21 Feb

Lasting love for the bisht in Kuwait

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Zain elects new board SEE PAGE 2

Local FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2014

KUWAIT: Zain Group holds its ordinary general assembly at the company’s headquarters in Shuwaikh yesterday.

Zain elects new board

KUWAIT: Zain Group held its ordinary general assembly at the company’s headquarters in Shuwaikh yesterday and elected a new board of directors with a three-year tenure. Asaad Ahmed Al-Banwan was named the new Zain Group Chairman of the Board and Bader Nasser Al-Kharafi was named Deputy Chairman. Other members of the board include Abdul Aziz Al-Nafisi, Abdul Mohsen Al-Faris, Jamal Al-Kandary, Shaikha Khaled Al-Bahar, Jamal Shaker AlKazemi and Waleed Abdullah Mishary AlRoudan.

In a statement issued to the press, Chairman Banwan reaffirmed Zain’s strength of vision and solid financial performance. “Across our entire footprint, although strong competition is the nature of our industry, I remain proud that we have been able to maintain and enhance our leadership position with respect to customer numbers in many of the markets we operate in, despite the heightened attention from our competitors,” he said.

Zain reported total consolidated revenues for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2013 of KD 1.24 billion and net profits of KD 216 million (56 fils per share), while earnings before interest, tax and depreciation (EBITDA) came in at KD 538 million ($1.9 billion). The group’s customer base rose to 46.1 million, up 8 percent year-onyear, translating to a net increase of approximately 9,500 customers per day.

Zain operates in eight countries and is the market leader in six including Kuwait, Iraq and South Sudan. In Kuwait, the cornerstone of Zain Group, the operation continued to perform well in 2013, with customer growth of 12 percent to reach 2.5 million, reflecting a leading market share of 39 percent.

Shaikha Khaled Al-Bahar

“The success of Zain Kuwait’s nationwide 4G LTE network saw data revenues grow 21 percent and contribute 29 percent of total revenues during the year,” said Scott Gegenheimer, Zain Group CEO in a statement released to the press.

“Ultimately, our goal is to transform from a pure mobile consumer player to a fully integrated converged consumer and enterprise player,” he added.

“Looking ahead, we are positive about our prospects for 2014, and will look to continue to build on the work we have undertaken in 2013. We shall continue to invest in our infrastructure and innovations, ensuring our customers receive the services they aspire for in a market-leading fashion,” said Banwan. “Mobile broadband will remain a key growth area for us, and we shall continue to invest in this area to ensure we maximize the opportunities which lie therein.”

KUWAIT: The Kuwait City skyline is seen from the Souq Sharq marina. — Photo by Yasser Al-Zayyat

Local FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2014

Local Spotlight

National holidays’ craziness

By Muna Al-Fuzai

muna@kuwaittimes.net

K

uwait’s National and Liberation Days fall on Feb 25 and 26. Festive celebrations mean large crowds, mostly teenage boys and girls, running in the street showering themselves and others with foam and water! Some come along with their parents while others don’t. They create heavy traffic congestion all along the Gulf Road till Salmiya. These are called national celebrations and will last from Tuesday until Saturday.

I’m writing this article because I for one don’t see the sense of nationalism in any of these acts. In fact I don’t see the connection between showering people, especially pedestrians, and the joyous sentiments which one feels. I also doubt if anyone has conducted a sur-

vey of these disturbing acts against people waiting at bus stops for example being sprayed with water and foam by someone who thinks this is his way of celebrating.

Some may wonder about the role of the police and if they can take complaints of such kind seriously. Well, if such acts occur at any other time of the year, I think you may call the police and they will come and control the matter. But during the national holidays, things usually go out of control. The Ministry of Interior will be available all the time to offer emergency services. But spraying someone with foam and water is clearly not an emergency situation.

So should all those who are not in favor of being stuck on crowded roads leave for a short while to any neighboring countries? Well, I would say yes. But this is my opinion. I believe in showing love and compassion to your country all year long by work ethics, fighting corruption and discrimination and enforcing laws and regulations. This is what I call patriotism and nationalism. Running in the street with foam and water bother-

Kuwait’s my business

Jobs go to the skilled, expat or local

By John P Hayes

local@kuwaittimes.net

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ourcing talent is a major challenge for Kuwait’s employers, and yet so many people nowadays in Kuwait are struggling to find a job. Employers say they can’t find good people, and good people say they can’t find jobs. What’s going on? Here’s how a major employer in Kuwait explained the dilemma: “Employees have to be customer-oriented and focused. To hire people that are able to think and operate this way from a limited talent pool is a challenge. So we’re taking steps to hire talent and staff from other regions of the world.”

“focused.” Along with most other countries, Kuwait suffers from “instantitis.” A mother in Kuwait wanted her daughter to learn how to play the piano. After her third lesson during as many weeks, the daughter couldn’t play the piano and the mother was frustrated. So she asked the piano teacher, “If I pay you more money, can my daughter learn how to play the piano next month?” Skills require time. Time requires focus. Of course, in an age when we communicate in 140 characters or less, and text while driving, focus doesn’t seem to be relevant. Except to employers.

In this case, expats are not the problem None of that bodes well for Kuwait’s unemployed. And just to quickly crush one popular knee-jerk response to this problem: No, the answer is not to send the expats home. Send the expats home and the employment problem gets worse because the people left behind still can’t meet the expectations of the country’s employers. For those who are serious about solving this problem, the answer is in the dilemma as it was explained above.

Employers seek employees who are “customer oriented.” In other words, they want to hire people who put other people first. Drive up to almost any roundabout in Kuwait, or try to walk across a street, and you’ll discover that the country isn’t customer oriented. Instead, the orientation is one of entitlement. “Me first, me first!” In a country where so many think that they should be served, instead of serving others, it’s difficult to find talent that’s customer oriented. We need to teach people to put other people first so they can become customer oriented.

Who teaches people to think?

Employers seek employees who can “think.” Where are the creative thinking courses in Kuwait? One of my pet peeves is that we don’t teach students the art of logic. It’s difficult for many students to get from point A to point D without showing them points B and C. It’s as though someone has done the thinking (as well as the homework) for many of the students. Employers expect employees to be able to think and solve problems on their own, but that’s not happening. Rote learning is popular in Kuwait, and that’s one of the reasons why many students can’t think and solve problems.

Add to that a lack of focus and what do you get? People without the skills that employers value.

Employers seek employees with skills (not just certificates) and too often they can’t find them in Kuwait. I say that’s the fault of the educational system as well as the people who don’t demand better education. The unemployment problem isn’t going to solve itself.

Young people make up the majority of Kuwait’s population and unless they acquire skills more and more of them will remain unemployed.

Meanwhile - as long as there are customers to serve - Kuwait’s employers will continue to import talent and staff from other regions of the world.

You can’t learn the piano in a month Employers seek employees who are

NOTE: Dr John P Hayes teaches marketing and management at GUST.

ing innocents is not relevant.

I have a tip for expats and anyone who doesn’t like to be in this atmosphere and yet can’t leave Kuwait during these days. Please stay up-to-date with the media and news coverage of local events but don’t trust everything you hear on social media. This year there is a need for personal security awareness, especially for families with kids. I don’t know how well local security measures are this year, but I think large crowds roaming the streets means anyone can sneak in and out without being noticed. I fear that such poor surveillance could encourage someone or extremist groups to create chaos. Regional unrest and the heated situation in Syria all create extra pressure over security, so all should be careful when being part of a crowd.

I always tell my friends who share my views to leave town for a few days until this craziness is over. If they can’t, they better stay home, avoid going out and stay alert.

Local FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2014

Giving them wings Riding school for special needs children open to all very experience for a child is an opportunity to learn. For children with special needs, however, few opportunities for learning and play are available in Kuwait. This is now slowing changing as new activities and programs for children with special needs are becoming more popular. The Little Wings riding school at the Kuwait Riding Center is one such program. It offers recreational riding lessons for special needs children. The lessons are once a week, lasting between 15-30 minutes and are available for children 3 to 12 years old who suffer from cognitive disabilities.

Riding instructor Fajer Al-Sabah invites parents to visit the riding center to get a feel for the place and to help prepare the child ahead of time for the lesson. The club is open and non members are welcome to come to meet the trainers and horses. Lessons can be given in Arabic or English and are open to all nationalities. “Though we are strictly recreational,

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there is therapeutic value in what we do,” explained Al-Sabah.

“Children benefit greatly from the interaction with the horse.”

As afterschool activities for special needs children in Kuwait are limited, the Little Wing program presents a wonderful opportunity for parents to provide a diverse experience for kids. Parents must sign up for 10 lessons, given once a week, at a total cost of KD 60. An initial assessment lesson will be conducted to give parents a chance to see how their child might respond and also to give the instructor an opportunity to assess the child’s ability to respond to verbal commands and how they react to being around horses.

Al-Sabah, who works as a special needs teaching assistant and has more than 10 years of riding experience, cautions parents to prepare children ahead of time by showing them videos or photos of children riding horseback. One-on-one lessons focus on speech communication and engagement

with the animal. For instance, children will be taught how to say stop when the horse stops and go when the horse goes.

Over time, that process will be reversed and the children will learn to command the horse to stop or go. Children learn other skills including riding bareback, turning in the saddle and are also encouraged to help feed and groom the horse at the end of the lesson.

Al-Sabah also cautions parents to understand that “accidents do happen. We’re dealing with live animals and horses are naturally spooky,” she explained. “However we take every precaution and there is no doubt that the children benefit from horseback riding.”

Parents interested in enrolling their children in the Little Wings program should call 2475-1551/2/3.

— Courtesy the Kuwait Moms Guide (www.kuwaitmomsguide.com).

Available at The Sultan Centre & Carrefour

Local FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2014

An artisan works on a bisht in a shop in Souq Mubarakiya yesterday.

— Photos by Yasser Al-Zayyat

Vintage photos show customers at the Albaghli bisht shop in Souq Mubarakiya.

Lasting love for the bisht Craft continues to flourish in Kuwait

By Nawara Fattahova

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hat was once a must-wear garment has today been replaced as a cloak for special occasions. The bisht is part of Kuwaiti men’s national dress. Bisht-making - albeit a fading tradition - can still be found in some Kuwaiti families for whom this handcraft was the main source of income. Al-Baghli, one of the oldest and most popular shops making and selling bishts, was founded by Mohammed Al-Baghli, who opened his shop in Souq Mubarakiya in the 1950s in the old part of the market. He passed on the skills of bisht-making to his son who inherited this handcraft and is teaching his son as well. “My family has been working in this industry for about 200 years,” explained Fahad Al-Baghli, son of Mohammed Al-Baghli, the Founder of Albaghli Textile. “My father has documents that go back to the 1800s, when he was exporting our bishts to Saudi Arabia. Although there are sewing machines that can now do the decoration of the bisht, we are still producing our bishts by hand,” explained Fahad.

Family heritage It takes between 80 to 100 hours of work to finish one bisht.

“The work done by hand is never the same as the one done by machine. It takes a month or two to finish one bisht, so people should order in advance,” Fahad says. He learnt how to make bishts at the age of 14. “Then I used to go to the shop with my father. He taught me how to make a bisht step by step. Now my 13-year-old son also comes to the shop and is talented in this craft,” said Fahad, explaining that his son already knows the basic steps to make a bisht. “My father was keen to make us continue our high studies, so

he sent his children to study abroad,” explained Fahad. “Today I’m supervising the work of the shop with my father. It’s our family’s heritage,” he added.

It is all about the detail The bisht is a common Arab dress, especially in the Arabian Gulf.

“It’s a traditional dress that symbolizes nobility, dignity and social status. Before we used to say that the bisht is half the clothing.

Today men wear it for weddings and other occasions, and ministers and VIPs wear it for their daily visits. Old bishts used to have different marks for sheikhs like horizontal lines of the motif, which only sheikhs used to wear,” he added.

The bisht is worn both in summer and in winter. The material of the bisht differs according to the season. The summer bisht is made from light materials, then there is the spring bisht that is between the two, and finally the more popular winter bisht. The latter is made from different textiles and materials. Mostly, winter bishts are produced from a baby lama’s soft hair, which is a luxury fabric and is very expensive. “The decoration is very expensive as it takes the majority of time to embroider, and the threads are either gold or silk and both are expensive,” explained Baghli.

Albaghli imports textiles from Iran, Iraq, Japan and the UK such as the soft wool fabrics, woven and handspun ones. Other fabrics are prepared by them in the factory in Kuwait. The summer bisht is usually either made from wool from Iraq (Najafi) or from Iran (Doregi). Some bishts made from cashmere imported from India.

“The colors of bishts differ, as the light colors are used during daytime, while the dark-colored bisht is worn in evening,” he pointed out.

The bisht is an expensive outfit. At Albaghli, the price ranges between KD 100 and KD 1,500. “The customers know the high quality of our work, and the bisht will last long years if the customer preserves it,” said Fahad, explaining that a bisht has to be cleaned in a special way that only the shops producing bishts can do. “Even the laundry may damage the bisht. The embroidery made with gold for instance needs to be knocked in certain way to make the dirt fall, and then cleaned,” he said, adding that this is the reason why they provide cleaning services for their customers. “Some kinds of bishts can shrink from humidity but we can restore their original size and shape,” he stressed.

Times of change The bisht has undergone few changes in the present era. “The variety of colors of bishts is much wider now. Before only two or three colors were known, while today we have more than 10 colors.

Also the styles of the embroidery (zari) on bishts became wider, as now there are Rolex, Versace and other styles,” he stated.

Albaghli also produced the biggest bisht in the world and registered it with the Guinness Book of Records in 1995. “The picture of my uncle was used on a postal stamp in 1998. Our bisht was also used to cover Kishk Mubarak in 2011, which was launched by HH the Amir. Many sheikhs and presidents wear the Albaghli bisht,” concluded Baghli proudly.

Not only Kuwaitis buy bishts from Albaghli, as many Westerners find the bisht to be a good souvenir or outfit. Albaghli exports products to other Gulf countries, and frequently participate in local and international exhibitions. In March 2014, they will be participating in an exhibition in Germany.

Local FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2014

A day in the life of a stockman

By Ben Garcia

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e is the man who makes sure that the milk on the shelf is not spoilt and sold after the expiration date. He is the man who arranges the shelves in the supermarket to make them look neat and tidy. He is the man who ensures the safety of food on the table of many families.

Meet Seth Escosa, 33, from San Jose Del Monte, Bulacan, Philippines. He had worked as a storekeeper, merchandiser and was promoted to store supervisor. In March 2010, Escosa joined one of the large supermarkets chains in Kuwait. “I have been stationed in almost all the major sections of this store,” he said, explaining that he started as a merchandiser and later got transferred to the cold section as a stockman. “There, I had to monitor the temperature and stocks in the cold section such as frozen chicken, fish, meat and even vegetables,” he stated. “I had to maintain the right temperature of the freezers and chillers. On my watch I had to monitor the expiry of every item too. I had to report any pilferage and handle customer requests, complaints and suggestions,” he added.

Working in the cold section The cold section includes all types of dairy products

and cheese, fresh eggs and cold beverages. Customers are always particular with the dates and expiry of the products and a little mistake may lead to a memo or worse - termination. “We are very particular about the products we sell here because the Municipality is really strict when it comes to the expiry of food items. We are told that even one expired product could result in the closure of our store, so we are very particular and strict with every food item and the expiration date.”

Since Escosa handles food items, he said he maintains cleanliness and orderliness of the section. He recalls one time when he received a complaint from a customer. “The customer wanted to replace his product.

When I told him that it was no longer available, he got mad and complained about the store,” he said, explaining that eventually everything was settled. “Imagine the hassle and the time wasted just because of a small complaint, so it served us a lesson,” he added.

Besides handling customers’ requests, complaints etc, Escosa has to handle coworkers who challenge his skills, especially when he got promoted as a supervisor.

He says that one of his every day challenges is to work with the staff. Especially after his promotion, his colleagues’ behavior towards him changed. “When I was promoted to supervisor my colleagues did not object, but you could see it in their behavior every day. In fact, I

had a fight with one of them and ended up at the police station. I thought it was the end of my journey in Kuwait, but the person withdrew his complaint and we were able to settle the problem amicably. There are challenges every day,” he said.

Sales targets As a supervisor, Escosa and the supermarket team have to set an achievable target for the month. “We have to think and be part of the team in order to hit the sales target for the month. So we hold meetings and brainstorming sessions. We see the movement of other supermarkets and we study the best promotion we can introduce to entice customers. So far, we are hitting the monthly sales targets, despite fierce competition,” he said.

Escosa left his wife and two children (10 and 5 years old respectively) behind in search for greener pastures.

He found it in Kuwait, but only after a year, his wife ran away with another man, leaving his kids behind with his relatives. “She went with another man. I cannot blame her as I was here working hard for them. Probably she got bored. It was painful, but life must go on. This is okay - as long as she’s happy and my kids are fine,” he said. “I am supporting my kids and I will do so as long as I live,” he vowed.

Saudi telco lifts curtain on new films DUBAI: Hollywood has missed out since Saudi Arabia banned cinemas in the 1970s, but residents may soon get to see movies at home on the same day as their release elsewhere in the Gulf in a new service promised by Saudi Telecom Co (STC). At present Saudis must wait six to nine months after films are released in cinemas in the rest of Gulf to watch them on local pay-television, while for free-to-air viewers the delay is 12 to 18 months. But STC subsidiary Intigral now aims to provide a permanent roster of first-day release films for television customers.

Intigral has already signed agreements with a clutch of smaller distributors - Gulf Films, Front Row, Italia, Phoenicia, Falcon and the Arabic language MA Films - and expects to conclude a similar deal with a certain major Hollywood studio within the next few weeks. “When one of the majors comes in, then they will all start to flow in,” said Ben Kinealy, chief executive of Intigral and prime mover behind the initiative. The lag on films appearing on television has led Saudi Arabia, whose young tech-savvy population is the world’s top user of YouTube per capita, to become a hotbed of piracy.

“If it’s a big title it will be stolen. If it’s a smaller title it might not even be seen but that’s still lost revenue,” said Kinealy, who estimates Saudi’s lost box office earnings for film companies total about $1 billion annually. Intigral aims to charge around $18 per film. “Studios look at this as a ticket and a half because people will see it with their families,” said Kinealy. Some broadcasters in other regions have experimented with one-off simultaneous cinema and television launches for certain films, but faced fierce hostility from cinemas.

That will not be a concern in Saudi, which outlawed public film screenings in the 1970s when the powerful religious establishment took a position against cine-

ma. Religious scholars, who believe Islam forbids any depiction of the human form, have opposed sporadic attempts over the past decade to weaken the ban. Intigral was created in 2009 to provide the content and user interface, or programme engine, for STC’s Internet-based TV services.

Kinealy hopes a redesigned interface will be launched within six months and help boost consumer demand for STC products, especially fibre-based broadband.

Domestically STC competes with Mobily, a unit of the United Arab Emirates’ Etisalat, and Zain Saudi , part-owned by Kuwait’s Zain. “The way we will be measured is through the reduction of customer churn, ARPU (average revenue per user), pull-through of new customers and most importantly the improved consideration of STC’s brand and core products,” said Kinealy. “When someone picks up a phone in Saudi, we want them to be looking at STC. How many people who bought an iPhone have now bought an iPad and other Apple services? It starts with one really good product.”

Kinealy sees Saudis’ prolific Internet actitivities - as of March 2013 Riyadh was the sixth most active city worldwide on Twitter, according to analysts Semiocast as complementary to the new film service.

“It could be seen as potentially meaning these people aren’t interested in paying for a premium experience, they’re interested in getting it for free by other means,” said Kinealy. “But that argument would have stopped iTunes against Napster and who won there ?”. STC has affiliates in Kuwait and Bahrain, plus investments in operators in Turkey, South Africa and Asia, and plans to roll out its revamped television services to these firms, he said. “We would like to go beyond that - we’re in conversation with other telcos who are not in the family,” added Kinealy. — Reuters

KUWAIT: Bedoon protesters hurl stones at security forces during a demonstration in Taima.

Bedoons staged demo despite MoI warning Ministry to probe mosque collapse

Minister of Justice and Awqaf Naif Al-Ajmi yesterday said those responsible for the incident would be held legally accountable after visiting the site.

By Hanan Al-Saadoun KUWAIT: Following up Wednesday’s bedoon demonstrations in Jahra, the interior ministry issued a statement explaining that despite repeated warnings against assemblies and demonstrations that threaten security and violate the law, a small group of illegal residents (bedoons) staged a demonstration Wednesday evening in Taima and Sulaibiya where they assaulted security forces and destroyed a number of patrol vehicles, injuring a number of security men. The ministry added that demonstrators stoned the police, blocked streets and burnt tyres.

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Eleven construction workers were seriously injured when the dome of an under-construction mosque in Omariya collapsed on them, said the fire department, noting that four of the injured workers were taken to hospital for further treatment while the others received on-site medical treatment.

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Security sources said that after intense interrogation, a citizen confessed to murdering his Filipina wife with blows from a squash racquet during a family dispute. The citizen had reported his wife’s death, and on examining the body, forensic medicine noticed marks of violence on it.

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An Indian reported that someone robbed KD 320 from him at gunpoint behind a popular shopping mall.

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A citizen and his Arab girlfriend were arrested for kissing in public, said security sources, noting that the lovers were caught kissing inside a vehicle in the Avenues mall’s parking lot. A case was filed.

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Local FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2014

Batelco takes control of Qualitynet Shell sells Italian business to Kuwait Petroleum DUBAI: Bahrain Telecommunications (Batelco) will take majority control of Kuwait’s Qualitynet after agreeing to double its stake in the Internet provider, Batelco said yesterday.

Batelco will buy 46 percent of Qualitynet from Ali Al-Ghanim & Sons for an undisclosed fee, raising the Bahraini firm’s holding to 90 percent from 44 percent previously. The deal will likely be concluded in March, a company statement said.

Kuwait’s Ministry of Communications ultimately owns and operates the country’s fixed-line infrastructure, with about four major Internet service providers including Qualitynet paying the govern-

ment to use it.

Qualitynet’s 2013 revenue was KD 31.3 million ($83.0 million), down 8.9 percent from 2012, which provided Batelco with a profit of KD 2.41 million, the latter’s annual report shows. As of Sept 2012, Qualitynet claimed a 45 percent share of Kuwait’s fixed-line Internet market, which operates largely on a copper-based network. The lack of widespread fibre connectivity has led many Kuwaiti residents to opt instead for mobile Internet provided by the country’s three mobile operators: Zain, Saudi Telecom Co affiliate Viva and Wataniya, a subsidiary of Qatar’s

Abu Ghaith lawyers may question KSM NEW YORK: A US judge on Wednesday briefly delayed the upcoming trial of a son in law of Osama bin Laden on terrorism-related charges so his lawyers could submit written questions to accused Sept 11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed. US District Judge Lewis Kaplan in Manhattan postponed jury selection from Feb 24 to March 3 after agreeing to a deal between the US government and lawyers for Suleiman Abu Ghaith to allow the submission of hundreds of questions to Mohammed. Mohammed is being held at the US military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

That delay was much shorter than the 45 days sought by lawyers for Abu Ghaith, 48, who want to question Mohammed to determine if he would be a suitable witness. Before the agreement with prosecutors, Abu Ghaith’s lawyers had sought to interview Mohammed in person, a request Kaplan suggested he wouldn’t have granted. “I am deeply skeptical that there is any right of access to Khalid Sheikh Mohammed on the motion the defense made,” he said at a court hearing on Wednesday.

Abu Ghaith, a Kuwaiti and former Al-Qaeda spokesman and one of the highest-profile individuals to face charges, is accused of conspiring to kill Americans, providing material support and resources to terrorists and conspiring to provide such support. His lawyers have said Mohammed, who faces a US military trial at Guantanamo, is “likely to be the most important witness” in Abu Ghaith’s case. Wednesday’s agreement calls for questions and documents to be submitted to Mohammed to be subject to US government review but not disclosed to prosecutors handling the case.—Reuters

Ooredoo.

Separately, Anglo-Dutch oil and gas major Shell said yesterday it has agreed to sell its Italian retail and aviation business to Kuwait Petroleum International. “The sale is consistent with Shell’s strategy to concentrate Shell’s downstream footprint on a smaller number of assets and markets where we can be most competitive,” the company said in a statement, without giving financial details. Shell’s Italian retail network will be rebranded Q8 as part of the agreement, the company said. The transaction is subject to regulatory approval. —Agencies

One of Q8’s gas stations in Europe. —KUNA

Lawmaker proposes cash fund for citizens at birth MP calls for special debate on economy

By B Izzak KUWAIT: MP Askar Al-Enezi yesterday proposed a draft law calling on the government to make a monthly deposit of KD 50 for each Kuwaiti born and deposit the amount into a special fund until the age of 18. Enezi, who has been making highly generous populist proposals since the July election, said the funds should be invested in favour of the young boys and girls and the total amount along with profits should be given to them when they turn 18. The draft law stipulates that 20 percent of the profits will be deducted for the Reserve Fund for Future Generations which is being run by Kuwait Investment Authority (KIA). The bill also calls for KIA to manage the new fund.

If the draft law is passed in the National Assembly and accepted by the government, each citizen will receive at least KD 10,800 when he/she turns 18 in addition to profits. Enezi said the main purpose of the proposal is to assist Kuwaitis to cope

with life burdens when they become adults, like completing their university education outside or inside the country, marriage or buying furniture.

In previous assemblies, a number of MPs had proposed that the government should distribute a percentage of the returns on foreign investments to citizens every year to help them in their expenses.

But that proposal was never debated in Assembly panels or in the Assembly itself.

The government has warned MPs that it is not possible to sustain the rapid increase in spending, especially in expenditures on wages and subsidies which together account for a major part of the budget.

In another development, MP Yacoub Al-Sane called yesterday for holding a special session to debate the government’s economic vision and strategy especially in light of key global economic developments. Sane said that the debate should discuss the government’s medium and long-term economic strategies if such strategies are based on the assumption of

continuing to rely on oil as the main source of income for a long time.

The debate should focus if the state budget is capable of meeting spending requirements especially with regards to wages and if the government has any plans to diversify its sources of income to reduce dependence on oil, the lawmaker said. He added that the debate should allow MPs to know if the government has taken into account the new important developments on the shale crude production which could have negative consequences on oil revenues. About 95 percent of Kuwait’s public revenues come from oil. Five MPs in the meantime submitted a request to form a committee to investigate the clean fuel project which was recently awarded to nine foreign companies at a cost of KD 3.4 billion. The request states that MPs should know the details of the project and the awarding process since it is one of the most important development projects in the country and involves large funds.

KUWAIT: Under the auspices and in attendance of deputy PM and Interior Minister Sheikh Mohammed Al-Khaled Al-Sabah, the Interior Ministry yesterday launched its museum in Bneid Al-Gar. The museum, that opened to coincide with the national celebrations, includes various equipments, weapons, vehicles and machinery that have been used by the ministry since its inception. It also includes samples of various official documents that have been issued by the ministry departments.

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2014

Brooks takes stand in British hacking trial

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Beauty queen the latest victim in Venezuela unrest

Thai protesters target businesses linked to PM

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KIEV: Protesters catch fire as they stand behind burning barricades during clashes with police yesterday. — AFP

Ukraine death toll tops 50 President’s ‘truce’ in tatters KIEV: Fresh fighting flared in central Kiev yesterday, shattering a truce declared by Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovich, as the Russian-backed leader met European ministers demanding he compromise with pro-EU opponents. A Reuters photographer saw the bodies of 21 dead civilians in Independence Square, a few hundred meters from where the president met the EU delegation, after protesters who have occupied the area for almost three months hurled petrol bombs and paving stones to drive riot police from the plaza. Acting Interior Minister Vitaly Zakharschenko said police had been issued with combat weapons and would use them “in accordance with the law” to defend themselves and others and to free hostages.

The ministry said protesters were holding 67 policemen hostage. In a sign of dwindling support for Yanukovich, his hand-picked head of Kiev’s city administration quit the ruling Party of the Regions in protest at bloodshed in the streets.

The foreign ministers of Germany, France and Poland spent much of the day in Kiev, meeting at

length with Yanukovich and extending their stay to talk to opposition leaders. They sent an interim report to EU colleagues in Brussels, who were meeting to decide on targeted sanctions against those deemed responsible for the worst bloodshed in Ukraine since it left the crumbling Soviet Union 22 years ago.

EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton told reporters in Brussels she had spoken twice to the visiting trio and would convey their impressions to the EU meeting. An EU source in Moscow said the ministers saw a chance for a compromise between the authorities and the opposition. A draft EU statement prepared for the meeting called for “targeted measures” against individuals, an arms embargo and a ban on equipment for internal repression.

Russia criticised the European and US actions, calling them “blackmail” that would only make matters worse. Russian President Vladimir Putin is sending an envoy to Kiev to try to mediate with the opposition at Yanukovich’s request, the RIA news agency quoted a Kremlin spokesman as saying. German Chancellor

Angela Merkel called to urge Yanukovich to accept the offer of EU mediation in the crisis.

Raising pressure on Yanukovich to restore order if he wants the next desperately needed loan, Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said Moscow would not hand over cash to a leadership that let opponents walk over it “like a doormat”.

Both sides used guns Ukraine is caught in a geopolitical tug-of-war between Moscow - which sees it as a market and ally and fears protests spreading to Russia - and the West, which says Ukrainians should be free to choose economic integration with the EU. Yesterday’s renewed fighting, which subsided after about an hour, heightened concern voiced by Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk that Ukraine could descend into civil war or split between the proEuropean west and Russian-speaking east. Video from yesterday morning’s clashes on the edge of the Kiev square, known as the Maidan or “Euro-Maidan”

by protesters, showed both sides used firearms.

“Berkut” riot policemen fired bursts from automatic rifles on the run as they covered retreating colleagues fleeing past a nearby arts centre just off the plaza. An opposition militant in a helmet was filmed firing from behind a tree. Other protesters used police riot shields for cover, while some fell wounded as the protest camp became a killing zone. A Ukrainian presidential statement said dozens of police were wounded or killed during the opposition offensive hours, after Yanukovich and opposition leaders had agreed on a truce.

Witnesses said they saw snipers firing during the clashes. The Health Ministry said two police were among yesterday’s dead. That raised the total death toll since Tuesday to at least 51, including at least 12 police. Local media said more than 30 protesters were killed in yesterday’s flare-up. One opposition group doubled that estimate. The protesters’ medical service said it was too busy treating casualties to count the bodies. —Reuters

International FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2014

Egypt puts three Al-Jazeera journalists on trial CAIRO: Egypt put three Al-Jazeera journalists on trial yesterday on charges of aiding members of a “terrorist organization”, in a case that human rights groups say shows the authorities are trampling on freedom of expression. The journalists, wearing white prison outfits, appeared in metal cages, a Reuters witness said. Six others identified as Al-Jazeera journalists are being tried in absentia.

