25 April 2012

CR IP TI ON BS SU

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, 2012

Israel legalises 3 settler outposts, angering Palestinians

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Shakespeare tragedy set amid Iraq strife

Amnesty: Europe must fight prejudice against Muslims

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Chelsea reach Champions League final, Barca out

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Immunity of 9 MPs lifted over Assembly storming Juwaihel to grill interior minister • Govt to regulate social network sites conspiracy theories

Give KAC a chance!

By Badrya Darwish

badrya_d@kuwaittimes.net

W

ill the Kuwait Airways saga finally come to an end? The news said that the Cabinet has approved a privatization plan for the airline. Now the ball is in the parliament’s court. This is where I am worried.

Do the honourable gentlemen have the time to study and discuss the Kuwait Airways issue thoroughly as they are too busy to talk about the women’s cafe issues and how to monitor them closely.

Monitoring women’s cafes, by the way, I find to be a very interesting job. You will be paid to sit and sip your coffee, puff the hubbly-bubbly and watch all kinds of young women sitting together chit-chatting all day long. What a nice pastime. I hope the honourable gentlemen will spare some time for the KAC project and its future lifespan. I hope that MPs will look at the interests of thousands of employees working at KAC. I find this more important than women’s cafes and alien practices committees.

These two can wait. No harm for the nation if they are delayed for years. The longer KAC is left in its current state, the more money goes down the drain.

I read the privatization plan and I find it reasonable. It suggested 20 percent of the company will stay with the government. The best part is the 5 percent that will stay for the employees. This will give them an incentive to hold on to the airline and work harder.

Another 40 percent stake is allocated for the public, and another 35 will be open for an investor. I think it is a fair deal. How is the actual assessment of the airline going to happen? I have no idea. It is not even known if the bill will pass through parliament.

It is high time we get our national carrier back on its wings flying around the world.

Nothing is impossible. Kuwait Airways one day was one of the best airlines in the region. It has a long way to compete with the modern players in the industry, especially in the region. In all honesty, I mean Emirates and Qatar Airways that are far ahead of KAC now. I hope this will give the parliamentarians some reason to discuss the issue thoroughly and approve it and for a change to look for the interests of the nation and not their own interests.

KUWAIT: MPs from the “majority” and “minority” blocs trade verbal blows during a charged session at the National Assembly yesterday. — Photo by Yasser Al-Zayyat

Max 35º Min 18º High Tide 02:11 & 12:56 Low Tide 07:01 & 19:51

KUWAIT: In a dramatic day in which MPs were on the verge of another fistfight, Mohammad Al-Juwaihel finally executed his threat and filed a request to grill the interior minister and the Assembly agreed to lift the immunity of nine opposition MPs to allow the public prosecutor question them for leading the storming of the National Assembly in November.

Fifty-three MPs voted in favour of the request, made by the public prosecutor, two opposed it while one MP opposed. All the nine MPs voted for the request insisting they wanted to be questioned by the public prosecution over the issue. During the debate, MPs from the “majority” bloc and others from the “minority” came on the verge of another physical fight after trading strong words that eventually forced deputy speaker Khaled AlSultan to adjourn the session. At one stage, a spectator from the gallery insulted Shiite MP Hussein Al-Qallaf who repeatedly interrupted opposition MP Khaled AlTahous while he was speaking.

The main clashes took place between Islamist MP Abdullatif Al-Ameeri and Juwaihel after Ameeri claimed that “there are a number of silly members in the house” that led Juwaihel to show a small signboard with “Liar” written on it. Sultan forced Juwaihel to remove the placard. Another clash took place between Tahous and Shiite MP Abdulhameed Dashti who insulted those who had stormed the Assembly and was insulted in turn by several MPs. The session was adjourned before the scheduled end because of the lack of quorum before holding the second round of voting on the establishment of a new technology university.

Continued on Page 13

officers killed in Damascus car bomb

CAIRO: Egyptian protesters take part in a demonstration in front of the Saudi Arabian embassy yesterday calling for the release of Egyptians who have been detained in the kingdom, including Ahmed Al-Gezawi. — AFP

Egyptians demand Saudis free activist CAIRO: Hundreds of Egyptians noisily protested outside the Saudi Embassy yesterday demanding the release of an Egyptian human rights lawyer detained in Saudi Arabia for allegedly insulting the kingdom’s monarch. The incident surrounding Ahmed Al-Gezawi has revived long-standing resentment over the treatment of Egyptians working in the oil-rich kingdom, which is a destination for more than a million Egyptians

searching for better jobs. It also raises questions about whether the Egyptian government does enough to protect its citizens working in the wealthy country or, as many activists claim, curbs its criticism so as not to alienate the wealthy kingdom or endanger Egyptian jobs there.

Anti-Saudi sentiment has flared on a number of occasions in recent years following Continued on Page 13

BEIRUT: Three Syrian military officers were killed in Damascus yesterday, state media and opposition groups said, and at least three people were wounded in a car bomb blast in the capital in further blows to a ragged UN-monitored ceasefire. Observers from the fledgling United Nations mission visited the central province of Homs, hotbed of a 13-month-old uprising against President Bashar Al-Assad, as part of efforts to silence the guns 12 days after the accord was struck.

SANA, the state news agency, said an “armed terrorist group” shot dead two army officers near Damascus, while the UK-based Syrian Obser vator y for Human Rights said a third was killed in the capital’s Barzeh neighbourhood.

Damascus residents described the explosion in a pickup truck directly outside an Iranian cultural centre, in a popular shopping district, as extremely loud but causing limited damage. Windows in nearby shops were not shattered and there were no signs of damage to the centre, run by Assad’s powerful regional ally, Tehran. Shopkeepers said four people were injured, including a taxi driver. The proAssad Ikhbaria television channel blamed the blast on “armed terrorists” - shorthand for the rebels who have been fighting to overthrow Assad, inspired by Arab Spring uprisings against autocratic rulers

in North Africa and the Middle East.

The United Nations says security forces have killed at least 9,000 people in the conflict, while Damascus says 2,600 of its personnel have died at the hands of insurgents who have seized control of pockets of towns and cities across the country of 23 million and who continue to launch daily guerrilla attacks. SANA said yesterday customs officials on the Syria-Lebanon border had seized a car stuffed with ammunition and weapons, including three machineguns and a rocket-propelled grenade launcher.

A small group of unarmed UN observers has been in Syria for just over a week tracking the stuttering progress of the April 12 truce engineered by former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan. Under its terms, both sides are supposed to adhere to a ceasefire while the army withdraws tanks and heavy weapons from population centres requirements that the UN and France have made clear are not being heeded. France said it still supported Annan’s peace plan but could not do so forever without changes on the ground, most notably in the deployment of proAssad forces. “ The regime must not get it wrong this time,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Bernard Valero said. “It cannot continue to mislead the Continued on Page 13

in the

news

Kuwait doubles budget income thanks to oil

Talabani gifts Kuwaiti envoy Saddam’s gun

Agility files $225m suit against US DLA

Bahrain cops fire tear gas to break protests

KUWAIT: Kuwait has posted twice the revenues it predicted for its 2011-2012 budget in only 11 months of the fiscal year, thanks to the high price and output of oil. The state’s income stood at a record $96.8 billion by the end of February, up from the budget projection of $48.4 billion for the year to March 31, according to figures posted on the finance ministry website. The revenues rose 44.1 percent from a year ago mainly due to higher oil prices and a sharp increase in output to about 3.0 million barrels per day from around 2.3 million bpd the previous year. Oil income reached $91.7 billion in the first 11 months of the fiscal year, up 45.8 percent from a year ago. Spending, meanwhile, was almost half of that foreseen in the budget. The ministry data showed expenditure at $38.9 billion after 11 months, from the budget estimate of $70 billion. This leaves a provisional budget surplus of $57.9 billion, double that of the previous year.

SULAIMANIYAH, Iraq: Iraqi President Jalal Talabani has given a visiting Kuwaiti minister a shotgun that belonged to Saddam Hussein, a source at Talabani’s office in Sulaimaniyah told AFP yesterday. “The Iraqi president on Friday presented to Sheikh Nasser Sabah Al-Ahmed Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, minister of the Amiri Diwan (royal court) a Brno rifle that belonged to Saddam Hussein which Talabani recovered after the liberation of Iraq” in 2003, the official said. Sheikh Nasser last week headed a Kuwaiti delegation visiting the autonomous Kurdish region of northern Iraq where Talabani is from. The now-executed former Iraqi leader invaded Kuwait in Aug 1990 but his troops were driven out of the country in Jan 1991.

HH the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah, made his first visit to Baghdad to attend the Arab summit on March 29.

KUWAIT: Kuwaiti logistics company Agility said yesterday it had filed for $225 million in claims against the US Defense Logistics Agency (DLA), saying the agency had breached the terms of a contract. Agility said in a statement US government officials employed by the DLA and Department of Justice “conspired and acted in concert to intentionally deprive Agility of its rights under the Second Prime Vendor Contract”. It said this was “breaching the contract’s express and implied terms and violating regulatory duties”. The US Embassy in Kuwait was not immediately available for comment. The $225 million comprises the amount owed in performance-based distribution fees plus interest, Agility said. The contract entailed distributing food products to combat units. Agility, the largest Gulf Arab logistics company, said it had filed the claims at the Armed Services Board of Contract Appeals in Virginia.

DUBAI: Bahraini riot police fired tear gas to disperse protesters yesterday as they approached a square in central Manama where they been banned from holding demonstrations, witnesses said. The demonstrators, who broke away from a larger march in the Jidhafs neighbourhood in the west of the city, were unable to reach Pearl Square, epicentre of month-long protests that were crushed last year, the witnesses said. The police did not stop the larger rally in Jidhafs, where hundreds called for the release of jailed Shiite activist, Abdulhadi Al-Khawaja, who has been on hunger strike since Feb 8. Khawaja was sentenced to life imprisonment with several other opposition activists for conspiring against the Sunni monarchy ruling Shiite-majority Bahrain. Yesterday’s protests come a day after police and protesters clashed in a Shiite village following the funeral of 36-year-old Salah Abbas Habib, who was found dead on Saturday.

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, 2012

LOCAL

Burgan Bank supports KACCH activities

KUWAIT: The President of Tunisia, Al-Moncef Al-Marzouki, left the country yesterday after concluding a two-day official visit during which he held talks with His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah. HH the Amir bid farewell to the President and accompanying Tunisian officials at the airport. HH the Crown Prince Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, HH the Prime Minister Sheikh Jaber Al-Mubarak Al-Hamad Al-Sabah, National Assembly Speaker Ahmad Al-Saadoun, senior officials, and senior officers in the Army, Police, and National Guard were also present at the airport for the departure of the president.

Tunisia vows more facilities for Kuwaiti businessmen President aspires to stronger ties KUWAIT: President of Tunisia, AlMoncef Al-Marzouki, who concluded an official visit to the country yesterday, confirmed that his talks with His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad AlJaber Al-Sabah dealt with bilateral relations between the two countries at political, economic, business and tourist levels. The president said all topics that were discussed during the top-level meeting “served one objective, which is the full mutual understanding of political issues and aspirations for establishing robust and fruitful economic relations.” He expressed hope that more Kuwaitis will choose his nation as a tourist destination.

At the investment level, the president affirmed Tunisia’s readiness to remove all barriers in face of the Kuwaiti entrepreneurs to enable them launch businesses in various sectors of the nation, noting that HH Sheikh Sabah expressed readiness to examine Tunisian proposals for carrying out business enterprises in the country. “ We in Tunisia encourage everybody to invest in various sectors in our country, namely in tourism, energy, sea water desalination, infrastructure and roads.

Now we have more than 40 mega projects designed to place Tunisia among the ranks of modern states, and some of these ventures will be proposed to the Kuwaiti Fund for Arab Economic Development,” he said.

Elaborating, he said the KFAED director general has affirmed readiness to finance a number of these major ventures. The proj-

ects include construction of infrastructural utilities, and roads linking coastal regions with inland areas.

Qatar is partially funding the establishment of a highway linking the cities of Nafidah, Tozar and Qairawan.

He indicated that KFAED’s activities in Tunis was cut during the era of the former regime. He said he hopes that the fund will restore its investments on a wide scale, capitalizing on the present political, economic and social facilities.

Al-Marzouki said his talks with HH the Amir tackled regional events, namely Syria.

“I listened to the Amir’s views on solving this problem. We share identical opinions on tackling it.

We reject armament, external intervention in that country and aspire that Syria finds a solution within the framework of international organizations.”

Elaborating, he noted that he briefed HH the Amir about matters related to the proposed AlMaghreb federation, adding that he addressed an official invitation to HH the Amir to visit Tunisia to follow up with such meetings.

Al-Marzouki expressed deep gratitude for the warm welcome he was accommodated during the visit, noting that he followed up on the plight of Kuwaitis under the occupation by forces of the former Iraqi regime.

“I am pleased to come to this country, which I followed up during its hardships with distress. At present, I follow up on its comeback among the ranks of the (free) states with pride and pleas-

ure.” He expressed deep admiration at the unique Kuwaiti democratic experience saying that he follows the debates in Parliament.

Asked about his assessment of Kuwaiti-Tunisian relations, the President said he aspires to elevate the 50-year-old ties into a full-scale relationship covering not only economic issues, but also political, social and cultural affairs.

On post-revolution Tunisia, AlMarzouki said the “revolution has crossed half of the road. This revolution was based on dignity and bread, dignity means freedom and liberation from fears, an end of tyranny and police suppression.” However, he said greater efforts are needed to achieve development in low-income and poor regions in Tunisia. “We are now seeking to realize such demands, and we hope that we will be able to make further achievements for our people amid hard international circumstances.

“We are capable, as a result of support, particularly from our Kuwaiti brothers, of completing the program of the revolution. In two or three years time, the Tunisians will relish implementation of the pledges.”

All Tunisians are united on renouncing repressive or religious regimes and adopting a ruling system based on a constitution that guarantees individual and public freedom, he added, acknowledging that realizing economic and social development constitutes a major challenge facing the Tunisians after the revolution.

On Al-Maghreb states’ federation in the region of Tunisia, the President said that during his recent tour of Libya, Algeria and Mauritania he raised the issue in talks with officials, saying its establishment “has become a necessity for the peoples” of these countries.

The federation of the regional states will guarantee free crossborder movement for citizens, and freedom of investment and work, he said.

The president confirmed that the revolution impacted negatively on the national economy, paralyzing investments and tourism. Many factories were badly damaged and burned, he added.

Tunisia, after the revolution, succeeded in restoring some tourism, he said, expressing hope that offering facilities for Arabs will result in further recovery of this sector. Reassuring prospected investors, he said Tunisia is being cleansed of corruption and that it will be governed by a firm administration.

“We are tackling bureaucracy.

There will be an independent judiciary and an investment environment with all success feasibilities for investors,” he re-affirmed.

Asked on Tunisia’s future role in the Arab arena, the Tunisian leader said the government will adopt an open policy with Arab states. “The issue of external relations is part of internal development,” he said, slamming the ousted ruling dictatorship that turned the “country into a farmland and isolated” it from the other nations. —KUNA

GCC seeks to revamp infrastructure MANAMA: Kuwaiti Minister of Electricity and Water Abdulaziz AlIbrahim said here yesterday the GCC member states seek to develop their infrastructure and urban planning.

Speaking following the opening of a Gulf municipal conference here, the Kuwaiti minister said: “The GCC countries are attempting to revamp their infrastructure and boost the level of urban planning in their cities by means of transferring and exchanging experience and getting acquainted with relevant successful models.”

On the conference, Al-Ibrahim, who also doubles as Minister of State for Municipal Affairs, said it mainly aims to discuss diverse municipal activities and services in the GCC countries.

The gathering is also intended to promote successful pioneering projects in the municipal work field;

including Gulf, Arab and international projects, the Kuwaiti minister pointed out.

Bahraini Minister of Municipal Affairs and Urban Planning Juma bin Ahmad al-Ka’abi inaugurated the seventh Gulf municipal conference here earlier in the day. In a keynote speech, he said the GCC countries seek to achieve sustainable development through strategic urban planning.

He said the exchanging of information, experience and continuing meetings among the GCC members during such gathering are conducive to the fulfillment of their strategic goals.

He added that the gathering would mainly discuss how to revamp Gulf urban planning and municipalities and to share experience among Gulf experts. — KUNA

MPs act to avoid enrollment crisis KUWAIT: MPs are currently assessing, two months ahead of high school finals, government plans to provide college seats for an estimated 30,000 graduates to avoid a similar crisis to that witnessed during the 2011 university enrollments.

Last year, the Ministry of Higher Education struggled to absorb high school graduates applying to the overcrowded Kuwait University. Eventually it was forced to intake an overcapacity of new students, after at least 3,000 students were omitted from admission.

The ministry has a plan, yet to be officially disclosed, to provide seats at the sole public university, as well as at the Public Authority for Applied Education and Training, in addition to scholarship programs both overseas and in private universities in Kuwait.

Dr. Nayef Al-Hajraf, Minister of Education and Minister of Higher Education, is not expected to make an announcement regarding these plans before June, according to statements he made last week.

KUWAIT: Burgan Bank reiterated its commitment to the community by rendering its suppor t to the Kuwait Association for Care of Children in Hospitals (KACCH). This is an ongoing commitment which is now in its 11th year.

The association between Burgan Bank and KACCH was avowed at a special visit to Bait Abdullah building site in Sulaibekhat where the Bank’s Assistant General Manager - Corporate Communications Bashir Jaber and Public Relations Manager, Fahad AlReshaid, presented a cheque to the KACCH president Dr. Hilal Al-Sayer and KACCH Vice President Margaret AlSayer.

Bashir Jaber, Assistant General Manager - Corporate Communications stated: “Supporting healthcare initiatives has been an integral part of Burgan Bank’s Corporate Social Responsibility framework and Corporate Citizenship program, Burgan Bank is proud to be a benefactor towards such leading medical projects, and KAACH’s humane initiatives.”

“Over the past 10 years, Burgan Bank’s continual contributions have helped support the development of healthcare and pediatric facilities in several hospitals which are part of the KACCH, often helping children and their families fund treatment and recovery from fatal and terminal illnesses, as well as providing entertainment” added Jaber. The KACCH is a volunteering organization working under the umbrella of World Child Care Program that aims to assist children in coping with the stress of being in hospital for treatment.

The association pays great efforts to provide a healthy and entertaining environment to the children through the kids clubs that KACCH established in many hospitals in Kuwait.

Bait Abdullah serves as a substitute home to children’s hospitals for patients suffering from terminal illnesses and their families, who need support to live a robust life. It is also notable that facilities are available to provide daily care, including recreation and residential facilities for emergency or advanced

cases. The Bank’s support to KACCH and to other numerous programs under its Corporate Social Responsibility framework avows its true values, commitment, dedication and belief in the importance of supporting the community and humanitarian causes.

Established in 1977, Burgan Bank is the youngest commercial bank based in Kuwait, with a significant focus on the corporate and financial institutions sectors, as well as having a growing retail and private bank customer base.

Burgan Bank has four majority owned subsidiaries: Gulf Bank Algeria - AGB (Algeria), Bank of Baghdad - BOB (Iraq), Jordan Kuwait Bank - JKB (Jordan) and Tunis International Bank - TIB (Tunisia), (collectively known as the “Burgan Bank Group”).

The Bank has continuously improved its performance over the years through an expanded revenue structure, diversified funding sources, and a strong capital base. The adoption of state-of-theart services and technology has positioned it as a trendsetter in the domestic market and within the MENA region.

Burgan Bank’s brand has been created on a foundation of real values - of trust, commitment, excellence and progression, to remind us of the high standards to which we aspire. ‘People come first’ is the foundation on which its products and services are developed. Earlier this year, ‘Brand Finance’ - the international brand valuation company- rated Burgan Bank brand as AA with positive outlook. The rating places Burgan Bank Brand at 2nd amongst the most valuable banking brands in Kuwait.

Excellence is one of the Bank’s four key values and Burgan Bank continually strives to maintain the highest standards in the industry. The Bank was recertified in 2010 with the ISO 9001:2008 certification in all its banking businesses, making it the first bank in the GCC, and the only bank in Kuwait to receive such accreditation. The Bank also has to its credit the distinction of being the only Bank in Kuwait to have won the JP Morgan Chase Quality Recognition Award for twelve consecutive years.

KUWAIT: Bashir Jaber and Fahad Al-Reshaid presenting the cheque to Dr Hilal Al-Sayer and Margaret Al-Sayer.

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, 2012

local

News

in brief

MoH to act tough on absentees KUWAIT: In response to news reports published recently about clerks’ absenteeism from Al-Sabah hospital reception desk, the Ministry of Health(MoH) inspected attendance and finger prints to keep a tab on employees. The ministry has asked that ministerial decision number 142 for the year 2010 should be enforced to conduct inspections, making sure that employees are performing their duty. An inspection team will be formed to conduct unscheduled inspections on hospitals and health centers.

This is to make sure that legal action will be taken against absentees.

Municipality crisis KUWAIT: Sources revealed that a crisis is anticipated between AbdulAziz Al-Ibrahim, State Minister for Municipal Affairs, and Ahmad Al-Subaih, the Municipality Director, on the grounds that the minister has withdrawn the authorities given to Al-Subaih and prevented him from taking any important decisions. Sources said that Ahmed Al-Subaih, the Municipality Director, has reached a very critical position since most of his authority was reduced, especially when he presented the rotation list to the minister. He became angry and told him “you have nothing to do with those things, do not do anything until I tell you.” Sources said the municipality director become in a hard position after MPs demanded his resignation or termination on the grounds of the Rahaiya tire fire.

Suppliers request price increase KUWAIT: A number of food suppliers are demanding price increases ranging between 30 and 50 percent on products sold at local cooperative societies, a local daily reported yesterday. Abdul-Aziz Al-Samhan, Head of the Prices Control Committee at the Kuwait Union of Consumer Cooperative Societies, said 21 requests for price increases were discussed during the Sunday meeting of the committee. Al-Samhan said the committee members were not convinced by some of the requests “that were not supported by documents or any proof to justify the increase”.

Al-Dar verdict in May KUWAIT: The Court of Appeals recently postponed hearing the case against Al-Dar newspaper until a final hearing on 15 May. The Ministry of Information filed the case against the local daily for publishing material that provokes sectarianism. The Al-Dar Editor-in-Chief was sentenced to six months in jail, and paid a bail of KD 1,000.

The publication of the newspaper was suspended for three months.

Unattended long-distance calls still cost money ‘Standard regulations set by ministry’

By Ben Garcia KUWAIT: Dialing your loved ones’ phone number (living abroad) comes at a cost. Tariff rates to the Philippines, for example, is 232 fils per minute and another telecom company charges subscribers 215 fils per minute. ‘Once upon a time’ placing a call to the Philippines set you back by 500 fils. The scenario changed when another ‘player’ forayed into to the telecom business here, and tariff rates plunged to new lows.

Even then, for some, making that long-distance call home is a expensive affair in this era of VOIP calls made through the internet. “I have been calling my wife back in the Philippines, but to my surprise my KD 3 credit [balance] disappeared with the wind although the phone only rang, and the call was not picked up,” complained an American servicemen working at Camp Arifjan.

“It is crazy, why are we charged when our message is not delivered? This isn’t the case in other countries. Why are companies in a rich country like Kuwait stealing our money? They shouldn’t be doing this. Even if they do, they should explain to us why, we are being charged,” he fumed. When contacted, Kuwait’s three telecom service providers’ customer service representatives admitted that these were the standard regulations set by the Ministry of Communications. When asked if the money was taken by the company or the country to which the call was made, a customer service representative said, “No. It goes to the company, not to the specific country.

That is the standard practice we follow because it was set by the Ministry of Communication. When it comes to international calls, even though a call is placed, we already collect money. This is practiced by all the service providers.” International calls made using the internet is illegal in Kuwait, although there are many phone centers operating illegally here. The internet-based calls are several times cheaper. Like a call made to India, costs ten fils, and 60 fils is charged to the Philippines and 100 fils to other countries. “You cannot blame us for using VOIP services because the ‘legal’ service offered here by the three different telecom companies is really expensive?

So why will we spend on outrageously expensive calls when more economical options are available. Skype to Skype service is a free service, though banned here,” a customer noted.

IRBIL: Sheikh Nasser Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah and his accompanying delegation pictured during their visit to Iraqi Kurdistan.

Iraqi Kurdish leader hails visit by Kuwaiti official IRBIL: The recent visit to Iraqi Kurdistan by Sheikh Nasser Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah, Kuwaiti Minister for Amiri Diwan Affairs, constituted a good opportunity to get acquainted with the northern region of the country pending future cooperation with

the State of Kuwait, a local official said on Monday.

The visit was important for both sides “because we want to open up to the Arab states, particularly sisterly Kuwait,” on political, economic, commercial and cultural levels, said Falah Mustafa, in charge of external affairs of the government of Kurdistan.

He expressed hope that after Sheikh Nasser examines the security and stability in the region, Kuwaiti entrepreneurs will launch businesses in the region. He said establishing a Kuwaiti consulate here could be helpful in establishing long-term ties and cooperation between the two sides.

Sheikh Nasser, accompanied by a delegation of officials, arrived in Al-Sulaimaniya on April 19, on a mission aimed at exploring boosting ties and cooperation.

Palestine, Egypt and Jordan have opened consulates in the Kurdish region.

The number of consulates in the area has reached 24.

Ties between Kuwait and Iraq have noticeably improved, with a recent visit by Iraqi Prime Minister, Nouri Al-Maliki, to Kuwait and the attendance of HH the Amir at the Arab summit in Baghdad last month.

Relations have been tense for two decades, since the former Iraqi regime invaded Kuwait in 1990. —KUNA

Rahaiya tire fire deliberate?

KUWAIT: A security committee investigating the Rahaiya fire, which broke out in Jahra last week, revealed that an electricity generator which feeds the dumping place was deliberately damaged one day before the fire.

This means that there are persons who intended the fire to start. The investigations revealed that the site was deliberately spoiled.

Sources said that the generator lights the whole area, and it was completely dark on the night that the tire fire broke out.

The finger printing machine also failed

to work. This would have shown the time of attendance of the employees, and the time they left on the day of the fire. This raises a big question mark concerning the absence of at least 12 employees that day, due to the lack of lighting at the site or in its offices.

The criminal investigators report will be ready in few days, and will expose many causes, which will make it easier to know the real reason for the fire.

The committee has called upon several responsible persons in Kuwait Municipality to hear their comments about the fire.

KUWAIT: His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah received yesterday at Bayan Palace, in the presence of His Highness the Crown Prince Sheikh Nawaf AlAhmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, Ali Awad Al-Harbi and his family. Al-Harbi’s family thanked His Highness Sheikh Sabah for his efforts in freeing Ali Al-Harbi from Iraqi captivity and making sure that he returned safely to the country.

Mandate of Kuwait chairmanship of Arab committee expires BEIRUT: Kuwait delivered Chairmanship of the Arab Transport Committee (ATC) to Lebanon on Tuesday. A leading representative of the Gulf state delivered the post, held on a rotating basis among member states, during the opening of the 13th ATC session in the Lebanese capital after Kuwait’s mandate expired.

Fahad Al-Massoud, Director of land transportation at Kuwait’s Ministry of Communications, shifted the Chairmanship to Abdul Hafeth Al-Qaissy, Director of the land and maritime transportation at the Lebanese Ministry of

Transportation. Al-Massoud affirmed, during his inaugural address, that Arab states have succeeded in executing international transport agreements and developing this sector despite various challenges in the region. Al-Qaissy also addressed the meeting, underscoring the key role of the committee in this field.

Topics of the session will address previous activities, memoranda of understanding among the member states of the commission, harmony of structures of institutions with legislations in transportation in the region of ESWWA, the United Nations

Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia, and funding infrastructural projects for an aspired transport network in the east of the Arab world.

The opening session was attended by Abdullah Al-Dardari, representative of the executive director of ESCWA, representatives of the member states, the Arab League, the Saudi Development Fund and other leading figures from the sector.

ESCWA, founded in 1973, comprises Jordan, Syria, Iraq, Palestine, Lebanon, Egypt, Yemen, Sudan and the GCC states.—KUNA

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, 2012

LOCAL Letters to Sahar

In my view

Legal awareness for expatriates

Are bikinis acceptable?

Dear Sahar,

P

By Labeed Abdal

local@kuwaittimes.net

P

etitioners who file court cases in Kuwait are surely looking for fair, accountable ways in which family, business conflicts and disputes are resolved.

In Kuwait, the basic system to deliver justice is present, and awareness levels should be upgraded by disseminating information to the public through the media.

All legal work is undertaken in Arabic, the official language in the country. In case of a labor dispute with employers, an employee can register a complaint with the labor office, which is part of the Ministry of Social Affairs and Labor. In practice, terminated employees have difficulty understanding their rights because the laws are in Arabic.

When a complaint is lodged and it is transferred to the labor court, one has to confront the languagebarrier again.

Similar incidents take place at the police station, where traffic accidents, injuries or even manslaughter will need to be charge-sheeted before investigations into the case commences.

Sometimes employers provide interpreters to employees. Otherwise, in many cases, individuals have to battle it out alone, without any external help or support.

There is an urgent need for administrative orders from the Ministry of Justice to raise awareness on this aspect among expatriates through modern media like websites, blogs, Twitter, Facebook and YouTube.

Most importantly, the new Parliament must pass new laws by making English a co-official language, establish special courts to resolve family and labor matters, where judges that can speak English are appointed. The Kuwaiti gazette must be made available to expats in Kuwait.

kuwait digest

A letter to Fadhel Safar

By Khalid Al-Awadhi

M

inister of Public Works, State Minister of Planning and Development Affairs, Dr. Fadhel Safar, attended a ceremony recently to reward a number of officials who took care of a project that included training Kuwaiti labor forces on planning work in the public sector.

According to news reports, the minister said during the event that the main goal of the project was to train between 5,000 and 6,000 public sector employees on the principles of planning and the process by which developmental plans are properly outlined. He also noted that Kuwaiti employees who participated in the program showed “eagerness to obtain skills and experience”.

As promising as these statements might sound, I would like to draw Dr. Safar’s attention to the sad reality that the results of this project were already determined before it was held. The truth is that state employees who passed the courses will return to their desks to do exactly what they did before the program, without being given the opportunity to apply what they learned.

Let us take the Ministry of Public Works as an example to demonstrate the point I am trying to make. The ministry was established in the 1940s to carry out infrastructure projects in Kuwait.

Today, the MPW is a workplace for thousands of Kuwaiti specialists and engineers who make millions of dinars in salaries and allowances, yet their sole purpose at work is to play a mediatory role between the ministry, as the owner of a certain project, and a contractor, hired to carry out the said project.

State projects are carried out by engineers outside the ministry; most of whom are nonKuwaitis, while Kuwaitis on whom the state spent millions in training are left in ministry offices with their true skills unutilized.

Kuwaitis need more than training courses and certificates to improve their skills. They need to garner actual experience through practice and playing the role they are supposed to play.

Mr. Safar, I urge you to ask the hundreds of thousands of Kuwaiti staff employed by your ministry to realize exactly how they feel. You’re probably going to find yourself in front of employees frustrated by being underutilized as a result of government procedures that govern state departments’ work.

I hope that Dr. Safar, now that he has become the state’s planning and development minister, will take the initiative and change the policies which spell destruction for Kuwaiti labor forces.

Instead, take measures to develop Kuwaiti human resources for the country to be able to utilize their skills properly.

It is illogical that despite being an oil-rich country with oil companies established over 75 years ago, that Kuwait still relies on foreign contractors for oil excavation, extraction and export.

It is similarly illogical that the Ministry of Public Works employs armies of Kuwaiti engineers and technicians, yet signs contracts with other engineers to carry out their projects. —Al-Qabas

kuwait digest

JUAS articles deviate from original intention

By Prof Faisal Al-Shareefi

B

efore talking about the amendments made by the education committee to Article Four of the Jaber University for Applied Sciences, I present to both the National Assembly and the Government some neglected facts about this law, and how it reached the National Assembly.

My points are as follows: 1. There are repeated technical and educational problems. The administrative flabbiness the authority faces is due to the vast differences in views between the applied and training sectors. These include the promotion rules, scholarships, scientific leaves and the mechanism of approving educational programs. The authority signed a contract to study the solutions, at the recommendation of its board, with the Canadian office. The advisory office recommended that the two sectors be separated to solve the current problems (the report is available for anyone to get a copy).

2. A group of the teaching faculty and the students union presented to the former National Assembly a proposed law named “Jaber Academy for Applied

Sciences”, which 40 MPs signed.

More that 20 of them are currently MPs. 3. The proposal was presented to the National Assembly in its first reading without any significant changes, other than changing the word academy to university.

4. All parties were heard at the education committee during the amendments. The committee should come out with a view that agrees with the main goal of the project, which is to achieve the university’s aim to separate the applied sector from training, and that the nucleus of the university be the applied colleges “basic education, health sciences, commercial studies, technological studies and nursing”.

After those quick points, the education committee came out with a major amendment to the fourth article. This said that the Basic Education College be a nucleus for Jaber University while approving the college of law, Administrative science, and the engineering college. This blows away the goal of the original proposal, which is to separate applied education.

This law deviated from its right path. After aiming at separating the applied sector, for the reasons mentioned in the advisory office report, we are faced with a proposed law that deviates from the original goal. It received a cesarean section that killed the fetus before it was born, and swept away all what was mentioned in a report that cost the country thousands.

Conclusion: We are facing a lame proposal that ignores the actual need for building a parallel university, and the needs of the market place. It also ignored the ambitions of graduates from the authority to continue their education. It is only a Basic College of Education, bearing in mind that it only offers a B.Sc. degree.

Problems of the authority will not be solved by this law, because regardless of the ability of the administration to reform, it will not be able to run an educational establishment of this size.

If the vacant administrative posts have not been filled all this time, then how it fill teaching posts for more complicated technical issues? —Al-Jarida

kuwait digest

Everything is possible

By Thaar Al-Rashidi

T

ake the stories of children and their wicked stepmothers, the master and the servant, even Cinderella and her step mother. Always, the one who is blamed is the stronger party. In any story where there are two parties, one is strong and the other is weak, the stronger party is the one to be blamed.

In the general stereotypical fairytale, the stepmother is always the evil one and full of hatred against the children, as in the international story of Cinderella.

She resembles the dark side of that story.

Whenever we hear about a poor laborer, who is dismissed by a wealthy employer, we start to curse that employer and call him all of the bad names, even though we did not hear the other side of the story. That is because we have prejudged such matters, and we assume without hearing their opinions in the case.

Has any one of you, for example, heard the side of the story as told by the stepmother of Cinderella? I doubt it, as everyone has taken the decision that the young beautiful girl who lost her shoes is innocent. Although we

have heard the story of her stepmother, our judgment might be changed completely about the most famous story in the world.

We always stand, automatically, with the weaker side. The servant, the old mother-in-law, and the children who are suffering from the wicked stepmother. The decision is always that the weaker side is right, although there is no logical explanation which connects power with evil acts.

The weaker side might be more evil, and before all of this each story has different faces and not one face. — Al-Anbaa

rogress is only made by looking forward.

Nothing is to be gained by stepping backwards. I spent a year in Kuwait working as a security contractor. I have been back in the US for almost three years now, and I must admit that there is much about Kuwait that I miss very much.

I need to share a little background. My wife and I have been married for almost 30 years. We lived near Seattle, Washington. Our falls, winters and springs were cold and wet. Our summers were short. We lived on a river and whenever the weather allowed, we were outside enjoying the sunshine. At the beginning of our marriage, our vacations were spent at my parents’ home, very near the beach in Malibu, California. In the 1990s, my wife took our vacations in Hawaii and each day we went to the beach. For the last dozen years, my wife and I have been going to Cozumel island in the Mexican Caribbean. We consider it our second home. We pack light. All we need is swimwear for the day time and light clothing for the evening. My wife might travel with dozens of bikinis.

Being in Kuwait was unusual for me. There were lots of bikini stores in the malls but I never saw anyone; Kuwaiti, TCN, westerner in a bikini. I had been told that bikinis were not allowed on Kuwaiti beaches; they were only allowed in private homes and hotels. That is what I was told. I was later told that it was not true.

One afternoon, I was at my favorite mall, the Souk Salmiya. I was invited to share a lunch table with an American woman and her three Kuwaiti neighbors. The American husband worked for Boeing and was a flight instructor at Ali Al Saleem Air Base. I worked at the nearby Camp Virginia.

The Kuwaiti women were surprised to learn that my wife was back in the US. “Why is she not here in Kuwait with you?” I told them, “I don’t think she would like Kuwait.” Shocked, they asked, “Why not?” “My wife likes margaritas and bikinis.”

A moment passed while they translated that.

“You are right. She wouldn’t like Kuwait.”

Because of Facebook, I have been in contact with many Kuwaitis. They tell me that what I was told is incorrect. They tell me that bikinis are indeed acceptable in Kuwait. One day soon, I hope to return to Kuwait as a tourist. I will ask that she pack her bikinis. She will have to forget about the margaritas.

What I liked about Kuwait was the tolerance I found and the respect that was given to others. It made me feel welcome.

Yours, Dave Hood Del Rio, Texas USA

Hi Sahar, You wrote a very good article today, I’ve been thinking about the same thing. I’m a resident of Canada, but for the last nine years, I have been teaching English in Kuwait and have enjoyed it immensely. Nevertheless, I have noticed many changes over the past several years, including more traffic, more people, more construction and so much more garbage! The country seems to be going backward. There is little concern for the environment, limited recycling that I am aware of, and energy conservation programs are minimal. I agree with you. Mulling religious edicts and implementing decency laws detracts us from priorities such as infrastructure and education.

Much more thought must be given to the future of the country that young people will inherit. The infighting among politicians must stop and everyone must move in the same direction. It can begin by letting the residents of Kuwait decide the direction in which they want to go and what the priorities of the country should be, before it is too late. Alas, it will not happen.

There is too much talking, very little will, and when 85 percent of the nation’s income is spent on government employees, there is very little hope that anything will change. It’s tragic to see Kuwait the way it is, when the potential is so enormous.

Regards, Peter Visser

kuwait digest

Keep PAAET undivided

By Dr Terki Al-Azmi

W

hile working as a journalist for Al-Qabas in 1986, I joined efforts against the quest of Dr. Jasem Khalaf, then the director of the Public Authority for Applied Education and Training (PAAET), to turn its applied education colleges into a university. The reason for our rejection was simple: Kuwait is a consumer country which puts the labor market in continuous need for technical labor forces.

Today, twenty six years later, a draft law is proposed to establish the Jaber University for Applied Sciences on the existing PAAET faculties for applied education.

MP Dr. Jamaan Al-Harbash, head of the Parliament educational committee, rejected a proposal to establish new faculties for the Jaber University to provide a four-year bachelor’s program and keep the PAAET faculties at their current two-year diploma program system.

The lawmaker explained that, as per the new university draft law, a student would be given the choice to either study for two years and earn a diploma or continue for two more years and earn a bachelor’s degree.

I do not know what kind of ‘solution’ this is, which leaves it completely up to the student to decide the program they like to study at the PAAET. Do you think any student will go for a diploma when they know they can get a Bachelor’s Degree?

Of course not. And the result will be less qualified Kuwaiti technicians, which the country desperately needs in various fields.

I would like to ask Dr. Al-Harbash a number of questions: 1- Does the Jaber University project, in its current plan, help to provide enough capacity to contain the increasing number of high school graduates looking for higher education opportunities each year?

2- When the PAAET is separated for the establishment of the Jaber University, does the plan contain the creation of job opportunities for the hundreds of projected graduates with Bachelor’s degrees, M.A and PhD’s?

3- Does the project take into account meeting the demands of the labor market for technicians, and staff members, with diplomas which they can

obtain from the PAAET? The state development plan contains projects that require a large number of diploma holders who are unlikely to be available once a Bachelor’s Degree program is introduced at the PAAET’s applied education faculties.

It is ironic that the development plan looks to create thousands of job opportunities, which are supposed to be filled by Kuwaiti labor forces and not technicians from southeast Asian or Arab countries.

Instead of using the PAAET’s applied education faculties to establish Jaber University for Applied Sciences, the better way is to establish new faculties where a PAAET student can chose to continue studying for a Bachelor’s degree after earning a diploma pending certain conditions such as the average and subjects taken.

Establishing a separate campus for the Jaber University will guarantee that the PAAET will still be able to provide the local market with technical labor forces, while the planned university will offer seats to the increasing number of high school graduates. —Al-Rai

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, 2012

local

Mega road project poses obstacles to motorists ‘Just a waste of money’

By Nawara Fattahova

KUWAIT: A fire broke out in a room containing papers and files belonging to the Customs Department in the containers inspection area yesterday. The fire was put out without injuries. Investigations are ongoing to determine the cause of the fire. — Photo by Hanan Al-Saadoun

Asian commits suicide

By Hanan Al-Saadoun KUWAIT: A 30-year-old Asian slashed his wrists, then hanged himself to death in Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh. The body was recovered by the coroner.

Drunk pain A 33-year-old Nepalese man complained of pain in his abdomen after drinking alcoholic material. He was taken to Jahra Hospital.

Fight A 30-year-old Indian man was injured in the head and back during a fight in Amghara. He then fell and broke both of his legs. He was taken to Jahra Hospital.

Car Accidents A 36-year-old male Kuwaiti sustained lacerations under his chin and ear during a car accident in Industrial Shuwaikh. He was taken to Sabah Hospital.

A 23-year-old male Kuwaiti lost consciousness and suffered lacerations to his face during a motorcycle accident in Qairawan area. He was taken to Jahra Hospital. A 28-year-old male Kuwaiti bruised his chest and fractured his right knee during a car accident on the Fifth Ring Road. He was taken to Mubarak Hospital. An 18-year-old male Kuwaiti had suspected fractures in his shoulder and right arm, while an 18-year-old male stateless resident lacerated his scalp during a car accident in Sulaibiya area. They were taken to Jahra Hospital.

Four Egyptian men suffered various injuries and fractures during a car accident near Kabad cooperative. They were taken to Farwaniya Hospital.

Two male Kuwaitis, both 45 years of age, complained of back pain and to the left hand, while a 59-year-old male Iranian sustained a small cut on his hand during a car accident near Sabahiya. The injured were taken to Adan Hospital.

KUWAIT: The First Ring Road’s reconstruction is one of Kuwait’s mega infrastructure projects. The idea behind it is to relieve the crowded area from traffic congestion that takes place. However, not all motorists are pleased with the results. Most motorists believe that this project is a waste of money and time, and that the current situation is even worse.

“I have a feeling that the designer of most parts of this project was done by someone who has never driven a vehicle before. How can someone spoil the road in this manner?

For instance, those driving from Sheraton roundabout towards Fahaheel Express Road are forced to halt at a traffic light on the bridge leading to the Ice Skating Rink, causing a jam and delaying drivers.

On the other hand, those driving along the First Ring Road are forced to wither take the bridge to Shuwaikh or Al-Sour Street. One has to wait at a traffic light that is very slow. Once, I waited at this traffic light for 35 minutes. I feel that the old road was a thousand times better,” a 28-year- old Salah told Kuwait Times.

Some feel that there are dangerous aspects to the new construction project, “The bridge

same route. I got lost in an area that I was not familiar with. It took me more than an hour to reach the place I was going to. It is confusing,” said 30-year- old Stefani.

Some people avoid entering the area right at the beginning. “The First Ring Road and the roads leading to it are always jammed. Now, I think it’s even worse. If I need to go to some of the places, I always choose the Gulf Road to reach my destination. I hear from people that the new constructions are complicated and a waste of time. I decided to avoid these roads from the beginning,” stressed Anwar, a 45year- old expat.

Abu Adel, a 60-year-old driver believes that this project is confusing. “I have been living in Kuwait for more than 35 years. I’m familiar with the roads. Therefore, the new construction is very confusing.

There are no signs or boards to give directions. I got lost when I used this route the last time. I was going to Shuwaikh from the First Ring Road, and suddenly I ended up at Mubarakiya, which is a crowded area. The drivers have to experiment with these new roads of the First Ring Road project. So if you are in a hurry, it is better try to and find another alternative,” he explained.

Authorities investigate Rahaiya fire KUWAIT: Authorities are investigating the cause of the recent huge fire that gutted a dumping site for used auto tires in the district of Rahaiya, an official of the General Fire Services Directorate (GFSD) announced yesterday.

Col Yousef Al-Ansari, Deputy General Director of the fire combat affairs and development of human resources, said the investigation might proceed for two weeks because of the difficulty in collecting evidence at the scene due vast area consumed by the tire fire.

Firemen struggled for long hours to put out the blaze at the tire dumping site. The blaze sent huge plumes of black smoke into the skies.

Colonel Al-Ansari said the department will hold a ceremony to honor staff and personnel of all departments that participated in combating the blaze, alluding to teams from the fire department,

2,140 stateless military men to be naturalized

KUWAIT: The Kuwait Oil Company is hosting its Seventh Exhibition for Travel and Tourism. The event was inaugurated at the Unity Center hall in Ahmadi yesterday and will be held for three days. Mustafa Bu Mijdad, Director of Ahmadi Services Group said that the exhibition will showcase the best services that the company has to offer to those working in the oil sector.

from the First Ring Road to Shuwaikh is really dangerous. The road is narrow. I wonder what will happen in case an accident takes place.

This road will be completely blocked. As the Ministry has been working on the road and reconstructing it, why haven’t they built it properly?” complained a 32-year- old Nawaf.

Other motorists have been able to see some positivity, “At the Sheraton roundabout, the traffic is better now that how it used to be in the past.

On the other hand, neat the Palace of Justice and the roundabout, traffic is worse.

The area is crowded, and has one way only.

So, the driver cannot take a reverse. This has caused traffic problems. This project should have solved the problem, and not just improve one place and spoil another. From the court to Fahad Al-Salem Street, there is a real crisis at 11:00 am. I wonder what it looks like during peak hours,” noted 38-year- old Ibtisam.

Many drivers, especially those new to Kuwait have been lost at the new conjunctions created along the First Ring Road. “After the launch of the first part of this project, I drove to Shuwaikh and I’m not very familiar with all the roads in Kuwait. I prefer to use the

KUWAIT: Well-informed sources at the central apparatus for illegal residents affairs, said 2,140 stateless military people have participated in various Arab wars and the Kuwait liberation war. A list has been prepared pending granting them Kuwaiti citizenship soon.

The sources said 1,700 of the nominees are army personnel, while 440 of them served in the Interior Ministry as policemen for 30 years. The sources said the process will begin with 750 names, with priority for those who were registered in the 1965 census. They had been already been presented to the Cabinet. The sources said the applicants include stateless people who have worked for various national oil companies. —Al-Jarida

KD190m for road projects KUWAIT: Official sources at the Ministry of Public Works (MPW) said it will offer 17 projects for tender during the month of May. All of them are road projects in different areas of Kuwait. The most important are the regional roads and the Airport Road, and sections along the First, Fourth, and Sixth Ring Roads. Sources said that the cost of the projects are KD 190 million. —Al-Anbaa

Smart cards do not contain travel data KUWAIT: The Public Authority for Civil Information (PACI) denied yesterday reports saying that travel information is disclosed and leaked when smart cards are used at gas stations. PACI said in a press statement that the Civil Identification number and serial number becomes known at gas stations, but travel information is not stored in the card. — KUNA

the Municipality, the National Guard, the Ministries of Defense and Interior, Kuwait Oil Company, the Ministry of Labor, the committee for tackling infringements on state property, Jahraa Cooperative and young volunteers.

He praised media personnel who covered the event and professionally broadcast instructions to citizens and residents,.

Authorities warned citizens and residents to refrain from approaching the fire site to avert close exposure to the black smoke and facilitate the work of teams that battled the blazes.

Minister of Electricity and Water and Minister of State for Municipality Affairs, Abdulaziz AlIbrahim, formed on April 19 an inquiry panel to probe the reasons behind the fire.

The committee will also recommend the best methods for disposal of the old tires. —KUNA

Egyptian MPs kick up storm over Kuwait murder victim KUWAIT: Egyptian lawmakers are accusing their government of failing to take follow up action with developments pertinent with the death of an Egyptian national that was reported in Kuwait earlier this month.

Saied Abdulghani died on April 12 after being stabbed in a Kuwait City market where he worked as a security man. During a recent meeting at Arab Affairs Committee in the Assembly of Egypt, lawmakers lashed out at their government stating that slow measures were being taken while taking follow up measures with Kuwaiti courts.

MP Mohammad Mustafa of Al-Nour Party submitted a request to Speaker Saad El-

Katatni, demanding that Foreign Minister Mohammad Amr brief the Parliament over the issue, adding that “mistreatment of Egyptians abroad is remnant of former president Hosni Mubarak’s policies.” Meanwhile, MP Fahmi Mustafa of the Freedom and Justice Party indicated that the victim’s family cannot afford to pay for the body’s transfer costs, and blamed the Egyptian embassy for failing to provide help. On the other hand, Ahmad Raghib, Assistant Undersecretary for Consulate Affairs, told the panel that the Egyptian Consulate in Kuwait was in charge of transferring the victim’s body on April 15. — Al-Rai

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, 2012

local

Roommate prime suspect in death of Egyptian 122 arrested in security crackdown

KUWAIT: Sixteen security officers took part in a recent training course organized by the Ministry of Interior’s Border Security Department on self defense skills. The classes took place at the department’s specialized training facility, and were supervised by General Manager of the department Maj Gen Jamaal Al-Dawwas on behalf of the Assistant Undersecretary for Border Security Affairs, Maj Gen Sheikh Mohammad Al-Yousuf Al-Sabah.

UNCTAD focusing on ‘vital, critical issues’ DOHA: The focus of the ongoing UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), to conclude here today, is on vital and critical issues affecting the economies and life in developing nations, said Economic Depar tment Director Ambassador Sheikh Ali Al-Khalid Al-Jaber Al-Sabah in remarks yesterday.

The remarks were made on the sidelines of the three-day UNCTAD meetings which kicked off yesterday.

The official said Kuwait is as keen as always to support development causes, as reflected back in 2009 at the Economic, Social, and Development Summit. The Amir had then announced a donation of $500 million as contribution to a Kuwaiti initiative worth $2 billion to rally support for development projects, under the management of Arab Fund for Economic and Social Development.

Al-Khalid stressed that the participation of over 140 countries in the UNCTAD gathering is alone solid proof the issues discussed are indeed having great impact on the countries concerned. The magnitude of challenges requires economic mechanisms that would help reduce the gap between the developing nations and the more advanced parts of the world.

Taking place after the brunt of the 2008 global economic crisis, this event offers an opportunity to assess the ramifications of

the crisis on developing nations, which are still felt today though the crisis ended in 2009.

Among the areas of special interest at the conference, held every four years, is WTO conditions deemed unfair to developing nations, inadequacy of financial aid, and impact of international blocs and mergers on developing countries’ economies.

Established in 1964, UNCTAD promotes the development-friendly integration of developing countries into the world economy.

The organization states that its prime goals are to “work as a laboratory of ideas and to provide on-the-ground assistance to help developing countries raise living standards through trade, investment, finance and technology; to help developing countries benefit from the globalized economy; and to contribute to international debate on emerging issues related to developing countries and the world economy - such as the current global financial crisis through major reports, policy briefs, and contributions to international conferences.”

Qatar signed the agreement to host the event in July 2011 in Geneva, selected from a list of developing countries due to its considerable experience with organizing international conferences.—KUNA

Three days reserved for women at Messilah beach

Abdullah Shuaib

KUWAIT: The Messilah beach will open exclusively to cater to female visitors on Saturday, Monday and Thursday of each week, starting next Saturday April 28, 2012, announced a senior Touristic Enterprises Company official.

“The new schedule was created in accordance with suggestions put forward by many women who prefer the privacy that the women-only days offer,” said Abdullah Shuaib, the facility’s supervisor, in a statement released yesterday to the press.

The beach will be open from 9am to 9pm during ‘women only’ days, and will be operated by an all-women team.

Competitions and other entertainment related activities will also be held, added Al-Shuaib.

KUWAIT: A criminal investigation is underway to determine the cause of an Egyptian national’s death. His body was found in a hotel apartment in Sharq. Meanwhile, a search is ongoing for the victim’s Egyptian roommate who disappeared before the death was reported. Bruises found on the victim’s body as well as drug paraphernalia found at the site led police to suspect foul play. Police are waiting to receive an autopsy report to determine whether the victim was murdered or died of an accidental drug overdose. The prime suspect was last seen on Sunday afternoon, a few hours before the death was reported.

Teen commits suicide Investigations are ongoing into a teenager’s death. Preliminary reports indicate that he committed suicide at his Sabah Al-Salem home. The 14-year-old boy was brought in dead to the area’s polyclinic Monday night, and the family explained that they found him hanging from the window pane in his room.

Criminal investigators examined the scene and found that he used a ‘shmagh’ (traditional head scarf ) to hang himself. Investigations are still ongoing to confirm the suicide case.

Suicide attempts A woman in her twenties was hospitalized

in Al-Jahra after swallowing an overdose of pills in an attempt to end her life. The bedoon (stateless) girl was admitted to Al-Jahra Hospital in a coma. Preliminary investigations indicate that the victim was depressed and decided to end her life.

Meanwhile, a Pakistani man sustained third degree burns after attempting selfimmolation. He suffered an emotional trauma after learning that the woman he loved got married in his home country. The man reportedly poured a flammable substance onto his body in public in Khaitan, before setting himself ablaze. Passersby acted swiftly and tried to put out the flames that engulfed him. He was taken in an ambulance to Al-Farwaniya Hospital. Police filed a case at the Khaitan police station.

122 in custody At least 122 people were recently arrested in security campaigns to handle illegal activities. Cafes and apartment hotels in Hawally, Salmiya, Farwaniya and Fintas were raided.

According to a security source, a total of 67 women and 55 men were arrested for committing violations that include drinking alcohol and imitation of the opposite sex. Among the detainees were eight women from Morocco, Syria and Iran who are to be deported for prostitution charges. Five citi-

zens were arrested for operating a gambling center in a Khaitan apartment.

Two hurt in fight Two men were seriously injured during a fight that was reported in Waha. A search is ongoing for two male suspects who have been accused of initiating the fight. The two Kuwaiti friends were reportedly admitted to the Intensive Care Unit of Jahra Hospital on Monday. Their fathers reported the case to Al-Waha police station and provided medical documents showing youngsters’ injuries.

Police headed to the hospital to obtain suspects’ description.

Car impounded An investigation was opened on Monday to learn the mystery behind an abandoned vehicle in which weapons and militar y badges were found. Patrol officers found that the vehicle was parked near a street in Al-Subbiya, and obtained a warrant to impound it after recovering the items. An air rifle, a number of knives and military badges were present in the car, in addition to a foreign country’s license plates. Police believe that the vehicle was abandoned by a suspect who used it as well as the items inside to carry out robberies.

— Al-Rai, Al-Anbaa, Al-Watan

KUWAIT: Former Minister of Health Dr Hilal Al-Sayer, Margaret Al-Sayer, Founder and Director of KACCH, NBK Public Relations Executive Manager Manal Al Mattar and NBK Staff celebrating with children.

NBK Children’s Hospital celebrates 12th anniversary KUWAIT: National Bank of Kuwait (NBK) celebrated the 12th anniversar y of NBK Children’s Hospital. Former M inister of Health President of KACCH Dr Hilal Al Sayer , the Founder and Direc tor of KACCH Margaret Al-Sayer, and NBK family visited NBK Hospital at Sabah Medical district to share happy moments with the children suffering from permanent and incurable ailments.

Earlier this year, NBK’s donated KD 4 million to build an independent cancer center, expanding the hospital’s ability to treat chil-

dren with cancer and blood diseases.

“NBK pioneered corporate social responsibility programs 12 years ago by establishing NBK Children’s Hospital, which focused on providing treatment for children’ suffering from leukemia,” said NBK Public Relations Executive Manager Manal Al-Mattar.

“Since its establishment 60 years ago, NBK has been at the forefront of suppor ting Kuwait’s community through a range of education, health, sports and social programs.

The establishment of NBK Children Hospital at Al Sabah Medical Area stands as one of

many NBK initiatives for children,” Al-Mattar added. NBK brought in a medical team from the renowned Great Ormond Street Hospital in the United Kingdom to NBK Children’s Hospital.

NBK Children Hospital stands as a landmark for the bank’s social contributions and initiatives to provide adequate support for the public health sector in Kuwait. The hospital accommodates different specialty clinics for leukemia, neurology, psychiatry and pediatrics in addition to surgery and operations, an auditorium and other amenities.

Heritage is record of national history, identity: Al-Youha

KUWAIT: Ali Al-Youha and other officials at the opening ceremony of Gulf Heritage Forum.

KUWAIT: The National Council for Culture Arts and Letters (NCCAL) General Secretary Ali Al-Youha yesterday stressed importance of heritage as a record to nations’ history and national identity, as well as reflector of intellectual and artistic talent to any society. This came during the opening ceremony of Gulf Heritage Forum, honoring here Kuwaiti singer Abdulhameed Al-Sayyed, which is organized by NCCAL and sponsored by Minister of Information Sheikh Mohammad Al-Abdullah Al-Mubarak AlSabah.

