.9 percent to 7.7 percent YoY, when many economists expected a pick-up. The latest indication that the economy is still frail was evident in the first indicator of this month, the HSBC flash manufacturing purchasing managers’ index (PMI): it fell from 50.4 in April to 49.6 in May, with a reading below 50 indicating a contraction and one above, an expansion. The final revision of the HSBC manufacturing PMI, which comes out a week later, confirmed the economy’s manufacturing sector was slowing down, as it further declined to 49.2. This is the first time in seven months that the HSBC manufacturing PMI fell below 50. China’s National Bureau of Statistics(NBS) also published their official PMI index, but as usual, was more optimistic than its HSBC counterpart. One reason for the discrepancy is that it focuses more on larger state-run firms. The index showed that the manufacturing sector was still growing in May, but at a slow pace, as it penciled in a figure of 50.8, a slight increase from 50.6 in April. In both cases, there is a clear indication that the manufacturing sector is going through a sluggish phase.

The lower HSBC PMI print was mostly attributed to the ‘new export orders’ subindex falling into contraction for the second time in a row, suggesting weakening external demand for Chinese products. The country’s domestic demand has also witnessed a slowdown, as shown by the easing of the ‘new domestic orders’ sub-index. However, despite lower demand, the ‘output’ sub-index showed that industrial output is still expanding. Another positive take-away was the continued contraction in ‘inputcosts’. This is a sign that inflationary pressures are receding, which gives authorities room to ease policy if necessary, especially if the ongoing tightening of the property sector hampers the economy more than intended.

The PMI is an index composed from data based on monthly questionnaires answered by purchasing executives in different sectors. The index monitors seasonally adjusted month-on-month changes in the managers’ views on business conditions (i.e. business conditions are better, the same, or worse than last month). A reading of above 50 means that more than 50 percent of managers see conditions as better than last month,

nomic growth. The gap grew by 8.5 percent to $40.3 billion from a $37.1 billion in March shortfall that was smaller than previously estimated. American demand for foreign-made mobile phones, automobiles and computers accelerated, pointing to gains in household and business spending that will help the world’s largest economy endure government cutbacks. Record US exports of autos and parts and consumer goods also indicate global growth is stabilizing.

ness and government spending are holding back the world’s largest economy. The Institute for Supply Management’s factory index fell to 49, the lowest reading since June 2009, from the prior month’s 50.7.

Europe & UK Europe manufacturing contracts at a slower pace Euro-zone manufacturing output shrank less than initially estimated in May, proving its economy is beginning to show some life. The data supports the optimism of ECB chief Draghi predicting ‘gradual recovery’ for the euro-zone. The Euro area Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) increased to 48.3 last month from 46.7 in April. It indicates that European manufacturing output is still falling, but at the slowest rate since February 2012.

fire up the market for asset-backed securities and tweaks to its collateral framework were “on the shelf ”, Draghi said.

Finally, Draghi pointed to some recent economic data as being better than expected and said ECB policy and exports would support a slow recovery in the euro zone economy later this year.

RBA keeps rates unchanged Australia’s central bank left its benchmark interest rate at a record low, saying it has room to cut further and that the nation’s exchange rate remains high even after the biggest monthly fall since 2011. Policy makers kept the overnight cash-rate target at 2.75 percent.

UK manufacturing A strong rise in new orders helped Britain’s manufacturing sector grow at its fastest pace in over a year last month, a survey showed on Monday. The sector’s expansion for a second month running will boost optimism that Britain’s recovery is becoming more broad based and less reliant on the services sector. The Purchasing Managers’ Index rose to 51.3 in May from an upwardly revised 50.2 in April.

China Factory activity contracting in China China’s factory activity shrank for the first time in seven months in May as both domestic and external demand softened, while growth in the services sector cooled, pointing to slowing momentum in the world’s second largest economy.

The Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) for May fell to 49.2, the lowest level since October 2012 and down from April’s final reading of 50.4.

American auto industry to go on hiring spree DETROIT: The auto industry is about to go on a hiring spree as car makers and parts suppliers race to find engineers, technicians and factory workers to build the next generation of vehicles. The new employees will be part of a larger, busier workforce. From coast to coast, the industry is in top gear. Factories are operating at about 95 percent of capacity, and many are already running three shifts. As a result, some auto and parts companies are doing something they’ve been reluctant to consider since the recession: Adding floor space and spending millions of dollars on new equipment.

“We’re really bumping up against the edge,” says Michael Robinet, managing director of IHS Automotive, which forecasts auto production. “So it really is brick-and-mortar time.” The auto industry’s stepped-up hiring will help sustain the nation’s job growth and help fuel consumer spending. On Friday, the government said U.S. employers added 175,000 jobs in May, roughly the monthly average for the past year and a sign of the economy’s resilience.

At 7.6 percent, US unemployment remains well above the 5 percent to 6 percent typical of a healthy economy. Growth is still modest, in part because of higher taxes and government spending cuts that kicked in this year and weak overseas economies. But the housing market is strengthening, and U.S. consumer confidence has reached a five-year high.

The auto industry’s outlook is bright. Vehicle sales for 2013 could reach 15.5 million, the highest in six years. To meet that demand, automakers must find more people. Hundreds of companies that make parts for automakers have to hire, too, just to keep up. “As volume goes up, we will really need to add heads,” says Mel Stephens, a spokesman for Lear Corp., which makes automotive seats.

From January through May, automakers and parts companies hired 8,000 workers, a relatively slow rate. But the pace is picking up. The Center for Automotive Research expects the industry to add 35,000 over the full year. The hiring plans are widespread. Chrysler Group LLC, Honda Motor Co., General Motors Co., Mercedes-Benz and Ford Motor Co. plan to add more than 13,000 people this year.

Large parts companies such as Lear, BorgWarner Inc. and TRW Automotive Holdings Corp. are hiring at factories and research centers.

Smaller suppliers are adding jobs as well. The auto business has helped keep the economy afloat while Americans wait for the rest of the business world to start hiring. Since 2009, 1 in every 4 manufacturing jobs added in the US came in the auto industry, says Daniel Meckstroth, chief economist for the Manufacturers Alliance for Productivity and Innovation, a manufacturing trade group. The auto industry is just under 7 percent of US manufacturing jobs.

Car companies and parts makers created 167,500 jobs from the end of the recession in June 2009 through May. At the same time, U.S. auto

sales rose from a low point of 10.4 million in 2009 to an annual rate of more than 15 million so far this year. Chrysler’s comeback gave Jeff Caldwell the confidence to leave a human resources consulting firm. Caldwell joined the company in February as an assembly line supervisor at a Jeep Grand Cherokee factory in Detroit. He supervises 100 workers who build the SUV’s chassis.

“I knew Chrysler was moving in the right direction,” says Caldwell, 29, who was born in Detroit and always had an interest in cars. “They kind of reinvented themselves, and I really wanted to get in while I could.” Among the hiring planned for this

in Sussex, Wis., is so strong that the company is near its capacity to make metal parts for axles, drive shafts and interiors. It’s adding $1 million worth of equipment near Milwaukee and building a plant in Mexico to be closer to companies it supplies.

Most industry analysts predict that US auto sales will rise gradually during the next five years.

Estimates for this year range from 15 million to 15.5 million, compared with 14.5 million a year ago.

LMC Automotive, a Troy, Mich., forecasting firm, predicts that sales will gradually increase to 17 million in 2017. That level would be almost equal to

DETROIT: In this photo, Jeff Caldwell, 29 (right) a chassis assembly line supervisor, checks a vehicle on the assembly line at the Chrysler Jefferson North Assembly plant in Detroit. —AP year: Chrysler will add more than 3,500 workers this year at factories in Indiana, Ohio and Michigan to make transmissions and to build Jeeps and Ram pickups. Ford expects to hire 2,200 salaried workers in information technology, product development and manufacturing. Plus the company is hiring 1,400 factory workers and recalling another 2,000 laid-off employees, in Michigan and Missouri.

GM is hiring 4,000 engineers and computer professionals at four technical centers in Arizona, Georgia, Michigan and Texas to develop software and other innovations. Honda is adding at least 500 jobs this year at factories in Ohio, Indiana and Alabama as it moves more production to North America. At TRW Automotive, recruiters are looking for 50 engineers in the Detroit area to work on new safety features such as a system that warns drivers when large animals are in their path.

Smaller companies also are joining in.

Automotive business at Waukesha Metal Products

the boom years of the late 1990s and early 2000s.

Analysts say sales will climb as more people reach driving age. Also, many consumers and businesses still have cars and trucks they bought last decade, if not earlier. The average vehicle on US roads is now a record 11.2 years. The improving economy also helps lift sales. As the housing and construction sectors have come back to life, pickup sales have risen faster than the rest of the market.

That has meant a job for Curtis Enkey of suburban Kansas City.

Enkey was laid off in April of last year when Ford moved production of the Escape SUV from his factory near Kansas City to Louisville, Ky. He wasn’t supposed to come back until Ford started making a commercial van at his plant in July or August. But higher sales of the F-150 pickup, which also is made at his factory, brought an early call to return.

Now Enkey is happily working 50-hour weeks. A Ford worker since 1995, he makes about $29 per hour plus benefits. —AP

PRATAP

MONDAY, JUNE 10, 2013

BUSINESS

In us breadbasket, Latinos stuck in poverty FRESNO: On a warm spring day, farmworker Cristina Melendez was bedridden and unable to make her way back into the asparagus fields of central California for the kind of backbreaking work she’s done since childhood. The 36-yearold mother of seven was desperate. Her bank account had been at zero for months, the refrigerator was nearly empty, and she didn’t have enough to cover the rent. Lacking health insurance, Melendez couldn’t see a doctor or afford medication, so her illness dragged on - and another day came and went without work or pay. A native of Mexico who was smuggled into

the United States as a child, Melendez had once dreamed big: to be a bilingual secretary, to own a house and a car, to become a US citizen.

Agriculture, she hoped, would be the springboard to a better life - for her and her US-born children, the next generation of a family whose past and future are deeply rooted in the fertile earth of America’s breadbasket. California’s San Joaquin Valley is one of the richest agricultural regions in the world, with Fresno County farmers receiving a record $6.8 billion in revenues last year. But the region also consistently ranks among the nation’s most impoverished.

Sometimes called “Appalachia of the West,” it’s where families, especially Hispanic immigrants and their children, live year after year in destitution.

This divide causes concern because of what it may foretell as the nation’s Hispanic population explodes and the US moves toward becoming a majority minority nation. Census data show that non-Hispanic whites will cease to be a majority somewhere about the year 2043. The shift is largely driven by high birth rates among Hispanics as well as by declines in the aging white population.

FRESNO, California: This photo taken June 1, 2013 shows farmworker Cristina Melendez posing with her seven children and one grandchild. — AP Already there are a record number of Hispanics living below the poverty line nationwide, and the number of Hispanic children in poverty exceeds that of any other racial or ethnic group. Largely less educated, Hispanic workers are concentrated in relatively low-skill occupations, earning less than the average for all US workers.

“America’s communities have become divided between economic winners and losers,” said Daniel Lichter, a Cornell University sociologist and past president of the Population Association of America.

“Increasingly, Hispanics begin life’s race at a decided disadvantage, raising the specter of new Hispanic ghettos and increasing isolation.” As poor working Latinos settle across the country, fueling local economies in industries such as manufacturing, construction and agriculture, some are left with little room to climb the job ladder.

That holding pattern leads to a cycle of poverty that shows up in the next generation of US citizens. With poverty stunting childhood development and stymieing educational attainment, experts say many Latino children are on track to remain stuck in low-skilled, underpaid jobs. Harvard economist George Borjas projects that the children of today’s immigrants will earn on average 10 percent to 15 percent less than nonimmigrant Americans, with Latinos in particular struggling. The trend could have broad repercussions.

“Much of the nation’s labor force growth, its future growth, will come from the Hispanic community,” said Mark Hugo Lopez, associate director of the Pew Hispanic Center, pointing to research showing that childhood poverty affects education and jobs. “This not only has implications for Latino families, but for the nation as a whole.”

The cycle is especially evident in the fields, vineyards, orchards and groves of the San Joaquin Valley, which stretches about 250 miles between the San Francisco Bay Area and Los Angeles. Thousand-acre farms dominate, thriving on a system of dammed rivers, drained lakes, advanced fertilizers and pesticides. Despite agriculture’s modernization and its steadily growing revenues, surprisingly little has changed for the workers themselves.

Farmers have always relied on hiring racial or ethnic minorities ranked at the bottom of society. Valley crops once were harvested by Chinese, Japanese, Punjabis, Filipinos, Mexican braceros, southern Europeans, African-Americans and the white American Dust Bowl arrivals that were an exception to the immigrant mold.

Today ’s crops are picked primarily by Hispanic immigrants like Melendez or their American-born children.

Hispanics account for half the population in Fresno County, and one-third of them live in poverty. Nationally, 1 in 4 Latinos lives below the poverty line, the second-highest percentage of all ethnic and racial groups, after blacks. That’s compared with an overall national rate of 15 percent and a rate for whites of about 10 percent.

Nowhere are these differences more apparent than in Fresno, California’s fifthlargest city and the state’s unofficial agricultural capital. Fresno’s north side - home to bankers, doctors and teachers - is dotted with gated communities and McMansions with manicured lawns. It boasts newly paved streets, bike lanes, generous sidewalks, a popular mall and parks.

Melendez’s neighborhood in southeast Fresno is a world away. Children on bikes crisscross cracked streets, their gutters strewn with trash. Shabby apartment complexes stretch for blocks. Melendez’s threebedroom home sits on the bottom floor of one such complex, shared by Latino immigrants and Hmong refugees.

Melendez’s journey here began with her father, who crossed the US-Mexico border illegally in the late 1970s to pick oranges.

He returned to Mexico within a year, but Melendez’s mother, Maria Rosales, then came to pick grapes, almonds and peaches.

“People told me I would be sweeping dollars with a broom in California, but what I

swept were only pennies,” said Rosales, 60, who is now a U.S. citizen and still lives in Fresno.

At 13, Melendez, along with two of her sisters, joined her mother in California, having trekked with a smuggler across the border. The family settled in a small farmworker town in Fresno County. After school and on weekends, Melendez and her sisters picked the grapes that surrounded them.

“It was loneliness. It was sadness,” Melendez said. “I hated grapes.” Melendez dropped out of high school to get married and to get away from working the vineyards, but she and her husband soon separated. Though she spoke good English, she still lived in the country illegally and lacked a high school diploma, barring most employment. She again turned to the fields.

When Melendez can work, she picks every type of crop, from asparagus and grapes to chili peppers. In the offseason, she ties vines and trims branches. Paid by the hour, Melendez generally receives California’s minimum wage of $8. But whenever possible she works “piece rate,” getting paid a set amount per box or bucket picked. Running through the fields to pick as much as she can, she once grossed about $3,000 for a few weeks of work.

But lean months with no work inevitably follow such windfalls. Without legal status, Melendez can’t file for unemployment. She obtains food stamps for her U.S.-citizen children, but otherwise receives little government help. To make ends meet, she sometimes peddles barbecued beef, tamales and beauty products door to door and rents a room to a friend.

“That’s what I have, and that’s what I make do with,” she said, “because the process of doing something else is difficult.”

Her children know this, too. Her eldest sons, age 18 and 21, have high school diplomas but no jobs. The oldest, Cristian, started attending Fresno City College’s automotive technician program with the help of a loan but then dropped out. Last winter, with help from a local employment program, he got a two-month job at a bakery. He’s also filled temporary positions in maintenance and at a vacuum cleaner company.

Now a parent himself, with a 3-year-old son to support, Cristian said he’s desperate to find something permanent. He worked as a farmworker in high school and last year picked peaches, nectarines and grapes. He eventually hopes to get a business degree and open a tattoo parlor and smoke shop, but still fears following in his mother’s footsteps - never finding a way out of the fields.

“I don’t want to work in the fields, busting my ass for low pay. That doesn’t make sense,” he said. “But if I don’t find work soon, we’re low on income, so I’m going to have to go to the fields.” In Fresno, advocates and experts for years have noticed the inextricable relationship between agriculture, the Hispanic community and poverty, and sounded the alarm. But little has been done to tackle the root of the problem. “ The number of working people in poverty is increasing, and we’re falling further behind in education and health. We need to reverse that trend. Otherwise we’ll continue to be seen as a poor area with bad statistics,” said Caroline Farrell, executive director of the Valley-based Center on Race, Poverty & the Environment. “And it will get worse. We won’t have a sustainable community.”

Fresno Mayor Ashley Swearengin hopes to reverse the trend and last year led a citywide program called Learn2Earn, which helps residents earn their high school diplomas and encourages them to pursue higher education and job training. “We’re talking about changing the mindset of people who think this is their lot in life, this is all they are ever going to do,” said Linda Gleason, who leads Learn2Earn.

“It’s about tapping into people’s internal motivation - and showing them education and a better job are not impossible dreams.” — AP

MONDAY, JUNE 10, 2013

BUSINESS

Brazil’s orange growers face hard times RIO DE JANEIRO: High production costs have orange growers in Brazil, the world’s top orange juice exporter, bracing for a tough citrus season, despite last season’s record harvest and high juice prices. “The orange market is going through its worst moment in two years: world consumption is stagnating, production costs are rising and processors are getting more and more powerful,” said Marco Antonio do Santos, president of the Taquaritinga growers’ union.

In the last season, Brazil produced an estimated 1.4 million tons of oranges, well above the one million tons forecast for the upcoming season. The record har-

vest solidified the country’s ranking as the world’s leading orange juice producer and exporter, but it also increased world stocks even as Brazilian exports have been falling since 2007. Soaring production costs mean the overproduction has not translated into lower pricesprices of concentrated juice have actually tripled since 2005 to reach $2,300 a tonbut it’s still not enough to keep growers out of the red.

Booming Brazil has updated its labor code and increased its minimum wage, which this year rose to the equivalent of $337 per month from $332. Land lease costs and prices of pesticides linked to oil

pices have also risen. “The government calculated that we have a production cost of around $5 dollars per crate (40.8 kilograms or 90 pounds), while we are selling it at $3.5 to $4 dollars,” said Antonio do Santos, of the growers’ plight.

“In the citrus belt of Sao Paulo, half of the orange farms have disappeared over the past 10 years, and only the most productive survive,” said Antonio do Santos.

“The other producers have switched to sugar cane, corn and soybean.” According to data from the government’s crop supply agency Conab, 36,700 hectares (90,000 acres) of orange trees were uprooted between 2012 and 2013.

Independent growers have been hurt by increasing coordination among the companies that process and market the juice.

One coalition of exporters-the Brazilian Association of Citrus Exporters, or Citrus BR, — monopolizes 97 percent of orange juice exports. “We are uniting because the bottling companies are merging,” said Ibiapaba Netto, a spokesman for Citrus BR, adding that, despite the rising price of concentrated juice, they can’t afford to pay growers any extra. “Orange juice faces new competition from energy drinks, multi-vitamin beverages, cold teas, flavored waters and Chinese apple juice, which is cheaper,” he explained.

Both sides agree, however, their industry could benefit from tapping into new markets-and that one with major potential is right at their feet: the domestic Brazilian market, where orange juice is rarely consumed.

“Brazil is booming. In a few years, our country can have as many people drinking industrial orange juice as in Germany, which is the world’s leading consumer per capita,” said Antonio do Santos. The orange production chain generates more than 200,000 direct jobs in over 300 Brazilian cities and export revenues of between $1.5 and $2.5 billion annually. — AFP

UK lawmakers meet to thrash bank reforms Future of RBS key issue at meeting

IVANEC: A woman displays shoes at the ‘Ivancica’ (daisy in Croatian) children’s shoe factory in Ivanec, Croatia, some 90 kilometres (60 miles) north of the capital of Zagreb. — AFP

EU entry shakes up Croatia’s economy ZAGREB: On July 1st Croatia becomes the European Union’s 28th member, a seminal moment for this former Yugoslav republic that waged a bloody four-year war against Serbs after defiantly declaring independence in 1991. But for Croatian businesses, the implications of joining the EU depend greatly on where you stand: state-run companies are fretting over looming losses of thousands of jobs, while small entre peneurs are hopeful for opportunities. A proud symbol of Croatia’s independence, Croatia Airlines, is fighting to survive in the new order where rules from Brussels replace business as usual.

The airline should be an easy fit for Croatia’s economy that is heavily dependent on tourism to its Adriatic coast. But joining the bloc requires adhering to a constellation of rules regulating almost all aspects of everyday business and accordingly, Croatia will be scrapping state subsidies to its cherished flagship airline.

Restructuring loss-making state companies is no easy matter and the process has exposed deep-rooted problems often linked to inept, politically-appointed management.

A majority of state-owned companies are oversized, inefficient and seen as hotbeds of corruption and with the introduction of new EU-harmonised business rules, job cuts are inevitable. At Croatia Airlines, more than a fifth of some 1,100 jobs will be lost, a fate that triggered a strike in May followed by tough negotiations on new contracts. The government has repeatedly warned that there was no alternative to job cuts if the airline wanted to survive.

“If the restructuring plan is not implemented the company would go bankrupt.

There is no step back,” Transport Minister Sinisa Hajdas Doncic said. Croatia Airlines chief executive Kresimir Kucko stressed that cuts were needed to remain competitive after EU entry. “As owner, the longterm interest of the state is that the company is privatised,” Kucko told AFP. The restructuring of Croatia Airlines, which posted losses of some 64 million euros ($83 million) last year, will include the cancellation of some non-profitable routes and reducing its 13-plane fleet.

The airline’s plight is shared by other state-owned transport companies-with some 10,000 people set to lose their jobs by 2015, a third of the entire workforce in

the sector. During the long 10-year accession process that led to EU entry, Croatia had to also agree to revamp its heavily subsidised shipyards, which could also bring big losses to the industry’s 10,000-strong workforce.

The newest EU member has an unemployment rate above 20 percent, among the highest in the bloc. “We are entering seriously ill an EU that is itself seriously ill,” prominent analyst Zarko Puhovski warned.

But the centre-left government hopes that entry into the EU will help attract investors and is eyeing 11.7 billion euros in EU financial assistance to boost an economy that has not grown since 2009.

While gloom hangs over the state-managed sector, some private companies are enjoying success. Not far from the Croatia Airlines headquarters near Zagreb, the ‘Ivancica’ (daisy in Croatian) children’s shoe factory is enjoying booming business, with sales growing in Austria, Britain and Germany.

“We strictly respect deadlines and carefully listen to market demands that we can meet swiftly as our production facilities are here,” said Eda Rain, spokeswoman for the firm located in Ivanec, some 90 kilometres (60 miles) north of Zagreb.

In the factory showroom, the young woman proudly showed dozens of models, ranging from sneakers to fancy ballerinas.

“It is important to know your market,” she stressed, explaining that German buyers were more traditional regarding colours and ornaments, while for Russia shoes often have fur or glitter. The company, founded in 1946, today employs 700 people. Some 70 percent of its income comes from exports, out of which 80 percent is to the EU. “Our priority market is central Europe where so far we’ve been present only through wholesale channels. As on July 1 customs barriers will be removed so we’ll get even closer to our buyers,” Rein said.

Ivancica recently enriched their main children shoes brand Froddo with a women’s line and acquired another local shoe factory. EU membership is also hoped to boost Internet sales. “Of course it will be better after July 1. EU membership means stability and better options for further development,” worker Milan Stefanec said. “We have good quality products and good marketing. This is a formula for success,” he said. — AFP

Al-Tijari announces winners of Najma draw KUWAIT: Commercial Bank of Kuwait held the Al-Najma Account Daily draw yesterday. The draw was held under the supervision of the Ministry of Commerce & Industry represented by Abdulaziz Ashkanani.

The winners of the Najma Daily Draw who get KD 7,000 are: Bader Waleed Mohammed Al-Fouderi, Abdullah Najiullah, Mohammed Aref Shaker Babu Mohammed, and Abudalnasser Ali Nasser Mohammed.

The Commercial Bank of Kuwait announces the biggest daily draw in Kuwait with the launch of the new Najma account. Customers of the bank can now enjoy a KD 7,000 daily prize which is the highest in the country and another 4 mega prizes during the year worth KD 100,000

each on different occasions: The National Day, Eid Al-Fitr, Eid Al-Adha and on June 19 which is the date of the bank’s establishment.

With a minimum balance of KD 500, customers will be eligible for the daily draw provided that the money is in the account one week prior to the daily draw or 2 months prior to the mega draw. In addition, for each KD 25 a customer can get one chance for winning instead of KD 50.

Commercial Bank of Kuwait takes this opportunity to congratulate all lucky winners and also extends appreciation to the Ministry of Commerce and Industry for their effective supervision of the draws which were conducted in an orderly and organized manner.

LONDON: New proposals to improve standards and culture within UK banks will be thrashed out

by British lawmakers in important meetings next week which could shape the industry for years to come. The Parliamentary Commission on Banking Standards, led by Conservative Andrew Tyrie, was set up by the government last July after Barclays was found to have manipulated global interest rate benchmarks, sparking public outrage.

After months of compiling evidence from former and current bank executives, regulators, central bankers, academics, politicians and consumer rights activists, the committee is putting the finishing touches to a 600-page report and will debate it today and tomorrow, industry and political sources said. One of the areas which will be most intensely debated will be the future of RBS, 81 percent-owned by the government.

Some members of the commission, including former British Finance Minister Nigel Lawson, want the bank to be broken up, with its toxic assets hived off into a ‘bad bank’, leaving the

resulting ‘good bank’ better placed to increase lending to British households and businesses.