Three of the Qatar-based television network’s journalists - Peter Greste, an Australian, Mohamed Fahmy, a CanadianEgyptian national, and Baher Mohamed, an Egyptian - were detained in Cairo on Dec 29 and remain in custody, Al-Jazeera said.

All three deny the charges and Al-Jazeera has said the accusations are absurd.

Egyptian officials have said the case is not linked to freedom of expression and that the journalists raised suspicions by operating without proper accreditation.

“Journalists should not have to risk

years in an Egyptian prison for doing their job,” said Joe Stork, deputy Middle East director at Human Rights Watch. “The prosecution of these journalists for speaking with Muslim Brotherhood members, coming after the prosecution of protesters and academics, shows how fast the space for dissent in Egypt is evaporating.” The court postponed the case, in which a total of 20 people are on trial, to March 5.

“We believe we will be acquitted. The lawyers are fully on board with us, they fully believe in our case, they fully believe that we were just operating as journalists,” said Heather Alan, head of news gathering at Al-Jazeera English. “We don’t have an agenda, we have nothing against Egypt, we certainly don’t lie or do biased reporting. So we believe that we are innocent,” she said, speaking outside the court.

Last month a prosecutor said Al-Jazeera journalists had published lies harming the national interest and had supplied money,

UAE lets passengers go after airline smoke probe DUBAI: Emirati security authorities have allowed all passengers on an Etihad Airways flight that had suspicious lavatory fires to leave after several were temporarily detained for questioning by police, the airline said yesterday. Passengers on board the Boeing 777-300ER flight from Melbourne, Australia, to the United Arab Emirates capital of Abu Dhabi said Tuesday’s fires sent smoke into the cabin and appeared to have been deliberately set.

Smoke was detected in two toilets after takeoff from Melbourne on Monday, prompting a precautionary diversion to Jakarta, Indonesia, and again in a toilet as the plane made its way to its destination of Abu Dhabi, according to the government-backed airline. None of the 254 passengers and crew was removed from the flight in Indonesia. Several passengers said that decision was unnerving given the fears that the fires were started by someone on board.

Twelve people were detained upon arrival in Abu Dhabi as authorities investigated the case. A young woman who had attracted the suspicions of some passengers was among those initially detained, witnesses said. “The real story is: Who was the idiot woman trying to burn a plane down, and why,” passenger Mark Sinclair, 45, said by email. “She should be in jail for a very long time.”The 12 passengers held for additional questioning were offered hotel accommodation but opted to stay together and were kept in the airline’s first-class lounge, according to Etihad. It said consular officials from Australia, the United Kingdom and Ireland visited them. By yesterday morning, all had been allowed to continue on their journeys.”In the absence of any conclusive incriminating evidence, no arrests have been made at this time,” the airline said in an emailed statement. Etihad described the investigation as ongoing, and said it is cooperating with authorities. “We have a zero-tolerance policy in respect to people who threaten the safety and security of passengers and crew or our aircraft,” the airline said.

Officials at the Abu Dhabi police department, which is leading the probe, could not be reached for comment.

The UAE’s aviation regulator, the General Civil Aviation Authority, said it is involved in the investigation and confirmed that no arrests have been made. Australia’s Civil Aviation Safety Authority said yesterday that responsibility for any safety investigation resides with the regulator in the UAE. Any security issues would be investigated by national security agencies, CASA spokesman Peter Gibson said.

CASA expects to be notified of the results of any safety investigation because Etihad has approval to fly into Australia.

“If it involves any safety issues, we would expect to receive some information from Etihad in due course,” Gibson said.

Etihad is the UAE’s national carrier and is based in Abu Dhabi. It and Gulf competitors Emirates and Qatar Airways have been rapidly expanding their operations in recent years, turning their desert bases into major intercontinental transit hubs. Its Australian destinations are Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney. It also has a minority stake in Virgin Australia. — AP

equipment and information to 16 Egyptians. The foreigners were also accused of using unlicensed broadcasting equipment.

The 16 Egyptians are to face trial for belonging to a “terrorist organization”, an apparent reference to the Muslim Brotherhood, which has been protesting against the government since the army toppled Islamist President Mohamed Morsi in July. “I have been subjected to torture,” said Suhaib Saed, who is accused of being a member of a terrorist group. The government has declared the Brotherhood a terrorist group. The Brotherhood says it is a peaceful organization.

Andrew Greste said his award-winning brother Peter had only been in Cairo on a three-week assignment to replace a colleague. “So it’s completely, from my point of view, unbelievable to have those accusations leveled against him,” he told Reuters outside the court. “The most diffi-

cult thing for him is the mental challenge of staying positive and focused and not allowing the conditions that he’s living under to become overwhelming and depressing.”

The Gulf state of Qatar, which funds AlJazeera, backs the Muslim Brotherhood. Its ties with Egypt have been strained since army chief Field Marshal Abdel Fattah AlSisi ousted Morsi last year after mass protests against his troubled one-year rule.

Both state and private Egyptian media have whipped up anti-Brotherhood sentiment, suggesting anyone associated with the group is a traitor and a threat to national security. Egyptians often ask journalists in the streets whether they work for AlJazeera. Saying yes could mean a beating.

The crackdown on dissent has raised questions about Egypt’s democratic credentials three years after an uprising toppled autocrat Hosni Mubarak and raised hopes of greater freedoms. — Reuters

Turkey’s Erdogan eyes powers for spy agency Obama urges policies ‘rooted in rule of law’ ANKARA: Battling a corruption scandal, Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan is seeking broader powers for his intelligence agency, including more scope for eavesdropping and legal immunity for its top agent, according to a draft law seen by Reuters. The proposals submitted by Erdogan’s AK Party late on Wednesday are the latest in what his opponents see as an authoritarian backlash against the graft inquiry, after parliament passed laws tightening government control over the Internet and the courts this month.

The bill gives the National Intelligence Organization (MIT) the authority to conduct operations abroad and tap pay phones and international calls. It also introduces jail terms of up to 12 years for the publication of leaked classified documents. It stipulates that only a top appeals court could try the head of the agency with the prime minister’s permission, and would require private companies as well as state institutions to hand over consumer data and technical equipment when requested. “This bill will bring the MIT in line with the necessities of the era, grant it the capabilities of other intelligence agencies, and increase its methods and capacity for individual and technical intelligence,” the draft document said.

Erdogan’s response to the corruption inquiry - purging thousands of officers from the police force and reassigning hundreds of prosecutors and judges - has raised concern in Western capitals, including Brussels, which fears the EU candidate nation is moving further away from European norms.

It has also shaken investor confidence in a nation whose stability over the past decade, following a series of unstable coalition governments in the 1990s, has been based on Erdogan’s firm rule, helping send the lira to record lows last month. US President Barack Obama, speaking by telephone with Erdogan late on Wednesday for the first time since the scandal erupted, discussed a raft of regional issues but also stressed the importance of Turkey’s domestic stability. “The President noted the importance of sound policies rooted in the rule of

law to reassure the financial markets, nurture a predictable investment environment, strengthen bilateral ties, and benefit the future of Turkey,” a White House statement said.

Hunkering down The graft scandal, which erupted in December with the detention of businessmen close to Erdogan and three ministers’ sons, poses one of the greatest threats of his 11-year rule. He has cast it as an attempt to unseat him by a U.S.-based cleric with influence in the police and judiciary before local elections in March and a presidential race, in which he has long been expected to run, five months later.

The feud with powerful preacher Fethullah Gulen, a former ally who has denied orchestrating the corruption investigation, is centred around a struggle for influence over state institutions and has drawn in the MIT before. In February 2012, Erdogan

blocked an inquiry into intelligence chief Hakan Fidan that was his supporters saw as a challenge to his authority from a Guleninfluenced judiciary, in what was a turning point in his relations with the cleric.

With the police and judiciary purged and the new laws on the Internet, courts and intelligence agency, Erdogan appears to be gaining the upper hand - at the cost of further polarizing the nation.

The judiciary bill, which is awaiting approval from President Abdullah Gul, will give the government more say in the naming of judges and prosecutors, while the Internet law will enable the authorities to block access to web pages within hours without a prior court order.

Social media and video sharing sites have been awash with alleged recordings of ministers, including Erdogan, and business allies, presented as proof of wrongdoing in the graft scandal. Reuters has been unable to verify their authenticity. —Reuters

QUDSAYA: Syrians wave national flags behind a portrait of Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad during a rally yesterday. — AFP

International FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2014

FGM on retreat in Somaliland HARGEYSA: It is a ritual supposed to keep women “pure”, but an increased understanding of the severe health risks of extreme forms of female genital mutilation appears to be slowly rolling back its prevalence in Somalia’s northwest. In the self-declared Somali republic of Somaliland, most women over 25 have undergone the most extreme form of FGM, known as “pharaonic”. This entails removal of the clitoris and the labia minora, cutting out flesh from the vulva and sewing up the outer labia, leaving only a tiny orifice for the passage of urine and menstrual flow.

The procedure is normally done with a razor blade when the girl is between 5 and 11 years old, and without any pain killers. They remain sewn up until marriage, at which point they are either opened up during sex-causing pain and distress to both partners-or cut open with scissors. “I cut girls for 15 years. My grandmother and mother taught me how and it was a source of income for me-but I stopped doing any cutting four years ago,” recounted Amran Mahmood.

“I decided to stop because of the problems. The worst time was when I was cutting a girl and she started bleeding. I injected the muscle to stop the bleeding and I cleaned the area and she kept on bleeding.” As well as social status, being a socalled “cutter” brought in good money. Cutting one girl takes 30 minutes and brings in between $30 and $50, a large sum of money for Somaliland.

Amran’s own daughter was cut, but she swears her granddaughters will not undergo the full procedure. After attending awareness programs organized by Tostan, an anti-FGM NGO financed by the UN children’s agency UNICEF, Amran has become an anti-cutting advocate.

‘Things are changing’ The medical consequences of the stitching-urine retention, blocking of menstrual flow, pain, bleeding, infection and childbirth complications-have brought the practice into disrepute.

In the urban setting of Hargeysa at least, the generation who are adolescents today have largely abandoned it in favor of less extreme forms, which still involve the removal of the clitoris. Their mothers, mindful of the pain they themselves have endured, support the change. “Things are changing. There are now men willing to marry uncut girls,” said village headman Mohamed Said Mohamed, a Muslim like most in Somalia, sporting a greying beard and a traditional sarong.

“I am totally against cutting. It is not accepted by our religion.” FGM is concentrated in some 29 countries in Africa and the Middle East, according to the World Health Organization

which says cutting has no health benefits and brands the practice a violation of human rights. It says more than 125 million girls and women today have undergone the procedure, whose roots are a mix of cultural, social and supposedly religious factors.

The UN General Assembly adopted a resolution to eliminate FGM in December 2012. At Sheikh Nuur primary school the girls sit on one side of the classroom in long beige skirts topped off by a black hijab, the boys on the other in beige trousers and white shirts. “People are beginning to see how dangerous the extreme form is,” said 14-year-old Sagal Abdulrahman, a slim, articulate and slightly solemn girl.

“The first type involved stitches, and is the painful one, because there are many times when the woman gives birth and has pain. And... when she has her period, it causes pain.

The second type is not that painful,” said her classmate Asma Ibrahim Jibril. “I’m very happy because my parents chose the less severe one, and I was very OK with that. And I won’t face the painful things that would come in the future,” she said.

Islamic jurisprudence For Charity Koronya, a UNICEF protection officer, all forms of FGM must be stopped. “To me total abandonment is the key because even if it is just a small cut it is still a violation,” she said, explaining that she herself comes from a Kenyan tribe that practices the clitoridectomy form of FGM. She escaped the practice because her father, who travelled outside their home district for his work, refused it.

The issue of whether of whether Islamic law requires FGM is the subject of much discussion, with several clerics admitting they themselves are confused. “Completely stopping FGM is not going to work in our country,” Abu Hureyra, a local religious leader taking part in a roundtable said, “but we are in favor of stopping the extreme type.” “There are doctors who say cutting is good for a woman’s health,” insisted Mohamed Jama, an elder from Somaliland’s religious affairs ministry.

“If you cut a woman you are killing her,” countered a younger leader Rahman Yusuf. Other clerics seemed puzzled, saying they had consulted experts in Islamic law in Saudi Arabia and Qatar only to receive contradictory responses. For Koronya the mere fact that the practice is now being discussed in public was a victory. “Initially it was difficult to discuss FGM in public. Today religious leaders, women’s leaders talk about it and even talk about the link between FGM and sexuality,” she said. “Having public discussions about FGM is a big step forward.” — AFP

Timetable set for ambitious Iran nuclear talks VIENNA: Iran and world powers agreed yesterday a timetable and framework for the ambitious and arduous process of hammering out a lasting nuclear accord by July 20 that satisfies all sides. Such a deal, if reached, should resolve the decade-old standoff over Iran’s nuclear drive, silence talk of war for good and help normalise Tehran’s strained international relations. After chairing “very productive” days of talks in Vienna, EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton said experts would meet in early March before political directors return to Vienna on March 17.

“There is a lot to do, it won’t be easy but we have made a good start,” Ashton told reporters, saying negotiators had “identified all the issues we need to address”. Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif wrote on his Facebook page that the parties “also agreed to hold several meeting on a monthly basis until late May”. He told Iranian media that the atmosphere in the Austrian capital was “very serious” and “even a little bit more positive than anyone predicted,” but however there is a “difficult way ahead of us”. A senior US administration official said the discussions were “very workmanlike” and “substantive, covering all the issues that need to be on the table... We are long past speeches of ideology”. “We have begun to see some areas of agreement, as well as areas where we will have to work through very difficult issues,” the official said, adding there was “extraordinary” unity among the six powers.

Iran and the United States, China, Russia, Britain, France and Germany aim to transform a landmark but only interim deal struck in Geneva in November into a long-term agreement.

Diplomats said they aimed to nail down the final accord by the time a six-month freeze of certain activities agreed in Geneva expires on July 20, although this period can be extended.

The holy grail is for Iran to retain its civilian nuclear program, but likely on a reduced scale and with enhanced oversight to ensure a dash for nuclear weapons is all but impossible. This could involve closing the underground Fordo facility, slashing the number of uranium centrifuges, cutting fissile material stockpiles, altering a new reactor being built at Arak and tougher UN inspections. In exchange, all UN Security Council, US and EU sanctions on Iran-which are costing it billions of dollars every week in lost oil revenues, wreaking havoc on its economy-would be lifted.—AFP

International FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2014

Pope tells cardinals to tackle divisive issues VATICAN CITY: Pope Francis yesterday urged cardinals gathered to discuss family-related issues such as contraception, cohabitation, divorce and gay relationships to be “intelligent, courageous and loving” in their debate. He was opening two days of closed-door sessions with some 185 cardinals from around the world to prepare for an autumn synod of bishops that will discuss the issues at greater length.

“We are called to make known God’s magnificent plan for the family and to help spouses joyfully experience this plan in their lives, as we accompany them amidst so many difficulties, even with a pastoral plan that is intelligent, courageous and full of love,” Francis told the cardinals. While there is no possibility that the Church will change its teachings against abortion and gay marriage, many Catholics hope that the autumn synod could lead to modifications of its stance on other family-related issues, notably divorce.

Catholics who have divorced and remarried without a Church annulment are now barred from receiving communion. A growing number of Church officials

Clean sweep for Orban billboards in Hungary LOREV: Six weeks out from a general election in Hungary, campaign billboards, perhaps surprisingly, are dominated by faces of the three main challengers to right-wing Prime Minister Viktor Orban. But in Orban’s Hungary, things are often not as they seem. A closer look reveals his centreleft challengers all guiltily holding ID cards in a police lineup, and that these are pro-government ads. This trio of shifty-looking usual suspects, Socialists leader Attila Mesterhazy and former prime ministers Ferenc Gyurcsany and Gordon Bajnai, “don’t deserve another chance”, the posters proclaim. After sweeping to power with a twothirds majority for his Fidesz party in 2010, polls indicate that Orban is on course to win another term on April 6. He already appears to have won the battle of the billboards.

On a recent drive between Budapest and the town of Lorev, 60 kilometres (40 miles) to the south, out of 81 billboards only 14 were genuinely for the opposition, according to an AFP count.

But critics say that this is because Orban, 50, who has come under fire and home and abroad for a raft of sweeping and sometimes controversial legislation, has tweaked the system in his favor. Whereas in previous elections, political parties could plaster every tree and lamppost across the land with posters, this is now banned. Now they are only allowed on designated places, something which the opposition says gives Fidesz a massive and unfair advantage since many of these are owned by people close to the party. Viktor Szigetvari, co-chairman of Bajnai’s party, blames Orban’s domination of the billboards on “oligarchs” close to Fidesz.

“They control 55 to 60 percent of advertising locations”, he told AFP. COF up Moreover, Orban has been able to circumvent a rule limiting spending by parties by having a nominally independent organization called Civil Unity Forum (COF), which in fact is close to the government, do their posters, critics say. COF posters have been up for weeks, on floodlit billboards and advertising columns, hanging from buildings and offices and on the sides of trams, even though the campaign officially began only last Sunday.

Observers note, however, that the opposition has not done much to help itself, with the three main left-wing parties only agreeing an electoral pact last month and only this week launching its poster campaign. “Nobody is stopping the opposition from campaigning more vigorously via other channels,” argues Peter Kreko, an analyst with the Political Capital consultancy firm. He points out the opposition could still do more campaigning through letterboxes or on social media.—AFP

believe the ban should be lifted, or annulments made easier, to welcome such Catholics back into full participation in the 1.2 billion-member Church. In his address to the cardinals, meeting in what is known as an “extraordinary consistory”, Francis said the Church leaders should “seek to deepen the theology of the family and discern the pastoral practices which our present situation requires”.

Surveys show dissent In preparation for the autumn synod, the Vatican asked local churches to survey their faithful about teachings on sexual morality related to the family.

Bishops in some countries, including Britain, opted not to publish their findings, but those published by German, Swiss and Japanese bishops showed that many people did not know Church teachings fully or rejected them as unrealistic and heartless.

They showed that most Catholics in those countries disputed bans on contraception, premarital or gay sex and criticized the rules regarding divorced Catholics.

Addressing the gathering of cardinals, Francis called the family the “fundamental cell of society” and indirectly re-stated the Catholic Church’s opposition to gay marriage. “From the beginning the Creator blessed man and woman so that they might be fruitful and multiply,” he said, calling the family an image of “God in the world”. Francis has had a packed week of meetings about reform with top Church officials in Rome before ceremonies on Saturday when he will elevate 19 prelates to the rank of cardinal. The first three days of sessions focused on overhaul of the Vatican’s often troubled finances.

A select group of eight cardinals from around the world advising the Pope gave him their proposals on Wednesday, with one suggesting a new central economic ministry that would incorporate the Holy See’s scandal-plagued bank. The eight cardinals from Italy, Chile, India, Germany, Democratic Republic of Congo, the United States, Australia and Honduras are advising Francis on how to reform the Curia, the Vatican’s often dysfunctional central administration. — Reuters

Brooks takes stand in British hacking trial Acquitted over picture of Prince William in bikini LONDON: Rebekah Brooks, the former editor of the News of the World and the Sun tabloids, gave evidence for the first time in her phone-hacking trial yesterday after being cleared of one charge of paying for a photo of Prince William in a bikini. The 45-year-old former chief executive of News International, Rupert Murdoch’s British newspaper division, still faces four other charges in the long-running trial, including for conspiring to hack phones.

After three and a half months of prosecution arguments, which included some sensational allegations about activities at Murdoch’s tabloids, lawyers for the seven defendants finally began their case.

Wearing a blue dress and white cardigan, her red curly hair pinned back, Brooks was first in the witness box, where she described her early career in journalism and how she began working for the News of the World. Shortly before she began giving evidence, the judge declared that she had no case to answer in one charge against her, that of conspiring to commit misconduct in public office.

Brooks was accused of sanctioning a payment of £4,000 ($6,700, 4,900 euros) to a public official for a picture of Prince William dressed as a bikini-clad Bond girl at a party at Sandhurst, the British army’s officer training school. The image was never published but led to a story in The Sun in September 2006 with the headline “Willy in a Bikini” together with a mockedup picture of the second-in-line to the throne in a green swimsuit.

Brooks edited the News of the World from 2000 to 2003, when she moved to edit its sister paper The Sun, until 2006.

Judge John Saunders ordered the jury to deliver a not guilty verdict on the charge, saying: “I have decided that there is no case for Ms Brooks to answer on count four. That is the charge relating to a picture of Prince William in a bikini.” Brooks smiled as she was acquitted, although she still faces charges of conspiring to hack

phones, paying an official for information and two counts of conspiring to pervert the course of justice.

‘Keep an open mind’ In his opening statement, Brooks’ defence lawyer Jonathan Laidlaw told the jury that it was “entirely understandable” if they had been confused by the evidence so far. He said Brooks was not on trial for being the editor of a tabloid newspaper, for working for Murdoch or for the policies and corporate views of his company, nor was she on trial for her political views or connections. “There are agendas as you can all see, being pursued elsewhere, so please just be careful and keep an open mind and stay focused upon what matters,” Laidlaw said.

“It is for you to see Mrs Brooks as she is-not as she has been described or spoken of elsewhere.” The lawyer said a key

question was, did Brooks “know about and endorse a practice of phone hacking at the News of the World during her editorship from May 2000 to January 2003”.

And “did she know that a public official was the source for a story at the Sun” or “did she instruct her husband Charlie and personal assistant Cheryl Carter to cover up evidence of phone hacking or paying (a) public official?” he asked.

Brooks is accused of conspiring to pay the official for the Sun story and for tryingwith her husband, Carter and head of security Mark Hanna, who are also on trialto cover up evidence of her alleged crimes. Also in the dock is Andy Coulson, Brooks’ one-time lover who replaced her as editor of the News of the World in 2003.

Coulson, who later went to work as media chief for Prime Minister David Cameron, denies charges of phone hacking and paying officials for information. — AFP

LONDON: Rebekah Brooks (right) former News International chief executive, and her husband Charlie Brooks (left) arrive at the Central Criminal Court yesterday. — AP

International FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2014

No release for three of Rajiv Gandhi’s killers NEW DELHI: India’s top court on Thursday stopped the Tamil Nadu state government from releasing three of the seven prisoners serving life sentences for the 1991 assassination of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, a lawyer said.

The state ruled Wednesday that the seven should be released because they have served more than 20 years in prison. Critics immediately slammed the decision, calling it a transparent attempt to win over Tamil voters in this year’s national elections.

The federal government petitioned the Supreme Court on Thursday to stop the state from freeing the prisoners, with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh saying the move was “not legally tenable.” The court on Tuesday had commuted the death sentences for three of the convicts, after their lawyers argued that executing them now, after they had already served long prison terms, would amount to an unconstitutional double punishment.

Rakesh Dwivedi, a lawyer for Tamil Nadu’s government, said the court’s order Thursday applied only to the three prisoners whose sentences had been commuted, and that

Afghan exit could hamper US drone war against Al-Qaeda WASHINGTON: The possible withdrawal of all US forces from Afghanistan would hamper manhunts for Al-Qaeda militants in neighboring Pakistan, forcing Washington to find alternative bases for its drone flights, officials and experts say. The CIA’s drone war against Al-Qaeda in Pakistan’s northwest tribal belt relies heavily on intelligence gathered by spies based in eastern Afghanistan and on the use of Jalabad and other air bases in the area. But without US troops to guard CIA outposts and air fields, intelligence officers would not be able to meet sources on the ground in eastern Afghanistan, and Reaper aircraft would have to take off from more distant locations, undermining the tracking and targeting of terror suspects across the border in Pakistan.

With Afghan President Hamid Karzai refusing to sign a bilateral security accord that would allow US troops to stay in the country beyond 2014, officials are looking at the possibility of flying drones out of Central Asian countries if American forces are forced to exit. “The government is just starting to think about this and planning for it,” said a senior US defense official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

“If you still want to put pressure on that region, you have to look at alternatives,” the official told AFP, adding that “none of the options are ideal.” President Barack Obama’s administration has viewed the drone strikes as a crucial tactic that has weakened the core leadership of Al-Qaeda in Pakistan, despite intense criticism from human rights groups and some foreign governments.

And Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel has acknowledged the administration is looking at gaining access to other bases if the security pact falls through with Kabul. “I don’t get into the specifics of what our plans are on intelligence and drone strikes,” Hagel told a news conference this month. But he said Washington was “constantly” weighing its options, reviewing “where you posture those assets” and “where do you have allies that are willing to work with you.”

Competing with Russian influence The United States once had secret access to an air base at Shamsi in Pakistan for drone flights, but Islamabad ended that arrangement in December 2011, after the US raid on Osama bin Laden’s compound in Abbottabad. Other possible air bases involve former Soviet states in Central Asia, where Russia seeks to retain its influence and has pressed its partners to reject Washington’s overtures.

In Kyrgyzstan, US forces have used Manas air base as a vital hub to ferry troops and equipment in and out of Afghanistan. But the deal expires in July, while Kyrgyzstan has agreed to host more Russian military aircraft at another base. The US military once had access to runways in Uzbekistan, but that arrangement collapsed in 2005 after Washington protested a violent crackdown on dissent.—AFP

the state was free to release the other four. The court asked the federal government to file a separate petition regarding the fate of the four prisoners not covered by Thursday’s decision, the Press Trust of India news agency reported.

Gandhi, 47, was killed by an ethnic Tamil suicide bomber in Tamil Nadu in May 1991 as he campaigned for a return to the post of prime minister. Sixteen other people were killed in the attack. The assassination was orchestrated by Sri Lanka’s Tamil Tiger rebels to avenge Gandhi’s decision to send Indian troops to intervene in the country’s civil war in the 1980s.

Mohan Parasaran, the solicitor-general who argued the federal government’s petition on Thursday against the release of the convicts, said he told the Supreme Court that the state government had no authority to free the prisoners. “The appropriate government to consider the grant of remission to prisoners is the federal government,” he told reporters.

The court scheduled further arguments in the case to be heard on March 6, and the state is unlikely to release

any of the seven prisoners - six men and one woman before then. Tamil Nadu’s government ruled Wednesday that the seven should be released because they have served more than 20 years in prison. Jayaram Jayalalitha, the state’s top elected official, said if the federal government failed to respond to the decision within three days, she would release all of them on her own.

The issue triggered noisy scenes when the lower house of India’s Parliament met Thursday, with lawmakers from the ruling Congress Party strongly protesting the state’s decision. The speaker adjourned the session for an hour to cool the tempers. Prior to the Supreme Court’s ruling, Prime Minister Singh formally asked the state not to free the convicts. “We have informed the Tamil Nadu government that their proposed course of action to release the killers of Rajiv Gandhi is not legally tenable and should not be proceeded with,” Singh said in a statement to the media. He said Gandhi’s assassination was “an attack on the soul of India.”“No government or party should be soft in our fight against terrorism,” the statement said.—AP

Pakistan airstrikes on Taleban hideouts kill 15 PM approves attack on militant hideouts

MIRANSHAH: Pakistani jets launched strikes on Taleban hideouts in the northwest yesterday, killing 15 people according to security sources, in retaliation for attacks by the militants which have derailed peace talks. The first raid confirmed by security officials came early yesterday when jets bombed several locations including a compound in the town of Mir Ali and surrounding parts of the North Waziristan tribal district.

“There are confirmed reports of 15 militants including foreigners killed in these airstrikes,” a senior security official told AFP on condition of anonymity. A second strike targeted militants hiding in the Khyber tribal district who are suspected of bombing a cinema in Peshawar last week and killing an army major on Tuesday, a second security official said. The twin strikes and spiraling violence cast further doubt on a troubled peace process between the government and the insurgents just three weeks after talks began.

The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Taleban (TTP) had offered a ceasefire on Wednesday on condition that government forces stopped killing and arresting their members. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif announced the start of talks on January 29 to “give peace another chance” following a seven-year Taleban insurgency that has claimed nearly 7,000 lives. But a source in his office said Sharif, under pressure to avenge the Taleban killing spree, “issued orders to launch the airstrikes” after being briefed by military advisers.

After several rounds of talks, government mediators pulled out of scheduled dialogue with their Taleban counterparts on Monday amid outrage over the claimed execution of 23 kidnapped soldiers. On Sunday a faction of the Islamist movement from Mohmand near the Afghan border said they had killed the soldiers who were seized in the area in June 2010. Despite the new bloodshed, Professor Ibrahim Khan, a Taleban peace negotiator, said yesterday there was still a chance of a settlement. “The bad effects are very visible but even then we will continue our struggle for the establishment

of peace,” he told AFP. “Negotiations are the only way. There is no other way.”

Rising death toll A total of 93 people have been killed since the reconciliation effort was launched at the end of January, including the kidnapped soldiers, according to an AFP tally. The Taleban say 60 of their members had died before yesterday’s strikes. They have accused the army of executing its members while in custody.

“Air strikes were carried out to target militant hideouts with precision,” a security official said about the first raids in North Waziristan.

“A huge cache of arms and ammunition has also been destroyed.” Another security official said the strikes were “in retaliation for recent Taleban attacks”. As well as the execution of the kidnapped soldiers and other killings, the insurgents claimed a car bomb attack on a police bus in Karachi on February 13 in which 12 officers died.

The government has demanded a ceasefire as a condition to resume the

peace talks. A third security official in Miranshah, the main town of North Waziristan, said jet fighters began pounding targets around 12:30 am, with the attack continuing for more than an hour.

Residents in the area, known as a hideout for Taleban and Al-Qaeda members, said the compound caught fire after the attack and many local people were moving to safer areas. The second strike in Khyber also targeted militants and destroyed “prepared explosives and IEDs (improvised explosive devices)”, said a security source who did not give a death toll.

The TTP has been waging a bloody campaign against the Pakistani state since 2007, often hitting military targets. Some observers have raised doubts about the ability of the central Taleban command to control all factions, including some opposed to peace negotiations. The Taleban’s demands include the nationwide imposition of sharia law, an end to US drone strikes and the withdrawal of the army from northwestern tribal regionsconditions unlikely to be met. — AFP

MULTAN: Relatives of Pakistani army Major Jahanzeib Adnan, who was killed by militants, touch his casket, during his funeral procession yesterday. - AP

International FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2014

Thai protesters target businesses linked to PM

Protest leader says ‘let them come’

MOUNT KUMGANG: Kim Song-Yun (left) of South Korea talks with her two sisters Kim Seok-Ryo and a niece, of North Korea, during a reunion event for families divided by the two countries yesterday. — AFP

Tearful Korean reunions begin SEOUL: Their backs stooped, dozens of elderly North and South Koreans separated for six decades reunited yesterday, weeping and embracing in a rush of words and emotion. The reunions come during a rare period of detente between the rival Koreas and are all the more poignant because the participants will part again in a few days, likely forever. About 80 South Koreans traveled through falling snow with their families to North Korea’s Diamond Mountain resort to meet children, brothers, sisters, spouses and other relatives. Seoul had said about 180 North Koreans were expected.