Al-Youha explained that heritage was an indication to the past in all its social, cultural, religious, and civilized dimensions, which make it worth caring about and taking care of in order to affirm the link between past and present.

He added that the five - day forum would include musical events, which

would reflect the other beautiful aspect of authentic traditional music of GCC countries, pointing out that elite Kuwaiti musicians and singers will be joining their brothers from Gulf countries for tasteful and enjoyable evenings of traditional music and popular Folklore art, which are k nown for their richness of rhythms, melodies, and songs that shaped in their verities some of the most distinctive works that are still to this day alive in people’s sentiments.

Moreover, Al-Youha noted that the forum embodies the attention of ministers responsible for cultural affairs in GCC countries, which resulted in a resolution during their 17th meeting last October in UAE on holding joint cultural activities between 2012 and 2016 that included holding the Gulf Heritage Forum here in Kuwait. — KUNA

(Left) Former Minister of Health Dr Hilal Al-Sayer and NBK Public Relations Executive Manager PR Manal AlMattar receiving a thanks letter from the children. (Right) NBK Children Hospital

NBK Family celebrating with children.

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, 2012

Muslims in Europe face discrimination: Amnesty Page 9

Washington edgy as prostitution scandal widens Page 10

Hardliners in driving seat after F1 fiasco Manama casts Shiite protests as Iran-backed sedition DUBAI: Hardliners in Bahrain’s Saudi-backed Sunni Muslim ruling family may dig in their heels after a Formula One Grand Prix debacle that spotlighted a frustrated prodemocracy uprising instead of projecting an image of stability. Western leaders joined rights groups and media watchdogs in criticizing Bahrain before Sunday’s race, which was cancelled last year due to the unrest. Officials hailed its reinstatement as proof of a return to calm, but billowing smoke from tyres set alight by protesters on race day told a different story. “I suspect now that those in the ruling family who argued that this is more trouble than it’s worth will be saying ‘I told you so’,” said Justin Gengler, a Qatar-based researcher on Bahrain, singling out the royal court and defense ministers.

Those ministers, full brothers from a family branch often known as the Khawalids, are widely viewed as masterminds of last year’s crackdown, which cut short a dialogue Crown Prince Salman had begun with the opposition on democratic reforms. Bahrainis took to the streets in February 2011, inspired by successful revolts in Egypt and Tunisia, but won no concessions. The government broke up the Pearl Roundabout protest camp a month later, imposed martial law and brought in Saudi troops. The Sunni Al Khalifa monarchy branded the protesters as Shiite subversives with Iranian backing and Bahrain slipped off the Saudi- and Qatari-dominated pan-Arab news agenda.

Western allies such as Britain and the United States, whose Fifth Fleet is moored in Manama, muted criticism of Bahrain for fear of alienating a trusted friend - or its Saudi big brother. Yet turmoil still convulses the tiny Gulf Island, where riot police clash daily with demonstrators, mostly from the Shiite majority, and opposition parties stage mass marches. Police deploy armored vehicles, teargas, sound bombs and birdshot to lock protesters down and prevent a critical mass from re-forming and winning world attention.

As a result, activists say the death toll has risen to 80 from 35, including five security personnel, when martial law was lifted in June.

SECTARIAN FEARS Bahrain’s government says it remains open to limited reform, but unease at the prospect of any power shift from the Sunni royal family to the Shiite majority has stifled progress. The hardline royal court minister, Khaled bin Ahmed, initiated contacts with the leading Shiite party Wefaq in January, but pro-government Sunni radicals objected strongly and the chance of renewed dialogue

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in brief

Iran halts ‘cyber attack’ TEHRAN: Iran said yesterday it had halted the spread of a data-deleting virus targeting computer servers in its oil sector, and hoped to have all systems back and running within days. Hamdolah Mohammadnejad, a deputy oil minister heading up a crisis committee to counter what officials described as a “cyber attack,” told the official IRNA news agency that the virus’s impact had been limited by rapid action. “We shut computers connected to these servers temporarily and fortunately we were able to stop its spread. Thus no information or data were harmed,” he said. “We are investigating the causes of these cyber problems and in the next two to three days we hope the problems will be solved,” he added. Reports on Monday said Iran had disconnected several of its computers from the Internet to curb the virus, including ones running its main oil export terminal on Kharg Island in the Gulf.

‘Anthrax’ threat probed JAKARTA: Two French embassy staff in the Indonesian capital were put in isolation in hospital after coming into contact with an envelope suspected of containing anthrax, police said yesterday. The embassy in Jakarta called the bomb squad on Monday afternoon after receiving an envelope labeled “#ANTRAC” that was contained inside another package, police said. It was not clear whether embassy staff had opened the second envelope. “Two French staff members who came in contact with the envelope have been isolated in hospital as a precaution,” Jakarta police spokesman Rikwanto said. “We are checking the contents of the envelope and expect to receive the laboratory results by today.” Police would not comment on whether they found any white powder.

‘SAFE California Act’ LOS ANGELES: Voters in California will have the chance to cast ballots on a referendum on ending the death penalty in November, state electoral officials said Monday. The “Savings, Accountability and Full Enforcement for California Act,” or SAFE California Act, garnered enough support signatures. It will be considered on November 6, when Americans head to the polls for general elections, Secretary of State Debra Bowen said. If the measure is approved, the 725 inmates on death row in the most populous US state would see their sentences commuted to life in prison without the possibility of parole. If the resolution passes, California would become the 18th US state to eliminate the death penalty.

Saleh relative resigns SANAA: A half-brother of former Yemeni leader Ali Abdullah Saleh has quit as air force commander, having previously refused to do so in a challenge to new President Abd Rabbu Mansour Hadi, a UN envoy said yesterday. “The handover has taken place as stated in the decree issued by the president,” Jamal Benomar told reporters in Sanaa. “It was a smooth handover with no conditions whatsoever”. Hadi replaced nearly 20 officers this month, including air force chief Mohammed Saleh Al-Ahmar, who besieged the capital’s airport, grounding all flights, in protest at the decision. Ahmar’s capitulation is Hadi’s first successful move to distance Saleh’s relatives from power and restructure the armed forces, threatening the vested interests of Yemen’s old guard.

appears to have evaporated. Nevertheless, King Hamad responded to the Grand Prix furore on Sunday by stating his “personal commitment to reform and reconciliation”.

Sheikh Abdulaziz bin Mubarak al-Khalifa, adviser to the Information Affairs Authority, said many Bahrainis wanted reforms but did not want them dictated by one party or sect. “All the political societies want to fight corruption, efficient government, an empowered parliament,” he said. “As long as there are no preconditions, mutual respect and no raising the bar too high, then there is hope.” Sheikh Abdulaziz declined to comment on any potential rifts within the government over the question of reform. Crown Prince Salman has long been seen as its keenest royal advocate. He brought Formula One to Manama in 2004 as part of what analysts say was a vision for political and economic change that would reduce reliance on receipts from an oilfield shared with Saudi Arabia - and the influence that the arrangement gives a powerful neighbor with no interest in a democratic Bahrain. The negative publicity the latest race attracted may help to undermine whatever remains of that reform drive. “If anything the race will probably encourage the hardliners in government to say ‘we don’t need this sort of thing, we don’t make money from it and it brings troublesome Westerners’,” said Jane Kinninmont, a Chatham

House analyst based in London.

Prince Salman’s reforms had for years been seen as a challenge to the way Sheikh Khalifa bin Salman, prime minister since independence from Britain in 1971, handles the economy. Sheikh Khalifa has become a figurehead for Sunnis who fear Shiite empowerment in the event of democratic change. Changes of personnel and remit in key bodies since last year’s crackdown suggest the concerns of the security apparatus now dominate. “It appears to be the case across the family and throughout the government that they think they are winning,” said Toby Jones, Middle East historian at Rutgers University.

NO URGENCY “There is no sense of urgency or commitment to creating the kind of space necessary to arrive at a rapprochement,” Jones said. “If that’s true, then it seems that all this talk of a split - and contradictory agendas - does not really matter.” Bahrain, a banking and tourism hub, is a shadow of its former self. Economic growth slowed to 1.3 percent in the last three months of 2011 compared to 2.2 percent the year before and inflation hit a three-year high of 4.7 percent in March. This has increased reliance on Saudi Arabia which has promised, along with other Gulf oil and gas powers, to

offer extra financial help, giving extra comfort to the ruling elite. Hotels and office space have low occupancy and fewer Saudi weekend visitors frequent its bars, restaurants and malls. Few foreign media have correspondents based in the country. Wefaq, the main Shiite party, says attempts to reach a deal with the authorities are at an impasse. “This government is not serious about having a real dialogue, to listen to the demands of the Bahraini people and implement those demands which cannot be ignored,” Wefaq leader Sheikh Ali Salman said. “Who are you to have a monopoly in power? Who tasked you with the job of appointing the government, controlling all ministries, taking advantage of national wealth?” he asked.

Demonized in pro-government media as the “Hezbollah of Bahrain” yet singled out by US President Barack Obama as an interlocuter the government should engage, Wefaq says the country is hostage to discord within the ruling family. The party, whose more radical rivals favor ditching the monarchy altogether, expects the conflict to get more violent. “Petrol bombs only appeared after November and in recent months we have seen some bombings, though it’s still not clear who carried them out,” Salman said. “It’s just logical that political deadlock will result in deeper instability.”—Reuters

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, 2012

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

Bashir wields stick to lead Sudan shorn of south Khartoum cranks up war rhetoric against ‘insects’ KHARTOUM: Sudanese President Omar Al-Bashir likes to wave a stick when he speaks in public, and he does not speak softly. Whether rallying his armed forces against internal rebels and the army of newly-independent South Sudan, or defying a war crimes arrest warrant from The Hague, the leader of mostly Muslim Sudan projects a career soldier’s voice of command. Sending his militar y this month to recapture a disputed border oil region seized by South Sudan, the former paratroop commander unleashed a barrage of belligerent rhetoric against the ex-rebels who now rule his independent southern neighbor.

Calling South Sudan’s ruling Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM) “insects” - a play in words on their Arabic name - Bashir vowed to “liberate” the southern state that became the world’s newest independent nation in July last year. Its secession meant Sudan is no longer Africa’s largest country. The South’s government would only learn from “disciplining with a stick”, Bashir shouted, flailing the air with his own trademark stick for emphasis. He warned that any who raised their hand in an attack against Sudan, would have it “cut off ”. South Sudan said on Friday it would withdraw its troops from the contested Heglig oil region, raising hopes the neighbours had pulled back from the brink of all-out war.

Three days later, Sudanese war planes bombed a market in the capital of South

Sudan’s oil-producing Unity State. The South’s army called it a declaration of war and Bashir, who denied the raid, ruled out a return to negotiations. In power since 1989 and one of the African continent’s

ting head of state to be indicted for crimes against humanity and war crimes by the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague.

Publicly reviled as a war criminal by

HEGLIG: Sudanese President Omar Al-Bashir speaks to armed forces in Heglig. — AP longest-ser ving rulers, Bashir has deployed a combination of steely determination and wily pragmatism to face off a series of domestic and external challenges to his rule and person. After Sudanese troops and militia fought a bloody campaign against a rebellion in the strife-torn western Darfur region, Bashir in 2009 became the world’s first sit-

campaigning Hollywood stars like Angelina Jolie and George Clooney, Bashir steadfastly rejects the charge that he is responsible for atrocities allegedly committed against local tribes by the Sudanese army and allied Janjaweed militia, the feared “devils on horseback”. He told US interviewers in 2009 he viewed the ICC as “a political court and not a

court of justice”. Bashir called it a “tool to terrorize countries that the West thinks are disobedient” in the interview with TIME magazine and “NewsHour with Jim Lehrer” on PBS. His comment on Darfur, where Washington says “genocide” was committed, killing thousands and forcing some 2 million from their homes, was: “In any war, mistakes happen on the ground”.

Those who know Bashir say he reacts with rage when he feels slighted, as apparently occurred when South Sudanese troops seized the Heglig oilfield earlier this month.

“I know the personality of Al-Bashir ...

When he feels treated badly or mistreated, he gets really ver y angr y,” said Eltayeb Mustafa, who is a relative and strong supporter of Bashir and whose Just Peace Forum par ty publishes Sudan’s most widely read newspaper Al Intibaha. ICC chief prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo has said Bashir’s destiny is “to face justice”. But although Sudan’s president has sometimes changed his travel plans to avoid the threat of arrest on the court’s warrant, he has still found governments in Africa, the Middle East and elsewhere willing to host him. And to judge by the thousands of Sudanese who filled Khar toum’s streets on Friday to celebrate the recovery of Heglig, Bashir still commands popular support with his bombastic, stickwaving rhetoric, his impromptu dances and his regular use of colloquial Arabic.

Decisively re-elected in 2010, Bashir has shifted in his years in power from initially overseeing Sudan’s transformation into a radical Islamic pariah state that provided a refuge for Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, to later improving ties with the international fold through a 2005 peace deal that ended more than two decades of north-south civil war.

Born the son of a small farmer in the Nile Valley north of Khartoum, he graduated from Sudan’s military academy in 1966. He was an obscure army brigadier when he came to power in a bloodless coup in 1989 in an alliance with Islamists, deposing the country’s last elected civilian government.

Relations with the United States hit a nadir in 1998, when Washington bombed a pharmaceuticals plant near Khartoum it said made ingredients for chemical weapons. Sudan denied this but has long been a target of US economic sanc tions and remains on Washington’s official list of state sponsors of terrorism.

After the 9/11 attacks on the United States, when then US president George W Bush warned nations they were either for or against Washington, Sudan stepped up its security cooperation, sharing information about its former guest bin Laden. Over the years the Bashir government’s Islamist agenda has taken a back seat to a growing interest in ties with the outside world. — Reuter

Egypt’s Sinai turns into ‘Wild West’: Netanyahu Violence surges along desert border since Mubarak’s fall

BEIJING: South Sudan’s President Salva Kiir stands in front of a Chinese national flag while national anthems are played during a welcoming ceremony at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing yesterday. — AP

South Sudan can ‘forgive but not forget’ war years JUBA: South Sudan’s President Salva Kiir, who spent much of his life as a rebel commander fighting in one of Africa’s longest and deadliest civil wars, says it will take another lifetime to make his newborn country prosperous, secure and self-sufficient. For now it is locked in fighting with its arch foe Sudan, the worst violence since South Sudan became independent under a 2005 peace agreement with Khartoum. “Building a nation will take our lifetimes,” the guerrilla fighter turned president told leaders of his ruling Sudan Peoples’ Liberation Movement (SPLM) last month, listing huge challenges in infrastructure, education and healthcare. While other members of the southern elite boast academic credentials obtained in the West, Kiir is seen as a no-nonsense army man, most comfortable in the field. He joined the south’s first insurgency (1955-1972) at 17 and later became a major in the Sudanese intelligence services.

In a tough speech to parliament interrupted by clapping, Kiir asked his people in April to prepare for war after his troops made a surprise grab of the disputed Heglig oilfield. He admonished UN Secretary-General Ban KiMoon for asking him to leave Heglig, which is

key to Sudan’s economy. “I told him you don’t need to order me because I am not under your command,” Kiir said. Bowing to demands from the UN Security Council, South Sudan said on Sunday it had withdrawn its troops from the contested Heglig oil region, raising hopes the neighbors had pulled back from the brink of all-out war. While promising to work for national unity and reconciliation, Kiir warned South Sudanese in his March 26 speech that “the biggest challenge to achieving this vision is our relationship with the government of Sudan”. Following South Sudan’s birth as Africa’s newest state in July 2011 after a landslide southern referendum endorsing this move, Kiir’s SPLM government has quickly become embroiled this year in disputes with Khartoum over ill-defined border lines, and especially over the economic lifeblood of both states: oil. Independence gave landlocked South Sudan three-quarters of the oil output previously held by Sudan. But Juba has rejected Khartoum’s insistence, reinforced by confiscation of southern cargoes, that it pay a certain level of transit fees to send its oil through Sudan’s northern pipelines and Red Sea port.—Reuters

Osama ‘wanted 9/11 follow-up’ NEW YORK: A British man who trained to be a shoe bomber a decade ago says Osama bin Laden told him shortly after the Sept 11, 2001 World Trade Center and Pentagon attacks that he believed a follow-up terrorism attack could doom the American economy.

Saajid Badat recounted his meeting with the Al-Qaeda founder in videotaped testimony that was played Monday for a federal jury in Brooklyn. “So he said the American economy is like a chain,” Badat said. “If you break one one link of the chain, the whole economy will be brought down. So after Sept 11 attacks, this operation will ruin the aviation industry and in turn the whole economy will come down.”

Badat, 33, was convicted in London in a 2001 plot to down an American Airlines flight from Paris to Miami with explosives hidden in his shoes. His testimony came in the federal trial of a man accused in a 2009 plot to attack New York’s subways with suicide bombs.

Badat said he was supposed to carry out a simultaneous bombing with failed shoebomber Richard Reid but he backed out because of his reluctance, fear and the effect it would have on his family. He said he informed his handler in Pakistan by email but never notified bin Laden.

In testimony recorded last month, Badat said he refused a request to testify in person

because he remains under indictment in Boston on charges alleging he conspired with Reid and he has been told he’d be arrested if he set foot in the United States.

Arrested in November 2003, Badat is free after serving six years of an 11-year prison sentence. He testified that he began cooperating in part because he hoped to testify someday against Khalid Sheik Mohammed, who has claimed responsibility while in US custody as the architect of the Sept 11, 2001 attacks. He said Mohammed gave final orders to himself and Reid, who is serving a life sentence. “He just gave us advice, uh, on how to interact with each other, how to contact each other,” Badat said.

Badat said he believed Mohammed and others like him take advantage of vulnerable youths to carry out terrorism attacks. On cross-examination, he said he believed some of the Sept 11 hijackers were victims like the others who died that day, “to lesser extent, to a much lesser extent.” Reid and Badat traveled with each other just weeks before the planned December 2001 attacks, meeting for a time with a group of Malaysians who were preparing to perform a hijacking similar to the Sept 11 attacks, Badat said. “I provided them with one of my shoes because ... both had explosives inserted into them,” he testified.—AP

JERUSALEM: Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula has turned into a “kind of Wild West” exploited by Islamist militants with Iranian help to smuggle in weapons and stage attacks on Israel, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said yesterday. The open desert border between Israel and Egypt was relatively quiet for three decades after they signed a peace treaty in 1979. But the Jewish state says that since the fall of Hosni Mubarak in a popular uprising last year, Cairo has lost its grip on the desolate Sinai and tensions are rising.

Earlier this month, Israel said a rocket fired from the Sinai hit its Red Sea resort of Eilat, causing no injuries. Last August, cross-border infiltrators shot dead eight Israelis and Israeli soldiers repelling the attack accidentally killed five Egyptian guards. “ The Sinai is turning into a kind of Wild West which ... terror groups from Hamas, Islamic Jihad and AlQaeda, with the aid of Iran, are using to smuggle arms, to bring in arms, to mount attacks against Israel,” Netanyahu told Israel Radio. “We are acting against this reality and we are in ... continuous discussions with the Egyptian government, which is also troubled by this,” said Netanyahu.

Iran denies supporting militants against its arch-enemy.

Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman was quoted as saying on Sunday that the situation in Egypt was more worrying than what was happening in Iran, and called for a significant boost to troop numbers along the southern borders. In an apparent

SINAI PENINSULA: A file photo shows an Egyptian man looking at flames rising from a pipeline that delivers gas to Israel and Jordan after it was hit by an explosion. — AFP riposte, Egypt’s interim military ruler, Field Marshal Mohamed Hussein Tantawi, cautioned on Monday against any interference along the long desert frontier.

“Our borders, especially the northeast ones, are inflamed. We do not attack neighboring countries but will defend our territory,” Egypt’s state news agency MENA quoted him as saying. “We will break the legs of anyone trying to attack us or who come near the borders.”

GAS DISRUPTION He spoke just hours after Egypt unexpectedly terminated a deal to sell natural gas to Israel, although leaders in both countries have been quick to stress it

was a business rather than a political issue.

“The stopping of the agreement is a result of a commercial dispute between the Egyptian company and a private Israeli company,” Netanyahu said yesterday. To fend off infiltration, Israel is building a fence along the border with Egypt that it hopes to complete by the end of 2012.

When finished, the barrier will run most of the 266 km from Eilat up to the Gaza Strip. The Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, which does not recognize Israel’s existence, controls Gaza and is looking to forge close ties with Islamist parties that recently triumphed in Egypt’s parliamentary elections.

Netanyahu said he hoped Egypt’s new rulers would continue to abide by the historic peace treaty. “I hope that the next government will understand that this is in Egyptian interests no less than it is in Israeli interests,” he said. Egypt has paid an economic price for the lawlessness in Sinai. The pipeline exporting natural gas to both Jordan and Israel has been blown up more than a dozen times in the last year, while its Red Sea resorts have seen a drop in tourists.

Israel’s counter-terrorism bureau renewed a warning on Sunday, urging Israelis not to travel to the Sinai because of intelligence warnings of planned militant attacks.—Reuters

Moroccan PM blasts king’s entourage in rare criticism RABAT: Morocco’s prime minister has hit out at courtiers around King Mohammed in rare criticism that could signify the star t of a confrontation between the Islamist-led government and powerful figures close to the palace. Moroccan authorities, under pressure from the “Arab Spring” upheavals elsewhere in the region, held early elec tions last year which for the first time handed power to the opposition PJD party of moderate Islamists.

Since then, analysts have been predicting a stand-off between the government, which is committed to tackling corruption and poverty, and a moneyed elite with long-standing ties to the palace.

Prime Minister Abdelilah Benkirane spoke out on Sunday after his government’s plan to reform state-run television, widely seen as a mouthpiece for the monarchy, was criticized by figures close to the palace. “The Arab Spring is not over yet,” Benkirane told a PJD gathering in Rabat, according to remarks carried on Monday by local newspapers. “It (the Arab Spring) is still wandering about and may feel like

coming back,” he added. “In this country, even the monarchy itself needs citizens who seek reform ... Kings are not always surrounded by the right kind of people, they can actually be surrounded by foes who become the first to desert them.” In a statement emailed to Reuters, Benkirane later said his comments were “taken out of context”. “Morocco’s democracy is a participatory one based on cooperation between constitutional institutions under the leadership of His Majesty the King, may God protect him, and his directives,” Benkirane said.

KING REVERED Two officials with Benkirane’s PJD party confirmed to Reuters that he had made the remarks, which were repor ted by publications including the independent newspaper Ak hbar Al-Youm and the Febrayer.com news por tal. Jamaa Moatassim, head of Benkirane’s office, could not be reached for comment. Any criticism of the palace is highly unusual in Morocco, especially from such a senior politician. The monarchy itself is revered,

with King Mohammed held by Moroccans to be a descendant of the Prophet Mohammad, and the elite around the palace, commonly k nown as the Makhzen, is also generally treated with deference. The PJD won the biggest share of the vote in November by promising to fight corruption, especially among people using high-level connections to enrich themselves.

It promised to unveil lists of beneficiaries of business licenses granted at the authorities’ discretion to politicians, businessmen and senior army officers.

Benkirane’s government issued guidelines that would have banned lotter y commercials and required them to broadcast the Muslim call to prayer - both in line with the PJD’s policy of promoting conservative social values. Executives at the state -run R TM and 2M channels argued that these rules were a threat to their independence from government.

Two government ministers from parties close to the palace that are in coalition with the PJD also attacked the guide lines.— Reuters

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, 2012

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

French rivals scramble to seduce Le Pen voters Gloves off for Sarkozy in second round Socialist challenger Francois Hollande, who topped Sunday’s vote and is favorite to win a May 6 runoff, said in an interview with left-wing daily Liberation: “It’s up to me to convince the voters of the National Front.”

Hollande put Le Pen’s unprecedented 18 percent score down to despair among “a suffering electorate of office workers, artisans, and bluecollar workers who are really feeling abandoned” as well as farmers struggling to make ends meet.

Those voters, some of whom came from the left, had wanted to punish not just Sarkozy but also the political system, Europe and globalization, he said. The two rivals for the second round, which will determine who leads Europe’s number two economy, a nuclear power and

activist UN Security Council member, are adopting sharply contrasting tactics to woo potential swing voters.

Sarkozy is playing up divisive issues such as “real work” versus “assistance”, curbing public displays of Islam in France and slashing immigration, while Hollande is trying to project himself as a calm, unifying presidential figure.

“Nicolas Sarkozy is constantly trying to create cleavages... when what people expect from a president, especially in times of crisis, is to be a unifier,” said veteran political scientist Roland Cayrol of the Centre for Studies and Analysis. “By contrast, Francois Hollande, who is the heir to a political family that invented the fundamental cleavage of the class struggle, has adopted the posture of a unifier.”

LONGJUMEAU: A combination of nine pictures shows France’s incumbent president and Union for a Popular Movement (UMP) party candidate for the French 2012 presidential election Nicolas Sarkozy yesterday during a campaign meeting in Longjumeau, south of Paris. — AFP

SCORN Le Pen poured scorn on both main candidates, saying that her supporters had voted for her ideas and not out of protest or distress at the crisis. She made clear her next objective was to win seats in parliament in June and lead “the real opposition”. Based on Sunday’s vote, the National Front would reach the second round in some 345 constituencies, more than half of the 577 seats, potentially splitting the right-wing vote in a major threat to Sarkozy’s UMP party.

Le Pen said she would give her view of the second round choice at a rally on May 1, but senior aides made clear she was highly unlikely to endorse either candidate. Analysts say her party’s strategy is based on defeating Sarkozy and the mainstream right falling apart in the wake of a lost election. Projecting himself as the outsider in the race and a victim of media and establishment bias, Sarkozy rejected the idea that Le Pen would arbitrate his duel with Hollande. “There’s only one referee of the second round, as there was in the first round. It’s not the pollsters, it’s not the pundits, it’s the French people, and the French people are free.

And it’s not Mrs Le Pen either,” he told France 2 television. — Reuters

PARIS: France’s presidential rivals scrambled yesterday to seduce nearly a fifth of the electorate that voted for far right anti-immigration crusader Marine Le Pen, voicing sympathy for voters’ distress in the economic crisis.

Conservative President Nicolas Sarkozy, fighting for his political life after being beaten into second place in Sunday’s first round, hammered away at Le Pen’s themes of fear of immigration, insecurity and industrial decline at public rallies and in media interviews.

“I want to talk to the little people, to the foot soldiers, to people in the countryside, to pensioners,” Sarkozy told a public rally, saying the National Front leader had drawn a “crisis vote” in “the part of France that is suffering”. “You are feeling afraid,” he said. “I have heard you.”

Nobel laureates press for peace CHICAGO: Nobel peace laureates gathered for an annual summit said Monday the work that earned them their prizes is far from over and rallied support for their fight for human rights and global justice. Mikhail Gorbachev, who as president of the Soviet Union helped end the Cold War and open the communist regime to democracy, said the time has come for “a new global order” that must be “more stable, more just and more humane.” But he warned that tremendous challenges still lie ahead.

Nuclear weapons are once again threatening mass destruction, poverty and deprivation shackle billions of people, while climate change and pollution deprive people of clean water, air

and food amid an age-old conflict of man against nature. “As Nobel laureates, we have the moral right to speak out and we need to take the situation in hand,” said Gorbachev, who launched the annual summit 12 years ago. “Even though we’re not getting any younger, we must commit our hearts and our souls and we must continue to raise these issues and to speak the truth to power.” Governments are ignoring commitments made to the United Nations and to their citizens, taking a “condescending attitude to the people” and using “old tricks” to benefit vested interests, he said.

“We must unite, we must have solidarity, we must work resolutely to change the world for the

better,” Gorbachev told a packed auditorium at the University of Illinois at Chicago.

An audience also followed the speech online. Frederik de Klerk, who as president of South Africa helped to end apartheid, said poverty and a “failure to manage diversity” were at the root of misery that is not only unjust but also leads to social unrest, conflict and terrorism. “Where do the terrorists come from? They come from countries where the masses do not have good living conditions and it is stimulated by fanaticism in its worst form,” de Klerk said. “They are vulnerable because they have nothing to lose.”

While South Africa is now troubled by the government’s failure

to honor its commitments to citizens such as good education, its history also provides a lesson in the power of diplomacy over threats of violence or embargoes.

“From the South African experience, I can testify that we did not change because of the many big sticks wielded-at times that delayed reform,” de Klerk said.

“Haven’t we had too much big stick and isn’t it time for speaking softly?” he asked, in reference to US President Theodore Roosevelt’s slogan “speak softly and carr y a big stick.” Lech Walesa, who led Poland’s Solidarity movement and served as the nation’s first post-communist president, warned of the threat of unsustainable economic disparities. — AFP

Breivik’s Trial sharpens focus on mental state OSLO: Confessed mass killer Anders Behring Breivik vehemently defended his sanity after a forensic panel found flaws in a psychiatric report that declared him sane in the eyes of the law. As the trial for Breivik’s bomb-and-shooting rampage that killed 77 people entered its second week, the far-right fanatic told a court that he was the victim of a “racist” plot to discredit his ideology. He said no one would have questioned his sanity if he were a “bearded jihadist.” “I know I’m at risk of ending up at an insane asylum, and I’m going to do what I can to avoid that,” Breivik said.

Two psychiatric examinations conducted before the trial reached opposite conclusions on whether Breivik is psychotic - the key issue to be resolved during the trial, since the 33-year-old Norwegian had admitted to the deadly attacks. But the second of those reports, which found him sane, has not yet been approved by the Norwegian Board of Forensic Medicine. On Monday, the panel highlighted several shortcomings in that assessment, and requested additional information from the two psychiatrists who wrote it.

In particular, the forensic board said it could not be established whether Breivik had adjusted his behavior during the examination as part of a strategy to be declared mentally competent. Paal Groendahl, a forensic psychologist who is not involved with the case but has followed the trial in court, said the panel’s queries underscore the difficulty in assessing Breivik’s state of mind. “I don’t think it’s any closer to being resolved,” he said. If found sane Breivik would face 21 years in prison, though he can be held longer if deemed a danger to society. If sentenced to psychiatric care, in theory he would be released once he’s no longer deemed psychotic and dangerous.

Breivik has admitted to setting off a bomb July 22 that killed eight people outside government headquarters in Oslo and then going on a shooting spree at the Labor Party’s youth camp, killing 69 people. More than half of the victims were teenagers. He rejects criminal guilt for the rampage, saying the victims had betrayed their country by embracing immigration. “I see all multicultural political activists as monsters, as evil monsters who wish to eradicate our people, our ethnic group, our culture and our country,” he told the court Monday. The self-styled crusader apologized to the family of a pub owner who was among the victims in the bomb blast, saying it was not his intention to kill “civilians.” But he refused to apologize to the families of those killed on Utoya Island, where members of the Labor Party’s youth wing had gathered for their annual summer retreat. — AP

LONDON: A video grab shows former News International executive chairman James Murdoch swearing an oath holding a Bible before giving evidence at the Leveson Inquiry into press standards at the High Court in London yesterday. —AFP

Murdoch’s political ties under scrutiny LONDON: James Murdoch was quizzed yesterday about his closeness to British political leaders, as a public inquiry prompted by the phone-hacking scandal at his father’s newspaper empire delves into the relationship between politicians and the media. Rupert Murdoch, head of News Corp, may accompany his son ahead of his own scheduled testimony at London’s Royal Courts of Justice today to the Leveson Inquiry, which in five months has already taken a wide-roving and discomfiting look at press ethics and journalists’ dealings with the police.

James Murdoch, 39, will face questions about meetings with ministers while they considered letting the Murdochs take full control of broadcaster BSkyB and also about a Christmas drinks party he attended with Prime Minister David Cameron, who may also soon face awkward questions from an inquiry he himself set up in response to public outrage at tabloid misbehavior. The younger Murdoch, who stepped down this month as chairman of BSkyB, may be asked whether the family political influence his Australian-born father had built up over four decades may have contributed to a sense of invulnerability among the tabloid journalists accused of hacking voicemails to break stories.

Nine months after the Murdochs, father and son, sat together to defend their record before a parliamentary committee an uncomfortable three hours marked by a protester hitting Rupert, now 81, with a shaving-foam “pie” - investors in News Corp will again be watching closely how they perform. Some investors have voiced dissatisfaction with their running of the businesses and fear scandal could touch the US core of the Murdochs’ operations. The group has moved to defend its reputation by cooperating with British police.

NEWS OF THE WORLD The inquiry by Brian Leveson, a senior judge, was prompted by scandal at the News of the World, a 168-year-old Sunday tabloid that was Britain’s biggest selling newspaper until the Murdochs shut it down and apologized to victims of crime and celebrities whose mobile phone voicemails had been hacked by private detectives working with the paper’s journalists.

Leveson and his team of legal inquisitors have already grilled hacking victims and journalists, and officers from London’s Metropolitan Police, whose own passing of information to the press and failure to pursue criminal inquiries when allegations first surfaced years ago has caused public anger.

US-based News Corp, owner of Fox Television and the Wall Street Journal, was

thwarted in its ambition last year to buy the 61 percent of BSkyB, a major British pay-TV provider, that it did not already own. Amid the fire storm of scandal at the News of the World, it withdrew the bid.

Before that happened, however, James Murdoch met Cameron’s media minister, Jeremy Hunt, early last year, at a time when the company was thrashing out concessions to British politicians who were concerned about a concentration of power across newspapers and television if the $12-billion deal went through.

The Leveson Inquiry is expected to ask about that, as well as a Christmas party James Murdoch has said he attended with the prime minister late in 2010 at the home of Rebekah Brooks, the Murdochs’ star tabloid editor at the News of the World and later The Sun. She quit the company last July and has since been arrested. James Murdoch has, since the scandal broke, stepped down from the News International subsidiary which publishes the British newspapers - including the Times and Sunday Times - and moved to New York as News Corp deputy chief operating officer.

CAMERON’S FRIENDS Cameron, who won power two years ago, has been forced to play down his contacts with the Murdochs and with Brooks, a neighbor and frequent guest at his home in the countryside. Many critics believe that the News of the World’s ability to make and break careers, partly through information gleaned from phone-hacking, discouraged police and politicians from investigating the allegations more thoroughly years ago.

The inquiry’s principal brief was to investigate press ethics but it is probing relationships between the press, police and politicians which many see as a complex web of influence. “I’m genuinely not too sure how far Leveson can push it in terms of the relationship between media owners and politicians without its snowballing into an inquiry about politics,” said Charlie Beckett, founding director of the Polis journalism and society think-tank at the London School of Economics.

“I wonder when it started whether David Cameron really thought it was going to turn into this wide-ranging inquiry about how we conduct politics. It’s gone far beyond newspapers doing dodgy things.”

Cameron and other top politicians are expected to be called to give evidence to the inquiry. James Murdoch also faces questions from other quarters, including a committee of British parliamentarians about his role in covering up the scale of phone-hacking at the News of the World, whose parent company he ran in the immediate aftermath. — Reuters

Muslims in Europe face discrimination: Amnesty FREETOWN: A file photo shows a Sierra Leonean soldier of the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) posing in a street of Freetown. — AFP

Liberia bitter as Taylor comes under spotlight MONROVIA: As Charles Taylor’s role in Sierra Leone’s war comes under the spotlight tomorrow, bitterness remains next door in Liberia where atrocities he caused as warlord and president have gone unpunished. Taylor will be judged in The Hague for his indirect role in war crimes such as murder and terrorizing civilians, rape and recruiting child soldiers in Sierra Leone in return for “blood diamonds” mined by the rebels.

But it was at home in Liberia that as leader of the rebel National Patriotic Front of Liberia (NPFL), Taylor pio neered the use of drug-fueled children in battle, and the blood-curdling tactics used to terrify citizens. Johnson Yarkparolo, 45, a farmer whose brother was killed by Taylor’s men during the war, says he does not understand why the man was being prosecuted for crimes committed in Sierra Leone, but not Liberia. “In my mind, Taylor needed to be prosecuted for the mayhems and atrocity he committed against the people of Liberia.” Taylor led a group of rebels into Liberia in 1989 in a bid to overthrow the hated regime of Samuel Doe, a move which descended into

bloody civil war with a panoply of warring factions. Taylor’s NPFL and units of child soldiers carried out massacres, torture and terrorized the population, placing human heads and entrails on sticks at checkpoints to incite fear.

However it was Taylor’s alleged role in training and financing Sierra Leonean rebels who sparked a war in their own country over control of its diamond wealth, which landed him at the International Criminal Court.

Prosecutors have tried to link the kinds of crimes seen in Liberia to those committed by rebel groups in Sierra Leone, such as the heads displayed at checkpoints and recruitment of child soldiers. They have also tried to tie him to deals in which rebels’ prisoners would walk hundreds of miles back and forth between the Liberian and Sierra Leone borders to swap “blood diamonds” for weapons. Alpha Sesay, a legal officer at The Hague for the Open Society Initiative, said Taylor’s role in Liberia’s conflict would have been a lot easier to prove than that in Sierra Leone, where he did not set foot during the war. — AFP

LONDON: European countries are discriminating against Muslims for demonstrating their faith, especially in the fields of education and employment, rights group Amnesty International said yesterday. In a report focusing on Belgium, France, the Netherlands, Spain, and Switzerland, Amnesty urged European governments to do more to challenge negative stereotypes and prejudices against Islam. The report was particularly critical of countries that have brought in outright bans on face-covering veils or on the wearing of religious symbols in schools.

“Rather than countering these prejudices, political parties and public officials are all too often pandering to them in their quest for votes,” said Marco Perolini, Amnesty International’s expert on discrimination. “Muslim women are being denied jobs and girls prevented from attending regular classes just because they wear traditional forms of dress, such as the headscarf. “Men can be dismissed for wearing beards associated with Islam.” The Amnesty report comes two days after the anti-immigrant National Front achieved a record score for the party in the first round of France’s presidential election, with 18 percent of voters backing leader Marine Le Pen. The report, titled “Choice and prejudice: discrimination against Muslims in

Europe”, says legislation prohibiting discrimination in employment has not been properly implemented in Belgium, France and the Netherlands.

Employers had been allowed to ban religious or cultural symbols on the grounds that they would annoy clients or colleagues, or that it conflicts with a company’s corporate image or supposed neutrality, it said. Amnesty said this was in direct conflict with European Union law. “EU legislation prohibiting discrimination on the ground of religion or belief in the area of employment seems to be toothless across Europe, as we observe a higher rate of unemployment among Muslims,” Perolini said.

This was especially true among Muslim women of foreign origin, he added. In the last decade school pupils have been banned from wearing headscarves or other traditional religious dress in countries including Spain, France, Belgium, Switzerland and the Netherlands, Amnesty said. The group also criticized Switzerland for a 2009 ban on the construction of new minarets for mosques.

It said that in Spain’s Catalonia region many Muslims had to pray in outdoor areas because authorities were rejecting applications to build mosques on the grounds that they were incompatible with Catalan traditions and culture. — AFP

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, 2012

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

Rumbling Mexican volcano keeps locals awake XALITZINTLA: Residents at the foot of Mexico’s Popocatepetl volcano no longer sleep soundly since the towering mountain roared back into action over a week ago, spewing out a hail of rocks, steam and ashes. “We close our eyes, but we don’t sleep much. In the past, there was only smoke but this time it’s stronger,” said Francisco Jimenez, who lives in the nearby town of Xalitzintla in central Mexico, 55 kilometers from Mexico City. The volcano, Mexico’s second highest peak at 5,452 meters, started rumbling and spurting high clouds of ash and steam on April 13, provoking the authorities to raise the alert to level five on a seven-point scale.

The alert extended a security cordon around the volcano but stopped short of starting evacuations of some 685,000 residents from nearby communities. Over the weekend, residents watched as Popocatepetl, which means “Smoking Mountain” in the indigenous Nahuatl language, lived up to its name, spouting glowing rocks

and shaking the ground beneath their feet. “When we went out to see, my son cried: ‘We have to leave!’ We were ready to leave for Mexico City but then it calmed down a bit,” said 67-year-old Leopolda Perez of Xalitzintla.

Authorities from the National Center of Disaster Prevention maintained their alert level and said Monday that the volcano remains at a “relative calm” state. After moderate activity during most of the 20th century, Popocatepetl registered more intense rumblings from 1994, with the strongest in December 2000, when nearby communities were evacuated.

Juan Carlos Salazar, head of civil protection for the central state of Puebla, said that while many people thought lava was now coming out of the volcano, the crater was only spewing glowing rocks, with no risk to the population.

Popocatepetl is an explosive volcano that can suddenly erupt at tremendous force, thrusting out rocks and ashes at large distances. That kind

of volcano can be more dangerous than those releasing only flowing lava.

Residents say they are used to the permanent threat of the volcano, which they affectionately nickname “Don Gregorio” or “Don Goyo,” but many say the new activity makes them nervous again. “We’ve been watching out for many nights, waiting to see what happens,” said Gabino Santibanez, mayor of San Pedro Benito Juarez, a small town only nine kilometers (six miles) from the glowing crater.

Locals said that most frightening was the unusual rumbling coming from the volcano, which many compared to an aircraft turbine. “We’ve never heard a noise like it,” said Maximiliano Grajales. Some 4.5 million people live on the outskirts of the volcano, which lies at the crossroads of the states of Puebla, Morelos and Mexico. Officials in the area have prepared temporary shelters for possible evacuations and even taken stock of livestock, in case of possible theft.

“Some people won’t want to leave

XALITZINTLA: Popocatepetl volcano spews lava, ash and steam during an eruption as seen from Xalitzintla, Mexico. — AP because of their animals. Thieves pillaged houses during the 2000 evacuation,” Grajales said. Some now wear

US government on edge as prostitution scandal widens 12 military, 12 Secret Service members implicated WASHINGTON: The widening Secret Service prostitution scandal has touched off a delicate dance in Washington. People are loath to criticize an agency whose employees are trained to take a bullet for the people they protect.

Members of Congress pressing for the juicy stories risk reviving - or having revealed - some of their own. Yet all parties claim to want the truth about the extent of sworn officers working for one of the nation’s premier law enforcement agencies hiring Colombian sex workers ahead of President Barack Obama’s visit there and whether national security may have been compromised.

Spinning the facts as they emerge poses more risk: The Secret Service and the military are supposed to be above politics, dedicated to protecting presidents, their families and the nation. “Sure, it creates a problem for President Obama. It adds to the sense that Washington is broken. But if the Republicans try to make this a point in their arguments, they are making a big mistake,” GOP strategist Karl Rove said on “Fox News Sunday.”

A dozen Secret Service personnel and another 12 military enlistees preparing for Obama’s visit to Cartagena are being investigated for cavorting with prostitutes. Six Secret Service agents have been let go over the incident, and on Monday, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta told reporters his department has suspended the security clearances of the military personnel being investigated. As many as 20 prostitutes were involved with the group, officials say. None are believed to be underage.

The incident came to light after one of the prostitutes argued with a Secret Service agent over her payment in a hallway of the Caribe hotel. Law local enforcement intervened on the prostitute’s behalf. Paid sex is legal in Cartagena, but violates codes of conduct for US personnel who were working there.

Secret Service Director Mark Sullivan launched an investigation and requested an independent probe by the Homeland Security Department’s inspector general. Sullivan ousted some of those implicated and, perhaps as importantly, he busily briefed key members of Congress who left no doubt they would hold public hearings should they find his investigation insufficient. For now, there’s no complaint about the swift pace of the fallout or Sullivan’s thoroughness. But there’s been much discretion, strategic question-asking and even

notable silence from some members of Congress, uncharacteristic restraint in a tense election year sizzling with gender politics.

Obama has coolly urged a rigorous investigation and said that if the allegations prove true, he would be angry. For any president, a

Romney’s spokesman Grenell deletes inflammatory tweets WASHINGTON: Before joining Republican Mitt Romney’s presidential campaign last week as a spokesman, Richard Grenell was a prolific - and inflammatory - voice on Twitter, posting biting commentary on subjects ranging from Newt Gingrich’s weight to Michelle Obama exercising in the White House. No more. Since he joined Romney’s campaign as foreign affairs spokesman, many of Grenell’s most provocative musings on Twitter have been deleted in a cleanup that is the latest reminder of how social media has become a sideshow - and at times more in the 2012 campaign.

In an email, Grenell, who was spokesman for the US mission to the United Nations during George W Bush’s presidency, acknowledged to Reuters that he began removing messages from Twitter after their content was reported

by Politico on Friday. Before then, Grenell had been an acerbic observer on Twitter of a wide range of political figures and topics. Besides the first lady, Democrats who were targets of Grenell’s more pointed tweets included President Barack Obama, the Obamas’ daughter Malia, Vice

President Joe Biden and various members of the media, many connected to NBC or its liberal-leaning cable affiliate, MSNBC. But many of Grenell’s most biting Twitter messages were directed at fellow Republicans. According to an account posted on a Politico blog the day after Grenell joined Romney’s campaign, he was a particularly sarcastic tweeter during some of the televised debates for Republican presidential candidates earlier this year. Grenell targeted Gingrich and his third wife, Callista, over their appearance and Newt Gingrich’s turbulent marital history. Of Callista Gingrich’s blonde hair, Grenell tweeted on March 13: “do you think callista’s hair snaps on.” According to Politico, Grenell earlier had tweeted: “does callista speak?”

Among Grenell’s tweets about Newt Gingrich, a former US House speaker, was this missive in January: “what’s higher? The number of jobs newt’s created or the number of wives he’s had?” And in an apparent reference to Gingrich’s weight, Grenell mused in January: “i wonder if newt has investments in Lipitor,” referring to a cholestoral-lowering drug. — Reuters

Chavez calls home to squash death rumors CARTAGENA: A prostitute poses during an interview with AFP in Cartagena. — AFP Secret Service scandal creates discomfort. there was support for Sullivan and deference Members of the agency’s elite protective serv- to his investigation - a recognition by some in ice help the first family feel safe in the public Congress that the scandal needs no spinning glare. It’s a fairly intimate relationship, First and that any congressional action must have Lady Michelle Obama told members of the credibility with voters. It’s about national secuSecret Service last year. The president, their rity, Republicans say.

But there’s no question the hubbub also is daughters and she playfully argued at the dinner table over their favorite agents, she said. about illicit sex, a topic not eagerly discussed “We love our detail,” Mrs Obama told the US by a long list of lawmakers who have transSecret Service employees in October. “For us, gressed in that department. Louisiana Republican Sen David Vitter, for example, it’s like having family around.”

The Secret Service also shadows presiden- admitted in 2007 to a “serious sin” after his tial candidates and their families. Republican telephone number had appeared in the frontrunner Mitt Romney is said to be close to records of a Washington-area escort service his detail. Aides have said Romney sometimes that authorities said was a front for prostitueats dinner in his hotel room instead of dining tion. Vitter, a member of the Armed Services in public, which requires an entourage and Committee, won re-election in 2010. Asked more agents at work. Ordering in allows some how much responsibility Obama should be agents to clock out. But the former taking for the scandal, House Speaker John Massachusetts governor suggested a lack of Boehner demurred, saying he’s interested right leadership led to the scandal and left no doubt now in finding out just what happened in what he’d do if it had happened on his watch. Cartagena. — AP

Alberta Conservative Party defy polls, win another vote HIGH RIVER: Alberta’s Progressive Conservative Party fended off its biggest challenge in more than four decades of rule on Monday, winning a convincing majority as voters balked at handing Canada’s top energy-producing province to an upstart right-wing movement that promised traditional values and fiscal restraint. The ruling party of Premier Alison Redford was winning or leading in 59 of 87 voting districts in the western province of 3.8 million people, garnering 44 percent of votes cast. Its biggest challenger, the Wildrose Party led by Danielle Smith, was leading or elected in 21 districts and had 35 percent of the vote.

It was a battle of two right-of-center visions in the province that is the largest foreign energy supplier to the United States, and a growing economic force within Canada. Wildrose had promised to pay out a slice of the province’s oil and gas revenue to residents and limit participation in some federal programs, while Redford’s PCs - now one of the country’s longest-ever political dynasties - promised to increase Alberta’s role within the country. “Every Albertan knew that this election was about choice,” Redford said in her victory speech. “A choice to put up walls or build bridges ... Tonight Alberta chose to build bridges.”

The Wildrose, who are further to the political right than the Progressive Conservatives and share many political philosophies with the US Tea Party movement, had led in the polls. But the party suffered after two candidates made intem-

“I’d clean house,” Romney told radio host Laura Ingraham. “The right thing to do is to remove people who have violated the public trust and have put their play time and their personal interests ahead of the interests of the nation.”

Among key Republicans on Capitol Hill,

face masks to protect their lungs from falling ashes as Don Goyo rumbles and smokes nearby. — AFP

perate comments about sexual orientation and race. “I acknowledge that we wanted to do better, and we expected to do better. Am I surprised? Yeah. Am I disappointed? Yeah. Am I discouraged? Not a chance,” said Smith, who had the support of many of Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s campaign workers.

“Albertans have decided that Wildrose might need some time, might need some time to prove ourselves, might need some time to establish ourselves. I relish the opportunity.” The Conservatives have ruled in Alberta since 1971, led by five leaders, the latest being Redford, a 47-year-old lawyer and former justice minister. A series of scandals, deficit budgets and policies that angered the powerful oil patch lobby led to a break in the right-wing vote.

However, Wildrose did not prove in the end to be a threat to the PCs’ reign.

“It says the PC brand is maybe the strongest brand in Canadian political history,” Rod Love, who was chief of staff for former Conservative Premier Ralph Klein.

“It can take a ton of hits and body shots, and after 41 years, Albertans still respond to the brand.” Alberta is not Canada’s most populous province, but it is the richest. It derives about a third of its revenue from its vast reserves of oil and gas.

Its oil sands deposits rival conventional oil reserves in Saudi Arabia and Venezuela, and Redford’s government is trying to convince Washington to approve the $7 billion Keystone XL pipeline, which would carry Alberta’s oil sands-derived crude to Texas. — Reuters

New England’s lack of violence reaps benefits BOSTON: The rural New England states of Maine, Vermont and New Hampshire are the most peaceful US states, a distinction that gives them an economic advantage over the most violent, including Louisiana, Tennessee and Nevada. Violence and its aftermath cost the entire US economy some $460 billion last year, according to the Institute for Economics and Peace’s second annual United States Peace Index, which was released yesterday.

The study found that the United States has become a less violent place over the past two decades, based on an analysis of historic data on homicides and other violent crime, the number of people incarcerated, police employment and the prevalence of small arms. While the United States continues to be rocked by highly publicized cases of gun violence - from the February shooting of unarmed black teenager Trayvon Martin by a neighborhood watch volunteer in Florida to an April shooting spree in Tulsa, Oklahoma by two men that left three people dead and four wounded - the overall homicide rate has declined, the study found.

“You have a really established trend of improving peacefulness in the United States,” said Steve Killelea, an Australian entrepreneur who serves as executive chairman of the institute, which also produces an annual Global Peace Index, which tracks relative peacefulness of countries. Over that time two of the most populous states - New York and California - recorded the largest drops in violence, a trend that reflects decades of focus on fighting urban crime, Killelea said. “Certainly if one sees there is a problem and takes a concerted action to solve the problem, you are much more likely to see results,” Killelea said. The most violent states pick up far more of the nation’s overall $460 billion tab for violent crime than their peaceful neighbors.

The cost estimates for 2011 cover a range of expenses - from the direct costs of medical treatment for victims and incarceration of those convicted of violence, to lost productivity. — Reuters

CARACAS: A healthy sounding President Hugo Chavez called Venezuelan state television from Cuba on Monday to dispel rumors fanned by a nine-day silence that he had died undergoing cancer treatment at a hospital in Havana. “It seems we will have to become accustomed to live with these rumors, because it is part of the laboratories of psychological war, of dirty war,” the 57-year-old socialist leader said in the telephone call.

Since leaving for Cuba on April 14 to undergo radiation treatment for an undisclosed cancer, Chavez had only addressed Venezuelans by short messages on Twitter to cheer supporters and hail the advances of his socialist “revolution.” His unusually long silence stirred speculation about his health and raised doubts about his political future as he campaigns for re-election in an Oct 7 vote. Chavez said the cancer therapy was “hard” and he needed to rest, but that he was recovering and planned to return to Caracas on Thursday - although he would need another radiation session.

“Some people would like to see me leave here sprinting ... not yet, let me recover. I have to rest and look after my diet, the treatment and the hours I keep,” Chavez said. “These rumors sometimes are damaging.” He said the rumors about his health were so strong they even had his mother worried and he had to call her. Photos released by the Venezuelan government showed Chavez wearing a track suit and strolling in a garden in Havana with Foreign Minister Nicolas Maduro, playing bowls with his brother, Adan, and kissing a crucifix as he hugged

his daughter, Maria Gabriela.

Information Minister Andres Izarra posted the photos on his Facebook page with the title “Chavez alive and kicking.”

Opposition candidate Henrique Capriles criticized Chavez for running the oil producing nation remotely by Twitter from a Havana hospital bed. One of the president’s first acts when he returns will be to sign a new labor law to take effect on May 1. Chavez’s political ally and president of the National Assembly legislature Diosdado Cabello accused the opposition of having a “morbid obsession” with the former soldier’s health. “The truth is that these embittered people don’t learn.

They’ve been saying for days that the Comandante died,” he said. “The only thing that is lifeless here is that loser,” Cabello added on Twitter, referring to Capriles, the opposition’s best hope for ending Chavez’s 13 years in power.

GOVERNING BY TWITTER Chavez’s opponents have criticized him for keeping the country in the dark about the extent of his illness, raising suspicions that his cancer may have spread from an initial baseball-sized tumor that was removed from his pelvis.

Before leaving for Cuba earlier this month, Chavez acknowledged that radiation therapy was physically tiring and he skipped the Summit of the Americas in Colombia this month on the advice of his doctors. Despite his cancer, Chavez is seeking a new six-year term at an election that is shaping up to be the toughest political fight of his career due to his ill health and a serious opposition challenge. —Reuters

HAVANA: Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez kisses a cross next to his daughter Rosa Virginia in Havana. — AFP

12

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, 2012

international

The ‘Missile Woman’ behind Indian test launch

NEW DELHI: Tessy Thomas the Key Scientist for Agni-V in Defense Research and Development Organization (DRDO) and the first woman scientist to head a missile project in India attends an Agni 5 missile press conference in New Delhi. —AFP

NEW DELHI: Hailed as a trail blazer in male -dominated India, Tessy Thomas juggles domestic duties with her day job-as the country’s top ballistic missile expert. Thomas was project director for the Agni V long-range nuclear-capable missile which was test-fired last week in a major military advance that will give India the ability to hit all of rival China’s cities for the first time.

Celebrated as “Missile Woman” in the local media, she has lent a new and unusual face to the secretive world of India’s Defense Research and Development Organization (DRDO). But while the Roman Catholic from southern Kerala state has changed perceptions of her profession and challenged tradition along the way, she says she remains the doting wife and mother at home. “In Indian culture, we feel that women are also supposed to be taking care of the home, so a little bit of challenges are there,”

the 48-year-old told AFP. “But all my lady colleagues are also doing the same, just like me.

“I t was slightly tough, but I could do it by balancing my time” between home and work. “It was tough when my son was in school,” she conceded. Not all of her female colleagues have risen to such a position of prominence however.

The Agni V was a prestige project for India. Its 5,000-kilometre range is seen as vital for national defense and another demonstration of the nation’s rising power. President Pratibha Patil, another woman in a prominent position, commented after the launch that “the work of Thomas in the Agni program would hopefully inspire more women in choosing careers in science”.

In January, Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said that Thomas was an example of a “woman making her mark in a traditionally male bastion and decisively breaking the

glass ceiling”. Thomas joined the DRDO in 1988 and went on to work under A P J Abdul Kalam, the architect of the national missile development program who later became India’s president. Her initial focus was on the guidance systems for the various Agni missiles. The first variant was flight-tested in 1989. Her stewardship of the Agni V came after the first launch of the 3,500-kilometre-range Agni III in 2006.

The mother of a son and wife of a naval officer insists there is no gender discrimination in predominantly male DRDO, where about 200 female colleagues work in its dozens of ordnance factories and research facilities. “I always felt like a scientist and DRDO never made me feel otherwise. Besides, science does not recognize who is making the inputs,” she said. Thomas says she decided to go into missileswhich she regards as instruments

N Korea set for 3rd nuclear test Kim Jong-un seeks to cement grip on power

BEIJING: North Korea has almost completed preparations for a third nuclear test, a senior source with close ties to Pyongyang and Beijing told Reuters, which will draw further international condemnation following a failed rocket launch if it goes ahead. The isolated and impoverished state sacrificed the chance of closer ties with the United States when it launched the long-range rocket on April 13 and was censured by the UN Security Council, including the North’s sole major ally, China.

Critics say the rocket launch was aimed at honing the North’s ability to develop an intercontinental ballistic missile capable of hitting the United States, a move that would dramatically increase its military and diplomatic heft. Now the North appears to be about to carry out a third nuclear test after two in 2006 and 2009. “Soon.