But others are concerned that not enough evidence has been considered on the matter.

Outgoing Bank of England Governor Mervyn King brought the issue to the fore by recommending a breakup of RBS in the last of 73 sessions in which he gave evidence to the committee as part of its industry-wide review.

Commission sources have said the report will put forward such a move as an option but will not make a definitive recommendation on whether it will be implemented. The commission’s final proposals will suggest there is not enough competition within the industry, the sources said, and that Britain’s major banks are still not adequately regulated.

“One of the key issues is that the major banks are too big and too complex to be able to provide effective corporate governance,” one commission member told Reuters. Ways to create new banks and foster competition in the industr y will be considered by the committee.

Suggestions by some members that customers switch accounts more easily and start-up banks carry less capital are already being implemented. The commission may also recommend a review into the viability of an industry-wide IT platform, which would enable customers to keep their account numbers when they change banks. Excessive pay will also be tackled: the committee will likely recommend tougher sanctions against executives associated with failed banks to stop them working in the industry again.

The commission is aiming to publish the report on June 17, according to one source, two days prior to British Finance Minister George Osborne’s annual Mansion House policy speech to London’s financiers. A spokesman declined to comment. So far the committee has achieved a success with Osborne adopting its proposal to give regulators the power to break banks up if they abuse new rules designed to protect retailers’ deposits from riskier investment activities. — Reuters

Want more time off? Some employers let you buy it WASHINGTON: Want more time off work to hang out at the beach?

Need a little cash and have vacation days to spare? Some companies allow their workers to buy and sell vacation time, a perk that gives workers more flexibility in managing their time off. The novel approach might help employees buy some extra days off to take the trip of a lifetime or spend more time with a newborn. Co-workers could sell off unused days to get some extra money.

“When times are a little tight, this benefit really doesn’t cost a lot of extra money to employers to provide,” said Julie Stich, research director for the International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans. “It’s offered by more forward thinking or flexible-type employers.”

A soon-to-be released survey by the Society for Human Resource Management found that 9 percent of employers allowed workers to cash out unused vacation time. Five percent let employees purchase additional vacation days through a payroll deduction. An additional 7 percent allowed employees to donate vacation time to a general pool that can be used by other workers.

The approach is even more popular with employers that have “paid time off” or PTO plans that combine vacation time, sick leave and personal days into one comprehensive plan. About 52 percent of employers reported offering such plans. Of those, 19 percent offered a cash-out option and 15 percent offered a donation program. One percent give their workers unlimited time off. The cost is usually one week’s salary, prorated over the course of the year. Employees often have to decide whether to participate during an annual fall enrollment process and it becomes part of their benefits for the upcoming year.

Nora Kouba, who manages company cars at construction materials giant USG Corp. in Chicago, said she used to buy an extra week off to care for her kids or take long summer vacations with the family. But these days, she tends to sell her excess vacation time.

“I loved having the extra week when I needed it, and now I like having the extra money,” Kouba said. USG allows all 9,000 of its employees worldwide to buy or sell up to a week of vacation time each year. A little more than half of the company’s employees typically buy an extra week off, while just 5 percent sell a week, USG spokesman Robert Williams said. “People really value their time and appreciate the benefit,” Williams said. The company used to allow employees to buy up to two weeks of extra vacation a year. But Williams said it was too popular and was cut back to just one week to avoid scheduling prob-

lems in USG’s production facilities.

A flexible vacation policy has been in place about for about 15 years at Kimberly Clark Corp., based in Irving, Tex. The company allows employees to purchase up to five extra vacation days each year during a fall enrollment period, said spokesman Bob Brand. “It’s very popular,” Brand said. “It provides a great deal of flexibility for someone that may have a big trip planned or an event that’s going to take an extended amount of time.”

The company does not allow employees to sell vacation days, but they can carry a limited number of unused days over into the following years. Brand said the program is open to about half of the company’s 15,000 U.S. employees, so as not to interfere with production. About 2,000 workers used it last year. In most plans, the employees aren’t actually buying and selling time from each other, Stich said. Time sold back to the company goes into a pool and in certain cases, other employees can buy it. New employees who get limited vacation time during their first few years at a com-

pany are among those who appreciate the benefit most, she said. Sandi Winant, a 24-year employee at financial services company USAA in Colorado Springs, said she buys a week of extra vacation time every year to work on a side business selling salsas and dips at festivals and events around country. She plans to pursue the business when she retires in a year or two. “It’s spread out over a whole year’s paycheck so you don’t even notice it,” she said.

“This gives me that extra padding to do what I want.” Jeff Weiss, senior vice president of benefits at San Antonio-based USAA, said about 41 percent of the company’s 25,000 employees bought vacation time last year, while 11 percent sold it.

“We think time off is actually critical to productivity,” Weiss said.

“When people take their time off to refresh and renew, we believe they service the members more effectively.” Some employers have set up flexible benefit plans where employees can sell back their extra vacation in exchange for a different type of benefit they find more valuable, such as more disability insur-

ance or life insurance, Stich said. An employee can get credits they use to buy benefits and then trade in the dollar or credit equivalency of those vacation days in exchange for other benefits they want.

Evren Esen, manager of the Society for Human Resource Management’s survey research center, said more companies are moving toward PTO plans that give employees more flexibility in determining how they want to use their leave. “In terms of human resources it’s easier to manage it,” Esen said.

“They put everything together in one bank and don’t have to separately track sick, vacation or personal days.” The PTO plans also encourages employees to schedule most of their leave time, which can be more reliable for the company than workers suddenly taking a day off on short notice, Esen said. The number of companies with PTO plans has grown from 42 percent in 2009, to 52 percent this year, according to the group’s annual survey of more than 500 randomly selected human resource professionals. — AP

CHICAGO: In this photo, Nora Kouba, an employee at USG Corporation sits at her work station in Chicago. —AP

Citroen DS models win awards KUWAIT: DS was launched a year ago in China, the world’s biggest car market. Positioned as a distinct brand for Chinese customers, it hit all the headlines at the latest Shanghai Motor Show with the Wild Rubis concept car. A concentrate of technology boasting powerful and refined styling, Wild Rubis won the “Best Revealing Car Award”, presented by the Chinese motoring magazine BitAuto, and the “Best Concept Car” prize from Netease magazine. The DS World, the world’s first flagship DS venue, located in Shanghai, also won the “Best Service Agency” award.

Back in the “Old World”, the CITROEN DS3 won “Best Supermini 2013” in the UK as part of a JD Power

satisfaction survey carried out with UK vehicle owners in May for What Car? magazine. Ranking 4th out of 116 models, the CITROEN DS3 scored five stars in the performance, service and running costs categories.

In Germany, the CITROEN DS5 was voted “All-terrain Hybrid Car of the Year 2013” in early April by over 100,000 readers of Auto Bild Allrad, Europe’s leading 4x4 motoring magazine. The CITROEN DS5’s hybrid technology succeeded in winning over the readers in one of Europe’s most demanding markets with its top-level driving pleasure, new at-thewheel experience and ultra-low CO2 emissions of just 88 g/km.

MONDAY, JUNE 10, 2013

BUSINESS

Chevrolet prices on fire this summer at Yusuf A Alghanim & Sons Automotive KUWAIT: Yusuf A Alghanim & Sons Automotive, the exclusive distributor of Chevrolet vehicles in Kuwait, is starting the summer by launching one of the strongest offers on the Chevrolet line up offering very special prices .The offer includes the Chevrolet Spark starting at KD 2,999, Chevrolet Sonic starting at KD 3,555, Chevrolet Cruze starting at KD 4,444, Chevrolet Captiva starting at KD 5,999 and the Chevrolet Malibu starting at KD 5,444. Chevrolet’s range is the ultimate choice for people seeking cars of a great value for money.

The new promotion offers a splendid array of powerful and modern Chevrolet vehicles including the elegant Chevrolet Cruze, a car that continues to evolve into one of Chevrolet’s most impressive vehicles in its segment. Now available with the new infotainment system ‘MyLink’, the sleek and sporty 2013 Cruze offers more value for customers than ever.

Chevrolet MyLink is the brand-new and sophisticated infotainment system, which brings smartphone capabilities into the

vehicle. Chevrolet MyLink aggregates content from a smartphone onto the seven-inch, high resolution, full color touchscreen display. Apart from its large sunroof, the Cruze is equipped with ABS, USB connectivity, frontal and side airbags, Bluetooth, rearview camera, Cruise Control and push start button, 17-inch alloy wheels and fog lamps. The Cruze is also powered with a 1.8-liter engine that generates an impressive 140 hp.

Customers can also choose the Chevrolet Malibu which has proved to be the ultimate choice for sedan fans. The sporty, mid-sized sedan and the winner of the 5-star safety rating, is one of the most aerodynamic sedans in the world and is available in 4 cylinder, 2.4 L, and 6 cylinder. Apart from its luxurious and spacious interior, the Malibu has a whisper quiet cabin, ambient lighting and includes MyLink which is Chevrolet’s infotainment system. The All New Malibu also has Bluetooth technology, remote engine starter, push start engine, smart key, and much more, all of which enhance the

Malibu driver’s experience.

The 4 cylinder 2.4 L, and 6-cylinder Chevrolet Captiva will surely captivate the eyes of crossover fans. Enriched with the latest modern technologies, the Captiva includes 3 rows of seats, and is loaded with technological features including Bluetooth, CD and MP3 players as well as ABS, rear parking sensors, front fog lamps, standard integrated turn signals on the outside rear view mirrors and standard 17’’ and 19’’ Alloy wheels all of which make the Captiva one of the most popular crossovers in Kuwait.

Yusuf A Alghanim & Sons Automotive adds the finishing touch to the ownership experience with high-quality aftersale services. With the world’s biggest and most advanced automotive service center, customers do not have to worry about their vehicles’ service and maintenance needs. Visit the nearest Yusuf A Alghanim showroom and benefit from this great offer to own a Chevrolet vehicle that will suit your life style at the best value for money.

Burgan Bank has exclusive offer for BuBa Kids account holders KUWAIT: Burgan Bank announced yesterday that it will be offering its BuBa kids account holders a special discount when registering for the Q8hoops summer camp for basketball.

The camp will run from June 22 until 4th of July 2013 at Kuwait Club in Kaifan. Q8Hoops is a basketball academy that provides a variety of services that include basketball skills development, personal and group basketball training, as well as organizing a range of basketball events and camps. The BuBa Kids Account is a savings account, with a minimum opening balance of KD 10. Children up to 14 years old, will also be entitled to a free branded ATM VISA Electron card that can be used at any ATM or point of sale (POS) in Kuwait and around the world.

Gulf Bank signs MoU with Export Import Bank of Korea KUWAIT: Gulf Bank, with The Export Import Bank of Korea (Korea Eximbank), signed a Memorandum of Understanding which aims at collaboratively financing the industrial and commercial projects in the state of

Kuwait. The signing ceremony took place in Seoul, South Korea, on May 28, 2013, and was attended by Khaled Al-Mutawa - Gulf Bank’s General Manager International Banking & Investments, Elie Nakouzi - Gulf

Bank’s Assistant General Manager International Banking & Investments, and Byung-Chul Won - Director General Overseas Constructions Finance Office at Korea Eximbank.

Under the MoU, Gulf Bank will

cooperate with Korea Eximbank to assist and support the Korean companies in bidding for projects in Kuwait by providing them with the financial and advisory support. Gulf Bank’s MoU with Korea Eximbank reflects the bank’s commitment to support Korean business in the State of Kuwait and in return, the development of the Kuwaiti economy.

Gulf Bank will jointly work with Korea Eximbank to provide financial solutions to Korean companies in Kuwait in order to facilitate their activities and further the level of activity between both leading institutions.

The Export-Import Bank of Korea (Korea Eximbank) is an official export credit agency providing comprehensive export credit and guarantee programs to support Korean enterprises in conducting overseas business.

Since its establishment in 1976, the bank has actively supported Korea’s export-led economy and facilitated economic cooperation with foreign countries.

The bank also provides overseas investment credit, natural resources development credit, import credit, and information services related to business opportunities abroad.

Protiviti names chairman of COSO KUWAIT: Bob Hirth, a senior managing director with Protiviti, a global consulting firm, has been named chairman of the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO), the organization that provides thought leadership and guidance on internal control, enterprise risk management, and fraud deterrence.

“I am thrilled to become the chairman of COSO and look forward to communicating with many organizations and individuals on the key enhancements to and benefits of the recently revised COSO Internal Control Framework,”said Hirth.”I also look forward to working with all of COSO’s sponsoring organizations and the many other firms and professionals who have contributed to COSO in developing and disseminating additional thought leadership materials on topics relevant to and aligned with our mission.

My last eleven years at Protiviti have been a critical part of preparing me for this leadership role and for delivering on COSO’s mission and focus on risk management, internal control and fraud deterrence.”

“We congratulate Bobfor being selected to lead COSO, and I know he will do an outstanding job to help fulfill its mission,” said Joseph

Tarantino, Protiviti president and CEO. “Bob’s extensive experience and knowledge of internal audit,plus his tireless work ethic, ensure that COSO is in good hands.”

A founding member of Protiviti and leading

Bob Hirth

industry voice on issues surrounding risk management and internal controls, Hirth’s selection was driven in part by his professional prowess, adept public speaking and leadership skills, and commitment to organizational success achieved through effective governance practices.

Hirth was chosen by the committee following an extensive four-month search process. He will succeed current COSO chair David Landsittel, who has served since 2009. Hirth will serve a three-year term, which began June 1, and will remain located in San Francisco.

Hirth has more than 25 years of professional services experience working with a broad range of global, public and local private organizations in a variety of industries, helping them manage their most significant business risks and issues.

During his career, he has served as executive vice president for global internal audit for Protiviti and is currently serving a two-year term(20122013) on the Standing Advisory Group of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB). He is a member of Financial Executives International (FEI) and The Institute for Internal Auditors (IIA). In March 2013, Hirth was inducted into The Institute of Internal Auditors’ Hall of Distinguished Audit Practitioners.

Chinese lenders draw industry critics’ ire SINGAPORE: Chinese banks have sharply increased loans to global ship-owners as European lenders retreat from the market but some are driving a hard bargain: the finance often comes with the condition that vessels be built in China. The financing has given China’s shipyards a lifeline after new orders dropped to a seven-year low in 2012. The government wants Chinese yards to move up the value chain by building higher-quality vessels and to become a player in the offshore energy equipment industry, a lucrative sector in the generally depressed shipbuilding market.

The role played by Chinese lenders has drawn the ire of some industry critics, who say an already oversupplied global fleet will only get bigger because ship-owners are taking advantage of cheaper quotes from Chinese yards compared to other builders.

Chinese shipyards won new orders of 11.57 million deadweight tonnes in the first four months of the year, up 57 percent from the same period in 2012, data from the China Association of the National Shipbuilding Industry showed.

A key supporter has been the Export-Import Bank of China, a policy bank that provides financing to advance government economic goals. “China Ex-Im is open to all clients who build vessels in China,” said Chen Bin, deputy general manager of the bank’s transport finance department. “In this tough time we want to do as much as we can to help (Chinese) shipyards get orders from shipping companies,” Chen told a Sea Asia shipping conference in Singapore in April.

Big Greek order Last month, Greek ship-owners ordered 142 vessels, more than 60 percent of their global orderbook,

from Chinese yards. Good pricing and Chinese financing were among the reasons, Greek Shipping Minister Kostis Moussouroulis was quoted by China’s official Xinhua News Agency as saying at the time.

Among them, Diana Shipping Inc, Angelicoussis Shipping Group Limited and Dynagas Ltd. got loans from the Export-Import Bank of China, the bank said on its website.

The Ex-Im Bank as well as commercial banks such as the International and Commercial Bank of China and the Bank of China are some of the most active lenders. Together they doubled their share of the loan book of the top 40 lenders to the shipping industry in the last two years to 11 percent, or about $46.5 billion in loans, data from Norway’s DNB, the world’s largest shipping loan provider, shows.

Ex-Im Bank had about $13 billion in outstanding shipping loans in May, up 30 percent from the end of 2011, and planned to offer more, Chen told Reuters.

He declined to give a target. “The enticement to order at particular yards on the basis that you will get financed certainly attracted a lot of non-listed European companies,” said Timothy Ross, head of Asia-Pacific transport research at Credit Suisse.

Seadrill Co. Ltd, Sevan Drilling ASA and Singapore-based Frigstad Offshore Ltd, all of which have made orders at Chinese yards within the past two years, did not respond to requests for comment.

But Larry Pupkin, director of Singapore-based Littoral Management, which helps ship-owners find yards for construction and arrange financing, said Chinese quotes and financing terms were attractive.

Chinese banks are not alone in helping their shipyards. Bankers and lawyers said policy banks in South Korea were also giving finance to ship-owners

to place orders at Korean yards, which topped China in the value of orders last year. In 2012, South Korea won contracts worth nearly $30 billion, while Chinese yards received $18.2 billion in orders, according to the World Shipyard Monitor published by Clarkson Research Services. Global new orders totalled $85.5 billion. So far this year, Chinese yards have won orders worth $5.4 billion for 184 vessels, compared to $11.5 billion in contracts for 125 new ships at Korean yards. In tonnage terms, China and South Korea were neck-and-neck, the Clarkson data showed. “The view in the industry right now is, if you need money to buy ships, Chinese and Korean lenders will fund you,” said Jon Windham, head of industrial research at Barclays for Asia ex-Japan.

Push into offshore equipment The oversupply of vessels, low shipping rates and sluggish demand has drawn concern from some industry officials in China. “Banks ... ship-owners and cargo owners should take an extremely cautious attitude towards shipping investment under this catastrophically oversupplied market,” said Zhang Shouguo, executive vice president of China’s Shipowners’ Association.

In a letter posted on the organisation’s website, Zhang estimated that global ship supply exceeded demand by 30 percent. Beijing has promised to help its vast shipbuilding sector develop as part of a broader effort to upgrade the country’s massive manufacturing industry. In a 2011 document on the strategy to develop the offshore energy equipment industry, China’s National Development and Reform Commission urged banks to increase financing to manufacturers. —Reuters

NORTH CAROLINA: Freshly cut soaps are stacked and ready to be wrapped at JustNeem, a body and skin care company incorporated in 2007. —MCT

A vendor can sink or save a small business JustNeem had three hours’ notice to prepare for the national television debut of its clay face mask and tub tea. The Cary, NC, body and skin care company had sent the goods to “The Dr Oz Show” and learned the last Friday in February that two products would be featured on the program. Magda Radtke, who founded the company with her husband, Peter, called an impromptu team meeting, prepped the website to pull in Google searchers, and called a JustNeem distributor in South Carolina.

Radtke needed gallons, buckets and sacks of oils, clay and wax to mix more of the skin care products, which include leaves and oil from the neem tree. JustNeem’s vendor promised the order would arrive Monday.

“And that was exactly how it was,” Radtke said. The situation highlights the importance of small-business owners’ relationships with their vendors. In a good relationship, vendors can be partners as they benefit from their clients’ success.

But vendors can also hinder a business with delays, broken promises or high-profile challenges, including one that Raleigh Orthopaedic Clinic recently encountered. The Raleigh, NC, company announced last month that it was trying to notify about 17,300 patients that it lost track of X-ray films containing names and dates of birth, according to a statement on the company’s website.

The clinic had contracted with a third-party vendor to transfer X-ray films into electronic format, but indicated in the statement that it was the victim of a “scam” and the vendor never provided the electronic version of the films. “It appears the X-ray films were sold to a recycling company in Ohio that harvested the silver from the films,” according to the statement. “Raleigh Ortho believes the films were ultimately destroyed.”

Constance Scott, a privacy officer with Raleigh Ortho, declined to comment. Smallbusiness owners looking for vendors often focus on price, said Peter Klyne, a Raleigh small-business counselor who has more than 20 years of experience in materials management. “Obviously pricing is important, but then you have got issues of delivery and availability of product, quality of product,” Klyne said.

Small-business owners should start their vendor search by identifying companies with products or services they need through online searches, industry associations, or other owners of similar businesses, he said.

Owners should gather information on pricing and delivery costs, find out whether the vendor carries inventory and ask about contingency plans for emergencies, Klyne said.

The Better Business Bureau recommends getting multiple estimates and checking out a company’s BBB Business Review. “It is vital to do your research before paying any upfront fees or signing contracts,” said Toby Barfield, president and CEO of BBB serving Eastern North Carolina. Small-business owners should also test the products, Klyne said, and ensure the vendor is financially stable by

asking for a credit report, talking to their comptroller, or getting a copy of their profitand-loss statement, Klyne said. Some smallbusiness owners may not have time or be in the habit of planning ahead and shopping for vendors.

“One understands that, but there is a cost associated with doing business that way,” Klyne said, such as paying higher prices for lower-quality items. Houston Barnes, a business strategy consultant, business attorney and founder of the Barnes Firm in Durham, NC, said small-business owners should seek some sort of formalized agreement with vendors. “You want to have some sort of written agreement that says what your responsibilities are, what their responsibilities are,” Barnes said. “And if they don’t fulfill their responsibilities, what are your obligations, and what are your remedies.”

Small-business owners should also include an indemnification clause, which gives one party of a contract the financial responsibility of specific damages, losses and claims, to ensure they are not held liable for their vendors’ actions. If possible, owners shouldn’t pay for the services until the service or the contract is completed, Barnes said.

Braden Rawls, CEO of Vital Plan, a fiveyear-old Raleigh company that sells supplements and related disease prevention plans to doctors’ offices, pharmacies and online, recommends that small-business owners set deadlines and create a related payment structure that inspires the vendor to complete the project. If the contract is set up in stages, ensure that the project isn’t being delivered on an uncommon platform or system that couldn’t be handled by another vendor if the first supplier drops the ball, Rawls said.

The Radtkes founded JustNeem in 2007 and partnered with a community development group in the West African nation of Mauritania to provide training, grow a neem orchard, and ultimately create jobs in the impoverished area. The community agency serves as a middleman between JustNeem and the West African farmers by training locals and performing periodic inspections of the orchards and drying facilities, Radtke said.

“We visit every year, just to have that faceto-face contact,” she said. Radtke found other vendors by searching online for specific ingredients, buying samples, and then getting to know the business through emails and phone conversations, fulfilled promises and face-to-face visits. “The foundation of it all is having a personal relationship,” she said.

A relationship that she maintains as firstquarter sales have increased more than 500 percent compared to the same period last year.

Radtke, however, said she also maintains a list of backup vendors for cases of unexpected emergencies and discontinued products. “You should always have a backup plan,” she said. “Never depend on one vendor.” —MCT

MONDAY, JUNE 10, 2013

technology

Few options for companies to defy US intelligence demands WASHINGTON/SAN FRANCISCO: US Internet companies that want to resist government demands to hand over customer data for intelligence investigations have few legal options, due to the classified nature of such probes and a court review process shrouded in secrecy.

Google Inc, Facebook Inc and Microsoft Corp are among the big US technology companies that were outed this week as key sources of data for the National Security Agency (NSA), under a surveillance program referred to inside the spy agency as Prism.

While the companies have uniformly denied knowledge of Prism and said they had not given the NSA direct access to their servers, US officials have confirmed the existence of the program, which President Barack Obama defended as “a modest encroachment” on privacy that was necessary to protect national security.

The program relies on section 702 of the 2008 amended version of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), which lets the government collect electronic

communications for the purpose of acquiring intelligence on non-US targets that pose a threat to national security.

For electronic service providers, the law says the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court in Washington can authorize a company to provide “all information, facilities, or assistance necessary.”

In return for compliance, the company is compensated for its work and receives immunity from potential lawsuits. Section 702 is a “broad tool to get the information they are looking for,” said Matt Zimmerman, a lawyer at the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a San Francisco civil liberties group critical of the law.

The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court overwhelmingly approves FISA requests from the NSA, according to Justice Department reports. In 2012, the court received 1,856 applications for electronic surveillance and physical searches.

All were approved except for one, which the government withdrew before the court could rule.

All of the court’s cases are kept secret,

including rulings, and companies are not given details about the investigations they have been asked to provide information for, legal experts familiar with the process say. That encourages compliance as corporate lawyers do not want to hinder probes that may help prevent a terrorist attack, for example.

Any company that objects to a judge’s order can appeal to the entire Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court, but there is no public data on whether they have ever done so. The law allows for further appeals to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court of Review and ultimately the US Supreme Court. “It’s possible there have been challenges, but if so they are still secret,” said Alex Abdo, a lawyer with the American Civil Liberties Union, which unsuccessfully tried to overturn the 2008 law as unconstitutional.

Although the Justice Department is required to report to Congress each year on the number of applications it makes to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court, a department spokesman said on

Friday he was not aware of any requirement to disclose the number of challenges that companies brought to the court. The disclosure this week of the NSA’s secret and vast phone and email surveillance programs - involving major US telecom and Internet companies - has prompted top Silicon Valley executives to demand greater transparency.

“We understand that the US and other governments need to take action to protect their citizens’ safety — including sometimes by using surveillance,” Google Chief Executive Officer Larry Page and Chief Legal Officer David Drummond said in a joint statement. “But the level of secrecy around the current legal procedures undermines the freedoms we all cherish.”

The technology companies, including Apple Inc, Yahoo Inc, Microsoft’s Skype, AOL and PalTalk, said they had not heard of Prism before. Former intelligence analysts said that was likely because the NSA only used that name internally.

The Washington Post first reported that

Prism had voluntary cooperation from the companies but later wrote that they had been directed to comply with requests for help from the Attorney General.