South Korean TV showed old women in brightly-colored traditional hanbok dresses talking and hugging, families trading photographs of relatives who couldn’t attend or had died.

Two men in suits and ties wiped away tears, grasped each other by the necks and pressed their foreheads together as cameras flashed.

One old man was wheeled in on a stretcher, his head propped on a pillow, a blue blanket wrapped tightly around him.

These meetings - the first in more than three years because of high tensions - are a vivid reminder that despite 60 years of animosity, misunderstanding, threats and occasional artillery exchanges, the world’s most heavily armed border divides a single people. The reunion came too late for 90-year-old Seo Jeong-suk, who died in South Korea just 15 days ago. Her daughter Kim Yong-ja, 68, sobbed as she handed her longlost sister a framed photograph of Seo. Kim Yong Sil clasped the photo to her heart and said, “It’s mom’s photo.”

For some other families, aging and illness did not thwart the reunions but made them bittersweet. “Sister, why can’t you hear me?” North Korean Ri Jong Sil, 84, asked 87-year-old Lee Young sil, who has difficulty recognizing people because of Alzheimer’s disease, according to South Korean media pool reports. Tears flowed down Ri’s deeply wrinkled face as Lee’s daughter began sobbing, telling her mother: “Mom, it’s my aunt. It’s my aunt. She’s your sister.”

The difference in the sisters’ family name is a product of the Korean Peninsula’s division: It’s basically the same family name but each country uses different spelling rules in both Korean and English. Ri Chol Ho, 77, from North Korea, used a piece of paper to communicate with his 81-yearold brother from South Korea, Lee Myeong-ho, who has a hearing problem. “Mother used to tell me that you would return home and buy me a pair of rubber shoes,” Ri wrote on the paper that he passed to his brother, according to the pool reports.

These Koreans are the lucky few. Millions have been separated from loved ones by the tumult and bloodshed of the three-year war that ended in 1953. During a previous period of interKorean rapprochement, about 22,000 Koreans had brief reunions - 18,000 in person and the

others by video. None got a second chance to reunite, Seoul says.

The reunions were arranged after impoverished North Korea began calling recently for better ties with South Korea, in what outside analysts say is an attempt to win badly needed foreign investment and aid. The North, however, sent mixed signals by threatening to scrap the reunions to protest annual military drills between Seoul and Washington set to start Monday.

Many in Seoul are also wary after last year’s springtime threats from Pyongyang of nuclear strikes against Seoul and Washington. North Korea in recent years has conducted nuclear and missile tests, and is blamed for attacks in 2010 that killed 50 South Koreans. Last week, North Korea decided to honor its earlier promise to allow the reunions after South Korea agreed to Pyongyang’s proposal that the rivals stop insulting each other. In South Korea, there are still worries that the reunions might be disrupted because of the impending military drills.

The reunions are broken into two parts.

Yesterday’s reunions end Saturday. A second group of about 360 South Koreans plans to visit the mountain resort Sunday to meet with 88 elderly North Koreans. Those reunions end Tuesday.

Both governments ban their citizens from visiting each other or even exchanging letters, phone calls and emails.

In Pyongyang, North Korea’s capital, many people had heard of the plan to hold the reunions on the television news or other state media. “I desperately hope for reunification. We are of the same blood and getting these families together will help national reunification,” said 63-year old Jang Hye Sun. The two Koreas have been in a near-constant standoff since an armistice ended the Korean War. It hasn’t been replaced with a peace treaty, leaving the peninsula still technically in a state of war. About 28,000 U.S. troops are stationed in South Korea to help deter aggression from North Korea.

In 2000, South Korea created a computerized lottery system for South Koreans hoping for reunions, and since then nearly 130,000 people, most in their 70s or older, have entered. Only about 70,000 are still alive. It’s not known how North Korea selects people who attend reunions.

South Korean media reported that the North usually chooses those loyal to its authoritarian government. According to pool reports, it was only through the application process that 93year-old Kang Neung-hwan even realized that he had left a son behind when he left North Korea during the war. Kang Jong Kuk, now 64, had been in his mother’s womb at the time, and his father had not been aware that she was pregnant. And when they finally met yesterday, the elder Kang could not resist a little gentle teasing.

“You look old,” he told his son. “Come give me a hug.” — AP

BANGKOK: Protesters campaigning to oust Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra turned to Facebook and other social media to attack businesses linked to her family yesterday and rallied outside the offices of a property developer whose share price tumbled. Yingluck’s government appears increasingly hemmed in by opponents and the judicial system, lacking the fiscal powers to fund key policies and warned by a court on Wednesday that it cannot use a state of emergency to disperse protesters.

Four protesters and a police officer were killed on Tuesday, in the deadliest clashes since the unrest began in November, when police attempted to reclaim sites near government buildings that have been occupied for weeks. The protesters are seeking to unseat Yingluck and stamp out what they see as the malign influence of her brother, Thaksin Shinawatra, a self-exiled former premier regarded by many as the real power behind the government. About 500 protesters gathered outside the Bangkok offices of SC Asset Corp, a property developer controlled by the Shinawatra family, waving Thai flags and blowing whistles.

“We will hamper all Shinawatra businesses,” protest leader Suthep Thaugsuban told supporters at a rally on Wednesday night. “If you love your country, stop using Shinawatra products and do everything you can so that their business fails.”

Yingluck was executive chairwoman of the company before being swept to power in a landslide election victory in 2011.

Shares in SC Asset fell 4.3 percent yetserday, following a similar fall the previous day. Shares in M-Link Asia Corp , a mobile handset distributor with links to the Shinawatras, have also lost almost 10 percent over the past two days. Anusorn Iamsaard, deputy spokesman for Yingluck’s Puea Thai Party, said the building the protesters targeted had nothing to do with her.

“The prime minister has no shares in SC Asset,” he said. “The thing that will worry her is the impact of the protest today, and the fact employees of the office tower had to leave, on the Thai economy overall. But the campaign against Shinawatra businesses will not weaken her resolve to see Thailand through this crisis.”

Other stocks affected include telecoms group Shin Corp , founded by Thaksin before he entered politics, and its mobile affiliate Advanced Info Service Pcl (AIS) . Shin Corp said it no longer has any connection with the Shinawatra family. “We should change our service provider and stop using AIS ... it’s easy to change SIM cards these days,”

said a post on the “No Thaksin” Facebook page.

“I ask the people to stop using the tyrant Thaksin’s products. Stop using AIS... so we can teach Thaksin a lesson ... and so he can know that hell really exists,” a user posted in response.

Yingluck has headed a caretaker government with limited spending powers since calling a snap election in December. Voting on Feb. 2 was disrupted by her opponents, and it could be months before a new government can be installed.

An anti-corruption agency this week filed charges against her over a soured rice subsidy scheme that has stoked middle-class anger and left hundreds of thousands of farmers, her natural backers, unpaid. More than 1,000 farmers, many riding in farm trucks, were travelling in convoy towards Bangkok from the rice-growing central plains and were due to reach the city overnight or on Friday. Chada Thaiseth, a former member of parliament, said he would lead farmers on Friday to Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport, blockaded for eight days by royalist, anti-Thaksin “yellow shirts” in 2008. “We are not sure where we will set up camp, but we will not leave the capital until we are paid for every grain of rice sold,” Chada told Reuters.

“Let them come” Yingluck’s “red shirt” supporters plan a rally in Nakhon Ratchasima, northeast of the capital, on Sunday, when they will decide what to do next.

“We are not saying that we want to come out and fight, but it seems that Suthep is challenging us red shirts to come out and face off,” spokesman Thanawut Wichaidit said.

“Let them come,” Suthep said in a midday speech to protesters in Bangkok. “Do they dare?”

The protests are the biggest since deadly political unrest in 2010, when Thaksin’s red shirt supporters paralysed Bangkok in an attempt to remove a government led by the Democrat Party, now the opposition. More than 90 people were killed and 2,000 wounded when Suthep, at the time a deputy prime minister, sent in troops. The protests are the latest installment of an eight-year political battle broadly pitting the Bangkok middle class and royalist establishment against the mostly rural supporters of Yingluck and Thaksin. Demonstrators accuse Thaksin of nepotism and corruption and say that, prior to being toppled by the army in a 2006 coup, he used taxpayers’ money for populist subsidies and easy loans that bought him the loyalty of millions in the country’s populous north and northeast.—Reuters

BANGKOK: An anti-government protester raises his clenched fist as he listens to a speech by anti-government protest leader Suthep Thaugsuban. — AP

17

International FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2014

Beauty queen the latest victim in Venezuela unrest Venezuelans rally in support of jailed leader

CHICAGO: A runner runs along the lake shore in Chicago. —AFP

Sunny weather offers new headache CHICAGO: Blue skies and temperatures above freezing had giddy Chicago residents basking in the rare sunshine after one of the cruelest winters in recent memory. But there were signs - melting snow, growing puddles - that Mother Nature was about to unleash a whole new miserable on the Midwest.

Flooding. Weeks of subfreezing weather are giving way, at least briefly, to temperatures in the 40s and 50s, putting many Midwestern cities on guard for flooding, roof collapses and clogged storm drains. Some areas expected a double whammy: warm, spring-like air combined with heavy rains that could compound the problem and turn the big melt into a muddy, damaging mess. A whole new layer of snow and sleet was forecast to accumulate early Thursday, particularly across Wisconsin, northern Illinois and parts of Indiana, before temperatures rise and change the precipitation to rain, according to the National Weather Service. The warmer temperatures may be accompanied by fog and strong winds that could reach 50 miles per hour.

Landscaping companies’ phones were ringing off the hook Wednesday with calls from homeowners seeking crews to scoop snow piles onto dump trucks and haul them away before basements or streets flooded. “They’re calling me to say, ‘With this rain coming, where is that water and the snow going to go when it melts?’” said Jodey Schmiedekamp of Countryside Industries in suburban Chicago.

Warnings were issued Wednesday that ice and deep snow could clog drainage systems. In Chicago, street crews were racing to clear catch basins of debris and asking residents to do the same. Officials in Will County, south of Chicago, prepared to siphon warm water from a nuclear power plant’s cooling pond into the Kankakee River in hopes of melting ice that can jam the channel and push floodwaters over the banks. At the same time, emergency management authorities warned people in low-lying areas to be ready to move to higher ground, even going door-to-door to ensure families were aware of the danger.

In Indiana, the weather service cautioned that melting snow piled as high as 18 inches wouldn’t be able to flow normally into rivers and streams because those channels are frozen. Between the snowmelt and the rain, some flooding would be unavoidable. “A lot of bad things could happen tomorrow,” Marc Dahmer, a weather service meteorologist in Indianapolis, said Wednesday.

Parts of Michigan have gotten so much snow that authorities fret about more roof collapses like the one that injured two women Wednesday in the Grand Rapids area, which has received 101 inches of snow this season. Other collapses have been reported around the state since January. If rain adds weight to the snowpack, it “can exacerbate the situation that’s there,” said John Maples, a weather service meteorologist in Grand Rapids.—AP

CARACAS: A local beauty queen died of a gunshot wound on Wednesday in the fifth fatality from Venezuela’s political unrest, as imprisoned protest leader Leopoldo Lopez urged supporters to keep fighting for the departure of the socialist government. Tensions have risen in Venezuela since Lopez, a 42-year-old Harvard-educated economist, turned himself in to troops on Tuesday after spearheading three weeks of often rowdy protests against President Nicolas Maduro’s government.

The latest included college student and model Genesis Carmona, 22, who was shot in the head at a protest on Tuesday in the central city of Valencia. She died later in a clinic. “How long are we going to live like this? How long do we have to tolerate this pressure, with them killing us?” a relative, who asked not to be named, told Reuters.

“She only needed one more semester to graduate,” he added of Carmona, who had been studying tourism and had won the 2013 Miss Tourism competition in her state.

Three people were shot dead in Caracas after an opposition rally a week ago, and a fourth person died after being run over by a car during a demonstration in the coastal town of Carupano. There have been scores of arrests and injuries.

State TV channel VTV said the mother of one its employees died while being rushed to hospital in Caracas. VTV said she suffered a heart attack while the ambulance carrying her was stuck in gridlock due to opposition supporters blocking roads.

‘Let’s fight’ Lopez has urged his supporters to keep fighting for the departure of Maduro’s socialist administration. “Today more than ever, our cause has to be the exit of this government,” he said, sitting by his wife in a pre-recorded video that was to be released in the event he was jailed.

“The exit from this disaster, the exit of this group of people who have kidnapped the future of Venezuelans is in your hands.

Let’s fight. I will be doing so.” There was sporadic trouble across Venezuela again on Wednesday. Rival groups scuffled outside the Caracas court where Lopez was due, while student demonstrators also blocked a highway in the capital, burning trash. In western Tachira state, security forces and protesters fought in the streets for about two hours, with two students injured, various vehicles damaged or destroyed, and local monuments charred, witnesses said.

In southern Puerto Ordaz city, pro- and anti-government marchers fought in the street, witnesses said, with police firing teargas to quell the trouble. Three government supporters were injured in the melee when shots were fired, and both sides faced off with sticks and stones, the witnesses said.

The demonstrators are calling for Maduro’s resignation over issues ranging from inflation and violent crime to corruption and product shortages. Maduro, who was narrowly elected last year to replace Hugo Chavez after his death from cancer, says Lopez and others in league with the US government are seeking a coup.

Street protests were the backdrop to a

VALENCIA: A motorcyclist carries Venezuelan model Genesis Carmona, injured during an anti-government protest. —AFP short-lived ouster of Chavez for 36 hours in 2002, before military loyalists and supporters helped bring him back. Though tens of thousands joined Lopez on the streets when he turned himself in on Tuesday, the protests have so far been much smaller than the wave of demonstrations a decade ago. Neither is there any evidence that the military, which was the decisive factor in the 2002 overthrow, may turn on Maduro now.

‘Free Leopoldo!’

Lopez was being held on Wednesday at the Ramo Verde jail in Caracas, and was due at a first court hearing. Hundreds of his supporters waved banners saying “Free Leopoldo!” in the city center on Wednesday as a line of soldiers stood in front with riot shields. “We’re prepared to give our lives,” said pensioner Juan Marquez, 68.

Police held back a rival demonstration

by several hundred ‘Chavistas’, some of them striking the protesters and chanting “Leopoldo, off to Tocoron” in a reference to a notoriously overcrowded provincial jail. In an intriguing twist to the drama, Maduro said his powerful Congress head Diosdado Cabello, seen by many Venezuelans as a potential rival to the president, personally negotiated Lopez’s surrender via his parents. Cabello even helped drive him to custody in his own car given the risks to Lopez’s life from extremists, Maduro said. With local TV providing minimal live coverage of the street unrest, Twitter, Instagram and Facebook have become the go-to media for many Venezuelans desperate for information.

However, many social media users are indiscriminately tweeting images without confirming their origin, leading to manipulation and gaffes including footage of unrest in Egypt and Chile being passed off as repression in Venezuela.— Reuters

Investigators eye pilot fatigue in UPS jet crash WASHINGTON: Pilot fatigue is among several issues being eyed by accident investigators as possible factors in the fatal predawn crash of a UPS cargo jet in Alabama last August. The National Transportation Safety Board scheduled a hearing for Thursday on the accident, which killed both pilots. The safety board has long expressed concern about operator fatigue, saying the problem shows up repeatedly in accidents across all modes of transportation - planes, trains, cars, trucks and ships. Fatigue can erode judgment, slow response times and lead to errors much as alcohol can.

Two years ago, the Federal Aviation Administration issued new rules aimed at ensuring airline pilots have sufficient rest. FAA officials proposed including cargo airlines in draft regulations, but exempted them when final regulations were released, citing cost. Cargo carriers, who do

much of their flying at night, strongly opposed the regulations. FAA officials estimated the regulations would cost $550 million over 12 years if applied to cargo airlines; the Independent Pilots Association, which represents UPS pilots, estimated the cost at $320 million.

The work shift of the UPS pilots killed in the crash began about 9 p.m. the previous day in Rockford, Ill., and took them to Peoria and then to Louisville, Ky. They were finishing their last scheduled leg when the plane slammed into a hillside just before 5 am during a landing attempt in Birmingham. Night shift workers frequently suffer fatigue, especially between the hours of 2 am and 6 am when the human body’s circadian rhythms - physical and behavioral changes that respond to light and darkness - are telling the brain to sleep, according to sleep experts.—AP

18

International FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2014

Roadside survey of impaired driving causes outcry B Orange cones and flashing police lights confronted Ricardo Nieves as he rounded a bend on the way to his mother’s house. Before he knew what was going on, Nieves said, a man working for a government contractor stepped in front of his car and forced him to turn into a parking lot.

There, a woman repeatedly tried to question him about his driving habits and asked for a mouth swab that would detect the presence of illegal or prescription drugs in his system. Nieves refused. Then he sued, contending his rights were violated. His Dec 13 experience has been repeated thousands of times in cities around the country as the federal government tries to figure out how many of the nation’s motorists are driving while drunk or high. US transportation officials call the National Roadside Survey of Alcohol and Drugged Driving, which has been conducted five times since 1973, a vital tool for monitoring the safety of America’s roadways. But some motorists and civil liberties advocates contend the government’s methods are intrusive and even unconstitutional. Some police departments have refused to partner on the survey or regretted their decision to do so in the wake of public outcry, while in Tennessee, legislation that would ban law enforcement from helping out on the survey unanimously cleared the state Senate last month.

In the southeastern Pennsylvania city of Reading, Nieves is angered over what he views as an abuse of power. “I didn’t even have a choice to make a decision” to stop for the survey or keep going, he said. “That choice was taken away the moment he stepped into my right of way.”

Conducted in 60 cities around the nation, the survey yields the government’s best estimate of the prevalence of impaired driving. It works like this: Motorists are randomly selected - either by a uniformed police officer or a private contractor working for the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration - and waved into a parking lot, where they are questioned about their drinking and driving habits, asked to take a breath test, and offered money if they provide saliva and blood samples or agree to answer a more extensive written survey.

Federal officials stress the survey is both voluntary - a large sign at each survey site says so and anonymous, with local police enlisted to provide security and divert selected motorists from the flow of traffic. Any driver found to be impaired is offered a ride home or put up in a hotel. The survey’s supporters include Mothers Against Drunk Driving and the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, a group funded by auto insurers whose president, Adrian Lund, said it lets researchers and policymakers monitor how national alcohol policies are working. Though the rate of drunken driving has plummeted over the past 40 years, impaired motorists kill thousands a year. Highway deaths involving drunken drivers rose 4.6 percent in 2012 to 10,322, according to federal statistics.

Methodology “This is a very minimal intrusion on privacy,” Lund said.

“If you know that by participating in this survey, (it) means that we may develop policies that make it less likely you’re killed by an alcohol-impaired driver, I think that’s well worth the price.”But the government’s own documents acknowledge concerns about the National Roadside Survey at least as far back as 2007. The tactics used by the Maryland-based contractor, the Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation, are “not routine by any means,” according to a survey methodology that describes how some police departments had balked at participating in the 2007 version of the survey because they believed they were barred by law.

And while federal officials contend the survey is voluntary, that’s not entirely the case. Survey takers use a device, called a passive alcohol sensor, to collect a breath sample before the motorist’s “consent or refusal of the survey,” according to the methodology. That lets researchers maximize the amount of data they collect while helping them get impaired drivers off the road, the document said. Later on, motorists are asked to blow into another device that measures blood-alcohol content more precisely. Kim Cope said there was nothing voluntary about her experience with the survey last November.—AP

Government cancels plan to collect license plate data NSA collecting data of millions of Americans WASHINGTON: The Homeland Security Department abruptly reversed course Wednesday and dropped plans to allow a private company to give the government access to a nationwide database of license plate tracking information.

Secretary Jeh Johnson directed that a contract proposal issued last week be canceled. The proposal said Immigration and Customs Enforcement was planning to use the license plate data in pursuit of criminal immigrants and others sought by authorities.

Gillian Christensen, an ICE spokeswoman, said the contract solicitation was posted “without the awareness of ICE leadership.” “While we continue to support a range of technologies to help meet our law enforcement mission, this solicitation will be reviewed to ensure the path forward appropriately meets our operational needs,” Christensen said. The department said Johnson has ordered a review of the proposal.

The contract notice came amid growing concerns about government surveillance of US citizens but didn’t address potential privacy consequences. Before the notice was canceled, Christensen said the database “could only be accessed in conjunction with ongoing criminal investigations or to locate wanted individuals.” Law enforcement has been using license plate readers for several years, but privacy advocates have raised concerns that the unchecked collection of such information could allow for the tracking of an

average citizen’s every movement.

Lawmakers around the country, meanwhile, have been wrestling with whether or how to control the collection and use of license plate data.

At least 14 states are considering measures that would curb surveillance efforts, including the use of license plate readers. License plate readers - essentially cameras that snap rapid-fire pictures of license plates and vehicles as they pass - are in use in a host of locations, by private companies and law enforcement. But it’s not just the license plate number that gets recorded. The readers - whether they are mounted to police cars, traffic lights or toll booths record the date, time and location of the vehicle when the picture was taken.

According to the contract proposal, the government wanted “a close-up of the plate and a zoomed out image of the vehicle.” The Homeland Security Department also wanted instant and around-the-clock access to the records and is asking for whoever wins the contract to make the information available through a smartphone app. It is not clear from the contract notice how long individual records would be kept or what other government agencies may have access to the trove of records.

Jennifer Lynch, a senior staff attorney with the San Francisco-based civil liberties group Electronic Frontier Foundation, said those unknowns represented serious privacy concerns. “The base level concern is that license plate

data is location data, and location data is very revealing,” Lynch said. “It can tell you a lot about a person’s life: where they go, who they associate with, what kind of religion they practice, what doctors they visit.”

In 2012, the American Civil Liberties Union criticized the collection of license plate scanner data and warned that millions of records were being collected with little or no safeguards for people’s privacy. Catherine Crump, an ACLU lawyer, said Wednesday she was pleased to hear that the department has canceled the contract proposal but still worried about that it might be brought back to life at some point. “While we are heartened that it looks as though the plan is off the table for now; it is still unexplained why the proposal was put forward and why it has been withdrawn,” Crump said.

The government’s contract proposal was published amid revelations of surveillance programs run by the National Security Agency. Privacy advocates have argued that NSA phone data collection programs and other surveillance programs are gobbling up massive amounts of information about US citizens who have no ties to criminals or terrorists, which the government has said the programs are designed to target. Classified NSA documents, leaked to news organizations, showed the NSA was collecting telephone records, emails and video chats of millions of Americans who were not suspected of a crime. —AP

US warns airlines about shoe bombs WASHINGTON: The US Department of Homeland Security has warned airlines that terrorists could try to hide explosives in shoes. It’s the second time in less than three weeks that the government has issued a warning about possible attempts to smuggle explosives on a commercial jetliner.

Homeland Security said Wednesday it regularly shares relevant information with domestic and international partners, but it declined to discuss specifics of a warning sent to airlines.

“Our security apparatus includes a number of measures, both seen and unseen, informed by the latest intelligence and as always DHS continues to adjust security measures to fit an ever evolving threat environment,” the department said in a statement. A U.S. intelligence official told The Associated Press that DHS released a notice to airlines reiterating that liquids, shoes and certain cosmetics were of concern, all of which are covered under existing Transportation Security Administration security policies.

The latest warning was focused on flights headed to the United States from abroad. The official said “something caused DHS concern, but it’s a very low threshold to trigger a warning like this.” The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the issue publicly. Earlier this month, Homeland Security warned airlines with flights to Russia to be on the lookout for explosive devices possibly hidden inside toothpaste.

The Transportation Security Administration

WASHINGTON: In this file photo, an airline passenger pulls off his shoes to be scanned as he prepares to go through a security checkpoint at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. —AP then banned passengers from bringing any liquids in their carry-on luggage on nonstop flights from the US to Russia. That warning became public just days before the opening ceremonies of the Winter Olympics in Sochi.

It is unclear if the latest warning, first reported Wednesday by NBC News, is related to the earlier threats to Russia-bound flights. Air passengers in the United States have had to take off their shoes at airport security checkpoints since shortly after Richard Reid tried to ignite explosives hidden in his shoes on a Miami-bound flight in

late 2001. Reid pleaded guilty to terrorism charges and is serving a life sentence.

The traveling public has grown increasingly impatient with expanding security checks at airports. TSA in recent years has changed some security procedures to allow young children and passengers 75 and older to keep their shoes on. The security agency has also launched a fee-based program that allows willing flyers to submit to background checks and avoid having to remove their shoes, jackets and small amounts of liquids packed in carry-on luggage. —AP

Business FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2014

IMF, Britain warn emerging economies ahead of G20

Diamonds, deals as Danone struggles for China bounce

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MENLO PARK: Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg speaks during a media event at Facebook’s headquarters office yesterday. — AFP

Facebook buys WhatsApp for $19bn WhatsApp deal shows Facebook push to stay on top NEW YORK: Facebook is buying mobile messaging service WhatsApp for $19 billion in cash and stock, by far the company’s largest acquisition and bigger than any that Google, Microsoft or Apple have ever done. The world’s biggest social networking company said Wednesday that it is paying $12 billion in Facebook stock and $4 billion in cash for WhatsApp. In addition, the app’s founders and employees 55 in all - will be granted restricted stock worth $3 billion that will vest over four years after the deal closes.

The deal translates to roughly 11 percent of Facebook’s market value. In comparison, Google’s biggest deal was its $12.5 billion purchase of Motorola Mobility, while Microsoft’s largest was Skype at $8.5 billion. Apple, meanwhile, has never done a deal above $1 billion.

The deal’s price tag stunned Gartner analyst Brian Blau. “I am not surprised they went after WhatsApp, but the amount is staggering,” he said.

Facebook likely prizes WhatsApp for its audience of teenagers and young adults who are increasingly using the service to engage in online conversations outside of Facebook, which has evolved into a more mainstream hangout inhabited by their parents, grandparents and even their bosses at work.

Facebook’s new acquisition also has a broad global

audience. Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said the service “doesn’t get as much attention in the US as it deserves because its community started off growing in Europe, India and Latin America. But WhatsApp is a very important and valuable worldwide communication network. In fact, WhatsApp is the only widely used app we’ve ever seen that has more engagement and a higher percent of people using it daily than Facebook itself.”

WhatsApp, a messaging service for smartphones, lets users chat with their phone contacts, both oneon-one and in groups. The service allows people to send texts, photos, videos and voice recordings over the Internet. It also lets users communicate with people overseas without incurring charges for pricey international texts and phone calls. It’s free to use for the first year and costs $1 per year after that. It has no ads.

Blau said Facebook’s purchase is a bet on the future. “They know they have to expand their business lines. WhatsApp is in the business of collecting people’s conversations, so Facebook is going to get some great data,” he noted. In that regard, the acquisition makes sense for 10-year-old Facebook as it looks to attract its next billion users while keeping its existing 1.23 billion members, including

teenagers, interested. The company is developing a “multi-app” strategy, creating its own applications that exist outside of Facebook and acquiring others.

It released a news reader app called Paper earlier this month, and has its own messaging app called Facebook Messenger.

“Facebook seems to be in acknowledgement that people are using a lot of different apps to communicate,” said eMarketer analyst Debra Aho Williamson. “In order to continue to reach audiences, younger in particular, it needs to have a broader strategy...not put all its eggs in one basket.”

Facebook said it is keeping WhatsApp as a separate service, just as it did with Instagram, which it bought for about $715.3 million nearly two years ago.

WhatsApp has more than 450 million monthly active users. In comparison, Twitter had 241 million users at the end of 2013. At $19 billion, Facebook is paying $42 per WhatsApp user in the deal. The transaction is likely to raise worries that Facebook and other technology companies are becoming overzealous in their pursuit of promising products and services, said Anthony Michael Sabino, a St John’s University business professor.

“This could be seen as a microcosm of a bubble,” Sabino said. “I expect there to be a lot of skepticism

about this deal. People are going to look at this and say, ‘Uh, oh, did they pay way too much for this?” For Facebook, WhatsApp’s huge user base, fast growth pace and popularity is worth the money. The app is currently adding a million new users a day. At this rate, said Zuckerberg, WhatsApp is on path to reach a billion users. He called services that reach this milestone “incredibly valuable.” It’s an elite group to be sure - one that includes Google (which owns YouTube), Facebook itself and little else.

“We want to provide the best tools to share with different sized groups and in different contexts and to develop more mobile experiences beyond just the main Facebook app, like Instagram and Messenger,” Zuckerberg said in a conference call. “This is where we see a lot of new growth as well as a great opportunity to better serve our whole community.”

Forrester analyst Nate Elliot said in an emailed note that “it’ll be tempting to read this as a sign Facebook is scared of losing teens... And yes, the company does have to work hard to keep young users engaged. But the reality is Facebook always works hard to keep all its users engaged, no matter their age. Facebook is tireless in its efforts to keep users coming back.” —AP

20

Business FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2014

China manufacturing index hits 7-mth low BEIJING: A key index of Chinese manufacturing fell further in February to hit its lowest level in seven months, HSBC said yesterday, in a sign of diminishing strength in the world’s second-largest economy. The British banking giant’s preliminary reading for its purchasing managers’ index (PMI) for China, which tracks manufacturing activity in factories and workshops, fell to 48.3 this month. That marked a further tumble from the final reading of 49.5 in January, when the figure showed contraction for the first time in six months.

The index is a closely-watched gauge of the health of the Asian economic powerhouse. A reading above 50 indicates growth, while anything below signals contraction. Qu Hongbin, HSBC economist in Hong Kong, blamed February’s worsening figure on decreasing new orders and production at Chinese factories, and called on the government to adjust policy to support growth.

“The building-up of disinflationary pressures implies that the underlying momentum for manufacturing growth could be weakening,” he said in a statement accompanying the data.

“We believe Beijing policy makers should and can fine-tune policy to keep growth at a steady pace in the coming year.”

China’s inflation rate remained subdued at 2.5 percent yearon-year in January, official data showed, arousing economists’ concerns that the figure suggested weak domestic demand and murky growth prospects.