Preparations are almost complete,” the source said when asked whether North Korea was planning to conduct a nuclear test. This is the first time a senior official has confirmed the planned test and the source has correctly predicted events in the past, telling Reuters about the 2006 test days before it happened.

The rocket launch and nuclear test come as Kim Jongun, the third of his line to rule North Korea, seeks to cement his grip on power. Kim took office in December and has lauded the country’s military might, reaffirming his father’s “military first” policies that have stunted economic development and appearing to dash slim hopes of an opening to the outside world. Washington, Seoul and Tokyo, which have most to fear from any North Korean nuclear threat, are watching events anxiously and many observers say that Pyongyang may have the capacity to conduct a test using highly enriched uranium for the first time.

Defense experts say that by successfully enriching uranium, to make bombs of the type dropped on Hiroshima nearly 70 years ago, the North would be able to significantly build up stocks of weapons-grade nuclear material. It would also allow it more easily to manufacture a nuclear warhead to mount on a long-range missile. The source did not specify whether the test would be a third test using plutonium, of which it has limited stocks, or whether Pyongyang would use uranium.

South Korean defense sources have been quoted in domestic media as saying a launch could come within two weeks and one North Korea analyst has suggested that it could come as early as the North’s “Army Day”

GANGHWA: Anti-North Korea activists release balloons carrying chocolates and leaflets denouncing North Korea’s defiant and costly rocket launch, in Ganghwa, a seaside border area west of Seoul yesterday. —AFP

today. Other observers say that any date is pure speculation. The rocket launch and the planned nuclear test have exposed the limits of China’s hold over Pyongyang.

Beijing is the North’s sole major ally and props up the state with investment and fuel. “China is like a chameleon toward North Korea,” said Kim Young-soo, professor of political science at Sogang University in Seoul. “It says it objects to North Korea’s provocative acts, but it does not participate in punishing the North.” Reports have suggested that a Chinese company may have supplied a rocket launcher shown off at a military parade to mark this month’s centenary of the birth of Kim Il-sung, the state’s founder, something that may be in breach of UN sanctions. China has denied breaching sanctions.

KIM STILL IN CHARGE The source said there was debate in North Korea’s top leadership over whether to go ahead with the launch in the face of US warnings and the possibility of further UN sanctions, but that hawks in the Korean People’s Army had won the debate. The source dismissed speculation that the failed launch had dealt a blow to Kim Jong-un, believed to be in his late 20s, who came to power after his father Kim Jong-il died following a 17-year rule that saw North Korea experience a famine in the 1990s. “Kim Jong-un was named first secretary of the (ruling) Workers’ Party and head of the National Defense Commission,” the source said, adding that the titles further consolidated his grip on power.

North Korean media has recently upped its criticism of South Korean President Lee Myung-bak, who cut off aid to Pyongyang when he took power in 2008, calling him a “rat” and a “bastard” and threatening to turn the South Korean capital to ashes. Pyongyang desperately wants recognition from the United States, the guarantor of the South’s security. It claims sovereignty over the entire Korean peninsula, as does South Korea. “North Korea may consider abandoning (the test) if the United States agrees to a peace treaty,” the source said, reiterating a long-standing demand by Pyongyang for recognition by Washington and a treaty to end the 1950-1953 Korean War, which ended in a truce. —Reuters

China eyes Europe’s ex-communist East WARSAW: Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao ends a four-nation European tour with a two-day visit to Poland starting today, focused on a high profile regional trade and investment summit with 16 fellow premiers. Having already inked an accord with Iceland on cooperation in the oil-rich Arctic region and opened the Hannover Messe-the world’s leading industry and trade fair-with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Jiabao will now turn his attention to the Europe’s up-and-coming ex-communist East.

Premiers from Albania, Bulgaria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungar y, Latvia, Lithuania, Macedonia, Montenegro, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia and host Poland are to attend the unprecedented Poland-Central Europe -China trade summit today in Warsaw. Three hundred Chinese firms and 450 companies from across the region, including 300 from Poland, are also due to attend. China invested a modest $821 million (622.44 million euros) in the region between 200410 with annual averages doubling in recent years, according to a recent report by the Central & Eastern Europe Development Institute (CEED).

Warsaw-based economist Witold Orlowski believes that with “mountains of euros and dollars they really want to spend,” the Chinese are eager to capitalize the region’s stability, growth and competitive prices to gain “perfect access to the West European market”-still Beijing’s top export destination. The EU’s imports of Chinese goods have quadrupled over the decade spanning 2000-10 and were worth 243.8 billion euros ($321.57 billion) in January-October 2011 alone, according to Eurostat data.

And while the recent hike in Chinese investments in debt-stricken eurozone

countries has caused concern, their noneurozone central and eastern EU and nonEU neighbors alike are rolling out the red carpet. Chinese expert Cui Hongjian confirms there is ample interest in the region “due to low local labour costs and preferential policies.” The head of the European

contradictions with central and eastern European countries (than with the West) and feels comfortable cooperating with them.”

For China, “Europe is one market and one production site,” observes Orlowski, a consultant for PricewaterhouseCoopers

GOTHENBURG: Chinese Prime Minister Wen Jiabao waves upon arrival at the governor’s residence in Goteborg. Jiabao started a three-day long visit to Sweden. —AFP department of the China Institute for International Studies-a Chinese foreign ministry think tank-told AFP that “comparatively speaking, China has fewer political

and former Polish presidential advisor. But despite its full pockets, he insists China still has a lot of homework to do before it can invest in Europe with the kind of savvy

displayed by Japan. So far, ex-communist Hungary, which joined the EU in 2004, hosts telecoms equipment provider Huawei, China’s largest to-date investments in the region.

It expects to see turnover more than double to three billion dollars in this year over 2011. The Bank of China has also been using its base in Budapest as a trampoline to invest across the region since 2003.

Last October, the Polish capital Warsaw hosted its first major Chinese trade congress. Local media now suggest the Shanghai Electric Group is one of two Asian investors vying to build and manage a new coal-fired electricity plant in Poland, worth an estimated five billion zloty (1.19 billion euros, 1.56 billion dollars).

Meanwhile in January, Chinese machinery group LiuGong agreed a deal with the Polish Treasury to acquire Poland’s bulldozer firm HSW as well as its distribution branch Dressta for an estimated 56 million euros ($72 million). But Beijing’s first step into the region’s public works sector suffered a major flop last June when Poland dropped the first Chinese firm to win a major deal in the EU. Construction on part of the A2 highway linking the Polish and German capitals Warsaw and Berlin came to a grinding halt after contract winner COVEC the China Overseas Engineering Group-failed to pay Polish subcontractors. The project was crucial to Poland ahead of the Euro 2012 football championships starting this June.

With less than 50 days to go until kick-off, it’s far from finished. “If the Chinese want to participate in Europe’s infrastructural market, obviously they should learn how to operate here,” Orlowski said. “It seems that they were sure it was a similar game here to what they’ve learned in Africa,” he added. —AFP

of peace because of their deterrence value-after watching rocket tests from a launch centre near her home. “As school children we used to go on picnics to watch the rocket tests and I would be fascinated.

Besides, I was always interested in science and mathematics,” she said.

Such is her passion for Indian defense hardware that she named her college -age son Tejas-after India’s indigenously-built light co m b a t a i rc ra f t . B e t we e n h e r kitchen at home in the southern c i t y o f H yd e ra b a d a n d p o r i n g over complex telemetry data at work, Thomas, who holds an engineering doctorate, has now set herself another challenge. “I am currently working on mission and guidance (systems) of the multiple independent re -entry vehicle,” the scientist said, referring to p ro p o s e d n e w te c h n o l o g y to deliver multiple warheads with a single missile. —AFP

News

in brief

Washington dismisses Tehran’s drone claims BOGOTA: US Defense Secretary Leon Panetta has dismissed claims by Iran that it had gleaned data from a downed US drone and was now building a copy of the robotic spycraft. “I can tell you from my experience that I would seriously question their ability to do what they said they’ve done,” Panetta, a former CIA director, told reporters before landing in Bogota. The commander of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards’ aerospatial division, General Amir Ali Hajizadeh, said on Sunday that Iran had discovered “codes” from the bat-winged RQ-170 Sentinel that fell into Tehran’s hands in December.

Panetta scoffed at Iran’s account but said he could not discuss details of such a sensitive subject. “It’s, obviously, a classified program. I don’t want to get into the particulars,” he said during a briefing on his flight to Bogota, at the start of a Latin American tour. Iran’s gleeful military proudly displayed the unmanned Sentinel drone on state television apparently intact, though with what appeared to be damage to one of its wings.

Italy pays damages THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Italian government has paid compensation of $190,000 each to the families of two Indian fishermen allegedly shot dead by Italian marines in February, lawyers said yesterday. The two marines, who are being held in custody in the southern Indian state of Kerala, were deployed as guards on an Italian oil tanker when they were accused of shooting dead the fishermen after mistaking them for pirates. The Italians face murder charges in the Indian courts, and the cash settlement will not affect the criminal case lodged against them by the Kerala state government. C Unnikrishnan, a lawyer representing the widow of one of the fishermen, said the Italian government had paid 10 million rupees ($189,500) each to the families of Selestian Valentine, 45, and Ajesh Pinky, 24. “We have settled the compensation case and signed the agreement to withdraw the (civil) cases with the consent of the High Court of Kerala,” Unnikrishnan said. “The Italian marines will have to face prosecution in the criminal case pending against them,” he added.

India drops monk charges NEW DELHI: Indian officials said yesterday they had dropped all criminal charges against a top Tibetan Buddhist monk seen as a potential successor to the Dalai Lama. Police in the northern state of Himachal Pradesh filed conspiracy charges against the Karmapa Lama last December, after authorities found more than $1 million in foreign cash, including Chinese yuan, stashed in his monastery. The discovery led to allegations in the Indian media-vigorously denied by the 26-year-old Karmapa-that he was a Chinese spy. “We have decided to drop all criminal charges against the Karmapa,” state Home Office official S P Singh said by telephone. “The police and the government lawyers thoroughly investigated all the charges and found no real evidence to pursue a case against him,” Singh said. The Karmapa, Urgyen Trinley, is revered by his followers as the 17th incarnation of the head of the Karma Kagyu lineage, one of the four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism. He fled Tibet in 1999 at the age of 14, reaching India after a perilous eight-day winter journey by foot and horseback over the Himalayas.

Armenians mark genocide YEREVAN: Thousands of Armenians staged a procession to a hilltop memorial above the capital yesterday to mark the 97th anniversary of the genocide of their kin by Ottoman Turks during World War I. From early morning, crowds of people joined the annual procession, carrying candles and flowers to lay at the eternal flame at the centre of the monument commemorating the mass killings.

“Today we, just as many, many others all over the world, bow to the memory of the innocent victims of the Armenian genocide,” President Serzh Sarkisian, who led top officials laying wreaths at the monument, said in a statement. “This day is one of those moments when the entire nation rallies around the unification of our homeland,” he said. Among the mourners was 75-year-old Tsovinar Tumasian, who said that her father had fought to save women and children from Turkish attacks. She urged other countries to pressure Turkey to accept that the killings were genocide. “If they are not forced to do so, they will not recognize the genocide as fact. They think that with time, everyone will forget about it,” Tumasian said as her relatives helped her make her way up the hill towards the monument.

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, 2012

NEWS

A Thai Buddhist monk talks on a radio while walking past tigers at a tiger Buddhist temple in Karnchanaburi province in western Thailand yesterday. Thailand is one of just 13 countries hosting fragile tiger populations and is a hub of international smuggling. Worldwide, numbers are estimated to have fallen to only 3,200 tigers from approximately 100,000 a century ago. — AFP

Israel legalises three settler outposts JERUSALEM: Israel yesterday decided to legalise three settler outposts in a move denounced by the Palestinians as a dismissive response to a letter from president Mahmud Abbas calling for a settlement freeze. A ministerial committee has decided “to formalise the status of three communities which were established in the 1990s,” the office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said. The move sparked an angry response from the Palestinians, Israeli settlement watchdog Peace Now, which said it was the first time the government had created new settlements since the 1990s and Denmark which holds the European Union presidency.

The three outposts - Bruchin, Rechelim and Sansana had no Israeli legal status since they were set up, but will now join the 120 official settlements dotted across the occupied West Bank that are home to more than 342,000

people. The Palestinian leadership said the decision was “expected” and said it was “the Israeli answer” to a letter from Abbas to Netanyahu, in which he laid out the Palestinian grievances over the collapse of the peace process and outlined his demands for restarting negotiations. Central to the letter was the demand for a settlement freeze.

“The decision on the settlements is the Israeli answer to president Abbas’ letter,” presidential spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeina told AFP. Hanan Ashrawi, a senior member of the Palestine Liberation Organisation, agreed that what was happening on the ground was “the real Israeli response” to Abbas’ letter. “This proves that Israel is interested neither in a political process nor in ending the occupation and the two-state solution. Israel is only interested in control, in grabbing lands and the creation of the greater

Israel,” she told Voice of Palestine radio.

But an Israeli official denied the move was tantamount to creating new settlements. “This decision does not change the reality on the ground. It does not establish new settlements or expand existing settlements,” he said. His remarks were roundly denounced by Peace Now’s Hagit Ofran, who accused the government of creating a smoke screen. “This is the first time since 1990 that the government decides on establishing new settlements, and the government’s manoeuvre - establishing a committee to establish the settlements - is a trick aimed at hiding the true policy from the public,” she said.

The current EU president Denmark said the Israeli move “represents a fundamental threat to a two state solution” to the Middle East conflict. Danish Foreign Minister Villy Soevndal expressed “great disappointment” at what

he called “Israel’s tactic of constantly nibbling away, establishing real and concrete facts on the ground on Palestinian territory that are illegal”. Under terms of a Supreme Court ruling last August, the Israeli government was required to address the legal status of some 16 outposts.

In six cases, the government pledged to demolish the outposts, while it said it would legalise the status of 10 others, among them Bruchin, Rechelim and Sansana. On Monday night, Netanyahu’s inner circle, the Forum of Eight, decided to ask the Supreme Court to extend its deadline for the demolition of the Ulpana outpost, which is to be razed by May 1. “We will ask the Supreme Court for a postponement in order to give us time to deal with it,” Netanyahu told army radio on Tuesday. “We are considering a few options.” — AFP

Immunity of 9 MPs lifted over Assembly...

officers killed in Damascus car bomb

Continued from Page 1

Continued from Page 1

Juwaihel’s grilling is based on five main issues which include failure to take the required action against those who committed forgery in citizenship files, failure to implement law on holders of dual citizenship, allegedly widespread arms that harm national security, alleged corruption at the traffic department and allegations of financial irregularities. The grilling alleges that a number of forgeries had been committed in the process of granting Kuwaiti citizenship that resulted in naturalizing many people in violation of the law and the minister failed to take the necessary legal action.

Regarding holders of dual citizenship, the grilling alleges that Kuwaiti citizenship was restored to several people after it was withdrawn from them for violating the law and holding the citizenship of other countries.

Kuwaiti law does not permit citizens taking other nationalities under the risk of withdrawing the Kuwaiti nationality. Juwaihel had placed this issue at the top of his election campaign. The grilling also alleges widespread assaults on policemen and public employees over which the interior ministry failed to take any action against the perpetrators which eventually encouraged more assaults and attacks that led to a state of lawlessness in the country.

The grilling cites examples in the attacks on SCOPE and Al-Watan television stations and also the spread of illegal arms which were smuggled into the country.

Juwaihel told reporters that he has strong evidence and documents to prove all the allegations he has made and which Interior Minister Sheikh Ahmad Al-Humoud AlSabah will not be able to defend or refute. He also cited examples of granting citizenships to Iraqi Baathists who were very close to former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein.

The debate of the grilling, the third to be filed by supporters of the former prime minister, is expected to take place after two weeks unless the minister demands a two-week postponement. The two previous grillings against the prime minister and the information minister, both members of the ruling family like the interior minister, ended just after the debate without filing a no-confidence motion.

Separately, Kuwait plans to pass laws this year to regulate the use of social networking sites such as Twitter, the information minister said yesterday in the wake of cases of alleged blasphemy and sectarianism that have prompted protests. Lawmakers also voted in favour of a legal amendment earlier this month which could make insulting God and Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) punishable by death. Twitter is extremely popular in Kuwait and many public figures use the messaging site to debate politics, share gossip and advertise events. Unlike print media, television and books, the state does not have the ability to censor electronic media and lacks specific laws for prosecution.

“The government is now in the process of establishing laws that will allow government entities to regulate the use of the different new media outlets such as Twitter in order to safeguard the cohesiveness of the population and society,” Information Minister Sheikh Mohammad Al-Mubarak Al-Sabah said. While the Kuwaiti press enjoys greater freedom than media outlets in some other Gulf states, it is under government surveillance and there are certain “red lines” local journalists

international community for much longer. When the time comes, we will have to take the necessary measures required if the situation on the ground continues.” For all the rhetoric, France and other Western powers have few tools at their disposal to get at Assad, who succeeded his long-ruling father Hafez in 2000 and who has brushed aside all calls to hand over power. Military intervention similar to the air campaign in Colonel Gaddafi’s Libya could draw in powerful Assad allies such as Iran and Hezbollah militants, and Russia and China are opposed to the UN sanctions that Washington and Europe are calling for.

The UN observer mission is meant to grow to 300 unarmed personnel although the modest presence already on the ground has led to some decline in the daily death toll, activists say. However, they accuse Assad’s army of simply parking tanks out of sight on farms on the outskirts of towns and cities and resuming operations the moment the monitors’ backs are turned. Activists said that 31 people were killed on Monday in shelling and shooting in the central city of Hama, a hub of the revolt, the day after a brief visit by a UN team.

“It began in the morning with tanks and artillery. There were houses burning,” a local opposition activist who

KUWAIT: A man is restrained and removed by security from the session after he started shouting obscenities at MP Hussein Al-Qallaf. — Photo by Yasser Al-Zayyat know they must not cross, including direct criticism of HH the Amir, regional heads of state, religious figures and religions. The government also clamps down on comments deemed to incite sectarian tension.

Kuwait has so far used its criminal code to bring charges against individuals for slander or libel. A court sentenced a Sunni Muslim writer to seven years in jail earlier this month and ordered that he pay nearly $18,000 in compensation after ruling that he had insulted Kuwait’s Shiite minority on Twitter. Police arrested a Kuwaiti Shiite last month, charging him with insulting Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) on Twitter. He denied this, saying his account had been hacked, according to his lawyer. Both cases triggered small street protests.

MPs from across the political spectrum have voiced concern about sectarian tensions. The unease reflects a wider regional trend, especially in Bahrain where the Sunni monarchy has cracked down on protesters who are mainly Shiites. Sheikh Mohammad said laws regulating social media needed to be passed as soon as possible. “I have been asking the parliamentarians to give this priority,” he said on the sidelines of a parliament session, adding he hoped the measures would be implemented this year.

Islamist MP Mohammad Al-Dallal, who specialises in legal matters related to the media, said he thought the legislation could be passed as early as June given strong support among fellow deputies. “Twitter is an open area ... everyone can speak. But it is not always being used as social media in Kuwait - not about friendship or personal matters but it is being used politically, to attack. This is a bad thing,” he said.

identified himself as Mousab told Reuters in neighbouring Lebanon. Video that activists said was shot in Hama showed 10 bodies wrapped in shrouds being loaded into a mass grave. Another 24 people were killed in violence elsewhere on Monday, according to anti-Assad groups.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon will brief the Security Council every 15 days about developments in Syria and submit proposals as needed for adjusting the mandate of the observer mission, to be called UNSMIS. Monday’s shelling in Hama has deepened scepticism that the monitoring mission - even when it reaches full size will effect a lasting reduction in violence. Tunisian President Moncef Al-Marzouki was the most candid, telling the Al-Hayat regional newspaper it was doomed to fail. “I do not expect it to succeed, because the number of observers is very small. Three hundred people cannot do anything,” he said.

The grinding conflict has crippled Syria’s oil- and tourism-driven economy, leaving at least a million people in need of humanitarian aid, according to a joint UNSyrian assessment mission reached last month. As with foreign journalists, UN aid agencies have been largely barred from Syria, although the UN World Food Programme said it aimed to deliver aid to 500,000 people “in the coming weeks”, roughly double the number it expects to reach this month. — Reuters

Egyptians demand Saudis free activist Continued from Page 1 reports of Egyptian nationals being mistreated in the kingdom or experiencing a miscarriage of justice in a Saudi court. This time a prominent Egyptian human rights lawyer was arrested upon his April 17 arrival in the Saudi port of Jeddah, Gezawi’s sister told a private Egyptian television channel Monday. Gezawi flew to Jeddah on his way to perform a minor pilgrimage, called umrah, in the Saudi cities of Makkah and Madinah, said Shereen Al-Gezawi.

The fact that he was arrested on his way to perform a religious rite further enflamed Egyptian sentiment.

Gezawi’s sister said he had been convicted in absentia and sentenced to a year in prison and 20 lashes by a Saudi court for insulting the king. However he was not notified of the court’s ruling ahead of his Saudi trip.

Gezawi had earlier filed a lawsuit in Egypt against King Abdullah over the alleged arbitrary detention of hundreds of Egyptians living in the kingdom.

A partner at Gezawi’s law firm, Mohammed Nabil, said in recent years they have filed lawsuits concerning 34 cases of Egyptians held in Saudi detention without a stated reason or legal recourse. As Arab uprisings have toppled four longtime Middle Eastern rulers, Saudi Arabia has been worried of signs of rebellion within its borders.

Attempts to advocate for more rights, as Gezawi has done, or question the authority of the monarchy in any way, have been met with strong opposition by authorities.

Egypt’s foreign ministry said it was closely following the case but warned people not to get too carried away with their anti-Saudi protests. Spokesman Amr Rushdi said Cairo was in constant contact with Saudi authorities over the arrest. However, he said the ministry would not

help feed a media campaign that incites public opinion.

“Citizens should think about how they voice their views and whether they would serve the interests of the detained citizen or make it worse,” he said. “This is not a football match.” Mostafa Al-Naggar was among several lawmakers who demanded parliament launch an inquiry into the issue. “Violating the dignity of an Egyptian is an offense to the dignity of the entire nation,” he wrote on his Twitter account.

Protesters chanted, “Down, down with Al-Saud!” referring to the Saudi royal family and “S***w you, your majesty!” in reference to King Abdullah, the Saudi monarch. The demonstrators called for the expulsion of the Saudi ambassador in Cairo, and some raised their shoes alongside a picture of Abdullah, a sign of deep contempt in the Arab world. At the protest, a woman cloaked in a black abaya, a long garment worn by many conservative Muslim women in Egypt, held a picture of her son. She said he has been detained for two years in a Saudi prison. “This is my 48th sit-in over the past two years. No one listens, no one sees, and no one talks about the Egyptians’ rights,” said the woman. She did not want to be identified because she comes from a conservative family that frowns on women demonstrating publicly.

In 2008, another case involving Egyptians living in Saudi Arabia caused a public uproar, when two Egyptian doctors were sentenced to seven years in prison and 700 lashes each for allegedly selling illegal pharmaceuticals and driving a Saudi princess to drug addiction. The Egyptian media and human rights groups said the doctors had been wrongly blamed for the princess’ alleged addiction. They demanded that now-ousted president Hosni Mubarak, who had close ties with the Saudi king and royal family, intervene. The two were pardoned and later returned to Egypt. — AP

14

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, 2012

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Issues

Mali: From poster child to broken state

By David Lewis ithin weeks, Mali has plunged from being a sovereign democracy to a fractured territory without a state, occupied by competing rebel groups in the north while politicians and coup leaders in the south jostle for control of the capital Bamako. There is no sign the broken nation can be put back together soon raising concerns among neighbours and Western powers of the emergence of a lawless “rogue state” exploited by Al-Qaeda and criminals. “We have never been in such a dire situation at any other time in our history,” said Mahmoud Dicko, influential head of the Islamic High Council in the poor former French colony once seen as a poster child for electoral democracy in West Africa.

“There is no state and two-thirds of the country is out of control,” he said of the seizure by a mix of Islamists and Tuareg-led separatists of the northern desert territory one-and-a-half-times the size of France.

Ask Malians in the street what they think of the crisis and most will say they are “depasse” - a French term for being overwhelmed by events that go beyond comprehension. Even before March 22’s coup and ensuing rebel advance, Mali was struggling to deal with this year’s drought on the southern rim of the Sahara. Over 270,000 Malians have fled their homes as the violence makes bringing aid to hunger victims even harder. But while Mali is now firmly on world radar screens as a serious security threat in the making, neither Western powers nor its neighbours can agree on how to come to its rescue.

A deal struck between the junta and negotiators from the 15-state West African ECOWAS group was meant to see the army hand back the reins of power to civilians in return for neighbours giving military help to regain the north. The naming of an interim president has nominally shifted the seat of power from a dusty out-of-town barracks back to the repaired presidential palace. But midranking coup-leading officers still hold sway, last week arresting top politicians and military brass.

A personality cult has sprung up around Captain Amadou Sanogo, the hitherto obscure US-trained officer turned junta chief whose face is now emblazoned on badges pinned to the chests of soldiers and civilians.

“You cannot push aside a military committee that has led a coup,” he told reporters in Bambara, one of Mali’s national languages. “You can say you don’t want soldiers in power but nowhere in the world are they pushed aside.” Unless new elections are held by May 23 - an all but impossible task given the situation in the north, Sanogo will, under the ECOWAS accord, have a say in shaping the transition body due to run Mali until polls can be held. But a glimpse at what led to the coup shows that even when elections are held, they offer no easy fix to Mali’s woes.

By mid-March, the national mood had been strained for weeks as Mali’s army struggled to contain a push by Tuareg-led rebels in the north. Morale-sapping defeats, including one that led to the slaughter of dozens of soldiers, sparked protests in the south, both among civilians and soldiers. It was one such army protest on March 21 that snowballed faster than anyone expected. Within hours, it morphed into a coup d’etat against incumbent President Amadou Toumani Toure which, while not too surprising, was largely accidental. “It was a mutiny that developed into a coup d’etat because they realised there was a vacuum,” Said Djinnit, head of the United Nations Office for West Africa, told Reuters. “We all applauded the democratic dispensation in Mali but we now realise that democratic dispensation was very fragile.”

With his palace under attack from parts of his own army, Toure fled into hiding. Foreign condemnation was swift and harsh as neighbours imposed trade and diplomatic sanctions and even aired the possibility of returning Toure to power by force. But the reaction of the street to the largely bloodless coup was less clear cut.

Hundreds of civilians unhappy with Toure’s rule cheered soldiers on as they seized state television, while procoup rallies easily outnumbered anti-coup demonstrations in the days that followed.

Toure’s consensus politics, based on local traditions of dialogue, had meant Mali was spared the post-election conflicts elsewhere in the region as he forged wide-ranging alliances that co-opted virtually every mainstream politician. But while that kept the peace, critics say Mali was robbed of any effective opposition. And while most Malians suffered grinding poverty, a minority was getting rich quickly amid allegations of drug-smuggling, money laundering and corruption.— Reuters

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

Old wounds, ethnic rivalries stoke war fever

By Ulf Laessing and Alexander Dziadosz hen petrol started running low in South Sudan’s capital this month, Peter Bashir Gbandi sensed a sinister force at work. Rather than blaming a severe shortage of dollars, which the newly-independent country needs to buy imported fuel, the lawmaker pointed to arch rival Sudan likely in league with Horn of Africa immigrants running filling stations, he said. A few days later, a member of Sudan’s parliament railed against the hundreds of thousands of ethnic southerners living in Khartoum, many of whom do not hold passports and have never been to the South, demanding the “fifth column” be expelled.

Breaking old habits is always hard, and in the case of Sudan and South Sudan - whose leaders fought one of Africa’s longest and deadliest civil wars until 2005, before the countries split from each other last July - it is proving nearly impossible. The longtime foes have clashed repeatedly in their contested oil-producing borderlands, and deep-rooted animosities mean they will probably keep at it until one of them collapses. The two edged dangerously close to resuming full-blown war this month when South Sudan seized the Heglig oil region from Sudan before withdrawing on Friday in the face of international pressure and, Khartoum says, a military drubbing.

The South’s withdrawal from Heglig eased the immediate crisis, but the aftermath of the incursion makes it less likely the two will be able to transcend the grim logic of their decades-long conflict and resolve disputed issues any time soon. On both sides of the border, the fighting over Heglig has stoked old ethnic suspicions, excited jingoistic zeal and hardened leaders into the conviction that peace is impossible as long as their old rivals remain in power. Gbandi’s diatribe about the ethnicity of owners of petrol filling stations shows just how deep the distrust runs. “Most of the fuel stations here are run by people whose allegiance is doubtful, so they can be used as agents of the Arabs,” he said, shouting for several minutes on live radio. “It is time for clear decisions so that the economy is in the hands of the sons of South Sudan.”

Rulers in the two countries face pressure from powerful domestic politicians who advocate confrontation and deplore compromise with their opponent, analysts say. These hardliners are gaining the upper hand on both sides of the border, where deteriorating economies mean leaders are more dependent than ever on the perception they are tough on their foes to shore up domestic legitimacy. South Sudanese President Salva Kiir said yesterday Sudan had “declared war” with aerial bombardments in its oil-producing Unity State this week. Sudan denied any raids, but its President Omar Al-Bashir ramped up the political tension by ruling out negotiations, saying the South only understood “the language of the gun”.

Before the countries broke apart, many had hoped mutual dependence on the oil industry that underpinned both economies would deter such conflict - the landlocked South took most of the crude output but needs pipes across Sudan to export it. But disputes over transit payments, the border, and other issues have halted almost all of the combined production, meaning that incentive to cooperate has all but vanished. “Both parties are working towards a change of regime in each other’s country,” Nhial Bol, editor of Juba’s independent daily “The Citizen”, said, adding he doubted the two would be able to work out their differences at the negotiating table.

Bashir has repeatedly called the South’s ruling Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM) “insects”, a play on their Arabic name, in recent weeks. It is an unsettling word in

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central Africa, where Rwandan Hutu extremists called their Tutsi enemies “cockroaches” before trying to exterminate them in the genocide of 1994. State television has grown increasingly fond of the label as it broadcasts montages of whooping soldiers, corpses of South Sudan’s SPLA fighters and a downcastlooking South Sudanese President Salva Kiir announcing the withdrawal from Heglig.

When Sudan’s armed forces declared Heglig “liberated”, thousands of people poured into Khartoum’s streets, some demanding Kiir’s downfall and an end to talks. One chant calling for military forces to enter Juba was especially popular. All of this is an ill omen for opponents of Bashir’s ruling National Congress Party (NCP) and proponents of reconciliation with the South. Some mutter darkly of authorities exploiting war fever to crack down on dissent. “Wisdom dis-

South’s ramshackle boomtown capital, where some call northerners “Jellaba”, a reference to Arab slave traders who once prowled the South. In an emotional speech to parliament near the outset of the crisis, Kiir fired up southerners by telling them to get ready for war and admonishing UN chief Ban Ki-moon for asking the SPLA to leave Heglig. Hundreds of people, framing the border fight as a chapter in their decades-long struggle against Sudan’s Arab-dominated government, joined street celebrations after the speech, some even demanding the SPLA seize Abyei, another disputed area.

The oilfield grab was a sign to many the South could score a victory against Sudan’s much larger army and dominant air force. “We are not afraid of Sudan’s army ... We managed to win independence and we will win Heglig and Abyei,” Alfred Lado Gore, the environ-

Sudanese soldiers step on the South Sudan flag painted on a seized tank for the Sudanese Peoples Liberation Army (SPLA) in the oil region of Heglig on Monday. — AFP appears during war,” said Farouk Abu Issa, head of the National Consensus Forces, an umbrella group of Sudan’s main opposition parties.

He said South Sudan’s ruling SPLM party had made a mistake by attacking Heglig, playing into the hands of Bashir’s NCP. Authorities had further “narrowed the margin of liberties and human rights” in Sudan since the Heglig crisis, leveraging popular support for military action to label the ruling party’s critics spies or traitors, he said. “It is detrimental to our cause of getting rid of the ugly regime of the NCP, and restoring democracy and the rule of law.”

For hardliners Heglig has been pure vindication. Eltayeb Mustafa, a relative of Bashir whose party’s Al Intibaha newspaper is Sudan’s most widely read, framed the South’s seizure of Heglig as evidence a group of SPLM leaders were bent on overthrowing Khartoum and “colonising” north Sudan. “The only solution for the problem between the north and the south is to remove the SPLM,” he said during an interview in his modest Khartoum offices.

Sudanese politicians who want to compromise with the SPLM - a group he brands the “Naivasha boys” after the Kenyan location where northern and southern officials negotiated the 2005 peace deal - are losing ground, Mustafa said. “They are keeping silent. We are bombarding them every day.” Western powers are also likely to watch for signs of a return to the radical Islamism that coloured Khartoum’s politics in the 1990s when it hosted militants, including Osama bin Laden. A US trade embargo imposed in 1997 remains in place.

Passions have also run high in Juba, the

ment minister, told a rally of about 1,000, mostly young people, who burned a Sudanese flag and chanted “down with Bashir” and “down with Ban Ki-moon” for hours.

Even independent newspapers and the parliament’s small opposition praised the army for teaching Khartoum a lesson after what the South calls frequent air strikes inside its territory. Many were disappointed when Kiir ordered the withdrawal. “This is a major decision, and I am telling you everybody I spoke to is not only surprised but disappointed about the withdrawal,” radio journalist Mading Ngor said, hosting a heated live debate just hours after the pullout was announced. Bol, the newspaper editor, said Kiir pulled out troops in response to rising international pressure, but that he might order them back to show Bashir his teeth. “I don’t think the SPLA will withdraw completely from Heglig. They will keep parts ... and then come back again.”

One reason Kiir needs to play hardball with Khartoum, analysts say, is to galvanise public support - especially among the South’s bloated army, which some officials estimate has as many as 200,000 soldiers.

Confrontation might also help Kiir deflect public anger over a rapidly worsening economic crisis resulting from the January shutdown of the country’s roughly 350,000 barrela-day oil output, part of a row with Khartoum over oil payments. Food prices are soaring while fuel, cement and some medications have become harder to get as importers struggle to get their hands on dollars.

“Supplies from the central bank have dwindled to a trickle,” one executive at a privately-owned bank in Juba said. “We now get

10 to 15 percent of what we used to get in dollar allocations ... People have to turn to the black market.” As a result, the South Sudanese pound is expected to lose even more ground.

A dollar now buys up to 4.2 pounds on the black market, compared to 3.5 before the shutdown. With practically no industry outside the now-defunct oil sector, South Sudan needs to import everything from basic food items to fuel trucked in on bumpy roads from Kenya and Uganda.

Building up the war-battered country, plagued by violent cattle raiding and widespread poverty, was never going to be easy, but corruption and cronyism have also hindered development. Juba is bustling with Toyota Land Cruisers - every senior official is entitled to two - and officials in designer suits and Rolex watches dine in expensive restaurants on the White Nile, while Juba still has no power plant or water utility. “The government is not delivering anything,” a Western diplomat in Juba said. “But there will be support for Kiir if he stays tough with Bashir in the face of a perceived military confrontation.”

Things are not much better in the north, where the Sudanese pound hit a historic low against the dollar in the wake of the Heglig occupation, forcing some importers to temporarily pause business because they could not get enough foreign currency. With no oil deal in sight, and Heglig’s central processing facility, which both countries use to separate water and impurities from crude, apparently badly damaged - analysts say the two economies will struggle to recover.

The central processing facility is a vital piece of infrastructure which separates water and impurities from crude before it is pumped into the pipeline. But in the north, the border fight may at least be a short term blessing for the government, as many citizens turn their thoughts away from food or fuel prices and toward stability after a perceived threat from hostile outside forces. “I think now the people are not concerned with the living conditions ... They are concerned with the national issue of Heglig,” Mustafa of the Al Intibaha newspaper said. “ The economic situation in the north is not good, yes, but the situation in the south is worse.”

The best chance for averting further war and economic catastrophe has so far been through African Union-brokered talks, but a resumption of those seems unlikely now as both sides seem to bet increasingly the other will soon fall. In addition to oil, the countries are at loggerheads over a long list of disputes including the exact position of the 1,800-km border, the status of citizens in one another’s territories and the division of national debt.

Speaking in Heglig on Monday, Bashir vowed Sudan would not return to talks because the South’s rulers “don’t understand anything but the language of the gun”.

Other Sudanese officials are less absolute in their pessimism, but still see little immediate prospect of a deal. Sudan’s State Oil Minister Ishaq Adam Gamaa told Reuters on Sunday the chance of the sides reaching a settlement soon was now “very remote,” and said Khartoum would probably demand compensation for damage to Heglig before returning to talks. Some diplomats hope China, the biggest buyer of southern oil and a longtime friend of Khartoum, will try broker a deal. Kiir is due to pay a state visit to China this week.

But even China, eager to avoid taking sides, may be hesitant to see itself as the key mediator, analysts say. For now that leaves little chance border fighting and attacks on strategic targets will die down soon, although neither side can really afford to launch a fullscale invasion of the other’s territory. As Magdi El-Gizouli, a fellow at the Rift Valley Institute think tank, wrote last week: “Khartoum and Juba have only adrenaline to compensate for their loss of oil.” — Reuters

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, 2012

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Death of UK runner touches hearts LONDON: The death of a runner in the London marathon has inspired a flood of donations to the charity she supported. Claire Squires, who ran to raise money for the Samaritans, which works to prevent suicide, collapsed Sunday near the end of the course. The cause of her death has not been determined.

By late yesterday, donations made through her JustGiving.com web page had passed 412,000 pounds ($664,000). Squires, a 30-year-old hairdresser from North Kilworth, England, had climbed Mount Kilimanjaro with a friend last year to raise 1,500 pounds ($2,400) for the Royal Air Force Association. The Samaritans said donations will go into a tribute fund in Squires’ name. —AP

London 2012 Olympic rings LONDON: The latest set of giant Olympic rings to celebrate the approaching London Games was unveiled at Birmingham Airport yesterday-the first British airport to be decorated with the iconic symbol.

The rings will sit either side of the airport’s new control tower and will be visible to passengers on approaching planes and also car drivers on the busy Birmingham to Coventry road.

Birmingham will host the Jamaican and United States track and field teams prior to the Games.

Coventry’s football stadium will kickoff the action at the Olympics with the first match in the soccer

tournament which begins before the opening ceremony.

American former Olympic 400 metre champion Edwin Moses was in Birmingham to unveil the rings.

“Seeing the Games celebrated in such an iconic way will be a great inspiration to the athletes training in the region,” Moses said in a statement from the London organising committee.

Other sets of Olympic rings have been placed at London’s St Pancras railway station, Kew Gardens and at the entrance to the Channel Tunnel.

Another set will float down the River Thames on a barge during the Games which start in July.—Reuters

Grugger ends skiing career INNSBRUCK: Austrian skier Hans Grugger has ended his career, 15 months after lifethreatening head injuries during a training crash on the World Cup downhill course in Kitzbuehel. Grugger said yesterday he has given up on his attempted comeback as he has still not regained full control of his right leg.

“There is a chance of improvement, but you can’t tell how long this is going to take,” the 30-year-old Grugger said. “That’s why I have taken this decision now.”

Grugger underwent a five-hour emergency brain operation and was kept in an induced coma for 11 days after smashing his head on the icy slope on Jan. 20 last year. In May, he announced plans to return to top-level ski racing, and five months later he resumed ski training. Grugger’s accident on the demanding Streif course was the third of its kind in four years. Scott Macartney of the United States in 2008 and Daniel Albrecht of Switzerland a year later also sustained head injuries, but both racers returned to the World Cup. —AP

Giants beat Mets for doubleheader sweep Boubyan Bank team

KBC League final on Friday KUWAIT: The stage is set for the KBC League final match which pits the Gulf Bank against Boubyan Bank on Friday evening at the Sabah Al-Salem Stadium in Al-Arabi Sports Club. Gulf Bank looks to win the title after finishing on top of the regular season standings ahead of Boubyan Bank, who enters the match looking for an upset against the regular season champions.

Meanwhile, the National Bank of Kuwait defeated the Kuwait Finance House 1-0 in a match held recently to determine the third place winner.

The final match, which kicks-off at 8:00 pm, will be attended by President of the Kuwait Banks Club, Hamad Al-Marzouq, and the KBC’s Board Chairman Ahmad Sultan, as well as officials and employees of local banks.

Ahmad Sultan

The Gulf Bank team

Wimbledon responds to calls to share the wealth LONDON: Wimbledon chiefs have increased the total prize money on offer at the grass-court tournament to £16.1 million ($26m, 19.7 million euros) in a bid to satisfy calls for a fairer distribution of the wealth at grand slams.

There has been growing unrest among players that too much of the prize money on offer at the four majors went to the top stars, who routinely reach the lucrative later stages, at the expense of the lower ranked competitors.

Late last year there were suggestions that the issue could even prompt strike action which would threaten the stability of the sport.

But All England Club officials entered into talks with Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer and Andy Murray-the top four in the men’s rankings-to debate the problem at the Indian Wells event earlier this year.

And Wimbledon has responded to the big four’s demands with a 10 percent increase of £1.5 million on the 2011 total prize money in a bid to ease the lower players’ complaints that the cost of living on tour wasn’t matched by the rewards on offer at tournaments.

While the men’s and women’s singles champions will now take home a cheque for £1.15 million, a £50,000 rise on 2011, it is the players who crash out earlier in the tournament who benefit most from the changes.

An increase of 26 percent in prize money for first-round losers means they get £14,500 ($23,400, 17,800 euros) for just a few hours unsuccessful work compared to £11,500 last year.

Second-round losers will get £23,125, a 14.9 percent rise, while third round defeats are worth £38,785, an increase of 13.1 percent. The daily allowance paid to players in the men’s and women’s main draws have gone up from £170 to £200, while there is also a 21 percent rise for losers in the Wimbledon qualifying event.

The singles’ runners-up will get £575,000 and beaten semi-finalists earn £287,500, both minimal rises of 4.5 percent.

“Wimbledon continues to be successful and we are delighted to share that success with the players by increasing total prize money by 10 percent, the largest increase since 1993,” All England Club chairman

Phillip Brook said. “At the same time we appreciate the need to help players meet the rising costs associated with professional tennis, so the majority of the record £1.5 million increase will be distributed to those who are knocked out in the early rounds of the Championships.”

Brook insists he was never concerned that reigning Wimbledon champion Djokovic and his fellow stars were attempting to bully the grand slams.

“There was never talk of (strike) action from players in any discussions I have had.

We had very professional discussions with all the parties and hopefully it will be received well,” Brook said.

“What we have in the top four players is a group of young men who are very responsible for all those around them. “We didn’t hear a request for more money for them, they wanted something done for the sport as a whole and were representing all the players, not just themselves.

“It is a positive development. When I met the players at Indian Wells we asked for the opportunity to have meetings like that on a regular basis. It can only be good to have dialogue with them.

“We heard genuine concern from top players and tour management that this was an issue and we have reacted to that.”

Murray said in Barcelona where he is competing that while he had not seen a breakdown of the increase “this is something that the players wanted.”

“It’s been in conversations for the last few months or even the last year,” said the world number four. “Hopefully more of the tour will be happy after this. “Prize money used to double with each round but it’s changed a bit over the last years. This decision might move closer to that (formula).

“It’s good that the Grand Slams are making some changes, it can only make things better.” However, with early-round losers flying home richer than previous years despite relatively unsuccessful tournaments, Brook had to fend off accusations that Wimbledon was rewarding failure. “I respect the comment, but for anybody who is good enough in our sport to come through qualifying or be a direct entry it is an achievement of itself,” he said. “You only get that opportunity by having considerable success elsewhere on the tour during the year.”—AFP

NEW YORK: Madison Bumgarner pitched seven neat innings and Pablo Sandoval homered to match a team mark set by Willie Mays as the San Francisco Giants beat the New York Mets 7-2 Monday for a doubleheader sweep. The Giants took the opener 6-1 as Tim Lincecum posted his first win of the season despite another uneven performance.

Slightly over 1,000 fans bundled up in the stands when the opener began on a windy, raw afternoon better suited for the Bay Area. The crowd later picked up, but Citi Field was nearly empty for the final out. A rainout Sunday forced the twinbill.

Sandoval hit a three-run homer in the first inning to back Bumgarner. The burly slugger has a 16-game hitting streak, tying the San Francisco record at the start of a season set by Mays in 1960, STATS LLC said.

start to the season with two RBIs, including his first home run, as Arizona downed Philadelphia.

Left-handed pitcher Wade Miley, starting in place of injured Daniel Hudson, stifled the Phillies on two hits through six scoreless innings. Philadelphia’s Kyle Kendrick (0-1), replacing the injured Cliff Lee, lasted just three innings plus one batter, allowing seven runs and 11 hits.

Jason Kubel homered and doubled twice, tying a career best with three hits. Miley (2-0) struck out seven and walked one in his first start of the season. Philadelphia scored all five runs in the ninth inning, including a three-run homer

by Shane Victorino and Carlos Ruiz’s solo shot.

Dodgers 7, Braves 2 At Los Angeles, Juan Uribe tied a career high with four hits and drove in three runs, and Chris Capuano pitched out of trouble for seven innings to lead Los Angeles over Atlanta.

AJ Ellis had a pair of RBI singles and Capuano (2-0) allowed a run, six hits and four walks while striking out five, helping the Dodgers improve to an NL-best 13-4.

The left-hander needed 27 pitches to get out of the first inning unscathed, striking out Jason Heyward on a full count with the bases loaded. Capuano escaped another jam in the fourth, retiring leadoff man Michael Bourn on a grounder with two runners in scoring position. Uribe had an RBI single in the first and a two-run single with the bases loaded in the eighth.—AP

Cubs 3, Cardinals 2 At Chicago, Joe Mather’s two-run single with two outs in the ninth inning lifted Chicago to a comeback win over St. Louis. St. Louis closer Jason Motte (1-1) had the Cubs down to their final strike when Mather, a former Cardinal, grounded a 2-2 slider up the middle, scoring Bryan LaHair and Geovany Soto. LaHair battled Motte for 12 pitches before drawing a one-out walk. Motte then walked Soto, before Steve Clevenger’s grounder moved the runners up to set the plate for Mather. Rafael Dolis (1-1) picked up the win in relief.

Brewers 6, Astros 5 At Milwaukee, Ryan Braun broke out of his slump with a homer and three hits and Zack Greinke remained unbeaten at Miller Park as Milwaukee held off Houston. Braun also singled in a run and doubled to end a 2-for-20 slide. Greinke pitched six solid innings to improve to 13-0 at home with Milwaukee, which won its 10th straight against the Astros.

Greinke (2-1) handed Jose Veras a 6-2 lead to start the seventh, but five of the next six Astros batters reached base. Houston scored three runs on four hits, including Brian Bogusevic’s two-run triple, before Veras struck out Jose Altuve and got pinch-hitter Matt Downs to ground out to end the inning.

D’backs 9, Phillies 5 At Phoenix, Justin Upton burst out of a slow

NEW YORK: San Francisco Giants’ Madison Bumgarner pitches during the first inning of the second baseball game of a doubleheader against the New York Mets.—AP

Rangers lose to Yankees ARLINGTON: Derek Jeter had four hits to stretch his hitting streak to 13 games and Alex Rodriguez belted career home run No. 632 as the New York Yankees beat the Texas Rangers 7-4 on Monday.

CC Sabathia (2-0) struck out eight over eight innings for his 11th career win against the two-time defending American League champion Rangers, who won their first five series this season. The big left-hander was pitching with an extra day of rest after the Yankees’ scheduled series finale at Boston was rained out Sunday night, a day after New York overcame a 9-0 deficit for a 15-9 win over the Red Sox. Mariano Rivera worked a perfect ninth for his fourth save. New York has won 10 of 13 since being swept in three games at Tampa Bay to start the season. Josh Hamilton homered for the Rangers.

Red Sox 6, Twins 5 At Minneapolis, Cody Ross homered twice, tying the game with a two-run shot in the seventh inning and giving Boston the lead with two outs in the ninth as the Red Sox beat Minnesota to snap a five-game losing streak.

Starter-turned-temporary-reliever Daniel Bard (1-2) recorded two critical outs in the eighth after the Twins put the leadoff runner on third. Alfredo Aceves picked up the save, his third in five tries, and all was right with the reeling Red Sox for at least one night. Ross put the Red Sox in front with his drive off Matt Capps (0-1). Jon Lester allowed six hits, five runs and four walks over seven innings. He struck out four but wasted a 3-0 lead.

Blue Jays 4, Royals 1 At Kansas City, Missouri, Jose Bautista hit a two-

run homer and Kelly Johnson also went deep as Toronto beat Kansas City to complete a four-game sweep. The Blue Jays improved to 6-1 on the road this season, while Kansas City lost its 11th straight to finish up a winless 10-game homestand. The Royals became the first team to lose its first 10 at home since the Chicago Cubs dropped 12 in a row at Wrigley Field in 1994.

Eric Hosmer homered for Kansas City.

Otherwise, Brandon Morrow (1-1) took care of the struggling Royals lineup for 6 2-3 innings. Francisco Cordero got some help from a double-play groundout in the ninth for his second save.

The four-game sweep was the Blue Jays’ first since May 2009, and their first ever at Kansas City.

The last time they swept four on the road was 2003 against the New York Yankees.

White Sox 4, Athletics 0 At Oakland, California, Jake Peavy pitched a three-hitter and Adam Dunn and Paul Konerko hit back-to-back homers as the Chicago beat Oakland.

Two days after teammate Phil Humber pitched the 21st perfect game in major league history, Peavy allowed only a leadoff single to Jemile Weeks in the fourth inning, a double to Yoenis Cespedes in the seventh and a single to Coco Crisp in the ninth.

The 2007 NL Cy Young pitching award winner walked two and faced only four batters more than the minimum.

Alex Rios added three hits for Chicago, while Brent Morel had two hits and scored a run. Oakland starter Bartolo Colon scattered seven hits over seven innings and fell short in his bid to become the first four-game winner in the majors.—AP

ARLINGTON: New York Yankees Derek Jeter swings on a single during the fourth inning of a baseball game against the Texas Rangers.—AP

MLB results/standings San Francisco 6, NY Mets 1; NY Yankees 7, Texas 4; San Francisco 7, NY Mets 2; Chicago Cubs 3, St. Louis 2; Toronto 4, Kansas City 1; Boston 6, Minnesota 5; Milwaukee 6, Houston 5; Arizona 9, Philadelphia 5; Chicago White Sox 4, Oakland 0; LA Dodgers 7, Atlanta 2.

NY Yankees Toronto Tampa Bay Baltimore Boston

American League Eastern Division W L PCT 10 6 .625 10 6 .625 9 7 .563 9 7 .563 5 10 .333

GB 1 1 4.5

Detroit Chicago White Sox Cleveland Minnesota Kansas City

Central Division 10 6 10 6 8 6 5 12 3 13

.625 .625 .571 .294 .188

1 5.5 7

Texas Oakland Seattle LA Angels

Western Division 13 4 .765 8 10 .444 7 10 .412 6 10 .375

5.5 6 6.5

Washington Atlanta NY Mets Miami Philadelphia

National League Eastern Division 12 4 .750 10 7 .588 8 8 .500 7 8 .467 7 10 .412

2.5 4 4.5 5.5

St. Louis Milwaukee Cincinnati Pittsburgh Houston Chicago Cubs

Central Division 11 6 8 9 7 9 6 9 6 11 5 12

.647 .471 .438 .400 .353 .294

3 3.5 4 5 6

LA Dodgers San Francisco Colorado Arizona San Diego

Western Division 13 4 .765 9 7 .563 8 7 .533 9 8 .529 5 12 .294

3.5 4 4 8

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, 2012

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Coyotes clinch playoff series

HOT SPRINGS: In this April 14, 2012, file photo, Bodemeister and jockey Mike Smith (11) cross the finish line to win the $1,000,000 Arkansas Derby horse race at Oaklawn Park in Hot Springs. —AP

Union Rags still on top in Run to Roses Top 10 CHURCHILL DOWNS: Picking the favorite for the Kentucky Derby may be as tough as picking the winner. Without a breakthrough star heading into the May 5 Derby, there’s a stable full of 3year-olds worthy of the leading role as horse to beat when a full field of 20 spring from the starting gate at Churchill Downs.

Let’s begin with Union Rags, who opened on top and now finishes No. 1 on the AP’s final Run to the Roses’ Top 10 list of Derby contenders. Other potential Derby favorites are Bodemeister, Creative Cause, Dullahan, Gemologist and I’ll Have Another.

Union Rags comes into the 11/4-mile Derby off a third-place finish in the Florida Derby after winning the Fountain of Youth. Not the most stellar credentials, but by finishing with a flourish in his last race after a tough trip trainer Michael Matz is hoping Union Rags will be at his best on Derby day.

The colt worked four furlongs in 47.40 seconds at Keeneland last week. Matz called the work “nothing spectacular,” but “we will ask more of him in his next work,” sometime next week at Churchill Downs. “If he has an exceptional work next week, he could wind up the favorite,” says longtime Churchill Downs oddsmaker Mike Battaglia, who will set the betting line a week from Wednesday.

“But in two losses, they made excuses for him. If he’s as good as everybody says he would have been able to overcome that bad trip (in the Florida Derby).”

With that, Battaglia is leaning toward Bodemeister based on the colt’s eyecatching, 91/2-length victory in the Arkansas Derby in just his fourth career start. Bodemeister is No. 3 this week.

“He ran a huge race in Arkansas, but the question is can he come back in three weeks and duplicate that?” says Battaglia.

Gemologist, No. 2 on our list, is unbeaten in all five of his starts, including a victory in the Wood Memorial.

Dullahan, No. 5, came rumbling down the stretch and overtook Hansen in winning the Blue Grass, and the Californiabased duo of I’ll Have Another and Creative Cause ran 1-2 in the Santa Anita Derby. “They all have questions,” says Battaglia, “which is why it’s so wide open.”

In Derby-related news over the weekend: l Trainer Bob Baffert’s Rebel winner and Arkansas Derby runner-up Secret Circle was sidelined by a sesamoid injury. Baffert also trains Bodemeister, and says he’s considering entering Liaison. l Owner Shivananda Parbhoo says he plans to enter Trinniberg, won the Swale and Bay Shore in his last two starts but has never run farther than seven furlongs. l Borderland Derby winner Isn’t He Clever is now being trained by Steve Asmussen and is under Derby consideration. Asmussen has two other hopefuls in Daddy Nose Best and Sabercat.—AP

CHICAGO: Mike Smith made 39 saves and the Phoenix Coyotes scored three times in the final period to beat the Chicago Blackhawks 4-0 on Monday and capture their opening-round NHL playoffs series in six games.

Oliver Ekman-Larsson scored in the second and Gilbert Brule, Antoine Vermette and Kyle Chipchura had goals in the third as the Coyotes won a first-round series for the first time since moving to Phoenix for the 199697 season. It is the first series triumph for the franchise since 1987 when it was still the Winnipeg Jets.

The Coyotes won all three games at the United Center Monday night’s game was the first in the series not to be decided in overtime - and now move on to play Nashville in the conference semifinals.

Rangers 3, Senators 2 At O ttawa, Brad Richards scored the go-ahead goal and Derek Stepan had a goal and two assists as the top-seeded New York Rangers staved off elimination with a victor y against Ottawa. The series heads back to New York Thursday night for the first Game 7 in any spor t at Madison Square Garden in 17 years.

Not even the return of Daniel Alfredsson in front of the firedup home crowd at Scotiabank Place could help the eighthseeded Senators complete the

upset.

The Rangers broke through in the second with three goals after going six straight periods without scoring.

Chris Neil gave Ottawa a 1-0 lead in the first with a powerplay goal and Jason Spezza cut it to 3-2 with 39 seconds left to play in the third. —AP

CHICAGO: Jonathan Toews No. 19 of the Chicago Blackhawks ends up hitting the ice after a battle for the puck against the Phoenix Coyotes in Game Six of the Western Conference Quarterfinals during the 2012 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs. —AFP

Japanese men out to end 44 years of hurt TOKYO: Japan’s men will be gunning to take full advantage of home soil to book their first Olympic ticket in 44 years, while their women are favorites to get to London.

Twelve teams-six in the men’s qualifying competition and six in the women’s-will do battle in Kakamigahara, central Japan, from today for the final Olympic slots, one each for men and women.

The event is the last of three final Olympic qualifying tournaments which started in February to decide the last three berths each for men and women and wrap up a long process to choose 12 men’s and 12 women’s teams for the London Games.

The Japanese men, ranked 15th in the world, are locked in a tough contest led by 12th-ranked South Africa and including China (17), Austria (21), Czech Republic (23) and Brazil (42). “The time must come when we

make history. And the time is now,” said Japan captain Kei Kawakami.

South Africa head coach Gregg Clark was talking up his team’s chances, saying that a “smooth, fast surface” at the venue, the Gifu Green Stadium, “suits our style of play.”