The Post initially reported that the companies gave officials access to their servers, then later cited a classified memo stating that analysts instead could issue queries to equipment installed at the companies. On Saturday, the New York Times reported that the equipment had been strenuously negotiated with the companies and was the computer equivalent of a locked room for sharing data.

“Historically, you hear about such ‘partnerships,’ and intelligence has been doing things like this for a very long time,” said former NSA analyst Ron Gula, now chief executive of Tenable Network Security.

“What’s changed is the volume.”

The extent of that change in volume remains unknown. Though executives at the technology companies vigorously denied handling bulk requests, mechanical queries by agencies could still produce large amounts of data. —Reuters

E3 a chance to address gamers’ questions

LOS ANGELES: In a June 5, 2012 file photo attendees walk past Microsoft XBox booth at Electronic Entertainment Expo 2012 in Los Angeles. At E3 this year about 46,000 attendees are expected to play, poke and prod new video games and gizmos from more than 200 exhibitors.—AP

Apple expected to reveal digital radio service and mobile software NEW YORK: Apple is expected to reveal a digital radio service and changes to the software behind iPhones and iPads today as the company opens its annual conference for software developers.

Apple hasn’t said what it will unveil at the Worldwide Developers Conference in San Francisco. But the major announcements are expected during today’s keynote presentation.

Last year, Apple used the conference to announce its own mapping service, better integration with social networks and improvements to virtual assistant Siri. It also announced thinner MacBooks with high-resolution screens. The conference runs through Friday.

This year, Apple is expected to show off a simplified look on iPhones and iPads. If the speculation is correct, it would be the most radical design change since the iPhone made its debut in 2007, showing consumers that phones could do much more than make calls and exchange messages.

This week’s event comes at an important time for Apple. The company’s stock price has fallen amid concerns that another breakthrough product isn’t imminent. Although CEO Tim Cook has said people shouldn’t expect new products until the fall, Apple is likely to preview how future products will function in its unveiling of new services and features.

Monday’s highlight is expected to be an updated version of iOS, the software that runs iPhones, iPads and iPod Touches. It will be called iOS 7 and will come with new devices expected to go on sale this fall. Owners of recent models such as last fall’s iPhone 5 will likely be eligible for free upgrades.

Icons in iOS now have a three-dimensional look that tries to mimic the real-world counterparts of certain apps. For instance, the icon for the Notes app looks like a yellow notepad and the Contacts app is represented by a leatherbound address book. The speculation is that Apple will do away with that theme in iOS 7.

Instead, icons will look plain and simple, offering more consistency from app to app. The new design is likely to favor black and white elements rather than splashes of color.

While design modifications could help Apple distinguish its devices from rival phones and tablets, they risk alienating longtime users.

Microsoft’s radical makeover of the Windows operating system in October was meant to give the company a stronger presence on tablet computers, but it ended up confusing many people who had become accustomed to using the old operating system on traditional desktops and laptops. IDC blamed

Windows 8 for accelerating a decline in PC sales.

Apple riled users of its gadgets last fall when it kicked out a beloved app using Google’s mapping service and replaced it with its own Maps app. Travelers complained of misplaced landmarks, overlooked towns and other problems.

What was supposed to be a triumph for Apple served to underscore Google’s strength in maps. Apple CEO Tim Cook issued a rare public apology and promised improvements.

Apple may use iOS 7 as an opportunity to update its Maps app. Other features in iOS 7 may include new ways to do things through gesture commands. Apple is also expected to debut a streaming music service dubbed iRadio.

Apple is a pioneer in digital music sales. The debut of its iTunes music store in 2003 gave people an easy, legal way to obtain music for their iPods. Apple persuaded the major recording companies to join its efforts as a way to thwart online piracy. What started with a catalog of about 200,000 songs has grown to tens of millions today. The iTunes store is now the leading U.S. retailer of music.

With iTunes, people buy songs or albums to download to computers, phones and tablets.

But streaming services such as Pandora and Spotify have emerged as popular alternatives for listening to music. Pandora relies on its users being connected to the Internet at all times and plays songs at random within certain genres for free.

The service is supported by advertising. It is the most similar service to the one Apple is expected to announce Monday The difference is that Apple is expected to feature a seamless way for listeners to purchase songs through iTunes.

The announcement could further cement Apple as a leader in digital music and cut into Pandora’s status as the most-listened-to Internet radio service.

But Apple faces a new type of competition that it didn’t have when it debuted iTunes. Rival Google Inc. started an on-demand subscription music service called All Access last month. The service joins Spotify, Rhapsody and others that give subscribers the ability to pick and choose specific songs and albums from a catalog of millions for playback on computers, tablets and smartphones. Such services allow songs to be saved on mobile devices for playback outside of Internet connectivity as long as the user keeps paying a monthly fee - usually $10 a month in the US.—AP

SAN FRANCISCO: A September 11, 2012 file photo shows the Apple logo at the Yerba Buena Center for Arts. —AFP

LOS ANGELES: What is the next generation of gaming? It’s a question the video game industry hasn’t quite figured out yet, but it’s one it must confront at this week’s Electronic Entertainment Expo, the muchhyped Los Angeles trade show where about 46,000 attendees are expected to play, poke and prod new video games and gizmos from more than 200 exhibitors.

Possible answers have included better graphics, cloud computing, increased social networking capabilities, smarter artificial intelligence, more computing power and new entertainment options. While the actual answer is likely a combination of all the above, it doesn’t seem like next-gen console creators have been able to effectively communicate that idea. The move from standard- to high-definition graphics, as well as the introduction of a simple-to-use doodad called the Wiimote, made the last transition between console generations easy to see - and feel. But it’s been a tougher proposition this time for companies attempting to sell difficult-to-describe consoles to consumers more interested in mobile devices.

Nintendo already kicked off the next generation with a thud last November with the launch of the Wii U, the successor to the popular Wii system featuring an innovative tablet-like controller yet graphics on par with Microsoft’s Xbox 360 and Sony’s PlayStation 3. Nintendo said it sold just 3.45 million units by the end of March, well below the company’s expectations.

Sony Corp. and Microsoft Corp. both plan to go into deeper detail at E3 about their forthcoming systems that were teased earlier this year.

Sony called the PlayStation 4 a “supercharged PC,” while Microsoft

described its Xbox One as an “all-inone” entertainment solution for living rooms. The announcements of both consoles were met with mixed reactions. “There’s a lot of anxiety about the console transition,” said Stephen Totilo, editor of the gaming blog Kotaku.com. “These transitions can flip a company’s fortunes. Sony was up for two generations, and then they came in third place this last time. It’s also difficult for the thirdparty publishers, who have to figure out where to allocate their resources.”

The gaming industry is expected to focus more on games at its annual gathering this week at the Los Angeles Convention Center since each of the next-gen consoles have already been revealed. The technology and creativity on display on the E3 show floor could potentially shape what’s to come in gaming over the next decade. Among the titles that

will be pushed at E3 are first-person shooter “Call of Duty: Ghosts”; stealth series reboot “Thief”; a motion-controlled rendition of a Disney classic, “Fantasia: Music Evolved”; Caped Crusader prequel “Batman: Arkham Origins”; shadowy action-adventure “Watch Dogs”; and new sci-fi game “Destiny.” from the creators of “Halo.”

With the world’s attention on E3, the event could also serve as the ultimate opportunity for Microsoft and Sony to address head on the concerns over connectivity and privacy issues with their new systems. Other questions that remain unanswered include just how much the PS4 and Xbox One will cost and exactly how the new systems will embrace previously played or used games.

In a note posted on Microsoft’s site last Thursday, the company outlined many such plans. Microsoft, which intends to showcase 15 exclu-

NEW YORK: In a Feb. 20, 2013, file photo Mark Cerny, lead system architect for the Sony Playstation 4 speaks during an event to announce the new video game console. Sony Corp. plans to go into deeper detail at Electronic Entertainment Expo about the system. —AP

sive games at its Monday presentation, said the Xbox One must be connected to the Internet every 24 hours to operate, and there are specific restrictions on how games could be shared with friends and family members.

Instead of a typical flashy E3 presentation, Nintendo is hosting demonstrations at its booth on the show floor, as well as previewing upcoming titles at more than 100 Best Buy stores in North America. The Japanese gaming giant will be showing off “Mario Kart” and “Super Smash Bros.” installments for the Wii U, and they might unveil a new “Legend of Zelda” game.

“We are past the days where one game alone has the power to change the course of momentum for any given system,” said Reggie Fils-Aime, president of Nintendo of America. “I think consumers need to look at an overall line-up and see three, maybe four games that they look at and say, ‘These are exciting and will get me engaged with this platform.’”

There will likely be less games promoted at E3 than in previous years, a sign of the times as developers continue to focus on launching sure-fire franchises like “Call of Duty,” “Halo” and “Assassin’s Creed,” which are capable of attracting consumers not only willing to buy new installments but also downloadable content and associated merchandise.

“The development costs and risks associated with into getting into developing games for the PS4 and the next Xbox is steep,” said Tony Bartel, president of GameStop. “It is more movie-like in terms of making products for these systems. The barriers are high, but what it’s leading to is phenomenal game-making, a concentration of talent that makes great games.”—AP

Kaspersky Lab appoints Westcon ME to boost Enterprise Business Growth DUBAI: Kaspersky Lab, a leading developer of secure content and threat management solutions, yesterday announced the appointment of Westcon Middle East, a leading value-add distributor of convergence, security, networking and mobility products and services, across the Middle East, Pakistan and North Africa regions , as authorized Corporate Distributor for Kaspersky Lab’s enterprise products and solutions across the GCC region.

Westcon Middle East will leverage its extensive network of over 1200 resellers to further reinforce the growth of Kaspersky Lab’s enterprise business; in addition the company will also represent Kaspersky Lab by extending Kaspersky Lab’s corporate solutions directly to corporate customers with large networks. Under this partnership, Westcon Middle East will be responsible for extending Kaspersky Lab’s leading portfolio of

corporate security solutions to an extensive network of channel partners in the markets of UAE, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman, Bahrain and Yemen. In addition, Westcon Middle East will also invest in on ground pre-sales, technical and maintenance resources to effectively support both new and existing Kaspersky Lab customers in the GCC and Yemen.

Commenting on this new partnership, Tarek Kuzbari, Managing Director, Kaspersky Lab Middle East said, “Being closer to customers and partners remains imperative for Kaspersky Lab’s business growth and success. We believe that this partnership with Westcon will not only help us expand our channel presence in GCC but also help us achieve targeted growth in the Middle East region, while bringing customers closer to the brand, with easier and direct access to the company’s latest technologies and experts. this

partnership comes in line with our vision and commitment to contributing to the development of safer enterprise environment for enterprises across the Middle East and the globe.”, continued Kuzbari. Steve Lockie, Group Managing Director of Westcon Middle East said, “We are very proud to have partnered with a respected vendor like Kaspersky Lab who we believe will add considerable value to our existing portfolio of leading security solutions. Our partnership with Kaspersky Lab will see us further cement our position as a market leading distributor with the ability to deliver outstanding support to our customers and channel partners. To successfully achieve the aims of this partnership we will continue to support our resellers with value add support including technical expertise, sales consultancy, training and development in addition to logistics services.”

PCs out as Senegal opens world’s first tablet cafe DAKAR: Among the washer women, carpenters, busy waiters and squabbling children sweltering under the midday sun on this dusty Dakar street an Internet revolution is taking place in the world’s first tablet cafe.

Next to the workshops, meat stores and barbershops on what could be any bustling street in sub-Saharan Africa, a grey concrete building stands out with a garish sign advertising the Tablette Cafe.

“This is the first tablet cafe in the world, a cafe that works with tablets,” said Tidiane Deme, the head of Google in French-speaking Africa. The concept, introduced by the Internet search giant, is a simple twist on the traditional cyber cafes which have been springing up across Africa as the Internet boom takes hold, ditching PCs for tablet computers. When Medoune Seck, 33, opened his Equinoxe cyber cafe six years ago, he quickly discovered that frequent power cuts and exorbitant electricity bills were a major headache for him and his customers. Then along comes Google which offered funding last year to turn one cyber cafe in Africa into a pilot tablet cafe. Seck applied

and his cafe was picked as their guinea pig.

While tablets have taken advanced industrialised countries by storm and pushed cyber cafes further to the margins, in the developing world they could lead to their renaissance.

Tablet cafes could take hold in Africa because most people cannot afford to buy the devices, and tablets use batteries and mobile data connections which make them not vulnerable to power cuts.

The Equinoxe now sports 15 tablets and has installed cabins for private video chats, while a corner of the cafe is given over to a shop selling various items of electronic equipment. Three PCs remain enthroned on boxes near a wall, but they do not generate much interest among clients, who recline on the cafe’s bright orange and blue sofas, jabbing at their touch screens.

Seck says his tablets cost more than PCs but they save on power bills as they consume 25 times less electricity. He believes they can help revive cyber cafes which, according to Google, are in something of a slump precisely because of the high cost of electricity and frequent power failures cutting into business. “—AFP

DAKAR: Clients use tablet computers in the world’s first cybercafe equipped with tablet computers in the Medina popular district of Dakar. It could be any bustling street in sub-Saharan Africa but Rue 41 in Dakar’s populous Medina quarter is the unlikely frontline of a technological revolution that could change forever the way the developing world accesses the Internet.—AFP

MONDAY, JUNE 10, 2013

H E A LT H & S C I E N C E

Walking device helps people get back in step

WASHINGTON: Carl Simmons tries putting on the Kickstart walking system by himself for the first time.

Kindergarten rivalry turns deadly in China LIANGHE: When kindergarten was dismissed on that April afternoon, 6-year-old Ren Xinyi and her younger cousin hurried home. They were eager to check out a plastic bag they had spotted on the way to school that morning with their grandmother, who had taken it home without thinking twice.

Xinyi looked inside and grabbed a blue pencil and notebook; 5-year-old Ren Zhaoning took out a children’s yogurt drink and sipped half of the creamy white liquid before handing it to her cousin. By nightfall, Zhaoning was dead. Xinyi, who drank less, would succumb six days later.

As it turned out, the drink had been laced with rat poison.

Even more shocking than the fact that the poisoning was deliberate was the identity of one of the perpetrators. Two people were arrested and later confessed. One was the principal of a rival private kindergarten. She was apparently intent on hurting the reputation of its bigger, more profitable rival, according to the official New China News Agency.

Though extreme, the tragedy in this remote corner in Hebei province draws attention to the intense, sometimes-brutal competition among private, profit-driven kindergartens across China. Such schools have mushroomed in recent years amid rising demand and awareness of the benefits of early education. The overwhelming majority of kindergartens in China are private and unlicensed, which is illegal, but officials rarely enforce licensing rules.

That’s especially so in rural areas, where qualified teachers are scarce compared with urban centers in which many of the kindergartens are public and governmentfunded. Competing for students, private kindergarten owners and staff members have been known to engage in smear campaigns and physical brawls. Some have used buses to block one another’s way.

“They know kindergarten students mean money,” said Yang Dongping, an education authority at Beijing Institute of Technology.

In the capital, he said, private kindergartens charge an average of $500 a month per child. Those in poor villages like Lianghe charge a fraction of that, but can still make handsome profits if they recruit enough students. Nationwide, more than 16,000 kindergarten schools opened in 2011, a 10 percent increase from 2010, according to the latest statistics from the Chinese Association for Non-Government Education. Of those schools, about 80 percent were private, receiving no government funding. The others, public kindergartens, were established in urban centers and are better-funded, licensed and much more likely to have highly trained teachers.

Education scholars say the Chinese government recently has taken more interest in preschool education, and three years ago issued a plan to increase the number of public kindergartens, though not at the village level. “In the past, only urban children went into kindergarten,” said Wang Feng, a population expert and director of the Brookings-Tsinghua Center for Public Policy in Beijing.

The rural trend is developing because of a higher standard of living, greater awareness and stiff competition to get into good elementary schools. Lianghe, population about 2,000, is unusual in that it had two kindergartens, both private. Lianghe

Central was the larger and more established. Village leaders opened it in 2007, but it was quickly converted to private ownership. At the time of the poisoning, the school’s enrollment was 217, according to the Education Bureau of Pingshan county.

Half a mile from Lianghe Central, along a polluted river and a row of discolored dwellings, stands the Pingan Kindergarten, which was started in March 2012 by Shi Haixia, a onetime farmer in this village.

Unlike Lianghe Central, Pingan has no outdoor playground or gate in the front. At last count, Pingan had 56 pupils.

Lianghe Central and Pingan charged the same tuition: about $16.25 a month, with an extra 16 cents during the winter for heating costs. That low tuition represents one-sixth of a Lianghe farmer’s average monthly income. Neither school operated with a license or qualified teachers, unbeknown to most villagers. Families were happy to have a preschool nearby, a convenience that couldn’t be said for many other villages.

Many of the parents in Lianghe, like Zhaoning’s, had jobs in Pingshan county, a good 10 miles away. Some commuted farther to Hebei’s capital, Shijiazhuang, where Xinyi’s mother, a single parent, worked at a law firm. Having a kindergarten nearby meant that elderly villagers, who, like many across China, typically take care of young grandchildren, could be free from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. to rest, farm or tend to other matters. As many saw it, kindergarten was a convenient day care center, and if the children learned something, all the better.

Ma Xinping, principal of Lianghe Central Kindergarten, told China’s CCTV recently that none of the school’s seven teachers were certified. Ma said that she was the most qualified educator on the staff, having earned a high school diploma.

“We don’t care about those extra things” such as licenses, said Zou Lingshu, an illiterate 65-year-old who looks after her grandson, Liu Menda, 6, who was a student at Lianghe Central. After the poisonings, Pingan was shut down and Lianghe Central was temporarily closed.

With classes canceled on a recent Thursday morning, Zou was lingering in a concrete lot in front of the school, her gaptoothed grandchild tugging at her arms.

The Education Bureau at Pingshan county, which has jurisdiction over Lianghe and 22 other villages, said no one was available to answer questions about the poisoning case. An official at the bureau said all of its workers were out conducting school inspections. He instead provided a copy of a statement saying the bureau had acted promptly to shut down the Pingan Kindergarten and notify parents that children should be careful not to eat food from strangers, among other precautions.

Local officials have been particularly sensitive to outside inquiries. Propaganda Bureau agents from Pingshan county closely tailed this reporter and his assistant, on foot and by car, during a visit to Lianghe. They refused to answer questions, and residents of Lianghe, including the families of the poisoned children, have been pressured to keep quiet. “Once you are here, it will make things messier,” said Li Zhixia, mother of Zhaoning, the 5-year-old who died on the way to a hospital.—MCT

CHINA: A woman watches grandchild play in lot in front of Chinese kindergarten school where two students died and was closed for a few days after a children’s yogurt drink was laced with rat poison.—MCT

SEATTLE: Carl Simmons regularly used to run 5K races. Now the 76year-old stroke survivor just wants to be able to keep up with his wife on a walk. Through help from Seattlebased Cadence Biomedical’s walking device, Simmons is hopeful. The Lynnwood, Wash., retiree is one of several dozen patients using the Kickstart Kinetic Orthosis since the device’s September 2012 debut.

Intended for those with mobility impairment resulting from strokes, spinal-cord injuries, traumatic brain injury or ALS, Kickstart, a wearable mechanical device that uses kinetic energy to help improve people’s gait, is even helping people who have been “stuck in wheelchairs for decades,” CEO Brian Glaister said.

Five years ago, Simmons ran farther than most men his age; he chose to work at his air-conditioning-andheating job at a time many would have retired. But joint failure led to knee-replacement surgery. Then came a stroke that crippled his right side. When he walked, “trusty cane” in hand, his right leg dragged on the ground. He trudged along slowly. “I’m always bringing up the rear,” Simmons said.

Upon being fitted for the fivepound Kickstart device, Simmons said he could immediately feel the difference. “It straightens my foot out right away,” he said. “It makes my steps more pronounced.” The Kickstart resembles a leg brace and was inspired by stretchy horse tendons that store energy, allowing the animals to run all day and not get tired, Glaister said.

Springs connected to pulleys attach at the ankle and hip flexor and create tension, propelling the opposite leg forward with each step. After hearing about the device from a friend, Simmons visited a physician to see whether he was a good fit. The doctor wrote Simmons a prescription for the device. Sarco Precision manufactures the Kickstart components and Independent Tech Service in Sumner, Wash., assembles and cus-

tomizes them. Cadence Biomedical, born out of Glaister’s basement, was co-founded in 2007 by Glaister and friend and former colleague Jason Shoen. Previously, the pair worked on a project at the Veterans Affairs Center of Excellence for Limb Loss Prevention and Prosthetic Engineering in Seattle.

But when people asked when the pricey robotic limbs they were developing would be available for in-home use, Glaister said he had to say “prob-

ably never.” As a result, the conversation shifted toward affordable technology that people could actually use, Glaister said. In 2010, the pair built the first Kickstart prototype.

Free of motors and batteries, the Kickstart competes mainly with products ranging from an inexpensive ankle brace to the exoskeleton, a robot assistive-walking device that can cost up to $100,000, he said.

While the exoskeleton is available for in-office physical-therapy sessions,

WASHINGTON: Orthotist Julie Schaar, left, and Carl Simmons discuss Cadence Biomedical’s Kickstart device, designed for those needing help to walk normally in Seattle.—MCT photos

Glaister contends that a few therapy visits are not enough to properly retrain the muscles.

Chie Kawahara, vice president of product management at Cadence, said exoskeleton technology is necessary for people who are paralyzed or who can’t walk on their own.

Meanwhile, Kickstart is intended for people who need extra assistance to walk normally. “It takes 1,000 steps a day to recover from a stroke,” Glaister said. “If you’re not able to take those steps, or not able to take them properly, then you’re kinda out of luck.”

Orthotist Julie Schaar of Seattle’s Center for Prosthetics Orthotics, who custom-fit the device for Simmons, agreed that stroke patients who “aren’t supported in the right way develop poor gait habits.” Operating out of a small office in Seattle, Cadence Biomedical has five full-time and three part-time employees. It has raised $1.7 million from investors, and $600,000 in grants from the U.S. Department of Defense and National Institutes of Health.

So far, private insurance users have paid up to $1,000 for the device.

Cadence is currently working to raise the slight Medicare reimbursement, as patients have paid out-of-pocket costs of $5,000 to $6,000. War veterans are completely covered for the device. With the overarching goal of helping people walk, the Cadence team is working on another version of Kickstart for use in physical-therapy sessions and a product to provide sensory feedback for those who have lost limbs.

Three weeks after Simmons’ introduction to Kickstart, he said he’s “never felt better.” Walking to the mailbox is a little easier; trekking up stairs is a little less daunting. And he’s catching up with his wife, Peg. The pair stroll around the neighborhood, “cul-desac after cul-de-sac.” Now, he hopes to get out on his boat more and eventually start ballroom dancing again. He said he just wants to be able “to do all the normal things that couples do.”—MCT

In rise of obstacle course races, fun comes with risk BALTIMORE: Mud pits, electric wires, climbing walls and a long-distance run for most participants, outdoor obstacle races offer a chance to overcome physical challenges and bond with friends, often in a rowdy atmosphere. But even as these adrenaline-fueled races have exploded in popularity in recent years, creating an industry with tens of millions of dollars in revenue, some racers have paid a high price.

The April drowning of an Ellicott City, Md, man at a Tough Mudder series race in West Virginia was at least the fourth death involving participants at such events since 2011. And across the nation, participants have been paralyzed, suffered hypothermia and electric shocks, or come away with other serious injuries. In 2011, for example, two men died after a Warrior Dash event in the Kansas City area; it was canceled after many participants were treated for heat-related illnesses, according to a report in the Kansas City Star. Last year, a Dallas man drowned while swimming across a river in the Original Mud Run in Fort Worth; a lawsuit is pending in that incident.

Other lawsuits have been filed by racers as well. Court documents allege that in recent years a Virginia man was paralyzed after diving into a muddy pool at a race in Richmond, a Michigan man was paralyzed after diving into a mud pit at a Warrior Dash near Detroit, and a trio of women smashed their ankles sliding down a tarp into a ravine at a race in Washington state.

While deaths and life-threatening injuries are rare among the hundreds of thousands of participants, other problems have occurred more frequently. In a Tough Mudder race in Wisconsin last July, many participants ended up at a hospital, with broken bones, dislocations and heat-related illnesses, according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. And at the West Virginia race where Avishek Sengupta of Ellicott City drowned on an obstacle called Walk the Plank, a 15-foot drop into cold, muddy water 19 other people were treated at a hospital for injuries ranging from heart attacks to electric shock to hypothermia.

Mario Vittone, a former rescue swimmer with the US Coast Guard and an expert on drowning, says the death of Sengupta, 28, is a warning to the burgeoning industry and participants. “I get where it’s fun. But I think there’s this illusion, that it’s controlled and thousands of people do it, so it must be safe,” he said. Noting that some obstacles are inspired by military training regimens, he added, “These aren’t as hard as in the real military, but the risk is the same.

(Organizers are) forgetting how little room for error there is.”

There has been no push for government to regulate the events, but some experts say the deaths and injuries highlight problems in the fast-growing industry. The main issue is the lack of a governing body and accepted best

practices for designing, building and operating the courses, said Todd Seidler, a University of New Mexico sports administration professor who teaches and researches risk management. “Basically, each group putting one of these together is developing their own obstacles and maybe copying from other similar races. Also, many of them seem to be out-doing each other,” Seidler said.

Organizers of the most popular obstacle course series Tough Mudder, Warrior Dash and Spartan Race defend the events and say safety is a priority.

Civil lawsuits against Tough Mudder,

information about participants.