Liquidity crunches But Julian Evans-Pritchard, an analyst with research firm Capital Economics, argued that broader indicators showed the labor market remained healthy and that the weakness in manufacturing was an acceptable result for Beijing. “Looking ahead, there are no signs of a shift towards loosening policy,” he wrote in a research note. Compared with the past, when authorities were quick to throw cash to stimulate a slowing economy, they have recently been taking a largely tight-fisted approach.

Two liquidity crunches last year occurred in part because of official eagerness to impose tighter discipline over banks amid burgeoning debt levels. Meanwhile, growth in fixed asset investment, a measure of government spending on infrastructure, has been slowing steadily since August.

Some analysts expressed caution over this month’s preliminary survey, as data was collected from February 12-18 and many Chinese companies did not reopen until the middle of this month after the lengthy Lunar New Year holiday. China posted economic growth of 7.7 percent in 2013, the same as 2012 — which was the worst rate of growth since 1999 — although it exceeded the government’s target of 7.5 percent for the year.

Analysts are expecting economic expansion to slow to 7.5 percent this year, as Chinese leaders have vowed to change the country’s growth model so that consumers and other private actors play the leading role, rather than huge and often wasteful state investment. Both exports and imports recorded robust jumps last month, despite the Spring Festival holiday season. But analysts skeptical of the data, feared that the unusually strong performance might be a repetition of what happened around the middle of last year, when traders faked reporting to channel money into the country to capitalize on the strengthening of the yuan. HSBC is scheduled to publish its final PMI reading for February on March 3. — AFP

SYDNEY: IMF chief Christine Lagarde (left) listens to a question during a public question and answer session program for ABC television yesterday. —AFP

IMF, Britain warn emerging economies ahead of G20 German finance chief says Europe not over-represented SYDNEY: IMF chief Christine Lagarde and British finance minister George Osborne yesterday demanded emerging economies get their own houses in order, after some attacked US monetary policy in the run-up to G20 talks this weekend. While Lagarde also cautioned the US Federal Reserve to be “mindful” of the impact of its stimulus exit on major developing players, Osborne urged emerging markets to refrain from “finger-pointing and distractions” at the Sydney meeting of G20 finance ministers and central bankers. Countries including Argentina, India, Russia, South Africa and Turkey have suffered sharp losses to their currencies as a by-product of the Fed’s “taper” the ending of a mammoth stimulus program that is seeing capital flows switch abruptly away from the developing world.

Lagarde said “just a hint of tapering” in May last year had sent ripples through the markets and the International Monetary Fund had asked “the US authorities, particularly the Fed, be mindful of what’s happening elsewhere when you do what you have announced”. “Don’t go too fast and explain what you are doing,” the IMF chief said in a public question-and-

answer session recorded for ABC television in Sydney, describing the issue as “high on the agenda” this weekend.

But she said a “mind the shop at home” message also applied to the developing economies. “In other words, emerging market economies, you need to look after your various equilibriums.

“You need to look at your fiscal policy, you need to look at your monetary policy, you need to have the house in order to resist the volatility that can be induced from the tapering of the US Fed, in particular, at the moment.”

Lagarde’s remarks were echoed by Britain’s finance minister, who said it was “neither accurate nor useful” to blame Western monetary policy for shaky currencies or high deficits in emerging markets. “The underlying causes are domestic fragility in those countries, often built up over a long period of time-and that is why some emerging markets have been much more affected than others,” Osborne, who heads to Sydney today, said in a speech to business leaders in Hong Kong. “We all need to get our houses in order.”

Osborne backed the agenda laid out by the G20’s Australian presidency for

what he called “comprehensive and ambitious national reform agendas” to address fiscal policy, financial regulation and structural blockages.

IMF ‘needs to be flexible’ That program is backed by the IMF, but Lagarde said G20 central banks should also signal their intentions clearly given the world’s economic interdependence. “There has to be enough cooperation between central bankers so that they are mindful of what the consequences will be, not just at home where they do the tapering, but elsewhere in the world where we have seen some volatility,” she said. Lagarde supported Australia’s call for bolder growth targets than the 3.7 percent expected globally this year, saying “there is a potential for doing better and for doing more if only countries were to take some action.”

Asked whether the IMF stood ready to assist in the event of a major emerging economies crisis linked to the US Fed’s wind back, she said: “We would have the instruments. “And to the extent that more is needed, different approaches are needed, we have to be flexible. We have to adjust, we have to respond to the membership(‘s) needs,” she said. —AFP

Japan logs record $27bn trade deficit TOKYO: Japan’s trade deficit swelled in January to another monthly record, data showed yesterday, as oncebumper surpluses disappear under the weight of soaring post-Fukushima energy bills, an imbalance driven by premier Shinzo Abe’s cheap-yen policies. The 2.79 trillion yen ($27.3 billion) shortfall also underscored a boost in purchases of foreign goods ahead of an April sales tax rise, analysts said, as fears grow that the hike will derail a recovery in the world’s third-largest economy.

Japan’s yawning deficit marked the latest worrying news after its sizzling GDP growth in the first half of last year slowed to a crawl in the fourth-quarter, and as it posted a record trade deficit through 2013. The yen has lost about a fifth of its value against the dollar since late 2012,

owing to a policy blitz dubbed Abenomics, which meshes government spending with massive central bank monetary easing-a plan aimed at reviving the long-lumbering economy.

While the weaker currency boosts Japanese exporters’ profitability, it also makes goods purchased from overseas more expensive. The growing imbalance was stoked by a 25 percent jump in January imports to a record 8.04 trillion yen on pricey bills for oil and gas purchases, after Japan shuttered its nuclear reactors in the wake of the worst atomic crisis in a generation at Fukushima in 2011.

But the monthly volume of energy imports has been slowing, with January’s rise also driven by stronger spending ahead of the tax rise, which is seen as crucial to bring-

ing down Japan’s eye-watering national debt, said London-based Capital Economics. “The most recent increase in imports can largely be attributed to strong domestic demand ahead of the upcoming sales tax hike, and a narrowing in the shortfall seems likely after April,” it added.

Despite upbeat exports to key markets in the US, China and Europe, Japan’s January deficit ballooned by 70.8 percent from a year earlier and was equal to about one-quarter the country’s trade deficit through all of 2013. Exports rose 9.5 percent to 5.25 trillion yen, partly driven by a jump in shipments of vehicles, but the value of shipments overseas lagged the sharp drop in the yen, Nomura Securities said.—AFP

Business FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2014

UK’s Osborne promises budget of ‘hard truths’ Britain enjoys highest growth rate in 6 years

NORTH ANDOVER: In this photo, price tags hang on merchandise at TJ Maxx in North Andover, Mass. — AP

ATMs raise Bitcoin profile, concerns WASHINGTON: Even if you aren’t sure what a Bitcoin is, you may soon find them at a nearby machine. The first Bitcoin ATMs are cropping up in North America, enabling consumers to swap cash for units of the crypto-currency, or cash in their Bitcoins. ATMs are coming in Europe and Asia as well. The machines could allow Bitcoins, generated by a complex computer algorithm designed in 2009, to move out of the realm of geeks to the broader public.

The US startup Robocoin, after unveiling its first ATM in Vancouver last year, announced plans to begin operating a machine in Austin, Texas, on Thursday. It also plans to open one in Seattle, in Washington state, ahead of a wider global launch.

“We have completely removed the barriers for people to buy and sell Bitcoins,” Robocoin chief executive Jordan Kelley told AFP. “You no longer have to wait days, you don’t have to provide your bank account.” Kelley said Robocoin provides the only “bidirectional” Bitcoin ATMs, meaning that consumers can either buy or sell the digital currency. Robocoin provides the hardware, made in the United States, to local operators, who must get certification from state and federal authorities and comply with antimoney laundering rules.

Operators around the world will also need certification in the countries where they operate, Kelley said. “We were built to be fully compliant (with finance regulations) globally,” he said. Kelley declined to provide the number of orders for the ATMs, saying only, “We have a lot.” He said the company is awaiting certification for its shipments to locations in Europe and Asia.

‘Incredible idea’ The Robocoin ATMs perform a biometric scan of each user’s palm, as well as take a facial photo, which is matched to the user’s government-issued identity card. The system also runs a check to determine if the user is a wanted criminal or terror suspect. “We provide a profile of the customer that gives our operators full visibility and trackability,” Kelley said.

The first operational ATM in the United States started up Tuesday in a New Mexico cigar shop, according to manufacturer Lamassu Bitcoin Ventures. Lamassu has some 200 orders around the world, and has opened Bitcoin ATMs in two Australian cities as well as one each in Helsinki, Berlin, Bratislava and Vancouver.

The New Mexico operator Enchanted Bitcoins is “paving the way for mainstream Bitcoin accessibility in the United States,” says Zach Harvey, CEO of Lamassu, a company registered in the British Virgin Islands. The operator is following guidelines from FinCEN, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, to avoid running afoul of the law, and has registered as a money exchange service.

Despite the growing popularity of Bitcoins, the digital currency has been linked to crime and drugs in exchanges such as the dark Web bazaar Silk Road. And many economists warn that the currency has no hard value.

Bitcoins have been exceptionally volatile, rising to more than $1,200 last year, before falling to around $600 in recent weeks.

And some Bitcoin exchanges have been shut down by regulators.

Last month, US authorities filed criminal charges against two operators of a Bitcoin exchange, including the head of a company with high-profile investment backers.

Some analysts see advantages in the move to Bitcoin-it has little or no transaction costs, is quickly and easily transmitted and has verifiable and traceable transactions based on its software.

“The deeper I dive, the more impressed I am with this as a technology solution, as an incredible idea for finance, as a stored value for payments,” said Staci Warden, executive director of the Center for Financial Markets at the Milken Institute. —AFP

LONDON: British finance minister George Osborne promised yesterday to deal with “hard truths” about Britain’s unbalanced economic recovery in his annual budget next month, emphasizing a need for more manufacturing exports.

Speaking in Hong Kong en route to a G20 finance ministers’ meeting in Australia, Osborne’s speech is likely to be one of his last before he delivers his budget statement on March 19. The budget will be his final chance to meaningfully alter fiscal policy before a May 2015 election.

Despite Britain enjoying its highest growth rate in six years, Osborne stressed a need to keep pursuing an austerity agenda in order to reduce the country’s budget deficit and bring the national debt down to levels he views as sustainable. “This is not a budget where we can rest on our laurels and say ‘job done’,” Osborne will say, according to speech extracts released by his office. “It is a budget where we must confront our problems and deal with some hard

truths.” Osborne has to date been cautious not to be seen cashing in on the political capital generated by a surprisingly strong economic rebound for fear of stoking expectations that the government can afford to ease up on spending cuts. Any expectations of a let-up in austerity could benefit the opposition centre-left Labor party, leading in opinion polls, which has set itself looser targets for fiscal consolidation.

Osborne will say that chief among Britain’s problems is that the recovery from a prolonged period of recession and stagnation is not yet secured, and that the economy has too much emphasis on consumer spending. “We cannot rely on consumers alone for our economic growth, as we did in previous decades,” he will say. “And we cannot put all our chips on the success of the City of London, as my predecessors did.

Britain is not investing enough. Britain is not exporting enough.”

His words echoed those of Bank of England governor Mark Carney who last

week said that as yet the recovery was neither balanced nor sustainable. Carney also said that weak overseas demand was likely to make boosting exports a tough challenge. Osborne did not give further details of any measures to encourage exports that would appear in his budget.

The focus on a resurgence of British manufacturing is a familiar refrain for Osborne. He made similar calls in his 2011 budget which he said would help make Britain the most attractive destination in Europe for business and investment.

However, a combination of the crisis in the euro zone and the government’s austerity push have left Britain still largely reliant on consumer spending. A sharp fall in sterling over the past few years has proved of little help to exporters. Major multinational firms have also cited the risk that Britain could leave the European Union, under Prime Minister David Cameron’s plans for a referendum in 2017, as causing uncertainty that deterred inward investment. — Reuters

Nigeria suspends central bank chief ABUJA: Nigeria suspended the central bank governor yesterday for alleged financial recklessness after he accused the state oil company of misappropriating $20 billion (14.5 billion euros) of public funds. Lamido Sanusi, whose term was due to expire in June, became embroiled in controversy after he charged the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) with gross mismanagement and corruption. A statement from President Goodluck Jonathan’s office said probes into Sanusi’s performance revealed that his “tenure has been characterized by various acts of financial recklessness and misconduct”.

It announced his “immediate suspension” as the central bank boss. He is to be replaced by the bank’s most senior deputy governor, Sarah Alade. Sanusi has alleged that Nigeria lost out on $20 billion between January 2012 and July 2013 partly related to suspicious kerosene subsidy payments by the NNPC. NNPC, long regarded as being riddled with corruption, was branded this week on the cover of the prominent News magazine as “Nigeria’s Sleaze Machine.”

The company has hit back at Sanusi, saying he does not under the technicalities of the oil industry. Financial analysts, both within Nigeria and abroad, have applauded Sanusi’s tenure in Africa’s most populous country, top oil producer and second largest economy. He was credited with overhauling a crumbling and deeply corrupt banking sector which teetered on the brink of collapse following the outbreak of the global financial crisis in 2008.

He also earned praise for bold moves to protect the Nigerian naira, although the currency has fallen against the dollar in recent weeks. Sanusi opened himself to criticism over the NNPC affair after he first alleged last year that oil-related revenues of $50 billion had not been paid into government coffers, which amounts to nearly double Nigeria’s annual budget.

Political pressure In the face of enormous political pressure, Sanusi backtracked and said some of the missing money had been accounted for and that further investigations were needed. He then revised the missing money figure down to $12 billion.

But earlier this month, he insisted the figure was $20 billion. A Financial Times report, citing Sanusi’s private documentation, alleged that the NNPC was continuing to pay subsidies to kerosene vendors even though Nigerians still pay full market price for the product.

Late president Umaru Musa Yar’Adua is believed to have scrapped the kerosene subsidy in 2009, meaning the NNPC

subsidy payments may be illegal while offering no benefits to consumers. The NNPC has countered that the kerosene subsidy removal was never approved by lawmakers so the company must continue to make the payments. It blamed unethical kerosene sellers for the fact that consumers continue to pay full price.

Kayode Awotile of Lakeworth Investment and Securities, who criticized yesterday move, said Sanusi has left Nigeria’s “financial sector better than he met it”. “I do not think any reasonable government would want to penalise him” for

PARIS: Nigeria’s Central Bank Governor Lamido Sanusi attends a session at the 10th International Economic Forum on Africa held at the French Economy ministry. — AFP demanding answers from Nigeria’s widely criticized state oil company. Nigeria has been attracting huge interest from foreign investors as an emerging economy that may offer strong returns in the coming years. In a February 19 report, Londonbased Capital Economics said Nigeria’s monetary discipline under Sanusi had positioned the country to outperform the rest of Africa over the next decade. It was not immediately clear if the turmoil surrounding Sanusi’s last months on the job would tarnish this positive outlook, but Awotile said the priority for successor should be to “sustain his reformist nature.” — AFP

22

Business FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2014

Diamonds, deals as Danone struggles for China bounce French dairy firm seeks to shake off 2013 troubles

HERZOGENAURACH: Former Norwegian football player Bjoern Gulden, CEO of German sportswear giant Puma, poses with a mock football shoe ahead of his company’s annual press conference yesterday. —AFP

Puma hopes top deals will stop sales slump in 2014 HERZOGENAURACH: German sportswear company Puma SE is banking on high-profile signings to underline its sporting credentials and stop sales falling this year, after revenue tumbled more than expected in the last three months of 2013. Puma ranks a distant third in the sports apparel industry by sales behind Nike Inc and Adidas AG and new CEO Bjoern Gulden is trying to return the company to its sporting roots under a turnaround plan that breaks with former chief Jochen Zeitz’s focus on sports-inspired fashion.

Gulden, a Norwegian former professional soccer player who took the helm last July, said the signing of deals with English soccer club Arsenal, Italian footballer Mario Balotelli and the extension of its sponsorship of Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt showed Puma was a “true sports brand.” However Puma shares were down 3.4 percent at 201.00 euros by 1035 GMT, having fallen to a near 2-1/2 year low of 199.2 euros, after the group said it expects flat net sales in 2014, with a rise in the second half to compensate for a first-half fall.

Puma, which last month ousted Nike as kit supplier to Arsenal from next season, is due later this year to launch a brand campaign dubbed “Forever Faster”. Gulden said another deal with a big soccer club could come although there was nothing imminent. English premiership champions Manchester United Plc are talking to several firms about a new kit supply deal to replace one with Nike that expires next year. Puma, 84 percent owned by French luxury group Kering SA , said sales fell 13.2 percent to 698.3 million euros ($960 million) in the last quarter, missing an average forecast of 718 million as footwear sales shrank 21 percent. Kering shares slipped 0.5 percent.

“Not No. 1” Gulden started his presentation of Puma’s annual results by showing the latest medals table from the Winter Olympics - with his home country Norway topping the list. “Puma numbers were not number one,” he lamented. “Obviously these numbers are not our end game and we are not happy with that... 2014 marks the start of the turnaround.”

The soccer World Cup and the Winter Olympics in Sochi should help sportswear sales to grow between 3.5 percent and 4 percent this year, the World Federation of the Sporting Goods Industry (WFSGI) predicted last month. Puma noted that a quarter of all teams at the World Cup would be wearing its kit, including Italy, Switzerland and four teams from Africa, seen as a big future growth market.

Unlike many other brands, which launched their World Cup replica kits before Christmas, Puma shirts go on sale next month.

Gulden said his top priority is to fix the group’s footwear sales, which account for almost half of sales and which fell a currencyadjusted 8.6 percent in 2013, compared with a dip of 1.2 percent for apparel and growth of 9.7 percent for accessories.

He highlighted the social media popularity of an ad for Puma’s new “evoPOWER” soccer boot, with which Balotelli scored a longdistance goal on Friday for Milan to give them a 1-0 win over Bologna. “Sometimes the product actually works,” Gulden said.

As it warned in November, Puma booked 129 million euros of costs in the fourth quarter to close a development centre in Vietnam and bring product staff from London to group headquarters in the small German town of Herzogenaurach. —Reuters

SHANGHAI: In Danone SA’s China, diamonds are free, milk powder is forever.

The French dairy giant is handing out the jewels as prizes in promotions to win back consumers it lost last year in claims of high prices, accusations of bribery and food safety scares. On milk, it’s spending big.

With investors restless over its inability to grow in China, this month Danone paid $665 million to lift its small stake in the country’s number two milk maker, China Mengniu Dairy Co Ltd. Sealed at a hefty premium, the Mengniu deal and Danone’s aggressive online campaign to promote its Dumex milk powder brand show the world’s largest yoghurt maker is determined to convince shoppers and investors alike it can make large profits in China after a string of failed tieups there. A breakthrough remains some way off: Danone has a 0.5 percent share of China’s dairy market, according to Euromonitor, and for some customers, its brand remains tarnished. The Paris-based company is just one of a string of foreign firms facing tighter scrutiny as China patrols pricing and product safety more closely, saying it needs to protect consumers in the world’s second-biggest economy.

“I don’t really trust Dumex,” said Pei Qianqian, 29, an office worker in Shanghai with a 17-month-old daughter to feed. “If it’s just one problem then perhaps it’s just the side-effect of industry competition, but if there’s two and then three in a row, I think this milk powder really has problems.” The home of brands like Evian mineral water and Activia yoghurt reported earnings yesterday, saying growth will accelerate this year after weakness in Europe and Asia woes weighed on its performance in 2013.

With much of its business rooted in lower-growth Europe, Danone has long targeted emerging markets like China as future growth streams. According to business consulting firm Frost & Sullivan, China’s dairy market will nearly double to about $89 billion in 2017 from 2012.

PARIS: French dairy food giant Danone Chairman Franck Riboud poses for photographers before a press conference yesterday. — AFP Danone’s China sales of early life nutrition products such as infant milk formula were virtually “zero” in December, the firm’s leadership said in an investor call yesterday. Danone said the firm would overhaul its offering for China in 2014, including launching a revamped Dumex product and making more use of other brands like Aptamil and Cow & Gate.

“Don’t think we are going to rebuild the same animal, we are going to build a new one, a better one, especially in terms of margins,” said Danone CEO Franck Riboud on an investor call. Riboud said Danone could not go it alone in China, but that he expected Mengniu to become the leader among China milk producers.

Record online noise The shadow of a crisis in China can loom large over international firms, especially in more sensitive sectors such as nutrition and health. Amid fervent condemnation from the country’s growing online community, KFC-parent Yum

Brands Inc has struggled to win back consumers over a year after a food scare at a local chicken supplier. Chatter around Danone’s “1000 Day Plan” promotion drives on China’s popular social network Sina Weibo has risen to record levels. Yet Internet watchers warn that a campaign designed to highlight Dumex milk powder safety after health scares across the industry in China last year may instead have the effect of keeping Dumex’s problems in people’s minds.

Mother Tang Jiahui, 27, said she was not swayed by Dumex’s online campaigns and free give-aways. “All I’m looking at when I choose which brand of milk powder is quality; an online prize draw won’t change my mind,” the Shanghai resident said. Still, in January alone, users re-posted its Weibo campaign messages over four million times, in the hope of being chosen in a draw for prizes including diamond-studded brooches or iPad tablet computers, according to a Reuters analysis. —Reuters

British Gas customers leave in droves LONDON: Householders left British Gas in their hundreds of thousands last year in a backlash against a 9-percent hike in already-high energy tariffs, owner Centrica said yesterday when it reported a drop in 2013 group profits. Public outrage at price rises has sparked a switching frenzy in the last few months and smaller energy providers, such as Ovo Energy and Good Energy, have been major beneficiaries of the move away from larger, integrated groups.

Britain’s biggest energy supplier lost 362,000 residential customers in 2013, up 60 percent from 2012, after hiking prices just weeks after opposition Labour leader Ed Miliband promised he would freeze prices if elected, sparking a political storm. Forty percent of customers switching electricity supplier in January moved to an independent company, up from 26 percent in December and 20 percent in November, data from energy lobby group EnergyUK showed.

The affordability of heating British homes shot to the top of the political agenda last autumn, and resulted in the government allowing suppliers to cut bills by 53 pounds ($89). British Gas, which has roughly 40 percent of the UK gas supply market and 25 percent of electricity - came under fire from Energy Secretary Ed Davey last week when he suggested the company’s gas profit margins were excessive.

Centrica said on yesterday its pre-tax profit margins for gas supply were 8.9 percent and 0.8 percent in electricity. The loss of customers coupled with high costs for wholesale gas and transmitting energy led to a 2 percent drop in the group’s 2013 adjusted operating profit to 2.7 billion pounds, in line with analysts’ expectations. Profits at British Gas fell 6 percent to 1 billion pounds. Chief Executive Sam Laidlaw said in a prerecorded interview on Centrica’s website that improved services, such as smart

meters, were crucial to returning British Gas growth.

Centrica also said it would keep investing in its upstream exploration and production business to find new sources of cheap gas. As Britain’s domestic oil and gas reserves are falling, exploration companies are increasingly looking abroad to secure supplies. Finance director Nick Luff told journalists he would not rule out further changes to the company’s upstream portfolio, adding that Centrica was “constantly talking to all major gas suppliers in the world”.

Last year, Centrica signed 14 billion pounds worth of gas supply deals, one with US energy group Cheniere to import US liquefied natural gas and an extension to its supply agreement with Qatargas.

The company also said yesterday it expected 2014 earnings per share to fall partly due to the impact of damaged networks and equipment during a cold spell in North America. — Reuters

Tr a v e l FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2014

Wondering where to get married?

Here are some of the classiest resorts at the most stunning wedding locations

2. Las Vegas, Nevada

D

espite what Hollywood would have us believe, most Las Vegas weddings are planned, well-thought out events as opposed to quickie ceremonies between people who’ve met mere hours before. Though more than 100,000 people choose Sin City for their weddings every year, Las Vegas is still the perfect destination for cutting-edge couples who rebuff tradition. Choose anything from an intimate ceremony on Bellagio’s Terraza Di Sogna with the waters of the world-famous fountains dancing in the background to The Graceland Chapel — site of many celebrity weddings and equipped with the capability to broadcast your wedding online for friends who can’t make the trip.

1. Amalfi Coast, Italy

I

magine a wedding in a centuries-old church followed by an intimate dinner party in a tucked-away family-owned Italian restaurant, glasses clinking while wine and laughter flows. There is perhaps no place in the world more romantic than Italy and perhaps no region there more picturesque than the Amalfi coast. Perched high above the coastline, Ravello is an ancient town with spectacular vistas well-suited for sophisticates. For a more casual seaside affair, choose the tiny and stunningly beautiful town of Positano.

3. Maui, Hawaii

4. Mauritius

T

here are more than a few reasons Maui is one of the world’s top honeymoon destinations, among them top-notch resorts, world-renowned surf, activities aplenty and sandy beaches ranging from white to black to red. These same traits are what make Maui such an idyllic wedding locale. Romantic moments are around nearly every bend in Maui, whether watching the sunrise atop Haleakala or simply strolling barefoot on the beach. An added bonus of tying the knot in Maui? You and your honey can just stay put for the honeymoon.

It’s been called “the island that inspired heaven,” so what better place to begin a life of heavenly wedded bliss? It’s relatively remote location - 500 miles east of Madagascar - has helped to preserve its pristine white-sand beaches, lush green mountains and cobalt-blue waters, but that’s not to say there’s any shortage of accommodations for you and your wedding guests. Luxury hotels like the Four Seasons Mauritius at Anahita are wellstaffed with professionals able to assist with plans for a wedding on Mauritius from far away.

5. Megeve, France

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or couples who prefer snow to sand, a winter wedding in the French Alps is a natural choice.

With its cobblestone streets, upscale shops and world-class restaurants, Megeve is everything one would expect from a tony Alpine ski resort.

Despite the plethora of high-end tourists it attracts, moderately priced hotels and family-run bedand-breakfasts are available in addition to the luxury hotels. Cozy up underneath a blanket in the back of a horse-drawn carriage or bundle up and wander the narrow streets hand-in-hand, either way, be prepared to succumb to romance.

Tr a v e l FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2014

6. Nevis, British West Indies

W

hen a bride imagines taking her vows on a beach at sunset, it’s likely the Caribbean she’s picturing. If it’s solitude you seek, make a beeline to Nevis, part of the twoisland nation of St Kitts and Nevis. The islands, though a short ferry ride from one another, have entirely distinct personalities, with Nevis being the quiet, untouched sister island to St, Kitt’s hustle and bustle. Nevis is all that’s right with the

Caribbean - beautiful volcanic ash beaches, fullservice resorts and easy to get to - while still managing to feel like a well-kept secret. Nevis’s legendary sunsets are the perfect backdrop for a Caribbean beach wedding and the stuff wedding photographer’s dreams are made of.

8. Orlando, Florida

P

rincess dreams die hard, which makes Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando the ideal place for regular ladies who’ve managed to find their own Prince Charming to begin their happily ever after. With locales ranging from exotic gardens to waterfront pavilions, there’s likely a place for nearly every taste. There’s no location, however, bet-

ter suited to carrying out a princess fantasy than Swan Boat Landing with Cinderella Castle as the backdrop.

Complete the dream by choosing Cinderella’s Coach, complete with six Welsh ponies and two footmen in full costume, as your transportation.

7. New York, New York

N

ew York City has been the inspiration of countless songs, been the setting to blockbuster movies aplenty and is home to some of the world’s most iconic sites. What better place to provide the backdrop for the most important day of your life?

Forgo the traditional limo and use a taxi for transportation, choose an ornate

hotel ballroom or stark loft for your reception, and afterwards, continue the celebration into the morning hours by taking part in New York City’s unrivaled nightlife scene. There’s nothing cookiecutter about this city, and no shortage of ways to have a one-of-a-kind wedding.

10. San Diego, California

W

eather is always at the top of the list of worries for brides to be. Though there are no guarantees, the odds of a sunny day are much higher when the wedding location is San Diego, California, home to some of the world’s loveliest weather. 70 miles of white sand means plenty of options for laid-back lovers looking for a barefoot-

9. Riviera Nayarit, Mexico

E

ven couples who’ve traveled to Mexico many times have likely not been to Riviera Nayarit, a short drive north but seemingly a world away from the bustle of popular Puerto Vallarta. Stretching 100 miles along the Pacific Coast from Nuevo Vallarta in the south to San Blas in the north, the region is the home of all-inclusive

megaresorts to tiny boutique hotels and everything in between. Depending on preference, a couple might choose to begin their lives in the laid-back surfer enclave of Sayulita or at one of Punta Mita’s ultra-luxe beachfront resorts, like the St. Regis Punta Mita.

on-the-beach ceremony, while the bustling Gaslamp Quarter is a perfect choice for couples who want a cosmopolitan locale in which to say “I do.”

— www.reuters.com

Opinion FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2014

UK wants you to postpone using kettles

By John Kemp

“C

The Facebook and WhatsApp app icons are displayed on an iPhone on Thursday in San Francisco. — AFP

Facebook pushes to stay at the top

By Rob Lever

W

ith a big, bold deal for hot messaging service WhatsApp, Facebook is demonstrating it wants youth, a wider footprint in more markets and new kinds of services to stay fresh.

Analysts say the staggering price tag of up to $19 billion in stock and cash highlights Facebook’s drive to be more mobile, global and to remain innovative.

“It shows the continued determination of Facebook to be the ‘next’ Facebook,” says Benedict Evans, a partner in the venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz. Evans said Facebook is responding in part to the explosion of mobile social apps and wants to assert itself as the dominant platform. “Any smartphone app is just two taps away,” Evans says in a blog post. “So It’s quite possible mobile social will have lots of services indefinitely. This creates opportunities, but also a pretty basic challenge to Facebook.”

Still, the news left many observers stunned that Facebook would pay such a steep price at a time when the world’s biggest social network seemed to be riding high. “The size of this deal is really massive and it will get people talking about a bubble,” Greg Sterling at Opus Research told AFP. Sterling said the deal is a risk for Facebook because “in social media you have a flavor of the month, and next year we might have another app with extremely rapid growth”. “I think (the high price tag) comes from the frustration of not being able to buy (the messaging service) Snapchat, and then there is the youth factor,” Sterling added. “Facebook really needs to have vehicles to attract younger users, and Instagram is not going to do that by itself.” With this strategy, Sterling said Facebook “is becoming a kind of holding company for different social media properties that appeal to different groups.”

Jim Goetz at the venture firm Sequoia Capital, an early WhatsApp investor which is getting a huge return, said the price makes sense because “WhatsApp has completely transformed personal communications, which was previously dominated by the world’s largest wireless carriers”. Goetz noted that WhatsApp, which allows users to bypass tele-

com charges for messaging, is “so widely loved overseas and so underappreciated at home”.