“The smooth surface allows us to be accurate and efficient with our technical skills and the pace of the pitch suits our ball movement,” he told South African media.

In the women’s, Japan are favourites to win a third straight Olympic spot because their world ranking of nine is far above nearest rivals Azerbaijan (15) and Chile (17).

The other women’s teams are Belarus (22nd), Malaysia (23rd) and Austria (29th).

Zenjiro Yasuda, head coach of Japan’s women, attempted to dampen expectation. “ The rankings count for little,” Yasuda warned. Azerbaijan’s women have enlisted

naturalised players from powerhouses South Korea and Chile are coming up strong with European-style hockey. Belarus are physically stronger than the Japanese.

“We have built up our finishing power, which was our shortcoming, and we will test it in our opening match,” Japan women’s captain Yukari Yamamoto said.

The Japanese women gained confidence when they finished fifth at the prestigious Champions Trophy in January, behind the world’s top-four teams, the Netherlands, Argentina, Germany and England.

Argentina took the title but Japan defeated Asian Games silver medallists South Korea and world number-six New Zealand.

The top two men’s and women’s sides in the round robin in Japan will play for the last ticket to London. The women’s final is on May 5 and the men’s May 6. —AFP

Kazakh weightlifter hungry for gold ALMATY: Heads turn when Ilya Ilyin strides into a billiards hall in Kazakhstan’s largest city. The three-times world weightlifting champion grins and wraps his muscular arms around doormen in the club as they take pictures on their mobile phones.

Ilyin, still only 23, has just finished training in an Almaty sports hall named in his honor.

Nationwide expectation that he can bring home his second Olympic gold sits easily on his broad shoulders.

“It’s not a burden. It’s a plus,” he said. “I like to make people happy.

When you compete, when you feel the energy of the people, it spurs you on.”

Ilyin is among Kazakhstan’s best hopes for gold at the 2012 London Olympics. The reigning world champion in the 94kg middle heavyweight category, he says nothing quite compares to the Olympic gold he won four years ago in Beijing.

“The Olympics have their own unique atmosphere and energy,” he said, his dark, spiky hair still glistening after training. “People might say it’s just the same as any other competition, but don’t kid yourself. There’s a hunger for victory.”

Ilyin said there were about 10 competitors in the 94kg category able to lift approximately the same weight in London. He expects strong competition from other ex-Soviet athletes, including his compatriot and 2009 world champion Vladimir Sedov.

“The victory margin will only be one or two kilogrammes,” he said. “ Whoever wins, I will offer my hand and embrace him like a brother. I’m a simple person, always ready to befriend people.

“But in competition, I’m a warrior.” Ilyin plays billiards to relax.

His mobile phone rings constantly.

He wears ripped jeans and a black Nike T-shirt and describes himself as “a music lover”; Russian rock songs are a particular favourite during karaoke sessions with friends.

From dieticians to trainers, Ilyin has “an entire army” behind his effort to win gold. He spares a special word of gratitude for Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev,

who has ruled the Central Asian state since before independence in 1991. “It’s no secret that I’m going for gold. Everything possible is being done for me,” he said.

“You will achieve a lot of support if you display the results. You must do your par t, and then you’ll receive it back.”

Ilyin showed his potential early.

He was only six-years-old when his brother started taking him along to a sports hall in Kyzylorda, the remote city on the steppe of southern Kazakhstan where his parents still live today.

“I’d finished kindergarten and there was nobody to look after me at home during the day,” he said. “I started going to the sports hall, running, jumping.”

Then he started lifting, only the bar at first. Coaches quickly saw his potential. “By nature I was a little guy with big legs - a stocky lad,” he said.

Ilyin was eight when he won his first local competition. A year later, competing against children four years his senior, he was crowned national youth champion of Kazakhstan. He was breaking Asian records in his mid-teens.

At 17, Ilyin travelled to the International Weightlifting Federation’s World Championships in Qatar in 2005 and returned as champion in the 85kg category.

He repeated the feat a year later, this time in the 94kg category.

After a minor injury, he decided to take a break from sport. “It was better to recover properly than to give everything straight away,” he said. A fully fit Ilyin travelled to Beijing in 2008 and won Olympic gold. Last year, in Paris, he became world champion for the third time.

Ilyin has already visited London on several occasions. After competing on Aug. 4, his thoughts will turn quickly to returning to friends and family, not least his two-yearold daughter.

Home is Kazakhstan, a vast country of 17 million people, but he cannot pinpoint a specific city.

He divides his time between Almaty, Kyzylorda and the capital Astana, where his par tner - a member of the national handball team - plays for the local club.

“I move around,” he says, “like a true Kazakh nomad.“ In the billiards hall, he racks up the balls for another game and sips a cup of coffee, his favorite drink. He thinks occasionally about a career after sport.

“I’ve started spending more of my time studying, tr ying to improve my IQ by reading and writing,” he says. “I’ve missed out on a lot in life. I don’t regret this, of course. Nevertheless I need to make up for lost time.” For now, though, his focus is London. “My desire is strong and I have every opportunity,” he says. “I have the hunger.” —Reuters

Ilyin is Kazakhstan’s best hopes for gold at the 2012 London Olympics.

Fabiana Beltrame in action in this file photo

Brazilians eye rowing final RIO DE JANEIRO: Brazilian rowers Fabiana Beltrame and Luana Bartholo teamed up only two months ago, have competed just once and not practised together since they qualified for the Olympics because their boat was stuck in customs in Argentina.

Despite these hurdles, they still look to be Brazil’s main hope of reaching a final in the regatta at the London Games. Fabiana became Brazil’s first rowing world champion in Bled, Slovenia last year but the lightweight single sculls in which she won gold is not an Olympic discipline.

So the 30-year-old sought a partner to take part in the lightweight double sculls in London.

“They’re very different things. I was rowing alone, now I’m with Luana, who is making her national team debut but I think we’re getting the respect of our adversaries,” Fabiana told Reuters.

“They certainly know that we exist,” she said in a joint interview at Lagos Rodrigo de Freitas, her training base which will be the rowing venue at the 2016 Games in Rio de Janeiro. “Alone I can row my own way, I haven’t got anyone accompanying me. In the double sculls the main thing is synchronization, the harmony between the two of us, the team,” said Fabiana, who competed at the 2004 and 2008 Games.

“Unlike other Olympics that I have competed in, I’m really aiming at good results. I think we can maybe make it to the final round.

“But it will be very difficult because our boat is new and we have only been practicing together for two months.

“The first time Luana competed for the national team was during the pre-Olympic competitions and we had good results. But we still have several months to train and improve,” she said.

Luana, a 26-year-old journalist, treated her sport as a secondary activity until 2010 when she went into rowing full time after partnering Fabiana in winning a bronze medal at a World Cup event in Switzerland.

Competition to become Fabiana’s partner took place before the Olympic qualifying regatta in Argentina in March when the pair raced for the first and so far only time and went through to London in second place behind the home pair, Milk Kraljev and Clara Rohner.

“It’s going to be my first official competition and making a debut at an Olympics already makes me tense but with Fabiana it’s easier,” Luana said.

“I’m really nervous, but at the same time I feel quite safe being Fabiana’s partner, since she’s already a world champion and has 15 years of experience and two Olympic Games behind her, so I think that makes me more confident.” Training for London was disrupted when their boat was delayed in Argentine customs as it was being transported back to Brazil. The box containing the boat

was not painted according to international regulations, the Brazilian Rowing Confederation said, delaying its return from Buenos Aires for three weeks and the women had to practice in separate boats. “We’re practising in separate boats but the (single) sculls is the basis for all boats so to improve technique and fitness the sculls is very good,” Fabiana said, though she added they would have to work hard on coordination. “We have to row together lots and lots and each one get used to the others’ rowing, especially she to mine because I’m the stroke,” added Fabiana, whose best results have come since 2010 after a year’s break to have a child.

Before last year’s world title, she had already won Brazil’s first rowing gold medal at a World Cup event in Germany and finished fourth at the 2010 world championships in New Zealand.

She weighed 65 kilograms before she became a mother and was in the heavy category, but now at 59 kilos she has dropped into the lightweights.

If the pair’s goal is to reach an Olympic final in London, the longer term target is Brazil’s first Olympic medal at the Rio Games in 2016. “We must keep our feet on the ground, think that nice and slowly we can get there and who knows, we might get a medal in 2016,” Fabiana said. “We’ll train this boat, plan for four years, which is a short time, to try to get a good result here in Brazil.” —Reuters

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, 2012

sp orts

So much for ‘Peace’ in NBA this season NEW YORK: Just like the real thing, Metta World Peace didn’t last very long. For those who still think the Artest formerly known as Ron delivered an elbow unintentionally to the head of Oklahoma City’s James Harden, go back to the video from Sunday’s game against the Lakers, then to the dozen or so previous incidents that made MWP the most suspended player in the NBA during the past 15 years.

To those who say he’s reformed, remember it was only a matter of weeks last season between the time he picked up the pro basketball writers’ citizenship award and laid out J.J. Barea in the playoffs with a clothes-line hit.

There’s no reforming the guy, because unlike Dennis Rodman, whose number he wore for a while in tribute, MWP isn’t playing a character. After years of counseling, he still has precious little impulse control and even less of an idea when his demons are about to grab the upper hand.

Teammates love MWP when he arrives, sin-

cere, funny and bursting with energy - until one day he’s not.

Then he shows up for practice in a bathrobe, or gets into shouting matches or fights with teammates, rivals or opposing coaches. Then the guys who play alongside him have to pretend it wasn’t Artest’s fault, all the while muttering under their breath how lucky they were to be somewhere else on the court when he went off.

Unless, of course, you’re Andrew Bynum, who’s already thrown the occasional Artestlike tantrum and would no doubt scribble a touching tribute to his running pal on the side of his sneakers for as long as MWP is suspended.

If I’m commissioner David Stern, the deliberations would have been over long before now. The point is not simply to send a message, it’s about protecting the other players. Besides, trying to teach MWP a lesson didn’t work the first dozen times, and anything less than a suspension through the playoffs - into next season, if need be -

is to invite the same kind of stupid risk-taking the NHL encouraged early in its postseason. However, it appears hockey has effectively tamped down by suspending serial cheap-shot artist Raffi Torres of the Coyotes for 25 games following a hit to the head of Chicago’s Marian Hossa.

Like MWP’s blow to Harden’s head, that hit had nothing to do with the run of play.

It wasn’t designed to accomplish anything but injure an opponent. Before NHL disciplinarian Brendan Shanahan levied the punishment, his responses to a wide range of infractions left players not just scratching their heads, but wondering what they could get away with.

There was no clear logic to the nearly dozen penalties handed out - whether the discipline was matched to the seriousness of the intent or the resulting injury - but every player understood that 25 games meant Torres won’t be back this year unless Phoenix plays 7 games in every series through the end of the Stanley Cup.

Suddenly, everybody on the ice was a lot more mellow, or at the very least a lot less reckless. In MWP’s case, even that glimmer of hope sends the wrong message. So does trying to fine-tune the suspension based strictly on recent precedents. Throwing an elbow generally falls into the 1- or 2-game category, but this one had nothing do with holding onto the ball or clearing space. If Harden hadn’t been already turned to the side, and instead caught the elbow full force in the cheek or eye socket, a concussion would have been far from his only problem.

To get 10 games, players usually have to clearly throw punches designed to injure opponents or fans - another infraction MWP already knows plenty about. He got 73 games for his central role in the 2004 “Malice at the Palace” brawl. Only Latrell Sprewell has come close, his 82-game sentence shortened to 68 in the 1997-98 season after an arbitrator decided trying to choke your coach wasn’t as scary as it

sounded (and there was no video).

Gilbert Arenas and his pal Javaris Crittenton got 50 and 38 games for drawing guns on each other after an argument over a gambling debt got out of hand in the Washington locker room, but at least the weapons weren’t loaded at the time.

Artest isn’t a bad guy, at least not in the sense that he plays dirty to hang onto a job or even to settle a score. He’s generous and generally well-intentioned, giving freely of his off-court time for charitable causes, not to mention going through all that trouble to change his name - “to inspire and bring youth together all around the world.” And who can forget his willingness to advocate for mental-health counseling, even thanking his sports psychologist moments after the Lakers won the title in 2010. But those counselors have had only limited success curbing the kind of outburst Artest unleashed Sunday night. Now it’s up to Stern to decide if he wants to give them a chance to try once more.—AP

76ers make playoffs for 2nd straight season NEWARK: Philadelphia secured the final playoff berth in the Eastern Conference and spoiled the Nets’ final game in New Jersey, 105-87 Monday night. Thaddeus Young scored all 15 of his points in the second half to help the 76ers make the postseason for the second straight year and eliminate the Milwaukee Bucks from playoff contention. Jrue Holiday and Elton Brand added 15 points apiece and Andre Iguodala had 14 points and nine assists for Philadelphia. MarShon Brooks had 18 points to lead the Nets, who will move into a new arena in Brooklyn next season.

KANSAS: Denny Hamlin celebrates in victory lane after winning the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series auto race at Kansas Speedway in this file photo. —AP

Caution-free races aren’t thrilling fans CHARLOTTE: The last 901.5 miles at NASCAR’s top level have been quick and clean, the kind of races where a team can tinker on the car the entire day and not worry about artificial on-track action ruining a strong run. It’s a racer’s dream, but it’s apparently a fan’s nightmare.

Three of the last four Sprint Cup races have been accident-free, which has reignited the age-old debate: Do fans prefer racing or wrecking?

Based on feedback five-time champion Jimmie Johnson has heard of late, he knows the answer and seems to disagree with the popular opinion.

“It seems like crashing to most is more important than racing,” Johnson tweeted Monday morning, adding his disapproval for the sentiment. NASCAR finds itself in a conundrum following this unusually clean stretch of racing.

The on-track product is pure, and there’s been no room for gimmicks or manufactured action during the races.

It’s what racing is supposed to be, and it gives teams the opportunity to let the race come to them. More times than not, in those kind of races, it’s the best car celebrating in Victory Lane.

But it’s action and drama that draws attention, and if you don’t believe that, rewind to Juan Pablo Montoya crashing into a jet dryer in the season-opening Daytona 500. The accident, ensuing explosion and raging fuel fire drew worldwide headlines and gave NASCAR the literal spark it needed to start the season.

Some of the most memorable moments of last season stemmed from crashes or conflict: An ongoing feud between Kyle Busch and Kevin Harvick led to a pit-road confrontation at Darlington, Brian Vickers was involved in five of seven accidents at Martinsville, the road-course race at Sonoma resembled a demolition derby and featured intentional wrecking between Vickers and Tony Stewart.

There were plenty of shouting matches from Boris Said calling Greg Biffle “a scaredy-cat” while promising to deliver “a whooping” at Watkins Glen, and Johnson and Kurt Busch had to be separated during a jawing match on pit road at Pocono. But here we are, eight races into a new season, and nobody is fighting on or off the track. It’s so quiet, the only driver to even elicit an emotional response from fans was poor David Reutimann, who drew the ire of NASCAR Nation when he failed to get his disabled car off the track at Martinsville to cause a caution that altered the outcome of the race.

Aside from a lack of compelling drama, NASCAR is also short on accidents of late. There have been only five crashes in the last four races, and all of them came in the April 1 race at Martinsville.

Before that, the race at California ran caution-free for 124 laps. Rain brought out the yellow on lap 125, and the race was called four laps later. Texas two weeks ago had just two cautions - both for debris - totaling 10 laps and a 234-lap green-flag run to the finish.

Even Bristol, a track infamous for its

bumping and banging, was sterile.

Although all five cautions were for accidents, only one involved multiple cars and the race featured an unheard of 219lap green-flag run. Drivers were asked this weekend at Kansas what’s happened to all the action, and opinions were split.

“I’m surprised there’s not more wrecks,” Johnson admitted last week.

Then came Sunday’s race at Kansas, and it was yet another polite affair. There were three cautions for 18 laps, and two of the yellow flags were for debris. The other was for Clint Bowyer’s early spin, and the race ended with a 75-lap greenflag run. Now, there was some excitement as Martin Truex Jr., who dominated the race, tried in vain to chase down eventual winner Denny Hamlin over the closing laps. But it’s not clear if that’s enough to hold the interest of an audience faced with an enormous selection of entertainment options.

Fans were livid after the ho-hum March 18 race at Bristol, where the crowd was a fraction of what it used to be and the customers were vocal that the racin’ just ain’t what it used to be in Thunder Valley. Track owner Bruton Smith felt sick on race day when he saw the half-empty crowd, and it didn’t get any better when the feedback solicited by Speedway Motorsports Inc. was almost unanimously negative.

Smith has promised to tear up the track if fans believe it will improve the racing, and he’ll announce his plans for the Tennessee track today.

Drivers seem divided on what’s causing this clean racing. Kevin Harvick thinks the stakes are so high right now, with drivers vying for one of the 12 spots in the Chase for the Sprint Cup championship field, that no one can take any chances.

“I’m sure everyone is trying to get off on the right foot and trying to get themselves positioned as teams and organizations to get into the Chase,” he said.

“Everyone is trying to win races, so you need as few enemies as possible at this point.” But Brad Keselowski, winner at Bristol, believes the current racing is a product of aerodynamics.

“We can’t get close enough to each other to wreck each other,” Keselowski said. “That’s the reality of it. When you can’t get close to someone because of aerodynamic effects of the cars, the potential to wreck is a lot less no matter what the situation. It doesn’t matter if you’re angry or not angry, you can’t get (there) to do anything.”

Next up for NASCAR is a Saturday night showdown at Richmond, where the action is typically intense. Of the combined 23 cautions in the two races last year at Richmond, 16 were for accidents and five others were for a spinning car. Like it or not, that’s what fans expect to see at a NASCAR race. That doesn’t make it right, and it’s certainly not fair to the drivers and teams who prefer pure racing without any gimmicks.

Unfortunately, that doesn’t appeal to a broad enough audience, at least not for an extended period of time. —AP

The Grizzlies pulled one-half game behind the Los Angeles Clippers for fourth place in the Western Conference and home-court advantage in the first round of the playoffs. The Clippers hold the tiebreaker between the teams. Rookie Kyrie Irving had 25 points on 10-for-16 shooting for Cleveland, which lost its fifth in its last six games.

Bucks 92, Raptors 86 At Milwaukee, the Bucks are out of the NBA play-

offs, despite getting 25 points from Brandon Jennings in a victory over Toronto.

Milwaukee’s postseason fate was determined earlier Monday night when Philadelphia beat New Jersey to clinch the eighth playoff berth in the Eastern Conference and eliminate the Bucks.

Ersan Ilyasova added 19 points and 15 rebounds for Milwaukee. James Johnson had 22 points and 13 rebounds for the Raptors, who have lost four straight games.—AP

Spurs 124, T Blazers 89 At San Antonio, Tim Duncan and Danny Green both scored 18 points as San Antonio clinched the top playoff spot in the Western Conference and pushed their winning streak to eight. Wesley Matthews had 24 points for Portland, which lost its sixth straight and has one game left in a tumultuous season. The Spurs secured the top seed with a second-half surge, winning 22 of their last 25 games. JJ Hickson had 14 points and 10 rebounds for the injury-depleted Trail Blazers who again only used nine players.

Wizards 101, Bobcats 73 At Washington, John Wall had 16 points and 14 assists, Nene scored 18 points and Jan Vesely had 16 points on 8-for-8 shooting as Washington handed Charlotte its 21st straight loss.

The Wizards have their first four-game winning streak since Dec. 9-13, 2007. The 28-point margin of victory equaled their largest in the season. The Bobcats were competitive for most of the first quarter until Charlotte’s Tyrus Thomas was ejected with 3.6 seconds left for throwing an elbow at Washington’s James Singleton. He was assessed a flagrant 2 foul.

Singleton made two free throws. Gerald Henderson had 19 points for the Bobcats, while D.J. Augustin added 15. If Charlotte (7-57) loses its final two games, they will finish with the worst winning percentage in NBA history. They play at Orlando on Wednesday and at home Thursday night against New York.

Pacers 103, Pistons 97 At Indianapolis, Paul George scored 12 of his 27 points in the fourth quarter as Indiana downed Detroit. George made 13 of 15 free throws and grabbed 10 rebounds for the Pacers. David West scored 20 points and Leandro Barbosa and Tyler Hansbrough added 13 points each for Indiana.

Pacers coach Frank Vogel rested regular starters Danny Granger, Roy Hibbert and George Hill since Indiana is locked into the No. 3 seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs. Greg Monroe scored 18 points, Brandon Knight had 16 and Tayshaun Prince added 14 for the Pistons. Detroit held the Pacers to 38 percent shooting, but Indiana forced 18 turnovers and outrebounded the Pistons 56-42.

Grizzlies 109, Cavaliers 101 At Memphis, Tennessee, Marreese Speights had 17 points and 10 rebounds, and Marc Gasol also scored 17 points as Memphis won its fifth straight game.

Rudy Gay scored 15 points, OJ Mayo had 14, Tony Allen added 13 points and a franchise-record eight steals for the Grizzlies, who won their 10th straight at home. Gay and Mayo led a rally that allowed Memphis to finally put the game away in the closing minutes.

MEMPHIS: Tony Allen No. 9 of the Memphis Grizzlies knocks the ball away from Kyrie Irving No. 2 of the Cleveland Cavaliers during the NBA game. —AFP

NBA results/standings Indiana 103, Detroit 97; Washington 101, Charlotte 73; Philadelphia 105, New Jersey 87; Memphis 109, Cleveland 101; Milwaukee 92, Toronto 86; San Antonio 124, Portland 89.

Boston NY Knicks Philadelphia New Jersey Toronto Chicago Indiana Milwaukee Detroit Cleveland Miami Atlanta Orlando Washington Charlotte

Eastern Conference Atlantic Division W L PCT 37 27 .578 34 30 .531 34 30 .531 22 43 .338 22 43 .338 Central Division 48 16 .750 42 23 .646 31 33 .484 24 41 .369 21 43 .328 Southeast Division 46 18 .719 38 26 .594 36 28 .563 18 46 .281 7 57 .109

GB 3 3 15.5 15.5 6.5 17 24.5 27 8 10 28 39

Western Conference Northwest Division Oklahoma City 46 18 .719 Denver 36 28 .563 Utah 34 30 .531 Portland 28 37 .431 Minnesota 26 39 .400 Pacific Division LA Lakers 41 24 .631 LA Clippers 40 24 .625 Phoenix 33 31 .516 Golden State 23 41 .359 Sacramento 21 43 .328 Southwest Division San Antonio 48 16 .750 Memphis 40 25 .615 Dallas 36 29 .554 Houston 33 32 .508 New Orleans 20 44 .313

10 12 18.5 20.5 .5 7.5 17.5 19.5 8.5 12.5 15.5 28

Allen faces ban, O’Sullivan wins

SHEFFIELD: Ding Junhui of China plays a shot during the first round match of the World Championship Snooker tournament against Ryan Day of Wales at the Crucible Theatre.—AFP

SHEFFIELD: Mark Allen was left contemplating a ban from snooker as officials confirmed they would take disciplinary action after he accused Chinese players of cheating.

Allen, beaten in the first round of the World Championship by China’s Cao Yupeng, was adamant Cao should have called a foul against himself in the opening frame of Sunday ’s session when the Chinese, who won 10-6, was just 5-4 ahead.

The Northern Irishman then risked further controversy by saying: “It seems to be a bit of a trait for the Chinese players because there’ve been instances in the past, of fouls and blatant cheating going on. It needs to be corrected.”

China is seen as a huge growth area for snooker. But Allen has already angered Chinese snooker chiefs, saying Hainan, the island venue for the World Open, was “horrendous” and the people “ignorant”.

The World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association ( WPBSA) confirmed yesterday that Allen would face disciplinary action, with chairman Jason Ferguson saying the governing body took “very seriously comments made which could be perceived to be directed at a particular nation”.

World Snooker chairman Barry Hearn added: “To effectively accuse your opponent of cheating is looked on as bringing the game into disrepute. “Time and time again

Mark seems unable to control himself in his public statements. Sometimes I am speechless.” Earlier Hearn, who has himself felt the rough edge of Allen’s tongue this season, urged officials to take the comments seriously, saying they risked the livelihoods of his fellow professionals. “This is a very good time to be a snooker player,” Hearn said. “It’s not a good time to be an idiot.”

Back on the tables, Ronnie O’Sullivan made light of a potentially awkward match to beat fellow English former world champion Peter Ebdon 10-4.

In 2005, O’Sullivan lost to Ebdon in the quarter-finals when, having been 8-2 up, he went down 13-11. But there were no such dramas this year for O’Sullivan, 7-2 up overnight.

China’s Ding Junhui moved into a narrow 3-2 lead in the early stages of his first round match against Wales’ Ryan Day here yesterday thanks to a break of exactly 100 in the fifth frame.

However, Day recovered for a 5-4 first session lead with Judd Trump, last year’s beaten finalist, ahead by the same scoreline after falling 3-1 behind to Wales’s Dominic Dale.

Trump, who won the UK Championship in December to claim snooker’s second most important title, was understood to be suffering from food poisoning yesterday and looked off his game.—AFP

18

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, 2012

S P ORT S

Murray rolls in Barcelona BARCELONA: Andy Murray continued to apply polish to his clay court tennis as the second seed reached the third round of the Barcelona Open with a comfortable defeat of Sergiy Stakhovsky 6-3, 6-2 yesterday.

Murray, playing the tournament for only the third time, secured his second career win at the Real Club de Tenis in 78 minutes.

and comes to the net - a lot of variation. But I finished the match well. Hitting the ball well is very important.”

Murray is working to reach the form which took him to a Roland Garros semi-final a year ago, with hopes of doing even better. He lost a Monte Carlo quarter-final last week to Tomas Berdych, who had to withdraw from

Andy Murray in action in this file photo The world number four now stands 4-0 over Stakhovsky, a Ukrainian journeyman ranked 68th. “I hit the ball really well,” said Murray. “I felt good physically but a bit mentally tired. it wasn’t from playing a lot last week (Monte Carlo).

Sometimes you just wake up and don’t always feel that great on the court. “Bur I played better as the match went on. He’s a tricky player, he gives you a lot of drop shots

this week’s competition in Spain.

The Scot ended with 16 winners and a dozen unforced errors, breaking on three of his five chances. He next plays either Santiago Giraldo of Colombia of Dutchman Robin Haase, a Monte Carlo quarter-finalist.

Murray improved to 2-3 in Barcelona and becomes the eighth player in the top 10 to register 20 match wins on the season, now standing 20-5.

Sehwag leads Delhi to easy victory over Pune PUNE: Captain Virender Sehwag produced an unbeaten knock of 87 as Delhi Daredevils scored a comfortable eightwicket victory over Pune Warriors to remain on top of the Indian Premier League yesterday.

The hard-hitting opener stroked three sixes and 10 fours off 48 balls as Delhi scored 148-2 in only 16 overs after restricting Pune to 146-2 at Subrata Roy Sahara Stadium.

Delhi thus avenged its 20-run loss to the same side three days ago, and now

NEW DELHI: Delhi Daredevils’ Virender Sehwag plays a shot during their Indian Premier League (IPL) match against Pune Warriors.—AP has 10 points after five wins from seven games. Pune has four wins from eight games.

The other game scheduled for yesterday - between Kolkata Knight Riders and

Deccan Chargers at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata - was abandoned due to rain without a ball being bowled.

The washout gave both teams a point each. Kolkata is now second behind Delhi at nine points with four wins and a no-result from eight games. Deccan got its first point in six games as it had lost all its first five games.

At Pune, Delhi lost opener Mahela Jayawardene cheaply as he was run out following a mix-up with Sehwag, but the Delhi skipper made up with an 87-run stand for the second wicket with Kevin Pietersen (27) to put Delhi on course to victory.

Sehwag completed the win in style as he smashed legspinner Rahul Sharma for a four and six off consecutive deliveries.

For Pune, Manish Pandey top-scored with 80 not out while Robin Uthappa chipped in with an unbeaten 60.

Pune failed to find the momentum after the early dismissals of left-handed openers Jesse Ryder and captain Sourav Ganguly before being steadied by Pandey and Uthappa.

Ryder was bowled by Pathan without scoring off a delivery that kept low, while Ganguly scooped one to third man off Morne Morkel after scoring 1. Pandey and Uthappa were slow to begin with and the scoreboard read an unimpressive 50-2 at the end of 10 overs.

But Pandey, who was the first Indian to score a century in the IPL during the inaugural edition in 2008, opened up with some fine shots down the ground and finished with three sixes and seven fours off 56 balls. Uthappa also batted well for six boundaries off 58 balls.

Scores: Delhi Daredevils 148-2 in 16 overs ( Virender Sehwag 87 not out, Kevin Pietersen 27) def. Pune Warriors 146-2 (Manish Pandey 80 not out, Robin Uthappa 60 not out). —AP

Birthday boy Tendulkar, 39, urged to carry on NEW DELHI: Batting great Sachin Tendulkar turned 39 yesterday with an impassioned plea from his childhood coach to carry on playing cricket for India since he is “far from finished”. “All those murmurs about his retirement must stop, this is not the right time to go,” said Ramakant Achrekar, 80, the man credited with the early training of the leading scorer in Test history. “He must not retire now.

He must go on playing and scoring runs for the country,” the celebrated coach told the Hindustan Times. Tendulkar made his international debut in 1989 and has played more Tests (188) and one-day internationals (463) than any other player.

He is the highest run-getter in both forms of the game and last month became the first batsman to complete 100 international centuries — 51 in Tests and 49 in one-dayers.

But Tendulkar took more than a year to move from 99 to 100 hundreds-against

Bangladesh during the Asia Cup in Dhakaand many fans started to believe he needed to rethink his career, especially in one-dayers.

The Mumbai batsman has himself dismissed talk of retirement, saying it would be “selfish” for him to quit when he still had a lot to offer Indian cricket. Achrekar predicted Tendulkar, currently playing in the Indian Premier League, would return to his best now that the 100th century was out of the way.

“I can see that his form is picking up and it is only a matter of time before we see him score those magnificent runs again,” he said.

“Now that he has got his 100th century, he will play freely. “My Sachin is going to play better than ever. He is far from finished... those who even bring up talk of his retirement are wrong.” Achrekar said Tendulkar would help India bounce back from two humiliating 4-0 Test series whitewashes by England and Australia in the past year. —AFP

Murray needed 42 minutes to wrap up the opening set breaking Stakhovsky in the fourth game, In the second, the second seed found his range to take control and run out the victory on his first match point. The 2010 champion Fernando Verdasco also won a second-round encounter after a bye, with the Spanish ninth seed defeating Belgian Steve Darcis 6-3, 6-1.

Verdasco didn’t bother to defend his title in 2011 after a dispute with the organiser but is now back in the Spanish fold.

“I played well and found my comfort zone from the first game,” said the winner, who broke four times. “Maybe he was a little tired.

“This is a special tournament for me. I’m back in Barcelona and I want to do my best.”

In the first round, Portugal’s Frederico Gil scored an upset as he took out 12th seed Marcel Granollers of Spain, 6-2, 6-2 while number 13 South African Kevin Anderson was untroubled by Malek Jaziri of Tunisia 6-2, 6-3.

Australian Bernard Tomic, seeded 15th, dominated fading Latvian Ernests Gulbis 6-3, 6-4 on to make a winning debut at the event.

Tomic, at 19 the youngest man in the field in the Catalan capital, spent 67 minutes in handing one-time prodigy Gulbis another ATP disappointment.

The two-time quarter-finalist Latvian who has faded to an 86th ranking after standing a career-best 21st just 14 months ago, went down on two breaks of serve.

Tomic, who won a round in Monte Carlo last week but lost his next match to Ukrainian talent Alexandr Dolgopolov, was pleased with a winning start in the hotbed of Spanish tennis.

“I played well from the first game,” said the Australian. “I was able to play my game. “I served well and got more comfortable on the clay,” added the number 35, the youngest man in the field. “I’m moving better and feeling better. I’m playing well right now.”

Six-time champion Rafael Nadal will attempt to pick up where he left off at the weekend after winning an eighth straight Monte Carlo title when he opens after a bye against compatriot Guillermo Garcia-Lopez, a winner over Olivier Rochus of Belgium 6-3, 63. —AFP

STUTTGART: Germany’s Angelique Kerber returns the ball to Italy’s Roberta Vinci during their match at the WTA Porsche Tennis Grand Prix. —AFP

Samantha breezes into Stuttgart’s second round STUTTGART: US Open winner Samantha Stosur admitted she was happy with her start to Stuttgart’s WTA clay-court tournament yesterday after seeing off China’s Shuai Peng in straight sets.

The 28-year-old Australian, who is the fifth seed here, needed less than an hour to see off Peng 6-2, 6-2 and was rarely tested by her Chinese opponent in her first round tie. Having helped Australia to a 3-2 Fed Cup win over Germany on Stuttgart’s clay courts over the weekend, Stosur has been here for several days and after winning both her Fed Cup singles matches is happy with her form on clay.

“It was good, I thought I played well and served well, it was nice to get through in straight sets,” said Brisbane-born Stosur. “It was handy to have been here a week already, whereas a lot of the other girls were only arriving from Fed Cup on Monday night.

“Sometimes the best preparations don’t equate to the best performance, but you aren’t going to complain about playing Fed Cup in the same place as your next event.

“I played well over the weekend and managed to keep that going today, so far so good as far as the clay-court goes, so I am feeling good.”

Stosur will face Germany’s Julia Goerges, the defending champion, or Russia’s Anatasia Pavlyuchenkova in the second round here.

“Either player will be tough, I had a long three-setter against Julia in the semi-final here last year and haven’t played her since,” said Stosur. “Against Anastasia, we have played a few times and I have both won and lost. “Maybe if I get Julia it will be extra hard playing a German here.”

French qualifier Alize Cornet will face second-seed Maria Sharapova in the second round after her 6-3, 6-4 win over Russia’s Anna Chakvetadze.

And compatriot Mario Bartoli, the seventh-seed here, is also in the second round after her 6-3, 6-2 win over qualifier Iveta Benesova of the Czech Republic. Bartoli will face either ex-world number one Ana Ivanovic or Germany’s Mona Barthel in the second round. —AFP

Shillingford shines, Windies go on top ROSEAU: Shane Shillingford delighted his fellow Dominicans with a four wicket haul as West Indies restricted Australia to 212 for seven on the first day of the third and final Test.

Although Australia lead the series 1-0, it was clear from an upbeat performance that Darren Sammy’s improving West Indies team believe they have a chance to level the series.

Shillingford was already adored by the home crowd, who relished the chance to watch a Dominican play in a test on home soil for the first time, and after his excellent spell on Monday his status in his homeland was further elevated.

The off-spinner produced turn and bounce and showed a varied repertoire which frustrated Australia’s batsmen and claimed the heart of their middle order.

Ricky Ponting and Michael Clarke both got into the twenties before Shillingford removed them and, with pacemen Kemar Roach and Ravi Rampaul both threatening, there was little respite for the tourists.

Rampaul, drafted in for the injured Fidel Edwards, struck with his second ball as left-hander Ed Cowan (one) offered no shot to a sharp inswinger in the second over and was trapped leg before.

Rampaul, generating some impressive pace as well as his trademark swing, should also have removed Australia’s other opener cheaply.

Warner, on five, reached for a wide delivery and edged to Sammy at third slip but the West Indies skipper spilled a straightforward chance. Sammy though was to make up for that mistake with two catches and a wicket with his own medium-pace.

Warner and Shane Watson got their heads down putting on 83

before Watson (41) went to pull Sammy but top-edged to Narsingh Deonarine in the deep to leave the tourists at 84 for two.

Shillingford finally got rid of

leaped around the square in delight.

Roach gained some reward for his exertions when Ryan Harris got tangled up in an attempted

remove the Australia tail and Mitchell Starc (24) and Matthew Wade (22) provided some muchneeded resistance partnership putting on 43 before the close.

ROSEAU: West Indies’ captain Darren Sammy (left) takes the catch to dismiss Australia’s batsman Mike Hussey (second from right) as the wicket keeper Carlton Baugh (right) and Adrian Barath look on during the opening day of their third and final cricket Test match. —AP Warner (50) with a ball that rose sharply, the left-hander top-edging to Kieran Powell at point.

Former skipper Ponting moved past Rahul Dravid into second place in the all-time test run-makers list when he reached 23 but 10 balls later, an outside edge looped to Sammy at leg-slip.

The Windsor Park crowd, basking in the sunshine at the ground, which is cradled by lush green mountains, roared their appreciation and they soon had plenty more to celebrate.

Australia captain Michael Clarke (24) and Mike Hussey (10) both fell victim to the quick turn and bounce of Shillingford who

hook and gloved the ball to wicketkeeper Carlton Baugh.

West Indies have learned already that it takes some work to

Nonetheless the day still belonged to the West Indies and in particular to their ‘Deadly Dominican’. —Reuters

Scoreboard ROSEAU: Scoreboard at the close of the first day of the third test between West Indies and Australia at Windsor Park: Australia Innings E.Cowan lbw Rampaul D.Warner c Powell b Shillingford S.Watson c Deonarine b Watson R.Ponting c Sammy b Shillingford M.Clarke c Barath b Shillingford M.Hussey c Sammy b Shillingford M.Wade not out R.Harris c Baugh b Roach M.Starc not out

1 50 41 23 24 10 22 4 24

Extras (b-4, lb-6, w-1, nb-2) 13 Total (7 wickets; 90 overs) 212 To bat: B.Hilfenhaus, N.Lyon.

Fall of wickets: 1-1, 2-84, 3-105, 4-142, 5-157, 6-164, 7-169.

Bowling: K.Roach 16-5-43-1 (nb-2), R.Rampaul 18-5-44-1 (w-1), D.Sammy 19-7-32-1, S.Shillingford 34-8-77-4, N.Deonarine 3-0-6-0.

Ageing Yousuf out to revive cricket career LAHORE: Veteran Pakistan batsman Mohammad Yousuf took part in a fitness Test yesterday to try to revive his international career, insisting he could still compete at the highest level. The 37year-old played the last of his 90 Tests against England at Lord’s in 2010 — a match marred by the spot-fixing scandal involving three of his teammates.

He has not been considered for selection in the last two years because he has not played in domestic matches in Pakistan, but he took part in a workout led by new Pakistan coach Dav Whatmore yesterday.

“I have given a fitness test and now the result is in the hands of PCB,” Yousuf told reporters out-

side the national academy here. “I am ready to play for my country and still have enough cricket left in me.”

Yousuf rose from a poor background to become one of the most stylish batsmen Pakistan had ever produced, smashing 1,788 Test runs in 2006 — a world record for a calendar year. His career drifted after the PCB banned him for an indefinite period in March 2010 following the disastrous tour of Australia, which he captained.

The ban was overturned to allow Yousuf a comeback on the 2010 England tour, during which Salman Butt, Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Aamer were charged and eventually

jailed for arranging deliberate no-balls for money. Yousuf, who has played 288 one-day and three Twenty20 internationals, said he has been playing regular cricket and wanted to feature in the English county championship, though a deal with Leicestershire fell through.

Whatmore said the fitness of all Pakistani players will be assessed before next month’s tour to Sri Lanka. “The fitness test was designed to give everyone an idea where they stand now and after a prescription of work to re-test and see the improvement,” he said.

Pakistan play two Twenty20s, five one-day internationals and three Tests on their tour of Sri Lanka from late May to mid-July. —AFP

19

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, 2012

SPORTS

Mourinho’s approach bearing fruit for Real

CRC Chinchinim team

Betalbatim and Chinchinim win GOA Rolling Trophy KUWAIT: Last Friday’s dull and dusty weather failed to dampen the spirits of teams participating in the 18th edition of the GOA Rolling Trophy organized by Goan Overseas Association (Goa Maroons) under the auspices of KIFF at the MOH ground, Shuwaikh.

Veteran Derrick Gomindes equalized for Real Betalbatim in a last gasp goal to lead his team to victory in the tie breaker against Indian Strikers FC and CRC Chinchinim surprised Kuwait Goan Association 4-1 in first round matches of this prestigious tournament. Derrick who is now a guiding force behind Real Betalbatim brought himself on in the second half with his team trailing 0-1 courtesy of cool finish by Indian Strikers FC forward Anthony Joseph, and ensured his team ended the game 1-1 with an excellent goal in the dying minutes of the game. In the ensuing penalty shootout, Real Betalbatim players kept their cool and with goalkeeper Yogesh Chavan in outstanding form, to make sure of qualifying for the next round.

In the second match from the same group, CRC Chinchinim who have had a

rollercoaster season left the field on a high with brilliant goals from brothers Joe and Sony Gomes to lead their team to a 4-1 victory against a strong Kuwait Goan Association fielding the likes of Christeo and Jacob in the defense and Rosario and Jose Fernandes upfront.

The first ten minutes of the game were no indication of what was to follow with C.R.C keeper Anthony having to make a fine save and defender Lawrence and midfielder Russel kept busy thwarting attacks from the KGA forwards.

Things changed however after Joe Gomes scored for CRC in a sudden countermove and brother Sony scored easily one of the goals of the season with an overhead bicycle kick from inside the 18 yard box. Sony added a second and Leslie Alimao scored the fourth goal for CRC Kuwait Goan Association pulled one back towards the end of the game.

Coming Friday, 27th April 2012, there will be three matches as follows: FC Spark v/s Santos United at 6:30am followed by United Goans Centre v/s Malabar United F.C at 8:00am and the final match will be between Curtorcares United and A.V.C Sports & C.A at 9:30am.

MADRID: Real Madrid look like being crowned kings of Spain but need to overturn a 2-1 Champions League semi-final first leg deficit against Bayern Munich today to continue dreaming of European glory.

Coach Jose Mourinho was lured to one of the world’s richest clubs to build a dynasty that would end Barcelona’s pre-eminence and he struck what could be a decisive blow in La Liga’s title race with a 2-1 victory over the champions at the Nou Camp on Saturday.

With a seven-point lead at the top of La Liga and four matches left, Real now divert their aim to Barca’s European crown.

Mourinho’s team will need to replicate the defensive rigour and clinical finishing that did for Barca if they are to reach next month’s Champions League final in Munich.

Normally outspoken and provocative, Mourinho has recently shunned several news conferences, leaving number two Aitor Karanka to handle the media with anodyne responses.

The rules of European soccer’s governing body UEFA dictate the head coach must speak to the media before the home game against Bayern.

However, the lack of controversy seems to have benefited his team, particularly ahead of the ‘Clasico’ which they won for only the second time in 11 attempts with Mourinho at the helm.

“We were able to rid ourselves of the pressure we felt in previous encounters,” Real captain and goalkeeper Iker Casillas told reporters.

“We have taken a big step forward. We aren’t the finished article yet but we have given ourselves a big lift for the upcoming games.”

Leading scorer Cristiano Ronaldo displayed less of the

MADRID: Real Madrid’s Xabi Alonso (third right) stretches alongside various team mates during a training session. Real Madrid will play Bayern Munich today in a semifinal, second leg Champions League soccer match. —AP petulance that has contributed to his failure to deliver on big occasions in the past and broke away to grab the winner against Barca, his 54th goal in all competitions this season.

With Ronaldo working better as a team player, Real are confident they can maintain a 100 percent home record in this season’s competition and edge closer to a record 10th European Cup victory. That could involve having to beat Barca again in the final if Pep Guardiola’s side overcome a 1-0 deficit at home to Chelsea in the other semi-final second leg on Tuesday.

Mourinho, in his third successive Champions League semifinal, is eyeing a third triumph in Europe’s elite club competition after his victories with Porto in 2004 and Inter Milan in 2010, the latter after a 2-0 final win over

Bayern at the Bernabeu.

His opposite number today, the hugely experienced Jupp Heynckes, also knows the Spanish capital well having led Real to European Cup glory in 1998.

Bayern, who have won three out of four semi-finals against Real, have a slender advantage thanks to Mario Gomez’s late strike in the first leg and arrive boosted after Franck Ribery grabbed a stoppage-time winner at Werder Bremen on Saturday.

Hours later Borussia Dortmund sealed a second consecutive Bundesliga title that killed off any lingering hopes of an unprecedented German treble for the Bavarians.

The win over Werder was the perfect dress rehearsal if they are to achieve the ambition of playing in the Champions League

final in their own stadium on May 19. “Now we can travel to Madrid with confidence to tackle the biggest of challenges,” said former West Germany international Heynckes who will have a full squad to choose from.

“The team showed in the first leg we can play at the same level with them and we go to Madrid with a lot of confidence because we are in a position to score away from home. I am optimistic and so are my players.”

According to media reports Bayern wingers Ribery and Arjen Robben were involved in a row a week earlier - but a handshake on Saturday looked to have sealed a reconciliation at just the right time.

Frenchman Ribery has even more motivation to reach the final after missing out in 2010 due to suspension.—Reuters

Olympics to open with Britain-NZ in football

Real Betalbatim team

Falcao and Adrian driving Atletico Europa League bid BARCELONA: Radamel Falcao and Adrian had big shoes to fill when they arrived at Atletico Madrid last year but they have both scored goals that have given the Spaniards a chance to repeat their 2010 Europa League triumph.

Atletico supporters were worried when 2010 World Cup golden ball winner Diego Forlan left for Inter Milan and big-spending Manchester City snapped up Argentine Sergio Aguero but the performance of their replacements in Europe have gone some way to appease them.

Colombia striker Falcao has netted 10 times in the latest edition of Europe’s second-tier club competition, level at the top of the scoring chart with Schalke 04’s Klaas-Jan Huntelaar, although he is still some way short of the record of 17 he set last season during Porto’s title-winning campaign.

Known as ‘the tiger’, Falcao struck twice in last week’s 4-2 semi-final first leg success at home to La Liga rivals Valencia and his total of 27 goals has lifted him to third on the all-time list of UEFA Cup/Europa League marksmen behind German Dieter Mueller (29) and Swede Henrik Larsson (31).

Adrian, a promising Spain Under-21 international, weighed in with a goal in the first leg, his seventh of the campaign, and after beating Espanyol 3-1 in La Liga on Sunday Diego Simeone’s troops are full of confidence for the second leg at the Mestalla on Thursday.

“We just need more of the same,” Simeone, who has revived the club’s fortunes since taking over at the turn of the year, said on Atletico’s website (www.clubatleticodemadrid.com).

“Obviously this is an important moment for the club, the players and the fans and hopefully we can repeat the same kind of performances we have produced in our last few games,” added the former Argentina captain.

Valencia, the 2004 UEFA Cup winners, have never lost a European home match against a domestic rival but were eliminat-

ed by Atletico on away goals in the quarter-finals in 2010.

“This is the competition that excites us and all we need is for the players to turn up who did not do so in Madrid last week,” Valencia coach Unai Emery said after his side thrashed Real Betis 4-0 on Sunday.

“We have to hit our stride and hope that they do not.”

The winners of the tie will meet La Liga rivals Athletic Bilbao, conquerors of Premier League champions Manchester United in the round of 16, or Portugal’s Sporting in next month’s final in Bucharest.

Sporting came from a goal down to win last week’s first leg in Lisbon 2-1 and their feisty coach Ricardo Sa Pinto, who took over from Domingos Paciencia in mid-season, has engineered a remarkable revival at the club, injecting new belief and greater tactical discipline.

They successfully disrupted Bilbao’s flowing passing game in the first leg and have won six of their last seven matches in all competitions, claiming the prized scalp of Manchester City in the last 16.

“The secret? Work. We foster the values of organisation and attitude,” Sa Pinto said after Sporting won 3-2 at Portuguese rivals Nacional at the weekend. “Attitude is a small thing which can go a long way and make big results happen,” he added.

Nicknamed ‘Ricardo the lion heart’ for his battling spirit as a striker, Sa Pinto had scant experience before taking the job but managed to rejuvenate a demotivated squad.

“We are now a strong team, united and tight-knit and, with the current spirit, we are hard to beat,” according to centre back Daniel Carrico. “Everyone is rowing in the same direction and now we want to get through the semi-finals.”

Bilbao will be without influential midfielder Oscar De Marcos, who is suspended, but are hoping to have Iker Muniain back after the Spain international missed the 1-0 win at Racing Santander at the weekend with an eye inflammation.—Reuters

WEMBLEY: Two days before the opening ceremony, the London Olympics will begin 250 kilometers (155 miles) away in Cardiff with Britain and New Zealand kicking off the women’s football tournament. “We are really excited by the prospect of it being the opening event,” Britain coach Hope Powell said.

The match at Millennium Stadium will be one of five on July 25, before the men’s football starts the following day when Brazil will also be playing in the Welsh capital against Egypt. The Brazilian men have never won Olympic gold, but former striker Ronaldo drew them into a favorable group yesterday at Wembley Stadium. In Group C, they will also play Belarus at Old Trafford on July 29 and New Zealand in Newcastle on Aug. 1.

In Group D, Spain will start against Japan at Hampden Park in Glasgow on July 26, followed by a trip to St. James’ Park to face Honduras on July 29 and to Old Trafford to play Morocco on Aug. 1.

Britain, which will have a football team at the Olympics for the first time since 1960, will start against Senegal in Group A at Old Trafford on July 26. The hosts, who are set to include David Beckham in the squad, will also play the United Arab Emirates three days later at Wembley and Uruguay on Aug. 1 at the Millennium Stadium.

Britain has not fielded an Olympic football team since 1960 because Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland feared losing their independence within FIFA. The world body has assured the federations that their status won’t be affected by participating in the 16team competition at the London Games.

“There might not be another Great Britain football team in our lifetime,” Britain men’s

LONDON: The draw for the London 2012 Olympic soccer tournament takes place at Wembley Stadium in London yesterday. —AP coach Stuart Pearce said. “It might be a oneoff.” In Group B, Mexico will play South Korea in Newcastle on July 26, Gabon on July 29 Matches on TV and Switzerland on Aug. 1.

(Local Timings) In the women’s draw, after facing New Zealand, Britain will play Cameroon and UEFA Champions League Brazil. The United States, which won the gold Real Madrid v Bayern 21:45 medal four years ago in Beijing, was drawn with France, Colombia and North Korea in Aljazeera Sport 1 HD Group G. In Group F, World Cup champion Aljazeera Sport +4 Japan was drawn with Canada, Sweden and Aljazeera Sport +8 South Africa.—AP Aljazeera Sport 2 HD

Malaga hold Osasuna MADRID: A stunning Santi Cazorla equaliser kept Malaga’s push for a first venture into the Champions League on track as they drew 1-1 at Osasuna in La Liga on Monday.

The Spain playmaker, a 20 million-euro purchase by the Qatari-owned club last year, thumped a long-range shot inside the far post after 67 minutes, cancelling out Nino’s diving header just after the break.

Malaga, coached by former Real Madrid boss Manuel Pellegrini, moved on to 52 points in fourth place, Spain’s last qualification berth for Europe’s elite club competition. The Costa del Sol side’s only previous venture into Europe was when they reached the quarter-finals of the UEFA Cup, now known as the Europa League, in the 2002-03 campaign after winning the now defunct

Intertoto Cup. Osasuna matched their visitors in a pulsating encounter at the Reyno de Navarra, though Malaga hit the woodwork twice, and maintain an outside chance of a second tilt at the Champions League.

The Navarrans finished fourth under Javier Aguirre in 2006 but failed to reach the group stage the following season.

Osasuna are five points behind Malaga in eighth with 47 points, one short of the Europa League qualification slots.

Real Madrid top the standings with 88 points after a 2-1 win at Barcelona on Saturday which made them hot favorites to win a first league title in four years. Jose Mourinho’s side are seven points clear of second-placed Barca with four matches left. —Reuters

Italian League Novara v Lazio Aljazeera Sport +1 Roma v Fiorentina Aljazeera Sport +2 Udinese v Inter Aljazeera Sport +1 Siena v Bologna Aljazeera Sport +7 Lecce v Napoli Aljazeera Sport +5 Palermo v Parma Aljazeera Sport +6 Cesena v Juventus Aljazeera Sport +2 AC Milan v Genoa Aljazeera Sport +1

13:30 16:00 16:00 16:00 16:00 16:00 19:00 19:00

Mourinho’s approach bearing fruit for Real

Samantha breezes into Stuttgart’s second round

19

18

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, 2012

Sehwag leads Delhi to easy victory over Pune

Lionel Messi

Page 18

Guardiola

SPAIN: Chelsea’s Spanish forward Fernando Torres (left) runs past Barcelona’s goalkeeper Victor Valdes to score and win the match during the UEFA Champions League second leg semi-final football match. — AFP

Messi misery as Chelsea stun Barca BARCELONA: Lionel Messi missed a penalty as holders Barcelona were sent crashing out of the Champions League semi-finals after 10-man Chelsea battled to a 2-2 draw at the Camp Nou here yesterday.

Chelsea, leading 1-0 from the first leg, snatched a 3-2 aggregate win on a night of extraordinary drama which saw the Premier League side recover from 2-0 down and the dismissal of captain John Terry to reach next month’s Munich final.

Barcelona looked to be cruising to victory after goals from Sergio Busquets and Andres Iniesta put them 2-0 up in the first half either side of Terry’s red card for a foul on Alexis Sanchez.

But a superb counter-attack and chip from Ramires put Chelsea ahead on away goals and despite a furious Barcelona onslaught the 2008 finalists held firm.

In the dying minutes substitute Fernando Torres raced clear as Barcelona pressed for a winner and

rounded Victor Valdes to kill off a quite remarkable contest.

An extraordinary first half had seen a disciplined Chelsea manage to frustrate Barcelona in the face of relentless pressure despite the setback of losing Gary Cahill to injury after only 12 minutes.

Cahill had wrenched his knee after twisting to thwart a Barcelona attack after six minutes and attempted to battle on before being replaced by Jose Bosingwa, with Branislav Ivanovic moving to centre-back.

Despite the defensive reshuffle Chelsea’s thin blue line held firm, with Petr Cech saving brilliantly with his leg from Messi on 19 minutes before Terry slid in desperately to block Iniesta’s follow-up.

At the other end Chelsea were limited to pumping long clearances for Didier Drogba, who, just as he had done at Stamford Bridge a week earlier, was forced to plough a lonely furrow up front.

Nevertheless Barcelona’s nervousness at

Chelsea’s aerial threat was plain to see, and it was a jittery punched clearance from Valdes that led to the substitution of Gerard Pique after a heavy collision with the defender.

Yet it was only to be a matter of time before Barcelona’s monopoly of possession yielded its reward and the breakthrough came on 35 minutes, the start of a catastrophic period for Chelsea.

A headed Drogba clearance fell only as far as Dani Alves on the edge of the area who picked out Isaac Cuenca on the left, who in turn rolled his pass across the six-yard box for an unmarked Busquets to side foot home.

It got worse for Chelsea a minute later with Terry’s moment of madness, a dismissal which left the English side with neither of their starting centrebacks.

It was not long before the makeshift nature of Chelsea’s defence was exposed and Barcelona struck what looked to be the killer blow on 43 minutes.

Careless play from Raul Meireles saw Messi dart forward and feed Iniesta, who sprang Chelsea’s defence and prodded past Cech for 2-0.

Camp Nou rocked with delight but incredibly within minutes Chelsea were back in the game and ahead on away goals when Ramires scored.

Lampard’s magnificent pass sent the Brazilian racing in behind the Barcelona back four and when Valdes advanced the rangy midfielder clipped an exquisite chip into the empty net for 2-1 on the stroke of half-time.

The Chelsea goal gave Barcelona something to think about but the Catalans were swiftly back into their stride in the second half.

And when Drogba brought down Cesc Fabregas to concede a penalty the match again seem to have swung in Barcelona’s favour.

Yet Messi, the most prolific scorer in Europe this season with 63 goals, implausibly crashed his spotkick against the bar and Chelsea were let off.

Cagliari grab vital win over Catania ROME: Cagliari edged six points clear of the Serie A relegation zone yesterday with an invaluable 3-0 win over Catania which all but ended the Sicilian side’s hope of a place in next season’s Europa League.

Cagliari, who were playing at ‘home’ in Trieste rather than Sardinia because their president Massimo Cellino is in dispute with the Calgiari municipality, secured the three points through goals by their South American contingent.

Brazilian Thiago Ribeiro opened the scoring in the 21st minute but it was only going into the final 10 minutes of the game they sealed the win as Chilean striker Mauricio Pinilla doubled the lead from a centre by Colombian Victor Ibarbo.

Ibarbo grabbed one for himself for good measure in the fourth minute of time added on. Atalanta also did their survival chances no harm with a 1-0 win over Chievo as a stunning long range strike by Argentinian Maximiliano Moralez sent them eight points clear of third from bottom Lecce, who are away at Napoli today.

Also on Wednesday leaders Juventus are away at bottom side Cesena while AC Milan who are three points adrift of ‘The Old Lady of Turin’ host Genoa, who themselves are fighting against relegation and are just a point above Lecce.

This round of matches were originally postponed in tribute to the death of Piermario Morosini, who collapsed and died while playing for second tier Livorno on April 14.

Meanwhile, Christian Panucci resigned as director of sports of Serie A side Palermo yesterday just over a month after he took the job.