Tough Mudder spokeswoman Ashley Pinakiewicz said the company’s safety precautions were reviewed after Sengupta’s death which authorities have ruled an accidental drowning and were determined to be satisfactory. “We’re constantly looking at all of our procedures,” she said. She declined to comment on how often participants were hospitalized after Tough Mudder events, but said bumps and bruises were common, as with any outdoor event. “There’s an inherent risk in any of our events and everything is geared toward minimizing risk, as possible,”

BALTIMORE: Participants exit the Boa Constrictor where the slide down a pipe into water and then have to climb up another pipe during the Tough Mudder at Devil’s Head Resort in Merrimac Wisconsin. — MCT photos Warrior Dash and organizers of similar local events have been contested by the organizers.

Kendra Alley, a spokeswoman for Warrior Dash’s parent company, Red Frog Events, said in a statement: “We’ve taken several steps to ensure that everyone on the Battleground stays safe while having fun. The race Director works with local officials for several months to determine the necessary on-site safety precautions and procedures.” Alley declined to comment on specific cases, including the Kansas City-area deaths, saying the company never discloses medical

she said, adding, “The entire company is deeply saddened by the accident.”

Getting zapped with electricity and jumping over fire might not sound appealing to everyone, but more than 1 million people are expected to enter obstacle course events in the US this year. With some entry fees topping $100,that will generate tens of millions of dollars in revenue for race organizers. The races come in many forms, with distances from a few miles to a dozen miles or more. Warrior Dash, a 3.1-mile run, promises participants will “bound over fire, trudge through mud and scale over 12 obstacles.” Tough

A participant stumbles after being zapped by 10,000 volts of electricity on the final obstacle known as “Electroshock Therapy”.

Mudder bills itself as “probably the toughest event on the planet.”

Danger is a key element of the marketing pitch. Youmaydie.com is the Internet address for the Spartan Death Race, the most grueling competition in the Spartan Race series. Here’s how it is described on the company’s website: “Please only consider this adventure style race if you have lived a full life to date. We highly suggest you come to a Death Race Camp before attempting this race. Death sounds cool until you’re dead.”

The obstacle course races are meant to appeal to a broad swath of the population. April’s Tough Mudder event in West Virginia drew 14,000 people who want a fun, muddy day off the couch. Baltimore Ravens head coach John Harbaugh and team staffers were among those who braved the Tough Mudder course in April. The Ravens posted a video of the group on the team website; at one point, Harbaugh is shown crawling militarystyle through mud. He looks at the camera and says, “This is awesome!

This is really fun!”

Tim Milan, a Baltimore resident who ran in that event, said it was “a blast” until the last obstacle, “Electroshock Therapy,” where participants dash through live electrical wires. He said he touched one of the wires and was thrown into the mud.

“That was the only part that I didn’t really appreciate.” Still, Milan, 38, noted that participants had to sign a liability waiver and generally knew what they faced. Organizers “do a great job of trying to scare you out of doing it to begin with,” he said.

For Jeff Fink, 31, a 2011 Warrior Dash was a jump-start to getting back in shape. He was a big man 6-foot-5, 250 pounds who had a lot of friends and traveled the country to watch baseball games. He collapsed during the event, held on a weekend when high humidity pushed the heat index in Kansas City to above 100 degrees, according to news reports. His core temperature when he was brought to a hospital was 108.3 F, father Randy Fink says, and he died from multiple organ failure after spending 10 days in the hospital.

Another man, Jeremiah Morris, 28, also died from apparent heatstroke in a hospital a day after that event; his family could not be reached for comment. Randy Fink traveled last year from his Iowa farm to Warrior Dash’s obstacle course, accompanied by a race organizer and a cousin who had run with his son, to see if new safety precautions had been added. The cousin pointed out places where there were more emergency technicians and more water at the stations.

Still, Fink wishes race organizers would promise to cancel events when the heat index was in the danger category. “I could see (organizers) were trying, so I kind of let it go a little bit,” said Fink. “But it still kind of bothers me.—MCT

H E A LT H & S C I E N C E

MONDAY, JUNE 10, 2013

More pain for Japan’s Daiichi after Ranbaxy fraud NEW DELHI: Daiichi Sankyo believed it had scored a coup in 2008 when it outbid rivals to buy Indian generics giant Ranbaxy for $4.6 billion but its foray into the high-growth copycat drugs arena has brought the Japanese drugmaker only pain. Last month, Ranbaxy pleaded guilty to US charges of selling adulterated antibiotic, acne, epilepsy and other drugs and agreed to a record $500-million fine, and since then the bad news has kept on flowing. In a new blow at the end of the week, Apollo Pharmacy, India’s biggest branded drug retail network with more than 1,500 outlets, issued a “cautionary advisory” against drugs made by Ranbaxy.

A Ranbaxy spokesman insisted all its products in India and globally were “safe and efficacious” and that it was addressing Apollo’s concerns. The Apollo advisory came days after an outspoken Indian Supreme Court lawyer filed a public interest suit in the country’s top court seeking cancellation of Ranbaxy’s licence. “It is not a tale of cutting corners or lax manufacturing practices but one of outright fraud” and a “heinous crime”, the suit filed by lawyer Manohar Lal Sharma said. The Supreme Court said it would hear the case this week, though no day has been set.

“There has been a continuous flow of negative news” about Ranbaxy, Sarabjit Kour Nangra, pharmaceutical vice president at Mumbai’s Angel Broking, told AFP. Daiichi’s Ranbaxy purchase was part of a calculated strategy that the Indian company’s dominance in generic medicines and developing markets would help the Japanese firm grow sales as Daiichi’s drugs came off patent. The Japanese firm, whose share price and earnings have taken a beating over the acquisition, paid a more than 30 percent premium for

the shares of the Indian company.

Even though the purchase gave Daiichi far greater global reach, the price paid by the Japanese firm raised analysts’ eyebrows at the time as Ranbaxy was already under the scrutiny of US regulators. Some analysts have suggested Daiichi may have been overeager to diversify to increase its global sales when it snapped up Ranbaxy. The US fraud, uncovered over eight years, was exposed by a whistle-blowing exemployee who said Ranbaxy created “a complicated trail of falsified records and dangerous manufacturing practices”.

India’s drug regulator-the Drugs Controller General of India-is already examining legal documents filed in the United States to see whether Ranbaxy violated any Indian safety norms and has said it will complete its preliminary findings in a month. On top of quality issues, Daiichi is at loggerheads with Ranbaxy’s former Indian owners, the billionaire brothers Malvinder and Shivinder Singh. Daiichi has alleged the Singhs hid information about the US regulatory inquiries at the time of the purchase and says it is exploring “legal remedies”.

The Singhs have rejected the allegations as “baseless”. The scandal has cast a cloud over drugs produced by other firms in India, known as the “pharmacy to the world” for making lifesaving generic versions of medicines for poor nations that cost a fraction of brand names. Americans, in particular, are saying the fraud highlights the lack of knowledge of what goes on inside foreign drug plants. In the face of the negative publicity, on Monday the Indian government felt obliged to issue a statement defending its $14.6-billion worth of annual generic exports as “safe “and

“tightly regulated”. It invited importers to visit Indian plants to “satisfy themselves of the quality of production”. Daiichi has said Ranbaxy now is a changed company since the fraud was detected in its “management, culture, operations and compliance” with regulations. But others say damage could be longer term and more far-reaching.

“Ranbaxy-like episodes will not only set back the fortunes of the export industry but also give a handle to multinational pharmaceutical com-

panies-no angels themselves-in their endeavour to push their patented, branded drugs” The Hindu said in a weekend editorial. Ranbaxy’s shares are trading at around half the 737 rupees Daiichi paid and analysts do not see any immediate chance of a recovery. “I don’t see any reasons why Ranbaxy (shares) should be going up in a hurry,” Mehraboon Irani, analyst at Mumbai investment house Nirmal Bang Securities, told CNBC-18.—AFP

INDIA: File photo shows an Indian pedestrian rides his bike past the Ranbaxy Laboratories Limited pharmaceutical Indian factory at Toansa village in Ropar about 50 Km from Chandigarh.—AFP

MONDAY, JUNE 10, 2013

W H AT ’ S O N

La Francophonie, a celebration of diversity at AUK SEND US YOUR INSTAGRAM PICS

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hat’s more fun than clicking a beautiful picture? Sharing it with others! Let other people see the way you see Kuwait - through your lens. Friday Times will feature snapshots of Kuwait through Instagram feeds. If you want to share your Instagram photos, email us at instagram@kuwaittimes.net

Shaastrotsav 2013

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AIPS-DPS added another feather to its cap, owing to the praiseworthy performance of its students at Shaastrotsav 2013, held at SIMS on 26 April 2013.

The grand, day-long event was a full-fledged Science Fair with numerous events for various age groups - Sub Juniors(VI-VIII), juniors(IX-X) and seniors(XI-XII). FAIPS was represented in all the categories by some of its brainiest students, who did the school proud by bagging prizes in several categories.

In the preliminary round of the science and technology quiz, FAIPS’ teams secured the top two positions, with the team in first place going on to win the finals with a lead of more than 80 points. The second place was bagged by a student in the Rubiks Cube Contest who had a time of less than 30 seconds. FAIPS’ students displayed their love for Science and their creativity through fascinating models, in the Science Exhibition.

The sub-junior team drew a significant amount of attention from the crowd with their artificial cloud creating exhibit.. The junior team presented an exquisite 3D image creator, which made a 3-D image of any object placed in front of it, and presented the image on a screen. The senior team came up with an original alternative to hazardous chemical research with their prototype of a gas sensing rover. The rover worked on a microprocessor chip called the Arduino, and included a wireless camera which provided live feed to a display screen.

3-D World secured first place, while the Cloud-Maker secured third position. The students’ hard work finally paid off as their presentations were lauded. It goes without saying that these victors owe a lot to their teachers who mentored them during their preparation for the event, which turned out to be a grand success.

As it always has, FAIPS, under the guidance of its Principal Anju Dheman, will continue to give its students the experiences that they deserve and strive to make the most out of every opportunity that comes its way.

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he French Language unit at AUK hosted “La Francophone” exhibition and competition to celebrate the diversity of the French language and culture. Under the supervision of Joseph Fiannaca, senior instructor of French language at AUK, students were given the opportunity to put together this event, which was juried and graded as a substitute for their final course examination.

Over the course of one month, students worked on preparing a comprehensive exhibition to demonstrate the treasures of the French language and culture around the world, and show that the French language is not the sole property of France. According to Fiannaca, “It is important to pay tribute to the countries who contribute to the rayonnement de la langue franÁaise, and to the prestige of the French language.”

In preparation for the exhibition, each French Level 1 student was asked to select a French speaking country, among the members of the International Organization of La Francophonie(IOF), and prepare a comprehensive overview of that country. The selected countries included Switzerland, Egypt, Canada, Morocco, Lebanon and more. The project included the creation of magazines with articles on famous figures and touristic places in the selected countries, an interview with a French speaker from each country, and an oral presentation about each country, all presented in French. In addition, students created short movies, displayed the countries’ costumes, and

brought food samples.

French Level 2 students created board games using structures that they learned during the semester. The games were composed of sets of questions related to French vocabulary, grammar, culture, and general information on the IOF. The aim was to have the students write at least 50 questions and their answers, and to allow participants to practice French while playing.

Fiannaca stressed the importance of incorporating such task-based projects into coursework since they give students “a clear goal on what needs to be achieved to succeed in the class while working on the four language skills (listening, speaking, reading and writing), and developing awareness towards diverse cultures.” He also added that students appreciate those opportunities that “allow them to be creative and artistic by planning a project instead of doing a traditional final exam.”

The exhibition was an engaging educational and entertainment experience, not only for students, but also for visitors.

So while visiting the exhibition, all the senses were engaged “you could see French mimes entertaining guests, drink mint tea in a Moroccan tent, try delicious Greek yogurt or Swiss chocolate fondue, listen to music and of course practice French!” said Finnaca.

One of the highlights of the event was a school visit by the children of le LycÈeFranÁais de KoweÔt (the French School of Kuwait). Big smiles were drawn

on their faces as they played the board games and interacted with the university students.

The exhibition was juried by a panel of judges, including Julian Clech, the Cultural AttachÈ at the French Embassy in Kuwait, in addition to selected Frenchspeaking guests. The judges selected the group with the best creative booth and best demonstration of French language skills.

The International Organization of La Francophonie(IOF) represents one of the biggest linguistic zones in the world. Its members share more than just a common language. They also share the humanist values promoted by the French

language. The French language and its humanist values represent the two cornerstones on which the International Organization of La Francophonie is based. The IOF was created in 1970. Its mission is to embody the active solidarity between its 75 member states and governments (56 members and 19 observers), which together represent over one-third of the United Nations’ member states and account for a population of over 890 million people, including 220 million French speakers. Qatar was recently awarded the privilege to be an observing member of the OIF.

Drama Club inaugurated at ICSK Senior

IMAX IMAX film program Monday: ** 9:30am Showtime Available for Groups Flight of Butterflies 3D 10:30am, 8:30pm Tornado Alley 3D 11:30am, 5:30pm, 7:30pm To The Arctic 3D 12:30pm, 9:30pm Born to be Wild 3D

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6:30pm

Thursday: ** 9:30am Showtime Available for Groups Flight of Butterflies 3D 10:30am, 5:30pm, 8:30pm Born to be Wild 3D 11:30am Tornado Alley 3D 12:30pm, 7:30pm, 9:30pm To The Arctic 3D 6:30pm Friday: Fires of Kuwait Tornado Alley 3D3:30pm, 5:30pm, 8:30pm To The Arctic 3D 4:30pm, 7:30pm Flight of Butterflies 3D Born to be Wild 3D

Drama Club was inaugurated at the Indian Community School, Senior Branch on 13 May, 2013 by Arif Ibrahim Kazi, a prominent theatre personality. The event was attended by Dr V Binumon, the Principal, ICSK Senior Branch and the Vice Principal Dr Sam T Kuruvilla along with the teachers and students of ICSK Senior. The inaugural ceremony commenced with the lighting of the lamp. The club coordinator .

Kanwaljit Kaur Lamba, teacher from the department of Hindi , delivered the introductory speech. A group of highly talented students presented a wonderfully choreographed skit. Mellifluous music and scintillating dance performance added extra flavor to the skit.

Dancing Divas holds annual jubilation

2:30pm

6:30pm 9:30pm

Saturday: ** 9:30am Showtime Available for Groups Flight of Butterflies 3D 10:30am, 1:30pm, 8:30pm Tornado Alley 3D11:30am, 2:30pm, 5:30pm, 7:30pm, 9:30pm To The Arctic 3D 12:30pm, 6:30pm Born to be Wild 3D 3:30pm Journey to Mecca 4:30pm

Write to us Send to What’s On upcoming events, birthdays or celebrations by email: local@kuwaittimes.net Fax: 24835619 / 20

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he Dancing Divas organized its 5th Annual Jubilation on Friday June 7 at Cambridge School, Mangaf, The program was attended by Dance India Dance fame Raghav Juyal who also judged the show as well as entertained the audience with his dance performances. Another highlight of the show was the presence of Comedy Circus fame Raja Sagoo who was also compere for the event. Vidhu P Nair, Charge d’Affaires, Embassy of India, Kuwait, sponsors and Dr

Nuna Goel, were escorted to the stage and honored with bouquets. They were then led by the Guru of the Dancing Divas - Jyoti Patel to light the lamp. Vidhu P Nair and Dr Nuna Goel appreciated Jyoti for sparing her valuable time and bringing out the hidden talents of the children. A souvenir was released to mark the event.

The visiting artist-compere of the day Raja Sagoo made a grand entry mimicking Bollywood stars. Raghav entertained the audience with his dance and humorous

comments. He also judged the dancers and announced the best dancers at the end. A workshop on dance was conducted on Saturday 8th June 2013 by Raghav which was a rare opportunity for the dance fans of Kuwait.

The Dancing Divas was founded in May 2008. The aim of the first step of the journey was to live the passion of the founder, to teach and leverage the learning to the others. The founder Jyoti Patel herself is an Odissi learned dancer.

MONDAY, JUNE 10, 2013

W H AT ’ S O N

Embassy Information 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-gcccom for more information. Kuwait citizens can apply for tourist visas on-line at www.immi.gov.au/e visa/e676.htm. nnnnnnn

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, Email: abdbi-im-enquiry@international.gc.ca. The Embassy of Canada is located at Villa 24, AlMutawakei 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.

The first groups of players attending the P G A Everton Summer Program sponsored by Porsche Centre Kuwait, Behbehani Motors Company were presented with medals after an entertaining evening tournament. Players aged from 3 to 15 years of age are attending the coaching course program which is running each evening from 5.30-7pm until 3 July at Bayan Block 7 adjacent to Abdullah Al-Rujaib High School. All are welcome

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Regency Hotel awarded yet another accolade

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he Regency is celebrating a bumper month of awards. After recently winning the coveted titles of Kuwait’s Leading Luxury Hotel and Kuwait’s Leading Conference Hotel at World Travel Awards in Dubai - the only Kuwait hotel to win two awards, The Regency is delighted to announce the acquisition of yet another prestigious accolade: the Trip Advisor Certificate of Excellence 2013, for the second year running.

To qualify for the Certificate of Excellence, businesses must maintain an overall rating of four or higher, out of a possible five, as reviewed by travellers on Trip Advisor’s website. Additional criteria include the volume of reviews received within the previous 12 months. The Regency has spent over 165 days as the top rated hotel in Kuwait according to guests, and is rated out of no less than 51 hotels in the state.

Trip Advisor is the world’s largest travel site operating in 30 countries world-

wide, enabling travellers to post comments after their stay. It therefore offers trusted advice and its branded sites make up the largest travel community in the world, with more than 50 million unique monthly visitors, and over 60 million reviews and opinions.

Aurelio Giraudo commented “The Trip Advisor Certificate of Excellence award goes only to companies offering the most highly rated and outstanding services, we are delighted to know that our esteemed guests recognize our efforts and are so supportive of our ongoing efforts to improve”.

He continued, “We have always stated from the beginning on our website and in our mission statements that we would like to see The Regency as setting the ‘benchmark for luxury hospitality in the Northern Gulf’. We do our utmost to maintain unparalleled standards of service and this award stems from all the hard work by every associate. It is an honour indeed”.

ESF’s ‘The Elves and the Shoemaker’

EMBASSY OF US Parents of Kuwaiti citizen children may drop off their sons’ and daughters’ visa applications - completely free of an interview or a trip inside the Embassy. The children must be under 14 years of age, and additional requirements do apply, but the service means parents will no longer have to schedule individual appointments for their children, nor come inside the Embassy (unless they are applying for themselves). The service is only available for children holding Kuwaiti passports. To take advantage, parents must drop off the following documents: Child Visa Drop-off cover sheet, available on the Embassy website (http://kuwait.usembassy.gov/child_visas.htm) - Child’s passport; The Child’s previous passport, if it contains a valid US visa; 5x5cm photo of child with eyes open (if uploaded into DS160, photos must be a .jpg between 600x600 and 1200x1200 pixels, less than 240kb, and cannot be digitally altered); A completed DS160 form; Visa Fee Receipt from Burgan Bank; A copy of the valid visa of at least one parent. If one parent will not travel, provide a visa copy for the traveling parent, and a passport copy from the non-traveling parent with a letter stating no objection to the child’s travel. - For children of students (F2): a copy of the child’s I20.

Children born in the US (with very few exceptions) are US citizens and would not be eligible for a visa. Parents may drop off the application packet at Window 2 at the Embassy from 1:00 to 3:00 PM, Monday to Wednesday, excluding holidays. More information is available on the U.S. Embassy website: kuwait.usembassy.gov/child_visas.html nnnnnnn

EMBASSY GREECE The Embassy of Greece in Kuwait has the pleasure to announce that visa applications must be submitted to Schengen Visa Application Centre (VFS office) located at 12th floor, Al-Naser Tower, Fahad Al-Salem Street, AlQibla area, Kuwait City, (Parking at Souk Watia). For information please call 22281046 from 08:30 to 17:00 (Sunday to Thursday). Working hours: Submission from 08:30 to 15:30. Passport collection from 16:00 to 17:00. For visa applications please visit the following website www.mfa.gr/kuwait. nnnnnnn

EMBASSY OF VATICAN The Apostolic Nunciature (Embassy of the Holy See, Vatican in Kuwait presents its compliments to Kuwait Times Newspaper, and has the honor to inform the same that the Apostolic Nunciature has moved to a new location in Kuwait City. Please find below the new address: Yarmouk, Block 1, Street 2, Villa No: 1. P.O.Box 29724, Safat 13158, Kuwait. Tel: 965 25337767, Fax: 965 25342066.

Email: nuntiuskuwait@gmail.com

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indergarten productions at ESF are always a display of talent, color and thorough enjoyment.

This year was no exception as the Kindergarten classes staged a musical production of the traditional children’s story “The Elves and the Shoemaker” at the Lloyd Webber Theatre.

Characters played by the children included the shoemaker, the elves, the twinkle stars, the teddy bears, the mice, the cats, the fire flies, the spiders, the dolls, the customers and the cowboy.

The colorful adaptation involved weeks of hard work with rehearsals and stage design. In the end it

was amazing experience to watch children display their speaking and singing skills. A big thank you goes out to the Kindergarten staff and backstage helpers and of course to all the parents for the help with all the beautiful costumes.

EMBASSY OF TURKEY The Embassy of the Republic of Turkey announces that a new classes of Turkish language for beginners will start at the Embassy’s Tourism, Culture and Information Office on 17 February 2013. The lessons will be two times in a week for six weeks, for further details and registration please contact. Or fill the application form on http://kuveyt.bemfa.gov.tr and send it to the email: embassy.Kuwait@mfa.gov.tr

MONDAY, JUNE 10, 2013

TV PROGRAMS

00:45 Into The Dragon’s Lair 01:35 Animal Cops Philadelphia 02:25 Roaring With Pride 03:15 Wildest Africa 04:05 Biggest And Baddest 04:55 Animal Cops Philadelphia 05:45 Wildest Islands 06:35 Wildlife SOS 07:00 The Really Wild Show 07:25 My Cat From Hell 08:15 Dogs 101 09:10 Panda Adventures With Nigel Marven 10:05 Wildwives Of Savannah Lane 11:00 Animal Cops Phoenix 11:55 Shamwari: A Wild Life 12:20 Wildlife SOS 12:50 Clinically Wild: Alaska 13:15 Clinically Wild: Alaska 13:45 Animal Precinct 14:40 Wildwives Of Savannah Lane 15:30 Echo And The Elephants Of Amboseli 16:00 The Really Wild Show 16:30 Dogs/Cats/Pets 101 17:25 Dick ‘n’ Dom Go Wild 17:50 Dick ‘n’ Dom Go Wild 18:20 Trophy Cats 19:15 Escape To Chimp Eden 19:40 Bondi Vet 20:10 Shamwari: A Wild Life 20:35 Echo And The Elephants Of Amboseli 21:05 Wildwives Of Savannah Lane

00:20 Cash In The Attic 01:05 Gok’s Fashion Fix 01:50 Design Rules 02:15 Daily Cooks Challenge 02:45 Daily Cooks Challenge 03:15 Celebrity MasterChef 04:05 Vacation Vacation Vacation 04:30 Bargain Hunt: Famous Finds 05:15 Design Rules 05:40 Antiques Roadshow 06:30 Daily Cooks Challenge 07:00 Design Rules 07:25 Cash In The Attic 08:10 Homes Under The Hammer 09:05 Bargain Hunt 09:50 Antiques Roadshow 10:40 Gok’s Fashion Fix 11:30 Celebrity MasterChef 12:25 Come Dine With Me 13:15 Bargain Hunt: Famous Finds 14:00 Cash In The Attic 14:45 Antiques Roadshow 15:40 Extreme Makeover: Home Edition Specials 17:00 Homes Under The Hammer 17:55 Food And Drink 18:25 Baking Mad With Eric Lanlard 18:50 Food Poker 19:40 Come Dine With Me 20:35 Extreme Makeover: Home Edition

00:15 00:45 01:30 01:55 02:20 02:45 03:00 03:20 03:45 04:10 04:35 05:00 05:25 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

Duck Dodgers Wacky Races What’s New Scooby-Doo? What’s New Scooby-Doo? The Flintstones Tom & Jerry Tales What’s New Scooby-Doo? Taz-Mania The Looney Tunes Show Tom & Jerry Tales Johnny Bravo Bananas In Pyjamas Jelly Jamm Ha Ha Hairies Bananas In Pyjamas Lazytown Krypto: The Super Dog Baby Looney Tunes Gerald McBoing Boing Cartoonito Tales Ha Ha Hairies Lazytown Baby Looney Tunes Krypto: The Super Dog Cartoonito Tales Jelly Jamm Gerald McBoing Boing Lazytown

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

Baby Looney Tunes Jelly Jamm Tom & Jerry Kids A Pup Named Scooby-Doo Moomins Sylvester & Tweety Mysteries The Looney Tunes Show The 13 Ghosts Of Scooby-Doo Taz-Mania Tiny Toon Adventures Moomins Tom And Jerry Tales What’s New Scooby Doo The Looney Tunes Show The Garfield Show Sylvester & Tweety Mysteries The 13 Ghosts Of Scooby-Doo Tom And Jerry Tales What’s New Scooby Doo Tiny Toon Adventures Puppy In My Pocket What’s New Scooby-Doo? Looney Tunes Dexter’s Laboratory Tom & Jerry Tales Pink Panther And Pals Pink Panther And Pals Moomins

00:30 Grim Adventures Of...