He said WhatsApp has grown faster than any similar company to 450 million users and has just 32 engineers. The business model is simple - no advertising, and users are charged $1 per year after the first year, which is free. This has resonated with users around the world, in places ranging from Botswana to China. The mega-deal announced on Wednesday bolsters the world’s biggest social network - which has more than 1.2 billion members with WhatsApp, which will be operated independently with its own board.

Worth the money Facebook founder and chief Mark Zuckerberg said that WhatsApp was worth the money because its blistering growth around the world has it on a clear path to hit a billion users. “Services with a billion people using them are all incredibly valuable,” Zuckerberg said while discussing the purchase price during a conference call with analysts. The purchase includes $12 billion in Facebook shares and $4 billion cash. It calls for an additional $3 billion in restricted stock units to be granted to WhatsApp founders and employees that will vest over four years.

Roger Kay at Endpoint Technologies said WhatsApp has become one of the most popular mobile applications and “reminds me a little of Skype”. Kay said the deal makes sense on one level because of Facebook’s record stock run-up. “When you have a stock like that which has run up quickly and created a lot of paper value, it’s good to trade that for other value,” he told AFP. Forrester Research analyst Nate Elliott said Facebook gets a fresh infusion of youth but much more with the deal. “It’ll be tempting to read this as a sign Facebook is scared of losing teens,” Elliott said. “But the reality is, Facebook always works hard to keep all its users engaged, no matter their age. Facebook is tireless in its efforts to keep users coming back. That’s why their 1.2 billion monthly users keep visiting the site more and more frequently, rather than drifting away.” — AFP

ripplingly high power costs are forcing some of Britain’s heavy manufacturers to shut down their entire operation at peak times, with furnaces cooling and workers shivering in cold, darkened offices,” according to an article in Wednesday’s Financial Times. “It costs us 27 pounds (about $45) to boil the kettle. We end up telling our workers to sit in the mess room together to keep warm, because we can’t afford to keep going,” Tony Pedder, chairman of Sheffield Forgemasters, a heavy engineering firm, complained.

Energy-intensive British businesses are curtailing their operations for as many as 20 or 30 days each winter between 4 pm and 6 pm to cut their power bills, part of an energy system which steelmakers describe as “third world”. In fact, the market is working exactly as intended. High prices are rationing scarce capacity on the transmission network by encouraging the heaviest users to shift as much consumption as possible away from peak hours. And in future, smaller businesses and residential users are also likely to face some form of time-dependent pricing. It is all part of an effort to keep bills down by making more efficient use of the network. Steelmaker SSI complained to the Financial Times that cutting power use at peak times “is not only a disruption to our operations but also a significant cost to the business”.

But without those power reductions, Britain would need to build lots of additional power stations and transmission lines, which would only be used on a few hours each year. The cost would have to be recovered either from energy intensive users, in which case it would be astronomically high, or smeared across all bills, in which case residential customers would end up subsidising steelmakers’ peak-time electricity use. Energy-intensive users may not like the current pricing system, but it is a rational reflection of the costs they impose on the transmission and generation system, and there is no reason to change it.

120 Hours a Year In contrast to the United States, where peak electricity demand is generally driven by air conditioning and occurs on summer afternoons, Britain’s electricity network is most stretched on early evenings in the winter between November and February. Demand is heaviest between 5 pm and 6 pm, or more broadly between 4 pm and 7 pm. Schools, shops, offices and factories are still open, the street lightning has come on, and at least some people have returned home, switched on the heating and started to prepare the evening meal. The entire generation and transmission system is planned around meeting demand on these few hours (just 120 hours out of a total of 8,760 in a year). It is a fundamental principle of pricing power, as well as most other goods and services, that the price each customer pays should be related to the marginal cost of supplying them. In the case of electricity, the marginal cost largely depends on the amount of power used on those 120 hours.

Triad Avoidance National Grid, Britain’s transmission operator, uses a formula to calculate the marginal cost for large consumers. It identifies the three half-hour periods between November and February on which total demand was highest, separated from each other by at least 10 days. Each energy user is then charged based on how much power it consumed in those periods, known as “triads”. Triad dates are calculated retrospectively, once the winter is over, which leads some firms to try to game the system by guessing which days are likely to be declared triads and reducing their consumption to secure a lower bill.

If a day is forecast to be unusually cold and comes at least 10 days since the last really cold day, there is a good chance a triad will be declared. Costconscious businesses might order staff not to boil the kettle during this time or even shut down their operations altogether to save power. The cost and inconvenience is more than offset by savings from lower charges throughout the rest of the year. Of course, if the next day turns out to be even colder, the likely triad date will shift, and the need for conservation will be repeated. This is why some companies complain they have to keep shutting down on so many winter evenings and complain their tariffs are based on the amount of energy they use on arbitrary dates.

Rational Pricing At first glance, the triad system makes no sense, but a more careful analysis shows that it is in fact highly rational. First, the system applies only to the heaviest energy consumers - those whose electricity use is metered and charged on a half-hourly basis - who put the most pressure on the grid at peak times. If these users continued to run their furnaces and operations as normal through the worst of the winter cold, the country would risk running out of power. If energy-intensive customers did not save power, the grid might have to ration supplies to offices, schools, shops and homes. As a last resort, the grid would have to order regional distributors to forcibly disconnect some small customers. For the furnaces to stay on, lights might have to go off. — AP

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2014 www.kuwaittimes.net

A stork stands in its nest near Sandershausen, western Germany on February 19, 2014. The "Meister Adebar" has returned unusually early back from his winter home. — AFP

C a re e r s FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2014

What’s the keyword?

How to make them respond when you apply for a job online

By Susan Adams

U

se your personal network to find a contact inside the company where you are applying. Last week I got a note from a reader, asking me for advice about how to elicit a response to her online job applications. “With the technology age upon us, I have been actively applying to employment opportunities on numerous websites,” she wrote. “My problem is that I am not getting any type of feedback.” She estimated she had pursued 100 openings in the last year, and received only two responses. Neither had led to a new job.

This job seeker wanted my advice about sprucing up her online applications and in particular, how she could get employers to reply to her queries.

I talked to three of my regular career coach sources, Robert Hellmann and Anita Attridge in New York, and David Couper in Los Angeles, and all of them say that two responses to 100 online applications is in fact a strong showing, given the competition.

Couper is the most blunt. “I tell my clients that they’re wasting their time applying online,” he says. “To me you’ve left it too late,” he says. “Once it’s online, millions of other people have seen it.”

Often, he says, online job postings are just a way for hiring managers to claim they’ve looked at lots of applicants when, in fact, they have already decided in advance on an internal hire. Other times, a job is posted and then a budget cut ensues and the position is eliminated before it’s been filled.

Hellmann and Attridge are slightly less pessimistic than Couper, and both say they have had clients who landed jobs by applying online. Attridge says the more specific your skill set is and the more closely it’s matched to the online ad, the greater chance you have of success. Within the last six months, a client of Attridge’s, a technical director in information technology, answered an ad that listed the precise skills that he had under his belt. After an initial phone screening, he went for an interview and wound up getting hired. If you’re not a strong match for the listing, Attrdige says, it may not be worth your time to apply.

Hellmann agrees with Couper and Attridge that most online applications are more trouble than they’re worth, but he has come up with some tips for filling them out efficiently. “Think about the application as a bureaucratic formality,” he advises. “It’s a one-size-fits-all form that has every possible thing on it,” he says. You don’t need to write detailed answers to every question.

Don’t put all your cards on the table In fact, there are a number of queries you should not answer. One is about salary.

Many forms won’t let you complete them if you leave spaces blank. Hellmann advises putting in $1, $10 or $100, “anything to show you’re not listing your real salary.”

Hellmann insists it’s not fair to discuss compensation before you’ve had a real job interview. Likewise, if there is a question about the name of your current boss, do

not fill it in. Write, “to be discussed.” Or if you’re out of work, you can also say, “to be discussed.” In addition, Hellmann says it’s inappropriate for an application to request that you list references. In that slot, he says you should write, “available upon strong mutual interest.” Says Hellmann, “only give your references when you’re close to an offer.”

Most applications ask for your current position and then request a description of your job. Hellmann recommends simply writing, “please see resume.” Though Hellmann cautions that writing out a description of your work could introduce spelling and grammar mistakes, you could also consider cutting and pasting from your rÈsumÈ or LinkedIn profile, directly onto the form.

Then there is the issue of keywords.

Hellmann says you should make sure your resume “is filled with keywords that come from the job you’re targeting.” If the online job listing asks for an applicant who is “experienced in portfolio analysis,” make sure you have the words “portfolio analysis” on your resume. Likewise, if the listing says, “social media marketing expertise,” do have “social media marketing” somewhere on your resume.

An excellent Wall Street Journal story today underlines how important keywords can be, especially if you’re applying to a large company like Starbucks or Procter & Gamble, both of which use automated tracking systems that screen resumes for

keywords, former employers, and schools attended. An example from the Journal story: PNC Financial Services Group filters out bank-teller applicants whose resumes don’t show they have had at least two years of cash-handling experience.

Cover letters go a long way Hellmann says it’s always a good idea to include a concise, specific cover letter with your application. Write a letter, he recommends, “that makes it really hard to screen you out.” Address the job requirements directly and list accomplishments that speak to them, preferably as bullets.

All that said, the most effective thing you can do is to find a personal connection to the hiring manager at the company that’s made the posting. That means networking, which can be made easier by tools like Facebook and LinkedIn. But don’t forget your face-to-face network. If you’re interested in a job posting, do ask everyone you know, including family, friends and colleagues, if they know anyone who works at the company posting the job.

Hellmann tells a story that illustrates the importance of having a direct contact. A client of his recently responded to an online job listing for a lawyer with international tax expertise. The client followed Hellmann’s guidance about including a keyword-filled resume and bulleted cover letter. He did get a response, a form letter rejection. But then he did some research, figured out who the hiring manager was

and contacted him directly with another cover letter and resume. He followed up with a phone call three days later, and now he’s one of the top two candidates for the job.

The bottom line, as I’ve written before: Spend a minimum of your time applying to online listings. Despite the explosion of online job boards and websites promising a quicker path to employment, most people still find jobs through people they know.

Speaking of precise bullets, here’s a recap of how to get a response to an online job application.

1. Prioritize listings that match your skill set directly 2. Fill out forms quickly, leaving selected questions unanswered.

3. When asked for your salary, write “$1,” “$10,” or “$100,” so you fill in the blank but don’t scotch a compensation negotiation in advance.

4. On other queries, like a request for references, or your current position, especially if you’re unemployed, write “to be discussed.”

5. Do tailor your resume to the listing; make sure it includes keywords.

6. Write a concise cover letter that specifically addresses the job’s requirements.

7. Most important: Search your virtual and face-to-face network for a connection to the job you want.

Food FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2014

Go green These salads, with colors that span the rainbow, pack in loads of antioxidants, fiber-rich vegetables and flavorful ripe fruit. Crisp and cool, salads are ideal summer fare. Lean protein, such as chicken transforms easy sides into satisfying main courses. And these healthy side salad recipes just take minutes to prepare.

ITALIAN LEAFY GREEN SALAD

TANGY CUCUMBER AND AVOCADO SALAD

CAESAR SALAD SUPREME

Ingredients

2 medium cucumbers, cubed 2 avocados, cubed 4 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro 1 clove garlic, minced 2 tablespoons minced green onions (optional) 1/4 teaspoon salt black pepper to taste 1/4 large lemon 1 lime Directions 1. In a large bowl, combine cucumbers, avocados, and cilantro. Stir in garlic, onions, salt, and pepper. Squeeze lemon and lime over the top, and toss. Cover, and refrigerate at least 30 minutes.

Ingredients

2 cups romaine lettuce - torn, washed and dried 1 cup torn escarole 1 cup torn radicchio 1 cup torn red leaf lettuce 1/4 cup chopped green onions 1/2 red bell pepper, sliced into rings 1/2 green bell pepper, sliced in rings 12 cherry tomatoes 1/4 cup grapeseed oil 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar 2 tablespoons lemon juice Salt and pepper to taste

Directions 1. Mince 3 cloves of garlic, and combine in a small bowl with mayonnaise, anchovies, 2 tablespoons of the Parmesan cheese, Worcestershire sauce, mustard, and lemon juice.

Season to taste with salt and black pepper. Refrigerate until ready to use.

2. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Cut the remaining 3 cloves of garlic into quarters, and add to hot oil. Cook and stir until brown, and then remove garlic from pan. Add bread cubes to the hot oil. Cook, turning frequently, until lightly browned. Remove bread cubes from oil, and season with salt and pepper.

Directions 1. In a large bowl, combine the romaine, escarole, radicchio, red-leaf, scallions, red pepper, green pepper and cherry tomatoes.

2. Whisk together the grapeseed oil, basil, vinegar, lemon juice and salt and pepper. Pour over salad, toss and serve immediately.

BLACK BEAN AND COUSCOUS SALAD

Ingredients 6 cloves garlic, peeled 3/4 cup mayonnaise 5 anchovy fillets, minced 6 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese, divided 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard 1 tablespoon lemon juice Salt to taste Ground black pepper to taste 1/4 cup olive oil 4 cups day-old bread, cubed 1 head romaine lettuce, torn into bite-size pieces

COLESLAW SALAD

Ingredients 1 cup uncooked couscous 1 1/4 cups chicken broth 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice 1 teaspoon red wine vinegar 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin 8 green onions, chopped 1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro 1 cup frozen corn kernels, thawed 2 (15 ounce) cans black beans, drained Salt and pepper to taste Directions 1. Bring chicken broth to a boil in a 2 quart or larger sauce pan and stir in the couscous.

Cover the pot and remove from heat. Let stand for 5 minutes.

2. In a large bowl, whisk together the olive oil, lime juice, vinegar and cumin. Add green onions, red pepper, cilantro, corn and beans and toss to coat.

3. Fluff the couscous well, breaking up any chunks. Add to the bowl with the vegeta-

bles and mix well. Season with salt and pepper to taste and serve at once or refrigerate until ready to serve.

Ingredients 1 (16 ounce) package coleslaw mix 2 tablespoons minced onion 1/3 cup white sugar 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper 1/4 cup milk 1/2 cup mayonnaise 1/4 cup buttermilk 1 1/2 tablespoons white vinegar 2 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice

Directions 1. Combine the coleslaw and onion in a large bowl.

2. In a separate bowl, combine the sugar, salt, pepper, milk, mayonnaise, buttermilk, vinegar and lemon juice; mix until smooth.

Pour mixture over the coleslaw and onion; stir well and chill for 1 hour. — www.allrecipes.com

Health FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2014

Define your delts

5 must-do

shoulder exercises

I

mprove the appearance and strength of your delts with these science-based exercise tips that will put you head, and shoulders, above the rest.

The shoulders play a key role in nearly every upper body exercise. Because of their critical function, extreme range of motion, and potential to bulge under your shirt like two stolen cannonballs, strong shoulders are essential for maximum performance and a well-rounded, fit physique. This article will help you maximize your shoulder development with a science-based exercise attack.

Shoulder Structure and Function Before you train, it’s important to understand the muscles you’re targeting. Your shoulders are composed of the larger deltoid muscles-anterior, medial, posterior-and smaller rotator cuff muscles that support the ball and socket joint. The rotator cuff is made up of four muscles-the teres minor, infraspinatus, supraspinatus, and subscapularis-which aid in all overhead and rotational movements at the shoulder.

The deltoid muscles are the prime mover of arm abductionmoving the arm away from the body-along the frontal plane. The front (anterior) muscles are involved in shoulder abduction when the shoulder is externally rotated-think lateral raises with your thumbs turned up. The anterior deltoid also works with the subscapularis, pectorals, and lats to internally rotate the humerus bone, effectively turning your thumbs in and towards the center of the body so your palms face back.

The rear (posterior) fibers are strongly involved in transverse extension, as in cable back rows. The lateral fibers perform basic shoulder abduction when the shoulder is internally rotated, like in lateral raises. They also perform shoulder transverse abduction, as in a reverse flye, when the shoulder is externally rotated. An important function of the deltoid muscles is also to support the humeral head to prevent dislocation when carrying heavy loads, as in a heavy farmer’s carry.

1 Standing Dumbbell Press Sitting is overrated. While it might cause you to have a lower one-rep max, a standing dumbbell press better stimulates shoulder growth than a seated press. Though you’ll be lifting less weight, the standing shoulder press requires more stability, so you’ll be actively strengthening your core and adding balance to your physique while you smoke your shoulders.

There’s no doubt that the standing dumbbell press performed with a full range of motion is the best exercise you can do for maximum deltoid recruitment. A study from the University of Padova found that using the widest range of motion when performing the military shoulder press-elbows fully extended at 180 degrees-resulted in a significant increase in electromyogram (EMG) activation of the pectoralis major, anterior deltoid, medial deltoid, posterior deltoid, upper trapezius, middle trapezius, long head of triceps, and teres minor.

Execution If you haven’t been fully extending your elbows during your shoulder presses, you’re in for a surprise. Check your ego at the

door, drop the weight, use a full range of motion, and reap the rewards of working smarter and harder with the following steps: With your feet shoulder-width apart, take a dumbbell in each hand. Raise the dumbbells to eye level with your elbows bent to about 90 degrees. Brace your core and drive the dumbbells up and together, extending the elbows to 180 degrees. Pause, and slowly return the weight to the starting position.

2 Prone Reverse Flye Skip the machines. A recent study showed that the EMG activity for the posterior deltoid and infraspinaturs was greatest when performing a reverse flye with a neutral hand position (palms facing each other) compared to a pronated grip (palms down). While you might be tempted to hop onto the seated reverse flye machine, you’re better off using free weights and a bench to perform the prone reverse dumbbell flye. Not only do free weights allow you to get in the optimal hand position, the movement also better isolates the rear delts and recruits more stabilizers than the machines.

Execution Lie face down on a flat bench with the balls of your feet firmly

planted into the ground for support. You can roll up a towel and place it under your forehead for comfort. Grasp the dumbbells with your arms angled out and a slight bend in your elbows.

Retract your shoulder blades as you bring the weight up, squeeze, and then lower the weight under control. Repeat. Maintain constant control and tension throughout each rep.

3 Bent-Over Reverse Fly 21s This tri-set targets the rear delts while hitting the medial and front heads as well. It’s a great variation to throw into the end of your routine. Remember to keep the weight light in order to maintain proper form and keep the mind-muscle connection you need to maximize every rep.

Execution Start in a bent-over position with your core tight and knees slightly bent. Perform the first seven reps with a neutral grip (palms facing each other). Retract the scapula, squeeze, and slowly resist the negative. Perform the next seven reps with a prone grip (palms facing down). Lead with the pinkies out as you squeeze the rear delts during each rep. For the last seven reps, turn the palms back to a neutral grip and perform a forward raise.

Keep the shoulders down as your raise the dumbbells and slowly lower them with control.

4 Lateral Raises with Kettlebells Take your standard dumbbell lateral raises to a new level.

Using kettlebells will add an extra challenge for your forearms and shoulder stabilizers since you really need to control each rep’s weight, which isn’t directly in your palms. It is important to focus on squeezing the deltoids instead of allowing momentum to take over the movement.

Execution Grab a pair of kettlebells and hold them at your sides. With your elbows slightly bent and your wrists locked, lift each kettlebell up and out to the side until your arms are parallel to the ground. Turn your thumbs down at the peak contraction to better target your side delts. Pause for a second and slowly lower back to starting position. Advanced Variation: Perform this with the weight hanging directly underneath the handle and go heavier.

5 Neutral-Grip Sternum Chin-Up If you’ve never performed this version of a chin-up, you’re missing out. Give it a shot. Not only does it hit your lats and rear delts harder than a traditional chin-up, it also blasts your core.

Execution Start with a neutral grip on the chin-up bars. Pull your shoulder blades together and drive yourself up until your chest reaches the bar. Keep your chest and shoulders open as you pull yourself up. Focus on the rear delt squeeze at the peak contraction. At the top of the move, your body should be at a 45 degree angle from the ground. Brace your entire body as you slowly lower yourself back to the starting position with your torso upright.

— www.bodybuilding.com

Health FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2014

The best exercise for strengthening your

shoulders P

ressing a barbell overhead has somehow acquired the reputation as a dangerous exercise for the shoulders. Doctors and physical therapists routinely advise against the exercise weightlifters refer to as simply The Press on the false assumption that an injury known as “shoulder impingement” is the inevitable result. Not only is the press perfectly safe for the shoulders-as evidenced by the fact that shoulder injuries are the least-common injuries for Olympic weightlifters who use the barbell overhead-but the correctly performed press is the best exercise for keeping shoulders strong. Here’s why: 1. Shoulder impingement is misunderstood: Shoulder impingement occurs when the rotator cuff tendons get “pinched” between the head of the humerus and the AC joint, formed by the end of the collarbone and the bony knobs at the end of the shoulder blade. Impingement means an entrapment of soft tissue between two bones in the area of a joint. You can safely experience this entrapment feeling for yourself: sit or stand up straight and raise your arms from your sides to a position parallel to the floor, with the palms of your hands facing the floor and your elbows bent at 90 degrees. Now, raise them just a little more.

The pressure you feel in your shoulders is the impingement of your cuff tendons against the AC. Now, rotate your hands up so your palms face forward, elbows still at 90 degrees, and raise your hands up over your head. Then shrug your shoulders up at the top, like you’re trying to reach the ceiling with your hands and shoulders. Pressure’s gone, right?

This is the lockout position of the press, and notice that at no time in this process did your shoulders feel impinged. This is because the shrugging of the shoulders at the top pulls the AC knobs away from the head of the humerus, so that impingement is anatomically impossible in the correct press lockout position. The press simply cannot impinge your shoulders.

In fact, shoulder impingement injuries are common only in athletes that use their

arms overhead without a shrug. Swimmers, volleyball players, and the racquet sports report most of the shoulder impingement injuries. They’d be far better off if they trained the press as a part of their sports preparation.

2.Why the press is the best exercise for shoulder strength: Since a correct press is done in a standing position, the exercise works all the muscles in the body.

Everything between the bar in the hands and the feet balancing against the floor participates in the exercise. Legs, abs, and back muscles, as well as the obvious shoulder and arm muscles, all work together in a correctly performed press.

Sixty years ago, the press was the primary weight room exercise for the upper body. For men who trained with weights, a bodyweighton-thebar press was considered a good starting point.

And back then, shoulder injuries were essentially unheard of because the press made the shoulders strong-the whole shoulder, not just the front of the shoulder like the bench press does. The takeover of upper-body training by the bench press was an unfortunate development. The bench allows the use of heavier weights, but at the expense of the involvement of more of the body, and more balanced shoulder strength, front-to-back. As a general rule, more muscle mass working at the same time all over the body is much better for strength training than isolation exercises.

The coordinated use of all the muscles while standing on the floor with a barbell in your hands produces the most useful strength adaptation-one that actually applies to all natural human movements.

3. What you know about rotator cuff

What is the normal daily role of a rotator cuff muscle?

muscles may be wrong: Physical therapists like to isolate the function of a muscle to rehab it when it’s injured. The isolated function of the muscles that lie on the shoulder blade is “external rotation” of the upper arm.

This motion occurs when you lay your arms down against your ribs, bend your elbows and rotate your forearms out so that your palms face forward.

Your humerus rotates “externally” along its axis when you do this, and the rotator cuff muscles make this happen in isolation.

The question is: what is the normal daily role of a rotator cuff muscle? Does it make your shoulder externally rotate, and that’s all? Or does it primarily function as a muscle group that stabilizes the head of the humerus in its socket, the “glenoid fossa”?

Think about it another way: who named it “external rotator”? Or physical therapists?

Maybe a better name for it would be the keeps-the-arm-in-the-shoulder-ator, and it also just happens to externally rotate the arm. When you’re not in physical therapy, the rotator cuff muscles are just another muscle group that helps hold the shoulder together.

4. There is no single muscle group in the entire human body that works in isolation as its normal function: Not even your tongue. It therefore makes no sense to train muscles in a way in which they do not function. Physical therapists may be able to isolate your rotator cuff muscles, but you may have noticed that this motion is not a normal part of your day.

If the cuff muscles work during a press (they do), and if they are aided in their function by all the other muscles in the shoulder (they are), then as the progressively heavier press makes the shoulder stronger, it makes the rotator cuff muscles stronger too. It is

So, if you start pressing with a light weight and grow stronger by adding a little weight each time you train, all the muscles you use in the press get stronger.

much better to strengthen the cuff muscles while their shoulder-muscle friends help lock out a press, than when they are made to work all alone, all by their skinny little selves in the PT office.

So, if you start pressing with a light weight and grow stronger by adding a little weight each time you train, all the muscles you use in the press get stronger. From your hands to your feet, and even your rotator cuff muscles, your whole body benefits from this perfectly safe and very important exercise. Once you’re able to handle heavy weights correctly overhead, you’ll know that strong shoulders are healthy shoulders, and the best way to make them strong is to use them correctly, by pressing the barbell overhead.

— www.huffingtonpost.com

Books FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2014

The Snowden Files a gripping read

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here are two big mysteries at the heart of the Edward Snowden story. First, why did he do it? That is, why did he do it: here was a relatively nondescript, unassuming twentysomething, with no apparent political backing, popping up out of nowhere to take on the world’s most powerful security organization. By incurring the wrath of the US government Snowden knew he was risking a lifetime in jail. Even the journalists who worked closely with him were confounded by his bravado, or naivety, or perhaps both.

Second, how did he do it? Snowden wanted the world to know about the newfound and mindboggling capacity of the NSA and its international partners to hoover up private information, allowing them to snoop on almost anything or anyone. Snowden nicknamed this surveillance operation the “Panopticon”, after Jeremy Bentham’s all-knowing, all-seeing prison system. Yet that same organization failed to notice when Snowden, a mid-level contractor, made off with its own darkest secrets, seemingly blind to the most glaring security threats in its midst. What was going on?

Luke Harding’s breathless page-turner, which reads more like a spy thriller than a piece of dry political analysis, does its best to answer these questions. Harding gives us Snowden’s backstory, which is not as straightforward as it might appear. Yes, he was a pretty regular guy, good with computers, interested in girls, a bit

vast amounts of human communications, indiscriminately, blindly, idiotically. It was a monster, and it was taking over the world.

In a way, Snowden’s own experiences confirmed that he was right. The monster was so big and so unwieldy that it didn’t notice what was going on. It was as if it had no time for old-fashioned security checks in the brave new world of big data. One of the most astonishing revelations in Harding’s book is that Snowden had already blotted his copybook at the CIA, where a row with a superior had him marked down as unreliable. But when he transferred to the NSA, no one thought to pass on the personnel file, so they employed him without checking his backstory (perhaps they simply looked at “TheTrueHOOHAA” posts and decided, mistakenly, that he was one of them). At Booz, Snowden was able to scrape vast amounts of data off the NSA computers, using what now appears to have been relatively old-fashioned technology, without anyone detecting what he was up to.

‘The Mission Never Sleeps’ Among his trawl was a series of internal PowerPoint presentations in which the NSA outlined its new capabilities and its eager readiness to use them. There are two ways to read these. One is that they are evidence of an organization that now has terrifying

We live in a new world, and a scary one: this is a riveting read that unravels the mysteries behind the Snowden revelations

Turning the clock back Harding slightly overdoes the plucky journalists versus the overweening state: his is an insider’s account that suffers from the vice of all such accounts in bigging up the experience of the people who were actually in the room. You had to be there. What they were doing was extremely important, but some of the excitement of being at the heart of world events reads overegged on the page.

Also, for a writer telling a story whose details depend on understanding how tech works, he sometimes seems hazy on the basics: Tim Berners-Lee, the creator of the web, is described more than once as “the inventor of the internet”, which is bit like calling Henry Ford the man who invented roads (the web is a system of documents accessed via the internet). Still, this is a riveting read and it unravels the mystery better than anything that’s been published so far.

flaky perhaps and something of a drifter, but no more than the average. Trawling the extensive record of Snowden’s online activities, where he posted for more than a decade on every subject under the sun as “TheTrueHOOHAA”, Harding suggests he might have been a bit of a Walter Mitty. But isn’t that the point of the internet age, that it makes Walter Mittys of all of us? What’s striking is not so much the range of Snowden’s fantasies as the depth of his political commitment. He emerges as a committed Republican, a libertarian, a huge fan of Ron Paul, a gun lover and believer in national security with a tendency to suggest that anyone who thinks otherwise deserves to be shot.

‘TheTrueHOOHAA’ This produces some startling moments. Writing in 2009 after the New York Times has leaked secret information about covert US action against Iran’s nuclear program, “TheTrueHOOHAA” rages against whistleblowers, WikiLeaks and anyone who would betray their country for the sake of airy-fairy liberal principles. But the real clue to his motivation comes later in the same exchange, when he wails: “Obama just appointed a POLITICIAN to run the CIA.” (The politician in question was Leon Panetta, who had once been Bill Clinton’s chief of staff.) As a libertarian, what really gets Snowden’s goat is the thought of government getting its tentacles into everything. He has no problem with spying and secrecy in their place (in Iran, for instance). What terrifies him is the idea that no one is setting limits to it all. Like many supporters of Ron Paul, Snowden would like to go back to the gold standard, because he thinks letting politicians print money is a recipe for inflation and ultimate global ruin. He sees the politicization of surveillance as part of the same pattern: evidence of a system spinning crazily out of control.

Despite dropping out of college and a failed interlude in the army (he broke both legs in a training accident), Snowden’s tech skills eventually got him good defense jobs, first at the CIA, then at the NSA, and finally at a private firm, Booz Allen Hamilton, which serviced the NSA’s computer systems. At some point he went from loyalist to whistleblower - Obama’s election seems to have tipped him over the edge. While Democrats were complaining about government overreach during the Bush years, Snowden was able to hope that regime change in the White House would signal a return to proper oversight. But when Obama morphed from a critic of the security state in opposition to its number one enabler in government, Snowden concluded that any safeguards were gone. In his eyes the entire US government was now operating outside its constitutional remit. What alarmed him about the NSA’s activities was that no one was in charge: this had become a system that was, as he put it to journalist Glenn Greenwald, “automatically ingesting”

frighteners. In America, journalists and editors were alternately brow-beaten and threatened by various high-up officials. In Britain, in the most bizarre episode of all, two heavies from GCHQ supervised the destruction of the Guardian’s hard-drives that were thought to contain the illicit files. Greenwald’s partner was detained and searched under anti-terrorism laws by British police officers at Heathrow, who were on the hunt for more Snowden material. The Americans persuaded the French to bar the plane of Bolivian president Evo Morales from their airspace, on the suspicion that he had smuggled Snowden himself aboard (Snowden was by now holed up in a Moscow airport).