The 38-year-old former Italian international defender’s resignation came about the club said because of a misunderstanding over comments made by volatile president Maurizio Zamparini which had been misconstrued by the media.

The press had reported that in an interview with a Palermo radio station Zamparini had said he was looking to recruit a sporting director for next season when in fact he had said he was looking to hire a vice-president.

“We are very bitter over this action,” the club said in a statement. “We would like to thank Panucci for the work he has done during this short period of time.

“This resignation comes after a misunderstanding over comments made by the president which were reported in an incorrect fashion by the press.”

However, later Zamparini - who has earned the nickname of ‘the coach eater’ as he has gone through 45 coaches as president of Venice (1987-2002) and from 2002 Palermo - said Panucci had over reacted in resigning. “For me Panucci remains a good person, but he has to change the way he reacts to things,” said Zamperini. “He got upset over my comments on the arrival of Giorgio Perinetti (the vice-president), alongside whom he could have made progress.—AFP

But the pattern of the game had been set, and what followed was 40 minutes of excruciating tension for Chelsea as Barcelona took up permanent residence on the edge of the visitors penalty area.

Chelsea, however, somehow managed to thwart their tormentors, closing down relentlessly and never allowing Messi, Xavi and Iniesta the freedom to work the ball into dangerous positions.

All too often Barcelona’s attempts to add width foundered as they cut the ball back into the middle where Chelsea’s wall of bodies stood firm. Messi had a goal disallowed before Cech tipped a shot from the Argentinian onto the post.

Then with Barcelona caught pressing upfield Torres raced away clear of the home sides defence and touched round Valdes to score and Chelsea were through.

The win came at a cost, however, with Ramires, Ivanovic and Meireles all picking up bookings that will keep them out of the final. — AFP

Bolton boost survival bid Aston Villa 1

Bolton 2

ITALY: Catania’s Gonzalo Bergessio (left) and Cagliari’s Vlada Avramov, challenge for the ball during their Serie A soccer match. — AP

BIRMINGHAM: Bolton boosted their survival bid and dragged Aston Villa into the Premier League relegation dogfight as David Ngog clinched a 2-1 win at Villa Park yesterday.

Owen Coyle’s side fell behind to Stephen Warnock’s second half strike, but recovered in impressive fashion with two goals in quick succession as Martin Petrov equalised with a penalty before Ngog bagged the winner seconds later.

Bolton remain in the bottom three but they are now just one point from safety with a game in hand, while Villa are only three points above the drop zone with three matches to play.

Villa boss Alex McLeish must have feared it wouldn’t be his night when he was forced to make three changes as Alan Hutton, Warnock and Emile Heskey came in for injured trio James Collins, Stephen Ireland and Gabriel Agbonlahor.

McLeish’s men made a positive start and could have gone ahead inside the first minute after Charles N’Zogbia’s corner picked out Chris Herd and the youngster headed just over the bar.

Villa and Bolton fans showed their appreciation for Wanderers midfielder Fabrice Muamba, who is recovering

from cardiac arrest, with 60 seconds’ applause in the sixth minute, in recognition of his shirt number.

There was a brief moment of controversy when Bolton boss Owen Coyle and Villa coach Kevin MacDonald had to be kept apart by fourth official Craig Pawson after Ryo Miyaichi was bundled into touch by Villa defender Eric Lichaj.

Japanese midfielder Miyaichi, on loan from Arsenal, was quickly back on his feet and tested Villa keeper Shay Given with a low drive.

But Villa were on top and Stephen Warnock smashed his shot against the crossbar from the edge of the penalty area moments later. N’Zogbia also struck the woodwork, clipping the outside of a post with a 30-yard free-kick, before the interval.

Coyle made a half-time substitution with striker Kevin Davies replacing Miyaichi, but Villa were posing more attacking threat and Warnock broke the deadlock when he converted a cross from N’Zogbia in the 61st minute.

That should have been the signal for Villa to press home their advantage, but Bolton hit straight back with two goals in the space of two minutes.

First Petrov levelled from the penalty spot after Carlos Cuellar brought down Mark Davies in the 62nd minute.

Then Chris Eagles was allowed too much room to pick out Ngog and the former Liverpool forward fired home from close-range.

With 20 minutes left, McLeish sent on Agbonlahor for Heskey in a bid to re-energise his side, but N’Zogbia wasted their last chance when he blazed over from 20 yards. — AFP

Indian shipping firms to carry Iran crude Page 22

US home prices drop for 6th straight month Page 23

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, 2012

KSE stocks near-flat as investors seek direction Page 24

Recession-threatened Britain awaits key data Page 25

BEIJING: A Toyota 86 sports car is displayed at the Beijing International Automotive Exhibition in Beijing yesterday.

—AP (See Page 23)

Greece in the throes as recession deepens Economy to contract more than 5%: CB ATHENS: Greece’s economy will contract a deeper than expected 5 percent this year, the country’s central bank chief said yesterday, piling more pressure on to a citizenry already battered by crippling austerity and record joblessness.

The projection topped a previous forecast the central bank made in March, when it projected the 215 billion euro economy would contract 4.5 percent after a 6.9 percent slump in 2011.

Twice bailed-out Greece is in its fifth consecutive year of recession.

Speaking to shareholders at the central bank’s annual assembly, George Provopoulos, also a European Central Bank Governing Council member, urged strict adherence to reform and fiscal adjustment commitments Greece has agreed with its euro zone partners, saying they were needed to return the economy to sustainable growth. Athens is under pressure to apply more fiscal austerity to shore up its finances as part of a new rescue package agreed this year with its euro zone partners and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to avert a chaotic default.

Its continued funding under the 130 billion euro package will hinge on meeting targets.

Provopoulos warned that Greece’s euro-

zone membership was at stake if it failed to follow through on its pledges, especially after national elections next month.

“If following the election doubts emerge about the new government and society’s will to implement the program, the current favorable prospects will reverse,” he said.

Greece is set to pick a new government on May 6, with the two main parties in the current coalition seen barely securing a majority in parliament, according to the latest opinion polls.

Whoever wins will have to agree additional spending cuts of 5.5 percent of GDP, or worth about 11 billion euros for 20132014, and gather about another 3 billion from better tax collection to keep getting aid, the IMF has said.

The central banker projected Greece’s current account gap, a key indicator reflecting eroded economic competitiveness, would shrink to 7.5 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) this year from 9.8 percent in 2011. In March the central bank forecast the gap would drop to 7 percent of GDP this year.

“The expected drop in unit labor costs in 2012-13, coupled with the projected price trends will lead to a marked improvement in competitiveness, contributing to a rise in exports and import substitution,” he said.

Consumer inflation is seen slowing to 1.2 percent this year and may fall below 0.5 percent in 2013. Weak domestic demand combined with downward wage pressures have shrunk the country’s inflation differential with other euro-zone states.

The central bank estimates that by the end of this year the economy will have regained up to three quarters of competitiveness lost during 2001-09. Greece joined the euro in 2001 and enjoyed a consumption boom on lower borrowing costs.

Provopoulos said the fiscal shortfall had come down markedly but remained high.

Last year Greece shrank its budget gap by 1.2 percentage points to 9.1 percent of GDP and aims for a 6.7 percent deficit this year.

Austerity measures including income and property tax increases, a rise in valueadded tax rates and cuts in wages and pensions, helped reduce the gap from 15.6 percent of GDP in 2009, when its debt crisis erupted. “The sought attainment of primary surpluses from 2013 is now achievable,” the central banker said.

Provopoulos also said private sector bank deposits had declined by more than 70 billion euros since the end of 2009, a sum equivalent to about one third of the country’s GDP, in a blow to the banking sector’s lending capacity. — Reuters

Dubai plans to issue Islamic bond soon

ATHENS: Bank of Greece governor G e o rg e Provo p o u l o s co l l e c t s h i s p a p e r s d u r i n g t h e b a n k ’s a n n u a l re p o r t o n t h e G re e k e co n o my i n Athens yesterday.—AFP

Americans remain confident in April Emirates says no interest in Indian carriers BARCELONA: Dubai’s Emirates airline yesterday dismissed talk of a possible stake buy in India’s troubled aviation sector. “We are not interested in getting involved in the Indian aviation sector,” Emirates President Tim Clark said, speaking to Reuters on the sidelines of a finance conference.

Clark specifically denied any interest in budget Indian carrier Spicejet.

Spicejet said last week it had been approached by several Gulf and Asian carriers as the Indian government mulled a change in foreign investment rules and there has been speculation of contacts between it and Emirates.

Earlier yesterday, Indian airline shares fell on waning hopes that the country’s government would allow foreign carriers to invest in the domestic sector anytime soon. — Reuters

NEW YORK: Americans’ confidence in the economy held steady in April from the previous month despite rising job cuts and falling home values. The Conference Board, a private research group, said yesterday that its Consumer Confidence Index is at 69.2, down slightly from a revised 69.5 in March. Economists were expecting a reading of 70, according to a FactSet poll of analysts. The current level is below February’s 71.6, which is the highest level it’s been in a year.

Consumer confidence is widely watched because consumer spending accounts for 70 percent of economic activity. The current level is significantly below the 90 reading that indicates a healthy economy. But it’s well above its all-time low of 25.3 in February 2009.

“Consumer confidence was vir tually unchanged in April, following a modest decline in March,” said Lynn Franco, director of The Conference Board Consumer Research Center, in a statement. “Overall, consumers are more upbeat about the state of the economy, but they remain cautiously optimistic.”

Economists are paying close attention

to consumers’ behavior because the US economy is at a critical juncture. New reports that show rising layoffs and slowing home sales are raising concerns that the economic recovery is facing a spring slowdown for the third straight year. The stock market rally also has lost steam in recent weeks amid renewed worries about the European financial crisis and the economy at home. The Conference Board’s report, which is based on a survey conducted from April 1 through April 12 with about 500 randomly selected people nationwide, underscored how Americans’ views of the job market remains cautious.

Those stating jobs are “hard to get” declined to 37.5 percent from 40.7 percent, while those stating jobs are “plentiful” decreased to 8.4 percent from 9 percent. Americans who are anticipating more jobs in the months ahead declined to 16.9 percent from 17.4 percent.

The lack of confidence comes as the average number of people seeking US unemployment benefits over the past month has risen to a three-month high.

According to the April jobs repor t, employers added 120,000 jobs last month

- half the December-February pace and well short of the 210,000 economists were expecting. The unemployment rate fell from 8.3 percent in February to 8.2 percent in March - the lowest since January 2009 - but that was mainly because many Americans stopped looking for work.

Meanwhile, the home market remains weak, according to the latest data released yesterday. Sales of new homes fell in March by the largest amount in more than a year, according to a report released by the Commerce Department.

A widely-watched report on home prices showed a drop in February in most major US cities for a sixth straight month, according to Standard & Poor’s/CaseShiller home-price index. Still, retail sales have been solid. Gas prices also are beginning to fall, after a four-month surge pushed gas to nearly $4 per gallon earlier this month. The price of gasoline in the US has dropped by nearly 8 cents per gallon since the first week of April following a decline in oil prices and gasoline consumption. Gasoline, on average, now costs about as much as it did a year ago. — AP

DUBAI: Dubai plans to launch a dual-tranche Islamic bond imminently, the banks arranging the issue said yesterday, and is expected to attract healthy investor demand as the Gulf Arab emirate puts its 2009 debt debacle behind it. The five- and 10-year benchmark sukuk is Dubai’s first Islamic bond since 2009. Initial guidance was seen around 5 and 6.5 percent respectively for the two tranches.

Sources told Reuters earlier yesterday that the emirate had mandated four banks - Citigroup Inc, HSBC, National Bank of Abu Dhabi and Dubai Islamic Bank for a bond that could raise up to $1.5 billion. Investors began selling off existing positions on Dubai government debt in anticipation of the new issue. “Certainly there will be demand for a new issue from Dubai, and the 2017 maturity is a gap in their curve currently,” said Thomas Christie, sales trader for fixed income at Rasmala investment bank.

Dubai is the latest to take advantage of investor interest in Islamic bonds as the euro zone debt crisis takes the shine off conventional bonds. Sukuk issues have dominated regional bond sales this year and issues have been heavily oversubscribed. State-owned Saudi Electricity’s $1.75 billion issue in March attracted demand of more than $15 billion.

The emirate last tapped debt markets in 2011 when it issued a $500 million, 10-year bond with a five-year put option, allowing investors to redeem their investment ahead of maturity at full value.

That bond was last bid at near 103 levels, according to Thomson Reuters data, to yield 5.2 percent.

Dubai’s 2020 bond was bid at 110.5 to yield 6.136 percent yesterday afternoon, according to data from Goldman Sachs, down from 110.700 levels at Monday’s close. Helped by an economic revival in trade and tourism and its safe-haven status amid the Arab Spring civil uprisings, Dubai has been climbing back from the depths of its debt crisis.

The emirate is still restructuring some debt at statelinked firms but its biggest restructuring - a $26 billion debt deal at flagship conglomerate Dubai World - was signed in 2010. “Dubai’s story has improved since 2009 given continued success on the debt restructuring front, resilient headline growth, and contained fiscal deficits,” Raza Agha, Royal Bank of Scotland senior economist for Middle East and Pakistan, said via email.

Dubai’s 2012 budget has a shortfall of $498 million, a smaller deficit than 2011, as spending on development projects in the debt-laden Gulf Arab emirate dropped.

The emirate’s five-year credit default swap spreads were around 370 basis points yesterday, down from around 650 basis points hit in the aftermath of the Dubai World crisis. Investors are closely watching two significant maturities in 2012 from state-linked firms, Jebel Ali Free Zone (JAFZA) and DIFC Investments, which have to repay a combined $3.25 billion this year. — Reuters

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, 2012

BUSINESS

Shell to buy Cove Energy for $1.8bn LONDON: Royal Dutch Shell has agreed to buy Cove Energy for 1.12 billion pounds ($1.8 billion), lifting its offer to access East Africa’s huge gas reserves, but failing to quell hopes of a bid battle for the Mozambique-focused explorer.

Cove’s directors recommended the offer from oil major Shell, which matched rather than beat a rival offer made by Thai state-controlled oil firm PT T Exploration and Production Pcl (PTTEP) in February, as Shell betted that its expertise would help secure the deal.

“PTTEP is currently considering its options and will make a fur ther

announcement as and when appropriate,” the Thai firm said in a statement yesterday. Industry interest in East Africa has been gathering pace after huge gas discoveries were made there, with the region tipped to become a major natural gas producing region supplying liquid natural gas (LNG) to energy hungry Asian markets.

Shares in Cove traded above Shell’s 220 pence offer price up 3.7 percent to 225 pence, signalling investors are hopeful of a higher bid. “Competing offers can still be made and the shares will now likely trade to a slight premium

on the hope that PTTEP will trump Shell,” said Investec analysts.

However, Westhouse Securities analyst Andrew Matharu said Mozambique would likely favor Shell’s offer. “A key component of this is how the Mozambique authorities want to develop their resources and a project of this scale needs an oil major with the financial resources and the exper tise of bringing world class scale projects to fruition so you need someone like a Shell,” he said. Shell said the deal was conditional upon approval from the government of Mozambique amongst

other things.

Cove’s directors, in possession of a collective 4.38 percent stake in the company, said they would be accepting the offer. Cove’s main asset is an 8.5 percent stake in the Rovuma Offshore Area 1 in Mozambique, where operator Anadarko has said recoverable reserves could top 30 trillion cubic feet of natural gas.

“Shell represents an excellent partner for all the stakeholders in the Rovuma LNG project given its extensive project development, operating and marketing experience in the entire LNG value chain,” Cove’s Executive Chairman

Michael Blaha said in a statement. The deal includes a break fee clause, meaning Cove will have to pay Shell 11.1 million pounds if it later accepts a rival bid.

Shell said its latest offer represented a 95.6 percent premium to the closing price of Cove’s shares on Jan. 4, the day before the company put itself up for sale. The company had previously made a $1.6 billion approach for Cove in February, before PTTEP beat the offer, prompting hopes of a bidding war, with an Indian consortium saying at one point it was also considering entering the fray. —Reuters

Indian shipping firms to carry Iran crude Firms request insurers to provide $50m in cover NEW DELHI/SINGAPORE: Indian shipping firms will continue to transport Iranian crude even if limited insurance coverage due to tightening Western sanctions leaves them financially exposed to a spill or accident, a top executive and industry sources said.

Tough new European Union sanctions aimed at stopping Iran’s oil exports to Europe also ban EU insurers and reinsurers from covering tankers carrying Iranian crude anywhere in the world from July. Around 90 percent of the world’s tanker insurance is based in the West, so the measures threaten shipments to Iran’s top Asian buyers China, India, Japan and South Korea.

The sanctions seek to stem the flow of petrodollars to Tehran to force the OPEC member to halt a nuclear program the West suspects is intended to produce weapons. Shipping Corp of India, which is the country’s largest shipping firm, Great Eastern and other Indian tanker firms have asked state insurers to step in and provide up to $50 million in third-party liability coverage per tanker voyage.

The amount is a fraction of the typical $1 billion coverage that a supertanker carrying around 2 million barrels of crude would have from reinsurers against personal injury and pollution claims.

India’s shipping companies would run the risk of shipping the crude even though they would be liable for any claims above $50 million in the case of an incident, industry sources said.

“To the best of our knowledge, over the last 10 years, none of the Indian shipping companies carrying Iranian crude oil into India has had any major incident relating to pollution or anything,” Shipping Corp Chairman S Hajara told Reuters on the sidelines of an industry confer-

ence in Singapore.

“Since there have been no claims in 10 years, we felt if we have cover of $50 million as a commercial organization it would be worthwhile for us to continue in that business.”

India is the world’s fourth-largest oil importer and one of the biggest customers for Iran’s 2.2 million barrels per day (bpd) of oil exports. On average, there are 10 crude shipments a month from Iran to refineries on the west coast of India.

A major oil spill from one of these tankers could leave Indian shipowners liable for billions of dollars in damages.

The most expensive oil spill was the Exxon Valdez disaster in Alaska in 1989, which industry groups estimate has cost as much as $7 billion so far in clean-up, fines, penalties and claims.

“Exxon Valdez happens once in decades. If you think all your risk must be covered, then you should not be in business,” Hajara said, adding that liability limits for an oil spill have extended beyond $1 billion and $3 billion for other incidents.

“We have been very clear that Indian insurance companies will have a tough task, if not impossible, to get reinsurance if the sanctions really set in. We know if we ask for a huge amount of cover we will never get it.”

The biggest reinsurers are located in Europe and according to some industry experts the only way to cope with the loss of European reinsurers would be for governments of importing countries to provide federal guarantees to cover any expenses relating to personal and pollution claims.

Shipowners have asked the government for sovereign guarantees, but have not received a response, Hajara said. Indian firms, along with Japan and South Korea, have also lobbied

ADCB Q1 net profit up 38%, beats estimates ABU DHABI: Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank the emirate’s third-largest lender by market value, posted a 38-percent rise in first quarter net profit yesterday due to lower impairments and higher interest income. ADCB posted a net profit of 802 million dirhams ($218.52 million) in the first quarter, compared with 583 million dirhams a year earlier, ahead of analysts’ forecasts.

Analysts polled by Reuters forecast an average first-quarter net profit of 641.25 million dirhams. Impairment allowances for the first quarter totalled 287 million dirhams, down 28 percent from 399 million dirhams in the prior year period, the statement said. On the other hand, net interest and Islamic finance income rose to 1.19 billion dirhams from 926 million a year ago. Deposits were up 4 per-

European officials for exemptions to the EU adjust. India’s refiners are already cutting imports to comply with a separate set of US sanctions requiring Iran’s crude clients to significantly cut purchases. Refiners could cut imports by about a quarter in the 2012-2013 year that began on April 1, but are keen to keep the remaining imports coming.

In the fiscal year that ended on March 31, India’s imports from Iran were less than 340,000 bpd, compared with the 362,000 bpd committed under annual term contracts. India is currently importing about 280,000 bpd. A finance ministry source said the Indian government would consider any action necessary to keep oil flowing from Iran, India’s second-biggest supplier after Saudi Arabia, including offering sovereign guarantees to shipments.

The shipping firms have sent their request to state insurers United India Insurance, General Insurance Company, New India Assurance Co Ltd, National Insurance Co Ltd and the Oriental Insurance Co Ltd, said a shipping source. The shipping and finance ministries were also looking at the proposal.

A final decision is expected “very soon,” Hajara said. Japanese insurers have also warned ship owners they will only cover one tanker at a time carrying Iranian crude through the Middle East because their ability to provide cover is limited without the European reinsurance market.

That will reduce the number of tankers carrying Iranian oil to three or four a month as each ship takes about a week to 10 days to travel in and out of the Gulf, sources said, compared with about 10 ships a month last year. Japan has cut its this month crude loadings from Iran by nearly 80 percent compared to the first two months of the year. — Reuters

Oman telco Nawras Q1 profit slumps 19% DUBAI: Oman telecoms operator Nawras yesterday reported a 19.1 percent fall in first-quarter net profit as a rise in mobile subscribers was offset by declining text income. Nawras, majority-owned by Qatar Telecom (Qtel), made a profit of 9.8 million rials ($25.5 million) in the three months to March 31, down from 12.1 million rials in the year-earlier period, it said in an emailed statement.

Quarterly revenue was 46.8 million rials, down 2.7 percent from a year ago. Nawras said this drop was “due to a reduction in SMS (text) revenues which was not fully compensated by growth in data revenue”, adding it made a one-off accounting gain of 658,000 rials in the first-quarter of 2012.

The drop in profit and revenue come despite its mobile subscriber base rising 2.4 percent to 1.99 million. This suggests its margins have fallen, with Nawras one of the few Gulf operators to offer low-cost voice-over-IP (VoIP) internet-based calls.

Nawras’s shares fell 0.2 percent before it announced its results, ending at a new alltime low of 0.59 rials. It listed on the Oman bourse in November 2010 after pricing an initial public offering at 0.702 rials per share. Nawras and rival operator Oman Telecommunications Co are in talks with the Gulf Arab state’s regulator to be assigned coveted lower-frequency spectrum to aid rising demand for mobile data. — Reuters

New England’s lack of violence reaps economic benefits

Dubai Aramex Q1 net profit rises 22%

cent in the first quarter totalling 114.5 billion dirhams but loans growth was nearly flat at 130.46 billion dirhams compared to end-December 2011.

ADCB’s total assets fell slightly to 182.91 billion dirhams in first quarter from 183.72 billion dirhams as of end December 2011. In late March, ADCB agreed to provide a $500 million loan to Abu Dhabi investment fund Mubadala in exchange for a 14 percent stake in indebted developer Aldar Properties The lender sold its stake in Malaysia’s RHB Capital last year to Abu Dhabi fund Aabar Investments for $1.91 billion. Earlier yesterday, ADCB’s rival National Bank of Abu Dhabi posted a 12-percent rise in quarterly profit, beating analysts’ forecasts, thanks to lower provisions and deposit growth. — Reuters

AHMEDABAD: An Indian salesperson arranges bangles made of gold and other precious metals on the eve of the Hindu festival, Akshaya Tritiya in Ahmedabad yesterday. Indian gold retailers yesterday reported brisk trade as an auspicious two-day Hindu festival got under way after weeks of subdued business due to a jewellers’ strike and weak global sentiment. — AFP

DUBAI: Aramex, the Dubai-based logistics firm, posted a 22 percent rise in first-quarter net profit yesterday, driven by higher revenues from the Gulf and contribution from its recent South African acquisition.

Aramex, a favorite of regional fund managers, made a first-quarter net profit of 61 million dirhams ($16.6 million), compared with 50 million dirhams for the same period last year. Revenues rose 25 percent to 746 million dirhams, Aramex said in a bourse filing. “These results were mainly due to the robust economic growth in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries, and the significant contribution of our recent acquisitions in 2011, in particular Berco Express in South Africa,” said Fadi Ghandour, founder and chief executive officer.

Aramex had in December last year paid $55.5 million for the acquisition of South African logistics firm Berco Express.

The company said it remains focused on its strategy of expanding into emerging growth markets in Africa, South East Asia and Central Asia. Ghandour is to step down by the end of 2012 and hand over day to day operations to Hussein Hachem, the current head of the Middle East and Africa regions, the company said last week. — Reuters

BOSTON: The rural New England states of Maine, Vermont and New Hampshire are the most peaceful US states, a distinction that gives them an economic advantage over the most violent, including Louisiana, Tennessee and Nevada.

Violence and its aftermath cost the entire US economy some $460 billion last year, according to the Institute for Economics and Peace’s second annual United States Peace Index, which was released yesterday. The study found that the United States has become a less violent place over the past two decades, based on an analysis of historic data on homicides and other violent crime, the number of people incarcerated, police employment and the prevalence of small arms.

While the United States continues to be rocked by highly publicized cases of gun violence - from the February shooting of

unarmed black teenager Trayvon Martin by a neighborhood watch volunteer in Florida to an April shooting spree in Tulsa, Oklahoma by two men that left three people dead and four wounded - the overall homicide rate has declined, the study found. “You have a really established trend of improving peacefulness in the United States,” said Steve Killelea, an Australian entrepreneur who serves as executive chairman of the institute, which also produces an annual Global Peace Index, which tracks relative peacefulness of countries. Over that time two of the most populous states - New York and California - recorded the largest drops in violence, a trend that reflects decades of focus on fighting urban crime, Killelea said. “Certainly if one sees there is a problem and takes a concerted action to solve the problem, you are much more likely to see results,” Killelea said. — Reuters

EXCHANGE RATES Commercial Bank of Kuwait US Dollar/KD GB Pound/KD Euro Swiss francs Canadian Dollar Australian DLR Indian rupees Sri Lanka Rupee UAE dirhams Bahraini dinars Jordanian dinar Saudi riyals Omani riyals Philippine peso Egyptian pounds

.2730000 .4450000 .3630000 .3020000 .2780000 .2820000 .0040000 .0020000 .0752950 .7335820 .3830000 .0710000 .7191440 .0040000 .0430000

CUSTOMER TRANSFER RATES US Dollar/KD .2773500 GB Pound/KD .4471850 Euro .3648820 Swiss francs .3036460 Canadian dollars .2800530 Danish Kroner .0490460 Swedish Kroner .0410790 Australian dlr .2846440 Hong Kong dlr .0357380 Singapore dlr .2221820 Japanese yen .0034290 Indian Rs/KD .0000000 Sri Lanka rupee .0000000 Pakistan rupee .0000000 Bangladesh taka .0000000 UAE dirhams .0755410 Bahraini dinars .7359690 Jordanian dinar .0000000 Saudi Riyal/KD .0739800 Omani riyals .7206700 Philippine Peso .0000000

.2807500 .4540000 .3700000 .3120000 .2860000 .2930000 .0070000 .0035000 .0760520 .7409540 .4000000 .0760000 .7263720 .0072000 .0500000

US Dollar Pak Rupees

Rate per 1000 (Tran)

278.400 3.066

Indian Rupee Sri Lankan Rupee Nepali Rupee Pakistani Rupee UAE Dirhams Bahraini Dinar Egyptian Pound Jordanian Dinar Omani Riyal Qatari Riyal Saudi Riyal

5.355 2.150 3.405 6.570 75.900 74.395 740.100 45.995 454.200 3.190 1.550 373.700 286.000 3.510

Rate for Transfer

US Dollar Canadian Dollar Sterling Pound Euro Swiss Frank Bahrain Dinar UAE Dirhams Qatari Riyals Saudi Riyals Jordanian Dinar Egyptian Pound Sri Lankan Rupees Indian Rupees Pakistani Rupees Bangladesh Taka Philippines Pesso Cyprus pound Japanese Yen Thai Bhat Syrian Pound Nepalese Rupees Malaysian Ringgit

Transfer Rate (Per 1000)

US Dollar Euro Pound Sterling Canadian Dollar Japanese Yen Indian Rupee Egyptian Pound Sri Lankan Rupee Bangladesh Taka Philippines Peso Pakistan Rupee Bahraini Dinar UAE Dirham Saudi Riyal

5.304 2.124 3.352 3.066 75.75 740.53 46.00 396.07 723.54 76.77 74.34

5.700 2.550 4.000 3.250 76.50 741.00 47.25 394.50 726.00 77.75 74.25

Dollarco Exchange Co. Ltd

Al Mulla Exchange Currency

.2794500 .4505710 .3676440 .3059450 .2821730 .0494170 .0413900 .2868000 .0360080 .2238640 .0034540 .0053180 .0021400 .0030860 .0034280 .0761130 .7415420 .3952620 .0745400 .7261270 .0065840

Kuwait Bahrain Intl Exchange Co. Currency

Indian Rupees Sri Lankan Rupees Bangladesh Taka Philippines Peso UAE Dirhams Saudi Riyals Bahraini Dinars Egyptian Pounds Pound Sterling Indonesian Rupiah Yemeni Riyal Euro Canadian Dollars Nepali rupee

278.050 369.000 450.250 282.000 3.470 5.315 46.000 2.133 3.400 6.522 3.063 740.400 75.750 74.250

UAE Exchange Centre WLL COUNTRY

SELL DRAFT SELL CASH

Australian Dollar Canadian Dollar Swiss Franc Euro Sterling Pound Japanese Yen Bangladesh Taka

291.47 284.03 309.54 369.39 450.78 3.51 3.399

292.00 284.50 307.50 369.00 447.00 3.65 3.550

Selling Rate

278.950 281.210 444.240 365.770 303.830 738.695 75.925 76.570 74.345 392.660 46.178 2.189 5.426 3.082 3.411 6.549 684.255 4.440 9.120 5.875 3.480 92.305

Canadian dollar Cyprus pound Czek koruna Danish krone Deutsche Mark Egyptian pound Euro Cash Hongkong dollar Indian rupees Indonesia Iranian tuman Iraqi dinar Japanese yen Jordanian dinar Lebanese pound Malaysian ringgit Morocco dirham Nepalese Rupees New Zealand dollar Nigeria Norwegian krone Omani Riyal Pakistani rupees Philippine peso Qatari riyal Saudi riyal Singapore dollar South Africa Sri Lankan rupees Sterling pound Swedish krona Swiss franc Syrian pound Thai bhat Tunisian dollar UAE dirham U.S. dollars Yemeni Riyal

Bahrain Exchange Company 10 Tola COUNTRY

Australian dollar Bahraini dinar Bangladeshi taka

SELL CASH

SELL DRAFT

291.400 740.540 3.670

289.900 740.540 3.400

Sterling Pound US Dollar

283.600 546.900 45.400 50.400 167.800 47.720 371.600 36.560 5.640 0.032 0.159 0.236 3.520 394.620 0.188 92.970 45.500 4.280 230.800 1.804 49.800 723.280 3.160 6.830 77.030 74.350 224.350 38.170 2.653 453.500 42.500 309.400 4.200 9.400 198.263 75.920 278.800 1.340 GOLD 1,717.070

TRAVELLER’S CHEQUE 450.500 278.400

282.100

224.400 46.068 370.100 36.410 5.345 0.031

394.570 0.187 92.970 3.370 229.300 723.100 3.075 6.540 76.600 74.350 224.350 38.170 2.134 450.500 307.900 4.200 9.220 75.820 278.400

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, 2012

BUSINESS

BEIJING: A model displays an ‘E30L’ electric car by Chinese auto manufacturer Dongfeng, at the Auto China 2012 car show in Beijing. — AFP

BEIJING: A Buick employee cleans a Buick LaCrosse at the 2012 Beijing International Automotive Exhibition.—AP

A Fiat 500C is on display.—AP

China city eyes cars to drive its economic future WUHAN, China: As China seeks to spread its economic boom from the rich coast to its vast interior officials say the central city of Wuhan plans to double its carmaking capacity to almost two million a year. The capital of landlocked Hubei province already hosts separate joint ventures set up by PSA Peugeot Citroen and Honda with China’s Dongfeng Motor, as well as many auto parts manufacturers such as Valeo and Faurecia.

The car industry has traditionally been located in eastern and coastal regions such as Shanghai or the southern province of Guangdong. But Wuhan aims to take advantage of a central government push

to develop poorer and more remote central and western regions-and is attracting carmakers eyeing potential growth in inland markets that have yet to rev up.

Wuhan, a sprawling metropolis of about 10 million people, has earmarked 200 square kilometres (77 square miles) along both banks of the Yangtze River on the city’s outskirts for an industrial zone to develop its car industry. Already 3,000 companies, many of them foreign-owned, have set up operations in the zone, and more than two-thirds are in the auto sector, said Wuhan government official Zhang Xiaowu. “Our aim is to double production in the next three years,” said Zhang,

deputy director of the government office in charge of promoting investments in the economic zone.

“We will easily double the number of cars produced in the zone which could reach 1.8 million for passenger vehicles alone,” he said, adding Honda was due to open a new facility in the zone in two months’ time. Peugeot Citroen is currently building its third factory in the area and is looking to nearly double its total production to 750,000 cars annually in the next few years. All the cars made by the French firm’s joint venture are assembled in Wuhan.

General Motors (GM), China’s market leader with 2.5 million

vehicles sold last year, has also started building a production facility. China is now the biggest auto market in the world and, despite a marked growth slowdown last year, carmakers remain optimistic that the Chinese consumer’s love of cars will continue to support demand for years to come.

China auto sales grew just 2.5 percent in 2011, compared to 32 percent the previous year.

The passenger car segment rose 5.2 percent. But Klaus Paur, auto analyst with the consultancy IPSOS, said that if disappointing minivan sales were excluded, 2011 growth in all other passenger car sales may have reached 10 percent. At any rate, carmakers are unde-

terred. “We have set a goal of having a five percent market share by 2015. That would mean selling 850,000 cars out of an estimated 17 million,” said Maxime Picat, general manager of Dongfeng Peugeot Citroen, PSA’s Chinese joint-venture.

Wuhan is not the only inland city to offer manufacturers lower wages and cheaper real estate compared to more developed auto-producing areas.

Ford has said it will double the capacity of its plant in the southwestern Chongqing region, where it is in a joint venture with Changan Automobile Group. Fiat has also just announced it will start producing its Viaggio sedan in

Changsha, a city in Hunan province in central China.

Volkswagen, already heavily invested in interior regions, has said its next factory will be in the remote western province of Xinjiang. But the market is becoming increasingly competitive as sales growth sputters.

Japan’s Nissan also has a partnership with Dongfeng, and is betting on its Chinese partner’s dealership network to conquer more western and southern provinces where the auto market has yet to take off.

“Dongfeng has a strong distribution network in second-tier cities,” said Shen Li, director of public relations for the Chinese brand. “The market inland has huge potential.” —AFP

US home prices drop for 6th straight month Modest sales gain not enough to boost prices

TOKYO: Angel Gurria (left) the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) secretary general shakes hands with Japanese Economy, Trade and Industry minister Yukio Edano prior to their talks at Edano’s office in Tokyo yesterday.— AFP

London Gatwick lures Asian airlines to fuel growth LONDON: London’s Gatwick airport aims to grow traffic by a third in the next decade by attracting long-haul carriers from emerging markets and taking advantage of capacity constraints at the capital’s Heathrow hub, its chief executive told Reuters. Stewart Wingate also said in an interview that Gatwick, Britain’s secondlargest airport, had not ruled out building a second runway that could transform it into an international hub, though it would stick to an agreement not to do so before 2019.

“In recent months we have attracted long-haul carriers Vietnam Airlines and Hong Kong Airlines, while Korean Airlines and Air China start services in the coming days,” Wingate said.

“Gatwick handled 33.8 million passengers last year and I think we can grow to 45 million by the mid 2020’s, helped by our push on routes to Asia.” Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP) - an investment fund founded by Credit Suisse and General Electric - bought Gatwick for 1.5 billion pounds ($2.4 billion) from Ferrovialowned BAA in 2009 and has since focused on improving the airport’s facilities.

In the last three years GIP has invested 750 million pounds modernizing its two terminals and revamping its security, baggage and inter-terminal shuttle services. “ The investments have helped attract Asian airlines who have high standards in terms of the new airports in Asia they operate from. Plus Heathrow is full and we are not,” added Wingate. BAA-owned Heathrow, the UK’s busiest airport, is oper-

ating at almost full capacity after Britain’s Conservative-led coalition government blocked development of a third runway when it came to power in 2010, as further expansion of the west London site would mean a huge increase in the number of planes flying directly over the capital.

The British government is under pressure from British business leaders to extend airport capacity in the south-east of England but Wingate points out that Gatwick has spare capacity available.

“There’s a misconception that because Heathrow is full that Gatwick must be too but in actual fact we are only three-quarters full. London is not full and not closed for business,” said Wingate. “We’re looking to fill the additional 25 percent by having more long haul flights to Asia.”

Wingate said GIP had not ruled out the idea of building a second runway at Gatwick, which would help turn it into a hub. South-east London-based Gatwick is a point-to-point airport, mainly focused on the leisure market, whereas Heathrow operates as a hub with around a third of its customers being transfer passengers. Only about 10 percent of those using Gatwick are transfer passengers.

“The option of building a second runway at Gatwick is there we have safeguarded the land needed to do so with the local borough council - but we will not look to upturn an agreement not to build a second runway before 2019,” said Wingate. GIP on Monday added to its UK portfolio by sealing a $1.3 billion deal to buy BAA’s Edinburgh airport. —Reuters

Baghdad-Mumbai flights restart after 21 years BAGHDAD: Iraq will reopen this week the Baghdad to Mumbai air route after a hiatus of more than 21 years, as a growing number of Iraqis are travelling to India, officials said yesterday.

“Iraqi Airways will open on Friday the route between Baghdad and Mumbai after more than 21 years of interruption,” Ak ram Louaybi, the flag carrier ’s spokesman, told AFP. “There will be two flights a week between the two cities,” he said. An Indian diplomat in Baghdad said

the flights would be operated every Friday and Monday, taking off from Baghdad to the Iraqi holy city of Najaf and onward to Mumbai. The diplomat further said that the Indian embassy issued an average of 200 visas a day to Iraqis wanting to go to India for medical, professional or educational reasons. Air links between the two cities were cut in 1991 following international sanctions against Iraq after Saddam Hussein’s forces invaded Kuwait in August 1990. —AFP

WASHINGTON: Home prices dropped in February in most major US cities for a sixth straight month, a sign that modest sales gains haven’t been enough to boost prices.

The Standard & Poor’s/Case-Shiller homeprice index shows that prices dropped in February from January in 16 of the 20 cities it tracks. The steepest declines were in Atlanta, Chicago and Cleveland. Prices rose in Phoenix, San Diego and Miami. They were unchanged in Dallas.

The declines partly reflect typical offseason sales. The month-to-month prices aren’t adjusted for seasonal factors. Still, prices fell in 15 of the 20 cities in February compared with the same month in 2011. That indicates that the housing market remains far from healthy despite the best winter for sales in five years. The steady price declines have brought the nationwide index to its late 2002 level. Home prices have fallen 35 percent since the housing bust.

Prices in nine cities fell to their lowest lev-

els since the housing bust. The average price in Atlanta fell 17.3 percent in February compared with a year earlier. That’s the biggest annual drop in the history of the index for any city.

Still, there were some positive signs in the report: Phoenix, one of the cities hit hardest by the housing bust, has seen five straight monthly gains. And most cities are reporting smaller annual declines than in previous months. The S&P/Case-Shiller monthly index covers half of all US homes. It measures prices compared with those in January 2000 and creates a three-month moving average. The February figures are the latest available. Stan Humphries, chief economist for housing website Zillow.com, attributed the declines in part to heavy sales of foreclosed homes, which are usually sold at super-low prices.

Foreclosures made up about one-fifth of February’s sales.

“We think home sales will continue to trend upward, which ultimately will result in a

slower rate of home value depreciation,” Humphries said. “But any housing recovery will be dependent on job growth.” Job growth has slowed but is still occurring at faster pace than last year. Employers added an average of 212,000 jobs a month from January through March. That helped push down the unemployment rate to 8.2 percent from 9.1 percent last August.

Some recent reports suggest that the housing market is slowly improving. January and February made up the best winter for sales of previously occupied homes in five years, when the housing crisis began. The 4.63 million annual sales pace in January was the highest since May 2010, the last month that buyers could qualify for a federal homebuying tax credit. Builders are laying plans to construct more homes in 2012 than at any other point in past 3 1/2 years. More jobs and a better outlook among buyers could also make 2012 the first year since 2008 that construction adds to the US economy. — AP

Libya recovery helps boost OMV Q1 VIENNA: Output from a Libya, recovering from the turmoil of civil unrest, helped OMV boost production slightly in the first quarter, the Austrian energy group said in a trading statement yesterday.

Production rose to 299,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boed) from 289,000 in the previous quarter, it said.

“Overall production increased compared to the previous quarter mainly due to the recovery of production in Libya,” it said, putting average production there at around 25,000 barrels per day (bbl/d).

“This increase was, however, partly offset by reduced production in Romania caused by severe weather conditions, as well as lower volumes in New Zealand,” it added.

Libya had provided a tenth of its global output in 2010 before a civil war halted production last year that is now coming back on line.

The group’s refining margin, an indicator of profitability, widened to $1.92 per barrel in the quarter from $1.77 in the previous three months. Total refining sales slipped to 4.55 million tons.

OMV repor ts quar terly financial results on May 9. It said for 2012 it had entered into oil price swaps, locking in a Brent price of approximately $101.5 per barrel for a production volume of 50,000 bbl/d. It had euro-dollar average rate forwards at $1.36 that cover approximately $750 million. “In Q1 2012 the net result of these hedges adversely impacted EBIT by 64 million euros,” it said. It expected its repor ted tax rate to increase versus the last quarter of 2011 given the recovery of production in Libya, partly offset by the positive tax effect of writeoffs in Norway and Britain as well as the treatment of a cartel fine in Romania in the fourth quarter of 2011. — Reuters

MUNICH: Dark clouds hang over cranes at a huge construction site yesterday in Munich, southern Germany. Germany is sticking with a cautious economic growth forecast of 0.7 percent in 2012 but expects the rate to more than double to 1.6 percent in 2013. — AFP

Germany’s Merkel defends budget discipline drive BERLIN: Germany mounted a spirited defense of its pro-austerity stance yesterday, with both Chancellor Angela Merkel and her finance and foreign ministers calling for a continued drive for fiscal discipline across Europe in spite of the latest bout of political uncertainty. Investors have been unsettled by concerns that the so-called fiscal compact of strict austerity and deficit controls agreed by European leaders earlier this year was beginning to unravel.

French Socialist Francois Hollande edged ahead with a narrow lead in Sunday’s first round of presidential elections with a pledge to renegotiate the pact to give greater emphasis to growth over austerity. Meanwhile, the Netherlands faces early elections after its minority government collapsed over a failure to agree on austerity measures. On top of this, Spain which is currently going through a harsh program of cuts and tax increases - announced it was entering a recession and a survey of purchasing managers across Europe pointed to a contraction in the region’s economy.

Merkel didn’t specifically mention the fiscal pact in a speech in Berlin but noted that, in its early years, West Germany ran up barely any debt. She said that “today, we have to get back to that situation.”

“One can talk about how we do it ... but to act as though it were an imposition to get by with what we are earning, (to say) we will carry on carting around the rucksack with debt - no one

will accept it from us, in any European country,” Merkel said. “I want to say clearly, it is not the case that we say saving solves every problem but, if you at home talk about how you want to shape your life tolerably, then one of the first conditions is that you somehow get by with what you earn,” she said.

Germany ’s power ful finance minister, Wolfgang Schaeuble, said he was confident that the treaty “will be ratified in all countries, I have no doubt about that.” European governments have signed the treaty but it has not made it through ratification by the parliaments; Ireland will hold a referendum.

Germany’s budget deficit is well under the limit of 3 percent of gross domestic product that euro-zone countries are supposed to observe, but its total debt amounts to 81.2 percent of GDP - well above the official 60 percent limit.

Germany and France, under incumbent President Nicolas Sarkozy, have piloted rescue efforts for other euro-zone countries as the region has been swept up in a succession of debt crises over the past two years. Berlin has insisted on an often-criticized emphasis on budget discipline and cuts. Merkel pushed hard for other European countries to agree to the fiscal compact, designed to limit government overspending, and 25 national leaders signed it earlier this year. Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle said Tuesday that “we agreed on the pact after long negotiations. It is necessary.”— AP

24

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, 2012

business

KSE stocks near-flat as investors seek direction GLOBAL DAILY MARKET REPORT

KUWAIT: Kuwait Stock Exchange (KSE) closed near-flat in muted trade with investors remaining unsure about the market direction as earnings season started.

The market benchmark KSE Price Index increased by 0.02 percent and closed at 6,327.6 points. Global General Index rose 0.32 of a point (or 0.18 percent) to close at 181.23 points. The market’s heavyweights ended modestly lower yesterday with the market’s blue-chip rich index, Global Large Cap Index, shedding 0.03 percent, at 186.22 points.

Volume of shares traded dropped by 26.92 percent yesterday reaching 386.22mn shares, while value of shares traded rose by 4.25 percent, aggregating to KD36.71mn. Real estate sector accounted for 32.07 percent of the total traded volume, followed by the services sector, which accounted for 31.12 percent of total traded shares.

Trading activity was intense on National Ranges Company which witnessed the highest traded volume in terms of 34.64mn shares traded. On the other hand, Agility The Public

Warehousing Company recorded the highest value traded at KD2.97mn. Agility said it had filed for $225mn in claims against the US Defense Logistics Agency (DLA), saying the agency had breached the terms of a contract.

Agility said in a statement US government officials employed by the DLA and Department of Justice “conspired and acted in concert to intentionally deprive Agility of its rights under the Second Prime Vendor Contract.” It said this was “breaching the contract’s express and implied terms and violating regulatory duties.” Ithmaar Bank was the prominent gainer. The scrip added 7.35 percent to close at KD0.0365. On the other hand, Al-Dar National Real Estate Company was the biggest loser today as it plunged by 7.14 percent to close at KD0.0195.

Sector-wise Sector-wise, Global Non Kuwaiti index was the biggest gainer today up 2.34 percent. The sector was still backed by Egypt Kuwait Holding Company which boosted by 1.72 per-

cent to end the session at KD0.295. Ahli United Bank closed up by 3.57 percent at KD0.174. Services sector played a prominent role in Tuesday’s session, as heavy weighted stocks witnessed hikes. Among which were Zain (+1.35 percent) and Agility (+4.94 percent). On the other hand, banking sector was the steepest loser yesterday (-0.33 percent), as Kuwait Finance House and Boubyan Bank recoiled by 1.32 percent and 1.67 percent respectively.

Corporate news Ikarus Petroleum Industries Co is in the process of obtaining a five-year loan worth $100mn to finance expansion projects and to fund investment opportunities. Ikarus expects to complete the procedures for securing the loan in the second quarter, Nader Sultan, the company’s chairman said.

The price of OPEC basket of twelve crudes stood at $115.50pb on Monday, compared with $116.46pb the previous Friday, according to OPEC secretariat calculations.

Brent dips below $119 on euro-zone concern LONDON: Brent crude was subdued below $119 yesterday due to weak demand amid the delicate state of the euro-zone economy. Prices, however, trimmed earlier losses following the Dutch bond sales. Brent crude futures fell 15 cents to $118.56 a barrel by 0840 GMT, having dropped to as low as $118.32 earlier. US crude futures turned positive, trading 11 cents higher at $103.22. “(There are) worries about growth in China, weak stock markets and especially the continuing difficulties in the eurozone,” said Christopher Bellew, broker at Jefferies Bache. Investor sentiment in Europe has remained fragile as Brent price has fallen almost 6 percent since the intraday high of $125.97 on April 3.

The Dutch state successfully sold two bonds at an auction, raising 2 billion euros, a day after the government collapsed in a crisis over budget cuts. “That may have a very short term impact,” Andy Sommer, oil market analyst with EGL in Switzerland, said. “But for the mid-and long-term, we have not changed our view. The market is still underlined by the weak fundamentals.

There are more downside risks.”

On Monday, data showed euro zone’s business slump deepened at a far faster pace than expected in April, suggesting the economy will stay in recession at least

until the second half of the year.

“The main dangers to the situation in Europe have been on display over the past couple of days, and these include political support for populist anti-reform economic agendas and inadequate economic growth against a background of fiscal austerity,” said Ric Spooner, chief market analyst at the Sydney-based brokerage CMC Markets. Oil prices were, however, supported by supply concerns stemming from a production stoppage at the North Sea Buzzard oil field, Britain’s largest, and worries over exports from Iran ahead of the EU ban on importing its oil from July 1.

“It is significant that in the face of recent bearish development, oil is holding above the lows of last week,” Bellew said.

Later yesterday the market focus was expected to shift to the United States, the world’s second largest energy consumer.

US crude stockpiles were expected to have risen last week, a Reuters survey of analysts showed. The American Petroleum Institute (API) will release its report on at 2030 GMT yesterday. The US government’s Energy Information Administration (EIA) will issue its data today.

The US Federal Reserve’s two-day policy meeting that begins later in the day to gauge the central bank’s attitude towards further monetary stimulus. — Reuters

Iraq exports first oil cargo from second terminal BAGHDAD: Iraq exported its first cargo of crude oil of two million barrels from its second new floating terminal in the Gulf yesterday, shipping data tracked by Reuters showed. The terminal is the second of four being built by Australia’s Leighton Holdings, each with a capacity of 850,000 barrels per day (bpd) and which are expected to more than double Iraq’s export capacity. Data showed the A Whale vessel left the second new floating Single Point Mooring (SPM) terminal early on Tuesday to deliver the crude to India’s state-run Indian Oil Corp. “After bringing a second export terminal online, we are confident that we’re ready to deal with exporting more crude in the future,” an official for Iraq’s state-run

South Oil Co. (SOC) told Reuters.

Iraq began exporting from the first Single Point Mooring (SPM) platform last month at a capacity of 300,000 bpd, which helped boost exports to their highest level since 2003. The SOC official said operations at the first SPM had been halted during loading of crude at the second platform as there was not enough oil from the fields to feed both terminals. The official said a vessel had already docked at the first terminal and started loading yesterday after operations at the second platform were completed. Iraq’s oil production has been held back for decades by infrastructure crippled by years of sanctions and war, including a lack of export capacity on its small strip of the Gulf coast.— Reuters

25

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, 2012

BUSINESS

Why investors aren’t impressed with profits NEW YORK: When it comes to happy surprises on Wall Street, it’s hard to get better than this. US companies made more money in the first three months this year than almost anyone expected. As earnings reports roll in, they’re beating the estimates of stock analysts at a rate not seen in more than a decade. Yet stocks have languished. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index has fallen about 2 percent in April.

So why aren’t investors impressed?

For starters, earnings season has just begun. The real test is the next two weeks, when more than 300 companies in the S&P 500 report. Apple, the most valuable company in the world, reports yesterday. Topping estimates is no great feat. Publicly traded companies do it almost every quarter. They tell analysts to expect a number the companies know will be low. Then they can enjoy a “pop” in their stock price when - surprise! they clear the hurdle.

And this quarter, it’s not much of a hurdle.

Just a month ago, companies got analysts to expect first-quarter earnings to grow so little you’d need an electron microscope to spot the rise - just 0.5 percent. “People aren’t as excited as they would be if the estimates hadn’t been taken down,” says Uri Landesman, president of Platinum Partners, a hedge fund.

Still, some beats are impressive. Yum Brands Inc, owner of Pizza Hut and Taco Bell, turned a profit of 96 cents per share, trouncing the 73 cents expected by Wall Street. Of every 10 companies that have reported first-quarter results, eight have posted higher profits than Wall Street analysts had estimated, according to S&P Capital IQ, a financial research firm.

That’s the highest ratio of “beats” since 2001. In the fourth quarter of last year, the figure was less than six in 10. Thanks to surprising results in the past two weeks, S&P 500 companies are on track now for earnings growth of 4.3 percent over the first quarter of last year. They’re growing across industries, too. Analysts had expected seven of the 10 industry groups in the S&P to post lower profits than a year ago. They now think only three will - telecom companies, utilities and materials makers. Here’s a look at what the higher profits portend.

Will they push stocks up” Maybe, but only if investors believe future numbers are heading higher, too. For all the upbeat reports, investors tend to buy and sell stocks based less on what companies earned in the past than on what they’re likely to earn in the future. And the outlook is OK, not great.

After a 11 percent increase last year, com-

panies in the S&P 500 are expected to grow earnings 7 percent in 2012, according to S&P Capital IQ. Just six months ago, Wall Street was expecting a 12 percent jump for this year.

The good news is that lower expectations don’t always push stocks down. In the first three months this year, analysts slashed estimates for first-quarter profits, and the stock market had its best winter since 1998.

There even have been periods when earnings barely budged and stocks soared. In the five years through 1986, the S&P nearly doubled while earnings slipped 2 percent.

Sometimes stocks rise because investors get more comfortable with the idea of buying stocks generally, and they’re willing to pay more for each dollar of profit - even if those profits are expected to grow more slowly.

And sometimes stocks fall even if profits grow faster. Chalk it up to less confidence about the future or perhaps higher expected inflation, which erodes investing gains.

The upshot: Investing is more complicated than just looking at past profits or guessing, even correctly, future ones. “What’s driving stock prices? Is it the beat rate, the forward guidance, a European recession forecast or the sovereign debt crisis?” asks Sam Stovall, chief equity analyst at S&P Capital IQ. “The

answer is, Yes. They all do.”

Will higher profits help the economy? As with stocks, profits have a curious, sometimes counterintuitive, impact on the economy.

Unexpectedly strong earnings don’t necessarily translate into surprising economic strength. Consider that profits have surged since the Great Recession ended in 2009, even as the economy has struggled to recover. That’s because companies made profits mostly by slashing jobs and cutting costs.

The economy, helped by a modest rise in consumer spending, is expected to grow about 2.5 percent this year, up from a sluggish 1.7 percent last year.

But in 2010 and 2011, the economy stalled after getting off to a strong start. And a string of disappointing economic reports this month is raising fears of another midyear slowdown in growth. “The economy is gradually getting better,” says Josh Feinman, chief global economist at the investment firm DB Advisors, part of the Deutsch Bank Group. “But it’s kind of a stopgo pattern. It’s somewhat frustrating, somewhat maddening.” He doesn’t see “a whole lot of linkage” between corporate earnings and the economy’s performance. What about profits for the rest of the year? If ana-

lysts expected little this past quarter, they’re not much more optimistic for the current quarter, either. They expect profits to grow just 2 percent for the three months that end June 30. Then they’re expected to rise nearly 6 percent in the third quarter, followed by an impressive 16 percent in the last three months of the year.

Some Wall Street pros aren’t buying it.

“It’s loaded into the back half - flat and then a big jump,” says Brian Lazorishak, portfolio manager at Chase Investment Counsel of Charlottesville, Va. “I don’t think it’s going to play out that way.” David Kostin, chief equity strategist at Goldman Sachs, is equally dour.

He points out that the profit margins, or how much profit companies get out of each dollar of sales, are starting to flatten, as they usually do in a recovery before dropping fast. The pattern is intuitive: Companies reach a point where they can’t squeeze any more additional work out of their staffs, and other costs start rising, too. What’s unusual is that Wall Street analysts expect those margins to stop flattening, then hit a new peak of $9 for every $100 in sales by the fourth quarter. In the late 1990s, Kostin says, margins rose after stalling. But that was the only time in the past 40 years. —AP

Recession-threatened Britain awaits key data Public sector debt hits new record

ESSEN: An asparagus field can be seen in the country site near Essen, western Germany. The asparagus season was officially kicked off in the region well known for the production of the vegetable. —AFP

US asparagus industry sees slight recovery

PASCO, Washington: Asparagus farmers crushed for decades by a flood of South American imports have begun to expand production again in the hope that healthy eating trends and demand for homegrown vegetables will help bolster prices and sales of their stalks.

US asparagus production is still only a third of what it was 25 years ago, thanks in large part to a pair of federal policies meant to combat drug trafficking and improve economic trade. A 1991 law exempted some crops, including asparagus, from tariffs to help Andean countries expand their alternatives to drug crops - a boon to fresh and frozen asparagus production in Peru.

Three years later, the North American Free Trade Agreement gradually reduced taxes on asparagus, boosting shipments from Mexico. California, the leading producer, has seen acreage decline by a third since 1990.

In No. 2 Washington state, production collapsed from more than 100 million pounds that year to just 17 million pounds in 2010.

It recovered slightly last year, and strong prices and new varieties that hold the promise of bigger harvests have farmers hopeful again.

“We probably hit our bottom, and now, we’re finally starting to bounce back,” said Bill Middleton, 62, who operates an asparagus nursery and grows asparagus near Pasco in Washington’s Columbia River basin.

“Prices are good. Demand is good. It’s too early to tell,” he said, “but the indications are that we’ll have a strong year.”

For an industry on the verge of disap-

BASEL: The headquarters of Swiss pharmaceutical company Novartis AG in Basel, Switzerland. Novartis reported an 18 percent drop in earnings for the first quarter yesterday citing strong competition in the generic drugs market and manufacturing problems at a plant in the United States. —AP

pearing, 2010 marked a rock-bottom year, said Alan Schreiber of the Washington Asparagus Commission. But in the past two years, he said, asparagus growers have halted promotions early because demand for fresh asparagus has been so high that it’s all been sold.