01:20 Johnny Test 02:10 Ben 10: Ultimate Alien 02:35 Ben 10: Ultimate Alien 03:00 The Amazing World Of Gumball 03:25 Regular Show 03:50 Ben 10: Omniverse 04:15 Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated 04:40 Powerpuff Girls 05:05 Evil Con Carne 05:30 Cow & Chicken 06:00 Casper’s Scare School 06:30 Angelo Rules 07:00 Dreamworks Dragons Riders Of Berk 07:25 Johnny Test 07:45 Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated 08:10 Evil Con Carne 08:55 Adventure Time 09:45 Regular Show 10:35 Angelo Rules 11:25 Ben 10: Alien Force 11:50 Ben 10: Alien Force 12:15 Hero 108 12:40 Hero 108 13:05 Mucha Lucha !

13:30 Angelo Rules 14:20 Evil Con Carne 15:10 The Amazing World Of Gumball 15:35 Adventure Time 16:00 Regular Show 16:30 Johnny Test 17:00 Ben 10: Omniverse 17:25 Dreamworks Dragons Riders Of Berk 17:50 Gormiti New 18:15 Young Justice 18:40 Ben 10: Ultimate Alien 19:05 Total Drama Island 19:30 Total Drama Island 19:55 Mucha Lucha !

20:20 Ben 10: Omniverse 20:45 The Amazing World Of Gumball 21:10 Adventure Time 21:35 Regular Show 22:00 Ben 10 22:25 Ben 10 22:50 Mucha Lucha !

00:00 01:00 01:30 02:00 03:00 Face 04:00 05:00 05:30 06:00 06:30 07:00 08:00 09:00 10:00

Bloodwork Private Crimes Private Crimes Evil Up Close Haunted Encounters: Face To Bloodwork Private Crimes Private Crimes Crime Town USA Crime Town USA Cold Case Files The FBI Files Crime Stories Crime Stories

11:00 12:00 12:30 13:00 14:00 15:00 16:00 17:00 18:00 19:00 19:30 20:00

Crimes That Shook Britain Psychic Detectives Curious & Unusual Deaths Stalker Vanished With Beth Holloway The First 48 The FBI Files Crime Stories Crime Stories Psychic Detectives Curious & Unusual Deaths Snapped: Women Who Kill

00:40 Inside The Gangsters’ Code 01:35 Inside The Gangsters’ Code 02:30 Inside The Gangsters’ Code 03:25 Inside The Gangsters’ Code 04:20 Heroes Of Hell’s Highway 05:15 Heroes Of Hell’s Highway 06:05 Heroes Of Hell’s Highway 07:00 Mythbusters 07:50 Soul Food Family 08:45 Gold Rush 09:40 Border Security - Series 6 Specials 10:05 Auction Hunters 10:30 Auction Kings 10:55 How Machines Work 11:25 How It’s Made 11:50 Wheeler Dealers 12:45 Wheeler Dealers: Trading Up 13:40 Fifth Gear 14:35 Border Security - Series 6 Specials 15:05 Auction Hunters 15:30 Auction Kings 16:00 Robson Green’s Extreme Fishing Challenge 16:55 Gold Rush 17:50 Mythbusters 18:45 Sons Of Guns 19:40 How Stuff Works 20:05 How It’s Made 20:35 Auction Hunters 21:00 Storage Hunters 21:30 Gold Divers: Under The Ice 22:25 Alaska: The Last Frontier

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

How Tech Works Sci-Fi Science What’s That About?

Future Weapons Future Weapons Future Weapons Future Weapons The Gadget Show How Tech Works James May’s 20th Century James May’s 20th Century X-Machines Things That Move Things That Move The Gadget Show How Tech Works Scrapheap Challenge What’s That About?

Superships Meteorite Men Things That Move Things That Move Sci-Fi Science The Gadget Show How Tech Works X-Machines Scrapheap Challenge Future Weapons Engineered Meteorite Men Under New York Things That Move Things That Move The Gadget Show How Tech Works Under New York Sport Science The Gadget Show

00:45 02:30 04:20 07:00 07:50 08:45 09:35 10:30

Final 24 Bone Detectives Timewatch Prehistoric Chasing Classic Cars Circus Treasure Quest Great Battles

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

00:00 Chelsea Lately 00:30 Opening Act 01:25 E! Investigates 03:15 E! Investigates 04:10 E!es 05:05 Extreme Close-Up 05:30 Extreme Close-Up 06:00 THS 07:50 Style Star 08:20 E! News 09:15 Married To Jonas 09:45 Married To Jonas 10:15 THS 11:10 E!es 12:05 Playing With Fire 13:05 Keeping Up With The Kardashians 14:05 Keeping Up With The Kardashians 15:00 Style Star 15:30 THS 16:30 Extreme Close-Up 17:00 Fashion Police 18:00 E! News 19:00 E!es 20:00 Ice Loves Coco 20:30 Ice Loves Coco 21:00 Chasing The Saturdays 21:30 Chasing The Saturdays 22:00 Kourtney And Kim Take Miami 23:00 E!es 23:30 E!es

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

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

YOUR SISTER'S SISTER ON OSN PREMIERE

Great Battles Survivorman Alaska’s Great Race Timewatch Bone Detectives Daredevils Prehistoric Great Battles Great Battles Chasing Classic Cars Chasing Classic Cars Survivorman Reign Of The Dinosaurs Hell On High Water Timewatch Reign Of The Dinosaurs Final 24 FBI Case Files

Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives Food Wars Food Wars Unwrapped Iron Chef America Iron Chef America Unique Eats Food Crafters United Tastes Of America Chopped Iron Chef America Unwrapped Unwrapped Guy’s Big Bite Guy’s Big Bite Reza, Spice Prince Of India Unique Sweets Kid In A Candy Store Barefoot Contessa Food Network Star Extra Virgin Extra Virgin Cooking For Real Food Crafters Ultimate Recipe Showdown Grill It! With Bobby Flay Barefoot Contessa - Back To Barefoot Contessa - Back To Food Wars Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives Guy’s Big Bite Chopped Barefoot Contessa Barefoot Contessa Food Wars Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives Guy’s Big Bite Reza, Spice Prince Of India Chopped Chopped Amazing Wedding Cakes Reza’s African Kitchen Reza’s African Kitchen Andy Bates American Street Andy Bates Street Feasts Food Wars

The Haunted Dr G: Medical Examiner Blood Relatives Couples Who Kill Scorned: Crimes Of Passion The Haunted Dr G: Medical Examiner Disappeared Mystery Diagnosis Street Patrol Street Patrol Real Emergency Calls Who On Earth Did I Marry?

On The Case With Paula Zahn Murder Shift Disappeared Mystery Diagnosis Street Patrol Street Patrol Forensic Detectives On The Case With Paula Zahn Real Emergency Calls Who On Earth Did I Marry?

Disappeared Undercover: Double Life Forensic Detectives On The Case With Paula Zahn Disappeared Nightmare Next Door Couples Who Kill Deadly Sins Blood Relatives I Almost Got Away With It

01:15 Cadillac Man 02:55 Boxcar Bertha 04:25 Eye Of The Needle 06:15 A Rage In Harlem 08:05 Bound For Glory 10:30 Twelve Angry Men 12:25 Johnny Be Good 13:50 The Crocodile Hunter: Collision Course 15:20 Billion Dollar Brain 17:10 The Wilby Conspiracy 18:55 The Tempest 20:25 Fires Within 22:00 Born To Win 23:30 Mgm’s Big Screen 23:45 Firestarter

00:15 Market Values 00:45 Living With The Amish 01:40 Into The Drink 02:05 Into The Drink 02:35 Lonely Planet: Roads Less Travelled 03:30 Travel Oz 03:55 Deadliest Journeys 04:25 A World Apart 05:20 Long Way Down 06:15 Graham’s World 06:40 My Sri Lanka With Peter Kuruvita 07:10 Market Values 07:35 Market Values 08:05 Living With The Amish 09:00 Into The Drink 09:25 Into The Drink 09:55 Lonely Planet: Roads Less Travelled 10:50 Travel Oz 11:15 Deadliest Journeys 11:45 A World Apart 12:40 Travel Oz 13:05 Travel Oz 13:35 Gone to save the planet 14:00 My Sri Lanka With Peter Kuruvita 14:30 Market Values 14:55 Market Values 15:25 Living With The Amish 16:20 Into The Drink 16:45 Into The Drink 17:15 Lonely Planet: Roads Less Travelled 18:10 Travel Oz 18:35 Deadliest Journeys 19:05 A World Apart 20:00 Market Values 20:30 Market Values 21:00 Gone to save the planet 21:30 My Sri Lanka With Peter Kuruvita 22:00 Long Way Down 22:55 Graham’s World 23:20 My Sri Lanka With Peter Kuruvita 23:50 Earth Tripping

HAPPY FEET TWO ON OSN MOVIES KIDS 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 22:00 23:00

Doomsday Preppers Situation Critical Blowdown Banged Up Abroad Naked Science Shark Men Banged Up Abroad Alaska State Troopers Doomsday Preppers Situation Critical Blowdown Banged Up Abroad Naked Science Shark Men Banged Up Abroad Alaska State Troopers Doomsday Preppers Situation Critical Mega Breakdown Trapped The Known Universe Dangerous Encounters Trapped Alaska State Troopers

00:00 Ultimate Animal Countdown 01:00 Speed Kills 01:55 Monster Fish 02:50 Dangerous Encounters With Brady Barr 03:45 Built For The Kill 5 04:40 World’s Deadliest Animals 05:35 Triumph of Life 06:30 Monster Fish 07:25 Dangerous Encounters With Brady Barr 08:20 Built For The Kill 5 09:15 Fish Warrior 10:10 Moray Eels: Alien Empire 11:05 World’s Weirdest 12:00 I, Predator 13:00 Monster Fish 14:00 Dangerous Encounters With Brady Barr 15:00 Built For The Kill 5 16:00 Fish Warrior 17:00 Ninja Shrimp 18:00 World’s Weirdest 19:00 Monster Fish 20:00 Dangerous Encounters With Brady Barr 21:00 Built For The Kill 5 22:00 Fish Warrior 23:00 Ninja Shrimp

09:30 Two And A Half Men 10:00 The Office 11:00 The Tonight Show With Jay Leno 12:00 Arrested Development 12:30 Seinfeld 13:00 Hope & Faith 14:00 1600 Penn 14:30 The Office 15:00 Two And A Half Men 15:30 The Daily Show With Jon Stewart 16:00 The Colbert Report 16:30 Arrested Development 17:00 Late Night With Jimmy Fallon 18:30 Malibu Country 20:00 Don’t Trust The B In Apartment 23 20:30 Brickleberry 21:00 The Daily Show Global Edition 21:30 The Colbert Report Global Edition 22:00 Family Guy 22:30 Louie 23:00 Girls 23:30 Enlightened

00:00 02:00 06:00 07:00 08:00 08:30 11:00 12:00 13:00 13:30 14:00 16:00 17:00 18:00 18:30 19:00 20:00 21:00

24 Good Morning America Good Morning America 24 Emmerdale Coronation Street The Ellen DeGeneres Show 24 Emmerdale Coronation Street Live Good Morning America Awake The Ellen DeGeneres Show Emmerdale Coronation Street 24 C.S.I. Miami The Carrie Diaries

00:00 The Keeper-18 02:00 Meskada-PG15 04:00 True Justice: Angel Of Death 06:00 Tomorrow, When The War Began-PG15 08:00 True Justice: Blood Alley-PG15 10:00 Do No Harm-PG15 12:00 Ip Man 2-PG15 14:00 True Justice: Blood Alley-PG15 16:00 Killer Mountain-PG15 18:00 Ip Man 2-PG15 20:00 Three Kings-18 22:00 The Silence Of The Lambs-18

00:00 01:00 02:00 04:00 05:00 06:00 07:00 07:30 08:00 09:00 10:00 11:00 12:00 12:30 13:00 15:00 16:00 16:30 17:00 18:00 19:00 20:00 21:00

Eureka Scandal Grimm Necessary Roughness Grimm Eureka Emmerdale Coronation Street The Finder Scandal Burn Notice Necessary Roughness Emmerdale Coronation Street The Ellen DeGeneres Show Eureka Emmerdale Coronation Street The Ellen DeGeneres Show The Finder Alphas Top Gear (US) Once Upon A Time

01:00 Footloose-PG15 03:00 Hidden Crimes-PG15 05:00 The National Tree-PG15 07:00 Underground: The Julian Assange Story-PG15 09:00 Footloose-PG15 11:00 Blackthorn-PG15 13:00 The Decoy Bride-PG15 15:00 Winx-FAM 17:00 Larry Crowne-PG15 19:00 Jane Eyre-PG15 21:00 One Day-18 23:00 Project X-18

00:00 Alien 02:00 The Keeper 04:00 Meskada 06:00 True Justice: Angel Of Death 08:00 Tomorrow, When The War Began 10:00 True Justice: Blood Alley 12:00 Do No Harm 14:00 Ip Man 2 16:00 True Justice: Blood Alley 18:00 Killer Mountain 20:00 Ip Man 2 22:00 Three Kings

00:00 The Cleveland Show 00:30 The Daily Show With Jon Stewart 01:00 The Colbert Report 01:30 Saturday Night Live 02:30 The Ricky Gervais Show 03:00 Guys With Kids 03:30 1600 Penn 04:00 Seinfeld 04:30 The Tonight Show With Jay Leno 05:30 Hope & Faith 07:00 Late Night With Jimmy Fallon 08:00 Seinfeld 08:30 Hope & Faith 09:00 Guys With Kids

00:00 Tucker And Dale vs Evil-18 02:00 Grassroots-PG15 04:00 Ernest Scared Stupid-PG15 06:00 Snow Day-PG 08:00 Police Academy 5: Assignment Miami Beach-PG15 10:00 3 Holiday Tails-PG 12:00 Ernest Scared Stupid-PG15 14:00 Falling Star-PG15 16:00 3 Holiday Tails-PG 18:00 Men In Black II-PG 20:00 30 Minutes Or Less-18 22:00 Tucker And Dale vs Evil-18

01:00 The Preacher’s Wife-PG15 03:15 Broken-PG15 05:00 7 Days In Havana-PG15 07:15 Virtual Lies-PG15 09:00 B-Girl-PG15 11:00 The Preacher’s Wife-PG15 13:15 Henry’s Crime-PG15 15:15 George Harrison: Living In The Material World-PG15 19:00 The Company Men-PG15 21:00 Mad Bastards-PG15 23:15 S. Darko-PG15

01:00 Toast-PG15 03:00 A Better Life-PG15 05:00 Crisis Point-PG15 07:00 A Fall From Grace-PG15 09:00 Water For Elephants-PG15 11:00 Big Miracle-PG 13:00 Bobby Jones: Stroke Of Genius 15:15 Kung Fu Panda 2-PG 17:00 Water For Elephants-PG15 19:00 Joyful Noise-PG15 21:00 Sherlock Holmes: A Game Of Shadows-PG15 23:15 Shark Night-PG15

01:15 Queen Of The Swallows 02:45 Quest For A Heart 04:15 Mandie And The Secret Tunnel 06:00 Judy Moody And The Not Bummer Summer 08:00 Emilie Jolie 10:00 Happy Feet Two 11:45 Winner & The Golden Child: Part II 13:15 Battle For Terra 14:45 Quest For A Heart 16:15 Winner & The Golden Child: Part II 18:00 Happy Feet Two 20:00 Dragon Hunters 22:00 Battle For Terra 23:30 Winner & The Golden Child: Part II

00:00 Burden Of Evil-PG15 02:00 HappythankyoumorepleasePG15 04:00 Green Lantern: Emerald Knights-PG15 06:00 Valentina-FAM 08:00 Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol-PG15 10:15 Flower Girl-PG15 12:00 Happythankyoumoreplease14:00 Alpha And Omega-PG 15:45 Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol-PG15 18:00 Mary & Martha-PG15 20:00 Seeking Justice-PG15 22:00 Your Sister’s Sister-18

00:30 01:00 08:00 13:00 21:00 22:00 23:00

Futbol Mundial Test Cricket PGA Tour Live Test Cricket AFL Premiership Highlights PGA Tour Highlights PGA European Tour Highlights

01:00 06:30 07:00 08:30 10:00 11:30 12:00 14:00 17:30 18:00 19:00 20:00 21:00 23:00

PGA European Tour Futbol Mundial Super League Super League Super League Futbol Mundial Live NRL Premiership Dubai Duty Free Darts Masters Futbol Mundial PGA Tour Highlights PGA European Tour Highlights Super Rugby Highlights NRL Premiership AFL Premiership Highlights

00:00 01:30 03:00 04:30 07:00 08:00 08:30

Super League Super League Super League Pro 12 Golfing World Top 14 Highlights AFL Premiership

11:00 12:00 13:00 14:00 16:30 18:30 19:00 20:00 20:30

World Pool Masters World Cup Of Pool Golfing World AFL Premiership NRL Premiership Top 14 Highlights Trans World Sport ICC Cricket 360 Dubai Duty Free Darts Masters

01:00 02:00 04:00 07:00 08:00 09:00 10:00 11:00 13:00 13:30 14:30 15:30 17:30 18:00 19:00 21:00

UFC Countdown UFC Prelims UFC WWE Bottom Line WWE Experience Ping Pong World US Bass Fishing NHL Mass Participation Ironman Mass Participation Ironman European Le Mans Series WWE SmackDown Mobil 1 The Grid US Bass Fishing UFC Prelims UFC

00:05 00:30 03:00 04:15 05:30 07:00 Shots 08:15 09:30 Shots 10:45 12:00 13:15 14:30 15:45 17:00 18:15 19:30 20:45 22:00 Shots 23:15 23:40

Excalibur’s Deer City USA Elk Chronicles Excalibur’s Deer City USA Elk Chronicles Bow Madness Shooting USA’s Impossible

01:35 03:30 05:10 07:00 07:30 09:20 11:15 14:20 16:00 17:35 21:10 22:00

Stihl’s Reel In The Outdoors Shooting USA’s Impossible Legends Of Rod & Reel Outdoors In The Heartland Bill Dance Saltwater Legends Of Rod & Reel Outdoors In The Heartland Bill Dance Saltwater Legends Of Rod & Reel Outdoors In The Heartland Bill Dance Saltwater Shooting USA’s Impossible Stihl’s Reel In The Outdoors Stihl’s Reel In The Outdoors

Cool Hand Luke Dark Of The Sun Little Women-FAM TCM Presents Under The...-U Guns For San Sebastian-PG Rhapsody-FAM Doctor Zhivago-PG Casablanca-FAM Jailhouse Rock-PG Gone With The Wind-PG Ride Him, Cowboy-FAM Cheyenne Autumn-FAM

00:00 Big Rich Texas 01:00 Fashion Police 01:55 Empire Girls: Julissa And Adrienne 02:50 Empire Girls: Julissa And Adrienne 03:45 Videofashion Daily 04:40 Videofashion Specials 05:10 Videofashion News 05:35 Videofashion Collections 06:05 Open House 06:30 Open House 07:00 Videofashion News 07:30 Videofashion News 08:00 Videofashion Daily 09:00 Open House 09:30 Dress My Nest 10:00 Built 10:55 Tia And Tamera 11:55 Kimora: Life In The Fab Lane 12:50 Videofashion Specials 13:20 Videofashion Collections 13:50 Chicagolicious 14:45 How Do I Look?

15:40 How Do I Look?

16:35 Giuliana & Bill 17:30 Giuliana & Bill 18:25 Tia And Tamera 19:25 Tia And Tamera 20:20 Kimora: House Of Fab 21:15 Kimora: House Of Fab 22:10 Built

Classifieds MONDAY, JUNE 10, 2013

Airlines QTR JZR JZR THY ETH GFA AFG UAE ETD FDB RJA QTR JZR JZR JZR JZR KAC KAC RBG MSR QTR THY DHX FDB BAW JZR JZR JZR KAC KAC KAC KAC KAC JZR FDB UAE ABY QTR FDB ETD GFA IRC MEA MSC UAE MSR THY QTR FDB JZR JZR JZR JZR UAE ETD QTR GFA QTR JAI FDB AIC UAL TMA KAC KAC KAC KAC KAC KAC KAC KAC KAC KAC JZR JZR JZR MPH SVA KNE OMA RJA QTR ETD UAE ABY UAL GFA SVA NIA QTR FDB GFA MSC JAI FDB OMA ABY MEA MSR AXB MSC ALK JZR TAR DLH PIA JAI MSR KLM THY

Arrival Flights on Monday 10/6/2013 Flt Route 148 DOHA 267 BEIRUT 539 CAIRO 764 SABIHA 620 ADDIS ABABA 211 BAHRAIN 416 JEDDAH 853 DUBAI 305 ABU DHABI 67 DUBAI 642 AMMAN 6130 DOHA 555 ALEXANDRIA 1541 CAIRO 529 ASSIUT 503 LUXOR 206 ISLAMABAD 412 MANILA 555 ALEXANDRIA 612 CAIRO 138 DOHA 770 ISTANBUL 170 BAHRAIN 69 DUBAI 157 LONDON 1543 CAIRO 241 AMMAN 561 SOHAG 302 MUMBAI 352 COCHIN 284 DHAKA 344 CHENNAI 672 DUBAI 165 DUBAI 53 DUBAI 855 DUBAI 125 SHARJAH 132 DOHA 55 DUBAI 301 ABU DHABI 213 BAHRAIN 6521 LAMERD 404 BEIRUT 403 ASSIUT 871 DUBAI 610 CAIRO 766 ISTANBUL 140 DOHA 57 DUBAI 535 CAIRO 177 DUBAI 185 DUBAI 189 DUBAI 859 DUBAI 307 ABU DHABI 136 DOHA 217 BAHRAIN 146 DOHA 576 COCHIN 59 DUBAI 975 CHENNAI 981 BAHRAIN 213 BEIRUT 104 LONDON 546 ALEXANDRIA 786 JEDDAH 788 JEDDAH 674 DUBAI 742 DAMMAM 542 CAIRO 118 NEW YORK 618 DOHA 774 RIYADH 257 BEIRUT 777 JEDDAH 239 AMMAN 93 AMSTERDAM 500 JEDDAH 472 JEDDAH 645 MUSCAT 640 AMMAN 134 DOHA 303 ABU DHABI 857 DUBAI 127 SHARJAH 982 WASHINGTON DC DULLES 215 BAHRAIN 510 RIYADH 251 ALEXANDRIA 144 DOHA 63 DUBAI 219 BAHRAIN 405 SOHAG 572 MUMBAI 61 DUBAI 647 MUSCAT 129 SHARJAH 402 BEIRUT 618 ALEXANDRIA 489 COCHIN 401 ALEXANDRIA 229 COLOMBO 135 BAHRAIN 327 TUNIS 636 FRANKFURT 205 LAHORE 574 MUMBAI 614 CAIRO 411 AMSTERDAM 772 ISTANBUL

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

Airlines AIC JAI UAL DLH MSR PIA JZR JZR THY THY ETH AFG QTR UAE FDB RBG MSR ETD QTR QTR JZR FDB RJA GFA THY JZR KAC JZR BAW FDB JZR JZR KAC ABY KAC UAE FDB QTR ETD GFA KAC KAC IRC MEA JZR KAC MSC KAC JZR MSR THY UAE FDB QTR KAC KNE OMA SVA KAC KAC JZR KAC RJA JZR QTR ETD JZR ABY UAE GFA SVA UAL JZR JZR MPH NIA TMA QTR FDB GFA JZR KAC MSC JAI FDB ABY KAC OMA KAC MEA MSR DHX MSC ETD ALK UAE QTR KAC GFA FDB KAC QTR JAI JZR JZR KAC TAR

Departure Flights on Monday 10/6/2013 Flt Route 982 AHMEDABAD 573 MUMBAI 981 WASHINGTON DC DULLES 637 FRANKFURT 615 CAIRO 206 PESHAWAR 1542 CAIRO 502 LUXOR 773 ISTANBUL 765 ISTANBUL 621 ADDIS ABABA 416 KABUL 6131 DOHA 854 DUBAI 68 DUBAI 556 ALEXANDRIA 613 CAIRO 306 ABU DHABI 139 DOHA 149 DOHA 560 SOHAG 70 DUBAI 643 AMMAN 212 BAHRAIN 771 ISTANBUL 240 AMMAN 545 ALEXANDRIA 164 DUBAI 156 LONDON 54 DUBAI 256 BEIRUT 534 CAIRO 671 DUBAI 126 SHARJAH 787 JEDDAH 856 DUBAI 56 DUBAI 133 DOHA 302 ABU DHABI 214 BAHRAIN 541 CAIRO 165 ROME 6522 LAMERD 405 BEIRUT 776 JEDDAH 103 LONDON 406 SOHAG 785 JEDDAH 176 DUBAI 611 CAIRO 767 ISTANBUL 872 DUBAI 58 DUBAI 141 DOHA 673 DUBAI 473 JEDDAH 646 MUSCAT 501 JEDDAH 617 DOHA 773 RIYADH 188 DUBAI 741 DAMMAM 641 AMMAN 238 AMMAN 135 DOHA 304 ABU DHABI 538 CAIRO 128 SHARJAH 858 DUBAI 216 BAHRAIN 511 RIYADH 982 BAHRAIN 184 DUBAI 266 BEIRUT 93 AL MAKTOUM 252 ALEXANDRIA 214 BEIRUT 145 DOHA 64 DUBAI 220 BAHRAIN 134 BAHRAIN 283 DHAKA 404 ASSIUT 571 MUMBAI 62 DUBAI 120 SHARJAH 331 TRIVANDRUM 648 MUSCAT 351 KOCHI 403 BEIRUT 619 ALEXANDRIA 171 BAHRAIN 402 ALEXANDRIA 308 ABU DHABI 230 COLOMBO 860 DUBAI 137 DOHA 301 MUMBAI 218 BAHRAIN 60 DUBAI 205 ISLAMABAD 147 DOHA 575 ABU DHABI 554 ALEXANDRIA 1540 CAIRO 411 BANGKOK 328 DUBAI

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

DIAL 161 FOR AIRPORT INFORMATION Directorate General of Civil Aviation Home Page (www.kuwait-airport.com.kw)

FOR SALE

ACCOMMODATION

Mitsubishi Lancer GT 2012, red color, sunroof, Camera, CD, (full option), 7,500km, Price KD 3,250/-. Contact: 50994848. (C 4438) 10-6-2013

Sharing accommodation available in Farwaniya near Garden for a Filipina lady in a C-A/C building. Rent KD 55/-. Contact: 99076372.