None of it worked. The material, once it had escaped into the public domain, could hardly be put back in the bottle: no amount of smashed up machinery can stop the spread of information (the NSA people, who devote much of their time to breaking encryption codes, might be expected to know that). Snowden was eventually granted temporary asylum in Russia, the very last thing the Americans wanted. Still, the spooks must be allowed to play their silly games. Harding writes that in the immediate aftermath of Snowden’s revelations, construction crews appeared during the night outside the offices of the Guardian and the homes of its reporters, “taxi drivers” got mysteriously lost, “window cleaners” began loitering outside meeting rooms. Those trying to report the story found their lives inconvenienced - and occasionally they got a little scared - but it hardly put them off what they were doing. You could call it the Chris Christie rule of politics: it’s easier to start traffic jams than it is to prevent them, but that doesn’t help anyone.

REVIEW

technological reach, able to cross all borders and access any information it chooses, often co-opting the tech industry along the way (Google, Facebook and other titans of Silicon Valley found themselves implicated in what was going on, to their horror). The other is that, like many PowerPoint presentations, they contain a fair amount of boastful corporate bullshit. “The Mission Never Sleeps” is the ironic heading of one of the files that Snowden stole. Snowden is probably right that what’s really scary is the thought of so much power being in the hands of people with so little idea of what it means. When it turned out that the NSA had been bugging Angela Merkel’s phone, with disastrous political consequences, no one could say what the point had been. As John McCain told Der Spiegel, the only plausible explanation is that “they did it because they could”.

Once Snowden broke cover in Hong Kong the surveillance state lumbered into action. The authorities hadn’t been much good at detecting what he was up to, but now they were determined to limit the damage. They weren’t much good at that either. The second half of Harding’s book describes, in sometimes hilarious detail, the cack-handed attempts of various security services to put on the

Yet by following the conventions of the political thriller - with its heroes and villains, its nods to John le CarrÈ and All the President’s Men - Harding perhaps does his tale a disservice. What is so astonishing about the secrets that Snowden revealed is how much in the dark everyone turns out to be. No one really understands what it all means. The pace of technological change and its extraordinary reach mean that a lot of this stuff is entirely new: this isn’t Nixon’s world any longer but it’s not Deep Throat’s either. Snowden is a quirky figure - a distinctive product of the American right, in ways that some of his European champions on the left ought to find uncomfortable - but he is also a thoughtful one. He is correct in thinking that something has fundamentally changed in our relationship to power. He would like to turn the clock back to the late 18th century when the American constitution said what it meant and meant what it said - the “originalist” dream. That’s not going to happen. It’s not even clear that we can turn the clock back to the late 20th century. This is a new world and a scary one.

In Britain the political debate about how we are going to regulate this new world has barely got going. In the US (and even more in so Germany) Snowden’s revelations have kickstarted an angry discussion about how to tame the monster. Though it’s unlikely to be enough to satisfy Snowden, some members of the US Congress have begun to bare their teeth. But here in the UK we still have politicians such as Sir Malcolm Rifkind, a standard-order product of the late 20th-century British establishment, assuring us that his parliamentary intelligence committee has got GCHQ under wraps. It doesn’t. Rifkind has instinctively closed ranks with people whose capacity to abuse their powers he can barely comprehend. This week Ed Miliband included the need to take on the security services as part of his agenda to confront “unaccountable power”. It will be a long haul.

— www.theguardian.com

Lifestyle

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2014

Lawyer files lawsuit over ‘Wolf of Wall Street’

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lawyer and investment banker who says he was defamed by a portrayal in “The Wolf of Wall Street” is asking for more than $25 million in damages and the film removed from theaters. Andrew Greene says in a complaint filed Tuesday in US District Court in the Eastern District of New York against the filmmakers and Paramount Pictures that the toupee-wearing character Nicky “Rugrat” Koskoff was modeled after Greene, whose real-life nickname is “Wigwam” because he often wears a hairpiece.

The hedonistic Oscar-nominated film starring Leonardo DiCaprio is based on the 2007 memoir by notorious Stratton Oakmont brokerage firm founder Jordan Belfort, played by DiCaprio. Greene, who says he never gave the filmmakers permission to use his likeness, served as the firm’s head of corporate finance in the 1990s. The lawsuit says the filmmakers made Greene look like a depraved criminal, drug user and degenerate. In the film, the character “Rugrat,” who’s played by actor PJ Byrne, uses cocaine, engages in sexual relations with a prostitute and shaves a woman’s head, among other risque activities. “The Wolf of Wall Street” is up for five Academy Awards at next month’s ceremony, including best picture and best director for Martin Scorcese. Paramount had no comment on the lawsuit.—AP Mouna Ayoub, the world’s biggest haute couture collector and billionaire divorcee, answers the Associated Press in Gennevilliers, outside Paris, Wednesday.—AP photos

Cinderella to couture queen: Meet Mouna Ayoub

S This photo released by Paramount Pictures shows from left, front, Jonah Hill, Kenneth Choi, Leonardo DiCaprio, Henry Zebrowski , PJ Bryne as, and Ethan Suplee in the film, ‘The Wolf of Wall Street,” from Paramount Pictures and Red Granite Pictures.—AP

Elton, Kanye to perform at Bonnaroo

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lton John and Kanye West will be among the acts during this summer’s Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival in Tennessee, organizers announced on Wednesday. The Bonnaroo festival will be held June 12-15 on a 700-acre farm in Manchester, about 65 miles (105 km) southeast of Nashville, where about 80,000 “Roonies” descend annually to enjoy 150 musical acts, dozens of comedians, arts and film.

The 2014 concert lineup announced on Wednesday also includes Ice Cube, the Avett Brothers and Lionel Richie.

Bonnaroo is among the top live music gatherings of the year, much like the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in California and the Glastonbury Festival of Contemporary Performing Arts in Britain. Tickets for the festival go on sale Saturday on Bonnaroo.com.—Reuters

File photo shows Kanye West performs at the BET Awards in Los Angeles.—AP

he emerges Venus-like out of a mist of hairspray with tousled hair, a shimmering 50,000-euro Chanel jacket and a 1,000-watt smile. “Hello daarling,” says Mouna Ayoub huskily with the warm familiarity of old friends (even though we’ve met only once before) - walking around a decor of gigantic silver oyster shells and blue glass buoys to kiss me. The billionaire divorcee’s claim to fame: owning the world’s largest collection of haute couture - a 1,600-piece wardrobe in which each gown costs between 50,000 and 290,000 euros ($70,000-$400,000). She never wears the same dress twice, and sometimes never at all.

The couture diva may hide it well, but she’s stressed today.

She’s working hard to prepare an auction of the sparkling seathemed contents of her old yacht, the Phocea, and has ditched her nicotine patches and gone back to Marlboro Lights. The Lebanese socialite is perhaps the best-known member of an uberelite group of superrich women who keep alive haute couture, the 150-year-old Parisian tradition of making astronomicallypriced, made-to-measure gowns. She’s also perhaps its most eccentric. Her wardrobe alone may be enough to bankroll a small country. But she still prefers to take a 60-cent coffee from the machine in the auction warehouse in Gennevilliers, near Paris, instead of ordering in.

Glamour mixed with down-to-earth It’s glamour mixed with down-to-earth. She doesn’t even have time for a proper lunch, and offers me one of the egg sandwiches that she produces from a bag with her well-manicured hand sporting fingerless gloves and a huge rose-shaped diamond ring.

Lying around her (and the egg sandwiches) in the warehouse outside Paris are trinkets resembling the cavern of a billionaire Little Mermaid that lined the inside of what was, until 2004, the largest sailing yacht in the world that she refurbished for $17 million. The 56-year-old has friends in high places. Her good friend King Carlos of Spain was a frequent sleepover visitor on her yacht and fashion designer pal Karl Lagerfeld once stripped her naked for a photoshoot.

She’s also a couture philanthropist. She has just donated what’s been described as the most expensive dress ever made to Paris’ Musee de la Mode - a gold Chanel traffic-stopper that cost over 300,000 euros ($412,000).

From waitress to a princess Ayoub’s is a living rags-to-riches fairytale. It goes like this: beautiful but impoverished waitress in Paris spotted by a billionaire prince charming who falls in love and sweeps her feet to a life of luxury and glamour. Ayoub now wears couture every time she has a public engagement before stashing the gown away in a sleepy French village to be preserved forever. But even this Lebanese Cinderella has moments when reality bites. Take when her yacht scraped a rock along Corsica’s coast in 2002, and she nearly drowned. In a panic, she boarded a lifeboat with the bare

essentials: a Jean Paul Gaultier gown to look chic for rescue, and a Louis Vuitton bag with $9.6 million of jewels inside. When the captain throttled up suddenly, the lifeboat capsized - and she was thrown into the chilly waters. Fortunately, she saw her jewel-filled bag floating meters (feet) away.

“I would have gone diving for it at the bottom of the ocean if it had sank, but luckily the bag was made from a new patent leather that floated,” she said. (“I took off my gown and swam naked to the bag,” she revealed in a post-interview SMS. “I have a feeling I am confessing to a priest.”)

For a sense of her fabulous wealth, instead of taking a bank loan to do up the Phocea, she raised the money by selling off a diamond she’d bought, “The Mouna,” which just happens to be the largest yellow diamond ever graded. Ayoub first met her fairytale prince when she was a 20-year-old working in a late-night Lebanese restaurant who, in her own words, “had no money at all.” He was Nasser Al-Rashid, a multi-billionaire businessman 20 years her senior and close adviser at the time to Saudi Arabia’s late King Fahd. Soon after the fateful encounter, she swapped the apron for a satin gown and cleaning scrubs for the diamond-studded slippers she’s been wearing ever since.

Passion for haute couture Fast forward four decades. Each couture house, from Chanel to Jean Paul Gaultier via Christian Dior, has their very own Mouna mannequin that they can tailor the clothes to when she is not available for a fitting. (“It’s a must,” she said.) “I just love haute couture. It’s my only passion. I wear haute couture every time I go out in public,” she said, explaining that she never wears the same dress twice as she’s frequently photographed.

Couture has always been a secretive club - in which buyers shy away from lifting the lid on how many millions they spend on dressing. Not Ayoub. She’s become an unofficial couture ambassador in recent years, and is dismissive of the buyers who fear the tax repercussions of talking about their wanton spending. —AP

Lifestyle FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2014

Arctic Monkeys say rock-and-roll is the winner at top UK music awards

I Ellie Goulding reacts on stage upon receiving the award for British Female Solo Artist of the Year.

ndie quartet Arctic Monkeys picked up the coveted best album award and triumphed over boy band One Direction to be named best group, prompting their lead singer to claim a victory for rock-and-roll at British pop’s show of the year.

“That rock-and-roll it just won’t go away. That rockand-roll, it seems like it’s fading away sometimes, but it will never die,” Arctic Monkeys frontman Alex Turner said as he received the band’s second gong of the night for the Mastercard British album of the year.

The best group prize at London’s BRIT Awards on Wednesday was the only head-to-head between Sheffield-born Arctic Monkeys and One Direction, the five-piece band formed in 2010 on the TV singing contest The X Factor. “There’s that

Kate Moss is seen on stage accepting the award for British Male Solo Artist on behalf of winner David Bowie from Noel Gallagher at the BRIT Awards 2014 at the O2 Arena in London. —AP photos

British band Bastille members Dan Smith, Kyle J Simmons, Chris ‘Woody’ Wood and William Farquarson accept the British Breakthrough award. fifteen quid we put on One Direction to win down the drain,” Turner joked as Arctic Monkeys picked up the BRIT for best group.

Opening the event with their track “R U Mine”, in the shadow of giant versions of the letters “AM”, flaming and suspended in mid-air, Arctic Monkeys were performing at the BRITs for the first time despite their multiple successes there over the last

eight years. In the past, the band had responded frostily to their BRIT wins. This year, they were odds-on favorites to win both the awards they were up for, and their BRITs silverware count is now seven. One Direction, a band targeted at a young audience and whose fans are mainly teenage girls, did not walk away empty handed, however. The group picked up the BRITs global success award, being joined late on stage by a panting Harry Styles, one of its five members. He said he was late because he had been off “having a wee” when the prize was announced.

To particularly noisy screams and cheering at their every appearance, One Direction also walked away with the best British video award which was decided by twitter votes cast during the evening.

With 17.8 million followers, dubbed “Directioners”, the band’s win never looked in doubt. “It’s the BRITS and it’s exciting,” Styles said, before the group got their hands on their two mohawkinspired black and white gongs, designed by milliner-to-the-stars Philip Treacy.

Band members of English electronic music quartet Rudimental accept the British Single award.

One Direction band members, from left Harry Styles, Liam Payne, Louis Tomlinson, Niall Horan and Zayn Malik accept the Best Video Award.

Star count Excitement was what the organizers of the event were targeting, after last year’s ceremony failed to impress. Labeled by critics as sensible, sober and dull, even Christian Tattersfield, current chairman of the BRIT Awards committee, admitted in a British newspaper recently that the 2013 event “lacked superstars”. He was counting on an attention-grabbing performance by Katy Perry, arriving in a chariot on stage and clad in a neon Cleopatra outfit, and Bruno Mars’s energetic routine, which included dancing saxophonists, to breathe new life into the show.

Wearing a sparkling green floor-length gown, pop queen Beyonce, also sung her track “XO”. Her appearance was not confirmed ahead of the show but was widely leaked to the press. The best British male solo artist award category was won by David Bowie, 67, thirty years after he last held the title.

He beat up and coming names such as Jake Bugg, 19, and Tom Odell, who is 23.

Absent from the ceremony, veteran artist Bowie nominated British supermodel Kate Moss to accept the prize on his behalf. Reading from a script written by Bowie, she finished with the words: “Scotland stay with us”. Bowie’s plea was the evening’s only nod to politics. Scotland will vote on Sept. 18 on whether to become an independent country, ending a 307-year union with England and splitting from the rest of the UK. Ellie Goulding, who three years ago performed at the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge’s wedding reception, won the best British female solo artist award, before wowing the audience with an electric performance in a gold bra and white hot pants.

The best British single award went to drum and bass dance collective Rudimental featuring Ella Eyre for “Waiting All Night”, while pop act Bastille took home the British breakthrough act prize.

For the first time, the BRITs also had a global audience with YouTube streaming the show live worldwide in addition to the usual broadcast on Britain’s commercial channel ITV. The BRITs harnessing of social media reflects the growing digital revenues powering the British music industry.

Figures released earlier on Wednesday show that revenues in the UK recorded music sector rose 1.9 percent 730.4 million pounds ($1.22 billion) in 2013. — Reuters

Lifestyle FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2014

Bruno Mars, winner of the award for International Male Solo Artist, performs on stage.

Nile Rodgers, left, and Pharrell Williams perform on stage.

Winners at the Brit Awards awards British Male Solo Artist David Bowie British Female Solo Artist Ellie Goulding British Breakthrough Act Bastille British Group Arctic Monkeys British Single Rudimental ft Ella Eyre-”Waiting All Night” British band Arctic Monkeys accept the Best Album of the Year award.

British video One Direction-”Best Song Ever” British Album of the Year Arctic Monkeys-”AM” Nile Rodgers accepts the award for International Group on behalf of Daft Punk.

International Male Solo Artist: Bruno Mars British singer-songwriter Ellie Goulding.

International Female Solo Artist Lorde International Group Daft Punk Critics’ Choice Sam Smith British producer Flood and Alan Moulder. —AFP

Australian singer and actress Kylie Minogue poses with her actress and singer sister Dannii Minogue.

US singer Katy Perry performs on stage.

Bruno Mars seen on stage after winning the award for International Male Solo Artist.

Beyonce performs on stage.

Lifestyle FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2014

Fendi deploys catwalk drones in fashion first

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British model Cara Delevingne presents a creation for fashion house Fendi as part of the Milan fashion week autumn/winter 2014 collections yesterday. — AP/AFP

talian luxury brand Fendi deployed three drones to film its catwalk show at Milan Fashion Week yesterday-a first for the fashion world that divided spectators.

The drones whirred ominously overhead in the closed showroom as Karl Lagerfeld’s collection flowed along the runway, with the models seemingly unfazed by the new technology. The drones “allow us to be pioneers once again and project ourselves into the future”, said Pietro Beccari, chairman of Fendi, which is owned by French luxury giant LVMH. Beccari said the drone footage, which was streamed live on Fendi’s website and on social media, would “give our fans a chance to see the show like it has never been seen”. The military technology of drones seemed oddly appropriate for a collection that looked back to the wartime 1940s-with a green-and-brown colour palette, fur shoulder wraps and anklelength trench coats. Yurata, a fashion editor from InStyle magazine in Moscow, said she liked the drones.

“It’s very futuristic. Nobody does this!” she gushed, saying the show was “spectacular”. But Kai Margrander, fashion director at Glamour magazine in Germany, said he had been “irritated” by the flying contraptions. “I’m from Germany. We’re very suspicious of things like that from our past with the Nazis and the Stasi in the East,” he said.

“All this filming and listening, I don’t like it at all and I didn’t like it at the show.” — AFP

Lifestyle FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2014

Gucci

Swinging ’60s opens hopeful Milan fashion week

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ucci opened Milan Fashion Week on Wednesday with a homage to the ‘60s as the new chief executive of Italy’s fashion chamber told AFP the sector had finally “turned the corner”. Models in pastelcolored mini dresses, soft furs and python

boots paraded down the catwalk in what Gucci creative director Frida Giannini called “glamour at its purest”. Gucci said the designs were a tribute to “inspirational ‘60s style icons”, with embroidered cocktail dresses, thigh-length trenchcoats and plenty of leather.

“I am trying more and more to get away from a sexy style to emphasize a romantic sensuality. Women have to like themselves above all,” Giannini said after the show. The collection kicks off six days of ready-to-wear designs in Italy’s business hub, where hopes are high for a recovery this year in a sector that has been hit by recession. “We’ve turned the corner,” Jane Reeve, the British chief executive of the National Chamber of Italian Fashion, who took up the post in January, told AFP in an interview.

“The fashion system has every right to think they will be in the forefront of recovery.” Reeve said the Chamber was forecasting a 5.4-percent rise in turnover for the fashion sector as a whole this year after drops of 5.4 percent in 2012 and 1.8 percent in 2013. She said she was planning to inject “energy, entertainment and a bit more glamour” in future fashion weeks to reflect the resurgent economic vibrancy of the sector.

“The style that Italians have is very hard to match,” said Reeve, a former top advertising executive who has lived in Italy for 26 years.

As she lunched with a risotto in a hotel restaurant in central Milan before the Gucci show, Reeve said her interest in Italian fash-

ion began at a young age when she dreamt of importing Italian shoes to Britain. “I’ve always had a shoe fetish!” she laughed. The catwalks continued with a show by Frankie Morello-a chaste collection featuring models in chains with crosses and an array of youthful blue and pink pastel dresses.

Alberta Ferretti, who will be a judge on the first Italian edition of the hit reality TV show “Project Runway” starting this month, went for a more naturalistic look. The collection was something between earthy and ethereal, featuring peacock feather colors, dragonfly motifs and rough brown dresses that looked like tree trunks.

‘Tip of fashion iceberg’ At a party hosted by Vogue Italia on Wednesday night, big names like Donatella Versace rubbed shoulders with up-and-coming designers showing off and selling their work. Franca Sozzani, the editor of Vogue Italia, which organized the event, said one of the distinguishing characteristics of Milan fashion week was that it was giving more and more room for young designers to flourish. “Milan has the highest concentration of brands in the world and gives a lot of space to young people,” she told AFP as she toured displays of young designers’ work with famed and feared Vogue US editor Anna Wintour — AFP

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2014

Kuwait

SHARQIA-1 POMPEII (DIG) THE MONUMENTS MEN (DIG) POMPEII (DIG) THE MONUMENTS MEN (DIG) POMPEII (DIG) POMPEII (DIG) NO SUN SHARQIA-2 OGGY AND THE COCKROACHES: THE MOVIE (DIG) OGGY AND THE COCKROACHES: THE MOVIE (DIG) 3 DAYS TO KILL (DIG) 3 DAYS TO KILL (DIG) ROBOCOP (DIG) 3 DAYS TO KILL (DIG) NO SUN SHARQIA-3 PATRICK (DIG) PATRICK (DIG) PATRICK (DIG) PATRICK (DIG) CODE RED (DIG) PATRICK (DIG) PATRICK (DIG) NO SUN MUHALAB-1 OGGY AND THE COCKROACHES: THE MOVIE (DIG) OGGY AND THE COCKROACHES: THE MOVIE (DIG) 3 DAYS TO KILL (DIG) KHOUTAT GIMI (DIG) 3 DAYS TO KILL (DIG) MUHALAB-2 WINTER’S TALE (DIG) PATRICK (DIG) CODE RED (DIG) PATRICK (DIG) PATRICK (DIG) MUHALAB-3 THE LEGO MOVIE (DIG) POMPEII (DIG-3D) ROBOCOP (DIG) POMPEII (DIG-3D) POMPEII (DIG-3D) FANAR-1 PATRICK (DIG) WINTER’S TALE (DIG) PATRICK (DIG) WINTER’S TALE (DIG) PATRICK (DIG) PATRICK (DIG) PATRICK (DIG) NO SUN FANAR-2 3 DAYS TO KILL (DIG) KHOUTAT GIMI I?E ???? (DIG) 3 DAYS TO KILL (DIG) 3 DAYS TO KILL (DIG) KHOUTAT GIMI I?E ???? (DIG) 3 DAYS TO KILL (DIG) NO SUN FANAR-3 ROBOCOP (DIG) ROBOCOP (DIG) GUNDAY (DIG) (HINDI) AMERICAN HUSTLE (DIG) ROBOCOP (DIG) NO SUN FANAR-4 OGGY AND THE COCKROACHES: THE MOVIE (DIG) THE LEGO MOVIE (DIG-3D) OGGY AND THE COCKROACHES: THE MOVIE (DIG) POMPEII (DIG) POMPEII (DIG) POMPEII (DIG) NO SUN FANAR-5 THE MONUMENTS MEN (DIG) CODE RED (DIG) THE MONUMENTS MEN (DIG) CODE RED (DIG) THE MONUMENTS MEN (DIG) THE MONUMENTS MEN (DIG)

KNCC PROGRAMME FROM THURSDAY TO WEDNESDAY (20/02/2014 TO 26/02/2014) NO SUN

12:30 PM 2:45 PM 5:00 PM 7:15 PM 9:45 PM 12:05 AM

2:00 PM 4:00 PM 5:45 PM 8:00 PM 10:15 PM 12:45 AM

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MARINA-1 OGGY AND THE COCKROACHES: THE MOVIE (DIG) OGGY AND THE COCKROACHES: THE MOVIE (DIG) 3 DAYS TO KILL (DIG) CODE RED (DIG) 3 DAYS TO KILL (DIG) 3 DAYS TO KILL (DIG) NO SUN a MARINA-2 PATRICK (DIG) ROBOCOP (DIG) AMERICAN HUSTLE (DIG) PATRICK (DIG) PATRICK (DIG) PATRICK (DIG) NO SUN MARINA-3 POMPEII (DIG-3D) WINTER’S TALE (DIG) POMPEII (DIG-3D) KHOUTAT GIMI (DIG) POMPEII (DIG-3D) POMPEII (DIG-3D) NO SUN AVENUES-1 OGGY AND THE COCKROACHES: THE MOVIE (DIG) OGGY AND THE COCKROACHES: THE MOVIE (DIG) OGGY AND THE COCKROACHES: THE MOVIE (DIG) OGGY AND THE COCKROACHES: THE MOVIE (DIG) AMERICAN HUSTLE (DIG) AMERICAN HUSTLE (DIG) NO SUN AVENUES-2 ROBOCOP (DIG) CODE RED (DIG) ROBOCOP (DIG) ROBOCOP (DIG) ROBOCOP (DIG) NO SUN

1:45 PM 3:30 PM 5:30 PM 7:45 PM 9:45 PM 12:05 AM

AL-KOUT.1 OGGY AND THE COCKROACHES: THE MOVIE (DIG) OGGY AND THE COCKROACHES: THE MOVIE (DIG) POMPEII (DIG) OGGY AND THE COCKROACHES: THE MOVIE (DIG) POMPEII (DIG) POMPEII (DIG) POMPEII (DIG) NO SUN

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AL-KOUT.2 PATRICK (DIG) PATRICK (DIG) PATRICK (DIG) KHOUTAT GIMI (DIG) PATRICK (DIG) PATRICK (DIG) NO SUN

1:45 PM 3:45 PM 5:45 PM 7:45 PM 9:45 PM 11:45 PM

1:00 PM 3:30 PM 5:45 PM 8:00 PM 10:15 PM 12:30 AM

AL-KOUT.3 THE LEGO MOVIE (DIG) THE MONUMENTS MEN (DIG) ROBOCOP (DIG) THE MONUMENTS MEN (DIG) THE MONUMENTS MEN (DIG) ROBOCOP (DIG) NO SUN

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AL-KOUT.4 3 DAYS TO KILL (DIG) 3 DAYS TO KILL (DIG) 3 DAYS TO KILL (DIG) 3 DAYS TO KILL (DIG) CODE RED (DIG) 3 DAYS TO KILL (DIG) NO SUN

1:00 PM 3:15 PM 5:30 PM 8:00 PM 10:15 PM 12:15 AM

BAIRAQ-1 POMPEII (DIG-3D) POMPEII (DIG-3D) THE LEGO MOVIE (DIG-3D) POMPEII (DIG-3D) POMPEII (DIG-3D) POMPEII (DIG-3D) NO SUN

12:30 PM 2:45 PM 5:00 PM 7:15 PM 9:30 PM 11:45 PM

BAIRAQ-2 OGGY AND THE COCKROACHES: THE MOVIE (DIG) OGGY AND THE COCKROACHES: THE MOVIE (DIG) PATRICK (DIG) PATRICK (DIG) PATRICK (DIG) PATRICK (DIG) NO SUN

AVENUES-3 3 DAYS TO KILL (DIG) 3 DAYS TO KILL (DIG) 3 DAYS TO KILL (DIG) 3 DAYS TO KILL (DIG) 3 DAYS TO KILL (DIG) NO SUN

2:15 PM 4:45 PM 7:15 PM 9:45 PM 12:15 AM

AVENUES-4 3 DAYS TO KILL (DIG) PATRICK (DIG) 3 DAYS TO KILL (DIG) PATRICK (DIG) 3 DAYS TO KILL (DIG) PATRICK (DIG) NO SUN

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BAIRAQ-3 3 DAYS TO KILL (DIG) 3 DAYS TO KILL (DIG) 3 DAYS TO KILL (DIG) KHOUTAT GIMI (DIG) 3 DAYS TO KILL (DIG) 3 DAYS TO KILL (DIG) NO SUN

360º- 1 PATRICK (DIG) PATRICK (DIG) PATRICK (DIG) PATRICK (DIG) PATRICK (DIG) PATRICK (DIG) NO SUN

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PLAZA GUNDAY (DIG) (HINDI) POMPEII (DIG) 3 DAYS TO KILL (DIG)

5:30 PM 8:30 PM 10:45 PM

360º- 2 AMERICAN HUSTLE (DIG) AMERICAN HUSTLE (DIG) LONE SURVIVOR (DIG) AMERICAN HUSTLE (DIG) AMERICAN HUSTLE (DIG) NO SUN

LAILA 3 DAYS TO KILL (DIG) PATRICK (DIG) POMPEII (DIG)

6:00 PM 8:30 PM 10:30 PM

2:30 PM 5:00 PM 7:30 PM 10:15 PM 12:45 AM

AJIAL.1 BRAHMAN (DIG) (TAMIL) BRAHMAN (DIG) (TAMIL)

7:00 PM 10:00 PM

AJIAL.2 AAHA KALYANAM (DIG) (TAMIL) AAHA KALYANAM (DIG) (TAMIL)

6:00 PM 9:00 PM

AJIAL.3 HIGHWAY (DIG) (HINDI) HIGHWAY (DIG) (HINDI)

5:30 PM 8:30 PM

360º- 3 OGGY AND THE COCKROACHES: THE MOVIE (DIG) OGGY AND THE COCKROACHES: THE MOVIE (DIG) OGGY AND THE COCKROACHES: THE MOVIE (DIG) OGGY AND THE COCKROACHES: THE MOVIE (DIG) PATRICK (DIG) PATRICK (DIG) NO SUN

2:00 PM 4:00 PM 6:00 PM 8:00 PM 10:00 PM 12:15 AM

AJIAL.4 GUNDAY (DIG) (HINDI) NO FRI TELIKEDA BOLLI (TULU) (DIG) FRI GUNDAY (DIG) (HINDI)

2:15 PM 4:15 PM 6:15 PM 8:15 PM 10:15 PM 12:15 AM

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FOR SALE Hyundai Azera 2008. Full options, sun roof, navigation, leather seats. KD. 2500/negotiable. Call: 65860200 Toyota Yaris, model 2013, mileage 3,500 white exterior, price KD 2,550. Phone: 99240654. (C 4649) 19-2-2014 Nissan Pathfinder 2003 model, good condition. Call 97277135.

Cooker with bottle and regulator, washing machine, tumble dryer condenser, microwave mirror four door wardrobe, queen size bed mattress as new, sofa and lounge chairs coffee tables, desk and office chair TV 42” LCD dining table and four chairs side board bookcase, chopping block mobile. Ph: 94400865. (C 4647) 18-2-2014 Mitsubishi Galant 2011, silver color, excellent condition, KD 2200. Mob: 66729295. (C 4644) Mitsubishi Lancer Ex 2013, white color, full options, km 19000, KD 2750. Tel: 50994848. (C 4645) 16-2-2014 CHANGE OF NAME I, Mundayadankandy Puthiya Purayil Jaseel, holder of Indian Passport No. F9952543 residing at Kadeeja Manzil IX 223, Haji Metta, P.O. Kanhirode, VIA Koodali, Kannur, Kerala - 670592, hereby change my name to Jaseel Ebrahim.

17-2-2014

ACCOMMODATION Sharing accommodation available for Pakistani bachelor in 2B/bath apartment in Khaitan, rent KD 90. Contact: 96618664.

(C 4648) 18-2-2014 Sharing accommodation flat with African family, 1 room + special bathroom, price KD 100, Abu Alifah. 66971502.

(C 4642) 16-2-2014 SITUATION WANTED IT-Engineer young and energetic with bachelors degree in electronics & telecommunication, passed in first class (honors), and holding Master Degree in Business Administration, having working experience in India and abroad, holding Kuwait residence is looking for suitable employment. Contact: 96681344. (C 4643) 17-2-2014 MATRIMONIAL Pakistani Punjabi speaking male belonging to landlord family aged 25 executive in family business (engineering services co) needs compatriot up to 23 living in Kuwait.