To meet that demand, Washington farmers planted more new asparagus fields this year than the state has seen in a decade. In all, they are expected to plant slightly more than 6,000 acres, an improvement from two years ago, when they planted about 5,500 but nowhere near the 30,000 acres planted in 1990. “After a decade of malaise, retrenchment, maybe even collapse - I don’t know what you want to call it - we’re seeing planting,” Schreiber said. “It’s not a turnaround, but it’s a good sign.”

Growers in California, where the asparagus season typically runs from Mid-March through June, are replacing old plants with new ones but don’t expect to add a lot of acres, said Cherie Watte Angulo, executive director of the California Asparagus Commission.

Some in the industry credit Americans’ efforts to eat healthier with the increased demand for asparagus. Others say a price drop caused by a bumper crop in Mexico this winter enticed more people to buy fresh asparagus. “I’m sure a lot of consumers may have even tried asparagus for the first time,” said Phil Clouse of Gourmet Trading Co of Los Angeles, which packages and distributes fresh fruit and vegetables.

On Friday, fresh asparagus averaged $2.64 a pound at grocery stores and other retail outlets, according to the US Department of Agriculture. Washington farmers are hoping prices will rebound, however. Prices rose last year after bad weather damaged about a quarter of the state’s crop, and Clouse said farmers are hoping demand will boost them again as the state’s harvest continues through the next couple of months.

Gary Larsen, 52, another grower near Pasco, Washington, believes the key to the future is in new varieties that allow farmers to grow more on the same amount of land.

He has already replanted one field and plans to replant another with new seeds later this year.

But he’s also not convinced the industry is turning around just yet. There have been significant changes since processors moved canning and other facilities to Peru and Mexico, following the boom in farming there. “When the processers were here, we knew we had a home for our crop,” Larson said. “Now, we’re dealing with the fresh market, but labor is still the key to this crop. We need to find a way to manage those costs.”

Asparagus is a labor intensive crop, requiring cutters to walk repeatedly through fields to harvest stalks by hand. Recent immigration sweeps and Washington’s high minimum wage have made labor expensive and scarce, he said. Washington’s $9.04 minimum wage is among the highest in the country. —AP

LONDON: Britain is to find out today whether it is officially back in recession or if the non-eurozone member has avoided a fresh downturn amid severe cuts to state spending and spreading debt tensions. All will be revealed when the Office for National Statistics publishes its first official estimate of British gross domestic product (GDP) for the three months to the end of March.

Highlighting the extent of Britain’s debt strains, official data yesterday showed public sector net debt as a percentage of gross domestic product-excluding the cost of bank bailouts-hit a record high 66 percent in March. Britain’s total debt stands at £1.022 trillion (1.25 trillion euros, $1.65 trillion), the ONS revealed. The country’s economy meanwhile shrank by a worse-than-expected 0.3 percent in the fourth quarter of last year.

A further contraction would put the country back in recession-defined as two consecutive quarters of negative growth.

However, market expectations are for slender growth of 0.1 percent, after a raft of recent encouraging economic data.

“The main concern from the first-quarter UK GDP figure is whether or not the UK will slip back into a technical recession,” said Phil McHugh, senior analyst at Currencies Direct.

“Recent opinion has shifted on the back of strong retail sales and lower unemployment figures ... (but) there is a real possibility that we could experience a second consecutive quarter of negative growth.” British retail sales volumes rebounded by a strong 1.8 percent in March from the previous month as unusually warm weather boosted demand for

clothes and gardening gear, official data showed last week.

Panic buying of petrol, caused by a threatened strike by fuel tanker workers, also helped retail sales climb last month by the fastest pace since January 2011.

In another positive development ahead of yesterday’s GDP data,

first quarterly decline since the three months to May 2011.

However, economist Howard Archer warned that anaemic activity in the construction sector could push Britain back into recession. “There is serious concern that reported very weak construction output will have been a

also looming large over the eurozone, which is a key trading partner for Britain. Data on Monday showed that debt-ravaged Spain slumped back into recession in the first three months of 2012.

Scarred by soaring public debt and surging unemployment, the euro-zone member’s economy

FAYETTEVILLE: Eduardo Castro-Wright, then president and CEO of Wal-Mart Stores Inc, United States’ division, speaks during the annual Wal-Mart shareholder’s meeting in Fayetteville, Arkansas. Allegations that top executives at Wal-Mart Stores Inc’s Mexican subsidiary bribed officials in that country could have huge implications for the world’s biggest retailerís business and executives. —AP recent official figures showed that the number of jobless Britons fell in the three months to February, marking the first quarterly decline in almost a year.

The number of unemployed fell by 35,000 over the period to 2.65 million people. That was the

major drag on the economy and resulted in a second (consecutive) quarter of GDP contraction, thereby officially putting the economy back into recession,” said Archer, a senior economist at IHS Global Insight.

Economic storm clouds are still

Weaker Australian inflation sets scene for rate cut SYDNEY: Australia said yesterday inflation rose a weaker-than-expected 0.1 percent in the March quarter, fuelling speculation the central bank will cut interest rates next week. The Consumer Price Index had been expected to rise 0.6 percent for the quarter and analysts said the disappointing figure essentially locked in a stimulatory rate cut when the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) meets on May 1.

The Australian Bureau of Statistics figures showed the CPI climbed 1.6 percent through the year to the March quarter, well down on the 3.1 percent rise recorded through the year to December. The Australian dollar dropped almost half a cent on the news, and was trading at 102.72 US cents. Analysts said there was little inflationary pressure on the economy at the moment, leaving the RBA open to cut rates at its next monthly meeting.

The bank, which last eased rates in late 2011, kept them on hold at 4.25 percent this month but indicated it would be prepared to announce a cut if inflation weakened. “Really there is no sign at all of the inflation bogeyman,” Westpac senior currency strategist Sean Callow told Dow Jones Newswires.

The data comes as a new report warned the gap between Australia’s tur-

bo-powered mining sector and the rest of the economy was widening. “Australia has a two-speed economy,” consultants Deloitte Access Economics said in a report, which claimed growth would be spurred by business investment as firms, particularly in the resources sector, attempted to boost production. Though Australian families were saving rather than spending, retail and housing construction were underperforming and government spending was weakening, the report said the economy would continue to boom.

“It may be a lopsided period in Australian growth, but growth it will be.

And the split in that growth is widening further,” it said. “The two-speed split in Australia’s economy, which was already large, is getting larger still.” The report said inflation was looking less dangerous in the short term because the bullish Aussie dollar was dampening import prices, demand was weak outside the resources sector, and wage inflation remained moderate. “But this is more a pause than a sea change-the (Australian dollar) won’t keep rising, demand will remain strong (including a modest lift in retail sales), and wage gains may resume their rise as jobs recover and (baby) boomers retire,” it said. —AFP

contracted by 0.4 percent in the first quarter after a 0.3-percent decline in the last three months of 2011.

Overall, the 17-nation eurozone’s output shrank by 0.3 percent in the fourth quarter of last year. —AFP

Kingfisher Shares hit record low MUMBAI: Shares of India’s troubled Kingfisher Airlines plunged to a record low yesterday on fears that a government move to allow foreign airlines to pick up stakes in domestic carriers may be delayed. Kingfisher shares tumbled as much as 17.15 percent to a low of 14 rupees, while budget airline SpiceJet lost 2.35 percent to 29.15. Rival Jet Airways also was down 0.67 percent to 342.8 rupees. Kingfisher had climbed from a previous low of 14.95 on April 2, on hopes the aviation proposal would soon be cleared. The cabinet was expected to decide on allowing foreign direct investment (FDI) in aviation, but media reports say the government is now more likely to discuss the matter first with all its allies before giving a nod.

The government last year suffered a humiliating climbdown when it was forced to backtrack on a proposal allowing foreign supermarket chains into India, amid parliamentary opposition and protests from shopkeepers and unions. FDI in aviation is seen as a lifeline to companies such as cash-squeezed Kingfisher Airlines, controlled by billionaire liquor baron Vijay Mallya, which is in desperate need of funds to implement a turnaround plan.

Foreign airlines are barred from holding stakes in Indian airlines though other overseas investors can hold up to 49 percent. Mallya, known as the “King of Good Times” for his flamboyant lifestyle, has been lobbying hard in support of proposals to allow foreign carriers to buy stakes in Indian airlines.

Kingfisher has scaled down its operations dramatically in recent months-stopping international operations completely-and now has the smallest market share among Indian airlines at just 6.4 percent. —AFP

26

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, 2012

business

Al-Mazaya Holding acquires ‘Al-Mawaleh’ plot in Oman Proportion of input in ‘Oman the First’ portfolio adjusted

(Right to left): Mohannad Al-Mutawa, Manager, Consumer Banking Group and Imtiaz Khalid, Assistant General Manager, accepting the ‘Best SME Startup Scheme’ award on behalf of Gulf Bank during the Banker Middle East ceremony.

Gulf Bank wins major awards at BME ceremony in Dubai ‘Best Retail Customer Service’ and ‘Best SME Startup Package’ awards KUWAIT: Gulf Bank was recently awarded the prestigious ‘Best Retail Customer Service’ and ‘Best SME Startup Package’ awards for 2012 by Banker Middle East, the region’s leading banking industry magazine.

Mohannad Al-Mutawa, Manager, Imtiaz Khalid, Assistant General Manager and Hala Bibi, Assistant General Manager from the Consumer Banking Group at Gulf Bank received the awards at a gala dinner held at the Emirates Tower Hotel, Dubai, which was attended by representatives from some of the Middle East’s leading regional and international banks.

Winners were chosen by a judging panel of industry experts selected from international rating agencies and from some of the region’s leading financial centers.

Aly Shalaby, General Manager, Consumer Banking Group at Gulf Bank’s said: “It is a great honor to accept these prestigious awards from the Banker Middle East, and we appreciate the recognition they represent. At Gulf Bank, we are committed to providing our customers with an excellent banking experience by delivering exceptional banking solutions, and the best customer service.

We take our customers’ feedback and comments very seriously, and we ensure that every Gulf Bank customer receives the highest level of professional advice to assist them in starting their business, be it small or large. The awards under-

line the Bank’s commitment to service and its promise to its customers to provide them the best and fastest financial services in Kuwait. We are very proud of our achievements in this area and the progress we have made in recent years.”

The award for ‘Best Retail Customer Service’ was awarded to Gulf Bank for its superior financial services and for the consistently high standards maintained by its customer service team in delivering customer satisfaction. Service levels at all the Bank ’s 56 branches in Kuwait are constantly monitored to ensure that customers’ requests are instantly met. The award reinforces the success of Gulf Bank’s ‘We Promise’ program, which promises customers exceptional speed and efficiency in delivering individual banking services such as loan agreements and credit and debit card delivery.

The ‘Best SME Startup Package’ award is an endorsement of Gulf Bank’s Business Banking Department, which was established to meet the financial needs of small business owners and entrepreneurs. The Bank’s Business Banking Department offers exceptional financial assistance and start up packages, as well as access to a dedicated team of experienced commercial managers who have the knowledge to guide and support each customer on an individual basis.

DUBAI: Hala Bibi, Assistant General Manager, Consumer Banking Group accepting the ‘Best Retail Customer Service’ award on behalf of Gulf Bank at the Banker Middle East Ceremony.

KIPCO announces gold sponsorship of Arab Media Forum’s events KUWAIT: KIPCO - the Kuwait Projects Company - has announced that it will be a gold sponsor of the ‘Second Arab Media Forum for Youth’. The event, organized by the Arab Media Forum, is being held under the auspices of H H the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad AlJaber Al-Sabah on April 28-29.

Eman Al-Awadhi, Assistant Manager, Marketing and PR Department, said: “KIPCO is always seeking opportunities to develop and encourage the young people of Kuwait because we believe in the vital role they play in the country’s future.

The Media Forum for Youth includes an award ceremony for promising talents in the media and communications sector, as well as a job fair. So our sponsorship is an opportunity for KIPCO and its Group companies to interact with the leaders of tomorrow.”

KIPCO is also sponsoring the ‘Ninth Annual Arab Media Forum’, which will be held under the auspices of H H the Prime Minister Sheikh Jaber AlMubarak Al-Hamad Al-Sabah between April 29 and May 1. The event will discuss ‘The Arab Spring of Media’.

Al-Awadhi said: “The media plays an important role during times of change, and it is important to discuss the affect that the Arab Spring has had on this sector. KIPCO operates in many of the countries that have felt the impact of change, and we are delighted to be supporting the ‘Ninth Annual Arab Media Forum’ which will be

focusing on the challenges that journalists and media institutions are facing in the aftermath of the enormous changes in our region.”

Al-Awadhi explained that as a Gold Sponsor of the event, KIPCO will be

Eman Al-Awadhi present throughout the four-day forum. Representatives of KIPCO Group companies - including Burgan Bank, Gulfnet and Marina FM - will be taking part in the job fair and exhibition held on the sidelines of the event.

The participating companies will outline the range of career opportunities awaiting graduating students in Kuwait’s private sector and showcase the broad scope of the activities of the KIPCO Group.

KUWAIT: Al-Mazaya Holding and Oman Housing Company has concluded the midMarch settlement agreement in which AlMazaya acquired plot number 186 in the Omani ‘Al-Mawaleh’ neighborhood of Muscat.

The deal was signed by Rashid Yaqoub AlNafisi, Chairman of Al-Mazaya Holding, and Sheikh Qais Bim Mistehil Al-Meshani, chairman of Oman Housing Company.

The 23,194 square metre land plot is allocated for commercial and residential use.

Both companies signed a joint venture agreement in August 2007 in which AlMazaya Holding entered into a partnership with the Omani company, resulting in a real estate portfolio through which Al-Mazaya Holding accrued dividends of 1.3 million Omani Riyals up until June 29, 2008.

Under the recent settlement agreement, the two parties agreed that Al-Mazaya holds 28% (6378 s-m) of the share of the Omani company in the ‘Al-Mawaleh’ land plot to the value of 931,000 riyals. Al-Mazaya thus becomes 100% owner of the property providing that the value of the plot is to be settled from the portfolio dividend, due Al-Mazaya.

Under the agreement, the remaining 370,900 OR is due for the benefit of Al-Mazaya Holding. Hence, Al-Mazaya’s share becomes 14.9% of the total value of the portfolio valued at 1.96 million OR.2012 plan.

Commenting on this agreement, Eng Nayef Mohammed Al-Awadi, CEO of Al-Mazaya Holding, said: “This move constitutes part of the Board of Directors’ 2012 plan. It aims to resolve the outstanding real estate disputes, reach amicable solutions between Al-Mazaya

Rashid Yaqoub Al-Nafisi

and other parties and reinvest the assets in a way that boosts access to risk-free new real estate projects in a meaningful way, with reasonable financial returns to be positively reflected on the financial position of the company.”

“Al-Mazaya’s land plot at “Al-Mawaleh” is a real prospect for a new real estate project, and a promising real estate investment due to its unmatched beauty and vital location. There are several ideas under study to decide which project can be implemented on this plot.”

Promising market Driven by growing local and regional demand particularly from Saudis and Emiratis, Al-Awadi pointed out that Al-Mazaya sees promising opportunities in the Omani real estate market in the areas of health, education and tourism, as the country enjoys wonderful natural land and seascapes and a fine climate.

The mature nature of legislation and law in Oman constituted an additional incentive for Al-Mazaya to acquire the “Al-Mawaleh” plot and further increase the company’s investments in the Sultanate. The regulation of real estate activities and the recently approved brokerage law reflect Oman’s true aspiration to develop the real estate sector and attract further investments during the next few years, Al-Mazaya’s CEO concluded.

Fed may keep stance on rates, bond buys VIVA launches special prepaid plan for youth KUWAIT: VIVA, Kuwait’s newest and most advanced mobile telecommunications service provider, today introduced an exclusive prepaid plan which targets the youth, allowing them to enjoy VIVA’s latest telecom services at affordable prices.

VIVA’s youth prepaid plan is specifically aimed at university and college students aged 16 - 24 years old. The plan offers special monthly rates to allow all the young users to enjoy maximum calls and internet usage without worrying about the cost.

Once they subscribe to VIVA’s BlackBerry and Surf On services, customers will be able to enjoy 50% bonus, as well as being able to access devices catered to this plan like Apple’s iPhone 4s 16GB and RIM’s BlackBerry 9790.

BlackBerry smartphone users can enjoy the BlackBerry services at KD7 a month, and enjoy a bonus of KD3.500 valid for 15 days from the date of signing up. VIVA’s Surf On package costs KD18, along with a bonus of KD9 valid for 15 days from the date the new customer registers.

VIVA continuously seeks to understand the needs of the younger generation and recognize that they have a passion to stay connected while at the same time having tighter budgets for telecom use. The new prepaid youth plan is a treat for the younger users, since it is designed to be both convenient and affordable for prepaid customers who are using either a BlackBerry device or a smartphone device to surf the internet.

Customers wishing to activate the youth package just have to send “On3” in an SMS to 214 for BlackBerry smartphone service or Send “On18” in an SMS to 254 for Surf On service, or visit any of VIVA’s 14 conveniently located branches across Kuwait or visit our website at www.viva.com.kw.

WASHINGTON: The Federal Reserve will have plenty to say about the US economy today when its two-day policy meeting ends with a statement, updated forecasts and Chairman Ben Bernanke’s latest news conference.

Whether all that information will signal any shift in its outlook or the prospect of further steps to boost the economy is far from clear.

The Fed will likely repeat its plan to keep short-term interest rates at record lows through 2014. It may also signal that it won’t likely launch any new program to lower longer-term rates unless the economy weakens. That would be a switch from three months ago, when Bernanke and his colleagues ended their January meeting with hints that they were edging closer to a third round of bond buying. The Fed’s bond purchases have been intended to drive down long-term rates to encourage borrowing and spending. But since then, signs have suggested that the US economy has strengthened. And the European debt crisis looks less dire than when the year began, though France’s presidential race has muddied the outlook. Those developments make a further round of Fed bond buying less likely, many economists say.

“This will be a wait-and-watch meeting,” said David Jones, chief economist at DMJ Advisors.

“Despite all the theatrics with a Bernanke press conference and new economic forecasts, I think we will get a very predictable outcome - no change in policy.” That would mean the Fed would retain its plan to keep its benchmark interest rate, the federal funds rate, at a record low until at least late 2014. The Fed set that target at its January meeting and left it unchanged at its March meeting. The funds rate has been kept near zero since December 2008. That means consumer and business loans tied to that rate have also remained at super-low levels. The lower those loan rates, the more likely people and companies are to borrow and spend and invigorate the economy. With the federal funds rate as low as the Fed can set it, the central bank has resorted to other unconventional steps to keep long-term rates down. Those rates, such as those for

home loans, are set by financial markets.

The Fed has pursued two rounds of purchases of Treasury bonds and mortgagebacked securities. Those efforts have expanded its asset holdings by more than $2 trillion.

And at his previous quarterly news conference in January, Bernanke said a third round of bond buying was an option that was “certainly on the table.”

Bernanke and other Fed officials have recently sounded less inclined to pursue further bond purchases. But private economists expect the Fed to keep another round as at least an option. They point to the cloudy state of the economy in light of Europe’s debt crisis, a potential new spike in oil prices and stillhigh unemployment.

“There is a lot of uncertainty out there,” said Diane Swonk, chief economist at Mesirow Financial in Chicago. “Europe is in and out of a crisis, week by week. Oil prices look good now, but are they going to stay low?” On Friday, the government will issue its first estimate of economic growth for the JanuaryMarch quarter. Many economists are predicting an annual growth rate of 2.5 percent better than they had expected when the year began. But analysts are concerned that growth could weaken in the current quarter, reflecting payback from an unusually warm winter that boosted economic activity in the first quarter. The Fed’s updated economic forecasts will be examined to see whether officials stick to their January assessments or have grown more upbeat about growth and hiring.

A brighter Fed forecast would be seen as a sign that officials will be less likely to take further steps to support the economy for fear of causing high inflation. One Fed bond-buying program is still underway: a $400 billion program dubbed Operation Twist. Under this program, the Fed sells shorter-term securities and buys longer-term bonds, to try to push down long-term rates. That program is scheduled to end in June. Many economists think the Fed will let it end on schedule.

If the Fed signals today Operation Twist will end, it might disappoint investors, who could react by sending stock prices lower and bond yields higher. —AP

Yusuf Ahmed Alghanim & Sons Automotive service center welcomes customers on Fridays KUWAIT: Yusuf Ahmed Alghanim & Sons Automotive, the exclusive dealer of Chevrolet and Cadillac in Kuwait, welcomes all customers in its service center in Shuwaikh on Fridays from 2:00 PM until 7:00 PM, giving customers a more convenient opportunity to bring their cars for periodic maintenance and service.

Customers can also drop off their vehicles any day of the week beyond the working hours of the service center through the SelfCheck-In system that was introduced to offer added convenience for customers.

This major step illustrates Yusuf Ahmed Alghanim & Sons Automotive’s commitment to offering its customers with quality services and a complete peace of mind as the company’s high service standards encompass every step of a vehicle’s maintenance needs, from the time a customer arrives into the center to the superior after-sales service. By opening its doors on Fridays, the service center has made one’s car service experience a more convenient one as many people prefer to take advantage of their weekend to have their vehicle serviced.

Yusuf Ahmed Alghanim & Sons Automotive Service Center works according to a vision and commitment that is carefully followed by every staff member who all work to provide customers with a comfortable and satisfying experience while their cars are being serviced in a professional and effective manner. The service center is also equipped

with comfortable waiting lounges, a children’s play area and free Wi-Fi Internet.

In line with providing customers with the utmost convenience, Yusuf Ahmed Alghanim & Sons Automotive also offers a Self- Check-In service at its service center in Shuwaikh that allows customers to drop off their cars to be

serviced beyond the service center’s working hours. With the above facilities, Yusuf.A. Alghanim & Sons Automotive offers complete peace-of-mind solutions to all customers by providing exceptional services which give Yusuf.A. Alghanim & Sons Automotive a competitive edge in the Kuwaiti market.

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, 2012

TECHNOLOGY

Intel launches chips of new generation NEW YORK: Intel Corp. said that PCs with chips from its new generation of processors, featuring a revolutionary design, will be available this week.

The new generation, code-named “Ivy Bridge,” is the first to be made with a 3-D structure.

Miniature fins jut out of the plane of the chip, letting Intel cram more features into the same space. That means the chips can be faster while consuming less power. Analysts have called it one of the most significant

developments in silicon transistor design since the integrated circuit was invented in the 1950s. In terms of manufacturing technology, it puts Intel two to three years ahead of the competition, said Romit Shah at Nomura Securities.

The first chips off the production line are destined for powerful desktop computers. Intel hopes to have them in laptop computers in time for the “back to school” shopping season. CEO Paul Otellini said he expects

“Ivy Bridge” to account for 50 percent of Intel processor shipments by the fall.

The “Ivy Bridge” chips are the first to be made with 22-nanometer-sized features, down from 32 nanometers.

Smaller features mean more transistors, or work ing par ts, can be squeezed into the same area. That means a chip can be smaller and faster.

The new chips also come with improved 3-D graphics performance,

which could reduce the reliance on add-in graphics chips for gaming.

The launch of Ivy Bridge was delayed for about three weeks, Intel said, because it wanted to be sure it had enough units on hand for the launch.

Separately, the first phone with an Intel processor went on sale Monday in India. It’s made by local phone manufacturer Lava International Ltd. Intel, which is based in Santa Clara, Calif., has also struck deals with Lenovo Corp. and Motorola Mobility

Holdings Inc. to have them make phones with Intel chips.

The phone chips aren’t part of the Ivy Bridge generation, but they also demonstrate reductions in power consumption. Intel’s chips are powerful compared to standard phone chips, but high battery drain has kept them out of phones until now.

Intel’s stock fell 15 cents, or 0.5 percent, to close Monday at $27.45. A week ago, it hit a seven-year high of $28.78. —AP

Brain power required for new handheld games New games are full of unexpected sagas

SEOUL: Baek Sung-min, 23, jumps in joy after purchasing a new iPad tablet computer at an Apple store in Seoul, South Korea. Apple is set to report another record quarterly profit yesterday, continuing the relentless string of results thatís made it the world’s most valuable company. — AP

Brazil wants US technology transfer restrictions lifted BRASILIA: Brazil’s defense minister says he will press for the lifting of US restrictions to military technology transfer in his upcoming talks with his American counterpart Leon Panetta.

“It is very important that there be no obstacle to the acquisition of items with technological content,” Celso Amorim told the daily Folha de Sao Paulo Monday. Amorim and Panetta were to meet here yesterday as part of the new Defense Cooperation Dialogue agreed during President Dilma Rousseff’s recent visit to Washington.

Brasilia is now insisting on technology transfer in all its defense agree ments. Amorim referred to the US restriction which blocked the sale of 24 Super Tucano light attack aircraft made

by Brazil’s top aeronautics firm Embraer to Venezuela in 2006. The planes have US-built components.

The technology transfer issue is a key factor in Brazil’s decision expected within a few months on a tender for 36 multi-role combat aircraft. US aviation giant Boeing’s F/A-18 Super Hornet is up against the Rafale fighter, made by French firm Dassault Aviation, and Swedish manufacturer Saab’s Gripen for the contrac t variously valued at between $4 billion and $7 billion. In addition to technology transfer, Brasilia

also wants some of the jet fighters to be assembled in this country, which according to analysts might favor the Rafale. But Boeing is said to be offering a better price.

Another irritant expected to come up in the Amorim-Panetta talks is the US cancelation of a $380 million contract with Embraer to buy 20 AT-29 Super Tucano aircraft from Embraer for the Afghan army.

Embraer and its US partner Sierra Nevada were awarded the contract in December but the US Air Force called off the deal in February after a legal challenge from rival Hawker Beechcraft Corp.

The Pentagon has called for a new round of bidding for the contract, but in any case, the equipment will not be delivered before 2014. The Brazilian-US dialogue is also meant to resolve other issues such as the US decision in 2008 to reactivate its Fourth Fleet in the South Atlantic, an strategic and resource-rich area where regional countries do not want want any external military presence.

Panetta on Monday began his first Latin America tour in Colombia and was also to visit Chile after Brazil in a bid to boost military cooperation and regional security ties. — AFP

Tech guru predicts end for tablets, smartphones TAIPEI: The founding editor of Wired Magazine has predicted that tablets and smartphones will become obsolete as the internet spreads into everyday products and people gain more points of access to their data.

Tech writer and thinker Kevin Kelly was speak ing on the future of the internet to an audience of technology executives in Taipei. He highlighted everyday objects with internet capabilit y, such as the recently unveiled Google Glasses, as the next line of products that will unseat the current d o mi n a n ce of s m ar t p ho nes and tablets.

Google recently unveiled a prototype of a pair of spectacles that connec ts to the internet and displays information on the things a wearer might be looking at.

“Screens are becoming ubiquitous

and devices are shrinking from our view,” Kelly said. “The success of innovation and devices are going to depend on their ability to disappear from our lives. The ideal situation is that we carry no devices at all.”

In the near future, everything from sneakers to cars will have computer chips that are collecting data on users and communicating that data across networks, according to Kelly.

“Information is the fastest expanding entity on this planet. Part of the wealth will be actually from being able to harness, manage, decipher, filter, and analyze the data,” he said.

As users store more and more information on the cloud, PC and hardware sales have declined. At the same time, simple devices that can access information quickly, such as smartphones and tablets, have taken off. —dpa

BERLIN: Handheld games coming on sale now are full of unexpected sagas, like that of a secondgeneration pirate on a treasure hunt; a master thief on the trail of his missing father; or a young demon fighting to become a good guy.

New games include Captain Morgane and the Golden Turtle, the tactical role-playing game Disgaea 3 or the fighting game Supremacy MMA: Unrestricted.

Captain Morgane and the Gold Turtle will take Nintendo DS players to the high seas as the classic point-and-click adventure helps them to accompany Morgane Castillo, daughter of the famous pirate, as she becomes a feared swashbuckler in her own right.

Grown up now, she wants to put together her own crew, buy a ship and go on a long trip to find the rumoured golden turtle of Turtle Island. On the way, she moves through 50 settings and meets about 40 characters, some more, some less, helpful. For changes of pace to the classic puzzles, there are several minigames. The story for the adventure comes from Steve Ince, known for creating the PC classic The Curse of Baphomet. The humorous Caribbean adventure from dtp Entertainment costs about 28 euros (37 dollars) and is also available for consoles and PCs. 3DS players who wants things a little bit less conventional need to check out Rhythm Thief and the Emperor’s Treasure from Nintendo. Art thief Raphael has set out on a search for his missing father ... while dancing. That’s because Raphael does his jobs in

Captain Morgane and the Golden Turtle

rhythmic three-steps.

Similar to music games like Guitar Hero, Rhythm Thief relies upon hitting the right buttons at the right time. Thus, players who get the rhythm, will see Raphael dance right by museum guards, jump over laser barriers and elegantly sideline opponents.

To help him, Raphael has his dog, who has the unusual name Fondue. Both of them dance through museums and across the roofs of Paris to solve the mystery of Raphael’s missing Dad. The colour ful rhythm game costs about 45 euros.

The complex tactical role-playing Disgaea 3: Absence of Detention from NIS Amercia has little to do with a sense of rhythm.

Here you have to think. If you go

News

in brief

Browser expansion BERLIN: For those people who miss reading their news in newspaper format, there’s Feedly, a browser expansion that bundles website contents into an easyto-read layout. Newspaper or magazine articles are displayed by clicking upon the Feedly icon on the left, near the address list. Settings, in the top right, allows various views. Those who already employ Google Reader can simply tell Feedly to draw contents from that service. Or you can just create websites by hand.

Feedly is available for both Firefox and Chrome.

Viruses via Java Trojan viruses can use a security gap in Java to attack Windows and Mac computers. All it takes is one visit to a manipulated website to open up your computer to attack, warns Germany’s Federal Office for Information Security (BSI). Java is necessary for some websites and the operation of many programmes, meaning it has been installed on many computers. However, users should check to see if they really need it, and uninstall it or turn it off if they can. If you can’t live without Java, make sure you have the most current version, where the security gap has been plugged. A test on the website of Oracle, which developed Java, shows whether the version installed on a computer is safe or not. The BSI recommends that Windows users opt for automatic Java updates in their system settings. In Mac OS X, the Software Update function allows upgrades. Using Firefox and Chrome also provides some basic protection against Java problems. Firefox blocks outdated versions of the programme and Chrome requires users to agree before websites with Java content can be displayed.

Android updates delayed Whenever Google brings out a new version of its Android operating system, it can take an average of nine months before the first devices see the upgrade, according to German computer magazine c’t. Of 29 Android smartphones that five major manufacturers brought to market in 2009 and 2010, seven had received absolutely no upgrade by the end of the study. Seventeen got late updates, while five were upgraded twice. The Android updates are so late because, when first created, they are essentially raw material. Manufacturers have to find ways to make the source code work with their hardware and programmes, say experts. And that can take time, on average, nine months. The problem is not only that consumers have to wait for new functions and better designs, but they also have to deal for a long time with the problems of old versions. It’s also common to find, to a user’s dismay, that newly downloaded apps won’t work on phones using old versions of Android. Experts say the problem could be minimized if Google would focus on a few major updates, instead of a series of small ones, and provide better instruction for manufacturers with little experience in software development.— dpa

into battle without a plan, you’ll come up empty-handed.

Mercifully, there’s a lot of ways to employ tactical tricks and feints to get an advantage.

For example, it’s possible to move around the blocks out of which Disgaea’s world is made, shoving them around, stacking them or even throwing them at opponents.

Made with a generous helping of humour, Disgaea 3 is set in an underworld finishing school for demons. To be successful at the Evil Academy, you’ve got to do as much wrong as possible: Those who show up to lessons on time are quickly branded as losers.

Mao is the hero who decides that he wants to be a real hero after all. This remake of a

Playstation 3 title now sells for 35 euros on the Playstation Vita. In Supremacy MMA: Unrestricted from 505 Games refined tactics are swapped for naked violence.

It’s little wonder that this game is only recommended for players aged 18 and older. In the mixed martial arts of the game, just about every fighting technique is allowed in the ring. The Playstation Vita version has managed to make 12 of them available, meaning wrestlers can now face off against kick-boxers.

The athletes are not fictional, but based on real fighters.

Players can choose between classic controllers methods like buttons and analog sticks or a newly developed touchscreen control system. —dpa

Adobe to launch new software for designers NEW YORK: Adobe is launching the latest version of its software package for designers and Web developers.

Adobe Systems Inc. unveiled Creative Suite 6 on Monday at an event in San Francisco. CS6 includes Photoshop, Illustrator and other programs. Unlike previous versions, which came shrinkwrapped in a box, Creative Suite 6 will be available on a monthly subscription basis as part of Adobe’s Creative Cloud offering. Subscriptions will start at $50 a month for those who sign up for a year. Subscribers will be able to d ow n l o a d p ro gr a m s s u c h a s Photoshop, InDesign or Illustrator, store their work online and share files with others.

This will likely make the pricey software package more desirable to new customers who may not want to shell o u t t h o u s a n d s o f d o l l a r s u p f ro n t .

Scott Morris, a senior marketing director at Adobe, compared the new pricing policy to the company’s decision nearly a decade ago to start selling its design-software products in one package. The result then was higher sales, and Adobe hopes to replicate that success with its new revenue model.

Selling CS6 through subscriptions should also help Adobe reduce piracy, a persistent problem for companies that sell shrink-wrapped software.

Customers will still be able to buy CS6 as a packaged software suite, just as they can still buy the programs separately. Prices for CS6 range from $275 for the cheapest upgrade to $2,599 for the full “Master Collection.”

Adobe’s Creative Solutions business, which is responsible for Creative Suite, accounts for the bulk of the San Jose, Calif., company’s revenue. — AP

TOKYO: Nitoru, a nine-month-old toy poodle, rides a radio control toy car operated by its owner in Tokyo during lunch time yesterday. — AP

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, 2012

H E A LT H & S C I E NC E

Appendix removal: Huge sticker shock in study CHICAGO: What do hospitals charge to remove an appendix? The startling answer is that it could be the same as the price of a refrigerator - or a house.

It’s a common, straightforward operation, so you might expect charges to be similar no matter where the surgery takes place. Yet a California study found huge disparities in patients’ bills - $1,500 to $180,000, with an average of $33,000.

The researchers and other experts say the results aren’t unique to California and illustrate a broken system. “There’s no method to the madness,” said lead author Dr. Renee Hsia, an emergency room physician and researcher at the University of California, San Francisco. “There’s no system at all to determine what is a rational price for this condition or this procedure.”

The disparities are partly explained by differences among patients and where they were treated. For example, some had more costly procedures, including multiple imaging scans, or longer hospital stays. A very small number were treated without surgery, though most had appendectomies. Some were sicker and needed

more intensive care. But the researchers could find no explanation for about onethird of the cost differences. Other developed countries have more government regulation that prevents these wild disparities. US critics of that kind of system favor more market competition, yet the study illustrates that “the laws of supply and demand simply do not work well in health care,” said Dr. Howard Brody, director of the Institute for the Medical Humanities at the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston and a frequent critic of skyrocketing medical costs. The study was published Monday in the journal Archives of Internal Medicine.

President Barack Obama’s health care overhaul, now in the hands of the US Supreme Court, would have little effect on the kinds of disparities seen in the study, policy experts say. One section of the law bars tax-exempt hospitals from charging uninsured people more than the rates insured patients end up paying because of discounts negotiated by insurance companies. The government has not said how the reductions for uninsured people would

be calculated, said health care consultant Keith Hearle. The researchers examined 2009 data that hospitals were required to submit to the state on 19,368 patients with appendicitis. To get the fairest comparisons, the researchers included only uncomplicated cases with hospital stays of less than four days. Patients were 18 to 59 years old. The study looked at what patients were billed, before contributions from their health insurance if they had any.

The figures don’t reflect what hospitals were actually paid. Insurance companies often negotiate to pay less than what they are billed, and what patients pay depends on their health plans.

Those least able to pay - the uninsured could be socked with the full bill. Still, even those with good health insurance may end up paying a portion of the cost, so price matters, Hsia said.

Uninsured and Medicaid patients had slightly higher bills than those with private insurance. Charges were highest at forprofit hospitals, followed by nonprofits.

County hospitals, typically safety-net hospitals, had the lowest charges.

The costliest bill, totaling $182,955, involved a woman who also had cancer.

She was treated at a hospital in California’s Silicon Valley. Her bill didn’t show any cancer-related treatment. The smallest bill, $1,529, involved a patient who had her appendix removed in rural Northern California. Otherwise, the cases were similar: Both patients were hospitalized for one day, had minimally invasive surgery, and had similar numbers of procedures and tests on their bills.

The lowest and highest bills were not freak occurrences; many cases involved charges well over $100,000 and under $2,000, Hsia said. Also, within geographic regions, the lowest and highest charges differed by tens of thousands of dollars.

Itemized bills for appendix removal can include fees for staying overnight in the hospital, the surgery and surgical supplies, operating room expenses, anesthesia, imaging tests, medicine and lab tests.

The analysis echoes other reports, including a study of 66 hospitals in the U.S. and Canada that found charges for the same services varied widely in both coun-

tries. Other studies have found big geographic disparities in health care costs.

Data from the federal Agency of Healthcare Research and Quality and the International Federation of Health Plans suggest the nationwide average price for an appendectomy is almost $28,000.

Dr. David Goodman, director of Dartmouth College’s Center for Health Policy Research, said the differences found in the study are credible and “very concerning.” Caroline Steinberg, a vice president at the American Hospital Association, said hospitals partly set charges based on their costs of providing services, which vary by community. Steinberg said if two patients with the exact same condition received exactly the same services in the same hospital, the charges would be similar. But Hsia said the problem is that most hospitals don’t advertise charges, and sick patients generally don’t get to choose the exact drugs or surgical techniques that are used on them.

The study was paid for by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, which funds health research and programs. — Reuters

India, Africa slow global progress in measles fight Disease killed 139,000 people in 2010

LAS VEGAS: Dr Jason Burke, a board certified anesthesiologist in Las Vegas, Nevada poses in his Hangover Heaven bus as it cruises down the Las Vegas Strip April 22, 2012, Las Vegas, Nevada. The service offers to “cure” morning-after revelers of their hangovers using a combination of anti-nausea and rehydrating drugs, as well as vitamins and other medicines. —AFP

In Vegas, a new cure for monster hangovers LAS VEGAS: It’s Sunday lunchtime in Las Vegas and Justin looks like he wants to curl up and die. He has a monster hangover after drinking for two days solid. But help, he hopes, is at hand. The 38-year-old from Seattle is among the first customers trying out a new service, “Hangover Heaven”, which promises to “cure” his throbbing head, sweaty pallor and general feeling of death, all within 45 minutes.

“I knew I was going to drink too much,” Justin, an aeronautics industry executive, told AFP with a fragile smile, as an intravenous (IV) drip fed nausea-reducing drugs into his left arm. “It’s been a guy weekend. We arrived on Thursday. Last night we went out to a club, drank too much, stayed up all night,” he added, estimating he has slept for maybe three hours.

Justin-who asks sheepishly not to give his surname-was speaking on board the shiny blue-and-white “Hangover Heaven” bus, parked outside the Mandalay Bay casino on the southern end of the infamous Vegas Strip.

From the outside it looks like any other tour bus. Inside, the vehicle is rigged out not unlike an ambulance: IV tubes, pulsometers, attentive nurses, and, if it all gets too much, soothing, darkened bunks. The new service, which launched on August 14, is the brainchild of doctor Jason Burke.

The trained anesthesiologist-who still works in hospitals locally in his “day job”-came up with the idea while working with patients in recovery rooms, after qualifying in 2001.

“Watching patients in the post-anesthesia care unit, I noticed they had a lot of the same symptoms that people with a hangover have: the nausea, the headache, aches and pains, disoriented feeling.

“And I thought maybe these medications that I’m using to treat them in the recovery room could work for a hangover,” he said.

Happily for him, he lives in the Nevada gambling capital-internationally renowned as a

center for heavy partying and intoxication of all kinds, and, of course, the setting for the first of the blockbuster “Hangover” movies.

What’s more, “when people come to Vegas and drink, they’re much more prone to get a hangover because of the time span over which they drink, it’s much longer and they get more dehydrated because they’re in the desert.

“So it’s the perfect set-up for hangovers,” he said. Burke was talking after welcoming AFP onto the bus outside Caesar’s Palace, its latest stop on a constant circuit up and down the sun-soaked Strip to pick up and drop off customers. The service offers to “cure” shellshocked morning-after revelers of their hangover using a combination of anti-nausea and rehydrating drugs, as well as vitamins and other medicines.

‘Doesn’t come cheap’- The bus promises an “ultra-smooth ride” to spare queasy stomachs, a mid-section with four bunks, a rear lounge, a bathroom and a “private interview room for people who have sensitive medical issues they wish to discuss.”

Debbie Lund, one of his nurses-she is a trained emergency medical technician (EMT), currently doing a Masters-said the first weekend went well, with over 25 customers in Vegas-and hung over-for various reasons.

“They come from all over the world, some of them are on business, some of them are on bachelor or bachelorette parties,” she said, echoing her boss’s explanation that Vegas provides a perfect storm for hangovers. “People come over on a long flight, they tend to start drinking while they’re on the flight... so they’ve started their binge already, they just carry on once they get in to Las Vegas,” she said, holding up Jason’s IV tube.

All of this care does not come cheap: there are two basic packages, “Redemption” and “Salvation”, offered at the introductory prices of $90 and $150 respectively.— AFP

HEART: An Afghan health worker (R) administers a polio vaccination to a child on the last day of a vaccination campaign in the outskirts of Herat yesterday. A new three-day nationwide immunisation campaign against polio began on April 22 in a joint operation with the Ministry of Public Health, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the World Health Organisation (WHO).— AFP

LONDON: Death rates from measles fell 74 percent between 2000 and 2010, missing an internationally agreed target for a 90 percent fall mainly because of low vaccine coverage in India and Africa where the virus kills tens of thousands a year.

A study led by the World Health Organisation (WHO) published yesterday found that despite rapid progress, regular measles outbreaks in Africa and slow implementation of disease control in India were major concerns and led to the target being missed.

If the world is to succeed in wiping out the highly contagious disease, vaccination coverage rates must be increased in these and other key regions, the researchers said. “Intensified control measures and renewed political and financial commitment are needed to ... lay the foundation for future global eradication of measles,” the researchers wrote in the study in The Lancet medical journal.

Measles is a viral disease and transmitted when an infected person breaths, coughs or sneezes.

There is no specific treatment for it and most people recover in two to three weeks. However, particularly in malnourished children and people with weak immunity, measles can cause serious complications including blindness, encephalitis, severe diarrhoea, ear infections and pneumonia.

The disease can be prevented by immunisation and experts say increasing vaccination rates to above 95 percent worldwide and keeping them up is the only way to eradicate measles. The WHO study, which also involved researchers from Penn State University in the United States and from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), said the 74 percent drop meant measles killed an estimated 139,200 people across the world in 2010, down from just over 535,000 in 2000. The researchers, led by WHO immunisation expert Peter Strebel, suggested India’s relatively low measles vaccine coverage - 74 percent - is the reason why the disease is still a major cause of death there. It lags behind Africa on 76 percent.

Southeast Asia excluding India had 79 percent coverage in 2010, with the Eastern Mediterranean on 85 percent, the Americas 93 percent, Europe 95 percent and Western Pacific 97 percent. The global coverage overall was 85 percent.

The study found that India accounted for 47 percent of measles deaths in 2010, while Africa had 36 percent. The Americas and Europe accounted for less than 1 percent each, but fears about a

measles comeback have been growing in these regions too.

The CDC said last week there were 222 cases of measles in the United States last year, more than triple the usual number. No one has died from measles in the United States since 2008. Europe suffered a major outbreak of the disease in 2011, with France, Spain, Germany and Switzerland recording thousands of cases. — Reuters

KIBATI: A child being immunized against measles at a clinic in a camp for displaced people, in Kibati just north of Goma in eastern Congo. It was announced yesterday, that the number of measles deaths worldwide has dropped by about three-quarters over the last decade, according to a new study by the World Health Organization (WHO), a significant success, although more effort has to be put into tackling measles in India and Africa according to WHO health official Peter Strebel. — AP

Novartis tries to make UK hospitals use $1000 drug LONDON: Drug maker Novartis is taking legal action in Britain to make state-run hospitals use an eye drug that costs about 700 pounds ($1,130) per shot instead of a cheaper one that costs 60 pounds ($97).

In a statement, Novartis said it was calling for a judicial review “as a last resort” because it believed patient safety was being potentially compromised. According to the UK’s health watchdog, Novartis’ Lucentis is the only drug recommended to treat the eye problem macular degeneration in the country’s state-run National Health Service hospitals.

However, several NHS hospitals have been prescribing the much cheaper Avastin, a cancer drug made by Genentech Inc., a subsidiary of Roche, for the same problem even though it has not been officially approved.

Most doctors only prescribe drugs approved by the health watchdog, but have the discretion to use other treatments if they believe they are warranted. Britain’s drug regulator has not approved Avantis for eye diseases, so it has not been considered by the health service’s advisory agency, known as NICE, for this use. NICE makes decisions based only on cost-effectiveness and agency officials said they would need help from the drug regulator to decide whether Avastin should be used for patients with macular degeneration. Last year, four hospitals in southern England decided they would pay for Avastin when it was prescribed by a doctor.

In a statement yesterday, Novartis AG said it was demanding a judicial review to make the hospitals use Lucentis rather than Avastin. Novartis said it was concerned patients and clinicians were being pushed to use an unlicensed medicine in order to cut costs. Britain’s coalition government has mandated that its National Health Service trim $20 billion ($31 billion) from its budget by 2015 as part of a national austerity drive. “It is unacceptable to put the safety of patients at risk through the widespread use of an unlicensed treatment when a licensed medicine is available,” the pharmaceutical company said. Novartis noted there was “emerging evidence” of safety concerns for using Avastin to treat eye problems.

Patient groups called for an independent analysis to determine which drug should be used. “If Avastin is not as safe as Lucentis, no one should be using it,” said Helen Jackman, chief executive of the Macular Disease Society.

“If it is as good, perhaps everyone should be using it.”

Jackman said government ministers should hold an appraisal of whether Avastin was safe to use in eye diseases. Eye doctors are divided over whether Avastin is as safe and effective as Lucentis, she said.— AP

Aspirin to lower lung cancer risk in women SINGAPORE: Women who took aspirin at least a couple of times a week had a much lower risk of developing lung cancer, whether or not they ever smoked, according to a study of more than a thousand Asian women.

The findings, published in the journal Lung Cancer, linked regularly taking aspirin to a risk reduction of 50 percent or more, although researchers cautioned that they did not prove aspirin directly protects against lung cancer.

But the study does back up a number of previous studies that linked regular aspirin use to lower risks of certain cancers, including colon, prostate and esophageal cancers. “Our results suggest that aspirin consumption may reduce lung cancer risk in Asian women,” wrote Wei-Yen Lim, of the National University of Singapore, and colleagues.

But in an email Lim added: “The question about whether aspirin use protects against lung cancer is still open to considerable debate at this point, and the published evidence to date is not conclusive.”

The study included 398 Chinese women

diagnosed with lung cancer and 814 cancerfree women, and Lim’s team found that women who had used aspirin regularly, at least twice a week for a month or longer, were less likely to have lung cancer.

Among women who had never smoked, the odds were 50 percent lower for aspirin users versus non-users. Among smokers, aspirin use was tied to a 62 percent lower risk of lung cancer. The researchers were able to account for some other factors, such as the women’s age, education and fruit and vegetable intake, but Lim said there could be still other differences to help explain why aspirin users had a lower lung cancer risk.

There was a fairly large relative difference in cancer risk between aspirin users and non-users in the study, but the absolute reduction in any one person’s risk, if there is one, might be small.

There are biological reasons that aspirin might offer protection against cancer. It blocks an enzyme called cyclooxygenase-2, or COX-2, which promotes inflammation and cell division, and is found in high levels in tumors.— Reuters

GALVESTON: A still unnamed King penguin chick that hatched on April 9 is unveiled at The Aquarium at Moody Gardens, yesterday, in Galveston, Texas. A blood test will be conducted to determine the gender of the bird who came into life weighing about 20 ounces. This chick is the 14th King penguin chick to have been successfully bred at the aquarium. — AP

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, 2012

H E A LT H

Vietnam asks WHO to help identify killer disease HANOI: Vietnam has asked international health experts to help investigate a mystery illness that has killed 19 people and sickened 171 others in an impoverished district in central Vietnam, an official said.

The infection has mostly affected c h i ld re n and yo u ng p eo p l e. I t begins with a high fever, loss of appetite and a rash that covers the

hands and feet. Patients who are not treated early can develop liver problems and eventually face multiorgan failure, said Le Han Phong, chairman of the People’s Committee i n B a To D i s t r i c t i n Q u a n g N g a i province.

Nearly 100 people remain hospitalized, including 10 in critical condition. Patients with milder symp-

Worm turns sheep clone to ‘good’ fat HONG KONG: Chinese scientists have cloned a genetically modified sheep containing a “good” type of fat found naturally in nuts, seeds, fish and leafy greens that helps reduce the risk of heart attacks and cardiovascular disease.

“Peng Peng”, which has a roundworm fat gene, weighed in at 5.74 kg when it was born on March 26 in a laboratory in China’s far western region of Xinjiang.

“It ’s growing ver y well and is ver y healthy like a normal sheep,” lead scientist Du Yutao at the Beijing Genomics Institute (BGI) in Shenzhen in southern China told Reuters.

Du and colleagues inserted the gene that is linked to the production of polyunsaturated fatty acids into a donor cell taken from the ear of a Chinese Merino sheep. The cell was then inserted into an unfertilised egg and implanted into the womb of a surrogate sheep.

“The gene was originally from the C. elegans (roundworm) which has been shown (in previous studies) to increase unsaturated fatty acids which is very good for human health,” Du said. China, which has to feed 22 percent of the world’s population but has only 7 percent of the world’s arable land, has

devoted plenty of resources in recent years to increasing domestic production of grains, meat and other food products.

But there are concerns about the safety of genetically modified foods and it will be some years before meat from such transgenic animals finds its way into Chinese food markets. “The Chinese government encourages transgenic projects but we need to have better methods and results to prove that transgenic plants and animals are harmless and safe for consumption, that is crucial,” Du said.

Apart from BGI, other collaborators in the project were the Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology at the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and Shihezi University in Xinjiang. The United States is a world leader in producing GM crops. Its Food and Drug Administration has already approved the sale of food from clones and their offspring, saying the products were indistinguishable from those of noncloned animals. US biotech firm AquaBounty ’s patented genetically modified Atlantic salmon are widely billed as growing at double the speed and could be approved by US regulators as early as this summer. — Reuters

toms are being treated at home. The illness responds well to treatment if detected early, but 29 patients have been reinfected, Phong said.

The M inistr y of Health sent a team of health officials to the area earlier this month, but they were unable to determine the cause of the illness.

The ministry has since asked the

World Health Organization and the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to help investigate.

A WH O s p oke s m a n s a i d t he G e ne v a -b a s e d b od y ha d n’t ye t received the request from Vietnam. “ We can’t investigate without an official request,” said Tarik Jasarevic.

The ailment was first detected last April, but the number of cases had

d i e d d ow n by O c to b e r. A f re s h spate of infec tions star ted last month, with 68 cases and eight deaths reported between March 27 and April 5, Phong said. Most of the patients are from Ba Dien village in Ba To. It is one of the poorest districts in the province and home to many from the Hre ethnic minority. —AP

US retirement fund’s future getting darker Medicare fund could run out in 2024 WASHINGTON: Ageing baby boomers got some jolting news when the US government said the Social Security retirement program is on track to go bankrupt three years earlier than expected if reforms are not made.

Unless Washington politicians, who have been at war with each other over government spending priorities and federal budget deficits, can decide how to put Social Security on a sound footing, retirees’ pension checks would start running out in 2033, according to an annual report.

The baby boomers - those 78 million Americans born between 1946 and 1964 - started retiring last year. With 10,000 of them expected to retire every day for the next 19 years, according to the Pew Research Center, they will increasingly strain Social Security.

“Never since the 1983 reforms have we come as close to the point of trust-fund depletion as we are right now,” trustee Charles Blahous told reporters.

“Our window for dealing with it without substantially disruptive consequences is closing very rapidly,” he said. Meanwhile, the Medicare healthcare fund for the elderly is still is headed for exhaustion in 2024, the same date estimated last year. But it was uncertain whether the assumptions used in arriving at the estimate were overly optimistic.

Blahous and fellow trustee Robert Reischauer said lawmakers should be aware that it will become increasingly difficult to “avoid adverse effects” on

retirees or those close to retirement if legislative changes are delayed much longer. For example, Americans’ average real earnings are forecast to grow more slowly than previously thought, crimping revenue from the taxes that pay for the benefits, the report noted.

Even when the fund starts to run out of money in 2033, it would be able to pay 75 percent of benefits.

An alternative, in order to keep payments at 100 percent, would be to raise the payroll tax on employers and employees to 16.7 percent from its regular 12.4 percent rate.

Members of Congress also have mulled raising the retirement age or cutting some benefits to the wealthy. But no action is expected before the November elections. Trustees for the fund said a disability insurance program, which is generally lumped in with Social Security, faces the most immediate financing shortfall. It said that fund will likely be depleted in 2016, two years earlier than projected last year.

Even as Republicans, including Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney, push to repeal the Obama administration’s signature healthcare law, Secretary of Health Kathleen Sebelius, claimed that without it, the Medicare fund would in fact have been depleted by 2016 instead of 2024.

“As a result of the law, we have added another eight years to its life, putting Medicare on much more

solid ground,” Sebelius told reporters. But the fund’s longevity rests on shifting ground because of the possibility of changes in law and in the economy’s direction.

For example, President Barack Obama’s healthcare law enacted in 2010 may be overturned by the Supreme Court. And some assumptions used to estimate the depletion of the trust funds - such as hefty cuts in pay rates for physician services - might never occur.

Trustees warned that costs for Medicare were on the rise, and likely to leap from about 3.7 percent of gross domestic product in 2011 to 5.7 percent by 2035. The declining condition of the Medicare and Social Security funds - blamed on the aging population and rising healthcare costs - fueled fresh calls from Republicans to overhaul the costly benefits programs.

“As this report shows, leaving Medicare and Social Security on autopilot and allowing them to continue to grow beyond their means is no longer an option,” said Senator Orrin Hatch of Utah, the senior Republican on the committee that oversees these huge programs.

Obama and his Democrats accuse Republicans of proposing Medicare changes that would dangerously raise healthcare costs for seniors, while Republicans claim the administration’s free-wheeling spending has pushed the nation’s debt to perilous levels.— Reuters

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WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, 2012

W H AT ’ S O N Greetings

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ongratulations to Reem Omeira of Kuwait Pakistan English School Salmiya for obtaining good grade. Best wishes from parents, relatives and friends.

Charity event for Palestinian children

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he ‘Kuwaitis for Jerusalem’ committee; a joint committee between the Women’s Cultural and Social Society and the Kuwait Graduates’ Society, organized a charity event to support a planned project for the ‘Relief for Palestine’s Children Society’ to establish a cancer treatment pediatric hospital in Bait Jala, Palestine, as well as a project to pay expenses of Palestinian university students.

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any happy returns of the day on the 2nd birthday to our Chackochan (Rohan Laku). How can we ever forget the moment when we took you in our arms for the very first time! Every year your birthday reminds of this beautiful moment.

Here’s wishing the best of blessings and good luck on your birthday! Ammuchechi, Appa, Amma, Linupa, Thottathil & Areekal family.

Book fair

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he Students Council at the Arab Open University inaugurated yesterday the first book fair. A three-day event which offers students a collection of publications that can be helpful in their studies. The opening was attended by assistant director for academic and administrative affairs, Dr Najeeb Al-Shehabi, and head of the students affairs department, Misfer Al-Omar.

Palestinian Cultural Exhibition

KNES victorious against BBS

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uwait National English School Secondary boys ranging from Year 8 to 11 competed in their first open age football tournament at the American University of Kuwait. Their opposition was Bayan Bilingual School who are a very strong and established team. Kuwait National English School won the match 3-0 with goals from Mohammed Dousidel and two from Mohammed Bou Zaid. The boys did themselves and the school proud with their fantastic effort and attitude.

Keep up the good work boys!

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andicrafts reaffirm the Palestinian national identity and support needy children and families. The Palestinian Culture Center in collaboration with the Women’s Cultural Society invite you to its spring exhibition.

The exhibition aims to preserve Palestinian handicrafts in order to reaffirm the Palestinian national identify by adapting it harmoniously to the 21st century demands.

We display classic designs intertwined with modern uses, colors, and motifs, to showcase some of the creativity of the Palestinian women. Items on sale include: cushions, runners, scarves, shawls, long traditional dresses as well as smaller items. We also have handmade ceramics from Palestine, books, music, and movies.