(C 4439) 10-6-2013

Toyota Yaris model 2008, red color, alloy rim fog lamp, R bumper sensor, CD, very excellent original condition, installment possible, cash price KD 1,950/-, negotiable. Contact: 99105286.

(C 4433) 8-6-2013

Sharing accommodation now available near big Jamiya, Bahrain Street, Salmiya (Gadeer Clinic building). Contact: 66792392/ 69664598. (C 4436) 9-6-2013

CHANGE OF NAME I, Pallath Halid, Passport No. F8706312, P.O. Vakkad, Malappuram (dt.) Tirur, Kerala, India have changed my name from Pallath Halid to Khalid Pallath. (C 4437) 10-6-2013

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

1889988 Kuwait

SHARQIA-1 AFTER EARTH (DIG) FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) AFTER EARTH (DIG) FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) AFTER EARTH (DIG) AFTER EARTH (DIG) FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) NO SUN+ TUE+WED

1:30 PM 1:00 PM 3:30 PM 5:45 PM 8:15 PM 10:30 PM 12:45 AM

SHARQIA-2 EPIC (DIG-3D) TATTAH (DIG) EPIC (DIG-3D) TATTAH (DIG) TATTAH (DIG) TATTAH (DIG) NO SUN+ TUE+WED

12:30 PM 2:45 PM 5:00 PM 7:15 PM 9:45 PM 12:15 AM

SHARQIA-3 NOW YOU SEE ME (DIG) DISCONNECT (DIG) THE HANGOVER PART III (DIG) DISCONNECT (DIG) NOW YOU SEE ME (DIG) DISCONNECT (DIG) NO SUN+ TUE+WED

1:30 PM 3:45 PM 6:00 PM 8:00 PM 10:00 PM 12:30 AM

MUHALAB-1 EPIC (DIG) EPIC (DIG) DISCONNECT (DIG) DISCONNECT (DIG) DISCONNECT (DIG)

1:30 PM 3:45 PM 6:00 PM 8:15 PM 10:15 PM

MUHALAB-2 NOW YOU SEE ME (DIG) THE HANGOVER PART III (DIG) AFTER EARTH (DIG) NOW YOU SEE ME (DIG) AFTER EARTH (DIG)

12:45 PM 3:00 PM 5:00 PM 7:15 PM 9:45 PM

MUHALAB-3 TATTAH (DIG) TATTAH (DIG) FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) TATTAH (DIG) TATTAH (DIG)

12:30 PM 2:45 PM 5:15 PM 7:45 PM 10:00 PM

FANAR-1 NOW YOU SEE ME (DIG) FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) NOW YOU SEE ME (DIG) FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) NOW YOU SEE ME (DIG) FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) NO SUN+ TUE+WED

12:30 PM 2:45 PM 5:15 PM 7:30 PM 10:00 PM 12:30 AM

FANAR-2 AFTER EARTH (DIG) THE HANGOVER PART III (DIG) AFTER EARTH (DIG) AFTER EARTH (DIG) THE HANGOVER PART III (DIG) AFTER EARTH (DIG) NO SUN+ TUE+WED

1:30 PM 3:45 PM 5:45 PM 7:45 PM 10:15 PM 12:15 AM

FANAR-3 YEH JAWANI HAI DEEWANI12:30 PM DISCONNECT (DIG) 3:30 PM DISCONNECT (DIG) 5:30 PM

Prayer timings Fajr:

03:13

Shorook

04:48

Duhr:

11:47

Asr:

15:21

Maghrib:

18:45

Isha:

20:19

KNCC PROGRAMME FROM THURSDAY TO WEDNESDAY (06/06/2013 TO 12/06/2013)

YAMLA PAGLA DEEWANA 2 (HINDI) (DIG) 7:30 PM DISCONNECT (DIG) 10:30 PM DISCONNECT (DIG) 12:45 AM NO SUN+ TUE+WED

DISCONNECT (DIG) DISCONNECT (DIG) DISCONNECT (DIG)

9:00 PM 11:15 PM 1:15 AM

360ยบ 3 THE HANGOVER PART III (DIG) THE HANGOVER PART III (DIG) THE HANGOVER PART III (DIG) THE HANGOVER PART III (DIG) THE HANGOVER PART III (DIG) THE HANGOVER PART III (DIG)

1:45 PM 4:00 PM 6:15 PM 8:30 PM 10:45 PM 1:00 AM

AL-KOUT.1 AFTER EARTH (DIG) EPIC (DIG-3D) AFTER EARTH (DIG) THE HANGOVER PART III (DIG) AFTER EARTH (DIG) AFTER EARTH (DIG)

1:30 PM 3:45 PM 6:00 PM 8:00 PM 10:15 PM 12:30 AM

AL-KOUT.2 TATTAH (DIG) TATTAH (DIG) TATTAH (DIG) TATTAH (DIG) TATTAH (DIG) TATTAH (DIG)

12:30 PM 2:45 PM 5:00 PM 7:30 PM 10:00 PM 12:45 AM

AL-KOUT.3 FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) NOW YOU SEE ME (DIG) FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) NOW YOU SEE ME (DIG) FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) NOW YOU SEE ME (DIG)

1:00 PM 3:30 PM 5:45 PM 8:15 PM 10:30 PM 1:00 AM

MARINA-1 DISCONNECT (DIG) DISCONNECT (DIG) NOW YOU SEE ME (DIG) DISCONNECT (DIG) NOW YOU SEE ME (DIG) DISCONNECT (DIG) NOW YOU SEE ME (DIG) NO SUN+ TUE+WED

12:30 PM 2:30 PM 4:30 PM 6:45 PM 8:45 PM 11:00 PM 1:00 AM

MARINA-2 AFTER EARTH (DIG) AFTER EARTH (DIG) FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) AFTER EARTH (DIG) AFTER EARTH (DIG) NO SUN+ TUE+WED

12:45 PM 3:00 PM 5:30 PM 8:00 PM 10:30 PM 12:45 AM

MARINA-3 TATTAH (DIG) EPIC (DIG-3D) THE HANGOVER PART III (DIG) TATTAH (DIG) TATTAH (DIG) TATTAH (DIG) NO SUN+ TUE+WED

1:00 PM 3:30 PM 5:45 PM 7:45 PM 10:00 PM 12:30 AM

AVENUES-1 NOW YOU SEE ME (DIG) NOW YOU SEE ME (DIG) NOW YOU SEE ME (DIG) NOW YOU SEE ME (DIG) NOW YOU SEE ME (DIG) NOW YOU SEE ME (DIG) NO SUN+ TUE+WED

1:45 PM 4:00 PM 6:15 PM 8:30 PM 10:45 PM 1:00 AM

BAIRAQ-1 EPIC (DIG-3D) EPIC (DIG-3D) FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG)

1:30 PM 3:45 PM 6:00 PM 8:45 PM 11:30 PM

1:30 PM 4:00 PM 6:30 PM 9:00 PM 11:30 PM

BAIRAQ-2 TATTAH (DIG) TATTAH (DIG) TATTAH (DIG) TATTAH (DIG) TATTAH (DIG) TATTAH (DIG)

12:30 PM 3:00 PM 5:30 PM 8:00 PM 10:30 PM 1:00 AM

1:45 PM 4:30 PM 7:15 PM 10:00 PM 12:45 AM

BAIRAQ-3 AFTER EARTH (DIG) AFTER EARTH (DIG) AFTER EARTH (DIG) DISCONNECT (DIG) AFTER EARTH (DIG) AFTER EARTH (DIG)

12:45 PM 3:00 PM 5:15 PM 7:30 PM 9:45 PM 12:05 AM

PLAZA TATTAH (DIG) TATTAH (DIG) TATTAH (DIG)

5:45 PM 8:00 PM 10:30 PM

LAILA FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) TATTAH (DIG) AFTER EARTH (DIG)

6:00 PM 8:30 PM 10:45 PM

AJIAL.1 IDDARAMMAYILATHO (DIG) IDDARAMMAYILATHO (DIG)

6:45 PM 9:45 PM

AVENUES-2 TATTAH (DIG) TATTAH (DIG) TATTAH (DIG) TATTAH (DIG) TATTAH (DIG) NO SUN+ TUE+WED AVENUES-3 FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) FAST & FURIOUS 6 (DIG) NO SUN+ TUE+WED 360ยบ 1 AFTER EARTH (DIG) AFTER EARTH (DIG) AFTER EARTH (DIG) AFTER EARTH (DIG) AFTER EARTH (DIG) AFTER EARTH (DIG)

1:00 PM 3:15 PM 5:30 PM 7:45 PM 10:00 PM 12:15 AM

360ยบ 2 DISCONNECT (DIG) DISCONNECT (DIG) DISCONNECT (DIG)

2:15 PM 4:30 PM 6:45 PM

34

stars CROSSWORD 216

STAR TRACK Aries (March 21-April 19) Your personal and business goals are the most active parts of your personality. These are the subconscious forces and influences you may be feeling now.

There could be an opportunity to assemble with many different personalities today and for the next few days. A variety of subjects could have you feeling that your time with these people is a time well spent. You have a talent of guiding others through the hurdles of life and today you are learning new perspectives. This afternoon you will enjoy becoming satiated with music, art or physical activity. This will also help you to regain or boost your energies. Gossip may creep into your evening but it is best to navigate away from this waste of time. Bonding with family can be experienced this evening.

Taurus (April 20-May 20) You could be taking the initiative today, but you will benefit best by letting others take the lead, especially if you have been experiencing a lot of overtime in the workplace. You may enjoy group sports or working with children or animals. Creativity and its expression are very important for your mental health and this is the day to enjoy creative expression—yours or others. There will be some discussion today about ways in which to earn extra money. This could be a creative and prosperous adventure. When you have breakthroughs, they often come as insights into your immediate surroundings, home and environment—your support system in general. You may have new ideas today that will fit in with the unusual environment that you enjoy creating.

Gemini (May 21-June 20)

ACROSS 1. A doctor's degree in theology.

4. Medieval plate armor to protect a horse's head.

12. Inquire about.

15. A joke that seems extremely funny.

16. A skirt consisting of a rectangle of calico or printed cotton.

17. Aircraft landing in bad weather in which the pilot is talked down by ground control using precision approach radar.

18. Either of two folds of skin that can be moved to cover or open the eye.

20. A pause during which things are calm or activities are diminished.

21. Thigh of a hog (usually smoked).

22. On or toward the lee.

23. An island in Indonesia south of Borneo.

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

28. A soft silvery metallic element of the alkali earth group.

30. A device for creating a current of air by movement of a surface or surfaces.

31. An official prosecutor for a judicial district.

32. A branch of the Tai languages.

37. Mature female of mammals of which the male is called `buck'.

40. A nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (trade name Clinoril).

44. Large short-tailed lemur of Madagascar having thick silky fur in black and white and fawn.

46. Of or relating to a pointed conical tooth.

47. Having undesirable or negative qualities.

48. Belonging to or befitting a supreme ruler.

49. A cell without a nucleus (as an erythrocyte).

51. (of reproduction) Not involving the fusion of male and female gametes reproduction".

53. Regional and archaic.

54. Any of various long-legged carrion-eating hawks of South and Central America.

57. A radioactive element of the actinide series.

58. A short sleeveless outer tunic emblazoned with a coat of arms.

64. A very young child (birth to 1 year) who has not yet begun to walk or talk.

67. Relative darkness caused by light rays being intercepted by an opaque body.

69. Type genus of the Alcidae comprising solely the razorbill.

70. A loose sleeveless outer garment made from aba cloth.

74. A boy or man.

75. A serve that strikes the net before falling into the receiver's court.

76. A medieval hood of mail suspended from a basinet to protect the head and neck.

77. (informal) Of the highest quality.

78. An agency of the United Nations affiliated with the World Bank.

79. An ornamental flower garden.

80. Used of physical heat.

DOWN 1. A squeeze with the fingers.

2. English writer on games (1672-1769).

3. A person of unquestioning obedience.

4. A user interface in which you type com-

mands instead of choosing them from a menu or selecting an icon.

5. A pilgrimage to Mecca.

6. The eleventh month of the civil year.

7. Used to make malmsey wine.

8. Any wingless blood-sucking parasitic insect noted for ability to leap.

9. Any of various long-tailed rodents similar to but larger than a mouse.

10. The female reproductive cell.

11. A period of time spent sleeping.

12. The ninth month of the Hindu calendar.

13. A fraudulent business scheme.

14. God of love and erotic desire.

19. A soft heavy toxic malleable metallic element.

24. The blood group whose red cells carry both the A and B antigens.

25. Resinlike substance secreted by certain lac insects.

27. An early Christian church designed like a Roman basilica.

29. A tricycle (usually propelled by pedalling).

33. A former copper coin of Pakistan.

34. Valuable fiber plant of East Indies now widespread in cultivation.

35. A rugged box (usually made of wood).

36. Having lost freshness or brilliance of color.

38. Lake in northwestern Russia near the border with Finland.

39. The younger brother of Edwy who became king of Northumbria when it renounced Edwy.

41. A digital display that uses liquid crystal cells that change reflectivity in an applied electric field.

42. Made of grain or relating to grain or the plants that produce it.

43. Little known Kamarupan languages.

45. Having branches.

50. West Indian evergreen with medium to long leaves.

52. A compartment in front of a motor vehicle where driver sits.

55. Formation consisting of the set of horizontal lines composed of pixels that is used to form an image on a CRT. 56. A Buddhist who has attained nirvana.

59. An Italian poet famous for `The Divine Comedy'--a journey through hell and purgatory and paradise guided by Virgil and his idealized Beatrice (1265-1321).

60. (Norse mythology) The chief race of gods living at Asgard.

61. Muslim name for God. 62. Small tropical American tree bearing edible plumlike fruit.

63. A military trainee (as at a military academy).

65. In bed.

66. A Chadic language spoken south of Lake Chad.

68. Dearly loved.

71. The sound made by a gentle blow.

72. Any of various coarse shrubby plants of the genus Iva with small greenish flowers.

73. An inflammatory disease of connective tissue with variable features including fever and weakness and fatigability and joint pains and skin lesions on the face or neck or arms.

MONDAY, JUNE 10, 2013

Your mind is ever on communication, how you present yourself and how you come across with others. You feel confident and outgoing today. You could be teaching or helping others make choices about their future goals. Finding any difficulties today may call on your ability to agree to disagree. You are the eternal patron of just about anyone who will let you look after them—the original mother hen. You need to feel useful and wanted and are happy to be involved in family activities. You will become active and involved in many different actions surrounding the needs of others. There are opportunities to visit with an older member of your family or an elderly friend today. If you have them, take some fresh cut flowers for this elder to enjoy.

Cancer (June 21-July 22) A career in music, poetry, psychology, philosophy—the realms of the imagination—may be the perfect platform for you. You will enjoy these areas today. Perhaps you are performing in some way. You work well in these areas and can help or teach others by sharing your understanding and your talents. You can serve as a guide to the nether worlds of the mind and psyche—religions, mysticism, etc. Spiritual problems and questions are easy—for you always grasp the unity behind what appears separate. You have a natural appreciation for the past, personal as well as world history—all which is traditional. You find it easy to work with music, color, fabric and the arts—whatever is beautiful and welcoming. Young people can be found under your umbrella.

Leo (July 23-August 22) You have an ability and opportunity to be particularly artistic today. This could involve cooking, art, redecorating, gardening, meditation, music, etc. Your enthusiasm for mystical and religious experiences could make you an excellent teacher. You are also, no doubt, a romantic. You are at home in the world of dreams and images. Story writing or ghost writing may be an avenue for you to explore; you have talent. You build upon your sense of feeling secure as you develop the steady domestic virtues: routine work, regular growth and commitments. A love relationship could be strained this evening—agree to disagree. You are an idealist when it comes to partners and relationships, always holding out for what your imagination tells you it could be.

Virgo (August 23-September 22) You enjoy tradition and find all that is historically to be very romantic. The ideal world of yesteryear seems to beckon and call. You are most imaginative when it comes to anything spiritual, or psychological—pertaining to the psyche. Others may find you entrancing and always able to draw them into your world of images and dreams. No one has any doubt that you are a high floater—a full-blown dreamer, complete with built-in psychic abilities and probably given to visions. This is a day of communication. You have a love affair going with the mind and you value its entire offspring: words, ideas, thoughts, etc. You love to talk. In particular, you appreciate good conversations. Fun and lively interactions with family members are possible.

Word Search

Libra (September 23-October 22) You can expect some sort of major reevaluation of your likes and dislikes, how and what you enjoy or appreciate about yourself and life—your value system.

You may find that your appreciation for the quality of everything is stronger; this is reappraisal time. Things you say mean a lot—especially today. You have a great mental drive and lavish great energy on mental pursuits of all kinds now. Ideas, words, books, etc., are pursued with great gusto. Friends may keep you busy all afternoon—all of this should go rather smoothly, however. You are understanding and sensitive to the needs of others and are in a good position to use your communication skills. A visitor may compliment you on your tastes.

Scorpio (October 23-November 21) You have a high degree of motivation when it comes to giving and to personal sacrifice. You feel understanding and accepting and are easily moved by the problems of others. Psychology in all of its forms is a driving force for you and on days like today you enjoy interacting with others. Today you will enjoy teaching the little secrets of your artistic talents and children love to learn from you. You have been thinking of a job with a senior home so that you can help create some new habits and talents that will give fresh enthusiasm to senior minds. You might think of beginning as a volunteer with this endeavor. Your patient ways make this a good talent as you interact with others. This evening you enjoy spending special time with someone you love.

Sagittarius (November 22-December 21) You are most original when concentrating on areas of home and family. You are not always a private person but you may find the pomp and circumstance of public life repressive and boring just now. You are determined to pick up an old hobby and may decide to include an interested member of the family in your fun. This could be fishing, building a useful object or walking along the beach in search of exciting things. The opportunity to interact with others is available and provides an opening to discuss recently read books and articles or just talk of things to come. Whatever choice you make for your activities today, you will be refreshed from the experience. Tonight, you could concentrate more on preparations for the upcoming workweek.

Capricorn (December 22-January 19) CAPRICORN Everything seems to work out for you when you are talking with others. You find it easy to say what you mean, even to people that do not speak your language. When it comes to teaching others, you are a natural, always able to motivate and inspire others. Personal achievement is exciting and you may find that you enjoy tutoring others in survival techniques. Perhaps you are good at identifying plants and starting a campfire. Your love of the spiritual and the eternal is clear to all who meet you. You love to solve the problems of the world, at least in words and images and when you tell it, all are enchanted. Lovers walk among the stars tonight. You might consider driving away from the city to view more stars since the two of you love the view.

Aquarius (January 20- February 18) A person or article comes to your attention and the information clears up a puzzling question from the past. You may find yourself analyzing and psychoanalyzing. You have no trouble putting your feelings into words; in fact, you may have to exercise some control over your tongue, for you may be quick to say things and everything you speak today packs a wallop. Letting go of things you cannot control, moves you forward. You have a great mental drive and lavish great energy on mental pursuits of all kinds. Young people will enjoy your guidance today in an afternoon neighborhood party setting, perhaps. You are at your most elegant in social situations now. Ideas, words, books, etc., can be pursued with great gusto.

Pisces (February 19-March 20) You can get to the heart of what is really happening today. You have great political power when it comes to other people and finances. You tend to attract and enjoy problem-solving situations; whether they are in board games, mathematical equations or disputes of whatever sort. Good results do not ignore signals that indicate a need for change, transformation and vulnerability in general. Know your subject and choose your words. Easy does it—ask and listen to other people’s opinion about what is needed to initiate a positive change. Think on these suggestions before making any firm decisions by yourself—you will be successful. Acceptance and faith may come into focus. Beautiful music fills the soft summer breezes this evening.

Yesterday’s Solution

Yesterday’s Solution

Daily SuDoku

Yesterday’s Solution

MONDAY, JUNE 10, 2013

i n f o r m at i o n For labor-related inquiries and complaints: Call MSAL hotline 128 GOVERNORATE Sabah Hospital

24812000

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

PHARMACY

ADDRESS

PHONE

Al-Madeena

22418714

Al-Shuhada

22545171

Al-Shuwaikh

24810598

Al-Nuzha

22545171

Ahmadi

Sama Safwan Abu Halaifa Danat Al-Sultan

Fahaeel Makka St Abu Halaifa-Coastal Rd Mahboula Block 1, Coastal Rd

23915883 23715414 23726558

Sabhan

24742838

Jahra

Modern Jahra Madina Munawara

Jahra-Block 3 Lot 1 Jahra-Block 92

24575518 24566622

Al-Helaly

22434853

Capital

Ahlam Khaldiya Coop

Fahad Al-Salem St Khaldiya Coop

22436184 24833967

Al-Faiha

22545051

Farwaniya

New Shifa Ferdous Coop Modern Safwan

Farwaniya Block 40 Ferdous Coop Old Kheitan Block 11

24734000 24881201 24726638

Al-Farwaniya

24711433

Al-Sulaibikhat

24316983

Tariq Hana Ikhlas Hawally & Rawdha Ghadeer Kindy Ibn Al-Nafis Mishrif Coop Salwa Coop

Salmiya-Hamad Mubarak St Salmiya-Amman St Hawally-Beirut St Hawally & Rawdha Coop Jabriya-Block 1A Jabriya-Block 3B Salmiya-Hamad Mubarak St Mishrif Coop Salwa Coop

25726265 25647075 22625999 22564549 25340559 25326554 25721264 25380581 25628241

Al-Fahaheel

23927002

Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh

24316983

Ahmadi

23980088

Al-Mangaf

23711183

Al-Shuaiba

23262845

Hawally

Kaizen center

25716707

Rawda

22517733

Adaliya

22517144

Al-Jahra

25610011

Khaldiya

24848075

Al-Salmiya

25616368

Kaifan

24849807

Shamiya

24848913

Shuwaikh

24814507

Abdullah Salem

22549134

Nuzha

22526804

Industrial Shuwaikh

24814764

Qadsiya

22515088

Dasmah

22532265

Bneid Al-Gar

22531908

Shaab

22518752

Qibla

22459381

Ayoun Al-Qibla

22451082

Mirqab

22456536

Sharq

22465401

Salmiya

25746401

Jabriya

25316254

Maidan Hawally

25623444

Bayan

25388462

Mishref

25381200

W Hawally

22630786

Sabah

24810221

Jahra

24770319

New Jahra

24575755

West Jahra

24772608

South Jahra

24775066

North Jahra

24775992

North Jleeb

24311795

Ardhiya

24884079

Firdous

24892674

Omariya

24719048

N Khaitan

24710044

Fintas

23900322

INTERNATIONAL CALLS

PRIVATE CLINICS Ophthalmologists Dr. Abidallah Al-Mansoor 25622444 Dr. Samy Al-Rabeea 25752222 Dr. Masoma Habeeb 25321171 Dr. Mubarak Al-Ajmy 25739999 Dr. Mohsen Abel 25757700 Dr Adnan Hasan Alwayl 25732223 Dr. Abdallah Al-Baghly 25732223 Ear, Nose & Throat (ENT) Dr. Ahmed Fouad Mouner 24555050 Ext 510 Dr. Abdallah Al-Ali 25644660 Dr. Abd Al-Hameed Al-Taweel 25646478 Dr. Sanad Al-Fathalah 25311996 Dr. Mohammad Al-Daaory 25731988 Dr. Ismail Al-Fodary 22620166 Dr. Mahmoud Al-Booz 25651426 General Practitioners Dr. Mohamme Y Majidi 24555050 Ext 123 Dr. Yousef Al-Omar 24719312 Dr. Tarek Al-Mikhazeem 23926920 Dr. Kathem Maarafi 25730465 Dr. Abdallah Ahmad Eyadah 25655528 Dr. Nabeel Al-Ayoobi 24577781 Dr. Dina Abidallah Al-Refae 25333501 Urologists Dr. Ali Naser Al-Serfy 22641534 Dr. Fawzi Taher Abul 22639955 Dr. Khaleel Abidallah Al-Awadi 22616660 Dr. Adel Al-Hunayan FRCS (C) 25313120 Dr. Leons Joseph 66703427 Psychologists /Psychotherapists

Paediatricians

Plastic Surgeons Dr. Mohammad Al-Khalaf

22547272

Dr. Khaled Hamadi

Dr. Abdal-Redha Lari

22617700

Dr. Abd Al-Aziz Al-Rashed

Dr. Abdel Quttainah

25625030/60

Family Doctor Dr Divya Damodar

23729596/23729581

Psychiatrists Dr. Esam Al-Ansari

22635047

Dr Eisa M. Al-Balhan

22613623/0

Gynaecologists & Obstetricians DrAdrian arbe

23729596/23729581

Dr. Verginia s.Marin

2572-6666 ext 8321

Endocrinologist

25665898 25340300

Dr. Zahra Qabazard

25710444

Dr. Sohail Qamar

22621099

Dr. Snaa Maaroof

25713514

Dr. Pradip Gujare

23713100

Dr. Zacharias Mathew

24334282

(1) Ear, Nose and Throat (2) Plastic Surgeon Dr. Abdul Mohsin Jafar, FRCS (Canada)