Email: zaidiformerdiplomat@hotmail.com

Fintas PO Box 1476 Code 51015. (C 4641) 16-4-2014 SITUATION VACANT Cook for Kuwaiti family, familiar with local dishes, preferably if knows to read English, transferable residence. 97577377. (C 4646)

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

05:03 06:22 12:02 15:16 17:42 18:59

39

Te c h n o l o g y FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2014

Say goodbye to bad photos 10 tips to click the best selfies

W

hat can we say, sometimes a selfie is kind of necessary! We asked fashion experts, photogs, hairstylists and regular Instagrammers alike to spill their top tips for looking super hot in a selfie. And boy, did we learn some good, good stuff!

1. Pump up the volume Who knew big hair could be so crucial?

“Oftentimes, because images are flat, what works in real life requires a little tweaking for the camera,” explains celebrity hairstylist and Creative Director at Assembly Salon in LA, Jacqueline Bush. “Your hair needs more volume both up top and around the sides, as photos tend to shrink it.” For blondies, updos work great, highlighting the texture in your mane.

Brunettes, on the other hand, should focus on achieving shiny, sleek strands, she advises.

2. Download the Camera+ App According to Dr Arleen K. Lamba, Medical Director of Blush Med Institute, the art of snapping an awesome selfie really involves knowing your good side. But in case you’re clueless, one way to capture your best Kodak moment is to first download the Camera+ app. “For only 99 cents, it allows you to brighten and clarify your skin, and make that hot pink pout shine even brighter.”

3. Use a filter for goodness sake If you’re looking like you’re about to keel over and die or haven’t slept in weeks, New York-based PR pro Stephen Wright highly recommends selecting an extreme filter, such as Inkwell or Willow, in Instagram to wash out those lines and dark circles from your complexion. Voila, beautiful!

4. Take your phone cover off Turns out, doing this can have a major impact (in a positive way, of course) on your

photo quality. “You’d be surprised at the difference in clarity with and without a cover,” divulges Julia Jacobson, Founder of fashion marketplace NMRKT. “Although there’s a hole in the cover for your camera lens, it catches the camera focus in the periphery, causing the image to be slightly less clear. It’s like night and day when I take my cover off and just shoot with the phone itself,” she says.

5. Do as the models do Kojenwa Moitt, CEO at Zebra Public Relations, suggests simply following the lead of models: “Hold your phone high above your head and away from you at a 45 degree angle so that you look slim and trim in your selfie.”

6. Let there be light Want your selfie to seriously shine? Then step outside! “Early morning or late afternoon is the ideal time for lighting,” reveals seasoned Instagrammer and Social Media Account Manager at /excelamktg, Dara Minchew. Also, don’t reverse the camera on your phone so that you can see yourself, she warns. “It lowers the quality of your photo.”

7. Get your angles right First things first, experiment in front of the mirror to determine which angles are most pleasing for your face, advises photog to the stars Matthew Rolston. “The majority of people look best when their face is tilted at a slight angle to the camera, as opposed to straight on,” he adds. “If your nose curves to the left, favor the left side of your face, otherwise, the curve of your nose may be greatly exaggerated. If emotional engagement is what you’re seeking, the best eye line is directly to the lens.”

8. Don’t copy a Kardashian face Unless you’re actually a Kardashian. “I’ve

tried, and I’ve yet to look like them,” proclaims5W PR girl Elise Levyn. “The gaze and puckered lip thing is really hard to achieve.”

But hey, we guess practice makes perfect, right?

9. Slow and steady captures the selfie Style Expert Lindsi Lane urges amateurs to go slow and concentrate on positioning. “Continually pushing the capture button only results in blurry photos and can cause you to accidently autofocus on

Think after you click, too W

hile it’s important to “think before you click” or be wary before you post anything on social media, you should also “think after you click” your camera. Many people just snap away, not thinking carefully if the photos they post will have repercussions on their personal and professional life. According to an article on the Daily News, posting too many selfies can damage one’s personal relationships.

Citing a study by lead researcher Dr David Houghton, the Daily News said, “That selfie habit of yours could be damaging your closest relationships. People who post a lot of photos on Facebook and other social networks run the risk of alienating friends, family members and colleagues, leading to less supportive bonds, a team of UK researchers found.”

An article on CNet says posting too many photos of yourself on Facebook implies that you’re a “weird person.” Citing a study conducted by three British universities-the University of Birmingham, University West of England, and the University of Edinburghthe report said frequent Facebook photoposters “risk damaging real-life relation-

ships.” The study, called Tagger’s Delight, said those who posted selfies frequently exhibited a decrease in intimacy with their loved ones. Jess Weiner, Global Self-Esteem Ambassador for Dove and a social messaging strategist, said selfies can affect one’s self-esteem. “The pressure to be cameraready can elevate self-esteem issues, with the pressure of commenting on posts and with the rise of social media. It has a more competitive aspect, and that can really put the pressure on.”

An article on Business News Daily said posting inappropriate photos can ruin one’s career. Chris Dessi, founder and CEO of social media marketing firm Silverback Social, gave a practical tip on determining if the photo you posted is inappropriate or not: Think of your parents.

“If you are not comfortable with your mom or dad seeing it, get rid of it,” he suggested. Posting photos that may be deemed as “too sexy” may cost a person his job. In the US, New York guidance counsellor Tiffani Webb, who also hosts an internet program called “Girl Talk NYC” was fired from her job in 2012 after posting photos of herself as a

scantily-clad model.

Last year, 26-year-old firefighter Clare Deloughrey was fired after posting topless photos of herself in the shower.

But if you must insist Despite the backlash, it seems the habit of posting selfies will be around for some time. The key is learning how to post prudently. Do not overwhelm your Facebook friends or Twitter followers with too many photos of yourself. How do you feel when you see others posting selfies? They might feel the same way when you post your pictures. For those who want to look good in their selfies, professional photographer Riz Pulumbarit, who’s been in the business for 25 years, said, “In having your photos taken, even for selfies, you first have to prepare yourself by checking yourself in the mirrorlook for unwieldy hair strands, beads of sweat, uneven make-up, creased shirt, etc.”

“You can even rehearse your smile and pose in front of the mirror,” he added. For group photos with family and friends, Riz suggested, “have a formal photo first. You can smile but avoid funny gestures.”

something else in the shot.”

10. Have fun Let’s be real, you’ll never find another model who will have as much patience with their photographer as you when you snap a self portrait, says author of SnApp Shots Adam Bronkhorst. “So take your time, explore all the possibilities within the photo and be as creative as you can.” After all, selfies are supposed to be fun! www.thefashionspot.com

Stars

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2014

Aries (March 21-April 19)

The day may be temporarily plagued by scandal of some sort, Aries. Some of your entourage, particularly women, may gather in conspiratorial gossip. Your curiosity will definitely be aroused, but don't be tempted to join them. There is more to the situation than meets the eye, and you'll want to know all the facts before jumping to conclusions. Concentrate on your own interests and worry about the scandal later!

Taurus (April 20-May 20)

You’re intuitive by nature, Taurus, but today you’re likely to have a rush of psychic premonitions. Insights into your own character could bring old traumas to the surface so you can release them. Your dreams could be especially vivid and rather disconcerting, although not in a negative way. Write them down. Your aesthetic sense is also very high. Don't be surprised if you discover that you're rather partial to Impressionist art!

Gemini (May 21-June 20)

Sex and romance are very much on your mind today, Gemini.

You’re feeling especially passionate, and your emotions are rich and deep. At times like this you’re likely to want to concentrate on your own pleasure, yet it’s important to be sensitive to your partner as well. Racy novels and movies could be especially appealing, and you might toy with the idea of shopping at Victoria's Secret. Go for it!

Cancer (June 21-July 22)

A family member could be feeling a little down, Cancer, and you may be tempted to give him or her a pep talk to get them going again. Don't. They won't respond to it, and this could create tension in the home. Your own self-confidence is probably at an all-time low. You tend to be your own worst critic in the best of times, but today you're a bit confused. Try to be fair to everyone around you, especially yourself.

Leo (July 23-August 22)

Too much exposure to books, newspapers, and computers today could produce eyestrain headaches, Leo, so try to exercise a little caution when working with small print or computer text. Thoughts of love and romance could interfere with your ability to do your work effectively. You may be tempted to spend most of your time on the phone. We all have days like this, so don't fight it. Just make sure you're feeling great when the evening rolls around!

Virgo (August 23-September 22)

By nature you’re a master psychologist, Virgo and you don't need to know someone well to accurately assess his or her thoughts and motives. Today this ability goes far beyond psychology and borders on the psychic. People's feelings may jump out at you. Reading newspaper headlines gives you uncanny ideas about the future. You could also experience some intense and vivid dreams. Make a careful record of the symbols in your dreams. You’ll be surprised at what they tell you.

COUNTRY CODES Libra (September 23-October 22)

Your internal fire may be feeling a bit smothered by a fierce reality check today, Libra. Give people the benefit of the doubt.

They are more perceptive than you may think. In fact, it may behoove you to get some honest feedback today from some people you trust. It could be difficult for you to sort out the truth in your present situation, since you’re the one caught in the middle of the maelstrom. Consider the perspective of another.

Scorpio (October 23-November 21)

Emotional issues rooted in the past could leave you feeling inhibited today, Scorpio. You might also be a bit more touchy than usual and see insult where none is intended. Curb the impulse to take offense. Try to confront and release the old issues or at least promise yourself you'll deal with them later.

Then be very sweet to your entourage. You should be feeling more positive by day's end.

Sagittarius (November 22-December 21)

Friction or other trouble on the job could cause you to want to quit, Sagittarius, but worries about money might keep you from doing it. You definitely need to reassess your situation.

Perhaps a change of position is just what you need now. You may have untapped talents that could make you more marketable, and you might also want to train those talents. Think about this! And if you really think you want a change, go for it.

Capricorn (December 22-January 19) Your self-confidence could well be in the pits today, Capricorn. Mistakes from the past could come back to haunt you, and you may be momentarily overcome by the fear that you'll make similar errors again. Force yourself to be objective before you drive yourself crazy. It could cause you some unnecessary problems. Try to realize that you’re unique and that you have skills and talents that set you apart from everyone.

Aquarius (January 20- February 18)

Generally, you tend to be a very physically oriented person, Aquarius, but today you’re more likely to want to look within, perhaps to experiment with your own psychic abilities or study spiritual concepts. You also might find yourself more interested than usual in the arts, particularly that which comes from other cultures. You'll be far more contemplative today than usual. It might prove enlightening to write down your thoughts.

Pisces (February 19-March 20)

Someone you work with might need a sympathetic shoulder to cry on today, Pisces. Stresses on the job extend beyond everyone's capacity to endure, so don't be surprised if at some point a colleague sheds a few tears. You might find your patience pushed beyond its normal limits. On days like this it's best to work as quickly as you can, stay focused, and go for a drink after you leave work.

Then have a nice walk home!

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

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

L e i s u re

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2014

Word Search

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

Chalenge Puzzle Challenging Mazes My MrazyMadM MooM M

Maze MM

ACROSS 1. (Roman mythology) Goddess of abundance and fertility.

4. Of or relating to a cancroid n.

12. The compass point that is one point south of due east.

15. Committee formed by a special-interest group to raise money for their favorite political candidates.

16. Any customary and rightful perquisite appropriate to your station in life.

17. Resinlike substance secreted by certain lac insects.

18. (Greek mythology) Greek god of darkness who dwelt in the underworld.

20. A Nilotic language.

21. A master's degree in business.

22. Brightly colored carnivorous fish of western Atlantic and West Indies waters.

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

26. The blood group whose red cells carry both the A and B antigens.

27. Being one more than one hundred.

28. A youth subculture (mostly from the middle class) originating in San Francisco in the 1960s.

31. A soiled or discolored appearance.

34. A flat wing-shaped process or winglike part of an organism.

37. A prosthesis that replaces a missing leg.

39. A person who eats human flesh.

43. The upper angle between an axis and an offshoot such as a branch or leafstalk.

44. Angular distance above the horizon (especially of a celestial object).

46. City in central Iran.

47. A genus of Scolopacidae.

50. Being one more than one.

51. Injured by bites or stings.

52. The compass point midway between northeast and east.

53. A woman hired to suckle a child of someone else.

57. (informal) Exceptionally good.

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

60. English aristocrat who was the first wife of Prince Charles.

63. Of a pale purple color.

67. (law) The party to whom something is assigned (e.g., someone to whom a right or property is legally transferred).

69. A state in New England.

70. The (prehensile) extremity of the superior limb.

72. Type genus of the Clupeidae.

73. A family of Sino-Tibetan languages spoken in southeastern Asia.

76. Any of various coarse shrubby plants of the genus Iva with small greenish flowers.

77. Wrap us in a cerecloth, as of a corpse.

78. An entire system.

80. A Chadic language spoken in northern Nigeria.

81. Essential oil or perfume obtained from flowers.

82. (of tempo) Moderately slow n.

83. Brief episode in which the brain gets insufficient blood supply.

Daily SuDoku

DOWN 1. An organization of countries formed in 1961 to agree on a common policy for the sale of petroleum.

2. (obstetrics) The number of live-born children a woman has delivered.

3. The universal time coordinated time on board the spacecraft.

4. (botany) Producing a well-developed stem above ground.

5. (Akkadian) Father of the gods and consort of Tiamat.

6. A radioactive transuranic metallic element.

7. A medieval hood of mail suspended from a basinet to protect the head and neck.

8. A nucleic acid that transmits genetic information from DNA to the cytoplasm.

9. A fertile tract in a desert (where the water table approaches the surface).

10. One of the most common of the five major classes of immunoglobulins.

11. Make or become free of frost or ice.

12. Any of various trees of the genus Ulmus.

13. A small cake leavened with yeast.

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

19. Aerobic rod-shaped spore-producing bacterium.

23. The federal agency that insures residential mortgages.

25. (botany) Relating to a plant of the family Araceae.

29. Large burrowing rodent of South and Central America.

30. One of the bottle-shaped pins used in bowling.

32. Of or relating to or characteristic of Texas or its residents.

33. Moving quickly and lightly.

35. Any of various fissiped mammals with nonretractile claws and typically long muzzles.

36. Resembling or containing slate.

38. Anything that provides inspiration for later work.

40. A very poisonous metallic element that has three allotropic forms.

41. The basic unit of money in Nigeria.

42. An imaginary elephant that appears in a series of French books for children.

45. At risk of or subject to experiencing something usually unpleasant.

48. The occurrence of a change for the worse.

49. Uttered in a shrill scream as of pain or terror.

54. Of or relating to or characteristic of Uganda or its people.

55. (used of count nouns) Every one considered individually.

56. A marksman who shoots at people from a concealed place.

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

61. A small island.

62. Earlier a god.

64. A repetitive song in which as many syllables as necessary are assigned to a single tone v 1.

65. A brief stanza concluding certain forms of poetry.

66. A city in southern Turkey on the Seyhan River.

68. An independent agency of the United States government responsible for aviation and spaceflight.

71. Channel into a new direction.

74. A loose sleeveless outer garment made from aba cloth.

75. One of the five major classes of immunoglobulins.

79. A colorless explosive liquid that is volatile and poisonous and foul-smelling.

Yesterdayʼs Solution

Yesterday’s Solution

Sports FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2014

Ireland stun World T20 champions West Indies KINGSTON: Ireland added to their list of giantkilling victories with a six-wicket win over World Twenty20 champions West Indies in the first T20 international at Jamaica’s Sabina Park on Wednesday. It was at the Kingston venue where Ireland dramatically defeated Pakistan in a St Patrick’s Day 50-over World Cup match back in 2007. And seven years on from that success, Ireland-the leading non-Test cricket nation-upset one of the sport’s ‘big boys’ once again, with former England batsman Ed Joyce making a decisive 40 not out. After the West Indies won the toss and batted, a good all-round Ireland effort in the field saw the hosts restricted to 116 for eight in their 20 overs. Tim Murtagh, Alex Cusack and Kevin O’Brien took two wickets apiece, with Cusack capturing the prize scalp of dangerman Chris Gayle for a meagre innings top score of 18. Ireland, coached by former West Indies batsman Phil Simmons, collapsed to eight for two in reply, losing both openers cheaply, before Joyce, the captain of English county side Sussex, and Andrew Poynter steadied the innings.

Joyce’s runs came off 49 balls, and it was left to Kevin O’Brien-just one of two survivors from the Ireland team that beat Pakistan at Sabina Park in 2007 - to hit the winning runs as the Irish finished on 117 for four with five balls to spare. “It was obviously brilliant,” said Joyce as Ireland took a 1-0 lead in the

two-match series ahead of Friday’s second T20 at Sabina Park and a stand alone 50-over one-day game there on Sunday. “It was a bit of a strange atmosphere but the nice thing is that we weren’t jumping around like we’d won the World Cup. Joyce said West Indies’ abundance of power hitters and some skilled bowlers led by spinner Sunil Narine made them “scary” opponents in this format. “They have a lot of power-Chris Gayle, Dwayne Smith opening up, and Marlon Samuels.

They also have the best Twenty20 bowler in the world in Narine.” Joyce, who helped Ireland recover from eight for two after both openers went cheaply, added: “They are a fairly scary team to play against but we know we’ve got a chance to beat anyone when we play well on our day.”

West Indies captain Darren Sammy said his men had been beaten by the “better team”. “Ireland played well and deserved their victory,” the allrounder added. “We were a bit rusty and they came hard at us and in the end were the better team on the day. “We can’t make any excuses....They bowled well against us and we just didn’t handle it as we should have.” Next month sees the West Indies defend their global title at the World Twenty20 in Bangladesh-a tournament where Ireland’s first match is a St Patrick’s Day clash against Zimbabwe on March 17. —AFP

SCOREBOARD KINGSTON: Scoreboard in the first Twenty20 international between the West Indies and Ireland at Sabina Park, Jamaica, on Wednesday: West Indies Dw. Smith c Sorensen b Murtagh 14 C. Gayle c Dockrell b Cusack 18 M. Samuels st Wilson b Dockrell 16 L. Simmons c Thompson b Cusack 16 Dw. Bravo c K O’Brien b Sorensen 8 A. Russell b Murtagh 15 D. Sammy b K O’Brien 7 D. Ramdin c Wilson b K O’Brien 4 S. Narine not out 6 S. Badree not out 3 Extras (lb2, w7) 9 Total (8 wkts, 20 overs) 116 Fall of wickets: 1-31 (Smith), 2-38 (Gayle), 358 (Samuels), 4-77 (Bravo), 5-79 (Simmons), 6-98 (Russell), 7-106 (Sammy), 8-107 (Ramdin) Did not bat: R Rampaul Bowling: Stirling 2-0-14-0; Sorensen 4-0-231; Murtagh 4-0-28-2 (4w); Cusack 4-0-17-2 (1w); K O’Brien 2-0-17-2; Dockrell 4-0-15-1

NFL - Dolphins sack 2 in wake of bullying report

Early Match Play exits for Poulter and Donald

MIAMI: The Miami Dolphins sacked an assistant coach and a physical trainer on Wednesday in response to a scathing report on bullying in the team’s locker room. Jim Turner, the coach in charge of offensive linemen, and head athletic trainer Kevin O’Neill were both relieved of their duties, the NFL team said in a statement. The move comes after a 144-page report by independent investigator Ted Wells found that offensive linemen Richie Incognito, John Jerry and Mike Pouncey directed intimidating behavior at teammate Jonathan Martin and others.

Martin left the team late last October and later claimed Incognito bullied him with threats of violence and voice mails that included racial slurs. “The language and behavior as described in the Ted Wells report are against the core values of our organization,” Dolphins owner Stephen Ross said. “After receiving the report, I conducted my own internal review of the facts to determine the appropriate steps for our organization.

“Jim Turner and Kevin O’Neill are good people who care a great deal about their profession and the players whom they serve, but both exhibited poor judgment at times which led me to this conclusion,” Ross said. The owner added that he had been in contact with Martin, and was also planning a partnership with the New York University School of Law on a “broader effort to address conduct in sports”. Dolphins head coach Joe Philbin also said the behavior by some of his players and staff as outlined in the Wells report was “disappointing and unacceptable”. “It is not possible for a team to accomplish its goals when the fundamental values of respect are violated,” Philbin said. “That ultimately rests on my shoulders and I will be accountable moving forward for making sure that we emphasize a team-first culture of respect towards one another.”

Ravens rusher Rice charged In another development, Baltimore Ravens running back Ray Rice, who helped his team win last year’s Super Bowl, faces assault charges from an alleged incident involving his fiancee in an Atlantic City casino.A copy of a New Jersey court summons for next week, obtained by Baltimore television station WJZ, showed that the three-time All-Pro rusher was charged with simple assault and domestic violence. The altercation with Janay Palmer in an elevator of the Revel Casino early last Saturday also saw Palmer charged with simple assault and domestic violence for allegedly hitting Rice. The court document stated that Rice had struck Palmer with his hand, rendering her unconscious. A surveillance video obtained by TMZ.com showed Rice, 27, dragging a motionless Palmer out of an elevator. Rice, who signed a fiveyear National Football League contract worth $35 million before the start of the 2012 season, struggled through the worst campaign of his career last season, running for 660 yards and averaging a career-low 3.1 yards a carry. In six NFL seasons, Rice has run for 6,180 yards and 37 touchdowns and caught 359 passes for 3,034 yards and six touchdowns.— Agencies

Ireland W. Porterfield lbw b Badree 4 P. Stirling c Russell b Rampaul 0 E. Joyce not out 40 G. Wilson b Badree 18 A. Poynter b Narine 32 K. O’Brien not out 15 Extras (lb5, w3) 8 Total (4 wkts, 19.1 overs) 117 Fall of wickets: 1-4 (Porterfield), 2-8 (Stirling), 3-37 (Wilson), 4-95 (Poynter) Did not bat: M Sorensen, S Thompson, A Cusack, T Murtagh, G Dockrell Bowling: Badree 4-0-18-2; Rampaul 3-0-24-1 (2w); Narine 4-0-16-1; Sammy 3-0-16-0; Samuels 1-0-7-0; Dw Bravo 3-0-210 (1w); A Russell 1.1-0-10-0 Result: Ireland won by six wickets Series: Ireland lead two-match series 1-0

ARIZONA: Ian Poulter of England lines up a putt during the first round of the World Golf Championships - Accenture Match Play Championship at The Golf Club at Dove Mountain on February 19, 2014. — AFP

ARIZONA: Unpredictability was again a recurring theme at the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship as former champions Ian Poulter and Luke Donald of England, and American Zach Johnson, were all eliminated in Wednesday’s first round. While American Jimmy Walker maintained his red-hot form this season with a commanding 5&4 win over South Africa’s Branden Grace, matchplay expert and 2010 winner Poulter was upset 2&1 by American Rickie Fowler in the 64-player event at Dove Mountain.

Donald, who clinched the 2011 title, was hammered 5&4 by Italy’s Matteo Manassero and world number six Johnson, the tournament’s third seed who is known for his gritty play, was stunned 5&4 by South Africa’s Richard Sterne. Long-hitting Dustin Johnson, who has triumphed once and been a runner-up twice in just four starts on the 2013-14 PGA Tour, also made an unexpected early exit, going down 4&3 to Swede Peter Hanson. In total, there were nine upsets based on seedings from the 32 matches at Dove Mountain as the elite World Golf Championships (WGC) event once again lived up to its reputation for wild uncertainty and sharp swings in fortune.

Fowler took advantage of a sub-par performance by Poulter, who is renowned for his steely matchplay prowess, especially in the Ryder Cup. “I knew it was going to be a tough match today, no matter if Poulter is not on his game,” Fowler told reporters.

“He wasn’t playing great, but I knew he was going to find a way to hang around.

“Obviously it feels good to get a win against him, against anyone. I’m excited for tomorrow.” Poulter, who succumbed to his third first-round exit in four years at Dove Mountain, wrote on Twitter: “Disappointed with my performance today do not deserve to move on.

Congrats to @RickieFowlerPGA.”—Reuters

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Sports FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2014

Venus destroys Pennetta, books Dubai Open semis DUBAI: Venus Williams continued to raise hopes of a return to the top echelons with her third straight sets win in a row and a place in the semi-finals of the Dubai Open yesterday. The seven-times former Grand Slam winner overcame Flavia Pennetta, the seed-destroying Italian, 6-4, 7-5 with a mixed performance which included a slow start and a tense finish but some typically powerful ground stroking during the guts of the match. It followed her rather more impressive conquests of Ana Ivanovic, the former world number one, and Elena Vesnina, the Russian she had never previously beaten, and increased Venus’ chances of regaining a title she captured last time she was here, five years ago.

However she failed to serve out for the match at 5-4 and then went love-40 down when she attempted to close it out at 6-5, and there were suggestions she might have been getting low on energy. “I was just thinking, god, what if she comes back and plays amazing,” said Venus, perhaps aware that a third set may not have unfolded in her favor.

“She’s very tenacious and has done unbelievable to get back from injury.”

Venus has done similarly. The 33-yearold American has already confounded predictions with her recent progress and is already certain to climb from outside the top 40 back up to the mid-thirties.

Asked how she had managed to get back from her illness and fitness problems, Venus said: “I pray and try a million different things all the time. “Serena has been extremely supportive and my family have changed their life style for me. It makes me feel better.” Asked if she looked forward to an all-Williams final, Venus replied: “That would be fantastic, but we both have to get there first.” An all-Williams final last happened five years ago in the WTA Championships in Doha when Serena won. Venus served consistently without being overwhelming, but often effectively when it mattered, saving 11 of the 15 break points against her.

She also hit a high ratio of groundstroking winners. The sunny conditions, she said, were a bit like playing in California, where she was raised. As Venus hinted, Pennetta did indeed look threatening late in the match, earning two break points at 3-4 in the second set, and became even more dangerous when she converted a break point to get back from 3-5 to 5-5. At that stage the Italian was striking the ball at least as well as the 33-year-old American, who appeared to be flagging and might have slipped into difficulties had she not rescued the final game from love-40.

But ultimately Pennetta, who on Wednesday had ousted the secondseeded Agnieszka Radwanska, could not this time find her best when it mattered most, allowing Venus, who may have been jaded after her late night doubles match with sister Serena Williams, to escape. Venus’ attempt to reach the final will pitch her against the winner of Caroline Wozniacki, the former world number one from Denmark, and Sorana Cirstea, the Rumanian who ousted the fourth-seeded Sara Errani. Meanwhile Serena, who had to save two set points in a difficult opening match against Elena Makarova, another Russian, was due for a quarter-final with Jelena Jankovic, the former world number one from Serbia.—AFP

Practice day crash tests Daytona safety measures DAYTONA BEACH: Spectator safety measures were put to the test at Daytona International Speedway on Wednesday when a seven-car accident ended opening Sprint Cup Series practice for the day ahead of Sunday’s Daytona 500 race. A car driven by rookie Parker Kligerman was sent into the catch fence, near the area of a multi-car accident last year in which more than 30 fans were injured, but thankfully this time the spectator area was not breached.

Wednesday’s accident, in which no one was injured, was apparently caused when Joey Logano and Matt Kenseth made contact in tight drafting practice, resulting in several vehicles being diverted sideways.

Kligerman bore the brunt of it as his vehicle rode up and over the car of Paul Menard before getting pushed from behind by Ryan Truex’s vehicle, then slid along the top of the outside wall and into the catch fence. “Turns out Joey was bump drafting the 20 (car of Kenseth) in the middle of the pack when we were trying to get up to speed,” Menard, who was among the fastest in qualifying practice, told reporters. “I guess that’s the end result.” Track president Joie Chitwood III told Reuters that the gate in the area of the accident had not been restored because there were an additional nine crossover gates at the venue.

“We did not put back in the one we lost after the accidents,” Chitwood said. “For us, we’re always going to look to be better. “It’s no different when we put in the SAFER barriers (fences designed to dissipate race car inertia).

Five years ago, we replaced all the fencing.”

Twelve months ago, the undercarriage of Kyle Larson’s race car flew through the fence and into the grandstands at the Daytona International Speedway during the Nationwide Series race, leaving more than 30 fans injured.

DUBAI: US’ Venus Williams serves the ball to Italy’s Flavia Pannetta during their quarterfinal match in the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships yesterday. — AFP

Ecclestone wins F1 case - but deal ruled corrupt LONDON: Formula 1 boss Bernie Ecclestone won a multimillion-dollar case at London’s High Court relating to the sale of F1 in 2005 yesterday but the judge nevertheless said it was a corrupt deal. A former F1 shareholder, German media company Constantin Medien, had sued Ecclestone and other defendants for up to $144 million, claiming F1 was undervalued at the time of the sale to investment group CVC Capital Partners. Ecclestone was accused of entering into a “corrupt agreement” with a banker to facilitate the sale of Formula One Group to a buyer chosen by him. Britain’s High Court ruled yesterday that the deal was corrupt, but said that Constantin Medien did not lose out as a result.

During the trial, which ran from October to December last year, Constantin Medien’s lawyers said that payments totaling about 27 million pounds ($45 million) were made to German banker

Gerhard Gribkowsky at the instigation of Ecclestone. Gribkowsky, who was in charge of selling German bank BayernLB’s 47-percent stake in F1 to CVC, has already been found guilty of corruption, tax evasion and breach of trust and is serving a 8 1/2-year prison sentence. Ecclestone acknowledged during Gribkowsky’s trial that he made the payment to avoid being reported by the banker to authorities over his tax affairs. “The payments were a bribe. They were made because Mr Ecclestone had entered into a corrupt agreement with Dr Gribkowsky in May 2005 under which Dr Gribkowsky was to be rewarded for facilitating the sale of BLB’s shares in the Formula One group to a buyer acceptable to Mr Ecclestone,” judge Guy Newey said in his conclusions. Ecclestone is also facing trial in Germany. The 83-year-old is charged with bribery and incitement to breach of trust connected with the payment to Gribkowsky. —AP

Hard look Crews worked through the night to repair the catch fence so the Daytona 500 race could go ahead as planned the following day, and officials have since implemented additional spectator safety measures. The 55-year old facility, which is owned by International Speedway Corporation, has undergone many levels of safety upgrades but racetrack safety has typically struggled to keep up with advances in racecar technology.