Kuwaiti Women Cultural Soceity, Khaldiya, Block 2, Al Qurouba Street Date: Monday April 23 to Thursday 26, 2012 from 10 am to 1:30 pm and 4:30 pm to 8:30pm. Call 25755866, 25727388, 99376608.

Announcements ‘Arangetram 2012’ Nandhanam School of Dance, an institute to promote India’s rich culture and values in Kuwait, is conducting its first “Arangetram 2012”, a student’s debut on stage dance per formance, at the American International School, Maidan Hawalli Kuwait on Friday, May 4, 2012.

The program will star t by 05:45 pm and the guests are requested to be seated 15 minutes before the program. For information contact 97895754, 99129611, 67057758.

Walk for CRY 2012 Friends of CRY Club (FOCC) is introducing this new event for children of all ages, to be held on 27th Apr, 2012. The venue is the walking track in Jabriya in front of New English School. In this event, children are invited to walk from as little as a kilometer to as much as they can. The walk timing is between 0800 hrs to 1000 hrs.

PAWS Kuwait quiz night Paws Kuwait quiz night on Friday 27th April at 7:30 pm till 12 am at Jade G arden Chinese Restaurant 12th floor Gulf Hotel Baghdad Street, Salmiya. Authentic Chinese cuisine will be served.

Dress: Smart/casual Oriental theme preferred. For more information Email events@paws-kuwait.org Sri Lanka festival Sri Lankan feastival will be held at Green Island, Gulf Road on April 27 from 0900 am to 10 pm. It is a cultural show, traditional items, sports meet etc.. etc., and it is held under the patronage of the Embassy of Sri Lanka. Wimal Weerawansa, M inister for Construc tion and Urban Development will be attending.

Intensive Free Arabic Course in IPC IPC is opening an intensive Basic Arabic Course for ladies commencing from June 3-July 8, 2012.

The class will be from 5 -7 pm and 3 days a week.

Registration is on! For information, call: 22512257.

Ambassadors of Comedy Dean-Obeidallah (The Axis of Evil Comedy Tour), Nitin Mirani (King Of UAE Comedy), Aron Kader (The Axis of Evil Comedy Tour). All of the proceeds from the event will be donated to the St. John Ambulance Brigade (India) and the Fazlani Foundation (India). Go out and have fun while supporting a wonderful cause When: April 27, 2012 @ 7:30 pm - 9:30 pm at the American International School (Hamood Al-Naser Street, Dr. Kamil Al-Rayes Auditorium, Meidan Hawalli) Contact: Mohamed Kagdi or Minhaj Shikari 99788692 or 99710242

Mannar natives in Kuwait form MAK

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n association for the natives of Mannar residing in Kuwait, Mannar Association Kuwait (MAK) was formed on April 13, 2012 following a general body meeting held at Abbasiya, Kuwait. The presidential address was delivered by Biju Menon. Sreejith Dhanwanthari welcomed the gathering and Rajeev Naduvilemuri presented the plan of activities and objectives.

Subramanian presented the by-law of the association and Milan Thulasidharan proposed a vote of thanks. The association aims to enhance unity, charity and cultural activities among the fellow members. A business town in Alappuzha district of Kerala, Mannar is also known as the Bell Metal Town as it is wellknown for its flourishing bronze industry. It is situated on the banks of the Pampa River and Manimala River.

sors), Dinu, Rahul, Sivakumar, Haris and Shyam Lal (coordinators), Pradeep Chandran, Prathapan, Gopakumar, Shaji and Ramesh (executive Members). For

further details please contact: Abbasiya 99263184/ 67045493, Salmiya 97257742, Sharq - 55160580 & Fahaheel/Mangaf - 65151962. We are

happy to welcome all the Mannar natives in Kuwait to be a part of this association!

Office-bearers Biju Menon (President), Rajeev Naduvilemuri (Vice President), Milan Thulasidharan (General Secretary), Sunil Kumar and Renjy Thomas (joint secretaries), Sreejith P (treasurer), Sanofer Shahul (joint treasurer), Hashim Ibrahim(PRO), Alex Vallakkali (auditor), Girish Kumar and Subramanian (advi-

Annual family get-together

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he annual family get-together of Thiruvalla Pravasi Association was conducted on 20th April at Orma Auditorium Abbassiya with variety programs.

The President of the association Thomas Kuruvilla presided over the function and the Lay Trustee of the Marthoma syrian Church, Adv. Varughese Mammen inagurated the function. Abey varicad, Pancley Varkey, Rajeev Vanchipalam, K.C.Chacko and Shaji Chirackapurathu spoke on the occassion.

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WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, 2012

W H AT ’ S O N

Embassy Information EMBASSY OF BRAZIL The Embassy of Brazil requests all Brazilian citizens in Kuwait to proceed to the website www.brazil.org.kw (Contact Us Form / Fale Conosco) in order to register or update contact information. The Embassy encourages all citizens to do so, including the ones who have already registered in person at the Embassy.

The registration process helps the Brazilian Government to contact and assist Brazilians living abroad in case of any emergency.

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GUST celebrates Earth Day 2012

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he Gulf University for Science and Technology (GUST) as a part of their community outreach initiatives, celebrated International Earth Day, which was first initiated on April 22nd, 1970 in the US and today unites one billion people from 192 countries, to broaden, diversify, mobilize and raise awareness about the global environmental movement - called “Mobilize the Earth” Campaign - which aims to convey the message that our Earth won’t wait and calls for people to unite, speak and act.

The event welcomed different stations by the Kuwait Environment Protection Society, Down to Earth, Environment Preservation Industrial Co. (EPIC), the Institute for Green Business

Certification ME, Al-Dhow for Environmental Projects and Green Technology Group. Each with a different

aspect of the environmental issues, but all with the same goal: to educate and raise awareness of people within our community.

Eng. Khalaf Alenezi, Head Organizer

of the event, welcomed Dr. Sabah AlQuaddoomi, VP for Academic Services, Dr. Lee Caldwell, Dean of the College of Business Administration, Dr. Mesfer Mesfer from the Office of Student Life, Ibrahim Emran, Assistant Vice President for Administrative and Financial Affairs, Dr. Osama Al-Hares, Director of Alumni and Career Servicesand Dr. Masoud Asad, Director of Public Affairs.

Eng. Alenezi took all the guests around the different booths set up by the different companies and societies, introducing them to the intricate ways the environment works and how we can help protect it by implementing a few simple strategies, including: smart shopping, buying energy-efficient products, considering transportation alternatives,

improving our food choices, developing washing and drying methods as well as heating and cooling, planting more trees, implementing bathroom basics, cleaning more consciously and never discarding items on the streets and recycling what we can.

Following the tour of the booths, there was a small Kung-Fu presentation by two young Kuwaitis, which was enjoyed by all. Followed by an enlightening presentation by Dr. Bader Alenezi, KU Professor and Essa Ramadan, from Kuwait Weather Forecast, talking to students and staff alike on the consequences and effects the things we do every day have on the environment; things that we normally won’t pay attention to at all on a daily basis.

EMBASSY OF CANADA The Embassy of Canada is located at Villa 24, Al-Mutawakel St., Block 4 in Da’aiyah. Please visit our website at www.Kuwait.gc.ca. The Embassy of Canada is open from 07:30 to 15:30 Sunday through Thursday. The reception is closed from 12:30 to 01:00 pm for lunch break.

Consular Services for Canadian Citizens are provided from 09:00 until 12:00 on Sunday through Wednesday. The Canadian Embassy in Abu Dhabi provides visa and immigration services to residents of Kuwait. Individuals who are interested in visiting, working or immigrating to Canada are invited to visit the website of the Canadian Embassy to the UAE at www.uae.gc.ca.

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EMBASSY OF CYPRUS The Embassy of the Republic of Cyprus requests Cypriot citizens living in Kuwait to register with the Embassy has moved. This registration service is provided so that the Embassy can update its contact list and assist Cypriot citizens in cases of emergencies.

Registration information can be emailed to cyprusembassykwt@gmail.com or faxed to 22253227 or given by phone to 65906048 (Mrs Christine).

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EMBASSY OF INDIA The Embassy of India will remain closed on Sunday, May 6, 2012 on account of ‘Buddha Purnima’.

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EMBASSY OF KOREA The Embassy of the Republic of Korea wishes to inform that it has moved to Mishref. New Address: Embassy of the Republic of Korea Mishref, Block 7A, Diplomatic Area 2, Plot 6 The Embassy also wishes to inform that it will be opened to the public on the following office hours: Saturday to Thursday Morning: 8:00 am to 12:30 pm Lunch Break: 12:30 pm to 1:00 pm Afternoon: 1:00 pm to 3:30 pm

Indians participate in jewellery exhibition

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haikh Dr Ebraheem Duaij AlEbraheem Al-Sabah the Governor of Al-Ahmadi inaugurated the 10th International Jewllery Exhibition at Hall no.8 International Fairgrounds Mishref on the 23rd April, and visited some of the Indian stalls. A large number of Indian companies are participating in the exhibition displaying exqui-

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EMBASSY OF MYANMAR Embassy of the Republic of the Union of Myanmar would like to inform the general public that the Embassy has moved its office to new location at Villa 35, Road 203, Block 2, AlSalaam Area in South Surra. The Embassy wishes to advice Myanmar citizens and travellers to Myanmar to contact Myanmar Embassy at its new location.

Tel. 25240736, 25240290, Fax: 25240749, email:myankuwait11@gmai1.com

site traditional and contemporary jewellery in enchanting designs from various parts of India.

The Ambassador of India to Kuwait and Srimati Prabha Thakur, Member of Parliament from India were present at the inauguration of the exhibition and visited Indian and other stalls. The exhibition is open until April 28.

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Adviser to Indian PM to attend NAFO anniversary

N

AFO Kuwait (National Forum Kuwait) is all set to celebrate its 9th anniversary on Friday, May 11, 2012, at the American International School, Maidan-Hawally, at 6.30 pm, spreading the flames of universal love and peace.

T K A Nair, the adviser to the Prime Minister of India will be the chief guest of the function. Indian Ambassador Satish C Mehta will be the guest of honor. Other dignitaries among the Indian expatriate community in Kuwait will also share the platform with the two most reputed diplomats.

“For NAFO, the presence of the adviser to the Prime Minister along with our Indian ambassador will be a great honor,” said B S Pillai, NAFO President. This will further motivate us to continue volunteering our social, welfare and cultur-

al services for the betterment of the downtrodden. “An informative souvenir will also be released on the happy occasion of our anniversary,” added M S Nair,

Australian Embassy

T

raveling between Australia and Kuwait has become a lot more convenient with the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) adding further flight options.

The new MOU between the two countries will increase business, tourism and trade opportunities with Kuwait and the Gulf Region by allowing Australian airlines to add Kuwait to their growing global code share networks.

The prospect of direct flights to Australia will make it easier for Kuwaiti students to travel to Australia to study, and for Kuwaiti visitors to access Australia’s tourist destinations such as the Great Barrler Reef.

Each country’s airlines can now operate up to daily direct passenger flights between the gateway airports of Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane of Perth and Kuwait.

Unrestricted access has been agreed for all other airports in Australia, opening the way for easier travel to premier Australian tourism destinations such as the Gold Coast and Cairns.

In the year to September 2011, around 11,000 travelers flew between Australia and Kuwait. Over the same period, approximately $13.2 million worth of cargo was flown between the two countries.

The MOU includes unrestricted code sharing and dedicated freight services, allowing greater commercial flexibility and opportunity for airlines wishing to serve the market. With a range of fifth freedom rights available for both sides, airlines may choose to operate direct or via intermediate stops. Today’s announcement further progresses the bilateral relationship between Australia and Kuwait, provides the basis for airlines of both countries to expand their flight services, and increases access for Australians to the significant and growing aviation market in the Gulf Region.

acting General Secretary.

Followed by a cultural meeting, a flamboyant cultural extravaganza ‘Samagamam’, a nostalgic event of har-

Iranian Contemporary Art Date: 23rd April to 10th May, 2012 These are images of conflations and juxtapositions. Sabzi’s paintings signify the crossroad of cultures and evoke one of the most pertinent signs of the multiculturalism that has been the hallmark of the arts in late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries. His art represents that humanized perspective where in memory persists across cultural zones, even when and where it has no relevance. So many of his works speak of conditions where values and perspectives seep through the chinks of any culture’s shield of protection. They are about the kind of interconnectedness that can no longer be undone; they are about the end of purity and the end of searching for origins and essence.

The Event-Art & Fashion Date: April 28-May 1 The Event will be sponsored by Goji Boutique and Qumarl4 and will be filled with an eclectic mix of designers who compliment each other, providing the visitors with an inspiring and unique shopping experience. To add to excitement Join them and feast your eyes! Dar Al Funoon is located In Al-Watiah, Behbehani Compound, House No.28. For more Information please call 22433738 or log onto www.daralfunoon-kw.com SADU HOUSE Opening: 7 May 2012 5pm-8pm Exhibition Hours: 8 May, 9am 1pm & 4- 8pm, 9 May, 9am - 1pm For its launch exhibition, Zen Crafts presents

mony and festivity will be staged to elevate the audience to multi-dimensional realms of visual experience. “The super show by Mohiniyattom exponent and recipient of many awards, Vinita Nedungady, winner of the best female playback singer of “ State Film Awards 2011”Kerala, Rajalakshmy and a glittering violin maestro and winner of “Asianet Star Singer” Vivekanandan, are expected to live up to aspirations of the audience.”, said Gopakumar, program convener.

the richness of Gulf handicrafts, blending traditional and modern design to create unique and expertly crafted contemporary pieces. An exquisite limited collection of hand-woven textiles inspired by the bedouin art of Sadu weaving, and award-winning designer/ silversmith Nedda El-Asmar’s take on the modern mabkhar, the Gulf’s iconic incense burner, will be unveiled. Join us on this cultural journey from Kuwait to Laos and Brussels in the brand’s quest for new interpretations of our Gulf heritage. Sodu House is located in Kuwait City, on Gulf Street, next to the Kuwait National Museum. For more Information please call 99402406 or email info@zericrafts.com Visit www.zericrafts.com Golf Tourney American Business Council of Kuwait invites you to its 11th Annual 4-man 18 hole Golf tournament at the Sahara Club on Friday, May 4th. If interested to participate, register now, individually or a team off our at americanbusinesscouncil@abckuwait2012 Non-Golfers are welcome to enjoy the day-out at the Sahara club and experience the delicious luncheon at the tournaments prize distribution ceremony.

Beachcombing in Kuwait The AWARE Center cordially invites you to its diwniya presentation entitled, “Beachcombing in Kuwait,” by Claudia Farkas Al-Rashoud on April 24 at 7 pm.

Virtually everyone who walks along a beach starts to collect odd bits and pieces that have been washed up and deposited along the strandline. On Kuwait’s beaches you can find many things that make beachcombing an interesting pastime. There are more than 500 varieties of mollusc shells alone. In addition to sea shells you might come across corals, sand dollars, sea urchins, cuttlefish ‘bones’, sea cucumbers, and various other types of marine life, and of course the inevitable man-made debris.

Join local photojournalist and experienced beachcomber Claudia Farkas Al Rashoud for this illustrated lecture and take a look at life along Kuwait’s strandline. Beachcombers of all ages are welcome. If you are interested in the topic, AWARE is the most appropriate place to visit.

Golden era Club Friday, 27th April from 5-7 pm. Join the Golden Era (an exclusive seniors club) for a 3500 km, zero carbon footprint, journey to a beautiful European country credited with amazing achievements. Dr Leos Tovarek’s dynamic presentation will give a unique insight into the Czech Republic; its history, culture, strengths, potential and future. Home sick Czech nationals are particularly invited to share their culture. Venue- House #34, next to Abu-Tammam Intermediate School for Boys, Sate Alhusari St., Block 2, Rumaithiya. For details call 97172788/ 66208183 or drop a line to goldenera60@yahoo.com

EMBASSY OF NEPAL The Embassy of Nepal will be moving from its current location to a new place in Jabriya, Block 8, St. 13, House No. 514, effective from 15th April, 2012. Till the new telephone connections are installed, the Embassy may be contacted by email: info@nepembku.org ■■■■■■■

EMBASSY OF NIGERIA The Nigerian embassy has its new office in Mishref. Block 3, Street 7, House 4. For enquires please call 25379541. Fax25387719. Email- nigeriakuwait@yahoo.com or nigeriankuwait@yahoo.co.uk ■■■■■■■

EMBASSY OF ROMANIA The Embassy of Romania to the State of Kuwait would like to inform that the Consular Section of the Embassy will be closed for construction works beginning with 18 April 2012, till 10 May 2012. During this period of time the Consular Section will not issue any type of visas for Romania and will not issue any Romanian passports or travel documents. The Consular Section will only be able to assist with notary deeds. We would like to apologize for any inconvenience.

■■■■■■■

EMBASSY OF THAILAND The Royal Thai Embassy in Kuwait, wishes to invite the Kuwaiti companies that deal business with Thai companies or those agencies of Thai commercial companies to visit the Embassy’s Commercial Office to register their relevant information to be part of the embassy’s business and trade database. The Royal Thai Embassy is located in Jabriya, Block 6, Street 8, Villa No. 1, Telephone No. 25317530 -25317531, Ext: 14.

■■■■■■■

EMBASSY OF UKRAINE We’d like to inform you that in response to the increasing number of our citizens who work in the state and the need for 24-hour operational telephone in case of emergency the Embassy of Ukraine in the State of Kuwait has opened “hotline telephone number” (+ 965) 972-79-206.

Write to us Send to What’s On upcoming events, birthdays or celebrations by email: local@kuwaittimes.net Fax: 24835619 / 20

Classifieds WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, 2012

ACCOMMODATION Sharing accommodation available in Abbassiya, single bachelor accommodation, double bedroom flat, rent KD 40/-, from May 1st.

Contact: 99162583 (C 3968) 23-4-2012

DIAL 161 FOR AIRPORT INFORMATION

Airlines JZR QTR JZR JZR QTR ETH GFA UAE ETD DHX FDB MSR QTR KAC THY DHX FAH JZR KAC BAW JZR KAC KAC FDB KAC KAC KAC KAC KAC UAE ABY QTR FDB IRA ETD GFA RNV FCX MEA JZR MSR IRM KNE JZR SVA IRC CLX MSR GFA RJA KAC FDB SVA KNE KAC QTR KAC SVA KAC KAC QTR JZR KAC ETD IYE SYR UAE VTF GFA SVA UAL JZR BAB JZR ABY ALK KAC KAC KAC FDB MSR JZR KAC KAC KAC JAI KAC AXB FDB OMA MEA QTR GFA KAC KLM UAE JZR ETD BBC ABY QTR DHX AIC GFA UAL SAI JZR DLH THY

Arrival Flights on Wednesday 25/4/2012 Flt Route 185 DUBAI 148 DOHA 539 CAIRO 267 BEIRUT 6130 DOHA 620 ADDIS ABABA 211 BAHRAIN 853 DUBAI 305 ABU DHABI 370 BAHRAIN 67 DUBAI 612 CAIRO 138 DOHA 544 CAIRO 770 ISTANBUL 170 BAHRAIN 201 DUBAI 555 ALEXANDRIA 412 MANILA 157 LONDON 529 ASSIUT 206 ISLAMABAD 382 DELHI 53 DUBAI 302 MUMBAI 352 COCHIN 284 DHAKA 362 COLOMBO 344 CHENNAI 855 DUBAI 125 SHARJAH 132 DOHA 55 DUBAI 603 SHIRAZ 301 ABU DHABI 213 BAHRAIN 311 YEREVAN 203 DUBAI 404 BEIRUT 165 DUBAI 606 LUXOR 5066 MASHAD 460 MEDINAH 561 SOHAG 9381 MEDINAH 6791 MASHAD 792 LUXEMBOURG 610 CAIRO 219 BAHRAIN 640 AMMAN 672 DUBAI 57 DUBAI 9384 JEDDAH 472 JEDDAH 790 MEDINAH 140 DOHA 790 MEDINAH 500 JEDDAH 788 JEDDAH 546 ALEXANDRIA 134 DOHA 535 CAIRO 538 SHARM EL SHEIKH 303 ABU DHABI 824 SANAA 341 DAMASCUS 857 DUBAI 302 AL MAKTOUM INTERNATI 215 BAHRAIN 510 RIYADH 982 WASHINGTON DC DULLES 177 DUBAI 436 BAHRAIN 777 JEDDAH 127 SHARJAH 227 COLOMBO 542 CAIRO 166 PARIS 786 JEDDAH 63 DUBAI 620 ASSIUT 787 RIYADH 618 DOHA 674 DUBAI 102 NEW YORK 572 MUMBAI 774 RIYADH 393 KOZHIKODE 61 DUBAI 647 MUSCAT 402 BEIRUT 146 DOHA 221 BAHRAIN 514 TEHRAN 417 AMSTERDAM 859 DUBAI 135 BAHRAIN 307 ABU DHABI 43 DHAKA 129 SHARJAH 136 DOHA 372 BAHRAIN 975 CHENNAI 217 BAHRAIN 981 BAHRAIN 441 LAHORE 239 AMMAN 636 FRANKFURT 772 ISTANBUL

Time 0:15 0:20 0:30 0:50 1:40 1:45 2:20 2:25 2:30 2:55 3:10 3:20 3:25 4:10 4:35 5:00 5:30 6:00 6:15 6:30 6:40 7:15 7:30 7:45 7:50 8:05 8:15 8:20 8:20 8:25 8:30 9:00 9:20 9:25 9:30 10:00 10:20 10:30 10:55 11:05 11:10 11:55 12:10 12:25 13:10 13:15 13:15 13:30 13:35 13:40 13:40 13:45 14:00 14:15 14:25 14:25 14:25 14:30 15:00 15:05 15:15 16:00 16:10 16:35 16:35 16:40 16:55 17:00 17:15 17:20 17:25 17:30 17:35 17:40 17:45 18:00 18:15 18:40 18:40 18:45 18:55 19:10 19:20 19:25 19:35 19:35 19:40 19:55 20:00 20:10 20:15 20:25 20:35 20:55 21:05 21:15 21:15 21:20 21:25 21:30 21:35 22:00 22:25 22:35 22:40 22:50 22:55 23:10 23:40

Airlines AIC UAL DLH PIA THY ETH QTR UAE FDB DHX ETD MSR QTR QTR JZR JZR GFA THY KAC KAC BAW FDB KAC ABY JZR KAC KAC UAE KAC QTR KAC FDB ETD IRA GFA RNV KAC FCX MEA MSR JZR KAC KNE KAC JZR IRM IRC GFA FDB MSR RJA SVA KAC KNE SVA SVA KAC JZR QTR KAC KAC ETD CLX JZR IYE SYR JZR QTR UAE GFA JZR ABY KAC SVA UAL JZR ALK FDB BAB MSR JZR KAC KAC JAI FDB KAC VTF KAC OMA MEA GFA JZR DHX KLM ABY ETD KAC UAE FAH QTR KAC KAC DHX BBC AXB QTR GFA KAC SAI

Departure Flights on Wednesday 25/4/2012 Flt Route 982 AHMEDABAD 981 WASHINGTON DC 637 FRANKFURT 206 LAHORE 773 ISTANBUL 621 ADDIS ABABA 6131 DOHA 854 DUBAI 68 DUBAI 371 BAHRAIN 306 ABU DHABI 613 CAIRO 139 DOHA 149 DOHA 560 SOHAG 164 DUBAI 212 BAHRAIN 771 ISTANBUL 545 ALEXANDRIA 537 SHARM EL SHEIKH 156 LONDON 54 DUBAI 175 FRANKFURT 126 SHARJAH 534 CAIRO 671 DUBAI 787 JEDDAH 856 DUBAI 789 MADINAH 133 DOHA 117 NEW YORK 56 DUBAI 302 ABU DHABI 602 SHIRAZ 214 BAHRAIN 312 YEREVAN 541 CAIRO 204 DUBAI 405 BEIRUT 619 ASSIUT 776 JEDDAH 103 LONDON 461 MADINAH 785 JEDDAH 176 DUBAI 5065 MASHHAD 6792 MASHHAD 220 BAHRAIN 58 DUBAI 611 CAIRO 641 AMMAN 2381 JEDDAH 673 DUBAI 473 JEDDAH 2383 JEDDAH 503 MADINAH 617 DOHA 786 RIYADH 135 DOHA 773 RIYADH 513 IMAM KHOMEINI 304 ABU DHABI 792 HONG KONG 238 AMMAN 824 SANAA 342 DAMASCUS 538 CAIRO 141 DOHA 858 DUBAI 216 BAHRAIN 134 BAHRAIN 128 SHARJAH 153 ISTANBUL 511 RIYADH 982 BAHRAIN 266 BEIRUT 228 DUBAI 64 DUBAI 439 BAHRAIN 621 ALEXANDRIA 184 DUBAI 283 DHAKA 361 COLOMBO 571 MUMBAI 62 DUBAI 331 TRIVANDRUM 303 KANDAHAR 351 KOCHI 648 MUSCAT 403 BEIRUT 222 BAHRAIN 502 LUXOR 171 BAHRAIN 417 DAMMAM 120 SHARJAH 308 ABU DHABI 381 DELHI 860 DUBAI 102 DUBAI 137 DOHA 301 MUMBAI 205 ISLAMABAD 373 BAHRAIN 44 DHAKA 394 KOCHI 147 DOHA 218 BAHRAIN 415 KUALA LUMPUR 442 LAHORE

Time 0:05 0:25 0:30 1:25 2:15 2:45 3:10 3:45 3:50 3:55 4:05 4:20 4:50 5:40 6:00 6:55 7:05 7:10 8:10 8:20 8:25 8:25 8:55 9:05 9:10 9:20 9:35 9:40 9:45 10:00 10:00 10:05 10:15 10:25 10:45 11:30 11:30 11:45 11:55 12:10 12:15 12:30 13:00 13:10 13:20 13:25 14:15 14:20 14:25 14:30 14:35 14:40 15:05 15:15 15:30 15:45 15:45 15:50 16:15 16:25 16:25 17:20 17:20 17:30 17:35 17:40 17:40 17:45 18:05 18:15 18:20 18:25 18:30 18:35 18:40 18:50 19:10 19:25 19:35 19:55 20:05 20:15 20:20 20:35 20:40 20:50 21:00 21:05 21:10 21:15 21:35 21:45 21:50 22:05 22:10 22:20 22:20 22:25 22:30 22:35 22:40 22:45 23:00 23:05 23:10 23:10 23:30 23:50 23:59

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

112 Ministry of Interior website: www.moi.gov.kw For labor-related inquiries and complaints: Call MSAL hotline 128

Fajr: Duhr: Asr: Maghrib: Isha:

03:47 11:46 15:22 18:21 19:43

THE PUBLIC AUTHORITY FOR CIVIL INFORMATION Automated enquiry about the Civil ID card is 1889988

Two bedroom, drawing room flat with air conditioners ready for occupancy from next month in Abbassiya, near Learners’ Own Academy School.

Contact: 66619705.

(C 3963) Sharing accommodation available for Indian bachelors in old Riggae, block-1, Street-1, Jada-3, building43. Contact: 97525930 21-4-2012

CHANGE OF NAME I, Nazia Begum, D/o Syed Aziz, R/o 18-8-134, Dargah Barhaneh Shah, Santoshnagar, Hyderabad, having passport No. E8384809, have changed my name, henceforth I shall be known and called as “Nazia Syed Aziz”. (C 3969) I, Sajna Kunhi Mohamed, holder of Indian passport No. E2271200 hereby change my name to Ayesha Mohammed hereafter.

(C 3970) 24-4-2012 I, Penigalapati Chinnanarsaiah, holder of Indian passport No. G9940624, residence of Venkatanarayanampalli, Chakrampeta post, Rajampeta, Kadapa District, Andhra Pradesh, have changed my name to Polarapu Babu Naidu.

(C 3967) 22-4-2012

CHANGE OF DOB I, Afzalur Rahman, son of Fazlur Rahman, holder of Bangladeshi passport No. E0982724 hereby change my date of birth from 0301-1968 to 03-01-1967.

(C 3960) 19-4-2012

MATRIMONIAL Marriage proposals are invited from parents of well educated boys preferably employed abroad for an ezhava girl, 24 years, height 159cm, fair good looking, star: Ailyam-Shudham, MSc (biotechnology) employed as JRF doing Ph.D at Central Govt. Institute in Kerala.

Contact Email: padmasree52@hotmail.com (C 3964) 21-4-2012

SITUATION WANTED Engineer need any work in any field, but I need good salary and I have experience in Secretary, Customer Service and Call Center.

Contact: 66606789.

(C 3961) 19-42012

mar, set book, vocabulary, notes and model exams available. Tel: 65791555.

Arabic language teacher, masters in methods of teaching for secondary and intermediate students. Tel: 50644685.

Senior Arabic language teacher, elementary and intermediate, long experience in Kuwait curricula, explaining grammar rules and starting those weak in reading and writing. Tel: 99262948.

Senior chemistr y and physics teacher. Long experience for 10th, 11th and 12th stages. Intermediate science and applied institutions. Highly competent.

Tel: 99542922.

Mathematics and statistics female teacher for female students in the secondary, intermediate, university and applied institutions female students. Tel: 99410370.

Female Syrian Arabic language teacher for elementary and intermediate, and starting the weak using Halaby method in her house located in Abdallah Al-Mubarak area. Tel: 50513699.

Senior biology and science teacher for 12th, 11th and 10th grades, and science for all intermediate classes, religious institutes, nursing, educational experience, simple explanation for fast understanding.

Tel: 66543474.

Math teacher for secondary stage, language schools, bilingual schools and intermediate stage: Algebra, Gmath, Geometry, Statistics for arts and science branches. Tel: 66974020.

English language teacher specialized in starting elementary and intermediate, 10th and 11th experienced in starting functions, gram-

Sabah Hospital

24812000

Amiri Hospital

22450005

Maternity Hospital

24843100

Mubarak Al-Kabir Hospital

25312700

Chest Hospital

24849400

Farwaniya Hospital

24892010

Adan Hospital

23940620

Ibn Sina Hospital

24840300

Al-Razi Hospital

24846000

Physiotherapy Hospital

24874330/9

Clinics Rabiya

24732263

Rawdha

22517733

Senior Arabic language and Islamic studies teacher to help weak and slow learning students in a short time. 20 years experience, teaching all elementary subjects except E. Arabic and Islamic studies for elementary and intermediate.

Tel: 66896088.

Adailiya

22517144

Khaldiya

24848075

Khaifan

24849807

Shamiya

24848913

Shuwaikh

24814507

Abdullah Salim

22549134

Al-Nuzha

22526804

Senior mathematics and statistics teacher. Long experience in Kuwait curricula to teach secondary students both science and arts branches, and university admission exams. Tel: 97975096.

Industrial Shuwaikh

24814764

Al-Qadisiya

22515088

Dasmah

22532265

Bneid Al-Ghar

22531908

Senior chemistry teacher for secondary students and science for intermediate. All reviews and exams, and university qualification chemistry. Tel: 99560268.

Female senior mathematics teacher, 35 years experience in Kuwait for secondary, intermediate and elementary stages, applied, initial university, communications and navigation and special courses. Tel: 97926737.

Elementary stage teacher, 12 years experience, ready to give remedial lessons for all topics in the elementary stage in a simple method.

Tel: 66594901.

English teacher specialized in elementary and intermediate, experienced in grammar, book questions and synonyms. Highly experienced in Kuwait curricula.

Tel: 97373301.

TUITION Teacher available to teach Mathematics B.Maths, Algebra, Calculus, Geography, Science and Statistics for British, American and bilingual school and university students. Contact: 97170935.

(C 3954) 18-4-2012

Hospitals

No: 15429

Al-Shaab

22518752

Al-Kibla

22459381

Ayoun Al-Kibla

22451082

Mirqab

22456536

Sharq

22465401

Salmiya

25746401

Jabriya

25316254

Maidan Hawally

25623444

Bayan

25388462

Mishref

25381200

W.Hawally

22630786

Sabah

24810221

Jahra

24770319

New Jahra

24575755

West Jahra

24772608

South Jahra

24775066

North Jahra

24775992

North Jleeb

24311795

Ardiya

24884079

Firdous

24892674

Al-Omariya

24719048

N.Khaitan

24710044

Fintas

3900322

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, 2012

S Africa’s Zuma on track for second term

By Peroshni Govender

S

outh Africa’s President Jacob Zuma is the f avourite to win a second term to lead the ruling ANC in a race dominated by factional politics instead of policy reforms for Africa’s most powerful economy. More than a dozen insiders in the ruling African National Congress told Reuters that Zuma had the race in hand even though there are strong factions in the party who want him out and could make things difficult. “It’s Zuma’s race to lose,” said one senior ANC member.

The winner of December’s party vote is almost certain to be its nominee in the 2014 presidential election. Since the ANC enjoys virtual one-party rule, its nominee is almost assured of winning the five year term as president.

The race will be fought at the local level with little attention paid to warnings from all three of the major global credit ratings agencies who have said the economy is on the wrong track under Zuma, posing long-term risks to stability.

The battle to lead the 100-year-old ANC according to party insiders is a two-horse race between Zuma and Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe. Zuma has a commanding lead in delegates and unless Motlanthe make huge strides by the electoral conference in December, Zuma should secure victory. Motlanthe, or any other candidate, is not going to openly declare their challenge to Zuma due to a party culture where raising one’s hand too early is tantamount to political suicide.

The race will be fought behind closed doors, leaving out a public that has grown increasingly angry at the ANC for not doing enough to fix a broken education system,

failing hospitals, rampant poverty and chronic unemployment. “Motlanthe has strong support but it’s all about timing and we want to make sure that his chances are good before nominations open,” said a source close to the deputy president.

The ANC, a former liberation movement that became the ruling party when the white-minority apartheid regime ended 18 years ago, is a broad-tent political grouping with members ranging from hard core communists to business moguls. Its consensus-building approach has stifled radical ideas from the left that include nationalising mines and seizing white-owned farmland. But it has also allowed a rot to set in. Its allies, its members and voters have criticised it for turning a blind eye to corruption eating away at social welfare spending.

Zuma, Motlanthe and many senior leaders have faced suspicions of corruption, with many in the party using leaks of graft on rivals as a way to settle political scores.

“The perception that corruption is increasing on his watch, and that Zuma can be bought, weigh him down,” one senior official said. Comments from Nedbank chairman Reuel Khoza, one of the country’s most respected businessmen, touched a nerve when he warned democracy is under threat from politicians incapable of running the country. “Our political leadership’s moral quotient is degenerating and we are fast losing the checks and balances that are necessary to prevent a recurrence of the past,” Khoza wrote in the annual report of South Africa’s fourth largest bank. “South Africa is widely recognised for its liberal and enlightened constitution, yet we observe a strange breed of leaders who are determined to undermine the rule of law and override the constitution,” Khoza

said.

The ANC’s top brass denounced Khoza this month, with some members calling him counter-revolutionary.

But economists say if the ANC government keeps up its current policies, South Africa risks slipping to new depths of unemployment, debt and corruption that could swell the ranks of the destitute and undermine long-term prospects.

Even if Zuma is replaced, it’s unlikely Motlanthe will inject much needed reforms to make the economy more competitive. Motlanthe, who served as the caretaker president for eight months, when former President Thabo Mbeki was ousted in Sept 2008 before his term ended, avoided confrontation during his stay in power. The period was one of the most fractious in the post-apartheid era and Motlanthe was a unifying force in the party.

Although his unionist’s political upbringing was shaped by leftist theories, he is seen at home as a moderate and is well regarded in international circles.

But the party race to succeed Zuma will be about handing out favours on the local level, and not addressing deficiencies in his government, analysts said. “The ANC should really consider leadership and policy side by side. Not all leader candidates are equally capable to steer and lead complex policy issues in complex public institutions,” Professor Susan Booysens from University of Witwatersrand said. “The ANC is at a point now where it is essential to move into this nuanced position in order to get governance right.”

Originally part of the “Zunami”, a term used to describe Zuma’s unstoppable rise to power, Motlanthe now appears to be fronting a campaign of dejected

Zuma supporters and Mbeki loyalists. “The mission to replace Mbeki was so great that we did not strategise beyond his demise and the consequences are now all too glaring,” said a trade union leader who previously backed Zuma’s rise to power. “Policy is a mess and the party is dogged by infighting which served Zuma in his election bid but now threatens to ruin the ANC”.

Since becoming president in 2009, Zuma a former ANC intelligence chief, has been seen as an ineffectual leader muddling through his term. One success was raising the country’s diplomatic profile by having South Africa included into the BRIC - Brazil, Russia, India and China - group of leading emerging economies. His major pieces of legislation include measures to protect state secrets, which critics said will give the government greater power in hiding reports pointing to corruption.

Job creation is one of Zuma’s top policy priorities, but since he took office, the country has lost about a million jobs, with the manufacturing sector the hardest hit. Many of these posts will not come back because labour has priced itself out of the market, with the ANC bowing to its union allies to protect labour friendly laws that drive up personnel costs. The average factory worker in South Africa earns about six times as much as a factory worker in China and is less efficient. Industries in sectors which were once internationally competitive, such as footwear, have faded. Zuma’s government has sent to parliament four major labour reforms aimed at pleasing labour by forcing employers to take on temporary workers as full time staff. But a report commissioned by the presidency said the measures would drive up joblessness by adding more costs and regulations on employers. — Reuters

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, 2012

TV PROGRAMS

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

Untamed & Uncut Human Prey Safari Sisters Safari Sisters Wildlife SOS Wolverine Revealed Going Ape Wildlife SOS Dolphin Days Dolphin Days Orangutan Island Wild Animal Orphans Natural Born Hunters The Really Wild Show Project Puppy America’s Cutest...

Wolverine Revealed Animal Precinct Animal Cops Phoenix Cell Dogs RSPCA: On The Frontline Wildlife SOS Wolverine Revealed Animal Battlegrounds The Really Wild Show Breed All About It Breed All About It Dogs 101 Project Puppy Project Puppy Wildlife SOS Going Ape Orangutan Island Animal Battlegrounds Astrochimp Wildest Arctic

00:00 The Hairy Bikers’ Cookbook 00:25 Indian Food Made Easy 00:50 Saturday Kitchen 2007/08 01:15 Living In The Sun 02:05 Bargain Hunt 02:50 Rachel’s Favourite Food For Living 03:10 The Hairy Bikers’ Cookbook 03:35 Antiques Roadshow 04:25 Living In The Sun 05:15 Bargain Hunt 06:00 Cash In The Attic USA 06:20 A Taste Of My Life 06:45 Cash In The Attic USA 07:10 The Hairy Bikers’ Cookbook 07:35 A Taste Of My Life 08:00 Cash In The Attic USA 08:20 MasterChef Australia 09:10 MasterChef Australia 09:35 Bargain Hunt 10:20 Antiques Roadshow 11:10 Come Dine With Me 12:00 10 Years Younger 12:50 What Not To Wear 13:40 What Not To Wear 14:30 Fantasy Homes In The City 15:15 House Swap 16:00 Bargain Hunt 16:45 Antiques Roadshow 17:35 New Scandinavian Cooking 18:00 Delicious Iceland 18:30 The Hairy Bikers’ Cookbook 18:55 Indian Food Made Easy 19:25 James Martin’s Brittany 19:50 10 Years Younger 20:40 What Not To Wear

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

Snapped Nightmare In Suburbia Britain’s Bravest Cops Snapped Parking Wars Parking Wars Nightmare In Suburbia Snapped Power, Privilege And Justice Crime Stories Crime And Punishment Crime Central Power, Privilege And Justice Crime Stories Crime And Punishment Crime Central Crime Stories Power, Privilege And Justice Crime Stories Crime And Punishment Crime Central Snapped Nightmare In Suburbia Bloodwork Watching The Detectives

00:15 01:10 01:35 02:30 03:25 04:20 05:15 05:40

Ultimate Cops Destroyed In Seconds Dirty Jobs Battle Machine Bros Ultimate Survival Mythbusters How It’s Made How Stuff’s Made

06:05 07:00 07:50 08:45 09:40 10:05 10:30 10:55 11:25 16:00 16:55 17:20 18:15 19:10 19:40 20:05 20:35

Dirty Jobs Mythbusters Penn & Teller Tell A Lie Mythbusters How Stuff’s Made Cake Boss Border Security Auction Hunters Ultimate Survival Battle Machine Bros Wheeler Dealers Ultimate Survival Mythbusters How It’s Made How Stuff’s Made Border Security Auction Hunters

00:30 Deadliest Catch 01:15 City Chic 02:05 Smash Lab 02:50 Extreme Engineering 03:40 Time Warp 04:05 The Reinventors 04:30 Mythbusters 05:20 Treasure Quest 06:05 Sunrise Earth International 07:00 Time Warp 07:25 The Reinventors 07:50 Smash Lab 08:35 Man, Woman, Wild 09:25 Solving History With Olly Steeds 10:10 Street Customs Berlin 11:00 City Chic 11:45 The Reinventors 12:10 Mythbusters 13:00 Smash Lab 13:50 World’s Most Expensive Rides 14:15 World’s Most Expensive Rides 14:35 Time Warp 15:00 The Reinventors 15:25 Deadliest Catch 16:15 Treasure Quest 17:00 Cafe Racer 17:25 Cafe Racer 17:50 Desert Car Kings 18:40 City Chic 19:30 Smash Lab 20:20 World’s Most Expensive Rides 20:45 World’s Most Expensive Rides 21:10 Treasure Quest

00:35 How The Universe Works 01:25 The Tech Show 01:50 Through The Wormhole With Morgan Freeman 02:40 Space Pioneer 03:35 How Does That Work?

04:25 Junkyard Mega-Wars 05:20 Ecopolis 06:10 How The Universe Works 07:00 The Gadget Show 07:25 The Gadget Show 07:50 Kings Of Construction 08:40 Through The Wormhole With Morgan Freeman 09:35 Space Pioneer 10:25 How Does That Work?

11:20 Ecopolis 12:15 Junkyard Mega-Wars 13:05 How The Universe Works 13:55 The Gadget Show 14:20 The Gadget Show 14:50 How Does That Work?

15:40 The Tech Show 16:05 Ecopolis 17:00 Kings Of Construction 17:50 How The Universe Works 18:40 Weird Or What?

19:30 Cool Stuff & How It Works 20:20 The Gadget Show 20:45 The Gadget Show 21:10 Build It Bigger: Rebuilding Greensburg

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

Fairly Odd Parents Fairly Odd Parents Brandy & Mr Whiskers Brandy & Mr Whiskers Replacements Replacements Emperor’s New School Brandy & Mr Whiskers Replacements Replacements Fairly Odd Parents Fish Hooks Recess So Random Wizards Of Waverly Place Good Luck Charlie Shake It Up Phineas And Ferb Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Jake & The Neverland Pirates Handy Manny The Hive Mouk High School Musical

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

Good Luck Charlie A.N.T. Farm Wizards Of Waverly Place Phineas And Ferb So Random Suite Life On Deck Good Luck Charlie A.N.T. Farm Phineas And Ferb Recess So Random High School Musical 2 Good Luck Charlie Have A Laugh Wizards Of Waverly Place Hannah Montana Phineas And Ferb Good Luck Charlie The Return Of Jafar Wizards Of Waverly Place Kim Possible

06:00 Kid vs Kat 06:20 American Dragon 06:45 Rekkit Rabbit 07:10 Pokemon: Black And White 07:35 Timon And Pumbaa 08:00 Phineas And Ferb 08:25 Pair Of Kings 08:50 Kick Buttowski 09:15 Zeke & Luther 09:40 I’m In The Band 10:05 Phineas And Ferb 10:30 Kid vs Kat 10:55 The Avengers: Earths Mightiest Heroes 11:20 Pair Of Kings 11:45 Rekkit Rabbit 12:10 American Dragon 12:35 Kick Buttowski 13:00 Phineas And Ferb 13:25 I’m In The Band 13:45 Kid vs Kat 14:10 Pair Of Kings 14:35 Zeke & Luther 15:00 Rekkit Rabbit 15:25 Pokemon: Black And White 15:50 Timon And Pumbaa 16:15 Kickin It 16:40 Pair Of Kings 20:25 Zeke & Luther 20:50 Escape From Scorpion Island 21:20 Aaron Stone 21:45 The Avengers: Earths Mightiest Heroes 22:10 Phineas And Ferb 22:35 Kid vs Kat 23:00 Programmes Start At 6:00am KSA

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

Style Star THS THS Behind The Scenes Extreme Close-Up Sexiest Extreme Hollywood THS Behind The Scenes E! News Bridalplasty THS E! News Kendra Kendra Keeping Up With The Kardashians Keeping Up With The Kardashians Style Star E!es Behind The Scenes Dirty Soap E! News THS Ice Loves Coco Ice Loves Coco Keeping Up With The Kardashians Kourtney & Kim Take New York E! News Chelsea Lately Keeping Up With The Kardashians

00:15 Ride Guide Snow 2010 00:40 Superstars USA 01:30 World Combat League 02:20 Ride Guide Snow 2010 03:10 Enfusion 04:00 Gumball 3000: London To New York 04:25 Gumball 3000: London To New York 04:50 Superstars USA 05:40 World Combat League 06:30 Ride Guide Mountainbike 2009 08:00 Tread BMX 08:25 Trulli Love 09:15 Lucas Oil AMA Motocross Championships...

10:05 Lucas Oil AMA Motocross Championships...

10:55 Fantasy Factory 11:45 Untracked 12:10 Untracked 12:35 Ride Guide Snow 2010 13:25 Superstars USA 14:15 World Combat League 15:05 Fantasy Factory 15:30 Fantasy Factory 15:55 Untracked 16:45 Tread BMX 17:10 Trulli Love 18:00 Lucas Oil AMA Motocross Championships...

19:40 Superstars USA 20:30 Ride Guide Snow 2010 21:20 Man’s Work 21:45 Man’s Work 22:10 World Combat League 23:00 Enfusion 23:50 Ride Guide Snow 2010

00:05 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives 00:30 Kid In A Candy Store 00:55 Guy’s Big Bite 01:20 Guy’s Big Bite 01:45 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives 02:10 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives 02:35 Meat & Potatoes 03:00 Meat & Potatoes 03:25 Barefoot Contessa - Back To Basics 03:50 Barefoot Contessa - Back To Basics 04:15 Dessert First With Anne Thornton 04:40 Good Eats 05:05 Luke Nguyen’s Vietnam 05:30 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives 05:50 Staten Island Cakes 06:35 Barefoot Contessa 07:00 Staten Island Cakes 07:50 World Cafe Asia 08:15 Barefoot Contessa 08:40 Good Eats 09:05 Dessert First With Anne Thornton 09:30 Paula’s Best Dishes 09:55 Luke Nguyen’s Vietnam 10:20 Lidia’s Italy 10:45 Reza, Spice Prince Of India 11:10 Unwrapped 11:35 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives 12:00 Staten Island Cakes 12:50 Aarti Party 13:15 Cooking For Real 13:40 Barefoot Contessa 14:05 Dessert First With Anne Thornton 14:30 Have Cake, Will Travel 14:55 Paula’s Best Dishes 15:20 Meat & Potatoes 15:45 Iron Chef America 16:35 Cooking For Real 17:00 Barefoot Contessa 17:25 Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives 17:50 Aarti Party 18:15 Luke Nguyen’s Vietnam 18:40 Dessert First With Anne Thornton 19:05 Have Cake, Will Travel 19:30 Staten Island Cakes 20:20 Iron Chef America 21:10 Unwrapped 21:35 Unwrapped 22:00 Kid In A Candy Store 22:25 Kid In A Candy Store 22:50 Good Eats - Special 23:15 Good Eats 23:40 Meat & Potatoes

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

The Haunted A Haunting Couples Who Kill Deadly Women Dr G: Medical Examiner The Haunted A Haunting Disappeared FBI Files Murder Shift Mystery Diagnosis Real Emergency Calls Who On Earth Did I Marry?

On The Case With Paula Zahn Disappeared Street Patrol Street Patrol Murder Shift Mystery Diagnosis Real Emergency Calls Who On Earth Did I Marry?

On The Case With Paula Zahn Disappeared Forensic Detectives Murder Shift Real Emergency Calls Mystery Diagnosis Who On Earth Did I Marry?

On The Case With Paula Zahn Disappeared LA: City Of Demons Cops And Coyotes Dr G: Medical Examiner

01:10 01:25 03:00 04:40 06:15 08:00 09:55 11:30 13:15 14:55 16:50 18:25 18:40 20:25 22:00 23:30

Mgm’s Big Screen-FAM Lost Junction-PG Welcome To L.A.-18 Holiday Heart-PG The Last Of The Finest Death Rides A Horse-PG One Summer Love-PG Tennessee Nights Flight From Ashiya-PG Twelve Angry Men Carrie (2002) Mgm’s Big Screen-FAM Stanley & Iris-PG Timebomb Safari 3000-PG Gothic

00:00 Lonely Planet: Roads Less Travelled 01:00 A World Apart 02:00 Treks In A Wild World 03:00 Extreme Tourist Afghanistan 04:00 Graham’s World 04:30 Graham’s World 05:00 Wild Rides 05:30 Wild Rides 06:00 Lonely Planet: Roads Less Travelled 07:00 A World Apart 08:00 Treks In A Wild World 09:00 Extreme Tourist Afghanistan 10:00 Graham’s World 10:30 Graham’s World 11:00 Wild Rides 11:30 Wild Rides 12:00 Lonely Planet: Roads Less Travelled 13:00 Weird & Wonderful Hotels 13:30 Young Global Hotshots 14:00 Miracle On Everest 15:00 Somewhere In China 16:00 Banged Up Abroad 17:00 A World Apart 18:00 Meet The Amish 19:00 Weird & Wonderful Hotels 19:30 Young Global Hotshots 20:00 Miracle On Everest 21:00 Somewhere In China 22:00 Banged Up Abroad

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

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

Engineering Connections Inside Air Crash Investigation Hunter Hunted Inside Air Crash Investigation Hooked One Ocean Engineering Connections Inside Air Crash Investigation Hunter Hunted Inside Air Crash Investigation Hooked Big, Bigger, Biggest Engineering Connections Inside Air Crash Investigation World’s Deadliest Animals Perilous Journeys

Shadow Hunters Golden Seals of Skeleton Shark Men Built For The Kill Predator CSI My Life Is A Zoo Clan Of The Meerkat Monster Fish Insects From Hell Insects From Hell Animal Underworld Shark Men Built For The Kill Predator CSI Alaskan Killer Shark Monster Fish Insects From Hell Insects From Hell Animal Underworld Shark Men Built For The Kill Predator CSI Monster Fish Insects From Hell Insects From Hell Animal Underworld Shark Men Built For The Kill

00:00 Icarus-18 02:00 Devil-PG15 04:00 Never Back Down 2: The Beatdown-18 06:00 Taxi-PG15 08:00 The Warlords-PG15 10:00 Star Trek: Generations-PG15 12:00 S.W.A.T.: Firefight-PG15 14:00 The Warlords-PG15 16:00 Ip Man-PG15 18:00 S.W.A.T.: Firefight-PG15 20:00 League Of Extrordinary Gentlemen-PG15 22:00 Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within-PG

01:00 A Way With Murder-18 03:00 According To Greta-PG15 05:00 West Is West-PG15 07:00 The Tender Hook-PG15 09:00 Bound By A Secret-PG15 11:00 Elle: A Modern Cinderella Tale-PG15 13:00 West Is West-PG15 15:00 Bound By A Secret-PG15 17:00 Elle: A Modern Cinderella Tale-PG15 19:00 Camp Hope-PG15 21:00 It’s Kind Of A Funny Story 23:00 Drag Me To Hell-18

Never Back Down 2: The Beatdown ON OSN MOVIES ACTION

00:30 The Daily Show With Jon Stewart 01:00 The Colbert Report 03:30 10 Items Or Less 04:00 King Of The Hill 04:30 The Tonight Show With Jay Leno 06:00 Weird Science

The Switch ON OSN PREMIERE 08:00 King Of The Hill 09:30 Raising Hope 11:00 The Tonight Show With Jay Leno 12:00 Weird Science 12:30 King Of The Hill 14:00 10 Items Or Less 15:00 Raising Hope 16:30 Weird Science 18:30 10 Items Or Less 19:00 Two And A Half Men 20:00 The Tonight Show With Jay Leno 21:00 The Daily Show With Jon Stewart 21:30 The Colbert Report 22:00 Angry Boys 23:00 It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia

00:00 01:00 02:00 03:00 05:00 06:00 07:00 07:30 08:00 09:00 10:00 11:00 12:00 12:30 13:00 14:00 15:00 16:00 16:30 17:00 18:00 19:00 20:00 21:00 22:00 23:00

Parenthood Pillars Of The Earth House Grey’s Anatomy Burn Notice Parenthood Emmerdale Coronation Street The Nine Lives Of Chloe King The Ellen DeGeneres Show Grey’s Anatomy House Emmerdale Coronation Street The Ellen DeGeneres Show The Nine Lives Of Chloe King Parenthood Emmerdale Coronation Street The Ellen DeGeneres Show The Nine Lives Of Chloe King Once Upon A Time Grimm The Glades Law & Order: Criminal Intent The Tudors

01:00 Ronin-18 03:00 Never Back Down 2: The Beatdown-18 05:00 Sugarhouse-18 07:00 Blank Slate-PG15 09:00 The Manchurian Candidate 11:15 The Front-PG15 13:00 No Time To Fear-PG15 14:45 The Manchurian Candidate17:00 Top Gun-PG15 19:00 League Of Extrordinary Gentlemen-PG15 21:00 Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within-PG 23:00 District 9-PG15

00:00 It’s A Wonderful Afterlife 02:00 Love And Mary-PG15 04:00 The Addams Family-PG 06:00 Addams Family Values-PG 08:00 One Hot Summer-PG15 10:00 Roommates-PG15 12:00 Last Of The Living-PG15 14:00 Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star-PG15 16:00 It’s A Wonderful Afterlife 18:00 Jack Goes Boating-PG15 20:00 Reach The Rock-18 22:00 Mystery Men-PG15

01:45 L’armee Du Crime-18 04:15 Vanity Fair-PG15 06:45 Inside Job-PG15 09:00 Star Trek III: The Search For Spock-PG15 11:00 Not Since You-PG15 12:45 Inside Job-PG15 14:45 Blind Mountain-PG15 16:30 The Sting-PG 18:45 Coach Carter-PG15 21:00 Thelma And Louise-18 23:15 Henry & June-R

01:00 03:00 05:00 07:00 09:00 11:00

Perrier’s Bounty-18 12 Men Of Christmas-PG15 Elevator Girl-PG15 Strength And Honour-PG15 Tooth Fairy-PG Nanny McPhee And The Big

Bang-PG 13:00 Like Mike-PG 15:00 16 To Life-PG15 17:00 Tooth Fairy-PG 19:00 Charlie St. Cloud-PG15 21:00 It’s Kind Of A Funny Story23:00 A Nightmare On Elm Street-18

00:00 Young Fisherman-PG 01:45 Marco Antonio-PG 03:45 Columbus III: The New World06:00 Flubber-PG 08:00 Ramses Of Egypt-PG 10:00 Nanny McPhee And The Big Bang-PG 12:00 Ramona And Beezus-PG 14:00 Columbus III: The New World16:00 The Lucky Dragon-PG15 18:00 Nanny McPhee And The Big Bang-PG 20:00 Hua Mulan-PG 22:00 Ramona And Beezus-PG

00:00 Pelican Blood-18 01:45 Life As We Know It-PG15 03:45 Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps-PG15 06:00 The Chaperone-PG15 08:00 Pina-PG15 10:00 Slipstream-PG15 12:00 The Chaperone-PG15 14:00 Head Of State-PG15 16:00 Slipstream-PG15 18:00 The Private Lives Of Pippa Lee-PG15 20:00 The Switch-18 22:00 Extract-PG15

01:00 UFC 145 04:00 Super Rugby 06:00 European PGA Tour Highlights 07:00 Snooker 10:00 Super Rugby 12:00 Live Snooker 16:00 Futbol Mundial 16:30 Live Snooker 20:00 Super Rugby Highlights 21:00 Live Snooker

00:00 01:00 01:30 02:00 04:00 06:00 07:00 07:30 08:00 10:00 10:30 11:00 12:00 13:30 14:00 16:00 17:00 18:00 19:00 19:30 20:00 22:00 22:30

AFL Winners Futbol Mundial Mobil 1 The Grid NRL Premiership NRL Premiership Trans World Sport Futbol Mundial SPL Highlights Scottish Premier League Adventure Sports Adventure Sports Adventure Sports volvo Ocean Race Mobil 1 The Grid NRL Premiership AFL Winners Super Rugby Highlights Trans World Sport Top 14 Highlights NRL Full Time Super Rugby Adventure Sports Top 14

03:00 Snooker 06:00 Ping Pong World Championship 07:00 Golfing World 08:00 Asian Tour Highlights 09:00 Super Rugby Highlights 10:00 AFL Winners 11:00 Golfing World 12:00 NRL Premiership 14:00 Volvo Ocean Race 15:30 Golfing World 16:30 Pro 12 Celtic League 18:30 AFL Winners 19:30 Trans World Sport 20:30 Golfing World 21:30 European Tour Weekly 22:00 Top 14 Highlights 22:30 Scottish Premier League Highlights 23:00 Futbol Mundial 23:30 Super League

01:00 04:00 05:00 06:00 07:00 08:00 09:00 12:00 12:30 13:00 15:00 15:30 16:00 16:30 17:30 18:00 19:00 20:00 21:00 22:00 23:00

Prizefighter UFC Unleashed UFC The Ultimate Fighter UFC Unleashed WWE Vintage Collection WWE NXT Prizefighter Mobil 1 WWE This Week WWE SmackDown UAE National Race Day Series UAE National Race Day Series Mobil 1 The Grid WWE Vintage Collection V8 Supercars Extra V8 Supercars Highlights V8 Supercars Highlights UFC Unleashed UFC Unleashed UFC The Ultimate Fighter V8 Supercars Championship

01:40 The Formula 03:30 TCM Presents Under The...-PG 04:00 Never Let Me Go-FAM 05:30 Ride The High Country-PG 07:00 Blackboard Jungle-PG 08:40 The Adventures Of Quentin Durward-FAM 10:20 Adam’s Rib-FAM 12:00 Woman Of The Year-PG 13:50 The Big Sleep-PG 15:40 Edward, My Son-PG 17:30 Hotel-PG 19:30 The Dirty Dozen 22:00 Mrs. Soffel-PG 23:50 The Color Purple

00:00 01:00 02:00 02:30 03:00 03:30 04:00 05:00 06:00 07:00 08:00 08:30 09:00 09:30 10:00 11:00 12:00 13:00 14:00 14:30 15:00 15:30 16:00 17:00 18:00 19:00 20:00 21:00

Ice Road Truckers Mummy Forensics Storage Wars Pawn Stars Pawn Stars Storage Wars Mud Men Mud Men Ice Road Truckers Mummy Forensics Storage Wars Pawn Stars Pawn Stars Storage Wars Mud Men Mud Men Ice Road Truckers Mummy Forensics Storage Wars Pawn Stars Pawn Stars Storage Wars Mud Men Mud Men Ice Road Truckers Mummy Forensics Tales Of The Gun Soviet Storm: WWII In The East

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

Fashion Police Fashion Classics Open House Videofashion Daily Videofashion News How Do I Look?