25655535

Dentists

Dr. Fozeya Ali Al-Qatan

22655539

Dr. Majeda Khalefa Aliytami

25343406

Dr. Shamah Al-Matar

22641071/2

Dr. Ahmad Al-Khooly

25739272

Dr. Anesah Al-Rasheed

22562226

22618787

Dr. Abidallah Al-Amer

22561444

Dr. Faysal Al-Fozan

22619557

Dr. Abdallateef Al-Katrash

22525888

Dr. Abidallah Al-Duweisan

25653755

Dr. Bader Al-Ansari

25620111

General Surgeons Dr. Amer Zawaz Al-Amer

22610044

Dr. Mohammad Yousef Basher

25327148

Internists, Chest & Heart Dr. Adnan Ebil Dr. Latefa Al-Duweisan

22666300 25728004

Dr. Nadem Al-Ghabra

25355515

Dr. Mobarak Aldoub

24726446

Dr Nasser Behbehani

25654300/3

Soor Center Tel: 2290-1677 Fax: 2290 1688

Neurologists

22639939

Dr. Mousa Khadada

info@soorcenter.com www.soorcenter.com

3729596/3729581

Dr. Sohal Najem Al-Shemeri

25633324

Dr. Jasem Mola Hassan

25345875

Gastrologists Dr. Sami Aman

22636464

Dr. Mohammad Al-Shamaly

25322030

Dr. Foad Abidallah Al-Ali

22633135

Kaizen center 25716707

25339330

Dr. Ahmad Al-Ansari 25658888 Dr. Kamal Al-Shomr 25329924 Physiotherapists & VD Dr. Deyaa Shehab

25722291

Dr. Musaed Faraj Khamees

22666288

Rheumatologists: Dr. Adel Al-Awadi

Dr Anil Thomas

Dr. Salem soso

Dr. Abd Al-Naser Al-Othman

25330060

Dr. Khaled Al-Jarallah

25722290

Internist, Chest & Heart DR.Mohammes Akkad

24555050 Ext 210

Dr. Mohammad Zubaid MB, ChB, FRCPC, PACC Assistant Professor Of Medicine Head, Division of Cardiology Mubarak Al-Kabeer Hospital Consultant Cardiologist Dr. Farida Al-Habib MD, PH.D, FACC Inaya German Medical Center Te: 2575077 Fax: 25723123

2611555-2622555

William Schuilenberg, RPC 2290-1677 Zaina Al Zabin, M.Sc. 2290-1677

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

Iran 0098 Iraq 00964 Ireland 00353 Italy 0039 Ivory Coast 00225 Jamaica 001876 Japan 0081 Jordan 00962 Kazakhstan 007 Kenya 00254 Kiribati 00686 Kuwait 00965 Kyrgyzstan 00996 Laos 00856 Latvia 00371 Lebanon 00961 Liberia 00231 Libya 00218 Lithuania 00370 Luxembourg 00352 Macau 00853 Macedonia 00389 Madagascar 00261 Majorca 0034 Malawi 00265 Malaysia 0060 Maldives 00960 Mali 00223 Malta 00356 Marshall Islands 00692 Martinique 00596 Mauritania 00222 Mauritius 00230 Mayotte 00269 Mexico 0052 Micronesia 00691 Moldova 00373 Monaco 00377 Mongolia 00976 Montserrat 001664 Morocco 00212 Mozambique 00258 Myanmar (Burma) 0095 Namibia 00264 Nepal 00977 Netherlands (Holland) 0031 Netherlands Antilles 00599 New Caledonia 00687 New Zealand 0064 Nicaragua 00505 Nigar 00227 Nigeria 00234 Niue 00683 Norfolk Island 00672 Northern Ireland (UK) 0044 North Korea 00850 Norway 0047 Oman 00968 Pakistan 0092 Palau 00680 Panama 00507 Papua New Guinea 00675 Paraguay 00595 Peru 0051 Philippines 0063 Poland 0048 Portugal 00351 Puerto Rico 001787 Qatar 00974 Romania 0040 Russian Federation 007 Rwanda 00250 Saint Helena 00290 Saint Kitts 001869 Saint Lucia 001758 Saint Pierre 00508 Saint Vincent 001784 Samoa US 00684 Samoa West 00685 San Marino 00378 Sao Tone 00239 Saudi Arabia 00966 Scotland (UK) 0044 Senegal 00221 Seychelles 00284 Sierra Leone 00232 Singapore 0065 Slovakia 00421 Slovenia 00386 Solomon Islands 00677

36

MONDAY, JUNE 10, 2013

LIFESTYLE G o s s i p

Perry cries all the time

DiCaprio wants to cheer up Pattinson

K

aty Perry cries all the time because it’s “good” for her. The ‘Wide Awake’ singer regularly has emotional outbursts, but sees them as a good and healthy thing, even though they ruin her stage make-up.

She joked to German website Blick.ch: “I cry all the time - but I had my tear glands removed because it kept ruining my make-up, and applying my make-up takes seven hours. Of course I cry. Crying is good for me.” Katy who is said to be single again after her on/off relationship with John Mayer ended again- admits she is a very emotional person, but she wouldn’t change her sensitive personality because it has made her stronger and more determined as an artist. Asked whether she cried out of happiness or joy, the 28-year-old star replied: “Both. I’m a very emotional person.

Sometimes I’m far more emotional than I’m supposed to be. On the other hand, that’s what has made me the artist that I am today.” Katy has been open about her heartache in the past, with her concert film ‘Katy Perry: Part Of Me 3D’ showing her openly sobbing over the breakdown of her short-lived marriage to comedian Russell Brand.

L

eonardo DiCaprio is helping Robert Pattinson through his recent split from Kristen Stewart. The ‘Great Gatsby’ actor wants to help his friend deal with his break-up from his ‘Twilight Saga’ co-star and has invited him to Miami for the summer.

It is said Robert, 27, has been miserable since his on/off relationship with the 23-year-old actress came to an end - and while he is tempted to take a year away from women, Leonardo wants to convince him otherwise. An insider told The Sun on Sunday newspaper: “Rob’s been mooching around LA and staying on friends’ couches. “Leo rang him and told him to have a shave, put on some nice clothes and rent a house near him in Miami for the summer.

“He told Rob he’s too young to settle down and ought to sow his wild oats.” Although it is reported the actor isn’t “the sort of guy ... [to] play the field”, it seems he has been tempted by Leonardo’s plan. The source added: “Rob’s the sort of guy who has long-term girlfriends and doesn’t play the field. “But Leo’s right - he’s miserable in LA, where there are too many memories of Kristen and mutual friends they have in common. He’s going to go down to Miami, put on a smile and see what happens. “Leo’s in Europe right now but he’s heading back to the States later this week. He’s determined to fix Rob up with one of the models he has in his phone book.”

Beyonce’s crystal-studded gift for Kim

B

eyonce sent Kim Kardashian a £9,000 baby shower gift. The ‘Love On Top’ hitmaker and her husband Jay-Z couldn’t attend the event but were reportedly able to make it up to the reality TV star with a “crystal-studded high chair”. A source revealed to the Sunday Mirror newspaper: “Beyonce and Jay-Z’s gift could not be outdone, a £9,000 Swarovski crystal-studded high chair, designed by Carla Monchen. “They had a similar one for their daughter Blue Ivy.” Another big name who didn’t go to the baby shower was Gwyneth Paltrow, who gave a more practical but much less extravagant - gift. The insider added: “Both Gwyneth and Beyonce politely decline Kim’s offer of attending her baby shower. “Beyonce is busy touring and Gwyneth doesn’t really know Kim that well. They met at a fitness event just the month before and share the same trainer Tracy Anderson. “Instead, Gwyneth sent six-months-pregnant Kim a £350 Vitamix blender and a 21-day cleanse that will help her bounce back into shape after the birth.”

Despite the high-profile snubs, Kim still enjoyed the company of the likes of Kelly Osbourne and Kimberley Stewart.

Shakira finds motherhood relaxing

Solange Knowles swaps clothes with Beyonce

T

he ‘Losing You’ singer likes to borrow items from her older sister’s wardrobe whenever they spend time together, but their number one rule is remembering to return each other’s prized possessions.

She said: “Beyonce and I swap clothes all the time, especially when were on vacation. The deal is we have to give them back afterwards though!

I’ve had a distinctive style since I was a child. “Between the ages of three and six I wore my tap shoes with absolutely everything. I didn’t borrow my sister Beyonce’s clothes [then] though - she’s older than me, so they were always too big.” Solange, 26, is famed for her exuberant style and love of bright colours and clashing prints, and she says she won’t ever wear black because it’s too boring. She said: “I’d describe my style as eclectic - plenty of bold prints and funky textiles. I like classic pieces with a really interesting structure and pattern, like my acne blazer, which is covered in dollar signs. “If I want to keep it simple I wear stark white, I’m not into wearing black.” The star refuses to employ a stylist since she believes she can do a better job and likes to line up her red carpet looks well in advance. Solange added to the UK’s InStyle magazine: “Getting dressed for the red carpet is second nature to me. Before I went on the road I would personally email designers and do all the studio visits myself.

“So many stylists will tell you not to wear certain prints or silhouettes, and that’s why i prefer to dress myself.”

‘T

he Voice’ judge welcomed her first child, Milan, with Spanish football star Gerard Pique in January and is surprised by how chilled out she is around him, even though juggling her career and motherhood is a challenge. She told InTouch Weekly magazine: “Everybody thought I was going to be one of those hysterical mothers - a smothering mother. Even I thought I was going to be super controlling, because I’m like that with my songs and my career. I like to be in charge. But with Milan, I’m so relaxed. “It’s not as idyllic as everyone tells you. You wonder if you’re ever going to be your old self again or get your body back. And nobody told me babies needed to be changed so often. “I’m enjoying every minute, but... I have a career, and that’s been a bit stressful, because I knew I’d have to come back to do ‘The Voice’ two months after I delivered. I’m not complaining, but it’s been full of challenges.” The 36-year-old singer is, however, loving every aspect of motherhood, including nursing. She said: “Breastfeeding has been one of the best experiences of my life. I love it. I can’t stop. I think I’m going to breastfeed him until he goes to college. I’m hooked!”

Father devastated

Tulisa

by drugs arrest

T

ulisa Contostavlos’ father fears for his daughter and her career after her recent drug arrest. The former ‘X Factor’ star was arrested on Tuesday after it was alleged she facilitated an £800 cocaine deal for an undercover journalist. Now her father Plato has reached out to his daughter and admitted he is “worried” about her social circles. He told The Sun on Sunday newspaper: “I was devastated when I heard [the news] - that’s my child. I was hurt badly ... I fear for Tulisa and her career and I’m trying to reach out to her so she can succeed again. “I’m worried as a father about the people she’s hanging about with. Any father on the planet would have fears - but I know she’ll pull through because she has a strong family.” The estranged father hasn’t spoken to Tulisa since they fell out three years ago, but he is desperate to reconcile and help her. He added: “I want to get back into her life. I’d just hug her and kiss her.

“That’s why I’m doing this through the paper - to remind her that her is there, to reach out.” It has also been reported the 24-year-old singer broke down and suffered a “panic attack” after she was arrested and bailed. A source told the Daily Star Sunday newspaper: “Tulisa went into the police station trying to be positive and strong but came out a complete mess, shattered and in shock. “She started struggling to breath and suffered a minor panic attack. She knows her career is pretty much in tatters. The realisation of how serious it all is hit her. “At first she was just in shock but now she’s terrified she won’t come back from this. She’s struggling to sleep has been in floods of tears.”

Jennifer wants baby with Casper

J

ennifer Lopez wants to have a baby with Casper Smart. The 43-year-old ‘Dance Again’ singer - who has five-year-old twins Max and Emme with her ex-husband Marc Anthony has allegedly turned to IVF in the hopes of getting pregnant with the 25-year-old back-up dancer. A source said: “She’s scared that time isn’t on her side with regards to her age. But she’s hoping that with fertility treatments she’ll be pregnant in the next couple of months.” The couple reportedly put their plans to wed on hold because they couldn’t reach a prenuptial agreement, and are now focused on having a baby. The source told the US edition of Star magazine: “They argued constantly over it, but Jen has decided to let the issue go and put her trust in him. She’s more interested in trying for a baby than planning a wedding right now anyway - and Casper is completely on board.” The singer wants to keep her fertility treatments a secret and Casper has agreed they will both act surprised when they announce she is pregnant. The insider added: “She’s paranoid about people knowing about her pregnancy hardships, because it makes her feel old. “He loves Jennifer and he knows he’s set financially for life if she has his baby.

They made a deal that when the pregnancy happens, Jen will make it sound like an ‘oops’ and a blessing at the same time, even though she’s actually planned the whole thing.”

—Bang Showbiz

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MONDAY, JUNE 10, 2013

LIFESTYLE M u s i c

Doctor who OK’d

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he psychiatrist who opened the Oregon State Hospital’s doors to filming of the 1975 Academy Award-winning movie “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” has died. Dr Dean Brooks died May 30 at a retirement home in Salem at age 96, family members said.

He had been in declining health for several weeks after a fall. Brooks’ daughter Dennie Brooks said Friday the film’s producers were turned down by all the other mental hospitals they approached. But her father, who was the Salem hospital’s superintendent, saw the value of the movie in starting a national discussion about mental health and the responsibility of institutions to do no harm.

She said Dean Brooks also thought being part of a movie would be fun for him and for patients. He ended up playing a small role in the film - which was based on a 1962 Ken Kesey novel and starred Jack Nicholson - and making sure patients were involved, too. Allowing the movie inside the hospital was a big career risk, but Dean Brooks regularly took risks on behalf of the patients, going so far as to take them on mountain-climbing expeditions and teaching them to rappel down cliffs, said Greg Roberts, the Oregon State Hospital’s current director.

At the urging of staff, he allowed patients to start wearing regular clothes rather than uniforms long before other state hospitals. “He would wink at me and say he could do stuff then I could never get away with today,” Roberts said. “In my opinion, Dean Brooks literally set the bar on how to be a great state hospital superintendent.”

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M o v i e s

‘Cuckoo’s Nest’ hospital use dies

Kesey based the novel on his experiences working at a Veterans Administration hospital while a writing student at Stanford University. But the movie made the story forever part of the history of the Oregon State Hospital, which has since moved to another building.

In the film, the free-spirited Randall McMurphy fakes mental illness to get off a prison farm, only to be defeated by the overwhelming institutional power of the hospital and the domineering Nurse Ratched. Dean Brooks played Dr. Spivey, a psychiatrist who initially acquiesces to Ratched’s power but later is inspired by McMurphy to stand up for himself and the patients. While the movie gave him a platform to speak out for patients, Brooks had a reputation as an innovator before the film was produced, his daughter said.

She cited a patient outing he organized that included whitewater rafting and was featured in Life Magazine.

“He saw Ken Kesey’s true message about our capacity and organization’s capacity to do harm to one another,” Dennie Brooks said. “If he hadn’t known that, he would have gone right along with the administration at the time and said, ‘No, we’re not gonna do it (the film).’” Before giving his approval for the movie, Dean Brooks went to every ward and discussed the idea with patients and staff. “To make the deal, he insisted primarily that the patients be respected, and the patients actually be involved,” said Charles Kifleyak, who made a documentary about the psychiatrist and the filming of “Cuckoo’s Nest”

called “Completely Cuckoo.”

“He felt the film had to benefit the patients in some way, or he was not going to do it,” Kifleyak said from Burbank, Calif. Nearly 90 patients ultimately had parts in the movie, or jobs

hospital, Brooks’ daughter said. Kesey eventually won an undisclosed settlement. The writer visited the hospital while working on a screenplay, which was rejected, and he later penned a handwritten note to Brooks.

File photo shows former Oregon State Hospital superintendent Dr Dean Brooks, center participates in a ribbon cutting ceremony for a museum about the hospital. —AP behind the scenes, said Dennie Brooks, who also worked on the film as a location coordinator. Though Kesey was unhappy enough with the movie’s portrayal of his book to sue its producers, owners and distributors, he “got” Dean Brooks and what he was doing at the

“What I thought was the greatest innovation was the eye-level way you deal with the men and women under your care, and the affection that created affection,” Kesey wrote. After the movie, Dean Brooks remained friends with Kesey. They did speaking engagements and visited

Disneyworld together, even sharing a hotel room, she said. Dean Brooks also remained friends with actress Louise Fletcher, who played Nurse Ratched. Born July 22, 1916, in Colony, Kan., Dean Brooks put himself through medical school at the University of Kansas playing trombone in dance bands, his daughter said. There he met his wife, Ulista Jean Moser, a nursing student. She died in 2006 after 65 years of marriage.

Brooks went into the US Navy in 1943 and served as a triage officer on ships taking part in the invasions of several islands in the South Pacific, including Iwo Jima, his daughter said. After the war, while Dean Brooks served at a military hospital outside Medford, Ore, his commanding officer counseled him to become a psychiatrist. Dean Brooks also worked at a Tacoma, Wash, VA hospital before joining the Oregon State Hospital staff in 1947 as a psychiatrist. He became superintendent in 1955. After he retired in 1981, Dean Brooks moved to Everett, Wash, to be close to his grandchildren. He continued to advocate for the mentally ill, founding the Dorothea Dix Think Tank to decriminalize mental illness and find better ways of treating patients. Besides Dennie Brooks, he is survived by two daughters, Ulista Jean Brooks and India Brooks Civey; a brother, Robert; five grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren. —AP

CNN trying new weekly nighttime talk show I

AMC’s ‘The Killing’: back to life for season 3

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gainst all odds, “The Killing” lives. This AMC whodunit, which solved a tangled murder case - Who killed Rosie Larsen? - during two often gripping, sometimes exasperating seasons, then was canceled last July for low ratings, will rise from the dead for a welcome third season on June 2. With this new lease on life, it’s preserving one of TV’s most delicious acting duos - co-stars Mireille Enos and Joel Kinnaman - while also restoring the faith of Kinnaman, who, in an interview last June, when the future of the series seemed dim, declared he was planning to come back for another season even if he had to “go up there and shoot it myself.”

That won’t be necessary. Veena Sud, who developed the series and has served as an executive producer, is back in charge, armed with a troubling new case for Stephen Holder, the glib, gangly Seattle homicide detective played so splendidly by Kinnaman.

It’s a year later, and a year after homicide detective Sarah Linden, Holder’s glowering, pint-sized ex-partner, had left the force. Her nerves and dedication were shattered by the Larsen case, a gruesome drowning murder of a local teen. Linden is now a ferry worker, waving vehicles on and off the ferry at its Vashon Island landing on Puget Sound. But a serial killer she helped put away a couple of years before is nearing his execution date even as similarly grisly murders have resumed in Seattle. Holder worries that the wrong man may have been convicted for those earlier crimes.

Initially, Linden scoffs at Holder’s efforts at belated justice. “Not every victim’s worth it,” she tells him glumly. “You start caring, you’ll end up like me, working minimum wage on a ferry.”What she isn’t saying (not yet, anyway): She, too, has been tormented by doubts that she collared the right man. How deeply will she be drawn into Holder’s frantic make-good probe as time is running out for the convicted culprit? Meanwhile: How, if at all, is psycho-inmate Tom Seward (played chillingly by Peter Sarsgaard) linked to the rash of new murders of runaway teen girls? Serial murder isn’t the freshest idea for a TV crime drama (just in the past few months “The Following” and “Hannibal” have joined the fray).

And by the way, why does “The Killing” keep killing teenage girls?

Never mind. Judging from the two-hour premiere, “The Killing” could snag its audience’s interest as the mystery unfolds. The premiere plants its share of provocative clues, including a grove of trees that keeps appearing in a child’s crayon drawings. And it reintroduces the irresistible Holder, a lovably skeezy ex-narc and recovering addict who radiates a blend of hip-hop-spiked elan and fidgety insolence. These days, he seems to have it made: less scruffy than when last seen, preparing for the sergeant’s exam, with a perfect closure rate for his cases the past year and a cool girlfriend. Aglow with success, is he bucking for a setback? Will this case trigger it? In any case, Kinnaman steals every scene he’s in, and, teamed with Enos’ prickly, pushy Linden, they still crackle with the chemistry of siblings who bring out the best in each other, whatever the friction between them.

That much hasn’t changed about the series. At the same time, past viewers of “The Killing” should know the show has undergone some noticeable tweaking.

Its original format - drawn from the original Danish series that inspired it - called for tracking 12 consecutive days of the investigation, with each episode covering each successive day. That structure has been scrapped. Another change: The mystery, though it will surely reach in unexpected directions, doesn’t seem likely to swamp the entire Seattle community, as the Rosie Larsen case did. (The mystery of who killed Rosie shed suspicion on at least two dozen characters, including a popular candidate for mayor.)

And most of the sizable original cast, which played characters tied intrinsically to the Larsen case, is unsurprisingly gone. In the premiere, the only hold-overs are Annie Corley as Linden’s friend Regi and Liam James as her teenage son, who make brief appearances.

The gloomy mood that prevailed for the first two seasons has been lifted, if ever so slightly. The show’s palette seems a teensy bit brighter. And the rain that seemed to soak every scene so atmospherically before has been scaled back. Indeed, the premiere is one-third over before the action is pounded by a full-out thunderstorm. One final note: To avert a repeat of the misunderstanding when season 1 ended not with the awaited Big Reveal, but instead a cliffhanger that had viewers howling, the show pledges to solve this new case by the season’s 12th and final episode. Between now and then, the more “The Killing” keeps Holder and Linden in the picture and in the same frame - grasping for the truth and pushing each other’s buttons - the more fun this never-say-die show is likely to be. —AP

t’s a safe bet that George Stroumboulopoulos will be the first male CNN personality to wear two earrings and a skull ring from a designer who made one for Keith Richards.

Stroumboulopoulos, whose new nighttime talk show premiered yesterday, is more curious than dangerous, though. The show gets a solid time slot for its debut, airing after the season finale of Anthony Bourdain’s successful “Parts Unknown.”

Then it will settle into a regular spot on Fridays at 11 pm. Eastern for the summer and, if things go well, maybe beyond. It’s part of CNN’s attempt to branch out beyond news programming at certain times, represented most prominently by Bourdain’s show. The effort started before the arrival of new network boss Jeff Zucker - Stroumboulopoulos had his first contact with the network last summer before Zucker arrived - but the enthusiasm continued with the change in management.

Stroumboulopoulos (STRAHM’-boo-lahp-yoolus) hosts a nightly talk show on the CBC in Canada, where his friendly style seems to encourage celebrities to talk. “I hope that people pick up something new about the person I’m interviewing and find out a way to relate to them,” he said. “I

want them to find a connection.” For CNN, the show represents an old style for a new generation.

Stroumboulopoulos, 40, said his interest in politics

File photo shows George Stroumboulopoulos poses for a photograph after winning best host during the 23rd Annual Gemini Awards in Toronto. —AP

‘Britain’s Got Talent’ won by... Hungarians

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troupe of Hungarian shadow dancers won the television show “Britain’s Got Talent” on Saturday-outshining a slew of homegrown performers and leaving viewers wondering if the program’s name could do with a change. The eight-member dance group, named Attraction, beat ten British acts to win the public vote on the primetime ITV show and walked away from the final with a £250,000 ($380,000, 290,000 euro) prize. They had wowed viewers with a series of dance routines performed behind a screen, twisting their bodies to form silhouettes in the shape of everything from Queen Elizabeth II to an elephant.

The Budapest-based group were hot favorites to win-an irony that was not lost on the British press, with The Sun’s front-page headline on Saturday reading: “Er, Hungary’s got talent”. Simon Cowell, the music mogul who is one of four judges on the panel, said of the result: “It just shows

was fueled less by politicians than by listening to the Clash and Public Enemy. He’s eager to interview Snoop Lion, the former Snoop Dogg, on his show because he considers him such an important figure in hip-hop. Rap artist Wiz Khalifa, comic Martin Short and actor Keanu Reeves are the guests on his first show.

Other confirmed interviews for the show’s 10week run include Keanu Reeves, Martin Short, Betty White, Bill Maher, Sharon Stone and filmmaker Werner Herzog. The show will tape before a studio audience in Los Angeles. Stroumboulopoulos said he’s not gunning for the job of CNN’s other general interview program, Piers Morgan, and said he likes the way Morgan conducts interviews. For the moment, he’ll fit the CNN show in with a schedule that includes the CBC show (which airs twice in the evening) and a weekly music and talk program he does for a CBS radio station. “This is what I do,” he said. “I don’t even have any dependents in my life. I don’t even have a plant.” —AP

Future filmmakers feted at Student Academy Awards

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he world’s future filmmakers got a preview of the kind of Hollywood glamour and glory that could be theirs someday as the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences presented its 40th annual Student Academy Awards. Sixteen college students from around the globe were honored at the Saturday night ceremony, held at the academy’s Samuel Goldwyn Theater in Beverly Hills and hosted by onetime Student Academy Award winner Bob Saget. Presenters included writer-director Kimberly Peirce and actors Clark Gregg, Jason Schwartzman and Quvenzhane Wallis. Past Student Academy Award winners have gone on to receive eight Oscars and 46 Oscar nominations. Could Saturday night’s winners be far behind? Remember these names: that this country welcomes people from all over the world and they obviously loved this act.”