The crossover gate is simply a hole in the fence with a mesh wire door to allow spectators and officials to move back and forth from the grandstand into the infield. Before the race starts, the gate is closed and locked. Although high-speed crashes are inevitable on the high banks of the 2.5 mile superspeedway, the catch fence usually works and contains the highly modified stock car-looking racers which exceed speeds of 190mph on the track. Last year’s Nationwide Series race at Daytona International Speedway was the exception. “We made it a contiguous fence from post to post, we repaired the fence and worked till 2 am that morning to get ready for the 500,” Chitwood said about the repair measures hastily implemented after last year’s crash. The International Speedway Corporation later hired an engineering firm to suggest improvements to the mesh fence and cabling for the circuit to be ready for its second big event in July.—Reuters

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Sports FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2014

Timberwolves overpower Pacers 104-91 MINNEAPOLIS: Kevin Love had 42 points and 16 rebounds, Ricky Rubio added a career-high 17 assists, and the Minnesota Timberwolves beat Paul George and the Indiana Pacers 104-91 on Wednesday night.

JJ Barea scored 12 points off the bench as the Wolves took control early against the Eastern Conference leaders. George led Indiana with 35 points, but managed just two in the fourth quarter as the Pacers lost for the third time in five games, never once taking a lead. It was Love’s eighth straight game with at least 25 points and 10 rebounds, the longest streak since Shaquille O’Neal accomplished the same feat Jan 3-19, 2005. Love has an NBA-best 14 games with 30 points and 10 rebounds this season.

SPURS 111, TRAIL BLAZERS 109 Patty Mills came off the bench to score 29 points, Marco Belinelli hit a go-ahead 3pointer with 1:34 remaining and San Antonio defeated Portland in a game between short handed teams. Mills scored 24 points during the second half to lead the Spurs, who rested starters Tim Duncan and Tony Parker. Belinelli had 20 points and Manu Ginobili 16 for San Antonio, which also sat Kawhi Leonard with an injured right hand. Damian Lillard scored 31 points, Mo Williams added 19 points and Wesley Matthews had 18 for Portland, which played without LaMarcus Aldridge. The Trail Blazers’ leading scorer and rebounder is out with a groin injury. Both teams had six players score in double figures.

ROCKETS 134, LAKERS 108 Dwight Howard thoroughly enjoyed his visit to the team he left as a free agent after one tumultuous and contentious season, getting 20 points and 13 rebounds in a rout of Los Angeles that extended Houston’s winning streak to eight. The streak is Houston’s longest since a franchise-record, 22-game run in 2007-08 under Rick Adelman. James Harden scored 11 of his 29 points in the final 1:25 of the third quarter and added 11 assists. Wesley Johnson scored 24 points for Los Angeles, and Kendall Marshall had 20 points and 16 assists.

BULLS 94, RAPTORS 92 Carlos Boozer scored 20 points, D J Augustin had 19 against his former team and Chicago edged Toronto to win its fourth straight game. Kirk Hinrich scored 19 points, Jimmy Butler had 16 and Taj Gibson fouled out with 10 as the Bulls won for the fifth time in six games and halted Toronto’s winning streak at three. Joakim Noah had eight points and 13 assists for the Bulls.

DeMar DeRozan led the Raptors with 32 points but had a couple key misses at the end. Kyle Lowry fouled out with 16 points and seven assists. Augustin, waived by Toronto in December, hit two 3-pointers early in the third as Chicago took a 76-66 lead at 9:34.

WARRIORS 101, KINGS 92 David Lee had 23 points and 11 rebounds, Klay Thompson scored 18 points and Golden State held off Sacramento in a game both teams played short-handed.

Stephen Curry added 13 points and eight assists for the Warriors in the first game following the All-Star break for each team.

Golden State is 3-0 against Sacramento this

MINNEAPOLIS: Minnesota Timberwolves center Ronny Turiaf (right) is fouled by Indiana Pacers guard George Hill during the second period of their NBA basketball game on Wednesday, Feb 19, 2014. —AP

season. With both centers out with injuries and a shorter roster from trades each team made earlier in the day, the depth of the Warriors was just too much for the Kings to overcome. Isaiah Thomas had 26 points and seven assists, and Travis Outlaw scored 18 points for a Sacramento team that’s headed for an eighth straight losing season.

CAVALIERS 101, MAGIC 93 Kyrie Irving scored 22 points and Cleveland won its sixth straight by beating Orlando. Irving, chosen MVP of the NBA AllStar game Sunday, paced a balanced offense that extended the Cavaliers’ longest winning streak since they won eight in a row in March 2010. That was LeBron James’ final season in Cleveland.

Luol Deng scored 17 points, while Tyler Zeller and Tristan Thompson each added 16 for Cleveland. Arron Afflalo led Orlando with 23 points. The Magic have lost 14 consecutive road games and are an NBA-worst 3-25 away from home. The Cavaliers built an 18-point lead in the first quarter that was trimmed to two early in the fourth.

BOBCATS 116, PISTONS 98 Al Jefferson scored 29 points, Kemba Walker had 24 points and a career-high 16 assists, and Charlotte defeated Detroit for the second straight night. The win gave the Bobcats (25-30) a sweep of the three-game season series and a 21/2-game lead over the Pistons in the race for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.

It was Walker’s best all-around game since returning from a sprained ankle. Jefferson, who had 32 points, 12 rebounds and seven assists in Tuesday’s win at Detroit, went 12 of 20 from the field and grabbed eight

rebounds. He has scored at least 20 points in 16 of the last 18 games. Brandon Jennings had 20 points for Detroit before being ejected with 1:13 left after picking up his second technical foul. The Pistons have lost nine of 14.

NETS 105, JAZZ 99 Joe Johnson scored 27 points, Andray Blatche had 25 and Brooklyn beat the Jazz for the Nets’ first win in Utah since 2008.

Deron Williams added 19 points and seven assists. His 3-pointer with 2:11 remaining gave the Nets their largest lead of the game. Brooklyn snapped a three-game road losing skid. The surging Nets have won five of their last seven overall. Reserve guard Alec Burks led the Jazz with 23 points and Enes Kanter, starting in place of Derrick Favors (hip), had 18 points and 10 rebounds. But the Jazz wasted a 13-point, third-quarter lead and a chance to extend their winning streak to a season-best four games.

WIZARDS 114, HAWKS 97 ATLANTA: John Wall scored 21 points and Washington recovered to beat reeling Atlanta after almost blowing a 20-point lead.

Paul Millsap had 21 points and 11 rebounds, and Elton Brand, a fill-in starter at center, had 20 points and 11 boards for the Hawks, who have lost seven straight. Trevor Ariza and Bradley Beal each scored 19 for the Wizards, who snapped a three-game losing streak. Washington ended an 11-game skid in Atlanta, winning for the first time since Jan 11, 2008. The Hawks, who trailed by 20 in the first half, made a third-quarter charge to twice cut the deficit to one.

KNICKS 98, PELICANS 91 Carmelo Anthony capped a 42-point performance with three clutch baskets in the last two minutes, and New York snapped a three-game skid with a victory over New Orleans. A night after losing at Memphis, New York blew a 13-point, fourth-quarter lead before Anthony, coming off a 30-point outing in the All-Star game in the same arena Sunday, took over by hitting a pair of pull-up jumpers from the left side of the lane. He hit the first of them over Pelicans All-Star Anthony Davis, who blocked five shots in the game, and the second over Luke Babbitt. J R Smith had 19 points and Tim Hardaway Jr. added 16 for New York, which lost Iman Shumpert to a sprained left knee in the third quarter.

Tyson Chandler had 11 rebounds and a pair of blocks. Eric Gordon scored 28 for the Pelicans, but was shut out in the fourth quarter. Davis had 14 points and 10 rebounds.

SUNS 100, CELTICS 94 Markieff Morris scored 18 points to lead six Phoenix players in double figures against Boston. Goran Dragic and Gerald Green added 17 points apiece for the Suns.

Channing Frye scored 15, among them a crucial 3-pointer with 1:20 left. Markieff’s twin brother, Marcus, scored 10 of his 11 points in the second half, including a 32footer at the third-quarter buzzer. PJ Tucker had 10 points and 11 rebounds for the Suns, who took the lead for good with a 170 second-half run, then used free throws to hold off the Celtics at the end. Rajon Rondo had 18 points and 10 assists for the Celtics.

Brandon Bass also scored 18 and Jeff Green added 17.—AP

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Sports FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2014

Kaka showing flashes of the old magic MILAN: He may not quite have the explosive acceleration of old, yet Kaka showed against Atletico Madrid that the old magic is still there and he could play a role for Brazil at the World Cup if selected. The former World Player of the Year’s performance on Wednesday suggested that Brazil coach Luiz Felipe Scolari, who has not picked Kaka for a year, could give him a place in the squad, even if he is not a regular starter.

When Kaka returned to AC Milan in August after four unhappy years at Real Madrid, it was seen as something of a gamble by Milan and an attempt to win back fans who have seen a succession of big names leave the club in the last two years. A thigh sprain in his very first match added to the feeling that the 31year-old, plagued by a variety of nagging injuries during his time at Real Madrid, would spend most of his time in Milan’s already crowded treatment room.

Fortunately, it has not worked out that way at all. Despite being thrown into a team in transition and a club in disarray, Kaka has scored six goals and produced five assists in all competitions for Milan, who are Italy’s only survivors in the Champions League. If it were not for Atletico Madrid goalkeeper Thibault Courtois’s fingertips, television stations worldwide would have spent yesterday replaying a goal every bit as stunning as Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s effort against Bayer Leverkusen. In the 15th minute, Kaka spun onto Adel Taarabt’s pass in the corner of the penalty area and curled a leftfoot shot towards the top corner which Courtouis tipped onto the bar.

Vintage moments Playing just behind striker Mario Balotelli, Kaka always looked capable of unlocking an uncompromising Atletico defense and was close again with anoth-

er fine effort when he curled the ball onto the roof of the net from a difficult angle. There was another vintage moment on the hour when he collected a pass around 30 meters from goal, drifted effortlessly between two defenders and toe-poked the ball just wide from outside the penalty area. So far, it has not been enough to impress Scolari, who has not selected him since the friendlies against Italy and Russia in March last year.

Somewhat strangely, Scolari suggested that Kaka had not done enough defensive work against the Russians.

“Kaka’s performance was what we expected, but the most important that I wanted him to do was to come back and mark the Russian number eight, who was dictating the rhythm of the game,” Scolari said after the game. Brazil seemed to have little need for Kaka when they won the Confederations Cup

in June but since then, things have not gone so well for Scolari who has seen a number of attacking players suffer injury problems.

Neither the player nor Brazil have ruled out a last-minute recall, even though he was again overlooked for next month’s friendly against South Africa.

“I’m doing my utmost to make sure I don’t miss this event,” Kaka said on Monday. “We’ll see if I’m on the list in May.” “We consider all players, some more than others,” Scolari told reporters in Brazil on Wednesday, adding that he would not be pressured. “Everyone lobbies for one player or the other.” But with Brazil likely to face massed defenses in most games, having Kaka around on the bench could prove an invaluable option for Scolari, both for his experience, moment of inspiration and ability to carve out chances in the tightest of corners.— Reuters

Crisis club Fulham seek fresh start with Magath LONDON: Fulham will look to put a week of off-field drama behind them and focus on their bid to avoid relegation when they travel to fellow strugglers West Bromwich Albion in the Premier League tomorrow (1500 GMT). The west London club are bottom with 20 points, four off safety, and on Friday appointed German Felix Magath as their third manager this season following the dismissals of Martin Jol and Rene Meulensteen.

The club confirmed this week that assistant coach Ray Wilkins and technical director Alan Curbishley had been let go just weeks after they were appointed, while first team coaches Mick Priest and Jonathan Hill also joined the exodus of backroom staff from Craven Cottage. Fulham, ever-present in the Premier League since 2001, have picked up one point from their last six matches and have brought in Magath in the hope that the noted disciplinarian can arrest their slump.

“We’re going to get the full German experience from him and I definitely think he’ll help us achieve our goal of staying in the Premier League,” midfielder and fellow German Lewis Holtby said. Record signing Kostas Mitroglou could be in line for his debut after arriving from Greek champions Olympiakos Piraeus lacking match fitness. West Brom are outside the relegation zone on goal difference and, despite a creditable 1-1 draw with leaders Chelsea last time out, are without a win under new manager Pepe Mel. Manchester City will be licking their wounds from Tuesday’s Champions League defeat by Barcelona when they host Stoke City tomorrow (1500), their final outing before they meet Sunderland in the League Cup final on March 2. After picking up one point from their last two matches against Chelsea and Norwich, Manchester City will be desperate to rekindle their title charge. They are in third spot with 54 points, three off Chelsea and two behind Arsenal.

Stoke confident Stoke striker John Guidetti is unable to play as he is on loan from City but is confident his new team can cause an upset against his parent club. “The manager (Mark Hughes) has lots of experience, having played and scored many goals in this league, and he’s coached a lot in this league too so he knows how to get a result in these sort of games,” he told the club website (www.stokecityfc.com). Sunderland, who are battling for top-flight survival despite their cup form - which has also seen them reach the FA Cup quarter-finals - could move out of the relegation zone with a point against Arsenal tomorrow (1500). Chelsea will look to hold their advantage at the top when they host Everton (1245), themselves in need of victory to close the gap to fifth-placed Tottenham Hotspur. “We lost the last game in the FA Cup and we don’t want to lose two in a row. That would be bad,” striker Demba Ba told the club’s website (www.chelseafc.com), referring to tomorrow’s 2-0 defeat at Manchester City. “We are just going to do everything tomorrow because it’s important to get back to winning ways, it’s important for the title race and it’s important for our confidence.” — Reuters

MILAN: Atletico Madrid’s Brazilian forward Diego da Silva Costa (right) makes a bicycle kick during the Champions League match between AC Milan and Atletico Madrid, on February 19, 2014.— AFP

Barca, Atletico on a high after European success MADRID: Barcelona and Atletico Madrid wobbled in recent weeks but will be brimming with confidence when they return to La Liga action this weekend after rousing performances in the Champions League.

Barca, who won 2-0 at English Premier League side Manchester City and Atletico, who beat Italian club AC Milan 1-0 at the San Siro, are tied on 60 points with Real Madrid at the top of Spain’s domestic league with 14 matches remaining.

Real have to wait until next Wednesday before they play their Champions League last 16, first leg at Bundesliga side Schalke 04 and coach Carlo Ancelotti could rest a number of key performers for tomorrow’s visit of promoted Elche (1500 GMT). Barca play at Real Sociedad, who are sixth and targeting a European qualification berth, tomorrow (1900) and Atletico travel to Pamplona to take on Osasuna on Sunday (2000). Barca’s performance in Manchester helped refute any suggestions the Catalan

giants are a declining force, while Atletico’s gritty win in Milan was further evidence they are genuine challengers for domestic and European silverware.

Barca suffered a surprise La Liga reverse at home to Valencia at the start of the month and Atletico took over at the top before they stumbled at Almeria and the champions returned to the summit on goal difference. They thrashed Rayo Vallecano 6-0 at the Nou Camp last weekend and Barca goalkeeper Victor Valdes said the win at City had left the squad in a “very positive” frame of mind. “We won the ball back very quickly and the way the game turned out was very good for us,” Valdes, who has rejected a contract extension and is set to leave at the end of the season, told reporters.

“Barca is a rival you can never discount,” added the 32-year-old. “There has been a lot of talk about whether we are pressing our opponents in the same way as before

but what we all want is to go as far as we can.” One reason Barca appear to be back on track is the form of their Argentina forward Lionel Messi since he returned at the start of January after a two-month injury layoff. The four-times World Player of the Year has netted 11 times this calendar year, including six in his last four appearances, and has 25 in all competitions.

Real also look to be in fine form as the season enters a critical phase. Carlo Ancelotti’s side have gone 25 matches without tasting defeat, equaling their second-best run from the 1996-97 campaign when Ancelotti’s Italian compatriot Fabio Capello was in charge. Their record is 34 games unbeaten from 1988-89.

Tomorrow’s match against Elche is the last one La Liga top scorer Cristiano Ronaldo will miss before completing a three-match suspension handed down after his dismissal in the 1-1 draw at Athletic Bilbao on Feb 2.— Reuters

Sports FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2014

SOCHI WINTER OLYMPICS Chapuis leads French sweep in ski cross ROSA KHUTOR: Jean Frederic Chapuis skied calmly through the chaos to take freestyle ski cross gold at the Sochi Games yesterday and lead France to their first Winter Olympics podium sweep. Arnaud Bovolenta took silver and Jonathan Midol won bronze after the fourth finalist, Canada’s Brady Leman, crashed out on the penultimate jump.

It was the second 1-2-3 in the freestyle skiing at the Extreme Park after the Americans swept the slopestyle event, and gave France a total of 14 medals in Sochi, their best tally at a Winter Games. World champion Chapuis, who has dual nationality and raced for Switzerland in Alpine skiing before switching

sports and countries in 2010, had shown good form all day. Fourth fastest in the morning seedings run, the 24-year-old led Midol through from their round of 16 heat and the pair repeated the one-two in their two subsequent races to secure berths in the final.

Bovolenta came through the bottom half of the draw with Leman and made a good start in the final, edging ahead of Chapuis before being hauled in by the world champion. When Chapuis got in front, he never looked like being caught and once Leman, who missed out on skiing at the Vancouver Games after breaking his leg on the eve of the contest, had fallen, the French sweep was on.

Although Midol’s ski made contact with that of Leman before the fall, the Canadian had earlier similarly taken out Swiss favorite Alex Fiva in the first round of heats. Having tangled with Leman, Midol, whose world championship silver medallist brother Bastien was ruled out of the Games by a serious back injury, looked unlikely to catch Bovolenta and the trio settled for staying upright over the final jump.

Semi-finalist Armin Niederer apart, it was a miserable day for the strong Swiss team.

Defending champion Michael Schmid, who has had three ruptured anterior cruciate ligaments since winning gold in Vancouver, sus-

tained another knee injury last Sunday and did not start.

Fiva, the 2012/13 overall World Cup champion, was struggling with his back and failed to complete the seeding run before being taken out while leading by Leman. As usual in the rough and tumble of the most unpredictable freestyle event, there were plenty of crashes and Fiva was by no means the only leading skier to go out early. Medal contender Victor Oehling Norberg’s exit was the most spectacular, the Swede crash-landing while leading after the final jump in his quarter-final and still missing out the semis by only a matter of centimeters in a photo finish.— Reuters

KRASNAYA POLYANA: (From left) Norway’s Magnus Hovdal Moan, Joergen Graabak, Magnus Krog and Haavard Klemetsen dive as they celebrate winning the gold medal of the Nordic combined Gundersen large hill team competition at the 2014 Winter Olympics yesterday. — AP

After Sochi, what’s next?

SOCHI: The sheer cost, size and scale of the Sochi Olympics has outstripped anything done before. The question for future Winter Games is clear: Can anyone - should anyone try to top that? Sochi has showcased President Vladimir Putin’s grand project, using the Olympics to reshape the entire Black Sea resort region, with brand new facilities and infrastructure built from scratch.

The huge financial investment, massive security apparatus and litany of logistical issues has thrown up major challenges to potential future Winter Olympic host cities. Can they afford it? Will the public support it? Should the games keep going to emerging and developing countries or return to more traditional winter sports nations? Will the weather be cold enough?

Under new President Thomas Bach, the International Olympic Committee is weighing changes to the bidding process that would cut down on the costs for applicant and host cities. “The idea that perhaps a more traditional country would produce a smaller scale games with a different legacy, it’s entirely possible,” IOC spokesman Mark Adams says. The fact is, potential host cities have been spooked by the $51 billion price tag associated with Sochi. Most of that cash

isn’t for the games themselves; it’s for roads, railways, hotels and other long-term regeneration projects.

Still, the international mood has shifted.

Proposed bids for the 2022 Winter Olympics from Munich and St. Moritz-Davos were rejected last year by voters in Germany and Switzerland because of financial and environmental concerns. Stockholm recently pulled out of the 2022 race after Swedish politicians said the costs were too high. “A lot of cities have found this a little scary, that so much money has to be invested,” senior Norwegian IOC member Gerhard Heiberg told The Associated Press. “People in western Europe say this is too much for us, too much investment, too difficult to run. We need to get more cities interested. It’s a question of cost - as little as possible.”

Thinking about fairness The next Winter Games will be held in 2018 in Pyeongchang, South Korea. Like Sochi, it’s a new destination, the first Winter Olympics in Korea, and a city with which many in the world are unfamiliar. Unlike Sochi, Pyeongchang already has many existing facilities in place. The infrastructure budget is a modest $7 billion. “We need to

always give a chance to developing winter sports nations to develop what they need to do,” Adams says. “We can’t always just go to countries where they’ve got everything already.

That wouldn’t help to spread the games and it wouldn’t be fair, either.” Next to be decided is the site of the 2022 Games. A lowkey bidding campaign has been waged behind the scenes in Sochi among the five candidate cities: Almaty, Kazakhstan; Beijing; Krakow, Poland; Lviv, Ukraine; and Oslo, Norway. The IOC executive board will cut the field to a short list of finalists in early July.

The full IOC will select the winner on July 31, 2015, in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Beijing, which hosted the 2008 Summer Olympics, would seem a longshot after the IOC awarded two consecutive games to Asia - Pyeongchang for 2018 and Tokyo for the 2020 Summer Games. It would seem impossible for Lviv to be able to overcome the political crisis and unrest in Ukraine, especially after the clashes that claimed at least 25 lives in Kiev on Tuesday. Krakow is an interesting option at the heart of Europe, but its plans for holding some ski events across the border in Slovakia pose tricky logistical issues. —AP

Canada, USA braced for Sochi superpower clash SOCHI: Defending ice hockey champions Canada and the USA meet in a rematch of the 2010 Olympic Games gold medal showdown while Sweden seeks to keep its perfect record intact against Finland in today’s semi-finals. Canada face an explosive American team that has scored a tournament high 20 goals in four games. “This is what it is all about,” said Canadian forward Jonathan Toews. “Canada-USA. It’s become even a bigger rivalry than Canada-Russia.” The North American rivals met in the 2010 Vancouver final where Sidney Crosby scored the winner in overtime. The men’s hockey tournament at Sochi is down to four teams after a surprising quarter-final round that saw host Russia crash with a 3-1 loss to the Finns.

The USA easily beat the Czechs 5-2 in their quarter-final, Canada survived a scare before easing past Latvia 2-1 on a late goal in the third and Sweden rolled over Slovenia 5-0 setting the stage for some dramatic semi-finals. USA coach Dan Bylsma said the Americans are hungry to avenge their loss from four years ago in Vancouver. “Now we have a rematch,” Bylsma said. “Canada is the matchup we certainly all wanted.”

Canada is hoping to get more production from some of their NHL stars like Crosby who has yet to fire on offence.

The top two scorers for Canada are defenceman Shea Weber (five points) and Drew Doughty (six points) while American forward Phil Kessel leads the tournament in scoring with eight points in four games. —AFP

Sports FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2014

SOCHI WINTER OLYMPICS

KRASNAYA POLYANA: Germany’s team walk to the flower ceremony of the Nordic combined Gundersen large hill team competition at the 2014 Winter Olympics yesterday. — AP

Norway hold off Germany for dramatic win ROSA KHUTOR: Norway scraped the narrowest of wins in a dramatic finish to the Olympic Nordic combined men’s team event yesterday, holding off Germany to grab the gold by 0.3 seconds. Coming into the stadium at the end of the 4 x 5 km cross-country relay race, Norway’s Joergen Graabak was just ahead of Fabian Riessle. Graabak had been in the same position during Tuesday’s individual large hill event and pulled away to win easily. When he tried the same move yesterday, Riessle stuck with him and Graabak barely found the strength to hold on.

“I’ve had a lot of good sprints this year and I knew if I was the first one into the stadium I was pretty confident that I’d be the first one over the finish line,” Graabak told reporters. “I saw behind me that Riessle was throwing his foot forward, but I was confident that I was first.” Defending champions Austria were third, 3.4 seconds behind the Norwegians. The win capped an excellent Olympics for the Norwegian Nordic combined squad, who had already won gold and silver in the individual large hill and a bronze on the normal hill. Given the Norwegians’ excellence on the race course the German performance was

admirable, especially because world number one Eric Frenzel was still suffering the after-effects of a virus. “We knew this was the team to beat and we came here looking for a good fight,” said Graabak. Riessle said Graabak was a strong competitor. “It was a really hard race,” he added. “We started slow at the beginning. Joergen is a great athlete. He did well.” The Germans had landed four solid leaps in the ski jumping section to earn a lead of seven seconds over Austria, and 25 ahead of the Norwegians, at the start of the relay.

Austria and Norway both quickly caught up, however, and the three leaders were together for virtually the entire race.

Austria’s Mario Stecher, 36, became the oldest man to win an Olympic Nordic Combined medal. He won the team gold in 2006 and 2010 as well as a team bronze in 2002. “It was difficult to ski because the snow was slushy ... It’s my fourth medal and it is the end of my career,” he told reporters. Stecher and Germany’s Bjoern Kircheisen both became the only two men to win four Olympic Nordic Combined medals. The US team, which won silver in 2010, jumped badly and ended in sixth place, almost two and a half minutes behind the winners. — Reuters

Bobsleigh

Fear the beards? We love them ROSA KHUTOR: They are easily distinguishable - four Canadian men with bushy beards creeping out from underneath their crash helmets. They could easily pass for lumberjacks if they were not bobsledders. It started as a way to help team bonding and the luxuriant whiskers have continued to sprout on the chins of Justin Kripps, Tim Randall, Bryan Barnett and James McNaughton - the four-man crew who make up the CAN-3 sled. Randall got a head start on the others and sports an impressive flocculent dark black mane. His own website says he is “dedicated to growing my beard like I am dedicated to my bobsleigh training”.

The team even have their own Twitter hashtag: #Beardmode “It was an Olympic thing to start with ... team bonding, make the other nations scared of us, make all the girls want us,” Kripps, who pilots the CAN-3 sled said. “Pretty much all of us have fallen in love with them, we’ve got a lot of attention from it. “We started in September, Tim in May. He got a head start on us but I think we’re all looking good, they’re all pretty much hanging out the helmets now so that’s what we want. I’ve had some of the best times of my life with this beard.”

The quartet caused a bit of stir last month when the pony-tailed Kripps tweeted a picture of himself and his shirtless team mates posing in their underwear. It perhaps caused too much of a stir in Russia with Kripps finding his website ‘restricted’ when he tried to access it in Sochi. Kripps describes himself on his Twitter profile as an “Hawaiian-born beach bum, international man of mystery and seeker of adventure”.

Growing up in Hawaii before moving to Summerland

in the interior of British Columbia, the burly 27-year-old ‘bobsleigh nomad’ also holds an Australian passport.

“Just kind of the circumstances of my life ... the way I was raised and stuff,” he says of the “man of mystery” moniker. “Kind of crazy, being born in Hawaii. I have three citizenships - Australia, Canada, and the United States.

“I live a pretty nomadic bobsleigh lifestyle so it’s just how it is. I love it.” His roots to his childhood remain strong - he names his sleds after Hawaiian goddesses.

“The two-man is Pele, the goddess of fire and lava. The four-man I first raced in World Cup races was Poliahu, the goddess of ice and snow.”

Now he is hoping for a little bit of help from a Superhero - Kal-El, the boy born on the planet of Krypton who became Superman. “This year I inherited (team mate) Lyndon Rush’s four-man sled from the 2010 Olympics. He won a (bronze) medal in that sled so a tribute to him and that sled I left the name Kel-Al. It kind of sounds Hawaiian too.”

Kripps, who won a World Cup race for the first time last month, is hoping to take the momentum of finishing sixth in the Olympic two-man event - the best of the three Canadian sleds - into the four-man competition which starts tomorrow.

His good showing, he said, was in spite of not having had as much experience as others of the Sanki track. “I didn’t get to come to the international training week at the start of the year, so I missed out on 20-25 runs,” he said. “But I’m looking to keep those lines from the twoman going and take the momentum into the four-man and hopefully surprise people again.” — Reuters

F1- Stray dogs a big problem SOCHI: Stray dogs roaming the streets of Sochi are just one of the problems facing Russian Formula One Grand Prix organizers as they prepare for a debut race in October. The slow hand of Russian bureaucracy and the risk of post-Olympic complacency are also on the list of challenges to be overcome.

However, Richard Cregan, who has been brought in to troubleshoot after managing Abu Dhabi’s Yas Marina circuit, is confident the newest event on the F1 calendar will meet deadlines and be a success on Oct 12. “There are certainly challenges ahead, no question about that,” the former Toyota team manager told Reuters as the Black Sea resort basks in the limelight of the Winter Olympics.

“The target to complete the facility is the first week in August and I think that’s doable. “There’s enough of the venue ready at the moment to ensure the delivery of the race. It will be tight, it will be challenging but we will make it and we will deliver.” The Games, and Paralympics, are currently the main focus and the F1 pit and paddock complex, along with the main grandstand, are a fenced-off building site on the edge of the Olympic Park. The straight has yet to be asphalted, the VIP boxes are windowless, and building debris lies strewn around with skips and diggers where the start/finish line will be.

Promoter Oleg Zabara told Reuters last week that the racetrack itself was more than 90 percent complete, given that public roads around the main Olympic sites will be used and work would pick up after the Games. “There has been a massive focus on the Olympics, which is totally understandable,” said Cregan. “Once these Olympics are completed, then we are in a situation where all of the resources are delivering the F1 circuit. So that’s a good thing. “But there will be some challenges in that.” The Olympics have highlighted the number of stray dogs roaming the city, with rights activists campaigning to save them after a local company was given a contract to round them up. Formula One’s primary concern is safety and a stray dog running onto the track could be hit by a car and cause a fatal accident. “It’s just a totally unacceptable situation. We have to do everything we can to avoid that, so we just have to make sure it doesn’t happen,” said Cregan. Dogs on track have been a problem before in F1, particularly in Turkey and India when those countries hosted races, despite purpose-built facilities with extensive perimeter fences.

“It (the problem) certainly went onto a list when we saw, basically after arriving here, so many of them,” Cregan said of the dogs. “We’ve already had discussions with (the Olympic organizers) about how they’ve dealt with it. “It definitely is an issue we need to deal with ... the fact that we have part of the circuit which is permanent and the rest is effectively street circuit brings its own challenges in terms of fencing and access and all of those things.”

Some journalists arriving for the Olympics found hotels unfinished or unfurnished but Cregan said that was not likely to be a problem for Formula One. —Reuters

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2014

www.kuwaittimes.net

After Sochi, what’s next?

SEE PAGES 46-47

KRASNAYA POLYAN: Jean Frederic Chapuis of France (left) leads compatriots Jonathan Midol, second left, and Jonas Devouassoux during the second men’s ski cross quarterfinal at the Rosa Khutor Extreme Park, at the 2014 Winter Olympics yesterday. —AP