Whose Wedding Is It Anyway?

Whose Wedding Is It Anyway?

Clean House Videofashion News Videofashion News Videofashion Daily Open House Fashion Classics How Do I Look?

Whose Wedding Is It Anyway?

Clean House: New York Dress My Nest Mel B: It’s A Scary World How Do I Look?

Giuliana & Bill Kimora: Life In The Fab Lane Kimora: Life In The Fab Lane Giuliana & Bill Big Rich Texas Big Rich Texas How Do I Look?

How Do I Look?

Fashion Police Wicked Fit

35

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, 2012

stars CROSSWORD 658

STAR TRACK

CALVIN & HOBBES

Aries (March 21-April 19) Deception and interruptions have run rampant these last few weeks—now, all this is past. You can work without fear of saying or doing the wrong thing—finally. Politics in the workplace seems to have eased—better working conditions are underway. There is a special emphasis on you and your accomplishments now. Your effort at keeping the peace between higher-ups and employees brings you much respect. Pay attention to the tendency to move into extremes within all areas of your life. When you learn to strike a balance and to operate on an even keel, you will find more control in your life than you ever had before.

You seem lighthearted and easygoing. You are learning all sorts of things about the neat person that lives in you.

Taurus (April 20-May 20) You should be able to get your ideas across to others with little effort. This is the beginning of a bright and witty day. Your communication skills are at a high. Through new studies, you will make great leaps forward in your career. You are just beginning to realize how much you can do to make a positive difference in the life of others as well as your own. This is a good time for clear deliberation and solving problems. This afternoon you may be in a serious frame of mind and find yourself dealing with matters of much concern and responsibility. Insert a bit of laughter into the afternoon—it will lighten your load for now. This evening, music and all sorts of entertainment and enjoyment are likely to come your way.

POOCH CAFE ACROSS 1. Inquire about.

4. The Tibeto-Burman language spoken in the Thailand and Burmese borderlands.

9. Willing to face danger.

13. Aircraft landing in bad weather in which the pilot is talked down by ground control using precision approach radar.

14. The mission in San Antonio where in 1836 Mexican forces under Santa Anna besieged and massacred American rebels who were fighting to make Texas independent of Mexico.

15. The chief solid component of mammalian urine.

16. Thigh of a hog (usually smoked).

17. United States photographer remembered for her portraits of rural workers during the Depression (1895-1965).

18. A girl or young woman who is unmarried.

19. A unit of current equal to 10 amperes.

21. (Akkadian) Mother of the gods and consort of Apsu.

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

25. An ugly evil-looking old woman.

26. A bachelor's degree in architecture.

29. (Akkadian) God of wisdom.

33. A unit of area (4840 square yards) used in English-speaking countries.

34. A European river.

38. An enclosed space.

39. A radioactive element of the actinide series.

41. A small fragment.

46. A complex red organic pigment containing iron and other atoms to which oxygen binds.

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

48. Of or relating to or involving an area.

55. Any of numerous perennial bulbous herbs having linear or broadly lanceolate leaves and usually a single showy flower.

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

58. A white linen liturgical vestment with sleeves.

59. Any organic compound formed by adding alcohol molecules to aldehyde molecules.

61. (prefix) Bad or erroneous or lack of.

62. The seed of the cereal grass.

63. West Indian tree having racemes of fragrant white flowers and yielding a durable timber and resinous juice.

64. The residue that remains when something is burned.

DOWN 1. Title for a civil or military leader (especially in Turkey).

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

3. God of love and erotic desire.

4. A high-crowned black cap (usually made of felt or sheepskin) worn by men in Turkey and Iran and the Caucasus.

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

6. (the feminine of raja) A Hindu princess or the wife of a raja.

7. A graphical record of electric currents associated with muscle contractions.

8. German mathematician (1882-1935).

9. A Russian prison camp for political prisoners.

10. The biblical name for ancient Syria.

11. Flat tableland with steep edges.

12. Situated in or facing or moving toward the east.

20. Female equine animal.

22. A plant hormone promoting elongation of stems and roots.

24. The 17th letter of the Greek alphabet.

27. The act of scanning.

28. Type genus of the family Arcidae.

30. (criminal law) Money that must be forfeited by the bondsman if an accused person fails to appear in court for trial.

31. A cruel wicked and inhuman person.

32. Something causes misery or death.

35. An official prosecutor for a judicial district.

36. An international organization of European countries formed after World War II to reduce trade barriers and increase cooperation among its members.

37. Sole genus of the family Naiadaceae.

40. An esoteric or occult matter that is traditionally secret.

41. A Russian prison camp for political prisoners.

42. Of or relating to or characteristic of Thailand of its people.

43. A high-crowned black cap (usually made of felt or sheepskin) worn by men in Turkey and Iran and the Caucasus.

44. A very light colorless element that is one of the six inert gasses.

45. African tree having an exceedingly thick trunk and fruit that resembles a gourd and has an edible pulp called monkey bread.

49. Neat and tidy.

50. A river in central Europe that arises in northwestern Czechoslovakia and flows northward through Germany to empty into the North Sea. 51. A Chadic language spoken south of Lake Chad.

52. A Tibetan or Mongolian priest of Lamaism.

53. Armor plate that protects the chest.

54. Distinctive and stylish elegance.

56. A logarithmic unit of sound intensity equal to 10 decibels.

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

Gemini (May 21-June 20) You are at your most practical when it comes to dealing and working with others. You develop a knack for organizing things and people, as a sense of ambition and practicality takes hold. Winning the hearts of others can be a challenge you are eager to accept. Ideas and thoughts will have greater meaning and form just now. You may be very eloquent or forceful in speaking or communicating. People will understand just what you mean. This afternoon is a good time to read a romantic book or take in a movie. Romance may be on your mind most of this evening as well. Marriage may be in the forecast. Think before you leap because if love is real, it will last. Choose a partner that will want the same things from life that you want.

Cancer (June 21-July 22) Your management abilities and your intuitive insights are strong today—they make for speedy results in the workplace.

Welcome the trials and oppositions that occur with your finances now, as they are the tests that will let you know whether you are on the right track or not. If your money investments work now they will continue to prosper in the future. Your depth of feeling and passion needs attention and you can do this by simply listening to your own response to others. Sometimes when you are concentrating extremely hard, it is tough to tolerate interruptions. Correct this error by not allowing the interruptions to happen. Let others know you will not want to be interrupted for a period of time and show appreciation for their efforts.

NON SEQUITUR

Leo (July 23-August 22) You could be promoted because of outside influences. Perhaps there is much praise from customers or the end results from your previous efforts have not gone unnoticed. You seem able to multiply other people’s money quite well. Be very careful in what you try to bring into your life because you may be stuck with what you get for some time. Ambitious schemes and the pursuit of success and status take on a high priority. This brings a focus on the practical, the successful, the pragmatic—whatever it takes to get you ahead in the future. The meek may inherit the earth, but the shrewd will collect the rent. A young person may need your attention this afternoon—you are wise to set aside some time for them. This is a great time for love.

ZITS

Virgo (August 23-September 22) Be careful that you do not go on a spending spree today. You could lose track of your purchases and buy a lot more than you intended. You are warm to those around you and you are appreciative of your own life and self, in general. New ways to communicate or an easy manner will make conversations go well; you are more talkative than usual. Higher education and foreign travel may be your dream. If you are searching the papers for a new job, look for a business in which you will need to travel to other countries. A dialogue with an older person may take place this evening. Someone you meet today may seem unrealistic and foggy-minded to you. Careful, this person may find you lacking in sensitivity if you do not exert some patience.

Libra (September 23-October 22)

MOTHER GOOSE AND GRIMM

Scorpio (October 23-November 21) Fluency in communication sharpens your intellect today.

You will be curious and talkative. Eating lunch with friends brings out the best in you. You are observant and quick to form impressions. Be wise in what you say. You could be urged to help make a decision today that will affect your living situation or life circumstances. Others may challenge your authority or the direction you are taking. Once you have made your decision— stick with it. Events could conspire to make it difficult for you to act. Your taste in art and appreciation, however, is heightened. Perhaps this evening is a good time to be entertained by selecting a movie or attending an art show. Tonight is a good time to sit back and enjoy what you have—to live life.

Sagittarius (November 22-December 21) Work this morning fills every minute. You may be in a hurry to do all you can before the noon break. Research and confirmation on some information is necessary and the Internet is not enough for what you need. It could be you need confirmation on some sort of statistics or a professional background. You could find yourself in the library this afternoon. Law and philosophy and religion have much potential to impact your life. Tremendous mental energy may need additional breaks and exercise in order to be refreshed. If you are creating a report or a lecture, you will be influential. People are amazed at your productive results. You could be in touch with your most personal emotions this evening, filling you with a sense of peace.

Capricorn (December 22-January 19)

To

Yesterday’s Solution

You crave organization and practicality and you want to get things accomplished. You aim to have a place for everything and everything in its place—and anything that gets in the way gets on your nerves. With a clean desk or office, you are ready to be creative and productive. This afternoon there are plenty of phone calls and if you are looking for new business, you will not have far to look. Health and work goals take on greater importance for you now. Figuring things out is an important factor in your professional life—this takes on a special significance now. This evening is a good time to run, ride your bicycle or walk a great distance. There is nothing like doing your exercise with other people—time goes by so much faster.

Head up! Shoulders back! You are able to tackle any challenge you find today. It is possible you will let someone else take the glory for your work. If you decide to let this happen, then you have to be able to let it go— all will sort itself out in time. Ideas are flowing and could come with ease. You can talk, talk, talk. Education, advertising and travel are certainly subjects that hold your attention now. You could want to sell a possession such as a boat or refrigerator so that you can make an upgrade. Be sure to shop in order to find the best buy, not just something that looks pretty. Be composed and self-assured—but never too humbled. You will enjoy contact between friends this evening. You are successfully teaching a young person to think positively.

Yesterday’s Solution Yester

Aquarius (January 20- February 18) Personal and romantic feelings may interfere greatly with your ability to work well. However, this period will bring about good conditions and communication among co-workers. You could be most persuasive with others and charismatic in speech and communication. You may appear very calm. You have lots of energy to tackle any problem or project you may want to accomplish. You will be confident when you express your viewpoint.

You are also conscientious; however, it is not necessary to be the last employee out the door—family is important for creating a life balance. There are trends toward the imaginative, new and different and when tempted to spend money excessively—think about whether you need the item.

Pisces (February 19-March 20)

Word Sleuth Solution

A stubborn streak—yours or someone else’s—could interfere with your purpose today. There is perhaps a sense of challenge just now. You have many creative ideas, but pushing these insights on others may not be productive. You may find yourself ahead of the usual thinking today and with no technical or scientific person around to listen to your thoughts—patience, your ideas will be heard. Write down your ideas for reference later. If you push now, you could give up entirely. A sense of emotional coolness or detachment at the personal level, combined with an emphasis on idealism, is the nature of the cycle you are now entering.

Someone understands how you feel and is sympathetic. You will enjoy activities with your loved ones tonight.

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WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, 2012

lifestyle G O S S I P

The Saturdays sign up for reality show he five-piece British girl group - which consists of Una Healy, Mollie King, Frankie Sandford, Vanessa White and Rochelle Wiseman - have agreed terms with the network to have their personal and professional lives documented on camera.

According to the New York Post newspaper, the series will chart the band’s move to Los Angeles and attempt to crack the US pop charts as well as show behind-the-scenes details of their concerts and studio sessions. But it is the girls’ private lives which will be of most interest to viewers with Mollie recently being romantically linked to Prince Harry.

The 24-year-old blonde beauty - who split from model David Gandy just a few months ago - first met the 27-year-old British royal at a polo match in 2010 and in recent weeks the pair have been partying

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together at Public nightclub and karaoke bar Bunga Bunga in London. In March, Una gave birth to her daughter Aoife - her first child with England rugby player Ben Foden - and the pair are set to marry in the summer. Rochelle got engaged to JLS singer Marvin Humes over the festive period and the couple are busy planning their nuptials. It will not be the first reality TV show the band has starred in. In 2010, they appeared in ‘The Saturdays: 24/7’ for British channel ITV2, which was six episodes and followed the girls on tour and preparing for the release of their single ‘Missing You’.

Thandie

Justin Bieber slams fake flame

Christopher Raeburn thrilled at Beckham endorsement

he singer-turned-designer recently invested in one of Raeburn’s waterproof jackets and he says it was great to get the seal of approval from someone so respected in the fashion industry.

Recalling their meeting at the 2011 British Fashion Awards, Raeburn said: “We had a quick chat; I found her to be very engaging. As a young designer it’s really great to get such an endorsement from an individual who commands such respect from the fashion elite.” Raeburn also spoke about the jacket Victoria had invested in and says he’s pleased she saw the quality that goes into making it.

He told vogue.co.uk: “The jacket was part of our Remade in England range (each season a limited selection of the range is constructed from deconstructed military garments); it was a waterproof jacket made from Swiss military macs with a soft jersey lining - I’d like to think that that she was interested by the cut, detailing and quality of the garment.”

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scared of following trends he stunning actress admits her palms go “sweaty” at the thought of being bangon trend so instead chooses clothes that suit and flatter her.

She told People: “The idea of following trends makes my palms sweaty. I think that we have all these wonderful things available, and you have to find whatever speaks to you in terms of style something that allows you to then speak to the world.”

Thandie, 39, also says it’s important for her to have a low maintenance beauty routine because it’s hard being a busy mother-oftwo. She said: “If I’m getting ready for the school run and I look in the mirror and I just look exhausted, I will get some Julie Hewett cheek rogue. “I’ll put that on the apples of my cheeks to make it look as though I’ve had a wonderful run in the morning even though I haven’t!” Thandie recently revealed her secret beauty weapon is turmeric as she believes the spice is an excellent addition to a moisturizer to help match her skin-tone. She said: “Olay does a great tinted moisturizer that I add a little turmeric to - making it more yellow depending on my skin tone and the season. “That’s a great trick for all women who find that foundations are too ashy or too pink for their skins. And it’s anti-inflammatory. It’s my secret weapon.”

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Carey Mulligan wedding

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Guests transported in tractors at

he 18-year-old singer has penned a track for his forthcoming record ‘Believe’ expressing his feelings about Mariah Yeater, a fan who claimed last year that he was the dad of her son, Tristyn, before she dropped a paternity case against him and confessed her ex-boyfriend was the child’s real dad. Justin - who always vehemently denied her accusations - said: “There’s a song about that girl that said she was gonna have my baby, Mariah Yeater. There are songs about things I’m going through.

I wrote songs about different situations.”

The ‘Boyfriend’ hitmaker - who is a Christian - has described his new album as being a mix between Black Eyed Peas singer Fergie and Jesus Christ. He is quoted by the Daily Mirror as saying: “It’s like a mix between Fergie and Jesus.” Justin - who has been dating singer-and-actress Selena Gomez for more than a year - recently took to twitter to direct a tweet at Mariah, on which he attached a video clip of Sacha Baron Cohen’s Borat character constantly saying: “You will never get this.” He wrote: “Dear mariah yeeter ... we have never met ... so from the heart i just wanted to say... (sic)”. The ‘Never Say Never’ hitmaker had previously agreed to take a paternity test in an attempt to rubbish her claims and also insisted he had never met her. In November 2011, he explained: “None of it is true. Never met the woman.”

he 26-year-old actress and Mumford & Sons front man Marcus Mumford tied the knot inside a barn at Stream Farm in Somerset, South West England, on Saturday (21.04.12) and attendees, including the couple’s celebrity friends Colin and Livia Firth and Jake Gyllenhaal, were transported around by the farm vehicles. A source told the Daily Mirror newspaper: “The tractors shipped guests including Jake Gyllenhaal and Colin Firth around the site. Everyone was warned to look out for cowpats.”

Meanwhile, Carey ensured her stunning custom-made cream Prada gown didn’t get dirty by teaming it with a pair of pink Hunter wellingtons as she made her way around the farm. The source added: “Carey herself had a pair of pink Hunter boots on under her gown.” Carey’s eight bridesmaids were dressed in turquoise knee-length prom dresses by Prada and matching heels.

Carey - who previously dated ‘Transformers’ actor Shia LaBeouf and Marcus were childhood pen pals who reconnected as adults when the actress and her ‘Brothers’ co-star Jake attended a Mumford & Sons gig in Nashville in 2011. A source said at the time: “At the end of the night there were just the musicians, Jake, Carey and the Mumford boys ... we had some pizza and they just played music. Jake picked up a guitar and Carey joined in on ‘Amazing Grace’. Marcus and Carey seemed really friendly.” The couple got engaged five months later.

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Katy Perry’s man teased for dating star

he ‘Firework’ singer was pictured with Florence + the Machine guitarist Rob Ackroyd at the Coachella Music Festival in California last weekend, prompting his friends to poke fun at him on social networking sites. Referring to Katy’s ex-husband, Russell Brand - who she split from in December 2011 - another friend wrote: “I’m guessing there is probably no chance of you getting an autograph off Russell Brand now.”

The pair flirted at the first weekend of the festival on April 14 and 15, but got together when the same bill was staged again this past weekend. A source told The Sun newspaper: “They hit it off on the first weekend, but got closer on the second. She was telling pals how gorgeous she thinks he is. He’s right up her street.” Another source said they looked like they had been dating for years, rather than having only just met. The source told the Daily Mirror newspaper: “When Rob came off stage, she ran up to him with her arms outstretched for a hug. You would have thought they’d been dating for years, she looked so into him. He looked like the cat that got the cream.”

Since splitting with Russell, Katy has also been linked to French model Baptiste Giabiconi. Russell is meanwhile dating model Nikolett Barabas.

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Wu wanted

scent to reflect his ‘design aesthetic’ he designer launched his debut candle in March - which is a mix of rare orchids infused with a bit of Asian pear - and he says he was keen for the smell to represent his other creations. He said: “Florals play an important role in my designs. So for my first fragrance, I wanted to create a floral scent that would reflect my feminine design aesthetic.”

Jason shot to fame after designing the dress Michelle Obama wore for her husband’s inauguration as president and recently said he has “a connection” with the people he is creating clothes for. He said: “I think it’s important to have a connection with the person you’re dressing. Fashion is so personal and I put a lot of me into everything that I do.”

Jason’s strong work ethic hasn’t changed despite his fame, and he still adds a personal touch to all the garments he produces. He said: “I’m so hands on. I’m on my knees doing the fitting all the time, for every single fitting. I don’t want to miss any part of it, because that’s why I’m in this industry. I wanted to do that.”

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WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, 2012

LIFESTYLE F e a t u r e s

online in 870,000 images

This circa 1983-1988 photo provided by the New York City Municipal Archives shows 172 Norfolk Street, which is now the Angel Orensanz Foundation, in New York. —AP

In this Oct 7, 1914 photo provided by the New York City Municipal Archives, painters are suspended from wires on the Brooklyn Bridge in New York. Over 870,000 photos from an archive that exceeds 2.2 million images have been scanned and made available online, for the first time giving a global audience a view of a rich collection that documents life in New York City. —AP he two men were discovered dead at the bottom of an elevator shaft in a 12-storey Manhattan building, as if dumped there, one man sprawled on top of the other. The rare crime scene photograph from Nov 24, 1915, is one of 870,000 images of New York City and its municipal operations now available to the public on the Internet for the first time. The city Department of Records officially announced the debut of the photo database yesterday. A previously unpublicized link to the images has been live for about two weeks. Culled from the Municipal Archives collection of more than 2.2 million images going back to the mid-1800s, the photographs feature

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In this May 18, 1940 photo provided by the New York City Municipal Archives, a man reads a newspaper on New York’s 6th Ave. and 40th St, with the headline: “Nazi Army Now 75 Miles From Paris.” —AP

In this September 30, 1936, Works Progress Administration, Federal Writer’s Project, photo provided by the New York City Municipal Archives, a man hands a program to baseball legend Babe Ruth, center, as he is joined by his second wife Clare, center left, and singer Kate Smith, front left, in the grandstand during Game 1 of the 1936 World Series at the Polo Grounds in New York. —AP

all manner of city oversight - from stately ports and bridges to grisly gangland killings.

The project was four years in the making, part of the department’s mission to make city records accessible to everyone, said department assistant commissioner Kenneth Cobb. “We all knew that we had fantastic photograph collections that no one would even guess that we had,” Cobb said.

Taken mostly by anonymous municipal workers, some of the images have appeared in publications but most were accessible only by visiting the archive offices in lower Manhattan over the past few years. Researchers, history buffs, filmmakers, genealogists and preservationists in particular will find the digitized collection helpful.

But anyone can search the images, share them through social media or purchase them as prints.

The gallery includes images from the largest collection of criminal justice evidence in the English-speaking world, a repository that holds glass-plate photographs taken by the New York City Police Department. It also features more than 800,000 color photographs taken with 35mm cameras of every city building in the mid-1980s to update the municipal records, and includes more than 1,300 rarely seen images taken by local photographers of the Depression-era Works Progress Administration. Because of technological and financial constraints, the digitized gallery does not include the city’s prized collection of 720,000 photographs of every city building from 1939 to 1941. But the database is still growing, and the department plans to add more images.

Among the known contributors to the collection was Eugene de Salignac, the official photographer for the Department of Bridges/Plant & Structures from 1906 to 1934. An iconic Salignac photograph, taken Oct 7, 1914, and now online, shows more than a half-dozen painters lounging on wires on the Brooklyn Bridge. “A lot of other photographers who worked for the city were pretty talented but did not produce such a large body of work or a distinct body of work,” said Michael Lorenzini, curator of photography at the Municipal Archives and author of “New York Rises” that showcases Salignac images. Maira Liriano, manager of the New York Public Library’s local history and genealogy division, said the tax photo collections are of particular interest to researchers. For example, she said, homeowners seeking to restore their historic houses often go to the Municipal Archives to get images of what the buildings looked like in the 1940s or 1980s.

The same collection is also used by people doing research for film productions, family historians hoping to see what their ancestors’ homes looked like, and scholars trying to measure the transformation of the metropolis over time.

One popular cache includes photos shot mostly by NYPD detectives, nearly each one a crime mystery just begging to be solved. The black-andwhite, top-down image of the two men in the elevator shaft is a representative example. Although it did not carry a crime scene photo, the New York Tribune reported Nov. 25, 1915, under the headline “Finding of two bodies tells tale of theft,” that the bodies of a black elevator operator and a white engineer of a Manhattan building were found “battered, as though from a long fall.” The news report said the two men tried to rob a company on the fifth floor of expensive silks, but died in their attempt. The elevator was found with $500 worth of silk inside, stuck between the 10th and 11th floors. Luc Sante, an author and a professor of writing and photography at Bard College in Annandale-on-Hudson, used images from the police collection for his 1992 book “Evidence.”

“They’re remarkable. They’re brutal. But they are also very beautiful,” he said. —AP

In this April 18, 1936 photo provided by the New York City Municipal Archives, the police booking photo of Charles “Lucky” Luciano is shown in New York. —AP

In this Nov 24, 1915 photo provided by the New York City Municipal Archives, the bodies of elevator operator Robert Green, left and Jacob Jagendorf, a building engineer, lie at the bottom of an elevator shaft in New York. —AP

In this Dec 22, 1936, Works Progress Administration photo provided by the New York City Municipal Archives, a man looks at the Hudson River from the New York tower of the George Washington Bridge. —AP

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, 2012

lifestyle M u s i c

&

M o v i e s

Hollywood eyes record summer at box office

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or Hollywood, summer is Prozac, Propecia and Viagra rolled into one.

With Spider-Man, Batman and the Men in Black all hitting theaters over the next four months, exhibitors and studios are feeling downright cocky these days. “It will be the biggest box office on record,” Jeff Bock, an analyst with Exhibitor Relations, told TheWrap. “It’s not every summer we see this kind of firepower.” Just how big will become clear on May 4 when Disney opens “The Avengers,” which brings together Thor, Captain America, Iron Man and assorted other Marvel superheroes. Reviews have been strong, and analysts predict that the movie could unseat “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2” as the highest grossing opening weekend of all time.

If it does, it might not hold onto the crown for long, because Warner Bros. brings out “The Dark Knight Rises” on July 20, 2012.

“This is what a summer popcorn movie is all about,” Jeff Goldstein, executive vice president of domestic distribution at Warner Bros., told TheWrap. “I don’t want to oversell it, but this has elements that are groundbreaking and are really a thrill ride.” That doesn’t even factor in Sony’s return to two of its most beloved franchises, “The Amazing Spider-Man” and “Men in Black 3,” Pixar’s girl warrior movie, “Brave,” or Universal’s fairy tale action film “Snow White and the Huntsman,” all of which enter the season with big budgets and major expectations. “In this industry, the lifeblood is the films, and this year we’ve got the product,” Mitch Neuhauser, managing director of the theatrical exhibition trade

show CinemaCon, told TheWrap.

It is a departure from last year, when the movie business limped into tentpole season, badly bruised by a spring that saw the overall box office down by double digits thanks to costly flops like “Mars Needs Moms” and “Sucker Punch.” After a lackluster 2011, when ticket sales slid 3 percent to $10.2 billion and attendance fell to a 16-year low, the box office has hit its stride again. Thanks largely to smash hits like “The Hunger Games,” the domestic box office is up nearly 20 percent to $2.89 billion through last week. Success breeds success, studio executives and analysts say, and that’s partly why they’re confidant the cash registers will keep ringing as warm weather hits. As more people go into the theaters throughout the spring they’re exposed to trailers and ads for summer tentpole films, which helps generate excitement, they argue.

“I think this business is all about momentum,” Greg Foster, chairman and president of IMAX Filmed Entertainment, told TheWrap.

“What the marketplace keeps saying is that more of the same doesn’t work, and I think last year there was an awful lot of more of the same. Fortunately, this year it’s the exact opposite.” On paper, it looks like a bumper crop of would-be blockbusters, but every summer has its share of turkeys like “Cowboys and Aliens” and “Conan The Barbarian.” After “Charlie and The Chocolate Factory” and “Alice in Wonderland,” it would seem like Johnny Depp and Tim Burton can do no wrong. Yet, their jokey update of the “Dark Shadows” television series looks like it

could be polarizing. Likewise, “The Bourne Legacy” revisits the amnesiac spy franchise that has racked up nearly $950 million worldwide. However, Matt Damon opted not to do the film, which will instead feature a new hero played by Jeremy Renner. If it works, it could extend the franchise into a new decade. If it doesn’t, it could mean byebye Bourne.

Then there’s “Battleship,” an alien invasion film that sails into theaters with a budget of more than $200 million. It has performed well in its early release overseas, racking up $100 million, but it will need to be a massive hit to break even Even this season’s “sure things” have risks attached to them. “Men in Black 3” has the most popular star on the planet in Will Smith, but the last film in the series was released nearly a decade ago.

Moreover, Smith hasn’t made a movie since 2008’s “Seven Pounds,” an eternity in a business with a short attention span. Likewise, “Spider-Man” features one of the most popular superhero characters in film history, but swings into theaters with a new cast and director, after Sony pulled the plug on Sam Raimi’s proposed fourth film.

“I think it’s the biggest gamble of the summer,” a rival studio executive told TheWrap. “To me it hasn’t been that long of a time since the last ‘Spider-Man,’ so I’m not sure there’s much of an appetite for a reboot.” But Rory Breur, president of worldwide distribution at Sony Pictures, thinks that both are strong enough brands to fill theaters. He argues that the 3D in “SpiderMan” will provide an immersive experience

that will appeal to fans and the time travel plot in “Men in Black 3,” in which Smith is sent back to the 1960s, will bring something fresh to the table. “I can’t think of a property that is better suited to 3D than Spider-Man flying through the streets of New York,” Breur said.

“I’ve rarely met a kid who doesn’t know about ‘Men in Black’” he added. “This franchise is so much fun and this story is so in Will Smith’s wheel-house.” Even Warner Bros.

“The Dark Knight Rises” may have trouble matching the $1 billion worldwide take of its predecessor. Analysts say that the tragic death of star Heath Ledger made the film an even bigger event than it might have been otherwise. Regardless, the conventional wisdom is that “The Dark Knight Rises” and “The Avengers” will vie to be the top grossing films of the season, with “The Amazing Spider-Man” and “Men in Black 3” jockeying for third or fourth place.

But there is always room for surprises.

One in particular is 20th Century Fox. After being maligned in recent years for taking few creative risks, the studio is unveiling one of the most ambitious slates this summer.

Yes, there are sequels to its popular “Ice Age” and “Diary of a Wimpy Kid” franchises, but Fox is also fielding an adaptation of Seth Grahame-Smith’s “Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter,” Ridley Scott’s science fiction horror film “Prometheus,” and the Vince Vaughn and Ben Stiller comedy “Neighborhood Watch.”“I think we’re going to all see that there’s a huge appetite for original content and we’ve really answered the call,” Chris Aronson,

executive vice president of domestic distribution and general sales manager at Fox, told TheWrap. “There are sequels and reboots, but there’s a lot of new material and that’s what’s going to make this summer fascinating and successful.”

Of these, “Prometheus,” which returns Scott to the futuristic world he created in “Alien,” seems poised to attract crowds even though it will likely earn an R-rating, traditionally a stumbling block for studios eager to bring in teen audiences. “It’s not the kiss of death,” Phil Contrino, editor of Boxoffice.com, told TheWrap. “‘The Matrix’ films were rated R.” Plus, he says, Fox has cleverly marketed the film with viral videos featuring the android character played by Michael Fassbender and with a chilling trailer that provides lots of scares, but keeps the plot closely guarded. The other risky R-rated bet that analysts think will pay off handsomely is “Ted,” a raunchy comedy from “Family Guy” creator Seth MacFarlane.

Conventional wisdom among exhibitors and analysts is that it has the potential to be a breakout adult comedy in the tradition of “Horrible Bosses” or “The Hangover.”“It is that unique brand of humor that Seth MacFarlane brings to the table,” Nikki Rocco, president of domestic distribution at Universal, told TheWrap. “We are hearing that the trailer is getting a great response from our friends in exhibition and Seth has a very loyal fan base.” —Reuters

Review

‘Avengers’ hits big screen with a blast

T These two file photos show US actress Lindsay Lohan (Left) following a press conference on the movie “Bobby” for competition in the 63rd Venice Film Festival at the Lido in Venice, Italy on September 5, 2006, and US actress Elizabeth Taylor during a gala at the Paradis Latin organized for the fight against AIDS on November 11, 1985 in Paris. Troubled actress Lindsay Lohan will portray Hollywood legend Elizabeth Taylor in a television movie about her romance with actor Richard Burton, Lifetime said April 23, 2012. —AFP

Lohan to play

Elizabeth Taylor in biopic

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roubled actress Lindsay Lohan will portray Hollywood legend Elizabeth Taylor in a television movie about her romance with actor Richard Burton, Lifetime said Monday. Production will begin in June in Los Angeles for the movie “Liz and Dick,” Lifetime said in a statement. “We are thrilled Lindsay will portray beloved Hollywood legend Elizabeth Taylor,” Rob Sharenow, executive vice president of Lifetime, said in a statement. “She is one of the rare actresses who possesses the talent, beauty and intrigue to capture the spirit of such a provocative icon.” Lifetime said the upand-down romance between Burton and Taylor, who died last year at the age of 79, was “the most notorious, publicized and celebrated love affair of its day. “Swarmed by paparazzi,

Taylor and Burton’s love affair was played out entirely in front of the global press from the time they met,” yet, “Taylor and Burton shared an undeniable love greater than most people could have ever dreamed.” The role is a break for Lohan, 25, who after a promising early start has become known chiefly as a hell-raising celebrity with substance abuse problems and frequent brushes with the law. “I have always admired and had enormous respect for Elizabeth Taylor. She was not only an incredible actress but an amazing woman as well,” Lohan said. “I am very honored to have been asked to play this role.” —AFP

Zac Efron brings ‘The Lucky One’ to London H

ollywood heartthrob Zac Efron says it was luck that propelled him to super stardom, not his acting ability. Speaking at the European premiere of his new romantic drama “The Lucky One,” the 24-year-old actor said that he’s had an easy ride so far, but it’s now time to prove he’s a legitimate thespian. “I got into this in a very lucky way, but it wasn’t the actor way, you know what I mean?” he said. “I would call what I had very much a lucky break. “So, my goal over the past few years has been to take a step back,

Actor Zac Efron attends a special screening of “The Lucky One”, hosted by The Cinema Society and Men’s Health, at the Crosby Street Hotel on Thursday, April 19, 2012 in New York. —AP

really learn about my craft, and prove to myself that it wasn’t just a fluke, that I am here for a reason.”

Efron shot to fame at the age of 18 starring in the 2006 smash hit “High School Musical.” He went on to star in two more movies in that franchise. After years of playing school boys, he’s hoping his role in “The Lucky One” is a step toward shedding his teen idol image. The movie is based on the best-selling novel by Nicholas Sparks and sees Efron star as a US Marine sergeant who tracks down a beautiful woman (Taylor Schilling) whose photograph he believes saved his life in Iraq. “I was proud to have taken this role - it was a scary choice,” he said. “I didn’t know if I could play a Marine. Everyone you talk to would say I am wrong for this part, but you know, at the end of the day it was a challenge, and I am proud. I think I pulled it off.”

According to the film’s director Scott Hicks, Efron is certainly a fully fledged, grown-up actor.

“He’s a hard-working, committed actor, very committed to his craft and I just thoroughly enjoyed working with him,” he said. Also at the premiere was Efron’s co-star Schilling. She also had nothing but praise for the actor, whom she called a “goofball.”“It was a blast,” she said. “We never took ourselves too seriously. The work, yes, but we were fooling around the whole time.”“The Lucky One” hits UK theaters on Wednesday, May 2. It was released in the US on April 20. —AP

he hype has been building for years and it couldn’t possibly be more deafening at this point. After a series of summer blockbusters that individually introduced Iron Man, The Incredible Hulk, Thor and Captain America, all these characters come together alongside several other friends and foes in “Marvel’s The Avengers.” And with director and co-writer Joss Whedon, they couldn’t be in better hands. He’s pulled off the tricky feat of juggling a large ensemble cast and giving everyone a chance to shine, of balancing splashy set pieces with substantive ideology.

Stuff gets blown up real good in beautifully detailed 3-D in “The Avengers” - the area in and around Grand Central Terminal, for example, gets obliterated beyond recognition in an exhausting, climactic battle - but the film as a whole is never a mess from a narrative perspective.

Whedon keeps a tight rein on some potentially unwieldy material, and the result is a film that simultaneously should please purists (one of which he is) as well as those who aren’t necessarily comic-book aficionados. He also stays true to the characters while establishing a tone that’s very much his own. As he did with the recent horror hit “The Cabin in the Woods,” which he co-wrote and produced, Whedon has come up with a script that’s cheeky and breezy, full of witty banter and sly pop -culture shout-outs as well as self-referential humor, one that moves with an infectious energy that (almost) makes you lose track of its two-and-a-half-hour running time.

The back-and-forth between Robert Downey Jr.’s glib Iron Man and Chris Evans’ old-school Captain America is electric, while Downey’s more low-key, philosophical exchanges with Mark Ruffalo’s Hulk help give the film some intellectual heft. Actually, Downey damn near runs away with this whole thing, a tough feat to pull off in a cast full of personalities who are literally larger than life; it just goes to show once again how irresistibly charismatic he can be with the right kind of writing. But the film’s vibe is never smug or off-putting; these are still comic book heroes full of all the torment and introspection you’d expect. And for a movie that’s violent as hell, “The Avengers” ends up being an earnest plea for peace. As in the best of its predecessors, the original “Iron Man” from 2008, it’s a reminder that a summer blockbuster can be glossy and entertaining but still have meatier matters on its mind.

And we haven’t even gotten to the plot yet: It’s your basic bad-guy-wants-to-takeover-the-world kinda thing. But even Whedon seems to recognize what a hackneyed premise that is, so he has a little fun with it. The preening, effete Loki (Tom Hiddleston), the

Actress Audrina Patridge arrives at the special screening of Relativity Media’s “The Raven” on April 23, 2012 in Los Angeles, California. —AFP

bitter brother of hunky demigod Thor (Chris Hemsworth), descends to Earth from Asgard, which still has a distinctly ‘70s cheesiness about its twinkly sci-fi aesthetic. Once here, he steals the Tesseract, the cosmic blue cube that gives its bearer unlimited power, or some such.

The no-nonsense Nick Fury (Samuel L Jackson), the head of S.H.I.E.L.D. - which had been entrusted with the safety of said cube springs into action to reacquire it by assembling a dream team of superheroes and other sundry bad-asses with specialized skills. Nick gets help in this endeavor from his right-hand man, Agent Coulson (Clark Gregg, once again

Man vs. Thor, Thor vs. The Hulk, Hawkeye vs.

Black Widow and so on. While they might seem like filler, these showdowns allow each character to have his or her time in the spotlight, and they do build genuine tension. They also happen to represent the adolescent fantasies of every geek in the audience. So in theory, everyone’s happy.

Eventually they will all have to come together for one epic battle against their shared enemy in Midtown Manhattan, home of Iron Man Tony Stark’s latest dazzling architectural creation, his eponymous high-rise, and a cool place in general to stage massive movie destruction. Much of the gadgetry is

In this film image released by Disney, Iron Man, portrayed by Robert Downey Jr, left, and Captain America, portrayed by Chris Evans, are shown in a scene from “The Avengers”. —AP bringing some welcome deadpan humor to this outlandish scenario). Besides Iron Man, Thor and Captain America, The Hulk’s services are needed because the Tesseract exudes a radiation that will help track it, and The Hulk despite the threat of his gigantic, green volatility - knows a little something about gamma rays. (Ruffalo, stepping into the Bruce Banner role that Eric Bana and Edward Norton played previously in the past decade, brings a sense of wry bemusement and appealing selfdeprecation to this dangerous and misunderstood character.) There’s also master assassin Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner) and super spy Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson).

But because these are superheroes with super powers, they also have super egos. And so a great deal of time is spent having them talk a lot of trash and square off against one another to prove who’s toughest. There’s Iron

cleverly detailed, as you’d expect - Tony Stark has devised stunningly efficient ways to get his metal suit on and off - but “The Avengers” is at its strongest in its quieter, simpler moments - when people are actually talking to each other.

The dialogue sparkles as brightly as the special effects; these people may be wearing ridiculous costumes but they’re well fleshedout underneath. And so in every regard, this movie truly fulfills its hype. “Marvel’s The Avengers,” a Walt Disney Pictures and Paramount Pictures release, is rated PG-13 for intense sequences of sci-fi violence and action throughout and a mild drug reference.

Running time: 143 minutes. Three and a half stars out of four. —AP

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, 2012

lifestyle

Evidence now focus after

Jennifer Hudson testifies P

This courtroom sketch shows Jennifer Hudson right, and her fiance David Otunga looking on in the courtroom during the first day of William Balfour’s murder trial at the Cook County Criminal Court in Chicago, Monday, April 23, 2012. Balfour is charged in the 2008 murder of the mother, brother and nephew of Oscar winner Jennifer Hudson. —AP

Bieber helps make Jepsen’s ‘Call Me Maybe’ a hit

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arly Rae Jepsen is playing cupid - on an international scale. Her catchy hit “Call Me Maybe” is about giving someone you don’t know your phone number. The 26-year-old Canadian singer hopes the lyrics will inspire people to take a risk on love - even though she’s not had the guts to do it that way herself. “I have never actually given a guy my phone number before,” Jepsen told The Associated Press in a recent interview. “You have to live vicariously through your music, so I figure if I was ever that brave that is how I would give a guy my number.”

“Call Me Maybe” is in the top 5 on iTunes and has hit No. 1 in the UK, Canada and Australia. The track was first spotted by fellow Canadian Justin Bieber, who signed Jepsen to his manager’s record label, Schoolboy Records/Interscope. He gave the track a big boost by appearing in a YouTube video, along with Selena Gomez and Ashley Tisdale, where they mimed and danced along to the song. The video has now clocked nearly 35 million views on YouTube.

AP: Why do you think people have related to “Call Me Maybe”?

Jepsen: A lot of the reason people have been able to hear it is because of Justin’s support. But why it is responding as well is kind of a mystery to me, but it is wonderful.

AP: What did you think when you saw the Justin Bieber, Selena Gomez, Ashley Tisdale video?

Jepsen: I was talking to my mom at the time and it popped up on my Facebook.

There had been a couple of mock videos that fans had done and stuff, I thought it was one of those. But I was like ‘that guy looks like Justin Bieber and that girl looks like Selena Gomez’ and by the time Ashley Tisdale came on I was like ‘Mom, I got to

go!’ and I had a little freak out.

AP: Have you seen the other ones by Katy Perry and James Franco?

Jepsen: And Miley Cyrus did one too, it’s insane. It’s kind of a cool little thing that has started - celebrities but also lots of different fans putting together videos. And everyone always looks so happy.

AP: What’s Justin like as a boss?

Jepsen: So far Justin hasn’t taken on the boss attitude, which is nice. He’s been more of a really good supporter and friend. He’s also given me a bit of a boost of confidence because you struggle for so many years.

AP: Is he OK with you beating him? In the U.K., you outsold him 2:1 and beat him to No.1.

Jepsen: (Laughs) Oh, I think we had a little friendly competition going on but he’s a good sport about it. And I think he knows, as I know, that none of that success would have been possible without his support.

AP: Tell me where “Call Me Maybe” came from, the inspiration.

Jepsen: The line ‘Before you came into my life I missed you so bad’ was in fact written and inspired by the guy that I am seeing now, actually. He’s got like three CDs written for him so it’s old news, he is used to it. That was the truth for me and him; I was like ‘Oh, life could be this good?

Awesome.’

AP: Is there pressure on you now to follow up on that success?

Jepsen: It would be a shame if I just released ‘Call Me Maybe’ and that was it. I feel so hungry to show all the stuff I’ve been writing for the past few years and this experience is inspiring things too! —AP

Indian street plays tackle harsh issues

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In this photo taken on Thursday, April 19, 2012 Canadian singer, Carly Rae Jepsen, poses for photographs following an APTN interview at the Landmark Hotel, London. —AP

Review

Hypnotic

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s the young, beautiful blonde woman truly a time traveler from a war-torn future, promising safety and enlightenment for a chosen few? Or is she merely a con artist who knows how to use her looks and magnetism to manipulate people for her own gain? This is the question at the heart of “Sound of My Voice,” one that you’ll be asking yourself until the very end and even afterward. Brit Marling follows up on the promise of last summer’s “Another Earth,” another sci-fi thriller that makes the most of its meager budget with intimate settings, well-drawn characters and steadily mounting mystery. Marling co-wrote, co-produced and stars in both, and once again she leaves a strikingly naturalistic impression.

“Sound of My Voice,” which Marling wrote with first-time director and fellow Georgetown University alum Zal Batmanglij, is the stronger film of the two, though, with its gripping tension and relatable realism. “Another Earth” benefitted from an intriguingly fantastic premise, but you could easily imagine what goes down in “Sound of My Voice” - you could see how people allow themselves to get sucked into this sort of murky world. Before we get to Marling’s character, though, we meet mousy Peter (Christopher Denham) and reformed

‘Sound of My Voice’ tantalizes party girl Lorna (Nicole Vicius), dating documentary filmmakers who have infiltrated a San Fernando Valley cult in hopes of exposing its leader, Maggie, as a fraud. The sequence in which they’re blindfolded, bound and stuffed into a

fully fluid bit of editing.

Once inside the nondescript tract house, Peter and Lorna descend to the basement where they must prove they belong with an elaborate secret handshake; it may look silly at first but it mat-

In this film image released by Fox Searchlight, Chris Denham, center, and Brit Marling are shown in a scene from “Sound of My Voice. - AP van, then forced to strip, shower and dress in simple white clothes upon arrival is one that’s repeated with each visit, with increasing speed, in a beauti-

rosecutors created a buzz by calling Oscar winner Jennifer Hudson as their first witness during the trial of the man accused of killing her mother, brother and nephew. But the hard part was yesterday , when got down to the details of their case. With no surviving witnesses to the murders, prosecutors must offer overwhelming circumstantial evidence that William Balfour, the exhusband of Hudson’s sister, committed the shootings on Oct. 24, 2008. They are expected to introduce evidence in the next few days that includes cellphone records and security-camera footage that place Balfour in the area of the killings, since he denies he was there. Another challenge will be tying Balfour to the alleged murder weapon.

Public defender Amy Thompson told jurors during her opening statement that DNA found on the gun didn’t match Balfour, which “absolutely, positively” excludes him as the killer. But prosecutors claim that Balfour targeted the family in an act of vindictiveness against his ex-wife.

Hudson took the witness stand in a sometimes tearful testimony. The “American Idol” finalist, who was in Florida at the time of the shootings, spoke of her reaction to her sister, Julia Hudson, telling her in 2006 that she was marrying Balfour. “None of us wanted her to marry him,” the 30-yearold said, her voice cracking as she struggled to hold back tears. Asked later if she was ever friends with Balfour, whom she knew from school, Hudson answered with disgust. “Never,” she said firmly. “I tried to keep my distance from William Balfour.”

She later bowed her head and wiped away tears when prosecutors called her sister to the stand and began playing a recording of the emergency call Julia Hudson made after discovering their mother’s bloodied body. Balfour, who pleaded not guilty to three counts of first-degree murder, slumped in his chair and kept his eyes fixed on his former wife, whose divorce from Balfour was finalized last year. Julia Hudson described how Balfour repeatedly threatened her and her family after she rejected his pleas in May 2008. “He said, ‘If you leave me, you will be the last to die. I’ll kill your family first,’” she said, her voice quivering.

The killings happened the day after her birthday.

Prosecutors believe that Balfour became enraged by balloons he saw at the home that he thought were from her new boyfriend. If convicted of at least two of the murder counts, Balfour would face a mandatory life sentence. —AP

ters later. Then they meet Maggie in all her glory: a figure who’s simultaneously ethereal and imposing. Supposedly she comes from the year 2054 and is allergic

to much of what constitutes presentday life, so she must stay downstairs, eat organic foods grown just for her and receive regular blood transfusions. She’s got a mesmerizing strength about her, though, and it doesn’t take long for her to burrow into Peter’s brain and root out his innermost secrets in a quietly intense scene that’ll make you hold your breath. Marling is riveting in these moments, in the way she can shift emotional gears subtly and convincingly.

Lorna, however, remains skeptical. But once Maggie asks Peter to bring her a specific person from the outside world, it’s clear she’s not only powerful but also dangerous. The film never reveals her truth, though; you could argue your interpretation of her actions in a number of ways.

“Sound of My Voice” may seem like an extended episode of “The Twilight Zone,” but within its clever structure it digs into the notions of identity, loyalty and the need to belong. It also raises the question of why there are no female cult leaders - besides Lady Gaga, of course. But the way it does a lot with a little is the most hypnotic trick of all. —AP

n a narrow residential lane in west Delhi, a woman calls out in Hindi for people to come and watch, banging harder than normal on the drum she carries to shoo away a stray cow. Within minutes, a curious crowd collects and boys and girls make themselves comfortable on the dusty ground in front of her, some waving away flies buzzing in the warm, humid air as they wait for the street play to start.

Street theatre, an art form with its roots in 1970s leftwing activism, has now evolved into a direct marketing tool to take both civic and corporate messages to poor audiences and is thriving in the streets and alleys of India’s slums, spreading their messages. “It’s cheap and effective, and nothing hits like a visual medium,” said Saumya Baijal, a 26year-old advertising executive who produces street plays with Ankita Anand, a friend. The venerable pioneer of Indian street theatre is Jana Natya Manch - People’s Theatre Front, or Janam - which was created nearly 40 years ago and popularized street theatre as activism.

In 1973, just two years before political unrest caused the Indian government to declare a state of emergency, the troupe began performing highly politicized leftist theatre that was viewed as radical. The group was propelled into the limelight in 1989 when its leader, Safdar Hashmi, was murdered at a performance on the outskirts of Delhi. The art form now is used less as a counter-culture tactic, with many new groups - inspired by Janam - taking up street plays as a way of addressing current Indian social issues. Anand and Baijal began performing together at university and continue today as young professionals. Both enjoy the spontaneity of street theatre, just turning up unannounced and performing, and the ability to stop people in their tracks as they go about their daily lives.

Their troupe Aatish, or Fire, recently performed a play on voting in a densely populated lower-class neighborhood in north Delhi, where the street is an extension of the home due to a lack of space. In such neighborhoods, it’s not uncommon to see people bathing, preparing meals and socializing out in the open. “You can’t just go and keep on talking to people forever and literature isn’t available to everyone and not everyone can read in India. That’s why street plays work,” Anand said. Student Siddhant Nakhat leads another group, larger and younger than Aatish. The aim of his troupe’s latest play is to inform parents that India’s landmark right to education act, which came into force only two years ago, gives every child between the age of six and 14 the right to free schooling.

HUMOUR AND DRAMA The 19-year-old believes he’s doing a positive thing and is having fun, using slapstick and verbal humor to engage with his audiences. “I really enjoy it. Seeing the reactions, the responses. People are always telling us to come back and perform again with different issues,” he said. Where Nakhat uses humor, other groups use drama. Days after a young mother said she was gang-raped on the outskirts of Delhi, a theatre group took up the issue in a performance in the area where the attack took place. “We know it, we read it, we understand it, but we don’t react against it (rape),” screamed Shilpi Marwaha, the play’s narrator, at the top of her voice.

She went on to list facts and figures on attacks on women from the previous year, her performance so intense that sweat rose on her face as her audience listened intently.

Recognizing the possibilities, corporate giants have jumped on the bandwagon, using street theatre to burnish their social responsibility credentials.

Several Vodafone India employees received training to perform in public as part of a volunteer program. “It’s infotainment. There’s a lot of comedy and humor, but the end result should be leaving some food for thought in the mind of the person who has just seen a street play,” said Shikha Mittal, who runs a charity that encourages volunteering.

Safdar Hashmi’s widow, Moloyashree, who continues to perform with Janam, says she is “very happy” that street theatre continues to thrive in the age of the Internet. “We’ve been around and active and relentless,” she said. —Reuters

Evidence now focus after Jennifer Hudson testifies

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, 2012

39

In this April 22, 2012, photo, Color Run participants are doused in colors at the finish of the 5k at the Great Park in Irvine, Calif. Participants begin the run in white shirts and each kilometer is associated with a designated color doused on participants as they make their way through. — AP

Shakespeare tragedy set amid Iraq strife R

omeo is Shiite, Juliet Sunni, and they must contend not only with warring families but a country torn by conflict and sectarian strife: this is the story of “Romeo and Juliet in Baghdad”. Pistols have replaced swords and some characters wear traditional dishdashas, abayas and keffiyah scarves, but the changes go far beyond props and costumes. The play is a distinctly Iraqi take on William Shakespeare’s 16thcentury classic-it is in the Iraqi dialect of Arabic, with an Iraqi cast and an Iraqi director who also adapted the play, weaving in the conflict and suffering with which Iraqis have had to live for the past nine years and more. One of the final scenes combines the general horror of suicide bombings in Iraq with a reference to a specific attack on October 31, 2010, in which militants killed 44 worshippers and two priests in Our Lady of Salvation church in Baghdad. Romeo flees to the church after killing the hot-headed Tybalt, and is later joined there by Juliet. In the play’s biggest departure from Shakespeare’s original story, Juliet’s spurned suitor Paris enters the church wearing a belt of explosives and blows himself up, killing Romeo and Juliet. Monadhil Daood, 52, who adapted and directed the play, said that

Paris is a member of Al-Qaeda and is not an Iraqi-a reference to foreign fighters who came to Iraq after the 2003 US-led invasion.

The reality of Iraq, and especially the sectarian violence here, ultimately provides a more tragic setting for the story of the two star-crossed lovers than Verona, Italy, where the original “Romeo and Juliet” was set. In 2006, militants bombed the Shiite Al-Askari shrine in Samarra, unleashing a sectarian war of bombings and death squad murders that killed tens of thousands of Iraqis and forced many more from their homes. That violence was eventually brought under control, but attacks remain common even today, and many Iraqis face other problems such as severe deficiencies in basic services such as electricity and water. It is the reality of life here, which they have experienced first-hand, that the play’s leading actors want to convey.

‘Written for Iraqis’ “Romeo and Juliet in Baghdad is (about) an Iraqi problem, 100 percent, so Romeo will suffer Iraqi sufferings,” said Ahmed Salah Moneka, 23, who plays Romeo. “Now,” he said, “it is an Iraqi story.”“I want to convey messages of the suffering of this generation

Company perform a scene from ‘Romeo and Juliet in Baghdad’ during rehearsals on April 16, 2012 in preparation for the World Shakespeare Festival. Romeo is Shiite, Juliet Sunni, and they must contend not only with warring families but a country torn by conflict and sectarian strife: this is the story of ‘Romeo and Juliet in Baghdad’.

— AFP

and previous generations, and the suffering of love,” Moneka said. “There are two sects in Iraq and it has happened many times that two people from those two sects love each other and they cannot continue” their relationship, said Sarwa Rasool, 23, who plays Juliet, adding that this not only goes for Sunnis and Shiites, but also Arabs and Kurds.

Anyone “who has a goal must not put sectarianism in front of (that) goal, or this tribe or that, or any other matters that stop love,” she said.

Both Moneka and Rasool have had personal experience with sectarian tragedy. “My friend committed suicide because her lover was Arab and she was Kurdish and her family did not accept him,” said Rasool, who is herself Kurdish. And the Urr neighborhood in north Baghdad where she lives was hit by sectarian violence. “During the time of Saddam’s regime, my area was mostly Sunni, but after its collapse it became mostly Shiite, and they started killing each other,” she said. There was an old man who owned a shop in her neighborhood, which she could see from her home. “Because he was from the other sect (Sunni), he was killed by the Mahdi Army,” she said, referring to Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr’s militia. “They came and killed him in front of my eyes; this is a simple example of what we witness.”“Our generation grew up in a war and lived its childhood during a war and embargo,” Moneka said.

“I have friends who were injured in explosions, and I lost two of my friends during the sectarianism,” he said. “That made my performance stronger and deeper and more serious.” The play, which opened to a packed house at Iraq’s National Theatre on April 16, was commissioned for the World Shakespeare Festival, part of the cultural program for the London 2012 Olympics. It will show in Stratford-uponAvon from April 26 to May 5, and in London from June 28 to 30. But it is ultimately a play tailor-made for Iraqis, and its director Daood

said that it should be performed in Iraq again after its run in England. “I think it’s a play that speaks directly to the Iraqi people first; it was written for Iraqis-it wasn’t written for an international festival circuit,” said Deborah Shaw, who commissioned the play.

“I need to help my people,” said Daood. “I need to tell them, come and see yourself, because I am the mirror.” — AFP