Attraction’s leader Zoltan Scuzs described the win as “amazing”, adding: “Thank you to all the British public.”

The troupe paid tribute to Britain in their final performance, using the red, white and blue flag as their backdrop and contorting themselves into the shape of the

British isles, Winston Churchill and the queen. Along with their £250,000 prize, they won a place on the stage at this year’s Royal Variety Performance, an annual gala evening attended on alternate years by the 87-year-old monarch or her heir, Prince Charles. Attraction have previously competed in both the Hungarian and German equivalents of Britain’s Got Talent. —AFP

Gold medal winners Kristina Yee, National Film and Television School, United Kingdom, Foreign Film category for “Miss Todd.”

Brian Schwarz, University of Texas at Austin, Narrative category for “Ol’ Daddy.”

Lindsey St Pierre and Ashley Graham, Ringling College of Art and Design, Florida, Animation category for “Dia de los Muertos.”

David Aristizabal, University of Southern California, Documentary category for “A Second Chance.” Rafael Cortina, Occidental College, California, Alterative category for “Bottled Up.” Silver medal winners Talkhon Hamzavi, Zurich University of the Arts, Switzerland, Foreign Film category for “Parvaneh.”

Jonathan Langager, University of Southern California, Narrative category for “Josephine and the Roach.”

Eusong Lee, California Institute of the Arts, Animation category for “Will.”

Rachel Loube, School of Visual Arts, New York, Documentary category for “Every Tuesday: A Portrait of The New Yorker Cartoonists.”

Perry Janes, University of Michigan, Alternative category for “Zug.”

(From left) Musicians Lenny Kravitz, Craig Ross and Jason Aldean perform during the 2013 CMA Music Festival at LP Field in Nashville, Tennessee. —AFP

Bronze medal winners Mauro Mueller, Columbia University, New York, Narrative category for “Un Mundo para Raul (A World for Ra˙l).”

Talkhon Hamzavi, Zurich University of the Arts, Switzerland, Foreign Film category for “Parvaneh.”

Wouter Bouvijn, RITS School of Arts, Erasmus University College, Belgium, Foreign Film category for “Tweesprong (Crossroads).”

Kevin Herron, Ringling College of Art and Design, Florida, Animation category for “Peck Pocketed.”

Daniel Koehler, Elon University, North Carolina, Documentary category for “Win or Lose.”

John Mattiuzzi, School of Visual Arts, New York, Alternative category for “The Compositor.” —AP

38 ‘Mickey and the Magical Map’

MONDAY, JUNE 10, 2013

LIFESTYLE T r a v e l

redraws Disneyland plans E

The character ‘Mulan’ (above) and ‘Pocahontas’ (below) perform in the premiere of ‘Mickey’s Magical Map’ at Disneyland.

astern philosophy is not the first thing one associate with the Disneyland Resort, but the message of the Fantasyland Theatre’s new and quite splendid stage show “Mickey and the Magical Map” is decidedly, and surprisingly, Zen. Or as Zen as a show can be in which young men and women in rustic fantasy-wear sing and dance their way through some of the studio’s greatest hits in front of a gorgeous three-tiered screen awash in animated wonder. Like many characters of his demo, Mickey Mouse is, above all, a seeker of enlightenment. In “Mickey and the Magical Map,” he’s back in Sorcerer’s Apprentice mode, trying to prove himself by filling in the final empty space on his master’s map.

The black spot, which does not want to be painted, comes to life and takes Mickey on a magical, musical, multimedia tour. A handful of Disney films, including “The Jungle Book,”“The Little Mermaid” and “Lilo & Stitch,” are given the stage craft that made “The Lion King” and “Beauty and the Beast” Broadway sensations, with the added bonus of a fabulous animated backdrop.

Finally accepting the unpainted spot on its own terms, Mickey learns that what makes the map magic is the fact that it’s never really finished. Which could very well replace “The Happiest Place on Earth” as the resort’s liturgical tag line. For all its devotion to, and commercialization of, the iconic, Disney has a healthy respect for the impermanent. Over the last few years, early summer has become synonymous with change in Anaheim, where park designers have spent years steadily fixing the initial disappointment that was California Adventure.

Last summer’s double opening of Cars Land and the newly refurbished Buena Vista proved such a success that Disney celebrated by jacking up its prices across the board. With its popularity tied to an ever-growing library of films, Disneyland likewise never stopped self-tweaking.

Buzz Light year got a ride and a show, the Swiss Family Robinson tree house became Tarzan’s, and Tom Sawyer Island took on a Pirates of the Caribbean flavor. As the packaged princess brand grew among the merchandisers, the park made the characters and their gowns available for meet ‘n’ greets, first at the Fantasyland Theatre, then, as of this spring, at the new Fantasy Faire.

Between Frontierland and Sleeping Beauty’s Castle, where the Carnation Plaza Gardens long stood, a mini-Elizabethan village has sprung. It’s complete with the Royal Hall housing three princesses and the Royal Theatre, where the stories of Beauty and the Beast and Rapunzel are

depicted in family-friendly vaudevillian style.

Many protested the passing of Carnation Plaza Gardens, which hosted such musical legends as Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington and Count Basie.

But if Benny Goodman’s modern day equivalents aren’t headlining at Disneyland, there’s certainly no lack of music here.

“Mickey and the Magical Map,” which had its official opening May 25, is just the fireworks finale of an explosion of live shows. In addition to daily parades in both parks Pixar-themed in California Adventure, Disney-themed in Disneyland a bevy of street performances are increasingly impossible to pass up. At California Adventure, the live acts range from the slick and joyful jazz combo “Five & Dime” to “Phineas and Ferb’s Rockin’ Rollin’ Dance Party,” from the goth- and teen-friendly “Mad T Party” to the Grammy-winning Mariachi Divas.

All of which is just part of a master plan, of course; Disney wants the Anaheim resort to become a multi-day destination, like that other park sprawling amid the mosquitoes in the swamps of Orlando. And, alas, it’s working. In addition to being a rousing and technologically revelatory show, “Mickey and the Magical Map” is the final blow to the delusion to which many locals still cling: That a smart, prepared parent can do both parks in a day.

Let’s be honest; the less than stellar performance of California Adventure in its early years was a boon to local parents. Disney would do anything to get you into that park, including, for several years, offer two-for-the-price-of-one tickets.

This Disneyland-with-benefits scenario challenged every resident who considered the resort a local playground rather than an international tourist attraction. Slapping down fast passes like a high-stakes blackjack dealer, my friends and I could get our families on every ride we cared about in both parks in any 12-hour non-summer period.

We were Disney’s worst nightmare we brought our own water and sandwiches, packed apples and cheese sticks and Goldfish crackers.

The best my kids could hope for off those carts was popcorn (and only because their father used to sell popcorn at Disneyland). But they knew the rules going in: No wait times over 15 minutes, no churros and no shows. The last were for suckers, the breadbasket that filled up precious half-hours of your day, which was much better spent on “Pirates of the Caribbean” one more time (that line always looks worse than it is). Over time, many of my new-parent convictions shook them-

selves into dust, but on this I held firm Disney in a day or bust.

I suspected those glory days were over last year when Cars Land made it clear that California Adventure had finally become a Real Park. But it wasn’t until the premiere of “Mickey and the Magical Map” that I finally surrendered completely. Running the park-standard 22 minutes, the show is fun, festive and amazing. Pocahontas and Mulan two beloved but previously under-utilized characters _ sing the songs that have launched a thousand talent show auditions. Early on, liveaction Mickey descends into the screen and becomes animation Mickey, which is something I have never seen before and want to see again.

Yes, you can technically still do the two parks in a day, but only if you’re willing to miss a lot. I concede that “Aladdin” is worth the hour the line and the show require, that “World of Color” is something you can’t see, or even imagine seeing, anywhere else on the planet. Now here’s the Fantasyland Theatre finally being put to good use with a show celebrating Mickey, music and the contradictory power of impermanence. Drat that mouse, I’m in. Go for the rides, stay for the shows.

But I’m holding the line on churros. —MCT

The character Princess Tiana (in white) and the ensemble dance in “The Princess and the Frog”.

Mickey Mouse with the wizard on the video screen in the premiere of “Mickey’s Magical Map”.

Mickey Mouse watches Michael Colglazier, President of Disneyland in his opening remarks before the premiere of “Mickey’s Magical Map”.

The characters Flynn Rider (left) and Rapunzel perform in “Tangled”.

“The Jungle Book” is performed in the premiere of “Mickey’s Magical Map” at Disneyland in Anaheim, California.

—MCT photos

The ensemble dance in “The Little Mermaid”.

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LIFESTYLE F e a t u r e s

Duck tops the billin farewell Hong Kong appearance

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Thousands of people crowd the waterfront on the last day to see a giant duck, conceived by Dutch artist Florentijn Hofman, in Hong Kong yesterday. —AFP

housands said farewell yesterday to a giant inflatable yellow rubber duck which has captivated Hong Kong, on its final day in the city’s harbor before it heads to the United States. The southern Chinese city has taken the 16.5 meter-tall (54-feet) duck, conceived by Dutch artist Florentijn Hofman, to its heart since it arrived under tow on May 2 to cheering crowds. Duck mania has gripped the cityand parts of the Chinese mainland-since its arrival, with hundreds of thousands of locals and tourists in Hong Kong flooding the streets near where the giant replica bath toy is moored to catch a glimpse.

Stalls and shops sold replicas and merchandise ranging from T-shirts to threedimensional duck tote bags. Restaurants created special duck dishes. In mainland China, copies of the duck made an appearance in several cities-prompting a rebuke from the communist party newspaper the People’s Daily for what it called unoriginal copycat behavior.

The duck was even embroiled in mainland politics, in the run-up to the 24th anniversary on June 4 of the Tiananmen suppression of pro-democracy activists by the army. Internet searches on the mainland for “yellow duck” were banned after users circulated a mocked-up image of a

famous 1989 photo, with tanks replaced by plastic ducks. In Hong Kong thousands were seen taking their last look yesterday at the genuine duck, wishing it well for the journey ahead and thanking it for bringing joy to the Asian financial hub. “I hope that it can bring happiness to the people in the different countries it visits,” 30 year-old Sam Tsang told AFP. “The rubber duck has brought us a lot of happiness...I hope it will come back,” said 34 year-old teacher Tina Yip. Shopping mall Harbour City, organizers of the exhibit, said in a statement the duck has “spread joy and positive energy to everyone in town and has received so much love and support from fans and media”. Since 2007 the duck has travelled to 13 different cities in nine countries ranging from Brazil to Australia.

Hofman said he hopes the duck, which will now travel to the US city of Pittsburgh, will act as a “catalyst” to connect people to public art. The duck was to be deflated early Monday before being shipped out. “Missing you already ducky! Must let you go to bring happiness to people around the world!!”

Annie Hung wrote on Hofman’s Facebook wall. —AFP

Crowding, overdevelopment make for a disappointing visit to Boracay Island

By Catharine Hamm

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an a million and a half people be wrong? That’s how many vacationers are expected to visit Boracay Island this year. Can Travel & Leisure be wrong? That’s the magazine that crowned Boracay the best island in the world. Can TripAdvisor be wrong?

That’s the website that dubbed Boracay a Travelers’ Choice 2013 Winner. After my visit last year to this island 250 miles southeast of Manila, I decided that, yes, they could be wrong. Or misguided. Or I could be.

I’m guessing that the visitors / voters aren’t Californians on the far edge of middle age who fancy themselves beach connoisseurs.

Maybe they don’t suffer guilt about the poverty or the damage to the environment. Maybe they were smart enough not to come at the height of habagat, typhoon season. If that’s the case, maybe they would enjoy this respite from the smog and traffic and heat and humidity of Manila.

Actually, I enjoyed the respite from the smog and traffic of Manila. (The heat and humidity came with us.) I liked the sands (once they were cleaned each morning) along the renowned White Beach and the bathtub-warm waters. I found the people quite wonderful. But what I didn’t find was the hoped-for piece of paradise that would shoot to the top of my favorite sun and sand destinations.

If Boracay had been a first date, there wouldn’t have been a second. We just weren’t right for each other. I should have known that almost from the minute I arrived at the hotel. The prop plane that deposited my friend Jan and me at the Caticlan airport was filled with eager visitors, all of us ready to strip off the workaday suit after the hour’s flight and put on the bathing suit.

But it wasn’t quite that seamless. First, there was a boat ride, which reminded me a little of those cigarette boats that go flashing across the waves in “Miami Vice.” (This wasn’t, I should add, a cigarette boat, but the captain drove it like one.) Then there was the ride to the resort in the back of a van, where we had a view of the water standing in the streets after recent rains and the rows of ramshackle snack shops and houses that lined the roads, which were like pot-holed obstacle courses.

Obstacles overcome, we were soon in our room at Boracay Regency, which had a king bed, another smaller bed and a welcome plate of fruit. And one more thing: a placard on the nightstand that said, “Linens stained with HENNA TATTOO, COCONUT OIL OR HAIR DYE will be charged accordingly.”

I was sure it wasn’t the linens that would be charged accordingly, but I didn’t understand why I would be. Or, more to the point, what would I be doing that would cause me to damage the sheets like this? It was such a problem that the hotel had to laminate the warning. But why? We got an inkling as we ate dinner at Christina’s, the hotel restaurant. From our outdoor perch, glasses of wine in hand, sun casting purplish shadows over all, we realized we were sitting along a sort of promenade. Boracay is divided into three “stations” along this strand of beach. We were in Station 2 (3 being more budget oriented and 1 being more exclusive). Station 2 that night was home to a company team-building event, where a tent full of people was being entertained by a bad comedian with a high-pitched giggle so high pitched that I briefly considered a fourth glass of wine, even though I was still on my first.

And then began the parade of people. There was no boardwalk, per se, but there was a constant stream of people along the sand.

By the time I finished my very average lapu lapu (grouper), I was ready to find out where they were going and why. They were going shopping at the stands selling jewelry and gewgaws of all stripes.

They were going to party in the numerous bars that promised tropical refreshments. They were going to pick out a lovely seafood dinner from booths where the entrees were on ice.

And they were going for henna tattoos and coconut oil mas-

sages, offered by eager young entrepreneurs. It was all a bit overwhelming. And sad. Children were begging, the occasional mom with a baby and another child with hand outstretched. We didn’t need a henna tattoo or a coconut oil massage, and we didn’t want the guilt. We needed air conditioning, a couple of anti-inflammatories and a good night’s sleep plus the promise of Discovery Shores, the hotel that had started me on this Boracay fever dream.

Travel & Leisure had voted it the fourth best hotel in the world.

Never the optimist, I felt certain although I don’t know why I’d find my peeps and my place in the sun. I headed for White Beach early the next morning. The sky was a dull gray, the color of some of the

Leisure said, would provide “barefoot elegance.” It was a bit of a hike to our room at Moorish-looking Discovery Shores, but things were looking up. Our accommodations included a living room, a bedroom and a small kitchen, where everything was dotted with small yellow flowers that contrasted with the brilliant white of the linens and the walls.

Our bellman explained the large water-filled bowl on the floor on which yellow flowers floated: Someone would be by soon to give us a welcoming foot massage. As we waited, we perused the tray of welcome sweets and tried a little pandan water, made from pandan leaves brewed in a light syrup and water. It was a little like

Industrial design student Lodewijk Bosman and Hidde van der Straaten work on items made from recycled bicycle parts at their workshop in Delft. —AFP

Dutch duo peddle old bikes as fashion, furniture

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Willy’s Rock on Boracay where the Virgin Mary keeps watch over the beach. It is accessible at low tide.

—MCT photos pearls that vendors were already hawking. Workers were clearing the detritus from the sand, while kids and their grown-ups frolicked.

In the growing light, I could already see the paraws, the bluesailed boats that flashed parallel to the shore. Might as well be out on the water, I thought, and get a feel for the island. Instead of booking a boat on the beach, I arranged it through the hotel, and later that morning, we boarded the outrigger Kevin 2 and soon were beyond Crocodile Island (which does look a little like a croc) and at a snorkel stop.

I jumped in with my snorkel gear and relaxed a little, until I remembered that the coral that I could now see clearly has been so badly damaged that the Philippine Daily Inquirer reported last year that less than a tenth of it remains in its original state. Coral is critical for marine life. I wasn’t helping. I got out of the water.

We cruised over to Crystal Cove Island, where other visitors swarmed its sea caves and crowded around what were billed as hawks and Philippine eagles. They looked as bedraggled as the island felt. It was time to head for Discovery Shores, which, Travel &

A skim boarder and his teacher practice the technique in the morning sun.

the US South’s equivalent of sweet tea, which isn’t my cup of tea.

The masseuse was MIA, it seemed, so what to do next? We could have gone swimming, but the pool was being repaired so we repaired to the Sandbar. There was no parade here, no one trying to sell us anything (except a Diet Coke and a mojito). We also sat outdoors at the nearby Indigo restaurant. By now I was a creature of habit and again ordered the lapu lapu, which didn’t taste appreciably different from the previous night’s dish.

We were leaving the next morning to catch an early flight back to Manila so we couldn’t sample the spa, but that was OK. No number of spa treatments was going to change my impression of Boracay, a place for partyers or rich people, of which I am neither.

This wasn’t a love match not for me. Maybe 30 years ago when Boracay and I were less overdeveloped. We said our goodbyes and headed back to Manila, where the smog and traffic and heat and humidity welcomed us with open, sweaty arms. It was good to be back. —MCT

A room at the Boracay Regency a resort on the island.

wo Dutch entrepreneurs have found a novel way to make money out of the thousands of bicycles abandoned in the Netherlands each year, by turning them into designer fashion items and furniture. Industrial design student Lodewijk Bosman, 25, and Hidde van der Straaten, 28, founded "The Upcycle" in university city Delft in January 2012 to exploit a typically Dutch problem. The Netherlands has more bikes -- 18 million-than its 17 million population, and around a million new bikes are bought every year. But with so many bikes come parking problems, and if they are left in the wrong place, or simply abandoned, the authorities pick them up and take them to the pound.

This happens to tens of thousands of bikes a year, and while owners can get their bikes back by paying a fine of around 20 euros (25 dollars), few do. Unclaimed bikes are sold to bike shops that sell them on secondhand, either in the Netherlands or abroad. Lodewijk and Hidde also buy the abandoned bikes and parts, but with something different in mind. Take for example an Upcycle bedside lamp, price 88 euros. It consists of a bike light with a new LED bulb fitted to a stem made of a few chain links and intertwined spokes-all standing on a wooden base wrapped in plaited inner tubes.

Other products include a bracelet made from bike chain links for 10 euros, a belt made from a tyre with a buckle fitted costs 30 euros. The Dutch duo has also come up with a dark and rubbery cubic stool made from waste wood covered in plaited inner tubes. The name of their company, set up after winning a 10,000euro prize for their innovative idea, is a pun on bicycle and upcycling, a process one step beyond recycling that consists of turning something to be thrown away into something of higher worth. The company began selling products through their website in February and quickly attracted customers around the world.

"I'd say half our customers are in the Netherlands, the other half abroad," said Hidde. They hope to strike distribution deals with shops, including the Netherlands' many souvenir boutiques. "The bicycle is something typically Dutch, so why not turn them into souvenirs?" he said. "The supply is practically never ending because the Netherlands is 'The' country for bicycles," said Lodewijk, his trousers held up by a belt made from a slashed bike tyre.

His business partner shows off a wallet made from a piece of old bike saddle and a small piece of tyre. "We try to use bike parts as much as we can, but that's not always possible, like with the belt's buckle or the lamp's switch," said Hidde The Upcycle also sells renovated bikes, made from recovered frames with new parts added where necessary, including Upcycle touches such as mudguards made from cut-up tyres.

"Getting around by bike is making use of a sustainable, environmentally friendly form of transport," said Saskia Kluit, deputy director of the Dutch Cyclists' Federation.

"This business is taking the idea of sustainability a step further." The company works with the "Stunt" foundation, that helps retrain the unemployed for new jobs, giving the business a social aspect. "In a way we're recycling people," said Stunt supervisor Hein Laakes. "It's very gratifying to see what we've made being sold in Australia, for example." Lodewijk says that his motto is "People, Planet, Profit,"-also known as "the triple bottom line." "In the end we're a business that has to function, and with which we hope to turn a profit, but the social aspect is important for our business," he said. Orders are picking up, and the company has yet to start making money, but when cash does come in, half will go to Stunt. —AFP

Doctor who OK’d ‘Cuckoo’s Nest’ hospital use dies

MONDAY, JUNE 10, 2013

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Devotees dressed in costumes to represent the Hindu god Lord Krishna and his consort Radha.

A devotee dressed in a costume to represent the Hindu god Lord Krishna poses for a photograph during the “Ratha-yatra” Festival of Chariots, as the procession travels through central London yetserday. Now in its 45th years the procession sees thousands of Hare Krishna devotees pull three brightly decorated chariots bearing the Hindu dieties of Lord Jagannatha, Lady Subhadra and Lord Balarama from Hyde Park to Trafalgar Square. —AFP

Ripley’s Believe It or Not museum gets family-friendly makeover A

gruesome photo gallery of men and women impaled by arrows, augers and pipes is gone from the Ripley’s Believe It or Not museum in Hollywood. And don’t expect to see any displays of medieval chastity belts or tongs used to torture victims of the Spanish Inquisition. These and other macabre oddities have been replaced by such exhibits as a painting of Marilyn Monroe made entirely of candy, a mounted twoheaded calf and the world’s smallest drivable car.

It’s all part of a new family-friendly look at 33 Ripley’s Believe It or Not museums around the world. The Hollywood location shifted to less-creepy displays after a $3.5-million renovation that museum operators hope will draw huge crowds this summer. “We really wanted to push this as a family place,” said museum general manager Andrea Silverman, who estimates that the new exhibits have already increased attendance about 40 percent. “We wiped out the entire museum to bring in an entirely new show.”

The makeover represents one of the final pieces in the overhaul of Hollywood Boulevard, a loud, colorful commercial district that has gone from downtrodden and scary in the 1970s and 1980s to glitzy and crowded today.

The boulevard, which draws an estimated 14 million visitors a year, has benefited from several multimillion-dollar projects over the last few years, starting with the 2001 completion of the $650-million Hollywood & Highland entertainment complex.

Since then, strong tourist demand has helped spur several other high-profile projects on Hollywood Boulevard, including the $55-million Madame Tussauds wax statue attraction in 2009, plus the Hard Rock Cafe and the $600-million W Hotel, both of which opened in 2010.

The Hollywood Wax Museum completed a renovation last year and the TCL Chinese Theater formerly known as Grauman’s Chinese closed this month to complete a remodeling project to accommodate a 94-foot-wide IMAX

Tegan Van Itallie, of Australia, reads a description of a jigsaw puzzle of actor George Burns.

screen. The new shimmering facades and pricey tourist attractions represent a dramatic reversal for the boulevard, which was known in the 1970s and ‘80s as a haven for runaways, prostitutes and drug dealers. “We’ve made considerable progress in upgrading the neighborhood,” said Leron Gubler, president and chief executive of the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce. “It’s nice that businesses are reinvesting and upgrading.”

The Ripley’s museum has been at the corner of Hollywood Boulevard and Highland Avenue for 20 years, displaying the freakish and the morbid. Regular admission is $16.99 for adults, $8.99 for children. Over the last few years, Silverman said, many parents had demanded refunds, saying the exhibits were not appropriate for children. The museum closed for three months late last year to install 350 new exhibits, including a new collection of

Marilyn Monroe clothes and photos.

Silverman, who has managed the museum for five years, said she agreed with the call from her corporate bosses to remove many of the extreme exhibits. The Ripley’s museums and aquariums are owned and operated by Florida-based Ripley’s Entertainment, a subsidiary of Vancouver, Canada-based Jim Pattison Group. Still, Silverman said she cherished many of the macabre exhibits and hated to store them away in a warehouse in Florida, including the skeleton of a two-headed baby.

“I was literally crying when I was packing it away,” she said. A few chilling curiosities remain on display, including a real shrunken human head and a sword used by the Japanese military to execute rebels and insurgents in the 1920s and ‘30s.

Some recent visitors to the museum parents and children say they have no problem with gruesome and freakish exhibits. Jocelyn Diaz, a tourist from Guam who visited the museum with her husband, Ramon, and their two daughters, Beatrice, 13, and Jasmine, 11, said she would not demand a refund if her children saw photos of impaled people.

“They are intelligent enough to understand what is going on,” she said of her daughters, adding that her 11year-old’s favorite display was a mounted one-eyed goat.

Other parents said exhibits such as the shrunken skull and the two-headed calf are appropriate only for kids older than 5 or 6. “I have a 10-year-old grandson and I think he would love it,” said Bettie Williams, a tourist from Birmingham, Ala. Such reactions are good news for Silverman, who said she wants to retain a few extreme displays. For example, she was recently offered the remains of an eight-legged puppy. “I can’t wait to get it,” she said.

“That’s my baby.” —MCT

Jasmine Diaz, 11, from Guam, stands inside the world’s largest tire on display at Ripley’s Believe It or Not museum on Hollywood Blvd. —MCT photos

Saba Tesfaye, left, and friend Mimi Atnafu, of Canada, checks out a mannequin on display.

Sally Stead of Australia looks at a display case at Ripley’s Believe It or Not Museum.

Duy Bui, left, and his mother Thu Tran, of Los Angeles, get a close up look at a mannequin in the likeness of J.T. Saylors, a master “girner” the art of being able to put one’s lip over one’s nose.